, 1860-01-25

tton i'll treating their children hy any Aysteun oil
| eivlf laws. You cannot make men honest
by my code in the world The great
| matter for us is to incutcate moral priu-
ciples and to form q public sentiment, that
will enforce its dictates upon the consciences o,
men. Such moral principle and such pub
lie sentiment are stronger than any GIRL law In
| the world. am. not here to defend civil codes
| Consequently the question is not whether there
is a great deal Of sin connected with slayery-a
great deal of sufrriDg and wrong growine cut
of its existence. Undoubtedly this is true.
Unfortunately the people Of the South are rery
tnueh Like the people everywhere There is il
human society great mi 1turt Of good aud bad
with m nnfor. innate. predominance Of the bad,
The great majority, a1asi' Of the people of any
one Of our States cannot be said to be ycrv re-
gardful Of Gods law. 1t would be absurd,
therefore, to deny that there ia great deal ot
sin committed in connection With this relation
Is It not 80 IN every relattone Wherever bad
men Ire. they commit bad acts. Wherever bad
Mcu have power, they will nbuse it. do not
pretend to say that thereis not great deal Of
evil growing out Of this relation but will
venture to say, that the amount Of suffering
bodily sutlsrlng-connected with it, has been
greatly exaggerated. Even bad men are not
generally disposed to abuse their horses, but
rather tuke care Of theM, Us matter Of self.
interest; and it abad man looks upon bis slave
as he does upon bis horse. will he not take care
ot him Tor the same reason! The amount Of
suffering, therefore, as every one acquainted
with the South knows, is exaggerated very
much. There are great evils in this thing. It
originated IN wrong, mud you never eau relieve
it from great and dreadful evils; ret they are
not mainly those which are most dwelt upon..
~. Nor ain here to advocate the p<rtffuity
OF Slavery IN this country. I hare said it was
an evil, originating in sln--a great evil, and
ought to be abolished just as soon as it can be
done, IN tue circumstances, BY the operation Of
T1F N1nfaa md f1& ufn}x xo$ h.,
ties concerned.
v. Still further-1 do hold, that the tendency
Of the gospel is to abolish slavery and it viii
accomplish the end it men will let it hare fair
play. The doctrines and principles OF the gos-
pei pressed upon the hearts aud the cousciemces
o. s;,5 msn-the s providence of God co operating,
Will drive it out Of our country and the world.
10 not blame any man for batting slavery
for It is h 'teful thing, and ought to be hated
! do not wonder that men say hard things about
s-especia1ly when SO many false Or exag-
t;erated statements are constantly pub
| llshed. The thing is evil. I remember,
sembIy met in New York, and one Of our
Congregational brethren-a representative from
his Assoclation-Epoke Of the evit Of slavery.
The venerable Dr.. Mcfarland, himself Virgin
ian, who was Moderator Of the Assembly, said.
IL substance, We don't expect you to approve
OF it; We do not approve Of it ourselves. We
get rid Of it." The sentiments he expressed
met tue aplrobation Of the entire body, South
and NORTH.
d" not blame men for not liking slavery, I
do not like it myself do not plead for the
perpetuity Of it. ! earnestly advocated emau-
advocated it in the st. Louis Presbyterian-
do not propose to discuss the best method
Of dealing with it. but simply to try to form IN
estimate OF the character Of those Christians
living IN the slare States, and Of our duty with
regard TO them. Are they living in such sin
that we are bound TO reprove them, and cut
them off from cur fellowship Is this the riew
take Of the natter? l am willing to apply its
language, in the strictness of intel pretation, to
this case. Let US not paliate sin where it e1-
lists; but let us not condemn brethren who are
as faithful servants Of God US ne.
The first question in examining the cireum-
stances attending tue existence Of slavery re-
lates to the Introduction Of II into our country.
Upon whon rests the responsibility Of its in
PRODUCTION: raise this question now for this
le4son: If slavery, as it exists in the slaye
Siates, were a matter Of their own seeking,
then according to rery obvious principle Of
own wrong. If the present slayeholding States
brought the difficulty upon themselves, then
the responsible IT. would be greater, aud the
obligation to remove it at all hazards would be
grearer. But If it WIS forced upon them, or if
others helped or pushed them toit-then their
responsibility would be less.
The hrst and the great responsibility rests
upon Great Britain. Bancroft says: "Defore
America legislated for herself, the iuterdict Of
the sluve trude was impossible. England was
tnexoruble in maintaining the system, which
gained now stronger supporters by Its excess.
English Continental Colonies in the aggr. gate
W. re always opposed to the African slave trade.
fn~ -. ~f.rx rnl
anxious preference for the introduction Of
white men; and laws designed to restrict the
importation OF slaves, arc scattered copiously
ati along the records Of Colonial legislation"
"1n Virginia the planters behold,' says Ban
croft. "~'' dismay, the increase Of slaves
among them.'
\ later vi DR.. Franklin dated London. April
%, 1918, mentions petition sent from the As
sembly Of Virginia to the British Government
Tor permission 10 pass laws prohibiting the fur
ther importation Of slaves into TINT Colony.
This request" says Franklin, will probably
not be granted. The interests Of few mer-
chants ltrre have more weight with the govern
ment, than thut Of thousands ut distance" AS
matter Of fact it was not granted. Georgia
was designed to be free from slavery. It was
the detcl mination Of Og1cthorpe and those u.s.
ISOLATED with him, that slavery nerer should
exist there. He says: 'Stayery, the misfor-
time. if not ths d,shonor. Of other plantations,
is absolutely prescribed" This he wrote in
l744. But the English Government forced sfay-
cry upon shcm against their will.
The next responsibility rests upon the States
themselves, and upon the Gertt rs fully US the
South. In the year TAO, the Legislature oil
New York said: !" All due encouragement ought
to bc given to tue direct importation or slaves.
and a'l smuggling oil slases eoude.aned IS an
eminent discouragtnlent to the fAir t:sHeF'
In 117h, just when Virginia was petitiouing the
Enr1 mi fnr tn
The further importation Of slures, New York
was the ceutre Of the slave trade, and the wealth
Of its citizens arose mainly from that SOURCE"
This il the statement Of Rev. Dr.. Thompson,
one OF the editors Of tue Independent, whose
ptejudices are certainly strongly enough the
other way. It Vas IN ITO the venerable Dr..
Hopkins. Of Newport, began to oppose this
vile traffic.
It is clear; then, that the responsibility of the
Introduction Of slavery into this country rests
as much upon the North as upon the South.
Indeed, SO far rs am able to ascertain, the
Southern people did not engage in the trade,
but Ill the vessels were bu 1t and sent out from
the North. do not know that it was upon moral
grounds that tue South, except Georgia, op-
posed the importation of slaves. It is, never
theless, u fact that, for some reason, they op-
posed it.
The reason why s!avcs multiplied most rapid.
y in the South is obvious. The climate and
ratio Of increase; consequently, while the trade
WIS mainly from New Eagland, the nccumula,
Inn Of slaves WIS mainly in the South. 1t is
amazing that, in colctry like ours, the Stare
trade should have been sd long sustained:
The responsibility Of the people now lts'ngin
the slayeholding States, is not iG..'nt having
r<a uctd tn Afr1taas to slarery it is an inaer1t-
I'd evil, which those now living found when
they came into being. Their obligation is, be-
ing encountered With the eyit. to apply to it the
principles Of Gods word, in their existing cir.
cumstauces, and TO remove it as far and as fast
as they can. / insist upon the obligation OF
word Of God as their guide in this matter, and
get rid Of it as far and rs fast as they eau By
the operation Of those principles. Still, the
original btame WIS not theirs; ind every one
kT:rws thu single generation can bring upon
! ':"':s''ry cs;ls which many generations canno.
remove. ~,
he duty of Christians iu the slave States
may he viewed in two aspects. First, as Elf
srne, having naoral influence in moldiug public
sentiment. md having voice in the legislation
ofthe country. Secondly, they have respcnsi-
God, in relation to the question Of holding
siavcs. These are the two aspects in which u
inoratist aud q Christian would view their duty
The question, then, is this: is il thtir duty i'm
medi1fey to enpancipa&e kAtr s1r<x, unI to refuse
to 1o'd +lar<s ostogttAef
This question can be answered, Us already in
tiu1ated, only By looking at the circumstances
surrounding them. In considering those cir.
cumstances. let us keep in view the moral law
itv, If You please. to the facts Of the case.
In the first place, it is fact, that ia. perhaps.
every one Of the Slave States the laws forbid
emancipation tcitLoat renordl; consequently