When the Paris Commune savagely threw down the Vendome column
all the civilized world felt a shock of disgust. Why? Certainly
not because all the world equally admired Napoleon, whose
triumphs the column recorded. Certainly not alone for the reason
that it was a noble work of art. It was because all intelligent
and unprejudiced people instinctively recognized that the column
had been reared as an emblem of patriotism. That column stood
for something higher than the fame of an individual conqueror,
and for something broader than any theory of government or
reaction of parties. It stood for the glory and dignity of
France. It typified the love of the native land--patriotism.
Take, as another instance, the great Washington shaft at
the capital. Long delayed, frequently jeered at before its
completion, it now lifts its finished strength toward heaven in
everlasting tribute to the great leader of the Revolution and
the founder of our nation.--New York _Star_.
(2004)