Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1904-06-28
,~-.ssno or -o1Us.
Some Of the Worlds Gveatest Char.
acters Have Been a. Sparinx Of
Language as They Have Been Prod.
1gal of Deeds Of RenOwn

i9al Of Deeds Of RenOwn.
1t is curious and interesting fact
that many of the worlds greatest men
have been as sparing of words as they
have been prodigal of deeds.
1t is doubtful if there ever lived a
more taciturn man than Wallenstcin.
the famous col1mander of the Austrian
army during the thirty years war. 1t
is said of Wallenstein that be "Jiyed in
an atmosphere OF silence" and never ut
tered word that was not absolutely
necessary, nor would he permit others
10 speak In his presence more than was
essential One of his chamberlains was
hanged for waking Wallenstein with
needless noise. His servants were so
many mutes, not daring to open their
lips in his presence, and he was sur
| rounded by patrols, and the approaches
TO his house were barricaded by chains
to preserve him from the least disturb
ance. In comparison with Wallenstein.
1t has been recorded, Diogenes would
nave been chatterhox and William
the Silent a brawlcr.
But silence is :: characteristic of many
| OF the worlds most famous soldiers.
| Napoleon boastod that in his dealings
with men he never wasted q word and
made monosy tables answer most pur-
poses. But nothing escaped his eyes,
and lie could compress more within a
| sentence than most men could convey
| in II quarter of an hour
The great Duke of Marlborough when
! receiving reports from his generals
! would produce his watch and say, Il
| will give You a minute And it was
! likely to go hard with the officer who
| did not observe the Imitation To his
| staff the Duke of Wellington was al
| ways more or less Il sphinx 4 nod or
4 shake of the head was often the only
| response they could get from him. and
! when once ne was asked what he con-
sidered tile best equipment of a com
mander he answered, A long head and
silent tongue
| Won Moltke almost rivaled WaIlen-
stein in taciturnity He never opened
| his mouth if a gesture would suffice,
| and when the news was brought TO
| him that the French had declared war
he simply said TO the aid-de-eamp. "Sec
| ond piGconholc on the right first tier
| and turned round TO sleep again But
| he had said all that was necessary, for
| In the pieeonhole indicated We're com
! plcte plans for the campaign which
closed in brilliant victory. Won Moltke
| used to say that one verb in the Ger
| man language was worth all the 9TH
! ers put together and that was "Ihun"
TO do.
! The worst thing his enemies could
| say of President Grant was. He won't
| talk because he has so much to con.
! ceal" ana yet it was precisely in this
silence that Grants real strength lay.
| His orders and dispatches We're the
| bricfest ever penned. and when once a
| charming young lady playfnliy asked
him why he would not talk TO her he
! answered. My dear, don't You know
| that silence is one OF the greatest arts
OF converse ton ?"
| But it has been the same in all ages
| Charlemagne WAS a perfect miser OF
words. holding. with Confucius that
! ''silenee is Il friend that will never be.
tray" Hannibal WAS 'man of mono
Syllables" and .Iulius Cesar was nick
named by his soldiers The Oracle"
Even great statesmen and writer's
who cannot suffer from any lack OF
words have often been among the most
reserved of men OF Addison. John
son says. "Of his external manners
Is off haf
timorous or sullen taciturnity which
his friends called modesty by too mild
name" According to Chesterfield,
he Was "the most tilnorouS and awk
ward man ever saw. and ever. Ad
Olson himself. speaking of his own
deficiency in conversation. used to say,
Il can draw bills for Il thousand
pounds, though | haven't a guinea iD
my pocket.
Dryden was unutternhlv dre2 ~ as a
companion. MY conversation is slow"
he once wrote. my humor Sa1urHine
and reserved, and | am none of those
who endeavor to break jests in COM
pany and make repartces.' And Shad-
we'll tells how he once dined with Dry
den. and from the beginning to the end
of the meal the poet never opened
his lips except to eat
Thomas Carlyle WAS Il "hoarder OF
the gold of silence, and would sit for
hours putting away at his pipe with |
out uttering more than n srunt or a |
Sruff monosyllahle. Leigh Hunt. his I
neiphhOr and intimate. once wrote to t
friend: 'llave Just spent "A pleasant
hour with Carlyl> When Went in he |