The Rutland daily globe. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1873-1877, 1873-08-26
JOHN TODD.


many years; man venerable in years,
noted as a clergyman, revcrcd for his pety.
beloved for his personal qualities, dstin-
gushcd for his talents and pulpit eoquence,
and marked, above all, for the purity of his
life and works. In concluding discourse,
preached on that occasion, he said: ".Just
seventy years ago, wanting one week, there
was man child born in your village. He
was carried away in the arms of his father,
while an infant he was, at very early
day, left an orphan--he has battled with
poverty and difficulties he early laid him.
self on the altar OF God, TO live for the
good of humanity; he has seen many sor-
rows, but more joys he has labored in his
poor way, and with such talents as God
gave him with his might but, Oh! the
sheavcs he has been permitted to lay at the
feet of the Master have been too few; the
good he has accomplished has been too
small the zeal with which he has toiled
has been too cold but though he can bring
you but few withcrcd leaves tonight. he
Is grateful for the privilege of greeting you
in your high prosperity, rejoicing with you
in what your town has done for humanity,
and though only claiming to be one of the
humblcst sons whom you have sent out,
give thanks to God for the honor which no
other man can ever hayc--that of preach
ing the frs! Centennial sermon that can
pynr In ,,rpachn1 ia D,,Inn1
That man was John Todd, ID. d.. who
now is through with battlings. with Joys
and with sorrows, and has entered into his
triumph. We do not propose to enter into
any extended biography of DR.. Todd; the
bare dates connected with his duties, or
list of his published works, would convey
but an inadequate idea of the life and
labors of a man who has made deeper
impress upon the minds of the young
men of the nation than that made by any
other man of his day and generation. The
motives which actuatcd his whole life and
conduct, and which bore so abundant
fruits, are modestly and self-depreciatingly
stated by him in the extract at the opening
of the present article. His labors were
constant and never firing, always in the
cause Of religion, of humanity, of cduca-
ton, of schools and the advancement Of the
interests of young men. He was ''instant
in season and out of season." and, vet.
never obtrudcd his advice at an I'M
seasonable time. We know not how
it is now, but only few years ago, and
for long term Of years prior thereto, his
students Manual" was in the hands of
every college student in New England.
Neither was it confined TO college students
alone, but the town, village or hamlet,
which was not possessed of copies there
of, in large numbers too, was an eNcep-
tional locality. The influence of this one
work is past compute, and if his life and
labors, Of nearly three quarters of cen
fury, had only resulted in this. then he
would not have lived in vain. and would
have gone down to the future as bene-
factor of mankind. With his happy fa-
Guilty of expressing his thoughts on the
printed page, and his powers of oratory in
the pulpit and on the rostrum, he added
the most rare personal attractions and con
versational abilities, so that his power over
the youth of both sexes was almost bound
less. We have called attention to these
particulars, because, during our college
life, they were brought particularly to our
notice, and we had occasion, quite often
to see how he attracted young men around
him, and how, in turn, they were attract
ed to, and influenced by. him. 1t is not
for us to dssect his character and intel
lectual attachments have not the abil-
ity so to do, if we desired it will, however,
be done by skilful hands, and will, when
done, present to the world one Of the
brightest examples Of character that all
should strive to reach.
AS we have said, the mere dates in his
long, busy and useful life are mcagre, but
if they were many they would be only
a lifeless skeleton, without instruction or
use. An approved custom, however,
makes it one of the duties Of the public
press, upon the departure Of great and
good man, 10 lay before their readers more
or less of the salient facts in his career. and
this, often, can be done by dry detail of
names and dates. A great author bril-
liant statesman, an able jurist, the most
eloquent Of advocates, the most skilful
physician, the most useful and self deny
ing of clcrgymen, when their biographies
come TO be written, aside from analysis of
character or extracts from their works,
consist of mere names and dates-which
are almost meaningless. Still II is ncces-
sary and proper to preserve these dry, hard
facts, for they have their uses, and, with
this view, as well as from his connection
with Rutland by birth, we shall, as briefly
and concisely as possible, give the main
facts in his biography. Before doing this,
however, we cannot help the remark, that
DIR. Todd, more than any one else we can
now call to mind, illustrates the idea of
which we have been speaking Coming upon
the occasion of his DEATH to review his
life, We are struck with the fact that a
man who has for so long a period occupied
the position that he has in the cause of the
church, and of education, and of educa-
uonal institutions, could have his outline
biography written with 50 few words and
with so few dates. Two other men have
died within the month, different yet the
same, OF whom the same might have been
said. Richard =. Storrs, Gardiner Spring
and John Todd have all, within the month,
passed from earth, after useful and fruit
ful lives Happy is the church which, for
SO many years, can enjoy the services of
such divines; happy the country that has
such men, at once, laboring for the wei
fare of her children; and happy the age
that receives and applies their teachings.
Sometime about the year 1900, a very &C.
centric man, by the name of Timothv