The times dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1903-1914, 1906-05-31

where the exercises OF the day were
held. The procession consisted OF sew
aral thousand men from the North Allan
tic fleet. army ard navy union organiza.
lions. Grand Army veterans, camps OF
Confederate veterans and many other so.
cietles.
At II o'clock the exercises were opened
With prayer by Bishop Van de vyver
Of the Catholic Diocese OF Richmond
President Roosevelt was introduced by
Colonel j. Edwin Brown, national COM
nander OF the Army and Navy Union.
The President said:
This dayis hallowed and sacred IN
our history, for on this day throughout
me arS e meet sa IL pay eaa wse fe
the great civil war. No other men de-
serve so we'll Of this country as those
TO whom we owe II that we now have a
country. Moreover, the men to whose
preserved have lleft us country re-
have left US the memory OF the great
deeds and the self-devotion alike oftthe
where brother Fought brother with
equal courage, with equal sincerity OF
conviction, with equal fidelity to high
ideal. as It was given to each TO see
that ideal. e.
speak TO day underline auspices Of the
Army and MAJ Union. of the Union
which is meant to include the officers
81 the e Wnited stat 81 Exactly as there
Is no other body 81 men to whom IN
the past we have owed so much as 70
the veterans Of the civil war, SO there
Is no oer e % fo q bo om aa W s
deserve quite as we'll Of the country as
the officers and enlisted men. OF tho
army and the navy OF the Un1sd States.
Every man who has served well ana
vice of the United States, has shown
that he possesses certain qualities
which entitle him In a peculiar degree
TO- the respect Of all his fellow.cittlzens,
service cannot but feel himself ny.
lifted by the thought that In any time
Of future crisis It may be that the
honor Of the whole nation VII! depend
upon his bearing. There rests upon
responsibility, and therefore to you be-
that load Of responsibility we'll
Army and Navy.
This audience is composed largely Of
veterans Of the civil war, largely Of
men who have served In or are serving
IN the army and the navy. Of the IN,
only with the duties OF the soldier and
the sailor, but with the duties of the
civilian, with all matters affecting the
plain, everyday citizen as he does his
everyday duties. For we must always
3 army and navy are an army and navy
made up OF volunteers; all our forces
are volunteers; our regulars, a float anu
ashore are merely our f9llSw,eitiz ems
UP this particular task. The task once
through they return to the body OF
our citizenship; and exactly as the ell
cheney Of the average enlisted man, SO
whole depends chiefly upon the way in
which the average man performs his
plain, everyday duties.
This does not mean that the leader,
esospe bearing a peculiar burden Of r.;
spons ibility. To him has been given
much and from him much will be de-
nanded. It is right and proper that
the man in a higl, position,.twhether
oGicfal & in time of peace or of a high
militar y or naval ofT1cerHin time OF war,
should receive n marked degree OF !,
credit II he performs his difficult, dell
should, 3 on the other hand be held to
an especially sharp accountabi ity Tor
any shortcomings. In any time Of
crisis the man IN high ONCE in y, , elyIl
r
or: Incompetent, paralyze the actions OF
multitude of brave and able men
who are under him. On the other hand
s. IL in intellect, and above all. IN char
i need OF the moment, he may SO conf
bine and direct the actions of he many
under flinlTas to make their Joint effort
irresistible The first duty OF a#leader,
must lead well. Exactly as the people
must demand the highest grade OF M
Stegrity and efficiency from their leaders
in civil affairs, 50 in military ai + rs
thsy must n se beg po thae ofa
him to hitting himself In the duties OF
his profession. to caring for and ldrill-
! ing and training those under him, SO
K that alike In point OF personnel and
& IN point Of nlaterierthe army and navy
of.ihePUnited States may reach as hlgn
) q point Of perfection as Is humanity
possible. This is the work that only
. the leaders can do;sand- II they shirk II
their shame Is unspeakn bic.
The Man Behind the Gun.
Nevertheless, 1t remains true that no
leader can accomplish Very much IN
less he has the right kind of men 70
lead. Unless the enlisted man has tho
+ right stuff In him It stands to reason
that no officer can get 1t out OF nm
& because itis not there to get out. so
IN civil life,5 II all our leaders were
Washingtons and Lincolns they could,
nevertheless, make. no permanent I'M
proyenent In our citizenship unless the
averag &c citizen had In him the. capacity
for such Improvement; IN the last
ANALYSIS it is the man be hind the ballot
who counts most in civil life, just as It
is the man behind the gun who counts
most In military life.
We cannot too highly honor the
memory OF the leaders in the civilS
+ war-of Grant and Lee. OF Sherman
and Johnston, of Stonewall jackson
and Sheridan, of Farragut and OF me
captains who fought under and against
him. But after all the man upon
whom the chief credit must rest was
the main man In the ranks, the man
in blue or in gray VITO went IN to see
\ the war through, and who did see It
through. He had the courage to stand
K without flnching the pickering Of the
skirmishes and the hammering Of the
great lights; he had the steadfast en-
durance to bear with accomplishing
resolution the hunger ana the heat ana
the cold, the scorching days and the
freezing nights, the grinding, heart
breaking fatigue OF the marches, the
Wearisome monotony OF the CAMPS,
and the slow suffering of the field hos
pitfalls. So In the army and the navy
to-day, in the last analysis we Nlust
dcpend upon having the right stuff IN
s tho enlisted man and then upon having
that stuff put into proper shape. 50
again in our republic as whole 1t Is
lust as true IN peace now as It was
forty-hve years ago IN war that Is
the cha racter of the average man that
,,,,,ct boa tho de,ermninG factor III