NORTH SHORE BREEZE 39 
posted they were. I have.no fear of 
the country when the schools are 
teaching the children such lessons ‘<n 
patriotism and love of the flag, and 
also when our courts are making ‘t 
plain that there is but one law for the 
high, the rich, the low and the poor. 
“‘Y have been angered at times at 
the sentiment expressed that the 
country is not grateful for what the 
GAR has done, is holding back pen- 
sions, ete. This country has been kind 
to us beyond measure and so long as 
the nation has a dollar in the treas- 
ury no man who wore the blue will be 
Memorial Bay Address at Manchester 
Col. J. Payson Bradley of South Boston Recalls 
Incidents of Great War 
eran—one who had enlisted at the 
age of fifteen as bugler of his com- 
pany—was one of the finest ever 
heard here. 
The Memorial Day address, at 
Manchester, was by Col. J. Payson 
‘Bradley, National Chief of Staff, a 
member of Post 2 of South Boston. 
The address, from the lips of a vet- 
Commander Bradley said in part: 
““Comrades of .the GAR, Woman’s 
Relief Corps and friends—When [I re- 
ceived some time ago a letter from 
my friend, the mayor of this city, 
Comrade Stanley, (great applause) 
that I was down for an oration in this 
town for Memorial day I simply ac- 
cepted .the invitation deciding to 
meekly obey his orders as you have 
probably learned to do. But it is no 
oration that I shall give you tonight, 
for today’s thoughts have come crowd- 
ing upon me like a Niagara and causes 
me to pause and look over the vista 
of fifty years that have passed since 
the great struggle in which you and 
I were engaged and it is my purpose 
tonight to ‘recall some of the many 
incidents of that great war and bring 
home to the minds of the young par- 
ticularly what the war meant and at 
what a tremendous sacrifice victory 
was achieved. Facts are more elo- 
quent than words and so I shall en- 
deavor to give you a few facts. 
““T recall as though but yesterday, 
the mustering in of the 6th Massa- 
chusetts regiment soon after the firing 
upon Fort Sumter. The scenes ac- 
companying the departure of that regi- 
ment for the front and a thousand 
other memories come surging over me 
tonight until I am overwhelmed and I 
hardly know where to start. In the 
past you have had historians. and or- 
ators awaken in your hearts a greater 
love of country; tonight but a plain 
soldier of the rebellion stands before 
you with but a simple story to tell :n 
the hope that you may draw a lesson 
from it. 
‘‘As we go back to the battle fields 
of Virginia thoughts of vanished 
years crowd upon us. The sound of 
the fife and drum, the bugle notes and 
the rattle of musketry and boom of 
cannon fill the air—sad memories of 
the past are revived that never will 
be forgotten. Today you have dee- 
orated the graves of some of these 
comrades and throughout this land the 
same ceremony has been performed. 
And I wish to say right here that I 
know of no county in any state that 
has shown better or truer qualities of 
the soldier than old Essex county of 
Massachusetts. (Applause). She has 
always stood for all that is good and 
true and noble. It was my privilege 
to enlist in an Essex county company 
and to serve as its bugler at the age 
of fifteen having already. served two 
years. I have brovght the old bugle 
with me tonight thinking it might be 
a connecting link that will join in the 
minds of the young, the present with 
the past and that perchance some 
note may awaken in their minds some- 
thing of the spirit it has inspired in 
the hearts of the boys at the front. 
**T recall the night of May 18, 1864. 
Grant was making a flank movement 
to ouvtflank Lee’s right. Lee’s spies 
were all around us as thick as bees. 
I can recall as though but yesterday 
the boys sitting around the camp fire- 
singing the old war songs: ‘‘Tramp! 
Tramp! Tramp!’’ ‘Star Spangled Ban- 
ner,’’ ‘‘Rally ’Round the Flag’’—oh, 
you can all sing those old songs—and 
away in the rear the picket lines were 
banging away and off in the distance 
we could hear the occasional boom of 
a cannon, and then the quartette in 
our camp struck up that old song, 
‘‘Just Before the Battle Mother,’’ but 
the reveille the next morning sent all 
those singers to their death and ere 
the setting of the sun all laid dead 
on the field of honor.’’ 
At this point, the speaker sounded 
the tattoo on his bugle which made a 
great impression on his audience and 
it was greeted with applause. Con- 
tinuing the speaker told of the charge 
of Evells corps giving the story he 
said that the. young might realize 
what it cost to defend the flag and 
save the country from disunion. In 
one company of 123 men, 64 men went 
down in that fight, killed or wounded. 
A terrible price to pay for a victory. 
The speaker told of the loss of a 
very dear friend and how he knelt 
over his grave and swore a terrible 
oath to be revenged, mindful of the 
scriptural quotation. ‘‘Vengeance is 
mine—I will repay saith the Lord’’ 
but later when he saw how the South 
was paying for their mistake in sack 
cloth and ashes, he found there was 
no need of further revenge.: 
“‘The brave deeds of these men fur- 
nish a lesson for these young people 
here tonight and it is this—do a little 
more than is expected of you. Don’t 
be satisfied with just getting by in 
your studies in school but do a little 
more—that is the way to win in the 
battle of life. Go a little way be- 
yond the firing line, that is the way 
to be true heroes. I want to show to 
the rising generation what it meant 
to save the nation and the cost to pre- 
serve the privileges you now enjoy, 
and young men and young women use 
them to your advancement. : 
‘‘Wifty years have passed since the 
war and sometimes we hear people ask 
what has been accomplished? Was it 
worth while? Yesterday I spoke be- 
fore ‘a school in Boston where eighty 
per cent of the pupils were foreign 
born and I want to say that I never 
before heard a more patriotic pro- 
gram than was there presented and a 
chorus of 125 voices sang all the 
patriotic songs. I tell you you will 
have to look out for your laurels at. 
home. Those pupils of about all na- 
tions could tell all about Lafayette, 
Washington and all the great military 
leaders and answer about any question 
about the war that was asked of them. 
I was thunderstruck to see how well 
allowed to suffer All honor to the 
army and navy who stood four years 
and defended it gallantly. The war 
did not make Abraham Lincoln presi- 
dent but it brought out in him his true 
spirit and character. No man _ ever 
started under greater difficulties. No 
one here ever had to study their les- 
sons by the light of a pine torch or go 
almost naked for want of money to 
buy clothes. If you want an example 
of all that is great and glorious look 
upon him who was truly great. 
‘““This day makes us think of the 
comrades who have gone from among 
us. It is great to die for our country 
but it is greater to live for it. To live 
for our country means to face the re- 
sponsibilities of the times. It means 
for you to buckle on the armor an 
fight, not with carnal weapons but 
with the knowledge secured in our 
public schools. Sometimes we must 
say ro and say it sharply, and some- 
times we shall say yes and say it 
sharply. 
“fAnd the girls—we must remember 
them for they have as much influence 
in the shaping of our government as 
the boys. While in the south I saw 
a monument erected to the memory of 
the women of the war but I have not 
seen any in the North. The women of 
the war deserve a monument as well 
as the men for they played a great 
part in it. 
**T want to say in closing that some 
boys today will ask what does it all 
amount to? What have we to show 
for it? There is not money enough in 
the treasury to pay me for my ser- 
vices. My country is the reward I 
have for the service done. If I was 
onered a pension and needed it f 
should take it but a saved nation is 
the real reward. They say our na- 
tion is feared by all the nations of the 
earth. Is it fear? No; it is respect and 
that brings fear. It is that for which 
we fought and to bring those condi- 
tions of which the angels sang at 
Bethlehem: ‘Glory to God in the high- 
est — Peace on earth and good will 
toward men,’ and in all this let Amer- 
ica remember that it has reached this 
proud station because the comrades 
living and dead were willing to meet 
the call when it came. 
‘Young people, respect the flag. 
Do not let the flag go by without tak- 
ing off the hat in reverence. And so 
may we ever be moving onward and 
upward to peace and victory in the 
eternal camping ground above.’’ 
As the speaker closed, he again took 
up his bugle and sounded the reveille 
and as he was seated three cheers were 
proposed by Comrade Bingham which 
were given with a will to which Com- 
rade Bradley replied saying it was 
worth more than all the gold of Cali- 
fornia to have the appreciation of the 
comrades of the GAR, 
