Some gentlemen on this side of the chamber, in anticipation of the difficulties which now surround us, never assented to the treaty by which this territory was acquired; they preferred the hazard of a continuance of the war with Mexico rather than a peace which should bring territory along with it. Decatur, Stephen (American, 1751-1808.) "Right or wrong, Our Country»-Our Country! In her intercourse with foreign nations, may she always be in the right; but our Country, right or wrong.-( A toast in 1816.) Demosthenes (Greece, 384-322 B. C.) Exordium of the "Oration on the Crown »— I begin, men of Athens, by praying to every god and goddess that the same good-will which I have ever cherished toward the commonwealth and all of you, may be requited to me on the present trial. I pray likewise, and this specially concerns yourselves, your religion, and your honor, that the gods may put it in your minds not to take counsel of my opponent touching the manner in which I am to be heard, that would, indeed, be cruel!-but of the laws and of your oath, wherein (besides the other obligations) it is prescribed that you shall hear both sides alike. This means not only that you must pass no pre-condemnation, not only that you must extend your good-will equally to both, but also that you must allow the parties to adopt such order and course of defense as they severally choose and prefer. (320 B. C. Kennedy's translation.) Lord Brougham's Translation of the Exordium "On the Crown"- Let me begin, men of Athens, by imploring of all the heavenly powers, that the same kindly sentiments which I have, throughout my public life, cherished towards this country and each one of you, may now by you be shown towards me in the present contest! In two respects my adversary plainly has the advantage of me. First, we have not the same interests at stake it is by no means the same thing for me to forfeit your esteem, and for Eschines, an unprovoked volunteer, to fail in his impeachment. My other disadvantage is, the natural proneness of men to lend a pleased attention to invective and accusation, but to give little heed to him whose theme is his own vindication. To my adversary, therefore, falls the part which ministers to your gratification, while to me there is only left that which, I may almost say, is distasteful to all. And yet, if I do not speak of myself and my own conduct, I shall appear defenseless against his charges, and without proof that my honors were well earned. This, therefore, I must do; but it shall be with moderation. And bear in mind that the blame of my dwelling on personal topics must justly rest upon him who has instituted this personal impeachment. At least, my judges, you will admit that this question concerns me as much as Ctesiphon, and justifies on my part an equal anxiety. To be stripped of any possession, and more especially by an enemy, is grievous to bear; but to be robbed of your confidence and esteem,-of all possessions the most precious,— is, indeed, intolerable. Such, then, being my stake in this cause, I conjure you all to give ear to my defense against these charges, with that impartiality which the laws enjoin,-those laws first given by Solon, and which he fixed, not only by engraving them on brazen tables, but by the sanction of the oaths you take when sitting in judgment; because he perceived that, the accuser being armed with the advantage of speaking first, the accused can have no chance of resisting his charges, unless you, his judges, keeping the oath sworn before Heaven, shall receive with favor the defense which comes last, and, lending an equal ear to both parties, shall thus make up your minds upon the whole of the case. But, on this day, when I am about to render up an account, as it should seem, of my whole life, both public and private, I would again, as in the outset, implore the gods, and in your presence pour out to them my supplications,first, to grant me at your hands the same kindness, in this conflict, which I have ever borne towards our country and all of you; and next, that they may incline you all to pronounce upon this impeachment the decision which shall best consult the glory of the state, and the religious obligations of each individual judge! Peroration "On the Crown"-Two things, men of Athens, are characteristic of a welldisposed citizen,- so may I speak of myself and give the least offense :- In authority, his constant aim should be the dignity and preeminence of the commonwealth; in all times and circumstances his spirit should be loyal. This depends upon nature; power and might upon other things. Such a spirit, you will find, I have ever sincerely cherished. Only see. When my person was demanded-when they brought Amphictyonic suits against me-when they menaced-when they promised-when they set these miscreants like wild beasts upon me-never in any way have I abandoned my affection for you. From the very beginning I chose an honest and straightforward course in politics, to support the honor, the power, the glory of my fatherland, these to exalt, in these to have my being. I do not walk about the market place gay and cheerful because the stranger has prospered, holding out my right hand and congratulating those whom I think will report it yonder, and on any news of our own success shudder and groan and stoop to the earth, like these impious men who rail at Athens, as if in so doing they did not rail at themselves; who look abroad, and if the foreigner thrive by the distresses of Greece, are thankful for it, and say we should keep him so thriving to all time. Never, O ye gods, may those wishes be confirmed by you! If possible, inspire even in these men a better sense and feeling! But if Demosthenes- Continued they are, indeed, incurable, destroy them by themselves; exterminate them on land and sea; and for the rest of us, grant that we may speedily be released from our present fears, and enjoy a lasting deliverance !(Kennedy's translation.) "A Wicked Thing is a Calumniator » — A wicked thing, Athenians, a wicked thing is a calumniator, ever; querulous and industrious in seeking pretenses of complaint. But this creature is despicable by nature, and incapable of any trace of generous and noble deeds; ape of a tragedian, third-rate actor, spurious orator! For what, Eschines, does your eloquence profit the country? You now descant upon what is past and gone; as if a physician, when called to patients in a sinking state, should give no advice, nor prescribe any course by which the disease might be cured; but, after one of them had died, and the last offices were performing to his remains, should follow him to the grave, and expound how the poor man never would have died had such and such things only been done. Moonstricken! is it now that at length you too speak out? ("On the Crown." Brougham's translation.) Liberty Sold at Athens - Once, O Athenians, in the hearts of all our people, a sentiment presided, which is paramount no more; a sentiment which triumphed over Persian gold, and maintained Greece free, and invincible by land and sea; but the loss of that sentiment has brought down ruin, and left the country in the dust. What was it-this sentiment so powerful Was it the result of any subtle policy of state? No: it was a universal hatred for the bribed traitors, in the pay of those powers seeking to subdue or dishonor Greece! Venality was a capital offense, and punished with the extremest rigor. Pardon, palliation, were not thought of. And so, orators and generals could not with impunity barter those favorable conjunctures which fortune oftentimes presents to negligence and inactivity, against vigilance and vigor. The public concord, the general hatred and distrust of tyrants and barbarians, all the guarantees of liberty, were inaccessible to the power of gold. But now all these are offered for sale in the open market! And, in exchange, we have an importation of morals which are desolating and destroying Greece. What do they exhibit? Envy, for the recipient of base bribes; derision, should he confess his crime; pardon, should he be convicted; and resentment towards his accuser!-in a word, all the laxities which engender corruption. In vessels, in troops, in revenues, in the various resources of war, in all that constitutes the strength of a state, we are richer than ever before; but all these advantages are paralyzed, crushed, by an infamous traffic. And all this you behold with your own eyes, and my testimony in regara to it is quite superfluous! ("On the Crown." Sargent's translation.) The Orator's Greatest Crime - And who is it that deceives the state? Surely the man who speaks not what he thinks. On whom does the crier pronounce a curse? Surely on such a man. What greater crime can an orator be charged with than that his opinions and his language are not the same? Such is found to be your character. And yet you open your mouth, and dare to look these men in the face! (Against Eschines. From the "Oration on the Crown.") How to Avoid Censure-The readiest and surest way to get rid of censure, is to correct ourselves. "Consider Whether You Are Not the Country's Enemy"-Consider, Eschines, whether you are not in reality the country's enemy, while you pretend to be only mine. Let us look at the acts of the orator rather than at the speech. He who pays his court to the enemies of the state does not cast anchor in the same roadstead with the people. He looks elsewhere than to them for his security. Such a man-mark me!-am not I. I have always made common cause with the people, nor have I shaped my public course for my individual benefit. Can you say as much? Can you? You, who, instantly after the battle, repaired as ambassador to Philip, the author of all our calamities; and this after you had declared loudly, on previous occasions, against engaging in any such commission,-as all these citizens can testify! What worse charge can anyone bring against an orator than that his words and his deeds do not tally? Yet you have been discovered to be such a man; and you still lift your voice and dare to look this assembly in the face! Think you they do not know you for what you are? or that such a slumber and oblivion have come over them all as to make them forget the speeches in which, with oaths and imprecations, you disclaimed all dealings with Philip, and declared that I falsely brought this charge against you from personal enmity? And yet, no sooner was the advice received of that fatal -O! that fatal-battle, than your asseverations were forgotten, your connection publicly avowed! You affected to have been Philip's friend and guest. Such were the titles by which you sought to dignify your prostitution! But read here the epitaph inscribed by the state upon the monument of the slain, that you may see yourself in it, Æschines, unjust, calumnious, and profligate. Read! "These were the brave, unknowing how to yield, Who, terrible in valor, kept the field Against the foe; and, higher than life's breath Prizing their honor, met the doom of death, Our common doom-that Greece unyoked might stand, Nor shuddering crouch beneath a tyrant's hand. Such was the will of Jove; and now they rest Peaceful enfolded in their country's breast. Do you hear, Eschines? It pertains only to the gods to control fortune and command suc cess. To them the power of assuring victory to armies is ascribed,-not to the statesman, but to the gods. Wherefore, then, execrable wretch, wherefore upbraid me with what has happened? Why denounce against me, what may the just gods reserve for the heads of you and yours!-("On the Crown.") Depew, Chauncey M. (American, 1834-.) "Liberty Enlightening the World"- American liberty has been for a century a beacon light for the nations. Under its teachings and by the force of its example, the Italians have expelled their petty and arbitrary princelings and united under a parliamentary government; the gloomy despotism of Spain has been dispelled by the representatives of the people and a free press; the great German race has demonstrated its power for empire and its ability to govern itself. The Austrian monarch, who, when a hundred years ago, Washington pleaded with him across the seas for the release of Lafayette from the dungeon of Olmutz, replied that "he had not the power," because the safety of his throne and his pledges to his royal brethren of Europe compelled him to keep confined the one man who represented the enfranchisement of the people of every race and country, is to-day, in the person of his successor, rejoicing with his subjects in the limitations of a constitution which guarantees liberties, and a congress which protects and enlarges them. Magna Charta, won at Runnymede for Englishmen, and developing into the principles of the Declaration of Independence with their descendants, has returned to the mother country to bear fruit in an open parliament, a free press, the loss of royal prerogative, and the passage of power from the classes to the masses. (1886.) Dering, Sir Edward (England, 1598-1644.) The Bottomless Pit of Error-One absurdity leads to a thousand, and when you are down the hill of error there is no bottom but in hell, and that is bottomless, too. De Ségur, Louis Phillipe (France, 1753-1830.) The Lesson of History - Everywhere shall you recognize the proof of this antique maxim, that, in the end, only what is honest is useful; that we are truly great only through justice, and entirely happy only through virtue. Time dispenses equitably its recompenses and its chastisements; and we may measure the growth and the decline of a people by the purity or corruption of their morals. Virtue is the enduring cement of the power of nations; and without that, their ruin is inevitable! (Sargent's translation.) Deseze, Raymond (France, 1748-1828.) Nations and Their Right of Revolution Nations are sovereigns; they are at liberty to assume any species of government that appears most agreeable to themselves. After having recognized and discovered the badness of their ancient form, they may enact for themselves a new one; this is a position which one of the council of Louis procured the insertion of in the constitutional code. But the whole nation cannot exercise the sovereignty; it is necessary, therefore, that it should delegate the exercise of it. (1792. At the trial of Louis XVI.) Dewey, Orville (American, 1794-1882.) Demosthenes and His Growth-That mighty energy, though it may have heaved in the breast of Demosthenes, was once a feebie, infant thought. A mother's eye watched over its dawnings. A father's care guarded its early youth. It soon trod, with youthful steps, the halls of learning, and found other fathers to wake and to watch for it, even as it finds them here. It went on, but silence was upon its path, and the deep strugglings of the inward soul silently ministered to it. The elements around breathed upon it, and "touched it to finer issues." The golden ray of heaven fell upon it and ripened its expanding faculties. The slow revolution of years slowly added to its collected energies and treasures, till, in its hour of glory, it stood forth embodied in the form of living, commanding, irresistible eloquence. The world wonders at the manifestation, and says: "Strange, strange that it should come thus unsought, unpremeditated, unprepared!" But the truth is, there is no more a miracle in it than there is in the towering of the pre-eminent forest tree, or in the flowing of the mighty and irresistible river, or in the wealth and waving of the boundless harvest. Exclusiveness-Why should those who are surrounded with everything that heart can wish, or imagination conceive, the very crumbs that fall from whose table of prosperity might feed hundreds, why should they sigh amidst their profusion and splendor? They have broken the bond that should connect power with usefulness. and opulence with mercy. That is the reason. They have taken up their treasures and wandered away into a forbidden world of their own, far from the sympathies of suffering humanity. Dexter, Samuel (American, 1761-1816.) Self-Defense - It is more dangerous for the laws to give security to a man disposed to commit outrages on the persons of his fellowcitizens than to authorize those who must otherwise meet irreparable injury to defend themselves at every hazard. Men of eminent talents and virtues, on whose exertions in perilous times the honor and happiness of their country must depend, will always be liable to be degraded by every daring miscreant, if they cannot defend themselves from personal insult and outrage. (In the case of Selfridge.) Dickinson, Daniel S. (American, 1800-1866.) The Constitution the Soul of the UnionI sing no hosannas to a Union without a con stitution. I admit that when the life and spirit have departed, the framework will be valueless and will tumble to decay. But the spirit has not yet departed— the life is not yet gone. It is true it has received many assaults, but it is capable of receiving and sustaining many more. - (1850.) Dickinson, John (American, 1732-1808.) Peroration of the Declaration on Taking Up Arms in 1775-We have not raised armies with ambitious designs of separating from Great Britain and establishing independent States. We fight not for glory or for conquest. We exhibit to mankind the remarkable spectacle of a people attacked by unprovoked enemies, without any imputation or even suspicion of offense. They boast of their privileges and civilization, and yet proffer no milder conditions than servitude or death. In our own native land, in defense of the freedom that is our birthright, and which we ever enjoyed till the late violation of it,- for the protection of our property, acquired solely by the honest industry of our forefathers and ourselves, against violence actually offered, we have taken up arms. We shall lay them down when hostilities shall cease on the part of the aggressors, and all danger of their being renewed shall be removed, and not before. With an humble confidence in the mercies of the supreme and impartial Judge and Ruler of the universe, we most devoutly implore his divine goodness to protect us happily through this great conflict, to dispose our adversaries to reconciliation on reasonable terms, and thereby to relieve the empire from the calamities of civil war. Didon, Père Henri (France, 1840-1900.) "Higher Criticism »-We must not confound criticism with history. Though inseparable from each other, they must remain distinct. In its general sense criticism is the exercise of the judgment, a faculty essential in all reasonable beings. To criticize and to judge are synonymous terms. For judgment as criticism first tries to discern the true from the false. This is the first right and the most necessary duty of the mind. Whatever the domain it explores, religion, philosophy, science, literature, æsthetics, even in mathematics, reason must be attentive to discern the real from the apparent, the true, sometimes unapparent, from the false, which is frequently most plausible. Criticism, therefore, cannot be a special science. It is rather a condition of all science. It enters into the logical rules which determine how men shall think fairly and judge justly. These simple considerations demonstrate the vanity of those who would arrogate a monopoly of criticism. The school of criticism is the school of all the world. Each has a right to claim and to exercise it. The most ordinary temptation of the cultivated mind is to desire to criticize too much, to overjudge, to criticize even that of which he knows nothing. The sage moderates this intem "Finding America » — A man may see American countries from the pine wastes of Maine to the slopes of Sierra; may talk with American men and women, from the sober citizens of Boston to Digger Indians in California; may eat of American dishes, from jerked buffalo in Colorado to clambakes on the shores near Salem; and yet, from the time he first "smells the molasses » at Nantucket light-ship to the moment when the pilot quits him at the Golden Gate, may have no idea of an America. You may have seen the East, the South, the West, the Pacific States, and yet have failed to find America. It is not till you have left her shores that her image grows up in the mind. Dinarchus (Greece, 361-291 B. C.) Demosthenes Denounced-Let us no longer suffer by the corrupt and pernicious conduct of Demosthenes. Let it not be imagined that we shall ever want good men and faithful counselors. With all the generous severity of our ancestors, let us punish the man whose bribery. whose treason, are unequivocally detected; who could not resist the temptation of gold; who in war has proved himself a coward, in his civil conduct a busybody; who, when his fellow citizens are called forth to meet their enemies in the field, flies from his post, and hides himself at home; when the danger is at home, and his aid is demanded here, pretends that he is an embassador, and runs from the city! Let this man no longer amuse you with airy hopes and false representations, and promises which he forgets as soon as uttered! Let not his ready tears and lamentations move you! Reserve all your pity for your country: your country, which his practices have undone,your country, which now implores you to save it from a traitor's hand. When he would waken all your sympathy for Demosthenes, then turn your eyes on Athens. Consider her former glory. Contrast it with her present degradation! And ask yourselves whether Demosthenes has been reduced to greater wretchedness by Athens, or Athens by Demosthenes! - (From an oration delivered at Athens against Demosthenes, c. 324 B. C.) Dix, John A. (American, 1798–1879.) Religion and Civilization - The influence of Christianity upon the political condition of mankind, though silent and almost imperceptible, has doubtless been one of the most powerful instruments of its amelioration. The principles and the practical rules of conduct which it prescribes; the doctrine of the natural equality of men, of a common origin, a common responsibility, and a common fate; the lessons of humility, gentleness and forbearance, which it teaches, are as much at war with political as Dix, John A.- Continuea they are with all moral injustice, oppression, and wrong. "Shoot Him on the Spot" - If anyone attempt to haul down the American flag, shoot him on the spot. (A telegram sent January 29th, 1861.) Dod, Albert B. (American, 1805-1845.) Truth and Error - We never think of working a permanent good in any other way than by instilling the truth; nor do we ever dream that error would answer our purpose equally well, if we could only succeed in making it pass for truth. Any man would spurn the shameless effrontery of the scorner who should tell him that the good of society and of its individual members would be equally well promoted by teaching them to lie and steal and murder, provided we could only persuade them that these things were right. That men can be elevated in their moral character, or in any way benefitted by being taught to receive error as truth, is as monstrous an absurdity and as palpable a contradiction to all the lessons of experience as can be conceived. Man is so made as to be swayed to good only by the truth. His moral nature cannot respond to any other influence. Dorset, the Earl of (England, 1591-1652.) Against Prynne in the Star Chamber - Mr. Prynne, your iniquity is full, it runs over, and judgment is come; it is not Mr. Attorney that calls for judgment against you, but it is all mankind; they are the parties grieved, and they call for judgment. Mr. Prynne, I do declare you to be a schism maker in the Church, a sedition sower in the commonwealth, a wolf in sheep's clothing; in a word, omnium malorum nequissimus. I shall fine you ten thousand pounds sterling, which [addressing the other lords] is more than he is worth, yet less than he deserveth; I will not set him at liberty no more than a plagued man or a mad dog, who though he cannot bite, he will foam; he is so far from being a sociable soul that he is not a rational soul; he is fit to live in dens with such beasts of prey as wolves and tigers like himself. Therefore, I do condemn him to perpetual imprisonment, as those monsters that are no longer fit to live among men nor to see light. Now for corporal punishment, my lords, whether I should burn him in the forehead, or slit him in the nose? He that was guilty of murder was marked in a place where he might be seen, as Cain was. I should be loath he should escape with his ears, for he may get a periwig, which he now so much inveighs against, and so hide them, or force his conscience to make use of his unlovely love-locks on both sides. Therefore, I would have him branded in the forehead, slit in the nose, and his ears cropped too. Dougherty, Daniel (American, 1826-1889.) "Hancock the Superb "-I propose to present to the thoughtful consideration of the con vention the name of one who, though on the field of battle he was styled "The Superb," won still nobler renown as a military governor, whose first act when in command of Louisiana and Texas was to salute the Constitution by proclaiming that military rule shall ever be subservient to the civil power. The plighted word of the soldier was made good by the acts of the statesman.- (Cincinnati Convention, 1880.) Douglass, Frederick (American, 1817-1895.) The Right to Speak Out-No right was deemed by the fathers of the government more sacred than the right of speech. It was in their eyes, as in the eyes of all thoughtful men, the great moral renovator of society and governDaniel Webster called it a homebred right, a fireside privilege. Liberty is meaningless where the right to utter one's thoughts and opinions has ceased to exist. That, of all rights, is the dread of tyrants. It is the right which they first of all strike down. They know its power. Thrones, dominions, principalities, and powers, founded in injustice and wrong, are sure to tremble, if men are allowed to reason of righteousness, temperance, and of a judgment to come in their presence. —(1860.) ment. Douglas, Stephen A. (American, 1813-1861.) His Last Words in Politics-I am not prepared to take up arms, or to sanction a policy of our government to take up arms, to make any war on the rights of the Southern States, on their institutions, on their rights of person or property, but, on the contrary, would rush to their defense and protect them from assault; but, while that is the case, I will never cease to urge my countrymen to take arms to fight to the death in defense of our indefeasible rights. Hence, if a war does come, it is a war of selfdefense on our part. It is a war in defense of our own just rights; in defense of the government which we have inherited as a priceless legacy from our patriotic fathers; in defense of our great rights of freedom of trade, commerce, transit, and intercourse from the centre to the circumference of this great continent. My friends, I can say no more. To discuss these topics is the most painful duty of my life. It is with a sad heart, with a grief that I have never before experienced, that I have to contemplate this fearful struggle; but I believe in my conscience that it is a duty we owe to ourselves, our children, and our God, to protect this government and that flag from every assailant, be he who he may. - (1861. ) Dow, Lorenzo (American, 1777-1834.) The Contrasts of Life-The whitest foam dances upon the darkest billow, and the stars shine the brightest when surrounded by the blackest of thunder clouds, even as a diamond pin glistens with the greatest effulgence when fastened upon the ebony bosom of an Ethiopian wench. So hope mirrors its most brilliant rays in the dark wave of despair, and happiness is never so complete as when visited occasionally by the ministers of misery. These ups and |