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Masonic Grand Lodge of New Mexico |
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The following is taken from a letter, drafted in June of 1861, from the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania, sent in response to a communication received from the Grand Lodge of Tennessee decrying the situation that our country was in. "As to the present deplorable state of this country, Masons cannot fail to have opinions as to the cause that produced it. It is to be feared that some of our brethren are in arms against the union of the States; others are in the ranks of its defenders. Taught by the history of the Order. . . they have carried these principles into the formation of opinions on the present crisis in our national history. But while Masons, as individuals, have been thus influenced and are acting in harmony with such views, Freemasonry is a silent, unimpassioned, abstracted observer of events. . . "Brethren -- We, with you, deplore the present unnatural and deeply distressing condition of our national affairs. . .But if this whirlwind threatens to overwhelm us, yet in this last extremity, the still small voice of Masonic faith will be uttered and heard, saying, Brethren, there is help at hand in this time of need. . .” Tennessee was later to become the sight of the Battle of Shiloh. It would enlighten the public that the war would be long and costly. With 23,746 casualties this battle is one of the most costly of any single battle in U.S. history. Shiloh actually means “Place of Peace,” but on April 6th and 7th, 1862 it was anything but peaceful as two armies came together at one of the bloodiest battles of the American Civil War. Shiloh was also the meeting place for many men who would become famous, including two Presidents; U.S. Grant and J.A. Garfield. There were four who would become Generals in Chief of the U.S. Army; Halleck, Grant, Sherman and Sheridan. Henry Morton Stanley was also there. In later life he would achieve world wide fame when he uttered what are probably the most quoted words on the African continent, “Dr Livingstone, I presume.” There were also two Union Generals named Wallace at the battle of Shiloh. The first, William H. L. Wallace, was a hero. During the first day of the battle, his men held a position at the hornet’s nest for over six hours. This heroic stand permitted the Union |
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Lewis Wallace |
