The Bedford gazette. [volume] (Bedford, Pa.) 1805-current, 1859-12-16


can to-day see no hope of:TiumPhing over thi
Western Continent in any other way than b,
breaking US to pieces. They cannot break US
but we can break ourselves. The combine,
armies and navies of the whole three continent
.. .. are not equal to the task OF severng this Union
. if we be true TO ourselves
e Seeing then, no hope, other than by dividing
: us against ourselves, our adversarles are apt, a
matter OF course, to seize hold OF that where
By they most readily engender strife make u
sectional-lif the heart from the great ark o.
: the covenant of the Union, and put ii down in
a little spot here and little spot there. Hence
it is you find England particularly, most imPeF-
tlnenlly oihcious in attempting tolntertere with
our institutions. Her press, her pulplts, her TO-
rum, her Senate chamber, roll out analhemas
upon US, with which they have no business
And, as the Lord lives, If they are not careful,
that arm will one day be smitten from the Shout
der, in its in;ermeddhng attempts. We are
long suffering people but, brethren, there was
| point at which we found encroaChmeat unen-
! durable and there may be another. II we are
capable of working out the great problem Of
/ self-government, we are capable Of taking care
| Of our own institutions, whatever they may be
| commercial, agricultural, domestic, civil, re-
! religious we are capable OF taking care Of
( our own institutions, and we mas! be LET
alone.
II, however, the enemies of republics can, by
! the utmost stretch Of their cunning and their
! power, urge Us on 10 spirit Of mutual jealousy,
! Of anarchy, of confusion II they can discover,
! land they think they have discovered il the
means by which an entering wedge Of separa-
! ton NAV be introduced between these States,
now bound together By len thousand iigaments
OF the human heart, and cemented by oceans OF
/ holy and patriotic bIood-ilthey can discover
! how they may divide and disrupt this Union,
! they will do il and when It shall be done,
| they will PIT the iron heel Of despotlsm upon
| the scattered fragments as may suit their plea
sure or their interest. But, . God that day
| cannot come, that day will never come, II we
/ be tue o ourselves.
| have no app:rhpnsjous from the malignant
| influence of any power, unless IT De seconded
! bv our own folly. Sometimes men itll me
| ''ifwe should have war with Eagiaad, our enc
mics would burn Boston, and barn New York,
| aud burn Philadelphia, and burn Baltimore
/ they will burn every city on the Atlantic shore.
! / do not believe word of It. That IS not the
| kind OF stuff that we are made OF, 10 be thus
burned. But we may burn ourselves. While
no other hand 75Fe grasp the helm oi tie ship
ol the state, and drive The uob. vessel up
on the quicksands, AMI on the rocks, we may
! DO II.
In viewing the aspect Of public morality in
! this country, one of the most alarming signs OF
the times, 10 my mind, is the utter Indifference
| that seems TO prevail witn regard to toe soem-
| nifty, value and importance Of an oath Every
! President, every governor, every Judge, all the
| mayors and lawyers, and marshalls, aad justi-
| Ces Of toe peace, all the members OF Congress
and Of our respective State legislatures, are
sworn solemnly before God, as they viii answer
at the great Day, to stand by the Constitution
and the laws Of tbe United States TINS is the
oath that they take. Il IS no tuAe. The ques-
| ton is now, Is this oath complied with All
naturalzed citizens-and | want this heard, /
want it understood-all nauTallzsd citizens are
/ if possible, more solemnly bound 10 the ConSti-
tuition aud laws of the United States by oath,
than either The President, the Governor, the
Judge, the lawyer, or the Magistrate. For the
man that comes TO this country from abroad and
IS naturaIzed, first solemniy renounces allegI-
ance TO the Government under which he was
/ born. soIemnly declares his abandonment of that
Government, and then soIemnly swears, or
aiirms before the great ! AN, that he will main
tam the Constitution aud laws of the United
States.
ask, then, are our official men faithful to
! their oath Wha; do they swear They
swear TO stand by the Constitution and laws Of
! the United States. What do the Constitution
and the laws require! 1t is your business 10
! know, if, as an adopted citizen of this Repub-
| lie, you have not examined them that you may
know what those laws teach, and what are
your duties in regard 10 them.
The Constitution is the compact. 1t does not
belong TO the North nor 10 the South, to the
East nor 70 the West 1t is the covenant, my
brethren, between the States of this Union
and while that Constitution remains as it is and
what it is, you are bound by il.
You may possibIYsay TO me: "But I am ma
tive born. | never took the oath of fidelity 10
the Constitution and the laws" But, my bro
ther, your brthright holds you to that Constilu-
fion as solemEly as the oath which binds the "a
dopted citizen. You are born under IT'S oblisa-
tioas. Being born here, you are bound to obey
the Constitution and the laws. No man has a
right to set them aside.
Now, for example, the Constitution most pos
itively and a5solutely-in the plainest and most
unmistakable manner-provides that fugitive
from labor, escaping from one State into another
shall be delivered up. This is the Constitution.
l am not to-day touching slavery, right or
wrong. am looking at things as they are.
THIS is the provision OF the Constitution. If,
then, the President or Governor, the judge. the
lawyer, or the magistrate, the citizen, lnative
born or adopted) does not comply with that pro-
vision, when it is within his Jurisdiction TO do
so-if he connives at lis evasion, if he aids or
abets the fugitive in his flight, he is before hea
ven pepured man, and tue waters of the oceaa
could not wash out the stain,