The evening herald. [volume] (Shenandoah, Pa.) 1891-1966, 1894-10-08

can army. Washington occupied the
house for time. A little latter it became
the home of DR.. Abiol Holiness historian of
New England, clergyman and author, and
in it, ON the 2Jth of August, lS09 was born
his famous son, Oliver Wendell Holmes.
Abiel Holmes second wife was daughter
of Oliver Wendell, and Of her five children
the third was the renowned genialist and
"Autocrat of the Breakfast Table"
Except the historian Bancroft no other
American had so long literary career,
and probably no other had one so uni
formly brilliant for he did admirable
work in boyhood and until quite recently
it could truly be said Of him that the fire
of his intellect was not dimmed or his
natural force abated. At is he wrote
musical lines glowing with optimism, and
at S3 he looked upon the world without
asperity and expressed himself with all the
yiyacity of youth,
While preparing for college at Phillips
Andover academy he made his first at
tempt at versilcation, turning the first
book of the .Eneid into heroic couplets In
1929 he was graduated from Harvard,
among his classmates being William H.
Cuauuiug, Benjamin r. Curtis and james
Freeman Clarke He was poet Of the class
at commencement, and was one OF the six
teen chosen into the Phi Beta Kappa so
ciety, an honor of which he was proud to
the last Of his life, as appears by many al
lusions in his writings.
His first poem to attract general atten.
tion as the famous one on the consUitu-
tion, beginning
Az, teAr uer tattered ensign down!
Long has it waved on high,
And many an eye has danced to see
That banner in the sky
Beneath it rung the battle shout
And burst the cannon S roar;
The meteor Of the ocean air
shall sweep the clouds no more.
1t stirred the popular heart as did the
"Star Spangled Banner" The young
poets fame became national in month
and world wide soon after. The poem was
published in almost every paper IN the
| United States and circulated by thousands
| in handbills. His suddenly won popular
| ity was never once lost during the sixty
odd years Of literary life which followed.
So far as DR., Holmes views on the un-
seen and unknown can be gathered from
! his writings he was philOsOphic or scie
| titic pantheisJ, nor does it appear that me
| ever had any orthodox faith, even in child
/ hood. 1t has often been remarked that in
| the United States the most pronounced ag-
nostics have been the sons Of ministers,
Holiness Ingersoll and Draper being cited
as noted ins.an In the "Autocrat of
| the braaklast Table are found the most
! pointed of DR.. Holmes stabs at the clergy
| ami tAere he gives otfeuse chiefly by ignor-
| ing what is said on the other side as simply
! beneath notice.
The young graduate had decided, or
more likely it had been decided for him,
| that he was TO be a lawyer and he studied
! law for one year. During this time he
wrote Evening" By Tailor, and other
popular pieces of humor then decided
against the law and went to Paris as soon
as ne could afford it TO study medicine.
! After three years abroad he published his
first volume of poems in 1876, the most
noted productions in it being My Aunt
and "The Last Leaf
| In 1889 he was chosen professor of anat-
omy and physiology at Dartmouth, and in
! 1910 married Amelia Lee, daughter of
( Judge Charles jackson, of the supreme
! court of Massachusetts A son of this
marriage, Oliver Wendell, Jr., born March
/ s. 1871, made a very honorable record in
I the war for the Union, and has attained
high rank as jurist In 1852 he was made
( a member OF the supreme court OF MaSsa-
! chusetts, having previously published va
( riOus law works.
In lS41 DIR. Holmes succeeded Dr. John
+, G. Warren as professor Of anatomy and
| physiology in the medical school at Har-
ward, and soon after became prominent as
"A lyceum lecturer Thence till 1850, his
larger works appeared in rapid succession,
! works on literature and medicine alternaU-
/ ing,
The zenith Of his power was attained in
! his contributions to The Atlantic Monthly
FOR the first three or four years of its exist
/ ence-ls57 to 1861. The most popular of all
his productions, this one which secured
-ihn tho title by which he is best known,
"Ihs Autocrat of the Breakfast Table, "