Great Falls weekly tribune. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1894-1???, 1896-06-05
MEMORY Of THE NOBLE DEAD
Graves Of Union and Confederate
Veterans Decked With Flow
ers and Flags,
Exercises at Black Eagle Pavilion
Yesterday Evening--Address
by DR.. WATSON.

"N~ 49, - til
closing up their places of business in
the afternoon. In the morning, the G..
A. r., Confederate Veterans, Woman's
Relief Corps and about GO school chill
dren gathered at the old armory and
there carriages were provided and they
were driven to the cemetery, where the
graves of the union and confederate
dead were strewn with flowers, which
had been gathered by the ladies' and
children for this purpose, After the
decoration OF the graves d memorial
service was read by Commander w. II.
Stafford, and this was followed by
prayer by Chaplain j. G. Epler. Then
the children, comprising about fifty
representatives from all the schools,
went through a flag drill and sang the
national anthem, a very beautiful por-
ton of the service, for which Mrs. G.. f.
Smith deserves due credit, having
trained the children. Fully 1000 people
visited the cemetery during the day,
The company returned about noon, and
at | p. N. dinner was prepared under
the auspices of the ladies at Feryan'e
restaurant, where the members of the
Ct. A. Il. were invited to refresh them
selves.
In the evening the remainder of the
Memorial day exercises took place at the
pavilion of the street car company by
tho falls. Supt. Dickinson kindly do
mated the use of his pavilion and fur
nished free transportation to the old
soldiers, the ladies of the Relief Corps
and the children who took part in the
program. The Great Northern band
also donated their services for the oc-
c%asion, and the Grand Army men feel
under great obligations to these persons,
as we'll as to the choir, consisting of
Messrs. Hawkins, Coleman, Craig,
Mesdames w. f. Brown, J. Is. Clark, o.
NJ. Holmes, Beebe, Pratt, Curtis and
Miss Spencer, as we'll as to the others
who took part in the program, which
was about as follows;
Address by Judge Benton, chairman
Of the evening.
Memorial service by Commander w.
II. Stafford.
Prayer by Rev, L. a. Riggin.
Music by the Great Northern band.
Vocal selections by tho CHOIR.
Flag drill by the children.
National anthem by the audience.
Music by the band.
The address by Rev. DIR. WATSON was
closely listened to by an audience that
packed the pavilion. recently enlarged
and fitted up as Il splendid audience
room. IL is d matter of regret that AS
the address was eXtemporaneouB and no
manuscript eXtant, the address could
not be printed IN full. The following is
a short abstract Of the speakers adj
dress:
1t has become fashionable lately to
denOunCe war as an unmiSed evil. that
in the progress of civilization has be-
come entirely unnecessary. Peaceful ar
bitrati0n is TO take its place, War I'M
dOubtedly ia sometimes an evil, and al
ways q misfortune. Iet there are things
worse than war. Peace at any price is
n Of them. SO far is WEI from being
always an evil, that it is sometimes a
positive duty, and then the nation that
shirkH it because it is painful and costly,
is doomed to speedy decay. War ls, like
matrimOny, to be entered into, mot un-
adVlsedly or lightly, but reverentiy, dis
creotly, aoberly, and in the fear Of GoG.'
Certain it IS that with every great ma
ton, past and present, some of the most
glorious memories and inspirations are Of
war, and even up above, whore the an
gels are, it i9 written that there twas war
III heaven
A war, TO be justified must be, not for
greed or pride, but for principle. 1t
must be u moral, more tnan Il material,
g.npfiInt ~ 10 tHtC ll,rt54.t Tj,ni p.,iyn,
our civil wal one OF the juajn8t and most
people sometime remark. the million Of
lives n billion OF doIiars;' not the
vast areas, multitudes Of lighting mon,
rivers Of treasures poured Out on every
side that make it ii great VAT. These
things only make it big, not great, And
time and time again it hae been sur
passed III those respects by vars that
wero merely criminal, that setticd moth
ing, and achieved nothing but pride and
greed.
The civil war was q moral conflict on
eacf, side, with Il mighty rrInclpl9 at
stake the principle Of human liberty
and equality ineXtricHb!y involved in the
perpetuation of the union. This made
the war great. grand. Had that war re-
suited differently our great repVhiic
would have entered Oh Il career Of disin-
tegration that would make us AS petty
as the South American republics, doing
nothing and counting for nothing in
humanlty's progress; and the cause Of
human freedom WouIu have been re-
tHrded a hundred years.
And on one side as truly as on the
other was it "a war OF principle and con
viction. "lraitor and treason are I'M
meaning terms as applied 10 the contest
ants, and, if inclined to speak of rebels,
let us remember:
THE patriot is a rebel who succeeds;
the rebel is d patriot who fails" The
South was as conscientious, rs honest,
as sur that it was right as WAS the
North. 1t was d difference of judgment
in a great moral issue, and the God Of
battle could decide it. We mourn those
that died, but we regret nothing. Blessed
are they. The old heather knew that
it It sweet to die for ones country.
They fought Il good fight; they loved
not their lives unto the death; they met
the hero's death and wear his ~unfading
crown. Their fame is secure; their
works live after them, and a grateful ma
ton, redeemed and saved by their valor,
will forever give them q name better