Daily State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1865-07-07
Freedom ana Equality.


The Declaration Of Independence waa rot q
p.peF which Il 20 be cited Ia The interest OF any
and every body Of revolutionists who may desire
10 o,erthrow government. OF TO reform existing
Under. the circumstances which
surrounded our fathers, IL was the necessary and
slooaept euunclation OF claims: but that Il was
not a State paper TO be quoted tor All time aud
under I'll circumstances. se zee clearly now,
when southern revolutionists attempt 10 found
nov government on iis declarations OF the
,ishs OF populations The famous sentence
which declares that equality which did not then
eriss, has not since existed. and never will sIist
among men, here or hereafter. was nevertheless
true Ia the sense In which ne authors under.
stood IL; and the freedom which they believed 10
be The right Of man. thongh u never ensts IN ao'
solute liberty. or even In equal liberty, 10 oil,
NAV nevertheless be preserved and maintained
"a freedom regulated by Law. Freedom y a.
impossible a. equality The dream OF many an
enthusiast the desire Of many Tar looking, but
not fer. seeing phiianthropist, the burden OF nu
merous bursts Of el0quence and song, these NO
deal. have long since been found impfacieable,
impossible Of realization among men. The dis
tlnctions which physical and moral conditions
impose. are tho necessities Of our nature AMI life
In i. easy enough TO assert original equality, ana
a right 10 re establish 10 where IL has ceased W
srlst. but ia spite Of assertion. OF theory o'
law of ali the ingenious devices Of msn-in
spte Of ever effort Of philanthropy or OF lanai
ielsm, vice will degrade aud dsbsse, shile virtue
eleva,cs and sdorns the msn, and the wnols zoe
orr Of equality dies 20 the vinds 10 the presence
Of tho ssd aud solemn truths OF practical human
If. Eoual Who will say that the poor drunken
dos living In the gutter 10 day, Va the prison TO
mo,,o. his BODY foul he mind debsoehed and
d..,roxsd /. tho equal Of tho strong. vigorous,
ssli. poised, active. educated mani What foolish
habbler sill dare compare the victim OF vice the
foul. mouthsd eonftesan. feekiog with profanity
and rum, over whose soul thefo bias not bean foI
wears ono sunshine thought OF purity, whose
bod, aud mind are alike III for damuation aud
nothing clse-who will say this los, thing. tina
was once a woman. l. the equal 10 any sense
moral, mental 90 physical OF the vision OF dc
lgh, which gaddens home and makes lie
worth living, pure and gentle woman, slater u
wlfef
Nor has the debased nah OF woman an,
right" TO claim equallty.or TO acquire equslit,
with the pure Ii Il not OF right" but o.
| mercy only that the claim can DO put forward
the equality realized Equality OF rights. a. e
such persons, has ceased TO exist. nor can thu
| Government ever be hrm which tails 10 Teoog
nire this truth The extreme eases serve to II
iustrate the intermediate shades and iineg o
difference. There are many grades Of inequality
i DE fatucfs ulu not hch ahol tsa'
| TO form State Governments, and the United
States Constitution. they dropped all IDEAS o
| equality "a a fact, snd established the principle
| that men needed 10 be checked and controlled
even in the exercise Of self government Thu
| United States Government WAS not founded 4
maintain equality. but 10 establish justice. |
was not designed to make men equal, but TO max
them prosperous and happy. That Is m!ser
able mistake which 80 many enthusiasts make
who suppose that equality Is necessary TO happi
ness or that happiness results from equality.
Nor il that freedom possible which the Decla
ration asserts to be the right Of man, though
is unquestionably true that the measure of lilo
| erty regulated by law, which our fathers intende'
and understood, does exist There Is no one VIII,
| is free in this country. Can we not 60 wher
we please? No; on the contrary, out of ever!
thousand acres of land n the State. nine hundred
and ninety at least we cannot tread on, for thel
are private property. Nor can We go as VI
please even ca the highways, for we must no
| iostle against or incommode others. Even il
our own houses. we cannot do please. 70
| we must not make nuisances OF ourselves eyei
| NJ home. The liberty TO which all men are en,i
tied is a limited liberty, and the limitations var
with persons. places and circumstances. Ou
forefathers fully understood this, aud we mus
interpret their declarations in the light of truth
| liz they meant 10 contradict the plain truth al,
still more, II they Meant to contradict their ow
daily lives and practices with reference to th
doctrines of liberty and equality, they were no
the men to be esteemed as we do esteem them
N 4. Jour. OF Commerce.