Southern telegraph., 1838-10-10

point, if you are forever making compromi
ses, if all men do this, ifthe entire policy o
private life here, is to escape opposition ant
reproach, every thing will be swept beneaII
the public wave. There will be no individ
uality, no hardhood, no high and stern re
solve, no sell-subsistence, no fearless digni
ty, no glorious manhood mind, left among us
The holy heritage of our fathers virtues viii
be trodden under foot, by their unworthy
children. They feared not to stand up a
gainst kings and mobiles, and parliament and
people. Better did they account it, thai
their lonely bark should sweep the wide sea
in freedom-happier were they, when THEN
sal! swclled to the storm of winter, than to
be slaves in palaces of ease. Sweeter to
their ear was the music of the gale, that
shrieked in their broken cordage, than the
voice at home that said submit and you
shall have rest And when they reached
this wild shore, and built their altar, and
kneltupon the lrozsn snow and Ainty rock tc
worship, they built that altar to freedom OIL
conscience and opinion; and their noble
prayer was, that their children might be thus
free. Let their sons remember the prayer
of their extremity and the great bequesi
which their magnanimity has left us.
| know ofbut one thing safe I'M the universe,
and that is truth. And know of but one
way to truth for an individual mind, and that
is unfettered thought. And know of but
one path for the multitude to truth, and that
is thought freely expressed. Make of truth
an altar Of slavery, and guard it about with
a mysterious shrine; bind thought as a VIC
tim, upon it; and let the passions of the pre-
JUDGED multitude minister fuel; and you sac.
riico upon the accused altar, the hopes OF
the world!
"Why is il. in fact, that the tone of mo-
rality in the high places of society, is so lax
and complaisant, but for want ofthe indepen-
dent and indignant rebuke ofsociety? There
is reproach enough poured upon the drunk
enness, debauchery and dishonesty OF the
poor man. The good people who to him can
speak plainly-ay, very plainly, of his evil
ways. Why is it then, that fashionable vice
is able to hold up its head, and sometimes oc-
cupy the front ranks of society? Ii is be-
cause respectable persons, of hesitating and
compromising virtue, keepIt in countenanco
1t is because timid woman stretches out her
hand TO the man whom she knows to be the
deadllest enemy of morality and her sex,
while she turns cold eye upon the victims
he has ruined. 1t is because there is nobody
TO speak plainly in cases like these. And
do you think that societyis ever to be regen
Grated or purified under the influence o.
these unjust and pusilanimous compromises
| tell you never. So long as vice is suffer
ed to be fashionable and respectable-sC
long as men are bold 10 condemn it only
when it is clothed in rags, there will neve
be any radical Improvement. You may
multiply Temperance Societies, and Mora
Reform Societies; may pile up state books
of laws against gambling and dishonesty
but so long as the timid homagcs Of the fai
and honored are TO splendid iniquity, it will
be all in vain. So long will it be felt, tina
the voice of the world is not against the sin
ner, but against the sinners garb. And ST
long, every weapon of association, and eve
ry baton of Office, Will be but missile to
gether against the leviathan, that is walIow
ing in the low marshes and stagnant pool
of society -