, 1862-09-12

attempt. For j: is important te keep tie
fact in mind, that the l,ves from their in-
fancy baye been taught to tel eve th4tthey
are the properly OF white men by Law.
-that the law, not the arbitrary act Of the
master, make them slaves. Being con-
demned to eervitude by the unseen but
influence called the 1a.o, they
bow their necks to the yoke in silent
obedience. Take familiar instance; /
score or two of guards and keepers hold
in sutjection to the prison rules, 700 des-
pe1a1e white men in the Joliet Peniten-
,iRry. Why is this? Mainly because these
men are incarcerated by order Of Court.
The Law condemns them to servitude for
a giyen time, in e2piation Of their ofenses.
They remain quiet and obedicnt, rarely
exhibiting INSTRUMENTATION or attempting
to escape. But suppose Governor Yates
should issue general pardon to take effect
forthwith, proclalnling their freedom and
eummonipg them to bear arms in defense
of the Union. How long would the keep
walls1 4 general INSTRUMENTATION aud
spirit Of mutinY would break forth. Not
another days work would be done
There would be a rush for the gates and
speedy exit would be the consequence,
however stout the resistance Of the
keepers, or bloody the rencounter.
Why this sudden outburst Of insubor-
dination? Simply because the convicts
would feel and believe, that they we're un-
lawfully detained; that they were legally
entitled to enlargement. Prison rules and
authority would be unheeded and trodden
under foot. So Of the slave. lie is q man,
governed By the same general impulses
and Influences that control the white man.
Like the con1icts in the States Prison the
slaves feel that they are doomed By zaw to
Ee1vitude. The law is against them.
They are the property Of a claimant, as
were their parents before them, BY virtue Of
the invisible but potential agency called
the law, and submit to their fate they must,
there hei0g no help for it, no hope Of free
d,m, But bark! Massa Lincoln-the great
supreme LAW giver in the Union, pro-
claims them free men and women The
2uqc which has bound the chains on their
limbs is itself broken, swept away or
submerged by the higher and more authori-
ta1ive edict Of the President of the whole
Union, who pronounces them emancipated
1x71 rfo arf of ho 1offr1fc 1,of,
1ature. The voice Of the President would
sound throughout Secessis louder than the
seven thunders. In the ears and hearts of
four millions Of slaves it would carry with
it the weight and authority Of the voice Of
Jehovah speaking from the Mount to the
children of Israel in the Wilderness, In
the mind Of the negro, all State laws, local
customs, and masters orders would be
null and void, aud not binding upon his
conscience or conduct. To hold hin long
er in slavery could only be done by brute
force, which would speedily prove to be
impracticahle. We do not suppose there
would be 8 simultaneous refusal Of the
slaves to remain longer in bondage. But
the generalization would be speedy.
Every day would extend snd strengthen it.
Iu sections where the slave population il
dense, and The whites sparse, the strike y
would quickly take place, and extend al
| around. Te1s Of thousands Of able bodied
! Degroes would make bee iue for the
Eca1est Federal pickets, to Offer their ser
vices to the Union cause
The length Of this articls forbids q SUI
wy OF the effect on the rebellion Of the Pres
idenl's proclamation; but it would. certain
Il iudict mortal wound on the Confeder
acy 1t would open fire-on-the-rear
on the secesh army too hot to resist
Whenever the industrial class Of secessi
refuse to supply rations to the rebe
soldiers and 10 support their families a
home, the bottom will be Knocked out c
the rebellion, and that would be the cor
sequence If proclamation Of freedol
issued By the President.