University of Virginia Library

R. I. P.

Among the many depressing events of the
holiday season, the deaths of two remarkable
men, former President Harry Truman and
baseball star Roberto Clemente. They were the
same sort of men, both committed to their
work and their world, and each dedicated to
doing what he thought was right for the
benefit of mankind. It is a pity that the
humanitarian slugger could not live as long as
the tough little president.

Mr. Truman was made of a rare mixture of
firmness and compassion which his moment
in history required. Almost any reference to
this personality seems trite, but history will
no doubt agree that an incredible weight fell
on his shoulders when he became president,
that he was forced to make decisions most of
us would find horrifying, and that he
probably did as well as any man could. His
death at 88 marked the end of a long full life
which we suspect will serve as an inspiration
to all the nobodies whose genius and talents
our languishing world could really use.

Mr. Clemente was a hero of his native
Puerto Rico and his fans in Pittsburgh; more
important, he was genuinely concerned with
the misery of others less gifted than himself.
His death while attempting to save the people
of Managua, tragic as it was, indicated what
sort of man he was, another kind the world
could use a lot more of.