The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-02-23

more glorious destiny the guiding force OF
civilization freer and mightier than the
history of man had ever known.
Exalted Character.
Though Washingtons exalted character and
the most striking acts of his brilliant record
are too familiar to be recounted here where
| SO many times they have received eloquent
| and deserved eulogy, yet often as the story
! Is retold it engages our love and admiration
and interest. We love to recall his noble I'M
selfshness, his heroic purposes the power Of
his magnificent personality, his glorious
achievements for mankind and his stalwart
and unfiinching devotion to independence,
liberty and union. Those cannot be too often
told or be too Familiarity known.
Shareholder himself, he yet hated slavery
and provided in his will for the emancipation
of his slaves. Not college graduate. he
was always enthusiastically the friend of lib
eral education. He used every suitable
occasion to impress upon congress and the
country the Importance of high standard of
general education and characterized the diff
fusion of knowledge as the most essential ele-
ment of strength in the system Of free gov
eminent. That learning should go with lib
erty and that liberty is never endangered so
citizens was the ideal civic code which his
frequent utterances never failed to enforce.
And how reverent always was this great
, man; how prompt and generous his recogni-
ton OF the guiding hand of Divine Provi-
dence in establishing and controlling the des-
TIMES OF the colonies and the republic.
),
in his state papers and formal addresSes-he
reveals this side of his character, the force
of which we still feel, and 1 trust we always
will AT the very height of his success and
reward as he emerged from the Revolution,
receiving by unanimous acclaim the plaudits
of the people and commanding the respect
and admiration Of the civilized world, he
did not forget that his first official act as
president should be fervent supplication to
1t is He who presides in the counsels of ma
tions and whose providential aid can supply
every human defect. 1t is His benediction
will consecrate the liberties and happiness of
the people of the United States. With His
help the instruments of the citizens employ
ed to carry out their purposes will succeed in
the functions allotted to public life.
But Washington on this occasion went fur
Their and spoke for the people, assuming that
he but voiced the sentiments of the young ma
ton in thus making faith in Almighty God
and reliance upon his favor, and care of the
strong foundations of the government then
states the reasons for his belief in language
so exalted that it should be craven deep
upon the mind of every patriot:
No people can be bound to acknowledge
and adore the invisible hand which conducts
| the affairs of man more than the people of
the United States. Every step by which they
| have advanced to the character of an in
! dependent nation seems to have been dis
unguished by some token of providential
! agency and in the important revolution just
accomplished in the system of their govern
ment, the tranquil deliberations and vo'un-
| tary consent of so many distinct communi-
! ties from which the events resulted, cannot
| be compared with the means by which most
| governments have been established, with
| out some return to pious gratitude along with
| an humble anticipation of the future bless
| ings, which the same seems to presage. The
rehecuons arising out of the present crisis
have forced themselves strongly upon my
mind. You will join with me, 1 trust, in
thinking that there are none under the in
! f1uence of which the proceedings of a new
and free government are most auspiciously
| commenced"
Fitting Response.
The senate of the United States made fit
ting response to its appreciation of this por-
! ton Of the presidents inaugural address.
when it's members declared that "a review of
the many signal instances Of divine inter-
vention in favor Of the country claims our
most pious gratitude, and that they were in
evitably led to acknowledge and adore the
great arbiter of the universe by whom en-
ptreS rise and fall"
Congress added its sanction by providing
that After the oath shall have been adj
| ministered to the president he attended by
| the vice president and members of the sen
ate and house of representatives, proceed to
| 81 sI.raa i cnapel 10 near divine services per-
| appointed
But If timely lesson is to be drawn from
| the opinions of Washington on assuming the
| ONCE of president, so also is much practical
| benefit to be derived from the present an
plieation of portions, of his farewell address,
document in which Washington laid down
principles, which appeared to him 'sall i'm
portant to the permanence of your felicity
as people,.
In the address, Washington contends, in
part: ~ for the promotion of institutions
of learning; ~ for cherishing the public
credit; 60 for the observance Of good faith
and justice toward all nations
One hundred years ago free schools were
little known in the United States, there were
excellent schools for the weli-to-do and
boys and girls without means; but the free
PUBLIC schools, open alike to the children of
the rich and poor and supported by the state
awaited creation and development. The seed
planted by the fathers soon bore fruit. Free
scnoois were the necessary supplement of free
lie instruction by the fathers second only in
enect to their struggle for the independence
ana creation OF the union were destined at no