The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1851-09-23

The " Higher LaM'' Ia the Old World.
The nigher law" philosophers in this
| country are not without apt imitators and ex-
Founders in the British isles. The identity of
French socialism with the vagaries which form
the shibboleths Of small political sects in our
own land, has long been a well-established
fact; and our last mails give melancholy evil
dence Of the spread Of kindred doctrines in the
metropolitan and manufacturing districts of
England. In more than one London journal
we find reference 10 debasing class of litera-
ture which has sprung up there, avowedly to
meet the growing demand for these wares In
one of these publications we have a curt but
emphatic expression of the principle on which
the higher law" theory is based. Here is
the matter in nutshell;
Men call their own made artificial laws la,ps OF
justice, while they laws only OF gross Ignorance
and glazing injustice. They are calculated to de.
stroy the minds of lawyers who study to expound
them; TO divide man from man; to cultivate uni
versa disorder and conusion and to aid the priest
IN keeping the world in lunatic ASYLUM"
Surely this will satisfy the most advanced
advocates of the new morality, who will be de-
lighted TO learn that what they have cautiously
limited at is openly avowed and improved upon
oy their transatlantic allies. The Anti-renters,
tor instance, will say amen to one passage,
written for Ireland, but plainly embodying
their own notions:
al should certainly be under temptations to shoot
The agents of the law-monopolies. / should GER
'ainly be under no conscientious restraints in the
matter. might fear for my life but | should
never feel as if | were doing an immoral act in
shooting either tyrant landlord, or a tyrant land.
lords agent, when them throwing down the
houses and laying waste the cultivated patches OF
the poor industrious people So far conscience
concerned, could shoot of the common sort OF
Irish landlords freely as could shoot wolf or
tiger -
Exactly: "My conscience is not to be re-
strained by man-made laws; recognise a
higher law which knows no restraint beyond
that which my own within imposes" What
follows carries the thing little further. The
principle having been laid down, and applied
10 the justification of murder, an apology for
robbery follows as a matter of course
$40 you, my brother owners of the SOIL it must
)e obviously clear and indsputabe that there ia not
here cannot be, any other tihs TO LAND than ExIsT-
aScE IN THE WORLD; hTe can be no 0!hr natural
Jr rational, or legitimate mode of descent and sue
rtsson, becalse inevitable, than the one pointed out;
md ,chie such is, and must remain indisputaJle
md applying equally TO euery iving and 10 lipe.
.AsD MUST De THE JoIsT PROPERTY OF THE PEOPLE,
SOW AND FOR EvERMoRE!!!
+" The people commit any robbery in
.aking possession Of that which is legitimately
heir own. Mark! THEY caanot steal
You reproach us, then, that we aim at the abo
'ition of species of property e. e. private pro-
perty) which involves a necessary condition the
absence of all property for the immense majority
# society. In word, you reproach US that we
lim at the destruction of your property. This is
precisely what we aim at"
We shall be reminded that no such opinions
lave been promulgated in this country. Not
lpenly, perhaps; but still the premises from
which these conclusions are deduced are de-
tended more or less plainly by every consistent
champion of the "higher law" We think we
could Gull more than one article in reference to
me Chrlstiana tragedy presenting these afro
cious ideas in a somewhat diluted form and il
would not be difficult to show that our last ex-
tract is not whit beyond the dogmas to which
certain sociallstic conventions in the North and
Northwest have recently given utterance. Let
those who have hitherto looked approvingly on
he labors of "higher law'' zealots, mark well
he consequences which must follow the inau-
DURATION of their theory