GETTYSBURG, SEPTEMBER 11-12, 1889 WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER IITH Dedication of the Monuments of the Pennsylvania Commands engaged in the Battle CEREMONIES IN NATIONAL CEMETERY THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 12TH, I 30 P. M. PRESIDING Brevet Lieut. Colonel George Meade Staff of Major-General George G. Meade, commanding Army of the Potomac MUSIC The Star-spangled Banner PRAYER Reverend John R. Paxton, D. D. ANTHEM "Praise the Lord " The "Arion Singing Society" TRANSFER OF THE MONUMENTS TO THE GOVERNOR Brevet Brigadier-General; Colonel 47th Penna, Infantry Brevet Brigadier-General; Colonel 148th Penna. Infantry Isaac R. Pennypacker, Esq. THE FIRST DAY, July 1, 1863 Brevet Captain Joseph G. Rosengarten Aide-de-Camp Staff of Major-General John F. Reynolds THE SECOND AND THIRD DAYS, July 2-3, 1863 Major and Judge-Advocate Staff of Major-General Winfield S. Hancock MUSIC Dedication Quartette TRANSFER TO BATTLE-FIELD MEMORIAL ASSOCIATION Governor James A. Beaver ACCEPTANCE ON BEHALF OF THE ASSOCIATION MUSIC Dedication Quartette and Perseverance Band BENEDICTION Reverend David Craft, D. D. Chaplain 141st Penna. Infantry (4) A REV. JOHN R. PAXTON, D. D. LMIGHTY God, Great Ordainer of all things, Mighty Sustainer of all Thy creatures, we are Thy people, preserved by Thy power, cared for by Thy love and redeemed by Thy grace. And whatsoever we do, whether we eat or drink, whether we cultivate the art of peace, or hasten unto battle, whether we celebrate a birth or commemorate the dead, what soever we do, we sincerely desire to do all in Thy fear and to Thy glory, thou Omnipotent God without whose blessing we can do nothing well and against whom we can do nothing long. : We bless Thee as the God of Righteousness and Truth, whose presence can be discerned on battle-fields, enforcing just judg ment by the sword and bayonet as well as in the houses of mourning inspiring hope, and soothing sorrow, or by the beds of dying men offering pardon and eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. We bless Thee as the God of Nations as well as of personal destiny. We see Thy hand moving amongst the affairs of the world, overturning dogmas of false worship, inflicting defeat upon wrong and wicked causes, and visiting with retributive punishment all unholy enterprises that offend Thy justice and truth.. In times past we see Thy hand moving amongst our affairs as a nation. Friends and allies of Thine assisted at our birth as a nation, and by Thy care and favor we have prospered as a people and grown great and powerful in the eyes of all the world, because we have, in the main, loved righteousness and truth and hated injustice, oppressions and lies. Almighty God, continue to us, we pray Thee, as a nation, through all future generations, Thy favor and Thy care, then with God on our side we shall not fear the wrath of men nor the gates of hell, and the Great Republic, the land we love, shall abide forever. And now, O God, our father's God, our country's God, for the occasion before us, and upon these memorial services, we confidently invoke Thy presence and Thy blessing, firmly believing that this day, and the dead around us, deserve Thy approbation, and are worthy of Thy consenting presence and Thy loving smile. Almighty and most Holy God, the Eternal Father, the Sovereign Ruler in Heaven, and on Earth, Lord of Lords, Great and Supreme God against whom no star ever rebelled, nor any sea ever mutinied, daring to overleap its prescribed boundaries, to Thee we boldly and confidently appeal; and on this memorial, this historic, this sacred field where our dead comrades sleep we fear not to claim Thy presence and Thy blessing. Hide not, O God, Thy face from us, nor keep back Thy smile and benediction, while we, survivors of this tremendous and terrific battle-field, on which treason and rebellion were fatally wounded, and the Union and the right assured of their final triumph, in grateful memory of our comrades who fell here, on the soil of our own state, and from our own homes, dedicate these monuments to their everlasting remembrance. O be with us in all these solemn and tender services, for in Thy power we begin them, and under Thy smile have to conclude them. The battle was fought and won by our comrades who sleep sweet beneath Thy smile, under the sod, and by us who survived to mourn their death, and pay them loving tribute to their memory. May these marble and bronze monuments, erected in loving memory of our fallen comrades, stand while the Republic endures, and preach patriotism to unborn generations on this eventful and sacred field. We thank thee, O God, for the faithfulness unto death of the heroic dead whose bones repose in this hallowed ground. May their memory be green in our hearts while life lasts. May the country for which they voluntarily and gladly shed their blood prosper, and survive the vicissitudes of time, and the calamities of fortune, great, united, enduring. May we be as loyal and patriotic in peace as we were in war, by the side of our comrades at rest under our feet. May the children cherish and perpetuate the institution, the constitution, the liberty and love, and equality our comrades died to maintain. And now Thy holy, helpful blessing we claim and crave on the day, on our dead, on our country, north and south, on our President, our Governor and the dear old State, which we and our common brothers who sleep in well-earned graves on this sacred battle-field, are proud to call our own, we ask in Christ's name. Amen. ANTHEM: "Praise the Lord." THE TRANSFER OF THE MONUMENTS TO THE GOVERNOR OF THE COMMONWEALTH. G By HON. J. P. S. GOBIN. NOVERNOR BEAVER: The Commission appointed by yourself under the provision of the act of assembly approved June 15, 1887, desire to present to the State of Pennsylvania, through you, as its executive, the result of their labor. They were directed to "select and decide upon the design and the material for monuments of granite and bronze to mark the position of each Pennsylvania command upon the battle-field of Gettysburg," and the object of the erection of these monuments was declared to be "for the purpose of perpetuating the participation in and marking by suitable memorial tablets of granite or bronze the position of each of the commands of Pennsylvania volunteers engaged" in that battle. From the earliest era of which we have historical data, nations and individuals have delighted to honor heroic deeds, and enduringly mark the spot upon which the fate of governments was involved in the shock of battle. Even though the result, in many instances, impeded the onward march of progressive thought and shackled the limbs of advancing freedom, the natural pride with which was beheld the prowess of her soldiery upon that field, demanded of the nation suitable commemoration of the event, and a definite location of the scene. In the memories and traditions of past centuries, the legends of the middle ages, the histories of the ancient rulers, or the struggles of nations for a better civilization, the one place made sacred is that upon which their armies fought and conquered. Every nationality has insisted upon tributes of this character, and many have learned important lessons from them. We remember the story of one of the old conquerors of Greece, who, when he had traveled in his boyhood over the battle-fields where Miltiades had won victories and set up trophies, upon his return, said, "These trophies of Miltiades will never let me sleep." Each feature of the chiseled granite was an inspiration to him as a soldier, and, doubtless, had an inspiring effect upon his subsequent career. The Romans who placed the busts of their successful leaders |