The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1905-05-14

In the hearts of a grateful people.
Thus memory will be kept green,
and thus the links of history will be
heightened, by a sentiment, akin to
that which brought the women to the
Lords grave, before daylight. on the
first day of the week-a sentiment,
which, the world over, delights in
honoring the brave, the heroic and
the self-sacrificing.
Should the historian lay down his
pen, and the orator no more recount
the valorous deeds of those who gave
their lives to the Southern Confed-
eracy, the story of their bravery and
wonderful achievements. would not be
forgotten; neither grow old, nor get
out of date-for Memorial Day, like
the Jewish Passover. which brings to
their minds the days of their exodus.
would bring to our remembrance all
the tragic incidents of the war Pc
riod through which we passed.
The Daughters of the Confederacy
have taken it upon themselves to
keep the garden of memory green,
and most lovingly and appropriately
are they performing that self-impos-
ed, yet. to them, delightful duty; and
/ feel honored in being permitted to
join them today in a service that is
to me as sacred as it is pleasant.
l am sure that great sacrifices were
made, and hardships were endured ;
that sufferings were patiently and pa
triotically borne; that a heroism and
a high type of bravery were display
ed on every battlefield, by the gall
liant soldiers, who, at the call of their
country, left their offices, their stores,
their farms, their shops, their home
pleasures and their loved ones, to
drive back the invaders.
And, l am sure our great generals
as well as their invincible armies
down to the most insignificant pri-
vate, will live in history; therefore it
is not my purpose to laud or to eulo-
gize in this address. any more than 1
have already done, the Confederate
soldier His fame is secure; and moth
ing l could say would add any glory
to that fame
AS l was not in the army, I cannot
speak, of my own knowledge, of the
movements thereof: of the sanguinary
battlefields; of the cold nights, out on
the frozen ground, with only a blanket
for covering: of the weary marches
through mud and over frozen roads;
of the camp life when, after a hard
campaign, the veterans had a short
respite, and could. while resting, en-
joy a season of social life; of the let
tiers from home which brought good
or bad news; of the preaching of the
chaplain and the camp songs; no, /
can not speak of any of these things,
from experience or observation; there
fore, I vii! not try
But, / think / can speak of some
things connected with the war period,
that are worthy of not only a place
in history, but, many of them of be-
ing put upon canvas to adorn the
walls of the temple of fame itself.
When the war began our young
men sprang to arms with an enthus-
iasm better suited to a holiday past
time, than to engaging in deadly con-
fiict with a hostile foe; and it was
predicted. that. after a few forced
marches, few bloody battles, and an
experience of a few months of priva-
ton and hardship, their enthusiasm
would die. their patriotism would yield
to suggestions of prudence and COM
PROMISE; and. the war would have to
come 10 a close, because the young
men, who had been reared in COM
parative ease. could not, or would not,
endure the hardshiDs of camp life.
Most of those, who first went to the
front, volunteered for a short period,
and their good-byes were as cheer
fully spoken as if they had been going
on a summer pleasure excursion.
While, to the boys, the matter was
not so serious, to the Women-the
mothers. wives and sisters-there were
fearful forebodings They were rest
less, troubled and apprehensive; still,
they We're, of one accord, in thorough
sympathy with the war spirit. which
had for it's only contention, the
Rights of the States.
1t is time | had said that while
these Tenth of May services are in re-
membrance of the men who gave their
lives to their country, the remainder
of this address will be devoted ''To
The Women Who Remained at Home;
The Soldiers in Dresses who Fought
the Greatest Battles
When the war commenced in earn
est the home-ranks began to thin
out, and the women began to feel
that new duties and new RESPONSE
bilities had to be undertaken by them.
From almost every home the father,
the son or the husband had gone, I'M
til the homes, in many cases, were
without men, between the ages of Is
and As. and to the women were left
all the cares and perplexities of the
families. which had to be fed, clothed
and governed.
Did the women complain? Did
they put on sack-cLoth and sit down in
the ashes of despair, to repine? Did
they stop planting and cultivating?
Did the plows stand still in the fur
rows? Were the spinning wheels and
the looms allowed to stand idle?
Were the children, in the country
homes, permitted to spend their time
in idleness? Was there, i'm short, any
diminution of energy and activity, in
the land when the men had all gone,
and the women were left in control of
the homes?
Answers to these. and similar ques-
lions, would bring to the worlds gaze
the picture of a condition. the like
of which has not been paralleied in
modern timcG
The nations abroad might have sup
posed that the South, bereft of it's
men, was growing up in weeds, and
all of its varied industries had ceased;
and, that, ii would be only a matter
of time when the young Republic
would be starved into submission. So
thinking they could not have made
worse mistake The war could have
gone on indefinitely, if the South had
had the men to Withstand the vast
armies which were recruited from all
parts of the world.
The women threw their whole souls
into the fight, and although, they did
not hold public meetings and adopt