Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1860-10-06


testimony to the kindness and hospitality Of the
negro tribes with which Ne journeyyd, and Lily
ingston has home witness that whenever he has
found the African race undisturbed by other
nations. and without religion, no has found a
high degree Of intelligence, aud moral char
acter.
Looking, then, down to the origin Of the two
races there is very little Of which we can boast.
Nor have we anything in the present, to pride
ourselves in,-morally at least, / have travelled
over this country, East and West and NUrtb,-
not SOuth,-constantly for o good many years.
and ! never asked a colored nan a question, to
which | received any other than the politest an.
sworI; and always an intelligent one. ! wish ]
could say half as much in this respect, to the
credit Of those of my own complexion. As our
friend tells US, the state of Illinois refuses to allow
the colored man to testify in her courts, and by
taking from that State a ruler for the nation, who
approves of such outrage, you bring the cOun'
try down to the level Of such morality.
In Sparta they had a law, not against stealing
but to punish whoever was detected Of theft not
for the crime, but because he did net etedl more
adroitly. A youth it is related, stole q fox and
concealiDg it under bis robe went into q a public
assembly where the animal guawed at his vitbls
till he fell dead on the ground. for he would
not divulge his theft, and could not otherwise
save his life. The city went into mourning for
him, and honored him, because he would steal
according to custom, and would die rather
than be exposed. We laugh at this, and talk
of the moral and religious darkness of the
age that would sanction it. But are we any
better? Do we look to anything but custom
as the rule of our conduct, and have we any
goodness, for the sake of goodness, among
us? Ihaye heard a Doctor of Divinity say
in exhorting his hearers to seek Heaven "Is
it wealth you want? Heavens streets are
paved with gold ~ These golden streets and
pearly gates, are held up to our view to in
duce us to do what is right,-or rather what
our priests would have us do and, as a fur
Their motive to obedience we are threatened
with the lake that burns with fire and brim-
stone. When such is the teaching, if the
fires of that lake could be quenched, who
would 90 bail for the perseverance, of the
saints, after that? We are to do good, not
because it is right, but because We must avoid
eternal ~burnings. What wonder, under stch
preaching and teaching, that we deny tc
the black man any rights that the white mar
is bound to respect? Our teaching ant
our preaching have murdered our humanity
and we have no true manhood left.
Let those who think the colored man al
: inferior being, prove him such by entering
the lists against him. 1 would like to Sc,
. the Doctor of Divinity or minister no mat
tor of what church, that would attempt this
: The black man is not inferior to the white
8 either in intellect or heart or soul, as all tru,
, history and all just experience attest. Whel
f Democrats, or anybody else, want to find
champion to vanquish such men as Rcmont
: and Brown, and Langston, Frederick Dug
e lass and the Douglass who has addressed us
they had better get a bigger giant to enter
). the lists than him who is making his weary
pilgrimage in search Of his mother. Ant
the best sign of promise 1 can see in the De
e mocracy is that they have yet a little too
much sense to risk such an encounter.