The Ely miner., 1930-05-23


The desolate mourners go,
Lovingly laden with flowers
Alike for the friend and the foe:
Under the sod and the dew,
Waiting the judgment-day;
Under the roses, the Blue,
Under the lilies, the Gray.
So with an equal splendor,
The morning sun-rays fall
With a touch impartially tender,
On the blossoms blooming for all:
Under the sod and the dew,
Waiting the judgment-day;
Broidered with gold the Blue,
Mellowed with gold, the Gray.
So, when the summer calleth,
On forest and field of grain,
With an equal murmur falleth
The cooling drip of the rain:
Under the sod and the dew,
Waiting the judgment-day;
Wet with the rain, the Blue,
Wet the rain, the Gray.
Sadly, but not with upbraiding,
The generous deed was done,
In the storm of the years that are
fading
No braver battle was won:
Under the sod and the dew,
Waiting the judgment-day:
Under the blossoms, the Blue,
Under the garlands, the Gray.
No more shall the war-cry sever,
Or the winding rivers be red;
They Danish our anger forever
When they laurel the graves Of our
dead:
Under the sod and the dew,
Waiting the judgment-day;
Love and fearS for the Rlue
Tears and love for the Gray.
When this poem was published 1t
achieved instant popularity, it was
widely reprinted and later set to
music so that its message of recon-
ciliation was carried everywhere.
Meanwhile on April 6, 1866, there
had been organized at Decatur, Ill.,,
a group Of Union veterans who took
the name of the Grand Army of the
Republic and within a short time
thousands of men who had worn the
blue were members of the G. A. r., as
it became familiarly known. In 1868
the national commander of the G. A.
r. was Gen. John A. Logan Of Illi-
nois. On cold, raw day in March
of that year party from Washington
set out to visit the battlefields around
Richmond. The leader Of the group
was Col. Charles L. Wilson, Chi
cago editor of that time, and with
him were his niece, fiancee and Mrs.
John A. Logan. They rode from one
scene of desolation to another,
touched by the poverty of the region,
once the proud capital of the Con-
federacy. And above all they noticed
the numberless Confederate graves,
most of them decorated.
"The Greeks and Romans" said
General Logan, "in the day Of their
glory, were wont to honor their hero
dead by chaplets of laurel and
flowers, as well as bronze and stone"
And he added that this thought
should be carried over to the United
States. 1t could be done, he believed.
by the issuance Of an order from him,
as commander In chief of the G. A. r.
to the posts established throughout
the North.
General Logan Immediately set
about writing the order and the fol-
lowing night called a meeting of the
G. A. r. staff officers in his rooms at
the old Willard hotel, Washington.
where the order he had written was
submitted for their approval. The
staff was unanimous In agreement and
not long thereafter "Order No. IL"
was broadcast from G. A. r. head
quarters all over the country. In
part that famous order reads as fol-
| lows:
GENERAL ORDERS NO. II
Headquarters Grand Army Of the Re-
| public,
| Adjutant Generals Office,
| 446 14th Street. Washington, D. c.
| May 5, 1868.
| General Orders, No. IL.
I. The 30th day of May, 1868, is
| designated for the purpose OF strewing
with flowers, or otherwise decorating
| the graves Of comrades who died in
defence of their country during the
| late rebellion, and whose bodies now
| lie in almost every city, village, hamlet
| and churchyard in the land. In this
| observance, no form of ceremony is
| prescribed, but posts and comrades
| will, in their own way, arrange such
| fitting services and testimonials of re-
| spect, as circumstances may permit.
| We are organized, comrades. as our
regulations tell US, for the purpose
| among other things, "of preserving and
/ strengthening those kind and fraternal
feelings which have bound together the
soldiers. sailors and marines, who unit
ed together to suppress the late rebel
| Iion." What can aid more to assure
| this result than by cherishing tenderly
| the memory of our heroic dead, who
| made their breasts barricade between
| our country and its foes. Their soldier
/ lives were the reveille of freedom to a
| race in chains, and their deaths the
| tattoo of rebellious tyranny in arms.
| We should guard their graves with sa-
/, cred vigilance. All that the consecrat-
ed wealth and taste of the nation can
add to their adornment and security. is
| but a fitting tribute to the memory of
| her slain defenders. Let no wanton foot
tread rudely on such hallowed grounds.
| Let pleasant paths invite the coming
and going of reverent visitors and fond
mourners. Let no vandalism of avarice