Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1865-07-13
GRAFTON
DELIVERED AT RUTLAND, JULY 4, 1860,
BY HON, 5, N, DoRR,

known 10 most of us that a committee
was appointed from among our cltlzehs
to obtain from abroad, the services OF
some distinguished individual to deliver
the Grafton on this occasion. The com
mittee having failed in their purposes |
am conscripted at the last moment for
a service which | had not anticipated.
had expected TO be here to-day listen
err TO the burning words of eloquence and
patriotism from some of Americas dis
tinguished sons. regret more on your
account than on my own, that we are
thus disappointed, while | must com
mend the spirit that has thus early called
the best talent of the country TO the
thousands of patriotic gatherings,
where the people will assemble to-day
to pledge anew their devotion to Tree
dom,
1t will not be expected that in the
| half hour allotted to me l shall even
allude TO all the themes which at once
| crowd the mind on such an occasion as
| this. | purpose briefly to allude to the
| principles enunciated in the Declaration
| of INTERCHANGEABLE history of our ma
| tional departure from those principles,
| the final return of the nation to the
| stand point of our fathers and the con
| seuuent salvation of the republic.
The Declaration of Independence has
[ been annually read in our hearing for
| more than three fourths of century.
| 1t has lost none of its interest by repe-
| tition. Indeed it falls upon our ears,
| our hearts and our cOnsciences today
| with a sweeter memory gifts truths and
a dearer recollection of the public and
| private virtues of the men who framed
| it than it ever did before. The infant
| republic which was born of it, week and
| feeble as it was in all it's resources,
| attracted the attention of the world
and won the admiration of mankind.
| The world was astonished that America
in its veriest infancy had dared to de-
clare in the face of the first power in
| the East that she would be free She
| spread broad. cast before the civilized
world her grievances-the wrongs upon
which she based her rights to an indie
| pendent government. She declared
these self evident truths that all men
are created free and equal and endowed
with certain inalienable rights, among
which are life, liberty and the pursuit
of happiness" On the broad and truth
| full basis of the Declaration ofIndepend-
ence they hesitated not to appeal to God
and the civilized world for the business
of their cause and to pledge to its main
tenance their lives, their fortunes and
| their sacred honors. The war of tn
revolution vindicated its truths and the
| peace which followed, was an unwilling
| but inevitable recognition by England
that our grievances were just and the
+rt,t l.,sN - = h.
| BILE. Tried by the ordeal of reason,
scrutinized by the truth of God aud
measured by the laws of political and
human rights it has stood the test OF
nearly century, In the statement of
the wrongs the people had endured, in
the utteranCe Of the redress which had
been denied, in the declaration of the
| natural and political rights with which
all are endowed and in the consequent
right of a people thus oppressed TO be
free, it has become the model of reform
ers and revolutionists the world over.
Looking back through history we find
that the Declaration of Independence
was made from the pre-existing facts of
the American Revolution. 1t triumphed
and was vindicated in that, because as
applied to it, its truths were as eternal
as the throne of God. | need not imag-
inc the existence of facts and theories
in the minds of the people when the
Declaration OF Independence was
formed. History happily furnishes the
facts and theories of that period, and
they are Enthusiastically recorded in the
Declaration itself
In studying the history OF the Ameri-
can Revolution we shall see at a glance
that on the surface of the contest all the
elements of power and success were de-
cidedly with the mother country. She
was the most powerful Of all the east
ern governments. She was the greatest
maritime power in the world. She had
a large army at her command and her
reCOurCes were unbounded. Men. mon
ey and munitions of war had only to be
commanded and they sprang up at her
call. We were mere colonists with no
common organization, no common tie
but that of the common danger. We
had few men, but little money, and less
of arms and munitions of war Every
thing which makes the military strength
of a people was yet to be created. Ev-
erythlng but the strong and willing |
hearts of patriotic people was yet to
be formed from the chaos of those times. |
England estimated our material strength |
correctly, her fatal error was in her es-
tlmation of the business of our cause.
Here was an unseen power which she did |
not appreciate, a lever which was moved |
at the throne of God and in her blind |
ness by hands unseen by her. You have
forced upon US the system of slavery,
and we declare that God created ali |
men free and equal and endowed them |
with the inailenable right to liberty and !
the pursuit OF happiness. We indict |
you before the civilized world for the |
crime of enslaving men, and we unfal-
teringly appeal to this tribunal for the |
business of our cause. l assert then, |
that the greatness the strength, and the |
glory of the American Revolution, were |
based upon the incontrovertable truths |
OF the Declaration of Independence, and |
mat our revolutionary fathers succeeded |
oy reason of the business of their cause
and the approving smiles of Heaven.
Now take the violent and impossible |
superstition that our fathers had de-
clared that all ,chite men are created free
and equal and endowed with the inal-
ienable right of liberty aud +bo ,,,,,,-,,;4 |