Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1846-12-18
WHOLE NO. ~.

merely to correct your falsehoods, but to show
that you are animated by a fierce, bitter and
untruthful spirit toward the whole Anti-sla-
very movement.
And for this purpose, l shall now proceed
to copy and commen upon extracts from your
letter to the New York Evangelist. In that
letter, you e~xclaim, respecting the foregoing
speech, delivered by me, every word of which
you take pains TO omit: what a perversion,
an abuse, an iniquity against the law of reci-
procal righteousness, TO call thousands togeth-
er, and get them, som certain ones, 70 seem
conspicuous and devoted for one sole and
grand object, and then, all at once, with OBJ
liquity, open an avalanche on them for some
imputed evil or monstrosity, for which, what
ever be the wound or the injury inflicted, they
were both too fatigued and too hurried with
surprise, and too straitened for time, to be
properly prepared. ! say il is a trick of mean
ness 1t is abominable!
AS to the 'perversion,' 'abuse,' %'iniquity
against the law Of reciprocal righteousness,'
'%obliquity,' "a trick of meanness,' 'abomina-
ble,'-not one word is necessary to show
their appropriateness, as applied to myself,
and the speech in question, or TO make more
glarlngly apparent the green and poisonous
venom with which your mouth, if not your
heart, is filled. You represent me as OPEN
ing AN avalanche upon you for some imputed
evil or monstrosity.' And is slavery only an
imputed evil? Now, suppose | had lugged
in Anti-Slavery (Which | deny.)-you pro-
fess to be an abolitionist. You, therefore,
ought TO have been the last man in the world
to have found fault with me, on that account.
Yodr great love of liberty, and sympathy for
The down-trodden slave, ought TO have led
you to pardon something to the spirit of Lii
berry, especially in one who had the scars
of the slave-driveT's whip on his back, and
who, at this moment, has four sisters and one
brother in slavery. But, sir, you are not an
abolitionist, and you only assumed to be one
during your recent tour in this country, that
you might sham your way through this land,
and the more ellectually stab and blast the
character of the real friends of emancipation.
Who ever heard Of a true abolitionist speak
ing OF slavery as an imputed evil or COM
planning of being wounded and injured by
an allusion TO it-and that, too, because that
~allusion was in opposition to the internal sys-
tenn! You took no offence when Mr.. Kirk
assumed the Christian name and character for
Shareholders in the w orld's Temperance Con-
ventlon. You were not wounded or injured
1t was not a 'perversion, an abuse, an mi.
putty against the law Of reciprocal righteous.
/ ness You have no Indignation 10 pour on.
upon him. Oh, no! But when q fusitir
Stare merely alludes to slavery as obstructinl
: the moral and social improvement of my race
= you were wounded and injured,' and render
l ed indignant! This, sir, tells the whole sto
ry Of your abolitionism, and stamps your pre-
tensions to abolition as brazen hypocrisy O.
selEdeception.
You were too ~fatigued, too hurried by sur
prise, too straitened for time Why, sir
you were in IAN unhappy predicament.'-
What would you have done, had you not been
'too fatigued, too hurried by surprise, too strait.
ened for time and unprepared Would you
have denied a single statement in my address!
| am persuaded you would not; and had you
dared to do so, | could at once have given
evidence in support Of my statements, thai
would have put you to silence or to shame
My statements were in perfect accordance
with historical iacts-facts OF so recent date
that they are fresh in the memory of every
intelligent American. You know | spoke
truly of tho strength of American prejudice
against the colored people. No man know
the truth on this subject better than yourself
| am, therefore, filled with amazement tina
you should seem 10 deny, instead Of confirm
ing my statements.
Much more might be said on this point
but having already extended this letter TO {
much greater length than | had intended,
5 shall simply conclude by a reference to you
5 remark respecting your protested sympathy
and friendship for me, previous TO the meet
! ing at Covent Garden. If your friendship
: a~nd.symparhy be of so,mutable a character as
: must be inferred from your sudden abandonr
ment of them, | may expect that yet anothe
change will return 10 me the lost treasure
At all events, | do not deem it of s~uficien
value to purchase it at so high a price as tina
: of the abandonment of the cause of my color
: ed brethren, which appears to be the condi
! lion upon which you impose its %continu
: ance.
: Very faithfully,
FREDERICK DOUGLASS.