greatest military achievements of the past; and each page bears the names of leaders which shine with a lustre equal to that of those which stand so prominent in the history of antiquity. And what shall I say of the noble soldiers, who in solid phalanx stood as a mighty bulwark against the storm of rebellion, and drowned. the hydra of treason in the sea of patriotic blood. Shall I forget them? Shall I pass them by in silence? Nay, rather let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth, than that I should forget the preservers of our nation; I would rather see parties and party names sink into oblivion, and forever abjure politics than to be guilty of such ingratitude as this. Never, never can I forget the honored dead, who now lie sleeping in their cold and silent graves, and who gave their lives a willing sacrifice for their country. Each armless sleeve and wooden leg would taunt me with ingratitude if I should be guilty of such forgetfulness as this.

Can I forget the noble boys who stood with me in the hours of severest trial and fiercest danger? Never, no never so long as memory shall retain the least hold on the things of this life.

But daring deeds and acts of personal valor, though worthy of all honor, and though they will gild the pages of the history of the great rebellion, are not the chief elements in making up our estimate, nor the primary reason why we should honor our captains and soldiers, and remember with gratitude those who fell in the struggle. The motive which tore them from the embraces of their families, and patriotic impulse which urged on the swelling hosts from the hills of the East and prairies of the West, constitute the brightest jewels in the crown of honor which rests upon the victorious brow.

Our captains and soldiers fought not for empire, nor for power, or love of martial glory, nor for the gratification of passion or territorial conquest, but simply for the preservation of national unity, and the maintenance of those great principles incorporated in that wonderful instrument, the Declaration of Independence. We did not even fight for the abolition of slavery, that dark blot on our national escutcheon, but that Divinity who worketh out the councils of his own will, included this as one of the results; in fact a contest maintaining on one side national unity, and personal freedom, and individual rights, could scarcely result in victory to that side without sweeping away that which stood in principle and in fact opposed to it. The moral force which for years had

been gathering in the American heart required this result, and with victory on the side of the nation it was sure soon to follow. Yet the battle was not fought for this purpose, union hearts were bared in defense of national integrity, and for the preservation of the fundamental principles of our glorious republic.

This is the corner stone of the edifice which we erect in honor of our captains and soldiers; it is the great element in our estimate of their acts and achievements. With such a motive, with such an object, defeat would have been a thousand-fold more honorable than victory to those who bore the arms of rebellion. Why does the name of William Tell occupy such a prominent place in the history of Switzerland? for the tale of the apple is probably a myth, and even his personal history is buried in obscurity. It is because he is made the representative of the great principle of freedom so dear to the Swiss heart. Think you not then that future generations, which shall live in the full enjoyment of the great principles maintained by the union captains and soldiers, will hold them in fond remembrance and shower benedictions on their names.

As long as rolls of honor shall exist, as long as deeds of valor shall be recited to attentive youth, as long as patriotism shall be appreciated by man, yea, as long as freedom shall endure and history be written, that long will the names of our eminent captains and the bravery and self-devotion of our patriotic soldiers live on the pages of history. The cold, lifeless tombstones which now mark the resting-places of the fallen will decay and crumble before the march of time, and future generations will be unable to mark the spot where the sacred ashes rest, but still their names and deeds will live on and on, growing brighter and brighter with the march of years.

Comrades and friends, I would gladly recount the incidents of the campaign and marches of the Army of the Tennessee; I would gladly tell of the daring deeds of this brave officer and the noble heroism of that one; I would gladly narrate the evidences of the patriotism, bravery and self-devotion of our noble boys in blue; but the time will not suffice, and I can make no invidious distinctions where all did their duty with hearty good will and with a true devotion to the great interests they were fighting in defense of. All honor, therefore, to our "eminent captains and pre-eminent soldiery."

FIFTH TOAST:-"The Army of the Cumberland.”

To Major-General JOHN M. PALMER had been assigned the response to this toast, but he was not present.

General JEFF. C. DAVIS was called upon for response, and in appropriate remarks in behalf of the Army of the Cumberland, thanked those present for the compliment to that army to which he was so long attached.

MUSIC.

SIXTH TOAST:-"The Old Flag. May its stars forever shine on a united people."

Response by General W. T. SHERMAN.

GENTLEMEN: It is proper that I should say that I was booked for another toast, and had prepared what I supposed would be appropriate and interesting, but on reaching Springfield was informed by the Local Committee that they had been compelled to assign my toast to another, and they requested me to answer to this. My prepared speech must therefore be tossed into the waste-basket, and I am forced to trust to the inspiration of the moment, begging your indulgence should I fall short of your expectations.

Many of you regard the familiar Stars and Stripes that now decorate your walls, and that you have so often seen in battle, as the oldest flag of our country. In the earlier stages of the Revolutionary War, many flags were carried by our troops, with strange devices. Instead of the eagle, clutching in one hand the olive branch and in the other the thirteen arrows, was that most beautiful of the birds of America, the wild turkey; in others the rattlesnake coiled away, its head ready to strike, with the motto: "Nole me Tangere." But gradually public opinion settled down upon the field of blue, with its thirteen stars, and the thirteen alternate stripes of white and red, as emblematic of the original thirteen colonies, united into one great union. The flag is the emblem of nationality, not only of the power but of the honor, the

dignity, the majesty of the nation, and to command the love of the subjects and the respect of the stranger it must be the symbol of justice and mercy as well as of force and power.

It is not extent of territory, nor numbers of population, nor the long array of figures that constitute national greatness. The Swiss are justly proud of their nationality, though but a speck on the map of Europe; and well may the sturdy citizen of Holland be proud of the proverbial honesty of their merchants. We may go on for centuries yet and not equal the Chinese in numbers, and who can say even that our civilization is better than theirs. We often boast of what is not ours. The magnificent chain of lakes danced in the sunlight with their bright crystal waters long before Agamemnon was born, and Niagara thundered with the roar of mighty waters before Rome was dreamed of; the great Mississippi has flowed for untold centuries, carrying down stream the rich mould that now waters the fertile corn and cotton fields; the shad and the salmon sported in the bright streams, and the deer and elk and buffalo ranged at large everywhere; and our predecessors, the Indians, believed in their hearts that all these things were placed here by their Great Spirit for them, and them alone. And where is the Indian now? No, my friends, these are not ours, but we are tenants at will, liable to be ejected on short notice by the cholera or some loathsome disease. We should not take to ourselves pride for the beauties of nature, nor for the gifts of God. Who can say that Illinois, with her thousands of miles of corn and wheat fields, with the millions of horses, cattle and hogs is more valuable than when the elk and the deer careered at large over our open prairies, and the Indian chased his game with his bow and arrow? We are but trustees in trust for the natural advantages we enjoy, and if we make proper use of them we will continue to prosper and thrive; but if from pride or luxury, or undue indulgence we fail, others more hardy, more virtuous, will come after, and displace us as we have displaced the Indian. We have a right to take pride in the industry and thrift of our ancestors and of ourselves in the labor and toil that have converted millions of idle acres into productive farms; that have wrought cities and towns and hamlets out of the rocks and trees; have built roads and canals to facilitate intercourse and the interchange of products; and mills and manufactories to convert the raw products into articles of use for civilized man; and more especially

for founding schools, colleges and universities for disseminating knowledge among men, and for founding governments that insure to all, rich and poor, the results of their own labor and enterprise. These are the great objects symbolized by our flag, and herein as a nation we have just reason to be proud. We are greatly favored in extent of territory, in variety of productions, in everything that enables a people to be just and great, and on us and our children rest the mighty responsibility of continuing our history, so that our flag will continue to be the emblem of all the virtues that constitute national greatness, quite as much as numbers and wealth. We in our day fought a great battle that unity should be maintained, that liberty should be universal, and that justice should not be at the mercy of the disaffected. Now our flag is universally respected because it is the true emblem of the power of a united people, and because it represents principles that are dear to all mankind. All may come and show its advantages, and none should fear it unless they attempt to trample on the principles of universal justice. Let us cherish the memories of the past, and resolve, each in his own sphere, to uphold the right as we see it, and the blue of our flag, studded with stars, will be as the firmament of heaven, and the stripes symbolic of the sun's glory, as he sets in the summer's horizon of the west.

MUSIC.

SEVENTH TOAST:-" The Armies of the United States-Past and Present."

Response by General W. W. BELKNAP.

GENTLEMEN OF THE ARMY OF THE TENNESSEE:-The response to this sentiment gives a wide field to thought. The history of the republic in its early life opens again its pages. The records. of the trials in which the founders of the nation fought for the right, and, in the face of death, toiled through disaster until peace crowned their work, are told to us again as they were read among our childhood's teachings. The struggles of the revolution-the victory which gave a name to the nation, and a flag which should float forever as that nation's emblem; the contests of later yearsthe war with Mexico, which taught the doubting what a little army, controlled by discipline and moved by patriotic pride, could do; all these changing scenes in the progressive march of the nation