manners and privations of a republican party. Such was the reception given to Lafayette by the most sagacious and observant of men; and the personal acquaintance, thus commenced, ripened into an intimacy, a confidence, and an affection, without bounds, and never for one moment interrupted. If there lived a man whom Washington loved and admired, it was Lafayette.

Gloriously did Lafayette fulfill, by his military career, the high hopes which swelled the hearts of American patriots, in the heroic courage which he displayed at Brandywine, where he received a ball in his leg; by his success in Jersey, before he had recovered from his wounds, in a battle where he commanded militia against British grenadiers; in the brilliant retreat, by which he eluded a combined maneuver of the whole British force; by his great services in the enterprise against Rhode Island, and his successful movements against Cornwallis;-all these proofs of his patriotism and military skill, together with his warm and unsullied friendship for Washington, through all the varying fortunes of war, endeared him forever to every American.

After the fall of Cornwallis, Lafayette sailed for France, but revisited America in 1784. He was received with enthusiasm wherever he went. Returning to France, he found himself the object of immense popularity, and took his seat with the notables, convoked in 1787. In 1789, he boldly proposed, in the national convocation, the Declaration of Rights, which he had brought from the free soil of America, as the preliminary of a constitution. Proclamation of this world-renowned document was made July twenty-second, and it furnished the French people with the metaphysical reasons for the "sacred right of insurrection." Meanwhile the Bastile had been taken, July fourteenth, the national guard organized, and Lafayette appointed to the command. In this capacity he rode a white charger, and shone the impersonation of chivalry, and twice the royal family owed their preservation to his address and courage. When the popu

lar enthusiasm lulled, he returned to his native fields; the national guard, on his retirement, presenting him with a bust of Washington, and a sword forged from the bolts of the Bastile. Subsequently, having denounced the bloodthirsty Jacobins, he was burned in effigy by the sans-cullottes of Paris, and, fleeing from the guillotine which there awaited him, he finally fell into the hands of the Austrians, and was by them subjected to a long and cruel imprisonment in the fortress of Olmutz. His release, so earnestly but unsuccessfully solicited by Washington, was peremptorily demanded by Napoleon, and obtained, in September, 1797. In the year 1818, he became a member of the chamber of deputies, and, resuming his career as an advocate of constitutional principles, succeeded at last in elevating Louis Philippe to the throne of France.

By this time, Lafayette had grown old in the services he had rendered to America and France. Though his years were now nearly three score and ten, he could not think of meeting death until he had once more seen the land of liberty across the wide Atlantic, which was as dear to him as his native country. In its infancy, and for its freedom, he had, fifty years ago, contributed his wealth and shed his blood, sharing the bosom confidence of the great Washington as did no other human being. That struggling little republic had now become a great nation; the thirteen states constituting the original galaxy, had become almost double that number, and vast as the empires of antiquity in territory. Remembering his magnificent services in 1824, the Congress of the United States voted unanimously a resolution requesting President Monroe to invite Lafayette to visit the United States, as the nation's guest,-an honor never before accorded a foreign nobleman, and tendering a ship of the line for his conveyance. This invitation was extended to the great French patriot in President Monroe's most happy manner, and was duly accepted, though the offer of a war-ship was declined.

On the twelfth of July, 1824, Lafayette, accompanied by his son, George Washington Lafayette, and his secretary, M. Levasseur, sailed from Havre for America. He arrived in New York, August fifteenth, and landed on Staten Island. One of the first to greet him was Joseph Bonaparte, brother of the great Napoleon. Joseph then resided at Bordentown, New Jersey; he had always cherished a high regard for the marquis, and greatly valued his friendship. The interview between the two was attended with the warmest emotion; and whoever has seen Sully's portrait of the great French patriot can form some adequate conception of the chieftain's magnificent bearing on this occasion.

The announcement of his arrival sent a thrill of joy to every American heart and home, and the great pageant of his reception commenced in the city where he first set foot forty years before. As the fleet arrived at the battery at New York, a military line composed of thousands of veterans was formed, and the people, crowding the battery and all the adjacent streets, swelled the throng to the number of forty thousand. The patriot was deeply affected when he exchanged congratulations with old companions and friends. Shout after shout went up in long and loud acclaim, while the bands of music played a triumphant welcome to the hero. His stay in the city was one unbroken succession of high honors and civic laudation, such as kings might envy; at Albany, he was received by Vice-president Tompkins. On proceeding to New England, the same enthusiasm was exhibited in every city, town, and village. From the residence of Honorable William Eustis, the governor of Massachusetts, in Roxbury, he was escorted by a large cavalcade and almost the entire population, to Boston, where a dense assemblage awaited his appearance. Arriving at the line, he was greeted by the mayor of the city and the people, through whom he passed in a superb carriage, under deafening cheers. The streets were lined with spectators to the entrance of the beautiful common.

There, the children of the public schools formed two lines, the girls being dressed in spotless white, and the boys in white trousers and blue jackets, and all wearing appropriate badges. A little girl sprang forward from the line as Lafayette was passing, and, at her request to speak to him, was lifted into the carriage, when she gracefully presented him with a wreath of flowers, which the venerable hero received with affecting courtesy. While going from town to town, he found in every place some of the descendants of 1776, ready to give him the heartiest of welcomes. Thus, when visiting Marblehead, in Massachusetts, the marquis manifested much curiosity at so many ladies being mingled with the male citizens, who had been deputed to receive him. The spokesman of the occasion, perceiving the pleasant surprise of the marquis at this peculiar feature, said to him

"These are the widows of those who perished in the Revolutionary War, and the mothers of children for whose liberty you, illustrious sir! have contended in the field of battle. They are now here in the places of their husbands, many of whom were once known to you.".

It may here be remarked, that Marblehead was the "banner town" for furnishing soldiers, in the Revolutionary War, there being a larger portion to the whole number of inhabitants from that town than any other place in the United States. The British armed vessels hovering on the coast destroyed the coasting and fishing business, and thus the loss of men in the war fell heavily upon the small seaport towns; for, being out of employment, nearly all the young and old men shouldered their muskets and joined the army. At Philadelphia Lafayette was welcomed with almost idolizing enthusiasm; for tender and thrilling indeed were the associations which linked together the history of the past and present of that city, in the person and services of Lafayette; the hospitalities of the state were appropriately dispensed by Governor Shultze. On landing at Baltimore, he was conducted to the "tent of Washington," and the

freedom of the state and city conferred upon him in an address by Governor Stevens. For some time Lafayette could not precisely understand the compliment conveyed in the selection of the tent— especially one of that construction-for such proceedings. It was soon made plain, however, for glancing around, he recognized a portion of Washington's personal equipage during the war; and turning to one near him, he said, in a voice tremulous with emotion, "I remember!" Proceeding to Washington, Lafayette was received with open arms by President Monroe, at the executive mansion. Congress had just assembled in regular session, at the capitol. He was introduced to both houses, and was formally and elegantly addressed by Mr. Clay, Speaker of the House of Representatives, the two branches unanimously uniting in their legislative honors to the nation's guest. At this session the sum of two hundred thousand dollars, together with a township, consisting of twenty-four thousand acres of fertile land, was voted by Congress to General Lafayette, as an expression of the grateful memory with which the people of America regarded his services in their behalf. A few of the members felt themselves constrained, from some doubts respecting its constitutionality, to vote against this appropriation. Lafayette, taking one of them by the hand, said to him with considerable feeling:

"I appreciate your views. If I had been a member, I should have voted with you, not only because I partake of the sentiments which determined your votes, but also because I think that the American nation has done too much for me." Most characteristic of Lafayette's disinterestedness and magnanimity was that remark!

At this time, Governor Pleasant was chief magistrate of the "Old Dominion," and warmly welcomed the nation's guest. The emotions experienced by Lafayette, as he once more trod the battlefield of Virginia, can of course hardly be described. Yorktown, distinguished for the surrender of Cornwallis, which event gave the