The Dallas daily herald. [volume] (Dallas, Tex.) 1873-1887, 1881-06-02
THE roLLIEs OF GREATNESS

When Scipio Africans, after his great
victories and his mighty exploits MS general,
entered Rome in triumph and with the spells
of the war he had so successfully vaged,
marched through the streets of the imperial
city, the proud mistress of the world, and
he the greatest man within all its wallis, he
had slave standing behind him, whose duty
it was to constantly remind him that no was
but man, lest the alteration of his country
men should turn his head and make him feel
that he was a god. Since Scipio we have no
record of any man similarly situated who
has been SO wise as he. Long continued
success, long lease of power and the con-
slant worship of people, and the eringing of
sycopbsn.s make men forget that they arc
fallible, forget that they are not omnipotent.
This Is the chief folly of greatness. Men
so situated never hear the truth. Its only
the voices of the flatterer, of the toady, OF
the parasite, that fall upon their ears and it
Is only the obeisances and the fswning of the
time servers and the axe grinders thai they
see. They become intoxicated with their
power tho delirium of their greatness besots
their reason and their judgment becomes
cloudcd and gives way to tho reign of folly.
This ia what led to Napoleon's downfall and
gave to tho world Waterloo and the island
of st. Helena. His continued successes, the
gddy pinnacle of greatness aEd power which
by his own genius and exertions no h d
rescued, made his brain dizzy, and he was
blind to the DEGREES of fate, falling to the
nethermost depths of tho abysm of
failure, never to rise again. 1t was
the folly of CmMrs greatness that
unshea,hed the dagger of Bru,us, thst
bathed tho statute of Pompey in his lito's
blood, and that made the field Of Phillipdi q
possibility. 1t was MI. Conkling's folly in
his greatness, that has wrought his downfall.
!. His imagination, not his common sense and
mature judgment, swayed him. So long had
he swayed the destinies of his party; SO long
had his dictation been AS the laws of the
Modes and Persisns so long had he listened
/ only to the siren music Of adulation and o.
!, Asttsry; so long hsd he seen only chaplets O
, laurel and bright flowers laid at his feet, ant
seen tho necks of the multitude barred arc
laid down 10 the dust for passage way 70
|, his chariot, that no thought ho wa
omnipotent and omniscent. He though
|, that no one dare oppose hin
, and hope to live. He thought tina
, his party existed but for his purpose. Ill
. heard no word of truth; he could not sc
. himself as others saw him, he could nc
realize that his will was not the sovereign
law and his dic.um fiat irresistible. Eli
parasites all about him shut out the trutl
s from him and they led him on to his DIES
0 ,ruction This is evident from the fact th.
0 in the white hes! of his wrath at Albany tn
3 other day he upbrsided Arthur for his mi;
: representations and in 'he agony OF h
= humiliation charged him with degrading hiI
b TO the dirty work OF ward caucussing. b
= it is we'll for Mr.. Conkling that he has falle
o from his proud eminence, that his Taught
" spirit has been humbled, and it is well t,
Il the country too. Intoxicated rs hs WI
a with the greatness of hispower and his plac
" he was restless OF tho forms of law; no hi
D. his eyes fixed on imperialism, and bo wanlt
the pomp, and circumstances, and pageantI
of power AS we'll AS the substance.