St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1903-06-03

| been given on the same day ana the
CALIFORNIAN is glad to give an abstract
of one and compete report of the
other.
In the morning the details from the
post decorated the soldiers graves in
this town and vicinity with ferns and
| flowers which the children brought in
| such generous quantities.
Promptly at 80 in the afternoon the
parade formed and marched to the Sum-
mer street school buildings. 1t was one
of the best professions seen for many
years and included Palestine Command
cry, Knights Tenlplar, Canton Crescent,
l. 0. o. F., Vermont Company, Knights
of Pythias, Knights of Columbus, st.
lean Batiste Society, Modern Woodmen
of America, Spanish War Veterans, Order
of Foresters, and Chamberin Post. The
procession was headed by our police and
the St Johnsbury Band; the president
of the day, Charles Ross, and the orator OF
the day, Rev. DR.. S. G. Barnes, and veter-
ans in carriages brought up the rear.
Chamberlir Post lined up in front of
the south building at the common for the
always interesting exercises of the school
children. The program here included
songs by the children, the recital by a
group of boys of Lincoln's Gettysburg
address, a brief address by Supt. Demp-
sey and gun drill well executed by the
boys in the upper grades in the Summer
vile schools.
The procession then marched to the
Soldiers Monument in Court House
square for their ceremony and then to
| Music Hall to listen to the address. Here
the exercises were opened by music from
theband. Prayer was offered by Rev. A. F
Walch and Lincolns Gettysburg address
was read by Miss Caroline S. Woodruff
Mr.. Ross then introduced Rev. DR.. S. G
Barnes, the pastor of the South church
who spoke upon the theme "The Sacred
ness of the State" An abstract of thi
address follows:
This is not a military nation; we dc
not believe that the only place where g
man can show himself manifest is on tn,
battlefield. The ranks OF the Crane
Army Of the Republic are made up o
citiz, n soldiers, who left the occupation:
of peace to do a strange and awful work
only undertaken asan absolute necessity
and who gladly returned to the vocation.
OF peace when that work was done. Wal
is terrible means OF redress, last re
sort, when all honorable methods O
peaceful contest have been exhausted
and ballots must give place to bullets.
War involves radical and perilou
change OF moral standards with referenc
J to property and life. Our courts of Law
are established to protect every man
possessions, to set high and stron,
tulwark about every citizens life. Blu
martial law brings us into anothe
world. The army takes what it needs
, and pays Tor it il it can or it it will; bu
j., it takes it anyway. Confscation is
constant incident of war, and absolut
: destruction a frequent method OF EN-
} barassing the foe. II Shermans marc
( to the sea had been paral' eled by lik
6 invasion from Canada that swept bare
similar track through Vermont, the pee
: pile of the Green Mountains would hay
j had a lesson in one awful aspect of wa
r that would have been bitter memoir
4 for generations. And the chief bushes
: OF the soldier is still more terrible, to des
> troy lite. 1t is OF no permanent advar
:. tage merely to compel the enemy to NOV
O to some other place men must be kille
+ III sufficient numbers to take the fightiu
spirit out OF the opposing force; and
the contest is between men of the san
sort, 1t IS necessary to sacrifice an equ
number on our own side And so
!, thousands OF homes there is agonizir
). suspense, and then the desperate certai
4 ty OF irremediable loss. All through Il
!, land war means widows and orphans;
:. often means the lonely and tearI
= struggle with poverty; it surely meal
an accumulation of all the evils that mt
ordinarily dread the most.
Andyet war isnot hell it is not necessa
lie lily devilisb, though it must often look S,
IL There are things that are more vaIuab
al than property, that are OF more wort
y than the life OF the body. When Il
u country calls, and when the voice of Il
vs. country is the voice of God, men cou,
n nothing too dear to sacrifice for such
- cause. For the state is sacred, even
70 the family and the church. Each h.
&c, sacred duties and affections, each h
60 been established of God, each is essenti
az to the kingdom of heaven towards WIFI
10 the progress OF the race is ever directe
A. The state protects both home and churc
ne and therefore men are willing to lea
W home and church, and to die in the 8,
lis vice of their country.
ne That the North was called of divi
te providence to enterinto the war the bo
ke in blue never doubted at the time, a,
We they have seen no cause to doubt it sin,
~ The solemn compact that underlay O
a. national existence had been broken
OF the South; and only through the keepi,
MT OF that compact could the work set
~ tore this people be accomplished. F
st liberty and union are for us one and
u. separabe. And this government COT
nj not permanently abide half slave a
IN bali free. In its constitutional devele
re ment the time came when the North mt
us become partner in the perpetuation a
N. extension of slavery, or slavery must
le' banished from the land. 1t became
mockery to style this land of liber