Glasgow weekly times. (Glasgow, Mo.) 1848-1861, 1854-11-02
THOS. N. COCKERILI
ADDRESS.

request consented TO address your asso-
citation to day on the subject of negro slave
ry as it exists in the Southern States.
And as am informed that the subject was
very ably presented at your last meeting in
its religious bearing by myfriend Mr.. Thomp-
son, and the institution as it now exists thor
oughly sustained and most triumphantly vim
dieated from the word of God, l propose
in the few remarks that l may offer you, to
view it in its social relations and political
aspects.
As social institution it is contended By
many and even by some owning slaves, to
be a moral evil, social blight entailed upon
us by our ancestry. Though not now dis
posed to defend it, in all its relations, as
positive good TO the whites, shall contend
that it ever has been up 10 the present time
and may continue for ages to come, an alb
solute blessing to the African race. There
always have been since the days Of Abraham
there always will be to the end of time ,hew-
ers of wood and drawers of water.
Thisis absolutely necessary in the econ
omy Of God, in order to the full expansion
of the human intellect-for the full develop
ment Of all the resources of nature. Hence
He has created individuals and nations with
different susceptibilites, various capacities
some to command, others to obey-some
to plan, others to execnte--some with gigan-
tic intellects to search out the deep and al
most hidden mysteries of nature, others to
perform the manual labor necessary to their
full development--al 10 share in the gener-
al blessings thus obtained.
BY this wise arrangement of Providence
the aggregate wealth of the world is largely
increased-the sum of human happiness
greatly augmented.
These facts, few will question in this en-.
lightened age of the world. Take all the
servants of Europe, Asia, Africa, the Is.
lands Of the seattle slaves Of North and
South America, leave them for only one
year, without mind to plan--an arm to di
rect--a voice to command-and the aggre.
gate wealth OF the world would be great,
administrative sum of human happines.
infinitely curtailed.
Suppose all men had to perform alike thei
own drudgery, where should we now be il
the development of the arts and science.
which have conferred so much happiness,
upon mankind, the Peasant as well as III,
Prince, the Slave as we'll as the Master
we should be centuries behind the prescn
age. For argue as we may for the necessi
ty of the development of the ply steal man
l tell you that human drudgery incapacitate
the mind for high and noble thought.
But who are to be hewers of wood, an,
drawers ofwater? Those ofmuScular frame
but inferior intellects, and separate and a
part from the curse pronounced against tn
defendants of one of the sons of Noah, -
may not color constitute the main distinc.
ticn-white, you know is an emblem in ma
ture, of virtue, purity, elevation-whil,
black is the reverse, of vice, depravity an
degradation.
The Circasans, the handsomest ant
whitest people upon the face of the earth
amidst all the revolutions of ancient and mod
ern times have never been enslaved. How
ever this may be, we are told by some sick
iy sentimentalists, some pseudo phianthrc
pists, some abolitionists of the North, tha
thong we must have "help," we must hav
servants to do the drudgery-it is wrong,
is sin, crying curse, to have an owner
ship in, and control over, the person of a
individual. Then if southern slavery b
wrong, the whole system Of northern apprer
ticeship is wrong-thcy are governed by III
same laws and usages, the apprentice is III
der the control Of a master; if he dsobey h
is punished as slave, if he abscond he
reclaimed under the law, and if this is rigl
for few years only, it cannot be wrong 70
three score years and ten. Length of tim
may be an extension Of the wrong, but car
not constitute the wrong itself. OF all tn
forms of human servitude, ofall the system
of slavery in the world, that of negro slave
ny is least Objectionable, most lenient, mos
humane.
| hope | shall never be a servant-Itrus
my children will never be enslaved-but
they are pray God, that the master MAJ
hold them as property, that his self-interes