The Delaware ledger. (Newark, Del.) 1879-19??, 1885-03-07
THE VANITY or FAME.


How great is the vanity of tamel
How proud it isl And yet man
loves it--man, whose very days are
numbered; man loves it long and
well--so well, that he becomes its
slave. The great teacher, Death,
confines man to time; as soon as
the signal is given, the shafts from
the monsters bow fly thick and
fast. Man may die soon, it is true;
he may die tomorrow. He may
outlive to-morrow-aye, outlive his
own strength; but death continually
Knocks him, and keeps strictaccount
OF the days yet allotted to his vic
tim.
Why do we fly death? II is inev-
table, and we should not fly it AS
an evil, when we are able TO and
ought to seek only what is good
the supreme joys of heaven, that are
born on earth--thc vestibule of
heaven. II is absolutely folly and
vanity, nischievious, namcless van
/ ity for man to talk of undyins fame.
Wisdom lies buried in the mortal
grave where we all must meet some
time. Wing and Tory, Protestant
and Caththolic, Jew and Gentle,
Baptist, Presbyterian, Saint, and
Atheist. Noble lords. who were OPP
posed to each other on earth-thc
bane and antidotc of politics; the
! defenders and betrayers OF freedom.
] lnglorious kings OF earth, dethroned
beheaded, or compelled to abdicate
their rights, or firmly holding them
till Death, the mighty denagogue,
trips up all prerogative; all these
meet at last Earth is the birth
place and cradle of glory, but its
grave as well. Surely man is fool
to seek for fame on earth! For fame
the invisible monster with hun
bred tongues, the child of fantasy,
the dream Of to-morrow-that never
is, but always is to be. To whom
has fame ever brought perfect hap
piness or entire satisfaction? Did
the Roman, who once leaped down
agulf for the acquisition of fame,
gain that fame? Yes, he found it
in untimely grave. Self-murder-
ed CatO--did he seek fame? Fame
indeed, was what he sought; but il
laid him in his tomb. Why did he
Rome's own imperial son, clad with
royal purple, recklessly drink the
poisoned contents of a golden bowl?
Satiated with palmy days, he sought
fame in the grave, where he found
the wisdom he so much needed.
When the great minister, Castlereagh
was dead, the world only said: "alas
for the minister He was a very
useful man." They did not ask
why the act was committed. lie
wished for fame, undying, attached
to his memory, an immortal name
He found all but the fame he sought
in the grave. And so it was with
Tiberius, Napoleon, and all the
other great, restless spirits, who aim
ed to be still greater than all theil
illustrious predecessors. But thest
! great minds, in trying to become
greater and more than man, some
times were less, but never more.
Then talk not of fame, We sag,
philosophers, We men of wit, v,
sophists of shrewdness! Fame il
mere wind, empty air,and come,
goes with every idle breeze, Whenc,
cometh it and whittier doth it 90
Tell me, We proud, ambitious vota
ries of fame, We slaves, did you
task-mistress, your idol, brush tn
tear from Caesars eyes, when hi
heart was torn and wounded by pei
tidy of his dearest friend? Did
wait cooling breezes across the waite
to the rocky st. Helena and fl
Napoleon's feverished cheekP Ca
thage was famous city. Ii fe
= though only once; but what
V great fall it was. That fall estal
- lished, was its fame, The ruins
the ancient Palmyra breathe ii
same lesson. And yet another OF
we find in Lord Byron, What W,
his birth to tho world? But h
death was something. His Dirt
was not his death. A Byron bon
was not Byron dead. Perhal
the world mourned over his deaf
" -wept tears. Alasl such tears 1
but serve to lay the dust of fam
the dust which clouds the air IN
ment, and is gone, to return to
parent, kindred earth-dust
dust!
HARVARD UNIvERsITY.-Octob