Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1900-05-30
Come, let us fairesf HOwers spread
Whereper sleep the hero dead:
Nor ask, on this Memorai day,
ILhefher they w0re the blue Orgr0y.

| %SOF USf, on Hf6 %7teMOffuS 0ug,
zDhefher they wOre the blue Orgray.
given Us nation preserved in its integrity.
How sad il would be if the Mason and Dixon
line divided us in twain. That would have
4 been the death knell to every American prin-
ciple. Thanks be to God we have not lost a
single star from O.d Glory; nor have we any
stars to spare. We are bounded on north by
the Dominion Of Canada and Gulf of ST.
Lawrence. on the south by Gulf Of Mexico
and central America on the east by the At
lantic and on west by the Pacific. And now
| the grand old flag floats over the islands of
the sea. Our fathers have given us the past
and present and made possible the future.
/ The most sanguine cannot forecast that
future. The twentieth century dawns big
| with promise and expectation. God has
large things for US to accomplish and we
must be in his hands and hear and obey his
| voice.
4 The time has come when we must stand as
one people. There is no Mason and Dixon
line now. Our southern brethren did a great
wrong TO a nation Of freedmen. They brought
us into disgrace, plunged US into awful night
and ruin, shot and killed our sons their
! martyred our beloved, immortal Lincoln.
! Tney are sorry now and see their mistake and
ask our forgiveness Since then there has
been another war wherein there was no grey
but all was blue. All were loyal and brave
and true. Let us stop singing the songs and
ma king the speeches that SAVIOR of division.
| Sing America" and "The Star spangled
! Banner" We are no more two but lone and
| inseparable.''
| How are we to profit by the patriotism of
our fathers? Shall we be less pati lotto than
they? They have left US goodly heritage;
how are we TO improve it. Is the old flag to
fare as well in our hands? If so there are some
things that will need our attention. The bat
tie against crime, corruption, vice and sin is
next in order. a hundred years ago an Eng
| lishman, Frenchman and an American were
dining together. The Frenchman gave this
toast: France; may she be like the moon
dispelling darkness by her bengnant light"
The Englishman gave this: England; may
she be like the sun-the JOY and strength of
the earth" Then the American who was our
Benjamin Franklin, being called upon, said:
"America may she be like Joshua, who COM
| manded the sun and the moon TO stand still,
and they obeyed him." That was witty and
| intensely patriotic, and prophetic also. If IL
is TO be realized there is something for us to
do.
Abraham Lincoln once said"At what point
shall we expect the approach of danger. Snall
we expect some transatlantic military giant
! TO step the ocean and crush us at a blow?
Never, All the armies OF Europe, Asia and
s.Africa combined, with alfthe treasures of the
earth tour own excepted in their military
chest, with a Ronaparte for commander, could
not, by force, take drink from the Ohio, or
make a track on the Blue Ridge, in the trial
of thousand years. AT what point, then, is
this approach of danger to be expected? / an
swer, if ever it reach us, it must spring up
amongst us. 1t can not come from abroad. If
destruction be our lot, we must be its author
and finisher. As nation OF freemen must
| live for all time or die by suicide"
The dangers which confront us are financial,
political, economical, moral and social. First
and the root of disorder is the infamous liquor
trafic. While the nation is asleep on this
question the black monster is doing his deadly
work, wrecking homes, ,damning souls assault
| ing and assassinatng innocence and purity,
dethroning virtue, claiming thousands of our
choicest young men, filling thousands OF
drunkards graves annually, bursting the
walls of our jails, penitentiaries and insane
asylums with inmates and crowding he'll
with damned sou of immortal heings. Like
| the slavery question it will MT down nor stay
out of politics until IL is settled and settled
right. Closely associated with the liquor
question Is question of crime. Crime is in
creasihg at rapid and dangerous rate. We
do not remain blind to the facts. There are
fifty-two penitentiaries and over 1900 jails in
the United States. II cost over 100000 600 10
build them. over 10000 persons were incar-
cerated in the year 1885. The criminal ex-
pense to the country is not less than slC0 0OO.-
COZ annually. This only represents the GRIM
inals who are fools enough TO get caught al
their game. Tens of thousands of Others are
able to practice crime, defy law and are never
brought to Justice. There IL the trouble be-
tween capital and labor, race strife, social
distinctions, the massing Of the population
in large cities and crimes that insults poll
tical corruption and other dangers which need
our patriotic attention. Our fathers died fol
our country and we honor them. Ii is by ia
more noble to live for our nation. 1t has beer
said that which is unfit TO live for is unfit tC
die for. Character is the loftiest possession o
man and the truest test of manhood. We
need men OF conviction and principle and
men who live to have their convictions and
principles enthroned and if necessary to take
to the field of action that these things do not
suffer.
And what shall say? America. With al
thy faults we love thee still. The finest land
of the globe. Land of my choice. Land OF
my birth. Long may she live. And the old
flag; that is the fairest banner that floats "a
the breeze. The stars and stripes forever!
After prayer by Rev. NJ. Willett,
ID. d., and the singing of America
by the congregation, the service closed.
Il AN incident that is reported TO have
occurred in a Milwaukee court room
will throw some light on legal decis-
ions of liquor questions. A German
saloon keeper was on trial and had
been sworn. One of the attorneys be-
gan to question. "What for you ask
such foolish dings? You drinks at my
blace more as hundred Iimesn That
has nothing to do with the case Mr.
! s.. State to the jury where your
place of business is" "De shury, de
shury! On, shiminey. Every shen-
tleman ON dis shury has shtring oi
marks on my cellar door like rail
I fencew His honor here interceded In
behalf of the council and in dim,
, dignified manner requested the wit.
| \. Al. Is IL