USA > Virginia > Post-bellum campaigns of the blue and gray, 1881-1882 > Part 9
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"My friends, in the armies of the North and the South, there were many thousand men whose love of country and devotion to duty was as loyal, as brave, and as true as that of Lord Nelson. Many survive, and long may they live to give to their country the benefit of their examples, their counsels and labors. Many, ah, so many, have crossed over the river, and rest now with Kearney and Jackson under the shade of the trees in the soul's fatherland.
""'On Fames' eternal camping ground, Their silent tents are spread,
And glory guards with ceaseless round, The bivouac of the dead.'
"We speak of them now as Federals and Confederates; we think of them as of the men who followed the stars and stripes, and by their heroic valor added fresh garlands to those already entwined around the flag of our Union, and as of those who, under the folds of the banner of the South, with equal courage, sealed with their lives their devotion to the cause they believed to be just. But it will not be so always. The time is not far distant when men will write, and speak, and think of them all as of Americans only.
"So early as the days of the second Henry, the distinctions between Normans and Saxons had all been blotted out; and the descendants of victor and vanquished, on the bloody field of
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Senlac, boasted that they were Englishmen all. The white rose and the red, in blended harmony and beauty, bloom side by side in the gardens of old England, and the contests of Yorkists and Lancastrians are matters of history only. Towton and Barnet, and Tewkesbury, are but as other fields on which England's sons illustrated their valor, and to-day yeoman and peer are equally proud of the fame of the dashing cavaliers who rode with Prince Rupert at Edgehill, and the stern old Ironsides whom Cromwell led at Naseby and Marston Moor.
"And so, my friends, one of these days men will talk of Feder- als and Confederates without passion or prejudice, and claim, as a common heritage of glory, the deeds and the fame of Grant and Lee. And be sure they will treasure up the memory of those deeds with something of vestal care, for these national recollec- tions are not shadows but substantial things.
" I know not else why men should linger with such delight over the pages of the historian who tells the story of the heroes who fell at Marathon and Platæa, at Bunker Hill and Princeton and Yorktown. I know not else why they should rear monuments of marble and brass to perpetuate the memories of the great and the good, and keep alive their examples to incite us to emulate their virtues. I know not else why it should be, that as we wander down the dim-lit aisles of England's grand old abbey, consecrated by the dust of her mighty dead, or pause in silent reverence and awe before the simple tomb of Washington,
"' The place
Becomes religion, and the heart runs o'er With silent worship of the great of old --
The dead, but sceptered sovereigns, who still rule Our spirits from their urns.'
"We can hardly overestimate the influence which the garnered glories of the Past exert upon the Present, nor tell how greatly they tend to mould the Future. When Demosthenes sought to arouse the Greeks to resist the encroachments of Philip of Macedon, he invoked the spirits of their dead heroes. It was to the past that Napoleon appealed, when on the burning sands of Egypt he pointed to the pyramids, and reminded his soldiers that from their
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summits four thousand years looked down upon them, the silent witnesses of their glory or their shame. And so, believe me, gen- tlemen, our children's children will love to tell of the steady valor with which their fathers marched into the jaws of death with Hancock and Hooker at the foot of Marye's Hill; and the heroic courage that led them mid the storm of shot and shell up the heights of Cemetery Ridge with Pettigrew and Pickett. And in the grand achievements of both armies, Federal and Confederate, they will find examples of patient endurance, of chivalrous dar- ing, of moral and physical greatness, that will strengthen their arms and nerve their hearts for any sacrifice and any effort that may be demanded of them for the preservation of the temple of our Union from foreign enemies or domestic foes.
" Cemented by the blood of so many of the best and the bravest of both armies, we have, gentlemen, if not a new, at least a stronger Union. Never again, I trust, shall the flames of civil war light the homes and scar the bosom of our beloved land; but deep in the love and affections of the people, in the truths of the Christian religion, in the principles of public faith and private honor, and the practice of justice and virtue, discarding the prejudices of the past and bound together by the material interests of the present and the boundless possibilities which the future spreads before us, may we lay the lasting foundations of national greatness and glory so strong that they may never more be shaken. And should the good Ship of State, so beautifully pictured in those soul-stirring lines, quoted by my friend of the Otey Battery, from the sweetest of all our singers, whose recent death has sent a thrill of regret throughout the English speaking world, ever again be tossed on the surging waves of sectional animosity, grant, God of our fathers, that amid the gloom of the gathered storm, some strong voice may be heard, with power to bid them 'Peace, be still.'"
" Manufactures and Commerce-conservators of national unity."
Responded to by Hon. J. Hart Brewer, M. C., of Trenton. He said :
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"MR. CHAIRMAN AND FRIENDS OF VIRGINIA :
"It would be a very easy matter for me to get up here in this eloquent presence and read (without a single tremor) a speech if I had one prepared. Now, an extensive speech from me is quite out of the ordinary, I must confess. It is said that occasions make speeches. I shall trust to the circumstances and surroundings of this occasion for what I may have to say this evening. I feel that if ever I could make a speech, impromptu, the enthusiasm of this time and place should bring it out.
"Having partaken of the generous hospitality of our guests on two occasions-at Richmond-I can say with all appreciation and all truthfulness that I am, for one, delighted to have this oppor- tunity to extend in return to them the same kind hospitality, the same generous feelings, in order that we may the better under- stand each other, and so fill up entirely each and every chasm, for God knows there should be no difference between us now. One thing was suggested while visiting Richmond applicable to the toast given me to respond to.
"The thrift and prosperity of the city in a manufacturing way, and the manifest pride of your people in them, suggested to me that there was the germ which in the near future was destined to grow and spread all over the valleys and water courses of the rich and sunny South, until the interest of each section-North, South, East and West-shall be identical. I know it is a sordid view to take of this question, but sentiment and patriotism, in the calmer moods of men, in the quiet of the growth of communities, must of necessity become cooled off, and make way for the industries, growing naturally on every hand, so that once more shall be made manifest that old and universal philosophy of the pocket, which interests every man.
" You have thought many times, no doubt, what the result of the late unpleasantness might have been, had your system of labor before the war permitted the growth of manufactures. Had you been self-supporting, had you been blessed as we were with the manufacturing wealth due to every nation and every portion of it, God only knows where our Union would have been to-day. But, thanks to him who doeth all things well, we have the Union-we
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have this pleasant meeting and greeting of the Blue and the Gray.
"You have your old and stately and artistically grand old man- sions of the past, denoting, as they do, the culture and refinement of wealth and chivalry. We have our manufacturing skill and our old Puritan ways. And what we need is a perfect union of interest and of ideas, and then shall we see here upon these shores a union so grand, so great, so perfect, that no thought but that of peace and fraternal feeling will ever again be heard of in our land. And when through this industry, peace and good will, our mer- chant marine shall have been built up, when our commerce float- ing under our own flag shall be on every sea, we will all agree with the gallant Dix at Baltimore, 'Who ever attempts to haul down the American flag, shoot him on the spot.'
"I plead, then, for a general distribution of manufactories and commerce, creators and conservators of national unity.
"The future of this country is all mapped out before me. I see the toast a living reality.
" A nation blessed with a rich and diversified industry all over it, happy and independent, cultured and intelligent ; all classes of society participating in the bounties of a righteous peace and union of a glorious prosperity.
"We will have a nation richer than all others, because inde- pendent ; different from all others, because more free ; greater than all others, because under the providence of God, we have greater advantages and a better form of government.
" In order that this may be brought about more speedily, I hail with joy this meeting of the Blue and the Gray. We will bestow our best attentions upon you. Our homes, our manufactories, our persons are at your services, and I trust you may enjoy your visit among us."
The speeches were all admirably well delivered and the applause was liberal and genuine. The sentiments of the speakers of the North and South were of the right kind, and the addresses had the right ring about them. The hour was late, or
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sounded. Its call was not responded to with that alacrity that in former days the sleepers used to pay to the sleep disturbing revillie of the drum or bugle. Although the sleepers were aware that there was work to do, they felt reluctant to turn out to roll call-breakfast rolls, for which the Trenton bakers are celebrated. The waiters re- ported, later in the day, that they had great diffi- culty in arousing the guests, and one of them who exercises the functions of a preacher, said he was reminded of the " old song " about the voice of the sluggard. The venerable darkey may be excused for his remembrance, and the campaigners were also excusable, for it must be remembered that they were pretty well tired out. They had under- gone a day of unusual fatigue. From five on the previous morning they had made a long journey by rail, a tiresome parade through the streets of the city, visited the Exposition of the Post, and wrestled in mortal combat, charged and retreated and charged again for almost six hours upon a formidable array of obstacles which had to be swept away at all hazards. All these difficulties had been encountered and overcome, and through - out the entire engagement the campaigners of the Gray had stood bravely up to their duty. They were entitled to a rest, but their captors were in- exorable and were determined to be even with them for the treatment they had received, when
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instead of taking Richmond they were themselves taken captives.
The programme for the day had been decided upon, and the first portion of it consisted of a visit to the State Capitol, where the ex-Confederates were to be received by His Excellency, George C. Ludlow, Governor of New Jersey.
The kindly feelings of the citizens of Trenton were demonstrated by an offer of many of them to place their carriages at the disposal of the com- mittee for the use of the guests. The following are the names of the persons who furnished car- riages : Hon. John Taylor, Hon. P. H. Laverty, John T. Wayman, C. & G. Furman, A. Wilson, Fred. Walter, F. W. Roebling, E. H. Stokes, Joseph B. Richardson, Sutphin & LaRue, Peter Fell, Fell & Heil, R. H. Moore, J. S. Chambers, W. Dolton, R. B. Ivins, W. Montgomery, General W. S. Stryker, J. L. Murphy, A. G. Richey, W. S. Sharp, George F. Wilson, L. Parker, Jr., Adam Exton, Peter Wilkes, John Hunt, R. C. Ivory, C. Braasch, P. J. Fitzgibbon, Dr. W. W. L. Phillips and others.
Shortly after ten o'clock the carriages arrived at the Trenton House and were soon brought into requisition. The drive to the State Capitol, or, as it is better known, the State House, was a short one, and ere the guests were fairly seated in com- fort they were upon the scene of their first en- counter.
This is an ancient building, with very few of
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the modern improvements. It is not as imposing in appearance as those of some of our sister States. From Fitzgerald & Gosson's Legislative Manual we extract the following history of the place :
" The Seat of Government was fixed at Trenton by an act of the Legislature, approved November 25th, 1790. James Cooper, Thomas Lowery, James Ewing, Maskell Ewing, George Anderson, James Mott and Moore Furman were appointed commis- sioners to select, purchase or accept so much land as was needed, and to erect thereon suitable build- ings for the use of the Legislature. They pur- chased the present site, containing about three and three-quarter acres-a frontage on Second street (now West State street) of two hundred and forty- seven feet and six inches, and a depth from the front to the low-water line of Delaware river of six hundred and sixty-six feet-at a cost of £250, 5s. The old State House was a plain, bare look- ing, rough-cast building, and was erected at a cost of £3,992 3s. ¿ d. By an act of March 4th, 1795, a building was erected to serve as an office for the Secretary of State, and for the preservation of the public records, at a cost of £620 19s. 10d. Numer- ous improvements and repairs were made, and on March 3d, 1806, an act was passed appointing commissioners to make certain repairs to the State House, to provide and hang a suitable bell, &c. This was done, and the bell was used for inform- ing the members of both houses, as well as the
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courts, of the hour of meeting. The bell was eventually discarded, and an American flag sub- stituted, which waves from the building unto this day, when the Legislature is in session, and upon holidays and State occasions. In 1848 the State House was altered by the removal of the rough- casting, and changing the front to the style of the Mercer County Court House, placing neat porticoes over the front and rear entrances, and erecting two additional buildings adjoining the main one, as offices for the Clerks of the Chancery and Supreme Courts. The rotunda was also erected, and the grounds fenced, graded, laid out and shade trees planted, all at a cost of $27,000. The commissioners, under whose direction the work was completed, were Samuel R. Gummere, Samuel R. Hamilton and Stacy A. Paxson. In 1863, '64 and '65, appropriations were made and expended in building additions for the State Library, Execu- tive Chambers, &c. In 1871, Charles S. Olden, Thomas J. Stryker and Lewis Perrine were ap- pointed commissioners to cause a suitable addition to be built-more commodious apartments for the Senate and Assembly, &c. The sum of $50,000 was appropriated, and the buildings for the Leg- islature were ready for occupancy in time for the meeting of the Legislature of 1872. In 1872, $120,000 was appropriated for completing the buildings, $3,000 for fitting up the Executive Chamber, $4,000 for fitting up the Chancery and
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Supreme Court rooms, and $2,000 for fitting up the offices on the first floor of the east wing. In 1873, the sum of $43,000 was appropriated for the improvement of the front of the building, com- pleting unfinished repairs and improvements, and for fitting up the library, &c. On March 18th, 1875, the sum of $15,000 was appropriated for the purpose of putting a new three-story front to the building and to fit up offices on the second floor for the Clerks of the Court of Chancery and Supreme Court, and for providing a suitable mu- seum for geological specimens and the battle-flags of New Jersey volunteer regiments, carried during the war of 1861. The Legislative Chambers are very handsome apartments, and the only cause of complaint, heretofore, has been inadequate ven- tilation, which has of late been much improved."
The Executive Chambers which are located in the west wing, if such it may be called, although it should more properly be called an addition, are very handsome apartments. They are large and roomy, handsomely frescoed, and covered with the softest of carpets. The main reception room is one of the handsomest chambers in the State, and connoiseurs, in that peculiar branch of art, say that it is unequalled for originality of design and excellence of execution, The work was done by Louis Wolfle, of Berlin, Germany.
On arriving at this apartment the members of Aaron Wilkes Post, with their guests, had not
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long to wait ere Governor Ludlow appeared. This was the signal for order, and as the chief officer of the State walked to the middle of the room a silence, that betokened the interest that was felt, prevailed.
Ex-Judge Buchanan, of the Reception Com- mittee of the Post, addressed the Governor, sub- stantially, as follows :- " Permit me, on behalf of Aaron Wilkes Post, to present to you these gentle- men, their guests. They represent three different organizations which participated in the late war, the First Virginia Infantry, the Richmond How- itzers, and the Otey Battery. Last autumn the Post, accompanied by a number of citizens of this city, undertook to pay a visit to Richmond. Some of the members of the Post had attempted pre- viously, on different occasions, to visit that city, but, owing to adverse circumstances, were not able to accomplish their purpose. They found that they would have to go by two Hills, through a Longstreet and over a Stonewall. On this occa- sion, however, they found their way open to the hearts and homes of those who had barred their progress years before. So warmly were they wel- comed, so royally were they entertained that they begged the boon of returning the hospitality there shown. Their request has been complied with, and their guests are now here. Those guests have now called to pay their respects to the Chief Magistrate of our State, and allow me to present
10
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them to you, with the assurance of their kind re- gard for our State and warm affection for our people."
Governor Ludlow replied to Judge Buchanan's speech of introduction, substantially, as follows :
He said he welcomed them to the State of New Jersey and to its hospitalities, and recognized them as citizens of our common country and co- laborers in the cause of national progress. He trusted nothing would occur to mar the good feeling of the present occasion, and that these interchanges of courtesies and communion of thoughts 'might continue, thus uniting and ce- menting together more firmly the affections of the people. Here the Governor dwelt at length upon the blessings which might be expected to flow from a thorough, earnest union of the hearts and purposes of all the people of all sections of the coun- try. He expressed his gratification at the spirit in which the gatherings of the Blue and Gray had been instituted, and the genuine exhibition of fraternal feeling which they had called forth.
Major Charles S. Stringfellow responded in behalf of the guests. He tendered his thanks for the gen- erous words of welcome with which the Governor had greeted them, and continued by expressing their gratitude for, and appreciation of, the way in which the citizens of New Jersey and of Trenton had treated them, and assured the Governor that the memories of the visit to the historic capital of
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this State would remain enshrined in their hearts forever. After discussing the necessity of a thorough reconciliation between all sections of the country and the obliteration of territorial distinction, he concluded as follows : " We are told that those who come in at the eleventh hour shall receive the same compensation as those who bear the toil and burdens of the day. But is it not true, sir, that those who have thus labored together through all the weary hours, and who together have borne the weary burdens, feel towards each other a warmer, a tenderer and truer affection than they can give to those who came in after much toil had been borne ? And do not the people of the old, original thirteen States, these States who, together through such fearful sacrifices, wrought out our independence and called this nation into life, feel towards each other a tenderness of friend- ship beyond what they can possibly bestow upon their brothers of the newer States ? In those days New Jersey and Virginia fought side by side, making one common sacrifice for one common cause, and may not this account, in part at least, for the warmth of feeling evinced toward each other by their sons? Again we thank you for your noble welcome to your noble State."
There was loud, whole-souled, heartfelt applause at the conclusion of each of the speeches, and when the ceremony of introduction, reception and ac-
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knowledgement was over, the visitors were indi- vidually introduced to Governor Ludlow.
After this portion of the programme had been con- cluded the ex-Confederates were escorted through the State Capitol. The place in which they took the greatest interest was the Geological Museum, in which, in glass cases around the walls, are the war-torn and tattered battle flags borne by the several regiments of New Jersey's Volunteers dur- ing the late war. There, in the presence of those torn reminiscences, the old soldiers of the Blue and Gray clasped hands in friendship and loyalty. One of the Gray-backs boasted that he had done his best to "bring down " the color bearer of one of the flags, and for aught he knew made a dent, which he pointed out, in the staff of the color. Another veteran, who wore the Blue, pointed with pride to the flag of his regiment which he claimed to have saved from capture. How long the " boys" -all of them Americans, and all bowing in rever- ence to the Stars and Stripes-would have re- mained there to fight over their battles is not known, but might have been, had not word been received that Comrade Royal H. Rose, of Princeton, had a photographic camera of large dimensions in posi- tion, and meant to take all of the party-captors and captives-upon paper. This is a thing which, by the by, many who had been captives of 1861- '65 would have been more pleased with than being captives in propria persona. After some delay a
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group was formed in front of the State Capitol, and a picture was taken. This ended the only fixed portion of the forenoon's programme.
As in Richmond, after the reception in Sanger Halle, there was a scattering of forces. The car- riages provided by the citizens were again ordered to the front. Before the general individual or squad reconnoisance, the column moved upon the famous Fashion Stud Farm, in Hamilton township. The proprietor, Mr. H. N. Smith, was absent, and the party were received by Superintendent Riddle, who showed them through that extensive estab- lishment and exhibited the more notable equines -Goldsmith Maid, General Knox, General Wash- ington, Socrates, Lucy and others. After seeing all that was to be seen there, the party broke up into squads and visited the several potteries, rub- ber mills and manufactories, besides the State in- stitutions, including the State Prison, State Luna- tic Asylum and State Arsenal. Hon. J. Hart Brewer presented each of the visitors with a hand- somely decorated plate as a sample of the work done at the Etruria pottery. The guests then re- turned to the Trenton House and had dinner, after which some returned to their rooms and others proceeded on tours of investigation through- out the city in charge of members of the Grand Army.
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knowledgement was over, the visitors were indi- vidually introduced to Governor Ludlow.
After this portion of the programme had been con- cluded the ex-Confederates were escorted through the State Capitol. The place in which they took the greatest interest was the Geological Museum, in which, in glass cases around the walls, are the war-torn and tattered battle flags borne by the several regiments of New Jersey's Volunteers dur- ing the late war. There, in the presence of those torn reminiscences, the old soldiers of the Blue and Gray clasped hands in friendship and loyalty. One of the Gray-backs boasted that he had done his best to "bring down" the color bearer of one of the flags, and for aught he knew made a dent, which he pointed out, in the staff of the color. Another veteran, who wore the Blue, pointed with pride to the flag of his regiment which he claimed to have saved from capture. How long the " boys" -all of them Americans, and all bowing in rever- ence to the Stars and Stripes-would have re- mained there to fight over their battles is not known, but might have been, had not word been received that Comrade Royal H. Rose, of Princeton, had a photographic camera of large dimensions in posi- tion, and meant to take all of the party-captors and captives-upon paper. This is a thing which, by the by, many who had been captives of 1861- '65 would have been more pleased with than being captives in propria persona. After some delay a
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