Norwich bulletin., 1909-05-31
25Oth ANNIVERSARY CELEBRAT TYON
 of the Founding of Norwich, July 5th and 9th

sacrificing spirit. It is this that we
 honor in our fallen brothers. It is this
 that justifies our sympathetic observ
 ance of Memorial Sunday as well as
 Memorial day.
 If you analyze the most chivalric
 patriotism, it will be found that self
 sacrifice is it's chief element-the one quality which renders it most divine
 and most worthy of perpetual com- mendation. This is the one sublime
 principle, whether evinced by man or God which commands the profound est homage of the human heart Ob-
 serve it in our soldiers of the civil war. Bcys, young men and men in their prime, regardless of sect, party or nationality, many of them the purest, the majestic might of their manhood
 and offered all that they possessed at the sacred shrine of the republic. They loved their happy homes and the peaceful pursuits of life. They had their cherished plans and inspiring hopes. They keenly relished earthly comforts and domestic joys. But all these they were willing to sacrifice rather than see our flag dishonored and our nation dismembered. Before them was a gigantic task, stupen-
 dous undertaking, the f1erceness of that struggle can be appreciated only 0y those who endured it's hardships and faced It's dangers. Not poorly armed Indians, not foreign invaders,
 rot the minicns of despotism, but our own countrymen stood before us in battle array. When We leveled our guns at the enemy we knew not whose friend might fall or whose household
 would be made desolate. Often met in
 deadly conflict classmates of the same college, one In federal blue, the other
 in confederate grey; companions of the
 same playground, and even brothers
 who had bowed in boyhood at the
 same family altar. These facts in tensified the sufferings and made
 harder to bear the sacrifices required of our men.
 After the battle smoke had cleared away and the guns were silent then
 we began to realize how dearly our victories had been bought-what cost | ly sacrifices had been made. Billions
 of money had been poured forth and
 streams of our country's noblest blood | crimsoned our country's altar. The assassin's bullet went crashing through | the brain of our honored chief and | Lincoln fell a martyr to freedoms s cause. The brilliant young General Lyon drops from his fiery steed in the | thick of a Missouri battle. The manly SOUL of Sedgwick goes out of his kingly body on the Potomac. McPherson's s pure, Christian spirit ascends to it's
 reward from Atlanta's gory plain. But time will not permit us to mention all
 who are just as worthy as these. Three hundred and sixty thousand of our | comrades dropped into the awful chasm of that terrible war. Had not these courageous men faced the can
 non's mouth and marched into the very jaws of death the most magnif1- cent temple ever erected to freedom
 would have tottered to it's fall; bar | parism would have triumphed over | Christian civilization and hard heart | ed despotism would have trampled civ
 il and religious liberty in the dust. | Comrades and citizens of the best gov e'nment on earth, look once moro up- | on our beauteous banner-the fairest l flag that floats on sea or land and al ! the graves of our heroic dead, earnest | ly pray that this flag may never trail | but wave on until every nation shall | be a republic and every human being
 loyal to the right.
 Fifth comrany Attends Service.
 By invitation from the Mems league
 of the Central Baptist church, the Fifth
 company. c. A. C., Capt. w. c. TarboA
 commanding. attended evening service
 at the church Sunday, marching in
 in uniform to the music of the Colum-
 bian Commandery March played by
 Organist Herbert T. Miller, and taking seats reserved in the center of the church. A large American flag dec
 orated the front of the choir gallery. Appropriate music was well rendered | by the church quartette during the
 service. consisting of Keller's American | Hymn, with tenor solo by Sergeant
 Turner of the Fifth company, who is a member of the choir; soprano solo, My Help Cometh from the Lord (Hawley), l by Miss Carrie Lyman, and quartette
 To Thee, o Country (Eichberg).
 An inspiring address by the pastor,
 Rev. P. c. Wright, upon the subject The Stars and Stripes Upon Two Mill | lion Graves was listened to with great 1 interest by the soldiers. Rev. Mir, Wright said in part
 Members of the Fifth Coast Artillery company of Connecticut:-I welcome you here in behalf of the Mems league
 of the Central Baptist church. As cit
 izens of the United States, and espe-
 cially as a body of men interested in
 the art of war and representing the
 militia of the commonwealth of Con- necticut, We thought it would be emi-
 nently proper to invite you here as our ! honored guests, and also eminentiy proper that you should come to do honor to the men who have made the armed power of this nation distin- guished before the world No body of