Lend Me Your Ears: Great Speeches in History
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Lend Me Your Ears
Great Speeches in History
selected and introduced by William Safire
Copyright
Lend Me Your Ears
Copyright © 1992, 1997, 2004, 2014 by William Safire
Cover art, special contents, and Electronic Edition © 2014 by RosettaBooks LLC
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review.
Cover jacket design by David Ter-Avanesyan/Ter33Design
ISBN Mobipocket edition: 9780795336607
TO
JUDSON WELLIVER,
first White House speechwriter
(Harding and Coolidge administrations), and members of the Judson Welliver Society, the association of former White House speechwriters
CONTENTS
Preface
An Introductory Address
I. Memorials and Patriotic Speeches
Pericles Extols the Glory That Is Greece at the Funeral of Its Fallen Sons
Roman Empress Theodora Refuses to Flee
Founding Father Gouverneur Morris Defines National Greatness
Daniel Webster Speaks at the Dedication of the Bunker Hill Monument
Lecturer Frances Wright Speaks on Independence Day
Lincoln Rededicates the Union at Gettysburg
Mark Twain Celebrates the Fourth of July
President Calvin Coolidge Affirms His Faith in Massachusetts
Interior Secretary Harold Ickes Lashes Isolationists and Defeatists
Judge Learned Hand Evokes the Spirit of Liberty
Underground Fighter Menachem Begin Pledges His Group’s Allegiance to the Newborn State of Israel
Democratic Candidate Adlai Stevenson Defines the Nature of Patriotism
General Douglas MacArthur Reminds West Point Cadets of Duty, Honor, Country
II. War and Revolution Speeches
Catiline the Conspirator Turns and Fights
Pope Urban II Launches the First Crusade
Queen Elizabeth Inveighs against the Spanish Armada
Patrick Henry Ignites the American Revolution
An Indian Chief Pledges Help
General Washington Talks His Officers Out of Insurrection
Richard Price, an English Cleric, Hails the Revolutions
Revolutionist Georges-Jacques Danton Demands Death for the Squeamish
Napoleon Exhorts His Troops against France’s Enemies
Garibaldi Prepares Italy’s Guerrillas for Battle
Jefferson Davis Takes His Leave of the U.S. Senate
Chief Joseph Surrenders
President Woodrow Wilson Presents an Ideal to the War Congress
Lenin Defends Proletarian Dictatorship
Mussolini Justifies His Invasion of Ethiopia
Hitler Declares Germany’s Intentions
Winston Churchill Braces Britons to Their Task
Churchill Rallies the British People after the “Miracle of Deliverance” at Dunkirk
Stalin Commands the Soviet Peoples to Scorch the Earth Being Taken by Hitler’s Troops
President Franklin D. Roosevelt Asks Congress to Declare War on Japan
General Montgomery Takes Command and Draws the Line at El Alamein
Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher Acts to Defend the Falkland Islands
Israel’s Yitzhak Rabin Shakes Hands with His Lifelong Enemy
III. Tributes and Eulogies
Mark Antony Urges Mourners to Vengeance over the Body of Julius Caesar
Edmund Burke Laments the Death of Marie Antoinette
Henry Lee Remembers George Washington
Daniel Webster Puts a Speech in the Mouth of John Adams
Senator George Graham Vest Offers a Tribute to the Dog
Ralph Waldo Emerson Commemorates the Centennial of Robert Burns
Frederick Douglass Cuts through the Lincoln Myth to Consider the Man
Humanist Robert Green Ingersoll Speaks at His Brother’s Grave
James Blaine of Maine Eulogizes Assassinated President Garfield
Jane Addams Praises George Washington
Rabbi Stephen S. Wise Offers a Tribute to Lincoln
Will Rogers Eulogizes Woodrow Wilson
Prime Minister Stanley Baldwin Toasts a Lexicographer
George Bernard Shaw Salutes His Friend Albert Einstein
India’s Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru Delivers the Eulogy for Gandhi
John F. Kennedy, in Praise of Robert Frost, Celebrates the Arts in America
Senator Robert F. Kennedy Speaks after the Assassination of Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr.
President Richard M. Nixon Defines “Politician” in Eulogizing Senator Everett Dirksen
President Jimmy Carter Salutes His Good Friend Hubert H. Humphrey
Senator Daniel P. Moynihan Spoofs Abstractionist Art at a Dedication Ceremony
Actor-Director Orson Welles Eulogizes Another Hollywood Legend, Darryl F. Zanuck
Secretary Jack Kemp, Saluting Winston Churchill, Applies the Munich Analogy to Kuwait
President Boris Yeltsin of Russia Eulogizes Victims of Communism’s Final Power Play
Senate Leader Robert Dole Remembers Richard Nixon as “One of Us”
IV. Debates and Argumentation
Cicero Rails against Catiline and His Conspiracies
Lord General Oliver Cromwell Orders the “Rump Parliament” Out of the House
A Youthful William Pitt the Elder Debates the Merits of Age
William Pitt the Younger and Charles Fox Disagree on Napoleon’s Offers of Peace
Senator Daniel Webster Backs the Union in His Reply to Senator Hayne
Senator John C. Calhoun Fights the Expunging of His Criticism of President Andrew Jackson
Abolitionist Charles Sumner Excoriates Two Senate Colleagues on the Issue of “Bloody Kansas”
Senator Stephen Douglas Differs with Lincoln on the “Popular Sovereignty” Decision on Slavery
John Cabell Breckinridge Disputes Colonel E. D. Baker’s Charge of Treason
Henry Cabot Lodge Speaks on the League of Nations
Emperor Haile Selassie of Ethiopia Appeals to the League of Nations to Stop Aggression
Candidates Nixon and Kennedy Meet in the First Televised Presidential Debate
Senators Dan Quayle and Lloyd Bentsen Clash on Qualifications for the Presidency
V. Trials
Martin Luther Addresses the Diet of Worms
Sir Thomas More Defends Himself against Charges of Treason
Robert Emmet Demands That Posterity Be the Judge of His Irish Patriotism
Novelist Emile Zola Turns His Libel Defense into an Appeal to Free Falsely Convicted Dreyfus
Antiwar Dissident Eugene V. Debs Addresses the Court before Sentencing
Gandhi Defends His Beliefs
Defense Lawyer Clarence Darrow Answers a Supporter of Capital Punishment
Cuban Rebel Fidel Castro Defies His Captors and Predicts That History Will Absolve Him
Defense Attorney Johnnie Cochran Wins Acquittal for the Accused Killer O. J. Simpson
VI. Gallows and Farewell Speeches
Socrates, Condemned to Death, Addresses His Judges
Charles I and, Later, His Regicide Speak from the Scaffold
Rebel Richard Rumbold, on the Gallows, Attacks Booted and Spurred Privilege
Revolutionist Robespierre Delivers His Final Speech
President George Washington Delivers His Farewell
King Edward VIII Abdicates His Throne
Yankee Great Lou Gehrig Bids Farewell to Baseball
General Douglas MacArthur Moves Congress with “Old Soldiers Never Die”
President Dwight D. Eisenhower Takes His Leave with a Surprising Theme
President Lyndon B. Johnson Halts the Bombing in Vietnam and Drops His Own Political Bomb
Speaker of the House James Wright Resigns as “Propitiation” for Ill Will
VII. Sermons
The Buddha Urges a Turning Away from Craving in His “Fire Sermon”
Jesus of Nazareth Delivers the Sermon on the Mount
Saint Francis Preaches to the Birds
John Wyclif Gives the Sixth Sunday Gospel after Easter
Religious Scourge Savonarola Demands Repentance from the Citizens of Florence
John Calvin Preaches on Suffering Persecution
Calvinist Jonathan Edwards Promises Hellfire and Damnation to the Sinful
Methodist John Wesley Asserts “Free Grace” to Deny the Implacability of Fate
Clergyman John Witherspoon Couples Religion with Politics
Chief Red Jacket Rejects a Change of Religion
Bishop James Madison Speaks on Divine Providence toward America
Lincoln, in His Second Inaugural, Seeks to Heal the Spiritual Wounds of War
Preacher Henry Ward Beecher Speaks of Visions
Evangelist Billy Sunday Preaches a Revival Sermon
Bishop Fulton John Sheen Makes a Wartime Plea
Rabbi Louis Finkelstein Delivers a Sermon in the White House
President Ronald Reagan Inveighs against the Sinfulness of Communism
The Exiled Dalai Lama Espouses a Philosophy of Compassion
VIII. Inspirational Speeches
Chemist Louis Pasteur Praises the Rise of Scientific Education
Theodore Roosevelt Blasts Ignoble Ease and Advocates the Strenuous Life
Mark Twain Reveals Stage Fright
Branch Rickey Discovers the Quality That Makes a Ballplayer Great
Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Acknowledges a Ninetieth-Birthday Tribute
John D. Rockefeller, Jr., Sets Forth His Family’s Creed
General Patton Motivates the 3rd Army on the Eve of the Invasion of Europe
Nobel Laureate William Faulkner Charges Writers with the Duty to Help Humanity Prevail
President John F. Kennedy Assures West Germany of America’s Steadfastness
Senator Everett Dirksen Extols the Marigold
President William Jefferson Clinton Urges Memphis Churchgoers to “Make Our People Whole Again”
President George W. Bush Envisions the “Age of Liberty”
IX. Lectures and Instructive Speeches
Philosopher-Poet Ralph Waldo Emerson Defines the Duties of the American Scholar
Edgar Allan Poe Presents His Theory of Beauty and Poetry
Mark Twain Stuns the Littery World by Spoofing Emerson, Longfellow, and Holmes to Their Faces
First Female Member of Parliament, Lady Astor, Expounds on Women in Politics
William Lyon Phelps Praises the Owning of Books
Broadcaster John Hilton Talks about Talking
Architect Frank Lloyd Wright Calls Up the Image of “the Floo Floo Bird”
Secretary of State Dean Acheson Explains Tensions between the United States and the Soviet Union
Senator Henry Jackson Analyzes International Terrorism
Presidential Aide Jack Valenti Recalls the Lessons Learned at the Center of Power
After Bush v. Gore, Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg Speaks Out for Judicial Independence
Bioethicist Leon Kass Warns against the “Brave New World” of Cloning
X. Speeches of Social Responsibility
British Statesman William Pitt the Younger Urges Abolition of the Slave Trade
Lord Byron Puts Poetic Passion into His Defense of Labor’s Rights
Social Reformer Maria Stewart Advocates Education for Black Women
Suffragist Elizabeth Cady Stanton Pleads for Women’s Rights
Evangelist Sojourner Truth Speaks for Women’s Rights
Abolitionist William Lloyd Garrison Admits of No Compromise with the Evil of Slavery
Chief Seattle Cautions Americans to Deal Justly with His People
Susan B. Anthony Argues for Women’s Rights
Governor Huey Long of Louisiana Proposes to End the Depression by Redistributing Wealth
Labor’s John L. Lewis Defends His Union’s Right to Strike
FDR Reminds the Daughters of the American Revolution about Their Lineage
Walter Lippmann Scores His Generational Cohort for Having Taken “the Easy Way”
Elder Statesman Bernard Baruch Offers America’s First Plan to Control Nuclear Weapons
Senator Robert Taft Opposes War Crimes Trials as Ex Post Facto Law
Governor Kissin’ Jim Folsom of Alabama Startles the South with a Concern for the Negro
Senator Margaret Chase Smith Issues a “Declaration of Conscience” against Senator Joseph McCarthy
Vice-President Albert Gore Slams the Cynics and Asserts His Credo
Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto of Pakistan Argues That Male Domination of Women Offends Her Islamic Religion
XI. Media Speeches
Thomas Jefferson Returns Fire of “the Artillery of the Press”
Broadcaster Edward R. Murrow Despairs of the Future of TV Journalism
Playwright-Journalist-Diplomat Clare Boothe Luce Criticizes the American Press
FCC’s Newton Minow Excoriates Broadcasters for Failing to Serve the Public Interest
Vice-President Spiro Agnew Castigates the Media
Arthur Ochs Sulzberger of the New York Times Discusses Business and the Press
A. M. Rosenthal of the New York Times Defines Freedom of the Press
Radio and Television Journalist Daniel Schorr, at Seventy-five, Makes a Few “Confessions”
Editor John S. Carroll Finds a Unity in the Pulitzer Prizes
XII. Political Speeches
Demosthenes Attacks His Accuser
John Winthrop Defines the Mission of Government Officials
Edmund Burke Makes a Case for Conciliation with America
Benjamin Franklin Addresses the Federal Convention
Thomas Jefferson Appeals for Unity at His Inauguration
Historian-Legislator Thomas Macauley Calls on Parliament to Lift the Political Restrictions on the Jews
William Cobbett Heaps Scorn on Opponents of His Bill to Reduce Child Labor
Senator Henry Clay Calls for the Great Compromise to Avert Civil War
Karl Marx Calls for the Dictatorship of the Proletariat
Lincoln, in His First Inaugural, Asserts the Necessity of Majority Rule
Representative J. Proctor Knott Uses Satire to Sink a Land Grant Bill
British Conservative Benjamin Disraeli Speaks Up for Tory Principles
Kalakaua, Last King of Hawaii, Assumes the Throne
Prime Minister Gladstone Argues for Toleration and the Rights of Freethinkers in the House of Commons
Democratic Candidate William Jennings Bryan Delivers His “Cross of Gold” Speech
“Bull Moose” Candidate Theodore Roosevelt Gives the “Speech That Saved His Life”
Claude Bowers Conjures the Ghosts of Democrats Past to Keynote a Convention
President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s First Inaugural Instills Confidence in a Depression-Racked Nation
Winston Churchill Warns the West of the Soviet “Iron Curtain”
Hubert H. Humphrey Divides the Democratic Party on the Urgent Issue of Civil Rights
President Harry Truman Whistle-Stops the Nation, Blasting the “Do-Nothing” Congress
Adlai Stevenson Makes the Model of a Concession Speech
Premier Nikita Khrushchev, in a “Secret Speech,” Tears Down Stalin’s Reputation
President John F. Kennedy, in His Inaugural, Takes Up the Torch for a New Generation
President Charles de Gaulle Offers Self-Determination to the Algerian People
Barry Goldwater Ignites the Conservative Movement
President Richard M. Nixon Rallies “the Silent Majority” to Support the War in Vietnam
Representative Barbara Jordan Makes the Constitutional Case for the Impeachment of Nixon
President Gerald Ford Takes Office after Nixon’s Resignation
Egypt’s President Anwar el-Sadat Travels to Jerusalem to Address Israel’s Knesset
Senator Edward M. Kennedy Exhorts Fellow Democrats to Hold Fast to Liberalism
President Ronald Reagan Foresees the Crisis of Communism
Ambassador Jeane Kirkpatrick Blasts the “San Francisco Democrats”
Labour’s Neil Kinnock Excoriates Mrs. Thatcher’s Toryism
Henry Kissinger Warns against the Reemergence of Isolationism
George H. W. Bush Accepts the Republican Nomination
President Mikhail Gorbachev of the Soviet Union Acknowledges His Fault
Commentator Patrick J. Buchanan Brings a Note of Populism to the GOP
British Prime Minister Tony Blair Exhorts His Party to Fight Terrorism
XIII. Commencement Speeches
President Woodrow Wilson Calls the Midshipmen to Their Duty
Editor William Allen White Calls the Prewar Generation to Its Duty
Language Maven William Safire Denounces the Telephone as the Subverter of Good English
Financier Felix G. Rohatyn Examines a Fragile Economy
Governor Mario Cuomo Speaks over the Heads of the Graduates to the Parents
Labor’s Lane Kirkland Rejects the Labels “Liberal” and “Conservative”
General Colin Powell Urges African-American Students to Reject Racial Hatred
Brain-Science Philanthropist David J. Mahoney Envisions Active Lives Lived to One Hundred Years
XIV. Undelivered Speeches
President John F. Kennedy’s Prepared Remarks at Dallas on November 22, 1963
President Clinton Rejects a Contrite Speech Draft and Elects to “Move On”
President Nixon’s Prepared Text in case the Apollo XI Moon Landing Ended in Tragedy
Permissions
Preface
A Curator at the National Archives in Washington called one day and invited me over to take a look at a new exhibit before it opened. The archivist said there was an item in its “American Originals” presentation that would surely intrigue me.