The New York herald., 1922-12-03

HHESE letters of the great Shake
spearean scholar edited by his
grandson. might be expected to yield
chiefly a literary feast. the record of a
bookman's relations with others or the
same taste. AS a matter of fact, they re-
cord with unconscious briIliancy the moral
rather than the literary aspects of noble
career and they leave the reader convinced
that here is one more first rate witness
to the quality Of American character in
the second third of the nineteenth century.
Furness had qualities of greatness as a
man. and the letters would have been as
faseinating-indeed. they would have been
practically unchanged-had he never had
anything to do with Shakespeare. and the
kind Of greatness he had. intelligence. in
tegrity, loyalty. common sense, humor. he
had from his abolitiOnist father, along with
his taeit assumption that all life. even his
pwn life. was to be lived for some lofty
purpose. To the end of his days. in 1912,
he preserved the same power and balance
of character which shows in his letters
from college, and it was his final grace
of mind that, though bringing down to US
so large an illustration of manhood in
Americas heroic age. he has no critical or
inhospltable attitude toward our later
world.
When he was IS he wrote from Harvard
an account of Daniel Webster's funeral
which he had attended with a classmate.
If we doubt that his abilities dared from
the heroic age we have only TO ask how
many undergraduates could give so lively
and straightforward an account OF any
thing. Each little road. from some neigh
boring village or town. mustered its crowd
as we pass. and even at the distance of
three or four miles the scene partOok OF
solemnity. There was no gayety or un-
seemly mirth Every one was silent and
seemed in earnest.
When reached Marshfield found that
Webster's body was laid out under a tree.
and that a queue of considerable length
had formed; the men walked two by two
up to the coffin. then separated. one on
each side of it. after passing it again Joined
ana then marched through his house.
When L got there, as said. the queue was
quite long. and as waiting was not very
consistent with my mood I coolly went
ana StOOu alouzSlue one OF the men 4 rev
feet from the coffin: the man could not
say a word. for I interfered with no one.
Whether Mr. Webster looked natural or
rot I cannot say. never having seen him
when alive but he certainly looked very
haegard careworn and black. He was
dressed. I believe, in his usual style. for
the whole lid OF the coffin being off the
entire man could be seen. There were
flowers in profusion i'm his coffin. and I
stopped and plucked an ivy leaf from
wreath Of the same placed near his head.
Instead Of joining my companions
and going through the house I simply
stepped aside and took my station near
one OF the undertakers from whence
could look 10 my hearts content. and en-
deavOred to impress Mr. Webster's fea-
lures on my mind Every one was silent
or else spoke in whispers. But not always
-one man "a brute) came up eating an
apple and just before he came to the
coffin took an extraordinarily large bite. so
that his eating might not be interrupted"
year later he wrote to his family an
admirable account of the Inauguration of
Or Walker who succeeded Jared Sparks
As president of the, college. and several pic
lures Of Akassiz in his gracious contacts
with the Undergraduates. one Of whom
brought him queer geological specimen
which turned out to be clinker of burned
coal In MAY. 1854 he went with three
other students to dine at Concord with r
". Emerson. a close friend of his father.