, 1859-04-22
"TuE BURDENS OF g0CIETT."
Report Of Henry Ward Beccllcrsa Lcc-
turc ut Metropolitan Hall.


turc ut Metropolitan Hall.
The lecture Of lIcnry Ward Beecher at Nc
tropoitan Hail last evening. the third. md last
Of Ills series before our public, during Ills pres
cnt trip to the West, was crcn more marked
t1lau its predecessors in the respect Of filing
Metropolitan Hall at the unusual hour Of G r.
NJ, with an audience Of which the capacity Of
the nsli itself was the only limit. Hundreds
last evening, US on the two previous occasions,
"camc, Saw, aud ooucvrreJ' in the very we'll
grounded opinion that they could not get in,
and turned away lcctureless, but the recipients
Of ineritable ho.nilies dc1uceable from proverbs
on punctua!ity, references to "early birds" aud
tho like.
We may here state that the two last lectures
Of Mr. Bcec!.erare shared unitedly by the Young
Mems Association, and the Yong Hens Chris
tian Association Of this city, md the statement
TINT the exchc1uers of both institutions hare
good ground for rejoicing at Mr. Beecher's visit,
is 4 work Of supcrerogation, as already ex-
pressed in what VIC have written IS to the at-
tendance on these occasions. Mr.. Beecher was
to take the cars for the East ut r. H. last eve
ming, md the public turned gfadly from-carly
and hasty tea tablcs to the matter Of early seats
at Metropolitan Hall, and wisely, for neyer we're
m audience better rcpaid.
btr Bcechcr came forward ut halfpast SIX,
to be introduced BY E. S. Wells, Esq, the Presi-
dent Of the Young Mems Association, to M
audience which WAS already III waiting. Less
than one hundred entered the Hall after the
speaker commenced, and for the good reason
that nli available sitting and standing room had
been previously occupied.
In the outline we are to present Of the lecture
on i" Tie Bw.dtns Of Society,"" we giEe merely
sketch Of the points, or rather the Stations,
touched at BY the train Of thought and argu-
nent as the sentences, glowing, eloquent, often
surprisingly So, filled the spaces between in a
manner to which 10 condensation could do
Justice.
LIZ besau by saying that in the existence Of q
man, simply, and ly himself, US an organized
creation, with lis con'plcxity and dellcacy Of
organism, and the variety Of the functions Of
tl4ose organs and their relations to the natural
world about him, in this there was something
wonderful, something beyond Ill admiration in
tie passage of creature so intricatciy arranged
so easily destroyed All machines, even the
most wonderful in mechanism and function, are
utterly contemplate beside man as physical
invention. But when the contemplation extends
to Society, to communities Of men, each king
dom, and takes in the eight hundred millions Of
men Oh this globe, what can furnish more
sublime spectacle. One never tires Of the ocean,
Of its vastness, its width, tsdeptl, its wondroas
yicissitudes. What is the liquid ocean in COM
parison with tue human ocean where cacli drop
is human soul.
One would, beforehand, almost naturally
think Tint the organization Of man into societies
and communities would be impossible, that it
would be weak and unable to hold itself to-
gether. Experience shows tho contrary, that
tl.erc is nothing so strong as this union. It is
shown by the burdens it bears. When one sees
what cyils and storms, growing out Of human
passions affect societv, what corruptions the
wonder is that s"cie:y eau sustain the sanr, and
when We consider tue organized systems Of evil
one would still more strongly believe society
must fall; but nevertheless like strong ship,
to whose hull barnac!cs are clin.ing, il bears
straight on, riding over aud through I'LL, sure Of
saf, l,asbor at last. To some Of these evils let
us refer.
nAp GOyEESMENr.
The First Ei,sl.u referred tn by the speaker
w;,s tile Evil Of Had Government. lie was
aware that the Young imagination was easily
dazzcd with the " divine idea Of Government" j"
Government though. il is true enough, divine in
origin, is nevertheless not very near approach
to divine, :.s srcn in must instances here upon
the earth Gu aud out Of all human necessities
have Lcen grated and grown cyils most danger
GUS. From thirst llas come drunkenness, from
hunger, glu.ouy, from lore, lust, out Of religion
has come intolerance and superstition. So on
the natural necessity Of tlc union Of men to
form sacety hare sprung up evils, and Of these
this burden Of government. kuight who
should order Of his arinorer suit Of mail 50 mas
sire that tue wearing and bearing it, lclt him
strength to wield sword and lance, would be not
unlike many nations who have become shcathed
and over-ritden by machinery Of government
SO cumLrous us to employ I'LL the strength and
do not in. this land know the burdens Of such a
Government, but it has been md is the e1pc-
ricncc Of other nations.
Those who are reared and trained in the d.
vine IDEA uf government, and in deep indis'
eliminating, incritable respect for the same, are
like tue pugun They must view and worship ut
distnucc III idol only then divine, which near
ut hand would be dcrilsl,, at ucar view the
carved divine monkey might be found more
honacly than his natural prototype.
4 great principle in organized nature is the
rccupcra;iye force. Men urc made to take care
Of themselves. The body is made to cure itself.
We talk of n1cn being cured Of medicines, and
doctors working curc*) The doctor only coa1es.
The body cures itself. as God made it, and gave
it recupcrasivc power to do. So In society
cx>ts this rccuperatiyc power. Men thrown in
government.
The lecturer said that it WAS doubtful If
mankind bad nut been us much mi ured rs
benefited by Government. We nFo often
editird t,y di>coursrA on undrray. i Il pic
turcd rs a =torluy sea, nn outbnrStinr crater.
civ, and n.rn who fccl they must avoid other
topics, spend their breath on anathrmizing 2
x,iarrhy bccausr they dare to hit nothing
else. Npw what is sU much dreaded as unar-
chy is really II misnolncr, for We applY II tn
t!sc stormy. transition state In which the
waves ai,d tcnpcsts of peoples wrath rage
and blow. TO thedcstruction Of some obnoxious
fern Of government. 1t is not ANARCHY. Let
the ocean rage. il will die away; let the
tempest blow, it will exhaust itsclf. So let
these reup!c alone aud they will suo, work
tt1vir owp cure, but it will nni b. he anarchy,