Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1884-1886, 1885-10-01
COMMANDER STEWARDS RE-
SPONSE.

or the WclcOille you nave given thtni
o this temporary abode, within sight
If the proud capital of the great sol
lier state of the Union.
You have extended to them the
spitaliiies of the prolific west on
-uch gigantic scale as 20 leave u"
room fer Improvement. within ihe /
scope allotted TO you.
ihe encampment "a Ft. Scott pro
vided fer a >emi-ann"ai encainp"eht
aud soldiers reunion. leaving II to the
ouuca of admini-tra ion TO fix The
time and place. The council. which
at wichita declared unani-
mouslv in favor of Topeka, having I'M
bounded faith in the promises OF men,
who. if they undertook a hercu!ean
task like this. would carry il to a sue
cessful termination Your commit
tee have performed work that en-
titles them TO the gratitude of every
individual on these grounds. At the
cali of their president they assembled.
accepting the duties assigned them
willingly. and through the long, hot
summer DAYS, and up 10 the present
time. have labored assiduously that
YOU. my comrades from the Missouri
river 10 the raging Arkansaw," and
from the Nebraska line down through
the suuflowers to Oklahoma, might
have the opportunity to meet together
on he tented field in comparative com
fort and little expense and enjoy sweet
intercoure of friends whom you may
not have seen for years, and perhaps
will never zee again. In this connec-
ton we fail not TO express our grail
tude to the business men OF Topeka,
who have gone down into their peck
cts and placed the means at the DIS
posal of this gallant committee OF 80
TO defray the heavy expenses incident
TO an affair of this kind. The press
throughout the state and across The
border have been exceedingly kind
and liberal in their timely notices OF
this grand demonstration and the
various railway corporations have
touched bed rock in the matter OF
rates. and thus given the lie to the oft
repeated assertion that corporations
are soulless. You remember the occa-
sion when a gifted son of Texas was
led TO exclaiin. "What are we here
for:'' The loaves and the fishes are
not a significant part Of tie answer
of a soldiers reunion. We are here,
nv comrades.to recount the days that
are past. to revive their memories, and
To cement the friendships that should
| live forever.
We are here to grasp the hand OF the
| old boz : " no touched elbows in ihC
| ranks. who bumked together under the
| same strip of canvas. and shared alike
the tolls. dangers and viei-siiude- OF 4
| soldiers life We are here to fight Tho
| old battles over a@aln. and listen io
| the stories aud the old songs that be
| guiled away many Il weary hour II
camp. In the faces before me. corps
| bri.adc-. regiments and companies
| that once had an existence aic repre-
scented. No field of blood and earn gc
of bitter strife and prof. uged agony
of marches by day and watchr- by
night No prison pen brgotten %
hate and iieudisli malice. but what ina:
| a representative on this ground to
| day.
In coming together. let no one fai
to take advantage of the occasion fol
which the reunion l. partially de
| signed 10 labor in the Interest of ~
| Institution that has been reared upGr
a foundation laid by YOUR bands an,
cenentcd by the blood of YOUR Taught
| cred comrades some X cutv wears ~
namely. the Grand Army OF the Re
public. Our du'y is To stimulate ano
encourage the faini-heartcd, 10 bring
| the SiraggIcr back into line and 10 re-
new within ourselves the embodImcn'
of the spirit of 81.
We are here TO extend the !iv;u :
principles of fraternity and charity 70
every grizzled veteran who has
worthilv worn the blue, and in The
name of our heroic dead, place upon
his breast the insignia of an order held
| in yeucration by one whose name is
immortal, and proudly worn to-day
| by three hundred thousand of the rank
and file of that grand old army that
| followed him on to victory. We are
here to greet the loyal ladies of The
land. and bid them God speed in The
noble work they have undertaken
They stood at our backs in the day
when war winged its wide dcsol;i'
| ton" and ihev recognize the fact.
that their work is 10 more completed
than ours, as .he years go by. Al
every turn of the pathway in life they
meet Us. and The destitute and help
| less. bear witness to their noble deed,
of charity.
The generation Just coming on the
stage of action. many of them enrolled
in the national guards, larger mum,
Der in the Sons of Veterans, look iC
Us for guidance. our precepts undoubt-
edly are right, eur practice should
| conform TO them. Obedience TO the
laws of the land is just rs essential Ia
good government to-day as it was q
quarter of century ago. The Grand
Army of the Republic is an exponent
OF this principle; blot it ont and all the
sacred memories of the past are not
potent enough TO keep life in the or.
ganiZa,ion day. Loyalty, with Us
means one flag, one union and one
constitution In the measure that
YOU inculcaie this sentiment in tho
minds of your children, so il will be
measured ont TO the country when our
names are forgotten; condone treason
and make il co-equal with loyalty. and
YOU fertilize the serpents eggs that
will hatch brood To faSfen their
fanes again in the yitals of the nation.
Loyalty Is the dome OF our struc-
ture II took mountains of wealth
aud rivers of blood to establish it.
Let the message 60 forth in thunder
tones To greet the twentieth century
tia 1.-THE union must and shall be pre-
,crved." and in diving leave il 10 your
offspring a. the last will and testament
of him who fought 10 maintain ii.
In fec short days you will retire
o Your respective homes. The re-
union of 50 will be atnlc that i told.
Ii will live in your memory. let Us
hope. along with all the pleasant rec
objections of the past, To be supple
mentcd in the future, God willing. 10y
Others, until in his own good time.
the last veteran of the war OF the slave
holders rebellion. shall be mustered
out aud admitted into the grand army
above.