The Virginia enterprise. [volume] (Virginia, St. Louis County, Minn.) 1893-19??, 1913-05-30
THE LESSON OF TODAY.

ence the congressional elections. ?
THE LESSON OF TODAY. Z.
Today throughout the length and
breadth of the land Americans are
engaged in the ANNUAL observance
Of Memorial Day. In the great
cities as we'll as in practically evely
town and hamlet thousands will do
honor to a handful of grizzled vet
Grams wearing the blue and gold of
the Grand Army of the Republic.
In flower-laden automobiles, past
waiting thousands, through city
streets to quiet cemeteries where
sleep their comrades of so years
ago, escorted by their children and
their ,children's children will pass
in impressive review the remnant
of 1.-THE boys of t61," and on the
graves of the soldier. dead, with
barred head and reyerent mien, each
will place the tribute Of flowers,
and each unconsciously will teach
again an impressive lesson Of pa
triOtism.
The Memorial Day occasion an
nually becomes more impressive.
Each succeeding season adds new
recruits to that silent encamp-
ment of low green tents whose cur
tains never outward swing,' and
the old soldier is more to US all
today than ever before, for the
years have brought fuller reali-
cation of the sacrifice he made,
of the duty he discharged unflinch-
ingly in the greatest crisis of our
history, and of the motives that
impelled him, which are still the
bulwark of our institutions and the
foundation of our homes. And
when he is gone our children will
honor him as he is today honoring
those who have passed before. 1t
is rare privilege to have with us
still the veterans of the Civil war.
We cannot too worthily honor
them, we cannot to our children
teach for them too much of rev.
erence or respect; we cannot af-
ford to allow Memorial Day to pass
without giving pause for considera-
ton of the lesson that it brings.
So we honor this veteran, this
man of another day and another
age; we hold our children aloft
that they may see him as he passes
in the line of march, for his gray
hair and his army blue and the
flower that he wears at his breast
teach US again in times OF peace
that love of country is one OF the
first duties of every true American.
The death of Luther McCarty,
claimant to the white heavyweight
boxing championship of the world
during a bout with Arthur Pelkey
at Calgary, Alta, last Saturday
night, will be a severe blow to the
game Of prize fighting the country
over. It is the first fatality OF the
kind in several years and comes at
a time when the public attitude
toward boxing was becoming more
lenient than ever before. Foot
ball annually claims its toll OF hu-
man lives and good authorities
pronounce it the most hazardous OF
the popular sports, but the death
of McCarty under circumstances
unusually dramatic will be heralded
around the world as an argument
against the federation of legallzed
boxing, while football fatalities are
forgotten. 1t was an accident ana
under similar circumstances might
never occur again. The element
of chance is present always, but
It seldom manifests itself as it did
Saturday night when the sudden
death of the great fighter stilled a
bowling mob of 10000 people and
sent them silent and awe-stricken
out into the night. After all, box
ing is a great game, but it is not
WORTH the cost when it is reckoned
; in the life of a fine young man
Ike the dead fighter.