Evening journal., 1914-05-11

have had to 90 TO their death and yet
there is mixed with that grief a pro-
founG pride that hey lhould have
gone as they did, and it ] may say it,
out OF my heart, a touch of envy OF
those who We're permitted quietly $50
nobly-to do their duty. Have You
thought of it, men. mere is the roster
of tho navy. the list of men. officers
and enlisted men, and marines, and
suddenly there swim nineteen stars out
of the list-men who have suddenly
gone into armament of memory,
where we shall always see their names
shine; not because they called upon
rs to admire them, but because they
served us without asking any questions
and in the performance of duty which
is laid upon us as well as upon them.
DUTY is not an uncommon thing,
gentlemen. Men are performing it
in the ordinary walks of life all
around us all the time. and they are
making great sacrifices to perform
IT, What gives men like these pecul-
lar distinction is not merely that they
did their duty, but that their duty
/ has nothing to do with them or their
own personal and peculiar interests
They did not give up their lives for
/ themselves. They gave their lives for
US, because we called upon them as
/ a nation to perform an unexpected
/ duty. That is the way in which men
grow distinguished and that is the only
/ way by serving someone other than
themselves. And what greater thing
"And what greater thing could you
serve than a nation such as this we
love and are proud Of.
Are you sorry for these lads2 Are
you sorry for the way they will be
remembered? Does 1t not quicken
your pulse to think of the list OF
them? ] hope to God none Of you
may Join the list. but if you do, you
viii join an immortal company.
$50 while we are profoundly sor-
rCwful and while there goes out OF
our hearts a very deep and affection
ate sympathy for the friends and rel
atives of these lads who for the rest
OF their lives shall mourn them
though with a touch of pride we
! know why we do not go away from
this occasion cast down but with OuI
heads lifted and our eyes on the fu.
ture of this country, with absolute
confidence of how it will be worked
out--not only upon the mere vague
future of this country but the imme-
diate future.
"We have gone down to Mexico tC
serve mankind if we can find out th'
way. We do not want to fight the
MeNicans. We want TO serve the Mexi
cans il we can. because we know how
we would like to be free and how We
would like to be served if there wer,
friends standing by ready to serve us
A war of aggression is not a war il
which it is a proud thing TO die. but d
war OF service is thing in which it l.
proud thing to die.
"Notice that these men were of on
blood. / mean of our American BLOOD
which is not drawn from ony one coun
try. which is not drawn from any On'
stock, which is not drawn from any ont
language of the modern world, but fret
men everywhere have sent their sons anC
their brothers and their daughters L
this country in order TO make tina
great compounded nation which consists
of all the sturdy element and of all th'
best element OF the whole globe.
Il listened again TO the list with q
profound interest in the mixture OF
the names for the names bear the
mark of the several national stocks
from which these men come. But they
were not lrishmen or Germans oil
Frencnmcn or Hebrews any more They
were not when they went to Ner'
Cruz; they were Americans, every ont
of them and with no difference IL
their Americanism because of the stool
from which they come.
"Therefore. they were in a peculiar
sense of our blood and they proved j
bv showing that they were of our spir
it-tlat no matter what their derive
tion, no matter where their people
! came from, they thought and wishe'
, rad did The things that were Ameri
I, can; and the flag under which the.
served was hag in which all the bloo'
of mankind is united to make a fre
nation