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CUSTOM EDITION

COMMUNICATING
FOR SUCCESS
2nd Edition

KOSSEN, KIERNAN, LAWRENCE

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CONTENTS vii

CHAPTER 6 PERCEPTION, AUDIENCE ANALYSIS AND TASK


ANALYSIS Chris Kossen 125
Introduction 126
Perception 126
Differences in perception 132
Audience analysis: targeting communication 135
Task analysis 138
Conclusion 143
Key points 144
Review questions 144
Bibliography 144

CHAPTER 7 INTERCULTURAL COMMUNICATION Jill Lawrence 147


Introduction 148
Defining culture 149
Cultural difference 152
Responding to cultural difference 164
Developing cultural competence 171
Conclusion 176
Key points 177
Review questions 177
Bibliography 177

PART 3 COMMUNICATION IN PRACTICE 179


CHAPTER 8 SOCIAL MEDIA—UNTANGLING THE WEB Eleanor Kiernan 180
Introduction 181
Social media—changing the world 181
Personal use of social media 182
Professional use of social media 184
Politicial use of social media 191
Social media issues 194
Psychological challenges 196
Social media abuse 198
Conclusion 205
Key points 205
Review questions 206
Bibliography 206

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viii CONTENTS

CHAPTER 9 ORAL COMMUNICATION: PRESENTATIONS AND


INTERVIEWS Eleanor Kiernan 209
Introduction 210
Oral presentations 210
The audience’s role 226
The interview 229
Conclusion 236
Key points 236
Review questions 237
Bibliography 237

CHAPTER 10 THE POWER OF NONVERBAL COMMUNICATION


Eleanor Kiernan 239
Introduction 240
The importance of nonverbal communication 241
Defining nonverbal communication 242
More than body language 244
Kinesics 245
Oculesics 249
Proxemics 252
Chronemics (time) 257
Paralinguistics 258
Olfactics (smell) 261
Haptics (touch) 266
Conclusion 272
Key points 272
Review questions 273
Bibliography 273

CHAPTER 11 THINK SMARTER: CRITICAL THINKING AND


ARGUMENT Eleanor Kiernan 277
Introduction 278
What is critical thinking? 279
Why is critical thinking important? 281
What is an argument? 283
Cue words 284
Hidden premises 285
Deductive and inductive reasoning 286
Truth and validity 289
The quality of the argument 291

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CONTENTS ix

Scattergun and chain arguments 292


Creative thinking versus logical thinking 296
Conclusion 298
Key points 298
Review questions 299
Bibliography 299

PART 4 COMMUNICATION IN THE WORKPLACE 301


CHAPTER 12 INTERPERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL
COMMUNICATION Chris Kossen 302
Introduction 303
Interpersonal communication 304
Intrapersonal communication 304
Self-awareness and self-concept 305
Positive psychology and emotional intelligence 308
Relationships and interpersonal interaction 313
Interpersonal styles of relating 317
Conflict 323
Collaboration: conflict resolution 325
High-level conflict 328
Workplace bullying 330
Conclusion 331
Key points 331
Review questions 332
Bibliography 332

CHAPTER 13 GROUP AND ORGANISATIONAL COMMUNICATION


Chris Kossen 335
Introduction 336
Roles and functions of groups 336
Task- and maintenance-based behaviours 337
Group dynamics 338
Leadership 344
Organisational communication 348
Communication climate and flow 352
Organisational culture 357
Conclusion 362
Key points 363
Review questions 364
Bibliography 364

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x CONTENTS

CHAPTER 14 COMMUNICATION BARRIERS Chris Kossen 367


Introduction 368
Physical/external barriers 368
Intrapersonal barriers 369
Developing productive attitudes and beliefs 374
Interpersonal barriers 379
Intercultural barriers 381
Planning for communication 385
Conclusion 388
Key points 388
Review questions 389
Bibliography 389

INDEX 391

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PREFACE
Communication is central to being human and the way we experience life. We rely
on effective communication to transfer information and ideas between one another
and this then allows us to coordinate, cooperate and function at a high level. It is also
important to remember that we are essentially social creatures and communication
allows us to develop the bonds we need with other people, including family, friends,
intimate partners and work colleagues.
However, it is only when we stop to consider the role communication plays in
our lives that we begin to realise how important it is. It affects all aspects of our lives,
and in significant ways. Put simply, the more effectively we communicate the better
we are able to function across a wide range of important areas: we can better manage
relationships so that they are healthy and produce happiness, we can coordinate
and cooperate with people, excel at pursuits and advance in our career, and we can
manage difficult and complex tasks such as university study. All of this provides the
rationale for this book.
Our aim is to help you develop and refine your communication skills so that you
can maximise your performance in all of your important pursuits. Key performance
skills dealt with in this book relate to academic performance, professional (career)
performance and competencies for dealing with people and generating productive
relationships. While academic skills development is covered throughout, chapters
with a strong focus on this area are Chapter 2: University Culture and Transition Skills,
Chapter 3: Academic Writing, Chapter 4: Research and Referencing and Chapter
5: Communication Theory, which discusses issues related to analysing and applying
theoretical knowledge. In addition, the following are all useful for university studies:
Chapter 7: Intercultural Communication, Chapter 8: Social Media—Untangling the
Web, Chapter 9: Oral Communication: Presentations and Interviews, Chapter 10:
The Power of Nonverbal Communication and Chapter 11: Think Smarter: Critical
Thinking and Argument. However, these areas are also important and applicable to
personal and professional contexts.
In addition to the work of the authors and publishing team in producing this
book it is important to acknowledge the efforts of others. Special thanks go to the
Custom team at Pearson Australia—Jill Gillies, Lucy Bartonek and Aida Reyes for
their guidance and support, and to Katie Millar, the Project Editor, whose work was
invaluable.We would also like to thank Rebecca Te’o and Sarah Muller for her helpful
comments on a number of the chapters.

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ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Dr Christopher Kossen is a Senior Lecturer in Communication and Public
Relations in the School of Humanities and Communication, Faculty of Arts at the
University of Southern Queensland. His particular interests include organisational
communication, persuasion tactics in communication and public relations and also
in social research methods.

Eleanor Kiernan is a Senior Lecturer in a large core communication course in


the School of Humanities and Communication, Faculty of Arts at the University
of Southern Queensland. She is interested in all aspects of communication and the
application of theory to real personal and professional contexts.

Dr Jil Lawrence is a Professor and Associate Dean (Learning and Teaching) in the
Faculty of Arts at the University of Southern Queensland. Her research interests are
the First Year Experience, transition and retention in higher education and cross-
cultural communication.

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CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

LEARNING OBJECTIVES
By the end of this chapter you should be able to:
■ appreciate the importance of, and need for, studying communication
■ understand the benefits of studying communication in relation to your
personal, university (academic) and professional life
■ appreciate the interrelated and overlapping nature of communication
skills whereby skills in oral and written expression can lead to
success in university life as well as professional life
■ understand the importance of ethical behaviour and communication.

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2 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

Introduction

C
ommunication pervades our lives at all levels: academic, professional and personal.
We can think of communication as anything that involves a transaction of meaning as a
result of messages being sent and received between people, and these messages can be
either intentional or unintentional. Your yawn at the breakfast table may be unintentional, but it
communicates a message that you are tired. Communication is vitally important in every facet of
our lives and we spend virtually all of our time communicating. Because it comes very naturally to
us we might assume that we know how to do it and therefore don’t need to spend time learning it.
In reality, few of us reach our communication potential and we therefore experience
communication difficulties from time to time. We have all had the experience of saying or doing
something and then being surprised to find that someone else interprets what we have said or done
in a way that we never intended. Communication is a complex process with many opportunities for
mistakes and misunderstandings to occur. In the chapters that follow we will explore how various
kinds of miscommunication occur and draw lessons on how to minimise barriers to communication.

COMMUNICATION AT UNIVERSITY
The early chapters of this book introduce you to different aspects of university,
particularly academic protocols and study strategies. You will be challenged to think
about the experiences that have made you the person you are and how this affects
your success at university. Different aspects of university culture are examined to
show you that many of the challenges you face can be met with an array of skills
that can be developed. These skills are broken down into chunk-sized bites so that
you can find practical ways to overcome problems in acclimatising to the university
culture, both personally and academically.
Some of the specific skills you will learn in transitioning to university are transferable;
that is, you can use them in different professional contexts. You will learn how to deal
with the seemingly perplexing administrative requirements at university, and develop
the skills needed for research and written work. The skills and knowledge you will
acquire are essential ingredients for life-long learning.
One of the key aspects of communicating well is to present logical arguments.
Understanding and evaluating arguments is not just a useful tool in your academic
studies; it extends into your personal and professional communication. Once you can
evaluate arguments, you will be better equipped to think critically about information
you encounter, whether it is from a television commercial, a politician’s speech or a
friend trying to convince you to go on a holiday.
Obvious areas of communication at university are written and oral presentations:
extended writing, including essays and reports, make up much of the assessment load at

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CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 3

university. However, presenting ideas orally and in writing are also of great importance
in professional life. The logic and the skills required for academic work give a strong
grounding for your professional life.
Writing effective essays requires the ability to research effectively, to think critically,
to apply (content) knowledge to address a particular task and to communicate clearly
using the correct format. This involves developing a thesis (position or point of view)
and constructing a logical and coherent argument to support that thesis.
Presenting your ideas orally involves the same skills of critical thinking, analysis and
logical development of argument needed for essays or reports. However, it also requires
the ability to adapt often complex material within the constraints of an oral presentation
format, which is considerably shorter than written formats. Presenting information in
this way also requires confidence and competence with spoken language. These skills of
confidence and expression can be learned by almost anyone.
Success at university and in professional life also depends on how well you can
solve problems; how self-motivated and self-directed you are; how effective you are
at thinking and learning independently; and your mental flexibility and adaptability to
cope with the career changes that will occur in our working lives.
In this sense communication can be seen as a very broad concept that includes
the skills required for effective learning (receive and process information). Chapter 2:
University Culture and Transition Skills, Chapter 3: Academic Writing and Chapter 4:
Research and Referencing, Chapter 11: Think Smarter: Critical Thinking and
Argument, provide a particular focus on these skills, while Chapter 12: Interpersonal
and Professional Communication and Chapter 14: Communication Barriers explores
skills from a psychological perspective.

COMMUNICATION IN PROFESSIONAL LIFE


There is a common perception that communication is important in people-oriented
professions like human resources and public relations and less important in technical
professions such as science and engineering. This is not really the case: being able
to express ourselves fluently (orally and in writing), being competent in interviews
and being able to work effectively with other people are skills that have become
increasingly important and in high demand across all professions and occupations.
Good communication skills help us to get the job in the first instance; you can test
this out for yourself by looking through job advertisements online or in newspapers.
Virtually all employers specify the need to have good communication skills, both written
and interpersonal. You will notice that selection criteria typically contain two levels of
skills: essential and desirable. Communication-related skills are usually essential. As well
as helping in obtaining a job, communication skills can help us succeed in the job and,
importantly, move up and advance in our career.

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4 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

Chapter 6: Perception, Audience Analysis and Task Analysis provides a particular


focus on analysing tasks and addressing criteria. These skills are essential for success
at university and in applying for jobs and promotions. Chapter 13: Group and
Organisational Communication, examines group and organisational dynamics and
provides practical guidance for success in professional contexts, including management
and working in team-based environments.
In terms of speaking and presenting information orally, do you find that you
are able to persuade others to your viewpoint, or do you become tongue-tied and
embarrassed? Do you know how to interpret what an interviewer is really looking for
and frame your answers accordingly? How skilled are you at reading nonverbal cues?
If you plan to work in marketing, export or the diplomatic services, for example,
you will require skills in reading cues from different cultural backgrounds, including
nonverbal cues. However, as already noted, these skills are highly sought after
today in all areas and professions. Chapter 9 outlines the importance of skills such
as audience analysis and structure in oral presentations and interviews. It focuses on
the widespread problem of speech and interview anxiety and provides strategies to
overcome them. Such anxiety can curtail many opportunities in personal, academic
and professional contexts. In addition, the power of nonverbal communication cannot
be underestimated. Where it was once a specialised research interest, interpreting
nonverbal communication has now become part of popular culture. The problem is
that while we may think we are ‘experts’ we often get it wrong because there are so
many variables that can affect the meaning. Also, some of the cues we once believed
indicated a particular behaviour have now been discounted. Chapter 10 therefore
looks at the dynamics of nonverbal communication and the powerful impact it can
have on our personal, professional and academic lives.
In Chapter 7: Intercultural Communication, we investigate how we learn through
the context of our own cultural background and ways of knowing. We explore how
our cultural understandings influence our communication and argue that to become
an effective professional we need not only to understand our own culture and how it
affects our communication, but also to manage the cultural and language differences that
are central to all our lives in the 21st century. The influence of new media today cannot
be underestimated either. Chapter 8 considers the benefits and opportunities associated
with social media along with the challenges, ethical implications and potential pitfalls,
including the credibility of content.

COMMUNICATION IN EVERYDAY LIFE


Communication is not only what we write or say; it is how we write or say it,
how we stand, how we use time, how we interact with others, even how we feel
about ourselves. Accordingly, we also incorporate areas of positive psychology and

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CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 5

emotional intelligence—primarily in Chapter 12, under Intrapersonal communication—


so that we can consider and learn from the emotional and psychological factors that
influence our abilities to learn and function well. Learning to manage our personal
lives well is of critical importance to our happiness and contentment, our academic
and learning performance, and our professional working life. Hence, it can be seen
that communication in our personal lives is of high, not marginal importance.
Do you have difficulty in saying ‘no’ to an unfair or unreasonable request and end
up resenting that you have been forced to do something you do not want to? How do
you cope with conflict? Are you passive and avoid it or are you aggressive and lose your
temper easily? Chapter 12: Interpersonal and Professional Communication examines the
relationship dimension of communication and the importance of managing relationships
through the use of ‘styles of relating’. We look at assertive behaviour (theory) and move
further into high-intensity conflict. The principles and techniques are presented in an
effort to help us learn to behave more assertively and to help us better manage conflict and
our relationships (personal and professional).
Groups are also central to our lives; for example, sports groups, work teams and
group work for university assignments. Chapter 13 explores group and organisational
communication and group dynamics (surprisingly similar in informal sport and club-
type groups) along with approaches to organisational management and the dynamics of
organisational culture, which encompass bullying and corruption. The issue of bullying
shows once again the interrelated nature of communication: on the one hand, bullying
is a personal matter (for those involved); on the other hand, when it occurs within the
workplace it also becomes an organisational/professional matter.
To be a good communicator means learning more about the principles and
techniques that make up communication performance. This book is aimed at helping
you add to and fine tune your skills to improve your performance. We will show
that communication skills are critical to success in most areas. Indeed, well-developed
communication skills provide a major advantage for those motivated to excel in their
pursuits: personal, academic and professional.
We have seen how central communication is to all aspects of our lives, providing the
mechanism for our interactions with individuals and groups. How we communicate, and
how effectively we communicate, are influenced by who we are, by the type of people we
are and by the way we view others. In Chapter 12, for example, we reveal the problems
that can result from an aggressive or nonassertive communication style and from a failure
to respect the rights of all participating parties.

ETHICS IN COMMUNICATION
What do we mean when we speak of ‘ethics’? Ethics form an entire branch of
philosophy and philosophical definitions of ethics can be quite detailed, but ethics

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6 CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION

are always linked to morality. When we speak of ethics we speak not of what is
legal or permissible, but of what is morally right: what is ‘good’.
If we think, then, of the styles of communication mentioned earlier, we can see
that failure to respect the rights of all communicating parties, whether by denying the
receiver rights as the aggressive communicator does, or by denying ourselves rights
as the nonassertive communicator does, is not communicating ethically. Persuasive
communication and the use of logic and argumentation are also areas where unethical
communication can often be found.
There are many variations on what constitutes ethical communication, but perhaps
we can think of it as involving:
■ honesty
■ respect for individual rights
■ concern for others
■ open-mindedness in terms of differing views, cultures, religious beliefs, gender
■ tolerance of diversity
■ clarity—tailoring the message to the audience and task so that the meaning is as
unambiguous as possible
■ a lack of manipulation and coercion.

However, as ethics is often concerned with what we could call ‘grey areas’, there
might be times when we will deliberately breach one of the guidelines in order to meet
other guidelines. For example, where does the ‘little white lie’ fit in?If a friend who is
ill and really looks ill asks how he looks, should we be honest or try to cheer our friend
up by being less than honest? Should our concern for our friend’s psychological welfare
override our concern for honesty?

DEEPEN YOUR UNDERSTANDING

From your own experience, think of a situation in which a communication problem


occurred. What caused the problem? What do you think could have been done to avoid or
overcome the problem?
In relation to ethics in communication, the issue of plagiarism looms large; that is, stealing
someone else’s ideas or intellectual property and passing them off as our own. What
kinds of problems can plagiarism create?
Recall an example from your personal or professional life that involved unethical
communication. What difficulties or issues arose from this incident?

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CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION 7

CONCLUSION
Communication is important in all areas of our lives: academic, professional and personal. Unfortunately,
because communication is an everyday activity, we often assume that we communicate adequately,
that there is no need to study communication. This is not the case. Few of us have achieved our
communication potential and the remaining chapters of this book deal with ways in which we can
improve our ability to communicate effectively in writing and speech, interpersonally, in groups and
within organisations.

KEY POINTS
■ Communication permeates our lives at all levels: academic, professional and personal.
■ Communication problems can, and do, occur. The more we know about communication, the greater
chance we have of avoiding or overcoming communication problems.
■ Success in academic life requires the ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing,
to think critically, to research effectively and to construct a logical argument.
■ Employers are placing increased importance on good communication skills when recruiting
employees.
■ Our ability to interact interpersonally and to function within groups and organisations is important to
the effectiveness of our communication.

REVIEW QUESTIONS
1 Why is good communication important?
2 Why is it important to understand the university culture and its languages and literacies?
3 Identify the importance of academic writing, research and referencing to the university context.
4 Why is it important to gain knowledge of your own cultural understanding?

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PAR T ONE

COMMUNICATION AT
UNIVERSITY

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CHAPTER 2

UNIVERSITY CULTURE AND


TRANSITION SKILLS
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
By the end of this chapter you should be able to:
■ identify your strengths and weaknesses in relation to your learning
style, personality and approaches to study
■ develop an understanding about the university, its culture and
practices
■ identify the skills and knowledge you need to develop to be successful
in the university culture
■ develop and apply transition skills or strategies to help you engage,
master and apply university-specific languages and practices
■ identify and develop your learning resources and organise yourself for
successful university study.

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CHAPTER 2: UNIVERSITY CULTURE AND TRANSITION SKILLS 11

Introduction

T
his chapter serves as an introduction to university and more specifically to university study.
It first asks you to reflect on who you are and to think about the beliefs, values, expectations,
skills and knowledge that you bring with you to university. It will then introduce you to the
idea, or concept, that university is like a culture with a range of languages, practices and skills
that you will need to learn and develop to be an effective university student. Next, the chapter will
provide some relatively simple strategies, or transition skills, that you can use to develop these
practices and languages. Coincidently, these are the same skills that you can use to make the
transition to any new context; for example, a new workplace, a new role, first-time parenthood,
and living in a new country as a traveller, employee or employer.

A STUDENT’S STORY
A first-year student interviewing a second-year student reflects about what they learnt
from discussing university expectations with an experienced student:
Interviewing Ruby gave me an insight into the way I should plan my study and how
to get help when I need it. Ruby emphasised that it was important to go online at
least once a day to access the course content and to print out lecture slides as it
was easier to highlight and add small notes in a lecture rather than trying to take
notes on everything that was said. Also important were sticking to the assignment
criteria sheet and having it at hand to help stay on topic. Study groups are useful too
as we are in the ‘same boat’ and can help each other. This interview changed the
way I approach university study as I realised that Ruby’s ideas focused on ways to
do things more effectively so that there was still time to do the social things that she
said ‘kept her sane’. She had felt really overwhelmed and stressed about how she
was going to cope with all her study. However, her friends helped her and finding
this out was the best experience in her first year. As a result of talking to Ruby I am
much more confident and enthusiastic about succeeding at my studies.

WHAT BELIEFS AND EXPERIENCES DO YOU BRING TO


UNIVERSITY?
Recent research into learning and teaching at university has focused on the diversity
of students now entering university.Thirty years ago (up until the 1980s) the majority
of university students were able-bodied males from a white, high socioeconomic
background (Schuetze & Slowey 2000). Now, however, you are a much more diverse
group of students. Some of you are older or have been in the workforce for a number
of years. Many of you come from different countries and cultures. Some of you may

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12 PART 1: COMMUNICATION AT UNIVERSITY

be the first of your family to attend university. Some of you may be incarcerated.
Many of you are balancing work (perhaps a full-time job), family and study.You are
also studying in variety of ways; for example, online, on campus, externally, or in all
three simultaneously.
This section of the chapter asks you to develop an understanding of why you
want to study. It asks you to reflect on your expectations, goals and objectives, beliefs,
attitudes and values, study habits, personal experiences, and the background that you
bring with you to university. In terms of communication theory this understanding is
seen as a filter and it is called your ‘perception’ or ‘field of experience’ (see Chapters 5
and 6). In cultural theory it is called your ‘culture’ or ‘set of cultural practices’ (see
Chapter 7). In critical theory it is called your ‘way of knowing’. In sociological theory
it is called ‘discourse’.

DEFINITION: DISCOURSE
Discourse, in its most open sense, encompasses all forms of communication, both verbal
and nonverbal, including ways of behaving, interacting, valuing, thinking, believing,
speaking and reading (Van Dijk 1997). Gee (1997) differentiates two forms of discourse.
Discourse with a capital ‘D’ comprises a ‘way of being together in the world’ for humans,
their ways of thinking and feeling. It includes being a certain type of person, including a
member of a certain socioeconomic class. Discourse with a lower case ‘d’ is used for
connected stretches of language such as conversations, stories, reports, arguments,
essays and so forth. This chapter uses the capital ‘D’ definition of discourse.

So whether you call it your perception, your way of knowing, your cultural
understandings or your discourse, you bring this discourse or way of ‘being in the
world’ with you to university. It affects your expectations about studying at university
and influences your goals, your learning style and the skills and beliefs that you bring
with you to university. For example, for some university students, university may not
be a place where they expected to find themselves or it may not be a comfortable
or even a ‘safe’ space. Other students might be the first in their family to study at
university. In the literature (see Lawrence 2005) these students are called ‘first in
family’ or ‘first generation’ students.

A STUDENT’S STORY
A first generation student who is in her mid-twenties and from a small rural town talks
about her background:
My mother and father both left school early and have the belief that university is
generally economically ‘useless’. My parents believed that securing a job was much

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he had ever had, and was depressed by the utter failure of the only
two business enterprises in which he had ever engaged.
He made another effort, and started a weekly paper called the
Atlanta Capital. This, however, soon went the sorrowing way of his
other hopes.
While those failures and disappointments seemed cruel set-backs
in that day, looked at now they may be counted to have been no
more than healthful discipline to him. They served to stir his spirit the
deeper, and fill him with nobler resolve. Bravely he trampled
misfortune under his feet, and climbed to the high place of honor and
usefulness for which he was destined.
In the day of his extreme poverty, instead of despairing he took on
new strength and courage that equipped him well for future triumphs.
When it is remembered that his vast accomplishments and national
reputation were compassed within the next fourteen years, the
record is simply amazing.
Fourteen years ago, Henry W. Grady stood in Atlanta, Georgia,
bankrupt and almost broken-hearted. Everything behind him was
blotted by failure, and nothing ahead of him was lighted with
promise. In that trying day he borrowed fifty dollars, and giving
twenty of it to his faithful wife, took the balance and determined to
invest it in traveling as far as it would carry him from the scene of his
discouragements. He had one offer then open to him, namely, the
editorial management of the Wilmington (North Carolina) Star, at a
salary of twelve hundred dollars a year. It was the only thing that
seemed a guarantee against actual want, and he had about
determined to accept it, when yielding to the influence of pure
presentiment, instead of buying a ticket to Wilmington with his thirty
dollars, he bought one to New York City.
He landed here with three dollars and seventy-five cents, and
registered at the Astor House in order to be in easy reach of
Newspaper Row.
He used to tell the story of his experience on that occasion in this
way: “After forcing down my unrelished breakfast on the morning of
my arrival in New York, I went out on the sidewalk in front of the
Astor House, and gave a bootblack twenty-five cents, one-fifth of
which was to pay for shining my shoes, and the balance was a fee
for the privilege of talking to him. I felt that I would die if I did not talk
to somebody. Having stimulated myself at that doubtful fountain of
sympathy, I went across to the Herald office, and the managing
editor was good enough to admit me to his sanctum. It happened
that just at that time several of the Southern States were holding
constitutional conventions. The Herald manager asked me if I knew
anything about politics, I replied that I knew very little about anything
else. ‘Well,’ said he, ‘sit at this desk and write me an article on State
conventions in the South.’ With these words he tossed me a pad and
left me alone in the room. When my task-master returned, I had
finished the article and was leaning back in the chair with my feet up
on the desk. ‘Why, Mr. Grady, what is the matter?’ asked the
managing editor. ‘Nothing,’ I replied, ‘except that I am through.’ ‘Very
well, leave your copy on the desk, and if it amounts to anything I will
let you hear from me. Where are you stopping?’ ‘I am at the Astor
House.’ Early the next morning before getting out of bed, I rang for a
hall-boy and ordered the Herald. I actually had not strength to get up
and dress myself, until I could see whether or not my article had
been used. I opened the Herald with a trembling hand, and when I
saw that ‘State Conventions in the South’ was on the editorial page, I
fell back on the bed, buried my face in the pillow, and cried like a
child. When I went back to the Herald office that day the managing
editor received me cordially and said, ‘You can go back to Georgia,
Mr. Grady, and consider yourself in the employ of the Herald.’”
Almost immediately after his return to Atlanta, he was tendered,
and gladly accepted, a position on the editorial staff of the Atlanta
Constitution. He worked vigorously for the New York Herald for five
years as its Southern correspondent, and in that time did some of
the most brilliant work that has ever been done for that excellent
journal.
Notable among his achievements were the graphic reports he
made of the South Carolina riots in 1876. But the special work which
gave him greatest fame was his exposure of the election frauds in
Florida that same year. He secured the memorable confession of
Dennis and his associates, and his report of it to the Herald was
exclusive. For that piece of work alone, Mr. Bennett paid him a
thousand dollars. His attachment to the editorial staff of the Atlanta
Constitution gave him an opportunity to impress himself upon the
people of Georgia, which he did with great rapidity and power.
In 1879, he came to New York, partly for recreation and partly for
the purpose of writing a series of topical letters from Gotham. While
here he was introduced by Governor John B. Gordon to Cyrus W.
Field. Mr. Field was instantly impressed by him, and liked him so
much that he loaned him twenty thousand dollars with which to buy
one-fourth interest in the Atlanta Constitution. He made the purchase
promptly, and that for which he paid twenty thousand dollars in 1880,
was at the time of his death in 1889 worth at least one hundred and
fifty thousand dollars. The enormous increase in the value of the
Constitution during his identification with it shows nothing more
plainly than the value of his marvelous work in its service.
Securing an interest in the Atlanta Constitution may be said to
have fixed his noble destiny. It emancipated his genius from the
bondage of poverty, quickened his sensitive spirit with a new
consciousness of power for good, and inspired him to untiring
service in the widest fields of usefulness. He saw the hand of God in
the favor that had blessed him, and in acknowledgment of the Divine
providence dedicated his life to the cause of truth, and the uplifting of
humanity. Atlanta was his home altar, and there he poured out the
best libations of his heart. That thriving city to-day has no municipal
advantage, no public improvement, no educational institution, no
industrial enterprise which does not either owe its beginning to his
readiness of suggestion, or its mature development to his sustaining
influence. Its streets are paved with his energy and devotion, its
houses are built in the comeliness and fashion that he inspired, and
its vast business interests are established in the prosperity and
strength that he foretold.
Georgia was the pride of his life, and for the increase of her peace
and prosperity, the deepening brotherhood of her people, the
development of her vast mineral resources, and the enrichment of
her varied harvests, he wrote, and talked, and prayed.
The whole South was to him sacred ground, made so both by the
heroic death of his father and the precious birth of his children. By
the former, he felt all the memories and traditions of the Old South to
have been sanctified, and by the latter he felt all the hopes and
aspirations of the New South to have been beautified. And thus with
a personality altogether unique, and a genius thoroughly rare, he
stood like a magical link between the past and the future. Turning
toward the days that were gone, he sealed them with a holy kiss;
and then looking toward the time that had not yet come, he conjured
it with a voice of prophecy.
In politics he was an undeniable leader, and yet never held office.
High places were pressed for his acceptance times without number,
but he always resolutely put them away from him, insisting that office
had no charm for him. He could have gone to Congress, as
representative from the State at large, if he would only have
consented to serve. His name was repeatedly suggested for the
governorship of Georgia, but he invariably suppressed the idea
promptly, urging his friends to leave him at peace in his private
station.
In spite of his indifference to all political preferment, it is universally
believed in Georgia, that had he lived, he would have soon been
sent to the United States Senate. Although he had no love of office
for himself, he was the incomparable Warwick of his day. He was
almost an absolute dictator in Georgia politics. No man cared to
stand for election to any place, high or low, unless he felt Grady was
with him. He certainly was the most powerful factor in the election of
two Governors, and practically gave more than one United States
Senator his seat. His power extended all over the State.
Such a man could not be held within the narrow limits of local
reputation. It mattered not how far he traveled from home, he made
himself quickly known by the power of his impressive individuality, or
by some splendid exhibition of his genius.
By two speeches, one made at a banquet of the New England
Society in New York City, and the other at a State fair at Dallas,
Texas, he achieved for himself a reputation which spanned the
continent. The most magnificent effort of eloquence which he ever
made was the soul-stirring speech delivered in Boston on “The Race
Problem,” just ten days before he died. These three speeches were
enough to confirm and perpetuate his fame as a surpassing orator.
It is impossible to give any adequate idea of Henry Grady’s
largeness of heart, nobility of soul, and brilliancy of mind. Those
three elements combined in royal abundance to make his princely
nature.
When Georgia’s great triumvirate died, their spirits seemed to
linger on earth in the being of Henry W. Grady. While he lived he
perpetuated the political sagacity of Alexander H. Stephens, the
consummate genius of Robert Toombs, and the impassioned
eloquence of Benjamin H. Hill.
True greatness is immortal. Real patriotic purposes are never
swallowed up in death. Good works well begun live long after their
praiseworthy originators have ascended in glory. If there is any truth
in these reflections, they are precious and priceless to all who mourn
the untimely taking off of Henry Woodfin Grady.
His sudden death struck grief to all true-hearted American citizens.
In him was combined such breadth of usefulness and brilliancy of
genius, that he illumined the critical period of American history in
which he lived, and set the firmament of our national glory with many
a new and shining star of promise. This century, though old in its last
quarter, has given birth to but one Henry Woodfin Grady, and it will
close its eyes long before his second self is seen.
A hundred years hence, when sweet charity is stemming the tides
of suffering in the world, if truth is not dumb, she will say: This
blessed work is an echo from Henry Grady’s life on earth. A hundred
years hence, when friendship is building high her altars of self-
sacrifice in the name of love and loyalty, if truth is not dumb, she will
say: This beautiful service is going on as a perpetual memorial to
Henry Grady’s life on earth. A hundred years hence, when all the
South shall have been enriched by the development of her vast
natural resources, if truth is not dumb, she will say: This is the
legitimate fruit of Henry Grady’s labor of love while he lived on earth.
A hundred years hence, when patriotism shall have beaten down all
sectional and partisan prejudice, and the burning problems that
press upon our national heart to-day shall have been “solved in
patience and fairness,” if truth is not dumb, she will say: This is the
glorious verification of Henry Grady’s prophetic utterances while on
earth. And when in God’s own appointed time this nation shall lead
all other nations of the earth in the triumphal march of prosperous
peoples under perfect governments, if truth is not dumb, she will say:
This is the free, full and complete answer to Henry Grady’s
impassioned prayer while on earth.
SPEECHES.
THE NEW SOUTH.

O N the 21st of December, 1886, Mr. Grady, in response to an


urgent invitation, delivered the following Address at the
Banquet of the New England Club, New York:

“There was a South of slavery and secession—that South is dead.


There is a South of union and freedom—that South, thank God, is
living, breathing, growing every hour.” These words, delivered from
the immortal lips of Benjamin H. Hill, at Tammany Hall, in 1866, true
then and truer now, I shall make my text to-night.
Mr. President and Gentlemen: Let me express to you my
appreciation of the kindness by which I am permitted to address you.
I make this abrupt acknowledgment advisedly, for I feel that if, when I
raise my provincial voice in this ancient and august presence, I could
find courage for no more than the opening sentence, it would be well
if in that sentence I had met in a rough sense my obligation as a
guest, and had perished, so to speak, with courtesy on my lips and
grace in my heart. Permitted, through your kindness, to catch my
second wind, let me say that I appreciate the significance of being
the first Southerner to speak at this board, which bears the
substance, if it surpasses the semblance, of original New England
hospitality—and honors the sentiment that in turn honors you, but in
which my personality is lost, and the compliment to my people made
plain.
I bespeak the utmost stretch of your courtesy to-night. I am not
troubled about those from whom I come. You remember the man
whose wife sent him to a neighbor with a pitcher of milk, and who,
tripping on the top step, fell with such casual interruptions as the
landings afforded into the basement, and, while picking himself up,
had the pleasure of hearing his wife call out: “John, did you break the
pitcher?”
“No, I didn’t,” said John, “but I’ll be dinged if I don’t.”
So, while those who call me from behind may inspire me with
energy, if not with courage, I ask an indulgent hearing from you. I
beg that you will bring your full faith in American fairness and
frankness to judgment upon what I shall say. There was an old
preacher once who told some boys of the Bible lesson he was going
to read in the morning. The boys, finding the place, glued together
the connecting pages. The next morning he read on the bottom of
one page, “When Noah was one hundred and twenty years old he
took unto himself a wife, who was”—then turning the page—“140
cubits long—40 cubits wide, built of gopher wood—and covered with
pitch inside and out.” He was naturally puzzled at this. He read it
again, verified it, and then said: “My friends, this is the first time I
ever met this in the Bible, but I accept this as an evidence of the
assertion that we are fearfully and wonderfully made.” If I could get
you to hold such faith to-night I could proceed cheerfully to the task I
otherwise approach with a sense of consecration.
Pardon me one word, Mr. President, spoken for the sole purpose
of getting into the volumes that go out annually freighted with the rich
eloquence of your speakers—the fact that the Cavalier as well as the
Puritan was on the continent in its early days, and that he was “up
and able to be about.” I have read your books carefully and I find no
mention of that fact, which seems to me an important one for
preserving a sort of historical equilibrium if for nothing else.
Let me remind you that the Virginia Cavalier first challenged
France on the continent—that Cavalier, John Smith, gave New
England its very name, and was so pleased with the job that he has
been handing his own name around ever since—and that while
Myles Standish was cutting off men’s ears for courting a girl without
her parents’ consent, and forbade men to kiss their wives on
Sunday, the Cavalier was courting everything in sight, and that the
Almighty had vouchsafed great increase to the Cavalier colonies, the
huts in the wilderness being as full as the nests in the woods.
But having incorporated the Cavalier as a fact in your charming
little books, I shall let him work out his own salvation, as he has
always done, with engaging gallantry, and we will hold no
controversy as to his merits. Why should we? Neither Puritan nor
Cavalier long survived as such. The virtues and good traditions of
both happily still live for the inspiration of their sons and the saving of
the old fashion. But both Puritan and Cavalier were lost in the storm
of the first Revolution, and the American citizen, supplanting both
and stronger than either, took possession of the republic bought by
their common blood and fashioned to wisdom, and charged himself
with teaching men government and establishing the voice of the
people as the voice of God.
My friends, Dr. Talmage has told you that the typical American has
yet to come. Let me tell you that he has already come. Great types,
like valuable plants, are slow to flower and fruit. But from the union of
these colonists, Puritans and Cavaliers, from the straightening of
their purposes and the crossing of their blood, slow perfecting
through a century, came he who stands as the first typical American,
the first who comprehended within himself all the strength and
gentleness, all the majesty and grace of this republic—Abraham
Lincoln. He was the sum of Puritan and Cavalier, for in his ardent
nature were fused the virtues of both, and in the depths of his great
soul the faults of both were lost. He was greater than Puritan, greater
than Cavalier, in that he was American, and that in his honest form
were first gathered the vast and thrilling forces of his ideal
government—charging it with such tremendous meaning and
elevating it above human suffering that martyrdom, though
infamously aimed, came as a fitting crown to a life consecrated from
the cradle to human liberty. Let us, each cherishing the traditions and
honoring his fathers, build with reverent hands to the type of this
simple but sublime life, in which all types are honored, and in our
common glory as Americans there will be plenty and to spare for
your forefathers and for mine.
Dr. Talmage has drawn for you, with a master’s hand, the picture
of your returning armies. He has told you how, in the pomp and
circumstance of war, they came back to you, marching with proud
and victorious tread, reading their glory in a nation’s eyes! Will you
bear with me while I tell you of another army that sought its home at
the close of the late war—an army that marched home in defeat and
not in victory—in pathos and not in splendor, but in glory that
equaled yours, and to hearts as loving as ever welcomed heroes
home! Let me picture to you the footsore Confederate soldier, as
buttoning up in his faded gray jacket the parole which was to bear
testimony to his children of his fidelity and faith, he turned his face
southward from Appomattox in April, 1865. Think of him as ragged,
half-starved, heavy-hearted, enfeebled by want and wounds, having
fought to exhaustion, he surrenders his gun, wrings the hands of his
comrades in silence, and lifting his tear-stained and pallid face for
the last time to the graves that dot old Virginia hills, pulls his gray
cap over his brow and begins the slow and painful journey. What
does he find—let me ask you who went to your homes eager to find,
in the welcome you had justly earned, full payment for four years’
sacrifice—what does he find when, having followed the battle-
stained cross against overwhelming odds, dreading death not half so
much as surrender, he reaches the home he left so prosperous and
beautiful? He finds his house in ruins, his farm devastated, his
slaves free, his stock killed, his barns empty, his trade destroyed, his
money worthless, his social system, feudal in its magnificence,
swept away; his people without law or legal status; his comrades
slain, and the burdens of others heavy on his shoulders. Crushed by
defeat, his very traditions are gone. Without money, credit,
employment, material, or training; and beside all this, confronted with
the gravest problem that ever met human intelligence—the
establishing of a status for the vast body of his liberated slaves.
What does he do—this hero in gray with a heart of gold? Does he
sit down in sullenness and despair? Not for a day. Surely God, who
had stripped him of his prosperity, inspired him in his adversity. As
ruin was never before so overwhelming, never was restoration
swifter. The soldier stepped from the trenches into the furrow; horses
that had charged Federal guns marched before the plow, and fields
that ran red with human blood in April were green with the harvest in
June; women reared in luxury cut up their dresses and made
breeches for their husbands, and, with a patience and heroism that
fit women always as a garment, gave their hands to work. There was
little bitterness in all this. Cheerfulness and frankness prevailed. “Bill
Arp” struck the key-note when he said: “Well, I killed as many of
them as they did of me, and now I’m going to work.” Of the soldier
returning home after defeat and roasting some corn on the roadside,
who made the remark to his comrades: “You may leave the South if
you want to, but I am going to Sandersville, kiss my wife and raise a
crop, and if the Yankees fool with me any more, I’ll whip ’em again.” I
want to say to General Sherman, who is considered an able man in
our parts, though some people think he is a kind of careless man
about fire, that from the ashes he left us in 1864 we have raised a
brave and beautiful city; that somehow or other we have caught the
sunshine in the bricks and mortar of our homes, and have builded
therein not one ignoble prejudice or memory.
But what is the sum of our work? We have found out that in the
summing up the free negro counts more than he did as a slave. We
have planted the schoolhouse on the hilltop and made it free to white
and black. We have sowed towns and cities in the place of theories,
and put business above politics. We have challenged your spinners
in Massachusetts and your iron-makers in Pennsylvania. We have
learned that the $400,000,000 annually received from our cotton
crop will make us rich when the supplies that make it are home-
raised. We have reduced the commercial rate of interest from 24 to 6
per cent., and are floating 4 per cent. bonds. We have learned that
one northern immigrant is worth fifty foreigners; and have smoothed
the path to southward, wiped out the place where Mason and
Dixon’s line used to be, and hung out latchstring to you and yours.
We have reached the point that marks perfect harmony in every
household, when the husband confesses that the pies which his wife
cooks are as good as those his mother used to bake; and we admit
that the sun shines as brightly and the moon as softly as it did before
the war. We have established thrift in city and country. We have
fallen in love with work. We have restored comfort to homes from
which culture and elegance never departed. We have let economy
take root and spread among us as rank as the crabgrass which
sprung from Sherman’s cavalry camps, until we are ready to lay
odds on the Georgia Yankee as he manufactures relics of the battle-
field in a one-story shanty and squeezes pure olive oil out of his
cotton seed, against any down-easter that ever swapped wooden
nutmegs for flannel sausage in the valleys of Vermont. Above all, we
know that we have achieved in these “piping times of peace” a fuller
independence for the South than that which our fathers sought to win
in the forum by their eloquence or compel in the field by their swords.
It is a rare privilege, sir, to have had part, however humble, in this
work. Never was nobler duty confided to human hands than the
uplifting and upbuilding of the prostrate and bleeding South—
misguided, perhaps, but beautiful in her suffering, and honest, brave
and generous always. In the record of her social, industrial and
political illustration we await with confidence the verdict of the world.
But what of the negro? Have we solved the problem he presents
or progressed in honor and equity toward solution? Let the record
speak to the point. No section shows a more prosperous laboring
population than the negroes of the South, none in fuller sympathy
with the employing and land-owning class. He shares our school
fund, has the fullest protection of our laws and the friendship of our
people. Self-interest, as well as honor, demand that he should have
this. Our future, our very existence depend upon our working out this
problem in full and exact justice. We understand that when Lincoln
signed the emancipation proclamation, your victory was assured, for
he then committed you to the cause of human liberty, against which
the arms of man cannot prevail—while those of our statesmen who
trusted to make slavery the corner-stone of the Confederacy doomed
us to defeat as far as they could, committing us to a cause that
reason could not defend or the sword maintain in sight of advancing
civilization.
Had Mr. Toombs said, which he did not say, “that he would call the
roll of his slaves at the foot of Bunker Hill,” he would have been
foolish, for he might have known that whenever slavery became
entangled in war it must perish, and that the chattel in human flesh
ended forever in New England when your fathers—not to be blamed
for parting with what didn’t pay—sold their slaves to our fathers—not
to be praised for knowing a paying thing when they saw it. The
relations of the southern people with the negro are close and cordial.
We remember with what fidelity for four years he guarded our
defenseless women and children, whose husbands and fathers were
fighting against his freedom. To his eternal credit be it said that
whenever he struck a blow for his own liberty he fought in open
battle, and when at last he raised his black and humble hands that
the shackles might be struck off, those hands were innocent of
wrong against his helpless charges, and worthy to be taken in loving
grasp by every man who honors loyalty and devotion. Ruffians have
maltreated him, rascals have misled him, philanthropists established
a bank for him, but the South, with the North, protests against
injustice to this simple and sincere people. To liberty and
enfranchisement is as far as law can carry the negro. The rest must
be left to conscience and common sense. It must be left to those
among whom his lot is cast, with whom he is indissolubly connected,
and whose prosperity depends upon their possessing his intelligent
sympathy and confidence. Faith has been kept with him, in spite of
calumnious assertions to the contrary by those who assume to
speak for us or by frank opponents. Faith will be kept with him in the
future, if the South holds her reason and integrity.
But have we kept faith with you? In the fullest sense, yes. When
Lee surrendered—I don’t say when Johnson surrendered, because I
understand he still alludes to the time when he met General
Sherman last as the time when he determined to abandon any
further prosecution of the struggle—when Lee surrendered, I say,
and Johnson quit, the South became, and has since been, loyal to
this Union. We fought hard enough to know that we were whipped,
and in perfect frankness accept as final the arbitrament of the sword
to which we had appealed. The South found her jewel in the toad’s
head of defeat. The shackles that had held her in narrow limitations
fell forever when the shackles of the negro slave were broken. Under
the old régime the negroes were slaves to the South; the South was
a slave to the system. The old plantation, with its simple police
regulations and feudal habit, was the only type possible under
slavery. Thus was gathered in the hands of a splendid and chivalric
oligarchy the substance that should have been diffused among the
people, as the rich blood, under certain artificial conditions, is
gathered at the heart, filling that with affluent rapture but leaving the
body chill and colorless.
The old South rested everything on slavery and agriculture,
unconscious that these could neither give nor maintain healthy
growth. The new South presents a perfect democracy, the oligarchs
leading in the popular movement—a social system compact and
closely knitted, less splendid on the surface, but stronger at the core
—a hundred farms for every plantation, fifty homes for every palace
—and a diversified industry that meets the complex need of this
complex age.
The new South is enamored of her new work. Her soul is stirred
with the breath of a new life. The light of a grander day is falling fair
on her face. She is thrilling with the consciousness of growing power
and prosperity. As she stands upright, full-statured and equal among
the people of the earth, breathing the keen air and looking out upon
the expanded horizon, she understands that her emancipation came
because through the inscrutable wisdom of God her honest purpose
was crossed, and her brave armies were beaten.
This is said in no spirit of time-serving or apology. The South has
nothing for which to apologize. She believes that the late struggle
between the States was war and not rebellion; revolution and not
conspiracy, and that her convictions were as honest as yours. I
should be unjust to the dauntless spirit of the South and to my own
convictions if I did not make this plain in this presence. The South
has nothing to take back. In my native town of Athens is a monument
that crowns its central hill—a plain, white shaft. Deep cut into its
shining side is a name dear to me above the names of men—that of
a brave and simple man who died in brave and simple faith. Not for
all the glories of New England, from Plymouth Rock all the way,
would I exchange the heritage he left me in his soldier’s death. To
the foot of that I shall send my children’s children to reverence him
who ennobled their name with his heroic blood. But, sir, speaking
from the shadow of that memory which I honor as I do nothing else
on earth, I say that the cause in which he suffered and for which he
gave his life was adjudged by higher and fuller wisdom than his or
mine, and I am glad that the omniscient God held the balance of
battle in His Almighty hand and that human slavery was swept
forever from American soil, the American Union was saved from the
wreck of war.
This message, Mr. President, comes to you from consecrated
ground. Every foot of soil about the city in which I live is as sacred as
a battle-ground of the republic. Every hill that invests it is hallowed to
you by the blood of your brothers who died for your victory, and
doubly hallowed to us by the blow of those who died hopeless, but
undaunted, in defeat—sacred soil to all of us—rich with memories
that make us purer and stronger and better—silent but staunch
witnesses in its red desolation of the matchless valor of American
hearts and the deathless glory of American arms—speaking an
eloquent witness in its white peace and prosperity to the indissoluble
union of American States and the imperishable brotherhood of the
American people.
Now, what answer has New England to this message? Will she
permit the prejudice of war to remain in the hearts of the conquerors,
when it has died in the hearts of the conquered? Will she transmit
this prejudice to the next generation, that in their hearts which never
felt the generous ardor of conflict it may perpetuate itself? Will she
withhold, save in strained courtesy, the hand which straight from his
soldier’s heart Grant offered to Lee at Appomattox? Will she make
the vision of a restored and happy people, which gathered above the
couch of your dying captain, filling his heart with grace; touching his
lips with praise, and glorifying his path to the grave—will she make
this vision on which the last sigh of his expiring soul breathed a
benediction, a cheat and delusion? If she does, the South, never
abject in asking for comradeship, must accept with dignity its refusal;
but if she does not refuse to accept in frankness and sincerity this
message of good will and friendship, then will the prophecy of
Webster, delivered in this very society forty years ago amid
tremendous applause, become true, be verified in its fullest sense,
when he said: “Standing hand to hand and clasping hands, we
should remain united as we have been for sixty years, citizens of the
same country, members of the same government, united, all united
now and united forever.” There have been difficulties, contentions,
and controversies, but I tell you that in my judgment,

“Those opened eyes,


Which like the meteors of a troubled heaven,
All of one nature, of one substance bred,
Did lately meet in th’ intestine shock,
Shall now, in mutual well beseeming ranks,
March all one way.”
THE SOUTH AND HER PROBLEMS.

A T the Dallas, Texas, State Fair, on the 26th of October,


1887, Mr. Grady was the Orator of the Day. He said:

“Who saves his country, saves all things, and all things saved will bless
him. Who lets his country die, lets all things die, and all things dying curse
him.”

These words are graven on the statue of Benjamin H. Hill in the


city of Atlanta, and in their spirit I shall speak to you to-day.
Mr. President and Fellow-Citizens: I salute the first city of the
grandest State of the greatest government on this earth. In paying
earnest compliment to this thriving city, and this generous multitude,
I need not cumber speech with argument or statistics. It is enough to
say that my friends and myself make obeisance this morning to the
chief metropolis of the State of Texas. If it but holds this pre-
eminence—and who can doubt in this auspicious presence that it will
—the uprising tides of Texas’s prosperity will carry it to glories
unspeakable. For I say in soberness, the future of this marvelous
and amazing empire, that gives broader and deeper significance to
statehood by accepting its modest naming, the mind of man can
neither measure nor comprehend.
I shall be pardoned for resisting the inspiration of this presence
and adhering to-day to blunt and rigorous speech—for there are
times when fine words are paltry, and this seems to me to be such a

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