The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1874-08-29
SOLDIERS REUNION.
speeches Oh GOV. commensurate
Edmunds-COi. COrItss-Gen. Al
den-COi. w. G.. veazey.

Edmunds-Co, Cor,tss-Cen A..
den-Coi. w. q. yenzcv
al 'he CONCLUSION Oh Tue paraae the COM
mand was massed In front of the stand.
and Gen. Staunard stepped forward upon
mn th. rIo,tor,, o,d so;d I, owordod t;,,,
IL ""'' 0",''' " ",ioi"eu nun
great pleasure 10 introduce 10 MS Old COM
rades and citizens in attendance, the Cover
nor of our avn nohle litllc state
GOV. CONVERSE.
The honored gentleman on rising was
greeted with cheers from the old veterans,
and said, he hoped he was not expected to
make speech certainly if the General
required that of him he must tell him what
to say. Although. nevertheless, great
deal could be said, and he wished he could
say some of the many things that crowded
upon the mind on this occasion Why are
you old soldiers hereg You are here for
the purpose of looking each other again in
the face; OF greeting again your old CON-
rades of recOuntng tie deeds of noble
daring achieved by you of shaking by
the hand the officers that lead YOU ON to
victory. The speaker was here for another
purpose; he came not here with the laurels
oh hnr'U,S slTmntng MS proW-ior Nc was
mari in the war bnt ike Tic multimde
around the old veterans here was only en-
aoleu 10 pun OIL his hat and make his most
what they have done for the country. They
had, in the first place, crowned the good
olu sla'e OF vermont WIN the laurel OF re-
who could erect them IN ' INV onnSron ,rnU
manner on this occasion hr, ,,d,o,Iba,ase
thev did have hove to .1av n mon or,,,,an,i,,
able 70 address thon,
lie thonLed the sol1ie,e rrosort for tho
honor thev hod donn for thair s,ota, far
the libertv thev Ind beounathod ~ ,hnir
children hv cn,,rora and oarse,,ororo,, H.,
Tho nnrforn1onco ~ ,hoir di,ios as Ii.
Suprose. said fhe governor, Won had heon
defeated in tbe war and we subin~otod 70
the rule of rcbels We womb not ho,o
seen this array of soldinrv hero to.doy
these ladies' and centlempn yoild hovo az
pcared with Grief and sorrow mon their
Drows instead of the smiles of to-day
He then stated that he was clad there
was one present who had sometime inter
esting to say. and would now take Ris sea,
and become very attentive listcnee
rbo s,ooo., ,,.o,, ,.a,,, iii. -,..-,
"'' s'00'0'' wiz" '"u''nS aP-
pause, followed by music from the band.
Gen. Stannard then introduced to the as
semblare. one who was not 81 so,dicr In,
oro ~ vo.,,,.,,.,, ,.,,ao. .'.'. '''
'''o W '.'''''' '''0S' '"'S'
SENATOR GEO. r. Epvr-yps
F,llo,, (yyj-,os Jpe,,,,.,,., CHI, va,
''''"' ''" ""'H"'"' 'eeeT'
ms
NDt.r -, 81,
der, and under penalty of the drun-head
court martial, brought me, a simple militia
man, to face this great array of the long
tried soldiers of the republic. say it only
because know you are as tender with the
timid and friendless us YOU were fierce and
resistless with the strong and hostile.
!, then, will hold the skirmisb line of
your afternoon festival for little while.
and then, like the warrior who believed
discretion the better part of yalor will re-
tire behind the ranks of the regulars.
The occurrence of these reunions. from
time to time, brings again wildly to the
mind the nature and events of that tremen-
dous struggle in which YOU bore SO CON
spcuous and so honorable a part. We
can now happily 10 DIX mt them without the
intensity of feeling we then experienced.
and with clearer comprehension of the
elements of strength in the republic and of
the issues to flow from the contest.
The opening of the rebellion found the
patriotic people of the country almost
wholly unprepared to resist it, and unwill-
ing to believe that it was more than the
temporary outbreak of few reckless and
disappointed politicians in three or four
States.
The great body OF the people of the
Nnp tbnp ~ ha1 hi. T..I
fore them, engaged in a warm presidential
campaign, and when it was determined, all
parties had accepted the result as matter
of course They did not realize that the
time had come, or that it must come, when
the natural growth of the differing systems
Of society, north and south, would produce
collision in which one must be overborne
by the other. And we had forgotten in the
long sleep OF peace, that the wisdom of the
founders of the national government AM
our own state in particular, say so clearly
that the training of the whole mass of
able-bodied citizens IN arms was one of the
essential conditions of quiet and free gov
eminent. So, when the storm burst. great
waste Of time, and, indeed, of life, Oc-
CURED before those administering the gov
eminent could see the vastness of the con-
test, or bring to bear, from the abundance
OF men and material at hand, the efficient
organization and persistent courage that
made our volunteer armies at last the won
der and admiration of the world, and gave
us again the peace of n more free and per-
feet government than we had before.
Our adversaries entered the field to up
hold the ideas of an aristocracy as complete
IN substance as any that had existed. II
believed that labor was for slaves and ne
groes, and that it was not honorable for
white and free men. 1t held that educa-
ton should be confined to the few, "the
first families and upper classes and as a
consequence that all the offices should be
held and the laws made bv its own men,
bers. You and your fellow soldiers of the
union took up arms for the constitution
and unity of the republic, with wholly diff.
ferent notions bred in your very bones.
Your states, whether democratic or repub.
lican in politics, had always recognized the
dignity and duty of labor the eoual honor