The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1885-11-26
A Plea for Monuments in the Populous Cities of
the Head.

lOlS "A SE w EG0lGOs
Plea for Monuments in the POpul0us Cities Of
| the Dead.
To THE EDITOR: hope it is not inoppor-
tune at any time to speak about the National
| Cemeteries, where lie our soldier dead. Every
| body seems to be satisfied that all has been
done that need be done. The Government has
no doubt done its part, and that not grudgingly
Indeed, our cemeteries are well attended to and
kept in excellent condition, and the most
critical can take no exceptions to these beautl-
full cities OF the dead and of the constant care
and attention that is given them. 1t is proba-
bic that the Government has done all that it
should do or ought to do, for these cemeteries
There is something that still should be done,
not by the Government, however, but by the
people, the old soldiers of the late war and
their friends. 1t is this and / have spoken OF
and urged it before:
In planning and laying off the grounds for
interment place was left in the center of each
section for a monument. If single monu-
| ment has been erected on any of these sections
since they were finished in any of the Southern
cemeteries, l do not know it. Ny brothers OF
| the Grand Army of the Republic and friends,
this ought not SO to be. Our people in the
Northern States are engaged in crowding
monuments on the battlefield of Gettysburg.
Indeed, Gettysburg soems at present to monopo-
lie the attention of our veterans. 1t is not to
be wondered at that that battlefield should so
engross the attention of the world, for obvious
reasons; and nobody takes or can take excep-
tions to the enthusiasm that animates our peo-
pie in placing monuments there.
But it must not be forgotten that, If a great
conflict took place there of wonderful proper
tions, there lie down here thousands of their
friends, who, il the battles they were engaged
in were not so important in their results to the
Nation at large, they laid down their lives for
hoe n,,I Co, how, cnfl
has been my hope for years that attention
would be drawn sooner or later to this matter
of erecting monuments in the Southern ceme-
teries. / some times despair of seeing it done
in my generation or before the old soldiers are
all gone. 1t can never be done by those men
who live in Southern States. They are too
poor in purse. Those who came down with the
army to help fight the battles and after muster
out remained here, (although they number
thousands,) are too poor to erect monument
Hence, if it is ever done at all, it must
be done by our Northern people, aud it is hoped
that when they get through at Gettysburg they
will turn their attention this way.
We have seven National Cemeteries in Ten
nessee alone, in which lie So 900 of our comrades,
over whom no monument has been erected,
except the small headstones placed at each
grave by the Government and a few small ones
by private parties.
VIII the day ever come when this will be
changed2 i hope so. In visit lately made
to Philadelphia and other Northeastern cities,
l thought | would call attention to this matter
before the GAR Posts. But it occurred to me,
after conyersing with old comrades, that ma
jorjty of those / net were comrades who had
been connected with the Army of the Potomac.
and that there were comparatively few who had
ever been with the Army of the Cumb erland or
of the Tennessee. / thought, too that to speak
Of our want of monuments to the Eastern peo-
pie was out of place, and that they were not the
men to talk to about it; that they probably had
the cemeteries of Pennsylvania, Virginia, etc,
under their supervision. So ] said nothing
about it.
On my return to Tennessee turned to my
maps to see from what sections Of the country
our dead came, and as a result l find that of
the 100000 who lie in the New Albany, Ind,
cemetery, the six cemeteries of Kentucky, the
seven cemeteries of Tennessee, the Marietta,
Ca. cemetery, aud in the Corinth, Vicksburg
and Natchez, Miss, cemeteries, there are from
niinois-............77e Ohio...............75I BIG
kentueky 81
michigan. j35
,5l7
This number singular enough amounts to an
even 81, 900, all of whom are known. How many
from these States that are marked as unknown
it is impossible to tell; undoubtedly large
number The known constitutes less than one
fourth of the whole There lie here also many
from the other States, but they number less
than 200 from any one State These figures
solve the question whence these comrades came
and who have no monumental recognition.
Estimating one soldier from family there
might have been two or Diore), we see that
there are more than 10000 families represented
in this sad list
1t is pity that some organized effort cannot
be made; but there may be some under whose
eye this may reach who will be equal to the
occasiOn.-P. NJ. RADFoRD, Adjt, Post No. l.,
Nashville, Tenn.