New Ulm weekly review. [volume] (New Ulm, Minn.) 1878-1892, 1891-08-26

inferior nation which previously pos
sessed them. 1t has always been an IT.
resistible march, carrying with it the
success OF the superior and humiliation
and degradation of the inferior. The
Indian was strong, brave and warlike.
There was as you can readily see, a nat
ural antipathy between him and the az.
gressors upon his country. 1t is deep
~ to be regretted that the American
Indian could not have been assimilated
into our grand and comprehensive CIV
ilization."
Recurring to the scenes that were enac-
ted here in '62, he gave a short nara.
tive OF the attacks and noble defense,
and recalling the Sunday, twenty nine
years ago, when New Ulm was evacu-
ated, he burst forth in the following:
The procession which left New Ulm
on that memorable day was perhaps the
most graphic and lamentable exhibition
that ever was witnessed since the set.
Element of the country at Plymouth
Rock. 1t consisted of 1853 wagon loads
of women, children and wounded men,
guarded by about $50 citizen soldiers,
and was strung along over the prairies
for distance of over two miles. These
poor people, who had a few days before
occupied beautiful city, and enjoyed
a fair degree of prosperity and wealth,
found themselves all at once homeless,
beggared and with no possessions ex.
cept the clothes they had on their backs
going forth among strangers without
hope for the future. But they we're
Hospitality received wherever they went,
and in very short time some of the
more enterprising and fearless of the
Inhabitants returned to their homes and
commenced the rehabilitation of their
city, and how we'll they succeeded you
have but to cast your eyes around on
the beautiful prospect which now lies
before us and say that the Inhabitants
of New Ulm have not only been SUBJ
jected to terrible calamities, but have
had the >strength, intelligence and cour.
age to live them all down and overcome
them.
Some critics may say that the battles
of New,were not of sufficient Importance
in An historical point of view to justify
all this ceremony. I wish to say and
emphasize it, that the importance of a
battle is never to be measured by the
number of men engaged 10 the con-
hict, or the amount of slaughter on
either side. In the revolutionary war
between this country and Great Britain
there was an Indian fight on the Mo.
hawk in the State of New York at a
point called Oriscany. 1t resembles, as
near as history tells US. very much in
all its particulars the battle of New
Ulm. do not think that it was much
more of fight than the one we had
upon this historic ground twenty-nine
years ago and doubt if the slaughter
was much greater than occurred at this
place-yet historians have classified the
battle of Oriscany as one of the decisive
battles of the world and the reason
was this, that had St. Leger succeeded
in forming junction with Burgoyne
it is very doubtful whether the indie.
pendence of America would ever have
been achieved. The defeat of St. Leger
resulted in the decentralization of Burg
oyne and American independence be-
came possible. 3.
Now, while do claim that the bat
ties of New Ulm possess any such in
terest or Importance as historians have
attached to the battle of Oriscany, dc
say unhesitatingly that if these savages
had not met with the gallant rebuff
that they received at Fort Ridgely, and
the equally heroic resistance that they
met with DC New Ulm. they would, en-
couragcd by success, have carried
everything before them through the
whole extent of the valley Of the Mime.
sofa even to the capital CITY OF. St Pau1
Therefore, ] say and insist that these
battles are events in the history Of
Minnesota that the. State does we'll tc
commemorate by an everything monu
ment, which shall speak to future gen
erations words of inspiration and pa
trlotism when they may be called upor
to act in defense of their country and
its institutions.
THE MONUMENT.