Year: 1866




pR- THE curse which attaches to the pos
session of stolen goods may not always be
manifest, but there is a curse nevertheless.
The people OF the North have not yet taken
fully into consideration the fact that, while
the war for the government, was carried on
as war, there was a vast amount of private
plundering carried On without license. No
laws of God or man can be cited to Justify
these crimes The excitement under which
some men were induced to wink at them has
passed away, and there is no honest person
in all this country who does not wish in the
bottom Of his heart that this business had
been cffectually stopped when it began to be
practice. But there is the fact. and at this
moment the moral evil which results from
it is increased and perpetuated by the fur
ther fact that all over The North there are
households which retain possession Of the
goods of Southern families and the children
of those households are by this very fact ed
ucated in first principles of dishonesty
What is the remedy? In the words of the
New York OJsarer, ''send it back u Re-
store the pluuder to its owner The advice
is enforced in connection with startling ac-
cusation made b. distinguished Southern
clergyman.-JoHrnal Of Commerce.


SEND IT BACK.-Rev. DR.. Adger, of South
Carolina in letter to DR.. Backus, of Balti.
more lately published, makes the following
statement, and vouches for the fact :


When General Shermau's army passed
through Winsboro', S. c., a Captain F.,
and six others of that army, robbed one of
the ruling elders of the Scion Presbyterian
Church there of an elegant silver communi-
on set, the gift of dying female member of
the same. costing in New York two hundred
dollars, and having the church's name and
the donor name engraved upon each arti-
Gle"


DR.. Adg,r makes the following additional
statement which, for the honor Of humani-
ty as well as Christianity, we would hope
cannot be true


"a certain congregation of your body now
has that silver communion set, which Capt
F-presented to them, and are now us
ing it for their communion purpose with
those names Of Scion Church and its dying
sister staring them in the face, as they eat
the bread and drink the wine which set forth
the body and blood of our common master"


The idea that a Christian church can cele-
brate the holy ordinance of the Lord Sup
per in the use of vessels thus obtained Is
too monStrous to be entertained for mo-
ment unless they arc held only until the
church from which is was taken can be as
certained. This notice may assist the church
in ascertainIng it, and we are sure that If the
sacred vessels should be sent to DIR. Adger;
Columbia, s. c., he would see that they
were restored to the church to which they
belong.


We echo the sentiment, that the idea that
christian church can retain such articles is
monstrous. We should imagine that the
communicates in the church. while using
these vessels, would see the vision of their
Master entering the temple with the scourge
in his hand, and saying to them, 1T has
been written that my house shall be called
house of prayer but ye have made it den
of thieves.


What can we expect for the future of our
country if we do not reform this great wrong,
which has cursed churches as well as fani-
lies. An old friend of ours, a Union man
in the South through all the war, told us
that his chandeliers were In certain house
in Massachusetts, his piano IN another and
various family treasures in others. He had
LT0CSQ lueHl iO IucI IoSi1iOnS W Y hofO
heard Of Southern lady sitting down at a
Northern table and recognizing silver on that
table as her own. We hav5 heard of LAZY
receiving from an officer a present of jewel-
~, which she recognized as the jewelry,
of a Southern lady who had been her own
schoolmate and friend. Public sentiment
needs to be aroused to this subject, and the
holders of such goods should be compslled,
by the indignation Of their honest fallow-cit--
izena 70 ssnd them back. IN r Ob-