The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1877-12-29

AIcttor from Colonel Tansili on; snc.
public Dsbf, the 1IofEett Regisater.
ssansi Other Matters. 1890 feF-
MANASSAS, il, December 10, 1877.
To tie Editors of the Richmond Daspatacae
have concluded to break my long silence
by writing You d letter from The historic
fields OF Manassas, where 30 many pra NV.
men murdered each other under the pellci
that they were serving tue God OF love,
mercy, and peace.
The people here are poor but desperately
brave, patriotic, and honest, and they Watcn
with lively interest the proceedings o! the
Legislature, the assembled wisdom OF the
State. Our people areswell yersed IN .tne
science Of government, and believe IN tnat
noble maxim that lie Is no longer desirable
without honor and liberty. So II you want
any OF your Richmond bloc scalped SEND
them here, and they will be accommodated
Immediately. ~
Some kind friend In this county has con-
ferred on me the distinguished title OF Aris-
.totle OF Terrapin Forest, winch cannot
but regard as a Just compliment 10 my W9 Won
sderful wisdom and many virtues. l should,
however. have preferred the sobriquet OF
stToots,O as the resemblance Is greater, and
would be nearer approach to the truth:
Since the Legislature last winter considered
me too great a man to be command r-ln-
chief OF the penitentiary / have become
somewhat proud and reserved. Such IS
the weakness of man. But the great diff
Guilty about my greatness is that cannot
induce any one to believe it but myself.
But enough OF the ridiculous. proceed
to the matters I propose to briefly discuss,
which are the State debt, funding bill, and
the Moffett bell-punch law.
Some persons entertain the opinion that
collecting public revenue by taxing all
drinks of liquor sold at bar-rooms is vlo-
lation OF the Divine law, and, consequently,
immoral. The Moffett bell-punch law does
not authorize the sale Of liquor, but only
places an additional tax on the traffic. As
this tax on drinks will, L am very sure, de-
crease the sale OF liquor, the law must be
regarded rather as 4 moral measure than an
an immoral one.
To determine the respective and legitimate
spheres OF the Divine and human law, and
when they come in contact; to point Wherc
the human is to yield to the Divine, is mat:
ter I shall not assume to determine. But II
we should dispense with all laws which
promote evil we should be LETT without any
law at all, and thrown into. state OF cnaos
and misery. EVIL in our present state IS
not only unavoidable. but often necessary
for the good OF society, and consequently
is not inconsistent with the Divine law.
There are three, kinds of eyil-viz.: Nat
uraI, moral, and civil. Natural evil is
ANYTHING which produces pain, distress,
loss, or Calamity, or which in any way dis
turbs the peace, impa:rs the happiness, or
destroys the PROJECTIONS Of natural beings.
Moral evil is any deviation OF moral agent
from the rules of conduct prescribed to
him by God or by legitimate human author
ity; or is any violation OF the plain princl-
pies Of justice and rectitude.
Civil evils are those which injurious's
affect the peace, honor, and prosperity OF
society, such as revolutions. giving the
elective franchise to the colored people, OPP
posing bloffett's bell-punch law, and the
woman's -rights agitation. All wiclledness,
all crimes, all violations Of law and natural
right, are moral evils. Diseases are natural
evils, but they often proceed from moral
evils. Furnishing convicted criminal for
crime and chastising 4 child for misconduct
are natural evils, done for a moral good.
The many unavoidable evils inflicted
upon men by the working OF the
physical laws which govern the material
world, such as floods, storms, lightning,
and the thousands OF other natural evils
which afllict the human race for some wise
and good purpose. We may, under some
circumstances, be justified in taking the
life OF "A person to secure our own or that
of another, without being guilty Of moral
evil. And SO may the innocent suffer evil
for the good Of others. This fact IS proved
by the innocent and glorious Saviour SUI
fering terrible death for the redemption
Of the world. 4,
The foregoing facts sufficiently prove that
the law. for, taxing drinks. of liquor sold at
public bar-roomS is justified by the good
derived from it, especially when it is re-
membered that its execution will promote
the cause of temperance and morality by
reducing the amount OF liquor. sold, and
greatly assist in paying the State debt.
II, as I have remarked, we condemn and
repeal a law because its execution works
evil, we should have no laws at all, as every
law produces more or less evil or crime,
which is the same thing.
BY the same reasoning it would be better
to return to the primitive and barbarous
state, as there is less crime committed in
that condition than in civilized society.
The law granting marriages produces evil
BY increasing the population, and thereby
multiplying evil Our election laws are the
cause of the evils which attend all elections.
The law for the assessment Of property for
the public revenue makes many persons
fail to give true list Of their taxable pro-
perry, which is also moral evil.
II / am right in these views, it isNery
clear that the Moflett bell-punch law is enc
Of the most moral laws ever made by man.
as it will decrease rather than promote mo-
raj evil.
It may be said. however, that liquor
vendors will not register all the drinks they
sell. and, therefore, the law produces evil.
Such ,supposition would be as unjust a
reflection upon the liquor-dealers as it would
be to censure the members OF the Legisla-
ture for enacting election laws because evil
is committed in their execution. The laws
to which have referred were made for,
and were necessary to, the public welfare,
which is their justification, notwithstanding
some evil, which is inseDarable from human
affairs, may result from their execution.
Everybody is preaching about preserving
the honor Of the State. All profess de-
sire to pay what the State Justly owes, but
they differ in opinion as to what that
amount is, and there are but few who are
willing to be sufficiently taxed to pay any
thing. Honor is noble thing when. IL
costs nothing. / am always doubt
full OF that Justice and honor which consists
of words rather than deeds. "Where there
is win there is a way" And il the peo-
pIe of Virginia are really DESTROYS Of speed
iily paying their just obligations and main
toininr their honor they can easily do so by