The gold leaf. [volume] (Henderson, N.C.) 1881-1911, 1898-05-26
THE PASSING OF Mr.. GLADSTONE,

morning the melancholy message
from Hawarden castle announcing
/. that England's grand old statesman
} is no more and the warm heart which
e has been for almost ninety wears the
r abode OF sympathy for human rights
e is cold in death forever
! While the unique position which
Mr.. Gladstone occupies in the world s
ahectonate regard invests him with
e much of the distinction which at
e taches to royalty itself he neverthe-
o less belongs essentially to the ranks
r OF England's commoners Without
o the least claim to aristocracv in his
!. unblemished but obscure lineage. Mr.
d Gladstone has eNemplified through
e out his long career those sturdy
t traits. of character which are pecu-
I harry the heritage of the plain, I'M
r titled Englishman. His svmpathies
|, have always been with the employ
y ments of the lowly born. and never
!, once has he permitted the favor of
!. the crown to swerve him in the least
u from jealousy upholding the inter
II ests of those whom he considered
+ the real soveriegns of the empire
t Badges of artificial rank have had
e little charms for him, and more than
e once he has put aside the flattering
proffer of some noble little to re-
: main the stsadfast champion of the
common people. In the council
Il chambers of the government as well
as in the privacy of home life, he has
|. been dominated by the same rugged
! principles; and every aspiration of
!, his great heart has shown him I'M
: mistakably to be the product of that
S sturdy element of England's citizen
n ship which seven hundred years ago
e wrested the Magma Charta from the
= reluctant clutches of King John.
: Seldom is it the lot of great talents
o to figure long upon the stage of
q exalted public usefulness. Empires
and republics are too often called
upon to mourn the premature depart
ure OF illustrious leaders who seem to
/ be so well equipped to lead them;
y and in view of this unhappy fact, the
f life of MIR. Gladstone, patriarchal in
Y its limit, constitutes within itself one
= of the most extraordinary dispense
lions which the world has known in
: modern times. But when the not
/. able achievements of his life are
,. | considered, its longevity is perhaps
1920 least distinguishing characteris-
n 1S2.
HOLY ALI Gladstone entered parliament
Austria. Eix years ago. With the first
yened in 1tnce which he made in that
placed hirt became manifest that he
army of mould, in time, the destinies
kent on sgland. His aim being to ele-
make a he condition of the masses, he
patiently and unremittingly
which cd that end, never permitting
If it's S,yn selfish interests to sway him
British he least. What success he at
in vaip.d in this endeavor is recorded
the So only in the love which the masses
it's ertained for him, but the multi
indered liberties which they to-day en-
Amer'. Without the least extravaganza,
this may be said that England's debt
that gratitude to MIR. Gladstone is
beyond the power of compen-
ninp. ion. But while the energies of
ernme Gladstone have been directed
minis ely toward ameliorating the con-
if thton of his own immediate fellow
restol ntrymen, they have not been
cd Snidly inclosed within that narrow
assistapass. With what zeal he has up
it.. ri the cause of down-trodden and
Ireland, the world well
in Slows; but scarcely less pronounced
Feras been the earnestness with which,
Spa1 the closing chapter of his life he
rants espoused the cause of the prose-
PhiIted Christians in Armenia From no
leadi1rter of the globe has the voice of
Tim an suffering ever cried in vain
King is sympathetic ear. What nobler
MARI taph than this could be inscribed
OR ION his tomb?
kee While engrossed with the affairs of
de- tatecraft, Mr.. Gladstone has man
tinged to find abundant leisure for
Satterary work. Early in his life he
poccupied himself with the congenial
bfask of translating Horace into Eng
Nlish. Other Latin authors have since
engaged the labors of his ready pen;
while numerous volumes freighted
| with his own thoughts upon matters
OF science, government and religion
have come from his intellectual lab
oratory. Of our American states
men, John Quincy Adams was per
haps the most notable example of the
literary set; but the volumes which
John Quincy Adams has left behind
are not to be compared in the amount
OF intellectual labor which Mr.. Glad
stone has produced during his long
; career.
Perhaps the browning glory of Mr..
| GladstOne's life is found in the I'M
wavering Christian piety which has
made him one of the most blameless
and circumspect of men. With stead
fast reliance upon the truths of Holy
Writ he has shaped his conduct to the
standards which that authority laws
down, making it the inspiration of
| his studious endeavOrs for the well
| fare OF his fellow men. What measure
of uplifting influence his example in
this respect has exercised upon the
| worlds faith can only be conjected;
but its potentiality cannot be doubted
in the least. From whatever point
OF view considered, the life of Eng
lands grand old statesman appeals
to universal admiration. Other great
forces in the years to come may sway
the worlds destinies, but Mr. Glad |
stone is not apt to be forgotten.-l
| Atlanta Constitution
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