1803.] Thoughts on the Duration of the American Republic. 831 
infifted on, flattery wae then put in force, 
and laftly, when thofe means failed of 
drawing them from neutrality, threats 
were prefied into the ‘fervice. It was 
thought neceflary, finding all/thefe mea- 
fares fail, to revolutionize them. The 
minds of the Americans were inflamed, 
and every moment watehed to paralizeGo- 
vernment, and create a coolnels betw-en 
it and the people. The Fiench began 
fyftemaiie operations, and foon divided the 
unfufpecting Americans into two parties, 
éalled Federalifis, (whom they allo deno- 
minated. Ariftocrats, and Englifh Tories, 
to render them odious to the republicans) 
and Antifederali/ts ; yet both parties were 
rigid republicans. 
war impended over this infantine repub- 
lic, when the wifdom of Wafhington in- 
terpofed, and, by a proclamation of neu- 
trality, he, as one of his beft eulcgifts em- 
phatically phrafes it, ¢ arrefted the in- 
trigues of France, and the paffions of his 
countrymen, on the very edge of the pre- 
cipice of war and revolution.’ his was 
followed up by a treaty of commerce with 
Great Britain, which was one of the lat 
atts of Wafhington’s adminiftration of 
any confequence, and dafhed the poifoned 
chalice of French fraternity from the lips 
of the Americans. The French faétion 
raged, and, at the expiration of his prefi- 
dency, Wafhiogton retired, difgufted with 
the firugeles of a defperate party. When, 
however,. the infolence of France ‘con- 
ftrained the Americans to: repel aggreffion, 
by agereffion, this truly great and good 
man was again called into action: he ac- 
cepted the Lieutenantcy-general of the 
army of the United States, and, in the de- 
cline of life, did not hefitate again to draw 
his {word in the maintenance of that in- 
dependence he had been fo infrumental 
in eftablifhing. Death clofed his glorious 
career! The veneration, which attended 
him vanifhed with him, and the United 
States have been ever fince convulfed with | 
the ftruggles of the two parties, although 
the caufe (the French revolution) has 
been long fince heartily defpived by both. 
But when the ball of contention has been 
once fet on foot, individuals will always 
be found to keep it up, in order to head 
the contending parties, until one of them 
gets the upper hand, and the weakeft calls 
to its aid a foreign power, which moft 
commonly fubjugates both. Thus tell 
the republics of Greece, which, torn to 
pieces by internal divifions, and ftriving 
with one another for the mattery, were 
“€atily brought undera foreign yoke ; and 
the German league prefents a very recent 
Anarchy and civil. 
example how eafily an empire may he 
crippled by a foreign enemy, when the 
undermining policy of fome of its rulers 
prefers the aggrandizement of their parti- 
cular ftates to the integrity and profperity 
of the whole. °Thele two parties: have 
created evident fymptoms of a divifion 
between the Northern and Southern States, 
and threats have been thrown out on both 
fides, which may ultimately bring it 
about. 
Another divifion alfo threatens to take 
place between the Eaftern, and Weiltern, 
territories. The.iatter have twice openly 
refifted Government, and yielded only to 
a fuperiority of force. An excife duty 
created the very fame difagreement be- 
tween them as theStamp Act did between 
them and Great Britain. It is therefore 
by no means improbable their offspring 
may, in time, mete to them the very fame 
meature they meted to the mether-country ; 
and fhow them, what they have taught 
Great Britain, that, in the government of 
a nation, as in that of a private family, 
there is an age when children will think 
and act for themfelves. 
This divifion is one of the fatal caufes 
of the downfall of an empire: effeminacy, 
which may be aptly ftiled a national epi. 
demic, is another. In proportion as a 
nation increafes in fecurity and affluence, 
it becomes diffatisfied with having barely 
wherewithal to fupply the. wants of na- 
ture; it pines for thofe of convenience ; 
thofe obtained, they pant for luxury, which 
brings its neverjfailing concomitant-effe. 
minacy. A nation, thus undermined, is 
eafily overturned by the firft hoftile bla. 
Through luxury Cyrus quelled the 
Lydians ; through luxury the Affyrian em- 
pire was overthrown by the Medes ; their’s 
by the Macedonians; the latter by the 
Romans ; and the Romans by the Barba- 
rians ; and, to give a more recent exam- 
ple, Davila tells us that, in an interview 
and femblance of treaty with the king of 
Navarre, Catherine de Medicis broke tnat 
prince’s power more with the infidious 
gaieties of her court than many battles be- 
fore had done. The exceffes of the civil 
war, and the irrupticns of the pernicious 
morals of the French fugitives from St. 
Domingo, through therepublican morals 
of the United States, will evince toa fu 
perficial reader, what muft have been fclf- 
evident to an eye witnels, that luxury has 
made a grievous breach in the deliberate 
gravity of republican Americans. 
Too great an extenfion of an empire is 
likewife another fatal caufe of its over- 
throw 5 whereby it is fir&{ weakened and 
: thea 
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