M'arthur Democrat. (McArthur, Vinton County, Ohio) 1853-1865, 1864-04-14

: with a radiance that never yet hat
fallen on sea or shore.
Strange as it may appear, tho fol-
lowers oi the faith of Milton al,
Cromwell, who fed to tho NewWorlt
Tor civil and religious liberty, rrac-
ticed towards others the same scSurif,
OF which they had themselves com
paingd. Claiming that the earth be
lonSed to the suints, aud that the,
were the saints, thry, in thir turn
persecnted the Quakvrs, Suppressed
free discussion and trammylled III,
f press, baniShed the l}aplists and hun.
odd women rs "witches" s"-and all IuI
the glory Of God" But tie prin-
; cipIes upon whicl, they based thcil
own claims could not thus bo mono
Ipoliz4d- other colonies enlarged upcI
them, or rather gave to them THEN
Legitimate application und, When
;oppr, ssiou came, the Puri,ans, true
tu their instincts, became tho luudest
dcclaimrrs for tho broadcst libe. iy.
The New England press aroused it,
self, like strong man atte. sleep,
and scattered the productions ol John
Adams liku fire Jru"ds through the
land. The common danger brought
the widcI Iy-srparated ana dissimiiar
colonies into closer union. In the
Virginia Assembly the defiant voice
u! Patrick Henry drowned the start
led cry Of treason, as in his terrible
philippe against the king he warned
him to remember the tate Of CRsar
and Of Charles the | Massach chqsctts
claspel hands with South Carolina :;
the clarion t2ncs "f the Virginia
Demoslhcncs re echoed in lnleprnd
ence Hall AID all the conflicting
elements OF Puritan and Cavalier,
PENNSYLVANIA Quaker and Maryland
Catholic and New England Calyiniot,
were fused into ono Homogeneous
mass in the hot furnace Of The lsavu-
luton. Puritan persecution paIed it's
Intellectual fires as tho glorious sun
rise oi War for Freedom beamed
over the mountains of tho W1,t. .
" Nights cand dlos are burned ont snd jocanl LAY
9I"h's "p-toe on the misty norniniH tops"
Amid the fiercest lhroboimg Of pub.
lie opinion, the young Republic was
boru, Il 'ckod IN the cradle Of te III
pcs'nous war, aud leI on the "strong
meat, OF that fierce Jacobin, Thomas
Paine, this infant EIercules strangled
the hoay errors of centuries IN its
iron gripe. Tho bronirst freedom
"as the cnrnpr stone Of the Union
aud Oh thu pillars Of the grarA cdihce
were inscribed its lessons. j ffrrson
wrote on the Bill Of Il shts' OF
Virginia:
"Freedom If the rrcss is ono Of ll," great |
buIwarks OF liberty, onl can never be res.
trained but by dcSpotc governments"
NJ massachusetts re:pohded in her
noble Declaration OF Rights".
The lbrry of the presa is essential to
the Sccuhty oi !reedom i'll state
And all the States united declared
in the Federal compact:
Congress snail make 10 law abrilgipu
the lrerdoln OF speech or OF the press" /
Every element Of progress dove
tails into every other. The invention
Of printing prepared the way for the
invention VI written constitutions
aud the latter, in turn, gave protoc-
ton and security to the forner. But
coId peace disunitcd the elements
which fiery war had fused. Diverse
interests and principles struggled for
he mastery eectionaI and religious
developed themselves;
he Puritan became again a bigot
aud DO sooner had "thc Father of his
Country" passed from the cares Of
''atC, than John Adams, who was
rue Puritan, ready at all times to de
end his own rights aud trample on ,
he rights OF others, essayed to put
uIlSrown Liberty in her swaddllnV ,
.lothes again. liz attempted to CON
oIidatc the government into one com. ,
'Act body and put Yankee Notions" ,
II its head. The immemorlal plea of
necessity" was revived. The times
we're disturbed and full OF danger, and
the Government must be supported" \
The Federal Congress- passed the {
'Sedition Law" which provided for 4
The punishment Of all persons who {
hould be convicted Of printing writing, ut. '
tring or publishing any false and malicious q
writing against the Government of the 8
United States, OF either House of Congress, 8
Il Of the President, with intent to defame !,
hem or bring them into contempt; VI to ex-
lite sgainsl them The hatred Of the people Of |
he United States; or to stir up sedition /
within the United States or TO excite the r
'eople 70 oppose any act OF the President !
esist, oppuse defeat any Jaw, or aid, en-
oarsge or abct hostile designs OF any nation
ganst the United States"