Evening star., 1896-10-31

10 the fditor OF The Evening star:
On the Both of April iTsa. George W,rb-
ington took the oath of office ana svora 70
preserve, protect and defenl the ,~onsff,r-
tion OF the United States lie WAS arry-
seven years OF age and in the zenith of his
powers; during the Revolution he had often
oeeh called upon to exhibit the foresi.,b,
ana the capacity In action which the CON
sress sometimes lacked; he was not nm
ianiihar with the duties of a statesman
and he knew that he had the love and CO...
hdence OF united people to supyo,, t,,n
in his new field Of usefulness Bc US
easily the first man in the land. he had
SHOWN the capacity to lead and tho na,,I,
nad shown their willingness 20 foIloyr ~
~ was with feelings OF trepidatiou that he
entered upon the duties of The new ON -
MOI uia ne relish the responsibilities thar
We're thrust upon him He lid not urestion
ms own intentions, but he doubted yyhatb,r
MS shoulders were broad enough and strong
ehotg gh 10 bear the burden that was nlacad
~, upNt ,r .neih. IN MS inaugural address ne
sald: ne magnitude and difficulty of the
trust could not but overWhelm with de-
spohdence one who. inheri:ing inferior on
uoWments from nature. and unpractised IN
me duties of civil administration ought 20
be particularly conscious of his GU, a.
nciencies. All 1 dare aver is thar n has
neeh my FAITHFUL study 10 collect nv duty
a.oni d JUST appreciation OF every circum-
= In contrast with the modest 6Iftidrpca NJ
the hfst President is the assurance of a
young man, now much I'm the pul,tr yis,S
put niue more than half the age OF Wash
lhston when he feared that his experience
ana ability were insufficient who was hui a
chllc When many of the statesmen of TODAY
were IN the maturity OF their povprs
S mnose quaIltles as a leader have never
peen put to the test. yet who confdentlv
cners TO take upon his youthful shoulJ,.-s
burden every whit as heavy as that iron,
winch Washington would fain have turned
aside. Panoplied with the consciousness
that he has Inherited no inferior endow-
ments from nature" he bids the neonln
come TO him TO be led into the chosen land
oHerlng in the stroke of his pen a panaeea
Tor all the nations ills he does moi admit
for moment the possibility of mistake
10 be young is not an offense but there
is certain modesty very becoming to
youth, and there are those who would have
more respect for his ability had he hlms,lf
rot quite so much.
There are other and no less striking dlf-
ferences between Washington and this
young man. When Alexander Hamilton.
VINO was quite as able man as PETER or
Tom watson, drew up a plan for the set
uement OF the public debt, Washington
gave II his most hearty approval, although
II pfovlded Tor the payment OF the foreign
deDt IN full, and the assumption of the
debts contracted by the several states
in the pruseeutions of the War for indie
pendehee. He Was charged with playing
Wall street Of the day; ii was nationaliza-
ton, IL was Capitalization of power n WAS
all that the new school objects to most
Yet 1t is doubtful if any one would wish
now that things had been done differently
Washington believed firmly that IL the gov
ernment was to endure IL must be strong
and it was his desire always that no one
should have more respect for its strength
than its own citizens. Ii was undoubtedly
a part of Hamilton's plan that the federal
government should make an exhibition of
it's own authority when Congress passed an
act providing for revenue by laying a tax
on the manufacture of spirituous liquors
This was looked upon as a usurpation of
states rights ard by many people was re
garded as an imposition. Yet when the
people of Pennsylvania rose UP to protest
and their pI otest threatened TO assume the
dimensions of riot Washington did rot
hesitate a moment in sending an armed
force, drawn from the militia of the sew
eral states, to quell the disturbance. The
difference between his act and the act Of
President Cleveland in sending troops TO
Chicago was as the difference between
tweedledum and tweedledee. Again. no
man has ever had more respect for tine
importance and the dignity of the Supreme
Court than he. one OF his first acts after
his Inauguration was to look about him
for the men most capable of filling that
high Office. he realized, every thought
full man must, that in a lav-abidng land
there must be supreme trihunal of jus
tice.
ana SO the ulHerenceS might be multi
piled without number. Yet the name OF
Washington is reyered the World over. IL
the views of this young leader who has
come out of the west, borne along 10 fame
on of words, be all he thinks they
are, then Washington erred nightly, and
the world has been mistaken in its judg-
ment. No man of his time had a clearer
conception of the part to be iilled by the
newborn in the family of nations than
Washington; but he questioned his own
ability in the matters of civil government.
Washington. on the threshold Of his new
office, hesitated, doubted. The younger
man striving for the sa he Office doubts not
and knows no hesitation. The people Of
this country believe that Washington erred
only in Understanding his own abilities In
their sober, later thought what will be
their judgment of the rashly confident
youth from Nebraska? X.