The Montgomery advertiser., 1904-04-26

with truth and courage, honor and
 manhood. It Is the rugged highway
 that calls forth ones strength and moi
 the valleys of sensuous ease. The
 fierce winds drive the roots of the giant
 oak deep down into the earth. sc that 1t may resist the raging storms Carlyle defined genius to be "a light
 of intelligence. of truth. and of all manfulness." This sort of genius craves recognition and appreciation
 Merit does not voluntarily hide itseli live through the ire of persecution. II will break the shackles of ignorance
 superstition. and prejudice. It will
 stand firm against the fires of adver-
 sfty. Even prison walls and iron bars can not shut outfits influence.
 | It was . doctrine of old organism that tine gods gave nothing to mortals
 without severe toll Acting upon the principle that labor. conquers all things
 and time will bring its own reward
 the splendid gentleman whose death we mourn today struck out for him self in the great ocean of busy life l around him and struggled heroicaily with it's waves. He proved himself strong and worthy: and his fellow-men were not slow in making the discov- cry, in properly appreciating his ef- forts. and in rewarding him according to his deserts. From obscurity to fame he fought his way, and his career de- monstrates and illustrates the mag niacent possibilities of American cit- ixenship.
 With modest beginning in his na- tive town of Tuskegee, he amassed a large fortune before he reached the age of 40 years. He did not enter. the political arena until he had already achieved notable business successes. The first official position he held was that of State senator. and while serv- ing in that capacity he was elected to the Fifty-seventh Congress in a .hotly contested race. He was returned to the Fifty-eighth Congress by a large ma jority. and would have been reelected without opposition to the Fifty-ninth Congress but for his sudden death. He was peculiarly adapted to public life. Enthusiastic in his affections, gener- ous In nature. magnanimous in dispo- sition. benevolent and public-spirited, tactful in the management of men and
 measures, tfreless in energy. patient and painstaking in the conquest of de- tails. he possessed. in addition to these characteristics, a magnetic per | sonality, which enabled him to triumph in all his undertakings without sur | ftuUcEluk one JOI OE tltt10 Ut HIS honest convictions.
 | Doctor Johnson has somewhere said He whose life has passed without q contest, who can neither boast success nor merit, and is content with his | character, must owe his satisfaction to his own insensibility." There is | not a person on earth who has not in | him the power to do good. What men
 want Is not talent so much as pur- pose; not so much the ability to achieve as the will to labor.
 In little circles, 1t may be, we gather about us those who are bound to us by ties of affection or cemented by conn mon rights and mutual interests. A | man can not live for himself alone. Our fallen friend was literally the arch imedean iever' that moved the social. commercial. and religious thought and action of the community in which he was born. He had, of course, battles to fight and victories to win. He en- countered difficulties and conquered them. He faced obstacles and sur mounted them. A tree is known by the fruit 1t bears. A man is judged by the product of his labor.
 According to every standard known to human experience by which earthly fame is measured we are forced to rank him among those who have compassed large results; but the makeup of this remark able man can not be understood, nor a proper estimate be put upon his life and character, without taking into account the benefeent influence his devoted Chris tian mother exercised in his moral and religious training.
 It was Madame de Stael who told Ma poleon Bonaparte that if he wished to regenerate France he must first regene- fe VranfhaFa nati0ntA glory shame begins at the lullaby cradle, fond ly rocked by an anxious mothers hand. I. is an indisputable fact that scarcely any man has ever attained distinction in his chosen sphere who was not reared by q consecrated mother.
 The tender love and consideration he always manifested for his mother was beautiful to contemplate. How proud she was of her worthy son-the idol of her heart the apple of her eye," and what a cruel blow was struck her when the "still small voice" coming from the realm Of shade fell upon his ear and whis- pered: Child of the dust, come away come away"
 When he left her to attend to his Con- gressional duties at Washington. i'm printing a kiss upon her aged lips. health bloomed fin his cheeks and toy laughed in his eyes;' only two weeks later when he returned to her his body lay in a coffin. His image deep graven on her broken heart will remain till memory be dead" He was her prop and support-her stay and hope She had directed his youthful mind and guided his erring footsteps, and now. in her declining years,> she delight ed to lean on his loving breast; and he never failed her. His stan was her "comfort."
 He was essentially a busy man; yet in the hurry and hustle incident to an &C., tive life he found time for the distribu- ton of charities and benefactions with a liberal hand. He did not deem 1t weakness to give sway to the influence of loving and sympathetic emotions. He preserved in his warm heart some green sLots where the caravan wheels of the world never passed and where the hoofs o1 its carnival coursers never trod. His benevolences made life beautiful to many sorrow-stricken souls, bringing to them flowers and music and good cheer, and pouring into their weary hearts, light and gladness. and sunshine.
 But he has left us forever. Death, who knocks alike at the palaces of the rich and the cottages of the poor, un- ly endeavors, has called this faithful pub from labor to rest" but he has not d:ed in vain. His good deeds will live after him and inspire the youth of the land to emulate his well-rounded charac- ter. He leaves to the nation and his na- tive State, to his family. kindred, and friends the legacy of an unsullied name.