And yet, so strong did the ties of war-comradeship prove; so tender were the memories of camp and march, of bivouac and battle; so full of heart-stirring events was the record of intimate service in the face of great peril, that even before the final disbandment, among the earlier returning veterans, soldier associations had already sprung into existence. Quite a number of these had their origin in 1864, and even the date and place of birth of the Grand Army of the Republic, with its membership of over three hundred thousand, is in doubt; two States at least, Indiana and Illinois, claim its parentage; and while there are absolutely no reliable data as to the place or exact time of the preliminary meetings out of which the great organization grew, there is a tradition--if the dim memories of only twenty years ago can be so called--that at a casual meeting of returned volunteers in Illinois in the latter portion of 1865, it was discovered that in the little group nearly all were possessed of certain mysterious signs, grips, and pass-words, by which various small bands of firm friends in rebel prisons had secretly bound themselves together for mutual protection. To no men had the value of organization come more forcibly than to these; and in this almost chance gathering was the beginning of the Grand Army of the Republic. There was, early enough after the close of the war, another reason beyond all questions of sentiment or association, demanding some form of organization among the returned soldiers and sailors. Empty sleeves, single legs, eyeless sockets, and emaciated bodies were too often coupled with personal necessities, and the maimed and diseased in need of charity or employment began to point out the larger and growing demand for organized work in behalf of suffering and dependent ones; and to what hands could this be so well committed as to those of old comrades in arms? The Post of the Grand Army of the Republic holding the first regular charter was organized in Dakota, Illinois, in the early spring of 1866, and in July following a department, including then some forty posts, was organized in that State. In October of the same year the association had extended into eight or nine other States, and a call was issued for a convention to be held at Indianapolis, Indiana, November 20, 1866, and here the National Encampment had its organization.