The contempt with which Comte and many other philosophizers have
treated the press which tells of the progress of mankind is an example
for all good men to avoid. If we recognize the brotherhood of
humanity, we cannot be indifferent to the passing lives, the joys and
misfortunes of our brothers. Let pedants and philosophasters bury
themselves in the writings of the dead, the good man prefers to know
something of the living, and he finds it in the daily, weekly, and
monthly press.
At our first outward glance, we are struck with the elevation of our
standpoint. This great republic has attained an elevation in
intelligence, wealth, and power, which enables it to look down on the
lands that are overshadowed by the darkness of the past, and to
anticipate the time when American pre-eminence shall be universally
acknowledged. The condition already attained was eloquently stated by
Chauncey M. Depew, in a recent address at New York, which gave a
startling view of