The Hillsdale standard. [volume] (Hillsdale, Mich.) 1851-1909, 1861-07-23

Europe, her men Of war travened every
ocean, ard her merchantmen visited the ports
of all nations. Under the lead Of Marlbor-
ough and Nelson, her arms he'd been vctori-
Gus wherever the British sword had been
drawn, and in a number Of successful cam
paigns by land and sea she had rolled back
the tide Of strong resistance upon France and
Spain, and upon every other power that dared
question her supremacy. The sun in all his
course around the heavens never ceased to
shine upon her domininns.
The fame of her learning her schools, and
her universities, constituted the literary glory
Of that age. But alas how true it is, that
ambition, wealth, commerce. and achievements
in this worlds wisdom, cannot secure to Eu.
rope the permanancy Of its possessions.
The die was cast. Americans had turned
against Engishmen. Terrible tho conhct.-
For seven successive years the war ragged. The
enemy called to their aid the scslping knife
and tomakawk Of the savage. Woes eusued
which can never be told or conceived Of. All
the unmtigated horrors Of barbarian warfare
desolated our defeDceless frontiers, and con
/ flagration, torture, blood, and woe held high
dominion. Many midnight tragedy WAS
enacted in the solitude Of tho forest, as prowl.
ing Indians, with whoop and yell, applied
the orch to the settlers cabins. The shrek
of the tortured father, the wall Of the dying
mother, and the grcans Of helpless children I,
faded away in the silence of the wilderness.
Our little army sometimes retreating from
the fee, sometimes victorious, and sometimes
driven into the mountain Businesses, passing
days ana weeks benea the shadows Of the
forest, rcposng from the hard labors Of the
march, upon the frozen earth, by the blazing
logs of camp. fires. never faltered. ln COM
pensaton for the love they bore their country
and its cause, they ro"dy to s"h"r co'd'
munger, thirst, death. They drove the enc.
my from the Hudson, crossed the Delaware
and cleared the Jerseys, striking blow upon
blow, until the main body Of the English army
were compelled to surrender at Yorktown.
Thus passed the dark night of the revolu.
ton, and victory returned the sword to its
scabbord
Soon followed the formation Of the Con-
stitution of the United States, by delegates
from all the States in general convention as
sembled, and on the 30tn day Of April, 1889,
in the open gallery Of the old Federal Hall,
in the city Of New York, George Washing
ton was inaugurated first President Of the
United States. One universal response greet.
ed the New Republic rs the wheels Of gov.
crnment were set in motion.
And now having enumerated some Of the
leading circumstances under which this nation
was born, let us iaks into consideration some
Of its achievements, and the blessing which it
has secured to us, 10 order that we may pro.
perIy appreci te the importance Of its pre-
servation.
From the day Of the adoption OF the Con-
sttution, our progress rs a nation has been
more rapid than that Of any other pow er upon
the globe. | desire to enter into no vain
BOOSTING, and will not but et us look at the
facts as they really are, and If we commence
with a broad sweep, We shall return again
upon our subject, pcrhaps with olearor uu
derstauding Of its bearings Turn where we
will IN Asia, from Constsntinople to Pekin,
we see everywhere but one phenomenoa, a
swift and absolute dissolution of the social s,s.
TEN Oriental governments, oriental society,
oriental religions, are rapidly giving away
from internal weakness, end pressure from
without. Even China whose Constitution
reached its maturity in the DAYS Of Coufucius,
and has preserved itself unchanged for more
ahan twenty centuries, is falling, and has
commenced the sys;eal Of disintegration at
last. In a few m re wears the ruin of tho
Chinese Empire will be complete. For the
last century, moro than half The human race
have been rapidly falling into decay, while
with the other half growth and expansion
have been truly wondrous. Two centuries
ago, Russia was snail feeble State, com.
pri'ing popur ton Of less than six millions
Of people, and territory of two hundred
thousand sqnare miles.
The French were hardly able to defend
their independence against England. Eng
land could call her owu but half narrow
Island and her population scarcely exceeded
that of frst.cass English city Of the pres
ent day. The English and the French stretch
cd their arms across the Atlantic, and con-
tended for Moth America. The result OF
that conflict has been the creation Of new
power, equal in strength 10 either.
England then turned her attention toward
conquest in India. France entered Northern
Africa and found an outlet for her energies
little less splendid than those Of England in
in India.
The Russians from Moscow have, as it
were, formed an expanding circle, and in
the mids, of the surr unding Anarchy, have
grown and conquered. They are now stretch
ing out their hands toward the Ottoman EN-
pire. Having already arisen to firstcass
European power, ruling over one sixth Of the
entire globe, and nearly l00,000.000 Of peo-
ple Russia is still ambitious to extend her
power and influence.
England is not content with her vast col
lonisl empire in India, but she has already
commenced the systsm Of disintegrslion in
the Celestial Empire. The French are es
tablishing extensive colonies in Algiers, aud
are following the line Of the Mcdteranian' -
For the last century the nations Of the earth,
which have mainly controlled the dostinles of
mankind. are France, England, Russia, and
the United States. Each of these powers
have been stretching their frontier toward the
other. The United States commenced last
iu the career Of future onward progress, and
they have not only kept pace with the other
great powers have mentioned, but in MANY
respects have goae far begond them 1t IS
truly astonishing that from beginning so
small should have gone forth in the short pc
riod Of eighty.fve years, Republic so great.
Tho thrteen orioinal States consisted of a