Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 16.djvu/354

 348 Southern Historical Society Papers.

peace, and that all the participants in the late war of the rebellion will soon be mustered on the far shores of the infinite

" The object, purposes and powers of said corporation shall be, and the same are hereby, limited to the erection and provision of a me- morial building at the national capital that shall be a suitable monu- ment to the valor, patriotism and fidelity of the American soldiers and sailors in the days of George Washington, and the establishment therein of a war-museum and library ; to perfect the fraternization of Appomattox; perpetuate the memories of the heroic dead; strengthen the renewed bonds of union between the States; to educate their chil- dren, so as to forever insure the nation from the perils of another civil war from any cause, and to promote purposes fraternal, chari- table, loyal and historical, in no sense partisan."

The order, it is said, will consist first of the men who were regu- larly enlisted or mustered in either of the contending armies during the war ; second, of the citizens who have reached a required age; third, of such patriotic citizens as desire to contribute to its success. One-half of all admission fees and fixed dues from members to go to a building fund, to be used first for the erection of the memorial building until completed, and then for the erection of the war-museum and library.

It is not proposed to ask Congress for anything more than a per- petual charter, permission to erect the building upon one of the pub- lic reservations, and copies of the books sent by the publishers to the Congressional library. It is anticipated that every State in the Union will, in behalf of the men each sent to the armies, contribute liberally.

The interest so just, grows more widely pervading, and is happily crystallizing into definite measures for durable and effective organi- zation.

A joint meeting of the Union and Confederate veterans, who were engaged at Chickamauga, was held in the room of the Senate Committee on Military Affairs in Washington on February I4th. The object was to devise a plan for preserving that field and mark- ing the positions of all the forces that participated in the fight. General Henry M. Cist, of Cincinnati, chairman of the committee of the Society of the Army of the Cumberland charged with this subject, called his committee here last night. It organized and invited co-operation from the ex Confederates present. The meeting