Vermont telegraph. [volume] (Brandon [Vt.]) 1828-1843, 1843-03-01

me we'll enough to know that | held to
no sentiments that go. could not listen to
without the fear Of ontamination-wi,h-
out any dreadful consequences from free
aud fair investigation? Are there any
sentiments advanced among the general
moral reforms of the day, that you are I'M
willing to investigate, or TO see or hear
investigated If there are, you are more
exclusive and bigoted than | thong hi for;
and if there are not, your qualified eau
ton is altogether out Of place. But per-
haps you may say that you have examin-
ed the principles OF notions of the Re-
formers" and find them generally to be
erroneous, and therefore do not want them
forced on you. In that case your COM
mingling of caution and threat is gratui-
tous and useless for [ have never at
tempted to force any of my peculiar senti-
ments on to you; ADD if you were afraid
that l should do some such thing,.it is a
kind ofdenyiug before you are asked,
principle you always abhorred. | sus-
pect that about the time this idea of fore
ing sentiments came into your head, you
were thinking of the case of poor Thorn.
as Parnell Beach, who was incareerated
in dungeon for the horrld crime OF "for-
cling sentiments in Baptist Meeting
House, where suppose they were not
wanted. Aud therefore from he purest
and best of motives gave me the hint, or
caution, that might be on my guard to
fee from the wrath that might come, if /
should perchance attempt to "force sentl-
ments where they are not wanted But
then you ought to have known that the
hint was needless; for you must have
supposed, that with all my Knowledge of
blood-thirsty Baptist church with a har-
| dy piratical deacon at its head, should
as soon thought of putting myself in the
power of flock of tigers, a gang of ruff.
fans, or Sribe of Feegeemeu. But the
universities, "good creatures they
managed it best, for they, las understand, J
acted on the principle of denying before
they were asked, and just put Thomas
under arrest, till they could do their wor-
shipping, and shut up their house, and
shut out the truth, for none deny thai
friend Beach advocated the truth. Were
1.-The >Uniyersalisls afraid of the truth
Certainly they could not have been afraid
of falsehood, for they know that orthodoxy
is false system, and they used to glory
in combating that, not by the civil arm Of
the law, bat by free discussion, BY free in
Iquiry and by argument. How are the
mighty fallen" = :....... ~.
But my dear friend, when you penned
THAT passage, did il occur to you that you
was doing just what you wished | wouIc
not do, that is, forcing your sentiment:
arhere they were not wanted. This is no
doing what you would have others do
The sentiment, that sentiments should no
!, be forced where they are not wanted" j;
your sentiment and not mine, neither d.
wish to embrace such sentiments, bu
whenever they are forced upon me, re
ceive them kindly, and freely discus
$ them. Now do hope you will banis
: these sentiments from your mind entire|,
they are dangerous; if carried out gene
d ally they would stop all improvement an
i all reform; and had they been needed b
IS primitive teachers, would have checke
80 christianity itself. Suppose the HoI
Apostles had forced" their sen,imen
l. ouly where they were wanted shou
v we not have been groveling in midnig
ID darkness? Would the broad light
y christian revelation have shed its pu
pr and celestial rays of heavenly brightne:
e, on this dark world of sin !! Would Il
r eternal truth of God have been proclair
rn ed to every creature ! Did the wor
pc that was then shrouded in heather dar
ID ness and ignorance, want the light a
IL knowledge of Gospel sentiments, TO
81 forced upon them? Were not the cal
III teachers bound to force their sentimer
$, where they were not wanled 2 or he
IN could they have proclaimed them TO eve
creature, unless every creature want
to lhem2 Suppose Luther and Calvin h
d, forced the sentiments of the reformati