The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1890-09-18
A TIMELY PAPER.
COL. BURGWYN'S UNIVERSITY
COMMENCEMENT ADDRESS.

!
COMMENCEMENT ADDRESS.
''The Necessity of Preserving the Ne
MORALS Of the Past and Transmit
ting to POsterity Just and Impair
tial History of North Carolina"
Wilmington Messenger
We called attention to the literary
address Of Col. w. H. S. Burgwyn, OF
Henderson, at the University Com
mencement in June. The last number
of. the University Magasine contains
it in full. Ir is long, instructive, pa
triotic, thoroughly raey of the soil,
and is worth reading and preserving.
The theme that was we'll handled is
of peculiar interest to the intelligent
people of the State. 1t was a discus
sion Of .The Necessity of Preserving
the Memorials of the past and trans
mitting to Posterity just and impair
tial History of North Carolina"
The Messenger published a fairly
good resume of the address at the
time, and we do not propose to go
into the matter at much length. We
are glad to see SO many North Caro-
linians discussing at literary gatherings
the history of our people. The more
the people learn of the historic past
the prouder they will be of the men
and women who preceded the present
generation. North Carolina as we
have often said in the Messenger and
elsewhere, has most interesting his
tory, full of incidents, full of patriot
ism, and full of bravery and devotion
to the sacred cause of human liberty.
We are gratiied that Col. Burgwyn
improved an interesting opportunity
to celebrate the ancestors of the pres
ent generation of Carolinians, and to
tell them of deeds that are worthy of
all commemoration, and of heroic
men and heroic women whose memo
ries should be always cherished with
gratitude and admiration.
We are particularly grati6ed to see
that Col. Burgwyn paid a fitting trib-
ute 10 the men of the war of the Reg
ulation. They deserve to have their
virtues comEemorated in story, and
in song, on civic occasions, and when
men of letters gather to enjoy
''Far from the madding crowds ignoble
strife"
ga feast of reason and flow of SOUL"
and to bring back from memory's
store-house those ambrosial. days
ssDies Boyeaies, when in life's
young spring they were preparing for
the sharp conflicts of life, and some
even for "the stern alarums" of war.
In discussing the important action
of North Carolina in connection with
the adoption Of the United States
Constitution, Col. Burgwyn mentions
Willie Jones, Galloway and Others
who resisted for the time its adoption.
He omits the name of Gen. Thomas
Person, of Granville. We believe that
Gen. Person and Willie Jones, of
Halifax, deserve more of the gratitude
of the genuine lovers of liberty and
constitutional government in our State
than any other two men. They were
the most active, earnest, resolved ad-
vocates of liberal government of the
people und for the people of any men
in the State. In an address delivered
in 1876, before $500 people at Ok
ford, this writer said that Gen. Person
and Willie Jones deserved above all
men to have monument of North
Carolina granite erected to their men,
ories at the capitol in Raleigh. Time
confirms us in this opinion.
Col. Burgwyn gives the strength of
the Northern army for the four years
at 2,32o,z7a. The figures are too
low by several hundred thousand we
think. The Government has published
officially, the strength, and our recol-
lection is that it was but little short of
2,8oo,ooo. Including all arms-navy
too-over 5000, 900 men were on the
Northern side. On the other side,
Gen. Cooper, the Acjutant General Of
the Confederacy, reports 100000 as
the number for the four years, in the
army with never more than 100000
ready for the field at any one time.
Col. Burgwyn does justice to North
Carolina in the late war. With II2,-
500 white voters in 1860, she sent
$4,000 men to the war in four years.
In the seven days fights around Rich
mond, of ninety-two regiments under
Lee, forty-six were from North Caro-
lima, and so it was through the war to
Ia very great degree. Her troops
opened the fight at Bethel and closed
it with last charge at Appomattox.
The loss of the Germans in the war
with France in 1901, was 3 40
per cent. In the Crimean war the
allies lost ) 2-1o; in 1866, the Aus
trians lost ITO. The total loss of
the North was 86.Io; but North Caro-
lima "lost over IS per cent. of her en-
tire military population Of 1861"
These are Col. Burgwyn's figures. He
adds-'sWe may well exclaim in the
language of a Northern writer (author
of 'Regimental Losses in the American
War The result is extraordinary in
its heroic aspect" The same author
ity established that this State led both
sides in the "greatest regimental loss