Page images
PDF
EPUB

(With a Portrait.)

It is not alone in commerce, in arts, in in- | galaxy of goodness stands GEORGE WASH

dustry, in territory or in power, that a nation finds its holiest treasures, these are things evanescent, which may pass away, and be lost in the crash of revolutions, or the whirl of empire. A more glorious and enduring wealth is found in the memories of the great spirits who gave her existence-framed her laws sustained her honor-increased her knowledge -gave tone to her morals, and developed her resources,—these are treasures which are cherished by her children forever--they glow in their hearts, stimulate their pride, and cheer their sinking souls for ages after the empire which they gave, has been cast a wreck in the vast maelstrom of absorbing Time. Greece, enslaved Greece! forgot not her sages in the hour of humility. Rome yet remembers her heroes of old, and Jerusalem, the outcast, still cherisheth the memories of her patriarchs with a green and growing affection.

Then what a treasure hath America! What an unfading halo of delight encompasseth the hearts of her generations, in the memories and fame of that long catalogue of men who gave her a name, and a place upon the scroll of nations, more proud-more glorious--more fruitful of good, than all that man, in his most earnest yearnings for Freedom, had hitherto thought or conceived! Foremost amid this

O, TEACH me not the barren creed,
That angels never haunt the soul;
That 'tis a dream, O, never plead-

INGTON, the warrior, the sage, THE FATHER oF HIS COUNTRY! Truly may it be said that to his virtue, his patriotism, his judgment, and his long-suffering, do we owe all that we possess as Americans, all that we hold dear as freemen! When the clouds of oppression gathered thick and black around, when the storm swept on in its fury; when hope withered, and stout hearts quailed, or shrunk back in despair-his form stood erect-his voice was firm-his heart was true; and by his example and wisdom the disjointed fragments were again and again gathered to the rescue. Can we too often speak of him? Will mankind ever become weary with gazing upon the lineaments of his countenance? Can Americans point their children to a purer or more soul-stirring example, either as a man or a patriot, than to GEORGE WASHINGTON? Surely, no! Let us remember him, then, with reverence, speak of him with pride, engrave his features upon our hearts, observe his precepts, and, if possible, follow his example.

The Portrait which accompanies this, the February, number of "THE REPUBLIC," is one engraved by Adams, after the celebrated painting by Stuart, of which it is a faithful copy, and, as we believe, one of the best likenesses, if not the very best, ever engraved on wood.

ANGELS.

BY C. D.

I would not lose their sweet control:
Low-whispering spirits, still they come,
And bid the dear emotions start
With visions of our childhood's home,-
That Mecca of the human heart.
Their feet are on the viewless wind,
Their lips among the odorous flowers;
They fill the waste of years behind,

And sweetly charm the passing hours:
The smile that mantles friendship's cheek,
The tear that gleams in pity's eye,
The thrill that words may never speak,
And hopes that brightly hover nigh;

O, rob them not of angel guise

The only founts to rapture given;
These young Immortals from the skies,
That bid us fondly hope for Heaven!
Still floating on their golden wings,
They bear the light of other years,
And each a sweet consoling brings,
To sprinkle o'er the tide of tears.

STUART

Break not the spell my heart has wove,
Bind not those fairy-footed gleams,
Those messengers of joy and love,
That people all my dearest dreams;
Still let me feel my mother near,
When summer winds are on my cheek,
And let me, though in fancy, hear
Her lips in music's echo speak.
Chide not these tears, that, while I sing,
Like waters from a fountain start;
The memories of a childhood bring
Their wild contagion to the heart.
Above the desert I have passed,

The flowers of life again I meet,
And youth its myrtle leaves has cast
Their shadows resting at my feet.

O, chide me not! nor break the spell-
All I have loved, or love, is here-
The kind, the good, the true-they dwe
In friendship's smile and pity's tear;
A little faith may rend the guise,
And what our yearning hearts adore
Will change to Seraphs from the skies,
Who, lingering, watch till life is o'er

[graphic][merged small]

BORN at Bridge's Creek, Westmoreland County, Virginia, on the 22d of February, 1732.

DIED at Mount Vernon, December 14th, 1799.

"Against the insidious wiles of Foreign Influence, I conjure you to believe me, fellow-citizens, the jealousies

of a free people ought to be constantly awake, since history and experience prove that Foreign Influence is one of

the most baneful foes of a Republican Government."-Washington's Farewell Address.

Page 82.

EDITORIAL.

NOTICE.-A few of our suoscribers have been returned by the carriers as "not found." All who did not receive the first number of the "Republic," are therefore requested to leave word at the office, with their address.

Chapters that have received the amount of subscription from any of their members, are requested to send the same forthwith to Chancellor J. J. Dickinson, at the office of the Astor Mutual Insurance Company, corner of William and Exchange streets, (in the Exchange )

Twelve active men may find good employment as canvassers, in and out of the Order at a liberal compensation. Apply at the office, with references.

CLUBS.

Our friends out of the city are requested to finish their club lists as soon as possible, and send them in. Those having additions to make to the lists already in, will please forward them at once, that subscribers may be served promptly. POSTMASTERS

acting as agents, in making up CLUBS, will be entitled to six per cent., to be deducted from the Club rates.

NEWSPAPERS.

We send a copy of this number to some of the most respectable and influential papers of the country. Those who will copy our PROSPECTUS (with or without the Table of Contents) three times, and send a marked paper, shall receive the Republic for one year. They are requested to call attention to its peculiar (American) character.

INCREASE OF POPULATION, AND THE RIGHT OF SUFFRAGE.—The longevity of nations has not yet, we believe, been reduced to a practical science, and thus far no theory has been adopted by which to determine either the natural limit, or the means of prolonging the vital principle of any form of government. Hitherto, the difelease of a nation, under the monarchical systems of the old world, has depended more on its maximum or minimum physical strength, than upon any moral or social qualities that it might possess: thus, a nation, powerful in arms, has existed almost from the dawn of civilization to the present time; and another, weak in physical power, has stood the shocks and changes of ages, and still survives. The first lived from an innate ability to sustain itself against all opposers;

and the last has been permitted to survive, because it was too insignificant to excite either jealousy or fear in surrounding powers.

The history of Republics, however, does not exhibit an application of this principle to their existences, and in fact there has been none to which the finger of the historian can point as an instance of national longevity. The peculiar character of Republican institutions, heretofore, has been such as to harbor in its own vitals the seeds of early dissolution,-a sort of hereditary consumptive affection, which has generally consigned them to early and dishonorable graves The Republic of the United States claims to be a model in this system of government, and so it is, so far as the privileges conferred on its people are concerned; but the searching eye of the philosopher can easily detect, in its physical organization, the pulmonic symptoms of decay, the seeds of a fatal disease-seeds that are even now germinating, and threatening a speedy and poisonous bloom.

Some clear-sighted mathematician has recently published, in the New-York Tribune, a welldigested article, in which he shows, that in eighty years from the present time, that is to say, within the life-time of the child now born, the population of the present territory of the United States will be 400,000,000, (four hundred millions,) or equal to the population of China at the present time. This estimate is based upon indisputable statistics of the past; viz., that by immigration, and the increase of the native born, the population of the States has, heretofore, doubled every twenty years, or thereabout. The present population is about 25,000,000, and by the same ratio it will reach the estimate, 400,-. 000,000, in eighty years.

Taken in connection with the fact that our territory, if we except the recent acquisitions. is about the same as that of China, this estimate presents a new and interesting field for speculation to the politician and philosopher of the present day, and especially to those who claim that we have room enough for all mankind, and who are so lavish of our soil as to tender it gratuitously to those who will come from abroad and accept it. It is true, that we have millions of unploughed acres-sufficient to make our country the garden and granary of the world; but if those acres are made to teem with human beings, most of whom must, of necessity, become consumers instead of producers, (because the

ratio of productive land necessarily lessens with the increase of population,) it follows that, in stead of feeding the world, we shall ourselves be dependent for sustenance on other nations. And to this condition it is possible to arrive in eighty years, unless, like the Chinese, we consent to feed on rats and offal.

To baffle this prospect, and put off the evil day for a few generations more, it would appear to be the part of wisdom to lessen, instead of increasing, the incentives to immigration, which at present exist. But this is only the physical view of the subject-let us look at its

SOCIAL AND POLITICAL PHASES.

Our population, as it appears, is doubled every twenty years, whereas immigration has, for several years past, more than doubled every five years,-taking the port of New-York as the criterion, and the year 1841 as a basis. The number of immigrants arriving at the port of

New-York was in

[blocks in formation]

The number that arrived in 1841 we find nearly doubled in 1846, and that again more than doubled in the next three years, viz., in 1849. The port of New-York, it is believed, receives less than half the immigration that pours upon our country from the Old World. The ports East and South, and especially of New-Orleans and Texas, receive vast and constant acquisitions of this class of population; so that we may safely set down the amount of immigration, for the year 1850, at half a million, without enumerating those that are smuggled in through the Canadas.

lanche of ignorance and superstition, upon our social and political existence, are already seriously felt. As immigration increases, the ratio of intelligence and virtue, in the masses, is lessened

the first is self-evident, and the latter is proven by our statistics of crimes, (about seven-tenths of which are committed by foreigners,) by pauperism, and mendicity. These effects are also seriously felt by our working classes, who, reduced to the standard of what in Europe is called pauper labor, by the competition of that portion of immigrants who do work, are, in many instances, deprived of the means of comfort, mental improvement, and almost of respectability. Thus, and in divers other ways, does society suffer and retrograde, through the influence of a too rapid immigration.

But it is our political system that is most abused by this influence. The system of suffrage created by the founders of this Republic, was based upon Intelligence, and it is only through intelligence that it can be exercised legitimately. It is presumed, by the very nature of the system, that he who expresses a voice through the medium of the ballot, knows what that voice means; otherwise it is as complete a nullity as the voice of an idiot. In law, the idiot is regarded as non compos mentis, and is not allowed to make contracts, to sue or defend in courts of justice, to perform offices and duties, or to make devises or bequests. Why? Because his intelligence, or knowledge, is not sufficient to enable him to perform these duties understandingly. Now, if the law protects private interests from the dangers resulting from ignorance and incapacity, how much more important is it that the public interests should be guarded by law against the same dangers, arising from the same causes. As it is, we give to ignorance a supervision over our public affairs which we do not allow it to exercise over its own affairs; a stretch of generosity upon which any intelligent" commission of lunacy" would consign us to keepers. Here lie the seeds of fatality in our political conformation. By our liberal system of suffrage, we not only place a grave and solemn power in the hands of ignorance, but we open the door for combinations and factions abroad, to enter our ballot-box and quietly vote away our liberties, as they did with the Republic of Switzerland.

Great evils require strong remedies, and it is now time for the lovers of civil and religious liberty to give attention to this subject, and take energetic measures to stay the growing danger

We shall not pretend to assume that the ratio of increased immigration, as shown above, is to continue for the next eighty years, but that the influx will be immense is plain. When we take into consideration the fact that the human race is rapidly increasing in every civilized portion of the globe; that the serfs of Northern Europe are just beginning to feel the weight of their chains, as contrasted with civil freedom; and that China herself must, ere long, fling open her We are much of opinion that the difficulty will gates to emigration, and pour forth her teeming not be removed until our present naturalization millions; it is difficult to estimate the flood that laws are abolished, and the power to grant cerwill be poured upon us, if we continue to hold tificates of naturalization is vested solely in out the same inducements as at present. Congress, to be exercised by that body only in The deleterious effects of this ceaseless ava- consideration of valuable public services per

« PreviousContinue »