Rutland weekly herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1859-1877, 1873-09-11
THERUTLAND HERALD.
EyHMIGR ALTON.

When. on the 4th of July, 1776, new
nation was born, on the shores OIL 'he
western hemisphere, it was procianneu
that the oppressed of every nationah'y'
should here find an asylum and home.
We then numbered thirteen small colon
les. along the Atlantic coast, with re"
thousand inhabitants, many OF whom
had sought a home in the wilderness OF
the new world, to escape religious intol-
erence or personal oppression in their
native land. Less than one hundred
wears has passed into history, ana our
civilization has swept across the western
nlains. and established powerful States
upon the uttermost verge of the contin-
emit. and our people number more than
forty millions of the most refined, en-
lightened and progressive OF the earth.
America has become the grand central
point, to which the long lines of emil
grafton, from all points of the world,
converge, and every living language is
spoken by our resident inhabitants, and
we are united by the ties of blood ana
kindred with every nation under the
sun.
Within the last half century, five mil
lions of persons have emigrated from
Great Britain and found homes in the
United States, so that when we speak OF
the mother country we mean something
more than that we were once depend
ency of her crown. We are lineal de-
scendants of John Bull, so far as one
eigth of our entire population, is con-
cerned. We also had in 1870, as appears
by the census reports 1000, 410 persons
born within the limits of the present
German empire, who have settled for
life residence on Uncle Sans farm, and
as our Teutonic fellow citizens practice
what their religion teaches, they are
fruitful, and they multiply and replen-
ish the earth exceedingly, and nearly if
not quite five millions more of our pop
ulation, are either native of the father
land or children of such natives. 30
that if we acknowledge kinship to
John Bull by reason of an infusion of
British blood, we must with equal JUS
tice own that we are all Germans, and
of all our ancestors we have least cause
to be ashamed of our Dutch.
One of the chief characteristics of
the German people, is their patriotism
or love of country, and the government
has for a few years back been attempt
ing to stop the steady flow of emigra-
ton towards America, and have sought
by appeals of patriotism, and by cen
tralization, and consolidation into a
grand empire, and by constant reference
to the splendid achievements of the ma
tional arms in the last war with the
French, to persuade the people to remain
in faderland; but the oppression of the
ultramontanes, and the exactions and
proscriptive policy of the government
more than overbalances the pride of
birth, and the love of home, and the
steady flow of industrious, sober and
enterprising citizens, continue to the
prairies of the West, there to build up
new homes, and to transfer the affec-
tons of their hearts from the land of
their birth and childhood, to the nation
and people that so cordially receives
them to the comforts, ease and wealth,
which their native land can never give
them.
We may well be justly proud of our
German people. The same love of
country and patriotism that made them
so devoted to their Empire and govern
ment, when in Europe, make them in
tensely loyal citizens here. When ire
son, in the South, raised her sacreligious
hand against the Republic, none of our
people were more ready than they to
bare their bosoms to the hail of war,
that the nation might live. Before the
rebellion, they were foremost in their
adherence of slavery and wrong. Since
the war, they have been generally
staunch and united in their support OF
the Republican party, and in theil
loyalty to the cause of truth and justice.
They go to the Western States instead
of stopping in New England or the East,
on account of the greater agricultural
inducements that section can offer them,
and, as a consequence, they are not as
evenly distributed over the country as
the Irish and other British immigrants,
and we lose the advantages of a general
diffusion or all the different elements OF
our society throughout the country; but
we rejoice that. while the people of the
overcrowded nations can better them
selves by coming to US, that we are
improved by their Identification with our
industrial and business life. Let us well
come them, and, if special inducements
are needed to increase the tide, let us
not be slow in offering them.