Dedication of the Hayes
Memorial. 439
ask each and every one of you to
register here on this consecrated
spot a solemn vow to preserve this
nation forever and forever to
the American - peaceably
if we can, forcibly if we must, but for
America, America forever and forever.
Mr. Charles R. Williams, of Princeton,
biographer of Ruth-
erford Birchard Hayes, then delivered
the following address:
ADDRESS OF CHARLES R. WILLIAMS.
We are met today to signalize the formal
dedication of the
Hayes Memorial building. There has been
no occasion like this
in all the history of our beloved
country. It is made possible by
the gracious cooperation of filial
affection and worthy public
appreciation, for which I recall no
parallel in our annals. By
deed of gift, a few years ago, Colonel
Webb C. Hayes conveyed
to the state, for the benefit of the
Archaeological and Historical
Society, this beautiful historic grove,
through which ran the
famous Indian trail by which William
Henry Harrison marched
his forces to Lake Erie, and whose
ancient oaks had sheltered
savage wigwams and been lighted by the
bivouac fires of hardy
frontier soldiers of 1812. The gift was on
condition that the
society should procure the erection of a
suitable fireproof build-
ing for the permanent preservation of
the books and papers and
personal belongings of President and
Mrs. Hayes. Of course the
society, of which Mr. Hayes was long
president, and which has
done so much to gather, to investigate,
and to preserve records
and documents and objects of historical
and archaeological sig-
nificance, was rejoiced to accept the
gift and to undertake the
trust. And the state, through
legislature and governor both,
as it happened, Democratic at the time
-was not slow to mani-
fest its appreciation of the gift and to
do its share to make the
gift secure, rightly esteeming its
patriotic purpose and its large
and permanent worth. To Senator T. A.
Dean, of Fremont, for
his effective presentation of the cause
before the legislature, we
should not fail, on this day of
rejoicing, to give special credit and
praise. He saw clearly, he spoke
persuasively - for the honor
of Ohio's greatest President, for the
dignity and glory of the
state.
440 Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications. |
|
Dedication of the Hayes
Memorial. 441
So, as I said a moment ago, in
dedicating this beautiful
structure of Ohio stone and enduring
bronze, built to commem-
orate the life and public services of
Ohio's pre-eminent citizen,
we are celebrating today the finished
result of the gracious co-
operation of filial affection and worthy
public appreciation.
Through the long future, this fair
grove, with its immemorial
trees and trees of sentimental appeal,
rich in its associations with
-"old, unhappy, far-off things
And battles long ago."
embowering the spacious mansion, still
redolent of the unclouded
domestic felicity of which it was the
centre, and surcharged with
memories of gracious and abounding
hospitality, of numberless
patriotic gatherings in which great and
famous men had part, of
peaceful communing of its master with
good books and devoted
friends, of self-sacrificing benevolent
activities, will remain, un-
desecrated by vandal industry,
uncontaminated by commercial
exploitation. Under the protecting aegis
of the society and the
state, Spiegel Grove-haunt and
habitation of good spirits-
will abide in perpetuity, a grateful
source of pleasure and recre-
ation to this community; a shrine for
patriotic visitors from afar,
who shall have formed true judgment of
the noble part in our
history enacted, through long and
strenuous years, by the man
whose home this was. Here men of remote
generations shall see
the very surroundings, the very house
with its familiar furnish-
ings and objects of use and ornament, in
which abode, with his
gracious and beloved consort, the
President, whose wisdom of
administration brought the Civil War
epoch of our national
life to a just and happy conclusion. And
in this Memorial build-
ing they shall see the books he used and
loved, the manuscripts
that record his thoughts, and articles
innumerable of utility or
taste which give some hint of his varied
interests and of his
manifold activities.
Here, too, in close association, they
shall behold intimate
memorials of that rare and beautiful
woman whose influence and
inspiration was felt in all that he
thought and did, whose char-
acter and life are a perpetual honor and
example to American
womanhood. Hither students of American
history will resort
442
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
for study and investigation, and here
they shall find treasures
of private and personal information to
reward their search, and
to clarify their conclusions touching
the measures and the men
of a momentous period.
There is special propriety in conducting
this service on this
particular day. It is the day set apart
for recalling the deeds
and honoring the memory of the men who
served and saved the
country when civil war threatened its
destruction. Among those
men, conspicuous for his gallantry and
for his devotion to the
country's cause, was the man whose high
worth this building
recognizes and commemorates. Well
acquainted as most of us
here are with the facts of his life, we
shall do well for a little
while to ponder his career and to seek
from his example to draw
some inspiration to lofty thought and
civic virtue. Of course,
no extended survey of his many-sided
life is possible, even if it
were desirable, on an occasion like
this. It is sufficient for my
purpose to touch upon his distinctive
qualities and achievements,
and to note the principles that governed
his thought and conduct.
Rutherford Birchard Hayes was born at
Delaware, Ohio,
October 4, 1822. He was of pure New
England parentage, of
English and Scotch descent. His American
ancestors were sturdy
pioneers; honest, wholesome,
industrious, God-fearing folk, do-
ing faithfully their duty to family and
state; and when the war
for independence came, leaping
whole-heartedly to the support
of the American cause. The best part of
his heritage from his
clean-living New England forebears was a
sound physical con-
stitution, a clear and active mind, a
tradition of conscientious
rectitude of conduct, and a scrupulous
sense of duty. What
better endowment could one desire for a
lad, provided he have the
environment and opportunity to develop
his powers, and provided
he have the will to make the most of
himself? And all this young
Hayes had. There was nothing in the
least precocious or out of
the usual in his boyhood and youth. He
was fond of sports; he
was fond of the open-air life and
adventures with rod and gun
which normal lads of the country enjoy.
But with all this he
was conscientiously industrious in his
pursuit of knowledge; and
in his college years, boy as he still
was, he began to be conscious of
his latent abilities and to seek by
rigid self-examination and
Dedication of the Hayes
Memorial. 443
appraisal of defects to follow the
Socratic injunction, "Know thy-
self." This self-scrutiny, this
weighing of his own powers in
comparison with others, did not result
in egotism or self-conceit;
it only made him see more clearly his
own limitations and spurred
him to greater effort for intellectual
growth and attainment. And
with this, too, his character was
strengthening into self-mastery
and self-reliance, and he was coming to
distinct, clear-minded
conclusions on fundamental questions of
life and conduct; on
what were the just aims of ambition; on
what constituted true
success in human endeavor.
"As far back as memory can carry
me," he wrote at nine-
teen, just entering his senior year at
Kenyon, "the desire of fame
was uppermost in my thoughts, but I
never desired other than
honorable distinction. The reputation
which I desire is not that
momentary eminence which is gained
without merit and lost with-
out regret. Give me the popularity which
runs after, not that
which is sought for. Let me triumph as a
man or not at all.
Defeat without disgrace can be borne,
but laurels which are not
deserved sit like a crown of thorns on
the head of their possessor.
It is, indeed, far better to deserve
honors without having them,
than to have them without deserving
them."
In these brief sentences of youthful
meditation and aspira-
tion we have not only a noble confession
of faith, a noble resolu-
tion of soul integrity, but also a
luminous prophecy of the attitude
toward public honors and distinctions
that during his long life
should characterize their author. For
never, throughout his
career, did Mr. Hayes seek any public
office, or ask for any pro-
motion, or endeavor to gain any
distinction or honor in any one
of the many social or philanthropic
organizations of which he
was a member. Offices, honors,
promotions, distinctions sought
him out and were pressed upon him. Often
they were accepted
with extreme reluctance, but once
accepted, the duties they in-
volved were performed with conscientious
assiduity. Surely, if
ever a man did, he had the realization
of his boyhood's wish.
He won "honorable
distinction." He enjoyed "the popularity
which runs after, not that which is
sought for." He, indeed,
attained "triumph as a man."
In all the years of his law practice,
whatever the demands of
444
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
his professional engagements or the
encroachments on his time
and energy of social life and of his
increasing participation in
political effort and civic enterprises,
he adhered steadfastly to his
projects for self-discipline and
self-culture, and sought ever to
enlarge the sphere of his knowledge. He
was always reading
good books; not only books that should
amplify his range of
information concerning history and
jurisprudence and principles
of liberty and government, but the great
books of pure literature
which should quicken his imagination,
elevate his thought, fortify
and ennoble his character, and give his
spirit fuller and clearer
vision. Here is the rule of reading that
he laid down for him-
self in this period; and who could frame
a better?
"In general literature, read Burke,
Shakespeare and the
standard authors constantly, and always
have on hand some book
of worth not before perused. Avoid
occasional reading of a light
character. Read always as if I were to
repeat it the day after-
ward."
So, unconsciously, he was schooling his
mind and character
for the larger duties, the vast
responsibilities, which, beyond his
wildest dreams of ambition, the future
had in store for him.
Being what he was, there could be no
doubt how he would
feel and what he would do when Rebellion
raised its angry crest
against our Federal Union. In his diary,
intended for no eye but
his own, he wrote with calm
deliberation: "I would prefer to go
into the war if I knew I was to die or
be killed in the course of it,
than to live through and after it
without taking any part in it."
There spoke the pure soul of the man.
Looking before and after,
discerning the country's need and peril,
laying aside all personal
regard, listening only to the voice of
patriotic duty, without hesi-
tation or doubt or fear of consequences,
he formed his high re-
solve, he chose with unfaltering purpose
"on whose party he
should stand." And into the war he
went, and for four years gave
heart and soul to its bloody business,
doing with all his mind and
might every task assigned him, heedless
of personal peril and too
busy with the work in hand to give a
thought to questions of rank
or promotion. He was glad to shed his
blood that the good cause
might prosper. Friends in Cincinnati
might nominate him for
Congress, if they thought his name would
strengthen the Union
Dedication of the Hayes
Memorial. 445
ticket, while the tide of war was at
flood in the Shenandoah
valley. But when they asked him to seek
a furlough and come
home to make speeches, that was quite
another thing. Instantly,
with something like indignation at the
thought, he wrote; "Your
suggestion about getting a furlough to
take the stump was certain-
ly made without reflection. An officer
fit for duty who at this
crisis would abandon his post to
electioneer for a seat in congress
ought to be scalped. You may feel
perfectly sure I shall do no
such thing." Let the election go as
it might; his duty was with
the colors on "the perilous edge of
battle."
It was a crisis in the Republican
situation in Ohio in 1875
that forced Mr. Hayes from retirement,
much against his will,
and gave him the unprecedented honor of
a third nomination for
governor. He had served with credit in
congress during the
stormy early days of reconstruction. He
had been governor two
terms - abundant in achievement of
permanent value to the com-
monwealth. Then, refusing to be elected
senator by disloyalty to
John Sherman, he had retired to Spiegel
Grove, intending never
again to take a leading part in
political life. In 1873 the Demo-
crats had elected William Allen governor
by an insignificant
plurality. In 1874 they had swept the
state in the congressional
elections. In 1875 the Republicans,
almost despairing of their
chances, were yet determined to spare no
effort to regain the
state. All eyes turned with one accord
toward Mr. Hayes, who
in his previous campaigns had defeated
Ohio's ablest Democratic
champions, Allen G. Thurman, and George
H. Pendleton; and,
despite his persistent refusal to be a
candidate before the nomin-
ating convention, the convention would
hear of no other man.
Under the circumstances, he had preforce
to yield his personal
preference and accept the nomination.
The dominating issue of the campaign was
sound money
versus Greenbackism - the latter making
strong and insinuating
appeal to the unthinking masses,
suffering from the severe de-
pression which followed the financial
crash of 1873. The contest
in Ohio was watched with close and
anxious attention by the
entire nation. Mr. Hayes fought the good
fight for sound money,
up and down the state, with a vigor and
convincing power which
compelled victory. This brilliant
success made him at once a
446
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
national figure; and it was this great
achievement more than any-
thing else which caused his party to
recognize his fitness for the
Presidency, and which in 1876 procured
for him the nomination.
I can only allude to the troublous and
tumultuous times
which followed the election. Through all
those bitter months of
angry controversy and threatening
partisan recrimination, Mr.
Hayes preserved unruffled poise and
dignity, desirous only that
right and justice should prevail,
whatever his own fate might be.
When the long and rancorous dispute was
ended and his title to
the Presidency was declared
indefeasible, he entered the White
House with one sole purpose, to serve
the interests of the whole
country to the limit of his ability and
his opportunity. In his
inaugural address he gave voice to the
principle which should
control his conduct in a sentence which
at once became a maxim
of political wisdom: "He serves his
party best who serves his
country best."
The judgment of posterity, I believe,
will pronounce Mr.
Hayes' administration one of the
cleanest, sanest, most efficient
administrations in our history. No
breath of scandal ever sullied
its fair fame. In all its relations,
domestic and foreign, honesty,
efficiency and sound decisions, coupled
with dignity and courtesy,
prevailed. And Mr. Hayes has to his
enduring credit three
achievements of vast and far-reaching
consequence. First: He
settled for all time the dangerous and
perplexing Southern ques-
tion on a sound and rational basis.
Whatever the past sins of
the Southern states, the national
government, Mr. Hayes saw,
could not go on treating those states
differently from other states.
That seems too obvious to mention now.
It was epoch-making in
1877. Second: Mr. Hayes, always a
defender of sound money,
restored specie payments. He did this,
to be sure, under a law
passed before he became President, but
he had to accomplish his
purpose in defiance of a hostile
congress and in the face both of
wide-spread disbelief in its feasibility
and doubt of its wisdom,
which only high courage and steadfast
determination could have
surmounted. The national credit was
established on a firmer basis
than ever and returning prosperity
smiled beneficently upon the
land. And, third, he made the first
sincere and serious effort to
bring about genuine civil service
reform. He did not do all he
Dedication of the Hayes
Memorial. 447
had hoped to do in this respect. But in
the face of incredible
obloquy and opposition he took the first
courageous step which
made possible and soon compelled the
adoption of his principles.
In all these great accomplishments he
had the active and per-
sistent hostility of powerful influences
in his own party. But he
was undismayed, serene in the conviction
that he was right, and
he won in spite of all opposition. The
event, he felt confident,
would approve the wisdom of his policies
and bring the doubters
and antagonists to confusion. And his
judgment was altogether
sound. As I have said elsewhere:
"When Mr. Hayes entered
upon his term the country was still
depressed and suffering from
the effects of the severe financial
panic of 1873; and his party
was discredited, riven by internal
dissensions, and on the verge
of collapse. When he left the White
House, bounding prosperity
made glad the hearts of the people, and
his party was once more
triumphant, confident, aggressive. The
wonder is that with a
hostile congress, and with his own party
disunited in its support
of all the great policies to which he
was committed by his letter
of acceptance and his inaugural address,
and which he determ-
inedly pursued - the wonder is that he
could accomplish as much
as he did. His administration proved and
illustrated his own
wise maxim that he serves his party best
who serves his country
best. In the face of the protests, the
denunciation, and the mal-
ignant enmity of men who had long been
leaders of his party, he
serenely maintained his course, firmly
convinced in his own mind
that the policies he was enforcing,
instead of wrecking his party,
as his detractors angrily prophesied,
would bring new strength
and new courage to the Republican cause.
And the result proved
that he was far wiser than his
critics."
Mr. Hayes returned gladly to Spiegel
Grove when his term as
President expired, but not to a life of
dignified leisure only.
During the twelve years that still
remained to him, he devoted
all his thought and energy, freely and
without reward, to the
furtherance of worthy benevolent
causes--to the interests of
the old soldiers, to education in the
South and in the universities
of Ohio, to the advocacy of manual
training in the public schools.
to the amelioration of the condition of
the freedmen, and to the
great cause of prison reform. In all
these fields of effort he was
448
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
a leader and not a follower; always an
advocate of policies a
little in advance of current popular
opinion; just as when Gov-
ernor and President he urged in his
messages upon legislature and
congress measures of reform and
proposals for new legislation
which only after his time men gained
wisdom to appreciate and
to adopt. Detractors and malignant
critics might scoff and sneer
and seek to belittle his achievements or
to deride his proposals,
but their silly clamor never provoked
him to explanation or de-
fense; never disturbed his equanimity;
never embittered his
thought. He was willing to let his
actions justify themselves,
willing to trust the calm judgment of
the future to approve the
wisdom and the righteousness of his
conduct.
The controlling principle of his life
was simplicity itself.
It was, under all conditions and in all
circumstances, to do what
he belived to be right. The motto of the
Scotch family of Hayes
from which he traced his descent, was
the single Latin word
Recte. That is the adverb form of the word that means straight
or right. In all his conduct, public and
private, Mr. Hayes ex-
emplified that motto. He was
"straight" in thought and action;
he moved in right lines;; his dealings
were void of indirection
or equivocation.
Mr. Hayes believed intensely but
intelligently in America,
in its polity, in its future, in its
exalted mission under
Divine favor, for the world-for
humanity. His was not
a blind, unreasoning patriotism. His
convictions were based on
wide knowledge of history, on prolonged
pondering of govern-
mental systems, on thorough
understanding of the common people
-their modes of thought, their beliefs,
their aspirations. He
knew
"In what a forge and what a heat
Were shaped the anchors"
of our Ship of State; and he believed
sincerely that
"Humanity with all its fears,
With all its hopes of future years,
Was hanging breathless on her
fate."
Dedication of the Hayes
Memorial. 449
And yet he was fully conscious of the
faults and defects and
dangers of our system, of the constant
vigilance necessary to pre-
serve "the jewel of liberty in the
house of freedom," of the
perils arising from the prodigious
concentration of wealth in a
few hands and from the clash of
contending interests and jealous-
ies of class, of the new duties that new
occasions were continually
teaching. But he never lost faith in the
Republic, never doubted
the essential soundness of the people,
never despaired that right
causes would in the end prevail, if men
that saw the right
worked on steadily, hopefully,
patiently.
In his young manhood, in a letter to his
betrothed, he gave
striking expression of his fine spirit
of optimism, which increas-
ing years and experience could never
quench nor qualify: "When
I see the immeasurable changes which a
century or two have
produced," he wrote, "it gives
me heart to throw my little efforts
in favor of the good projects of the
age, however slow their
apparent progress. Nothing great is
accomplished in a day, but
gradually the strong hours conquer all
obstacles." Take heart,
take heart, O ye of little faith-even ye
who through the lurid
clouds of the mad and frightful war now
devastating Europe
seem to hear infernal angels croaking
the doom of civilization.
For, be assured "Our sins cannot
push the Lord's right hand
from under"; be assured that, in
God's good time, "gradually the
strong hours shall conquer all
obstacles."
One quality further of Mr. Hayes I must
note and empha-
size, and that was his love for Fremont,
his appreciation of the
respect and confidence of her people
that he enjoyed, his pride
in her growth and prosperity, his
interest in all that contributed to
her welfare. Here only was his real
home, and whenever he was
absent from it he longed for the day of
his return. He was
deeply touched by the public reception
given him here by friends
and neighbors of all parties after his
nomination for the Presi-
dency. As his term was nearing its
close, he looked forward,
with eager anticipation, "to the
freedom, independence and safety
of the obscure and happy home in the
pleasant grove at Fremont."
When, at Cleveland, the sudden attack
which was to prove fatal
came upon him and he was urged to delay
his journey home, he
declared: "I would rather die at
Spiegel Grove than to live
Vol. XXV- 29
450
Ohio Arch. and Hist. Society Publications.
anywhere else." His regard for
Fremont was not confined to
mere sentiment. No project for its
betterment but had his
sympathy, his counsel, his assistance.
It is due to his activity
and to his generosity that the city has
its public parks and its
library. For, whatever fame or fortune
Fremont may attain, to
the country and the world at large it
will alway be chiefly notable
because it was here that Rutherford B.
Hayes had his home.
It will be a perpetual benediction to
the people of state and
nation that Ohio has erected and will
maintain this beautiful
building to commemorate the fame and
achievements of her
great citizen. The future, in my
judgment, will increase his fame,
will come to a clearer and fuller
understanding, and so to a just
appreciation of the greatness and value
of his achievements. His
character and worth shine more
resplendent with every fresh con-
templation of his career. I can only
repeat, by way of perora-
tion, what I have already said
elsewhere, and what my added
reflection reaffirms and enforces:
"He may not have possessed
transcendent intellectual gifts,
nor the brilliancy and imaginative power
displayed by great
orators, but he had, in equipoise and
under complete control, all
the solid qualities of character and
mind which fit a man to win
the confidence of his fellows and mark
him for their chosen
leader. These were a clear and
penetrating intelligence, impreg-
nable to the assaults of sophistry; a
judgment, cautious and de-
liberate in action, but when once formed
not to be shaken from
its conviction; a will that did not
waver; sincerity and honesty
of mind and act; absolute veracity and
candor in speech and
conduct; faithfulness in discharging
every obligation imposed on
him or assumed by him; constant and
unquestioning obedience
to the commands of duty; a conscience
void of offense; a patriot-
ism that rose above party, that was
founded on intense faith
in the American constitution and an
abiding belief in the high
mission, under Providence, of America in
the world, and that
was ready to give his life for his
country's welfare; an under-
standing of the common people-the great
masses of his fellow
countrymen-and full sympathy with their
needs and aspirations;
unselfish interest in all wise endeavors
for the public good. And
with all this he was
Dedication of the Hayes Memorial. 451
"Rich in saving common-sense, And, as the greatest only are, In his simplicity, sublime." Surely, we shall be dull indeed of apprehension if we catch no inspiration from his ardor for humanity; if we feel no impulse to emulate the virtues which made his service to the world so great. I, at least, thing of him always as of "One who never turned his back but marched breast forward, Never doubted clouds would break, Never dreamed, though right were worsted, wrong would triumph, Held we fall to rise, are baffled to fight better, Sleep to wake." After a song, the Hon. Newton D. Baker, Secretary of War, representing the President of the United States, was presented and spoke in part as follows:
ADDRESS OF HON. NEWTON D. BAKER, SECRETARY OF WAR. Mr. Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen: Before leaving Washington last night, I was charged by the President of the United States to convey to you his greetings, |
|
|
ject, has detailed for us the life of this President from the days of his childhood through the testing years of the civil war, and |
Dedication of the Hayes
Memorial. 439
ask each and every one of you to
register here on this consecrated
spot a solemn vow to preserve this
nation forever and forever to
the American - peaceably
if we can, forcibly if we must, but for
America, America forever and forever.
Mr. Charles R. Williams, of Princeton,
biographer of Ruth-
erford Birchard Hayes, then delivered
the following address:
ADDRESS OF CHARLES R. WILLIAMS.
We are met today to signalize the formal
dedication of the
Hayes Memorial building. There has been
no occasion like this
in all the history of our beloved
country. It is made possible by
the gracious cooperation of filial
affection and worthy public
appreciation, for which I recall no
parallel in our annals. By
deed of gift, a few years ago, Colonel
Webb C. Hayes conveyed
to the state, for the benefit of the
Archaeological and Historical
Society, this beautiful historic grove,
through which ran the
famous Indian trail by which William
Henry Harrison marched
his forces to Lake Erie, and whose
ancient oaks had sheltered
savage wigwams and been lighted by the
bivouac fires of hardy
frontier soldiers of 1812. The gift was on
condition that the
society should procure the erection of a
suitable fireproof build-
ing for the permanent preservation of
the books and papers and
personal belongings of President and
Mrs. Hayes. Of course the
society, of which Mr. Hayes was long
president, and which has
done so much to gather, to investigate,
and to preserve records
and documents and objects of historical
and archaeological sig-
nificance, was rejoiced to accept the
gift and to undertake the
trust. And the state, through
legislature and governor both,
as it happened, Democratic at the time
-was not slow to mani-
fest its appreciation of the gift and to
do its share to make the
gift secure, rightly esteeming its
patriotic purpose and its large
and permanent worth. To Senator T. A.
Dean, of Fremont, for
his effective presentation of the cause
before the legislature, we
should not fail, on this day of
rejoicing, to give special credit and
praise. He saw clearly, he spoke
persuasively - for the honor
of Ohio's greatest President, for the
dignity and glory of the
state.