, 1876-07-05

balanc3 p s. :gravitatlo Of power as Tic an, M
ia tlie aoi e" planet would In the system Of
I'll! Mts = s understand that tho rupture bc
!!sa9.L nave Rorked result Of political inds-
Pendcnce that wault1 l,avc Involved
No SUCH MIGHTY CoEsEqUEHcEs
plosonIie sas % strongly arn9unse by The most
ahce of the Colonies, which catno to a head In
tho revolt, was lei In tho name and FOR thn
maintenance Of tho liberties Of EnglIslmcn
aEnsns! rMasiIanentary M usltrpation and subycr-
Those liberties might hayo ended In un c1nanci-
pnt'on fr0in the rule OF EugiIsl, Parliament,
2 eontlnued submission h., the scheme and sYs-
tem OF tho brttisb.a Monarchy, with m American
principles of tic English Constitution. W1leth-
ef this now political establishment should hare
maintained loyalty Ia tho Bri.Isl, sovereign, or
s,loaIu hayc bccn organized under crown ind
have iaTc lad no other Importance than such IS bc-
iu,!s 70 tl[s'Httnf,cf1ncnt of existing empire,
~ 9nt with preservation of existing Institutions.
ansro a,n,a would have been, to be sure, ''ncw
md tat 'Jt xse not tn nc new ,a++ spsf;es sf H.
elobe" "onid have gonc far TO make tho die
incsnoctfHent but ! Temporary and circumstars-
ttal dtatufbance In tho old order OF things. In
ased, @ tc so!l.llty and porpetuity Of that order
asation of the nUdcl Of tue European tnonarcfl-
iea Oh the lounllcss regions al tt,is continent.
II is PRECISELY hero that the Declaration Of In.
dependence llas
IT'S IMMENSE rMronrAscp.
as civi1 act, and by tic peoples decrcc-
and not by the achievement OF the army, or
through niflftary notrea-nt the lrat stage Of
.1,e, a9o conflict 1t assigned ncw nationality,
ordained end to be fought for and secured It
DID not leave It 10 he an af.cr-frult Of triunpl-
ant war, shaped and measured by military
po'scF. md conferred hy tho army on tho people.
civil oyer military authority, tic subordIna-
t!on or tho army to the unarmed pcoplc,
This dclibcrattve cllo!ce of tho scopo anI
Eoal Of Thy Revolution made surc Of two
in doubt, II military rcasons and events had
hcl1 the mastery urer tho civil power. Tho
first was that nothing less than tic an1cpcntl-
encc Of thu nation, aid its separation from tho
system Of Europe. would bc attained II our
nation would always be the mistress Of Ills own
Institutions. This might not have been It's fato
Ind triumphant arnly won tile prize Of indc-
pcnacncc, not as \ task set for II By the people,
and DONE tn It's scrrlcc, but by Its own might,
nn! held BY tts own IT'LL, and SO to bc shipped
and dealt with lly its own will.
There Is tue best reason to think that tho
Congress which declared our independence gavo
ITS CHIEF soLIcITuDE,
not TO tllc hnxartls OF military failurc not to tho
change Of miscarriage in the project Of sepasa-
tfon from England; but TO ths grave rcsponsI-
blllty OF thc military success-of which they
ns Governmcnt to the new nation, the mnn-
archT Of England, which they considered as gono
to them forever from tho date Of tho DecIafa-
tIon.
Nor did this Congress feel any uncertainty,
either ~ - disposition or expectation, that tic
formation Of the new Government out Of any
otlIcr materials tllnn such us were to he found
IN society rs established on this side Of the At
,t,; lant!S; These materials they fo1esaw ,wcro
ilttcal establishment as would maintain and
rcrpctuptc the equality and liberty always cn-
1oyed III tho scycfal colonial communities.
but ~ these Limitations upon what wns posi-
WINS probable, and might become actual. Ono
thug was too essential to be left uncertain, and
the founders OF this natlon determined that
there never should be o moment when tho scy.
eral communities Of tie different colonies should
lose tho character Of
COMPONENT FARrs OF ONE NATION.
Hy their plantation mud growth un to tho day Of
tile Declaration Of Independence they wcrc sub
political connection, lartA OF one country, under
one constitution, with one destiny. AceurilinE-
" the Declaration, by its vcry terms, made tic
aet % otsepasatt.i1;n d!ss9l7tng by "oue people,,
them With another," and tho proclamation of
a]tty Was ttttnt thcse unfth{ cnt11{cs nrn dnd ~
rjst ought Il, bc. FREQ anil fntlcnondent States
is was thus tf1at. at one bre!.fh. sind.t,rn,
1cure and uuIon j, were declared und established.
The confirmation Of the lrst by wnr, and Of tllo
second by cIrfl wthJon1. wns hit thn eYrcntinr,
Of thc slcIe csjsn, which it Is tho rlory az liz
great tuhtrt,,.un. 81 our national e1istcnco to
t,nyr framed nrI nnnouncctI. Tim rccnrnit,nn
Of uar Independence 1lrbt by Frnncc, aud then bv
urcat britain, the closer uon by tic articles OF
and the final unity OF tho Federal
were all but uluntnents Of titlo of
that
:" "1..nERrrANp uS1os,, ONE AND 1ssrpAnAnLE,"
which were proclaimed Mt this PLACE, mud ou ills
day, onu hundred years ago, whlc!, have been
our possession fron tl,at mon,cnt hitherto, and
whtct, wu surely avow shall bo our possession
[ornvcr.
Seven years of Revolutionary war, an.l twclvn
years ut culnsumlnatc civil prudence brought
lis, in turn, u the conclusive pcacu Ut 1853 s,nl
10 tlu perfected Constitution Of l7S7. Few
chapters If tie worl,i's history, covering surll
brief periods, arc crowded with 80 many Illus
tsous nuIncs, or maale up OF events Of 10
deep and permanent INTEREST to mankind I
ra,,;lot stay tu rrcnll to your attention theso
:taractcrs nor ttcsc incidents, or to ronew thu
rrnf It,IGu nt1 nnn}a,1ke with 1yIfrl, wa ncrnr