The Maryville times. (Maryville, Tenn.) 1884-1944, 1892-06-08

count 'ess lips before the echoes o.
shot should have died AWAY?
There was at that time at Galena,
young man, silent, unobstrusive, un
known, and yet, the moment that
shot was fred he was destined to
lead the greatest host ever marshalled
on field of war, destined to receive
the Gnal sword of the rebellion.
There was another in the South
west who heard one of the echoes, of
that shot, and who afterward march
ed from Atlanta to the sea; and an
other, far away by the Pacific who
also heard one of the echoes, and
one who became one of the immor-
tai three.
But, above all, the echoes were
heard by millions of men and women
IN the ranks of unpaid toll They
knew not the meaning, but fel. that
they had heard a prophecy Of free
dom and the echoes told of death
and glory for many thousands-of
the agonies Of women-the sobs of
orphans-the sighs OF the imprisoned
and the glad shouts of the delivered
the enfranchised, the redeemed.
They who fred that gun did not
know they were giving liberty to mil
lions ofpeople, including themselves;
white as well as black, North as
well as South, and that before the
echoes should die away all the shack
les would be broken, all the consti-
tutions and statues Of slavery re-
pealed and all the compromises mer-
ged and lost in a great compact
made to preserve the liberties of all.
In these piping days of pens and
ploughs we are apt to forget what a
grand character-take him all in all
was presented by the American Vol
unteer Soldier of a quarter of a CEN
tury or more ago. The world had
never revealed his equal then, nor
has since.
He Was Inodest-save when facing
a foe-the thought of gain did not
appeal to him; he relinquishcd for a
time, perhaps forever, all that was
dear to him, and all because of a
high sense of honor-a love of his
country. 1t is well to call this to
mind now, for it has become a fash
ion of late for scoffers to jeer at all
that is best in men, to smile at pa.
triotism and match frivolity against
the right.
1t was a strange mctamorphosis,
that Of 1860 and 81, men came from
the field and factory, from the coun
try store and lawyers office, raw
Loned, awkward boys from thu
plough, merchants from the desk
and to all of them, or nearly all, th'
only war they knew was on tn,
printed page. Unskilled in army
reared in a placid atmosphere of un
broken peace, buying and selling
working and playing, they wer,
snached without preparation, prac
tically without the training that mel
were supposed to need for the tent
ed field, to scenes of privation an
carnage. That was the wonder @
it, it was minerva springing armo
clad from the brain of Jove. In
space of time inconceivably shor
to the European mind, these farm
ers and lawyers and shinboned boy
were tramping over the sand an,
dust and through the piney wood
weary of body, but stout of hear
with the bullets whistling and tn
blood flowing, but through an
through the bravest, brainest
grandest body of citizen soldiery tn
world has ever seen.
That was the American oft. Th
men were fighting for somethin,
dearer to them then all else; the
knew the danger. but accepted
calmv; they were private soldier
with brains and hearts, "a new fe
ure in war; and they fought all tn
more valiantly for it.
Europeans gazed on with wonder
ing eyes-they could not realize
soldier with a heart in his work.
True of the soldier was true of th
/ sailor a young man, these days, doe
not need to long thumb the pages {
civil war history to feel a thrill in h
= eo,l IL E,J, l~oro Al Al