The Washington herald., 1908-02-10
=" THE ORATOR"
SENATOR BEVERIDGE.

/ only the man who has a message should
speak TO the people: and such a man was
/ Father Stafford Always / have believed
/ what Thomas Carlyle said of oratory,
/ that no man should speak until the hour
was so ripe, his message so needed his
4 conviction so firm. his knowledge so per
! feet. that what is said by the speaker
results in righteous deeds by the hearer
] The speaker who is eloquent merely
+ the orator who only entertains. is. after
all. play actor amusing us for an hour
/ and afterWard forgotten The gifted
tongue which uses its power for base
I ends Is criminal il prostitutes a gift OF
I God 10 the service of the evil one The
( man who tries 10 speak acceptably to
every one, offending none. avoiding the
mention OF wrongs because ne does not
want the WrOngdOer against him. or the
advocacy of right for the same reason,
/ is a poor creature. unworthy honest men S
attention Only the man who, for the
faith that is in him. would go 10 the
gdllOWs II need be. only the man who
knows whereof he speaks; only the man
l VINO holds righteousness dearer than life
only such a man Is commissioned 10 teach
and lead the people. And such a man
was Father Stafford, IA whose veins the
1 blood OF martyrs ran, whose ancestor
Went to the he8dsman's block rather
than renounce a syllable Of his beliefs.
Born Orator.
Father Stafford was an orator-a born
orator, as true orators are-was. indeed.
the fire divine with which his tongue was
tipped
He spoke as the Spirit gave him ut
terance, and such a speaker the Spirit
never fails to move. The real orator
always has a cause to proclaim; the
cause for which this man suoke WAS the
religion nf lHGrFG Christ real TOR
IS certain OF his ground The master
speaker considered merely from a hu-
man point Of view. WAS the Saviour Of the
world and he never argued-he an
houuced. he never said, "ln my judg-
ment or lin my opinion or Il may
De wrong. lie uttered the truth without
doubt without hesitation. without fear
lie spoke as one having authority. and
the common people heard him gladly. q"
Common people always gladly hear the
man who thus speaks 10 them: and that
is why they gladly heard the golden
words OF Father Stafford
The real orator always is in earnest
There are three rules Of oratory,f said
the greatest speaker OF classic Greece,
"the first IL action, the second is action.
and The third is action Better trans
lated. this means that the FIRST is earnest
ness, the second is earnestuess, and the
third Is earnestness- No other kind OF
speaker ever moved the hearts OF men
10 action. or set their souls on nre for
righteousness.
An Earnest Man.
Father Stafford was andme with
carnestuess. His intensiy Of speech lifted
men and women 20 the heights Of ideals
lie carried his hearers on the wings of
her forvid cioquence 20 those spiritual
regions where dwell the better angels OF
our nature, He raised men and women
from their baser selves 10 their nobler
selves, and, therefore. TO their real selves.
His eaTnestness was real. You knew
ID from his voice and eye and gesture.
but you knew IL more deeply from that
inward knowledge that tells you when
a thing is true and when a thing is
false. Nothing Is more pItiable than pre-
tended carHertuess-simuiated fcryor and
passion that Is manufactured for the end
iH view Nothing is more touching and
splendid than real earnest1ess. true fer
voT aud a passion that comes Ike the
volcanoes tongue Of flame. up from the
burning core below" And such was the
earnestuess, fcrvor. and passion OF Father
Stafford.
The real orator must speak with knoWl-
edge. lie must be student of both
men and books. a reader OF nature and
the universe, and through all the works
Of both nature and man De- must see
the hand OF God. He must bring 10 what
he says the focused light from all the
mountain peaks OF human wisdom. And /
here too, Father Stafford was again the !