Edwardsville spectator. [volume] (Edwardsville, Ill.) 1819-1826, 1825-08-20
From the Liverpool Mercury,

STATE OF AMERlCA.-In forty
years the Americans have quadrupled
their population, and stretched their ter
ritory from the waters of the Ohio and
Mississippi TO the Pacific.-They have
assumed, as if by instinct, mighty sys-
TEN Of private law i; precision of diplo-
macy; large code Of commerce and
national interests. They have taken the
lead in vigor of improvem ent and prac-
tical science. Mendici,y is almost IN.
known; the demand of labor is i'm.
mense, and its rewards abundant. Church
dissensions are heard OF only in the his
tory OF foreigners slavery itself the
plague spot of human society, is fast
yergmg TO decay. Agriculture, the me-
chanlc arts and manufactures are adj
vaucing with mighty strides. The bow
els of ihe Ailegbanes are pouring forth
their treasures OF iron, coal and lead {;
and the huge western Savannahs, trod-
den htlle while ago oo!y by The bison,
the cougar, or the volt, are echoing the
noises o! torges, looms, and bloom cries.
Sioce 1908, The export trade o. the L mon
has advanced from twenty three millions
OF dollars, to more than eighty millions.
Their tonnage amounts to more than a
million aud half, being nearly treble
increase since the beginning of the pre-
sent century. III the Hudson alone the
number of merchant vessels is at this
hour nearly equal, and twelve years ago
was much superior TO the whole ship
ping Of Scotland. Their steam vessels
almost double in nuueric al amount, and
far surpass in tonnage ant, velocity, the
vapour ships OF Britain. Before the ex-
tent OF their canals, the efforts of the
modern world shrink into insigni6c canoe,
nay, the brightly ways and acqueducts of
imperial Roiae herself are brought into
hazardous comparison. The number is
at least twenty; and the greatest length
stretches to three hundred and sixty
miles. Yet the huges, of those ma lcs-
tic ducts was accomplished at the sole
charge of State Of little more than
single miitian OF inhabitants. The navy
OF The Union amour. : 70 sTiore than TWEEN
iy ships Of the line, besides numerous
frigsles and gun boats. And the whole
OF this enormous mass of vIgor, wealth
and population, IS securely defended by
standing army Of little more than i've
thousand men. Nor are there any inter-
nal taxes; any hateful pryings into in
come or domestic privacy. The pro-
vincial governments alone levy direct
mpost OF about dollar on each in!abi-
tant. This is TO be free people. This
it is to have sprung from the bosom Of
the British empire like Pallas from the
brain OF Joye, full grown and armed in
proof De we turn sick at these ad.
vances; The mutual trade of the United
States and British empire now exceeds
fifty millions of Dollars; an amount
quite equal to the trade OF the Republic
with ali the rest Of the globe. And is
this any food for jeaiously? II is, as il.
ought to be, the stronges, cement Of
friendship. We rejoice IN tins growing
up of freedom and power in the western
world We glory in this living bulwark
against the worse than Pagan incursions
OF legitimate fana,icism. We look for
ward with Joy to the ilius'rious period,
when the growing tide OF population
shall have fully ierlilzed the barbarity
Of the western wilderness and nigh.
,y race, one in sentiment, one in virtue,
one in interesest, speaking in no more
than double tongue, shall be busted in
lighting up and transmitting the lamp of
knowledge, without interruption, from
the wolves dens Of +" Oonalashka," to
the eternal fires OF Horne.