Carroll free press. [volume] (Carrollton [Ohio]) 1834-1861, 1846-09-18

ain in The community, BAT NJ niece Iariiy iu eye-
~ person -usilinIng Ih. relation 0f mazirr. A
man may bs 20 involved in slavery thlt he can.
not cease IL without committing SIN. Yea, more.
he may b. 80 situated a. that il would b. his du-
y to have the legal relation formed. Suppos. a
case. A planter in Louisiana bclucaths 90 A.
+. Hanna Of Cadiz, Ohio. 100 slaves by his last
will and testament on this condition, that If he
(Iianna) will not accept ofthcm as his slaves by
the will they shall bo sold 10 the highest bidder
Tor the use Of the other heirs. They arc all
young and anxious 10 have their liberty in a free
State. Now, would il b. his duty 10 refuse nc.
ceptance Of them by the will and have the LEGAL
relation formed, or should he accept Of them un-
al he could bring them TO Ohio where they
could have personal liberty, when his sole object
was their good, in giving them and their poslerty
liberty Would Hanna, if he were one Of the
slaves, wish the legal relation 10 be accepted
with this benevolent intention or nOil This is
the Bible rule.
Suppose another case. A. F. Hanna is worth
$4,000, secured by his own industry or by in
herltance, and he is about to spend 2 or $1,000
Of it jOumeying in Europe for recreation. Just.
before he leaves he is informed by the Pastor Of
his church, thai there is in Wheeling a family of
slaves consisting Of the father, the mother, and
six children, three sons and three daughters,
who are to be sold the following day to the high
est bidder. lie is informed also that there are
four slave dealers in that city from different
southern States, who have their arrangements
made to purchase them for the southern market
One is to purchase the father, another the moth.
or, third the sons and the fourth the daughters.
He is assured they are all Plus consistent MEM
bcrs of the Presbyterian church and they arc in
awful distress al the idea Of separation and south
em cruelty. And this family Of slaves, through
Mr.. Ilanna's Pastor, say to him. that if he will
spend 1900 or $4,000 Of this money he is about
TO spend in pleasure, he would confer an unspcak-
able favor in saving them from separation and
southern cruelty. And if he will purchase them
and give them their liberty as soon as crcum-
stances will permit it with safety TO them, they
will pay him his money as soon as ii can be earn.
ed. Now, the question is, what is Mr.. Hanna's
duty! Would ii be sinful to purchase them to
free thcml
But he says this is not slavery. Well, call il
what you please. But this is what the great bo-
dy of protesting Christians call slavery, and what
they say does not necessarily involve sin in the
master. can assure Mr.. II. that there are few
men who think oppression is not sinful
This is the view of the Presbyterian church.
The system is sinful and the relation generally
involves sin in the master, but not necessarily
so, and therefore the church has not made il
term of communion. Many of our ministers,
however, who do not desire TO make slavehod-
ing term of communion still think the church
has not done all she might do and ought to do.
But we do not think we should take such rcck-
less course as would run the pIow share of soon
tention" through the church in the north and
shut our ministers out from access to either mas
ter or slave in all the south, by taking unscriptu-
raj measures in showing our opposition TO slave
ry.
We should occupy the same ground in refer
ence to slavery that we do TO intemperance. Is
the use of ardent spirits necessarily sinfull-
Surely not, for as a medicine it is no more sinful
to use it than colonel or any other medicine.
The best medicines that can be employed in re-
moving disease from the human system usually
are poisons to persons in health.
The Advocate will plsase to copy this.
w. T. ADAMS.
Carrollton, Sept. Is, 1916.