St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1877-08-24

the States, and especially by the pres
ence of the President of the United
States and his Cabinet. The heroic
deeds of one hundred years ago were
not done to achieve the independence
or liberty of any one colony or State,
but to achieve the liberties of America.
Fellow citizens of this great republic
and patriot soldiers, lovers of human
rights and liberty-in the name of the
State of Vermont | bid you most
hearty and cordial welcome to these
commemorative services and hallOwed
associations. Well will it be if from
them we catch and carry away in some
measure the same patriotic devotion to
universal freedom which inspired those
valiant heroes on yonder battlefield, 100
years ago.
President Hayes, Secretary Evarts
and Attorney General Devens we're
each called out by the assembled null
titude, at the close of President Bart
lett's grafton.
SPEECH BY PRESIDENT HAYES.
Ladies and Fellow Citizens: l need
not say to you that am grateful for
this greeting. am greatly obliged to
those who had charge of this celebra-
ton for their courtesy in giving me an
opportunity to enjoy with them the
ceremonies of this day. l am quite
sure none of us ever forget the occur
renee, the notable event-the battle of
Bennington great an event toward
National independence. | am sure we
feel it has been fitly celebrated to-day.
Only think of the procession that we be-
held an hour or two ago; the citizen
soldiers, so disciplined, soldiers from
Vermont, from Connecticut, from Mass
acllusetts and New Hampshire were
here. (Applause.) But more touching,
and understanding that all the long
procession of the veterans of the Union
army, the survivors of the 1900 battles
that saved the nation and made liberty
throughout the world forever possible.
(Applause). And what eve was more
dimmed, as we saw proudly marching
with his comrades, than that MANNED
soldier walking with his crutch But,
my dear friends, | must not detain you.
| recognize that among the pages of the
speech to which we have listened, pack
ed full, as each page was With interest
ing matter touching on that great event
of 100 years ago, that no one page in it
was llldiH JulS, anu IOO
years ago it was meritoriOus to be "a
minute man to fight in the cause of in
dependence. Is there not some merit in
my becoming minute man? (Applause.)
AT the close of President Hayes's
speech both Secretaries Evarts and Key
were called for, but declined to respond
in but a word or two.
ATTORNEY GENERAL DEvENs
Was called for. Smilingly advancing,
he said: 1t is said to be one of the
maxims of the Chinese philosopher
CoLfucius Il have never read him. to
put few words in your speech that
more may be remembered" so | will
follow the example of my predecessors.
But | will detain you few moments to
tell you short story, story with a
moral. Perhaps had better tell the
moral first, for know that in studying
EsOp we used to skip the moral.
The moral of the story is simply this {:
| That in the cause of patriotism, how
ever weak we may be, we may all do
| something.
The story is this: Although 10th to
confess this in the presence of so many
ladies, it was something more than 30
years ago, that |, Il young lawyer, was
invited to deliver an address on the 4th
of July, before my fellow-citizens of the
state of Vermont, at BrattlebOrO. Three
OF four were waiting in the hotel where
| was stopping with my Grafton SIM
mering inside of me, great deal en-
barrassed us | am now. (Applause.)
Constitutional bashfuIness | shall never
get over. There came into these three
or four old gentlemen, one somewhat
younger than they, but still considera-
bly, over 20. ''Gentlemen," he said, 81
am not Revolutionary soldier, but /
should like to ride with the RevoIu-
tionary soldiers to-day. l would like
to explain my position and ask if | have
not a right"
Of course they readily gave him per-
mission. He went on to- say that when
he was boy, about eight years old,
his father kept ferry somewhere on
Lake Champlain, at Putnam or Wind
ham. | think there came to the river
to cross, while my father was away and
| was at home alone, two men, one of
whom seemed of superior rank to the
other. They were soldiers evidently,
though there was little uniform among
men in Revolutionary times. They
wished to cross the ferry said they
must cross. | said that | was only a
boy and could not run the ferry across,
and even if they assisted me, could not
get back. They said they would help
me to cross and some of the neighbors
could help me back. I undertook it,
and after had crossed to the other
side said to the superior gentleman
''When my father comes home l shall
not be able to tell him who it was /
have carried across the ferry" "Well,''
said he, "you may tell him that it was
John Stark" He said that six weeks
after that he heard of the battle of Ben
ningtOD, "And now," said he, ~ claim
to be the person who carried John Stark
across the ferry to fight the battle of
Bennington, and | should like to ride
with your Revolutionary soldiers" OF
course the answer was that they all
thought he was a good enough revOlu-
tionary soldier for them if he was but
eight years old at the time of the bat
tie.
The Banquet.
At the conclusion of these addresses,