American citizen. [volume] (Butler, Butler County, Pa.) 1863-1872, 1865-05-31
VOLUME 2.
A SERMON:
Prssehed d Before the BenIah Baptist Congregation,
.sund,y April 23d, 1856, on the Murder of prest.

men,
This language speaks our sentiment and
feeling. The head of our nation has fall
len by the hand of the bloody assassin ;
and the nation trembles amid grief and
tears. In the person of Abraham Lin
coin, we boosted, Christian, Patriot,
and a Statesmen. His family, and kim
dred. Husband Father, and friend
He was kind merciful rejoicing, and gen
,orore even TO a fault. This Horrible
deed was committed in the monet Of vic
tory. in the midst of Nations rejoie-
ings Four years Of stern war had passed
away; the strongholds Of treason had
suceumbed, one after another, to the hea-
w blows dealt by our victorious troops
The embodiment Of the rebellion surren-
.ders to our forces and with it falls the
mHitary power Of the notorious Confe3-
eracy
All their schemes. and projects, for the
overthrow of this our government aided
by foreign emrnissaries abroad, and des-
-oicable sympathizcrs at home, had most
Significantly failed all their hopes had
expired. Davis fees from his government
and capitol, and leaves his unhappy dupes
to take care of themselves, or fall prey
to the "hated Yankees" The Govern
ment is declared triumphant; Repubii-
can institutions worthy of support; and
Liberty, universal liberty, every mans
and woman's birthright,
After this, and much moro, they add
to all their wholesale crimes this terriL le
tragedy of assassinating the beloved, re-
spected and, by many adored, Ruler and
Prcsidcntl
As though they had not done wickodt
enough, by rebe!ling against bcnefcient
Government: As though it was too lit
tie to have murdered in cold blood our
defenceless soldiers after surrender; and
while in their filthy prison pens -
Also, to starve them from week to week,
and from month to month, until their
wasted forms looked more like ghostly
visions, than human beings.
As though it were a crime too small to
notice, the piracy on the seas; the muir
der Of Union men and women by hordes,
and bands of wretched Guerrillas : deeds
only known to the barbarous until intro
duced by our "Southren brethren" They
now seek to outyie all their other crimes,
to eclipse all their other enormities, and
to fill more full their cup of iniquity, by
stealthily, daringly, and defantly, taking
the life of, and laying upon the altar Of
sacrifice the greatest victim yet offered,
tie official heat Of the nation
We look in vain the page of modern
history far parallel: a precedent is not
to be found. Save in the deliberate mur-
der of the Son of Goo himself by his
ovn people, the Jews. And to this histo-
ry of the past we now turn with fresh in
terest, as the tragic scene looms up be
fore our astonished and confoundel. vis-
ion. Though shocked by the enormity
of the crime; staggered by its unexpect
cd occurrence; and nerved by its harrow
ing sensations; we refrain from uttering
imprecatous, or threats of vengeance !;
(for vengeance belongeth unto Cod but
we would calmly view the circumstances,
honestly compare the points of analogy;
gather instruction from the awful lesson !;
and adopt rules for further guidance,
We would not compare Abraham Lin
coin, or any other mortal man to our ador
able Redeemer but in their official char
acters and relations, there are analogies
that are properly comparable, and that
may be considered without Idoli2ing our
beloved and lamented President x LIST.
We take the ground that this Land as the
Land of restored Israel: Bounded by
the two seas" in which is the "valley of
the passengers on the east of the sea-
(Mississippi valley and the sea the Pacific
OCEAN,. Noother land fills the Geograph-
ical description given by the prophets,
but this Gland of unwalled villages. =
(But We have neither time nor space for
arguments at length). And this Govern
ment is the "Stope cut out Of the noun
tain without hands, seen by the Prophet
Daniel that is to break in pieces the I'M
age of Nebuchadnezzar, Symbol of mon
archy) and roll on until it fills the whole
earth. The mountain out of which the
stone is taken, is christianity
The mountain of the Lord.
That in the latter days should rise
Above the mountains and the hills.
And draw our wondering eyes.
II Let no one mistake our meaning in
this position; not in personal character,
or moral excellence do we compare these