Author: Geo Wm Curtis

Publisher:

Published: 2015-07-11

Total Pages: 78

ISBN-13: 9781331202455

Excerpt from The Proceedings at the Dedication of the Soldiers Monument: At Pittsfield, Mass;, September 24, 1872; Including the Oration of Hon. Geo; Wm; Curtis During the first few months after the government established by the fathers of the American Republic, and held sacred by so many generations, was assailed by the Rebellion of 1861, the Soldiers of Pittsfield hurried to the field with no thought save the imminent danger of their country; but their fellow citizens sent after them, in hot haste, pledges, not only of protection and pecuniary aid to their families, but of perpetual honor and gratitude. Afterward, as the prolonged contest demanded more and more of sacrifice on the part of those who, as the representatives of the town, responded to the successive calls of the government, a part of this sacrifice was assumed in the form of bounties. But those who received this aid wore assured that it was only in compensation for their pecuniary losses. For the dangers which they were to encounter; for the lives which they might lose, the reward which was proffered them, next after the satisfaction of having done their duty to their country, was that they should forever be held in memory as brave, true and patriotic men. In all the glowing and eloquent speeches with which the Park and the neighboring halls resounded in those; days of danger, anxiety and excitement, these pledges were constantly repeated; often in terms, always by implication. And, by most of those who enlisted, the bounty was only accepted with full faith that these pledges were sincerely made, and that they would be ratified and redeemed by their townsmen. In this faith they were not deceived. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.