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Show Links That Bind Present and Past On this Memorial day the roads that lead to bivouacs of sleeping soldiers ore filled again with marching comrades, com-rades, carrying flowers to freshen old memories. Each year takes Its toll and every spring finds more vacant .files In ranks of those who first ;mnrcnea on memorial aay ; nnas more names scratched from the muster rolls. But ranks that were fast dwindling a 'few years ago are being filled again. ITounger, sturdier veterans are march-ling march-ling with those who wear the blue or jgray. As the years roll on the blue 'and gray will fade and these recruits jof a younger generation will turn out Hu Increasing numbers to take their 1 places. Time will have that effect Thus another link Is welded for this chain which, on the thirtieth diy of (May, binds the present and the past. 'The veterans of the Civil war formed 'one link. Then the veterans of the ; Spanish war made another and the veterans of the World war are another. anoth-er. The Civil war link holds firm. The pension office carries more than 77,000 survivors on K roll Nor were they the first link, though they originated orig-inated this custom of today. Only ten years before they went to war the last man who bore arms In the Revolution died. They were gray-haired when. In 1009, the last soldier of 1812 sought his grave, ' And today a bare handful of those, who fought In the Mexican war are living; feeble old men who were adventurous youngsters when Lincoln, In the house, was berating James K. Polk for sending them to war "He knows not where be la. He Is a bewildered, confounded and miserably miser-ably perplexed man." In lOfiQ, some of those who march today, wearing their blue or gray, will be alive. In 1088 there will be living some who volunteered when the Maine went down. And some of the "boys" of the World war will see the dawn of a new century. But after they go will there be yet another link? |
