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_From the “Boston Herald.”_
THE death of Henry W. Grady comes at a time and under conditions which
will cause a deep feeling of sorrow and regret in the minds of the
people of New England. He came to us only a few days ago as a
representative of our Southern fellow-countrymen, grasping the hand of
good will that was extended to him, and professing, in the eloquent
addresses that he made, a desire to do all that he could to allay any
differences of opinion or prejudices that might exist between the people
of the North and those of the South. One means of doing this, and one
which appealed particularly to the inhabitants of New England, was the
unquestioned admiration that he had for our traditions and institutions,
an admiration which he owned was so far cherished in the South as to
lead many of its people to copy our methods. The New South was a change
from the Old South, for the reason that its people were discarding their
former theories and opinions, and were to a large degree copying those
which we have always held.
It is needless at this time to speak of Mr. Grady’s attempt to defend
the Southern method of settling the race problem, but, although there
were many who believed that he did not fully make out his case, his
statement of it threw a light upon the question which was probably new
to a large number of those who heard or read his words.
Of Mr. Grady’s eloquence it can be said that it was spontaneity itself.
Rarely has a man been gifted with so remarkable a command of language
and so complete a knowledge of its felicitous use. There was in his
address an exuberance of fancy which age and a wider experience of men
and methods would have qualified, but no one can doubt that this gift of
his, combined as it was with high intentions and honesty of purpose,
would have made of him in a few years more, if he had been spared, a man
of national importance in the affairs of our country.
It is sad to think that this young and promising life was thus
unexpectedly cut off, and by causes which seem to have been avoidable
ones. It is probable that Mr. Grady unconsciously overtaxed himself on
his Northern trip. He arrived in this city suffering from a severe cold,
which would probably have yielded to a day or two of complete rest. But
not only were there fixed appointments which he had come here to meet,
but new engagements and duties were assumed, so that during his short
stay here he was not only in a whirl of mental excitement, but was
undergoing constant physical exposure.
A man of less rugged strength would have yielded under this trial before
it was half over, but Mr. Grady’s physique carried him through, and
those who heard his last speech, probably the last he ever delivered, at
the dinner of the Bay State Club, will remember that, though he excused
himself on account of his physical disabilities, the extemporaneous
address was full of the fire and pathos of his native eloquence. But,
although unaware of the sacrifice he was making, it is probable that Mr.
Grady weakened himself by these over-exertions to an extent that made
him an easy prey to the subtle advance of disease.
His death causes a vacancy that cannot easily be filled. The South was
in need, and in years to come may be in still greater need, of an
advocate such as he would have been. She will, no doubt, find
substitutes for this journalist-orator, but we doubt whether any of
these will, in so short a time, win by their words the attention of the
entire American people or so deservedly hold their respect and
admiration.
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