Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1876-02-10
Patriotic Speech In Favor OF the
Centenninl.


A Patriotic Speech tu Favor OF the
Centennial.
[speech Of Mr. Robbins IN. CO. on Centennial.1
Mr.. CHAIRMAN: In North Carolina
there lives an old man who in 1851 had /
six sons just grown up to manhood. At
the first tap OF the drum the six sons
went to the front to fight for the cause of
the South. They did not stop to reason
much about it. North Carolina called |
for them and they went. Most Of them
were over here at the frs: battle Of Ball
Run, and from there to Appomattox
they followed that bloody and fiery track |
of war all the way by Chickahominy,
Fredericksburg, Antietam, Chancellors-
vile, Chickamauga, Gettysburg, Wilder
ness and Petersburg. There were not
six when they got to there
were but two. Four were sleeping in
their bloody blankets; one at Antietam,
another at Charlottesville, another on
the Chickahominy and another in Ken
lucky. Two were at Appomattox, battle.
Scared, to see the flag 60 down forever
which they had followed with such un.
faltering devotion. One of those two
survivors stands here and speaks to you
now, and he says that he has seen enough
ofwar, and wants. peace. He wants rec
onciliation; he wants good feeling; he
wants fraternity everywhere in the coun-
try. And that is the reason, Mr.. Chair.
man, why I propose to vote for this bill,
because I think it's tendency is to produce
that peace which We need. Whv have
we not had it! At Appomattox, Mr..
Chairman, when we were waiting to sec
whether old "Uncle Robert was going to
tell us to charge or to surrender, and did
not know which, went into the little
church which stood close by and there
lay large Bible on the stand and opened
it. The words which fell first on my eve
were these, and they seemed prophetic: {:
"Lo, the winter is past; the rain is over
and gone; the flowers appear on the
earth; the time of the singing
of birds has come, and the
voice of the turtle is heard in our
land" thought, Mr.. Chairman, it was
prophetic. 1 welcomed it as the harbin-
ger of peace. Why is it not peace {?
Why have We not had peace! The sol.
diers fought the great question out with
bayonets and muskcts and cannon hut
they have quit fighting. 1t is be.
cause few restless agitators still want
to keep up the fight, and their only
weapons arc jaw.tones. Great laugh.
ter. have no capacity, Mr.. Chairman,
to participate in that kind of battle, and
I am opposed to it as an unworthy after.
piece to q grand drama. want peace.
North Carolina, sir, has large inter-
est in those glories which are to be cele.
brated on the Fourth of July next. Let
it not be forgotten that she first spoke
the word independence at Mecklen.
burgh. Let it not be forgotten that she
shed the first blood for liberty at Ala
nance. Lett not be forgotten that her
sons. the mountain men, with the aid of =
few gallant sons Of Virginia and South
Carolina, turned the tide of the Revolu.
tion toward final victory at Kings Noun.
tain. And We are coming to the Centen-
nial, Mr.. Chairman, though we are poor
and some of US will come in tears, remem.
bering the past. Yet we are coming. the
sons Of the men of Kings Mountain, and
Of Guilford, and of Alamancc, to shake
hands with the men Of Brandywine, and
Bunker Hill, and Monmouth. and restore
peace in this country. 1t has been said
Mr.. Chairman, that the soldiers could
settle this thing if allowed to do so. Well,
that will be good time for them to settle
it. want to 60 there and shake by the
hand the brave men used to meet on the
field. admire them, love them, re.
spect and honor them. o, sir, with
what reverence stand always by the sol.
diers grave, whether he wore the ''gray''
or the ''blue," because there sleeps man
who dared to die for his principles. [Great
applause.1 I think of these things, Mr..
Chairman, without bitterness. because
you cannot tell me that any man died in
vain in that war. This American people
Of ours is money.loving, money.getting
people, too fond Of merely material inter.
ests, too sordid: and it needed the great
lesson of self sacrifice that it is worth
while to die for sentiment and fer princi.
pie. Our dead heroes have taught us
that lesson. Yes, Mr.. Chairman, we are
coming from Cape Fear and the Albe.
marie, from the lowlands and the noun.
tains. You will hear the bagpipes Of our
Scotchmcn and the bugles of OUT
mountaincers swelling the blast oi
the national jubilee. We want ia
shake hands with the gallant soldiers ol
the North. We hope to see such greet.
ing of the soldiers and patriots Of the
North aud the South as will show to the
whole Union that the hood.tide of sec
tional hatred has ebbed forever, and that
it remains no longer to float any freight.
age Of unholy and unpatriotic ambition.
And We want to show to the multitude oil
visitors from other nations how invinci
bio We are when the heroes of the blue
and the gray stand together in one com
mon phalanx Of amity and concord
There, my countrymen, let us renew oul
VOWS Of fervent devotion to that com
mon country which the righteous Arbitcl
/ of al things has decreed shall be forever
one and undivided; and. turning ool
backs upon oil bitter memories Of th,
past, and leaving our gallant fallen com
rades on both sides to repose in etremb
ling hope on 'sthe bosom of the Father
and their God, . let US 60 forward viii
courageous hearts and patriotic aspira