The Lafayette advertiser. [volume] (Vermilionville [i.e. Lafayette], La.) 1865-19??, 1890-04-12

great French Explorer, La Sale,
fioated down the turbulent Mississippi
in his frail bark dated a contest be-
tween England and France for the
supremacy iii America. In 1744 be-
gan series of conflicts between these
two powers which lasted for twenty
years, reaching its elimination in the
"French and Indian" War, in which
England came forth 9ictorious. Dur
ing this war, the Colonists, then sub
ject to Great Britain, showed much
zeal and made great sacrifices, al
though sufficient grounds, through
England's narrow and illiberal policy
had already been given them for
alterations. England at this period
was heavily in debt and thought it a
capital scheme to tax her Colonies, to
draw life's blood from the veins Of
her Youngest offspring in order to
mash away the debt. To this Unjust
Ice if not cruelty she continually add
etl insult and did all in her power to
tFiturate her colonies to thraldom.
But thanks be unto God, the heroic
blood Of their ancestors still courscd
its way unrutjlcd through the appoint
ed channels; the spirit Of Justice i'm
planted in their hearts still lived; the
I ~sl leNezy u re Puritan 1Na.,.seess:: I:a:..seess::
wa:s still vivid and before submit to
the tyranny of the pompous monarchy
George III, they were more than will
ling to fertilize the plains of Boston
with their blood. It is to these brave,
generous and truth loving men with
clear brains and pure hearts guided by
the love Of freedom and an overruling
Providence that we owe our liberty.
1t is a patent fact that where there is
no knowledge there is no responsible
ly; where there is no law there is no
transgression and where there is no
established nation there are no States
men, and, mark you acel5 Gentlemen,
no confederation existed as yet be-
tween the thirteen different Colonies,
they were still under the subjection,
Legislature and jurisdiction Of Parlia-
ment, and we utterly and most empha-
tically deny that until such confeder-
alton subsisted Or until delegates re-
presenting the Colonists and voicing
their sentiments convened a Congress,
''dissolvcd the political bands which
connected them with the mother coun-
try" and in fact established a separate
and distinct nation there were no
Statesmen. 1t is indeed true there
were local leaders and politicians by
the score, but it is a misnomer to APP
ply the exalted title of Statesman to
those not vested with authority and
who could not be until a government
was established. At this juncture we
ask for definition Of Statesman. Is
it every local leader, every inflated
politician, every unscrupulous dema-
gogue and every man who by superior
pugilistic powers or surplus of ''boo-
die" seats himself in the council of the
nation? Is it the lawyer who leaves a
fifty thousand dollar practise to ,ac-
cept instead the paltry salary Of five?
Is it the man wl1e spends hundred
thousand dollars in his election to re-
ceive instead the meagre stipulation of
ten? Is it the man who after buying
his pay to Congress is never present
except to deposit his vote which has
already been nefariolsly and crimi-
nally bought? No sir!' for the sake Of
our own honest opponents and in the
name of the affirmative. we deny this.
A Statesman is one skilled in the. sci
ence Of Government, one who is the
servant Of the people, one who carries
into effect in Legitimate way the die
tates of his constituents. We now
arrive at the only valid argument
presentable by the affirmative and that
/! is our Indebtedness to the Statesmen
for formerly draughting the instru-
ment which forever declared to the
world Americas Independence. Let
us now see if the Statesmen shall
share all the honor even in this.
While.it is true that the Declaration
Of Independence sets forth every inju-
Try sustained by the Colonists; every
insult offered by Great Britain and
furthermore every reason why Ameri
ca should be free and independent,
and while it was necessary link in the
chain of freedom set forth in the most
beautiful style comprising in itself
the finest specimen Of literature in the
English language, still we deny that
| the statesmen were its real and genuine
author. Do you suppose for one mo
ment that the Congress assembled, OF
the Committee appointed to draugh1
such an instrument originated or con
cected it from the fancy imagery OF
btheir own brains? Do you believe
that they laboriously sought for the
sentiments to be ingrafted or incorpo
rated in it? Gentlemen, before thai
instrument was pruned, before the
| Congress that immortafized itself il
| nri1ffis0 II convened the Sentiment;