country's glory. They are true to their great General, Grant, whose glory and success they have recognized as the just results of valor, wisdom and strength and imperishable patriotism; and amid those ills that now assail him, they send him their sympathy and unalterable loyalty. I speak the soul of every soldier of the Union when I ask you to send him greeting with reverence and love, from the loyal volunteers, not only of the Army of the Tennessee, but every army that helped him save the Union and protect the Flag. They are loyal to the memory of McPherson, to the record of Logan, as a soldier and statesman. They are loyal to the cause of Good Government. They live in the spirit of the right. There are no ex-union-men. The Volunteers are Union men in fnll communion to-day, and they have a Union:-a Union that is united to Liberty, "now and forever, one and inseparable.” FOURTEENTH TOAST-"The Rank and File." Response by Colonel AUG. JACOBSON. In the spring of 1861, when all nature was renewing life, when the grass was turning green, when the buds were swelling and sweetening the air, when the timid violet was coming forth to be kissed by the warm spring sunlight, when the birds were caroling their new songs, when earth and sea and air were gay with young life, when the lips of the young men and of the young maidens were telling their dreams of love, there crashed thro' the air of this land a cannon ball, the forerunner of millions of others. It crashed through and poisoned the free American air. The noise stopped the farmer at his plow. His loyal oxen shook and trembled. The engineer stopped his engine. The mechanic dropped his work. The merchant closed his store. The Sumter cannon was fired to frighten the people into letting the Union be peaceably split in twain. The men who fired it knew not the people upon whom they fired. The Sumter cannon was fired from a lonely spot in an out of the way corner of the earth, where the spelling-book for the multitude had not yet appeared. It was fired for effect upon communities all alive with endless traffic, netted with telegraphs, interlinked by railroads, where books by the million were being printed by steam. With the stupidity begotten of slavery, the men who loaded the Sumter cannon put into it for wadding the speeches of Patrick Henry, for which they had no further use. The cannon ball spent its force against the stone wall of Sumter, but the wadding carried the great cannon's roar into every loyal American heart, with the words of the matchless orator of the revolution, "I know not what others may do, but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!" The tocsin sounds. Men rush to the place of meeting. There is no party. There is no debate. There is no argument. There is no oratory. There is only the flag. It is held aloft. It has been fired upon and hauled down. The only question is who'll go and hoist it over the very spot where it has been dishonored? Who'll go and hoist it over every spot where it has been dishonored? The young men crowd up and form line. Mothers and fathers, sisters, brothers and lovers moisten the earth with their tears. The mother. parts from her only son. The father parts from the boy in whom are centered all his earthly hopes. The maiden is torn from her lover, whose manly vigorous arms shall never again embrace mortal. His young handsome form shall be one among thousands of the unknown to stop a bullet and fill a ditch for liberty. And so they march. And in all the land for millions of people there shall never again be a glad day on earth. What is Liberty ennobles her children. Where Liberty is not, nobles are few. Where Liberty dwells, the many become noble. Did the young men stop to count the cost? Not they. They only knew that rather would they nobly die than meanly live. What is the use of living, said they, if the majority is not to rule? the use of living if the Union is to be split in twain? the use of living if the flag of our fathers is not to wave over us in honor and glory? We opened our eyes for the first time in this world in a land consecrated to Liberty. What is the use of living, if instead it is to be an infamous slave empire? What is the use of living if we are to be ashamed to repeat the speeches of Patrick Henry? What is the use of living if we are no longer to own the memory of Washington? If the Union is to go down, we'll go down with it. If the flag is to go down, we'll go down with it. But the Union and the flag shall not go down. They who fail in homage to the Union and the flag shall perish, but forever in honor and glory shall live the Union and the flag. And so they march under the flag, upon the Potomac and upon the Rappahannock, upon Henry and Donelson, upon Corinth and Chancellorsville, upon Gettysburg and Vicksburg. So they marched through the Wilderness; so they marched to the sea, and thence to Richmond; so they marched under the flag, victorious, from "Unconditional Surrender" to "Let us Have Peace." The great military leader whose name is enshrined in the heart of every American soldier, he who to vast achievements adds the great gift of few and fitting words, has well told what was in the breast of the volunteers. As there is no thought higher than the thought of Plato, as there is no eloquence higher than the eloquence of Demosthenes, so hereafter to the end of time for American citizen soldiers, there will be no inspiration higher than the words of our illustrious commander: "I propose to move immediately upon your works;" "I propose to fight it out on this. line if it takes all summer." When wars and rumors of wars shall cease from the face of the earth, when the last American soldier shall have been, when the earth shall cease to nourish the children of men, when the sun shall grow cold, then, and not till then shall die the name and fame of our beloved, silent and incomparable leader, Ulysses S. Grant. The enemies of the Union sought by war to force upon us more slavery. The volunteers by war gave to all mankind more liberty. When the volunteers went forth, they carried with them a flag which meant liberty; but liberty for white men only. When the volunteers came back they brought with them a flag which means liberty for all the earth and for all mankind, and above all things liberty. When the volunteers went forth they carried with them a constitution in which was written liberty, but liberty for white men only. When the volunteers came back they brought with them a constitution in which is written: "God hath made of one blood all the nations of men." Out of the impress upon the soil made by the footsteps of the volunteers all around the Union, the fairies are weaving invisible bonds wherewith to bind together in love and unity, as brethren, all the people of this nation. The unknown fallen who lie in unmarked graves shall not be without a monument. Of them history shall write that when they heard only just the faintest whisper that Liberty was in danger, they instantly rushed to her rescue. FIFTEENTH TOAST.- The Ladies. Response by Prof. O. F. Tousley. The gentlemen not being present, no response was made to the toast. The President:-The carrying out of the programme of your banquet has been completed, and we are ready to adjourn, but before doing so, I wish to thank you all for your kind consideration of myself during the banquet and the courteous attention you have accorded the speakers. Again I wish you all may have good health and prosperity during the coming year and that we shall meet one and all at our next reunion. CEREMONIES. It may well be said that the ceremonies of this meeting are but a part of the meeting itself and have taken position in the regular proceedings of the Society as arranged by the Local Committee. They were confined to the excursions on the Lake on Wednesday and Thursday, the lunch at the Lake Park Hotel on the former and the yacht race on the latter. These gave to the members an opportunity of social experience, a renewal of acquaintance and refreshing of memories of war incidents such as we have not had at any previous reunion—all hearts were reached and had genuine enjoyment. |