Had the prophet foreseen the increasing facilities of commerce, the triumphs of steam, the floating masses of transportation, the wonders of navigation, quickened and guided by the telegraph, and to these had he added the diversified industry of the country, extending, expanding, and prevailing, his remarkable vision, which already saw so much, would have viewed other glories in assured certainty. * * * * * 8. There is another prophecy, at once definite and broad, from the same eminent quarter. In a letter dated London, 17th October, 1785, and addressed to John Jay, at the time Secretary for Foreign Affairs under the Confederation, John Adams reveals his conviction of the importance of France to us, “while England held a province in America”;[375] and then, in another letter, dated 21st October, 1785, reports the saying of people about him, “_that Canada and Nova Scotia must soon be ours_; there must be a war for it,--they know how it will end,--but the sooner, the better; this done, we shall be forever at peace,--till then, never.”[376] These intimations foreshadow the prophecy found in the Preface to his “Defence of the American Constitutions,” written in London, while minister there, and dated Grosvenor Square, 1st January, 1787:-- “The United States of America have exhibited, perhaps, the first example of governments erected on the simple principles of Nature.… Thirteen governments thus founded on the natural authority of the people alone, without a pretence of miracle or mystery, and _which are destined to spread over the northern part of that whole quarter of the globe_, are a great point gained in favor of the rights of mankind. The experiment is made, and has completely succeeded.”[377] Here is foretold nothing less than that our system of government is to embrace the whole continent of North America. * * * * * 9. This series may be concluded by other words, general in character, but deeply prophetic, showing a constant sense of the unfolding grandeur and influence of the Republic. The first is from the concluding chapter of the work last cited, and in harmony with the Preface:-- “A prospect into futurity in America is like contemplating the heavens through the telescopes of Herschel. Objects stupendous in their magnitudes and motions strike us from all quarters, and fill us with amazement.”[378] Thus, also, he writes to Thomas Jefferson, November 15, 1813:-- “Many hundred years must roll away before we shall be corrupted. _Our pure, virtuous, public-spirited, federative Republic will last forever, govern the globe, and introduce the perfection of man._”[379] Then, again, in a letter to Hezekiah Niles, 13th February, 1818:--