The Portland daily press., 1869-05-29
Memorial Day.

Two Years ago it was stated that the women
OF Columbus, Mississippi, showed themselves
impartial in the offerings which they made to
the memory of the dead; for they strewed
flowers alike on the graves OF the Confederate
and the National soldiers. All will remember
the beautiful poem OF "The Blue and the
Gray" written in commemoration of this Incl
dent. Let others emulate this spirit Let
Northern women be impartial in their offer
ings and strew flowers upon the graves of
Confederate soldiers as q sorrOwlul tribute of
pity and regret. Thus may the ceremonial OF
Decoration Day" become truly national one,
and do much to remove any lingering vestiges
Of heart burning, and to bring all sections OF
"our common country" into harmonious and
fraternal relations with each other
SO says an accomplished writer in the Maine
Farmer. The question of discriminating be-
tween the soldiers of the two armies in the
observances of to-day has been widely discuss
ed in the different posts of the Grand Army.
The Washing on post has decided that though
no malice is cherished toward the vanquished
foe, yet respect for the memory of the dead
and for their surviving friends forbids COM
rades to honor the graves of those who died in
defending bad cause. On the other hand
Pennsylvania post has decided that the brave
men of both armies shall be alike remembered
with floral offerings and such poor honors as
the living can accord to the dead We are in
clined to sympathize rather with the magnan-
imous and soldierly feelings of those who are
willing to forget that citizens of a common
country ever joined In the desperate struggles
of battle snd spilled each other's blood There
Is nothing to be gained by perpetuating the
feud and cherishing the animosites that have
often threatened and once overwhelmed our
r
course, where the ashes of no Confederate sol
dier repose, the question is of no practical i'm
portance, but here, as elsewhere, the feeling
that leads to the one or the other conclusion as
to the proper course to be pursued is of the
greatest Importance. For our part, we have
only to decorate the graves OF those who in
our behalf stood between the Republic and its
enemies, but it matters much whether or not
10 doing SO we still cherish hostile and re-
vengeful feelings toward those whose deadly
bullets filed the graves. beside which we shall
stand to-day.
The Grand Commander of the grand army
whose campaigns substantially closed at Ap-
pomattox leaves us in no doubt as to how he
would decide. "Let us have peace means
'let us forgive our enemies or it is mere
glittering generality that means nothing
But it does mean something. Gen. Grant has
received the leader of the Confederate armies
at the White House. He has given Gen.
Longstreet lucrative and honorable position
and that, too, at time when he has given
such conclusive evidence of his unwaverlng
devotion to the just principles cherished by
those who elected him as to drive from his
support tho members of the opposition who
were eagerly drawing near in the hope that
they were about to witness another apostacy,
like that Of Grants predecessor.
Neither has the Republican party left us in
doubt as to what answer it would give. 1t is
not necessary to deny that all the political dis
examinations against ex-Confederates now in
force are chargable to the Radicals, for every
intelligent observer knows that these discrimi-
nations are not vindictve or punitory but
purely remedial and preventive of the further
perpetuation Of mischief. One by one they
are being removed. In some of the late Rebel
States not vsstge of them remains. In Mis-
souri, and Tennesses alone do they continue in
fall force. In North and South Carolina, and
Florida, only the exclusion Of few prominent
ex Rebels from Office under the 14th amend
ment to the Constitution of the United States
is left to mark the division of citizens into two
classes as respects political and civil rights
The preliminary measures for the reconstruct
tion of the States of Virginia, Mississippi and
Texas have been SO ordered as to leave little
doubt that all will be admitted to the Union
with constitutions that have in them nothing
of disfranchisement or prescription. The par
ty that elected Grant echoes his "Let us have
peace" and let the nation, standing to-day by
the graves of its noblest dead, say amen