Vermont farmer. [volume] (Newport, Orleans County, Vt.) 1870-1877, 1877-02-16
W. Il. n. Murray.

The oratory of Mr. Murray is of that
type which Wendell Phillips has, in the
course of thirty years, made familiar to
every New England village. Calm, grace.
full, polished, 1t is the eloquence Of one who
feels how easily he can either agitate or
persuade. 1t is the eloqueuce of judge
expounding the laws, not Of an advocate
pleading for his client. Mr.. Murray Is as
far removed, on the one side, from the fire
of Sheridan as it blazes in his famous "Be-
gum Speech" as, on the other, he is from
the ice Of President d wight as it freezes in
some Of his sermons. Following Hamet's
advice, he "uses all gently" No "whir-
wind of passion" sweeps through the chords
of his oratory. In neither word, gesture nor
pose does he "overstep the modesty of na-
ture." The positive gesture of giving" as
the professors Of elocution say is most usual.
Ii the Stole Cato were to speak in Music
Hall his manner would not, in earnestness
and calmness, differ essentially from that
of Mr.. Murray. His voice, too, is in har-
mony with the gravity of his manner. 1t
is neither stentorian, like that Of Banks,
nor silver-tougued, like that of Phillips
Deep, yet smooth, seldom rising into the
higher notes, it maintains its steady bari.
tone through all passages; and within a
narrow compass its incubation is excellent.
The three leading characteristics of Mr..
Murray's sermons arc simplicity, indepen-
dence, and igurative language.
Mr.. Murray's simplicity is the simplicity
of man who conceives of Christianity less
as system Of dogmatlc theology than as a
method Of right living. The religion Of
Christ is to him not an ecclesiastical poity,"
as it is to the "Judicious Hooker" 1t is
not logical puzzle of terms, definitions and
luductions, as it is to the school.men of the
Middle Ages. Christianity is only the state
ment Of certain truths regarding God aud
regarding man, and regarding their relations.
These truths are simple, plain. The topics,
therefore, upon which he breaches can be
understood by his least educated auditor.
1.-The Simplicity of Christianity" God
Love for Man." "Mau's Love for God"
"The Nobility of Self-sacrifce," are topics
equally interesting to the banker and butcher,
to the grocer and the lawyer. The success.
sion of ideas in single sermon evidences
his simplicity. Thought springs from thought
as naturally as. the stock Of plant springs
from its root or its flower from its stock.
Ideas are not joined together as the links of
chain, each link being independent Of
every other, but as the obes of telescope
one lobe growing out of another. 1t is the
most subtle logic the logic Of thought, not
of secondlys and thirdlys. His individual
sentences are simple in construction and
words. They are short, periodic, wel.aimed
Each, like the sentences of Homer, usually
contains but a single idea. Each idea,
therefore, hits the mind Of an auditor with
that directness with which ball from his
rifle hits an Adirondack stag His iDdivid
uai words are the words of common life.
They do not smell Of the books. They arc
the words OF the field, the woods, the fore.
castle, the shop Though the scholar oc-
casionally objects to the use of term in Il
sense hardly authorized, he is always OBJ
liged to confess tho fitness of term to the
speakers purpose.
The independence of Mr.. Murray is the
independence of a man who knows his SUI
peror power. lie, therefore, cuts himself
aloof from denominations, assured that his
personality is the promise of an audience
and church. He, therefore, throws theo
logical systems overheard, assured that no
can steer better by the Bible and his own
sense than by the star of Geneva or Of North.
hampton. His independence is rather de-
structive than constructive 1t is more in
clined to point out the errors Of old methods
than to indicate new and better modes oil
preaching divine truth. From his indie
pendence springs his freshness of thought
and expression. He does not so much pre-
sent new ideas as he obliges the spectator
to behold old ideas in new lights To use
the phrase Of the picture. man, he is res
torer Of old ideas. Under his touch
dusty truths glow. From his independence
also arises what may be called the person
ality or dlrectness Of his preaching. Each
individual 10 his audience of nearly three
thousand feels that Mr.. Murray is address
sing him. His constant use of "you" tend'
toward this effect, as we'll as the frequent
Interpolation of "my friends" or "friend. u
Mr.. Murray uses metaphors as Ruben;
uses colors. Brilliant, teeming with con.
trasts, full of energy, the works of both
artists captivate the behOlder. As metaphor
are more effective than SMILES, so are they
more frequent 10 his sermons, and oittimei
they take the form of apostrophe. The
deal rather with nature than with human
life, with space than with time, with cloud
and stars than with earth and ocean. Hi
use OF them illustrates what Plutarch sale
about fgurativo language, and which Bacor
thought worth quoting THAT speech wa
like cloth of Arras opened and put abroad
whereby the imagery doth appear in figure
whereas in thoughts they lie but as in packs.
Nearly all Of Mr., Murray's sentences con
tain either metaphor or metaphorica
word. A general term can be employed
A dehnteness, clearness is thus gained a
} remarkable as it is rare,-Christiaa Union