north america-2-第87节

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enstown；　consoles　himself　with　reflecting　that　the　evil　has　been　unavoidable；　but　will　perhaps　soon　be　avoidednevertheless　he　cannot　but　remember　that　there　is　no　such　squalor　and　no　such　poverty　in　the　land　from　which　he　has　returned。　　I　claim　no　credit　for　the　new　country。　　I　impute　no　blame　to　the　old　country。　　But　there　is　the　fact。　　The　Irishman　when　he　expatriates　himself　to　one　of　those　American　States　loses　much　of　that　affectionate；　confiding；　master…worshiping　nature　which　makes　him　so　good　a　fellow　when　at　home。　　But　he　becomes　more　of　a　man。　　He　assumes　a　dignity　which　he　never　has　known　before。　　He　learns　to　regard　his　labor　as　his　own　property。　　That　which　he　earns　he　takes　without　thanks；　but　he　desires　to　take　no　more　than　he　earns。　　To　me　personally；　he　has；　perhaps；　become　less　pleasant　than　he　was；but　to　himself！　　It　seems　to　me　that　such　a　man　must　feel　himself　half　a　god；　if　he　has　the　power　of　comparing　what　he　is　with　what　he　was。　It　is　right　that　all　this　should　be　acknowledged　by　us。　　When　we　speak　of　America　and　of　her　institutions；　we　should　remember　that　she　has　given　to　our　increasing　population　rights　and　privileges　which　we　could　not　givewhich　as　an　old　country　we　probably　can　never　give。　　That　self…asserting；　obtrusive　independence　which　so　often　wounds　us　is；　if　viewed　aright；　but　an　outward　sign　of　those　good　things　which　a　new　country　has　produced　for　its　people。　　Men　and　women　do　not　beg　in　the　States；　they　do　not　offend　you　with　tattered　rags；　they　do　not　complain　to　heaven　of　starvation；　they　do　not　crouch　to　the　ground　for　half…pence。　　If　poor；　they　are　not　abject　in　their　poverty。　　They　read　and　write。　　They　walk　like　human　beings　made　in　God's　form。　　They　know　that　they　are　men　and　women；　owing　it　to　themselves　and　to　the　world　that　they　should　earn　their　bread　by　their　labor；　but　feeling　that　when　earned　it　is　their　own。　If　this　be　so；　if　it　be　acknowledged　that　it　is　so；　should　not　such　knowledge　in　itself　be　sufficient　testimony　of　the　success　of　the　country　and　of　her　institutions？

END　OF　VOL。　II。


End