Virginia Military Institute - Bomb Yearbook (Lexington, VA)

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THE. CHARLESTON TRIP. HERE were no absentees from Rev. on the morning of April the fourteenth; every one was up early and on tip toes with excite- ment, although some tried to conceal the fact in a blase man- ner. The long expected and much hoped for daj ' had arrived, the Charleston trip had become an actuality, and was no longer a dream. After an early dinner we were marched to the station through cheering crowds, assembled to see us off; and after some delay we boarded the train. The officials of the C. O. to add interest to the trip and to give some idea of the proposition earlj ' railroad travellers had to buck up against, furnished us the original ten cars used by the companj ' when it was incorporated. But we rose above such petty annoy- ances, and would that day have been content if they had put us in box cars. As we pulled out there was not a man among the two hundred odd that was not de- termined to have a good time; and we may say here that no one was disappointed. A light rain commenced to fall soon after we got our last sight of Barracks and this added materially to the comfort of the trip and did not dampen our spirits in the least. On arrival at Richmond we found a large crowd awaiting us; and even those who had no relatives or friends were most hospitably received. The companies were formed outside of the station and were then conducted to Kirkwood ' s res- taurants, where a plentiful supper was awaiting us to which we did ample justice. After a short delay in the station, which was agreeably spent chatting the calic, our special pulled out for the last stage of its long journey, accompanied b} ' the cheers of the crowd. The rest of the night was one of horror, onl} ' 25

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Battalion Staff. M. I. FORBES, Lieutenant Adjutant. H. J. GEIGER, Lieutenant and Quartermaster. H. P. RANKIN, Sezgeant-Major . Co. A. ' Co. : Co. C. Co. D. CAPTAINS. I. B. Johnson, ' P. A. Tillery,- A. B. Rawn,- J. C. Wise. ' FIRST LIE.UTE.NANTS. E. D. Jackson, E. R. deSteiger, M. F. M. Werth, ' R. A. Risser.- SE.COND LIEUTENANTS. J. B. Wright, ' H. W. Stude,- H. G. Garland, R. M. August. riRST SLRQLANT. G. S. Dewey, ' S. G. Whittle J. H. Ellerson,- ' L. H. McAdow.= SLRQE.ANTS. J. B. Sinclair, ' H. L. Flowerree,- ' S. S. Lee, ' ' J. D. Owen,- W. H. Tate,s J. S. Utter, ' W. T. Blackwell,« P. L. Minor, ' W. L. Carneal, W. B. Anderson, D. M. French, ' C. S. Mullen, ' ° J. Paul, ' 3 T. A. Dewey, ' ? M. E. Ford, ' T. W. White, ' CORPORALS. R. Ragland, W. W. La Prade, ' D. C. Pearson, C. S. Dawley,- W. W. Dillard,? C. W. Hollingsworth, ' J. E. Biscoe, ' - C. F. Collier, E. H. Johnson, L. C. Leftwich, F. K. Hyatt, ' - ' W. C. McChord, ' W. Weaver, ' - C. P. Noland, ' ? G. E. Ross, ' J. S. Williams, ' H.B.Worden, ' - G. W. Headley, ' C. E. Pennington, ' A. E. Wilbourn. ' 24

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equalled b)- that spent by the prisoners in the Black Hole of Calcutta, and that spent by us on the return trip. To attempt any description of it would require the pen of a Dante or a Milton, and as I am neither the one nor the other, It ' s b} ' me. However everything must have an end; and the welcome da ' light found us in Florence, S. C, where ever} ' one hastily commenced making futile efforts to get rid of the goodly collection of dirt which accumulated during the night. On arriving at the Exposition grounds, we supposed our troubles were at an end; and they were except for the fact that the camp provided for us had to be abandoned. We finally took up our abode in a large building, which was suit- able in ever}- way and in which we were very comfortable, much more so than we expected to be. Indeed, every possible arrangement was made for our com- fort and welfare throughout our entire stay, except the unavoidable one in the choice of cars. After settling down in our quarters we were marched to the Palmetto Hotel, which, as we were informed repeatedly during our stay was The feature of the Expo-sition. The menu, though not varied, was good; and in that condition of our appetites, we had absoluteh ' no kick coming over the dinner the} ' gave us. Fish, potatoes and liver disposed of, we dispersed into the grounds and town, most of us in search of a bath, which we all needed after our experience of the previous night. From the very first, we say it modestly, but with a due sen.se of our own irresistibility, we took the town by storm; and by night the . M. I. was as pop- ular in Charleston as the Citadel itself. Our faces had become familiar, and we were welcomed every where we went in store, restaurant, and hotel. But it was on the Midway that we won our greatest laurels, and there we will be longest re- membered. There were several centers of attraction there, although all the shows were well patronized. Chief among these was the Old Mill, Si Perkins Grist, a trip through which was ver} ' pleasant alone, and simply entrancing a deux. In fact, the pleasures of a ride through the mysterious tunnel were so seductive that a party of Cadets, unable to resist them broke into the Mill Sun- day morning and started the machinery going, an escapade which caused them considerable trouble and expense. Second only to the Old Mill as a gathering place of the bands were the Streets of Cairo. There we were kings and none disputed us. The camels with fair Oriental riders werep laced at our disposal (for a consideration,) and the galaxy of Eastern beauties in the theatre never re- ceived in their long careers such rounds of applause and complimentary com- ments as they did when we occupied the benches. None were slighted: from La