The citizen. (Honesdale, Pa.) 1908-1914, 1911-05-31
Large Audience Hears
Father Balta on 80
Years Ago"
CAPT. JAMES HAM POST NO. 1913,
G. A. r.; LADIES' CIRCLE, G. A.
r., co. Il, 18TH INFANTRY n. G.
p. AND FIFE AND DRUM CORPS
AMONG SPECTATORS.
AMONG SPECTATORS.


AMONG SPECTATORS.
'Of which l have been a great
part" Taking these words as his
theme, Rev. DR.. J. w. Balta, deliver
ed an eloquent address Sunday even
ing before the Captain James Ham
Post No. 1913, G. A. R., the Ladies'
Circle of the G.. A. R., Company e,
Thirteenth Infantry, N. G. p, and
the Maple City Fife and Drum Corps,
and an audience which taxed the
capacity of the main auditorium of
st. Mary Magdalena's R. C. church,
of which he is the popular rector.
Father Balta had for his subject
Fifty Years Ago." and spoke in
part as follows:
To-day again Columbia unbosoms
herself and shows her tender and
sentimental thoughts and adds an
other milestone of tribute and re-
spect to those who died for love of
her.
Fifty years ago to-day, this great
country of ours saw the boys she had
reared arrayed against each other
The Sons of the North said there
shall be no bondage in the South
The Sons of the South said all the
rights we had before entering the
Union belong to u.s. House stood
up against itself. Son fought
against son.
And the Son in Blue and the
Son in Gray died on the battlefield
for what he thought was the right
conception and meaning of that
great name SO dear to our hearts
America.
81 care not now for the justness or
unjustness of this great war, but
for one great fact brought out by
this war, that what God has united
no human force shall ever tear
asunder.
Fair Columbia in order to show
that her boys died not in vain, set
aside and consecrated q special day,
a day to the sacredness of the unself-
ish sacrifices of you veterans.
This country ordered it's children
to bow down before the shrine of
yes- unselfish sacrifices. lest we
forget
Tuesday will behold thinned-
out body of tottering old men going
down to the cemetery. Many a
flower will be placed on the grave of
many a Union soldier to show that
this heart of ours is not dead
quantity.
"As long as we have this old tot
tering man among us, with that
bronzed button in his coat, let us
be kind to him, for he shall soon
pass away, but his memory shall
remain burning fire of emulation.
And when they are all gone
away how shall we think of them?
Only in Blue? No, but clothe them
in Blue and Gray. 1t took courage
on both sides to bring that ques-
tion to a point of issue. The South
erner fought for what he thought
was correct. Though he hail from
Puritan Massachusetts or Sunny
Missouri, let US honor that man.
Since the war no man is ques-
toned about his religion. Pens in
Catholic hands signed the Declara-
tion of Independence. Catholic
hands helped to build up the ship of
State. Catholics went out to war
accompanied by their priests to re-
ceive, when their heart-blood burst,
the assurance that they had served
their church and their God well.
Il praise them, honor them. But
am happy to say they sacrificed
their human blood because their
mother church told them to do it.
This Memorial Day of ours is
a development of the idea of human
fairness, human honesty, human
equality. Is it not an honor when
we come together irrespective of
color and personal belief that we
all may say Thou art my brother ,
L am your sister,
Are we not living in a perfect
time? Some are thinking this Con-
stitution of ours will go into ruin.
do not believe it can. God cannot
let this county die because it stands
for equality in religion.
CONTINUED from Page Four)