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Show I MEXICANS SEE A GREAT SIGHT Py CHARLES HICHBLSON. Vera Cruz. Mexico. April 30. The taking over of Vera Cruz by the army today wa purposely impressive. Every Ev-ery detachment of troops had its own band, every movement was a full parade pa-rade through the important sections of the city. By the time General Funston had briefly accepted Admiral Fletcher's ' General, I turn over to you the gov ernraent of Vera Cruz," the inhabitants inhabi-tants were in a state of awe. Their comments indicated a belief that all the soldiers in the world had been turned loose in Vera Cruz More impressive than the long lines Of kbakl-dreseed men of the navy I and army with the general and the' admiral walking between, formally transferring the dominion of the city that through 400 years has been ac-rufitomed ac-rufitomed 10 fire, loot and slaughter on such occasions, was the presence 01 hundreds of American refugees who have been coming to the city ever since the landing of the marines ma-rines Those folk of ours, some In the finest fin-est of tropical linen, some in misfit garments, gathered anywhere to take Cafe of the destitute and nearly naked nak-ed people who had been robbed of I everything men women and children chil-dren gathered on corners at the f'laz.i Del Arms and on the roofs to cheer the soldiers Patriotism is a very real thing to people who have heen exposed to insults, abuse and danger from a hostile population, and i lie flag being tarried up the narrow .'tresis between lo,H walls of white-pushed white-pushed houses meant more to them than to anybody else Refugees Weep. Some were weak from their prlva tions. but. weak or not. tbe specta rle broke down the stoical reserve to the north and made these people as sentimental as the people among whom they had suffered so much Every woman alternately wiped away teirs and waved to the soldiers, and Hie men were hardly more composed There is a grimness about the soldier sol-dier that the marine and tbe blue jacket do not suggest. The tall lean Infantrymen, though they marched under a hlls'.ering sun with a heavy equipment on their backs, gave a very different impression from the smiling naval forces, who seemed to people here to shoot or play with equal willingness. It is perhaps a.s well thai the amiable feeling engendered by the sociable seamen should he supplanted by the implacable impression given by the soldiers. There will be no diminution of the helpful-hand spirit that has so surprised the Vera Cruz Indians, but there is a permanency and finality indicated by the heavy rpglmeniK that is not lost on the unreconciled un-reconciled here It is a sort of "snip crs, take notice, the time for lenl I ency is past." From early morning tbe streets j. were filled with marching men get ting to the, stations prepared for them. There they got a chance to drop the blanket rolls, wash the sweat away and get something to eat and be spruced up for the reviewing re-viewing and the saluting thai were scheduled for a later hour. I In the meantime the navy people I had been doing the same thing in re verse order, getting all their gun aboard ship and gradually moving their belongings to Malecon or sanitary sani-tary dock. The soldiers marched in first, forming on both sides of the pier. General Funston, in the center of the long aisle with his aides, awaited await-ed Admiral Fletcher and his staff. The shattered walls of the naval acad- I emy, the gloomy customs house and other gray walls identified in the minds of the naval forces with the first gunfire that greeted their landing, land-ing, looked down upon the scene. Formal Transfer Made. ! The lane extended full length along the pier and on to the wide, open space where occurred the first American Amer-ican casualties. There were distant bugle calls, then bands could be heard and then the lines of blue and khaki came into iiew as Admiral Fletcher and his staff, with all the gold lace that their dazzlng white uniforms could carry. joined General Funston. I It took the better part of the morning morn-ing for the procession of seamen to pass. An hour under such a sun was as tough an ordeal as any lu the campaign cam-paign of war. The military, however, seemed to suffer less than the spectators, who crowded every vantage point regard less of the sun. When the last line had passed, Admiral Ad-miral Fletcher advanced to General Funston and saluted him with hiB j sword. The salute was returned by the general. J "General, I turn over to you the government of Vera Cruz," said the admlraL "I accept the charge on the part of the army and I hope I may administer adminis-ter it capably," replied the general. There was another salute, and Vera Cruz was an American army post. Here is the brigade formation ordered or-dered by General Funston: Brigade front toward Mexico City: extreme left, 8eventh Infantry, Colonel Colo-nel Moore, outpost duty. Fourth infantry, in-fantry, Colonel Van Vllet; outposts, Nineteenth infantry, Colonel Waltz. For the garrison of the town there will he 3000 marines, under Colonel Mahoney. The Twenty-eighth, under Colonel Plummer. will be held In reserve re-serve at tbe lighthouse. The Mexicans who a week ago resisted re-sisted to the point of death tbe land-. land-. inp of Americans at Vera Cruz, cheer ed the troops under General Funston that marched into the city this morning. morn-ing. The Seventh and Nineteenth regiments regi-ments entered by the Avenue Inde pendencla. the. Fourth infantry passed by the American consulate. Mexican children brought flowers and presents to the bluejackets before they went back to the ships Some cried and pleaded with the sailors not to leave A little boy and girl clung to Lieutenant Jones Ingram, the famous fa-mous Annapolis football coach of the battleship Arkansas brigade, and pleaded that he remain Thousands were at the docks when Admiral Fletcher reviewed the sailors at 2 o clock Commander Moffet of the Chester, who shelled the naval school and the arsenal, may take the American dead to New York on the Chester. no |