The southern press., 1852-01-10

of education--where the very tchO oiOoy u Del
ter acquainted with the history of his country
than in monarchics scarcely the professors are
in such country it would be indeed but ridc-
ulous parading OF vanity for a stranger to dwell
upon facts which every child is better acquainted
with than he can be- Allow me- therefore, gen
tlenen, rather briefly to expoupd what Is the
practical philosophy Of that great victory which
YOU are assembled to celebrate-what is the
moral of the train as it presents itself to the
scrutator's mind
I Just as man has to pass through several Pc
riods or age each of them marked with its own
peculiari,ies before he comes to u settled posi-
| ton in life even so nation. nation has hrst
to be born, then to grow; then it has TO prove
| It's passive vitality by undergoing trial OF life.
| Afterwards it has TO prove its active force IN
gaining ascendency in its own immediate hOr-
zon. AT last, it must take its competent seat
amongst the nations Of the world power on
earth Every one Of these periods OF national
life must be gone through. There is no help
against it. 1t is necessary process OF life
And every one of these lfe-peri0ds has its own
natural condition, which must be accepted as a
necessity, even if we should not be pleased with
it. As there is no jumping in nature, equally
there il 10 stop to it, A man must be a child
before he becomes youth, and he must have
u
then, if be ridiculous to desire from the child
to act az a youth, or from the youth to be a
man, it is indeed impossible for the youth to be
still child, or to the man not to become man.
He must because he is; and if, being man, he
does not act as it becomes a man to act, well,
then, he loses the position ofa man. 1t is quite
the same with nations.
Gentlemen having pas ssed through the ordeal
OF an earnest life, with the view before my eyes
to have yet to steer through stormy gales, it is
natural that, while | grasp with steady hand the
helm Of the TEN oest-tossed bark, ! look with
calm attention to the compass of history to guide
me by its philosophy through the foaming
waves. And there is 40 history more instruc-
tive than yours because you have concentrated
within the narrow scope of a few years that ma
tural process of national life which elsewhere
was achieved bnt through centuries; and while
other nations, starting from false point OF a
false principle, wavered in their progress like the
magnetic needle surrounded by iron bars, you,
starting from Il true point, conscious of your
aim, advanced in straight direction to that
aim; and there you are, arrived, in short time,
where other nations failed to arrive in centuries,
consuming the strength Of manhood in making
their way and growing old before they got to
the settled position of the man.
IL would be "A mistake, and a mistake not un-
dangerous, to believe that your nation is still in
its youth, because it has lived but seventy-tive
years The natural condition of nations is not
measured by years, but by those periods of the
pr cess of life which had the honor to mention
already. And there is no nation on earth in
whose history those periods were 80 distinctly
marked as in yours. First, you had to be born
There is the period Of your glorious struggle for
independence. Eternal glory to those who con
Quoted it! You were baptized with blood, as
it seems TO be the destiny of nations; but 1t
was the genius Of freedom which stood god
father at your baptism, and gave to you lasting
character by giving you the Christian name OF
"repmblic" Then you had to grow, and, in
6eed, you have grown with the luxuriant rapid
ity of The virgin nature of the American SOIL
Washington knew the nature of this soil, fertil
lied by The blood of your martyrs, and warmed
by the sun Of your liberty. He knew 1t when
he told your fathers that you wanted buttwenty
years of peaceful growth to defy whatever power
in just cause. You have grown through those
twenty years. and wisely avoided to endanger
your growth by undertaking toll not becom-
ing to your growing age; and there you stood
about another twenty years, looking resol1tey
but unpretendngly around if there be anybody
TO question that you were really nation on
earth The question was put in 1912, and de-
cided by that glorious victory the anniversary
Of which you celebrate to-day. That victory
has deeper meaning in your history than ooly
that Of repulsed INVASION. 1t marks period
liz your national life--the period OF acknowl.
edged, unshakeable secur Ity of your national
existence. II is the consu bimation OF your dec
lara;on of Independence You have proved by
it that the United States 'ossess an lncontest-
able vitality, having the po wer to conserve that
ind Lott, an IL
ers have established by the declaration Of inde-
pendence. In reality, it was the victory OF New
Orleans by which you took your sea, amongst
the independent nations Of the world, never to
be contested through all p p,sierity. nation
is really independent only when it proves by
fact to make good the word of the poet:
"Come the three corners of the world in arms,
And we will shock them
The victory of New Orleans was proof of it
was the period of demonstr ,tive pa ssive vital
iy And the process of life went on. The
next natural period was to demonstrate your
Vitality That was demonstr sted by the war
against Mexico.
1.-THE history of New Orleans was the period
demonstrating the security of your national ex.
istence the victorious war against Mexico WIS
the peri I'd demonstrating not only that nobody
can dare to attack your existence, but that also
your national interests must be respected, and
nobody can dare to oppose them.
The period of active vitality is accomplishe d..
Now one period then remains yet to achieve
that to take your seat, not amongst the nations
of the earth, because thai you have since the
day of New Orleans, but amongst the poacers
on earth. What is the meaning of that word
"power on earthy" The meaning of it is to
have not only the power to guard your own par
ticnIar interests, but also to have a vote in the
ree ulation of the common interests OF humanity,
of which you are an independent meinber-in a
word, to become tribunal controlling the
manter arce Of the law Of nations, precisely as
your Supreme Court controls the maintenance
of your own Constitution and laws. And, in
deed, all logic of craftsmanship, all philosophy
Of history, would be vain, if were mistaken
that your grea. nation is arrived at-this unavoid-
able period of the natural process of your natu-
raj life.
The sympathy which met with in your glo-
rious land, the very toast you pleased to
honor ne with, the principles you expressed, are
highly significant dem onstratioD of the truth
of this statement of mine. Indeed gentlemen
what is the explanatory key of this rapid pro-