" We never call a man "noble" who serves only himself; and if you
will look about through all the nations of the world upon the statues
that men have erected--upon the inscribed tablets where they have
wished to keep alive the memory of the citizens whom they desire most to
honor--you will find that almost without exception they have erected the
statue to those who had a splendid surplus of energy and devotion to
spend upon their fellow-men. Nobility exists in America without patent.
We have no House of Lords, but we have a house of fame to which we
elevate those who are the noble men of our race, who, forgetful of
themselves, study and serve the public interest, who have the courage to
face any number and any kind of adversary, to speak what in their hearts
they believe to be the truth.
We admire physical courage, but we admire above all things else moral
courage. I believe that soldiers will bear me out in saying that both
come in time of battle. I take it that the moral courage comes in going
into the battle, and the physical courage in staying in. There are
battles which are just as hard to go into and just as hard to stay in as
the battles of arms, and if the man will but stay and think never of
himself there will come a time of grateful recollection when men will
speak of him not only with admiration but with that which goes deeper,
with affection and with reverence.
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