Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1845-09-12

''lhHi 'N'l'l'"'' 'H'' ~ HhH.'4A' "a 10 "
flee of chief, had sometimes assisted at them.
To my successive inquiries he replied that he
felt no conjunction, but rather satisfaction
in performing this Office; that his god had a
right to dispose of men at his W pleasure,
and that his pleasure was to have many hui
man sacrifices; that it was his imperative du-
ty to obey the gods commands, and that he
knew these offerings to be his command, be-
cause the priests assured him of it. ] urged
upon him as forcibly as ] could, the consid-
t%ration, that the Creator of the world being
clearly a God of infinite bcnevolence, having
commanded the love Of human beings to each
other not less than to himself, having impllnt-
ed gentle and kindly affections in every hui
man heart, and having SO constituted men
that mutual kindness, confidence, forgive
ness, love and help always render them hap
pier, while strife and opposition always di-
finnish their happiness,-a command to one
human being to Kill another would be rever-
sing his own work, and it is therefore impos-
sible that he can have given such a command,
and the priests who assert that he has done SO
must be deceived or decclYerS. 10 THIS he
replied that such might be the character OF
my god, but that AruA was Il vlndictive and
malignant being, who If not propitl1ted by
such sacrifices, would bring great cdlamities
| upon lilt NHOlt Ittllt'
] then presented to his mind the inquiry
whether a being cherishing such dispositions,
and issuing such commands, could possibly
be the true God, and whether all such repre-
sentltions of the true God must not neceSsa-
rily be regarded as impious and l~ibelous,
though all the priests in the world should u
mite in asserting them. He seemed struck
with the Justice Of this thought, and begged
me to tell him more of the true God, and his
mode of communication with men. / then
told him Of the covenant of God with Abra-
ham, and in reply to his further inquiries,
narrated TO him the chief events in the life
of the father of the faithful. His attention
was strongly arrested by Gods command to
the patriarch to sacrifice his son, and he in
sisted, with the strongest pertinacity, that
this command was precisely like that of ATUA
to the priests of his heathenish island, though
pointed out the difference in the c~learest
manner. He dwelt so long upon this point,
that l felt rather relieved when a knock at
the door interrupted our conversation.
My new visitor proved to he \ MESSENGER
from the sheriff. re1uestinp mo 70 norfa2,n
the religious services at The execption Of two
pirates, which was TO take place that dav-
Tapio accompanied me to the nlace Of eve
%cution, and stood at a little distance while I
assembled the scalfold to offer the last sorvi-
ces to the criminals. The first proved 70 he
a hardened wretch. for he turned contemntu-
ously away from me,-refIsed the pravar
which | proposed to offer for him. called our
professions of sympathy bynocriticll cant
and declared that, bad as he was. he was
never bad enough to murder n fellow man in
cold blood. as we were about to do. He re-
manned Obstinate TO the last. and was sent
into eternity without hayinG manifested a
single symptom of penitence during the whole
six weeks which the ulpem ercifnllv allow
ed him to prepare for death. The other had
pursued a far different course, havinuapnlieJ
himself diligently. Immediately after his SEN
tence. to the great work of re1eptance. He
rave abundant evidence of a real chance of
heart and | felt as | stood by him on the seat
fold and MINGLED NV PRAYERS with his. and
then saw him hanrcd by the necl, fiji he was
dead, that he was a true brother in Christ.
would here mention, to show the mailer
nity of infdclity, that as we were roinu A.
way, one of the opposers of capital nunfsh-
ment said, evidently Intending that | should
hear it, that the sheriff and the parson had
done a great deal for the kingdom of heaven
to-day, having just damned a sinner and muir
dered a saint. OF course | took no notice of
tris scurrility.
We walked away in silence. l was med
i%tating on the impressive scene we had just
witnessed, with a view to the addition of
some further reflections to my sermon on the
necessity of capital punishment, and my new
acquaintance seemed alsoabsorbed in thought.
But scarcely had we seated ourselves again
in my study when, to my utter amazement,
Tapio looked up to me and seriously asked,
'why have you deceived me?' In what
have | deceived you!' | replied. you have
led me to believe,' said he, that human sd
crifces were unknown in tlhs country, and
contrary to its religion | explained to him
that this execution took place in the ordinary