The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1872-09-12
0yTgxEM IN wAls-soxnInR IN
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Speech OF CAPT. BURDETT-WoRDs
ArRoros 70 THE HoUn

SPEECH OF CAPT. BURDETT-WoRDs
Arnoros 70 rHE HoUn
The following are the remarks Of
Hon. s. s. Buraett, Of Osceola, NO.,
at the meeting Of Soldiers and Sailors,
at st, Louis, ia tho Temple on We'd
ncsday night: II
Mr.. President, Fellow-citizcn and
Comrades: Tho chairman has made q
mistake In introducing me as Colonel
Burdett, for / never was colonel in
my life. 1 only know Of two honora-
bic positions in the army-one was that
of a private, and the other that of a
brigadier-gcneral Of the smallest sort
[laughter] and inasmnch as never got
above a captaincy, / always desired to
be known as private Burdett. Laugh
ter and applause,1 I have always
thought that among the offensives
which smell the rankest in decent So
ciety, is that of cruelty. / recollect
that for the last three years, and more
especially within the last three months,
there has been great hue and cry ali
over this country that this has come to
De military government.
There are two modest young men,
with nncxceptionable morals and with
all proprietv, driving quill in the
White House, belonging to the army,
and our Democratic, and more espe.
cially our hummer friends, are quite
sure that liberty has departed from the
face of the earth. Laughter.l
Now If so much alarm possesses the
people when but three military men
are gathered together in one place,
what will happen when it goes forth
to the people Of Missouri, that Ave
hundred Of the old boys are wagginq
their heads together hero Tonight
Laughter and applause.l
Well, now it Is not dangerous after
all, and | may just as we'll say here,
that there is no blathcr more contempt.
liable than that which in these modern
times, enters into the weak heads 81
weak men, who pratc in this free
land, about the danger Of military us
urpation. For what is the American
soldier but the American citizen p
[Applause.]
Now I don't know what to talk
about in gathering OF this sort. What
shall it be for just five minutes? Well,
THE BLOODY cIIAsM. y
How is that? IA voice, " high
"Give us what Grant DONE Now, In
the face ola congregation of this sort
who arc reviving the memories Of d
few years ago, only for moment, fol
they are not pleasant to any Of us, how
weak and impotent is the blather with
which flnnkeys are sullying the air by
talking about shaking hands across the
bloody chasm. laughter. The mos,
humanity thing that have noted in ali
this campaign of manliness is this at.
tempt on the part of our adversarie,
to make an evil where there is none
lApplause. To revive the memories
that are dead. Thus to tear open tht
wound long since healed, that they
may try their quack plasters on it,
[Appianse.l Why, fellow-citixcns, i,
has been three years, yea, it has beer
four years since the anger which some.
times Welled in the hearts at the bitter.
ness which gathered in the spirit at tht
memory Of the desolated hearthstones
has passed away in the sunshine o
peace. There is to-day nowhere in THU
broad land remnant, a reminder tina,
there dwelleth anywhere betweenstl1u
Oceans aught but brofhcrh06d, save
whAu e y6n ind II In the fanaticisn
and the blather Of these follows wht
never saw chasm, but desire to eros,
one now. Laughter.l I say it is al
departed, and brotherhood dwells be
meath the sun.
l.Under the sod aud dew waiting til,
Judgment.
"There are tears aud signs for thu
hlue-therc. arc signs and tears fol
the gray"
This Is better answer. This gath
erins, simply to revive the old sOcia
feeling, is as good an answer, at least
as this false shout attempted to b,
raised Gpnn lis.
Some one has said,
TALK ABOUT GRANT.
Well, that is n welcome subject Il
| me, and il is no doubt, q welcome sub
ject to all who are gathered here.
am not q man worshipper. l neveu
saw in my life any one man that
| thought was much better than any 9th.
| er man. There is n common level upor
which we pretty. much all stand L
by accident, or somebody else goes
to Consress--and 1t is an accident, you
know-we all stand together-wc arr
American citizens, and that is The
proudest boast we have. [Applause..
So ! say have never been disposed
to worship manhood, 10 matter ii
whose form it may present itself; and
SO have never been worshipper Of
q. S. Grant; but have endeavored
by the association and intercourse
which have had with him during the
last four years to reckon up the mar
and see what he is. / discover III
these latter days that our friends who
are SO afflicted at the sure prospect o.
his reelection Npplause] are cOnced
ing-Lord bless you, think of it!-that
he was respectable as general, but
are DENYING 20 him any civic virtues
whatever. My -citizens, history
has no. made mp her verdict, it is true
and years will roll past before the time
shall come when the record of u. S
Grant shall be made up, but SO far al
his record has been made-so far al
facts done and accomplished can testi
fy--l stand here tonight and say thai
there is not upon the eartha record Of
civic Kind so grand as that which
doably adcrns the lead Of u. S. Grant
prolonged eheers.l
1t was said by Junius iii one Of hi:
celebrated letters, that the condition OIL
people is the testimony out of which
shall come the verdict as to the wis.
dom of the ruler. Look about you
aye, look about in pride, my fellow.
citizens, and where will you find in all
| history, a nation that has prospered SO
grandly as ours since we called Gcncr.
oil Grant our President. Applause
reputation has swept onward in itsin.
crease, material wealth has been gath.
| cred within the last ten years, and not.
ably within the last four, until we can
say of that increase, that it is larger
than all the increases aggregated since
the day the Mayflower landed at Ply.
mouth Rock. This, the testimony
which your public record, which your
talisnian Of the census gives you as the
result OF Republican rule, and notably
that OF the soldier. Look at
OUR OWN STATE.
Ny teliow-citizens, that State which
is ours, not theirs, [applause, within
the last decade we have been war-rid-
den, famine, nor pestilence has
desolated our shores, but all over our
frontier plains the chimney has stood
alone as a monument that a hahitafion