Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1866-04-19

new ideas nor developed old ones with
extraordinary power and yet without
question he was one Of the safest states
men and most judiclous legislators of
the age He did not resemble the noun
tain, towering to the skies, but barren
and useless from It's hight, but rather
the lesser emineuCe whose summit is
crowned with the forest, and whose
slopes wave with the yellow grain. He
did not resemble the terrific shower,
which destroys by It's violence, so much
as the gentle rain, which the earth
drinks and then dresses herself in new
| life and beauty. God granted Mr.. Foot
one Of the greatest Of earthly blessings
"a loving, praying, piOus mother-who
instilled into his mind principles of rev.
erenCe toward God, obedience TO author
ity and love of truth; and through q
long public life the great leading char
acteristiC of his midland perhaps the
! highest power Of his CharaCter-was his
! devotion to truth-that high, ethereal
truth which is grounded in the moral
| being and fitness Of things-lying back
| Of and deeper than refnemcnts and pOpu,
! Notwithstanding down TO the inner ma
! ture and cleyating the moral forces.
| Senator Foot was patriotic man. lie
! cherished the principles Of the Declare
| ton of Independence. He believed that
all men were created free and equal, aud
| yet subordinated his acts and theories
TO the constitution Of the land. COnsti-
| tutional liberty was his watChword; and
when, by force of law, all men became
| absolutely free, he was the earnest and
! fearless advocate of these measures, de-
| signed to protect the freedmen in their
civil rights.
| But, sir, when the first gun was fired
| at Fort Sumter, and the cry to arms ech-
oed from peak to peak of the mountains
| OF his native State, then the nobleness
and patriotism and generosity of Sol
onion Foot shOne forth like a star
| Calmly and serenely he met the issue,
! and everywhere infused into the people
| his own heroic and enthusiastic nature
| and when at times during the rebellion
! the clouds seemed to lower about us his
faith in God and liberty never taltered.
! He trusted in the right. He met and
performed every obligation of duty with
out fear and without reprOach. The
highest and proudest enCOmium which
Popular at home beyond description ell
evated by the people to almost every Of
flee within their gift; beloved, hOnOred
and trusted, he always and everywhere
proved himself an honest man, the
nobest work of God He loved his
native State. To him there was no air
so pure as that which swept about her
mountaineering water so pure as that
which dubbed from her crystal springs
no grass 50 green as that which cloth
! ed her valleys and he now lies beneath
the shadow of her hills where the wind
sings his requiem, and the solemn old
pines stand as seuttnels over his dust
During the long and bloody rebellion
when suffering and Death entered nearly
every household, no wounded soldier, nc
weeping sister, no heart-brOken wife or
mother ever called upon Senator Foot in
vain. Their wants were his wants, and
their suffering was his suffering. In
sunshine aud in rain, in sickness and in
health, by tender and sympathizing
counsel, and by active and efficient eff
fort, he labored for their relief But
more beautiful than lie is the death Of
] the Christian. Mr.. Foot from the com.
menCement of his sickness, seemed to
feel that he would die and when the
first summons came he was ready. His
last thought was for his country, and
his last thought to look out upon the
beautiful sunlight and this noble edifice,
where he had labored so long, and where
he believed the future safety Of the Re-
public rested, and then as if fully salts
fed, with eyes full of celestial radiance,
he exclaimed ~ see it | see it The
gates are wide open Beautiful Beauti-
full !" And the plastic form was Stilled
The Casket was broken, and Solomon
Foot entered upon eternal rest.
Mr.. Banks said
All nations have regarded with pride
the masterpieces OF rhetoric as well as
Of passion, reason and diCtion, which
the world calls elOquenCe. But our own
cOuntrymen, perhaps, carry this rever-
enCe to excess. Speech making is
scarcely high end. 1t is rather what
DR.. johnson calls "a knack, exuberanCe
and extravaganza" Speech, however, is
the counterpart aud accompaniment of
! liberty, a vice Of individuals, it is the
virtue Of an age. 1t is not of itself
| power, nOr pne accompaniment OF pow
err. Power exists in integrity and truth,
Rhetoric sustains as VIII the opposite as
the real cause. Great rulers are invar-
iably silent, thoughtful men. Irit were
well to "gild refined gold or paint the
lily" we would add to the majesty Of
great action the aflluence and ornament
Of eloquent diction. But the Senator
whom we mourn brought enough of the
power of speech to aid to impress upon
the world the justice of his convictions
and the wisdom of his principles. Speech
to him was made to serve rather than
command the judgment. 1t satisfied
adversaries who, by less brilliant but
more effective means, were won to his
support. His great influence depended
upon warm, enduring and noble quail
ties, serenity of mind, purity of charac.
ter, tirmness of purpose, integrity of
principle, constancy to duty, fullness of
information and experience, and unceas-
ing and honest labor were his weapons.
In him spoke an earnest, intelligent
/ mind and the Commonwealth he repre-
; I'd