America's Future.

Auckland Star, Volume XXIII, Issue 4292, 23 February 1884, Page 9 (Supplement)

America's Future.

These last seven years have given occasion to the Americans and to their foreign, friends to give utterance to many congratu^ lations about the happy result of that struggle of a century ago—the war of indepenence. Every one has been saying, withal! degrees of eloquent emphasis that never since the iroi'ld began has there been such progress seen as lias been seen betweea.the Atlantic and the Pacific Shores since them People point to maps of. a hundred or fifty, or twenty years ago, and show us with.exultantwonderthe difference between eac!jijjaii\ With the peace of Paris, the United Statesreached out to the Mississippi, and excluded New Orleans and Florida ; and vast roigonsofthattrack were uninhabited and unalearad.. We need not dwell on tho change taat each year, each week, has brought forti* on theextension of territory westward aad northrward, on the hundreds of great citiaitha myriads 01 towns, the tens of thousands of miles of railway, the mines, tho manufacturers tha .machinery. AU this is familiar to every one. What is less obvious is tho goal to whichthis vast material progress is tending :; a question which ,has perploxei refloating minds since De Tocquvilles day, and which* is exercising America not a attle" ab, this moment. The United Statce have now formed aad established themselves,, not without one struggle of tremsndoua proportions ; their material resources are scoured to them ; they are safe for a long time to come against many of the -tatals wlSch beta! the older civilization of Ehgope. But it is already almost a commonplace to say Shat their real trials are only just beginning. When tho era of supplement is over that of internal development wili begiin. What will be tho moral and intellectual aspect of it ? What will bo the gift of. Asaerica *o the common stock of ideas * The question is one that can only be vaguoly jtskod as yet ! time alone can answer ii*.. But meanwhile it wauld be vain to deny that the century-old republic is-giving eveuy indication of a future as remarkable in the region of morals and of ideas as hi the material region. Literature is beginning to hvke n, character, and a very charming character, of its.own. In art the Americans arc showing, if not independence, at least an oxtraodinary facility which must lead them to better things before long. They are eager for all tli^t Europe can send tnem in tho way of letters, the drama or pictures. There is no " evacuation of Heir York" on tho part of English lectures, English actors or English writers. The keen American mind;is turning with eagerness, uninformed with criticism, torl ward the best that the modern world can give it. The intellectual feature of such a race is not likely to disappoint: the moe^ sanguine of the prophets.— London Timts,