of arrangements deserve much encomium for their enterprising spirit
and judicious efforts. It is a seem which no man who saw it will ever
forget. The Virginians appeared in their true colours.--The moral
effects of this spectacle were sublime. There was an effect in it,
which no words can describe, "tears streamed from an hundred eyes. The
sentiments it diffused through several thousands of spectators, were of
the loftiest character.
On this day, Monday 18th, the reception was purely civic, not a soldier
appeared under arms. But on the 19th the military spectacle was imposing
and brilliant. Soon after breakfast, Lafayette walked from his quarters,
to the tent of Washington, surrounded by the committee of arrangements
and others. Numbers were then introduced to him--many ladies, the
veteran soldiers of the revolution, citizens from other states and all
quarters of Virginia.
Col. Wm. I. Lewis, of Campbell, was introduced to him, and delivered the
following address:--
"GEN. LAFAYETTE,
"The sons of the mountains join most cordially their low land brethren
in welcoming your return to this country, they are the more delighted at
this particular period, because after an absence of about forty years,
you will now be a witness of the happy effects of self government,
founded on the natural rights of man--rights, which you so nobly
contributed to establish. Little did you think when in youthful age, you
voluntarily put your life in your hand, and crossed the stormy billows
of the deep, to fight and bleed for the independence of America that
the results would have been so wonderful. At that period we were only
a handful of people, for in everything of military import, except an
invincible love and attachment for liberty--we fought, and thanks
to Lafayette and his native nation, we conquered!--Now we see the
result--we have nearly by the offspring of our own loins increased
to more than 10,000,000 of people cleared the immeasurable forests
of savages, and wild beasts, and in their places are cultivating rich
fields, building villages, towns, and cities; our commerce is spread
over every sea, and our navy rides triumphant on the ocean. Such are the
effects of free government, founded on equal rights, supported by wise
and merciful laws faithfully executed!--There is but one alloy to our
pleasure of meeting you--we dread your return to Europe. The despots of
that country envy your increasing glory, founded on virtue, which they
cannot imitate; and their political fears may again incarcerate you in
the grated walls of a dungeon! Stay then with us, Lafayette--stay
with us--here in every house you will find a home and in every heart a
friend--we will with filial affection rock with gentleness the cradle of
your declining age; and when it shall please the God of universal nature
to call you to himself, crowned with the blessings of at least one free
and mighty nation, we will then with holy devotion bury your bones by
the side of your adopted and immortal father, and moisten your tomb with
the tears of love and gratitude."
The costume and whole appearance of Col. Lewis were striking and
interesting; he had on the mountain dress. On the conclusion of the
address, the General grasped him with both hands, and in the most
touching manner, begged him to convey to his mountain friends his, most
affectionate acknowledgments for this testimony of their kindness. He
recounted the services which their gallantry had formerly rendered
him. He dwelt with delight upon the interest they now manifested in his
happiness.
About 11 o'clock, the procession began to form for the triumphal arch,
erected on the ruins of the Rock Redoubt, standing within six yards of
the river's bank. The ceremony of the reception at that most interesting
point, was pathetic beyond expression. The old General advanced up
the hillock which leads to the redoubt, limping and supported by the
Governor, with his aids and members of the committee of arrangement. A
large column of officers and citizens followed them. When Lafayette had
reached the triumphal arch, General Taylor stepped from the semicircular
group, which was formed near the river's bank, saluted him with profound
respect, and addressed him in the following manner:
"GENERAL,
"On behalf of my comrades, I bid you welcome. They come to greet you,
with no pageantry, intended to surprise by its novelty, or dazzle by its
splendour: But they bring you. General, an offering which wealth could
not purchase, nor power constrain. On this day, associated with so many
thrilling recollections; on this spot, consecrated by successful valour,
they come to offer you this willing homage of their hearts.
"Judge, General, of their feelings at this moment by your own. Every
thing around them speaks alike to their senses and sensibilities. These
plains, where the peaceful plow-share has not yet effaced the traces of
military operations; these half decayed ramparts, this ruined village,
in which the bombs' havoc is still every where visible, tell us of past
warfare; and remind us of that long, arduous and doubtful struggle, on
the issue of which depended the emancipation of our country.
"On yonder hillock, the last scene of blood was closed by the surrender
of an army; and the liberty of our nation permanently secured. With what
resistless eloquence does it persuade our gratitude and admiration
for the gallant heroes, to whose noble exertions we owe the countless
blessings which our free institutions have conferred upon us?
"The spot on which we stand was once a redoubt occupied by our enemy.
With how rapid a pencil does imagination present the blooming chieftain,
by whom it was wrested from his grasp. Can we be here and forget, that
superior to the prejudices which then enchained even noble minds, he
perceived in the first and almost hopeless struggles of a distant and
obscure colony, the movement of that moral power, which was destined to
give an new direction and character to political institutions, and to
improve human happiness. Can we forget, that, deaf to the solicitations
of power, of rank, and of pleasure, with a noble prodigality, he gave to
our country his sword, his treasure, and the influence of his example.
"And when in the aged warrior who stands before us, we recognise that
youthful chieftain, with what rapidity does memory retrace the incidents
of his eventful life? With what pleasure do we see his manhood realize
the promise of his youth? In senates or in camps, in the palaces of
kings, or in their _dungeons_, we behold the same erect and manly
spirit. At one time tempering the licentiousness of popular feeling; at
another restraining the extravagance of power, and always regardless of
every thing but the great object of his life, the moral and political
improvement of mankind.
"General--In the brightest days of antiquity, no artificial stimulus of
rank or power, or wealth, was required to excite noble minds to acts of
generous daring, A wreath of laurel, or of oak, was at once the proof
and the reward of illustrious merit. For this, statesmen meditated,
warriors bled, and eloquence soared to its sublimest heights. The prize
was invaluable; for, it was won only by merit. It detracted, however,
somewhat from its worth, that it was conferred by the partiality of
compatriots, and in the fervor of admiration inspired by recent success.
"Your life, General, illustrious throughout, in this also is
distinguished.--Time which dims the lustre of ordinary merit, has
rendered yours more brilliant. After a lapse of nearly half a century,
your triumph is decreed by the sons of those who witnessed your
exploits.
"Deign then, General, to accept the simple but expressive token of their
gratitude and admiration. Suffer their leader to place upon your veteran
brow the only crown it would not disdain to wear, the blended emblems
of civic worth and martial prowess. It will not pain you, General, to
perceive some scattered sprigs of melancholy cypress intermingled with
the blended leaves of laurel and oak. Your heart would turn from us
with generous indignation, if on an occasion like this, amid the joyous
acclamations which greet you, every where, were heard no sighs of
grateful recollection for those gallant men who shared your battles, but
do not, cannot share your triumph. The wreath which our gratitude has
woven to testify our love for you, will lose nothing of its fragrance,
or its verdure, though time hang upon its leaves some tears of pious
recollection of the friend of your early youth; In war the avenger, in
peace, the father of his country.
"In behalf then, of all the chivalry of Virginia; on this redoubt which
his valour wrested from the enemy at the point of the bayonet; I
place on the head of Major General Lafayette this wreathe of double
triumph:--won by numerous and illustrious acts of martial prowess, and
by a life devoted to the happiness of the human race. In their names,
I proclaim him alike victorious in arms and acts of civil polity. In
bannered fields, a hero--in civil life, the benefactor of mankind."
Lafayette was deeply affected. There was a solemn earnestness in his
manner, a touching sensibility in his whole countenance which most
deeply impressed every observer. Many wept--all were moved. When Gen.
Taylor had closed his address, he was about to fix the civic wreath upon
the General's head. But the considerate veteran, always himself, always
attentive to the slightest proprieties of word and action, caught the
hovering wreath as it approached his brow with his right hand, and
respectfully bowing, dropt it to his side, when he thus replied:
"I most cordially thank you, my dear general, and your companions in
arms, for your affectionate welcome, your kind recollections, and the
flattering expressions of your friendship. Happy I am to receive them on
these already ancient lines, where the united arms of America and France
have been gloriously engaged in a holy alliance to support the rights of
American Independence, and he sacred principle of the sovereignty of
the people. Happy also to be so welcomed on the particular spot where my
dear light infantry comrades acquired one of their honorable claims to
public love and esteem. You know, sir, that in this business of storming
redoubts, with unloaded arms and fixed bayonets, the merit of the deed
is in the soldiers who execute it, and to each of them, I am anxious to
acknowledge their equal share of honor. Let me, however, with affection
and gratitude, pay a special tribute to the gallant name of Hamilton,
who commanded the attack, to the three field officers who seconded him,
Gimat, Laurens and Fish, the only surviving one, my friend now near me.
In their name, my dear general, in the name of the light infantry, those
we have lost as well as those who survive, and only in common with them,
I accept the crown with which you are pleased to honor us, and I offer
you the return of the most grateful acknowledgements."
When he had closed, he gave a new proof of the rapidity of his
conceptions, the generosity of his soul, the uniform modesty of his
character. The very moment he concluded, (never having been prepared for
such a scene, never having seen the address, never having suspected the
presentation of the wreath) he turned round and drew Col. Fish to the
front. "Here," he exclaimed, "half of this wreath belongs to you." "No
sir, it is all your own." "Then." said Lafayette, putting it into Col.
Fish's hand, "take it and preserve it as our _common property_."
The whole scene was strongly marked by the moral sublime. This ceremony
over, the grand review commenced. Lafayette stood near the arch, and
the volunteer companies, and the U. S. troops passed him in regular
succession, with flags flying and music floating in the air. The troops
then formed themselves again in line, and Lafayette on foot, passed
down the line. He was carried to the obelisk, situated on the spot where
Vimionel had stormed the second redoubt.--The review over, and Lafayette
having seen and been seen by all the troops, he mounted his barouche in
company with the governor, and was followed by the other carriages. The
whole body of military and citizens then moved to the field, near to
which the British troops had grounded their arms in 1781. Between
these, and the amphitheatre, where at least one thousand ladies sat, the
barouche passed on near to the ladies, who continued to wave their white
handkerchiefs as he slowly moved on. "Ladies, receive my warm thanks for
your kind welcome," was constantly upon his lips.
The whole scene defies description. Here were the fields, which
forty-three years ago, had witnessed the tread of a conquered enemy!
A thousand associations of this description rushed upon the mind. Now,
filled with an animated and joyous throng of from 10 to 15,000 persons.
The spectacle surpassed all expectation; all expression.
When at the tomb of Washington, Mr. Custis addressed him as follows:--
"Last of the generals of the army of Independence! At this awful and
impressive moment, when forgetting the splendour of a triumph greater
than Roman consul ever had, you bend with reverence over the remains
of Washington, the child of Mount Vernon presents you with this token,
containing the hair of him, whom while living you loved, and to whose
honored grave you now pay the manly and affecting tribute of a patriot's
and a soldier's tear.
"The _ring_ has ever been an emblem of the union of hearts from the
earliest ages of the world; and _this_ will unite the affections of
all the Americans to the person and posterity of Lafayette, now and
hereafter. And when your descendants of a distant day shall behold
this valued relic, it will remind them of the heroic virtues of their
illustrious sire, who received it, not in the palaces of princes,
or amid the pomp and vanities of life, but at the laurelled grave of
Washington.
"Do you ask--Is this the Mausoleum befitting the ashes of a Marcus
Aurelius, or the good Antonius? I tell you, that the father of his
country lies buried in the hearts of his countrymen; and in those of the
brave, the good, the free, of all ages and nations. Do you seek for the
tablets, which are to convey his fame to immortality? They have long
been written in the freedom and happiness of their country. These are
the monumental trophies of Washington the great; and will endure when
the proudest works of art have "dissolved and left not a wreck behind."
"Venerable man! will you never tire in the cause of freedom and human
happiness? Is it not time that you should rest from your labours, and
repose on the bosom of a country, which delights to love and honor you,
and will teach her children's children to bless your name and memory?
Surely, where liberty dwells, there must be the country of Lafayette.
"Our fathers witnessed the dawn of your glory, partook of its meridian
splendour; and oh, let their children enjoy the benign radiance of your
setting sun. And when it shall sink in the horizon of nature, here, here
with pious duty, we will form your sepulcher; and, united in death as
in life, by the side of the great chief you will rest in peace, till the
last trump awakes the slumbering world, and call your virtues to their
great reward.
"The joyous shouts of millions of freemen hailed your returning
foot-print on our sands. The arms of millions are opened wide to take
you to their grateful hearts, and the prayers of millions ascend to the
throne of the Eternal, that the choicest blessings of heaven may cheer
the latest days of Lafayette."
General Lafayette having received the ring, pressed it to his bosom, and
replied--
"The feelings, which at this awful moment oppress my heart, do not leave
the power of utterance I can only thank you, my dear Custis, for your
precious gift. I pay a silent homage to the tomb of the greatest and
best of men, my paternal friend."
General Lafayette was escorted to his quarters by the troops, and a
sumptuous dinner provided for him, and the distinguished civil and
military characters who were present on the occasion. The following
morning, the officers of the volunteer companies present, prepared a
military breakfast. The table was spread in the tent of Washington,
which was pitched at the volunteer's encampment. He left York Wednesday
afternoon, and reached Williamsburg in the evening, where he was
received with open arms by the citizens. Hence he proceeded to Norfolk,
where he had been previously invited, and where great preparations were
made to receive him according to his distinguished merit, and his highly
important services to the country. From Norfolk he was to proceed to
Richmond; and thence farther south through North and South Carolina, to
Georgia. Invitations have been given him to visit Kentucky, Tennessee
and Ohio; but it is probable he will decline them. For he intends
returning to Washington in December, and to spend most of the winter
season in that city. Early in the spring, he will probably visit the
northern states again; and embark for France at Boston, some time in
June or July.
There is a strong and very general desire that Lafayette should pass
the remainder of his life in the United States; and that the national
government should provide a respectable establishment for him and his
family in this country. That the representatives of the people will be
ready to grant an honorable stipend, there cannot be a doubt. But France
is his native country and his home. There are his children and his
grand children. There, it is natural, he should desire to pass his few
remaining years. And such an intention, we believe, he has expressed.
What will be his final resolution on the subject, we will not
conjecture.
* * * * *
From the New-York Commercial Advertiser.
LAFAYETTE.
O deep was the gloom on our sad land descending,
And wild was the moan from the tempest's dread form,
While the heroes and sires of our country were bending
Their souls to their God, and their brows to the storm.
Who bounds to the shore from the dark bosom'd ocean,
In the sparkle and pride of his beauty and youth?
His ardent mind burning, his soul all devotion,
To the high cause of liberty, justice and truth?
He joins the bold band, who, with spirits undaunted,
Strive to guard and to win, all man's bosom holds dear;
It is done! they have triumph'd! and heaven has granted
Fair freedom to crown their majestic career.
How lovely the land where the bright sun is flinging
The purple and gold from his throne in the west!
There millions of hearts in their gladness are singing,
There finds the poor exile contentment and rest.
The eagle that rush'd on a torn, bloody pinion,
And soar'd to the sky 'mid the clamors of light,
Now wings his proud way in untroubled dominion,
While the nations all silently gaze on his flight.
Who comes o'er the billow with head bent and hoary,
With full throbbing heart, and with glistening eye
Past years roll before him--the scene of his glory
Fills his heart with emotions, deep, solemn and high.
Great man! thy lov'd name to the skies is ascending,
A name whose remembrance no time can destroy,
While gladness and grief are within us contending,
For all _thou_ hast suffer'd, and all _we_ enjoy.
We will rank thee with him, who was sent us by heaven;
Ye shall meet in our hearts as in glory ye met:
Spread, ye winds, the glad news! to our wishes is given
The friend of our WASHINGTON, brave LAFAYETTE.
* * * * *
TO LAFAYETTE.
We'll search the earth, and search the sea,
To cull a gallant wreath for thee;
And every field for freedom fought,
And every mountain-height, where aught
Of liberty can yet be found,
Shall be our blooming harvest-ground.
Laurels in garlands hang upon
Thermopylae and Marathon;--
On Bannockburn the thistle grows;--
On Runnymead the wild rose blows;--
And on the banks of Boyne, its leaves
Green Erin's shamrock wildly weaves.
In France, in sunny France, we'll get
The Fleur-de-lys and mignonette
From every consecrated spot,
Where ties a martyr'd Huguenot;--.
And cull _even here_, from many a field,
And many a rocky height,
Bays, that our vales and mountains yield,
Where men have met to fight
For law, and liberty, and life,
And died in freedom's holy strife.
Below Atlantic seas,--below
The waves of Erie and Champlain,
The sea-grass and the corals grow
In rostral trophies round the slain;
And we can add to form thy crown,
Some branches worthy thy renown.
Long may the chaplet flourish bright,
And borrow from the heavens its light!
As with a cloud that circles round
A star, when other stars are set,
With glory shall thy brow be bound,
With glory shall thy head be crowned,
With glory-starlike tinctured yet:--
For air, and earth, and, sky, and sea,
Shall yield a glorious wreath to thee.
End of Project Gutenberg's Memoirs of General Lafayette, by Lafayette