The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1897-06-17
Philadelphia Greatest Philanthropist
Correspondence of The Journal. I

| correspondence VI L lie journal.
PHILADELPHIA, PENN, June 2. 1897.
The men whose names shine bright upo1
the pages of history have sprung, for the
greater part, from the humblest walks ir
life. They come from the workshop
from the factory and from the farm. I'm.
proving the spare moments of life in self
culture and study, they have risen from
obscurity to occupy positions of trust and
influence in civil and political life. The
unwilling of the statue of Stephen
Girard, one of the greatest of Philadel-
| phia's adopted sons, on the Goth of May in
this city, is indeed most excellent illus
tration of one who had no idle hours in
his existence, no wastings in the economy
| of his time; but who by the force of his
own genius became the most eminent
philanthropist of his day and generation.
The career of this great man, whose statue
L have looked upon with much interest, is
indeed worthy of the most appreciative
insight. Said he, some years before he
died.
Il can say with truth, | have made my
way alone, with means gained from my
nurse, the sea;'' and again in 1918 he
writes; 81 have the proud satisfaction to
know that my conduct, my labor and my
economy have enabled me to do one hun
dred times more for my relatives than
they, altogether, have ever done for me
since the day of my birth. While my
brothers were taught at college, l was the
only one whose education was neglected
But the love of labor, which has not left
me yet, has placed me in the ranks Of
citizens useful to society"
The statue is cast in bronze. The height
Of the figure, including the plinth upon
which it stands, is nine feet, three inches,
making a total height of eighteen feet
four inches from the ground to the top of
the head. 1t cost $40, 900 and was erected
| by the Alumni Association of Girard Col
lege and the people of Philadelphia. 1t
stands in the western plaza OF the City
Hall-*hich, blythe way, is one of the
most magnificent public buildings in the
woodland bears the following inscrip-
ton: ''Philadelphia' Greatest Philan-
thropist. Erected by the Alumni OF
Girard College and the People of this
City and Commonwealth, 1897 The
large die stone of the statue came from
the quarries of New Hampshire, and is a
fine piece of granite without flaw OF
speck to mar its beautiful surface.
Memorial day has come and gone and
so has generation of time since the wal
between North and South was ended.
Flags were displayed everywhere in the
F! city, and martial music was heard on
every hand No grave where sleeps a
soldier, no matter how humble. was left
! unmarked by evidences of the love of the
people. Special decorations We're made
at the tombs of Benjamin Franklin Com
modore stephen Decatur, Major General
many others. The government cannot do
100 much for the soldiers who fought to
preserve the union, and thought as saw
walking in the parades children with
their grandsires that it is well that we
should teach them to love the dear old
flag; and may the children Of to-day be
ever ready to uphold and defend the
glorious banner of liberty.
But it is with sad heart | write that
the beautiful services of Memorial Dav
were greatly marred by drunkenness.
While the public offices and business
houses in the centre of the city were
closed during the greater part of the day
these hell holes, licensed by our Chris
tan government, were wide open devour-
ing the people. | saw soldiers drunk and
even women and boys drunk Well, they
have right to get drunk, for our govern
ment allows them to do so; but it does
not seem just right for our government.
after allowing people to get intoxicated,
to then turn around and punish them for
getting drunk. In my opinion it would
be just as reasonable for our nation to Ii
cense skin disease and then punish peo-
pie for scratching. Look at the vagrant
youth who wander about this city day
and night and congregate in dens of in
fanny Who are they? They are the pro-
duct, for the most part, of broken and
disrupted families, shattered and con-
sumed by the liquid fires OF rum. Oh it
is burning shame and disgrace for this
nation to license this awful evil which is
overshadowing our land with misery and
pauperism; and every intelligent citizen
must realize that our country is in more
danger to-day as result of this rum evil
than when Fort Sumter was fired upon
and unless our people put stop to this
drunkard making business it will stop
the wheels of this Republic.
Men may sheer at temperance and
at temperance workers, but God knows
| II we desire to preserve this ma
ton we must put down this mighty
enemy of civilization, liberty, justice
humanity, morality and religion. Often
have heard in the night the rumbling of
the carts conveying the departed to their
long home unhonored and unsung. -
and it is safe to say that nine-tenths of
the people in this great city who are