The Irish standard., 1905-09-23
TRUE HERolsM,

TRUE HERolsM.
Not long ago two sailors from the
Inflated gun-boat Bennington" lay dy.
ing in hospital at San Diego. One
poor fellow in a moment of almost un.
bearable torture uttered oaths against
his God and his fellow-men. The other
was made of sturdier stuff. Hold
hard shipmate," he said, 1T will soon
be over. We have got but little time
| to live. Let's be decent" The world
should have charity for the former,
but 1t should make of the latter a hero.
The instance illustrates that the COM
INQUEST of us may be heroes. 1t brings
| to mind the glory Of a common life
we'll lived and good death. The man
who urged his comrade to "hold hard
and be decent" was but common
sailor. Common toll is not so inter.
| esting as conspicuous accomplishment,
hut common toll we'll performed and
common life we'll lived is as truly a
| measurement of character as the most
| exalted accomplishment of great per-
sonages. 1t is comparatively easy to
be brave in the midst of stirring
events. Most deeds of heroism re-
| counted in history are due to the ex-
element of the moment and the sure
knowledge that they would be reward
ed by the appreciation of mankind.
There was no such motives actuating
the sailor who faced death under most
trying circumstances with calmness
and the resolution to "be decent" The
only reward for such acts are those
which the soul renders unto itself.
There are men who appear to great
advantage on public occasions. Elo-
quent, intellectual, mastery; but in
the privacy of their everyday lives
they show none of the greatness with
which they impress others in public.
There are women, too, who are veri-
rable queens in society, who conquer
all by their seemingly lovable DISPOSE
ton, but who in their own households
are anything but amiable.
On the other hand there are men
whose names never appear in print;
Who have never done anything to at
tract the admiring gaze of the crowd,
and yet these men perform their every
themselves true heroes.
There are women, toe, who do not
shine in society, who know nothing
of drawing-rooms, but who in their
own quiet homes do their tasks in
ways of homely duty with patience
and cheerfulness. These are the men
and women who are the real heroes
and heroines. The world builds no
monuments to them, but the world
il better because they lived. The
blue-jacket who died urging less
heroic comrade to be decent rests now
in an unmarked grave on Point Iona.
His body is thrown into common
trench with the bodies of sixty odd
comrades, but he is more truly a hero
than most of those whom the world
has designated great and whose men,
DRY it commentaries with granite
| monuments Now and then there is
brought to our notice instances such
as this which teach us that we, too,
can be great in the performance of the
common toll of life. We are reminded
that we may die heroes even though
the press may not bulletin the circum-
stances surrounding our death. But
to be truly great we must not look for
any reward upon this earth. BY putting
into the routine duties of life our very
best effort we can make the most
! humdrum ana uneven.frl life shine re-
| splendent. The dying hero of the
bennington gave us good motto
whe1 he said, Hold hard. 1t will soon
t'a over. We have got but little time
to live. Let's be decent"