The spirit of democracy. [volume] (Woodsfield, Ohio) 1844-1994, 1845-09-13

poor. and very poor, in that true wisdom which
makes the minds riches.
Z II may be. man OF wealth that you are afraid,
lest your State Legislature shall be nstgated to m-
pose new taxes upon you; and perhaps, you have
the usual narrow notion Of sordid souls, that gov
ernment is instituted, solely, for the protection of
property" aud not to take care Of the minds Of
men. Friend, you reason badly, even with your
own miserable selfishness. You forget that the
well-being Of your neighbor greatly concerns both
you and your property, and that the ignorance or
bad education ofhis children may affect you much
more than you can tell, both as . man an citi-
zen
Compare for one moment, the uneducated man
with one that is educated. Which of the two is
more likely to become burthen upon community,
by failing to procure for himself the means ofsub-
slstance' Which is more likely to fall into the
paths of vice, or TO obey those impulses that lead
to crme' Which is more likely to be honest and
discreet in exercising his share Of the sovereignty
of the country, at the baIlotbox? Which is more
likely, when opportunity occurs, to disregard the
rights of property or to trample upon social order!
Which will make the better soldier in war, or the
better citizen in peace' Which will make the
better neighbor, and whom would you rather have
in your houses, your fields, and your workshops!
Winch will be most likely to make his home the
abode Of temperance, ofindustry, of innocepse, of
good economy. and of all those christian virtues,
from which flow "peace OH earth, and good will
TO men"
II you still would prate about the protection Of
property. Thomas CARLYLE shall answer yuo.
Speaking nlhe name of one whom you-think to,
be of little worth, because he is poor man, boast-
ing not of property, Carlyle addresses you, in
these words ..-es al
-'ADd now, what's thy. property' That
parchment ttle-deed, that purse thou buttonest in
thy breeches pocket? Is that thy valuable proper
| tyr Unhappy brother, most poor insovent broth
er. without parchment at all, wth purse often
| est in the faccid state, imponderous, which viii
not fling against the wind, have quite other proper
" than that! Ihave the miraculous breath Of Life,
breathed into my nostrils by Almighty Gbd. l
hive affections thoughts, God-given caPabaay
to be and do; rights, therefore,-the right for IN
stance to thy love il love thee; the strongest
rights, whereof in church puIpits one still hears
something, though almost unlntelligible now;
rights, stretching, high into immensely, far into
Eternity! Fifteen pence a-day, three-and-six-
pence a-day; eight hundred pounds and odd a.day,
dost thou call that thy property? value that lIt-
te little all could purchase with that For truly,
as is sad what matters it. III torn boots, IN soft
hung carriages and-four, man gets always toh
journeys end. Socrates walked barefoot, or in
wooden shoes. and yet arrived happily They
| never asked him, What shoes or conveyance! new
| err, What wages hadst thou? but simply, What
pork dds 'sth0u?-Property, o brother, "of my
very body have but lite rent" AS for this fiac-
cid purse of mine, 'tis something, nothing; has
been the slave Of pick-pockets, cut-throats, Jew
brokers, gold-dustrobbers; twas his, It's mine;-
It's lhIne if thou care much to steal it. But my
soul, breathed into me by God, my Me and what
capability is there; that is mine, and will resist
the stealing oft. call that mine and not thine;
| | will keep that, and do what work can with It:
God has given it me, the Devil shall not take it
away"
But what need of talk like this. The question
of improving our means Of ofeducation, like all 9TH
er questions of ref,rm, rests not with the sordid
.fec, but with the many The drones Of society
should not determine II. II is the interest Of the
tolling millions that is at stake; and, so long as
#r "The smoke ascends
Toheayen, as lightly from the cottage hearth,
| AS from the haughtest palace"
the laboring masses ought not, for one moment, to
forget that they are the real soveregns of this fa-
vored land.
Your fellow citizen,