Ypsilanti sentinel. [volume] (Ypsilanti, Washtenaw Co., Mich.) 1843-1900, 1844-03-27

The republican experiment in ancien
Greece failed for want of federal uniol
among the States. In Rome, it failed b,
consolidation and Capitalization of al
power in one State, which was bounded
by the walls Of a single city. Rome hat
subject provinces where she ought to have
made free States with equal rights ant
common liberty, a common interest, q
common bond of union. Greece hat
free States, bat no national unity.
The evils Ofthese two opposite extremes
were well avoided by ourfathers, and the
good of both was blended into a firm
basis, upon which we stand to work.
They founded ae build. The task of q
Revolutionary age.--the purpose of thai
| time, was not to overthrow and DESTROY
but to establish, to fr. 1t was not le
show that free united people could sue
cessfully resist tyranny and repel inva-
sion for what was an old facr, associa.
ted with all the most inspiring remem-
brances of classic ages. That lesson
had been taught to all the world through
all time at Marathon, at Thermopyle, at
Salarnis, and had been repeated in the
earliest history of Republican Rome, re-
reiterated drought modern ages in Swift.
zerland. in Sweden and in Holland. Our
Rev evolutionary War, but added one to nu.
merous evidences of familiar truth which
the world could never deny nor forget.
The patriots Of that age knew when
their work was done. They knew that
the cause of liberty was only half vindi-
Gated by the sword. That only showed
the power to get; the right to keep lib
erty could only be indicated by making
good use Of It. The Revolution proper
was not complete till The national govern
meni was organized by Congress, and
the people had felt-and the world had
seen--the beneficial operation of Re-
publican Government. That Revolution
airy age, therefore, includes a period of
fifteen or twenty years, throug hout which
one great work was in progress. It was
tho TINE, with one PURPOSE and one
MAN.
The wonderful and perfect adaptation
of that man to the great purpose of that
whole time, and the complete identi6ca-
lion of the cause of the nation, that his
ton of this general truth, and are best de-
monstrated by the fact that at this mo-
ment his name need no, be uttered. In
all this assembly, there is not heart
tina, does not thrill with grateful and en-
lhusiastlc Impressions of that name. And
not here alone, not merely where our
language is spoken, not merely in those
countries and places with which we
have frequent and familiar incourse-but
in other lands, that name
ais st ill q Watchword to the Earth.''
In Greece you need but speak of our
Revolutionary time, and they will anti
cipate your Inference by murmuring that
name ia accents so strange that you will
hardly recognize it in the perverted sounds
into which it has been transformed to
suit it to the language Of Leonidas, Arts
tides, Phocion and Philopemen. And
in the far Southern regions of this con,
tinent, in the valleys of the Orinoco and
the Paraguay-on the Ilanas of the An
des, and among the forest.over-grown
ruins of.vast primeval Empires that left
no record and no name-from California
to PatigonIa-.-there are many in every
country and in every city who will long
repeat that name, in tones of sorrow that
they had not known, sat least in their
day. one like him, mourning that he
only
"Beeueathed the name of Washington,
To make man blush there was but ONE"
1t is instructive to look at the relations
of Washington TO his time. He was so
placed and so acted in his place, as 10 be-
come the exemplar Of his nation; the
concentration and personification of all
the distinctive virtues ofthe age. fyou
analyze and coldy criticize his charac.
ter without refernce to his connexions
with the purposes of his time, you may
find cause to wonder at his reputation and
perhaps doubt his title to that singular
and undisputed glory which is now his
everywhere and will be his forever. He
was not a brilliant man, nor was he lear.
ned and eloquent. His moral sense, mor-
al dignity, judgment and sagacity were
pre-eminent but in many Of the traits
which we might hastily deem important
to the completeness ola great character,
he was decidedly inferior to many secon.
dairy men who surrounded MIN through
his whole career, contributing each a
part to that greatness which shone thro'
his actions. He was perfect general,
vet you never rank with him such men
as his interiors in that respect, however
tried. A more valiant warrior never led
a host to battle ; you never think ofcom-
pairing him with Prescott, Wayne, Mari
on, Paul Jones, or the infamous Arnold,
who all showed themselves unsurpassed
in desperate military courage. No sin
gle act Of Washington's life was, for
mere personal selfsacsifoe, equal to the