The mirror., 1919-05-29
SIGNIFICANCE OF MEMORIAL DAY
A Day That Should Be Observed in Tribute to Our
Heroic Dead and Not as Day of Sports

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schools. no schools for blinded SOL
diers. The shell.shocked went on
in that condition or died in insane
asylums.
Yet, out of all this riot of ruin
the men who made the Union rose
supreme and for more than 40
years after the war were the guild
ing element in the nation. They
opened our great West and fol-
lowed the sun to its setting out
over the great Pacific. They pene-
trated the forests of the North, in
to the gold fields of Alaska. They
builded great factories in the East,
and made the middle West the
granary of the world, and grid
ironed it with railroads, with tele-
graph and telephone wires.
There were $500, 900 men IN the
Union army, and only a little over
half of them came back. The rest
of them rest where they wearied,
and lie where they fell," under
the southern skies. Thousands of
them are unknown and lie in un-
marked graves. Their comrades
have followed them till less than
10000 are left. These walk
weariedly and alone toward the
west. Soon they, too, must 60 to
rest in the little green tents"
For these men, dead and living,
Memorial Day was established
Do you not think it the very least
that any of US can do to let the
world slip out of sight for a little
while-just one day-and remem-
ber for that one day all the honors,
all the material wealth. if you will,
that these $500, 900 have brought
to us and ours?
And that is not all. The Span
ish-American war. laid tribute at
the feet of a reunited country.
Some years ago a friend told me
that over in Arlington he saw 200
ag-draped cofins beside 200 open
graves. They were the dead of
the Maine. He had the honor of
being over to witness the COM
memoration exercises over the
Maine dead. We honor all the
Spanish War Veterans wherever
we find the little mounds.
And last but not least, the dead
of this great world war. They are
as blades of grass for numbers;
over 100000 sleeping here and
overseas and beneath the oceans
waves. More than 100000 of
them sleep because America babe
them do or die. And in spite of
all these millions of dead, whose
names the people of the country
will honor in their hearts on this
blessed Memorial Day, the thought
less, sport-mad men and women
will ''open the sport season. on
Memorial Day. and 1,50O, 900 of
our Union veterans, many thou
sand Spanish war veterans and
100000 of all countries scarcely
cold in their graves, lie dead for
you and me-"
Is there not enough real honest
patriotism in our country to call
off the sport-mad people and per-
NIT the country to get back to the
spirit of the elder days?
We do not seem to realize the
horrible suffering this great world
war has brought about. There is
no person on earth. who feels the
pangs of war more than do the
mothers of those who have paid
the supreme sacrifice. When the
boys enlist they know what it
means; they are prepared to suffer,
to die, if need be, for their cause,
so death is robbed of its worst hor-
ror. But the mother who is left
behind has to fight against the sus-
pense of what each moment may
bring after her loved one has gone
"up the line::" How often a smile
hides q heart full of anxiety for
the welfare of her loved one.