The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1901-04-09
From ICELAND TO MISSOURI.
chapter OF History Jast Being Com-
pleted.

the barbarian is the father OF ciYillza-
tion and as We know a man best and
can only understand him fully when We
have known him from his childhood, We
can only understand fully the ciyiliza-
tion Of people by acquainiing our
selves with tfron its beginnings 10 bar
barism The history Of Missouri aud
Illinois, OF Tennessee aud Texas, as
States, hardy extends beyond the
memory 81 living men. but il this his
ioryis 10 bn inieilieibe. the history Of
The PEOPLE who made the STATES, whose
lives and customs IMPRESSED themselves
on their generation IN constitutions
laws and institutions, must be known
from their race infancy. II is fortunate
that the people Of Illinois and Missouri,
Of Tent see aud Texas, began writing
history ia their childhood a. soon as
they learned to read. They have be-
hind them nearly a thousand years Of
history made and written by them
selves
When We are at loss to account for
anythii ia American history, we gen
orally 70 back 10 the history Of the
British Islands to seek an explanation,
aud we seldom fail to find il there
This will be true for many centuries, no
matter how many millions Of immi-
grants We receive from Continental
Europe For the history of the British
Islands is the history Of all the great
divisions Of the Caucasian race which
now compose the population Of the
United States. There met, Is here,
Celt, Latin and Teulon; each modify
ing and educating the other. as in the
United States
AS the original British Colt yielded
TO the Latin, as the Latin dynasty fell
before the Gothic of Hengist and Horsa,
as the Gothic gave place to William the
Conqueror, a Latiuized Goth followed
by a horde Of Latinized Celis aud
Cloths, the history Of England camo to
have IN it a synopsis OF the history Of
three great divisions Of the Causasian
race Gothic or Teutonic, Celtic and
Latin.
Il will not often happen, therefore.
that we will look in vain TO the his
tory Of the British Isles to find explana-
iion OF anything ihat is not clear IN the
history Of any part Of the Uni ed States
II any custom Of ours cannot be ex-
planned from Gothic pfecedcnts. il may
be from Celtic or from Latin. and we
find all these together in this history Of
The British Islands.
But at the most important period Of
English history as It concerns a., there
is "A hiatus ralde defendus' most
lamen'able gar. due 70 the fact that for
several centuries after they had oppor-
tuniiies 70 learn to write the people of
North England were too busy fighting
to do 50, Nearly everything We know
about England in That pesicd IS about
South England, and a great deal in
American history to-day would be unin.
ielligible but for the fact that there
was a great Gothic literary ceuier fur
ther north, almost under the pole. Ia the
bleak island Of Iceland. The settlers
Of North England and Of iceland were
almost identical 10 the language aud
customs. IN the tenth century the peo-
pie Of Northumberland. Of the Scotch
borders and Of Iceland could have nm
derstood each other with little difficulty
without an Interpreter In tie leo
laudic version Of the parable Of The
houses builded on o rock. ii IS said that
ho who heaIeih the word aud doelh il
is "tikj0 Meim rifrum manHi sem
lyggefhi up SIT has yfr sieiu lis
Ike the witty (wise) man who biggeih
lScotch for buildcthl his house over
(yyerl stone Every word Is still En-
giish, with only changes 10 pronunoia-
tion from speaking IA The front or bacA
OF the mouth.
To understand our trial by jury. our
circuit aud quarterly courts. our systems
Of fines and punishments. even cur
ieuda In the mountain districts. We must
60 back to Iceland. where we can see our.
selves. il not IN race childhot1. vet IN
the period When the childhood Of bar
barIsm is Just yerging into the manhood
OF civilization. Though We may thus
80 back a thousand years in point Of
time, We may not be going back at all
in point Of fact A Nevada mining camp
will repeat before our eyes almost every
phenomenon Of the order and disorder
OF Iceland ten centuries ago even to
the Berserker fury. which was 10th.
ing more than the familiar Western
phenomenon Of taking the town, as It
j. done by the drunken cowboy who
rides through the streets yelling and
discharging bis pistols.
No study could be more interesting
than that Of our American human nature
from the earliest time when e began 70
leave a record uf iisclf 10 letters Il
seems q long stretch from Iceland ia tie
teuih century 10 Missouri at the close
Of Tie nineteenth but It IS not SO ia
reality. Ia the essentials which d1 not
change IN reality, however much they
may 10 modes Of manifestation. The bis.
tory Of Missouri j. bai q continuation of
the history 81 the islands Il Great
Britain aud Iceland From the time 81
The Norseman Of ihc ninth century
who preached the gospel with his
sword 10 the time of Abraham Lincoln.
who showed bis Morse blood and breed
ing by duirg oxacilv The came thing 10
the samo way IN the nireiccaih. we
run the same race that oug fathers have
run. We try 10 be religious with The
religion OF Palestine; civilized with tie
rirfIfvaifnt. af flrnn..s l.ut AL. 4ats a. atl