Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 01.djvu/43

, her ancestral relics destroyed, her people impoverished, her territory made the battle-ground for the rude shocks of contending hosts, and then divided, with hireling parasites, mockingly claiming jurisdiction and authority, the Old Dominion still stands with proud crest and defiant mien, ready to tramp beneath her heel every usurper and tyrant, and to illustrate afresh her sic semper tyrannis, the "proudest motto that ever blazed on a nation's shield or a warrior's arms."

To prevent such effects, our people are now prosecuting this struggle. It is no mere war of calculation, no contest for a particular kind of property, no barter of precious blood for filthy lucre. Everything involved in manhood, civilization, religion, law, property, country, home, is at stake. We fight not for plunder, spoils, pillage, territorial conquest. The Government tempts by no prizes of "beauty or booty," to be drawn in the lottery of this war. We seek to preserve civil freedom, honor, equality, firesides, and blood is well shed when "shed for our family, for our friends, for our kind, for our country, for our God." Burke said: "A State, resolved to hazard its existence rather than abandon its object, must have an infinite advantage over that which is resolved to yield, rather than carry its resistance beyond a certain point." It is better to be conquered by any other nation than by the United States. It is better to be a dependency of any other power than of that. By the condition of its existence and essential constitution, as now governed, it must be in perpetual hostility to us. As the Spanish invader burned his ships to make retreat impossible, so we cannot afford to take steps backward. Retreat is more dangerous than advance. Behind us are inferiority and degradation—before us is everything enticing to a patriot.

Our bitter and implacable foes are preparing vigorously for the coming campaign. Corresponding efforts should be made on our part. Without murmuring, our people should respond to the laws which the exigency demands. Every one capable of bearing arms should be connected with some effective military organization. The utmost energies of the whole population should be taxed to produce food and clothing, and a spirit of cheerfulness and trust in an all-wise and overruling Providence should be cultivated.

The history of the past three years has much to animate us to renewed effort, and a firmer and more assured hope. A whole people have given their hearts and bodies to repel the invader, and costly sacrifices have been made on the altar of our country. No