Helena weekly herald., 1885-06-04

tno memory OF him whose s"oe,
position, hereditary tendencies OF thougnt,
and whose social and politicai feia'ions
made him for time an antagonis'
cause his heroism for the truth, as b' con
ceiyed IT, his brave sacrifices ior WI NC
thought was right, and above ali nis nam
ly acceptance of inevitable results merit
nothing from you or from me pl 'he
most generous respect
There are two scenes OF earth which the
angels, in their realms Of eternal bcauty,
might rejoice to convey to canvass. Ihey
would need all the rolling grandeur o: the
oceans, all the beauty OF the silent stars,
all the good night tints from the sinking
sun. The first was on a bright Sabbath
morning, years ago. when an army, resting
In fancied security, was roused Dy the
beating drum to the lines OF battle. In
came the pickets, and after them the lnces-
SAINT patter of balls Bursting from the
wood on the right, amid the roar oil artillery,
rushed an army of seventy thousand ior
the assault. Regiment after regiment melts
away, until night kindly draws her cur
tains and the armies rest. The showers
descend aud the streams are red with ira
ternal blood. The cries OF the wounded
and dying are hushed only by the distant
tramp of reinforcements. The broken
lines are filled. The conflict is renewed
with the sun. The camps are retaken.
the enemy is routed. They bury their
dead, as numberless as autumnal leaves,
and the dispatches announce victory.
But on nearly every hearthstone, north
and south, there sits another messenger
with black wings dabbled in blood, and it
whispers a tale at which fathers bow and
weep, mothers shrek in their dreams, mai
dens cease their sony and their smile, and
the voices of all are cboked in a common
utterance of woe. That Is the field of
Shiloh in 1859.
And for the second picture take the
same beautiful landscape aud the same
majestic river. Almost quarter of a
century has passed away. The spring has
come with its annual mantle of green, and
mound, rampant and grave are enfolded
and embalmed In beauty. The shattered
forest is healed OF its wounds, or has been
replaced by q younger growth. The same
sun is shining on a Sabbath morning. The
birds again are singing their love songs
from balconies of verdure. Again are
heard the rich strains of martial music,
but they call not to conflict. Again are
encamped the two armies, but not for COM
bat On the battle field consecrated by
the blood OF their comrades the men who
had once met for mutual slaughter now
meet as brothers. The hands which held
opposing musketry now clasp in friend
ship. Around the camp fires they narrate
their daring deeds end extol the bravery
of the dead While high above, in eternal
calm, smiles the God of war and of peace,
showerng equal blessings upon a favored
land, bound and united anew by the ties
OF national harmony. That is the field of
Shiloh at the reunion of the Northern and
Southern armies in lS-4.
IL is not characteristic of the generous
Anglo-Saxon race; il is not the genius OF
the American Republic TO count its scars
or 10 nurse its grievances We are living
for the present and the future. The voices
Of destiny are calling us up the sleeps of
progress TO the contemplation of new sub
iecis, TO the solution of new problems,
and 10 the enjoyment of new triumphs.
The old Is passing away and all things are
becoming new. A new generation, to-day,
Joins the remnant of the old in this sacra
mental service A new tide of emigration
Is filing these mountain solitudes. A new
series of political problems is pushing itself
into the future paths OF the Republic. The
future alone can dispel the difficulties at
tendaht upon the formation and adj
mission of at least half score
OF Territories pleading for the en-
endowment of Statehood. 1t remains for
the future alone to devise ways and means
by which the discordant elements may be
knit together in harmony which are being
produced by so wide range of Latitude in
empire. by such manifold variety of pro-
ducts, by such rising multitude of con-
tlicting industries, and above all by the ex-
pertinent Of amalgamating into one such
an array of races, languages, religions and
political ideas.
Will the people succeed? Let them
cherish the valor of their fathers. VIII
the dreams of philanthropy blossom into
realization? Let US stand fast by the
graves of the soldiers, repair the crumbling
headstone and cover every tomb with our
richest flowers. Will the strength Of the
Union increase with its age and Its stars
Let this day be sacredly observed as long
as the sun in heaven shall lead the
spring and the flowers through the circling
zones of earth. Let us make this annual
Journey to this Mecca OF Patriotism, waive
the flags above the tombs, open our minds
and hearts to all that memory can tell or
hope inspire, and consecrate ourselves anew
to the labors of life.
And you, old soldiers of the war, you
alone can comprehend and feel all that this
occasion imparts. You alone can under
stand that from the silent graves OF earth
there come the impulses that nerve the
living on &C duty. You alone can under
a. Ill - h1S N
on generous sacrifice, and that every fallen
hero of the past, every brave and gallant
deed every grave and battlefield, has voice
full of warning, full of patriotic love, which,
above all the din and clamor of ensuing
days, shall he heard and obeyed. May
God grant you a long increase OF happy
days. And when the evening shall come on
and the march is done, when the darken-
ing twilight grows apace, may the Tecollec-
ton of your rounded life be as pleasant AS
your past deeds were brave. Your memory
will be preserved, your deeds will live,
ave, and your tombs, too, will be decked
with the myrtle and the rose. For the
children of tomorrow, taking the places
of all who are here assembled, will sing
the songs of a united land and embalm
the memory of every hero with the flowers
of every spring.
And sleep on, ye fallen heroes OF the
republic, In the shadows OF these pro-
tecting mountains may your rest be peace
full and serene. You changed the channels
of history. You determined the destiny
of a race The feet of oncoming genera
tions will stand above your sacred dust,
and there amid the fragrance OF flowers,
there in the golden light OF a more perfect