Page:Journal history of the Twenty-ninth Ohio veteran volunteers, 1861-1865.djvu/28

 hail through which they were carried to glorious victories.

This beautiful stand of colors was presented to the regiment on Wednesday, November 27th, by Hon. J. R. Giddings, on behalf of the donors, the ladies of Ashtabula and Summit counties. Mr. Giddings spoke as follows: "Gentlemen, officers and soldiers. Before entering upon the particular duty assigned me on the present occasion, I may be permitted to congratulate you and the country, upon the completion of your regimental organization and the perfection of your preparation for the field. I desire you at all times to bear in mind the causes which led to its formation. The present rebellion has its origin far back in history. Its first overt acts were put forth in Congress by subjecting the people of the free States to gag rules, by striking down the right of petition, by arraigning and publicly censuring Representatives for the faithful discharge of duty, by annexing, unconstitutionally, slave territory, and extending and strengthening the encroachments of slavery. To these violent encroachments upon the constitutional rights of the free States, this Western Reserve has from the first, presented a very general resistance

"The ladies have prepared a splendid National and regimental stand of colors, and have imposed on me the pleasing duty of presenting them to the regiment. In all past ages civilized nations have gone forth to war under their own banner, on which was inscribed some device, figure, or emblem, peculiar to such nation. Thus each tribe among the Israelites had its particular banner. The early Christians fought under the cross, the Romans under the golden eagle, the Mohammedans under the crescent. The founders of our government selected for their colors a groundwork of blue, repre