New-York daily tribune., 1866-01-12
mUsCULAR CHRISTIANS.


opinion, two distinguished defenders OF Gov.
Eyre The first in time is Henry Kingsley.
brother Of tho author Of "Alton Locke
novelist of muscular Christianity, once tho
eulogist of Jefferson Davis, and now cloudy
romancer for tho Governor of Jamaica. Inc
second is John Ruskin, a many -sinewcd mixture
of tho modern and middle ages, who looks at
politics out OF cathedral, and with whom
architecture, kingpower, Westminster Abbey
muscular heroes and apocalypses of nature have
a strange kindred. A third ought to DO Thomas
Carlyle. the quaint architect Of Frederick. who
wrote certain ELIAS in Nuce" Qt is wonderful
into how small shcH the great philosopher
could creep with his philosophy, which has been
worse than cracked in the shock of North and
South. When we reflect that four years OF
civil war, very epic in principle if not in
persons. have settled it at last, that inhuman
muscularity {or if you choose, muScu.
lar intellect) is not superhuman, VIC
might be aStonished that the Jamaica
butcher hts found ono religious defender. That
same war taught us, no doubt, that when a
muscular Christian undertakes to be his own
selfish gospel. it is as possible to grind him to
powder as it was for British Haynau, aided by
British guns to hang and shoot 80 many thou
sands ofpoor. unarmed, ,bu. still muscular Jamaica
negroes. Ifmuscle does for kings. and British,
Austrian and Russian generals, why should IL
not do for Jamaica negroes If stubborn Paul
Bogle could have risen oil at once, and with
the jawbone OF a Jamaica planter have slam
thousand or two Of whito Philistlnes, VINO
should be more enraptured than that strenuous
Christian. Mr.. Kingsley But, them II Gov.
Eyre strsnges crisis in its infancy. by hanging
some thousands of blacks. who Is to blame
Here is nice question for the vigorous balance
of muscuIsr minds. In justice We should allow
that if governors can anticipate the law in their
own way. and make st. Bartholomews mas
sacrc 70 eradicate all manner of heresy, then
either such people as Eyre should be mcrcifully
shot before tley are Of age. or the embryo
rebels Of Jamaica should have been blown out
of existence twenty years ogo.
Mr.. Kingsley's letter Of defense sets up the
singular plea that the Jamaica governor has
been used TO such things as the Jamaica say.
sgcry; that once he led explorers across q
hideous wild in Australia. and saw them nearly
all killed. Consequently, Col. Eyre is brave
rfhn Ono officer who blasted Sepoys could be
brayer). has t-icd savage life himself (may be
a savage, foy all we know 20 the contrary, and
certainly knows something about sayagcs. This
| il a. much as we can make out of the bungle oi
Mr.. Kipgalcy's palliltory. But, gentlemen OF
England, would you rashly immediate the daring
explorer who fought hand TO hand with savages'
Woull you strike down the romantic saw
ngc' Would you Kill the majestic
condor, even if nature inseperable
from majesty might, by chance impcl him to
peck the eyes out OF your child l. it possible
| lha, a brave man or N intellectual hero can be
anything but Christian Of the muscular sort
Shoot at partridge and pheasant in a rare case
you may kill a sktlark or canary; shoot as many
blackbirds as you please; but never harm al
eagle. Respec. q lion. s.; up saycrs and
Hccnan 20 maui each other (they are com
moners, aud it is hlrl to spoil thcm) and let us
pray, in the faith Of pluck. for good fight
Riie your noble gray TO death, aud repeat
Walter SCOTS lines about him. Keep down the
gnarled and grabbed lower natures, the gnomes
and dwarfs Of mine and factory, but let us
have educated sinews on every estate in merry
England The poacher should bs shot rather
than Four paItr!dgcs Let the rich and
well.born make laws and parks, and let
the poor serve them. So on, through various
phases Of powers worship, aud we have muscu.
larity refined in some manner connected with
the gross Of brute power-a Christianity good
| Cor tbe strong, but very heavy bcnediction for
the weak. II tho said poor and weak will allow
you to DO what you please with them, they will
find you good enough masters (that was the
plantation way OF thinking); but if they do Mt
allow you the established church-mitant fashion
ofconver.ing them. then take the church-mitant
fashion of keeping them down. The Jamaica
way Of putting down rebellion is possibly
nothing more than the milestone weight Of the
British system of power always suspended over
the heads of tho "lowcr orders') let fall with
crushing force on 1900 negroes.
Mr. Ruskins letter is, ifpossiblc, quite as en-
tangled as Mr.. Kingsley's He did not aid, il
seems, the election Of Stuart Mill and Hughes
(who arc "abetting the radical movement
against Gov. Eyre") because he held with
them in oil their opinions" but because he
knew they had "a principle of opinions" and