Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, Va. [W. Va.]) 1852-1859, 1854-07-27
Signs Of the Times.


ing torrent of human events, 10 view the incidents
OF the past, 10 note their action on the present,
andioeaIcplate their influence on the future. ii
10 always more than Profitable for The American
citizen; DESTROYS rs he should be Of promoting The
best Interests Of his country, Of preserving It's
stability, and Of fostering and pressing forward 10
full development the imnuiable principles Of hu-
man rights on which our government Is based; 10
tecur 10 the history and example Of other nations
aud other timesj 10 look at the principles on which
their system was based, at their results, at the
circumstances affecting them, and 10 draw, so for
aShe eau. proper conclusions, and then apply them
10 his owngovernment and his own times. While
II is true that the exact principles is combined
and balanced in our political organization, find no
prototype in history, 1t Is equally true that there
are striking instances in the past, Of The workings
OF the great principle OF freedom in other f'Tms
and subject 10 other combinations, Which may
well be carefully studied and proftabIy applied 10
the acts and actors Of our own times "HslotY is
philosophy by example," and he is worse than
blind who closes his eyes 10 the records and teach
ings OF the past. Humanum est sndre, and lie is
little better than a wild enthusiast who praes Of
a., The DmtnuIoOlll(y Ol OUT uHu VI
iallibility OF the voice Of the people.
Time was when Cas- now with us (VOr poIuH
por Del rung from tue lips OF every demagOgue
who haranguedi in the forum, and Of every candi
date who solicited the sufrOges Of the Roman free
, men, We. sing eye witnessed tlle march Of
Rome from civil 10 military consulS, then 10 mill.
taEy dictaiors, and lost 10 military emperorsj while
her after history witnessed herrapd declention in
TO the worst Of tyrsnnies Nndm.itary despoiism.-
So absolute was the freedom OF her citizens that
even her emperors were, for awhile, elected by
the exclamation Of her Mountaineering people,
while The citizens received sentence OF death or
Punishment from the loud accl, i'm OF the countless
thousands who met in The great daily council OF
turbulent Rome. She rose, the boast Of free ma.
tionS; her empire and her laws were widespread
over the world, while her eagle flew scatheleSS
through the clouds Of conquest, ind her name was
a terror 10 tho nations Yet she has fallen, her
glory has withered as the leaf her MONUMENTS cf
stt, once The bonst Of the world, have been pros.
ttated and destroyed, their very existence subject
for scepticsm, and nnugt but tue ruins of her
greatness, the stripped or fallen column OF her
once stately edifce, the mythical history OF her
ouce glorious achievements, and the (tsGmeutaIy
& laws OF her once stupendous polity, have come
down 10 us on the heavy burdened stream Of time,
! and we have but 10 contemplate The original, aud
wonder at the causes which produced The wreck
II Is moi necessary for our purp:se TO examine
critically into the various causes which produced
this decline, but il Is enough for US 10 know gener
= ally that oil past free governments have falIen,
n,.lt a. SIan of full bao hpnn IhAYIV
first, then RIGHTEOUSNESS, and last tyranny 1t is
enough for us 10 know that their people forgot thOt
liberty could alone be perpetunted by temperance
in all things;" that power, luxury, and degeneracy
were the necessary consequences Of their neglect
and foIgetfulness.
al The most casual observer of lie progress Of our
. institutions cannot but have observed The rap
id tendencies towards aggression, manifested alike
lin portions ofouT citizens and in our legislative
halls. No ore con have failed TO perceive that the
split OF Our people, Of on Congressional debates,
haslong since lost that fraterna tone which once
constituted its great merit The band Of brothers,
who once met 10 deliberate upon the common well
fare Of the Union, with the common desire TO pro-
moe The interests Of the Union, and of all parts Of
It, meet no longer. The stormy outbreak Of sec.
tional controversy has taken the place of frnterno
consultation, and words OF hate, and words OF It.
terness constitute in great measure The vocabu'
.lsryof our national legislature.
The de- corum and order once so strkngly mani.
fest there, have given place 10 confusion and dis
order, and bngsgate and personal collisions,
worthy OF the bull-bang and Of The cockpit; are
now The everyday dessert TO which the Congres.
I" Sional visitant is treated. The powers and as.
mmptions OF the different branches Of govern.
ment are alarming. Following in the arbitrary
. lead or Andrew Jackson, the Executive is daily
advancing towards nonarchCal powersj its inlu.
ence once limited, is now by the means and tests
opped in the appointment Of its officers through.
outthe county, made 10 penetrate into every cir
Gle, until the espionage Of the Federal Govern.
ment is little behind Pouches French police es.
Enlistment. Now the President directs the leg.
islaton OF Congrsssi in The better days oil the Re-
public he was directed by il. The question for
National Legislature is now, chow will this men
. sure please at the White ouseI" instead Of Cos II
once wus,) how does il comport with the honor,
the interests and The necessities Of free people7
Our Federal judiciary has well nigh ceased TO
be such. Not satisfied with their exposition Of The
Limited laws IHauo IoI 'HeH' 'Ho Juuke" h"'e 'u'h'
ed law makers; jurisdiction is assumed, and the
rights Of the people, vested nndall, are Os nothing
IN The eyes Of the legislative judiciary. While
this has been the history Of The executive and the
judiciary, the march Of mobocracy has in parts OF
the Union been no less alarming. we need moi
specify. The mobs and lawless resistance TO the
laws, in different parts Of the North, are known
10 all, and II has become difficult 10 ray whether
anti. Southern feeling or religious fanaticism is
tending most 10 disturb the current Of progress.
I. cannot be denied that there is existing and fos
iering deep.seuted snmity between numbers OF
our citizens religious topics, that II is not con.
fined TO any one place party, but Is widely diGu.
sing itself oyet The Unicn. Where it will end or
what will be its manifestation, no one can tell;
but the experience OF the past bids US fear, while