The Fremont weekly journal. [volume] (Fremont, Sandusky County, Ohio) 1867-1877, 1870-06-10


What though he fJIl at the BATTLES close,
In the 4ush of victory won ho goes,
With martial music and waving plume,
From q field of funG 20 D lauroled tomb.
But the soldier removed from the ezcitements
Of strife,
With faint hope to cheer him in the battle OF
life,
Alone in his weakness or strength must 20:
He may not 1y on this fated field,
He wust win or lose, he must conquer OF die.
This terrible agony is better under.
stood when we learn that this vast
army, thirteen thousand seven hun
dred and sixteen strong, followed so
rapidly in close column that it took
but faw days over one year to
march this long column through the
gates of death to the silent bivouac
ofthe dead. This constant funeral
procession had no nodding plumes,
or gazing crowd, or weeping friends
no word of prayer or song OF
praise.
We come to-day to blend all these
sacred rites, and tender expressions
in the services Of this hour.
If Simonides could inscribe on
the monument erected in the Strait
of Thermopyl,e, to perpetuate the
memory of the Spartans who died so
bravely for Greece, go, passenger,
and tell Lacedemon that we died
here in obedience to her sacred
laws, we may write upon the monu
ment which should be placed in the
center of this sacred spot, Go pass
enger, and tell the ,eofjd that we
gloriously died as martyres to free
DOM"
In the presence of the graves OF
such men who sought the distinction
OF doing their duty that their country
might be saved, party and sectional
strife, and the mad ambition fol
place and power should be rebuked
That our work may be well done
to-day.
/. Let us plant upon the graves
the flag of our redeemed country-s
flag respected in all waters, revered
among all nations-the flag under
which these men were marshaled
and in defending it were made pris
oners of war. We honor these men
when we honor this flag, we honor
the flag so long as we protect the
weakest when doing right and pun
ish the strongest when doing wrong
.. With evergreens.
To keep in mind the patient wait:
ing. the heroic suffering, and the
noble daring Of the honored dead
and to remind us that all heroes are
immortal. In the tribute l pay to
the silent dead ! would not forget
that heroes. met heroes. They were
men Of our race, born under our flag
and worthy of our steel.
3. With sweet-scented yet frail
flowers:
To remind us that our memory
and offerings for these brave men
will perish like the beautiful wreath,
except it is enshrined in some per
mancnt offering to their dependent
widows and children left to us as
sacred legacy.
These flowers have value for the
beauty of their colors and the rich
ness Of their fragrance. Our offer
ings to the memory of these men
will have value if in the presence of
their graves we resolve to make their
dependent children the honored, ed
ucated children of the Republic.
These graves of the dead, like a
mighty host scattered in every part
of this land, are mute witnesses to
the mighty power which has moved
this great people, showing resource,
skill and ability to endure, dare and
suffer, Thank God, and our brave
comrades, we stand before the world
a nation, regenerated, united, babtiz-
ed with the babtism of blood.
To-day we come and the sacrament
is the sweet incense Of flowers, the
messenger of spring, the poetry Of
the Lord.
The great principles that unite
the Grand Army of the Republic,
and should characterize every law
abiding citizen, are fraternity,
charity and loyalty, with malice to-
ward none and charity for all. "
We welcome the blessings of peace
and pledge ourselves; by every pro-
per means to maintain it. If the
brave men in the visions of the future
could have seen this gathering of the
loval men and women of Georgia,
this beautiful decoration offags and
flowers, it would have brought some
light where all the fords of the river
were so dark and dreary. If by any
means this noble army could come
back and look down upon this scene,
they would sing as did the angels,
"Glory to God in the highest, peace
on earth and good will to men"
Let us turn away from the battles
and sufferings of the past to the
better, present and more hopeful
future.
There are those whose peryersi-
ties become consecrated altars be-
fore which they worship, where
reason and Justice can find no audi
ence and redeemed country pro-
duce no joy.-There are those who
see nothing in the present to enjoy,
or in the future to hope for, constant
" CRYING in their sorrows, "where-
fore have We brought us up out of
the land of Egypt to die in the will
nerness, for there is no bread,
neither is there any water. And
our soul loathed this light bread" T"
The Red Sea is passed and the
Canaan is before us, and we are fully
able, in the name of the Lord God,
humanity and liberty, with the in
spiration of the departed heroes, to
90 up and possess 1t.
We are already gathering glorious
fruit.-Not only have we secured a
more perfect union, established JUS
tice. insured domestic tranquility
but the general welfare will be pro
NOTED by securing the blessing ''of
life, liberty and the pursuit of hap
piness" to the millions who iRhabit
our rich and beautiful land,
Through the fortunes of war your
kindred are buried in the North and
ours in the South. May the pre-
sence of the silent dead still every
angry passion; and as we exchanged
M, fnr. mon d11rinr the war 50 Let