"A Nation's Strength" by Ralph Waldo Emerson, gives us a unique viewpoint on what makes a nation strong. The speaker explains that gold isn't what makes you strong, as it only leads to ruin. Nor is it battle. You can just ask the "red dust of empires passed away," and they'll tell you how war destroyed them. Pride isn't the correct answer, either. Pride leads to destruction as much as wealth and war. No, it's the people, the good, hardworking people, who toil ceaselessly everyday, even "while others sleep;" people who don't care about wealth but honor, and not war but peace. Those are what make up a great nation's strength.