Newspaper Page Text
BY ALBON CHASE.
ANNIVERSARY ORATION
Before tlie Phi Kappa Society, by
L, J.JSLEfJN. ,
CORRESPONDENCE.
Pm Kappa Hall, Feb.^JOJ, 1341.
Oil motion, Rijo/ivJ 1st, That tbc thanks of the Phi
Kappa Society.be returned to Mr. L. J. Glenn, for
the able and eloquent manner in which he discharged
a duty, confidently assigned to him. as her Represen
tative.
Hfsoh'cd, 2nd. That three from the regular mem
bers, be appointed as a Commute to obtain for public
ation, a copy of his interesting and chaste oration.
Pm Kappa Hall, Fch. 22d, 1811.
Sir—In conformity with the foregoing r.sAu.ions,
we ackr.o-vGdge the pleasure that lias ce.i granted
by our appointment, and as organs of ilia Phi Kappa .So-
Cioty. we tender to you, her sincerest thanks, lor the
noble manner in which she lias this day neon sustain
ed by you, in your representative capacity. Believing
that wherever it may be perused, prejudices favorable
to our Society will be formed, and relying confidently
in tho hope, that we shall not encounter a refusil, al
low us respectfully to solicit a copy of your address
for publication. (.'HAS. B. _JGNES, )
.Ccm'tto
ATHENS, GEORGIA, FRIDAY, MARCH
6,1841.
5 ‘
VOL. IX.—NO. 51.
=* .
(.'HAS. B. JONES, i
L. I.sCONTE, jCc
VY. S. NORMAN, >
Mr. L. J. Glcns.
Cullkox, Feb. 36th, 1811.
GtniUinen—In conformity to precedent, and in
compliance with the request of the Society, as expres
sed through your polite communication. I herewith
place at your disposal a copy of the oration 1 had.the
honor to deliver on the 32d inst. Accept gentlemen
for the body you represent, the strongest assurances
of my attachment, and for yourselves individually, the
kindest wishes of vour friend and lcllow member,
L. J. GLENN.
C1IAS. B. JONES,)
L. LkCONTF., >Committee.
W. S. NORMAN, >
ORATION.
Since the creation of the world—at least,
from the lime, to which the mind is carried by
authentic history—no age or period has passed,
without leaving its impress, or without exert
ing a marked and decided iuilueuce upon oth
ers, that have followed. 'Hie nature of this in
fluence is determined by the circumstances, and
state of things, whence it is derived, and the
extent, to which it is frit, always, in propor
tion to the degree of civilization, and mental
illumination, which characterized the particu
lar epoch. In proof or illustration of this po
sition, we need only refer to the. histories of
various nations that have existed, but are now
no more. The influence of the prosperous,
flourishing, and happy limes of antiquity upon
the world, has, with little interruption, b.:cn
constantly exhibited. True, immediately up
on the ovet throw and destruction of the Re
publics of Greece and Rome—the one the illus
trious mother, the other the successful cul
tivator of the Arts and Sciences—there en
sued, what arc generally denominated the
“ Dark Ages;’’ during which, every thing, like
knowledge and learning was consigned to the
tomb of oblivion. No sooner however did the
reformation commence, than a light which
had—like subterranean lires smouldered for
centuries streamed forth from those countries,
burst in upon, dissipated, and scattered the
mists and fogs of ignorance and superstition,
winch h »d for jiges beclouded and debased the
human intellect. And from that time, the
whole civilized world has frit and yielded to
the influence of Greece and Rome, which has
been exerted through a thousand different
channels. Not a government is now to he
found upon the face of the globe, for which
they did not, either at some period of their ex
istence furnish the model, or into whose sys
tems and codes of laws, their regulations and
enactments are not incorporated. More parti-
ticularly is this remark true, when considered
with reference to those governments, vhich
are democratic or republican in their charac
ter. The spirit of liberty, that once glowed
within the breasts, and nerved the arms of the
inhabitants of those countries to strike for free
dom has long since been caught, and us won
derful and glorious results, arc now visible in
both ; but more especially in our own hem
isphere. The causes that impeded their rise
and progress and tho-c flint brought about and
accelerated their decline and final dissoluion
stand forth, delineated by' the pen of the his
torian, in characters of living light, as so ma
ny beacons, to guide and direct the future pilot
upon the boisterous and tempestuous sea of
political aflhtrs.
Rut not only so. The voices of their phi
losophers, which were once heard by thou
sands, assembled in the groves, lycenms and
academies, dedicated to science and learning,
still fall upon the ears of attentive and listen
ing auditors, in all their original force and en
ergy. The sublime lessons they inculcated
upon their countrymen, illuminated by the
light of divine revelation, are as instructive
now and ns productive of the same effects, as
when first they fell warm from the lips of the
immortal authors. The productions of their
poets, breathing the spirit of inspiration, and
gathering freshness from the dews of time, are
sought after with as much avidity and read
with ns much zest by the people of the present
day, as they were by those for whose imme
diate instruction, amusement and edification
they were more particularly’ intended. The
eloquence of Demosthenes, when he lightens
over Greece and thunders against Philip,
arousing his countrymen from their apathy,
and warning them of the impending danger,
still warms, enrapts and eleetifies—still excites
and stirs up the honest indignation of the pat
riot against the bribery and corruption, which
are intended to ens ave his country—still an
imates to “deeds of noblo daring,” those in
whose bosoms the sparks of liberty and inde
pendence yet glow and hum. Cicero, too,
than whom, a more illustrious example of the
patriot, statesman, and scholar united, the nn-
uals of human society can not furnish, still
speaks, though from the tomb, with the same
voice that once resounded through the Roman
forum, “in thoughts that breathe and words
that burn,” admonishing not only his own peo
ple, but all posterity, io beware and guard
with n vigilant and never sleeping eye against
the intrigues,,conspiracies oud wicked designs,
of ambitious and aspiring meu, who upon the
alter of self interest and self aggrandizement,
would sacrifice the best hopes ^tid the bright
est prospects of their country .apd thei^ race.
This the)) being the case f( . The fact that
QU* epoch, does in some degree^ give lone and
character to anothor being obvious, it cannot be
otherwise than interesting, for us on the present
occasion, briefly to hupfire into, observe and
trace, The intellectual,religions, and political
influence, that the present age, and our coun
try especially, will exert upon succeeding gen
erations.
The characteristics of the times, in which
we live, are numerous and striking beyond all
others. One of which, and by no mentis the
most inconsiderable is a rAstless anxiety'to pen
etrate into, investigate, and th >:0 :g Jy com
prehend, every thing connected with, arid hav
ing relation to man’s present stute of existence.
In addition to the native love of knowledge,
inherent in the human breast, the discoveries
and achicvmnnts of mind in preceding ages,
have doubtless contributed to.tlie creation of
this laudable commendable and inquisitive
spirit, under whose pervading influence, mid
through whose powerful agency new truths
are constantly developed in the fieldsofscience,
and her boundaries constantly extended be
yond the landmarks of former periods. Fired
with it men who have entered into and ex
plored the dusty and mouldering vaults of time,
and enriched their minds with the secret and
hidden treasures therein contained, abandon
ing all other objects and pursuits, have in eve
ry department of knowledge labored with a
zeal and a desire to expound the arcana of na
ture which have resulted in the development
and exhibition of truths and facts, that have
astounded . and overwhelmed an admiring
world. So that the car of science will start
from its present resting place and roll down
the track of time height* d with a richer and
more valuable cargo, than it has ever yet fal
len to the lot of man, gratuitously to erijov.
And what will he the influence upon posteri
ty? What the .effect, of having at their com
mand, ready and prepared for use, the most
extensive and glorious inheritance, ever be
queathed by one generation to another? Catch
ing the same spirit, warmed with the same zeal,
and having in view the acromph-Jimcnt of the
same objects, which actuate and animate the
present actors upon the Stage of 1 emg what
grand, what sublime, what magnificent reve
lations will be made throughout the kingdoms
of nature, and the empire of knowledge ! Look
ing back through the vista of the past, and in
spired with confidence and courage, excited
to a noble and generous emulation by behold
ing the mental victories ofthe present age. and
having their intellects increased, expanded and
enlarged by tlienccumulated and concentrated
wisdom of all previous periods, new worlds
of thought will be discovered and cultivated,
new paths of science struck out, and pursued.
Rut not only so: among the Philosophers,
who shall arise to solve tiie mysteries and bring
to light, the laws and operations of nature, there
wiil appear another Newton, who unlike the
first, shall he enabled to unfold and explain the
texture, nature and character of the bright and
elfulgcnt robe of day. Another Franklin will
come forth, with a more axalted intellect, and
with talents, superior to those of him, who en
chained the forked lightening and conducted
it harmlessly to the ground, to expound the
true nature and theory of electricity and mag
netism. Another genius more acute, more
subtle, more creative and more towering than
that of Euclid, shall by the aid of a science
still more sublime than that ol Calculus, re
move, the long standing reproach of mathe
maticians and furnish the method by which
the quadrature ofthe circle may he calculated.
Another Locke more deeply versed in meta
physics, than his predecessors, shall explore
trie depths of the human understanding, and
reveal truths not dreamt of in the philosophy
of the present day. And thus hv and through
the influence ofthe present age, will the com
paratively narrow and contracted sphere, with
in which the operations of mind are now con
fined, be extended and enlarged, until it shall
reach the limits, assigned by the hand ofthe
Creator. And then with the substitution ofa
single word, how applicable will be the lines
of the poet,
1 ioro, eiuOl thy triumph, genius, ccasc, an:! here,
“Truth, science, virtue, close your long career.”
Another and perhaps more interesting view of
the intellectual influence of the present upon
after ages, remains to be taken. To the mind
of him, who desires the universal diffusion ol
the. blessings and benefits of knowledge among
the sons of men, the world never before pre
sented a prospect half so lovely, so charming,
\and delightful. Here in our own, onr happy
land, the most vigorous and powerful efforts
arc made to raise all, even the humblest and
the lowest, to the participation and enjoyment
of the pleasures resulting from a well unprov
ed and cultivated intellect. In proof of tins as
sertion, witness the many Universities, and Col
leges, Academies and free schools in constant
and daily operation. Where in any portion
ofthe civilized world, has so small an extent
of country, ever gi ven birth to so great a num
ber of institutions in which arc inculcated the
truths of science. Farther, see the increasing
anxiety manifested by parents to bestow upon
their sons and daughters, the advantages ofa
liberal education. Nor are the operations of
tins spirit confined to the circle in which move
the wealthy and the great. Nothing short of
penury and want, now prevents the immortal
mind, from having its faculties fully developed
and expanded, under the guardianship of those
who have qualified and devoted themselves to
the high and honorable calling, of teaching
the young idea how to shoot.” And who can
be so selfish, so limited in his vi .nvs, as to sup
pose that with the present generation will ex
pire the glorious flame, which now slimes up
on, and lights up the cottage of the poor, as
well as the palace of the rich. It cannot lie.
Our example in this respect, will have, its ef
fect upon those who are to follow. The influ
ence of present exertion, will, like the pebble
dropped upou the surface of the ocean which
causes a succession ol waves, to heat against
the distant shore, extend nnd, be felt through
out generations yet to come. Despots and
tyrunts and those whose policy it is
“ To bind
With iron chains the freeborn mind,"
may in view of approaching danger, interpose
their fcejle efforts, to arrest the progress ofthe
spirit of education. So diffusi ve however and
so subtle'is it, in it? naturej that it will contin
ue to spread until like, the electric fluid, it shall
pervade tho whole earth. And then indeed,
will the tree oi knowledge,, with its roots firm-
lyplanted in the United States, encircle the
globe within its giant arms, and under its cool
ing branches, shall sit and recline, and of its
delicious fruits, shall pluck aud partake, all
mankind.
By a retrospective view it will he seen that
in proportion ns. civilization nnd common in
telligence have advanced among mankind, re
ligious sentiments have always spread and ob
tained. Simultaneous efforts have usually
been made for the promotion of the one, und
the diffusion ofthe other. And by this means,
have knowledge and religion generally gone
hand in hand, pouring torrents of their respec
tive blessings at one and the same time, upon
the same people. Thus has it been in the .pre
sent age. Casting our view abroad, wherever
an alter erected to science, meets the eye, there
too may be found a temple dedicated to the
“living God.” While the people of Christian
countries have labored to sow with an unspar
ing hand the seeds of knowledge they have not
forgotten or neglected to instil into the youth
ful mind, correct religious ideas, and.to incul
cate upon the tender heart, sound moral prin
ciples. Adopting the maxim that charity be
gins at home," they have first provided for the
poor and destitute upon their own shores, and
by whom they were more immediately sur
rounded the necessary means, by which they
might be elevated from moral darkness, to the
enjoyment of the light, reflected from the pa
ges of divine revelation. Their labors howe
ver have not terminated here. The attention
of the humane aud benevolent has been direct
ed to and fixed upon other and distant lands,
over which dark clouds of ignorance and su
perstition, have for ages cast their baneful.and
withering shadows. And in co-operation with
those of other countries, the philanthropic ol
this republic, have within the Iasi half century
made wider, nioie permanent, and enduring
inroads into the dominions of Idolatry and
Heathenism, than it has ever been the good
fortune of the friend of suffering humanity, to
behold and contemplate.
In addition to all this, the present is an age,
in which the progress of free, liberal, and en
lightened views aud enquiries in religion has
been rapid and altogether unparallelled. No
longer are men compelled to how and wor
ship, nnd pay their devotions at a shrine, erect
ed by the hands of another. Religious despo
tism has at least upon this side of the Atlantic,
been consigned to the same grave, in which
were buried the last remains of that system of
political tyranny and oppression sought to be
rivetted upon the necks of our ancestors, by a
haughty King aud an, unprincipled ministry.
“Sitting under Ins own vine and figtree,’
each man is uow permitted unmolested and
undisturbed, to worship the “God of Nature”
according to the dictates of an untrammelled
conscience.
" Such being a brief and imperfect descripton
of the religious spectacle, which the world pre
sents at the present time, what will be the in
fluence upon the generations which are to suc
ceed and fill the places of those who now live,
aud move, and act upon life's busy theatre?
It cannot be estimated. It will be incalcula
ble. It almost exceeds the powers of the ima
gination to conceive. The various systems,
plans, and schemes, which have been organized,
und set on foot, the practical tendency, and obvi
ous effect, of which, is to rescue mankind from
the bondage and dominion of superstition and
moral ignorance, aud heathenish darkness,meet
ing with, and receiving the approbation coun
tenance, and support of posterity, must and will
continue, in operation until the grand, noble,
and praiseworthy objects of their organization
and establishment be fully and completely ac
complished. The thousand table societies now
to be found in Europe, as well as in our own
country, will never cease their efforts, to sup
ply with the richest und bestot treasures, those
who have l.t»cn so unfortunate, as to have their
lots cast in uncivilized lands. Imitating the
glorious example which lias been set l>y their
predecessors, posterity will never relax their
exertions, until the press shall have been erect
ed upon every “isle ol the sea,” lor the pur
pose of furnishing with the “bread of li e,”
tiiose who are living and dying, ignorant ofthe
God that made them. In after times the Mis
sionary, too, in -whose breast shall glow, aud
burn, a spark of divine love caught from the
alter of high heaven, forgetting the hallowed
associations and sweet recollections of youth,
will sever the ties ot country, of friends and of
kindred, and bidding adieu to. bis long cherish
ed home, throw fiimself upon the heaving bo
som of an angry ocean—eontend with tide and
wave—baffle against wind and storm—until
he teaches the destined field, in which he pur
poses to labor, for tho salvation of perishing
mortals.
Before the steady march of Christianity, in
fidelity with all its horrid train of evils—the
same that once scattered fire-brands and de
struction over the stintiy hills and lovely vales
of vine-clad France—that doctrine which
would dethrone deity himself, and attribute to
blind chance the formation and preservation of
the laws and operations of nature—that Phi
losophy which declares death to be an eternal
sleep—which denies the accountability of man,
and by consequence future rewards and pun
ishments—thereby enconrogtQg every species
of vice that will contrii ute to; and condemn
ing every principle of virtue which interferes
with the indulgence ofthe animal propensities,
and the gratification of sensual appetites, will
disappear and be lost forever, l>eneath the de
vouring waves, of deep and dark oblivion.—
Persecution, with all her diabolical machine
ry of torture and cruelty—she that
“ Wakes into living flames, huge heaps of fire
And feasts on murders, inassacrestind death,"
shall be banished from the world, and the hu
man race thus relieved from the disgrace, ns
well ns the misery inflicted by those who un
mindful and regardless of future consequences,
view with admiration the writhing* aud con
tortions, nnd hear with delight the agonizing
groans nnd heart-rending shrieks of the victim
of the stake. The darkness occasioned by the
sable curtains, whiclt superstition has so long
thrown rironuri a large proportion of theinhah-
ifecTglobe, shall be dissipated and put to flight
by the beams of divine revelation, and the
gloomy abodes of idolatry shall lie penetrated
and lighted up by the effulgent rays reflected
from the pages of inspiration. In short the
some ardent, and inextinguishable philanthro
pic zeal, which now pervades the hearts, and
stimulates to action three whd ore engaged in
the glorious work of ameliorating the moral
condition of the inhabitants of the globe, will
lie communicated to each successive genera
tion until the bright dawn of the great mtHc-
nial morn shall streak the skies above, and the
earth beiov, shall be covered by one sea of re
ligious gloty/
We now come to the third, and last division
of onr subject, “the political influence that the
present will exert upon averages.'* Time tests
the value of all things sublunary. Upon its
rapid wing.it lias borne to the receptacle of
departed days, fifty-two years since the estab
lishment of she American government. Dn-
iing this period, although the signs of the
times have been occasionally portentous, and
such as to excite the fears ofthe patriot heart,
while they gratified the hopes ofthe enemies
of equal rights, our country has marched with
nn parallel led rapidity ton high nnd distinguish
ed stand a mongthe nations ofthe earth. Dark
clouds have not unfreqnetillv lowered in the dis
tance, and overspread onr political horizon,
threatentngn disgorge a storm that would shake
aye, sweep from its foundation the glorious fab
ric of constitutional liberty. The besom of de
struction, in the hands of unprincipled men,
Jins in more instances than one, come well
nigh annihilating the institutions of our fa
thers, the establishment of which, cost so much
blood arid Ireusuie. The rumbling of the*
mighty thunders of discord, disunion, and an
archy, rolling along the plains of the South,
and re-ccliod by the mountains of the north,
has fallen upon the ears ol terrified thousands,
even within the last few years. Amid the
awful apprehensions of friends, however, and
(lie fond anticipations of enemies, the ship of
Slate lias thus far been so steered, ns to uvoid
rocks and shoals on the one hand, while it has
escaped whirlpools and quicksands on the oth
er. And at the present time, with a calm and
serene sky, with a pure und healthy atmos
phere, no danger seems to menace, but peace
and plenty, prosperity and perpetuity, in one
long and unbroken chain, appeur to uwuit our
common country.
The influence of tire American revolution,
and of the subsequent successful operation of
our admirable and complex system of govern
ment upon the world, lias already been great,
and done much towards the expulsion of those
odious and oppressive forms, which have m
other portions of the globe, been sustained and
upheld by men, who deny the truth of the
hitherto doultlul, but now demonstrated prop
osition, that “man is capable of sell-govern
ment.” All Europe has been agitated nnd
convulsed, and shaken from centre to circum
ference, by the secret and invisible, but all-
powerful and irresistible operations of that
spirit, which warmed the bosoms, and prompt
ed the hearts of the heroes of Amertcuti inde
pendence, to undertake and prosecute the most
arduous, self-sacrificing nnd hopeless task, that
was ever conceived or imposed. And al
though that period has apparently passed, and
quiet nnd tranquility, in this respect seem to
rest upon the Eastern continent, yet we nfo
hound to believe that the repose of the spirit
of Republicanism, in that quarter, is but the
sleep of volcanic fir^s.
In South America, also, the effects of onr
example have been great and powerful. The
noble aud animated struggle of her sons in the
cause of liberty—and their persevering and
untiring efforts to erect an independent gov
ernment—under it to enjoy the blessings, and
exercise the prerogatives of freemen, can nev
er be forgotten. Upon the historic page they
are recorded and emblazoned, and by the la
test generations they will be read nnd apprecia
ted. Closely linked to them, and upon the
same page, will live the mime of Bolivar, en
circled with a halo of glory brighter, more
beautiful and lasting, than “the phosphoric,
light, which gleams from the bones of a buried
ancestry.”
At a later day, under the same genial and
fructifying influence, which transplanted and
nourished fora while, in European soil.nsprig
plucked from the tree of American liberty,
there has sprung up, toward the South, a
young Empire, that gives the fairest promise
of future greatness and renown. The bright
est star that flouts in the canopy of heaven, has
its radiance obscured by the flood of light,
poured forth by the sun, as be performs his
diurnal revolutions. And so it is with the
new-born republic. .Such is its proximity to
the United States, and such its uifancy, that
its lustre ts lost and disappears, amid the glory
shed upon the world, by the American Union.
Under the protecting wing, however, of the
“mother country,” Texas is ye* destined to
have her name enrolled high upon the cata
logue of Nations.,
If, then, so much has already been effected
within the short space of time, which compri
ses the existence of our government, for the
emancipation of mankind from the thraldom
of tyranny and the shackles of oppression,
What is there that we could wish or desire,
the accomplishment of which, we are not au
thorized to anticipate? Avoiding the univer
sal fate ofthe Republics ofby-goue days,
“ That rose, flourished and died away,
Like morning dews before the king of day,”
the only remaining evidences of whose for
mer greatness nnd glory, arc a few moulder
ing columns or decaying temples; this, based
upon the increasing virtue and intelligence of
the people, shall withstand and defy the corro
ding tooth of time, and lavish profusely upon
millions yet unborn, trie blessings we to-day
enjoy. From the temple of American free
dom, the voice of dertlocracy will; never cense
to reverl>erate, until it shall have aroused from
their apathy, and startled from their slumbers,
those who “bow submissively” at the feet of
Despots. The flame which has been enkin
dled upon the altar of American independence,
will never be extinguished, until its beams
shall have hurst upon, and shall have irradia
ted the midnight gloom, that enshrouds the
minds ofthe degraded vassals of foreign climes.
The American eagle will never wing her
flight from our peaceful shores, until 'she shall
have borne nnd transplanted in “earth’s retno-
shall be swept down, to float off like common
recks upon the returnless tide. And then, in
deed, will the bright vision of the poet be ful
ly realized, when he sung,
“ Prone to the dust, oppression shill be hurled;
Her name, her nature, withered from the world.”
And when in connection vyith the two other
events to which allusion has already been
made, this auspicious peiiod shall arrive—-
when the sun of science shall career proudly
to his zenith in the heavens, and under his ge
nial rays, shall revolve the globe—when the
standards of Christianity and civilization shall
have been planted upon every shore, and their
hauliers unfurled to every breeze—when songs
of freedom shall burst forth from every tongue,
aud hosannas of independence shall make the
welkin ring—then will a world, “ redeemed,
regenerated and disenthralled” in one undying
and never ceasing strain, sing the virtues,and
chnnt the praises of the IMMORTAL WASH
INGTON.
Fellow-Members .—Twenty-one years
have elupsed, since the organization and estab
lishment of the institution, whose anniversary
we this day celebrate. Numerous have been
the difficulties, und formidable the obstacles
with which onr society has had to contend.—
By the persevering and unwavering efforts
however, of her friends, she has nobly sustain
ed herself, and triumphantly overcome them
all. And to-day, we huvp the proud satisfac
tion of knowing, that she stands forth, com
pletely disenthralled from every thing calcula
ted to impede her onward progress, to "that
high and exalted stand among similar institu
tions of the country, which it was the original
intention, mid fond anticipation of her found
ers, she should occupy. Henceforth, then, let
ns spare no effort, relax not our exertions, un
til the Phi Kappa Society shall become, like
the queen of the stars, “the fuirest and the
loveliest among ten thousand.”
Your probationary state here, fellow-mem
bers, will soon have terminated. Your seclu
ded apprenticeship, with those whose pleasure
it is, to lend yon through the flowery fields of
literature, will soon have ended. The day is
not far distant, when your last offering will
have been made at the altar, which has here
been dedicated to science, and your last visit
will have been paid to the temple which, on
this consecrated spot, has been erected to the
muses. Your walks among the classic shades
of Franklin, will soon have ceased. How im
portant then, in view of the hopes entertained
by those who frel tiie deepest nnd liveliest in
terest in your welfare and success, in view of
the blessings which must accrue to yourselves,
and in view of the great and responsible duties
which will devolve upon you in after life, that
yon apply yourselves diligently and assiduous
ly to the prosecution of those studies, which
have been marked out and set before you.—
How indispensable, in order that these hopes
may be realized, these blessings attained, and
these duties discharged, that yon improve well
the advantages nnd opportunities here afford
ed, lor the Cultivation of your intellects, Itie
improvement of your minds, and the acquisi
tion of knowledge.
Perhaps no circumstance is so well calcula
ted to discourage the young devotee, in the
pursuit of knowledge, as the reflection which,
like an evil genius haunts Iris mind, that by
him, the “ultima Thule*'of science can nev
er be reached. Each successive point in his
progress, instead of bringing him nearer the
imaginary goal, upon which in the outset he
fixed his eye, serves but to unfold to bis aston
ished view new and unbounded prospects.—
At each successive step.
“ Hills peep"o'er hills and alps on alps arise.”
Aud lienee, it not unfreqnently happens,
that the ardor of pursuit is c ooled, the energies
become paralyzed, and all effort on the part of
tho student suspended. But let me beseech
you to remember
“ ImpTobcs labor, vir.cit omnia,"
and that by the exercise of a constant and
unwearied application, you will finally be en
abled to scale the alpine heights of knowledge,
and in ecstaey exclaim one to another, behold
the dazzling pyramids of Science! the reward
of all our toil. And Fellow-Members, as was
once said by a Son of Erin, of the genius of
Caledonia, may you say, or cause it to be said,
that the genius of the South wings her eagle
flight, ngauist the Maze of every science, with
an eye that never winks, and a wing that nev
er tires.
CONGRESS.
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.
Wednesday, February 17, 1841.
CIVIL AND DIPLOMATIC APPROPRIATION
BILL.
Ou motion ol Mr. JONES of Virginia, the
House resolved itself into u Committee of the
Whole tn the State of (he Uuion, (Mr. Bell in.
the chair,) and resumed the consideration of
the MU making appropriations for the civil
und diplomatic, expenses of the Government
for tho year 1841. The question pending was
the motion of Mr. Green to strike out all tho
Uems of appropriation having reference to tho
Brand) Mints of North Carolina, Georgia and
New Orleans, und the expenditures connected
therewith.
Mr. COOPER of Georgia said that ha
would add u few remarks to those mudo by his
cqlleague fr om Habersham county.
1 find Mr. Chairman, (said Mr. C.) the es
tablishment of tin se branch mints to have been
n part of your policy for several years. The
motion to strike out involves a change. To
justify this change, it should be shown or od^
milled hy the friends of the policy, that the
reasons for creating them were unlbunded, ol
that .those, reasons haA’e faihd to operate.—
What were ihose reasons? The gentleman
from Vermont has intimated to you, as he did
inst session, that one reason was lo protect the
laboring classes in the gold region. This 1 do
not agree to; -for, with equal ptopriety, the
sume might be assigned as a reason for estab
lishing the principal Mint ut Philadel| hia,
which was established before the discovery of
gold in North Carolina and Georgia.
Again: foreign gold is not taxed by this !a\y
to enliuuce the value of our gold, but competes
fairly at the Mint with the domestic. There
fore, tiie idea of protection is misapplied here.
Tiie presumption is that the objects ofthe law
were to diffuse n metallic currency amongst
the mass of the people, and to give to those
States which produced the gold the full bene
fits of that product, free of the taxation inci
dent to an exportation to a foreign market.—
This, sir, is carrying out tiie pnuciplcs of free
trade on terms of equality. , .
But establish your Mint exclusively at Phi’-,
adelphia, and whut is the effect? The entire
product of gold in Georgia, North Carolina,
Alabama, and Tennessee, will lie shipped to
Philadelphia, just as cot:on, rice, or tobacco is
to New York or Europe, before it will become
available as money. This involves the cost of
discounts, commissions, insurance, and freight j
so that a man in Georgia, after possessing him
self of the specific metal, will not he permitted
to count it out as money, until lie shall sub
mit to all these items of cost. This, too, will
he by the operation of your laws. And to what
end ? Why, sir, tha* your Government agents
at Philadelphia may have the benefit of tliede-
posite and coinage of his money—a benefit
which heretofore has teen worth to your bank
agencies liilllUl ed.-> of ilwiKMijU.
The cost of n branch mint, therefore, of $6,-
000 a year? is a tax for protection, (you say,)
though the man who buys pays no more for the,
coin ; and yet the tax which would he paid by
the producer ofthe gold, for the benefit of your
Philadelphia agencies, hy which he receives-
less, is no protection to your great city and its
United States Bank. This, sir, is a fair speci
men of Bank logic, and is based on the univer
sal assumption that whatever is given, or loan
ed, or paid to the Bank, is rightfully bestowed.
You will perceive, therefore, that the refer
ence of this motion to a United Slates Bank
policy, by the gentleman from North Cnroliun,
[Mr. Bynum,] is exceedingly appropriate. All
the active operations of Unit institution were,
end will he. on Government funds and private
deposites. The former are of specie, (Georgia
and North Carolina gold, lor instance,) or bank
notes commanding specie. The amount in
volved in the operations of tho branch limits is
worth contending lor, being from half to nniil-
Biceipt for the Ladies.—Cream may he fro
zen by simply putting it into a glass vessel, and
then placing the whole in an old bachelor’s bo
som.
ward still, in stronger and yet stronger cur
rents, till the ancient pillars of Despotism, that
have been vainly imagined by kings to have
their foundation in the centre of the earthy
• You want nothing of irou ware but a dish'
kettle,’said an old house wife in the backwoods
to her daughter who was just married. ‘ Why,
when your father and l commenced, l had no
thing but a dish kettle. 1 used to boil tny cof
fee in it nnd pour that into a pitcher—then boil
my potatoes fit it and set them on ri plate by the
fire to keep warm while I stewed up the meat
in it—I used to milk" in it—and always after a
meal 1 fed the hogs out of the kettle. You can
do a great deni with udish kettle, Sully, if you’re
only a mind to.’
A priest who bad received four hundred dol
lars, was, hy another society, offered six hun
dred and fifty. It was presented us a cull to
the regular authority, acknowledged as such
by them, and he of course regularly dismissed,
und in due time inducted into his office. In
hiddtug his people a provisionary farewell, he
addressed a poor hut shrewd black, who was
u member of his church:
‘ Well, Jack, I have to leave you.’
‘Ah! how so?’
‘Why, Jack, the Lord has called me to
preach the Gospel in another place.’
‘ How much do you get here?’ iuquired the
negro,
‘Font hundred dollars.*
‘And how much will yon receive there?’
‘Six hundred and fifty.’
\Yell,>eU, irihe Lord call so loud as two
test bounds,” a branch from the green and flonr^ hundred aud'fifty dollars, I spose you have to
ishing tree of Liberty. The influence of our "hear him!’
country will continne to flow onward and on- ■ ;
Youth should reflect that profanity is asnre
dicat ion of improf ‘ ‘ umlo
sar a perfect gentle
p hit conrersutiofc.
lion of dollars annually in United Stalesgold,
besides foreign coin. This will form nn im
portant item in the specie exhibit of vonr
Bunk. -
Another lasis of the nctiye operations of such
a Bank has been, and will hr, cotton, rice, and
tobacco. By these it has cot it ro'led, and will
control the foreign exchanges. By the gold
products and other deposites of your Govern
ment, it will control your domestic exchanges,
and realize thereon what profits it may deem
prudent.
So far, then, ns profits are to be derived
from the natural products, whether of cotton,
rice, tobacco or gold, as a medium of exchan
ges, foreign or domestic, it is, by the policy of
this law, held to be just and fair that those
profits should fall into die bauds ofthe labor
ers, merchants, or monical institutions of that
people whose soil and climate, work and labor,
care and diligence, produce those commodities.
This is the principle of the existing law, aud
yet gentlemen say this is protection. Yes, sir,
it is protection—protection to free trade and
equal rights; that is all; and for (hat ouly your
Government was formed. ^ _
Another item of expense, sir, 1 would here
mention, by no means the least, which would
be visited on those hardy yeomanry who dig
gold, if you dispensu with your branch mints.
It is the exchange of pure gold for batik hills
which wear out, or hum up, or prove worth
less by hank suspensions or bank breakages.
A great safeguard nnd facility to the inhabi
tants where gold is produced, arising from its
coinage in their vicinity, is an easy, cheap, and
certain nnd safe currency for domestic use.
Arid now, as tho location of your coinage
brings advantages nnd facilities' to those
amongst whom it takes place, in realising it jn
moneyfree of cost, iti\\\efacilities of currency,
&e. it becomes a question not of protection but
of alternative right and choice, in whose fa
vor yon will decide—the people who dig the
gold, or the bankers, brokers, and merchants
of Philadelphia. By establishing vour branch'
•mints, you have determined according to equity
and justice, to distribute a portion of these liettp
efits to the gold diggers ; and now the proposi
tion is to rensstune the little you have yielded; 1
and that before you have fittrly tasted ycia'f
policy of giving-up. iAnd ! why 7 ;'ff is art* 5
indication of improper education. „You never swered: 1st. For economy. 2d. For reform
hear a perfect gentleman use profane language in Executive patronage, to diminish the chatj^
ee» of corruption. J, shy amior reform, •
