Bellows Falls times. [volume] (Bellows Falls, Vt.) 1856-1965, 1860-04-27

hepuolle, as ciilarn, uumoles.ed and ol
utterng In an orderly and Iog,d way. anv
sentiment that | choose to utter; and va,
are we allowed TO do it? Are we for that.
IN these United States, 10 be subjected 10
violence, outrage, tar and feathers, BURNING.
imprisonment, the gaows? Answer thai
/ quosiinn, know gentlemen saw tba, SELF.
preservation l. the first law of nature but
1t you cannot keep slavery and allow frca
discussion, then | say, in Gods nemc. he.
fore free discussion and all tho rights of
free citizens are TO be sacrificed to tha, Mo-
loch OF slavery that Moloc must be i'm,
molated at the shrine of liberty, free speech
free discussion, and all Of those rights thai
cluster around an American citizen.
Why, Mr.. Chairman, citizen of Rome.
when the scourge was already upraised and
about to fall upon him. if he uttered the cry,
Il am II Roman citizen" il arrested the
scourgr. Well, Sir, is not there more Of a
charm, Is II no. prouder position 10 be an
American than TO be Roman citizen?
And are we, in the nineteenth century, liv-
Ing under this Constitution, with our FREQ
instuuions-arc our persons and our rights
to be less sacred than they were under the
old Roman administration eighteen eantu-
ries ago, and more? That is my response
TO the question why recommended the cip,
culation of the Helper book.
Now, what about John Brown. (Crcs
of Lets have itr) This afair Of John
Brown brings us to the reality Of things.
lihs rad conironts rs with slavery, and
makes us ask, is slayeholling right? ? and IL
50, what rights has it? When the curtain
rose and startled the nation with this tradp.
edy, John Brown lay there like a wounded
hon with his head upon his paws, sabre
cut on his brow, bayonet gashes in his side,
the blood oozing out, and life itself appar-
emily ebbing fast; around were certain lit
tie specimens of the canine species, snuff.
ing and smelling, and finally one of them
yelped out; "Mr. Lion, was the old war
horse that pastured on the Western Reserve
with you on this expedition p The lion
slowly raised his head, cast disdainful side
glance upon the inquirer, growled out con-
temptuous negative, and reposed his head
as before.
In regard TO John Brown, you want me
TO curse him. will not curse John Brown.
lon want me to pour out execrations upon
the head of old Ossawatamie. Though all
the slaveholding Balaks in the country fill
their houses with silver and proffer it, will
not curse John Brown. ! do honestly con-
denim what he did, from my stand point,
and with my convictions disapprove of his
action, this is true; but believe that his
purpose was good one that so far as his
own motives before God were concerned,
they were honest and truthful and no one
can deny that he stands head and shoulders
above any other character that appeared
on the stage in that tradgedy from begin
ming TO end; from the time he entered the
armory there to the time when he was
strangled by Governor @Fussation" (Gen-
eral laugh,er)
He was not guilty of murder or treason.
lie did unquestionably violate the statute
against aiding slaves TO escape; but no
b'ood was shed, except by the panic strick-
en- multitude, till Stevens was fired upon
while waving flag of truce. The only
murder was that of Thompson, who was
snatched from the heroic protection of
woman, and riddled with balls at the rail-
road bridge. Desrotism has seldom sacri-
feed three nobler victims than Brown, Ste-
vens, and Hazlitt.
/ As remarked, Mr. Chairman, this
brings us to confront slavery, and ask what
right this Caliban has upon earth? / say
no right. My honest conviction-and do
not know why gentlemen need take offense;
they need not unless they choose--my hon.
est conviction is, that all these slaveholding
laws have the same moral power and force
that rules among pirates have for the dis
trbution of their booty; that regulations
among robbers have for the division of their
spoils; and although / do not believe gen.
tlemen have behaved very handsomely to
me, am going to add Notwithstanding,
that do not mean to say that gentlemen
who are shareholders would be guilty of
these particular things-that is not the point
Il am talking about this matter in the
court Of conscience, in the court of right and
wrong and insist that any laws for en-
shaving men have just the same moral force
as the arrangement among robbers and pi-
rates for distributing their spoils
want TO know by what right you can
come and make me a slave ! want to
know by what right you can say that my
child shall be your sIavc2 want to know
by what right you say that the mother shall
not have her child, given to her from God
through the martyrdom of maternity?
/ iioa' that Aoit cAIuiSuO WHuiC vi u mum
er's love:
| I" Ere last wears had left the skv,
| birtlng sought my Indian nest,
| And folded so lovingly,
| its tiny wings upon my breastn
! Now where is the wretch who would dare
to 20 up and take that futtering andI pant
ing birding from the bosom of It's mother,
and say, II is mine will sell it like
calf; will sell il like pig?' What
| right had that mother to her babe Was
it because she was Fanny Forester" the
gifted authorcss was it because she was
the wife of veherated missionary? No,
it was because she was its MOTHER; and
every slave mother has just as good a title
to hcr babe as /" Fanny Forester " had TO
hers. No laws can make il right to rob
her. l say in Gods uame, my child is
mine; and yet ! have no right to mine that
a slave father has not to his cbild.- Not
a particle. The same argument that proves
my right to my personal liberty, proves the
right of every human being 10 his. The
argument that proves my right to my chill
lren gives the same title, the same sacred
claim TO every father. They, as I, get it
/ 4 :. 4