The Savannah morning news., 1902-06-04
ractiee the best ideals of popular gov

eminent.
To all such questions the Southern
people are ready to make the answer
agreeing to the words of a tribute maue
by an eminent New England senator,
who recently said: Il believe II every
man of the North were to die, the
South. with the virtues 1t has cher
ished from the beginning, of love of
home, and love of state, and love OF
freedom, with it's courage and its con-
stancy, would take the country ana
bear it on to the achievement of its
lofty destiny"
The greatest Latin epics opens ma
jestically with the authors stated pur-
pose to sing of the martial deeds, and
virile manhood of a leader and his peo-
pie who having suffered defeat with
the destruction of Troy and being
driven by fated forces to the shores of
Italy, beached their past on the banks
of the Tiber without dishonor, and
there founded a future country which
lowered into the civilization of the
Roman republic-a republic that fell
only when ambition craZed for empire.
With this history in mind, | will say
for the people who followed the leader
ship of the three Southerners of this
hours special thought that they did
cast away the animosities of their
past struggle in honorable surrender
with patriotic purpose to join all states
in united progress to great and good
future, but they and their sons pro-
pose to so achieve such true greatness
for our country that it will not lose
one of its peculiar features as repre-
sentative democratic republic.
Training by Time and Conditions.
In the course of about a century and
a quarter of our history as an indie
pendent people we have made stri-
dent, chivalrous, romantic growth to-
ward power. From a fretted fringe of
coastwise settlements the forests of a
continent have been rolled away west
ward like a scroll, and on the soil
where grim soltudes had hidden saw
ages for centuries, there are now the
dwellings, of eighty millions of free,
enlightened people, with room yet for
one hundred millions more. From the
crude gold nuggets of colonial ideas
there came at length out of the cour-
age to which oppression gave life and
wisdom which experienced had nur-
tured, the best form of civil govern
ment known to mankind.
We have had the training of four
centuries to bring US to the present
position; the training of emigrants in
pGISOlldl independence anu III LIlS lOCci
of local government as to local mat
tiers, and a general government as 10
general matters, with education in ac-
QUESTION of territory league by league
westward with the far-off ocean as
it's only limit. We had during this
period the experience of many wars,
with Indians, French, Dutch, Spanish,
English, and having whipped all these
foes, we fell upon ourselves in the six
ties and whipped each other. But dur
ing the making of all this history what
grand principles of human right have
been struck out in the clash of our
conflicts, to enlighten the world! What
grand displays of civic and martial
heroism have illustrated those princi-
pies by act and deed! What a marvel
lous sweep of the magic wand has
transformed the valueleSs Wilds of
America into fixed wealth greater than
all the Old World had when the ships
of Columbu sighted the New Worlds
land! What power has been WELD
ed by our progress in free institutions
to abate the tyrannies of kings and
enlarge the liberties of mankind!
what Is Our Country's Destinys
Such I consider to be our rise into
the condition which bring to the heart
and conscience of the people of our
country the great question, What
shall we do with our government" |
regard our position with transports of
pride and confidence in the decision of
the people. l know there is no neces-
sity that the liberty we have gained
through the government of our choice
shall ever be lost unless we sell it as
Arnold sold his honor There is no
cause inherent in the nature of our
ROY fThl 10 70 H. -
ing into the knowledge, use and en-
joyment of free citizenship for all these
centuries of events in which Celt, Sax
on, Hebrew, Teuton, Gaul and Angle
have mingled assimilative blood and
spirit mas made the structure of a dur
able freedom too firm to be easily sub
verted. Without the lure of spoils by
conquest, without the lurid ambition
that in former days made strong ma
tons hew with sword and burn with
loren the weaker community, this great
republic can move on in the limitations
and by the power of its special gov
ernmental form to cover this continent
with its glory and win the world 10
the love of representative democratic
government. Two hundred millions of
free people may inhabit this land with
suthclent wealth and equal privileges
for each and ALL the whole body living
within well-governed states, which
shine as stars whose individual rays
make one united universal light The
voices of these many mighty states
will blend in one great federal utter
ance that governments are instituted
to make the unalienable rights of men
available, practical and perpetualIv
sure. Having been trained in the WAYS
of this kind of freedom, they will
therefore. have no ambition to bind
other people in servitude TO empire
and having been trained TO value the
pursuits of peace above all passions az
war this mighty people VIII attain
power with authority from heaven 10
enforce the mandate that there shall
be liberty, prosperity. progress, peace
ana good VIII among men on earth
everywhere and foEeyeri
am moved. IN conclusion. 10 ex-
press my profound gratitude 10 you
Tor the kind cOurtesles which hnv,
very highly honored me with the dis
unction and duty Of this hour. II las
been my desire ~ mark the transit Of
my NE by FDrne RefVloea here and !