The Stark County Democrat. [volume] (Canton, Ohio) 1833-1912, 1900-06-05
STARR COUNTY DEMOCRAT, TUES DAY, JUNE 8, 1900.

hand for lifting food to it. The Grand
Army of the Republic, by their heroism
and by their valor, averted this great
danger to our country and to mankind.
They made perpetual the sentiment
which Washington created, which Lin
coin said that he was willing to die for
that all men, not the men Of one local.
ity, not the men of one race, of one
color, of one blood, but all men, might
be free, and answerable alone to God.
That call a sentiment, because 1t is a
principle that speaks to the heart and
to the SOUL Cardinal Newman says that
man is not thinking animal, he is a
feeling, acting animal. Men may talk
of slavery, of loyalty to the north, of
state pride. l tell you it was sentiment
of union, not of northern states, but of
all states, north and south. that made
the north and the soldiers of the north.
invincible. God fought on the side of
the highest ideal.
Many lessons of the war are now
plain to us, which, for many years, were
clouded and indistinct.
Flrst-The war left us the most beau
tiful end matchless example of heroism
and self sacrifice which the world has
ever seen.
Second-It demonstrated that citi-
zen soldiery is the ideal soldiery; that
good, intelligent, upright citizens are,
with little training, ideal soldiers; that
when the army is an army of citizens,
in thorough accord with the environ
ments and principles of their govern
ment, that there is no danger from
standing armies; that such an army is
without cupidity, without vulgarity;
that 1t is not beastly and bloodthirsty;
that it Is gentle and humane, but strong
as the arm of God: thGt it marches
along the Inc iof righteousness, not to
ruin and devastate, but to save, ennoble
and establish great and lasting princi-
pies.
Third-The war demonstrated that
ideas are the bonds that bind men gently
into brotherhoods, that obliterate Sec
tional lines, statehood and local habita-
tion in the larger ideal of union, broth
erhood and justice to all humanity
Emerson says: The mighty force OF
ideas is irresistible at last And so ]
say, that war demonstrated that the
larger ideal, the highest purpose begets
the highest bravery, the best military
discipline, the most concerted action.
Fourth-The soldiers in blue did what
the supreme court of the United States
was unable to do-they construed the
constitution. They construed it in IA
vor of brotherhood and union; they ce-
mented it in blood, so that henceforth
there shall be no more shedding OF
blood; they construed the constitution
to mean that our Union is a Union by
ties of blood, by bonds made by God
and not by virtue of a contract made
by man, to be ended in time, depending
upon the whims Of the people Of state
or of ruling, selfish politicians.
Fifth-It demonstrated that republi.
can government is the strongest and al
the same time the most flexible of gov
ernments. Never in the history of the
world has government been subjected
to strain as was that of ours in 1861
Never in the history of the world was
there such a recoil of the government
back into its normal channels as that
Immediately following the rebellion.
Sixth-The war destroyed and set al
rest forever all false prophecies as tc
the downfall of our great republic. We
had million men in the field and still
in no wise did we suffer from the des-
potisms which large armies have been
wont to visit upon their people. 1t won
us respect abroad. We have conquered
the ancient skepticisms of philosophers
and scholars. We reversed the verdict
of Macaulay and Carlyle. We gladdened
all the struggling people OF Europe and
England. We were hailed as the savior
of man, as the gift of God to the whole
human race. Men from every cline
fiocked to our shores to taste of the lib
erty we guaranteed the citizens Of the
world. We took in the stranger. the
downtrodden, from every nation and
every race. We changed the attitude
of the great statesman, Gladstone, from
that of doubt and misgiving, to that OF
admiration. Our flag became the SYM
boil of fair play and equal opportunity
Seventh-That war established great
and abiding moral principle. Clear
perception of moral truth is one of the
results of war. We see things through
medium, as it were. We have learned
how great national sin can pluck the
rose from the fair forehead Of our cher
ished republic and set an odious blister
there. Three hundred thousand graves
under southern sod witness what it cost
to purge our nation and bring us to the
ideal that all government, and educa-
tion, and religion, and civilization is
false that does not stand for the sa-
credness Of man.