Excerpt from An Oration Delivered on the Centennial Anniversary of the Initiation of General George Washington, Among the Ancient and Honorable Fraternity of Freemasons, Before the Grand Lodge of Rhode Island, in Newport, November 4, 1852

If there is wisdom in holding up before the people the Virtues Of great and noble men, who have laid their country, and their fellow men under Obligations, by the deeds that they have done, and the examples they have left for emula tion; much more wisdom is there in adding to the history which chronicles their greatness and patriotism, and point ing out the steps, by which they mounted to such eminence. It is not our intention to detain you, while we seek to illus trate the character and virtues, or tell you of the deeds of our immortal Washington. 7c might as well seek to il lustrate the glory of the noon-day sun. Every school boy, among the first lessons of his progress in reading learns the history Of the acheivements of that illustrious man, and the high and glorious station, which he attained and filled. But, perhaps, it has Often perplexed the thoughts Of the youthful aspirant, who has read of this wonderful man, to conjecture by what means, a young man, without a college education, and whose early life was spent among persons of limited ac quirements, and in times when knowledge was difficult of access; how such a man, under such circumstances, could not only rise to such eminence, but also be fitted to fulfil the various duties which devolved upon him, when he had at tained it. And it may be, that the thought has Often lin gered in the minds Of American youth on such public occa sions as these, when ennobled patriotism has been held up for their emulation, Might not I, also, become a Washing ton, if I only knew how he started in life - if I could only find out the path by which he set out 3 History is in the moral world, the counterpart Of such a place and collection as the patent office in Washington City is in the mechani cal world. For, as in the Patent Office we are presented with a vast collection Of wonderful and ingenious results of the varied combinations of the mechanical powers; but no clue is given to the attainment of that artistic skill, which brought them into being, and thousands gaze at them, ad mire the genius of man, and go away without a thought Of imitating or eclipsing them; so also in history the student is presented with the results Of the long and laborious efforts of great men, but the first steps of their progress, steps, which were made when they were young men, and Obscuremen, the steps which ascend from the platform Of political and social Obscun'ty, to that higher platform, where history first introduces them to the world; these are unnoticed; and yet, to the student, who would ascend that eminence, they are necessary. Let it be our Object to trace some of the early influences, which combined in moulding the great model which is before us. Let us go back to the starting point of his career, and look at him when he was a boy, and watch him as he began his ascent. And if, in this investi gation, we shall bring to light the fact, that he was subject to the same feelings, and a sharer Of the same obscuiity, and gifted with the same natural endowments, which other young men around us possess; and that they are, themselves, pro vided with the same means and instrumentalities, which he used, then we may, perhaps, provoke their ambition, and stimulate their efforts fer the attainment Of true greatness.

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