WEDNESDAY, APRIL 5, 2017
CHESTER COUNTY PRESS
7A
Chester County Press
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Opinion
Editorial
Letter to the Editor
Reflections on a rainy afternoon
Group only offers divisiveness
Directly outside the International Cultural Center at Lincoln University’s “Feel the Roar” event for prospective and committed new students on March 31, an early spring rain attempted to wash out the great expectations that the welcome address had built up inside the large auditorium moments before. It didn’t work. The Chester County Press reporter sat in the rear of the crowded auditorium and listened to the words of Interim President Dr. Richard Green, Provost Dr. Patricia Ramsey and Associate Director of Admissions Nikoia Fredericksen. Their words were inspiring. Their words planted the first bricks in hundreds of individual journeys that will begin on this campus in the fall. As students and parents began to file out of the auditorium to a series of breakout sessions, tours and a pep rally, the reporter juxtaposed the positivity he was seeing against the backdrop of our nation’s current climate, the news of which has minimized Optimism to a precious drop of water in a sweeping drought of Fear that attempts to dismantle the best of who we are, both here in Chester County and all across the nation. The reporter reads that in order to put a down payment on confronting that Fear, the new administration’s budget includes a $54 billion increase in military spending, and beefed-up funding to help deport more illegal immigrants and build a wall on the border with Mexico. He reads that the budget includes massive cuts in spending for the Environmental Protection Agency, the State Department and the Agriculture Department, as well as 19 other federal agencies, including the Education Department, the Labor Department and the Department of Health and Human Services. While it is our government’s responsibility to protect its borders and its citizens, these responsibilities should not come at the expense of neglecting them. Consider, for a moment, what severe cuts to agriculture, education, the environment and healthcare would have on Chester County alone. Grants that pay for teacher training, after-school programs, and aid to low-income and minority college students would be downsized. Job training programs that benefit seniors and disadvantaged youth would be reduced. Funding for the insurance provided by Medicare and Medicaid, two vast entitlement programs for older and lower-income Americans, would be wiped away. Indeed, much of the fabric that connects us as a community -- business, education and agriculture -- would be severely threatened. Seated in this auditorium, the reporter thought, is the future of what our nation will become. For those students in that audience who choose to attend Lincoln University, they will soon become the beneficiaries of a world-class education that sees learning as part of a global classroom, not one marked by boundaries. Somewhere in this auditorium, he thought, are the future iconoclasts, artists, engineers and the peacemakers of our nation, who will leave Lincoln in four years and launch their knowledge into the world, fearless of Fear, and committed to the idea that leadership is about inclusion, not separation. Chief Justice Thurgood Marshall, a graduate of Lincoln University, said that “In recognizing the humanity of our fellow beings, we pay ourselves the highest tribute.” The rain did not let up. The reporter walked to his car, drenched by the weather, and enlightened by Hope.
Chester County Press Randall S. Lieberman Publisher
Steve Hoffman ........................................Managing Editor John Chambless ..............................................Staff Writer Richard L. Gaw ...............................................Staff Writer Carla Lucas ................................................Correspondent Nancy Johnson ...........................................Correspondent Brenda Butt ...............................................Office Manager Tricia Hoadley .................................................Art Director Alan E. Turns....................................Advertising Director Christy Larry.....................Assistant Advertising Director Teri Turns......................................Advertising Executive Helen E. Warren.............................Advertising Executive Stone Lieberman................Digital Advertising Specialist The Chester County Press (USPS 416-500) is published every Wednesday by: AD PRO, Inc. 144 South Jennersville Rd, West Grove, PA 19390 Mailing Address: PO Box 150, Kelton, PA 19346 Telephone: (610) 869-5553 • FAX (610) 869-9628 Internet E-mail (editor): editor@chestercounty.com HOURS: Monday- Friday 8 a.m. - 4 p.m., no weekend hours
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Letter to the Editor: There is a group in this community that does nothing but perpetuate negativity among citizens. They appear whenever there is school board activity going on, especially for larger decisions like fullday kindergarten. They offer no solutions, other than to be against the Avon Grove School District’s school board. They will try to convince you that we are victims of bad decisions. Rather than try to unite the community, all they offer is divisiveness. Watch them at school board meetings—their behavior
is juvenile, obstinate and embarrassing. Our community is a great one. Sure, there is always room for improvement, such as offering full-day kindergarten. Why would you be against that? Why would assume that offering an opportunity for children is a hostile act against you? But that’s what they do. They interpret every act that the Avon Grove School Board does as a personal, reckless attack against them. A look at their website tells me that they offer no solutions other than to be against the current school board.
They seem to ignore the fact that our community has both a public district and a charter school living in harmony. Many families have kids in both. Why would you want to try to pit one against the other? But that is their message. If there is a rift between the two, they have no desire or plans to fix it, only to widen it. Any negativity they talk about is self-imposed. The Avon Grove School District community has done nothing but accept and promote all kinds of learning. We need school board members who are going to
promote a positive learning environment that is always striving to be better—in both the public schools and the public charter school. We do not need another leader of any kind claiming that we’re going to be “great,” but not offering any concrete solutions or cohesiveness to make it happen. I do pay taxes in Avon Grove School District, but this group doesn’t speak for me. Make sure you learn if they really speak for you before you vote on May 16. Lisa Lightner Avondale borough
Bayard Taylor: A life of accomplishment By Gene Pisasale The 19th century was a period of dramatic developments in science, technology and ways of thinking. It was also a changeover from the era of the Enlightenment to one more focused on expression in the age of Romanticism. Romantics highlighted the powers of the individual through creativity, finding new, even mystical meanings in nature. Bayard Taylor’s books exhibit this style, his poetical connections with each landscape he traversed around the world. After nearly fifteen years of traveling, Taylor was ready to settle down. He broke ground for what became Cedarcroft, a sturdy brick mansion outside of Kennett Square. The name derived from the English word “croft” (meaning field), surrounded by cedar trees. The cornerstone was laid on June 5, 1859. Under it is a box containing a copy of Views A-foot (Taylor’s first travel book), a poem written by him, some coins, a manuscript by friend R.H. Stoddard and personal items. Guests at the housewarming included Ralph Waldo Emerson, John Greenleaf Whittier, James Russell Lowell and Horace Greeley. The years leading up to 1860 were ones of turmoil in America. Tensions regarding slavery had erupted into numerous bloody uprisings around the country. Bayard Taylor opposed slavery and openly supported a country lawyer from Illinois for President. Taylor gave at least two public speeches backing Abraham Lincoln, one in Kennett Square, the other in Chadds Ford to a crowd estimated at over 15,000 persons. His endorsement of Lincoln paid off. In 1862, he accepted a position as secretary to Simon Cameron with his entourage in St. Petersburg, Russia. Taylor later became charge d’affaires. While he never fought in the Civil War, Taylor had a close connection to the conflict. His brother Charles became the youngest Colonel in the Army of the Potomac. He led the “Bucktails,” a group of volunteers from Chester and surrounding counties who fought throughout the war. Charles was killed defending Little Round Top on day two of the Battle of Gettysburg. Monuments to him and the Bucktails stand proudly on the nearby hillside. Bayard gifted a cannon—nicknamed Old Ben Butler—to the town
of Kennett Square. It was fired in celebration of every Union victory during the war. The cannon now stands at Kennett Borough Hall. Taylor’s experiences in Russia inspired him to start a new series of lectures. In 1863, he presented his ideas in Washington, D.C. President Lincoln was in attendance and was impressed, later writing Taylor a letter. “My dear Sir: I think a good lecture or two on ‘Serfs, Serfdom, and Emancipation in Russia’ would be both interesting and valuable. Could not you get up such a thing? Yours truly. A Lincoln.” Having dominated the lecture circuit and the travel genre, Taylor was ready for something different. His novel, “The Story of Kennett” (1866) returned the author to his roots. In the Prologue, he writes: “To my friends and neighbors in Kennett: I… dedicate this story to you…” The book chronicles life in Chester County following the American Revolution; the interactions of local families form its framework. Chadds Ford village historian Chris Sanderson made notes within his copy of the book identifying the actual persons depicted in the novel. The Fairthorns supposedly represent Taylor’s own family; Sandy Flash a real life outlaw of the time. While not a world-class novel, the book does capture the sensibilities of people in rural America during this period. Taylor later ventured again out West, this time around Colorado on horseback with a group that included William Byers, editor of The Rocky Mountain News. The trek resulted in “Colorado: A Summer Trip” (1867). The introduction to a later edition states: “Taylor’s account stands as a world-class observer’s first-class treatment of territory that few were competing to present to a literate and sophisticated constituency.” The work remains a classic of western travel literature. Taylor’s wanderings may have inspired another gentleman to write. Samuel Langhorne Clemens, known today as Mark Twain, portrayed his experiences through Europe and the Holy Land in “The Innocents Abroad” and western mining camps in “Roughing It.” It was terrain Taylor knew quite well. From 1870 to 1871, Taylor combined his knowledge of German with his love of poetry in his two-volume translation of Goethe’s Faust. Taylor’s book was
Courtesy photo
Photo courtesy Kennett Library
The Bayard Taylor gravesite monument at Longwood Cemetery.
The Bronze bust of Bayard Taylor in the Kennett Library.
Photo courtesy “History of Chester County” by Futhey and Cope 1881
Cedarcroft, Taylor’s home.
well received and remains one of the most acclaimed interpretations of this classic. Because of his experience, he was appointed Minister to Berlin in 1878. On the ship going over to the continent he chatted with Twain, who admired his work. Unfortunately, Taylor’s European stay would be short. He died a few months later on Dec. 19, 1878. The next day, the Wilmington News Journal printed the announcement. “The Poet, Novelist, Traveler and Diplomatist Dies Quietly at his Post of Duty… It is as an author and a poet that he will be remembered with ever increasing admiration and respect…” Newspapers across America mourned his passing. The New York Times posted his obituary on the front page, noting him as “a great traveler, both on land and paper.” His body was returned to the U.S., the casket displayed in New York’s City Hall. On March 15, 1879, Taylor was honored lying in state at Cedarcroft before he was laid to rest at Longwood Cemetery. Above his grave is a cylinder of Indiana limestone, on its side a bronze bas-relief of the poet. His brother Charles, hero at Gettysburg, lies next to him. In his 53 years, Bayard Taylor experienced more than most people could see in five lifetimes. Yet his poetry is simple and ele-
gant, yearnings of a soul constantly seeking new insights. Taylor’s “The Ghosts of Night” hints at his ambition and realization that his time on Earth was limited. “My deeds are dust in air… My words are ghosts of thought… I ride through the night alone, detached from the life that seemed… And the best I have felt or known… Is less than the least I dreamed.” These dreams come alive in his books, showcased at Macaluso’s Rare Books in Kennett Square. A beautiful bust of Bayard Taylor is prominently displayed nearby in the Kennett Library next to a plaque honoring his many achievements. Gene Pisasale is a historian and author based in Kennett Square. His nine books and lecture series focus on the history of the Chester County and MidAtlantic region. His radio show, “Living History,” is on WCHE AM 1520 every Wednesday from 1 to 1:30 p.m. His new book, “Alexander Hamilton: Architect of the American Financial System,” is available on Amazon.com. He can be reached at Gene@ GenePisasle.com. For more information, visit his website at www.GenePisasale.com. (Editor’s note: This concludes a three-part series about the life of Bayard Taylor.)