The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1914-06-30
AMERICAN NATIONALISM THE
WORK OF THOMAS JEFFERSON
Powerful Influence of The Sage of Monticello In Shaping
The Prevailing Ideals Of The Nation Eloquently De
scribed By Professor William M. Thornton

the clarity OF Professor Nlillam NJ.
Thoruton's exposition of the lroe
Doctrine. his eloquent tribute TO pa
triotism and his scholarly discussion
of trying times in the nations history.
as expressed in an address before the
Pewter Platter Club at its Jefferson
dinner Saturday night.
Professor Thornton, h is senior
member OF the Society OF the Univer-
sity Of Virginia, has a particularly
happy style and his beautifully pol
ished address was one of the features
of the evening. His subject was
american Nationalism'' and his ad-
dress. in full follows:
This brilliant and distinguished as
scmbly of NirginianS, met together to
do honor to the memory of the great
Nirginian of our heroic past, seems to
link that past with the stern happen
ingS of Il pregnant present. The guns
Of the Prairie, ~thundering at the port
Of Vera Cruz, seem TO thunder back
upon Us fateful questtOnings, lis Us
the republic" they seem to ask as, Tor
which Thomas jefferson prescribed:
Peace. commerce and honest
friendship with all nations; en-
tan@iing alliances with none
Are these the people of whom
Thomas Jefferson said:
Peace il cur passion: wrongs
might drive Us from, il: but we
tt0sN. htiti= 'N11S ~ JH'N
principle before we WOULD recur
to war"
As we turn our thoughts back to
those earlier years in our history
me brings before us two precious
and familiar portraits. One Sazes out
at us from the canvaS of Gilbert
Stuart. The face has q sweetness al
most feminine. a serene beneyolence,
a philoSophic calm. 1t is the counte-
nance Of the Sage of Monticello, when
he had laid aside the %tumutluous care
of public office and sought the rest
and refuge always furnished by the
children. the books, the farms which
never lost their hold on his inmost
heart. The other we owe to the brush
Of Trumbull. The head is nobly
poised, the features keen, mobile, al
most beautiful. The cheeks are ruddy,
the fair lociS cluster around the lofty
!. brow The CARR eyes eye at us. deep
set and vivid. 1t is the portrait of a
young laar. q man who persisted IL his
forties in 4 duel least other men m
pugn his martial courage. 1t is tho
military sec etary of Washington. 1t
is the general who .ith Gcry NalCr ed
the American col nan III 49, final as
Sault upon the British VOL ks II \ ork-
town. 1t is Thomas JefferSon's great
rival and implacable antagonist. Alex
andeT Hamilton. We ask ourselves to
which of these mcn-the Sage or the
Soldier-does our predatory young re-
public owe the essential characters of
its national life; and Madame History
steps forward to deny all the dicta of
p"hSsiosnomy, all the lessons OF proba-
bility, inc to testify that American
N~ationalisIn is truly Thomas Jefler-
sons work.
II would be too long for a festal
occasion like this to assemble all the
data Tor this indiction, and To con
verge on its obsCurities all the lights
needed to make them clear. Nor is il
necessary to renew for this enlight-
ened audience statements so trite and
SO familiar. jefferson entered public
life with an Inherited respect for tho
general sanity, the general wisdom, the
general rectitude of the plain Vir-
g%inians. who had been his own and his
fathers friends.
lie trusted the people Of his coun.
try because he knew by long expert.
cnce that they were worthy of trust
Judging them worthy of freedom he
looked To the steady growth Of lighr
and knowledge to render them a.
time went on more and more worthil,
of political power. This faith in TIL
honesty Of his fcnow-countrymen
THIS noble belief in tIteir CONNER
sense, this trust in the appeal to tn,
educated reason of the voters. this as
Surance that human society Is capa
NE OF indefinite advancement in Vir
tue ana -uprightneSs. this firm con
Niction that majorities rule not b.
might alone but Of right as we'll. mad,
OF ThoInas Jefferson the Orieina
Democrat. the Typical American.
Hamilton brought to his adopted
country the point of view of a soldie
OF fortune. Frank, ardent, high
minded. generous. he exercised upol
men a powerful fascination. Wash
lngton loved and trusted him as n
trusted and loved few other men
women adored him and despite III
occasional lapSes from fidelity the de
voton OF his beautiful American wifi
followed him to the end. Conscious O
his genius. re showed the keen in
tehSlty, the treiess power. the in
dofnlt3ble courage OF the man reso
lutte To achieve and to conquer. Hi
capacious intelligence dealt with tn
great problems OF politics in such ma
terry FASHION that the history c
Aynarin1n Cfnfncrraa -lf,N -. 4