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Ebook has 559 lines and 82206 words, and 12 pages

"My father," said he, "who started in life as a fish dealer in this very town, never dreamed that he would one day be the founder of the greatest menagerie in the world. But it chanced that, in the year 1848, some fishermen, who usually traded with him, brought him some seals which they had caught in their sturgeon nets. They were fine animals, and he could not help being delighted with them, and straightway resolved to take them to Berlin. There he opened a small exhibition in Kroll's Gardens, charging an admission fee. But there came a revolution; business was at a standstill, and he was glad enough to get rid of the seals for a small sum of money, and to return to his fish-dealer's shop in Hamburg. But he was bitten with the wild-beast fever; live animals had more attractions for him than dead fish, and so he told the fishermen that he would always be ready to buy any queer animals they might choose to bring him. A short time after that a sailor from a whaling vessel brought him a polar bear; this he exhibited here in Hamburg. It was a great novelty, and the people flocked in crowds to see it. From that time forward, sailors from all parts of the world would bring him animals for sale--monkeys, parrots, deer, snakes, and so on; once a young lion. Gradually he got together quite a small menagerie, but I am bound to say that at first there was not much profit in the business. When I left school in 1859, at the age of fifteen, father asked me which of his two callings I would rather choose as mine. Of course, being a boy, I chose the wild beasts. He gave me a hundred and fifty pounds to spend as best I could in buying animals. Fortune favored me from the start. I made some capital bargains, increased the business rapidly, and in 1866 father handed the whole business over to me."

HAGENBECK AND BARNUM.

At this moment my eye fell upon a large photograph of the celebrated Mr. P. T. Barnum, which hung upon the wall. Mr. Hagenbeck, noting the direction of my gaze, said: "I suppose you know who that is?"

I replied, "Why, it's P. T. Barnum."

"Exactly," said he. "I was walking about the menagerie one day in 1872, when Mr. Barnum was announced. He said: 'I've just come to have a look round. I've got an hour or two to spare, and I thought I might as well spend it here as anywhere else.' Well, sir," continued Mr. Hagenbeck, smiling at the recollection of his first momentous interview with the great showman, "he stayed fourteen days, and he filled two big note-books before he left me. He was delighted with all he saw, and still more so with all I told him. I spoke about ostrich riding, suggested that it would be a splendid thing if he got up a regular wild-beast hunt in his hippodrome. He was immensely taken with the idea, and wanted me to join him as partner, but this I was not able to do. For many years I supplied him with his animals."

"Why," I said, "Mr. Hagenbeck, that opened up quite a new field."

"Exactly," he replied. "The training of wild animals is now one of the most important parts of my business. I also undertake the establishment of menageries all over the world. I supply people with their buildings, with their animals, with their keepers, with their trainers. Take, for instance, the Zo?logical Gardens at Cincinnati. I filled them from top to bottom. I recently made one in Rio Janeiro."

THE PRICES OF WILD ANIMALS.

"And now you might just have a look round at some of the animals. Here," said he, as we stood before a cage of very charming monkeys, "are some very clever little animals. They can ride horses in a circus, they jump through hoops; in fact, they are trained exactly like human beings, and can do almost everything but talk. I have just sent people to Abyssinia to fetch me some big silver-gray lion-monkeys, sometimes called hamadryads. I said just now," continued Mr. Hagenbeck, with a laugh, "that monkeys can't talk; and yet I must believe in Professor Garner, for you give me any monkey, you like to name, and I'll guarantee I'll make it talk. But you can only do it by imitating them closely. Take, for instance, that chimpanzee over there," continued the clever trainer, pointing to a little animal fast asleep on a crossbar. "Now listen," he went on, making a peculiar noise with his lips. At once the animal woke up, jabbered a reply in chimpanzee, flew to the bars of the cage, put his tiny paw out ready for the nuts which he knew were forthcoming. "There," said Mr. Hagenbeck, "don't tell me monkeys can't talk."

A little farther on we came across a tiny baby elephant, two feet nine inches in height. It was as black as coal, and had just arrived from Singapore. It was very playful, but when I began pushing it about, as one might roll a big beer barrel, it indulged in a fretful growling, which much amused us. Seven beautiful elephants stood in one big stable together, and as I admired their huge proportions and wondered at their entire gentleness, I said to Mr. Hagenbeck, "Is it true, as the great English circus proprietor George Sanger told me last summer, that the Asiatic elephant is far more intelligent than its African brother?"

"Certainly not," replied Mr. Hagenbeck. "The African elephants are just as clever, just as gentle, just as intelligent as the Asiatic elephants. There's no difference between them; and I ought to know, for I have had to do with them for thirty years, and in only one year I have imported as many as seventy-six of them."

HOW WILD BEASTS ARE CAPTURED.

Karl Hagenbeck and I stood in his beautiful gardens, beside the enclosure in which the lions and tigers spend the long, hot summer days so frequent in Hamburg. Most artistically this enclosure has been made to resemble an African desert. In the foreground there are bushes and a few small palm trees, whilst in the far-off distance there rise, towering to a blue tropical sky, grim mountains and sun-stricken rocks. There is thus conveyed to the mind an impression of the great Nubian deserts--an impression whose force and reality is strengthened by the appearance of the wild beasts themselves, basking in the heat of the sun, or restlessly prowling about the enclosure.

"I should very much like to hear, Mr. Hagenbeck," said I, "everything you can tell me of the way in which your wild beasts are captured."

At this moment we were passing a large cage full of the finest lions I had ever seen. As soon as they caught sight of Mr. Hagenbeck, they began to purr loudly, and when he spoke, came up to the bars of the cage to be stroked and petted.

"There," said my host, "these are some very beautiful lions from Nubia. You can see that they are in perfect condition, and this is chiefly owing to the fact that they are being trained for their performances. There is nothing that keeps them in good health so much as constant exercise; that, I think," added Mr. Hagenbeck, with a laugh, "is a very good argument in favor of training wild beasts, and goes a long way to prove that there really is very little cruelty in it. Now, I'll tell you how lions are caught in the Nubian desert. The Kauri negroes, when my messenger arrives, form parties to go in search of young lions. When they discover the spoor of a lioness, they creep about the bush until they find the animal's lair. It is usually one man alone who does this, and he has only a bundle of assegais under his left arm. Before the lioness can spring upon him, she has these spears in her body. Look at this skin," continued Mr. Hagenbeck, pointing to a magnificent tawny skin hanging up in the hall. "There," said he, "that skin has no less than twenty-four holes in it. The poor mother made a brave fight for her young ones. Well," continued Mr. Hagenbeck, "when the old lioness is killed he takes the young ones to the zereba. The little lions are suckled by goats three times a day, and get quite fond of their foster-mothers.

"Leopards and hyenas are caught in Nubia in traps which are made out of wood or cut out of stone in the mountains. These traps are baited with meat, and catch the big cats precisely as a mouse-trap catches a mouse. Once trapped, the hunters can tie the creature's legs, and bear it in triumph to the zereba."

"And how are the Asiatic animals caught?" I asked Mr. Hagenbeck.

"Well," he replied, "very much the same method is pursued there that we adopt in Africa. For instance, in Borneo and Java, animals are caught in trapfalls and pitfalls, and some in huge mouse-traps. In these we often catch full-grown tigers, black panthers, and leopards. In the pitfalls we find two horned rhinoceroses and saddlebacked tapirs. The animals, running through the forest, run over these pitfalls and drop in. The greater part of these unfortunately die directly after they are caught; some kill themselves in their excitement, others won't feed, and so pine away. A rhinoceros or a tapir dies because it is often hurt internally, although we frequently do not discover that they have been hurt until they have been with us for one or two months. I can remember that I once imported seven big rhinoceroses, and I sold only one of them, as the other six died. Bengal tigers are caught young, brought up by the natives in much the same way as the young lions in Africa, on milk and fowls. Most of these come by way of Calcutta."

Standing in front of a great glass cage full of snakes, I said to Mr. Hagenbeck: "Now, how do you manage to get hold of these reptiles? They must be very dangerous."

"Ah!" he replied, with a thoughtful look, "I'll tell you later on one or two stories of dreadful adventures that I myself have had with snakes. In the meantime this is the way they are caught in India. In the dry season the jungle is set on fire. As the snakes run out in all directions, they are caught by the natives with long sticks having a hoop at the end, to which is attached a big bag, a sort of exaggerated butterfly net. After that the reptiles are packed in sacks made of matting, which are fastened to long bamboos, and carried to Calcutta on the shoulders of the natives. When Calcutta is reached, they are packed in big boxes, from twelve to sixteen in a box, that is when they are only eight or ten feet long; big snakes, from fourteen to sixteen feet in length, are only packed from two to three in a box. They are then sent direct to Europe without food or water on the journey, for they require neither. The principal thing is to keep them warm. Cold gives them mouth disease, which is certain death. I remember once," continued Mr. Hagenbeck, "that I had one hundred and sixty-two snakes reach London in perfect condition; a violent snow-storm then came on, and when the boxes were opened in Hamburg every snake was dead.

"The majority of my Asiatic elephants come from Ceylon, although a few of them are exported from Burma. I remember one year there was a great demand in the American market for Asiatic elephants; Barnum and Forepaugh each wanted twelve. I couldn't get enough from Burma, so sent direct to Ceylon, and got no less than sixty-seven elephants, all of which I disposed of in the next twelve months. Most of these were caught by noosing. This is done by Afghans who take out a license from the Ceylon Government. They go out with dogs, find a herd, follow it up, and drive the elephants into different flights; they then give their attention to the younger elephants. Each man has a long raw-hide rope with a noose in the end of it. He chases an elephant, throws the noose round its hind legs, and follows it until a tree is reached, round which the line is fastened. When the elephant drops down in despair, the rope is fastened round its other legs, and it is left for several days until calmed down; it is then taken and easily tamed. I can well remember," said Mr. Hagenbeck, "how interested Prince Bismarck was when I told all about the capture of my elephants.

"I was sitting in my room one day, when a servant came in and told me that he believed that Prince Bismarck was in the menagerie. I went out, and as soon as I saw his tall, erect figure and white moustache, I knew it was the great man himself. I never came across so intelligent a man, or one who asked so many questions. I should think he must be something like your Gladstone."

"It must be a very difficult matter," said I, "to know how to feed all these animals properly."

"I should think it was," he replied. "Animals are most dainty and delicate as regards their food. Now, for instance, those lions and tigers which were exhibiting at the Crystal Palace last year were fed on such bad food that they were quite ill when they came back here. Besides, a number of young animals were seized with what appeared to be cholera. I lost three thousand pounds' worth of them in three weeks. It is a very anxious business, indeed, I can tell you."

NOTE.--In the July number will be published an article on "The Training of Wild Animals," which includes a description of a special performance given by Mr. Hagenbeck, at which Mr. Blathwayt, the writer of the articles, was the only spectator.

UNDER SENTENCE OF THE LAW.

THE STORY OF A DOG.

BY MRS. ROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON.

Here he passed several uneventful, greedy years, until the day when the Belvedere was startled by the appearance of the officers of the law with an official document--a summons for Rick. How it was served I cannot imagine, but Rick was cited to appear, on a given date, at the Rathhaus, under the appellation of Tiger Hund. Tiger Hund was a fine, dashing name, but hardly applicable to Rick, who had more of the characteristics of the sheep than of the tiger. The two leading hotels, the Belvedere and the Bual, were shaken to their base by the threatened danger to Rick. Foreign counsel was appointed to plead his cause; I cannot now remember whether the chosen advocate was Herr Coester of the Belvedere, or Mr. J. Addington Symonds of the Bual. One, I know, appeared for Rick at the trial; while the other, after conviction, got up a petition for his pardon.

The eventful day arrived; the learned gentleman, honest Rick at his heels, took his way to the ancient Rathhaus, the gloomy aspect of whose exterior, with its narrow, barred, windowy and high-pitched roof under the eaves of which were many a row of wolves' heads now dried into mummies, should have thrilled with apprehension the heart of the least imaginative dog. But Rick, poor innocent, trotted through the portals as he would have trotted into the confectioner's, and curled himself up for a nap at the feet of his counsel.

His affection for the accused, and the sympathy of the large audience assembled to hear his pleading, inspired the learned gentleman with unwonted eloquence. The only creature unconcerned was Rick, who, having finished his nap, thought it a fitting occasion to make a little excursion into the next canton.

After a brilliant peroration in which he dilated on the fidelity of the accused, who, he asserted, never left the Hotel Belvedere except in company with some of the guests, Rick's advocate wound up with these words: "Behold at my feet the Tiger Hund!" But, alas! Rick was not at his feet, nor could he be found in any of his usual haunts, though eager searchers beat the precincts for him. And so, through Rick's own fault, his case was lost and his friends put to open shame. Sentence of death was passed in the absence of the culprit, and things for a time looked black for Rick. Strenuous efforts, however, were made to secure a pardon; and finally, after the presentation of a petition pleading for mercy, numerously signed by the foreign and native residents, the magistrate was induced to commute the sentence to muzzlement for life. I cannot myself believe that Rick had the courage to attack a sheep, even in company. I know that his first meeting with a donkey threw him into such fits of terror that his reason was despaired of for days.

THE EDGE OF THE FUTURE.

UNSOLVED PROBLEMS THAT EDISON IS STUDYING.

BY E. J. EDWARDS.

Thomas A. Edison, when he was congratulated upon his forty-sixth birthday, declared that he did not measure his life by years, but by achievements or by campaigns; and he then confessed that he had planned ahead many campaigns, and that he looks forward to no period of rest, believing that for him, at least, the happiest life is a life of work. In speaking of his campaigns Mr. Edison said: "I do not regard myself as a pure scientist, as so many persons have insisted that I am. I do not search for the laws of nature, and have made no great discoveries of such laws. I do not study science as Newton and Kepler and Faraday and Henry studied it, simply for the purpose of learning truth. I am only a professional inventor. My studies and experiments have been conducted entirely with the object of inventing that which will have commercial utility. I suppose I might be called a scientific inventor, as distinguished from a mechanical inventor, although really there is no distinction."

When Mr. Edison was asked about his campaigns and those achievements by which he measured his life, he said that in the past there had been first the stock-ticker and the telephone, upon the latter of which he worked very hard. But he regarded the greatest of his achievements, in the early part of his career, as the invention of the phonograph. "That," said he, "was an invention pure and simple. No suggestion of it, so far as I know, had ever been made; and it was a discovery made by accident, while experimenting upon another invention, that led to the development of the phonograph.

"My second campaign was that which resulted in the invention of the incandescent lamp. Of course, an incandescent lamp had been suggested before. There had been abortive attempts to make them, even before I knew anything about telegraphing. The work which I did was to make an incandescent lamp which was commercially valuable, and the courts have recently sustained my claim to priority of invention of this lamp. I worked about three years upon that. Some of the experiments were very delicate and very difficult; some of them needed help which was very costly. That so far has been, I suppose, my chief achievement. It certainly was the first one which made me independent, and left me free to begin other campaigns without the necessity of calling for outside capital, or of finding my invention subjected to the mysteries of Wall Street manipulation."

The hint contained in Mr. Edison's reference to Wall Street, and the mysteries of financiering which prevail there, led naturally enough to a question as to Mr. Edison's future purpose with regard to capitalists, and he said:

N?ytt?m?taiteen rinnalla Cygnaeus innokkaasti harrasti kuvaamataiteita. Nyt me hieman hymyilemme Suomen 50- ja 60-luvun taiteelle ja ripustamme senaikuiset taulut h?m?r??n nurkkaan taikka eteiseen valmistaaksemme tilaa 20:nnen vuosisadan mestarien teoksille. Mutta muistakaamme, ett? silloin jos koskaan taide oli hell?n hoidon tarpeessa, silloin jos koskaan taiteilijat tarvitsivat kehotusta ja rohkaisua. Sill? jos taide oli heikko ja kehittym?t?n, niin oli yleis?n mielenkiinto ja halu kannattaa taidetta viel? kehittym?tt?m?mpi. Juuri sin? aikana oli Cygnaeuksen suoma suosio ??rett?m?n t?rke? taiteelle, jopa sen kehitykselle v?ltt?m?t?n ehto. Aina optimistisena, aina ihanteellisena Cygnaeus kykeni antamaan arvoa harrastukselle ja tahdolle silloinkin, kun tulos oli verraten v?h?arvoinen, ja niin t?m?n suuren taiteenyst?v?n hoidossa taide v?hitellen otti juurtuakseen karuun maaper??mme, ja ilman h?nt? meid?n kuvaamataiteemme tuskin olisivat saavuttaneet niit? enn?tyksi?, joista me nyt iloitsemme.

Merkillisin Cygnaeuksen yrityksi? taiteen alalla oli h?nen alottamansa ja Suomalaisen Kirjallisuuden Seuran nimess? ja avulla kunnialliseen loppuun ajettu puuha pystytt?? Porthanin kuvapatsas Turkuun -- ensim?inen laatuaan maassamme. Kun h?ness? ajatus syntyi, ei Suomessa ollut kuvanveistotaidetta nimeksik??n, mutta silti Cygnaeus ei ep?illyt yrityksen mahdollisuutta. H?n tapasi Tukholmassa nuoren, innokkaan kuvanveist?j?n, Kaarle Eneas Sj?strandin, sai t?m?n muuttamaan Suomeen, ja Cygnaeuksen innostuttamana Sj?strand ei ainoastaan luonut Porthanin muistomerkki?, vaan muovaili toisen toisensa per?st? uuden is?nmaansa suurmiesten muotokuvia ja antoi meille sarjan Kalevalanaiheisia veistokuvia sek? oli vihdoin Valter Runebergin ja Johannes Takasen ensim?inen opettaja tullen siten kuvanveistotaiteen perustajaksi maassamme. Ilman Cygnaeuksen luottamusta ihanteelliseen pyrkimykseens? olisi t?m?, jollei kokonaan, niin kumminkin ep?m??r?iseksi ajaksi j??nyt tekem?tt?.

Cygnaeuksen kirjailijatoimesta aika ei salli laajemmin puhua, mutta viittaan kuitenkin erin?isiin suuriarvoisiin teoksiin. Kiit? on h?nen tutkimuksensa "Traagillisesta aineksesta Kalevalassa", joka ep?ilem?tt? on etevin ja syv?llisin kansanrunouttamme tarkottava esteettinen tutkielma, mik? meill? on ilmestynyt, ja joka muun muassa on, jollei suoranaisesti aiheuttanut, kumminkin suuresti vaikuttanut ensim?isen suomenkielisen murhen?ytelm?n, Aleksis Kiven "Kullervon", syntyyn; niit? on Cygnaeuksen kenties enimmin luettu kirja, Joachim Zakarias Dunckerin el?m?kerta, jossa tekij? pystytti unohtumattomalle sankarille pysyv?n muistopatsaan jo ennenkuin Runeberg oli luonut toisen runoelmassaan "Hein?kuun 5 p?iv?"; niit? on h?nen kirjansa V?nrikki Stoolin tarinoista, jolla h?n t?ydensi varhain alottamansa, ymm?rt?myksess? ja nerokkaisuudessa verrattoman arvostelun niist? Runebergin runoteoksista, jotka kansallisessa suhteessa ovat kaikista t?rkeimm?t; ja niit? on my?skin historiallinen tutkimus nimelt?: "Hans Henrik Gripenbergi? kohdanneen yleisen mielipiteen langettaman tuomion tarkastus." Koska t?m? viimeksi mainittu teos aivan erikoisella tavalla valaisee Cygnaeuksen luonteenlaatua, on siit? v?h?n enemm?n sanottava.

Ruotsalaiset olivat ankarasti arvostelleet Seivin sopimusta, jonka mukaan Suomen armeijan viimeiset t?hteet heitt?en aseensa luopuivat vastarinnasta, ja syytt?neet sen allekirjoittajaa kenraali Gripenbergi? pelkuruudesta ja kavalluksesta. Kun asiantuntevalta taholta t?t? v??r?? tuomiota oli turhaan koetettu oikaista, otti Cygnaeus seikkaper?isesti tarkastaakseen kysymyst?, ja h?n suoritti teht?v?ns? ei ainoastaan innostuksella ja nerolla, jotka olivat h?nelle ominaisia, vaan sanan varsinaisessa merkityksess? ensim?isen? suomalaisena historioitsijana. Nojaten tietoihin ja asiakirjoihin, jotka h?n oli saanut mukana olleilta tai heid?n l?heisilt??n, h?n havainnollisesti kuvaten sotilaalliset olosuhteet ja selvitt?en tapahtuman psykologiset edellytykset n?ytt??, kuinka ruotsalaiset vallanpit?j?t olivat ilman riitt?v?? harkintaa m??r?nneet joukkojen sijoituksen, kuinka he kerrassaan laiminly?den oman maansa puolustuksen olivat j?tt?neet tautien ja ankaran talven harventamat suomalaiset oman onnensa nojaan, kuinka varsinaisten p??llikk?jen poistuttua ylin johto oli uskottu Gripenbergille, joka tosin koko sodan aikana s??st?m?tt? enemm?n vaivojaan kuin vertansakaan oli ollut mukana, mutta aina alip??llik?n asemassa, sek? edelleen kuinka t?m? urhoollinen mies, ylivoimaisen vihollisen saartamana ja j?tettyn? ilman suoranaisia tietoja Tukholmassa tapahtuneesta vallankumouksesta ja uuden hallituksen tarkotuksista, ratkaisevalla hetkell? ei n?hnyt edess??n muuta kuin kaikki uhranneitten sotilaittensa kuoleman ilman voiton mahdollisuutta. Kun Gripenberg silloin neuvottelussa upseeriensa kanssa ly?den nyrkkins? p?yt??n huudahti: "Hyv?t herrat! Jos teiss? on ket??n, joka tahtoo, ett? min? tappelen, niin, Jumal'auttakoon, min? tappelen; kyll? olen ennenkin tapellut" -- eik? kukaan hiiskunut sanaakaan, silloin ei h?nk??n en?? vaatinut turhaa verenvuodatusta.

Lukiessa t?t? kertomusta tapahtumien traagillinen yhteenliittyminen ei kiinnit? meit? enemm?n kuin kertojan intomieli. Cygnaeus puhuu suomalaisena ja suomalaisena h?n puolustaa suomalaista miest? ruotsalaisia vastaan, jotka peitt?en oman syyns? asiain onnettomaan menoon olivat heitt?neet syyn taakan viattoman p??lle. H?n etsii kauttaaltaan totuutta, ja my?hempi tutkimus onkin p??asiassa hyv?ksynyt h?nen esityksens?, mutta silti h?nen kertomuksellaan ei ole sit? objektiivista tyyneytt?, jota pid?mme historiankirjoituksen ihanteena. Cygnaeus oli ennen kaikkea tunteen ja intomielen mies, ja t?ss? se tulee sit? enemm?n n?kyviin, kun v??r? tuomio Gripenbergi? kohtaan oli yht? paljon loukannut h?nen inhimillisyystuntoaan kuin h?nen kansallista itsetuntoaan. On muistettava, ett? teos ilmestyi V?nrikki Stoolin tarinain j?lkeen, ja siihen n?hden saattaa sanoa, ett? siin? on ensi kerran teoksi muuttunut se kansallinen itsetunto, jonka tarinat olivat her?tt?neet.

Kumminkin on tunnustettava, ett? Cygnaeus v?hemm?n kuin kukaan oli V?nrikin tarinain sytytt?v?n vaikutuksen tarpeessa. H?nen ylimysmielisyytens? oli n?et kehittynyt itsetietoisuudeksi, joka oli arka arvostaan eik? koskaan ep?illyt puhua suutansa puhtaaksi, kun h?nen oikeuden- tai ihmisyyden- tai kansallista itsetuntoansa oli loukattu. Paitsi Gripenbergin puolustuskirjoituksessa tuli t?m? monesti n?kyviin. Niin esim. 1850 vuoden sensuuriasetus, joka kielsi painattamasta suomenkielell? muuta kuin uskontoa, taloutta ja kansanrunoutta tarkottavia kirjoja, koski h?neen kuin persoonallinen h?v?istys, ja h?n kirjoitti siit? suorin sanoin ministerivaltiosihteerille, kreivi Armfeltille. Sama kansallinen itsetunto aiheutti niinik??n sen puheen, jonka Cygnaeus piti j??hyv?isjuhlassa yliopiston ruotsalaisille vieraille 1857 ja joka tavallaan on h?nen kuuluisimpiaan. Se oli sangen lyhyt ja kielt?m?tt? maltillinen ja kohtelias, mutta vaikutti kuitenkin kuin jonkinlainen sodanjulistus. Er??ss? juhlassa Tukholmassa oli julkilausuttu runo, jossa Suomelle annettiin mainesana "orjuuden kultainen pes?". Puhuja valitti, ett? juhlassa ei kukaan ollut noussut ja vastannut noihin sanoihin: "Sin? valehtelet!" H?n oletti vieraitten havainneen, ettei Suomessa kuitenkaan elet? eik? puhuta niinkuin voidaan ajatella orjuuden pes?ss? elett?v?n ja puhuttavan, ja p??tti toivomalla, ett? meille Ruotsissa ja muualla Europassa suotaisiin kunnioitusta eik? s??li?, sill? edellinen on meille tarpeen useinkin vaikeissa oloissamme.

Vaikka varmaankaan ei kukaan t?ss? maassa ole suoremmin ja kauniimmin puhunut Ruotsin suurista muistoista ja eritt?in ruotsalaisten ansioista Suomeen n?hden, sai t?m? puhe kaikki unohtumaan. Se k?sitettiin ja selitettiin julkeaksi solvaukseksi Ruotsia kohtaan, ja Cygnaeus joutui h?nkin vuorostaan, semmoisen h?v?istystulvan esineeksi, jolla meill? on tapana aika ajoin koetella ja karaista merkkimiestemme luontoa. Tietysti h?n k?rsi siit?, k?rsi syv?sti ja katkerasti -- mutta v?hitellen sekin tulva juoksi kuiviin.

Oli kuin Cygnaeuksen ty?p?iv? olisi ollut ohi, kun 60-luvulla ensim?isten valtiop?ivien johdosta ja j?lkeen valtiollinen ja yhteiskunnallinen el?m? puhkesi aavistamattomaan virkeyteen. H?nen el?m?ns? viimeinen jakso oli alkanut, jolloin h?n p??asiassa katsojana seurasi ajan pyrint?j?. Mutta vaikka Cygnaeus yh? harvemmin esiintyi julkisesti, eiv?t h?nen sanansa olleet menett?neet tenhovoimaansa. Kuoriin 60- ja 70-luvun ylioppilaspolviin, jotka s??nn?llisesti 1 p. huhtikuuta k?viv?t h?nt? laululla tervehtim?ss?, vaikuttivat h?nen puheensa aina innostavasti. Me ymm?rsimme h?nen kanssaan, ett? ihminen ei el? ainoastaan leiv?st?; h?n oli meille kunnioitettava patriarkka, jonka sanoista yh? s?teili se Suomen aamun kirkkaus, jota h?n nuorena oli julistanut. Todistuksena ihastuksestamme mainitsen vain yhden piirteen. Tunnen ylioppilaan, joka saatuaan er??st? sanomalehtikirjoituksesta 30 markkaa, ensim?iset mit? h?n el?iss??n oli ansainnut, k?ytti ne ostaakseen Cygnaeuksen runoelmat. Huhtikuun 1 p?iv? tuli meille henkiseksi kev?tjuhlaksi, joka uudistui joka vuosi yht? varmaan kuin Vapunp?iv?n vietto, mutta erosi t?st? siin?, ett? se kes? ihanteellisine rientoineen, jonka Cygnaeus meiss? her?tti, oli kest?v?mp?? laatua kuin luonnon kes? -- monessa se ei ole tiennyt syksyst? eik? talvesta, vaan on pysynyt kautta el?m?n.

Vaikken l?hesk??n ole tyhjent?nyt ainettani, on jo aika lopettaa. Ja t?ll? hetkell? kysyn itsekseni, riitt??k? esitykseni todistamaan, ett? Cygnaeus yh? edelleen ansaitsee sijansa toisten suurmiestemme rinnalla, huolimatta siit?, ett? h?nen muistonsa on niin himmentynyt nykyisess? polvessa? Toivon ett? niin on laita. -- Her?tysty? vaati monenlaisia voimia, ja Cygnaeuksenkin osuus oli siin? tarpeellinen, jopa v?ltt?m?t?n. Ajalla, jolloin sanomalehti? ja kirjallisuutta levisi ja luettiin v?h?n, oli ??rett?m?n t?rke??, ett? ilmaantui mies, joka ollen saman hengen el?hytt?m? kuin muut tulevaisuuden miehet, el?vin nerokkain sanoin julkilausui mit? ajassa liikkui ja avasi varsinkin nuorille aavistamattomia n?k?aloja ja kuvasi ihanteita, jotka vastustamattomasti innostuttivat totuntatavasta eroaviin harrastuksiin. N?in Cygnaeus t?ydensi ja teki suurten yst?viens? ty?n tulokset kuulijoilleen mieskohtaisiksi ja velvottaviksi. Samalla h?n enemm?n kuin kukaan muu on vaikuttanut henkisen sivistyksen kohottamiseksi maassamme, h?n on tehnyt el?v?ksi k?sityksen meid?n sivistyksellisest? yhteydest?mme suurten kulttuurikansojen kanssa ja vaatinut, ett? meid?n tulee kaikilla aloilla -- eritoten taiteenkin alalla, joka silloin n?ytti niin toivottomalta -- edustaa suomalaista kansallisuuttamme, jopa uskaltaa ajatella kilpailua muitten kanssa. Yksi syy miksi me en?? harvoin muistamme Cygnaeusta on se, ett? niin paljo siit?, mit? h?n ensiksi harrasti ja vaati, on jo muuttunut sivistyneitten kansalaisten yhteisomaisuudeksi, tullut lihaksemme ja vereksemme -- mutta onko h?nen ansionsa silti v?hempi?

Huomautin alussa, ett? el?mme individualismin aikakaudella, jolloin yksil?n hyvinvointia ja menestyst? katsotaan inhimillisen harrastuksen oikeaksi p??m??r?ksi ja jolloin v?h?t v?litet??n ihanteista, jotka vaativat yksityisten pyyteitten uhraamista yleisen hyv?ksi, kansakunnan onneksi. Mutta yht? varmaa kuin se on, ett? tuo nykyajan oppi ei ole aikojen viimeinen viisaus, yht? varmaa on, ett? Suomen kansan tulevaisuus yh? edellytt??, ett? sill? on poikia ja tytt?ri?, jotka Cygnaeuksen tapaan pit?v?t korkeimpana onnenaan uhrata el?m?ns? ty?n sen eteen. Kuinka ajat vaihtelevatkin, on semmoisia aina nouseva, ja koska heid?n toimintansa ehtona on, ett? he ajattelevat suurta kansastansa ja ett? heill? on ihanteellisia p??m??ri?, niin on Fredrik Cygnaeus, t?m? suurien ajatusten ja ihanteiden mies, t?m? kansallisen itsetunnon mies, aina oleva heille rakastettu ja kunnioitettu opas ja tiet?j?.

Lauri Stenb?ck.

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