The New era. [volume] ([Portsmouth, Va.]) 1845-1847, 1845-08-27


whatever pretences might be advanced by those
who had now etiectually become their masters
Thus oft has the fame of civil war been enkindled
Hatred. and fiend like love of blood. SLAUGHTER,
and lnhuman vengeance, has usurped those bowers
where peace and friendship had dwelt encircled
with the silken cords Of mutual love. The Bosom
OF destruction has swept over the lands,--those
habtations within whose sacred recesses domestic
happiness had reared her altar have sunk in
RUNS. enveloped IN devouring flames The wall
of distracted widows and defenceless orphans. fly
ing houseless, homeless and unprotected, has rent
the ar,-the earth has gushod with the blood of
slaughtered innocence
What has been the final result of these wide
spread desolations Why the establishment of
an arbitrary despotism, under which, the only
alternative is unconditional submission, or the de-
thronement and death of the oppressor. But
blood shed and ruin have here, again and AGAIN.
been the attendants upon this course of proceed
ing, and the elevation TO power of another dena-
g0gue the ultimate result. Thus did faction in
a majority of cases confer the Roman diadem upon
the three score and eight emperors who succeeded
Julias Cesar and by faction were most of their
shades prematnrely sent TO reap just retribution
in the realms of Old Pluto. Millions of lives
have thus been sacrificed. and an incalculnble
amount of evils utterly beyond the power Of Ian
guage to portray have, like vials of wrath. been
poured forth to scourge mankind. If, then, il
be true. that national commissions tvrannic usur-
p1tlons, despotlc oppression, slavish derradation
and moral degeneracy, legitimately, and ne
cesSarlIy, consequent upon the want of that ex-
pansIon OF the Intellectual powers of man, which
enables him to reason accurately and dispassion-
ately, at all times and upon al OCCASION surely in
the point of view, alone, the cultivation of the
mind becomes subject of the first importance
Nor can that department O f knowledge which dis
covers to the mind these facts and principles, be
unworthy the attention of any whose ultimate OBJ
Ject is the securing their own happiness and that
of their fellow men. But it is only from the mast
history of the world we can derive knowledge
of those principles of relationship between causes
and their consequences, upon which men NAV
safely act, from correct estimate Of the final re-
suits thereof and all the sequences therein involv
ed. Then it is the imperative duty of every
patriot, and phllanthropst, to labor indeiatigably
Tor the universal dissemination of snch knowl-
edge,-and to frown, Indignantly, upon every
scheme or system of proceeding, whatever NAV
be the ostensible object, and whoever NAV he the
alders and abettors of the same that has directly
or indirectly tendency to trammel the mind. and
by irrational eXcitemenls induce men to adont
without scrutiny the opinions of Others For this.
as history abundantly proves, is fearful stride
towards the yawning vortex of national ruin, into
which, if our beloved Republic be permitted to
fall the imprecatons of the latest posterity will
justly be entailed upon those unfaithfn guardians
who thus lily requite their successors in life for
the invaluable trust confided to them nv their IL
lustrous ancestry.