Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1900-06-06

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color appear; everything takes on colors that
chill; the stoutest hearts quail in the waiting
SO awful the suspense. And then It comes
pounding and pelting and swallowing all tina,
1T can reach in its awful mystery Of power.
And so at the last in the history OF this great
conflict, men who had the wisdom to foresee.
knew 1t must come. Others with equal
love Of country, tried to stay its power, but
at last all saw the clouds darken, the lurid
horizon, the calm and awfulness before the
storm. Then 1t came. pelting and pounding
the mental life OF the North, destroying the
high hopes, wrecking the halting ambition,
and as it cleared it left clear sky and ii pur-
pose. All DOUBT gone, the die cast at Sumter.
it was henceforth one nation or two. free
nation or slave. What an era?
Then Lincoln said want men; I want you
and you went, you and long list not here to-
day. One thing / want to emphasize es-
pecially for those here who belong to a gem
Grafton later than you. 1t was absolutely
necessary that you should go. War and deaf h
and carnage are awful. but at times absolutely
necessary. Nothing could have made this
nation one. nothing could have closed the
wide difference, nothing could have decided
the difference between the two centuries but
the conquering Of one by the other. 1t was
hell or heaven for the race on this continent
believe.
Then the carnage began. We cannot trav-
erse it. The treachery rampant we do not
care to dwell apon; the air was full OF 1t as
always on like occasions. But above IL always
was the honor. the patriotism, the flag, Old
Glory led every other sentiment and beat
every opposing feeling down.
One or two battles in which many Of you
were we may speak Of. Bull Run, at which
was fought the first great battle OF the war.
disastrous as it was, greatly united the North.
II proved that we had foe worthy OF all
effort. 1t surprised and sorrowed. but it de-
termined the northern people. Not very long
after came Antietam, with battles of course
between. This should have been the great
battle OF the war. Some Of you were there
some Of you were with Burnside holding the
bridge. 1t was your first great victory, and
how miseraby its effect was lost. Lee, the
great general of the Confederate army, out
generated Mcclellan and made his escape
good. | am but reciting history.
There is one other battle to which | must
fefer. Gettysburg was the Waterloo of the
Rebellion. Had that been lost, the govern
ment OF the Confederate states would have
been acknowledged by foreign powers in
forty-eight hours, with intervention. The
South, flushed with success, had determined
to invade the North, seize Washington, Phila-
delpha and Baltimore, and close the war
This was May, 1863. The battle of Gettysburg
occurred at Pennsylvania on the LIST, I'd and Sd
days OF July. OF the forces engaged there
were under Lee. assisted by Longstreet, 10000,
the loss $4,000; under Meade, $4,000. and the
loss 23.0o0-one-third of the entire number
engaged. 1 have said that this was the battle
OF the war. am not forgetting Grant in the
West, nor Shermau's splendid march to the
sea; am not forgetting Farragut, nor Porter.
nor Mobile, nor Vicksburg, nor the Cumber-
land, nor the Monitor and the splendid,
unparaliel victories Of our navy; am not for
getting Petersburg nor Charlottesville, nor
am forgetting the Wilderness and the awful
carnage from that spot 10 Appomatox.
Forgetting it, what arena? On the one
side small quiet, elf-contained man of iron,
unyielding, patient, untiring, before which
every opposing force must go down, in whose
hands was the direction of million men scat
tered over an area larger than France and the
German Emf ire, Holland and Denmark com
bined, 500 600 square miles. Against him one
Oh the most accomplished BtntraiS OF modern
skilful in his knowledge of
warfare and of men, worshipped by his TO :
lowers men with whom it was an honor to
cross steel. am not forgetting the 100000
OF men who gave up their lives in this awful
slaughter, and yet Gettysburg will be placed
in history as the Waterloo of the Rebellion
Henceforth it was on their part war of de-
ftnse. not of offense.
There were five elements that most largely
prevented the intervention of England first
then France and perhaps other countries later
Far away in the lead is Gettysburg, with little
Round Top as the key; second. the marvellous
capacity OF Lincoln and seward especially the
former. who under the most delicate and trying
circumstances assuaged the resentment of
Americans and allowed no excuse for the Eng
ll>h to strike. third, the gracious and ever
friendly feeling OF England's ruling monarch, who
was wiser than her ministers, and who never
cca sed to be our courteous friend in these trying
Quern Of England. God Bless her
fourth the presence one morning, in New York
harbor ot the war>h ps of Rus>!a-So far as
know nothing was officially said. but it- sugges
t'yeness was oycrpowerng and fifth. the most
>iupendous feat of combined courage. physical
endurance and convincing oratory known to
history. when Henry Ward Beecher beginning
at Liverpool. where his life was in the hands OF
IA mob and in four lectures, the last at London
changed the opinion of the people as no other
like work ever did From vast populace
hating America and thlrsting for blood, they
wer made to that the interests of thee
Anglo Saxon race were common. and the
effect was overwhelming upon the ruling
classes.
We pass gladly over the days of reconstruc-
ton when the world missed the dead Lincoln so
much-lays when the conquered South and the
conqueI King North were emerging from the slime
and ooze of war; days OF travail is well as Of
trcachery, and hatred and wrong-dong incident
to a war like unto which there is no paralel-a
war in which there were a hundred battles III
either OF which more men were slain than III
all the Spanish quarrel and battles incident
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