Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1874-04-01
L. II. RANDOLPH.
What He Knows about s.Our Country
The Impending Revolution, nepu-
d~fafion, Dissolution, and Rise OF n

LAIBCnult4S nttOAutAOs A1~f
dfation, Dissolution. and Rise of
Southern Republic."
The above named gentleman lectured al
the Opera House last night, upon the above
named subject, 10 a small, but remarkably
select audience. IL must be confessed thai
those whOwere present came away Wlthbut
few new ideas upon a subject to which it Is
hardly to be supposed they had ever given
a thought before. The speaker certainly
exhibited a great command of language,
but utterly failed to confine his remarks to
the subject matter.
Coming upon the stage, he glanced
around upon the slim, but as before stated,
remarkably select audience, and said: Il
can't do justice to it, but / shall try" He
then deliberated removed his gloves, took a
pair of spectacles from their case, glanced
over his manuscript, which had been
placed on a small table in the centre of the
stage, and began his discourse.
He said that he did not propose to enter
into a TRADE, or to appeal to the passions OF
any one. 1t was as far from his intention
to evoke sentiments against the peace and
dignity Of the nation, as to rob his neigh
Dor. He was disposed to believe that the
nation of which We form a constituent part,
is and has been so far, merely provisional.
He believed that there is a God
in the Universe and that he al
ways preserves the nation, if the
individual perish. The lecturer saw
something more in the principles which
undeflie governments than mere politics or
party. There is a grand idea running be-
meath the entire universe of men, of which
mankind have either been not cogniZant, or
nrhiah fhoxy Iar,a 10000 h. u.nntiNod
Governments were not instituted merely for
political ends, but the Father of US all in
tended all governments to be
MERELY PROVISIONAL INSTITUTIONS.
The ~speakerhad u~nderstoodsince being in
vited to lecture in Nashville, that the idea
had gone forth that he was a disturber of
the peace; that he ~endeavored to precipi-
tate, rather than hold back, the waves of
barbarism which, but a little time ago,
swept over our land, desolating our homes
by millions. This was not his
purpose, but, on the contrary
he inculcated principles of peace and pro-
gress. He was a peace man, deprecating
war, believing it Unnecessary to the progress
of mankind. He believed that an appeal
to arms by either North, South, East or
West, would place the parties in the posi-
ton of the German who, threatening to
commit suicide to spite his wife, did so by
sitting down on a hot stove.
We reyolve around ideas, just as the
earth and other planets revolve around the
sun. Men have tried in all ages of the
world to upbuild all kinds of governments
in order to give the greatest good TO the
greatest number, but all countries, civilized
and semi-civiliZed, somehow always fall
into the hands of demagogues-men of
small ideas but large ambition.
All nations move in orbits; all mankind
move in orbits; all individuals move in Or
bits; all religions move in orbits. Ideas
move from unity to diversity and back
from diversity to unity. You cannot unite
two incompatibilities-it is impossible.
There are tidal waves of ideas which, start
ing from barbaric bounds of thought, grad
ually advance until these tidal waves of
mentality have overcome the people and
given resistance to tyranny through all
ages.
The people of the United States began in
unity and have gone to diversity. Those
who settled in New England were one kind
of people and those who settled upon the
shores of the Southern States Were of a
different class entirely. These people came
together, each working in their own way
to achieve the civilization of the whole
world.
THE NEGRO QUESTION
came in on one side and universal domin-
ion on the other. The man of the South
had no time TO turn his attentionto science,
art, or philosophy, as his whole time was
engaged in the accumulation of wealth and
in acquiring those traits of character which
90 to make up the chivalric gentleman.
The man of the East saw that his section
of country was a barren waste, with the eX-
ception of small portions. This caused
him to seek by what means and by what
measures he could make nature subser-
Went TO his ends, which ends were the ac-
emulation of wealth and the ~aggrandize-
ment of his own ideas.
Throuh the East, North, South and West
these conflicting elements met and caused
an antagOnism not based uDOn slavery.
Men are moved by two grand motives
lust for gold and Love, and the lust for
money is the stronger.
Here the speaker gave a glowing descrip-
ton of the incidents connected with the
discovery of America, and said that the
opposition and sneers which met Column
bus on every hand, were but a sample of
the difficulties all men who had a grand
idea had to contend with in e~ndeavOring to
carry out that grand idea.
After an immense stride in all that goes
to make a nation prosperous had been
made by the people of this country, it be-
came necessary TO lure men back to the
wilderness. Gold was discovered away Off
in California About this time there was
also a revolution in religion. A man in
Illinois, becoming dissatisfied with the re-
ligions of the day, devised one for himself
and gathered about him his zealOts and fol-
lowers. The principles of this religion
were so repugnant to the majority of the
people in that section that this man
JOSEPH SMITH, WAS KICKED
beyond the confines of civilization. and he
and his followers, and Brigham Young and
his followers were driven from Nauvoo and
settled half way across the continent, at a
place called Utah. The hand of God was
in this, for when the thousands of thous-
ands who sought gold on the shores of the
Pacific wendell their way across the desc
late plains, they were kept from perishing
by the food furnished them by these Nor
mons, who had irrigated the land where
they settled, causing it to bloom rs the rose.
Capt Suter, who discovered gold in Cali
fornia, was making a living by dealing in
NAlliC1 NUTS, GU II WIS Cllllll1 uONn q |
tree one day, and as he swung the axe with
vigorous stroke, he sung merrily TO him
self. The tree was felled and he sat down
the stump to think over the money he
would make out of it, when suddenly his
gaze was attracted by a bit of flashing
metal in the earth which had been torn uD
by the falling tree. He picked it up gently.
compared it with a five dollar gold piece he
had in his pocket, took it to a friend and
had him test il with acid. 1t was pro-
nounced gold and the startling news was
carried over all the world and a new
impulse was given to mankind
all over the globe. This country prospered
and gained in wealth. People flOcked in
all countries. The sturdy Irishmen,
with their strong arms, came over to build
railroads and dig canals. God made Irish
men TO make our railroads and dig our
canals as He made the negro to pick our
cotton.
Men are govelRed by two grand motives:
The love of money and the love of religion.
The people who settled on the banks of the
James river came here to accumulate
wealth. Those who settled on Plymouth
rock came there in order TO serve God after
the dictates of their own conscience. 1t
love Of money on one side and love of