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Old Soldiers Unfashionable

Old Soldiers Unfashionable image
Parent Issue
Day
25
Month
November
Year
1885
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

Col; Atkinson of Detroit, in hls adOress Friday evening at the G. A. R. camp-lire, said: "The old soldier is getting unfashionable." Xever was thore a truer statement of a saddening fact, for, although a patriot at once revolts from tlie bare idea of the ingratitude of the Kepublic, yet facts are beginning to stare us in the fiice proving the charge. This has not long been so, but the era of revulsión has dawned with the rlsing of the democratie sun. It began when brave Gen. Jolin A. Logan wns beaten by Hendlieks, who during the war had not heljed the Union but, on the coutrary, who tried to aid It in its dismemberment, Now, instead of ex-Union soldiers beIng given position of honor and reward - even they who had them are being disuussed. Moreover, to niake it worse, they who were rebels are rapldly coming into office insolently to supplant the oldtime defenders of the Unjon. Truly the old soldier is become unfashionable, and he has but little sympathy with the powers that be. Is it not so, when, Hie poor widow of the brave Custer, choking down her pride, goes to Washington, iis asuppliantfora position, and only to meet witli insultó and a cold refusal 'i In our own county are two well-known exaniples. Captain Allen, a brave and noble man, is turned out for a man like Stevens of Fllnt, who neve dared to risk his precious life just to save his country. Captain Manly, too, is turned aside by an administration which bas mocktngly bid him hope for a position tliree separate times. These are ouly instances wiiich have come to us iu our immediBte viciDity, but they are in the same direction and the same proportion over all the land. It is too bad that thïs is true, but some of the old soldiers have only themselvee to blunie for it, for a few of them have buen so thoughtless and short-sighted as to vote with the party whicb, through all the war :uid ever since, has frowned upon their taking up arms to protect the flag. Now, that their party has come to power the soldiers who voted for it fiud they sowed to the wind. We do not doubt but that the democrats, whom tbis shoe pinches, in the absence of ability to deny those things or to excuse them, will yell, "bloody-shirt," in order to distract attention from the issue, but when they say "bloody-shirt" at us, we :isk : "Who made those shirts bloody n the fint place? Was it not done by the men tor whom in the past they have apologized, and whom now they exalt? when rebels are rewarded by a county it is mighty poor encouragement for patriota. Tn us in these times old soldiers have become unfashionable.

Article

Subjects
Ann Arbor Courier
Old News