The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1877-03-08

The great work or making folks happy,
Can be done by aiassie like you
For the VALLEY vIEoINIAN.
Have we a Cray. Tottering Government
"A prophet is not without honor save II
his own country" and. in obedience to The
Saying. men appear more sensitive to criti
cism from without the circle that bounds
ttieir lines, either domestic or national, ano
4 this..feeling, no doubt, gives even increased
Significance to Lord Macauiay 8 words where
he says OUR Consultation l. all sail and nc
anchor as much "a to say, so long as winds
and tides favor, aud no lee-shore, we may
float bravely enough. Englishmen, not d
few. honestly believe nlus; others wish it,
believing it or not; and others, no doubt
hope for better. things, though finding iiu
stout and weighty argument upon which to
build their graiiisof mustard seed faith. But
here rises UP In cur midst our own prophet
aud cries with loud vice !: Behold this SER
'pent Of the wilderness which you hold aioft
works no cure for wandering, waywartl, SUIT
feriug children of then, hils IL alto4ether
pOweriess. Naysmore, that this supersTruc-
ture Of mars rights and man's liberty ta-
become Tower Of Bxbel, with confusion of
tongues, and that all Is sscfazy !" aud :. tot
t ring 'ato ruin, sand we, poor fools OF men.
inusstturta our eyes upon the wrecks and de.
bis of this, our nineteenth century panacea
for the aggregate Ills OF humanity ia DO
litical way, popular government, and gov
eminent instituted for mans projection and
convenience, and no longer, pOor man, ul-
der original ban, the pack-horse OF kings
and lords. temporal and spiritual.
Which to honor the most we may hardly
say, siiice we verify believe neither to b.
Prophet ut all. else would these Republican
Institutions OF North America have long
since passed away. to be heard OF no more
forever. Our own Prophet, viii, no degree
Ut philosophy. and Ia the presence Of august
assemblies OF legislation, and so to the w0rl.l,
petitions the 9tn,d Lord to deliver with
Strong arm this '.craxy and tottering gov
ernnfent - from It's imminent peril, and
some having faith In the efficacy Of such
appeals, see ifunsediate answer nj this .. EItc
toral Commission OF Arbitration" il happily
it hail his King--Kinx, though, to our
thinking, such happy settlement Of vexed
questions has some better and even hplier
REASON than special interp0sition OF Higher
Power at the request OF any one or number o;
purblind mortals; aud it may not always be
utter waste Of time and Thought to cast abcn
us for come logical reason and fitness III
things to account for the ever steady manner
Mill which .otr political institutions sir
inount all difficulties aud survive lluniero,a.
tnenacing eveiitualities and immediate pres
ent troubles. Such research and casting
about will be likely In the end to give ia no
small degree Of proof that matters are NOT
altogether fortuitous with our Repu lican
Government, or thai, as the Talmr,d saws,
I'VE have Owed irtO All ocean aud brought
up 4 pOtsherd;' but, Oh the contrary. we
have something worth revering and of price
less value. There Is a juxtapositi0n of sen
timent, rather than form, in the ,,tterances
we have quoted; both evidently expect the.
same 1onsummation. We prefer, though,
Macaulay's way Of puItingi az the manifest
and most downright as well as philosophical.
for he fairly and fatty tells Us that hy-ansl-
by, in the course Of time, our political insti-
tutioms are bound TO go to pieces, and we are
to take refuge in the arms OF u Cesar or-Na
poleon, OF else suffer spoliation at the hands
Of internal Huns and Vandals, In the form Of
our working classes. The other certainly
lUoses much OF Its force in appe Hing to 4
sort Of miraculous interference Of Divine
Providence TO save us from ourselves: for
men have come to think that though mira
Giles may have been in old times quite essen
tial, we OF this day are left TO tlie workings
out OF natural laws, and water is to run
downward, aud fire to burn, and men to suf.
fer the consequences OF their acts; and if
there Is no better logic for the survival OF
popular government with us than arbitrary
interference Of Higher Power, the sooner
things are RACED the better, and new and
Jfirmer foundations commenced for rearing
our edlfiee OF government for and by the
peoplt. In Macaulay's way OF formulating
our future destiny, there Is no reading be-
| tween lines. ard seeing there not SO much
l LII Unit 1sN IL.
ifrepres sible partizatship that can see saliva
ton to republican government only in the
rule OF some one political party doing out
party patronage and emoluinents, and, In
The original sense OF that word, taking toll
for grinding, from the public treasury. But
however this may all be, 1t Is fact that
from Declaration OF Independence down to
Electoral Commission, .here have not been
wanting j, remiahs to fnretell the dow nfall
rot republican government, with more or less
degree Of confidence IN their predictions.
Our peculiar institution. the stump orator, has
not entirely monopolized this peculiar field Of
prophetic vision. We have become used 10
HI oratoriesa flights depicting our govern
1inent flying of Into atomic destruction be-
cause his party was In aud didn't want to
lxet out, or was out and wanted to get in.
I'VE applaud him, but are not disturbed IN
~
sAblime bursts OF enthusiasm, sits up all
night to watch the Star-spanged Banner
| waving over the Capitol We pity aud en-
dnre him, but never embrace suci patriot
Ism il too deep; we cannot attain unto it..
! iOneiday there comes civh war, ami VIZ 90
about the business OF cutting each oter'>
threats And blowing humanity to atoms. rs
il It was the trade Of life, and without even,
shipping to ask why we are doing IL; and
| tier. is Xieat danger to these instituto :
THAT have ina century Of time SO materially
I assisted Us in working out national veal ai,,
great individual prosperity, and that have.
done much to keep intact most precious civ
liberties, and then men not fond OF the H.
public rs pri ciple in the world, and Others,
animated with dislike to this particular
Republic Ut the United States as now exist.
ing, have risen up aud proclaimed, ssonle In
a maiIly fashion and Others not SO mani. /,
that at last we had hoatcd to the brink uf
Niagara, and tiencefUr.tl there WAS to be all
| anarchy and misrue or no rule; but sud
denly the winds Of passion aud strife are
still, the voice Of calm counsel and honest,
manly tolerance Ia heard, spying :''Men and
brethren !; differences exist between us 1t Is
barbarous that we kill each other; let just
men decide between us, nd We will abide
the result" Your prophetic dUuber is, OF
course, sileneed, and for consolation niust
take refuge In his classics and Roma repiib-
lies and Greek demoeracies and his dictnm
| Of historical cycles, forgetting to look deeper
than his formula, and seeing there, under all
governments of kings or priests or vox
pop,di, continued progress to the perfection
Of government, anu which we believe to be
this Republic Of the descendants Of the An
glo-SaxOn, IN main principles, II rot alto
gethcr In form.
It Is well. no doubt, that we have amongst
MS those who have little faith IN republican
government, AMI some who have little liking
for it. Faith In the ability of men to govern
themselves is not Of SO ancient growth as to
remove 1t altogether from the category OF
things progressive, or to. enlist Under its
banners that element no society wrongfully
termed conservative, and for WHICH no bet
ter word has been coined than Bourbouisin,
which may meaa something not at all con-
sentative. Because We find Americans who
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