The Birmingham age-herald., 1906-06-16
From the Washington Post.

N AR be 1t from us to question the V wisdom and benevolence of any
 u measure boomed by the combined statesmanship of two such congressman as Bowersock of Kansas and Gardner of Massachusetts. Their very names stand for righteousness and altruism. In Bow ersock" we catch the reverberations of gigantic moral upheaval. In Gardner" we seem to find glimpses of almost super human grace and tenderness. Perish the thought of oppositionl Away. also, with the very faintest nimbus of an incredul- ity! Canteens at government homes for the old soldiers are anathema. Messrs Bowersock and Gardner have said it. And who are we that we should mutter in our boards?
 But 1t is sad to think of the fast-dying veterans of the civil war-the most titanic conflict the world has ever known-de- prived of a solace which, wicked as 1t may be in theory. Is nevertheless an im- portant factor in their scheme of happi- ness. Custom, long usage, previous ignor- ance of the immortality involved, have made these poor old men somewhat de-
  fort and content. Their lives are over They have fought the good fight have bled, and starved, and suffered for the nations sake. All that is left to them Is a peaceful corner, furnished by the peoples gratitude, and sucn little physi- cal delight as may come to them at times through artificial agencies. Every thing Is behind them, save only the mem- ories of the outpost, the bivouac, the weary march, the battle, the wound, the suffering, the martyrdom. They never heard that 1t was sinful to take a drink of whisky until some one else told them so, and even then they doubted 1t. Most of them had made the acquaintance of good, red liquor before MT. Bowersock got out of school Most of them had been drinking and fighting and saving the union before MT. Gardner became can- didate for swaddling clothes. They stood the test of manhood, all the same. They made their title clear to the American peoples everlasting gratitude and admir- ation, and no one accused them of de- cadence or branded them with infamy It is only now, in the pathetic twilight of their lives, that they are charged with sin and degradation by men who never shared their sacrifices or their pains, nor yet exhibited their patriotic valor.
 So, now, these fast-vanishing relics of a heroic and a splendid time are to be tutored. moralized and saved according to the pattern cut by malingerers and novices. Until quite recently they have been allowed to cheer themselves accord ing to their need. They have dreamed by the roaring fires of winter or In the warm suns of summer-dreamed, harm lessly enough. of the pleasant hours or youth and early manhood. drink or two of whisky and the tired lids would close, the misery of age and loneliness pass away. The old soldier would live again in memory. He would hear the voices of the spring, feel the tough of vanished ec- stasies, experience the rapture of awaken ed passion. and the quickenins or ar dent hope and purpose. Before his vision passed the glorious pageant of resur- rected youth. A vista of green trees and running streams and gracious landscapes. A recollection of harvest homes and rus set fields, and happy laughter and the throbbing cadence of the dancers danc- Ing in tnne; an opening of long-trodden graves from whichi trooped forth thous- and holy and delightful memories. Old, feeble, lonely, helpless, crippled and for lorn. the dying veterans could still recall the joys of youth and live again those eager. pulsing, and celestial hours. He did no harm-to himself or any one. He si nply passed beyond the reach of sor- s E-fx the unutterable ichor in his withered veina u1
 But Messrs. Bowersock and Gardner