James M. Jeffords: “my amendment is a critically important amendment to make sure that we preserve the Civil War battlefields for those…”

“my amendment is a critically important amendment to make sure that we preserve the Civil War battlefields for those people who will be in the next millennium to better understand this Nation. Mr. President, I am proud to be joined today by Senator Torricelli in offering this amendment of national historic significance. The American Civil War is thought by many historians to be the fundamental event shaping the character of the United States. This amendment takes a giant stride at preserving our history by establishing that it is these funds that be made available to protect the threatened American Civil War battlefields. I am proud to say that there is in this land a great wellspring of caring for the places where freedom was won and defended. Millions of Americans have, in recent years, become aware of the hallowed ground of our Civil War battlefields, have visited them, read of them, many have written of them. The clear and eloquent message I hear is that these treasured places should be saved, intact, for future generations.”