Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 18.djvu/270

 270 Southern Historical Society Papers.

rank that fought in our Western armies the most illustrious expo- nent of Irish valor and prowess that has yet appeared upon Ameri- can fields. He knew how to lead a charge or rally a wavering col- umn; possessed those martial qualities that achieve success and in- spire in soldiers devotion to their leader. Though a stern discipli- narian, he was loved by his soldiers, who were ready to go wherever he commanded. He was not only a commander, but a comrade, fighting with his men. And if every Confederate soldier had been a Cleburne, we question not that the issue of the war would have been reversed and the political destiny of a people changed. He was a fearless soldier, a sagacious leader, a true patriot and a reproachless man. In his devotion to the cause he espoused he shrank from no sacrifice. Inspired by a sense of right "and sustained by a sublime courage he challenged danger and died gallantly in the cause of his country." His deeds we honor, his death we mourn ; and in token of our recognition of his sacrifices, our admiration of his deeds and our veneration for his memory this modest monument has been erected. And on behalf of the ex-Confederate soldiers, and indeed of the people of the South, I would offer our thanks to those who have especially had charge of and accomplished this noble work. Beautify it with flowers, wreath it with laurel and crown it with im- mortelles. At the call of Arkansas he went to the field and it is fitting that his remains should repose in her soil ; and more espe- cially upon this beautiful spot, said to have been a favorite resort in his walks before the war. Tennessee, whose bosom received his blood, unites in honoring his memory to-day. Her soldiers, her pa- triots, her citizens are here, while her histories contain high tributes to his name. A work, entitled the " Military Annals of Tennessee," contains a chapter (written by Colonel C. W. Frazer, of that State, and who served in General Cleburne' s command), in which this pa- ragraph appears :

"The hero worship (amounting almost to idolatry) on the one hand, and the sympathy and admiration on the other, that existed between this regiment (the Fifth Confederate, composed of Tennes- seans), and General Cleburne was remarkable, and can only be par- tially accounted for by their common birthplace, their devotion to the Southern cross, and the ties that bind men who have often met a common foe in the death grapple. The snows of twenty winters have covered his modest grave at Helena, Ark., but now the men- tion of the name of Pat. Cleburne, brightens the eye and quickens the pulse of every man who fought under him. A born soldier, he