Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-10-09
A UNITED COUNTRY.
Henry Waterson's Speech at the Banquet
Of the Army of the Tennessee-Senti-
ments of a Southerner Talking to North


ments of a southerner Talking to North
ern Soldiers.
CHICAGO. Oct. s-The annual banquet of
the Army of the Tennessee was held at the
| Palmer House this evening. In response to
the toast "The War is Over-Let us Have
Peace" Mr.. Henry Watterson spoke substan-
TALLY as follows:
Il believe that at this moment, the people
| OF the United States are nearer together, in
all that constitutes kindred feeling and in
terest, than they have been at any time since
the adoption OF the Federal Constitution. If
it we're not So should hardly venture to
come here and talk to you as am going to
talk tonight. Asit is, surrounded though
be by Union soldiers, my bridges burned,
and every avenue of escape cut of, am not
in the least discouraged, or alarmed. On the
contrary, never felt safer, or happier, or
| more at home. Indeed, think that, sup
| ported by your presence, and sustained by
these comnissary stores, could stand
siege of several months and hold out against
| incredible odds. 1t is wonderful how cir
cumstnnces alter cases; for it was not always
! so.
II am one of many witnesses who live to
tell the story of a journey to the moon, and
back! 1t may not be that have any mar
vels OF personal adventure or any prodigies
of individual valor to relate; but do not
owe my survival to the precaution taken by
q member of the Confederate battery COM
manded by the brave Captain Howells, of
i Georgia. 1t was the habit of this person to
| go to the rear whenever the battery got well
| under fire. At last Captain Howells called
| him up and admonished him that, If the
| breach of duty was repeated, he would shoot
| him down as he went without a word. The
reply came on the instant That's all right,
| Captain; that's all right; you can shoot me,
but I'll be dadburned if I'm going to let
! them darn'd Yankees do it," at least gave
| your debtor that, In my case, yonr marks
| manship was so defective.
Roses Sweeter Than Gunpowder.
"You have been told that the war is over.
| 1 think that 1, my self, have heard that OBJ
| servation. 1 am glad of it. Roses smell
sweeter than gunpowder; for everyday uses,
| the carving knife is preferable to the bayo-
| net or the saber; and, in a contest for first
| choice between cannon balls and wine corks,
| have decided prejudice in favor of the
| latter!
"The war is over; and it is well over. God
| reigns, and the Government ut Washington
still lives: 1 am glad of that. can con-
ceive nothing worse for ourselves, nothing
worse for our children, than what might
have been If the war had ended otherwise,
| leaving two exhausted combatauts to be-
| come the prey of foreign Intervention and
| diplomacy, setting the clock of civilization
back century, and splitting the noDlest OF
warning Republics, like those of South
America, to repeat in the New World the
mistakes of the Old.
| it is well over. If anything was wanting to
proclaim its termination from every house
top and door post in the land, that little
brush we had last spring with Signor Maca-
roni furnished it. As to the touch of an
electric bell, the whole people rallied to the
brave words of the Secretary of State, and,
for the moment, sections and parties sunk
out of sight and thought in one over-master-
ing sentiment of racehood. manhood and
nationality
Il shall not stop to inquire whether the
war made us better than we were. 1t GER
tainly made us better acquainted, and, on
the whole, it seems to me that We are none
the worse for that better acquaintance The
truth is, the trouble between us was never
more than skin deep; and the curious thing
about 1t is that 1t was not our skin, anyhow!
1t was black skin, not white skin, that
brought il about.
Only a Gradual Evolution.
Gas I see it, our great sectional contro-
versy was, from first to last, the gradual
evolution of people from darkness to light,
with no charts or maps TO guide them, and
no experience to lead the way. The trainers
of our Constitution found themselves unable
to fix decisively and to define accurately the
exact relation of the States to the Federal
Government. On that point they left what
may be described as an "open clauee," and
through that open clause, as through an open
uOOT, Euo Spoctfc VI ulsunIOH Stdlkeu
1t was attended on one hand by African
slavery, on the other hand by sectional jeal-
ousy and between this trio of evil spirits
the household flower of peace was torn from
the Intel and tossed into the flames of war.
"In the beginning all OF us were guilty,
and equally guilty, for African slavery. It
was the good fortune of the North first to
find out that slave labor was not profitable.
So, very sensibly, 1t sold its slaves to the
South, which, very disastrously, pursued the |
delusion. Time at last has done its perfect
work; the South sees now, as the North saw
before it, that the system of slavery, as it |
was maintained by us was the clumsiest and |
costliest labor system on earth, and that |
when we took the field to fight for it. we set
out upon a FOOLS errand. Under slave labor,
the yield of cotton never reached 5000 900 |
bales. Under free labor it has never fallen |
below that figure gradually ascending to six
and seven, until, this year, it is about to |
reach nearly 9, ,OOO, 600 bales.
This tells the whole story. am not here
to talk politics, of course But put it to
you whether that is not pretty good show |
ing for free black labor, and whether with |
such showing, the Southern whites can af- |
ford any other than just and kind treatment |
to the blacks, without whom, indeed the |
South would be q briar patch, and half our |
national gold income gaping hole in the |
ground! |
Not Time for Political Economy.
"Gentlemen, beg that you will not be |
apprehensive. 1 know full well that this is I
neither time, nor place, for abstract econo- !
mics; and am not going to aff1ict you with |
a disserta ton upon free trade, or free silver |
1 came primarily, to bow my head and to
pay my measure OF homage to the statue
that was unveiled to-day. The career and |
the name which that statue commemorates
belong to me no less than to you. When
followed him 70 the grave-proud to appear
in the obsequies, though as the obscureist of
those who bore any official part therein-I
felt that was helping to bury, not only |
great man, but true friend. From that day
to this, the story of the life and death of |
General Grant has more and more impressed |
and toucned me.
81 never allowed myself to make his ac-
quaintance until he had quilted the White
House. The period of his political activity
was full of uncouth and unsparing partisan
contention. It was q kind of civil war 1
had my duty to do, and did not dare trust
myself to the subduing influence of what 1
was sure must follow friendly relations be-
tween such a man as he was ana such O man
as 1 knew myself to be. In this / was not
mistaken, as the sequel proved. / met him
for the first time beneath my own vine and
fig tree, and a happy series of accidents, 4
thereafter, gave me the opportunity to meet
him often and to know him we'll He was
the embodiment of simplicity, integrity and
courage: every inch a general, a soldier and
= man; but in the circumstances of his last
illness, figure of heroic proportions for the
contemplation of the ages. recall nothing
in history so sublime as the spectacle of that
brave spirit broken in fortune and in health
with the dread hand of the dark angel
clutched about his throat, struggling with
every breath to hold the clumsy, Unfamiliar
weapon with which he sought to wrest from
the jaws of death a little something for the
support of wife ana children when he was
gone! If he had done nothing else that
would have made his exit from the world