Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 14.djvu/521

 Address Delivered by Governor Z. B. Vance. 515

children no bread, the strength and confidence of the Confederacy- began to weaken at once. No cause, however just,. no enthusiasm however zealous, could long withstand the cry of wife and children for food. To meet this necessity granaries were established at several points in the State, and corn distributed in the most needy districts; committees were appointed in each county to look after the needy, and commissioners selected, whose sole duty it was to provide salt. The State became for the time a grand almoner, and though from the very nature of the task it was impossible to effect the object com- pletely, yet it is my opinion that no part performed in that great struggle was more deserving of praise than that effort which North Carolina made to provide for the poor families of those who were fighting for her independence on distant fields. These efforts went to the very gist of our success. Nor were these confined to the pub- lic authorities. Private charities and liberality abounded. Each county has its list of neighborhood heroes, gray headed, quiet men, whose victories were won over the greedy passions of gain and the tempta- tions of avarice. They are pointed out yet as the men who would sell no corn except to soldier's wives, widows or mothers; who would sell no leather from their tanyards except to put shoes on their feet, and who did not raise in price or discount their money. All honor to such men. And let history make mention of it as a fact, that in thus serving God they were likewise rendering a service to their country quite as great as that of the armed soldiers, and far greater than that of the brawling politician. Nor did they stop with the giving of their goods. Courage and patriotism usually go hand in hand with kindness of heart. Such an instance comes to my mind now in the person of old Thomas Calton, of Burke county, whose humble name I venture to give to the Society as worthy of \ our attention, and as a good sample of the grand but unglorified class of men among us who preserve the savor of good citizenship and enno ble our humanity. He not only gave his goods to sustain women and children, but gave all his sons, five in number to the cause. One by one they fell until at length a letter arrived, telling that the youngest and the last, the btight-haired blue-eyed Benjamin of the hearth, had fallen also. Kind friends deputed an old neighbor to take the letter to him, and break the distressing news as gently as possible. When made aware of his desolation, he made no complaint, uttered no excla- mation of heart broken despair, but called his son in law, a delicate, feeble man, who had been discharged by the army surgeons, and said, whilst his frail body trembled with emotion, and tears rolled down