Columbia Democrat and Bloomsburg general advertiser. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1850-1866, 1861-03-02

OF HIN, De1ore whose tribunal must rem
der strict account in the last great day.
L proceed, accordingly, to the evidence
of the sacred Scriptures, which, long ago,
produced complete conviction in my own
mind, and must, as I regard it, be equally !
conclusive to every candid and sincere in
quirer. When the array of positive proof
is exhibited shall consider the objections,
and examine their validity with all the
fairness in my power.
The first appearance of slavery in the
Bible is the wonderful prediction of the
patriarch Noah, "Cursed be Canaan, q
servant Of servants shall he be to his
brethren. Blessed be the Lord God of
Shem, and Canaan shall be his servamt.-
God shall enlarge Japhet, and he shall
dwell in the tents of Shem, and Canaan
shall be h,s servant. (Gen, tx, 25.)
The heartlcss irreverence which Ham,
the father of Canaan, displayed towards
his eminent parent, whose piety had just
saved him from the deluge, presented the
immediate occasion for this remarkable
prophecy; but the actual JuIfHment was
reserved for his posterity, after they had
lost the knowledge of God, and became
utterly polluted by the denominations of
heather idolatry. The Almighty, fore
seeing this total degradation of the race,
ordained them to servitude or slavery un-
der the descendants of Shem and Japhet,
doubtless because He judged it to be their
fittest condition. And all history proves
how accurately the prediction has been
accomplished, even to the present day.
We come next to the proof that slavery
was sanctioned by the Diety in the case of
Abraham, whose 3ls bond servants, born
in his own house, lGen xiv Ia, are men
toned along with those who were bought
wih has o'cn money, as proper subjects for
circumcision. (Gen. xvii, l2.) His wife
Sarah had also an Egyptian slave, named
Hagar, who fed from her severity. And
"the angel of the Lord commanded the
fugitive to return to her mistress and sub
nit herself" Gen. xiv, 9) If the phil
anthropists of our age, who profess to be-
lievc the Bible, had been willing to take
the counsel of that angel for their guide, it
would have preserved the peace and well
fare of the Union.
The third proof that slavery was au-
thorized by the Almighty occurs in the last
of the Ten Commandments, delivered from
Mount Sinai, and universally acknowledged
by Jews and Christians, as THE MORAL
LAW. "Thou shalt mt covet they neigh
bor's house, thou shalt net covet thy neigh
bor's wife, nor his man servant nor hi
maid servant, nor his OK, nor his ass, mol
anything that is thy neighbours" (Exod
xx.l7.l Har~ :. - --ia~-' 'ii"' 'he pm
cple of proporty-"anythins that is thy
neighbor s"-runs throughout the whole
am quite aware, indeed, of the prejudlc'
J which many good people entertain asaiRs
the idea of property in human being
and shall consider it, in due time, amongs
} the objections. am equally aware tina
the wives Of our day may take umbrag
at the law which places them in the sam
5 sentence with the slave, and even with tn
house and the cattle. But the truth
none the less certain. The husband hf
r a real property in the wife, because 81
a is bound, for life, to serve and to obey hin
e The wife has real property in her hu
band, because he is bound for life to che
II ish and maintain her. The character
n property is doubtless modified by its dosig
y But whatever, whether person or thing, Il
of law appropriates to an individual, becom
lie of necessity his property.
lie The fourth proof, however, is yet mo
u express, as it is derived from the dire
+, rule established by the wisdom of God
IN his chosen people, Israel, on the We
No point in question, w;
hit "If thou buy Hebrew servant,
lis wears shall he serve, and in the sever
re year he shall 60 out free for nothing
sin If he came in by himself, he shall go
lal by himself. If he were married, then
m, wife shall 60 out with him. If his mas
have given him wife, and she have bol
re, him sons or daug ghters, the wife and cl
,ly dren shall be her masters, and he sh
ID. 90 out by himself (Exod' xxi, =
my Here we see that the separation OF husbi
+, l and wife is positively directed by the
IN vine command, in order to secure
my property of the master in his bondm
,ial and her offspring. But the husband
But an alternative, if he preferred slavery
not scnaration. For thus the law OF God
not eeeds. IF the servant shall plainly
As l love my master, my wife, ana my
my dren will not 60 out free then
rity master shall bring him unto the JUDI