The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1876-02-18
A MANLY SPEECH.

The Centennial Bill has passed, anu ny
he vote of Southern Democrats. There can
'e no better answer to the furious Repub-
lean editors who would again fan into
,laze the smouderiug embers of sectional
late. And 10 is.notable that the most fero-
'ious of these editors are men "who
lever set squadron in the field, nor the
livision ola battle know, more than spin
ter" As an Offset to this incendiarism
We give the speech of Mr.. Robbins of north
Carolina on the Centennial Bill:
Mr.. CHAIRMAN In North Carolina |
here lives an old man who in 1861 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 aud they
went. Most of them were over here at the
first battle of Bull Run. and from there 70
Appomattox they followed that bloody and
fiery track of war all the way by Chick
ahominy, Fredericksburg, Antietam, Chan
cellorsvile. Chickamauga, Gettysburg, Will
derness and Petersburg. There were not
six when they got to Appomattox-there
were but two. -Four were sleeping in their
in Kentucky Two were at Appomattox
battle-scarred, to see the flag 60 down for
ever which they had followed with such un-
faltering devotion. One of those two sur
vivors stands here and speaks to you now,
and he says that he has seen enough OF war;
and wants peace. He wants reconcilation
he wants good feeling; he wants fraternity
everywhere in this country, And that is
the reason, Mr. Chairman, why propose to
vote for this bill, because | think its ten
dency is to produce that peace which we
need. Why have we not had it ?
AT APPoMATroX,
Mr., Chairman, when we were waiting to
see whether old "Uncle Robert" was going
to tell us to charge or to surrender, and did
not know which, | went into little church
which stood close by and there lay large
Bible on the stand and l opened it. The
words which fell first on my eyes were these,
and they seemed prophetic so, the win
ter is passed; 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.
Why is it not peace?
WHY HAVE WE NOT HAD PEACE?
The soldiers fought the great question out
with bayonets and muskets and cannon
but they have quit fighting 1t is because
few restless political agitators still want
to keep up the fight and their only weapons
are jaw bones, Great laughter. | have
no capacity, Mr.. Chairman, to participate
in that kind of battle, and | am opposed to
it as any unworthy afterpiece to grand
drama. L want peace; 1t is urged, MIR.
Chairman, that we need to save this money
this million and half dollars. We do
| need enconomy, but we need also concord,
confidence, good understanding in this coun-
| try. o! If we had faith enough in one an
other, if there was faith in this country, in
its different sections, and among all its peo-
ple the money would come forth from the
Golfers where it is now boarded, the hard
times would pass away, and general pros
perity would return. The people who sent
me here, it is true, sent me to help econo-
mize, but they sent me here also, or else |
have misunderstood them, to promote peace
and help bring about reconciliation and
good understanding. l vote for this bill,
| also, Mr.. Chairman, as a North Carolinian.
NORTH CAROLINA
has larger interest in those glories which
are to be celebrated on the Forth of July
next. Let it not be forgotten that she first
spoke the word independence at Mecklen-
burgh. Let it not 60 forgotten that she shed
| the first blood for liberty at Alamance. Let
] it not be forgotten that her sons, the noun
tain men, with the aid of few gallant sons
of Virginia and South Carolina, turned the
tide of the Revolution toward final victory
at Kings Mountain. And we are coming
to the Centennial, Mr.. Chairman, though we
are poor; and some of us will come in
tears, remembering the past. Yet we are
coming, the sons of the men OF Kings
Mountain, and of Guilford, and ofAlamance
to shake hands with the men of Brandywine
and Bunker Hill, and Monmouth. and re-
store peace to that country.
IT HAS BEEN SAID
Mr.. Chairman, that the soldiers could set,
tie this thing if allowed to do so. Well that
will be good time for them to settle it.
want to go there and shake by the hand,
the brave men used to meet on the field
] admire them, | love them, | respect and
honor them. o, sir, with what reverence ]
stand always by the soldiers grave, whether
he wore the "grey" or the blue" because
there sleeps man who dared to die for hii
principles. Great Applause. l think o
these things, Mr.. Chairman, without bitter
ness, because you cannot tell me that any
man died in vain in that war; This Ameri
can people of ours is money loving money
getting, too fond Of merely material inter
ests, too sordid and it needed the great les
son OF self sacrifice that it is worth while t,
die for sentiment and for principle. Ou
dead heroes have taught us that lesson. Ye
Mr.. Chairman, we are coming from Cap
Fear and the Albemarle, from the lowland
and the mountains You will hear the bag
pipes ofour Scotchman and the bugle of on
, mountaineers swelling the blast of the ma
tional jubilee.
WE WANT TO SHAKE HANDS
with the gallant soldiers of the north. w
3 hope to see such greeting of soldiers an
patriots of the North and South as will shoV
to the whole Union that the hood-tide {
4 sectional hatred has ebbed forever, and
Y remains no longer to float any freightage {
y unholy and unpatriotic ambition. An
A we want to show 10 the multitudes ofvisitol
!, from other nations how invincible we al
n n when the heroes Of the blue and the gra
d stand together in one common phalanx
e amity and concord. There my countryme
O let us renew our VOWS of fervent devotio
6 to that common country which the righteol
:. Arbiter of all things has decreed shall
IL forever one and undivided; and, turnir
y our backs upon all bitter memories of Il
n past, and leaving our gallant soldiers {
~ both sides to repose in trembling hope" c
:, "the bosom of their Father and their God
ii let us go forward with courageous hear
l. and patriotic aspirations in that path whiC
o. duty and destiny have marked out for I
te Much applause