The gazette-times. [volume] (Heppner, Or.) 1912-1925, 1915-03-11
\ LITTLE HISTORY.

people OF the United States must
Keep their heads level in these days
when the war is sore in Europe. and
the later arrivals in the United States
and their immediate descendants,
carried away by their sympathies for
this or that country in Europe are apt
TO misjudge the situation and what
should be the duty of this country in
this foreign war.
They all recall what their former
respective countries have done for us
and are not careful enough in giving
their opinions of what our country
should do now.
Such people forget that the first
instinct of nations, as well as indi-
viduals, is the instinct of self-pres-
eryation, and that when the war is
over all the belligerents in Europe
will need our country's friendship
more than they ever did before. We
are under obligations to them all
all of them owe us something.
To begin with our country was or
iginally mostly settled by immigrants
from Great Britain. They stamped
upon this land the English language
and all that is best in English law
and literature and the reverence for
law and the love of home which are
among the strongest attributes of
Englishmen.
BY these both the Puritans in the
north and the Cavaliers in the south
though widely different in other re-
spects, were united.
But the ideas that prevailed of the
duties of colonies toward their for,
eign sovereign were much the same
that Spain clung to up to the very
hour when it became necessary to
break her hold upon all her island
colonies, because of the cruelties that
| she permitted her agents to perpe-
trate, until eternal justice demanded
their surcease.
So England heaped expressions up
on her American colonies, and de-
spite the warnings of Barke and Fox
and Chatham persisted until the re-
volt came and'the seven years war.
Her attitude was that of anger and
contempt. She hired mercenaries to
| come and fight her battles, on the
frontier she engaged savages to raw
age the settlements.
When the frail entertainments
were thrown up on Breeds (Bunker)
Hill, which might have easily been
| made untenable by warship in the
harbor without loss, Lord Howe, un-
der Sir Henry Clinton-then in com
mand in Boston, in contempt of the
foe, formed his army in solid column
and ordered them to drive the rag
mullins out, which cost them the lives
OF 1900 soldiers and some of his
most valued officers.
That war won for this country in
dependence, but it also taught Eng
land lesson on the treatment of col
onies which has enabled her to retain
her hold on Canada, Australia, India
and South Africa and which makes
her supreme in Egypt now.
In those years France was our
friend. Lafayette and others came
and Joined our army; France sent the
fleet and loaned the money which
finally closed the war in triumph for
us. That, surely, we never can cease
to be grateful for, even if behind the
French government acts there was
as much hate of England as love for
the colonies.
At that time there was no United
Germany, Prussia was the ruling
kingdom and Frederick the Great
was at the zenith of his great fame
When the great war of the revolu
tion came and an army was sum-
moned, the volunteers had no more
idea of the need of having an army
disciplined than the average cong
resSman now has. They were ready
to fight, certainly but their idea of
liberty was that their officers were
not better than themselves and had
no inherent right to command them.
Hence the army that gathered under
Washington were little better than a
mob, and never accepted the truth,
that to become efficient, armies must
accept the rules of a perfect imper-
ialism and submit to orders.
In half despair Washington sent to
The great Frederick for help. A few
uds hItCi tllt lutoodSt W 40 IttCiFtu
Baron Steuben, one of the kings fay-
orite officers, resigned from the Prus-
sian army and with a letter from his |
king sailed for America and report
ed on his arrival to Washington
Steuben began at once to put the |
contenental army in army form. BY
his skill, his firmness and high char
acter he was able to make the ragged |
army understand what Wae needed |
In brief time it understood what was
needed to make it really effective and |
from that moment there began to be |
rifts of sunlight throught the pail |
that had so long shadowed the land |
So much for early history. There |
was not much change in national |
thought until after Che war of 1912. |
Napoleon had sold Louisiana to the |
United States for pittance but he
did is because he could not hold 1t |
against Great Britain and his comfort |
was that on that soil power would |
expand that would finally rival
Great Britain in every way.
By the way it was German, AL
bert Gallatin, who was Jefferson's !
closest advisor then and as secretary
Of the treasury helped so much to
continue Hamilton's work and get |
the finances Of the nation in order.
In the meantime large immigra
tion poured in from England and
Scotland and more especially ireland
and every Irishman was at heart
an American when he embarked for
this country.
After the Napoleon wars ceased,
the Germans began to come in great