New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1845-10-22
Hebrew Commonwealth.

Professor WINES, in his seventh lecture illustrated
the Jewish Laws respecting the collection OF debts
and also 10 relation 10 u.ury and marriage.
The Israeiies were poor people jasi rescued
from slavery and ending. among them was a spe-
cies Of aims a. what they borrowed was not TOR
purposes of trade or profit but % meet some eNi-
gence. Yet poverty never prevented the safely Oh
a loan. because every debtor bad auachabc prop
crt,.b. va. tle owner Of land tue crops0 u whch
might be annually seized for debt and u these
-, nreyiouslv forfeited there was his person,
,gbo.c services as also those % his vie and child
rem might be -old until they discharged the debt
Excessive severity, he said, bad often been charged
poon the Hebrew Laws. which thus permitted the
sale Of debtor for the bcneii. Of the creditor But
+, rnirht be found he thought that tie more refined
modern practice OF improvement for debt which
Gisgraccd the legislatures Of some Of these nited
States and many Of the states Of Europe, was a
thousand times more severe. slavery among The
Jews was a means Of payment The slave Wa mol
separated from his family, nor shul up ~ Idle soil
fude nor deprived the his limbs, and The pure
air Of Heaven 10 breathe ,-while the imprisoned
debtor suffers al these dreadful evils and is, al the
same time, sinking deeper and deeper in DEBT, ~
crafty tie ayarice Of ardhearted jalor
The law iorbidding usury. together with the abo-
itiOn OF all debts the Jubilee, once IN MY years,
rendered the condition OF debtors among the Jews
~ - ulUftuNdf lltl4 dHlbN- Ai1 'AAifA -.'s'f
ancient or modern while inducements to industry
and economy were never surpassed. Indeed II
seems 10 have been the great aim u Moses 20 pro
mote feeling Of brotherhood among the entire ma
ton and 10 prevent the growth Of arisiocracy
The Laws of Moses respcctng usury were not
peculiar ancient Legislators we're decidedly
hostile TO interest for loans. aud made prohlbaiory
laws Bat the circumstances OF the Hebrew Ma
ton were such as o. render the restriction mani
testify proper They run no risk Of losing what
they loaned through the uncertainty or expense OF
collection The owner could not use II probably IN
foreign commerce. nor invest IN lands-ihese We're
Northumberland the borrower id not want II Tor
purposes of gain but to meet some actual necessity
TO hoard money in such circumstances, and refuse
aid TO the needy. would be contemplate meanness
would be like refusing friend the privilege OF
lighting his lamp at my fire, or shaking ms thirst al
my fountain.
That Moses disapproved Of divorce. and consid-
cred II morally wrong, the lecturer said was mani
fest, both from the salutary restrictions imposed
upon it, and from the manner IN which he words
the original institution of marriage he evidently
thought il n crime Of deeper dye for man 10 cast
of the wife of his bosom. whom he had freely cho-
SEN and who had cOniided her honor and happi-
ness to his protection, than even 10 abandon to IN
suit and penury the very authors of his being and
while Moses did really tolerate divorce he al the
same time threw around II 50 many hindrances and
difficulties that divorce cOuid not be hastily pro-
cured, and, except IN very extraordinary cases was
not likely 10 be attempted.
The Professor offered very consoline apology
for the Baresole or the man who was refused an
oGer Of marriage, an epithet which he thought
could not be very mortifying-at worst more atier-
ing than even the politest language with which a
lady begs leave to decline marriage or but family
yields to il
He concluded with an investigation OF the laws
relating to revenge and the provision Of cities OF
refuge to protect the manslayer till he could have
an impartial trial This humane provision, IN q
age of violence he thought could scarcely have had
an origin lower than divine.
The next lecture Of this interesting course w ed
ncsday evening" is To treat OF naturalization. poor
laws and regulations OF the civil military and ecle
ziastlca police