The Opelousas courier., 1902-06-21
TRAITS OF CECIL RHODES
ONE OF THE MOST BRILLIANT FIG.
uRES OF HIS TIME.
Power of Mental Concentration-Where
His Greatness Lay-His Talents For
Leaderahip-Exerciscd . Fascination
Over His Associates.

| HILL VI luG Cuu1CA VI GlSlutius lSStOA
of Bishops Stortford, a small town halt
way between London and Cambridge.
He was educated at the grammar
school of the town. His lungs were
SO weak that at the age of nineteen
he was sent to live with a brother
in Natal, whence he presently drifted
to the recently discovered diamond
mines at Kimberly, and spent a num-
Der of years there, acquiring Claims"
and laying the foundations of his i'm
mense fortune, while returning from
time to time to England to keep his
terms and pass his examinations at
Oxford. Ultimately he effected a con-
solidation of all the numerous interests
at the diamond mines into one huge
company, of which he became the
ruling spirit, and turned to politics.
His career thereafter is known to all
the world.
The characteristic note of his intel
lect was it's power of concentration.
He had no very wide range of tastes
and interests, nor did his mind play
freely upon different subjects. 1t vas
absorbed by a few ideas, was accus-
toned to brood upon them, and was not
easily drawn off, wen in general soci-
ETY., to other topics. Literature and
art seemed to have no great attraction
for him. The only department of his
tory that he cared for was the his
tory of the Roman Empire, apparently
because it touched his imagination,
and suggested to him a~nalogies with
the history of the British Empire as
it has grown during the last two cen
turtles. Indeed, he was SO fond of it as
to have special tr%anslations made for
his own use of the works Of those
more obscure historians Of the later
imperial period who had not been
turned into English; for though he had
taken his degrees at Oxford, he had
no special turn for languages, and
had allowed his Latin and Greek to
grow rusty. But though he did not
shine in general conversation, those
who talked with him were always i'm
pressed by the force with which he
spoke on any practical question. He
had always formed his views for him.
self; he held them with tenacity; he
stated them with an air of almost pas
sionate conviction, reiterating them
again and again in almost the same
words, and seldom seeming to recog-
nize the worth Of any objections that
might be brought against them. He
could, when it was necessary, attend
carefully to details and be patient in
working them out. No such success
as he achieved in business and (for a
time) in politics would have been posi-
bic without a mastery of details. But
he liked better to deal with large con
ceptions, and TO dwell upon a few
dominant facts or forces, as if these
were the only things that needed to
be regarded.
Though he sat for many years in the
Cape Parliament and led 1T as Prime
Minister, he lacked the ordinary ac-
complishments of the practical poll
tician. He was a powerful rather
than q persuasive speaker, and by no
means skilful in debate; sometimes Of
Tending people whom he ought to have
conciliated, and often hurting out
opinions which it would have been
prudent to conceal. His colleagues
In the Ministry were always nervous
when he rose, though his talent for GO
ing straight to the vital issues, and
the force of his personality, made him
effective. He might in this respect be
compared to Bismarck although the |
latter was a much greater master of
expressfon), and while not an orator In |
the recognized sense of the word, he !
often struck out phrases Of extraor-
binary strength and point.
Although Cecil Rhodes was a socia-
BILE man, h%ospitable and always sur
rounded by friends, his intellectual life |
was solitary and isolated. He did not
seem to profit much by the counsel of
others, nor indeed to feel the need Of
consulting others. He thought things |
out for himself, brooding upon them
in q half-dreamy way, which seemed
In contrast to the steady direction of
his thoughts to practical aims. This
habit constituted part of his strength.
1t gave his views consistency and So
lidity. He had reflected so deeply that
he felt sure of himself, and was not
easily turned from his purpose. But
1t had also a weak side; it gave him an
f1TaH7rn@ nnr1G.1n r, nn @ 4r,- IRs z~-- 49,. - Il
confidence fostered by the Difference
which he received from all those who
surrounded him, among whom he
found no equal. And by putting him
out of sympathy with the persons lie
had to deal with, it affected his judy
ment. He was so self-absorbed as not
always to foresee how his action would
strike other people. There can be lit
tie doubt that the anger which the co.
loniai Dutch showed against him after
the raid Of December, 1895, was not
foreseen by him, and that, even as late
as 1897, he expected to win over
enough of their votes to ecove his
political position In the colony. Men
far Inferior to himself perceived that
this was not to be hoped for.
This mistake-the capital mistake of
his life-which brought his political ca
reer to a close, was largely due to a
singular feature of his character. He
had a clear view and a firm grasp OF
material forces. He knew how to
use money and how to appeal to mems
interests. but he did not equally appre-
ciate the influence of sentiment. He