[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
The least desirable form of glory to a man of his habitual mood and temper--that of successful war--was
nevertheless conferred upon him by uncontrollable events. He felt it must come; he deplored its necessity; he
strained almost to breaking his relations with his friends, in order, first to prevent and then to postpone it to
the latest possible moment. But when the die was cast, he labored with the utmost energy and ardor, and with
an intelligence in military matters which showed how much of the soldier still survived in the mature
statesman, to push forward the war to a decisive close. War was an anguish to him; he wanted it short and
conclusive. His merciful zeal communicated itself to his subordinates, and the war, so long dreaded, whose
consequences were so momentous, ended in a hundred days.
Mr. McKinley was reelected by an overwhelming majority. There had been little doubt of the result among
well-informed people, but when it was known, a profound feeling of relief and renewal of trust were evident
among the leaders of capital and industry, not only in this country, but everywhere. They felt that the
immediate future was secure, and that trade and commerce might safely push forward in every field of effort
and enterprise.
He felt that the harvest time was come, to garner in the fruits of so much planting and culture, and he was
determined that nothing he might do or say should be liable to the reproach of a personal interest. Let us say
frankly he was a party man; he believed the policies advocated by him and his friends counted for much in the
country's progress and prosperity. He hoped in his second term to accomplish substantial results in the
development and affirmation of those policies. I spent a day with him shortly before he started on his fateful
journey to Buffalo. Never had I seen him higher in hope and patriotic confidence. He was gratified to the heart
that we had arranged a treaty which gave us a free hand in the Isthmus. In fancy he saw the canal already built
and the argosies of the world passing through it in peace and amity. He saw in the immense evolution of
American trade the fulfilment of all his dreams, the reward of all his labors. He was, I need not say, an ardent
protectionist, never more sincere and devoted than during those last days of his life. He regarded reciprocity
as the bulwark of protection--not a breach, but a fulfilment of the law. The treaties which for four years had
been preparing under his personal supervision he regarded as ancillary to the general scheme. He was opposed
to any revolutionary plan of change in the existing legislation; he was careful to point out that everything he
had done was in faithful compliance with the law itself.
In that mood of high hope, of generous expectation, he went to Buffalo, and there, on the threshold of eternity,
he delivered that memorable speech, worthy for its loftiness of tone, its blameless morality, its breadth of
view, to be regarded as his testament to the nation. Through all his pride of country and his joy of its success
runs the note of solemn warning, as in Kipling's noble hymn, "Lest We Forget."
The next day sped the bolt of doom, and for a week after--in an agony of dread, broken by illusive glimpses of
hope that our prayers might be answered--the nation waited for the end. Nothing in the glorious life we saw
gradually waning was more admirable and exemplary than its close. The gentle humanity of his words when
he saw his assailant in danger of summary vengeance, "Do not let them hurt him;" his chivalrous care that the
news should be broken gently to his wife; the fine courtesy with which he apologized for the damage which
his death would bring to the great Exhibition; and the heroic resignation of his final words, "It is God's way;
His will, not ours, be done," were all the instinctive expressions of a nature so lofty and so pure that pride in
CHAPTER XXXI 232
its nobility at once softened and enhanced the nation's sense of loss. The Republic grieved over such a [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
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The least desirable form of glory to a man of his habitual mood and temper--that of successful war--was
nevertheless conferred upon him by uncontrollable events. He felt it must come; he deplored its necessity; he
strained almost to breaking his relations with his friends, in order, first to prevent and then to postpone it to
the latest possible moment. But when the die was cast, he labored with the utmost energy and ardor, and with
an intelligence in military matters which showed how much of the soldier still survived in the mature
statesman, to push forward the war to a decisive close. War was an anguish to him; he wanted it short and
conclusive. His merciful zeal communicated itself to his subordinates, and the war, so long dreaded, whose
consequences were so momentous, ended in a hundred days.
Mr. McKinley was reelected by an overwhelming majority. There had been little doubt of the result among
well-informed people, but when it was known, a profound feeling of relief and renewal of trust were evident
among the leaders of capital and industry, not only in this country, but everywhere. They felt that the
immediate future was secure, and that trade and commerce might safely push forward in every field of effort
and enterprise.
He felt that the harvest time was come, to garner in the fruits of so much planting and culture, and he was
determined that nothing he might do or say should be liable to the reproach of a personal interest. Let us say
frankly he was a party man; he believed the policies advocated by him and his friends counted for much in the
country's progress and prosperity. He hoped in his second term to accomplish substantial results in the
development and affirmation of those policies. I spent a day with him shortly before he started on his fateful
journey to Buffalo. Never had I seen him higher in hope and patriotic confidence. He was gratified to the heart
that we had arranged a treaty which gave us a free hand in the Isthmus. In fancy he saw the canal already built
and the argosies of the world passing through it in peace and amity. He saw in the immense evolution of
American trade the fulfilment of all his dreams, the reward of all his labors. He was, I need not say, an ardent
protectionist, never more sincere and devoted than during those last days of his life. He regarded reciprocity
as the bulwark of protection--not a breach, but a fulfilment of the law. The treaties which for four years had
been preparing under his personal supervision he regarded as ancillary to the general scheme. He was opposed
to any revolutionary plan of change in the existing legislation; he was careful to point out that everything he
had done was in faithful compliance with the law itself.
In that mood of high hope, of generous expectation, he went to Buffalo, and there, on the threshold of eternity,
he delivered that memorable speech, worthy for its loftiness of tone, its blameless morality, its breadth of
view, to be regarded as his testament to the nation. Through all his pride of country and his joy of its success
runs the note of solemn warning, as in Kipling's noble hymn, "Lest We Forget."
The next day sped the bolt of doom, and for a week after--in an agony of dread, broken by illusive glimpses of
hope that our prayers might be answered--the nation waited for the end. Nothing in the glorious life we saw
gradually waning was more admirable and exemplary than its close. The gentle humanity of his words when
he saw his assailant in danger of summary vengeance, "Do not let them hurt him;" his chivalrous care that the
news should be broken gently to his wife; the fine courtesy with which he apologized for the damage which
his death would bring to the great Exhibition; and the heroic resignation of his final words, "It is God's way;
His will, not ours, be done," were all the instinctive expressions of a nature so lofty and so pure that pride in
CHAPTER XXXI 232
its nobility at once softened and enhanced the nation's sense of loss. The Republic grieved over such a [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]