New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1889-04-07

sueh declaration; they felt the solid earth be
meath the speakers feet and beneath their own.
And IL was by such declaration that he led them
n that almost Incompatible peroration which
every American schoolboy ought to know II he
does not. beginning / am not nor did l ever
pretend to be a statesman and ending Lei
II not be said that am alone in my condemnation
of this war and Of this incapable and guilty Aa-
ministration. And even il I were alone, II mine
were a solitary voice, raised amid the dln OF
arms and the clamor Of q venal press, shoupu
have the consolation have to-night--and whlch
trust will be mine TO the last moment OF my OK
istence-the priceless consolation that no woru OF
mine has tended TO promote the squander1ng OF
my country's treasure or the sp11ng OF one slnsle
drop of my country's blood"
There are many parts Of the speeeheS On
America which the American, whether schoolboy
or statesman. knows in more senses than one oy
heart both for their value to us at the time. anu
for their rhetorical beauty. On them need MOI
dwell even for a moment. What Emerson salu Vi
poetry may also be said of oratory-of the pes'
oratory-that IL teaches the enormous force Oh
few words. that il requires that splenuor Vi oA
preston which carries with it the PROOF OF grea'
thoughts; and that every word Should % 'iie
word / commend this Cnmean passage W Une
student If he will master the sense OF IL "iVlou'
committing TO memory the words, anu "ili 0HoA
try to write out the sense in his own "orus' III
viii have had lesson which ought to proht MIN.
Or let him try to take these sentences W p'eoeS
and reconstruct them, or forget woro ana Try U"
replace It, The topic is full OF interest," ouO 4
discussed il twenty years ago ana nave "rltUeh
much about it since, and will add WORD on one
other point only.
RriObts speeches were nerer frequent, and
a. 4hn Ina Of
Neither in the House OF Commons nor on the
platform was he at any time since the rePe@l OIL
the Corn Laws to be heard very often. 1t was
an event when he spoke in the House, and when
he delivered an address at Birmingham there
were pilgrimages from far and near. de dislkea
parade, ostentation, fuss, as much as any man
could, but he never shrunk from the ahecuohSe
greetings of his constituents. The infrequency
of his public appearances was due, however, 70
other causes than Incidence or love Of seciuslon'
He understood that great efforts must DC naoe
st long intervals, and that one great speech Is
worth score which just fall short of being great
once heard an admirer of Mr.. Gladstone claim
for him a superiority to Mr.. Bright because he
had spoken so much more than Mr. Bright there
are half dozen borB in English pubic lie
who might be ranked above him for the same
mason II Mr.. GladstOnes speaking falB 10
attain to the very highest excellence, 1t is probably
because of its scopiousness as we'll as from the
extraordinary complications Of his style HIS
exuberanee is irrepressible: it is magnificent out
it is not always oratory. Bright avoided extremes
He valued directness of speech. The majesty OF
Chatham, the sonorOus pomp Of Pitt, the luxurance
of Burke, the elaborate artifee of BrouGham,
none of these were his, but 10 none OF them
perhaps to no orator who ever Hved-was he
inferior in those qualities which are the vital
force of oratory, in all its literature is there
anything more admirable than the august SIM
plicity Of Bright. u W. D.