YALE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY From the Library of BRIG.-GEN. CORNELIUS VANDERBILT, '95 The Gift of His Wife GRACE G. VANDERBILT and His Children CORNELIUS VANDERBILT and MRS. ROBERT L. STEVENS JR. WORLD PATRIOTS BY JOHN T. M. JOHNSTON AUTHOR OF "A MAN WITH A PURPOSE" "THE QUESTION OF THE HOUR*^ ETC., ETC. WORLD PATRIOTS CO. 489 Fifth Avenue New York Copyright by JOHN T. M. JOHNSTON 1917 St. Louis DEDICATED TO THE thirty-two million pupils of Pan-America who are studying in the English and Spanish languages, the patriotic principles and precepts of George Washing ton and Simdn Bolivar; to those young men and women of the Western Hemisphere to whom we must look for the perpetuation of patriotism and the spiritual advance of the world. Contents PAGE FOREWORD ri INTRODUCTION— Champ Clark 1 INTRODUCTION— Robert L. Owen 5 A PERSONAL WORD— The Author 9 1. ABRAHAM LINCOLN— UNITED STATES 17 2. SIMON BOLIVAR— SOUTH AMERICA 47 3. NAPOLEON BONAPARTE— FRANCE 65 4. PETER THE GREAT— RUSSIA 95 5. OTTO VON BISMARCK— GERMANY HI 6. WILLIAM PITT— ENGLAND 137 7. HIROBUMI ITO— JAPAN 153 8. CAMILLO BENSO CAVOUR— ITALY 169 9. GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS— SWEDEN 189 10. GEORGE WASHINGTON— AMERICA 199 TEN COMMANDMENTS OF PATRIOTISM 231 ROBERT E. LEE Text-Book Edition 235 THOMAS JEFFERSON Text-Book Edition 259 THOMAS HART BENTON Missouri Text-Book Edition 287 vn Illustrations PAGE 1. ABRAHAM LINCOLN 16 2. WHITE HOUSE AND BIRTHPLACE OF LINCOLN. 44 3. SIMON BOLIVAR 46 4. NAPOLEON 64 5. PETER THE GREAT 94 6. BISMARCK 110 7. WILLIAM PITT 136 8. MARQUIS HIROBUMI ITO 152 9. CAMILLO BENSO CAVOUR 168 10. GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS 188 11. GEORGE WASHINGTON 198 12. WASHINGTON IN PRAYER AT VAIXEY FORGE.. 228 ROBERT E. LEE Text-Book Edition 234 THOMAS JEFFERSON Text-Book Edition 258 THOMAS HART BENTON Missouri Text-Book Edition 286 IX Foreword The obj'ect of this book is to kindle the fires of patriot ism in the hearts of the American people and to inculcate sound principles of citizenship. It is the author's con viction that this is the paramount need of the hour. Our nation is now in the greatest crisis of its history. It is essential that the hearts of our people be filled with patriotism, with a deep love of country and a desire to serve. A successful termination of this war will be con summated only by a concerted and united effort of the whole people. Wars are no longer fought exclusively by armies and navies. Ploughshares outweigh swords. The workers in the shops and the fields of the warring na tions are as truly a part of the armies as are the men in the trenches. These countries are vast camps in which the entire populations are engaged in military service. In this conflict America has cast her lot on the side of freedom and humanity. Her purpose in entering this war is to defend American honor, and to place Ameri can principles and ideals in absolute security in the pres ent and in the future — "to make democracy safe in the world, and to aid in inaugurating the reign of justice and fair dealing among the nations of mankind." Each individual has a duty to perform and there must be no evasion or shifting of burdens. Equality of opportunity, which democracy guarantees, has its counterpart in equal ity of responsibility, obligation and sacrifice. The bur- xi FOREWORD dens of government, both in peace and in war, should rest equally upon the shoulders of all. There must pervade our entire citizenship a spirit of Americanism that will submerge all differences and unify the entire people in a loyalty and devotion that will bring victory. Our President has appealed to the nation. The re sponse will be universal, for the American heart beats with a steady stroke for humanity. Our nation is taking its position, internationally, anew and for all time. We are now a world power, and world issues are our issues. Our isolation is gone. American inventive genius, by giving to the world the aeroplane and submarine, has destroyed the protecting power of the elements and robbed us of our two great allies — the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. It has made all nations neighbors. The United States is closer to Europe today than Virginia was to Massachusetts at the time of the American Revolution. This situation calls for new con ceptions of citizenship. In order to perform these new duties intelligently, our people must be internationally informed. They must have an understanding of world- history, world-races, and world-movements. They must comprehend the scope and meaning of the foreign policies of our own and other nations. A live, virile and wise patriotism is the necessity of the hour if we are to vin dicate our past, maintain our present and rise to the future destiny which is foreshadowed by the vigor of our people and the vastness of our resources. Xll FOREWORD It has long been recognized by educators and leaders of thought that biographical history is at once the most fascinating and the most useful branch of knowledge. Nothing is so calculated to stir the imagination, fire the ambition and inspire the heart with patriotic fervor as the contemplation of the deeds of the heroes of the past. "The proper study of mankind is man." What man has done man can do. There is in the hearts of all an in tuitive desire to gain an insight into the methods and motives of hero-life. Who of us has not longed to live within some idealized hero, to study the riddle of the universe through his eyes, to learn the secret of his power and to know the innermost heart of his mystery? "His tory is the essence of innumerable biographies." The very soul of history is biography — it is life and not theory. These considerations have led the author to adopt the biographical method as being the most effective for his purpose. He believes that by looking in upon the char acter and achievements of the world's great patriots our vision may be clarified, our patriotic devotion deepened and our lives more fully consecrated to the service of our country. XUl Introduction THE SPEAKER'S ROOMS HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES WASHINGTON, D, C. August 7, 191 7. The author of this book, Dr. John T. M. Johnston, is one of the foremost men in Missouri, a scholar of profound learning, a preacher and public speaker of great force, a banker and financier of high rank. In addition to all of this, he is a philanthropist as well as an intense patriot. This is not his first plunge into literature. He has already written several excellent books. In this volume, he has seized upon one of the most important and elevating subjects to which the human mind, whether nascent or mature, can turn its attention. Knowing Dr. Johnston as thoroughly as I do, and ad miring him as much as I do, I am certain that this vol ume will be widely read, and universally used as a text book in our schools and do a vast amount of good. The truth is that for years we have been so self- satisfied with the liberties we enjoy, and with our con- 2 INTRODUCTION dition generally, that we take everything for granted and think that it was an easy matter to attain the status which we now occupy. Consequently, we have paid little attention to patriotism and to good citizenship. All is easy in the retrospect, as all's well that ends well. The average citizen seems inclined to think that the making of the Declaration of Independence, which is the real foundation of our Government, was a sort of holiday performance — which is a great mistake. The men who performed that immortal deed did it with halters about their necks. When they were signing, old Ben Franklin, the greatest wit of that age, perhaps the greatest wit of all the ages, said : "Now that we have signed, we must all hang together or we will all hang separately," an im mortal truth. Big, bluff Ben Harrison, afterwards Governor of Virginia, poked little Elbridge Gerry of Massachusetts in the ribs and said: "I will have one advantage over you when the day of hanging comes. My great weight will make me die sooner." John Hancock, the President of that Congress, signed it in characters so large that he who runs may read, and said : "I guess King George the Third can read that without his glasses." When Charles Carroll of Carrollton signed it, some body said to him that in the multiplicity of Charles Carrolls, he might escape when the day for hanging should come, whereupon he seized his pen and added to INTRODUCTION 3 his name the words "of CarroUton," so that there would be no question of identity on the great occasion to which they looked forward. This was the spirit in which those men did that great and renowned deed. My own opinion is that patriotism and good citizen ship should be specifically taught in every school in the land. Dr. Johnston has written a book suitable for this purpose, and I have no sort of doubt that the end will be abundantly attained. The cause is as worthy as the man. If he can induce all of the public and private schools in the United States to turn a portion of their time to the study of the subject which he has studied so profoundly, he will be recognized in future ages as a great public benefactor. Introduction United States Senate Committee on Banking and Currency ROBERT L. OWEN. CHAIRMAN I congratulate the country upon the production of "World Patriots" by my dear friend, Dr. John T. M. Johnston, of Saint Louis. The purpose of this volume is to emphasize upon the mind of the youth of the Western Hemisphere and of the world, those great ex emplars of patriotism, whose efforts to serve men have lifted their names like mountain peaks above the com mon plain. These are the great and noble spirits from whom the youth of the world can draw inspiration in devotion to country in the highest lessons of patriotism. Never was the time more urgent for teaching these lessons. During the past century have been born the most gigantic intellectual and material forces of all the records of time. They are expanding constantly. These forces should be the servants of human life, of human liberty, of human happiness. Properly directed, they will bring to every human being the highest development and happiness. The doctrine of patriotism, of service to others, is as essential to the wise guidance of these 6 INTRODUCTION great forces as a rudder is to an ocean liner, or a steel track to a mogul engine. Intellectual power and material power may be used for dangerous and harmful ends when employed to serve coarse selfishness, or cold ambition. They are only serving mankind best when they are directed by altruism and for patriotic purposes. The lessons of patriotism are contagious. We see tens of thousands of humble men rush to the colors at the call of the country, ready to give their lives as a willing sacrifice in the service of their country and in love for their fellow men. May the contagion of patriotism, which breathes through the pages of "World Patriots," seize the hearts of all the youth of America that they may realize the everlasting truth of the adage : "Be noble, and the nobility that lies in other men sleeping, but never dead, will rise in majesty to meet your own." It is the fruitful nobility of these patriots which has moved the spirit of Dr. Johnston to render this service to his fellow men. I bid the book God-speed, that its mission may be fruitful, that it may inspire tens of thousands, yes millions, of the noble young men and women of America to emulate the splendid example of INTRODUCTION 7 service set forth in the lives of "World Patriots," which is laid before them with such high purpose. I so thoroughly believe this book will be a potent factor in inspiring the young folks of America to lofty patriotism that I am looking forward to have it adopted as a text-book not only in the public schools and colleges of my own State, Oklahoma, but of the entire United States. Washington, Yjpf^j -^ fflP&L-^ August 7, 19 1 7. "~ " A Personal Word from the Author "World Patriots" was conceived seven years ago when the author was a professor of biography and his tory in an American college. Previous to that time he had published "The Question of the Hour," which was followed by "A Man with a Purpose." The kindly re ception of those books of biography and history encour aged his endeavor to actualize his vision of a patriotic America. The desire was awakened to influence the com ing generation to become good citizens and intelligent patriots. In order to effectively mould the youth of our land they must be reached through the public schools. This volume has been so shaped in manner and matter as to make it useful as a text-book. A committee of expert educators has adapted it for that primary purpose. It has been issued in two editions — a national edition for general reading and a text-book edition for students. A study of the educational systems abroad reveals the fact that in most of the European countries patriotism is taught in both church and government schools. Yet, so far as the author can discover, no regular instruction is given from a text-book on this subject in the United States except in the primary department of the public schools of New York City. Citizenship should be more strongly emphasized in our republic than in any king dom, monarchy or oligarchy. It is the author's convic- 9 10 A PERSONAL WORD tion that patriotism should be a regular study in all our schools. Educational systems in both North and South America are being modernized. Curricula are being de veloped and improved. Teachers in our public schools and professors in our colleges and universities are intro ducing new methods and subjects to meet present-day needs. Vocational training has been largely adopted as a department in the public schools. A recent enactment of Congress sanctioned this system that specializes edu cation in agriculture, trades and industries. Military training is being introduced — a military training which does not mean militarism. A chair of patriotism has recently been endowed in Lincoln Memorial University. Many leading officials of the United States are advo cating the teaching of patriotism in our schools. The author hopes to meet this real American need through the biographical and psychographical method. He has full appreciation of the magnitude and the difficulties of the task. A complete biography of the world's heroes would be a history of civilization, for true biography not only portrays the career of the individual, but reflects the life of his time and gives an insight into the genius and spirit of the people that produced him. Men and move ments are as inseparable as the heart and pulse. The developing forces of civilization, whether commercial, political, or educational, have had their birth in the hearts and brains of a few courageous men and women of pro gressive initiative. A PERSONAL WORD n Pride in one's own country is essential to lofty patriot ism. The heart of an American is leaden which does not thrill in contemplating our glorious record. Our nation only a few generations ago was one of the least among the people of the earth. It stands forth today the rich est, the most prosperous, the most potential. Wealth, however, is not a true measure of greatness for men or nations. The two hundred and twenty billion dol lars of wealth of the United States is twice as great as the total wealth of the British Empire, three times that of the German Empire and four times that of France. It equals the combined wealth of these three great mone tary powers. America's annual income is thirty billion dollars. The pioneer fathers who founded this republic were men of courage, prescience and imagination. Some of them, looking upon the deep silent forests of the South, and the vast unbroken plains of the West, dreamed of a mighty nation, of a free, self-governing people enjoying peace, prosperity and liberty. But the most daring vision- ist of those formative days did not dream that they and their compatriots were establishing a republic so soon to become the dominant power, the creditor, and the hope of the world. Today America stands as Atlas holding up the world. With reverence we should attribute these present unprecedented blessings to the providence of God and to the wisdom of our leaders, who have so wisely shaped our governmental affairs as to develop such mar velous resources both of men and products. 12 A PERSONAL WORD The present generation of Americans should be deeply grateful for this inheritance of wealth and opportunity. They should become so loyal to their flag and country that they will be of one mind on any issue that stands essentially for its safety and honor. The protection of our country's rights and liberties is not found in its laws, but in the men and women throughout the land who make those laws effective. Pride in one's country and a contemplation of its glory and power is not the highest type of patriotism. A patriot must give expression to his sincerity by serving his country and by respecting those things which represent his country — its officials, its laws, its flag, its God. Loyalty to one's state and nation bears with it a consecration to their noblest well being. One shows his patriotism not alone in dying, but also in living. Citizenship in the United States is a great pos session, whether it be inherited through the spilled blood of ancestors, or acquired by casting off allegiance to the land of one's birth and pledging loyalty to the Constitu tion of the United States. There can be no dual citizen ship. The oath of naturalization precludes all other alle giance or protection. The fate of the wealth-wrecked nations of tKe past should be a warning to America. Shall we, as did the Romans, develop only through lines of commercialism, materialism and self gratification at the expense of the growth of the soul, or shall we subordinate the spirit of sordidness to the spirit of altruism and devote our ener- A PERSONAL WORD 13 gies to the fostering of those qualities which build an enduring individual and national character ? The author has endeavored to recite in a simple and succinct manner the achievements of the patriots and statesmen of other nations as well as those of our own and to show the part. such noble citizens have played in moulding the spirit of the countries in which they lived. Unlike the European, the American has not the cumula tive history of thousands of years of deeds of daring as a stimulus, but there are patriotic peaks in the one hundred and forty-one years of American history sufficiently high to inspire the heart of her every subject. The author has approached the subject with an un biased, non-partisan and open mind. His central idea has been to portray the highest type of citizenship and patriotism regardless of race or religion. He does not formulate fixed laws of living or prescribe rules, but be- lives that his idea will become constructive through brief biographies of conspicuous patriots. The national edition of "World Patriots" is being supplemented by a Text-Book edition, to which is added the biographies of American patriots especially identified with individual States. The author acknowledges special help from Andrew Dixon White in his masterful work, "Seven Statesmen." He desires to express grateful appreciation to L. R. Wilfley, who collaborated with the author the articles on Ito and Pitt ; also to W. L. Webb for valuable assist- 14 A PERSONAL WORD ance. He wishes to acknowledge the faithfulness and efficiency of his secretaries, Randolph P. Titus and Howard G. Busch. It is the deep desire of the author that his work may cause the heart of every American to burn with devotion to his flag and to his country. ABRAHAM LINCOLN ABRAHAM LINCOLN ABRAHAM LINCOLN AMERICA'S TYPICAL PATRIOT 1809 — 1865 During any crisis of our nation, there is no figure in history which we may keep before our eyes with so much profit as that of Abraham Lincoln. He was the em bodiment of civic virtue. The ruling passion of his life was a love of the cardinal principles of human freedom. The central purpose of his career was the preservation of the Union. Abraham Lincoln was the controlling spirit in the greatest crisis through which our nation has passed since the adoption of the Federal Constitution. Although the great Washington presided over the convention which wrote that instrument which Gladstone called "the most wonderful document ever struck off at a given time by the brain and purpose of man," there were elements of weakness in the new constitutional system which were destined to be eliminated by the life and labors of Abra ham Lincoln. The miraculous growth of the fame of Lincoln has no parallel in the history of great men. It is difficult to divine the secret of his fascinating personality. He was at once simple and profound, modest and bold, gentle and firm, logical and poetical, jocular and seri- 17 1 8 ABRAHAM LINCOLN ous, sympathetic and severe, gloomy and optimistic. There was in him a mysterious blending of rare quali ties of heart and mind which cause men to gaze with increasing wonder and admiration upon the record of his amazing achievements. When requested to give an account of his youth he answered : "Why, it is a great folly to attempt to make anything out of me or my early life. It can all be con densed in one short sentence of Gray's Elegy: " 'The short and simple annals of the poor.' " Later, however, he set out a few of the details of his life in a letter as follows : "I was born February twelfth, 1809, in Hardin County, Kentucky. My parents were both born in Virginia, of undistinguished families — second fami lies, perhaps I should say. My- mother, who died in my tenth year, was of a family of the name of Hanks, some of whom now reside in Adams, some others in Macon County, Illinois. My paternal grandfather, Abraham Lincoln, emigrated from Rockingham County, Virginia, to Kentucky, about 1781 or 2, where a year or two later he was killed by Indians — not in battle, but by stealth — when he was laboring to open a farm in the forest. His ancestors, who were Quakers, went to Virginia from Berks County, Pennsylvania. An effort to identify them with the New England family of the same name ended in nothing more than a similarity ABRAHAM LINCOLN 19 of Christian names in both families, such as Enoch, Levi, Mordecai, Solomon, Abraham and the like. "My father, at the death of his father, was but six years of age; and he grew up literally with out education. He removed from Kentucky to what is now Spencer County, Indiana, in my eighth year. We reached our new home about the time the State came into the Union. It was a wild region, with many bears and other wild animals still in the woods. There I grew up. There were some schools, so called; but no qualification was required of a teacher beyond readin', writin' and cipherin' to the rule of three. If a straggler sup posed to understand Latin happened to sojourn in the neighborhood he was looked upon as a wizard. There was absolutely nothing to excite ambition or education. Of course, when I came of age, I did not know much. Still, somehow, I could read, write and cipher to the rule of three; but that was all. I have not been to school since. The little advance I now have upon this store of education I have picked up from time to time under the pressure of necessity. "I was raised to farm work, which I continued until I was twenty-two. At twenty-two, I came to Illinois and passed the first year in Macon County. Then I got to New Salem, at that time in Sangamon, now Menard County, where I re mained a year as a sort of clerk in a store. Then 20 ABRAHAM LINCOLN came the Black Hawk War, and I was elected captain of volunteers — a success which gave me more pleasure than any I have had since. I went through the campaign, was elated, ran for the legislature the same year (1832) and was beaten, the only time I have ever been beaten by the people. The next and three succeeding biennial elections, I was elected to the legislature. I was not a can didate afterwards. During this legislature period I had studied law, and removed to Springfield to practice it. In 1846, I was elected once to the lower house of Congress. Was not a candidate for re-election. From 1849 to 1854, both inclusive, practised law more assiduously than ever before. Always a Whig in politics, and generally on the Whig electoral tickets making active canvasses. I was losing interest in politics when the repeal oi the Missouri Compromise aroused me again. What I have done since then is pretty well known. "If any personal description of me is thought desirable it may be said, I am, in height, six feet four inches, nearly; lean in flesh, weighing on an average of one hundred and eighty pounds; dark complexion, with coarse black hair and gray eyes. No other marks or brands recollected. Yours very truly, A. Lincoln." ABRAHAM LINCOLN 21 Socially, Lincoln was a plain American citizen of the common people. His father was of the sub-stratum of society, where poverty pinched and ignorance abided; yet the boy — Abe Lincoln — possessed from childhood an eager mind that hungered for intellectual oppor tunities. The famine of social gratification in the Lincoln household made him crave companionship. A strong feeling of brotherhood for mankind grew in his breast. He developed a passion for biographies of heroes. His meager library consisted of ^Esop's Fables, Robinson Crusoe, Pilgrim's Progress, the Bible and Weem's Life of Washington. He shucked corn to pay for that quaint book of biography which inspired in him an ambition to prepare himself for the position first held by George Washington, whom he had adopted as his ideal. When a mere lad he dreamed and talked of be ing President, and each new duty in his life was con sciously or unconsciously preparing him for distin guished service to his country. Woodrow Wilson said that "no man ever entered the presidential chair so well prepared" for the position as Abraham Lincoln. The profession which he chose was the law, which he mastered under trying handicaps. He did most of his legal studying while splitting rails in the Sangamon Bottoms, running a sawmill, working as a deck-hand on a flat boat to and from New Orleans, working as a day laborer for neighbor farmers and while serving in the Illinois State legislature. 22 ABRAHAM LINCOLN One employer tells a typical story of the lanky boy whom he found awkwardly cocked up on a haystack with a book. " 'What are you reading?' I says. 'I am not reading, I am studying,' says he. 'What are you studying?' says I. 'Law,' says he, as proud as Cicero." Abraham Lincoln was not reading, but studying. This is the key to his mental processes. The studying of a few great books developed in him that rare capacity for concentrated thought which was the most marked of his powers. Perhaps his keen interest in surveying and the knowl edge of it, which later made him a deputy surveyor, was suggested by the fact that George Washington in the pioneer days had devoted his life to that pursuit. If every youth in the United States could hold before him such examples as George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, the coming generation would give to the world a nation of patriots. During the Black Hawk War, Sangamon County, Illinois, organized a company and elected young Lincoln its captain. Many stories are told by the soldiers of his physical and moral courage. One day a forlorn and hungry Indian came to camp seeking charity and saying : "Injun white man's friend." The soldiers were about to hang him as a spy when Lincoln interfered and saved the Indian's life, offering to fight every man in his com pany. "When a man comes to me for protection, he's going to get it, if I have to lick all Sangamon County," ABRAHAM LINCOLN 23 he shouted in that shrill and penetrating voice which was later to hold men breathless with words of undy ing wisdom. The legal profession has been a stepping-stone to political preferment since the beginning of our govern ment. Lincoln was a politician even before he was a lawyer. Only ten days before the election he returned from the Black Hawk War and offered himself for the Illinois legislature. The rude times and the crude so ciety in which he lived are well shown in his maiden political speech, made at a public sale a few miles from Springfield. After the sale, the speech-making and the fighting began. Lincoln took part in both. After van quishing his man, whom he had fought in protecting a friend from abuse, he mounted the speaker's platform. He was dressed in a homespun blue jeans coat and tow trousers. He said: "Fellow citizens: I presume you know who I am. I am humble Abraham Lincoln. I have been solicited by many friends to become a candi date for the legislature. My politics are short and sweet — like the old woman's dance. I am in favor of a national bank. I am in favor of the internal improve ment system, and a high protective tariff. These are my sentiments and political principles. If elected, I shall be thankful — if not, it will be all the same." This was Lincoln's unpretentious entrance upon a political career unparalleled in history. He was de feated, but Lincoln's life is one of the best examples 24 ABRAHAM LINCOLN of that American insistent determination which over comes the most trying hardships and consuming defeats. By indomitable will and a masterful resuscitating power, he surmounted every failure. His life is a constant en couragement to those who are called upon to combat hardships and overcome difficulties. The innumerable failures, which would presuppose a lamentable ineffi ciency, he made stepping-stones to future achievements. He was subsequently elected four times to the legis lature. In 1844, he was suggested for Governor of Illinois, but with his usual frankness he announced himself a candi date for Congress. He did not, however, receive the nomi nation until two years later, when he was easily elected. He attracted much attention throughout the country by his speech in favor of Zachary Taylor for the presi dency. A leading editor said : "He is a very able, acute, uncouth, honest, upright man and a tremendous wag. His manner was so good-natured, and his style so peculiar, that he kept the House in a continuous roar of merriment. It was the crack speech of the day." Lincoln's term in Congress was as valuable to him as a course at college. The Mexican War was fought dur ing his service — a war which was not only a camp of instruction wherein those valiant heroes — Winfield Scott, U. S. Grant, Robert E. Lee, Stonewall Jackson, Joseph E- Johnston — received training for our terrible Civil War, but also a sort of skirmish line between the slavery ABRAHAM LINCOLN 25 and the anti-slavey forces. The North and South mar shalled their advocates in the halls of Congress, and, ultimately, on the fields of battle. Lincoln introduced what is known as his "Spot Resolution," requiring the President to inform Congress of the exact location of the "spot" desecrated by murderous Mexicans on our soil. He supported the famous "Wilmot Proviso," the purport of which was to exclude slavery from any terri tory acquired from Mexico. Even at this time Lincoln unhesitatingly and firmly took his first stand against the extension of slavery. When a youth he had witnessed the sale of negroes from an auction block at New Or leans. The horror of it had stirred in his heart that impulse which was later to inspire him to give freedom to seven million slaves. That was the point of friction which provoked the War of Secession. He never re ceded from the position. When Lincoln left Congress, at the age of thirty- seven, he was a man of extensive reading, earnest thought, a close observer of national affairs and an orator of recognized power. He desired re-election to Congress and could have secured it had he not been under an agreement not to enter the campaign against a friend. He returned to the law office with the de termination to eschew politics from that time forward and devote himself entirely to law. He was the part ner of William B. Herndon, and the firm had an ex tensive practice. But the passage of the Kansas-Ne- 26 ABRAHAM LINCOLN braska Bill, providing for the explicit repeal of the Missouri Compromise, roused in him such indignation that he once more entered politics. On August twenty- fourth, 1855, in a familiar letter to an old friend, Joshua Speed, he defined his position on the issues of the day : "I do oppose the extension of slavery because my judgment and feelings so prompt me, and I am under no obligations to the contrary. If for this you and I must differ, differ we must. . . . "You inquire where I now stand. This is a dis puted point. I think I am a Whig; but others say there are no Whigs, and that I am an Abolitionist. When I was in Washington I voted for the Wilmot Proviso as good as forty times; I never heard of anyone attempting to un-Whig me for that. I now do no more than oppose the extension of slavery. I am not a Know-Nothing, that is cer tain. How could I be? How can anyone who abhors the oppression of negroes be in favor of de grading classes of white people? Our progress in degeneracy appears to me pretty rapid. As a na tion we began by declaring that 'all men are created equal.' We practically read it 'all men are created equal except negroes.' When the Know-Nothings get control it will read 'all men are created equal except negroes and foreigners and Catholics.' When it comes to this I shall prefer emigrating to some country where they make no pretense of lov- ABRAHAM LINCOLN 27. ing liberty — to Russia, for instance, where despot ism can be taken pure and without the base alloy of hypocrisy." At the next election, in 1858, he was nominated to run against Stephen A. Douglas for the United States Senate. He challenged Douglas to a joint debate. Douglas was recognized as the greatest forensic debater since Webster. Although he defeated Lincoln, the seven debates attracted national attention and paved the direct way to the presidency. Lincoln revealed in his speeches a masterful logic, a comprehensive grasp of national affairs and a brilliant wit and sense of hu mor which captured his hearers and opened the eyes of the country to his greatness of mind and spirit. Lin coln and Douglas became known as the Big Giant and the Little Giant of the West. The Republican party advanced to Lincoln's position and his nomination for the presidency came as a unani mous call. The Republican State Convention of Illinois met at Decatur, May ninth, i860. Lincoln was ob served in the audience and amid a roar of applause was seized by the crowd and carried to the platform. Be fore the convention adjourned, it resolved that Abraham Lincoln was the first choice of the Republican party of Illinois for the presidency. With characteristic energy and unusual political skill he secured the nomination at the Republican National Convention at Chicago, May 28 ABRAHAM LINCOLN eighteenth. At the psychological moment of this second and most dramatic National Republican convention, two ten-foot hickory rails were brought upon the platform. Upon the rails hung a placard bearing in large letters the following inscription: "two rails from a lot made by abraham lincoln and john hanks, in the sangamon bottom, in the year 183o." At the sight of this the delegates went wild with enthusiasm and "The Rail Splitter" became the slogan of the most exciting campaign in American politics. It later became the occasion for scathing sarcasm by his enemies, who said that he was a rail splitter in his early life and a nation splitter in his later life. Senator Sew ard of New York was the leading candidate. Chase of Ohio, Bates of Missouri, Smith of Indiana, and Cam eron of Pennsylvania were also candidates. Seward's vote remained about the same. As state after state turned to Lincoln great excitement prevailed. On the third ballot he received the 233 votes necessary for nomination, and the crowd went wild — pandemonium reigned, men shouted and laughed, they wept and sang, they pounded and hugged each other; hurrahs within and cannon without made Chicago tremble. Lincoln's speech of acceptance was the product of great care and the mature thought of years. A coterie of his friends, who were invited to hear his proposed ABRAHAM LINCOLN 29 address, were dumbfounded at its daring tone and mas terful sweep. They urged him to modify it. Lincoln announced that he would rather go down to defeat with the principles of that speech than to win without them. He was immovable in his resolution. The startling thought was expressed in the famous passage: "A house divided against itself cannot stand. I believe the government cannot permanently exist half slave and half free. I do not expect the Union to be dissolved; I do not expect the house to fall; but I do expect that it will cease to be divided. It will become all one thing or all the other." This position as to slavery was in direct contravention of the policy of the nation as enunciated in the Mis souri Compromise of i82fj — a compromise which ac tually divided the nation into two parts — one part slave and the other part free. But Lincoln was far in ad vance of the vacillating legislation of his time. His indignation over the repeal of the Missouri Com promise in the Kansas-Nebraska Bill had elicited from him the sharpest and shortest exposition ever given on the doctrine of "Popular Sovereignty." He said it amounted to just this: "That, if any man chose to en slave another, no third man shall be allowed to object." The four and a half months between Lincoln's nomi nation and election marked the most enthusiastic, intense and exciting campaign in American politics. His three opponents were men of national renown with great per- 30 ABRAHAM LINCOLN sonal followings. Douglas, from his own State of Illinois, was a United States Senator. Breckenridge, from Kentucky, had an enormous support from the South. Bell, from Tennessee, was a popular Whig of the constitutional party. Against these odds, Abraham Lincoln received over them all fifty-seven electoral votes. From the day of his election in November until his inauguration, March fourth, 1 86 1, the political storm that had been brewing since the first issue of the slavery question raged in creasingly about him. The year had closed in deepest gloom. The South was making ready to secede and openly rejoiced that the North had chosen a "buffoon" for a President. Even the North considered him the cause of national disruption. But neither friend nor foe knew Abraham Lincoln or recognized the power of the man. The government of which he was soon to take charge was shaken with uncertainty and indecision. Buchanan, weak, vacillating and irresolute, was an ex ponent of the national feelings around him. He ac curately marked the public pulse. The whole nation was in an unspeakable quandary. The people had re pudiated the political creed of President Buchanan, and had accorded but feeble support to the principles for which Lincoln stood. This demoralized state of public sentiment was reflected in the conflicting streams of advice which flowed upon the President-elect. Horace ABRAHAM LINCOLN 31 Greeley, the editor of the leading newspaper of that time, urged that the seceding States be permitted to go in peace; General Scott suggested that the country be di vided into four distinct confederacies; the business men of the North, alarmed at so much disorder and de moralization of commerce, became loudly solicitous for concessions to the South. In the face of these condi tions, no vigorous policy was possible. Lincoln's patience and moral courage were tested to the breaking-point. All of the responsibility for the nation's wreck and ruint as well as for its salvation, rested directly upon him, yet he was powerless to aid or thwart the designs of friends or enemies. On De cember twentieth, i860, the South Carolina convention unanimously adopted the ordinance of secession. On February eighteenth, the Southern Confederacy was formed and Jefferson Davis was inaugurated President, with Alexander Stephens as Vice-President. The South was aflame with excitement and many were fascinated with the idea of taking Washington and converting it into the Confederate Capital. The Richmond Exami ner said: "That filthy cage of unclean birds must and will assuredly be purified by fire. Our people can take it ; they will take it. Scott, the arch-traitor, and Lincoln, the beast, combined cannot prevent it. The Illinois ape must retrace his journey more rapidly than he came." When Lincoln arrived in Washington, members of the Peace Congress called on him and were rebuked by 32 ABRAHAM LINCOLN this simple answer: "My course is as plain as a turn pike road. It is marked out by the Constitution. I am in no doubt which way to go." He had been elevated to the presidency on the slavery question. For years it had occupied his earnest attention. It had now brought the country to the verge of civil war and to disruption of the government. Lincoln, unswerved by prejudice or previous declarations, realized that slavery had become a subordinate issue, and that the preser vation of the Union was the all-important question of the hour. As President, he displayed no vulgar self-confidence. He was sustained by his rare temperament, by the courage which came with responsibility. His fair, plain, simple method of arriving at conclusions saved him from the fateful doubts and blunders which would have submerged and beset a man of small calibre. He selected for his Cabinet the leaders of his party whom he had defeated^ As President, he was master of the cabinet. Reticent, self-contained, he asserted himself only when occasion demanded. William H. Seward, his Secretary of State, pre sumptuously prepared an inaugural address, but, without the slightest rebuke, Lincoln wrote and delivered his own address. The subject was never mentioned and the relations between the two men continued cordial. In less than a year, Lincoln accepted the resignation from the Cabinet of his Secretary of War — Simon ABRAHAM LINCOLN 33 Cameron. He astounded the government by appointing Edward M. Stanton to the vacancy. Lincoln and Stan ton had met in 1855 in Cincinnati, where they were as sociate attorneys in a case before the Federal Court. On this occasion Stanton had treated Lincoln with the utmost disdain. Lincoln overheard him say: "Where did that long-armed creature come from and what can he expect to do in this case?" Stanton had made no effort to conceal his hostility to Lincoln's administra tion. Yet he possessed that dynamic force which was needed in the war office; therefore, all personal feelings were brushed aside and the appointment was made. Stan ton declared that he would make a President of Lin coln; in the end, Lincoln made a good Secretary of War of Stanton. The latter learned to recognize his superior and to submit in every crisis. Stanton affords a striking background for Lincoln's magnanimity. On April twelfth, Fort Sumter was bombarded. In stantly there was an end to all doubt and hesitancy. Those who had thought they believed in the right of secession and those who had opposed the sending of armies into the South fell into line for the Union and for coercion. Slavery was momentarily forgotten and the North adopted Lincoln's version of the situation. "The Union! The Union!" was the cry. The vacil lating and divided North was unified in a day — just as the Declaration of War on April sixth, 1917, against the German Empire quieted the present distracting elements 34 ABRAHAM LINCOLN in our own nation's political unsettledness. Simultane ously the South was also unified. The war so long de ferred had begun. Lincoln continued unshaken throughout those days of ferment. He had foreseen the break, but the actuality shadowed his grave face with a new and deeper sadness. Lincoln had refrained from sending any troops to the South. With equal reluctance Davis had held aloof from trespassing upon the North. Both Lincoln and Davis were capable of states- manly patience. But the firing on Fort Sumter set the armies of both sections into instant activity. Lincoln did not question his right to send United States troops to any part of the country. His theory was that a state could not secede and therefore all seceding states were but parts of the United States. In response to his call for 75,000 volunteers, the North took up the war cry of "On to Richmond!" Lincoln had offered the command of his army to the Virginian, Robert E. Lee — that aristocratic Southern gentleman who called duty the "sublimest word in the English language." With characteristic strength of purpose, Lee declared that he would take no part in an invasion of the South ern States, although himself opposed to secession. He later became the hero of the South and one of the great est generals ever produced by America. On the day after the battle of Bull Run, Lincoln summoned General George B. McClellan to Washington ABRAHAM LINCOLN 35 and appointed him Commander-in-Chief of all the armies of the United States. McClellan had seen service in the Mexican War and witnessed the siege of Se- bastopol, where he had been sent as Secretary of War under Buchanan. Ranking next to the President, he at once arrogated to himself the importance of the savior of his country, yet continued a do-nothing policy when popular clamor demanded a movement on Rich mond. The President was finally constrained to urge him into action, saying that if McClellan did not want to use the army he would like to borrow it. Lincoln then began that long search for a capable commander of initiative genius and fighting ability to cope with the brilliant strategy of Robert E. Lee. The time speedily came when McClellan was su perseded by Halleck. Lincoln had that rarest virtue among men in public life — political unselfishness. At no time during all the war did he manipulate any man euver or movement of the army for the purpose of bringing credit or glory to himself. He removed Mc Clellan, but instantly reinstated him when the occasion demanded it. The President was honest, unselfish and able, but not unerring in military matters. Although a discriminating judge of human character in general, he was repeatedly unfortunate in his choice of commanders- in-chief. General Burnside and Major-General Joseph Hooker in turn followed Halleck. But Lee was win ning such signal success over Hooker that an invasion 36 ABRAHAM LINCOLN toward Gettysburg was planned and immediately put into execution. Lincoln removed Hooker and gave the command to Meade. The battle of Gettysburg was the beginning of the turn. Meade fought valiantly and successfully, but failed to follow up his victory as Lin coln thought he should have done. It was apparent that Lincoln had not yet found the man to defeat Lee. He had tested four veterans of the North and the East, and now, in the hour of desperation, dimly outlined on the Western horizon, there appeared the prodigious figure of U. S. Grant. It was with a warm feeling in his heart that Lincoln welcomed a man born in his own State who was finally to cope with the battle-winning generalship of Lee. Lee was persistently invading northern territory and plunging into great battles, followed by extraordinary events at Washington. The battle of Antietam, one of the bloodiest engagements of the entire Civil War, was followed by the Emancipation Proclamation. The bat tle of Gettysburg was followed by the elevation of Ulysses S. Grant to the supreme command of the federal armies. These two events, the Emancipation Procla mation and the promotion of General Grant, were far- reaching and consequential — outweighing in importance all other occurrences of the Civil War. The prime mover in them was Abraham Lincoln. After the bat tle of Gettysburg, General Rushling, who fought in that battle, relates that Lincoln said to him: "The fact is, ABRAHAM LINCOLN 37 in the very pinch of that battle, I went to my room and got down on my knees, and prayed Almighty God for victory. I told God that this was His country, and the war was His war, but that we couldn't stand an other Fredericksburg or Chancellorsville. And then and there I made a solemn vow with my Maker that if He would stand by your boys at Gettysburg, I would stand by Him." Lincoln also made a vow to Heaven that if Lee were driven back from Maryland he would issue his procla mation of freedom to the slaves. Secretary Stanton has left the following interesting account of the first reading of the Proclamation to the Cabinet: "It was on September twenty-second, 1862, when the cabinet members assembled, not knowing for what purpose they had been called together. The President slowly and deliberately and to their amazement and disgust read to them three chapters from Artemus Ward. No one laughed. At last the President threw down the book, heaved a sigh and said : 'Gentlemen, why don't you laugh? With the fearful strain that is upon me night and day, if I did not laugh I should die2 and you need this medicine as much as I do.' "He then put his hand in his tall beaver hat that sat upon the table and pulled out a little paper. Turning to the members of the cabinet, he said : "'Gentlemen, I have called you here upon very 3S ABRAHAM LINCOLN important business. I have prepared a little paper of much significance. I have made up my mind that this paper is to issue; that the time has come when it should issue; that the people are ready for it to issue. It is due my cabinet that you should be the first to hear and know of it, and if any of you have any suggestions to make as to the form of this paper, or its composition, I shall be glad to hear them. But the paper is to issue.' "I have always tried to be calm," says Secretary Stanton, "but I think I lost my calmness for a moment, and with great enthusiasm I rose, ap proached the President, extended my hand and said: 'Mr. President, if the reading of chapters of Artemus Ward is a prelude to such a deed as this, the book should be filed among the archives of the nation, and the author should be canonized.' And all said 'Amen.' " The Battle of Gettysburg was followed by a bill passed in Congress in February, 1864, providing that the President appoint a Lieutenant-General to command the armies of the United States. Ulysses S. Grant was called to the exalted rank previously held by George Washington alone. Grant had been victorious in the West, and Lincoln realized that under his leadership the army of the Potomac might vanquish the South. He justly appraised Grant's value and was deaf to the calumniators of the pugnacious fighter from Missouri. ABRAHAM LINCOLN 39 Lincoln had learned by bitter experience to give little value to the military judgment of editors and scheming politicians. He thought fairly and accurately and never as a bigot or partisan. He answered a charge that Grant was intoxicated by inquiring what brand of whiskey he used, as he desired to send a barrel of it to some of the other generals. Grant arrived in Washington on March eighth, and frankly stipulating that he was to be free from all in terference, assumed personal control of the campaign in Virginia. During those bloody battles fought between Grant and Lee, Lincoln's second presidential campaign took place. Notwithstanding the slander of politicians who hated him in proportion to his contempt for them, Lin coln was re-elected. Deeply grateful for the confidence of the people, he said : "If I know my heart, my grati tude is free from any taint of personal triumph. I do not impugn the motives of anyone opposed to me. It is no pleasure to me to triumph over anyone; but I give thanks to the Almighty for this evidence of the people's resolution to stand by free government and the rights of humanity." Lincoln's second inaugural address has taken its place among the most famous of all written or spoken com positions in the English language. After reading it, the editor of The London Spectator said: "Abraham Lincoln is the greatest master of English prose." The 40 ABRAHAM LINCOLN following excerpt reveals his noble purpose and his grasp of the issues of the day: "Fondly we hope, fervently do we pray, that this mighty scourge of war may speedily pass away. Yet, if God wills that it continue until all the wealth piled by the bondsman's two hundred and fifty years of unrequited toil shall be sunk, and every drop of blood drawn with the lash shall be paid by another drawn by the sword, as was said three thousand years ago, so still it must be said: 'The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.' With malice toward none, with char ity for allj with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are now in ; to bind up the nation's wounds ; to care for him who shall have borne the battle, and for his widow, and his orphan — to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves, and with all nations." As President Lincoln entered upon his second term, there were many outside efforts to terminate the war through compromise, emanating from both the North and the South. Francis P. Blair — Missouri's junior Senator — obtained from Lincoln, almost under subter fuge, a permit "to pass our lines, go South and return." In fact, he consulted with Jefferson Davis and proposed that both sides come to amicable terms for the purpose of sending an expedition under the leadership of Davis ABRAHAM LINCOLN 41 to Mexico to expel Maximilian. Davis merely gave Blair a short letter expressing a willingness to send or receive agents "with a view to secure peace to the two countries." Lincoln then gave Blair a letter stating that he would meet informally agents sent him "with the view of securing peace to the people of our common country." The closing words of the two letters showed that Lincoln and Davis were, as ever, politically antipodal. Lincoln attended the Hampton Roads meeting. After four hours of debate, he was unyielding for the Union, and the others for the disunion. It was currently re ported that Lincoln wrote the word "Union" and offered his visitors from the South carte blanche to write be neath it any terms whatever. Five days after the surrender of the Confederate Army, Abraham Lincoln died as he had lived — a mar tyr. J. Wilkes Booth — a fanatical and dissipated actor — assassinated him in the President's box at Ford's Theater, on the evening of April 14th, 1865. The South thus lost its greatest friend, for had he lived she would never have suffered the trials of the reconstruction period, which have disgraced the pages of American history. Abraham Lincoln was the pivotal point around which the Civil War revolved. It was that war which "left the mooted question of national unity so firmly settled that only sporadic and unconsequential voices have since 42 ABRAHAM LINCOLN debated the final result." The passion of Lincoln's Americanism and his ardent devotion to the Union are revealed in the following address delivered by him at the Dedication of the National Cemetery at Gettysburg. Although delivered from impromptu notes jotted down while en route to Gettysburg, it is a revelation of his great soul expressed in classic words: "Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, con ceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. Now we are en gaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation or any nation so conceived and so dedicated8 can long endure. We are met on a great battle field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field as a final resting-place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this. But in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate, we cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground. The brave men living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it far above our poor powers to add or detract. The world will little note nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us, the living, rather to be dedicated here to the un finished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to ABRAHAM LINCOLN 43 be here dedicated to the great task remaining be fore us — that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion — that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain, that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom, and that the government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth." If no other record of Lincoln's life remained than these words, the world would recognize his greatness and know that he had given statesmanship a new and nobler meaning. "With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right," Lincoln lived and died a patriot and a martyr. Though of lowly origin, his character and services have placed him high in the annals of American history and endeared him to all hearts. Lin coln will ever be an inspiration to Americans and to the people of all nations. Home of Lincoln's early youth, Elizabethtown, Kentucky, In this house his mother died when Lincoln was nine years old. Home of Lincoln, Coles County, Illinois. In this house Lincoln lived when he became of age. While living here he broke up fifteen acres of sod with oxen and split the rails destined to make him immortal. Home of Lincoln 1861-65 — White House. SIMON BOLIVAR SIMON BOLIVAR SIMON BOLIVAR THE LIBERATOR AND BUILDER OF SOUTH AMERICAN REPUBLICS 1783— 1830 The people of South America represent such a great number of racial types that their civilization cannot be intelligently considered from Anglo-Saxon standards. The appreciation of Simon Bolivar, South America's greatest patriot, requires a sympathetic understanding of his people. He himself said of them : "Bear in mind that our population is neither European nor American, but is rather a compound of African and American. Spain herself is less European than African in blood, institutions and character. It is impossible to point out with propriety to what human family we be long. The greater part of the aborigines have been an nihilated, the European has mixed with the American, and the African has also mixed with the Indian and European. All children of the same mother, our fathers are of various origin and blood and differ in figure and form from each other." Even late in the eighteenth century South America was in a desperate state of confusion and oppression. The history of Spanish and Portuguese conquest had been a record of successive cruelty and misrule. In addition to diversity of race there was excessive class distinction. 47 48 SIMON BOLIVAR The original twenty million native Indians Had been re duced to six million through hardship and ill-treatment suffered under this colonial regime. They sought refuge in the Andean plateaus and in the temperate regions of Argentine, Chili and Bolivia, while the Africans dis placed them along the torrid coasts and lowlands of the Spanish main, Brazil and Peru. The half-breeds, issued from the hybridization of all these races, formed an intermediate caste on whom devolved the exercise of all "vile occupations," such as crafts, trade and industry, considered beneath the dignity of the Spanish hidalgo. The government discriminated unjustly against the "Creoles" — the immediate heirs of the hidalgos, who were pure-blooded whites — born in the colonies. In that sense, the founders of the United States could have been considered Creoles. These descendants of free, self-reliant, daring pioneers were subjected to the unrestrained tyranny of Spanish viceroys and governors. On one occasion the King of Spain refused permission to the Venezuelans to establish a university in Maracaibo because, in his opinion, "it was unsuitable to promote learning in South America, where the inhabitants appeared destined by nature to work in the mines." The same fundamental errors which impoverished and enfeebled Spain brought about the loss of her vast American colonies: First, the belief that possession of gold, instead of indus try and commerce, was the foundation of prosperity; SIMON BOLIVAR 49 second, the belief that ignorance, not education, was the lot of the masses and the keystone of empire. The same short-sighted policy which had banished the Jews and the Moors from the Peninsula had decimated the Indians in the New World. It forbade non-Spanish immigration, encouraged only the mining of precious metals and stones, discouraged agriculture and com merce through fear of competition and under penalty of confiscation and death to the transgressor of the monopolistic laws of the metropolis. It maintained a prohibitive system of agrarian and industrial taxation. In the face of these inane restrictions the Creoles, "re duced to the social condition of serfs and, at the ut most, of mere consumers, were helpless to exert any real influence in governmental affairs." After enduring centuries of oppression, the people of South America, who since the early eighteenth century had attempted municipal revolts in Paraguay, Chili, Venezuela, Peru and Santa Fe, burst forth into general rebellion. At the beginning of the nineteenth century, under the leadership of a few courageous men, chief among them being Simon Bolivar, the great move was started which drove the Spaniard from continental Latin America. This succession of revolutions was part of a world movement in behalf of humanity. The half century from 1776 to 1826 marked an era of democratic tri umph — the overthrow of kings and the inauguration of limited monarchies and republics. At this time the 50 SIMON BOLIVAR United States established her independence; Belgium broke away from Holland; Greece freed herself from Turkey; France was in the terrible throes of revolution and the South American republics were founded under the guidance and inspiration of their liberators. Bolivar was born in Venezuela in 1783, of noble descent. As a youth he was sent to Europe to study and passed several years in Madrid, where he played with the boy who became Ferdinand VII, King of Spain. He traveled extensively in southern Europe, and visited Rome, the central home of the Latin races. His mind was enlarged by diligent study and keen ob servation and he was able to contrast the progressive vigor of Latin Europe with the miserable bondage that weighed down the intellect of his native land. In Paris he was an eye-witness to some of the last horrible scenes of the French Revolution. Returning home from Europe in 1809, he passed through the United States and witnessed the actual workings of a free, democratic nation. Here he became firmly fixed in a purpose to free South America from her tyrannical rule and to establish her states as independent republics. He might have been the richest, the most powerful of the Creole caste; he might have passed the remainder of his life in opulence; he might have won high fa vors of the king and the Spanish courtiers, if he had been willing to be untrue to the spirit of patriotism and liberty that surged up in his soul. He preferred the SIMON BOLIVAR 51 prospect of exile, penury and death to servile allegiance to a tyrannical government. Soon after his return from Venezuela he became identified with a secret organization of patriots, bound together in the cause of independence. In April, 1810, he took part in an insurrection at Caracas. That insur rection eventually determined the destiny of South America. Without violence and bloodshed, the gover nor was deposed and the freedom of Caracas was won. Bolivar proposed a toast, "to the liberty of the new world." A junta was formed which opened the com merce of Venezuela to the world, removed the capitation and other taxes, proclaimed equality, threw off the Spanish yoke, and evidenced the birth of a new republic. In recognition of his services, he received a colonel's commission from the revolutionary junta and was sent to London with Louis Lopez Mendez to seek the as sistance of the British Government in their revolt. Great Britain declared her neutrality and his mission was fruitless. When he returned he was accompanied by General Francisco Miranda, a veteran soldier who had fought with Washington for the liberty of the United States and with Dumouriez for the liberty of France. Miranda was made general-in-chief of the armies of the new republic through the influence of Bolivar, who proved clearly by this action his freedom from personal ambi tion. While the first South American Congress was '52 SIMON BOLIVAR deliberating about the expediency of declaring the in dependence of Venezuela, Bolivar said to the Patriotic Society: "Why should we take into account Spain's in tentions? What shall we care if she chooses to keep us as her slave or sell us to Bonaparte, since we have de cided to be free? That great projects should be pa tiently weighed, I hear; but, are not three hundred years of waiting enough? Let us set without fear the foundation of South American independence. To tergiversate is to fail." Venezuela declared its independence on July 5, 181 1, and in the following year the war began in earnest with the advance of the Spanish troops under Monteverde. Bolivar fought several successful engagements under General Miranda, and was entrusted with the command of important posts. But, owing tp Miranda's lack of knowledge of actual conditions and to the insufficient support given to Bolivar, the Spaniards recovered their hold over Venezuela and the Republic was short-lived. Miranda, considered as a foreigner by the common people, as an intruder by the more ambitious patri cians, became a martyr to his life-long devotion to liberty and was kept in irons in a Spanish dungeon until his death in 18 16. Bolivar escaped to Curacao. In Sep tember, 1812, at Cartagena, he enlisted the aid of its republican president. He published a declaration in which he stated the cause of the failure of the Caracas government and explained that Venezuela should be SIMON BOLIVAR 53 reconquered in order to make possible the liberty of the continent. With 200 men he opened a campaign against an enemy ten times superior and within fifteen days, less time than was usually employed by travelers, he ar rived at Ocafla, having fought twelve successful combats and having added a large province to the patriots' realm. He continued his march through craggy, : uninhabited mountains by paths "where a false step meant death," and succeeded in destroying large Spanish forces and occupying the important city of Cucuta. The victory enriched the government with more than a million dollars. Finally, on May fifteenth, he received per mission to invade Venezuela. Three months later, with an ever-increasing army of volunteers, having traveled 750 miles and vanquished in fifty combats a far superior enemy, he entered his native city of Caracas in triumph. Once again ambitious chieftains and the indifference of the masses allowed the Spaniards to react. The people, with characteristic Latin enthusiasm, gave him an ova tion as the deliverer of his country, and bestowed on him the power of dictator in civil as well as in mili tary affairs. But he had not yet succeeded in overthrow ing the might of Spain. The crudest of men, Boves, collected an army of Venezuelan llaneros (cowboys) under the name of the "Infernal Legion" and, notwith standing a long series of defeats, finally routed the re publican forces in pitched battle. Bolivar left Venezuela to obtain resources for another attempt: "There is no 54 SIMON BOLIVAR power in this world," he proclaimed when leaving, "capable of arresting me in the work in which I am en gaged. . . . God reserves victory to constancy." Then followed the darkest period in South America's strug gle for liberty. The wars in Europe had ended with the battle of Waterloo, and Ferdinand VII sat securely upon the throne of Spain. This ruler "by divine right" firmly resolved never to grant freedom to South America and prepared to start a war of extermination "which would leave no patriot alive in the continent." A great army was raised and placed under the command of General Morillo, a bold and pitiless officer. He soon subdued New Granada and massacred every patriot of eminence, without the semblance of trial. Caracas, once the home of freedom, now became the center of Spanish rule. Peru, Chili, Buenos Aires and the South were subdued and all South America was blighted by the most dreadful tyranny known to history. The Spaniards conducted their campaign in such a barbarous manner that an official report says, regarding Venezuela: "These prov inces have ceased to exist. Towns inhabited by thou sands now number scarcely one hundred; others have been wiped out. I have just traversed roads covered with dying and dead and unburied skeletons. Heaps of ashes 'mark the sites of villages. The trace of culti vated areas is obliterated. . . ." Even in this extremity, Bolivar had the courage and SIMON BOLIVAR 55 perseverance to hope and work with untiring zeal. It was while at Jamaica, during this period, that he wrote his prophetic letter about the destinies of the Latin- American countries, stating that "as long as our coun trymen shall not acquire the political knowledge and virtues distinctive of our northern brethren, I greatly fear that the system of absolute democracy, instead of favoring our progress, may prove our ruin. The federal organization is too perfect and demands civic habits and talents far superior to ours. We must avoid the danger of demagogical anarchy and of monarchic tyranny." As soon as possible he banded his fellow-refugees to gether on the Island of Haiti, and in December, 1816, landed on the Island of Margarita, just off the coast of Venezuela. Here a congress convened and a gov ernment was instituted. Impelled by his grasp of the fundamental in nation building, at the very outset oi this struggle to establish freedom in Venezuela, Bolivar proclaimed the abolition of slavery. This was nearly fifty years before the Emancipation Proclamation of Abraham Lincoln. "Honor to whom honor is due." The world has been tardy in recognizing and appreciating the first liberator of human slavery in the New World — Simon Bolivar. For two years he fought against the Spanish general, Morillo. His victories culminated in the cap ture of Angostura on July 17, 1817. It marked the turning point in his contest for freedom as distinctly 56 SIMON BOLIVAR as the capture of Trenton had signalled the turn of the tide for George Washington. In 1818, a large number of soldiers of fortune, French and English veterans, left without a congenial occupa tion at the close of the Napoleonic wars, joined Bolivar's army and strengthened it — a much-needed reinforce ment. A Congress was opened at Angostura in Feb ruary, 1 819, and Simon Bolivar was chosen President and given almost supreme power. At this congress he made his famous address, a recognized classic in South American literature, in which he said: "A republican form of government has been, is and ought to be that of Venezuela ; its basis ought to be the sovereignty of the people, the division of power, civil liberty, the prohibition of slavery and the abolition of monarchy and privilege. ... I have been obliged to beg you to adopt centralization and the union of all the states in a republic, one and indivisible." This speech bears a striking resemblance to some of the utterances of Abraham Lincoln, both in sentiment and simplicity of expression. He also disclaimed be fore congress the dictatorial power, warning that "noth ing is more dangerous to popular government than the continuity of executive power in the same individual." "Popular education," he added, "must be the paramount care of this congress. Morality and knowledge are the poles of a republic; morality and knowledge are our first needs. He proposed the creation of a court that SIMON BOLIVAR 57 would have jurisdiction over the education of children and the maintenance of patriotism. The domain of that court, which would constitute a fourth power, would be the hearts of men, the public spirit, good habits and republican morality. Nobler thoughts have seldom been uttered by a statesman or patriot. In 1 8 19, Bolivar crossed the Andes through forests and passes which were believed impassable for an army, descended upon the royalists of New Granada and after seventy-five days of campaign destroyed the forces three times more numerous than his, and liberated the coun try. He was honored with the presidency of the Repub lic of Colombia, newly formed from the colonies of Venezuela and New Granada. He continued his battle with the Spaniards. His army gained a signal victory at Carabobo in June, 1821, when the royalist forces were completely routed. Caracas once more received Venezuela's heroic deliverer in triumph. From 1821 to 1824, Bolivar, seconded by the most able and virtuous of his generals, Antonio Jose de Sucre, delivered Ecua dor in the battle of Pichincha, and Peru, "the real center of Spanish power on the continent," in the battles of Junin, "where not the sound of a firearm was heard, but the clash of sabres," and Ayacucho, one of the great decisive battles of the world. Thus he sealed the independence of South America. Chosen Dictator of Peru, he prosecuted his campaign so vigorously that by 1825 he expelled the Spaniards, summoned a congress 58 SIMON BOLIVAR at Lima and resigned his supreme office to turn to wider fields. The next country to feel his patriotic impress was Bolivia, a nation formed from the territory of Upper Peru and named for the great Liberator. As Perpetual Protector of this new republic, Bolivar drafted a consti tution which was adopted in 1826. At this time he was President of Colombia, Dictator of Peru, Per petual Protector of Bolivia, his authority extending over a territory two-thirds as large as all Europe. But it was an authority exerted only so far as military neces sities made it imperative. He maintained civil authority and resigned all dictatorships as soon as the military objective was attained. Scarcely were the Spaniards expelled when factional strife and political intrigue be gan to undermine the work of Bolivar. He devoted his entire thought to the consolidation ' of the American republics, to the continental equilibrium between the North and the South, to the stability of the Colombian nations, to the Central American federation. "Its ca nals," he wrote, "shall shorten the distances of the world, tighten the conventional bonds between Europe, Amer ica and Asia and bring to that happy region the tribute of the seven seas. Perhaps only Panama can be the site of the capital of the earth, as Byzantium was, in Constantine's mind, the capital of the eastern hemi sphere." But while he thought of these great deeds, petty ambitions were designing his ruin. His enemies SIMON BOLIVAR 59 plotted to break Colombia and rule over its pieces. They killed Sucre, whose dominating personality and loyalty were in their way, and conspired against the life of Bolivar. Finally, after having divided the fed eration in its three elements, Venezuela, New Granada and Ecuador, they banished their Liberator. He was too great and sincere to dispute the exercise of a power he had so often resigned or placed in other hands. But the base ingratitude crushed his great, gen erous soul, and he went forth to die of a broken heart. Shortly before his death, Bolivar called his secretary to the bedside and dictated his last address to his coun trymen: "For my enemies I have only forgiveness. If my death shall contribute to the cessation of factions and the consolidation of the Union, I can go tranquilly to my grave." These words breathe the spirit of a martyr. He died on December seventeenth, 1830, at the age of forty-seven years. In the brief years of his life he had laid his mark forever upon the independence and liberties of South America. In the midst of his ceaseless labors as liberator and conqueror, he was en gaged in a purposeful plan to unite all Spanish America into one vast federation ; his dream was to consolidate into one mighty confederacy all the territory from Mexico to the Straits of Magellan. His vision for a united Latin America was similar to that which the United States has wrought out in North America. Bolivar spent nine-tenths of a large inheritance in the 60 SIMON BOLIVAR service of his country. Although he had at one time unlimited control over the revenues of three countries, he never accepted a shilling of public money. Few men ever had greater opportunities of enriching themselves; still fewer refused to take advantage of their oppor tunities. Bolivar died in comparative poverty. His name is everywhere in South America today. Coins, streets, monuments, squares, cities, provinces and a republic, all bearing the name of "El Libertador," are a constant reminder of the homage of his countrymen. His dauntless courage and unconquerable hope com mand the admiration of the Anglo-Saxon as well as the Latin. His purpose never faltered under the blows of defeat and apparent failure. With a persistence scarcely ever equaled, he came back with renewed zeal after each repulse. On his single arm rested for many years the destiny of half a continent. In a conflict where the enemy gave no quarter to revolutionists, and in a government where the fires of lawless insurrection ever smouldered among the people, he has left a record singularly free from cruelty. With the growth of education, commerce and industry in South America, the world is coming to know the greatness of Simon Bolivar's struggle for human liberty. South Americans may justly compare Bolivar with the early heroes of Rome, but he was a patriot rather than a Caesar; he fought to liberate, not to enslave. His genius rose with difficulties ; his powers were matured in SIMON BOLIVAR 61 trials ; he showered with bountiful hand the blessings of life and liberty upon millions of people. Bolivar had an achieving career of patriotism with which Caesar had nothing to compare; Napoleon had no liberating record worthy of such praise. The combined spirits of Washington and Lincoln united in the altruism of Simon Bolivar. NAPOLEON BONAPARTE NAPOLEON BONAPARTE NAPOLEON BONAPARTE THE MILITARY AND CIVIC GENIUS 1769 — I 82 I France, the nation which glories in protecting the oppressed, has an especially warm place in American hearts. The peculiar comradery which exists between the two countries started early in 1780. It was the year in which Benjamin Franklin went on his famous mission of appeal to Paris, the year in which France sent to the stricken American patriots the assistance which so helped them to establish and maintain their republic. She sent Rochambeau — the cool-headed, fearless lieutenant-gen eral, who packed his 5,000 eager troops into slow trans ports and brought them to an unknown country to fight for an almost unknown people — to fight for liberty and not for recompense. Rochambeau came to the cause of Democracy — as did also many other illustrious French men, including Lafayette, the young enthusiast, who left a life of luxury to serve as a volunteer in the cause of freedom. These Frenchmen, so loved and honored by the Amer ican people, returned to France only to prepare them selves for another and more personal war on autocracy. 65 66 NAPOLEON BONAPARTE Their names were to go down in the records of the French Revolution — some of them on into the annals of the French Empire. The American Revolution was a forerunner of the French Revolution. Indeed only four years elapsed between the drawing up of the respective constitutions. It is only natural that we should feel especially close to those soldiers who fought side by side with our own soldiers and that we should take keen interest in the phenomenal man which those times produced. This man took control of the divergent forces of the French Revolu tion and directed them toward national unity. He does not stand out as a moral hero, nor as the highest type of patriot, but his life is such an unusual example of achievement, such a prodigious spectacle of genius, that he towers above all other French statesmen as a domi nant and inspiring leader of men. We may deem Napoleon Bonaparte a world hero. Napoleon, island-born, inherited neither wealth nor position. A self-made man, he spread his name a living glory over the world; he elevated himself to a throne more magnificent and powerful than that of the Caesars ; he effectuated revolutions and began operations that fu ture ages will continue to utilize and admire; he changed the political face of Christendom. His life stands as an unparalleled example of worldly ambition. Had his patriotism excluded selfism, he would be idealized as NAPOLEON BONAPARTE 67 the greatest patriot as well as the greatest military genius that ever lived. The story of his dramatic rise to the blinding light of supreme power and abrupt fall to the black depths of despair is one which never grows old for the telling. It captivates the hearts and minds of today as it did those of his own time. It seems that in the great crises of nations some big man comes to the fore. Such men were Cromwell, Washington, Lincoln, Bslivar, Napoleon. Napoleon was of Italian descent, born in Corsica, Au gust fifteenth, 1769, Portly after the island had been sold to France by Genoa. His parents, though poor, were of some prominence among the gentry of the island. Little attention was given to the child's early training, and his companions were sailors on the beach and herds men in the hills. He grew up a diffident yet wilful child — unkempt and uncultured, pale, nervous, almost igno rant, yet manifesting a certain superiority over his com panions. When Napoleon was nine years of age, his father, as if to compensate for early negligence, secured for his child an appointment to a French military school. After three months of tutoring at Autun, he passed his examination and entered the military academy at Brienne, a school conducted by the French govern ment for the purpose of training officers for the army. According to the annual report he was "distinguished in 68 . NAPOLEON BONAPARTE mathematics ; tolerably versed in history and geography ; weak in Latin, general literature and other accomplish ments ; of regular habits, well behaved, studious, and en joyed excellent health." He was a poor boy among sons of wealth, and an alien with despised foreign manners and accent. Under these disadvantages he became mo rose and discontented, shunned the society of his fellows and engrossed himself in his studies. After five and a half years at Brienne he was one of the few to be promoted to the royal military school at Paris. In October, 1784, he entered the school, where he found the associations still more distasteful than at Brienne. Because of his own poverty, the luxurious atmosphere of the school aroused his antagonism and caused him to repel friendships and to concentrate the full attention of his rapidly developing mind on study. As a result, he finished the course there in one year. It is remarkable that the young Napoleon, then only sixteen years old, should have been one of the six in his class of fifty-eight to choose the artillery branch of the service. The artillery, though unappreciated at that time, was destined soon to be the greatest weapon of warfare, and Napoleon the supreme master of its science. Napoleon was commissioned a second lieutenant in the artillery, and was stationed at Valence. The follow ing seven or eight years were a period of such depressive poverty and recurring failures as few men have had NAPOLEON BONAPARTE 69 the fortitude to pass through to success. His family lost what little remained of their meagre estate, were exiled from Corsica, and became a burden upon his own slender resources. For many months he received three francs (60 cents) per day from the government, ate but one meal daily in the cheapest restaurants, and was so shabby that embarrassment kept him from friends and society. Unlike the usual pleasure-loving officer, he .preferred penury and privation to debt. He became subject to moods of extreme depression and thought himself doomed to failure. This turbulent and unhappy state of mind led him into further difficulties, and because of long ab sences to Corsica without proper leave, he was dismissed from the army. It was while he was living in utmost privation and exerting all his energy toward regaining his command that the days of the second revolution brought a turn in the tide of his life. The new authorities restored him to the army, and he was sent with his regiment to the south of France. While he was there an insurrection oc curred in Marseilles. In a paper written on the sub ject in the form of an imaginary conversation called "Le Souper de Beaucaire," the young officer discussed the situation with such justice and keen insight that the gov ernment ordered it published at public expense. It is significant that a literary effort rather than a military ac complishment first brought the name of Napoleon Bona parte into prominence. 70 NAPOLEON BONAPARTE Toulon followed Marseilles in a counter revolution by opening its harbor to the English. Napoleon, now a lieu tenant-colonel, joined the French army, which had promptly laid siege to the city (1793). He proposed a plan of forcing the issue by the capture of a single posi tion from which the French guns could dominate the har bor. It was chiefly due to this strategy and his energy in organizing the artillery and munition departments that Toulon was taken. He was only twenty-four years old, but as he himself said, "people age quickly on the field of battle." Although the victory at Toulon plays a minor role in the history of France, it stands out with especially significant importance in the rise of Napoleon. It was there that he had the first occasion to show his military ability ; it was there he first met with the Eng lish, who were to play such a tragic role in his life; it was there he first came in contact with Junot, Marmont, Duroc, Barras — men who were to be so closely and vitally associated with his stormy career. Who does not thrill at the account of his first meeting with Junot ? The young man came to Napoleon to take dictation, and while he was writing, a bomb burst near by, covering him and the letter with earth. "Good," said he, laughing, "I shall not need any sand to dry the ink." Napoleon, impressed by such cool bravery, from that time kept the young sergeant by his side. It was, in fact, Junot who described Napoleon after the siege of Toulon NAPOLEON BONAPARTE 71 as "one of those men of whom nature is avaricious and that she permits upon the earth only from age to age." Napoleon received honorable mention for his services, and favors were granted him and his family. He was made a Brigadier-General of Artillery, and served effi ciently on the Italian frontier. Through the jealousy of the War Minister, Aubry, he was recalled and ordered to command an infantry brigade in the West. This unjust demotion was avoided by a concocted leave for sickness. Finally, through the influence of the powerful conven tionalist, Barras, who had become interested in him at Toulon, he was stationed in the Department of Topog raphy at the war office in Paris. It was at this time that he prepared a plan of campaign in Italy, which was the laughing-stock of the commanding generals in the field. This plan, with few material changes, he himself after ward carried out brilliantly in the famous first Italian campaign. As the revolutionary reconstruction continued, Napo leon became identified with the convention. On October fifth, 1795, the Sections rose against the government. Barras, the nominal head of the defence, gave Napoleon command of the 5,000 troops provided for the protection of the Tuileries, where the convention was in session. He had but one night in which to formulate plans and' arrange defence, yet he did his work so thoroughly that it took less than one hour of actual fighting to gain a victory over an enemy numbering about 40,000. Al- 72 NAPOLEON BONAPARTE though Toulon had caused him to be favorably recom mended as an officer, this was the first evidence of phenomenal genius. It resulted in his appointment to the command of the Army of the Interior. He was twenty- six years old. This surprising position had been attained by an unsurpassed energy and a phenomenal grasp of detail. He once said : "There is nothing I cannot do foe myself. If there is no one to make powder for the can non, I can do it." • With his prosperity came a new position and interest in the social life of Paris. On March ninth, 1796, he was married to Josephine Beauharnais — a widow of great personal charm and influence. However, he was imme diately appointed commander of the army of Italy, and two days after his marriage departed to join the army, which for three or four years had been repeatedly de feated by Sardinians and Austrians. Napoleon's first problem was to fire the ambition and gain the confidence of the soldiers. In taking command he addressed them as follows: "Soldiers, you are hungry and naked; the Republic owes you much, but she has not the means to acquit herself of her debts. The patience with which you sup port your hardships among these barren rocks is ad mirable, but it cannot procure you glory. I am come to lead you into the most fertile plains that the sun beholds; rich provinces, opulent towns; all shall be at your dis posal. Soldiers, with such a prospect before you, can you NAPOLEON BONAPARTE 73 fail in courage and constancy?" This was the first of those remarkable speeches which thereafter preceded and followed his battles. He showed in them a mastery of the art of persuasion and a picturesque command of words which never failed to dominate men. Napoleon's 40,000 ragged, hungry and disheartened soldiers were opposed by a much larger force. But within fifteen days these troops, jeeringly called the "rag heroes," gained six victories, and within two months se cured the whole of northern Italy for France. Hostili ties continued with Austria until November fifteenth, iwhen, after three days' fighting, he won at Areola the de cisive battle of the campaign — a campaign as dazzling to the French as it was terrifying to the enemy. Napoleon's personal bravery during these months won for him an almost superstitious adoration from his sol diers and the title of "Little Corporal." A most striking example of bravery was in the engagement at Lodi. When his troops hesitated to make a charge across a wooden bridge covered by 30 cannon, he sprang to their head and led them into the deadly fire. ^Vgain at Areola the fight was at a bridge. "The Lit- |tle Corporal's" life was only saved by the heroism of his grenadiers, who forcibly dragged him back from the cen tre of the bridge, where he himself had dashed to plant a standard. Such utter contempt of death appeals to the soldier heart. Although a man of small stature, scarcely five feet four inches tall, with a sallow and serious face, 74 NAPOLEON BONAPARTE he had a commanding presence which inspired instant re spect and obedience. His personal magnetism caused him to be loved by all with whom he came in contact. The devotion of his soldiers almost amounted to an obsession. In later years his old guard formed as bold a background for him as did the Tenth Legion for Julius Caesar. In February, 1797, after cleverly ending an armistice previously made with the Pope, Napoleon invaded the states of the Church. Within three weeks the Pope was compelled to procure peace by the surrender of several provinces. By April first the Italian campaign was closed, during which Napoleon, by his ingenious plans, rapid movements and daring assaults, out-generaled his antagonists completely. Although a mere youth he de feated the oldest and ablest generals in Europe, and by his new principles of strategy overturned their whole system of military science. These exploits drew the eyes of the world in wonder upon him and marked him for ultimate greatness. On his return to Paris in 1797 he was hailed with boundless enthusiasm as the idol of his countrymen and the man who had retrieved the prestige of France. He was twenty-eight years of age. The dazzled multitude attributed his success to intuitive genius alone. Some there were, however, who had seen him at Brienne study ing the lives of Plutarch and of Caesar; some who had watched him as a student in Paris pinching and sacri ficing to help his family; and some who had known him NAPOLEON BONAPARTE 75 as a young officer working with a perseverance unknown among the soldiers — they knew that it was not genius alone, but a gigantic eagerness for knowledge and an almost superhuman capacity for work. He had plundered Italy and sent such rich and ex quisite spoils to Paris that the war more than paid for itself. This pointed out to France a way to wage war with but little expense, and greatly facilitated his ambi tious plans. He thought that the glory of France, as well as the security of its domestic government, required further supremacy in the scale of European nations. This could only be assured by the force of war. The diplo matic machinations of England among the enemies of France directed first attention to her, and Napoleon was put in command of an army created to challenge her power. Realizing the futility of an invasion of the Brit ish Isles at that time, he determined to strike her through Egypt. This plan was readily agreed to by the political heads of the government, whose jealousy and fear were aroused by Napoleon's growing popularity and power. They were relieved to be rid of him until their positions were more secure. Napoleon dreamed of an Oriental realm, but the dream was short-lived. He captured the island of Malta and proceeded victoriously through Alexandria to Cairo, where he began to reorganize the civil and military gov ernment of Egypt. Word came that the English under Admiral Nelson had closely pursued them and destroyed 76 NAPOLEON BONAPARTE practically the entire French fleet, cutting the line of com munication with Europe by sea. This was the first mani festation of that dogged hatred between the two men which followed him through his career and hung a leaden weight upon his ambitious dreams even to the field of Waterloo. The Sultan seized the opportunity to declare a holy war. Napoleon led his army with all possible haste into Syria, thence into Eastern Europe, where he left it sadly depleted, in command of General Kleber. Receiving word that the Directory was in tottering disorder and the credit of the government wholly gone, he hurried back to France. Upon his arrival in Paris he immediately realized that his ideals of liberty and equality were nothing but watchwords for destruction in the hands of the ignorant impulsive classes. He saw that the revolution needed a guiding hand and France a directing head. With the co-operation of Moreau and other generals then in Paris, he succeeded in abolishing the Directory early in November. A new constitution was drawn up, under which there were to be three consuls — Napoleon, Cambaceres, a famous lawyer, and Lebrun, a skilled ad ministrator. Napoleon as First Consul had practically all power. He could appoint all public officers, propose all public measures in peace and war, and command all administrative affairs, both civil and military. He was thirty years of age. The great popular feeling was strongly with the NAPOLEON BONAPARTE 77 First Consul. He systematically set about reforming the civil affairs of France. He recruited the national treas ury, founded the Bank of France, recalled the "Emigres" of the Revolution, created the "Legion of Honor," re opened churches, established schools and hospitals, re pealed the more violent laws that had been passed during the revolution, and, most important of all, showed match less ability in promoting the industry and commerce of the nation. In fact, economic progress was so rapid as to arouse great uneasiness in England. Having thus established and invigorated the govern ment, he created a sentiment favorable to the renewal of hostilities against Austria, England and Turkey. He offered terms of peace which he knew could only be re jected, and started his campaign against Austria through Italy. While his other generals were fighting elsewhere, by the most skilful preparation and in deepest secrecy, Napoleon himself led an army in a surprise attack across the Alps into Italy. He advanced into the open plain with a comparatively small number, and under the guise that it was only a division, engaged the entire Austrian army in the battle of Marengo. At 4 o'clock in the afternoon his generals reported that a retreat had commenced. Yet, when his expected reinforcements ar rived, Napoleon, in the midst of unbelievable havoc, remained cool, and with remarkable deliberation spent an hour planning an attack which turned defeat into decisive victory. Within two months he captured and set up gov ernments in Milan, Turin and Genoa. 78 NAPOLEON BONAPARTE Although Napoleon's antagonists could seldom antici pate his plans, and his own generals were frequently un certain because of his deliberate secretiveness, he himself had very positive and well-defined rules of warfare : "Attacks should not be scattered, but should be con centrated." "Always be superior to the enemy at the point of at tack." "Time is everything." To these essentials he added marvelously inventive strategy. During one of his brief visits to Paris, the Austrians were so severely defeated by General Moreau that they sued for peace, and Napoleon concluded the Treaty of Luneville, February 9, 1801. Treaties were subse quently made with Spain, Naples, Portugal, Russia, Tur key and the Pope. Finally, on March twenty-seventh, 1802, the Peace of Amiens was concluded, by which Eng land was to retain Ceylon and Trinidad, but was to evacu ate the islands and ports of the Mediterranean; France was to restore Malta to the Knights of the Order of St. John, to restore Egypt to Turkey, to guarantee the in tegrity of Portugal, and to evacuate Rome and Naples. Neither side adhered to the treaty, which proved to be no more than a farcical armistice. August 4, 1802, by a decree of the Senate, Napoleon was made First Consul for life. He spent the next years in performing his greatest service to the French people NAPOLEON BONAPARTE 79 and to the world. He assembled the foremost lawyers of the nation and drew up a code of civil laws, known later as "The Code Napoleon." This code is but another monument to an intellect whose grasp was universal. Heretofore, France had been divided into provinces, each governed by its own peculiar and imperfect laws and customs. There had been no great system of jurisprudence or coincidence of laws. All had been confusion and insecurity. The Code Napoleon was a system of laws of such perfect and uni versal application that the rights of persons and property were everywhere fixed. Security was felt and public confidence established. Good laws and their impartial administration are the essence of liberty and the foundation of happiness. Na poleon gave these to France. His code sprang into ex istence at once with all these features of wisdom and perfection which other systems owed to the gradual im provement of centuries. On Easter Sunday, 1802, a concordat with the Pope was proclaimed with great pomp at Notre Dame, by which the Roman Catholic religion, which had been driven from France by the Revolution, was re-estab lished, with such restrictions as to make the Church sub ordinate to the state. The conception of the Louisiana Purchase, usually at tributed to Thomas Jefferson, because completed by rep resentatives whom he had sent to buy New Orleans, was 80 NAPOLEON BONAPARTE in reality the fruit of Napoleon's brain. It was on Easter Sunday, April ioth, 1803, while attending service in Notre Dame, that the idea came to him which was to be of such vital import to the future of the United States. His active brain never relaxed from the weight of state, and no one knew as well as he the danger of losing that American colony through the power of England's su preme navy. The sudden inspiration to sell the whole territory to America caused Napoleon to abruptly leave the Cathedral, call his cabinet, and present the idea to Robert Livingston, the United States Minister to France. Twenty days later, papers were signed deeding Louisiana to the United States for the sum of 15 million dollars. This purchase more than doubled the area of the United States. The area of the original 13 states was 827,844 square miles; that of the Louisiana purchase, 875,025 square miles. But trouble was brewing in Europe. The incorpora tion at this time of Elba, Piedmont and Parma with France was regarded by England as an infringement of the Treaty of Amiens. On May eighteenth, she had de clared war on France. Napoleon thought the time oppor tune to gratify a burning ambition to assume imperial power and dignity. An appeal was made to the nation, and by a vote of over three millions against less than three thousand, or one thousand to one, he was given the title and prerogatives of Emperor. He was thirty-five years of age. Napoleon was made Emperor by direct NAPOLEON BONAPARTE 81 suffrage. His family was invested with the right of hereditary succession. On December second, 1804, at a coronation cere mony performed in Notre Dame by Pope Pius VII, Napoleon and Josephine were crowned Emperor and Em press of France. The old fear and jealousy of England increased with Napoleon's power. She had long sought to form alli ances against him by offers of naval, military and finan cial aid. Following rapidly upon the coronation, she united with Russia, Austria and Sweden in a coalition against the new Emperor. In France an army of 120,000 men was raised, appar ently for the invasion of England. That project was un expectedly abandoned, and Napoleon led his magnificent military machine into Austria. He was joined by Ber- nadotte (coming from Hanover) and by Marmont (from Holland), whose additional troops swelled the lists to 200,000 men. Napoleon called it the Grand Army. Within two months (September and October, 1805) he marched from Boulogne to the Danube, overwhelm ing his enemies by such masterly tactics that his losses were practically nothing. He seized Hanover, the ap panage of the English kings, and established himself in the heart of Germany. Ulm capitulated and Vienna was at his mercy. He proceeded to Austerlitz, where he, as ever, showed the genius of his leadership by defeating the combined Russian and Austrian armies in an over- 82 NAPOLEON BONAPARTE whelming victory (December 2, 1805). The importance of Austerlitz is told in the last words of the great Eng lish statesman, William Pitt, who was mortally ill when word of the battle came. He sighed, "Alas, my coun try^' turned his face to the wall and died. Austria instantly sued for a separate peace, signed at Presburg December 26th. Russia retired behind her own frontier; England, in spite of her naval victory of Trafalgar, which was the death-blow for Napoleon's dream of an invasion, entered into an agreement whereby hostilities should cease by the restoration of Hanover. This caused dissension with the Prussians, who forthwith declared war with France. After the battle of Jena the German armies were driven in flight across the Elbe, and the French Emperor entered Berlin in triumph. Napoleon established himself at the head of the Con federation of the Rhine, a league composed of sixteen German princes, including practically all of Germany, ex cept Prussia and Austria. The Prussians had combined with Russia, and Napoleon boldly followed them into Poland. He won renowned victories at Eylan (Feb. 8, 1807) and Friedland (June 14th). The three rulers met at Tilsit, where Napoleon dictated his own terms of peace. It is said that the beautiful Queen Louise of Prussia vainly tried to secure from him better terms. Napoleon wrote to Josephine of her, "The Queen of Prussia is really charming; she is full of coquetry toward me, but NAPOLEON BONAPARTE 83 do not be jealous; I am an oilcloth off which all runs. It would cost me too dear to play the gallant." After the Treaty of Tilsit, July 9th, 1807, Napoleon was at the zenith df his power. He was called the "King of Kings." At thirty-seven years of age he was practically supreme Dictator in the continent of Europe. His craving for glory was insatiable. He determined to undermine the power of England by establishing the "continental blockade." It decreed that all continental governments should confiscate the property of English citizens wherever found — and should prohibit all trade or intercourse with England. This forced coalition against England eventually led to the dethronement of the Pope, the conquest of Portugal (caused by their refusal to seize British property), and the bitterly mistaken invasion of Spain, which ended in the seven years' Peninsular War. It was first in Spain that Napoleon met with that sub lime popular patriotism before which diplomacy and force lose their power. In the seizure of Spain were sown the first seeds of his downfall. It cost him 300,000 men and left him weakened in Central Europe, Northern Germany was in insurrection, and Austria, urged on by Eng land, was preparing to strike another blow against him. Napoleon returned from Spain abruptly. He collected his scattered army with remarkable velocity and opened the road to Vienna within a month. Here he remained on the island of Lambau, ostensibly shut in by the Aus- 84 NAPOLEON BONAPARTE trians,but in reality waiting reinforcements, which soon swelled his army to 150,000. July 4th, 1809, in a terrific storm, he led his troops, in a prodigious crossing of the Danube, to the fields of Wagram. After two days' fight ing, a great French victory resulted, and a peace compact was arranged by the Treaty of Vienna, October 14th, 1809. The surface of his success was again smooth. The years 1810 and 181 1 were pinnacles of Napoleon's greatness, and were spent in the luxury of court life. He never forgot them. His empire extended from the fron tiers of Denmark to those of Naples. It was divided into one hundred and thirty provinces and had a population of 42 million people. In addition, he had control over Spain, the Italian Kingdoms, Switzerland and the Con federation of the Rhine. France bestowed upon him all the adulation of her hero-worshipping people. He was a born leader; his abounding self-confidence gave him courage to dare that which was apparently im possible. His influence over men was phenomenal. As an inspirer of armies, a commander-in-chief, a strategist, a law-giver and a ruler, he was pre-eminent. His mental and physical vigor was almost incredible. He frequently held important conferences lasting throughout the night, and it was not unusual for him to give dictation from midnight to early morning. He required only four or five hours' sleep. He kept three or four secretaries busy at once. With his abnormally retentive memory for de tail he would correct a clerk in a trivial fact as unhesi- NAPOLEON BONAPARTE 85 tatingly as a minister upon a matter of international im port. Particularly in military matters this ability for detail and memory was almost superhuman. He knew without hesitation the precise situation of his armies, their strength in men and munitions, the names of their leaders and the amount of military stores on hand or required at all points. Napoleon's deep loyalty and devotion to his own fam ily did not waver with his dizzy rise to power. He lav ished upon them great fortunes, high positions and royal titles. Joseph, his oldest brother, he made King of Na ples; Louis (married to Josephine's daughter, Hortense), King of Holland. His sisters became princesses; his mother was given the highest title in France, that of Madame Mere. It is remarkable that a man of such dynamic will should have been always so sensitive to the influence of his family. During this period of peace he was persuaded by them and other advisers to divorce his wife, Joseph ine, who had borne no children to succeed him as Em peror. Even after this separation they remained devoted friends, and Josephine died of a broken heart in 1814. Napoleon was a fatalist, and in after years often said that his good luck had departed with Josephine. Soon after the divorce he married the 18-year-old Austrian Archduchess, Marie Louise. The next year, on March 20th, 181 1, she gave birth to a son, who, in his cradle, was proclaimed King of Rome. 86 NAPOLEON BONAPARTE We now turn the pages of Napoleon's career regret fully, yet with a growing appreciation of the fact that power lives through devotion to country and dies through devotion to self. In the midst of this apparent security there were forces of unrest at work prophetic of evil days to come. The Continental system was weighing heavily on the Russian people, and war soon became inevitable. In May, 1812, Napoleon concentrated at Dresden an army of over 650,000 men for the invasion of Russia and Sweden. It was called "The Army of Twenty Nations," and in truth there were almost as many Slavs, Spaniards, Italians, Bavarians, Dutch, Poles and other foreigners as there were Frenchmen. The Russians craftily withdrew before his advance and his soldiers were unable to endure the hardships of a winter campaign in the vigorous climate (frequently 25 degrees below zero). A disastrous retreat was forced by the burning of Moscow by the Russians. They had completely devastated the country, so that no supplies were available, and in December, when the Emperor re turned hastily in advance of his army to France, they had been reduced to about 25,000 men. Had the cam paign in Russia been victorious, the capstone of Napo leon's imperial splendor would have been in place. But the spirit of Europe was gradually rising against this great devastation of life. Prussia, Russia, England, Sweden and Spain formed a coalition against Napoleon^ who, by draining France of men and money, raised an- NAPOLEON BONAPARTE 87 other army of 250,000 men to meet them. With this army in a campaign, which was doomed from the first to failure, he made a last stand against the allies — a stand so feeble in men and morale that on March 30th, 1814, Paris fell into the hands of Alexander and Wellington. The French Emperor was forced to abdicate the throne. He wrote and signed the following document: "The allied powers, having proclaimed that the Emperor Na poleon Bonaparte is the only obstacle to the re-establish ment of peace in Europe, the Emperor Napoleon, faith ful to his oath, declares that he renounces for himself and his heirs, the throne of France and Italy, and that there is no personal sacrifice, even that of his life, which he is not ready to make in the interest of France.", Napoleon retired with his guard to the Island of Elba, of which he had been allowed sovereignty. He was given a revenue of six million francs, and with apparent con tent reorganized the government of the little island and inaugurated many beneficial reforms. But his heart longed for leadership, for his people and for his army. During his ten months in Elba he was quietly planning and awaiting the period of unrest he knew would follow the return of the Bourbons. On the first day of March, 1815, he landed at Cannes, on the southern coast of France, with 1,000 of his faithful "Old Guard." His dramatic and audacious confidence was rewarded with a thrilling response. The army, which had tearfully and reluctantly parted 88 NAPOLEON BONAPARTE from the man who had led them through so many bat tles to victory, had shared their hardships, inspired their love, and understood them always, received with en thusiasm and admiration that same man whose courage and daring fearlessness had brought him back from exile and defeat. The whole south of France threw itself at Napoleon's feet and he began a triumphant march to Paris. The troops sent forth under Marshal Ney to bring him back "in an iron cage" joined his forces and marched back to Paris with him, while the craven King Louis XVIII fled. The Emperor often referred to this march from Cannes to Paris as the happiest event in his life. It exemplifies distinctly a great secret of his suc cess, which consisted of an ability to attempt the appar ently impossible and by its very unexpectedness succeed. He surmounted the greatest obstacles and used them as a means to his own end. The allies, astounded at the ease with which Napoleon was rehabilitated, sent an army under Wellington and Blucher toward the French border. On June 16th, 1815, Napoleon with 130,000 men met and defeated Blucher at Ligny. This, however, proved only a fore runner of the famous battle of Waterloo on June eight eenth. Never had the French soldiers shown such bravery and fighting ability. With inferior numerical forces they sustained during a whole day an aggressive attack against the English, who dared not advance a foot until reinforced by 20,000 Prussians. So tremendously out- NAPOLEON BONAPARTE 89 numbered, no human power could prevent defeat, though the devoted charge of the Old Guard under Marshal Ney, "the bravest of the brave," will ring forever in the corridors of heroic history. The valiant French army was completely crushed and Napoleon's power forever broken. He afterwards said: "I ought to have died at Waterloo, but the misfortune is that when a man most seeks death he cannot find it. Men were killed around me, before, behind, everywhere, but there was no bullet for me." Throughout his career he seemed to bear what his soldiers called a charmed life. Hero of innumerable battles, he was not destined to die upon the field of honor. This famous battle stands among the most critical events of history. It put an abrupt close to the predatory ambition of the French as inspired by Napoleon and re stored confidence to the tottering allied powers. The great conquerer, of whom Wellington said : "I would at any time rather hear that a reinforcement of 40,000 men had joined the French army than that Napoleon had ar rived to take command," was again forced to abdicate the throne. He determined on a course entirely characteris tic of his decisive nature, and placed himself voluntarily in the hands of his greatest enemy, England. He wrote the King of England : "Royal Highness : Exposed to the factions which divide my country and to the hostility of the greatest power of Europe, I have closed my political career. I have come, like Themistocles, to seek the hos pitality of the British Nation. I place myself under the 90 NAPOLEON BONAPARTE protection of its laws, which I claim from your Royal Highness as the most powerful, the most constant, and the most generous of my enemies. — Napoleon." But his return from Elba was well remembered. His marvelous recuperative power was so feared that he was confined as a prisoner of the English government on the Island of St. Helena by authority of a secret convention signed by Great Britain, Austria, Russia and Prussia. The dazzling life of military glory of the greatest sol dier of the modern world should not lead us to accept him as an ideal patriot. Notwithstanding the brilliancy of Napoleon's success and the unique place he holds in Eu ropean history, he cannot properly be held up as a model patriot, because of his inordinate selfishness and tower ing ambition which led him to his career of world con quest. The result was that he built an empire that was not enduring and set up ideals and standards of mili tary aggrandizement that were fraught with danger not only to France, but to the future of Europe and of the world. At his residence, "Longwood," Napoleon spent the remaining five years of his life. There he meditated upon his shattered glories and wrote of them in his "Memoirs." He was under strict guard and not permitted to see his family or friends. In reality the defeated conqueror lived out that admonition to his generals — "Death is nothing. But to live vanquished and without glory, is to die every day." NAPOLEON BONAPARTE 91 He died May 5th, 1821. His last request was: "Bury me on the banks of the Seine among the people whom I so much love." The English officials had him buried on the Island of St. Helena, but his remains were later re moved to Paris and placed under the Dome des Invalides. It is manifestly unfair to judge Napoleon from a twen tieth century point of view, after the lapse of a century of unprecedented advancement in science, art, literature and democracy. Let us rather judge him with his own people, who, twenty years after his death, brought his body to place it in a magnificent mausoleum "On the banks of the Seine." They brought it reverently, even worshipfully. When it arrived more than a million Frenchmen surged and struggled to catch even a glance of the sarcophagus that contained his precious remains. They erected a monument for his body — the most unique, massive and impressive ever constructed to the memory of man. Never in the history of France have its people risen in such unanimous accord to do homage to man. They came from every corner of France and waited in line for days to see or to touch the coffin of the man whose per sonality was the acme of a curious charm and magnetism. fiven cynics, beholding their adulation, said : "Something great must have been in this man, something loving and kindly, that has left his name so cherished in the popular memory and gained him such lasting reverence and affection." 92 NAPOLEON BONAPARTE The pathetic word "terminus" is not written on the tomb of Napoleon Bonaparte. So long as France lives Napoleon will live. The greatness of his transcendent genius glorifies his life and immortalizes his memory. The magic of Napoleon's name will never lose its spell over men. Note. — It is interesting to note the augmented regard of the French nation for Napoleon Bonaparte at this crisis of their exist ence. When they desired to bestow upon General Pershing the most signal honor possible, they laid in his hand the sword and grand cross cordon of the Legion of Honor, which belonged to Napoleon. They paid him what they considered their highest pos sible tribute to a soldier by permitting him to touch the sacred relics of their national hero and conqueror. This was the most signal honor France ever bestowed upon any man. Although kings and princes have visited this tomb, no hand had touched these sacred relics since the time of Louis Philippe. PETER THE GREAT em ' ja^^^ffii iiJ • 4HH if ' i«ivi,, ,. .fji^i Pj ,y ¦'<'' IMp^ JB :J%5M fx? flp^r .5pPH Wk: ^^¦'i "3^! — ' ^W®3&f92?& : ¦ / ., :0i^Z Wmm *i^?C? ^P PETER THE GREAT PETER THE GREAT RUSSIA'S MASTERFUL MAN 1672 — 1725 The recent democratization of Russia places her in the limelight of the world. She is now in a crucible; all eyes are upon her tragic past and her critical present; all minds are speculating upon her uncertain future. They are looking for the "great man" which this great hour de mands; the man who is to be a Washington and build a strong and enduring republic upon the foundation- stone laid when the young Minister of War Kerensky, in March, 191 7, rose in the Duma and said, -in answer to the Czar's demand that the body be dissolved, "We will not go, we will stay here." Russia's dramatic entrance into the democracies of the world, practically without the shedding of blood, marks an epoch in history. In friendly recognition of that mo mentous event, the United States sent a commission of American diplomats to welcome her as a sister republic, to extend to her the nation's congratulation and to proffer any available assistance in stabilizing her place on the roll of democracies. The commission was headed by Elihu Root, former Secretary of State. The speeches of Secretary Root and Ambassador David R. Francis, made before the Duma, eloquently voiced our nation's reason 95 96 PETER THE GREAT for becoming one of her allies in the "great struggle to make democracy safe in the world." Russia's potential wealth is greater than that of any other nation, but it is undeveloped and unutilized. It is like the crude ore of an inexhaustible mine, unavailable until dug out and marketed. The vastness of the new republic is appalling. Over eight and a half million square miles, one-sixth of the total land area of the earth, twice the area of all the rest of Europe, and nearly three times that of the United States is encompassed within the unbroken boundary line of this mighty empire. Paul N. Miliukoff, a young Russian who came to fhe United States to study, first at Chicago University and later at Harvard, caught the American spirit of freedom and equality and became obsessed with the vision of an enlightened Russia. He returned to his country with the purpose of freeing her from the tyranny of autocracy, and of inaugurating a public school system, as 80 per cent, of her one hundred and eighty million people can not read or write. Should his plan be actualized, Rus sia will become earth's most promising field for achieve ment. This region of untold natural resources will be come immediately the most inviting opening the world has to offer the ambitious youth, whether his aspirations be in the domain of agriculture, commerce, politics or education. More than to any other single individual the present and the coming generations are indebted to Peter the PETER THE GREAT 97 Great for the foundation that made possible these aus picious Russian opportunities of today and tomorrow. In the thirteenth century Europe was threatened with devastation by the mighty wave of Tartar invasion that poured down from the highlands of Asia across the vast plains of China, Persia and Russia, finally spending itself on the borders of Germany. These barbaric hordes left in their wake depopulated cities and desert plains. The rising power of Russia was crushed at a blow, and for two hundred and fifty years her princes paid tribute to the great Tartar Khans. During this period she lost her identity as a European nation and became an Asiatic dependency, oriental in dress, oriental in social customs, oriental in form of government and oriental in thought. Her rulers were despots and her national character was indelibly stamped with the remains of Tartar cruelty and barbarism. She faced the East, and was ignorant of the West. Things went from bad to worse until the latter part of the seventeenth century when there arose the monumental patriot who turned the face of this huge nation toward the civilization of the West. Peter I, the son of Czar Alexis, was born in Moscow, June 11, 1672. He was the embodiment of the Russian characteristics of his age. Waliszewski says: "Never have the collective qualities of a nation, good and bad, been so summed up in a single personality, destined to be its historic type . . . Peter is Russia — her flesh and blood, her temperament, her virtues and her vices." 98 PETER THE GREAT The forces with which he had to deal are shown in the turbulent years of intrigue and bloodshed preceding his accession to the throne. When he was four years old, his half-brother Feodor succeeded his father and ruled for six years. Feodor, upon his deathbed, designated Peter to succeed him instead of his own brother, Ivan, who was really entitled to the throne. Ivan's sister, Sophia, how ever, had designs of gaining power herself by the suc cession of feeble-minded Ivan. She, therefore, managed to circulate a story to the effect that Feodor had been poisoned by certain nobles who wished to gain control of the government through the young boy Peter. This story caused a horrible revolution in which Peter and his mother narrowly escaped death at the hands of the wild soldiery. The revolution was finally ended by the crown ing of Ivan and Peter as joint rulers, with Sophia as regent. Ivan only lived until 1691 and during his few years was weak in mind as well as in body and made no effort to take part in the government, leaving everything to Peter. The Regent Sophia, having the reins of the govern ment securely in her hands, surrounded the youthful Peter with the worst possible influences, exposed him to every temptation and placed around him the most depraved and licentious associates, hoping to ruin his character and health, and render him unfit to take an active part as ruler. Peter's mother hoped that through marriage he would PETER THE GREAT 99 be led into a better life and in 1689, when seventeen years old, she persuaded him to marry a young girl, who belonged to a powerful family. By this alliance, he was enabled openly to oppose his half-sister. Within a year he succeeded in wresting all power from her and con fined her in a convent, where she spent the remainder of her days. His marriage, though politically helpful, wa3 unhappy and the young couple separated within two years. The moment that he ascended the throne, though only a youth, Peter seems to have thoroughly understood the position of his empire. Previous Czars had issued edicts forbidding their subjects to leave the empire; Peter recognized the fact that they could not get out with or without permission. Both of the natural gates of Russia were locked upon them and the keys were in the hands of their enemies. He determined that his great inland empire, whose inhabitants had never seen nor heard of the ocean, should have an outlet through the seas and become a maritime power, and thus have a base for be coming a world power. There is nothing that indicates the true instinct of his genius more clearly than the con stancy with which he cultivated a love of maritime affairs. Peter made himself a practical sailor. He realized that without seaports, Russia could never be redeemed from barbarism. Therefore he formed the plan of wresting the Baltic from the Swedes and the Euxine from the Turks. This was an immense undertaking, for Sweden and Turkey were at the height of their power. ioo PETER THE GREAT Peter attached to himself two men, Lafort and Menzi- koff, who were destined to play important parts in his life. Lafort was a young Swiss adventurer who had been educated abroad and had seen much of the world. Russia is greatly indebted to him for the first impulse towards western civilization and ideals. It was he who first planted the seeds in the fertile but fallow mind of the Czar ; it was from him that Peter first learned of the great superiority of the disciplined troops of western Europe over the licentious and anarchical soldiery of Russia. Under the energetic influence of Lafort, Peter organized a regiment of soldiers upon the European plan, which was to be the germ of the reformed army which he contemplated. He appointed Lafort colonel of the regiment and entered himself as a drummer so that he might be promoted by merit, as he required others to be. It was Lafort who discovered the celebrated Menzikoff, peddling cakes and pies on the streets of Moscow, and presented him to the Czar, who immediately appointed him a court page and later pushed him forward until he finally became a prince of the empire, general, governor and regent. In 1695, Peter sailed down the river Don and struck his first blow at Azof. This campaign against the Turks was unsuccessful at the beginning, chiefly on account of the treachery of a trusted artillery officer. Peter, how ever, possessed the happy faculty of never knowing when he was defeated and renewed the attack. During the PETER THE GREAT 101 next year he succeeded in capturing the city. Upon his triumphant return to Moscow, then the capital of Russia, he levied large taxes upon the nobility and clergy to build and sustain a fleet upon the waters he had taken. With a single blow he humbled the savage Tartars of Crimea, who for centuries had harassed Russia and had extracted large tributes from her. Now that he had secured a seaport, he took another step toward the establishment of Russia as a sea power. He not only sent a number of prominent young Russians into Holland, Italy and Germany to study the arts of civilized life, but he personally set a noble example to his subjects by going to Holland to perfect himself in the arts, and especially to acquire a thorough and practical knowledge of maritime affairs. Early in 1697, he appointed an embassy to visit his neighbors on the west — Sweden, Prussia and Holland, composed of Lafort, Menzikoff and two others as pleni potentiaries, and himself incognito as a minor attache. In Prussia he left the embassy and hastened to Holland, where he established himself as a journeyman in the dock yard of Mynheer Calf. Within a comparatively brief time, Peter became an accomplished shipbuilder, and made considerable progress in the study of civil engineer ing, mathematics and the science of fortifications. He not only mastered the Dutch language, but also acquired the miscellaneous accomplishments of tooth-drawing, blood-letting and tapping for dropsy. He inspected fac- 102 PETER THE GREAT tories and studied industries of all kinds; and this was done within the space of nine months when he was twenty-five years old. On leaving Holland, he visited England for the purpose of examining her navy yards, dock yards and maritime establishments, and to acquire some practical knowledge of English naval architecture. After spending some months there, he engaged a number of scientists and spe cialists to accompany him to Russia, where he employed them in various works of internal improvement. While on his way home, Peter received news of an insurrection in Moscow, which caused him to hasten back to his capital. He found that the Strelitzes, correspond ing to our national guard or militia, having been insti gated to revolt by the Princess Sophia, had been defeated by his general, Patrick Gordon. The Czar ordered the leaders of the insurrection to be imprisoned, and many of them beheaded. It is said that he himself executed some of these rebels. The Czar of Moscovy now sought to improve his country by transplanting the civilization of the older countries of western Europe. He endeavored to change the oriental customs of his people. He decreed that his subjects, with the exception of the clergy and a few espe cially favored ones, should either shave off their beards or pay an annual tax for the privilege of wearing them. As many chose to pay an enormous tax rather than to part with their sacred beards, it later became necessary PETER THE GREAT 103 to issue further decrees, increasing the tax, and finally compelling every man to shave. He issued an edict com manding all courtiers and officials to wear nothing but foreign-cut clothing. Peter himself cut off many of the long sleeves of his officers, saying : "See, these things are in your way! You are safe nowhere with them. Atone moment you upset a glass, then you forgetfully dip them in the sauce; get gaiters made of them." Decrees were likewise issued against the use of the high Russian boots^ Russian saddles and long Russian knives. Peter doubtless went too far in such radical changes, for there is no great connection between costume and civilization; but he doubtless felt that when his people had once broken the customs and traditions of their ancestors regarding the unimportant matter of dress, it would be easier to make them break those traditions in regard to ideas of life, education and government. He changed the beginning of the Russian year from September first to January first, and began reckoning time from the birth of Christ. He reorganized the mone tary system of the nation, instituted assemblies for the encouragement of social intercourse between men and women, established libraries and galleries of art and introduced many other modern reforms. The year 1700 is memorable in the history of Russia as the beginning of Peter's long and desperate effort to gain the supremacy of the North. In an attempt to mobilize hrs full strength in a war against Sweden and 104 PETER THE GREAT thereby gain for Russia her proper place on the Baltic, he negotiated peace with Turkey in June, 1700. He was then free to make an alliance with Denmark and Poland and attack the young Charles XII of Sweden. This was the beginning of a war which lasted for twenty-one years. Peter was the only ruler of the allies to survive the war, and Russia was the only country to gain by it. But the undisciplined Russian forces, although greatly superior in numbers, were signally defeated at the battle of Narva, November 30, 1700, by the veteran Swedish soldiers. Gustavus Adolphus, Sweden's national hero, had been dead sixty-eight years, when this great battle was fought, but his spirit dominated the veterans who fought desperately and victoriously, as they shouted: "We come in the name of Adolphus the Great." This defeat, however, did not dishearten Peter, for while the Swedes were fighting in Poland, three years later, he seized a portion of Ingria, where he laid, May 27th, 1703, the foundation of his new capital, St. Peters burg, now called Petrograd. This city at last gave Russia a port on the Baltic. After Peter had almost annihilated Charles' army at the decisive battle of Poltava, Sweden was able to enlist Turkey as her ally. The campaign against Turkey which followed was almost fatal to Peter's cause, for by it he lost the Black Sea forts and Azof, which he had gained by the expedition fifteen years before. Finally, in 1 721, the war ended and the Peace of Nystad was concluded. PETER THE GREAT 105 Peter declared this to be the most profitable peace which Russia had ever made. The gain to Russia was more than territorial, for Sweden not only surrendered the last of her Baltic provinces, but the dominant power of the North. On October 22, 1721, the official birthday of the Rus sian Empire, with thanksgiving services for the Peace of Nystad, the Czar was proclaimed in the senate to be the "Father of the Fatherland, Peter the Great and Emperor of all Russia." There were some who preferred that Peter be proclaimed "Emperor of the East," but he in sisted upon the more patriotic title of "Emperor of All Russia." Russia was no longer looking to the East. During the twenty-one years of the war, the nation had been constantly progressing internally. New insti tutions on western models gradually grew up; new men were being trained by the great regenerator to help him carry on his herculean task. The Great Northern Way, as it was called, was, primarily, a means of developing its material resources. During the war, in 1712, at the age of forty, Peter was married to Catherine, who was afterwards crowned Empress of Russia. She was from the peasant class and could not read or write ; but she was able to share Peter's pleasures and sorrows, to enter into his plans and to sympathize with his ambitions. She was able to cheer and comfort him and to help him overcome his sudden attacks of nervousness. 106 PETER THE GREAT During the war, 171 8, a widespread conspiracy was discovered. The purpose of the plot was to undermine Peter's reforms, but it was promoted under the pretence of favoring his son, Alexis, a dissipated, indolent youth, who had caused his father continuous trouble and worry. The conspirators, including the Czar's son, were sen tenced to death, but Alexis was taken ill in prison and died, after having been pardoned by his father. It must be remembered that Peter the Great was a despot, an absolute monarch. His lack of regard for human life was a trait common to his predecessors and to his country men, and the civilization of Russia had to grow for many years before all inhuman acts were to cease. During the last four years of his reign his policy was chiefly oriental. As he had gained all that he desired in Europe, he turned to Persia, and during the years 1722 and 1723 waged a victorious war, which gained consider able territory for Russia. In 1724 he set aside with characteristic arbitrariness the law by which the Czar's son succeeded to the throne, and crowned his wife Empress, stating that he wished the Empress to be his heir to the throne. He did not long survive this, for the Persian campaign had affected his feeble health. He died in the arms of the Empress on January 28, 1725, at the age of 53. Peter's greatness lies largely in the recognition of his nation's needs and of his own obligations as its ruler to regenerate his country. His task would have been con- PETER THE GREAT 107 siderably easier if he had placed foreigners at the head of every department of the government and had allowed them gradually to train up a native bureaucracy ; but he was patriotically determined that Russia should be ruled by Russians; he believed in the policy of Russianization of all the elements and races of the nation. Before his death, he had the satisfaction of witnessing every im portant office in the empire in the hands of capable and efficient Russians of his own training. Peter the Great's character exhibits a strange mixture of opposing qualities. He was cruel and tender at inter vals, yet never weak. At heart he was profoundly re ligious, having a firm persuasion that he was an instru ment for good in the hand of God, yet he was indifferent to the educational and moral training of his subjects. He wrought mightily for the material upbuilding of his people, but was heedlessly neglectful of their spiritual advancement. Neither by precept nor example did he set before them the ideal character of man nor the noblest order of life. He found Russia many fathoms deep in the chaos of barbarism and wrought out her civilization. He added six important provinces to his dominions, he gave her an outlet upon two seas, he established a regular trained army, he initiated a maritime fleet and a naval academy, he established libraries, galleries of sculpture and art, he founded and named the present capital — all this, yet by failing to recognize that the real foundation of a nation io8 PETER THE GREAT must be on the moral character of her people, he failed to reach the full height of greatness. Peter was cast in that mighty mold of patriotism that is characteristic of heroes of his time. In his great physical energy and capacity for work, in his unshakable convictions, in his iron will he stands as one pf the distinguished figures of history. This strange colossal hero founded a nation which has grown into the largest in population, the largest in area, the largest in resources of all the republics. He left Russia as his monument, which will, in the light of her new democracy, go on to greater achievements. BISMARCK OTTO VON BISMARCK BISMARCK THE ACHIEVER OF GERMAN UNITY 1815— 1898 For generations Germany consisted of over two hun dred disorganized and conflicting states, principalities and independent cities. Frederick the Great of Prussia had made of his kingdom the cornerstone upon which Otto Edward Leopold von Bismarck, also a Prussian, was to build the German Empire. Frederick was the hero of the German people and their model in general ship. Bismarck was to become the high-priest of Ger man statesmen and their model in statecraft. It was he who first realized that so long as disunion existed the political divisions of Germany would continue to be mere pawns on the chessboard of European politics and diplo macy. It became the ambition and the dream of his life to consolidate the various branches of the German peo ple and mould them into a unified nation. He was born April first, 1815, the year in which Na poleon's last army was annihilated at Waterloo and in which the Congress of Vienna met to reconstruct the gov ernments of Europe. Chief among the tasks of this body of eminent statesmen was the reorganization of Ger many, which had been more or less held together by the loose Confederation of the Rhine, composed of Austria, in 112 BISMARCK Prussia, Saxony, Hanover, Bavaria and Wiirtemberg — together with thirty-three smaller kingdoms, principali ties and free towns. The largest state inhabited wholly by Teutons was the kingdom of Prussia, ruled by Fred erick William III. Austria, which was one of the larg est and most populous monarchies of Europe, headed the confederation under the chancellorship of the great states man, Metternich, who presided at the Congress of Vi enna. Although the Emperor of Austria ruled twenty million Teutons, his dominion included equally as many inhabitants of Italian, Slavonic and Hungarian prov inces. Austria could never have consolidated the Ger man people. Although the career of Napoleon had taught the necessity for a common defense, any common government for this conglomeration of small states con trolled by heterogeneous Austria was impossible ; nor was a common government brought about until more than half a century later, when in 1870 Bismarck and Moltke led the Prussian army into Paris. Bismarck grew to manhood surrounded by the memo ries of desolation wrought upon his country by Napo leon's armies. Throughout his life he was destined to reckon with France, for as he himself said: "Mer curial France was, the thermometer that marked the height of the revolutionary heat in phlegmatic Prussia." Scarcely had the influences of Napoleon begun to fade when new rumblings were heard in the direction of France. The long-slumbering revolution broke at Paris BISMARCK 113 in 1830. Louis. XVIII, who wore the French crown, that he considered "the gift of God," refused to accept it as the gift of the French nation and was dethroned. The Bourbons were thus unseated and Louis Philippe, the "Citizen King," ascended the throne by popular elec tion, powerfully aided by Marquis Lafayette, the friend of American freedom. Louis Philippe reigned as king, not of France, but of the French. The news of the revolution struck Germany like an inundation and produced a remarkable effect upon young Bismarck. His natural impulses inclined him toward democracy, but the impression this created upon his mind did not cause him to espouse radical reform, but bred in him contempt for such liberal movements. He witnessed the wild demonstration of joy with which the masses in Prussia greeted all revolutionary news from Paris. But revolutions were anarchy in his estimation. That "see-saw from revolution to reaction and from reaction to revolution," which was permeating the world was in direct contrast to Bismarck's belief that evolu tion could only rise to its height through sober judg ment and right reason. As he grew older, two decided convictions grew out of his peculiar patriotism. The first was his dislike of foreign influence ; the second, his belief in the divine right of kings. Bismarck was not prone to admire men of other nations. He was a whole- souled Prussian, intolerant of his compatriots who ha bitually eulogized the achievements, and policies of 114 BISMARCK France and England. He had little patience with George K. Nineke, a strong liberal, who constantly paraded Hampden and Pym as patterns worthy of imitation and urged that the Prussian people obtain power by means of a "Petition of Rights" and a "Bill of Rights." Bis marck believed that the problems of Prussia rose out of a peculiar set of conditions, which demanded that they be settled by Prussian statesmen along Prussian lines. Early in his career he spoke of the Christian state in a way which clearly showed his belief in the divine right of kings. He wrote : "It is as old as every European state ; it is the ground in which they have taken root ; no state has a secure exist ence unless it has a religious foundation. For me, the words, 'by the Grace of God,' which Christian rulers add to their names, is no empty phrase ; I see in them a con fession that the princes desire to wield the sceptre which God has given them according to the will of God on earth. As the will of God I can only recognize that which has been revealed in the Christian Gospel — I believe that the realization of Christian teaching is the end of the state." It is only by a consideration of this conviction that we may understand Bismarck's policies, and know how he was enabled conscientiously to disregard popular clamor in the years that followed. The old Prussian King, Frederick William III, died in 1840. He had been a member of the Congress of Vienna and had been persuaded by Metternich to help force- BISMARCK 115 through a series of measures for the restriction of the liberty of the press, for the control of the universities — those hot-beds of liberalism — and for the suppression of democratic opinion. His son, Frederick William IV, although a man of many gifts, was scarcely more liberal when in 1847 he summoned for the first time a United Diet at Berlin. It was the first parliament representing the whole of Prussia and the king expected nothing but homage from the assembled representatives. The young and unknown Bis marck, who sat as a substitute in this parliament, listened to the king with unlimited approval. When he distin guished himself as a loyalist in opposition to the aggres sive liberal faction, the king discovered that he had a new friend in this young enthusiast so ready to devote his life to public duties. The king was to have great need of this friendship in the stormy times to come. In 1848 came another startling and futile French revo lution, which dethroned the house of Orleans. Louis Philippe was forced to abdicate the throne and France set up a republic. In the south of Germany disorder registered sympathy with France and the excitement spread like wild fire until it involved the whole country. The Diet at Berlin, after its three months of ineffectual bickering and disputes, was dismissed. The Prussian Liberals, who had been watching England and France, had demanded a written constitution. The king had de clared with solemn emphasis that he would never permit a 116 BISMARCK sheet of paper to come between him and God in Heaven. But now, after a fierce battle between the people and the soldiers, the king was virtually made a prisoner in his own castle, was forced to swallow his medieval pride and promise a constitution. Bismarck felt keenly that outrage and humiliation had been visited upon his sovereign by the people. He had met the king personally while on his wedding journey in Venice, and discussed freely with him the political prob lems of Prussia. He wrote the unhappy monarch a letter which was treasured and read every day for months. Eventually Frederick William IV was forced to call a second United Diet, which sat for six months ineffectu ally squabbling and quarreling. Bismarck sat as a sub stitute member, although not in sympathy with its pur pose. He tacitly accepted the principle of constitutional government only in the hope that the new power would be an instrument in the hands of the monarch to restrain popular agitation and to maintain order. Doctor Lord wrote of him : "I need not enumerate the subjects that came up for discussion in the new Prussian parliament, in which Bis marck exhibited with more force than eloquence his. loyalty to the crown. His conservatism was branded by the liberals as medieval. But his originality, his humor, his biting sarcasm, his fertility of resources, his knowl edge of men and affairs and his devoted patriotism marked him out for promotion." BISMARCK 117 In 1848 the Federal German Diet met at Frankfort-on- Main. It was in reality a national parliament represent ing the entire German people. In spite of the fact that it was composed of high-minded and intelligently thought ful men, it proved utterly impotent. When finally the parliament chose Frederick William IV of Prussia as German Emperor, the monarch was influenced by Bis marck to refuse an honor which the people had no right to confer. The refusal agitated the socialists to open rebellion and the diet degenerated into a mere diplomatic conference dominated and weakened by intrigue and jeal ousy. The Prussian and Austrian factions seldom agreed. Indeed, Bismarck thought it advantageous to Prussia to promote rivalry between them. Not until 1 85 1 was the parliament revived. Bismarck was sent to represent Prussia. Although in these early years of his career, Bismarck appeared as a bigoted, fanatical- man, these outward qualities only obscured the full glow of his final great ness. Brusque in manner, he had surpassing confidence in himself and said of his polished fellow diplomats : "Nothing but miserable trifles do these people trouble themselves about. The men of the minor states are mostly mere caricatures of periwig diplomatists, who at once put on their official visage if I merely beg of them a light to my cigar." His memory seemed infallible In all details of state. during those years of growth, due largely'to his voracious 118 BISMARCK reading and study of statecraft. Nothing escaped his watchful eye. He showed that he was an ultra royalist by reporting every detail to Berlin and by recommending new restrictions on the press and universities. His object was to prevent revolutions. He had little love for Ger many outside of Prussia; to him Wiirtemberg and Ba varia were foreign states; Austria, whose principles he had formally upheld, became a foe, whose designs must be contravened for the glory of Prussia. At the age of thirty-six, Bismarck, a more or less im poverished country squire, was swaying the German parliament with his lightning repartee, his whimsical humor and his dynamic personality. On January second, 1861, Frederick William IV died and was succeeded by his brother, the Prince Regent William I, grandfather of Kaiser William II. The new king was not only a soldier, but a patriotic ruler of com mon sense and force. Summoning Bismarck to Berlin, he invested him with the powerful office of President of the Ministry. Their first move was to double the army. Bismarck not only foresaw war with Austria, but also the future preponderance of Prussia. He realized that Aus tria must be thrust out of the Germanic body. The rul ing passion of his life was to raise Prussia to the power to which Metternich had raised Austria. The king was in full accord with this ambition. Even the horror of the present war does not blind us to the fact that Bis marck's vision has been so truly realized. BISMARCK 1 19 Bismarck was reckless as to the means of success. When parliament, in accordance with the popular demand, refused to vote supplies for the larger army, he dissolved it, admitting that he was acting unconstitutionally, but maintaining that his only purpose was to serve the coun try. Although misunderstood by the masses of the people, and bitterly attacked by the press, he was unshaken. Prussia, in the meantime, under his guidance, was leaping forward in commerce; the railroads had rejuvenated in ternal industry ; traffic on the rivers had increased ; foreign trade was growing; education was becoming a universal passion; general advancement was everywhere acceler ated, except in matters political. Here Bismarck and the king believed that conservatism was indispensable to the welfare of the Fatherland. The cohesive power which was to hold the German Empire together was embodied in Bismarck's principle of "blood and iron," which made him known as the "Iron Chancellor." He made full use of the superb Prussian military organization. Universal military training in Germany had been originated by Frederick William I one hundred years before. It was employed by Frederick the Great in his numerous wars, but was afterwards per mitted to fall into temporary disuse. The system was revived and perfected by a group of men who came on the scene of action at the time Napoleon conquered Prussia. The most prominent of this group were Stein, Scharnhorst, Gneisenau and Roon, who reorganized and 120 BISMARCK finally established the Prussian military system which had not been changed in any essential respect. The mili tary system which Bismarck fostered and developed was merely an instrument in his hand for realizing his dream of a unified nation. Bismarck had traveled extensively in England arid Italy and had been Ambassador to Austria, Russia and France. He had met and conversed with the leading men of Europe. Fortunately for Prussia, no one then living so exactly understood the political world status as he. A diplomatic crisis now threatened and for a time public thought was diverted from internal matters to the more serious questions of foreign policy. In 1863, when Poland revolted against Russia, England, France and Austria remonstrated with the Czar on behalf of the Poles. Prussian public sentiment was overwhelmingly in favor of Polish independence. Bismarck, however, realized "that an independent Poland would be the ir reconcilable enemy of Prussia and that the Polish ques tion was to them a question of life and death." William I wrote an autograph letter to the Czar of Russia pro posing that the two countries stand together. This step aroused unbounded popular indignation, but it retained the favor of the Czar which Bismarck had so cleverly gained by refusing to join Austria and the western allies during the Crimean war. He succeeded in making his people understand that Prussia would cease to exist if Polish nationality and Russian policy ever predominated. BISMARCK 121 . By this move he gained the Czar's gratitude, which alone made his subsequent projects feasible. An extract from a letter which he wrote to Motley, the historian, one of Bismarck's many American friends, reveals the bitterness of his contention with parliament at this time: "I am obliged to listen to particularly tasteless speeches out of the mouths of uncommonly childish and excited politicians. I never thought that in my riper years, I should be obliged to carry on such an unworthy trade as that of Parliamentary Minister. I have come down in the world and hardly know how. * * * I sit and hear nonsense. All these people have agreed to approve our treaty with Belgium, in spite of which twenty speakers scold each other vehemently. They are not agreed about the motives which made them unanimous, hence, alas! a regular German squabble about the Emperor's beard. You Anglo-Saxon Yankees have something of the same kind also. * * * Your battles are bloody; ours wordy." The time was now approaching when the policies of Bismarck and William I were to receive the universal support of the people. The ultimate triumph was the success of the army under the great general, Von Moltke. Bismarck, who had been denounced as a Catiline, a Strafford, a Poligna, was to be honored as the man who had made Prussia one of the powerful nations of the world. When the King of Denmark, who was also Duke of 122 BISMARCK Schleswig-Holstein, died in 1863, Austria and Prussia at once joined in a prodigious scheme to acquire for them selves the two duchies, which had been so long contested. An Austro-Prussian army invaded Schleswig-Holstein and forced Denmark to give them up. England was par ticularly outraged and offered indignant protest. Even the Prussian Chamber refused to grant money for the enterprise, and boldly declared the transaction null and void. Immediately Bismarck dissolved it and coolly in formed his opponents that the Chamber had nothing to do with politics. In the division of the conquered terri tory, an endless succession of disputes arose between Austria and Prussia. There was no way of settling the complex difficulties except by war. Bismarck hoped and believed that war would bring German unity by exalting Prussia and expelling Austria from the confederation. Although his idea was bitterly opposed by the populace and the entire royal family, it was shortly vindicated. It was during these days of struggle and frantic de nouncement that one of the incidents occurred so typical of Bismarck's venturesome courage and indomitable spirit. It was in Berlin on May seventh, 1866, while walking along Unter den Linden that he was fired upon at close quarters by a young Jewish revolutionist. Bis marck, although unarmed, rushed upon his assailant, but did not succeed in overpowering him until five shots had been fired — burning his clothes and even drawing BISMARCK 123 blood. He delivered his assailant over to the police and joined his family at dinner with an unbelievable self- possession. The war began on a prodigious scale with Austria and the greater states on one side against Prussia, leagued with various minor states. Four great Prussian armies set forth, and within seven weeks Saxony, Hesse, Nassau, Frankfort-on-Main, Bavaria and Wurtemberg were brought to humble terms. Three of the armies pushed against Austria until they finally met at Sodowa and gained overwhelming victory of Koniggratz. Two mighty factors decided the contest — Count von Moltke, the greatest strategist since Napoleon, and the Prussian breech-loading needle gun. It was with great difficulty that the elated Prussians were dissuaded from marching on to Vienna. Bismarck with keen foresight realized the danger of incurring Austria's enmity, for he saw a great war with France coming in the near future. At least he stood so firmly for "never making your enemy so angry that he cannot get over it" that he again successfully resorted to the threat he so often and effectively practised — resignation. The Prussian people were frantic with joy over the victory — a victory which dazed the world. Instantly the hated Bismarck became a national idol. His marvelous diplomacy, firm patience and unswerving purpose were universally acknowledged. The triumphal return of the Prussian troops from the 124 BISMARCK glorious field of Koniggratz was followed at once by the opening of the first Parliament of the North German Confederation. The parliament was composed of an upper council to represent the political division of North Germany, and a lower house to represent the people, chosen by universal suffrage. The Confederation was under the presidency of the king, who was commander-in-chief of the united armies. Thus Bismarck, the royalist, the devotee of the monarchi cal system unconsciously became the most dynamic factor in giving his country a semblance of democratic govern ment. Meantime secret treaties of alliance were concluded with the states of South Germany in order to checkmate the intrigues of Napoleon III. The Austrian chagrin and French wrath thereby provoked were precisely what the great Prussian arch-diplomat wanted. Bismarck sought to drive into frenzy the vain-glorious rulers of the French. After the battle of Koniggratz, he had inveigled Napoleon into sending to Berlin the draft of a treaty for the annexation of the Bavarian Palatinate to France. Both Napoleon and Bismarck secretly desired the war and prepared with all energy for it. Ostensibly in order to promote "peace/' Bismarck and Moltke had visited the exposition at Paris. Napoleon, surrounded by a flat tering court, was certain that his preparation for the im pending conflict was complete. Although the Prussian BISMARCK 125 army had vanquished the Austrians at the Battle of Kon iggratz, yet the French had also defeated them at Solfer- ine. Prussia had conquered with her newly invented breech-loading needle gun; but France had secretly armed her soldiers with that terrible engine of war, the breech- loading Chassepot gun. "Nothing was now wanting but the spark to kindle the conflagration ; and this was applied by the nomination of a German prince to the vacant throne of Spain. The Prussian king gave way in the matter of Prince Leopold, but refused further concessions. Leopold was sufficiently magnanimous to withdraw his claims, and here French interference should have ended. But France demanded guarantees that no further candidates should be proposed without her consent. Of course, the Prussian king — seeing with the keen eyes of Bismarck, and armed to the teeth under the supervision of Moltke, the greatest gen eral of the age, who could direct, with the precision of a steam engine on a track, the movements of the Prussian army, itself a mechanism — treated with disdain this im perious demand from a power which he knew to be in ferior to his own. Count Bismarck craftily lured on his prey, who was already goaded forward by his home war party, with the Empress at their head ; negotiations ceased and Napoleon III made his fatal declaration of hostilities, to the grief of the few statesmen who foresaw the end." On July nineteenth, 1870, the French declaration of war became known in Berlin. Bismarck, at this strategic 126 BISMARCK moment, brought to the press those previous proposals of France to annex territories belonging to the Netherlands, Belgium, and Bavaria. It was this documentary evidence of Napoleon's perfidy which worked such a transforma tion in the attitude of southern Germany toward Prussia and set France in the wrong before the world. It com pleted another link in the chain which the great chancellor was forging for the ultimate unity of the German empire. It brought the forces of the German army up to a million men and this mighty machine was perfect in construction, distribution and co-operation. In September, 1870, Napoleon marched with an en thusiastic army straight to the fatal field of Sedan, where the entire French force became prisoners of war, in cluding the Emperor himself. The triumphant Germans marched on Paris and besieged the city. Meantime Ger man victories continued and the French Republic was proclaimed. Bismarck established himself at Versailles and accomplished prodigious work — ending in a peace with Thiers and Favre — the representatives of the French republic. In a position to dictate almost any terms, he exacted from France Alsace and Lorraine [provinces originally taken from Germany in 1648 by Louis XIV] in addition to the huge indemnity of five thousand mil lion francs. Surrounding the picturesque Place de la Concorde in Paris are statues representing the cities of France. On festival days when flowers decorate the other statues, that of Strassburg, the capital of Alsace-Lorraine, BISMARCK 127 .is draped in mourning. It is the dream of France to tear away those black memories and replace them with wreaths of victory. The ambition to regain these surrendered provinces is one of the rootlets of the present war and is today inspiring the French soldiers in the trenches. It has been said that "not Nietzsche nor Treitschke nor Bernhardi, but the successes of 1870 are responsible for the present world tragedy." When Von Moltke advised Bismarck not to take Al sace-Lorraine because it would be a source of future con tention he little realized the truth of this prophetic vision. Bismarck now reached the climax of his career. King William I of Prussia was crowned German Emperor in the historic hall of Louis XIV in the palace of Versailles. The Teutonic race was finally united under one monarch and one flag. Honors and added responsibilities were showered upon the man who had wrought one nation out of thirty-nine and who had set up a government destined to be a vigorous, quickened model of economic efficiency — who had built up an army which was amazing the world with almost daily victories. While the excesses of Prussian militarism have brought down upon Germany the condemnation of the world, yet recognition must be given to the important role played by the German people in the development of modern civilization. Afeng with Greek Art, Roman Law, Eng lish Constitutional Government and American De mocracy, German Efficiency is one of the great heritages of mankind. 128 BISMARCK Although Bismarck's greatest work was done, there were treaties to be made and a constitution to be adopted. These were drafted under his personal direction. Parlia ment now represented twenty-five states. It was divided as before into the Bundesrath, or Imperial Council, and the Reichstag, or Imperial Diet. As Chancellor, Bis marck was the only minister of the empire. He was given the title of Prince and a magnificent estate. In the very prime of life, Bismarck held a self-made posi tion in Europe rarely equalled. For almost twenty years he continued to direct the affairs of the nation. He made political pilgrimages to many capitals. Friendly relations increased steadily with Italy, Sweden, the Netherlands, Spain — even with Austria. After the year of struggle between Russia and Turkey, which had ended in the Treaty of San Stefano — so fatal to Turkey, and bringing England to daggers' points with Prussia, Bismarck called a conference in Berlin (June, 1878). As President, he sat at the head of this body of eminent statesmen, the most important conference held in Europe since the Congress of Vienna had met to close the Na poleonic wars. In spite of the German Chancellor's for mer friendship for Russia, an ill-feeling had been recently brewing between the two countries which came to a cli max in the Berlin conference. "All possible concessions were made to Turkey and Great Britain, and although Bismarck had done all possible for Russia consistent with the interest of Europe," he failed to satisfy the Rus- BISMARCK 129 sian government. The denunciations heaped upon him only clarified his vision of the future dangers for Ger many. He forthwith made a dual alliance with Austria in which "Prussia and Austria were to stand together in any attack by Russia and France." Very shortly France aroused the bitterness of Italy by taking Tunis — so long coveted by the Italians. Bismarck seized the op portunity to form the Triple Alliance between Germany, Austria and Italy against France and Russia. He there by hoped for that final peace of which he said : "The long and short of it is that we must be as strong as we possibly can be in these days. We lie in the midst of Europe. We have at least three sides open to attack. God has placed on one side of us the French — a most warlike and restless nation — and He has allowed the, fighting tendencies of Russia to become great ; so we are forced into measures, which, perhaps, we would not other wise make. And the very strength for which we strive shows that we are inclined to peace, for with such a powerful machine as we wish to make the German army, no one would undertake to attack us. We Germans fear God, but nothing else in the world, and it is the fear of God which causes us to love and cherish peace." Nor was the scope of Bismarck's statesmanship con fined to Germany alone. The affairs of all Europe cen tered in him. He was the "prophet of the new epoch." His insight was so deep and his foresight so vast that he stood strong and alone in his greatness. His advice was 130 BISMARCK sought by the renowned statesman Gladstone, who, more over, was little loved by Bismarck. His favorite Eng lish portrait was one of Disraeli. "The old Jew," he often said, "he is a man." Bismarck had spent great energy in enlarging the Ger man navy and he kept it in constant effective action — collecting debts in South America and China, protecting Christians in Syria, keeping peace in Greek waters, de stroying slave trade in Africa, protecting the wide-spread ing and increasing German colonies. He gave much time in solving domestic and political reforms and ecclesias tical disputes. When his attempt to secure all the rail ways for the government failed, he compromised by bringing them all under an imperial control which was most advantageous to the state. He found new sources of imperial revenue in indirect taxation. He adopted a new imperial coinage — as sadly needed as was our new financial system after the civil war. In direct contradiction to his old theory of "the gov ernment being everything, the individual nothing," he brought about the most daring socialistic reform ever adopted by a modern nation — compulsory state insur ance for workingmen against accident, illness and old age. It is known as "Workmen's Compensation," and has been adopted in the United States and other countries. Although his health was greatly undermined by ex cessive work, he carried on an active war against free trade with the eminent political economists of his day. BISMARCK 131 His capacity for work was colossal, and yet his mod esty and careful suppression of compliments to himself, either written or spoken, is not found to such extent in any other great man, save Abraham Lincoln. Never in his life did Bismarck sacrifice his ideals or the interests of Prussia to the fear of public disapproval or a desire to be applauded in the court and the theatres. Each year of his life was fertile with service to his country. In 1888, at the death of his devoted friend and Em peror, William I, Bismarck was the power behind the throne of Germany. But the new Emperor, Frederick III, was generally known to be in opposition to the Chan cellor's policies. His wife was the daughter of the Brit ish Queen, and he himself had spent much of his life in England. "But in spite of his preferences for English constitutional monarchy over German absolutism," the noble Frederick had unlimited respect and admiration for Bismarck. Perhaps because of this, perhaps because of the knowledge of how soon disease was to cut short his life and rule, the Emperor retained the Chancellor in power. After ninety-nine days, Frederick died, and was suc ceeded by Emperor William II, who had undergone the most stringent military, naval; university and political discipline. He loved the old Chancellor, and it was gen erally hoped and understood that the Bismarckian era would continue. But William II soon showed that his imperial will was not prone to move in the old grooves 132 BISMARCK as presented by Bismarck. Their differences rapidly led to a dispute — in itself a mere technicality — which caused the Emperor to demand a resignation, taking effect March twentieth, 1890. It were better not to dwell upon the following eight years of the great statesman's life. Although the Em peror bore no personal grudge and issued eloquent tribute to Bismarck's services, conferring on him the great Dukedom of Lauenburg, the Chancellor showed a pitiful reluctance to retire to that private life for which he had so often longed. The outburst of national resent ment which the Emperor's action had caused did not rec oncile him to loss of power. He criticized the govern ment as ruthlessly as he had formerly led it wisely. But pity is due to the heart-broken old man, who knew so well the height of European glory and mourned so natu rally the loss of it. At his death, in 1898, all Germany rose to do him homage. A national monument was erected to him in front of the Imperial Parliament House at Berlin. Bis marck stands out as the establisher of Germany's nation ality and as one of the greatest European statesmen. History will include him among the great founders of empires. Yet, notwithstanding his wisdom and achieve ments, there were grave defects in his statecraft and diplomacy. Napoleon's ruling passion was super-self-aggrandize ment at the sacrifice of his country's best welfare; Bis- BISMARCK 133 marck's ruling passion was the super-aggrandizement of his country at the sacrifice of the world's best welfare. His patriotism was so intensely centered on Prussia that he was led at times to violate the high standards of inter national usage which control the intercourse between nations. His policies and personality brought Germany to the highest pinnacle as a world power. The exaggeration of these policies which have dominated the reign of William II has brought the German Empire today face to face with a hostile world. In power of comprehending divers currents of diplo matic movements, no man has been superior to Bismarck. He is a titanic figure in the patriotic world. WILLIAM PITT WILLIAM PITT WILLIAM PITT EARL OF CHATHAM 1708 — 1778 William Pitt, the elder, was called upon to meet the greatest crisis, save the present, in the history of England and in the history of the modern world. In its last analysis the issue that confronted him was whether the future great colonial empire of the world should be French or English. It was due to his leadership that this issue was decided in favor of England. He saved his nation from ruin and at the same time laid the foun dation for the greatest colonial empire that has arisen in the history of mankind. He appeared on the scene at a time when the corrupting influence of money in England's political life was more extensively felt than in any other period of her history. He found the Eng lish people dispirited by failures, distrustful of their government, suspicious of treachery in their naval com manders, committed to mercenaries for their own de- 'fense! — in short, he found a people without courage, without leadership and without hope. "A despondency without parallel in English history," says Green the historian, "had taken possession of her coolest states men," and even the impassive Chesterfield cried in de- i37 138 WILLIAM PITT spair, "We are no longer a nation." Pitt met this situa tion with a heroism unsurpassed in history. He energized and magnetized the whole people and infused his irresistible driving power into every branch of the public service. He stirred to their depths the heroic qualities of the soul of the nation, and as head of the ministry from 1757 to 1761 he aroused the national sentiment and recreated the warlike spirit of the people to such an extent and directed the national effort with such contagious and imperious confidence that he turned a war that had begun badly into the most glorious and successful that England had ever fought. On the continent, Frederick the Great was engaged in a life-and-death struggle for the preservation of Protestant Prussia against the coalition of the Catholic powers of France and Austria, aided by Russia. The Bourbon crowns of France and Spain, by means of a treaty known in history as the "Family Compact," had resolved to unite for the purpose of obstructing and de feating England's policy of trade expansion and colo nial extension. The issue involved was that of trade. The controlling motive of all parties concerned was the desire for colonial expansion and for command of the sea, because on these depended a great commerce. Pitt had no illusions on the subject of the fundamental mo tives that control the policies of men and of nations and cause them to fight. "England fighting for her trade," he said, "is fighting in the last ditch." WILLIAM PITT 139 When Pitt came into power England's foreign situa tion could not have been in a worse plight. While she had made great progress on the sea and in the field of colonial expansion, the prospect of her colonial power at this time was clouded by the rivalry of France. It had not yet been decided whether the French or the English race should control North America and the Indies. France for the moment was the leading power both in America and in India and had a predominance of power on the sea. She was everywhere on the ag gressive. Port Mahon in Minorca, the key to the Mediterranean, had been captured by the Duke of Richelieu. Frederick's early victories in Germany had proved to be transient and his great defeat at Kolin filled him with despair. In 1757 the Duke of Cumber land, in charge of the English forces in Germany, with an army of fifty thousand men, fell back before the French army to the mouth of the Elbe and engaged by the Convention of Closter-Seven to disband his forces. At this time it seemed almost certain that the great European countries would be successful in crushing Great Britain and Prussia. In America things went even worse than in Germany. The inactivity of the English forces was contrasted with the genius and activ ity of Montcalm. Already masters of the Ohio Valley by the defeat of Braddock, the French drove the Eng lish garrisons from the forts which commanded Lake Ontario and Lake Champlain and their empire stretched 140 WILLIAM PITT without a break over the vast territory from Louisiana to the St. Lawrence. In India, England's prestige and power were at a low ebb, as is shown by the following incident. Surajah Dowlah, one of the great nabobs of India, at the instigation of the French, seized the Eng lish settlers at Fort William and thrust one hundred and fifty of them into a small prison called the Black Hole of Calcutta. The heat of an Indian summer did its work of death. The wretched prisoners trampled each other under foot in the madness of thirst, and in the morning only twenty-three remained alive. As soon as Pitt became minister he resolved to adopt as his major policy the establishment of England's sea power and the extension of her colonial empire in Amer ica and in Asia. On a former occasion he had opposed the prosecution of the war in Germany. He now recog nized that England's chief rival was France and con ceived the plan of winning America in Germany. To this end he gave vigorous aid to Frederick the Great. He threw his support to Prince Ferdinand in his cam paign against France. He found money not only for the Prince, but furnished an annual subsidy for Fred erick. He sent reinforcements to the English troops in India and directed in detail the campaign against the French in America. With Wolfe he conquered Montcalm, captured Quebec and broke forever the power of France in America. In Africa he took away all the French pos sessions; in Europe, his troops at Minden under Prince WILLIAM PITT 141 Ferdinand beat the flower of the French army and turned the tide in favor of Prussia ; he also gave directions to the fleets in every part of the world. England's ascendancy on the sea was complete and involved the most absolute destruction of the colonial empire of France. Hawke, Boscowen and Pococke, in a succession of naval vic tories, captured or destroyed about nine-tenths of the ships-of-war of France. In America he won a continent. In India, through the triumph of Clive at Plassey, he laid the foundation for the Empire of England in the East. In other parts of the world, England had no European rival left, and the victories of Pitt insured that in America and India the Protestant Anglo-Saxon, and not the French Roman Catholic, civilization should prevail thereafter. In spite of this long war, commonly known as "The Seven Years' War," the commerce on which England's greatness then rested had never been so flourishing. To Pitt all this is due. Thus England had become a veritable world-empire under the inspir ing leadership of the "Great Commoner." Her horizons had greatly broadened by this rapid increase in military- renown, power and territory. When he resigned his office his country had risen to a position greater than any of which Elizabeth, Crom well or Marlborough had dreamed. So high had Eng land's prestige risen during his ministry that the Pope of Rome said he esteemed it the highest honor to be born an Englishman. 142 WILLIAM PITT Few wars have had more disastrous beginnings, but none ever had a greater effect on the history of the world or brought greater triumph to England. Its effect upon Pitt's fame was magical and at once entitled him to the unique distinction, universally accorded him, of being the greatest war minister England ever pro duced. In his direction of naval power he has never been surpassed, and none of his predecessors had fully realized the great power of a fleet. He was also first to conceive the strength and resources of his country and the readiest to expend both blood and treasure for the great national objectives he pursued. An insatiable am bition, a sublime courage, a lofty patriotism, and a flawless integrity made him the inspiring genius of British arms. To these heroic qualities he added an untiring industry in his ministerial office and a strong will which coerced the admiralty into dispatch and order, which later drew from every servant of the nation his proper service. When he was at the height of his fame his name was an inspiration to every British sailor and soldier and it was said that no man ever entered his closet who did not come out a braver man. Other conquerors have won more brilliant victories, have brought more territory under their sway and have lived for posterity in a greater blaze of glory, but none — not Alexander, not Julius Caesar — has changed such na tional dejection into such national triumph in so brief WILLIAM PITT 143 a space. Few have made conquests of so lasting an import to their country. William Pitt was born on November fifteenth, 1708, in the parish of St. James, Westminster, and was the grandson of Thomas Pitt, Governor of Madras, who was the possessor of the famous Pitt diamond, which he sold for six hundred and seventy-five thousand dollars. It was largely through this fortunate transaction that he was enabled to raise his family, which was one of old standing, to a higher position of political influence. William was educated at Eton and at Oxford. At the age of sixteen he became afflicted with gout, a malady which racked his body and mind throughout his life and eventually caused his death. "His appearance was extremely attractive. Tall and slender, his figure genteel and commanding. He had cultivated all the arts of grace, gesture and dramatic action. Graceful in motion, his eye and countenance would have conveyed his feelings to the deaf. All au thorities dwell on the magic of his eye. They were gray, but by candlelight seemed black from the intensity of their expression. When he was angry or earnest no one could look him in the face. No one, indeed, seems to have been able to abide the terrors of his glance." Of his early powers of fascination we have an au thentic instance. He was once seen walking with the Prince of Wales in the gardens at Stowe, and Cobham, watching them with anxiety, expressed some apprehen- 144 WILLIAM PITT sion of Pitt's persuading the Prince to adopt some measures of which Cobham disapproved. A Mr. Bel- son remarked that the interview could not be long. "You don't know Mr. Pitt's power of insinuation," said Cobham; "in a very short quarter of an hour he can persuade anyone of anything." One of his greatest sources of power was his oratory. His eloquence was unique in that he used it not as an end in itself, but as a means to an end. What Lucian said of Demosthenes can be truthfully said of Pitt: "No words of mine can describe the power of his elo quence, yet I give it a secondary place, as a tool the man used." Pitt himself once said: "I am not fond of making speeches; I have never cultivated the talent but as an instrument of action in a country like ours." He possessed the ability for effective public speaking in a large degree and used it as an instrument of action. "As an orator," says the historian Lecky, "if the best test of eloquence be the influence it exercises on weighty matters upon a highly cultivated assembly, he must rank with the very greatest who have ever lived. Pitt's speeches appear to have exhibited no pathos, and not much wit. He was not like his son, Pitt the Younger, skilful in elaborate statements; nor like Fox, an ex haustive debater; nor like Burke, a profound philoso pher; nor like Canning, a great master of sparkling fancy and of playful sarcasm ; but he surpassed them all in the blasting fury of his invective and in the force, WILLIAM PITT 145 fire and majesty of his declamation which thrilled and awed his audience, in the burning and piercing power with which he imprinted his views upon their minds. His eloquence abounded in noble thoughts, nobly ex pressed, in rhythmical phrases of imaginative beauty which clung like poetry to the memory. He possessed every personal advantage that an orator could desire — a singularly graceful and imposing form, a voice of wonderful compass and melody, which he modulated with consummate skill and an eye of such piercing brightness and such commanding power that it gave an air of inspiration to his speaking." "His words," says Lyttleton, "have sometimes frozen my young blood into stagnation, and sometimes have made it pace in such a hurry through my veins that I could scarce support it." Grattan said: "Great subjects, great empires, great characters, effulgent ideas, classical illustrations formed the material of the speech." Wonderful as was his elo quence, it was attended with this most important effect, that it impressed every hearer with a conviction that there was something in him even finer than his words; that the man was infinitely greater than the orator. By means of his rare gift he at once breathed his lofty spirit into the country he served, as he communicated something of his own greatness to the men who served him. He was in fact the first English orator whose words were a power, a power not over Parliament only, but over the nation at large. Parliamentary reporting 146 WILLIAM PITT was at that time unknown, but the few broken words we have of him stir the same thrill in the men of our day that they inspired in the men of his own. His elo quence stirred to their depths the heroic qualities of the English people and made them feel that it was a high privilege and honor to fight and die for their country. Pitt was a profound scholar and a close student of the classics. His speeches show that he read to a purpose. Some of his favorite authors were Josephus, Shake speare, Homer, Virgil, Locke, Cicero, Demosthenes and Thucydides. It is said that "He read Bailey's Diction ary through twice to improve his vocabulary, and for style studied Barrow's Sermons ; the great orator Cicero for 'copiousness, beauty of diction, nobleness and mag nificence of ideas'; and Demosthenes for the irresistible torrent of his vehement argumentation, his close and forcible reasoning and his depth and fortitude of mind. Plutarch's Lives was a favorite, especially the account of Pericles." He had that keen love of good literature for its own sake, which has been one of the best tradi tions of English statesmen. Another source of his power was an unimpeachable integrity. For the corruption about him he had nothing but disdain. At the outset of his career, Pelham ap pointed him to the most lucrative office in his adminis tration, that of paymaster t® the forces. Its profits were ©f an illicit kind, but poor as he was, Pitt refused to accept one farthing beyond his salary. He was a man WILLIAM PITT 147 of great pride, and it never appeared in loftier or nobler form than in his attitude toward the people at large. He was deservedly popular, but his bearing was always that of a man who commands popularity and not one who seeks it. He never bent to flatter popular preju dice, nor did he sacrifice principle or independence to win preferment, he did not "Crook the pregnant hinges of the knee, That thrift may follow fawning." In 1735, twenty-two years before he attained supreme power, Pitt entered Parliament at the age of twenty- seven and at once attached himself to the party of dis contented Whigs known as the Patriots. He soon became the leader of the Patriots who opposed Walpole's exclusive and tyrannical power. In 1754, three years before he reached the zenith of his power, Pitt was married to Lady Hester Grenville, one of the first ladies of the realm and a sister of his dearest friend. His domestic life was the fountain of his happiness and one of the chief sources of his power. After the peace of Paris, which concluded the Seven Years' War, Pitt retired to Hayes, where he made his home. Here two of his children were born, John and William, and here they, with the other three, spent most of their early childhood. His second son, "Stout Wil liam" — afterwards known as "Pitt the Younger" — was destined to add further lustre to the name of Pitt and further to augment the glory and the power of England. 148 WILLIAM PITT The important part that Pitt's wife and family played in his life may be judged from the following note to Lady Hester: "I wait with longing impatience, after much Court and more House of Commons, for the ; groom's return with ample details of you and yours. Send me, my sweetest life, a thousand particulars, of all those little-great things which, to those who are blessed as we, so far surpass in excellence and exceed in attraction, all the great-little things of the restless world." Though Pitt's fame rests upon his record as war minister and as an empire builder, it would be a mistake to assume that he accomplished nothing of importance in other branches of administration. It is not too much to say that his achievements in other fields were such as to entitle him, independently of his record as war minister, to a place among the greatest English states men of his time. He was pre-eminently a friend of the people and a champion of their constitutional rights and liberties. His first support did not come from the aris tocracy, but from the merchants of London, who con stituted the middle class of the English people, and later he was hailed as the upholder and defender of the rights of the common people. He was known as "The Great Commoner." His opposition to the House of Bourbon was based upon his inherent and deep-seated hatred for absolutism, tyranny and intolerance. His devotion to the principles of the Constitution led him to champion WILLIAM PITT 149 the cause of the American colonies in their war for in dependence. He supported the proposal to repeal the American Stamp Act, arguing that it was uncon stitutional. He pointed out to George III and Lord North that the American colonies were fighting for English liberties. "I rejoice," he said, "that America has resisted . . . and if ever this nation should have a tyrant for its King, six millions of freemen, so dead to all the feelings of liberty as voluntarily to submit to be slaves, would be fit instruments to make slaves of the rest." There can be no doubt that his great sympathy and love for the common people and his devotion to their cause against the encroachments of aristocratic and ar bitrary power was one of the principal sources of his success as a leader. Without these he would not have possessed that insight into human nature and into the needs, desires and ambitions of the people, so essential to the success of his career as a statesman. Pitt's in sight and foresight amounted to genius. Intuitively he understood the meaning of commerce, of colonial ex pansion and of military preparedness to the destiny of a nation. Instinctively he understood the fundamental springs of action in both men and nations. He realized as did no other man of his time that the welfare and perpetuity of the nation depended upon the upbuilding of the people, the improvement of their condition, and the development of those heroic qualities of the soul ISO WILLIAM PITT which are essential to both individual and national greatness. When the qualities of Pitt's character and personality are analyzed his great achievements no longer remain a mystery. He was a great man, a great states man, a great patriot. The heroic qualities of his spirit were infused and incorporated into the English nation. He loved England with an intense and personal love. He believed in her power, her virtue, her people, till England learned to believe in herself. "If he was ambitious, it was for England. If he was despotic, it was in the cause of freedom." Two phrases of his own best illustrate his character and his career. He speaks of that sense of honor which "makes ambition virtue," and he writes of those "Who, wherever they are, carry their country along with them in their breast. I mean those feelings for its general honor, and those large and comprehensive sentiments for the common happiness of the whole, which everywhere, and more particularly in our island, constitute alone just patriotism." "Chatham dying," says Green, his biographer, "in the midst of the civil war he had tried to avert, is the last of those great men whom England and America can both claim; to both States he rendered signal service, and not the least part of that service is the memory of a nature moulded in the very form of honor, an eloquence never suborned to mean causes, a lover of his nation who immeasurably strength ened her power and elevated the ideals of her public life." HIROBUMI ITO MARQUIS HIROBUMI ITO HIROBUMI ITO THE CREATOR OF MODERN JAPAN 1841 — 1907 Patriotism in Japan has a different meaning from patriotism in any other country, for the reason that it forms a vital part of the religion oi the people. One of the two fundamental tenets of Shintoism, the indigenous religion of Japan, is loyalty to the Mikado and obedi ence to the law of the state. This sentiment is instilled into the people from their earliest youth and is one of the guiding principles of their lives. As a result, Japa nese soldiers fight for their country with a bravery and a sublime indifference to death that renders them well nigh invincible in battle, and the Japanese citizenry cheerfully subordinates its private interests and sacri fices its all to the welfare of the state. This characteristic of the nation was one of the most potent factors which enabled its regeneration to be brought about with un paralleled rapidity. The transformation of Japan from an isolated, feudal, oriental despotism to a great modern commonwealth in the short period of fifty years is the most dazzling achievement in the history of nations. It is great men as well as great causes that have made world history. The fate of a country is determined largely by the character of its leaders. Japan had the 1 S3 154 HIROBUMI ITO good fortune, in the day of calamity, to produce a group of statesmen of surprising abilities. This group, com monly known as "The Elder Statesmen," had for its head and dominating spirit Hirobumi Ito. If the des tiny of Japan were prearranged, the appearance of a hero could not have been more auspiciously planned than at the time Ito made his appearance on her rostrum of opportunity. When Ito appealed on the scene, two great issues con fronted the Japanese people, who for centuries had been deteriorating. Two hundred and sixty years before, the Shoguns — the feudal lords — had broken the power of the Mikado and established the feudal system as the basis of national administration. The first issue was whether their rule should be maintained, or whether, weakened by cor ruption and internecine strife, their regime should be overthrown and the deposed Mikado restored to power. The second issue was whether Japan should embrace or reject the principles of western civilization. Both prob lems pressed for solution during the period which ex tended from 1853, the date of the arrival of Commodore Perry in Japan, to 1867, the date of the restoration of the Mikado. The correct solution of the one depended upon the proper solution of the other. If Japan was to survive as an independent nation she could not continue the Shogun policy of isolation. In order effectively to embrace the principles of western life it was necessary that the corrupt and warring regime of the Shoguns be HIROBUMI ITO 155 overthrown and the nation united under the rule of her traditional dynasty. Ito, the son of Juzo Hayaski, a samurai or feudal sol dier of low grade, acquired his surname from the family of Ito into which his parents were adopted. According to the Japanese custom of renaming, Ito, at the beginning of his official career, changed his given name "Risuke" to "Hirobumi." He began life as a soldier in the village of Nuyata in the army of the Chosu Clan. When Commo dore Perry landed in Japan, Ito was but a retainer of Lord Chosu, one of the most powerful Japanese nobles. The treaties made at Yedo between the Shogun rulers and Commodore Perry and representatives of other foreign powers, conceded the right of ships of alien nations to navigate the Strait of Shimonoseki. These treaties were received with hostility by the people of Japan and were especially obnoxious to Lord Chosu. Ito, brilliant and industrious, excelling his fellow soldiers in zeal for serv ice to his country, won the admiration of his chieftain, who several years later sent him on a secret mission to Yedo to investigate the movements of the government. The effect of this visit turned his attention to a concen trated study of foreign methods, especially the military systems of Europe. As a result he recommended to Lord Chosu that he remodel his army and exchange the bows and arrows of his men for guns and rifles. But Ito felt that his knowledge of foreign affairs, if it were to be thorough, should be based upon personal experience. 156 HIROBUMI ITO So, with the connivance of Chosu, he and three other young Japanese, in 1863, risked their lives by committing the capital offense of leaving Japan and visiting a for eign country. They made their way with great secrecy to Nagasaki, where they negotiated for passage on board a ship which was about to sail for Shanghai. The story of this adventure is interestingly told by Ito himself in the following quotation : "Knowing that the only way to secure passage was to direct appeal to foreigners, we did so. We sought a certain Mr. Gower of an English firm, Messrs. Glover & Company, who spoke Japanese well, and we were for tunate enough to be successful. The five thousand Japa nese dollars we had had been exchanged for eight thou sand American dollars. We carried this in a draft, leav ing only a small amount in cash for our incidental ex penses during the voyage. Thus after everything had been arranged we went to Kanagwa and slipped into a tea-house called Shimodaya, which was well patronized by the clansmen of Chosu, and there we disguised our selves as merchants. "In the deep night of May eleventh we were summoned to the English firm and were told to wait until the cap tain finished his dinner. We complied with the instruc tions and I now remember that all of us waited hidden in a corner of the hill which is beside the moat, behind the company's office building. While thus waiting for the captain each of us went out in turn and had our hair HIROBUMI ITO 157 cut. This made us look still worse and far funnier. At about midnight, Mr. Gower came out and told us that after a consultation with the captain that person had declined to give us the passage, for it was against the laws of the Japanese to leave Japan. We appealed to him earnestly and finally told him that after thus cutting our hair, we would be arrested and executed by the gov ernment. We showed our determination to commit 'harikari' right on the spot rather than be disgraced and beheaded by the officials. At this determined appeal Mr. Gower became alarmed and made another attempt to in duce the captain to consent to the passage. He finally did so." Ito and his companions reached London in safety and remained there for a year studying English institutions and methods with keen interest, when an event occurred in Japan which suddenly recalled them home. Lord Chosu, who ruled over the feudal state which stretched along the northern shores of the Strait of Shimonoseki, resolved to ignore the navigation treaties. He opened fire on all ships which attempted to force a passage. This angered the foreign powers and they resolved to settle the matter by force of arms. Ito's insight into the situation abroad enabled him to see better than his chief the disproportion of the fighting powers of Europe and Japan. He caused hostilities to be suspended until he should have time to use his influence with Chosu in the interests of peace. His efforts were futile; Chosu 158 HIROBUMI ITO refused, with the result that his batteries were destroyed and he was forced to pay a heavy fine. Ito played an important role, however, in the negotiations which fol lowed and was able to render his nation a great service. The treaty which concluded this episode provided that foreign ships should pass the Strait of Shimonoseki in safety and laid the foundation for further intercourse with foreign powers. The prominent part taken in these negotiations by Ito aroused the enmity of his reactionary fellow-clansmen who several times tried to assassinate him. On one oc casion he was pursued by a band of assassins and fled to a tea-house near by, where he was concealed under the floor by Umeko Kida, a beautiful young woman of the same clan. This was the beginning of a romantic ac quaintance which resulted in the young woman becoming his wife. As soon as the treaty between Chosu and the foreign powers was signed, Ito undertook the consolidation of the clans of Satsuma and Chosu for the purpose of re storing the imperial regime. This combination, accom plished in 1867, was known as the Stacho faction in Japanese politics and was ever afterwards the controlling power in Japanese affairs. With this event began the "Era of Enlightenment" ; from this time on a new spirit rapidly permeated the whole nation. Progress became the aim of all classes and the country entered upon a career of intelligent assimilation, which, in forty years, HIROBUMI ITO 159 won for Japan a universally accorded place in the ranks of the great occidental powers. All the epoch-making events and reforms which mark the history of this prog ress bear the indelible impress of the genius of Prince Ito. After the restoration of the Mikado it became evident to the statesmen of Japan that, if their nation was to take her place among the western powers, she must reform her entire system of administration; and they set to work to adopt a -parliamentary system patterned after European models. With this in view, a commission headed by Ito was sent to Europe by the Emperor, in 1882, for the purpose of making a study of the constitutions of foreign countries. "In Germany," says Ito, "I learned the sub ject under the tutorship of Prof. Gneist, of Berlin Uni versity, and now I am convinced that I made quite a study there. In Austria, Prof. Stein was my tutor for the fundamental study of the state and its philosophy. After my return from this trip in 1883, I began the work of drafting the constitution for Japan, with the assistance of a few others, and completed it at the end of the year. This was accepted by the Emperor, who promulgated it in 1889, as the fundamental law of the Japanese nation." This was the crowning work of his legislative career. The Japanese people point proudly to it as the only char ter of the kind voluntarily given by a sovereign to his subjects. Usually such concessions are the outcome of long struggles between the rulers and the ruled. In Ja pan the Emperor voluntarily divested himself of a por- 160 HIROBUMI ITO tion of his prerogatives and transferred them to the people. The political ability of Ito manifested itself more clearly perhaps in the development of Japan's parlia mentary system after the adoption of the constitution, than in any other work of his career. It was here that he showed his deep insight into the character of the Japanese people. He realized from the beginning that they were not ready for a highly developed parliamen tary system, based upon public opinion and under the direction of political parties, such as existed in west ern countries. He understood the reverence of his peo ple for the Mikado. Consequently he established, as the practical basis of the plan of administration, the principle that the cabinet should be appointed by and re ceive its mandates from the Crown. This step gave rise to two political parties in Japan : the Conservative party, which he headed, whose principal tenet was that the cabi net should be responsible to the Crown ; and the Liberal party, headed by Count Okuma, based upon the principle that the cabinet should be responsible to parliament. The contest over this principle raged for many years. Experience finally demonstrated the wisdom of Ito's policy and Japan settled down to a parliamentary gov ernment under the leadership of a cabinet which re ceived its mandates from the Mikado. The net result of the operation of this system was to furnish a school of experience of incalculable value to the Japanese peo- HIROBUMI ITO 161 pie in the field of parliamentary government and at the same time to leave the actual management of affairs in the hands of the group of "The Elder Statesmen," which, in time of crises, is the controlling influence in the coun sels of the Mikado. After the new regime had been inaugurated, it became evident that the systems of taxation and finance which had been developed under the old feudal barons were totally inadequate to meet the demands of the new con ditions. A reform of these systems was resolved upon and the work committed to Ito and a committee of the ablest financiers of the country. Ito's own account of his connection with the task is as follows : "Under the ministership of Date, Okuma and I were in the Department of Finance and we worked together hard to prevent the counterfeiting and depreciation of the paper money, and I visited America in order to study the American financial system. In the next cabinet, un der the ministership of finance of Okubo, I became the head of the Taxation Bureau and Mint, during the time of which office the regulations and by-laws of the De partment of Finance have been drafted by me. The establishment of the national banking system and the is suance of government bonds were also decided on at that time." Old systems were swept away, modern banks of issue were established, the gold standard was adopted, and a 162 HIROBUMI ITO complete new regime patterned after the financial sys tems of western countries was inaugurated. Ito was no less eminent and successful in the field of foreign affairs ; his first work was the modification of trea ties with the western powers and especially those relating to the subject of extraterritoriality. Under the opera tion of the principle of extraterritoriality, foreigners domiciled in Japan were not subject to the laws of Japan, but were subject to the laws of their own country, which were administered by their consular officers and by special courts established in Japan for that purpose. This was exceedingly irritating to the people of Japan. Ito recognized that in order to eliminate this system, it was necessary for Japan to reform her substantive laws as well as her system of administration. With this end in view he systematically set to work to establish a legal system with standards similar to those which existed in Europe. He introduced a new criminal code modeled after the criminal laws of France, and a commercial law patterned after that of Germany, while the basis of their new civil code was the civil law of Japan. Having thus reformed both her system of public administration and her substantive law, making them to conform to western standards, little difficulty was experienced in securing the abolition of those treaties which gave foreign powers extraterritorial rights in Japan. This was accomplished in 1894. Next to the revision of the treaties the most memo- HIROBUMI ITO 163 rable event in connection with Japan's foreign relations was the conclusion of an offensive and defensive alliance with Great Britain which occurred in 1905. This al liance gave Japan a firm and permanent position in the circle of the family of nations and was the most remark able achievement of Ito's diplomatic career. Ito's military insight was as phenomenal as his diplo matic gift. He laid the foundation of the present mili tary system of Japan. While in Europe studying the methods of western civilization he was impressed with the military system of Germany and gained a compre hensive grasp of the meaning of such a system to the life and destiny of a modern nation. Upon his return to Japan he inaugurated a system, which still prevails, of universal military training and service along the lines of the German idea. Perhaps no other act of his ca reer had such a far-reaching effect upon the destiny of his country. The adoption and development of this system have made Japan one of the great military powers of the world. Ito recognized at the outset that Japan's future depended largely upon the manner in which she conducted her Department of Foreign Affairs. He be lieved that a diplomacy that was not backed up by force would become valueless. Shortly before his death he out lined what, in his opinion, Japan's future foreign policy should be. His views on the subject were given to his son just before his departure for Manchuria, where he met his death at the hands of a Korean fanatic. They are as 164 HIROBUMI ITO follows: "All the people of Japan, whether officials or merchants, should not forget for a moment the fact that it is our duty to secure and to champion peace in the Far East with the unbroken Imperial Dynasty. Whether constitutional government may work well or not in China, whether she may be preserved or divided, Japan's voice should be first heard and most respected in the matters of the Chinese Empire. All the nations will not deny this. Not only China, but it is Japan's natural duty to safeguard all the Oriental nations, including Korea and Manchuria. So the domination of the Sea of Japan, the China Sea as well as the Pacific, is a matter of most vital importance to our own protection." The policy here out lined by Ito is being followed by the statesmen of Japan. It is well known that the major foreign policy of Japan is to consolidate all of the many hundreds of millions of people of the Orient under her own hegemony. The history of modern Japan is interwoven with the policies and achievements of Ito so closely that every page of it contains his name and records his deeds. The abolition of the rule of the Shoguns, the restoration to power of the Imperial dynasty, the opening up of Japan to foreign intercourse, the reorganization of her gov ernment, the reform of her legal system, the reforms of her systems of finance and taxation, the successful con ducting of wars with China and Russia, the adoption of her present military system and the formulation of her permanent foreign policy— all these great and epoch-mak- HIROBUMI ITO 165 ing changes were either produced by him or by his aid. In a large sense Ito is the father and creator of modern Japan. Prince Ito was scarcely over five and a half feet tall, with bright eyes and an intelligent, full-moon face, but behind his impassive countenance was a fiery spirit that relighted his declining nation to prosperity. Through his merit and unswerving devotion to his country he had risen from the rank of an insignificant samurai private to that of a Prince of the realm and President of the Privy Council of Japan. The years since his death have made his greatness the more apparent. The product of his genius has remained stable; and the world justly calls him "The Patriot of Japan." His people revered him during his life and showered him with every honor. Prince Hirobumi Ito is today the idol of the Land of the Rising Sun. CAVOUR CAMILLO BENSO CAVOUR CAVOUR ITALY'S CONSTRUCTIVE STATESMAN 1810— 1861 Italy, at the opening of the nineteenth century, was merely a collection of petty and despotic kingdoms, sub ject to conquest and the alternate prey of powerful, con scienceless neighbors. Her own people were ground under the heel of a luxurious aristocracy. For more than a thousand years she had been trodden down by foreign rule. Germans, Saracens, Frenchmen and Spaniards had in turn devastated and tyrannized her. She had also been divided by feuds between numerous bigoted tyrants within her own country. The people groveled beneath a surge of cruelty and ignorance. On the surface, Italy was frivolous and happy; she outwardly possessed that "fatal gift of beauty" which attracted pleasure seek ers from the world over, but to the great masses it seemed as if the patriotic utterances of Dante and Michael Angelo had never been. When at St. Helena, Napoleon wrote, "Italy is des tined to form a great nation ; unity of language, customs and literature must, within a period more or less distant, unite her inhabitants under one sole government." Although Napoleon had invigorated Italy in many ways, he had not fulfilled those promises of "liberty, fra- 169 170 CAVOUR ternity, prosperity and glory" for the Italian people. At his downfall they were left in a pitiable state. At the Congress of Vienna, held by the principal powers of Eu rope in 1814, the vassals of Austria were restored to the thrones of the Italian peninsula, thus re-establishing Aus trian predominance in Italy. The Austrian Emperor, Francis, announced that he required the universities to turn out not enlightened scholars, but obedient servants and subjects. His minister, Metternich, expressed the Austrian contempt for Italian independence when he said that Italy was simply a "geographical expression." In reality, Italy was composed of the following duchies and kingdoms: Lombardy and Venetia, Austrian prov inces, in the extreme north; Piedmont, belonging to the House of Savoy, to the northwest; Tuscany, under a branch of the Hapsburgs, further south; Parma, Lucca and Modena, under Austrian despots; the states of the Church, under the Pope, occupying central Italy; the kingdom of Naples, and the kingdom of the two Sicilies, under the Bourbons, in the extreme south. During the French Revolution there had grown up in this historic peninsula a great body of thoughtful and patriotic men and women — truly Italian in spite of Austrian control. They looked with great expectancy to the results of the revolution — that great upheaval which was preparing them for reconstruction and a uni fied political existence, and their ideas were communi cated to the rising generation. CAVOUR 171 From 181 5 to 1831 the entire country was saturated with a spirit of socialism and revolution. Secret socie ties were formed to gain ends which were openly pro hibited. Chief among them was the Carbonari, a pow erful organization that originated in Naples, which drew not only professional and military men, but even a few nobles into her ranks. Their motto was "Independence, a sound liberal government, and the confederation of the Italian States." The Carbonari was followed by the association of "Young Italy," fostered under the guidance of Giuseppe M. Mazzini — a brilliant young patriot, who had identi fied himself with the Carbonari. Their aim was to make of Italy a free and independent republic. They published a periodical called "Young Italy" (1832), but their ef forts were quickly discovered and punished by wholesale death sentences. But the fundamental ideals of these great movements toward democracy and unification were to be forwarded in a more effective and powerful way by the judicious statesmanship of Count Camille Bensi di Cavour. Cavour was a man whose burning patriotism was of such unpretentiousness and modesty that keen discrimina tion is indispensable to a thorough understanding of his high place in history. Cavour was the real cause of Italy's rise to a free, invigorated, united nation. Italy's roll of ancient and modern heroes is a notable 172 CAVOUR one, but for disinterested patriotism and sound states manship, Cavour outranks them all. Cavour was born in Turin, the capital of the kingdom of Sardinia, on August tenth, 1810, when Sardinia was under Napoleonic supremacy. He was descended from a noble family of ancient and honorable standing in that section of the peninsula. He especially exerted himself to rise above the handicap of being a second son, which greatly limited his rights and fortune. The principal ave nues open to advancement were those of the army and the Church, and at the age of ten he was entered in the mili tary academy at Turin. He was appointed a page at the court of Sardinia, but he was so little adapted to court etiquette, which he heartily disliked, that he was soon discharged from the position, "highly elated," as he expressed it, "in having thrown off his pack saddle." At school he was especially proficient in the study of mathematics, languages and history. He had a practical mind, and cared more for political economy and social science than for art or romance. He graduated at the head of his class, and at sixteen entered the army as a lieutenant of engineers. As an engineer, Cavour was employed in many impor tant surveys and fortifications. But he brooded continu ously over the degraded condition of Italy. While work ing in Genoa, it was reported to the court that the young officer had expressed himself too freely on political af fairs, and he was ordered to the lonely Alpine fortress of CAVOUR 173 Bard for one year. At the end of the year he resigned his commission in the army, much to the chagrin of his family and to the satisfaction of the newly crowned Charles Albert, who considered him a young man with "too liberal views." His character was no more fitted to the passive submission required by military discipline than it was to the position as court page. With great interest and energy he undertook the man agement of his father's estate at Leri, in Piedmont. He soon mastered the science of farming and became a leader in introducing new and progressive methods of agricul ture. Such love of nature and of the soil is evident in the characters of many other statesmen. Not only Cavour, but Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, Bismarck and many others spent parts of their lives actively en gaged in farming. When twenty-four years old, at a time when the pros pects of Italy inspired but little hope, Cavour wrote to a friend : "I am a very, an enormously ambitious man, and when I am Minister I shall justify my ambition; for, I tell you, in my dreams I already see myself Minister of the Kingdom of Italy." The visions of a young man typify his greatness more exactly than his achievements. With this intuitive conviction that he was destined to play an important part in the future of his country, Ca vour began to prepare himself for that day, just as his American contemporary, Abraham Lincoln, was prepar ing himself to become President of the United States. 174 CAVOUR Cavour spent the following seventeen years in prodig ious activities. He studied political science and political economy, collecting books and reports from England and France. He traveled extensively over the Italian penin sula, and went to Switzerland, France and England to familiarize himself with political and social conditions. He studied in the Sorbonne at Paris and met with the foremost philosophers and statesmen of the age. The democratic monarchy of England was always his ideal form of government, and he was an enthusiastic ad mirer of Anglo-Saxon liberty. He studied the English Constitution thoroughly and drew from it those broad principles which characterize the Anglo-Saxon system of government, both in republican and monarchical form. He formed friendships which were to broaden and in fluence his entire life — those friendships so often neg lected by men who most need them. In 1842, on returning to Leri, he devoted his time to improving his estates, to political research and to writing. This vast knowledge of the world, political and commer cial which he had sought unceasingly, formed the basis for that constructive genius which was to crystallize in the unity of the Italian peninsula. In 1847, Italy awakened to the consciousness of a new life. Sixteen years before this, Mazzini had appeared with a burning enthusiasm for liberty, desiring to cast aside every vestige of monarchical institutions and subor dinate all issues to that of establishing a republican form CAVOUR 175 of government. Cavour, however, realized the imprac ticability of this plan when adapted to conditions then prevailing in Italy. His vision was to emancipate the country from foreign domination and to establish a na tionality through the existing monarchy, renovated by constitutional liberty. And now that the censorship of the press was somewhat relaxed, Cavour established and became the chief editor of a daily newspaper, called "II Risorgimento" — The Resurrection. This paper, advocat ing independence for Italy, union between the various Princes and the people, progressive reform and a Confed eration of the Italian States, exerted a great influence on the course of events. The following year Cavour concentrated his efforts toward procuring from King Charles Albert a constitution for Piedmont — a kingdom superior to any other in Italy. At this time the move was considered revolutionary, and such audacious demands aroused the revolutionary world. Europe heard of Cavour; he had been praised as a master by thinkers and economists of Italy, but he was now universally recognized as a statesman who hated despotism and who advocated open discussion rather than the conspiracy which was then so prevalent throughout Italy. When the statute was granted, March fourth, 1848, it became a rallying point for all the advocates of Ital ian liberty and unity. It is still the foundation of the constitution of the Italian kingdom. Cavour was show- 176 CAVOUR ing the first signs of leadership which proved so valuable to his country. In that same year the first Piedmontese Parliament was opened, and Cavour sat in it as a deputy of his na tive city, Turin. In his maiden speech he urged the vigorous prosecution of the war against the Holy Alli ance, represented by Austria. He realized the impor tance of throwing off foreign oppression. The occasion was peculiarly favorable. An insurrection had risen in Vienna on February twenty-fourth from the news that Louis Philippe, of France, had been dethroned. Rumors came to Italy that the insurrection had caused the fall of Metternich. Venice rose against the Austrians, and pro claimed a republic. Milan was equally successful in driv ing out her oppressors, and public opinion, influenced largely by "II Risorgimento," soon forced Charles Albert to declare war on Austria. This unhappy king was a bet ter ruler than soldier, and had been warned both by England and Russia against such a war. Although he won a victory at Goito, May thirtieth, 1848, he was deserted by his allies, the Pope and the King of Naples, and was forced by defeat to retreat. The war finally ended in the fatal battle at Navara (March twenty-third, 1849). Charles Albert abdicated the throne of Sardinia and retired in exile. He was succeeded by his son, Vic tor Emmanuel, a born leader, who swore allegiance to the Constitution and won for himself the title of "The Honest King" by a life of devotion to Italian liberty. CAVOUR 177 Cavour retired to his farm at Leri, but was recalled to his old seat in Victor Emmanuel's second parliament. It was now for the first time that he made his real power felt in the chamber. It is difficult to realize the unde veloped and chaotic condition of Italy at this time. There was hardly a mile of railroad south of Genoa, while northern Europe enjoyed an extensive railway system. At least fifty per cent, of the inhabitants could neither read nor write, and higher education was reduced to a minimum. Italy was separated into many petty despotic principalities. . Cavour made a speech in parliament proposing to abol ish the special jurisdiction of the ecclesiastical courts, and stating that Piedmont, by persevering in her reform policy, would be "gathering to herself all the living forces in Italy, and would be in a position to lead the mother country to those high destinies whereunto she is called." The speech set forth an aggressive national policy for Italy and brought Cavour into even greater prominence. He was made Minister of Agriculture and Commerce, and gave up his work as a journalist to devote his entire time to statecraft. In the cabinet he negotiated favorable trade treaties with France, Belgium, and England. He was shortly given the additional appointment of Minister of the Ma rine, and rapidly won his way to leadership in Par liament. Within the year he was promoted to the office of Minister of Finance, and became the dominating force 178 CAVOUR in the Ministry. He established manufactories, railways, steamship lines, and accomplished remarkable feats of political and commercial progress. The great statesman now made an alliance with Rat- tazzi, the leader of the moderate liberals, to unite the two parties in support of the Ministry against the opposition. Cavour proposed to foster the new Italy through this union of the moderate parties, but the compact was dis countenanced by D'Azeglio, then the head of the Min istry. This instantly led to a rupture in the Cabinet. Cavour resigned his offices and went to France and Eng land to ascertain how his compact had been received by those two countries, to whom he was looking for assist ance in overthrowing Austria's power in the Italian pen insula. He was greatly encouraged by his reception, especially in France, to which he particularly looked for aid against the Austriansv Upon his return to Piedmont another ministerial crisis occurred. Cavour was reinstated as Minister of Finance, and as President of the Council became the head of the government and of what is known in Italian history as the "Grand Ministero." He continued to devote great energy to the material development of the country. He strengthened its finances and effected numerous reforms, such as the legalization of civil marriage and the encour agement of secular education. In 1854, although opposed by the whole country with the exception of the King and his ministers, Cavour CAVOUR 179 brought about an alliance with France and England against Austria. This brought the kingdom of Sardinia into the councils of the European powers. He sent an army of 10,000 Sardinians to the Crimea to fight side by side with the French and English armies. Europe was inclined to laugh at the little Sardinian army and the fable of the frog and the ox was recalled in num berless satires and cartoons. But when the small army unexpectedly gained a brilliant victory at Tchernaya, the effect was magical and the ridicule of Europe was turned to respect and admiration. The pride of all Italy was aroused as never before. Austria's weak course greatly destroyed her dominant power in European af fairs, and at the Congress of Paris, in 1856, Cavour suc ceeded in having Sardinia admitted to the councils of the representatives of the Powers, and in having them con sider internationally the condition of Italy. His accomplishment in that Congress of Paris was so far-reaching that it enabled him to speak to all Europe through the Congress. He made it more and more ap parent to the powers that the condition of affairs in Italy was a menace to civilization, that every town in the peninsula was a centre of fanaticism and that revolutions might burst forth at any moment to plague all of the coun tries of Europe. Although Cavour gained nothing defi nite for Sardinia at the Congress, he became universally recognized as an Italian leader. He was thinking and speaking of Italy, rather than of Sardinia. 180 CAVOUR The issue between Sardinia and Austria now became radical. Cavour began to make his preparations for the inevitable war. He raised the taxes to gain increased revenue and rapidly developed the resources of the coun try to meet the new burdens. It was about this time that certain Italian fanatics attempted to assassinate Napo leon III by throwing a bomb under his carriage. This occasioned a decided check in the better feelings toward Italy and caused a bitter distrust of Italians throughout Europe. To offset this, Cavour had stringent laws against conspirators and assassins passed by the Pied- montese Parliament. The one thing which served pow erfully to recover the confidence of Europe was the con stant distinction which Cavour drew between a rational evolution of freedom and a sudden spasmodic plunge into revolution. He supported evolution rather than revolu tion. After the attempt on Napoleon's life, Cavour held a secret conference with the French ruler at Plombieres, in France. It was agreed that France would aid Italy in her war with Austria. Cavour understood that it would be a disadvantage to appear as the aggressor, and so by a masterful stroke of diplomacy he forced Austria to de clare war on Sardinia. Napoleon sought to have another congress, in the hope of preventing the war, and England suggested that all of the Italian States should be admitted to that congress. Austria would not agree to this and peremptorily demanded the disarmament of Sardinia. CAVOUR 181 This offensive ultimatum, which was not agreed to by Cavour, caused Austria to declare war and also left no other course open to Napoleon, except to support his ally in the war. Cavour took up the onerous duties of Minister of War, while the War Minister, La Marmora, took com mand of the Sardinian forces. Everything progressed in Sardinia's favor until Napoleon, without consulting or advising his ally, negotiated the Peace of Villafranca with Austria, abruptly abandoning the cause of Italy when it was on the verge of success. Upon receipt of this news "Cavour was overcome with grief and rage, and so keenly felt that the betrayal had disgraced him personally that he resigned his office and again retired to Leri. On the contrary, he became the idol of Italy. The people began to realize the depth of his patriotism and the farsightedness of his policy. The new Ministry, un der Rattazzi, proved unequal to the task and in i860 Cavour was recalled to his post at the head of the gov ernment." At their conference at Plombieres, Cavour had prom ised Napoleon to cede Savoy and Nice to France. Na poleon still had a large army in Lombardy and he let it be known that he would give his consent to the annexa tion of the central states of Italy, only in return for Nice and Savoy. Cavour considered it absolutely es sential for the union of Italy to annex the central States, and signed a secret treaty, giving the two provinces to 182 CAVOUR France. This was one of the most difficult tasks of his life — an act for which he has been most generally criti cized. Although Parliament, with a large majority, rati fied his act, it was a none-the-less severe test of his power and popularity. The great Italian soldier, Garibaldi, who had been born in Nice, never forgave Cavour for the act. Naples and Sicily, in the southern part of Italy, were in a continual state of revolution, and when Sicily re volted against the Bourbon government, Garibaldi con ducted an expedition in aid of the Sicilian revolutionists and soon took both Sicily and Naples. Although Cavour had neither planned nor promoted either of these moves, he overlooked their irregularity and planned to treat diplomatically with the victorious force, whose leader had become a popular hero. He sent an army down into Umbria and the Marches of Ancona in order that Gari baldi might not attempt to sweep north through the Papal territory. While this action was a direct defiance of the temporal power of the Pope, it was an inevitable step now that practically all of Italy desired to be united. Cavour's army took Ancona and marched on into Nea politan territory, delivering the last central provinces from Austrian influence. A dispute arose between the royal forces and those of Garibaldi, who had also been acting in Victor Emman uel's name. Cavour wrote to the King : "Garibaldi has become my most violent enemy, but I desire, for the good CAVOUR 183 of Italy and the honor of your Majesty, that he should retire entirely satisfied." Cavour well knew that Gari baldi had never forgiven him for the sacrifice of Nice to France. There was a popular acclaim for Garibaldi's appointment as dictator of the territory he had con quered, but Cavour wisely suggested and influenced Par liament to pass a bill authorizing the annexation of any provinces in central and southern Italy which should express, by a plebiscite, their desire to become a part of the constitutional kingdom of Victor Emmanuel. There was great doubt as to whether this plan would be ac ceptable to Garibaldi. However, Garibaldi stated that if the people voted for annexation, they should have it, and an order was issued that "the two Sicilies form an in tegral part of Italy, one and indivisible under the con stitutional King, Victor Emmanuel, and his successors." Garibaldi thus made the King a present of his conquest and displayed the depth of his unselfish patriotism. By the beginning of 1861 all Italy, except Venetia and Rome, was united. The work which Cavour had planned as a young man was almost accomplished. On February eighteenth the first Italian Parliament met in Turin. A few months later, Cavour, seeking to com plete the historic Italy by having Rome its capital, se cured the passage of a bill to that effect. But the great statesman did not live to see the consummation of his vision nor the annexation of Venetia, for which he had so longed. 184 CAVOUR The tremendous amount of work he had done during the fifty-one years of his life now began to show its ef fect upon his health. After a brief illness, he died on June sixth, 1861. No master of romance could have put more appropriate words into the mouth of a dying hero than those actually uttered by Count Cavour: "Italy is made; all is safe." To the friar who administered to him during his last hours, Cavour whispered: "Brother, brother, a free church in a free State." When the great patriot died, his life work had practically been brought to a happy fruition. Italy was free and united ; Victor Emmanuel had been accepted as the constitutional King of the entire nation; Rome had been proclaimed the capital of Italy. Cavour died as he had lived — a splendid man and a true patriot. His great service was to guide into the right channel the flood of patriotism and heroism that was sweeping Italy — to restrain it from excess and mis direction. He alone realized that in order to politically create a nation, public opinion in general and the states men who directed the destinies of Europe, must be won over to the cause of Italy. He knew the necessity of convincing them that it was no anarchical revolution, but the inevitable development of the sentiment of nationality in a people whose history and traditions alike entitled them to shape their own destiny and take their place once more among the great powers. Cavour did not belong to that class of politicians whose CAVOUR 185 love of country is subservient to self-interest and whose objects are confined to flattering popular passions and prejudices. He never let the fear of decreasing his popularity deter him from performing what he consid ered to be his duty, and he repeatedly threw himself against the prevailing current of opinion when he deemed it harmful to the national cause. Metternich once remarked : "There is only one diplo mat in Europe, but unfortunately he is against us; it is M. de Cavour." Napoleon III told Cavour during their conference at Plombieres: "There are only three men in Europe — we two and then a third whom I will not name." Cavour deserved the high esteem of the powers of Europe. He possessed a superb brain, a brilliant im agination, a tireless will-power, indeed many qualities that made him of the rare type of Napoleon Bonaparte. Yet they were combined with an honesty of purpose, an absence of personal ambition, and a capacity of pa tience, all unknown to The Little Corporal. "He was the master mind who moulded Italy's scat tered members into one whole ; he was the great architect who erected the splendid temple of Italian national unity, founded on the cornerstone of constitutional liberty." Cavour achieved the work which the longings of an en slaved people and the heroic efforts of centuries had been unable to accomplish. He was loyally supported by the enlightened patriotism and bravery of Victor Emmanuel, the opportune friendship of Napoleon III, the incredible 186 CAVOUR leadership and soldiership of Garibaldi, the energy of the Italian people and the sympathy of the civilized na tions of the world. With their invaluable aid and by the boldness of his genius and the wisdom of his pa triotism, he counteracted the deadly effects of the Con» gress of Vienna. Mazzini had breathed new hope into Italy; Victor Emmanuel had proved a noble leader to the cause; Garibaldi had fought and conquered; Cavour fused all these efforts toward a single goal — the freedom and the union of Italy. GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS (Gustavus II.) THE HERO OF SWEDEN 1594— 1632 There is a rugged, staunch stability about the Scandi navian people that compels admiration. This was never more evident than at the present time when the deluge of death and destruction that is engulfing Christendom has surged in vain against the ramparts of their borders. These sturdy principles were largely inculcated by the Vasa rulers, and most especially through the example and efforts of Gustavus Adolphus — the hero Vasa king of Sweden. Prior to his reign, religious and political intrigue de termined the relations of European countries. Catholic and Protestant alike was relentlessly intolerant; a mer cenary soldiery under ruthless commanders ravaged the land; rulers were selfish, petty in soul, and greedy for power and lands. Sweden' had no place in the councils of Europe. She had been engaged in a desperate strug gle to become a nation. In the dawn of her history two tribes warred against each other — the Swedes in the north and the Goths in the south. They were so lawless, un- teachable, and savage that Christianity advanced but 189 190 GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS slowly, and centuries passed before they could even be nationalized. There was also continual strife between Sweden and Denmark. In 1389, however, they became united with Norway under the rule of Queen Margaret. Sweden, res tive under this enforced bond, succeeded in breaking away in the year 1523 under the leadership of Gustavus Vasa, the founder of the celebrated line of Vasa rulers. This man, the grandfather of Gustavus Adolphus, achieved incredible reform in his country. Fletcher says : "Gustavus I used to complain that his people under stood civilization so little that they invariably robbed the merchants who came to trade with them." But condi tions changed and after the lapse of eighty years Sweden became a highly civilized nation. By the end of the six teenth century, the Swedish nobles were by far the most cultivated aristocracy of the north. Gustavus Vasa not only educated his people in the knowledge of art and science, but in patriotism and the blessing of national unity. He made Sweden a hereditary monarchy, he fostered trade and manufactures, filled the royal treasury and built up a strong army and navy. His choice of Lutheranism as the state religion was perhaps due to his desire to confiscate church property and to eliminate the opposition of the clergy, who favored the union of the three Scandinavian countries. To every public issue there were two aspects — religious and governmental. Gustavus Vasa had bent his genius GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS 191 toward the solution of this dual problem, but his work was greatly retarded during the reign of his son, the brilliant, half-insane Eric, and during the rule of John III, whose tendency was toward a reaction against the established faith. There was little progress. John had married a member of the Polish royal house, and his son, Sigismund, was elected king of Poland. Sig- ismund immediately embraced Catholicism, the religion of his new country, and this move practically destroyed his possibility of becoming the king of Protestant Sweden. After John's death, Sigismund was deposed because he failed to keep his pledges to the Swedes. The crown now passed into the hands of John's younger brother, Charles IX, a practical, energetic man, who ruled wisely, as had his father before him. But to his son, Gustavus Adolphus, was to fall the greater glory of ex alting Sweden to her highest position in history. Gustavus Adolphus was born in Stockholm in 1594. He received a broad, practical education under a learned tutor, John Skytte. Not only was he conversant with six or seven languages, but he also received training in law, in government, and in military affairs. When he was but seventeen years old, he ascended the throne of Sweden. A contemporary thus describes the young king: "He is slender of figure, well set up, with rather a pale complexion, a long-shaped face, fair hair, and a pointed beard, which here and there runs into a tawny 192 GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS color; and, according to all reports, he is a man of high courage, though not revengeful ; keen of intellect, watch ful, active ; an excellent speaker, and courteous in his in tercourse with all men; from a youth of such promise great things are to be expected." Gustavus' chancellor, Axel Oxenstiern, was only twen ty-eight years of age at that time. These two young men set out to play the sinister game of war opposed by all the powers of northern Europe, with the very national existence of Sweden as the stake. A glance at the map of that period will show how Sweden was hemmed in and menaced by Denmark, Russia, and Poland. And, in addition to this there were complications caused by a Polish claimant to the Swedish crown and the firm re solve of Ferdinand II, the German Emperor, to establish the supremacy of the Hapsburgs by crushing the small Protestant nations. The life work of Gustavus Adolphus was to eliminate these dangers threatening his country. The key to the situation was the control of the Baltic Sea, a necessity for commercial and defensive purposes. When he began his rule, Sweden was involved in a war with the Danes, who were pressing their claim on Lapland by holding the two most important Swedish fortresses, Calmar and Elfsborg. There was no decisive outcome of this war, and at last James I, of Great Britain, acted as mediator. According to the terms of the com promise effected in 1613, Denmark was to hold Nor wegian Lapland and the port of Elfsborg for six years. GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS 193 She was to keep them forever unless Sweden could re deem them for one million riksdalers ($270,000), a sum that was deemed impossible for Sweden to raise in so short a time. Gustavus and Oxenstierrt not only made the payment, but made it within two years, in this way permanently regaining the disputed territory. Gustavus next waged war on Russia in order to bar her from the Baltic and to change the boundaries for adequate protection of Sweden. After a series of Swed ish victories, Russia was compelled to cede the provinces of Ingria and Carelia, which became a barrier between Russia and the sea. Petrograd now stands on this ter ritory which was recaptured in a later generation. The king now devoted himself to the careful reorgan ization of his country. He endowed schools, reformed the judiciary and the system of civil government, built up a well-trained, strictly disciplined army and navy, en couraged trade and even extended his energies to the fos tering of the "South Company of Sweden." This com pany became one of the great civilizing agencies of his tory. The colonists sent out by the enterprise for build ing up of a New Sweden in America built Fort Christina on the Delaware River. The next war of Adolphus was that against Poland, fraught with consequences more far-reaching than those of any previous conflict during his reign. Ostensibly, his purpose was to force Sigismund to renounce his claim to the scepter of Sweden. Of greater importance, how- 194 GUSTAVUS. ADOLPHUS ever, were his championship of the Protestant cause, and the need for protecting Sweden by acquiring terri tory along the shores of the Baltic. The Emperor, Fer dinand II, recognizing in this "Lion of the North" a formidable foe to his plan for the extension of Hapsburg influence and Catholicism throughout Europe, allied him self with Poland, and sent an army against the Swedish king. In this way Gustavus was drawn into the "Thirty Years' War," a conflict that had already been raging for twelve years. He negotiated with Poland for a six years' truce, that left in his possession Lionia and parts of Pol ish Prussia. In the summer of 1630, he landed on the coast of Pomerania. This event marks not only the en trance of Sweden to the councils of Europe, but also the turning point in a war that closed the period of dis tinctively religious politics and inaugurated the period in which secular statecraft replaced ecclesiastical. The "Thirty Years' War" had the dual aspect characteristic of the history of the Reformation. It was a war of Catholic against Protestant, of the House of Hapsburg against certain would-be independent states of Germany. The horrors of this struggle, although they did not arouse the spirit of tolerance, impressed upon the nations the undeniable necessity for a certain degree of religious toleration. Gustavus Adolphus was urged to enter the war by Cardinal Richelieu, who granted him a subsidy of four hundred thousand riksdalers, provided that a Swedish GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS 195 army of thirty thousand men be maintained in the field. After the sack of Magdeburg by trie Imperialists under Tilly, the Protestant Electors of Brandenburg and Sax ony gave their support to Gustavus. In 1631, he was victorious in the battle of Breitenfeld, near Leipzig, and in the following year, in spite of meagre numbers, sick ness, and a lack of supplies, he again defeated Tilly, and compelled Munich to capitulate. In October, 1632, the Imperialists, now under the com mand of Wallenstein, began to ravage Saxony. Gus tavus, who had encamped near Nuremberg, threw his army into Saxony by forced marches, and on November 6, 1632, confronted Wallenstein at Liitzen, the winter camp of the imperial army. The Swedes, numbering only about fifteen thousand to the enemy's twenty-five thousand, plunged into the battle, crying "God is with us !" Into the raging fray Gustavus led his cavalry. In the confusion his men could not follow him closely. He was surrounded by the enemy and mortally wounded. Fired to vengefulness by the sight of his riderless horse, the Swedes stood firm that day, dying by the thousands in the line of battle. When nightfall came, they re mained masters of the field. The Chancellor and the remarkably well-trained gen erals carried forward their king's plans. Gustavus Adolphus is recognized as one of the world's greatest patriots, because of his outstanding ability and moral heroism. In an age conspicuous for materialism 196 GUSTAVUS ADOLPHUS and self-gratification, he shone forth almost alone for moral living, high thinking and courageous achieving. He directed every great effort of his life of only thirty- eight years to strengthening the organization of the Swed ish government, to amalgamating his people into a uni fied nation, and to establishing the integrity and prestige of Sweden among the countries of Europe. He was great of intellect, rich in genius and versatility, magnanimous and pious. Although men of today believe that he who sheds blood for the sake of religion fights in a mistaken cause, no one can deny the noble sincerity and inherent patriotism of the motives that impelled Gus tavus Adolphus to sacrifice his life in a struggle to defend his religion and his country. As he lay dying, some hostile soldiers came up and challenged him to give his name. He said : "I am the King of Sweden, who do seal the religion and liberty of the Swedish nation with my blood." GEORGE WASHINGTON GEORGE WASHINGTON GEORGE WASHINGTON THE FATHER OF REPUBLICS 1732-1799 George Washington stands unique and apart, in monumental solitude, the greatest world patriot. No statesman or warrior challenges his pre-eminent place in the annals of history. Napoleon, Bismarck, Pitt, Cavour, Ito, Bolivar, Adolphus, Peter the Great and Lincoln are high examples of citizenship and patriotism, but the crowning statesman, warrior, executive and world patriot is Washington. George Washington is rightly called the "Father of his Country," but broadly speaking, he is "The Father of Modern Republics," for he wrought out the model which inspired the formation of all the twenty-seven republics of the world, save Switzerland. Simon Bolivar, in 1809, visited the United States and returned home so saturated with the spirit of Washing ton that he instigated the construction of five republics, thus winning for himself the name of "Liberator of South America." When San Martin of Argentine read the life of Washington and the Constitution of the United. States, he was inspired to a valorous effort that finally established three more South American republics. La- 199 200 GEORGE WASHINGTON fayette, fired by the spirit of the revolting colonists, came to America to offer his brilliant military gifts to Wash ington and his cause. He returned to France so imbued with Washington's spirit of freedom and independence that he gave his influence to the movement of reform which ultimately resulted in the present French republic. Lafayette sent the key of the fallen Bastile as a gift to Washington and the French people erected a splendid statue of Washington on the principal boulevard of Paris. The belief in man's right to a voice in his government, and the justice of representative citizenship sank deep into the minds of the men of many nations; England herself adopted the liberal standards of Washington's platform, and today, though in name a kingdom, is more broadly democratic than is the republic Washington founded. King George of England has less power than the President of the United States. The spirit of de mocracy is still growing; it has recently deposed a most autocratic ruler and laid the foundation of an independent Russia. One of the issues of the present war is liberty — ¦ democracy is arraigned against autocracy — and when democracy prevails the world should bow in profound reverence to George Washington, the father of govern mental freedom. Washington was born February twenty-second, 1732, at Bridges Creek, Virginia. His father was of aristo cratic blood, and his mother a gentlewoman of grace and GEORGE WASHINGTON 201 wisdom. He lived the life of the colonial families of his day, who were loyal to England, their mother coun try. When George was eleven years old, his father, Au gustine Washington, died, leaving his second wife, Mary, who was George's mother, with four young children and1 two grown stepsons. Mary Washington was endowed with a strong will and ruled her household with a firm motherly hand. She trained her sons to be truthful, sincere and honest. George spent the first twelve years of his boyhood, during which he chopped the proverbial cherry tree and rode the famous colt, as a boys' boy. He possessed the normal boy's love of fun and mischief, was healthy and athletic, and excelled in out-of-door sports. He was fascinated by the muscular powers of the Indians and aspired to rival their feats of strength. This sympathetic understanding of the Indians perhaps saved his life later when dealing with them as a soldier. At one time he felt the call of the sea and vainly pleaded with his mother to be allowed to be a sailor. His half-brother Lawrence realized his intense disap pointment and invited him to his home at Mount Vernon, where he completed his education and grew into young manhood. Lawrence Washington had been educated in England and had married into the cultured family of Lord Fairfax — an accomplished Englishman, who had experienced life's disappointments without becoming em- 202 GEORGE WASHINGTON bittered by them. He had come to spend his later days enjoying the freedom of his vast inheritance in Virginia. From Lord Fairfax Washington learned that knowledge of man and manners which no school can give — that poise and dignity of bearing which were so valuable through out his life. Washington's youth was not fraught with the hard ships and trials of poverty which often make stepping- stones to an achieving career ; however, in early boyhood he possessed the traits of leadership, which neither pros perity nor reverses could turn aside. He grew from a manly boy into a manly man. His innate passion for leadership welled up to the surface, and even his amuse ments took on a military aspect. Irving said : "He made soldiers of his schoolmates. They had their mimic pa rades, reviews and sham fights." George was comman der-in-chief of the school. Maturing early he made his first step in business at sixteen. He was surveyor by choice and training — a profession which in that day required a knowledge of woodcraft as well as mathematics. Lord Fairfax en trusted to him the task of defining the boundaries of the Fairfax estate beyond the ridge of the Alleghanies. The elderly English aristocrat and the young Virginia gentle man were much together and became devoted friends. Washington was large in body, tall, muscular, strong, long of arm and big of wrist. His dominant will showed in the decisive cut of his jaw ; the light of purpose shone GEORGE WASHINGTON 203 through his gray blue eyes, giving evidence of a strong nature. For three years he toiled as a surveyor, living a rough pioneer life, strengthening his muscles, hardening him self to exposure and fatigue, accustoming himself to risks and perils, engraving on his character self-confidence and self-reliance. A short time before Lawrence Washington's death he gave George his place in the Virginia militia, and soon he was commissioned a major and adjutant-general. The governor selected him to make the dangerous mid winter journey through the forests to the French fort to warn the French that they were trespassing on English soil. The expedition was full of peril and hardships. Accompanied by only seven men, he made his way to the Ohio River through seven hundred and fifty miles of almost unbroken wilderness. There he delivered his message and set out in the dead of night to retrace his dreary route. His footsteps were dogged by Hophill Indians, whom the French had enlisted to fight for them, but he dealt with them with remarkable cleverness by exciting their personal admiration for his physical strength. On one occasion he entered a village in full Indian regalia, minus only the war paint, and so ex cited the warriors in feats of strength and prowess that they named him "Conotancarious," "plunderer of vil lages," and suggested that he take to wife an Indian maiden and remain with them as chief. 204 GEORGE WASHINGTON But that perilous mission to the French was in vain. They refused to heed the warning, and continued to en croach upon English territory. War between England and France ensued. England sent her troops, in com mand of General Braddock, expecting to make short work of her foes. Braddock, however, unskilled in pio neer and forest warfare, and unheedful of the advice of Washington, whom he had made a member of his staff, made an open siege upon Fort Duquesne. He was attacked from behind by an unseen enemy and seriously wounded. Washington was left to conduct the retreat. This he did with such skill that he was recognized by his superior officers as a singularly resourceful soldier. On his return to Virginia he became the chief stay of his province in guarding her frontiers against the sav ages. At this time he was not only a daring young soldier but was conspicuous in social life. He loved society and entered into it with characteristic whole-heartedness. Brilliant, courteous, gallant, he was welcomed into the gayest circles of Virginia. Impulsive by nature, he was susceptible to feminine charms. His succession of youth ful romantic affairs merited the oft cited tale of his impetuous proposal upon first meeting Miss Philipse, the most sought-after heiress in America, and her equally prompt refusal. Not long afterwards, while riding from Mount Ver non to WiUiamstown with dispatches, he was invited to GEORGE WASHINGTON 205 dine with a friend. There he met Mrs. Martha Custis, a wealthy young widow. He lingered, entranced, while his faithful black servant, "Billy," paced his impatient horse back and forth before the window. Mrs. Custis was pretty and self-possessed and had that acquired sweet ness which often comes to a woman who has become a mother and a widow before care and age have checked the first full tide of her life. At sundown he departed, only to return on his way to the frontier to make an impetuous offer of marriage. This romantic and auda cious courtship of but a single day resulted in their be trothal, and five months later he married and settled down to the placid life of a Virginia planter. Through this marriage, Washington's estate was con siderably augmented, for Mrs. Washington's portion of the Custis property was 15,000 acres of land, over two hundred negroes and ten thousand pounds ; this heritage, added to Washington's fortune, distinguished him as the richest man in America. His wealth was estimated at $800,000. Mount Vernon, the home he inherited from his brother Lawrence, was his chief source of enjoyment. He de veloped and enlarged it into a successful plantation. Watchful, systematic, energetic, with an insatiable relish for being out-of-doors, he personally supervised the es tate. It was a perfectly conducted farm, typical of the man. Agriculture, however, was only one of the pur suits on the Washington estate, which was a distinct and 206 GEORGE WASHINGTON self-supporting community with some three hundred peo ple, mostly slaves, busily engaged in various kinds of labor. The plantation had its own blacksmiths, brick- makers, shoemakers, carpenters, masons, gardeners, staff of mill operators, coopers, weavers and plowmen. They supplied not only the plantation with ample food and products, but also the village stores for miles around. Washington was a kind but firm master. His slaves enjoyed many privileges, which were rarely transgressed. He was especially devoted to his body servant "Billy,"1 who assisted him in his surveyings and who was his constant bodyguard and companion during the war. Though an extensive slave holder, he was ready to pro mote any feasible plan that promised its abolishment. To a Pennsylvanian he expressed the sentiment: "I hope it will not be conceived from these observa tions that it is my wish to hold the unhappy people, who are the subject of this letter, in slavery. I can only say that there is not a man living who wishes more sincerely than I do to see a plan adopted for the abolition of it; but there is only one proper and effectual mode by which it can be accomplished, and that is by legislative author ity; and this, as far as my suffrage will go, shall never be wanting." Mount Vernon was a center of unbounded hospitality. It became a "well-resorted tavern." Washington often said that his greatest pleasure was companionship with intimate friends. A day spent at Mount Vernon with- GEORGE WASHINGTON 207 out company was unusual. In his diary we often find Hamilton, Jefferson, Adams, Monroe, Lafayette, Mar shall, Jay, Robert Morris and other leading men of that period dining with him and even spending days and weeks at the historic mansion on the Potomac. Washington became a member of the House of Bur gesses, from Frederick County, which held annual ses sions at Williamsburg. At first he was awkward upon the floor, but each year gained more ease and eloquence. His life gradually broadened about him, and with matu rity came experience and understanding. From the beginning of the English colonial quarrels, he took an active part in asserting the rights of the Col onies and informing the Committee of Correspondence, which had for its object the "maintaining of the liberty which they had derived from their ancestors." He was not a political agitator, such as Samuel Adams, who planned with unerring intelligence to bring about inde pendence. On the contrary, Washington longed and hoped for conciliation ; but with remarkable foresight, he early realized that war was inevitable. He was prepar ing himself quietly and resignedly for the struggle while other statesmen, more brilliant, were waiting for the dawn of understanding. The military uniform in which he appeared at the first Continental Congress ©f Phila delphia, t© which he was a delegate, gave visible manifes tation of his conviction and the extent to which the fire of his patriotism had led him. 208 GEORGE WASHINGTON Patrick Henry said on June fifteenth, 1775, "If you speak of solid information and sound judgment, Colonel Washington is unquestionably the greatest man on the floor." When Congress, weary of fruitless protest against England's tyranny, weary of waiting for even faint promises of reconciliation, decided that revolt was necessary, all minds seemed to turn to Washington. John Adams perceived in him the right man to entrust with the leaderships of the Continental Army and nom inated him for Commander-in-Chief. The members of the famous body who voted unanimously for him were the ablest men of the country — Samuel Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Patrick Henry, Richard Henry Lee, Thomas Jefferson — but none of them realized so fully as Wash ington the gravity of the situation. Instead of a united nation the colonies were thirteen detached units — weak, distrustful, jealous, with little in common save their hatred for England. Many individuals were still loyal to the mother-country and revered her crown. They had no taste for a rebellion that would take their lives and lay waste their lands. The leader of such an army had first to harmonize the allies before he could defeat the enemy. This Washington set about to do. His purpose was to create a vigorous public sentiment which would make the Continental Congress dominant. He turned the minds of his generals to Congress and invited the assemblies of the several colonies to recog nize the same central power. He saw and felt the need GEORGE WASHINGTON 209 of a national spirit, and his highest achievement was in bringing the people to the idea of nationality. This phase of his work has not been sufficiently recognized. In fact all his military success would have come to naught had it not been for his gift of nationalizing his country. His central purpose throughout his public career was to bring all the colonies into a self-sustaining, efficient government, not dependent upon any man for its per petuity, but upon the patriotism and loyalty of all men. He accepted his commission with a mixture of mod esty and pride that evoked high admiration. He wrote his wife, "You may believe me, my dear Patsy, when I assure you in the most solemn manner that, so far from seeking this appointment, I have used every endeavor in my power to avoid it. Not only from my unwillingness to part with you and the family, but from a conscious ness of its being a trust too great for my capacity. But as it has been a kind of destiny that has thrown me upon this service, I shall hope that my undertaking is designed to answer some good purpose." Two days later he started across country to take com mand of the army at Cambridge. "That noble figure drew all eyes to it, that mien as if the man were a prince ; that sincere and open countenance which every man could see was lighted by a good conscience; that cordial ease in salute, as if a man who felt himself brother to his friends," It was a man in the prime of life fitted to in spire courage in the people and to make their hearts grow 210 GEORGE WASHINGTON strong, who rode through the colonies to take charge of their insurgent army. Mankind is ever impressed by externals, but beneath the stately form, the courageous countenance, the military bearing, those humble country men saw in the Virginia gentleman an honesty and sin cerity of purpose that stirred their hearts to patriotism and their hands to battle. The gigantic task committed to Washington was appalling. He was to oppose the mightiest empire in the world. A nation with a naval and military power unparalleled. A kingdom with a record of hundreds of years of triumph and conquest. The magnitude of the herculean task is more apparent when we realize that the colonies were not yet an organized nation and the entire population was only three million eight hundred thousand, and eight hundred thousand of these were slaves and a great number of these citizens were in sympathy with England. As Commander-in-Chief, Washington's, first task was to drive the British from Boston ; to do this he was given a force of 14,000 country lads, brave and enthusiastic, but utterly devoid of discipline, and unequipped with uniforms or arms. There were no resources to draw upon for necessary provisions. The provinces were totally ignorant of the details of war and of the principles of organization. Gradually Washington taught them to provide for their needs. Little by little he trained new privateers, and organized companies, disciplined and GEORGE WASHINGTON 211 ranked the officers, who were as ignorant of military tac tics as the troops themselves. Although overwhelmed with the cares immediately surrounding him, he was not unmindful of the country at large. He planned cam paigns, distant and near, and supervised a multitude of preliminary details that demanded prompt and vigorous execution. By gripping every task and pushing it to its finish, he supplied one deficiency after another until the time for the siege of Boston was imminent. A body of British troops, as well trained and equipped as Europe could produce, occupied Boston. General Howe was in command, and the British fleet held the har bor. Secure in the knowledge of their superior forces, they placidly awaited extra guns from England. On the evening of March fourth, 1776, they saw the sun sink calmly over the hills of Dorchester and were amused by the noise of occasional cannonading from the three divi sions of Washington's little army stationed at Roxbury, Summerville and East Cambridge. But while these fire works amused the enemy, Washington was busy moving wagons, timber, tools, ox-carts, bales of hay, provisions and men up the hills. The rising sun revealed such a display of ramparts and cannon on Dorchester Heights that the enemy quickly embarked 8,000 troops and 1,000 citizens of Boston and set sail for Halifax. They left behind them 200 cannon and much military store. Washington established himself in General Howe's head- 212 GEORGE WASHINGTON quarters, having won a brilliant victory without loss of life or property. But Washington did not waste his time in luxurious ease. When he had seen the British fleet disappear from Boston Harbor, he had waved a good-bye, say ing: "We shall see you again," for he knew full well that the defeat had but intensified the struggle and that England would double her reinforcements in the spring. New York, open to the sea and without protection of fort or fleet, would naturally be the point of attack, so Washington set out to control the Hudson, which would probably be the command of the continent. Throughout the years that followed his triumphs were mingled with opposition, censure and defeat, but with his patriotism and courage ever at white heat he met success and defeat with equal dignity and reserve. The Declaration of Independence on the following July fourth, and the defeat at New York, August twenty- seventh, were exigencies that equally stiffened his tem per and added daring to his spirit. The taunts of ene mies, the indifference and the rebukes of Congress, the desertions of his men, the offers of reconciliation and privileges by England served only as stimulants that nerved him to the master-move made on the memorable Christmas night, when, through pitchy darkness and grinding ice, he crossed the Delaware and walked nine miles through blinding snow to Trenton. "They marked their journey by the blood of their naked feet." As he GEORGE WASHINGTON 213 neared the town, held by Hessians, word came to him that his guns were wet. "Use the bayonet," said he, "the town must be taken." He captured 2,000 Hessians and lost but three men. Although Washington's courage seldom waned, his countrymen were often discouraged, not because their ideals sank, but because Congress had failed to provide bread for the patriotic soldiers who were fighting and starving for the cause of liberty and independence. Loyalists and Tories and timid men, who believed suc cess impossible, plotted against Washington. He met the conspiracy — the so-called Conway Cabal — with his wonderful self-control, effaced it quietly and calmly and spoke not a word of reproach. "The ultimate secret of greatness is neither physical nor intellectual, but moral. It is the capacity to lose self in the service of something greater. It is the faith to recognize a star, the will to obey it, and the strength to follow it." Washington's ideal did not waver, but the stab at his heart sent him out to a solitary bank of snow to seek healing of God. The prayerfulness and patience of the man were phe nomenal ; this leader and master of men and affairs was intent and imperative, but he never stormed, except on rare occasions, when his passion became a torrent of in vectives. The growing greatness of Washington with the pass ing of time is manifest. The leading biographer of Eng land, Lord Charnwood, says : "The American cause was 214 GEORGE WASHINGTON hopeless but for the commanding genius of Washington and his moral authority." The eminent English essayist, Frederick Scott Oliver, says: "Washington occupies a unique position, because it has never been possible to praise him beyond his merits." At a time when the country was in desperate straits, without food for the army or money to pay the soldiers, who were deserting in hundreds, Washington alone kept heart and patiently endured and waited for the moment of final victory. His individual fortune was unstintedly used in times of need. His army in 1776 numbered 89,- 640, but it soon began to dwindle; in 1778 only 70,000 remained, in 1779, 60,000. In four years it had been re duced to 50,000, and at the close of the war it numbered only 29,000. Clinton was in New York Harbor with his fleet. Washington was still holding the Hudson Bay region. The British under Lord Cornwallis took up a position on the York River and at Yorktown threw up strong fortifications and established a line of batteries along the river. Gen. Lafayette at once began to maneuver against Cornwallis and the French fleet under De Grasse entered the Chesapeake and so cut off cofnmunication with Clinton at New York. Washington now prepared for the final drama of the Revolutionary War. He issued several fake orders purporting a vigorous move ment on New York, and these orders were contrived to fall into Clinton's hands, which, as was intended, greatly GEORGE WASHINGTON 215 alarmed him. At the strategic moment Washington cut loose from the Hudson and advanced by forced marches to Yorktown. Clinton refused to believe that Washing ton had ventured on such an audacious and courageous move. With a combined army of Frenchmen and Amer icans numbering 16,000 he suddenly invested Yorktown. It was a master stroke. Cornwallis was caught in a trap and forced to surrender. Washington had won the independence of his country and set for the world an example of generalship that mankind will admire to the end of time. Just in what point lay his success as a general is diffi cult to define. Frederick the Great sent him a sword bearing this inscription : "From the oldest general in the world to the greatest." Washington was a versatile and resourceful general. In open battle he was reck less, daring and fearless. In advance he flamed with a passion for fight. In retreat he was marvelous in con trol, calculating, alert to the slightest opportunity of rebound. He excelled in the power to gain advantage by retreat. He could fight to the end ; he could wait, or he could maneuver. Washington resigned his commission with these words to Congress: "Mr. President : The great events, on which my resig nation having at length taken place, I have now the honor of offering my sincere congratulations to Congress and of presenting myself before them, to surrender into their 216 GEORGE WASHINGTON hands the trust committed to me, and to claim the in dulgence of retiring from the service of my country. "Happy in the confirmation of our independence and sovereignty, and pleased with the opportunity afforded the United States of becoming a respectable nation, I resign with satisfaction the appointment I accepted with diffidence; a diffidence in my abilities to accomplish so arduous a task, which, however, was superseded by a confidence in the rectitude of our cause, the support of the supreme power of the Union, and the patronage of Heaven. The successful termination of the war has verified the most sanguine expectations: and my grati tude for the interposition of Providence, and the assist ance I have received from my countrymen, increases with every review of the momentous contest." Then, after a word of gratitude to the army and to his staff, he concludes: "I consider it an indispensable duty to close this last solemn act of my official life by commend ing the interests of our dearest country to the protection of Almighty God, and those who have the superintend ence of them to His holy keeping. "Having now finished the work assigned me, I retire from the greatest theater of action; and bidding an affectionate farewell to this august body, under whose orders I have so long acted, I here offer my commission, and take my leave of all the employments of public life." When the war was over, his influence with both officers and soldiers gave his patriotism its severest test. His GEORGE WASHINGTON 217 heart went out to the brave men who had followed him, loved him, and never swerved in their loyalty to him. In fact, Washington's affection for his men saved the cause of American independence more truly than did strategy and daring. Ignorant, unrealizing Congress, in principle opposing a standing army, passed no measures to reward the soldiers or to provide for the future of the men who had sacrificed their all for its cause. The officers resolved to meet with the ultimate purpose of resorting to force in order to obtain their just recom pense; the army was in a ferment and planned to revolt. The situation was full of peril. A weak man would have held his peace, a rash one would have tried to suppress the meeting; Washington did neither. He quietly took control of the whole movement himself and appointed a time and a place for the meeting. When the officers assembled he rose, with a manuscript in his hand, and, taking out his glasses, began: "You see, Gentlemen, I have grown both blind and gray in your service." He appealed to their patriotism and exhorted them one and all to remain loyal and obedient, true to their glorious past and to their country. His address was brief and calm, but the clear, vigorous sentences were charged with meaning and deep feeling. His in fluence prevailed, and for love of him they swore al legiance to the government. Washington's power had been supreme in the army— • a supremacy gained by love, faith and confidence. He 218 GEORGE WASHINGTON was their commander in war; they wanted him to be commander in peace. They offered him the position of Dictator — he could have reigned as king. His offi cers met and formulated a letter calling on him to assume absolute control of the government. His answer breathes the greatness and wisdom of the man : "With a mixture of surprise and astonishment, I have read with attention the sentiments you have submitted to my perusal. Be assured, no occurrence in the course of the war has given me more painful sensations than your information of there being such ideas existing in the army as you have expressed, and which I must view with abhorrence and reprehend with severity. For the present, the communication of them will rest in my own bosom, unless some further agitation of the matter shall make a disclosure necessary. I am much at a loss to conceive what part of my conduct could have given en couragement to an address which seems to me big with the greatest mischiefs that can befall my country. If I am not deceived in the knowledge of myself, you could not have found a person to whom your schemes are more disagreeable. At the same time, in justice to my own feelings, I must add that no man possesses a more sin cere wish to see justice done to the army than I do; and as far as my power and influence in a constitutional iway extend, they shall be employed to the utmost of my abilities to effect it, should there be any occasion. Let me conjure you, then, if you have any regard for GEORGE WASHINGTON 219 your country, concern for yourself or posterity, or re spect for me, to banish these thoughts from your mind, and never communicate, as from yourself or anyone else, a sentiment of like nature." Such words can come only from a true patriot, a man whose self fades into insig nificance when the issue becomes self or country. To put aside a crown for love of country is noble, but to look upon such an opportunity in such a light reveals a great soul. Washington fought for a cause and not for self-power, place or glory. He fought to make the colo nies independent, and not to play the part of a Caesar or a Cromwell in the wreck and confusion of civil war. To him. alone belongs the honor and aureola of having refused supreme rule and of having effected in the spirit and under the forms of free government all and more than the most brilliant military chiefs have ever achieved through absolute power. In Virginia he sought to pick up the threads of his former life, to remedy the disorders caused by his ab sence from his establishment, to throw himself vigor ously into the pursuit of the hounds. He sought to relax, to rest, to return to his happy home ; but the past broke in and would not be put aside; the present knocked at his door and demanded his strength. At the beginning of the war, Washington had passed with a single step from being a Virginian to an Amer ican — the first American. He could not step back. He must answer again the call to serve his country. He had 220 GEORGE WASHINGTON perceived the greatness which our future nation held, and sought to open up the western lands. Realizing that development of internal commerce was one of the first needs of a new country, he organized a company for the extension of navigation. He refused a gift of 150 shares of stock in the company, saying that he could better serve the people in an enterprise if he were known to have no selfish interest in it. We marvel at the char acter of the man whom neither personal glory nor worldly emoluments could tempt. It was six years after independence was won before a constitution was formed and a president elected (1783- 1789). This was the most critical period in the history of the new nation. The winning of American freedom was not of greater importance than the establishing of the American Union. The new republic had to form and organize an efficient government to insure the per petuity of the freedom for which they had fought. Washington was as dominant a factor in bringing this about as he was in winning the war. The Articles of Confederation originated by Benjamin Franklin in 1775, though assuming "a perpetual union" and a "firm league of friendship," remained in force thirteen years, until the Constitution was formed, but it failed utterly to bring strength or to give an efficient working basis for the new nation. It did not give Congress sufficient au thority to run the government — its great defect was its failure to supply an executive head to the nation. GEORGE WASHINGTON 221 The thirteen states were inviting disaster by nursing petty jealousies, when Washington, by the ardor of his desire and forcefulness of his will, led them to unite. He did it largely by means of private letters — a feeble instrument of today, but more effective then, when the nation was small and Washington's influence so great. Many of his fellow-citizens had been inspired by the spirit of nationality, but Washington was wholly dom inated by it. His conception was that of the states bound together into a perfect union. To him this was Ameri canism. Washington himself became an American and then made his countrymen Americans. The chaotic condition of the states was becoming more alarming with the dawn of each day. Intrigue was undermining the great work of Washington; even plots on his life were being nursed by those who could not understand the intricate and gradual processes of putting a new-born republic on a firm foundation. Stanch citizens were becoming disgusted by repeated disturbance and commotion, and were being "led by the insecurity of property, and the loss of public faith and rectitude, to consider the charms of liberty imaginary and delusive." Signs of internal revolution were loom ing up in the distant horizon like a mighty cloud that forecasts a tornado. The confederation, as Washington said, was little more than a shadow without the sub stance, for the thirteen states were in fact thirteen inde pendent sovereignties, eternally counteracting each other. 222 GEORGE WASHINGTON The seriousness of the impending crisis is evinced in a letter from Washington to James Madison, in which he said : "How melancholy is the reflection, that in so short a time we should have made such large strides towards fulfilling the predictions of our transatlantic foes : 'Leave them to themselves, and their government will soon dis solve.' Will not the wise and good strive hard to avert this calamity? What stronger evidence can be given of the want of energy in our government than these dis orders ? If there is not power in it to check them, what security has a man for life, liberty or property? To you, I am sure, I need not add aught on the subject. The consequences of a lax or inefficient government are too obvious to be dwelt upon. Thirteen sovereignties pulling against each other, and all tugging at the federal head, will soon bring ruin on the whole; whereas, a lib eral and energetic constitution, well checked and well watched, to prevent encroachments, might restore us to that degree of respectability and consequence to which we had the fairest prospect of attaining." Washington sounded the keynote when he proposed in this communication a "liberal and energetic constitu tion." On May ninth, 1788, he set out from Mount Vernon to attend the Convention at Philadelphia, but it was not until May twenty-fifth that a quorum was finally assembled. Washington was unanimously called to the chair as President of the Convention. The sessions were GEORGE WASHINGTON 223 secret, and from four to seven hours each day were assiduously devoted to the consideration of the many and voluminous propositions brought forward as constituent principles of the new government to be established. But no progress was evident. As he sat in the Convention listening to the quibbling, the vacillation, even the manifest fear of some of the members to do what they knew was right, forseeing no definite decision, he rose from the chair and made a brief and effective speech. He said: "It is too probable that no plan will be adopted. Perhaps another dreadful con flict is to be sustained. If, to please the people, we offer what we ourselves disapprove, how can we afterwards defend our work? Let us raise the standard to which the wise and honest can repair ; the event is in the hands of God." These telling words sank deep into their hearts, and the Constitution was soon agreed upon. When it finally passed, the aged Franklin pointed to the picture of the half-sun on the back of Washington's chair above the head of the presiding officer, and said: "I have looked at that picture for four months and could not decide whether it represented a rising or set ting sun. This Convention has answered the question. It is a rising sun." Gladstone, England's "Grand Old Man," said: "As the British Constitution is the most subtle organism which has proceeded from progressive history, so the American Constitution is the most wonderful work ever 224 GEORGE WASHINGTON struck off at the given time by the brain and purpose of man." The Constitution was forwarded to Congress, thence transmitted to the several states for ratification. It met with vehement opposition in many quarters. Only three states, New Jersey, Delaware and Georgia, accepted it at once, and unanimously. Conflicting opinions were expressed in debate and in the press. Some states feared the Constitution would have too little control over the individual states; others believed it too strong for their separate independence. But the storm of diverse criti cism at length subsided and one state after another agreed to its adoption, thereby laying a lasting founda tion for American tranquillity and happiness. "Long live George Washington, President of the United States!" cried Livingston to the people on that 30th day of April, 1789, when Washington, in the pres ence of a great concourse of people, standing in front of the Federal Hall in Wall Street, New York City, solemnly took the oath of office as first President of the United States. A great shout went up for the man who, famous for self-mastery, stood before them profoundly and visibly moved; — speechless. He shrank from accept ing the office of President of the new nation, doubtful of his ability as an executive, infinitely preferring to con tinue his calm life in Virginia. He had said : "I'd rather be on my farm than emperor of the world." But the whole country turned to him, duty called, and he obeyed; GEORGE WASHINGTON 225 that obedience meant to Washington tasks more difficult than those of war. It meant the organization of a nation of peace, which should have for its aim the maintenance of peace. Washington considered himself a general, not a states man; a warrior, not an administrator. But he deter mined to master his new duties as an executive with a calm thoroughness of purpose which seemed at once to pass into the administration of the government. There was not only a government to be created, but a definite body of opinion also, which should sustain and perfect it. This government, as Washington said, must be mixed with firmness, prudence and consideration if it would win lasting loyalty as well as respect. The dig nity of the government had come into Washington's keeping with his office and no one could better sustain it. Never haughty, never servile, profiting from the example of the correct Lord Fairfax, who had visited at every court and absorbed its etiquette, Washington established the office once for all with a dignity that gained the respect of the world. He first made himself familiar with governmental proc esses, then established himself firmly as master, choos ing his aids with keen discrimination. He selected a cabinet which in its aggregate ability has never been sur passed: Alexander Hamilton, Thomas Jefferson, Henry Knox and Edmund Randolph. Here we see the mag nanimity as well as perspicuity of the man who neither 226 GEORGE WASHINGTON sought nor occupied a lonely eminence of unshared glory. "He was not of the jealous type of those who "Bear, like the Turk, no brother near the throne" — nor of the temper of George III, "who chose ministers for their vacuous compliancy." He sought the fittest in the men whom he chose as counselors. Van Dyke says of him: "He stands in history not as a lonely pinnacle like Mount Shasta, elevated above the plain by 'drastic lift of pent volcanic fires,' but as the central summit of a mountain range, with all his noble fellowship of kin dred peaks about him, enhancing his unquestioned supremacy by their glorious neighborhood and their great support." At the end of his second term as president, after over twenty years of strenuous public service, Washington again returned with Mrs. Washington to Mount Vernon. Almost three years were spent in the tranquil enjoyment of rural life before his death on December fourteenth, 1799. During these years he resumed the duties of a citizen. He served on a grand jury and on petit juries, and invariably voted on election days. Washington served and achieved in a larger degree than any man of his time. He was an unusual patriot — he was big — he was unselfishly great. He is today a colossal figure in America and in the world. He yearned for the best for every nation and for the individual of every nation. He loved freedom, not only for his own nation, but for all nations. Heroes and statesmen of the GEORGE WASHINGTON 227 past had conceived and brought forth republics, but through personal ambitions or defective construction they soon perished. But the structure which Washington created and guided for so many years has become the world's most powerful nation. In service and achievement, he stands at the pinnacle of greatness. The richest heritage left by George Wash ington to the world was a pattern of Citizenship and a model of Patriotism unexcelled in all history. WASHINGTON IN PRAYER AT VALLEY FORGE TEN COMMANDMENTS OF PATRIOTISM Ten Commandments of Patriotism Rabbi Eichler gives the following "Ten Command ments of Patriotism": I. Love thy country, which has redeemed thee from tyranny and bondage. 2. Thou shalt not worship any political idols, nor bow down to them, nor serve them; for their iniquity will be visited on thee and thy children until the third and fourth generation. 3. Thou shalt not take the name of patriotism in vain, nor use it to hide thy selfish motive. 4. Remember the day of election, to keep it holy. 5. Honor the sanctity of the ballot that the days of the Republic may be prolonged. 6. Thou shalt not kill the spirit of freedom by neg lecting to exercise the prerogatives of a freeman. 7. Thou shalt not adulterate the purity of civic life by entering politics for gain. 8. Thou shalt not encourage public servants to steal by thy indifference. 9. Thou shalt not let greed for political reward bear false witness against the spirit of patriotism. 10. Thou shalt not covet a public office which thou art not fit to fill. The original Decalogue speaks of "the land which the Lord thy God giveth thee." It thus lifts patriotism up to the Highest. Teachers and students of patriotism and good citizenship need not hesitate to relate their lesson to the deepest and most reverent faiths of the human heart. Under such a conception, duties per formed conscientiously toward the nation are a part of the service of the great God. 231 ROBERT E. LEE ROBERT E. LEE ROBERT E. LEE* THE CHIVALROUS SOUTHERN HERO 1807 — 1870 Robert E. Lee loved his native state, Virginia, with a devotion equal to that of Bismarck for Prussia. When called upon to defend her, he answered the call and un sheathed his sword in her behalf. Duty was the impel ling power in the life of Lee. He wrote to his son : "Duty is the sublimest word in our language," and he felt that his first and most sacred duty was. loyalty to his state. Lincoln and Lee were both patriots. Lee interpreted his patriotic duty to be first to his state, while Lincoln in terpreted his first and most sacred duty to be that of serv ing his nation. General Henry Lee, the father of Robert, was a valiant Revolutionary soldier, an impassioned patriot, a classic scholar, and a thrilling orator. He was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence; also Gov ernor of Virginia. He was impetuous and hot-headed, had many warm friends and bitter enemies. It is said that once when ill, he became angry at his negro servant and threw his boot at her. She threw it back at him, and thus won his admiration. His son Robert flung no boots nor had any flung at him. Henry Lee was the beloved friend of Patrick Henry, Nathaniel * Text-Book Edition. 235 236 ROBERT E. LEE, Green and George Washington, who affectionately called him "Light Horse Harry." Lee and Washington were wealthy farmers and neighbors. Lee's wife was Ann Hall Carter. It is said that Robert Lee owed his great ness to his father's blood and his goodness to that of his mother. Perhaps because Robert E. Lee camp to greatness so late in life, little is known of his early training. At eight een he entered West Point, where he stood high in his classes. His conduct was irreproachable. His temper ance and self-control in moral matters are doubly credi table, when we read the statement made by Colonel Thay er, superintendent of West Point at that time, to Presi dent Adams, as to the drunkenness and dissipation gen erally prevalent among the young cadets. A distaste for profanity existed in Lee throughout his life. A conver sation between him and General Wise is often quoted. Wise had damned an intruding civilian out of camp. Lee dined with him later and suggested that they walk into the garden. Lee began : "Wise, you know as well as I do what the army regulations say about profanity. As an old friend, let me ask you if that dreadful habit can not be broken ?" Wise, seeing that he was due a sermon, replied : "Now, I am perfectly willing that you and Jack son shall do the praying for the whole army of Northern Virginia, but in Heaven's name, let me do the cussin* for one small brigade." Immediately after his graduation from West Point he ROBERT E. LEE 237 received an appointment in the Engineer Corps, and was stationed for some years at Old Point Comfort. It was during this time that he met the great-granddaughter of Martha Washington — Mary Lee Custis— whom he mar ried at Arlington in June of 1831, and through whom, several years later, he came into control of extensive property, including farms, mansions and a number of slaves. Lee followed his profession of military engineer until the outbreak of the Mexican War. He rose from cap tain, in which rank he served in the battle of Buena Vista, to colonel at Chapultepec. From the beginning to the end of the war he displayed energy, daring and resource, and won for himself the distinction of being a great general. During the years of violent controversy which pre ceded the secession of the South, he attended quietly to his military duties. But the realization that sooner or later he would be forced to choose one party or the other and actively defend its principles was a heavy burden upon his mind. Neither party satisfied him, for each seemed inconsiderate of the rights and feelings of the other. In December, 1859, he wrote: "Feeling the ag gression of the North, resenting their denial of the equal rights of our citizens to the common territory of the Commonwealth, I am not pleased with the course of the 'Cotton States,' as they term themselves. In addition to their selfish, dictatorial bearing, the threats they throw 238 ROBERT E. LEE out against the 'Border States,' as they call them, if they will not join them, argues little for the benefit of peace of Virginia, should she determine to coalesce with them. While I wish to do what is right, I am unwilling to do what is wrong at the bidding of the South or of the North." At that time many able men of the North advocated the right of secession and the peaceable separation of the two sections. Wendell Phillips — an ardent anti-slavist — said: "Here are a series of states girding the gulf who think their peculiarisms require a separate government. They have a right to decide that question without ap pealing to me or you." The New York Tribune advo cated the reconstruction of the Union with New England left out. Horace Greeley wrote: "If the cotton states choose to form an independent nation, they have a clear right to do so." Many Americans believed that no state should be coerced by the government at Washington. After the election of Lincoln came the first intimation that a seced ing state might be coerced back into the Union. It was a bold, startling stroke, new to the country. It elicited from Horace Greeley the vigorous declaration, "Soldiers marching into the South for any such unholy purpose would be fired upon in the rear by Northern men who believe in the sacred right of secession." Secession was the vital question of the Civil War; slavery was secondary and today the North and the South ROBERT E. LEE 239 rejoice equally that these two colossal issues were settled forever. Lee said when he was asked whether the issue of the war would perpetuate the institution of slavery, "The future is in the hands of Providence. If the slaves of the South were mine, I would surrender them all without a struggle to avert this war." The bombardment of Fort Sumter opened the Civil War. Lincoln called upon the states of the Union for 75,000 troops of their militia. At the urgent recommen dation of General Winfield Scott, who said, "Robert E. Lee is the greatest soldier now living," President Lincoln offered Lee the command of the United States army. The secession of Virginia two days later gave Lee to the South. After an agonizing mental struggle, he refused the honor proffered by the President. The difficulties of decision placed him in a position involving a profounder moral struggle than can be realized. For thirty years he had served under the Stars and Stripes. Honor, advance ment, profit were assured should he remain with the United States. Should he choose to go with the South, what would come to him no one could tell. Mrs. Lee relates of his mental strife : "The night his letter of resignation was to be written, he asked to be left alone for a time, and while he paced the chamber above and was heard frequently to fall upon his knees and engage in prayer for divine guidance, I waited and watched and prayed below. At last he came 240 ROBERT E. LEE down, calm, collected, almost cheerful, and said, 'Well, Mary, the question is settled. Here is my letter of resig nation and a letter I have written to General Scott' " Lee had settled the question once and for all and in all his correspondence or conversation there is nothing to in dicate regret. Said he : "Trusting in God, an approving conscience, and the aid of my fellow citizens, I accept the command of the armies of Virginia." He afterwards wrote: "I declined the offer made me to take command of the army, — stating as candidly and courageously as I could, that, though opposed to secession and deprecating war, I could take no part in an invasion of the Southern States." Later he was put in command of the military forces of Virginia. General Lee was then in the prime of his splendid phys ical and mental manhood. He was six feet tall, strong, supple, and in perfect health. His mustache was dark and heavy, and his hair was as yet scarcely touched by the frost which whitened it before the end of the year. His military bearing said to all, Here is a master, a Sir Galahad, "Whose strength was as the strength of ten, Because his heart was pure." Lee understood at once the burdens and responsibil ities of the Southern Confederacy, which had just been formed out of the states of Virginia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Louisiana and Mis sissippi with Jefferson Davis as President and Stephen ROBERT E. LEE 241 'A. Douglas as Vice-President, tee's active participation .with the army of northern Virginia began in the spring of 1862. General Joseph E. Johnston and General G. W. Smith outranked him, until the one was wounded and the other became ill. On June first, 1862, he was put in gen eral command of the southern army by Jefferson Davis and his cabinet. The hand of & master strategist was at once revealed. Eee forthwith sent the following astounding order to Thomas J. Jackson ("Stonewall") : "Leave your en feebled troops to watch the country and guard the passes, and with your main body move rapidly to Ashland by rail or otherwise, and sweep down between the Chickahominy and Pamunkey, cutting off the enemy's communications, while this army attacks McClellan in front." It was a bold, pugnacious, inspiriting stroke. It meant fighting and scientific military maneuvering. It thrilled the South and the Confederate army and delighted the combative Jackson. Jackson was repeatedly given charge of Lee's most delicate and difficult strategies. It was when he met the Union forces on the field of Bull Run, that by his pugnacious resistance at the critical moment in the battle he won the sobriquet "Stonewall." In the thick of the fight ait under-officer asked, "Where is General Jack- aon r* "Tber© he stands like a stone wall.* Jackson and fohnstm had fought with Bee In tfie Mexican War and when Virginia seceded, the three with fidelity to state as tSeir ruling passion, cast their lot with the South— 'John- 242 ROBERT E. LEE ston resigning a high commission in the United States Army. "Stonewall" Jackson and Joseph E. Johnston personified the typical Virginia gentleman. They were chivalrous, devout, fearless, magnanimous, conscientious — characteristics embodied in the typical Southerner of the old school. Lee understood that McClellan's tactics involved a slow, gradual approach upon Richmond. He promptly forestalled this possible danger by erecting impregnable works about the city. At the same time he took the offensive against McClellan and drove him back in the terrible battle of Gaines' Mill. He did not succeed in capturing the Federal army, for the Union forces -held Malvern Hill against the fierce onslaughts of the Con federates and reached their gunboats on the James River in safety. In this battle Lee wielded and controlled his tremen dous forces as complacently and easily as the engineer on a locomotive manipulates his levers. Time and again he checkmated the movements of the Union command ers — McClellan, Burnside, Pope and Hooker. He un derstood them all and in nearly every case anticipates their plans and purposes. His fame as a great military genius and far-seeing strategist may be traced to his in sight into the motives and purposes of his several and dissimilar antagonists, as well as to his quick initiative and tenacious pugnacity. Scarcely three months had elapsed after Lee assumed ROBERT E. LEE 243 command until the way seemed open and the time op portune for the invasion of Maryland. When, by a strange mishap, his plans fell into the hands of McClel lan, he quickly changed them. With forty thousand men he met McClellan, who had eighty-seven thousand men, in one of the bloodiest engagements ever fought on this continent — the battle of Antietam. Lee's intrepidity saved him. His men sank down to rest at nightfall on the line of battle, so exhausted that they could not be awakened to eat their rations. The officers, faint with hunger and sickened with the awful slaughter, looked forward with apprehension to the morrow, but from one indomitable heart the hope of victory had not vanished. When Lee called his officers before him, each advised immediate re treat across the Potomac. After Jackson, Longstreet and other officers had given their opinions, there was an appal ling silence. Lee, rising erect in his stirrups, said : "Gentle men, we will not cross the Potomac tonight. If McClel lan wants to fight in the morning, I will give him battle." All the next day Lee watched and waited, but McClellan did not accept the challenge and Lee recrossed into Vir ginia unmolested. President Lincoln, astute and pene trating, afterwards asked McClellan what the outcome at Antietam would have been could the North and South have exchanged generals. A number of prominent leaders of the South, who did not like Jefferson Davis, visited Lee at his camp early in 1863, and urged him to consider the proposition of sue- 244 ROBERT E. LEE ceeding Davis as President of the Confederacy. "Never," Lee replied. "That, gentlemen, I will never permit. Whatever talents I may possess are military. I think the military and civil talents are distinct. I shall not do the people the injustice to accept high civil office,, with whose questions it has not been my business to become familiar." "But, General Lee, history does not sustain your view. Caesar and Frederick of Prussia and Bonaparte were great statesmen as well as great generals." — "And great ty rants," Lee promptly replied. "But Washington was both and yet not a tyrant." Lee replied, "Washington was an exception to all rules." Notwithstanding the loss of his ablest lieutenant — "Stonewall" Jackson — Lee dauntlessly determined upon his second invasion of northern territory. This was the greatest military move in his career and culminated in the three days' holocaust at Gettysburg. Lee's broad comprehension discerned the immediate necessity of striking a quick, terrible blow in defense of Richmond. In the Far West, Grant was tenaciously be leaguering Vicksburg, where he was destined to win, even as he had won at Fort Donelson and at Shiloh. General Lee's outlines of his campaigns were intense mental visions and his visions were not mere dreams. Each sally was a mathematical problem. Whether ad vancing or retreating, it conformed to the art and science of the civil engineer, and he was ever alert to alter and revamp his plans. No warrior, not even Napoleon, pos- ROBERT E. LEE 245 sessed a more vivid imagination or concise knowledge of military tactics. The Gettysburg compaign was thor oughly matured, but his orders were instantaneously mod ified or wholly changed as the exigencies of the march or battlefield required. The invasion has been characterized as "splendid audac ity," but Lee's audacity was justified by his confidence in his own ability, and in the steadfast courage and in trepid valor of his army, which had been tried many times in the fiery furnace. Charles Francis Adams, a conspicuous Northerner, said : "I do not believe that any more formidable or better organization and animated force was ever set in motion than that which Lee led across the Potomac in the early summer of 1863. It was essentially an army of fighters." The campaign was planned with consummate skill and pursued with keen strategy and daring. Critics agree that its failure may be attributed to a lack of dependable support at a critical moment on the part of his generals — chiefly J. E. B. Stuart and "Old War Horse" (Long- street). We are not so much concerned here with the details of the conflict at Gettysburg as with the man whose tre mendous genius occasioned it. This battle, the greatest ever fought on American soil, was conducted by a man who was pre-eminently a lover of peace. Lee became in volved in the struggle of his nation when it was rocked to its foundation with civil strife. When summoned to 246 ROBERT E. LEE the harsh rude work of the warrior, he had no lust for battle. On the eve of the invasion of the North, he wrote to his wife: "The country here looks very green and pretty, notwithstanding the ravages of war. What a beautiful world God in His loving kindness to his crea tures has given us. What a shame that men endowed with reason and knowledge of right should mar His gifts." When the battle of Gettysburg was over and while the squadrons yet waited wearily for orders, the commander, disconsolate and with a great pity in his heart, stood by his noble gray horse — "Traveler" — with the bridle rein over his arm — a figure as pathetic as that of King David after the flight from Jerusalem — when General Pickett came up and said: "General, my noble division has been swept away." The great chieftain replied : "It was all my fault, all my fault!" But his depression passed quickly, and he said with decision : "We must go back to Virginia." The order was issued, but for twenty- four hours Lee's army remained in position on the field of Gettysburg, and was not attacked. The retreat was conducted as skillfully and deliberate ly as the invasion itself. The zeal of the battle was un abated in the General and his men. Meade was too wary to attack the retreating lion. When Lee reached the Potomac, he found the river a seething flood, and camped on its banks for ten days, undisturbed by attack from Meade. ROBERT E. LEE 247 Generously and magnanimously Lee assumed the whole responsibility for the tragedy at Gettysburg. He had no word of censure for the generals who had failed him at the critical moment, though his declaration that he would have won at Gettysburg had "Stonewall" Jackson lived, expressed the sentiment of the entire South. His sin cerity in assuming the responsibility for the Gettysburg defeat was proved by an immediate offer to resign his command. The following letter written to Jefferson Davis reveals his unselfish spirit : "Camp Orange, August 8, 1863. "Mr. President : "I am extremely obliged to you for the attention given to the wants of the army and the efforts made to supply them. Our absentees are returning, and I hope the earnest and beautiful appeal made to the country in your procla mation may stir up the whole people, and that they may see their duty and perform it. Nothing is wanted but that their fortitude should equal their bravery to insure the success of our cause. We must expect reverses, even de feats. . . . The general remedy for want of success in a military commander is his removal. . . . "I have been prompted by these reflections more than once since my return from Pennsylvania to propose to your Excellency the propriety of selecting another com mander for the army. I have seen and heard expressions of discontent in the public journals as the result of the expedition. I do not know how far this feeling extends to the army. My brother officers have been too kind to report it and so far the troops have been too generous 248 ROBERT E. LEE to exhibit it. But it is fair, however, to suppose that it exists, and success is so necessary to us that nothing should be left undone to secure it. . . . "Everything, therefore, points to the advantage to be (derived from a new commander, and I the more anxious ly urge the matter upon your Excellency from my belief that a younger and abler man than myself can be read ily obtained. I know he will have as gallant and brave an army as ever existed to second his efforts, and it would be the happiest day of my life to see at its head a worthy leader— one that would accomplish more than I can per form, and all that I have wished. . . . "Very respectfully and truly yours, "R. E. Lee. "General." In Mr. Davis' reply occurs this sentence : "To ask me to substitute for you some one, in my judgment, more fit to command, or who would possess more the confidence of the army, or of the reflecting men of the country, is to demand an impossibility." At this time President Lincoln arrived at the conclusion that Lee's army rather than Richmond was the necessary objective. He realized that the South could never be subdued, while Lee was in the field. Lee said at Gettys burg : "There is the enemy. I will whip him or he will whip me." Lincoln said : "There is Lee. We must de stroy him or he will destroy us." Perhaps Lincoln did not know that Lee was utterly helpless to project another invasion ; he did not know that his soldiers were hungry, ROBERT E. LEE 249 barefooted, and physically exhausted. Perhaps he did not realize that General Lee himself had many meals of cab bage alone and joked with his soldiers about borrowing a piece of bacon when he entertained guests. But the Presi dent did know that Meade was incapable of defeating Lee. He removed him and put in his place the fighter from Missouri — U. S. Grant — who coincided with Lin coln and made Lee's army his true objective, and not Richmond. These two men had not met in battle until now. Grant perceived immediately that no generalship could prevail against Lee — the master of strategy. He determined upon a new policy of giving two men for one, or three for one, if necessary four for one. Only by continual hammering could he destroy Lee and subdue the South. Knowing his ability to continue these tactics indefinitely, he began with the battle of the "Wilderness," and fol lowed with what was known as the "Overland Cam paign." With acute military foresight, Lee anticipated move after move made by Grant. Many military experts accord to Lee greater genius in the science of warfare than the hero of Appomattox. He met every move made by his able antagonist with the tactics of a Napoleon. After Grant had been for six days in a deadly grapple with Lee at the battles of the Wilderness and Spottsyl- vania, he sent to Washington his famous dispatch: "I propose to fight it out on this line if it takes all summer." This was on May eleventh, 1864. The battle of Spott- 250 ROBERT E. LEE sylvania was resumed and concluded the next day, after twenty-four hours of dreadful fighting, chiefly at the "Angle of Death — one hideous Golgotha," yet with no marked advantages to Grant. His next purpose was to place himself between Lee and Richmond, but Lee again anticipated his skillful foe, and quickly transferred his army from the rear to the front of the northern army. It was one of the most brilliant movements in the annals of warfare. When Grant's leading column under Han cock arrived at North Anna, Lee was entrenched across the path. Finally, in this strategic race, Grant found Lee posted at Hanover Court House — the fourth time since Spottsylvania that Lee had thwarted his plans. Grant spent many anxious, uneasy hours seeking to outmaneuver his opponent, and was balked time and again. At Cold Harbor, Grant's gallant army of the Potomac was sent repeatedly against Lee's steadfast lines, and was as often thrown back. Flesh and blood could stand no more. Again Grant ordered the army to move forward. It quailed and lay still, immovable — a silent but unanimous disobedience. This was Grant's most disastrous and distressing experience and he suf fered the deepest apprehensions that ever stirred his soul. Lee won victory after victory, although confronted by vastly superior forces. Every victory was followed by a retreat, until the last days of the struggle occurred in the siege of Petersburg and Richmond — a campaign which, to quote Jefferson Davis, "was too sad to be pa- ROBERT E. LEE 251 tiently considered." Lee's lines grew steadily thinner under the wasting of battle, famine and sickness, while Grant's lines were as constantly refilled. Grant's policy of "hammering" — his own expression — continued with unabating tenacity; steadily, unremittingly the attrition went on. Lee rose to grander heights of strategy as the situation grew more desperate. He sent General Early with a detachment to threaten Washington, but this skillful maneuver only delayed the fateful day. "Valor may be indefinite, but endurance has its limitations!" On the last day of the defense of Richmond, Lee was unshaken and undismayed. His veterans, a mere hand ful of spectres, abandoned the trenches, fully believing their leader was now to lure Grant to his destruction. "In the two weeks between Lee's desperate effort to break Grant's right, and their personal meeting at Appomattox, where Lee's surrender took place, both Lee and Grant reached their zenith. In Lee every high quality which had enabled him to carry the Confederacy on his shoulders for more than two years shone forth. In Grant noble and hitherto unsuspected qualities dis covered themselves." Up to this time both North and South had looked upon Grant as a sort of reincarnation of some pagan warrior from the ruthless dark ages, Now, in the presence of his great antagonist, his mag nanimity in the hour of victory equalled his implacable sternness and terrible onslaught and efficiency on the field of battle. 252 ROBERT E. LEE "You will take with you," said Lee, in his farewell address to his veterans, "the satisfaction that proceeds from the consciousness of duty faithfully performed." Ever, ever the word duty. As Lee turned from Ap pomattox and rode away, he contemplated, without dis may, the obscurity which defeated greatness covets. Without a trace of rancor, he returned to his home in Richmond. He dismounted from his faithful horse and patted the neck of the noble animal affectionately. As he entered his yard, his dog was the first to recognize him, Richmond rejoiced as if a conquering hero had entered her gates. His first recorded words after reaching his home was a tribute to his victorious opponent : "General Grant has acted with magnanimity." Lee's agony will never be known. In his last con ference with his officers, he said at its conclusion : "I must see Grant. I would rather die a thousand deaths than to surrender this army." If Lee suffered so acutely at that hour of humiliation, what must have been his agony of spirit in the days of delirium that followed the assas sination of Lincoln? What must he have endured dur ing the years of reconstruction, when cupidity and un- soldierly fanaticism wreaked so terrible a vengeance upon the South ? But he went through it all with the patience and poise of a loyal American patriot, ever admonishing and advising his people to be good citizens and to bear their misfortunes uncomplainingly. Grand juries sought to indict him, and a Congres- ROBERT E. LEE 253 sional Committee summoned him to appear in Washing ton. There he was harassed with impertinent questions, but not for one moment was his splendid equipoise dis turbed. He stood before Congress one of the greatest moral heroes of history, a man of such dignity and nobility that Congress was deeply moved. Lee declared that as the decision of the war had been against the South, it was, in his opinion, "the part of wisdom to acquiesce in the result, and of candor to rec ognize the fact." Said he: "I have invariably recom mended this course since the cessation of hostilities, and have endeavored to prattise it myself." He lived to re joice that the Union was preserved, and today the men who followed Lee are vying with the men who followed Grant in loyal devotion to the Union and to our country's flag. To his old soldiers who had not been able to secure employment and who were somewhat embittered, Lee wrote: "I am sorry to hear that our returned soldiers cannot obtain employment. Tell them they must all set to work and if they cannot do what they prefer, do what they can. Virginia wants all her sons to sustain and recuperate her. . . . Don't bring up your sons to detest the United States Government. Recollect that we form one country now. Abandon all local animosities and make your sons Americans!" During the war the devoted loyalty of the southern army to its commander had become something akin to 254 ROBERT E. LEE worship. He had shielded them and protected them when they were poorly clothed and fed, and often delayed bat tles that they might rest on the Sabbath and hear words of comfort and cheer from their chaplains. Such con sideration could come only from a commander who loved his army as if they were his children. And General Lee never forgot his old comrades. In 1869, he said to a confederate officer, who was touring the South, "You will meet many of my old soldiers during your trip; I wish you to tell them that I often think of them, try every day to pray for them, and am always gratified to hear of their prosperity." Many business positions of high trust and dignity were pressed upon General Lee after his surrender. He was solicited to become president of an insurance company at an annual salary of $50,000. He declined the offer on the grounds that he was not familiar with that kind of work. "But, General," said the gentleman who repre sented the company, "you will not be expected to do any work; what we desire is the use of your name." Lee replied that "his name was not for sale." Thomas Nelson Page, in referring to this incident, said : "Amid the commercialism of the present age, this sounds as refreshing as the oath of a Knight of the Round Table." After refusing the highest official position within the gift of Virginia, he was persuaded to accept the Presi dency of Washington College at Lexington. In accepting ROBERT E. LEE 255 this office, he wrote, "I have led the young men of the South in battle ; I have seen many of them die on the field ; I shall devote my remaining energies to training young men to do their duty in life." At that time the college consisted of four professors and forty students. Lee's great name brought many stu dents, and the college was renamed Washington and Lee University. Lee died on the morning of October twelfth, 1870 — - five years after his surrender. U. S. Grant was not a truer, more consistent and loyal American during this time than was the man who handed him his sword at Appomattox. The love and esteem in which the State of Virginia holds Robert E. Lee was shown when she selected her two favorite sons to represent her in Statuary Hall in the Capitol at Washington. A long list of great Virginians were considered, among whom were James Madison, James Monroe, Thomas Marshall, Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson. But the final vote of the Legislature unanimously selected George Washington and Robert E. Lee. The growing respect and admiration of Robert E. Lee by the North, as well as the South, is evidenced by the recent erection of a heroic statue of Lee on the battlefield of Gettysburg. The President of the United States delivered the dedication address on the occasion of its unveiling. 256 ROBERT E. LEE Goodness and bravery, leadership and generalship, citizenship and patriotism, purity and devoutness were sanctified and hallowed by the greatness of spirit, nobility of soul and unpretentious modesty of the favorite and greatest hero of the South — Robert E. Lee. THOMAS JEFFERSON THOMAS JEFFERSON THOMAS JEFFERSON* THE FATHER OF DEMOCRACY 1743— 1826 Thomas Jefferson has given to the world more broad! principles of government than any other American. His articles of governmental faith were: the sover eignty of the people, local self-government, freedom of speech, political equality, compulsory education, separa tion of church and state, emancipation of slaves. All of which have been incorporated into the United States Government. His father, Peter Jefferson, was a Welshman of edu cation and culture, and a member of the House of Bur gesses. His mother, Jane Randolph, was a prominent colonial dame. Thomas was the eldest of eight children. He was born on a plantation in Albemarle County, Virginia, on April 2, 1743. He was a bright and healthy boy with large feet and hands, red hair, freckled skin, hazel-gray eyes, prom inent cheek-bones, and a heavy chin. He grew to be a strong and active youth six feet two and one-half inches tall — devoted to riding, hunting and fishing. His great physical strength was the outcome of untiring energy and industry. Although there were over a hundred slaves on the estate, he abhorred the attentions of servants. * Text-Book Edition. 259 26o THOMAS JEFFERSON Between the ages of five and seventeen, he attended five different preparatory schools in Virginia — each of them conducted by ministers of strong minds and morals. Their influence upon the boy was very pronounced, and young Jefferson kept a clean record during a time when the morals of the aristocratic circle were lax. At seventeen he entered William and Mary College — the oldest and best institution of learning in the colonies. With a negro servant, he made a journey of five days on horseback to Williamsburg. He had a gift for making friends, which made him universally beloved in the col lege. This grace had a continuous and profound effect upon his life. Dr. William Small, a Scotch minister, who was pro fessor of mathematics, became greatly attached to the young Virginian. Jefferson himself said that Dr. Small probably fixed the destinies of his life. Francis Fauquier, governor of the colony, and George Wythe, leader of the Williamsburg bar, were his friends and advisers. These men met socially two or three times a week at the home of Doctor Small, where Jefferson heard their brilliant conversation and discussions, which were most instruc tive and inspiring. He was unconsciously preparing himself to become a peer of such men as John Marshall, James Madison, James Monroe and Patrick Henry — and later in life was instrumental in making two of them President of the United States. His father, who died when Thomas was fourteen years THOMAS JEFFERSON 261 old, was a leader in all public enterprises, and his worthy son, upon reaching his majority, recognized and assumed the responsibilities of citizenship with such credit that he was considered one of the most public-spirited and promising young men in the state. After two years of college work he read law in the office of George Wythe, where, it is said, he studied fif teen hours daily. He was an indefatigable worker, pos sessing an unusual capacity for insistent application. Yet he was not without diversion, "For there were cakes and ale in those days, young girls and dancing at the Raleigh tavern, cards and horses; and the young Virginian had his full share of all these things." He was admitted to the bar on his twenty-fourth birth day and practised law with great success. In his auto biography he states that during his first year as a lawyer he was employed in sixty-eight cases, which yielded him an income of some $1,500. He was employed in a num ber of cases with and against Patrick Henry. But Henry had the coveted gift of eloquence — which in Jefferson was conspicuous by its absence. Much to his humiliation and regret, he was never able to develop the art of ora tory, because of an impediment in his speech and an incurable irregularity of his vocal chords. This fact led Jefferson to write his messages to Congress, instead of delivering them. Thus he began the custom of the writ ten presidential message to Congress, which has been followed by his successors until President Wilson broke 262 THOMAS JEFFERSON the precedent of over a hundred years when he delivered in person his first message to Congress. Although Jef ferson failed as an orator, he excelled as an author. His writings were voluminous and so brilliant that his views upon public questions have been alphabetically arranged in an encyclopedia. On January first, 1772, Jefferson was married to the young widow of Bathurst Skelton. His bride was a beautiful woman, possessing accomplishments that aided him materially in his life work. Jefferson was enjoy ing such an extensive law practice that the large estate inherited from his father was a minor source of his in come. His wife was the daughter of John Wayles, an eminent lawyer at the Williamsburg bar. He had been associated with Jefferson in his profession, and was de voted to his brilliant young son-in-law. He was a man of wealth and at his death, one year later, bequeathed his entire estate to Jefferson. At this time Jefferson wrote: "The fortune which came to me from John Wayles' estate, after the debts were paid, was about equal to my own patrimony and consequently doubled the ease of our circumstances." In 1769 Jefferson had been sent by Albemarle County as a member of the House of Burgesses — an honor held by his father before him. This was his first public office, and was the initial step in his career as a statesman. A few years before he had heard Patrick Henry deliver his famous oration against the Stamp Act, and from him THOMAS JEFFERSON 263 he imbibed the spirit of revolution. He was by nature a bold and fearless thinker and on becoming a member of the House of Burgesses immediately joined the fac tion who resented England's unjust taxation and tyran nical domination. The principle of freedom to which he held so firmly was expressed by a motto which he had engraved on a seal when a mere boy, "Resistance to tyrants is obedience to God." Jefferson became a conspicuous member of the House of Burgesses. He was one of those who signed the agree ment not to import goods from England; he helped to establish, and became a member of, the Committee of Correspondence between Virginia and the other colonies ; he was among those who voted for a day of fasting and prayer, because of the oppressive measures passed by Eng land against Boston. In 1774 the first extra-legal assembly met in Virginia to consider the state of the colony. Jefferson, although' a delegate, was unable to attend, but his revolutionary influence was felt through a document called "The Sum mary View of the Rights of British America," written by him as a series of instructions to the Virginia delegates of the First Continental Congress. Jefferson himself became a member of the Second Con tinental Congress. He was only 32 years old, but his personality had already promulgated itself into such bold advocacy of independence that he was placed upon im- 264 THOMAS JEFFERSON portant committees and recognized as a coming states man. In the spring of 1776, Richard Henry Lee (often called the American Cicero), instructed by the Virginia convention, moved that a Declaration of Independence be adopted, declaring the United Colonies as free and independent States. In accordance with the motion a committee was elected by ballot to draft the immortal document, which stands in the history of the world as the most revolutionary paper ever written. Thomas Jef ferson received the highest number of votes and was made chairman of the committee. Such men as John Adams, Benjamin Franklin, Robert R. Livingston and Roger Sherman were members of it. On July 4, 1776, the document was unanimously adopted — practically in the form drafted by Jefferson. Only in the 20th century are we beginning to compre hend those universal truths of government "by and for the people," which Jefferson gave to the world. Hen derson says of it: "As an eloquent arraignment of tyr anny, a denunciation of oppression and an inspiration to resistance, it stands perhaps unequalled among the products of human intellect." An interesting story is told of Jefferson's eccentric devotion to his favorite violin. It had belonged to John Randolph, and the ancient instrument was long and ardently coveted by Jefferson, who had become devoted to the violin when a boy. He made many attractive THOMAS JEFFERSON 265 offers for the Stradivarius, which Randolph persistently refused to consider. It was not until August, 1775, when Randolph returned to England, that Jefferson finally suc ceeded in purchasing the instrument for 13 pounds. From that day he carried it with him continuously. It never failed to divert and inspire him when matters of state rested upon him heavily. It is said that he played it fre quently during the week he was writing the Declaration of Independence. Jefferson retired from Congress later in the same year, and in October entered the Virginia State Legislature. While the Revolutionary War was raging he rejuvenated the laws of his state and instigated beneficial reforms. During his three years' service he succeeded in breaking down the laws of primogeniture and entail, and in pass ing a law for a public educational system from the pri mary school to the university. He also instigated in numerable reforms for the final abolition of slavery, re ligious freedom, freer suffrage, etc., which, although too radical for Virginia, were one and all eventually adopted by the United States. Jefferson was as proud of this work for his State as he was of the Declaration of Independence. One can neither realize the laborious intricacies in such an undertaking nor appreciate the just application of the new Virginia statutes, without a thorough study of the political move ments of those stirring times and of the old statutes which had been full of absurdities and crudities — instruments of 266 THOMAS JEFFERSON oppression rather than justice. Jefferson explained to the legislature that his purpose was to "destroy the aris tocracy of wealth and make an opening for an aristoc racy of virtue and education." By this attitude he in curred the opposition of the aristocracy, who became his bitter enemies. During those stirring years from 1779 to 1781, Jeffer son was Governor of Virginia. His term as Governor reached an unhappy climax in the death of his wife on September 6, 1782. Edward Bacon, the superintendent of the Jefferson plantation, tells the story of Mrs. Jeffer son's death. "When Mrs. Jefferson died, Mr. Jefferson sat by her, and she gave him directions about a good many things she wanted done. When she came to the children she wept, and could not speak for some time. Finally, she held up her hand, and spreading out her four fingers she told him that she could not die happy if she thought her four children were ever to have a stepmother brought over them. Holding her other hand in his, Mr. Jefferson promised her solemnly that he would never be married again," Jefferson was only thirty-five years old, but he kept the promise. He is one of the few famous men who came unscathed through the temptations which seem to especially pursue men of conspicuous talents. His character was an ennobled example of high morals and lofty ideals. The following extracts from letters to his oldest THOMAS JEFFERSON 267 daughter, Martha, show an attentive gentleness rarely found in busy men: "Goodness is the greatest treasure of human beings. If you love me strive to be good under every situation and to all living creatures. The more you learn, the more I love you. I rest the happiness of my life on seeing you beloved by all the world, which you will sure to be if to a good heart you join the accomplishments so pleas ing in your sex." "Our dear Polly will certainly come to us this summer. She will become a precious charge on your hands. Teach her above all things to be good, because without that we can neither be valued by others nor set any value on our selves. Teach her always to be true ; no vice is so mean as the want of truth; and at the same time so useless. Teach her never to be angry; anger only serves to tor ment ourselves, to divert others, and alienate their esteem. Teach her industry and application to useful pursuits. A mind always employed is always happy. This is the true secret, the grand recipe for felicity. The idle are the only wretched." In the same year that his wife died Jefferson entered the Congress of the United States, where he established the decimal system of coinage, and devised a plan of government for the Northwest Territory. In 1785, he succeeded Benjamin Franklin as Minister to France, and through his efforts various impositions on American com merce were removed. In 1790, Washington appointed 268 THOMAS JEFFERSON him Secretary of State. Here his political views served to array him against Hamilton, who believed in a strong centralized government. Jefferson vehemently opposed the life membership of judges of the Supreme Court of the United States, the theory of a centralized government, and the plan of hav ing the President of the United States succeed him self. He was the apostle of the rights of man — making property subsidiary to humanity and not humanity sub sidiary to property. As he was Minister to France when the Constitution was adopted, he had no direct hand in its making. But he freely criticized it, especially the "omission of a bill of rights, providing clearly for freedom of religion, freedom of the press, protec tion against standing armies, restriction of monopo lies and the enforcement of the principle of rota tion in office." He resigned from the cabinet in De cember, 1793, and returned to Monticello. Here he spent four years on his vast estate of 10,647 acres. He was passionately fond of all phases of agriculture and was a systematic farmer. He spent much time in im porting and developing fruits and vegetables. His 154 slaves were taught to be cabinet makers, bricklayers, masons, smiths — in order to make them self-supporting in case they were ever made free. Jefferson's foresight was never more clearly shown than in regard to the slavery question. One hundred years before Abraham Lincoln issued the emancipa- THOMAS JEFFERSON 269 tion proclamation, Thomas Jefferson and Henry Clay made a compact while students at Williamsburg that their influence should be given to the freedom of the slaves. This boyhood agreement doubtless prevented Clay from being President of the United States. He was nominated three times for the office and defeated by Southern votes because of his pro-freedom policy. Thomas Jefferson, when elected Chairman of the Committee to revise the laws of Virginia, advocated a law freeing the slaves. His views on this question were also expressed in the Declaration of Independence, but the passage was stricken out by Congress. Although a large slave owner, his ideals of democracy and equality led him to realize that slavery must be abolished. In his notes on Virginia, he said : "I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just, and that his justice cannot sleep forever. The abolition of slavery is not impossible and ought never to be despaired of. Every plan should be advocated and every experiment tried which may do something toward the ultimate object. Nature herself has made it im possible for the two races to live happily together on unequal terms." To one who defended slavery on the theory of the intellectual superiority of the white man he said: "Whatever their degree of talent, it is no measure of their right. Because Sir Isaac Newton was superior to 270 THOMAS JEFFERSON others in understanding, he was not therefore lord of the persons or the property of others." Jefferson did, however, pass a bill without opposition forbidding further importation of slaves into the state, and in 1783, when a member of the National House of Representatives, he fathered a bill providing for the abolition of slavery "after the year 1800 of the Chris tian era." This was lost by one vote in a Congress of twenty-three members, representing ten states. Jeffer son was greatly grieved over the defeat of his bill by such a small majority and uttered these prophetic words : "We see the fate of millions unborn, hanging on the tongue of one man, and heaven was silent in that awful moment." When Washington was elected President there were no political parties. He prevailed upon Jefferson to give up his position as Minister to France and become Secre tary of State. The first four years of Washington's ad ministration were absolutely non-partisan, but during his second term, two political parties were formed — the Re publican and the Federalist. The Republican Party was founded by Jefferson, who resigned his seat in the cabinet because Washington favored the Federalist Party, which was led by Hamilton, Adams, Marshall and Jay. Washington filled his place with a Federalist. Jefferson is known as the Father of Democracy, be cause the Republican Party, which he founded one hun dred and twenty years ago, stood practically for the same THOMAS JEFFERSON 271 principles that the Democratic Party advocates today; and the Republican Party of today adheres to the same doctrines as did the Federalists in the days of Hamilton, Marshall and Adams. When Jefferson founded the new party he gave it the name "Democratic-Republican," but the party soon dropped "Democratic," as the word had been brought into disrepute by the extreme revolutionists in France, who had made their democracy a reign of terror. To Jefferson and Hamilton is due the credit of establishing the national party system in the United States, which is the basis of our state and national gov ernment today. In 1796 the Republican Party nominated Thomas Jef ferson for President, and the Federalists nominated John Adams. The campaign struggle was a bitter one. John Adams won by only three electoral votes, 71 to 68, and Jefferson was elected Vice-President. In 1800 the two parties again pitted Adams and Jefferson against each other. Jefferson won, and was re-elected again in 1804, and was largely instrumental in the election of his con fidential friend and neighbor, James Madison, to suc ceed him, who served eight years. Then Jefferson sup ported another Virginia friend to succeed Madison — James Monroe. The seat of government Had been moved from Phila delphia to Washington only six months before the inau guration of Jefferson. On the morning of MarcK % 1801, when Jefferson 272 THOMAS JEFFERSON rode up to the White House, it was only a big, square, unfinished building. The home for the Presidents of the United States, and the Capitol building were then being constructed. "Pennsylvania Avenue was then a muddy lane, and when Jefferson rode on horseback to the capi tol to be inaugurated, he rode through a miry road running across a muddy creek." In striking contrast to the stately dignity and ceremony of Washington and Adams, "Jeffersonian simplicity" pre vailed. Jefferson despised every appearance of "aris tocracy." His confidence was in the plain people, and especially the agricultural class. Although Jefferson was a strict constructionist in his interpretation of the Constitution, he had the cour age to over-reach the limits of his power in order to buy Louisiana — a step which he considered necessary to the future welfare of his country. He had been alarmed at the transfer of the Louisiana territory from Spain to France (1801) ; and feared that our Republic would have a hard struggle to retain her democratic policies and might be unduly influenced by the great monarchies of Europe — England, France, Russia and Spain — who con trolled such large colonies in America. The Louisiana purchase was made in 1803 at the small sum of fifteen million dollars. This same political sagacity caused him to advocate the purchase of Florida from Spain — but this plan was not accomplished until 16 years later. THOMAS JEFFERSON 273 The years of Jefferson's second term were clouded with the plundering of American commerce by Tripolitan pirates. The war which ensued increased our influence as a world nation. But complications arose from the Na poleonic wars. Napoleon tried to prevent trade between the United States and England. England retaliated by an attempt to cut off commercial relations between the United States and France. American vessels were seized by both France and England, and Jefferson vainly tried to meet the crisis by the Non-Importation Bill and the Embargo Act. But the New England merchants pre ferred to risk losing their ships rather than to keep them without traffic, and Congress was forced to repeal the Embargo Act. Jefferson always felt that the enforce ment of this Act would have prevented the War of 181 2 with England. Jefferson retired from the White House to spend the remaining 17 years of his life at Monticello — but his in fluence continued to guide the political destinies of the United States during the terms of Madison and Monroe. The Natural Bridge of Virginia, one of the most beauti ful and historic spots of the state, belonged to him. It was here that he planned to enjoy the country life to which he was devoted. He wrote : "I abhor cities, and consider them dangerous to the public welfare, but I love cultivators of the earth; they are the best citizens. They are the most vigorous, the UJQgt virtuous, and the best citizens. They are tied to 274 THOMAS JEFFERSON their country and wedded to its liberty and interests by the most lasting bonds." Among his many letters on file is one he wrote at the request of a friend who had named an infant son for him. He asked Jefferson to write something to be given to the boy when he became old enough to read it. It follows : "To Thomas Jefferson Smith. "This letter will, to you, be as one from the dead. The writer will be in the grave before you can weigh its coun sels. Your affectionate and excellent father has requested that I would address to you something which might pos sibly have a favorable influence upon the course of life you have to run; and I too, as a namesake, feel an in terest in that course. Few words will be necessary with good dispositions on your part. Adore God. Reverence and cherish your parents. Love your neighbor as your self, and your country more than yourself. Be just. Be true. Murmur not of the ways of Providence. So shall the life into which you have entered be the portal to one of eternal and ineffable bliss. And if to the dead it is permitted to care for the things of this world, every action of your life will be under my regard. Farewell. "Th. Jefferson. "Monticello, Feb. 21st, 1825." He became known as the "Sage of Monticello," and for half a century this country seat was the Mecca for authors, poets, politicians and statesmen. On this classic spot have perhaps been assembled more great men than in any other home in America. THOMAS JEFFERSON 275 Jefferson was tireless in his hospitality. Indeed, his entire fortune was ultimately squandered in generous en tertainment. He did not realize until too late the hope less state of his finances and bankruptcy finally forced him to sell his splendid library — "a sacrifice which none but his own family who witnessed the struggle it cost him could ever fully appreciate." The crowning event of his life was the establishment, in 1819, of the University of Virginia. A year before his death, General Lafayette paid his dis tinguished friend a short visit. A great dinner was given by Jefferson at which Madison and Monroe were present. The three ex-Presidents were gathered together under one roof. The meeting of Jefferson and Lafayette was a. most touching scene. "As Lafayette descended from the carriage, Jefferson descended from the steps of the por tico. Jefferson was feeble and tottering with age — Lafa yette permanently lamed and broken by his long confine ment in the dungeon of Olmiitz. As they approached each other, their uncertain gait quickened itself into a shuffling run, and exclaiming, 'Ah, Jefferson !' 'Ah, Lafa yette !' they burst into tears as they fell into each other's arms. Among the four hundred men who witnessed the scene, there was not a dry eye — no sound save an occa sional suppressed sob. The two old men entered the house as the crowd dispersed in profound silence." Jefferson died July 4, 1826. He requested that three inscriptions be put on his tomb : "Author of the Declara- 276 THOMAS JEFFERSON tion of Independence; of the Statue for Religious Liberty in Virginia; and Founder of the University of Virginia." The fifty years from 1776 to 1826 mark perhaps the most eventful half century of the world's history since the period that included the advent of the Messiah. This era was initiated by the Declaration of Independence. At that time practically all nations of the earth were con trolled by kings, czars, emperors, mikados, khedives or sultans — monarchs who ruled with almost absolute power. This period was one of awakening. The in dustrial and commercial revolutions and the spread of democracy wrought a profound change in the position of different classes in western countries. The serfs were freed, great opportunities were offered in the New World for economic and social equality, and political equality was gained for vast numbers of the lower classes. Thomas Jefferson saw and felt the injustice and danger of hereditary power and set about to defeat it in the New World — thus winning for himself the title "Father of Democracy." The divine right of man as opposed to the divine right of kings was his dominant doctrine. So mightily and prolifically did these principles grow after the establishment of American independence that the entire western hemisphere became inoculated with them and republic after republic was wrought out in South America. Finally the momentum of de mocracy swept across the ocean. The New World began to rumble with its echo, and kingdoms became democ- THOMAS JEFFERSON 277 ratized. So rapidly did the contagion permeate Europe that a council of kings and other monarchs was called to organize a confederation. Their object was to thwart the tidal wave of democracy that was sweeping over the world and gradually displacing autocracy. The meet ing was arranged by secret letters to the individual mon^ archs. They stated, in substance, that unless a united effort was made to destroy the influence of democracy, they would probably lose their thrones. They met in Verona on November twenty-second, 1832. This meeting resulted in what became known as the Secret Treaty of Verona or the Holy Alliance. Chief among the rulers present were: Alexander, Em peror of Russia; Frederick William, King of Prussia; Francis II, Emperor of Austria, and Louis XVIII, of France. The resolutions they passed throw a strong light upon the combined kingly powers which democracy had to meet. Following are the articles of agreement: "Article First. The high contracting powers, being convinced that the system of representative government is equally as incompatible with the monarchical principles as the maxim of the sovereignty of the people with the divine right, engage mutually in the most solemn man ner to use all their efforts to put an end to the system of representative government, in whatever country it may exist in Europe, and to prevent its being introduced in those countries where it is not yet known. "Article Two. As it cannot be doubted that the liberty 278 THOMAS JEFFERSON of the press is the most powerful means used by the pretended supporters of the rights of Nations, to the det riment of those of Princes, the high contracting parties promise reciprocally to adopt all proper measures to sup press it, not only in their own states, but also in the rest of Europe. "Article Three. Convinced that the principles of re ligion contribute most powerfully to keep Nations in the state of passive obedience which they owe to their Princes, the high contracting parties declare it to be their intention to sustain, in their respective states, those meas ures which the clergy may adopt, with the aim of ameli orating their own interests, so intimately connected with the preservation of the authority of the Princes, and the contracting powers join in offering their thanks to the Pope, for what he has already done for them, and solicit his constant co-operation in their views of submitting the Nations." The monarchs of Europe thus solemnly pledged their overwhelming power, with their tremendous armies and navies, to put an end to the system of representative gov ernment as being incompatible with the monarchical prin ciple — the divine right of kings to govern under a com mission from the Lord of Hosts. The immediate results of the Holy Alliance were the re-establishment of monarchy in Spain and of Austrian autocratic power in Italy. This organized aggregation of autocracy became a men- THOMAS JEFFERSON 279 ace to all republican forms of government. In a letter to President Monroe, Jefferson strongly advised him to stand firm against permitting any European intervention in America. On December second, 1823, Monroe sent his famous message to Congress, establishing the so-called "Monroe Doctrine," in which he refers to the Holy Alliance as follows : "We owe it, therefore, to candor and to amicable re lations existing between the United States and those [the allied] powers, to declare that we should consider any attempt on their part to extend their system to any por tion of this hemisphere as dangerous to our peace and safety. With the existing colonies or dependencies of any European power, we have not interfered and shall not interfere; but with the governments who have de clared their independence and maintained it, and whose independence we have, on great consideration and on just principles, acknowledged, we could not view any interpo sition for the purpose of oppressing them, or controlling in any manner their destiny, by any European power, in any other light than as the manifestation of an un friendly disposition toward the United States." Nearly a century has passed since these momentous movements took place, and working under the Monroe Doctrine, the republics of North and South America, comprising nearly two hundred millions of people, are enjoying great prosperity. They are bound together by 280 THOMAS JEFFERSON a feeling of solidarity, equality and liberty, which augurs well for the future happiness of mankind. It is well to remember, however, that in this mighty conflict between the right of autocratic monarchy and the right of the sovereignty of the people, the liberty- loving sons of Spain and of Portugal, who have estab lished the Central and South American republics, threw themselves with resolute courage on the side of the people. No higher patriotism and intelligence can anywhere be found than in the stand taken by the men who estab lished the republics of the western hemisphere. In the war for the liberation of Cuba in 1898, the American soldiers captured a cannon cast in 1693, which is now at the north entrance of the War Department at Washington. This cannon has cast on its sides the spirit of autocratic monarchy expressed in three short lines: Le passe par tout — the passage through everything. Non impar pluribus — not unequal to many. Ultima ratio regum — the final argument of kings. These mottoes reveal the doctrine of imperialism, "might makes right" — the antithesis of the principle of democracy, which is, "right makes might." This is the glorious spirit which animates the republics of the west ern continent, and this spirit is today pervading the eastern continent. The Orient has caught the liberty spirit of the Occident. Russia's democratization is an omen of the passing of autocracy and the inauguration of a reign of democracy throughout the world. THOMAS JEFFERSON 281 In striking contrast to the Secret Treaty of Verona is the address delivered by Thomas Jefferson at his first inauguration as President of the United States : "Equal and exact justice to all men ; peace, commerce and honest friendship with all nations, entangling alli ances with none; a jealous care of the right of election by the people ; a mild and safe corrective of abuses which are lopped by the sword of revolution, where peaceable remedies are unprovided ; absolute acquiescence in the de cisions of the majority, the vital principle of republics, from which there is no appeal but to force, the vital principle and immediate parent of despotism; the diffu sion of information and arraignment of all abuses at the bar of the public reason ; freedom of religion, freedom of the press, and freedom of person, under the protection of the Habeas Corpus; and trial by juries impartially selected. These principles should be the creed of our political faith; the text of civic instruction; the touch stone by which to try the services of those we trust; and should we wander from them in moments of error or of alarm, let us hasten to retrace our steps ; and to regain the road which alone leads to peace, liberty and safety." In Jefferson's long life of eighty-three years, he con stantly emphasized, in all his voluminous writings, the central idea that pervaded the Declaration of Independ ence, which he wrote fifty years before his death — Inde pendence and Liberty. Liberty was the biggest word in the vast vocabulary 282 THOMAS JEFFERSON of Thomas Jefferson. The germ of liberty and patriot ism was dropped into Jefferson's soul by Patrick Henry. About the time he entered college he made the acquain tance of that hilarious, reckless young lawyer, full of wit and music. He was regarded by his neighbors as a worthless indigent, but in a single speech he won the reputation of being the most eloquent and persuasive orator in America. When Patrick Henry came to Wil liamsburg he frequently shared Jefferson's bed for the lack of money to pay a hotel bill, and thus their intimacy grew. It was from Jefferson's rooms that this young attorney went to the meeting of Burgesses in May, 1765, to make that famous speech against taxation without representation. Jefferson accompanied him to the little courthouse and, being unable to secure entrance, stood in the doorway and listened : "Is life so dear or peace so sweet as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty or give me death." For eleven years "liberty or death" had been burning in Jefferson's soul when it found an outlet on July fourth, 1776, in the Declaration of Independence: "When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the laws of Nature and of Nature's God THOMAS JEFFERSON 283 entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of man kind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights governments are instituted among men, de riving their powers from the consent bf the governed, that whenever any form of government becomes destruc tive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute a new government, lay ing its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness. . . . The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of re peated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct ob ject the establishment of and absolute tyranny over the states. To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid world. . . . "We, therefore, the representatives of the United! States of America, in general Congress assembled, ap pealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the recti tude of our intentions, do, in the name, and by authority of the good people of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, that these United Colonies are, and of a right ought to be, free and independent states; that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and 284 THOMAS JEFFERSON that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as free and independent States they have full power to levy war, conclude peace, contract alliances, establish commerce, and to do all other acts and things which in dependent States may of right do. And for the support- of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protec tion of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor." THOMAS HART BENTON THOMAS HART BENTON THOMAS HART BENTON* MISSOURI'S PIONEER STATESMAN 1782— 1858 The "Big Four" of American politics— Daniel Webster, Henry Clay, John C. Calhoun and Thomas Hart Benton — were contemporary statesmen. These men served in the United States Senate as colleagues during a period of formative and constructive national legislation. They were all endowed with magnetic personalities and im perial wills; they reveled in forensic battles and were fierce combatants in many heated debates. The youth who is familiar with the life and achievements of these four men has an insight into one of the most important periods of American history. A full biography of Benton alone would adequately present our political, commercial and social progress dur ing its pioneer period. Benton himself wrote such a historical treatise in his "Thirty Years' View," and in "Ah Abridgment of the Debates of Congress" — from 1789 to 1856 — in 16 volumes. Theodore Roosevelt, in his excellent biography of Benton, graphically pictures the story of his life as it runs like a golden thread through* the nation's history for half a century. The father of Benton was Jesse Benton, who came over from England as the private secretary of Governor ?Missouri Text-Book Edition. B87 288 THOMAS HART BENTON Tryon, next to the last of the royal governors of North Carolina. The elder Benton was a lawyer, scholarly and cultured. After reaching this country he married Anne Gooch, whose parents had died while she was a child and who lived with an uncle, Colonel Thomas Hart. She gave his name to her eldest son. After the War of In dependence, Jesse Benton accompanied Daniel Boone to the west side of the Alleghany mountains where he ac quired a tract of 40,000 acres of land near Nashville, Tennessee. After his death, his widow moved to this ranch, which became known as the "Widow Benton's Tract," and today is called Bentontown. Thomas Hart, the eldest of the children, was a lad about seventeen years of age when the Bentons arrived in Tennessee and the responsibility of the family fell upon him. He was pas sionately devoted to his mother, an admirable woman, tender but firm, a Southerner of the noblest type. Just before his death, Benton wrote in his autobiography these words of her : "All of the minor virtues, as well as the greater, were cherished by her; and her house, the resort of the emi nent men of the time, was the abode of temperance, modesty, decorum ; a pack of cards was never seen in her house. From such a mother all the children received the impress of future character, and she lived to see the fruits of her pious and liberal cares — living as a widow above fifty years — and to see her eldest son half through his senatorial career and taking his place THOMAS HART BENTON. 289 among the historic men of the country, for which she had begun so early to train him. These details deserve to be noted, though small in themselves, as showing how much the after life of the man may depend upon the early care and guidance of a mother." Benton lived a temperate life ; he was a total abstainer from his youth, never used tobacco, never played a game of chance, and did not, as a rule, attend public amusements. When questioned about his habits of so briety later in life, he said : "My mother did not wish me to drink wine or spirits, and I never have." Benton's mother nurtured her son with books of bi ography and history. His schooling was limited to the training of country teachers, with the exception of one year in the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. But he was a student throughout his long life and learned Greek, Latin and Spanish after entering the United States Senate. His knowledge of the Spanish language proved of great value. When in his 'teens, he chose the law as his vocation and mastered Blackstone; but he was not admitted to the bar until about the time he became of age. From seventeen to twenty-one, Benton improved his mother's great backwoods plantation, acting as overseer of some fifty slaves. He built on the farm a log school- house, also a log meeting-house for the Methodists, with which denomination he and his mother afterwards united. He later taught in this same rustic schoolhouse. 290 THOMAS HART BENTON Benton's early life in the wilderness of Tennessee broadened his mental vision. Here he grappled with ele mental nature and learned the hard practical lessons of experience. He also learned quick sympathy for others, open-hearted hospitality, and the dash and dare charac teristic of the frontiersman. He was elected to the State Senate of Tennessee in 1809, and his work there for the right of the pre-emption of public lands for actual settlers and certain rights of negro slaves foreshadowed his useful future. He also voted for the abolition of imprisonment for debt. Not long after his arrival in Tennessee, Benton met the impulsive but generous Andrew Jackson. On the eve of the War of 1812, Jackson organized an army at Nash ville, and Benton became his Aide-de-Camp. Like most of the high-spirited men of the South and West, he heartily favored the War of 18 12. Although made a colonel, he saw but little active fighting; he was of gen uine use, however, in calling the volunteers to come for ward, for he was, even at this time, a good platform speaker whose force, energy and earnestness commanded the respect of the people. Upon their return to Nashville after the war, Benton and Jackson quarreled. The affray arose from a duel of laughable rather than serious character between Ben ton's brother and one of Jackson's lieutenants. Benton shot Jackson and was himself pitched headlong down- THOMAS HART BENTON 291 stairs. This led to a temporary estrangement of the two men. In those days duelling was prevalent in all the states. In the code of Napoleon it was sanctioned, and America's Constitution did not oppose it; consequently, frontiers men engaged in duels as a matter of course. Benton — spirited, independent, even arrogant — more than once took advantage of the "Code duelo." The duel of which George G. Vest speaks, in his oration on Benton, was the result of a quarrel over the conduct of a case in court. In accordance with the usages of the time, a challenge was sent by Charles Lucas, the opposing attorney, and was promptly accepted by Benton. The antagonists met on "Bloody Island," in the Mississippi, opposite St. Louis. Lucas fell mortally wounded. Senator Vest said : "All this sounds to us now as semi-barbarous, and yet if we carry ourselves back to the age in which this event occurred and place ourselves in the position public men then held, it will, I think, be charitably admitted that, entertaining the opinion he did and in the community he lived, Benton could have hardly done anything else. Duelling was then an institution. No man could remain in public or social life without ostracism who refused what was called a challenge to the field of honor. All the distinguished men of the United States fought duels. When Randolph and Clay fought, in sight of this Capitol, members of the Cabinet and members of the Senate and House of Representatives, among whom was Colonel 292 THOMAS HART BENTON Benton, were present as spectators. Jackson had killed his adversary in a duel. Samuel Houston had fought a duel and wounded his opponent severely. David Crockett acknowledged the obligations of the duel and participated in it; and it was not until Hamilton fell be fore the deadly pistol of Aaron Burr that even the peo ple of the conservative, God-fearing North came to a full realization of the terrible nature of the institution." Benton moved to St. Louis in 1813, began the practice of law, and assumed editorial charge of the St. Louis Inquirer, now the St. Louis Republic. The territory of Missouri was about to send her first petition to Congress asking admission into the Union. The whole spacious province west of the Mississippi River had been known as Louisiana from the day in 1682 when LaSalle planted the Lilies of France at the mouth of the great stream and named the country for Louis XIV, to that day of petition in 1812. There had been a Missouri River since the voyage of Marquette and Joliet in 1674, when they discovered at its mouth a tribe of Indians calling themselves and the river "Missouris" ; but, for one hundred and thirty years after Louisiana was established, no part of the earth's surface was known by that name. On the extreme southern side of the Couisiana Pur chase, the territory of Orleans was marked off for pros pective statehood ; when it was admitted into the Union it appropriated to itself tB% kisttirft name 8f Louisiana. THOMAS HART BENTON 293 That left the remainder of the purchase — upper Louis iana — nameless, whereupon Congress, in 181 2, selected for it the name "Missouri." The territory of Missouri, as constituted by this act of Congress, embraced what is now Arkansas, Missouri, Iowa, Kansas, Nebraska and so on to Canada and to the Pacific in the northwest. The work of carving the boundaries of the State of Missouri out of this vast territory appealed strongly to the en thusiastic young Benton. He entered with tremendous zeal into the preparation and forwarding of these peti tions. In this work he immediately became the friend and associate of Governor William Clark, Auguste Cho- teau and other prominent advocates of statehood. Soon it became evident that Benton was qualified and destined for exalted public service, though he displayed no eagerness or desire for public office. His editorials revealed the sweep and mental magnitude of this youth ful lawyer whom destiny had marked for an unusual career. He thought "continentally" — an expression ap plied to him by his old neighbors in Tennessee. Benton's political birth occurred simultaneously with the birth of the State of Missouri. He showed profound statesmanship in his comprehensive plan of the division into states of the vast western region. Certain con temporaries held that the Missouri River should be the boundary line of the new state. Benton opposed this, and in one of the petitions sent to Congress he effectively gained his end by pointing out that rivers ought not to 294 THOMAS HART BENTON divide states, since the public policy of our government was not to dissever, but to unite. Herein is foreshad owed his attitude toward the secession movement which culminated in the Civil War soon after his death. Benton was powerfully impressed by the westward motion of humanity. He pondered over the great rivers flowing to the Gulf and foresaw them useful channels of commerce which would give the West accessibility to the markets of the world. He saw the potentialities of the West with a vision possessed by no other man save Thomas Jefferson. He sought information about the western wilderness by conversing eagerly with hunters and trappers upon their arrival in St. Louis from their long and adventurous trips. From missionaries, priests, explorers and Indians he learned all that could be known of the land to the west of the "Father of Floods," as he admiringly referred to the Mississippi. At the time of the petition of Missouri for statehood he knew the great domain acquired by the Louisiana Purchase as no other man knew it. The efforts of Benton and his associates were finally successful. The state constitution was accepted after a long, bitter fight. In 1820 Congress passed the famous "Missouri Compromise Bill," which admitted Missouri into the Union as a slave state, but prohibited slavery forever from all territory north of thirty-six degrees and thirty minutes north latitude. Missouri came into the Union as a republic and con- THOMAS HART BENTON 295 tinued such for forty years. The first sentence of the constitution made it a republic: "We, the people of Missouri, inhabiting the limits hereinafter designated, by our representatives in convention assembled, at St. Louis, on Monday the 12th day of June, 1820, do mu tually agree to form and establish a free and independent republic by the name of 'The State of Missouri,' and for the government thereof, do ordain and establish this con stitution." "The Republic of Missouri, in the exercise of her; sovereignty, maintained her own flag and her own army, in accordance with the usages of independent govern ments. The flag was made of blue merino with the arms of the state emblazoned in gold on both sides." (This beautiful ensign was patterned after the royal standard of France, the Fleur-de-Lis, which it resembled.) The flag of Missouri was not circumscribed to cere monial uses ; it was carried at the head of all State troops on the march, and was the standard around which the Missouri soldier rallied at times of battle. The State of Missouri acted as if she were an independent sover eignty, and when the Civil War began, Missouri an nounced a policy of neutrality and raised an army. She hoisted her blue merino flag and warned the United States not to trespass upon the sacred soil of the independent republic. For more than a year after the beginning of the Civil War, the state troops, called the "Missouri State Guard," commanded by Sterling 296 THOMAS HART BENTON Price, whom Governor Claib Fox Jackson appointed Major-General, marched up and down the Republic of Missouri, fighting battles and winning victories. The campaign of the Missouri State Guard is one of the mar vels of the Civil War. Price's army of the "State Guard" was not a Confed erate army, nor was the state flag an emblem of seces sion. It was frequently carried side by side with the Stars and Stripes. After the battle of Pea Ridge and the dissolution of the State Guard, the flag of Missouri was furled — never again to wave in peace or war. There was no question about the election of David Barton as Missouri's first United States Senator. He had no opposition and was chosen by unanimous vote. But the election of Barton's colleague was severely con tested. There were five candidates. Benton's name was presented by a son of Daniel Boone. John B. C. Lucas, the father of Charles Lucas, whom Benton had killed in a duel, was also a candidate. The contest was long and bitter. A deadlock of many days was finally broken by a resolution calling on David Barton to decide whom he desired as a colleague. He named Benton, who was then elected by a bare majority of one vote. In order to se cure that vote, a man dangerously ill was carried into the convention hall. He died a few days after cast ing the vote that elected Benton to a seat in the United States Senate which he was to hold for thirty years. THOMAS HART BENTON 297 Benton later referred to the six terms in the senate as "Six Roman lustrums." On August tenth, 1821, President Monroe issued his proclamation admitting the State of Missouri into the Union, whereupon the new State Constitution, framed more than a year previous, went into effect automatic ally. Benton and Barton had proceeded to Washington immediately upon their election, but represented a State not yet in existence and consequently were not seated, though their salaries were paid. In the autumn of 182 1 they took their seats. Barton was a man of strong abil ity, but made a political blunder when he took a stand which was in opposition to Benton and which led to his defeat for re-election. When Benton entered the Senate the "Era of Good Feeling" was spreading its blessings over the land. The great Jefferson still lived, over eighty years of age, the most venerable character in the nation. In the early years of Benton's career, he made a visit to Jefferson. He wrote, "I felt for four hours the charm of his be witching talk." In a speech before the Senate, he said of Jefferson: "The individual must manage badly who can find himself in the presence of that great man and retire from it without bringing off some fact or some maxim of eminent utility to the human race." After Benton had been in Washington about two years, he was sitting one morning in his seat in the Senate when his old enemy, Andrew Jackson, came upon the floor as 298 THOMAS HART BENTON the newly-elected member from Tennessee. Looking about for a seat, Jackson found the only vacant one beside Benton. He promptly and resolutely installed him self there as if oblivious of the presence of his personal enemy. For months they utterly ignored each other. Jackson, the most famous military figure of the age, was soon made Chairman of the Military Committee, with Benton as a member. This brought the two into close association. One day at a committee meeting Jackson said, "Benton, how is your wife?" For such a man as Jackson this offer of reconciliation was almost heroic. Benton responded in a manner becoming a great man. Though dislike between them was strong, slowly the two men were drawn close together by their patriotic labors. Personal antipathies were made subordinate to the higher obligation of citizenship. For many years they stood for identically the same principles and at last mutual admiration grew into affectionate friendship. Benton and Jackson had a profound sense of the duty of serving their country, and the government was never in safer hands than during the time of their leadership. Benton sought every opportunity on the floor of the United States Senate, through the press, in private con versation, anywhere and everywhere, to magnify and further the cause of westward expansion. In one of his powerful and fiery pleas for the interests of the Missis sippi Valley he shouted, "It is time that western men had some share in the destinies of this Republic." THOMAS HART BENTON 299 He violently objected to the tariff on salt, which dis criminated against the farmers of the West, who pro duced bacon, and one of his earliest legislative achieve ments was to secure its repeal. He had learned the actual needs of the honest settlers and home-builders of the West, and to meet such needs he introduced the Home stead Bill. He carried it through in the main, though for a long time his land bills were treated as preposterous, absurd and impracticable measures. Daniel Webster made his most famous oration in his debate with Hayne on the Foot resolution which limited the sale of public lands which was a counter measure to the Benton homestead plan. Benton hotly opposed it, as did all sena tors from the West and South, while those from the North and East advocated it. When Benton shrewdly detected a flaw in Webster's argument, the latter turned his oration into an eloquent elucidation on the nature and character of our government. Hayne in his reply taunted Webster for thus diverting the debate to avoid Benton. As an orator, Webster is considered the greatest our country has produced, but, as a statesman, Benton ex celled him. Intellectually, Benton was not so great as the master of eloquence from Massachusetts, but his breadth of vision was superior. Webster's narrowness was never more practically exemplified than in his speech against the establishment of the mail route from Inde pendence, Missouri, to the Pacific Ocean, which Benton so forcefully advocated. Said Webster: "What do we 8O0 THOMAS HART BENTON want with this vast worthless area ? This region of sav ages and wild beasts, of deserts, of shifting sands and whirlwinds of dust, of cactus and prairie dogs? To what use can we ever hope to put these deserts, or these endless mountain ranges impenetrable and covered to their base with eternal snows? What can we ever hope to do with this western coast, a coast of 3,000 miles, rock- bound, cheerless, uninviting and not a harbor on it? What use have we for such a country? Mr. President, I will never vote one cent from the public treasury to place the Pacific coast one inch nearer Boston than it is now." Against such sentiments Benton battled in the United States Senate for thirty years. He ever stood as the oracle and defender of the virile and aspiring West. He was in constant conflict with New England. The extreme South gave Benton as frequent battle as did the East. He supported Jackson in violent op position against the nullification doctrine of Calhoun. The political gulf that opened between Jackson and Cal houn was manifest in a patriotic toast offered by Jack son : "The Federal Union, it must be preserved." This was also an expression of Benton's sentiments. He was one of the clearest financial students of his age. He and Jackson also agreed on monetary issues. "Old Bul lion" became Benton's sobriquet, because of his untiring opposition to paper money and his advocacy of gold and THOMAS HART BENTON 301 silver coins. Gold coins were called "Benton mint drops." Benton possessed that arrogance so often characteristic of men of force and achievement. He did not under estimate his own ability or the clarity of his insight. He was the essence of the self-reliant Westerner. He was self-confident and abnormally dogmatic. An anecdote of his egotism is often told. Lord Elgin, an Englishman, seems to have known Andrew Jack son, not as President of the United States, but as the terrible and ruthless hero of New Orleans. At a luncheon one day, Lord Elgin said: "Colonel Benton, do you know General Jackson?" Benton exclaimed: "Know him ! I shot him ! He afterwards helped me in my fight on the National Bank." Inasmuch as it was the opposition to the National Bank that distinguished Jackson's second administration, and Benton but sus tained the President's policy and made it his own, this is somewhat humorous conceit. In fact, the egotism of Benton was as phenomenal as his courage. It is said that a member of the Senate one day made a caustic speech on the floor, alluding severely to the vanity of Benton. Mr. Benton retorted : "The difference between the Senator and myself is that he has no ego and I have." Perhaps his imperial manner helped to give power to his dominant tongue. The defeat of Van Buren in 1840 marked an era in the politics of the century and the life of Benton. Until this 302 THOMAS HART BENTON time, slavery had played a less prominent part in politics than did many other matters. This was never so again. Though slavery had lowered like a thunderstorm on the horizon, Benton outwardly had chosen to ignore it. But the time had come when it was the vital factor which was to determine whether the Union should hold together or be separated into two distinct governments. Benton was a Southerner, and no one doubted but that he would stand with the South on questions of slavery. But the years of thoughtful study and experience in the Senate had awakened anti-slavery convictions. When the question came to issue, he took his stand promptly, staunchly against it. He was a slave owner and a sena tor from a slave state, but his standard of patriotism placed nation above state, and he fought for union. Roosevelt writes of the stand Benton so altruistically took : "He had now entered on what may fairly be called the heroic part of his career; for it would be difficult to choose any other word to express our admiration for the unflinching and defiant courage with which, supported only by conscience and by his loving loyalty to the Union, he battled for the losing side, although by so doing he jeopardized and eventually ruined his political prospects, being finally, as punishment for his boldness in opposing the dominant faction of the Missouri Democracy, turned out of the Senate, wherein he had passed nearly half his life. Indeed, his was one of those natures that shows better in defeat than in victory. In his career there were THOMAS HART BENTON 303 many actions that must command our unqualified ad miration ; such were his hostility to the Nullifiers, where in, taking into account his geographical location and his refusal to compromise, he did better than any other pub lic man, not even excepting Jackson and Webster; his belief in honest money ; and his attitude towards all ques tions involving the honor or the maintenance and ex tension of the Union. But in all these matters he was backed more or less heartily by his state, and he had served four terms in the federal Senate as the leading champion and representative, not alone of Missouri, but also of the entire West. When, however, the slavery question began to enter upon its final stage, Benton soon found himself opposed to a large and growing faction of the Missouri Democracy, which increased so rapidly that it soon became dominant. But he never • for an instant yielded his convictions, even when he saw the ground being thus cut from under his feet, fighting for the right as sturdily as ever, facing his fate fearlessly, and going down without a murmur." The first actual defiance of Benton to his state was to oppose the annexation of Texas, with his antipathy for the non-unionist designs of the pro-slavists as his basic reason. "The Lone Star State" came of Missouri parentage. The largest county in Missouri is Texas County, which shows their friendly relationship. When the Republic of Texas felt the tyranny of a foreign foe, she appealed to 304 THOMAS HART BENTON Missouri. Benton had often declared that the treaty whereby we gained Florida from Spain in 1819 should have given us Texas also. Consequently, Missourians could hardly believe that Benton would oppose the an nexation of the Republic of Texas. But he did oppose it, because he interpreted the movement as only a political maneuver to elect Calhoun to the Presidency and after that, dismemberment of the Union. He declared that the annexation movement was not to legislate Texas into the Union, but to legislate the South out of the Union. Ben ton said, in a speech in the Senate: "The intrigue for the Presidency was the first act in the drama; the dis solution of the Union the second. And I, who hate in trigue and love the Union, can only speak of intriguers and disunionists with warmth and indignation." When it was pointed out to Benton that all Missou rians were in favor of annexation, he said : "If they were, and I knew it, I should resign my place, for I could neither violate their known wishes in voting against it, nor violate my own sense of constitutional and moral duty in voting for it. If the alternative should be the extinction of my political life, I should have to em brace it." Nevertheless* Benton was finally forcefl to com promise; Texas was admitted1, and the foundation for our war with Mexico was laid. Close upon the foot steps of the war, followed the question as to what should be done with the immense tracts of territory conquered THOMAS HART BENTON 305 from Mexico. The Wilmot Proviso forbade the intro duction of slavery into any part of the territory thus acquired. Benton, ever solicitous of the Union, vigor ously opposed this measure as being needless and harm ful. Calhoun introduced his famous resolutions declar ing that Congress had no power to interfere with slavery in the territories, and therefore no power to prevent the admission of new states except on the condition of their prohibiting slavery within their limits. Benton opposed these as being non-union in tendency; he believed that Calhoun had introduced them solely in order to carry the question to the slave states on which they could form a unit against the free states. He gives his own account of a conversation between them on the subject. "Mr. Calhoun said he had expected the support of Mr. Ben ton 'as the representative of a slave-holding state.' Mr. Benton answered that it was impossible that he could have expected such a thing. 'Then,' said Calhoun, 'I shall know where to find that gentleman.' To which Mr. Benton said : T shall be found in the fight places — on the side of my country and the Union.' This answer, given on that day and on the spot, is one of the inci dents of his life which Mr. Benton will wish posterity to remember." Though Benton was relentless in his opposition, the slavery extensionists made unceasing efforts to further their cause. First they endeavored to extend the Mis souri Compromise line to the Pacific; then they declared 306 THOMAS HART BENTON that the conduct of the northern states on the subject of slavery had released the slave-holding states from the Missouri Compromise and that the right to prohibit slavery in any territory belonged exclusively to the peo ple thereof. These resolutions failed to pass at the Con gress of 1847, but the opposition to Benton in Missouri rapidly increased. The "Softs" — as those who op posed hard money were called — carried the state legis lature, and by the time the next session convened the pro-slavery forces were able to pass a series of resolu tions based on Calhoun. They demanded that slavery be permitted to exist in all the new states to be admitted and instructed their senators to vote accordingly. Ben ton utterly refused to obey these instructions. In ac cordance with the universal expectation, he issued "Ben ton's Appeal" directly to the people where he regarded himself the master and maker of public opinion. He re turned to Missouri and for the first time in his life be gan a systematic campaign of the state. He opened with a magnificent speech at Jefferson City, which, according to William F. Switzler, Missouri's greatest historian, "set the state ablaze." The campaign to command the legislature, which was to re-elect Benton or his successor, was one of the most noted in the annals of our nation, and was similar in public interest and importance to the campaign in Illinois when Lincoln and Douglas debated the same issues, and when Lincoln shared for a time the fate of Benton. There was a deadlock in THOMAS HART BENTON 307 the convention, which was finally broken by the "Softs" coming to the support of the Whigs and electing Henry S. Geyer, of St. Louis, to replace the fearless Benton, who had devoted thirty years of his life in worthy service for Missouri and the mighty West. But defeat to Benton was not synonymous with sub mission. He fought for his principles as vigorously as ever; in 1852 he was sent to Congress from St. Louis as a Union Democrat. One of his last speeches, perhaps his greatest, was one in opposition to the Kansas-Nebraska bill, which was being pushed through Congress by the pro-slavery lead ers. Referring to the remarks of a Georgian member, ' he said : "He votes as a Southern man, and votes sec- tionally; I also am a Southern man, but vote nationally on national questions." Unable to stem the pro-slavery tide that was sweep ing over his state, he was defeated when again a can didate for re-election to Congress. During this forced rest from public work he completed "Thirty Years' View." In 1856 he made his final effort to win back the con fidence of his state. He ran for governor on the In dependent ticket as a Union Democrat. This famous campaign, made in his seventy-fourth year, was remarkable for its vigor. He canvassed the entire state, making forty fiery speeches — some of them several hours long. 308 THOMAS HART BENTON He traveled about twelve hundred miles, mostly by horse. He was defeated by Trusten Polk, the Demo cratic nominee. Later Governor Polk was elected to Ben ton's seat in Congress. The overthrow of Benton was not the act of a day. It occupied his opponents ten years. This was the most progressive decade in the development of the West. During this period the West had absorbed the chief at tention of the nation: the Mexican War was fought; our boundaries were extended to the Pacific; the doc trines of squatter sovereignty and of the Wilmot Pro viso were bitterly discussed in Congress and among the people; Clay's final compromise was made in 1850; the Missouri Compromise of 1820 was repealed; the Kansas-Nebraska bill was passed; the Oregon question was settled without war; the transcontinental railroad route agitated the nation ; the development of the Santa Fe Trail and river navigation went forward prodig iously; the discovery of gold occurred in California in 1848 and at Pike's Peak in 1849; n€w states and terri tories knocked vociferously for admission into the Union ; and the underground railroad became a national prob lem and menace; these were some of the issues which lashed the nation into fury and laid deep the foundations for dissension, disunion and civil war. There was now a temporary lull in the political world, and Benton sank to his grave while the Civil War cloud THOMAS HART BENTON 309 was no larger than a man's hand. He saw the cloud and understood its measure and meaning. From the beginning of her statehood, Missouri had occupied a conspicuous place on the national stage. Be cause of her central geographical position, the fertility of her soil, the vigor of her people and the virility of her representatives in Congress, she was ever in evidence. Very early she became a national school politically, where masters in statecraft learned new lessons — where Web ster, Clay, Calhoun, Atchison, Douglas, with Benton— fought out policies to the severest and often fatal test. Of them all, Benton was the supreme Patriot. His glory, in the eyes of the world, fell in defeat, but he ever kept for himself that exultation of spirit that came from the knowledge that he had not failed in doing what he conceived to be right. It did not occur to him to weigh the expediency of any position. "Is it right?" was the question in his mind and its answer decided his course. In the lapse of time almost every principle for which Ben ton fought has been established. In a unique lecture on Thomas Hart Benton, Champ Clark says: "Benton's scorn of his opponents was so lofty and so galling, the excoriations he inflicted — aye, lavished upon them — bred such rancor in their hearts, the lash with which he scourged them left such* fester ing wounds, that they never forgave him until they knew he was dead— dead as Julius Caesar. Then they put on 3io THOMAS HART BENTON sackcloth and ashes and gave him the most magnificent funeral ever seen west of the Mississippi." April tenth, 1858, he died. The magic touch of death seemed to awaken the people of Missouri to the realiza tion of his heroism. All classes united to do honor to the memory of their dead statesman. More than 40,000 people witnessed his burial in the Cemetery of Belle- fontaine in St. Louis. Thus, at the very end, the great city of the West again paid fit homage to the West's mightiest son. Roosevelt closes his biography of Benton with the fol lowing characterization : "During his last years, when his sturdy independence and devotion to the Union had caused him the loss of his political influence in his own state and with his own party, he nevertheless stood higher with the country at large than ever before. He was a faithful friend and a bitter foe; he was vain, proud, utterly fearless, and quite unable to comprehend such emotions as are ex pressed by the terms despondency and yielding. With out being a great orator or writer, or even an original thinker, he yet possessed marked ability; and his abound ing vitality and marvelous memory, his indomitable en ergy and industry, and his tenacious persistency and per sonal courage, all combined to give him a position and influence such as few American statesmen have ever held. His character grew steadily to the very last; he made better speeches and was better able to face new problems THOMAS HART BENTON 311 when past three score and ten than in his early youth or middle age. He possessed a rich fund of political, legal and historical learning, and every subject that he ever handled showed the traces of careful and thorough study. He was very courteous, except when provoked ; his courage was proof against all fear, and he shrank from no contest, personal or political. He was some times narrow-minded, and always wilful and passionate ; but he was honest and truthful. At all times and in all places he held every good gift he had completely at the service of the American Federal Union." Index Adams, John, 208, 236, 264. Adams, Samuel, 208. Alexander, 142. Alexandria, 75. Alsace-Lorraine, 126, 127. Amiens, Peace of, 78. Antietam, 243. Areola, 73. Articles of Confederation, 220. Austerlitz, 81. Ayacucho, 57. Azof, 100. B Baltic, 104. Barras, General, 70, 71. Belgium, 50, 121, 177. Bell and Everett, 30. Benton, Jesse, 287, 288. Benton, Thomas Hart, 287; de votion to mother of, 288; a Tennessee farmer, 289; a Tennessee senator, 290; a duelist, 291; advocates Mis souri Compromise Bill, 294; elected senator, 297; advo cates westward expansion, 298; opposition to paper money, 300 ; fought for Union, 302; opposes slavery, 306; defeated for Congress and for Governor of Missouri, 307; the supreme patriot, 309; Roosevelt's eulogy of, 310. Bismarck, birth, 111; whole- souled Prussian, 113; belief in Divine Right, 114; foreign travel, 120; wounded, 122; victory of Koniggratz, 123; statesmanship, 129 ; enlarges German navy, 130; death, 132. Blair, Francis P., 40. Blucher, 88. Bolivar, Simon, 47; birth, 50; education, 50; sees French Revolution, 50; visits United States, 50; one of the Patri ots, 51; famous address, 56; abolition of slavery, 56 ; Presi dent of Colombia, 57; seals independence of South Amer ica, 57; Dictator of Peru, 57; death, 59, 199. Bolivia, 48. Boone, Daniel, 288. Booth, J. Wilkes, 41. Boston, 210, 211. Braddock, General, 204. Brazil, 48. British, 210, 211. Breckenridge, John C, 30. Brienne, 67, 68. Buchanan, James, 30. Buenos Aires, 54. Bull Run, 34. Burke, 144. Burnside, General, 35. Byzantium, 58. 313 314 INDEX Caesar, 60, 142. Cairo, 75. Calhoun, John C, 287, 300, 304. Calcutta, Black Hole of, 140. Cameron, Simon, 33. Cambaceres, 76. Canning, 144. Caracas, 54, 57. Carbonari, 171. Catherine of Russia, 105. Cavour, Camille Bensi de — burn ing patriotism, 171 ; love of soil, 173; extensive travel, 174; statesman, 175; idol of Italy, 181; death, 184. Charles Albert, 173, 175, 176. Charles XII, 104. Chili, 48, 54. Chosu, Lord, 155, 157. Clark, Champ, 1-3, 309. Clay, Henry, 269, 287. Clinton, General, 214, 215. Colombia, 57. Congress, of Paris, 179; Conti nental, 207, 208, 213, 215, 220. Constitution of United States, 199, 220, 222, 223. Convention, National Republi can, 27; at Philadelphia, 222. Cornwallis, Lord, 214, 215. Corsica, 69. Creoles, 48. Cromwell, Oliver, 141. Davis, Jefferson, 31, 40, 240, 243, 248. Declaration of Independence, 212, 264, 282. Delaware, 212. Demosthenes, 144. Denmark, 84, 104, 190. Diet, Federal German, 117. Disraeli, 130. Dorchester, 211. Douglas, Stephen A., 27, 30, 241. Dumouriez, 51. Duroc, 70. Ecuador, 59. Elba, 87, 90. Elizabeth, Queen, 141. Emancipation, Proclamation of, 36. England, 86, 102, 137, 177, 200, 208, 263. Fairfax, Lord, 202, 225. Federalist, 270, 271. Ferdinand II, 192. Ferdinand VII, 50. Ford's Theater, 40. Fort Sumter, 33. Fox, 144. France, 65, 177, 200, 204, 273. Francis, D. R., 95. Franklin, Benjamin, 65, 208, 220, 264. Frederick the Great, HI, 215. Frederick William I, 119. Frederick William III, 114, 131. Frederick William IV, 115, 116, 118. Garibaldi, 182, 183. Genoa, 77, 172. George III, 149, 200. INDEX 315 Gettysburg, 36, 38; Lincoln's speech at, 42, 245, 246, 255. Gladstone, William E., 17, 130, 223. Grant, U. S., 24, 36, 38, 244, 249, 253. Great Britain, 51. Greece, 50. Greeley, Horace, 31, 238. Grenville, Lady Hester, 147. Guard, Old, 87. Gustavus Adolphus, 104; birth of, 191 ; early training, 191 ; personal appearance, 192; war with Poland, 193; death of, 195. H Halleck, General, 35. Hamilton, Alexander, 225, 268. Hampden, 114. Hampton Roads, 41. Herndon, William B., 25. Henry, Patrick, 208, 235, 261, 262, 282. Holland, 50, 101, 102. Holly Alliance, 277. Hooker, Major-General, 35. Howe, General, 211. I Indians, 49. India, 141. Infernal Legion, 53. Invalides, Dome des, 91. Introduction, Clark, 1-3. Owen, 5-7. Italy, 75, 169, 181. Ito, Hirobumi, 153; birth of, 155; early patriotism, 155; visits England, 156; concealed by Umeko Kida, 158; studies in Germany, 159; establishes national banking system, 161 ; death of, 163; made prince, 165. Ivan, 98. J James I, 192. Jackson, Andrew, 290, 297. Jackson, Stonewall, 24, 241, 243. Japan, 153, 154, 162; Sea of, 164. Johnston, Joseph E., 24, 241. Jefferson, Peter, 259. Jefferson, Thomas, 207, 208, 225 ; governmental faith of, 259; early education, 260; admitted to bar, 261 ; marriage of, 262 ; drafts Declaration of Inde pendence, 264; member of Virginia Legislature, 265 ; Governor of Virginia, 266; anti-slavist, 269 ; inaugurated President of United States, 272 ; purchased Louisiana, 272; Sage of Monticello, 274; death of, 275; love of liberty, 282. Josephine, 72, 81, 84. Junin, 57. Junot, 70. K Kerensky, 95. Koniggratz, 123, 124. Korea, 164. Know-Nothings, 26. Lafayette, 65, 113, 199, 207, 214, 275. INDEX 316 Lafort, 100. Lebrun, 76. Lee, General Henry, 235. Lee, Richard Henry, 208. Lee, Robert E., 24, 34, 35; duty, the impelling power of, 235; at West Point, 236 ; marriage, 237 ; in command of Army of Virginia, 240 ; military tactics, 242 ; victory at Antietam, 243 ; offered Presidency, 244; let ter to President Davis, 247;- genius in science of warfare, 249; surrender of, 251; loy alty of army to, 253; accepts Presidency of Washington College, 254 ; death of, 255. Leopold, Prince, 125. Leri, 174. Lincoln, Abraham, 15; ruling passion, 17 ; miraculous growth of fame, 17; autobiography of early days, 18; on the farm, 19; personal description, 20; socially, of the plain people, 21; passion for biographies, 21; meager library, 21; split ting rails and studying law, 21; key to his mental proc esses, 22; Captain, Black Hawk War, 22; maiden po litical speech, 23; defeats and failures, 24; elected to Con gress, 24; Spot Resolutions, 25; defeated by Douglas, 27 nominated for President, 28 speech of acceptance, 29 elected President, 30; calls for volunteers, 34; emancipa tion proclamation, 36; prayer and vow, 34; second term, 40; assassinated, 41 ; American ism, 42; Gettysburg speech, 42, 56, 61, 131, 173, 239, 243, 248. Livingston, Robert, 79. Lodi, 73. Louisiana Purchase, 78, 292. Louis XIV, 126, 127, 292. Louis XVIII, 91, 116, 277. Louis Philippe, 113, 115, 176. Loyalists, 213. M Manchuria, 164. Marengo, 77. Maria Louise, 84. Marlborough, 141. Marmont, 70. Marseilles, 69. Mazzini, 171, 174, 186. McClellan, George B., 34, 241- 243. Meade, General, 35, 246. Mendez, Louis Lopez, 51. Menzikoff, 100. Metternich, 112-118, 176. Mexican War, 35. Miranda, Francisco, 51. Missouri Compromise, 26, 29, 38, 40; bill passed, 294, 305. Missouri, Territory of, 292, 293; becomes a republic, 294; State guard, 296. Milan, 77. Milinkoff, 99. Moltke, 112, 121, 123. Monticello, 268, 273. Moors, 49. Morillo, General, 54, 55. Morris, Robert, 207. Moscow, 85, 101. INDEX 3*Z Mount Vernon, 205; a com munity, 206, 222, 226. N Naples, 83, 84. Napoleon I, 61, 63; birth, 66; education, 67; chooses artil lery, 68; Second Lieutenant, 68 ; Brigadier-General, 71 ; ad dress to army, 72; at Lodi, 73; made consul, 76; battle of Maringo, 77; war tactics, 78; code, 79; crowned Emperor, 81; family relations, 84; ban ished, 90; death, 94, 169, 273. Napoleon III, 124, 180, 185. Nelson, Admiral, 75. New Granada, 54. New York, 212, 214, 224. Ney, Marshal, 87, 88. Notre Dame, 78. Nystad, Peace of, 104. Okuma, Count, 160. Owen, Robert L., 5-7. Oxenstiern, Axel, 192, 193. Panama, 58. Paraguay, 49. Patriotism, Ten Commandments of, 231. Persia, 106. Personal Word, 9. Peru, 54, 57, 58. Perry, Commodore, 154, 155. Peter I, 97. Peter the Great, 93; determina tion to unlock gates of Rus sia, 99; visits Holland, 102; changes New Year, 103; lays foundation of Petrograd, 104; proclaimed "Peter the Great," 105. Philadelphia, 207. Piedmont, 173, 175, 178. Pitt, William, 81; lays founda tion for greatest empire, 137; heads ministry, 138; foreign policy, 139; extends England's sea power, 140; England's prestige, 141 ; lofty patriotism, 142; birth and education, 143; oratory, 144; marriage, 147; family devotion, 148; death, 150. Pitt, the Younger, 144. Plutarch, 74, 146. Prussia, 101. Randolph, Edmund, 225. Randolph, Jane, 259. Republican National Conven tion, 27. Republican Party, 270, 271. Revolution, American, 66 ; French, 66. Richelieu, 194. Rochambeau, 65. Roon, General, 119. Roosevelt, Theodore, 287, 302, 310. Root, Elihu, 95. Rushling, General, 36. Russia, 85, 99, 200. San Martin, 199. Sardinia, 172, 180. 3i8 INDEX Scott, Winfield, 31. Scharnhorst, 119. Seward, William H., 28, 32. Shakespeare, William, 146. Shoguns, 154. Skytte, John, 191. Socialism, 171. Sophia of Russia, 98, 102. South America, 47. South Carolina, 31. Southern Confederacy, 31, 240, 251. St. Helena, 89. Stanton, Edward M., 33, 38. Stein, 122. Stephens, Alexander, 31. Spain, 47. Spottsylvania, 249. Sucre, Antonio Jose de, 57. Sweden, 85, 101, 189, 190, 196. Switzerland, 199. Taylor, Zachary, 24. Thucydides, 146. Turkey, 50. Trafalgar, 81. Trenton, 212. Triple Alliance, 129. Toulon, 70. Tories, 213. Turin, 77. Turkey, 99. U United States, 50. V Valence, 68. Venezuela, 49, 52, 54, 55. Verona, Secret Treaty of, 277, 281. Versailles, 127. Vest, George G„ 291. Victor Emmanuel, 183. Virginia, 39, 200; gentleman, 202, 224, 235, 239, 255, 259, 263, 269. W Wales, Prince of, 143. Walisczewski, 97. War, declaration of, vs. Ger many, 33; Mexican, 35; Min ister of, 138; Seven Years', 141, 147; Thirty Years', 194; Revolutionary, 214; Civil, 237; of 1812, 290; Mexican, 304. Ward, Artemus, 37, 38. Washington, Augustine, 201. Washington, George, 19, 38, 56, 61; the crowning patriot, 199; father of governmental free dom, 200; parents and child hood of, 201; stature of, 202; cleverness of, with Indians, 203; conducts retreat at Fort Duquesne, 204; social quali ties of, 204; anti-slavery ideas of, 206; member of House of Burgesses, 207; Commander- in-Chief of the Army, 208; dark outlook, 209; first vic tory, 211; growing greatness, 213; final victory, 215; resigns commission, 216 ; refuses to be Dictator, 218; elected Presi dent, 224; death of, 226, 236. Washington, Lawrence, 201, 203, 205. Washington, Martha, 205, 226, 237. INDEX 319 Washington, Mary, 201. Waterloo, 58; battle of, 87. Webster, Daniel, 27, 287, 299. Weem, life of Washington, 21. Wellington, 86, 88. William I of Prussia, 118, 127. William II, German Emperor, 118. 131. Wilson, Woodrow, 21, 261. Wise, General, 236. Whig, 27. Wolfe, General, 140. Workmen's Compensation, 130. Yorktown, 214, 215.