New-York daily tribune., 1849-02-15

many hfn AZ noiy associations which send thrill #
awe 20 every American heart Il Is only BY the power
Of association, however. that any such sensations
produced for worse commonplace barren dreary.
looking barn ii would be dE.cult to ind Imagine
large square room, with a ceiling about as hish a.
hsy NOV, and the door covered v.tn aveshiling n-
grain carpet in whose web red lily with purple
leaves seems 10 be chasing green snake through a
field Of blue and white grass Opposite the entrance
stands plaster paris statue of General Warrington
thcky coated with cream coored vsrnish Al hs feet
e fragment Ct motiled marble, bearing gided in
scrption 10 the effect that
IT.. ape-- of,hs sor.ts from orb ,t- s-er-r, -ss .-
Decsffiiar % lnd-f eltsros % lie Pep
.....
On the right Of the stands the great leather
covered armchair Of JoHN HANCOCK and on the left
that Of WILLIAM Thompson, the Secretary Of the
Convention. On the right hand Of the door s sweet,
dreamy portrait Of WrLLIAM PENN, who must have
been Of the most romantic, poetieal souls ever
created, Whatever History may say to the contrary
His face In all his portraits has that cslu celestial
preston Of love and purity which we seldom see in
the present corrupted and convulsve rsce Of mep and
only sometimes in women and children. ltis face %
fall in love with and 70 have forever haunting ones
a
side Of the door is vivid, muscular portrait Of
LAFAYETIE lke that Of Penn foll length which pre-
sent. with remarkabe force the face and presence Of
this arid republican and good hearted srisocrat Ia
the corner stands the old deal table which bore the
precious Declaration and around which gathered the
mghties, and grayest and ssddest and yet hoPeuest
council Of brave men that convened this earth
10 whose brsins and hearts lay terminating the seed OF
the Tree Of Liberty whose upspringing and wide.
spreading branches already have begun overshsdowng
the world While standing here mighty hand seemed
to seize and bear back TO the stern, earnest
times Of the Republic when all was uncertain but
honor. all weak but faith, all dark but hope And be
hs, time and this could not fail TO draw con
trast that reflects no glory on the present
We fingered long in this old room, while thoughts
were busy with the past, the present and the future.
We recalled the days and the men Of the Revolution,
and saw that America in its very infancy, was cenu
res in advance Of ell the world in respectto the great
fundamental questions Of the freedom and happiness
OF mankind Europe has looked on snd watched our
career with pretended suspicion and contempt, yet
with real fear and envy end now the example OF the
men Of the Republic ls producing It's inevitable conse
quences and France, Germany and Italy ringing
with these ideas of moderate and practical republic
which originated among the pioneers and puriians OF
the new world Blu, have maintained the relative
position Of our foreathers advance Of all the world
or have we suffered Europe to overtske and pass US,
and degenersted to become in spectators
and enviers OF the progress Of others While Europe
came slow fserng after in the achievement Of po
liticsl emancipation 1t clearly our duty and
privilege to have kept still in advance and by this time
have achieved social prosperity and individual hsp
piness to every member Of the repubhc-to have se
cured to Strength Employment to Employment Re
ward TO have appropriated the discoveries OF physical
science 10 and magnificent system Of improv
ing the earth and developing all the bengnsnt powers
Of the elements for the benefit Of the whole people
10 have distributed to the children Of Industry and
cured to them and theirs forever the boundes
Of fertile wilderness and prairie that lie cosxng the
fructifyog hand Of Labor to have banished from the
length and breadth of soil every trace and yesge
of social or political slavery to have quencbed the
spirit Of and conquest and established over all the
land the religion Of love and peace and brotherhood
How have these obligations been accomplished aud
how stand we now
But the bell tolls midday, and we have wasted ar
hour dreaming in this ghosty old Hall. lie, climb
up the sieeple and look out upon the busy
actual, selfcomplscent world Here we are upon the
dreamy haze, over the vast city expanding iis rigid
waves TO sea Of brick and mortar and brown roof
beneath us-n,erspersed here and there with issrds
of rich green foliage tha, refresh the soul OF to the
North east climbing in the diminishing distance to
minge Itself in the clouds creeps the blue Delaware
Ike vein in an old mans hand. The banks concealed
by the ciiys smoke and dust which hang in low clouds
over The western shore expand into blue green forests
W tain fhs E.sf tn sns
northwe the green thread Of the schuylki is just
visible and beyond the sieeples that rise amborsly
above the roofprairie. stands in classic and modest
beauty, Girard College-hst most exquisite snd i'm
mortal poem, the life and death work OF the hardest
and least poeticsl Of mortsls. West and South the
gaze loses itself in an iniermnsbe horizon of brown
tiles and eastwsrdy long green island severed in the
middle Ike lizard cut in two bounds the vision.
Immediately feet the grey panorama Of Chesnut
gides no.elessy BY the street dwndled to the dimen
.ions OF forest path and all the pretty ladies' looking
like butteraes-while the brave shops a-d lofty build
ings seem no bigger than the card houses which chi
dren love to build aud overturn. So let descend
and recover Of proportion, or we shall end
by coneeiving contempt for al LillPui beneath US
Clink - clank what have we herei we 20
through this little door and stand In the center Of the
Illuminated Clock It is the miscroscope realized
The wheels are broad mill stones and the weights
are attached TO cables strong enough 10 fasten steam
boat 10 the wharf We trace clearly every com
picated contrivsnce Of this nisble result Of meehsn
ism The pendulum Of the SIZE Of steamers wax
ing beam move. slowly and fro once in two seconds
cink --- cank Morning and noon and night sum
mer and Winter up here alone in It's mysterious and
slen, realm OF wheels and springs and machinery
ever cit. the broodng Spirit OF the Clock Clink --
clank Il makes queer sort Of shudder creep over
Us 10 think what be It's reflections in rs sole mn
aud dreary solitude What heart breskings what crimes
what horrors chroniclest thou, from day to day and
from year 10 year unconscious monitor Of the unheed
ing world Thy four faces, though they al look oil
iereu, ways vet zee but the same weary monoto
ny Of sorrow and fraud and desPair-wi;h row and
then bright cesm Of besuty Of happiness, Ike the
golden assh Of star falling amid the stil and solemn
night Farewell, old Clock Il "a 4. If we had been
looking in upon the brain OF Time himself and watching
is gigantic pulsstons
In our descent from the clock, We come 10 he Old
Sell OF independence, with iu prophetic inscripuon'
Proclaim Liberty to al the Nations Having faith
fully performed its mission il now hangs broken and
useless. vet sacred msmeniO Of days that have shed