The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1885-10-09
KANSAS VETERANS.

KANSAS VETERANS.
Address OF Welcome Delivered by Governor
John A. Martin ut the Soldiers and
Sailors Reunion. Topeka. September %.
1885.
COmmdpSsr Sterdrf, COmr0les Of the Grand
Army and Soldiers Of the Onion:
To me has been assigned the delightful
duty of welcoming to the capital this great
multitude Of patriot heroes. Yet 1t seems 10
me that words Of welcome are unnecessary.
There no town or city within the boun-
diaries of kansaS where the soldiers OF the
Union would not be greeted as friends or
know that the loyal people Of the capital,
one and all. will welcome you with q hand
clasp far more eloquent than speech.
They will welcome you as men who brought
from the gloom of the past the lights OF the
present and the hopes of the future. They
will welcome you as soldiers who eescued
brought union. liberty and peace out of the
smoke asA flames of civil war. They will
welcome ron n feilow-citizens whose
energy, enterprise and industry are building
up, here in the heart of the continent, the
greatest and most prosperous State in the
Union. One aud al, they will welcome and
You are survivors of the greatest war the
world has ever known. You were prominent
actors i'm the grandest epoch of history. You
fought for the nOblest cause that ever
warmed the hearts and nerved the arms OF
heroes. You have liz ed to witness the grand
eur of your triumph, and the growth and
prosperity il has brought In its train. You
are here to meet old comrades: 10 revive
recollections of scenes and events that
should never be forgotten: to sing old songs:
To touch elbows again i'm the steadily dwin-
ding line that once reached from the Rocky
Mountains to the Atlantic. And ! am glad
and proud to say to you: -All hail and vel
come. thrice welcome to the capital
know that dyspeptic. enviOus and small
soued people regard the fact that sold ers
reunions are. steadily increasing in interest
~s-,tb ots.d Atsfr ,sf aun
following a meeting similar 70 this. gen.
ticman said to me: 1.-The boys have had
pleasant time, no doubt. But of what prac-
teal benefit are these great gatherings of
eoldiersg They keep alive. it seems to me,
recoilections of a period OF strife and b4ood-
shed. and what good does that dor
Ireplied: my friend did you ever object
to the celebrat. on of the FOurta of judy!
That keeps alive memories of period OF
strife and bloodshed. Yet We have been eel
ebrsting the Glorious Fourth for over q
hundred years. and nobody has ever objected
that it did no good to celebrate it"
Similar objections are sonnet mes made to
the Grand Army of the Republic" Ii is
sad that such an organization not only keeps
alive the memories of war. but perpetuates
the feelings and prejudices of period when
the land was a1ame with passion: and that
there is something of egotism in these aSs0-
ciatiope and assemblages of men to celebrate
events in which they were actors.
unions and the Grand Army organization do
all this. and are all this. make no apol gies
for them On the contrary, l rejoice that the
with the men who wore the blue, and
that soldiers reunions and camp ares are
held with more and more frequency. When
the people cease to remember that there
have been times when men cheerfuiiy per-
lied health and life for good cause. they
cease to believe in SUCH a thing as patriot
ism. There is something in example. and
these organizations of old soldiers these re-
unions of old soldiers. reviving recollections
of the old days, when nearly three million
Of @lS<.,
monplace lives and glorfed a cause by pa
sient endurance of harriships and prvCtions.
and the herosm of death-this example
can not be without its uses in teaching the
younger generations of Americans. enjoy
ing the birthright won at Yorktown and
preserved at ApDomattOx. that love of cOun-
try. courage, and devotion TO duty should
endure forever.
And why should not the memories of the
late war be kept alive? Was there ever,
since the morning stars sang together,
more patriotic. holier, q greater war than
shat wag~l for the Union. We have been
celebrating the Declaration of Independence,
as l have said. for over century. Yet the
total free population of the Amer can Col
onies AT the outbreak of the Revolutionary
war. WAS in round numbers, 1884, 200 less than
the number of Union soldiers mustered into
service during the late civil war. The CONT
mental army. during the Revolutionary war.
never exceeded 5000 men. present aud alb
cent: our army, during the war of 1872.
aggregated only IS. 1856: and the total force of
the United States during the war with Mexico
was only 1851. During the war of the
Rebellion LII 40S men enlisted in the Union
army, and from January LIST, 1863. TO May LIST,
ls6i. our srmy numbered, at all times. nearly
lG1.0oQ trained sold erS. Kansas alone fur
Hished nearly half many men for the
Uaion army rs were present for duty during
any year Of the Revolutionary struggle,
under Washington.
There were more Union soldiers killed in
battle during the war of the Rebel or. and
more died of wounds received in battle. than
were present for duty during any previous
T-..ss- L.
gagged. In the National Cemeteries. 3ls.s,0
soldiers of the Union are buried-more than
four times rs many as were enlisted during
the Revolutionary war. The latest and most
accurate statements show that a. 2Ss Union
soldiers were killed in battle; 49.26 died of
wounds received in battle: a,05S were
drowned accidentally killed: lA were
executed by che enemy: sa4, $40 died of DIS
case. and Il. l:i5 Of causes not stated-makiug
a total Of al.sla.
There were forty-nine engagements, large
and small. during the eight years of the
Revoiutron. There were 2.ail during the
four years of the Rebellion. And in each of
these the Union loss exceeded sou men killed
and wounded: in each of lightweight it was
over ,Ou: in fifty-two. over 700: in twenty
three. over 5000: in fourteen over 10000; and
I'm each of four, over 20UU.
The engagements, of the war of 1872 num-
bered only So andrhe casualties aggregated
5.6I4
In the Mexican war there were only twenty
one engagements in which the Americans
lost l,oig killed and & 40 wounded-a total of
i.4sg At the famous battle of PaiO Alto. the
American loss 10 killed and wounded aggre-
gated only la: at Monterey, ass: at Buena
Vista II: al CerzC Gortio, 80, and at Moline
nel Rey. ~.
The aggregated easusltios of the American
troops IN all previous wars were less than
those of the Ugion Army mt each of the
great battles of Chancellorsvilie. Gettys-
t.urg. Ch'camaGgR Spottsylvania, and
hardly reached one-hsif the casualties OF
Grants campa Sn through the Wilderness,
or Sherman's campaign against Atlanta
am not citing these facts to depreciate
the Importance OF previous wars, and GER
tailly l would he the last person to depreci-
ale the patriotism and yaior of the soldiers
who took part in them. / reverence the
memory OF the acknowledgements who, on
the village green at Lexington, fired the
shot heard round the world" l honor
ton bales at New Orleans. taught the trained
soldiers of Great britain anew lesson OF war;
and glory the fame our little army won
on the red hci<st eff Mexico. But l want to
make plain and clear rohe fact that the war
for the Union c1M UNNECESSARILY greater
in the vast arm ses ri called into being. but in
the hero;sm and patriotism it inspired, and
the momentous results depending on its
issue.
Why. too, shouE NOT the sentiments and
rrejudices of the kse civil war be perpetu-
Eted. The war SAVED the Union and eman-
. cpated a race A2k In that single sentence
glorious records of herOism. sacrifices and
patriotism are condemned! What e noble
lifting of all that is eIaltsng in human ma
tire. what q splendid raeerd of devotion to
duty, what self-forgeSfIlness end magnif
ces,t courage does it ssausd for! What eentu-