Orleans independent standard. [volume] (Irasburgh, Vt.) 1856-1871, 1862-11-07
Where shall we cast Anchor2

The old ship Constitution has bee
driven from her mooriugs and is now bu
fcted by angry winds and storms. ST.
is tar out at sea. When she has COZ
quered the storm, shall she furl her sal
and cast her anchor in the same perilou
waters in which she has been well mig
overwhelmed by the black waves Of p
racy and the foul waters and hidden rock
of treason, or shall she return to III
pure smooth harbor Of liberty, tie Ply
mouth rock of Freedom, and be repairet
and made seaworthy once more upon he
old dock, the Declaration Of Indepen
dence?
So far as the course of the Constitution
has been consistent with the chart OIL
freedom contained in the Declarati N, The
gods of Safety and Success have attended
her. Whenever the spirit Of tyranny
and slavery Disgusting itself ind the
dHaS of Compromise has enfced her into
n deviation from that course, Safety IN !
Success have refused to follow, and Dan
ger and Defeat with all their brood of
carcass-eatng, foul birds Of prey have
lowered over her and sat upon her prov.
and their fiery eyes through the darkness
peering with
call the seeming
OF a demons that is dreaming
Have burned into our bosoms core"
To abandon the figure, it having been
proven by our experience that comprom-
Use with the wrong Of slavery has in
creased its strength without decreasing
its natural animosity to free Institutions
that it has encouraged war by giving the
slave power occasion to believe that il
had strong and reliable friends in the
very camp of freedom who would distract
our councils and paralyze our arms, does
1t become US to make any pledges to pro-
tect or prolong the existence of this ele-
ment of discord, the entire destruction off
which is essential to that permanent peace
which rises from an undivided heart and
purpose? The south understood this and
looked into visionary future when state
after state should sell its freedom for cot
ton, unite with the confederacy and the
country become by degrees an united
slave empire. Impossible as this vision
was, il recognized the truth of the incom d
patibility of the two forms of society
the principle which 'ce often forget--that
this Is an " ilrepressibe conflict between v
slavery and frecdom," that no man or J.
nation "can serve both God and Nam
mon, for either he will love the one and !.
hate the other or hate the one and love
the other" Desiring to have no peace
till we may have an abiding peacc--ca- ~
ring nothing for quiet produced by OPT
ates while the cause of the disease re-
mains in the system, we hail with pleas :
ure every war measure which tends to u
the destruction of slavery. We would
gladly see it destroyed as an incident of
the war that its friends have Initiated. i
and see it checked by every Constitution =
al means in the power of our civil as well 2
as military authorities, and in the end we $
hope to see Constitutional alteration Of "
the Constitution which shall kill slavery "
root and branch, and thus secure US a Il
permanent union. Il
We suppose that article of the consti- "
tuition which provides for its amendment
was intended to be used when any por-
ton Of the organic law was found to be Il
productive of evil. Now this is the time Il
to see that the fault which occasioned our cI
war is removed. Such CONFUSION as d
now shakes our country never leaves a a
nation as it finds it. 1t is the duty of S
every loyal man to determine on its leay b
ing us stronger and better, with the poi 81
son of slavery removed from our system ii
and constitution planted upon the plain p
principles Of virtue contained in the dec "
aration of independence, the last will and )
testament OF the martyrs of the revolu- til
ion, signed with their hands aud sealed in
with their blood. is