The National tribune., 1910-10-13
CONDITIONS IN THE SOUTH.
Speecl, in the National Encampment by
Conrade J. w. Stcbbins, Past Com
Inander. Department of Virginia aQd
North Carolina. q. 4. X,

Comrade J. W. Stcbbins. Past Com
mander. Department of Virginia aQa
North Carolina, q. A. II.
commander-in-Chi and Comrades:
While reading this paper on the condi-
tions in the South, wish 1t understood
THAT / speak from personal knowledge
land observation gained during the near
lly 80 years in which 1 have lived, traV-
eled and done business in Dixie: that L
expect to spend the balance of my life
and leave my bones there; that many
OF my best friends are natives of the
South and that some of them wore the
gray during the war of the rebellion:
that / concede that ewhat is really good
for the Southern people Is good for me
and mine but that we differ greatly at
times as to what is good. Now. at the
loutset, | contend that these conditions
in the South are not understood by peo-
pie in the North unless they have lived
There and learned by actual experience.
From time to time our Commanders-in-
Chief and many others have taken fly
ing trips thru the South or perhaps
have visited there for short period.
and have been wined and dined and
entertained with a most royal hospital
Iity. Hospitality is a part of the re-
Iligion in the Southland.) Move there
to stay and your family are tabooed for
a year. and ever after you are not one
of them. The G. A. r. is not an OBJ
ject of special Veneration in the South.
The Daughters of the ConfederaCy and
| in many instances the school teachers
and ministers of the Gospel teach the
Young to reverence that for which their
! fathers fought in the COS. and to hate
those who wore the blue and what they
| fought for. The children are taught
that the rebels were fighting for con-
stitutional liberty and right, and that
we were the aggrcssors and eternally
wrong; and. worse still. the children
are told that the civilized world now
has come to acknowledge the justice of
their cause; in other words they are
teaching dissatisfaction to the young.
Now, l hold that a dissatisfied citizen.
whether in the North. East. West or
South, is an incipient rebel, always pro-
vded that he is not already Il full
ledgcd one, and l also hold that this
teaching is not good for the future of
! the South: neither for the natives nor
| for me or mine.
! The G. A r. has done noble work,
They have been greatly handicapped by
poverty and lack of sympathy They
| have had no aid, except on Memorial
occasions and that has been small in
! deed. In the Journal Of the 43d Ma
| tional Encampment the Adjutant-Gen-
eral says tpage 123) the total number
of the Union soldiers graves IS about
250,060 in the Southern Departments;
/ that there was contributed TO the Me-
mortal Fund about sl,700; that he had
disbursed S1.105 Of it; that the United
States Government appropriated $4,000
annually and that this should be am
pie. at least for the next year; and he
recommends that no appeal be made by
/ the next Administration for memorial
funds. Now, Commander-in-Ch the
100000 graves noted by the Adjutant-
General comprises only those in the
National cemeteries. There is scarcely
IA cemetery in the Sonth that does not
contain more or less Union soldiers
graves. Within radius of % miles of
Norfolk, Va, the Union soldiers graves
outside of the National cemeteries run
| up into the thousands, and instead of
the 250,00O l believe $4,000 would be
q. conservative estimate.
| The little green tents where the SOL
derS sleep, and the SunbeamS play, and
the women weep, should be covered
with flowers each goth day of May; and
between the tents walk the weary few
who were young and stalwart in 90,
when they went to the war away. The
little green tents are built of sod, and
they are not long, and they are not
broad, but the soldiers have lots of
room; and the sod is a part of the land
they saved when the flag of the enemy
darkly waved, the symbol of dole and
doom. The little green tent is a thing
divine; the little green tent should be
| country shrine, where patriots kneel
and pray; and the brave men left. so
old. so few. who were young and stall
wart in '62. when they went to the. war
away.'-Walt Mason.
| The cheapest flag we can buy for
grave marker on the 30th of May costs
two and a half cents each. VIII some
comrade who is quick at figures multi
ply 250,000 by Two and a half cents and
| tell us how much the flags would cost?
from one to IS miles from the nearest
G.. A. r. Post. The decoration of the
graves is done almost entirely by Union
veterans and their families, and when
| you count the cost of flags, flowers.
transportation and other incidental ex-
penses you can readily see why it is
that so few of our comrades of the
South have been able to attend these
National Encampments. - -.-.r
| The Daughters of the Confederacy
are making each of their Memorial
Days more conspicuous than the last;
military and civic orders in line, schools
close and the children turn out en-
masse. On May 30 a few haired
VETERANS in blue, with their old wives
and perhaps here and there a son or
daughter, go quietly to the cemeteries,
listen to the G. A. r. service and maybe
a short address, place the flowers on
the little green tents, go quietly to their
homes, 10 come again next year. But
each time we assemble there are many
more of the little green tents to deco
rate and less of our comrades to do the
work, and this brings US to the gist Of
the matter in hand. The Southern De-
partments and Posts will soon be of the
lpast The Southern memorial exercises
will be kept up. Memorial Day will
pass with the last of US unless the Gov
ernment takes il I'm hand.
From time to time the Southern De-
partments have put forward candidates
for National office in hopes that they
might find a man with the courage of
bring these matters before these En-
campments that they would be acted
upon in a fitting manner, taken TO Com
gress and laws passed for the Govern
ment ownership Of monuments and at
least one of the b3ttIcfields In the heart
of the one-time ConfederaCy In the
State of Virginia there is a little trian-
gular piece Of land containing less than
40 square miles on which during the
war of the rebellion there were more
men killed than Old England, which
boasts of being the greatest fighting
+ Nation on earth, had lost in battle in
the last 100 years, including the ROer
war. The graves of the Union dead
should be attended 10 in the South in
such manner as would be an object
lesson in patriotism to the rising gener-
ations; but our Moses has not yet ap-
peared. nor have the National Encamp-
ments been generous towards us in the