Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1857-06-06

NO ohence-but let the crime be charged home
upon any individual, or a class of individuals, and
the whole character of the thing is changed at
once. 1t then becomes o mortal offence. This Is
exactly the condition Of Shareholders, in the
church and out Of it. They can bear any amount
Of general defamation against slavery, br' they
will not have the doctrine applied to themselves.
Bet this is the work to be done. The character Of
slavery is pretty well ascertained. We have now
to locate the enormity. The crime has been suii-
ciently ascertained, and we now only wish to de-
termine who commits it. All men, not involv.
ed in the sin and blinded by its effects, will see in
an instant, that the STAKEHOLDER is chiefly respon.
eible for slavery. But for him, there could be no
slavery. Others, however, may share the guilt
with him. The slave lis often heavily involved.
AS a man, 1t is his duty to rise above the condition
of q slave; the God Of nature has written the law Of
freedom in his mombers, and this law must stand.
in spite Of all human statues. 1t cannot stand,
however, unless the slave will be a mamie must
feel the burden ofhis calling as contained in the
law of his members, and warning against the un-
godly, enslaving, human statute. Yet, whatever
he may do, or not do, we cannot escape RESPONSE
bility. We must disclaim the wrongs inflicted on
him, or become accessories to the crime. III we
speak not, and If we act not up to the demands of
the occasion, we are guilty of sobctioning the en-
slavement Of our fellow Eaen-we are shareholders.
Silence makes US such, as truly as if we had a
Southern plantation stocked with q thousand
negroes.
IL is this necessity which presses upon the
American Churches at this moment. The Chris.
tains of the North are responsible for all the aboma-
nations of the cotton plantotion, the auction block,
md the cofle gang, We cannot see the evil going
on and keep silence. without making it our own.
1t is not Southern slavery with which we have to
do. We must become parties to the hcllish COM
pact-the robbery of the slave virtually has our
assent, if we keep silence and witness his spolia.
tion without an indignant protest. 1t will not do
to extend the right hand to men guilty Of this
crime; our affairs require to be purged from such
characters. The Church literally becomes a "den
of thieves" and while endorsing such n sin, is
justly entitled to the contempt of mankind.
These are the reasons which lead US to insist
upon Church action, and that at the soonest prac-
ticable moment. We are suffering. Our religion
is compromised. Tho energies of Christendom
are paralyzed by our base connivance at this hor-
rible barbarism. We can no more expect a slave.
holding Church to convert the world, than we can
a nation of drunkards to ~extirpate the vice Of in
temperance. On no heather shore is our religion
wanted, while stained with the crime Of slavery.
1t is a mercy to keep our missionaries at home.
Till we have got rid of this sin, let us not insult
the miseries of heathondom, by offering O theology
no better than its own. The heather have no
worse sin than American slavery.