PROCEEDINGS
AT THE
jSemi-Cciitaraal Ctlcbrata
OF THE
WASHINGTON LIGHT INFANTRY,
22d AND 23D FEBRUARY, 1S57.
PUBLISHED BY ORDER OF THE CORPS.
CHARLESTON:
WALKER, EVANS & CO. STATIONERS AND PRINTERS,
No. 3 Broad Street.
1 8 5 7.
Charleston, April 15th, 1857,
The Washington Light Infantry, impressed with the obligation they are under
to you for your eloquent discourse delivered on the 22d February last, desire to
show their appreciation of the service you have rendered them, by publishing it
in a more permanent form than in the columns of a daily paper. We have been
appointed a committee to request of you a copy for the purpose of carrying out,
at an early day, the wishes of the corps.
Respectfully,
Wm. A. Courtenay, I
Donald McQueen, [■ Committee.
A. L. Michel, J
To Rev. Sam. Gilman, Chaplain W. L. I.
Sullivan's Island, Sept. 14th, 1857.
Gentlemen:—I was happy to perform my duty for the interesting occasion, and
then dismissed it with no further thought of publicity.
Your wish to reprint the discourse I shall be glad to facilitate by all that may
be in my power.
With all brotherly regard, very truly yours,
S. GILMAN.
To. Messrs. Wm. A. Courtenay, Donald McQueen, A. L. Michel, Committee
W. L. I.
ORDER OF EXERCISES
AT THE
UNITARIAN CHURCH.
ARCHDALK-STREET,
hud febrtaar, J«v
voluntary.
" When the sun gloriously," <£e.
chant,
" O be joyful in the Lord."
"lord's prater and invocation."
" Litany for 4th Sunday in the Month."
" t£ deum laudamus."
"Scripture Lesson."
" HYMN."
P r a p f r, bp c». <§. ©itman.
voluntary.
"SERMON."
anthem,
"O let the joyful tidings."1
" BENEDICTION."
SEMI-CENTENNIAL SERMON.
A Discourse delivered in the Unitarian Church, of Charleston, S. C., on Sunday,
22d February, 1857, before the Washington Light Infantry, in commemoration of
the 125th Anniversary of the Birth of George Washington, and of the semi-cen-
tennary of the Washington Light Infantry. By Rev. Samuel Gilman, D. D.,
Pastor of the Church, and Chaplain of the Washington Light Infantry of Charles¬
ton, South Carolina.
" I will remember the years of the right hand of the Most High."—Psalm 97, vs. 10.
So should we all devote to religious uses and purposes the func¬
tion of memory, one of the brightest of heaven's gifts to man. By
an inherent law of our mental constitution, we are perpetually led
to remember and to dwell upon the past. Thence we draw the
boundless stores of experience to guide us through the mazes of
the future. Blot memory from among our powers, and the wheels
of life must immediately stand still. The cultivation of this fac-
culty is at the same time as delightful as it is natural and essen¬
tial. At the very first step by which communities emerge from
the lowest barbarism, see them erect the rude monument of wood
or of stone to recall some event which they would not have utterly
to perish. As they advance in civilization, they replace these
earlier attempts by more towering, polished, and elaborate struc¬
tures. Among the first literary exercises also of the opening mind
of a nation is the composition of history, as an aid to the decaying
memory. And if we survey the productions of our own contem¬
porary age, when civilization seems to have reached a higher point
than it ever attained before, we shall find that the most vigorous,
thoughtful, and accomplished minds have devoted themselves to
this same department of intellectual labor. It is, indeed, the sa¬
lient feature of the literature of our day. It is a loud and attractive
call upon the hurrying generations of mankind to remember the
years of the past I
But there are two very different and opposite ways of remem¬
bering the past. We may survey it either from a religious or
from a mere earthly point of view. We may study history simply
to indulge a prurient curiosity—to amuse a vacant hour—to admire
the strangeness of events—to dwell on remarkable characters—to
8
SEMI-CENTENNIAL SERMON.
gaze, in short, upon a revolving panorama of scenes, gliding gor¬
geously before the eye. This is one way, but comparatively a
very low and unworthy way of remembering the past. The other
method is, to explore and trace throughout the facts of history a
superintending Providence—a guiding mind—a connected order
a speaking and instructive oracle. It is, to deduce from what we
behold the manifest will of our Almighty Creator—to read events
by a clear and steady moral light—to pursue consequences up to
their legitimate causes—and to discern what blessings follow in
the wake of righteousness, what fatal ills ensue from courses of
wrong and sin. This is the high religious method of remembering
the past. It is sketched in the compass of our text, by two or
three burning and emphatic words, such as the sacred scriptures
so often employ to convey ideas of the deepest meaning. The
Psalmist does not simply say, I will remember the years of the
past. For in that case he would not apparently be separated from
those who contemplate history from an inferior and earthly point
of view. But rising infinitely above so grovelling a stand-point,
he says, I will remember the years—what years? the years of the
right hand—of the Most High! Observe here the true method of
regarding and studying the phenomena of Time. We are to look
upon the revolving years of the past not as if rolling forth from
the dark caves of a blind fate—not as if dashing about the ocean
of existence like so many wild waves of chance, but as if im¬
pelled and directed by some intelligent and all controlling hand,
the right hand, as it were, of God ! This fixes our contempla¬
tions on a true, safe, and intelligible basis. This leads us into a
clear and luminous track. This helps us often to appreciate a
profound and even blessed significance in the very humblest
events. This disentangles the perplexity in which the affairs of
the world are often involved. This is the guiding thread to many
an unexplored labyrinth. This gives each of us a personal inter¬
est in the on-flowing changes of the universe, and enables man, in
some humble degree, to be the interpreter of his own mysterious
existence.
These reflections are naturally suggested by the day that assem¬
bles us in this place. The anniversary of the birth of George
Washington may welhadmonish every American bosom to remem¬
ber the years that have past. The intimate association of that
man with our origin as an independent people irresistibly forces
such an exercise on our minds. But no mind of reflecting piety
SEMI-CENTENNIAL SERMON.
9
can stop there. Was the life of George Washington an uncon¬
nected, hap-hazard event ? Was there in it no Providential de¬
sign, no intelligent adaptation and correspondence to the circum¬
stances of our embryo nation? My friends, we could no more
believe such a paradox, than we could believe that the eye's socket
of bone was not intended to receive and protect the exquisitely
delicate eye, or that the human foot with its manifold construction
of nicely adjusted parts, was not designed to tread firmly on the
solid ground. If there be a Divine Providence at all, and is there
a single reflecting person in this assembly that doubts it? then
George Washington must have been placed by it, and by it alone,
at the head of the American colonies. So that the anniversary of
the birth of Washington carries us directly up to the Throne and
the Mind of God, and -bids us place this well remembered, long
cherished epoch specifically among the years of the right hand
of the Most High.
Brethren of the Washington Light Infantry ! I trust that in the
foregoing remarks I have correctly expounded the genuine motives
which have brought you to-day within these consecrated wails.
The habitual worshippers in this sanctuary proffer you their sacred
sympathies on the occasion, and welcome you to a participation of
their solemn rites and exercises around the altar of our common
Father. Recently, at the approach of that distinguished anniver¬
sary which you have so long commemorated with devoted punc¬
tuality and fidelity, you noticed the fact that this day would com¬
plete the fiftieth year of your corporate existence. The season
may well have reminded you of that jubilee period of nearly fifty
years which the Deity himself appointed to be observed by his
chosen people of old with peculiar ceremonial rejoicings. It fur¬
ther occurred to your notice that the present endeared anniversary
would be coincident with the Christian Sabbath, a day so generally
appropriated by yourselves and the community in which you
reside, to religious repose and abstinence from secular engage¬
ments. Under these circumstances, you might naturally have
been induced to pursue the usual practice of entirely deferring
your annual celebration to the succeeding day. But, happily, you
were inspired by another idea. " These fifty years, this circling
jubilee—this blessed closing Sabbath," you said, " shall not pass
in silence and unimproved. Why should we not first have a reli¬
gious celebration of this interesting occasion, to which so peculiar
and remarkable a juncture of dates invites us ? Why not regard
10
SEMI-CENTENNIAL SERMON.
the last fifty years, so far as we are concerned, not from a low,
mundane point of view, but as years of the right hand of the Most
High?" Accordingly, you requested, for the purpose, the minis¬
trations of him, whom, for more than half the period of your exist¬
ence as a company, you have kindly honored and received in a
religious capacity. Often have you listened, in respectful sympa¬
thy, to his prayers. In the halls and churches of other cities
where you have been favored guests—in the fresh air of the
mountains under the open sky—in the resorts of your own public
annual celebrations—and around the board of your more private,
chastened festivities, you have chosen to regard his humble suppli¬
cation to heaven as a kind of standing necessity—an institution of
your corporate life. You would seem to have borne it with you,
as you have borne your own Eutaw flag—a sort of oriflamme for
your hearts to follow. It is not so much for his personal interest
in these things that he gratefully mentions them, as it is to congrat¬
ulate you on having constantly cherished, in the midst of your
duties, your exercises, and your enjoyments, a religious, element
and habit. A feature like this, my friends, is worthy of your
Christian education—worthy of the better spirit of the country
and the age in which you live. In fact, it involves a felicitous
resemblance and imitation (of course unconscious and uninten¬
tional) of that good and illustrious man whose name you bear, and
whose memory you this day religiously celebrate. For in nothing
was Washington more remarkable than that deep, religious vein
in his character, to which I shall soon again call your attention,
and which distinctly, yet unobtrusively, gleamed forth, as well
through his adventurous early days, as in the prime of his care¬
worn and laborious manhood, and in the more pensive glories of
his sunset decline. I thank God that the Washington Light In¬
fantry of Charleston at least illustrates this precious lineament
of our great American exemplar. In the earnest shock and clangor
of their earthly material calling, they do not forget that they have
also a spiritual and immortal nature. Their stringent relations to
man do not extinguish in their minds their more stringent and
sacred relations to God. Therefore, the sympathies which you
ask of this Church to-day, this Church affectionately and devoutly
surrenders. Come, and receive our welcoming benedictions!
Come, and share the prayers of your brothers, friends, neighbors.
Here already the punctual foot of the oldest in years among your
living members has, for more than half a century, trodden the
SEMI-CENTENNIAL SERMON.
11
sanctuary's floor, and long may it continue to do so, surrounded by
loving children and by revering children's children. In this still
temple, consecrated to Jehovah, and to His Son, the Prince of
Peace, seize upon this solemn, critical, passing hour, to bid adieu
to the eventful half century which is winging its way to eternity,
and hail, with a holy, humble, trembling, yet cheerful anticipa¬
tion, the still more eventful half century which is pregnantly
looming on your expectant eyes. While the necessities of this
imperfect world constrain you to buckle on the accoutrements of the
citizen-soldier, may you learn to wear beneath them, yes, next to
your very heart and soul and life, the girdle of truth about your
loins, having on, withal, the breast plate of righteousness and love,
and having your feet shod with the preparation of the Gospel of
peace, your side defended by the shield of faith, your head by the
helmet of salvation, and your whole being protected by the sword of
the spirit, which is the word of God. Whatever of peace and com¬
fort, of joy and hope, can emanate from the fountains of our divine
religion, that do we wish you as an undying treasure for your
souls. Whatever blessings a kind and tender Providence may
have in store for his creatures, we pray that you may partake of and
enjoy. Tranquil and loving be your homes. Generous and en¬
during be your friends. Peaceful as the summer's evening be
your consciences. Firm as the mountain rock be your faith in
God. Well-grounded and perpetual be your reconciliation to his
Spirit. At which ever of his altars your hearts may choose to
bow, thence may the refreshing dews of a heavenly influence de¬
scend upon your heads. And whether you pass the remainder of
your days in this fair and cherished city, of which the large ma¬
jority of you are natives, or launch on the crowded stream of
emigration, to seek a distant home, may some useful and prosper¬
ous sphere of action be assigned you—may the cordial approval
of your fellow-citizens increase with your advancing years—may
you do something to elevate the character, to defend and improve the
institutions of that wonderful confederated commonwealth, whose
sons you are, and whose destiny has as yet only begun to be devel¬
oped—and be your summons from this world at the early period
of vigorous, buoyant youth, or during the years of a late and de-
crepid decline, may you have made your mark, and a good one,
on your earthly day and generation, and be prepared, by grace,
for that welcoming heaven, the ranks of whose armies are filled
by the blessed spirits.of the redeemed.
12
SEMI-CENTENNIAL SERMON.
A religious glance at the fifty years of your corporate existence
must awaken in your hearts many emotions of complacency and
gratitude. It is a pleasure to remember that the very origin of
your corps partook specifically of a moral and patriotic character.
Not compulsion, not the resistless behest of the law, not the iron
hand of conscription, called your predecessors into sullen and re¬
luctant action. Seeing that their country had pressing need of
their services, they sprang spontaneously into the line of their
duty. The high elastic impulse, to which the company thus owes
its being, seems never to have expended or diminished its force,
but has continued characteristically to distinguish it throughout its
whole career. If I mistake not, you have generally rushed to your
post at every frequent summons that mustered you, rather in the
spirit of a society of volunteers, than as the submissive subjects of
a martinet discipline. You have felt yourselves a family, instead
of the sub-division of a brigade—a mutual band of brothers, rather
than a legal body of political creation. This spirit, no doubt, has
been fostered and perpetuated by the peculiar qualities of the com¬
manders in whom, from the first, you have been so fortunate. If,
waving from delicacy the living, and looking back alone to the
dead, Charleston would ever point to high intellectual eminence
among her sons—to dominant weight of character—to brilliant ge¬
nius—to active and exemplary citizenship—and to an elevated
moral tone as unsullied as a virgin's fame—she has but to unfurl
the catalogue of those who have headed her Washington Light In¬
fantry. May you not feel a grateful pride that mutual sympathies
have drawn yourselves and such men together? The fact presents
a happy feature in your history, to be recognized and cherished,
and may have been a main cause why }7ou have so long been re¬
garded as a model military corps. Nor has your history been one
merely of private discipline and preparation, or of brilliant pa¬
geantry and parade. You volunteered for rugged service—you
fronted palpable dangers—you endured no common hardships—
you discharged no holiday duty, amid the treacherous and ensan¬
guined morasses of the Floridian peninsula. A generation later,
within the fresh experience and memory of you all, saw you
marching for days through toilsome mountain roads, and tented
many a night, that you might be the first in Carolina to plant a fit¬
ting monument to the self sacrificing but triumphant valor of your
fathers. Mistake not the purpose of these gratifying allusions.
This pulpit may not descend to the language of flattery. But on
SEMI-CENTENNIAL SERMON.
13
an occasion, especially devoted to religious reminiscence, you are
reminded of circumstances which may awaken your devout thank¬
fulness to the Giver of every good and every perfect gift. Proba¬
bly, both as a corps, and as individuals, you are ready to acknowl¬
edge and lament the deficiencies and imperfections, which widely
separate you from the standard, both of military and of christian
perfection. Many an action, word, and feeling, in your associated
relation, you doubtless profoundly regret. If you have always es¬
caped the though tless excesses of inexperienced age, if no mother
or father, connected with yo'u, have had cause to weep over a sou's
disastrous habits, such as have been said to be often contracted in
bodies more or less resembling yours, happy, indeed, will it be for
you ail. At this solemn hour and place, I know that you are will¬
ing to enter into these humbling reflections, and to drop, where it
is needed, the warm, generous, penitential tear. Ah ! could some
angel-hand impart a preternatural strength and compass to our
memories—could the long tissue of our lives be unrolled to our as¬
tonished gaze—could we, while on earth, partake something like
the privilege vouchsafed to the venerable friend, whom for so many
years you have delighted to own as an honorary brother—the priv¬
ilege of beholding, in one collected focus, the separate deeds,
thoughts, visions, aims, toils, and cares of a whole lifetime,—we
might then, in some degree, be assisted to anticipate the solemni¬
ties of a future judgment, and gather up our trembling spirits to
await the nearer presence of our God, and the impartial awards of
eternity. But while this power is denied us, the amplitude of di¬
vine revelation supplies the defects and poverty of our limited na¬
ture. The word of God points to and inculcates a repentance unto
salvation, not to be repented of. Lying in the dust with the weep¬
ing monarch of Israel, we may implore our forgiving Father to re¬
member not the sins of our youth nor our transgressions. Exclaim¬
ing, too, with the impassioned Apostle of a "new and better cove¬
nant," Oh! wretched men that we are, who shall deliver us from the
body of this death!—we may also rise, through a blessed experience
like his, to that exultant height of triumph, which empowered him
to say, thanks be to God, who hath given us the victory through our
Lord Jesus Christ. We may flee to that mercy-seat, which is
covered by no wing of golden cherubim, but which is brought
down by a Saviour's love into every believing, earnest, sin-abhor¬
ring, and sin-forsaking heart. Thus may we become more than con¬
querors through him that loved us, persuaded, that neither death, nor
14
semi-centennial sermon.
life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor
things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature shall be
able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our
Lord.
Oil this anniversary natal day of the Father of out Country, coin¬
cident as it is with the Christian Sabbath, and partially celebrated
here in the temple of the Most High, I cannot forego the duty and
the privilege of again adverting to the religious features of his ex¬
traordinary character, and to one or two moral qualities, closely
allied to, and dependent on them. This is not the place nor the oc¬
casion to ponder on his attributes as a mere soldier or statesman.
Other opportunities and better qualified lips will be soon found to
render justice to those subjects. But of little account is the Corin¬
thian column, whether in its grander outlines or its nicer flutings,
without the consummating capital. Accordingly, my friends, deem
it not the suggestion of professional formality, but simple justice
to the man, to the occasion, and to yourselves, if I now call your
special attention to the crowning characteristic of Washington, his
deep, practical, and ever-pervading piety. It was his happiness
to have been religiously trained, and when first he left the paren¬
tal roof to attend school, the last words that his mother spoke to
him were, " My son, neglect not the duty of secret prayer." I be¬
lieve that the influence of these words accompanied him to his dying
day, like the breath of a whispering angel. Several of the manu¬
scripts of his earlier youth bespeak his religious interest and habi¬
tudes. When colonel of the regiment at Fort Necessity, during
the war with the French and Indians, and at the time only twenty-
two years of age, he is recorded to have regularly performed reli.
gious services himself in the camp. He never would permit a
regiment, so far as his influence could extend, to be destitute of an
exemplary chaplain. In his general orders he forbade, under
severe penalties, the profane swearing and other vicious habits of
the soldiers under his command. He enjoined upon all a punctual
attendance up'on divine service. In middle life, during the inter¬
val between his two long periods of military service, we find him
actively engaged in promoting the prosperity of two Churches in
his neighborhood. Throughout the revolutionary war, and amidst
the engrossing cares, toils, and temptations of his civil life, his
scrupulous and reverent observance of the Sabbath was unin-
termitted. He received no visits on that sacred day, but de¬
voted it to seclusion and meditation. His deportment at public
SEMI-CENTENNIAL SERMON.
15
worship in Philadelphia exerted a marked and happy effect on the
congregation where he habitually worshipped. In his military
tent, or in some retired grove beneath the open air, or in his library
at home, he was frequently discovered unawares by his attend¬
ants and secretaries, in the attitude of prayer. Did not the angel
voice of the mother whisper there? Well might a gentleman on
the Tory side, on learning a fact like this, have exclaimed, "Our
cause is lost!"—Throughout all his public and private documents,
he explicitly recognizes the hand of Providence, as interposing in
the affairs of men. After his final retreat to Mount Vernon, in his
declining age, and up to the day of his death, he rode nine miles
every Sabbath to attend church at Alexandria. I have often thought
that this calm, unostentatious, yet positive and open testimony of
Washington to the reality and authority of religion, keeping stead¬
ily as it did midway between extravagant fanaticism and infidel
indifference, constituted a specific blessing to his country, particu¬
larly at a period when himself and the whole nation were grateful
for the services of France, and when the example of her govern¬
ment and the influence of her philosophy exerted on so many minds
an opposite and pernicious effect. No civilian had been more
popular throughout the country than Thomas Paine, whose earlier
political writings had done so much to enlighten and arouse it
against the wrongs of Britain. His scoffing infidel publications,
therefore, exerted afterwards a dangerous power, which was very
much neutralized by Washington, not clamorously denouncing
Paine, but just by silently and calmly living him down, and anni¬
hilating his influence by the logic of a religious example instead
of the logic of syllogism and theology.
No merely human character, I believe, could constitute a better
study and model for earnest imitation, than that of Washington.
To form a right and true conception of him, we must not think only
of his brilliant success—of his imposing official splendors—of
his vast administrative talent—of his sagacious choice of instru¬
ments and assistants—and of those other prominent features, which
stood out to the eye of the world, and which public history loves
to emblazon on her page. It is to Washington in the shade that I
would point as to one of the dearest treasures of humanity. He
was a greater hero in the shade than in the sunshine. In fact, the
word hero, as applied to him, is contemptibly inadequate, unless we
employ it in that most comprehensive and sacred sense which in¬
volves the dreadful battles and struggles of the inner soul, as well
16
SEMI-CENTENNIAL SERMON.
as the dazzling, mighty achievements of the outer man. What
Alexander, Caesar, Frederic, Napoleon indulged in with all the
fond proclivity of passion, Washington either had to work himself
up to, or rigidly controlled himself in, from a high sense of duty.
It is Washington contending with difficulties, rather than Washing¬
ton waiving his glittering sword of conquest, or gracefully pro¬
nouncing the oath of office before assembled and admiring multi¬
tudes, that ought to be habitually contemplated and prized by
every youthful American. For almost every young man is des¬
tined to encounter difficulties, discouragements, embarrassments,
and opposition of various kinds; but how few can ever expect to
waive the glittering sword of conquest, or take the grave oath of
dignified magistracy. There never was a man, whose path lay
through so many discouraging difficulties from the first, as Wash¬
ington. His early travels through the wilderness—torrents crossed
—mountains passed—Indians encountered—nights beneath the
inclement sky, might well-nigh seem a speaking prophetic type of
his subsequent career. I will not dwell on the innumerable fierce,
unjust, determined, private enmities which persecuted even his
mild and equitable life from his earliest colonial youth down to his
very decease as an aged civilian and citizen. Nor will I trespass
over the limits which I have assigned myself for this occasion, by
more than a passirfg allusion to that world of formidable obstacles,
perplexities, and imposed toils, which incessantly embarrassed
and oppressed both his bodily and intellectual powers. If you
can count a dozen great successes of his, you can count an equal
or greater number of his defeats. Poor Washington was as fa¬
miliar with retreat as happy Washington with victory. Study,
then, young men, this more sombre phase of his fortunes, since it
presents the brighter and grander side of his character. Mark his
fortitude—his perseverance—his serenity—his hopefulness—his
unalterable confidence in the right; since every man, in his own
little sphere, has abundant opportunities, without absurd preten¬
sion or ostentation, but by his abiding efforts, and even by his pa¬
tient tears, to be an humbler Washington.
It was never, indeed, my lot to behold the living face of Wash¬
ington. But having attained, at the time of his decease, the age
of nine years, I was capable, with the observant and curious eye
of youth, of estimating, in some degree, the deep and tenacious
hold which fastened him, both in life and in death, on the affec¬
tions of his countrymen. It was common, in many places, to cele-
SEMI-CENTENNIAL SERMON.
17
biate his recurring birth-days, for several years even before his
decease—a public honor, I believe, accorded to but few of the
children of men. One day late in December, 1799, I was among
a group of schoolmates, in a little town of New Hampshire, and
we were awaiting the return of our good old minister from the post-
town which he regularly visited. As he came driving up the road
in his vehicle, we went forth as usual to welcome him, but instead
of his accustomed beaming smile, we found a melancholy cloud on
his countenance, and the large tears rolling down his venerable
cheeks. Startled and anxious, we inquired the cause of his sor¬
row. The embittered and low-toned reply, which even now seems
to dwell on my ear, was simply this: "General Washington js
dead—General Washington is dead!" "No, sir! Can 'General
Washington be dead?" exclaimed the whole of that boyish group,
as we mingled our tears with those of our revered guardian. Soon
the news reached the family within-doors, and that was a day of
lamentation and woe, as if one of our own family had been stricken
down, and removed forever from the world. 1 record this obscure
and remote domestic scene, that your imaginations may realize the
gloom and anguish which overspread the land from its northern to
its southern border.
On the ensuing twenty-second day of February,>he whole coun¬
try celebrated its departed father's funeral obsequies by every va¬
riety of solemn demonstration that could be appropriate to the
occasion. In the humble little incorporated township I have
spoken of, with a population of less than five hundred souls, while
labor everywhere rested as on a silent Sabbath, the inhabitants
moved in procession, from the academy to the place of worship,
where an oration was pronounced by one of the adult students of
the institution, and the anthem and the prayer went .up from our
afflicted hearts. Medals had been struck and circulated all over
the country, commemorating the principal events of the hero's life.
These every child fondly studied, and became familiar with their
crowded mystic inscriptions. Imagine the power of such circum¬
stances as these to impress the opening mind of an American boy.
Age, however, has not obliterated, but has rather deepened and
intensified these impressions. In common, I imagine, with the
whole generation of my contemporaries, the character of Wash¬
ington continues to be with me a study, which an ordinary life¬
time would hardly avail to exhaust. I believe that every enlight¬
ened American has within his mind a certain beau ideal conception
2
18
SEMI-CENTENNIAL SERMON.
of Washington, which no biographer can perfectly represent. As
there was a reserve in the living hero's manners, so there is an un¬
developed depth in his historical and traditional character. We feel
that, like the corps-de-reserve of an army, there was that within him
which was not brought out into life and action. Accordingly, one
is apt to say, after every eulogy and every biography of him, how¬
ever detailed, however analytical, however finely descriptive and
apparently complete, "It is all very well, but the real Washing¬
ton went something beyond it. You cannot make objective the
subjective image in my soul." Still I am impressed with the con¬
viction that our best thinkers and writers can propose to themselves
no worthier aim than to make approximations at least towards a
perfect literary embodiment of Washington; also, that his coun¬
trymen, although they cannot hope to do justice to their own inter¬
nal consciousness of his transcending excellence, should weary of
no material sacrifice in their power, for multiplying and perpetuat¬
ing solid and tangible memorials to his fame. Therefore would I,
as a patriot and citizen, offer my Simeon-prayer of readiness to
depart in peace after I could be permitted to peruse the completed
Life of Washington, now passing under the plastic hand of our
country's most accomplished author,—and could behold the top¬
most stone laid on that magnificent monument which, though only
half finished, already towers over the metropolis of the confed¬
eracy—and could learn that the tomb and homestead, where the hero
sleeps, have been rescued from a profane or vulgar destiny by the
continued joint endeavors, hitherto so well put forth, of a daughter
of South Carolina and of the most persuasive orator in the land.
But, friends, a greater than Washington is here ! The very day,
the holy Sabbath, that finds us assembled in this Christian temple,
speaks of and commemorates the rising of the Prince of Life from
the tomb. Our relations to Washington, precious though they be,
are but temporal and perishing; our relations to the Son of God
are spiritual, infinite, and eternal. Soon shall we all lie down in
the silent dust, and few, if any of us, will survive to pronounce
the name of Washington on the second jubilee like this. But the
immortal soul, which Jesus lived and died to redeem, shall endure
through all changes, and must pass the thorough-searching review
of Him, who is the "appointed judge of the quick and the dead."
Unseemly and fatal were it therefore for us to retire from this place
and occasion, without finding our spirits baptized afresh in that
divine element, which has been freely poured forth for us by the
SEMI-CENTENNIAL SERMON.
19
Lamb of God. More steadfastly than we have been gazing on
Washington, will we look to that perfect being, "who has left us
an example, that we should follow his steps." For ah, how far
from being a spotless man was even our Washington ! He would
have been the first to own and to weep that distance in himself from
the standard of perfection, which the heart and mind of the world,
as the ages advance, continue more and more to recognize, and to
recognize in one being alone, the great Messenger of the new cove¬
nant. Yes, history can alone find all its problems solved—the
human heart feel all its needs supplied—and this fleeting earth de-
velope a blessed connection with an enduring heaven, through
those treasures of mercy, wisdom, justice, truth, light, power, and
love, that abound to us from "God in Christ."
" Around the patriot's bust ye throng,
Him ye exalt in swelling song;
For him the wreath of glory bind,
Who freed from vassalage his kind.
"And shall not he your praises reap,
Who rescues from the iron sleep—•
The great Deliverer, whose breath
Unbinds the captives even of death"?
" Shall he, who, dying men to save,
Became the tenant of the grave,
Unthanked, uncelebrated rise,
Pass unremembered to the skies'?
" Christians ! unite with loud acclaim
To hymn the Saviour's welcome name;
On earth extol his wondrous love ;
Repeat his praise in worlds above."
The corps then returned to their armory, where they were
quietly dismissed.
20
PREPARATIONS FOR THE DAY COMMENCED.
ON MONDAY MORNING, 23RD INST.,
At an early hour, the preparations for the day commenced.
Assembling in Meeting street, in front of the Charleston Hotel,
in large force, at the hour appointed, the Washington Light In¬
fantry were received by their escort, which comprised the Citadel
Cadets, Major Capers; the Charleston Riflemen, Captain Joseph
Johnson, Jr.; the German Riflemen, Captain John Siegling; the
Moultrie Guards, Captain Allen S. Hanckel, and the Palmetto
Guards, Captain J. J. Lucas. Lieutenant Julius A. Blake, of the
Charleston Riflemen, acting as Adjutant.
The procession then marched by the route previously ordered,
and through a gauntlet of admiring spectators, who occupied every
point and post of observation, to the Institute Hall, which was
found crowded with ladies and visitors in all portions not especially
reserved. The orator of the day, chaplain, commanders of the
companies in escort, ex-Captains of the Washington Light Infantry,
and other military guests of honor, were conducted to the platform.
Governor R. F. W. Allston, on entering, was greeted with a gen¬
erous and spontaneous applause.
An invocation was made to the God of Battles and of Nations,
for his blessing on the exercises, by the Chaplain, Rev. S. Gilman,
D.D., after which the choir of the W. L. I., aided by the kind as¬
sistance of Messrs. Reeves, Greatorex, O'Neil, and others, and by
accompaniment on the piano, sang the "Washington's Day."
song.
21
SONG.
Washington's day.
BY MISS M. E. LEE, OF CHARLESTON.
[First read to the Company whilst around their Camp Fires in St. Augustine, Fla.]
Rise, fellow-freemen, and shout the proud lay,
'Tis Liberty's watchword, our "Washington's Day!
His was the heaven fraught spirit that nourished
The life-blood that flows in each patriot's breast;
And the flag of our country would never have flourished,
If "united we stand" had not been his behest.
Rise, fellow-freemen, and shout the proud lay, •
'Tis Liberty's watchword, our Washington's Day!
Thousands were heroes, but his was the hand
That reared freedom's ark in our ocean-bound land—
Safe thro' the billows and tempests he guided
The perilous plank, 'till contention did cease,
Nor turned 'till the glorious structure had glided
With stars and with stripes to a haven of peace.
Rise, fellow-freemen, and shout the proud lay,
'Tis Liberty's watchword, our Washington's Day !
Who would be silent ? we blush for the fame
Of him whose heart throbs not with joy at the name.
The light of his glory must ever be growing
While the sun sheds a beam, or the sea rolls a wave ;
For the far-brightest lamp, 'mid fame's temple that's glowing,
Is fed by the tribute we pay to his name.
Rise, fellow-freemen, and shout the proud lay,
'Tis Liberty's watchword, our Washington's Day!
Be it eternal! let Freedom's shrill horn
Unceasingly tell when our Chieftain was born.
Shout! let each mountain-hold echo the measure,
And bear it still on to the wide Western sea,
'Till the Old Rock shall ring with the wild note of pleasure,
And our children shall learn it, in ages to be.
Rise, fellow-freemen, and shout the proud lay,
'Tis Liberty's watchword, our Washington's Day!
CORRESPONDENCE.
Charleston, April 15th, 1857.
Dear Sir: The Washington Light Infantry have imposed upon us the grateful
duty of conveying to you their sincerest acknowledgments for your very excel¬
lent Address upon their Semi-Centennial Anniversary. They feel it due, as well
to the oration itself, as to the occasion which it graced, that it be preserved in
some permanent form. They have, therefore, instructed us to request your per¬
mission to print and distribute it. Trusting, dear sir, that you will grant us this
further favor, we are, with the highest respect and esteem,
Gentlemen: I have received your note requesting for publication a copy of the
address delivered before the company on the occasion of the Semi-Centennial
Anniversary.
In placing the address at your disposal, allow me to thank you for the grateful
manner in which you have discharged your duty.
Your obedient servants.
Charleston, April 16, 1857.
With great respect, your obedient servant,
W. D. PORTER.
Messrs. Wm. A. Courtenay, Donald McQueen, and A. L. Michel.
SEMI-CENTENNIAL ADDRESS.
25
SEMI-CENTENNIAL ADDRESS.
An oration pronounced in the S. C. Institute Hall on Monday, 23d Feb., 1857,
in commemoration of the 125th Anniversary of the Birth of Washington, and the
Semi-Centennarv of the Washington Light Infantry of Charleston, S. C. By
Hon. W. D. Porter, Ex-Captain of the W. L. I.
We have a common interest and a common purpose in the com¬
memoration of this day. As children of the father of his country;
as heirs of the liberties he won by his wisdom and valor; as the
countrymen of him to whom alone, of warriors and statesmen, the
world has by common consent accorded the conjoint title of great
and good, we have come together at this time, not to praise him,
not to bear our weak witness to his worth, not to decorate that
august brow with garlands of our poor fashioning—not for him,
but for ourselves,—that we may study him and learn of his great
example, that we may indulge for a brief hour in the feelings of
gratitude, of filial piety and reverence so proper to the occasion,
and by the genial contemplation of his virtues and services, may
strive to lift our thoughts to a conception, not altogether unworthy,
of one of the noblest human characters that God has given for the
instruction and delight of mankind.
The name of Washington has become a power among the friends
of virtue all over the civilized world; and it will be so to the end
of recorded time. The great names of history, those connected
like his, with the conduct of public affairs, are, for the most part,
potent for warning rather than for example. They serve to point
the moral of selfish ambition and the lust of power,—and teach
the eternal lesson that the moral laws of the world are stronger
than any human will, and never fail to bring down upon their vio¬
lators the sure and terrible retributions of justice. Among the
brightest on that long roll, there is not one that shines with a lustre
so clear and benignant, so radiant of true glory, as that of Wash¬
ington. The great memories that gather around it, are hallowed
in the hearts of his countrymen by feelings of gratitude for the
blessings of liberty won and enjoyed; and in whatever other land
under the sun, men shall worthily aspire to the same blessings,
there also will it be uttered with reverence, and invoked in the
hour of struggle, for encouragement and support. The work of
his genius and patriotism, this fabric of free constitutional, repub¬
lican government, may be destroyed by the unworthy passions of
26
SEMI-CENTENNIAL ADDRESS.
his descendants, but the fame of its great founder is beyond their
reach. That at least is a consummation—a thing accomplished
and secured—a property and a possession to mankind forever. Nor
malice nor envy, nor the wild rage of fanaticism, nor the chances
and changes of fortune, nor the tides of time, can ever touch or
harm it. It is indestructible as the virtue it rests upon. Immortal
name ! Sanctuary of a people's love and of the hopes of millions!
It is thy glorious distinction that no appeal can ever be made to
thee for sympathy or support, that is not consistent with honor,
truth and justice, with the love of liberty, and the independence
and well-being of nations !
The actions of Washington—the events of his life, are familiar
to us all 5 they are of our history and need not be recounted now.
Time would fail for this. It were a vain task, too, for one of ordi¬
nary ability to undertake a complete portraiture of his character.
Thousands of tongues and pens have been employed upon it, and
thousands more will continue to be employed upon it, in time
to come. It may, however, be to our profit at this time, to select
for discussion, some few of the leading elements or attributes of
his character, that by this sort of analysis of it, we may endeavor
to arrive at the reasons or sources of the estimation in which it is
held, and of the universal reverence it has inspired. The effort,
however imperfectly made, will be well rewarded if it only serve
to awaken in any of our bosoms a more vivid or more loving appre¬
ciation of the great excellence we commemorate.
I would say then that among the most prominent traits in the
moral and intellectual constitution of Washington were faith,
truthfulness, the spirit and power of command, and that particular
combination of genius and knowledge, for which our language fur¬
nishes no better name than wisdom.
Washington had faith—faith in himself and in his principles
and ideas. By faith in himself I do not mean simple self-suf¬
ficiency, nor a blind and superstitious confidence in his fortunes.
He had nothing of the fatalism so common to the Caesars and Na¬
poleons. A disciple of the Christian ethics, he regarded himself
as the child of duty, not as the " child of destiny." Conscience
chastised his ambition, and put a check on the spontaneous and
irregular action of those faculties which, as the event showed, were
equal to the greatest undertakings. No man knew better than
himself the uncertainty of events, and the limits of human achieve¬
ment; but when the liberty of his country was in danger, he could
SEMI-CENTENNIAL ADDRESS.
27
rise grandly to the level of the occasion, and meet, without fear
though with a becoming sensibility, issues and responsibilities
which might well make a thinking man, however resolute, tremble
to the depths of his soul. His modesty gave another charm to his
heroism. The gross appetite for publicity never infected him.
He shrank from those exhibitions of himself, as well as those
public demonstrations in his behalf, which are so flattering to the
vanity of most men. He could do great deeds/but he blushed to
find them fame. Such was his agitation when the thanks of the
House of Burgesses of Virginia were returned to him for his earlier
military services, that it required all the address of the Speaker to
relieve him from his embarrassment. "Your modesty," said Mr.
Speaker Robinson, with a prompt grace which eclipsed the effect
of his previous compliments, "Your modesty is equal to your
valor, and that surpasses any language of mine to describe." And
what an unaffected beauty there is in the memorable words in
which he expressed to Congress his deep sense of the honor conferred
on him in the appointment to the Command-in-Chief! " But lest
some unlucky event should happen unfavorable to my reputation,
I beg it may be remembered by every gentleiftan in the room, that
I this day declare, with the utmost sincerity, I do not think myself
equal to the command I am honored with." How much modesty
joined to how much courage; the modesty of a truly magnanimous
nature, not catching at a great trust, not shrinking from it, but
accepting it in a spirit of self-denying heroism and with an affect¬
ing consciousness of the gravity of its responsibilities. To sacri¬
fice his private ease, and comfort; to put at hazard life, fortune,
reputation, and all that is dear to man ; ever to bear about with him
the cares, anxieties and plans of a young people, entering almost
without preparation, on the perilous path of revolution, in an
armed struggle with one of the oldest and most powerful nations
of the earth, and that nation the mother country of the rebelling
colonies; and to carry upon his shoulders the weight of a cause
freighted with the hopes and destinies of three millions of human
beings—a cause that was to be wrought out through much tribula¬
tion, in fire and in blood, by an appeal to the sword, the last argu¬
ment of freemen against oppression;—this was his trust and this
his undertaking. Well might a pious fear, which is the beginning
of wisdom, suggest the possibility of an " unlucky event;" but
without other doubt or fear, that great heart, that courageous soul,
moved onward and forward, through long years of hope and dis-
28
SEMI-CENTENNIAL ADDRESS.
couragement, of success and disaster, unseduced by the one and
unshaken by the other, to the final and glorious triumph of the
cause to which without pay or emolument, he dedicated his services.
Never was confidence in one's self more truly needed, and never
was it more justly and wisely placed!
But greater than one's faith in himself is his faith in principles
and ideas, in the truth of his convictions and the rectitude of his
cause. It is this sort of faith that removes mountains, and works
wonders in the world. It is the nursing mother of virtues, the source
inexhaustible of great and heroic enterprises. Earnestness, con¬
stancy, fortitude to suffer and daring to achieve—these are of its
offspring. Whether in speculation or in action, whether in morals,
in politics, or in religion, we find it the same animating principle,
the same vivid and irresistible element of power. With a sort of
magnetic power it sways the souls of other men, attracting their
sympathy, kindling their admiration, and bringing them into sub¬
jection to its biddings. A man does not sp much possess it, as it .
possesses him, making its teachings and its guidances a law to him.
Patriots and prophets and martyrs are born of it; and under its
inspiration they speak and do and die, for the sake of the truth
and for the example of mankind. Like Luther, " God help them !
they can no other."
This faith is a fountain of enthusiasm, not noisy, often silent,
but deep, full and irrepressible. It looks upwards to its object
with hopeful, steady eye, and its wing never tires in the pursuit.
It is patient, enduring and forgetful of self in the love of country
or of kind. We see men in the common walks of life who make
cheerful sacrifices of ease, health and estate, for the good of others.
We read of sages who devote days and nights and years of unre¬
quited labor to the discovery of truth, and of heroes who offer up
their lives on the field or the scaffold, and seal with innocent blood
their testimony to the right. And what is the source of all this
self-denial and self-devotion ? Whence does it proceed ? From
faith,—from faith in principles and ideas ; from faith in what men
oftentimes deride as barren abstractions, but what the history of
the world shows to be the germs of rights and institutions, the
springs of revolutions and reforms, the true motive forces of the
moral and political world. Columbus exemplified this faith when
on the strength of an idea, he steered his frail little barks into re¬
mote and unknown seas, onward and onward, amid gloom and un¬
certainty, through perplexities and perils, till he lifted with his
SEMI-CENTENNIAL ADDRESS.
29
hand the veil that shut out the New World from all eyes but his.—
Washington exemplified it when on the strength of a principle, he
embarked his life and fortune in the cause of his country, and by
his courage and constancy redeemed that New World from the
tyrannous grasp of the Old, and stamped upon it in all amplitude
of domain, upon its mountains and rivers, its cities, its institutions
and its States, the character and impress of freedom forever!
The American Revolution turned directly on one of the stubborn
troublesome principles,—one of these stumbling blocks in the way
of rulers by the right divine, who imagine that they were born
"ready booted and spurred to ride their fellow-men by the grace of
God." Lord North repealed all the obnoxious duties except a
duty of three pence per pound on tea, which was retained for the
avowed purpose of maintaining "the right of parliament to tax the
colonies." It was precisely this "right of Parliament" that was
challenged and denied. The tax was not oppressive, but the prin¬
ciple on which it was demanded, the principle of taxation without
tepresentation, involved the whole question of freedom or slavery.
From the beginning of the controversy Washington was clear and
decided in his opinions. Without seeking any special prominence
he kept pace with the popular movement, and gave to it the whole
sanction of his character and influence. His letters, written at
the time, disclose the moderation as well as the firmness of his
opinions. He speaks of the mother country by the endearing
name of "home;" denies that there is any desire on the part of the
colonies, or any of them "to set up for independence," and declares
it to be "the ardent wish of the warmest advocates for liberty, that
peace and tranquility on constitutional grounds may be restored,
and the horrors of civil discord prevented." But he was unyield¬
ing in his determination to defend his rights under "the laws and
constitution of Great Britain." Born in a land of liberty he would
not consent to live otherwise than as a freeman. Sentiment and
tradition, natural rights and historical rights, all forbade it. Ac¬
cordingly, when Patrick Henry, before the first issue of blood was
joined at Concord, exclaimed at the Richmond Convention, in
tones of patriotic and prophetic fury, "Wemustfight, Mr. Speaker!
I repeat it, sir, we must fight! there is nothing left for us but an
appeal to arms and the God of Hosts," Washington joined him in
the conviction, and announced his determination "if needful, to
devote his life and fortune to the cause." Happy in his relations,
domestic and social, possessed of one of the amplest fortunes on
30
SEMI-CENTENNIAL ADDRESS.
the continent, without turbulence or personal ambition, and en¬
tirely free from that spirit of factious discontent which is so rife in
revolutionary times—what but a strong and overmastering convic¬
tion of the duty of resistance could have induced him to embark
on the troubled sea of rebellion and civil war !—In no future exi¬
gency however distressing, did his confidence in the righteousness
of the cause ever forsake him. That was his light in gloom, his
strength in weakness, his victory in defeat ; it kindled a warmth
at his heart amid the snows of Valley Forge and on the stormy
hanks of the dark-rolling Delaware; and in the darkest hour of
calamity, when the cause seemed well nigh lost, and the shadows
of failure appeared to be gathering fast and thick about his devoted
head, it kept alive the embers of hope within his bosom, and in¬
spired him with the noble but desperate resolution of crossing,
with the faithful remnant of his broken army, the harriers of the
Alleghany, and of making in the mountain passes and in the prim¬
eval forests behind them, a last stand for the liberties of his country.
Other patriots of the Revolution were true, but whose truth was
subjected to trials like his ? Upon what other did there rest the
same harrassing cares, the same multiplied toils and duties, the
same concentrated responsibility? It is fearful to think how much
the issue of a national life-and-death struggle may depend on the
fidelity of one man ; but it is something cheering and elevating to
the heart, to contemplate an exhibition of the faith of a great soul
informing and upholding a great cause,—breathing confidence and
courage into all around it,—not driven from its course by any as¬
sault of temptation or blasts of adverse fortune, but holding fast to
its integrity, and at last crowning its agony of doubts and fears, of
toils and sacrifices, with a consummation of success, the more
durable and glorious, because founded upon the unchangeable
principles of right and freedom ! Such was the faith that dwelt
in the soul of Washington, and such was its reward !
The moral view of the character of Washington presents a bright
picture, and singularly distinguishes him from the whole herd of
the common great. Guizot, the French statesman and philosopher,
speaks of him as "the most virtuous and fortunate of all great men."
It may be added that he was the most fortunate because he was the
most virtuous, for to the truly great all things are prosperous.
Kossuth says of him that "he raised the word honesty to be a rule
of policy"—a line of praise that carries with it a volume of mean¬
ing. Guizot expresses the common conclusion of mankind; Kos-
semi-centennial address.
31
suth, with a closer insight, expresses the main ground or reason on
which that conclusion rests. Fisher Ames made the striking and
admirable remark, that he caused men to "change their ideas of
greatness." And how did he accomplish this? By presenting to
them in his own person an example of moderation, of equity, or
self control, and of uniform, undeviating regard for duty, to which
the-history of public men had offered no parallel. It was not that,
as a warrior, he had fought the most brilliant actions on record,
nor that as a statesman, he had devised the subtlest and most
comprehensive schemes of policy; but that as the one he had con¬
ducted a revolution to a victorious issue without a crime or a fault—
that, as the other, he had established and put into successful
action a free government, founded upon popular consent, without
a single infraction of the rights or liberties of his country;—and
that, in both capacities, he had voluntarily retired from power,
after having satisfied his countrymen that it was safe in his hands,
and that there was no one so worthy as himself to wield it. Men
had before been too much dazzled by the splendid displays of
genius and power, without regarding the motives which led to
them, or the ends to which they were directed. It had been their
wont to bow themselves down in adulation before the idol which
crushed them in its progress. Washington recalled them to a
nobler worship—the worship of virtue, which takes delight in the
subjection of self to the requirements of duty. He raised their self-
respect, by showing them that greatness begins and terminates in
a true sympathy with our fellow-men, and in the promotion of their
welfare and happiness. He taught them that political morality
can be,conjoined with private morality—that the rule of right is,
by an unchanging law, the rule of expediency—that there is one
ambition which has its origin in the love of power, and another
ambition which has its origin in the love of virtue, and that as the
one is the last infirmity of a noble mind, so is the other its crown
and glory, its highest expression and most consummate excellence !
And men learned and loved the lessons which they saw so beauti¬
fully illustrated in his life and conduct; and they did change their
ideas of greatness ! Thenceforward they might call Alexander
great, and Csesar great, and Napoleon great; but as if in recogni¬
tion of a new revelation, of a purer and better order of human
greatness, they bestowed upon Washington the appellation of
Great and Good!
The idea of virtue is complex; it embraces many qualities and
32
SEMI-CENTENNIAL ADDRESS.
principles; and it is difficult, if not impossible, by any means of
analysis we possess, to separate tbese so as to assign to each its
precise degree of influence in the formation of character. A
character which aspires to the title of great must be harmonious.
It cannot be a thing of compromises and compensations, setting
off virtues against vices, and borrowing from one side to make up
for deficiencies in another. An imperfect character is a bundle of
inconsistencies and contradictions; a great character is uniform.
Like the perfection of art, it is the expression of nature in her
best mood and highest form.
The character of Washington had this unity and completeness.
Of course many principles and qualities were bound up in it; but
they were of kindred nature, and harmonized with each other just
as every truth in the world consists and harmonizes with all other
truths. Where so many rays blend their glories into one bright
focus, who can separate them and distinguish their individual beau¬
ties ? But if there was a quality which predominated in Wash¬
ington, which pervaded his character from base to summit, and
around which his other qualities gathered themselves in orderly
array, or from which as from a central point, they radiated as
emanations, it was his truthfulness. And what virtue is there that
does not draw its origin from truth ? What good principle or noble
action but has its foundation there ? In reference to others, his
truthfulness was justice-, in reference to his country, it was patri¬
otism,; in reference to the Divine Author of his being, it was de¬
vout piety, and unshaken reliance upon his power and goodness.
It was the sun of his moral system, and shot its genial, quicken¬
ing and restraining influences over the whole circle of his duties
and relations.
The spirit of command is a kingly quality. It displays itself in
all the exigencies of life, but chiefly and upon the grandest and
most imposing scale, in those great crises of affairs, when the ele¬
ments of society are in commotion, when the foundations are being
broken up, and a new order of things is about to be established.
It does not come from books, nor is it learned in the schools; per¬
sonal character is the source and foundation of it. Presence, man¬
ner, modes of thought, modes of action, all reveal it. It is won¬
derful how soon, upon great occasions, this quality asserts itself
and finds recognition—something of that sort of recognition by
which the ancients claimed to know a god in human form the
moment he appeared to their eyes. Some men, without an effort
SEMI-CENTENNIAL ADDRESS.
33
on their part, impress us with the conviction that there is in their
characters a latent force, a reserved strength, an undisclosed depth
and breadth, which is capable of much greater things than they
have achieved, and which only waits the hour and the occasion of
display. Such was the feeling and the conviction in relation to
Washington at the time of his appointment to the command of the
army. He was no orator, as Henry and Rutledge and Adams
were; and had not,, like them, struck the chords of the popular
heart with that stormy eloquence to which, in such emergencies,
it responds with so strange and fierce delight. It is true that he
had seen some military service, but no signal achievement had
attested his success or bound his brow with the victorious laurel.
At the Great Meadows he just saved his regiment by an honorable
capitulation; and on the plains of the Monongahela he only suc¬
ceeded as a volunteer aid-de-camp, in rescuing the remnant of
Braddock's shattered army from the slaughter of that ill-fated field.
But on both of These occasions however unfortunate, he had dis¬
played the courage and conduct which betoken the genius of com¬
mand. At the first Congress, so full of orators, sages and states¬
men, Patrick Henry declared that " for a solid knowledge of things
and a clear judgment, Col. Washington was incontestibly the
greatest man on that floor;" and at the second Congress no one
seems to have seriously doubted that the Virginia militia Colonel,
whose reputation rested on reverses and defeats, rather than on suc¬
cesses, was the natural and proper chief of the forces raised and to
be raised for defence of American liberty. It is no more a matter
of wonder that he should have been so chosen than that he should
afterwards have justified and vindicated the choice. Herein is the
demonstration of his superiority—that in the then partial and im¬
perfect development of his character, men should have seen and
felt enough to give them faith in its prospective and potential ca¬
pabilities for one of the greatest trusts ever committed to mortal
hands. And he did amply vindicate the choice. He became
forthwith the central figure of the Revolution, standing out through
all its scenes and phases in grand and excelling proportions.
Those who had before been foremost, soon bowed in acknowledg¬
ment of his ascendancy, and revolved in their proper orbits about
him like planets around the sun of their system. War and states¬
manship, the public credit and the public defence, the smallest
details and the largest combinations engaged but did not strain
the resources of his intellect. With the hand of a master he
3
34
SEMI-CENTENNIAL ADDRESS.
touched, the springs of action, and Congress, the States and the
people, responded with patriotic fidelity to the suggestion of his
great and ruling practical mind.
It is the fashion of some, who are " nothing, if not critical," to
disparage the intellect of Washington. They affirm that he was
not a man of genius. The first step in discussion is to settle the
meaning of terms; otherwise argument is a mere battle of words,
" vain wrangling all, and false philosophy." What then does
genius import ? A distinguished scholar of this State once said
that it was " word not to be profaned ;" and yet there is hardly
another word in the language so mysterious, ill-defined and much-
abused. How often do we hear it applied to the flippant smartness
which affects indolence or eccentricity, and expends the whole
measure of its ability on brilliant platitudes;—and denied to the
more solid parts, which by the aid of laborious cultivation, have
trained themselves for high and useful achievement. However
genius may be defined, it will be agreed that it is not universal in
the application of its powers—that it cannot in the person of one
man, accomplish all things, with equal success, in the various de¬
partments of art, philosophy and action. Shakspeare and Milton
were certainly men of genius. Now it may be admitted that
Washington could not have written the tragedy of Hamlet, or com¬
posed the immortal epic which tells of man's first disobedience and
his fall. But on the other hand it will hardly be contended that
Shakspeare or Milton could have commanded the American armies,
and begun and ended the revolution, and administered with success
the first functions of the first free, purely representative, confederate
government that the world ever saw. What then does genius
import ? What is its essential quality ? What its tokens and
credentials ? According to some it consists in the power of appli¬
cation or intense mental action; according to others in intuition or
bright and lively acts of immediate intelligence ; and, according
to others, in the inventive or creative faculty, which forms new
combinations and invests old truths with the air of freshness and
originality. No one of these definitions is entirely satisfactory,
but all of them perhaps express traits or attributes which belong
to genius. In which of them then was Washington wanting?
The power of application ? Look at his public accounts during the
war, descending to the minutest items of expenditure, and kept in
his own clear neat autograph, amid all the harrassments of active
service in the field—in themselves a monument of his industry.
SEMI-CENTENNIAL ADDRESS.
35
Read the selections from his writings, published by Sparks, em¬
bracing letters, messages, proclamations and other papers, private
and official, addressed to the President and Committees of Congress,
heads of departments, Governors of States, Kings, Ministers and
Envoys, comprehending, discussing and embracing the whole body
of our public affairs, foreign and domestic. Bear in mind also that
during the eight years of war, he had to maintain his position in
the field before a foe of great skill and prowess, and of superior
force and discipline, to plan campaigns, fight battles, defend States
and cities, compose jealousies and strifes, retrieve disasters and
improve victories ! Then consider the ease, power, assiduity and
success with which he disposed of this weighty and multifarious
mass of business, crowding and pressing upon him in the varying
crises of a people's peril, and say whether Washington did not
possess the power of application, the concentrated action of mind,
the " animi assidua et vehernens occupatio," which in the opinion
of some constitutes the distinctive quality of genius !
What is called intuition, in its application to affairs, seems to me
to be only a quicker, brighter and surer process of the reasoning
faculties than falls to the common allotment. I mean not to dis¬
parage it—it is a divine gift, and should be greatly reverenced.
The process of thought in all minds is wonderfully rapid ; it eludes
our grasp; we cannot follow it. Look at the association of ideas,
how it hurries us in the twinkling of an eye to the uttermost parts
of the universe, bounding from earth to heaven, from'heaven to
earth. And yet who doubts that there are successive and unbroken
links in the chain of its progress. It is with intellectual as with
natural phenomena. The lightning and the thunder-clap seem
sometimes to break upon us simultaneously, but it is physically
certain that the flash always precedes the bolt. There is order
and succession in all things, however in some we may be unable
to fix and measure the steps and stages. When we speak of
" intuition," or " the immediate view," in relation to the manage¬
ment of practical affairs, and not merely in relation to the percep¬
tion of abstract truth, we greatly err if we do not mean to convey
the idea of exercises of the reasoning powers—of judgment or a
series of judgments. Every man of master-mind acts upon maxims
in the conduct of affairs, and his superiority consists in the skill,
promptitude and certainty with which he applies these maxims
Was Washington deficient in this respect ? Who ever dealt more
skilfully or more victoriously than he, with principles, facts, and
36
SEMI-CENTENNIAL ADDRESS.
men? No capital error mars the record of his career, civil or
military. With a clear and comprehensive insight, he penetrated •
to the substance of men and things, and with that plastic power
which is so potent for good or evil, and which in its exercise proves
the blessing or the curse of mankind, he moulded them to high
purposes and ends of enduring renown. His whole public, life was
a succession of triumphs. He attempted great things, and he
achieved them greatly ! This is the top and summit of genius—it
is wisdom I
But the inventive or creative faculty is a necessary constituent
of genius. It has already been indicated that there is genius in
action as well as in philosophy and art. Nor is the former of an
inferior order to the latter. The epic poet portrays the character
and describes the actions of his hero. Is he greater than the hero
or actor whom he counts it his worthiest task to present for the
instruction and delight of men ? His imagination may indeed body
forth pictures of ideal excellence, but these do not rise above some
examples of virtue which the history of the world has furnished.
The probity of Phocion; the justice of Aristides, too just for the
fickle-minded populace of Athens; the unambitious patriotism of
Epaminondas, whom Cicero considered the best and brightest
character of Greece; the self-devoting valor of Arnold Van Winkel-
reid, who rushed upon the Austrian lances at Sempach, and by
gathering them into his bosom made a lane in the ranks of the
enemy, through which his countrymen marched to victory, and
whose spirit is at this moment burning brightly in the mountain-
passes of Switzerland; the world-tvide philanthropy of Howard;
the heroic and sweet-souled charity of that noble English maiden,
who carried to the wounded and the dying in the hospitals of the
Crimea the gentlest ministries of sympathy and comfort, and with
whose name all Europe rings from side to side;—these are a few
among many real instances of virtue, the essential and unborrowed
graces of which art may portray but cannot enhance. We may
talk of poetry, painting and sculpture, but there is no diviner thing
on earth than the soul that flashes out in great and virtuous deeds
like these !
I shall not speak now of the merely intellectual qualities of
Washington. I rise to higher ground and maintain that his char¬
acter, the habitual tenor and manifestation of his active being as
displayed in his life, public and private, is of itself and in a true
sense, one of the highest achievements of what is called the creative
SEMI-CENTENNIAL ADDRESS.
37
power. This power displays itself in the discovery of new truths
and principles, or in new applications of old ones. It does not
literally create anything. It discovers, modifies or reproduces.
The character of Washington presented combinations of nature
and discipline; of intellect, knowledge and virtue; of mental qual¬
ities and moral excellences, such as had never before been embod¬
ied in the person of any great actor on the theatre of public affairs.
Particular parts of it doubtless had their counterparts in other per¬
sons, but the complete, rounded whole was new, fresh, and original.
In its production, nature, inspiration, the divine afflatus, or what¬
ever else we may call it, had much to do; but self-culture also
played a most conspicuous part. Born in a country which was
then regarded as almost a wilderness; untaught in the schools of
learning; coming into rough contact at an early age, first as a sur¬
veyor, and then as an officer, with outward nature in her wildest
forms, and with human beings still more wild ; thrown upon the
bare resources of his judgment in untried situations, and compelled
to. provide against hunger and thirst, wind and rain, savage ambus¬
cades and all the privations and perils incident to pioneering and
campaigning life on hostile forest frontiers, he drew from the depths
of his own soul, and from the lessons of a hard and stern experi¬
ence, that self-reliance and self-control—that activity and decision
of character, and coolness in the presence of danger—those rules
of military prudence, and, above ail, those maxims of moral and
civil conduct, which pointed him out in advance as a man designed
by Providence to render some important service to his country, and
which fitted him, when the time came, to be her natural and con¬
summate leader in war and in peace, No man was ever more truly
the artificer of his own character, as well as of his own fame and
fortunes. And if to the philosopher who drags to light some hid¬
den law of nature;—if to the inventor who, combining skill with
knowledge, constructs some new machine for the economy of labor
and the multiplicationofpower;—if to the poetwhocalls uptolife the
beings of his fancy and robes them with forms of beauty and qual¬
ities of excellence, to excite the delight and the imitation of men—
if to these be attributed the God-like faculty of creation,—on what
principle, and with what justice shall it be denied to him who,
working in all faithfulness and truth with the elements of nature
within him, and with the outward facts and influences around him,
made conquest after conquest in his own bosom, till he possessed
his soul in patience,—and then adding knowledge to knowledge,
38
SEMI-CENTENNIAL ADDRESS.
and duty to duty, and virtue to virtue, built up within that soul—
fit temple for such ministry—a real, vital, living character, clothed
with all attributes of physical and mental and moral power—grand
in repose and grand in action—till he stood, confessed before men,
a type and a pattern of that true, heroic and world-embracing man¬
hood, of which poets had sung and philosophers dreamed, and
which the good of all ages had longed to behold !
Such fellow citizens, and so great was the Washington whose
natal day we are assembled to commemorate. Reverence in him
that majestic intelligence, which, though unstirred by ambition,
proved sufficient upon the call of duty for the command of armies
and the re-construction of government; which in fact created the
armies he commanded, and inaugurated the advent of the new-born
republic he helped to construct; which conceived our foreign policy,
not in that spirit of sophistry which suggests intervention for the
sake of non-intervention, but in that other spirit of wisdom and
morality which enjoins good faith and justice towards all nations^
preserving friendly relations with all, but seeking entangling alliances
with none; and which with the forecast of a farseeing statesmanship,
pointed to equality of right and sectional harmony as the necessary
constituents of that "more perfect union," which he believed to be
indispensable to the collective and individual happiness of his
countrymen. And reverence in him, that still more majestic virtue,
which made him deny himself for the sake of his country; which
bore in patience and for long years the reproach of inactivity and
the imputation of incapacity, because he was satisfied that a defen¬
sive strategy was the only policy that could save the confederacy;
which never despaired of the republic, but was a fountain of
confidence, when all other hope was extinct; which grandly re¬
buked the offer of a crown, while still at the head of the army and
at the height of his popularity, as a thing which he did not think it
possible could have been proposed to him; which soothed the irri¬
tations of his officers and soldiers at the injustice of Congress, and
persuaded them to lay down their arms at the foot of the civil
authority, and so illustrate their victory over the foe by a victory
as signal over themselves; which never sought power, nor used it
so as to abuse it, but accepted it with reluctance, and wielded it in
justice and with mercy, and resigned it with alacrity rather than
regret; which found in the shades of his beloved Mount Yernon,
and in the duties and pleasures of domestic and agricultural life, a
charm and a delight unknown to the camp or the senate, but which,
SEMI-CENTENNIAL ADDRESS.
39
for a third time, and in the sunset of life, could forsake even these,
upon the call of his country, and for the defence of her honor;
which, in a word, so greatly fulfilled all the duties of life, that
death was but the gate to an immortality of renown I
Men of the South J—The fame of Washington belongs to America
and the world; but it is your especial duty to guard it from pro¬
fanation. I grieve to think that this duty should be devolved upon
you. But some, even in the land of which he is the glory, have
dared to asperse him. The bad tongues of bad men may vent
their venom upon his memory, but they cannot deface or defame
it. A~ conscience claiming to be higher than that, which wrought
out the very liberty they abuse to licentiousness, and which recon¬
ciled that liberty with justice and with law in a wise and nobie
constitution of government, may affect to spurn the association of
his name, but the malignity of their passion will dissolve away
before the majesty of his virtue, as the fetid breath that would soil
it recoils and disappears from the surface of the highly polished
mirror. He
" Kept the whiteness of his soulf
be it yours to keep the whiteness of his fame ! And it will be
your boast as it is your glory, that " the illustrious Southerner,"
the man born on your soil, and reared under the influences of the
patriarchal civilization you cherish, became the Father of his
country, the representative man of America, and the model man of
all the world !
Daughters of the South!—An enterprise of patriotic interest is
also before you. The home, the grave, and the ashes of Wash¬
ington remain to be placed under the guardianship of the Com¬
monwealth of Virginia, of the mother that bore and cherished him,
and whose nurture he repaid with a love passed only by the love
of woman. Let not this work linger to the further reproach of re¬
publican gratitude, and of all true and generous sentiment. De¬
vote to it somewhat of the strong faith, of the loving and unselfish
devotion which belong to your natures. Enrol yourselves under
the banner of the "Matron," whose pure spirit conceived the de¬
sign, and whose honors and labors it is your privilege to share.—
And as fair maidens strewed with flowers the pathway of the
living hero, and welcomed and hailed him as their deliverer, so
may you, their descendants, emulous of their virtue, bring offerings
of patriotism, more sad but not less beautiful, to the shrine of his
hallowed memory!
40
SEMI-CENTENNIAL ADDRESS.
Brother Soldiers of the Washington Light Infantry!—This is
peculiarly your festal day. You meet to celebrate the semi-cen¬
tennial anniversary of your organization ! Whether you lookback
to the past, or forward to the future, how much cause have you for
rejoicing! This brilliant assemblage greets you with the smiles
of the fair! These gallant Companies offer you their soldierly es¬
cort and companionship ! Your veterans, honorary and exempt
members and officers, throng to your ranks, and signalize anew
the zeal that in younger days burned in their bosoms! The State,
in the person of her Chief Magistrate, waits upon your ceremonies
and tenders you her cordial sympathy and congratulations! All
good omens cheer you ! All bright auspices are on your path !
Fifty years ago this corps sprung into existence under the im¬
pulses of indignant patriotism. The pure and gifted Lowndes—
lost, alas! too soon to the love of his State and the highest serviee
of his country !—and his worthy successors, Cross, Crafts, Simons,
Miller, and Gilchrist—all now no more—were its early command¬
ers, and gave the fashioning influences of their noble natures to
the spirit that has always distinguished it. Nor have you been
untrue to its record. It is your merit to have responded with alac¬
rity to every call of patriotic duty, and, with a pious gratitude
worthy of all imitation, to have raised the first shaft of a series of
monuments that are destined to rescue the sacred spots of our re¬
nown from the doom of unmerited forgetfulness!
Brother Soldiers!-—You are linked with the memories of two
Washingtons. You bear the name of one, and you carry the
trophy of the other. May that name teach you how lovely is
virtue, and how beautiful her rewards; and may that trophy in¬
spire you with the resolution to imitate the example of patriotic
devotion which gives to its crimson folds their brightest glow!
Again I say, all good omens are before you ! All bright auspices
are on your path ! Be faithful—be true ! And our noble and vir¬
tuous Commonwealth, whose escutcheon has never been touched
with the taint of dishonor—whose soil is covered all over with holy
places of patriotic association—whose story is a story of the
brightest achievement in the Senate and in the field—whose past
is a glory secured, and whose future is a glory to be achieved—
that Commonwealth, which is your cherishing mother, and whose
loving sons you are, will look to you with pride, and will rank you
among her jewels—her true and chosen defenders!
PRESENTATION.
41
After the Oration, the " Banner Song " was given by the choir
with fine effect and spirit:
BANNER SONG OF THE W. L I.
Unfurl the glorious standard.
Which at Eutaw shone so bright,
And as a dazzling meteor swept
Thro' the Cowpens' deadly fight—
Sound, sound our lively bugles,
Let them pour their loudest blast,
Whilst we pledge both life and honor
To stand by it to the last.
Chorus—Sound, sound our lively bugles,
Let them pour their loudest blast,
Whilst we pledge both life and honor
To stand by it to the last.
In the struggle for our freedom,
When the boldest stood in dread,
Our Washington stood foremost.
With this banner o'er his head ;
And where the fight was fiercest,
And carnage raged the most,
As a beacon light, this banner
Mark'd the hero at his post. Chorus—Sound, &c.
British skill and British valor
Could not stay his onward course,
Nor fierce Tarleton, with his vet'rans,
Withstand his Patriot force ;
Where gleamed his trusty battle-blade,
This banner waved on high,
The thunder of his charge was heard.
Re-echoing to the sky. Chorus—Sound, &c.
Should again our happy country
Feel the foeman's hostile tread,
We will emulate the hero,
Who so nobly fought and bled;
With our banner waving proudly,
Bugles pealing loud and high,
Onward! onward! to the battle.
To conquer or nobly die. Chorus—Sound, &c.
Then unfurl our glorious banner,
Which at Eutaw shone so bright,
And as a dazzling meteor swept
Thro' the Cowpens' deadly fight—
Sound, sound our lively bugles,
Let them pour their loudest blast,
Whilst we pledge both life and honor
To stand by it to the last. Chorus—Sound, &c.
All eyes were then interested and attracted by the ceremony of
presenting a standard to the Citadel Cadets. This Flag is of
rare elegance and richness in material and execution, doing credit
to the taste of the Committee that ordered it, and to the spirit of
courteous recognition and fraternity displayed towards the gallant
young pupils of the State Military School.
The material is blue silk, of the usual standard size, bearing on
42
presentation.
one side a richly wrought wreath of oak leaves, containing the in¬
scription from one face of the Cowpens Monument, as follows:
" Fort Moultrie, Cowpens, Eutaw Springs, King's Mountains,"
and on the wreath below, the words, "Our heritage."
The other side exhibits the arms of the State, on a white satin
field, and the name " S. C. State Military Academy."
The embroidery was executed by Mrs. P. Shuckman.
W. S. Elliott, Esq., on behalf of the Semi-Centennial Committee,
presented the standard to Capt. Hatch, in the following words:
Capt. Hatch, of the Washington Light Infantry:
To request you to present these colors to the Citadel Cadets is
the position assigned me by the Semi-Centennial Committee.—
The high chivalry and generous bearing which have ever charac¬
terized that corps, make them proper recipients of the gift; and
the Washington Light Infantry, on their fiftieth anniversary, desire
to mark an epoch in their history.
Alike, sir, are we the sons of South Carolina—with the same
warm attachment to her soil—our pride still mantling at recollec¬
tions of her glory—-our hearts still throbbing with all that is high,
and brave, and noble; retaining with pride our Spartan claim to
distinction in the field, we have elicited from a distinguished com¬
mander the encomium " that when on the field of battle he sees
the Palmetto banner cease to wave, he is confident that her last son
will be found enwrapped in its folds."
In the Citadel Cadets we recognize the descendants of our own
heroes, and should the Old State ever see another field like
"Cowpens," on that eventful day when "Red Battle stamps his
foot and nations feel the shock," may I hope that the Cadets and
the Light Infantry will stand side by side; and may I request, Sir,
that in the terrific moment when each volley tells that thousands
cease to breathe, this flag may wave over them ; while that veteran
relic of the Eutaw field, bearing upon its fold a mark of the hot
conflict it had seen seventy-six years ago, shall once again unfurl
itself and inspire us to emulate the deeds of our ancestors in the
same sacred cause and in defence of the same holy soil. Sir, the
flame of Liberty is guarded by too true a band ever to become
extinct. They are those whose mothers were our Washingtons
and Mottes, and, Sir they teach us ever to look upon and venerate
the Eagle as the proud ensign of Republican Liberty, but always
RECEPTION OF THE STANDARD.
43
to be most loved and admired when perched on the evergreen sum¬
mit of our own Palmetto.
I would beg, Sir, that you would offer this flag to the Citadel
Cadets as a mark of the high esteem and regard of the Washing¬
ton Light Infantry, feeling assured of its safety and honor among
hearts so pure, and chivalric, and loyal.
Capt. Hatch, receiving the standard, delivered it to Maj. F. W.
Capers, Commandant of the Citadel, with the following address:
Not for your measured tread and accurate drill, quickly as these
things catch our eyes, readily as we yield you the palm in them
have I been charged with this pleasing duty. -
We have been drawn to you rather by your modest, manly
bearing, evincing that you have well learned that most important
lesson for either soldier or citizen; to command yourselves.
Breathing this air of self-control during your academic years,
you will leave your soldier-student home with vigorous bodies and
well-trained minds, to enter on life's duties.
You may pass by the high places to which others aspire, unless,
they can be won by pure and honorable conduct, for a thousand
fields of usefulness will open before you, over which with ever
increasing treasure you may tread, keeping time to the good old
lessons of honor and of duty until to each the order eomes to halt.
To you, Sir, in an especial manner, has the State confided these
her jewels.
To you, Sir, we commit this Flag, with the trust that under its
folds the lessons taught may produce men worthy to be the country¬
men of Washington.
Maj. Capers replied as follows :
We accept your gift, sir, most gratefully. We acknowledge,
with emotion, the honor you have done us, not only in the gift
itself, but also in the generous words with which you have chosen
to present it. If your kind appreciation had extended no farther
than the drill and discipline of the corps of Cadets—if you had
given us this beautiful color as a sort of military brevet, rewarding
exact attention to the details of tactics, we would have felt pride
in our banner. But you have not rested your approval upon the
manual or manoeuvre of our corps. You have given us a color, to
signify your respect for the personal and social bearing, for the
moral character no less than the military acquirements of the
cadet. Such testimony to the good conduct of our corps, coming
44
RECEPTION OF THE STANDARD.
from any one citizen, himself approved, would give us pleasure;
but coming from you, sir, on this great occasion, as the chief offi¬
cer of a corps so distinguished as the Washington Light Infantry,
it invests these silken folds with peculiar interest, and cannot fail
to be of lasting benefit to our institution.
Gentlemen of the Washington Light Infantry, whatever may be
the future fortune of the Citadel Academy, it will always be to me
a gratifying fact, that on this day we received our banner from
you, and for this reason above all others—that I do not know any
patriotic association, military or civil, which has evinced more
public spirit, or has acquired a wider fame, than your corps. En¬
joying so largely public respect and confidence, you are in position
to award the trophies which in your judgment are due to merit,
and as a friend of the Military Academy, as a citizen of South
Carolina, no less than as an officer, I rejoice that you have thought
the Cadets worthy of this color. A body of youth, subjected "sua
sponte" to the restrictions of Military discipline and the exact re¬
quirements of Military life, while they prosecute the studies of an
Academic course and fit themselves intellectually for the duties of
citizenship, need a banner, which shall remind them that no pub¬
lic service is unimportant, no public duty menial. They have it
here. The Altar sanctified the offering at Cowpens where the
dying soldier laid his life upon it, and the altar sanctified the gift
at Cowpens once again when the Rifleman laid by his weapon of
parade for the trowel of the Mason, and marked forever the spot
of the sacrifice. Welcome the color which comes to us from men
always prompt to meet the call of duty—ready, whether the march
shall be to the Citadel Green or the seven mile pump, to the Gov¬
ernor's review or the hammocks of Florida:—keeping up the old
smoke of Eutaw, the public spirit of the volunteer of '76.
I transfer to your keeping, Cadets, this beautiful token of regard
from the Washington Light Infantry. You have heard with what
kind compliment it was presented. It has come to us adorned by
the hands of the daughters of Carolina. They have embroidered
here a device which embodies all the excellence of military virtue,
all the glory of heroism. They bid you to be worthy of your
native State, not only as she is, "Jlnimis opibusque parati," exclaim¬
ing in the confidence of strength " Dum spiro, spero," but Carolina
as she was,—unconquered and unconquerable amidst disaster and
defeat. The genius of Carolina pictured here, stands before the
graves of your fathers, and by those words of power, "King's
RECEPTION OF THE STANDARD.
45
Mountain, Cowpens, Eutaw, Fort Moultrie, she bids you emulate
the virtues, and if need be, illustrate in your lives the deeds which
have rendered their memories immortal.
Deserve your colors !
Capt. W. J. Davis of the Cadets on receiving the Flag, said :
I receive your charge, Sir, with great pride and pleasure.
I would prove recreant to the corps whom I represent, I would
do injustice to my own feelings, did I at this moment stifle the
voice of nature within me. If I fail, fellow Cadets, in inade¬
quately expressing your thanks, attribute it to inability to give
tone and shape to the feelings stirring within my breast.
If there be any controlling principle which transcends all others
in the force in which it moves a disingenious nature, it animates
the bosoms of brothers laboring in a common cause ; it is illustra¬
ted in the hearts of fellow soldiers having in view the same grand
ultimate object—the honor and glory of their native State.
It is our heartfelt wish, gentlemen, that friendship and good
feeling shall grow with our. growth, and strengthen with our
strength. If ever rivalry and emulation enter our hearts, let it be
the rivalry of dutiful obedience to Carolina's behests, and the
emulation of her sons struggling to be foremost in promoting her
interests, and in resenting any attempt made to pluck one bright
laurel from her brow.
There is a halo investing our Alma Mater, which when confi¬
dence is exhibited towards her, and acts of kindness and approba¬
tion performed towards her sons, impels them to acknowledge their
thankfulness. The events of the day and the associations con¬
nected therewith naturally suggests to our minds the glorious
scenes in which the Great Father of our common country was the
all-controlling genius. There is borne to our ears the sullen boom-
ings of the invader's cannon, and the keen echo, ringing from
the rifles of our patriot forefathers. Upon the pleasant wings of
this morning are brought to us echoes of Yorktown's capitulation,—
the expiring sigh of oppression, and the loud joyous shout of
blood-bought freedom !
The spirits of a Washington, a Marion and a Sumter, are with
us, well pleased with the tone of patriotic pride pervading this
social assemblage of Carolina's sons. The cries of victory, which
rang the welkins of Cowpens and Eutaw, now reverberate through
this hall,- encquraging that elevated, chiva'lric sentiment, which
Sir Philip Sydney has expressed as "high thought seated in a
heart of courtesy."
46
award of prizes.
We receive this flag in the spirit with which it is presented; if
it ever be unfurled to the breezes of war, may this star be seen,
"shining like a meteor streaming to the wind," where the conflict
is thickest, and nerve our spirits to glorious effort.
The Palmetto has been Carolina's badge of chivalry, since the
smoke that Moultrie raised over old Fort Sullivan. It is welcome
here. We do not regret the absence of the Stripes—they are des¬
tined to be but unsubstantial recollections of the time when the
blithest songs of the South were attuned to the notes of the North¬
ern Harp.
Proudly, proudly may our banner "wave o'er the land of the free
and the home of the brave." Entrusted by valor to those whose
aim is virtue, and whose search is after truth and honor! it shall
be our endeavor to preserve untarnished, its bright escutcheon, and
long may we point triumphantly to the undimmed splendor of the
Lone Star ! As we gaze on this emblem of our much loved State,
coupled with our emotions of filial pride, will be bright, joyous
remembrances of this day's exhibition of soldierly bearing and
manly generosity on the part of the " Washington Light Infantry."
The Company proceeded, after leaving the Hall, to Paine's
Farm for target exercise, which, after a fine and closely contested
display, resulted as follows :
1.—Silver Cup, (a present from the Citadel Cadets,) A. F.
Black.
2.—Silver Cup, S. S. Howell, Jr.
3—Silver Cup. C. M. Mason.
4.—Silver Cup, F. M. Harper.
5.—Silver Cup, Serg't E. W. Lloyd.
6.—Silver Cup, R. W. Gale.
7.—A Gold Medal, H. M. Bruns.
8.—A Gold Medal, T. A. Honour.
9.—A Gilt Pompon, T. J. Keckeley.
At 6 o'clock P. M., the company reassembled at Hibernian Hall,
which had been for several previous days the scene of busy prepar¬
ation. The decorations of the Main Hall, which was taken for the
dining saloon for this occasion of superabundant festivity, were im¬
pressively and appropriately imposing and did no less credit to the
taste than the industry of the committee. The decorations how¬
ever gorgeous were all in soldierly taste, and in strict significance;
the five large windows on either side of the Hall, as well as those
at both ends were tastefully draped with flags and colored bunting;
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47
suspended from these were shields, inscribed with the name of the
Captains Lowndes, Cross, Miller, Crafts, Simons, Gilchrist, Ravenel,
Lee, Jervey, Porter, Walker, Hatch, and at suitable intervals
"Knapsacks" with the magic initials W. L. I. The Music Gallery
at the head of the room, was festooned with a brilliant drapery, show¬
ing in golden letters the name of Wm. Washington, this was sup¬
ported by two luxuriant Palmettos, cut from the sea shore. The in¬
tervening space being occupied as a Rifle Rack, on which were
seen in sombre array the peculiar arm of the company, a similar
display met the eye at the opposite end of the room. The edible
preparations, in all respects, were in consonance with the spirit of
determination and resolution that hare marked all social demonstra¬
tions of this corps, and it was the common and concurrent testi.
mony of many—who were deemed judges—that the festival through¬
out was worthy of the special interests of the occasion. The
caterer and purveyor was W. Hammond, successor to A. J.Rutjes.
After due interval of attention to the table duties and interests—
which, as usual with the corps, were preceded and introduced by
the office of the Chaplain, Captain Hatch, as President of the feast,
opened the delivery of sentiments and the flow of social intercourse,
by the following:
The Bay we Celebrate—Glorious as the birthday of Washington,
dear to us as our own anniversary ; may it ever dawn through cen¬
turies to come—on a free and happy Carolina.
The Hon. A. G. Magrath rose to reply to this toast, and as is
his wont upon such occasions drew upon him the acclamation and
applause of his audience. He spoke of the excellence of the oration
which had been listened to in the morning, and the difficulty he
would have in producing anything that was worthy to follow it.
The great idea of the American revolution was typfied in the char¬
acter of Washington—great in its patriotism, its private heroism
and virtue, and greater in its results. There is nothing that re¬
sembles it except the revolution of England, which died with the
battle of Marston Moor—a character which has ever occupied a
higher and more ennobled position than any other. He compli¬
mented the Washington Light Infantry, by saying that while other
companies hastened upon special occasions to lay their offerings
before the altar of liberty, this corps seemed to be one that sat
around that altar, giving oil to its lamp and ministering to its fires.
This company, he said, were constantly doing that which should
keep alive the memory of the revolution, and he then alluded, with
48
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the eloquence which is his characteristic, to the " Eutaw flag," to
the company's trip to Cowpens, and other circumstances of a simi¬
lar nature.
He spoke of the inception and organization of the company, the
occasion which provoked it—an occasion which, though they dif¬
fered from'the government, the people thought was cause for war,
and mentioned the name and services of the patriot Lowndes, pay¬
ing a striking tribute to his character in connection with the com¬
pany—whom when death took from this community, tore him also
from the Presidency of the Republic. In the same connection he
spoke of ex-Capiain Crafts—as fair a child of letters as ever blos¬
somed—a treasured name in South Carolina, but who was torn
away and strangled by the seductive influences of politics.
He spoke also of the succeeding commanders, six of whom are
now dead, and from each of whom might be copied some virtue
which would become the best of us.
To the chaplains he paid ^he tribute that was fitting to their
pure and exalted character, the first, John England, Bishop of
Charleston, and the next and last who sat by his side.
Mr. Magrath closed his speech, of which this pretends to be no
adequate report, with some remarks addressed to the company upon
the necessity for the practice of much self-denial, and for much
effort to the end of the preservation of the honor of those from
whom so much was expected and required; and gave in conclu¬
sion the following toast:
The Washington Light Infantry—Its name a pledge to honor
and virtue; its banner a symbol of duty and danger.
The response to this toast was from Dr. Samuel H. Dickson.
He spoke at some length of the circumstances which attended the
formation of the Washington Light Infantry—circumstances which
have already been presented to the attention of our readers. He
said that though most minds assented to the proposition of "dulce
est pro patria mori," yet the spirit of war is most unjustly con¬
demned. All government and independence is founded upon war
or the capacity to make war. Peace enervates, but war strength¬
ens the nerves of a nation. The speaker illustrated this by re¬
ference to the revolutions of France, the war in the Netherlands?
and the English nation, which is ever at war abroad and at peace
at home. Most people place too great a value upon man's life;
but the establishment of a single great principle, or a single step
in the road of progress is worth ten thousand lives. He related
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49
here an anecdote of Frederick the Great, who, when the regiment
had been several times repulsed, and refused again to advance to
the assault, exclaimed—" the rascals ! do they expect to live for¬
ever ?" With some further remarks complimentary of the W. L. I.,
he gave the following toast:
The ex-Captains of the W. L. I.—Cherished be the memory of
the honored dead; ever welcome among us the presence of the liv¬
ing. Proud may be the State, which has produced a succession
of such Sons as those whose names illustrate this brilliant and
lengthening roll.
Wm. Jervey, Esq., one of the ex-Captains, and a descendant of
an "original" member, replied briefly and eloquently, referring to
the many influences and sources of fraternity and ripening attach¬
ment that were to be found in the brotherhood of the W. L. I. Al¬
though military duties and defences were the future inducement to
such organizations, their influence of social culture and fellowship
extended far beyond the actual necessities of military life. On the
rolls of the W. L. I. were to be found names distinguished in all
walks of civil no less than of military life. Capt. Jervey referred,
with terms of well-deserved commendation, to the address of the
day, and concluded by the sentiment—
Our Orator, Hon. W. D. Porter.—The W. L. I. are proud to hail
him as a brother.
The orator replied feelingly and gratefully, acknowledging the
tender ties which bound him to the cherished corps—once his com¬
mand—and commending again the study of the life, character and
examples of those who had fashioned the high character of the
corps. He concluded by proposing—
The Health of Gov. Jtllston.—His election is a merited tribute to
fidelity and integrity of service, with dignity of character.
Gov. Allston expressed his sense of the privileges of the day, and
his gratification at the opportunity of honoring it with a corps so
justly renowned for patriotic ardor and military spirit.
He referred to the character and services of Col. Washington,
and gave instances of his impetuous daring and strategic invention.
He concluded with
" The Memory of Col. Wm. Washington."
Henry Ravenel, Esq., an ex-Captain, took the mournfully pleas¬
ing cue given by Gov. Allston, and described happily and ten¬
derly the relations and memories that attached the W. L. I. to the
name of Wm. Washington. He spoke of the humble graves, where,
4
50
the banquet.
side by side, in a quiet rural rest, reposed the remains of William
Washington, and his noble wife. He suggested that it was not
merely the privilege, but the duty, of the W. L. I., to ask permis¬
sion to designate a spot so dear to them, by some humble, yet apt
memorial.
Capt. Hatch offered to pledge the company a visit to the grave
of William Washington, on the next anniversary of the Battle of
Cowpens. The company responded in enthusiastic and expressive
affirmation, and Lt. Trout moved the appointment of a committee of
thirteen to execute the resolution.
Ex-Capt. Ravenel, resumed his remarks and referred to the well
known instance of the preservation of Col. Washington at Eutaw
by the noble generosity of Major John Majoribanks of the British
Army, to whose memory as a gallant and generous freeman he pro¬
posed a sentiment.
Capt. Hatch read the following letter from H. B. M. Consul:
British Consulate,
Charleston, February 17, 1857. j
"My dear Sir: I regret extremely that a recent and severe
domestic affliction will prevent me from taking a part in the festiv¬
ities which are to attend the semi-centennial celebration of the
Washington Light Infantry on Monday next.
"The disappointment which I experience in being compelled to
decline the hospitality of your gallant company, is enhanced by
the recollection of your very kind reception of me on a former oc¬
casion. I feel, also, that in doing honor to the memory of the
illustrious: Washington, we all, whether Americans or Englishmen,
confer honor upon ourselves. I am, therefore, the more loth to
lose an opportunity of expressing my reverence for his great ex¬
ample.
"I shall not fail to mark the day by the display of the British
Union Jack on my official residence. That flag can never be better
employed than in waiving its friendly folds as a token of good will
towards the land of Washington.
"I beg you to accept my best wishes for the success of your
festival, and to believe in the sincerity with which I am, my dear
sir,
Your very faithful servant,
ROBERT BUNCH, Consul.
Lt. T. B. Trout, and others, Committee,
Washington Light Infantry."
the banquet.
51
Col. A. O. Andrews, in reply to a call from the Chair, spoke as
follows:
Mr. President and Gentlemen—It was the remark of one, whom
while the world admires him as the profound philosophic states¬
man, we cherish his memory, as the sagacious foreseer, and brilliant
advocate of that struggle which gave us our country—that a peo¬
ple who never look back upon their ancestry, will not look forward
to their posterity.
Never, sir, have I been more impressed with the wisdom of this
observation than in the interesting proceedings which have marked
this day's commemoration. Clad in no habiliments of military
rank—shorn of all the insignia which give a claim to official recog¬
nition—I still find myself followed by your kindness—still the
honored recipient of your grateful courtesies—still with my friends
and brothers of the Washington Light Infantry!
I cannot more aptly convey to you my feelings, gentlemen, than
as those of one, who has been summoned to come up to his old pa¬
ternal household. His heart leaps with a quickened bound at the
thought of meeting again the companions of his childhood—scions
of the same trunk—children of one common mother—scattered
sons from far and near, once more around the old family altar—
there to clasp hand to hand, to drink again at the old fountains,
and take fresh courage, and a goodly cheer for the opening future.
Indeed, sir, standing amid the tasteful and pertinent arrange¬
ments of this hall, so deftly has patriotic fancy, with cunning fin¬
gers, woven the illusion, that we feel, we are in reality, once more
upon our own classic ground,—where each spot of earth, consecra¬
ted by heroic action, is part and parcel of our domain; and the
venerated actors thereon, who have exhibited our nature, in some¬
thing of its full stature, are garnered up in our hearts as a common
heritage, their fame a priceless patrimony, to which each one of us
is a joint heir, none so humble, that he may not claim his full por¬
tion as his birthright, and no one so high, that he can without sac¬
rilegious crime, stain the inheritance !
As I have listened to the accomplished orators who have pre¬
ceded me, the lineaments of those dear familiar names—" those
dead but sceptered sovereigns who rule our spirits from their urns,"
seem to have been wrought out, and brought out, on the old ances¬
tral walls, in colors glowing with patriotic fire,—and though inau¬
dible to outward years, yet commanding as the rattle of the thun¬
der, coines the utterance, Sons! be worthy of your Sires!
52
THE BANQUET.
But thanks to the happy circumstances under which we meet, our
lessons of wholesome instruction are not to be drawn only from the
canonized dead. The glowing pencil and the marble effigy, cluster
in beautiful confraternity, with the living exemplars of that virtue
which alone gives character and security to valor—of that heaven
directed principle, so conspicuously and so endearingly repre¬
sented in our revered Chaplain—like an interior light, shedding its
serene and purifying halo over the embodiment in which it resides.
Yes ! not alone
"From mighty Lowndes, nor gifted Crafts,
Nor Cross, with eagle view,
Nor Simons warm, nor Miller bland ;
But others, yet on earth,
Whose lengthened years, God grant may prove
Co-equal with their worth."
In estimating the influences which have had a strong and marked
share in contributing to that palmy state in which this day exhib¬
its your corps, we should seriously err, did we fail to assign a
prominent place to the public declaration you have given, by main¬
taining the sacred office in your organization—that He who was the
strong hope and confidence of Washington, is still to he embla¬
zoned on your banners, as the shield and buckler of the Washing¬
ton Light Infantry.
There is a profound significance, as well as a hallowed propriety
herein. Ever let it be for perpetual memorial among us, that
Washington began, continued, and ended his great mission, in un¬
shaken reliance, and humble dependance on Almighty God. Type
and exponent of our fathers, as Washington was, he was pre-emi¬
nently so, in this. The mighty heavings of that contest in which
he led, had their origin in no turbulent and God-erasing throes of
infidelity. The spirit which prompted our Revolution, was indeed
a conviction that " resistance to tyranny, is obedience to God,"
but in overthrowing the tyrant, our fathers sought not to disavow
their obligations to their rightful Sovereign. They recognized
man's highest and noblest freedom, to be in proportion to his loy¬
alty to Heaven, and his obedience to its King. Long may this
office stand, a sign and a pledge, of the Heaven-linking conserva¬
tism of our citizen soldiery. Forever, let it be a distinguishing
symbol of " old Charleston's loyal sons !" Like the feather to the
arrow, shot by the stalwart arm, giving steadiness to its direction,
and surety to its aim ! Like the quiet, but potent influence of the
needle, which keeps the mighty Leviathan, though the tempest
the banquet.
53
roar, and the billows surge, constant in her track, and at last safely
ftioors her in the desired haven !
And now, gentlemen, I have spoken to you of the principle;
what need I say to you, of him, who has so long, so faithfully, and
so endearingly, been to us, and among us, its honored exponent.
If I were to go outside these walls, and ask for his testimony, would
it not be in the language of one of old, "now afore Heaven, this
reverend and holy man, our whole city is much bound to him!"
Need I ask you, gentlemen of the Washington Light Infantry?—
you, who have known him as your early and constant friend, the
ever-ready and prudent counsellor, steadfast and close in your da}*-
of small things, as well as in this, your hour of larger consideration.
Not only adorning and chastening your festive re-unions, but the
cheerful sharer in the soldier's march, when patriotic duty sounds
her peal. First at the bugle's call in Country's holy cause,
may he be among the last, summoned to withhold those gentle
ministrations, which like incense, waft to Heaven the soldier's
offerings !
I propose to you, gentlemen :
Our Esteemed and Beloved Chaplain—Like the gentle dew of
Heaven, which both gems and nourishes the trunk to which it
ministers, so has his influence been to our corps.
" From him, we learn full-well each wild excess to check,
And throw the rein of self-control, round festive freedom's neck.
We listen to his friendly words, by years and wisdom given,
And learn our public trusts to shape with due regard to Heaven."
The Chaplain rose with the intention of offering the substance
of the following reply to the toast of Col. Andrews; but lest he
might intercept other speakers whom he expected and desired to
hear, he confined himself chiefly to the concluding portion, parti¬
cularly as he had been requested to introduce into his remarks
some reference to the Inauguration of the Monument at the Cowpens
Battle Field—
You very well know, Mr. Chairman and Commander of the
Washington Light Infantry, how pertinaciously I have embraced
every opportunity to inculcate on these young gentlemen-soldiers
before us, the example of their illustrious namesake, George
Washington. But, sir, there was one feature in his character,
which 1 have always forborne to impress on their attention, for the
sufficient reason that I deemed it altogether superfluous. I allude
to the generous care, kindness, and attention, which Washington
54
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ever bestowed upon his chaplains. In this, the Company appear
to have equalled their great prototype, and even to have surpassed
him; for where, I should be glad to know, is it recorded in the
annals of the colonial wars or of the American revolution, that
Washington toasted any of his chaplains, after the fashion by
which I have just been unworthily complimented, gratified, and
obliged ?
But, sir, Washington certainly honored and cherished his
chaplains. He spared no pains to procure one for every regiment
in his armies; and during his western expeditions, in the flush
and hey-day of his youth, if his own regiment happened to be
without one, he acted in the sacred capacity himself. His letters
to the Congress and to his official friends in the army, urge the
importance of securing to the service the benefits and blessings of
the spiritual arm. In connection with this topic, I am just now
forcibly reminded of one beautiful passage in our revolutionary
annals, which I am surprised has been rarely, if ever, alluded to
by the biograpers of the hero or the historians of the war. The
incident is recorded somewhere in Mr. Sparks' voluminous col¬
lection of the writings of Washington. It is a correspondence
between Mr. Dwight, afterwards President of Yale College, the
celebrated poet and theologian, and Gen. Washington himself.
Dwight was at the time a young chaplain in the army at West
Point, and Washington was passing the well-known terrible winter
with his suffering forces at Valley Forge. Dwight requested the
honor of dedicating to the General his new poem, entitled the
Conquest of Canaan, a very readable poem, I can assure you, Mr.
Chairman, and much superior to a good deal of the hifaluting poetry
that comes to us from the other side of the Atlantic. Thanks to
that popular expressive word, of purely American origin, which
reveals, after all, that Americans have a keen, ludicrous sense of
what is ridiculous in speech or composition. Liberty in the new
world, as well as in Athens of old, may lead the popular mind to
the nicest developments of taste. But to resume our thread. The
General replied in very gracious terms that nothing could give
him more pleasure than to accept the dedication. The whole
correspondence, sir, which I must forbear to quote any further,
sounds to me like some sweet song of birds bursting in amidst the
dreadful din and confusion of arms. The prospects of the patriot
cause were at that moment about as low as at any time throughout
the contest, and yet here we see Washington and the youthful poet-
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55
theologue, weaving a chaplet together for the future literary glory
of their country, which they seemed instinctively to discern would
soon rise from the dust of oppression into a serene and enduring
triumph.
On this day of happy reminiscences, sir, I should delight, if
there were time, in attempting an appropriate response to your
toast, by reviewing my connection with the Washington Light
Infantry as their honored chaplain. How the connection began, I
know not. There is no record of it. It would seem to be a matter
of tradition, instead of history or remembrance; it happened so;
it grew so; it was so; and, as I never wish to seem younger than
I am, I frankly acknowledge that its origin may have been lost,
like that of so many other things of vastlymore importance, among
the unsearchable beginnings of antiquity. This was, indeed, my
impression, until the distinguished gentleman on my left (Judge
Magrath) awakened my recollection to the fact, that my predeces¬
sor in this office was the very eloquent and revered Bishop England*
to whom, in his remarks just uttered, he rendered more deserved
justice, by his graceful encomiums, than by those which, in the
kindness of his heart, he generously lavished upon me. But cer¬
tainly for many, many years, before even the birth of some of
yonder platoons, the company's public annual celebrations—their
more private festive occasions, at which I distinctly recall the
stirring and beautiful addresses of the Bishop that so lifted us from
our feet—their excursions to a number of our surrounding Southern
cities—their retreats for recreation to. the rural scenes in the
vicinity—all pass before the eyes of my memory; for I was of
them, and with them, and gladly spoke the word, to a greater or
less extent, which they requested and expected—conducting, too,
at several places, their Sabbath exercises of worship, to all which
they appeared as kindly and attentively to listen, as they do, sir,
(forgive the immodest and presumptuous comparison), to your own
word of command. I must confess, however, that I sometimes feel
ashamed of having only had so comfortable and inglorious a
function to discharge. I have been too much petted and spoiled,
and feel my conscious need of a ruder discipline than I get in these
quarters—but if I know my own heart, I think I would share any
hardships and dangers with those boys, quite as willingly as I have
participated in their more piping and peaceful campaigns. While,
however, sir, I refrain from prolonging these garrulous notices of
the past, there is one duty I have been called upon to perform in
56
THE BANQUET.
my professional relations to the company, upon which, while I
dwell for a few moments before resuming my willing seat, I beg
their indulgent patience. Will you believe it, sir ? The singular
duty to which I allude was neither more nor less than the cele¬
brating of a marriage ceremony. I think I perceive by the glis.
tening of your eye, you may imagine this to have been some run¬
away match, or clandestine affair. I assure you, I never en¬
courage such things, especially in my capacity as chaplain to this
honorable company. No, sir. Mine was the happy task, a little
less than one year ago, for I must reveal the secret, and I see a
relative and friend of one of the parties here present, who I think
will forgive me for disclosing it, and it is time it should now come
to light—mine was the happy task of tying the connubial knot
between two very worthy and interesting parties, who may be
known to you and others under the names of The Seaboard and
The Mountains. Oh there was indeed a splendid demonstration!
Several hundred young groomsmen, beaded by the Washington
Light Infantry of Charleston, lent it their gallant presence, and
they will themselves vividly remember the equal array of fair
bridemaids who adorned and beautified the scene. The union took
place under the open canopy of heaven, in circumstances remind¬
ing one of that exquisite ode of the dear old poet Herrick, com¬
mencing with the lines,
" Sweet day, so cool, so calm, so bright,
The bridal of the earth and sky!"—
the Seaboard having travelled on foot, like a true lover, one hundred
miles, to secure his captivating bride, and when on the spot, being
most willing to linger beyond all bounds of propriety, just like
Washington himself, who, on that celebrated night on his way down
from Winchester to Williamsburgh, forgot to give directions about
his steed at the door, while fascinated within by the charmer of his
heart.
For some good reason, instead of placing a wedding ring on her
finger, the lowland bridegroom fastened a certain precious gem
on the bosom of his mountain bride, as a pledge of their mutual
inviolable fidelity. This pledge was fashioned skilfully after the
shape of a comely monument. The ingenious artist had composed
it, as goldsmiths often do with breastpins, &c., of different kinds
of workmanship. The base of the jewel exactly resembled a
neat, compact piece of masonry, whose well-tempered brick and
THE BANQUET.
57
mortar were an emblem, I suppose, of the clay moulded, alluvial
soil of the sea-board. Then, sir, the graceful shaft, immediately
rising above it, appeared as if composed of massive fluted iron,
equally emblematic too of the solid product of the mountains;
while the whole was surmounted by a golden eagle, type of that
glorious old confederacy, which our fathers fondly accepted, and
in all fidelity trusted, as a sheltering protector over every interest,
every right, every nationality, every heart, and every life, gathered
by Providence beneath its wide spread pinions.
Thus, sir, was the marriage happily consummated. Hencefor¬
ward, I venture to predict, the Seaboard and the Mountains will
find themselves to be more closely united than they ever had been
before. There used, as you are aware, sometimes to be a little
bickering between up-country and low-country. Up-country would
complain of low-country as being too proud and well dressed, and
low-country murmurred at up-country as too jealous and prejudiced,
too candid and out-spoken. But these were only a sort of lovers'
quarrels, and were forever reconciled by the parties becoming bet¬
ter acquainted with each other, and by exchanging mutual altar-
vows on that blessed occasion. By the way, sir, again yielding to
my lecturing propensity, I would admonish all the young gentle¬
men within hearing, that the best mode of pacifying lovers' quar¬
rels and getting rid of them altogether, is to enter into the wedded
state. After that event takes place, I know not how it is, but
lovers' quarrels seem happily, in general, to disappear.
But to resume our narrative. In order to render the whole cere¬
monial complete, and accordant with immemorial usage, I have
understood that the bride having declared that monumental brooch
to be as precious to her as even a wedding finger of flesh and
blood could be, forthwith a number of her neighbors and friends
surrounded it, like a real finger, with a costly ring, which serves
the double purpose of another binding pledge, and a secure safe¬
guard from harm.
And now, sir, I imagine some of the company taking me aside,
as the intimate friends of clergymen occasionally do, and whisper¬
ing this question into my ear, how much was the fee ? Well, sir,
clergymen are willing to confess their interest in that matter, for,
I can assure you, that such little aids often come in very oppor¬
tunely, when the bonnets in the household, in this extravagant and
fashionable age, begin to grow somewhat passes and faded, or
when some precious theological work has for a while looked down
58
THE BANQUET.
from. Mr. Russell's or our own Courtenays' shelves, upon their
scholarly hut unavailing gaze, as a luscious fruit looks down upon
a school boy's longing eye from the inaccessible topmost bough of
a tree. However that may be, sir, for my own part, 1 came not
away from the mountain ceremony I have been describing, without
my proffered honorarium, which I unaffectedly received, and cherish
as beyond all price. You must know that I have a little porte
monnaie, which I wear quite inside the vest, and which I call by
the name of heart memory. The generous parties concerned in
the marriage ceremony dropped into that porte monnaie, not, in¬
deed, any coin of the so-called precious metal, nor any paper note,
engraven with the sure promise of wealthy President and Di¬
rectors to pay, but an indescribable mintage of a more ethereal,
more immaterial, more spiritual, more indestructible essence, and
on it is stamped in characters that neither time nor traffic shall
ever efface, this brief, simple legend—Battle of the Cowpens, 1781—
W. L. /., 1856. Here it still lies, sir, next my heart, safe and
sound, and no amount of silver or gold, I assure you, can ever be
found available to purchase or replace it.
Jno. D. Bruns, Esq., replied to a call by an impressive and
affecting reference to the memorable field of Churubusco. He
portrayed vividly the chances and changes of that dreadful strug¬
gle, and the uncalculating ardor of the devoted regiment which
then and there sustained the Palmetto. He referred to the "boy
hero " of canonized fame, and closed fitly by proposing :
"The memory of Preston S. Brooks."
Ensign T. Y. Simons, in reply to the next call, addressed the
eager auditory with characteristic effect and eloquence, and pro¬
posed as a concluding sentiment:
Jane Washington.—Type of the true woman; from her we re¬
ceived the crimson fold that floated over fields as crimson at Eutaw
and Cowpens. All honor to the memory of the patriot wife of
the patriot soldier.
A song was then sung by the choir, aided and accompanied by
Mr. Reeves at the piano. The song was furnished for the occa¬
sion, and is as follows :
UNFURL THE GLORIOUS BANNER.
Unfurl the glorious banner, let it sway upon the breeze,
The emblem of our country's pride on land and on the seas ;
The emblem of our Liberty, borne proudly in the wars,
The hope of every freeman, the gleaming stripes and stars.
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59
CHORUS.
Then unfurl the glorious banner out upon the welcoming air,
Read the record of the olden time upon its radiance there!
, In the battle it shall lead us, and the banner ever be
A beacon-light to glory, and a guide to victory.
The glorious band of patriots, who gave the flag its birth,
Have writ with steel in history, the record of their worth ;
From east to west, from sea to sea, from pole to tropic sun,
"Will eyes grow bright, and hearts throb high, at name of Washington.
Chorus.
Ah! proudly should we bear, and guard this flag of ours,
Borne bravely in its infancy, amidst the darker hours j
Only the brave may bear it; a guerdon it shall be
For those who will have won the right, to boast of Liberty.
Chorus.
The meteor flag of seventy-six, long may it wave in pride,
To tell the world how nobly the patriot fathers died ;
When from the shadows of their night, outburst the brilliant sun,
Is bathed in light the stripes and stars, and lo! the field is won.
Chorus.
Capt. Hatch remarked that as the attention of the company had
been called to the battle fields of Mexico he would remind them
that to-day was the anniversary of one of those battles.
The victory at Buena Vista, had been claimed for the volunteers.
This he had never felt to be right. To his mind the regulars de¬
served for that day our deepest debt of gratitude.
He reminded the company that one now at their board had, ten
years ago that very day, been there engaged, and gave as a senti¬
ment,
Capt. C. P. Kingbury.—He had no warmer welcome for the
Mexicans at Buena Vista, than that with which we now greet him.
Capt. Kingbury replied substantially as follows :
Mr. President: When I accepted your courteous invitation to be
present on this occasion, it was certainly with no expectation of
being called upon to respond to the sentiment which has iust been
so flatteringly received. I came to listen rather than to be heard.
Speech-making is foreign to my profession, and I can assure you,
after the displays we have heard this evening, that even a practiced
orator might well hesitate, in the presence of such varied and com¬
manding eloquence, as that to which it has been our privilege to
listen. But I am unwilling to let your signal courtesy pass with¬
out a brief though inadequate acknowledgment, and would avail
myself of the occasion to refer, for a moment, to that heroic and il¬
lustrious commander, to whom I am indebted for that association
with the event which has brought my name to your remembrance
on this glorious anniversary.
60
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It was my good fortune to have known General Taylor as inti¬
mately as was consistent with his position as commander-in-chief,
and mine as an humble subaltern. I have seen him on many and
trying emergencies, and it may be truthfully said of him, that on
every occasion he came up to the mark—the only infallible test of
real genius. I was with him when, in the afternoon of the first
day of the battle, he received that exceedingly civil invitation from
the Mexican General, for himself and his army to partake of Mexi¬
can hospitality as prisoners of war—in which Santa Anna mani¬
fested his " particular consideration" much after the manner of
old Trapbois to the Lord of Glenvarloch. I heard him with unruf¬
fled calmness dictate to Col. Bliss that modest and inimitable reply,
which, in terseness, pertinence and comprehensive brevity, will go
down to immortality as the rival, in military literature, of the famous
dispatch of Julius Ctesar—not, as Dryden says,
•' Equal in years, but rival in renown."
It was my high privilege also, Mr. President, to witness the
bearing of General Taylor through all the varying fortunes of that
eventful day, and to see him in that darkest hour which preceded
the dawn of our deliverance. Our troops had been almost driven
from the plateau; our gallant volunteers engaged in that part of
the field, had gone down before the iron avalanche of the enemy's
artillery, and the Mexicans were advancing with the majestic
march of triumph. It was at this moment that Captain Bragg—
his horses and men rapidly falling—deprived of all support, and
the enemy almost within striking distance of his guns, held that
renowned interview, in which Gen. Taylor did not say "a little
more grape Captain Bragg." But what was the response ? Some¬
thing like this; " I have no support for you, but that of myself
and staff, and that you shall have !" And that was all sufficient.
Gen. Taylor, himself constituted our main body, and what more
support could the artillerist require ? Nobly did he respond to the
assurance, when maintaining his advanced position, in the lan¬
guage of the official report, he "saved the day." In the history of
battles there is no single instance, in which the moral power of a
commander rises to a loftier eminence. Not even Napoleon, at the
Pyramids, or Wellington amid the delirious cry of Waterloo, in¬
spired a nobler enthusiasm among their followers, than did the
American General, at this fearful crisis in the day of Buena Vista.
Santa Anna had boasted that no quarter should be given, as we
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61
had rejected his terms of submission, he arrogantly determined to
place us beyond the laws of war or the claims of mercy. But
" High and inscrutable the old man stood,"
Calm in his voice and calm within his eye,",
though at that moment the entire result of-the campaign, the fate
of the battle, and without doubt, the life, the life of every American
from the vale of Angostura to the Rio Grande, depended upon
Zachary Taylor. How that heroic spirit under Providence bore it
all nobly up, has passed into history and there I am willing to con¬
sign it.
But there is one point Mr. President suggested by the remarks
just made by yourself, touching the battle of Buena Vista, in rela¬
tion to which I would, beg to trespass a few moments longer on
your attention. Of the five thousand troops composing the Ameri¬
can Army on that day, more than four-fifths were volunteers. The
regulars consisted of artillery, dragoons and staff; the whole body
of infantry present was drawn from the States. Of course the vic¬
tory was due to the united action of the whole. There was no
jealousy to stifle the instincts of patriotism, but an honorable emu¬
lation as to which should best do his duty. But it should be re¬
membered that five of the field officers attached to the volunteer
troops on that day, had been regularly educated at West Point for
the military profession, while it is known that other officers—how
many I cannot state—had also participated in these advantages.
The point then to which I wish to advert—and which I cannot
doubt will be duly appreciated in a community so mindful of the
importance of grounding all its citizens in the elements of a mili¬
tary education—is that the eminent success of these troops must
be attributed to a certain extent, to the facts which I have men¬
tioned.
And the result of this battle furnishes the most conspicuous illus¬
tration in our annals of the truth that when the American volunteer
is even moderately instructed and properly led, he has never
failed to maintain the honor of our flag, from Bunker Hill to Buena
Vista, from the Cowpensto Churubusco. There was moreover one
company of volunteers that had been formed on the basis of an or¬
ganization like yours, which received the pre-eminent distinction
of a special commendation from the Commanding general in his
report of the battle of Buena Vista. This company was com¬
manded by one distinguished alike in literary and legal, civil and
military pursuits to whose eloquence these walls have echoed—I
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mean the warrior poet—Albert Pike, of Arkansas. May we not
hope then that the patriotic example furnished ten years ago to¬
day may serve for imitation in all our future history ? Side by side,
and shoulder to shoulder, regulars and volunteers together,
achieved on this memorable day a victory which shed new lustre
upon American arms; and having a common country and a com¬
mon destiny, why should we not ever be animated by one senti¬
ment and one purpose ?
It was aptly and philosophically remarked by a gentleman who
addressed you early in the evening, that much of the greatness and
glory of England was due to her interminable state of war. And
as, perhaps, illustrative of an Anglo-Saxon weakness, on both sides
of the Atlantic, a clever Englishman, on an occasion similar to this,
recently predicted, at New York, that Great Britain, pursuing her
conquests in the East and the United States in the West, would
soon meet and shake hands on the Chinese wall. The history of the
world for the last fifty years—the period of your own organization
—almost divests this prediction of the semblance of extravagance.
The mother and daughter will then unite with raptures en¬
hanced by a long absence. Together they will set their face
against the tyrants of the world, and unfurling that flag, bearing
the inscription of "Christianity, Liberty and Law," the oppressed
of all nations will flock to the common standard. The great day
of Armageddon will then have arrived, and against the champion
of the forlorn hope of despotism.
" Whose games are Empires, and whose stakes are thrones,
Whose table earth, whose dice are human bones,"
it must devolve upon this Republic to furnish another Washington
for the combined hosts of America and England. Our army, then
as now, must be composed of regulars and volunteers, and from
" the spirit of your founders," the spirit of your past history and
the spirit which is our inheritance and shall be the inheritance
of those who are to come after us, 1 am persuaded that neither
regulars nor volunteers will be found wanting in that great
struggle. To work out the great ends of our political ex¬
istence, we must contribute so far as in us lies, to the preser¬
vation and extension of those civil and religious institutions
which first found their abode in the wilds of North America, and
whose success has thus far demonstrated that Washington was not
an enthusiast, nor Hamilton a day-dreamer. Regulars and volun¬
teers, I am sure, will labor alike to widen and deepen the founda-
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63
tions of this Republic, that this constellation of States, without one
star blotted from its banner, of the " thirteen" of the past, or of the
thirteen of the future, may go down to the remotest generation,
yea, may last even till the epitaph of time shall be written in the
ashes of the world, and " the sun shall slumber in the cloud, for¬
getful of the voice of the morning."
Col. J. J. Pettigrew, in answer to a call from the Chair, invited
the attention of the festal throng, to a new topic and theme. He
referred with brief but discriminative and pregnant phrase, to the
functions and advantages of agriculture, commerce, and arms, and
while giving to each due tribute, claimed from all a proper recog¬
nition and contribution to art. He referred with happy eloquence
and fitly chosen words, to the Gallery now on exhibition, and to
the general and genial manifestation it had elicited. And con¬
cluded with a toast complimentary to the venerable and beloved
artist, Charles Fraser, Esq.
The venerable recipient of this eloquently rendered tribute was
among the guests of honored place, and his presence was a crown¬
ing grace and glory of the jubilee. He was, however, too feeble
in voice to reply, and therefore, deputed to his friend and neighbor,
Dr. Gilman, the reading of his responsive remarks he designed.
Dr. Gilman accordingly read the following:
How few are there, engaged in this day's celebration, that can
boast of having seen Washington ! Yet it is your privilege to num¬
ber among your guests one who has beheld the person of that great
man, whose name now fills the world. It is an incident in my life,
never to be forgotten, that I have seen Washington ; and if there
be any occasion for pride in that egotism, now is the occasion for
me to indulge it. I remember to have read of a person, in ancient
times, who walked to Rome from the furthest confines of Spain, to
behold the person of Livy, the celebrated historian, and returned
to his country with the triumphant pleasure of having beheld that
great man. I never can forget the vociferous joy that hailed the
arrival of Washington in Charleston.
This day should be forever cherished in our calendar, as it was
although unknown to us, the pledge of Heaven's favor, which was
afterwards so signally realized in the instrumentality of Washing¬
ton to the establishment of American Independence.
He enclosed the following sentiment:
The imperishable Memory of the 22 d of Feb., 1732.—Then Heaven
gave George Washington to his country, and consecrated him the
Pledge and Leader of her Independence.
64
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"This is the day which the Lord hath made; we will rejoice
and he glad in it."
In response to a sentiment in honor of the "Press," Richard
Yeadon, Esq., replied in an admirable speech. We make the
following extracts:
Captain Hatch, and Gentlemen of the
Washington Light Infantry:
I feel highly honored in being assigned the office and duty of
response to the just and discriminating sentiment, by means of
which you have through Corporal Courtenay, as your organ, asso¬
ciated the press with this festive occasion and time-honored anni¬
versary. That sentiment deals not in barren compliment, or ful¬
some adulation, but, in manly phrase, demands of the press those
requirements, without the investiture of which the press would
cease to be a public blessing, and become a public curse; and yet
is it pregnant with the kindly implication, that the press of Charles¬
ton, in the presence and hearing of whose representatives it is ut¬
tered, is not wanting iff those requirements. As a member of the
editorial corps of the city, and President of the South Carolina
Press Association, (whence, at least, in part, I presume, the com¬
pliment of my selection,) I proceed with the expected response.
With talent to inform and enlighten the public mind, and integrity
to uphold the great interests of country and society, the press is,
indeed, a great political and moral engine of human progress—it
is then the palladium of liberty, because the bulwark of law and
order, as well as the tree of knowledge, and the source of intelli¬
gence—without them, it loses its chief value, degenerates into li¬
centiousness, the worst foe of liberty, and becomes the vehicle of
private slander and general defamation, a sink of corruption, moral
and political, and a prolific source of bitterness and strife, individ¬
ual and social—in short, the enemy of virtue and the ally of vice,
and an instrument of positive and unmitigated evil. The press,
however, must not only be guided by talent and integrity—to en¬
sure its usefulness and accomplish its great ends, it must also be
free and independent—it must boldly and bravely lead, not slavishly
follow public sentiment—and I trust that there is virtue enough, in
the generous community, in which we live, to uphold the indepen¬
dence of the press, even when, in a martyr spirit, it honestly and
fearlessly breasts the adverse popular current, and dares wreck
and ruin for the good of country or the cause of truth.
But this season of festivity, this gala-night of patriotic gratula-
THE BANQUET.
65
tion, is neither the time nor the occasion, for a homily, on the uses
and abuses of the press, or a prolonged disquisition on its proper
office and character. We are here to unite with you in celebrating
the glorious anniversary of that fortunate day, in the calendar of
history and of the world, which gave Washington to America, and
to mankind. Although, by birth, nature, and service, especially
identified with our republic, of which he was the father and the
founder, yet his virtues, as a man, yielding a purer and a brighter
glory than do his achievements as a warrior, or his counsels as a
statesman, great and illustrious as they were,—the moral beauty
and the goodness, which constituted the chief elements of his
greatness, and have consecrated it, and canonized him, in the uni¬
versal suffrage and reverence of our race—render him the prop¬
erty of humanity. Singular and alone, he towers in moral and
pyramidal grandeur, above all created and uninspired greatness,
in ancient or modern times. There have been Alexanders, Caesars,
and Napoleons,—there have been Solons, Bacons, and Chathams,—
but there has been but one Washington. In illustration of his
moral greatness, I have recently heard narrated the following anec¬
dote. Some one, of no inconsiderable note, on being introduced
to Washington, was so struck, or overpowered, with a sense of the
towering virtue, as well as of the majestic presence of the Sire of
America, that the awe-impressed observer confounded the moral
with the physical, and, on leaving, declared to his friend, that he
felt, under the eye of Washington, as if there stood before him a
man seven feet high. Let me cease however, to dwell on this
attractive theme, lest I intrude on ground, pre-occupied by the
eloquent and distinguished orator of the day, and also by your
gifted and pious Chaplain, in his pulpit and Sabbath commemora¬
tion, in the temple of religion of your hallowed jubilee.
It was, indeed, a hallowed jubilee ; for not only has your semi¬
centennial anniversary, your fiftieth birth-day, fallen on the Chris¬
tian Sabbath, and been consecrated by the rites of religion, but it
has found you still in the enjoyment of those civil and religious
privileges and blessings which Washington fought in the battle
field and toiled in the Council Chamber to bequeath to you and to
your posterity. An especial association of the Courier with your
corps, so honored, in bearing and in honoring the name of Wash¬
ington, and, also, in the faithful discharge of duty, as well during
the prevalence of "grim-visaged war," as in the "piping times of
peace," is that the father and founder (in connection with Loring
5
66
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Andrews and Stephen Cullen Carpenter) of the Courier was, during
the war of 1812, with Great Britain, (when, in consequence of the
difficulty of procuring paper, the Courier, for a time, appeared on
a dingy half sheet,) a soldier of your patriotic corps. The first
number of the Courier was issued on the 10th January, 18051, bear¬
ing the impress—"Published by A. S. Willington, for Loring An¬
drews"—Mr. Carpenter being dormant partner and editor. And,
after the lapse of 54 years, and at an age exceeding three score
years and ten, the original publisher of the Courier yet lives
among us, its senior editor and chief proprietor, and now the
patriarch of our press, enjoying the reward of an honorable, use¬
ful and well-spent life, his old age and deprivation of vision having
the solace of " otium cum dignitate," "troops of friends," and the
high esteem and regard, as an editor, a citizen, and a man of the
entire community—a golden sunset illumining the evening of
his days.
Other associations, connecting the Courier with your corps,
belong to the lamented dead.
The late Col. Wm. S. King, commanded, for several years, the
16th Infantry Regiment of South Carolina Militia, to which you
are attached; and, in testimonial of his admiration of your
military discipline and soldierly conduct, and of his devotion to
your corps, he presented you the beautiful banner, the folds of
which now aid in the decorative drapery of this noble and spacious
hall, its pictorial device, or emblematic Palmetto, designed by
your venerable artist guest, (Charles Fraser, Esq.,) whom we all
delight to honor, and skilfully and tastefully embroidered by the
fairy fingers of fair daughters of Carolina. This mark of your late
Colonel's kindness you reciprocated, by enrolling him on your list
of honorary members.
Another nexus, or link, between the Courier and your corps,
belonging to the honored dead, consists in the fact that William
Crafts, your first Ensign, and a standard bearer of the press, one
also of your gallant Captains, and one of your war-officers of 1812,
and in that memorable year, your first orator, and perhaps the
most gifted of all your orators, was, for several years, commencing
in 1821 and continuing until the close of his life, editorially, and
as an occasional contributor, connected with the Courier and
assisted largely in adding literary fame to its commercial reputa¬
tion. His contributions to its columns, in prose and verse, with
other productions of his gifted pen, oratorical and otherwise, gath-
THE BANQUET.
67
ered into a volume, by your respected Chaplain, (also numbered
among your gifted orators,) form a literary garland, which gives
both fragrance and fame to the memory of William Crafts.
An anecdote, associated with the acomplished Crafts, and re¬
cently narrated to me by the venerable artist already alluded to,
as one of the honored guests of the evening, and who is likewise
on your roll of eloquence, and whose extensive "gallery" of the
productions, exclusively of his own gifted pencil, is now "winning
him golden opinions from all sorts of people/' may not be out of
place here. The amiable and eloquent Crafts, when a young man,
was so much fascinated, at an evening party, with one of the belles
of Charleston, bearing the name of Hume, as to render him almost
insensible of the presence of others. Seeing his plight, his artist
friend classically and playfully said, to the enamored swain,—
"Crafts, ex Hume tollere vultus," which, being freely translated
is—"Crafts, take your eyes off Miss Hume, and bestow a little
notice on other people."
In my stray reading, a few days since, I met with the following
gem, in the way of mingled alliteration, wit, and sly sarcasm,
given as a sentiment, on some festive occasion :
"The three P's, and the three Ruling Powers—The Press, the
Pulpit, and Petticoats—The first spreads knowledge, the second
spread morals, and the third spreads—considerably."
In conclusion, sir, permit me to propose the following sentiment:
The Citizen Soldiery of our Country. — "A well regulated mi¬
litia" is the best and the constitutional safeguard of the freedom
of the press—"the right of the people to keep and to bear arms,"
without infringement, is the surest defence of popular liberty.
Dr. S. H. Dickson, by request of the Chair, read a letter that
had been received, in reply to an invitation, from Hon. W. C.
Preston, as follows :
Sir: I am very sensible of the kindness which prompted the
invitation to be present at the semi-centennial celebration of the
Washington Light Infantry, and am flattered by the complimentary
terms in which you have been pleased to couch it.
The time has passed by when, with any degree of propriety, I
could join in such a festive occasion, for time and infirmity have
done their work upon me. Still I sympathize in the feelings which
inspire you on this celebration of your fiftieth anniversary, a fact
entitling you to the consideration of a venerable institution; but I
the more feel moved by the recollection that your Company had
the honor, let rne say, of being commanded by that illustrious
68
the banquet.
man, William Lowdnes, whom I knew as the brightest and most
dispassionate intellect it has been my fortune to meet, and still
more admirable for the purity and excellence of his walk in life,
which was always regulated down to the minutest circumstance by
the presence and presiding of a most vigilant and enlightened
conscience. He lived in an atmosphere of virtue, and had no im¬
pulses but those of truth, honor and patriotism. Whether he com¬
manded your company or led the willing counsels of Legislative
halls, in his heart was the continual predominance of high and
holy impulses. His acquaintance I have always regarded as a
piece of eminent good fortune, although it was hut such an inter¬
course as could take place between an eminent statesman and an
obscure young man.
It is gratifying to me to think that during its long existence the
spirit of its founder has been impressed upon your company, and
I may expect your hearty concurrence when I offer you as a senti¬
ment—
The memory of William Lowdnes—The wise statesman, the
pure patriot, and the virtuous gentleman, whose blood and judgment
were so well commingled that he may well be honored in our
heart of hearts.
I have the honor to be, sir,
your obedient servant,
WM. C. PRESTON.
Capt. Hatch gave the following toast:
The Charleston Riflemen—Sprung from the same thought, born
in the same hour—our elder brother, it may be—our debt to them
is large, but, like the national debt of Great Britain, it is all in
the family, and we are ever ready to settle.
Lieut. Blake, of the Charleston Rifles, responded appropriately.
John Sloman, Esq., responded to a complimentary sentiment by
singing " Old Tubal Cain."
By Lieut. O. Wilkie :
The Army.-—To the science of West Point, we are mainly in¬
debted for the unparalleled success of our Army, from the landing
at Vera Cruz to the city of Mexico.
To this toast Capt. Vogdes, U. S. A., replied as follows:
Permit me, gentlemen, to return thanks for the very handsome
compliment which you have been pleased to bestow, upon that
branch of the public service to which I have the honor to belong.
Let me assure you, gentlemen that this compliment is more fully
appreciated, coming as it does from so distinguished a body as the
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69
Washington Light Infantry, of Charleston, a military corps, whose
members are not only distinguished for their gentlemanly tone, but
are equally eminent for their mental, moral, and high military
qualities. Allow me, gentlemen to assure you, that the Army will
always consider it an honor and a privilege to meet you at the so¬
cial board, and that they will be proud to have you at their side in
the day of battle.
Permit me, gentlemen, to make a few remarks upon a subject,
which your military schools, and the military appearances of your
corps evince, that however much it may be overlooked elsewhere,
has not been neglected by your State. I mean the military educa¬
tion of the people.
The great extent of our country, the variety of its soil and cli¬
mate, the energy and skill of its inhabitants, enable us by our own
exertions to supply ourselves with all the necessaries, and most of
the luxuries of life. The vast bodies of water which separate us
from the great military powers of Europe, the enormous expense
attending upon transporting and maintaining large armies, will
probably secure us from any attack which could endanger our ex¬
istence as a nation. These causes fortunately enable us to dis¬
pense with large military and naval establishments. Feeling secure
from any attack that could endanger our nationality, our states¬
men are content to rely upon the courage, skill, and energy of
our citizens to repel any attack that may be made upon us.
No one can doubt that if properly trained, and skilfully lead,
the American soldier is capable of defending his country against
the attack of any or of all the military powers of Europe. This,
however, should not induce us to neglect military education/ nor
should we forget that although our enemies may not be able to in¬
flict upon us the evils of conquest, yet it is in their power to bring
upon us serious and lasting injuries—injuries that may retard our
growth for years, and bring a lasting disgrace upon our free insti¬
tutions.
It is our boast to have demonstrated by acts, that free institu¬
tions can give all the internal quiet, all the protection required by
labor and capital from government, at the same time that they per¬
mit all the freedom of thought, and liberty of action, that can con¬
tribute to the happiness of the individual, or the advancement'of
society. The enemies of democracy admit that order, domestic
quiet, social improvement, and mental development are not incom¬
patible with democratic institutions. But they insist that this
70
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freedom of thought and action, and the dislike of constraint which
it begets, will always prevent a democracy adopting such military
institutions as will enable it to repel an attack from without. They
say that when a nation becomes military, it ceases to be demo¬
cratic. Let us prove to our gainsayers, that the same liberty
which contributes so much to our advancement in the arts of peace,
will, when the hour of trial arrives show us equally skilled in all
that belongs to war. Let us show that we may become a nation
of soldiers, without ceasing to be a nation of freemen.
An army is an epitome of a nation. You cannot create a
brave army out of a nation of slaves, nor a cowardly one from
a nation of freemen. But bravery, however essential, is not the
only quality required of the soldier. Fortitude, long practice,
and obedience, are required to make a soldier. Knowledge,
skill and experience are indispensable to a leader. You cannot
make a soldier in a day, nor create an army in a year. Num¬
bers, unless well trained, add but little to the strength of ar¬
mies. Beyond a certain amount, if ill-disciplined, they are
rather a source of weakness than of strength. A few brave
marksmen, in strong positions, may retard the advance of an
army; concentrate the same men in masses, and their efficiency is
entirely destroyed. Fifty thousand well disciplined troops on a
fair field canrt»t be beaten by any amount of irregulars that may
be brought against them.
In some respects we are not deficient in military preparation.
Our ordnance is excellent—equal, if not superior, to any in the
world. Our volunteers are well drilled in the school of the sol¬
dier, and, of the company, many are equally proficient in the drill
of the battalion. But in the movement of large masses, in the di¬
rection of large armies, our volunteers and regulars are equally ig¬
norant, equally inexperienced. There probably is not in the
whole extent of our country an individual possessing the skill
and experience necessary to put an army of fifty thousand men in
motion.
Nature is not bountiful in bestowing the faculty of commanding
large armies. It is only attainable by great talents, combined
with long experience and profound study. "I found him a dwarf,
and I lost him a giant; he learned rapidly, and would soon have
been capable of great combinations/' was the profound remark of
earth's greatest Captain when criticising the character of one of
his greatest marshals. One whom he pronounced his ablest com-
THE BANQUET.
71
mander of twenty thousand men—one who had had the experience
of fifteen campaigns—the hero of more than fifty battles—the
brave Marshal Lannes.
The amount of injury that could be inflicted upon our country
by an active and powerful enemy occupying New York, those of
you engaged in the mercantile pursuits can best estimate. One
thing we may rely upon, that in the event of a war with any of
the great powers of Europe, the means which they will concen¬
trate for the attack of that place, will be proportional only to the
injury its loss would inflict upon us.
-What are our means for defence ? We are told that steam com¬
munications—railroads and'telegraphs, will enable us, if necessary
to assemble at that point an army of a hundred thousand men.
No doubt an abundance of means and thousands of men may be
thrown into New York in case of alarm; but an army of one
hundred thousand men cannot. It does not exist in our country.
It cannot be created for years.
It is to the want of knowledge in the higher branches of the art
of war, and the movements of large masses that I would invite
your attention. Having so done, I shall only presume on your
patience long enough to ask you to join me in a sentiment. 1
propose the memory of one who was not great simply for what
was given to him to execute; one to whom we are indebted for the
splendid destiny of this republic; one whose image is forever im¬
pressed upon our institutions; one whose glory like the light of
the stars is self existent, and from within, and not like those grosser
heavenly bodies, the faint reflection of some brighter luminary.
The Memory of Washington—Ever to be held in grateful re¬
membrance while liberty has a friend or tyranny a foe.
By Sergt. E. W. Lloyd :
Ma/. Gen. Schnierle—-as the Citizen and the Soldier.—The long
and faithful discharge of arduous duties in both capacities attest
his devotion to the city and State.
Gen. Schnierle replied as follows :
Mr. President and Gentlemen of the Washington Light Infantry:
At this late hour of the night, it is almost inexcusable in me to
occupy your attention by protracted remarks, more especially as
your prior calls have already opened upon you so many fountains
of elpquence replete with every topic available for this memorable
anniversary. Nevertheless, the personal and very complimentary
sentiment just uttered, and the very cordial manner in which it
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has been received, excite in my bosom no ordinary feeling, and
compel my grateful thanks and warmest acknowledgment. For
who of you, Washingtons, in casting his eye over this festive
board and recognizing, as he must, so many who have been and
still are, inseparably identified with the honor, the prosperity and
the renown of your company, can suppress his pride, his enthu¬
siasm, or his exultation in the enviable character and material that,
now as ever, compose, illustrate and adorn it ? Or who of you, in
reflecting on the vicissitudes that attend such a voluntary organi¬
zation and the transitory life that so generally measures its dura¬
tion, does not rejoice in the distinction of a place on your muster
roll—a roll which for fifty years has sparkled with every attribute
that can dignify the citizen or stimulate the soldier? It is with
these impressions, that I have greatly preferred on this jubilee,
crowded with so many fond and spirit-stirring associations, to
evince my high appreciation of the value of an honorary member¬
ship in your corps, by appearing as such among you—rather than
to display the tinsel and feathers of a Major General.
But as you have been pleased in the garb of the citizen to re¬
cognize your General, permit me to tender you my heartfelt con¬
gratulations on the brilliant auspices, that surround your company,
a company which for half a century has nobly encountered and*
weathered every wave of passion or of faction that has surged
against it—steadfastly maintaining throughout, its entire self-re¬
spect, integrity of principle and determined purpose of character,
and now triumphantly floating yon memorable banner over an
organization, if possible, more flourishing and more unrivalled
than at any prior period of its annals. And, Washingtons, while
in the retrospect, my admiration is kindled higher and higher, by
the concord and amity so conspicuous and characteristic—my ar¬
dent hopes and anticipations are fortified more and more into con.
viction, that in your hands, the well-earned reputation of your
corps, now become " an institution," is not only abundantly safe,
but is pregnant with a future increase of glory. And since your
illustrious prototype is characterized as confessedly, first in war,
first in peace, and first in the hearts of his countrymen, so do you
emulate that noble exemplar and deserve to rank, first in virtue,
first in discipline, and first in the unqualified respect and confi¬
dence of every worthy citizen soldier.
Mr. President and gentlemen, with your permission, I tender
you the patriotism that engendered, the fidelity that preserved, and
the banquet.
7$
the indomitable spirit which now animates and sustains the Wash¬
ington Light Infantry—Esto perpetua.
By Sergt. James Robb :
The Marion Artillery.—They have a name which should belong
to Riflemen. They have won the hearts of some who are riflemen.
Responded to happily by Lieut. Kirkwood.
The following sentiment was sent by H. S. Hall, a member of
the Washington Light Infantry, now a resident of New Orleans :
The Washington Light Infantry.—Distinguished as soldiers and
respected as citizens, may they ever maintain the proud position
they now occupy, as the model corps of Charleston.
A letter was here read from Capt. C. C. Tew, Arsenal, Colum¬
bia, regretting his inability to he present-;
Capt. Hatch gave—■
Maj. Edwd. M'Crady, Jr.—Filling an office unsought, he proves
his devotion to his command by his earnest endeavors to improve
them and himself in their duties. He commands, as he should, a
Battalion of which I trust the State will yet be proud.
Maj. McCrady responded as follows :
I thank you, gentlemen, for the complimentary toast which has
just been given, and for the manner in which it has been received.
I wish that I could attribute its compliments to my deserts, but as
I cannot, I thank you for it as a renewed assurance of that kind'
partiality which I have ever received from this company. And al¬
though you have been so often already congratulated upon it, I
trust that you will allow one so near to you as myself—nearer than
any one not actually a member of your company, again to con¬
gratulate you upon the occasion which assembles us around this
board to-night. I congraluate you upon it alike as the fiftieth An¬
niversary of your company and as the birthday of him whose hon¬
ored name your corps have borne so long and so well.
It is indeed a subject of congratulation not only to you, but to
the millions of freemen who to-day have celebrated this occasion,
that we have again enjoyed another opportunity of thanking the
God of nations for having raised up to us in the time of our neces¬
sity, that good and great man whose character we have this day
heard so eloquently portrayed. And I thank you, gentlemen, for al¬
lowing me this opportunity of raising my voice, however feeble, to
join the loud chorus that has risen to-day from the vast extent of
our country, and now swells from ocean to ocean and echoes from
mountain to mountain, ascending to heaven a great hymn of na-
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tional thanksgiving, and I trust that even in the bitter state of sec¬
tional feeling that now exists, I may be allowed to express the
hope that when all other ties shall have been severed and even the
bonds of our Union itself burst, that the name of Washington will
still be a watchward around which the people of this great republi¬
can hemisphere will forever rally in support of republican institu¬
tions and in defence of each other, and still give to the rest of the
world strength and significance to our motto, "E Pluribus Unum
And then—
" though the warriors sun has set,
Its light shall linger round us yet,
Bright, radiant, blest."
It is indeed gentlemen a subject of congratulation not only to
you, but to the community at large that for fifty years the Wash¬
ington Light Infantry have maintained by the voluntary efforts of
its individual members an organization for the safety and defence
of their country. An organization too which required a large ex¬
penditure of time and private means, the study of a science while
there was no immediate prospect of an occasion occurring for its
application, the submission to authority the importance of which
it required faith to appreciate. It is indeed a subject of congratu¬
lation for you thus to have shown the State that her citizens well
know that she can be served with as much patriotism by maintain¬
ing her safety and defence in time of peace, as by valor in time of
war.
I would not gentlemen mar the festivities of this occasion by in¬
troducing any subject of political difference, but there is one of our
political welfare of which this occasion whether I regard it as the
bifthday of Washington or as the Anniversary of your Company,
is so peculiarly suggestive that 1 cannot but allude to it. For the
subject of our militia organization was one which gave Washing¬
ton much concern ahd anxiety, conceiving it to be a subject, to use
his own words, "upon which the honor, safety and well being of
our community so evidently and essentially depended," and you
too gentlemen by your very organization have shown your appreci¬
ation of its importance and foremost as usual in all that concerns
the welfare of our militia and true to your arm as Riflemen, you
have commenced the war upon an inefficient system and have
moved and carried the first point by gaining from the Legislature
as some consideration for the services of the volunteer companies
an exemption from ordinary militia duty for their members after
THE BANQUET.
75
fourteen years service. I congratulate you upon the success of
your skirmish. But though you have gained this ground to the
front, this is not all, the battle has still to be fought. For though we
cannot at this time enter into any discussion as to the efficiency of
the present militia system, yet when we recall the long list of il¬
lustrious names upon your roll, can we doubt but they believed such
an organization, whose very origin is at least the supposed inef¬
ficiency of that system, necessary. Would such men as Lowndes,
Cross, Crafts, Gilchrist, Ravenel, Porter, and other distinguished
citizens have concerned themselves to form and maintain this com¬
pany, if they had not deemed such an organization a necessity,
and putting aside all other motives ignoring for the time even the
possibility that such an organization could be maintained from
purely patriotic motives. We live in a practical age, in an age in
which the mighty dollar rules, and is it probable that in such an age
for fifty years there should be found men enough, .foolish enough
to pay so much for the poor excuse of occasionally dressing them¬
selves in "fuss and feathers," must there not have been a necessity
for all this expense, a demand for a superior organization to that
of the present milita system, of which the volunteer organizations
are the attempted supply.
How well the volunteer companies, have supplied that demand—
how faithfully the individual members have toiled and labored—
how faithfully guarded the interest of the community they have
undertaken to protect, it is not for us to say; nor to point to those
whose presence here to-night reminds us how promptly the volun¬
teer companies responded to the call of a younger sister State for
protection and assistance in time of need, and so gallantly illus¬
trated that spirit which ever actuates the volunteer companies, and
a double portion of which has descended upon your company from
the sacred folds of the Eutaw Flag. The subject of our volunteer
organizations is one, gentlemen, upon which I could say much to
you, but the occasion does not admit of it, and I will not trespass
to-night upon your time. For I am sure that, after the eloquence
we all so much enjoyed during the day, if I were to attempt further
to entertain you, it would indeed be like offering new wine to those
who have already drunken of old.
Allow me, then, in conclusion, to urge upon you the necessity of
our earnest efforts for the reform of the whole military system, and
if our organizations have accomplished only this, that they have
kept alive the military spirit of our people, and have maintained
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in some degree the safety and defence of our community, and are
now the means of inducing reform, and of building up a militia
system that will indeed be the safety and defence of our country,
"the bulwarks of our freedom," then will these organizations have
been to some purpose, and we, the individual members,.have done
the State at least some service.
I offer, therefore, the following toast:
The Volunteer System—Let the State either so reform her militia
system as to render it unnecessary or let her do something for its
support.
Mr. Reeves then sung "Annie Dear—Good Bye," with great
effect, assisted by Mr. Greatorex on the piano.
By A. L. Michel, (Committee :)
The Companies of the Rifle Battalion—May they, in their strife
for numbers, never lose sight of true discipline.
Captain Siegling, of the German Riflemen, rose and said:
That representing one of the companies attached to the Battal¬
ion of Rifles, he could not, at this late hour of the evening, in re¬
sponding to the toast which had just been offered, more sincerely
exhibit his appreciation of the kindness and courtesy extended to
him, than by refraining to inflict upon them, in return, any lengthy
remarks. He rejoiced at the privilege accorded him of participat¬
ing in the cheerful festivities of the day. The occasion was one
which should be replete with interest to all good men in every
section of our vast country, because it was in commemoration of
the natal day of him already so eloquently eulogized, whose wise
foresight and unblemished life and character had given stability
and an imperishable fame to that country. In contemplating that
life and character, and the happy results which had ensued there¬
from, no true and virtuous citizen of this great republic could
feel otherwise than ennobled by this proud heritage derived
from him, nor fail to recognize it as a sacred duty, by his action
and conduct, to deserve as well as preserve it. It was by cherish¬
ing the noble example of Washington, by inculcating and encour¬
aging those sentiments of gratitude and admiration for his exalted
virtue, which have been so well expressed here this evening, that
we elevated ourselves, as patriots, citizens and men, towards the
attainment of that high standard of excellence, acceded to him by
the unanimous voice of mankind. And so, too, by insisting upon
his uncompromising honesty and integrity, as the indispensable
trait in the character of our public men, we would save ourselves
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77
the humiliation of witnessing those ignominious accusations so re¬
cently and Freely preferred at our national capitol. He would,
however, trespass no longer. As his object was simply to return
thanks, and give utterance to a sentiment, in accordance with what
he had just said, he would propose:
The Principles of the Illustrious Father of his Country—Fit
matter for the imitation of his countrymen! May they ever be
enshrined in every true American heart, and may his spotless
name, wherever assumed, be as worthily borne in all time to come,
as it has hitherto been, for the last half century, by the Washing¬
ton Light Infantry.
By Secretary D. McQueen :
Our own Living Ex-Captains—-Health and happiness to each.
Long may it be ere we are called upon to do honor to their memo¬
ries, whose living virtues are now our pride and boast.
F. Lanneau, in a response to a call from the chair said :
Mr. Chairman: It would be presumptuous in me, after the many
eloquent addresses to which you have listened, to trespass upon
your time by any remarks which I could make.
But, sir, upon this auspicious occasion, I can scarcely refrain
from doing so, having participated in the thrilling events which
have crowded upon the festivities of this brilliant celebration.
Memory would indeed be recreant to its trust, did it not revive
in moments like this, associations in which in other days I have
participated—and imagination would also be oblivious, did it not
also contribute its share of the grateful duty.
Sir: More than a quarter of a century ago I became a member
of this corps. Time has made its mark since then, upon the gal¬
lant spirits with whom I became associated. They have passed
from the scenes of active duty—many to that "bourne from whence
no traveller returns." A few remain and they have rallied at your
call, and have appeared to day as Washingtons to take place in the
imposing pageant of your successful celebration. But, Mr. Chair¬
man, while I listened to the thrilling addresses which have echoed
through this hall to-night, I could not but draw upon imagination
for the past, and revert to the period when the founders of this
corps assembled to commemorate its first anniversary—and here,
Mr. Chairman, 1 fondly looked forward to another epoch in your
history, to a period when you shall have attained a centennial cele¬
bration.
Sir : The thought is sad, but no less true. Pom will not be there.
The speaker will not be there. Nay, not one of you, fellow-soldiers,
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in all human probability, will be there. That occasion will doubt¬
less come, and it cheers our hearts to think that it will be com¬
memorated by gallant spirits, who will emulate the deeds of those
who have proceeded them, and who will in turn perpetuate the
history of our beloved corps. They will profit by the bright ex.
ample -which you have presented for imitation, and the pen of the
faithful historian will furnish a theme for the living orators, to por¬
tray then the history of the Washington Light Infantry.
Mr. Chairman, I must forbear. In quick succession grateful
thoughts present themselves to my mind, and I could indulge the
pleasing theme to a much greater extent than I can venture to do
at this late hour. Reluctantly I conclude these imperfect remarks
by offering you a sentiment, in which I feel assured you will all
heartily unite. I give you, sir :
The Centennial Anniversary of this Corps.—May the demonstra¬
tion, then, be as successful as this, and by hearts as true to its
interests as those which now throb with delight at the recital of
its past history.
By D. C. Marsh, W. L. I.:
Palmetto Guards—Their name should ever sustain and support
them in this State.
In reply, Capt. J. J. Lucas, of the Palmetto Guards, give the
following:
Our Country—"He who loves not his country can love nothing."
By Thomas Plane, one of the Committee of Arrangements :
The Charleston Light Dragoons—Absent or present they com¬
mand our highest esteem and regard.
James H. Murrell, Esq., responded as follows:
Mr. Chairman, and Gentlemen of the Washington Light In¬
fantry:—The compliment that you have just bestowed upon the
Charleston Light Dragoons, very naturally, if not even necessarily
devolves upon me a duty which, were I to fail in discharging,
would render me in every just sense an unworthy recipient of
the honor I now enjoy. Not wishing or intending for a moment,
however, to convey to your minds an impression that I exercise
any influence whatever over, or that I enunciate in any degree the
sentiments of the patriotic corps to which I have the honor to be¬
long, I will yet frame my remarks in such a manner as to fasten the
conviction, that although they are absent, and doubtless in the full
enjoyment of the hospitalities of their noble and patriotic Georgia
THE BANQUET.
79
friends, they cannot and do not fail, in spirit, to be here, and in
that sense, are as sensibly alive, as we are ourselves, to the pro¬
ceedings that are now so delightfully engaging the attention and
interest of every one upon this floor. Assuming thus much for
my corps, I feel proud to acknowledge personally that, imbibing
as I have done, somewhat of that spirit that I know pervades your
own and their full ranks, I too have been fired by emotions this
day, that should cluster around the very heart-strings of each and
every true patriot, who can boast the enviable distinction that tells
him he is a citizen of this vast, this mighty, this happy republic.
Rejoicing, therefore, in common with every one who bears the
name of American, in the realization of those common birth rights
that render us such a free, happy and united people, I must crave
to trespass, gentlemen, yet a moment longer upon your time and
pleasures. Had I even felt inclined, Mr. Chairman and brother
soldiers, I could not have passed unnoticed, the courteous invita¬
tion, that renders me to-night a participant in that joyousness, that
characterizes this festive scene. The simple fact, that I find my¬
self by invitation a guest at the board of the Washington Light
Infantry, on the occasion of the celebration of their semi-centen¬
nial anniversary—an occasion and an epoch pregnant to them of
so much pleasure, is of itself an honor gentlemen, permit me to
assure you, that I prize even above ail estimate. Bearing as you
do the name of Washington—the immortal father of this great,
this glorious, this ever-growing, this freest of all people—a name
that has descended, and will continue to descend to millions in the
far distant future, without ever losing any of its force and power;
a name from first to now, and until time shall be no more, that has
been, is now, and will ever be, as familiar as are household words,
upon the tongue, even, of lisping infancy—a name, the oftener it
is pronounced the more it charms, and if possible, enhances our
veneration. Bearing then such a name, and congregated as you
are this day for the purpose of honoring that name, can it prove a
matter of surprise, I ask, that either I or any other guest at this
board can feel aught but honor reflected upon him by being one
among you? No! brother soldiers and friends, no; and while I
thus emphaticalty answer the question, I will undertake to predict,
that with yon proud relic of the Cowpens and of Eutaw unfurled
and animating you, come what may, the Washington Light In¬
fantry will ever be found adding to the distinction, the very high
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THE BANQUET.
distinction that now points it out, as the Banner Company of the!
State. In conclusion, and apologizing, gentlemen, for having thus
detained }mu, allow me to offer as a sentiment,
The Washington Light Infantry and the Charleston Light Dra¬
goons—They have always worked well together in peace, and
doubtless, shoulder to shoulder, would be found claiming and assert¬
ing their position at a moment's warning, nearest "the flashing of
the guns."
Song and sentiment now followed in rapid succession, and the
small hours of the morning were unintentionally devoted to the
winding up of this ever-to-be-remembered Jubilee. Our willing
pen would fain record the many brilliant responses, soul stirring
songs, and that '■'■flow of soul," which characterize the social gath¬
erings of the Washington Light Infantry, but memory fails. The
last call being made,—and the magic circle, formed around the
board by the clasped hands of the Corps, with here and there a
Cadet, or other guest,—we joined our venerable friend, John Slo-
man, Esq., pledging a mutual-health, in parting,
" For Auld Lang Syne "
The following Members composed the Semi-Centennial Committee
of Arrangements:
First Lieut. THOMAS B. TROUT, Chairman.
Sergeant C. H. Simonton,
'• . J. M. Carson,
" J. Robb. Jr.,
Corporal W. A. Courtenay,
Sec'y D. McQueen,
A. L. Michel,
Saji'l J. Btjrger,
Thomas Plane,
David C. Marsh.
II. B. Olney,
Wm. S. Elliott.