Sunbury American and Shamokin journal. [volume] (Sunbury, Northumberland Co., Pa.) 1840-1848, 1842-03-26

uul UiOIdl ulSO, 81 Idt rs ttl1J 'cOnStUera-
tion formed, at that time, a motiyc.of legsla-
tive action. That il is illegal, by the great
code of public lew, no statesman, no publcst,
nor well informed man will seriously contend. |
Thanks to'the advancing opinions of the age, |
its atructy is generally acknowledged, and the |
obligation of Christian States to extrpate it, |
almost everywhere felt and obcyed But It'll !
not permitted, in order to attain a great good |
to commits great evil. In order to break up
this traffic, to break dawn the barrier which |
centuries have been rearing, and by which the |
weak arc everywhere protected against the |
strong, the peaceful against The warlkc. The
law of nations is but general opinion, illustra.
ted by able jurists, and sanctifed by time, and
| by universal acquiescencc. Touch it,rudely,
and the wholc'iabric will disappear, leaving the
nations of the world, in their mutual relations
as they existed in the most batbarousages
| But AFTER all, what kind OF philanthrophy is
that which seeks. not merely to put down the
African slave trade, but to put it down by the
! employment OF one means among many, and
which means, If persisted in, as threatened,
will as surely involvetwo great nations in war,
as to morrow's sun will rise upon both! And
! WHO can tellthe issue of such war, not mere
| lytothe parties themselves, that we shall not
touth, but To the civilized world Who can
tell thetuestjons of maritime right, which will
rise during lis progress, aud OF maritime wrongs
! which will be inflicted Vino can tell how
soon its sphere will be enlarged and the op-
pressions of Africa be- lost sight Of, in the strug-
giles fEuropc AID America?
1t is strange indeed, tnt so it is, tnat one Of
thc modes proposed for the Liberation of the
negro, from the traffic Of his flesh and blood
will necessarily lead to the bondage of the A.
merican seamen, where his flesh and blood
are not indeed sod but where they are taken
without price, and may be swept away by the
cannon ofhis own country.-'When they doubt
ed, they took the trick Words which all
Amerlcansshould grave upon their hearts. We
may safely appoalto any generous Englishman
and Frcnchman, and ask what would be their
sensations iftold, yes, we do seize your citi-
zens, We will seize them; when we doubt we
take thc'trlck.' Let each answer ferhimsclf; ;
and that answerwi! disclose the feelings of the
Americans; for this trick is a mao, an Amer-
can citizen. BY aud by, after law shall have
worked its way far enough the trick may be-
come French citizen; and what scrt of strug-
gle will come when that s,epis taken!
But should the United States yield to this claim,
what security is there ior them, for nations hike
ihoD Interested in the freedom of the seas that it
would not be followed by another and another pre-.
ten'ion, I'LL the British flag rode triumphant over
r the waters Of The earth How far is 10 be pushed
this crusade of benevolence, which would involve
, east and ives, into one common calamity, in order
10 aitsiH, in its own way, an object which mus,
come, and that speedily There are sgnilican,
!, signs abroad that this is but the commencement OF
a system destined to a wide extension. Already
the project has been publicly discussed in Eng land
putting stop to slavery, by putting stop 70 The
sale Of rs. products. II has been supported in the
Journals, and advocated, we believe IMP srament
The scheme has no, yet Iipeued iato plan But
benevoence is s-sss, ,eimes ,threwd well active
and the proposition SO far, is merely 10 Interdct the
sale of these products in England; yet who car
tell how the question may enter, in an impro
we'd form, into the maritime code of 'nationsl !,
, would be bu, another step, and although it might
: be accompanied by another struggle, leading to u
niversa war, what the philahthropst for this
IA law would work its own way Slavery is wrong
as well as the slave trade We cannot enter upon
t the, territory of another nation to suppress it, But
;, will seize it's products upon the ocean. They
shili become con,rsband of peace. No Gotten, rice
coffee sugar nor tobacco, not The product v free Ia
:, Dor, shall be lawful freight. And ,hns the okiec
:. being just, the means must be Just also.
: But here we drop the discussion, leaving every
s rejecting man to draw his own conclusions Mo.
f. sincerely do we hope Lhst' Lod Ashburion carries
. out, to the American government, some moah.eS
- propositions il can accept. But we freely conf, IS
s locking to the preensons of both parties and know
>, ing the feelings Of ouF coun,tyEien, that we do
see upon what middle gSosnd they Can meet, o..
ricars stronger .han our hoTes; ari SAD will ,
- the day whar two such nations 20 to,Syar Even
Eng'ah were clearly riet; es, -. our opinion she
o.eafiy wrong, she n.ghtIorbear much, without all
u imPa'a'ion uP.n ,i.er honor. She has won h,
'e way to LIsltscion by thousand frats IN an
W N'na. hsT keueTtie To TcnaNn, countless iess
al ss.cc Trinpphs orgerdu, OF skin, of industry an
sh OF enterprise, which have gained her name ia h
lf, proudest my envy, and that few can hope to
sh qual She has given biIth To an rmpue in il
We West. An empire whose extent and duration il pa
n ses human sapacI,y sVsn 10 conl.cture There a