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 ADDRESSES OF COMMANDERS 
 
 AT 
 
 ANNUAL BANQUETS 
 
 OF THE 
 
 COMMANDERY OF THE STATE OF MICHIGAN. 
 
 MILITARY ORDER OF THE 
 
 LOYAL LEGION 
 
 OF THE 
 
 UNITED STATES, 
 
 AT 
 
 DETROIT, MICH. 
 
 Detroit, Mich.: 
 
 WINN & HAMMOND, PRINTERS. 
 
 1893. 
 
 / 
 
Gift 
 Author 
 
 18JP05 
 
INTRODUCTORY. 
 
 At the Annual Banquet of the Michigan Commandery 
 of the Loyal Legion, at the Russell House, 
 ^ . Detroit, May 5, 1886. 
 
 By COMPANION ORLANDO M. POE, 
 Brevet Brigadier General, U. S. Army, Commander. 
 
 " When the oldest cask is opened, 
 
 And the largest lamp is lit ; 
 When the Chestnuts glow in the embers, 
 
 And the Kid turns on the spit ; 
 When young and old in circle 
 
 Around the firebrands close ; 
 When the girls are weaving baskets 
 
 And the lads are shaping bows." 
 
 " When the goodman mends his armor, 
 
 And trims his helmet's plume ; 
 When the good wife's shuttle merrily 
 
 Goes flashing through the loom ; 
 With weeping and with laughter 
 
 Still is the story told, 
 How well Horatius kept the bridge 
 
 In the brave days of old." 
 
 The traditions of martial glory "in the brave days of old," 
 were kept alive in the home circle, amidst the ordinary 
 avocations, and their recital stimulated emulation amongst 
 
the younger folk. Somehow it has become customary to 
 extend the circle, and to celebrate the memory of deeds of 
 valor by eating, drinking and speech making. 
 
 In former times war was the only honorable profession 
 outside of mother church. We live in a time when the 
 honorable pursuits are not so limited, but none the less we 
 revere the church and grow enthusiastic over the stories of 
 feats of arms. Although we no longer mend our armor, and 
 the trimming of helmet plumes is relegated to younger men, 
 it is proper that we, a small portion of the survivors of the 
 greatest conflict the world has ever seen, whilst not especially 
 straining our relations with the church, should occasionally 
 meet together to renew the memories of the camp and battle, 
 and if wte prove to be somewhat noisy in our demonstrations, 
 it is only because our blood is w^armed to youthful heat by 
 the recollections which crowd upon us. 
 
 In the responses which are to follow, it is not improbable 
 that we may recognize some "Chestnuts." If so, you will 
 doubtless good-humoredly assist in drawing them from the 
 embers, and seem to relish them as greatly as if they w r ere 
 not a little "wormy." As we listen to the unprepared bursts 
 of eloquence now snugly reposing in the coat pockets of those 
 who are to reply to the toasts, you will see that you are not 
 alone to be banqueted upon hard-tack and — its acompani- 
 ment. It is proposed to give you something more palatable 
 and more headachy. The "feast of reason and the flow of 
 soul" will lie around loose, and will contribute to the head 
 trouble. The viands will be guiltless. Notwithstanding the 
 heaviness of the speeches to which you will be compelled to 
 listen, now that we have you securely here, I beg you will 
 give your undivided attention to the speakers, and award 
 them that measure of applause which they crave. Even if 
 you do not subscribe to every sentiment, sprinkle in the 
 tremendous applause after the manner of the public printer 
 
in the speeches of the Members of Congress as they appear in 
 that hilarious publication, the Congressional Record. It 
 will do you no harm, and will encourage the orators. 
 Remember how badly they fee], and the great embarrassment 
 under which they labor. 
 
 We have no kids turning on the spit, but some of us have 
 "kids" at home, whose juvenile ears we kindly fill with 
 tales of what we did "in the war." What an appreciative 
 audience the little folks make, and how unquestioningiy they 
 place us in the front rank of heroes. The strategy of 
 Hannibal, the stern fighting of Frederick, the cunning of 
 Marlborough were as nothing compared with the way their 
 fathers fought and overcame the rebels. They learn what a 
 glorious privilege it will be to inherit, through us, first-class 
 membership in the Loyal Legion and to partake of future 
 banquets. Long may it be before they come into their 
 heritage. Meanwhile they will have to be satisfied with 
 membership of the second class, and practice the virtue of 
 longing and waiting. 
 
 The customs have greatly changed since the days of 
 Horatius. It is the lads who now weave baskets, shingles 
 etc., in their moments of leisure from weary cigarettes and 
 beer, whilst the girls devote their attention to the catching 
 and shaping of beans, trusting to the milliners for their bows 
 and other furbelows. Our goodwi Tr es, too, no longer waste 
 their energies at the loom, yet Companions Smith and Curtiss 
 can tell you how " Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed 
 like one of these." This shows how wonderfully our 
 civilization has advanced beyond that of the Romans. 
 
 It may be asked what are we here for, anyhow. In the 
 earlier days of my membership in the Loyal Legion, an 
 anxious inquirer desired to know what was the object of our 
 Order. I told him it was to meet occasionally and ' ' swop 
 lies." I am better informed now, and am satisfied that a 
 
searcher for the lies must go to the Official Record of the 
 War of the Rebellion. In this assemblage will be heard 
 nothing but the truth. If any body doubts it we will all 
 swear. 
 
 After the speeches shall have been delivered, let us 
 indulge in reminiscences of the days when the ear piercing 
 fife, the rattling drum, and sometimes the blaring trumpet 
 ("Chestnuts,") awoke us from our slumbers, and set us to 
 wondering what fiend invented reveille. If there be a deeper 
 depth of damnation, it is reserved for that devil who invented 
 this torture. In case of another war the opposing armies 
 should strike against the reveille, and by arbitration arrange 
 for its abolition, probably by declaring a truce between the 
 hours of sunset and 10 a. m. next day, (standard time), 
 during which no movement should be made, and no military 
 duty be performed. It would notably ameliorate the horrors 
 of war. This suggestion is not patented, and as there is no 
 "job" in it, the digression will perhaps be pardoned. 
 
 There are many interesting memories stored away in the 
 pigeon-holes of your minds. Pull out the drawers and 
 overhaul the records, set your tongues to wagging, but don't 
 all talk at once. Give the other fellow a chance to tell how 
 he saved the day at Gettysburg, or how he and Grant 
 captured Lee, or how contemptible it was in Sherman to steal 
 from him his plan for the ' ' March to the Sea. ' ' It would be 
 cruel to deprive him of the pleasure, and it would be selfish 
 in you to monopolize the conversation. 
 
 The story of the war will never grow stale, 
 
 " When the oldest cask is opened, 
 And the largest lamp is lit ; 
 # # # # 
 
 With weeping and with laughter, 
 Still is the story told." 
 
And as our hearts warm up with the good cheer before 
 us, and the glistening eye but reflects the gleam of its 
 neighbor, there is little danger that our thoughts will become 
 prosaic, or that the current of our feelings will run in too 
 stagnant a stream. Let us drink deeply of the draught of 
 pleasure in each other's company, — again feel the magnetic 
 touch of our comrade's elbow. 
 
 But let our laughter "and merriment be mingled Avith 
 sadness as we remember those who went with us to battle, 
 never to return. 
 
 " They lie at rest, our blessed dead ; 
 
 The dew drops cool above their head." 
 
 Our hearts are wrung with sorrow at the memory of their 
 fate, but swell too, with pride at the recollection of their 
 patriotism and knightly gallantry. Our tears bedew their 
 graves, whilst history records their exploits for the admiration 
 of posterity. 
 
 In all this we are doing right, and continuing it from year 
 to year as we move on to our end, we may feel well assured 
 that we are laying, broad and deep, the foundations of 
 patriotism amongst our descendants, and that our beloved 
 country will find them as ready to do and die for her in her 
 time of need as we were in the "brave days of old " 
 
 God save the United States ! 
 
INTRODUCTORY 
 
 At the Annual Banquet of the Michigan Commandery 
 
 of the Loyal Legion, at the Russell House, 
 
 Detroit, June i, 1887. 
 
 By COMPANION ORLANDO M. POE, 
 Brevet Brigadier General, U. S. Army, Commander. 
 
 At our banquet last year a visiting companion related an 
 anecdote which probably illustrates the popular notion of 
 these gatherings of old soldiers. He stated that upon an 
 occasion which called a large number of them together, a 
 street arab remarked to his companion, that "them is the 
 fellers what fit, and fit, and fit," whereupon the other replied, 
 " Yes, and they haint got done a-blowin' about it yit." 
 
 However much we may be inclined to blowin', in the 
 aggregate, individually we are opposed to anything of t*he 
 kind. 
 
 The story of the whole life of any one man is seldom 
 interesting, nor do we meet for any purpose of listening to 
 such. So far as the members of the Loyal # Legion are con- 
 cerned, our life's history is. concentrated in the four years 
 covering the duration of the War of the Rebellion. That 
 period, in point of time comprises but a comparatively small 
 fraction of our lives, but in events it tells nearly all there is 
 of interest attaching to a great majority of us. 
 
It is proper that we congregate from time to time to 
 interchange our experiences in camp and held, in trench and 
 assault, and, by a little effort, preserve for future reference 
 the personal observations of our members. In a few years 
 the last of us will have disappeared from earth forever, and 
 such stories as Trowbridge, Duffield, Withington, Swift and 
 Pittman have told us during the past year will have a value 
 to our descendent successors that no laboriously compiled 
 history by a non-participant can ever equal. These remi- 
 niscences will stimulate those inheriting membership in our 
 order to greater interest in the affairs of the Union saved by 
 the very life-blood of their fathers, and arouse, in the highest 
 degree, that patriotism which ennobles a people. Does any 
 member of the Loyal Legion, who is such by virtue of his 
 personal service, Hatter himself with the belief that his 
 response to the call of his country in 1861, was more prompt 
 or patriotic than will be that of his successor by inheritance ? 
 If so, he can readily have his answer in the faces and bearing 
 of the splendid young men whom he daily meets on our 
 thoroughfares, and be disabused of any such conceit. 
 
 Let us tell and tell again the story of Fort Sumpter, of 
 Donelson, of the Peninsula, of Antietam, of Gettysburg, of 
 Vicksburgh, of Chattanooga, of Knoxville, of Atlanta, of the 
 Wilderness and Petersburgh, of the March to the Sea, the 
 Campaign of the Carolina s. of Nashville, and of Appomatox, 
 as well as of hundreds of other fields and campaigns where 
 men died by the thousand in evidence that we have a Nation 
 worth this supreme sacrifice. If our " of t told tale " results 
 in greater love of country, in profounder respect for her 
 constitution and laws— in forming a nucleus around which 
 may rally, in time of National trial, all the patriotic elements 
 of our people, — then indeed will our efforts have served their 
 purpose. 
 
10 
 
 Much has been written, said and published about the 
 Rebellion. Generals are quarreling about this battle, and 
 statesmen wrangling about the disposition made of that 
 question, but all seem to forget that each, in his own sphere, 
 only did his share of the work allotted him. Seldom does 
 success or failure in the great events of nations depend upon 
 one man, and our Civil War was no exception to the rule. 
 Generals there were who were mighty men of war, — but there 
 were others who were weaklings of their kind. Privates 
 there were who were only fit for the "coffee-cooling'' station 
 they so persistently filled, — but there were others who would 
 have graced tlje double stars of the Major General. We 
 know it was neither the weaklings nor the "coffee-coolers" 
 who bore our glorious nag to its pinnacle of fame. Notwith- 
 standing the graceful diction of the professional writer, 
 illustrated by the highest skill of the engraver, there is more 
 of downright truth, and therefore of historical value, 
 preserved in the papers of the Loyal Legion than in a cart 
 load of volumes made to glorify the writer or some pet 
 subject of his. The story of the soldier, told in the presence 
 of soldiers, is, and must be related in simple words, free 
 from self-laudation, untruthfulness, and all other unright- 
 eousness. No vague forms of expression nor confusion of 
 words can conceal from such hearers misconduct or blunders. 
 He tells a plain unvarnished tale. We are gratified by its 
 clearness without being dazzled by any reflected light, and 
 when it is completed we know what he has been talking 
 about and believe what we have heard. 
 
 Trowbridge has given a better and clearer account of the 
 operations of the cavalry on the right, at Gettysburg, than 
 has any other man thus far. It is most satisfactory because 
 we know he was there, and we know the man. 
 
 S. E. Pittman has given the clearest account of the opera- 
 tions of Gen. A. S. Williams' command at Chancellorsville. 
 
11 
 
 It is invaluable because we know he was there, and we know 
 the man. 
 
 H. M. Duffield has described a portion of the operations 
 at Chicamauga. We have no difficulty in comprehending 
 the story and mentally following all the movements with 
 perfect confidence, for we know that he was there, and we 
 know the man. 
 
 And those of us who were present will remember the 
 pathos of that story of prison life and return to the cover of 
 the flag as told by Swift. The breathless silence, the 
 moistened eye, the twitching face lines of his comrades truly 
 showed how deeply they were in sympathy with him, and 
 our love and reverence for the glorious stars and stripes were 
 heightened as he recounted the emotions of himself and his 
 fellow sufferers as they passed under its folds. 
 
 The chapter which Withington has added to the history of 
 the earliest movements in Michigan, and the organization and 
 dispatch of her first troops to the seat of war is of inestimable 
 value, and all Michigan men should be grateful to him for 
 his labor. 
 
 Companions, I have but little respect for the patriotism of 
 any man whose blood does not bound with higher impulse ; 
 whose nerves do not tingle with thrills of pride ; who does 
 not glow with greater ardor at the recital of the glorious 
 deeds of his country's defenders. I cannot believe that any 
 considerable portion of our people would willingly have them 
 forgotten. It is sometimes said that we should forgive and 
 forget. The Loyal Legion will carry forgiveness to the very 
 extreme, for that is incumbent upon the Christian gentleman, 
 and distinguishes him from the unrelenting savage, but they 
 will never forget. They are not made of the milk and water 
 stuff that forms the pabulum of babes. Neither do we 
 expect our opponents to forget their heroic deeds, nor to 
 cease to tell of them. We only ask that in doing so they 
 
12 
 
 will give us the same meed of praise that we give them, and 
 that they will be as fair in their relation of events as we are. 
 They were magnificent in war ; their prowess was worthy of 
 our antagonism, out chief glory consists in having beaten 
 them, and we do not intend to forget it. 
 
 To the guests who have honored us by their presence, I 
 beg to say that we meet in no vain-glorious spirit. Our 
 object is to keep alive that feeling of comradeship which had 
 its origin amid the stirring scenes of actual war, and to 
 cultivate among the younger generations, upon whom the 
 burden of future wars must fall, that sentiment of true 
 loyalty to our country and its institutions which will carry it 
 forward to "a fame that no tongue can be telling," and to 
 the proudest place in the history of nations. 
 
 It may not be amiss, in the presence of this distinguished 
 company to publish the principles and objects of the Order 
 as set forth in the language of our Constitution. 
 
 The fundamental principles are : 
 
 First. "A firm belief and trust in Almighty God; 
 extolling Him under whose beneficent guidance the sover- 
 eignty and integrity of the Union have been maintained, the 
 honor of the flag vindicated, and the blessing of civil liberty 
 secured, established and enlarged." 
 
 Second. ' ' True allegiance to the United States of America, 
 based upon paramount respect for and fidelity to the National 
 Constitution and Laws, and manifested by discountenancing 
 whatever may tend to weaken loyalty, to incite to insur- 
 rection, treason or rebellion, or to impair in any manner the 
 efficiency and permanency of our free institutions." 
 
 The objects of the Order are "to cherish the memories 
 and associations of the war waged in defense of the unity 
 and indivisibility of the Republic; to strengthen the ties of 
 fraternal fellowship and sympathy formed by companionship- 
 in-arms; to advance the best interests of the soldiers and 
 
13 
 
 sailors of the United States, especially of those associated as 
 members of this Order, and to extend all possible relief to 
 their widows and children ; to foster the cultivation of 
 military and naval science ; to enforce unqualified allegiance 
 to the general government ; to protect the rights and liberties 
 of American citizenship, and to maintain National honor, 
 union and independence." 
 
 Gentlemen, upon such a platform of principles and objects 
 we are prepared to expect the countenance and respect of 
 every lover of his country, and claim for our Order the same 
 degree of regard so freely bestowed upon our revered 
 progenitor, the Order of the Cincinnati. 
 
 For the further information of our guests I venture to 
 give a short account of the organization and present condition 
 of the Michigan Commandery. 
 
 In mid-winter of 1885, at the suggestion of Col. H. M. 
 Duffield, a meeting was called of the members of the Loyal 
 Legion then residing in Detroit, with a view to the organiza- 
 tion of a Commandery for the State of Michigan. At that 
 meeting only live persons could be gathered, and after 
 inquiry it was ascertained that only seven members were 
 resident in the State. As thirteen was the minimum number 
 that could be granted a charter, it was necessary to secure 
 the requisite additional membership before anything further 
 could be done. But little effort was needed, and when 
 application was duly made for a charter, General Hancock, 
 then Acting Commander-in-chief, promptly gave it his 
 approval. At a stated meeting of the Acting Commandery - 
 in-chief (the Commandery-in-chief was not organized until 
 later), held in the City of Philadelphia, February 4, 1885, 
 the charter was issued to 
 
 Brevet Brigadier General, Orlando M. Poe, 
 
 Of the Commandery of the District of Columbia. 
 
 Brevet Brigadier General, Henry B. Clitz. 
 
 Of the Commandery of the State of New York. 
 
14 
 
 First Lieutenant Henry M. Duffield, 
 Brevet Major General, Luther S. Trowbridge, 
 Brevet Brioadiet General, John Gibson Parkhurst, 
 Brevet Major General, Russell A. Alger, 
 
 Of the Commandery of the State of Massachusetts. 
 
 Surgeon, Sidney L. Fuller, 
 Lieutenant, Fordyce H. Rogers. 
 Brevet Brigadier General, John Pulford, 
 Brevet Major Levi T. Griffin, 
 Brevet Major James Biddle, 
 
 Of the Commandery of the State of Wisconsin. 
 
 Brevet Lieutenant Colonel, Robert Burns, 
 Lieutenant, Deming Jarves, 
 
 Of the Commandery of the State of Illinois. 
 
 Just the requisite thirteen members. 
 
 The permanent organization was effected in Detroit, April 
 13, 1885, and has remained with little change as to its officers 
 until the present time. 
 
 Meanwhile our membership has grown to 139, and we 
 have thus far had a career of remarkable prosperity. 
 
 Having been the commander first elected, and having 
 been twice re-elected, by a unanimous vote on each occasion, 
 I am very proud of the success which has attended our 
 undertaking, and reckon amongst the first honors of my life 
 the confidence which my fellow-soldiers have reposed in me. 
 
 With the close of this meeting I transfer the command of 
 the Michigan Commandery to that knightly Michigan soldier 
 and chivalric gentleman, General Russell A. Alger, "on 
 whose bright plume of fame not a spot of the dark is." His 
 unanimous election this evening betokens a continuance of 
 the wonderful harmony that has prevailed amongst us from 
 the first. With him to lead us we are sure to increase in 
 numbers, and, as an Order, in the estimation of our fellow- 
 citizens. 
 
 I say then, with an overflowing heart, long life and 
 presperity to the Michigan Commandery of the Loyal Legion, 
 and beg the company to rise and join me in three hearty 
 cheers for the commander elect. 
 
INTRODUCTORY. 
 
 At the Annual Banquet of the Michigan Commandery 
 
 of the Loyal Legion, at Hotel Cadillac, Detroit, 
 
 Mich., May i, 1889. 
 
 By COMPANION BYRON R. PIERCE, 
 Brevet Major General, U. S. V., Senior Vice-Commander. 
 
 Companions and Friends: 
 
 If I had words or wit I could not be eloquent at this time; 
 if I can only hold the front line steady and firm and render 
 possible a right royal good time at this banquet I shall be 
 satisfied. 
 
 My position this evening is made by the unaccountable 
 absence for several months of our commander, which yet 
 remains clouded in mystery, a brave soldier, whose service 
 was of that earnest, enthusiastic character which entitles him 
 to our grateful and lasting remembrance. 
 
 Occasions like this speak to us of memories measured by 
 years, recalling old associations, renewing that patriotic 
 feeling that bound us together, always remembering the 
 brave who stood by our side, in which are emotions that will 
 never die. Woe to us and to those who come after us when 
 those battle fields are forgotten, or when we feel called upon 
 to apologize for maintaining with stout heart and a victorious 
 
16 
 
 hand, the promise, the integrity, the permanence of the 
 American Republic. 
 
 The members of a society like this, based on the friendship 
 and associations of army life, to whom the four years spent 
 in fighting for union and freedom, whose dangers were 
 bravely met, and victories nobly won, is the most interesting 
 period of our lives. The links that bind us were welded 
 when we stood as comrades on hallowed ground, fighting for 
 the eternal right ; hallowed by the red laurel of war, but now 
 mantled with the tender grass and sweetest flowers. 
 
 But who among us would not endure the same hardships 
 of war for such a result ? 
 
 As I look around and see the heroes here, I know there is 
 not one man who would not freely give his life to engage 
 again in the great work that was accomplished. 
 
 Our cause was right, and may we ever continue to look 
 treason steady in the eye and call it crime. 
 
 With the advancing years we realize every season gathers 
 many of our members, and amid the joyous festivities of this 
 evening we would pause to pay a tribute to the memory of 
 those of our Order who have crossed the river during the 
 year. Those of us that remain find our locks whitening and our 
 joints stiffening. We shall soon pitch our tents beyond the 
 valley, amid the shadows of the dim unknown, but over all 
 and forever may that starry banner, whose folds are embla- 
 zoned with the proudest victories ever won, continually wave 
 as the ensign of a re-united Republic. 
 
INTRODUCTORY 
 
 At the Annual Banquet of the Michigan Commandery 
 
 of the Loyal Legion, at the Russell House, 
 
 Detroit, Mich., May ist, 1890. 
 
 By COMPANION FREDERIC W. SWIFT, 
 Brevet Brigadier General, U. S. V., Commander. 
 
 Companions : 
 
 One more year lias rolled away. We have made one 
 more march toward the "eternal camping ground" and 
 to-night we sit again around the festive board, and gaze into 
 each other's eyes, and grasp each other by the hand and note 
 the changes time has made since the days of old, and pledge 
 each other that loyalty and companionship which none but 
 those who have stood shoulder to shoulder in fierce combat 
 can ever know. 
 
 Time has dealt kindly with us during the year past, and 
 yet we have not fully escaped its ravages. 
 
 Five of our companions have been dropped from our roll 
 of honor, and have gone into bivouac with the great 
 majority. 
 
 The kind-hearted, fatherly Clitz, the genial Remick, the 
 gallant and soldierly Tyler, the ever popular Bell and Vernor 
 the courteous and warm-hearted will join us no more in our 
 
18 
 
 camp fires. We miss their kind greetings and their cheery 
 voices, and we look into each others faces and ask ourselves, 
 Who next ? 
 
 Twenty-one companions have been added to our member- 
 ship, and three have been dropped from the rolls for 
 non-payment of dues, leaving a net gain for the year of 
 thirteen companions. 
 
 I cannot help expressing regret at this slight growth of 
 the Michigan Commandery, and my conviction that if every 
 companion would but exert himself to promote the interests 
 of the order as its objects deserve, the coming year would 
 give us a membership of nearly double our present number. 
 
 These objects are, as expressed in the constitution, "to 
 cherish the memories and associations of the war waged in 
 defence of the unity and indivisibility of the Republic. 
 Strengthen the ties of fraternal fellowship formed by 
 companionship in arms." * * "Enforce unqualified 
 allegiance to the general government, protect the rights and 
 liberties of American citizenship, and maintain national 
 honor, union and independence." 
 
 I hold, then, that it is a sacred duty of every companion 
 of this order to use his best endeavors to interest all who are 
 eligible to membership on all proper occasions and by all 
 proper means to induce them to identify themselves with su 
 and to assist us in carrying out its glorious and patriotic 
 work. 
 
 We should not forget that the Loyal Legion is the 
 offspring, as it were, of the Society of the Cincinnati, formed at 
 the close of the American Revolution and whose founders 
 were Washington, Hamilton, Steuben, Knox, Green and 
 Putnam, with many others of like fame and renown. 
 
 Will you bear with me a few moments and go back 
 to the cantonment of that little army at Newburg, on the 
 Hudson? It is the spring of 1783. A general treaty of 
 peace had been signed at Paris on the 20th of January. 
 
19 
 
 On the 23d of March a French war vessel arrived at 
 Philadelphia bringing the joyous news, and while, as Irving 
 says, " sadness and despair prevailed among the Tories and 
 refugees in New York, the officers in the patriotic camp were 
 not without gloomy feelings at the thought of their approach- 
 ing separation from each other. 
 
 Eight years of dangers and hardships, shared in common 
 and nobly sustained, had wedded their hearts together, and 
 made it hard to rend them asunder. 
 
 Prompted by such feelings, Gen. Knox, ever noted for 
 generous impulses, suggested, as a mode of perpetuating the 
 friendship thus formed, and keeping alive the brotherhood 
 of the camp, the formation of a society composed of the 
 officers of the army. The suggestion met with universal con- 
 currence and with the hearty approbation of Washington. 
 Meetings were held, at which the Baron Steuben, as senior 
 officer presided. A plan was drafted by a committee 
 composed of Generals Knox, Hand and Huntington and Capt. 
 Shaw, and the society was organized at a meeting held on 
 the 13th of May, at the Baron's quarters in the old Verplanck 
 House, near Fishkill. By its formula the officers of the 
 American army in the most solemn manner combined 
 themselves into one society of friends, to endure as long as 
 they should endure, or any of their male posterity, and in 
 failure thereof, the collateral branches who might be judged 
 worthy of becoming its supporters and members. 
 
 In memory of the illustrious Roman, Lucius Quintius 
 Cincinnatus, who retired from war to the peaceful duties 
 of the citizen, it was to be called "The Society of the 
 Cincinnati." 
 
 ****** * 
 
 Individuals of the respective States distinguished for 
 patriotism and talents might be admitted as honorary 
 members for life, their numbers never to exceed a ratio of 
 
20 
 
 one to four. The French ministers who had officiated at 
 Philadelphia, and the French admirals, generals and colonels 
 who had served in the United States, were to be presented 
 with the insignia of the Order and invited to become members, 
 and Washington was chosen unanimously to officiate as its 
 president until the first general meeting to be held in May, 
 1784." 
 
 As the time approached when the first annual meeting 
 was to be held, Washington saw with deep concern that a 
 popular jealousy had been awakened concerning it, Judge 
 Burke of South Carolina had denounced it in a pamphlet as 
 "an attempt to elevate the military above the civil classes, 
 and to institute an order of nobility." 
 
 Irving says : "The Legislature of Massachusetts sounded 
 an alarm that was re-echoed in Connecticut and prolonged 
 from State to State. The whole Union was put on its guard 
 against this effort to form a hereditary aristocracy out of the 
 military chiefs and powerful families of the several States." 
 
 ******* 
 
 "The society met at the appointed time and place, 
 Washington presided, and by his sagacious counsels effected 
 modifications in its constitution. The hereditary principle, 
 and the power of electing honorary members were abolished, 
 and it was reduced to the harmless but highly respectable 
 footing on which it still exists. 
 
 In notifying the French officers included in the society, of 
 the changes which had taken place in its constitution, he 
 expressed his ardent hopes that it would render permanent 
 those friendships and connections which had happily taken 
 root between the officers of the two nations. All clamors 
 against the order now ceased. It became the rallying place 
 for old comrades in arms, and Washington continued to 
 preside over it until his death." 
 
21 
 
 I am inclined to the opinion that Irving is in error as to 
 the abolishing of the hereditary feature and honory member- 
 ship at the first meeting. It is likely that Washington did 
 recommend it, but Companion Mitchell in his able paper on 
 the subject before the California Commandery in War Paper 
 No. 2, says: 
 
 " In the minds of the meeting at Philadelphia in May, 1784, 
 already referred to, this matter was fully discussed, and it is 
 recorded that General Washington in confidence introduced 
 a report of a committee of Congress, that ' no person holding 
 a hereditary title or order of nobility should be eligible to 
 citizenship in the new State they were about to establish,' 
 and declared that he knew that this was leveled 'at our 
 institution,' and that our friends had prevented its passing 
 into resolution till the result of this meeting should be" 
 known, but that if we did not make it conformable to their 
 sense of Republican principles we might expect every 
 discouragement and even persecution from them and the 
 States severally. 
 
 ''An attempt was made to propitiate the public sentiment 
 and the society recommended to the State societies certain 
 modifications of the institution, but as the assent of all the 
 States was necessary to the change and that assent never 
 being given, the society retains to-day the hereditary feature. 
 The opposition seems soon to have died out, and as an 
 indication of the estimation in which the society was held, 
 when the time for its next general meeting came around it 
 appears that the convention which adopted the Constitution 
 of the United States was convened to meet in Philadelphia in 
 May, 1787, with direct reference to the fact that the 
 Cincinnati would meet there on the first Monday of the same 
 month, and in order to give Washington an opportunity of 
 presiding over both sittings." 
 
 Curiously enough the order excited opposition in France 
 as well as at home. Lafayette was proud to wear its 
 
22 
 
 decoration, but the extreme and radical Mirabeau, the great 
 agitator and Jacobin of the French Revolution, said, "In 
 less than a century this institution, which draws a line of 
 separation between the descendants of the Cincinnati and 
 their fellow citizens will have caused so great an inequality 
 that the country which now contains none but citizens 
 perfectly equal in the eye of the Constitution and the law 
 will consist altogether of two classes of men— politicians and 
 plebians. This order, which America beholds with indiffer- 
 ence, will, when consolidated by time, convert the children 
 of our military chiefs into a disticnt, a privileged and a 
 commanding race. Lying poets and fawning orators will 
 prostitute their eloquence to confer the honors of an 
 apotheosis on the parricides who will have enslaved their 
 country. The rest of the citizens will be nothing but an 
 obscure, spiritless, degraded and degenerate rabble, unworthy 
 of regard and devoted to oppression." 
 
 Senator Manderson in his report to the Senate, June 12, 
 1888, says of the above: *'In the presence of the historic 
 events that followed the birth of the order and the patriotic 
 results that have come from all the great military associations 
 that were called into being by the three great wars of the 
 Republic, we can well afford to laugh at the fears expressed 
 by the opponents of the Cincinnati and those of later days 
 who have condemned the existence of kindred societies. 
 The nation has nothing to fear from their teachings, and 
 their aims are so noble and patriotic that good only can 
 result from their maintainance." 
 
 Companions, you all know of the origin of our noble 
 order. How, after four years direful war the dark cloud had 
 been lifted at Appomattox only to come down on the nation 
 still darker, more appalling than ever, in the assassination of 
 our beloved Lincoln. Three gentlemen who had served 
 in the Union armies during the war, Lieutenant-Colonel 
 
23 
 
 Mitchell, Lieutenant-Colonel Ze]l and Captain Keyser met on 
 that sad and sorrowful morning of April 15, 1865, and 
 determined to call a meeting of all the officers and ex-officers 
 then in Philadelphia and express their honor of the act of 
 assassination, and do whatever the necessities of that critical 
 time might require. The meeting was called and was largely 
 attended and steps were taken for the formation of the 
 society, out of which grew the order known as the "Loyal 
 Legion." 
 
 Let us then strive to emulate the glorious example set us 
 by our fathers. Let us seek to preserve what they fought 
 to create, and what we fought to save. Year after year rolls 
 by and we are a little grayer grown. " We incline more and 
 more to the ease of the arm chair and the comfort of the fire 
 side. We find ourselves dreaming of the days gone by as we 
 sit and smoke our fragrant cigar or pipe, and see faces of our 
 companions perhaps in the curling smoke, and a tear will fall 
 now and then as we think of those who have gone before. 
 Yet we have duties to perform although we are getting old, 
 and we find our sons looking us "square in the eye," and 
 their shoulders as broad as ours, and we feel that the mantle 
 must soon fall upon them. Yet we can serve as the 
 "Videttes of the Republic." We must still remain on the 
 picket line and sound the alarm if need be. Has our beloved 
 country no danger menacing her? Are our free schools 
 unassailed? Is the right of voting as one choses safe and 
 unmenaced \ Are there no demagogues ? Have we taught 
 our sons to love the dear old flag which means so much to 
 us? Have we taught them that it is better to die for liberty 
 than to live as slaves \ Have we taught them to guard with 
 jealous care that for which we fought to save % And our 
 companions died to save ? I am full of hope for the future 
 for I believe in the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the 
 United States. I believe in the glorious Republic for which 
 
24 
 
 we gave the best of our days and the best of our endeavors. 
 I believe in the permanency of its glorious principles and 
 institutions. I believe in the loyalty of our sons who are 
 soon to fill our places. I accord all the honor that time and 
 history can give to those who fought under the starry flag 
 that the Republic might endure. 
 
 I drop a tear to the sacred memory of those who stood 
 shoulder to shoulder with us and went down to death, 
 sealing with their hearts' best blood their devotion to a 
 country in peril. ' I seem to see them now on the bloody 
 slopes of Antietam, on the storm rent heights of Fredericks- 
 burg, of Lookout Mountain, of Kenesaw, of Spottsylvania, in 
 the trenches of Vicksburg, of Atlanta, Petersburg, aye from 
 an hundred other fierce fields of honor, as they enter the 
 fearful strife turning for one long last fond look at their 
 beloved Northland and their loved ones with a far away 
 gleam in their eyes. I seem to hear them say, with a salute, 
 as did the gladiators of old, "We who are about to die 
 salute you." 
 
 Then gather closer around our camp fire, companions. Let 
 the glance of your eye be that of kindly greeting and of loyal 
 comradeship. Let this festal night be one of a life time. 
 Raise high the social glass and "let joy be unconfined," for 
 the days that are left us are few. And may they be joyous. 
 Let each heart say to its fellow : 
 
 " Were't the last drop in the well, 
 As I gasped upon the brink, 
 Ere my fainting spirit fell, 
 
 Tis to thee that I would drink. 
 
 With that water, as this wine, 
 
 The libation I would pour 
 Should be — peace to thee and mine 
 
 And a health to thee, Tom Moore." 
 
INTRODUCTORY. 
 
 At Annual Banquet of the Michigan Commandery of 
 
 the Loyal Legion, at the Russell House, 
 
 Detroit, May 7, 1891. 
 
 By I. C. SMITH, COMMANDER, 
 Brevet Brigadier General. 
 
 Companions of the Loyal Legion: 
 
 We assemble here to-night to enjoy one of life's blessings, 
 a sumptuous spread. To cement friendships formed by those 
 who risked their lives in a common cause. To listen to those 
 who are gifted in speech, and hear extolled the genius of our 
 great captains, who led us on to victory. Also, to recount 
 the gallant deeds of those who fell, that their memory may 
 be an inspiration for generations to come. 
 
INTRODUCTORY. 
 
 At Banquet of the Michigan Commandery of the 
 
 Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United 
 
 States, at Detroit, May 5, 1892. 
 
 BY COLONEL SAMUEL E. PITTMAN, COMMANDER. 
 
 Thomas Carlyle says, " Whoever can speak * * 
 becomes a power. * . * It matters not what rank he has, 
 what revenues or garnitures, the requisite thing is that he 
 have a tongue that others will listen to." And again he says, 
 "A person making what we call 'set speeches' is not he an 
 offense ? " Here is a dilemma. We must speak, but we must 
 not prepare speeches ; however, he who now stands before 
 this assemblage will not upon this occasion be an offender. 
 
 Memory will carry some of us back to school days when 
 it was the fashion to declaim weekly. We recited Mrs. 
 Heman's then thrilling lines, "The Boy Stood on the Burn- 
 ing Deck;" Byron's "There was a Sound of Revelry by 
 Night," and later from Webster, Hayne, Chatham, Burke — 
 looking forward to the time when we would electrify the 
 world with our eloquence. Your present speaker has been 
 looking forward ever since and at last the supreme moment 
 seems to have arrived. Courtesy and duty, however, both 
 
27 
 
 demand that opportunity shall be afforded the distinguished 
 gentlemen whose names appear on the programme before you 
 and they shall not be forstalled. Postponement, then, of 
 electrifying from this quarter must be had. 
 
 It may have been the practice of some of the retiring 
 Commanders to deliver something in the nature of an annual 
 message upon these occasions, and it were well, perhaps, to 
 review the past and forecast the future briefly. Within the 
 past eighteen months the Commandery has taken leave 
 of the Merrill Block with its dust and rodents and is now 
 happily domiciled under the roof of the Detroit Light 
 Infantry, illustrating that two families can live harmoniously 
 in the same house. We shall naturally point to our amiable 
 tempers as the important factor in this instance, yet will 
 admit that much of this commendable harmony is the 
 product of the high soldiery and gentlemanly deportment of 
 the Light Infantry. Expressing my own convictions and, as 
 I believe, of the Commandery, it can be said that not a State 
 military organization north, east, south or west can be named 
 as superior to this tine body of young soldiers. 
 
 The opportunity afforded by the Grand Army of the 
 Republic encampment in August last, for the Michigan 
 Commandery to extend its hospitality to such companions of 
 the Loyal Legion as were in attendance, proved to be a rare 
 boon to us. The particulars of the entertainment by our 
 Commandery of such visitors and many others, have already 
 been given in glowing sentences by Companion Swift on 
 behalf of the several committees, and we need but say that 
 the insignia and button of our order received fresh brilliancy 
 from the interchange of fraternal godspeeds between 
 members from every loyal State in the Union. 
 
 Papers may not have been as numerous as in some former 
 years but those we have had were so excellent they would go 
 far towards making up for the limited number. Col- 
 Ludlow's was the first. Col. Sterling closed up along gap 
 
28 
 
 and Companion Sibley's historical sketch of the Society of 
 the Cincinnati brought to light much of that society that 
 many of us had never heard and sympathetically stimulated 
 a larger interest in our own order. The Poe incident was 
 equal to a "paper" evening, and thanks to its literary 
 productions the event has taken an important place in our 
 history for the past year. 
 
 Companions — The call to "fall in" to perform our last 
 duties to deceased companions has frequently sounded — too 
 frequently, we are apt to say. You will readily recall 
 their names : Leggett, Dodge, Lemon, Merrill, Burns, Hull, 
 Osburne. All these have passed over the river, and in 
 their memory let us for a moment pause. 
 
 With these losses, however, our membership is larger than 
 a year ago, yet recruiting from the participants in the rebel- 
 lion war alone cannot last long at the best, and attention should 
 be paid to adding membership to class 2. Companions of this 
 class, which may be termed the inheritance class (and others 
 eligible) are making their way into the ranks of represen- 
 tative men and in due time it will rest upon them to keep 
 prosperous the order their fathers loved so well. More of 
 them should be with us now and acknowledge in the language 
 of our Constitution: "First, a firm belief and trust in 
 Almighty God, extolling Him under whose beneficent guid- 
 ance the sovereignty and integrity of the Union have been 
 maintained, the honor of the fiag vindicated, the blessings of 
 civil liberty secured, established and enlarged. Second, true 
 allegiance to the United States of America based upon para- 
 mount respect for and fidelity to the National Constitution 
 and laws, manifested by discountenancing whatever may tend 
 to weaken loyalty, incite to insurrection, treason or rebellion, 
 or impair in any manner the efficiency and permanency of 
 our free institutions." 
 
29 
 
 Members not residing in Detroit have in common witli all 
 the proud consciousness of membership in this unique order, 
 an organization that received its first inspiration upon the 
 announcement of one of the greatest crimes ever committed ; 
 an organization that adopted in its charter both acknowledge- 
 ment of dependence upon Divine power and the highest 
 loyalty to state and free institutions ; an organization that 
 we believe will exist as long as a pulse of patriotism shall 
 throb from an American heart. The opportunity for member- 
 ship becomes a legacy to hand down to successors that no 
 money can buy, no genius can obtain, but simply through 
 the lines of inheritance. This is surely a grand possession, 
 but looking at it from a practical standpoint, to such members 
 the annual meeting and banquet sums up their annual divi- 
 dends, therefore it has been the practice to concentrate most 
 of our energies and finances upon the banquet. We would 
 recommend that annual meetings be for the entire day, the 
 forenoon for business, thus giving ample time for full 
 discussion of any question ; the afternoon for a more free 
 companionship between members assembling from different 
 parts of the State, and the evening for the usual rollicking 
 around the banquet table. At present candidates for the 
 several offices are frequently voted for by members whom the 
 candidate hardly knows, even by name, and in turn members 
 know only by name the men they vote for. This, however, 
 is not a suitable subject for long presentation upon such 
 an occasion as this, yet worthy of consideration. 
 
 A cordial greeting to our guests for the evening can ever 
 go without saying, still should always be and is now 
 extended. Upon many occasions our guests have been our 
 soul stirrers, and to-night doubtless will prove to be no 
 exception. 
 
30 
 
 "We may now enjoy the pleasure of the passing hour, 
 bidding adieu for a time to grave pursuits," recalling the 
 poet's words slightly paraphrased : 
 
 " The act of feeding as you understand, 
 Is but a fraction of the work in hand. 
 Its nobler half is that ethereal meat 
 The papers call the intellectual treat. 
 Songs, speeches, toasts around the festal board, 
 Drowned in the juice the Legion men afford." 
 
 (The Commander then read certain letters of regret, after 
 which the regular order of toasts proceeded.) 
 
INTRODUCTORY. 
 
 At Annual Banquet, Hotel Cadillac, Detroit, 
 May 4, 1893. 
 
 By WILLIAM H. W1THINGTON, 
 Brevet Biigadier General U. S. V., Commander. 
 
 The past year cannot be said to have been an eventful one 
 in the history of the Michigan Commandery of the Loyal 
 Legion. In former years there have been some important 
 events, such as the National Encampment in Detroit of the 
 Grand Army of the Republic, re-unions of some of the army 
 societies, or trips away, to give the year especial mark. The 
 year closing drops to its place in column with no such 
 distinction. 
 
 It was the cherished purpose of your retiring Commander 
 to invite the Commandery to his home and hearth at Jackson 
 for one of its meetings, but the illness of his wife, prolonged 
 through a period of five months, compelled him reluctantly 
 to forego this pleasure. The interest of the companions, 
 however, has shown no signs of flagging. The attendance 
 upon meetings has been large and remarkably uniform. 
 Since the resumption of the meetings in October, the smallest 
 number present at any meeting has been 30 and the largest 
 40, and the average for the seven meetings (not including the 
 present) has been a little over 35. 
 
32 
 
 The year began with a total membership of 261. There 
 have been added 24 companions and lost 8, leaving a total 
 membership at the date of the last meeting of 273. Six 
 companions have responded to the last call within the year, 
 and have passed on to join the gallant spirits of the greater 
 army. These are : Major N. B. Hall, of Jackson ; Lieuten- 
 ant Chas. S. Draper, Saginaw; Lieutenant A. A. Thompson, 
 Flint; Colonel James I. David, Grosse Isle; General B. F. 
 Partridge, Bay City, and Captain Chase H. Dickinson, of 
 Kalamazoo. It is notable that of all these companions not 
 one was a resident of Detroit. 
 
 The contributions to our records and incidents of the war 
 have been increased within the year by the addition of seven 
 papers. These papers have awakened and re awakened the 
 thronging memories of the illustrious past. Its deeply 
 graven experiences and thrilling scenes have a portraiture in 
 the papers which have been read before the Commandery, of 
 abiding interest to the members of the order and of great 
 historic value. The Commandery is to be congratulated 
 upon their possession, and upon the action taken at the last 
 meeting to place these separate printed papers in a more 
 compact and enduring form. The historic period of this age 
 of our country's existence lies in the war for the Union, and the 
 Loyal Legioner, of the original First Class, who would remind 
 himself that he was once an embattled hero, and marched 
 with those whose names are emblazoned high on the scroll of 
 enduring fame, must naturally turn and return to this page 
 of his life. If it becomes a habit, who shall gainsay it or 
 question a just pride in such recurrency ? Certainly none but 
 ourselves. Possibly it might be wise for us to question how 
 far and how wholly the papers at our meetings should be 
 confined to the past, glorious as it was. To the end of 
 adding, while the veterans are still living, valuable facts and 
 incidents from the personal knowledge and experience of the 
 
33 
 
 writers, these summonings of the past should go on. As a 
 period overflowing with examples of heroic deeds, and full 
 of inspiration to noble, self-sacrificing patriotism, it can be 
 drawn on indefinitely by tongue and pen. No danger of 
 going too far under these motives. The only danger in this 
 direction, to the soldier himself, lies, to my mind, in accept- 
 ing the past as the all, and in resting upon it ; in regarding 
 his services in the war as fulfilling all demands upon him for 
 heroism and high achievement. No habit or attitude of 
 mind which tends to satisfy a -man with what he has already 
 done in life, to lull ambition and benumb effort is good for 
 his mental or moral health. I do not think the members of 
 the Loyal Legion stand much in need of preaching upon this 
 head, but we have all of us seen soldiers to whom it might 
 possibly be profitably applied. We have seen soldiers who 
 proclaim that their deeds in the army were an all-sufficient 
 discharge of any obligation to further public service or 
 personal effort. We have seen soldiers upon whom the 
 youth of to-day must look and wonder how they could have 
 been heroes, and yet they were. The default is that they 
 did not keep on so being ; that they failed to realize that 
 they owed something, more to themselves though they owed 
 nothing more to their country. We may know of a soldier's 
 bravery and understand his shortcomings, but to impress the 
 citizen of to-day with a just sense of his service in the war 
 the veteran must be something as well as have done some- 
 thing. With the citizen the quality of soldiership in 1861-65 
 is measured by the quality of 'citizenship in 1870-90. 
 
 The Loyal Legion brands its members as high types of 
 soldiers, citizens and patriots. The brand is really valuable 
 only so far as the member lives up to it. He owes it to the 
 order to live up to it, and he owes it to himself not simply to 
 live upon his record but to live up to its standard. There is 
 a vast difference in the two. The one means stagnation, the 
 
34 
 
 other continued activity, continued effort, continued zeal, 
 continued interest in the affairs of to-day, and participation 
 in them so far as health and ability permit. This brings me 
 back to the subject of the papers and to some consideration 
 of the future of the Loyal Legion. There are reasons, I 
 think, why there should be introduced into our meetings 
 more of the "to-day." The plan of the Loyal Legion is 
 that it shall be a continuing body. To this end membership 
 is open to our sons. While, no doubt, they are interested in 
 the war period and in the deeds of their fathers, it may be 
 well for them and for us that our faces should not turn 
 altogether backward ; that we should confront the life and 
 and discuss the conditions of to-day. It is within the scope 
 of our organization to do this. There is a broad field of 
 discussion and action open to the Loyal Legion, and legiti- 
 mately open. What are its objects? Let us look to the 
 constitution for an authoritative statement of them. Article 
 third of the constitution reads : "The objects of this order 
 shall be to cherish the memories and associations of the war 
 waged in the defense of the unity and indivisibility of the 
 republic ; to strengthen the ties of fraternal fellowship and 
 sympathy formed from companionship in arms ; to advance 
 the best interests of the soldiers and sailors of the United 
 States, especially those associated as members of this order, 
 and to extend all possible relief to their widows and children ; 
 to foster the cultivation of military and naval science ; to 
 enforce unqualified allegiance to the general government ; to 
 protect the rights and liberties of American citizenship, and 
 to maintain honor, union and independence." Here is past, 
 present and future committed to us. We are to "foster the 
 cultivation of military and naval science." There are 
 various ways in which this may be done, but Ave are not 
 likely to do it at all unless we keep up our own interest 
 in military and naval affairs, and not likely to do it 
 
85 
 
 intelligently unless we keep in some measure informed of the 
 changes and developments in these departments. Arms are 
 changing, organizations are changing, tactics are changing, 
 naval architecture and armaments are changing. In both 
 arms of the service there seems to be continued progress in 
 two opposite extremes, heavier ordnance on the one hand 
 and quicker action and higher speed on the other. We have 
 in this commandery both army and naval officers. There are 
 officers of the regular army stationed here who could enter- 
 tain and instruct us with papers or talks upon the changes 
 taking place, and the probable results of these changes in 
 coast defenses and field operations, and give ideas upon 
 needed legislation on behalf of both the regular army and 
 the State militia. Gen. Poe and Col. Ludlow have had long 
 experience and great knowledge of lighthouse construction 
 and service. If they would draw upon their experiences and 
 knowledge for the benefit of the Loyal Legion we could 
 become possessed of a great deal of valuable information and 
 entertaining incident pertaining to lighthouse systems and 
 service on the great lakes which envelop our State. Col. 
 Ludlow, perhaps, could give us some interesting chapters 
 from recent experience, if he would let himself be as funny 
 as he could upon this subject. 
 
 Another object is to "protect the rights and liberties of 
 American citizenship." Here, indeed, is open a wide range 
 for thought and discussion in which our youngest members 
 may join, and perhaps contribute ideas which our older ones 
 ought to hear, if they do not adopt. Of course, we cannot 
 enter upon political questions in their narrower or party 
 limits. But there are public questions upon which parties 
 do not divide, and upon which the better sentiment of all 
 parties is agreed, in their professions at least, which might 
 be discussed here with profit and interest, Of these ques- 
 tions there are Civil Service Reform, the Problem of 
 
36 
 
 Municipal Government, Annexation of or Commercial Union 
 with Canada, Pension Legislation, the Relations of Labor 
 and Capital. All of these questions may be legitimately dis- 
 cussed under the stated objects of the Order. In short, 
 whatever tends to incite higher patriotism and cleaner and 
 more intelligent citizenship may be brought into our 
 meetings, whether it be the glorious deeds of the past or the 
 animating thoughts and movements of the present. 
 
 The assassination of Abraham Lincoln prompted the 
 organization of the Loyal Legion. It was the thought of 
 that well rounded citizen, soldier and statesman, the late 
 commander-in-chief of the Order, that the founders of the 
 Order were the first to raise a monument to Abraham Lincoln ; 
 that there is devolved upon the Order the obligation to exalt 
 and perpetuate the ideas which inspired Lincoln's life and 
 hallowed his service to his country. These ideas, as General 
 Hayes stated them, were, "Humanity, anxious solicitude for 
 the welfare of all mankind, hatred of wrong to the humblest 
 human being, our common brotherhood, sympathy with the 
 oppressed and the suffering." If this thought of our late 
 commander-in-chief is true, the Military Order of the Lo^al 
 Legion is an organization with a mission as well as with a 
 memory. 
 
 Our Commandery at its last meeting took a step which is 
 very important on its practical side, and very significant on 
 its sentimental side. It voted to lease, for its future quarters^ 
 the first floor of the building to be erected by Colonel Atkin- 
 son on Congress street near Shelby. The new quarters are 
 centrally located, will be easy of access, commodious, con- 
 venient, and can be enjoyed undisturbed. That is the 
 practical side. These quarters are to be taken and occupied 
 in conjunction with the Detroit Post No. 384 Grand Army of 
 the Republic. On this side there is a significance which I 
 hail with entire pleasure. The absolute limitation of the 
 
37 
 
 original first-class membership of the Loyal Legion to those 
 who were commissioned officers of the army in the war is a 
 feature in which I have never taken any personal satisfaction. 
 It involves exclusions in which, I fancy, many of us have 
 felt uncomfortable and unhappy. All of us know soldiers of 
 the late war whose patriotism in enlisting, whose gallantry in 
 the service, whose blood shed for their country, whose high 
 character and distinguished citizenship make them peers of 
 any man, yet they held no commission during the war. They 
 were too young, were wounded too early in the service, were 
 too inodest, had too little influence, or the ranks of their 
 regiments were too depleted to enable them to reach a 
 commission. We have felt that upon every test of gallantry, 
 of manhood, of character, of intelligence, these men could be 
 welcomed as worthy companions of the Loyal Legion. 
 
 The organization of the Loyal Legion was peculiar. It 
 was not the work of officers of the army. The founders of it 
 did not seek or have the judgment of the officers in general. 
 A small group of elegant gentlemen, with the most patriotic 
 and zealous motives, gathered themselves together in the city 
 of Philadelphia and founded the Loyal Legion, modeling it 
 upon the Society of the Cincinnati. One State after another 
 adopted the organization, ready made, as Philadelphia had 
 prepared it. Whether it would have been differently 
 planned or framed, had a general representation of the 
 officers of the army been gathered at its foundation, it is 
 difficult to say. Probably it would not have been essentially 
 different then, even upon such larger concensus of opinion. 
 If it was to be founded to-day, the limits of membership, in 
 my judgment, would be an open question. Times are 
 changing. The America of 1893 is not the America of 1783, 
 when the Society of the Cincinnati was formed, or even the 
 America of 1865. The city of Philadelphia, with its conserv- 
 atism, its social exclusiveness and pride of ancestry, does not 
 
38 
 
 epitomize the American nation. Two considerations would 
 operate now upon the organization of such an order as onrs 
 more than they did or conld in 1865. First, the demonstrated 
 character and ability to reach and fill high social positions of 
 many of the men who fought in the ranks of the Union Army. 
 Second, the growing tendency of the times to make less of 
 the distinction of rank and more of the man as he is. 
 
 A revision of the constitution upon the matter of eligi- 
 bility of members is a remote probability. Should it ever 
 have consideration, the first question would be, where will 
 you draw the line ? It does not seem to me so very difficult of 
 answer. I would limit admission from the ranks to those 
 who volunteered and enlisted without bounty of any kind, 
 local, State or national. Under the unwritten laws of admis- 
 sion, which apply to all, I do not think the order would be 
 in danger of adulteration. 
 
 Leaving, however, what is as yet an unmooted question, 
 I return to the action of the Commandery which prompted 
 these thoughts — the joint tenancy of our new quarters with 
 a post of the Grand Army. 
 
 Carlisle once said, in effect : 
 
 The insight of genius is co-operation with the real tendencies 
 of the world. 
 
 A step which is in recognition of and which seeks 
 fellowship with the larger brotherhood of a common service 
 shows, I think, that the Michigan Commandery has some of 
 this insight of genius and is in co-operation with the real 
 tendencies of the world. We can say to the Detroit Post : 
 
 "Comrades known in marches many, 
 Comrades tried in dangers many, 
 Comrades bound by memories many, 
 
 Brothers evermore are we. 
 Wounds or sickness may divide us, 
 Marching orders may divide us, 
 But, whatever fate betide us, 
 
 Brothers of the heart are we. 
 
39 
 
 'Comrades known by faith the clearest, 
 Tried when death was near and nearest; 
 Bound we are by ties the dearest, 
 Brothers evermore to be. 
 And, if spared and growing older, 
 Shoulder still in line with shoulder, 
 And with hearts no thrill the colder, 
 Brothers ever we shall be. 
 
 By communion of the banner, 
 Battle-scarred but victor banner, 
 By the baptism of the banner, 
 
 Brothers of one church are we. 
 Creed nor faction can divide us, 
 Race nor language can divide us, 
 Still, whatever fate betide us, 
 
 Brothers of the heart are we." 
 
JUL 17 1905 
 
 LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 
 
 012 196 584 7