The Portland daily press., 1879-03-04
Portland Army dad Navy Union.

When Our veterans we're mustered out OF
service and the armies of the Union disbanded
to retire quietly to their homes and fresides,
affairs, they found a solemn duty yet to be full
filled. home charity deserving of their best
efforts aud noblest sacrifices. The widows and
the orphans Of their dead comrades, and in
many instances the crippled, MANNED or dying
brother-at-arms himself who had laid down
more than life and taken up more than the
burden Of death in defence of the old fiag,were
helpless to bear the feeble remnants of the life
left to them without the defence and protec-
tion, the aid and comfort, Of the able bodied
among his old comrades While the last echo
of the bugle was fading on our ears, and the
throbbing of the war drum hushed into a rev.
srent silence by the sobbing of the mourners at
the grave of a nations dead, the men who had
stood shoulder TO shoulder in che front of the
battle reunited themselves in q union of char
it3 and benevolence to the survivors, ard of
memory and reverence for the dead, aud bent
their best energies and untiriDg efforts to the
accumulation and increase of a little subscrip.
tion fund for the relief Of comrades and those
dependent upon them in sickness and for care
and protection in health, of those to whom a
timely assistance might prove almost saliva
tion. Then this little band, who had so long
served as protectors of our nation, reenlisted
as protectors of the defenders of that nation,
and the members of the P. A. & N. U. have
been quick and prompt in their work ever
since, easing, in so far as their means would
permit, the SLOW passage from the shattered
20 t1 = @hn fol nrfo
death of q comrade, and watching both at his
bedside and his grave
Since 1866 their work has been systematized
and regulated, and their charities extended
further and broader as the demands increased,
the treasury filled and their readiness to furn-
ish relief became known. To fill the treasury
they insugurated the course of entertainments
which have in years past proved SO popular and
often profitable, and jadiolously expended the
returns for their personal labor, and the sur
plus of revenue in caring for the sick and dis
abed, without regard to any claim of men,
bership 10 the association. With single ex-
ception the officers and committee cheerfully
render their services withoutspsy or remuners-
iion in aGy shape, and with spirit of fellow
chip for all in suffering. More money has been
actually expended for the reliet Of the sick aud
poor outside of the union than has been called
called for or accepted by all those within the
pale of mem bershp 10 the aggregate.
With the increased pressure of hard times,
while claimants for charity have necessarily in-
creased daily, the means of satisfying these
daily increasing dem snds have slowly but
steadily dimi nished. In 1867 their winters
course OF entertainments proved unsuccessful,
aud resulted 10 q loss heavy enough in itself,
but which would have been doubly severe but
for tue devotion aud business economy of the
management. The winter of 1878, in the
crowded field of course entertain ments, the P.
A & N. Q. made substantial gain from their
one grand enterprise, the Kellogg-Cary con-
Cert, and rested content with their success un-
til the opening of the present season.
During the present winter the management
used extrao; dinary effort, to present to the
public such first class entertainments as might
deserve and secure the approval and the pat
ronage of the discriminating public. Yet it
has been disastrous season in many ways.
Ia October 1875, they lost, by the non-ful6lment
of the Kellogg-Csry contract, some hundreds
of dollars. The Wilheimj concert followed
with another draught on the treasury, and the
Lilputian Opera Company, which had proved
SO universally popular and successful in other
citles, failed to pay expenses here, SO that not
only has their usual source of revenue failed
them but their reserve fund has been de-
pleted.
Once more the P. A. & N. U. promise usa
strong and powerful attraction in the shape
OF concert at City Hall next Friday evening,
by the famous Gillmore's Military Band, an
organization of itself deserving Of q full house,
and appearing as they do under the auspices of
the UAion we cannot but trust that the hopes
Of the management may bs fully realized. AS
home charity, the poor Of our city will reap
the benefit of liberal patronage, and as ma
tional charity, every dollar paid for tickets will
raise the relief fund Of the association out of
lis present weakness. 1t is not a pleasant
thing when a charity Of this nature becomes
impotent from indifference on the part of a
public from whom it has never solicited contri.
buttons, but only invited patronage for SO many
years, but the forced abandonment of one of
their charities. that of free bed at the Maiue
General Hospital, bed that we are informed
was never called for or occupied by any mem.
Der or dependent of the P. A. & N. o., but
was freely granted to and occupied by deserv-
ing patients wherever found, should be q warn
ing aud a sad lesson to US who have the poor
always with us, and to whose necessities our
eyes nor our ears eau long remain closed. A
noble Charity appeals to the charitable, not for
subscriptions but for countenance. Let not the