Richmond palladium. [volume] (Richmond, IA [i.e. Ind.]) 1839-1854, 1843-09-09
For The Palladium 4.
Imagination forms events unknown,

insane on the subject of tails. The long behem
9th like toll that reaches FIR ON the days Of the
Apostles down 10 the present time, regularly
joiuted and connectet,-'novlng like a Cedar
with clean sweep of one thousand five hundred
years-osciaiIng from end of the christian
world 10 the other with a consciousness Of It's
length, strength. and antiquity, and occasionally
la shiDg the ephemeral bob tails of The day seem
10 rise before his Imagination, sleeping wax
ing like some gorgon horror destroying his peace
and threatening him with instant destruction -
perhaps IN his more rational moments he is draw
ing comparisons between the long line of regular
succession, which may indeed, be likened to the
tail OF the great behemoth, and the thousand limo
less and tailfess genera that are wagging their
stumps with all the pomposty and consequence
Ito n CLASSICAL quotation of 'siump tail horse
IN fly time" Such comparisons must be odious
in the eyes of Gideon, still il 10 remarkable with
what tenacIty be hangs on to the tail, and seems
TO regard it worthy ofvery grave consideration,
mikes 1t up with poetry and prose -Hudlbras
and Job,-heads his article with tail and tails ii
with tale, soma other quotation, and to my
great dismay ha. informed Equity Of the vulner
able part Of episcopacy, advising him TO seize i,
forthwith by the tail, and that by doing he
might bruise its head. He advises Equity 10
make most cowardly and ingorious attack by
sneaking up behind like a little dog instead of
meeting his adversary in front like a bravo. My
only consolation is that believe Equity is too
rash and inconsidera,e to follow any advice, how
ever saIutary, but that when his 'blo0d - up
he will attack his opponent any ,chere and not
stop TO apply the old maxim that ''dlscretion is
The better part Of valor,' which | think synony-
nous with the sapient advice Of Gideon. Bat
such opportunity for good grip is not afEor-
ded by every sect, else might profit by his sug-
gestion, and thus by common consent have a
taI-fght-but alas ~ must content myself by a
short hold for the want of better, and if
not bruse their heads certainly shall be doing n
commendabe and prase-wor,hy act, by
pulling their stamps and thus causing them TO elon
gate into a more respectable length
Should Gideon become less agiiated and moro
farnil arized with this '-behemolh,' which ia for
tunate enough TO have tail OF no mean magni-
tude and longitude, he will fl nd to his as'oDish
ment that it is a very harmless animal, and that
he has the usual magnanimlty of all great ami
mais-that his tail does not add particle TO his
feroci,y his thirst for "blood, but the con-
trnry, tho very possession Of it has remarkable
tendency to make him exceedingly good natured
and docile, whilst the want Of that almost indis
pens nble appendage whether for ornament
10 animals Of even moderate pre- teniIons, has
quito tho contrary effect,-ihey to man like
the tailless fox not George Fox go distinctly
against tails, from pure principle and out OF sheer
modes,y. Bat enough upon this sub I.ct, which
raised by slight aiiusion to "a fable. hu,
which has afforded Gideon, the only available
argument which no has ,eteaded Nth any con
ed attack on the episcopalIans.
He says tina. l"have changed my ground and
vituperate the society of friends" | frankly
confess that have changed my ground contrary
to my will, but have been obliged TO do TO
search after Gideon, w no dea ling out his whole
sale abuse, not only upon tho church Of England
as a church, but upon few of its prominent
members as men-raking open tho ashes of those
long since dead and with more savage ferocity
than christian charity, endeav orng TO heap OBJ
loquy upon the sacred memories OF those master
spirits that took such an active part in bringing
about our own g oriouS era, and who was at the
ushering in aud hailed with Joy the morning Of
that MONDAY lns,re which now dis inguishes the
present from all preceding ages, and to whom
the whole chri s,iaa world OF whatever sect or
denomination, owes debt of eternal gratitude
Bgoted beyond endurance must that man be
who cannot OF ,riH not find meihing in their
characters TO admire we'll to condemn, and
that, when considering the times in which they
lived and tho herosm with which no member of
modern scots can produce paralie-they suffer
ed marty dom at the stake, for the cause Of
the Christian Religion, he canno: find some softer
and moro humane epithet than that Of the bloody
I.aud"and sbloody and polluted Cranmer." Should
| or any man tamely submit to such gratu itous
abuse dealt out in Bingsgate style against
those that are immortallzed upon the impartial s.
unprejudiced page OF the worlds history for their
exalted piety profound learning and heroic death,
aud who are destined to live in the memory of
the great and good ages and ages after their ira
ducers shall to be known. ever hav.
ing thread this mundane sphere?" Pasied be
The arm that would not WELD his pen feeble
though it be, in vinaicating from such foul asper,
sions the celebrated chieftens Of tho church. and
lights of former sges-FRoM WHOM THE GLORI-
Gus REFORMATION UNDER GOD RESULTED
AND ADVANCED, and bat for whom, might still
be enshronded in the thick gloom of mental and
moral darkness. Ii is true that after | exposed
his garbed unfair and unchristian like statements,
be of q sudden grows very tender hearted, and
would no, for the world "s,r up the ashes of the
dead" Let him first purge his own conscience
by sincere repentance and appease their names
BY some suitable apology before he hypocriticalIy
pre- tends such holy veneraton for the departed
great Of by gone centuries. and never again "str
up their ashes" for the express purpose OF anathe-
rnatizinn iham when their true history shows