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CJcuotci* to Citcraturc, Srintcc, anh tt)e Sons of QTcmpcrana, iTdloioslpp, ittasonrn, atti ©cncral SntcUigetur. VOLUME I. SESsBCEEB fftlfSf. THE WIFE TO HER HUSBAND. not long! Homo is not homo without thee, Its dearest tokens only make me mourn; Oh! let its memory, like a chain about thee, Gontly compel and hasten thy return. Linger not long! Linger not long! Though crowds should woo thy stay, Bethink thoo : can the mirth of friends, though dear, Compensate for the grief thy long delaying Costs tho fond liesrt that sighs to have thee hero ? Linger not long! Linger not long! How shall I watch thy coming, As evening shadows stretch o’er moor and dell, When the wild bee hath ceased her busy humming, And silence hangs on all things like a spell. Linger not long! How shall I watch for thee, when fears grow stronger, As night draws dark and darker on the hill ! How shall I weep, when I can watch no longer : Oh! art thou absent —art thou absent still! Linger not long! Yet I should griove not, though the eye that soeth me, Gazeth through tears that makes it splendor dull; For Oh! sometimes 1 fear, when thou art with mo, My cup of happiness is all too full! Linger not long! Haste—haste thee home into thy mountain dwelling! Haste as a bird unto its peaceful nest! Haste as a skiff, when tempests wild are swelling, Flies to its haven of securest rest! Linger not long! 08191541. THE SPIRIT OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. Alt ADDRESS DKLITSRBD BEFORE THE GEORGIA HISTORICAL SOCIETY. BT DR. F. M. ROBERTSON, OF CHARLESTON. ( Coucluded.) To estimate as we should, the deep devotion and true spirit of Washington and his compan ions, let us contrast this scene with one in w’hich a chiettain, who flourished on the Continent of Europe, was a prominent actor. With such an illustrious example before him, who could have believed that the great Napoleon would have robbed I ranee of her liberty, to aggrandize him selt and family. France struggled in vain for what America accomplished, because selfish am bition and vain glory were allied to usurp the throne of moral worth and elevated patriotism. 10 can forget the scene that was enacted when 10 was created Consul? Though one branch of the Legislative Council had been gained by in trigue and corruption, yet a majority of the an cients remained firm, until driven from the hall 0 Legislature by the bayonets of the usurper’s grenadiers. This scene is, indeed, full of interest, ab i US tyative of the power of moral force, even tV er .- m . 05t §l° w ing circumstances, for, at is CHtieaA juncture, though backed by a strong who y et the iron-hearted Napoleon, — in \ lce( l the connon’s mouth, and mingled trembled:\t a : g r gre 'J ? T* fence of theirßK°" fr ° nted freemen “ d ’ callpd imn l * erlies * He, however, rallied, hv for vJ* f & rena(^e rs to clear the hall, and, mSi hU f “’ 0n ‘ he this nnW m ° re Ste P Was required to fasten upon cost th7r natC nation > that which had already This rn S thousands of her best citizens, raised T° Wed - But one solitary voice was creation of In T? NaUonal Council > oppose the whose eh’ f , Bmperor in the person of the man Trance th shoul(i have been in g iv ! n S to Th e and bert y s^e so on g sought in vain. corona tion soon arrived. It that Sunders °f that artillery bailee ten struc k terror to the enemies of lue multitude assembled to witness the creation of anew, but short-lived, dynasty. Well did his countenance wear a thoughtful as pect as, with his own hand, lie placed the ill-fated diadem upon his brow. The shouts of “ long live the Emperor /” from his chosen menials, re sounded like a knell through the vaults of the ancient cathedral, while the solemn tones of the choir, as it chaunted the Te Deum, fell upon the multitude like the requiem of liberty! We have drawn this contrast for the purpose of exhibiting, in bold relief, the patriotism, virtue and moral worth of that man, whose character should, at all times, be held up to the American people as a glorious beacon-light, to guide them in their onward course. Truly has he been styled “ the Father of his Country .” Look at his official acts, and voluminous correspondence. Here we behold his life “drawn out in living characters.” Whether in the field, in the coun cils of the Nation, in the executive chair, around the domestic fireside, or engaged in the ordinarv business transactions of life, we find him ever the same—guided always by the same high princi ples of moral action. In looking over the long list of our revolutionary patriots, we cannot re frain from exclaiming, “This was the noblest Roman of them all.” Though he possessed all the fire of a brave and intrepid general, yet “ His life was gentle ; and the elements So mixt in him, that nature might stand up, And say to all the world, this was a man !” We cannot close this part of our subject without alluding to another instance in which the Spirit of the Revolution, and particularly the moral force of Washington, was active in preventing a ca lamity to our country, which would have ren dered the blood and trials of the revolution vain sacrifices. No sooner did peace begin to shed its benign influences over our infant republic, than discord, intrigues and dissentions arose in consequence of the defects in our confederation. A strong party arose, w r hich thought that the evils arising under the then existing form of government, could only be removed by a monarchy; and its members were ready to carry their views into execution. In opposition to this, no one was more active than Washington; who, assisted by his ancient co-la bours in the great cause of American liberty, suc ceeded in setting in motion a train of events that resulted in the formation of our present constitu tion. This was another great crisis in the liberty of our country; and nothing but the preponder ance of these high moral principles that had car ried the bark of State safely through the storms of the revolution, could have saved it now from a total wreck. And, we must sincerely believe, That the incorruptible integrity and unflinching patriotism ol Washington and his companions, were the instruments of averting the destruction that awaited our Republic. Anticipating the dis astrous consequences that would flow from such a state of disaffection, he most correctly appeals to his countrymen. “What astonishing changes” he exclaims, “a few’ years are capable of pro ducing, I am told that even respectable charac ters speak of a monarchical form of government without horror. From thinking proceeds speak ing, thence to acting is but a single step. Rut how irrevocable and tremendous! What a tri umph lor the advocates of despotism, to find that we are incapable of governing ourselves, and that systems founded upon the basis ol equal lib erty, are merely ideal and fallacious. Would to God that wise means may be taken in time to avert the consequences we have too much reason to apprehend.” . ir This glorious spirit has shone itself adequate to every succeeding crisis. Though aggression has come from abroad, and turmoil, and the dire fuleftectsof sectional jealousies from within, have shaken the federal arches to their centre, yet like a vestal flame, this divine spirit that shone so brightly in our revolutionary fathers, has never SAVANNAH, GA„ THURSDAY, MAY 3, 1849. ceased to burn in the bosoms of their children; and long may it prompt them to make all need ful sacrifices to uphold the pillars that sustain this mighty fabric. If the great work which we have been contem plating, was achieved through enlightened pat riotism and moral worth, how essential, then, must they be to that purity which can alone per petuate its existence. We have numerous ex amples, both in ancient and modern history, to warn us of the fatal rock upon which the liber ties of many nations have been totally wrecked; and we have endeavored to point out those pe riods in the history of our government, in which the supremacy of these principles prevented the same fatal consequences from falling upon us. Like causes, in the moral and political world, as in the physical, will produce like effects. These effects are inevitable, and the same under what ever form of government the cause may operate. What written constitution has ever been able to guarantee peace and liberty to a nation, when the source of power had become impaired—when enlightened patriotism based upon moral princi ples ceased to predominate? The source of power, in our government, is the people. If these principles are not placed supreme, we can not advance —decay and ruin must be the inevi table consequence. The constitution is but the shadowing forth of that unwritten code that pre existed in the minds of its founders. To respect and sustain the principles it contains, we must possess the same dispositions and feelings that prompted its formation ; and if we would per petuate its existence, we must use every means to fix these principles in the bosoms of the rising generation. It is a common observation, that when public opinion does not sustain the law, theii obedience to its commands cannot exist. What is public opinion hut the expression of the principles by which a majority of a community are governed? The stability of all republican form of govern ments must, then, depend upon the degree of de gree of devotion of public opinion. Let public opinion cease to respect the constitution of our country, and of what value would all the laws, enacted under it, be in sustaining our rights and liberties? We may bonst of the liberty we enjoy under our constitution; but let us look well to those principles which alone guarantee to us the constitution itself. We way truly indulge an honest pride at the position we occupy as a nation, among the pow ers of the earth ; but let us beware of sell-confi dence and vain glory, which act like a mildew upon the virtues of a people. Since the achieve ment of our independence, our progress has been almost without a parallel in history. Our popu lation has extended from our most northern limit to the Mexican frontier; and the tide of emigra tion sweeps on to the west with such rapidity as to leave no doubt that the American Eagle will stretch its pinions from the Atlantic to the Pacific Ocean. The following facts are well cal culated to impress our minds with the benign in fluence and great importance of our institutions, and that spirit was infused into them as they came from the hands of our forefathers. These facts are more valuable, because they came from a foreign tourist, and show a contrast which cannot fail to strike the reflecting inquirer into the cause that led to the common good of mankind. # In speaking of the rapidity of the spread of our population, this writer remarks, that, “DeToqueville calculated that along the borders of the United States, from Lake Superior to the Gulf of Mexico, extending a distance of more than 1200 miles, in a direct line, the whites advance every year, at a mean rate of seventeen miles; and he truly observes, that there is a gran deur and sublimity in this gradual and continuous march of the European race towards the Rocky Mountains. He compares it to a deluge of men * Lyell’s travel* in North America. rising unabated, and daily driven onward by the hand of God.” “When conversing with a New England friend” observes the same writer, “on the progress of American population, I was surprised to learn, as a statistical fact, that there are more whites in North America than all that have died there since the days of Columbus. It seems probable, moreover, that the same remark may be good for fifty years to come.” “ The territory of the United States is said to amount to one-tenth, or at the utmost to one-eighth of that colonized by Spain on the American con tinent. Yet in all these vast regions, conquered by Cortez and Pizarro, there are considerable less than two millions of people of European blood, so that they scarcely exceed in number the popu lation acquired in half a century in Ohio, and fall far short of it in wealth and civilization.” We will look now at another striking fact, from the same author, in relation to the British posses sions in North America. “The population in these possessions in 1542 amounted, in round numbers, to one million and a half. The annual growth of the United States, with which her wealth and territory keep pace, exceeds at present 700,000 souls, so that every two years’ increase is equal to the number of all the present inhabitants of British America.” Comment upon these facts are unnecessary. Let the true spirit of the revo lution be maintained and cherished, and what power shall define the limits of our territory, or the wealth and glory of our Republic ? Our march in internal improvement far sur passes the expectations of the most sanguine. Our commerce whitens every sea, and scarcely a nation exists that has not been furnished with the products of American industry. The arts and sciences have progressed to a high degree of perfection, and our literature will not suffer by a comparison with that of older nations. Yet while we enumerate all these, we tremble lest we should be found wanting in the one thing needful—that, without which all would be in vain. In the midst of our success and greatness, may we not be too unmindful of the true Spirit of the Revolution, without which there can be no security for the permanence of our institutions? Let us beware least a fated lethargy come over us, from which we shall only be aroused by the crash of the fair fabric reared upon the moral ex cellence and incorruptible patriotism of our revo lutionary fathers. Nothing is so w r ell calculated to weaken and counteract those high principles that can alone maintain the purity of the fountain of power, as the violence of party spirit and sectional preju dices. There can be no question that both have exerted a most baleful influence over the adminis tration of our government, from the first forma tion of the constitution, and it has steadily in creased up to the present time. This was early foreseen by the framers of the constitution; and Washington looked forward to its increase with fearful anxiety. “The spirit of party” he ob serves, “is unfortunately, inseparable from our nature, having its root in the strongest passions of the human mind. It exists under different shapes in all governments, more or less stifled, contracted or repressed ; but in those of the popu lar form, it is seen in its greatest rankness, and is truly their worst The alternate domi nation of one faction over another, sharpened by the spirit of revenge, natural to party dissentions, which in different ages and communities, has per petrated the most horrid enormities, is itself a frightful despotism. But this leads, at length, to a more formal and permanent despotism. The disorders and miseries which result, generally in cline the minds of men to seek security and re pose in the absolute power of an individual; and, sooner or later, the chief of some prevailing fac tion, more able or more fortunate than his com petitors, turns this disposition to the purposes of his own elevation on the ruins of Public Liberty.” NUMBER 9.