Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1898-01-27

courage, pOSSSsS6u d ulOIe aTueut spirit
of love for home and loyalty to country
than the pioneer families of our state.
They were in most cases foreigners,
having been born, reared and educated
in a foreign land; but they gave up the
citizenship of their native country,
parted with all that was near and dear
TO them, said good-by to their friends
and came and made Wisconsin their
home. Others came from some neigh
boring state, choosing to live among an
industrious people. We, who attend
this college to-day, are the children of
those parents. We thank Him, who
presides over the destinies of nations,
for such parents; for the christianity
and the patriotism in which they in
structed us.
l wish thatI possessed the power to
picture clearly to you, ladies and gentle
men, a real pioneer home. [ have In
my mind a little log house that has just
been built in the woods ten or twenty
miles from any railroad. 1t is con-
structed of logs one upon the other, the
spaces between having been filed up
with moss or mortar; the roofis of logs,
too; the floor is of logs hewn flat on the
upper side; there are perhaps one or
two small windows in the house; chairs
there are none, but blocks of wood are
used in their stead; the table is rudelv
constructed of handmade boards;
door rests upon wooden hinges and is
closed by wooden latch. 1t is now
ready for occupancy. The father now
walks to the nearest village to buy
cook stove, and, after having purchased
it. carries it home on his shoulders, but
in order to do this he must take it apart
and make two or three trips. In this
way he carries in all his provisions un-
til be is able to buy yoke of oxen,
which relieve him Of the load but not
Of the walking. Time will not permit
me to carry this any further, but [ will
leave it to your imagination to continue.
Surely, such people deserve our honor
and reverance. What shall we do to
perpetunate the memories of the dead,
who have completed Iife's work? We
erect costly monuments to our de-
parted statesmen and warriors, but
these pioneers, the upbuilders of this
republic, the defenders ofllberty, sleep
in their silent graves, with no record
but tradition of their hardships to
commemorate their noble deeds. But
this is grateful generation; their sad
stories will be told from year to year,
from generation to generation, and until
nations cease to exist.
fl were a poet | would make the
words ring with eloquence; if were an
artist, I would bring. before your eyes
what was in years gone by if | poss-
essed the voice of an orator, | would
move you to tears-all IN honor Of our
fathers and mothers who have gone to
rest with former generations; if l were
a sculptor, | would carve from the mar
ble a monument symbolic of courage,
thrift and virtue, erect it in my own
country and inscribe upon its pedestal
these words: "To the memory of de-
parted pioneers
Today Wisconsin is no longer wider
ness; nay, it is the garden of the North
west | wish that you might be per-
mitted to see its fragrant flowers Of
June, its laden orchards of August, and
its golden grain of autumn. Of its two
million people nearly all haye their own
fireside, what blessing! where reign
industry and harmony. The rich man
glories in the possession Of his magnlti-
cent home; the laborer feels contented
in his humble cottage, and the farmer
moves with Il lordly air i'll his spacious
farm house. If, therefore, there are
any two Of you who have concluded to
live no longer in ''single blessedness,"
| welcome you in the name Of my state
10 come and make your home with us.
You who wish to leave the bound
coast of New England come and dwell
in our fertile valleys; you who must
brave the stormes of the prairies come
and live on our sunny hillsides; you
who wish 10 flee from the destructive
influences of the yellow fever of the
South come and make your home on
the banks of our beautiful streams.
There is a place for all who possess
thrift, patriotism and virtue.
1t is not my aim to inject politics into
my speech; L respect the opinions of all
honest and sincere freemen, but | wish
to make one statement, that if poster
ity will ever praise their foretathers
for maintaining the dignity and high
standard of this Republic, then they
will look with pleasure upon the record
of Wisconsin, made in the last campaign
when it asserted with a strong voice
that the United States flag shall be
honored the world over. Wisconsin
cares little for democracy, 1t cares little
for republicanism, but it is strongl in
favor of sound and honest dollar.
In conclusion, [ wish to say, do not
know what my fellow Wisconsin stu
dents think about it, but as for me, l
wish to say that 1 was born in Wiscon-
sin, log cabin claims my birth, and
when my days upon earth are ended
would that | might be buried by the
side of my people.
Earmers' Institute