The Vermont watchman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1883-1911, 1895-02-20

The following is an extract from the
speech of Hon. John d. Long, deliv-
cred on Lincoln's birthday before the
Middlesex Club, Boston.
As we retire farther away from the clouds
and gloom, and afterwards the inbreaking
sunshine of the War for the PreseI walton of
the Union, there rises the picture of that
humble, but magnanimous face of Abraham
Lincoln. He was, indeed, the great Ameri-
can, the Sa ior of his Country, as George
Washington was its father.
There is a greatness which is unique and
distinct. There is the greatness of pure in
tellect and logic, like Webster; there is the
greatness of pure force, like that of the iron
Bismarck there Is a greatness which is like
some tall, memorial shaft springing from
the earth to the sky, and yet constituting
part Of neither.
Now, there Is another greatness, great
ness which consists in adaptation to times
and circumstances, greatness which is the
seizure and use OF times and circumstances,
a greatness which marks deep impression
and stamp upon the history of the time i'll
which man lives, and in that sense Lin
coin no doubt falls short in might Of intel
lect of Webster. / think he falls short in
breadth and strength of mind of Franklin,
perhaps the largest mind of American birth,
in quickness of comprehension certainly of
Hamilton, or philosophic vision of Jeffer-
son, but in imp essvene ss upon his times,
in stamp upon the era in which he lived, in
guiding and moulding and directing forces
to the accomplishment of lgreat human
destiny, Lincoln stands foremost among
Americ An citizens by the side of Washing
ton forever.
| There is one element of greatness, and
that is an element of greatness which is
recognized by the plain people, whose yer
| dict after all is always the right one, and
1 hot 10 hn ole nf Sir 10 rnth harA
have been men great in history who have
not been possessed of that element of great
ness. L think that Marlborough in English
history, one OF her greatest warriors and
| greatest statesmen, Is among those who
lead the leaders of England, and yet his
/ tory has stamped him as liar and a thief
and a traitor.
There are men in our own history who
have been great leaders, who have pos
sessed great powers of domination and of
accomplishment, great orators, great states
| men, and yet you instinctively feel that
this one element has been lacking, that had
they been on the other side of a cause they
would have attained the same rank and
shown the same ability.
But God bless that humble rail-splitting
Abraham Lincoln. Look through his bis
tory from beginning to end, and there is nc
derogation Of his individual honor, truth
integrity and purity of character.
Congressman Boutelle has suggested the
| name OF the great warrior VINO LED OuI
forces and directed the blow which Lincoln
struck. 1t is nearly third Of century
now since Lincoln died, only little less
since Grant followed him. We can almost
forgive the crime thai led to the war, we
can almost count its sufferings and loss OF
blood and treasure as nothing, when we
think of these examples which 1t gave us,
those two men born, az you have suggested
of New England stock, but moulded out OF
that great noble western growth, magnani.
nous men, patriots. You can think OF
nothing Of them, and of nothing mean al
the same time,
On what pedestal those men stand to-
day, and forever will sand. How II leads
not only our eyes, but the very soul itself
to look back and upward. Think of it
Think of it. AS time shall recede, ages
and ages until all these circums iances OF to-
day shall have leveled into the common
historic landscape of the past, even theI
high above the horizon will tower those two
great figures, the men who never faltered
and never fiinched the men who gave theil
lives that their country might live, the
American statesman and the American sol
der, Abraham Lincoln, leaning ON the
shoulder OF Ulysses s. Grant.