The star of the north. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1849-1866, 1851-08-07

81AAkk
Here, too, lot The monument Of this man
be built. To carry out its expression and
appropriate associations, this is tho place
for il. Tho monument Of the Swise who
fell a,lParis defending the King in 100. is
in shoyery heart of the land whose children
they were, and in which their faithfulness
was taught and cherished. II is cut out in
their native GRACE, in tho mids, Of their boz
loved mountains. The Same law Of associ-
a,isns locates Shunk's monument here.
While iss shadows fall sofily,on his grave,
leri, mark also the place Of his nativity,
aud whore no imbibed those noblo senti-
men,s and affections which so s,rikingly H.
Illustrated and adorned his life.
Undoubtedly Governor Shunk's German
blood and language helped his advancement
in public favor. Germans, attracted at an
early day by tho fame of Penn, came in
prea, numbers from the father-land, and sct-
tied in Pennsylvania, and have always for
med a large aud mos, respectable portion Of
our population. Though mixed with people
of different habits Of thought aud action,
who have displayed in Pennsylvania all tho
activity, energy and enterprise that belong
TO the Scolch-Ir irish and Yankees, yet the Ger
mans have maintained their ascendency
both in wealth and in social and political in
auence. Love Of ~country-patient industry
sound Judgment, and infexible integrity,
ARE characteristics of this people, and how
ahesc qualities have impressed The people ,of
other extraction in Pennsylvania, may be
seen in the fact that our chief executive of
flee has been entrusted to a German for
more than half the time since the adoption
of the Constitution of 1890. Snyder, HES
ter, Shultz, Wolf, Ritner and Skunk were all
Germans, and so is that estimablo man. re-
Gently nominated by reclamation, Col. Will
liam Bisler. In our Legislative halls and
in government departments, The Germans
have always had a largl representation. In
tho developemcnt of the agricultural resour-
ces of Pennsylvania, they have led tho way,
and done more TO demonstrate the wisdom
sand pIoftableness OF good farming Than any
other class of our people. Thoy love good
land, and they know how to make good use
of il. Where on our cortincnt-wherc IN
our world, will you ind more independence,
contentmcn, and solid comfort than in the
German families Of our limestone valleys
It is a pleasing thought that a race OF Cover
nors has been nurturcd amid tho rich luxuri-
ance and tho exemplary virtues OF these
valloys-a pleasing thought it is too, that
we have come, at lcngih, to croct in tho bo-
som of ono of tho l~oycliost Of these valleys
a monument TO ono of tho noblest OF those
German Governors. That people msy well
love Skunk and honor his memory, for he
was an cxponcnt-an embodied expression
of the characteristics of his race-and they
may look on this monument as peculiarly
, ,heirs-as q memorial Of what they have
done Tor Pennsylvania-a concrete tribute TO
the virtues, the manly Independence, and the
-e,ern ropublicanism of Pennsylvania Ger
mans.
In the death OF Governor Skunk, there
was the same conscientious regard Tor tho
public interests that marked his life. In tho
hour of his mortal agony, he forgot not the
people whom no had long scryod, and who
had confded important trusts to him; but,
in q beautiful and touching letter OF rosIgna-
lion, lo said, 81 restore TO you tho trust with
which your s~uflrases have clothed me, in
order that you may avail yourselves OF The
provision of the Constitution to choose @
successor at the next General Election" lilo
must have resigned ,hen-July 9, lSiS-or
his successor could not have beeu elected
until a year and q quarter after his death;
and to havo left tho people so long without
a Governos of their own choosing, would,
in his judgment, have been unjust and mex
podient. Had tho dying patriot forgotten
this last duty, or neglected TO perform 1t,
whose heart is so callous that It could not
have forgiven him! But since he neither
forgot nor neglected it, but performed ii
as the last act of Ms mortal lie, whose heart
us so insensible as not to honor his devotion
TO duty and county?
Some strange misapprchcnsions grew out
of this transaction, the motives Tor which
arc plainly expressed on its face and the
upright men with whom Governor Skunk
had surrounded himself as Constitutional in
our political annals, has, like his Great
Chief paid the debt of nature-weto chang
cd with .indelicate intrusion 10 obtain q res
ignaiion, at, that particular hour but. they
were unjus,ly, charged. Tho Rev. DR.. De
Witt has abundautly xindicaied them and
Governor Skunk, from all sinister motives
and indicate conduct. Let calumny and
1eproach DO hushed in the silence OF the
grave
Governor Shnnk died, as he had lived, q
firm believer in the great doctrines OF chris
tianiiy. He was q Lutheran by education,
aud remained ,hrongh life strongly attached
to the doctrines, the polity; and tho disci-
pline, of the Lutheran Church. He read
Luther's Bible, in the German, daily, and he
learned from its sacred pages how to live
and how TO die.
And now we sum up the properties OF
this charactcr-a character as solid as this
granite base, and as puro as this white mar
III, Il, Tho u,ords that ihia heautifuI struc.