New-York daily tribune., 1856-04-28

s,es are il fay in repeating II India, a. 20 Pol
nv. the same experiment which has been tried In
America in the case Of Slavery and with results go
disastrous, and that the American Baptist Mis-
siouares are pretty nearly unanimous in favor OF
this policy. which seems to be indicated By the eX-
cuse which The Examiner sets up for the silence Of
the Union snd it, executiyes-which excuse iP,
that il might he regarded az sn interference with
1.-THE lust liberty OF the missionaries 10 at
tempt BY rules sent from the missionary rooms, 70
trammel them as to this matter. or 70 prevent
them from baptizing as many pOlygamist converts
a. they please.
Ifit be the fact that n ssioDaries Of ee American
Baptist Union do bsptize polygamous converts,
then the silence Of the Union upon tie subject be-
comes 10 less significant than the silence OF the
Tract Society on the subject Of Slavery. Both
In one case and the other, it seems open -
the construction Of being silence that gives con-
sent. The excuse intimated By the Examiner, that
this silence is forced upon the Union through fear
Of being charged with tampering with the liberty
of missionaries" is rot very creditable to the
Christian courage Of body and We are inclined
10 suspect is not wholly just toward the mission
aries themselves. 1t appears from The Ezam-
ner's article that there have been complaints,
both abroad and at home, as to unreasonable
interferences on the part of the Board touch
ing the means TO be employed in evangellzlng
the heather, and also as TO matters Of expenditure
as 10 which it has been thought and said that
the missionaries in the field were better Judges
Of, ,ha ~
Union in Boston or New-YOrk. The grounds for
such an opinion obvious, but does it folio"
that because the missionaries think themselves
best qualified TO Judge as 70 these matters OF de-
tail, that they would spurn and reject the decision
of their brethren at home as to the fundamental
principles of Christianity We think that The
E1aminer ought to hesitate how it throws out such
a charge against the missionaries. We at least
shall hesitate to give credit to it till the Missionary
Union, by first speaking out upon the subject, has
given the missionaries chance to show that how
ever it may be as to email matters of business
policy, upon great question Of principle like this
they are not above listening to suggestions from
home.
Upon this question of allowing their converts to
continue in the practice Of Polygamy, We are well
aware of the delicate position in which the mis-
sionaries are placed. We understand perfectly
well, and are ready to make all allowance for the
strong temptation under which the missionaries
labor to surrender stern principle to plausible views
of temporary e1pediency. After all that the ut
most zeal of Professionalism can claim, our mission
aries are but men; and with the most ample allow
ance for superior enlightenment, how can they be
expected TO be entirely proof against those potent
Influences which induced their Roman Catholic pre-
decessors in India to yield so much to the heather
ideas and customs OF their converts "a cOnces-
reason why, with all their apparent early success
these missions made so little permanent impression
on the people of India.
This, indeed, is one of those numerous cases IN
which the missionaries are much less to be blamed
for yielding TO the force of q powerful temptation,
than we at home are for not stretching out sea
sonable hand to prevent them from falng-for not
utterinp seasOnable word to warn them of the
pit into which they were about blindly to step.
Eveyb body knows the power of habit, the influence
of surrounding circumstances, and the deluslon
to which, through such means. the strongest
inteects and souls the best disposed, are subject.
OF this We have fearful proof in the doctrines at
present current in the churches of the South
and in some of the churches of the North
too, for the infection has spread even to US
on the subject of slaveholdng. But these
considerations, just in proportion as they afford an
apology for the missionaries and the Shareholders be-
cone for us a condemnation. That the missionaries
in heather land surrounded by polygamous house
holds, and fearful of putting obstacles in the way
of conversions by demanding too painful sacrl-
fees should gradually forget their American edu-
cation, and begin 10 see things with Indian and
heathen eyes-this is natural. and may be ex-
cusable. But so much the more reason why We,
who remain al home and who have not been ex-
posed to the binding and bewldering influences of
this fog of heathenism, should give prompt timely
and sharp warning to our erriDg brethren to recall
them back to the light of American Christianity
Had this course been taken on the Slavery ques.
ton both We and the Southern churches would
have had much less to answer for. From what
sea of troubles, from what necessary purgatory
OF selfreproach-nay, from what hell OF rebelliOus
and defiant wickedness would it not have saved Us
both 1t would be pity, with our eyes open and
with the result of this sad experiment before U.s.
to run headlODg on this new question Of Polygamy,
into similar false position.
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RUSSIA.
Russia, disabled at last, can no longer threaten