and converts us to stone, if we do not rather transform that to life and beauty.  Hostile, predatory, it rushes upon us; and we, cutting at it in brave self-defence, hew it above our hope into shapes of celestial and immortal comeliness.  So that angels are born, as it were, from the noble fears of man,—­from an heroic fear in man’s heart that he shall fall away from the privilege of humanity, and falsify the divine vaticination of his soul.

Hence follows the fine result, that in life to hold your own is to make advance.  Destiny comes to us, like the children in their play, saying, “Hold fast all I give you”; and while we nobly detain it, the penny changes between our palms to the wealth of cities and kingdoms.  The barge of blessing, freighted for us by unspeakable hands, comes floating down from the head-waters of that stream whereon we also are afloat; and to meet it we have only to wait for it, not ourselves ebbing away, but loyally stemming the tide.  It may be, as Mr. Carlyle alleges, that the Constitution of the United States is no supreme effort of genius; but events now passing are teaching us that every day of fidelity to the spirit of it lends it new preciousness; and that an adherence to it, not petty and literal, but at once large and indomitable, might almost make it a charter of new sanctities both of law and liberty for the human race.

THE STATESMANSHIP OF RICHELIEU.

Thus far, the struggles of the world have developed its statesmanship after three leading types.

First of these is that based on faith in some great militant principle.  Strong among statesmen of this type, in this time, stand Cavour, with his faith in constitutional liberty,—­Cobden, with his faith in freedom of trade,—­the third Napoleon, with his faith that the world moves, and that a successful policy must keep the world’s pace.

The second style of statesmanship is seen in the reorganization of old States to fit new times.  In this the chiefs are such men as Cranmer and Turgot.

But there is a third class of statesmen sometimes doing more brilliant work than either of the others.  These are they who serve a State in times of dire chaos,—­in times when a nation is by no means ripe for revolution, but only stung by desperate revolt:  these are they who are quick enough and firm enough to bind all the good forces of the State into one cosmic force, therewith to compress or crush all chaotic forces:  these are they who throttle treason and stab rebellion,—­who fear not, when defeat must send down misery through ages, to insure victory by using weapons of the hottest and sharpest.  Theirs, then, is a statesmanship which it may be well for the leading men of this land and time to be looking at and thinking of, and its representative man shall be Richelieu.