give to the public. [Applause.] Every member of this Society is in himself an evangelist for patriotism. This country was born through patriotism, it was saved through the efforts of patriotic men,—many of whom are before me here to-day,--and to say that we were not organized for this purpose is to violate the very essence of the principle for which we were organized. An annual "jamboree" is not our purpose, to "dead-head" it over a few railroad lines, cannot be our highest aim. Gentlemen of the Society, our aim is to set examples to those that are to come after us, and induce them to do as we did; not to wait for bounties, or to secure officers, but to defend the life of this old flag when it is assailed, and when the life of the nation is assailed, sacrifice everything in order to save it.

During the war I recollect attending a meeting, when the chaplain (probably our friend Bishop Fallows) was addressing a number of soldiers, and he was telling them that he was "a soldier of the cross and a follower of the Lamb," and wanted them all to come forward and enlist in that grand army of the Lord. A sleepy looking soldier in the crowd asked him what bounty he was paying. When Lord Byron tried to rouse the fire of the Greeks by appealing to them to remember their deeds of heroism in the past, they applauded him, but after he had finished they asked him how much he would give them to strike another blow for their liberties. We must do all that we can to save and keep alive the fires of patriotism, to let the people know that liberty in this country means something. I have the loftiest respect for those who differ from me, because they were all grand soldiers and are now splendid citizens, but when I heard them say that it was not a part of the purpose of this Society to vote this money, I was wounded, it gave me absolute pain, and I will tell you why: In all the grand army societies the poor, crippled, maimed, penniless soldiers, honorable notwithstanding their poverty-are putting the blush of shame to our cheeks by giving, of their little fund, money to help this object out. The Workingmen's Society of Chicago is doing this; they are laboring day after day for a mere pittance, and yet they are taking their mites, like the widow of the Bible, and giving to this grand purpose. To say that we should leave it to New York, because the monument throws its shadow across that metropolis, is the most narrow view you can take of it. I think we should avail ourselves of this privilege;

indeed, I think we ought to thank our chairman for the opportunity of contributing our mite to this grand object. And I say, my comrades, proud as I am of this illustrious Society, proud as I am of its glorious achievements, proud as I am of that grand march from Atlanta to the sea, as a member of this Society, I would feel the tinge of shame upon my cheeks to see that statue erected, and to think that this great, powerful, and even rich Society (in comparison with others) refused to contribute a single hundred dollars. If members of this Society want to rear monuments to commemorate the memory of their brother members, and we refuse to contribute, let the Society be rebuked for that, but let it not be rebuked when an opportunity is given to do what it can to help the cause of liberty and of patriotism. I say it is wrong for the Society ever to have refused to support the movement that was proposed for the erection of monuments to Ransom and Blair, but two wrongs never made a right; and if this is wrong, let us be grand. I appeal to the distinguished gentleman who opposed this proposition yesterday, to be as catholic-hearted in this as he is in everything else; I appeal to him to see that the Society return good for evil, and we will give of our abundance, at least our share to this grand purpose.

General Belknap:-Mr. President, I would like to inquire if the gentleman refers to me.

Captain Beem:-Yes, sir.

General Belknap:-I will subscribe to the Bartholdi statue,— will the gentleman?

Captain Beem:-Yes, sir, I will go farther

General Belknap:-Very well, let individuals subscribe. [Applause.]

Captain Beem:-I am very glad the suggestion is made, and if a paper had gone around this room and the members called upon to contribute one hundred dollars more, I would have been glad to subscribe, and I would give fifty of it myself, if necessary, and do it now; but it has gone into history, it has been recorded, that the Society of the Army of the Tennessee has refused to give a dollar for this grand enterprise. Comrades, you cannot afford to go into history with such a record, and I submit it to your pride and to your patriotism. I say in reply to the distinguished gentleman who has interrupted me, that after this Society votes a

hundred dollars I will give, poor as I am in purse

and in person,

as much as any one man here to help this cause, and I will say, farthermore, that I have already contributed.

General Belknap:-I have already contributed.

Captain Beem:-So have I, so you have not anticipated me. [Applause.] Now, gentlemen, of the Society, I hope you will not think that there is any disposition on my part or the part of those who advocate this, to do aught that would bring us into discredit or establish a wrong precedent. One of the gentlemen I talked with this morning said: "It is a wrong precedent." It can never be a wrong precedent when we do that which is right; and as patriots, as men who are by their examples teaching lessons for future generations, I submit that it would be one of the grandest things that this Society could do; and I will go farther and say that if there is any member of this Society that ever regrets the disbursement of this hundred dollars, or if it ever happens that one hundred dollars is needed to replace the hundred dollars so appropriated, in order to build a monument to the distinguished gentleman who has interrupted me, or any other member of this Society, there will not be any lack of volunteers to replace it.

I do trust, comrades, that there will be no opposition; we cannot afford that there should be opposition. Let us be generous, and if it ever comes that we need a hundred dollars we will all help to contribute and put it back into the treasury. As General Hamilton suggests, the little school children throughout the country are contributing.

Colonel Oliver:-Mr. President and gentlemen.

Colonel

:-Mr. Chairman, I would like to ask one question before Colonel Oliver begins. Is there any communication, direct, to the Society, asking for this subscription?

The President:-There was a communication from General Charles P. Stone and he also sent me about a dozen pamphlets containing a description of the statue, etc.; also a picture of the statue, which I displayed here yesterday. I also received a communication from the Hon. Wm. M. Evarts, addressed to me, personally. The other was addressed to me as the President of the Society, asking me to lay the matter before the Society of the Army of the Tennessee.

General McNulty:-There was a direct appeal, then, made to the Society for a subscription?

The President:-Yes; I rather think they want the example, however, more than the money.

General McNulty:-Now, Mr. President, if Colonel Oliver will bear with me just a minute, (I am not much of a speech-maker) I will say all I have to say in about a second. I don't think the reputation of the Society is involved in this question at all, by any means whatever. Now, I am going to vote for the appropriation. Colonel Oliver:-(Interrupting) I cannot yield the floor, Mr. President.

The President:-Colonel Oliver has the floor.

Colonel Oliver:-Mr. President and gentlemen of the Society of the Army of the Tennessee, it may appear singular for a man, coming from the district of the country I do, to oppose an appropriation of any kind. [Laughter.] I live in one of those beautiful places where, to a very limited extent they are in favor of the "old flag," but to a very great extent in favor of "large appropriations:" [renewed laughter] but the gentleman has remarked that this Society can not afford to go down to posterity with such a record. This Society can afford to be handed down to generations coming after us upon the record which we have made. [Applause.]

Now, I simply call the attention of my comrades to the section of the country to which I belong for this purpose. If the gentleman that advocates an appropriation by this Society to this great and noble monument will look back, he will see that it was a dangerous and is now a dangerous precedent. Why did we object. to contributing as a Society to the monument of Frank Blair and General Ransom? This is not a benevolent association.

Captain Beem:-May I say a word?

Colonel Oliver:-No sir, not until I get through. I say with pride, though not a citizen of either, that Chicago or Minneapolis, if they will bring that monument here, the citizens of this country will build it. [Applause.] I have seen too many large hearted men and handsome ladies, if you please, in this section of the country, to doubt for one moment that if they will bring it here—even upon the border of this beautiful lake-they will not ask the country for contributions, especially not from societies like ours.

This Society desires to perpetuate what? Not only liberty in this nation, but the memories of our own comrades and of our particular army. If that be so, and we desire to build monuments, then let us as a Society build monuments to the members of our Society. [Applause.] As citizens of this great country let us do as we did with reference to the monument of Frank P. Blair, put our hands in our pockets. I now speak as a member of the Society, as a citizen of this great country; I say that monuments should be erected and as citizens we will contribute towards it, but guard well your records, make no precedent, if you do, then we will be preyed upon by benevolent associations of all kinds; we will be asked next year to contribute a hundred dollars to some fashionable picnic, probably, [laughter] or we will be asked, another year, to pay money toward an object to which Governor Davis alluded, sending a ship to the Feeji Islands or to Africa, and so on. Now open a record like that and soon we will hear the report of our Secretary that instead of having bonds we have indebtedness. That is the objection. No one objects to the gentleman contributing to this-it is an object to which we should. contribute, as citizens, but we are not here now in that capacity, we are here as members of the Society of the Army of the Tennessee, to guard not only the reputation and treasury of the Society, but the reputation which we have made.

The gentleman appeals to some of the members and says it would be considered that we were not generous-why, all you have to do is to look over these faces, and you will see generosity written on every forehead. It is ridiculous. It is only the precedent that I object to. I have no objection to the gentleman contributing all he wants or as little as he wants to this object. We all hope that the monument will be built, and, as citizens, we will contribute, but as a Society I hope, fellow comrades, that we will guard well this treasury.

The President:-Gentlemen, I will state the proposition before us. There is a proposition to reconsider the measure that was before us yesterday, which was rejected by a vote of 38 to 36. Is there any other gentleman that wishes to be heard?

Bishop Fallows:-Mr. President and gentlemen of the Army of the Tennessee, this is the first speech I have made at any business meeting of our Society; I simply want to put myself right upon the record and say that I was not present yesterday when this subject