The Life Story of Part III: Life in the Business World and among Friends Page 4 The Culmination of a Life's Work
As the war progressed, Higginson's thoughts grew sober. He was concerned about the "waste of the armies of all those nations" and the "burden that comes on the poor people." Though he tried to remain calm in the face of the storm, he became a focal point of controversy as the war reached its climax. Henry's nationalism was questioned by a number of the orchestra's faithful subscribers because the conductor was a German-born citizen and supported his homeland. In a letter to a close friend, Judge Frederick P. Cabot, Henry confided on February 25, 1918: ...My present plan is to keep absolute silence
until the end of the last concert, and then to state my
case from the stage: that the conductor [Dr. Carl Muck]
has been so harassed that he can only go; and that I quit
also. This plan involves a considerable statement, which
can be made then and there. Any earlier statement would
injure the concerts and make much trouble all around.
Tell me if you approve of this plan. In March, Dr. Muck was arrested for being an "alien enemy" and was later replaced by another conductor. In his reminiscences, Henry stated: At the end of the season, at the last concert of Saturday evening, May 4, 1918, I went on to the stage, stated the original purposes of the Orchestra, and said that I was done with the work, added a few words to the men of the Orchestra, and came away; and that was the finish of my connection with that enterprise. Various friends had already been moving and had resolved to carry on the Orchestra, and I stated that fact at the last concert.... As summer approached, Higginson was urged by his physicians to get some rest. He was now approaching his 84th birthday when his niece, Mrs. George R. Agassiz, suggested in July that he write his reminiscences. To this request, Henry replied: ...As to your suggestion about reminiscences, those about you and various other pleasant people are delightful, but many of my reminiscences are anything but pleasant. I have made so many mistakes, and done so many foolish things, and thrown away so many good chances that I cannot take any particular joy in my life. As to what has been done, that was all in the day's work. I have received more credit in my lifetime than I ever deserved. Did I ever tell you that, if I had not been married, I proposed staying in the army, and, by this time, would have been a retired old veteran, growling at everything. I enjoyed my army life, and, on the whole, did it better than anything else—that is, I was a good regimental officer, but could not have gone above the command of a thousand men. I 've not been a good business man, but have come through somehow or other. Yes, I can remember many things within my European life which were interesting to me, and some of them are so still, but they would do nobody any good, and I think they would entertain nobody.... Henry set to work writing his reminiscences and was feeling better now that his obligations in maintaining the details of the Orchestra had ceased. He was pleased by the hundreds of letters he received at his bedside, expressing appreciation of him and his work. In a letter written on August 2 to Sir Hugh Levick, a partner at the London house firm, he reflected on earlier days, wondering if he should have regarded the firm with more consideration: ...I certainly have been treated with great kindness [at the firm]. But I do think that for most people the place of second fiddle is preferable to first fiddle. If only a man will consider the success of the work of the firm, of the government, of the country, rather than of himself, he will probably reach the same conclusion. If I were X, I should not care whether I was first or fifth in the firm, so I was kindly treated and got my share of what was going.... Certain qualities I have, and they may have helped to the success of the firm; but, after all, it was founded by George Lee's grandfather,—who was a very noble old man,—and my dad,—who was honest, tolerably keen, full of common sense, and irascible at times and pleasant at times,—and also by Mr. Henry Lee, whose character was as spotless as that of the others. To them must be added old George Lee, who was a sunbeam, faithful to the last degree, and a man whom nobody ever doubted for a quarter of a second. It was they who made the firm, and I have merely followed in their path. I am not thinking of my own value. I have thought too much of my duties and wishes outside and too little of the firm. If, instead of spending all the money that has been spent outside, I had kept it, I should have five or six millions to-day, and very likely more. But it is all in the day's work.... A week before Henry's 84th birthday, Armistice Day arrived, bringing peace to the world at last. Early in 1919 Henry was hospitalized, but felt better by the end of spring. That summer, he addressed the school of bond-salesmen organized by Lee, Higginson and Co. on the philosophy of the firm: ...The house has always tried to do its work well and to have and keep a high character, and I think it has succeeded in those points. Character is the foundation-stone of such a business, and once lost, is not easily regained.... Now, for yourselves: Do not lose a day; use your time well, remembering that that day never comes again; know your business, and tell the story just as it is; find out the truth about the bonds and shares; if a bond is pretty good, say so; if it is first-class, say that; if it is attractive from a speculator's point of view, say that. Put the "cards on the table" every time, and do not bore buyers. If you are roughly treated, never mind. Good men are not infrequently out of temper or very busy, and do not care to see you. Remember this about truth: you must know your subject in order to speak truly; and although making a mistake is not the same thing as deceiving, still you are responsible for the facts, and, therefore, for the truth. Do not waste your time. Keep your temper. Play the game decently, and be faithful. In October, Henry was hospitalized again but returned to work in early November.
A week later on November 14 he underwent surgery and
never regained consciousness. On the day before what
would have been Henry's 85th birthday, services were held
for him at Appleton Chapel. From there he was borne to
Mount Auburn and laid to rest. I've had only too many kind words of praise for doing my duty, and only my duty, as my eyes and those of dear, dead friends saw it. The simple tale—that he tried to fill up gaps and sought to bring sunshine into the lives of his fellow men and women, that he usually kept his word, given and implied, and that he worshipped his country and had the very best and most far-seeing of friends—is the whole story. Sources Used in Writing this Section of the Essay Book: Life and Letters of Henry Lee
Higginson, by Bliss Perry, The
Atlantic Monthly Press, Boston, MA, 1921. Periodical: A Great Private Citizen, by M.A. DeWolfe Howe, Atlantic Monthly, March 1920, pp. 329-339. Web Pages: Ancestry.com, copyright 2001, http://www.ancestry.com (accessed August 2001).
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