Year: 1865

On the 18th ultim0, the annual festival oi
school children took place in Boston,
Twelve hundred children constituted grand
choir whose singing elected rapturous ap
plause. Speeches were made by several
gentlemen, among whom was Wendell
Philips, from whose address we take the
following remarks:


Boys, you viii not be moved to action by
starvation and want Where will YOU Get
the motive power? You will have the spur
Of ambition to be worthy of the fathers that
have given you these opportunities Remem-
ber, boys, what fame it is you bear up
This old name of Boston. A certain well
known poet says it is the hub of the universe.
Well, this is gentle and generous satire
In revolutionary days they talked of the
Boston revolution. When Samuel johnson
wrote his work against the American colon
les it was Boston he ridiculed When the
King could not sleep over night he got up
and muttered Boston,. When the procla-
national pardon was issued the only two
excepted were the two Boston fanatics-.John
Hancock and Sam Adams. Applause. l.
But what did Boston do? They sent Han
| cock to Philadelphia to write his name in
the Declaration Of Independence in letters
large enough, almost, for the king to read on
the other side of the ocean. Boston then
meant liberty. Come down to forty or fifty
years ago. What did Boston mean when
the South went mad and got up a new flag.
and said they would put it in Boston in
Faneul Hall? 1t was Boston that meant
| Liberty, as Boston had meant independence.
And when our troops went out in the last
war, what was it that gave them their su-
periority 1t was the brains they carried
from these schools When General Butler
was stopped near the Relay House with a
broken locomotive, be turned to the Sth
regiment. and a private walked out of the
ranks and patted it on the back, and said
! ought to know it, | made it, When
we went down to Charleston, and were kept
seven miles off from the city. the Yankees
sent down New Hampshire Parrott that
would send two hundred pound shot into
their midst The great ability of New
England has been proved. Now, boys, the
glory of father is his children. That
father has done his work well who has left
child better than himself The German
phrase is Lord, grant | may be as well
off tomorrow as yesterday No Yankee
ever uttered that prayer. He always means
that his son shall have better starting point
in life than himself The glory of a father
is his children. Our fathers made themselves
Independent seventy or eighty years ago.
1t remains for us to devote ourselves to liber-
ty and the welfare Of others, with the gener-
Gus willingness to be and to do towards
Others as we would have others do to US
Now, boys. that is my lesson to you to day
Be as good as your fathers unless You are
better You have your fathers example
the opportunities aud advantages they have
accumulated-and to be only as good is not
enough. You must copy only the spirit of
your fathers and not their imperfections.
There was an old merchant, wears ago.
wanted set of China made in Pekin. You
know that Boston men, sixty years ago,
looked at both sides of cent before they
spent it, and if they earned twelve cents
they saved eleven. He could not snare
whole plate, so he sent cracked one. and
when he received the set there was crack
in every piece. The Chinese had initiated
the pattern exactly. Laughter. Now,
boys, do nat initiate US, or there will be
great many cracks. Be better than We
We have invented a telegraph, but what
of that? | expect if live forty years, to
see telegraph that will send messages with
out fire. both wavs at the same time. If
you do not invent it you are not as good as
we are. You are bound to 90 head Of US
The old London physicians said the way to
be well was to live on sixpence and earn it,
That is education under the law of necessity.
We cannot give you that. Underneath you
is the ever watchfu hand Of city culture and
wealth. All the motive we can give you is
the name you bear. Bear it nobly ~