The independent press. (Abbeville C.H., S.C.) 1853-1860, 1858-08-06

Country cries aloud to US from the sods Of
Mount Vernon, and calls upon us, East and
West, North aud South, as the brethren of
one great household, to be faithful TO the
dear-bought inheritance which lie did so
much 10 secure to U.S.
Nor is the fame Of Washington confined
to our own country. 3ou,,laoue, in lis
eu'ogy on the military sss.af lr.nrc. vx.
eL'nc-"Ihe other saints Acve been riycu
by the Church TO France; but France in re-
turn has given St. Louis to the Church."
Born into the family of nations IN these
latter days, receiving from foreign countries,
'nhcriting from ancient times, the bright
and instructive example Of all their honorcd
sons, 1t Is the glory of America, in the ver|
dawn of her national existence, TO have
given back to the world many names Of
which the luslre will never fade, one name
OF which the whole family Of Christentlom
Is willing to acknowledge the unenvicd pre-
. enincnce, a name Of which neither Greece
nor Rome, nor republican Italy, Switzer-
land, nor Holland, nor constitutional Eng
FlasA san boast;t!.e 1ival. "A eharacter of
virtues so happily tempered by one an.
other" Il use the language of Charles
James Fox) sand so wholly unalloyed BY.
any vices, is hardly TO be found OH the pages
Of history"
1t Is delightful to witness the generous
recognition Of Washngtons merit, even in
countries where, from political reasons, some
backwardncss in that respect might have
! been anticipated. Notwithstanding his
! leading agency i'll wrestling a colonial en-
p'rc from Great Britain. England was not
slow 10 appreciate the grandeur and beauty
OF his character. Rufus King, writing to
General Hamilton, in l79z, says: no one
who has not been in England can have
just idea Of the admiration expressed among
all parties for Gen. Washington. 1t is
common observation that he is not only the
most illustrious, but the most meritorious
character Which has yet appeared"
Nor was France behind s1;nelnd in her
admiration of Westinghouse Notwithstaud-
ing the uneasy relations of H. g." countries
at the time Of his dcccasc, when the news of
his death reached Paris, the youthful and
fortunate soldier, who had already reached
tue summit Of his power by paths which
Washington never could have trod, com
manded the highest honors to be paid to
him. y solemn funeral service was perform
cd i'll the ''lnvaliJs.' in the presence of all
that was most eminent in Paris. "A sor-
rowtul cry" said Fontanes, the orator cho.
sen by Napoleon for the occasion, "has
reached us from America, which he liberia
ted. 1t belongs to France to yield the first
response to the lamentation which will he
echoed by every great soul. These august
arches have been well chosen for the apothe-
oss of hero"
How often, in those wild scenes of her
revolution, wien the best blood of France
was shed by tile remorseless and ephemeral
tyrants who chased each other, dagger in
hand, across that dismal stage of crime and
woe, during the reign of terror-how often
did the thoughts Of Lafayette and his com
pan'ons in arms, who had fought the bat
ties of constitutions! liberty in America,
call up the image Of the pure, the just, the
humane. the unambi,ious Washington.
How different would have been the fate of
France, if her victorious chieftain, when he
reached the giddy heights of power, bad
initiated the great example which he eulo-
gized. lie might have saved his country
from being crushed by leagued hosts of
Europe; he might have prevented the
names of Moscow and Waterloo from being
written in letters of blood on the pages Of
history; he might have escaped himself
from the sad significance of those ,rpemora-
bic words Of Fontanes, on,the occasion to
which have alluded, when, in the presence
of Napoleon, he spoke of Washington as q
man who, "by destiny. seldom shared by
those who change the'fate of empires, died
in peace, as a private citizen, in his native
land, where lie bad held the first rank, and
which lie had himself made Free"
How different would. have been the fate
Of Spain, Of Naples, of Greece, of Mexico,
and the South American Republics, had
their recent revolutions been conducted by
men lie Washingtonlan bis patriotic .asso. $50
/ e'ates, whose prudence, patriotisu,, probity,
and disinterestedness conducted DIR reyolu-
ton to- 3aat tahspioious aud 1lohorahtssre
Britt is coarss a. home that ID mist
look for,an adequate appfeciaf saa q our
Washing nsns shs slortb. He ,isitRs
friend 6fsotbeneondf fies lta;fs, ,ths father Of
bis2eHa aaoyh, n hfs & that ithasbeel,,
to- sii6la, ,s6arcsoEs inexpressible sst;sfaction