The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1877-1885, 1884-03-05
For the f. & NJ. Household.

For the F. & NJ. Household
IL seems that Birdie Wren and m,
sell entertain so many conflicting opir
ions, and misunders tand each other 5
grossly, that the Household must gran
US the privilege of adjusting our friendl
differences. | will not let Brides las
letter pass unanswered, for if L did it
powerful reasoning would make man,
believe that had failed to maintain m,
position. | shall not weary the House
hold by discussing the already thorough
~ discussed subject of Carlyle; bu
shall come Immediately to the disagree
ment between Birdie and myself. Biz
ole conflicts her ideas of greatness Will
those OF goodness. and atfirms that M
man can be great without being good
Every one can grasp the meaning o
greatness, but when it is qualified b,
that little adjective which has weaken.
ed the meaning of so many words thai
were sufficiently clear without any modi.
| ficatlons, it becomes confused and ad.
mlts OF as plany constructions as there
are variations of intellect and diversity
| OF thought. Greatness standing out nv
itself conveys to every one the same
idea OF grandeur, fame, honor and DOW
/ er, but how many different meanings
] can be attached to true greatness. One
man would call the warrior wadiro
| through the blood OF the slain, and defy-
ING the nations OF the earth to the com
bat. as man OF True Greatness. Anoth
er would call the poet and historian
| truly great, and still another would atfis
the title upon the unsteady eminence Of
christian life. For my part consider.
any man great who has attained distinc-
ton in his calling, be he warrior. or
apostle, poet. or painter. If we 90 a
l.ttle further we will find where these
rery fine adlectives lead us. Does it
not lesson the force OF happiness to call
1t true happiness? Will not that con-
yey the idea that happiness is some
times not happiness, and when it is hap
piness it is true happiness? This is
where the analogy ieads-ad a6,rd,.m.
There are no two words in English exact
ly synonymous-ofte those the
most so are very different indeed. A man
may be great and very good. prbS ,7,es
be great ara very wicked " w. is lust as
absurd to call man that is both good
and G. inent, 4 man Of true goodness,
as TO cell man, great and religious, a
man Of true greatness. Both are the
same. luJ while it is plausible enough to
say u al Of true greatness it CRATES
harsh!y upon our ears to say true good
ness. The truth IS, good man is a
good man, and the circumstance of his
ae.ac g-ca5 lust as much entities him to
he called a man OF true goodness, as a
religious life conters the title of true
creatn = upon a man Of renown. We
are u,t justified in confounding the two
no more than we are justified in calling
a man hota wicked and cruel man of
true yirke,lness. But here is our diff
ference. Birdie; here is the rock upon
which we split. i do not grasp your
idea of great man." You say truly
here. and / am persuaded that not one
in ten can grasp your idea of great
man because YOU must have him man
of ..true greatness" You say. "shall
we. one Of the most highly civilized ma
tions on the globe, standing here in the
latter half OF the nineteenth century
adopt as our standard of greatness that
OF a heathen nation 20 We have done
it. with all our boasted wisdom, the
standard is the same. And when |
think Of the history of the nation from
which Alexander sprang, | am not dis
posed to grumble at the choice The
same people that called him great, and
made the ancient world resound in his
praise. likewise conferred as many
praises upon Socrates The same ma
ton, q hedthen nation. whose standard
of greatness we must not adopt. perpet-
uated the name OF the wise Solon. and
ages before these great men, whose
names so many ages after are kept fresh
aud venerated. this same heather ma
tom flocked to hear a blind bard, con-
soled him in his waLderings, and we
have not yet seen fit, in keeping with
our hioh civilization, to pluck the crown
OF greatness from the memory of the
man who sang in imm orlal strains the
exploits of Achilles and the fall Of Troy.
| Aud we never will the great men of
the ancients will all still be great with
us. Their Plato's and Aristotles.
| Cicero's and Homers. will be hailed
| through time as greater than our Bacons
and Newtons, Pitts or Millions. What
they condemned we condemn. Diony.
| sius was to them murderer and tyrant,
and we finding the same qualities in the
rer,ccQtinr kings of modern days as the
ancicrts found in the despot of Syracuse
we afiE to them the same title. HUI
man nature is in all ages the same. anC
though those nations of antiquity were
deb!rred OF the light of the gospel the,
erscrbed so nearly what a man should
.e. and proclaimed a philosophy 81
.earl, divine that they have been taker
- studies and guides wherever civiliza
son mas reached. Their influence j.
.nI erl,.lable. and in the language o
one who was also great and good
Wherever few great minds have
made a stand against violence anC
fraud IN the cause of liberty and reason
there has been their spirit in the mds
of them, inspiring, encouraging, con
,olno " AMI shall we now forget al
The .puefits we have derived from tn,
ancielts: Shall we harbor like un
grateful children under the blessing
they have given US and spurn then
from our minds as "a heather nation 2
No. ,he IL liuence of the ancients vii
survive. when all that is now great shall
; have decayed, when savages shal
!. again roam the American plains, an
; our lronuments and cities shall be re
par,.ed as the ruins OF an ancient race
.teI still fresh and pure, in whateve