The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1895-06-28

liOu us 80 lASL Il pTAut anu Nubst n1LlCS dIt
so indisSOlubly associated with the great con-
fict, is, after all, but the reflection Of the pa
tent courage. the heroic fortitude, and the
sublime sacrifices OF the rank and file OF the
army. OF general and soldier it can be said:
Their fame is one and indivisible You can
not separate the glory o; their deeds, for while
the private soldier wore no insignia of rank
upon the outside. his blue blouse bore heart,
honest and brave within"
Ny friends. in these glad times of peace and
quiet, we little comprehend the trying expert
ences OF the war, nor the great risks it con-
stantly involved to the institutions and gov
eminent of our country. We had 1909 900 SOL
diers in the field when the war terminated,
and the highest testimonial to their character
is found in the fact that when the muster-out
hour came and that vast army, which for years
had been accustomed to war and carnage, re-
turned peaceably to their homes. and dropped
into the quiet walks of citizenship as sOberly
and as steadily as did their ancestors at the
close of the revolution. no trace of them was
ever discernible in civil connections or riots,
nor in any other manner, except in their inteG-
rity of character their intense patriotism and
their active and useful participation in the
subsequent growth and development and i'm
provement of the country which they had done
so much to save.
What became OF these batalions
When the victory was won?
Let me point you to a picture
See million soldiers there,
Flushed with triumph and with weapons
Flashing keen and bright and bare
Vanished Wondrous transformation
Where is now that mighty band?
DO they roam vast banditti,
Pillaging their native land?
No. We point to field and workshop:
Let the world the moral see
There beneath the dust Of labor
Toll the veteran Soldiery.
Eye who were mightiest in the battle,
On the mountain and the plain.
Wrought. yes. wrought your greatest triumph
When We sought your homes again.
Sought your homes mid peace and quiet
GraSping with your strong right hand
Implements of honest labor.
Toiling to upbuild the land
True Patriots.
NY fellow-citizens, the rank and file OF the
old regular army were cast in the same heroic
mold as our volunteer army. 1t is a recorded
fact in the history that when treason swept
over the country in 1861; that when distin-
guished officers who had been educated at pub
lie expense, who had taken the oath to support
the constitution of the United States and de-
fend the government against all its enemies.
foreign and domestic, deserted their COM
ulauCSs IudI Nucu Jucy proven 10
trust and duty, and enlisted under the banner
of the confederacy, the rank and file of the old
army stood steadfaSt to federal authority, loyal
to the federal government, and no private SOL
der followed his old commander into the
ranks OF the enemy. None were false to con-
science or to country; none turned his back
upon the old flag.
The most splendid exhibition Of devotion to
country, to the government and to the flag,
lsSn1auad also Z T1riSOnerS
We had 175 900 union soldiers taken prisoner
during the civil war, and when death was
stalking within the walls of their prisons,
when starvation was almost overcoming their
brave hearts. when mind was receding and
reason tottering, life andliberty were offered to
those I75O01 men upon one conditiOn-that they
would swear allegiance to the confederate gov
eminent and enlist in the cause OF the confed-
eracy. What was the answer Of our brave but
starving comrades? From such men there
could be but one answer. They preferred to
suffer all and to be bear all to die, if they
must, rather than to prove false to the cause
they had sworn to defend
Magnitude of the Struggle.
It Is interesting TO note the size OF our armies
in the civil wars in which the United States
has participated: the number Of colonial troops
in the revolution was 294.79l. In the war of
1872 the total number Of Americans was $40 ca.
United States numbered Il2.2S0 But in the
great rebellion the number of union troops en-
gagged was 2.s59.OOO, or three times the COM
bined forces of the American army in all our
previous wars.
The magnitude of the struggle is also striS-
ingly illustrated by comparison of casualties.
The casualties in the war Of 1872 were 1877
killed in battle, and 3739 wounded. In the
Mexican war, 1909 were killed. 904 died of
wounds, and g. 40 were wounded. In the war
of the rebellion 81 ,362.solders were killed out
right, "a, 627 others died of wounds, and lS3,2S7
more died of diseases. In other words, our
casualties in the rebellion, in killed, and those
who died OF wounds and disease were only
about Is. OOo less than the entire number Of the
United Colo-ies in the war with Great Britain,
and were two and half times the entire force
engaged on the part Of the United States in the
war with Mexico
But perhaps. it gives US truer idea Of the
dreadful sacrifices OF our country to compare
our casualties with the casualties of European
wars. At the battle of Waterloo there were
5000 French. with 252 guns, and Of the Allies.
1900 troops with 1s6 guns. The loss OF the
French was &c, 900. estimated and OF the Allies,
% ls5. At our battle Of Gettysburg. the union
force engaged was $1,000 men with 800 guns.
The confederates had 1000 troops. with go
guns. The loss was 23,20S to the union
forces and q. SIS TO the confederate forces
Gravelotte was the bloodieSt battle OF the
Franco-Prussian war. The German loss
there was in killed. 4,4i9. and in wounded
1879. out OF $4,000 troops engaged. MeaSe's
loss at Gettysburg was greater in numbers,
while he had only one-hah as many men en-
gagged. Massena. the French marshal at
Zurich. in 1923. when he defeated Gen. Kor-
sakon the Russian. lost but 6 per cent Of his
forces. while at bloody Shiloh the union loss
in killed and wounded was more than 30 per
cent Bonaparte, in the famous battle of
Marengo, which was an awful disaster in the
morning and splendid victory in the even
ing lost but 1900 Of his forces, while the
heights OF Gettysburg witnessed y per cent. OF
loss to the union forces, or total OF ZOO
brave men. Wellington, at Waterloo, lost IS
per cent. OF his forces, while in the carnage of
the Wilderness we lost about 81 per cent Ma
poleon. at Austerlitz, lost 10 per cent Of his
forces, but our sacrifcial loss at ADtietam and
MurrTeesboro was . per cent
''How they went forth to die
Pale, earnest thousands from the busy mills,
And Sun-broWned thousands from the harvest
hills
Quick, eager thousands from the city streets,
And storm tossed from the fishers fleets
How thsy TcEt forth to dieS'