Squatter sovereign., 1855-06-05


country, the honors of equalty;and Abirne-
lech, the king, Gas Pharaoh had done be-
fore him, seeks Sarah for wife, under
the idea that she was Abrahamss sister,
When his mistake was discovered, he
made Abraham large present Reason
will tell US, that in selecting the items of
this present, Abimelech was governed by
the visible indications of Abraham's pre-
ference in articles of wealth--and that
above all, he would present him with noth-
ing which Abraham's sense Of moral OBJ
legation would not allow him to own =
Abimelech's present is thus described In
Gen. Xxx. Ia, 10: "Abimelech took sheep,
and oxen, and men-servants, and women
servants, and a thousand pieces of silver,
and gave them unto Abraham" This
present discloses to us what constituted the
most highly-prlzed items of wealth, among
these eastern sovereigns In Abraham's S
day.
God had promised Abraham's seed the
land OF Canaan, and that in his seed all
the nations of the earth should be blessed.
He reached the age of IS, and his wife
the age of rs, while as yet, they had no
child. AT this period, Sarah's anxiety for
the promised seed, in connection with her
age, induced her to propose female slave
of the Egyptian stock, as a secondary wife
from which to obtain the promised seed
This alliance soon puffed the slave with
pride, and she became insolent to her mis-
tress-the mistress complained to Abra-
ham, the master. Abraham ordered Sa-
rah to exercise her authority. Sarah did
so, and pushed it to severity, and the slave
absconded. The divine oracles inform US,
that the angel Of God found this runaway
bond-woman in the wilderness; and if God
had commissioned this angel to improve
this opportunity of teaching the world how
much he abhorred slavery, he took bad
plan to accomplish it. For, instead of re-
peating homily upon doing to others as
we "would they should do unto u.s." and
heaping reproach upon Sarah, as hypo-
crite, and Abraham as tyrant, and giving
| Hagar direction how she might get into
Egypt, from whence (according to AboIi-
tionism) she had been unrighteously sold
into bondage, the angel addressed her as
'Hagar, Sarah's maid,'' Gen. xvi. 10;
(thereby recognizing the relation of mas
ter and slave and asks her, ..whither
wilt thou go?" and said 81 fee from the
face of my mistress" Quite wonder she
honored Sarah SO much as to call her mis-
tress; but she knew nothing of abolition,
and God by his angel did not become her
teacher.
We have now arrived at what may be
called an abuse of the institution, in which
one person is the property of another, and
under their control, and subject to their
authority without their consent; and if the
Bible be the book, which proposes to furnish
the case which leaves it without doubt that
God abhors the institution, here we are to
look for it. What, therefore, is the doc
trine In relation to slavery, in a case in
which rigid exercise of its arbitra-
ry authority is called forth upon help |
less female; who might use strong
plea for protection, upon the ground of be-
ing the masters wife. In the face of this |
case, which is hedged around with aggra-
vations as if God designed by it to ava
ken all the sympathy and all the abhor-
renee OF that portion of mankind, who
claim to have more mercy than God him
self-but say, In view of this strong case,
what is the doctrine taught? Is it that
God abhors the institution of slavery; that
1t is reproach to good men; that the evils
of the institution can no longer be winked |
at among saints; that Abraham's character
must not be transmitted to posterity, with
this stain upon it; that Sarah must no lon
ger be allowed to live a stranger to the
adherence God has for such conduct as
she has been guilty of to this poor help
less female2 l say, what is the doctrine
taughts Is it so plain that it can be easily
understood? and does God teach that she
Is bond-woman or slave, and that she is
to recognize Sarah as her mistress, and
not her equal-that she must return and
submit herself unreseuedly to Sarah's
authortys Judge for yourself, reader, by
the angels answer: sand the angel of the
Lord said unto her, Return unio thy mis-
tress, and submit thyself under her hands,
Gen. xri. 9.
But, says the spirit of abolition, with
which the Bible has to contend, you are
building your house upon the sand, for t
these were nothing but hired servants; and