Vermont telegraph. [volume] (Brandon [Vt.]) 1828-1843, 1838-12-26

dltCt3 % tndt uO ulOTe vi tlLiIt duu SpdCS
shall need TO be occupied with prelimina
ries. Respectfully, yours, &c.
HARVEY CURTIS.
No severity, however undeserved, shall ever be
lily received by me, coming from SO good heart
as my correspondent manifests. If he at any time
! thinks need public castigation, I will stand up
and allow him to lay ON, to his hearts content:
and if l cannot then show that it was undeserUed
why, viii, with becoming submission, suffer the
odium as well as the smart,-for are, indeed
and will be, no intellectual gadiators' but honest
inquirers after truth.
Perhaps, if my brother had in the outset of his
former article, stated as clearly what his object
routd be, as he now has what it ,eas he might not
have bad occasion for all the complaint which he
now makes. After oil, am unable to see that 1
wandered so widely as he appears to suppose. He
brought it as charge against the "Declaration of
Sentiments" that it would not allow its endorsers
either to be drafted into military service or to pay
taxes for carrying on war. How much it was
wandering from the subject presented By himself
for me, in reply, to undertake to show him that
Christianity requires the very thing of him. and of
all its followers which the "Decaraian' requires
of its endorsers, others will judge. sTor myself
instead of once thinking that was wandering, I
verify supposed, in the honesty of my heart, that
was keeping very close to the subject-and, as vet
, have been unable to view it otherwise.
am happy to-be told by my brother that mis-
apprehended him, and therefore put misconstruc-
ton. Not that am happy to have misapprehend-
| ed-but TO learn that he shrinks from results to
which doctrine, that supposed he held to, would
inevitably lead him. After all, whether he has
done more by this step than to exchange part of
his error for inconsistency, remains yet to be SEEN
1t strikes me that he has only changed the place
and kept the pain. And here would render nv
| reasons for entertaining this view,-but am re-
quired to be cautious about putting construc-
tons-so, in future, shall be under the necessity
OF adopting the Socratc Misunderstanding questions,
and allowing my brother to fix his own construc-
tons And it is but reasonable that should have
the privilege of doing so, after having been so
thoroughly catechised myself At proper time,
then, shall PROFOUND to my brother the following
questions, among others:
| Would he, in obedience TO government, fall down
and worship Juggernautl If not. would he paw
taxes to defray the expense of worshipping this
idol? If he would, why would he? If not, why
not?
Would he, in obedience to government, shoulder
his musker, 60 into the battlefield, and assist in
Strengthening his fellow-beings! ...
| If not would he pay tax to defray the expense
| of carrying the diabolical work of murder. in
which he would not allow his own hands to en-
gage? If he would, why and with what consis
tency? II he would not pay such tax, with what
propriety or consistency does he bring it as charge
! against the signers of the "Decaration," that
they will not do what he will not (?
When these questions are disposed of, more will
be forthcoming. have submitted patiently to be-
ing catechised. 1t is now my turn.
zone thing at time,'' my brother saws.
agree with him that this is good general MOTTO
But there are things which stand inseparably con.
nected with other things,-so that to move the
former is to set the latter to vibrating. Brothel
Curtis says that his "single aim was to show tina
the sentiments of the Boston Declaration involved
refusal to pay civil taxes" Now if he will turn
to the obnoxious note, he will find the first para
graph of it to contain my reply to his "single,'
distinct proposition. The remaining paragraphs O
the note called forth by what conceived Il
be involved by the position brother Curtis had tax
en-. From the fact that he brought it as charg
against the signefs of the Declaration, that the
would neither be drafted nor pay tax in lieu c
!, fighting, did not hesitate to infer that he woul
either fight or pay the tax, and do all other thing
consistent Herewith. But as he disclaims tn
4 sentiment, l am in duty bound to wait for an ex
PLANTATION. Whether that explanation will reliev
: him before the public, in point of consistency, tn
0 event will determine.