The Nation's Guest—Arrangements for his Reception. (From the Georgia Messenger, Macon, Ga, March 23, 1825.) A signal gun will be fired as soon as the General and his suite arrive, on the hill at the old fort. The ladies and gentlemen will proceed to form themselves immediately in two lines on Bridge Street, near the ferry, under the direction of the Town Marshal, and A. Mandell, J. S. Childers, G. B. Wardlaw, E. McCall, R. McCall and Isaiah Chain, Marshals for the day; the arrangements to be as follows: First, the Commissioners of the town and Committee of Arrangements on horseback; second, the ladies; third, the citizens generally. He will be received by the Commissioners and Committee near the ferry, where he will be addressed by James S. Frierson, Esq., in behalf of the citizens. Wednesday, March 30th.—Reception of Lafayette. At 12 o'clock yesterday a signal announced his approach, when the ladies and gentlemen proceeded to form lines on Bridge Street near the ferry. Owing to the rapidity with which he now travels, he was entirely unattended by any military escort. The only persons with him were his son and secretary, and two of the Governor's aids, Cols. Thaddeus G. Holt and Henry G. Lamar. He dismounted from his carriage and crossed the river, where he was received by the Committee and Commissioners. On ascending the bluff he was welcomed to our town in behalf of the citizens by James S. Frierson, Esq., who said: "General Lafayette. Sir: I am deputed by the citizens of Macon and its vicinity to welcome you to this place. "To tell you, sir, that you were the early, steadfast and constant friend of this republic in her revolutionary contest, would be only to say what had been acknowledged by the past and present generation. "But that glorious struggle in which your destinies were pledged in common with the illustrious characters of that day, has eventually proved that a system of government, now in the history of the world, a confederative representative democracy, is the best guarantee for the liberties of a great people, is now confirmed by the experience of thirty-six years. "The first State, sir, which you will enter after leaving this, and those you are now to visit are prominent testimonials of this sublime truth, unknown in the Revolutionary struggle; a barren wilderness where the foot of civilized man had scarcely trod, in this short period had grown in numbers nearly equalling the original States, entertaining the same political views, the same veneration for your person and character that we do; you will there be greeted with the same hospitality that you have met here. "With hearts full of gratitude for your past service, with the earnest and intense interest for your future welfare and prosperity, we all unite in wishing that the evening of your days may be spent in that calm tranquility and repose of which you were deprived in your earlier life." To which the General replied in substance: "That he was thankful for the manner in which the citizens of Macon were placed to receive him; that he perfectly accorded in the opinion that a representative Democracy was the best calculated to secure the liberties of the people, and requested that the people of Macon would receive his thanks for the manner in which they had been pleased to treat him." A procession then formed and he was conducted to his quarters at the Macon Hotel. During the moving of the procession a national salute was fired. Soon after his arrival he was waited upon by the ladies, who were individually introduced to him; after which every citizen who wished was introduced, to whom General Lafayette gave a cordial grasp of the hand. He was then waited on at his quarters by the brethren of Macon Lodge, No. 34, and was addressed as follows by Worshipful Ambrose Baber, Master of the Lodge: "Brother and General Lafayette: In our humble capacity as brothers of the mystic union, we welcome you to our infant "Admonished by that resplendent luminary which rules and governs the day, and imparts an equal lustre on all mankind twice in every year, that we have all once been and must again be upon a level, we have ventured to hail your arrival among us, and to offer you a welcome in unalloyed gratitude, the spontaneous effusion of our hearts. "Illustrious benefactor of mankind. What a train of associations does thy eventful life excite. Companion and associate of our immortal Washington. Thine efficient arm hath prostrated oppressive tyranny—succored, and relieved distressed and agonized humanity, and established a nation in the full enjoyment of freedom. The glittering offerings of princes could not dissuade, nor the appalling frowns of royalty deter you from a life of benevolent usefulness. The assassins of sanguinary demagogues nor the loathsome cells of the dungeon mar or destroy your feelings of philanthropy. Unaltered and unchanged didst thou remain amidst the calamities and vicissitudes which harrassed thine own distracted country. "Behold thy compensation. The gratitude of ten millions of freemen, the applause and admiration of every nation. Even the wilderness smiles with joy and the savage is gladdened at thy presence. "Amidst this jubilee of feeling, permit me to offer you again the grateful rejoicings of my associates and brethren of the society of Free Masons, in beholding you among us. Royal tyranny may condemn, ignorance may reproach and blaspheme the holy mysteries of our institution; yet with Lafayette for her support the science of Masonry will continue to illumine and harmonize mankind to endless ages. Gratitude must have fled from the breast of man, humanity lose its refuge on earth, and memory lose its seat ere the virtuous deeds of the generous, amiable, distinguished and exemplary Lafayette shall be forgotten." To which the General replied in an animated manner: "The very grateful reception I have met among my brethren demands of me an expression of my most sincere and affectionate acknowledgements. Permit me to declare to you particularly, "The science of Free Masonry, to which I have for many years been an humble votary, is wonderfully calculated to alleviate the many distresses and calamities to which mankind are exposed in their variegated and manifold duties in society, and when I recur to those scenes, to which you have been pleased so delicately to allude, I am constrained to acknowledge how much I have been cheered, sustained and animated in the various vicissitudes of my life, by the holy precepts and examples of our institution. "That you and your Lodge may be blessed with prosperity and harmony, that the rising town of Macon may continue in its advancement, that Masonry may flourish, and the citizens enjoy all the social and intellectual blessings it so eminently inculcates, I pray you, sir, with the rest of my brethren to accept as my most sincere and ardent wish." He remained in town but about two hours and a half, during which time, he in company with a large number of our citizens, partook of an excellent dinner prepared by Mr. Stovall. After dinner the following toast was given by Edward D. Tracy, Esq.: "Our illustrious guest—the friend of our country, of liberty, and of man." To which the General replied, and gave: "The town of Macon—may its prosperity continue to be one of the strongest arguments in favor of republican institutions." Very soon after dinner he bade an affectionate adieu to the gentlemen and ladies around him and resumed his carriage, at which time another national salute was fired. He was accompanied by the Committee, Commissioners of the town and a number of our citizens, on horseback, several miles on his way. It is understood he intended to lodge at the Agency; making the whole distance traveled during the day about sixty miles. Singular Coincidence of Circumstances in the History Of Lafayette and Bolivar. South Carolina was the first place in the United States in which they both landed, and at no very distant spots the one near Georgetown, and the other at Charlestown. Lafayette, a Frenchman, came by the way of France. Both have most materially contributed to the independence of the New World—the one in North, the other in South America; and what is most singular, at the very period in which the one is receiving the homage of national gratitude in the former—the other has succeeded in his efforts for the cause of freedom in the latter place. Among the persons who received Gen. Lafayette at Columbia, was Judge Waites, who is the only survivor of the party that first received him at landing on the soil of South Carolina, at Gen. Huger's in Georgetown. |