File:34. North Carolina Monument Dedication Program July 3, 1929 Page 10 (2196b8f8-bd09-4ea3-8f34-200ec215761c).jpg

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would give our all. This attitude has been fully demonstrated wince the battle fought here. When the war with Spain came, we were not only ready and anxious to defend our country, but the blood of a North Carolina naval officer was the first to be shed in that struggle. Sacrifices in that war were not so great as those we had theretofore undergone, or those we were destined to undergo in later years, when in defense of democracy the United States enter the World War. North Carolina then blazed with patriotic fervor from one end to the other, and our people contributed most liberally in men and money. It became the high privilege of troops from our State, shoulder to shoulder with their comrades from New York to break the most stubborn line ever flung across a battlefield. The same American spirit that moved those who made the gallant charge at Gettysburg under the “Stars and Bars” was regnant in those who broke the Hindenburg line under the Stars and Stripes. And that same spirit exists today and will continue to exist until flood gates of life close in eternal rest. And so, my friends, in a golden mist of American valour [sic] lies Gettysburg. Sectional lines no longer mar its peaceful slopes. Nor longer do we recognize in its clouds of imperishable glory the devices of its flags. Yonder dying sun reflects from this field one flag and one alone – the glorious emblem of our common country. With a feeling of pride inspired by the valour [sic] of our fathers who here offered upon the altar of their country “the last full measure of devotion”; with tender sentiments for the cause they represented, and with unreserved love for the reunited Nation in which we live and strive today, I give this Memorial into the keeping of the United States of America. When in years to come, it shall catch the morning’s first gleam and reflect the last rays of the setting sun, my prayer is that it shall inspire all who behold it to emulate the glorious valour [sic] and patriotic devotion to duty, which characterized those brave North Carolinians, who under the leadership of the immortal Lee fought and died upon this field.

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