Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1914-06-30
HOUSE VOTES TO WIPE
WAR LAW FROM BOOKS
Removes Disability of West Point
Men Who Wore
the Gray.
Advocated in Speech by Northern
Republican and Is Passed
Unanimously.

The House Of Representatives wiped
away one more OF the bitter memories
left by the civil war by passing a meas
ure Yesterday which takes from the
statute books a law prohibiting the pay
ment of accounts and claims to any one
who encouraged or favored the 'trebel-
lion The bill was presented in the
House under the suspension of the rules
Yesterday by Representative Graham, a
republican from a northern state. Penn
sylyania, and after his short speech, the
bill went through unanimously. and Mr..
Graham was besieged by southern men
who left their places to shake hands with
him.
To Remove War Bitterness.
Representative Graham's speech fol-
lows:
'"The bill is intended to repeal section
$3.50 of the Revised Statutes, which I'M
posed penalty upon those men. 8radu-
ates Of West Point, who served In the
Confederacy 1t included among the roll
names like those of Lee. jackson,
Wheeler and Pickett, a long line OF hon
orable and brave men,
1--WE all know. for I can just remember
that period. when the war closed, the bit
terness of feeling that existed. and natur-
ally existed, and existed upon both sides.
with reference to each other. Out OF
that spirit came this punitive statue
Things have changed since then. the
half century and more which has passed
has brought together the warning COM
batants of Gettysburg to weep and cheer
in unison upon that fateful field.
81 had the privilege and pleasure Of at
at Arlington the scenes incident
to the dedication of a beautiful CON
monument, erected in a govern
ment burial place, dedicated to the
soldiers and men of the south who fougne
against and who lie side by side WIN
the Union soldiers of that war. Memoriai
day has Just passed. with all its haIlloW-
ed associations and memories: IN the
beginning every flower that fell upon q
soldiers grave was drenched with grief
and perhaps touched with bitterness. But
here again the scene changes; we OF tne
north began to better understand tne
men Of the South and they of the South
to understand us; soon we saw nortneIn
attendants upon this ceremony decorat-
ing graves of Confederate dead, and then
the chivalrous people Of the south re
spending in like spirit and decorating the
graves Of Union soldiers.
Scenes Of Reconciliation.
Eve have witnessed within a very few
scenes of reconciliation, harmony
and love at Gettysburg. and frequently
noted men on one side surrendering to
men on the other side the battle hags
which were torn from each other in the
heat of battle.
ct feel that the spirit of the immortal
Lincoln is invoking US in the exercise
of our better selves to play upon those
mystic chords of memory today. Let
us unanimously. II It may. wipe from 1
the statute books this penalty. the on
spring of the feelings which the bitter
strife of war engendered and left now
for more than half century upon the
statute books OF the nation. THIS Will
promote a finer feeling everywhere,
twice blessed; he who receives has the
spirit Of gratitude created. I could
read from a number of letters here.
but will only quote from one. from no
less distinguished a person than the
widow of that brave, grand soldier OF the
'Stonewalr Jackson. Speak
ing of this movement, she said:
cit creates a feeling of gratitude In
my heart that you, a northern man.
should advocate the passage of this
bill
Duty for Northern Man.
mo one but a northern man should
advocate its passage, but every man
with red blood. whether from the north
or from the south, should vote to pass
the bill and thus help to eliminate one
of the last vestiges of those things
which make a distinction between the
men of the north and the men of the
south. Fighting joe Wheeler and
Fitzhugh Lee put on the uniform Of the
nation and fought under the Stars and
Stripes in the Spanish war. The de-
scendants of these very people from
whom we are removing this penalty
also served their country and showed
their willingness to die in her defense.
Surely under such circumstances Con-
gress should ungrudgingly and cheer
fully wipe this penalty away, and say:
In this act we speak for the eternal
concord and unity of our country
Such acts. such thoughts, such senti-
ments will make US repeat the scene l
once witnessed in a southern city. l
walked through graveyard and l found
the tombstones marked with the names of
men from this state of the south and that
state of the north and other states from
all over the Union. Soldiers Of these
states had met to battle for New Orleans
and to save her from the British army In
the war of 1912. That scene will be re-
peated perhaps. who knows, in the history
of our country when we war with some
foreign foe and the men of the north
and the men of the south, one in heart,
one in courage, one In valor, will vie
with each other in defense of every city
and every foot of land in our blessed re-
public. Side by side. one in patriotism.
one in loyalty. one in death. those who
fall may lie like they do today in the
old graveyard at New Orleans"
S