1810.]> by Joel 
tent of continent that is, or must be, com- 
prised within our limits, containing not 
less than sixteen hundred millions of 
acres, and susceptible of a population of 
two hundred mitlions of human beings; 
our habits of industry and peace instead 
of violence and’ war—all these are cir- 
cumstances which render-our situation as 
novel as it isimportant. It requires new 
theories; it has forced upon us new and 
bold, and in some cases doubtful, expe- 
riments; it calls for deep reflection on 
the propensities of human nature; anac- 
curate acquaintance with the history of 
}\uman actions: and what is perhaps the 
most difficult to attain, a wise discrimi- 
nation among the maxims of wisdom, or 
what are such in-other times and nations, 
to determine which of them are applica- 
ble, and which would be detrimental, to’ 
the end we have in viéw. I would by no 
means insinuate that we should reject the 
councils of antiquity in mass ; or turn a 
deaf ear tothe voice of medern experi- 
ence, because it is not our.own. So far 
as the policy of other nations is founded 
on the real relations of social man, on 
his moral nature undisguised, it may 
doubtless be worthy of imitation; but so 
far as it is drawn from his moral nature, 
disguised by habits materially different: 
from ours, such policy is to be suspected, 
it is to be scrutinized, and brought to 
the test, not perhaps of our experience, 
for that may in certain cases be wanting, 
but the test of the general “principlesof 
Our institutions, and the habits and max- 
ins that arise out of them. : 
There has been no nation,either ancient 
or modern, that could have presented 
human nature in the same character as 
ours does.and will present it; because 
there has existed no nation whose go- 
vernment has resembled ours. <A repre- 
sentative democracy on a large scale, 
with a fixed constitution, had never be- 
fore been attempted, and has no where 
else succeeded. A federal government 
on democratical principles is equally un- 
precedented, and exinbits a stiil greater 
_innovation on all received ideas of states- 
men and lawgivers. Nor has any theo- 
rist in political science, any among those 
powerless potentates of reason, the phi- 
losophers, who have taught us so many 
valuable things, ever framed a system or 
conceived a combination of principles: 
producing such a result. 
Circumstances beyond our controul 
had thrown in our way the materials for 
this wouderful instituuion. Qur first me- 
tit Jay in yot rejecting them, But whea 
and force them to become. 
Barlow. | | 8B 
our sages began to discern the use that 
might be made of materials then so un- 
promising, they discovered great talents 
and patriotism in combining them into 
the system we now find in operation, It. 
is indeed a stupendous fabric; the greate 
est political phenomenon, and probably 
will be considered as the greatest ad- 
vancement in the science of government, * 
that all modern ages have produced. 
This is not the moment to go intoa 
dissertation on the peculiar character of 
our political constitutions. . The subject 
being well understood by so respectable 
a portion of this assembly, and the time 
allotted to this part of the exercises of 
the day being necessarily short, I shoalds 
hardly expect to-obtain your indulgence 
if I were even capable of doing justice to 
so great a theme. Otherwise the whole 
compass of human affairs does not admit 
of a more profitable inquiry. Every cis 
tizen should make it his favorite study, 
and consider it as an indispensable pare 
of the education of his children, 
But nations are educated like indivi- 
dual infants. ‘They are what they are 
taught to be, They become whatever 
their tutors desire,and invite, and prepare, 
They may 
be taught to reason correctly; they may 
be taught to reason perversely; they may 
be taught not to reason at all. The last 
is the case of despotism; the second, 
where they reason perversely, is the case 
of a nation with an unsettled and unprin- 
cipled government, by whatever techni- 
cal name it may be distinguislied ; for a 
democracy without a constitution, though 
generally and justly called the school of 
disorder and perversity, 1s no more liable 
to these calamities than a monarchy ill 
defined, and without a known principle 
of action, and where the ‘arm of power 
has not that steady tension which would 
render it completely despotic. he first, 
the case in which they reason correctly, 
if it ever existed, or ever 1s to exist, must 
be ours. Our nation must, it can, its 
legislators ought to say, it shall, be taught 
to reason correctly, to act justly, to ‘pur- 
sue its own interest upon so large a scale 
as not to interfere with the interest, or at 
least with the rights, of other nations, 
For the moment it should interfere’ with 
theirs, it could no longer be said to be 
pursuing its own. 
What then are the interests of this na- 
tion, which it becomes us as private. ¢citi- 
zens (withonc any mission but the auto- 
cratical right ef individuals) to recom- 
mend to the great body of the American 
people 
we 
