The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1909-06-03

little tots were in charge of Mrs. Ed
ward Baker, Mrs. Florence HarK
and Mrs. Daisy Duchame, Miss Grace
Jacobs at the piano.
Rev. Donald Fraser, the speaker
of the day was then introduced, and
delivered an address of great power,
interest, an full of patriotism. Rev
Mr.. Fraser brought frequent ap-
plause, enlivened his more serious
thoughts with anecdotes that
brought a laugh and left the right
spirit with his audience. He said in
part:
The defeat at Bull Run and Will
sons Creek nerved the North to
action on "a scale worthy OF the
titanic struggle in which the govern
ment was now inviewed. The first
call for $4,000 men became now
call for 100000.
The verdict of the world before
the event was against the Union.
the conquest of the South hope
less dream and Mr.. Gladstone, it's
leading statesman said the govern
ment's task could never succeed. We
don't like slavery. said Palmer
ston, but we want cotton, and from
every hamlet and hill side in the
North, the noblest sons Of Amer
icas soil rushed to the Flag and
proclaimed that country was might
Ter than Cotton.
Abraham Lincoln who had shown
the vision of stateman in his COM
prehensive statement of the issue
involved, now came out as a prac-
tical ruler of militant government.
He declared blockade of the
southern ports. With the few ships
at his disposal the blockade was at
first ineffective, but as the weary
war dragged on it became a death
grip on the throat of the South. He
had cut off the Southern army from
the supplies of the open sea, the
world beyond In the blockade a
new monstre of war appeared, the
first iron-clads The wooden walls of
England had seen their day, the
Cumberland became a tomb for her
gallant crew. Ericson's monitor
freed the Merrimac, from that day
the sea fight of the future was dedi-
Gated to the iron-clad.
Meanwhile on land, McLelland,
Grant and others were opposing
their forces to Johnson and at DON
elson, the first agonies of the infer
no of war were experienced when
on the hillside, set ablaze, wounded
soldiers, who had rushed fearlessly
on the rife pits, were slowly tor
tured to death in the flames and over
the charred bones, arose the star of
Ulysses S. Grant, whose decision
to recapture the blazing hill chang
ed defeat into victory. Fort Donel-
son was again under the Union flag,
and Feb. 10th, 1862 was Grants
birthday as the cOnquerring CON-
mander of the North. His first words
as Dictator of the issue gave to
America at Fort Donelson, the one
goal to which the Federal forces
must press, the Confederacy "un-
conditional surrender
At Shiloh the honors fell to Sher-
man. Grant was taken by surprise.
Sherman appeared a man incapable
of surprise. Horses were shot I'M
der the great battalion leader, but
his spirit never stumbled and Shiloh
counted to the Union after the first
great bloody conflict of the bloodiest
war in history. The Confederates
lost one of their greatest generals,
Herbert Sidney Johnson. The victory
at Pea Ridge followed and brought
Missouri safely and securely into
the Union cause.
The speaker went on to say:
What heroes they were, one and
all of these great generals. The rock
of Chickamauga, Thomas Of Nash
Vile, Sheridan, Sherman, Mcclellan
and Grant. A nation growing at
their delays, callous of their suffer-
ings, painting for victories, frenzied
for the contamination. Oh it was
easy from Washington to carp and
criticise and for New York to
write editorials, but with Grant in
the canal at Vicksburg or with
Sherman in the awful march from
Savannah or with Farragut tied to
the mast or under the blazing RATS
and belching batteries were the men
who blundered and suffered and
failed, who rose again from weary
bivouacs to the call of the drum,
who at last succeeded accomplished |