Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1863-01-16
30. pourlal., Leeturs.

| coin and the opinion OF U. ;. Attorney Bates
declair that the cOlored man may claim to be
an American citizen. he may also claim the
honor Of defending his country against its
assailants, and the honor of falling or four
ishing beneath the Star spangled Banner.
he congratulated his hearers on the triumph
Ofright over wrong, mercy over cruelty, and
freedom over slavery. He spoke of the con-
test, old as the world itself, between truth
and error. Truth is that theory of things
described as they really exist. Error is the
contradiction to simple truth. Let the scales
turn but hairs breadth and we are vergiDg
towards the region Of darkness Truth is a
unit-errOr is muItitudinOus. While man
has one chance Of hitting truth he has many
chances of hitting error.
It is not strange, therefore, that every
page of human history records the triumph
Of error. The wonder is, not that man has
so often gone wrong, but that he has gone
SO often right. Man will in the end prefer
truth to error; the right way to the wrong
way. There would be little hope for the
world were there not, deep down in the hu-
man heart, love Of truth and hatred of er-
ror. Progress is attainabls through free dis
eussion, for it is in that way that men obtain
correct ideas and ways. It is the suppress
sion Of free thought and free inquiry that Is
the secret of our present difficulties. Error
is always destructi7e unless truth is left free
to combat it. Our bitter experience should
teach US to allow unlimited freedom Of dis
cnssiOn. Innocence loves and courts the
light. When you see theory that its yota-
ries shield from discussion, you may be sat
ished there is something rotten in Den
mark" Whence this conflict that is now
desolating the land Why does the cold,
greedy earth drink up the warm blood of our
friends Why is the temple of liberty rent
in tWain2 1t is because a stupendous
error is being pulled down. II is an
error that we have ourselves nursed, but
the conflict could not be delayed for that
For years it was a conflict of words, it is
now a conflict of blows. When error argues,
truth may argue also; when error snatehes
the sword, truth must also take the sword,
and he is a ttaitor to truth who will not bare
his bosom to the blow. The speaker alluded
to the "hunkers of the north, the social
ed I" conservatives" those who pirate Of the
Union as it was and the Constitution as it is
and shut their eyes to the meaning of this
contest now going on between truth and er-
rOr. They draw the drapery of their couches
about them, they darken their room and ask
for little more sleep, little more slumber,
yet the world mOves-the day dawns-they
see it with their aching eyes and strive in
vain to prevent it. The children Of the men
who are now opposing progress will be
ashamed to refer to the position Of theirfath-
ers. It is not two years since enlightened
Boston eombatted anti slavery with brick
bat, but the wheels of progress could not be
elOgged by any such means.
Fortunately for Truth, Error is bad rea-
sOner. He fights better than he reasons.
Brutes may stalk into the Senate and strike
down the Senator, but the argument is still
up. Had the Abolitionists of this country
been allowed to confront slavery with argu-
ment, it would have met the fate that it did
in British West India Error cannot rea-
sOn-Slavery, which is the grossest form of
error, is least able to argue. Language it.
self is at war with it. Persons and property
can never be assimulated together. Leading
men of the South always saw this weakness
of slavery, and they decided that it was a
subject that should not be open to discussion.
The Augusta (Ga.) Chronicle said, the man
who discussed slavery should be hung high
a. Haman, nd left there until the winds of
Heaven whistled through his bones. death
to Abolitionists " was the cry.
Slavery was discussed only on one side in
the South. Religion, science and law were
bought up by the BlOOd-stained gold of
Shareholders. Masters talked, slaves were
dumb. They said the slave was cOntented
and happy. They represented themselves as
modern Abrahams, Isaacs and Jacobs. He
spoke Of the different classes of those who
oppose the anti-slavery struggle. The man
who is opposed to the abolition movement,
and yet gays he is opposed to slavery in the
abstract" he compared to the man who was
opposed to the small pox in the abstract,
and yet would do nothing to remove it from
our midst. Another man with heightened
visage and sepulehral voice says, glad
as be would be to see the slaves
free be cannot consent to see the
rights Of white men imperiled by
the AbOlitionists. Another plants himself
on the Constitution in defense of slavery,
and when asked to point out a word or syl-
liable Of the Constitution which susteins it,
] he is dumb. Mol the Constitution knows no
black, no white, no slave and no stakeholder.
It is meant to establish justice and to secure
the blessings of liberty to all the people.
The Constitution says /" We, the people, ="
not we the horses or sheep. 1t means men
with two elbows and a good appetite, be they
white or black. One man who is a constant
reader of the Scriptures is not in favor of alb
clifton because he has not seen word in the
Bible in opposition to slavery, and he thinks
We ought not to be wise beyond what is writ
ten. He does most damage Of all. Another
is opposed to amslgamatiOn, and another is
fearful that the negroes are going to be turned
loose. A brave, burly man, who voted for
James Buchanan, and will vote for another
as bad man when he gets chance, wiz see
every negro sunk before our glorious institu-
tiOns shall be compromised
There is no weapon to fight slavery with
except truth. The cOntestwas long delayed
Even John Brown never drew his sword
against slavery until he saw his sons bleed.
lug in far off Kansss-glOriOus soul, it il
q marching on"
The speaker alluded to the conversion o