Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1900-08-09
The Death of DR.. RIdpath.

DR. Ridpath, the historian, died a
few days since. Had a successful
stock gambler died ten times as much
would have been heard of the event.
Had Terry McGovern, a conscien-
tious little fighting savage. left the
earth, newrpaper pages would have
been full OF it, and men would have
talked OF it for days. The stock gam
bier succeeds IN getting other mems
money by means more or less reput-
able. The pr re fighter succeeds IN
hsmmering kis fellow IN superior
gorilla fashion until the weaker
human monkey gives in. It is a fun
ny world that is more interested in
such creatures than in one who, like
DR.. RIdpath, made his study of hu-
man progress on this globe.
Next to the worlds great inventors,
who add to our actual wealth and
push civilization forward, we should
be grateful to historians, who hand
down to Us truthful accounts of the
wisdom, achievements and failures
of the past for our own guidance.
DR.. Rldpath undertook and success
fully accomplished that greatest of
all tasks-a history of the world.
Any attempt to systematlze and
chronicle this earth's fertile past calls
for intellectual courage of the high
est type. Every nation, every CEN
fury, every year almost, furnishes
material for a lifetime's writing.
Buckle undertook to write history
of civilization in England. The mere
introduction, two volumes, exhausted
his strength and he died, with only
the introduction wrItten-but that in
PRODUCTION, complete ID itself, is a
glorious monument to any man.
Beautiful and amazing Is the most
rapid glance over human history.
You see the cave jewellers of Switzer-
land scratching the mammoth's pro-
file on the mammoth's own tooth. |
And almost with the same glance you
see the great Italian painter portray
ing the sufferings of the worlds Saw
Tor. So fast do human events crowd |
one upon another.
Attills, stupid, ferocious, blood
drinking, rides his war horse over
fertile plains to leave them desolate
for years. Archlmedes in his bath
rubbing soft oil over his philosophy
cal chest and half floating in the
water makes marvellous discovery
useful to human beings for all time.
Only hairs breadth in the worlds
history separates them.
Abelard whispers his we'll studied
love story to poor Heloise, Richard
the Lion Hearted. the Jefferies of his
day, wanders around Palestine, he
roic buffoon, exchanging fsticuffs on
the ear with casual acquaintances.
Elizabeth slgughters Marie; the
Pope's dead body Is dug up and for
merIy tried; humble Englishman
in7ents the steam engine; Columbus
goes sailing over the ocean; Newton |
travels through space to bring back |
it's secrets; Shakespeare for the first
time in esrth's history analyzes am
bition; Jefferson writes a neat obitu-
airy for England's rule in America;
hermits torture their bodies; religious
enthusiasts butcher, boil and burn !
each other ingeuiously; one man
brings up treasure from the seas
depth, another loses his life trying to |
fly through the air; nations rise and
flourish and fade like cabbages-snd
all the while the human race is steed- |
lily aud persistently wiggling on to-
ward that harmonious condition which |
is its destiny.
The man who devotes his life to
conscientious description of human
ity on the globe deserves the thanks
and admiration of his fellows.
&c.