Grand River times. [volume] (Grand Haven, Mich.) 1851-18??, 1852-08-11
SUDDEN PATRIOTISM.

The Wings have got up celebration Of the
the Battle of Lundy's Lane, at Niagara, which
was to have taken place on the 27th ut, We
see by telegraphic despatch, that Gen. Scott
has yielded to the solicitations of his friends
and old comrades, to revisit the fields upon
which he fought and bled," at that time.
Now We publish a democratic paper, and may
not be looked upon as disinterrested in this mat
ter but we humbly submit it to the candor of
our wing friends, if this is not carrying the hum
bug a little too farl 1t is a new and repulsive
feature in our party manGuvres when the bat
tle-felds of the countryside sacred places of
history-are to be made the stamping grounds
of horde of men, who perhaps never gave them
moments thought before; the arena where
not the merits of the dead are to be canvassed,
but the living are to be vilifed.
Forty years have passed since that brave band
fought and conquered at Lundy's Lane Forty
years have the gallant dead slept where they
fell. Forty years have their deeds been record
ed in our country's history; but scarcely any
other demonstration of regard as far as our
memory gocs,has been paid them, except the cat
aract, which has, with singular disinterested-
ness, sung their requiem. Forty years have
passed. and the great, universal, all-the-ntelli-
gence, all-the-decency, Wing party, have never
celebrated Lundy's Lane-have never given it
moments thought. But the fortieth year has
passed, and behold, this patriotic party has wa
ked up,and with an astonishing fit of patriotism,
has stopped in the very heat of its strife to weep
over the heroic dead and to give the neglected
Lundy's Lane the benefit of their concentrated
fuss and feathers and smoke and ditties and tom
foolery.
Forty years have passed. and Scott, who new
L. i.
"yields to his friends" and re-visits the old bat
tie ground. One would imagine him with barred
head and respectful step, going in silence to that
spot consecrated by the blood of his comrades
but who will not turn with disgust from the
real picture--the screaming music, the cotton
banners, the oath and jest, the partizan appeals,
the sacriligious tramp of ribald crowd over the
graves, the liquor selling booths, the omnbuss-
es, hacks, runners, stages, the party badges, the
cheers and Kisses, and perchance the roulette
and dice boards and scrub races, and all the usn-
al accompaniment of great gathering. The
all-decency party have come to this The all
intelligence Wing party have put on their trick
and tinsel, and gone to one Of our country's bu-
rial ground to make political capital; and their
man has gone with them! If dead men could
move, those gallant fellows would make one
more fight at Lundy's Lane, and these party
hacks and office seekers would come back faster
than they went
We did not intend to speak of this at such
length, but cannot refrain from presenting one
more picture. In plain, unpretending house
in the Granite State, there is another party lead
er; man who has served his country in her
battles and councils, and yet has gone back to
his home, seeking and asking nothing therefor.
Declining nomination to the highest office in
the world, it has forced itself upon, and yet
found and left him the same modest ilnassuming
statesman. Not inflated with the honor, not
running hither and thither with routs and caval-
cades, not setting up over the graves of his COM
rades menagerie wherein to show himself off
at half price, with tinsel and feathers and trick
ery-but attending to his business and biding
his time like an honest republican, American cit
izen. That man is Franklin Pierce-and if no
political earthquake shall overwhem the parties
of this nation, between now and November he
will be the next President of the United States.
[Green Bay Advocate