The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1863-07-23

in the marvellous adaptation of our system
TO the outworking of peaceful reforms, which
under u more rigid system must encounter
the peculiar prejudices and jealousies of mu'
tually obnoxious sects and castles and clans
and so endanger the peace and stability Of
the social structure. 1t is noticeable in the
spirit of inquiry, the freedom of thought,
and the thoroughness Of discussion, which
the right of self-government uniformly fos-
tiers nor less is it noticeable in that fertility
of invention and that readiness to expert
ment, which leads men TO devise and apply
some remedy for every political evil,-prov-
ing all things, that they may hold fast that
which is good. Surely a government thus
progressive and liberal in its tendencies !;
thus durable, not by virtue of its severe
and rigid forms, but by virtue of its fexibility
and power of adaptation to all circumstances
and times, is we'll worthy of our patriotic
regard.
/ have intimated that the patriotism of
the American people is intelligent not merely
because it apprehends the true basis and
tendency of their institutions, but also be-
cause it rightly appreciates their worth. Yet
who shall tell us what they are worth /?
Shall we estimate their value by what they
cost7 See the hardy pioneers of American
civilization sundering all the tender ties
which had bound them to the home of their
ancestors. Drawing all the hardships Of a
boisterous sea, and the far more terrible hard
ships Of a wintry wilderness, that they might
plant and nurture, in a hardy soil. the germs
of civil and religious liberty. See them
with yet undeveloped resources, boldly de-
claring their independence of the mother
country, from which most of the luxuries
and many of the comforts of life had till
then been derived. that they might enjoy the
privilege and feel the responsibilities of self
government. See the thirteen riral colonies,
each with its separate interests, arIning
themselves at length in a common cause
first conquering their mutual jealousies, and
then defyIng a common enemy. See them,
almost without arms, without ammunition,
without Qualifications, without ships, without
a treasury, without allies, declaring war
against the proudest, richest, most powerful
and influential nation upon the globe. See
them with a population of only three mil
lions, sparSely scattered along a narrow belt
of sea coast from Nova Scotia TO Florida
with every port an easy prey TO the enemy,
and their whole western frontier beset by a
savage foe with varying fortunes, yet with
unfaltering faith, maintaining Il seven years
war, and bringing it to a successful termina-
ton.
"Ouiu YOU KNOW WLldL IilOSe INSTITUTIONS
cost? Look back TO those days of trial,
when daughters gird.d The sword upon their
sires, and mothers freely dedicated their sons
upon the altar of their country upon the
chances of that contest for freedom, risking
all the possibilities of poverty, w~idowhood
and orphanage. Weigh, if you can, the
agony of a nations suspense, when, time and
again, all their hopes rested upon the issues
of a single battle. See, at a most critical
period, everything depending upon the sue
cess or failure of that grand scheme of the
British, by which their line of occupation
upon the Hudson was to be made an un-
broken barrier between New England and
the South "a scheme thwarted now by the
bravery of Arnolds impetuous
charge at Saratoga. and now by the discovery
of his matchless baseness at West Point.
Go ask the dying martyrs of the prison
ships what the liberties of the American
people cost. Go visit The battle-fields where
thist their rich bequest, was sealed with your
fathers blood: think of the sufferings Of a
halE-clad and poorly-provIsioned army during
all that severe winter at Valley Forge and
remember that those were the bloody foot
prints of your heroic fathers that stained
New JERSEYS snow-clad hills. | would that
there were time TO trace that trail of martyr
blood from Bunker Hill TO Yorktown for
the deeds of our patriot sires are worthy
to be rehearsed in the ears of our children,
that they may tell them again to theirs,
and they TO the generations following.
We have not time to dwell upon the
that the worth of those institutions is
estimated by the priceless value of
great principles which were involved
in that Revolutionary struggle-PrinciPles
which the vitality of American insti-
tutions IS but n name to live, and their
form is but an empty mockery. Nor can |
dwell upon their worth as estimated by
their marvellous success and harmonious
working hitherto. Judged by this criterion
of value, what government is worth MORE,
for what has better served all the purposes
of a government? If eighty-seven years
of unparalleled progress is not enough to
give men confidence in our institutions, how
long will they require?
But what. you will say. Does not the
logic of facts block the wheels
of that triumphal chariot in which America
has, till now, seemed to be riding towards
the proudest position of honor among the
nations No: the logic of facts only con-
our patriotic hopes and intensifies our
attachment to those institutions which are
now enduring the fercest of fiery ordeals.
ours are no coward craven spirits, that
are ready to forsake the ship and jump
the moment we see a storm-cloud
gathering in the sky. This mec baptism of
Hood is q reconSecration Of Uhat acaS already
sacred.
The spirit of taction-tie bane of every
Constitutional government, nor less the smoul-
1erinc volcano beneath the thrones of absolute