0 1 :7 - DeVOled to.. Politics, Ibreign and Domestic Intelligence, Literalniv, Science, .Igriculture, the *Mechanic slrts, Internal Improvement, and General Onscellany...4:o EVLOGETAII ON GEN. LAFAYETTE. arlicaOttlefP ON THE LIFE AND CHARACTER OP *it* • . ert 4710tter, De 'Gate:gene: ; oillieeed at th e request of both Houses of the Cc:re gress of tha 'lifted States, before them, in the flatuo of Representatives at 'Washington, on the 31st of December, 1934, by JOHN QV/NOT ,ADANCS, A PIPMBER OP THE HOUSE. [CONCLUDED FRO)! ODE LAST. n the month of April, 1776, the combin - tfid.Wisdoei of the Count de Vergennes and .af SL . Turgot, the Prime 7rlinister, and the •‘ <Financier of Louis the Sixteenth, had bro't 'him to the conclusion that the event the •thiest desirable to France, with regard to the 'controversy between .Great Britain and her Atnericeb-Colonies, was that the insurrec tion should be suppressed. This judgment evincing only the total absence of all moral considerations, in the estimate by these emi nent statesmen, of what was desirable to France, had undergone a great change by the close of the year 1777. The Declara tion of Independence had changed the ques tion between the parties. The popular feel. ing of France was all on the side of the A ittericaas. The daring and romantic move tniitit efLafifyette in defiance of the Govern ment itself, then highly favored by public opinion, was followed by 'universal admire tioiti. The spontaneous spirit of the people gradually spread itself even over the rank corruption of the court; a suspicious and deceptive neutrality succeeded to an asten eible exclusion of the insurgents from the portsof France, till the capitulation of Bur goyne satisfied the elisions . 4 international kw at Versailles that the inippression of the insurrection•was no longer tile infHt desira ble of events; but that the United States were, de facto, sovereign and intivendent; and that France might conclude a treaty of commorce with them, without giving just cause of offence to the stepmother country. On the 6111 of Febniary, 1778, a treaty of Commerce between France and the United States was concluded, and with it, on the same day a Treaty of eventual Defensive Alliance, to take effect only in the event of Great Britain's resenting by war against France, the consummation of the Commer cial Treaty. The war immediately ensued, arid in the slimmer of 1778 a French fleet, antler the command of Count d'Estaing was .sent to cu-operate with the forces of the U. States for the mainteuunce of their ludepen. dence. By these events the position of the Mar quis de Lafayette was essentially . change It became necessary for him to r Na-to himself in the ~trod r.ic S:pioret; - ; 011141.1 , .(1 ..t t;!..; ! C.Ourif.v ".!; -,.. '2; ,1 •1 `‘l, close of the i i 18, with the approbation of his friend and patron the Commander-in chief, he addressed a latter to the President of Congress, representing his then present circumstances, with the confidence of affec tion and gratitude, observing that the semi meats which bound him to his country could never be more properly spoken of than in the presence of men who had done so much for their own.. "As long (continued he) as I thought I could dispose of myself, I made it my pride and pleasure to tight under A merican colon', in detence of a cause which I dare more 'particularly call ours, because I had the ga,od fortune of bleeding for her. Now, Sir, that France is involved in a war, I am urged / by a sense of my dutyris well as thalo,re of my country, to present myself before the King, and know in what manner he judges prdper to employ my services.— 'rhe 'moat agreeable of all will always be - soch as may enable me to serve the common ;Cause among those whose friendship I bad / the happiness to obtain, and whose fortune I had the honor to follow in less smiling times. That reason, and others, which I leave to the feelings of Congresi, engage me to beg from them the liberty of going home for-the next winter. . "As long as there were any hopes of an active campaign, I did not think of leaving the field; now that 1 see a very peaceable and undisturbed moment, I take this oppor tunity of waiting on Congress." In the remainder of the letter he solicited that, in the event of his request being gran ted, he Might be considered as a soldier on furlough, heartily wishing to regain his col ors and his esteemed and beloved fellow soldiers. And he closes with a tender of any services which he might be enabled to render to the American cause in his own country. On the receipt of this letter, accompanied by one from General Washington, recom mending to Congress, in terms most honora ble to the Marquis, a compliance with his request, that body immediaty passed resolu tions, granting him an unlimited leave of absence, with permission to return to the United States at his own most convenient time; that the President of Con.ressshould . write him a letter, ;returning him the thanks of Congress ferthat disinterested zeal which bad led him to America, and for the services he had rendered to the United States by the exertion of his coinage and abilities on tummy signal occasions, and that the Minister Plenipotentiary of the United States at the `Court of Versailles should be directed to canoe an elegant sword, with proper devices, 'to be made and presented to him in the tame of the United States.. These resolu tines were communicated to him in a letter expressive of the sensibility congenial to 'time, from the President of Congress, lien el Laurens. U. embarked in January 1770, in the 010 , 0 Alliance, at Boston,. and on the suc "ciieding 12th day of February, presented at Versailles. Twelve months had tilittadY elapsed since the conclusion of the Tseaties Conunerce and of eventual Mil ''istsets" betwetto France and the United States. ir , had, during the greater part of that • t* heist tkieply engaged in war with a 4101111451013 cause against Great Brita in, and THE GETTYSBURG STAR EPUBLICAN BANNER. it was the cause in which Lafayette had been shedding his blood: yet, instead of receiving him with open arms, as the pride and orna ment of his country, a cold and hollow-heart ed order was issued to him not to present himself at Court m but to •consider him I unrier arrest, with permission to receive vis its only from his relations. This ostensible mark of the Royal displeasure was to last eight days, and Lafayette Manifested his Isense of it only by a letter to the Count de Vergennes, inquiring whether the interdic tion upon him to receive visits was to be considered as extending to that of Dector Franklin. The sentiment of universal ad• miration which had followed him at his first departure, greatly increased by his splendid career of service during the two years of his absence, indemnified hini for the indig nity of the courtly rebuke. he remained in France through the year ' 1779, and returned to the scene of action early in the ensuing year. Ile continue.l in the French service, and was appointed to command the Kner's own regiment of dragoons, stationed during the year in va rious parts of the Kingdom, and holding an incessant correspondence with the Ministers of 'foreign Affairs and of War, urging the employment of a land and naval force in aid of the American cause. "The Maiq.iis de Lafayette," says Dr. Franklin, in a letter of the 4th of March, 1780, to the President of Congress, "who, during his residence in France, has been extremely zealous in sup porting our cause on all occasions, returns again to fight for it. Ile is infinitely es teemed and beloved here, and I am per suaded will do every thing in his power to merit n continuance of the same affection from America." Immediately idler his arrival in the U. States, it was, on the 16th of Slav, 1780, resolved in Congress, that they considered his return to America to resume his com mand, as a fresh proof of the disinterested zeal and perseveringattachment which have justly recommended him to the public confi• deuce arid applause, and that they received with pleasure a tender of the-further services ofso gallant and meritorious an (ifficer. From this tinr.e until the termination of the, campign of 17 1 41, by the surrender of Lord C- , rnwallis and his army at Yorktown, his service wag of incessant activity, alwa) s signalised by military talenis unsurpassed, and by appirii never to be subdued. At the time of the treason of Arnold, Lafayette way accompanying his Comm"'.-- • an unnar*--• war,lt which he occupied, personal character, his individual rein. , f-ins with Washington, with the officers of th the allied armies, and with the armies Inselves, had been specially ordered to promote and secure that harmony and mu• tual good understanding indispensable to the ultimate success of the common cause. His position, too, as a foreigner by birth, a Eu ropean, a volunteer in the American ser. vice, and a person of high rank in his native country, pointed him out as peculiarly stilt ed to the painful duty of deciding upon the character of the crime, and upon the fate of the British officer, the accomplice and vic tim-of the detested traitor, Arnold. In the early part of the campaign of 1781, when Cornwallis, with an overwhelming force, was spreading ruin and devastation over the Southern portion of the Union, we find Lafayette, with means altogether inad equate, charged with-the defence. of the Territory of Virginia. Always equal to the emergencies in which circumstances placed him, his expedients for encountering and surmounting the obstacles which they cast in his way are invariably stamped with the peculiarities of his tharacter. The troops placed under his command for the defence of Virginia, were chiefly taken from the Eastern regiments, unseasoned to the cli mate of the South, and prejudiced against it as unfavorable to the health of the natives of the more rigorous regions of the North.— Desertions became frequent, till they threat ened the very dissolution of the corps. In stead of resorting to military execution to retain his men, he appeals to the sympathies of honor. He states, in general orders, the great danger and difficulty of the enterprise.' upon which he is about to embark; repre sents the only possibility by which it can pmmise success, the faithful adherence of the soldiers to their chief, and his confidence that they will_not abandon him. He then adds, that if, however, any individual of the detachment was unwilling to follow him, a passport to return to his home should be forthwith granted him upon his application. It is to a cause like that of American Inde pendence that resources like this are con. genial. After these general orders, mob ing more was heard ofdesertion. The very cripples of the army preferred paying for their own transportation, to follow the corps, rather than to ask for the dismission which had been made so easily accessible to all. But how shall the deficiencies of the mili tary chest be supplied? The want of money was heavily pressing upon the service in every direction. Where are the sinews of wail How aie the troops to march without shoes, linen, clothing of all descriptions, and other neceiKerriestflife! Lafayette has found them all. From the patriotic merchants of Baltimore he obtains, on the pledge of his own personal credit, a loan of money ade quate to the purchase of the materials; and from the fair hands of the daughters of the Monumental City, even then worthy to be so called, he obtains the toil of making up the needed garments. The details of the campaign, from its un promising outset, when Cornwallis, the British Commander, exulted in anticipation that the boy could not escape him, till the storming of the twin redoubts. in emulation of gallantry by the valiant FrenChmen of Vinmeenil,and the American fellow-soldiers of Lafayette, led by him to victors at York town, must be left to the recording pen of History. Both redoubts were carried at the point of sword, and Cornwallis, with I averted face, surrendered his sword to i Washington. I This was the last vital struggle of the war, I which, however, lingered through another year rather of aegotiation than of action.— Immediately after the capitulation at York town, Lafayette asked and obtained again a leave of absence to visit his family and his country, and with this closed his military service to the field during the Revolutionary War. But it was not for the individual en joyment of his renown that he returned to France. The resolutions of Congress ac companying that which gave him a discre tionary leave of absence, while honorary in the highest degree to him, were equally marked by a grant of virtual credentials for negn tiation, and by the trust of confidential powers, together with a letter of the warm , est commendation of the gallant soldier to the favor of his King. The ensuing year ' was consumed in preparations, for a formida ble combined French and Spanish expedi 'ion against the British Islands in the West Indies, and particularly the Island of Janizii ca; thence to recoil upon New York, and to pursue the ofFensive war into Canada. The fleet destined for this gigantic undertaking was already assembled at Cadiz; and La fayette, appointed the chief of the Staff, was there ready to embark upon this perilous adventure, when, on the 30th of November, 1782, the preliminary treaties ofpeace were concluded between his Britannic 11ajesiy on one part and the Allied Powers of France, Spain, and the United States of America, on the other. The first intelligence of this event received by the American Congress was in the communication of a letter from Lafayette. The war of American Independence is closed. The People of the North American Confederation are in union, sovereign and independent. Lafityette, at twenty-five years of age, has lived the life of a patri arch. and illustrated the career of a hero. fled his days upon earth been then number ed, and had he then slept with his fathers, illustrious as fbr centuries their names had been, his name, to the end of time, would have transcended them all. Fortunate youth! fortunate beyond even the measure of his companions in arms with whom he had achieved the glorious consummation of American Independence, His lame was all his own; not cheaply earned: bly won. His (1.11- .oe rewards of their dangers and their toils. Lafayette had watched, and labored, and fought, and bled, not for himself, not for his family, not, in the first instance, even for his country. In the legendary tales of Chivalry we read of tournaments at which a foreign and unknown Knight suddenly pre sents himself, armed in complete steel, and with the vizor down, enters the, ring to con tend with the assembled flower of Knight. hood for the prize of honor, to be awarded by the hand of Beauty; bears tt in triumph away, and disappears from the astonished multitude of competitors and spectators of the feats of arms. But where, in the rolls ofl - listory,where,in the fictions of Romance, where, but in the life of Lafayette, has been seen the noble stranger, flying, with the tribute of his name, his rank, his affluenee, his ease, his domestic bliss, his treasure, his blood, to the relief of a suffering and distant land, in the hour of her deepest calamity— baring his bosom to her foes; and not at the transient pageantry of a tournament, but for a succession of five years sharing all the vi cissitudes of her fortunes; always . eager to appear at the post of danger—tempering the glow of youthful ardor with the cold caution .of a veteran commander; bold and daring in action; prompt in execution; rapid in pur suit; fertile in expedients; unattainable in retreat; often exposed, but never surprised, never disconcerted; eluding his enemy when within his fancied grasp; bearing upon him with irresistible sway when of force to cope with him in the conflict ofarms? And what is this but the diary of Lafayette, from the day of his rallying the scattered fugitives of the Brandywine, insen-ibis of the blood flow ing from his wound, to the storming of the redoubt at Yorktown? Henceforth,as a public man, Lafityctte is to be considered as a Frenchman,always ac tive and ardent to serve the H.States,but no longer in their service as an officer. S o transcendent had ben his merits in the com mon cause. that, to reward them, the rule of nrogressive advancement in the armies of France was set aside for him.- He received from the Minister of War a notification that from the day of his retirement from the ser vice of the United States as a Major Gene ral, at the close of the war, he ghnuld hold the same rank in the armies of France, to date from the day of the capitulation of Lurd Cornwallis. Henceforth he is a Frenchman, destined to perform in the history of his country a part,as peculiarly his own, and not less glo rious than that which he had performed in the war of Independence. A short period of profound peace followed the - great tri umph of Freedom. The desire of Lafayette once more to see the land of his adoption and the associates of his glory,the fellow-soldiers who had become to him as brothors,and the friend and patron of his youth, who had be come to him as a father; sympathizinc , with their desire once more to see him—to see in their prosperity him who had first come to them in their affliction, induced him, in the year 1784,t0 pay a visit to the (J.States. On the 4th of August,of that vear,he.lan ded at New York, and in the space of five months from that tline,visited his venerable friend at Mount Vernon,where he was then living in retirement,and traversed ten States of the Union, receiving every where from their Legislative Assemblies, from the Mu nicipal Bodies of the cities and towns thro' which he passed,from the officers of the ar my, his late associates, now restored to the virtues and occupations of private life, and even from the recent emigrants from Ire land, who had come to adopt for their coun- r .,,,olrity to ihe 'West -1 try the self-emancipated land, addresses of gratulation and of joy,the effusions of hearts grateful in the enjoyment of the blessings I for the possession of which they had been so largely indebted to his exertions—and,final ly,from, the United States of America in Congress assembled at Trenton. i On the 9th of December it was resolved by that body that a committee, to consist of one member from each Slate, should be ap pointed to receive, and in the name of Con gress take leave of the Marquis. That they should be instructed to assure him that Con gress continued to entertain the same high sense of his abilities and zeal to promote the welfare of America, both here and in Eu rope, which they had frequently expressed I I and manifested on former occasions, and which the recent marks of his attention in their commercial and other interests had perfectly confirmed. "That as his uniform and unceasing attachment to this country has resembled that of a patriotic citizen, the United States regard him with particular action, and will not cease to feel an inter est in whatever may concern his honor and prosperity, and that their best and kindest wishes will always attend him." And it was further resolved, that a letter be written to his Most Christian Majesty, to be signed by his Excellency the President of Congress, expressive of the high sense which the United States in Congress assein bled entertain of the zeal, talents, and meri torious services of the Marquis de Lafayette, and recommending him to the favor mid patronage of his Majesty. The first of these resolutions was, on the next day cart ied into execution. At a so lemn interview with the Committee of Con gress, received in their Hall, and addressed by the Chairman of their Committee, John Jay, the purport of these resolutions was communicated to him. He replied in terms of fervent sensibility for the kindness mani. fisted personally to himself; and, with allu sions to the situation, the prospect, and the duties of the People of this country, he point ed out the great interests which he believed it indispensable to their welfare that they sheuld cultivate and cherish. In the follow mg memorable sentences the ultimate ob jects of his solicitude are disclosed in a tone deeply solemn and impressive. "May t his immense Temple of Freedom," lid he, "ever stand, a lesson to bppressors, example to the oppressed, a sanctuary for Oils of mankind I and may these hap -1 States attain that complete spiel'. -.rity which will illustrate the qovernment, and for ages to corns. founders." since these words wk. the years of the existent:. founders of this immense '1 dom have all departed, gave her, a solitary exception, even while I sp.. the point of taking wing. The prayer Lafayette is not yet consummated. A g es upon ages are still to pass away before it can - have its full accomplishment; and, for its accomplishment, his spirit hovering over 'our heads, in more than echoes talks around these walls. It repeats the prayer which from his bps fifty years ago was at once a parting blessing and a prophecy; for, were it possible for the whole human race, now breathing the breath °fide, to be assembled within this Hall, your Orator would, inyour name and in that of your constituents, ap peal to them to testify for your fathers of the last generation, that;so far as has depen. ded upon them, the blessings of Lafayette has been -prophecy. Yes! this immens- Teinple of Freedom still stands, a lesson to oppressoman example to the oppressed,und a sanctuary for the rights of mankind. Yes! with the smiles of a benignant Providence, the splendor and prosperity of these happy United States have illustrated the blessings of their Government, and, we may humbly hnpe,have rejoiced the departed 8. 43 18 of Its founders. For the past, your fathers and you have been responsible. The charge of the future devolves upon you and your chil dren. The vestal fire of Freedom is in your custody. May the souls of its departed founders never be called to witness its ex tinction by neglect, nor a soil upon the pu. rite of its keepers! With this valedictory, Lafayette took, as he and those who heard him then believed, a final leave of the People of the U. States. He returned to France,and arrived at Paris on the 25th of Janaary, 1765. He continued to take a deep interest in !he concerns ef the United States,and exer ted his influence with the French Govern ment to obtain reductions of duties favorable to their commerce and fisheries. In the summer of 17e6, he visited several of the German Courts, and attended the last great review by Frederick the Second of his ve teran army—a review unusually splendid, and especially remarkable by the attendance of many of the most distinguished military commanders of Europe. In the same year the Legislature of Virginia manifested the continued recollection of his services ren dered to the People of that Commonwealth by a complimentary token of gratitude not less honorable than it was unusual. They resolved that two busts of Lafayette, to be executed by the celebrated sculptor, Hou don, should be procured at their expense— that one of them should be placed in their own Legislative H ill, and the other presen ted, in their name, to the municipal authori ties of the city of Paris. It was accordingly presented by Mr. Jefferson, then Minister Plenipotentiary of the U. States, in France, and,by the permission of Louis the Sixteenth was.accepted.and,with appropriate solemni tv,placed in one of the Halls of the Hotel de Ville of the Metropolis of France. We have gone through with one stage of the life of Lafayette; we are now to see him acting upon another theatre—in a cause still essentially the same, but in the application of its principles to his own country. The immediate originating question which occasioned the French revolution was the same with that from which the American 4 eparted souls of 16 missed away ' ages are The their c►. 3. The i astniulll.ll sembly,rerresenting the People of France— Personal Liberty—Religious Liberty---=and a Representative Assembly of the People. These were his demands. The first and second of them produced, perhaps, at the time, no deep impression on the Assembly, nor upon the public. Arbi trary imprisonment, and the religious perse• cutions of the Protestants had become uni versally odious. They were worn-out in .truments even in the hands of those who wielded them. There was none to defend them. But the demand for a National Assembly startled the Prince at the head of the Bu reau. What! said the Count d'Artois, do you ask for the States General? Yes, Sir, was the answer of Lafayette, and for some thing yet better. You ddsire,then,replied the Prince,t hat 1 should take in writing,and re port to the King,that the motion to convoke the States General has been made by the Marquis de Lafayette? "Yes,Sir," and the name of Lafayette was accordingly reported to the King. The Assembly of the Notables was dis solved—De Calonne was displaced and ban• ished,and his succe undertook to raise the needed funds, by7Tie authority of Royal Edicts. The war of litigation with the Par liaments recommenced, which terminated only with a positive promise that the States General should be convoked. From that time a total revolution of Go vernment in France was in progress. It has been a solemn, a sublime,often a most pain. fill,and yet,in the contemplation of great re 3ults, a refreshing and cheering contempla tion. 1 cannot follow it in its overwhelming multitude of details, even as connected with the Life and Character of Lafayette. A se cond Assembly of Notables succeeded the first; and then an Assembly of the States General,first to deliberate in separate orders of Clergy, IsLibility, and Third Estate; but finally, constituting itself a National Assem bly, and forming a Constitution of limited Monarchy, with a hereditary Royal Execu tive,and a Legislature in a single Assembly representing the People. Lafiiyette was a member of the States General first assembled. Their meeting was signalized by a struggle between the several orders of which they were compos ed,which resulted in breaking them all down into one National Assembly. The convocation of the States General had, in one respect, operated, in the pro gress of the French Revolution, like the Declaration of Independence in that of North America. It had changed the question in controversy. It was on the part of the Kin g of France, a concession that he had no law. ful power to tax the People_without their consent: The States General, therefore, met with this admission already conceded by the King. In the Ameiican conflict the British Government never yielded the con cession. They undertook to maintain their supposed right ofarbitrary taxation by force; arid then the People of the Colonies renowi. Revolution had sprung—Taxation of the ced all community of Government, not only People without their consent. For nearly with the King and Parliament, but with the two centuries the Kings of Franco had been British Nation. They re-constructed the accustomed to levy taxes upon the People by I fabric of Government for themselves, and Royal Ordinances. But it was necessary I held the people of Britain as foreigners— that these Ordinances should be registered friends in peace—enemies in war. in the Parliaments or Judical Tribunals; and I The concession by Louis the Sixteenth, these Parliaments claimed the right of re• implied in the convocation of the States Gen monstrating against them, and sometimes eral, was a virtual surrender of absolute refused the registry of them itself. The , power —an acknowledgement that, as exer members of the Parliaments held their °fn. cised by himself and his predecessors, it had cos by purchase, hut were appointed by the ' been usurped. It was, in substance, an ab- King, and were subject to banishment or jut- dication of his Crown. There was no pow prisomnent, at his pleasure. Louis tile Filer which lie exercised as King of France, teetith,towards the close of his reign,liad a- the lawfulness of which was not contestable Ipiltsited the Parhaments,but they had been on the same principle which denied hiin the restored at the accession of his successor. right of taxation. When the Assembly of The finances of the Kingdom were in ex• (ream disorder. The Nliiiister,or Comptrol ler General, De Cilium!, after attenirting various projects for obtaining the supplies, the amomn and need of which he was with lavish hand daily nicreasing,bethouglit him- ,elf at last ()leaning for the counsel of oth ers. He prevailed upon the King to convoke, not the States General, but an Assembly of Notables. There was something ridi rufous in the very name by which this meet ing was called,but it consisted of a selection from all the Grandees and Dignitaries of the Kingdom. The two brothers of the King— all the Princes of the blood, Arch-bishops and Bishops, Dukes and Peers—the Chew cellar and Presiding Members of the Parlia ments; distinguished Members of the No. blesses and the Mayors Ai. Chief Magistrates of a few of the principal cities of the King domoconstituted this assembly. It was a re presnniat ion of every interest but that of the People. They wrre appointed by the King —were members of the highest Aristocra- cv,and were assembled with the, design that their deliberations should be confined exclu sively to the subjects submitt• d to their con- sideration by the Minister. These were cer.- tain plans devised by him fir replenishing the insolvent Treasury,by assessments upon the privileged classes,the very Princes,No hles, Ecclesiastics, and Magistrates exc!u sively represented in the Assembly itself. Of this meeting the Marquis de Lit .yeite was a member. It was held in February, 1787, and terminated in the overthrow and banishment of the Minister by whom it was convened. In the fiscal concerns which ab sorbed the care and attention of others, La filyette took comparatively little interest.— Ills viek‘s were mere comprehensive. The Assembly consisted of one hundred and, thirty-seven persons, and divided itself into seven sections or bureaux, each presid• ed by a Prince of the blood. Lafiyeite was allotted to the division under the Presidency of the Count d'Artois, the younger brother of the Kirr,and since known as Charles the Tenth. The propositions made by Lafay ette were— 1. The suppression of Lettres de Cachet, q abolition of all arbitrary imprison- the :States General met at Versailles, in %lay, 1769, there was but a shadow of the Royal authority left. They felt that the power of the Nation was in their hands, and they were riot sparing in the use ofit. The Represe;itatives ot the Third Estate, double in numbers to those of the Clergy and the Nobility, constituted themselves a National Assembly, and, as a signal for the demoli tion of all privileged orders, refused to de liberate in separate Chambers, and thus compelled the Representatives of the Clergy and Nubility to merge their separate exis tence in the general mass of the popular Representation. Thus the edifice of societv was to be re. constructed in France as it had been in A. The King made a feeble attempt menca to overawe the Assembly. by culling regi ments of troops to Versailles, and surround ing with them the hall of their meeting.— But there was defection in the army itself; and even the poison of the King soon ceased to be at his own disposal. On the 11 th of July, 1789, in the midst oldie fermentation which had succeeded tlo fall of the Monar chy, and while the Assembly was surround- ed by armed soldiers. Lafayette presented to them his Declaration of Rights—the first declaration of human rights ever proclaimed in Europe. It was adopted, and became the basis of that which the Assembly pro mulgated with their Constitution. It was in this hemisphere, and in our own count ry,t hat all principles had been imbibed. At the very moment when the Declaration was presented, the convulsive struggle be. tween the expiring Monarchy and the new born but portentous anarchy of the Parisian populace was taking place. The Royal Palace and the Hall of the Assembly were surrounded with troops, and insurrection was kindling at Paris. In the midst of the platter commotion, a deputation of sixty members, with Lafayette at their head, was sent from the Assembly to tranquilize the People of Paris, and that incident was the occasion of the institution of the National Guard throughout the Realm and of the appintment, with *the approbation .of the King, of Lafayette as their General Com- This evnr.t. without ~idler, M..... uuara was the armed militia of the whole Kingdom, embodied for the preservation of order, and the protection of persons tide-pro perty, as well as for the establishment of the liberties of the People. In his double ca pacity of Commander General of this force, and of a Representative in the Constituent Assembly, his career, for a period of more than three years, was beset with the most imminent dangers, and with difficulties be yond all human power to surmount. The ancient Monarchy of France had crumbled into ruins. A National Assem bly, formed by an irregular Representation of Clergy, Nobles, and Third Estate, after melting at the fire of a revolution into one body, had transformed itself into a Constitu ent Assembly representing the People, had assumed the exercise of all the powers of Government, extorted from the hands of the King, and undertaken to form a Constitution for the French Nation, founded at once up on the theory of human rights, and upon the preservation ofa royal hereditary Crown upon the head of Louis the Sixteenth. La fayette sincerely believed that such a system would not be absolutely inconovatible with the nature of things. An hereditary Mon archy, surrounded by popular Institutions, presented itself to his imagination as a prac ticable form of government; no. is it certain that even to his last had he ever abandoned this persuasion. The elemei,t of hereditary Monarchy in this Constitution was indeed not congenial with it. The prototype from which the whole fabric had been drawn,had no such element in its composition. A feel ing of generosity, of compassion, of com miseration with the unfortunate Prince then upon the throne, who had been his Sover eign, and for his ill-fated family, mingled it self, perhaps unconsciously to himself, with his well reasoned faith in the abstract prin ciples of a republican creed. The total abo lition of the monarchical feature undoubted ly belonged to his theory, but the family of Bourbon had still a strong hold on the afli!c. tions of the French People; History had not made up a record favorable to the establish. ment of elective Kings—a strong Executive Head was absolutely necessary to curb the impetuosities of the People of France; and the•same doctrine which** played upon the fancy, and crept upon the kind-hearted be nevolence of Lafayette, was adopted by ci large majority, of the National Assembly, sanctioned by the suffrages of its most intel ligent, virtuous, and patriotic members, and was finally embodied in that royal democ racy, the result of their labors, sent forth to the world, under the guaranty of number. less oaths, as the Constitution of France for all aflertime. But during the same period, after the first meeting of the States General, and while they were in actual conflict with the expiring energies of the Crown, and with the exelu. sive privileges of the Clergy and Nobility, another portentous power had arisen, anti entered with terrific activity into the con . . troverates of thi, time. This was the pow. "CONTINUED F.MIST VAQX
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