Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1820-02-12

contracts. Moreover we apprise our con-
scieniious readers-tba, the proofs which
we shall adduce from scripture 10 demon
straie such asseveratIon shall not be
grounded on such observances as cousii.
tuted only tile ritual or typical part OF its
irame-No-our proofs shall be the an.
Mo'1sed doimgs Of Gods chosen people an
their best seasons Of correct Obedience, or
shall he entirely grounded on such esta6-
iSAed pyeceptS and formai statutes as toy :
thrr exhibit the Ilnsophisticated morality
OF the Mosaic system.
In making this part of our scripiural
researches, II struck us as remarkable
fact, that The very first law, enacted by
God himself immediately after he had re-
delivered to Moses the ten command
meuts, on Mount Horeb, is "a canon for
The rule and regulation OF slave holding.
This canon we thus accurately tram
scribe. (Ex. xxi. !, A.
These are the Judgments (says God
TO Noses which thou shalt sci before
them. L! thou buy an Hebrew servant
SIX years he shall serve thee, and in The
" thing. II he came in bv himself, he
p" shall go oui by himself; If he were
married, then iiis vile shall 20 out with
p" him. ii ms master have given him
: wtc aud she have borne him sons and
: daughters, The wife and children shall
" be her masters, andhe shall go out by
himself Aud IN The next verses il is
enacted, " that if he shall plainly say
vii! net go out free, the master shall
bring Inn unto The JUICES, aud shall
bore his ear through with. an awl; AMI
- he shall serre Mm.forerer." Gen xxi. s, 6
Here then, lsa positive, manifest, exp l.
cit sanction of slave holding by God
himself; and that TOO of Hebrew siave..
holding: Even one OF Gods chosen peo-
pie might he bought in Judra, and be-
come liable TO Involuntary service, first
tor six years it. during his period, his
master had given him a wife, aud she
had borne children, aihoughihe Hebrew
husband in the year of jabil"p ,as ma
numi,ted-h his family continued lie alb
soiuIe possession OF his late master: and
moreover. IT he made plain declaration
before m glSiraie, that the right o!
jubilee Notwithstanding. he vouid not lie
n'anc,pdted-such declaration beng raii-
hed by an car marx, the entire FANNY
became the masters absolute property
Nor will The method of marking HE bond
man b. deemed an harsh process by those Of
MS, ,ChOSe most delicate daughters hare Gy a
sar rings That bargains for bondmen
and bondwomen, and their value as pro-
perry, were recognized by the Mosaic
code, we must also infer from enactments
that we find in two other statutes. By
on" OF them man stealing is made felony
(uslng our technical idiom y and by the
other, Jehovah, after allowing a Jew, in
special cases, 10 espouse a Gentle, pro-
hibiis the husband from selling the female
captive whom he had espou sed for beauty,
and wished To divorce from disgust The
inhibition Is absolute, and the reason for il
l. assigned by the Iawgiver-" thou shalt
not sell her at all for money, because thou
hast humbIed er."-[Deut. 81,
But as we advance in our scriptural
researches under The Mosaic dispense
ton, we find slave-hnlaiug aud contracts
Tor The purchase OF servaRis, not only au-
lhorized but encouraged by the laws Of
Jehovah. The following enactment i'm
one OF those laws which we find recorded
IN Levlt'cns, 25th chapter, seems 10 adj
init o! no other construction.
Both thy bondmen and bondmaids,
(says the supreme lawgiver) which thou
shalt have, shall i,e of the heaihen that
are round about you of them shall We
buy bondmeH and bondmaids. Moreo-
yer OF the strangers that do sojourn
among you; of them shall We buy, and
OF their families that are with you,
which they begat in your land and
they shall be your possession. And We
shall take them as an inheritance for your
children otter you, to inherit them as
possession they stall be your bondme,,
forever" Surely these words are not
merely permissive-ye may btty-but man.
dato'y; ye shall buy, and, they shall be you,
6Oadmea forever!
By This decisive, explicit, irrefragable
authority OF the written word Of God, il
Is evident that servants, other than native
Hebrews, are commanded under the Mo-
slaiIc law 10 he bought and that when
80 bought OF alien sojoUrneTs. that they
and their Issue became Unbeatable pro.
perry. In addition TO the express auiIlo.
rl'y of such PLAIN statutes, We shall cite a
case OF slaye-hOldng under the best and
most Obedleni times of The Mosaic dis
pensailOD; namely, in The life time and UNI
der The command OF the first great pupil
OF Moses, Joshua a leader so celebrate d
Tor exemplary morals and piety, that our
greatest dNines consider him as type
OF the Redeemer. shall here cite the
words OF one OF them, plous and learned
Bishop" Our Lord Jesus, captain of his
fathers host, appeared TO Joshua, tile
typical Jesus, before Jericho, with
drawn sword in his hand. and promis-
ed there 10 defend his people"
The case TO which we refer is that of
the GIbeoniies the scriptural report OF
Which is recorded in ihe 9th chapter OF
the book Of Joshua. This race OF gen
Tiles snciently rcplcnisbed hnd adjacent 10
their fomr poputous cities, i'll tie land of
Canaan. They were doubtless included in
lie number OF those id0Iaiers, Wl5o by The
express command Of Jehovah were pro-