Fayetteville observer. [volume] (Fayetteville, Tenn.) 1850-1966, 1875-06-17
Pride and Ambition.
An Address delivered at the Commence
ment of Oak Hill Institute

| -N0N-N~NOEl
Mr.. President, Ladies ana
GentLemen-It is my good for
tune to address you on this sub
| iect. l assert that pride and
ambition are greater evils than
ignorance and superstition
First, we will travel back to the
annals of the past. We will
Gull the dim pages Of ancient
history and show you that al
most ever since this noble, grand,
and mighty world Of ours has
been spoken into existence,
pride has been the monarch that
has welded the scepter undis-
mayed. Assisted by her COM
panion ambition, they have
caused more evils than | am now
able to tell you. Let us look
at the history Of our first pa
rents, and what do we see? The
effects of ambition that caused
the first murder thatever stained
the pages Of history. When
Cain saw that the offerings of
Abel were acceptable in the
eyes of the Lord, ambition
whispered, abe not excelled,
let no one rule over thee," and
that same day as the sun was
shedding her last ray Of lish hit
upon this beautiful world there
was a deed recorded in blood!
the first murder that ever was
committed! Now let us pause
and look abroad upon onr land
and country to-day. Scarcely
a day rolls by that we do not
hear Of some foul murder. The
newspapers TEEN with the cries
Of murders
Ambition being the father
of murders, it has multiplied un-
til the whole world is stained
with brothers blood. Isnot this
Il great evil, when pride and am
bition are daily sweepting our
fellow men off the face Of the
eartn, by the hundreds, yea by
the thousands? And then Cain
like the murderer turns to you
in his pride with these words
"am | my brothers keeper?'
But to be brief: Through
pride and ambition, Alexander
leveled Empires to the dust,
threw kingdoms at his feet
Thousands of souls were sent to
eternity, only for the sole pur-
pose of showing that he, being
led on by ambition, could make
the world feel his power. In
two battles over 10000 men
lost their lives. And when this
was accomplished and the world
lay at his feet, through pride
and ambition he wept because
there were no more nations with
which he could appease hispride
and ambition, by devastation
and murder.
And yet not satisfied with
this evil, he turned the intoXi-
eating bowl to his lips, throw
ing his own soul into an ever
lasting eternity, where it takes
its journeyings with the souls
of those who forget the true
God.
Passing on we come to Caesar,
that ambitious man who ruled
the nation by the force Of arms,
He cnslaved his country and
waded to dominion through riv-
ers of blood.
His elevation cost the lives of
one million and two hundred
thousand human beings.
Then there is Cleopatra, tho
dark and beautiful Egyptian
princess, of whom, no doubt you
have all heard. After winning
the heart Of the renowned
warrior and statesman An
tony, she, being influenced
by pride and ambition, induced
him to turn his arms against
his countrymen. In this con-
test over one hundred and eigh-
ty thousand persons were under
arms. Now Cleopatra's pride
urged her to try the fidelity of
her lover; caused herself to be
reported dead. Antony fell OF
his sword and expired. Gle.
opatra's own tragical end, which
was by her own hand, was BY
poison. This is not igno.
rance! This is not superstition
1t is pride! 1t isambition! Now
Napoleon comes upon the stage
of action. He whose mighty
arms have astounded the world
Springing from Corsica, his rul
ing passion, ambition, sooI
brought him into the notice oi
; the world. Starting as lieuten
j. ant of an artillery company, b