Daily globe. [volume] (St. Paul, Minn.) 1878-1884, 1880-04-21
GEN. SIGEL.
His Lecture Last Evening-Remarks by
Won Bodenstedt and Gen. johnson.

His Lecture Last Evening-Remarks by
Won BOdenstedt and Gen. johnson.
The announcement that Gen. Sigel, the dis
tinguished soldier and lecturer, would deliver
his scholarly and thoughtful address "Repub-
lie and Empire" at the Opera house last night
should have drawn out an immense audience.
Especially should this have been the case,
when coupled to the appearance of the staunch
loyalist was the announcement that Herr Fred
erick Won Bodenstedt the renowned poet,
would also be present and favor the audience
with short address. BE that as 1t may, now
ever, fair sized audience turned out, and the
deeply interesting proceedings were character
ized by rare enthusiasm.
A few minutes after o'clock Gen. Johnson
arose and introduced the distinguished soldier
and the poet respectively in neat speech.
In commencing he said that it gave him great
pleasure to introduce two such distinguished
representatives of their people as Frederick
Won Bodenstedt and Gen. Franz Sige-the
one a great scholar who had the peculiar honor
of having made the best translation OF Shakes
pear in the German language. He was also
poet of renown. and great author. and as such
had been signally honored by his own people.
Gen johnson then referred to the contempla-
ted trip of Heer Won Bodenstedt to the Pacific
coast and to the pleasant recollections hewould
carry with him regarding the city.
The speaker then referred to Gen. Sigel,
whose name, he said, was SO familiar to the
American people as not to REQUIRE an intro
duction. The man, he continued, who aidn't
know the record of Gen. Sigel was not famil-
lar with the history of his own country. Born IN
1924, he disting uished himself in his own coun-
try before coming to America. Coming to this
country he came to the front at the outbreak
of the civil war. member of the Eleventh
corps, he Won renown by his bravery, which
was crowned first by the title of brigadier gen.
eral and then by the signal promotion to the
rank of major general. Gen. johnson con-
cluded by saying that there were few indeed,
who had not heard of the men that fought
NIT Sigel."
Herr Won Bodenstedt then delivered short
and very pleasing address. He said that 1T
gave him great satisfaction to respond to the
invitation to speak, as it afforded him an OPP
portunity of giving public utterance to feel
ings of the highest admiration and respect for
the distinguished soldier and countryman, Gen.
Siegel.
In continuing his remarks. he said that he
appeared friend among friends and
that he accepted the peculiar posi-
ton. \ privilege only enjoyed by
poets, of being happy in the gift of voicing the
fame OF the really brave and great. He could
not help loving the name of him who
had done much to honor and
adorn the name of his own and
adopted country. In abiding to the services
rendered by him, he only reechOed the senti-
ments of regard entertained by his coun-
trymen everywhere. The name of Slgel had
rallied to the flag thousands of defenders and
guns. The poet here adverted to the reunion
between Gen. Sigel and himself at Chicago,
and the many pleasant hours passed IN his
society in that city.
In conclusion, the poet spoke of the cordial
ity of his reception in this city and said that
Gen. Sigel could not find more cOngenial
place as permanent place of residence than
st. Paul, the queen city of the Northwest.
GEN. sIaEL.
Gen. Sigel's lecture which followed was politico-
historical survey of the strong and weak sides Of our
government, illustrated by many interesting facts,
comparisons and drawing its conclusions relative to
certain evils and reforms in very forcble but IN
partisan manner. After paying neat compliment
to Herr Bodenstedt, he spoke of the Clements of
strength of our republic and mentioned as such ee-
ments the great extent of our territory, reaching
from to and from the great lakes to the
Gulf of Mexico, embracing three and q
half millions Of square miles and nearly
fifty millions of inhabitants; its immense
natural wealth, is lines of communication and
its being protected not only by the vasness of the
ocean, but also by the living wslls' of its citizens.
He then spoke of our political institutions, the
American constitution, presenting now, in its amend
ed form, great instrument of freedom; of the
press and its 5000 BATTERIES" spreading light and
intelligence into every nook and corner of the land
and acting in its mutfarious languages as an in
terpreter and guide to all the different nationaltes
represented in the great body of the American peo-
pie; of our public schools, with their "army' of
teachers and pupils, the finest army people may
possess because it is army of civilization, peace
and progress; of the English language,
the national medium of the American peo-
pie, and so well adapted to this great
service on account of representing in itself the two
principal elements of European civlization-the
Latin and the Germanic, that not only the Anglo
Saxon, the Dutch, Germanand scandinavian, but
iso the Frenchman, Italian and Spaniard or Portu-
guese could easily become acquainted with it, while
tho Irish people had already adopted as their own.
He also mentioned of the elements of strength
our militia system, in which rested our security,
which of the pillars of our liberties and. as
great reserve force of the regular army, would be
foreign enemy or enemies, wherever they may
GENE from. free people,
to remain free should principally rely its m ltia
Its citizen soldiers, and not exclusively principally
on standing army
Gen. sige then said that in spite of all the advar
tages mentioned, and others not mentioned, there
were many who did not believe in continuation of
Republican government, for the reason that the
country ''too arge;" that the people consisted
of too many different races and nationalitieS, dis
tinguisbed by different education, creed, manners
and passions that they could not we'll be kept united,
but there would be discord, separation and conflict;
besides this, there was corruption extravaganza,
growing tendency of forming aristocraiic classes,
to make capital not only predominant in
social point Of view, but also in
the direction Of pc itcal affairs,
and, the other side proletaranism, socialism and
communism we're raising their heads and there were
symptoms of anarchy, as demonstrated by the con-
hicts which had taken place in Louisiana, Florida
and South Carolina then, during and after the Pres
Dental campaign of 1876, and finally after the State
elections in Maine. That therefore on account of
all these Jhings "Str0nger gOCerRD1ent was need
ed to keep down disc der, strikes and anarchy, and
to control better the turbulent masses and danger
ous'' classes of our people, The lecturer refuted
this idea of "strong government" saying that our
government was strong enough, and In
certain respects even stronger than it
should be. He ridiculed this idea of stronger"
government and said that the condition of
things in America was not favorable to a sudden
change into monarchy; that even in Europe mon
arches, in the true sense of the word, had played
out, as no one of common sense and education be-
Neved in the "divine right" of princes. 1t would be
interesting to know what kind of monarchy those
desire who speaking SO loudly about it-an En-
peror Alexander of Russia? Then they have to take
care that day their emperor will not be blown up
in the White House; "Kaiser'' like that of the
venerable William of Germany? Then they have to
take his would-be assassins Hoedel and Nobiling
and his 100000 soldiers into the bargain.
Even the queen of England was more Of figure
head than an Empress" and if monarchy did not
exist in England probably would not be introduced
again or continued. The long and successful strug-
giles for the extension of suffrage, the downfall of
Disrae and the agitation in Ireland, did show that
the people of England were marching on'' in the
line of progress and it would certainly be strange
the American people should remain behind or go
backward.