^*i'M'*.' < «C.^' 1 < t «" rC^ .; < ^ (_' •^ ''- ^./^ ^~3,.s.^ ■c en 3 United states op America. ^ <.CC(C -c ^^'S C CM <\ S.S. S fe" «i' CC CC ^ C_ C _C C <:.. C-, <,C ^JftaC. 'CC « cC:«t^ CfCr : cc:c <-C-<^- '■ - s: C5:'C C' ... .c_«t-< ""^l^. C^ cv4r^^ cc<- «^^c- c' «C^^^^ c<>-;c • <«:. c f od<,c c .c. c - ^ -C CC ■ ' ■ <:.c ct ' . AasRSxacu«k::r^i3:aes#' Fki??tkb. at. WORCESTER^ j S¥ SEWALL GOOD RIDGE. - J 'i'^ '■-£>, ^O ,' Mai^ i(y:«. 3804.. V^-^*-^>^ *-<>-■ '"■^^'-tf^^-*^ *^>*»-^^^-*»^»-«5>i*-^'^^|»«-rf>-^»- A N ADDRESS, THERE is a Spirit in Man ; and the inspiration of the Almighty hath given him Understanding !" Happily for man, unhappily for the despot who oppresses, for the demagogue who deceives him, this Spirit rouses to resistance ;— this Understanding unveils the visage, and exposes the arts of ambition. — But when no arbitrary .-despot enthrals, and no aspiring demagogue dejudes; when the wisdom and patriotism of the government are difplayed in the peace and prosperity of the people ; vhen it is the proud employment of illustrious men, *' To scatter Plenty o'er a arniling land, " And read their hist'ry in a nation's eyes ; the Spirit and the Understanding combine, to render to their rulers the willing homage of a glad and grateful pi^ople. For this. Friends and FellowXitizens, we arc here assembled. Had we convened to commemorate the day, which introduced to the world some fool o.r knave, whom Chance had made a King, or to consecrate the nativity of some idol or martyr of superstition, whom Hierarchy had dubbed a Saint^ we might well strive to forget, in the tumult of unmeaning mirth, the occasion which prompted it, and to drown, in hollow acclamations, the source whence they arose. But ws med not employ these arts of self-delusion. The fc-stivc ( 6 ) joy, ^v•llich at this time electrifies our Fellow- Citizens, in every section of the continent, which at this moment- riots in the breasts and glistens in the eyes of applaud- ing millions, evinces that honest, heart-felt, Repuhli-^, can Gratitude, which does equal honor to those, who, receive, and those who proffer it. A recurrence to the motives of our hilarity will cause our hearts to thrill with livelier transport, and beat with added animation. The event we celebrate, whether we regard merely its intrinsic consequence, or the mode in which it was produced, will well justify our joy and gratulation. The acquisition of the vast territory o{ Lozdsiana^ in itself was a great, a wonderful atchievement of wisdom and policy. The means, by which it was obtained, afford an honorable, an unprecedented example of magnanimi- ty and justice. The value of the acquisition is beyond doubt or dis- pute. The high estimation, in which it was once held by those, whom the spirit of party now induces to un- derrate and belittle it, furnishes unequivocal evidence of its magnitude. Before the object had been compassed, before success had given a sanction to the project, whea the most sanguine of the votaries of hope were startled at the boldness of the cntcrprize ; at this time, the enemies (.f the govcnuTient were loud in their assertions, th.at the attainment was of the first and greatest moment. They likened Louisiana to the rocs egg, in the Eastern Tale, tj> gain which no sacrifice could be too great, and in the attempt to gain which, they felt assured the Administra- tion would incur defeat, disgrace and ruin. The iniurv.^ ( 7 ) Vnich our " Western-Brethren " had sustained, by the unofficial encroachment of a subordinate Spanish offi- cer, was described with affecting and pathetic earnestness. These Western Inhabitants, who, four short years since, were treated by these very men with every mark of indig- nity and insult, and loaded with every term of reproach, ^-these " Whishy-Boys,''-ihcsQ " Offscourings of the earth,'" < — these " Swetpings of creation^ " were all at once, by the magic influence of party, converted into the dearly-be- loved " brethren " of their former calumniators, and be- came subjects of the tender mercy and loving kindness of Ross, Mason and Morris ! That the United States MUST possess the control of the navigation of the Mis- sisippi, was Stated as a settled and establiffied point. To prevent the colonization of the country by the French, was declared an object of great and momentous concern. I'he Northern States were told, by these careful guardians of their rights and interest, that if the proposed colonization should be effiscted, their Commerce to the West-Indies would be materially injured, if not utterly destroyed. The dangers consequent on the vi- cinity of a great and enterprizing colony, were depicted in dark and frowning characters. The exuberant fertil- ity of the soil, the delightsome salubrity of the clime, were painted, in the richest and most brilliant colors, by the pencil of romance. In a word, we were told, that an adequate compensation for such an acquirement could scarce be conceived, that it was a prize worthy the loftiest ambition, — that the horrors of war were not Ca be .shunned, when such an object was at stake. (8) TiiE justice of these statements was not contested; thou<:^h the purity of the motives which produced them, vas, with propriety, questioned. All parties agreed in the importance of the acquisition, and differed only in the means of securing it. In former negotiations, be- tween sovereign powers, the barter and cxcl'Gvgc had been blood for blood, the lives of thousands the " valuable consideration^"" and cannon-balls the current coin. In the codes of Grotius and Vattel, we might be taught Kaiional LazL>,Rs founded on principles of equity, and prescriptions of justice. But, in the Courts of St, James, Versailles or Vienna, those practical schools of political science, the very rudiments were reversed. Pow- er was substituted for Right, reasons of state for the dic- tates of conscience, and Humanity and Honor were struck out of the vocabulary. WfiLL-versed in the maxims of Europeart policy, Oi'r American disciples of the "Old-School," our " Friends to Order and Steady Habits,," viewed the proposition for an amicable adjustment, as a most dangerous and dread- ful " iKN'ovvMioN." The very idea was replete with *' Modern Philosophy S"" The governmcHt were instantly accusedofmeanncssofspiritjof cowardice and pusillanim- ity. An immediate declaration of hostilities was loudly demanded. War ! War ! WAR ! was proclaimed with incessant clamor, by the meek and pious friends of the " Gospel of l*cace and Reconciliation." They appeared, for a time, to have divided their rancour between the Ad- ministration and the Spaniards. Each Federal Quixote was. on tiptoe to post off to Nezv-Orkans, and find IVind- (9) Mill Giants to fight with. Each Federal Hotspur, in loud and vaunting tones, exclaimed : ** — — — — Then let them come j ** And to the fire-eyed maid of smoaky war, ** All hot and bleeding will we offer them. *' The mailed Mars shall on his altar sit^ ** Up to the ears in b'ood," The veteran heroes oi Harper's Ferry apdthe Oxfori Encampment were again to brighten their bayonets, to ef- fcU^ not to repel invasion ; and the invincible New-York General was again to quit the Bar for the Camp, and drop his brief to take up a muster-rolL True, the event of i •war was hazardous and uncertain ^ the expense and the horrors certain and inevitable. But what then ? The :failure of an attempt was a completion of their plan. They well knew, that the expense of an armed force would be felt, and felt sensibly by the people. They knew also, from sad experience, that the administration^ which raised a: needless military force, gave a death- wound to its j)opularity. Every misfortune of the Gov- ernment would have been to them a source of joy ; for every blot on its escutcheon w^ould serve as a foil to their armorial bearings, A War, and an unsucccessful War was a *' consummation devoutly to be wished," for then might they hope to regain their lost popularity ; then might they expect to revive their dying influence. True — the bones of many a gallant soldier might bleach on the banks of the Missisippi ; the breast of many an orphan child might throb with the agony of paternal bereave- ment; the tear of conjugal grief might bedew the cheek of B ( lo) many a v\ idowed mother. But these misfortunes vrould befal only the " SzuinishMuhitude." The " -^ell-born," iht " Eugencis,'' the " Howards, and Burleighs and Somersets of our country" vould find ample remu- neration, in the c5ffices and promotions, a w ar v ould pro- vide for their dissolute descendants. But vain alike were all their artful intrigues, and their boisterous clamors. Unbiassed by the one, unheeding the other, the Administration pursued the path of pol- icv, with deliberate, determined and considerate energy. Disregarding the puny censure of disappointed parii- zans, despising the little malice of the slaves of faction, they consulted only the iriterestand honor of the nation : Like bui" ^^ first and greatest rcvoliltionary charaEcr^' they evinced the rare courage to despise the iHiputatibri of cow- ardice; and to confide their vindication to the impartial verdict of their Country and posterity. It is only on great and trying occasions, that such men display their brightest talents or their noblest qualities. Like the fabled gem of the Ocean^ in the gairish sun-shine of prosperity, their lustre is a bright, but unheeded sparkle ; in the gloomv night of adversity, they shine and they enlighten. At the momentous crisis we commemorate, the Govern- ment disclaimed alike the blustering threats of a bully, and the pitiful whine of a suppliant. In a mild and moderate, but manly and determined tone, they demand- en reparation of the wrong, an^ security against its fu- ture recurrence. While with one hand they profferrcd the peaceful olive-branch ; the other was nerved to un- ohcath the SNscrd of vengeance. ( " ) The success of their efforts we this Jay celebrate. JBy fair, honest, pacific, Republican measures, we have acquired possession of the fertile fields of Louisiana ; \st Jiave gained complete control of all the Western Wa- ters ; and th9 Fla^ of the Union waves in triumph over ihe Levee of Orleans. But it is not merely the selfish consideraiionjthat ve have obtained possession of a city or a country, or the navigation of a river, that warrants our festive rejoicings. Our hearts dilate with nobler rapture and with new enjoy- ment, when we recollect, that, bythis event, is openeda "Wider spread for the blessings of Friedom and Equal Laws 1" A true Republican does not confine his regard to the narrow circle in which he may be placed. Enlisted in the holy cause of Freedom, he traces her prog- ress with equal delight, whether she wantons in the lux- uriant fields of /^a/)', or climbs the rugged heights of Switzerland; whether her footsteps press the vine-clad hills of France, or the bleak mountains of Norway ; whether, to " redress the rigors of the inckvient clime," she scatters her dews on the arid plains of the Equator, or melts, with her fires, the frozen fetters of the pole ! To him, every advocate of the same glorious cause, is a friend and a brother. He groups, with an ey:^ of im. partial admiration, the worthies of ancient and pf modern days, who have fought under her baaners. Reviews with equal affection and respect, aai Emmet on the scaffold, and a Hancock in the- Chair of State ; a Ca- MiLLUs in banishment, and a Fayette in prison ; a Ca-. ( »2 } TO on his sword, and a Brissot under the guillotine ; a CuRRAN defending the rights and lives of the victims of oppression, and a Jefferson protecting the peace and prosperity of the sons of liberty ; a Rowan, bending his Exiled steps from the land of his nativity, and a Wash- ington, retiring to the scenes of his youth, laden ^vith laurels, and escorted by the acclamations of his country- men. Proud of a connection with the intrepid defend- ers of the Rights o/"Man, he regrets their excesses, and bewails their misfortunes. He laments that delirium of Freedom, which armed with daggers and with pikes the people of France, which erected the guillotine, which inscribed death and devastation in letters of blood on the banners of the Unitzd Sons of Erin, v/hich clogged with carcasses the channel of the Seine, and crimsoned with blood the waves of the Zzjfry / But still more does he detest the dark, designing, determined cruelty of despo- tism. For the one springs from great and ennobling motives — from the generous impatience of wounded honor, of irritated feeling, of honest zeal for " OP- PRESSED HUMANITY." The other is the offspring of cold, jealous, malicious cowardice, of conscious vij. lainy. The one consigns its victims to a certain and inevitable fate, from the warm and unreflecting impulse of excited passion. The other imposes the torture of suspense and the horror of anticipation.' Or when pro- miscuous slaughter is decreed by the dark Conclave of Tyranny, she mingles with the bloody obsequies of mur- der, the solemn mockery of devotion. She chaunts th^ ( '3 ) sacred hymn of Gratitude to God,* while the shrieks of the massacred fill every pause of the choral rites of hy- pocricy. She raises to i/e^t;^?i with all the affectation of praise and prayer, hands but just imbrued in the blood of immolated innocence ! Fellow-Citizens ! In the occasion of our joy, we anticipate neither the exeesses of Liberty, nor the hor- rors of Tyranny. We rejoice, that an Empire of Laws is about to be established ; that mild, social, ra- tional Freedom is about to pervade a wid'^ly-extended terrritory ; that Despotism and his minions are expelled irom this fair American Eden, and that the " cherubim" are posted,and the " flaming swordjwhich turneth every way" is suspended, to prevent their return. And while we offer to our Rulers our tribute of.ap- plause, for this instance of their wisdom and patriotisra, let us not forget, that this is but one of a series of mer- itorious services ; that they have labored incessantly,hon- * The name of Catherine II, Isitz Empress of the Russtas, reminds Bs of all that ia base in treachery, or diabolical in cruelty. She appears so have existed, merely to convince the world, that it is the blasting and destructive effect of a Craiva to take away, nat only all that is humane and honorable in a man, but all that is lovely and attractive in a female. When the MsTister Suwarrow, a ^t agent cf this " She.ijiolf of the }iotthy' had sacked the city of Warsaix!,?iViai ten hours after all resistance had ceased, set fire to tne city, consumed in the flames the sick and woiincJ, ed, and in cold blood put to the sword all the other inhabitants, includin&~ old men, women and children, to the number of nine thousand : In com-' memoration of this happy event, this pious Princess set apart a day of sal- cinn Thanksgivinn; to God, and ordered ^^ Te Dmrt" to bs surg in all ihe churches ( H ) estiy and successfully for the public good ; that they have thus justly acquired the praise, the esteem, ihe sup- port of every friend to his country. The foul and viih- €red hand of Envy has been extended to pluck the wreath of glory from their brows. £.ut — -Is vain ! There vill it bloom in perennial verdure, unblasted by the pestilen- tial breath of ^landerJO^ the chill frost of ungraiefui neg- lect. The darts of calumny, like the arrows of Xerxes, may, for a time, darken the atmosphere of reason ; but vhen aimed at iuch exalted, characters, the " strong breast-plate of a heart untaintedj" bjunts aiid repels them. *• Lf there be any in this assembly, " any inveterate foe to the great and good men, to whom we have confia- cd the destinies of our nation ; any, who wiih the vio- lence of heated invective, or the cunning oi cautious ma- lignitv, assails their characters and traduces their actions; let him withdraw from the festivities of this day, and seek, in some gloomy retirement, a scene more congenial with the coloi^of his soul. Let him not damp, even with a look of distrustful jealousy, the high and buoyant ten- or of our joys. And for you, Republicans ! you, who decided and undeviating, have adhered to the principles of our Glorious Revolution, who have never '• defiled your gar- ment. >," who have '-held fast your integrity," and re- mained firm and unshaken amidst the obloquy, the con- tempt and derision, to which you were exposed, during xy.c''rcignoJurror-r DISCIPLES of FREEDOM ! who endured the opprs£sionof 5cnif5 and Pharisees, for ( >5 ) her sake, witnessed her Crucifixion^ watched at her SepuU chre^ and awaited her Resurrection ; suffer not your suc- cess and your triumph to lull your watchfulness, or to paralize your energies. Let not the fortress, you have acquired by your valor, be lost by your listlessness, or betrayed by your false security. Inattention to your highest concerns admits of no palliation. Interest, pas- sion, or prejudice may incite your opponents to their ceaseless warfare against Truth and E.epuhlicar.isvi. But for ar. indolent and indifferent neglect of duty, there is no excuse. No motive can be assigned, which is not humiliating to you, and treaGherous to your country f '' irAo is not WITH us^ is against us : — and xvhoio cath-^ ERETH not^ SCATTKRETH I" Never had a cause nobler inducements to offer j — never had a cause better or more brilliant prospects. The Sun cf Rcpublicanisrn has grown brighter and brighter, almost unto perfect day I Already ii shines with full-orb"d splendor, on the mountains of Hdmc- shirs. Already has it " tipt, with its rising beams," the hundred hills of Massachusetts. Soon may every p»rtion of our Fellow. Citizens and our Fellow-Men bask in its meridian rays ! Soon may that glorious political Millen- nium arrive, when every knee shall bov/ to the Majesty of the People, and every tongue confess their Sove- reignty ! ! E X D. /<; POSTSCRIPT, f A FKwsen fences, in ths 14th page of the preceding perfo'riiiance,were extracted from a former news-paper publication of the Author. Wheth- er or not, this be plagiarism, he leaves to critical casuists to detcrroine. 11^0 ^»^^ S^^ #^^ii>.- 1 •>jj>> :-» ^^■?'>?\V?; •^._>i.,:> :^^^■;'^' >^ ^"^r >"^^ ^ > > T ..■ > ) .y> ■ -^m m^-^ )-:'>^>..> >^ :? ^:i^^v7S6►^ :^ > :)v •^^ > T ^ ^ 1 > 5^^>T '^7 3> >>^ ^ ^ > >;^ ^i "> > ^ > ^ > "> j > Ji :> _> > ->3>^:^:> a> '>^ -V> ;5> - > ■■■-■ ' ->>^'^- -R -^^ ■ mm «■: U BB^B"^ OF CONGRESS 01 1782 877 3