The New York herald., 1870-04-25
NEW YORK HERALD MONDAY APRIL 20 ls7o-TRpLB SHEET


eule mat there Is not one text IN tho B,tie which
even renote'y supports poygamoas marriages. And
u tnls oe true whoa are the scripture passages
whica conarinn poiyganys Cpon no suoIect arc
the iaspfcd writers mOfe expliclL than tDls And
ir Is TO be regretted that some comnenta' ors VINO
hare not given special attention TO tals suo,ect nave
mol only concedcii loo much. which on thsrouen
inyesllsatDa wou q have been denied, but have
treated me subject with a suuernciality unworthy
mea OF learning and tnc solemn interests ln-
VOWED In tae Question: For many years uiAnY able
m nlsters concealed that the Eble sanetoned ana
authorized slavery; bui there were few to whom
God mad given oetter UNDERSTANDING ana on
whose mod purer ght had sloue. who bravey
deieuuea the scriptlres Ana il s not TOO mash 10
say llat, m view OF the great revolution OF political
ana moral ideas through whiea we have just
passed, that WITHIN the next ten years mon VII
wonder at the attempt of any man 10 intefpiet The
IN THE INTERESTS or SLAVERY.
This ia analogOus 10 the case before us. The
events OF tne hour win force Biblical scholars to
maze tae study OF the scriptures toucnlrg pow
Rany spec,aity; ana that whica mas n,tneclo neen
CONCEDED WIN aereaiter Oe denied. Cooxson, and
paley, and EQwards, Gud Dwight ana otuef eipinent
scholars, who nave consistently eApoahuea tne
Scriptures as c0l4emuiay pOls "a ny, WIZ % sus
taiei NY tSe profound scholars Of Sae Charcn IN ~
lands Biblical interpretation IS progressive. 10
ls q femarSabe fact that tle homogeneous c.er-
acter OF the arst marriage on record is airme1 oy
Noses the laWgiYer; Dy ii acbl the ssr OF the pro
pnets; by ChrlsE the founder OF new dl5pensa
tIon OF religious truth worship. aud by SS Paul tne
great apostle to tho aentnes. That marriage Is le
corded In Genes NJ, 2.--"raereoge anal man
leave his aior and hts mother, end shal eieaye unto
MS wile and .nay snA DO one 1esD." fnat Is, Ia
all other uarlrai cOnnec, ons even parental eudear.
meats Which are ned TO be strongest ana 'snaii .
snail DO one Aeas.n Language cannot Ike moro
simple and cxpcit. He mas celtre ell his love on
her And that nc might obey thus c9ninand. COG
gave Adam buS one woman Re could nave created
more
oSE WAS sUeriCreNr.
The creation was perfect. lie pronou aced the same
to be good" Adam was q perfect hunanity prior
% Eyes creation Tnat psrfectoa ,s re,r9. nss,
cal, mental and moral chnracterstics man
ana woman become IN marriaee perfect
OF tins dual union OF one man and one woman IN
wediock these words are quoted by Maiachi H., IA,
hath Oeen witness between thee ana the wife OF shy
Jou.h against whom thou nast dealt ireacaerously;
yet is she tny companion, ana tie wife OF my cove.
nanC. And did not lie make one? YET iad ne tue
residue OF the spirit. Ana wherefore one! Inat ne
might seek cody seed. Therefore. take heed TO
the wife OF mis- youthn Herein tne Lord complains
against the Jews ior their treament OF tne.r nrst
Wlethc wife or their youth and OF thelr covenant.
AT tnat Sme they pfactised
SUCCESSIVE POhYGANY,
divorcing one wiie-marryln1 another. the hoy
prophet condemus ths vile practice as deceltla ana
treacAerous. The condemnatc1 ~ based upon Gnc
fact the pDactlce is IN opposition 10 the nten
ton or the Creator, expressed N the orgina IN
stitution OF marriage IN se creation OF one man and
woman. The CONDEMNATION Is e9lofced oy the
prophets statement that God having the residue OF
the spirit, lie could nave made many wives lor Adam,
but woull not. And the propuet ASKS -" neteiore
one =" and answers hls own Heston, that COD oe-
signed by laonogamy TO secure ior man noly pos
ery In Osher words, to prevent That domestlc con.
usi0n tnose bitter heartburniaas. the neglect OF
sioes, waIchr r ineyiiiSi5 now iroia po,iiygsay.
And Ia sanction or Noses aud Malachi oar Lofd
quotes these very words IN Matthew XVII, :-"Fot
tns cause shall man leave father and moltier anu
shall ceavc TO ms wife, aud they TWAIN Shall De one
lesh. Wherefore, they are no more TWAIN, but one
nasl. What, therefore, GOD hatl joined tO2etnef
In these words Cnrist condemns both successive
and Simultaneous poygamy aad 1t Is remarkable
consist in putting away former wife. Man anu
WIG may separate ana yes be innocent OF the great
trausgrsss on.n But the Sin consists in aud 'sna
marry another" "Marry another!n lie has no right
to take another; no right to nave but ono .wife.
AHd, following II the footsteps OF MS Master ST.
Paul repeats tnese words in Ephesians W. 2s-3l:-
$50 ought men TO loya Their wives as their own
boues. lie That loyesh his wife l0veth himself For
this cause shall o man leave hs father anu mother
and shall be joined unto bis Vile, and meg twain
shall be oae nesi.n
Herein does tue Apostle reassert what had been said
Of Ola. And now as touchn lhese remarkable words,
WHAT IS THE sun?
/ They were recorded Dy Moses IN the opening chap
ters OF the BDie. Iaey are repeated ana explained
by Maiacni in the last book OF the Old Testament
they are repeated and enforced by Chrst in first
booS Of the New Testament. They are reasserte1
enforce the game doctrine or duality IN marriage
this great truth comes laundering along The ages
as the voice OF God to man. And. as u iurner en-.
torcement Of ns grand truth, history repeats ITSELF
vi Whole ice earth y tho Offspring That s5oad come nom
Adam and Eve, one man and one woman. so after
lace OF the earth God prepared to re-
people the world By the eighG persons
saved in tho ark-four men and four wOnen-
Moan and his three sons ana their wives God starts
tue race anew uuder almost Ike circumstances and
gives TO Moan the same command and the same
Blessing as he dld Adaul"f5e fruitful and multi
ply and repeUisn tile eafth." Genesis TX. i These
hstoiic iacss are IN proof at poygay Is not essen
In DeuteTonomy XVIII u, poiygamy IS positively for.
bldden by Moses Neither snail the King multiply
wives to himself, that his hear. turn not away.D
Mos a
and commands what ne snall not DO, ana among the
otner innlotlons ls the one HE shall not mal.
| tiply wives unto himself" And that ne may re-
| member this command Moses orders that
THE KING SHALL HAVE l. COPY
OF the law, and snail read the same oil the days OF
| his lile Ana a similar law Is gwen to the higa
| priest In Leyicus XXI, l3--"And he shall take y
wife IN ner virgn.n Aai thus law IL carried out
| " ILL., pa bisnop thea must be bamcess, the
| husband OF one Wife," This Is regarded as very
weak proof text; but regard as Oe oil the strong
est lD the Bible. Ihe aDcGtors Of poyIainy assume
| that plsnop must have one WIFE, and as many
more rs ne peases. But the distinction is not be-
| tween an unmarried man and q married man. out
| between man WITH one wife and q man with many
wives For If the distinction between an unInar-
! rled man ana q married man-that IL, II pisnop
must have one wife, aloleflS UOenS-tbon no unmar-
rled man can De an cider In the Church OF Goa. IL
minister loses his wife he must, therefore, caase
TILL. HE GETS ANOTHER.
But what shalt VIC do With John the Baptist with
st. Paul himself. With Bishop Asbury aud with Jonn
Wesley, who remained unmarried many years, and
lt mad been Detter Tor nlm anu tne CuuFCu uau no
never married? But It Ii SAID this passage applies
exclusively to bsnOp or to the ministry, and not TO
| the a,ty. This may be true Bat Paul gives us o
passage for the alCy excuSyely-L Corinthians vii
| 2 4-"Let every man have his own vile, and LEI
| every woman have ner own husband" Aud TO make
| this even moro definite aud conclusive no dodnes
the mutual and exclusive control given to each other
"The wife hath not power OF her own body, but ner
husband, and likewise the husband hath not power
| of his own body, but the WIFE" Well has BLACK
stone, that great and learned lawyer, said "Poy-
gamy 10 condemned by the lazy OF TIE New Tesla
| men."--vo. l., p 4a6, 7tn eultiOn Of Conn.,, $40.
Aud the census OF the world, so Tar as taken aS TO
| the proportion OF males and lena es,
| CONDEMNS POLYGAAY
| and vindcates tho Divine law. The injunction Is,
| "Let every man have his own wife, and let every
| woman nave her own husband" Now, take the
census OF the world ana what are the facLs2 Ac-
Cording to the census Of this country for 1850 we
| have the foilOwlng:-Wuite population, IL, ,s3S. .00I
males and II, 354 0oU females-tnere being an excess
OF 4S40 males; slave population. 1903 600 maes
! and 1.e02,0a0 females-an excess Of 1000 males
Take the census OF population, 160so,l9l
| ruales and 1883. l05 tema!es-an excess Of over
700 nae9: color d population. 1882 600 males