The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1888-06-01
TBE NATIONAL IDEA.
Eloquent Address Of Hon. John A. Camp
hall nj Hancock County,

| Eloquent Address Of Hon. John a. Camp
bell, of Hancock County.
The following is synopsis Of the elo-
quent address OF the Hon. John A.
Campbell, of Hancock county, delivered
at Grafton on Decoration Day:
After tracing the two systems Of po-
litical philosophy that were under the
operation, OF our government, antagoniz-
ing each other, the one under the states
manship Of Hamilton and Webster, de-
veloping the National idea us self.eXist-
ent in the spirit and moral constitution
of the people, linked with which was
the equality Of all men under the law,
and the other mildly reflected by JetIer-
son and more, boldly and aggressively
defined by Calhoun us the State Sover-
eighty idea, linked with which was the
development of a civilization based
upon the subsection OF labor, and that
the inevitable and logical resultant OF
the Presidential election OF 1860, was the
triumph of the National idea and the
termination and ultimate extinction OF
slavery, which the South ,interpretingas
destructive OF her social and political
system, challenged by the appeal TO battle,
lie said: The South brought her pres
tige, her wealth, her military superior
ity, her eloquence, her religion, her civ
ilization itself and cast all into the scales
of the mighty conflict. Planting her
STANDARD upon the heights OF Gettys-
burg with eighteen miles OF line Of bat
tie they stood the flower and heroic i'm:
personatlon OF creatures of social and
political development, and that fiery
mass OF living valor rolling on the foe"
in one short hour condensed the filth,
and hopes and dashipg schemes OF 200
years OF Southern civilization. Men
were as nothing. Above the smoke OF
the conflict stood incarnate their ideas
OF the sovereignty Of the State, and
slavery OF the colored man. And the
magnificent army OF Meade standing un-
broken was rs nothing, save rs the en-
bodiment and incarnation ofthe Nation
nj idca.
The speaker said every gun that
was fired was shotted with Nationality,
every sabre that cleaned in the sun was
respondent with Nationality, and that
when tho army OF Meade held the
heights Of Gettysburg, there was planted
forever on this continent the conquer
ing ideas OF American nationality and
American liberty.
He disproved the great prophesy madn
by NIacaulay, the English historian, more
than thirty years ago, that we would be
destroyed by the Huns and Yandals
within us. When he said that the war
closed with an improvised volunteer
army OF 100000, that they stood a vast
military, unrestrained and linvincible,
they returned from the war and furled
their banners and melted again into the
vast sea OF American citizenship,
He said that the great armies Of Greece
and Rome and the modern nations OF
Europe had been used for the destruction
Of liberty, but he challenged the world
10 show that since the days of Magma
Charta" there had been an Anglo.Saxon
army dangerous to liberty, and said that
for 800 years the battles Of constitutional
liberty have been fought by the Anglo
Saxon race,
Speaking OF the great struggle for the
payment OF the national debt, he called
Il the second war for the Union, and Of
the soldiers he said they had borne the
Republic on their shields in the hour OF
battle, and nOurisheditwith the strength
of their hands in the hour OF victory and
place. They put their shoulders TO the
burden and lifted three thousand mil:
lions Of dollars OF a national debt and
placed it upon an equality with the cur
rency Of the world, and welcomed their
yanguished foes to the rights and digni-
ties or citizenship. All they asked in
return was that 1t be written sthesogrce
for permanency of the Constitution, that
the national debt and the plighted faith
Of the Republic to the widows and or
plans OF its dead defenders be forever
inviolable.