Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1889-11-08
CURRENT AFFAIRS.


]
Facts about its Ownership aud the Pro-
| posed ChicknniRugn National Park.
Some discussion is being caused by de
mand or request which the Patterson
Grand Army post Of Allegheny City, Pa,
has made upon Gov. Beaver Of Pennsyl
vania for the removal from the Gettysburg
battlefield Of Confederate monument
erected there bv "A Maryland regiment. In
an article called out by this protest the New
| York Sun gives facts about the ownership
Of the battlefield, the purposes for which it
is held, and about the proposed Chickamau
ga national park which will be read with
interest, especially since our Vermont as
sociations with the Gettysburg field have
been renewed 50 recently. The article is
copied, not for the views it entertains, but
for the facts it presents in concise form;
'The Gettsysburg Battlefield Memorialas-
sociation, incorporated 10y the state of Penn
| sylvania under an act approved April 30,
| 1861, does not own or control fourth part
of the land which may be properly includ
cd in the operations Of tine great battle 1t
owns all the crest Of Cemetery Ridge and
Culps hill, ON which the Union lines were
established, and the large patch Of woods
west Of the town, in which Reynolds
fought the first day it owns the lines
around the peach orchard and large wheat
field famous in the second days battle, aud
also very extensive grounds including both
Round Top and Little Round Top at the ex-
treme left of Meade's line it also owns
the scene Of Pcketts charge on the third
day and OF the hand to hand fighting which
/ spl al ha VI rttrbt
at Culp's Hill, aud on all that curved part
of the fish hook shaped line, the space ac
quired is broad. The association has also
narrow strips on the Emmittsburg road
and on roads or original battle lines both
west and north of the town. The land
around the Devils Den. between the wheat
field and Little Round Top owned by Gen
Crawford, Is also dedicated 70 public uses
These reservations constitute what is
most necessary to secure in the great bat
tlefed But they do not include the entire
ground over which bullets and cannon balls
flew and on which men fell in conflict
Still less do they include all over which the
Confederate troops charged, or on which
they had bivOuacs Accordingly, land not
acquired 10y the memorial association may
undoubtedly in some cases he bought for
erecting monuments to Confederate sol
diers no camped or marched or fought or
fell either on the spot chosen or in its i'm
mediate neighborhood And this seems H.
be what was done in the particular case
complained of hy Abe Patterson post of
Pittsburgh
There is a second point to be noted
When the Gettysburg burial ground, bought
Toy the state Of Pennsylvania was dedicat
ed. on Nov. -, 1868, the country was still
in the midst of war Since then the pur
poses Of the Gettysburg memorial associa
ton have been extended beyond those Of
simple sepulture for the Union dead Land
has been acquired to denote the lines Of
battle, aud great historical work has been
accomplished 10y various marks and memo
rials, the exact parallel for which cannot
be found anywhere else ON the globe
1t turns out that the memorial associa
ton is itself now anxious to mark accu
rately the Confederate lines Of battle as
well the Union. Whether this is done
10y the survivors of Confederate organiza
tIons or utherw ise the memorial associa
ton has complete control of the site, char
acter, aud inscription of all monuments
on its own grounds, which alone it Is re
spunsiblr for. The discussion and action
ON the proposed Pickett monument show
that point clearly But what is no less t.
he noted is that those who have charge Of
the battlefield have Of late years repeated
ly welcomed the visits of Southern soldiers
for the purpose of helping to fix accurate
ly its historic features while the Society of
the Army of the Potomac last year, at the
the 2jth anniversary Of the great battle
had expressly and warmly invited all South
ern survivors to unite with them in fra
ternal celebration, and some Of them went
there. The language and spirit Of the Abe
lAttgrslu re- q
facts
The Chckamauga battlefield, the most
sanguinary Of the West, is to carry still
further the fraternal spirit 1t is true that
the project which was started at the recent
meeting Of the Army of the Cumberland
partakes rather more of the character of
"A national park at Chickamauga than of
national military burial ground The lead
ing idea is the marking out of the battle
lines of both sides, u be studded undoubt
edly with regimental and other monuments
both Union and Confederate. 1t is remark
able that this scheme, in which both Union
and Confederate officers are named as in
corporaturs, should have been initiated at
the reunion Of the largest of the Union
armies Of the West, and still more remark
able that for such commemoration bat
tie should have been chosen which ended
10y leaving the field in Confederate posses
sion.
AT Gettysburg it has been proposed to
erect great structure to typify the restor
alton Of peace and the union Of South and
North Should Confederate survivors take
part in such memorial, and even frame a
part Of its records and inscriptions it
would none the less be an emblem Of the
triumph of the cause for which the Union
soldiers fought