New Britain Herald Newspaper, June 15, 1915, Page 5

T — PR e N "PAY THEIR ANNUAL TRIBUTE 0THE “STAR SPANGLED BANNER” spiring Exercises Held in Lodge Room with Members of Stanley Post, G. A. R., As Guests of Occasion— Dr. Griswold Orator of Occasion, ican army was discipline and orgaa- ization. In Steuben he saw the man able to undertake and accomplish the task of converting the untrained and undisclipined gathering of farmers and mechanics into an effective army. and upon him he exercised all his well known powers of persuasion, until at last he brought about a meeting with - Franklin and Dean, but the former's manner, and some things he said, so offended Steuben, that the interview was soon terminated. Dean however, in his more diplomatic way, soon patched up a peace, and | and negotiations were resumed, but Steuben never entirely- got over his antipathy to Franklin, although he at last consented to come to = America and undertake the task of reorganiza- tion so much needed. Having con- sented, he sailed from Marsailles under an assumed name, and after a tempetuous voyage of fifty-five days, during which there was a mutiny among the crew, and the ship was three times on fire, they landed at Portsmouth, N. H., ‘on the eleventh of December, 1777. Steuben at once offered his services to congress, say- ing that the motive which brought | him here, and added a people engaged in defending their rights and" liber- ties, and added that though he had given up a lucrative rank and hon- orable position, he asked neither | the sreat thing lacking in the Amer- ‘ 1 I ‘honor the city was named, it being the first and oldest incorporated city in Ohio, and I may say in passing that many of the original settlers of the city and vicinity came frfom this im- mediate locality, “Steubenville was thé home ' of Edward M. Stanton, Lincoln's great war secretary, and one or_the finest. bronze statutes in the country stands in memory of him, in the yard of the Jefferson county court. house. The celebration was participated in by great throngs of people from all over Ohio, as well as from Pennsylvania, Kentucky and West Virginia, all of Wwhich states were represented in the military parade by various organiza- tions. The United States army was represented by two companies of ew Britain lodge, No. 957, B. P. ©9 K., paid its annual tribute to-the ' Amaerican tlag at exerciges held in the y ge- rooms last evening. The cer- nies were of an ennobling nature, fl:s fame of Old Gory being revived in ‘song and story. iNearly half a hundred members of Stanley post, G. A, R. were guests “of the lodge and" it could be easily agn that the grizzled ‘vets” enjoyed every minute of the evening. While New Haven N the evening at camp when all hands are after a day’s tramp, canoe trip, ‘ swimming, this 3 COLUMBIA Graphophone “Meteor” for $17.50, on easy # will make welcome entertainment. ' ; fishi the Alpha quartet of gang “Tenting on the Old Camp | Grounds” the 'men in blue were gutht again. With their chins cupped ALONZO J. HARY ""ROGER M. GRISWOLD Tribute to the Flag Flag Day Orator . their hands their memories flew pack over the stretch of years that soldiers of our later war called our sometimes unreasonably severe copit: President Lincoln ‘Old Abe.’ mander. But his soldlers soecn Bas silvered their hair and dimmed their eye, back to the tented villags the “Johnny Rebs"” only & short nce away. %A touching scene was enacted while assemblage was singing the *Star &éngled Banner.” At the first strains, all rose to their feet in tribute ‘to.the song and what it means. Two of the veterans could not rise. The gpirit was wiling but the . flesh ‘was éBK. Ini ‘vain they tried to stand un. several members of the lodge, see- itheir predicament, went to their | assig Witn guiding hands « to | "help them, the veterans. stood as \straight as the next man = and Te- sained’ standing until the last notes haa - died away. n the whole the services were aching and impressive. There is bably no organization in America has ‘more respect for'the ' Red, ite and Blue than the B. P. O, B. is tirst of all an American society its annual ‘Flag Day exercises a prominent role In its history m year to year. ' ' : he tribute to the flag, offered by fst Exalted Ruler Alonzo .J. Hart, s ‘excéptionally; well delivered. The ng of the Alpha quartet was ex-< ent and the work of the Elks’ or- was worthy of -praise. The OQ the flag was readiin an in- ing manpner by Herbert ! C. iahm. Exaited Ruler James/ H, u svas master Of ceremonies. Roger M. Griswold of Kensing- a lieutenant in the' ‘Putnam oy .-and.-his part in the exercise w:a:n,kon.ma of.. Dr. Griswold on ‘Baron ‘Steuben, ‘a stranger in .dand, who did as much to d* perpetuate. the Ameri-. After the exerciser lunch - was lserved, the veterans being entertained e rathskeller. K . Griswold’s address in full fol- hen the invitation came to me ‘deliver the oration Dbefore this .of Blks, who on previsus occa- .such as this, have been favored | eloquence, ~wit, = oratory and jos, it found me so occupied. that Ay impulse . was to decline the .. but when -your secretary. inti- mgted. that, the story of one who did fso - much to make it possible for our lig to wave over one hundred mil- {" free people, might bé of interest 86 you, I was klad to be able to.com- j%; with . his request. and so I come: $ you with the story which'I told at elebration of the ‘Three Wars' at enville, Ohio, on the 28rd, 24th, 25th of July, 1913, wi fléd in that city, memorials to Gen- if¥ George Rogers Clark, the con- or of the Northwest, Judge Jame on, grandfather ot President on, and one of the most illustrious h 'Ohio ever produced, and General on von Steuben, inspector general ' the Continental army, in whose s | 8ge of fourteen. regulars, and the navy by a company of marines. There was also present the secretary of war, the German em- bassador, and the governors of Penn- As the representative of the Putnam Pha- lanx, I was the guest of the city for five days, and what I shdll present to you tonight, is the story of that great of American colonies, as I gave it to “them.at the unveiling of the memorial ‘to Baron Steuben on that occasion, tory of a man, who nearly 140 ago gave up the pleasures and comforts which he had earned by more than thirty years of strenuous life'in camp and on the battlefield; to take up the cause of a' young and urdisciplined people, in their unequal sylvania and Ohio. military genius and th years &iruggle for liberty. Saw Warfare as “Frederick in American history, ticlan, and graduated and the Emperor of made him flattering offers to enter their services, but ai than thirty years strenous work, he seems to hdve fallen in love with the ease and pleasures of a life at court, and declined all offers of further ac- ‘tive service. Early in the year 1777 he started for: England to visit some English 'officers- whose acquaintance William Henry. Ferdinand von Steuben, known as Baron Setuben, is a unique figure Born in Magde: burg, Prussia, November 15,1730,‘ he was taken by his father into the war in the Crimea when he was so young- that he was but ten years old when he returned to Prussia. fzther’s, tutelage 'he has been so well instructed that he was prepared to enter the college at Neisse, where he aistinguished himself as a . mathema- friend Mere Auj at. the He now again joined his father in the army, and was pres- cnt at the siege of Prague. time:.on his career as = soldier was uninterrupted and continuous, until he was made aide to that great mili- tery . genius, Frederick the ' Great. After the close of the war, he was presented by his sov- | ereign with the canonry of Havelberg, and was made a grand marshal . Frussia, with an annuity for life, At this time the King of Sardinia, seven Austria fter his he had made in the Crimea. But Steuben was destined never to 'forces Stopping in Paris, he | engagement, and it is now. generally met ‘St. Germaine, the then French |admitted that no generzl in the fleld, ministéer of war, who just at that |not even Washington himselft, the | more for the see England. time Wwas greatly interested in cause of the American colonies. The | Baron Steuben. r the | astute Frenchman well knew desperate condition of the American cause, and was only to ready to'fur- ther that cause at the expense England. Franklin American commissioners, were urgent and persistent in their demands for assistance; ‘Steuben ‘Hope of United States The trained Germaine knew that | markings of a harsh, imperious nng and Dean, @ X SOTPLED AT THE BRCWERY ERT \ speciul Under his From this riches nor honor in return.” Offers Services as Volunteer. “He expressed himself as willing to serve as a volunteer in any casy pacity where he could be of greaatest use, with the understanding that if his services were not satisfactory, or the colonies failed to gain their in- dependence, he was to receive nothing, but if they were successful he was to be refunded the income he had given up, and receive such other remunera- ation as might be agreed upon, and as seemed just and right., Upon the | acceptance of his offer he departed | at once for Valley Forge. When he arrived at this desolate and famine stricken place he was so astonished and disheartened at conditions as he found them, that he said ‘no army in Burope could be kept together for | a week in such a state.’ “A man of different caliber would have given up the task of trying to create an efficlent army from /such thaterials, but his immediate and energetic work soon began to be apparent, and almost from the first the whole military system he- gan to take on new life and shape. “He was greatly handicapped by his lack of the knowlédge of English, and the awkwardness of the men at drill would sometimes throw him intc a rage so great that he would call on some of the officers who spoke Ge--‘ man, to translate the damnings which he gave them into language which they could understand. But the men goon’ learned to know the greatness of his warm heart, and his liberality and parental care soon made them in- dulgent to his warm curses * “On the advise of Washington he was made inspector with the rank cof major-general in May, 1778, and at once began a system of drill. and the appointment of sub-inspectors throughout the army. “This is not the time nor place ta summarize the great work which he accomplished. Numerous historians bhave handed that down to us. The work was so unostentatiously, so without ‘fuss or feathers,’ so gen- erally dnknown and unseen by the country at large, that its importance was not realized them, and has never since been fully appreciated. It was so effective, however, that from that If You Purchase time on, the regular, or Continental were never defcated in any aid American cause than A Strict Disciplinarian. ;“His army seérvices at this time be- ing a matter of official record,’ we shall call attention rather to his per- sonal characteristics, than to his mill. tary achievements. His great ability as a disciplinarian and his skill as a drill master and teacher of military tactics gave to him the external yo;xr lager in THIS package you will buy A Real ~ Old Time ~ Lager Beer: one of the beers that has made good lager beer the popular,deli- cious beverage it is, Case Goods for Home use, of your Dealer or our Bottling Department. THE HUBERT FISCHER BREWERY { Dehm, Hotel Schmary, W. J. Hartford, Conn., Keevers, 3 Beloin, McCarthy. e ers.. . - learned that under the rough exter- ior, like the velvety lining to tle chestnut burr, was hidden a heart full of charity, generos'ty. and rev- erence for all things which- were noble, honest and pure. “If Steuben was irritable and errat- ic in his personality, it was largely due to his lack of knowledge of Eng< lish, and often to the unpolished man# ners of many of the army office with whom he came in contact, for he had been bred in a court of con: venticnal mannerisms, and of stocking diplomacy, and the rude manners of some of his brother offi- cers often jarred his aristocratic nerves. 2 “He was naturally frank, blunt and excitable, expressing his sentiments without, fear or favor and scrupulously just to foe and friend alike. Stern and inflexible as a dis- civlinarian, in battlee hee wes rash, violent and furious as a tornado, and as little sparing of what he said or did. And yet under it all, he was oné of the kindest hearts which ever beat under a men’s coat. Ready to Attack Hell with Wayne. “’Steuben and General Anthony Wayne had a great and mutual ad- miration for each other, and at the siege of Yorktown, when ‘asked if he thought a certain point could be tak- en by assault, said ‘If someone will plan an attack on Hell, Wayne and I will storm the gates.’ With his mon- ey he was prodigal to a fault, and as appeals to his symathy, and conse- quently his pocket-book were fre- quent, ie was never long possessed of funds. On one occasion when he had received 600 pounds from the sale of some property in the old country, it is related that he at once spent half of it for food and clothing for the more needy of his soldiers, and with- in a week had lent or given away nearly all the rest among his friends. His table, whenever he had anything to put upon it, was always filled with officers, often of an inferior rank, for, he said, ‘the poor fellows have tield officers appetites without their pay or rations.’ On one occasion 'he sold nearly all his camp equipment to give a dinner to some French offi~ cers whose hospitality he had often enjoyed. When the common soldiers heard of this, they soon stole enough from the neighboring villages, and from other officers, to refurnish his quarters. Referring to this incident as showing the feeling which the soldies had for him, one of ‘them wrote home to His father, saying ‘we are not going to have any little cap- tains in this camp, sleep on feather beds while the “old Dutchman” sleeps on straw.’ After the siege of York- town he sold hig only horse to give a dinner to the captured British offi- cers, and long before this he had pawned his watch to relieve the needs of a friend. When sometimes chided for his impecunious habits he repliea, ‘One can nearly always geét money, but their friends are few.' “When he was leaving Yorktown after the surrender of Cornwallis, he went to Major North, who was sick with' a fever, and said, ‘I am leav- ing vou my shay that you may get out of this place as soon as you can,’ and giving him a piece of gold he said, ‘this is half of all the money 1 have in the world.’ No Home After the War. “Whaen the army man disbanded at Newburg, most of the officers and men, though poor, unpaid and desti- tute, had at least homes to go to. But Steuben had no home. He was a stranger in a strange land and yet 8o ready was he to aild and comfort those about him, that he turned to Colonel Cichrane who stood near him with a look of sadness on his face, and said, ‘Cheer up Cochrane, in such a country as this, things will soon be better.’ Cochrane replied ‘I can take care of myself, but in the attic of the hotel across the street, are my wife and daughters, and I have not sufficient money to buy them a meal, or to remove them to a more suitable lodging.’ Steuben was soon missed from the gathering of officers, and when he returned, he had not a dol- lar in his pockets, for he had sought out the wife and children of his com- rade in arms, and left with them the entire contents of his purse.” “In spite of his strict discipline, he wsa 80 loved by the common soldiers that one of them wrote home to his wife as follows, ‘The Old Dutchman would \give the last loaf he had to his men and g0 hungry: himself. ‘While I was on picket yesterday he gave me a pips of tobaceo, and I think it was the last he had. The men respect most of the other offi- cers, but they love the 0ld Dutch- man, and would follow him to hell and back if -he asked them.’ Such was the human side of the man whom his soldiers called the ‘Old Dutch- man’ in the same spirit in which the silk? j Comnnecticut was organized in | ket, Steuben a Religious Man. “In spite of Steuben's gruff man- ner, and: his, picturesque profanity under provocation, the religious side of 'his character was markedly pre- dominant. When in. New York he Wwag a constant and devout attendant At old 'Trinity. When lving' in his +dog ‘cabin in the woods, he ifailed ' to attend divine service #*the opportunity offered. The g is perhaps the only authen- et we have bearing evidence to nterest in’ the affairs of the churech. The Missionary society of 1798, but before that time the Congrega- tional ‘ministers of the state had sent out ‘some of their members to visit the setlements along the Mohawk river as far west as Oneéida lake. In the archives of the society at Hart- ford, there are many curious reports from these missionaries. Among them is a faded and tattered letter ad- dressed to the general assembly and Congregational clergymen of Connec- ticut. It wag written by the inhabi- tants of that little town of Steuben, N, Y., thanking the good people.of Connecticut for their great kindness in sending them a good minister to preach the gospel among them. The first signature on that paper was that of the noble old man and heroic sol- dier, Baron Steuben, who died the following year. Forty American far- mers attended his funeral, and in- terred his remains in the native for- est, within a few rods of his humble | home. “When a boy more than fifty vears ago, I spent much of my time in the home of my paternal grandmother, who before she married was Ann Ar- nold, daughter of Samuel Arnold of the little village of Hockanum, in the town of East Hartford, on the Con- necticut river. In the old farmhouse where she lived, built in the latter part of 1600, in the closet of an up- stairs. chamber, I found an old but well preserved and serviceabile mus- which my grandmother told me was ‘the -gun which Uncle Jonathan had in the war.’ " “There seemed to be: something about the history of this Uncle Jon- athan of which she was proud, and after I.attained man's estate, I sought out and verified the truth of the story which she told me as a boy. Jona- than Arnold spent his boyhood in this old house, where his father Ensign John Arnold, and his grandfather, Sergeant John Arnold, lived and died before him. “Jonathan’s mother was Lucy, daughter of Captain Thomas Wads- worth, who lived on *he farm next ' 1 | ! f J nqrth of his grahdfather, and in this old Wadsworth house still standing, Jonathan was born, February 27, 1757. He enlisted for the war when a lit- tle over eighteen years old, taking the place of his father who had served for several months before him. From the day he enlisted until after the army disbanded at Newburg, Jonathan never came home, Others might ask for a furlough, but Jonathan remained at the front. He was a member of Colonel Sheldon’s Light Horse cavalry, and later of Colonel Huntington’s reg- iment of infantry, and still later an detached service as a drill sergeant. Steuben and Jonathan Arnold. “At the attempted treasan of Ben- edict Arnold, a part of the American army under command of Steuben, was stationed at Verplanks Point on the Hudson river. A roll call on the morning following the capture of An- dre, when the name of Jonathan Ar- nold was called, the general said ‘Cor- poral Arnold three paces to the front. Steubén was a man of hardly medium size, and as he dismounted from his horse, and came close up in front of Arnold, and lookeéed him over from head to:foot, he found facing him a young man of about 20 years, standing six foot two inches tall, and said to be able to whip any man in the bri., gade. Even after he was sixty years old he was noted far his strength, and lightness of foot. Taking a musket from one of the sergeants, Steuben put Jonathan through the manual from ‘Shoulder arm’ to ‘Parade rest,’ and then turning to one of his aides, who was familiar with German, he said, “Tell this man he is a good soldier with a bad name, and he must change it. Arnold asked ‘What name shall 1 take, general?’ ' Steuben replied, ‘If you have none better, mine is at your service, and I will stand as your god- father.! Arnold’s name was imme- diately changed on the company roll to Jonathan Steuben, and Jonathan Styben he always remained, and after the close of the war the *unge nas legalized by act of the gen®ral assem- bly of Connecticut. “In 1790 the state aof New York granted a large tract of land, neer where the city of Utica now stands, to Baron Steuben, where he built a leg house, which he made his home, with occasional trips to New York and to his old army friends. Steuben left 138 Main St. & Nore ™ his favorite aid, and he gave Jonathan a large tract of the New York sta'e grant, to which he removed, with sev- eral others from Connecticut, and founded the township of Steuben, One'- da county. Here Jonathan Arnold Steuben died and was buried, Jan- uary first, 1839. His only surviving son, William North, named after Major North, was living in Santa Clara county in the latter part of 1889, age eighty- two. In such a manner has the name of the ‘old inspector general of the Con- tinental army been perpetuated by the descendants of the Yankee farmer =ol. dier, Jonathan Arnold, of Fast Hart- ford, Conn. Steuben Much Like Putnam. In many respects the characters of Putnam and Steuben were similar, Both were strict disciplinarians, and fearless resolute men, shirking no hardships, repelled by no difficulties, daunted by no dangers.. “He dared to lead where any dared to follow’ ap- plies as well to Steuben as to Putnam, Neither ever asked his men to en- dure a hardship or face a danger they were not personally willing to meet. But both lacked the power of combin- ation which only qualifies for a great commander-in-chief. They were not fitted to conduct a campaign over a large territory, that combined the the movements of different bodies of men. They were both remarkable for the'r ability ‘o concentrate their ener- gies on a single point, but they were not fitted to control a large army and moved it with ease and rapidity. In their imnetuous daring, chivalric man- ner, and steadfastness of purpose, both resembled the great Frenchman Lannes, more than any other ‘>great military ‘eader. Both had that rare quality of character which never al- lowed them to become discouraged. Putnam ‘.ever made preparations for retreat, he always expected to advance and fight From what we know of Steuben it is doubtful if the thought of retreat ever entered his mind when he went into battle. They were both iron men of ugswerving integrity, generous, frank, brave, noble men, Putnam fighting for his country, and his l.ome, Steuben fighting for the freedom of mankind and from his love of humanity. Slould Be Thankful for Steuben, “We have always been thankful of his Steuben lived to see the result of his work for his adopted country. In spite of all the difficulties under which he labored, the bright came at last when the treasure of spilled, -and the labor of seven years, found its fruition. The matchless cour<ge and patience of Washington, supplemented by the great skill and energy of Steuben, worked out the ! reward of our countries freedom, and we today enjoy the results of their labors. When we think of what Steu- en was in his native land, of his rank and distinction, of the sacrifices he made, of what he did so thoroughly and patiently for us, of the results he accomplished in spite of the inade- quatc material at his command, the jealously of his brother officers, and the refusal of an incompetent and unpatriotic congress to recognize his woith and assist his efforts content to art in an humble and inconspicu. ous capacity, if thereby he could eon- tribute to a just and righteous cause, when we consider all these things, then his name grows luminous and resplendent , among that galaxy of Revolutionary heroes, who stand as day | symbnls of dutiful service, heroicly performed. “And so today, nearly one hundred and forty years after Steuben landed on the rough shores of New Eng- land, in this city which has become a busy hive of industry in less than' half , that time, enjoying the fruits of that land he did so much to help our ancestors acquire, and living under that flag which ‘he helped to Mmake the emblem of the most pro- gressive and enlightened nation the world has ever seen, we have come most of his property to Major North, | together, with many of ours great order Small, light, easy to tote and needing little room, the “Meteor” is a musical instrument {l make your camp complete this summer. BRODRIB & WH in in this country, to do’ verence to that flag and his compatriots and which these men some of whom are service, Steuben to liberty, and the these men of country the: men of 1861, A cent rivers, and of luxuriant valleys where the churéh house stand “And ye! 28 this, in honor of livion children, a heritage which passing years “And what a land 1776, guests, did so much to n out the loss of a single blotting out of a single Having affluence and ho home country, standing 3 esteme of his great the kings of Europe left friends and fatherland, the land of the sti might have part in t new nation, and help ‘4—. (o o by breath of freedom blo tinent from ocean to oo so short is ¢ ¢f man, that, but for su our blem, and in commem men of past days, the would soon memory of their noble such acts as this, we b mit to our children and el 3 of ¥ “We may say in closing all forms of honoring the | desirable, and salutes, and orations are commendable, in which we can best tional emblem, is to teach, our children, but those who are yearly coming to foreign lands, that they can honor it by being worthy of of that which it represents. and martial music, and tions are useless, if the a nation indifferent to high | neglectful of its duty 4 fellow men, and our God. = % If we expect other our flag, it must be A over a nation to whom spect are due. of trouble and awful And i the parts of the world, we mi erendly, with uncoversd from such as this, United States of America.’ " ‘God P.B. Alg Is the Best Nig Take a glass bedtime. and sleep. No better tonic Ale or It aids diges sound, R than P, they PBAL At best bars and hotels. dealer cannot su; write for New England.” Bunker Hill B mld 1 ) __ 172-174 e il -