Every evening, Wilmington daily commercial., 1920-04-24
Heroes of Another Day
BY Frederic J. Haskip

Washington, ID. c., April 2O.--N Nearly
AL Of the mon still living who fought 10
hold the United States OF America to-
gether more than half century ago will
10 gathered Mt the Arlington National
Cemetery when the new Memorial AM
phithcntrc Just completed there is dcdi-
Gated by the Grand Army Of the Re-
public on the fifteenth Of next month.
The new amphithcatrc is beautiful
thing which cost nearly million dollars,
and is valuable addition to the collec-
tion Of marble objects which the nation il
making in and about Washington. But
OF far more interest is the handful Of old
men who have long worked to induce
Congress to appropriate money for this
memorial and who will now come to-
gcther to dedicate IL.
To most Americans this amphitheatre
will be Just ne more stone edifice to be
viewed from rubberncck wagon while a
glib guide spiels off the facts as TO how
much IL cost, how long il took 20 build it.,
who designed IL, and all the rest of the
staple information. But 10 these few
old men il in monument 10 mighty
emotions which nre dead everywhere
except in their hearts, and in those Of
another little group Of old men who
cherish gray uniforms instead Of blue
ones, and the know ledge that they gave
the best Of their manhood for cause
TINT was lost instead of one that tri-
umphed
WE CAN'T UNDERSTAND.
''You young gentlemen cant under
stand" was the reply Of one Of these
union veterans who was asked 70 tell
something Of the days and deeds for
which the Arlington Memorial stands
in his mind And others OF his fellows
saw about the same. "You cant realize,
YOU cant understand" they cay again and
again AZ they try in vain to body forth
in words the mnssive emotions that
moved them and which still dominate
their lives. II is fifty-five years since the
Civil War ended, and yet these old men
stll talk continually Of that war, talk
with beat and feeling, az though IL had
been only Yesterday. The Spanish
War seems 20 be already nearly forgotten.
Many of the men who fought In the
World War sre beginning 90 wonder
what they fought about. and those Of them
who were i'm the thiekest of IL have the
least To say Plainly there was some
thing in this Civil War which our sub
sequent military adventures have lacked
some atmosphere Of glory, some motive
Of genuine heriosn it's memory is
Ho vivid. No doubt sinister and selfish
motives played their part in that as in
every other war, but Of the two million
men who went out 10 save the union,
and who saved il, the great majority
really and passionately believed in their
cause. They had no reason then, nor
have they had any reason since, To gus
pect that they were the dupes Of selfish
hidden purposes. Nor did their great
sacrifice end in a miserable bicker Of old
men. stripping the bright garment off
the figure Of patriotism and showing an
ugly skeleton Of greed Their cause stood
clear and unnistakable before them
the preservation of n union Of men which
should strengthen every man in u and
prevent future wars Looking with sad
eyes upon the wars that men have fought
since then. they turn back 20 their
memories and say you cannot under
stand"