The weekly Mississippian. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1859-1864, 1860-07-04
{5r The lMississippian.
The Evil Of Slavery Contrasted with
the Right and Wrong of it.

: be the source Of all moral and physical evil
t that he is also the author Of the rules of RICH
prevailing in the social relations of life, an
that right and wrong have exclusive relation
to the conduct of the fallible creatures of God
: As stakeholder, have lively interest il
the prevalence of just views in relation to il
With me it is question of conscience
question OF moral principle.
have no idea Of being unprincipled-
have no idea of being delinquent in my mora
duties-I have no idea of deliberately violat
ing the moral government of God.
Notwithstanding, admit slavery to bea so
cial, political and moral evils
Now, sir, it is very obvious that if evl B,
Wro'lg, | am delinquent in my moral duties
because | am stakeholder from deliberation
Very many Shareholders deny in their ar
| guments with Abolitionists that slavery is
morally evil. I, on the other hand do not
hesitate to admit it.
What now is the dictate of wisdom impos-
ed on US? Is it not maniestly to settle the
| question among ourselves? l think so. And
how is that to be done? Why, simply to
| find out what evil is-what is the origin and
what the meaning of it. If evil be Of man,
then, the right and wrong OF it are questions
proper for US to investigate and to determine.
But suppose it turns out, as l think it viii,
that evil, both moral and physical is of God,
then, the right and wrong of it is beyond the
province of human investigation and determi-
nation. How can We judge the doings of God
when he is the ultimate authority
All ask at the hands of my immediate fel-
low citizens is to listen with the attention due
to the Importance of the interest at stake, to
the arguments as shall be enabled to present
them in favor of the position taken by me.
With respect to slavery cannot be regard
ed as an intermeddler. beg it may be re-
membered that l am a slaveholder-that
| am not Northern man turned slave
holder-that Mississippi is my native soil
that was to the manor born and have there
fore right to my opinion, and if my opinion
be right, it is proper for me to insist on its
general acceptance.
The position l take on the slavery issue is
this, and | take it upon the utmost delibera-
tion-that right and wrong are questions
wholly and exclusively relating to the conduct
of fallible creatures who are utterly incapable
of instituting either moral or physical evil in
our natural world, even if they were ever so
much disposed to do so.
What is the inevitable conclusion if it in
deed be true that man cannot give institution
or existence to either moral or physical evil =?
1t is that they must be traced to God.
Take, for the moments illustration the
physical evil that attaches to the institution
of Agriculture. This institution is, as none
will gainsay, physically evil.
Agriculture, or the science of husbandrv,
the mean of our natural livelihood, has or
possesses in the thorns and thistles md nox-
ious weeds with which our natural world is
cursed, evils, whose institution or existence in
this world is now the subject inquiry. Are
these evils of God or of man ? The Scrip
ture, if we make that the test is plain and
open mouthed on this issue But desire to
discuss this question, the Scriptures being for
the time wholly out of the debate. I wish to
discuss it in the field of philosophy. wish
to meet the infdel Abolitionists of the North |
as we'll as our own christian people. |
Now | maintain-now | vehemently and |
maintain that right and ,o,-ong hare
no logical relevancy to eul, ohether moral or
physical. This is the great point in issue. If
succeed in this, succeed in the debate.
presume that few men deny the existence t
Of moral and physical evil in our world AS
q general rule, both infidels and Christians
concur in the judgment that evil characterzes
all the relations of life, or in other words, that
all conditions of life are susceptible of i'm
amelioration.
Now no man can say that the state of slave
~ is susceptible of improvement or of ameli-
grafton, and deny the existence of evil in that
state and preserve his logical consistency.
No man can say that there is evil in the
state of slavery, and deny slavery to be evil,
and preserve his logical consistency. But let
this pass. The point now on hand is this
can right and wrong be predicated of evil q?
Let US return again to the evil of husband
ry-or if you prefer, take any other physical
evil, pain of body for example-or if you wish
an instance of moral evil, take the natural
liberty that men have to destroy animal life
N each other-God has made it possible in
this life for A. to kill B.-for one man to kill
other men. Now are these evils of our natu-
raj world right or wrong? Can we tell
Is it not necessary for US, in the contempla-
ton of morals, to have some tribunal of right,
some standard Of truth, for the security of
our judgments, when we are unable to insist
On the infallbility of our private judgments?
l should think so, clearly. But the God in
nature is the ultimate authority. We cannot
90 behind him to find greater. This being
the state of the case, We are manifestly shut
up to the conclusion that the evils of our sew
eral relations in life-those of slavery among
them-are right because they are due to the
legislation of God in nature-to his disposition
Of our states in life, and we know of no more
remote authority in questions of morals, than
that of Natures God. take it for granted
therefore (the Scripture being now out of con-
sideration) that evil is right, because it comes
from an ultimate cause. | admit that am
in strait. l admit there is a great need of
a revelation from God to solve the object and
design of evil, but still, in the absence of any
revelation, l hold that We are compelled to
say that evil is right, for the reason gwen
We cannot declare of anything that it is wrong
or that it is right, without giving a reason for
our declaration, and since our private judg-
ments are inherently &llible, what better rea-
son can be given why evil is right than the
fact that it takes its origin in an ultimate I
cause
To my mind, the Scripture solves the |
whole difficulty with respect to evil and |
makes its existence in our world consistent |
with the benevolence of Gods character, but |
this is what Philosophy cannot do. If we
consult the scriptures 1t Will unequlVocaHy
tell us not only that evil originated with God,
but it will tell us why God cursed our world
with it ?
But the Scripture being aside from the
debate, 1 tell our infidel fellow citizens
who admit evil to prevail in all the relations of
natural life, as they uniformly do, that take
for them the least Objectionable mode and
method of extrication-and that is to take it
for granted that evil is right, for the reason
that it takes origin in the ultimate cause
Still evil may be wrong. Still God may be
malignant being. Still it may be right to con-
ciIiate him with evil sacrifices. Still virtue
and self.denial may not always delight him.
In the absence of Scripture there is no telling.