E 664 .P64 U5 Copy 2 59th Congress I HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES P^'^Tni'' 2d Session | ( No. 805 John McPherson Pinckney t Late a Representative from Xesas) MEMORIAL ADDRESSES ^ Fifty-ninth Congress First Session HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES April 29, 1906 Compiled under the direction of the Joint Committee on Printing WASHINGTON : : GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE : : 1907 ■fCs'f JUN 6 1907 D. OF D. ]@)M.aI).5a.l?'llu11©l>iKl[lY TABLE OF CONTENTS Page. Proceedings in the House Prayer b.y Rev. Henry N. Couden Jlcmorial addresses by — Mr. Moore, of Texas '^ Mr. Field, of Texas Mr. Padgett, of Tennessee ' '' Mr. Henry, of Texas ^' Mr. Gregg, of Texas ^ Mr. Burgess, of Texas -^^ Mr. Beall, of Texas •''^ Mr. Garner, of Texas "^-^ Mr. I.anib, of Virginia "^^ Mr. Sheppard, of Texas 53 Proceedings in the Senate 3 DEATH OF REPRESENTATIVE JOHN M. PiNCKNEY PROCEEDINGS IN THE HOUSE Tuesday, December 5, 1905. Mr. vSTEPHENSof Texas. Mr. Speaker, it is my painful duty to announce to the Hou.se of Representatives the death of Hon. John M. Pincknry, of Texas, late a Member of this body. At a future day I shall ask that a suitable time be .set apart for the passing of such eulogies upon him as Members desire. I now move the adoption of the following resolution, which I send to the Clerk's de.sk and ask to have read. The Clerk read as follows: Resolved, That the House has heard with profound sorrow of the death of the Hon. John M. Pinckney, late a Representative from the State of Texas. Resolved, That the Clerk of the House be directed to transmit this reso- hition to the Senate, and a copy thereof to the family wf the decea.sed. The Speaker . The question is on the adoption of the reso- lution. The question was taken; and the resolution was agreed to. Mr. Stephens of Texas. Mr. Speaker, as a further mark of respect to the memory of the late Mr. Pinckney, I move that the Hou.se do now adjourn. The motion was agreed to. Accordingly (at 4 o'clock p. m.) the House adjourned until to-morrow at 12 o'clock noon. 5 6 Memorial Aii-. In war and in peace he hore himself so well that the people loved and trusted and greatlj- honored him; and the tmeducated coimtry boy in gray who forty years before, with rifle in hand, stood picket on the banks of the Potomac, with scant clothing to shield him from the winter's blast, returned a Representative in the Congress of this great, happy, and reunited country. Mr. Speaker, I witnessed once, in this splendid Capitol, the honors paid to one who died high in place and power. Cirand and imposing were the obsequies. The great ones of the nation and tho.se who represent the nations of the earth were here, and many thousands came to pay deserved honor to the distin- guished dead. In the Senate Chamber the coffin rested on a bed of ro.ses, and the pomp and ceremony was liefitting the grand and solemn occasion, and it was well, for a great man was dead and the nation mourned. But all this did not so impress me as did the simple services on the occasion of Pinck- ney's death. When I reached there the old .soldier lay at rest in his little htimble, vineclad home; a brother, who gave his life in his defen.se, lay dead beside him, and his dear old sister — sister and mother both to him — could not be comforted, for death had .sent to(3 man>- darts of late into her devoted heart. The excitement of the day was over, the pa.ssions of men had subsided, the day was as beautiful and quiet as was the first Sabbeth at creation's dawn, the funeral bell tolled slowly as if each stroke would be the last, and as though reluctant to bear the sad, .sad tidings. It was the warm springtime and the air wa , laden with the perfume of the jasmine and the rose. The people came by thousands from miles aroimd — the rich and poor — in buggies. 1 6 Memorial Addresses : Jolin M. Piiickncy wagons, on horseback, and on foot. A few old .soldiers, the remnant of his gallant command, who had placed many of his fallen comrades in shallow trenches on the battlefield, stood by to bear him to his final resting place. An earnest, simple prayer was said, tears were falling, and many heart sobs could be heard. The hearse moved out and all the people followed in .slow and long procession far across the prairie to the little country churchj-ard. Loving hands placed the clods above him, an humble prayer was said while the people knelt, a brief tribute was .spoken, and then the women banked high the roses and prairie flowers on his lonely grave. I thought this is indeed the tribute my plain old friend would like, and such as his brave, useful, and un.selfi.sh life so well deserved, and look- ing at his quiet, peaceful resting place and thinking of the struggles he had had in life, the battles fought, the dangers past, the victories won, the many wounds upon his weary body, his comrades gone before, that could he have spoken he would have said : Dear friends, what the women lave For the last sleep of the grave. Is a hut which I am quitting, Is a garment no more fitting, Is a cage from which, at last, Like a bird, my soul has passed. Love the inmate, not the room, The wearer not the garb, The plume of the eagle, not the bar.s That hold me from those splendid stars. I cast a clod upon his lonely grave, have paid a last poor, but loving tribute to his memory, and now, my old friend and comrade, for a time, farewell and good cheer to you and all the boys; I'll meet you on the river at the crossing in the morning when the reveille shall sound. Address of Mr. Padgct/^ of Tennessee 17 Address of Mr. Padgett, of Tennessee Mr. Speaker: I avail myself of this opportunity to en- deavor to pay a merited tribute of respect to the memory of a departed associate. I wisli, sir, that I were able to pay a trib- ute commensurate with his deserts, but poverty of language denies to me that privilege. I did not know Mr. Pixckxey before our association here. I did learn here to know him well. He was a retiring, modest, unas.suming gentleman. Ofttimes during the sessions of the House he would meet me and talk in that quiet, friendh% com- forting way that drew us close together. He was not the dazzling sunflower nor the gorgeous rose; he was not one who .startled or commanded men; but he was more like the violet, modest and retiring, that we have to search for, but that when found we gather to ourselves to be admired and loved. As a bo}' Mr. Pincknev had neither the advantages of \i-ealth nor of influential station, but as the .son of an invalid father was cast upon his ovs-n efforts and resources and had to bear much of the burden of the support of his family. He met the duties and responsibilities of a noble son in a wa}- befitting the nobilitj- of his character and his purpose. Growing into manhood, entering into the estate of citizenship, he ever met and di,-- charged the duties and responsibilities that came to him in a way that won for him the esteem, the confidence, and the re.spect of his fellow-citizens. Earh' in his life came that trving epoch in our nation's history when, as he .saw his duty, it became incinnbent upon him to enter upon the field H. Doc. S05, 59-2-^ — 2 l8 Mcuuirial Addresses : Jolni .1/. Piiickiiey of battle and assiniie the obligations of a soldier. Those who knew him ilurins those times have testified to-day and others will testify to the splendid life and character and to the unsullied bravery which he displayed on the field of battle. He came out of the war in the \-ery prime of young manhood and bega" to enter upon the duties of citizenship. He had so won the respect and confidence of his people that they honored him, as has been told you, by election to the judgeship for a series of years to preserve the order and maintain the Govern- ment among his people. He was also elected, for a longer number of years, as prcsecuting attorney, to conduct the active administration of the duty of prosecuting offenders against the law and dignity of his State. In both of these positions, with uuflinching courage, with unwavering devotion, with an impar- tiality which conunended him for more exalted station, he hon- ored himself and he honored his people, and they commi.s.sioned him to represent them in this august body. When he came here he brought with him the same devotion to duty, the .same puritv of purpo.se, which had characterized his life and his puljlic service at home. Mr. Speaker, John M. Pinckney was an honorable man. When I sav that I do not limit him to that narrow view of honesty which renders to Cse.sar the things that are Caesar's. I do not place him upon the low level of the motto attributed to Benjamin Franklin, that " honesty is the best policy." It is true, sir, that honesty is the best policy; but may we not .stop for a moment to think upon what a low plane that places this yirtue — to be honest becau.se it is politic, to be honest because it may be profitable, to be hone.st because it may serve a pur- pose or promote a selfish interest? Nay, verily, Mr. Speaker, John M. Pinckney was an honorable man who ro.se into the hio-her clime of integrity of character and nobilit\- of purpose. Ad/i7-css of Mr. Paiis;ctt, of Triniessce 19 He was honest liecanse he loved the truth. He was lionorable because falsehood was hateful to lais soul. He was honorable because the truth was congenial to his very being. Johx M. PiNCKNEY, Mr. .Speaker, was a good man. As I intimated a moment ago, I would not say that he was a great man. He was not one of tho.se whose brilliance and genius shone out as an overpowering light. We often impre.ss upon others and upon our children the truth that it is a good thing to be a great man. I commend it, and it is true. But let us turn that proposition around, and it is equally true that it is a great thing to be a good man. John M. Pinckney was a good man, and in the superlative character of his goodness he was great. Mr. Pixckney was a man of convictions. He believed something. What he de- clared he believed, and he declared what he Iselieved. He was not afraid for the world to know his purpose; he did not desire to withhold from his fellows his belief and his convictions. One thing he believed that I n^ay properly refer to here, Mr. Speaker, and that is, he believed in temperance. He believed in private and public .sobriety. He believed that it was to the uplifting of his fellow-men and to the betterment of his Com- monwealth to have sober citizens, and to that conviction he gave his life; and no grander tribute can be paid to his memory, no better testimony can be borne to his character, than the .sol- emn fact that he gave his life for the betterment of his people in upholding that principle of individual and public .sobriety which he believed was a foundation principle in human society. It was a holy moment, a noble cau.se in which to die. Mr. Speaker, we can not luiderstand the mystery of death — why it is that he should have been cut down just at that moment, or whj' others go in such mj-sterious and, as it seems to us, inop- portune times. It is not my purpose here to philosophize about 20 Moiiorial Addresses : Jolui M. Pinekiiey death, but one thought does occur to me. The seed must he planted to grow. As long as it remains unplanted it is circum- scribed and limited by its own circumference; but plant the seed in the soil, in the sunshine and rain, and the body lireaks and there comes forth the plant with its foliage, its fruitage, and its flowers; and so it has been said of us: Except we be planted we shall not live; earth to earth, du.st to dust; the manacles of the flesh broken loose, the limitation of the .sen.ses removed, and the soul in communion with the universe, in fel- lowship with eternity. In that life, Mr. Speaker, where the good and the true and the brave are gathered, there we shall expect to find John M. Pinckney, and to be with the true, the good, and the brave of the earth forever will be satisfaction. Address of Mr. Henry, of Texas 2i Address of Mr. Hinry, of Texas Mr. Speaker: One year and five days have elapsed since Hon. John M. Pixckxkv, in a deplorable tragedy, at the town of Hempstead, Tex., in an unexpected moment, was hurled into eternity. His death came without warning while he was attending a citizens' meeting of his home town. It grew out of one of those unfortunate differences so frequently engendered by a discussion of the liquor problem. Johx M. Pixckxey sprang from a talented and chi\-alrous race of men who have made the history of more than one Southern State rich in deeds of valor and patriotism. His name is linked with those of the Prestons, Sims, Bees, and others of the South who have con- tributed to the glory and achievement of this Republic. In the early days of this Government, while Washington and Adams were President, there were complications of our com- merce on the high seas with France, and citizens of that coun- trv were connnitting depredations against us. Adams sent an embassy to France to adjust the differences between the two nations. The French Directory insulted our embassy b)- refus- ing to give audience until a liberal sum was paid the French Government and a quarter of a million dollars was given to Talleyrand, who was on the Directory. In reply to this dis- graceful demand, one of our embassy made the immortal answer: "Millions for defense but not one cent for tribute." Thus answered Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, a citizen of South Carolina. From this patriotic name and distinguished ancestry sprang John M. Pinckney. He ever proved him.self a worthy son of the noble race of men preceding him. Their ardent 22 ]\Tc)iiorial Addresses : John M. Pinckney ])atriotisni and conscientious rei^ard for right never abated in the shghtest degree in the lirain and heart of the latter-da\- Pinckneys. In the hfe of onr deceased brother may be gleaned many les- sons worthy to be emulated by the youth of the land. Through his whole career, public and private, the noblest and best impulses of humanit>- were ever present and predominant. The good ran through his whole existence. Evil never found lodg- ment in his make-up. The history of this man is worth}' to be held up before all mankind. It is desen'ing of the best study and the deepe.st scrutiny of everyone. Let me briefly portray his career. He was a native Texan, born in Grimes County in May, 1845. When the war between the States came on in 1861, a beardless youth, he enlisted under the flag of the Confederacy. He joined Compan>- G, Fourth Texas Regiment Volunteer Infantry, organized at Camp Texas, near Richmond, Va. , in September, 1S61, under Col. John B. Hood. He participated in all the battles of his regiment (except Fredericksburg) from the first, in the woods at Eltham Landing on the \'irginia peninsula, thrtuigh the campaigns in Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Ten- ues.see, and Virginia again, until the immortal Robert E. Lee surrendered at Appomattox. Among the notable battles of his career were the great struggles at Gaines Mill, Second Manassas, vSharpsburg, Gettysburg, Chickamauga. and the Wilderness. Once captured, he remained a prisoner oidy fif- teen da\-s. Thrice wounded, once .seriously, he languished on the battlefield of the Wilderness for two days. His wounded Texas comrades stricken down l)y his side on that fateful day have testified to his soklierly bearing through that terrible ordeal. Rising from the blood-stained and cruel battle ground a veteran of many conflicts, though not yet 20 years of age, he Adc/rcss of Mr. Hcnry\ of Texas 23 emerged from that terrific struggle and returned to his home and native State. As soon as he could gather means and get himself in readiness, he took up the study of law, and in 1875 was admitted to the bar. Locating at Hempstead, the place where rest his mortal remains, he was elected district 'attorney, and for ten years, without opposition, held this re.sponsililc office, achieving most signal distinction as a prosecutor, so fair, honorable, vigilant, efficient, and courageous was his adminis- tration in office. In 1900, without opposition, he was chosen county judge of his county and filled that ]ilace with great credit until 1903, when he was elected to the United States Congress to fill out the unexpired term of the Hon. Thomas H. Ball, of Hou.ston, Tex. It is but fair and ap])ropriate in giving a brief history of this splendid man, without reference to who was right or wrong, to set down a short allusion to the causes leading Xo his untimeh- death. It is truly lamentable that the question of local option in his county had wrought good men up to fever heat and arrayed friends and neighljors in warring and opposing fac- tions. In his races for Congress his friends importuned him and said: ''John, give up prohibition or you will not win the Congressional race." So zealously imbued with the righteous- ness of his cause he promptly replied: " I will never go back on women and children for Congressman or any other office." Passions of men rose to the highest pitch, the citizens' meeting- at Hempstead came, and in its midst, in the twinkling of an eye, the unsullied and knightly spirit of John M. Pincknev was hushed forever. Without warning, without a nuirnuir, his dauntless soul left his body while he calmly remarked: " The\' have killed me." K martyr to the cau.se he advocated and loved with all the intensitv of his brave heart. 24 Memorial Addresses: Jolih M. Piiickiiey lien slay the prophets; fagot, rack, and cross Make up the groaning record of the past ; But evil's triumphs are her endless loss. And sovereign beauty wins the soul at last. No power can die that ever wrought for truth ; Thereby a law of nature it became, And lives unwithered in its sinewy youth, \\'hen he who called it forth is but a name. To-day we pay tribute to a man noble in every sense of the word. A brave .soldier in Hood's superb and immortal Texas bri}e was wet with tears of sympathetic joy. He once said: I owe more to my sister than can ever be e.vpressed, anil the ambition of mv life is to so live that I will l5e worthy of her affection. In 1903 he came to Congress as the Representative of the Eighth Congressional district. His service here was brief, but was characterized by the strictest fidelity to official duty. He was at all times a Democrat of the purest and best type. He honored his constituency, Texas, and his party on all occasions. It can be truly said that John Pixckney never faltered at the discharge of public or private obligation. He knew not fear, physical or moral. I pronounce no empty declaration when .saj'ing he hated wrong and loved all righteous things. With an honorable and distinguished life's work ended, he has gone to that — Mysterious world, iintraveled by the sun, Where Time's far-wandering tide has uever run. In far-off Texas, 'neath a billowy blue .sea of April flowers, he sleeps in the congenial soil of his native State. Texans knew, honored, and loved him. His memory will not soon be forgotten l)y lier generous people. In one sphere alone did I know him best. He was my friend and here he proved hinuself — Constant as the northern star. Of whose true-fixed and resting quality There is no fellow in the firmament. The life of John Pixckney was filled with those things that live after men to liless them. He will not be lo.st in the oblivion of forgetfulness. Neighbors, friends, Texans will Ai/i/nss of Mr. Henry, of Texas 27 cling tenaciously to his memory. Those grizzled veterans yet living who faced death on a hundred fields of carnage will glory in his career, which sheds luster on their joint deeds of valor and patriotism. Valiant soul, farewell ! And though the warrior's sun has set, Its light sliall linger round us 3-et, Bright, radiant, blest. 28 Memorial Addresses : John M. Pimkncy Address of Mr. Gregg, of Texas Mr. Speaker : It is but titting that we, Members of this body, which deals so much with the statistics of material prosperity and the worth and value of material products, should pause occasionally and devote some of our time, thought, and energy to a consideration of the material of which men are made ; that we now and then should turn from glorifying par- tisan policies and political deeds to the exaltation of the deeds of men ; that we occasionally should turn from the prose of life to its poetry. This is why to-day, in punsuance of a custom handed down to us from the beginning, has been set aside to pay tribute to the memory and virtues of our friend who has passed over the river and now rests under the shade of the trees. In the Fifty-eighth Congress there came to us one whom, though he stayed with, us but a short time, all of us who knew him learned to love. This one, Mr. Speaker, was John M. PixCKNKv, of Texas. The history of this man's active participation in the affairs of his country may be divided into two clearly separate and dis- tinct periods or epochs, in each of which he builded for himself a monument more lasting then brass, the period of boyhood, for it was as a boy he fought the battles of his country and in- scribed his name upon the imperishable records of valor as the bravest of the brave ; the period of manhood, for in this he battled with the adversities of destroj'ed fortune and an op- pressed and desolated land and inscribed his name upon the records of those trying times as the truest of the true. Address of Mr. Grc^sr^ of Texas 29 John M. Pinckxev sprang from a long line of illustrious ancestors. He was a scion of the Pinckney stock who, in Colonial times and for the first third of the nineteenth century, dominated the political activities and governmental agencies of the States of Maryland and vSouth Carolina. After serious financial reverses in 1837 his father settled in Texas. Here in Grimes County John M. Pixckxey was born on the 5th day of May, 1845. While a bo}- in his teens the tocsin of war .sounded. His country summoned ; he answered her summons and gave to her all his boyhood and j-oung manhood. He enlisted on the 20th day of April, 1861, in Company G, Fourth Texas Infantr\-, then commanded liy Col. John B. Hood. Immediately he left his home and saw it no more until the cause for which he fought was lost, his government overthrown, and his president a shackled prisoner in the chilly, gloomy ca.sement at Fortress Monroe. He was a famous member of the famous Hood's Texas brigade. This brigade, it is the sober truth to say, was the best body of infantry that ever mustered on this globe. Xeuo- phon has told of the advance and retreat of the 10,000 Greeks ; no poet has sung, no historian has chronicled, the achievements of Hood's Texas brigade. When John M. Pinckney and his brave companions in arms started on the long and toilsome journey from Houston, Tex., to Richmond, Va., they compassed in their march twice the dis- tance of Xenophon and his 10,000 Greeks. To their infinite chagrin the\' reached Richmond the day after the first battle of Manassas was fought. They were then incorporated into the army of northern \'irginia and were the star brigade of that illustrious armj-. What the Macedonian phalanx was to Alexander, the Tenth Legion to Caesar, the Ironsides to Cromwell, the Old Guard to Napoleon, Hood's Texas brigade was to General Lee. 30 Mviuorial .{ddrcssi's : John J/. Piiickncy In the most desperate charge of tlie civil war — of any war — that at Gaines Mill, in July, 1862, this brigade, under the imme- diate connr.and of Gen. Jolm B. Hood and under the eyes of their great conmiander, Lee, stormed three lines of bristling intrenchnients, captured twenty-two pieces of artillery, and drove vSykes's division of regulars and Porter's whole corps in confusion from the field of battle. The gallant Hood, at the head of his victorious troops, was the first wl;o leaped over the intrenchnients ; he turned, and there b\' his side stood the modest, brave, heroic John M. Pincknev. He was, with his .stout-hearted brothers in arms, in the second Manassas, at vSharpsburg, and Suffolk. \A'hen Longstreet's corps reached the fatal field of Gettys- burg, in the early morning of the 2d day of July, 1S63, John M. Pincknev and five others of his regiment were sent out on a scout to ascertain the enemy's line, ]iosition, and designs. Secretly, cautiously, and successfully they passed arouinl the flank of the Federal Army, ascended the summits of Little and Big Round Top, and there beneath them, saw all the trains of the Union Army, its artillery, and thousands of its troops huddled together, not suspecting that the enemy was so near. The brave Pincknev innnediately dispatched two of his scouts to General Hood with the information that they were on the flank of General Meade's army, and that that army, and all its trains and artillery, by bold and resolute attack, could be made the ea.sy prize of General Lee, and urged that these positions be at once occupied by all the forces possible. \\"lien the mes- .senger with this information reached General Hood, he was just forming his division for an assault on Peach Orchard. He begged General Longstreet for permission to make the move- ment suggested by Pincknev, but Longstreet could not grant it, as General Lee had .given him imperative orders to charge Address of Mr. Gregg ^ of Texas 3 1 with his corps up the lininiitsljur^- pike. Could tliis move- ineiit have lieeu made, the result of the fearful struggle niij^ht have been different. When General Lee's broken lei^ions retreated from their murderous and hopeless assault on Cemetery Hill back to Vir- ginia, John M. Pinckney was ever with his command, at the point of danger; and when his division was hurried off to Chickamauga he went along, and under their veteran com- manders, Longstreet and Hood, thi.s division, with Pinckney in the front rank, stormed Suodgrass Hill and drove the enemy in confusion from the bloody field. At Knoxville, Bull's Gap, the Wilderness, Spottsylvania Court House, Cold Harbor, and at 100 battles and skirmishes around Richmond and Petersburg, John M. Pinckney was always in the van, and bore a hero's part. Rut amid all the.se .scenes of carnage and death the Supreme Arbiter of life and death suffered him not to be .seriously harmed, but spared him, that he might become a factor in the material and social upbuilding of his beloved Southland, to whose cause he had devoted his boyhood and the flower of his >'oung manhood. Forty-one years ago from the 8th day of this month he .stood in the last line of battle of the Army of Northern Virginia, at Appomattox. On the following day he stacked his arms, and with streaming eyes and heavy heart took up his melancholy march to his far-distant home in Texas. While in war his character was .grand, yet in the arts of peace, in his efforts for the enforcement of law and order, in his devotion to duty, in his fidelit>- to his friends, and in his ardent affection for his loved ones, his character was sublime. Though brave in war, he was heroic in peace. Though he devoted, in war, four years of his life in an effort to uphold the sovereignty of his State, he spent the remainder of his life in 32 McDion'al Addrcssrs: John M. Piuckiicy an effort to uphold the dignit}- and sanctity of her laws. In war he was a terror to honorable foes, in peace he was a terror to evildoers, and a shield to righteousness and virtue, and a protector of the innocent. The same courage and the same fortitude, heightened in degree by his added years, he carried into civil life. He .studied law by torchlight, and was admitted to the bar in 1875. In 1890 he was appointed district attorney of his district by Gov- ernor Ross, and for ten years faithfully and efficiently prose- cuted all violators of the law. None were high enough or rich enough to secure immunity from just prosecution and punish- ment, and none low enough or poor enough to be subjected to unjust prosecution or punishment. If I were asked what were the strongest traits of his char- acter, I would say the honesty with which he formed his conclusions and the courage displayed in maintaining his con- victions. He won the sobriquet of "Honest John." Time will not permit me to mention more than one illu.stration of this courage of conviction. Prior to his becoming a candi- date for Congress he had been a Prohibitionist — that is, he favored the adoption by his comnnmity of the local laws pro- vided by the State of Texas to prohibit the open .saloon. The.se laws were very unpopular in certain parts of his district, and certain friends wrote him: "John, let prohibition alone, or you are beat for Congress. " This manly reply was sent: "I will not go back on my convictions for Congress or any other ofHce." Like the great Clay, he had rather be right, as he saw it, than be President. This won the respect and admira- tion of the most bitter opponents of his views on this subject, for all of us admire a man who fearlessly stands for his con- victions, regardless of whether we agree with or differ from these convictions. Address of Mr. Gregg., of Texas 2>i If I were asked what was the crowning trait of his character, I would say his heaven-born devotion for those liound to him by ties of l:)lood and family — his loved ones. While his love for his brothers was such that he would have given his life for them, the chords of his tenderest and sweetest afTectiou naturally twined about his only sister. These two, the brother and sister, were all love and devotion ; they grew up together, and shared each other's every joy and sorrow. To her he was an idol ; to him she was a solace and in.spiration and incentive to lofty ideals and deeds. He has been taken and now she is left. My heart goes out to her in her desolation. Alone, with uo companion save the memory of his glorious life — alone to nurse that agony of grief which only a devoted heart like hers can feel, until she receives the summons to join again her loved ones upon the shore of that great beyond. H. Doc. S05; 59-2 3 34 Memorial Addresses : John J/. Piiickncv Address of Mr. Burgess, of Texas Mr. Speaker: John McPherson Pinckney is dead, and ^ his colleagues and friends meet here to-day to pay our last tribute of respect to his memory. He died a sudden and a tragic death, the circumstances and manner of which furnish but another of which hi.story is full of those .striking, liitter commentaries upon the frailty of mankind. That human beings should become aroused by reason of religious ox political differences to the height of passion and prejudice and to engage in the destruction of each other seems in our peaceful moments in a Christian age incomprehensible, and that is exactl\' what did occur — a .sad picture which furnishes for us food for the profoundest reflection. The victim in this case was a man of notable characteristics. Other colleagues have .spoken already of his matchless career as a soldier, of his devotion to civic dut\'. Certain it is that a review of this man's career as a soldier in Hood's Texas brigade stirs human hearts, and is a matter in which not only every Texan, not only every .sou of the South, not only every American, but every brave man can rejoice. For many years Mr. Pincknev represented a judicial di.strict, many counties of which were a part of the Congressional dis- trict in which I was finst elected. We had very many warm mutual personal friends, and while I had known him for many years more or less intimately it was but natural that when lie came to Congress we became at once intimate, warm personal friends. I wish to .speak, out of my friendship for him and Address of Mr. Burgess, of Texas 35 knowledge of his personal characteristics, of some of the ele- ments of his character, all of wliich will be abundantly con- firmed by what has been said of both his pnblic and his private career. He came of an illustrious family, and while his envi- ronment as a young man was not equal to many more favored men in this life, it developed the fact that to be a fine character, to be a genuine gentleman, blood — family — cuts some figiu'e and is a potent factor to that result. His early educational advantages were meager. His environment was not of the highest kind, which we term "polite societ\," but he came of good, honest stock. He was born and reared among good, honest people, and he lived and died a genuine gentleman that invokes those beautiful lines by Eliza Cook; Nature, with a lavish hand, sends forth her nobly born, And laughs the paltry attributes of wealth and rank to scorn. She molds with care a spirit rare, half human, half divine, And cries, exulting, "Who can make a gentleman like mine?" The profoundest characteristic of this worthy man may be summed up in the simple and trite expression, "He was an hotiest man." And by honesty I mean more than that mere sense of obligation of which we sometimes speak as commercial honor. I mean more than a mere sense of duty to obey law and to discharge legal obligations. I mean a far deeper thing than that. That is superficial honesty; that is an honesty that may .spring of policy and may be forced by intellectual recogni- tion of its advantages. The Great Teacher, in the profoundest of his parables, in which He likens men to soil and the Word to seed sown, depicts the fact that only that seed prospered which fell in "good and honest .soil." Real honesty is a gift of God worked out in those infinite processes which compose the law of heredity, and under all circumstances, under any environment, they will work out true results. 36 Memorial Addresses : Joliii M. Pinckney Such an lioiiest man was John M. Pinckney, a man inher- ently lionest, a man built to be honest, a man who desired to be nothing else but honest, a man whose fiber of soul was as true to truth as the magnet to the current that animates it. He also was a brave man, and I mean here, as in the other case, more than that bravery partaken of by the brute, more than that physical ner\'e to engage in a personal encounter. I mean that bravery which springs up in the human soul as a result of the sense of right, and which is the sister of honesty in the liuman heart; that braver>- which knows no fear when once it conceives its duty. This man's career, as strikingly as any of the great of earth, revealed the fact that he was brave in the highest and best sense. Whether you differed with him as to his convictions upon which he went into the great civil conflict, whether you differed with him in his views in this or that case when he prosecuted in the courts of the country, whether \'ou differed from him in his views that led in part, unfortunately, to his tragic death, whatever your view may have been, as opposed to his upon any i.ssue, if 3'ou knew him you recognized that they were sincere, honest, manly, brave, and that he%\ould not be swerved and would not be turned by any consideration of the result of his advocacy of the conviction. It follows from these two things, that were deep in the man's soul, as day follows night, that he was a loyal patriot ; that he was a sincere, unwavering friend; that he was devoted to every object of his affection. I have never heard, and I believe no other living man ever heard, in all the bitter conte.sts of John M. Pincknky's life, liis worst enem},- proclaim that he had ever been false to a friend. He was as intense in this respect as any man I ever knew. I never came in personal contact with any man in all my experience who I thought had a higher sense of loyalty to his friendship, as well as his devotion to his prin- ciples and his duties. The man had a great heart. Not only Arfdrrss of Mr. /iiirffcss, of Texas 37 his career as a soldier and as a citizen, not only his devotion as a friend, but his matchless affection, long-continued, for his sister, is one of the most wonderful things in the career of any man I know in history, in any age — anywhere. His maiden sister managed his home. She was mother, sister, daughter, .sweetheart, all rolled into one. And no fond father, no devoted brother, no lover ever worshiped the object of his affection more deeply and continuously than John M. PiNCKNEY worshiped his sister, Miss Sue, as she was commonly and generally called. You have heard it described here b>' other colleagues how for years, when separated from her in the discharge of his duties as district attorney and in other posi- tions in life, it was his daily custom to write this sister a letter. Ah, it is the little things in life that touch our hearts: it is the little things in life that go to make up the great sum of human character that at last, in the day of final account, glorify the human soul. This devotion was really pathetic. No mention of the man's life would be complete without a mention of this remarkable affection borne between this maiden si.ster and this old bachelor. No language can soften the grief of that heart. I would that I had power, I would that language had not so great limi- tation, so that it were possible that some of us could utter something here that would fall with softening effect upon that sorrowing heart. Nothing can be said, humanly speaking, that can soften her sorrow. If, as we hope and fondly believe, she be one of those whose faith is anchored within the \-ale, who can look with Christian eyes beyond the dark river and contemplate the glories of a future state beyond this, she may soften her grief and her sorrow by the hope that is left her, and all who grieve as she does, in the great beyond. 38 Memorial Addresses : JoJui M. Piiukney Address of Mr. Beall, of Texas Mr. Speaker: I can add nothing to what has already been said in beautiful tribute to the memory of John M. Pixcknev. It is fit that on this beautiful Sabbath day, this day that is dedicated to rest and worship, when tree and flower are feeling the touch of a new resurrection, we should meet to honor the memory of as bra\-e and lofty a spirit as ever walked among men. We speak no cold and formal words of etilogj- of our dead to-day, for if he could speak to us from that m3-sterious and echoless shore JOHX M. Pixcknev would spurn such words if spoken. We come to voice a grief that is sincere, and to honor our- selves and our State by paying tribute to our colleague who has .solved the mysteries of death. The birth of our friend was under humble conditions, but in his veins flowed the blood of a heroic race and an illustrious family, he being a descendent of tlie old Pinckney stock .so distinguished in the earl}' days of this Republic. He was a native of the district which he so 'faithfully represented here. His whole life was spent among these people, and they, better than all others, were acquainted with his virtues and his frail- ties, and the love his own people had for him is the surest testi- monial to his worth. I know of no surer test to appl}- to determine the worth of a man than to judge him in this wav. A man here is viewed through a light that diminishes and reduces him Ijelow what he really is. If he is viewed through the partial glasses of Address of Mr. Bcall, of Texas 39 relatives or intimate friends, he is unduly enlarged; but when he is measured b}- the regard of his own people as a whole, where neither intense friendship nor intense hostility refract the light, a fair estimate of his character can be reached. At the time of his birth Texas was just laying aside the scepter as an independent republic and was taking her place as a State of this Union. It was then far out upon the border line of civilization. Her vast prairies were then unsettled and her great forests were unpeopled. His early years were spent amidst the dangers and hardships of this frontier life. His opportunities for an education were limited. While he was but a slender, beardless boy he donned the uniform of the Confederacy and went out with the other lirave .spirits who formed Hood's immortal brigade of Texans. At Second Manassas, at Gaines Mill, at Sharp.sburg, Gettysburg, Chicka- mauga, the Wilderness, and upon a hundred other battlefields he looked death in the face without faltering. He fell, .seriou.sly wounded, in the Wilderness, but finally recovered. He suf- fered the horrors of captivity, but e.scaped. He was with the ragged and famishing battalions that Lee. the kniglitliest .soldier of all time, surrendered to Grant, the generous one. To me there is something inexpressibly .sad in the thought that this House is now lionored by the presence of so few of those who participated in that great struggle upon either side. As the years go by their ranks are growing thinner and thin- ner here on earth, and fewer and fewer are those who answer to roll call in either branch of Congress. The}' were the choicest spirits that the world ever saw, and their record here has been no less honorable than their conduct upon the field of battle. When he returned from the war he became the support of his invalid father and of his brothers and sisters. He had 40 Memorial Addresses: John M. Piiickiiey neither child nor wife to lavish his affection upon, and so he gave it in generous measure to brothers and sister and orphan children. Mention has already been made of the sweet and tender love between him and his sister. To him she repre- .sented all that was tender and beautiful and good in woman; to her he was all that was noble, brave, and heroic in man. When separated, as thej- rarely were, neither the labor of his profe.ssion nor the cares of official position ever prevented him from sending his daily message of love to his "Sukey," as he fondly called her. When the convention met that first nominated him, the con- test was bitter and the result uncertain. When finally he was nominated, he was .sent for to address the con\ention, and amidst the applause of friends he was escorted to the platform. In that hour he forgot all about personal triumphs, but with tearful eyes said, "Boys, you have made my sister the happiest woman in all the world to-day." It was told of him that when in the heat of the campaign it was charged that he really belonged to the Prohibition party because of his bitter opposition to the liquor traffic, he said: "I am a Democrat. If you don't believe that I am, go ask my sister Sue." In the mind of this brave and simple old man there was no right of appeal from the judgment of that - sister. I pray God to pity her and care for her in this night of lone- liness and sorrow to her. Within a few short months she was bereft of three brave brothers by the hand of violence. In a letter to one of my colleagues she says: ' ' Had any woman such awful trouble as is on me? Day and night I think of them. If the -sun shines, my soul is sick; there are no dear boys here to enjoy it. If it rains, the raindrops that fall on their graves also fall upon my heart." Address of Mr. Beall^ of Texas 41 While we coudiict these exercises here to-day, iu far-off Texas, in a little cottage she sits with streaming eyes and breaking heart, caressing the blood-stained garments of her loved one, whispering to herself his name and living over in sorrowful raemor>- the years of the past with him. Mr. Speaker, I rejoice that it was my privilege to .serve with John Pinxkxey in this House and to know him. I admired and lo\-ed him because he had lived such a life of sacrifice for others; because he had been such a knightly soldier; becau.se he was as gentle as a woman and as simple as a child. He was not a politician as the word is commonlv used. He despised all the arts of the demagogue and all the practices of trickery and hypocrisy. He did not pretend to be what he was not. He was a plain, old-fashioned Texan, faithful to truth as he saw it and to duty as he understood it. I thank God that we live in a land that produces such men, and that honors such men, and that is blessed with the memory of such men. He was not a great man as the world usually measures greatness. Limited in opportunity and education, he possessed but ordinary ability and ordinary attainments. Yet he was a great man as measured b\- the truer standards of greatness. He was a man who dared to look his dut},- in the face and to follow, though by doing .so he walked alone and in the night. He was a man who loved truth above all things else. He was a man who forgot himself and by the light of that sacrifice dedicated himself to the service of his fellowman. His death was a cruel and needless sacrifice. His heart was pierced by the bullet of a cowardly assassin. He died as he had lived, pleading for the supremacy of the law- and the protec- tion of the helpless. 42 Memorial Addresses: John M. Pinckney Mr. Speaker, the tired hands of our colleague are folded now and the weary eyes are closed forever. Above his grave the blue skies of his beloved Texas bend, but he .sees them not ; the flowers are blooming about him, but he catches not their fra- grance ; the -southern breezes whisper above his resting place, but he feels them not ; the mocking bird sings wondrous melodies above his dust, but he hears them not. Let us hope that his spirit abides 'ueath e'en fairer skies, where sweeter flowers blos.som and gentler breezes blow, and where the strains of heavenly music thrill his .soul. Address of Mr. Garner^ of Texas 43 Address of Mr. Garner, of Texas Mr. Speaker: John M. Pinckxev was a genuine son of the old South. He had the virtues and characteristics of a long line of slave-holding ancestors, with but few of their vices. He was brave, honest, patriotic, unselfish, and the ruling prin- ciple of his nature was the performance of everj' duty intrusted to him. While he was yet a raw boy in his teens, on his father's plantation, the great civil war burst upon the country. With youthful ardor he threw aside his school books and enlisted in C'ompau}- G, Fourth Texas Infantry, then commanded by the Marshall Nej" of the Confederacy, John B. Hood. He was with the Confederacy from its beginning to its end. He sat by its cradle ; he followed its hearse. He marched with his command from Houston, Tex., to Richmond, \'a. There his regiment was incorporated, with other Texas regiments, into Hood's famous brigade, which was the finest brigade of the finest division of the finest corps of the finest army that ever marched to battle, that bod\' of incom- parable infantry, that array of tattered uniforms and bright muskets, the Army of Northern Virginia, which, as has been eloquently and truly said, ' ' carried for four years the revolt of the South on its bayonets and died only with its annihilation." If the nianj' battles, marches, and victories of Hood's Texas brigade could be written, truly its story would rival the Odyssej- in adventure, romance, and thrilling interest. Thej' ■won glorious victories in Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, 44 Memorial Addresses : John M. Piiickiiev North Carolina, Georgia, and Tennessee. More than half a dozen States were the theater of their brilliant exploits in anns. At Yorktown, Williamsburg, Seven Pines, and the seven days' battles around Richmond, second Manassas, South Mountain, vSharpsburg, Fredericksburg, Suffolk, Gettysburg, Chickamauga, Campbell Station, Knoxville, Bulls Gap, the Wilderness, Spottsylvania Court-House, Cold Harbor, in a hundred battles around Petersburg and Richmond, its plume floated bravely and defiantly on the red crest of battle and where the storm was fiercest there was John M. Pinckney. Often have I heard him tell how, in the late afternoon of the 15th day of September, 1862, Hood's brigade, with worn and wasted ranks, stood on the fatal field of Sharpsburg, and right across the Antietam River they beheld McClellan's vast army unrolling for battle. When Hood's heroes saw this mighty host arrayed against them and looked around on their thin, gray line they shuddered, but just then they turned around and there on the hill behind them they .saw outlined again.st the sky the heroic figure of their great commander, that god of battles. General Lee, seated on his charger and calmly sur\'eying the scene of the coming contest. When Hood's brave veterans saw their great commander the}' rai.sed a shout of exultation which cheered their comrades all down the line and carried defiance to the brave foes in front of them. In the crisis of the battle of the Wilderness, when General Lee put himself in front of Hood's Texas brigade to lead a desperate charge against the victorious enemy, it was a comrade of John M. Pinckney who seized hold of his horse's bridle, and John M. Pinckney joined in the .shout, "General Lee to the rear, and then we will go to the front." Where the strife was direst there was the Texas brigade. Address of Mr. Garner, of Texas 45 In the verv forefront of all of its desperate battles stood John M. Pinckmey. Ill the winter of 1864 and 1865, when this gallant band had been reduced to hardly a respectable company in numbers, it was proposed to consolidate them with a North Carolina bri- gade. A delegation, of which Johx M. Pinckxey was a mem- ber, was sent to General Lee to protest against their destruc- tion as a brigade. General Lee joined in their protest and gave them a letter to President Davis. When old Howdy Martin, who was made the head of the delegation, found President Davis and eloquently protested against the destruction of their autonomy as a brigade, the stout heart of the inflexible and resolute Davis relented. He burst into tears and told the ragged veterans in front of him to go back to their command; as long as the Confederacy lived and he was its chief executive never would that great, grand old brigade cease to preser\-e its original organization. The graj- and grizzled veterans carried back this message to their comrades, and in all subsequent battles they made good the confidence reposed in them by General Lee and Jefferson Davis. John M. Pinckney marched with his brigade into Rich- mond on the Sunday preceding its evacuation. He there boarded the cars for Petersburg, and on the way looked back and saw the whole sky aflame with the conflagration of the capital of the Confederacy. When he reached Petersburg he there saw Generals Lee and Longstreet seated on their hor.ses gazing woefully on the remnant of the brave old Army of Northern \'irginia marching in the gloomy night away from the scene of its many trials and victories. John M. Pinckney' fought all the way to Appomattox. There he stacked his arms with the few survivors of his brave old brigade, marched back to Texas with a broken heart, 46 Memorial Addresses : John M. Pinckney ruined fortune, and to a destroyed home. He girded himself anew for the battle of life, and in peaceful civil pursuits lived out his appointed days. By the voluntary suffrage of his friends and countrymen he vi'as elected to many honorable and responsible offices, the diffi- cult duties of which he always performed successfully, faith- fully, and well. In every conflict of opinion he always stood for righteousness and for right. Dying, he left behind him an untarnished name and spotless record. No monument marks his final resting place, Init there where he sleeps are sepul- chered the a.shes of one of the best, the brave.st, and noblest of men. .ItMnss (1/ Mr. Lamb, of I'irginia 47 Address of Mr. Lamb, of Virginia Mr. Speaker: We turn ', in pathetic verse, has epitomized this subject, and a lady in Loudoun County, Va., has put the words to nuisic. Often around the camp fires I have heard soldiers sing: "All quiet along the Potomac," they say, Except here aiul there a stray picket Is shot, as he walks on his beat to ami fro. By a rifleman hid in the thicket. 'Tis nothing — a private or two now and then Will not count in the news of the battle; Not an officer lost — only one of the men — Moaning out, all alone, the death rattle. Af/drcss of Mr. Lamb, of Virginia 51 All quiet along the rotoiiiac to-night, Where the soldiers lie peacefully dreaminj;; Their tents, in the rays of the clear autumn moon Or in the light of their camp fires, gleaming. A tremulous sigh as a gentle night wind Through the forest leaves softly is creeping, ^\'hile the stars up above with their glittering eyes Keep guard o'er the army while sleeping. There is only the sound of the lone sentry's tread, .\s he tramps from the rock to the fountain, -And thinks of the two on the low trundle bed Far away in the cot on the mountain. His musket falls back, and his face dark and grim, " Grows gentle with memories tender. As he mutters a prayer for the children asleep, For their mother — may heaven defend her ! The moon seems to shine as brightly as then. That night when the love yet unspoken Leaped up to his lips and when low murmured vows Were pledged to be ever unbroken. Then, drawing roughly his sleeve o'er his eyes, He dashes off tears that are welling, .And gathers his gun close up to its place .As if to keep down the heart swellin,g. He passes the fountain, the blasted pine tree, His footsteps are lagging and wearv ; Yet onward he goes through the broad belt of light Toward the shades of the forest so drear}-. Hark! was it the night wind rustled the leaves? ' Was it moonlight so wond'rously flashing? It looked like a rifle. " Ha 1 Mary, good-by ! " .And the lifeblood is ebbing and plashing. .AH quiet along the Potomac to-night. No sound save the rush of the river ; While soft falls the dew on the face of the dead — That picket's off duty forever. Again we may draw some useful lessons from the contempla- tion of our colleague as a type of the Confederate soldier who survived that struggle and entered at once upon another that challenged to the utmost his courage, patience, and endurance. 52 Memorial Addresses : JoJni M. Piiickiiey The obstacles overcome and the victories won by our friend in this field of endeavor will lie told by others better equipped for the task than I can possibly be. The way in which the southern soldiers gathered up the fragments and rebuilt their waste places after the war was simply marvelous. The cold facts, gathered from statistics, will show them as active in peace as they had been in war. Here, too, the individual apparently counted for little, but he lielped to swell the sum total of the striving masses who have been laying surely, if slowly, the foundations of new structures destined to surpass in wealth and power those that w&ni down in the fierce conflict of battle. Toward this rehabilitation John M. Pincknev contributed his full share in the State of Texas, as his colleagues from that State have shown this day. We will cherish his memory and pray that peace and con- tentment may follow those who directh- bind that memory to earth. It will not be long before some of us shall join him on the other shore. Death is no more mysterious than life. So live, that, when thy suimnons comes to join The innumerable caravan that move.s To that mysterious realm where each shall take His chamber in the silent halls of death. Thou go not like the quarry slave at night Scourged to his dungeon; but, sustained and soothed By an unfaltering trust, approach thy grave Like one that wraps the drapery of his couch About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams. Address of Mr. Slieppard, of Texas 53 Address of Mr. Skeffard, of Texas Mr. Speaker: Emotions weird and uuniberless overwhelm us as we turn from the grave whose gates are closing on the form of some beloved companion and wander among the castles of the dust. As meditation deepens we see the .shadowy out- lines rise until the melancholy habitations of the dead surround tis in unending vistas. It is a univer.se of gloom, an empire of the night. On everj- wall and tower sits the scepter of the dark. In every chamber solitude is unquestioned monarch. We .speak, but only an inaudible whisper leaves the lips. We tread the pallid passages, but no sound betraj's our steps. We see the phantom multitudes — the fleshless fingers, the ghastly brows, the pulseless frames — myriads on myriads pouring from a va.st and dim horizon, a noiseles,s Niagara of the dead. They .swell the twilight avenues and flood the fragile palaces, a dis- mal pageantry that ceases not but ever multiplies. We see the forms of those we love. With grief unspeakable we obser\-e the features stark, the bloodless lips, the lifeless eyes in which shine neither recognition nor affection, but only the feeble glimmer of decay. lu the desperation of an agony which a strange paralysis chains unuttered in the soul we reel against that tide of death to find the vi.sion vanished and in its place a cemetery with a city near at hand. In contemplation of the grave a thousand fanta.sies arise. It is the theme of all themes most prolific in the literature of the world. In the oldest writings known to man — the \'edas, Brah- nias, and Avestas — it was the source of the profoundest specula- 54 A/ciiiorial Addresses : Joltti M. Piiickncv tion. Its origin was conjectured in the strains of Hesiod. It was defied and satirized in the philosophy of Epicurus and Lucretius. It was exalted in the meditations of Aurelius. It gave a somber emphasis to the barbaric melodies of Beowulf and all the war chants of the Saxon time. It toi:ched with resistless sorrow the flaunting cynicism of the Rnbaiyat. It darkened the life of Petrarch, who emptied his heart in crinusou sonnets on the tomb of L,aura. It was apotheosized in Milton's classic grief for Lycidas, wherein the bard innnortal bids * * * amaranthus all his beauty shed And daffodillies fill their cups with tears, To strew the laureate hearse where Lycid lies. It prompted the pathetic imagery of Robert Blair, the elegy of Thomas Gra\'. It suggested to the observant genius of John- .son the famous dirge upon the vanity of Inmian wishes. It added horror to the wild imaginings of Poe. It freighted with a pathos deep and exqtiisite his lamentations for the lost Lenore, his distress for the death of Annabel Lee. and the journeyings to the tomb of Ulalume. Down by the dank tarn of Auber, In the ghoul-haunted woodland <>f Weir. Such are the reflections with which we approach the com- memoration of the death of John ]\IcPher.sox Pincknev — reflections saddened beyond all measure bj- the recollection of his infinite nobility. He combined the qualities of a brave and spotless manhood. Honor radiated from his soul, while truth sat on his brow as on a throne. He was in manner gentle and in action firm. His faith was perfect and his love sincere. Friendship was his altar and justice his shrine. Purity in pur- pose and courage in execution were the striking elements of his nature, and in his loft}' philosophy duty was but another word for God. .liMrt'ss of Ml'. Slicppard, of Texas 55 Although a native of Texas, he was a descendant of the Pinckneys of South Carolina, who were conspicuous among the founders of the Republic and who adorned the history of their State and the nation with examples of patriotism and ability. His earl)^ existence was one of uneventful toil. From the reluctant earth he was compelled by stern conditions to aid in obtaining the necessities of life for a crippled father and a family of brothers and sisters. Thus was impressed upon his tender years the principle of unselfish love which enuobled his entire career. When he was 16 years of age the American civil war began, and he became a Confederate soldier. He took part as a private in Hood's brigade in nearly all the im- portant battles and campaigns of that mighty struggle, sur- rendering with I,ee at Appomattox. His bearing on the field and in the camp was flawless. He was faithful to comrade and loyal to commander. He was cheerful in the bivouac, tireless on the march, and terrible in the charge. His daring on one occasion led to his capture, but he was soon released. He was thrice wounded, once quite seriously. The close of the contest found him a veteran of one of the greatest wars in history at the age of 20. He returned to his home to face the forces of reconstruction, enemies to be more dreaded than the forces of invasion by which he had been overpowered. In common with his coun- trymen he began the ta.sk of rebuilding a shattered land. He labored at various employments for ten years, being still the principal support of the family. Whatever respite he could secure was utilized in the study of law and general literature, and in 1S75 he was admitted to the bar. When it is recalled that during the most impressionable period of his youth he had been subjected to the demoralizing influences of war, that after the conclusion of hostilities society was in an unsettled and 56 Memorial Addresses: John M. Piiickney perilous condition, and that the demands upon his time and means strained his energies to the utmost, we may begin to comprehend the moral strength and resolution with which he discharged every obligation to his family and his country, and yet found time to cultivate the gentler graces of the mind and to prepare successfully for the bar. He was an able and progressive lawyer. He was a vigorous and convincing advocate, a frank and honest coun.selor. His professional conduct was above question. His conception of his relation to court, to client, and to adversary rested on the highest ethical basis. He would never sacrifice principle for gain nor truth for tainted victory. It was not pureh" as a lawyer, however, that he achieved a commanding position in the community. The people knew that above the lawyer stood the man. They came to love him for his worship of right, his devotion to justice, and for the stainless splendor of his integ- rity. The people as a whole, Mr. Speaker, possess a remark- able power of analysis, an unerring judgment of sincerity in public men. They seem to know by some mysterious instinct when public servants are prompted by proper or improper motives. It ma>- be that for this reason the voice of the people is said to be divine. At any rate it is certain that the people of John M. Pincknev's section came intuitively to regard him as the embodiment of law, the pensonification of its majesty. He was elected to the office of pro,secuting attorney. The peo- ple summoned him to combat the elements which threatened the overthrow of society, and his response was prompt and manful. For ten years he championed the peace and dignity of the vState. As a prosecutor he was utterly fearless and won- derfully eft'ective. At the close of his service as district attorney he became, in 1900, county judge of his home county. When he was nomi- Address of Mr. Sheppard^ of Texas 57 nated for Congress at Houston in 1903 the people of Hemp- stead, the place of his residence, prepared a joyful reception. As he stepped from the train that had borne him home the shouts of multitudes, the peals of music, the clangor of bells united in a tumultuous but happj- welcome. First to greet him was his sister, Miss Sue Piuckney, whom he loved and worshiped with a constancy as rare as it was beautiful. Be- tween them had existed a devotion for which the language of poets, the canvas of artists, the marble of sculptors have no adequate expression. For more than half a century they had walked hand in hand through shadow and through light. Hardly a day had ever passed that they did not communicate in some way. As he embraced her on this supreme occasion the clamor immediately ceased and the great throngs in rev- erent silence ob,served this expression of as pure a love, a loyalty as sublime, as ever flowered in the human heart. Of his sister he once said: I owe more to her than can ever be expressed, and the ambition of my life is so to live that I will be worthy of her affection. It was when he assiuned his seat in Congress that I made his acquaintance. We were drawn together by the. fact that we were, respectivelj-, the youngest and oldest Members of the Texas delegation. From acquaintance to friendship, from friendship to affection, were but short and eager steps. Our association here was most intimate. I had thorough opportti- nity to observe him in every phase and mood of life, and admiration rivaled love. He gave the closest and most con- scientious attention to the proceedings of the House. He would remain in his seat through the tedious deliberations on long appropriation bills, evincing the liveliest interest in every motion and in every debate. When death retired him he was rapidly taking a high place among the most conserva- 58 Memorial Addresses : JoJui M. Piiickncy tive and useful Members of this body. Of the civil war he frequently spoke. Of his record as a Confederate soldier he was justly proud. He accepted, however, the logic of Appo- mattox. He gloried in a reunited countrj- and a common flag. He believed with Jeffer.son Davis that on the arch of the Union should be written, " Esto perpetua " — be thou perpetual. The .significauce of his life lies in the fact that he was a typical Confederate .soldier. Earth has no higher title. As I heard from his laconic lips the story of that giant .strife I saw the hosts in battle line. I saw the thinning rank through four tempestuous years yield slowh- to superior force. I heard the thunderous prelude of Manassas. I saw the fires of Carthage, Lexington, Columbus, and Ball's Bluff. I saw the surge of Shiloh's thousands, the cla.sh of the legions at Murfreesboro. I .saw the crini.son .skies of Malvern Hill, of Antietam, and of Fredericksburg. I saw the carnage of Chickamauga and Mis- sionary Ridge. I heard the crash of Jack.son's columns against the opposing myriads at Chancellorsville. I saw the charge at Gettysburg. I saw the gleam of a million bayonets encircle the tattered groups of gra>-. In the gloom of the Wilderness I saw them approach the superbest martyrdom since Calvary's agonies made all defeat and sorrow holy. And when the tumult of the conflict fell there ro.se above the ashes of Southern hopes and homes a cross that bore the figure of a Confederate soldier. Beyond the waste of nineteen hundred years I saw that other cross on which a God had died ; and I knew that through my tears I saw the two sublimest sacrifices of God for man, and man for his conception of the truth. Sleep, warrior, sleep. Your unimprisoned soul now mingles with the armies in the tents of light, where blue and gray to- gether welcome every comrade to the rank immortal, armies Address of Mr. Sheppard, of Texas 59 summoned to the peace of endless morning by reveilles from the lips of God — enemies no more, but brothers there and their imited children brothers here, forever and forever. FUKTHKR ACTION OF THE HOUSE. And then, in pursuance of the resolution heretofore adopted, the Hou.se fat 12 o'clock and 47 minutes p. m. ) adjourned. 6o Memorial Addresses: Jo/iii iM. Piiukney PROCEEDINGS IN THE SENATE Wednesday, December 6. iqo§. A message from tlie House of Representatives, by Mr. W. J. Browning, its Chief Clerk, communicated to the Senate the intelligence of the death of Hon. John M. Pinckney, late a Representative from the State of Texas, and transmitted reso- lutions of the House thereon. Mr. Culberson. Mr. Pre.sident, I ask the Chair to lay before the Senate the resolutions of the Hou.se of Representatives relative to the death of Hon. John M. Pinckney, late a Repre- sentative from the State of Texas. The Vice-President. The Chair lays before the Senate the resolutions referred to by the Senator from Texas. They will be read. The Secretary read the resolutions, as follows: In thk House ok REPRESENT,\Tivi;s, Dccetiibcr ^, jgoj. Rfsoli'ed, That the House has lieard with profound .sorrow of the death of the Hon. John M. Pinckney, late a Representative from the vState of Texas. Resoli•■