Little Falls weekly transcript. (Little Falls, Morrison Co., Minn.) 1894-19??, 1896-06-05

WAS a6CnIOn,---lne hIiu Mos' rs $500
now and forever. That the land an y
which they lived, was the land 81 the l
free. That as I his government had
been bequeathrtl tous bv our ia 4 hers \
60 should it. in Il urn, ty us, be be be-
4ueathed tO our posterity and
bequeathed. 3 too, not simply ~ VI ntn-
paired, butspnritied. Abraham in IN
coin, as president Of the United e'1
states, could prnmnlgate the procl,,''-
nation of u emancipation. But It
took the boys in blue to see that the
was enforced. II believe Y
that Abraham Lincoln and the boys
iii blue were instrumentsin the hands 's
OF Hinwho doeth all. things we'll, to
preserve. purify and perpetuate the the
best government that the sun ever
shone upon. BUTT was Q gigantic
task. The richest blood in all the
land poured ont upon thesOuthern
soil. The bravest bows yielded up
their lives as sacrifice upon the
shine Of liberty, and their bones
were left to Bleach beneath {, south
ern sun. They We're heroes, every
one. There could be no Drawer men
than they. They not mercenary
troops, but Instruments in the hands
OF God to right the wrongs heaped
upon suffering humanity. They
never faltered, but pressed steadily
on. resolved to do, and If need be, TO
die.
( Every state north of Mason and
Dixon's line was full Of heroes, ready
to respond to their c0untry.'s call.
Butamong them all, there were none
to excel in bravery, those who went
out from our own beloved state.
We read of the little Spartan band
Of parrots at Thermopylae, and our.
hearts are filed with admiration Of
their patriotism. We read Of the
valor displayed at Balaklava. and
we are lost in wOnderment as we
think of. it,. But we remember. ah,
right well do we remember, the hero
ism displayed by the old Minnesota
First, --our o wn brave boys in blue.
as with invincible courage they
pressed steadily on, as firm as the
rock that knows not how to yield,
until they wrested victory from the
very Jaws OF defeat, on the battle
fields of Gettysburg, and our hearts
stand still in awe. rs 49,
But the story is too well known
to yOu-better far than can tell it.
Suffice it to say that the memory of
the brave boys in blue-the boys
who took their lives in their bands
and went out to battlei in their cOun-
try g cause in her hour OF d,-the
boys who offered themselves as a
rich sacrifice upon their country's
5altar,-the i boys who fought SO
nobly in defence of the inalienab BILE
rights tf man, their memory is for
ever enshrined In the hearts Of q
grateful people.
And so it is that we love to gather
together on each recurring Memorial
day, to do honor to the memory Of
those who slumber here. And not
only to the memory Of those who
slumber here, but of their comrades
as well, who. though they may be
resting this beautiful May day be-
meath q southern sun, in unmarked
and unknown graves, yet have
erected to their memory, monuments
more enduring than brass,-the
monuments set up in the hearts of a
grateful people.
More than thirty years have elapsed
since the boys laid down their KNAPP
sucks and returned to the paths OF
peace. The government that they
loved SO well-the government that
they not only saved, but purified,
has enjoyed unexampled prosperity.
1t has grown stronger, richer, better,
more magnificent. Each year has
added to it's luster. until 1t has be-
come the cynosure OF all admiring
eyes. 1t inspires not only the admit
ration, but the wonder OF the whole
world. >s.5 "
But as the revolving years have
come and gone, the ranks Of the boys
in blue, the boys.who made it, possible
for us to have the government OF
which we are so proud oday,-have
been steadily growing thinner and
thinner, until only a few, compare
lively speaking, remain. Each re-
curing Memorial day fails to bring
back some of the loved ones who
were here the last. A few more years
at most. and those who remain will
have responded to their last reveille,
and will have gone to greet with
the warm CLASP. of the hand, we trust,
those who have gone before. But
while, in loving remembrance, we
tenderly decorate the graves Of those