The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1877-07-21

A Hawk-eye Fslrth-sf-Jlly 0rstisn.
fBy Burdetse, Of the Burlington Hawk-sye.l
Why have we assembled here t0-dayf
What means this vast concourse Of peo-
pie, these waving banners, these strains
of soul-stirring music, this Offering ar
ray of beauty, patriotism and inte!li-
gence? As I face this immense multi
tude, am impressed with one thought,
that rushes upon my very soul and
struggles in vain for utterance. 1t is
the thought that am not going to be
able to make one-half these people hear
. word I say. tits not . grand thought.
It is not even brilliant thought. But
it is true, and the truth is worth far more
than brilliancy. And I win tell the truth
every time 1 get an opportunity. 1t
isn't often that I get the chance. What
with trying to reconcile Tees weather
predictions and the Presidents policy, a
man has to be vigilant, and lie awake
nights and watch his chances, in order
to get an opportunity to tell little
truth, once a week, and yet, this has
nothing to do with the Turkish war.
Why, then, repeat, are we assem-
bled here to-day? To rejoice that we
are free people, endowed with the in
alienable rights of life, liberty and the
pursuit of happiness at long range. To
rejoice that the precious boon and her
itage of freedom is ours, bequeathed us
by the fathers who fought, bled and
died, that I and mine and you and yours
might breathe the air of freedom. And
we rejoice to-day, we are proud and
happy and glad, glad, glad, that our
fathers died for us instead of compelling
us to die for them. They were great,
great men. In fact, they were, many of
them, great grandfathers.
1t is sweet to die for ones country. 1t
seems to me that I, too, would gladly,
oh, how gladly, add my name to the list
of the great and good, and die for my
country-of old age. Iwould die SOON
er if it was thought necessary, but 1
haven't got time. I am too busy. But
if any sacrifices are needed next centen-
NAL, they may cali on me, and I will
either come or send q hand.
Our fathers died for us. They died will
ingly and gladly. But if they could come
back to-day and see what kind of a
crowd they died for, quarreling over the
Presidents policy, wrangling over the
currency, and some of them trying to
pay dollars worth of debt with ninety
cents worth of money, talking politics
twenty-three hours day and praying
so seldom that our knees get rusty,
drowned out by the rain, devoured BY
grasshoppers, they would, if they had it
to do over again, live nine thousand
years and only die then when they had
to.
And vet ours is glorious country.
A wonderful, magnificent country. It
is marvellous. AS a high school girl
would say, it is "nice." Look abroad
over our land, turn the pages of history,
and see'what the mighty genius of prog
ress has wrought. But one short CEN
fury ago the cornerstone of this mighty
fabric was laid, amid the thunder of can
non and the rattle of musketry, cano-
pied by the smoke of battle and cement
ed with blood. A little band of strug-
Cling, needy patriots, half clad, poorly
fed, with only few dollars in the Ma
tional Treasury. To-day the sun of one
hundred and one years breaks upon the
and-wherever it isn't storming-and
where do we standp A billion dollars
in debt.
Our fathers died, but they had no rail-
roads. If they had, they might have
died with less expense and trouble be-
fore they got to the war. Our fathers
never knew the ecstatic pleasure of lean
ing out of car window and getting q
red hot cinder as big as pea in their
eye before they could look at a tree.
They had no telegraph, and never knew
what a convenience it was to pay forty
cents to send a message fifty miles, and
then have the dispatch come tagging a
day or two after the man had died OF
old age. They had no kerosene lamps,
and they never knew what it was to
light kitchen fire and take balloon
ascension out of the same can. They
had no United States signal service, and
never had forty-five rainy days in a
month, with a tornado every wash-day.
Their wants were few and simple. They
didn't need a great deal of weather, and
what they had was regulated by the
ground hog, and that reliable weather
bureau never made mistake.
These men have passed away. In
their simple habits. their sterling hon.
esty. their GRAND patriotism. their nm.
selfish devotion to principle. thew mass.
ed from life into eternal fame. The
men of rs are gone. I do not know
where but thew have GONE somewhere
7 do not seq any of them here. If tbere
CO. y ap,;iI;nn - he oo VII 49, ILL.,
an ~ miGn =. ;.,..a
nnu o ou. -. na. =, 80 e - ' em ~