Omaha daily bee., 1906-04-08


north to south.were It not for an empty
sleeve here and an artificial limb or
crutch there, with an occasional mourner
who will not be comforted, We would not
be able TO realize that we had passed
through a terrible war within so short a
time. The institution Of slavery, which
was the cause Of all our trouble Is a thing
OF the past, and today the people of the
south sincerely Join with us Of the north
In declaring that II is gone forever and
can never again be the cause OF strife or
discord between us. There is nothing in
any part Of this fair land today to occasion
any sectional strife or bitterness. or cause
any OF the members Of our great and
happy family to take up arms against
their brothers. Our recent war with Spain
demonstrated the fact that u any nation
engages In war with the United States
government 1t must expect TO wage that
war against a united people. As our minds
30 back today to that terrible struggle
we witness again the wonderful courage
and endurance OF the men who fought
here, on both sides of that great battle,
we are able to realize what such men,
standing shoulder to shoulder under one
flag, in defense Of our government, would
be able to accomplish In struggle with
any foreign foe. AS we Of the north as.
sefnble here today for the purpose OF dedi-
eating this monument to the memory Of
wisconsin soldiers who perished here, our
hearts rejoice TO feel that In coming to
this place we are not coming into an
enemy's country, and that our dead do not
lie in an enemys soil; but that we have
assembled here among the people of the
south and are mingling with them as MEM
bers of a reunited family That we are
among those who honor our dead as we
honor theirs. That we Of the north join
with the people Of the south in saying
that the heroes of this great battle wore
both the blue and the gray.
Tribute to Old state.
We, Of Omaha, who formerly lived in the
state we represent here today, are wont 10
speak Of her as the Good old state OF
WISCONSIN, p and good, yea grand. old
struggle of 81 to IS opened It was In It's
infancy as a state. 1 was admitted into
1t was then only a territory; and it was
not until the following year that IL was
admitted into the great sisterhood Of states
So that when the war began Wisconsin
was only thirteen year old. Butt what a
sturdy, brave and loyal member OF the
union 1t proved itself to be.
What an ovation we received from the
| loyal people of our state as we marched
away. How little we, in fact, knew Of
what was in store for us here, and OF the
test to which we would be subjected in a
It is said that Coming events cast their
| shadows before" An incident which &C.
CURED In my company the evening before
/ the battle of Shiloh verihes that saying.
Some people say that we were surprised
| fact. All day Saturday we had the in
stlnctive feeling that great battle was
| imminent. You all doubtless remember
many times VIXEN, Just before a hard
storm, and while there was yet no sign
! or cloud, something in the atmosphere
| has told you of what was coming. Your
whole nervous system, like great barome-
| ter, has warned you of the approaching
! danger. So il was on that Saturday. We
| felt that we were soon going to be arrayed
In deadly conflict and that some of us
| would probably pay the price OF loyalty
and be numbered with the slain On Sat
| urday evening number of us gathered
| together In one of the large Sibley tents
| we were then. using. One of the boys
! struck up a song in which we all Joined.
! That song was followed by others, and
the spell which seemed to be over all
caused us, with one accord. to sing the
songs of home and bygone days. Our last
song was, Brave Boys Are They" How
the words came back to me today:
Thinking no less OF them,
Loving our country the more,
We sent them forth to fight for the flag
Their fathers before them bore"
The singing ended; Ind, under the spell
Of its pathetic pathos, without uttering g
word, we separated and each man retired
to his own tent some to dream of homes
to which they would never return, and o
friends they would never meet again thi
side of the eternal Shore" That little
company never met again. On the mex
morning the long roll" called them from
their dreams of home to THE Dread F1elt
Of Battle" of which they had sung the
night before. Some of them fell that day
but we have this great consolation; W.
: were able to bury them where our banner
, in triumph waved" '-t 20