New-York daily tribune., 1858-07-07
THE CELEBRATION AT BOSTON.
MR. CHOATEs GRAFTON.

Clnb al Boston on Monday, the 5th inst;
lis well that 10 our year, busy, 50 secular 80 dis
oordsr, there comes one day when the word is, and
,uts, the emotion is "our country our whole coun'
try and nothing but our country" 1t Is wei that law
-our onlv soyereisn on esth-duty, no. less the
dauehter OF God not less within its sphere supreme,
custom not old alone, but honored and useful memo
xes our heart, have set time in whch-scythe loom
and anvil stled wharves silent the tiag-our nag un-
reut-the flag Of our glory and commemor stion waving
On mast he'd, steeple and highland, we may come
together and walk hand in hand, thoughtful adnirng,
through these galleries Of civil greatness when we may
own together the spell Of one hour of our history
Upon US all; when faults may be forgotten, kindness
revived virtues remembered and sketched unblsned;
when the arrogance Of reform the excesses of reform,
tho sfes Of partes the rivares Of regions shall give
rlsce TO wider, warmer and juster sentiment when,
turning from the and dark places Of offensive
pess If such the candle lighted by msignty or envy,
or censoriousness or truth has reyealed anywhere;
when turning from these, we may 90 up together TO
the serene and secret mouLtsn top and there pause
and there unite the reverent exclamation and in the
.xul,snt PRAYER: "How beautiful at last Tny
tsbsrnaclesl What people at last is like unto Thee
Peace be within Thy palaces and joy within Thy gates
The high places Thine and there shall Thou stand
proudy. ard innocenuy, and securely
Usnnv if such day shall not be decorated by our
ss,vics Hspuy if for us that descending shall look
out on q more loving, more elevated, more united
America! These 10 less 10 narrower, be the aims OF
our celebration These always were the true aims Of
this celebration In its Origu, recital or defense OF
the grounds snd principles of the Revolution now de-
mspdirg and permitting no defense-al taken for
granted and all had by heart then sometimes wasted
IN spaiade Of van-glory cheap ana vulgar s?tneu nos
proianed by the attack andi repulse OF partisan aLu
local rhet0rciaIs its CREST worE its distinctive char
acter and its chief lessons remsin and vndicat them
selves ana will DO sOwhie the eye OF the hghhng or
the diving shsli yet read On the stainless ample fUds
the superscrptiOn blazing etl in light: Liberty ana
"UniOn, now and forever one aud inseparao!e.
Ihave wished, therefore, as 1t was my duty, IN
doing myself the honor to join you in this act, to give
some direction to your thoughts and feelings suited at
once to the nations holiday and seasonaoIs and use
fu in ITSELF How difficult this may be, know. To
fry, however, TO do anything is easy, ard 1t ls
American also. Your cand0r will make 1t doubly
easy, and 10 your candor commit myself.
The birthday Of a nation, old or young and GER
taipy young is time TO think OF the means OF Keep
iug alive the nation. do not mean to say, however,
becaue do not believe that there IS but one way 20
this the direct and the ddacc. For al last IL Id the
spirit of the day we would chsrish. 1t is our grest
national love feast which we keep; ana II We ! rso
from it with hearts larger beating fuller win ieens
purer and warmer for America wnat sig"n. osd or
frugally or how richly or how It wss sp,eun, tm,st
whether il wss a strain tho organ the trumpet
tones Of the Declaration, the prayer OF the SOou man.
the sympathy Of the hour, or wbst was "mcn
wrought TO that end .-
do net therefore, cay that such an anniversary is
not time for thanksgiving 10 God for gratitude 10
men the living and the Dead for teas and thougats
foo for tears for euogy for exutaon Tor all the
memories and for all the contrasts which soften ana
lift up the general mind / 90 not say, tor example
that TO dwell on that imsge of Progress which Is
history; that image 20 grand 90 aszzhpB, ogon
slant; that stream nov flowing 80 far ana swelling
into 80 immense food, but which burst out SMALL
choked, uncertain spring from the ground at hrsti
that uansiton from the Rock at Plymouth, from the
unfortifed pennsular at jamestown to this America
which lays q hand on both the oceans-from that
heroic vet feeble folk whose allowa to man
by the day five kernels OF corn, for three
months no corn, or piece OF hsh or molded remain
der of biscuit, or a limb of a wild brd-tO whom
drouth In Spring was a fear and judgment, and
call for humiliation before God-who held their breath
when flight Of Arrows or war.cfy broke the lnro-
cent sleep or startled the brave wa,ohng-trom tnat
handful and that want TO these millions, whose area
is continent whose harves. might load the boAId of
famishrg nstions, for whom world in arms has no
terror TO trace the long series of causes hch con-
xeoted these two cont asted conditions, the frov-
dences which ordained and guided growth 20 SUI
pendous-the dominant race, sober, earnest construct
Ive changed, but not degenerate here the inhux OF
other races, aeslmiating, eloquent and brave, the
fusion of all into 0De the sweet etmulanons OF
liberty the removal by whole width Of oceans from
the establishments Of Europe shaken tyIanIno1 y.
burdened the heabfu virgin, tue universal progress
Df
of revolutions on the human mind, the expansion OF
discovery ard trade the developing sentiment oi inde'
pendencs, the neeofu baptism OF wars, the brave
men the wise men, the Constitution, the Union, the
national life aud the feeling of union which have
grown With our growth ana strengthened with oar
strength do net cay that medtatons saoh as these
might not teach deepen the lessons OF the Day All
these things 80 holy aud beautiful all things Amen
can NAV afford certainly the mears TO keep Amercs
alive. That vast panorama unrolled by our generai
history, or unroDirg that eulogy, 80 Jast
go ieivent, so splendid, 30 approved tnat
electric. reasonable memory Of Washington
that purchase and that dedication Of the
dwelling and the tomb, the work OF woman; that rec
ord Of his generals that visit to battle teds that rev.
erent wpng away Of duet from great urns that dream
of her past present and uture every snip bu'aed on
lake ocean every treaty concluded every acre OF
Territory annexed; every cannon casti every machine
invented; every mile of new railroad aud telegraph
undertaken; every dollar added TO the aggregate vt
national or individual weath-these al as subjects of
thought as motives TO pride and care a. tescners OF
wisdom, as agencies for probable good may work,
may insure that earthly immortality oi love and glory
for which this celebration was ordained.
NV way however, shall be lees ambitious ana loss
indirect. Think, then, for moment, on American
nationality itself; the outward national LIE, ana the
inward national sentiment; think on THIS It's paturel
and some Of its conditions and some OF Its ethics
would cay, toe, Of its dsngers-bu' there snail
be no expression of evil in this stage OF the dis
course and day at east toe WORD IS safety OF nope
To know the nature of American nationality ex
anime il 6rst by contrast and then examine III i,sei
In some of the elemental chsracterlstc' OF political
opinion the American people are one Inese they can
renounce for substance than the highest sum
INIT Of the highest Of the White Hills, than the peak
OF the Aueghsuiss tasn the Rocky Mountains can
bow and cast themselves into the sea. Inrougn all
fheir hetory from the dawn OF the e0onsl lie 10 tnls
bgetress Of this rising they hsve spoken them they
have written them, they have acted them, they rave
run over with them. In all stages, In ali agoniss,
through all report, good and ev-some lesrning from
the golden tunes OF ancient and medieval freedom,
Greece, ard itsy, aud Geneva from Aristotle, from
I'd RndinaR nd aluin nr