The daily sentinel., 1908-05-30
IBy Associated Press. /

1tltN SDuiEF I'd, May OO.=lH tHt
presence of a great throng of peo-
pie who had gathered to pay tribute
to the memory of the men who died
in one of the greatest battles of mod
ern times, Senator Philander C.
Knox this afternoon delivered one
of the strongest, most interesting
and impressive Memorial day ad-
dresses ever delivered on the hal
lowed and historic field of Gettys-
burg.
Senator Knox's address was as
follows:
MY friends and fellow citizens of the
Republic:
I'm the last days of June, 1868, the
Confederate forces, raiding on the
North and East and advancing from
the West, were recalled and conCen-
trated towards this spot under the
pressure of the Union forces comm g
up from the South. On the afternoon
of June 30th, the weary and dusty
troopers of Buford's vanguard rode
through the village and threw. out
their picket lines in readiness to
touch the advance from the west of
the Army of Northern Virginia
'On the morning of July 1st. at
nine O'Clock, an officer of another
staff came Gathering up to Buford
and was sharply questioned and or
dered to return Immediately to his
command. Just as he protested
Why, what's the matter, General?'
the far-off sound of single cannon
shot was heard, Buford's signal to his
skirmishers to open on the enemy,
and Buford said, That's the matter!
The battle of Gettysburg had begun.
AT the close of that pitiless and ter
rible July day, the Union forces, re-
pulsed but not beaten, fell lack to
Cemetery Ridge, and the brave antag-
onists waited for the morrow and
fought. and again waited for the
morrow and fought with the result
that all the world knows.
Let us leave the battle now, leave
the recital of its details of valor to
the tongues of those whose proud
memories of their past achievements
qualify and entitle them to speak.
Let us rather seek to find the real
reason for Gettysburg; discover. If
possible, its fundamental cause: find
what indeed was the matter; why 1t
was necessary that Gettysburg should
be: what law had the American peo-
pie broken that they should receive
this baptism of fraternal blood and
how such crises in National life are
to be averted.
1--WE know that the laws of the
material universe, If observed, so
govern and control matter that it
continues 20 develop its results in per-
fect.on of form and strength. but II
those laws are disturbed destruction
follows.
1--WE also know that in the spiritual
world the laws promulgated by the
Creator, which are to govern men in
this world. If observed by man. either
consciously or unconsc.ously, make
him to grow in spirit and in right
eousness.
so it is with the nations of the
earth They ara subject to ethical
laws, the observance of which means
life for the nation, and the rejection
of which means death.
"As in the natural world there Is
continual war between the evolut'ng
forces of nature and the opposed
forces of dissolution, and is in the
spiritual world there is continually
strife between the spiritual laws and
the forces of evil so there is in the
history of every nation this continual
strife and war. which ultimately must
reach crisis where, face to face,
good and evil, justice and injustice
must fight until either the right pre-
walls or evil survives.
Nations have passed through such
crises and have survived or perished,
Just as moral laws have prevailed or
been overthrown.
Sometimes men are conscious of
the real nature OF the struggle in
which they are engaged. They re-
alize just what forces are contending.
They appreciate the exact issue in
volved, follow the casual sequence of
events and can forsee the nature and
effect of the result. AT other times,
God moving in a mysterious way His
wonders to perform hides from the
mind and vision OF men real appre-
hension of the causes and coree-
quences of their most vital acts.
Man proposes but God disposes,'
and His dispositions are controlled
by His own immutable and inexor-
able laws and inscruitable purposes.
Speaking of Napoleon and Water
loo. Victor Hugo says:
Was 1t possible that Napoleon
should win this battle? We answer
no! Why? Because of yelling
ton? Because of Blucher? No, Be-
cause of God.
For Bonaparte to be conqueror
at Waterloo was not in the law of the
nineteenth century Anoth rr series
of facts were preparing in h,ch Ma
poleon had no place. The i'll will of
events had long been announced.
"'It was time that this vast man
SHOULD fall.