Elihu
Burritt
Born:
New Britain; December 8, 1810
Died: New Britain; March 6, 1879
Entry
by James P. Walsh
Some
people personify the deepest values of their culture. So it was
with Elihu Burritt, who achieved international fame because he
proved that a common man, no matter how humble his birth, could
improve himself by study and hard work.
Burritt,
born to an average farm family, at the age of seventeen became
an apprentice blacksmith. His background seemed to offer little
prospect of advancement, but he was encouraged by the example
of his brother Elijah whose intelligence had so impressed the
family's neighbors that they financed his college education. Elihu,
hoping for the same opportunity, began to teach himself foreign
languages. Eventually, he taught himself to read about fifty languages,
even though his study took place after a long day of manual labor.
His dedication can be seen by one day's study: on June 19, 1838,
he read 65 lines of Hebrew, 30 pages of French, 10 pages of a
science textbook, 8 lines of Syrian, 10 lines of Danish, 10 lines
of Czechoslovakian, 9 lines of Polish and memorized the names
of 15 stars. He had also worked 10 hours that day at the forge.
In
1837 Burritt walked to Worcester, Massachusetts, in order to take
up residence near the American Antiquarian Society, which possessed
a collection of books in rare, ancient languages. He soon became
known to the rich patrons of the Society who brought him to the
attention of Edward Everett, the governor of Massachusetts. In
1838 Governor Everett gave a speech in which he praised Burritt
as an example for all to follow. Burritt had arrived.
Self-improvement
went hand in hand with social reform in the nineteenth century,
and after Burritt fell into the orbit of the intellectual and
artistic circles of the Boston-Concord area, he began to work
to improve the world. He became particularly dedicated to the
cause of peace, and he became the leading pacifist of his age.
In 1846, while on a visit to England, he formed the League of
Universal Brotherhood, one of the most active pacifist organizations
in the nineteenth century. In 1848 he organized the Brussels Peace
Congress, an action which led to other such gatherings throughout
Europe. By the time he was fifty, the humble blacksmith from New
Britain was known and respected by most of the prominent leaders
of England, Europe, and the United States.
The
cruelest dilemma for the peace movement in the United States came
in 1860-1861 when the South seceded from the Union. Almost to
a man, American pacifists advocated war in order to destroy slavery.
Burritt, who opposed slavery, refused to compromise his belief
that war for any reason was immoral and urged President Lincoln
to let the South go in peace.
In
1875 Burritt suffered a stroke and retired from public life.
He
had always loved New Britain and had often returned there after
his travels in Europe. He now became a permanent resident until
his death. Although he was known as the "learned blacksmith," Burritt's
real occupation was trying to improve the human condition.
He worked as hard at that as he ever had in forging a hoe or
conjugating
Greek verbs.
For
Further Reading
The
best biography is Peter Tolis, Elihu Burritt: Crusader for
Brotherhood (Hamden, Connecticut, 1968).
*
Entry under revision.
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