Rutland herald. [volume] (Rutland, Vt.) 1823-1847, 1844-01-18

Get cfttss 81 Arstvtt, CO TIE bloody slitit 81 va
k.sscnn Sisiahiss
ipsess. TIE erss, o.5ssa n war, w1,h ;hs AEiscs
~ss quite mech to gaIher victims ipr the ssenh
os, % 70 sss.ra lhsit empire. Hence, Il wss tha
ss .serr "a. never slain In battle. u there vef'
chsnes q uking him siiro To this cifcur,
.isses Tire stsnissds repeatedly owed theis preset
ssupn When Mcnisrums wa. asked. why be sui
f.r.d The ftgusiic of TsscAla 10 mas,sin bet ince
psnesnce on hs borders he replied. ahs, she nigh,
fsirtsh him with victims fr his gods - A. The
svfTy began 10 fsil, ihs priests, The Domnicsns OF
the New World. beloved aloud for more, and Org
81 tsi sgpersiioos sorsfsisn ~ the denuneiaiions
osle.isi wr,1h iAie ,h- militant ehurchpsn Of
Cbrsasbdot1 IN the middle Ages, they mingled them
esirrs in the fAsks. and wefe conspicuous Ia the
isictes Of the bgb,, by their hideoos aspect and
traaisT ges,a's,. sus1gs, thn in every coun-
wy. tho most feDdish passions Of the human heart
bs.s been those kindied In the name Of religisn.
Tho Influence Of these practices an the Aztec
character YVES .. disastrous ss nigh, have been eS
peeisd Familiarity with tho bloody rites Of saeri-
fee stseled the heart sgsinsi human sympathy, and
bega, thirst for carnage, like tina, excited in The
Romans BY ihe erhlbilloas Of the circus. The per
peipsl recurrence Of ceremonies. in which the 'peo-
concerns. and spread II. gloom Of superstition over
the domestic hesrh until the character Of the
ton vote grave and even a melancholy aspect,
which belongs 10 their defendants a, the present
day Tbs influence Of the priesthood, Of course be-
came unboupded. The sovereign though, himself
hosored by being permitted to asst In the services
of the temple. Far from limiting the authority OF
the priests to spiritual matters he of,en surrendered
ttx aF,{ntnp In ths,, tbax h. laas
compe,en, TO give Ii. I, was their opposition tina,
prevented the final capiiuaiion which would have
saved the capital. The whole nation, from the pea
to The prince, bowed their necks to worst kind
Of tyranny, ,ba, of a blind fana,icism.
In rejecting on the revolving usages recorded In
the proceeding pages, finds I, difficult, TO recon.
eile their existence with anything like regular
form Of government, or an advance in civilization.
Ye tho MeIoans had many claims TO the character
Of a civilized community. One may, perhaps, un-
ders'snd the anomaly. by rejecting the condition Of
some Of the o.polished countries Europe, 10 the
sir,centh century, after the establishment Of modern
lnqusiiion an institution, which yearly destroyed
its thousands, by death more painful than the Az
tee saeri6ees which armed the hand Of brother a.
eainst brother and, setting tsburnng seal upon the
lip, did more TO stay the march Of improvement ,
than any other scheme ever devised by human cum
ming I,
Human sacrifice, however cruel has nothing In &
II degrading to its victim. II may be rather said 10
snnoble him by ng him to the gods. AL
housh 80 terrible with the Az,ecs, it was some I
ines Voluntarily embraced by them, as the most il
ilofious DEATH and one that opened a sure passage
no paradise. The Inqusi,ion on the other hand, n !,
ranjid Its victims with nfamy in this world and :,
unsigned them TO everlasting perd,ion n the next
Ono de'estabe feature Of tho Aztec superstition,
however, sunk IL far below the Christian. This >,
vas i's canniealism Though, in truth, the Mex.
ans were notcannibals in the coarsest accep ,a,on
4 the term. They did not feed on human flash II
merely to crafty british appetite but in obedience
o their religion Their rcpssts were made of the -
chms whose blood had been poured on the altar of -
aenhce' This is distinction worthy of notice.
'Hi' cannioaiism; under any FORM or whatever "
sneuon cannot have but fatal influence on the I'm
ahon ADDICTED TO IT, II suggests ideas so loath- IN,
'me' so degrading 10 man. to his spru oil and i'm. SCI
'oa nature that !, is impossible that the people de
no piachee 1t should make any great progress in WI
ota OF Intellectual culture. The Mexecans fur tn,
sn no exception 10 this remark The civilization. d:
n'ch 'hey possessed. Defended from the Toltecs.
fsoe VINO never stained their affairs, still less their
'oqoets with the blood Of man. All that deserved fol
s name OF science in Mexico; came from this
.otee, and the crumbnguns Of sdifces, a,,ribu, mi
70 mem, stu exian, in New Spain, show deci. frt
20 superiority In their architecture over that of the ga
'et races OF Anshuac. II is true, the Mexicans
soc great proficiency in many Of the social and ii
10 mechanic arts, In that material culture.
20 cali H. the natural growth Of in increasing ~
p'ieoee winch ministers to the qualification Of The IL
'nses' 10 purely Intellectual progress they were p
'hhd 'he iezoucans, whose wise soyereirns came ~
70 me accountable rites of their neiehbors with of
''e'shee, and praeticed them on a much more mod
late scale. .
20 'his state things i, was benecisly ordered du
iio''oenre That the land should be delivered sc
w. 70 sho'ner race, who would rescue il from the WI
s"sa supefs'iiions that daily extended wider and IN
e'' "''n extent OF empire. The debasing ns,i. pu
O"s u 'he Aztees furnish the bes, apology 70, pr
=" conquest II 10 true, The conauerors 5rouyh,
eng With them the inquisi,on. Bu, the, also OF
~ sh' christianity whose benign radiance would re
III survive when the fierce flames of fsna,icism re
0a'a ee s'iinguished: dispelling those dark -,
~" " noffor which had so long brooded over The !"
IL resions Of Anahsuc. "' III,
mt
ne Af'ses, did not only no, advance the eondi. az
- - u's' ssss,h but, morally speaking, they did
0sn 70 degrade II. How can a nation. wh.,, I'M
$50 saenhoss prevail, and especially when com n,
VIM eannieaiism, further the march Of civil. n,
49, 80" can ne Interests Of humanity DO con. Of