Fayette County herald. [volume] (Washington [Washington Court House], Fayette County, O. [Ohio]) 1860-1???, 1876-05-11
Published by request of the Congregation

Published by request OF the Congregation
For the days shall come upon thee that thine
pass thee around and keep thee in on every side |
and shall lay thee even with the ground, and thy /
children within thee, and they snail not leave in |
thee one stone upon another.''-LUKE XIX: 4S. a. |
Nations, as well as individuals, are sub
ject to Divine authority. This distinction, |
however, must always be made: between |
the individual and the State, between the |
city and its inhabitants; to the Nation or |
the city, as such in its aggregate relation, |
there is no future; to the individual there |
is life beyond. Hence, the authority of
God with regard to Nations must be vim
Dictated in the present.
The words of our text were uttered by
the Son of God, with reference to the
coming desolations of the city of the
''Great King and by implication of the
whole Jewish nation. This Divine pre-
diction had a most literal ftIlf1llment,
when under Titus the city of Jerusalem,
the Temple and the Jewish Nation were
destroyed by the Roman armies.
Let lis regard our Nation in this one
hundredth year of its life from survey
of some of the changes that environ the
Nation.
''The days shall come upon thee that thine
enemies shall east trench dimes of cir
eumvallation employed in ancient war
fare in the beseigement of fortified cites)
about thee, and compass thee around and
keep thee in on every side" Elements
there are of weakness, as well as of
strength, in National cOmpacts. What
ever does not conduce to the stability and
conservation of the National fabric is to
that degree and to that extent an enemy,
casting its trenches about the National
life. Whatever of influence tends not to
unitize and homogenize the different sec
tions, classes and nationalities of a peo-
pie, is an element of weakness to its own
life. Nations have ever made one great
fundamental mistake. They have guard
ed the without, rather than the within.
They have vested the safety of the Nation
in armies and navies of sufficient num-
bers to repel or vanquish external foes,
while internal foes have often wrought
the ruin that external enemies were, un-
| able to accomplish Thus the factions of
John and Simon inside the walls of Jeru-
salem did as much to hasten the fall of
the city as did the beleaguering hosts of
Titus entrenched about her Without
Hence cometh our danger. Our position
in the grand divisions of the earth is
such, as within itself to secure us from
the without; but how guard the within ?
Our diversified climate, habits and in
terests are not conducive to National uni
ty, strength and prosperity. This single
fact rendered the formation of the Ma
tiOnal compact under the Constition after
the achievement of independence almost
a thing impossible, and has characterized
the National legislation from that day
| (1789) to this with the spirit of conces-
sion and compromise. But even conces-
sion and compromise may ultimately not
avail in securing peace and good will
As it was of the Missouri Compromise, sc
may it be of the others and the rest
Judging the future by the past, the next
| Centennial of the American Nation viii
see not less than $50, ZOO, 900 of people
representing all nationalities, and stretch
| 1IOI1 OCCobl ~ OGCdIlS dI4NA 1IOIll JIlt
pine-clads of Maine to the distant RiC
Grande. But ere that day shall come lie
but the sectional interest of New Eng
land, and of the Pacific Coasts, or of tn
Middle and Western States, or of the grea
, North and South, all at once become alb
solutely irreconcilable, and nothing bu
standing armies and men of war will ev
, er awe the spirit of revolution. A Natiol
e loses its charm to the individual when
: contravenes his interests. Our late inter
: nicine strife points strongly to the posi-
: bility of other conflicts of like character
While Republics possess many ele
e ments of strength, they also are expose
r in many places to the possibility of al
: tack. Republics are supposed to posses
/. their chief strength in their liberal spir
o and in the intelligence and patriotism {
i their people. Their devotion to a Coz
n ernment affording rare opportunities fc
n success to the meritorious, in all the d'
/, partments of civil, political and busine!
life, is regarded as & great defensive pow
er to that Government; yet, its liberal
ty is liable to many abuses, ruinous
their charcter and effects. A Governmel
like ours is proclamation to the Natiol
"a and worldwide inviting the malconten
* of all people to find protection under OIL
at National agis. Whatever may be said
~ ~ the spirit debating such policy, it ma
n and doubtless will, become an enen
he casting bloody trench against the life
II the Nation that no power can fill up
as % bridge across. Judging from the lesso
! !? and examples abounding in history, t
Id efforts to homogenize and unitize diffe
re ent nationalities with different -custom
~ habits and national idiosyncracies, a
,e- with ill-defined notions of personal FIRE
id dom, and with vague ideas of loyalty
We the Government, will doubtless, as in t
~ -, past, prove delusive cheat. This DC
RE cy, adopted from the first, and advocat
I by all administrations, is, to my mil
got planting citidels all over the land, VIII,
80 guns will yet be turned upon the life
he the Nation.
me We haYe no proof from the history
IF example of the past, that the favorite
lev pertinent of our Government was eve
Ike permanent success, but many examT
llaG of most disastrous failures. Having gi,
some attention to history, have ne
been enabled to believe that the INTEL
tual and moral culture and standards
the world were sufficiently high as to
lily to. - 5i1,p,.sa ,,o+ia1i4i -,
ly- 0i " lives 0ii1.l'loS 0"H "o
hes tized and homogenized into one vast pa
,eb- otic, loyal and Nation-loving people.
the not the indications daily multiplying
,toT gaoT foreign immigration to these shores is
is tuated by motives of the most sol
big character, as evidenced by the purs
title followed, and entirely unworthy that
me 60 1arged view of American citizenship
80, ~, which coufassadIv, tho fa+a oDd RI.