The record to which we allude is his epitaph, written by himself: "Good friend, for Jesus' sake, forbear To dig the dust enclosed here: Blest be the man that spares these stones, Does not a careful consideration of these four lines betray a foreshadowing of what has already occurredthat his tomb would become, not only one of the "Meccas of the mind,” but of the body also, the shrine where loving hearts repair and eager feet still hasten after such· a lapse of years? Have not those simple words stood sentinel through all this time above his grave, guarding from irreverent touch, with a power beyond all bolts and bars, the power of moral force? PART FOURTH. I. THE GLORIOUS FOURTH; OR, THE HOME LIFE OF THE NATION. HE national birthday brings with it, as is meet, not THE not only general rejoicing, but much eloquent speaking and writing about the past glories and future greatness of the country. Without pretending to enter a field which is already so well occupied, we may take the opportunity of saying a few words concerning what may be called the domestic view of the subject; and perhaps it will be seen that this view is, in reality, the most important of all. Our nation is usually termed a federative republic, and so it is in more than one sense. If it is a people made up of federal States, it is also a community composed of united households. It is important to bear in mind, that, in our nation, the unit is not the individual, but the family. Every household is a little republic in itself. The husband and wife are the heads, dividing the departments between them, after the mode prescribed by nature itself. The children take their proper parts in the little community, according to their ages and characters, from the wee citizen of three years old, whose whole duty is to be as obedient and happy as possible, to the sprightly and busy maiden or youth of eighteen or twenty, who is an influential member of the household cabinet. And how truly do all together constitute a genuine "commonwealth "! Of all the plain, sound, hearty Saxon words which enrich our language, there is none more expressive and pleasing than this. True, the Latin word "republic" (respublica) meant originally the same thing; but that primitive meaning is not apparent to an English ear. The word "commonwealth " carries with it at once a description and a lesson. It describes a community united together for the common good of all its members; and it reminds us, that, in such a community, no individual should be excluded from a share in the general weal. The true type and germ of such a community in every free and Christian country is to be found, as has been already observed, in the family. Six millions of such domestic commonwealths possess our land from ocean to ocean, and make up the American people; and on the virtue and intelligence of these six millions of families depend the welfare, happiness, and liberty of the nation. Let us consider this point for a moment. A nation may exist in which the institution of the family, in the sense in which we understand it, is unknown. In Sparta, for example, under the laws of Lycurgus, private house holds could hardly be said to exist. The men lived in public, and took their meals together at common tables. The children were considered to belong to the State, which withdrew them from their parents at an early age, and educated them under a rigid system for the public service. The domestic affections were contemned, and purposely smothered. We are told in history, that after the famous battle of Leuctra, which was so fatal to the Spartans, and which they had fought not for the defence of their country, but from motives of ambition and revenge, "the parents of those who died in the action congratulated one another upon it, and went to the temples to thank the gods that their children had done their duty; whereas the relatives of those who survived the defeat were inconsolable." The whole object of Spartan laws was to convert their community into an army of trained soldiers, not merely in order to protect their country, but for the ambitious. purpose of making it the ruling power in Greece. For this object, to make their sons accomplished manslayers, all natural affection was stifled, all family ties were broken, and all the restraints of morality disregarded. The Spartans had their reward. History records, that, for a few centuries, they were known as a race of famous soldiers, the terror of Greece. But history further declares that art, science, and virtue withered and died in that ungenial soil. Not one great philosopher, statesman, orator, artist, or author is known in the annals of --- that country. Even in their own special calling of warfare, their leaders were not among the greatest generals of Greece. No Spartan commander ranks with Miltiades, Themistocles, and Epaminondas. The whole history of that remarkable people shows, that, when the institution of the household is destroyed, there may remain a community of unhumanized men and unsexed women; but the elements of goodness and greatness are lost, and the seeds of progress and improvement perish. The Mahometan nations afford another striking example of this truth. The founder of their religion, by sanctioning polygamy, made the existence of the true. household impossible. For a few generations, the frantic fanaticism of his followers gave success to their arms, and extended their sway over many countries. But the lack of the domestic virtues soon began to sap their power. For centuries past, all the Mahometan nations have been wasting away, and gradually giving place to nations whose children are trained in Christian households. In short, if we survey all the nations of the earth, "from China to Peru," we shall find that the happiness. and prosperity of every people will be in exact proportion to the degree in which the institution of the family is esteemed, protected, and cherished among them. We have no doubt that all our readers will concur in this view, and that they will further agree with us in the opinion that the central figure in this institution, the one on whom its essential excellence depends, is the wife and |