New-York daily tribune., 1859-01-14
+. THE BURDENS or SOCIETY,""
LECTURE BY THE REV. HENRY "ARD
BEECHER.

j., L . l.,oe asd il :. lis seut aud. nos OF cati-
"a -. N listen 20 q di,eourse by the Rev.
U.nry Ward Beeeber given under the auspices OF the
yonns Mems Christian Association. Be:~een 1000
and 3 COO persons were present.
rhs them. of the lecture was "The Burdens OF So
c;s,,.v A1u1iog to man ard the exhibitions Of hls
pasons the lecturer regarded the race ss farnisni'g
the most extraordinary spectacle which could De pre-
serted Wha. was tae hqoii ocean compared with
the bumsn oeeao, where every drop vas an organ'z-
iug AID eternal God. There was notoiag 20 strong ss
society--nOthing which codld bear such hards'lps-
could survive soch sbuss carry snch burdens IS were
perpetuslly inflicted upon IL. Among these Durieas
vss o.spoiic go7ernment. Divire governments had
not bee1 ttts ned. B,sed upon Ignorance and n.c's
eiiy systeme Of gOver0ueot 80 vast aud cOmpf4 na1
been built up tnat they required sh- "9ole s1engl ~
the nati,D 10 enoo'e tue government Ine uaci'izsd
races Of history had been better governeo tnah IN
civilized Ire first thing that cvilzaIon ts1Snt vas
sources Of poser aud hos to ABSORB taem. Inc nr7t
busipess OF government was to le' peSpie
aloe and then TO Oblge them 20 let ooe
another slore. They neeoed only helps 70 ana
them IN approaching the D'ylae loet. ~
practical inposs 1l'y for ooveinens - 'nHs
care al The people If the Government usurped TINS
power il robbed the people Of its strength aed look
ipg at it oomprebebsively, it was 4ui:e douottai
whether mausicd had lot been as much III JdTeo ne
b.lo, d by Governments. A najOn without 4 Go 7ern
eGt presented scene Of wretcbedness only equasd
by a nation with one. desperate or corrupt Gov-
eiument was worse than ansrcDy-ior ORGANIZED co..
rupton was sefperpetuatiDg, whiie from ahncny
eder could be secured. la free Government cflm-
nails we're under the law ard in potc Government
they uere above il; aLo it was only In r,VOts doo
revolutions, in huLdIeds OF nations, inst we iouu'
their worst Intentions historical episodes. Az he+s
of nations had ever had great uo1ble with t9elr
peOIle; and the people had al rays had great des
more with their beads. The substance OF the people
lao been exnausted to build the State, and fantas-
tic fools called wise men had drawn out every one his
of - fba att she
press the pe ope this FORM 6s If the State had any
iOun Educate every man into the facultits oOd nal
given and then-let lin alone. T1at was the state:
lApplaose Pabic wealth was private wealth, 7ni
1ubIc strength the citizens strength Inc second
burden Of society the lecturer said was Slavery,
which woe but vsria ion OF tue hr-t; slavery was
1othi0g but despotsm struck 10. lApplanse'I CnoeI
all fOrus and every modification, IT ~as mischiei ana
vase. II began by destroying the liberty of the
weak ard ended by cOrruptIDg the strengtn OF tne
strong. Old.TestameDt Slavery, so called, was Gov
ernmeDt but that system wblca struck nah no Tue
Of buJabity which governed him. not oy the
law of persons, but by the law OF things, WAS not
merely sn but kiDgoom Of organized sin for which
all terms to chaIsc erize IT were inadequate; Ap-
plause1 But there vas a penalty attached 10
This sn II was ffaus BIT with the greatest trouble and
retributioD In the early periods OF the state, slavery
was less harmful. AL men were then 10 toe beginnings
Of society, aa6 were nearly on level lie dla not
object to classes in society. There would be no harm
from classes if those above would shower their be-
ne6cence upon those below; bot II they attempt 10
oppress them society destroys itseli. Inc pecuhtr
BURDENS growing out Of Slavery were tae Substitution
of stupid druogery for intelligent RANK 1t had been
said that the foot % the husbaI dmsn was the beet
azure for the soil but if this was not sufficient We
of the North imported g1sno from the Cai9che
IslsIds But the Sonth had imported manure from
Africa He knew that it had been said that 1t caused
the spread of the gospel and was good missionary ald
but for every load OF gospel that We SEPT 10 Africa III
that ~oy, We received IN retnrn ioad OF hea,hen.
ISM and the exchange was one that We could not
stand long as had not more than our snare OF gos-
pei pow TIE plantation was the school Tor the petty
tyIart In this connection the speaker aladed 10 Tue
North Anne savages, and the lDIustce that had
been done them by the whites. Although the Puritan
Fathers we're, perhaps not entirely bsmeless IN tne
trt atment OF the savsges yet he bore witness 10 tneH
wisdom 10 sending among them two MISSIONARIES one
secular and the other rehgous the latter preaching
GOspe and the other preaching plows and hoes, and
the clements # agriculture He said thai 1t would DC
found in nineteen out OF tTerty, that Wherever
uestes have been broken with the indians oy the
ybtes il had been through tee result OF the Slave
mower, Slavery corrupted the purity OF national
morals, and destroyed the nstional conscience Inc
third burden of society WAS war. Inc lee
turer alluded TO the destructveness character
izIpp al animal existence from the lowest to
the highest, ard drew this distinction betwet man
and the brute, that whereas one destroyed Tor pur-
poies Of susten8Dce, man destroyer Tor the mere
pleasure Of destruction. K1liog was luxury among
men 1. pastime a mere wsnton pleasure, wit1ont the
spur Of want II a man killed animals IN q somewhat
merciiul way, n order that human wants might oe
supplied, he called q DutcLtI, Anu pl7Cc tho
SHAMELESS bat if man destroyed life for the fun of IT,
he was a Bportsman. We we're the only persons ON
the eerh who pracced cruelty as an aesthetic art IN
which cruelty was the essence Of the whole. We
boubarded town, and killed ten or dozen pers Dds
without the slightest desire to eat them and he be-
Leved there would be less and bloodshed, II the
vctors were compelled 10 unC ertake the uopsatabe
task Of eating al, they killed. Aud war never went
alOIe. FAMINE ano pestlenoe followed; industry was
disorgar zeO ten hearts boros TO the grave to
one killed by the sword Death Ia a night cause was
naItyre om but il seldom thst war was waged IN
behalf Of night. He bsd thought years ago that war
was most ended, bot never was geoius and industry
SO taxed to invent spd make implements OF war ss now
The next burden ~ which the lecturer advefted was
old and deosying Institutions. Institutions were Ike
bark on TIE trees; when they had nounsaei the
fer long tine, they crack of and let 1ew bArk
cone; but this they Ike TO DO All insects and vermn
were rvative and if those which we're ensccnced
in the bark consulted to the bark giving ~ay,
they would be unanimous against It. SICKNESS was
the next burden Of society. The next was compre-
htnye dishonesty and in THE connection the lectnrer
alluded {, the amount of property and labor wasted
and destroyed by being compelled to gusrd
against the Efforts Of criminals The burdeos OF lying
vice ana crme were alluded n, and were nstru tive
themes in the treatment of the lecturer He held that
the hone 4 u,an was compelled to pay the losses
casousd by the DISHONEST man-the temperate man
for the drunksrd. But because of burdens, the lee
turer did not believe tbst society was to go into
anarchy On the contrsry, be believed that society
was to grow cut Of these the reign of Christianity
on earth.
m tha