"
"Yes," said Mr. Ridley, "I suppose they will. They ought to. It may be
some consolation to the family anyhow. But it is an empty sort of thing,
after all, when you come to think of it. A man's life and actions are
his best monument; those who loved him will never forget him, his
enemies will be sorry they spoke, and there will be something _more_
than appropriate cut on his tombstone--that's certainly all a man should
want. What's the use of waiting for a fellow to die before immortalizing
him in marble or bronze? It is small satisfaction to him personally. Why
not put up a statue while he is living, and let him have the pleasure of
walking past it with his wife and children on a fine Sunday afternoon
when all the folks are out?"
"There is a rich vein of truth in what you say, Sammy," said Senator
Bull; "but you are alive and well, and it is almost impossible for you
to take a dead man's view of the situation."
"I don't know but what you are right, Senator," observed Mr. Ridley
thoughtfully, and the group relapsed into silence.
"You are a Southern man, I believe, Mr. Ridley," said Representative Van
Rensselaer a few minutes later, as they touched glasses.
"I _was_ one, sir, very much of one; that's why I am limping around now.
I was in the Confederate Army, up to the fall of sixty-three, and then I
was taken prisoner.
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