The Portland daily press., 1899-05-31

The Rev. J. K. Wilson, ID. D., tn en-
delivered. . brief but interesting address
| on the adaptibility of the American peo-
pie to any and all emergencies in which
he took era NIPPLES from the history OF the
civil and later war.
DIR. Burrage then introduced the orator
OF the evening, Gen. q. p. Mattooks.
The Grafton Of Gen. Q. p. Mattooks
was one Of the most scholarly and eio'
quent delivered at q Memorial Day. gath
ering in this city In many years. When
the veterans of two wars was introduced
the great audience gave him very fiat
tering reception. His address was listened
to with great attention throughout. he
| began by telling Of the custom In centur-
! les past of honorin9 the memory OF SOL
\ diers who fell on the field Of battle and
said that tributes paid to our soldiers
who fell in conflict are just to the dead
and beneficial to the living. He then dis
cussed the results Of war. stating that 1t
often accomplishes what diplomacy falls
to bring about and diffuses new vigor
and strengthing to the civilization OF the
world. He then showed what had been
the effect Of the civil war on the conn
try and how 1t had educated oficers for
the Spanish American war. The deeds OF
the civil wnr served rs AN inspiration to
those Of the last war. He then spoke of
what had been achieved by the civil war.
giving us a united nation and increasing
our influence abroad and encouraging
other nations in their efforts to obtain
universal liberty. He said: "By your
deeds and the deeds of your Successors
the Spanish-Americsn war new sta nd
ard of manhood has been established, so
that men may be valued by what they
have done for others and not BY what
they have done for themselves Thank
God, amidst our multiplying trusts and
com binations to get money we may now
and then mourn man who has been OF
some good to his country"
He then went on to say:
At the beginning of the con hict Le-
tween ourselves and 5 pain, the most san
guine American had not the slightest
hope Of our success except At the END OF a
long and expensive war. 1t was said at
the outset by distinguished Spanish
writer, that the Americans were composed
of all races, that they would have In their
ranks the scum of their own and OF
European society which had been thrown
upon the shores of the new world; that
our army and navy would bs composed OF
mercenaI les and not patriots. If there be
any one element In our civilization which
makes US strong today In . military poin'
Of view, IL Is this very mixture OF races.
The infusion Of the blood Of foreign ma
lions into our population has added to
our military strength, and 1t is source
of much pleasure that In the recent hos.
tilities We had not only the American
element such as the descendants OF the
Cavaliers and Roundheads hut that. In
addition, the sturdiness of the German
and Scandinavian, the patien CO OF the
negro and the dash and enthusiasm OF
that born soldier. tine Irishman. As an
other element of strength we had side
by SIDE men from the North and from the
South whose fathers had once opposed
each other.
1t was my good fortune to command
for time during the present war bri-
gsde composed of one regiment from
Iowa, one from Mississippi and one from
Maine. We encamped together and be-
came friends Il n would have become sol
diers in the true sense of the term, had
not the triumph OF our arms rendered our
services no longer necessary. Here side
those of the South upon the field of
Chickamagua where third of century
ago their fathers had met In mortal COM
bat; and always felt that, hadsSe been
called upon to enter upon the active and
dangerous duties of real warfare, my west
ern men would have displayed the Same
courage and steadfastness which charac-
terized the western troops under Sherman
and Thomas and Grant; and that my
Mississippians, many of whose ancestors
lie buried upon the field OF Chickamauga,
would have preserved the prestige of their
state, nor had l this slightest doubt that
the men of the First Maine, some of
whose fathers had served under me In the
civil war, would have preserved the rep
utation OF Maine, which claim was in
the civil War first of all the states.
10 show how we blOtted out, under my
own observation at least, the bitterness Of
the civil war, will state that my Mis-
sissippi regiment was commanded by an
ex-Confederate major, whose brother had
been killed at the battle Of Chickamsuga;
one of the companies Of the rsgimsnt
was from the former home OF Jefferson
Davis, and that company still bears his
name; one of my staff officers was a aoD
of the private secretary of the Confederate
President. And believe today that these
men ara as firmly devoted to the flag, as
any who have served in the present war.
especially, and occasionally. l admit, to
members of our order, TO continus to fan
the fire of sectional hate, but this feeling
Is confined to few men for whom eop-
fess have but little respect. 1t must be
remembered that the old soldiers North
and South have not since the erd of the
civil war made themselves prominent In
causing to oe continued the strained rela-
lions between the sections. The charges
made upon the ''rebel brigadiers" iu the
halls of Congress vera made by men who
had not seen tit to face them In ths field
10 jump at hasty conclusions is a char
acterIstlc of the American people We
magnify the present and forget the past.
The general criticisms OF The spanish war
have erred in two directions They mag
nifty the sutferings of the soldiers,a I'd they
nave belittled the magnitude o. the sue
cssses of our arms. Inat our
soldiers suffered and still suffer, there
can be no doubt. That some Of the
suffering was caused by neglect II officers
high and low, cannot be doubted, and
that much suffering was caused unfortu-
nateIy by the men themselves there can
be less doubt, and yet We must remem-
her that this Is the fate of all new armies
and ali new soldiers, The sutfsrings Of
,ha livi1 rom m rad