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Nearing St. Pat's Day
Folks,
Well, youse guys are good. I had two answers to my teaser within
an hour; one from Georgia and one from Minnesota (you know who you are).
While under siege by the General Counsel's staff [see op. cit.] I was reading
the Proceedings of the Forty-sixth Annual Encampment of the Department
of California and Nevada-Grand Army of the Republic: Held at Reno, Nevada
June 10, 11, 12, 13, 1913. This remarkably informative work [
the administration of the Santa Monica Branch of the Soldier's Home was
under attack and a recommendation was forwarded to Congress that the Home
be placed under the War Department in part because the Home refused to
have the general mess waiters pour coffee from pitchers rather than place
it in earthen bowls on the tables where it cooled before the men could
drink it, but I digress] presented to me a photo lithograph of O'Brien
with his white mustache Dei sub numine viget. Hmmmm, where
was I ? Oh yeah, as my correspondents pointed out (as did the picture title)
O'Brien was he who first originated "the present beautiful custom of rising
and standing uncovered when the 'Star-Spangled Banner" is being played
or sung. According to my Georgia informant, O'Brien died in 1914
the year after the encampment and is buried in Mountain View Cemetery in
Oakland, California where Hall of Fame catcher Ernie Lombardi, architect
julia Morgan and author Frank Norris are also buried. Requiem
aeternam dona eis, Domine. Dick King, University of Arizona.