The evening herald. [volume] (Shenandoah, Pa.) 1891-1966, 1894-05-19
SHENANDOAH. PA. SATURDAY. MAY 10. 1894

would people, individually, be permitted,
by themselves, to construct an armory This
is what the flag epresents-individual
in the government, individuality in cit.-
zenship. There is no power among the
people, except that which comes from that
individuality, and it has become possible
for us to have the privilege of being citi-
zens of country where we are permitted
to evidence our sentiments by the erection
of such a building. These sentiments
founded this government Amongst no
other people is there such thing as a
military body known rs militia. 1t is
purely American. You can search the
governments Of the earth and you can't
find one. 1t came to our people at the
very beginning of the settlement of the
country Left alone here as colonists
there were no means of defense
they had TO face the wilderness and CON
front savage foe, and repel invasion
They had no standing army with which
TO do chat; and they We're dependent upon
Themselves. Whenever the assault came
to the American people the call was not
to a standing army. The mother country
dld not send any troops over here at that
time TO protect and defend them. Fortu-
nately she did not. The American people
grew of neglect. IT the English govern
meut had planted troops here, planted
them here as % standing army, there
would have. been no American army.
Every sentiment of American citizenship
would have been forever surrendered.
The absence of the troops from the midst
of the colonists made it possible for the
establishment and founding of the Ameri-
can system of the volunteer militia. /
hope i have impressed upon you this
thought, because our citizens ought to
know . where we get our system and
how il comes to Us When the senti
ment Of individual liberty and freedom
and right of citizenship took hold of the
American people they were prepared by
reason of their experience and had a vol
unteer militia TO back up their opinion.
We are indebted to-day more to these
sentiments for our liberty than any other
thing. Where do we get the law for or
ganizing the militia When it came to
organizing government the first article
Of the Constitution of the United States
declared that I'VE, the people of these
United States, in order to have a more
perfect union, establish justice, insure
domestic tranquility, provide for the
common defense, promote general well
fare and secure the blessing of liberty to
ourselves and posterity have established
this constitution One of its provisions
was the right of Congress to call forth the
militia for the defense of the country.
The constitution of the United States is
the Magma Charta of the National Guard.
Pennsylvania, following the constitution
of the United States, starts out that 1--WE,
the people of the Commonwealth of Penn
sylvania, do ordain and establish this con
stitution" The fundamental thought of
all government came from the people. All
the power came from the people, so that
in the constitution of Pennsylvania we
find the additional preamble "that the
treemen of this commonwealth shall
have an armed organization and disci-
pline them for its defense" When YOU
assemble to-day TO dedicate this building
you do it in recognition of that funda-
mental law which provides for such a
privilege. prefer the militia system to
a standing army. prefer that our people,
from themselves, when it comes to a
question of defense, shall go out as they
have in the past and defend the country.
want to leave this country if the time
shall ever come to rise in the morning
with the sound of a gun and retire from
labor in the evening with the sound of the
gun; when 1 see pointing down every
highway piece of artillery for the
preservation of the peace, Every man
who wears the uniform of the National
Guard of Pennsylvania represents the
constitution of his state. Every man
who wears it carries in himself the law
as given by the people and our citizens
cannot do more than uphold the National
Guard.