The daily phoenix. [volume] (Columbia, S.C.) 1865-1878, 1869-07-08
General 9rendle &C osttysbure,

suo BEeRb VictOry Wh1ch the 6O-CQlI6d
army OF the Union and the Constitu-
tion, under General Meade, late disunion
and Unconstitutional satrap in Georgia,
won from the Southern army of inde-
pendence under General Lee. At the
Inauguration of this monument. General
Meade delivered u brief address. He
opened his speech by contrasting the
different scenes of 1868 and 1862 He
then explained how he had consented to
make spectacle OF himself on each sue
ceeding anniversary Of the battle, at the
request OF the. managers of the show.
lie dropped a sincere tear or two over
his fallen Heterogeneous, and insisted
that they died to defend the Government
OF our forefathers. He did not say that,
thus dying, they had died for fiction.
On the contrary, he really seemed to
think that the battle of Gettysburg and
George Meade had saved the republic
just as it existed in the days of Jefferson
and Buchanan. Sublimely impressed
with an idea of this character-at which
even the New York Herald and Imperial
ist never cease guffawing-Gen. Meade
squeezed his briny handkerchief over
tho wreck, the ruin and the fatality of
war, and, for the moment, forgetful of
the Columbus prisoners, he went into
perfect sweat-box of pathos. At this
point, he deemed it convenient to inter
polate delicate pt rsonal allusion to his
distinguished self. Thus:
''At the same time, I feel gratitude
and JOY; gratitude to the Almighty, who
directed the event, and who selected me
as IN humble instrument, with those
then around me upon this field, to OBJ
tain that decisive victory which turned
the tide of that great war, and settled
forever, L trust. in this country, the
principles of personal liberty and con-
stitntlonal freedom" Applause.
That little hint about decisive victory
(which turned the tide," etc., will be
charming reading for the President-Gen-
eral, and coming, as it does. Immediately
upon tho heels of Andrew Johnson's ter
rifle onslaught, must make Grant double
his rations of cigars and juleps. But what
amusing reading the last clause of this
paragraph will be for Edman Spangler,
to sundry people of Texas, to some peo-
pie In Georgia, and to the public gene
rally OF the ten Southern States. II the
dead hear, what commotion there will
be In the spiritual world at this awful
mockery. Why the shade of Mrs. Sur
rat on the land and the wrath of Gren-
fel IN the deep ought to torment the
slumbers of our late satrap for daring in
his vanity to assume that he, sweat-box
Meade, had "settled forever the princi-
pies OF personal liberty and constitution
al freedom" What arrogance! What
egotism! What hypocrisy!
After such huge plaster to his bulky
pride and self-esteem, no wonder he had
compassion on the half-buried Confede-
rates. Certain of his remarks on this
theme are honorable to him, and we give
him due credit in the premises. Take
this specimen, for instance:
There is one subject, my friends,
which will mention now, and on this
spot, where my attention has been called
to 1t, and in which I trust my feeble
voice will have some influence. When
l contemplate this field, see here and
there, marked with hastily-dug trenches,
the graves in which the dead with whom
we fought are gathered. They are the
works of my brothers in arms the day
after the battle. Above them bit Of
plank indicates simply that these re-
mains of the fallen foe were hurriedly
laid there by the soldiers who met them
in battle. Why should we not collect
them In some suitable place? L do not
ask that monument be erected over
'nohi' VO LOU uSk tilaG we should In
any way endorse their cause or their
conduct, or entertain other than feelings
Of condemnation for their course. But
they are dead-they have gone before
their Maker to be judged. In all civil
lied countries it is usage to bury the
dead with decency and respect; and even
to fallen enemies respectful burial is ac-
corded in death"
Wesay these sentiments are honorable
to Gen: Meade, though the Government
which he thinks he saved must bear the
stigma of barbarism for neglecting to do
what ''all civilized countries" have al
ways done. 1t happened that one of the
Generals present on the occasion, and
whom he complimented in high terms, is
now Governor OF Pennsylvania. A few
months ago, some acknowledgements
persons proposed to give decent inter
ment to such of the Confederate dead as
reposed in shallow trenches on the field
oil Antietam. The better to do this, it
was agreed that they should admit the
bodies into the Union Cemetery at that
place. No sooner did Gov. Geary hear
OF this than he sent rabid denuncia-
ton of If WhjnI,