The Van Buren press., 1876-07-04
FOURTH OF JULY.

This morning, as our readers are we'll
aware, is the hundrcdth birthday of our
country, and from one end of our broad
land to the other, the day has been ush-
cred in by the ringing bells and firing
cannon. A patriotic joy, indcscribablo in
its supreme nobility, Childhood days
seem to have a revery dance in our mem
ory, and we live, once mere, amid the
shadowy patriotic "reminiscences of our
juvenile years
Onc hundred years ago, there assem-
bled a body of men, whose duty it was
to legisate for the good of the colonies
which they were representing. They
had heard the murmuring of the infuri
ated people; they had heard them cry
out against The nunbet,vss #EoE1s done
them ty the British crown. They had
seen their fellow citizens ground down
under the iron heel Of English despotism,
They saw hands stretched out to them,
imploring assistance; they saw heads
and forlns, bowed down beneath the
weight of u kingly rule, mutely pleading
for relief. Mothers, with their babes
upon their bosoms, were present in the
minds of these heroes, and their voices
of eutreaty for relief. II owed them to ae
ton. They were weary of the infamous
tyranny of British dominion, their limbs
were sore and tired with the weight Of
the shackles with which they were bound.
They determined to shake Off this ser
vile, degrading bondage They made
the tucipient movement. they had horno
long and patiently all the miserable mi
quty that had been practiced upon them,
hoping that time would mellow the as.
perity and injustice of the mother coun'
try. Year after year they had waited for
this coveted blessing, and yet, with the
swift flight Of time, the distance between
hope and fruiton increased rather than
lessencd, and they were only still farther
from reconciliation than ever. Wearied
with n vain but eager hope; worn out by
an ungratiiicd anticipation, fo"bearauct
ceased to be a virtue, and they made thai
stroke the hundredth anniversary OF
which, we, their children, are permitted
to celebrate, to day.
TO fully appreciate the true nobility O
tie act--and it is worthy OF all our graf
itnde-we should advise ourselves Of tht
danrsrs in which the colonies would be
involved by disruption, with the British
nation. Second the effort necessary to
the ncipient steps in such course The
island Of Britain was the strongest pow
er, naval as well as army on the globe
She was mistress Of the sea- while the
dense mass Of her soldicry shook the en-,
tire earth with its tread. The sun was
said never to SCI on her dominions, and
the weight Of her tyranous hand fell up
on all c'imes and people Wealthy. in
the stores of the main government, she
had an immense yassalaee, whom she
could rob and impoyersh at pleasure
The American colonies numbered bu,
thirteen, with but few able to bear arms,
and Ill able to carry on warfare with a
nation like Britain. Terrible must be
the proyoeation, fearful tho Injustice
aud dtaholieal the miserable infamy
that would demand action that mus. ulti
mate in war vita such a likelihood of
defeat Let MS imagine, if we can, the
utter and positive determination, as well
as impotuosity Of despair, that must have
| burned in the breasts of those heroes,
when they dared do an act which was to
result in warfare with that English Ii
on, whose roar loaded with n terror the
hearts of the entire world, and the lift
ing of whose paw, made the kingdoms OF
the world tremble with apprehension.
When we remember all this, no words
can express our admiration Of their he.
roism.
! Yet these fathers of this grand and
glorious old republic, whose privileges
and rights we enjoy, on this the one hun
dredth anniversary, had no easy task to
accomplish the event which we to day
celebrate. There was a strong feeling
IN Congress against an independence Of
the mother country, They dreaded to
bring ahqut contest with n nation SO
able to crush them to atoms, 1t took
tho burning words of Patrick Henry to
rouse Virginiato positive action in the
matter Jefferson says. "a Before ,ha
18TH of April, l775, had never heard OF
q disposition to senarata from, a.. .t