The Globe-republican., 1903-09-03

The Southwest Kansas Veterans asso
citation reunion here this week has beer
another great meeting The reunion
grows larger each year, more interesting
and draws crowds from further away.
Tuesday mornings meeting was pre-
sided over by Representative G. NJ. Bee
son, The address of welcome was made
by Mr. Reeves of this city. He gave tht
Veterans a cordial greeting, and bis oper
ing remarks in humorous vein started the
reunien off in a happy frame of mind
In concluding bis address Mr.. Reeves
said:
"If anybody in this country is entitled
topleasure, peace and plenty the veterans
4 Of The civil war are thus entitled. They
have earned it by toll, They have earned
it by suffering and by anguish that
amounted to almost death. They earned
it too, by restoring 10 the flag The stars
that secession had erased and by reStor-
Ing to us and our posterty united coun-
try.
40 resent tile invasion Of ones own
country by an armed foe is not necessari
ly heroic. For be who would not defend
bis own freside against invasion is
craven indeed.
Buthe who leaves the quiet joys of
home as you did, who leaves his friends
and family and all that life holds dear
yand goes forth to battle, perhaps to die
for an abstract principle of government
does that which entities his name to an
exalted place in bis country's hall of
fame, and entities bis memory to be en-
shrined and forever cherished in tue
hearts Of his countrymen,
"The struggle in which you engaged
was awful beyond conception. 1t is no
disparagement to the junior veterans of
our later wars to say that compared with
1t these wars have been skirmshes aud
their heroes have, some ofIthem, achieved
fame at an expense 50 cheap as 10 be al
most absurd.
"Feeble as orr conception Of civil war
1t seems incomprehensble to us that you
went through it all and have for nearly
forty years survived its terrors. 7 Surely
it must be that often in the quiet of the
night 1t has invaded your dreams of hap
pier things and in the form of night.
mare has dragged you through its sights
and sounds and miseries again in all
tnelr gnaslly norrldhess.
sand when 1t recurs to you with all ITS
attendant unhapplness how thankful,
how profoundly thankful you must feel
for the peace and comfort which sur
rounds you. 1t Is when we think of
these things that we have some idea Of
the pleasure which these reunions impart
to the old soldier. And If we had passed |
through all that you have gone through |
aud had lived for forty years to meet our
old comrades out here III western Kansas,
surrounded with peace and plenty, here
10 this glorious sunshine among these
glorious trees we should want to escape
the speeches and go out where the sun
shine riffs in glittering little patches of
gold through the shade and just lie down
in the grass and wallow there and feel
good"
The response was made by Mr.. Grlggs
OF Meade. 10 the afternoon tho reunion
was addressed by Senator ]. r. Burton.
Mr.. Sutton Of this city presided over the
meeting,
SENATOR BURToN's SPEECH.
Senator Burton speaking to the Old
Soldiers said
"When You went out at your Coun-
try's call you had no Intention Of freeing
the negro, you went out to save the
Union and In doing your duty did better
than you knew. 8 The man who does
bis duty always builds better that he
knowsn
SHOT only did you strike the shaCkles
from four millions Of slaves as the result
Of doing your duty but you wiped from
the brow Of labor the word disgrace
and wrote thereon the word honor for
before the war labor throughout the
south was looked upon as degrading, as a I
result Of your building better than you
knew, labor is today in every part Of our
grand and glorious country no longer 70. {
garded as degrading but as enobling and ,
uplifting. .
We arc prone to compare deeds Of
valor 10 the warriors Of old but five will {