263. How the North and the South have grown since the war; the great
West.--Since the war the united North and South have grown and
prospered[1] as never before. At the South many new and flourishing
towns and cities have sprung up. Mines of coal and iron have been
opened, hundreds of cotton-mills and factories have been built, and
long lines of railroads have been constructed.
At the West changes equally great have taken place. Cities have risen
up in the wilderness, mines of silver and gold have been opened, and
immense farms and cattle ranches[2] produce food enough to feed all
America. Three great lines of railroads have been built which connect
with railroads at the East, and stretch across the continent from
the Atlantic to the Pacific. Into that vast country beyond the
Mississippi hundreds of thousands of industrious people are moving
from all parts of the earth, and are building homes for themselves
and for their children.
[Illustration: THE MEETING OF THE ENGINES FROM THE EAST AND THE WEST
AFTER THE LAST SPIKE WAS DRIVEN[3] ON THE COMPLETION OF THE FIRST
RAILROAD TO THE PACIFIC IN 1869.]
[Illustration: PILING SILVER BRICKS. (From the silver mines in
Colorado.)]
[Illustration: HOW THEY USED TO SHOOT BUFFALO IN THE FAR WEST.]
[Illustration: INDIANS ATTACKING A STAGE-COACH IN THE FAR WEST FORTY
YEARS AGO; BEFORE THE FIRST PACIFIC RAILROAD WAS BUILT.]
[Footnote 1: Prospered: to prosper is to succeed, to get on in life,
to grow rich.]
[Footnote 2: Ranches (ran'chez): farms at the West for raising horses
and cattle, or sheep.]
[Footnote 3: The last spikes (one of gold from California, one of
silver from Nevada, and one made of gold, silver, and iron from
Arizona) were driven just as the clock struck twelve (noon) on May
10th, 1869, at Promontory Point, near Salt Lake, Utah. Every blow
of the hammer was telegraphed throughout the United States.]
264. Celebration of the discovery of America by Columbus; the
unfinished pyramid; making history.--Four hundred years have gone
by since the first civilized man crossed the ocean and found this
new world which we call America. We are now about to celebrate that
discovery made by Columbus, not only in the schools throughout the
country, but by a great fair--called the "World's Columbian
Exposition"--to be held at Chicago; and we shall invite all who will
to come from all parts of the globe and join us in the celebration.
[Illustration: FIRST GREAT SEAL OF THE UNITED STATES.]
[Illustration: SECOND GREAT SEAL OF THE UNITED STATES.]
On one of the two great seals[4] of the United States a pyramid is
represented partly finished. That pyramid stands for our country.
It shows how much has been done and how much still remains to be done.
The men whose lives we have read in this little book were all builders.
Little by little they added stone to stone, and so the good work grew.
Now they have gone, and it is for us to do our part and make sure
that the pyramid, as it rises, shall continue to stand square, and
strong, and true.
[Footnote 4: Seals: the first great seal, having the eagle and the
Latin motto "_E Pluribus Unum_," meaning "_Many in One_,"--or one
nation made up of many states,--was adopted June 20, 1782. The spread
eagle signifies strength; the thirteen stars above his head, and the
thirteen stripes on the shield on his breast, represent the thirteen
original states; the olive branch, held in the eagle's right talon,
shows that America seeks peace, while the bundle of arrows in his
left talon shows that we are prepared for war. This seal is used in
stamping agreements or treaties made by the United States with other
nations, and also for other important papers.
The second great seal, adopted at the same time, was never used. It
was intended for stamping the wax on a ribbon attached to a treaty
or other important paper, thus making a hanging seal. The Latin motto
"_Annuit Coeptis_," above the all-seeing eye looking down with favor
on the unfinished pyramid, means "_God has favored the Work_." The
date MDCCLXXVI, or 1776, marks the Declaration of Independence. The
Latin motto at the bottom, "_Novus Ordo Seclorum_," means "_A New
Order of Ages_"--or a new order of things, such as we have in this
New World of America.]
What is said about the North and the South since the war? Tell about
the growth of the South. What is said about the West? What about
railroads? What about people going west?
How long is it since Columbus discovered America? What is said about
the celebration of that discovery? What is said about one of the great
seals of the United States? What does the unfinished pyramid stand
for? What does it show us? What is said of the men whose lives we
have read in this book? Is anything left for us to do?
A SHORT LIST OF BOOKS OF REFERENCE
(_For the Use of Teachers._)
This brief list is arranged alphabetically. It consists, with a few
exceptions, of small, one-volume biographies; all of which are
believed to be of acknowledged merit.
A much fuller reference list will be found in the appendix to the
author's larger work, entitled _The Leading Facts of American
History_.
Balboa: Irving's Companions of Columbus, and Winsor's America, Vol.
II.
Baltimore, Lord: William H. Browne's Lords Baltimore;[3] G. W.
Burnap's Baltimore.[1]
Boone, Daniel: C. B. Hartley's Boone (including Boone's
autobiography); J. M. Peck's Boone;[1] and see the excellent sketch
of Boone's life in Theodore Roosevelt's The Winning of the West, Vol.
I.
Cabot (John and Sebastian): J. F. Nicholls's Cabot; C. Hayward's
Cabot.[1]
Clark, George Rogers: see Theodore Roosevelt's The Winning of the
West, Vol. II.
Columbus: Irving's Columbus, abridged edition; Charles K. Adams's
Columbus;[3] Edward Everett Hale's Columbus.
De Leon: Irving's Companions of Columbus, and Winsor's America, Vol.
II.
De Soto: see Winsor's America, Vol. II.
Franklin, Benjamin: D. H. Montgomery's Franklin (autobiography and
continuation of life);[2] John T. Morse's Franklin.[7]
Fulton, Robert: J. Renwick's Fulton;[1] R. H. Thurston's Fulton;[3]
Thos. W. Knox's Fulton.[4]
Gray, Robert: see H. H. Bancroft's Pacific States, Vol. XXII.
Harrison, William Henry: H. Montgomery's Harrison; S. J. Burr's
Harrison.
Houston, Sam: Henry Bruce's Houston;[3] C. E. Lester's Houston.