Page:The World's Famous Orations Volume 9.djvu/40

 THE WORLD'S FAMOUS ORATIONS this great cause! Him! the premature victim of his own self -devoting heart! Him! the head of our civil councils, and the destined leader of our military bands, whom nothing brought hither but the unquenchable fire of his own spirit ! Him ! cut off by Providence in the hour of overwhelming anxiety and thick gloom; fall- ing ere he saw the star of his country rise; pouring out his generous blood like water, be- fore he knew whether it would fertilize a land of freedom or of bondage ! — how shall I struggle with the emotions that stifle the utterance of thy name? Our poor work may perish; but thine shall endure ! This monument may molder away; the solid ground it rests upon may sink down to a level with the sea; but thy memory shall not fail ! Wheresoever among men a heart shall be found that beats to the transports of patriotism and liberty, its aspirations shall be to claim kindred with thy spirit. But the scene amid which we stand does not permit us to confine our thoughts or our sym- pathies to those fearless spirits who hazarded or lost their lives on this consecrated spot. We have the happiness to rejoice here in the presence of a most worthy representation of the sur- vivors of the whole Revolutionary army. Veterans! you are the remnant of many a well-fought field. You bring with you marks of honor from Trenton and Monmouth, from Yorktown, Camden, Bennington, and Saratoga. Veterajsts op half a century! when in your 30