MEMORIAL DAY ^^ROBERT EDWARD LEE^^ r January 19 19 9 W ^ —^= ARKANSAS —^^ DEPARTMENT of EDUCATION s;;^^^^^ GEO. B. COOK, Superintendent s^;s Book_.t-L^A^- A SUGGESTIVE PROGRAM FOR THE Schools of Arkansas For Use in Celebration of ROBERT E. LEE DAY JANUARY NINETEENTH ISSUED BY DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION With kind and friendly greetings to children, teachers and all friends of education throughout the State. GEO. B. COOK, Superintendent of Public Instruction. Little Rock, Arkansas. ^' OF 0, OfC 30 1909 E4G1 • I .L4A3 AN ACT ENTITLED An Act to Encourage the Study of Arkansas History and to Promote the Spirit of Patriotism in the Public Schools of Arkansas. Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of Ark- ansas: Section i. That the nineteenth of January, the birth- day of Robert Edward Lee, shall be observed in all the public schools of this State as a day for patriotic exercises and the study of the history and achievements of Arkansas men. Sec, 2. The state superintendent of public instruc- tion is hereby authorized to prepare and publish annually for use in all public schools of the state, a program of exer- cises dealing with events in the life of General Lee and other distinguished men, giving attention also to the achieve- ments and work of eminent men who have served this State in civil and military life. Sec. 3. It shall be the duty of county examiners, city superintendents and principals of schools to aid in carry- ing on this work and they shall arrange the exercises of their various schools in accordance with the provisions of this act. Sec. 4. This act shall be in full force and effect from and after its passage. Approved February 13, 1905. SUGGESTIVE PROGRAM OUTLINE Song by the School — "America" (standinp-). Invocation. Song by the School. Quotations. Address — Life and Work of Robert E. Lee. Song by the School — "Arkansas." Essays, Recitations, Readings. Brief accounts of Distinguished Men of Arkansas. Song by the School. AMERICA By SamueIv Francis Smith. My country, 'tis of thee, Sweet land of liberty, Of thee I sinsf ; Land where my fathers died. Land of the pilgrim's pride, From every mountain side Let freedom ring. My native country, thee, Land of the noble free. Thy name I love; I love thy rocks and rills, Thy woods and templed hills ; My heart with rapture thrills Like that above. Let music swell the breeze, And ring from all the trees, Sweet freedom's song; Let mortal tongues awake, Let all that breathe partake. Let rocks their silence break, The sound prolong. Our father's God to Thee, Author of liberty, To Thee we sing; Long may our land be bright With freedom's holy light ; Protect us by Thy might, Great God, our King. ARKANSAS Tune, "America." Words by A. C. Millar. 1 My Arkansas, of thee. Home of the brave and free, Of thee I sing: Land where our fathers fell, Land where true patriots dwell, — From every height and dell Let freedom ring, 2 My own dear Arkansas, Land of impartial law, Thy name is sweet: I love thy crested hills. Deep vales and laughing rills, — My soul with rapture fills. As thee I greet. 3 Thy anthems ring sincere, Thy lovers far and near Raise freedom's song : Let slumbering rocks awake; Let trees their banners shake; Let nature all partake; — Thy praise prolong. 4 O God, our fathers' guide. Cast not their sons aside, 'Though they be dust; Hold with Thy mighty hand Those who as suppliants stand ; Fail not to bless Thy land, — In Thee we trust. SELECT QUOTATIONS "I have met many of the great men of my time, but Lee alone impressed me with the feehng that I was in tlie presence of a man who was cast in grander mold and made of different and finer metal than all other men." — Lord Wolseley, Commander-in-Chief of the British Army. "I tell yon that if I were on my death-bed tomorrow, and the President of the United States should, tell me that a great battle was to be fought for the liberty or slavery of the country, and asked my judgment as to the ability of a commander, I would say with mv dving breath, 'Let it be Robert E. Lee.' " — General Scott to General Preston. Patriotism is one of the positive lessons to be taught in every school. Everything learned should be flavored with a genuine love of country. Every glorious fact in the nation's history should be emphasized, and lovingly dwelt upon. The names of her illustrious citizens should be treasured in the memory. Every child should feel that he is entitled to a share, not only in the blessings conferred by a free government, but also in the rich memories and glori- ous achievements of his country. ■ — Richard Edwards. "Do not be ashamed to love the flag or confess your love of it. Make much of it; tell its history; sing of it. It now floats over our schools and it ought to hang from the windows of all our homes on all public days. Every man should uncover when the flag is borne in parade, and every one should rise when a national air is given at a con- cert or public meeting." — Benjamin Plarrison. If ever it is a cjuestion whether you or the flag must perish, you will instantly choose that it shall not be tlie flag. — William T. Sherman. Patriotism consists of a love of one's country so strong that it is counted no sacrifice to die for it. —Daniel R. Ballon. We may adorn with loving tributes the resting place of our. beloved dead; the flowers which are strewn may symbolize the living fragrance of their memory; but we shall honor them the most by having their example teach us to love our country, to value its dearly purchased institu- tions more, to prize its manifold blessings more, and to ad- vance its greatness and true glory more. — Schuyler Colfax. We are strong in our territorial extent, strong in the vast natural resources of our country, strong in the vig- orous men and in the fair women who inhabit it, strong in those glorious institutions which our fathers of the Revolu- tion transmitted to us ; but, above all, strong, stronger, strongest in the irrepressible instinct of patriotic devotion to country which burns inextinguishably, like the vestal fire on its altars, in the heart of every American. — Caleb Cushing. Let us do our duty in our shop or our kitchen, the mar- ket, the street, the office, the school, the home, just as faith- fully as if we stood in the front rank of some great battle and we knew that victory for mankind depended on our bravery, strength and skill. When we do that the humblest of us will be serving in that great army which achieves the welfare of the world. — Theodore Parker. Every good citizen makes his country's honor his own, and cherishes it, not only as precious, but as sacred. He is willing to risk his life in its defense, and is conscious that he gains protection while he gives it. Our Federal Union, it must be preserved. — Andrew Jackson. The only debt that the nation can never repay is the one to her old soldiers. A Nation's character is the sum of its splendid deeds ; they constitute one common patrimony, the Nation's inheri- tance. They awe foreign powers, they arouse and animate our own people. —Henry Clay. No words can depict, no pen can describe, the won- derful variety, richness, grandeur and beauty which the Almighty has stamped upon this, our favored land. — Joim Sherman. It is the people's constitution; the people's government; made for the people ; made by the people and answerable to the people. — Daniel Webster. We honor our heroic and patriotic dead by being true men; as true men by faithfully fighting the battles of our day as they fought the battles of their day. The flower of a true and beautiful life is the flower to put upon the soldier's grave. Trueness to our countiy is the best way to honor the soldier who fell in the defense of his country. — David Gregg. We join ourselves to no party that does not carry the flag and keep step to the music of the Union. — Rufus Choate. Let our object be our country, our whole country, ,and nothing but our country. — Daniel Webster. "Let us have that faith that right makes might, and in that faith let us, to the end, dare to do our duty as we under- stand it." — Lincoln. He liveth long who liveth well; All else is life but flung away; He liveth longest who can tell Of true things truly done each day. Then fill each hour with what will last ; Buy up the moments as they go; The life above, when this is past, Is the ripe fruit of life below. — Horatius Bonar. BRIEF OUTLINE OF THE LIFE OF LEE Born in Virginia, January 19, 1807. Graduated at West Point, 1829. Served in Mexican War under General Wool, later as military engineer under General Scott. Superintendent Military Academy at West Point, 1852-55. " Resigned his position in the United States army, 1861, and was made Major-General of the forces of his native State — Virginia. Became president of Washington and Lee University, 1865, and served until his death, October 12, 1870. THE CHARACTER OF LEE When the future historian comes to survey tlie char- acter of Lee, he will find it rising like a huge mountain above the undulating plane of humanity, and he must lift his eye towards heaven to catch its summit. He possessed every virtue of all other great commanders, without their vices. He was a foe without hate, a friend without treach- ery, a soldier without cruelty, a victor without oppression, and a victim without murmuring. He was a public officer without vices, a private citizen without wrong, a neighbor without reproach, a Christian without hypocrisy, and a man without guile. He was Caesar without his ambition, Fred- erick without his tyranny. Napoleon without his selfish- ness, and Washington witliout his reward. He was as obedient to authority as a servant, and as royal in authority as a king. He was gentle as a woman in life, modest and as pure as a virgin in thought, watchful as a Roman vestal on duty, submissive to the law as a Socrates, and as grand in battle as an Achilles. Ben H. Hill- AN ESTIMATE OF LEE By James Ford Rhodes. The Confederates had an advantage in that Robert E. Lee espoused their cause; to some extent appreciated at the time, this in reality was an advantage beyond computation. Had he followed the example of Scott and Thomas and re- mained in service under the old flag in active command of the Army of tiie Potomac, how differently might not events have turned out. Lee, now 54 years old, his face exhibiting the ruddy glow of health, was physically and morally a splendid ex- ample of manhood. Able to trace his lineage far back into the mother country, the best blood of Virginia flowed in his veins. Drawing from a knightly race all their virtues, he had inherited none of their vices. Honest, sincere, sim- ple, magnanimous, forbearing, refined, courteous yet dig- nified and proud, never lacking self command, he was in all respects a true man. Graduating from West Point his life had been exclusively that of a soldier, yet he had none of the soldier's bad habits. He used neither liquor nor 10 tobacco and indulged rarely in a social glass of wine, and cared nothing for the pleasures of the table. He was a good engineer and under General Scott had won distinction in Mexico. The work that had fallen to his lot he had per- formed in a systematic manner and with conscientious care. "Duty is the sublimest word in our language," he wrote to his son. Sincerely religious, Providence to him was a verity, and it may be truly said he walked with God. A serious man, he anxiously watched from his station in Texas the progress of events since Lincoln's election. "Thinking slavery as an institution a moral and political evil," having a soldier's devotion to his flag and a warm attachment to General Scott, he loved the Union and it was especially dear to him as the fruit of the mighty labors of Washington. Although believing that the South had just grievances due to the aggression of the North, he did not think these evils great enough to resort to the remedy of revolution and to him secession was nothing less. "Still," he wrote in January, 1861, "a union that can only be main- tained by swords and bayonets and in which strife and civil war are to take the place of brotherly love and kindness has no charm for me. If tiie Union is dissolved and the Gov- ernment disrupted I shall return to my native State and share the miseries of my people and save in defence will draw my sword on none." Summoned to Washington by his chief, Lee had arrived there a few days before the in- auguration of Lincoln, and he had to make the decision after the bombardment of Sumter and the President's call for troops whether he should serve the national Government or Virginia. The active command of the Federal army with the succession to the chief place was virtually offered to him, but with this notion of State's rights and his allegi- ance to Virginia his decision, though it cost him pain to make it, could have been no other than it was. He could not lead an army of invasion into his native State and after the ordinance of secession had been passed by the Virginia convention he resigned his commission and accepted the command of the Virginia forces. Northern men may regret that Lee did not see his duty in the same light as did two other Virginians, Scott and Thomas, but censure's voice upon the action of such a noble soul is hushed. A careful survey of his character and life must lead the student of men and affairs to see that the II course he took was from his point of view and judged by his inexorable and pure conscience the path of duty to whicli a high sense of honor called him. Could we share the thoughts of that high-minded man as he paced the broad pillared veranda of his noble Arlington house, his eyes glancing across the river at the flag of his country, waving above the dome of the Capitol, and then resting on the soil of his native Virginia, we should be willing now to recog- nize in him one of the finest products of American life. For surely as the years go on we shall see that such a life can be judged by no partisan measure, and we shall come to look upon him as the English of our day regard Washing- ton, whom little more than a century ago they delighted to call a rebel. Indeed in all essential characteristics Lee re- sembled Washington, and had the great work of his life been crowned with success, or had he chosen the winning side, the world would have acknowledged that Virginia could in a century produce two men who were the embodi- ment of public and private virtue. RECOLLECTIONS BY ONE OF' HIS SOLDIERS By Robert E. Park. It has always been a source of pleasure and gratifica- tion to me that I have enjoyed the privilege of frequently seeing General Lee, on the line of march, in the bivouac and on the battlefield, and I am proud that on more than one oc- casion I had the privilege of very brief conversations with him. I recall that while in command of a detachment of the 1 2th Alabama Regiment on the banks of the Rappahannock river, in 1863, General Lee rode to where my men were digging rifle-pits. As he rode along up to where the men were eagerly working I spoke to him, and with uplifted cap and reverent look, I told him that I had directed my men to cease firing at the pickets across the river, and that the enemy's pickets had been silent for some time as if in tacit approval of our course. General Lee smiled and said, "Shooting down pickets is not war," and in these words ex- pressed his approbation of my command. I then ventured to say, "General, it is dangerous for you to be here, for the enemy's pickets may renew their firing at any time, and you are in a very exposed position. I wish you would go back." 12 Without making any reply, but bowing slightly, he turned his horse and quietly rode back to where his staff were awaiting him some distance in the rear. As I looked upon him the impression made by having seen him frequently before, as to his remarkable personal beauty and great grace of movement was deepened. He had a superb figure, deli- cate hands, was graceful in carriage, and of most benign countenance. His character a? understood by the soldiers was pos- sessed of a gentleness and dignity that won their love and admiration. The men whom he commanded were men of courage, honor and nobility, because they were true to their convictions of right, and were soldiers whose hands were unstained by cruelty or pillage. Their characters were, in a large sense, influenced ,by the example of their beloved leader. The admiration of the Confederate soldiers for General Lee was not their partial judgment only, hut his greatness and his goodness are admitted by the bitterest of his foes. Books and papers and the very air has heen filled with calumnies and revilings of his cause, but none has been aimed at this illustrious exemplar of the cause. If there are spirits so base as to malign him and so blind as not to see his matchless worth and incomparable greatness, they Avill at least merit and receive the certain indignation of mankind. Base cowards who have spoken of him as a rebel and a traitor have been branded as unworthy, and the name of Lee has moved more tongues and stirred more hearts than the siege of the mightiest city or the triumph of the. most renowned of kings. He was in every sense the great- est of soldiers, the sublimest of heroes and the best of men. His unblemished name and shining fame will endure through all ages, and the undying love of every Southern man or woman and the admiration of all the world will follow him. General Lee's name and fame are not bounded by the borders of the South nor by the limits of the Ameri- can continent. The South gave him birth, the South holds his ashes, but his enduring fame belongs to the human race. Washington and Jefferson Davis were born in the South and sleep in the South, but their great fame is not to be ap- propriated by this country; it is the inheritance of mankind. The names of Lee and Davis should be placed by the present 13 and by posterity beside that of Washington. This trium- virate belongs to the world. I do not believe that to any one could be more appro- priately applied this great poetic epitaph than to Robert Edward Lee : "Ne'er to the mansions where the mighty rest, Since their foundation, came a nobler guest; Nor e'er was to the bowers of bliss conveyed A purer saint or a more welcome shade.'' HEROISM We build monuments and sing praises to the heroism of battle, the wild charge, the forlorn hope, the still white face upturned to the pitiless stars. This is the heroism we never forget, for it stirs the heart like the call of the trum- pet. But there is another heroism of the c[uiet, unnoted life, lived out in honor and duty and self-respect. He is a true patriot who in the piping times of peace knows how to respect himself, his neighbor, and his God ; who does each day an honest day's work, and lays him down each night to honest dreams; who adds his little mite to the nation's wealth of brain or power or goods; who holds a steadfast trust in the things that are worth while; who proves his Americanism, not by his much shouting, but by the clear, square democracy of his daily life; who sees his present humble duty and, seeing, does it. America needs men who are willing to die for her; even more she needs the unknown millions who know enough, care enough, and dare enough to live for her. — Charles S. Chapin. 14 THE SOLDIER BOY The man who wears the shoulder straps And has his sword in hand, Who proudly strides along- the front, Looks good and brave and grand — But back there in the ranks somewhere, Just where I can not see, With his gun upon his shoulder is The soldier boy for me ! The man who wears the shoulder straps Is handsome, brave and true; But there are other handsome boys. And other brave ones, too. When there are heights that must be won While bullets fill the air, 'Tis not the officer alone Who braves the dangers there. The man who wears the shoulder straps Is cheered along the way. And public honor dulls his dread Of falling in the fray; But there behind him in the ranks. And moving like a part Of some machine, is many a man With just as brave a heart. The man who wears the shoulder straps Deserves the people's praise — I honor and applaud him for The noble part he plays ; But, back there in the ranks somewhere, Stout-hearted, is he, Prepared to do and nerved to dare — The soldier boy for me ! — S. E. Kiser. 15 *'IN PLACE REST'* "Possibly none but old soldiers will understand tne significance of this term. To the soldier it suggests nearly everything pertaining to soldierly character and soldierly duty. When battle was imminent, or in progress, and the regiments were in line of battle, there would come intervals of quiet. A command might be in position for five minutes, for an hour, or three hours, awaiting orders or awaiting the development of the battle. In such cases the order was 'In place rest.' That is, each soldier might sit down, or lie down, or rest as best suited him, but he must keep in place so that on the instant he would be ready to make a charge or to repel one. "The image that comes to the mind, that is expressed in the words, is of the soldier fully armed, fully prepared and ready for whatever may come. The figure is that of the soldier in his place, ready, alert, watchful, but at rest. The picture is of soldiers in unbroken line or in solid column waiting orders. It is a picture of men who have subor- dinated the individual to a defined purpose, to a great cause ; of men who at rest are ready on the instant when the call comes; of men who are in place, who have taken the posi- tion resignedly under orders and who await the words of the Great Commander or the bugle blast 'Forward.' "This 'In place rest' is a good text for Decoration Day. In one of the great battles at the very crisis of the conflict one of the finest regiments in the service was formed to repel a bayonet charge. They knew that when the charge came it would be a terrible one but as they waited they 'rested in place.' Suddenly there was the sharp ringing order that brought every man into position to resist the bayonet charge. The next day in passing over the field scores of men of that regiment were found dead in perfect alignment. They had been shot as they knelt or as they stood to receive the charge. That regiment turned the tide of battle. It stood like a rock but it left one-third of its members dead on the line of battle. There had been no fal- tering, no hesitation. There had been strict obedience to orders, the courage that makes men great, the calmness of men looking death in the face. In the same battle one of the most popular colonels was wounded to death. As his men carried him to a place of safety and lowered him ten- derly to the ground he murmured 'In place rest,' and that was all." — Inter-Ocean. i6 A NEW MEMORIAL DAY By the sob of the southern rivers. By the sig'h of the northern hills, To the tender tune of the soft tattoo, While the muffled drum-beat thrills The heart of a common nation With a common sorrow to-day, Let roses fall, for one and all, On the graves of the blue and gray ! Clasp hands forever and ever — There are no sections now. They are one and one in the new faith won From the faith of a patriot vow ; The wounds that were wide and bitter Are healed by the touch to-day Of the tender fingers of love that press Rose-wreaths for the blue and gray! They are calling the veteran legions Who march from the fields of the past ! They are calling the brave young heroes Who are one with the old ones at last ! And the flag they are marching under Is my flag and your flag to-day — The stripes and the stars of old glory. The flag of the blue and the gray! Bend down with your blossoms, ye living! Sleep on in your silence, ye dead ! The bugles are mute, the drums muffled, The columns swing slow in their tread ; But the north and the south march together. They are under one banner to-day. And they pluck the white rose of remembrance Alike for the blue and the gray! For the graves that are green with the verdure Of the years that have healed with their song The sting and the stain and the anger. The passion, the pride and the wrong; For the graves with the fresh turf upon them, Those young graves that call us to-day, With the rose-wreaths of common affection Made one for the blue and the gray ! — Baltimore News. ^7 WITH THE RED, WHITE AND BLUE An interesting incident is told by the newspapers of Paris apropos of the last hours of the session of the Ameri- can and Spanish peace commission. When the treaty between the two countries was signed, it was proposed by some one that, out of acknowledgment of the hospitality of the French government, the momentous document should be tied with a tricolored ribbon — the red, white and blue of the French flag. The American commissioners readily assented to this, not only because they were quite willing to offer France the compliment, but also because the red, white and blue are their own national colors. A messenger was sent for the tricolored ribbon, but no such thing was to be found in the building of the ministry of foreign affairs, in which the session was taking place. This important department of state was without such an emblem of the republic. At this juncture a French functionary had a happy thought. "The confectioners always have them," he said, "to tie up boxes of candy for patriotic people. Here, Jean," he called to a messenger of the department, "run over to X's, the confectioner in the Rue Saint-Honore, and buy me a pound of macaroons. And be sure to ask the man to tie up the parcel with a tricolored ribbon." After a little wait the messenger came back with a package of macaroons, tied up with a narrow red, white and blue ribbon ; and with this confectioner's "string" the treaty of peace between America and Spain was tied. — Youth's Companion. OUR STANDING ARMY We have no standing army? Nay, look around and see! The man who ploughs the furrow, The man who fells the tree, The statesman and the scholar — At the first word of fear Turn to their country, breathing "My mother, I am here!" Not of a dumb, blind people. Is this, our army made ; Where school house and where steeple Have cast their friendly shade. Our army grows in knowledge, As it to manhood grows, And, trained in school and college, Stands ready for its foes. The brawny arms of gunners Serve minds alert and keen ; The sailors' thought has traveled To lands he has not seen. Not for the joy of killing. Not for the lust of strife. Have these come forth with gladness To offer up their life. Behold our standing army — Not, as in other lands. An army standing idle, With empty minds and hands^ But each one in his station; And peaceful victory Is training for the nation Heroes of land and sea. — Margaret Vandegrift. 19 WHAT CONSTITUTES A STATE What constitutes a State? Not high-raised battlements nor labored mound, Thick wall or moated gate; Not cities proud, with spires and turrets crowned; Not bays and broad-arm ports, Where, laughing at the storm, rich navies ride; Not starred and spangled courts, Where low-bro\\ed baseness wafts perfume to pride. No! Men — high-minded men — With powers as far above brutes endued. In forest, brake, or den. As beasts excel cold rocks and brambles rude : Men, w^ho their duties know. But know their rights, and knowing, dare maintain, Prevent the long-aimed blow, And crash the tyrant while they rend the chain. These constitute a State; And sovereign law, that State's collected will, O'er thrones and globes elate Sits empress, crowning good, repressing ill. — Sir William Jones. p^ti LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 013 700 435 5 \t^i ^