National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1879-11-20

statue upon the Circle every citizen Of Washington
Is greatly impressed. ! know every member Of the
Army OF the Cumberland Is. l know !
am, as your old friend and commander
aud thank you for having done noble work
sna zone ~ T9 S Applahuse me relations Pc
friendly and social nature than that of commander
and commanded. You know that it ls difficult for
one who has been associated In boyhoOd TO see
champion growing up in the person Of his compan-
ion and then afterward ahero. II is said that no
valet believes that his master can be hero. But
know the qualities Of General Thomas. l have
listened TO his conversations thousands Of times be-
fore the civil war we had been comrades together
before we dreamed Of civil war. You only saw him
in manhood, You did not know him as we did.
Van Vliet, there and myself are his only classmates
here tonight surviving the class Of ls36. we
years nfterward in the same regiment long before
you members Of the Army of the Cumberland ever
saw him. and before he ever thought of you. But
nevertheless l wish to do whatever l posi-
bly, can to establish him firmly on the
basis to which he is entitled in American history.
where Il was possible to attend In order 10 hear
others say what they thought of General Thomas.
Mh hen GHred in o 9ks IN Sas
to Us large an audience as this, he drew picture
which thought would stand forever-and still
will live forever in history. Again here, III your
own capial,when news came Of the death of Gene.
raj Thomas early in April of 1870, there were mem
orial services. On that occasion Chief-Justce
Chase spoke, General Garfield, j. d. Cox and said
something, and those eloquent remarks are re-
ono or two points made by Stanley Matthews which
pleased me very much. begyou will allow me to
refer to them. Thomas began at the bottom of the
ladder as soldier. lie was second lieutenant
before he was first lieutenant, captain before
major Il lieutenant before a colonel, and
acknowledgement before majorgeneral. He was
one who built his character the foun lHton rock.
His reputation was not one that sprang up in day
aud was, swept away, the next The memory OF
George H. Thomas, lf commemorated in all the
granite that could be quarred in Quincy aud a
monument built as high as Heaven, II would be no
more than he deserved Another fact want TO
impress upon you here, especially Virginians: that
the day VIII come when they will make their pill
grimage Of this monument, and bow before II as
you have before that of Washington, and say This
man lived in the midst of q tempest that swept as
to perdtion yet he stood firmly by the Union, and
he Is our god" Vociicrous applause Thomas
will become the idol of the South, is my predic-
ton Renewed applause don't expect to see
this consumatcd. don't want to live That long,
laughter but they will have TO do It, One other
point although cannot interest you much longer
cries OF Go on Uncle Billy can't talk forever.
Laughter One other point ! want to
make plain and emphatic. that George
Thomas was indebted for his commission as Brga-.
dier General to Robert Anderson, and to him alone
was present myself when Anderson asked PreS
dent Lincoln to appoint George ii. Thomas Briga
ddier General. and 10 allow him TO so with him to
Kentucky Tho promise was fulfilled, and you
owe this debt of gratitude to him for having such
commander; and still there are men writing and
publishing that Robert Anderson was not true II
Washington was traitor, so was Anderson. lie
had pure and god-likc nature, aud could not
think wrong. aud any ono speaking about his be-
Ing q traitor 10 his country don't want to hear
him or to say anything TO him. lie had better stop
writing, that's all. Laughter George ii. Thomas
and Robert Anderson's trip, to Kentucky was the
Cumberland and it was their valor and the
courageous conduct Of you men that gained for the
Army of the Cumberland the reputation 1t bears.
The next on the programme was music by
the Marine Band, followed by the recitation,
by Miss Annie Story, of the following poem