Meigs County telegraph. [volume] (Pomeroy [Ohio]) 1848-1859, 1851-06-19


by either, were as mailer-of.course resort
for q livelihood as priva,eering, campaign
ling, disliIling or (til recently slave.rading s
was TOO many respected and well-Io-do C ham
pions Of Order and Conservatism ,hrough.
out Chris,endon. And the oulcas!e
have ten times tho excuse for their mora
| blindness and their misdeeds that their we'll
fed competitors in iniqu,y ever had. They
have simply regarded The world as then
oyster and tried 10 open lis hard shells as
they bes, could, not indicating thereby spe.
cial love Of oysters, but rayenous appetite
for food Of some kind. 1t was oyster or
Enoshing with them. And 10 ths course OF
| life thus forced upon them, The males who
survived the ported Of isdahey maay yhaYe
averaged twenty-five years Of wretched de-
based, brutal existence, while The females
of more delicate frame and subjected TO ad-
ditional evils, have usually died much
younger. But the gailows, the charity hos
pilals, the prisons, the work houses (re(uges
denied TO the healthy and the unconvcted)
with the unfenced kennels and hiding.places
of the destitute during The inclemeni wca-
ther, generally saw the earthly end of them
all by the time that men in better circum.
stances have usually attained their prime
And ali this has beeen going on unresisted
and almos, unno,ced for countless genera
lions, in the very shadows Of hundreds ol
church sleeples, and in The city which pays
millions OF dollars annually for The supper!
of Gospel minisrali ons.
The chief impression made on me by The
spectacle here presented was one Of intense
sadness and sef.reproach. | deeply reaIi.
zed that had hitherto said TOO liuIe, done
TOO itile, dared 100 iule, sacrificed 100 IiI.
lie, 10 awaken attention TO The internal
wrongs and abuses which are inherent in
The very structure and constitution, the ma.
lure and essence, OF civilized society as i,
now exists throughout Chrislendom Oh
what avail are aims. giving, and individual
beneyolence, and even The offices Of reli.
gion, in The presence Of evils SO gigantic
and so inwoyen with lhe very framework OF
society? There have been here in all re-.
cent times charitable men, good men enough
10 have saved Sodom, but not enough TO save
society from the condemnation OF driving
this oulcast race before il like sheep 10 the
slaughter, as its members pressed on in pur-
suit OF their several schemes Of pleasure,
riches or ambition, looked up 10 God Tor His
appreciation on their benevolence us they
tossed penny 10 some miserable beggar al
Ter hey had slelen,lhe ,arlh from under his
feet. How long shall this endure!
The school was dismissed, and every one
requested to leave who did not choose 10 at
tend the prayer.mee,ing. No effort was
made 10 induce any 10 s,ay-the contrary
rather. was surprised 10 see lha. three.
iourhs (I ,hink) siaid; though this was part
y explained alierward by the fact that they
had hopes of nights lodging here and none
elsewhere. That prayer-meeling was The
mos. impressive and saluIary religious ser.
vice have attended for many years. -Four
or five prayers were made by different teach.
ers in successon-all chasIe, appropriate,
excellent, fervent, affecting. A hymn was
sung before and after each, by the congrega.
tion-and we'll sung. Brief aud cogcnt ad.
dresses were nude by the Superintendent Il
believe) and all American visitor. Then The
school was dismissed, and the pupils who
had tickets permitting them 10 sleep In the
dorm,ory below, filed off in regular order
10 their several ber,hs. The residue left The
premises. We visitors were next permlued
TO 90 down and see those who slaid-ol
course only the ladies being allowed 10 look
into the apartment for women. Y The sad
ness Of lha, sight! There in lhe mems
room werc perhaps hundred men and boys,
sl,Iing up in their rags in liIIle compartments
of naked boards, each about halfway be-
tween bread.uay and hog-rough, which,
planted close 10 ouch other, were 10 be lhelr
resting places for the night, as they had been
for several previous nights. And this is
very recent and very blessed addition 10 The
school, made by the munifcenco of some
noble woman, who gave $500 expressly 10
fit up some kind Of a sleeping room, so that
those who had attended The school should moi
all be turned oui (as part still necessarily
are,) 10 wander or lie all night in the always
cold, damp streets. There are not many
hogs in America who are not better lodged
than these poor human brethren and sisters,
who now united, al the suggestion oil the
superintendent, in a hymn OF praise TO God
for all His mercies. Doubtless, many did
so with an eye 10 The shelter and hope OF
food (Ior each one who is permitted 10 stay
here has bath and six ounces OF bread al
loued him in The morning3 yet wren con-
lrasled this with lhe more formal and stately
worship had attended at Westminster Abb
hey in the morning, the preponderance was
decidedly NOT in lavor Of the lauer.
1t seemed to me q proianalion-an insult
heaped on injury--an unjusIifable prying
into the saddest secrets Of the great prison
house OF human woe--lor US visitors 10 be
standing here; and, though apologlsed for
ii with a sovereign, which grain Of sand
will, am sure, be wisely applied 10 The nit
igalion Of this mountain OF misery, was
ye. in haste 10 be gone. Yet leaned over
The rail and made some inquiry of ragged
and forlorh youth Of some nineteen or iwen'
ty, who sat next us in his trough, waiting
Tor our departure before he lay down 10 such
rest as that place could afford him. lie re-
piled that be had no parents nor friends VINO
could help him-had never been taught any
,rade--always did any work ho could get
sometimes earned sixpence TO shilling per
day by odd jobs, bui could get no work laIe'
ly-had no money Of course--and had cat.
en- nothing that day but she six ounces Of
bread given him in the morning had
only the like six ounces in prospect between
him and starvation. Tha, hundreds so Sit