(December 5, 1782–July 24, 1862), was the 8th President of the United States, 1837–41; Vice-President under Andrew Jackson, 1832–36; U.S. Minister to Great Britain, 1831–32; Secretary of State under Andrew Jackson, 1829–31; Governor of New York, 1828–29; U.S. Senator, 1821–28; Attorney General of New York, 1815–21; Regent of the University of New York, 1815; New York State Senator, 1812–15; appointed Surrogate of Columbia County, New York, 1808; married Hannah Hoes, 1807, and admitted to bar, 1803.
On Saturday, March 4, 1837, in his Inaugural Address, President Martin Van Buren stated:
So sensibly, fellow-citizens, do these circumstances press themselves upon me that I should not dare to enter upon my path of duty did I not look for the generous aid of those who will be associated with me in the various and coordinate branches of the Government; did I not repose with unwavering reliance on the patriotism, the intelligence, and the kindness of a people who never yet deserted a public servant honestly laboring in their cause; and above all, did I not permit myself humbly to hope for the sustaining of an ever-watchful and beneficent Providence. …
I only look to the gracious protection of that Divine Being whose strengthening support I humbly solicit, and whom I fervently pray to look down upon us all. May it be among the dispensations of His Providence to bless our beloved country with honors and length of days; may her ways be pleasantness, and all her paths peace!1831
On Monday, September 4, 1837, in a Special Session Message to Congress, President Martin Van Buren stated:
Banking has become a political topic of the highest interest. … I felt it due to the people to apprise them distinctly that in the event of my election I would not be able to cooperate in the reestablishment of a national bank. To these sentiments I have now only to add the expression of an increased conviction that the reestablishment of such a bank in any form, whilst it would not accomplish the beneficial purpose promised by its advocates, would impair the rightful supremacy of the popular will, injure the character and diminish the influence of our political system, and bring once more into existence a concentrated moneyed power, hostile to the spirit and threatening the permanency of our republican institutions. …
Surely banks are not more able than the Government to secure the money in their possession against accident, violence, or fraud. The assertion that they are so must assume that a vault in a bank is stronger than a vault in the Treasury, and that directors, cashiers, and clerks not selected by the Government nor under its control are more worthy of confidence than officers selected from the people and responsible to the Government—officers bound by official oaths and bonds for a faithful performance of their duties, and constantly subject to the supervision of Congress. …
The great agricultural interest has in many parts of the country suffered comparatively little, and, as if Providence intended to display the munificence of its goodness at the moment of our greatest need, and in direct contrast to the evils occasioned by the waywardness of man, we have been blessed throughout our extended territory. …
We can only feel more deeply the responsibility of the respective trusts that have been confided to us, and under the pressure of difficulties unite in invoking the guidance and aid of the Supreme Ruler of Nations.1832
On December 5, 1837, in his First Annual Message to Congress, President Martin Van Buren stated:
We have reason to renew the expression of our devout gratitude to the Giver of All Good for His benign protection. Our country presents on every side the evidences of that continued favor under whose auspices it has gradually risen from a few feeble and dependent colonies to a prosperous and powerful confederacy.1833
On December 3, 1838, in his Second Annual Message to Congress, President Martin Van Buren stated:
These blessings, which evince the care and beneficence of Providence, call for our devout and fervent gratitude. We have not less reason to be grateful for other bounties bestowed by the same Munificent Hand, and more exclusively our own.1834
On Monday, December 2, 1839, in his Third Annual Message to Congress, President Martin Van Buren stated:
The ravages of fire and disease have painfully afflicted otherwise flourishing portions of our country, and serious embarrassments yet derange the trade of many of our cities. But notwithstanding these adverse circumstances, that general prosperity which has been heretofore so bountifully bestowed upon us by the Author of All Good still continues to call for our warmest gratitude. Especially have we reason to rejoice in the exuberant harvests which have lavishly recompensed well-directed industry and given to it that sure reward which is vainly sought in visionary speculations. …
By ceasing to run in debt and applying the surplus of our crops and incomes to the discharge of existing obligations … we shall see our country soon recover from a temporary depression. …
Fortunately for us at this moment, when the balance of trade is greatly against us and the difficulty of meeting it enhanced by the disturbed state of our money affairs, the bounties of Providence have come to relieve us from the consequences of past errors. … Our surplus profits, the energy and industry of our population, and the wonderful advantages which Providence has bestowed upon our country … will in due time afford abundant means. …
Abuses as we are now encountering … seek to perpetuate their power by means of the influence they have been permitted to acquire. … To gain for the few an ascendancy over the many by securing to them a monopoly of the currency … to nourish, in preference to the manly virtues that give dignity to human nature, a craving desire for luxurious enjoyment and sudden wealth, which renders those who seek them dependent on those who supply them; to substitute for republican simplicity and economical habits a sickly appetite for effeminate indulgence and an imitation of that reckless extravagance.1835
On December 5, 1840, in his Fourth Annual Message to Congress, President Martin Van Buren stated:
Our devout gratitude is due to the Supreme Being for having graciously continued to our beloved country through the vicissitudes of another year the invaluable blessings of health, plenty, and peace.1836
In the autumn of 1860, Martin Van Buren joined the Dutch Reformed Church.1837 During his last illness he made this confession:
The atonement of Jesus Christ is the only remedy and rest for my soul.1838
Heber, Reginald (April 21, 1783–April 3, 1826), was an English missionary and hymn writer. He was the first Anglican bishop sent to India, where he baptized the first Christian convert in East India. In 1827, Reginald Heber wrote the immortal words to the hymn, Holy, Holy, Holy:
Holy, Holy, Holy! Lord God Almighty!
Early in the morning our song shall rise to Thee:
Holy, Holy, Holy! Merciful and Mighty!
God in Three Persons, Blessed Trinity.1839