Quotes:Phillips, Wendell

Boris de Zirkoff

Phillips, Wendell. American orator, writer and reformer, b. in Boston, Mass., Nov. 29, 1811; d. Feb. 2, 1884. Inherited not only a superb physique and family traditions of a high order, but also ample means. Educated at the Boston Latin School; graduated from Harvard, 1831. After three years at the Harvard Law School, he was admitted to the bar and opened an office in Boston, but was never enthusiastic about his profession. In 1837, he married Ann Terry Greene who soon became an invalid, but their domestic life was quite happy; they had no children.

Phillips early became identified with the anti-slavery movement, and was greatly encouraged in this by his wife. His great opportunity presented itself on Dec. 8. 1837, at a public meeting held in Faneuil Hall to protest against the murder of Elijah P. Lovejoy, the abolitionist editor, at Alton, Ill. Phillips listened in the audience while James T. Austin, attorney general of the commonwealth, compared the assassins of Lovejoy to the Revolutionary patriots; then he responded with a stirring indictment of the outrage. His passionate eloquence caught the imagination of the audience which responded with cheers. Thus, at the age of twenty-six, he took his place in the front rank of the anti-slavery movement. His ability as an orator and his family prestige, as well as his charm and persuasive power, made him invaluable as a champion. Disregarding hostility from various quarters, he devoted himself to advocating other moral causes as well, such as prohibition, reform in penal methods, votes for women, and the labor movement. His denunciation of the moneyed corporations and his urging of the laboring class to organize to further its own interests were regarded by some as aberrations of a noble mind. Actually, Phillips had an unusually clear perception of national trends and was ahead of his time. He also showed himself as an uncompromising critic of academic conservatives. An omnivorous reader and a thorough scholar, he knew how to impart his knowledge in a simple and appealing way. He was an aristocratic-looking man, with a rich, persuasive voice and a graceful, self-assured manner. Like many other men who have stirred their country to eliminate evils of various kind, Phillips was frequently sharp of tongue and sometimes unfair to his opponents, but he was courageous, self-sacrificing and magnanimous, and has been called the "Knight-Errant of Unfriended Truth."

Among his many orations and speeches, there is one that stands out especially; its subject is "The Lost Arts" on which he spoke more than two thousand times. It is a speech which H.P.B. thought very highly of, and quoted from upon numerous occasions. It outlines some of the knowledge possessed by the Ancients and now lost.

Source: Boris de Zirkoff, «H. P. Blavatsky Collected Writings», vol. 1, pp. 522-523