career of my public life my feelings do not permit me to suspend
the deep acknowledgment of that debt of gratitude which I owe to my
beloved country for the many honors it has conferred upon me; still
more for the steadfast confidence with which it has supported me,
and for the opportunities I have thence enjoyed of manifesting my
inviolable attachment, by services faithful and persevering, though
in usefulness unequal to my zeal. If benefits have resulted to our
country from these services, let it always be remembered to your
praise, and as an instructive example in our annals, that under
circumstances in which the passions, agitated in every direction,
were liable to mislead, amidst appearances sometimes dubious,
vicissitudes of fortune often discouraging, in situations in which not
unfrequently want of success has countenanced the spirit of criticism,
the constancy of your support was the essential prop of the efforts,
and a guarantee of the plans by which they were effected. Profoundly
penetrated with this idea, I shall carry it with me to my grave,
as a strong incitement to unceasing vows that Heaven may continue
to you the choicest tokens of its beneficence; that your union and
brotherly affection may be perpetual; that the free Constitution,
which is the work of your hands, may be sacredly maintained; that its
administration in every department may be stamped with wisdom and
virtue; that, in fine, the happiness of the people of these States,
under the auspices of liberty, may be made complete, by so careful a
preservation and so prudent a use of this blessing, as will acquire
for them the glory of recommending it to the applause, the affection
and adoption of every nation which is yet a stranger to it.
Here, perhaps, I ought to stop. But a solicitude for your welfare,
which cannot end but with my life, and the apprehension of danger,
natural to that solicitude, urge me, on an occasion like the present,
to offer to your solemn contemplation, and to recommend to your
frequent review, some sentiments, which are the result of much
reflection, of no inconsiderable observation, and which appear to me
all important to the permanency of your felicity as a People.
Interwoven as is the love of liberty with every ligament of your
hearts, no recommendation of mine is necessary to fortify or confirm
the attachment.
The unity of government, which constitutes you one people, is also now
dear to you. It is justly so; for it is a main pillar in the edifice
of your real independence, the support of your tranquility at home,
your peace abroad; of your safety; of your prosperity; of that very
liberty which you so highly prize. But as it is easy to foresee that
from different causes and from different quarters much pains will be
taken, many artifices employed, to weaken in your minds the conviction
of this truth; as this is the point in your political fortress
against which the batteries of internal and external enemies will be
most constantly and actively (though often covertly and insidiously)
directed, it is of infinite moment that you should properly estimate
the immense value of your national Union to your collective and
individual happiness; that you should cherish a cordial, habitual, and
immovable attachment to it, accustoming yourself to think and speak
of it as of the palladium of your political safety and prosperity;
watching for its preservation with jealous anxiety; discountenancing
whatever may suggest even a suspicion that it can, in any event, be
abandoned; and indignantly frowning upon the first dawning of every
attempt to alienate any portion of our country from the rest, or to
enfeeble the sacred ties which now link together the various parts.
For this you have every inducement of sympathy and interest.
Citizens, by birth or choice, of a common country, that country has
a right to concentrate your affections. The name 'American,' which
belongs to you in your national capacity, must always exalt the just
pride of patriotism more than any appellation derived from local
discriminations. With slight shades of difference, you have the same
religion, manners, habits, and political principles. You have in a
common cause fought and triumphed together; the independence and
liberty you possess are the work of joint counsels, and joint efforts,
of common dangers, sufferings, and successes.
But these considerations, however powerfully they address themselves
to your sensibility, are greatly outweighed by those which apply more
immediately to your interest. Here every portion of our country finds
the most commanding motives for carefully guarding and preserving the
union of the whole....
To the efficacy and permanency of your union a government for the
whole is indispensable. No alliances, however strict, between the
parts can be an adequate substitute; they must inevitably experience
the infractions and interruptions which all alliances in all times
have experienced. Sensible of this momentous truth, you have improved
upon your first essay by the adoption of a constitution of government
better calculated than your former for an intimate union and for the
efficacious management of your common concerns. This government, the
offspring of our own choice, uninfluenced and unawed, adopted upon
full investigation and mature deliberation, completely free in its
principles, in the distribution of its powers uniting security with
energy and containing within itself a provision for its own amendment,
has a just claim to your confidence and your support. Respect for its
authority, compliance with its laws, acquiescence in its measures, are
duties enjoined by the fundamental maxims of true liberty. The basis
of our political systems is the right of the people to make and to
alter their constitutions of government. But the constitution which at
any time exists, till changed by an explicit and authentic act of the
whole people, is sacredly obligatory upon all. The very idea of the
power and the right of the people to establish government presupposes
the duty of every individual to obey the established government.
All obstructions to the execution of the laws, all combinations and
associations, under whatever plausible character, with the real design
to direct, control, counteract, or awe the regular deliberation
and action of the constituted authorities, are destructive of this
fundamental principle and of fatal tendency. They serve to organize
faction, to give an artificial and extraordinary force: to put in the
place of the delegated will of the nation, the will of a party, often
a small but artful and enterprising minority of the community; and,
according to the alternate triumphs of different parties, to make the
public administration the mirror of the ill-concerted and incongruous
projects of faction, rather than the organ of consistent and wholesome
plans digested by common counsels, and modified by mutual interests....
Towards the preservation of your government, and the permanency of
your present happy state, it is requisite, not only that you steadily
discountenance irregular opposition to its acknowledged authority,
but also that you resist with care the spirit of innovation upon its
principles, however specious the pretext. One method of assault may
be to effect, in the forms of the constitution, alterations which
will impair the energy of the system, and thus to undermine what
cannot be directly overthrown. In all the changes to which you may be
invited, remember that time and habit are at least as necessary to
fix the true character of government as of other human institutions;
that experience is the surest standard by which to test the real
tendency of the existing constitution of a country; that facility in
changes, upon the credit of mere hypothesis and opinion, exposes to
perpetual change, from the endless variety of hypothesis and opinion;
and remember, especially, that, for the efficient management of your
common interests, in a country so extensive as ours, a government of
as much vigor as is consistent with the perfect security of liberty
is indispensable. Liberty itself will find in such a government, with
powers properly distributed and adjusted, its surest guardian. It is,
indeed, little else than a name, where the government is too feeble
to withstand the enterprise of faction, to confine each member of the
society within the limits prescribed by the laws, and to maintain
all in the secure and tranquil enjoyment of the rights of person and
property....
Of all the dispositions and habits which lead to political prosperity,
religion and morality are indispensable supports. In vain would that
man claim the tribute of patriotism who should labor to subvert these
great pillars of human happiness, these firmest props of the duties
of men and citizens. The mere politician, equally with the pious man,
ought to respect and to cherish them. A volume could not trace all
their connections with private and public felicity. Let it simply
be asked, where is the security for property, for reputation, for
life, if the sense of religious obligation desert the oaths which are
the instruments of investigation in courts of justice? And let us
with caution indulge the supposition that morality can be maintained
without religion. Whatever may be conceded to the influence of refined
education on minds of peculiar structure, reason and experience both
forbid us to expect that national morality can prevail in exclusion of
religious principle....
Promote, then, as an object of primary importance, institutions for
the general diffusion of knowledge. In proportion as the structure of
a government gives force to public opinion it is essential that public
opinion should be enlightened.
As a very important source of strength and security, cherish public
credit. One method of preserving it is to use it as sparingly as
possible, avoiding occasions of expense by cultivating peace, but
remembering also that timely disbursements to prepare for danger
frequently prevent much greater disbursements to repel it; avoiding
likewise the accumulation of debt, not only by shunning occasions of
expense, but by vigorous exertions in time of peace to discharge the
debts which unavoidable wars may have occasioned, not ungenerously
throwing upon posterity the burden which we ourselves ought to bear.
The execution of these maxims belongs to your representatives, but it
is necessary that the public opinion should cooperate....
Observe good faith and justice towards all nations; cultivate peace
and harmony with all. Religion and morality enjoin this conduct; and
can it be that good policy does not equally enjoin it? It will be
worthy of a free, enlightened, and, at no distant period, a great
nation, to give to mankind the magnanimous and too novel example of a
people always guided by an exalted justice and benevolence.
TRIBUTES
The life of our Washington cannot suffer by a comparison with those
of other countries who have been most celebrated and exalted by fame.
The attributes and decorations of royalty could have only served to
eclipse the majesty of those virtues which made him, from being a
modest citizen, a more resplendent luminary.
Malice could never blast his honor, and envy made him a single
exception to her universal rule. For himself he had lived enough
to life and to glory. For his fellow-citizens, if their prayers
could have been answered, he would have been immortal. His example
is complete, and it will teach wisdom and virtue to magistrates,
citizens, and men, not only in the present age, but in future
generations, as long as our history shall be read.
_John Adams_
Washington stands alone and unapproachable like a snow peak rising
above its fellows into the clear air of morning, with a dignity,
constancy, and purity which have made him the ideal type of civic
virtue to succeeding generations.
_James Bryce_
First in war, first in peace, first in the hearts of his countrymen,
he was second to none in the humble and endearing scenes of private
life, pious, just, humane, temperate, and sincere, uniform, dignified,
and commanding, his example was as edifying to all around him, as were
the effects of that example lasting.
_Henry Lee_
Others of our great men have been appreciated--many admired by all.
But him we love. Him we all love. About and around him we call up no
dissentient and discordant and dissatisfied elements, no sectional
prejudice nor bias, no party, no creed, no dogma of politics. None of
these shall assail him. When the storm of battle blows darkest and
rages highest, the memory of Washington shall nerve every American arm
and cheer every American heart. It shall relume that Promethean fire,
that sublime flame of patriotism, that devoted love of country, which
his words have commended, which his example has consecrated.
_Rufus Choate_
Let a man fasten himself to some great idea, some large truth, some
noble cause, even in the affairs of this world, and it will send him
forward with energy, with steadfastness, with confidence. This is what
Emerson meant when he said: "Hitch your wagon to a star." These are
the potent, the commanding, the enduring men--in our own history, men
like Washington and Lincoln. They may fail, they may be defeated, they
may perish; but onward moves the cause, and their souls go marching on
with it, for they are part of it, they have believed in it.
_Henry van Dyke_
Brave without temerity, laborious without ambition, generous
without prodigality, noble without pride, virtuous without
severity--Washington seems always to have confined himself within
those limits where the virtues, by clothing themselves in more lively
but more changeable and doubtful colors, may be mistaken for faults.
Inspiring respect, he inspires confidence, and his smile is always the
smile of benevolence.
_Marquis Chastelleux_
Great without pomp, without ambition brave,
Proud, not to conquer fellow-men, but save;
Friend to the weak, a foe to none but those
Who plan their greatness on their brethren's woes;
Aw'd by no titles--undefil'd by lust--
Free without faction--obstinately just;
Warm'd by religion's sacred, genuine ray,
That points to future bliss the unerring way;
Yet ne'er control'd by superstition's laws,
That worst of tyrants in the noblest cause.
_From a London Newspaper_
BIBLIOGRAPHY
See Bibliography at end of monograph.
ARBOR DAY
Second Friday in April
TREES
I think that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree;
A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
Against the earth's sweet flowing breast;
A tree that looks at God all day
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;
A tree that may in summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;
Upon whose bosom snow has lain,
Who intimately lives with rain.
Poems are made by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.
_Joyce Kilmer_
ARBOR DAY
FOREWORD IN PAMPHLET ON ARBOR DAY ISSUED IN 1913
The following are the provisions of the statutes of the State
concerning the observance of Arbor Day:
The day in each year known as Arbor Day shall be suitably observed
in the public schools. The Commissioner of Education shall from time
to time prepare and issue to schools such circulars of information,
advice and instruction with reference to the day as he may deem
necessary.
For the purpose of encouraging the planting of shade and forest trees,
the second Friday of April in each year is hereby designated as a day
for the general observance of such purpose, and to be known as Arbor
Day.
On said day appropriate exercises shall be introduced in all the
schools of the State, and it shall be the duty of the several county
and city superintendents to prepare a program of exercises for that
day in all the schools under their respective jurisdiction.
You will notice that Arbor Day now occurs on the second Friday of
April, the Legislature of 1912 having changed the date.
It is believed that Arbor Day may not only be devoted to the
consideration of the value of trees and forests, including, of course,
the planting of trees and shrubs, but that it may also be used to
direct attention to birds and their protection, to the importance of
the school garden, and to other related matters. The conservation of
some of our natural resources might well be considered as the broad
theme of the day, the main emphasis, however, being placed on trees.
Much of the contents of this pamphlet will afford suggestive material
for the use of teachers at any appropriate time. The general
information given may be of help to many teachers throughout the spring
months. The discussions of the various subjects presented may afford
valuable reading material in the grammar schools.
The main purpose of the pamphlet is to give an impetus to the movement
for a greater interest in our natural resources, and the movement
for a greater appreciation of the opportunities offered by rural or
semi-rural life. It is hoped that the suggestions made are such as may
appeal to the interests of children.
It is hoped that Arbor Day may be a profitable one to the pupils in the
schools. It is further hoped that the influence of the contents of the
pamphlet may not be confined to any one day, but may be extended to
many days of the school year.
Calvin N. Kendall
_Commissioner of Education_
LETTER ISSUED TO SCHOOL OFFICIALS IN 1919
Arbor Day will occur this year on Friday, April 11. An announcement
concerning it may be found in the March number of the Education
Bulletin.
It has been happily suggested by Secretary Houston of the Department of
Agriculture at Washington that the day be observed in part this year
by planting trees upon our roadways, in our yards, and in our pleasure
places, each tree being named for a soldier who has fallen in the late
War. Such trees would be appropriate memorials to these soldiers.
I suggest that this particular year there be wide-spread planting
of trees dedicated to those whose lives have been sacrificed in the
War. The planting of the trees should be marked with some appropriate
exercises and these exercises should take on more than a school
significance. The whole community should be invited by the school to
take part.
I trust there may be a generous response on the part of the schools of
New Jersey to this idea.
Calvin N. Kendall
_Commissioner of Education_
TREES AND FORESTS
ALFRED GASKILL, STATE FORESTER
Save What We Have, Let Planting Come After
When the farmers of Nebraska, led by J. Sterling Morton, established
Arbor Day in 1872, they sought the threefold blessing that trees always
give--shade from the summer sun, shelter from winter winds, and wood.
These men found the broad prairies of the Middle West practically
treeless and they soon discovered that unless nature's fault was
remedied the homes they hoped to make could be neither pleasant, nor
secure, nor successful.
In New Jersey, as in all parts of the East, conditions were and are
different. The whole state was originally unbroken forest, and the
task of the pioneers was to make room for fields and settlements.
Nearly half our area (46 per cent) is still forest, though the greater
part has been reduced to a woefully poor condition. Thus if _our_
festival is to serve _our_ needs, we will celebrate Arbor Day in such,
a way that we shall learn to improve the forests we have rather than
seek to make more; to protect and care for the trees we have as well
as to plant more; to get rid of false impressions and broaden our
understanding of the relations between tree life and human society.
New Jersey cannot spare more land for forests. She now has upwards of
two million acres, and if we apply the rule that a state with 30 per
cent of her area in forests is well off, we shall reduce the total to
about a million and a half acres. But this will adjust itself; our
present concern is to stop the waste of our forest resources and bring
them to serve one of the most highly organized communities in the
nation.
With respect to trees, as distinguished from forests, this intensive
life and concentrated population make it imperative that cities and
towns be provided with parks and as much street shade as possible.
Thus there are two ample fields for study and work, the one dealing
with trees and their social bearings, the other with forests and their
economic relations.
The art of caring for _trees_ is called arboriculture, and one who
devotes himself to it an arborist. The art of producing and developing
tree communities, or _forests_, is silviculture or forestry.
HOW TREES LIVE AND GROW
The intimate study of trees is full of interest. The sap, consisting
of raw food material gathered by the root hairs from the soil, courses
upward, through the newer wood cells of trunk and branch, to the
leaves; there, under the action of sunlight, it is assimilated with
carbon dioxide, and, so prepared as tree food, passes downward through
the newer bark. Thus, the process never entirely suspended, even in
winter, but varying in vigor with the seasons, the tree grows in
stature by producing new shoots each year. No part of a tree that has
concluded a season's growth is ever elongated, but remains fixed, and
length is added to its terminal by the development of new buds. This
is why a branch always remains at the height at which it started. On
account of this fact the age of a tree or branch may be determined
by counting back from the terminal one year for each section of
development. On most deciduous trees this is hard to follow for more
than a few years, but on the evergreens, which produce their branches
in whorls, it is easy. On the other hand, diameter growth may continue
indefinitely and is exhibited on any cross-section in a series of
annual rings. A count of these rings will give the age of the tree at
that point.
Other interesting things to know are the means by which trees support
themselves upright, even in severe storms; how they support the weight
of heavy branches; and how the various species differ in the form,
color, texture of their bark. Then the flowers and fruits. Few people
know that the early spring awakening of the silver maple is marked by
the appearance of its flowers weeks before the leaves come out, or that
pines and oaks have flowers at all. And so with the fruits: willows
produce catkins; chestnuts, burs; elms, samaras; spruce, cones.
KNOWING THE TREES
And then one who is fond of trees will not be satisfied until he can
recognize and name at least the commoner kinds. This is field work for
many seasons, for the variations as well as the fixed characters must
be observed, and there are at least a hundred species to be found in
New Jersey. The student will soon want a handbook like Collins and
Preston's "Key to Trees," but without that he will distinguish the two
great groups--evergreen and deciduous. The evergreens are also called
conifers because the fruit of most of them is a cone. Almost all are
ornamental but none is suitable for the street. Their wood is commonly
called soft, though that of many species is quite hard, and forms the
great bulk of coarse lumber used for building, etc.
Deciduous trees are so called because their leaves fall at the
beginning of winter. There are many more kinds or species of these than
of evergreens and their forms and characters are more varied. A few
have recognized values as shade trees; many more are interesting or
attractive in the park or on the lawn; others are never found outside
the forest. By way of contrast with that of the conifers, the wood
of deciduous trees is called hard, though many kinds are quite soft,
and the trees themselves hardwoods. Hardwood lumber is often very
beautiful, and is used for many purposes besides furniture, but the
world could better get along without it than without soft woods.
SHADE TREES
One is attracted to a noble oak, a graceful hemlock, a beautifully
colored maple, and wants to live with it and its kind. This desire
deserves to be satisfied, and can be satisfied by encouraging the
planting of trees where they will reduce the glare and heat of city
streets; on lawns and in parks they are more at home and can be
treated so that the beauty of individuals and the values of groups or
masses can be brought out. Especially should they find place upon every
school ground so that the attention of the children may be constantly
drawn to these hungry, thirsty, breakable, burnable, beautiful friends
of man.