Year: 1864

that it is the foundation of all right and
wrong; and that it is the will of God as
stamped on our nature and written IN his


word, that men should live together in civil


society, that is, under some form OF govern
ment. Human society indeed cannot exist
without some regulations to determine the


boundaries of mutual rights, and some
means to enforce those regulations. For
otherwise there would be anarchy in which


all virtue and happiness would perish, and


society itself would soon become extinct: -
But while it is the benevolent will OF God
that men should live IN society with each
| other and have some form of government
to regulate their intercourse, he has left the
particular form of government which each
community or nation shall establish entirely
subject to their own choice lie has also
left them free to modify or abolish, their
form of government whenever, and to what
ever extent, they may deem necessary for
the promotion Of their own happiness and
prosperity. All are agreed that III this
general and abstract sense of the terms, the
will Of God is the source of all authority in
civil government, but the will, or consent,
of the governed is necessary to make an


particular form of government legitimate or
Just Consent of the governed = makes


the sole difference between u free and an


arbitrary government A free government


is one which, whatever may be Its form,


rests in the consent OF the governed" an


arbitrary government is one which is with


out that consent In short, whatever gov


crnment over people is maintained by


force is not free, but arbitrary, and the peo-


pie have q moral right to abolish 1t by
whatever means may lie in their power.


The expressions which we are considering


unbushingly fout the doctrine OF popular
consent as a principal in government, and
even brand it as infdelityl And this in an


age Of the world when enlightened political
philosophy has long since learned to accept


that doctrine as an axiom, and noe, among


people whose ancestors died upon many


bloody field in order to vindlcate it in their


own institutions! Is tyranny then shortly


to be crowned and enthroned among us in


the name OF religion and guarded by her aw


full sanctions! God fOrbidl Yet to shun so


dire result. we need to look well to the


doctrines which are ayowed by many OF the


leading ministers Of religion for they are un


mistakably those Of the worst deSpotlsm. -
And when we consider that the words on
which we are now commenting are almost
identical with those which was used not long
since by one Of our most prominent military
leaders, what doubt can there be left Of the
existence Of the most dangerous tendencies
among u,?


According to Dr. Cummings the present
war is but the natural result Of the vic Gus
principle introduced at first into the civil
polty Of the country, that ''the consent of
the persons governed y is the source Of le
gitimate authority in governments. 1t was
not slavery then that caused the war, but
the democratic principle in our civil polity
What then must be done to settle the coun-
try upon a safe and solid basis? Destroy
that principle, to be sure Oyerrn the
Constitution of the country gather an as
semby of Puritanical 'Rarebones" +" to found
new system of civil polity in which the
sword Of the Lord and Of Gideon y shall be
the persuasive argument to obedience pro-
claim another Reign of the Saints" re-
store the Blue Law code, and no doubt VIC
shall soon see what alas the world has too
often seen before under similar auspicies.