The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1890-08-09

poaColul luOuhtTlal puTsults, IL ouf WoIh-
shops md factories, or, most largely, upon
the prairies and in the back woods of the
great West whore, by honest toll, they have
converted millions of acres of wild land into
fertile farms and happy homes. The
Swcde also brings with him, from his old
home, the fear of God, the reverence for
the Bible, the respect for sacred things,
and the strict observance of the Sabbath;
and it is my belief, that no immigrants of
to day, in both faith and works, SO closely
resemble the sturdy pilgrim fathers of
New England as the Swedes. l respect
and esteem the emigrants that come to us
from all christian nations-from Ireland,
from England and Scotland, from Ger
many and Italy and Russia and France,
and those Scandinavians from Norway and
Denmark, who share in common with
their cousins, the Swedes, many of the vir-
tues I have enumerated; but I know l am
simply repeating the universal verdict of
Americans when I say that no immigrants
in this world make better citizens of this
great republic than the sons and daugh-
tiers of Sweden.
My friends, no celebration of New Swe-
den would be complete without at least a
brief mention of it's illustrious founder.
Undoubtedly the greatest character Sweden
has ever produced is Gustavus Adolphus.
His life and deeds belong, not to Sweden
alone, but to the world. He stands out in
history the hero of the great war of tho
seventeenth century; that war, which for
thirty years, shook the continent of Europe
to its foundations. That war, as you know,
was the gigantic contest between freedom
in thought and religion, and papal and i'm
perial despotism; between the pure teach
ings of Luther, and the horrors of the
Spanish Inquisition. After twelve long
years of battle, the armies of the emperor
under the great generals, lilly and Wal
lenstein, were everywhere victorious; the
protestant princes were beaten, divided,
dishcartened, and the free cities of Ger
many lay bleeding at the feet of the i'm
perial cohorts. Freedom Of religion
seemed about to be crushed out of continen-
tai Europe. Then what? A little band of
$4,000 Swodes sails from their homes in
the Northland across the stormy Baltic,
and lands on the shores of Germany. But
at their head is their golden king, ''the
lion of the North," Gustavus Adolphus.
ooh! ho!" cried the emperor, Ferdinand,
1--WE have another little enemy come against
U.S." And his courtiers laughingly replied,
''The Snow-King will melt as he approach
es the Southern Sum-" But the great COM
mander was not made Of stuff that melts
in the sunshine. 'Ho is one OF the seven
generals of the world who have revolution
lied the art of war;" said Napoleon the
Great. ''To pray often, is almost to con-
quor,'' said Gustavus himself. His march
was a succession of victories. The prot
estant princes took heart and rallied under
his standard-the free cities opened wide
their gates to welcome his victorious le-
gions. C%onquoring and to conquer, he
swoops across Europe from the Baltic to
the Danube. He meets end routs tho
grandest army of the empire, under the
veteran lilly, hero of q hundred battle
fields, and his victorious march is stayed
Only by the eternal hills of Switzerland.
ITO be continued.)