Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1886-08-12
UNCLE BILLY ELOQUENT.

General Sherman Addresses the National
! G. A. II. Encampment at San Francisco
A Retrospect of Twenty Years-Patriotic
Sentiment.
| SAN Francisco, Aug. TN the G. A.
r. encampment yesterday the committee
Oh resolutions reported unfavorably on
| proposition to promote legislation for
| pension of eight dollars per month to
every surviving soldier and sailor of the
civil war, whether disabled or not. A
minority report in favor of the PROPOSE
| ton was made by Mr.. Bennett, of In
diana. 1t was rejected by vote of SET
to sc.
The majority report against the eight
dollar pension measure was adopted.
After several Intellectual attempts to
get vote as to the next place for hold
ing the encampment, the subject was
postponed until the evening session.
General Sherman read an address yes
terday, in which he reviewed the history
of the G. A. R., and summarized the deeds
of its members during the war. Contin-
uing, he made good-natured hit at
the tendency of those who have been en-
| gagged in only one battle or Il single cam
paign, to talk about it as if it was the
only one ever fought or endured. OF a
similar tendency to regard our civil war
as the greatest on record, he said:
''With a retrospect now of only twenty
one years we realize that the war was but
single step in the progress toward a
newery and higher civilization. The
revolutionary war demonstrated that the
thirteen colonies planted by Europe on
the coast of America had attained man
hood and had a natural right to assume
all its functions, among them indie
pendence. The war of 1912 demonstrate
that this new nation was capable of de-
Tending itself, not only within its own
domain, but on the high seas and every
where. Then the Mexican war of 1876
At demonstrated that our race and lnsti-
tutions must reach from ocean to ocean,
from the lakes to the gulf, with ample
room for development, and finally the
civil war demonstrated that we, as citi-
zens, could defend our government
against the greatest of all enemies-our
selves.n
General Sherman then gave an account
of the causes which I'D to the Mexican
war and of the conquest of California by
the United States. and of the part he
played in that conquest. Concluding
General Sherman spoke as follows:
''You, my beloved comrades of the war
of 1861, have abundant reason for your
ldltIl III Tie SeCuElGy VI tulS new OuIou.
bound together in harmony by rivers and
mountains, and by bands of steel, each
State controlling its own property and in
terests, with strong government over
all. At your conventions and feasts you
can well spare some words of cheer to
your older comrades of the Mexican war,
who did so much to enlarge the National
domain, and made possible the glorious
work you afterward so thor
oughly accomplished. We can not ex-
pect to tarry long to enjoy the
fruits of our labor, but untold genera
lions of Intelligent men ard beautiful
women will be here to protect, defend
and maintain these conquests, and, mean-
time, we have the right to be proud and
content that in our day and generation
we have largely contributed to build up
and strengthen the fabric of Govern
ment fashioned by our fathers, sanctited
by the greatness of Washington, made
doubly precious by the public virtues of
our martyred Lincoln, and crowned by
the achievements of our comrade
Grant,