The weekly pioneer and Democrat. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. Territory) 1855-1865, 1864-06-24

closest Ofthe sacred brotherhood OF arms. IL
has therefore seemed. and it is fitting, that we
should erect upon this spot, sacred to us all,
an enduring monument to our dear brothers
who have preceded US on the path OF peril and
Ofhonor which it is the destiny of many of us
some day to tread.
. What is this regular army to which we be-
long?
Who were the men whose death meritS~such
honOrs from the living?
What is the cause for which they have laid
down their lives?
Our regular or permanent army Is the nucle-
us which in time of peace preserves the mill
tary traditions OF the nation, as well as the or
ganization, science and instruction indispensa-
bic to modern armies. 1t may be regarded rs
cOevil with the nation. 1t derives its origin
from the old continental and state lines of the
Revolution. whence, with some interruptions
and many changes it. has attained its present
condition. In fact. we may with prOpriety go
even beyond the Revolution to seek the roots
of our genealogical tree in the old French
wars; for the cisatlantic campaigns of the sew
en- years war were not confined to the "red
men scalping each other by the great lakes of
North America" and it was 10 them that our
ancestors first participated as Americans in the
large Opc, atoms of civilized armies. American
regiments then fought on the banks of the st.
Lawrence and the Ohio, on the shores of Onta.
rio and Lake George in the islands of the Ca
ribbean, and in South America, LOuisburg.
Quebec, Duquesne, the Moro and Porto Bello
attest the valor of tle provincial troops, and in
that school were educated such soldiers as
Washington, Putnam, Lee Montgomery and
Gates. These, and men like Greene, Wayne,
Knox and Steuben were the fathers of our per-
manent army, and under them our troops ac-
quired that discipline and steadiness which en-
abled them % meet upon equal terms and Of
ten to defeat the tried veterans OF England.
ho nd nf Of ha nd
perusal of the dispatches of Washington, will
convince the most skeplical of the value of the
permanent army in achieving our inoepen-
dence, and establishing the civil edifce which
we are now fighting to preserve. The war of
1872 found the army on q footing far from ade-
quate to the emergency, but it was rapidly in
creased, and of the new generation of sOluiers,
many were found equal to the requirements of
the occasion. Lundy's Lane. Chippewa,
Queenstown, Plattsburg, New Orleans, all bear
witness to tie gallantry of the regulars. Then
came an interval of more than thirty years OF
external peace, marked by many changes in
the organization and strength Of the regular
army, and broken at times by tedious and
bloody Indian wars. OF these the most re
markable were the Black Hawk war, in which
our troops met unflinchingly foe as relentless
and tar more destructive than the Indians
that terrible scOurge, the chOlera-and the te-
diOus Florida war, where, for SO many years,
the SeminOles eluded in their pestilential
swamps our utmost efforts, and in which were
displayed such traits of herOism as that con-
memOrated by yOnder monument to Dade and
his command, when " all fell save two, without
an attempt to retreat" At last came the Mex
lean war to replace Indian contests and the
mOnOtOny of frontier service, and for the first
time in many years the mass of the regular ar
my was concentrated, and took the principal
part in the battles OF that remarkable and rO-
mantle war. Palo Alto, Resaca and Fort Brown
were the achievements of the regulars unaid-
ed and as to the battles of Monterey, Buena
Vista. Vera Cruz, Cerro GordO and the final
triumphs in the valley, none can truly say they
could have been won without the regulars.
When peace crowned our victories in the CAPT.
tai of the MOnteZumas, the army was at once
dispersed over the long frontier, and engaged
in harassing and dangerous wars with the H.
dams of the plains. Thus thirteen long years
were spent, until the present war broke out,
and the mass of the army was drawn in to be
employed against domestic foe.
cannot proceed to the events of the recent
past and the present without advertny to the
gallant men who were so long of our number.
but who have now gone to their last home for
no small portion of the glory of which we
boast was expected from such men as TAYLOR
Worth, Brady, Brooks, Totten and Duncan.
There is a sad story of Venitan history that
has moved many heart, and often employed
the poets pen and printers pencil. 1t is of an
old man whose long life was gloomily spent in
the service of the State as warrior and a
statesman, and who, when his hair was white
and his feeble limbs could scarce carry his bent
form toward the grave, attained the highest
honor that Venitian citizen could attain.
He was Doge of Venice. Convicted of trea-
son against the State, he not only lost his life
but suffered besides penalty which will en-
dure as long as the name of Venice Is remem-
bered. The spot where his portrait should
have hung in the great hall of the Doge's pal
ace was yelled with black, and there still the
frame remains with its black mass of canvass
and this vacant frame is the most conspicuous
il the long line of effigies of illustrious Doges
Oh, that such pail as that which replaces the
portrait of MaurInO Farieno could conceal from
history the names OF tE Ose, once our comrades,
who are now in arms against the flag under
which we fought side by side in years gone by.
But no veil, however thick, can cover the an
guish that fills our hearts when we look back
upon the sad memory of the past, and recall
the affection and respect we entertained to-
ward men against whom it is now our duty to
act in mortal combat. Would that the courage,
ability, and steadtastness they display had been
employed in the defeuse OF the stars and stripes
against foreign foe, rather than in this faIui-
tious and unjustifable rebellion, which could
not have been SO long maintained but for the
skill and energy of these our former comrades
GENERAL SCOTT.
But we have reason to rejoice that upon this
day, SO sacred and eventful for US, one grand
old mortal moi ument of the past still lifts high
his head among U.S. and should have graced by
his presence the conservation of this tomb by
his children. We may well be proud that we
are here commanded by the hero who purchas-
ed victory with his blood near the great waters
OF Niagara who repeated and eclipsed the
achievements OF Corles who, althoueh a con-
summale and confident commander, ever pre-
terred, when duty and honor would permit,
the olive branch Of peace to the blood stained
laurelS of war; and who stands at the close of
a long, glorious and even.tul lite living col
umn of granite, against which have beaten in
vain alike the Establishments and storms of
treason. His name will ever be ono Ut our
proudest boasts and most moving inspirations.
In long distant ages, when this incipient
monument has become venerable moss clad,
and perhaps ruinous; when the names inscrib-
read them indlstinct mementOes of the almost
mythical past the name of Winfield Scott will
still be clear cut upon the memory OF all, like
the still fresh carving upon the monuments Of
long.tOrgOtten PharaOh's.
THE REGULAR ARMY IN THE PRESENT WAR;
But it is time TO approach the present In the
war which now shakes the land TO its fOunda-
lion the regular army has borne most homer
aole part Too few III numbers u act by them.
selves, regular regiments have participated in
every haf in thu pQs tlft hoSo