The Ashland union. [volume] (Ashland, Ashland County, Ohio) 1854-1868, 1865-02-22
The Epitaph General Butler
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IN0 EpIbHYM UOHCk6h DWACH
roi | mid ip9Hi1.lTi sinqah idgIm 4
% OnatHo 95th ult. General Butler made
q speech at Lowell, Mass, in which he
gave an account Of the management Of
his department In the speech, he uses
H,,.! q l...a.g .epcgig - 70 ,gl5iklsrsa 4
this Language : saasae-,ao ~ anna, - /
~ understand that there are those who,
were among my Old friends ip, politics.
lbut who, unfortunately, have lately ogone,
upon The otheF.side, who sneer an me as
,[tbe hero of Big Bethel and Fort Eishlff.
| / accept the title; they do me, honor
| lovermach. What was Big Bethel It
was skirmish, in which twenty-five men
were killed and wounded. But Big
Bethel was not Bull Run, Big Bethel
was not Fair Oaks. Big Bethel was not
Seven Pines. Big Bethel, was mot the
Ohickahomipy. Big Bethel was a fail
ure, but it was no disaster. No West
Point General commanded there. Iclaim
credit for this--that when we Of the VOL
upteer army of the United States make
failures, we do not make disasters. Stop
a moment and compare the battles l have
named with Big Bethel. Why, at these
there were more men slaughtered, and
homes made desolate, than there, were
leaves on the trees and the forests around
Big Bethel, not to Le numbered. But !
am the hero of Fort Fisher, too. We'll,
! Fort Fisher was not Fredericksburg
Fort Fisher was not Charlottesville |;
: Fort Fisher was not tie Wilderness;
: Fort Fisher was net Cold Harbor. A
|, volunteer General commanded at Fort
|, Fisher at each attack, One was without
I result, but, no disaster. The last was a
: success. llbonor to General Terry and
his braye volunteer, soldiers. NJ. ,.s7I
"Again, 1T is charged upon US that We
5 did not make as big a hole in the Dutch
q Gap canal as we ought to have made.
G 1t may be that we did not, although the
! Dutch Gap canal, was q success, made 50
Q large hole as made by the explosion ol
: the mine at Petersburg, last summer
e but, thank God, neither did we fill use.
lessly that hole up with American deac
II until il, ran blood, Renewed applause.
u I am, therefore, content-nay, elalu
,, to be the hero Of the comparatively blood
a less attacks on Big Bethel, and the Who'll
d lly bloodless failure Of Fort Fisher ant
G. though I do not claim to be the source 0
O. Fredericksburg, of Chancellorsville, o
.. the Chickahominy, Of the Wilderness, o
CT Cold Harbor, nor Of that charnel-hous
ne of useless dead in the mine before Pe
u tersburg, | nm prepared to taks the issut
y and hereafter, fellow-citizens, when 20
~ bear me to that little enclosure on tn
= other side Of the river, which hope fo
y as my last resting place, | pray you pr
~ ! over me for my spitaph: "Here hes tn
NJ General pho sayed he liyes Of has me
u u at Big Bethel and Fort Fisher, and ph
ler aever commapled the Army Of the ROt'
y, y, mac" I ask for nothing elsa- lGre;
20 Applause.] 'l sas o.oa Gu,, q.
M. 1t matters not in what estimation tt
ur character oi General Butler is hel
by large portion Of this country, an
;. throughout the civilized world, tho sent
: ment of the spitaph he desires place
over his grave when be is dead, deserve
| a.
~, commendatiop. General Butler profess
to feel that the slaughter Of our bra
IAN men in useless enterprise confers
Jus honor on him under whose direction
takes placs-that 10 the great hereaft
til, the name of him who irterposed to pI
CO. vent such slaughter will receive the fl
~. M vent blessings Of mankind. We wi
nm that President Lincoln could be hroug
Ter. to realize this fact. IF he were Undue
oas to feel Thus, there might be hope Il
aiu a the War would be brought to termil
was tiop without the slaughtering Of ma
in. more American citizens, The presun
his ton is that General Buffers sense
,srs !. s honor is not the most refined, and wO,
tov. % not, therefore, be over solicitOus as
lied the kind Of epitaph that should be i
res over his grave, but when he cOvets h
m ,mver or for bloodless achievements, iust'
re-. Of great battles, in which thousands
the American. citizens have been mang
ii. the and killed, how great will be thesttis'
= ton Of him who never cOu,pRteppan nan
at measures that have lead to such slau
pon. terings !-,Statesman' Gam 90 q i'''
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