Holmes County Republican. [volume] (Millersburg, Holmes County, Ohio) 1856-1865, 1857-02-05

Not content with reading this lecture to
Congress, he goes one step further, and as
sails the people for agitating the question
of negro emancipation in the Southern
States. am sorry to have heard members
of this body and Of the Senate, apologize
for those people of the Free States who
discuss the cause of universal emancipation.
shall speak of them in no apolegetie terms.
assert their clear and constitutional right
TO agitate this subject phen they please and
wkere they please in those States. They
are the soyereigns of the land, and the
President is their servant-they the potter
and he the clay-and neither he nor Con-
gress can deprive them of the right to speak,
discuss and agitae, any subject they please.
Why, sir, Southern preachers, and menu
bers of this body, insist that Slavery is or
dained of God; that Abraham was the
father of the faithful: that he was slave
holder, and a slave dealer, as the gentle
man from Georgia Mr.. SrEPHExs said at
our last session; and, according to his the
ory, he might have added that Abraham
was also slave-breeder, for he had many
.servants" born in his own house. He
| further declared that "Abraham was lustl-
ed" He forgot to add, that he was lusti-
fed "Jy faith, "and not by such ~orSs,T
While he, and Southern preachers, are hold
ino ND these doctrines, so revolving to
Christianity, their compeers in Utah were
proclaiming that Polygamy was also estab-
iished by divine authority; and Brigham
Young, with his retinue ofthree-seore wives
cites Abraham as Polygamist, and in
sists that he was the servant of the "Most
High,p and was justified, not by faith, but
by his works. Both he and the gentleman
from Georgia, look around upon us who
worship God of purity and justice, and
with emphatic gusto ask, Haze ace not
A6rahana for our Father@ Laughter.
For these advocates Of Slavery and Polyg-
amy, the President has no word of reproof.
His wrath falls only on those who assert
the holy truth, that all men are endowed
by their Creator with the right TO life and
liberty. 2 --- s--
l recently saw q statement of the amount
of money expended by our Southern Aid
Societies." during the past year. North
ern Christians and philanthropists raise
money in the Free States, to enlighten the
heathen of India. of the enslaved people of
our Southern States. They put forth their
efforts and spend their money to extend
the lights of civilization and Christianity
to all those who are cropping in moral dark
ness: : and while they are doing this, is the
President to assail and denounce them for
agitating the subject, and discussing the
evils of barbarism?
It has been asserted, on the opposite
side of the House, that radical Abolition
lists voted with the Republican party. l
wish it were so. I think that duty requires
them to vote with us; but l should not
apologize for any association with them !;
particularly, l would not apologize to men
who insist on carrying Slavery into our
Free States. Nor have / any apology for
Garrison and Phillips, and those old school
Abolitionists who refuse to vote under our
Federal Constitution, because they regard
it as upholding Slavery. They have the
same right to entertain their own honest
opinions that the President has to enjoy
his. They have the same right to proclaim
their doctrines which the President has to
avow his. He has no more right to re-
proach them than they have to reproach
him. "Errors of opinion" says Jefferson,
"may be safely tolerated, where truth is
left free to combat them." The popular
feeling of the North has been so long held
in subsection to slaveholding dictation.-
Submission to The Slave Power has been
carried so far, that even Judge in my ma
tive State has substantially decided that a
STAKEHOLDER may bring and hold his slaves
upon the soil Of the Keystone State, I
feel humbled at this degradation, this serv-
lie submission to the propaganda of Sla-
very. would say TO the people, speak
out your sentiments freely, but kindly; IN
the spirit of manly independence and Chris
tian dignity, avow your own opinions; COM
pare ideas with each other, and unfold your
own moral feeling: learn more and more
of nature and of natures God; examine,
discuss, and study the natural, the God Civ
en- rights of mankind, and permit no dieta-
tor, no petty tyrant, to limit your thoughts.
Do not permit yourselves to be Influenced
by arrogance or usurpation. Bear in mind
that public men are your servants, not your
masters, dependent on you for the official
breath which they inhale. They cease to
hold political existence when you frown up
on them. 4, -..-g.. -e,.... .
Il -. Of c.o1
of acts of the people Of the Northern States. and
in several instances of their Governments. aim
ed to facilitate the escape of persons held to ser
vice in the Southern States"
Not content with his charge against
Congress and the people of the Free States,
he goes one step further, and assails our
State Governments. All are aware that
several of our Free State Legislatures have
| prohibited the use of their jails for .impris
/ oning fugitive slaves. They are unwilling
! to be involved in the disgraceful business of
! aiding the piratical seizure of human beings
who are seeking liberty. Others have felt
more deeply the degradation of that infa-
nous work, and have prohibited their
State officsrs from dsgracing themselves
and State by engaging in it. He does not
charge them with any violation of the
Constitution, or of any law, nor of any NOR
al or Christian duty. On the contrary, he
charges them with thus performing their
duty to themselves and to mankink. He
seems to have forgotten that our Governors
and members of the Legislature hold their
Offices from the people, and not from him +;
that they are accountable to the peoph and
not to him. .lcg -l2 grf