Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1902-06-05

| the south he said: 1.-THE American war
was not collection Of struggling pyg-
miles, It was a war of giants!'
Deeds OF Heroisni.
An American never fights as we'll as
| when he is a civilian, taken out Of the
ordinary walks Of life, to fight for the
defense of his own home and native
land. Where in all the pages of his
tory can you find greater deeds Of her
oism than those exhibited in the south.
ern army? The reason 1 use this as
an illustration Is because the southern
army, being the defeated army, had to
suffer more. That army fought until
1t could fight no more. The Confed-
crate soldiers fought until they had no
shoes upon their feet; they fought when
they had no food in their stomachs;
they fought until their clothes were in
tattcrs, and the southern ladies had to
tear up their dresses to bandage up
their wounds; they fought until the
slightest wound, on account Of their
depleted physical system, would cause
death by gangrene; they fought until
they died.
Where can you find a greater exam
pie Of heroism than that exhibited by
the colonel Of a Pennsylvania regi-
ment? AS he was leading in charge
he looked down and saw the upturned
face Of his own boy. All that he did
was to kneel a moment and kiss his
child. saying, "Goodby, my darling;
goodbyw Then he turned and waved
his sword, crying: Come on. boys!
Come on! Charge and follow me"
Where can you find greater deed Of
heroism than that exhibited upon the
field of battle when the ambulance
corps found among the wounded boy
in blue with both Of his eyes shot out.
There he sat, holding in his arms the
dead body of another boy in blue. They
were brothers. AS the surgeons aid
came near they heard the blind boy
whispering to the dead boy: poor Bob
by. Poor Bobby! Mamma told me to
look after you, and will. Poor Bob
by! Poor Bobby" All, in this land Of
the free and the brave we do not want
n greater standing army! We do need,
however, more consecrated homes; we
do need more fathers and mothers who
will build the right kind Of family al
tars; we do need the right kind Of
Christian churches, where those chill
dren can be brought in contact with
God; we need those Christian boys and
girls started in the right kind of avo-
cations. Then when war comes, II 1t
must come, the Christian homes Of the
| nd ta hn CT ho
west, will yield up their sons for the
battle and their daughters for the field
hospitals.
The Christian dead Of our American
battlef1elds are intensely alive today
in the heavenly recognitions which
have been given to them. Impossible
Is it to suppose that God would allow
both armies and who died upon the
American battlehelds to 60 unreward-
ed. In the beautiful sermon upon the
mount Christ pronounced blessing on
those whose lives were full Of tears
and heartaches, poverty and persecu-
ton, SANDER and death. DO not Christs
. words apply to those brave men? Did
they not suffer enough? Were not their
,, wounds deep enough? Did not they
|, hunger enough and have inconsistencies
,, enough? Did not many fair checked
boy under his blanket at night sob
himself to sleep, or, unable to sleep, keeI
; on crying, "Oh, mother, mother, if
could only see mother" In one of the
, national museums i saw Bible which
had saved soldiers life. When the
young man left home his mother gave
1t to him. In battle he was carrying II
, in his coat pocket just over the heart
A flying bullet almost cut its way
through that Bible, but it was stopped
at one of the leaves Of the four gospels
q Did not many a dying soldier have one
of these Bibles in his hand? Did be
not weep over 1t when he was dying
far away from home? Can God forget
his Christian soldiers who died upor
.. the American battlefields? No, no
The Bible describes the entrance into
. heaven of mighty host marching
through the gates as before the review
. ing stand Of an earthly ruler. st. JohI
. In apocalyptic vision cried out in rap
ture as he saw them, "Who are these
who are arrayed in white robes. ant
!. whence came they" There must have
. been many seen by his prophetic eye
= who came from our American battle
!, fields to whom the answer that he re
: ceived would apply, These are the.
!, which came out Of great tribulatiol
and have washed their robes and mad
;, them white in the blood of the Lamb.
6 An Incident of the Crimea.
/ When the English soldiers came bacl
d from the Crimean war, all Londol
Q turned out to greet them. After the.
!. had marched past the reviewing stant
( Queen Victoria and the prince censor
!, arose to receive those heroes who wer
d to be decorated with medals. AS eac
/ soldier approached. the queen, with HI
/ own hand, pinned the medal upon tt
8 breast Of the man she wished to homo
: Some Of those soldiers had an empt
J. sleeve; some came on crutches; SON
II had their heads bandaged. At la
l. there came litter. In it was carrie
&c the physical wreck Of n man. Both {
o his legs had been shot away. One (
his arms was gone. His body had sir
% ply been riddled with bullets. The
q the queen, with tears In her eyes, bat
% the bearers halt. She left her pla'
1t and descended the steps Of her star