The native American., 1838-04-28

JloWlHg appear 10 tAIHcIleil PdtfloliSm and love
of country, and would suggest, as compliment
to its distinguished author, and the intrinsic me,
ris of the piece that our readers impress its les
sons indelbly on their minds.-E. N. Am.
OUR COUNTRY.
When we reflect on what has been, what is.
how is it possible not TO feel profound sense al
1.-THE responsibilities Of this republic to ali future
fages! What vast motives press upon us for lofty
effort! What brilliant prospects invite our enth,l-
siasm? What solemn warnings at once demand
our vigilance, and moderate our confidence?
The old world has already revealed to us in
its uIlseaed books, the beginning and end Of all
its marvellous struggles in the cause of liberty.
Greece! lovely Greece! the land of scholars and
1.-THE nurse of arms, where sister republics. in fair
processon chanted the praise of liberty and the
lgood--where is she? For two thousand wears
the oppressors have bound her to the EARTH Her
arts are no more. The last sad relics of her tenn
pies are but the barracks of ruthless soldiery:
| the fragments of her columns and palaces are in
the dust, yet beautiful in ruins! She fell not
when the mighty were upon her. Her sons
were united at Thermopyle and Marathon, and
the tide Of her triumph rolled back upon the He'll
espont. She fell not by the hands of her own
people. The man of Macedonia did not the
work of destruction. twas already done by her
own coTuptions, banishments and dissensions.
| Rome! republican Rome! whose eagles glanced
! in the rising sun--where and what is she? The
eternal city yet remains proud even in her DESC
laton, noble in decline, venerable in the majesty
of religion, and calm in the composure of death.
The malaria has but travelled in the parts won
by the destroyer. More than eighteen centuries
have mourned over the loss of the empire. A
moral disease was upon her before Caesar had
passed the Rubicon, and Brutus did not restore
her health by the deep probings of the senate
chamber. The Goths, and Vandals, and Huns,
the swarms Of the north, completed only what
was begun at home Romans BETRAYED Rome
The legions were bought and sold but the people
paid the tribute money. as a
And where are the Republics Of modern times
which cluster around immortal Italy! Venice and
Genoa exist but in name. The Alps, indeed,
look down upon the brave and peaceful Swiss, in
their native lastnesses; but the guaranty Of their
freedom is their weakness, and not their strength
The mountains are not easily retained. When
the invader comes, he moves like anavalanche,
carrying destruction in his path. The peasantry
sink before him. The country, too, is too poor
for plunder, and too rough for valuable conquest
Nature presents her eternal barrier on every side,
to check the lwantonness of ambition And
Switzerland remains with her simple institutions
a military road to climates scarcely worth per
manent possession, and protected by the jealousy
Of her neighbors. sasiilj s.sr4 9taa .sigH,.
We stand the latest, and if we fall probably the
last example of selfgovernment by the people.
We have begun it under circumstances of the
most auspicious nature. We are in the vigor of
youth. Our growth has never been checked by
the oppression of tyranny. Our constituents
have never been enfeebled by the vices or luxu-
ries Of the world. . 4a.t
Such as we are, we have been from the be-
ginning; simple, hardy, intelligent, accustomed to
|selfgovernment and selfrespect The Atlantic
rolls between us and formidable foe. Within
our own territory, stretching through many de-
grees of latitude we have the choice of many pro-
ducts, and many means of independence. The
government is mild. The press is free Reli-
gion is free. knowledge reaches, or may reach,
every home. What fairer prospect of success
could be presented?--what more is necessary than
for the people to preserve what they themselves
have created? ,ss. stl
Already has the age caught the spirit of our
institutions. 1t has ascended the Andes, and
snuffed the breezes of both oceans. 1t has in.
fused itself in the life-blood Of Europe, and warm
ed the sunny plains of France, and the low lands
of Holland. 1t has touched the philosophy Of
Germany and the North, and moving onward to
the South, has opened to Greece the lesson Of
better days. af us III n t
Can it be that America under such circumstan-
|ces can betray herself!-That she is to be added
to the catalogue of republics, the inscription upon
whose ruin is, they were, but they are not. =
Forbid it, my countrymen. Forbid it heaven.
/ call upon you, FATHERS, by the shades OF
your ancestors, by the dear ashes which repose
in this precious SOIL by all you hope to be- resist
every project of disunion; resist every attempt to
fetter your conscience, or smother your Public
Schools, or extnguish your system of Public In
struction. r s @ Y
call upon you, MOTHERS, by that which new
er fails in woman, the love of your offspring, to
teach them as they climb your knees, to lean on
your bosoms, the blessings of liberty. Swear
them at the altar, as with their baptsmal vows
to be true to their country and never forsake her.
| i call upon you, YouNe MEN, to remember
whose sons you are, whose blood flows in your
veins. Life can never be too short which brings
nothing but disgrace and oppression. Death
never comes too soon, if necessary, in defence of
the liberties of our country.-BaH Monument.
The tragedy of Othello was lately performed
e. tbn Iaatb IN