Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 14.djvu/187

 Reunion of Virginia Division, A. N. V. Association. 181

Artillery, armed 780

do. unarmed 650

1,430

Infantry, armed 5, 790

do. unarmed 250

6,040

Riflemen, armed 2,230

do. unarmed 3,800

6,030

Total volunteer force, rank and file 18,300

Address before the Virginia Division of Army of Northern Virginia, at their Reunion on the Evening of October 21, 1886.

The hall of the House of Delegates in the State Capitol was packed to its utmost capacity with beautiful women and brave men to honor the annual gathering of " the men who wore the gray." General W. B. Taliaferro, president of the Association, called the meeting to order, and the chaplain. Rev. Dr. J. William Jones, opened the ex- ercises with prayer.

On motion of Judge George L. Christian, the president appointed a committee (Judge George L. Christian, Colonel Archer Anderson and Captain Carlton McCarthy) to wait on Governor and Mrs. Lee, and Miss Winnie Davis, and invite them to seats in the hall.

The committee soon appeared with the distinguished guests — Gov- ernor and Mrs. Lee and Miss Winnie Davis, escorted by General Early — who were received with deafening applause as they came up the aisle and took the seats reserved for them.

General Taliaferro made a very appropriate address of welcome, in which, after an allusion to the presence in the city that day of the commander-in-chief of the United States armies, he said that our devotion to the order of things now existing did not in the least pre- vent us from being true to our convictions of 1861-65, and that we have by no means ceased to honor our Confederate leaders or our noble Confederate women. He was especially glad to greet here the distinguished soldier who is now Governor of Virginia, and "the child of the Confederacy" — the daughter of our ever-honored chief, President Jefferson Davis.

These sentiments were greeted with enthusiastic applause.

General Early then arose, and amid loud applause moved that Miss Winnie Davis, " the daughter of the Confederacy," be made an honorary member of the Association, and that the president