one o'clock
It was a noisy , merry , bewildering scene as we came upon the ground . The incessant rattle of small arms , the booming of the twelve-pounder firing on the Mill Dam , and the silvery clangor of the church-bells ringing simultaneously -- not to mention an ambitious brass-band that was blowing itself to pieces on a balcony -- were enough to drive one distracted . We amused ourselves for an hour or two , darting in and out among the crowd and setting off our crackers . At one o'clock the Hon. Hezekiah Elkins mounted a platform in the middle of the Square and delivered an oration , to which his `` feller-citizens '' did n't pay much attention , having all they could do to dodge the squibs that were set loose upon them by mischievous boys stationed on the surrounding housetops . Our little party which had picked up recruits here and there , not being swayed by eloquence , withdrew to a booth on the outskirts of the crowd , where we regaled ourselves with root beer at two cents a glass . I recollect being much struck by the placard surmounting this tent : ROOT BEER It seemed to me the perfection of pith and poetry .