Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1959-07-05
SPIRES OF THE SPIRIT
On Exulting Excellence
BY DIR. FREDERICK BROWN HARRIS
Chaplain Of the United States Senate

the average. The doctrine
that all men are created equal
is too often interpreted to
mean that anyone who
FORCES ahead in any realm is
a traitor to the common mass
from which he sprang. In a
mistaken democracy there
seems to be an innate horror
Of any kind Of aristocracy, but
there is an aristocracy Of
brains and energy.
Excellence is often some
thing to be disdained and
ridiculed. In politics one who
excels in ability and knowl-
edge is diSparagingly called
an "egghead." In education
one who pays the price for
scholarship and so is rated
far above the average is called
q grind" or square"
But while all things fair
spring from the common soil,
1t is from the tall hills of
achievement that humanity's
salvation comes. The curse of
democracy is conformity to
the lowest common denomi-
nator. The real rule of the
people involves, not q leveling
down, but a lifting up. The
hope Of the races future is
always in those who push
ahead Of the crowd. Even the
advancement of the so-called
common people" is in the
hands Of those who excel and
are willing to pay the price
for excellence, which usually
means adding perspiration to
inspiration.
In Soviet Russia, whose
professed faith is in the
gradual progress Of the
masses, the gifted" students
are those upon whose train
ing are lavished all the facil-
tiles vi the slave state. In
America educators are see
ing more and more that in
our contemporary situation
any adjustments in our
school system that tend to
pull down all to the level
of the lowest must make
room for special attention
to the gifted. ANY pedagogy
that treats the highly en-
dowed exactly as those
whose 10. suggests little fu-
ture promise, is finally q
detriment to all. Affairs
erected to mediocrity threat
en- the very life of democ-
racy, which goes forward
always on the feet of ex-
cellence.
Former President Herbert
Hoover. whose ripe Sagacity
is listened to by most Amer
leans, flashes this warning,
I'VE are in danger of devel-
oping a cult of the common
man-which means a cult of
mediocrity. I have never
been able to find out who
this common man is. Most
Americans get mad and in
suited if you try calling them
common. Let us remember
that the great human ad-
vanceS have not been
brought about by mediocre
men and women. We believe
in equal opportunity for all,
but we know that this in
cludes the opportunity to
rise to leadership-in other
words to be uncommon" The
doctrine Of equality which is
the foundation of freedoms
belief in the dignity of the
individual is simply the
chance for each person to
make the best of what 1t Is
in him to be and to do.
To be realistic we must
agree that in a profound
sense men and women are
not equal-certainly not in
practical ability. An out
standing student OF econ
omy has ventured the asser-
ton that under any predict
able social system, if riches
were to fall like snow upon
a MINDLESS day making a
dead level everywhere, that
situation would quickly
change, for upon that scene
of financial equality the
wind Of unequal ability would
blow, and some fields would
be drifted high and some
fields blown quite bare. TAX
ing wealth from those who