Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1886-06-12
LEONE LOCAL CHAT.

most interesting character. ] have
been unable to obtain a program, but
learn that the exercises were partici-
pated in by a number of prominent
men, among whom were Rev. Mr..
Hammond, of Shepherdstown, Rev.
r. C. Holland, Of Martinsburg, Col.
VIM. Morgan, who introduced to the
audience as the orator of the occasion,
our genial fellow-citizen, Hon. E. j.
Simpson, and others.
BY permission of Mr.. Simpson, who
has won distinction as an eloquent
public speaker at home and abroad,
THE HERALD is enabled to give a
verbatim report of his address, re-
GREETING that for lack of space the in
troductory remarks had to be omit
ted. After brief resume of the rise
and fall of the Confederacy, with its
attendant successes and defeats, hopes
and sorrows, and overlooking with
tribute to Southern soldier, Mr.. Simp-
son continues =
"Your loved ones went forth in
spired by your patriotism. oh noble
women! went forth in defence of
home and loved ones, and for the
maintenance of what they believed
were the rights of freemen, the rights
of self-government. They were heroes
and are heroes still, and if the uni
verse was assembled on the eternal
plains to pass judgment, the need of
praise and honor would still be theirs.
All! and what panorama that would
be; the assembled universe, and the
flower of martial spirit passing in
grand review! Look! Who are those
with battered helmet and riven
shield, who march with the tread of
heroes? Few in number, but each
man a giant of strength and proves.
No wonder that garlands of flowers
are showered from every side; they
are the Spartan cooled by brave
Leonidas! There come Richard the
Lion Hearted, and his chiyalric band
coursing along on spirited chargers
theirsuits ofmail and FURNISHED shields
rejecting the brilliant light which
CLEANS upon them. Saladdin and his
courtly Saracens followed with keen
which once flashed circles of
fire as they wildly clashed gainst bat
tie ak and helmet of knightly foe.
And Scipio and Caesar pass by lead
ing the Roman legions who follow,
with shields locked, a solid and in
vincible phalanx Alexander and his
world conquerers, Hannibal and his
dusky warriors, Wellington and Marl-
borough, with the crimson coated
soldiers ofmerry England. Bonaparte
and the troops of France go by as
the bands play the Marsailles, and as
the Imperial Guards appear their bat
tie cry is echoed on every side, =" the
old guard dies but never surrenders."
Bismarck and Van Moltke with their
Uhlans pass with soldierly air inspired
by Germany's grand battle hymn "The
Watch on the Rhine" Every people,
and every nation, aud every tribe
in the grand review as the
long columns move by. But a muir
muir Of expectancy is heard, ana soon
the air resounds again and again with
shouts of welcome. The Continentals
appear. Inscribed upon their banners
are Saratoga-Yo yorktown, Lexington,
and Victory. Washington the noble
soldier and lofty patriot heads the
command, and every patriotic heart
applauds as our fore fathers go march
ing by. But who are these in suits of
blue? Inscribed in letters of light
are Gettysburg. Vicksburg, Rich
mond. It's the Union army which
looms in sight led by Grant, Hancock
and other well tried chieftains. The
vast assemblage showers plaudits
upon them, and the South rears tri-
unphal arches and joins in the an
thems of praise as the troops swing by
with the Star Spangled Banner burst
ing upon the air. Down the long
avenue the grey mist of morning
seems to float, nearer and nearer it
comes. The grey mist changed into
the grey uniform of q vast army, the
patches upon sleeve and breast are
glorified into emblems of honor, and
the buttons upon the jackets CLEAN
like gems snatched from Orion's jewel
ed belt. Noneed to tell that even at
Apprenticeship the hour of defeat
the lustre of their honor remained
and the bands all along
the line sound the familiar notes of
" Dixie" and universal applause re-
sounds as on flower strewn paths Lee
and his hosts march proudly by.
Mother, wife, sister, child, these
warriors who sleep so calmly here
will be there, and as you once more
clasp loved ones to your breast, a
thrill of pride and joy will electrify
every heart. Nor need the people of
the South be troubled with the thought
that the war was in vain and the blood
of loved ones shed for naught. No
need to think that because final defeat
instead of great triumph was theirs,
that nothing was gained, a new South
has arisen P9nix-like from the ashes !;
a South not lioning upon tradition,
but alive to-day with enterprise and
energy and resonant with the hum of
industry. The clash of battle has
given place to the music of the loom
and spindle; and the red glare of war
to the lurid illumination of furnaces
in active operation.
Slavery, it is true has passed away,
and the new South is better and rich
err because of its abolition. Burdened
with the weight Of slavery the South
ern States were bound by heavy fet-
tiers which prevented them from as
Stunning a lofty commercial and man.
ufacturing position among their more
energetic sisters. The South was like
an eagle chained to earth fretting
within a narrow limit but when the
chains were burst, the new South rose
like an unfettered bird, and now scars
above the clouds, free from riots,
from strikes and from the red flag and
redder torch of anarchism. The war
did more, it swept away the veil
of prejudice which dropped between
the North and South. Joined, it is true
by the ligament of common union,
= l. Hr,l