The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1875-05-31

made the king of Israel. And julius Co., {
ear, proud with the consciousness that his
fea,s of intrepid valor had raised the honor /
of the Roman state to the highest pinnacle
of it's history, was spoken Of even by his
enemies, and while they were plotting his
fierce assassination, aa the "Immortal Co.
sar"
The sentiment which calls together year
by year general assembage of our citi-
zens upon the occasion known as Decora-
ton day, has Its origin and intent chiefly
in the honor which we love to pay to the
courage and devotion of those patriotic
martyrs, once of us, but now no more,
who, having addressed themselves to the
task of countrys preservation, laid down
their lives in Its accomplishment one by
one they took their solemn resolution; the
path of duty was trod by each alone
singly they fell, though thousands watched |
them q personal resolve, an individual
struggle and solitary death brought them
at last, each by each, to his lonely grave.
We find them here, there and everywhere;
single perhaps, perhaps arranged in rows
Of green, by units, by tens, by thousands
no mountain township is without them,
many a city contains full regiment in its
chambers of the dead yet the national
courage, which We are accustomed to
| think and speak of in the aggregate, was
exercised by each for himself and every
hero whose last resting-pace to-day bears
the little flag which marks 1t as the grave
of Union soldier, or whose dust lies in
unknown and undiscoverable sands and
marshes, or is scattered amid the wild
waters of the sea, every hero OF them all
had formed his own life purpose and had
| deliberately abandoned 1t had suffered his
own mental pang, left his own friends,
parents, sisters, perhaps children and wife
had sought for himself his own path of
duty, and followed it ia his own way to its
same result in manifold methods of endless
variety. The death OF each, though ply
steal in its manifestations, was only posi-
be because of that moral power which we
call courage, and which alone made it pos
sble for each soldier and sailor to dare all
and endure all for the sake of his country
and the principles which the contest car
ried to his soul.
Therefore no subject can be more ap-
propTiate to this occasion than the exam
nation of this wonderful power, 30 eff
cient motor upon the springs of human
action; the presence and manifestation OF
!, which have created the conditions under
, which we meet to-day. There are exhibit
t tions of physical courage which are moi
5 to be honored but are intensely to be des-
pissed there are other manifestations OF
, actual bravery, resulting from such condi
f tons of body and mind as deserve no hon
or, although not in essence wrong or cul
e pable; there are yet again such instance:
r found of heroic devotion. even unto death
r as TO induce our belief that the result wal
2 permitted because the world was no
: worthy of such high exponents of suct
d noble aims. There is manifestation O
physical courage which is the result of IL
i, norance, there is another which is deriy e,
i from knowledge Some OF the most re
markable instances of absolute courage, a
u induced by the supremest exhibition of tn
n superiority of mind over body in overcom
ing the fear of death. are seen in eases o
>, such mental disease that the conscious in
- telligent operation of the mind is not il
q fact existent. The temporary insanit,
produced by the use of intoxicating drin
often give use to pseudo courage, no
founded on intelligence, not evinciDg tn
least possession of true mental resources
yet full of eager and enthusiastic bellger
ence. The sentiment of this rampant va
or is apt to instantly evaporate upon tn
first opposition of little sober authority
Again, instance of sudden anger often oc
cur, impelling the stern resentment OF al
ri insult or the bitter retaliation of an injury
or the unreasonable inf1iction of punish
III ment undeserved Such courage, man
IN tested without reflection, without know
le edge, and often without cause, can be com
Il mended by no one.
- There is a remarkable result obtaine
IN for military uses by a systematic an
re riged discipline, the object and effect @
es which is to exclude from the mind of tn
III soldier all individual judgment and deci'
:" ion, to break down and wear away what
81, | IF inf no fnun
o. in the minds of the recruit, and to develo
an the army into mechanical machine, O
which the component parts are only bel
TO together by the cohesion of authority an,
fear. Such an army is often vauable-t
he its owner is often successful-in enfor,
Il ing wrong is often terrible-to the OF
~ pressed; is often vctorlous-over trr
nc patriots Even our own American histol
e. affords ready and notable example. Eng
laad was enabled to prolong the Revolt
H. tionary war for years after her supply
-, men was found to be too small for h,
le needs, by the actual purchase of regimen
re of men for military uses. They were o.
da tanned from the various minor Germa
:, states. Nearly thirty thousand of the
:" mi3erable wretches were hired by Geor,
he III, and shipped to America to reinfor
II. his armv. Nearly twelve thousand ney
of returned. These poor men came far fro
willingly, on the contrary most of the
were pressed into the service by fraud al
guile, or by force and severity. SUE
were the human machines under the nan
ot of Hessians, that took such promine
part in the battles of the Revolution.
VI Another peculiar condition of mind, 7
IN sulting in courageous bearing, is oft
,w exhibited upon the battle field aud is of Il
no greatest practical use which is truly Il
"a result of ignorance, and yet as truly is
hu honorable and valuable trial. To illu
ith trate my meaning clearer here, shs
to ask your attention to an historic
IT, reminscence connected with SheridIn's far
~ GUS campaign in the Shenandoah Vale
A. the battle of Winchester. The Vermo
nts brigade was ordered to lead the chare
,tb AS they struck the marshy ground
90 seemed to widen visibly before them.
Vi extent was totally unexpected, and
ar crown all full regiment in gray was su
denly seen to be standing at their rig
I'm hand, not six rods distant, and coolly poi
-. ing in deliberate enfilading fire upon t
ch broken ranks of the Vermonters, as tn
led founder through the morass. The loss
re- five minutes, at this point, was one he
he the entire loss of the day. Up the ste
,., bank they struggled, being actually driv
iai forward by the rebel bullets from the re,
by There was now no semblance of an orga
led izatioD, but there was common impuls
nj and that was to get to the top of the
'' and out of the way of their immediate t
al mentors. AS one by one they gained t
m summit the earthwork standing the
,ed brought the thought to every one "caug
ha between two fires must we surrender
"o But no, the enemy waivers, they are
as treating. Our troops could hardly reall
las the situation. After passing through t
his jaws of hell, aud escaping death only
m oo.stu ,i'"' .ney iouna ,he'isei,vs o, ..
ore broken, the rebel works carried, everythi
his gained that could possibly have been hop