JOHN ERICSSON 311 Kossuth occupies a position peculiarly his own, whether we regard the cir cumstances of his rise, or the feelings which have followed him in his fall. Born in the middle ranks of life, he raised himself by sheer force of intellect to the loftiest place among the proudest nobles on earth, without ever deserting or being deserted by the class from which he sprung. He effected a sweeping reform without appealing to any sordid or sanguinary motive. No soldier him- self, he transformed a country into a camp, and a nation into an army. He transmuted his words into batteries, and his thoughts into soldiers. Without ever having looked upon a stricken field, he organized the most complete system of resistance to despotism that the history of revolutions has furnished. It failed, but only failed where nothing could have succeeded. r JOHN ERICSSON* By Martha J. Lamb ( i 803-1889) N a message, referring to the relations of our country with the several nations of Europe, Presi- dent Harrison said : " The restoration of the remains of John Ericsson to Swe- den afforded a gratifying occasion to honor the memory of the great in- ventor, to whose genius our country owes so much, and to bear witness to the unbroken friendship which has existed between the land which bore him and our own, which claimed him as a citizen." This paragraph is a for- cible reminder of the im- pressive ceremonial wit- nessed in the streets and harbor of New York City, It had been intimated to this Government, as on Saturday, August 23, 1890. is well known, that the Government of Sweden would regard it as a graceful act
- Reprinted, by permission, from the Magazine of American History.
