The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1894-08-26

Among the dead of the frighsful Frank
lin mine disaster was young Joseph Daw-
son. who nobly went back 10 warn and
snve the others and lost his own life
through this act OF humanity and cour-
age.
on sea or land. There is always a hero,
and he is always a hero Of everyday. CON-
mon life; some sturdy, manly fellow. who
never read any poetic tributes to heroism;
never made heroic speech, prepared for
public occasion. or saws heroic dramas on
the theatric stage. or fed upon heroic liter
allure OF any description. These heroes
OF everyday life are as unconscious of
their heroism as man of real genius is OF
his exceptional power. A genuine hero
does what he must; he does the heroic
thing At the right time and place, not be-
cause Of vanity seeking praise, but spon-
taneously, because he cannot do other
wise.
No man is born q soldier; he must be
trained 20 the military art, but every real
hero. that is. every man who Is capable of
that rare kind OF selfsacrifce which freely
risks life for his fellows, Is born, not
made. You might rs well expect a tin
soldier to lead charge on battery as to
expect heroism Of . man who had been
educated and trained to heroism by read
ing heroic literature. or writing heroic
poems. plays or speeches. Because Web
ster could rise in eloquent speech 10 the
level Of the heroes who fell at Bunker
Hill would be no assurance that Webster
would have borne himself as brayely as
Warren on the battlefield.
The impulse to seiEsacrifce for others is
older than Christianity. 1t is as old as
Homer and the Greek drama; IL is the
brightest light that glows out OF the dark
ness Of Greek mythology. Antigone goes
10 her death 10 give funeral rites 10 her
brothers body; Alcestis faces death for her
husband.
II we pass from ancient mythology 10
history the story OF Damon and Pythias is
familiar illustration that the ancient
Greek deemed = man of exceptional nobil-
ity who was willing 20 die for friend
Even the hard. stern civilization Of Rome
held self-sacrifiee Of this sort IN high es-
TEEN. To die for the state was expected Of
every eitiEen whether in Athens, Sparta
or Rome. hutindsvidaaI sacrifice FOR Others
was held as al exceptional title to endar-
ing fame.
There is not much Of this spirit OF self
sacrifice in the Old Testament David's
lament for Jonathan implies love that
might have risen to the height OF self
sacrifice. but as matter of fact David was
incapable Of selfsacri6ce: he talked about
il. but be sacrificed others, never himself
Superstition produced acts Of seIf-ahnegA-
ton on the part OF the ehivairy Of Europe
in the Crusades. bat in personal inter.
course with each other they were as a rule
intensely selfish, and in later times figures
like Bayard and Sidney were exceptional
in their century.
The spirit Of ss.fsaevifce illustrated so
increasingly By Christ in life and death
WAS preached 10 comparatively little pur-
pose until our present century, whose
soeial and civil life has been more com
plssely pernsased by it shan thai Of any
previous period Of the worlds history.
selAsh. intensely selfish IS cur modern
life seems. il Is 81 epoch OF social benign
ity. beaeAcen,e. pnss.6shness and self
sacrifice compared with any century THAI
preceded L.
Outside % sidney and Sir Humphrey
GslbeFt. there Vas liltls Of the modern
spirit Of se.gsaerlgics in the E,izab-shan
age. ard yes Shakespeare, who pictured
human nature, rot only as he foand il in
his own time. bas as Il ought to Re when il
rose 10 the faA hsigat Of its possibilities.
alw&ys sa4oss bis fnest n1ea and women
wgth sas spiEls % sslEszcrlflcs and sron-
saBeoas hero8sm that aakraas aud over
tops the vain passion for mill
tary glory and shs praise that the
popelaoe award deeds Of reckless
wAfllks har3sheoa and wAlor. Ia
Hsaxv the sixth he makes sAs EaglasA
general. Talbot, urge "a vain upoa his
young son - mo2at hss horse aad av.
ssnoe as.e&t aad Destruction are certain. sad
he. as commander. can % more IN honor
ay than could Caster hare legg ais uaen 70
die wlthcus him ca as last battle ae.d.
1he soa answers
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