Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1899-06-09


est rates are about To- build ships and
claim part Of the carrying trade Of the
ocean - say Just al the juncture OF
these favoring coalitions an American
Commolore uu thu other side uf tie
globe, one morning before breakfast, By
a victory the most wonderful m all his-
tory aud which was 80 blessed uf God
that not a single American life was lost,
opened wide the way for this great ma
ton 10 extend its commerce aud carry
, the heLign influence Of its free institu-
iiuus to a part of the earth sadly Ia need
of both, hat far less in need uf our COM
merce than We are ia need of this Pro
yidrutial outlet for il. rp'at ! fain
would dwell on this great passage incur
history now 50 imIsricctly realized 10y
many. hut am admonished that time FOR
bids. Let me. however. say. that while
the fighting in the war with Spain has
apparently done more to establish Amerl-
can military aud naval valur than the
fighting of the late Civil war, 1t Is really
uu more to he compared with 1t than a
SkiuniSh is to hattlr. Think of the
battle at Santiago. the only land ell
gagemrnt of the war. with only a few
hundred killed and wounded, | believe
only little over one thousand all told, |
have not the exact figures. Thea recall
how October 18th. 1851, 1000 of our
men were killed and wounded and 1900
| taken prisoners before breakfast. And
| in passing you will recall also how, if the
enemy had not stopped for breakfast and
/ incontincntly gotten too full of the good
and bad things of our camp, including
the comnisSaly whiskey, Of which they
were in full possession, but had Wig
orously followed up their advantage,
there is no telling what would have lac
come OF the army which Sheridan a few
hours later brought into order out of
panic and confusion and with it turned
| the crushing defeat of the morning into
/ glorious victory before the setting of
| the sun. Compare for moment the
| few hundred killed aud wounded at San
/ tiagO. and the few hundred more all
told killed and wounded on land and sea
| in the late war, and since its close in
| quelliug the instruction in the Philip
/ pines, to which You may probably add
/ all who have died of disease in the SeTV-
/ ice, and doubt if il would equal our
/ losses in a single day at Antirtam which
amounted to over 10000 men: while
/ the enemy acknowledged the loss of be-
/ tween $4,000 and $1,000. and which Nc
| Lellan estimated at over 1900.
The fact is my friends the war of the
| Rebellion was one of the most bloody il
| not the hluodiest in all history. Anglo.
! Saxon stood up against Anglo-SaXon and
/ fought it out. But the American PEG
/ pie gained no particular military or ia.
/ val standing among foreign nations on
account of that war. 1t was looked upon
/ abroad as family dispute, as only a
! quarrel between brothers. disgraceful at
/ best and no note was taken outside OF
| the bravery and hcroism of that contest
/ But the moment an outside nation. no
matter if it bc puSilanimouS Spain, is
| made to feel the terrible energy Of Amcri
can guns, with American soldiers and
sailors behind them, then American val
or is recognized among foreign nations
and SO it has come to pass that the late
little affair with Spain more than all ou
. previous history. has established among
"the nations of the earth our capacity fol
war; and this tirkles Just a little the
pride OF every American. But let us
not my friends if YOU will pardon the
expression, no other seems to tit SO we'll
let us not get the big head" over it
Let us remember while war ALWAYS
opens the way to a higher civilization
vet war is never itself ciyilizer. Lei
us also remember that peace hath hel
victories no less renowned than war
Our own history shows this. Oar grand
est triumphS are not to be found in the
cannon We have invented, nor in the
Monitors We have built. though they
have revoutionizrd the navirs of til,
world. No, not, to the rnginery of wal
do we point in this era of peace. as tn,
| greatest achievement OF American civ
ili2atiou.
War with all its "pomp and circum
stance" brought hlightrd fields and DIES
olateu homes. And though we are prou,
of American valor as DISPLAYED ON tn,
field of strife. vet We the rather point t.
the nobler trophies of peace; to ripenec
haryests aud happy fresides. We tn,
rather point to the painter and the sculp
tor. the poet. the novelist and the his
torian. who are reveling amid the EN-
chantmcnts of our legends. tradition anc
history, and producing new creations -
literature and art - to cheer and elevate
We point also to the trumphs of invent
i've genius which are every dav turnin.
labor over to the willing servitude O
steam and natures forces. and biddin.
man take time to think. And amons
these triumphs. as essentially American