The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1879-05-22


sations of your hearts. For that vencra-
ton yon need no aid of association or OF
memory it lives in every faculty of your
being aud in the vital convictions of yonr
existence. Memory may lie lest in ob-
llyion-nature knows no apostacY. In
obedience TO her dictates, kneel i'm the
pride and the purity of fiial piety, and
dedicate this monument 10 the trutl, for
which your fathers died. Their justified
spirits are approving your act.
AT this point the four young girls.
dressed i'll white, who were to perform
the act of unveiling the monument, were
handed from the stand TO the base of the
monument by four onc.armed Confcd-
crate soldiers. -Four ropes were sus-
pended from the statue, and one Of these
was placed Ill the hands of each of the
girls, and, by means of them, they drew
away the veil. The names Of these girls
are Miss Chever McCord, Miss Roberta
Beck, Miss May Dargan and Miss Bev-
eriy Means. The onc-armed soldiers
who handed them from the stand were
Col. John Z. Haskell, Capt. S. l.. Leap.
hart, Mr.. s. w. Rowan and Mr.. James
Fraser
AS the veil fell from the noble and
beautiful and impressive proportions of
the monument, q hush fell upon the mul.
t,tude Tor moment as they gazed upon
1t, and then their admiration and SYM
pathy burst forth in rounds of prolonged
and enthusiastic applause.
a member of the Richland Volunteers.
who was on the ladder behind the statue.
placed beautiful wreath upon the BAY
onet OF the Confederate soldier, and this
( incident was greeted by the assemblagc
with renewed cheers.
General Preston then resumed and
spoke thus:
Ana now, my countrymen, standing by
this consecrated symbol of the grayest
event in our own history-thc grandcst
and most pregnant event in the history
OF civilization on this continent-if we
look back through the time of twenty
centuries, we may see the mighty repub-
lie of Rome glowing sublime with the
power Of thousand States, her curule
chair OH the thrones Of an hundred kings
and the arm of Roman liberty aweing a
subject world, PROSTATE ut her feet TO
the DEGREES of right and justice, when her
laws were more powerful than the com.
mands of men or the cohorts of soldiers :
and these DEGREES are still her monu.
mcnts, challenging the admiration and
the adoption of civilized nations.
On the tomb of Alexander Of Macedon
was written: "This is the grave of Alex
ander-his monument is two continents" !"
They were the worlds conquerors. The
monument OF our con9ucrors is consol-
idated power from the Atlantic TO the
Pacific, from the Lakes to the Gulf; the
graves OF our soldiers is the soddcn earth.
without name. IN which these women
three days ago placed pale white flowers.
iheir monument is subjugation and obe-
dience, honest obedience, to tho consoli-
dated power of their conqucrors.
True philosophy and the religion of
the Lord Jesus Christ teach us that the
hand of God is at all times in the dis.
pensatlon of Providence. We dare not
scrutlnize His purposes, and mortals' in
genuity cannot penetrate his designs.
May all his visitations to us be messages
OF mercy to bring our faith closer TO
Him, Tor the liberty Of people is the
gift OF God. This monument Of stone is
placed on the spot where these women
stood shelterless in the bleak winter
night, with their old men and half naked
| children, gazing thitherward ut their
crumblng houses and the things sacred
to God but not secure from man, burned
to the ground by those who had slain the
men whose cffigy overtops that column.
1t looks toward that scene which you all
must remember, for it is scared with fire
on your hearts and brains. Go. ladies.
and call your sculptor here and bid him
complete his haif-told tale and carve
there in deep relief your own images
crouching and shuddering and huddlnng
around the base, and then, if he can. give
1t the supernatural power to utter the
voices of woe and terror, as an undertonc
to the cracking flames of your homes
and the shouts Of your rursuors.
Is not this monument meant in part to
commemorate that scene? Many of Won
remember Columbia before that day anu
night. How beautiful the dear old town
was with its quiet, dccp-shaded streets,
its comfortable, chcery looking houses,
surrounded by gardens bright with ever.
greens and gorgeous with flowers, redo.
lent OF natures sweetest incense, its peo.
pie happy, cheerful and busy in honest
prosperous toll. We all knew each other
and every one trusted his neighbor, and
gentle charity waved her wand and
sccptre over us all. | remember it about
ten months before its destruction. had
come from the battle fields around Rich
mond, where the thunuerbolts of wa,
were flashing perpetually 1t was g
bright morning in the early May. The
earth was moist with dew, the balmv 81.
was laden with the perfume and spark.
ling with the glow of flowers, the shaded
streets calm and quiet as if the war va.
not raging 1t was very beautiful as
walked up to this very spot, as familiar
with every foot of the ways, with every
turn and corner, as with my own home
/ went back to the battle field far away
and came here again one March morn
ing. In hunting for morsel Of food fol
my wife and children, lost my way
among the smouldering and still smoking
ruins and was sickened by the stencil o
decay and death. The conqucror was in
the capitol there and in that temple
He was in your house and mine, and We
were shelterlcss. Like Sylla at Athens
he did not como here 10 learn .u- .,as,
history, but to punish rcbels-and O
course he could not pardon the living fo
the sake OF their dead.
The day is past--the scene partl,
changed. The memory is here-the re
cord is there and there. When writer
history shall truly recc-a liz, struggle
which ended thus, every leaf may bt
dripping with the tears Of grief and woe
but not page will be stained with
stigma of shaEie. These women ma,
wreathc their cypress around the fetter
of martyrs and plant willows which over
shadow the laurels they have won
their anthems may be wailng over un
marked graves and their songs sounc