The San Francisco call., 1899-05-28
DOES He NEED a MONUMENT :?

! 0UR esteemed contemporary the Evening Post,
II ] which of late has devoted its editorial page to
- vagrom fancies and curious statistics, put to
itself the question some time ago, Does Dewey need
monument" and after wrestling with 1t announced
on Friday that he does not
The conclusion is lust Admiral Dewey needs no
monument either in his back yard his front yard or
on board his ship Indeed, it is difficult to see what
he would do with were presented to him. ouch
things are useful neither to private citizens nor 10
naval officers man with monument thrust upon
him would be about embarrassed as the peasant
was with the elephant
Had the Post contented itself with announcing It's
conclusion on the subject all would have been well
with it. but in an evil permitted itself to
indulge in the rashness of trying to make an argu-
ment 1t asserts in the first place, that shaft, or
statue or a monument, in bronze or brass, could not
enhance the fame of the Admiral render more en-
during the honor conferred by great people. His
name and his fame it says are enshrned in the
hearts OF his countrymen and he will live in the pages
OF history beyond the term of crumbling stone
metals corrupted by the rust Of ages
All OF which is most excellent fooling. Because
he needs no praise shall we be dumb?" Had the peo-
pie never praised Dewey, never sounded their appre-
citation OF his valor and his patriotism his deed would
ere this have been forgotten. A feeling or thought
from memory. 1t is only by giving it expression in
enduring forms through the medium OF letters Of
art that any sentiment OF the brain feeling OF the
heart is perpetuated among men.
There were heroes before Agamemnon, but no
Homer sang their glory, and the world knows them
not The hero to whose honor song has been
raised, monument erected, is as obscure in death
the nameess slaves that served in the cellars OF
''the courts where Jamshyd reveed and drank deep.
No hero needs monument but people whose
tional life must be fed with noble memories need all
forms OF monuments that those memories may be
forever fresh in their minds and in their hearts.
Pursuing its folly with fatuous persstency, the
Post goes on to say have artists, scuptors
architects with the genius requisite TO provide
monument worthy of Dewey and adds: Let lis at
tain to the genius OF building monuments to heroes
before we risk the failure that may subject the hero
thus honored to the scorn of future generations not
so enthusiastic as ourselves over deeds of heroism
that may appear less heroic in the pages OF cold pas
sionless impartial and accurate history of the event
The argument that we must not erect monuments
until we have learned to erect them is equivalent to
the old grandmothers advice to the boy not to go
into the water until he learned to swim AS matter
OF fact we have in this country many artists quite
pabe of designing and constructing monu-
mental works OF the highest class Several OF the
kind erected in the Eastern States within the past few
years are equal in magnitude. dignity and artistic
beauty to any recently raised in Europe
The Pacific Coast needs monument Dewey as
an expression OF regard for his glorious service to
the republic, as a memorial to future generations Of
his patriotism and OF the honor in which it is now
held and as stimulus to artists and to genius, The
whole republic needs the monument, and it will be
erected