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Helena weekly herald. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1867-1900, June 03, 1886, Image 2

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MEMORIAL DAY.
The Memory of the Nation's
Dead Honored by Grand
Services in Montina's
Capital,
Under the Auspices of the
Grand Army the People of
Helena Pay Tribute to
the Heroic Lives of
Deceased Soldiers.
(■rand Profession to the Cemetery
and Memorial Services in
the City of the Dead.
Eloquent Addresses of the Oratorsof
the Day, Col. W. F Sanders
and W. B. Reed.
Calendar changes this year caused Me- j
tuorial day. the 30th of May, to fall upon j
Sunday, aud, although its formal service ;
was postponed until the day following,
.still the keepiug of this National day was
in Helena, as in the other cities of the
Union. commenced in the evening of the
Sabbath. At the close of last Sunday
Wadsworth Post No. 3, G. A. R.. of this
city assembled in their hall aud thence
marched in a body to the Broadway M. II. ;
Church, where appropriate memorial
services were held, conducted by the pas- i
tor, Rev. R. E. Smith, w ho is chaplain of J
the post. The church was crowded. Beau
tiful flowers adorned the pulpit and the
tlag of the Nation, its folds interwoven
with tho.-e of the G. A. R. banner, draped
the wall l>ehind the minister and announc
ed to the unfamiliar visitor that the i
services of the evening were in honor of
the God of Nations, as usual, but with
special hearing upon the grandest, most j
enlightened and most eminent of all the
governments under His rule. An able
quartette, consisting of Miss Taylor, Mrs.
Rodolph, Mr. Burgess and Judge Anuiiage, .
accompanied on the organ by Miss Slocum, ;
rendered delightful aud appropriate music, j
Chaplain Smith preached on the text : j
"These stones shall l»e a memorial unto the I
children of Israel forever," Joshua, 4:7, j
and delivered a masterly address, replete j
with the eloquent features inspired by the j
theme. Instances from).,war history and 1
reviews of the deeds of heroes furnished
subjects teeming with a patriotism that
could not fail to render eloquent the words
of the merest tyro in oratory, aud with j
Mr. Smith's commaud of language and ex
cellent delivery, the never old theme was
discussed in a mariner fitting its exalted
nature.
During his discourse the Reverend gen- I
tlemau read a poem by T. C. Harbough, ;
entitled. "Bury the Banner "—some choice |
verses inspired by an incident at the recent ;
celebration in Montgomery, Alabama, when ;
Miss Winnie Davis. diMighter of the Con
federate ex-president, deposited a Con- |
federate tlag in the corner stone of a mon- j
ument. Here is the poem :
W RY THE BANNER.
That I- riglit, Winnie, hide it away.
Bury it deep with the rel>el gray.
Darker than night is the treason it served.
Swifter than lightning the doom it deserved ,
Bast is its glory and faded its stars.
Bed with the blood of the loyal it bars;
Where it once floated the misguided sleep,
Bury the banner. Oh bury it deep.
Bury the banner of treacherous fame.
Liberty blushes at sound of its name.
Heaven refused to permit it to wave.
Over the flag of the free ami the brave.
It is the symbol of slavery's stain.
It is the flag of the whip and tiie chain ,
Treason for it some respect may d'still,
It floated in triumph o'er Andersonville :
Bury the banner, whose hot blooded sons.
Kell"in the flashes of Loyalty s guns;
Holy it is to the ehief of the band
W hose <*rime overshadows one-halt of the liind.
Bury forever the banner of cant.
Shot into death by the cannon of tirant.
Sabered bv Sheridan's blue coated host.
Torn by the columns that marched to the coast.
Bury tin» flag that deluded the gray'
It floats from no masts and no steeples to-day.
Weep for its cause, if you will—it is dead :
Cover it up with the blood it lias shed.
Hide it from sight for it poisons the air.
Why should it float in this country so fair
Ages to come of its failure will tell.
It was titled to float on the ramparts of hell.
yesterday's proceedings.
Two o'clock yesterday afternoon saw the
Memorial Day procession start from the
corner of Warren street aud filth avenue
on its march to the cemetery. It was
headed by the Marshal of the day, Com
rade Ross Deegan, of Wadsworth Post No.
;>, G. A. R., and his aides. Comrade K. C.
Wallace, of Wadsworth Post, and Brother
William Green, ot U. S. Grant Camp, Sons
of Veterans. A platoon of police followed,
succeeded by the Sons of Veterans in uni
form, twenty-one strong, under command
of Capt. G. W. Gibbs and headed by their
drum corps. Next came the veterans ot
Wadsworth Post, commanded by J. G.
Sanders. Post Commander, all in uniform
and under their standards. Following
were carriages containing the chaplain,
president and orators of the day, the Apollo
Club, Mexican Veterans, Mayor and Aider
men, Territorial and county officials. Next
succeeded the Irish-American society, corn
mantled by A. Dougherty, marching under
the stars and stripes and the green folds of
their society banner, followed by the hand
wagon containing twenty little flower girls
dressed in white. The rear of the long col
umn was brought up by numerous citizens
in carriages anti on horseback. The line ot
march was from Warren street up Fifth
avenue to Rodney, up Rodney to Broad
way, down Broadway to Main street, down
Main street to Price, up Price to Clore
street, down Clore to Lawrence street,
Lawrence to Benton avenue, Benton a\enue
to the cemetery. It was a brilliant page
ant. To the inspiriting music of drums
and fife the veterans accorded a step as
elastic as in days of yore and marched with
regular footfall through the city until pass
ing without its gates the order for "rout
step" was given and a go-as-you-please
mode of march was kept up until the ceme
tery was reached.
EXERCISES AT 1 HE CEMETERY.
Entering the gates of the cemetery to
the sound of muffied drums the long col
umn was orderly divided and stationed
around the grave of W. H. Armour, late
Adjutant of Wadsworth Post, where special
services were held. The tomb was draped
with the National banner festooned with
crape. The services concluded the grave
was covered with flowers and the little
girls bearing the same dispersed to all
quarters of the grounds to strew the graves
of other departed heroes with similar
offerings.
ORDER OK EXERCISES.
The assembly call, souuded on the bugle
hv Comrade Yaeger, brought every one to
the vicinity of the stand, where Post Com
mander Sanders introduced the president
of the day, Mr. T. H. Carter. Mr. Jno. »S.
Tooker had been chosen for the office, but
sickness compelled his non-attendance, and
the honor was conferred upon Mr. Carter
in his stead. He presided with a grace in
dicative of studied preparation, although
the {»osition was entirely unexpected and
his many neat little speeches totally im
promptu. Governor Hauser, the Apollo
Club, and officers of the different societies
were invited by the president to seats upon
the platform, aud upon their acceptance
proceedings were opened with a well ren
dered song by the Apollo Club quartette,
Messrs. Eckles, Osgood, Thornburgh and
Yaeger, "The Flag Without a Stain.'
Chaplain Smith then offered the follow
ing prayer : "O God, thou God of strength
and might, in whom Lincoln trusted and
to whom many hearts resorted in time of
sorest conflict, Thou, who hast led us
through the perils of war aud brought us
to a condition of peace without any stars
being blotted from the bright constella
tion, look down upon this solemu service,
replete with tende rest recollections?, and
bless the influence of this Memorial Day.
Endue us with the spirit of patriolism
aud of grace, and make this service one of
lasting benefit to all our hearts. Amen.
Adjutant Shaw, of Wadsworth Posï.
then read the general order from the de
partment headquarters calling for the
proper observance of Memorial day, and
this was succeeded by another .song, "Rest,
Soldier, Rest," by the Apollo quartette.
President Carter then introduced Rev.
W. B. Reed, one of the orators ot the day
who spoke for twenty minutes in an elo
quent and interesting strain. Following is
the full text of
reeij's oration.
Soldier» of the Republic aud }'elltne-»-iti
zms: A poet of Greeee speaks in lines
beautiful and touching of the "memories of
joys that are past, pleasing, but mournful
to the soul." Such are the memories which
fill our minds to-day, as we stand in the
silent city of the dead—where every stone
tells of some one's sorrow and every flower
speaks of some one's love. We have as
sembled here in obedience to one of the
mast beautiful sentiments of the human
heart—in oliedience to a sincere desire to
pay just tribute to the memory of our fallen
brothers—brothers who in a dark hour of
a nation's peril went forth from city and
country, from manufactory and lroai mill,
from oar farms and from our foundries,
from office, store and workshop, they went
forth from homes as dear and loved ones as
precious to them as yours and mine are to
us to-day. But beyond home and friends,
beyond wife and child even they loved this
laud of liberty, and from valley and from
hillside they rallied around that grand old
banner, took the oath ol allegiance aud
swore by all that was noble and brave that
it should uever he trailed in the dust. And
gallantly, heroically they kept their faith
ami the trust committed to mem —
they keot it to death—aud when
they fell on a field of bloody
battle and lay with their white faces
upturned to God they left us a lesson
to learn, that we should love our country,
that we should defend this blood-bought
heritage and honor the memory of those
who paid the prices of oar liberty with
their lives. And this beautiful service in
which our nation joins to-day, of decorating
the graves of our brave brothers and com
rades is not a meaningless thing. Ifweshall
fittingly aud taithlully conduct these solemn
'ceremonies we shall tell to our children's
children the story of a sacrifice made for
them and testify to the world the power of
•American patriotism and perpetuate the
principles of liberty lor generations yet
unborn. Would you know the truth of
this? Read the history of the world's
heroes. Go read the history of Marathon's
bloody plaiu, where the undaunted baud
of Miltiades swept back myriad forces of
the Persian invader, and where year after
year, so long as Greece maintained her free
dom, the men. women aud children of
Athens united in strength and decorated
with flowers the graves of their
fallen defenders' Go read the story
of Spartan patriotism—a story which
was g-180 years old when the Christian
era began, and is yet told to-day to illus
1 träte the love of country. How Leonidas
and his little band of Spartans laid down
i their lives in Thermopylae's gory pass, a
sacrifice to liberty, and over whose mould
ering bones stand a column bearing this
! simple but suggestive inscription "Go,
stranger, aud to listening Sparta tell, that
I here, obedient to her laws, we fell.
As we pay that debt of love to the mem
ory of those who fought ami fell for us, we
are only repeating the history of human
gratitude to men who have died for their
i country in every age and under every form
of government. Athens had her Ceramicus,
i a cemetery of temples and altars, ol louu
tains and flower.
Rome had her Campus Martius, couse
i crated grouml where the bones ot her dis
| tinguished heroes might repose in hallowed
I peace.
i France has not forgotten to build a
mighty monument to her soldiers, and be
neath its high dome sleeps the dust of the
great Napoleon.
England, too, has her aneient Westmin
ster Abbey aud her grand St. Paul's, where
her Wellingtons and Nelsons may find
honored rest.
It is fitting then that the American Re
public should have its great national
cemeteries, at Gettysburg, Arlington, Nash
ville and Chattanooga, where we have
tenderly laid the scattered remains of
friend and loe together, and where as each
successive summer's sunshine and rain
shall unfold the leaves and fairest flowers
we may bring these floral tributes aud lay
them on
"Graves of the patriotic dead, and
Each garland telling of loves and cares
As each, on its leaves a mystic language l>ears.
These flowers, significant memorials,
are telling us in lauguage unmistaka
ble of immortality. They tell us thatt the j
i dead shall rise again, and as "summer's
I roses hurst into bloom, so shall the pure
and the good who are sleeping now, rise
! again aud enter into new being beneath
! the life-giving smile of God."
Soldiers, some of your comrades have
already pitched their tents on the unseen
border-land. Already some of them who
struggled beside you ou the weary march,
stood shoulder to shoulder with you in the
bloody fight, have entered into rest. Î** 0
more for them will bugle sound nor drums
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beat, nor fifes' shrill note send forth the
dread alarm of battle. No more for them
shall the camp-fire throw out its promise
of rest and cheer. No more shall come to
them the midnight call to weary watching
along the picket line. They rest well. It
has been truly said "the stored urn," or
"animated bust" marks the resting place of
a score of nations' heroes, but the vast army
of freedom's martyrs sleep in lowlier beds.
Their bones are mouldering far away in
the sunny south, 'neath the green mould
of Chickahominy's swamp, under the pines
of the silent Wilderness, in the rugged
gorges of the Southwest, on the plains of
Manassas. From the Atlantic shore to the
great father of rivers, from the great Gulf
to the green valley of the Cumberland,
they are resting peacefully where the last
"relief" on its rounds found them at their
posts, and the last "tattoos" beat turned
them in for the long, long night—till the
"reveille" of the resurrection morn shall
Summon them to the "roll call" of heaven.
Soldiers of the Grand Army and friends—
these recollections of the past are full of
meaning to us. Not only is there left to
us the sad privilege of perpetuating the
memory ot their noble deeds, hut upon us
is enjoined the duty of emulating their de
votion, which led them to lay down their
lives on their country's altar, and pour out
their life's blood as an offering for this
land of liberty.
To us is given* the high honor, not only
of keeping green the graves where our
brave soldiers sleep, but of preserving the
honor of that dear old flag under whose
unsullied folds they fought and fell.
To us is given the great commission of
handing down to future generations the
principles of free government—the purest
and best government on which the bright
sun has ever shined. Other governments
have fallen into decay and ruin—other
countries have passed their maturity—
nearly all the countries of the Old World
have come to the day of dotage, and some
to the hour of dissolution. But the map
of the Fnited States of America marks a
spot to which the eye of every race and
nation on earth has turned. Our resources
are so vast that the researches of 400 years
have left them still undeveloped. We
stand ts day on the great highway of the
earth—one {»onion of the Old World on
the east of us and one portion on the west
of us. We are. in the midst of an immense
basin, stretching from the snow-capped
peaks of the Rocky Mountains on the one
side, to the pine covered ridges of the
Alleghenies on the other ; from the frozen
shores of Alaska on the north to the sunny
isles of Florida on the south. And all
through this great tract we find a soil fer
tihs as the Carden of Eden—watered on
every hand by mighty rivers and inland
seat?-, hills and valley tilled with rich min
eral and vegetable products of every kind ;
vast beds of coal and iren deep veins of
silver and gold, nnfathonsed fountains of
oil, «Enaustless reservoirs of powerful gas
hidden deep in the bowels of the earth,
and all al>out us are boundless forests of
timber enough to rebuild all the houses, on
the glob#. On our seacoast are great» har
bors and broad roadsteads where the mer
chant navy of the v.»rld might lie at an
chor.
Bounteous harvests are gathered home
each year in our land, and the nations of
world are calling upon us to feed them,
and to-day scores of great steamers are
panting on the trackless ocean bearing
their burden of supplies to the Old World.
The Israelite of old looked upon his little
Canaan with feelings of pride and love, but
what emotions of patriotic pride should,
stir our hearts to-day as we compare old
Cauaau in its palmiest days to this great
and goodly land which God has give»
us to possess and preserve 0
I kuow we often hear it said that "our
government io corrupt and will fall to
pieces; thisgrsat republic must eventually
go down," etc. Fellow citizens and de
fenders of our constitution, if this country
ever dots go to ruin it will be because the
great mass of peevish croakers aud unsat
isfied grumblers are really traitors at heart
to the laud that gave them file and liberty.
There is corruption aud bribery perhaps
in every department ot our government,
enough to make the ears of every honest
citizen tingle with shame, but it is not the
fault of the governmeut; it is our fault.
Let us not fear "History repeats itself."
The adulterous David had his Nathan.
Nebuchadnezzer had his Daniel. Herod
had his John the Baptist. England's King
George had his Cromwell. American
slavery had its Lincoln, and the civil war
had iis Générai Grant. But let us he on
our guard. "Eternal vigilance is the price
of liberty." Me are solving political prob
lems that shall influence the world for
ages to come. Representatives of every
nation under heaven are finding their way
into our national life. The stolid English
man and industrious (ierman, the unyield
ing Scotchman and bigoted Chinaman, the
sunny-faced Irishman and sable-faced
African. They have come to make their
homes with us. They talk tenderly of
"Fatherland" and kindly of the "old coun
try," but their homes and hearts are here
now. They have come to help us develop
a new world's wealth ami power, and roy
ally they are at work. Who stood beside
you, soldiers, in the hour of battle more
firmly aud faithfully than did these adopt
ed sons of the Old World? Were they
not brave ? Were they not true? Haye
not thousands of them, with their own
blood, bought blessings tor us and for our
children in their goodly laud? Let us not
forget their graves to-day. They sleep far
awav from the horns of their birth, but
they sleep in the midst ol the land they
died to save. Perhaps no kindred hand is
here to strew flowers, or dearly loved ones
to mingle tears with the hallowed dust,
but (aithful comrades aud grateful friends
will not suffer the last resting place of a
soldier to be neglected or remain without
these memorials of affectionate gratitude.
Then
Cover them over with beautiful flowers.
Deck them with garland«, those brothers of ours.
Yas, lrieuds, all over our land are found
"love aud tears for the blue, tears and love
for the gray." Ours is a common country.
We are bound together by four great, ties
that hold the society of mankind together:
One ongiu, one language, one belief and
one law. This laud is our laud. These
homes are our homes. We have one com
mon heritage here, and we hope to inhabit
one Father's house hereafter.
Soldiers, one word more and I have done.
You have laid aside the uniform of the sol
dier and are found day by day at your
various callings in the dress of private
citizens. But somewhere among the treas
ures of your houses you keep laid away a
"discharge," which signifies that after serv
ing your country faithfully, you have been
honorably "mustered out ' and allowed to
return again to the pursuits of peace. Yet
the honor and dignity and bearing ofa
soldier belong to you still, and although
you are no longer called to go forth to
battle of bloodshed, yet there is a strife in
which we must all take part. It is the
great battle of life, a struggle against the
great enemy of human happiness, an enemy
of evil. "And there is no discharge in that
war." Oh, my fellowmen, comrades in this
great couliict, let us stand firm. Enlist
under the "banner of truth," aud quit us
like men. "Be strong." Carry with us the
countersign ot heaven. Endure and en
deavor as good soldiers, and when the last
battle has been fought, and the last trench
is taken, when the "general roll call of
death companions shall say 'muster out"'
may each and every one of us be entitled
to say with the victorious apostle, "1 have
fought a good tight, I have finished my
eourse, I have kept the faith, henceforth
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there ia laid np for
ness. "
me acrownof righteous
y
A round of applause greeted the con
clusion of the address, and that subsiding
another song was voiced by the Apollo
Club. After this Col. W. F. Sanders was
introduced by the president and com
menced the following eloquent address,
whose delivery occupied about thirty
minutes :
COL. SANDERS' ORATION.
J Jr. President, Comrades of the Grand
Army of the Republic, Ladicsand Gentlemen :
—You have separated yourselves to-day
from the sordid occurrences of life, aud come
here to celebrate an event in your history.
The scene presented is more than a tribute
of personal and individual affection. The
inciting cause which, through nearly fifty
States among more than fifty million peo
ple, moves them to pav this spontaneous
tribute, is deeply and iueradicably imbed
ded in the human heart, ann it is a dull
observation that does not perceive it. Our
collective and individual liberty is an evo
lution which slowly through many centu
ries has come to its present felicitous ex
cel leuce. "With rnauy perturbations and
aberrations in times that are past, it has
survived sunshine and storm, and has
truly been preserved to us through great
tribulation. It is the gift of no fortune,
the creatine of no accident, the result of
no caprice. An analysis of the causes
which have produced so divine a Itoon, in
structs us as to the processes for its preser
vation. Experience and example with
their puissant influences, harvesting wis
dom across two continents, repelled from
tropical lands by the isdolence which they
beget, and from the frozen north by the
forbidding forces of rugged nature, have
placed an English speakiDg race with its
accretions in possession of the fairest heri
tage which the eye can liebold or the mind
conceive upon this visible diurnal sphere.
By its configuration and surroundings, by
its division into land and lake, ocean and
river, by the mildness and variety of its
ternperatore, by its industrial resources on
land and sea, and its facilities for inter
communication, it is a fitting theatre for
the stateliest drama of all time—a stage be
fitting the action of demigods—a prize tor
the best race of mankind. Carious ethxo
logists have sought to trace the genesis of
this sturdy race of ours back to the plains
of eastern or central Asia, and follow the
migrations of those remote peoples to and
along the shores of the Mediterranean to
the Atlantic sea.
But speculation® like these leave out of
consideration the fact that races are a
growth resultant of similarity of thought,
of tastes and of conviction, and' that as
ideas swept throwgh the world making pro
fert of themselves, there were attracted to
them from all observant peoples those
whose sympathies were moved thereby,
and that on a wide? view all thoughtful
races have a'composite quality. No decay
ing forms of earlier or primitive institu
tions eucumbe^ed the American continent
where two hundred and fifty years ago
men who disdained that Dobility horn of
wealth and brawl, soujçht to plant a people
v? ho should turn the sweat of their faces
into renown aud power. No king was here
to divide with them authority or fortune
for servile homage, and to their stalwart
morality and hsalthful political creeds
they added a just esteem» for the dignity
of labor and the supremacy of benignant
toil. The strivings of the past which had
for so many centuries eubausted the re
sources and wasted the energies of the peo
ple from whence they sprung, they left to
"A,w ambition a-id 'die pci<8* of kiiiRS."
The occasion permits no review in detail
of the experience which moulded their
character. For thousands ot years ideas
have been assimilating and cohering, sur
viving every peril, purified by every
tumult, strengthened by every disaster.
Theories have been entertained and ex
ploded, superstition liatl woven around
them temporarily her potent spell, con
tending terms of government, theocracies,
monarchies, anaretiies, order and disorder,
peace and war had wrought their in
fluences, tumult and stagnation, indolence
aud activity had swept across them in
their journey and left their impress on their
lives. But in all these mutations, century
by century they were more clearly per
ceiving the central idea ot this race, which
was that of individual liberty, the right to
be, the right to think, the right to do.
This central idea was » heresy in that
night of time. It threatened the suprem
acy of dominions, principalities and {low
ers, aud its extirpatiou was fiercely at
tempted, but as it concerned all, with
many mutations and vicissitudes it sur
vived to he hence transplanted upon its
chosen lield. We are prone to attribute its
preservation to the wisdom of the few, hut
it has required the vigilance aud labor of
the many to preserve it to this day.
It has had through all its existence a
steady battle with enemies plausible
enough to convince themselves and able at
times to mislead the unthinking and un
wary. So it is that the common people
have ever stood con fronted by those who
would destroy so great a boou, ever in the
presence of arrogant pretense, with every
nerve strained to defend their own. What
wonder that thus these same plaiu people
have through rnauy generations become
trained athletes and gladiators skilled in
fight aud strong and wary for the protec
tion of their own. Herein we shall learn
why all that is best in the achievements of
the world, all that is most precious iu the
harvest of the generations has been pu i
tied if not produced by "the mad wars
which make ambition virtue." They have
been the alembic in which institutions of
benevolence bave l>eea retiued ; they forbid
trilling; they are the final supreme argu
ments of peoples as of kings. I am not
about to argue in defense of wars. I only
note a fact common to all observation, that
for reasons easily discoverable the best
peoples are those which have survived
battle, the highest civilization that which
has most frequently felt its shock. Events
of very recent occurrence significant in
their character take us back aerass the
thronging years a quarter ot a century.
We must not lie too impatient of words
nor deny to dotage its inheritance ot prat
tle, but we insist without offense that the
generation with which we are identified
has not lived vainly; that political unity
and moral good are in these United States
inseparable ; that to challenge what battle
has settled is as idle as appeal from the
order of nature. It was a high conceit of
the poet that the earth from her prime to
her final catastrophe moves under the obser
vation of conscious stars, that their com
ments are the voices to which we should
listen, their approval the judgment we
should covet. Their high debate compre
hends all space, all considerations, all gen
erations and all time, and their irrevocable
determination abides.
It was for such an approval profoundly
satisfying that these comrades, visibly be
fore me, twenty-live years ago. counting
nothing so dear as duty, went forth to do
battle for the Republic.
Reflecting upon all that huDg on the
issue of the hour, examining and re-exam
ining that issue, assuring and re assuring
themselves that neither pride nor prejudice
moved them ; with cheerfulness they went
forth to battle in no spirit of hate but with
the modesty of tearful dnty. Forms bent
and broken attest how profound was their
conviction, how wtll that was done. Cour
age they displayed—so have many before ;
convictions also moved them deeply, and
these were their chiefest crown. Their de
votion to their country, their generous
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sacrifice of self as conscience commanded,
is a prouder tribute to their worth than
all their scars. Loyal to the memories ot
the nnreturning brave, and holding them
and all who have since fallen by the way
in sweet remembrance, the rescued and
garteful country weaves for all her chap
let of flowers.
To us in Helena, assembled t>day in the
presence of the Governor and other officers,
the civic societies and the survivors of our
country's wars in the silent city of the dead
sacred to memory and affection, the sur
roundings and occasion inspire thronging
memories and generous pride. The events
which brought us hither are rapidly taking
their place iu the pages of history, and in a
few short years she alone will have them in
her keeping. We are yet permitted to look
into the faces of the actors in this great
tragedy, to hear from their voices the events
which made that era pivotal and instruc
tive, but we are warned by their decreasing
numbers that these events will soon be as
a tale that is told. Recalling the civic so
cieties formed by the soldiers ot the Repub
lic who participated in the late rebellion,
we are painfully impressed at the change
the years have wrought. They are no longer
the young men whom we knew in the war,
active, eager, impulsive, blithe, whose ring
ing laughter attested their youthful prime.
They are the sedate citizens who have dis
charged and are yet discharging the grave
duties of manhood instructed by observa
tion, whose visions are widened by exper
ience aud whose convictions are strength
ened by their judgment instead ot enthusi
asm. They must even now recall to the
youth of the laud the heroic era of which
they are the survivors, as in my own child
hood the survivors of the American Revolu
tion recalled auotber era of patriotic mem
ory aud inspired the most grateful emo
tions. In such contentions as these it has
been a privilege to live. It has given to us
duties, it has made possible and useful
sacrifices, it has enabled os to become ex
emplars, and it has taught us high lessons
of life and duty. Indeed, when the faithful
historian shall sum up the most precious
result of that strange and heady eoutention
of battle, we shall learn to know that it
was most valuable in wha' it taught. This
Republic can never be since wbat it was
betöre. In social, in moral, in political, in
intellectual life, in judgments of the past,
in alms for the future, iu eager strivings, or
in restful re-pose, in objects to eompass. or
in achievements to guard, the e?a ot i860 is
forever closed. Whoso to-day can recall
American life before that period hath lived
in two worlds divided by sharper lines of
demarcation than men ever s&w before.
And this change has not been wholly geo
graphical,. political, or industrial it has
heeu largely moral, metaphysical and scien
tific, and it has been ineradicable. It were
profane to deny that it has been benign.
Thought and action, law and religion, as ot
old, were borne on warriors' spears. Eaieh
soldier truer than he knew, was a veritable
Red Cross-Knight,.yielding to impulse» of
commanding import, of the divine genesis
of which he was perhaps, somewhat uncon
scious, but which fulfilled destiny in »
supreme cris - ,» of the world. In Europe,,
indeed, before that period, there were move
ments-which did concern elemental truth
and took hold of abstract right, but in our
own land we had erected form into a demi
god and worshipped at her shrine. We
sought to blind ourselves to the command
ing homage which philosophy ever exacts,
to the unhesitating obedience of which she
will not be denied, and so in the midst of
our trifling the whirlwind came.
I recall those anxious hours in this pres
ence to-day only to remark that they are a
curious memory. Men hopeful of man
kind, with clear faith in the future of hu
manity, in its ultimate career, were solici
tious of the hour. Our noblest Roet of
Humanity iu the bitterness of his soul
cried,
Tlie ape is poo? an<l mean,
Men orcep, not walk
But it was the exterior that deceived,
the surface seemed dull, only superficial
vision could err, patriotism and valor bided
tbeir time, the age was equal to the duty,
for these dead whose graves we deck to-day
with flowers were then alive. They meas
ured with clear eye the vast interests at
stake on the issue, they deemed those in
terests worthy of ail price, and that price
they were ready to pay. Blessed indeed is
peace ! She was never lovlier of mien, she
wits never more worthy of devout homage,
she never inspired the poets to sublimer
strains, she never showered upon her devo
tees blessings in greater profusion* than
during those ruddy days of 1861.
Ambition beckoned her devotees to the
fields of commerce, of science, of benevo
lence, of politics, promising if not ease, re
nown. The flowers of spriug, the soft airs
of summer aud the rich fruitage of autumn
gave an alluring presence to nature, filial
aud domestic affection bound ail in a com
mon hope and destiny, aud habits of
peaceful pursuits, loug followed, had recon
ciled man to his lot. The government was
fulfilling efficiently its benign purpose, in
spired by wises precepts than those ol
former ages, or of other nations. The na
tion seemed crowned with every felicity
aud the Utopia of the poets seemed to have
become a reality wbeu upon the scene thus
alluring there burst the hoarse alarums ot
war..
To the questions which precipitated the
war much thought had already been given.
The moral sense of the nation lnsuncted
by reflection, by history, by religion, had
reached its ultimate conclusion and would
not be moved from its integrity. If it hes
itated, it was hut tor a moment to make
sure that it had not mistaken the immuta
ble right for pride of opinion, and to meas
ure the task which was betöre.
Due idea pervaded all patriotism, inspired
all hearts,occupied all hands—-the Republic
must receive no detriment. If Carthage
imperilled it, dclendu est Carthago must
be the watchword. Aud so with open eyes
and mauly hearts the citizen soldiery
marched forth to battle and to death.
In this presence, surrounded by the sur
vivors of that conflict, and recalling the
young men who went forth to do that bat
tle, one cannot hut be impressed with the
rapid flight of the years. Before us to-day
they stand men of mature years—rnauy of
them in the decline of life. Then the im
pulsive enthusiasm of youth predominated
that great host that marched to the rescue
of the imperilled republic. No tale that
orator has told, no song of poet in inspir
ing strain, no muse of history wrapped
with the enthusiasm which her recitai in
vites can magnify their valor or do more
than confess their earned renown.
Before their deeds Arbela and Marathon
and Waterloo have already paled their in
effectual fires. A grateful republic snatched
by them from destruction makes eager
haste to place upon her ineffaceable records
their achievements and write high in her
sacred places their immortal names. With
significant and signal tenderness she buried
in her chiefest city—the ocean before him
and the continent behind—the great leader
of her serried host, upon whose fortitude
in peril, whose sagacity in council, whose
skill in action she relied through those
fateful years, aud whose moderation in
victory became a commanding example. I
need not name his name. Two hosts—his
friends aud foes—with affectionate solici
tude in sympathy with his misfortune,
with bowed heads watched around his
couch ot pain, and in conscious pride as
sisted the nation in making another pil
grim's shrine. His grasp upon the grati
tude and affection of his countrymen is
deep aud abiding, his renown their precious
heritage. History denies him to no nation,
his human prowess 1km made him kindred
to all people and given his fame and
achievements to the universal world.
Since our last Memorial Day the nation, in
tears and sorrow, not unmixed with pride,
has borne to their last resting place two
other haughty champions of valor who
served her in high places in peril with
stubborn and unbending loyalty and devo
tion. With equal honor, too, do we to-day
recall onr brave soldiers yet spared to us
in the enjoyment of the honors they nobly
and dearly earned. May they long lie pre
served to be made conscious of the public
gratitude, to know how keenly the repub
lic values her own preservation and with
what abounding gratitude and affection
she salutes her own preservers.
The republic corrects the distorted and
jaundiced vision of coarse minds, she is
showing with increasing emphasis and
clearness the sordid qualities of place and
pelf, and demonstrating that he alone is
blest whom she approves, he alone re
warded whom her deliberate judgment
commends, that the accidents of politics are
the trifles ofa day, that office is the ephe
meral football of coarse schemers, that pelf
is but the tinsel which shines for an hour
and lades away. But the honors she pays
are genuine, they are not earned, except by
deeds of high emprise in supreme crises of
human history. But the bravest leader in
sists that these honors shall l»e reserved tor
the common soldier who without the ex
pectation of earthly reward, toiled, suffered,
fought in the consciousness that only by
such sacrifices could the country live. To
them always, on all occasions, be immortal
honor. Except as leaders typify them aud
image them forth, we could not account for
the large place iu the world's story which
leaders occupy. It is vicarious homage
which the world has paid to heroic devo
tion, to nationality, to truth, to liberty,
which the vast armies have had most al
ways in their keeping. This glory is due,
and it is paid to the unnamed aud unknown.
They make victory possible, they discuss
with bayonet and bullet the great questions
of ethics which concern nations, races, peo
ples and elementary rights: they are phil
osophers, they are orators, they are school
masters, who bring seriousness to every
discussion. None can have failed to note
the increasing interest in this day. Events
are sometime so near to t*.« that we do not
appreciate their magnitude. We sometime
yield to great impulses instinctively and
almost '.«nawares. It is the mission ofjter- |
spectiye to sift these events and place them
iu tbeir true relations.
This force is activeeven now and is mag
nifying the great struggle of ovtr time.
Less and less as the years recede will men
look at it as a gladiatorial contest where
skill, strength aud agility were alone con
cerned, and more aud more will it appear
to have been a contention of principle with
moral and social aspects of vital interest
aud consequences to mankind.
We name the living to-day because they
have survived their comrades and tor their
comrades' sake, hot the occasion itselt is
set apart by a spontaneous command, with
out the form or authority of legislative en
actment, by a universal acclaim, to the
memory of the heroie. sacred dead. Gone
from our vision and no more to return , we j
have eome among them this day with a
sorrow not unmixed with pride. They did
not seek glory, but they avoided shame,
and I think there is a tinge of vanity
manifested by our presence here to identi
fy ourselves with their unfading renown.
Emancipated from-the grossness of earth
they have joined the immortals and have
dominion in earth and sky. It is careless
ness of speech to speak of them as unre
turning. They are not dead, they are
here, they dominate ottr hearts and homes, 1
they live in our lives, and are the supreme |
influence in every sphere of human
thought and action. We yield to them,
obedience and obeisance. Only the sordid,
the selfish, the pusillanimous die. Whoso,
does his duty well, without low aim or,
coward^ fear, secures immortality. On»* of
our greatest orators standing by the grave
ot a noble lawyer, fitly ado:mistered and j
derived consolation by words appropriate
to this occasion. He said :
"If the reputation of the living were the
only source from which the honor ot our
race is derived, the death of an eminent
maß would be a subject of immitigable
grief. It is the lot of fèw to gain great
distinction, before death has placed them
above the distorting medium, through
which men are seen by their contempor
aries. It is the lot of still fewer to attain
it by qualities which exult the character
of our species. Envy denies the capacities
ot some, slander stigmatizes the principles
of others, fashion gives an occasional
currency to false pretensions, anti the men
by whom the age is hereafter to he known,
are often too much in advance of it to he
discernible by the common eye. All these
causes combine to reduce tbe stock of j
living reputation as much below the real
merits of the age, as it is below the digni
ty of man ; and he who should wish to
elevate bis spirit by great examples of
w : «dom, of geuius aud ol patriotism, it
he could not derive them from the illus- !
trious dead, would have better reason than
the son of Philip to weep at the limits
which confined him. To part with the
great ami good from a world which thus
needs them, and not to receive thereafter
the refreshing influence of their purified
and exalted fame, would be to make death
almost the master of virtue, as she appears
to be of our perishable bodies',
"The living and the dead are, however,
hut one family, and the moral and intel
lectual affluence ot those who have gone
before remains to enrich their posterity.
The great fountain of human character lies
beyond the confines' of life, where the {las
sions cannot invade it. It is in that region,
that among .innumerable proofs of man s
nothingness are preserved the records of
his immortal descent aDd destiuy. It is
there that the spirits of all ages, after their
sun is set, are gathered into one firmament
to sbed their unquenchable lights upou us.
It is in the great assembly of the dead that
the great philosopher and the patriot who
have passed from life complete.their bene
faction to mankind by becoming imperish
able examples of virtue.
"Beyond the circle of those private affec
tions which cannot choose hut shrink from
the inroads of death, there is no grief then
for the departure of the eminently good
and wise. No tears but those of gratitude
should fall into the graves of such as are
gathered in houor to their forefathers. By
their now unenvied virtues and talents,
they have become anew possession to their
posterity, and when we commemorate
them and pay the debt which is their due,
we increase and confirm our own inheri
tance."
It is from such considerations as these
that the race apprehends the continuity of
its history, that individual men and gener
ations derive increasing incentives to
action, that consolation is derived in hours
of disaster, and although few of the actors
whose memories are here preserved could
formulate this philosophy, they lived and
toiled in the possession of the satisfaction
it brings. They knew that through all
time their sacrifices would blossom in a be
nign harvest of good to be garnered by
their comrades and the thronging genera
tions which shall tollow iu an endless pro
cession, and all embracing nature claims
them for hfr own.
Anri so here to-day with the everlasting
mountains as witnesses, a grateful country
proudly, reverently, kneels by these silent
graves, covers them with the' cheerful fra
grance of flowers and gives assurance that
their labors and memories shall live with
the eternity of its fame.
The concluding song, "My Country 'tis
of Thee," was then intoned by the quar
j
tette, and soon the mighty assemblage
took up the strain and swelled the patriotic
chorus. This ended, the chaplain pro
nounced a benediction, the people dis
persed, and the procession re-formed and
marched hack to the city.
DEATH OF JOHN KELLY.
Tammany's great Sachem is dead and
there is mourning among the brave-.
New York city could better have spared
many greater and better men, arc I we
say this without intimating that John
Kelly was not a man of great ability and
high character. Those who regard the
Tammany forces of New York as on ri
veting cattle and John Kelly as sitnplv
their herder and marketer, have cer
tainly misjudged the men and John
Kelly most of all. Kelly was born in
New York in 1822 and supported him
self from the age of eight years, worked
at making ropes, learned the mason s
trade and the printer's trade. He de
voted his leisure earnestly and succès—
fully to educating himself and was quite
a proficient in several languages.
lie was early in politics and a mem
ber of the Tammany general committee
in 184P. In 1853 lie was «elected alder
man and after that served two terni-, in
Congress. Twice he tilled the office of
sheriff and in 1876 was appointed Comp
troller of the city. In 186!* Mr. Kellv
went abroad and spent two years and ;<
half in foreign travel, visiting the Holy
Land, Egypt and Arabia.
Considering his surroundings, tempta
tions and opportunities it is a strong
tribute to the remarkable strength of
character of the man and his wonderful
integrity that his personal honor and
honesty were never questioned by hi
most bitter enemies either within .
without his party.
He was the idol of the Tamrnaa»
organization and no man of small r
sources or a weak character could have
held his place and influence asjlong as
he did. _
Death of John Kellv.
New York, June 1. —John Kelly died at
3:20 this afternoon. His wife was with
him. She is seriously ill.
J[Ne\v York, June 1. —Mr. Kelly had been
ill for seven months. During the last few
weeks he seemed to feel comparatively
well, but on Sunday last he was taken with
an attack of fainting and became weaker
afterward. On Monday he was worse, hut
this morniug an improvement was appar
ent. At noon, however, he began to sink
and the approaebiug end was realiired. Mr.
Kelly's death was painless, although he
was concious to the last. Only Mrs. Kelly
and her two children were preser t when
the patient passed away. Mrs. Kelly was
prostrated by the blow and is too ill to see
anybody. No funeral arrangements have
yet been made.
Mr. Kelly s- physical deterioration was
great. His hair and beard became perfectly
white. He lost at least sixty pounds of
flesh. His heart and other internal organs
were very much affected, although he had
no organic disease. He had several attacks
from which he rallied and he had as much
chance of recovering Iront the last as from
any time, but it was certain that he must
succumb at last. His condition was never
really critical until Monday. On Friday
last he had a severe attack accompanied
by two fainting spells, but he afterwards
rallied. He began to grow weaker and on
Sunday practically stopped eating. On
Monday lie did not leave his bed. Before
that he was about a part of nearly every
day. A male nurse and sometimes two
were in constant attendance. "Yesterday,
continued Dr. Keyes, "I told him he was
dying. He was perfectly conscious and
possessed all his faculties. He seemed to
show no regret, but appeared to be willing
to let go his grip on life. For the first time
he showed noticeably a rise in temperature
and became feverish. This morning he
was very restless. His heart troubled him
and respiration became difficult. About J
p. m. he lapsed into unconsciousness aud
death appeared in the distance. He died
gradually and suffered no pain toward the
end."
Flags at llalt*.Wast.
New York, June 2 —Mayor Grace to
day ordered the flags on the City HaM t<
be placed at half-mast in respect to the
memory of John Kelly.
Death ot Ilayeniyer.
Babylon, L. I., June 2.—Henry Kave
mver, sugar refiner, died suddenly at his
home, near this place, this morning. Me
participated iu the decoration day ex
ercises, acting with the Old Guard as es
cort to President Cleveland.
• -----♦ • —
Arriva! bl the itnde.
■Washington, June 2. —Miss Folsom
arrived safely iu Washington shortly after
5:30 this morning and was met by Cel. La
mont. Ther- were very few persons in the
Baltimore & Potomac depot when the tram
arrived, although it was broad daylight.
The train was composed of four cars and
President Roberts' private car, the latter
being occupied by Miss Folsom and party.
While Col. 1-amout was hurrying down
the platform, Benjamin Folsom stepped
out on the rear platform of the car. He
was dressed iu a mixed suit of brown, with
a white derby aud carried a »lark spring
overcoat on his arm. Miss Folsom pres
ently alighted. She was dressed in black
and wore a wrap of tin- same color to pro
tect her from the morning air, a stylish
hat, trimmed with white and black ribbons
and black kid gloves. She is ot medium
size aud her manner was shy aud restless
She was escorted by Col. Iauuont to the
carriage and was driven direct to the White
House with Mrs. Foisom, who was dressed
in black aud looked a little tired, and Mrs.
Rogers of Syracuse. There was a little de
lay owing to the number of Euglish look
ing hat boxes and shawl straps and other
bundles, which had to he looked after.
There was a slight misty rain falling when
the train arrived, but later on, the clouds
broke away and there is every prospect
now of tine weather.
The White House Closed To-dav.
Washington, June 2. The White House
was entirely closed to visitors to-day and
tlu usual afterunon reception by the Presi
dent omitted. Several express wagons uu
loaded numerous packages of various sizes
at the main entrance aud were at once re
moved from sight. Some were addressed
to the President, some to Miss Folsom, some
to Col. Earnout, aud one to Mrs. Grover
Cleveland, most of them undoubtedly wed
ding presents.
Failure.
New York, June 2.—The failure ol A.
R. Redy was announced on the stock ex
change this morning. The liabilities are
small.

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