The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1896-05-27

But 1t Is going to be italian and Norwegian,
Russian and Celt, Scotch and French, Eng
l1sh and American.
The American of 1G0 years from noWis to De
different from the American Of to-day. Ter
man brain. Irish wit, French civility, Scotcn
frmness, English loyalty, Italian 8estnetlcS
packed into one man, and he an American
It is this tntermarriago of nationalittes tha'
Is going to make the American nation the
greatest nation of .he ages. But What are we
doing for the moral and intellectual culture
of the 100000 foreigners who came In one
year, and tine G0O 0C0 who came IN another
year, and the 1000 who came IN another
wear, and the It. 90, 900 who are coming into
our various American ports! .What are we
doing for them! Well, we are doing great
deal for them. We steal their baggage as
soon as they get here. We send them up to
q boarding house. where the least they lose
is their money. We swindle them within ten
minutes after they get ashore. We are doing
great deal for them. But what are we DO.
ing to introduce them into the duties OF
good citizenship? Many OF them never
saw ballot box. Many of them never heard
of the constitution Of the United States.
Many of them have no acquaintance with
| the United States, so commanded by one
political party or both political parties, give
to every immigrant who lands here volume,
in good type and we'll bound for long usage
"a volume containing the Declaration of
Independence, the constitution of the United
States anu chapter on the spirit of our
government. Let there be such book on
the shelf of every free library in America.
While the American Bible society puts into
the right hand of every immigrant copy of
the holy Scriptures, let the government OF
the United States, commanded by. some po-
litical party, put into tho left hand of every
immigrant volume instructing him In
the duties of good citizenship. There are
thousands of foreigners In this land who
need to learn that the ballot box is not q
footstool, but a throne-not something to
put your foot on, but something to bow
before.
But whether members Of the national leg
islature, or delegates to one Of the national
conventions, or private citizens, let US cultt-
vate Christian patriotism. Oh, how good
God has been to us as nation! Just open
the map Of the continent and see how 1t is
shaped for immeasurable prosperities. Nav
igeble rivers, more In number and greater
than of any other land. rolling down Oh all
sides into the sea, prophesying large manu-
factories and easy commerce. Look at the
great ranges Of mountains. tlmbered with
wealth on the top and sides and metalled
with wealth underneath. One hundred and
eighty thousand square miles OF coal! One
hundred and eighty thousand square miles
of iron! The iron to pry out the coal. The
coal to forge and smelt the iron. The land
so contoured that extreme weather hardly
ever lasts more than three days-extreme
heat or extreme cold. Climate for the
most part bracing and favorable for
Drawn and brain. All fruits. AL min
tumnal pageantry that no land on earth pre-
tends to rival No South American earth
quakes. No Scotch mists. No English fogs.
No Egyptian plaques. The people OF the
United States are happier than any people
on earth. 1t is the testimony of every man
that has travelled abroad. For the poor more
sympathy! For the industrious more oppor-
tunity! Oh, how good God was to our ia theirs
and how good God has been to US and our,
children! To Hin-blessed be His glorious
name! To Him Of cross and triumph be con-
secrated the United States of America!
There are three great reasons why you and
should do our best for this country-three
great reasons: Our fathers graves, our cradle,
our children's birthright. When say your
fathers graves, your pulses run quickly.
Whether they sleep in city cemetery or coun-
try graveyard their dust is very precious to
you, think they lived we'll and that they
died right. Never submit to have any gov
ernment over their tombs other than that
government under which they lived and
died. And then this country Is our cradle.
It may have rocked US very roughly. but 1t
was good cradle 10 bs rocked In. Oh, how
much we owe to it! Our boyhood and girl
hood, 1t was spent In this blessed country. I
never have any patience with man who
talks against this country. Glorious
place to be born in and glorious.
place to live IN. It has been our
cradle. Aye! It Is to be our children's 8
birthrlght. You and will soon be through.
We will perhaps see few more sprinS
blossoms, and we will perhaps see few
more summer haryests, and we will perhaps
gather q few more autumnal fruits, but we
are to hand this government to our children
as it was handed TO us-a free land, happy
land, Christian land. They are not to be
trampled BY despotism. Thev are net to be
frightened by anarchists. We must hand
this government to them over the ballot box,
over the school desk, over the church altar,
as we hare received it and charge them.
solemnly to put their life between 1t and any
keen stroke that would destroy it.
And Thou, Lord God Almighty, We put,
with q thousand armed prayer, into Thy pro-
lection this nation! Remember our fathers
bleeding feet at Valley Forge. Remember
Marion and Kosciusko. Remember the cold.
and the hunger. and the long march, and tha
fever hospital. Remember the fearful charge
at Bunker Hill. Remember Lexington, and
Yorktown, and Kings Mountain, aud Gettys-
burg. Remember Perry's battle on the lake,
and Hampton Roads, where the Cumberland
went down. Remember Washington's prayer
by the campfire. Remember Plymouth
Rock and the landing amid the savages. Re
member Independence Hall and how much
it cost our fathers to sign their names. Re-
member all the blood and tears OF three wars
-1776, 1872. 1862. And more than all,
remember the groan that was might
Ter than all other groaus, and the
thirst that stung worse than all 9TH
er thirsts, and the death that WAS ghastlter
than all other deaths-the mount on which
Jesus died to make all men happy and free.
For the sake of all this human and divine
sacrifice, o God. protect this nation! And
whosoever would blot 1t ou::, and whosoever
would strike 1t down, and whosoerer would
turn his back, let him be accursed!
Go home to-day in high hopes OF the
future. The eternal God Is on tho side OF
this nation. Our brightest days are yet to
come.
he hath sounded forth the trumpet that will
never call retreat.
BE Is sitting out the hearts OF men before the
judgment seat.
Be swift, my SOUL to answer Him, be iubilant,
my feet! Our God Is marching on!