New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1851-10-25
Resistance 10 Law.
Erracts from fae Speech Of Rev. SAMUEL J. MAr, al
tas Ann. FGsiilre- Stare Lao Convention n Syra-
cLst. OCT. Is, 1851.


cLst, oct. Is, 1851.
FELLow-CITIzENs We have not come
here 10 array ourselves against the government
OF our country but to denOunce most yran-
nous act of our Government. We have come TO
speak as freemen may. and freemen should,
against hlghhanded oppression, execrable cruel
~ anu If We are not allowed TO 10 this, what
advantage is there IN being freemen' We have
not come to set our foot upon law; but to put
the stamp Of reprooaton upon thai which IS an out
rage upon law. We have not come to declare our
independence ofthe State or Of the Confederacy to
which We belong but 10 declare that neither our
STATE nor our COnfederacy Independents OF God, or
independent Of the obligation that Is upon all men
"to Go Justly love mercy, and walk humoy" We
have not TO counIenance our iellow-clrzens OF
tins city and county III trampLng upon the majesty
OF Law but to say what we think and feel OF their
haymg lifted the iron heel OF mean and cruel dss-
poism from the neck Of poor fellow being We have
no, come 20 insult our Chief Magistrate and the Leg
islators OF our land but to admonish them that
they cannot with impunity set God at defiance, and
may not compel Us 10 insult Him
Gods hing OF Anss, Goyernor OF governors. Ru-
II to his neighoor therefore Ice IS tho fulfilling
of Lac"
The frs, and creates, OF all commandments Is,
Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy
heart and with all hy mind and with all thy strength
And the second is hAe unto II, Thou shat love my
neighbOT thyseli." On these TWO commandments
hang from them depend that rs, with them must be
consistent all laws which should have, or can have,
any binding obligation upon the consciences of good
men. Only such Laws as may DC dcduced frem these
commandments. have any DIVINE authority
Mr.. May then went on foI half an hour or more 10
argue support OF The above position, rom the words
OF Jesus Christ from the moral constitution Of mar,
from TIE "DeciaIauOn OF Independence, ana the
ayow ed purpose OF the Constitution Of these Uni
ted States and from the philosophy of Civil Govern
ment and Law, as Land down by the most eminent
writers on the subject Coke, blackstone, Lord ba-
con, Lord BTougham and Chancellor Kent.
lie showed the enormities Of the Fugitive Slave
bill and insisted upon the necessity OF dlsooeying
It. in older that may bring 10 the test OF public
OPINION and common law, and procure It's repeal.
He argued that II should DO as good citizens are
commanded TO do IN this bill II we went ABOUT 10
seize men and women that might be claimed as
slaves help TO tear them from thelf iamles I'd re-
press their struggles for liberty by loading their imos
wnh Hon and TO hand them over 70 their oppres.
sors If should consent 10 10 all tins, or any part
of It, IN vain should We protest against the Dlli, OF
ask for IT'S Tepeal. Our actions would speak louder
than our words. and Mr.. Webster and his partIsans
would graduate themselves and the country upon
the eminent success OF their Peace Measures
tThe Convention voted - have the whole
speech published and circulated through the
coun,ry far and wide can now send you only
the closing passage
The citizens of Syrucuse md Of Onondaga
County did not, on the LIST oi October violate
la,e they set at nought al unrigh!eous, cruel
edict, they trampled upon tyranny VINO
doubts-who does not lnOw-that If poor Jerry
had been arrested tor some crime OF only mis-
doneanor, tor the violation Of property or the
disturbance of the peace-who does not know,
ifthat had been his case that all the people would
have sand Amen so let il be They would not have
interposed his behalf, even N, in his struggles
against the executive officers, he brought upon HIM
self harsher usage than his ohcnse seemed TO de-
serve.
the streets chained and held down In cart BY
four or six others who were upon him treated
as II he were the worst Of feIons, and learned
that It was only because he had assumed To be,
what God made him 10 be, MAN and NOT Q
slaye--when this came to DO known throughous
these streets, there was miShtv throoohe oil we
public heaIt-an all but unanmous uprising ssAins'
/ cepting that 10 which common humanity imPehed
the people. Indignation flashed from every eye
adherence OF the Fugitive Slave bill poured IN ourn.
ing words from every tongue. Thevery stones crieo
out. Persons who had never been known before 10
manifest the least interest in the cause OF oar en-
shaved countrymen. were loud IN then cfies Oh
Shame Shame Qulckened, reused, urged on ~
this almost universal deDunciation OF the Outrage
upon freedom, some men more ardent, less patiens
or cautious than the rest broke tafough tne slsn.
partition between the victim and his liberty suuc.
off the chalns that bound him, and gave him Cou
speed" 10 a country where man hunters may not fo-
low him. Then such shout o, gisdness rose upon
the an, as never made this weikn ring before.
was not my privilege to witness the release. came
as soon az feet could bring me to the scese, and
joined my feeble voice IN the iouo acclaim nTsf
were sinful then were there few II any SAINTS IN ALI
our town that night. II that veIe Geason, then
we're there few patriots here
And now there are men tS0-cacd honorable
+ mem going about to ,nhlct heavy pecuhaiy pss..s
ties imprisonment, and, fthey csn compass dsasn
upon those individuals who may DO pro.sa 70 n~vo
aided and abetted The rescue u man from : .e"y
10 punish those felODs wh no mean TO obey God Az.
respect the rights OF their fellow beings Nay, but
thSv 4 nj l. a q
TO be punished. VIII they then Americans AZ they
are-will they maintain that government cannot
enact Law 90 bad that the people would be justified
in Tampling under foo, Ifthey take this position,
they condemn utterly the Fathers Of the Revolution
But If they stand upon the American doctrine that
resistance 70 tyrsnts is ooediencs to COO tnen !
fain would have them tell me- II they can, what law
could be MORE tyTannical than this. which some Of
our citizens are accused Of having violated For
ole, cannot believe that the public sentiment Of
this nation will sustain our rulers 10 tnen ssmpW
to enforce obedience 10 this outrageous enactment
But fellow. citizens, whatever may betiie any Oh
us for the aid we have given OF the sympathy we
have shown to a hunted feliow-man, let US meet u
firmly In the spirit OF Christian forstuds and long
suffering Let there be no violence offered OF
thought OF, toward the misguided men who are at
tempting TO execute this great unrighteousness-
They cannot dispose Of US By any summary pro:
ceedIDg. They cannot deny Us the due process oil
Law. They cannot withhold from US uial by
Jury nor, Il we should need Il, a Writ Of hA6eae
Corpus We can venture, therefore, 70 wait. TAsrs
dire necessity upon US TO resort 70 any violence
IN order to escape ourselves. % to rescue any Of
our number from doom which cvery accounts
far worse than death. They eannof make US sLAvEs
Our iegalixed persecutors may take from US our
money but they cannot rob u of our respect Tor the
nights Of man, and the consciousness Of good lntea-
ton. They may incarcerste our bodies, but tney
cannot impnsOn our souls. They cannot conhne
our thoughts or the expression Of them within dun
geop. They cannot build walls so high thai our
prayers shall not overlap them and go up 70 !hs
God OF the oppressed. They may, (though 700
monstrous TO be sppsehended in thus age and coun.
try,) they may perhaps infict death upon US pos
that would only set our spirits free htt!s sooner,
and send them into the Immediate presence nan
vbo has filed our hearts with this t'ps@ L~s'fy'