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fon to accufe me af negligence. If I afford neither inftruction nor amusement to your readers, I will not tire their patience by prolixity, nor infult their candour with invective. I have confiderable leifure time for reading and reflection, and fome for writing; but none for mere trifles, low fcurrility, or acrimonious altercation. I rank myself on the fide you have taken in politics. The pen is my weapon. It is devoted to the public; and I fhall acquiefce in the decifion of the public on the merit of its performance. I make no boaft of courage; and do not wish to ftand at the cannon's mouth, or point of the bayonet. My "poft of honour" is a private ftation." A ftation, below envy, and above contempt, favourable to obfervation and reflection, without being much exposed to party animofity, or local prejudice. In this fituation, modefty might dictate me to remain filent, and enjoy my own reflections; floth would certainly find many reafons for inaction. But ever feeling a strong inclination to fill every hour with fome employment, and an ardent wish that employment may be useful, I have enlifted myself in the volunteer corps of writers. The prefent ftate of our country, its parties and its politics, its domeftic concerns and foreign relations, its re

fources, its character, the state of its literature, morals and religion, the nature of its conflitution, and fpirit of its government, are fubjects, not only worthy the attention of the politician, philofopher and hiftorian, but immediately connected, in a greater or lefs degree, with the happiness of every American. Here is a wide field opened to the writer. It must remain for others to judge, whether any part of it will be cultivated by my labours. I shall study neither system, nor elegance; but aim at the perfpicuous, and concife. The occafion will generally furnish me with a fubject, and my own reflections, with fuch aids as reading and obfervation have given me, fupply the comment. My obfervations may fometimes be fingular; but I will never differ from others for the fake of fingularity, nor forego my own. judgment out of complaifance to the reader. Whenever I meddle with the dry fkeleton of politics, it fhall be with a design to diffufe into it the foul of morals, and the principles of focial order, to fhow the connexion between private and public duty; and to form, from domeftic virtue, a national character. have chofen my title, because it is, as I intend my writings fhall be, appropriate to America.

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IN a country like ours, where ing reflection, inftead of being

government is founded on opinion, where religious, moral, and civil actions, are dictated by feel

enforced by prefcriptive ceremony, and venerable cuftoms, it is the indifpenfable duty of

every man, especially those who give their opinions to the public, to inculcate fuch principles as will give ftability to the fickle, correct the vicious, foften the turbulent, and harmonize the fentiments of every clafs of citi

zens.

In fuch a country, enjoying the means of information, which we poffefs, if there is any tyrant to be dreaded, it is the hydra of faction; if there is any monarch that rules with an absolute, but gentle fway, it is the prefs. It is this that kindles the perennial flame at the altar of freedom.

Since the discovery of the art of printing, the manners and laws of Europe have affumed an entire new afpect. Science has extended commerce: each have contributed to foften the rough manners of the dark ages, and ameliorate the hard condition of feudal fervitude. Literature and freedom became reciprocally caufe and effect, and invigorated each other, till they had eftablished a dominion, efpecially in England, which feemed to bid defiance both to Gothic barbarity, and lawless domination; but unfortunately, in France, the former has become more fenfible than fenfe, more refined than refinement; the vagaries of metaphyfics have fupplied the place of folid fenfe, and found logic. The dreams of theoretic philofophers, have been fubftituted for the maxims of common prudence, and the experimental knowledge

of ages.

"The influence of letters has been employed to fan the turbulent pamons, rather than to cherith focial and legal fentiments. The fpirit of illuminatifm has

D

gone

forth from the closet of the deift, lit its flaming torch in the blaze of the fun, and endeavoured, by its cloud of vapour, to extinguish the luminaries of heaven.

Though the pen and the press were the moving caufes in that revolution, which, by employing for its inftruments every baser paffion, has fapped the vitals of focial order, and fwept Europe with the befom of deftruction; we would rather ascribe the incalculable effects to the blindness of ignorance, than to the forefight and concerted plan of the literati of France and Germany.

Our

We have only to turn eyes to England, to draw a conclufion more favourable to the effects, and to find as strong a proof of the force of letters.

When the ftorm of revolution broke forth in France, winged its defolating course to the island of Great Britain, and rolled its inundating waves against her fhores, threatened her monarchy with its furious onfet-BURKE ftood forth the literary champion of his country. "Hitherto fhalt thou come and no further, and here fhall thy proud waves be stayed," was the voice of his eloquence. As though spoken by Omnipotence, the storm died at his feet, and England was tranquil.

Her cabinet, her armies, and her navies, did much; but they were put in motion by Burke, who excited to vigilance and activity, the virtue and energy of the people.

The powerful voice of his clo, quence reached our hemifphere, and firft began to purify it from the contagion of French princi

ples:

ples: it has been echoed by the junior Burkes of America, till we have in a degree, by the means of information and reflec

tion, what we had been almost ready to offer a fatal facrifice on the alluring altar of pretended reformation.

No. III.

impulfe of nature alone, they rival the firft orators of Europe, with the powerful affiftance of letters. Their fagacity in war, and their favourite employments, prove them by no means deficient in the exercife of judgment, or inferior to the favages in other parts of the world.

THE EAGLE. GENIUS is an innate quality of the mind, a power of conception and invention, lefs dependent on circumftances than its artificial cultivation. There are, however, various caufes, fuch as climate, foil, and temperature of the atmosphere, which invariably have their effect on the mental powers. Before we venture to call our countrymen blockheads in literature, or pronounce them deftitute of genius, we will fee whether physical caufes are propitious, that we may know which to accufe, nature or ourselves, fhould we be found deficient.

Temperate climates have always been found most favourable to the powers of the mind; a pure atmosphere, to clear intellects romantic fcenery, to brilliancy of thought; and magnificent objects, to fublime conceptions. Thefe caufes are as happily blended by nature, in America, as in thofe countries, where genius has fhone in its brightest luftre. To me they appear to have their effect.

If we examine the uncultivated Aborigines of our forefts, and compare them with the favages of other countries, we fhall find the refult corroborating the conclufion I have drawn. They are fo far from being belittled, in mental capacity, as has been reprefented by European prejudice, that in their eloquence, and ftrength of conception, by the

A full inveftigation of these facts, which time allows me but just to mention, will show to an impartial mind, beyond a doubt, that nature has done her part for the production of genius on this fide the Atlantic. Thefe are mentioned, not only because they are connected with my fubject, but because it is neceffary, in order to ftrengthen our attachment to our native foil, that we know how to appreciate the bounties nature has lavished upon it.

Should it be found, that the fcion of Anglo-American genius has fuffered a decay, by being tranfplanted in a foil, at least, as congenial as that from whence it fprang, while we are ftill grateful to nature's God, we fhall owe a greater duty to ourselves, in its more attentive cultivation. Whether this be the cafe or not, I fhall attempt to determine in future numbers; where I fhall examine the genius of my countrymen, by more decifive documents-the progrefs they have made in the ufeful and refined

arts.

GENERAL

IT

GENERAL LEE's ORATION.

T was intended by the Editor of the Columbian Phenix, to furnish his Patrons with the biography of our ILLUSTRIOUS WASHINGTON; but, on feeing his exalted character fo ably deline ated in the great number of Eulogies and funeral Orations, which have been pronounced by men of the most diftinguished, political and literary merit, in various parts of the United States; he apprehends, that the infertion of one of them in each fucceffive number of the Phenix, till all those of the first merit shall appear, will give more general fatisfaction, than to exhibit the mere history of his life, and noble deeds, unaccompanied by a rich difplay of genius and eloquence. The one pronounced by General HENRY LEE, before both Houses of Congrefs, will claim the first place.

IN obedience to your will, I

rife your humble organ, with the hope of executing a part of the fyftem of public mourning which you have been pleafed to adopt, commemorative of the death of the most illustrious and moft beloved perfonage this country has ever produced; and which, while it tranfmits to pofterity your fenfe of the awful event, faintly rep prefents your knowledge of the confummate excellence you fo cordially honour.

Defperate indeed is any attempt on earth to meet corref pondently this difpenfation of Heaven; for, while with pious refignation we fubmit to the will of an all-gracious Providence, we can never cease lamenting, in our finite view of Omnipotent Wif dom, the heart-rending privation for which our nation weeps. When the civilized world shakes to its centre; when every moment gives birth to ftrange and momentous changes; when our peaceful quarter of the globe, ex

empt as it happily has been from

any fhare in the flaughter of the human race, may yet be compel led to abandon her pacific poli cy, and to rifk the doleful cafualties of war: What limit is there' to the extent of our lofs?— None within the reach of my words to express; none which your feelings will not difavow.

The founder of our federate republic-our bulwark in war, our guide in peace, is no more! Oh that this were but questionable! Hope, the comforter of the wretched, would pour into our agonizing hearts its balmy dew. But, alas! there is no hope for us; our WASHINGTON is removed forever! Poffeffing the touteft frame, and pureft mind, he had paffed nearly to his fixtyeighth year, in the enjoyment of high health, when, habituated by his care of us to neglect himself,

flight cold, difregarded, became inconvenient on Friday, oppreffive on Saturday, and, defying every medical interpofition, be

* The two Houses of Congrefs.

fore

fore the morning of Sunday, put an end to the best of men. An end, did I fay his fame furvives! bounded only by the limits of the earth, and by the extent of the human mind. He furvives in our hearts, in the growing knowledge of our children, in the affection of the good throughout the world. And when our monuments fhall be done away; when nations now exifting fhall be no more; when even our young and far fpreading empire fhall have perished, ftill will our WASHINGTON's glory unfaded fhine, and die not, until love of virtue ceafe on earth, or earth itself finks into chaos.

How, my fellow-citizens, fhall I fingle to your grateful hearts his pre-eminent worth! Where fhall I begin in opening to your view a character throughout fublime? Shall I fpeak of his warlike achievements, all fpringing from obedience to his country's will-all directed to his country's good?

Will you go with me to the Banks of the Monongahela, to fee your youthful WASHINGTON, fupporting, in the dismal hour of Indian victory, the illfated Braddock, and faving, by his judgment and by his valour, the remains of a defeated army, preffed by the conquering favage. foe? Or, when oppreffed America, nobly refolving to risk her all in defence of her violated rights, he was elevated by the unanimous voice of Congrefs to the command of her armies ? Will you follow him to the high grounds of Bofton, where to an undifciplined, courageous and virtuous yeomanry, his prefence

gave the ftability of system, and infufed the invincibility of love of country: or fhall I carry you to the painful fcenes of Long Inland, York Island and NewJerfey, when, combating fuperior and gallant armies, aided by powerful fleets, and led by chiefs high in the roll of fame, he stood the bulwark of our fafety; undifmayed by difafter; unchanged by change of fortune? Or will you view him in the precarious fields of Trenton, where deep gloom, unnerving every arm, reigned triumphant through our thinned, worn-down, unaided ranks ; himfelf unmoved.Dreadful was the night. It was about this time of winter'; the ftorm raged; the Delaware rolling furioufly with floating ice, forbad the approach of man. WASHINGTON, felf collected, viewed the tremendous fcene

his country called; unappalled by furrounding dangers, he paff-. ed to the hoftile fhore; he fought he conquered. The morning fun cheered the American world. Our country rofe on the event; and her dauntless Chief pursuing his blow, completed in the lawns of Princeton, what his vaft foul had conceived. on the fhores of Delaware.

Thence to the strong grounds of Morristown he led his fmall but gallant band; and through an eventful winter, by the high efforts of his genius, whofe matchlefs force was measurable only by the growth of difficulties, he held in check formidable hoftile legions, conducted by a chief experienced in the art of war, and famed for his valour on the ever-memorable heights

of

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