Ohio History Journal
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EDITORIALANA. |
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NEW TRUSTEES OF THE SOCIETY.
REV. WILLIAM HENRY RICE, D. D. Among the historic characters who played a thrilling and imperish- able part in the early annals of Ohio were the three Moravian mission- |
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son of this marriage was James Alexander Rice, who married Josephine Charlotte Leibert, descendant of a Moravian family. William Henry Rice, the son of this union was born at Bethlehem (Pa.), September 8, 1840, during the Harrison campaign, whence his name, as we learn from the history of Tuscarawas county by Byron Williams. From the same source we condense the facts concerning the life of Mr. Rice. Mr. Rice enjoyed the home and school training of Bethlehem, that famous center of Moravian learning, until he was received into Yale College before his fifteenth birthday as a member of the Class of 1859, when he was graduated as one of the "scholars of the House", standing number seven in a class of one hundred and ten students, although he was the youngest but one of the class. On graduation he became a mem- ber of the Phi Beta Kappa fraternity. The next two years were spent in teaching in the public and select schools of New Haven, Conn., after which he entered Yale Theological Seminary. In his middle year he joined the Union Army and was elected Chaplain of the One Hundred and Twenty-Ninth Pennsylvania Infantry. He took part in the battles of Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville. (350) |
Editorialana. 351
He re-enlisted as a private in the
Thirty-Fourth Pennsylvania, an
emergency regiment that served in the
Gettysburg campaign. After being
honorably discharged he completed his
theological course at Yale and
was appointed to the pastoral charge of
a German Moravian Home Mis-
sion Church in New Haven. He then served
by successive appointments
through the following forty odd years
from 1867 to 1907 in the Moravian
pastorates of York, Nazareth and
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; in Brook-
lyn, New York City and on Staten Island,
New York; and for the past
ten years at Gnadenhutten, Ohio. He is
the Dean of the American
Moravian Pastors, having seen more years
of service than any other
minister on the active list. He also
served as the assistant Chaplain in
St. Luke's Hospital in New York. In 1869
and again in 1899, he was
sent to the General Synod of the
Moravian Church which meets once
every ten years in Hernhut, Saxony,
having been elected both times by
the American Moravian Synod. In Ohio he
is the Moravian Vice Presi-
dent of the State Christian Endeavor
Union. He is a Vice President of
the Moravian Historical Society of
Pennsylvania, and a life member in
the Pennsylvania Historical Society. He
is the author of "David Zeis-
berger and His Brown Brethren," a
most graphic and accurate account
of the religious labors of Zeisberger
among the Delaware Indians
of Eastern Ohio. The historical address
delivered by Mr. Rice at
the Gnadenhutten Centennial, in 1898,
was published in a previous
volume of the Ohio State Archaeological
and Historical Society annuals.
During his Gnadenhutten pastorate he had
a large part in the erection
and dedication, free of debt, of the
beautiful memorial sanctuary, the
John Heckewelder Memorial Moravian
Church. On July 27, 1905, the
Board of Trustees of Scio College
conferred upon him the honorary
degree of Doctor of Divinity. On June 13, 1907, in the
Encampment of
the Grand Army of the Republic at Canton
for the Department of Ohio,
Dr. Rice was elected Chaplain for the
Department. He has successively
been a Comrade of the Grand Army of the
Republic in Rankin Post No.
10, Brooklyn, New York; in Anna M. Ross
Post, Philadelphia, and J. K.
Taylor Post, Bethlehem, Pennsylvania;
and lastly of Alexander Rank
Post No. 534, Gnadenhutten, Ohio, where
he is serving his fifth term as
Post Commander. During his pastorate at
York, Pennsylvania, he was
married to Miss Mary Elizabeth Holland,
eldest daughter of Rev. Francis
R. and Augusta Wolle Holland, of Hope,
Bartholomew County, Indiana.
They have two children, Doctor James
Francis Rice, of Buffalo, New
York, and Rebekah Holland Rice, of
Gnadenhutten. Mrs. Rice is a de-
scendant, on her mother's side, of the
Benezet family of Philadelphia,
Huguenot exiles from France. Mr. Rice is
an accomplished theological
scholar and linguist, an earnest and
eloquent speaker and unites a ripe
maturity of experience and wisdom with
the enthusiasm of vigorous
youth. He will enter con amore into
the work of the Society of which
he now becomes a Trustee.
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352 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
ALBERT DOUGLAS. The county of Ross is one of the richest in Ohio in historic lore. It figured potently in the pioneer and early state annals. Chillicothe was |
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attorney in 1876. His success was all the more marked as the county at that time was largely Democratic. He was re-elected in 1878. He held no other political office until he was placed upon the State Republican ticket in 1896, as one of the presidential electors-at-large. When the Electoral College met he was made chairman of that body. Two years ago (1906) he was the choice of the Republicans of his district for repre- sentative in the Sixtieth Congress. He was elected by a handsome ma- jority. In 1905 Mr. Douglas received the honorary degree of LL. D. from the Ohio University and the same degree from Kenyon College in 1906. In 1880 he married Lucia C. Taylor of Brooklyn, N. Y. Mr. Douglas is a man of scholarly tastes and a most polished and forceful speaker. His ability in this line places him in the front rank of the political orators of the state. He is constantly called upon to deliver addresses before colleges and literary societies. At the annual meeting of the Society, held March 22, 1907, Mr. Douglas delivered the address, his subject being "Arthur St. Clair." It was later published in the annuals of this Quarterly.
ETHICAL FUNCTION OF THE HISTORIAN. The International Congress of Historical Sciences, whose annual session attracted scientists from all parts of the world, was held this year (from August 6 to 12) in the great Philharmonic Hall at Berlin, Germany. The governing body selected Dr. David Jayne Hill, Ambassador |
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Editorialana. 353
of the United States to Germany, for the distinction of delivering the opening address. Dr. Hill delivered his address in German and dealt with "The Ethical Function of the Historian." Prince Frederick Leopold was present as the representative of Emperor William. Dr. Bethmann-Hollweg, Minister of the Interior welcomed the delegates in the name of Chancellor von Buelow and the Empire. The Mayor of Berlin made a speech in behalf of the municipality, in which he said he hoped the congress would be a second peace conference. Dr. Reinhold Koser was elected President of the congress. Honor- |
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sittings were: G. Maspero, Cairo; F: Wilkhoff, Vienna; J. L. Heiberg, Copenhagen; Sir Frederick Pollock, London; F. R. Cumont, Ghent; M. Rostowzew, St. Petersburg; Prince of Teano, Rome; L. Pelissier, Montpelier; Sir William Ramsay, Aber- deen; H. Hjarne Upsala; P. Rajna, Florence, and A. Bugge, Christiania. The United States was represented by Ambassador Hill; G. Reisner, of Cambridge: E. Capps, of Princeton: N. Haskins, of Cambridge; M. Jastrow, of Philadelphia; A. C. McGiffert, of New York, and Kuno Francke, of Cambridge. Dr. Hill's address received closest attention throughout and was applauded at the close. He said: "The question: 'What Is History,' is closely connected with that deepest of all questions: 'What is Human Life?' For whatever in reality human life may be, history is the record of its development, its progress and its manifestations. The fundamental problem for the his- torian is to determine the peculiar nature of his task and he is greeted at the very threshold of his inquiry with the questions: What is the purpose for which historical science exists? What is the nature of his- Vol. XVII- 23. |
354 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
toric truth? How does history differ
from other sciences? How does
the historic process appear as seen from
within? and what, in conse-
quence, is the chief function of the
historian?
" There are two aspects of reality
that have to be treated in quite
different ways. It is a postulate of
modern science that there exists in
the universe a fixed amount of energy,
never increased or diminished,
and all phenomena are believed to be
manifestations of this primordial
energy. Some of these phenomena appear
in an order of co-existence
in space, others in an order of
succession in time; and it is with these
transformations in time that history has
to deal. But there is another
aspect of phenomena not less important
for history than transformation
in time. The resemblances and
differences of phenomena are both quan-
titative and qualitative. It is with the
latter chiefly that history has to
deal; for, while the quantity of
co-existent energy always remains the
same, the qualitative differences among
phenomena appear to be always
increasing in variety and complexity in
the order of succession.
EVER INCREASING VARIATION.
"If, for illustration, we pass
from physico-chemical to biological
phenomena, and from these to
psychological phenomena, in the progres-
sive order of natural evolution, we
notice that, while the quantity of
energy is supposed to remain the same,
there is an ever increasing varia-
tion of qualitative differences, until
in the ascending scale of organisms
we arrive at man, who, standing at the
head of the biological series, pos-
sesses a greater diversity and
complexity of qualitative distinction than
any other being known to science.
"As we rise in the scale of
qualitative development from the chem-
ical compound to the plant from the
plant to the animal, and from the
animal governed by instinct to man
governed by reason, we find mathe-
matics less and less sufficient as an
organ of investigation. While in the
realms of color, temperature and other
secondary physical properties
quantity may furnish a key to the
explanation of quality, we find our-
selves at last in a sphere of being
where quality is the matter of supreme
interest, and there the mathematical
method ceases to apply.
"It is precisely this new and
higher sphere of human activity which
is by common consent, par excellence the
field of history. The point I
wish here to establish is, however, the
scientific necessity of qualitative
as distinguished from quantitative
measurement in estimating the phe-
nomena of human life, which are the
phenomena of human history. One
side of human science is built up with
answers to the question, 'How
much.' There is another side, equally
important to science in its totality,
and far more rich in human interest,
which depends upon the answers to
the question, 'Of what kind?' and this
is the historical, as distinguished
from the mathematical aspect or science.
Editorialana. 355
HISTORY ANSWERS SECOND.
"As mathematics answers the
questions of the first series, so history
answers those of the second. It deals
with transformations of a qualita-
tive character, while mathematics deals
with quantitative relations. To
make clear this difference, let us note
the contest between the mathe-
matical and the historical methods. The
former aims to discover the
uniformities that exist in space and
time; that is, to reach the largest
attainable generalizations of the laws
of invariable action. The aim of
history is exactly the opposite.
"Seen from within, the historic
process opens new vistas to the
historian. What is the signification of
this ceaseless struggle with the
evanescent and this endeavor to lift the
contents of time to a position of
permanent security? Does it not imply in the human agent a sense
of continuity through which he realizes
his part in the general develop-
ment of man, and his duty as a member of
the human race? It is in
the great crises of history that its
true nature is made apparent.
"While it is undeniable that
science of necessity requires measure-
ment and comparison, it is an error to
suppose that mathematical meas-
urement and comparison are the only
forms of human estimate or that
scientific knowledge may not be based as
firmly upon differences as upon
resemblances and uniformities. While the
observer of physical phe-
nomena measures them upon a scale
expressed in quantitative units, the
observer of historical phenomena
measures them upon a scale expressed
in qualitative differences. The
essential basis of science is variation of
experience, which may be capable of
expression in either of two ways;
the mathematical, which measures it in
quantitative value; or the ethical,
which measures it in terms of
qualitative value.
FUNCTION OF HISTORIAN.
"If I am correct in this analysis
it is no derogation of the rank
and position of history in the hierarchy
of knowledge to say that it is
an ethical rather than a mathematical
science. And, if this is so, then
it is evident that the function of the
historian in dealing with historical
material is an ethical function; not
simply because it is his duty, in com-
mon with all other men of science, to
discover and to state the truth
with a high sense of his responsibility
to mankind, but because the whole
substance of history is of an ethical
nature. It is the work of the his-
torian to trace the upward or downward
curve of man's development as
displayed in the various forms of human
conduct, such as art, industry,
thought, literature and politics; and,
if possible, to bring to light by
following the successive transformations
that have affected that develop-
ment the forces and conditions that have
in fact produced it, and the
effect of particular instances of
conduct upon it.
"The necessity of this ethical
function on the part of the historian
356 Ohio Arch. and list. Society Publications.
grows directly out of the nature of the
historic process. Although the
life of mankind in its totality may be,
and in some sense is, dependent
upon the natural energies that underlie
human existence, there is in every
individual a sense of relation to the
past and to the future: that is, a
historic consciousness that
distinguishes man from his fellow creatures
of the organic world. And this historic
consciousness not only includes a
certain sense of indebtedness for the
labors and solicitude of the past,
but there is, perhaps, no human
individual, certainly no typical individual,
who does not feel that the forces acting
in and through him, whatso-
ever they are, have ends that ought to
be accomplished.
MOTIVE AND RESULT.
"The one constant factor in the
historic process is human nature,
which is sometimes governed by reason,
but generally moved by impulse.
The business of the historian,
therefore, is not to make history seem
reasonable by placing upon it a
scientific stamp foreign to its nature; but
to display the motives that have
determined the historic process as it has
in reality been unfolded. If he is thus
faithful in his exposition of
motive and result, his work will have a
far greater scientific value than
if he imports into it principles and
methods borrowed from other sciences
dealing with materials of a different
nature, or products of purely in-
tellectual abstraction; for the effect
of this importation is to impart to
history an appearance of reasonableness
that it does not in reality possess.
"Thus, from every point of view, we
see that the function of the
historian is not to deal with uniformities
and universal formulas, but
with the variations of human conduct,
and to measure its success and its
failure upon the scale of rational
endeavors; for history is the record
of man's efforts to solve the
problems with which his nature and his
environments confront him. It is good
for mankind to realize that, al-
though living in a universe governed by
law, as a result of its freedom
it has sometimes gone wrong; and that,
without a loyal adherence to
great principles, it may go wrong again.
The best antidote to this
eventually is a true science of the
past. But whether it be for good or
for evil, as men of science, dealing
with the largest and most instructive
aspect of human development, historians
are bound by that scientific
conscience which is the test, the badge
and the glory of their profession
to unveil reality and to give meaning to
the words, 'Die Weltgeschichte
ist das Weltgericht.'"
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EDITORIALANA. |
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NEW TRUSTEES OF THE SOCIETY.
REV. WILLIAM HENRY RICE, D. D. Among the historic characters who played a thrilling and imperish- able part in the early annals of Ohio were the three Moravian mission- |
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son of this marriage was James Alexander Rice, who married Josephine Charlotte Leibert, descendant of a Moravian family. William Henry Rice, the son of this union was born at Bethlehem (Pa.), September 8, 1840, during the Harrison campaign, whence his name, as we learn from the history of Tuscarawas county by Byron Williams. From the same source we condense the facts concerning the life of Mr. Rice. Mr. Rice enjoyed the home and school training of Bethlehem, that famous center of Moravian learning, until he was received into Yale College before his fifteenth birthday as a member of the Class of 1859, when he was graduated as one of the "scholars of the House", standing number seven in a class of one hundred and ten students, although he was the youngest but one of the class. On graduation he became a mem- ber of the Phi Beta Kappa fraternity. The next two years were spent in teaching in the public and select schools of New Haven, Conn., after which he entered Yale Theological Seminary. In his middle year he joined the Union Army and was elected Chaplain of the One Hundred and Twenty-Ninth Pennsylvania Infantry. He took part in the battles of Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville. (350) |
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