New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1855-06-27

ever struggles snd hopes for the dav "noso-
I one may work who viii, when all who vo,t ~
! be justly paid, and when every honest n, MAI
shell be more respected and admired than ~ sxer
flying, haunting ldler, mus, inevitably condem, s
dctost Slavery. lnndequately as The ND
esteemed in the fashionable circles Of Boston or rs
York, he ranks still lower in the reoani a. W.
J corresponding circles Of Charleston or Ncy.oJ..ns
And the existence and influence Of Saver :. s1s.
country powerfully tend TO degrade even Free ~. sr
below the point at which il would otherwise stand ~
For, il is mainly the cOnsiraint under which :, .
presumed to be- performed, that renders Labor - 80
common regard, humiatiDg. Man s cprren,i. 80 20
posed 10 work with his hands only because he e. p
otherwise live without suffering OF crime The 80
YER the Doctor the clergyman, ekose his pross..,-.
the wood-sawyer or hod-carrer adopted his hss.sn
he could not help il. The former labors 10 fuls ~
destiny the latter to I'll his stomach And II hi, a.
sumed diversity OF impulse be real, there can be M
doubt that the disparity thereon based Is we'll,
grounded The man who works for Humanity -,
matter in what sphere, is nober than he who warLs
merely for bread.
Now the debn.cment Of motive which is assumed
as against the free laborer und0nbtei faet v,S
regard TO the slave. Whatever may be the impu.,
of other Workers, his is the gnoble fear of the lash
Our greatest American poet eXh0Tts US, ia view Of
death, TO see that
Thou 60 not, Ike the gal eyslave, a. night,
Scourged TO HE dungeon"
And Goethe has somewhere said "The spirit in vh;el,
eve sct-thGt is the great matter" Andthus the fscr
that one-half the laboring class work because ,As
driver stands behind them with menacing whip, Is a
uerpotual degradation not TO them only, but TO all
who labor with their hands--fice as well rs slave
The lash Of Necessity is known 10 have thongs thas
accrate the spirit ieaIfuly the drivers docs tho
quiveriug flesh.
This, then, is the primary and fundamental rela-
ion OF Slavery 20 LabOr-that of brutal taskmaster
GA part of the laborng class and sneering dspar-
agcr Of the motives, and degrader OF the position OF
the other half IL says TO the eHsidred Workers, Bo
silent and work diligently or expect cut from the
drivers goad;" and to the Free, 90 yes see
"vhat airs you putting oni but buy better men
than YOU, every day, Tor thousand dollars per
head II IS Mephistophoes standing by and jeer-
ny whenever one ventures 10 speak of the elevation
of Labor or of the Laborcr Elevation of Labor Srs
"why, nggers 50 high, now, that Cotton don't
"pay. at present prices; 40 you mean TO put them
up another notch Ii will be ruinous TO all who ara
"short of hands" And from no quarter has every
suggestion or project contemplating radical improve
mept i'm the condition of the abormg class, been NEE
with more determined, unyarying and coutemptuous
hostility than from the Shareholders and their North
EN- seTNltoIs.
And. ON the other hand, there are no tidings moro
welcome to a Shareholders ear than those fro
quently borne TO him--so frequent, and, alas! SO
true of degradation and distress prevailing among
the poor OF the Free States But for this, do not
see how the atrocious system could be kept countc
nance, even for another year. The spectacle of q
rich strong shrcwd capable man, hunting weak,
ignorant, frightened, dospairing woman across State
after State 10 compel her. after she has worked for
him twenty on thlity years for nothing, 10 work az
the same for him all the rest OF her ie, and bear
more children TO grind IN the same prison-house after
she shall have found rest IN her unmarked grave
This would be revolving enough Without the SUPER
added sttocity of a Nation of Twenty-Five Millions
of nominal Christians turning out their whole dis
possible foce-no to aid the poor fugitive from devil
ish injustice in her flight, but TO ad her oppressors IN
oyeruke and bind herand do not think IL could bo
longer upheld by the most sumpuously furnished pull
mis- were il not for the countenance afforded by the
hardshirs and TO which the least fortunate Of tina
Moor are often exposed in the ihrongcd cities of the
free States Liberty" says Carlyle, 81 am told, is
divine thing; but liberty to dlG by starvation 10
" not so divine" Ay," say the Shareholders,
though their Northern as well as their Soulherf,
mouthpieces: - IL is easy TO talk Of the woes and
- sufleIpgs of slaves; bui what does all that prove
- Is il not n bitter thing 10 be poor anyhow Are
"slaves the only sufferers Admit that one is now
"Gnd then whipped 10 death-that is certainly very
"bad-but il i worse to die by the whip than by
frost or sarvation; and while many die of waat s
). Free States we defy you 10 show that any slave
"holder ever allowed his slave unless very old,
"good-for nothing onc,l 10 starve. 30 long as We
hold on TO them, they safe at least from thts
"porl; and who could say they would be If we wera
10 LEI them run away TO you Mo- there evils
under every sy senl-lhls earth was not meant for
"Paradse-und shall keep my slaves until II is made
"certo,n that they will be happier and safer from evil
&" in Freedom than in Slavery" such is about tho
ubstance Of the most plausible apology for persistent
lavoholding
Now il is perfectly legitimate in answer to this SORT
reasoning to interpose The question of Right before
hat of Expcdiency ana say, sir, challenge your
authority to decide for oiher ADULT human beings,
choose to he your servants for mere subsistence,
whether Liberty or Bondage ia preferable. II hey
$50 be IL; but you cannot be allowed to choose for
them Many persons die lingering and painful
"deaths whom YOU could easily and speedily put out
of their misery but this 10y no means establishes
"vour rieM to DO it. Not until you show n commits
"sion from the Almighty TO hold these persons in
"bondsge-not merely permit for somebody TO hold
somebody, somehow somewhere, but for you to
sholl these-can we descend to the plane Of Expe-
"diency, and argue that point with you"
But IN the present controversy, il is not enough
that we have arguments adequate 10 produce conyic-
ton In The mnCs of any impartial tribunal; II u tho
STAKEHOLDER himself with whom we have to deal. We
have 10 reach has conscience through the triple mail
of his seeming nert ST, his convenience, and his
pride; for il is grateful to human arrogance TO DO
arbiier Of the destini,s OF our iellow-beings. Wo
must be prepared 10 follow his sophsry through all
lis abyrInlhs and hunt il out OF It's and
spacious hiding places. We must be prepared to van
qush not merely his reasons such as they are out MS
sn-rei SON. and make him realize us fuity. We must
show him that his excuses for pcIsisting In evil
course are no in the eye of Heaven and that
duty and safety combine to warn him to forsake ua
Iplead. then, with Anti Slavery men especially, for
nm earnes al anxious 81 slematlc devotion the well
Leue of The Il 50 fortunate class ia our own section,
primarily because II is duty in scf, but seconIaniy
because think the voluntary abandonment of slave
holding may thus be promoted more signaly and
surely than in any other way. II | were able this
4sv 10 say TO the Shareholders " Send along many
"heed chatios as you please; guarantee them work
whenever they will do II, and bread whenever they
"w,n earn H." believe hundreds would soon ia
given up, and, ultimately, thousands. But no such
guaranty now be given for 1t 10 not assured by
civilized Christian society, as | think it should be,
that every one able and willing TO labor may certainly
live by his labor IL is at best but tolerably certaps
that one who has obtained fair start, and has proved