Baltimore and The Nineteenth of April, 1861 Part 13

"'Be a.s.sured, Mr. Mayor, that in the sentiments of devotion to our common country which you so eloquently express, this Phalanx sympathizes heart and soul. You may plant the flag of the Union anywhere and we shall warm to it. And now, renewedly thanking you for the present manifestation of courtesy, we shall leave to enjoy the hospitality which awaits us in pleasant quarters at our hotel.'

"Captain Stuart was frequently interrupted by applause."

APPENDIX VI.

On the 19th of April, 1880, a portion of the members of the Sixth Ma.s.sachusetts Regiment again visited Baltimore, and an account of its reception, taken from the Baltimore Sun and the Baltimore _American_, seems to be a fitting close to this paper:

"Thirty-nine members of the a.s.sociation of Survivors of the Sixth Ma.s.sachusetts Union Regiment came to Baltimore yesterday afternoon, to celebrate the nineteenth anniversary of their march through Baltimore, April 19, 1861, which gave rise to the riot of that day. The visitors were met, on landing from the cars at President-street Depot, by Wilson, Dushane and Harry Howard Posts, Grand Army of the Republic, in full uniform, with band and drum corps. The line was up Broadway to Baltimore street, to Barnum's Hotel. A file of policemen, with Marshals Gray and Frey, kept the street open for the parade. The streets were crowded with people. The Ma.s.sachusetts men wore citizen's dress and badges."

Wilson Post No. 1, of the Grand Army of the Republic, received the visitors in their hall, Rialto Building, at two o'clock. Commander Dukehart, of Wilson Post, welcomed the guests in a brief speech, and then introduced Comrade Crowley, of the old Sixth, who said:

"'Nineteen years ago I was but a boy. A few days before the 19th of April, the militia of Middles.e.x County were summoned for the defense of the National Capital. We left workshops, desk and family, to come to the defense of the capital. We thought we were coming to a picnic; that the people of South Carolina were a little off their balance, and would be all right on sober second thought. A few miles out from Baltimore the Quartermaster gave us each ten rounds of ammunition. We had been singing songs. The Colonel told us he expected trouble in Baltimore, and impressed on each man not to fire until he was compelled to. The singing ceased, and we then thought we had serious business before us, and that others besides South Carolina had lost their balance. When we reached the Baltimore Depot some of the cars had gone ahead, and four companies--young men--were in the cars unconscious of what was going on outside. We thought the people of Baltimore and Maryland were of the same Government, and if not they ought to be. (Cheers and applause.) That they had the same interest in the Government, the best ever devised; that Maryland at least was loyal. A man knocked on the car-door and told us they were tearing up the track. Our Captain said, "Men, file out!" The order was given and we marched out. The Captain said, "March as close as you possibly can.

Fire on no man unless compelled." We marched through railroad iron, bricks and other missiles. We proved ourselves brave soldiers--proved that we could wait, at least, for the word of command. We were pelted in Baltimore nineteen years ago. We lost some of our comrades, and others were disabled for life. But we went to Was.h.i.+ngton. We don't claim to be the saviors of the capital; we take no great credit for what we did; but we did the best we could, and the result is shown.

The success of our march through Baltimore to-day is as indelibly fixed and will ever be as fresh as that of nineteen years ago, and our reception will remain in our hearts and minds as long as life lasts.

My father had six sons, and five were at the front at the same time.

I had learned to think that if Maryland, South Carolina or Virginia was to declare independence the Government would be broken up, and that we would have no country, no home, no flag. We were not fighting for Ma.s.sachusetts, for Maryland or for Virginia, but for our country--the United States (cheers and applause)--remembering the declaration of the great statesman, "Liberty and Union, now and forever, one and inseparable." This country went through four years of carnage and blood. Few families, North or South, but have mourning at their firesides; but it was not in vain, for it has established the fact that we are one people, and are an all-powerful people.

(Prolonged cheers.) Our reception to-day has convinced us that the war has ended, and that there are Union men in Maryland as in Ma.s.sachusetts; that we are brothers, and will be so to the end of time; that this is one great country; and that the people are marching on in amity and power, second to none on the face of the globe.'

(Cheers.)

"In the evening there was a banquet at the Eutaw House, and Judge Geo.

William Brown, who was Mayor of Baltimore in 1861, presided. Nearly two hundred persons were at table. After the dinner was over, Judge Brown said:

"'This is the 19th of April, a day memorable in the annals of this city, and in the annals of the country. It is filled in my mind with the most painful recollections of my life, and I doubt not that many who are here present share with me those feelings. I shall make but brief allusions to the events of that day. The city authorities of Baltimore of that time have mostly pa.s.sed away, and I believe I am the only one here present to-night. In justice to the living and the dead I have to say that the authorities of Baltimore faithfully endeavored to do their duty. It is not necessary for me, perhaps, to say so in this presence. (Applause.) It was not their fault that the Ma.s.sachusetts Sixth Regiment met a b.l.o.o.d.y reception in the streets of Baltimore. The visit of that regiment on both occasions has a great and important significance. What did it mean in 1861? It meant civil war; that the irrepressible conflict which Mr. Seward predicted had broken out at last, and that, as Mr. Lincoln said, a house divided against itself cannot stand. A great question then presented itself to the country. When war virtually began in Baltimore, by bloodshed on both sides, it meant that the question must be settled by force whether or not the house should stand. It took four years of war, waged with indomitable perseverance, to decide it, because the combatants on both sides were sustained by deep and honest convictions. It is not surprising, looking back coolly and calmly on the feelings of that day, that they found vent as they did. I am not here to excuse or to apologize, but to acknowledge facts. That was the significance of the first visit of the Ma.s.sachusetts Sixth Regiment, in response to the call of the President of the United States. After the war there was peace. But enforced peace is not sufficient in a family of States any more than in a household. There must be among brothers respect, confidence, mutual help and forbearance, and, above everything, justice and right. After nineteen years the visit of survivors of the Sixth Ma.s.sachusetts is, I hope, significant of more than peace. It is, I hope, significant of the fact that there is a true bond of union between the North and the South (applause), and that we are a family of States, all equal, all friends; and if it be, there is no one in the country who can more fervently thank G.o.d than myself that the old house still stands.' (Applause.)

"Judge Brown offered as a toast: 'The Sixth Regiment of Ma.s.sachusetts: Baltimore extends to her fraternal greeting.'"