Statesmen . millions of dollars,could be easily borne by the country, and wasnot greater in proportion than the debt assumedby our government at the time it was founded in1779. His historical parallel was a striking one,and by quoting from Jeffersons estimates of thefinancial carrying capacity of the people in 1779,he argued that the republic of this later timewas even more competent to bear its burdenthan it was at the close of the War of the Revo-lution. This speech, which was circulated by hun-dreds of thousands of copies throughout theUnited States, concluded with these memorablesentences:
Statesmen . millions of dollars,could be easily borne by the country, and wasnot greater in proportion than the debt assumedby our government at the time it was founded in1779. His historical parallel was a striking one,and by quoting from Jeffersons estimates of thefinancial carrying capacity of the people in 1779,he argued that the republic of this later timewas even more competent to bear its burdenthan it was at the close of the War of the Revo-lution. This speech, which was circulated by hun-dreds of thousands of copies throughout theUnited States, concluded with these memorablesentences: These are the great elements of JAMES G. BLAINE 291 material progress, and they comprehend theentire circle of human enterprise, agriculture,commerce, manufacture, mining. They assureto us an increase in property and populationthat will surpass the most sanguine deductionsof our census tables, framed as those tables areupon the ratios and relations of our workersin the past; they give into our hands, under. ^*» |j ????iii|.i,.»?»lO^ Where Mr. Blaine went to School at West Brownsville, Pa. the blessing of Almighty God, the power tocommand our fate as a nation; they hold outto us the grandest future reserved for any peo-ple, and with this promise they teach us thelesson of patience and render confidence andfortitude a duty. With such amplitude andaffluence of resources, and with such a vaststake at issue, we should be unworthy of ourlineage and inheritance if we for one momentmistrusted our ability to maintain ourselves a 292 STATESMEN united people with one country, one constitu*tion, one destiny. Blaine contented himself, however, during hisfirst term in Congress with speaking briefly on avariety of important measures, including thosefor the adjustment of the revenue, tariff for pro-tection of American industries, a law in refer-ence to fugitive slaves, and other similar his remarks on these questions, while theywere short, were always pungent, crisp, and
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