The New York herald., 1879-02-10
NATIONAL DRY ROT.
Henry Ward Beecher on the. Lack of
Public Conscience.
RETURNING BOARDS AND THE CHINESE
The State Smoking Like Sodom
and Gomorrah.

Por the FIRST time in good while Mr.. Beecher
preached yesterday what is commonly called sen
sational sermon. 1t devoted the subject of
corporate morality. and contained great many sorci
BILE illusions the principal public questions of the
day, Especially did he illuminate anathemas against
the passage of the AntChrese bill in one House of
Congress- and he pointed with hand shaking In
n,iniic palsy at the imagined form OF the great de-
fsa,ed candidate for tho presidency. whom he de-
picted the symbol and representation this
people Of what IL would become should 1t reach that
stage where nl conscience Of national morality is
lost The audience applauded with their feet at two
or three particularly vigorous sentences. and
seemed very deeply moved by the earnes.ncss
and nre with which he spoke Mr. Beccher looked
IN excellent health and spirits. If the burden of
his great trouble slowly slipping from his
shoulders and he would speedily awake and be again
the pulpit Samson that he of old. His manner
was full Of warmth and vehemence. On the left Of
his chair o lovely mass OF blood-red flowers.
Tho text of the sermon was Isaiah xxtv. Id. The
prophets. Mr.. Bcccher said the statesmen of
Israel and although theydeclared exalted morality
for tho conduct OF individuals and the governments
of tho household they especially had resting upon
their consciences thes welfare OF the State have
already in previous sermon spoken Of the forma-
ton OF national conscience but you not to
found this with corporate conscience. whero any
body OF people is banded together with certain ends
IN vew agreeing that the decisions Of the majority
shall rule. 1t possesses . corporate conscience.
DUTIES OF FREEDOM.
With regard to all great questions of ethics there
ought to be a common conscience. identical with tho
common public sentiment acting in the mass. For
the want of it nations have perished for the of
It. the years go by and we progress in develop
mcnt and our temptations multiply. our danger az a
naton.wil greatly increase. We not in danger
Of foreign invasion nor will We be in danger from
internal conclusion for many generations to come.
The far creator danger that the foundations of
society and our polity may crumbc: away and let
us down into the depths of ruin. We were accus-
tokhed 10 consider ourselves highly privileged
in the advantages and the power Of self-gov-
ernment, but It should always be understood that
rights invariably bring with them greater duties than
We had before. The people OF these great common
they Free To secure just and equitable laws is
incumbent upon them, and concerns not only
ligion but morality. virtue. prosperity and final sal
vaon. No man has right to be without any interest
in the laws. which are framed or changed by the
representatives of the people. The right of self
Of . sound maglstracy. composed OF just men who
fear God and will administer their Offices disinter
estedly. No man ought to vote to put corrupt men
In ONCE or to have part or parcel in doing IL.
Was 1t so that magistrates who are chosen by tho
people wink ut criminals in their crimes? That
tho laws which brought forth in pain
and travail for the reformation and puriaca-
tion Of our cities are not TO be executed
account OF the lack Of conscience In ofh-
cislsf Where is tho moral public sentiment? It is
who responsible for tho formation Of public
sentiment which will compel them to do their duty
In the community which has put them in office.
They would not dare TO do alone what they do. The
trouble ts that thoy represent too well tho COM
nunity which elected them.
HIxDERAxcEs TO NATIONAL EQUITY.
The acts Of nation arc bound TO be Just and right
All national policies should not alone be founded
upon substantial wisdom but upon equity ~ we'll.
A conscience should be formed which would MAIN
tain the national honor We he'd king and no
ruling class. On the people rested tho
But there were many hnderances in the way OF tho
exercise Of eonscis1ce ,s By which Christian equity
educated had public conscience. When there
were men uninstructcd holding the Dagstracy the
they could be expected to rise higher than the
plano of uneducated morality. Ignorance must be
its officers would be other than uniformed and low
toned. II these ignorant consciences, which in
the majority. could over be consolidated. unto
The low state Of the public conscience was due in
great measure TO those members of society who did
mako any part of their civic and personal duty
to look after the welfare OF the whole community
continuously. The effect had largely been that the
management of affairs was thrown down to the ig-
norant who were manipulated by intelligent men
without scrupies Of morality The value OF suffrage
decreases men rise In wealth and position. Tie
tendency OF our CIVILIZATION was to carry away
from the conscience of the vote On the other hand
men who have no property or personal influence
value the vote as . prcrogatiye. There seemed to
have como over the nation determination TO remit
all public questions TO parties Party grounds seldom
admitted of the question OF right wrong
their hands, but simply . shuttlecock between two
battledoors. II bear In mind the former opposi-
ton OF the pulpit and the Church to these
We will find that that power was long ago broken
and had not yet boen entirely rc-estabshed In tho
days of our fathers repubiicanism and religion were
you we went into drugged condition and the voice
Of the pulpit was smothercd When the question OF
Of aS mo,
OF the South was political powers that Of the North
was commercial. The bright and rising young men
their conscienees disturbed sunday by Sunday.
That is the Babyionian captivity Of this nation.
TSs paps had Dssn nos,,ssn
before any other organized institution but not the
ono which 1t held during the colonial days. When
patriotism how could it be expected that the subor-
dnate institutions of society should be ruled by
suffer. Heroism could not burn in the ncphitic
mospherc.f Schools instructed moro and more in
ideas and things and cs~ and less IN tho moral quail
ties In this way II canie TO pass that pubic fstruc-
tors. while leaving technical theology,
introducing very largely into education . COM
pAxaxns or 4 LACK or coxscxxcx
Where was there any great influence At work to
form national conscience. IN what conduct. policy
or Institution? Tho Church does not do It, neither
does tho school or the nowrpapcr tsvowcdly follow
ing and not attempting ~ oadJ BY and by the capt.
tai Of truth, honesty and honor which we hsve re-
ccived will be spent and unlcss by trading gain
more ehall soon have moral resistance nor bo
ablc TO act against the temptations that assa u.s.
The consequences Of these alarming tendencies
called for the most profound anxiety. There
growing inscnsibility on tho subject Of business
honesty. Repud'stton was becoming more and moro
frequent When Il was t. break out in suoh
States as Mississippi and for all moral purposes the
leves might we'll break open and sweeping n clean
OF all that now encumbcrcd its soil bring In
entirely population endowed with conscience
tscnsation In the audiencet-Tcnnessce. which rc-
fused to put its shoulder TO the burden Of
taxation whom others in the Northwest we're attempt