Urbana union. [volume] (Urbana, Ohio) 1862-1872, 1865-09-27
PERSONAL EXPERIENCE.

More than quarter of a century has roll
ed away, since I first sholldered a musket
and packed my Lnapsack as private soldier,
And it is with emotions Of pleasure that Ire
cali those early days When I abandoned tie
college hall to hasten to Texas to aid our
cothtrymen in driving back the 1hongrel
hordes of Mexico-not Spaniards. but saw
age and degenerate race, compounded OF In
dian, Negro and Spaniard-such race Of
mongrels as viii exist in Chic, if negro eqal-
ity be established. But I must not digress,
for I was speaking Of comrades of by-gone
years. comrades long since died Of Houston
and his heroes. How often recall their
memorfes-these men Of 1836-7-8 and o.
With them I first commenced my soldier-boy
career-I first Learned to understand the brave
generous and sometimes naughty character
Of the Southron; it was there the great truth
was impressed Upon my mind that "tFe black
and white races are front the antirodes Of the
human family"
Never again did I expect to grasp the mus
llet or the sword bit how little We know of
the future. had become citizen of the
Buckeye State-a State which had produced
a constellation ofheroes, whose brilliant deeds
have shed Immortality upon otr country's
name. Again the war-drum beat, and the
tocsin called aloud to arms torepel the invad-
er from our Southern border. Again I be-
came q private soldier. By the voice Of my
comrades was made their Captain, and their
soldier-like bearing caused me to be chosen
Colonel OF the ID Ohio Volunteers. A year
passed away battles were fought, and vieto-
ries won; and as recognition Of the gallant
services of my comrades, I was promoted to
the senior Colonelcy Of the eight new regi-
ments Of regular infantry, mine being the
brave 18th.
I had been one year with Taylor, but was
now with Scott. Step By step the veteran
warrior drove the Mexican from mountain
gorge to mountain gorge, down into the love
Iy valley of Mexico-the Eden Of America
Five Bloody battles there were fought, and
FIVE victories crowned our arms.
Peace once more smiled upon our land; and,
by the treaty We obtained, the session of ter
ritory nearly equal to the half Of Mexico; and
from California alone, we received gold
enough to pay all the expenditures of the
war, and give US a surplus of more than six
hundred million dollars.
Time passed; broken health caused me to
seek distant shores in search of new life and
new strength; and was still abroad when
the echo Of faterral war CAME moaning across
the waters. Americans who were in Europe
yrieved as Americans nowhere else could
1rieve. Surrounded by tie gaudy trappings
Of Kings and Courts, the towns and cities fill
I'd with an armed police, and every society,
rom the church to the theater, contaminated
~ the presence otdetectives-those supple in
,tuments of depostic power-and we all
banked God that we belonged to Repub-
ie that we were the children OF Democra-
", and that our homes were unstained by |
,rothers' blood by brothers shed. To US,
hen, tie shock was terrible, though not
wholly unexpected, and in one instance an
American fell in his tracks, on the hearing
hat our old flag had been fred upon at Fort
sumter.
came home, ard dnce more was in the
ield surrounded by as noble band of men
i might better say "boys, but boys with
he beafts Of heroes-as ever faced a foe upon
n unsanguinsd Battlefield. Applause !
~ comrades were soldiers in the highest.
,oblest sense, for every truesoldier is at heart
gentleman. [AppIause.l Patient and en-
uring on the march, cheerful and orderly in
aD1p heroic in battle, and generous after vic
orv such was the character of the men
With whom had the honor to be associated;
uch is the real type of the American soldier. i