GEN. SHERMAN and Gentlemen: I firmly believe that any nation great
enough to produce and appreciate a great and splendid man is great
enough to keep his memory green. No man admires more than I do men who
have struggled and fought for what they believed to be right. I admire
General Grant, as well as every soldier who fought in the ranks of the
Union,--not simply because they were fighters, not simply because they
were willing to march to the mouth of the guns, but because they fought
for the greatest cause that can be expressed in human language--the
liberty of man. And to-night while General Mahone was speaking, I could
not but think that the North was just as responsible for the war as the
South. The South upheld and maintained what is known as human slavery,
and the North did the same; and do you know, I have always found in my
heart a greater excuse for the man who held the slave, and lived on his
labor, and profited by the rascality, than I did for a Northern man that
went into partnership with him with a distinct understanding that he was
to have none of the profits and half of the disgrace. So I say, that,
in a larger sense--that is, when we view the question from a philosophic
height--the North was as responsible as the South; and when I remember
that in this very city, _in this very city_, men were mobbed simply for
advocating the abolition of slavery, I cannot find it in my heart to lay
a greater blame upon the South than upon the North. If this had been a
war of conquest, a war simply for national aggrandizement, then I should
not place General Grant side by side with or in advance of the greatest
commanders of the world. But when I remember that every blow was to
break a chain, when I remember that the white man was to be civilized
at the same time the black man was made free, when I remember that this
country was to be made absolutely free, and the flag left without a
stain, then I say that the great General who commanded the greatest army
ever marshaled in the defence of human rights, stands at the head of the
commanders of this world.
There is one other idea,--and it was touched upon and beautifully
illustrated by Mr. Depew. I do not believe that a more merciful general
than Grant ever drew his sword. All greatness is merciful. All greatness
longs to forgive. All true grandeur and nobility is capable of shedding
the divine tear of pity.
Let me say one more word in that direction. The man in the wrong
defeated, and who sees the justice of his defeat, is a victor; and in
this view--and I say it understanding my words fully--the South was as
victorious as the North.
No man, in my judgment, is more willing to do justice to all parts
of this country than I; but, after all, I have a little sentiment--a
little. I admire great and splendid deeds, the dramatic effect of great
victories; but even more than that I admire that "touch of nature which
makes the whole world kin." I know the names of Grant's victories. I
know that they shine like stars in the heaven of his fame. I know them
all. But there is one thing in the history of that great soldier that
touched me nearer and more deeply than any victory he ever won, and that
is this: When about to die, he insisted that his dust should be laid in
no spot where his wife, when she sleeps in death, could not lie by his
side. That tribute to the great and splendid institution that rises
above all others, the institution of the family, touched me even more
than the glories won upon the fields of war.
And now let me say, General Sherman, as the years go by, in America, as
long as her people are great, as long as her people are free, as long
as they admire patriotism and courage, as long as they admire deeds of
self-denial, as long as they can remember the sacred blood shed for
the good of the whole nation, the birthday of General Grant will be
celebrated. And allow me to say, gentlemen, that there is another with
us to-night whose birthday will be celebrated. Americans of the future,
when they read the history of General Sherman, will feel the throb and
thrill that all men feel in the presence of the patriotic and heroic.
One word more--when General Grant went to England, when he sat down
at the table with the Ministers of her Britannic Majesty, he conferred
honor upon them. There is one change I wish to see in the diplomatic
service--and I want the example to be set by the great Republic--I want
precedence given here in Washington to the representatives of Republics.
Let us have some backbone ourselves. Let the representatives of
Republics come first and the ambassadors of despots come in next day. In
other words, let America be proud of American institutions, proud of a
Government by the people. We at last have a history, we at last are a
civilized people, and on the pages of our annals are found as glorious
names as have been written in any language.