The Enquirer

Extract from an Oration delivered in Manchester on the 4th of July, by Mr. P. F. T. Smith.

'Before I portray the characters of those illustrious statesmen and heroes, by whom our revolution was planned and conducted—before I enter upon that momentous series of disasters, which our fathers encountered in the holy cause of freedom, and which consigned so many of our beloved countrymen to the murderous prison-ship, or the gloomy mansions of the dead—permit me, Fellow-Citizens, to draw your attention, for a few moments, to the situation of our country previous to our bloody but successful struggles against the savage encroachments of Britain. Persecuted under her, had chosen it as her last, as her only asylum: unable to exist amidst the corruptions of the old world, hither, to the lonely wilds of America, she had retired with a few faithful followers, inspired with the cheering hope, that here, at least, her invaluable blessings might be enjoyed in peace and tranquility.

Vain, delusive idea! England, that 'royal throne of kings, that scepter'd isle,' envied and denied the act of greatness, to which her discarded offspring, sheltered by the nurturing wings of this celestial goddess, was about to arrive. She saw, that although she had refused to extend to them the protecting arm of justice, and had compelled them, by the most nefarious means to forsake their native realm, they were about to organize a republic, which clashing with her rude monarchy, would shake it to its centre. In short, she clearly foresaw, that the sun of reason, which was rising more intelligibly in the American hemisphere, if permitted to attain its zenith, would dissipate the mists of delusion, which had hitherto darkened the world: that the people, from whom all power emanates, and whose will is omnipotent, would no longer content to bend their necks to the galling yoke of slavery—and, of course, that the corrupting influence of the mightiest monarchs would, like the magi's castle, vanish forever.'

'No matter how splendid may be the robes, with which the despot may be invested—no matter how long his destructive reign may have been tolerated, suppose him seated on the throne of the east, protected, on the one hand, by a powerful priesthood, and, on the other, by a numerous and well-disciplined soldiery: the moment reason resumes her rightful sway in the human heart, the scepter falls from his 'nerveless grasp,' and his mock authority is forever demolished. For his palace is never reared but on the ruins of reason and morality. Ere he dare show his hideous head, mankind must be emasculated in the extreme by luxury, or must have lost sight of the 'inborn and deathless prerogative' of their nature. They must not only have never understood the true principles of government, but must also have been kept in a state of deplorable ignorance with respect to every other subject: for if ever permitted to begin the work of investigation, there is nothing which would escape their scrutinizing researches. In vain the tyrant might say to them, you may explore the boundless fields of Science, and cull its fairest flowers—you may examine the sublime phenomena of nature: but beware! respect not the sacred and mysterious institution of my empire—they would indignantly despise the naughty interdiction, and regard it no more than the passing wind which affects them not.'