Springfield daily republic. [volume] (Springfield, O. [Ohio]) 1887-1888, 1888-07-03
ENEMIES NO LONGER.
THE SOLDIERS sxt5AT WORE THE
BLUE ANp GRAY
meet Together In Frisndly Reunion On
the Historic Field Of Gettyssarg-Dsdi-
catory Exercises and Address OF General
establishments OF Other Dtsttn-
guished Veterans.

shou veterans.
GErrYsRERo, Pa, July 3-The second
day of the reunion opened clear and besuti-
fui No cloud menseed the joy of the visi-
tors, and the terrible battle of twenty-five
years ago was on the lips of everyone.
Trains with thousands of passengers rolled
INTO the town. and the great crowd has
grown larger, until the place is filled fuller
than at any time since the memorable days
OF 81. AT 10 O'Clock the five regiments Of
Green's brigade, the 7s.h, lo2d. Goth. 1S7th
and ii9th New York dedicated their monu-
ment on Culp'ss Hill, and Immediately
afterwards reunion OF the brigade was
held. Major General Henry ]. Slocum who
commanded the right of the federal line
during the sbattie, and Brigadier General
George 5. Green, the brigade commander,
made addresses.
At ths1eame hour sickles' Excelsior Brig
ade, msd< pup of the 10th. 7lst, I'D, 73d and
'4th New York regiments. met at the site
of the brigade monument and held the
dedicstory exercises Owing to some un-
eHplainsble trouble, the monument the
position of which is near the peach orch
ard, Is not finished and the foundation is
the only thing in place General Sickles
was TO have unveiled the memorial, but
this was dispensed with. DIR. Buckley, for
mer chaplain of the First regiment made
the prayer. DR., Twitchell delivered the
Grafton and DIR. Buckley read an original
poem entitled Excelsior" Appropriate
musical selections interspersed the exer.
cises
At half-past nine O'Clock, the members
of the Irish Brigade, composed of the SD.
69th and SSth New York infantry, marched
To the Catholic church. where requiem mass
for those who fell in the battle was cele-
.brated by Fathers Suillett and Corby. 1t
was the latter who, just before the brigade
went into battle on the afternoon of the
second, blessed and absolved them. The
party then proceeded to the monument
near the Loop" back of the Devils
Den, where the exercises of the dedica-
ton we're held. General Robert Nugant
and Dennis f. Burke made addresses, and
Mrs. Rice-knox and other ladies led the
singing. -=a4----4-a-.
At 4:S0 the regular reunion exercise.
were held. General Sickles called the as
semblsge to order aud addressed it as fol-
lows:
This assemblsge marks an epoch. You
are suryiversof two great armies. You and
your comrades fought here the decisive bat
tie of a long and terrible civil war Twenty
five years have passed and now the COM
batants ot IS come together again ON your
old field Of battle TO unite in pledges of love
AuV utS0llOu one ono
union and one flag. Today there are no
victors, no vanquished. As Americans we
may all claim a common share in the
glories of this battlefield. Memorable for
50 many brilliant feats of arms, no storm
rests on the colors OF any battalion, battery,
or troop, that contended here for victory.
Gallant Buford, who began the battle, and
brave Pickett who closed the struggle fitly
represent the intrepid hosts that for three
n. Id. u,
renown. Among the hundreds of
memorial structures on this field,
there is not one bearing an
inscription that wounds 3 the suscepti-
bilities of honorable and gallant foe.
This meeting is an historical event We
dedicate here on this battle 6eld, an altar,
sacred % peace and tranquility and union
We SOW the seeds Of friendship between
communities and States and populations
once hostile and now reconciled. We all
share in the rich harvest reaped by the
whole country, north and south, ezst and
west, from the new America, born on this
battle field, when the republic consecrsted
her institutions to liberty and justice. It
is sometimes said that il is not wise 10 per-
petnste the memories of civil war, and
such was the Roman maximum. But our
civil war was not a mere conspiracy
against q ruler; il was not u plot
power; it was not pronunciamento.
The conflict of s6iI65 was war of institu-
tions and systems and policies. II was q
revolution ranking in importance with the
French Revolution of the eighteenth CEN
tury and with English Revolution OF the
seventeenth, universal in its beneficial in
fuence upon the destinies OF this country
and ineffaceble in the foot prints it made
in the path of our national progress. The
of Stlnb ind ,Df-
ible as our civilization. The names of Lin
coin. and Lee, and Grant, and Jackson, can
never be ctfaced from our annals. The
yalor a;sa fortitnde ans achievements of
both armies were never SURPASSED IN any
age demand or record in American history,
And now, that time and thought, and COM
mon sense and common interests
have softened all the animosities of
war, we may bury them forever,
whilst We cherish and perpetuste as Amer
leans, the immortal heritage of honor be-
longing 30 rep-5lic that became i'm
perishable when il became free. The war
of lS6l-a65 was our heroic age. II demon
strated tie vitality Of republican institu-
tions. Itiliustrated the martial spirit and
resurces and genius of the American soldier
and sailor 1t was a war in which senti-
ments and ideas dominated interests. The
lavish sacrifices of blood and treasure, the
constaHcy and irmness of the people on
both sides, men and women, old and
young, rich and poor, signalized the great
conflict rs the heroic age of the republic
We now see that the obstinacy OF the war,
on both sides, compelled settlement of all
the elements of disunion between the
North and South. An earlier peace might
have beena mere truce, to be followed by
recurring hostilities. We fought until the
furnace OF war melted all our discords and
moulded as in one homogeneous nation.
Let US all be devoutly thankful that God
has spared us to witness and to share tho
blessings bestowed by Providence upon our
country, as the compensation for countless
sacrifices made,to establish ON Just and
firm foundations, government of the peo-
pie, by the people and for the people For
myself | rejoice that am here to-day to
meet so many comrades and so many foes,
and to unite with all of you in pledges OF
friendship and fraternity. And now l ask
you, one and all, the survivors of the blue
and the gray, to affirm with one voice our
unanimous resolve to maintain our Union,
preserve our institutions and defend our
flag.
General SickIes presented General Cor
don, Governor Beaver and other veterans
who addressed the crowd.
Another Account of the Exercises,
GErTYsBURG, Pa, July 3.-The day was
filled with the dedication of monuments,
the meetings of the corps societies, the
meetings of old comrades long separated by
years and distance, and the informal as