Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1896-06-06

of tile capitol (for have I'D faitla III lla I
morals Of heather goddess) and pit
one great statue IN all our nationa
cemeteries--a statue Of liberty Iii iii
form cf Christian woman with lie
hand on an open Bible and her foot Ct
the Rock Of Ages. with the other haHs
pointing Down to the graves Of the M
known. saying. These are my sons VII
died that might live. Take off tn
misnomer Everybody knows them. /
is of comparatively little imp0rtanc
what was the name given them in bar
tism of water. In the holier and might
Ter baptism Of blood we know them, ane
yesterday the nation put both arm
around them and hinged them to he
heart, crying. Mine foreverr'
Again, by this national ceremony W
mean the future defense Of this nation
BY every wreath of flowers on the sol
diers' graves we say, Those who eli
for the country shall not be forgotten,
and that will give enthusiasm to on
young men in case our nation should II
the future need to defend itself in battle
We shall never have another war be
tween north and SOUTH The old decayes
bone Of contention, American slavery
has been cast out, although hero ant
there depraved politician takes it NJ
to see If lie can't gnaw something of it.
We are floating eff farther and farther
from the possibility Of sectional strife
Everything For Defense.
No possibility of civil war. But abori
foreign invasion / am not so certain
When spoke against war, said moth
ing against self defense. An inventor
told me that he had invented style 81
weapon which could be used in self de
Tense, but not III aggressive warfare. ]
said, "When you get the nations ia
adept that weapon, you have introduced
the millennium. / have no right TO &c
on my neighbours premises and ASSAULT
him, but if some ruffian break into my
house for the assassination Of my fam
lily. and | can borrow gun and load
i'll time and aim it straight enough, j
will shoot him.
There is no room on this continentf 70
any other nation except Canada, and
better neighbor no one ever had. If 70
don't think So go to Montreal and so
ronto and see how well they will tre.lt
you. Other than that there is absolutely
no room for any other nation. I have
been across the continent again az,
again and know that we have not :
half inch of ground for the equity foot q
foreign despotism to stand ON. But l 40
not SO sure that some of the arrcgan
nations of Europe may not some Ga
challenge us. do not know that thos
forts around New York bay are to slee
all through the next century. 1 do no
know that Barnegat lighthouse will &c
yet look off upon a hostile navy. d
not know but that half dozen nations
envious of our prosperity, may want
give us wrestle. During our civil wa.
there were two or three nations tina
could hardly keep their hands off u.s. L
is very easy to pick national quarrels
and if our nation escapes much longer j
will be the exception.
If foreign foe should come, we wan
men like those of 1912 and like those
1862 to meet them. We want them al
up and down the coast, Pulaski ant
Fort Sumter i'll the same chorus q
thunder as Fort Lafayette and Foli
Hamilton-men who viii not only know
how to fight, but how to die. Whei
such time comes, if it ever does come
the generation on the stage of action
will say: My country will care for M
family as they did i'll the soldiers asy
lum for the orphans III the civil wal
and my country will honor my dust
it honored those who preceded me il
patriotic sacrifice, and once year at any
rate, on Decoration day, l shall be res
directed into the remembrance of thos.
for whom died. Here go for God ant
my country! Huzzap'
If foreign foe should come, the ole
sectional animosities would have III
power. Here go our regiments into th,
attlefeld-Fifte New York volun.
teers, Tenth Alabama cavalry, -Four
tenth Pennsylvania rifielnen, Tent.
Massachusetts artillery, Seventh Soutl
Carolina sharpshooters do not know
but it may require the attack of SONS
foreign foe to make us forget our absut
sectional wrangling. / have no faitl
in the cry, mo north, no south, nc
east, no westp' Let all four sections
keep their peculiarities and their pref
erences, each doing its own work and
not interfering with each other, each OF
the four carrying its part in the great
harmony-the bass, the alto, the tenor,
In f,4
Union.
Promise of the Resurrection.
Once more, this great national cere.
mony means the Identification of til,
tombs, whether of those who fell in
battle or accident, or who have expired
in their beds, or in our arms, or on our
laps. suppose you have noticed that
many of the families take this season as
the time for the adornment of Their
family plots. This national observance
has secured the arboriculture and flori
culture of the cemeteries, the straight
ening up of many slab planted 80 Oh
40 years ago, and has swung the scyth.
through the long grass and has brought
the stonecutter to call cut the half OBJ
liberated epitaph. This day is the bene-
iiction of the resting place of father.
mother, son, daughter, brother, sister
1t is all that we can do for them now.
Make their resting places attractive, not
absurd with costly outlay, but in quiet
remembrance You know how. If you
can afford only one flower, that will do
1t shows what you would do if you
could. One blossom from you may mean
more than the Duke of Wellington's
catafalque. Oh, we cannot afford to for
get them. They were so lovely to us.
We miss them SO much We will never
get over it. Blessed Lord Jesus, comfort
our broken hearts. From every bank of
flowers breathes promise of resurrection.
In olden times the Hebrews, returning
from their burial place, used to pluck
the grass from the field three or four
times, then throw it over their heads,
suggestive of the resurrection. We pick
not the grass, but the flowers, and in
stead of throwing them over our heads
we place them before our eyes, right
down over the silent heart that once
beat with warnest love toward us, or
over the still feet that ran to service, OF
over the lips from which we took the
kiss at the anguish of the last parting.
But stop We are not infidels. Oui
bodies will soon join the bodies of oul
departed in the tomb and our spirits
shall join their spirits in the land of ths