The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1902-04-24


thought more of her happiness and
freedom than he did of bloody and
tempestuous Paris, torn by faction and
darkened by the shadow of the revol-
ution. And finally when Napoleon be-
came general of the army of Italy and
master of Southern Europe one of the
first things he did was to drive the
English out of Corsica and annex the
island under the flag of France. 1t
is the duty of every man to love his
country. Devotion to the land of ones
birth is a noble trait and no man can
be really great or useful who has not
this quality in his soul.
Col Stovall here showed the duty of
every boy in Georgia to love his state
and his country, making an earnest APP
peal to cultivate the highest patriot
ism. ~ syn 80 tta
Napoleon was educated at the ex-
pease of France. In spite. of all his
sufferings he loved Brienne, and when
he was emperor he went back to the
scene Of his early struggles and fought
his snow battles over again. 1t is not
a little pathetic that when he entered
his last campaign his enemies were
camped upon the grounds where he
played as a schoolboy, and that Water
loo which closed his public career was
near the place where he merged as a
youth to become a lieutenant inrsthe
French army.
Probably the highest virtue of young
Napoleon was devotion to his mother.
When he was a young officer, poorly
paid, sleeping in a garnet and lunching
from door to door, it was his habit to
send his mother each month a part of
his slender earnings. He never for
got the folks at home When rising
fortune filled his purse and frightened
his fame his family arose with him in
ascending scale. He always kept them
near him. He made them kings and
queens; married them off to dukes
ard princes. Nothing was too good for
his own people. Many men who be-
come famous rise above their sur
roundings and sometimes grow
ashamed of the loved ones at home.
But Napoleon never looked down ex-
cept with tenderness upon his brothers
and sisters, who had not enjoyed the
same advantages or shown the same
splendid talents. All Of his glory was
reflected upon them and in hours of
triumph, as well as in days of disaster,
he claimed them as his own, sharing
with them his fortunes or his great
ness, or dividing generously the crust
of struggling life. The Bible says:
Honor thy father land thy mother that
thy days may be long in the land
Gratitude "A Royal Virtue.
MANY of you are orphan boys, but
some of you have mothers and Sisters
and brothers. Remember that YOU
owe them debt of love and protec-
ton, and that however successful you
may become you should give them the
benefit of your good name and your
prosperity.
There was another thing about Ma
poleon which even his severest critics
have never denied. He never forgot
those who did him a kindness. GRAFT
itude is a noble virtue. II is related
that he was once walking on the banks
of the river meditating how he should
drown himself. His money had been
exhausted. His mother and her fam
lily were suffering. He had lost his
position in the army and fortune had
hidden her smiles for many a. day.
While he fingered upon the brink of
the stream, his face darker than the
clouds of a stormy night he was ac-
costed by Des Mayes, an old friend,
in this secluded spot.
why, Napoleon" said Des Mayes,
where are you going?
1.-The young officer confided to his
friend his sad story and his hopeless
plight The friend dissuaded him from
his desperate venture. He loaned him
30 900 francs. Napoleon sent a, large
part of this to his mother and went
on his way rejoicing. He did not see
his friend again for many years. He
was the consul of France and forced
upon his benefactor ten times the
amount of the loan, besides appoint
ing him to a position under the gov
eminent which paid him 10000 francs
a year This was the act of a great
man and was Characteristic of Napo-
leon.
when he stopped in Corsica on his
way home from the east he presented
his old nurse with home in Ajaccio
and the guide who conducted him over
the mountain paths of the Alps he
never forgot. He bought him a beau
tiful farm. and long after Napoleon's
campaigns were over and every YES
tige &C his power was swept aside the
mountain guide retained his fertile
acres, an evidence of the kindness
and appreciation of the commander of
the army of Italy. There is nothing
more kindly than Kindness. He never
forgot Madame Marmont, who had
been kind TO him when he was a
poor boy. had nursed his father on
his death bed. As Mr.. Watson, his
biographer said: He gave place and