';<:'r-i*/ry,, iii'^ K;','>:'?V,^ 1^ <-cs3c:-ci3c:5. i^ 5 l?" >-^ ^ ■.■ '^'-^'^ '"^^i-* ^■^ " r '•-• «CLi,('C "C ■^^ «C*c^<'C c ■< «c < c r LIBRARY OF CON: II ^Ae/f.^.. CCc cf c ccc c CXjC. <* ' CCC c CCS-. c, •• iC <& '%.-s...'fc^^»-%-**''s>'S>'%.'»^%>'» ^ C'« «:: ^ sec cTd-K. «:. . Lcc. CC', c <(r c i't CCi.e .— ^ LCC cc j;cr cc- ■ ^>C - Cf c .cc-( f .-.' ■ -^=^- - 'CC <:•!!; ■_: r CC - -CC-iC '^c cc«,c.. CCc^'C ■< cc^t CCCC cm: ca:.*K c:<3::&■■ ■-' - cc < CCC C CC'CC CCCCC GCJ& <- CC( ■ liCC (J t CTfCC C' > :0 c«r c ^'■' cC'Cir c ^OC c ccc ^<*■ec, c cc«: cc ct .C_ CCC ^ C^ ^C C ccc c.^ X Z CCCt C^ C C C -^ '- Cc C ^ cC ' '■ C c c ■CCC cC CC ^ . < C t CvC. c c >. c c cc c c ': C CCc C C ' . 'cc CC'^C c c. ^. cc cc: ^ V c ■ , ^_^- cc CC ' '<■ c - ^XT-'^k cC' ' C- «C: •C C ' c cc cr; ^ t. t_ ; CXZ'. ^ c f c cc:^- CcC cc cc 0.< c c; cr CZC ccf rt ' c cC- rcc ccc c c c&. er c <« <[ C c CCCC c^^ *AcC ■ <^c : <:■ c .dc '■CCsCC-, C^c c; ;«:,c . cc;-.^ cc: <£ Cv c c^S^^cT C ■''' C- ■■ 1^ CC Cf, ©n t\)t IBcati) / EDWARD EVERETT \ SERVICES EVERETT SCHOOL, IN BOSTON, ON THE DEATH 1^ EDWARD EVERETT 1876. 3 i-^^CWASHlM^ BOSTON: J. E. FARWELL AND COMPANY, PIUNTEHS, No. 37 CoNOEKsa Street. 1 8 G 5 . ^'340 MEMORIAL SERVICES AT THE EVERETT SCHOOL. On the morning of Saturday, January 21, 1865, at nine o'clock, the scholars of the Everett School were assembled in the spacious hall of the Schoolhouse, on Northampton Street. The Committee of the School were present, and a large number of the parents of the children. The Master of the School, Mr. George B. Hyde, commenced the exercises by reading appropriate selections from the Scriptures. Prayer was offered by Eev. Robert C. Waterston, after which a hymn was sung by the members of the first class. Alden Speare, Esq. Chairman of the Sub-Committee, then stated the purposes of the present gathering, setting forth the loss this school had sustained in the death of Mr. Everett, and the mul- titude of reasons which impelled us to pay respect to his memory. He closed by introducing Frederic F. Thayer, Esq. who, as Chairman of the Sub-Committee of the School for the year 1860, was familiar with all the circumstances connected with the naming and the dedication of the Schoolhouse. Mr. Thayer spoke as follows : — Mr. Chairman: When, yesterday, I received your kind invitation to be present here this morning, and to 4 MEMOKIAL OF EDWARD EVERETT. say a few words, I confess to mingled emotions of grati- tude for the compliment of the invitation ; and of con- scious inability to say anything worthy of the occasion. But inasmuch as here I am not a stranger, and lest my silence might be construed to indicate a diminution of interest in this School, or an indifference to the occasion, I shall venture to occupy a few moments of the hour, set apart for this sad memorial service. We have reached the last day of a week of mourning. On its first morning, when all the Christian world was preparing for the quiet of another Sabbath, the foremost man among us was called from the turmoils and excite- ments of earth to his everlasting rest. From the crowd who were accustomed to go to the house of God in com- pany, one was missing ; our hope and our faith prompt the suggestion, that another had joined the society of "the spirits of just men made perfect." A mortal, though loved, honored as few men ever have been, yet a mortal, by one of the kindliest agencies, through which the angel of death visits human habitations to execute his terrible mission, had laid aside the burden of the flesh, ■with its anxieties, its struggles, and its sorrows, and put on the immortal vestments, with the emblematic palm- wreath and crown. And as the voice of the Christian minister was lifted to lead the devotions of his people in prayer to God, for the forgiveness of their sins, in thank-, fulness for innumerable blessings, it did not fail to offer also the petition of a whole people, stricken by sudden and overwhelming grief. From that day to this, has the SERVICES AT THE EVERETT SCHOOL. O prayer been repeated aloud in the busy marts of com- merce, and in the privacy of a thousand homes, indicat- ing so sincerely, an expression of bereavement so general, as almost never to have been equalled in the event of the death of any citizen. The eloquence of the most gifted, the learning of the schools, and the heartfelt utterances of friend to friend, have indicated a realizing sense of the loss our city, our state, our country, the enlightened world, have sustained in his death, whose virtues, whose patriotism, whose learning, all vie with each other most fittingly to exalt and to commemorate. Impelled by the same motives which have induced the numerous societies and associations, of which he was a member, to assemble that they might properly call to mind his pleasant connection with them, — to be experi- enced no more on earth, — and to make a respectful record to his memory, are we now assembled, — the teachers, the pupils, the Committee, and a portion of the friends of the Everett School ; to repeat in great measure, it may be, what others have said before us ; but on this spot, amid these scenes, wherein he was wont to join us with pleasure, — in this building, which is to bear his name, — probably when all of us, like him, have passed from earth, is to bear his name to the generations that shall be, until brick and stone, and mortar shall have crumbled, and the action of the elements shall have worn away from the tablet all traces of the letters which compose the illustri- ous name, — in this building, within these walls, resonant with his praise, and tributary of the esteem, with which b MEMOKIAL OF EDWAKl) EVERETT. the men of this generation regarded him, we do gratify our feeHngs of reverence and of affection, as we gather here in sympathy with a whole community ; and among ourselves, in our own way, to mourn for the lamented dead, where we have met to rejoice with the honored living. I am aware, Mr. Chairman, that I am indebted for the compliment of an invitation to be present on this occasion to the fact, that a few years since, it was my privilege to bear an humble part in connecting Mr. Everett's name permanently with this school. To a gentleman, now a member of the Committee, and myself, were entrusted the arrangements for the dedica- tion, and we entered upon our duties, by waiting upon Mr. Everett, to inform him of the action of the Board, and to request his presence at the dedication, which was to take place on the following Monday, the 17th of September, the 230th birthday of our city. He cheer- fully complied with our request, and most of us remem- ber with pleasure, his participation in the exercises of that day, when with his friends, the Hon. Robert C. Winthrop, President Felton, of blessed memory. Rev. Dr* George Putnam, of our neighboring city, and Rev. Dr. Eliot, of Washington University, he joined the city authorities, and teachers and pupils of the school, in consecrating this building to the lofty purposes of education, — under his revered name, to hold no unworthy place among the excellent schools of our metropolis. That Mr. Everett appreciated what had been accom- plished, in this appropriation of his name, we may learn, if SERVICES AT THE EVERETT SCHOOL. 7 we recall the words used by liim, on that occasion, where he says, " Devoted, for a pretty long life, to the public service, in a variety of pursuits and occupations, laboring, I know, I may say diligently, and I hope I may add, though sometimes with erring judgment, yet always with honest purpose, for the public good at home and abroad; I franlily own, sir, that no public honor, compliment, or reward which has fallen to my lot, has given me greater pleasure than the association of my name with one of these noble public schools of Boston." In full accord- ance with this expression, are other indications which have come under my personal observation. Both by letter, and from his o^n lips, have I had repeated assur- ance that he was deeply interested in the prosperity of this school ; that he felt a just pride in its reputation and in its usefulness ; and as he more than once said, he only waited the time, when his country could be relieved from threatening perils, to manifest his interest more by his frequent presence. Alas, for the school, that day will not come ! Alas ! for us and for the school, the demands of a bleeding country upon his patriotic services pre- vented his frequent and valuable participation in cultivat- ing here the arts of peace. But thanks to the Providence which ordained it, he was found equal to the emergency, and in the hour of our country's greatest need, when the hearts of men were failing them from fear, he stood forth, loftiest among the mighty, the safe counsellor, the champion of republican institutions in their purity, the intelligent and eloquent prophet of the ultimate triumph of liberty. You, my young friends of the school, were 8 MEMORIAL or EDWARD EVERETT. deprived of his benedictive presence and his valuable counsels ; but his strength of body and mind, and the earnest prayers of his trusting, Christian heart were given to his country, which needed them more than you. And, to-day, when we are met to mourn his sudden departure, we can rejoice, tliat by the sublime efforts of his genius, as developed so recently in untried channels, and the con- secration of his matchless powers to sustain all that is good in the institutions under which we live ; in the out- pourings of his lips that the hungry might be fed, the naked clothed, and the famishing restored ; and all this, while not entirely neglecting the multitude of obligations which had claimed a share in his regards and his services, under a happier condition of national affairs, he showed to us and to the whole world that his last days were his best days, and every day as it came, shortening his career upon the earth, found him better fitted for heaven. We can then, and we will mingle gratitude with our lamentations over his grave, — gratitude to God, that to our times he gave such a complete development of the highest manhood. We will be grateful for his services to the world, — grateful that his unsurpassed talents were never used but for the public good, — grateful that before our bodily eyes has been presented, in attractive form and feature, such an excellent example. In the refined scholar, in the accomplished orator, in the consummate statesman, in the perfect gentleman, in the unostentatious Christian, we find an embodiment of what our free insti- tutions, in their highest culture, directed and controlled by a living Christianity, will produce. We will be grate- SERVICES AT TUE EVERETT SCHOOL. 9 ful also for our humble connection with him, trifling though it be ; for so miach as it is, it has been another bond to whatever is good, and noble, and true. When- ever he has been with us, he did not leave us without his blessing. And now that he has ascended, I would that all which is worthy of remembrance and imitation, — and how much was there in such a life as his, — I would that it should be transfigured before us. As we shall see his living face no more, I rejoice that the devotion of the master of this school, and his reverence for him who was worthiest among the living, now sainted among the dead, prompted his generous heart to secure this splendid marble bust, calm, graceful, majestic, like him whose lineaments it so accurately portrays, but to-day deco- rated with the emblems of sadness, in sympathy with all around. I rejoice it is here. I rejoice it is to remain here, to be more precious than before ; to remind all who enter within these walls that the presiding genius here is excellence, — excellence in conversation, excel- lence in deportment, excellence in intellectual accom- plishments, excellence in Christian graces. Under such a tutelage, with the throng of cooperating advantages here enjoyed, we might trust in the most flattering prom- ise of a generation of well educated, well balanced, firm principled, devoted, Christian women, to bear their honorable part in the great future of our country. But, Mr. Chairman and friends, I have consumed the portion of time which it becomes me to occupy ; and I must close, although I have just reached that part of my theme which most attracts me. I must leave to others to 2 10 MEMOKIAL OP EDWAED EVERETT. dwell upon the value of such an example before the youth of our land. What a wealth of beneficent influence is treasured up in the story of his life ! Though " being dead, he yet speaketh." To all alike, young and old, he speaks, telling of the possibilities wrapped up in this nature of ours, of the responsibilities which accompany exalted talents, and how religiotisly they may be fulfilled; — of the present reward, which waits upon fidelity to duty, and a compliance with the providential directions of passing life, — telling, how it is possible to be great and good ; to be kind, and virtuous, and true ; to be learned in all worldly lore, to hold the loftiest positions among men, and yet be studious of the precepts of the Master, humbly following Him who " went about doing good," — how it is possible to move uncontaminated amid the world's glitter- ing fascinations and its fleeting shadows, — to turn aside from the broad highway and its sure destruction, to enter in at the straight gate, — to attain, as he attained, and to share with him " the peace and the progress of the skies." Kev. R. C. Waterston, a member of the Sub-Committee, said: — It is natural that we should strive to recall, as far as possible, each incident in the life of the illustrious bene factor who has been so recently taken from us. Every look and word, all the expressions of counsel and en- couragement which we have heard him utter. It was one of his great pleasures to visit this school, SERVICES AT THE EVERETT SCHOOL. 11 bearing as it did his name ; and you, I am quite sure, always felt it a privilege to Avelcome him. In that volume from which we have just heard such appropriate passages read, — we are told that when Peter was in a certain city of Judea, one who had been actively useful, had been suddenly taken away. When the Apos- tle met the sorrowing company, they gathered around, showiug the garments they had received, while the friend now departed was yet living. What a graphic touch of nature is that ! The instructive prompting of their hearts led them to recall those grateful reminiscences. It was the finest tribute which could be paid, surpassing in its simplicity all human eloquence. Thus Shakespeare, with his transcendent knowledge of human nature, makes Mark Antony exclaim over the body of Julius Caesar : — "You all do know this mantle, I remember The first time ever Csesar put it on." So in the presence of the Apostle, the people gather about him holding up for his notice the treasured memo- rials of their departed friend, recounting each act of kindness. True to the same natural impulse, at the present moment, societies, associations, and individuals are meeting together, that they may express those feehngs of respect and affection which gush up with fresh in- tensity in the heart. Fondly do they dwell upon each 12 MEMORIAL OF EDWARD EVERETT. pleasant remembrance. What he has said and done in their behalf. The University, the City, the State, the Nation, pauses to recount every word and deed. Ay, even while we speak, the steamer that so lately left this port, may be entering the harbor of Savannah, while those who receive the aid which has been thus gen- erously sent, having heard already by the swift telegraph, of this sad event, may exclaim — "That eloquent voice (to be heard no more) gave forth its closing accents in our behalf. That which we receive, in this hour of need, comes as from his hand ! " So also with us, my young friends, we shall do well to recall in this impressive hour, whatever we may have known of that life and character. If we have seen that face, if we have heard that voice, if we have had any special opportunity at any time or in any way of becom ing acquainted with a mind which exerted so wide and so powerful an influence, let us dwell upon it in thought, let us speak of it frankly one with another. Thus if you remember Mr. Everett's visits to this School, if you can recall any of his remarks, you will do well to retain that recollection as vividly as possible ; to strengthen the impression, and to add to its value by speaking of it to others. I know that he gave a book to each of the older scholars, the name written out in connection with his own ; with what constantly increasing interest, will others look upon that autograph ! My personal acquaintance Avith Mr. Everett commenced in 1834:, — thirty-one years ago. I had written an article SERVICES AT THE EVERETT SCHOOL. 13 for the North American Review, of which he was, at that time, the editor. He resided at Charlestown, and sent an invitation for me to come and see him. Never can I for- get his kindness upon that occasion, a kindness which knew no shadow through thirty years. Within three days of his death, I received two notes from him, in one of which he says " I rise from my bed (to which I have been mostly confined since Monday) to write you." The day following he says — " I was too ill to write at any length yesterday, and I am not much better to-day." Then, having added a few lines, he closes with the words " My head is too cloudy." A startling expression from him, and, I confess, awakening the first feeling of ap- prehension. This I received on Friday. On Sunday morning he was no more here. On that Monday, to which he refers, he had made his thrilling, and (as we then little knew) his last speech at Faneuil Hall. That mind which seemed never cloudy before, had this slight foreshadowing, this gentle mtimation of the swift-approaching event. Now, even that momentary veil has been withdrawn, and that mind, with its wonderful powers, has risen into celestial glory. How mysterious ! and yet is it not blended with grand- eur ? With every faculty in unsurpassed vigor, active and usefid, never more so, to the whole community and the entire Nation, suddenly he is uplifted above the things of time. Sorrowful as we may feel, is there not reason on his account for exultation 1 As long as the oldest of us here can remember, he has 14 MEMORIAL OF EDWARD EVERETT. been one of the most marked men of the country, and never has he been more honored or beloved than within the last four years of our country's strife and struggle. Through these days of calamity and cloud, he has been firm and fearless. I need not dwell upon that patriotic devotion which we have all witnessed, and to which we shall ever recur with gratitude and delight. My purpose at this time will be, not to dwell upon his public career, but briefly to consider two or three of those characteristics, which it may be of advantage for the pupils of this school, and for the young generally, to keep in mind. The first characteristic to which I will refer is, his Courtesy. This, I believe, he extended at all times, to all persons, old and young, learned and ignorant, rich and poor. I doubt if he was ever guilty of a discoui'teous act to the least influential person, or even to an opponent. It is my conviction that this was in him no empty for- mality ; but that it was based upon a thoughtfulness of the feelings and the rights of others. This respectfulness of manner, this grace of deportment, so marked, and so attractive in our distinguished friend, was a trait which the young may well keep before them as an incentive. Some things are beyond our reach, but this, to a consider- able degree, is within the attainment of all. At times, unawares, perhaps, the young acquire a brusk manner. They become, it may be, abrupt, hasty, pert, overbearing. They are not properly respectful to the aged. There is a lack of gentleness in their daily inter- course with their companions. SERVICES AT THE EVEEETT SCHOOL. 15 In what striking contrast to this was the manner and the spirit of Edward Everett. Let the young, when they recall the splendor of those gifts which made him illustrious, and some of which are far beyond common acquirement, remember this winning and admirable trait, by which he imparted pleasure to many, through all the daily routine of life. Another remarkable characteristic of ISIr. Everett was his Memory. This was no doubt in him a rare natural endowment. Still it was strengthened by care and culture. Probably no man in this country has possessed this faculty and per- fected it to such a degree, unless it was John Quincy Adams ; but this gift in him, though as extraordinary in some respects, was less marvellous in others. John Quincy Adams appeared to remember the name of every person he had ever known, the ideas of every book he had ever read, and each fact which had ever presented itself to his knowledge. And, moreover, he was never at a loss. The instant that any subject was suggested, at that instant all his recollections and acquisitions were be- fore him, in perfect order and ready for use. But Avith him, as far as I know, it was principally names, facts, data, the rich ore which he could work abundantly, and turn evermore to his purpose. All history and literature seemed familiar to his mind, his eye penetrating through everything at a glance, and resting upon the very fact he needed. But Mr. Everett, while he remembered facts, names, and data, could also recall with unerring exactness the precise language of an author. 16 MEMORIAL OF EDWARD EVERETT. We all know how he could with ease repeat, word for word, orations of one and two hours in length, without the slightest reference to notes, and this in a natural tone, without apparent effort, as if every expression was the spontaneous utterance of the moment. I will mention a little incident illustrative of his memory, which happened to come within my knowledge. A friend of mine in London stated to me that an English gentleman, having printed a history of one of the inte- rior counties of England, he sent a copy of the work to our city Library. In writing to Mr. Everett, as one of the Trustees of the Library, my friend suggested that, as the book was privately printed, it would doubtless be a gratification to the author if he should receive some special acknowledgment. By the next steamer a letter was received from Mr. Everett — not only expressing thanks for the volume, but Mr. Everett stated in addition that he was at Oxford when that gentleman received his degree. That he listened with great pleasure to a Poem which that gentleman recited at that time, and that he was particularly impressed by the following Imes. Here he quoted a passage from a Poem which had never been published, and which Mr. Everett heard incidentally from a young man at that time quite unknown, and in connection with the various public exercises of a Literary Festival, and yet years after he could recall those lines, and send them across the Atlantic to the author, who was as much astonished as if he had heard a voice coming down to him from the heavens. It is doubtful if there is another man in the country SERVICES AT THE EVERETT SCHOOL. 17 who could have exercised such a singular power of memory, or have made such a felicitous use of it. Mr. Everett's natural gift he used and directed with consummate care. It would be curious to know more fully his rules and practices. While at College he com- mitted the whole of Locke on the Human Understandincr, so that he could repeat it word for word, from the intro- duction to the close. And in an address delivered at the request of the Massachusetts Historical Society, I heard him repeat more than one hundred and eighty names of authors and artists of different nations, Greek, Latin, Ger- man, Italian, Spanish, French, in exact order, with as much apparent ease as he would have spoken his own name. This power varies in different persons, but there is no faculty more perceptibly affected by culture. You may be sure, my young friends, that by every lesson you learn, by every paragraph you commit, you are strengthening this important faculty of mind, which may prove an in- calculable advantage to you in after life. No one can fully estimate the value of this faculty to such a man as ]\Ir. Everett. How different he would have been with that one power wanting ! And how greatly is the world indebted to him for the diligence and wisdom with which he employed it. The next and closing characteristic of which I will speak is that fidelity which was manifested by Mr. Everett, not only in great but in minor duties. It was said of Oberlin that he was conscientious even to the roundin 3^ :>' > 'SO 3> :» ■ -•>:::_ ,._ ^ . 5 >/,» •..5> :€>>5j j5^ , ^-^ . '•^.^»-J>> ^>J3 ^ ^> >^ »> > -j> = ^^tei^i^js:^ 0: .yii2X)4>~ ^:a'F -i*-*,J> lS>->P^:^xo ^);^ ^ ■^' i» » -::>''" " ^.> ii)3: ^~ -::> BO r>>. "^ ►3 >r. , aeir::* C*>>>.3^^_ j-j.» 30:: > 'i> ->-^ z>j j>s» ij» >■- > >:S)>> i: ^ :>) J£» > ^P 3\22> 3 x> J j> D )?)> o J; <) ^ . ,^^> >j>n» -'>^^ ->^ .Ok> "'>>^ •"■■^^-^-'^ >^^i^> 3 i>- ^».a^> ?^^ > X.3J> ;- jI>^ ;:>3> ) I>> > -■ ) i> -^ -> 3>^ > =