Auguste Levasseur

“ In that illustrious catalogue of names which she claims as of her children, and with honest pride holds up to the admiration of other nations, the name of Lafayette has already for centuries been enrolled. And it shall henceforth burnish into brighter fame; for if, in after days, a Frenchman shall be called to indicate the character of his nation by that of one individual, during the age in which we live, the blood of lofty patriotism shall mantle in his cheek, the fire of conscious virtue shall sparkle in his eye, and he shall pronounce the name of Lafayette. ”

“ Speaker, to allude to the peculiar felicity of my situation, when, after so long an absence, I am called to witness the immense improvements, the admirable communications, the prodigious creations, of which we find an example in this city, whose name itself is a venerated palladium; in a word, all the grandeur and prosperity of those happy United States, who, at the same time they nobly secure the complete assertion of American independence, reflect, on every part of the world, the light of a far superior political civilization. ”

“ General Lafayette replied with that heartfelt emotion, and that happy choice of expression, which so often, during his journey, excited the astonishment and admiration of those who heard him. Forty officers and soldiers of the revolution, the most part enfeebled by age, and some mutilated in war, notwithstanding which they had assembled from all parts of the state to assist at the triumph of their old general, now advanced from the two sides of the arch, amidst the acclamations of the people, and showered upon him marks of affection and patriotic recollections ”

“ When he entered, the violence of the plaudits, and the repeated cries of “Vive Lafayette,” suspended the representation. Every body rose; it was like Themistocles appearing at the Olympic games: at last, calm being re-established, the general took his seat in the box that had been prepared for him, and saw with pleasure the last act of that charming comedy, L’Ecole des Vieillards, which seemed to me to be as much relished by my former countrymen, the Americans of Louisiana, as by the inhabitants of Paris. ”

“ If the difference which exists between the president of the United States and the kings of Europe are striking, that between the ministers of that republic and ours is not less remarkable. A minister of the United States has but 3000 dollars salary, no hotel, no furniture nor train of servants paid by the nation, no sentries at his door, no servants in a ridiculous dress to attend him when he goes in public, no privileges unconnected with his office, but, at the same time, no responsibility for his actions. Chosen by the president, he is in fact his instrument, and owes him all his time. ”

“ The appearance of Lockport filled us with astonishment and admiration. No where have I ever seen the activity and industry of man conquering nature so completely as in this growing village. In every part may be heard the sound of the hatchet and hammer. Here, trees are felled, fashioned under the hands of the carpenter, and raised on the same spot in the form of a house; there, on a large public square, which exists as yet only in project, an immense hotel already opens its doors to new settlers, who have not any other habitation. ”

“ The first day, after travelling for some hours, we arrived at Macon to dinner, where the general was received with enthusiasm by the citizens, and a number of ladies, whose elegance and manners formed a singular contrast to the aspect of the country we had traversed. Macon, which is a small and handsome village, tolerably populous, did not exist eighteen months since; it has arisen from the midst of the forests as if by enchantment. It is a civilized speck lost in the yet immense domain of the original children of the soil. ”

“ The cherishing of that union between the states, as it has been the farewell entreaty of our great paternal Washington, and will ever have the dying prayer of every American patriot, so it has become the sacred pledge of the emancipation of the world, an object in which I am happy to observe that the American people, while they give the animating example of successful free institutions, in return for an evil entailed upon them by Europe, and of which a liberal and enlightened sense is every where more and more generally felt, show themselves every day more anxiously interested. ”

“ For a long time after we had entered the Mississippi we thought ourselves in another sea, so distant are its shores, and so tumultuous are its waves. It was not until after some hours that it became sufficiently narrow for us to perceive its muddy banks, or that the stream diminished in swiftness.
In the morning we passed fort Plaquemine, from which we were saluted with thirteen guns, and night again surprised us before we could perceive the walls of New Orleans. No variety in the vegetation is perceptible for sixty miles from the Balize. ”

“ The name of Chippewa, pronounced in the recital of the fate of the young Indian, awoke our recollection of the glorious deeds of the American troops, during the last war, on the frontiers of Canada, from which we were only separated at this time by an arm of the Niagara. With this recollection were naturally mingled the names of Brown, Van Ransellaer, Ripley, Scott, Porter, Harrison, Pike, Jessup, Miller, and many others who rendered themselves illustrious in these spots, by their talents, their courage, and their ardent love of country. ”

“ Scarcely is there to be found in the whole town a sufficiency of the necessaries of life, and yet, by the side of a school, in which the children are instructed whilst their fathers are building the houses that are to shelter them, is to be seen a printing press, which every morning issues a journal, teaching the labourers, in their hours of repose, how the magistrates of the people fulfil the confidence reposed in them. In streets traced through the forest, and yet encumbered with trunks of trees and scattered branches, luxury already appears in the light wagons drawn by splendid horses ”

“ As soon as he learned that the American colonies, shaking off the despotism of England, were ready to maintain their independence by an appeal to arms, he crossed the ocean and offered them his services, declaring that he was ambitious of no other honour than that of acting as a volunteer in a good cause, and that he would accept neither rank nor pay before he had given proofs of his valour. This noble disinterestedness, and the services he rendered the American army, merited him the friendship of Washington, and the confidence of congress, who elevated him to the rank of major-general. ”

“ Whilst we were viewing, with pleasure and astonishment, the beauties of nature spread before us, we heard the thunder of artillery, and an instant afterwards saw advancing towards us a body of militia, preceded by a crowd of citizens, who hastened in front of the national hotel. The good order of this body of troops, the bold and firm step of the men who composed it, answered perfectly to the reputation for bravery and patriotism which the inhabitants of Vermont had acquired in the revolutionary war, and in that of 1814. ”

“ At midnight, at a signal given by the Vevay artillery, we took our leave of the citizens of Cincinnati, and embarked in the Herald to continue our journey. The general could hardly force himself away from the circle of his friends, nor could he cease from expressing his admiration at the prosperity of Cincinnati, and the state of Ohio, which he denominated the eighth wonder of the world. One cannot, in fact, avoid being struck with astonishment at the sight of such prodigious creations of liberty and industry, of which this state offers so many examples. ”

“ Every body told us that General Jackson’s slaves were treated with the greatest humanity, and several persons assured us, that it would not surprise them, if, in a short time, their master, who already had so many claims on the gratitude of his fellow citizens, should attempt to augment it still more, by giving an example of gradual emancipation to Tennessee, which would be the more easily accomplished, as there are in this state but 79,000 slaves in a population of 423,000, and from the public mind becoming more inclined than formerly to the abolition of slavery. ”

“ When the general arrived at a point from whence he could embrace this scene at a glance, the family of General Washington and the principal officers of government, ranged themselves around him, when all the different masses of men who had hitherto been so motionless, moved on to the sound of artillery, and advanced melancholy and silent to receive his last adieu. ”

“ It is in such assemblies, that the public feeling of a people can be studied, particularly where its representatives, chosen freely, and having no reason to flatter those in power, or to dissimulate, give a free vent to all their sentiments. After a variety of toasts, highly complimentary to the general, and to which he replied with great felicity, the entertainment was concluded with a universal wish of the guests that all the American people could have been present at it. ”

“ Permit me to believe that what you have told is only pleasantry, and that you wished to amuse yourself for a moment with a poor Tennessean who has never visited Europe. But rest assured, that however ignorant we may be of what passes on the other side of the water, it is not easy to make us credit things which militate so strongly against good sense and the dignity of man.” Do what I could, I could never make this good citizen of Nashville believe that I was not jesting, and was obliged to leave him in the belief that we were not worse governed in France than in the United States. ”

“ The vain wish has been sometimes indulged, that Providence would allow the patriot, after death, to return to his country, and to contemplate the intermediate changes which had taken place—to view the forests felled, the cities built, the mountains levelled, the canals cut, the highways constructed, the progress of the arts, the advancement of learning, and the increase of population—General, your present visit to the United States is a realization of the consoling object of that wish. ”

“ The water of the Ohio is said by the Americans to possess great prolific powers, and when you demand on what ground they found this opinion, they proudly point out the numerous dwellings which are infinitely multiplied on its banks, and the prodigious number of children who issue forth every morning, with a little basket of provision on their arms, to spend the day at school, to return in the evening to the paternal roof, singing the benefits of liberty. ”

“ The state of New York will then present the new spectacle of a community of more than two millions of men, not only supporting its government without taxes, but also having money arising from its own property. The citizens of that state will always, it is true, have to pay the duties the general government thinks right to impose on the importation of foreign products; but the independent farmer, who produces on his farm all the necessaries of life, may live without paying any tax either direct or indirect, to the state or the general government. ”

“ Men of North America, I congratulate you that the services of the brave remain vivid in your memories: for it were the extreme of rashness, to expect aught for the future of nations that forget the past, by which they were established and by which they exist. There are in you the elements of vigour, and you well know how to cherish them. You have desired that the hand of one of the earliest defenders of your liberty might assist you to complete the pious duty. ”

“ I have already, I believe, mentioned the remarkable fact, that at the south, as at the north, and from the east to the west of the United States, we had met with men of 239different manners and languages, submitting for the general good to the same democratic government; living in harmony, in the enjoyment of domestic happiness and of public prosperity, under the shield of the same institutions. ”

“ Our view, extending to a great distance, agreeably reposed on the beautiful river Niagara, which rolls its waters as smooth as a mirror, over a large bed unincumbered with obstacles, and between low and fertile banks: it is only in approaching the superior point of the island, that the rapidity of the course is accelerated and it prepares for the terrible fall, whose noise, during the stillness of the night, is heard, it is said, for more than twenty miles around. ”

“ These have the reputation of loving pleasure to licentiousness, and of treating their slaves badly. The love of gambling, and the duels so often occasioned by this passion, give rise, it is said, to much disorder among them. To confirm or disprove this opinion by my own observation, would be, in me, culpable arrogance. My too short stay in this city did not permit me to study the character of its society, and I could only be struck with the patriotic spirit, the freedom and hospitality, displayed with enthusiasm in the presence of General Lafayette. ”

“ O Manahella! he exclaimed, if my arrows have disappointed my skill, if my tomahawk has not spilt the blood of the whites, if I have not brought thee their scalps to ornament the door of thy cabin, forgive me! It is not the fault of my courage, the evil spirits have fought against me. And yet I have suffered no complaint to escape me, not a sigh, when the iron of my enemies tore my breast; I have not abased myself by asking my life! They preserved it against my will, and I am only consoled by the hope of one day avenging myself, and offering thee many of their scalps. O Manahella! ”

“ His house, built according to reduced plans of the temple of Theseus, stands upon one of the most beautiful situations imaginable; from the portico the eye takes in, at one view, the majestic course of the Potomac, the commercial movements of Georgetown, the rising city of Washington, and far beyond the vast horizon, beneath which lie the fertile plains of Maryland. ”

“ Carter, who, in complimenting the general, felicitated him above all, that his efforts in favour of American independence had also resulted in the establishment of religious liberty.
To his acknowledgments, general Lafayette joined the expression of his satisfaction in seeing America giving so good an example of true religious liberty to old Europe, which still enjoys a very limited toleration. “In religious, as in political societies,” added he, “I am persuaded that the election by the people is the best guaranty of mutual confidence.” ”

“ In that lapse of forty years, the generation of men with whom you co-operated in the conflict of arms, has nearly passed away. Of the general officers of the American army in that war, you alone survive. Of the sages who guided our councils; of the warriors who met the foe in the field or upon the wave, with the exception of a few, to whom unusual length of days has been allotted by heaven, all now sleep with their fathers. A succeeding, and even a third generation, have arisen to take their places ”

“ After two hours of delightful excursion, we left Goat Island, and cast a farewell look on it from the bridge which unites it to the main land. From this it appeared to us like a garden in the air, supported by the clouds, and surrounded by thunder. The general could not tear himself from this imposing scene, and I believe that when he learnt that Goat Island and its charming dependencies were for sale for 1000 dollars, he strongly regretted that the distance from France would not permit him to purchase it. It would be, in fact, a delicious habitation ”

“ It will be seen that the constitution, in fixing in a precise manner the duties and power of the chief magistrate, has rather kept in view the welfare and interests of the nation, than the gratification of one individual and his family. Hence, the president is placed in such a situation, that whatever may be his personal character, it is impossible for him to injure the liberty, right, or honour of his fellow citizens. He does not, like some kings on the old continent, enjoy several millions of revenue, and immense estates. ”

“ I am aware that the arrival of Lafayette in the different towns, gave rise to a recollection of those facts; I also had constant proofs, that the other events of the revolution were equally familiar to all classes of society, from the veterans, with whom they were a never failing topic of conversation, to school children, who were proud of the deeds of their ancestors, and of the republican liberty, they had the happiness to enjoy. Another very remarkable trait in the American character, is, that the people are not only free and happy, but that they appreciate this happiness and liberty ”

“ These virtues exist amongst you: where women are chaste, men are brave; where religion is the free and spontaneous motion of the creature toward the Creator, and is not transformed into a political lever of worldly interests, salutary faith presides over social order, and nerves the soul. You have had a Franklin, a Washington, a Samuel Adams, a Jefferson: if needed, you will find others. The tree abounds in sap, why then shall it not produce new fruits? Your prosperity no longer excites my astonishment ”

“ He extolled the military qualities of his fellow citizens, from conviction, and as he would have praised, in strangers, any points he thought worthy of commendation. I have often remarked that the Americans, in general, are little given to the species of hypocrisy we term modesty, and with which we think we should always veil ourselves when we are speaking of our own virtues. They believe, and I am of their opinion, that true modesty does not consist in depreciating ourselves, but in not speaking with exaggeration or without cause of our own merits. ”

“ It was not until 1798, that the constitution, which had been adopted in 1785 and amended in 1789, was definitively and vigorously enforced by a general assembly of the representatives. This constitution is very nearly similar to that of South Carolina.
If Georgia is not yet one of the richest states of the Union, by the abundance and variety of its productions, the cause should be attributed to the influence of slavery alone. No country, perhaps, is more favoured by nature than this, and all the products of the most opposite climates may be easily and abundantly drawn from its soil. ”