The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1881-10-01
The Lesson Of the Hour.

Death has brought sorrow to man
hood, rest to hero, and duty to the
Nation. Never before has a death
bed been watched for months by the
whole civilized world.l No other
death in history ever called forth
from men then living such universal
grief. In other times, when electric
cords had not knit all nations into
one family, men whose lives and
characters have since made them
loved and immortal were known IN
life at most only by the peopleSof 4
single State. ButS this land eau
not claim its dead hero as all It's
own. The civilized world has Wat
ed for months in strained anxietN
for each pulse beat of the dying Pres
ident. and shares our grief to-day. =
y For him Death brin1s aiad daiaaAA--s s.
and glorious reward. His work and
life are done. DeathIess and bright
in human memory they will stand
unchanged. His fame can now be
tarnished no longer by any human
error or weakness, and is secure for
ever. Before wonted use of power
had time to dull the deep sense of
responsibility, before the wear and
rasp of personal strife had time to
swerve his calm dignity, he is set
free. From the pain and struggle of
bed of death he goes at last, and
the sorl ow is lett for us who feel his
loss. The world will grieve because
what the man had done was earnest
of what the man could do. From
humble birth and hard fortune, he
and been lifted by his own royal gifts
and qualities to a level with the
greatest monarchs. Made immortal
by grand and useful deeds for coun-
ty and mankind, he will be loyed
while time lasts for the brave, sweet
and patient nature shown while lying
eighty days face TO face with death.
Strong in will, and. stronger yet in
Christian faith, having no fear of
death, and clinging to life only that
he might use for the good of others
the vast power trusted to him by the
Nation, he bore pain with the for
tituda of a martyr, brought rare self
control 10 the aid of surgical science,
and kindled the hearts of all man
kind by his bearing, loyal to every
duty, and tender and true to all his
loved ones. IN all modern History
there is no more touching, more en-
nobling or grander example than
this death-bed gives.
What he has done for his country
and the world. who can tell =? The
man and his family show forth to all
the world the WORTH and the justice
of free institutions. Where else could
this poor boy have climbed to the
rank of kings? Where else could
the true wife and mother have found
her rightful place in the worlds re-
gard IA place which few queens could
ever reach? Loved by the Nation,
and revered by the world for the pure
light of love which has shone upon
that long fight for life, she will be
hon0red to. all time for the strange
courage and marvellous might of true
womanho0d which she has shown.
Not less the children, as brave and as
true AS the parents. and the staunch
and skilled friends. untiring and de-
voted, have helped to give the world
a picture of family life such as no
palace has ever seen. What other
family scene has history to match
this? BY instinct, we know the man
himselfby those who have loved him
and whom he has loved. If there is
not true royalty, where can it be
found? A whole family is taken,
just as it stood for years in the sweet
privacy of American home-life, and
placed under that fierce light which
beats upon a throne. Will not the
world ask. "How many such can free
institutions produce ?" Who can
measure the power of this example ?
Women will feel it, in every social
circle; men will feel it, in every walk
of life; with old and young it will
have power for training and for aid
while time lasts.
The public service of the dead
President will never be wholly
known. We know that, when the
fate of the Nation turned upon bat
tie, victory at Chickamauga was due
in part to the deeds of this brave sol
dier. We know that the right pre-,
vailed more than once in Congress
because of this trained and strong
leader. In finance especially, no
other was his equal in force, and it
may be that his words turned the
scale for public honor. At the polls,
when the honor OF the Nation was at
stake, we know that his State more
than onoa Uava doaiSivo vnfoc ond