Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1889-03-30
THE GRAND OLD MANS EULoGY.
Gladstone Delivers Grafton on join,
Bright to the Commons.

LONDON, March 30-!n the house of com
mons last evening Gladstone delivered an
Grafton on the life and services of John
Bright. Mr.. Briyht's life, he said, had been
happy in a renaI kable degree, even to the
! moment of his departure He had lived 10
see the triumph of almost every great cause
to which he had especially devoted his heart
and mind. He had established a special
claim to the admiration OF those who had
otherwise differed with him by his concur
renee with them upon the prominent question
OF the hour. Though he had separated him
self from the great bulk of the Liberals on
the Irish question. there had never been q
word of disparagement On ei her side Mr..
Bright's views with regard TO the Crimean
war, he [Gladstonel had been unable to agree
WITH but he had ever felt profoundly what
must have been the moral elevation of men
who had all their lives been nurtured in the
temple of popular approval, yet who could at
| a moments notice consent TO part with the
whole of that favor they enjoyed and which
their opponents II ght think the very breath
| of their nosirils
Gladstone then proceeded and concluded
as follows:
| Another Circumstance Of his career is
| better known to ms than to any other person
present Everybody Is aware that office had
no attraction for him But few can be
aware what extra efforts were required to
induce him 10 bee )me a servant Of the crown
In the crisis OF 1858. when the fate of the
Irish church hung in the balance, it was my
duty to propose TO Mr.. Bright that he be-
| come a minister. j never undertook so diff
cult task. From IL o'clock at night until
O'Clock in the morning we steadily debated
the subject. 1t was only at the
last moment that he found it
possible to set aside the repugnance
he felt at doing anything that might in the
eyes OF any one even of the more ignorant
class of his couutrymen, appear TO detract in
the slightest degree from that lofty independ-
dence of character which / have mentioned,
and which never throughout his career was
held in doubt
Among other gifts MIR. Bright was de-
lighted to be one Of the chief guardians Of
the purity of the English tongue lHear,
hear He knew how the character of the
nation Is associated with its language He
was enabled, as al Englishman profoundly
attached to his country, the tongue of the
people being 10 him almost an object of wor-
ship, to preserve the purity of the language
Of Shakespeare and Milton. tCheers1 1t was
a happy lot to unite SO many attractive
qualities If had to dwell upon them alone
l should present dazzling picture to the
world. 1t was a happier lot to teach moral
lessons by simplicity, consistency, unfailing
courage and constGncy Of life thus present.
ing combination Of qualities that carries US
| to higher atmosphere. Hear, bear1
His sympathies were not strong only, but
active; not sympaihies awaiting calls to be
made upon them, put sympathies of man
| sesking objects upon which to bestow the in
esNimable advantages Of eloquence and cour-
aga In Ireland, when support of the Irish
cause was rare; in India, when support Of
the native cause " is rarer still; in America,
at 1he time when DIR. Bright, foreseeing the
ulti mate issue of the great struggle of 1861,
stot d as the representative Of an exceedingly
small portion Of tie educated community Of
the country, although undoubtedly repre-
senting large part of the national sentiment
| lhear, hear]-in al these cases Mr. Bright
went far outside the necessities of his calling
Whatever touched him as q man of the great
Anglo Saxon race, whatever touched him as
a subject, obtained unasked his sincere, earn
est and enthusiastic aid. Hear, hear.l
"An causes having his powerful advocacy
made a distinct ao vance in the estimation of
the world, and distinct progress toward tri-
|
that he is entitled to higher eulogy than il
due to success. or mere success, indeed, he
was a conspicuous example In intellect he
might claim most distinguished place. But
his character lies deeper than intellect,
deeper than anything that can be described
| or that can be seen upon the surface.
1.-THE supreme e'ilogy that is bus due, Is
TINT he elevated political life to the highest
point; to lofter s;andard than 1t had ever
reached He .bequeathed to his country a
character that cam OF only be made a subject
| tor admiration and gratitude, but-and / do
not exaggerate when l say it-that can be-
come an object of reverental contemplation.
In the encomiums that come from every
| quarter there is not note OF disson-
apce. / do not know of any states
man of my time who had the happiness
of receiving, on removal from this passing
world, the honor Of approval at once 30
enthusiastically, So universal and so I'M
broken. Hear, besrr.] Yet none could bet
ter dispense with the tributes of the moment,
because the triumpls of his life were the
triurnphs recorded in the advance Of his
country and Of its people. His name is in
delibly written in ne annals of time and on
the hearts of the great and over-spreading
race to which he belonged, whose wide ex-
tension he rejoiced 20 see, and whose power
and prominence lie believed to be full Of
promise and glory for the best interest of
mankind"
Eulogistic speeches were also made by
Smith, Harrington, Chamberlain and Justin
Mccarthy. McCar thy said he heartily en-
dorsed the noble speech Of Gladstone. His
memory Of Irish e, ents carried him back to
the time when Mr.. Bright had championed
the Irish cause, and therefore he claimed the
the right Of Erelantl 70 lay wreath Of i'm
mortsllss upon that staseaman's grave.