The Eulogies of Howard by William Hayley
page 11 of 35 (31%)
page 11 of 35 (31%)
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unsteadiness to the pursuits of Genius and Virtue. As human praise was
never the object of his ambition, so he has nobly soared above it. There appear, in different ages upon the Earth, certain elevated spirits, who, by the sublimity of their conceptions, and the magnanimity of their conduct, attain a degree of glory which can never be reached by the keenest followers of Fame--They seek not panegyricks; and panegyricks can add nothing to their honour. The Eulogies have perished which were devoted by the luxuriant genius of Tully, and by the laconic spirit of Brutus, to the public virtue of Cato; yet the name of that illustrious Roman is still powerful in the world, and excites in every cultivated mind, an animating idea of independent integrity. The name of Howard has superior force, and a happier effect. It is a sound, at which the strings of humanity will vibrate with exultation in many millions of hearts. Through the various nations that he visited, the mere echo of his name will be sufficient to awaken that noblest sensibility, which at once softens and elevates the soul. Every warm hearted and worthy individual who mentions Howard will glow with an honest, a generous satisfaction, in feeling himself the fellow-creature of such a man. Wherever the elegant arts are established, they will contend in raising memorials to his honour. Indeed, the globe itself may be considered as his Mausoleum; and the inhabitants of every prison it contains, as groups of living statues that commemorate his virtue. There is no class of mankind by whom his memory ought not to be cherished, because all are interested in those evils (so pernicious to society! so dangerous to life!) which he was ever labouring to lessen or exterminate. It might be wished, that different communities should separately devise some different tribute of respect to him whose character and conduct is so interesting to all: not for the sake of multiplying vain and useless offerings to the dead, but to impress with more energy and extent his ennobling remembrance on the heart and soul of the living. It is hardly |
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