Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1866-04-05
Fu..rai Services OF senator Foot.
A YuRrHxR ABSTRACT OF rHK DISCOURSE.

In our yesterdays notice of the i'm
posing funeral services of the late Sena-
tor Foot we inadvertently committed
an error. Rev. Aldace Walker of Wal
lingford made the first prayer, and the
Rev. DR.. Aiken the second, The bene-
dict,on was pronounced by the Rev Mr.
Campbell of this town.
Now that our mind Is again turned
to the subject, we propose to take an
other look at the Rev. MIR. Seaver's ex-
cellent discourse on the occasion.
The speaker said we honor Mr.. Foot
because he was successful. In this Coun-
try success means something If a
man should occupy a seat in the British
parliament eighteen yesrs,it would mean
that he was allied by blood to one of
the great families of England, who re-
turn as matter of course from the
boroughs under their control, one half
of the legislators of that realm. Butin
this country, that a man should I'LL for
eighteen years prominent places in our
two national legislative bodies, means
that despite Of all Fictitious circum-
stances of birth and standing, he had
been weighed in naked individuality of
heart and brain in the balance of peo-
pies needs, and had been found sufiici
ent. la this country success means
thought and intellect; it means energy,
perseverance. Itmeans the preference of
duty to pleasure, the postponement of
present qualification to the attainment
of future good-it means striving after
the ideal of excellence instead of sink
ing down into luxurious Incidence, con-
tented with mediocrity, if it only gives
us living, We do right, therefore, In
praising success, in honoring successful
men. We do right, we did right, in
honoring Solomon Foot He began life
a poor boy, in yonder forest; he is fol.
lowed to his grave, to-day, by the re-
grets of thousands. 1t may be said of
him, as in his last public utterance he
said of Judge Collamer, that like most
of the distinguished men Of our time
and country, Solomon Foot was the
author and arbiter of his own fortunes.
AS illustrating his frmness of charac-
ter, his fidelity to truth and his country,
the speaker referred to Roman history.
During the terrible struggle of the last
five years, who of US, said he, has not
laid on his pillow at night, and slept
the more calmly, when he thought that
that grand old man stood at his post as
our representative, and through his lips,
the voice of the lreemen of Vermont
would find clear and authoritative ut
teranCe that there should be no cOmprO-
mise with traitors. have read in an
cient story, said the speaker, that when
the tyrant Scylla made himself master
of Rome and expelled his enemies, he
summoned the Senate to meet, and com
ing with an armed force, demanded that
they should declare his rival foe, and
himself friend to Rome. In solemn
silence sat that grave assembly, until at
last, the oldest of their number, Quin-
thus Sc@yola, being present to declare
his mind, and terribly threatened by
Scylla, if he showed any reluctance,
spoke as follows Though, Scylla, thou
thinkest to terrify me with thy armed
troops which have invaded the Senate
House, and threatened me with death
itself, yet seem to save little super
animated blood by pronouncing Marius
an enemy to the State and by sustain
ing thee, who art a traitor. And so,
when Lee beleagured Washington, if
they, who then were endeavoring to at
tain by force what they may yet attain
by fraud, and captured our imperial
city-if the myrmidons of rebellion had
| broken into the Senate Chamber Of the
| fathers of our country, we know that
Solomon Foot would have been torn in
| pieces, limb from limb, ere he would
have left the Senatorial chair of YER
mont to be occupied by q traitor.
Among the reasons given for honoring
| Mr.. Foot was his warm heart. Pure af-
| fections are always honorable. But
when we fad pure affections congenial
with commanding ineffective bow befort.
them with peculiar reverence. Such affec-
tions bring down their possessors from
their intellectual heights into the plane
of our sympathies and regards, but raise
them to the throne of our hearts. or all
the portraits of our loved Lincoln, there
is none on which the true American
will look with deeper reverence than
that which portrays him seated in a
chair, with an open volume on his knees,
while at his side stands little Thad
| Napoleon looks not so kingly in Da-
vid's picture of him as he appears in
his coronation robes at st. Cloud, as In
| that representation of him as he sits
upon sofa in his library, while upon
| his lap slumbers the infant king of
Rome. Warm affections throw q robe