Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-05-30
President Lauds Heroes Who
Fought TIL Death.
PAST AND THE FUTURE
THOUSANDS GATHER TO sTREw
GRAVES WITH FLOWERS.
Gov. Pennypacker of PENNSYLVANIA
and Others in the Ceremonies
to Union Dead.

! lhgton at 1910 last night, leisurely run
was made by the Baltimore and Ohio rail-
road special train to Pen Mar, Pa
AT Pen Mar, in a delightful park In the
mountains the train was side-tra cked at
am, remaining until 7:3O this morning
A crowd began to assemble at the park
as early as $50, and before the train left
for Gettysburg several hundred people had
| gathered.
Before leaving Pen Mar the President ap-
/ peaTed on the rear platform of his private
| car and was given enthusiastic recep-
/ tion. He spoke as follows:
1T is a great pleasure to greet You this
morning and l am glad that we have
! such beautiful weather on the occasion of
my visiting this great historic be ttlcfieid OF
/ the war, on Decoration day. / will not at
/ tempt TO speak now, as | am to speak later
! in the day. l shall merely repeat how glad
| l am to see all of you, especially those who
wear the button that shows you have
right greater than any of the rest of us to
! be here and to rejoice in all that this me-
| mortal day means.
| The train was stopped in Gettysburg at
Reynolds avenue,-the road which traverses
| the position of the confederate forces on
! the first day of the battle. There the Presi-
! dent and party entered carriages and start
ed on drive over the battlefield.
Greeted by Pennypacker.
/
from their car Trey were greeted by Cow
ernor Pepnypacker on behalf of the COM
n onwealth of Pennsylvania. and by re-
! oeplion committee of Corporal SkeIy Post,
! No ., G. A. r., under whose auspices the
| ceremonies of the day were conducted. A
| section of d battery of the I'd Artillery u.
| S. A, fired presidential salute of twenty
| one guns.
The drive over The battlefield occupied
| three hours and quarter, the entire
| twenty miles of the fine roads built by the
| national government being covered. The
| frequent stops were made to enable the
President to study at close range some OF
! the more important features of the histof1c
/ field.
He manifested familiarity with the details
| of the Rattle and expressed the deepest in
| terest In various incidents recounted by
! General o. o. Howard and General Daniel
! Z. Sichles. both of whom participated in the
| three days engagement on Little Round
| Top, wEere a prolonged stop was made.
Generals Howard and Sickles succinctly de-
scribed the battle the President. Mrs.
Roosevelt and .he entire party listening at
tentively to the graphic word pictures the
/ two distinguished veterans drew OF the sit
uations they arose during the battle. At
| the Presidents request General Sickles
| pointed OUT whore he received the wound
| which cost him his right leg.
In that connection he said that he did not
! know precisely when he received the wound,
| he did not know that he had been hit
until he returned to his headquarters, about
| $50 pm, only discovering the fact then
| by finding his right hand, which had been
| resting on his leg, covered with blood
| While Generals Howard and Sickles were
| talking Major Robbins who served
major in the 4th Alabama. in Laws bril-
gade during the second and third days OF
| the fighting, joined the party and greeted
| the President He was recognized Instantly
! by General Sickes, who remarked eagerly:
| There IS the fellow who tried to take the
| hill, but found II too hot"
| Yes" responded Major Robbins, we
| charged up this hill. but you moved us
| down like grass. We couldn't stand I ana
had to get back
The major then recounted some interest
| ing details of the part of the contest In
| which he participated After hearing cross
| fire # graphic descriptions from both the
| Union and confederate participants. Presi-
| dent Roosevelt remarked:
This country is all light long as we
| can have this kind of a talk on Little
Round Top"
| on historic Cemetery Hill, overlooking
| ground hallowed by the blood of half q
| hundred thousand brave men and in the
presence of a concourse of thousands who
| had assembled to pay tribute to the mem
| ory of the nations dead, President Roose-
welt today delivered notable address. He
| said.
The Presidents Address.
| The place where we now has won a
double distinction. Here was fought one OF
| the great battles of all time, and here was
| spoken one of the few speeches which shall
| last through the ages. AS long as this re-
| public endures or its history is known, SO
long shall the memory of the battle OF
Gettysburg likewise endure and be known;
| and as long as the English tongue is IN
| derstood so long shall Abraham Lincolns
| Gettysburg speech thrill the hearts Of
| mankind.
| A Great War for Righteousness.
| The civil war was a great war for
| righteousness; a war waged cor the nohlcst
| Ideals but waged also in thoroughgoing.
practical fashion. 1t was one OF the few
wars which mean, in their successful out
come lift toward better things for the
| nations of mankind Some have
| meant the triumph of order over anarchy
| and RIGHTEOUSNESS masquerading as lib
! crty: some wars have meant the triumph
| of liberty over tyranny maSqueradlns as
order but tins Viclos iogs war OF ours mStnt
| the triumph of both liberty and order, the
! triumph OF orderly liberty the bestowal
| of civil rights upon the freed slaves, and
! at the same time the stern insis -enCe on
| the supremacy OF the national law through
| out the length and breadth of the land
| Moreover this was one Of those raIe con-
| tests in which it was to the inmeasurlble
| interest oil the Van4uished that they should
| lose, while at the same time the Vlctors
| acquired the prec, Gus privilege of trans
| mitting to those who came after them, as
| a heritage of honor forever, not only ths
memory OF thei- own valiant deeds, but tie
memory of the deeds OF those who, no less
valiantly and wi equal sincerity of pur-
| pose fought against the stars in their
| courses
The war left to rs ALL as fellow w-country-
| men as brothers, the right to rejoice that
| the Union has been restored In indestruc-
/ t:ble shape in a country where slavery no
| lor ger rnocKs the boast of freedom, ana
! also the right TO rejoice with exultant pride
| In the courage. the sef-sacrifice and the
devotion alike of tine who wore the
| blue and the who wore the gray.
Looking at This Field.
| He is but a poor American who, looking
at this field does not feel within himself a
deeper reverence for the nations past and
higher purpose to make the nations fu-
ture rise level to her past Here fought