Dakota farmers' leader. (Canton, S.D.) 1890-19??, 1912-05-24

gan concerning the matter CT having
the Grand Army inaugurate the Gus
tom of placing flowers on the graves
of Union soldiers at some uniform
time. Following this conference Cen
eral Logan issued an order setting
aside May 80, 1868, for the purpose
of strewing with flowers or otherwise
decorating the graves OF comrades
who died in defense. OF their ountry
during the late rebellion and whose
bodies now lie in almost every CITY,
village or hamlet churchyard in the
land"
Wherever the Grand Army had a
post the order for the observance OF
Decoration day was obeyed, and even
thus early after the close OF the wal
it had such strength and numbers that
there was no misunderstanding what
it meant throughout the northern
states. So important did this special
lzation of a custom which, OF course,
had been practiced by many peoples
who had known sorrow for the dead
long before the western continent
witnessed its great civil war, seem In
the eyes of the nations lawmakers.
that G resolved to have 40
counts Of the proceedings in the vari
Gus towns throughout the country o
lected and bound. This.was done ana
any one interested in those proceed
ings Of 1868 may find a copy OF this
book in the Chicago public library.
Chicago had the first celebration o.
a Decoration day under the auspices
of the Grand Army organization in
1868. Two years before this, in a let.
ter which was printed March IL. 1856,
in the columns Of the Columbus
Times, a southern woman, Mrs. Mary
Ann Williams Howard, widow Of a
confederate officer, Maj. John H. How
ard Of Milledgeville, Ca, had suggest
that April &c Of that year be set aside
as the date ito wreathe graves of u
martyred dead with flowers" The
suggestion was followed and that
date, April 26, is now observed as
Confederate Memorial day, and set
aside as a legal holiday. as is May 80
in other states, in four southern
states, Louisiana, Alabama, Georgia
and Florida. Mrs. Williams was great
ly beloved in the south. During the
war she was as active in doing all she
could TO serve the southern side as
her husband and was the moving spir-
it in putting into operation what were
known as "wayside houses" in which
care was given soldiers en- route to
battlefelds. When she died at Co
lumbus, Ca, in 1874, she was buried
with military honors.
T-,~ -o,,fh1rp afnfnc North f'drnIlra
and South Carolina, observe May 10
as their memorial day. In New Mex
leo 1t is left to the governor to ap-
point the day. AS every state is in
dependent in its legislation, traditions
and customs, every state has power to
appoint it's own holidays, but, despite
these variations, a spirit of centraliza-
ton or the growth of a national spirit.
il you wish to call 1t that, has aided
in bringing about an approximate uni
formity of date for Memorial day in
most of the states. Thirty-four states
and Alaska, Porto Rico n the Dis
trict of Columbia observe the Goth OF
May as a legal holiday dedicated to
the memory of soldiers. -Four south
ern states, as has been said, observe
the day on April 26, two on May 10.
The only States in which Memorial
day is not listed as a legal holiday are
Arkansas, Idaho, Mississippi, Nevada.
Texas and Virginia.
1t is a good custom this, which
teaches each succeeding generation to
honor the courage, patriotism and 10y
al sacrifice of those who have pre-
ceded it. A nation which does this in
spirit every day as it does in special
ceremonies one day each yea may
fearlessly face the future, confident
that it will be worthy of the past.