Little Falls transcript. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1876-1894, 1886-12-03
Il STATE sR.LDIERs' HOME.
Gen. Anderson GIveA i Interest
ing Views Regarding Tt.

i
i As contributing . little 4, the discus:
! sion Of an important public matter,
nope is will not be deemed intrusive on
! my part t., state Tia; i lar ge nun,ber pi
ex-vo olu,.eers'now. .residingiiI Minnesota
earnestly wish md confidently expec,
hat The approaching Legislature Will
take proper means for the establishment
|>ofa s,'Mters, lunlr, The platforms both
If the Democratic and / Republican
parties am; Tho nominees OF botb tpurtie.
for governor strongly and explicitly
declare for suci, " tll me, and there CAT,
1, ,ke ,e.:afcs Is any douAt that The Legislature
i wiil take id lll#. "A
! The stste of Michigan has lately
| established u eoldiers' home at Grand
Rapids, the buildings alone costing
100000. The grounds, consisting ol
1872 acres, were donated by the ci'y o;
Grand Rapids. The cost ot the Illinois
soldiers and sailors home: including
g:olnds, was $23D,OJ0, The grounds
comprjs: l4j acres. hut are considered
insufficient. The b.netils ut these Stale
houses ,tre not restricted 10 those who
served ia Il military organization OF the
respective states, bu. may be enjoyed by
amy OK sOIdieS, coming within the
prescribed conditions, who has been a
resident uf the $lale for year. The
Michigan regulations read: "All
honornbly discharged soldiers, sailors
and marines vino have served IA the
army or navy OF tue United States in
are disabled by u,srass, wounds or
otherwise, ami who have no adequate
mean, OF support, and ny reason OK such
disability are incapable If earning their
living and who would he otherwise
dependent upon pub!lc and private
cha,iiy shall Ie entitled t. oe admitted
10 such .uome.' The conditions for
admission 10 the National Homes ar.
equally liberal il not now being required
that title di ability shoald hay. been
incurred in the service.
The principle which is characteristic
both OF the National and Stale llo.nes is
EN-; hatical'y against The idea ot ch,rily
and is exprs ed rs follows by The
managers ol the National Ko.ne: The
|p,uvision is not Il charity, but is 4
reward to the bralt and deserving. anil
is their ri gbt, to b. forfeited only by bad
conduct al the Home, or con, Ic(ion o.
hpnious crimes -
The Soldiers Hume represents tho
sentiment ot the. ssa,c toward the idea
hero Of the war. 1t is i memorial to iAt
uca.l as Il retreat for ,hc Lnnorably
disabled survivors ui the wary Ii must
lherelo!cr, III the uu,ai,iIiss and beau,!
OF It's architecture and It's whole rllarccte,
Mol only do honOr t., the sentiment a)t
dignity OF HE sl;l;,: at III: pusen; time
anu be M Object 10 which every citizen
in this generation can point with pride,
tut it should be something which will
reflect honor upon the state twenty o1
thirty years from now, when It's ,'opn a
l,n shall lie a million or two more thar
uow. aud when the inmates Of The home
shall DC in the decline OF life.
A state like Mnneeo'a. which received
as gift frsm congress the muuiticen1
dover os 1880 acres of land in eyer!
township for an inriolable school fund
now amounting to over $5,0C0,OO0, enc
destined to reach the amount of $l2OO5,
600, cannot afford and should not be
permitted to do anything mean in the
way of a soldiers home. Her veneratior
for the memory OF her heroes who in
rosy Youth sacrificed their lives in the
war viii Of itself cuusrain hel to create
a home that will he worthy uf The name
a generation or two hence As well as
now. I,s->i,uaiun should be " here he
satitary conditions are unexceptionahlc,
with plenty Of pure water, ample
grounds and easily accessible TO visitors
from ali parts OF The state.
Not only are the buildings Of The
different National Soldiers Homes
eegan, and durable, hut the park ground:
beloegins 10 each are, in most cases
extensive. .Asis we'll known, The grounds
Of tue National Home a, Washingto,
city, are large and beautiful. The
Northwestern Branch Home nea,
! Milwaukee,. has $40 acres very finely
situa'ed, purchased al a cost OF s1tU 900
prmeeds of u fair made by. The Indies
OF Milwaukee-and donated 10 the
government, The Central Branch, located
near, Dayton, Ohio, has charuiing
srounds of G27 acres. The Western
Branch al Leavenworth has Gs0 acres
which the city not only donated but
embelished at an additional expense o
! S50.e0D. The Eastern Branch, abon
five miles from Augusta, Me, has a tract
Of /, ,1GO acres. We thus STE that extensive
and .en,belllsL ed parks form an import
iani feature of every soldiers home, and
: i, should tc insisted upon, if q home be
! established in Minnesota. that it sl}al
i have large and finely situated tract o
. land 5:5 ; n. n: s 81 .:, 4 s.'s
Congress apprOpria.es over fmillior
dollars year for The support q, ths
]. tldi iiferent national soldiers 1hom,,s. ]
|. Minnesota shall establish state home
. the expense OF maintaining il would be
considerable every year. Whether. in
view Of the fact that there are now 81
many disabled ex-soltliers in Minnespts
and Dakota, Congress would create
], another branch home III this state, ! an
not iu position to express an opinion
i The distance from the branch holue il
iMilwaukee 10 some eligable site ii
& Minnesota is very little more than It'll
y from the branch home at Dayton, Ohio
Il iisSio that at Milwaukee, Il is safe fo~saY
ANYHOW, that the action of congress ii
y such a case wovid he very consideTabl,,