Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1869-08-26
The Elements Of True Greatness.


ercises of the State Teachers Association
at Brandon After singing by the choir
the President introduced Q. H. Ballard
"A NJ, of Castleton, who consented 10 '"A'
the place made vacant by the absence VI
j. s. Adams, Esq, and who Procsouou -
deliver an excellent lecture on Inc Ele'
,oon,s If True Greatness" OF which the
following il a mcager abstract:
,psrp.cy OF MR. BALLARD's LECTURE
In introducing the lecture Mr.. Ballard
said: at your speaker last evening was jus.
titled in craving your forbearance while he
attempted to perform the part of a substi.
tute, much more am /, who have very
reluctantly consented to take the place Of
that Son of Thunder, the late Secretary Of
the Board of Education. Trusting that
my performance will be received with al
least one grain of allowance, / proceed tic
fire my pop-gun, which it seems is fated
for the hour to take the place of an eleven
inch Columbiad."
Greatness is a word that wakes a ready
echo in the human heart. Its sound is
music to the school boy porting over the
rudiments of science, also to the sage,
patriot, aud prompts to renewed exertion,
and in all ages has been an incentive to
constant effort.
The heroic age and the age of chivalry
have passed and another has dawned.
The votaries of art and literature are
ranging through the courts of the temple
of knowledge. an age whose greatness Is
the greatness of mind, whose aristocrry
is an aristocracy of intellect, whose
mightiest weapon is the pen, which is to
be followed by another, when greatness
shall be synonymous with holiness.
Real greatness possesses more than one
characteristic, and is made of elements
which combine III fit proportions, and
form like the elements of the atmosphere,
compound at once perfect and unique,
elements which will remain through all
time and will be found at last shining a.
gold and enduring a. the diamond These
under the title of the The Elements of
true Greatness" form the basis of this
evenings discussion.
The proposition requires Us to peak Of
the elements of physical greatness, and
Will he exhibited by preeept and exam
pie.
lst, BY precept:
In the physical development of man,
the lessons of experience mist be needed,
and those who strive for the mastery
must be temperate in all things,
seif-denial, must be practical, and
man must know and obey, and know
ledge will prove Il delight and obe-
diene. Will become pleasure. When
subjected to this discipline the physical
becom, fit component part in our ideal
OF true greatness The physical viii be-
come IL sure foundation on which to build
tho intellectual and spiritul, and promises
that man may yet attain t. that original
image in which he was created, and
would have him physically perfect in
every particular. Examples of the stand
ard to be attained were yariou-ly cnumer-
ated.
;. The Intellectual in mans nature
This IL a. superior 10 the phys
Is mind Is to matter, a. think
ing es.enec to an inert lifelesz
less mass. Hero the subject becomes truly
great, for mind is fAthomle-s, and ne who
attempts 10 explore it and discover its
hidden springs, undertakes labor from
which Hercules would have shruuk, and
yet there are certain well defined ee-
ments which constitute intellectual great
ness. In whatever sphere he appears, or
on whatever subject man discourses the
constant progress of the mind is indicat
ed, and the man of intellectual greatness
dispen~es the clear light of mind
aud through all the realm OF mental
darkness seatters gems radiant with wis
dom aud Immortality.
Among the elements of intellectual
greatness are; l-t. A know ledge of hui
man character in all it, various phases
The examples Of TINS insight are
Shakespeare. the great delincatdr of hui
maa character; Honcr's smoothly flow
ing verse; D,mosthcnc-, with his con-
vlncisr and irresistible cloquence; Cicero,
inyiuclbIe IN IL bate, were AL students OF
the inner life Of man in all his re-
lAtious This element has crowned
with success the great effort. of the
heroes of every age, and it was
the lack of this element which sent
Xerxes into di-grace. and the possession
of it which made C.c-lr victorious in a
thousand battles, and dictated every /
moves~nt of Napoleon. This element t
enters largely into the composition Of the
master minds OF these later times 1t /
was this element which prompted Chat |
ham TO utter those dishcartening yet pro-
phetic words in the ears of the Briti-h
parliament, My lords, you cannot con-
quer America" 1t was the inspiration OF
Patrick Henry, and gave force to the /
words Of the dying Douglas, Ny boys,
defend the constitution of these United
States" and prompted Lincoln to speak
and act therefore il knowledge of
human character is 30 important an ele-
ment in intellectual greatness, it be-
comes us to make it our study.
Another element il mental strength
This element is the product of earnest and |
protracted study, accompanied by the ex-
erciso of well directed thought, and mani
fests itself in many ways. With this an
inspiring principle in the mind man is
no longer %oveling lise the brute, but as
sumes the dignity of being guided by
reason and actuated by thought and re-
hection. Aad here, perhaps the atheist
will AJAX what more il needed to consti-
tuts true greatness. The physical has
realized its own ideal, and the intellectual