The state rights democrat. [volume] (Albany, Linn County, Oregon) 1865-1900, 1882-07-07

at all. IL Is book Of history. and t.
my mind the most instructive book o
history that / have ever read. / dc
not mean that IL contains more facts
than some bigger books. Facts are
abundant, but the study which it give,
or offers, and the lessons which It teach
es, surpass, 10 my mind, those that ]
have derived from or found in any other
book Of history. / refer 10 Bancroft'i
"History anj Colonization Of the Unit
ed States" II il a book a good deal
read in this country. II deserves to be
read by everybody who wishes 10 have
some true knowledge Of the history oi
some Of the most important events
which tlauspired during tie last cen.
tury. Now, in reading that book you
fiud out hsw colonies were planted
colonies that have become great nation
and will soon he the greatest nation
upon the globe how they were govern.
ed in their state Of infancy, how they
grew, how they suffered, how they pros.
pered, and became at last the great
nation we now see them. To begin
with the colony OF Virginia Two hun
dred and sixty years ago Virginia be-
came soon under very free Govern.
ment, and If i. had not been for the
curse Of slavery there il every reason tc
believe that Virginia at this momen!
would have been perhaps among the
foremost, or the very foremost, Of the
States Of the American Union. After
Virginia yon come to Maryland, and
the foundation Of the fine city Of Balti
more, founded mainly by Catholic
noble, Lord Baltimore, auJ, with q
liberality which bis Church has not
always displayed. be ~as anxious in
that colony 10 establish firmly the prin-
ciples Of religious freelJm. You come
down few years later, and end the
establishment Of the colony Of Rhode
Island by Roger Williams name
that deserves TO be held in everlasting
estimation, for he seems TO have been
almost, il not quite, the very frss man
10 pronounce FOR and defend the princi-
pie Of absolute freedom Of the human
conscience. a few years later and you
come down to the Caroliuas, and there
You have an extraordinary and almost
amusing exhibition of the way in which
wha. are called grea: men fail in doing
very simple things. We have there
Hn attempt ola very emiAent statesman
- ord Shaftesbur, and very en-
ineat ptilosopher-Jobn Locke-who
put their wise heads together 10 form a
Consultation Tor the Carolinas. IL was
TO Le Constitution founded somewhat,
as they thought, upon tho same basis as
the English Constitution Of that day.
IL was on basis Of this kind, that what
Was most to te regarded was property,
and that nothing out property was 70
enjoy power. / need hardly tell you
that tho Constitution absolutely and
utterly failed. Mr. Bancroft says oft
"The Interests Of aristocIacy dreading
the existence Of u proprietary yeomanry
the perpetual deg adation Of the cul'
tisators Of the soil was enacted" Thai
was by the Constitution Of these tive
eminent men, and it was only when i
was got rid of and = simple and rea
sonable Constitution like those Of othe
colonies was established that it wa
possible for them to prosper and to b
ut peace. We then come TO Pennsyl
vania, which was the last of them, il
the year 1851, founded, as you know
by William Penn, who is illustrious il
connection with the State, and wher
Immediately all panishments of death
except for the worst crime OF deliberat
murder, were abolished, although
have no doubt that thousands of pei
sons in this country since that tim
have been put to death for crimes fc
which it has never been necessary {
inflict that punishment IN the State {
Pennsyl,anis.
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