Newspapers / The Weekly Standard (Raleigh, … / March 18, 1846, edition 1 / Page 1
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"2 3 TERMS. THE NORTH CAROLINA STANDARD IS PUBLISHED WEEKLY, AT THREE DOLLARS PER ANNUM ZiT AbTANCE. Those persons who remit by Mail (postage paid) Five Dollars, will be entitled to a receipt for Six Dollars or two years' subscription to the Standard one co py two years, or two copies one year. For four copies, : : $1 JJ " : : : 20 00 Iwenty " : : : : 35 00 The same rate for six moths. . ftj-Any person procuring and forwarding- five subscri bers with the cash ($15,) will be entitled to the Stand ard one year free of charge. Advertisements not exceeding fourteen tines, will be inserted one time (ox One Dollar, and twenty-five cents for each subsequent insertion ; those of great er leneth. in proportion. Court Orders and Judici al Advertisement will be charged twenty-five per cent higher than the above rates. A deduction of 33 1-3 per cent, will be made to those who advertise by the year. Qc5If the number of msertionsbe not mark ed on them, they will be continued until ordered out. Letters to the Editor must come free of postage, or they may not be attended to. r , - - -j u- ? The Protective System Considered in connection with the present Tariff, in a series of twelve essays, originally published in the Washington Union over the signature of"Bundel ewid. " ( Written by the Hon. Edmund Burke ) No. 4. The present tariff considered. It is a protective tariff in ail its features. Duties ad valorem, minimum, and specific. Tiose terms explained. Injustice and oppression practiced under the minimum and specific duties. Illus trations by fads. In my last communication I attempted to ex plain the principles which mark and distinguish a tariff for revenue from one for protection, defin- ing what I deemed a revenue and what a protec tive tariff In this number I propose to consider the funda mental principles and the peculiar characteristics - . i . rf i i . I I of the existing tariff, which is the only surviving monument of the in? orious and disastrous reign ' of whiggery in 1842 exccDt a National Debt of $17,000,000. In the first place, it is, in all its leading features, a protective tariff". Deducting a conclusion from its most important provisions, it was enacted main ly for the express purpose of benefitting and en riching the manufacturing capitalists of the coun trv at the exnense of all olhrr classes of our citi- zons. It is a MA IN U fAU 1 U HfiK d ia- RIFF devised by the manufacturers, voted for j in Congress by manufacturers, and designed to ! benefit manufacturing capital and other capital at 1 V w . -m. T T t . r W T W Tt T" f"l I ' A I the expense of consumption and labor, ll u is- criminates in favor of the manutacturer, against the nroduee.r of the raw material, who is the far- iner. It also discriminates in favor of the rich consumer against ihe poor consumer. Its whole : tendency is to build up and fortify capital in this(ed country ; thus establishing the basest, most soruia, most grovelling of all aristocracies a moneyed aristocracy at the expens meat and degradation of the This is its character, and th careful and thorough analy will most clearlv prove; It is my purpose to go into this analysis, and to demonstrate the pro positions I have laid down. Admitting, duty free, articles imported for the benefit of the United States, philosophical appara tus for schools and colleges, certain articles used by the manufacturers in their business, tea and coffee, (improperly exempted from duty, in conse- quence of the injudicious appeals, pernaps, or par tisans of both parties to the prejudices of the peo ple,) gold and silver, and a few minor articles, it imposes on all other articles raters of duty reduced to ad valorem, ranging from about 2 per cent, to over 300 per cent., as appears from actual impor tations since its passage. The duties which it imposes are of three de scriptions, viz: ad valorem, minimum, and spe cific. In order to enable those not conversant with the precise meaning of these tern3, il is ne cessary that I should go into a brief explanation of them, illustrating, by the way, the justice of the first, and the injustice and enormity of the two last f. The ad valorem duty. The term "ad valo rem " is a Latin term, which means in proportion to the value. Thus, when a commodity is charg ed with a duty of 30 per cent, ad valorem, the im porter has to "pay at the custom-house $30 for eve ry hundred of its value. If the duty is 20 per cent., he pays $20 for every $100; and, if 40 per cent.. $40 for every $100 in value of the arti cle imported. Thus it is evident that this descrip tion of duty is a just and an honest duty. If the articles are of a cheap description, they are of less value, and, of course pay less duty. If they are valuable and costly, they pay a higher duty in proportion. Each person who purchases the ar ticles imported, whether cheap or dear, pays a du ty only in proportion to its value. To illustrate more clearly : Suppose that silks were charged with a duty of 30 per cent, ad valorem, and that two pieces were imported one valued at 50 cents ner yard, the other at $1. Under this description of duty, the person who purchased a yard of the cheap silk would have to pay only 15 cents duty ; while the person who bought the dear silk would have to pay 30 cents just double the amount because the value is double; but both articles paying only a duty of 30 per cent, ad valorem. Thus an ad valorem duty, whatever may be the rate, falls equally and impartially upon all con sumers the high and the low, the rich and the poor. It is the only kind of duty which an hon est, republican people should ever submit to or tolerate. 2. The minimum duty. This, in the language of the frainers of the tariff of 1842, is also called an ad valorem duty; but, while pretending to that character, it is a mere mendacious, fraudu lent, and cheating legislative device to collect a duly, in some instances four or five limes higher than it professes to collect. It is also a Latin word, which means the smallest quantity possible. In the present tariff it applies only to cotton fab rics and yarns. There are three mini mums which apply to fabrics, all or a part of which are cotton, viz: the 20 cents. 30 cents, and 35-cents minimums: and two which apply to cotton yarns, viz: the 60-cents and 75-cents minimums. The following is the mode in which these minimum, duties are levied. To explain the method, I will take, for instance, coarse cotton shirt ings which cost 3 eents per yard in England. The present tariff professes lo levy on all cotton manufactures, coarse as well as fine, imported into this country, only a duty of 30 per cent, ad j consumer, that the sordid and purse-proud manu valorem that is. $30 for every 8100 of value im-; facturing capitalist calls upon the country to sus- ported. If, however, that were the actual duty, levied on manufactures of cotton, the cloth above yard, I would pay a duty of bat 9 mills. The impor ter enters the cloth at the custom-house, and offers to pay the duty of 9 mills per yard, which would be 30 per cent, ad valorem, the collector tells him he must pay 6 cents, instead of 9 mills. The im porter asks him why he demands 6 cents per yard duty, when the law; says it shall be taxed only 30 per cent ad valorem, which is only 9 mills? The collector replies: "True, the law says you shall pay only 30 per cent on your cloth : but it also says for the purpose of 'protec ting Abbott Lawrence who is worth a million of dollars; Nathan Appleton, worth another mil lion; Samuel Appleton, woith another million; and numerous others, worth hundreds of thou sands each, manufacturers of cotton that all cost- ! ing less than 20 cents a square yard, snail be as I turned lo have cost 20 cents : and on that 20 cents I.I J..... ...4 U '.A ...lii.k la A inis Mow uic uuiy uiuai ue puiu, wuiu jo j wwm j you paid, it is true, but 3 cents in England for your cloth; but the tar if says, for the purpose of protecting the aforesaid manufacturers, that you paid 20 cents, which is the minimum, or least pos sible prices the tariff supposes you have paid ; and, therefore, 30 per cent, on 20 cents is 6 cents ; and, instead of 9 mills, you must pay 6 cents du ty." The importer replies : " Then, sir, while the tariff pretends to tax me only 30 per cent., by stating a falsehood in assuming that my cloth cost 20 cents a square yard, instead of 3 cents it ac tually, under this device of a minimum duty, taxes me 200 per cent 1 1" He then consoles himself with the reflection, that, in the end, he shall not pay that enoimous duty ; but he will add it to the cost oj the cloth, ana will mace tne poor man wno buys the cloth pay it. Thus, through this men- dacious, fraudulent, and cheating invention of min imums. is the consumer defrauded of a duly equal to 200 per cent., while the tariff pre tends to exact onlv 30 ner cent, of him. This illustration ex- plains the principle ol a minimum auty. . J . r - . . . . . . . The ef- fcci of this enormous duty is to exclude the coarse ration c oths from our market, ana to leave to me Amcrican manufacturer of the article a complete monopoly of their sale. As I have before marked, there are three min imums applicable to fabrics of which cotton is a component part, and two applicable to cotton yarns. They are, in substance, as follows: 1 On all manufactures of cotton, or which cot- a i 1 m ton is a component part, not dyed, coiorea, print 1 . I I 1 .... L If 1 A VnP ed, or staineu, not exceeaing in vaiue u crow yc square yard, shall be valued at 20 cents per square yard ;" and on that assumed value a duty of 30 per cent, is imposrd, which amounts to 6 cents on every square yard. On all fabrics of the same description, if dyed colored, orinted. or stained, in whole or in part, not exceeding in value 30 cents, shall be valued at 30 cents the square yard ; and on that assum- value a duty ot 30 per cent is imposea, wnicn amounts to 9 cents on every square vara ' On vnluota rnrri ran c ;ms. lUSlianS. DUnulO . . .-'.. , - - i rr- i I : J amounts to 10 cents 5 mills is imposeu., wuiuu per square yard Cotton twist, yarn, and thread, unbleached and 1 uncolort d, costing less than 60 cents per pound, ! shall be valued at 60 cents per pound; and on J that assumed value, a duty ol 30 per cent, (lo per cents per pound) is imposed. . On the same articles, bleached or colored, cost- mentioned, costing- in England 3 cents V . I V t WO , VW J V"- J - J " i e of the impoverish- cloths, of which cotton is a component pan, or ; ffers on the throat ol the teacher, so as to teel tlie on tne otn ana Din 01 ucioocr, rey, when, as w -.'v?t? "Ulr- "u nasi "1CV WCIC ",lul,,ltui masses of the people. 1 goods manufactured by napping, or raising, cm- voice, and then by placing them on his own, lor commanaer ot tne national tjuaras, he protected -y"j 1,11 peu ui utu ueuim, is is its tendency, as a tin or shearing, not exceeding in value 3d cents me same purpose, by imitating the motions of the them from the populace who had assailed them in naa oDiainea permission, unaer cnarge ol an arm- . . . I . . mm' m t . r r m ft I i 1 . mm 9 1.1 . I f tt - 1 1 C-.l . 1 . V A I on rviinrfl in tilrn rlflill- r V r. ir l ii itkni.l tlia tun Ho sis of all its provisions ner square yard, snail be valued ai no cems ; teacher 8 lips ana tongue ana jaws ana ny sum-; me paiace m rersniiirs. Bonwoujl wBifle pre'')l7 7i'w"j """ imi: . now. un. nn ihit ns5nmrr ue a autv or ner cent, -ir mranf. comes at last to uiter tne eicmeniarv Kinj was uenoseu anu lmnrisoneu aipi; . lJ'Z. i-.vio .... cmuit .u uou ui uuuu.', f, I I . W." ... - J ; - 1 J J 7 I ing less than 75 cents and over 60 cents per pound, ; musical modulation nor expressive accent in their to seek his own safely by flying from the king shall be valued at 75 cents per pound; and on 'speech; but I was agreeably surprised at the gen- dom. thai assumed value a duty of 30 per cent (22 J era absence of every thing positively disagreeable He and the officers of kindred sentiments by cents 5 mills per pound) is imposed. lor offensive. You will be satisfied that they can j whom he was accompanied, had scarcely passed The duties actually paid on importations in-1 he taught lo speak distinctly enough, when I tell j the frontier, when their farther progress was ar der the minimums in the present tariff, reduced to you that at Berlin, I understood at once and with- rested by a body of the Limburg volunteers ; and real ad valorem duties, range from 30 to 162 per out difficulty, the short and simple sentences of a , the national cockade, which, unthinkingly, they cent., as appears by the report of the Committee ! jtte girl in answer to her teacher. He asked had retained, betraying them to the leader, they of Ways and Means of the House of Represen- her how many brothers and sisters she had, to j were, by his command, arrested and conveyed to tatives, during the 1st session of the 26th Con-1 which she readily answered, and then gave their i the' prison"bTLuxeniburg, from thence removed gress, being documeni 306. I names. She then told him the color of the table, j to Wessel, then to Magdeburg, and lastly to Ol- But, in all arguments, I prefer the logic of its shape, saying it is not round, it is square, the ! mutz. facts and figures to mere theories or assertions; kind of wood of which it was made, and so on. On the plea of Lafayette having been seized on and in this instance I have them before me. 1 1 it requires a long time, and a good deal of prac- neutral ground, and that, having ceased to be a have before me samples of seven different fabrics, j tice, for an Englishman or American lo become , soldier, he could not properly be considered a in whole or in part manufactured of cotton, all j enough accusiomed to German, merely to catch . prisoner of war, strenuous efforts from all quar coming into the country subject to the minimum j and make out the words, although their enuncia- j ters were made to obtain his release ; but the em duties above specified, and which were purchased tion is generally much clearer and more distinct j peforof Germany, who regarded him as a princi in England by an eminent importer of Boston. I than our own. I was, a few days ago, in the j pal instigator of the Revolution, as well as one of shall give the name of the article, cost, and duties, ! Catholic Church in Dresden, w hile the priest the chief instruments of the insulting degradation in his own words. They are as follows: J wilh a very clear voice and a sharp clean utter- and fibsequent death of ihe royal family of 'France, "No. 1 is composed of cotton nnd worsted, is . ance, was preaching, and I could make oul only was not to be moved. The vengeance of Robes called Orleans cloth, is one yard wide, cost in few of his words; and still I understood readily pierre for the Joss of his victim was, meanwhile, England 14 cents per yard, and pays 9 cents the the simple sentences of the little deaf and dumb wreaked with savage inveteracy against the unfor yard duty, or 65 per cent, 'girl at Berlin; L. and Mrs. S. were with me tunate wife of Lafayette; for no sooner was the " No. 2 is also composed of cotton and worsted, during my visit to ihe Berlin school, and were escape of her husband known, than that unhappy is called mousselin de laine. cost in England 8 3-4 both of them more delighted nnd interested than lady was arrested and thrown into prison. She cents per yard, is 23 inches wiae, pays o - cents duty, or 66 per cent No 3 is ihe same material, usca lor linings, called Verona serge, cost in England 11 cents per yard, is 23 inches wide, and pays 5 7 b cents duty, or 53 per cent. " No. 4 is composed of cotton, is called u ging ham," is 7-8 of a yard wide, costs in Englnnd 1 1 cents per yard, pays 7 7-8 cents, or 71 1-2 per cent. " No. 5 is composed of cotton and worsted, cost in England 12 cents per yard, measures 1 yard wide, pays 9 cents per yard duty, or 75 per cent. This description of goods is called " Parisians." " No. 6. This article is composed entirely of cotton, is called ' sarsnet cambric,' and is used for lining women's dresses; il costs in England 5 cents 6 mills per yard, measures 92-100 of a yard in width, pays 13 cents 3 mills per yard duty, or 148 per cent!! This (the merchant adds) a mounts to nearly a prohibition ; still a few are im ported, and pays this abominable duty for the ben efit of the manufacturer. " No. 7 is white cambric,' all cotton, costs 7 cents a yard in England, measures 90-100 of a yard in width, and pays 5 cents 4 mills per yard duty, or 78 per cent," All these fabiics, except the last, come under the second or 30-cents minimum. The last one comes under the first or 20 cents minimum, which is totally prohibitive as to the coarse cotton cloths. Further, it will be seen that all the' articles above described ore worn and used almost entirely by the poor and middling classes of the community. Well may the importer, in the fervor of his in dignation, denounce such taxation upon the poor mWlftlir.tr e.lnsses ns " abominable !" But it is a tariff containing such abominable impositions and oppressions upon the poor nnd unsuspecting tain! It is the poor who wear gtngnams cheap " mousseline de lainei," " Parisians, and " Orleans cloths, made of cotton and worsted, and "sarsnet cambrics tor cioaK linings, wmcn are loaded down with these enormous duties, rang ing from 53 to 148 per cent, ad valorem. And it is the courteous, polite, high-minded, magnanim ous manufacturer, who desires, through the aid of a mendacious, fraudulent, cheating device, in the tariff laws of his country, to exact these enorm ous duties (which serve the double purpose of giving a revenue to Government and a bounty to himself) from poor men and women, while it pre tends only to tax them 30 percent. Out upon such legislative fraud, such shameful knavery ! What effect can such base practices have upon the moral characters of those who are guilty of them? Can the representatives of the people hesitate to blot such infamous provisions from the revenue system of a republican nation, the funda mental principle of whose institutions and laws is justice and equality f I cannot doubt it It remains to be seen whether a democratic Con gress will longer tolerate a tariff system contain ing such iniquitous provisions. 1 designed to explain the device of specific du- lies in this communication, but it has already transcended the limits Ihad assigned to it, In my next I shall take that subject up, and, in con nexion with it, show that the present tariff dis criminates in favor of the manufacturer against the farmer or producer of the raw material, and in favor of the rich against the poor ; thus bene fitting capital aLne, and tending to build up in this country that roost mercenary, most selfish, and basest of alt aristocracies a moneyed aris tocracy. BUNDELCUND. From the Lowell Courier. Deaf and Dumb Institutions of Germany, c. Vienna, Oct. 30th, 1845. Mr. jSchouIer My Dear Sir : I will devote my present letter principally to a description of my visit to the German institutions for teaching the deaf and dumb to speak. I must confess, that be fore leaving home, I had but small faith. I will not say exactly in the possibility or the practica bility of this achievement, in individual instances, but in its general usefulness and applicability, as a system of education for the deaf and dumb. A visit to the institutions in Leipsic and Berlin has wholly changed my opinions, which were, before these visits, the offspring of ignorance, but which are now founded on positive knowledge. I went to the establishment at Leipsic, one of the oldest and best in Germany, accompanied by Dr. Vogel, and by N. P. Willis and his brother. We were shown by the excellent director, and by several of the teachers, the processes and operations made j use Df jn enabling the deaf and dumb to give dis- j ijnct. vocal utterance to their thoughts. It would not be easy to convey to you a clear and adequate conception of the processes, by any description u in my letter, and I will not thal i can send you attempt to do so. It will be sufficient lor me to sav tnat tne pupn, oy placing nis nanas or no- sounds. He is then carried along from the easier and simpler elements of speech to their more dif- fiCult and complex combinations until, finally, as witnessed in several cases, he is enabled to speak wjtn a readiness and distinctness sufficient for all the daily and important purposes ot life. It is hardly necessary for me to say, that as they have no hearing to guide them, there can be neither with any thing that they have seen in Europe, We were all very much struck wilh the un- tiring patience of both teachers and pupils, and with the eager animation also of the latter. One little fellow at Leipsic, with a most striking and intelligent face, who Mr. Vi illis thought would make a capital Puck, interested us exceedingly by the cheerful and obstin ite pertinaci'y with which he hammered away at his difficult sounds, and the hardest of which, to his manifest delight as well as our own, he finally succeeded in expressing. The lime occupied in this discipline is very con siderable, usually some six or seven years; and the patience and perseverance, on the part of both teachers and pupils, such it seems to me, as can hardly he looked for anywhere, except among these untiring and devoted Germans. The moral and religious training of the children is assidu ously and systematically attended to; and as I stood in the rooms at Leipsic, where the teachers, unknown to fame, in their quiet seclusion, with their moderate salaries, are occupied year after year in plying their humble but heavenly task, I was seized with an overwhelming sense of the utter and melancholy emptiness of the mummeries, both Protestant and Catholic, which pass for reli gion, when compared with such labors and such Fives as these. Truly, as Dr. Vogel remarked, this was better than long prayers. Still, a flippant Englishman, said to me the other day in the cars, wilh an air, and atone not as though it was his opinion merely, but as if it was quite settled and determined, and he had been chosen and annoint ed as ihe oracle to make proclamation thereof that there was no rcliffion in Germany, neiihcr " lr w among Protestants nor Catholics. My own opinion, although the Germans go to church less than we do, and spend their Sundays very un-Puritanicnlly. is quite different from that of ihe Englishman but I am shooting wide -of my object, which was to give you a short account of some German institutions, and not to write a ! commentary upon German religion. One of the teacherr in the Loipsic school was himself deaf and dumb, and it was exceedingly interesting to woness ine Facility witn which be carried on con versation with Dr. Vogel and others. The sys tem, you are to remember, as no new thing here: these schools have been in full and successful operation many years, and formed just as much a fixed and settled element in the system of public instruction, as any other. In many of the small er towns of Prussia, there are preparatory school? from which, after two or three years of instruc tion, the pupils are removed to the higher and larger schools The director of the Berlin insti tution, when we were there, had just returned from a visit to several of these primary schools. I must appropriate the remainder of my sheet to a few words about still .another enterprise, hardly less wonderful than that of which I have been speaking, undertaken within a few years by the director of the Berlin institution. This is a school for the education of imbecile children. 1 ne distinguished Dhvsiologist Dr. Muller, had alreudy spoken tome of this establishment, and after we had gone through the anartments of the deaf and dumb, the good director took us into a i little room, where, seated round a table, engaged in meir stuaies, were some eight or ten ol these! poor creatures boys and girls, with faces more or less indicative of the absence of reason. The result of his efforts, thus far. have been remarka- bly and most satisfactorily successful. One little fellow, with a now thoughtful and intelligent face, interested us exceedingly. He was very intently and earnestly at work, writing upon his slate; and for three months after his entrance, he was unable to fix cither his attention or his eyes upon anything. Another boy considerably advanced we cannot say in the recovery, but in the creation or development of his reason was endeavoring to instruct a third, on whose faces still rested the til l . . . Dianii ana voia expression ol idiocy, buch are the labors that nregoing quieily and noiselessly and confirm the idea that curiosity was the mo on under this hallowed, roof: the lamp of rea- tive of their journey, they lingered so long at son lighted not in bosoms where passion or dis- each, that a considerable time had elapsed before ease bad extinguished or dimmed it, but where their reaching Olmutz. it had never been kindled and the dumb literally made lo speak I The director inquirfd particu- f..i r. rt jT-i ii laily after Mr. Horace Mann, and Dr. Howe, of whom, and his interesting child, Laura Bridgman, we hear at all these places. Very truly your friend, E LIS II A BARTLETT. From Chambers' Journal. PRTSON ADVENTURES of LAFAYETTE. The Marquis de Lafayette entered upon the scenes ot the b rencn Kevolution with Ihe idea of the trench Kevolution with fixed in his mind, that republican institutions were ' reconcilable with a monarchy. He was, there- j fore, a fiiend to the royal famil)', at the sanit time that he promoted the reforms which were succrs- ' sively conducted by the States-General and the ' Legislative Assembly. His cluvalric fidelity lo ijouis uuu mane aiiiuihcuc was poweriutiv inea : Lafayette, then with the army on the frontiers, en- deavored to incite the soldiers to march upon Pa- ! ris, in order to restore the throne, and put down Pelion, Danton, and their associates. But the revolutionary tide, impelled as it was by the fiars oi trie people lor tne loreign armies pressing on .the country, was too strong to bo thus resisted ; j and a few days thereafter, JLnfayette was obliged escaped death something like a miracle; diff-rent members of her family perished on the scaffold unci she hprself, for the space of fifteen months, : endured all the horrors of a loathesome confine- ment. Un the death of the tyrant she was re leased from prison, and so soon as her health was ' sufficiently reinstated to allow of her taking so long a journey, without servants, or the means ofi procuring the most necessary comforts, she, ac- companied by her children, set out for Vienna, and, throwing herself at the feet of the emperor, implored his influence for the liberation of her husband. What Francis III. had denied to the various authorities interested in the fate of Lafayette, he yielded to pity; and, raising the suppliant, he granted her request, allowed of her repairing im- mediately to Olmutz, and held out the prospect of j the speedy delivennce oitne prisoner. W nether the emperor afterwards regretted the clemency he had shown, or ihnt other powers were interest ed in prolonging the captivity of Lafayette, docs not appear ; but s far from obtaining his hoped for release, Madam de Lafayette found herself and daughters immersed in the same dungeons that contained her husband. I have, however, antici pated this event, for it was not until within two years of the release of Lafayette, that his wife and family were thus unexpectedly made the partners of his imprisonment Two years of solitary confinement had, from the period of his capture, been dragged on by La fayette, when the romantic scheme of procuring his liberation was formed by one, an utter stran ger to the prisoner, and a foreigner. From mo tives of pure compassion, and an earnest desire to free from so galling a thraklom the great promo ter of liberty, M. Balman, a Hanoverian by birth young, active, intrepid, and intelligent repair ed, alone and on foot, to Olmutz. there to gain such information as might enable him to judge of Dr. Eric Bollman Livio Aob. the best means of executing the purpose he had in view, and releasing Lafayette from the power of Austria. He soon found thnt, without an able coadjutor, the difficulties that presented themselves were insurmountable, and repaired, then fore, to Vienna, where he devoted himself exclusively to the society ol young Americans; for among them, from their veneration of the character of Lafay ette, he hoped to find one who. with enthusiasm like his own, would dare the undertaking. What followed is interesting as a proof that the spirit of nationality may engender a principle of gratitude. Lafayette, as is well known, had in his early youth proceeded to America, and serv ed in her armies. Shipwrecked at his first arriv al, he had been kindly received into the house of a gentleman named Huger, residing in Charles ton. And by him was the youthful votary of lib erty introduced to the American army. By chance, a son of this gentleman was now in Vienna, and to him did M. Batman apply. Although a mere ; child when the shmwrecked nartv viiied his fn- .ther's house, the young American retained a vivid recollection of. and the highest admiration Tor. M. de Lafayette : and he entered, therefore, with all ! the zealous ardor of vouth. and ihe enthusiasm of a generous nature, into LJalman s scheme lor the release of his favorite hero From the vigilance of the Austrian police, and their jealous watchfulness of strangers, n whs ne i jcessary that the greatest caution and secrecy should j be maintained, and the scheme proposed promised well lor the completion of their design. Huger assumed the pretence of ill health, and M. Bal- moved on, ihey continuing for a lime their ride to man, who had already adopted the character of a wards the town, and then slowly following the physician, was upon this account to travel with him. In company with cnly one servant, who was not entrusted with the secret, and mounted upon the best horses money could procure, ihe friends set out on their tour : and visiting different placets, me Dcuer to conceal their rea purpose, As they had desired, a rumor of iheir insatiable curiosity had preceded them thither ; and. acting r'...U.: ii ." c. ujj iu linn uffoumeu cnaracier, auer viewing every- to repossess nimselt ol his sworu. At that mrt thing worthy of notice in the town, they repaired meni Huger reached the spot. M You are free," to the castle, examined the fortifications, and, hav-'said he: "mount this horse, and fortune be our ing made acquaintance with the keeper, obtained guide;" but the words wero scarcely uttered, when permission to visit the interior of ihe prison on ' ihe sun, glancing on the naked blade of the sword, the following day. staitled the horse he led: he reared, broke his Thus their first step being happily achieved, I bridle, and galloped across the plain. M. Balman, they continued, by frequent visits, to improve their j in the vain kope of overtaking the frightened ani acquaintance with the jailor; and now trusting j mal,rode-iifter him, while Huger generously in thiit any suspicion of their intentions, had'it ever sisted on Lafayette mounting his horse, and mak existed, must be lulled to sleep, they ventured ing all speed to the place of rendezvous. "Loser carelessly to inquire what prisoners were under ! no time," he exclaimed; " the alarm is given ; the his care. Among other names, that of Lafavetle! peasants are assembling: save vourself." T.nfnv- u as mentioned, and they expressed curiosity to i know how he contrived to occupy himself, how i " uu,c u,a ""F1 w wumrer reaier i o s ;- w uw hmh i.uivis J m. M -k . m m were sent open, so as to assure himself, he said, that no conspiracy was to be carried on against the Stale. This caution was complied with, and the same evening a book and open note, addressed lo Lafayette, were sent to his care. As afterwards - v ' m appeared, he was unacquainted wilh the French, the language in which the note was written; but, 1 suspecting no treachery where all was so openly j carried on, he conveyed it to Lnfayette. It con- tained apologies-for the liberties thus taken by ; strangers, but as they were anxious, they-said, to j contribute to his happiness, they hoped he would, attentively read the book they had sent, and if any ' passages in it particularly engaged his notice, ' they begged he would let them know his opinion, j The unusual mode of expression attracted, as was intended, the attention of Lafayette, and care-1 fully perusing the book, he found in certain places j words written with a pencil, which, being put to- j gether, acquainted bim with the names, qualities, j and designs of the writers, and requiring his sen-j timcnls before ihey should proceed further. He returned the book, and with it an open note, thank-j ing them for their civility, and adding that he highly approved of, and was charmed with I r J ..I i :.i. .L the contents. Having thus commenced a correspondence, no day passed in which open notes were not written and received. Some of these were brought for the inspection of persons acquainted wilh the French language; but so carefully were they worded, that no cause of suspicion appeared, and the correspondence was allowed to continue. A greater difficulty, however, now appeared; for the plan of escape being at length arranged, they were at a loss how to acquaint Lafayette with par ticulars that could not be hazarded in nn open note. A happy expedient presented itself ; the whole was written in lemon juice, and on the other side of the paper, a note of inquiry after Lafayette's health concluded with these words, " Qu-and vous aurai lu ce billet mettre le au feu.u The experiment was a hazardous one, but il suc ceeded. The note was conveyed to Lafayette, and, obeying the injunctions given on holding the l-naper to the fire, the writing that appeared made him acquainted with the well-digested scheme of his unknown benefactors. The day following was that fixed for the at tempted escape, and all the caution used by M. Balman and his friend was in truth required, to hold out any chance of success. The city of Olmutz, about thirty miles from Silesia, is situated in the midst of a plain extending three miles on either side, and bounded by dark woods, so lhat the smallest object on any part of the level ground is distinctly visible from the walls. Sen tinels, too, hold a continual guard, for the purpose of giving the alarm should any attempt at escape be made, and the whole people are bound to as sist in the pursuit, while the successful individual is liberally rewarded for ihe recapture of a pris oner. These obstacles to the success of their scheme were well known to the adventurod1! friends of Lafayette ; but they were not intimidated, and the hour of exercise allowed lo ihe prisoner was lhat selected for its completion. In company of an officer, and attended by an armed guard mounted behind the carriage, La fayette was in the habit of daily driving in an open cabriolet on the plain, and had so far won upon the confidence of he officer, that when at a inn, ana paper, m. tfalman men remarked, that thrown to some distance by the shock, was so in some new publications he had with him might jured, as wilh difficulty to be laised from tha afford amusement to the prisoner, and inquired ground. Once more the gullunt Huger. with Iho whether he might be allowed to make the offer, j same forgelfulness of self that had characterized The jailor agreed, upon condition that ihev ! him through the whole undertaking, sacrificed distance fiom the walls, they used to quit the car riage and walk together. Thcplan determined upon was as follows: BaJman and Huger were to ride out oh the plaii, the latter leading a third horse, while Lafayette was to gain as great a distance as possible frorrl the town, and, as usual, quilting the carriage with the officer, draw him imperceptibly as near the boundaries as might be, Vhhoot awakening his suspicion. The two friends were then lo ap proach, and, if necessary, to overpower the offi cer, mount Lafayette on the led horse, and ride at full speed lo Bauirapp, a town at the distance of fifteen miles, where a chaise had been prepared to convey the party lo the nearest town on the Prus sian dominions. In the morning, Huger bad at tempted to ascertain ihe precise lime at which La-' fayette would leave the caslle, and ihrn, with beat ing hearts, ihey set forward on their expedition ; but having almost reach-d the wooded country and still no carriage appearing, they believed that some unforeseen accident had led to ihcir discove ry, and hesitated how lo procetd, till, recollecting that their movements wvn- in all probability watch ed from the walls, they slowly retraced their steps, and, on nearing the town, beheld, to their great satisfaction, the u ished-for cabriolet pass through' the gates. It contained two persons. One was in the Austrian uniform, and a musketeer as usual was mounted behind. Neither of the friends be- 1 ' vS v 1 IIU o WW j ing personally acquainted with M. de Lafayette, a j signal had been agreed upon between them. In i passing it was made, relumed, and the carriage cabriolet at such a distance as to allow of Lafay ette's executing his part of the agreement. Upon the Iwo gentlemen quitting the carriage, and con tinuing their exercise on foot, the friends gradual ly approached, and perceiving M. de Lafayette and the officer engaged in earnest conversation about the sword of the" latter, which Lnfayette held in his hand, they seized the favorable mo ment, and, pulling spurs to their horses, galloped forward. Their rapid approach alarmed ihe offi cer : he altempted to draw Lafavetle towards the carriage : and finding that he resisted, struggled i. ' i. , . . . ' . rf- ' j cite obeyed, and mounting Huger's horse, ho left ' him on foot, and was soon out of sight. M. B il- , mau nau, meantime, pursueu me nymg animn. , um jjeillihu u uau iunc mc iuju iu re wn n. : lie uiivc up uiu euusu us iiopeirss, anu reiurning to Huger, he sprang on the saddle behind him, and they galloped off together. But the double burden proved too much for the already wearied horse. He stumbled and fell : and M. Balman. I m , . ' - o si - the chance of his own safety to secure that of his friend, and, assisting Balman to remount, he in sisteel that he should follow Lafiyetle, nnd leava him to make his escape on foot; for, as he was a good runner, he said he could easily reach tho woody country, and then find a safe place of con ccalment. His fri nd consented with reluctance; but there was no time for argument: the whole occurrence had been seen from ihe wall, ihe can non had been fired, the country was raised, and the plain covered with men, women, and children, all eager to join in the pursuit. By pretending to follow in the chase, Balrnan contrived to escape unsuspected. Huger was less fortunate. Noliced from the very first by n party who never lost sight of him, his fleetn ss of foot was of no avail ; for his puisuers being constantly joined by new com era, fresh for the chase, thi y soon gained upon him, and at last, breathless and exhausted, he sank upon the ground. He was instantly se ized, and further resistance being now hopeless, he was conveyed back to Olmutz in triumph; nnd while secretly consoling htmfelf with the idea thnt, whatcrer miaht be his own fate, he had rescued I l . i , .i. irom tyranny unu oppression, me man who, in nil eyes, was one of the first characters upon earth, was consigned to one of the dungeons of the cas tle as a state prisoner. M. de Lafayette had, meanwhile, followed the directions given him by his gallant deliverers, and, without any obstacle, had reached a small town about ten miles off; but here the road dividing, he unfortunately took the wrong turn, and sus pecting he had mistaken the way, inquired of a person whom he met the road tj Bautrapp. The appearance of Lafayette, his foreign accent, the inquiries he made, and his horse covered as il was" with foam, fed the man to suspect the truth, and directing him to a narrow Jan which, by a long circuit, led back to the town he had just left, ho himself hurried there by a shorter cut; and thus, when about lo regain, as he thought, the road which would secure his retreat, Lafayette found himself surrounded by a guaid of armed men, who, regardless of his protestations, conveyed him to the magistrate. His collected manner, the plausi ble answers returned to the interrogations put to him, and the apparent truth of his story that be longing to the excise at Trnppau, he had visited some friends at Olmutz, and having exceeded his leave of absence, was now hurrying back under the fear of losing his office all so won upon the faith of the magistrate, lhat he was about to dismiss his prisoner, when the good fortune of Lafayetto again forsook him. As he was about to retire, a young man entered the room to have some papers signed, and after fixing his eyes for a moment on Lafayette, he whispered to the magistrate that, having been present when the French general was delivered up prisoner to the Austrian, bo could not be mistaken, and that the person now be fore him was he! Lafayette inlreated to be heard ; but in vain. The indignant magistrate directed that he forth with should, be conveyed to Olmutz, where his identity would be ascertained; and, disheartened and hopeless, the unfortunate prisoner was thrust again into those miserable dungeons which but that morning he had left with so fair a prospect of liberty. M. Balman, the first instigator of the whole scheme, was now the only one who had successfully avoided the search of his pursuers. He reached in safety the place where the chojo
The Weekly Standard (Raleigh, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
March 18, 1846, edition 1
1
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