Wausau pilot. [volume] (Wausau, Wis.) 1896-1940, 1902-06-03
MEMORIAL EXERCISES
The Program Successfully Carried Out and
the Turnout of Citizens Unusually
Large.

The day was a beautiful and ideal one
for Memorial services, and even the
chronic kicker was happy aud looked
satisfied. The program, which the
members of Cutler Post had framed,
was carried out nearly as had been ar
ranged. Shortly after the dinner hour
people began to cluster about the court
house square, and il was not long until
the Post, Co. g and Cones band put in
an appearance. At lbs Atty. f. P.
Regner, one of the speakers chosen for
the day, assembled an improvised plat
form near the monument on the court
house square and addressed those
present. His words were well chosen
and were in keeping with the spirit of
the day.
A synopsis of Mr.. Regner's speech is
here appended:
The heroes who assemble here on the
| 30th of May in each year are growing
| less in number with every recurring
| Memorial day and a. these veterans are
/ passing from us. the coming generations
! are prone TO forget the memories OF
former years, the bravery of the men
who have fallen in defense of their
! country Yet the nation that forgetS
| its defenders does not deserve them,
and in keeping with this thought, |
wish today, at these exercises, in honor
of the unknown dead heroes, TO make
my small contribution 10 prevent such
/ forgetfulness, by speaking to you OF the
courage and loyalty of the union sol
diers-the boys who met at the point
where the lightning burned and the
| thunderbolts fell, who, when the shock
] of war came, were at the front to meet
| its terrible force, and who stood there
| like a wall of fire and as firm as the
everlasting hills.
AS we decorate this monument with
| flowers, we think of the brave boy in
! blue leaving for the front, tearing him.
| self from father, mother, wife or chill
| dren, to answer his country's call. We
think of the parting from home and
| family, from all that was dear to him,
| to go forth to battle that the flag which
! fioated over our nation might be true
emblem of liberty. We think of the
watching and waiting through the
months and years which went go slow;
| of camp and march, of siege and battle,
! of danger and death, of victory and de-
| feat. We think of the hundred thou
sands taken prisoners during the Civil
war, who, when death was stalking
within the walls of their prison, when
starvation was almost overcoming their
| brave hearts, when mind was recedlng
and reason lettering, were offered
their freedom if they would enlist IN
! the Southern army, who preferred 10
suffer all rather than prove false TO
| their country.
Nobly has the Union soldier per-
| formed his duty. On more than thou
sand battlefields has he gloriously vim
| Gicated the cause of his country. The
world knows no man more brave, more
patriotic than the boy in blue, and
| glory in his gallantry and devotion to
! the grand cause of human liberty. His
| pluck, his energy, his enthusiasm are
| irresistible his determination is I'M
copquerable and his patriotism sublime.
| And now shall we forget? Shall we
| forget those boys in blue who with
| Sherman marched from Atlanta to the
sea Shall we forget those who, with
| Sheridan, swept the valley of the Shen-
andoah Z? Shall we forget those who
with Thomas stood like a rock at Chlca-
manga Shall we forget the three
| hundred thousand boys in blue who
| came not back at the summons OF
peace? Who withered away in the
| hot breath of battle at Donaldson and
Shiloh. in the bloody trenches before
! Vicksburg, up close TO the sky on
Lookout Mountain, in the great battles
of the Wilderness and in the crucial
struggle at Gettysburg. Everywhere that
cannon roared and battle ragged? |
answer you no ! So long as there re-
| ~ hroa r Of
gratitude for those who suffered one
! spark of patriotism for the government
! thew protected, one spark of love for
! the dear old flag which they never
! allowed 10 trail in the dust SO long as
the Republic shall last or time endure,
must We cherish in our hearts the mem
DRY of those who offered their all on the
altar of freedom.
But we must do more. We must fol-
| low the examples of these veterans; we
must be filled with the true spirit of pa
| trotism manifested by them; we must
put the welfare of our nation always
uppermost in our minds and hearts; we
must be ready to meet every danger, to
| overcome every difficulty.
And the country is today confronted
by grave dangers, by perplexing prob
| lens. A few months ago VIM. McKin-
ley. who was probably the best beloved
| President who ever sat in the chair of
Washington, was struck down by the
| hand of an assassin, fell victim to the
| social evil, Anarchy, an evil that is at
| lacking the very fountain-h head of re-
| publican government. Yet the bullet
that struck Mckinley was not aimed so
much at the man as at the social and
political fabric of which he was the
| honored head 1t was aimed at our
national liberty. Here is fighting for
! you and me, here is the opportunity to
| manifest our patriotism, to make our
sacrifices for the country.
A few years ago this country was Sc
lected by Almighty God to fight war
for humanity, for liberty Through the
valor and patriotism of our soldiers we
have stormed the heights of San Juan
under Shafter and Wheeler, burst
through the ramparts at Manila,
wrenched the hand of the tyrant from
the throat of Cuba, bringing civilization
and freedom to the world As a result
| of the war, vast territories In the East
| have been acquired, mountains pos
sessed of mineral wealth ofuntold value;
| islands with commercial advantages
that give ms the control of China's mar
kets. We have grown to be a world
/ er,-acknowiedged as the foremost
nation of the globe.
But with this wealth and power have
come new dangers, perplexing prob
lens. Questions of vital Importance
| confront the American people-we must
provide government for race thous-
ands of miles away. Shall it be colon
ial government, similar to that granted
onr Revolutionary fathers by England,
shall we grant them all the rights and
! privileges of citizen of the United
States, or shall we give them their ma
tional Independence
In solving these problems that con-
front the American people let us give
them most earnest consideration Let
/ us be careful how we listen to the voices
of adventurous statesmen; how we
| satisfy the aspirations of greedy specu-
lators Let us always look to the t>st
interests of the country; to the we'Iare
and happiness of the people. let us
| alwavS ha ouidpd bv the Jc,.f.fnpS of