The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1850-05-11

| Slavery.
II having been announced that Mr.. w. Philips
Of Boston, was to grve lecture on slavery last
evening, at the Brooklyn Institute, we proceeded
thither. and found that the Institute, though a,
first partly promised, had been afterwards refused
and another placard was posted, stating that the
lecture would be given in Plymouth Church, Orange
street. On repairing to that builing, we found il
nearly empty, but in half an hour it was quite
filled. There was not single negro present. The
lecture was announced for hafpast seven o'clock,
but did not commence till eight o'clock.
On motion of Rev. Mir. BEEcInR, the pastor of
the congregation, Hiram Barnum Esq, was called
| TO the chair
Prayer having been offered, Rev. Mr.. BKKcuKR
addressed the assembage, in explanation of the
circumstances under which they had met in his
church. He differed in many important points
rom the gentleman who was about TO address
them. But there were two points upon which
there were no difference of opinion in this Ameri-
can community. One was the right of conscience;
the other was the right of free speech. These
were rights guaranteed under all free governments,
but especially under this republican government
they were held sacred. hold that every man has
right 10 speak what he thinks, even if he were a
thousand times blacker than the gentleman who is
10 speak to- might, Il mean ia his sentimens,l and,
therefore, freely give place to him, especially as
from prudential considerations he has been refused
the use of the building he expected. (Appiause,
mingled with hisses.)
Mr.. PHILIPS then came forward and said, that he
received with feelings of deep qualification the OBJ
ssivations made by the reverend gentleman who
had just set down The right Of free speech was
almost the only high thing that governments
cured To man, except. indeed, free thought if that
were conlrosble. What, after ALL was the value
of government II was to edacate men and to
deveope the germ Of liberty, of thought, and
speech, which God had implanted in the human
breast, that men might become wiser and better by
The interchange of thought and speeeh-to permit
thought 10 70 free like chartered hbertine, TO
IN he
abolilionists charged with using hard language;
the question is, is the language true 1t is easy
tosit on the heights OF criticism and hook down
with scrutnizing eye upon the work done by 9TH
ers, which we ought to have done ourselves, and
TO say, "but for these rude guns, would be sol
der" QIaughter) Men engaged in such rough
work as the sbolitionists, with the ma ory against
them, cannot be always very choice in their Ian
guaee; il they were, they would probably not
obtain the public ear. The scholar may sit
in his study, and take care that his language
is rot exaggerated; but the rude mass of
men not 10 be caught by balanced periods-they
are caught by men whose words are half battles
From luther down, the charge against every re-
former has been that his tongue is too rough. BE
it 70. Rough instruments are used for rough |
work. What is slavery! The denial of every right |
OF man. The slave is thing. The slave is de-
that has survived the garden. One vast legalized |
prostitution is the condition of slavery The slave
is denied the right TO his labor. When the child
of the slave is born, the hand of another IL placed
on his brow, and claims il his own, despite of
the ties Of father and mother. And when the child
grows up. all knowledge is denied to him.
The Bible is a prohibited book Again,
the slave is thing, because IL is portable,
and the child can be separated from the mo-
ther, and the wife from the husband. In the
old pepers of Massachusetts, one hundred years
ago, you will find such advertisements a. ths-"A
woman TO be sold, and her child, six weeks old TO
be sold together or separately" At the present
time, such advertisements abound in all the South
eIn papers. To lift up our voice against system
al hIs M rec
been called blasphemy and inhdeiity; but 1t IS the
r. whe Ssy arr hss sh ~ tue ends Of ,e
by any sanction Of slavery. What do these men
sayf Why, that the philanthropy of the aboli-
tionists is greater thon Christianity. But the hu-
man heart in its most pblanihropic mood, never
suggested thought so bcnehcent those with
whioh the inspired volume abounds. Ii il therefore
a hbel on the scriptures To say that they sanction
so iDiquitcus and cruel syseni. We send out
Christian missionaries 10 the banks of the Gan
ees, on the principle that II Il our duty 10 care
for our brother man, no matter how distant
ils rosition on The globe may be from
iier at the other side of the Potomac
do not ATTACK the sects; but say this that with
i0,ot0 Chrison pulpils, 10000 slaves have grown
into ,ocO,0oo, aud that statutes 50 bloody have
been cnOcicd under their teaching, that those of
Iuco are light in comparison. Instead Of the JEFF
rrsers. the Heniys, aud the men of te first OF
the R,Iublic, ameniing slavery AN evil, We have
Calhoun declaring il blessing, aud McDutiy
saying il is the corner stone of the poica cdcc.
Mr.. Webster, az lar as we can judge from his last
speecl-tspplausc. Missing and cheering alternate
w, tor five minuics)-l was going To say, that
though Mr.. Webster has described what were the
views OF the Romans and Creeks about slavery, 1t
would puzzle ten Philadelphia lawyers TO tell what
are his own. UauGlitcI and Kissing Tho chan
mel Of European thought has been towards liberty
fer scmc years. But where liberty Is favored. and
the church il educating twenty millions of men,
We have retroGraded more deeply into the bac <est
Of all iynnni>s What has wrought this change
Something must have caused Il. This river
must have springs. Why is II that slavery,
which in I7s7 was hated, bas iriumThed IN every
compTo mice since, and every cabinet that has had
the accidental virtue Of adopting the anti-slayery
principle has broken down While, ia the old
country, every great man desires To place record
he seuiirrt nis in favor Of liberty and progress.
WebfieIs esn be bought mp here faster than nature
can make them. daughter and hissng) There
IL platform, deeper and better, behind Christian
organization. and that i Christianity it-elf-ihe
individual conscience. | cannot settle Disputes
about sccis or polcmics; Lut | pat my hand upon
my breast, and l feel there the selfeyident truth
that man is entitled to freedom. Rome u the
centre cf the papacy, England Of epi-copacy
America Of oongregationasm bot, hke every
thing human. the voluntary principle has iis evll-
and one OF these is, that the minister - speak
ing To bis creators, as the audience are. and
he is moulded, more or less, Wy their wishes
and interests. IL IL true there saints and
martyrs who are exceptions To this rub but
all know that saints don't travel in bat
talone, nor martyrs la regiments The a-
mighty dollar l. ai the bottom of slavery. II il
not only "A question Of morality, but 81 prop-rty-
an investment Of s3O,O00,OtO of dollars. An AIns-
Tican's lcgic H. clear the NJ day upou
every subject in the world except II IL relates
"a white man IL is lucid and bright bot the mo-
ncnt You touch on a black man, u yccrs about
Ike the needle Of the compass when u comes near
g msss of iron. Calhoun said, when talking on
HIoiler subject, that nothing clearer than that
what man dug out Of the earth was his. Bot he
had, at the came timc siNiy human beings, slave'.
to whom he denied that right Daniel Webster,
lsn linn nf ks..4 NTH ed rxt-
ely for his escape from the bloody tyranny of his
Turucrs; but put Doug in place Of kossuth cscl-
ping frcm a Ear bloodicr dcspotsm, and will he re-
spoIdl Not bit oft (iissing ,drowned IN cheersN
since you will not permit NC To speak OF Wehsica
I let ne zee what Horace Mann rays-and has
selected IN him n noble specimen of Massachusetts,
/ thoUpLt. lie says ia late sPecch, "The colsTvd
msn " nv brother. the colorcd woman u ~ ayr
urd Im bound 70 them by the Tee of duty, ihcJgh
4 not ~ strong a. to my brollt.r by blood ! would
/ ~ soon return my own bleed brother 10 Nond age
~ The fugitive slave, but for the con saitition"
Nov thst IL American logic. The cv1shts ct she
Iaft week in u sister aily have proyyl lhat the only