Crossville chronicle. [volume] (Crossville, Tenn.) 1894-current, 1919-07-02
OUR COUNTRY IS
GREATEST ON EARTH
Pause Long Enough In Your Rush for
Bushes or Pleasure to Read What
Some eff Our Greatest Men
and Patriots Have Said

anu oliIulO ttotC SClh
The Fourth of July is above all
other days an occasion for every one
of us, of whatever birth and what
ever station in life, to take stock of
our Americanism and of the advan-
tages that we enjoy as citizens of the
United States.
Our country is one hundred and
forty-three years old today. When
the white man came to America, he
found an unbroken wilderness from
which few savages drew a scanty
living; now within her borders dwell
over one hundred million people with
a standard of living equaled nowhere
else in the world.
Orderly Government and Industry
have made the difference. Destroy
these and America would quickly sink
back to a primitive condition wholly
incapable of supporting our present
great population.
We cannot fully measure our debt
to our country, but we can gain
clearer sense of our obligation from
the words Of those who have been
most conspicuous in their Devotion to
nef advancement.
The name that first comes to our
minds is that of GEORGE WAS1-t-
INGTON, "The Father of His Coun-
try He speaks to each of US when
he says:
Citizens by birth or choice of
a common country, that country
has right to concentrate your af-
fectiOns. The name of American,
which belongs to you, in your ma
tiOnal capacity, must always ex-
alt the just pride of patriotism"
Inspired by Washington's example
the French patriot, the MARQUIS
DE LAFAYETTE. hastened to Ameri-
ca to aid in her struggle for indie
pendence. Looking back on that day
he wrote:
Prom the momen: tnat | first
heard the name of America, |
loved her; from the moment that
l learned of her struggle for lib
erty, | was inflamed with the de-
sire of shedding my blood in her
cause"
But people cannot long retain
heir liberty without a System of
Government and law. Among those
Who clearly saw this truth was AL
GXANDER HAMILTON, who toiled
lay and night for the adoption of the
Constitution of the United States.
When that Constitution was in dam
Ter he said:
"A nation without a national
government is in my view an aw-
full spectacle. The establishment
of Constitution in time of pro-
found peace, by the voluntary ac-
ton of all the people is a prodigy
{. it is Impossible for the man
of piOus reflection not to perceive
in it q finger of that Almighty
hand which has been so frequent
ly and signally extended TO our
relief"
These words of Alexander Haml-
)n inspire us to Loyalty to the Con-
titution Of the United States. Our
constitution established the most pop
lar and at the same time the strong
st government that the world has
YER seen, and it did so because it
1ded Law to Liberty and made both
ecure.
Yes our forefathers were conscious
needing something more. As that
reat patriot, THOMAS JEFFER-
ON, said:
Though the will of the ma
iority is in all cases to prevail,
that will to be rightful must be
reasonable the minority pos
sess their equal rights which
equal law must protect and to viO-
late which would be oppression"
By these words we are warned that
elf Control and Sense of Justice
e vital to the preservation f Lib
ty.
And now, having Liberty, ew and
lstice, is this not all to make a ma
on great? BENJAMIN FRANK
IN did not think so. Born in pow
ty, he won his position among our
ltional leaders by histoil, an ex-
rience which taught him that politi-
! freedom does not lessen the ne
ssity for individual effort, as he
rcibly reminds US in these words:
''The taxes are, indeed, very
heavy; and if those laid on by the
Government were the only ones
we had to pay, we might the more
easily discharge them; but we
have many others, and much more
grevious to some of us. We are
taxed twice as much by our idle
ness, three times as much by our