Judge Milton J. Helmick Points Out Significance Occasion at Special Ceremony 7E do not come here to gloat over bloody battles boast of great victories.
Our mission is only to show gratitude for services rendered", declared Judge Milton J. Helmick in his address at the Memorial Day service held on May 30 at Bubbling Well Cemetery over the graves of ninety American ser men. Judge Helmick said that they met on this day in obedience to American tradition to honour the dead who were once soldiers! and sailors of the Republic.
So far as he knew, no famous soldier nor any other American of great historical moment was buried here, and consequently this ceremony was not one of homage to some great figure.
"We like It better because these dead were humble, ordinary men who served the Republic without fame and without large reward", said Judge Helmick, "The theme of our tribute Hes not so much in praise of them as warriors but in the thought that they elected to enlist themselves for the protection and ald of others." The sword could be a symbol of aggression, belligerence and brutality, It could be a symbol of calm cour age, "sacrifice and justice. Every Memorial Day celebration raised again the inevitable question whether these honoured dead had died la vain. democracy in their country was fon the decline, if bigger and bloodier wars were impending for them, lying propaganda was potent their borders, if vainglorious nationalistic priority and sordid commercial gain' were the chief ends of government, if their statesmen held Power by recourse to pseudo superpatriotism, if their plain people had of learned the futility of war as a Solution of differences—then perhaps these dead had died in vain.
But they were happy to believe that none of these things were so. They "had long been inflicted with 1 plethora of orators who were eager {fo lay down someone. else's life. for his country, but happily their people were now acquiring intelligent and bhard-headed processes of thought which did not yield to specious exhotlation or mob fervour, or to appeals to. racial and national prejhid ice. They honoured the soldiers and sailors of the Republic because they were committed. to protection and defence and not to war-making. Tt was a fine and signifeant thing that the motto of the particular farmed force. they best knew and loved was "Semper Fidelis."
In this motto there was no bombast and no hint of aggression or belligerency or challenge. It was not the motto of bullies but of gentlemen unafraid. They had taken' time out to come here not because they could do anything for these dead, but for the good of their own souls. While they honoured the memory" of the dead, they revived their own sense of civie responsibility. They had come here to say and to show that their Republic, at least, was not grateful and that their' Republic did not forget.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.