Year: 1863

in heaven. He finds fugitive slave, and
converts him to the Gospel, and then sends
him back again 10 his old home, with a
letter Of kind Recommendation. Why does
ST. Paul act thus Why does he not
counsel the fugitive to claim his right to
freedom, and defend that right, il necos-
eary, by the strong hand of violence, even
unto death I Why does he not write to
his disciple, Philemon, and rcbuke him
for the awful sin of holding fellow-man
in bondage, and charge it upon him, as
solemn duty, to emancipate his slaves, at
the peril of his soul.


The answer is very plain. 81. Paul
soas inWi'M, and k"e0 the wW Of the
Lord Jesus Christ, and uas only intent on
obeying 10. And who are we, that in our
modern wisdom presume to set aside the
Word of God, and scorn the example o
the divine Redcemer, and spurn the
preaching and the conduct Of the apostles,
and invent for ourselves a "higher law
than those holy Scriptures which are given
to us as "a light to our feet and lamp to
our paths," in the darkness of sinful
/ and polluted world I Who are we, that
virtually blot out the language of the sa-
cred record, and dictate to the Majesty Of
heaven what he shall regard as sin, and
reward as duty Who are we, that are
ready to trample on the doctrine of the
Bible, and tear to shreds the Constitution


of our country, and even plunge the land
into the untold horrors of civil war, and
yet boldly pray to the God Of Israel to
bless our very acts Of rebellion against


his own sovereign authority Woe to


our Union when the blind become the


leaders of the blind Woe to the man


who d ares to "strive against his Maker !"


Yet do not mean to charge the numer-
Gus and respectable friends of this popular


delusion with a wilful or conscious oppo-


sitlon to the truth. They are seduced,


doubtless, in the great majority of cases,


by the feelings of false philanthropy,


which palliates, if it can not excuse, their


dangerous error. Living far away from


the Southern States, with no practical ex-


perience of the institution, and accustomed,


from their childhood, to attach an inordi.


nate value of their personal liberty, they


are naturally disposed to compassion ate


the negro race, and TO believe that the


slave must be supremely wretched in his


bondage. They are under no special in


ducement to "search the Scriptures" on


this particular subject, nor are they in


general, 1 am sorry to say, accustomed


to study the Bible half as much as they


read the newspapers, the novel and the


magazine. There they find many revolt


ing pictures of slavery, and they do not


pause to ask the question whether they


are just and faithful Perhaps fugitive


comes along, who has fled from his mas.


ter, and who, in justification Of himself
will usually give a very distorted state.
ment of the facts. even if he does not in
vent them altogether. And these good
and kind-hearted people believe 1t all i'm


plicitly, without ever remembering the
rule about hearing both Sides before We


form our opinion. OF course, they sym
pathize warmly with the poor, oppressed


African, and are generously excited to hate
the system of slavery with all their heart
Then the eloquent preacher chooses it fol
the favorite topic of his oratory. Th'
theme is we'll adapted to rouse the feel
ings, and it is usu9lly by no means diff
, cult to interest and crafty the audience
when the supposed sins of others, whlcl
they are under no temptation to commit


are made the object Of consure. In du
5 time, when the public mind is sufficient.
heated, the politician lays hold of the sub
I ject, and makes the anti-slavery movemen
the watchward of party. And finally tn
Press follows in the wake of the leaders
1 and the fire is industriously famed unit
a it becomes perfect blaze while the ad
= miring throng surround it with exultatior
d and fancy its lurid light to be from heaven
n until the flames begin to threaten thci
|, own security


# Such has been the perilous course {
our Northern sentiment on the subject {
\. slavery. The great majority, in ever
s community, are the creatures of habit, {
;, association and of impulse, and every a
~ lowance should be made for those erroi
c which are committed in ignorance, unde
# generous sympathy for what they SUI
It pose to be the rights of man. I can no


however, make the same apology for thot
Y who are professionally pledged to unde