Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1860-06-12
Published By request ]
Another Div,sion in the M. e. Church
70 Expected.

pline by the General Conference at Buffalo, New
York. 1t is from the pen of DIR. Bond, the tai
ented editor of that paper
The new chapter is as follows:-"Ques. What
shall be done for the extirpation OF the evil OF
Slavery 2"
"Ans. We declare that we are as much as
ever convinced of the great evil OF Slavery. We
believe that the buying, selling, or holding of
human beings to be used as chattets, IS lncon-
sistent with the golden rule, and with that rule
of our Discipline, which requires all who desire
to continue among us to do no harm and to avoid
evil of every kind. We, therefore, affectionately
admonish all our preachers and people to keep
themselves pure from this great evil, and to seek
its extrpation by all lawful and Christian mems"
At first sight many will think that the new
chapter is weaker than the old, and that the
General Conference has made concessions to the
Border--but little careful consideration will
vindicate the majority of the Conference from
the charge of extreme stupidity involved in such
conclusion. That body knew what they were
about, and when they urged this chapter as q
progressive action on the slavery question, they
were not so silly as not to comprehend its mean
ing. 1t is artfully constructed. The barb is care
fully covered by the bait, but moments exami-
nation bares the steel.
The old chapter declared slavery to be great
evil-but carefully abstained from calling it q
sin. 1t forbade STAKEHOLDER to have official
station in the church, but qualified the prohibi-
ton so widely as to leave obedience to the pre-
cept almost optional with society. In fact it
was sort of sliding scale of oficiali:y, to be
worked by the sentiment of locality. the chap
ter also forbade travelling preachers to hold
moral grounds. 1t left room for the explanation
that the ''eviP' in the case of preachers, was in
the embarrassment of their work.
The old chapter also directed our preachers
to enforce upon our members the necessity of
teaching their slaves 10 read the Word of God,
and allowing them to attend upon the public
worship of God on our regular days of divine
service-but even this, the preachers were in
structed to do ''prudently." AS an answer to
the Titantic questiOn-what shall be done for the
extirpation of slavery2 the old chapter was as
the mewing of kitten to the crash of thunder.
So far as our private members were concerned,
it only required them to listen to prudent
suggestion on the part of the preachers to teach
their slaves to read the Bible and let them 90 to
church on Sundays. A suggestion which prob
ably was never offered, simply because it was
not needed. Our members, under the old chap
ter, were permitted to hold slaves, with no 9th
er restrictions than those enforced by their own
upon them. The relation was not declared to
be sinful, but only ''evil." The church might
have said as much of Malaria. The character.
degree, determination, remedy OF the "evil"-ot
all these the church said nothing. In fact, the
church might as well have said nothing at all,
for there was no practical use in what it said,
The new chapter declares that the buying,
selling, or holding of human beings as chattels,
is inconsistent with the law of Christ, and with
that rule in our discipline which requires all who
remain among us to do no HARM"
This is plain declaration, that slayeholding
is a sin against God and the Discipline sim
guar duality in which we would suppose the
latter element superfuous: did we not perceive
the necessity of looking to some other quarter
than revelation for support of the declaration
The word .sin" is carefully excluded-the idea
is conveyed in the circumloeuton inconsistent
with the golden rule" The distinction las
chattels," is introduced with the evident purpose
of creating ambiguity, and shading the meaning
of the precept. This law term is not commonly
understood. The people have been led to con-
found ''chattel" with Seattle" or something of
that kind. They suppose that by holding slaves
as chattels, is meant holding thela with the same
views and feelings as they hold brutes and
dealing with their servants az though they had
neither mind nor soul, thought nor sensbility.-
1t is in this sense the term is often tauntingly
used towards them. Now, in truth, .schattel''
means nothing but movable or personal proper
ty- something else than real estate, and unless
man holds slaves as real estate, he must hold
them as chattets The committee on Slavery in
tended, by the use of this word, to exclude from
censure such slaveholding as they described in
their report as tOerable, that is, purely benevo-
lent slaveholding-over the young, rearing them
for mancpation-oyer the old, providing for
their intirmty-and over all to whom bondage
IS legal necessity during their transit to free
dom. Such cases, the committee intended to
exclude, by using the word chattel, but in their
ignorance they have brought even the benevo.
lent class OF shareholders under condemnation
and declared them sinners before God, if they
avail themselves of their legal authority ovel
their servants, for none of them have real es
tate 10 a negro.
All slaveholding is, by this chapter, declared
to be a sin. 1t effectively creates new term Of
membership in our church, fer it declares al
cases OF slaYeholding to be amendable under the
General Rule, forbiddng sail HARM" After
having laid down this rule, the General Confer.
and people to keep themselves pure from this
great evil" What more could they have said
about Mormonism 9-and ito seek its extirpatior
by all lawful and Christian means.' What
more could they have said of any sin2 Having
declared slaveholding to be sin, the Discipline
calls upon preachers and people to seek its ex
tlrpatiOn ny all means except such as are law,
less and wicked. The word 'satfectionately'
sounds sweetly, but it is not applied to qualify
the manner OF the ''extirpation," but only the
tone of the admonition. The inquisitors used
even more kindly words when they surrendered
the victim to the secular arm"-as they being
nantly styled the exeeutioner.
Such, then, is the present Discipline. 1t con.
dennis all shareholders by rule, aud by comment
airy excuses only in SUCH cases as we have men
toned. Real slaveholding it concludes to be O
sin against God, and violation of the Discipline
OF our Church. The chapter is advisory, bu,
advisory of action against slaveholding mem.
bers. 1t advises preachers aud others to dea
with such as immoral, and volators of our Rule,
and extrude them by the lawful means pro-
| videG in the discipline.
Gan we remain in o connection where We
must live in perpetual rebellion against its law
Can we hOnorably continue in a fraternity O.
churches when our only right to be in. is the
lmposslbllity for the others to put US out2 Gar
we obey the present Disciplin9s Can we re
main in cODnexlon with the other churches an(
disobey it Will it be for the glory of God t.
| submit to the present chapter and try to prac
tice upon it2 These are questions for our read
| ers to answer.
| at the Florida State Convention which as
sembled in Quincy on Monday, the 4th inst, t.
nominate candidates for Governor and represent
alive, Gen. John Milton, delegate to tn,
charleston Convention, was nominated for Gov