John Clark Ridpath

“ The other party held that the national Constitution is a compact between sovereign States; that for certain reasons the Union may be dissolved; that the sovereignty of the nation belongs to the individual States; that a State may annul an act of Congress; that the highest allegiance of the citizen is due to his own State; and that nullification and disunion are justifiable and honorable.
2. This question struck into the very heart of the government. It threatened to undo the whole civil structure of the United States. ”

“ American boys and girls have little cause any longer to complain that the writers and teachers have put beyond their reach the story of their native land. Great pains have been taken, on the contrary, to gather out of our annals as a people and nation the most important and romantic parts, and to recite in pleasing style, and with the aid of happy illustrations, the lessons of the past. ”

“ The goodness of the man in private life, combined with his distinction as governor, senator, and Vice-president of the United States, drew from the people every evidence of public and private respect for his memory. ”

“ The announcement at once drew to the General and ex-President the interest and sympathies of the whole American people. The hero of Vicksburg and Appomattox sank under the ravages of a malignant cancer, which had fixed itself in his throat. On the 23d of July, 1885, he expired at a summer cottage on Mount McGregor, New York. His last days were hallowed by the love of the nation which he had so gloriously defended. No funeral west of the Atlantic—not even that of Lincoln—was more universally observed. ”

“ On the evening of the 25th of July, General Scott, commanding the American right, found himself confronted by Riall's army, on the high grounds in sight of Niagara Falls. Here was fought the hardest battle of the war. Scott held his own until reinforced by other divisions of the army. The British reserves were brought into action. Twilight faded into darkness. A detachment of Americans, getting upon the British rear, captured General Riall and his staff. The key to the enemy's position was a high ground crowned with a battery. ”

“ With the Mound-builders, history can be but little concerned; but with the Red men, or Indians, who succeeded them, the white race was destined to have many relations of peace and war. On the first arrival of Europeans on the Atlantic coast, the country was found in possession of wild tribes living in the woods and on the river banks, in rude villages from which they went forth to hunt or to make war on other tribes. Their manners and customs were fixed by usage and law, and there was at least the beginning of civil government among them. ”

“ No person shall be a representative who shall not have attained to the age of twenty-five years, and been seven years a citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, be an inhabitant of that State in which he shall be chosen.
Representatives and direct taxes shall be apportioned among the several States which may be included within this Union, according to their respective numbers, which shall be determined by adding to the whole number of free persons, including those bound to service for a term of years, and excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all other persons. ”

“ No tax or duty shall be laid on articles exported from any State. No preference shall be given by any regulation of commerce or revenue to the ports of one State over those of another; nor shall vessels bound to or from one State be obliged to enter, clear, or pay duties, in another.
No money shall be drawn from the treasury but in consequence of appropriations made by law; and a regular statement and account of the [Pg 376] receipts and expenditures of all public money shall be published from time to time.
No title of nobility shall be granted by the United States ”

“ The condition of the army was desperate—no food, no pay, no clothing. On the first day of January, the whole Pennsylvania line mutinied and marched on Philadelphia. At Princeton they were met by emissaries from Sir Henry Clinton, and were tempted with offers of money and clothing if they would desert the American standard. The patriots answered by seizing the British agents and delivering them to General Wayne to be hanged. The commissioners of Congress offered the insurgents a large reward, which was refused; and a few liberal concessions on the part of the government quieted the mutiny. ”

“ When the people were worn out with the governor's exactions, they availed themselves of a pretext to assert their rights by force of arms. A war with the Susquehanna Indians furnished the occasion for an insurrection. The tribes about the head of Chesapeake Bay fell upon the English settlers of Maryland, and the banks of the Potomac became the scene of a border war. Virginia and Maryland made common cause. John Washington, great-grandfather of the first President, led a company of militia against the Indians, and a devastating warfare raged along the whole frontier. ”

“ At the close of the war the assembly petitioned the proprietors to bear a portion of the expense. But they refused, and would take no measures for the protection of the colony. The people, greatly burdened with rents and taxes, grew dissatisfied with the proprietary government. In the new election every delegate was chosen by the popular party. When James Moore, the new chief magistrate elected by the people, was to be inaugurated, Governor Johnson tried to prevent the ceremony. But the militia collected in the public square, and before nightfall the government of Carolina was overthrown. ”

“ The growth of public opinion in the colonies tended to independence. The better class of men came to believe that a separation from England was very desirable. As early as 1755, John Adams, then a young school-teacher in Connecticut, wrote in his diary: "In another century all Europe will not be able to subdue us. The only way to keep us from setting up for ourselves is to disunite us." ”

“ In the former section the laborers were freemen; in the latter, slaves. In the South the theory was that capital should own labor; in the North that both labor and capital are free. In the beginning all the colonies had been slaveholding. In the Eastern and Middle States the system of slave-labor had been abolished. In the Northwestern Territory slavery was excluded from the beginning. Thus there came to be a dividing line drawn through the Union. Whenever the question of slavery was agitated, a sectional division would arise between the North and the South. ”

“ The new assembly made haste to declare THE PEOPLE to be a part of the government. All freeholders were granted the right of suffrage; trial by jury was established; taxes should not be levied except by the assembly; soldiers should not be quartered on the people; martial law should not exist; no person should be persecuted on account of his religion.
7. In July of 1684 the governors of New York and Virginia were met by the chiefs of the Iroquois at Albany, and the terms of a lasting peace were settled. In 1685 the duke of York became king of England. ”

“ No State shall, without the consent of the Congress, lay any imposts or duties on imports or exports, except what may be absolutely necessary for executing its inspection laws; and the net produce of all duties and imposts laid by any State on imports or exports, shall be for the use of the treasury of the United States ”

“ On the 23d day of May, 1609, King James granted to the London Company a new charter for the government of Virginia. The territory was extended from Cape Fear to Sandy Hook, and westward to the Pacific Ocean. The members of the Superior Council were now to be chosen by the stockholders of the company, vacancies were to be filled by the councilors, who were also to elect a governor. The new council was at once organized, and Lord De La Ware chosen governor for life. Five hundred emigrants were collected, and in June a fleet of nine vessels sailed for America. ”

“ THE war had now grown to enormous proportions. The Confederate States were draining every resource of men and means. The superior energies of the North were greatly taxed. On the day after the battle of Malvern Hill, President Lincoln issued a call for three hundred thousand troops. During Pope's retreat from the Rappahannock he sent forth another call for three hundred thousand, and to that was added a draft of three hundred thousand more. Most of these demands were promptly met, and it became evident that in resources the Federal government was vastly superior to the Confederacy. ”

“ The savage races possessed the soil, hunted in the forests, roamed over the prairies. This is the Primitive Period in American history.
3. After the discovery of America, the people of Europe were for a long time engaged in exploring the New World and in becoming familiar with its shape and character. For more than a hundred years, curiosity was the leading passion with the adventurers who came to our shores. Their disposition was to go everywhere and settle nowhere. These early times may be called the Period of Voyage and Discovery. ”

“ The aristocratic party opposed such liberty as dangerous to good government. Zenger, an editor who published criticisms on the governor, was seized and put in prison. Great excitement ensued. The people praised their champion. Andrew Hamilton, a lawyer of Philadelphia, went to New York to defend Zenger, who was brought to trial in July of 1735. The cause was heard, and the jury brought in a verdict of acquittal. The aldermen of New York, in order to testify their appreciation of Hamilton's services, made him a present of an elegant gold box, and the people were enthusiastic over their victory. ”

“ The best hopes of the Indian race seem now to center in the Choctaws, Cherokees, Creeks, and Chickasaws of the Indian Territory. These nations have attained a considerable degree of civilization. Most of the other tribes are declining in numbers and influence. Whether the Indians have been justly deprived of the New World will remain a subject of debate. That they have been deprived of it can not be questioned. The white races have taken possession of the vast domain. ”

“ The Independent Greenback party presented as candidates Peter Cooper, of New York, and Samuel F. Cary, of Ohio. The canvass began early and with great spirit. The real contest lay between the Republicans and the Democrats. The election was held. The general result was uncertain, and both parties claimed the victory! The election was so evenly balanced; there had been so much irregularity in the elections in South Carolina, Florida, Louisiana, and Oregon; and the power of Congress over the electoral proceedings was so poorly defined, that no certain result could be announced. ”

“ In November of 1681 Jennings, the deputy-governor of West Jersey, convened the first general assembly. The Quakers now met together to make their own laws. The Concessions were reaffirmed. Men of all races and religions were declared to be equal. Imprisonment for debt was forbidden. The sale of ardent spirits to the Red men was prohibited. Taxes should be voted by the representatives of the people. The lands of the Indians should be acquired by purchase. Finally, a criminal might be pardoned by the person against whom the offense was committed. ”

“ Meanwhile, the credit of the nation was sinking to the lowest ebb. Congress resorted to paper money. At first the continental bills were received at par; but the value of the notes rapidly diminished, until, by the middle of 1780, they were not worth two cents to the dollar. Business was paralyzed for the want of a currency; but Robert Morris and a few other wealthy patriots came forward with their private fortunes and saved the colonies from ruin. The mothers of America also lent a helping hand; and the patriot soldiers were supplied with food and clothing. ”