The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1900-05-30
TOPEKA'S TRIBUTE
Graves of Soldier Dead StreWn
With Flowers.
Many New Resting Places Found
in the Cemeteries.
PARADE AT 2 P. NJ.
Old and Young Soldiers Marched
Together.
DIR. D. M. Fisk Delivers an EIO-
Quent Grafton.

Thousands of flowers of varied hue to-
day mingle with the grass that covers
the graves of the soldier dead in the
cemeteries about Topeka. They form
the annual Memorial Day tribute OF
the living-a proof that the dead and
their deeds are not forgotten.
There is not known soldiers grave
in the vicinity of Topeka this afternoon
that does not show floral offering.
Many more were found for decoration
than a year ago. and the increase in
number does not represent only the vet
Grams who have died during the past II
months. Among the number are several
where rests the bodies of youthful sold
ierS cut off in the start of life by Fill
pino bullets or the pestilentia1 atmos-
phere of & tropical country.
Baskets of flowers were gathered ear
ly this morning from several of the city
schools, and in charge Of committees
from the G. a. r. posts and ladies of
Topeka, taken to the Topeka cemeteries
| and strewn on the soldiers graves. The
entire morning was given up to the dec
Grafton of the graves
This afternoon the usual Memorial
| Day parade was held. Headed by Mar
shalrs band. the veterans of the civil
war walked in line with veterans of the
| Spanish war, fraternal orders and mill
| tary organizations of the city. The pa
| rade was under the direction of Col. H.
| c. Lindsey, and the divisions were COM
|
The exercises of the day were held at
| the First Presbyterian church immedi-
| ately after the parade on Kansas ave
| nue.. The Memorial Day address was
| delivered by Rev d. NJ. Fisk, pastor of
the First Congregational church, and
was entitled 1.-The Unfinished Battle of
| Freedom 1t proved to be a mastery
| effort, and DR.. Fisk had the close atten-
| tion of the large audience that filled the
| auditorium of the church. In part he
| said:
Though close on 40 eventful years
have crowded between US and that
| month of May that saw the men of the
| Massa chusetts sixth shot down in the
treason streets of Baltimore,-though 80
years have elapsed since the surrender
of the last Confederate command,-yet
! no lengthening perspective of interven-
ing time, no commanding events of more
recent history have diminished, either
materially or spiritually the eminence
of your sacrifices and accomplishments.
Let one comparison be suggestive and
Il ample evidence. The Civil war is to US
history even to you, to widows and or
phanS the bitterness of this memorial
hour is somewhat SOftened by the heal
ing ministries of more than 80 years of
patience, and the comforting reflection
on the greatness of the results achieved
| by sacrifice. Not so to another portion
of the great English-speaking world.
Our mother-country too has a great way
on her troubled hands. While we strew
roses on long grassy graves whose sod
has been kept green by the submissive
tears of more than a quarter GEN.
. tury, English graves are being dug
and swiftly filed and mothers dread
) and wait, and weep (as the silver-hair-
ed matrons wept and feared 80 years
ago) Well, how does that great war
4 compare with your campaign for lib
erty? Where the energies of an EN-
pire today send forth an army of 200, ,00t
men, the startled North sent out more
than ten men to Englands one-2,252,
= lxI.7<,I ,r-I,
for Old Glory and their freedom
. Q7S000) as now contend for British SUI
premacy in Southern Africa. And OF
the battles, do they pale in awful splen
; dor of sacrifice for a. cause in the fact
, of later actions? Rather say, that re-
: cent engagements become skirmisne:
beside the 81 ,S07 killed, wounded anC
missing (on both sides) in the one
, epoch-marking battle of Gettysburg
The whole Boer army musters no more
men than counted as loss on eithel
side (23.186 federal; 1922 confederate
in that one terrible action And in some
other fearful conflicts, as Cold HarbOr
Wilderness and Chickamauga.
20, my brothers, what a price yol
: and your comrades paid for the priv
1 ilege to spell Nation with a large N
J and for the acknowledgements of its peo
pie both black and white-777, 900 UnioI
e dead. wounded and missing; 44,23S shot
e 1888 died of wounds; $4,000 died il
= hospital; $4,000 dead Three hundret
= thousand unkissed but not unwept dea,
4 faces looking up to the pitying stars
a too early in their graves to cleanse tn
|. eScutcheon of our country from tn
b stain of slavery, contempt of labor. DO
= litical hereSieS and treason. For neye
Y let it be forgotten, not any materia
e compulsion, but a great conviction o
o duty made you, our peace-loving broth
q erS into men of war. No cool calcula
e tion of balanced advantages, no lus
e of blood, revenue or booty, but rathe
d a great imperative must, the deep in
e stinct of national preservation, and re
O Spect for labor and justice set these
e battle front, and hid the 10000 faces
O forest gloom, or deep in unfathome
d brine. One out of every. eight men tha
r went into the war died.
q MY soldier brothers, your work a
II freemen, and as patriots is not yt
d completed. So long as Gods free sur
shine and health giving air is fence
# and owned by loveless Rhine-baron
! | and farmed out ass extortion, at til
n price of preventible disease, so long E
N the soft snow of a freeman's ballot doe
" not express the will of a voter. but
n only added emphasis to the merciles
e dictum of some self-seeking polite;
IA ring, so long as the theory of a frs
Il government is The people rule bl
4, the daily fact is: The boss rules tt
J. machine rules So long as the la
4 vestige of caste in social or polite;
,e life remains, so long as spoliation TAX
1e the place of legitimate trade, and di
~ tation from any hierarchy be it eccle
s. 1dSNASdi VI POheAS1l - 4OhS WIN ~
" things remain true: The cleaning lin
- of shadowy blue that beleaguer
N round this day will ask: Was it for tn
1r we died?' Is this the brotherhood thi
rt we purchased on Antietam. and
Of AndersonVlHe! are our graves
is trenchments for such social tyrannies
1e Was it for such a Cain posterity TIL
m we left our wives widows, and our sol
al to grow up without fathers? Why d
er we dle. ana tne olhef personal "a
ad and unacceptable duty-tO complete Il
= battle for human acknowledgements.
.ssE111rnan slavery bred nassinn treas