Phenix gazette. [volume] (Alexandria [D.C.]) 1825-1833, 1827-08-20

sacrificed to the glory Of some military chieitain'
I had fondly hop'd 10 have found !nihee an e2eeP-
ton; but thy support; of Jackson--a man VINO
has disregarded every order he reeelVed-Who
has irampled under foot the laws ana conS'l'u
ton Of his country-and who has substituted
his own ungoycrnable will as ms only rule OF
ccndbct-thy support OF such man SNAKES
my confidence in the capacity OF man Tor sell
government, and ! fear all is lost" This is the
language Of the dying patriot. And II we iol-
lowed him with undiminished confidence, and
with unexampled success, intimes and seasons
when liable to temptation, what Difference is
not due 10 his opinion, when delivered under
such solemn circumstances, and in condition
little less imposing than if he had just risen
from the dead Under such high authority,
the more confidently assert, that the effort 10
elect Jackson, is the fruitful fountain Of the
prevailing misehitfs, which every sober man
must deprecate, as disturbing the repose and
threatening the safety o. the republic. This in
6rmi,y Of blind and idolarous devotion to mi
litary success-!he bane Of every republic that
has gone before us--is The prolific soil whose
harvest Of bitterness we are now reaping. In
the phrensy it produces, reason is no longer
heard. The grossest falsehoods are propagat
ed and believed-esery object is sacrificed with
out scruple to the success OF the idol. Talents,
services, character, weigh nothing il out Of the
pale of the party The bad passions are let
loose; lisorganiZing sentiments, and eventhreals
10 commit treason, coming from par,zans, are
countenanced and approved; the desperate Ell
ther in circumstances or character, come from
| their hiding places, wearing the badge of the
| idol, broad mantle covering every defect:-
petty politicians seeking Office without merit
10 win it, mount The popular hobby; even The
| more sedate catch The general conlagion and
| swell the tide, or lost in amaZeineat atIhe cla-
mour and folly of others, stand by without an
] effort 10 resist. These are The causes conribu-
ting to that state OF things, in which Jefferson,
profoundly versesl in the history OF Govern.
menls, saw the frightful foreboding tina, even
here all would be lost. In vain did Cato, the
! stern Roman patriot, warn his countrymen a
gainst Caesar. Equally vain was the English
patriots admonition, that CROMWELL under the
hypocritica mask of religion, was man Of
deep designs and unlimited ambition. Vain
also were the warnings Of experience against
Napoleon and his designs. The sycophanls OF
these military ehiefains, then as nov denoun-
| ced the solemn admonlion as SANDERS against
patriotism; they commended then, as now, thai
these men had nothing SO much al heart as the
|
energy and purity Of character were necessary
to cleanse their governments Of corruption; tina:
they alone could saUe The country!
The confdng dupes shouted their hosannas
TO these military chieftains, and awoke from
their deluson only at the clanking of their
chains. The sycophants, alike in all times and
countries, laughed at the folly OF the people
and applauded these brisands for their success
es -achieved by the ruin Of the liberties they
cared that their atrocious usurpa,ion was a
happy radiance from the tu bulence Of democ.
| racy.
My fellow citizens, which will you select as
your euide?--the solemn voice of The great
champion of our independence, and the stedfast
patriots Of the land; or those mushroom polili,
clans and ofIice-hunting demagogues who cry
out "away with the men now in power thou ph
pure as the angels at the right hand Of Cod
offer you these few remarks by way of in
| troduction, and shall continue thu subject in
| some future numbers A FARMER