Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1853-07-09
THE UNITED STATES ABROAD.
FROM THE BOSTON DAILY ADVERTISER.

result from the reflection of the progress of this coun
try upon the nations Of the Old World The article is
written in fair spirit and is quite interesting The
writer had advantage which many foreigners who have
attempted write about the United States especially in
reviews have not enjoyed viz that Of being toeraby
well informed of the facts Of the condition and institutions
of the country, for which he is apparently in great
indebted to the Pulszky's book. We copy below
portion of the article After several pages Of preliminary
statements necessary for readers abroad than for
ourselves, the article proceeds thus
Such being the geographical theatre which the
American nation has reared ITSELF such the materials Of
which it is composed and such tue general political form
in which it is cast what, it may be asked the actual
and observed qualities in the result which make it most
interesting in cosmo political point Of view
First of all, then, the Americans nation they
display and are peryaded by most intense spirit of
nationality No small nation of the Old Word-not the
SWISS the Scotch before the Union, not the Danes,
possessed and animated in extreme degree by the
pure sentiment of nationality this large and highly
Fictitious nation of North America. True the Union is
dvisbe into four groups Of States presenting very mark
ed differences from each other regards interest," social
condition. and physognomy First there the New
England group of Statescomprehending Maine, Massa
chusctts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island Connecticut,
and VeTmontthe land Of the genuine Yankees, and the
hard headed aborous, dogmatic, shrewd, Free and
terprsng descendants Of the old Purans Next there is
the middle group of States-comprehending New York,
Pennsylvania Maryland, Ohio and New Jersey-he seat
prehensive political tendencies, Of the Union Then
there is the southern group of States-Vrginia Ken
lucky Tennessee, Missouri Arkansas Texas louisiana
Alabama Florida the Carolnas, and Delaware-the seat
slavery and Of arisocratc leisure and luxury and the
population of which, though less Industrious enterp-sng
and intellectual than the New Enganders, yet
distinguished having supplied the greatest number of
statesmen to the Union Lastly, there is the western
group OF States-incuding parts of Kentucky Missouri
and Ohio, and the States of Indiana Illinois, Michigan
Wisconsin, and Iowathe land Of independent small far
home of absolute democratic equality But though these
four groups of States have their distinguishing charac
terstics and their points of antagonism, in
in the slavery controversy between
the South and the Norh threats of political dsrup
ton yet, the whole the inhabitants of all the four
have deeper feeling than that which displays itself in
the boast that they are Americans The nationality of
the Americans is we all know, proverbialy offensive
There nation the earth vain of its
merits and contemptuous of the merits of Others
Are great nation sir 2? is their sautation
every foreign traveller in the States and the
phrases bombast put into the mouths of Americans in
works of icuon, We almighty fine peoples I'VE
can put the Atlantic in one pocket and the Pacific in
another and reduce the universe nowhere and spot
of grease hardly exaggeraons Of the actual slang
with which The Americans regale their of their
national Importance Disagreeable in individuals this
national braggardism formidable and respectable when
viewed characteristic Of people in the aggregate and
its possession by people composed ethnographcay of
such heterogeneous elements illustration Kossuths
remark that the nation of every man is not certain
fragment of population marked out for him by condera
tons ofanguage but the those social
forms under whose influence his being has been develop
ed Even black in America discaims being African,
and says proudly when he is asked to what country he
belongs, j am American
g In the second place. the Americans are not only
nation full TO the brim of the consciousness of nationality
they are also entitled according to any test or measure
that can be applied to hem to rank high in the cosmo
political scale. Tried by the numerical measure of popu
lation they already a par with Great Britain
and will leave it behind Even Russia, with its If
y millions, must regard America full-grown nation
Again. tried by the exports and importsthat is
of commercial necessity to the rest Of the wordthe
United States hold place with the first Further, if
make military and naval prowess the test of cosmopoti
cal Importance America will still stand second to none
She has already in the past given sufficient proof of her
capacities for fighting both by and land and, if it
be not yet admitted that the Americans superior the
English sea- il is mt least certain that the despotic
Powers Of the Old World would be chary Of insult
ing the rspangled banner than of insulting the flag
of England Yankee captain, indeed, is VIGOROUSLY
the most terrible thing going and chips Of the Ameri
can block generally, though they are recognised every
where the most braggard and rreverent Of the
of men, recognised also the dangerous be
locked up called in question for any thing they say
or do. Add to all this the consideration that In all de-
partmcnts of intellectual labor America is leading
ton. In art and literature indeed, well in the
higher walks of pure speculative science America is yet
behind England though there is evidence now that
spirit of original effort in such things is at work
among the Americans But in the application Of science
TO social uses in industrial invention, and generally in
such exercises Of the intellect give country pract
cal emnence the nations Of the world, they have
already acknowledged superiority Among the ma
chimes for agricultural and other purposes sent to the
Great Exhibition those sent from America the most
useful and Colts pistols but example Of inyen-
ton proceeding from America and claiming instantly
the attention of the whole world Essentially the
thing in reality, with this claim Of America to high
mopohtca estimation in virtue Of her Colts pistols her
improved poughs, reaping machines models Of ships and
the like, is her claim to cosmopotcal estimation in yir-
tue OF the fact that she already possession OF great
ny conclusions important social questions which are
by their very nature interesting al the world alike,
and that she is at present the richest known field Of
with view to the calculation Of other
cia questions. The very thing that most OF all gives
country cosmopolitcal Importance is its ability to fur
nish out of its experience the questions
that chance at the to be Of greatest social interest
to other countries TO exhibit going within its bosom
processes and experiments the issue Of which yet
clear perhaps to ITSELF but which curious novel,
and suggestive in their nature America is like black
board which something is ever being chaked up
whether in the way Of solution Of interrogation For
example, the entire political system Of America is prac-
teal solution Of the great problem, every where impor
ant Of the reconciliation Of local self government with
federation The question Of national defences without
standing armies is also set in new light by the
militia system Of America while the question Of the
peenee ola people act the aggressive without stand
ing armies also receives light from the experience Of
America N volunteer enterprises hundred such
PIES might be given Of points Of great social interest
when America may be said to have fully made up its
mind, while the other nations are still only bungling in
the DARK Lastly, what are such odd manifestations
The 81 t rappngs the Mennonite outburst with its
sequences and all the other similar developments Of Amer
eau inquisltvenes creduty but chalkngs il were
On the blackboard of the world for the other nations
ook att IL It be the that humanity has not yet
iled out its utmost constitutional limits but that from
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