The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1853-11-17

ed that it is neither the theft, nor the liberia.
ton of servant or slave, that is to be punish
ed with death The larceny here made CAPT
tai is the theft Of a Mantle most atrocOus
: larceny in the power of human being to com
nit, not an act of illegal but disinterested be
nevolence, like that which Mr.. Webster pro
posed should, under the name of high treason
be expiated on the gibbet
The severity of this law teaches us the indig
nation of the Almighty at the conversion of a
being made after his image into an article OF
merchandise.
Much. indeed is the Hebrew law needed in
this country. where so many free men are
stolen. both by kidnappers and the operation
of villanous laws: but why, it may be asked
was it needed in Israel where. there was nc
legal Slavervi The answer is obvlous-to pro-
tect the weak against the strong and wicked
Although there could be no legal compulsory
service. with the single exception of the indl-
gent thief, there ght be, a. with us, much
compulsory service contrary to law. Many
man. free By law. is now toiling as slave on
Southern plantations. So in Israel, poor
friendless man might be seized and carried to a
distance. and there forcbly held as SIX years
servant under pretended contract AS base
money is often a subject of traffic among con-
fedcrates, so this poor man might be sold by
the kidnapper to another as profligate as him
self, who might also hold him under the plea
of contract Such was the only Slavery an
ticipated by the law Of Moses and to guard
against it, certain death awaited the perpetra-
tor when discovered-"HE SHALL SURELY BE
PUT TO DEATH
TIE GIBEONITES
There is still species of sarytude, recognised
by the laws of Moses, which remains to be ex-
amined. and which has been frequCatly con-
founded with Slavery.
As early as the time of Abraham, the land
of Canaan was promised to his descendants,
on account of the grievOus denominations OF ITS
inhabitants who we're doomed by divine de-
cree to utter determination. The threatened
destruction, however was delayed, for the in
iquity of the Ammonites is not yet full"-Gen,
xy Is At the time Of the Exodus they had
filled up the measure of their guilt, and the 10
raelites were commissioned to put them all to
the sword and to occupy their territory. The
| Gibeonites a tribe of the Invites, avoided the
impending doom by persuading the lsraelltes,
through fraud and falsehOod, to enter INTO
treaty of amity with them. The plighted faith
of the nation although ext0rted by deceit was
kept inyiolate 50 far as regarded the lives OF
these people, but perpetual service was ex-
acted Of them "NOw, therefore," said Joshua
to them, eye are cursed, and there shall none
of you be freed from being bondmen servants
and hewers of wood and drawers Of water for
the house Of my God; and Joshua made them
from that day hewers of wood and drawers of
water for the congregation, and for the altar
of the Lord, even unto this day, in the place
which the Lord should choose. Josh. tx, %
81.
Thus their lives were spared, and the COM
paratively light service was imposed on them
of providing the fuel and water required in the
Tabernacle and Temple worship. In all this
it is impossible to discover a solitary feature of
Slavery. Their wives and children were Who'll
ly free. No Gibeonite was required to labor
for any individual and, as far as we can dis
cover, not man was deprived Of his estate
whether real or personal. Instead of being
scattered and sifted through Israel by sale, gift
and devise, they lived together as Il distinct
community, discharging their hereditary service
of bringing to the altar wood Tor sacrifices and
water for abutions. Too numerous to be all
engaged in this work at a time, they were prob
ably divided into detachments, and labored in
rotation. We learn from / Chr. tx, 2, that
these people had shared with the Jews the Bah.
Of them, under the name Of Nethimins lgiven
or offered returned with the other captives
They became proseytes, for Nehemiah Informs
us that, with the priests and Levtcs, they had
separated themselves from the people of the
land, unto the lar Of GOd-Neh. x, 90. Their
return from Babylon was of course, voluntary,
the Jews having no power Of coercing their at
tendance; and we find that particular part
of Jerusalem was assigned tor their residence
Neh iii, %. 1t is surely in vain to cite those
people as evidence Of the divine appreciation of
American Slavery.
s0LOMONS TRIBUTARIES IN JUDEA
The lsraelites, in their conquest of Canaan
sinfully disobeyed tho divine command to ex.
terminate the guilty and doomed inhabitants
Many beside the Gbeonites were spared, and
permitted to reside among the Jews corruptng
them by their profligate manners and entcing
them to idolatry. Solomon, we are told, levied
on these people "a tribute of bond service
| Kings TX, 81. The translators, true to their
Slavery theory choose to translate tribute of
labor or a tax in labor, "bond service" The
tribute was in fact, tax in labor payable not
to individuals, but to the State These people,
We are told, were employed in building stone
cities, public edfce4, and the walls of Jerusa-
lem. The 22d verse, following the announce
ment of the levy OF bond service, is remarkable :
"But of the children of Israel did solomon
make no bondmen, but they were men of war
and his servants" 1t is scarcely necessary to
say, that the distinction here between bond
men and servants, 30 marked 30 palpable, is
the concet of the translators. In the original
it il: "Of tho children of Israel did Solomon
make no servants but they were men of war
| l.. Ia, =, IL 4
Israel did Solomon exact no compulsory labor,
but they served him as soldiers, officers, &c.
Those tributaries werc in number, (able-bodied
men, 1853 600 From these solomon drafted
10000 These last were divided into three d.
visions of 10 900 EACH and in the course of the
year each division laborcd one month in three,
being at work four months for the public re-
naming their own masters at home the remain
ing eight months. So that the tax amounted
to four months labor per year for one man out
Of five. IT, as is probable, II new draft was
made each year, tho tribute would be about
four months labor for each man in five years
This certainly was not very hard bondage
when regarded as a Communication of the sen.
tence of death passed on them by their Maker
This tribute of labor did not conflict with the
laws respecting strangers. These Canaanites
were not resident Foreigners but natives of the
soil, "whom the children of Israel were not
able utterly to destroy" They are, indeed once
called strangers" but in the sense of alien,
to the Commonwealth OF Israel, not in the
sense of foreign proselytes.
FOREIGN TRIBUTARIES.
The land of Canaan, which was promised t
the Hebrews for their eIcIuive occupancy, afte,
discriminating it's guilty inhabitants, was o
very limited extent not exceeding onc-third o
the area of the State OF New York. The Israel
tics were, however authorized to exercise do
min,on over a very wide territory--a permits
sion which their own sins and foles alone pre-
vented them from embracing, except during
portion of Solomon's reign Their rule was +