Lebanon, Ohio, March 5, 1899.
* An Impromptu preface to Colonel Ingersoll's lecture at
Lebanon, Ohio.
LADIES and Gentlemen: Being for the first time where Thomas Corwin lived
and where his ashes rest, I cannot refrain from saying something of
what I feel. Thomas Corwin was a natural orator--armed with the sword of
attack and the shield of defence.
Nature filled his quiver with perfect arrows. He was the lord of logic
and laughter. He had the presence, the pose, the voice, the face
that mirrored thoughts, the unconscious gesture of the orator. He had
intelligence--a wide horizon--logic as unerring as mathematics--humor as
rich as autumn when the boughs and vines bend with the weight of ripened
fruit, while the forests flame with scarlet, brown and gold. He had wit
as quick and sharp as lightning, and like the lightning it filled the
heavens with sudden light.
In his laughter there was logic, in his wit wisdom, and in his humor
philosophy and philanthropy. He was a supreme artist. He painted
pictures with words. He knew the strength, the velocity of verbs, the
color, the light and shade of adjectives.
He was a sculptor in speech--changing stones to statues. He had in
his heart the sacred something that we call sympathy. He pitied the
unfortunate, the oppressed and the outcast His words were often wet
with tears--tears that in a moment after were glorified by the light of
smiles. All moods were his. He knew the heart, its tides and currents,
its calms and storms, and like a skillful pilot he sailed emotion's
troubled sea. He was neither solemn nor dignified, because he was
neither stupid nor egotistic. He was natural, and had the spontaneity
of winds and waves. He was the greatest orator of his time, the grandest
that ever stood beneath our flag. Reverently I lay this leaf upon his
grave.