The Middlebury register. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1850-1882, 1870-11-29

llSl -htNUitbll III tiit 1Nlihh' ''N wv
cl should not I've narrowed 80 scctaran
IA pu.ea. iotr uf 80 h,od y spirit, us to
pnuic all religion. Il 'jnhi, 10 an i'll
>titutiun ior he rntiic.
Fifth, A. eov-,,d jcii j. l'nsed Oh
virtue and reliriuu. II 'houid directly
and foster ltit witch IL 40
to Itself .
sixth. To Sustain 0oNcrunIcn, In the
church up,or amy where uenr UP TO the
high ideal oi it, duties and designs, the
church, H. the divincly constituted res.
ervoir OF pieiN. must Il" trp; ''ure ana
active. The church il To -urply the
saps of virtue to the governmental tree.
This il true OF all govelnnIcnis--that OF
a town, II village. a. well IA ot Il nation.
IL the churcu becomes selfish ana
worldly, lOOScnc-s of morals ANA weak
ness of administration will he eXhibit-
ed in private and public life. This was
illustrated 10y the course ut thechurches
i'm the southern states, on the subject OF
slavery, as proceeding and leading to
our late civil war.
He then showed our danger in this
respect giving facts and statistics, which
point to the need of watchiulness and
prayer, and of renewal OF conservation
Oh tite part ~ tiit t'i"i''' vi N'''3-
tians.
The views of the preacher OH this
point are 81 timely and important that
we give them to our readers in full in
the remainder of this article.
"But if our government. Is based on
virtue and religion, why should it not
direct by action. recognize and foster
a. t.. mi itan1fO
Why not exert, at least its strong arms
to suppress every source I'll evil and OF
vice, that virtue may have fair scope
for development ? Why should its in
fuence not be exercised to blast every
immoral harvest, or rather to permit
their being sown Did God ordain the
powers that he. without their use fol
objects personal to himself? Why is
it not, then, the most sacred trust Of
government, to keep men i'm subsection
subjects respect and reverence the Lord
of the universe.
mot to do so is like the navigator
who should look well to his sails ant
rigging, but should wholly neglect and
never repair his hull, soon amid the
pillows and the storm, that hull sink.
ing in the troubled and engulphine
waters, will drag the gaudy ensigns
and the attractive symbols of his vanity
and folly down with il to a common
grave and utter ruin. We have laws
on our statute book which are dead
letter. They are so, ii is said, because
an energetic, moral sentiment does moi
But why should the State as such
| xr,1,x .,I,np1I ,t. In n
towards the creation of such a mora
much Why should it not institute
positive measures calculated to evoke
and sustain such II sentiment: Why
should it leave such things wholly t.
voluntary associations or to individual
State see to the enforcement of its State
laws: Why should ii leave such en-
fOrcement to- mere local police, il
many ways incompetent: Why coulc
not and why did not the Legislativ,
body, which has just closed its session
give us State constabulary. and o.
rather furnish themselves with one
Why don't the government look afte
the government" Why he guilty o
the egregious nonsense and foil -ough
| not to say crime-of constructing
mere machine and then leaving 1t t,
run itself.
Waiting for the people to provide ,
moral sentiment to do all this. Cam
our Legislators see that they are taking
the very course, which forecloses al
possibility of doing much of any sucl
thing on the part of the people? !
you haye passed law against Sabbath
breaking, against profane swearing
against dram-selling, who don't Sc,
that the enforcement of those laws, b,
the government itself, would go far
very far, toward the engendering, ant
keep alive such sentiment while OF
the contrary, to take the Opposit,
course, and be practically Indifferent a
to whether they are executed or not
and seemingly and really to be just q
well satisfied whether they be not exc
cuted as whether they are, is mos
powerfully and effectively to lend tn,
vast influence of the State, to breal
down both legal and moral power. Fo
to day, multitudes of the very hest citi
zens feel that government, albeit it ha
helped them to healthy, and wise, ant
judicious laws, is, in ITSELF in man,
cases, q great barrier to theirexecution
and hangs with a deadly weight, upor
all moral endeavOrs.
DO you tell me thar government
the government of this state-could no
enfore the law against dram-selling, 5,
as practically to annul that atrociou
and criminal practice: Then is gov
eminent failure; and in passing, an,
in keeping such a law upon her sta
tute book, il is Il sham; and is guilt,
OF inconsistency and wrong. But, |
you mean to say that no political par
may tell the truth tho, If it be a truth
nnr notice and nerfnrn,amoa M, w ~ u
is. thai government is now onIv IN 10 81.