Ashtabula weekly telegraph. [volume] (Ashtabula, Ohio) 1853-1873, 1873-06-07
independent in all things.

with civilized man the foundations for
the future generation are laid in the
house erected as the sign Of the coming
race, the water mark of the coming tide,
the evidence of the approaching age.
There is no reccding from these lines,
until the tide Of natur j life is full, un-
til the nation begins its decline, and its
his .ory is written-its work completed,
AMI then the ruins mark where man has
| b .en, and where the civilization of the
past is buried. There may be different
building periods to the same community,
and like some towns on the western riv-
ers, the marks of growth be as distinctly
seen as the rings on the trees, yet each
new stage be only the primitive period
of a future history. Antiquarians tell
about the different ages Of primeval
man marked by the remains that are
found beneath the ground. There is
the stone age, and the bronze age, and
the iron aye, each bctokening a different
stage IN the condition Of the race; so
these primitive buildings are signs of
the growth, like the different circles in
the covering of the shcll-fsh, or like the
rings on the horns OF the OK, indicating
the age to which the animal has grown.
So Il city may have its log period, its
olrd period, its brick period, its stone
period, its marble-front Ieriod, its iron
period and perhaps the next will be its
gold period. 1t is strange, too, how civ
ilizatlon casts off its covering and leaves
its gigantic ruins like some monster SER
pent which has crept out of its worn
out skin, and left it on the sand, or like
the worm dropping off its covering and
rising up to its gorgeous butterfly state.
Go with NE to the scenes of the past.
Let us look for the birthplace OF the
race. With revcremt hearts and muihed
steps, let us search for the home OF our
ancestors, and view where the race was
Graded. Far away over the waters, far
beyond the towers of England, the ca
thedrals of France, past the st. Peters
of Rome, beyond the III n .rets of Con-
stantinuple, hey ond the signs Of the
crescent and the cross, even across
the burning desert, and amid the
frozen sand waste, i'll loneliness, i'll ST.
lence, bet III grandeur, behold the mon
uments OF the past. Covered with the
accumulated sands of many ages, crum-
bled, and rent, and torn, and burnt,
worn with the ruin OF time, behold the cra
die and the grave. There they lie, silent,
and desolate, and dreary; filling the be-
holder with awe at their very solitude,
and yet surprising him with their eX-
tent. Is it possible that these have re-
mained since the beginning of the race?
That hep of sand and brick and NOR
tar, that immense tower so black, scar
red, and scanned, that heap of rubbish,
standing like desolate mountain amid
the area of sand-yes that itself is no
other than the tower OF Babel. 1t was
the cradle of the race, but it soon became
the grave. They said, 90 to, let us
build city, and tower WHO G
top may reach unto heaven, ana
, let us make name; but God said,
: 90 to, let us 90 down and there con-
found their rlanguage; and the Lord seat
, tered them abroad from thence upon the
. face of the earth. That building period
; was indeed wonderful age. Look at
: the dimensions of those ruins, at the
, size of that tower. Look around you
and see other signs of buildings that are
ruined. Wander around that lonely
r desert, and beside that sullen stream
and see the buried cities of the cast! 1t
1 seems hardly possible that the race in its
infancy could have erected such massive
: walls and such magnificent structures.
t Is it not the work Of the Antedlluvian'
t which has survived the flood? Is II not
c the work of the tabled giant race, those
| celebrated Titans of godlike descent
| of whom poetry sings and mytholog!
! speaks? Was not the mighty Nimro'
= a mythical person, and these the worl
I of a former race, the heroes and tn,
Q demi- rods whom the ancicnts worship
5 ped? No! No! 1t was the building pc
e iriod which is the primitive state
: of man. The race la; put all it
strength into the erectiov OF this ont
o great building, n tower whose hea'
It should reach unto heaven. -Four thou
g sand years have passed, and yet tn
e race has not eXcelled the size or massive
e ness of these structures of the ancient'
y And why? because it was the buildin
o period, and only illustrates wha
e human energy may accomplish eve
It in its earliest stages. Every one VIII
g builds thinks that no one has done s
d we'll us he Every city and town and vi
lage beginning its building period, take
|: great deal OF pride in the wonderful in
le proven it is making. Every matte
ii boasts of the magnifcence of its stru'
N lures And SO the pride and the tast
ID for building assumes gigantic propo
N tions in its own estimation. But let l
C. 90 stand beside the tower of Babel al.
learn it's lessons. We think we have nc
re vanced so greatly beyond the past, an
l. we recount the numbcrand magnificent
N of our structures aS the evidence OF OF
G growth. But let us remember that tn
IS building period was the primitive stat
le and that in reality this is only Il
IN beginning of our history. DO W
re think that we have completed our wol
L. when we have erected our houses an
il, built our city? All no, my friend, o'
in utilization has just begun. We thin
IN these builders OF the tower of Babel vel
H. childish to imagine that they could bul
IL n tower whose top should reach uni
H. heaven; but not more childish than "
he if we think all we have to do to get
to our heaven is to build our town and OF
n city-if we think we can defy the a
lg mighty and put ourselves beyond a
es power, safe from all death or danger, al
4 | -. - ,,ood no hipher thing than thi