Year: 1861

Ps. CTXn 6.


We are in the midst Of war, the worst


of all wars; because a civil, inhamed in.


to a religious war, and likely to be follow


ed by servile war. Such state OF


things is tolerable only because anything


is better than protracted suspense, be-


cause there are evils worse than war, and


we know that it is Gods way to bring


good out of evil and order out OF confu-


sion.


/ am by temperament, habits, and prin-


ciples, as well as my profession, need


hardly say, man Of peace. This is no


time to disguise my principles, as one


would doff his ordinary dress for military


costume. The divine authority can new


er be suspended like our civil arrange


ments on the proclamation of martial law.


am a peace man and pray for peace +;
and therefore, paradoxical though it may


seem preach for this war.


/ 20 to the New Testament for princi-
pies of the profoundest philosophy as well


as largest humanity; and ! find there


that the end is not to be sacrificed to the
means or reality to appearance. As our


Savior said, from the state in which the
world was then, lie that fndeth his life
shall lose it, and he that loseth his life


shall find it, to life eternal" so | feel


warranted to say in the condition of our
country now, that if we seek peace at
any price We shall lose it, but if we are
willing to lose it we shall find i,-even a
lasting peace.


pray for peace, but it is peace in
righteousness that the Lord would COW
er our enemies with confusion, that he
would scatter those that delight in war,
that be would carry the council of the
froward headlong, and cause their violent
dealing to come down on their own pates.


The proposition, then, which | would
seek to illustrate and prove is this,-that
it is needtul in the present circumstances
of our country to seek peace by war.
In developing this subject, | would re-
mark:


1. We must conquer peace; for the
state in which we have lately been was I
not peace. Is rampant Iawlessness peace
Is anarchy peace; Isan armed andayow-
ed rebellion peace That anomalous con-
dition had all the evils and none Of the adj
vantages of war. There was no safety for
public or private interests, the most sacred .
and important. There was no regard to
natural RIGHTS any more than to constitu-
ito nal obligations. The name and form of
were a snare and mockeIy; and
we were fast becoming byword amongst
the nations. 1t was the proud boast of
Rome that the name Of a Roman citizen
procured safety in the most distant land
anda mongst the most barbarous people.
The name of an American citizen, asserted
in the spirit of the Declaration Of Inde-
pendence, could procure only the death
of dog in large part of our own coun-
try.


At first, rebellion might have been
crushed and all the States easily preserv-
ed. As of yore, the Sybil returned again
and again with her books, but every time
had more to ask and less to offer. Delay
has allowed it to assume the nature and
proportions of war, by which our inter-
ests and feelings alike suffer. All we
can do is to make it as Short and effect
nal as possible, so that this "affIction shall
not rise up the second time" Let US
therefore labor and pray that God may
make a short work" not only sin right ,
but in mercy, that for the elects {
sake, and the sake of his cause, these l
lays of evil may be shortened" {


2. We are called to contend for those {
irst principles that underlie all peace. t
We must assert, once for all, constitutions {
al freedom, by showing that our govern {
nent is no Mexican republic. The ques- t
ion, then, is not between peace and war, |
out between one sharp, decisive struggle
and chronic state of bloodshed. Were
we like our enemies, those sons of Be- {
ial, men of blood who cannot sleep I
lnless they have slain some one, we '
night acquiesce in a revolution that 7
would subject the majority to an irres- d
1onsible minority, and change a govern a
nent of law into government of the r
word. As they settle their private diff /
'ulties they may consistently decide pub r.
ic matters in that way. But to US t
seems as absurd as it is cruel. We '
rad hoped that the time was at hand S
'hen arbitration would universally take e
he place of war, though we were not il
blind to the difficulties that lay in the way. I
some nations are SAVAGE and others civ