The Yale expositor., 1898-06-10


honor. Peace brings her wealthy lords |
and her toadying sycophants TO money. |
In contrast with this war brings TO the
front and presents as her heroes the
noble characters who are willing 10
toll suffer. and, if need be, die for the
welfare of humanity. When peace
presents as her worthiest products such
men as Gould, Vanderbilt, Russell sage
and Joseph Letter, we may we'll thank
God for war which gave us such charac-
ters as George Washington, Abraham
Lincoln, u. s. Grant and the men whose
graves we decorate to-day as Ideal
Americans.
"Ill fares the land to fastening ills prey ,
Where wealth accumuateS ana men uecaN'
Show me a land where the people
have lost that spirit which makes theln
willing to fight for the right and | Will
show YOU lana Of intolerable condl-
tions. degraded manhood and aDJect
slaves i'm whom the love of liberty is
dead. 1t is the tendency OF govern
ments or the ruling class to become
more and more despotic till there
comes a time when wrongs must De
righted. when freedom summons men
TO arms and follows in their tread,
External vigilance is the price OF llber-
ty." All the republics OF the past
have persisted of class distinctions
developing under conditions of peace
War is the great leveler OF humanity.
Under it the millionaire is no better
than the paupeT, the master no better
than his slave and at its close they are
ant to have equal rights. The sharp
surgery of the sword is sometimes
necessary to save a state rotten TO the
core from dissolution as III the much
bewailed French revolution. Prlor TO
that event Frenchmen were lleeing
from their homes to found colonies,
hut that horrible nightmare OF blood
overthrow the despotism that was
crushing her manhood and her woman
hood and made France Il decent
country in which TO live. since thlI
revolution with her relapses ana count
er revolution her condition has been so
improved that rarely does an emlgrant
| leave her shores, and when we meet
one it is always MA belle france 10
which he desires speedy return.
The student of history finds that
nearly every principle safeguarding
the rights of man have been establish
ed as a result of war by our English,
| German or Dutch ancestors or by our
own. 1t took war to establish the TACT
that every mans house is his castle
and it with his belongings Tree from
interference except by due process OF
law. 1t required war to secure 10
every accused man the right to speedy
trial by a jury of his peers IN the place
where the crime was committed ana II
required the sacrifice of countless lVes
of the nOblest men who ever trod the
earth TO establish the right OF every
man to worship God according to the
dictates of his own conscience.
Burke has remarked that no great
war ever left nation where 1t found
il and this was pre-emlnently true Oh
our civil war. 1t found John Jacot
Astor. a Jew peddler, the type of man
whom we were being taught to honor
il left nobler hero in every hamlet
1t found a growing disposition to SUB
stitute dollar marks for the stars on
our flag. it polished those stars until
they shine with renewed Drllllancy ~
they shine for the rights OF man; II
found the country stagnant with marc
times, il left prosperity. 1t found pro
gress hampered, it opened the way &c
a wonderful era Of advancement. j
found slavery, 1t left freedom. i
found secession, 1t left loyalty. II
found our statesmen pleading Wltl
men not to destroy the | nion, but II
the smoke of the guns at Appomattol
, yas read the declaration that is ;
Nation and against 1t the penalty o
treason is death" 1t found the namt
of an American citizen reproach an'
a hvevord among the nations, but il
the light of the mighty uprising ant
wonderful battles of the men of g
that name became the proudeSt pass
mort which a man can carry TO any par
of the civilized earth. we grew 4
those four wears as never before. n
men ever did SO much for humanity a
, those whose graves we decorate toda
! because with their iron nerves an
lion hearts they Shouldered the Worl
onward more than it would have Other
t, wise advanced in Thousand years.
l we do well to decorate these graves
not because it will benefit these dC
! parted heroes, but because 1t is goo
: for us. Egypt was a proud natlon III
! Israel seemed imperiShable when sh
= carried the remains of Jacob to til
, tomb of his grandfathers. Greece Wa
, InNlllQ NII6tCC WHY civ CppNA W. VI
:, solemn services of the Ceramicus, an
y Rome grew to be the mistress of I'll
v world" while deifying her departe
!. heroes. History teaches that 1T is onl
. when a people become so absorbed
a the gaining of wealth that they ne;
: lect their dead and forget the lessor
= of Justice, equality and patriotis
u taught by their departed heroes TIN
C liberty can be lost. Conquered The
" NAV be but not oppressed because Il
, memory of their noble dead will i
= spire them to rise again and again II
y til they throw off the bands of the o
+" pressor. SO is our Republic safe
~ long as we have these graves amor
. us. because every flower above the
:. tombs is a lesson of freedom, eve
" song beside their graves an anthem
= patriotism and the glorious recolle
= ton of their immortal deeds is an ey
20 living and eloquent Grafton on 6
J. rights of man.
le 4 larger debt than time or flowe
X we owe TO those who died to save I'll
s. glorious land of ours. We pay this II
re beside their graves. That larger de
is TO keep sacred the principles T
lr which they died. Old Glory was DO