The Portland daily press., 1880-09-14
Garfield's Speech at Canton.
The Soldiers OF the War-Meaning of
Their Reunions.

AT the soldiers reunion at Canton, Ohio,
Gen. Garfield spoke as follows:
SOLDIERS AND FELLOW CITIZENS: Several
months ago l promised to come here today and
deliver an address; but lately got the prom
Use to speak Cancelled, and l came here as a
soldier and comrade, to seq you and enjoy
this great meeting Still, will say a word or
two if can have your attention and as much
silence as is possible in these forests-the for
ests that God made, and the forests of men and
women that you have brought here today.
look upon this stand and this great mass of
people, and ask myself what has the war
done to us? Why, in the first place, it has
brought these thousands of men to know each
other that never would have known each other
but for the war. The man that just addressed
you, the Chief Executive of the United States
/ saw first as Major of the Twenty. second Reg
flee, just getting ready to do his duty for his
country, in the great struggle. And you know
what he has done. Here turning to Gen.
Sherman] sits another man. L saw him first
on the field of Shiloh on a horse 16 or IS hands
high, and he seemed to be 16 or IS feet high
himself. Laughter and great applause1 He
had handkerchief wound about his finger
bloody with his own blood. | saw him and his
finger for the first time in the middle of that
fight, but that finger of Tecumseh Sherman
before very long got to be heavier than the
loins of the whole rebellion could bear loud
y,
whom l saw also for the first time in the great
struggle for the Union. And here is Mander-
son, whom you all know, that was lifted up
into the heroic proportions of man of war
and did his duty nobly. And here is Sam
Beatty, of your own town, who honored Stark
County and the Republic by his work in the
war. [Applause.l Here are these regiments,
these thousands, these soldiers, who went out
unknown to fame. Those who came back are
enrolled on the tablets of immortal heroism for
their country. Here they are today to meet
each other, to greet each other, to rejoice over
the work they have accomplished and the Re-
public they saved.
Now, fellow-citizens, I hear here and ther.
of man who speaks of these reunions and the
spirit that prevades them as sectional In the
name of every soldier who fought. I deny it.
There is nothing more national in all this Re-
public than the spirit that saved the Union.
[Applause. Voices, "That's SOL We went
out believing in that doctrine OF geometry that
the whole is greater than any of the parts, and
is equal to all the parts put together, and that
the Union is greater than any State voice,
Yes, sir, and greater than any part of the
Union, however large. [Applause and cries of
Good. We fought for the whole Union.
and the spirit that animated US was the spirit
OF nationality against the spirit of sectionalisn
and in defending the truths for which we
fought we are national to the core an section
al in nothing. 1t was sectionalism against
which we fought, and the -pirit of grand,
united nationality which we defend, and will
defend while we live. [Great applause Now,
therefore, in the presence of soldiers, in the
presence of their leaders, in the presence of
these flags and under them, we assert the
nationality of our spirit-the broad, embrac-
ing, benefcent nationality of this whole coun-
try.
What is more national as material thing
than the Mississippi River? We made that
river of one people from Fort Benton, far up
by the British line, down to the Gulf, and
every wave, every drop, from the lakes of the
far North goes singing of the Union all the
way till it joins the tropical ocean, [applause.
and we make the song of the Union ring along
its banks, and make the people that inhabit its
shores one people, l trust, forevermore The
great mountain chains that God made are one:
and we made the people and the government
that dwell on these mountains, in these val
leys, one, like the ocean-one like the ever
lasting hills, and we will be one with them
forever. And now, soldiers and fellow-citi-
zens, l thank you for myself that we are able
to stand together this late day after our tri-
umph and rejoice that those who died did not
die in vain; that those who live did not strue-
gle and suffer in vain, and that the old Hsss
that have come back torn with the contest are
full OF the glory of the Republic, and the vic
tory 1t won. Goodbye. Cheers and ap-
plause,