Daily American organ. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1856, 1854-12-30
From the New Orleans Creole.
Citizens by Birth and Citizens by Adoption.


From the New Orleans Creole.
Citizens by Birth and Citizens by Adoption.
The love Of country, like that Of kindred, Ii an
instinct Of nature. The associations Of youth, the
ties OF the household, and the habits Of thought,
confirmed by education, excite and strengthen at
achment to the place Of BIRTH and love Of the nsti
tutions Of home. Even the emotion OF selfesteem
in the development Of the Individual becomes iden-
titled with the honor and glooy Of his country,
since he participates in its shame or Its exalt-
alton.
The hardy Swiss mountaneer never forgets the
rugged Alpine scenery, diversified with sweet
valleys and towering mountains however far he has
wandered, or however exquisite the face OF nature
in his new home. In his reveries he sees again
the white mountain peaks, like petrifcd clouds
piercing the heavens he hears the dashing Of the
Alpine torrent leaping from the beetling crags
and inhales the inspiriting air Of his native land
fresh from the snow-capped hills, So it is with
the denizen Of every cline. Changing habitation
and government does not eradicate the sympathes
Of the man, nor change the character Of his mind
Expatliation, then, is not induced by an abstract
admiration of foreign forms of government or the
sole desire to bear part in the Inauguration of
great principles The mnltitudes which Europe
annually pour upon our shores are driven by the
stern hand Of necessity from land which they love-
and with which they must still continue TO sympa-
thize. Despair or disgust, with the prospect, amid
an overcrowded population, of a ceaseless struggle
for bare subsistence; the iron force, ever felt,
crushing out all noble aspirations the turmoil and
revolution which gives restlessness that might be
supposed to aifct one living over threatening
volcano the miseries Of the Old World and the
visions Of plenty, and happiness, and prosperity in
the New, are the governing motives which impel
the better class of emigration to our shores while
the conspiracy Of despotism, to extinguish the
light of liberty bcaming upon upon it from our re-
public, gives direction to the human tide Of ignor-
ance, extreme poverty and vice, whose destructive
influence is already felt upon the order peace, and
the virtue the nation. Ignorant Of our peculiar
system Of government; perhaps never capable Of
arriving at full appreciation of its artistic and
elaborate mechanism; liberalsts only in the sense
of opponents of the visible power of the despots
in their native homes; without distinct percep-
ton that freedom not governed by law Is worse than
absolutsm; that a democracy in which the princi-
pie Of representation lies at the very groundwork
ofpolitcal action is not the exercise of the unre-
strained impulses of the people, the forcign-born
cannot have cast their lot with us from mere love
Of our institutions SelEinterest, rather than pa
triotism, was their governing motive. The love
of the associations Of their youth Is not the less
strong, but their hopes OF ease and plenty abroad
subdues the outgushing instinct.
Even when one forswears his allegiance the love
Of his old home still turks in his bosom The ten
drills of affection which bind him to other clmes
are not broken. 1fit were possible that ho could
forget as well as forswear his native land he were
unworthy citizenship in any country. He should
be classed with those destitute of human love and
natural sympathy, upon whom Divine Wisdom pro-
nounccs curse. He would falsify the truth, to
which the heart in all cmes has 10 rapturousy re-
sponded, so beautifully expressed by the poet
Lives there man with soul so dead
Who never to himself hath said,
This Is my own--my native land "
The claim Of the foreign-born that they being citi-
zeas from choice are better republicans than those
who are citizens by the accident Of birth is not
only presumptuous but untrue.
The latter know no other country; have no sym
pathies with other forms Of government; revere
tho memories Of the past and exult In the reyela-
tons of the future. The former show contrary to
their viii, their foreign partialtes The sound Of
their mother tongue stirs them did the blast oi
Roderick Dhu his warlke clan. As the shipwrecked
mariner rejoiced that he In land OF ciyiliza-
tion when he say fowning gallows, so does the
foreign-born hail the presence Of his fellow emf
grant, and feel his heart throb before the symbols
of his native land. The elomosynary, political and
military organizations OF the adopted citizen every
where speak the natural language of the soul--ev-
crywhere testify that the love Of the olden home
has not and never can die out Of the heart. Com
plete identity in feeling and action with American
citizens is impossible The IDEAS usages, and all
the pecularitcs ofthe country forsworn still have
charm that can never be supplanted.
We cannot appeal to the foregnborn TO sustain
our distinctive nationality; 10 stand firm for our
ideas Of abstract right; TO aid our schemes Of pro-
gress, and to improve system of legislation and
government We look not TO them for the moral,
yea Purftanicd earnestness OF the American char
acter, its patriotism and noble love Of liberty, in
connexion with dcep-rooted reverence for law and
civil authority its clear, practical understanding
its talent for organization; its inclination for I'M
proyement In every sphere It's fresh enthusiasm
for great plaus and schomes Of reform, and its will
lingness TO make sacrifices for the promotion of
every good work We wrestle with the most CO.
lossal projects. The deepest meaning and aim Of
our political institutions IL 10 actualze the idea Of
universal sovereignty--the education of every in
dividua for intellectual and moral sclfgovernmcut
and thus for true freedom,
They present a mere aggregation Of foreigners,
whose associations are among themselves; who are
controlled by one mind. They lead the. mobs in
our great Cities and clamor against our laws they
hang in effgy our Senators, for Independence of
character; send protests TO be enrolled upon tho
Journals OF our legislative bodies attempt to abo
ish the Christian Sabbath and even propose to
amend the Constitution of the United States. They
better republicans than the native born
All Fools Not Dead Yet.
A queer case was lately tried in Albany, New
York, wherein n charge was brought aQaiust n