Monongalia mirror. [volume] (Morgantown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1849-1855, 1854-08-05

| eSAto eSut' III tuC WIZ IooOp NO
conscience decides for himself alone
In the other case, its dictates would
prompt him to decide for others, by
doing what he supposes good, whether
it be suitable for others or NOT. Hero
civil governments have right to come
in and say, let US see abou; that
They have right also to refer to their
laws as a rule for personal conduct
If the individual still imagines that
his conscience requires him to do some
act forbidden by the law, but yet highly
praiseworthy in his estimation. he eau
make the experiment but he must abide
the consequences.
But in General Cass' view of con.
science there is no distinction, or but u
fallacious ono between conscience act.
ing for tho individual, forbidding him
to do an evil act, and conscience dicta-
ting to him to do good, or what he may
think good, without regard to others,
wherever he may find himself. If this
principle were carried out. fear that
strange exhibitions Of individual zeal
would become very frequent. If tho
supposed American should happen to
be Mormon, he will have right to
carry out the dictates Of his conscience
in all countries. IF he should happen
to be a A1illeri,e, visiting Rome, it shall
be his privilege to pitch his tent in from.
of ST. Peters church, then and there,
under the protection of Gen. Cass' doc
trine. to speak and act according to the
dictates of his conscience. He will un-
dertake to prove that the end of the
world is at hand. And by applying
figures, which never lie," to the Book
of Daniel, and Of Revelation, and eluci-
dating the subject still more by exhibi-
ting appropriate drawings of the lbig
horn and the little horns, with various
references to the number Of the beast,
descriptive of Anti Christ.-proyc clear
ly that his doctrine is right. in the
meantime it might happen that this sup
posed Anti.Christ, the Pope, would be
looking down from some window Of the
Vatican, unable to interfere lest this
Government should be understood as
violating the rights Of American con-
science as shadowed forth by General
Cass.
am not unmindful that General
Cass has ascribed very high powers, and
in my judgment, extravagant powers to
human governments, in supposed right
of theirs 10 judge what is conscience
and what is not. And in this he betrays
again the faculty of conscience as un-
ders,ood by me. "ltis not" he says.
every vagary Of the imagination, nor
every ebullition of feeling, nor every
impulse of the passions, however hon
est the motive may be, which can lay
claim to the rights of conscience" A
gain, "the human legislator has the
right to separate presumptions, or un-
founded pretensions at war with the
Just constitution of society, from con-
scientous dictates properly regulated
and operating within their justsphere."
Here General Cass takes away from in
dividual conscience the very rights which
he had claimed for it elsewhere, and he
refers to the legislator, because he is
legislator, to determine whether doc.
trine held by the conscience of man is
to be regarded as vagary of the i'm
agina,ion, or is consistent with the just
constitution of society. In other parts,
his position is, that there is no lord or
Judge Of mans conscience but God
and the man himself However, find
such mutual contradiction in the phra-
ses of General Cass as he touches now
on one topic and now on another, that
it may become necessary for me here
after 10 examine his speech more in spe.
cifc detail. 1t is now spread out be-
fore me in thirteen or fourteen columns
of the Washington Globe, its dimen-
sious horizontally considered in the or
der of length and breadth, become ab-
solu,ely appalling. Its depth ia BY no
means frightiuI,-a child could wade
Though it. Its other dimension would
be its height, and in that sense it may
be my duty to analyzs this immense
mountain Of words, and If in doing so,
| shall discover the smallest mouse Of
sound logic, prac,ica! common sense, or,
philosophical craftsmanship, Gen. Cass
shall have the benefit Of tho discovery.
l canuot however close this commu-
already too long, withou, re-
ierring as in proof Of my position, 10
one nf the historical illustrations addu.
ced by General Cass in support nf his.
He refers to the epochs in the ciTil wars
that resulted from the reformation in
Germany and in France. Aud because
the word liberty OF conscience is said
to have been granted to the Protestanrs
of both countries by their respective
sovereigns. General Cass seems to think
,ha, my idea Of liberty of conscience is
refu,ed by its having been granted in
treaties, according to Gen. Cass' quota
,ion from " Universal History. Vol. 26,
p. 3O2." ] am quite surprised that this
very reference did not tend TO clear up |