The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-06-02
/ HE GREEK MAIDEN
AND THE
CALIFORNIA { fIRL.
BY PHGBE w. COUZINS
BY PHGBE w. CoUZINs.

lsang Justify and long "God Save tn,
Queen" had not a word from either of it
| speakers for the maker of its flag, or tn,
author OF its banner of freedom, on the ev,
of our May tribute.
On the 18th of April, 1862, just one yea
after the fall of Fort Sumter, four women
Sarah Nicolls Evans and the wife and two
daughters OF Chaplain May of the Second
Michigan Volunteers, appeared in the
cemetery. of Arlington Heights, on tn,
western slope of the Potomac, with flower
baskets on their arms, tears in their eyes
and with tender hands strewed the hum bic
mounds of the volunteer soldier, and in.
stituted the hallowed service which now
we style Memorial day."
Year after year they went, until the ser.
vice grew to such stately proportions, aug
mented by the following of hundreds OF
other women, that Congress, in 1874, took
legal notice of a ceremonial so significant
of the Nations obligation to its honored
dead, and formulated. at the suggestion OF
these women, the Memorial day of this
Republic.
And yet we listened in vain to hear from
the lips of two leaders of women single
suggestion of the great debt we owed to
the authors and SUCCESSORS of our hallowed
service day.
Has it come to pass that but one idea
may be submitted to the California girl,
hold to the one and fail to comprehend the
other2
Is she to be an "all round" maiden or
one who can only grasp a single thought
under single subject, leaving to man
alone the complex duties of giving honor
to whom honor is due and of placing
immortelles on his colaborers' brow, while
the great service of the other half of
humanity is forgotten or ignored even by
those of her sex who assume to direct the
thought of the less favored?
In the fall of 1861 a troop of 80, 600 trained
English soldiers were landed over in
Canada playing the prelude of "God Save
the Queen" menacing this country with
the threat that if within sixty days Union
victory was not assured Johnny Bull
would raise the siege and recognize the
Southern Confederacy.
Who saved this country in that mo-
mentous hour, prevented England and
European powers from interference in the
struggle, saved us from National bank
ruptcy and told the Government when to
strike and how to strike the rebellion on
the head?
dana E1a Carroll of Maryland, the author
Of the Tennessee campaign, fully entitled to
the name Of the "Savior of Her Country"
as the Congressional reports again and
again testify.
But, on the eve of our Memorial day, the
women who sang "God Save the Queen
had not a tribute of any kind or character
to the memory OF the woman who ran the
Queens guards out of Canada and hoisted
the Betsy Ross flag over her rehabilitated
country and its finances.
From Maine to the Gulf, from the At
lantlc to the Pacific, when war was desolat-
ing the land from one end to the other and
widows and orphans were the tribute
America was paying to her past falsity of
principles, who sent the amending stores
of supplies to the soldier on the battlefield
shlpload OF bandages, lint, under and outer
clothing, jellies, canned fruits and all that
goes to ameliorate the horrors of war and
its miserable follies and evils2
1t was the unpaid and unhonored patriot,
woman, sending her tribute of love from
out the midst OF broken hearts and deso-
late homes, and giving ofttimes her SER
vices in hospital and camp to bind up the
wounds and heal the sorrows of men in
war without money and without price.
On the eve of this Memorial day, so
fraught with fate and memories, with the
State which gave so freely of her sons to
preserve the starry flag and the principles
OF true freedom, not a word in praise
OF the patriot women of California was
given by the congress through its
speakers of yesterday - whose song
thus far was in honor of the Brit
ish rulers, whose dynasty our fathers
OF '.76 fought, bled and died to overthrow
and yet who sits triumphant in our midst
to-day, astride of our treasury on the At
lantic Coast, and honored by the women
on the Pacific in "God Save the Queen"
But have not told you the story of the
Greek maiden. by Professor Donaldson, or
the possibilities of the California girl in
this famed Hellenic air.
My patriotism ran riot on this Me-
mortal day with the sound of the fife and
drum in my ear. Betsy Ross flag in nv
eye and my heart full of keen sorrow over
the great gathering in Oakland of the Cali
fornia maiden, to whom not one inspiring
word of tender memories of past tribute OF
patriotic women was spoken.
When the cup shall not be full and run
ming over with the sweet and hallowed
Homeric maid who must live again H IN IN the he
enchanted land of California.