The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1879-06-07

luz ieot lney SuOuld WOunu tHe feelings
or humilate the pride or touch the van
ity of men whom they met in social
intercourse, venturing an expression
of opinion with diffidence, and even
with an apologetic air. But when they got
the pen between their fingers they forgot the
amenities, and lavished upon each other the
words OF vocabulary of indignation of
which they were both masters. One de-
nounced the other as copperhead and
traitor. The other retorted by calling his
opponent visionary and fan attic. And
both were thoroughly in earnest.
1t happened that these men met one day,
were presented to each other, and fell into
long conversation. They were delighted.
One said - was one of the pleasantest
men he had ever seen, and the other was as
unreserved in praise of -. Ever after
that they had a respect for each other. But
the pleasant meeting did not stay their pens.
The Republican had liking for the Demo-
crat, but believed that Dem ocrat was advo-
eating doctrines that would lead to the dis
truction of the country, and it was not in
his nature to refrain from denouncing the
doctrines or stigmatizing as dangerous to
the public good the man who preached
them. The Democrat felt much
the same way, and was as unsparing as ever
in his condemnation of "radicalism'' and its
apostles.
These men were much like Garrison.
They had no hatred of each other, but the
fierce indignation of each at the pernicious
doctrines taught by the other, led them into
savage denunciation. They could, during a
truce, meet between the lines and swap to-
bacco and drink from a common canteen
but the moment the bugles sounded, each
weapons, and sought to conquer the other.
1t was not the man either hated, it was the
cause the other upheld, and the supporters
of that cause he thought must be stricken
down as enemies to good, and obstacles in
the way of its triumph.
The memorial addresses at the soldiers
graves which the papers are still printing,
picture war, the veterans say, as quite
different thing from what it really is. They
didn't do things after the fashion the ora
tors describe. They didn't advance upon
earthworks in serried columns, and mount
ramparts and form tableau there for a
minute or two, and then jump over and ex-
terminate the foe. What they did do was
to scurry along as fast as possible to get out
of the way of the bullets; and when they
got to the earthworks,-i they got there
they clambered over them and drove
the other fellows out-if the 9TH
ers waited for that. But the correspon-
dents the next day represented the column as
marching as steadily as on parade" The
orators of Memorial Day have kept up the
illusion. A Captain in one of the Maine
regiments, the Sixteenth, who saved the
flag of the Ninety-Fourth New York, was
questioned by Yorick Decoration Day con-
corning his exploit, an account of which is
war. 1t was at Spottsylvania. The New
York regiment had fallen back, shattered
and more than decimated by the rebel fire,
and leaving colors and olor-bearer-dead-
behind them. The Maine Captain rushed
forward, snatched the flag and bore it to the
regiment. 1t was brave, in truth reckless
deed. The correspondents who described
the scene, and the chroniclers who
have copied the description represent
the rescuer thus: ''He advanced far
fire, took the colors gently from the hands
Of the dying man, and, defantly bearing the
flag aloft, made his way, steadily as though
on parade, back to the Union lines, and,
saluting the Colonel of the Ninety Fourth,
handed him the trophy saying, 4 hope you
will yet carry this into Richmond" Yorick
read this account to the hero of that men,
orable episode, who ''laughed consumedly,"
and then went on to correct the account.
He saw the color-bearer fall, he said, and
the regiment driven back. He 'hated to see
the cussed rebels get the fag," and as he
was ''sort of handy to it" he rushed across
the clearing, pulled it from the hand of the
dead man and ran back. Instead of bearing
it proudly aloft, he trailed it after him, and
skulked along, with head down to avoid the
Workers, with the remark, ''Heres your old
rag" and they said, eve owe you one."
That's all there was about it. To Yorick's
mind the action was all the nobler because
the actor didn't know he was doing heroic
thing and looked upon the affair as a lark.
1t was like the Norman knight at Hastings
who led the attack beating time with his
sword as he sung of Roland.
One may be pardoned for doubling, in
view of this dressing up of very recent his
tory, if many of the speeches attributed to
the heroes of past times were ever uttered
by them Men may in the heat of conflict
strike out an epigram, but they have no
time to forge the rhetorical sentences the
historians put into their mouths. Everyone
knows how hotly Victor Hugo denies La
Gdrde meurt, ne Sc rend pas. Many older
sentiments, put into the mouths of men who
have done notable things, are perhaps quite
as apocryphal.
This Maine Captain went into the flag
business extensively. He seemed to like
fags-had an eye for color, perhaps. At
Fredericksburg his regiment, one that had
had no chance to distinguish itself, was sent
across the river, on the left of the line. The
commanders knew nothing of its fighting
qualities, were little distrustful of it, and
so sent the Thirteenth Massachusetts,, a
regiment of excellent repute, to support it.
The Massachusetts, regimentwas just behind
it, so that if the Maine boys fell back they
would fall on bayonets, and be pricked into
courage again. The fire was hot that De-
cember day, and as it happened the Thir-
teenth Massachusetts, was driven back, and
left its colors hanging on the low branches
of tree in the wood through which itpassed.
| The Maine regiment held its ground some
time longer, indeed until the word was given
for retreat. As it passed through the woods
'Black-eyed Billy''-that was the affection
ate name his men gave the Captain-dropped
behind and took down the flag, handing it
to its owners that night, and saying: ''Heres
something of yours you fellers forgot to take
with you." The flag is now in the State
| capital at Boston. After that day the Six