Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1860-06-15


protension and twice repeated by the Senator
from Mississippi, is that the Africans arc the
posterity OF Ham, the son Of Noah. through
Canaan, who was cursed by Noah, TO be the
Servant that is the word employed his
I, brethren, and that this malediction has fallen
upon all his descendants, who are accordingly
devoted by God to perpetual bondage. not
only in the third and fourth generations, but
throughout all succeeding time. Surely,
when the Senator quoted Scripture to enforce
the claim Of slave-masters, he did not intend
70 Jest And yet it is hard to suppose him
in earnest The Senator is Chairman of the
Committee on Military Affairs, in which he is
doubtless experienced. lc may, perhaps
set squadron in the field, but he has eyi-
IDENTIFY considered very little the text of Scrip
ture on which he relies. Tho Senator as
sumcs. that it has fixed the doom Of the col
orcd race leaving untouched the white race
Perhaps he docs not know That, in the worst
days of the Polish aristocracy, this same arr
gument was adopted as the excuse for hold
ing white serls in bondage precisely as it is
now put forward by the Senator, aud that
even to this day the angry Polish noble adj
dresses his white peasant as the "son of
Ham
1t hardly COMFORTS with the gravity of this
debate TO dwell on such an argument. and vet
! cannot 20 wrong iE for the sake of much
injured race. brush il away. TO Justify the
Senator in his application of this ancient
curse, he must maintain at least five different
propositions, az essential links in the chain of
the Airic-Amcricau slave; first, that. by this
malcdiction, Canaan was actually changed
into a "chattcl, whereas he is simply made
the servant of his brethren; sec0udig, that
not merely Canaan but all his postcrtv. to
the rcmotcst generation, was 80 changed.
whereas the language has no such extent
MirdiV, that the Airic-American actually be-
longs to the posterity of Canaan-an cthno-
logical assumption absurdlv difficult to cs
tablish fo,piLiU that each of the descend
ants of Shem and Japheth has right to hold
an Ahic-Amcrican folow-man as a "chattcl"
IA proposition which finds no scmblancc of
support and fHhIy. that every slave-uastrr
is truly descended from Shem or Japhcth--a
pedigree which no anxiety can establish
This plain analysis which may ftly excite
smile, shows the fvc-fold absurdity of an at
tempt to round this prctcnsion on
ANY successive ttle, long and dark.
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