St. Paul daily globe., 1888-08-12

and his great deeds recorded with admiration.
There is one consoling feature that distin.
guishes the obsequies of our illustrous hero
from those of the great Hebrew leader He
was buried in the midst of war, amid the
clashing of arms, and surroundeded by the
armed hosts of the enemy; our captain, thank
God,
Is BURIED AMID PROFOUND PEACE.
while we are enjoying the blessings of dos
all the world.
The death of Gen. Sheridan will be la.
mented not only by the North, but also by the
1 know their chivalry; know their
magnanimity; their warm and affec.
tionate nature; and am sure that
the sons of the South, and especially those
who fought in the late war, will join in the
national lamentatioD and will lay garland
of mourning on the bier of the great general.
They recognize the fact that the nations
general is dead, and that his death is the ma
TONS loss. And this universal sympathy
coming from all sections of the country, ire.
spective of party lines, is easily accounted
for when we consider that under over.
ruling Providence the war in which Gen.
Sheridan took such conspicuous part has
resulted in increased blessings to every state
| in our common country.
There's divinity that shapes our ends,
Rough hew them how we will
And this is true of nations as well as of in
| divduals. What constitutes the great differ.
| enc between the wars of antiquity and ouI
| recent war? The war of the olden time was
| followed by subjugation and bondage; in the
1
ton and freedom. Alexander the Great
| waded through the blood of his fellow man.
| BY the sword he conquered and by the sword
he kept the vanquished in bondage. Scarcely
| was he cold in death when his vassals shook
| off the yoke and his empire was dismem-
bered into fragments. The effect OF the late
| war has been to
| WELD TOGETHER THE NATION
| still more closely into one cohesive body; II
| has removed once for all slavery, the great
| apple of discord; it has broken down the
wall of separation which divided section
from section and exhibits us more strikingly
| as one nation, one family, with the same aims
| and the same aspirations. The humanity ex-
| hibited in our late struggle contrasted with
| the cruelties exercised toward the vanquished
/ of former times is an eloquent tribute to the
| blessings of Christian civilization.
In surveying the life of Gen. Sheridan, il
| shows to me that these were prominent feat
ures and the salient points of his character
undaunted heroism combined with gentle-
ness of disposition, strong as a lion
peace; bold, daring, fearless, undaunted,
| unhesitating, his courage rising with the
| danger, ever fertile in resources, ever prompt
| in execution, his movements never impelled
by blind impulse, but ever prompted by a
| calculating mind. / have neither the time
| nor ability to dwell upon his military career
from the time he left West Point till the close
| of the war.
Let me select one incident which reveals to
us his qulckness of conception and readiness
of execution. l
in the valley of Virginia. AS ne is advance
ing along the road he sees his routed army
rushing pell-mell towards him. Quick as
thought-by the glance of his eye, by the
power of his word, by the strength of his
will, he hurls back that living stream of the
the enemy and snatches victory from the
jaws of defeat. How bold in war; how gentl9s
in peace. On some few occasions in WASH
ington had the pleasure of meeting Gen.
Sheridan socially in private circles. was
forcibly struck by his gentle disposition. his
amiahlp nnaSGnmInp danOrt.
ment his eye beaming with good nature,
and his voice scarcely raised above a
%hsber said and to %ysg nszns Is c,1dg this
the great general of the American army? Is
this the hero of so many battles? 1t is true,
Gen. Sheridan has been charged with being
sometimes unnecessarily severe towards the
enemy. My conversation with him strongly
impressed me with the groundlessness of the
charge, which could in nowise be recOnciled
with the adherence which he expressed for
| the atrosities of war, with his natural aver
sion to bloodshed, with the hope he uttered,
that he would never again be obliged to draw
his sword against all enemy. am persuaded
that the sentiments of humanity ever found
congenial home, q secure lOdgment in the
breast of Gen. Sheridan. Those who are best
acquainted with his military career unite in
saying that he never needlessly sacrificed
human life, and that he loved and
CARED FOR HIS SOLDIERS,
as father loves and cares for his children
But we must not forget if the departed hero
was a soldier, he was too citizen; and il
we wish to know how man stands as a ctf-
zen, we must ask ourselves how he stands as
a son, a husband and father. The parent is
the source of the family, the family is the
source of the nation. Social life is the re-
fiex of the family life. The stream does not
rise above its source. Those who were adj
mitted into the inner circle of Gen. Sheri-
dams home need not be told that it was
a peaceful and happy one. He was
ate father, lovingly devoted to his
| wife and children. L hope
am not trespasslng upon the sacred privacy
of domestic life when state that the gem
erals sickness was accelerated, if not aggra-
vated, by fatiguing journey which he made
in order to be home in time to assist at do
mestic celebration i'll which one of his chill.
dren was the central figure. Above all,
GEN. SHERIDAN WAS CHRISTIAN.
He died fortified by the consolations of re-
ligion. having his trust in the saving mercies
blessed Immortality. What is life without
hope of immortality? What is Lire that is
bounded by the horizon of the tomb? Surely
it is not worth living. What is the life even
of the antediluvian patriarchs but like the
mist which is dispelled by the morning
sun? What would it profit this illustrious
hero to go down to his honored grave GOV.
cred with earthly glory, il he had no hope in
the eternal glory to come? 1t is the hope Of
eternal life that constitutes at once our dig
| nifty and our moral responsibility.
God has planted in the human breast an
| irresistible desire for Immortality. 1t is born
with us and lives and moves with us. 1t in
spires our best and holiest actions. Now
God would not have given us this desire if
he did not intend that it should be fully sat-
| iSfed. He would not have given US this thirst
for infinite happiness if he had not intended
to assuage it. He never created anything in
vain. Thanks to God, this universal
| YEARNING OF THE HUMAN HEART
is sanctioned and vindicated by the voice OF
! revelation.
The inspired word of God not only pro.
claims the Immortality of the soul. but also
the future resurrection of the body. "f
| KNOW says the prophet JOB, that my re-
deemer liveth, and that on the last day I
shall rise out of the earth and in my flesh I
| says our Savior, ''for the hour cometh when
| all that are in their graves shall hear the
voice of the Son of Man, and they who have
done well shall come forth TO the resurrec-
TO the resurrection of Judgment and
| the Apostle writes these comforting words to
| the Thessalonians: Il would not have YOU
! ignorant, brethren, concerning those that are
| asleep that We be not sorroWful like those
| who have no hope, for we believe that Jesus
| died and rose again, even so those who have
| died in Jesus God will raise unto Himself.
| Therefore, comfort yourselves with these
| Words.''
These are the words of comfort would ad-
| dress to you, madam, faithful consort of the
| illustrious dead This is the olive branch of
peace and hope would bring you to-day.
| This is the
| SILVER LINING OF THE CLOUD
which hangs over you. We followed you in
| spirit and with sympathizing hearts as you
knelt in prayer at the bed of your drying
husband. May the God of all consola-
ton comfort you in this hour of sorrow.
| May the soul of your husband be this day in
| peace, and his abode in Zion. May his MEM
| ory be ever enshrined in the hearts of his
countrymen, and may our beloved country,