———
To Victis.
I sing the hymn of the conquered who fell in the battle of life —
The hymn of the wounded, the beaten, who died, o’erwhelmed in the strife;
Not the jubilant song of the victors, for whom the resounding acclaim
Of nations was lifted in chorus, whose brows wore the chaplet of fame,
But the hymn of the low and the humble, the weary, the broken in heart,
Who strove and who failed, acting bravely a silent and desperate part;
Whose youth bore no lower on its branches, whose hope burned in ashes away;
From whose hands slipped the prize they had grasped at, who stood at the dying of day
With the wreck of their life all around them — unpitied, unheeded, alone —
With death swooping down o’er their failure and all but their faith overthrown.
While the voice of the world shouts its chorus, its paean for those who have won;
While the trumpet is sounding triumphant, and high to the breeze and the sun
Gay banners are waving, hands clapping, and hurrying feet,
Thronging after the laurel-crowned victors, I stand on the field of defeat,
In the shadow, amongst those who are fallen, and wounded and dying, and there
Chant a requiem low, place my hand on their pain-knotted brows, breathe a prayer,
Hold the hand that is helpless, and whisper: “They only the victory win
Who have fought the good fight and have vanquished the demon that tempts us within;
Who have held to their faith unseduced by the prize that the world holds on high;
Who have dared for a high cause to suffer, resist, fight — if need be, to die.”
Speak, history! Who are life’s victors? Unroll thy long annals and say
Are they those whom the world called victors, who won the success of a day?
The martyrs of Nero? The Spartans who fell at Thermopylae’s tryst,
Or the Persians and Xerxes? His judges or Socrates?
Pilate or Christ?
W. W. STORY. Courage in Adversity.
When loss of property and loss of repute are come, when the severance of friendships has come, when the future is overcast with disappointment and hopes are shattered, and we know nothing of what is to come except simply this, that we know God’s will must be done, and try to do what is pleasing in His sight, and leave all to Him, the endurance which then reveals itself is the masterful power of the human will. Men trained in the experience can not be frightened nor disheartened by troubles, however great. — R. S. STORRS.
Nerve Thy Spirit.
Yet nerve thy spirit to the proof, And blench not at thy chosen lot.
The timid good may stand aloof,
The sage may frown; yet faint thou not, Nor heed the shaft too surely cast,
The foul and hissing bolt of scorn;
For with thy side shall dwell, at last, The victory of endurance born.
Truth, crushed to earth, shall rise again;
The eternal years of God are hers;
But Error, wounded, writhes in pain, And dies among her worshipers.
WILLIAM CULLEN BRYANT. The Art of Life.
The great art of life, so far as I have been able to observe, consists in fortitude and perseverance. I have rarely seen that a man who conscientiously devoted himself to the studies and duties of any profession, and did not omit to take fair and honorable opportunities of offering himself to notice when such presented themselves, has not at length got forward. The mischance of those who fall behind, though flung upon fortune, more frequently arises from want of skill and perseverance.
Life, young friends, is like a game at cards. Our hands are alternately good or bad, and the whole seems, at first glance, to depend on mere chance. But it is not so, for in the long run the skill of the player predominates over the casualties of the game. Therefore, do not be discouraged with the prospect before you, but ply your studies hard, and qualify yourselves to receive fortune when she comes your way.
— SIR WALTER SCOTT.
Strengthened by Defeat.
But noble souls, through dust or heat, Rise from disaster and defeat
The stronger,
And, conscious still of the divine Within them, lie on earth supine
No longer.
LONGFELLOW. The Development of Courage.
A great man is always willing to be little. Whilst he sits on the cushion of advantages he goes to sleep. When he is pushed, tormented, defeated, he has a chance to learn something. He has been put on his wits, on his manhood; he has gained facts; learns his ignorance; is cured of the insanity of conceit; has got moderation and real skill. The wise man always throws himself on the side of his assailants. It is more to his interest than it is theirs to find his weak point. The wound cicatrizes, and falls off from him like a dead skin, and when they would triumph, lo! he has passed on invulnerable. As long as all that is said is against me, I feel a certain assurance of success. But as soon as honeyed words of praise are spoken for me, I feel as one that lies unprotected before his enemies.
— EMERSON. Condensed Comments.
They are slaves who dare not be In the right with two or three.
JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL.
If there be one thing upon earth that mankind love and admire better than another, it is a brave man — a man who dares look the devil in the face and tell him he is the devil. — JAMES A. GARFIELD.
We pluck at roses and encounter thorns;
Clutch at life’s thorns, and fill our hands with roses.
ANNA KATHERINE GREEN.
Courage is a love of the morally beautiful more than life. — PLATO.
—————