Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1917-08-15
BY J. p. MORGAN, Harvard Club Of
Hawaii.

Hawaii.
Today, August Is, Is the one hun
dred aad fortey eighth anniversary of
ti.e bfrA IN Corsica OF Napoleon Bon
aparte. In these martial days when
our life Is .quickeEed by the. conflict OF
, those physical forces over which Bon
aparte was a prssminent master, It
might not be uniting to make some
mention of the mans career. or at
least to use this occasion to. present
the following short study Of the is
sues which were as true in his time
as they are today.
1t Is easy to viliffy or apotheosfZe
Napoleon. In the accompanying study
l have done neither. ! have tried to
bring into contrast the two opposing
instincts which trouble thoughtful
men at the imminence Of war 1t
becomes little easier for some to go
into this fight whole-heartedly after a
realization of its fnevitability. The is.
sue concerns the validity of idealtsm
in the practical work of the day; OF
ideahsm, not as a personal standard
Of belief, but as a philosophical basis
for immediate action.
In order the better to present both
aspects in unison, resort to the Pla.
tonic dialogue, a device which has
been used for similar purposes by
George Berkeley in his "Alciphron,' -
and by G. L. Dickinson in his Jus
tice and Liberty" AS the time-free
personification Of the opposing doc
trines ! choose Napoleon Bonaparte
and Josiah Royce; guiltless both Of
them Of the words and the senti-
ments, perhaps, which l now impute
to them, but conspicuous. neverthe-
less, as examples Of the variety of the
dilemma.
NAPoEEoN: I am reminded by
your argument Of that saying of Pas.
calls: Felix Qui potuit rerum
cognoscere causas." II seems to me
that he hints at the eternal inability
Of the mass Of men to comprehend
philosophically.
ROYCE: But it Is not essential
that the masses should have this abil-
ity. Men in general do not under.
stand revealed religion, and yet they
follow the churches. They do not IN
derstand chemistry and yet they
strike matches. They do not reason
about patriotism and still they follow
the flag.
NAPoLEoN: Let US then confine
our discussion so as to involve only
the leaders Of men. Does It not now
appear to you that ideal courses Of
q mi
for actual employment?
ROYCE: / would say that as
leaders decide that question they
stamp themselves either pragmatists
or idealists.
NAPOLEON; As q pragmatist,
then warn you that men may be led
no faster than the speed of the aver
age. The leader, whether he be pre-
eminent in peace or in war, must
have constant thought for the feet
Of his soldiers, for the opinions Of
hts people. He can not rush forward
with the vanguard or hnger with the
camp followers: he must ally himself
neither with the radicals nor the re-
dictionaries.
ROYCE: How is he then a leader
II he is forever in the center of his
Ga.
NAPOLEON: He is a leader only
insofar as the wielder of the baton
In an orchestra, is q leader. He CO.
ordinates his men and produces from
q conflict of separate harmonies one
unified polyphony. He does nothing
more. 49,
ROYCE: Such leader exists, ] ad-
NIT But he exists as an administra-
tor Of status quo. There is another
type OF leader who definitely projects
himself and his people into new arenas
OF action. He foresees and endeavors
to outguess opposing forces Of Ill; he
turns his people from the toll of
Egypt to the promised land Of Canaan;
be regolutionizeS or at least definitely
shapes the thought Of his time, wheth.
or it be In philosophy or art or poll
tics. ...s5..sS ~
NAPOLEON: But you will find that
man is not an idealist In most cases
be ID an opportunist. His course is
IKE that Of water, forever restlessly
seeking q change Of level. His pro
lection Is not toward ideaiism but to-
ward change. 1900,
ROYCE: Do you then deny the ex.
lstence Of idealism? Il
NAPOLEON: No: rather do 1 as.
sert that the leaders OF men, or the
Of men, are far too eff.
iective Gas proved by their success)
10 allow themselves to be dominated
BY the ideal at the expense Of the
popular. Let me give you an example. |
IN my own career have consistently
the, means to the end. |
have been justified by my success. |
Ny eventual failure was not due to |
weaknesses In my system but |
10 various detached. errors which I +
made and which never took the time |
" the care. to rectify. BY these I re-
'er. TO my neglect to mollify England |
md when / might have done so; to
ny excessive reliance on arms to car
y myself through crisis as they arose; |
o the creation Of an emperorship too |
=