My feeble virtue. Here its enemies, The passions, at thy plainer footsteps shrink And tremble, and are still. Oh! God, when thou The swift, dark whirlwind that uproots the woods Its cities, who forgets not, at the sight [The reader may note the questions in this piece, tell what kind they are, and how they should be read. — Rule 1, p. 77.] 1. The study of the history of most other nations, fills the nind with sentiments, not unlike those which the American traveler feels, on entering the venerable and lofty cathedral of some proud, old city of Europe. Its solemn grandeur, its vastness, its obscurity, strike awe to his heart. A thousand recollections of romance, and poetry, and legendary story, come thronging in upon him. He is surrounded by the tombs of the mighty dead, rich with the labors of ancient art, and emblazoned with the pomp of heraldry. 2. What names does he read upon them? Those of princes and nobles, who are now remembered only for their vices; and of sovereigns, at whose death no tears were shed, and whose memories lived not an hour in the affections of their people. There rest the blood-stained soldier of fortune,- the orator, who was ever the ready apologist of tyranny,-great scholars, who were the pensioned flatterers of power,- and poets, who profaned the high gift of genius, to pamper the vices of a corrupted court. 3. Our own history, on the contrary, like that poetical temple of fame, reared by the imagination of Chaucer, and decorated by the taste of Pope, is almost exclusively dedicated to the memory of the truly great. Or rather, like the Pantheon b of Rome, it stands, in calm and severe beauty, amid the ruins of ancient magnificence, and "the toys of modern state." Within, no idle ornament encumbers its bold simplicity. The pure light of heaven enters from above, and sheds an equal and serene radiance around. As the eye wanders about its extent, it beholds the unadorned monuments of brave and good men, who have bled or toiled for their country; or it rests on votive tablets, inscribed with the names of the best benefactors of mankind. 4. We have been repeatedly told, and sometimes, too, in a tone of affected impartiality, that the highest praise which can fairly be given to the American mind, is that of possessing an enlightened selfishness; but a clear refutation may be given, confidently and triumphantly. Is it nothing, for the universal good of mankind, to have carried into successful operation a system of self-government, uniting personal liberty, freedom of opinion, and equality of rights, with national power and dignity, such as had before existed only in the Utopian dreams of philosophers? Is it nothing, in moral science, to have anticipated in sober reality numerous plans of reform in civil and criminal jurisprudence, which are but now received as Chaucer, an English poet, died in 1400, aged seventy-two. b Pantheon, a magnificent temple at Rome, dedicated to all the gods. Utopian, a term used to denote ideal perfection. plausible theories by the politicians and economists of Europe? Is it nothing, to have been able to call forth, on every emergency, either in war or peace, a body of talents, always equal to the difficulty? 5. Is it nothing, to have, in less than a half century, exceedingly improved the sciences of political economy, of law, and of medicine, with all their auxiliary branches; to have enriched human knowledge by the accumulation of a great mass of useful facts and observations, and to have augmented the power and the comforts of civilized man, by miracles of mechanical invention? Is it nothing, to have given the world examples of disinterested patriotism, of political wisdom, of public virtue; of learning, eloquence, and valor, never exerted, save for some praiseworthy end? It is sufficient, to have briefly suggested these considerations; every mind would anticipate me in filling up the details. 6. No, Land of Liberty! thy children have no cause to blush for thee. What though the arts have reared few monuments among us; yet our soil has been consecrated by the blood of heroes, and by great and holy deeds of peace. Its wide extent has become one vast temple and hallowed asylum, sanctified by the prayers and blessings of the persecuted of every sect, and the wretched of all nations. Those prayers Land of Refuge! Land of Benedictions! still arise, and they still are heard:- "May peace be within thy walls, and plenteousness within thy palaces!" "May there be no decay, no leading into captivity, and no complaining in thy streets!" "May truth flourish out of the earth, and righteousness look down from heaven!" LESSON XV. EXTRACT FROM A SPEECH IN PARLIAMENT. — BURKE. - [Before reading this piece, let the pupil determine the general character of the language, and tell how such language should be read. See Rule 12, p. 133] 1. Since I had the honor, I should say the dishonor, of sitting in this house, I have been witness to many strange, many infamous transactions. What can be your intention, in attacking all honor and virtue? Do you mean to bring all men to a level with yourselves, and to extirpate all honor and independence? Perhaps you imagine a vote will settle the whole controversy. Alas! you are not aware, that the manner in which your vote is procured, is a secret to no man. 2. Listen! for if you are not totally callous, if your consciences are not scared, I will speak daggers to your souls, and awake you to all the horrors of guilty recollection. I will follow you with whips and stings through every maze of your unexampled turpitude, and plant thorns under the rose of ministerial approbation. You have flagrantly violated justice and the law of the land, and opened a door for anarchy and confusion. After assuming an arbitrary dominion over law and justice, you issue orders, warrants, and proclamations against every opponent, and send prisoners to your Bastile,a all those who have the courage and virtue to defend the freedom of the country. 3. But, it is in vain that you hope by fear and terror to extinguish the native British fire. The more sacrifices, the more martyrs you make, the more numerous the sons of liberty a Burke, (Edmund,) was born in the county of Cork, Ireland, in 1730, and died in the sixty-eighth year of his age. Mr. Burke is ranked among the most emirent orators and statesmen, of England or Ireland. b Bastile, a castle in which criminals, or men condemned for political offenses, are immured for life. will become. They will multiply like the hydra, and hurl vengeance on your heads. Let others act as they will; while I have a tongue, or an arm, they shall be free. And that I may not be a witness of these monstrous proceedings, I will leave the house. These walls are unholy, baleful, deadly, while a prostitute majority holds the bolt of parliamentary power, and hurls its vengeance only upon the virtuous. [Let the reader also determine the character of the language in this piece, and tell how it should be read. See Rule 12, p. 193.] 1. Think of the country for which the Indians fought! Who can blame them? As Philip a looked down from his seat on Mount Hope, that glorious eminence; as he looked down and beheld the lovely scene which spread beneath, at a summer sunset, the distant hill-tops blazing with gold, the slanting beams streaming along the waters, the broad plains, the island groups, the majestic forest, could he be blamed, if his heart burned within him, as he beheld it all passing, by no tardy process, from beneath his control, into the hands of the stranger? 2. No wonder, if in company with a friendly settler, contemplating the progress already made by the white man, and marking the gigantic strides with which he was advancing into the wilderness, he should fold his arms, and say, "White man, there is eternal war between me and thee! I quit not the land of my fathers, but with my life! In those woods, where I bent my youthful bow, I will still hunt the deer; over Philip, a celebrated Indian chief in the war of 1675, whose seat and headquarters were at Mount Hope, in Rhode Island. |