Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1886-01-22

understand that you are the first veteran
who has had that honor and we congratu-
late you. Your elevation to that position
by the citizens OF this city attests their
confidence in your wisdom and integrity
as we can attest to your courage and gal
lantry on the field of battle 1t shows
that Burlington is not unmindful OF those
whom she sent to the front. Permit me
again to thank YOU for your kind greeting
and to say to the citizens of Burling
ton that the hospitable reception they
have given us is very grateful and will be
held in lasting remembrance by the So
ciety in whose behalf speak
At the conclusion of Col. Holbrook's re-
marks the band rendered II selection, after
which prayer was offered by the chaplain,
Rev p. p. Gould, pastor of the Berean
Baptist church. The owl Glee club of st.
Albums then sang "Marchng through
Georgia. in very effective manner, the
veterans and audience by request joining
heartily in the chorus. At the conclusion
of the song the club were encored in re
Spouse to which they repeated the last
verse.
The president then said A little more
than eight years ago this society met in
Burlington upon which occasion the adj
dress was delivered by one of the foremost
citizens of Vermont, the Hon. George f.
Edmunds Applause. Tonight we are to
hear from one of Nermonts leading sol
diers, who on all occasions acquitted him
self in the field to the credit of himself
and his State. | take great pleasure in in
Producing to you Col. Thomas o. Seaver of
Woodstock. Col Seaver in response to
this pleasant introduction came forward
and delivered an Grafton which was mt
once scholarly and inspiring, and To which
IL brief abstract fails to do justice He
spoke in part rs follows
COLONEL sEAvERs CREATION.
More than twenty years have com e and
gone since this society composed of the
surviving officers of the veteran soldiers
of Vermont had it's birth. In view of the
fact that there are to day within our State
Young men and women four-andtwenty
wears of age who were unborn when we
first hazarded the experiment to deter
mine whether we had in us the stuff out
of which the true soldier is made, it has
seemed to me that should rather try to
speak over your heads to the young men,
young women and children of our state,
trusting that may perchance deepen and
fix some patriotic impulse born of that
great struggle now happily over. ! be-
lieve none but veterans can know how
anxious we are that our children and our
children's children should be taught to
believe that in that conflict we were right
That notwithstanding all the peril of those
sorrow laden years from 81 to 90 it was
great opportunity and Il great privilege
to he a strong young man then.
The orator then gave graphic descrip-
ton of the battle of ThermopylH and
drew the following lessons therefrom !:
Down through all the centuries since that
day has been celebrated i'll song and story,
the courage and love of country displayed
by that little Spartan band who resolved
to return with their shields or upon them.
| think we have been too much inclined
to suppose that such patriotism rs was
there displayed is the product only OF Il
hygone and IL heroic age, that III earlier
and ruder times 1t might have been seen,
but that in these days the world has made
such advances in civilization, human life
has become so precious that men Will not
willingly give it up even at their country )
call But history repeats itself in almost
every successive age. The history of our
own land for the last quarter of a century
shows that patriotism is not the special
product of any age or cline.
TWENTY-FIVE years ago we all Thought
that ours was great, prosperous ana tree
country. The evil that existed was
chargeable in Il great measure To It, pros,
prrities Too busy with our stocks and
ledgers, we paid too little attention to
FALSE theories of government. The North
aud the South had grown up together side
by side The one claimed that freedom
/ was national and that slavery was section
al the other held the contrary, and
claimed the right to take It's slaves into
/
These rival claims, carried To their ulti-
mate conclusions, made it impossible for
the two sections to exist together. Hence
it was seen that sooner or later the cpun-
try must become either all free or all
slave territory. The irrepressibe conflict
was inevitable. The history OF our legs
latOn proves it.
/ In the last analysis, the strength of our
government must depend upon the loyal
hearts and the strong right arm of lis
citizens. In that great contest INTO whlch
we as a nation entered in 1861 every able
bodied man between the ages of IS and Il
was needed, and at times sOrely needed
To the Union soldiers who yet survive
there is the proud consciousness of duty
performed. \ record of such services,
comrades, is worth more to YOU than any
thing else the world has to give.
On the 24th day of May, 1860, was wit
messed Il scene III our national history
never to be forgotten. II was the tina
day of the grand review at Washington
in which the three main Union armies
joining their forces in one grand Army o.
the Republic. made their last marcel
through PENNSYLVANIA avenue me army
of the Potomac with General Mead at IT.
head led the triumphal march. sheridan
cavalry formed the head of the column
with the Vermont cavalry well toward tn,
front. The orator then gave graphic
description of the grand review, III the
words of Il contemporary writer.
Have we not in this grand scene which
marks the close of the war Il reflection o
the struggle as whole ? What WAS TIT
great end sought for on the part of thu
national government through the who'll
course of the war-was it not the peace o
the whole country We sometimes speal
of war as the sheer contrary of peace
but the fact is that war is sometimes thu
only possible road to peace What is i
that we mean by a righteous war but jus
II war that has for its great end and ain
. the promotion of peace Nowhere in al
the range of human history was this ide
so fully realized as in our late struggl
for the overthrow of rebellion and slave
ry. No less than the people, the army ha
longed to fulfill its mission with complet
and glorious triumph, and these cltze
soldiers to campaign no longer, except b.
/ tranquil tiresideS in pleasant rehearsal
: of dangers long past
How this great characteristic of III
war stands out al every point of it
appears in the very terms i'll which III
soldiers We're enlisted At first it WAS TO
three months only that they were Gale