The mountain Democrat., 1863-02-14
. FrOmIhs NY. FrOcman's Journal.
General ana Jmp0rtant COnsIdera-
tlOMS.

The New Year is dawning upon It's,
and with it, new duties, and-thank God
new hopes The past is gone and will
return no more. But its lessons live still,
and its ancient traditions In the ne
glect of our traditional institutions-in
the attempt Of sciolistS to substitute he
terOgeneous devices for the time -honored
customs of representative and responsible
government, we have been drilted away
from the admin trative conditions of a
free people. The material prosperity OF
the country, Offering tempting prizes to
the low intrigues Of the lobby, managed
by men Of whom T&&c5I:::- '"-~-' = 'he 'h'.ee
type, has accelerated and precipitatcd the
ruin that has overtaken us. The masses
have found in legitimate industry facili,
ties for amaSsing wealth. In the absence
of any fixed social conditions, the coun-
try being so young, wealth, mere wealth,
has seemed to measure the degree of So
cial consideration. 1t has, at least
seemed to offer one accepted method Of
attaining that distinction, that is the vul-
gar ambition. While the masses have
thus been occupied, the political admins.
tration has, with rare exceptions been
abandoned to knaves and fools. This is
not philippe, it is recitative, in its sim
plest form.
Are our democratic republican institu-
tions, then, failure? So far from it,
that it remains most certain that, for US,
they are the only institutions neutral,
and therefore the only ones possible.
We wish we could arrest upon this the
attention of a large class Of gentlemen,
who, no doubt, think themselves wiser
and more far seeing than we, because
they have made money, while we have
been otherwise employed. The break
down in the Government Of the United
States has happened, not on account of
the democratic republican character Of
our institutions, but despite of that char
acter.
Imagine. now, that the popular mind
of the United States, impatient Of past
ills, and forming an imaginary idea Of
what monarchy Is, should seek such u
political transformation. The ideal the
ory is that one Of the most cultivated and
able would DC accepted as prince or en-
peror; just so the ideal of the republican
form is that the people will always ad-
vance their best men to highest places,
irrespective Of birth or advcntitous adj
vantages. Everywhere, Tie ideal is one
thing, the practical experiment some
thing vastly different. Those who sigh
for strong government, for Il monarchy,
must be prepared to take it as it may
happen-some baboon, accidentally in
the highest place, with fox for his
and low animal cunning. Such a re-
gime must rely on brute force to sustain
it. Its satraps- military governors and
groveling contractorS-wil find means
to advance themselves in wealth at the
expense Of the moneycd fools who have
hoped, by such government, to pcrpct-
uate their money influence. Their pre-
tentious airs, which they mistake for ar
iStocratic, will go for nothing, and they
will be plundered pitiessly by the rude
instruments of uncutivated and unscru-
pulous power. Is this not certain {?
Look at the Yankee brood who have
amassed wealth in this Massachusetts
war;" Look at the beastly Buffers, &c,
&C., &c.--thc military satrapS-and at
the shoddy- Morgans from New England,
domicied in New York, who have heaped
up fortunes, while. the widows and or.
phans of the soldiers who have fought
their battles are shivering in garrets, and
begging food on the streets.
Not in mOnarchic or aristocratc ex.
periments, alien to our traditionary Gus.
toms, is our remedy to he found. 1t
must be in return, and in a wise and
prudent restoration and perfecting of the
traditonary institutions that we have in
herited, that formed our prosperous
States, that belong to us. and are natural
to us. Here, and in this, it must be.
Sought elsewhere, it will be sought in
vain.
In the infancy Of the American States,
on achieving sevcrally their indcpen-
dencc, a Federal system was necessary,
to secure internal peace and develope.
ment, and to guard against foreign en-
roachment. To accomplish what, as
American States, we should accomplish,
some federative system is still required,
a general and common American policy.
In the various parts Of the country, diff.
ferent habits and sentiments existed from
the first. With the progress of time the
Emergencies became more marked \
broad and generous statcmanShip would
have understood and provided for this.
We could have done it, had it not been
Tor the narrow spirit, the prosecuting
fanaticiSm, and the thirst for dominion
in that New England Puritanism that
hanged Quakers, burned witches, and
banished Baptists. The children Of the
Puritans have the virus in the blood
They are the "peculiar people," They
insist on dwelling alone"-would tC
God they might be Accommodated, on theil
| own bleak hills and that their progeny
could be sent back to them to increase
their happiness! These Puritans have
no ideas of real liberty. They canno
conceive Of rights opposed to their owl
notions. The earth belongs, by title, tc
the saints, and they are the saints. Ou
public schools arc filed with the primers
and books they peddle among US. Ou
youth are infected with their narrow anC
capricious notions, which they insist ant
very probably believe, are the highest re
suits of Christian civilization! Imperi
ously, vigorously, we must get rid o
these pernicious dogmas-dogmas tina
are commended to the people as certain
and plain, because they are shallow.
We must return to the system of
Confederation, or Federacy of States
New Englandism must be extcrminatcC
from our policy, if, to do it, we mus
thrust out New England itself Our cx
listing Federal Union has broken down
because an Administration ruled by New
England has thrust itself into place. Tn
Federal functions, as devised by the fore