Eastern times. [volume] (Bath, Me.) 1846-1857, 1851-01-02

| placed in condition OF extreme peril. Our
abest and most sagacious statesmen long
ago lifted up their voices against proceedings
SO traught with danger; the father of his
country, in his farewell address, solemnly
warned us against tins founding parties up
on geographical Determinations" and
against exciting sectional jealousies: and now
the great masses OF intelligent, thinking, prac.
teal men in whose hands is The vast uiass of
the property, in whose minds is the great
preponderance Of knowledge, and upon
whose shoulders, the burdens of society
principally rest. have taken the alarm, and
IN these great meetings for Union, have called
upon us all 10 rally for our country and laws
IN these most perilous times. am entirely
convinced, unless such measures are pursued
10 silence IN proper way, The noisy voice
OF, what an eminent man has lately called.
''this pesiiient agitation" by showing our fel.
low ciIIZens that they are tramplIna upon all
that is sacred aud valuable to t,renfy nnHsois,
only for the purpose OF making two Or three
millions more miserable than they ever were
before, our Union must before long he Ut.
terly dissolved Ii seems to rne idle to deny
that the danger from this agitation is immr-
nent and very great. There no Disgusting
the fact that :he astators are in open war
with that article in the Constitution, requir-
ing that "persons held TO labor in one state.
aud escaping into another, shall be deliuered
up, lain Of the party to whom such
vice or labor may he due" Ii is not the de-
tails otany particular law, they desire merely
10 modify; rhey are determined 10 break
down violently this article of the Constitution
itself The issue IS between agitation and
disulion. know we are told by inen who
are determined TO agrate, and in every way
10 emhltler and eXasperate the minds of our
.elow citizens at the South, that there is no
danger of disunlou, that the South are too
much Interested IN the Union. really 10 take
measures o protect themselves from our ahtl-
stve attacks; as thong h experience lad not a
thousand times shown the result of the meas
ures which we are advised TO pursue. and as
though our fellow citizens al the South would
consent to see Il settled system of operations
going on, sustained by the whole North. TO
deprive them of property, whose possession
the Constitution guarantees. Such declara-
tions, III my opinion. are folly aud madness,
IN the extreme. Dis,uuon mast result, un-
less erpv article of the Constitution he reli-
giously supported and preserved. The time
will come, doubt not God hasten the day
ter shall fall the last slave shall 20 free, aud
this necessity, TO which we are now held,
will no longe. exist; but at present, this com
pact, this solemn covenant must he kept
unbroken, or the lair fabric of our govern
ment must he shattered and fall.
The question then is fairly presented to cv-
cry man, shall this government as far az your
influence is concerned, stand or fall Will YOU
obey God and be subject unto the higher
powers, or will you agitate. and agitate, and ag
itate, striving to defeat the laws of the land,
and from a mistaken philanthropy, involve
your in greater miseries than any can now
conceive. We all at times, feel and respect
the majesty and importance of law. when we
lean upon 1t for support. We rejoice when its
strong arm Is around us in oar Defence
When, not long ago, a case of great crime agi-
tated the heart of New England and OF the civ
ilzed world. had men come forward. and there
were multtudes ready to do and declared
that their conscieaces would not permit them to
allow DR.. Webster TO be hung, could their
strenuous efforts have prevented his conviction
and the execution of the law had their dread
ful delu>ions on the matters of humanity and
conscience prevailed to overthrow established
law; had the mass of the citizens of New
England. without directly resisting the law
themselves, been willing quietly to stand and
see the majesty of government dishonored, and
its penalty set aside by fanatics and mistaken
men, what security of life, liberty and property
would remain who could walk the streets with
confidence or sleep with security in his bed =
We may cry out against lw, when in partic
ular instance, from partial view its operation
NAV seem hard out we should all find at last if
law should be overturned the would be
much hGrtler that there would be no mercy nor
happiness, nor liberty of anv kind to be long en-
loved. The French RevolutionistS started out
with these extreme notions of human right, and
this extreme horror of anv human suffering
Robespierre, who, when his revolutionary ag:-
tatng doctrines prevailed. made France drunk
with blood and struck the world aghast with
horror declared at first that the sight of blood
r:ade him faint, and refused to serve on Jury
upon whose verdict sentence of death might
depend. The extreme doctrines of the agitating
party of the present dav hare been destructive of
order and peace in every age and country where
they have obtained currency. and have invaria-
bly, led TO bloodshed and the most harbar Gus
war. The men who have piotessed TO have
such peculiar love Of liberty and such deep
hatred of oppression, as to lead them to break
the laws of their land have often been found
afterwards the most savage unrelenting butch
ers and tyranIs, under whose crimes the world
has groaned. Shall we follow the coun
sells of such men in disobedience to Gods word
and to the utter ruin ofour national institutions
We cannot break the yoke of slavery if we DIS
solve the bonds OF The union. Every slave will
be doubly doomed to his present situation. IT
the union DC dissolSeo. We cannot dissolve
the Union and live in peace with our neighbors
at the South Unless the lessons OF ell human
history deceive US, occasions OF alteration and
war Will shortly arse between these severed