schel, without finding any trace of the wreck or of natives. 15. The object of the expedition being now accomplished, the Fox only waited till she could get away from the ice, and then returned to England, escaping with great difficulty the clutches of the "pack," which would fain have cut off her retreat.-J. H. Fyfe. LIX. — THE FIRST AMERICAN CONGRESS. THE HE interposition of Divine Providence was eminently conspicuous in the first general Congress. What men what patriots! what independent, heroic spirits! Chosen by the unbiased people, chosen, as all public servants ought to be, without favor and without fear, what an august assembly of sages! Rome, in the height of her glory, fades before it. 2. There never was, in any age or nation, a body of men, who, for general information, for the judicious use of the results of civil and political history, for eloquence and virtue, for true dignity, elevation, and grandeur of soul, could stand a comparison with the first American Congress! See what the people will do, when left to themselves, to their unbiased good sense, and to their true interests! The ferocious Gaul would have dropped his sword at the hall-door, and have fled, thunderstruck, as from an assembly of gods! 3. Whom do I behold? - A Hancock, a Jefferson, an Adams, a Henry, a Lee, a Rutledge! Glory to your immortal spirits! On you depend the destinies of your country, the fate of three millions of men, and of the countless millions of their posterity! Shall these be slaves, or will you make a noble stand for liberty, against a power whose triumphs are already co-extensive with the earth; whose legions trample on thrones and sceptres; whose thunders bellow on every ocean? How tremendous the occasion! How vast the responsibility! 4. The president and all the members of this august assembly take their seats. Every countenance tells the mighty struggle within. Every tongue is silent. It is a pause in nature, that solemn, awful stillness, which precedes the earthquake and tornado! At length, Demosthenes rises, he only is adequate to the great occasion,― the Virginian Demosthenes, the mighty Henry ! What dignity! What majesty! Every eye fastens upon him. Firm, erect, undaunted, he rolls on the mighty torrent of his eloquence. 5. What a picture he draws of the horrors of servitude, and the charms of freedom! At once, he gives the full rein to all his gigantic powers, and pours his own heroic spirit into the minds of his auditors; they become as one man actuated by one soul; and the universal shout is, "Liberty or Death!" This single speech, of this illustrious man, gave an impulse which probably decided the fate of America. - Jonathan Maxcy. LX.- INDEPENDENCE BELL. JULY 4, 1776. The Declaration of Independence was adopted by Congress, July 4, 1776. Congress, at that day, held its sessions in the Old State House, Philadelphia, a building generally known as Independence Hall, and which is still standing. In its tower was a bell imported from England for the purpose, on which were the words, cast in the metal, "Proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof." It is known as "Liberty Bell." When the motion for the adoption of the Declaration was pending, the old bellman stationed his boy at the door leading to the belfry, with instructions to notify him when the motion passed. As the door-keeper gave the lad notice of the passage of the Declaration, he cried out, "Ring! Ring! RING!" It was a time of great excitement, not only in Philadelphia, but throughout the entire land. "What of Adams?" "What of Sherman? "Oh, God grant they won't refuse!”. "Make some way there!" "Let me nearer!". 4. So they beat against the portal, And the July sun in heaven, On the scene, looked down and smiled; The same sun that saw the Spartan Shed his patriot blood in vain, Now beheld the soul of freedom, All unconquered, rise again. |