The Portland daily press., 1898-05-31
ON FIELD OF GETTYSBURG.
Impressive Memorial Day Ceremonies
in Historic Town.

Assistant Secretary of the Interior
What Time Has Woven for This Nation
andWhat Future Holds.
gettysburg, Pa, May 30-Ths atten-
dance was larger and the exercises more
interesting at the Memorial Day cere-
monies held here today than on any SINH
lar occasion in the past.
The parade moved at 2 p M. to the
national cemetery, where, after impress
sive services by the G. a. r., and amid
the booming of cannon, the school chill
dren, ladies' aid society and others
strewed flowers over the graves. This
work oyer..the crowd .thronged about the
rostrum. Hon. George j. Benner, mem.
Der of Congress from this district, presid-
ed, and the opening prayer was offered
by Rev. II. @. Alleman of Christ Lutheran
church. Chairman Bepner- read a letter
from President = Mckinley, regretting his
inability to he present. He then intro
Quoted the orator of the day, Hon. Web
ster Davis, assistant secretary of the in
terror, who held this. audience for 40
minutes in mastery Grafton.
He spoke in part as follows:
For more than century, in the loom
of time, brave people have been weaving
the fabric of this Republic. and portion
of the blood-red colors which make the
most radiant part of that wondI Gus fabric
were placed there by the men who fought
and died on these heights of Gettysburg.
They resided at the dawn of new era
in our republics history. The whole
| future was here with them, and destiny
dim brooded over it; in their hearts and
unshaped tho lights it lay illegible and
inevitable. until finally it unfolded itself
| in fire and thunder of cannon and rattle
| of musketry, in the rustling of battered
battle flags, the tramp of hurrying bat
talions, the glow of wars crimson, in the
| signs and groans of the wounded and
dying. They thus announced, in rifle
| volleys, deathwinged, that the Union
must and shall be preserved.
'All honor to the memory of our heroic
dead-dear as the blood they gave. No
| impious footstep e'er shall tread the her.
bage of their graves. And we do not for
get the boys who went down to watery
graves in the unfortunate Maine; their
vaior shall never be forgotten while fame
her record keeps. Nor do we forget the
graves which are marked unknown; for
them we bring the rarest flowers. We
believe in the establishment and mainte-
names of homes for homeless defenders OF
| the republic. We believe, too, IN reserv-
ing a little space there for the poor old,
helpless, homeless, white-haired mother
who gave husband Or q son as living
We believe also, in liberal pensions for
ell who are worthy and deserving.
II believe the hour has struck on the
clock of ages (whose huge pendulum
swings to and fro over the arch of ceD-
turies) when this wonderful land shall
take on newer and higher types of nation
al itNy, Gala. -. ,os4 o,a,,,,,,, =, 70,
American adventure. Alaska, with it's
teeming wealth, is only awaiting the
coming of American steam and electric
| engines, American enterprise, genius and
energy, to unlock her treasures and pour
them into the pockets of American thrift
and courage.
"The Hawaiian Islands, too, which
could furnish homes for million of our
people and market for untold mil.
lions of our products, also atfording a
place Of refuge for our vessels, are daily
knocking at our door for admission into
our family of states, wanting the protec-
ton of our flag. Let us take them and
make them feel perfectly at home
"Then, again, in the far east there are
countless millions of people to be clothed
and fed. who have plenty of wealth with
which to pay for It,, who would furnish
and shops. factories and farms, whenever
we can reduce the rates of transportation
SO that our poducts can be furnished as
! cheaply as those of other countries. This
we can do by bringing about the early
construction and operation of the Nicara-
qua Canal. And this, together with
Patio cable which we should construct
and controD would. give us easy oommuni
cation with the Pacific Ccean-destined,
at no distant day, to float the greater
pert Of the worlds commerce. Then.
with proper attention on the part of our
government to the encouragement of the
construction of merchant ships we would
soon become one of the greatest CONNER
cial nations and be masters Of the COM
m cree and trade of the Pacific. It would
not be long until the sails Of the Ameri-
can commerce would whiten every sea
and our flag be found in all the harbors
of the world.
"Our standing army should, also, be
increased not too much, however, for
our excellent volunteer soldisry can al.
ways be relied upon but we should have
a trained force always ready for duty,
sufficiently large to protect our frontiers
until the volunteer army could get ready
| for action.
"We should. also. strengthen our coast
defenses in order that we may be we'll
prepared for foreign invasion.
"Then. too, we should build one of the
finest navies that ride the seas, in order
that we may hold our own with any
nation, on sea as we'll as on land. 1t
should make no difference what the cost
would be, for our nation is rich and can
easily afford it.
1--WE love peace but we should realize
that eternal vigilance is the price of
liberty and that the way to always have
peace is to be always prepared for war.
Eve are glad, today, that sectional lines
have entirely disappeared in this country
In the face Of foreign insults, prejudice
and hate cannot longer endure among
the.people of the North and South thaa
the snow can last when kissed by the
beams of the warmth of the life-giving
SUM- Only the other dny-a third of q
century since the eagle of victory nestled
with the dove of peace on the flag Of the
Union, at OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES call for