USA > New York > Oswego County > Orwell > History of the town of Orwell, New York, from 1806 to 1887 > Part 9
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15
Frederick S. West. Enlisted in Naval service, on ship "Kansas," Aug. 27, 1864; in battles of Fort Fisher, Howlet House and James River; discharged June 12, 1865.
CHAPTER V.
1. Civil Government and History. 2. America, the discovery of. 3. Population of United States and Territories. 4. Electoral votes of each State. 5. Mode of choosing the President and Vice-President, their duties, etc. 6. Congress in general House of Representatives, etc.
CIVIL GOVERNMENT AND HISTORY.
Whether the blessings of civil and religious liberty which our system of government is so happily adapted to secure shall be enjoyed by our posterity, will depend generally upon what shall be done to qualify the rising generation of American youth for the duties and re- sponsibilities of freemen.
The destinies of this great and growing republic will in a few years be committed to those who are now re- ceiving instruction at our public schools. How im- portant, then, that the course of education pursued in these institutions should embrace the study of civil gov- ernment, especially of that government in which our youth will soon take part. Our government is, in the- ory, a government of the people. To be such in fact, the people must know how to govern. The right of self- government can be valuable only as it is exercised intel- ligently. Questions of public policy involving constitu- tional principles, and even liberty itself, are not unfre- quently decided by popular suffrage, and, without a thorough knowledge of our constitutional jurisprudence,
111
CIVIL GOVERNMENT.
the very object of free government may be defeated and the people become their own oppressors.
A fundamental principle of our government is equal- ity. At the ballot-box the constitution recognizes no difference or preference. Children should grow up in the knowledge of our republican institutions. The pro- visions of our state and national constitutions should be as familiar to them as the spelling-book; yet thousands of our young men reach their majority who have never given these constitutions so much as a single reading, and who assume the high prerogatives of freemen with- out knowing what the vast responsibilities of freemen are. Can our liberties be safe in such hands ? Can parents reconcile it with an enlightened sense of justice to their country to turn their sons upon the community thus unprepared to discharge their political duties ?
The fact, however, has been ascertained by experience that youth have the capacity to comprehend the princi- ples of civil government at a much earlier age than that to which the work is adapted, and hence it is used by a small portion only of those who may be benefited by the study. The primary design of the present work is, therefore, to supply a deficiency still remaining; and it is confidently believed that it may be profitably studied by children of ordinary intelligence at the age of ten years.
In the author's endeavor to so simplify and illustrate certain subjects as to meet the capacities of children, some may discover what may be deemed an excessive at- tempt at expression. Those, however, who have been engaged in the instruction of youth, are aware that there is little danger of aiming too low. A very common de- fect of many valuable works is, that they do not descend to the comprehension of those for whose benefit they are designed.
112
HISTORY OF ORWELL.
It may be read with no less interest and profit by the mass of adult citizens, and will be found highly useful and convenient in almost every family library as a book of reference.
The study of the book by females is also recommended. The position they occupy in society, and the part they take in training our youth in the family and in the school, gives them an influence in forming the character and settling the destiny of the nation no less powerful than that which is produced by a direct participation of the government. Moved by that patriotic feeling which a thorough knowledge of our republican institutions naturally inspires, they would more effectively aid in the diffusion of a pure and enlightened patriotism, indis- pensable to the health and vigor of the body politic and to the security of public liberty.
In hope that this work will, in some good degree, an- swer the purpose for which it is designed, it is respect- fully presented to the public.
§ 1. Government, in a general sense,signifies direction or regulation ; or it is the control which one thing has over another. When applied to mankind, it means the exercise of authority by one or more persons over others, in controlling and regulating their conduct.
§ 2. A parent gives directions to his children for the regulation of their behavior. He commands what they are to do, and forbids what they are not to do. In giv- ing these rules and causing them to be obeyed, he is said to govern his family. So the government of a teacher consists in keeping order in his school, by causing his scholars to observe the rules he has prescribed for their conduct.
113
CIVIL GOVERNMENT.
§ 3. But the kind of government treated of in this chapter is the government of a state or nation, generally called civil government. It is so called, because it is the government which regulates the actions of persons as members of civil society. But in order fully to under- stand the meaning of civil government, it is necessary to know what is meant by civil society.
§ 4. The Creator intended that mankind should live together. He has given them a desire to associate with each other, and made their happiness depend, in a great measure, on such association. Hence we find that per- sons derive enjoyment from each other's company which they could not have by living alone.
§ 5. Any number of persons associated together in any manner, or for any purpose, may be called society. The friends of temperance associate for the purpose of promoting temperance, and are called a temperance soci- ety. Other persons act together as a Bible society, or an education society. But neither of these associations, nor any others commonly called societies, are what is understood by civil society.
§ 6. The term civil society is applied to the people of a country united for the purpose of government, under written rules and regulations. But it does not apply to the people of every nation. The Indians of this country observe certain rules and customs; but as these people are savage and unlearned, they are called uncivilized, and are not properly civil communities.
§ 7. Civil society can be said to exist only where the people are in a civilized state, or state of social improve- ment. By a state of civilization and social improvement is meant refinement of manners, or growth in knowledge. In any country where the people enjoy the benefits of
114
HISTORY OF ORWELL.
learning, and the means of improving their social con- dition, or of making themselves more comfortable and happy, they are called civilized; and the authority exer- cised in regulating the conduct or actions of mankind in civil society, is called civil government.
§ 8. The rules by which the conduct of men in civil society is to be regulated are called laws; as the com- mands of the parent or householder are the laws of the family, or as the rules of the teacher are the laws of the school. A law is therefore a rule prescribing what men are to do, and what they are not to do. A law implies two things; first, the right and authority of those who govern to make the law; secondly, the duty of the gov- erned to obey the law.
§ 9. To give force to a law, it must have a penalty. Penalty is the pain or suffering to be inflicted upon a person for breaking a law. The law requires, that for stealing, a man must pay a fine, or be put into prison, and that for murder, he must be hanged: therefore, fine or imprisonment is the penalty for stealing, and hang- ing is the penalty for murder. If there were no penal- ties annexed to laws, men could not be compelled to obey them; bad men would commit the worst of crimes without fear, and there would be no safety or order in society.
§ 10. Civil government and laws, therefore, are neces- sary to preserve the peace and order of a community, and to secure to its members the free enjoyment of their rights. A right is the just claim or lawful title which we have to any thing. Thus, we say, a person has a right to what he has earned by his labor, or bought with his money. A man is entitled to what is lawfully or justly his own; that is, he has a right to it.
115
CIVIL GOVERNMENT.
§ 11. We have a right also to do things. We have a right to go where we please, and to act as we please, if by so doing we do not trespass upon the rights of others. This being free to act thus is called liberty. But it must be remembered that all men in civil society have the same natural rights, and no one has a right to dis- turb others in the enjoyment of their rights.
§ 12. All laws ought to be so made as to secure to men the liberty to enjoy and exercise their natural rights. Natural rights are those which we are entitled to by nature, rights with which we are born. They are called natural rights, because they are ours by birth. And because all persons in society have naturally the same rights, we have no right to what belongs to an- other, nor to say or do what will injure another.
§ 13. The law of nature is that rule of conduct which we are bound to observe towards our Creator and our fellow men, by reason of our natural relations to them. It is a perfect rule for all moral and social beings, right in itself, right in the nature of things; and it would be right, and ought to be obeyed, if no other law or positive command had ever been given.
§ 14. Mankind being dependent on their Creator, they owe to him duties which they ought to perform, though he had never positively enjoined them. It is a right in itself that we should love and serve our Maker, and thank him for his mercies; and it would be just as much our duty to do so, if he had never so commanded. And it is right in the nature of things that we should love our neighbor as ourselves; and our obligation to do so would be just as certain, had the duty never been en- joined by a positive precept.
116
HISTORY OF ORWELL.
§ 15. Living in society with our fellow men, on whom we are in a measure dependent, and who have the same natural rights as ourselves, we are bound by the princi- ples of natural justice to promote their happiness, by doing to them as we would that they should do to us; that is to say, the law of nature requires us to do so. And here let it be remarked, that the all-wise and kind Creator has so constituted man, that in thus promoting the happiness of his fellow men, he increases his own.
§ 16. But it may be asked, if the law of Nature is the rule by which mankind ought to regulate their conduct, of what use are written laws ? The will of the Creator is the law of nature which men are bound to obey. But mankind in their present imperfect state are not capable of discovering in all cases what the law of nature re- quires; it has therefore pleased Divine Providence to re- veal his will to mankind, to instruct them in their duties to himself and to each other. This will is revealed in the Holy Scriptures, and is called the law of revelation, or the Divine law.
§ 17. But though men have the Divine law for their guide, human laws are also necessary. God has com- manded men to do that which is right, and to deal just- ly with each other; but men do not always agree as to what is right: human laws therefore become necessary to say what shall be considered just between man and man. And these laws must be written, that it may al- ways be known what they are.
§ 18. Again it may be asked, what must be done when a human law does not agree with the Divine law ? Must such law be obeyed ? Men have no right to make a law that is contrary to the law of God; and we are not
117
CIVIL GOVERNMENT.
bound to obey it. The apostles were forbidden to preach the gospel; but they said, "We ought to obey God rather than men;" and they continued to preach. (Acts, Chapter 5.) But we may not disobey a human law simply because it fails to require strict justice. A law may be imperfect, as many human laws are, and yet we may obey it without breaking the Divine law.
118
HISTORY OF ORWELL.
Of the Government of the United States.
It is thought by many persons, to be very difficult to understand the relations which the state and national governments bear to each other. But if the reader will attentively study the following he will learn what many may have never learned.
To learn the nature of the general government, and of our rela- tions to it as citizens of the United States, we must go back to the time when the colonies were subject to Great Britain. Though they were all subject to that country, they had no political connec tion with each other. They were, in this respect, as independent of each other as so many different nations. Hence there was no such thing as being a citizen of the United States. Every person was only a citizen of the state in which he lived.
During the controversy with Great Britain, it became necessary for the colonies to agree upon some general measures of defence. For this purpose, the first great continental congress, composed of delegates from the several colonies, met at Philadelphia on the 4th of September, 1774. The next year, in May, another congress met to propose and to adopt such farther measures as the state of the country might require; and the same congress, on the 4th of July, 1776, declared the colonies to be free and independent states.
This declaration was called "the unanimous declaration of the United States of America:" but the states were united only in cer- tain measures of safety. There was no government which exercised authority over the states. The peeple were subject to ther respect- ive state governments only. They were not yet incorporated into one nation for the purpose of government, as now, under a consti- tution. Hence, they were not properly citizens of the United States.
To provide effectually for the future security, as well as the im. mediate safety of the American people, congress deemed it neces- sary that there should be a rion of the states under some gen- eral government; and in November, 1777, that body agreed upon a plan of union. The articles were called "articles of confedera- tion and perpetual union between the states ;" and were to go into effect when adopted by the legislatures of all the states. Some of the states were slow to agree to the articles ; but they were finally adopted, March 1, 1781,
119
CIVIL GOVERNMENT.
The states were now united in a kind of national government, but it was not such a one as the present ; as will appear by noticing a few points of difference between them. In the first place they were different in form. The confederation was a union of states ; it was scarcely entitled to be called a government. It had not, as the national government now has, the three departments of power, legislative, executive and judicial. It had only a legislature, and that consisted of only one body ; and to that congress the several states, large and small, were entitled to send each an equal number of delegates.
That government differed from the present also in regard to its powers. The confederation was a very weak government. I's powers were vested in congress. The congress was to manage the common affairs of the nation, and to enact such laws (if laws they might be called) as might seem necessary ; but it had not the power to enforce them.
For example, it belonged to congress to ascertain the number of men and the sums of money to be raised to carry on the war, and to call on each state to raise its due share; but congress could not compel a state to do so. The government had no power to lay and collect taxes; it was dependent upon the states for raising the money to defray the public expenses. It could, and did, to some extent, borrow money in its own name, on the credit of the union; but it had not the means of repaying the money so borrowed. But more of its defects will hereafter appear.
It may be asked how so weak a government could keep the states together. The plan was devised in a time of war, and had respect to the operations of war, rather than to a state of peace, and a regard to their own safety induced the states, in most cases, to obey the orders of congress; just as individuals will readily unite when exposed to a common danger or when pursuing a com- mon interest. But when the danger is passed, and the desired object attained, their union and friendship are easily broken.
So it was with the states. The war being over, they did not continue to act in harmony. Laws were enacted in some states, giving their own citizens undue advantages over the citizens of other states, and soon the good feeling which had existed was in- terrupted : and in a few years the jealousies and disputes between the states became such as threatened to break up the union.
120
HISTORY OF ORWELL.
It was now evident that to keep the states united in time of peace with foreign nations, there must be a different government ; a goy- ernment possessing more extensive powers, which could control, in all necdful cases, the action of the state governments.
Having been thereto requested, congres called a convention, to revise and amend the articles of confederation. All the states, Rhode Island excepted, chose delegates, who met in Philadelphia in May, 1787. Although it seems to have been generally intended only to alter the articles of confederation, it was proposed in the convention to form a new government, different both in its form, and in respect to its powers. This proposition was agreed to by a majority of the convention.
In examining the constitution, we see that it differs also in its nature from the former government. This appears from the man- ner in which it was formed and adopted. The articles of confed- eration were framed by congress, the members of which were ap- pointed by the state legislature3 ; and when so framcd they were sent to the state legislatures, to be approved by them, before they could go into effect. The adoption of these articles was therefore the act of the legislatures of the states, and not the act of the peo- ple of the states; and the confederation was a union of states, rather than a union of the people of the states.
The constitution, on the other hand, was framed by men appoint- ed expressly for that purpose and submitted for approval, not to the state legislatures, but to the people of the states, and adopted by state conventions, whose members were chosen for that purpose by the people. Hence, the constitution is virtually the act of the people ; and the union is not a mere confederation of states, but as the preamble declares, "a more perfect union," formed by "the people of the United States."
1
1
NORTH AMERICA.
The names and even the nationality of the first foreigners who landed upon American shores are lost in obscurity. Through the mists of distance and tradition we see only vague, shadowy out- lines. A few historical fragments are all that remain to tell of a vanished people. Yet these remains tell unmistakably of visitants prior to Columbus. The round tower at Newport is supposed by historical investigators to be of Danish origin. The inscription upon the writing rock at Dighton, Mass., the skeleton in armor found at Fall River, the mounds in the Mississippi Valley with their strange contents of cutting tools and pottery, the pyramids, walled cities and other relics of an extinct civilization in Mexico, record the presence of a people undoubtedly of Asiatic origin, whose coming to the continent, occupation of it for a long period and final disappearance will doubtless remain one of the mysteries of the past. It is probable that the race of the Mound-builders reached America by way of Bering's Strait, then much narrower than now, and gradually pushed their way southward. It is certain that they attained a high degree of civilization wholly im- possible to attribute to the American Indians.
In the carliest centuries of the Christian Era, mariners had no guides but the sun and stars, and when the clouds intervened, they were at the mercy of the wind and waves. Hence they dared not venture far out upon the pathless deep.
In the 15th century, after the discovery of the wonderful prop- erties of the lodestone, and the consequent invention of the com- pass, men grew bolder, and a passion for adventure coupled with a hope of acquiring vast riches in unknown lands, rapidly developed.
122
HISTORY OF ORWELL.
.
Here was the opportunity of genius, and Christopher Columbus, an obscure mariner of Genoa, was the man for the hour. A master of the scientific knowledge of the day, his powerful mind drew from what was already known, inferences which he longed to prove re- alities. Convinced that the earth was round, it seemed to him self- evident that the land on the East must be counterbalanced by land on the West. He did not dream of finding a continent, but only a continuation of Asia, and a shorter passage to the Indias, then the goal of commercial expeditions. Burning with enthusiasm to ver- ify his conjectures, he made unsuccessful attempts, first in Genoa and then at the courts of England and Portugal to secure an outfit for his expedition. He then applied to the Spanish sovereigns, on - ly to be repeatedly dismissed with indifference. Neither in the courts of Kings nor in the halls of Universities could he communi- cate his own strong faith in the existence of a western world and the possibility of reaching it.
Finally, the clearness of his reasoning and the force of his con- victions won Queen Isabella to aid his projects. The Spanish re- sources had been exhausted by long Moorish wars, and to fit out an expedition, she was obliged to pawn her jewels. But her un- tiring efforts in his behalf, won for her, as the patroness of Colum- bus, the brightest jewel that sparkles about her name to-day.
Columbus was fitted out with three small ships, such as no sea- man of our time would venture himself in for an ocean voyage. They were called the Santa Maria, the Nina and the Pinta. Fri- day, August 3, 1492, they set sail from the port of Palos, the heart of Columbus beating high with hope, and those of his crew filled awe of the unknown ocean, whose mysteries they were about to penetrate, and dread of the dangers they might encounter. Sept. 5, they left behind them the Canary Islands, then the farthest known land.
As the little squadron glided swiftly westward, directed by no chart, the compass their only guide, the timid and superstitious sailors lost heart entirely. They even threatened to mutiny and bury their leader in that sea whose dangers he had contested. Only Columbus' remarkable energy and force of character kept them in check from day to day. At last unmistakable signs of Jand appeared. Land birds flitted past the ships; a freshly broken
123
NORTH AMERICA.
branch with berries floated by; fragments of hewn timber were rescued from the waves. ' On the night of the 11th of October a light was seen glimmering far to the westward and the dawn was awaited with intense excitement. The cry of "Land! Land!" was first heard from the Pinta and a scene of indescribable rejoicing ensued. At sunrise boats put off from the ships and Columbus, splendidly attired and with a drawn sword in his hand, first set foot upon the shore. Surrounded by the kneeling crew he ux .- furled his country's banner, and solemnly took possession of the New World in the name of the sovereigns of Spain. This land, one of the Bahama Islands, he named San Salvador.
The achievement of Columbus greatly intensified the universal passion for discovery and exploration. Europeans dreamed of the fabulous wealth awaiting adventurers in the western world. It was believed to be a land of gold. But the dreams of the gold seekers were never realized. What treasure they did acquire by plunder and conquest of the native Indians only whetted their desires, and they wreaked their disappointment in frightful cruelty to the help- less natives. The story of the Spanish occupation, is a story (f broken faith, fierce bigotry, savage cruelty, and innumerable crimes which stain forever the glory of the Spanish name.
But the tide of eager adventurers never ceased.
In 1497, Americus Vespucius made his memorable voyage to South America, and wrote a description of his travels which result- ed in giving the new continent his name. In the same year, John and Sebastian Cabot visited the bleak coast of Labrador. In 1512, Ponce de Leon traversel the wilds of Florid i in a vain search for the fountain of perpetual youth. Balboa first looked upon the vast Pacific Ocean in 1513. Iu 1521, Cortez led his ruthless troops through the palace of the Montezumas in Mexico. De Soto made his way through pathless wastes to the mighty "Father of Wa- ters," the Mississippi, and found a grave beneath its turbid flood. Cartier, the Frenchman, first beheld the noble St. Lawrence. In- numerable adventurers of lesser note made their way to America, and colonization began in earnest. In 1565, the Spaniards founded St. Augustine, the oldest town in the United States, and in 1582, Santa Fe, the next oldest. Iu 1606, a company of English, with John Smith at their head, crossed the ocean and founded James- town in Virginia. About 1610, the French colonized Canada and
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.