He has not seen its horror pass; His heart is blithe; the village hears His distant laughter; he careers In festive waltz athwart the glass.-- We are the skaters, we who skim The surface of Life's solemn flood, And drive, with gladness in our blood, A daring dance from brim to brim. Our feet are swift, our faces burn, Our hopes aspire like soaring birds; The world takes courage from our words, And sees the golden time return. But ever near us, silent, cold, Float those who bounded from the bank With eager hearts, like us, and sank Because their feet were overbold. They sank through breathing-holes of vice, Through treacherous sheens of unbelief; They know not their despair and grief: Their hearts and minds are turned to ice. THOMAS JEFFERSON.[1] [Concluded.] Mr. Jefferson returned from France in the autumn of 1789, and the following spring took office as Secretary of State. He was unwilling to abandon his post abroad, but the solicitations of Washington controlled him. He plainly was the most suitable person for the place. Franklin, the father of American diplomacy, was rapidly approaching the close of his long and busy life, and John Adams, the only other statesman whose diplomatic experience could be compared with that of Thomas Jefferson, was Vice President. It would be a tedious task to enter into a detail of the disputes which arose in Washington's Cabinet, nor is it necessary to do so. Most candid persons, who have examined the subject, are convinced that the differences were unavoidable, that they were produced by exigencies in affairs upon which men naturally would disagree, by conflicting social elements, and by the dissimilar characters, purposes, and political doctrines of Jefferson and Hamilton. Jefferson's course was in accordance with the general principles of government which from his youth he had entertained. As to the accusation, so often made, that he opposed an administration of which he was a member and which by the plainest party-rules he was bound to support, it is completely answered by the statement, that his conduct was understood by Washington, that he repeatedly offered to resign, and that when he retired it was in opposition to the President's wish. It is not worth while for us to apply a higher standard of party loyalty to Washington's ministers than he himself applied.