Wyandot County Republican. [volume] (Upper Sandusky, Ohio) 1869-1903, 1870-07-08
JEFFERSON AND WEBSTER.
Their Views Oh the Sabbath, the
Bible and Sunday Schools.

where many of the meetings were
held. tracts. designed to bring into
discretlit the Bible, the Sabbath,
and the Institutions of religion gen
orally. Previous to the anniver
sary of the American Sunda,
School Union, some one took the
trouble to scatter over the seats OF
fremont Temple a tract designed
to show that Mr. Jefferson bad no
very had opinion of the Bible or the
institutions Of religion founded on
it's teachings. The attention of the
chairman of the meeti g, Hon. T.
S. Totey, having been called to
this. he thought it peculiarly appro
pirate to fea,l a letter in his posses
sion from Daniel Webster. written
thirty eight years ago, to Professor
Pease. of New York, in response to
his report of the New York Sabbath
School Association, which the Pro-
fessor had sent to Manchester. In
this Mr.. Webster describes an in
terview which he had with Thomas
jefferson many years previous,
while spending the Sabbath at lis
residence in Virginia, and repeats
Mr.. Jefferson's utteranccs respecting
the Sabbath. the Bible, and the Sab
bath School institution, which very
clearly show that whatever specuia-
tive opinions he may have expressed
at any time, he was very far from
being the scoffer which some would
have us believe. And this CONVEX
sation and the entire tone of Mr.
Wehster's letter, prove concIusively
the deep respect and reverence for
religious things which were ever
cherished by this most eminent
American lawyer and statesman:
| LETTER FROM Mr.. WEBSTER.
MARsHF1ELD, June Is, 1852.
Professor Pease:
DEAR SIR: l have received YOUR
very able anil interesting annual re-
port of the condition Of the New
/ York Sabbath school association
and read it with great pleasure and
instruction 1t is gratifying, very
gratifying, to learn that in "a city
where vice aud Immortality run riot
with impunity.'' few humble Chris
tians have devoted their time and
energies to the cause of religion,
and l fervently pray that your Ia
bors may be crowned with success
The Sabbath school is one of the
great institutions of the day. Ii
leads our youth in the pats o,
truth and morality, and makes them
good men and useful citizens. As
u school of religious instruction il
is of incstimable value as a civil
institution it is priceless, and has
done more to preserve our liberties
than grave statesmen and armed
soldiers. Let it then he fostered and
preserved until the end of time!
| once defended man charged
: with the awful crime Of murder Al
the conclusion of the trial / asked
him what could induce him to stain
his hands with the blood of Eel
low murderer. Turning his blood
shot eyes full upon me, he replied,
in a voice of despair, Mr.. Webster
in my youth I spent the holy Sab
bath in evil amusements instead OF
frequenting the house of prayer and
praise" Could we go back to the
early years Of all hardened crimi
mails, l believe, yes firmly believe,
that their first departure from the
path of morality was when they
abandoned the Sabbath school, and
their subsequent crimes might thus
be traced back to the neglect OF
youthful religious instruction.
Many years ago spent Sabbath
with Thomas Jefferson, at his resi-
dence in Virginia. 1t wss in the
month of June, and the weather was
delightful. While engaged in dis
cussing the beauties of the Bible.
the sound of q bell broke upon our
ears, when, turning to the sage OF
Monticello. | remarked, How
sweetly, How sweetly, How very
sweetiy sounds that Sabbath bell %
The statesman for a moment seemed
lost in thought, and then replied,
Yes, my dear Webster, yes, il
melts the heart, it calns our pas
sions. and makes US boys again y
Here | observed that man was only
an animal formed for religion wor-
ship, and that Notwithstanding all
the sophistry Of Epicurus, Lucre-
tias und Noltaire, the Scriptures
stood upon alocls as firm, as unno
vable as truth itself; that man in
his purer, lottier hreathings, tuned
the mental eyes toward immortality
and that the poet only echoed the
general sentiment of oar nature III
saying that 1.-The soul.' secure in
her existence. smiles at the drawn
dagger, and delies its point"
Mr.. Jefferson fully concurred in
this opinion, and observed taat the
| tendency Of the American mind was
in different direction; and that
Sunday schools The did not use our
more correct term, Sabbath pre-
seuted the only legitimate means,
under the constitution, or avoiding
the rock on which the French Re
public was wrecked. '.Burke," said
he, ''never uttered q more impor-
tant truth than when he exclaimed
that "a religious education was the
cheap defense of nations" 'Raike>, !,
said Mr. jefferson, "has done more
for our country than the present
generation will acknowledge; per.
haps. when am cold, he viii obtain