American Political Writing During the Founding Era: 1760–1805: Two Volume Paperback Set

73. Noah Webster, An Oration on the Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence

PolWritV2_1201-1250.indd 1220 2/23/12 2:22 PM [73} NoAH WEBsTER r7s8-r843 An Oration on the Anniversary of the Declaration of Independence NEW HAYEN , r8 0 2 Noah Webster, distant kin of the God-like Daniel, was no match for the younger (by twenty-three years) Webster in eloquence or in public acclaim. At the same time, the case can be made that Noah Webster contributed more to the original conceptions of republican government than did the more famous Daniel Webster. Not only did Noah have a twenty-three-year head start, but his use of the printed word allowed him to reach an audience larger than that of the orator Daniel Webster and to produce a more long-lasting effect. The current selection is a good case in point. Noah Webster wrote on almost every topic relevant to history, politics, education, and morals, and always he combined a fierce patriotism with an iconoclastic eye. Much as David Hume turned a clear-sighted eye on the standard ideas of his own rime in England, Webster here reconsiders the popular assumptions then current among Americans concerning their political system, and departs rather markedly in his conclusions. That Webster's conclusions are not far from those which many political scientists today would reach indicates that intellectual realism was one of the strains present in the writing of the founding era. AN ORATION The history of the first English settlements in America, and of the measures which prepared the way for a revolution in the colonies, is too interesting not to be well understood by men of common curiosity ( !22 0 } PolWritV2_1201-1250.indd 1221 2/23/12 2:22 PM ( I 22 I } NOAH WEBSTER I758-I843 and reading in this State. That history unfolds a series of great events, evidently suited to accomplish important purposes in the economy of Divine Providence . . . . events which every American of expanded views must contemplate with admiration; and every Christian, with delight. To recapitulate even the most remarkable of those events, however amusing and instructive the recital, would require more time than the appropriate business of this anniversary would afford. The day we are assembled to commemorate, summons the attention of American citizens to the history and the real objects of the revolution; to the national rights vindicated; to the dignity of character attached to the new sovereignty; to the duties imposed on the citizens, by their new rank and station among nations; to the errors which have been committed in framing the constitutions of the States and the federal compact; and especially to the means of preserving and perpetuating the benefits of Independence. [6] In the lapse of twenty six years, since the date of our sovereignty, a large proportion of the inhabitants of the United States have been changed. Most of the civil and military characters, conspicuous in the revolution, are now in their graves; and a new generation has arisen to guide the public councils, and to guard the blessings which their fathers have purchased. The experience of the same period of time, has drawn in question some opinions respecting the superior excellence of a republican government; and clouded the brilliant prospect which animated the hopes of the revolutionary patriots. Numerous unexpected difficulties in the management of this species of government, and multifarious disappointments, under the best administrations have arisen in thick succession, ::o confound the wisdom, and blast the hopes, of the most discerning friends of their country. To trace the causes of these disappointments, is to prevent a repetition of them , or prepare ourselves to meet them with advantage. It is worthy of observation, that nations sometimes begin their political existence, as young men begin the world, with more courage than foresight, and more enthusiasm than correct judgment. Unacquainted with the perils that await their progress, or disdaining the maxims of experience, and confident of their own powers, they expect to attain to supereminent greatness and prosperity, by means which other nations have found ineffectual, and bid defiance to calamities by which others have been overwhelmed . . ... Nations, like individuals, may be misled by an ardent enthusiasm, which allures them from the PolWritV2_1201-1250.indd 1222 2/23/12 2:22 PM [ 1222} NEW HAVEN, r8 o2 standard of practical wisdom, and commits them to the guidance of visionary projectors. By fondly cherishing the opinion that they enjoy some superior advantages of knowledge, or local situation, the...