The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1906-07-13
croft and finally the permanent settlers

\
arrived.
History is true narrative of the ac-
tions of the human family. We cannot
add to it or improve. We may, however,
select and abridge so as to bring long
| historical account. within the purview of
a meeting of this kind The story of
those old time French adventures will
always remain an interesting one, be-
cause of their heroism and fortitude,
but further than this what will the flu
ture historian say of them? What can
he says? He cannot regard them as the
pioneers of civilization, they blazed no
line through the forest for the Others
to follow, they established no homes,
they constructed no roads, they made no
improvements, they came not only to
explore but to exploit. Even sons of
good fathers were alive to the spirit OF
commercialsm and were busy eXchang-
ing beads and trnkets with the easily
duped red men for their valuable furs.
LaSalle SAYS of one of them who had
established himself on Green Bay and
who brought backsmiths with him,
chat he turned more iron into beaver
belts than he did savages into chris
tans'' Among those old Jesuits we find
none like Livingstone who gave life of
labor to christianiZe the savages of CEN
trail Africa and lived and died among
them. Not so with those who came to
the northwest. They came and they
came, and when their urladen canoes
passed from sight over the waters the
faint light of a higher spiritual life soon
faded from the minds of the natives and
the great Medicine Man reasSerted him
self and his wierd incantations soon SUI
perceded the eucharist. 1t is doubtless
true that the late Bishop Whipple,
whom the Indians loved, and to whom
they gave the name of Straight Tongue,
did more to civilize and uplift the red
men than all the Pesuits that ever came
to the northwest.
Both ancient and medieval history
treats largely with wars, with heroes
and Adventures. but the historian of
today records the social, economical, ed
ucatiOnal and commercial affairs of the
people. So we may be confident that the
actual pioneers, the men who came to
this country and wrought out here i'll
| the wilds a better condition than they
! found when they came, will receive more
attention at the hand of the historian
than the adyenturer, no matter how bold
he may have been.
This counry is rich in the names of
the makers of history. In a
retrospective glance such names come to
notice as the Bradfords and Standishes
of Massachusetts, the Davenports and
| Williams of Connecticut and Rhode Is
land The Penns and Baltimores of
Pennsylvania and Mary land, the Wash
ingtons and FairfaXes of Virginia. The
Pickneys and Rutledges OF the Caro-
fnas and the Oglethorres of Georgia.
Names of men fit to build up country
and establish an enduring government
| The same is true of the state of Mime
| tic pf ri,
as the Sibieys and Ramseys, the Rices
and Marshalls, and others good and true
| The standard of excellence is main
taineI on reachin. our own country in
4 the Johnsons and Jacksons and Hinck-
leys and Paddocks and many Others
equally worthy whose number are too
great to name or to recall on an occa
sion like this. Names that call to youl
minds the days and scenes and the rem
inisoenoes of long ago. They were the
true makers of history; they came into
a land of savages; they came into a will
derness, and they, unlike the old voy-
ayers, came to remain. They wrested
the land from pagan darkness; they
felled the forest; they turned the fur
row; they titled the soil; they con-
structed roads; they established homes
and schools and churches; they made
and obeyed laws; they brought order out
of chaos. and against all the difficulties
that opposed them on every hand they
| wrought out high and noble civiliza-
ton. The scene about you today is but
ktbe continuation of their beginning
which has resulted in making this por-
ton of Minnesota delight to all and
Mankato the loveliest residence city in
this great commonwealth.
| We cannot speak too highly of the
sterling men of those early days, nor of
| the noble women who shared their Joys
and sorrows. They came as ministering
angels. They cooked, they washed, they
sewed and they prayed and they did
more than this. They brought the sun
light of Joy into the humble log cabin,
and happiness and good cheer to the
hearts of men. A few of the women OF
old territorial DAYS are here. The