Farthest North: The Life and Explorations of Lieutenant James Booth Lockwood, of the Greely Arctic ExpeditionLanman, Charles
History
Farthest North: The Life and Explorations of Lieutenant James Booth Lockwood, of the Greely Arctic Expedition
Lanman, Charles
Arctic regions; Lady Franklin Bay Expedition (1881-1884); Lockwood, James Booth, 1852-1884
“I but echo the feelings of all in the Twenty-third Infantry who
knew your son, in saying that your great loss is partly theirs. His
kindly and generous impulses, his sterling integrity, and his
thoroughness as an officer and a gentleman, secured and retained for
him the substantial good-will and friendship of all. And while we
may grieve at the mournful end of his career, yet this feeling is
somewhat neutralized in the melancholy satisfaction of knowing that
he died on the field of honor.”
In another letter from one who had been in the army and on the staff
of General Lockwood at Accomac, Va., occurs the following most
admirable and appropriate passage: “I do believe, dear general, that
all is well with your son. Standing where no human footstep had ever
trod before, seeing what no eye had ever before beheld, alone amid
the awful silence of that frozen deep—alone with God—there must have
been communings with the Holy One of more import to James than all
else besides. And at the last day you will again see your son in
glory, wearing the crown of those made perfect through suffering.”
Besides the many letters written by personal friends, there were
others from perfect strangers, who had either served under General
Lockwood in the army, or been especially interested in the fate of
the youthful hero.
Among the strangers who wrote letters of condolence was the Rev.
William E. Griffis, D. D., of Schenectady, N. Y., who had preached a
sermon on the conquests of peace, and in which he made the following
allusion to Lieutenant Lockwood: “The laurels that repose on the
memory of Lieutenant Lockwood are better than battle-honors or
wreaths after bloody victories.” It was his opinion that the Arctic
secret would yet be won; and that Lockwood and his brother heroes
were doing the will of God as explorers in the far North.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account