The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1878-07-13
An Extinct Race.

ATthe decoration of the graves of the
Union soldiers in the National Gene
terry at Gettysburg, Gen. b. +. Butler
delivered an address on "The private
soldier in the war of the rebellion" 1t
was a touching theme There is al
ways wonderful pathos in a speech or
play or story founded on life that has
ceased to exist This is the charm of
"Uncle TOMS Cabin; this is the
power in Joaquin Miller's ''Danites,n
this must have lent tenderness and pa
thos to Gen. Buffers address.
The ''private soldier in the war of
the rebellion" He is dead. Or lost.
Strayed or stolen, possibly. We do not
know where he is, but he is not here.
He has gone away to some place Per-
haps he has ceased to be necessary.
Perhaps, if he were here, he would be
in the way. AT any rate, he is not
around. He does not 90 to the Legis-
lature. We do not find him in Con-
gress. He is not eagerly sought as
candidate for anything. Nobody ap-
pears to know anything about him. Oc-
casionally he appears at the pension
list, with one leg, wife and seven chill
dren, and eight dollars month. If
flour takes much of rise, he will not
last much longer at this rate, and we
will soon be deprived even of the occa-
sional glimpse we have of him.
1t is asserted and quite generally be-
leved, that at one time he was quite
numerous, and was even considered
rather convenient, if not, indeed, quite
Indispensable. 1t was found that up
ward of 100 of him were necessary in
order to secure mere line commissions
for three eminent and deserving men.
For field commissions for three even
more eminent and great men, upward
OF l,OOO private soldiers were neces-
sary. One thousand! 1t seems an
enormous number now, when, by con-
sulting the Congressional directory, we
ind there are none in all this proud Re-
public. But twelve or fifteen years ago
even that, incredible as it may appear
to us to-day, was considered a small
number There were private soldiers
and private soldiers. There were even
hundreds of thousands of them.
And they were useful. They duo
trenches; they constructed long lines of
breastworks, and then, when an enemy
came within sight, they climbed over
them and went outside of them to fight.
They worked and watched and fought.
Cooperating with great and eminent
men who have since passed to their re-
wards in one office and another, these
private soldiers sometimes rendered
very useful service in winning great
battles. Oh! they were useful. Some
historians have even gone so far as to
maintain that without them the war
could hardly have been carried to a sue
cessful termination. They were really
quite useful.
And now they are all gone. 1t seems
sad, looking back at the war, that none
but the Generals and Colonies and
Majors and line officers should have
survived its dreadful ravages. Provi-
dence, ever mindful of the wants of
great and growing nation, undoubtedly
took special care of these great men,
and, in her anxiety that the country
should not suffer from lack of emf
nent men, kind of forgot the private
soldiers and let them wander away.
And so they are all gone. Some of
them got shot. Some of them died
Some of them got married and moved
out of the world, to settle upon tracts
of Government land, where the Indians
could get at them more easily. Some
of them went into business. Some of
them are teaching school. Some of
them are driving dray. Some of them
went away and didn't leave their pres
ent address. But, all the same, they are
all gone, and it seems dreadfully lone
some without them. There used to be
so many of them.-BurtingtO1s HaaOk-
Eye.