Gallipolis journal. [volume] (Gallipolis, Ohio) 1837-1919, 1853-06-23


: kind, of which even we, fond and proud
Of it as we are, do but family guess the
, magnitude. Applause. 1t could hard
, ly be said at the time to prosper in any
: of its parts. 1t yielded no return to
) the Pecuniary capital invested. The
, political relations of the colonies from
: the first were those of encroachment
} and resistance, and even the moral prin-
ciple, so far as there was one, on which
: they were founded. was not consistently
carried out. There was conflict with
/ savages; war with the French and
f Spaniards; jarring and feuds between
neighboring colonies; persecution Of
dissenting individuals and sects; per-
! petual discord with the crown and the
J proprietsries. Yet, in the main, and on
J the whole,
"The work went brayely on"
Things that did not work singly
worked together; or if they did not
work together they worked by reaction
and collision. Feeble germs of settle
ment grew to the consistency of power
full colonies; habits of civil government
rooted themselves in soil that was con-
tinually stirred by political agitation;
the frame of future Republics knit itself,
as it were in embryo, under monar-
chial system of colonial rule; and in the
middle of the eighteenth century the
approach of mighty changes began to
be dimly foreseen by gifted spirits. A
faint streak of purple light blushed
along the eastern sky. Applause.
Two things worth mentioning contri-
buted to the result. One was the alb
sence of the precious metals. The
British colonies were rich in the want OF
gold. As the abundance of gold and
silver in Mexico and Peru contributed,
in various ways, to obstruct the pros
perity of the Spanish colonies, the want
! of them acted not less favorably here.
In the first settlement of a savage
wilderness the golden attraction is too
powerful for the ordinary routine of life.
1t produces a feverish excitement un
favorable to the healthy growth and
calm action of the body polite. AL
though California has from the first had
the advantage of being Incorporated
into stable political system, of which,
as a sister State, she forms an integral
part, it is quite doubtful whether, look
ing to her permanent well-being, the
gold is to be blessing to her. 1t will
hasten her settlement; but that would
at any rate have advanced with great
rapidity. One of the most intellectual
men in this country, the author of one
of the most admirable works in our
language, l mean "Two Years Before
the Mast" once remarked to me that
"California would be one of the finest
countries in the world to live in if it
were not for the gold"
The other circumstance which opera
, ted in the most favorable manner upon
the growth of the Anglo-American
colonies was the fact that they were
called into existence less by the govern
ment than by the people-that they
were settled not only by bodies of colo
nists, but by individual emigrants.-
, The Crown gave charters of govern
, ment and grants of land, and a con-
siderable expenditure was made by
some of the companies and proprietors
who received these grants; but upon the
whole, the United States were settled
by individuals-the adventurous, reso-
lutte, high-spirited, and in many cases
| prosecuted men and women, who sought
/ a home and a refuge beyond the sea-
and such was the state of Europe in the
seventeenth and eighteenth centuries
: that it furnished succession Of victims
of long series of political and religious
: disasters and prosecutions, who found,
one after another, safe and congenial
{ retreat in some one of the American
colonies.
! This noble theme has been treated
with beauty and a power by one
whom l need not name in this presence
r 1.-THE Historian of the United Sta:es
; which, without impairing their authenti
t city, have converted the several page:
: of our history into a magnificent Odys.
5 sey of national adventure. can but
{ glace at the dates. The first settle
ment, that of Virginia, was commenced
in the spirit of worldly enterprise, with
no slight dash, however, of chivalry
} and romance on the part of its leader.
: In the next generation this colony be-
came the favorite resort of the royal
E cavaliers and gentlemen who were dis
D gusted by the austerities of the Eng
e lish Commonwealth or fell under its
f suspicion. In the mean time, New
England was founded by those who
F.. suffered the penalties of non-conformity
r The mighty change of 164o stopped
: the tide of emigration to New England,
D but recruited Virginia with those who
e were disaffected to Cromwell.
t In 1924, the Island of Manhattan-oi
| which you have perhaps heard, laugh
3 ter, and if not, you will find its histo-
d ry related with learning, judgment,
: and good taste, by royal descendant
of its early settlers, { Mr.. Brodhead =
: was purchased of the Indians fol
S twenty-four dollars, sum of money,
: by the way, which seems rather low for
/ twenty-five thousand acres Of land, in
f cluding the site of this great metropolis,
t but which wouldNf put out at COM
e pound interest at seven per cent. in
S 1924. not perhaps fall so very much