Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1883-04-29
MR. LEIGHTON'S ADDRESS.
A, NhIe Exposition OF the Character
rnd " riIing OF shake peare.

A, NhIe Exposition OF the Character
rud " riIing OF Shakes peare.
T.. ,u,vl.sr singer of our land. whose
-... ...-s voice IS now huShed in death,
o.. %. $50 aj> charming verse,
Aft :, Icing sud Time Is dieting"
Vl,,. are truths from which even genius
.r.,. Nvmpt. Through the progress OF
..r .-a through the ylClSSltudeS OF feeling
a.. 10 human heart, the greatest poet Of
- ... glaGr ran lis course, like thousands
. . .y>>rr brethren. TO the end of iite;
~. .tty-lwO wears of his earthly career
49,. ~ enough for him to achieve in
.... lat tar longest lives seldom &C
~ ~. I'm immortality IN the remem-
-ti.. d men.
V:..N,~ This man who thus secured
..., % 'ar love and admiration Of cOult-
~, ... r-ruuES, higher than that OCClp.ed
.a.. % his COntemporaTIeS-by any one of
- -.,ou.EJ gjlSh race We have his
.l-,. ley are the glory OF our litera-
.-- s. Wha, ", his personality? His
.-r p wa, >hake~pe. g that is disputed;
~. % sands ueN -th'leSs. The name
, r.r..ns. What I'd Of feelings filled
., .r4r.' What Kin Of a man WAS he?
4 a.rs or prince No. \ nObleman
g-g.l Ne. the SOL [ yeOman, and
81 set working At m hanical trades in
.stug-h: a!.rrwJrd al actor Of fair re-
~ h'-hly esteemed in his day as play.
.-.s.t and somewhat noted as a poet
..r fn 80 that so knew and esteemed him,
.r'v .:ua.inrd how bright and glorious q
p AT ,uCGeeding centuries would put upon
.,aa.i 4 man OF gentle life, loved and
PSI e Il By bis neighbOrS and cOmpin.
p, patient worker; a careful actor; a
..--.. writer; bat not famous enough to
r w-..trD Of in dis own day, or at his
-.'a IN honor only given TO those OF
.-t.- social CssIe. The brilliant court OF
gee" r. Izaheth, princes gDttering with
70 .--> 1t nobility. lords like Sidney. Essex,
a r-n. southampton and Bacon, famous,
.l, u them. for learning and literary &C
.r.l. .>ImeutS aS we'll as statlOu-all these
.ar .,.y gave 4 passing thought 10 the actor
20 paw writer, who was 10 eclipse them
.. a..I the greatness OF mis- fame.
4 r..y-Srlght and the son OF yeOman
. va fmmOrllIi,y2 What, then, are titles,
g.. b -.h, great estates and dominion
... ,.r trappugs that a man puts on, for
..,',. NhI.r. 70 please his vanity, or in
ra..h .n perform MS part OF shows and
---s.nurr-. hut no part ut hlmselt-trap.
i-, AT add nothing Ol real value 20
.a o. e. rause uIm To be reAem Oered. IL
,Asa. - wsrhin that ennObIeS, endears
g. Old. italics, not the outside gliding,
800 ~ bur the gold on a Out,eray's
---, '-.uGlug the vain insect into the
-... ..ll hc himself Is the summer.
~. ~ the plays and ptems he wrote, We
... ..t.e r. ord Ot William Shakespeare.
. a-- u1t the IL iAiOn o. his time 10 put
.s. ..v record OF tho sons OF yeOmen.
To- s., not thought Of sufficient import
p p 600 N-lIe OF. 20 make book ABOUT,
-. Isf,ff.,,a ~ Ia,
Us "a. Il the i.tly years after his death,
80 have found 7ery few buyers or
...r4 HenC-. We have no Biographical
-'...- We can fiul out all about Essex,
.. ...- IA eigh and hundreds OF Othe's
...h belonging % that age; but Ot
.- a,a that modern times most nearly
-l,r.rjy> Iu'O gOiship almost nothing.
r .D not know his birthday, and are oO'
g.. o agree upon a date which certainly
n.'H true One1 Is his anniversary. Let
u. th--e words disturb the punCtual and
-.. .,.. keepers Of birthdays; for a mistake
't.,. gay Uill not lessen the tribute that
b. Ir. To the poet. As with his birthday,
, his whole lie is involved in doubt and
D., srity: and We cannot safely say Of any
i-t ut II. this is authentic, except OF the
90. , and poems. And even here dOuotecS
.. . forward and say, Bacon wrote theml
? E.rish wrote them; the old player,
aae peare, had not the wisdom. the
r-ulng the dignity to write them; Or he
p, nj of jOllity, fun, and good living,
IS son of a yeomsn, and never went
Co. eye." But there is not a single piece
evidence to invalidate the old players
hit of authorship to his plays; AMI all
rmpts To deprive him Of il are based on
umcnts les ingenious than Bishop
ha'pley's Historic Doubts Relative -
vol, on BOnaparte,' and made for the
.rpa.s of exhibiting the adroitneSs
80 histry, or the skill OF the liter
" ~ .gler. They originated in the tancles
an lIlba!aucrd mind thrown out OF
Disc bv the continuous haunting OF ln-
,uAripns that grow out OF HhlnS INTO
3 A..ddin's palace. The "Old player
"a write the PLAYS he put upon the stage
3 s.. and in So doing wrote himself into
be. ..,-ts of the many generations that
--p o. love and wear the name OF Shakes
cay. and bless the pOat for the light OIL
.,,.~,t.On. the wealth Of revelation, and
,- yhIUslIb.e source OF pleasure ne
10 t. his legacy - the world. wherein
The tltEcuity of believing Shakespeare
.-.'r the plays that bear his name some
ar wrote them. The impress OF one
..! the Signature OF one style. anu taese
10 dominating characteristics, are Oh
hen all although in many oil them may
n Ind the work OF ether hanAS' set
b ..r,.,.I,chwork. or forming the canvass
}. IA the higher genius has wrought
g res. Somebody wrote them. way
.u, '..r man who had the credit Of writing
.s.. :, zen they were first produced, aul
.,r calm Of authorship WAS undIspnte1
= $50 hundred and fifty years Is
. g.. .g,e he was TIE son OF a yeOmaa, tAaS
j. could not have had 50
J-..s a mind? Does genius always
Ia..r IN palaces So Homer did not sung
o q aurrlC songs, because he was a oInu
Be-. ...a,'er Of smyrna l cannot see why
-...v OF King Lear" or Macbeth, or
A Summer Nights Dream" could not
Lave zen written by the genius-klndIed
t9n o.. woman Just as well as by any one
}; tLst gll,terIng ring of mobiles that blAzed
Proud T. iZtbeth's throne. This nineteenth
tsR'E-y j. too late in the history OF the
NO'a % ignore the teachings the years
az" wen US, and TO seek TO cast Us back
pom hat sLOal of ignorance where the De-
e, might exist that any line OF kings, any
'u1T ul nobility, has heayen-oor rights or
l@Aerent qualities that may not exist IN
e in>om Of the poorest peasant OF tue
l'd. Genius IS the touch OF Gods handr
'''F IEdtlOn that comes not out OF any
| "--e, but is evoked from the soul by It's
| ~ tendencies and aspirations; and, 80
=. -'' an only be fOstered into healthy ma
f. y ? uH-emitting labor. The attempt
| 'a-e from Shskespeare's brow the laurel
| Own at the most glorious of bards is
t,.'r' To rob dead man Of we'll earned
% 3, and why? Because q yeomsn
Us! not presume to stand above
4 y, 'man, Or poet, who has not been TO
1 ',5-'' care to mount the winged steed.
1 =. >-aAespeare's hOnOrs can not be taken
aim by lille sophistry o. arbitrary
1 SHauSm; he has entrenched himself ia
1 hearts OF bis countrymen, and his posi-
IS 'npregnable. Except as the plays
e. poems show him, there is, indeed,
IL and shadoWy Shakespeare. Some
T. nsS said: The glory around his head
4 y,VHtS US from beholding his ieet of
but this poetic image is not, IN
d ~ slects, true. His feet OF clay-if
us image We mean the feelings Of his
RI;,TT me passion, the varied emotions
HCr5' -. - common with the great brother
az OF men, be felt-are often fully re-
ri'inn y the glory of his genius. While
.k NE plays end poems, their author
s'u itom lis shadows and became il.