The Julesburg grit-advocate., 1913-05-22
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- the palmy days Of democratic Athens
'N the bones Of every citizen who had per-
EHJ Ia ished in the service Of his country
pSj were brought homo to be buried in the
R fl Ceramicus. day was appointed In
Sg 81 winter. when military operations were
Nj suspended. for the funeral One Of
the noblest orations Of antiquity-that'
attributed by Thucydides to Pericles-
was delivered on such occasion.
Modern nations build stately mausoeums for
their great generals. but are usually content to
allot only the hasty trench ditch to the COM
mon soldier The bones of British soldiers, for
example, are scattered the world around. Says
Kfplng:
Walk wide O. the Widow at Windsor.
For 'alf O. creation she owns
We ave bought 'er the same with the sword an
the fame.
An we've salted it down with our bones.
poor beggars! It's blue with our bonesD
| To this rule of indifference as to the final rest.
Ing place Of obscure heroes the United States
forms shining and honorable exception There
are today eightyfour national cemeteries, which
contain the graves of over 100000 American sol
ders and sailors. These cemeteries are among
the grandest and loveliest Gods acres In the
world, They are lavishly adorned by nature and
has been expended upon them without stint, and
they are cared for by large corps OF supern-
tendents, overseers and gardeners.
The national cemeteries are matnly result OF
the Civil war. In September, 1861. the secretary
OF war by general order directed accurate and
permanent records to be kept Of deceased SOL
diers and their places of burial. The work was
assigned to the quartermaster generals depart
ment That department already had charge Of
the burial Of officers and soldiers, but its care
had ordinarily ended with the drifting smoke Of
the guns that were discharged over their graves.
By act of July II, 1852, congress empowered the
president to purchase cemetery grounds to be
used for the burial of soldiers who shall die
In the service Of their country" Such the
intensity Of the great war that for some time
action was taken under the law.
Following the battle of Gettysburg Governor
Curtin OF Pennsylvania inaugurated movement
whereby several states purchased seventeen
acres of ground embracing the center OF the
Union line and caused to be reburied there the
bodies Of the soldiers who had been buried out
side this area. The cemetery dedicated by
Lincoln November 49, 1868. in that perfect tribute
to the "honored dead" who there gave the last
full measure of devotion" The cemetery
subsequently taken over by the nation.
The cemeteries at Antietam, Murfreesboro.
Chattanooga and other places were begun like
wise by states or by federal troops acting under
orders Of their commanders That at Chatta-
nooga was largely the result Of the activity Of
Gen. George H. Thomas in charge of the depart.
ment. 1t is related that when the work of rein
terring the dead was proceeding question arose
as to whether they should be buried together &C
cording to the states from which they came
I'VE have heard enough about states and states
rights lately" said Thomas. who. though a vir.
sinian. had remained loyal to the Union LET us
mix them up and nationaize them little"
Other cemeteries sprang up by mere accumu-
lation Of interments about military centers hos
pitals. prisons etc At .Andersonville, for exam
pie. tho dead wore buried by parties Of their
comrades. who. notwithstanding the horrors of
their own lot. took pious to keep accurate
records. and even erected many rude headboards
From first to last about $4,000 men were con-
fined at Andersonville In August 1854 tn Asre