Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1854-07-08
THE ANTI-SLAVERY BUGLE.

haps, to speculate. My gloomy guesscs may be as
far from truth as some mems eager hopes. Per
haps wosshali have no war at all. Perhaps the
telegraph may bring us tidings Of a reconciliation.
Well, war or no war, l will try so to spend my
time, that may be able to enjoy my life as 1t passes
away and to look back on it when gone with pleas
ure. My happiness shall not depend on newspaper
stories or telegraphic dispatches. l will treasure
up a recollection of labors undertaken for the good
of mankind Twill give myself to the illumination
and improvement of my race. On my farm | will
plant the best trees / can find, and rear the best
stock l can get; and in the ,corid, | will sow the
seeds Of knowledge and virtue of peace and bless
edness. And these my labors, and the hopes that
my labors shall be successful and the philan-i
thropic labors Of my fellow-men, and the belief
that they too shall be successful; and the company
and conversation of the good and noble souls |
meet with everywhere, and the signs / everywhere
see that truth is spreading, that freedom is gaining
ground, and that mankind arr moving on a little
in the way of virtue and happiness, shall lie my
comfort and my joy. / have q cheerful faith. l
believe that progress is the destiny of man,-that
peace, while it lasts, and war, when it comes, shall
both help on this progrcss,-that every development
of human character-those Of Daniel Webster,
Arnold Douglas, and Icy Everett, not excepted
shall aid the cause of humanity,-that there is Il
moral-chemical power in the words and deeds of
such men as Garrison and Parker, in the words and
deeds of all true-heartcd reformers, that can turn
even the dross of politics, the dregs of law, and
Ihe scum of senatorial and editorial eloquence to
gold, and make even from priestly villany, popular
superstition, and proud hypocrisy, a wholesome
medicine for our suffering race. There is already
more of good in man than many think,-more both
of virtue and enjoyment, and the good is growing
faster than seems to be the case to many. Such,
at least, is my belief. And this belief makes it
both pleasanter to labor, and easier to wait for the
good that is yet to come. And something tells me,
that the power to wait, the power to keep ourselves
from great alarms and devouring cares, from hope
lessness and fears, is as needful as the will to labor
and to suffer in the cause of man. 1t is well to be
Jealous, but not well to be in a hurry. 1t is we'll
to be bold, but not well to be rash. 1t is well to be
eager for the success of q generous undertaking,
but not well to be anxious or fretful if it seem to
fail, The more patiently and calmly we labor,
the longer we shall live to labor. The freer we
can keep ourselves from anxiety and fear, the more
wisely shall we be able to form our plans, and the
more surely to gain our ends. l will fix no time
then for the end of the war or the death of slavery
Nor will l allow myself to say that war shall come
to an end, or 81 very die, in this or that particular
way. l will only say, that they shall die; and thai
every word of truth by good men spoken, and
every generous deed by good men done, shall has
ten their death. And 1 will speak true words
and do good deeds, us many as l can and, taking
my share Of lifc's enjoyments, move cheerfully
along, leaving the great powers of Truth and Love
to work their happy wonders in the world in theil
own time, and after their own way.
The anti-slavery cause has made Roadway il
England since we left. Almost every one whc
lean slavery. All seem to have been hearinI
\ or reading on the subject. All speak Of the gull
and inconsistency of America, and'many speak will
horror and amazement. l agree with them in al
they can say against slavery and pro-slavery Amer
t leans; but l often feel it my duty to add q few
} words Oh English tyranny, and aristocratic selfish
ness and cruelty. With my own readers an,
hearers this is not ncedful. They are as well &C
! quainted with the evils around them as with tn
evils far away and they are as jealous in the caus
: Of reform at home as abroad. But with OTHERS
5 is otherwise. Many that pirate about America
S slavery are not aware that thousand are starved t
e death in their own country, by a selfish and hear
less system, which they themselves have bee
= blindly or ~wickedly supporting their whole lii
S long. When I explain to them the tendency
+ English land laws, corn laws, bounty laws, an
English systems Of taxation, and show them no
r they have all been framed SO as to enrich the here,
itary aristocratic legislators, at the expense of IL
laboring millions,-when l show them that IL
aristocratic misrule which they have always su
is ported against English reformers, has caused Il
death of millions By the slow and ~frightful tortur
of want and famine, they stare at me in specific
:. amazement. For they cannot gainsay my stat
|, mcnts. They may find it harder to speak again
IS the cruelty of their landlords, than against IL
meanness and villany of American stakeholder
d but they know what l tell them is the truth.
/. don't suppose you have any ground to fear that II
rs course will lessen the number of English aIolitio
lists. But whether it does or not, l cannot chan,
ID it. I can never cease to feel a peculiar interest
h. the class with which so long and so g%rievous
d suffered. AS my regard for the rights of Cypress
It. Englishmen never prevented me from pleading t
cause Of oppressed Americans and Africans;
10 my regard for oppressed Americans and Africa
can never prevent me from pleading the cause
ir oppressed and plundered Englishmen. l know
e, is so common in America for pro-slavery men
ed refer to the wrongs and suferings of the workil
at classes of Europe, as an excuse for screening fro
al rcprobation the accursed institution of Americu
sy slavery, that both shareholders and some abolitic
as lets are prone to take it us a sign that n man
a pro-slavery when he speaks of English institutio
he and English laws as ! do. But they may learn,
ad and by, that n man may be true to humanity
lr- one sphere, without being false to it in anoth
DIS and that the real abolitionist is a friend of rig
,se and liberty for all, and a foe to oppression a
of wrong the whole world through. And, in tru
raj the most trustworthy abclitionists in England "
Die be found amongst the most jealous roformers