"At the close of our civil war,in 1865,we had but 3,000,000square miles,and a population of 34,000,000.The country staggered beneath a colossal debt of over $4,000,000,000,had an expensive but essentially perishable navy,and there was an ominous feeling between the sections.The purchase of Alaska in 1867,by which we added over half a million square miles to our territory,marked the resumption of the forward march of the United States.Twenty-five years later,at the presidential campaign of 1892,the debt had been reduced to $900,000,000,deducting the sinking fund,and the charge for pensions had about reached its maximum and soon began to decrease,though no one objected to any amount of reward for bona fide soldiers who had helped to save the country.The country's wealth had also enormously increased,while the population had grown to 65,000,000.Our ancestors had,completed or in building,a navy of which no nation need be ashamed;and,though occasionally marred by hard times,there was general prosperity.
"Gradually the different States of Canada--or provinces,as they were then called--came to realize that their future would be far grander and more glorious in union with the United States than separated from it;and also that their sympathy was far stronger for their nearest neighbours than for any one else.One by one these Northern States made known their desire for consolidation with the Union,retaining complete control of their local affairs,as have the older States.They were gladly welcomed by our Government and people,and possible rivals became the best of friends.Preceding and also following this,the States of Mexico,Central America,and parts of South America,tiring of the incessant revolutions and difficulties among themselves,which had pretty constantly looked upon us as a big brother on account of our maintenance of the Monroe doctrine,began to agitate for annexation,knowing they would retain control of their local affairs.In this they were vigorously supported by the American residents and property-holders,who knew that their possessions would double in value the day the United States Constitution was signed.
"Thus,in the first place,by the encouragement of our people,and latterly,apparently,by its own volition,the Union has increased enormously in power,till it now embraces 10,000,000square miles,and has a free and enlightened population of 300,000,000.Though the Union established by Washington and his contemporaries has attained such tremendous proportions,its growth is by no means finished;and as a result of modern improvements,it is less of a journey now to go from Alaska to the Orinoco than it was for the Father of his Country to travel from New York or Philadelphia to the site of the city named in his honour.
"Adequate and really rapid transportation facilities have done much to bind the different parts of the country together,and to rub off the edges of local prejudice.Though we always favour peace,no nation would think of opposing the expressed wishes of the United States,and our moral power for good is tremendous.
The name Japhet means enlargement,and the prophecy seems about to be literally fulfilled by these his descendants.The bankrupt suffering of so many European Continental powers had also other results.It enabled the socialists--who have never been able to see beyond themselves--to force their governments into selling their colonies in the Eastern hemisphere to England,and their islands in the Western to us,in order to realize upon them.
With the addition of Canada to the United States and its loss to the British Empire,the land possessions of the two powers became about equal,our Union being a trifle the larger.All danger of war being removed by the Canadian change,a healthful and friendly competition took its place,the nations competing in their growth on different hemispheres.England easily added large areas in Asia and Africa,while the United States grew as we have seen.The race is still,in a sense,neck-and-neck,and the English-speakers together possess nearly half the globe.The world's recent rate of progress would have been impossible without this approximation to a universal language.The causes that checkmated the Continental powers have ceased to exist.
Many millions of men whose principal thought had been to destroy other members of the race became producers,but it was then too late,for the heavy armaments had done their work.
"Let us now glance at the times as they are,and see how the business of life is transacted.Manhattan Island has something over 2,500,000inhabitants,and is surrounded by a belt of population,several miles wide,of 12,000,000more,of which it is the focus,so that the entire city contains more than 14,500,000souls.The several hundred square miles of land and water forming greater New York are perfectly united by numerous bridges,tunnels,and electric ferries,while the city's great natural advantages have been enhanced and beautified by every ingenious device.No main avenue in the newer sections is less than two hundred feet wide,containing shade and fruit trees,a bridle-path,broad sidewalks,and open spaces for carriages and bicycles.Several fine diagonal streets and breathing-squares have also been provided in the older sections,and the existing parks have been supplemented by intermediate ones,all being connected by parkways to form continuous chains.
