St. Paul daily globe., 1884-07-23

said that while the men in the ranks were
proud of their honored generals, they knew
that 1t was by their assistance that they
obtained this fame. 1t was thought the
effects of the men in the ranks that Grant
was enabled to march in victory to Appom-
atox and Sherman to the sea- He paid
brilliant compliment to the soldiers of the
war, and closed by thanking the people for
the hearty welcome extended.
Mayor Pillsbury was then introduced, and
proceeded to read the following
ADDRESS OF WELCOME.
! Minneapolis never had prouder day than
this And dno more gratifying duty ever fell
/ tony lot than to welcome to our city the
| preservers of our nation. You have come
from the remotest parts of the land to greet
again one another as friends and as COM
panions in arms; and as the years advance
the relationship becomes more sacred.
Words cannot express the pleasure of our
citizens in greeting you at this time Our
people have looked forward to this occasion
with enthusiasm and delight. By your pres
ence we are honoied. Your stay here marks
the most important gathering that could
anywhere assemble, in any country, in any
cline. You are the heroes OF the greatest
contest that was ever fought You are the
representatives of an army that consisted
of nearly three millions of men, You
fought for freedom and the progress of man
kind Each year that passes presents in
bolder relief before the world the results of
your bravery and devotion As the decades
pass and the events Of the day are forgotten,
the memorable struggle that began with the
fall of Fort Sumpter will grow in the hearts
of free men everywhere. Applause AS
gaze over the concourse of men who wore
the blue in this great struggle, and see those
who sacrificed home, friends, loved ones,
ambition, everything; men who did not count
their lives dear to themselves, provided they
might be able to establish great principle
and preserve our countrK, l can but thank
COD from the fullness my he heart. IT. ZAP TAp-
Veterans you are welcome to our city.
Soldiers who have borne the long marches,
who have stood in terrible battle among the
:. dead and dying, who in prisons and hospitals
have proved your devotion, we thrice
welcome you. In memory we go back a
score of years and see you in the freshness
and prime of life fastening from the office
the shop and the farm, pictures of Il noble
manhood hurrying to join the grandest army
that ever marched to the sound of fife and
drum. [Applause.l That grand army
gathered from all parts of the country was
strong and robust, and better than all it
was loyal to our country. The world had
never beheld so loyal true and brave an
army of those who voluntarily came into
their country's service. Applause. But
all are not here to-day. You went to battle
but many did not return. Yourranks were
more than decimated. Many of your COM
radaG Uh rnarchnd 11-ith Won cbouldar ff,
shoulder to the battle were left on the field,
some with their faces upward. Some were
borne away bleeding by kind hands.
Some bore the indescribable horrors of
the southern prison and others were the vic
tins of slow disease Their memories you
will ever cherish. You were victorious You
picked up the flag that fell at Sumpter and
have made it the emblem of freedom the
world over. Applause. To you, the sur
vivors, we return our heartfelt gratitude. But
your ranks are growing thinner Each year
a less number will gather at your annual
camp fires. Familiar faces will disappear
and your ranks cannot be recruited. As
some of us in our earlier boyhocd days re-
call the admiration with which the old
fashioned muster, amid the sound of the
fife and drum we looked upon the few sur
vivors of '76. so will men soon look upon
you And in the years to Some no person
can claim greater honor than the privilege
Of saying that his ancestor was one of that
great and grand army that fought for the
preservation of the government that our
forefathers established. Loud applause.
To-day you do not meet on the tented field.
You did your work so well that no pickets or
sentinels are needed now. The sword has
indeed been turned into plowshares. But
that spirit and energy which rallied you
around the flag has entered into your private
walks and has indelibly stamped your man
hood upon the country. Whatever our ma
ton has since enjoyed in its growth and
prosperity, is the fruit of our labor. No ma
ton that has ever existed has made so great
an advance in everything that goes to make
a nation great, prosperous and powerful as
has been maze by this nation since the clos
ing of the war in which you were the chief
actors. Through your struggles, America
stands to-day, the greatest and freest nation
in the world. Applause. Without your
efforts, free government would have been
a failure, and we could not have stood as we
do to-day on the western brink of the Mis-
sissippi river and gazed on rapidly growing
and extending nation. Without the pros
perity which you earned, the struggling set
Elements around Fort Smelling could not
have expanded into these two great cities.
[Appluase. We feel that there is no hom-
age too great to be extended to you. There
fore we say to you. enjoy all that our city
affords. We shall take YOU to our homes.
and we wish your stay could be longer We
wish that our resources for your pleasure
were greater; but such as they are, we most
freely offer them. In the name, and in be-
half of the people of Minneapolis, most cor
daily welcome you all to our midst. Loud
and continued applause.
Senior Commander Warner, of Missouri,
responded to the speech of welcome by Mayor
: Pillsbury. He said he was elated when he
was introduced as general, but when he
came to consider what he had done he was
dwarfed into insignificance He was not
general; he had never been general, and
he would not even claim the somewhat
doubtful honor of belonging to that large
class OF soldiers known as general disability
If he felt inclined to quote scripture, he
would use the words of the queen of Sheba.
and say in regard to the preparations made
) for entrtaining the veterans, s'the half had
not been told.n He had heard of the bospi-
tality of the people of Minneapolis, but now
that he had an opportunity to test ii he was
convinced the half of it had never been told.
He spoke of the Touring interests of Minue-
apolis, and OF her great Industries, and said
2 he felt it was good for the &. A. r. people te
} be there. Referring to the history and the
causes of the late war, he
said that. as Americans, all
felt common interest and pride in such
men as Robert f. Lee. Stoncwal Jackson
and Albert sidney Johnson. But while thi:
was so they felt greater interest as citizen.
and individuals in such men as Grant, Sher
: man and Sheridan. While they were willing
: to clasp hands over the chasm, and to Lei
: the past rest, yet they wanted to write it in
letters OF living gold so that all could read