The examiner. [volume] (Louisville, Ky.) 1847-1849, 1847-09-18

hieflOS them 10 set them free
In order rightly to understand this ma,
ter, We should recollect the situation O
Christians at this time. They were unde
the Roman yoke. the government of TIN
heather; who were watching every oppor
tnnty OF charging them with designs agains
tneir government. in order to Justify thei
bloody prosecutions. In such circumstan
ees, for the Apostles TO have proclaime,
liberty to the slaves. would probably hav,
exposed many Of them to certain destruc
ton, brought ruin on the Christian cause
and that withou; the prospect of freeing on,
single man. which would have been III,
height OF madness and cruelty. Ii wa
wise, it was humane in him not TO drop
SINGLE hint on this subject, farther than say
ing. II thou mayest be made free, use i
rather.
Though the Apostles acted with this pru
dent reserve, the unreasonableness of per
Petual unconditional slavery may easily b,
inferred from the righteous and benevolen
doctrine, and duties taught in the New Tes
lament. Ii is quite evident, that slavery i.
contrary to the spirit and genius OF thu
Christian religion. 1t is contrary to tha
excellent precept laid down by the divn.
author Of the Christian institution, viz -
Whatsoever ne rould that men should do
10 you, do ne eren 50 to them. A precep
50 finely calculated to teach the duties o
justice, to enforce their obligations, and in
duce the mind 10 obedience, that nothins
can excel it,
No man, when he views the hardships, the
sufierings, the excessive labors, the unreason
able chastisement, the separation between
loving husbands and wives, between affec
Tomato parents and children, can say, wer,
| in their place, should be oontented:
so lar approve the usage, as to believe the
law that subjects ME to it, to be perfect,
right; that and my posterity should be de
MED the protection Of law, and BY il be
exposed to suffer all these calamties though
| never forfeited my freedom, nor merteC
such treatment, more than others. No
there is an honest SOMETHING in ON
breasts, that bears testimony against this, a.
unreasonable and wicked. | found it il
my breast nearly forty years ago, anc
through all the changes OF time, the infu
ence OF custom, the arts Of sophistry, anc
the destinations Of interest, it remains her,
still. | believe it is law of my nature q
law OF more ancient date than ac
of parliament; and which no hu
man legislation can ever repeal. Ii i.
a law inscribed on every human heart
and may there be seen in legible charac
tiers, unless it is blotted by vice, or the ey,
Of the mind blinded by interest Should
do any thing to countenance this evil,
should fight against my own heart should
| not Use my influence to annihilate it, IN,
own conscience would condemn me-
Ii may be farther objected, thar slavery
II is true, is a great evil but still greater
evils would follow their emancipation
Men who have laid out their money In pun
chase Of slaves, and now have little othe
property, would certainly be great sufferers
besides, the slaves themselves are acquain
ted with the arts Of life, being used to &C
only under the direction of others; the,
have never acquired the habits of industry
have not that sense Of propriety and spii
Of emulation necessary to make them use
ful citizens. Many have been 80 long &C
customed to the meaner vices, habituated Il
lying, pilfering and stealing, that whel
pinched with want, they would COMM
these crimes, becomes pests to society, o
end their days on their gallows. Here ar
the evils on both hands, and Of two evils
We should take the least
This is a good rule, when applied TO ma
tural evils; but with moral evils it has no
thing to do; for of these We must choos
neither. OF two evils, the one natural, tn
other moral, We must always choose the ma
tural evil; for moral evil, which is tn
same thing as sin, can never be a prope
object OF choice. Enslaving our fellow
creatures is a moral evil some of its e
fects are moral, and some natural. Their
is no way 50 proper to avoid the moral ev
effects as by avoiding the cause. The M
tural evil effects of emancipation can neve
be balance for the moral evils Of SLAYER,
or reason, why we should prefer the latte
to the former.
| Here We should consider on whom thes
evils nrs to be charged and We shall I'm
that they lie at our own doors, they al
chargeable on Us. We have brought or
generation into this wretched state an
shall we therefore doom all the generation
T Of their posterity to it? DO We find by e
, perience, that this state Of slavery cornp
and ruins human nature? And shall v
. persist in corupting and running it in ord
to avoid the natural evils we have alreac
produced Do we find, as The ancient 20
: said, that the day we deprive man Of fire.
dom, we take away half his soul Al
! shall we continue to MAIN souls, because
: manned soul is unfit for society! Suan
! reasoning indeed. An astonishing cons
c quence, should have looked for co
clusion quite opposite to this, viz that '
4 should be sensible Of the evil Of our CO
b duct, and persist in ii no longer. To !
c this appears very powerful argume
e against slavery, and convincing proof
u its iniquity. 1t is running Gods creatu
whom he has made free, moral agents, a
3 unaccountable beings; creatures who g
/; belong to hira, and are not left to us TO +,
y at our pleasure.
u However, the objection is weighty, a
l. the difficulty suggested great. But ]
T. not think, that it is such as ought to de
g us from our duty, or tempt us to contlnu
l. practice, so inconsistent with Justice
g. sound policy: therefore give it as
Of opinion, that the first thing TO he done