He was a pioneer worker in building up what he liked to speak of
as the New South: --
The South whose gaze is cast
No more upon the past,
But whose bright eyes the skies of promise sweep,
Whose feet in paths of progress swiftly leap;
And whose fresh thoughts, like cheerful rivers, run
Through odorous ways to meet the morning sun!
Chapter XI. Characteristics and Ideas
Perhaps the best single description of Lanier is that by his friend
H. Clay Wysham: "His eye, of bluish gray, was more spiritual than dreamy --
except when he was suddenly aroused, and then it assumed
a hawk-like fierceness. The transparent delicacy of his skin and complexion
pleased the eye, and his fine-textured hair, which was soft
and almost straight and of a light-brown color, was combed behind the ear
in Southern style. His long beard, which was wavy and pointed,
had even at an early age begun to show signs of turning gray.
His nose was aquiline, his bearing was distinguished, and his manners
were stamped with a high breeding that befitted the `Cavalier' lineage.
His hands were delicate and white, by no means thin, and the fingers tapering.
His gestures were not many, but swift, graceful, and expressive;
the tone of his voice was low; his figure was willowy and lithe;
and in stature he seemed tall, but in reality he was a little below six feet
-- withal there was a native knightly grace which marked his every movement.
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