of mention to their sons. There is no whisper of ancient wrong; no
hint or rankling of any irrevocable injustice.

Doubtless some of these land grants were made, at a later day, to
soldiers of the Revolution. But the children of the Revolution maintain a
not unbecoming unreticence as to all things Revolutionary; from their
silence in this regard, as from the name of Manor, we may make safe
inference. Doubtless many of the royalist estates were confiscated at
that time. Doubtless, again, our Government, to encourage settlement,
sold land in such large parcels in early days. Incurious Abingdon cares
for none of these things. Singular Abingdon! And yet are these folk,
indeed, so singular among citizens? So unseeing a people? Consider that,
within the memory of men living, the wisdom of America has made free gift
to the railroads, to encourage their building, of so much land as goes to
the making of New England, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware,
Maryland, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois; a notable encouragement!

History does not remark upon this little transaction, however. In some
piecemeal fashion, a sentence here, a phrase elsewhere, with scores or
hundreds of pages intervening, History does, indeed, make yawning
allusion to some such trivial circumstance; refraining from comment in
the most well-bred manner imaginable. It is only the ill-affected, the
malcontents, who dwell upon such details. Is this not, indeed, a most
beautiful world, and ours the land of opportunity, progress, education?
Let our faces, then, be ever glad and shining. Let us tune ourselves with
the Infinite; let a golden thread run through all our days; no frowns, no
grouches, no scolding--no, no! No ingratitude for all the bounties of
Providence. Let us, then, be up and doing.--Doing, certainly; but why not
think a little too?

Why is thinking in such disfavor? Why is thinking, about subjects and
things, the one crime never forgiven by respectability? We have given
away our resources, what should have been our common wealth; we have
squandered our land, wasted our forests. "Such trifles are not my
business," interrupts History, rather feverish of manner; "my duty to
record and magnify the affairs of the great."--Allow me, madam; we have
given away our coal, the wealth of the past; our oil, the wealth of
to-day; except we do presently think to some purpose, we shall give away
our stored electricity, the wealth of the future--our water power