Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1899-06-01
THE GRAVES KEPT GREEN
Tributes of Love and Respect for
the Memories fHerOes of
SiXty-One.

The people of Lancaster and vicin-
itv paid their tribute to soldiers dead
on tuesday last Patriotic programs
occupied most of the day. The wealth
err was propitious. Nature seemed to
have relented from her angry. stormy
mood of the previous week and to
second with soft breezes and bright
skies the loving labors of men in hit
tinglv conducting the peculiar and
impressive exercises of the day.
In the morning a procession formed
in the city and marched to the eeme-
terv. 1t was made up OF the Lancas-
ter Cornet band, Tom Cox post and
corps. soldiers of the late Spanish
war. children bearing wreaths and
flowers, citizens on loot, citizens in
carriages.
AT the cemetery the G. A. Il. service
was read by Commander Williams
and Chaplain Woodhouse. The grave
of every soldier of the Civil war was
lovingly decked with flowers by
children who thus expressed the love
Of the veterans and older folk for their
tried and true dead friends and COM
rades. the honor and respect of the
Younger generation for a race OF he
roes whose patriotic devotion to our
country in great crisis has made its
present greatness possible and the lib
erty of its citizens secure. The pro-
cession then returned in formal lines
to town.
The afternoon program began with
the decoration Of the soldiers monu-
ment in the Court House Square. A
procession formed as in the morning
marched once around the square ana
to the monument where they formed
as follows: A young lady dressed in
black with barred head at each column
of the monument circle OF one hum
bred little boys and girls around them,
! and double circle OF w. G. and
Il. A. r. members around nj.
The exercises here consisted OF the
decoration of the columns with bou-
quets bv the young ladies, strew-
ING with fresh spring blossoms the
lawn around the central shaft by the
little ones while their childish voices
were sweetly. tunefully raised in pat
riotic song, and the salute to the dead
by the grand army
The procession then marched to the
stand at the eastern entrance to the
court house where the program was
completed There .was prayer by
Rev. Morgans, good music by the
choir and band and poem by H. U.
Johnson. a taking selection most
charminolv recited by the little five
vear-old daughter of Lewis BETTER OF
Patch Grove. She was 50 little that
her head barely came above the plat
form railing but she was big enough
or at least witty enough to get, at the
close of her piece, the heartiest burst
of applause of the day
The address of the orator of the day
Mr.. Ferdinand Geiger of Milwaukee,
followed 1t was an exceptional
speech in some respects. 1t shows
Mr.. Geiger to be brainy man, man
of positive views on the questions of
the day and a man who has the cour-
are of his convictions. He told his
hearers some timely truths which a
merely time-serving politician would
have hesitated to proclaim, but which
truths
people need to hear, TO ponder and TO
heed. He hewed so close to the line
>sthat chips may have struck in the
4 faces of some but an unbiased thinker
4 must admit the line was one of recti-
ude Following is the address:
You are met for the thirty-second time, in
obedience 70 the order Of yourold Comman-
rades. and. as YOU well know, no form Of
ceremonyis prescribed. but you are asked
to gather around the sacred remains Of
your comrades. and garland the passion
less mounds above them with the choicest
flowers Of spring time; TO raise above them
the dear old flag which they saved from dis
honor
with such a simple act to symbolic a
world of sentiment and generous tribute.
how truthfuliy did ore of your old comrades
say that he was oppressed with a sense of
the improperly Of words upon this Occa-
sion: and surely one who is nearly a gener-
alton removed from the struggle in which
these heroes fell. is not expected TO be en-
dowed with words deep enough to measure
out the tribute which their memory de-
serves. Nor could summon to my com
nand power to tell to you survivors. nor
would you care 10 hear from me. OF heroic
deeds and sacrifices OF your fallen comrades,
when yourselves witnessed and shared them,
We. OF our day and generation. can see in
the light OF the martyred.president's words
spoken when. for the second time he took
his oath OF ONCE. We can see great strug-
gle in which one party offered war. that the
nation might die. the other accepted war
that il might live. struggle in which both
read the same Bible each appealed 70 the
same God FOR tire Righteousness OF is cause.
we see il a great scourZe. the coming.
going and end OF which was in fllftrnent OF