The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1862-04-10

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! the mere act of iibera.ing them would con.
vert them into savages and murdersrs. sj, d
If neither their masters nor they are dis
posed to engage in such strife, l apprehend
there is nogreat danger. never yet have
met . white man or white woman in the
District who manifested this species Of vim.
dlctivensss against the colored people. am
glad for the sake of humanity that this is SO.
Why should they. Do you answer because
they are poor and ugly and ignorant and
feeble. Is it possible that an American
Senator will teach here to-day that because
the white race is said to be more powerful
and more highly endowed, and has acquired
. high position In the scale of civilization,
he may with inpunity trample on the feeble
and dcfenseless? The advancement of such
a dogma ought to maptis the statesman's
cheek with the blush of shame. 1t is at war
with every manly impulse. Why. sir, I
have occa-iona:ly in passing through the
rough society which sometimes congregates
on the frontier, observed strong powerful
man stepping into the ring in tho midst of
. broil ITO pick mp the glove" as it was
called, in defe'se Of q gray ha red man, or
boy, or a feeble person, about to be assailed
BY some thoughtless person of superior
strength, with the declaration, "sir, if you
must have fight take a-man Of your in.
ches," and such an act never failed to secure
the applause of the crowd. This is true hu-
manity; it is moral courage; it is kind Of
natural religion, superior to much we hear
from the pulpit. It is true courase; it
prompts to personal sacrifice in the defense
of the feeble. And have never yet wit
messed crowd Of froptisrsmen, however
rough and uncultivated. who could be in
duced to applaud tho victor in contest
with an inferior. This principle Of human
ity It is thought by many was illustrated on
grand scale when the English nation and
the French people stepped in between Rus
sia and the Turks. Here was q great and
powerful nation attempting to crush out a
feeble people. The contest was unequal it
was the athletic champion with iron muscles
in deadly strife with the child, or decrepid
age, and two powerful nations stepped in
between them and commanded peace, and
took up the glove In defense Of the weaker
| suppose this element of humanity to be the
foundation Of that manly pride that most
men experience when they stand in defense
of their own families, in defense of their
wives and children and parents. They stand
between the. feeble and the strong, and peril
their existence in defense of their rights
As a nation We act from these generous and
manly impulses in our intercourse with the
children Of the prairies and forests. They
are comparatively feeble people, incapable
Of taking care Of themselves, and you organ
ize bureau under the Government and ap-
point Commissonert and appropriate mil
lions Of dollars year by year to pay agents
to stand between them and your own cti-
zens who'might be stimulated by avarice to
become their oppressors. And this policy
usually receives the applause Of Christian
men. tits but another illustration of better
impulses of an enlightened humanity
powerful nation stretches out its strong arm
to protect the feeble. ra
Here is another feeble people, race of
men chat are inferior to Us, not equal to Us
in beauty, not equal to us in Symmetry Of
body. not equal to US possibly in original
mental and moral capacities or endowments
They are supposed not to be as capable Of
taking care Of themselves as the Anglo-Sax-
ons or others Of the Caucasian race and
on that account you telf me they are to be
trampled under foot. You are to trample
them into the earth because they are feeble
Do you treat your own feeble people in this
way? I hare sometimes stepped into
probate court, and have seen Judge sit
ting On the tribunal Of justice appointing
guardian for the persons and property Of or
phan children, and requiring him to give
bond and security for the proper execution
Of the trust They lave neither father nor
mother; these natural guardians have been
called hence; they may become the victims
of avarice or malice. The officer Of the law
steps in for their protection. You sir, see
this evidence Of Christian civilization -
And two hundred millions Of Christians
scattered up and down in the earth unite in
applause. Orators and statesmen chime in
with the axiom, the very object of the organ
ization Of civil society is the protection Of the
weak from the aggression Of the strong.
Now ifthis be so in relation to every other
people, in relation TO weak members OF your
race. would It not be equally humane to pro-
vide for the protection of feeble colored peo-
pie that have been born in our midst with
out any fault surely Of their own; who have
been cast here, you may say, as waits on So
ciety, by an act Of Providences Are we to
crush them with the iron heel Of civilization
that brings only blessings to all others p
And If their shackles shall be stricken of.
are we indeed doomed to witness their indis.
criminate murder because they NE weak,
because they are less capable Of providing
means Of their own defense than We? This
is an Illustration Of what is sometimes styled
the superior civilization Of the slave system,
and q conception Of an enlightened humani.
ty that could not have believed few years
since would have been exemp!ified on the