The DeSmet leader. (DeSmet, Kingsbury Co., Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1886-06-12
Memorial Address Before the q. A. r.
by ]. c. SHETLAND. A.

Mr.. Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen: am
profoundly grateful for the privilege OF ad-
dressing such an audience on the sweetest
and saddest memorial day of our republic.
When our fathers declared. 1--WE hold these
truths to be self-cvident: That all men are
created equal,'' they did not mean It, They
only meant some white men are equal. We do
not fully mean it. We count out the Chinese
unless they come to remain as citizens: we
except the Indian and the poor fellow who
does not know how to make money. But we
come nearer to believing that oil men 'are
endowed with certain inalicnahie rights,
among which are life, liberty, and the pursuit
Of happiness" than our fathers did. With the
grand old Declaration for a political standard
we can congratulate each other that we have
room to grow.
a republic formed on the principle OF equal
rights, whose only rule for social position and
political advancement was large heart and
a cultured mind, whose people should have
right to do their very best, took Immediately
II prominent place among the nations. But
slavery. a relic of barbarism, which had sur
vived the ideas among which 1t was born
which had outlived the creeds with which 1t
was related, which had continued after the
empires among which 1t fourished had passed
away, an institution as opposed to our plan OF
government as revenge and hate arc opposed
to love and prayer. was devil our fathers
could not cast out. State by State, step by
step, measure by measure, these two systems
opposed each the growth of the other. A ma
ton dedicated from its birth to freedom saw
the murder OF men for free speech, and used
| bloodhoupds to hunt slaves. The Kansas
pioneer. toi.ing to make q home, awokc from
| his slumbers to find his house burning. his
children murdered. his property scattered to
| the winds OF heaven, and when he remon-
| strated was told, "Sit down, old man, i'm the
ashes of your home and by tho graves OF your
| children. You are only poor working man.
You have no rights that the chivalry are
| bound to respect" He looked to his govern
ment and heard Senators sneering at Northern
/ mechanics as "the mudsills of society" He
| looked to the North and heard orators apollo
gizing for the Declaration OF Independence as
"a string Of glittering generaities." He
| looked TO the South and saw caste, not IN
aristocracy Of brains not an aristocracy OF
| culture, not an aristocracy Of skill, but OF
skin. whose strength was the number OF
children IL could raise to sell and its Quickness
| I'm shooting whoever criticised. a chivalry with
| which any clean man would not allow his
hostler to run foot-racc.
The government Of equal rights seemed tC
have dissolved "like the baseess fabric OF q
VISION" and left chivalrous duellists and
assassins hunting people who worked for d
living. Hc took refuge I'm the folds OF OUT
| starry banner, and the slave power blotted
the stars with his blood. All the land heaved
with Indignation. Slavery was defeated u,
the ballot and appealed to the bullet, as was
natural to those used to controlling others by
brute force, and the first gun against Fort
Sumter awokc the spirit OF liberty.
There are moments Of destiny when the
event of an instant decides the fate of nations
for coming ages, when opposing moral forces
gather all their power and struggle like giants
for mastery. when the march of al army .:
the advance OF an idea and soldiers are mar
tyrs for humanity. Such moment OF destiny
was marked by the sound OF the first gur
aimed at Fort Sumter II aroused the indig
nation of thu nineteenth century against
slavery. II de\idcd that this should be free
republic. II called the opposing forces OF
feudaIism and republication to deati
grapplc. The march OF the Union army wal
the advance Of self-government. The sodier'
whose graves. we aeok with flowers to-day
were martyrs for the type ofpoi:tieal govern
mcnt which represents all that Is most gcrcr