Act 1 Scene 1 - Describe the arrival of Brady. What does he proclaim as his primary purpose for coming?

Matthew Harrison Brady, "a benign giant of a man...gray, balding, paunchy, an indeterminate sixty-five," enters with his wife Sarah, the mayor, the minister, and other citizens. The townspeople sing "Give Me That Old-Time Religion," adding a verse "It is good enough for Brady, / And it's good enough for me!" A magnetic speaker, Brady thanks the people for their hospitality and says he is there to defend against an attack by the big cities of the North and to defend the Living Truth of the Scriptures. Photographers snap pictures, and the major welcomes Brady in a speech which credits the man with everything from women's suffrage to Wilson's election to President to victory in World War I. Brady arranges a picture of himself between the mayor and minister, and the mayor presents him with a commission as Honorary Colonel in the State Militia, before leading him off to the picnic lunch.