“Gets The Gun”, The Seneca Tribune, Volume XXXII, Number 45, Thursday, January 19, 1911, Column 3, Page 1 (Microfilm - Seneca Free Library, Seneca, KS)
Through Untiring Effort Congressman
Anthony Secures a Field Piece for
G. A. R. Cemetery Lot.
A short time ago the G. A. R. Post of Seneca through Ira K. Wells took up with Congressman Anthony the matter of securing from the government an obsolete cannon and some shells to be used in erecting a soldiers’ monument at Seneca.
When Mr. Anthony laid the matter before the officials at the war department and asked that the request be granted he was informed by General Crozier, chief of ordnance of the United States army, that the government then had no cannon which could be donated to the Seneca G. A. R. post, and in fact congress had forbidden the donation of any more brass or bronze cannon. He said, however, that he could let the post have sufficient eight-inch shells to make two pyramids. Being very anxious to secure if possible some sort of old cannon for Governor Felt, Commodore Murphy and his G. A. R. friends at Seneca, Mr. Anthony followed up his request at the war department and again asked if it would not be possible for them to find, upon closer examination, at some one of the government arsenals an old iron or steel cannon which could be donated to the Seneca old soldiers. This latter request he supplemented by a personal call at the war department and was finally informed by the chief of ornance that the milita of the state of Montana now had in its possession several old field pieces with carriages that had been used in the civil war, which the department had ordered returned to the government and that when received he would make a special exception for Mr. Anthony and order that one of these guns be sent to the Seneca post. The shells will be sent out as soon as the Seneca end give the commanding officer of the Frankfort Arsenal at Philadelphia shipping directions, but as it is uncertain just when the government will receive the old guns now in the possession of the Montana state militia it is not definitely known when the gun can be shipped. When ready it will be shipped from the Rock Island, Illinois, Arsenal.
Ira Wells has handled all the correspondence for the G. A. R. folks who, together with the citizens of Seneca, feel very grateful to him and Congressman Anthony for making it possible for Seneca to have a very creditable soldiers’ monument.