Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians, Edinburgh,
and Physician to the Hydropathic Establishment.

PURSUIT OF KNOWLEDGE UNDER DIFFICULTIES.—

The following is a most remarkable and praise-
worthy instance of what perseverance and industry,
rightly directed, are able to effect. Among the
graduating class at the commencement last week,
at Williams College, was one by the name of Con-
dit from New-Jersey. This gentleman is a shoe-
maker, is married, and has a family of four children.
Six years ago, becoming sensible of the business of
an education, he commenced learning the simple
branches, such as are taught in our primary schools.
One by one, as he sat on his shoemaker's bench, he
mastered grammar, arithmetic, geography, &c.,
with some occasional assistance from his fellow
workmen. At this time he determined to obtain a
collegiate education. Without means, and with a
large family depending on him for support, he com-
menced, and learned Latin and Greek in the even-
ings, after his day's labor was over, under the direc-
tion of a friend; and after the lapse of a year and a
half, prepared himself, and entered the sophomore
class of Williams College.

He brought his bench and tools as well as his
books with him. The students supplied him with
work; the faculty assisted him; and together with
the fund for indigent students and some occasional
assistance from other sources, he was enabled to go
through the college course, and at the same time
support his family. He graduated last week, on
his birth-day, aged thirty-two. He stood high in
his class, and received a part at commencement, but
declined. At the farewell meeting of the class, in
consideration of his perseverance, talents and Chris-
tian character, they presented his wife with an ele-
gant set of silver spoons, tea and table, each hand-
somely engraved with an appropriate inscription.

Mr. Condit will now enter the theological semi-
nary at New-York, and will, no doubt, make a faithful
and popular minister.

What young man in this country will ever, after
such an example as this, despair of obtaining an ed-
ucation.—*Springfield Republican*.

COST OF INTEMPERANCE.—The Hon. E. Everett

From the Liberty Herald.

## THOMAS MORRIS.

We mentioned incidentally, a few weeks since, in speaking of Mr. Clay's pro-slavery speech in the Senate in 1839, that we were in Washington at the time of its delivery. It was not our misfortune to witness the humiliating scene, when this great man thus threw the weight of his mighty influence into the scale of the oppressor. But it was our good fortune, on the following day, to hear the speech of Thomas Morris in reply.

On the afternoon and evening of the day of Mr. Clay's self-immolation on the altar of slavery, scarcely any thing was talked of throughout the city but the "great speech" of Mr. Clay, by which, it was said, the abolitionists were silenced forever. The next morning the National Intelligencer contained the speech in full, brought out with extraordinary facility, and accompanied with high praises of the ability and promptitude of the reporters. The great production was considered worthy of great effort to lay it promptly before the public.

It was understood that in some way or other the debate thus begun by Mr. Clay was to be continued the following day; so the gallery of the Senate was crowded at an early hour. After the usual heartless prayer of the chaplain, and the other preliminary business was disposed of, Mr. Morris took the floor, and announced some petitions in favor of abolishing slavery in the District of Columbia, and commenced speaking in reply to Mr. Clay. This produced agitation in the gallery, a prominent trait of which was, evidently, disappointment at the speaker and the side of the question he advocated; for it was expected Mr. Calhoun would take the floor upon the subject, from an intimation in his remarks the preceding day, in which he so highly eulogized the effort of Mr. Clay.

During the entire speech of Mr. Morris, which occupied half an hour or more, the gallery of the Senate was alive with a buzz of excitement. It was sickening to see how few there were in that crowded auditory, who sympathized with the speaker in favor of freedom and humanity. Loudly whispered curses upon the speaker, and tart replies to particular sentences, were heard on every side. One young fellow in particular, who stood leaning directly over where we sat, literally gnashed his teeth at Mr. Morris, and was particularly loud and bitter in his comments on almost every sentence. In reply to one of his expressed wishes that he had Mr. Morris in his clutches, we ventured to inquire of him if he could answer his arguments; which elicited a most withering "overseer" look of vengeance, and threat of personal chastization!

Below, excitement was less visible. The members generally listened to the remarks of Mr. Morris with respectful attention. Mr. Benton, as usual with him, showed his ill-breeding by turning his back upon the speaker, and busy him with reading. Mr. Clay, on the contrary, with his usual tact, essayed to listen with the closest attention, and to bestow his blandest smiles upon the most pointed remarks of his opponent. We could not help thinking that he was annoyed instead of gratified with the repeated interruption of his minions, especially members of

the other house, who seemed to think that he needed their consolations, or at least that it would be a relief to divert his attention from the speech to which he was listening. Conspicuous among these, we were mortified to see the member from the district to which we then belonged.

We have never been satisfied with the published report of Mr. Morris's speech on this occasion. There were passages in it, far exceeding in point of force, and beauty, any thing which appears in the report soon after published in the Globe; for be it known, the reporters of the Intelligencer, who did themselves such honor by their promptitude and herculean labors in getting out Mr. Clay's speech, were dumb when the other side of the question was sustained. The reply of Mr. Morris to the passage of Mr. Clay's speech in which he deprecated the resort of the abolitionists to the ballot-box, we deemed the most spirited and severely sarcastic portion of it in the delivery; but is very inadequately given in the report. When Mr. Morris avowed his determination, near the close of his speech, to go home to his constituents, and "assist them in lighting the beacon fires of liberty on every hill," in support of the doctrines he had been advocating, the audible ejaculation of applause on one side, and hiss on the other, in the gallery, was scarcely suppressed by the presence of the assistant door keeper.

When Mr. Morris concluded, with a motion that the petitions he presented be referred to a comimttee, and the remark that he too well knew the feelings of the Senate to expect that his motion would prevail, there was silence for some time, as though no one wished to be conspicuous in making the usual motion virtually refusing to receive the petitions. At length Mr. Linn, of Missouri, moved that the question of reception be laid on the table—the usual mode of disposing of like matters in that body. Half a dozen ayes, and two noes, one of which was Mr. Webster, we believe, and the other Mr. Prentiss, of Vermont, decided the question.

The occasion of this speech of Mr. Morris, in view of the circumstances attending its probable effect upon himself personally, was as creditable to him, and as expressive of his integrity of principle, regardless of personal considerations, as was the reverse in the case of Mr. Clay. The term for which Mr. Morris had been elected to the Senate was then nearly expired—but a few days afterwards he well knew a successor was to be chosen. He was a candidate for re-election, and his party was in the ascendant in the legislature, yet he was true to his principles and the cause of righteousness at such a time. He spoke his sentiments fearlessly, and lost his place. How well he has fulfilled the pledge in his speech we have already quoted, the people in the south part of the State well know.

ALPHABETICAL ADVICE.

The Sunday Mercury gives the following
advice to its readers :

A—Always attend to your avocation, avoid
ale-houses and artful women.

B—Be benevolent but not prodigal, bury
all bickerings in the bosom of forgetfulness.

C—Contrive to collect cash, and keep it.

D—Do your duty and defy the devil.

E—Early endeavor to eradicate every er-
ror, both of the head and heart.

F—Fight fairly when you fight; but the
better way is, not to fight at all. Fiddle for
no tools.

G—Grace, goodness, gumption and a lit-
tle goose grease, enables a man to slip thro'
the world mighty easy. Get them and glo-
ry in them.

H—Harbor hope in your heart if you
would be happy; but hark ye, hope can't
render rotten the hemp of the hangman.

I—Inquisitiveness is insufferable, indulge
not in it.

J—Juleps may be called the juice of joy
and the yeast of jest; but let them alone, for
too much joking often destroys the joviality
of the social circle.

K—Kindness kindles the fire of friendship.
A kiss always avails more than a kick.

L—Love the ladies, 'look before you leap,'
and eschew loaferism.

M—Make not mischief by meddling with
other folk's matters.

N—Never be caught napping except in
night time.

Order is 'my own's first law, of
Pursue 'in ice who
is

Atra 'xertions accomplish 'xtraordin-
ary ends.

Y—Yield to no tyrant; yeomen and their
yoke-fellows are lords of the soil.

Z—Zig-zagging is characteristic of a
zany; take a straight course through life
and zealously pursue it.

&—& mind your own business, & let oth-
ers' alone, &c.
Dow, JR.

n

Four Great Murderers.

Happening to cast my eyes upon a printed page of miniature portraits, I perceived that the four personages who occupied the four most conspicuous places, were Alexander, Hannibal, Cæsar and Bonaparte. I had seen the same unnumbered times before, but never did the same sensations arise in my bosom, as my mind glanced over their several histories.

Alexander, after having climbed the diz-
zy heights of his ambition, and with his
temples bound with chaplets dipped in the
blood of millions, looked down upon a con-
quered world, and wept that there was not
another world for him to conquer, set a
city on fire, and died in a scene of debauch.

Hannibal, after having to the astonish-
ment and consternation of Rome; passed
the Alps, and having put to flight the armies
of the mistress of the world, and stripped
"three bushels" of golden rings from the
fingers of her slaughtered knights, and made
her very foundation quake, fled from his
country, being hated by those who once ex-
ultingly united his name to that of their
God, and called him Hanni Baal, and died
at last by poison administered by his own
hands, unlamented and unwept, in a foreign
land.

Cæsar, after having conquered eight hundred cities, and dyed his garments in the blood of one million of his foes, after having pursued to death the only rival he had on earth, was miserably assassinated by those he considered his nearest friends, and in that very place, the attainment of which had been his greatest ambition.

Bonaparte, whose mandates kings and popes obeyed, after having filled the earth with the terror of his name—after having deluged Europe with tears and blood, and clothed the world in sackcloth, closed his days in lonely banishment, almost literally exiled from the world, yet where he could sometimes see his country's banner waving o'er the deep, but which did not or could not bring him aid.

Thus these four men, who, from the peculiar situation of their portraits, seemed to stand the representatives of all those whom the world calls great—these four, who, each in turn, made the earth tremble to its very centre, by their simple tread, severally died—one by intoxication, or, as some suppose, by poison mingled in his wine—one a suicide—one murdered by his friends—and one in lonely exile! “How are the mighty fallen?”—The Presbyterian.

PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES.—
George Washington was born in 1732; elected
President in 1789; installed in 1789; fifty-seven
years old when installed; served eight years, re-
tired from public life in 1797, when he was sixty-
five years of age.

John Adams was born in 1735; elected in 1796;
installed in 1797; sixty-two years of age when in-
stalled; served four years; retired 1801, at the
age of sixty-six years.

Thomas Jefferson was born in 1743, elected in
1800; installed in 1801, at the age of fifty-eight
years; served eight years; retired from office in
1809, at the age of sixty-six.

James Madison was born in 1751; elected in
1805; installed in 1809, at fifty-eight years of age;
served eight years; retired in 1817, when he was
sixty-six years of age.

James Monroe was born in 1758; elected in
1816; installed the year following, when he was
fifty-eight years of age, served eight years, retired
from office in 1825, being then sixty-six years of
age.

John Quincy Adams was born in 1767; elected
in 1824; installed in 1825, being then fifty-eight
years of age; served four years; went out of of-
fice in 1829, at the age of sixty-two years.

Andrew Jackson was born in 1767; elected in
1828; and went into office in 1829, at the age of
sixty-two, served eight years; retired to the Her-
mitage in 1837, at the age of seventy.

Martin Van Buren was born in 1782; elected in
1836; installed in 1837, at the age of fifty-five;
served four years; retired from office in 1841, at
the age of fifty-nine.

William Henry Harrison was born in 1773;
elected in 1840, at the age of sixty-eight years,
and died in the first month of his term.

John Tyler, the present incumbent, was born in
1790, elected Vice President in 1840; installed as
President in 1841, at the age of fifty-one, and will
retire in 1845, having served three years and eleven
months, at the age of fifty-five nearly.

Of these eleven Presidents, three were military
chieftains, and the remaining eight members of the
bar, as were also two of the former.

Presidents, six of Vir-
ginia and one of Massa-
chusetts, were elected
by the name of Harrison.

MERIDEN, SEPT. 24, 1844.

Rev. Dr. Taylor—Dear sir; I trust that you will not consider me as impertinent in presenting to you the following inquiry, viz: Can a Christian, consistently with the word of God, cast his vote either for a duellist or an oppressor of the poor, for Chief Magistrate of this nation? There are many conscientious minds that have their doubts upon this question. They wish to act in view of the great and final day of accounts. Will you, dear sir, have the kindness to give what you conceive to be the will of God upon this point. An answer at an early day will be very acceptable.

I am, dear sir, very respectfully yours.

EDMUND TUTTLE.

YALE COLLEGE, Oct. 5, 1844.

My Dear Sir—I should have replied to yours of the 24th ult. before now, had I not been so occupied as to find it inconvenient. And now I have not got time to go into a full examination of the principles on which, in my view, the true answer to your inquiry depends. A general view of these principles, with a supposed case or two of their application, may be satisfactory.

You inquire. "Can a Christian, consistently with the word of God, cast his vote for either a duellist or an oppressor, of the poor, for Chief Magistrate of this nation?"

I answer in the first place, that I know of no precept in the word of God, which *expressly* forbids the act. In the second place; in respect to all this class of actions, viz: external actions, which are not *expressly* required or forbidden by Divine precept—the scriptures necessarily leave them to be judged of by men on their individual responsibility; in other words, what ought, and what ought not to be done, in this kind of action, is left by the word of God to man's judgment. There are at least three reasons for this. One is, that the right and wrong of such actions change with circumstances;* another, that to give a particular precept for every particular action of this kind to every man, would have been impossible, as the world could not contain the books; and a third is, that to lay down certain principles for the regulation of individual judgment in all such cases, is not only the only practicable method. But the best fitted to secure the greatest amount of right external action among men.

Here, however, it is most carefully to be inquired, *what are these principles?* One is, that in all cases, we are to be governed by the right principle of all action. or, that we are bound in all things, in all judgments, all external actions, to intend, purpose, or aim, to do that which will be for the glory of God, or, what is the same thing, *for the greatest good*. The other is, that circumstances, in respect to such actions, alter cases; so that the same action which, in one set of circumstances, would promote the general good, would, in another set of circumstances, defeat the general good.

These principles, so obviously true and just in their own nature, we find distinctly recognized in the Scriptures, in respect to that class of actions under consideration—and I might say also, are applied, in some cases, even to external actions, which in words are forbidden by formal precept. I refer you to the distinct recognition of them in the following passages. 1. Cor. 10, 31. Matt. 6: 22, 23, and also 12; 3, 4, and 7. Here note, that we are to aim in all things at the glory of God, or at the greatest good; for God prefers doing good to sacrifice. Remark, further, that in *obvious cases* in which the greatest good requires the act which even the law in words prohibits, the act is justified; as in the case of David, the Priests, and the Savior and his Disciples in the corn fields. And now, how are we to judge what is for the best in these cases? By having the eye single, by sincerely, honestly aiming to judge right: by judging as well as we can. Thus there will be no mistake; none for which we shall be blameworthy—"thy whole body shall be full of light."

Let us now suppose a few cases, to which these principles will apply, and see the results which they will give.

It were easy then to suppose a case, in which a Christian would be bound to vote for a pious or good man, instead of a wicked man, to fill the supposed office.—

Were there such a man as well qualified for the office as any other man, or even if not as well qualified in all respects for the office, as some other, yet if there was good reason to believe, that the general good would be best promoted by his election, and if, also, there was a reasonable hope of his election, or even if his election were not hopeless, the Christian would be bound to vote for him.

I can suppose another case in which a Christian shall be bound to vote for a wicked man. If we suppose that there is no good man to be voted for; or no good man qualified in any degree for the office, or that if there is a good man qualified for the office, there is no hope of his election; and that by voting for him, his vote will not only be lost, but one more wicked than the first, even a traitor to his country will probably be elected: in such circumstances the Christian would be bound to vote for a wicked man.

I can suppose yet another case in which the Christian is bound to vote for the more wicked man of the two; viz, when he has good reason to believe, that the former is a friend to his country, and that the latter is not, or utterly mistakes its true and essential interests; and that the former, notwithstanding his greater wickedness, will, in essential respects, better administer the Government than the latter, as being both more competent and more disposed to do so.

To put a stronger case. Suppose that there is no reasonable doubt, that one of two devils, one of which is less a devil than the other, will be actually elected, let the Christian vote as he may; and that his vote will therefore be utterly lost, if he does not vote for one of them; I think that an enlightened Christian would vote for the least devil of the two.

I know not that these views may be satisfactory to you. They are those which I adopt. I wish to add that the reason that good men are bound to vote for wicked men, arises from the circumstances of the case—from the necessity of so doing, or of throwing away their votes, and thus occasioning a greater evil, than that connected with the election of a wicked man. If the Christians of our country, would unite in a candidate of known or acknowledged piety, and well qualified for the office, to such an extent as to afford a reasonable prospect of his election, (and this I think might be done,) then I should say, the duty of every Christian to vote for such a man, would be undeniable. As things are, however, Christians seem to be under the necessity of choosing the least of two evils; and cannot, so far as I can see, throw away their votes on a man of whose election there is no hope, without also being responsible, even in their own view, for neglecting to prevent, and therefore responsible for, producing the greater of two evils.

I am, dear sir, very respectfully yours, &c.

NATHANIEL W. TAYLOR.

MR. EDMUND TUTTLE.

*By right and wrong, of such actions, I do not mean morally right and morally wrong, but right, as fitted to good results, and wrong, as fitted to evil results. Moral quality does not, strictly speaking, pertain to external action, but only to the heart—the intention—the principle of external action.*

5

ORVILLE DEWEY.

The citizens of this place, who had the pleasure of hearing the discourses of the eloquent Dr. Dewey last winter, will be much interested in the following extract from one of his sermons, a volume of which has just been published:

"I would earnestly ask those who sustain this relation, if they have well and duly considered what a tremendous element they hold in their charge. The awfulness of this human nature!—the whole world has yet to wake up to it. But is there not a sentiment of contempt towards the slave man, that fearfully overlooks what he is? Amidst all the professions of kindness and protection towards him, I think I see that, in a very marked degree. The great human claim which we assert for him is met with a smile of incredulity and indifference, if not of contempt.

"This, it seems to me, is the dividing point in the whole controversy. In the Southern mind, as far as I have studied it, there appears to be no proper recognition of the *common humanity* in the African man. That the slave man is a man, with a man's feelings, with a man's rights, with a man's capabilities—this is precisely what is not felt. I would solicit the attention of my Southern brethren to this point. It seems to me that the long habit of using these beings as mere cattle, and disposing of them as mere chattels, has worn off from them, in the eyes of their masters, the venerable and solemn impress of humanity itself. I once put the question in conversation—Suppose that this were a race of apes or ourang-outangs, which you held in bondage, but that you believed, according to some modern theories, that they were capable of being cultivated up to humanity; would you not feel a greater moral interest in such a race, than you now do in the slave race? Would you not be inspired with the most enthusiastic desire to bring about such a consummation? And is it not some strange habit of mind that prevents an equal interest about the improvement of human beings?

"The comparison may be repelled; but is not the allegation mainly true? Is the *human* claim of this unhappy race felt? They say, at the South, that we do not understand the case—how inferior these people are. We reply, "Do you understand the case—how *human* they are? You say you feel kindly towards them. So you do towards your dog or your horse. Is that enough? Does that satisfy the sacred relation of man with man? Is, we repeat, the awfulness of the human claim regarded? And will the God who has made man in his own image permit that sacred claim to be so disregarded?

"Far be it from me to invoke his displeasure, but I say, in the third place, that there is peril in that dread element which we have taken into our charge. The times of ignorance God winked at; but these later Christian ages cannot pass over a race oppressed, dwarfed, kept down and chained to the earth, without making terrible inquisition for it. Heaven demands, 'where is thy brother?' and earth echoes, 'where is he?' It is in vain to resist that universal sentiment that is rising all over the world in behalf of this oppressed race. That universal sentiment will educate the slave; and it will educate him to wrath and resistance,

"Do not educate him to intelligence"

The following masterly description of manhood as once a drunkard, and of his present views of a Drunkard Maker, is from the pen of the editor of the Middlesex Washingtonian. Let it be read in families, by the young, in public meetings, and re-published in all papers.

It is now four years since we forswore the in-
toxicating cup and enlisted, heart and hand, in the
great Temperance reformation. Our conversion
from intemperance to sobriety was a work of time
—of oft-repeated attempts at reform. It was not
occasioned by the movement of the immortal six
at Baltimore, nor did we awake from the trance of
drunkenness in an instant, and start forthwith upon
a life of sobriety, without having tried, "many a
time and oft," the principle of total abstinence.—
We had frequently abstained, in the days of our
intemperance, for six or eight months at a time, and
we knew there would be no danger of our dying
of the horrors, if we should at once withdraw the
alcoholic stimulus, so infatuating, so exhilarating,
so maddening in its nature. Yet, there was a charm
about the wine—a potent spell—that held us cap-
tive. It produced a pleasing delirium of the brain.
It threw a bright and gorgeous vesture of tran-
scendent beauty over the heavens and the earth. It
sent the imagination forth, as on angel's wing,
through the world of matter and the world of
mind. It clothed all living things in unearthly
beauty, and conjured up scenes of ideal loveliness,
such as poet seldom dreams of, even in "his high-
est heaven of invention." The earth—the sea—
the sky—the human form divine of woman became
invested with colors and tints, outshining in beauty
awake that ever met the eye of man in his sober
senses, and we reveled in a world, such as that in
which the maniac lives. But—thank God, we
awake from this wild dream, and dashed the infu-
entiating bowl to earth!

It was at midnight—as we lay upon our bed—
that the whispers of the Angel of Temperance
broke upon our ear. We listened to that gentle
voice, and resolved, in the strength of Heaven, to
devote our life to the cause of Total Abstinence.
And, from that to the present hour, we have lived
a life of strict sobriety. Our cup has been filled
with happiness—not that of the maniac, but that
of a calm and rational man. And we go about
among our fellow-men, with a proud conscious-
ness of having triumphed over an enemy, who
binds his victims in heavier chains and locks them
in deeper dungeons than any other tyrant ever let
loose by the Evil Genius of man, to prey upon
human hearts and human hopes. From that hour
to this, we have labored, according to our ability,
for the promotion of Temperance. And we here
pledge ourself, that for the remainder of our life,
be it longer or shorter, we will advocate the cause

of total abstinence—throw our whole influence,
more or less, upon the side of strict sobriety—and
battle with this Arch Foe of God and man, till
Death shall summon us out of time into eternity.

It is now sneeringly asked of us, why is it—
since, as you acknowledge, your own reformation
was brought about by kindness—by the entreaties
and persuasions of friends—why is it that you do
not use the same weapons with the rumseller?—
Why? Because he laughs these weapons to scorn!
Besides he is not, like the drunkard, a slave of ap-
petite; there is not, as in the case of the drunkard,
a law in his members warring against the law of
his mind, leading him captive at its will. His rul-
ing passion is avarice—a passion, that will be
bribed by no entreaty, but demands with Shylock,
the last pound of flesh—the last drop of blood.—
You might as well reason with the pauper, hun-
gry and starving for blood, to let his victim pass
untouched, as with the modern rumseller to stop
his infernal traffick. The one sordid, selfish pas-
sion for gain has stopped his cars and closed his
eyes to the sound and sight of want and woe that
follow from his accursed business. We are sorry
to be obliged to speak thus of the rumseller, but it
is the truth, and no one can prove its falsity. And
therefore it is that we would drive him from his
occupation, by the force of public opinion, embo-
died and concentrated in the law. The thief, if
d proved guilty, is sent to prison; the forger, if de-
tected, shares the same fate; the murderer swings
upon the gallows, or is shut out from his fellows
in perpetual imprisonment. And who complains?
Who but the guilty one? But the rumseller,
whose business it is, though not ostensibly so, to
make thieves, and counterfeiters, and murderer, is
no sooner seized upon by the executors of the law,
than complaints are poured in from certain quar-
ters, of persecution, persecution! and an effort at
sympathy set on foot, which proves but too suc-
cessful among the whole fraternity of rum drinkers,
and rumsellers, in the region where the guilty and
convicted felon may chance to drive his work of
death. If the rumseller, like a good citizen and
an honest man, would be persuaded to leave his
business, no one would rejoice at it more than our-
self; but, inasmuch as he will not, we shall clamp
or often and loudly for the enforcement of the law
upon his guilty head. Such have been our views
of the drunkard-maker ever since our reforma-
tion, and we see in them nothing inconsistent with
Washingtonianism.

PERIODICAL RELIGION.—There's a religion
which is too sincere for hypocrisy, but too tran-
scendently superfluous to reach the

R.

The following masterly description of a man
as once a drunkard, and of his present views of a
Drunkard Maker, is from the pen of the editor of
the Middlesex Washingtonian. Let it be read in
families, by the young, in public meetings, and re-
published in all papers.

7

to the con-ferges int-o the land of the- American members o-f the great-est republic—noising over: it achieve-the race.

American-republic has a Four-land every n-nion on the globe ma-grateful remembrance; but the August belongs to the world,—the Independence Day of mankind. That summer's sun that saw the shackles fall from 800,000 human beings, will carry down to the last years of time a sabbath day of freedom. Millions now groaning in the prison-house of their iron bondage,—unconscious that any star of hope has penciled a ray of promise on the thick night of their destiny—will keep it as a kind of passover, when they come to the Red Sea of their captivity, and be free in their unfettered feet upon the Can-land. The American slave the Fourth of July! we are free!

MELANCHOLY MUSINGS.

As o'er my dark and cheerless way I wander on benighted, Each star of hope seems overcast, Each bud of promise blighted.

Drear and perplexed my onward path, In gloom and sorrow shrouded, And every scene of future joy

By disappointment clouded.

So the lone seaman, tempest-tossed, Far on the trackless ocean, Finds naught to meet his aching eye, Save the waves' wild commotion.

But look, sad mariner, on high, See you bright arch suspended; See, with the rain-drops and the clouds, The bow of promise blended.

So, to the Christian's fainting soul, Faith its bright hopes is lending, And shows, beyond life's stormy sea, A heaven of joys unending.

There may I fix my constant gaze, There may my wishes centre, Nor dangers of the voyage heed, So I the haven enter.

work paper, a eak of the death of a the bloom and pride of youthful beaut-miserably in a sink of vice, surrounded very outcasts of society, black and white.

She died of disease, drunkenness, and destitution, at the age of twenty-three years. And yet, she had once moved among the fashionable, and been admir-ed in the giddy crowd of those who count wealth and worldly display as above all other desires and pos-sessions. Where is the feeling heart that shall look down upon the powerful story of that poor creature, and not weep—aye, weep bitter tears, as it reads? She was once as innocent and happy as the happiest; the pride of a father, the sweet blossom of a fond mother, the gay and joyous spirit of a joyous circle —a creature whom all might love. But oh! what a change—what a change—as she lay dead in the squallid hovel, where fiends held their hellish revels, and brutes in human form stalked around, with de-bauchery and shame as their boon companions.—

The who had once stood—the gay, the young, the beautiful, the deauchee!

shall go into the bosom of that fa-the young kid of the flock?

The ear of her mother, to had so often and bosom and

BY BARCOCK & WILDMAN,
No. 5 Marble Block, Chapel-street.

<table><tr><td>TERMS OF THE PALLADIUM.</td><td></td></tr><tr><td>EVERY DAY... PER ANNUM.</td><td>$5.00</td></tr><tr><td>EVERY OTHER DAY.. DO.</td><td>3.00</td></tr><tr><td>EVERY SATURDAY... DO.</td><td>2.00</td></tr></table>

NEW HAVEN:

SATURDAY, SEPT. 15, 1849.

Colored Men's Convention.

The Convention of colored men assembled in his city the past week, closed its session on Thursday evening. The object of the meeting was to deliberate upon the best means of regaining the rights of which they were deprived by the adoption of the constitution of this State—and also to agree upon such other measures as in their opinion would promote their common welfare. We visited the Convention in the evening, intending only to remain a few minutes, but we were so interested in the proceedings and particularly the debates, that we could not leave until the convention adjourned. We observed a number of our citizens present, who all seemed highly interested in what was going on. The audience was composed chiefly of colored men and women, and their appearance and deportment throughout were of the most dignified and creditable character. The most rigid conformity to parliamentary rules was observed throughout the debates. Some of the arguments were ably urged and very happily illustrated, and often in a strain of genuine eloquence. We cannot name all the speakers. The following is the list of officers of the convention :

President—Jehiel C. Beman, of Middletown.

Vice Presidents—Henry Foster, Hartford; G. Garrison, Middletown; Leonard Collins, Bridgeport; R. J. Cowes, New Haven; Leonard Black, Stonington; P. M. Williams, Norwich.

Secretaries—S. M. Africanus, J. E. Burr, L. C. Beman.

The President of the convention, an excellent officer, was the father of the Rev. Mr. Beman, a colored preacher of talents and high standing in this community.

One of the best speakers of the evening was a Mr. S. M. Africanus, of Hartford. His style was quiet and modest, and not at first very attractive, but as he proceeded he began to draw the most earnest attention of all present, and finally every ear seemed to be listening, while every eye was fixed upon him. When the time allowed each speaker by the rules had expired, he was about sitting down, but some one moved that he be allowed five minutes more, and leave being granted, he proceeded to the close of his speech. Throughout his remarks we did not observe a single slip in grammar, nor any bad pronunciation. He was a full faced man of middling height, with a fine shaped head and a remarkably pleasant eye and countenance. His thoughts were connected and logically expressed, without any repetition of language or any waste of words. He said that for the elevation of their characters they must rely upon themselves; and for the exercise of the rights of citizenship, which is the basis of all their rights, they must rely on the justice of their cause. They were men, and the constitution of the State which degraded them, admitted that they were citizens—otherwise such language as this would not be found in it. "Every white male citizen of the United States," shall under certain restrictions "be an elector." Now the words "white male citizen" implies that there are male citizens who are not white—these now claim a restoration to their lost franchise. In the course of his speech he said that in New York State colored men were sometimes permitted to vote, but their privileges were very narrow there.—They were there treated much as some of the ancient Egyptians treated their dead. They were not buried entirely out of sight—but were embalmed and placed in niches in the walls of the houses of their relations where they were seen. So in New York State the colored citizen was not wholly lost sight of.

If he were worth the sum of 325 dollars in real estate, he could vote, but not otherwise—in short his rights were embalmed, and placed in the niches of the political temple, where they

could be seen and spoken of. But they had no vitality—they were merely the rights of sepulchre, but even these were not tolerated in Connecticut. But he believed they would be in time, if colored men would show those who truly love republican principles that they could appreciate a freeman's privileges and exercise a freeman's franchise with reference to the best interests of our common country.

Wm. Spellman, from Norwich, we believe, in defending a resolution providing for the employment of colored lecturers in the State, said that he thought their simple story would be listened to by the whites and ultimately produce the desired effect. White men might be found who would plead their cause with more ability and eloquence, but they might be suspected of party motives, when the colored man would not be. He told a story in illustration of the great effects which are sometimes produced by the humblest means, and most insignificant instruments. A poor woman had suffered the loss of her cow, which was all her property. It was killed by a railroad locomotive. She had no friends to bring her cause into court, and no means to employ others to do so; she resorted to this expedient: After melting up a portion of the fat of her cow, she poured the grease up on the track of the railroad, and when the train came up, it was brought to a stand, still. The Engineer called out "Old woman, did you do this?" Her only reply was, "Pay me for my cow!" The next day the grease was again applied, and with the same result. The old woman was again appealed to, when she made the same simple, but expressive speech—"Pay me for my cow!" The cow was at last paid for and all further trouble ceased in that quarter. The colored men, in view of their wrongs, could, like the old lady say to the white men of the State, "Pay me for my cow!" At length they will hear and do us justice. Let us act like men, and when we talk to white men, do not let us dodge and turn away our heads, but look them in the face—and though they may at first attempt to "bluff us off," and deny our rights, they will at last, as they often have done, admit that the argument is all on our side, and will respect us for our manly adherence to the cause of truth, justice, humanity and true republicanism.

A young man, Mr. West, of Bridgeport, spoke with a great deal of energy, and in a clear and pleasant tone of voice, which many a lawyer, statesman or clergyman, might covet, nobly vindicating the rights of his brethren. He said the bones of the colored man had bleached on every battle field, where American valor had contended for National Independence. Side by side with the white man, the black man stood and struggled to the last for the inheritance which the white men now enjoy, but deny to us. His father was a soldier slave, and his master said to him when the liberty of the country was achieved, "Stephen, we will do something for you;" but what have they ever done for Stephen, or Stephen's posterity? This orator is evidently a young man of high promise, and better capable of voting intelligently than half of the white men who would deny him a freeman's privilege.

In the course of the evening, a Mr. Bibb of Kentucky, was called out. He offered a resolution approving of the circulation of the Bible in those States in which there was no prohibitory statute law. He made a very eloquent speech, and in the course of it remarked that he had been a slave many years of his life. This was surprising to us, for his color was almost a clear white, and he had the air of an experienced professional man. He maintained that the free circulation of the Scriptures was not only promotive of spiritual freedom but also of political and personal rights. He was a man of uncommon talents and evidently has improved them to the utmost since he obtained his freedom.

The Rev. Mr. Beman, was next called upon and he made a short but very sensible address. He is a man of education. We learn that when he was admitted to the ministry, he passed a better examination than some of his white brethren, who were admitted at the same time. He stated in the course of his remarks, that several meetings for the promotion of the interests of colored men, had been held in his church, and it was his wish that the convention should have been held there, but his people had been summoned into court, in consequence of a debt which they could not liquidate, and it was very possible that the next Sabbath would be the last time in which services would be held there by his people. Mr. Beman seemed deeply affected when he made this declaration. But added, if compelled to leave New Haven, he should labor in whatever place his lot might be cast, for the religious and political advancement of his brethren.

He was followed by George W. Francis, of Bridgeport, who spoke very handsomely in behalf of his race, and alluded very feelingly to the conditon of Mr. Beman's church.

Mr. Collins, of Bridgeport, succeeded the last named, and appealed in a very eloquent manner to the colored men of New Haven, to come forward and save the church of the Rev. Mr. Beman, from the fate that seemed to hang over it. Let it not be said, he remarked, that any Christian church has been thus sold in New Haven. It would be a disgrace to christians here, but more especially to colored men, to permit such a sacrifice. Talk not, said he, of political elevation, until you can save your sanctuaries from desecration.

The Convention after a vote of thanks to the officers and to the hospitality and good will shown the members by the citizens of New Haven—adjourned.

We wish all our citizens could have witnessed the deliberations of this body. Most of them we are quite sure, would have been as surprised and gratified as we were. We trust that they will persevere in their efforts to obtain their political rights, for we are confident they will eventually succeed. The five thousand votes last obtained will, on the next trial, be increased to ten thousand, and the next time to twenty thousand, and perhaps to a majority of the people. We promise them the same vote we gave them before, and a more vigorous co-operation for their success, when the proper time shall arrive. The man who would deny the common rights of manhood to so much intelligence and moral worth as was represented in that Convention, deserves to be pitied for his subserviency to a blind prejudice.

## Colored Men's Convention.

MR. EDITOR—I have read your account of the proceedings of this Convention at its evening session with interest and pleasure. I was led by mere curiosity to look in upon the meeting in the afternoon, intending to remain but a few moments, but like yourself, I was tempted to remain until near the close; and I wish to say that all your statements in regard to the proceedings of the evening may be justly applied to those of the afternoon. I was surprised, not only by the intelligent and dignified conduct of the officers and principal speakers, but also by the respectable appearance and deportment of the large assembly of colored men at

women in attendance. The discussions upon the several resolutions and questions presented, were conducted in a manner highly creditable to the assembly. All who presented themselves as speakers, were evidently unprepared by any special previous meditation or study, for their respective efforts, yet their remarks were directly to the points under consideration, their words generally well chosen, and appropriately

and even eloquently expressed. No attempts were made, on the part of the speakers, to strain and overact, but their performances were characterized by an exhibition of natural ability, zeal, discretion and sincerity, which should recommend them and their cause to the respect and favor of every unbiassed mind. Most of the speakers heard by you in the evening, and mentioned in your account, spoke also in the afternoon besides others; one certainly, introduced by the President, as "Doctor Gray, of New Haven," who deserves to be named, was not in your article. I do not know Doctor Gray, and never saw him before or since, but if he does not possess all the uncultivated material of a man of the highest grade of intellect, my estimate of him is greatly at fault. His theme was like that of all the rest, the elevation of the condition of their race and the means to apply in attaining it—and the manner in which he handled the subject, and referred to the necessity of steady perseverance in mental and physical culture, and to their strong attachments to their native land and its government and laws, evinced strength of mind, and a spirit of devotion and patriotism which certainly entitle him to notice and commendation. He wound up his speech in a strain of eloquence which aroused and thrilled the audience with electrical effect.

This demonstration on the part of the people of color of our own State, has awakened a new interest in their cause, in one mind at least, and I cannot but hope they will persevere and succeed in their efforts to secure their own political freedom, and labor by all lawful means to extend the blessings of liberty to their brethren throughout the country and the world.

P.

["THE JOURNAL AND COURIER.", "NEW HAVEN.", "EDITED AND PUBLISHED BY\nJ. B. HOTCHKISS & CO. 115 Chapel-st.", "DAILY JOURNAL, Per Annum,\nWEEKLY HERALD, Per Annum,\nADVERTISING,—including Paper,", "Five Dollars.", "Two Dollars.", "25 Dollars.", "THURSDAY MORNING SEPTEMBER 20.", "For the Journal and Courier.", "THE NEGRO RACE—SUFFRAGE.", "MR. EDITOR :—", "Living under a system of government which\nsecures to each individual the right of forming\nand expressing his own opinions, I trust that\nyou will not \"usurp authority\" by suppressing\nthe sentiments of a fellow-citizen upon a subject\nof common interest. I do not wish to hold you\nresponsible for my views, nor do I consider that\nyou incur such responsibility by giving publicity\nto them; from the simple fact that they are\nknown to be directly in opposition to your own\nsentiments on the question under consideration.\nIndeed, your remarks at the conclusion of a re-\nport of the \"Colored Convention,\" which re-\ncently assembled in this city, in connection with\nminor circumstances, were what induced me to\naddress you this communication.", "In the remarks above referred to, you express\nthe belief that the \"colored population\" of this\nState will secure the object for which they have\n\"so long and (in your opinion) justly prayed,\"\nby a constant \"agitation,\" and by keeping their\ncause \"before the people.\" Now, sir, it seems\nto me that their cause has been pretty well \"ag-\nitated,\" and that their claim has been presented\nto the people in various ways, and that without\nreceiving any very flattering evidences of a\nchange in the public sentiment in their favor.—\nThe question has been repeatedly presented to\nthe State Legislature, and also to the people of the\nState, for an amendment of the Constitution, by\nstriking out the word \"white,\" and all the ap-\npliances of political intrigue—all the inventive\ngenius and arguments of political aspiration—\nhave been brought to bear upon the subject, and\nwithout success. Politicians, with the hope of\ngaining their cause, and securing their votes as\nthe ultimatum of their pseudo-philanthropy,\nhave espoused \"universal suffrage,\" and euto-", "gized the patriotism, the valor, the wisdom, the\ndiscrimination and the vigilance of the African\nrace. They have bleached the bones of blacks\nupon the field of glory; they have made a\nDemosthonese of a Gumbo, a Brutus of a Prin-\ngle, a Constantine of a Guffler; they have immor-\ntalized them as Heroes, as Statesmen, as Patri-\nots, as Martyrs; but all to no purpose. They\nhave ridiculed the idea of attaching importance\nto color, and sworn that wool was hair; they\nhave re-moddled the head and bruised the shin;\nthey have shortened their heels and sharpened\ntheir noses; but still the white man's efforts in\nthe black man's cause has not been appreciated.\nThey have whispered the praise of \"Afri-\nslubr'ous clime,\" and sang the fascinations of\n\"Dandy Jim;\" they have sighed \"Oh, Dinah,\nlet me in,\" and danced the \"Jim Crow Polka;\"\nand yet Republics is ungrateful! No means have\nbeen withheld by these interested politicians to\nenhance the estimate upon the virtues of the\npeople in whose behalf they evinced such an in-\nterest. Their peculiar characteristics have been\nthe subjects of enology and fashionable song.\nTheir wrongs and their grievances have been\nrepeated before public assemblages and by the\npublic press. Conventions have been held.\nPrayers and petitions have been presented by\nthem and urged, ably and eloquently, by their\nfriends, in various ways and before different bo-\ndies, but all in vain. The efforts of themselves\nhave been abortive, and the exertions of their\nfriends has availed them nothing.", "Now, sir, it seems to me there must be some\nreason for all this. Either the hearts of the\npeople are hard and desperately wickel, or there\nis a substantial, overruling, paramount objec-\ntion to the admission of this class of people to\nthe rights of freemanship. Perhaps, sir, you\nmay attribute it to the former cause, but, if so, I\nmust be permitted to differ with you on this point.\nI place that objection on this basis—The igno-\nrance of the Negro race. You may think this a\nbold position, but I think facts will sustain it.\nThere may be exceptions, but I have never seen\nthem to any remarkable extent. You may point\nme to the eloquence and sound arguments of the\nrecent Convention in this city, as your cotempo-\nrary has done; but I will point to the explana-", "C\no\np\nh\na\ns\na\nl\nu\no\np\nh\na\ns\n

pr
ret
cor
H

tion. In commenting upon one of the orators
on that occasion, the Palladium says: "He made
a very eloquent speech." In the very next sen-
tence he further remarks: "As is color was almost
a clear white." This principle I believe will
hold good in almost, if not every single instance
where any considerable degree of mental ability
is recognizable in those who class themselves
with the Negro race. That those who have
hardly Negro blood enough coursing their veins
to preserve the distinction, should be possessed
of some of the mental qualities of the white
man, in a greater or lesser degree, of course is
not to be disputed. But confine the principle to
the Negro race—as a race. Look back upon the
history of Africa. Where are her Heroes and
her Statesmen? where her Christians and her
Patriots? where her Reformers and her Libera-
tors? Do you say there were none in those an-
tiquated days of darkness and despotism? Who
were the poets, orators and statesmen of ancient
Greece? Who taught the Arts and Sciences in
the palmier days of Italy's grandeur? Who
were the heroes of Rome and the authors of her
magnificence and splendor? The monuments of
whose greatness are the stupendous ruins of
Nineveh, Babylon, Palmyra, Balbec and Anti-
och? Who piled the towering pyramids of
Egypt, where lie the bones of Cecrops and
Cephrenes? But where are the evidences of
greatness, the monuments of glory, the remnants
of ancient splendor, the testimonies of Art and
Science, in benighted, barbarous, heathen Africa?
Do you see them in Guinea, in Ashantee, in
Congo, in Timbuctoo? Do you see the ruins of
ancient grandeur and departed glory in Loango,
in Angola, in Benguela? If so, the historian
has failed to record them. If her citizens were
once civilized, enlightened and refined, then the
story of her ignorance, her barbarity, her isolat-
ed, degraded condition, is false. If she was
once governed by Republican laws and Christian
principles, the chronicler of human events has
failed to transmit it to succeeding ages.

ze
ev
im
ag
ge
co
t
s
f
i
t
i
v
e
r
t
i
g
ri
w

E
fr
la
in
to
al

—And do we look back upon such a people
and such a country, as a model for our own?—
Do we want *their* wisdom and instruction dis-
tilled into our institutions? Do we want *their*
intelligence and experience to sway the balance
of power? Do we wish to become subservient to
*their* wishes by elevating them *above* our own
race—our wives and our daughters? The peo-
ple *have* answered these questions; they will
answer them *again*—unbiased by “agitation,”
and unblinded by political Jesuits.

ANGLO-SAXON.

We doubt whether "Anglo-Saxon" has
correctly apprehended the Journal's sentiments
touching the expediency of admitting the "Ne-
gro race" to the full privileges of citizenship.
The Journal Editor has been absent some days,
and the sentiment to which the above correspon-
dent refers, was not from the Editor of the Jour-
nal. As for "universal suffrage" in its broad
sense, we apprehend there is too much old fash-
ioned Federalism in the Journal Editor to go
for it.

Pius, and that he had got the " hage."

H.

For the Journal and Courier.

### Messrs. EDITORS:

Will you please insert the following paragraphs, the one from the pen of Mr. Anglo-Saxon, on 'Negro Suffrage,' the other from a Memorial to the Legislature of Virginia in behalf of the Republic of Liberia, as illustrative of a remarkable 'coincidence of great minds.'

Says Mr. Saxon: "Look back upon the history of Africa. Where are her Heroes and her Statesmen? where her Christians and her Patriots? where her Reformers and her Liberators? Who were the poets, orators and statesmen of ancient Greece? Who were the heroes of Rome and the authors of her magnificence and splendor? Who piled the towering pyramids of Egypt, where lie the bones of Cecrops and Cephenes?"

If these questions cannot be answered, if the African cannot prove that his progenitors made the pyramids of Egypt, or that they were Christians thousands of years before there was a Christ, he must forever hold his peace in this State and quietly submit to disfranchisement.

But what says the Memorial—"It is now probable that Liberia may reclaim from barbarism, the entire western coast from Sierra Leone to the Cape Colony, closing all access to the piratical slaver, and diffusing civilization and the Christian religion through this whole border country. From this rim of light, central Africa will be illuminated, its darkness, intellectual and moral, expelled, its fertile lands reclaimed from sterility, its physical resources regenerated, and Africa—whence civilization and the arts passed into Greece more than three thousand years ago, through Rome to England, and thence to America—Africa, the land once fruitful of heroes and scholars and Christians, of Hannibal, Hanno, Jugurtha, Terrence, Origen, Tertullian, Augustine and Cyprian—of a race that wrought the

pyramids, chiseled the proudest monuments of marble, and left in her tombs the evidence that she had done all for the material body but to give it eternal life—this Africa will be again raised to her place among civilized nations, received to the circle of the human family, and, for the civilization she has centuries ago imparted to others—repaid by civilization and Christianity, too."

Mr. Anglo-Saxon, this is a plain paragraph and I believe conveys as much as is insinuated in yours. If you will discuss 'Negro suffrage,' the propriety of granting it in this State, stand on our own soil, and confine your remarks to our colored men, I trust your arguments will be satisfactorily met. What if the greater part of Africa is at this day, pagan and barbarous and degraded; shall we not for this reason confer upon the colored of this State civil rights which they ask by virtue of their oneness to us? For one I will not own that there is a class of men in Connecticut too ignorant to exercise "the rights of freemanship." Prove this point and I will give you the case without appeal.

ANGLO AMERICAN.

## THE JOURNAL AND COURIER.

### NEW HAVEN.

EDITED AND PUBLISHED BY
**J. B. HOTCHKISS & CO. 115 Chapel-st.**

DAILY JOURNAL, Per Annum,
WEEKLY HERALD, Per Annum,
ADVERTISING, —including Paper,

Five Dollars.

Two Dollars.

25 Dollars.

WEDNESDAY MORNING, SEPTEMBER 26.

For the Journal and Courier.
"NEGRO SUFFRAGE."

### Messrs. EDITORS:

I think that your correspondent "Anglo-American," either misunderstands or misrepresents me, when he imputes to me the sentiment—"If the African cannot prove that his progenitors made the pyramids of Egypt, or that they were Christians thousands of years before there

was a Christ, he must be disfranchised in this State." I am not conscious of having advanced any such assertion. In the course of my remarks in a former communication, it became proper, to sustain the argument, that I should refer to the history of ancient Republics, and contrast their condition with that of Africa. However, perhaps this point is not important, inasmuch as Mr. "Anglo-American" denies my right to apply the test to the "progenitors" of Connecticut Negroes, but confines me to "our own soil" and "our own colored men." Truly, this is confining me to pretty small limits to establish the ignorance of the Negro race—as a race; the only object for which I have thus far contended. But perhaps my opponent has formed his convictions of the race from his acquaintance with the amalgamated mulattos within the limits which he has prescribed, and hence his favorable opinion of them; and if such be the case, perhaps it would not be unaccountable were his representations as erroneous as his views are contracted. He nevertheless seems to attach some importance to an extract which he makes from a "Memorial to the Legislature of Virginia in behalf of Liberia"—a portion of Africa purchased some years since by the American Colonization Society, the inhabitants of which are nearly one half white. The authenticity of this document is not given, although I am not disposed to question its correctness, I would simply observe, however, as another "remarkable coincidence of great minds," that it may be considered a little mysterious how "civilization and the arts" could have passed from Africa "through Rome to England and thence to America" more than three thousand years ago! Perhaps the old "Dutch Settlers" and he "Pilgrim Fathers" are not entitled to so much credit, after all, as history awards them. Another "coincidence" hardly less remarkable, is the fact (according to the Memorial) of the Africans having "wrought the pyramids and chiseled the proudest monuments" of Greece and Egypt, while they utterly neglected to perpetuate the memory of their own "heroes and scholars and Christians" by similar magnificent tokens of respect. This certainly is a very striking evidence of the benevolence and self-sacrificing spirit of martyred Africa, and very plainly exhibits the injunction—"charity

begins at home"—as quite a modern dogma. Revivisco magnanimus Africanus!

In regard to a public discussion on the subject of "Negro Suffrage," I do not feel ambitious for it—especially on the plan suggested by "Anglo-American," for I do not believe it can be thus fairly discussed. If the Negroes of Connecticut are entitled to the "rights of freemanship," the same rights should be extended to the same race in all other States. But I disclaim the right of Negroes to vote at all—no less in Connecticut than in South Carolina—no less in the Free States than in the Slave States. I believe they belong to an inferior order of beings; although they may be improved by the advantages of civilization—as the vegetable may be improved by cultivation, or as the animal may be made the more useful by the proper training. Yet I believe them to be deficient in that sound judgment which is necessary to a full understanding and a wise decision in matters pertaining to governmental polity. They have ever been regarded as such, and to deny it now would be to deny the wisdom and experience of those who framed our constitution and ratified its articles; it would be charging our forefathers with a superstitious prejudice, injustice and oppression, and admitting ourselves to be no less bigoted and intolerant than were they. I admit that I do not belong to that "progressives" order which would make a common, "universal" receptacle of the ballot-box. I believe its purity should be the object of our most vigilant watchfulness; for when ignorance and indifference undertake to make inroads upon its securities, do I believe to the precise extent of the success of such undertaking is the safety of our Republic and the perpetuity of our free institutions endangered.

ANGLO-SAXON.

THE JOURNAL AND COURIER.
NEW HAVEN.

EDITED AND PUBLISHED BY

DAILY JOURNAL, Per Annum, Five Dollars.
WEEKLY HERALD, Per Annum, Two Dollars.
ADVERTISING,—including Paper, 25 Dollars.

SATURDAY MORNING, SEPTEMBER 15.

For the Journal and Courier.
Messrs. EDITORS,--

Being present at the three sessions of the Colored Convention on Thursday, the 13th, in this city, permit me to express briefly my feelings in relation to it.

For one I was highly gratified with the whole proceedings. Every thing was conducted with the order, ability and dignity of a Senate chamber. I went in to hear what they had to say, to learn whether they felt agrieved and were determined to seek redress. Many times were my feelings so wrought upon by the earnest, pathetic appeals of the speakers, that tears would rush into my eyes "in spite of me," so agonized was my soul as I listened to their simple tale. Their theme was liberty. What more glorious, soul stirring theme to consider, to advocate? Whose heart will not beat high, when he sees liberty throttled by oppression? Who will not sympathize with the liberty-forsaken and oppressed? The Colored people of this State feel *oppressed*, they feel *degraded*. Their words and their deeds prove their sincerity. Still they utter not defiance, but patiently ask for liberty; liberty to exercise the elective franchise, liberty to educate their children, liberty to be recognized as men, liberty to protect their families, liberty to protect their property. Their rights they are deprived of by a professedly Christian people; a people who know that God hath made of one blood all the nations of the earth. O for shame on my brother who makes color the only reason for withhol-

ding these rights from the colored men of Connecticut. Would the speeches of that day's Convention could be poured into the ears of every free white male citizen, with the eloquence and power they were thundered in mine. Sure I am, the colored men's petition would be heard, their prayer for liberty granted, and the very next election would secure honor and renown to the people of this State by their giving proof to the world that they hold in sincerity the truth they profess... " That all men are equally created; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty and pursuit of happiness."

Go on, colored men, carry out faithfully the principles you advocated at your late Convention,—continue to reason as prudently, and I pledge my humble influence and vote to aid you in securing a final and glorious triumph.

THE AFRICAN'S FRIEND.

A Light in a Dark World

THURSDAY MORNING SEPTEMBER 13.

OFFICE OF THE BOARD OF HEALTH,

CONVENTION.

The Colored Convention, which has been in contemplation for some time past, is to be held in this city to-day. We presume it will be largely attended, as many are already in town, and every part of the State appears to be represented. What the result of the gathering will be we cannot state, but we trust our colored brethren will express themselves fully and intelligently upon the subject which is to come before them, and we have no doubt what is said and done, will have great weight upon the action of future legislatures.

spirit
will
work
presented

TERMS OF THE PALLADIUM.

<table><tr><td>EVERY DAY... PER ANNUM</td><td>$5.00</td></tr><tr><td>EVERY OTHER DAY... DO</td><td>3.00</td></tr><tr><td>EVERY SATURDAY... DO</td><td>2.00</td></tr></table>

NEW HAVEN:

THURSDAY, SEPT. 27, 1849.

Colored Men's claim to the Elective Franchise.

We find the following paragraph in a communication in the Journal of yesterday morning. It would hardly be supposed that such views of a portion of the human race would be unblushingly put forth in this age and this community. Men may doubt the expediency of allowing colored men to vote, and whether right or wrong in their views, we will not now stop to argue, but to deny them the right on the ground that they are not members of the human family, may be a very consistent position for a Brazilian slave holder, or an African slave trader and buccanier, and it is such a doctrine as we should look for in some of the Southern States, but it will be universally repudiated here in the Free States, and generally throughout Europe. The writer says:

> "If the Negroes of Connecticut are entitled to the "rights of freemanship," the same rights should be extended to the same race in all other States.—But I disclaim the right of Negroes to vote at all—no less in Connecticut than in South Carolina—no less in the Free States than in the Slave States. I believe they belong to an inferior order of beings; although they may be improved by the advantages of civilization—as the vegetable may be improved by cultivation, or as the animal may be made the more useful by the proper training. Yet I believe them to be deficient in that sound judgment which is necessary to a full understanding and a wise decision in matters pertaining to governmental polity. They have never been regarded as such, and to deny it now would be to deny the wisdom and experience of those who framed our constitution and ratified its articles; it would be charging our forefathers with a superstitious prejudice, injustice and oppression, and admitting ourselves to be no less bigoted and intolerant than they were."

Does not this writer know that our forefathers, for whose memory he expresses such a tender regard, *did* permit colored men to vote—that colored men *now* vote in all the N. England States, except in Connecticut, and that here, it was only by the adoption of the State constitution of which he speaks, that they were cut off from their rights? He appears not to be acquainted with these facts. Indeed the style of the above paragraph shows a rather juvenile hand, and we suspect that the writer has not been many years a voter if he ever was one. His argument that we should not depart from the customs of our ancestors, lest we stigmatize their memory, concedes the whole ground, inasmuch as these ancestors did recognize the political rights of the colored man and allowed him to vote.

The question, in our view, is not one of mere privilege to the present race of colored men in our State. It is of vastly more consequence than that, and reaches down to the great and fundamental principles upon which the institutions of the Free States are based. Correctly answered, it strikes a moral blow at slavery, in a constitutional way, more effectual than all the abolition societies that ever had existence in the country. In the slave States the doctrine maintained in every form is, that *men* are *property*. In the Free States, where the elective franchise is denied to colored men, the same doctrine is practically maintained. It is true that in the Northern States, black men are not held to servitude against their will (except criminals of course) Colored men cannot be bought or sold. So far is an improvement—a very considerable step towards freedom. But, nevertheless, while only governmental protection is afforded to colored men, without the recognition of their right to participate in that government, they are *treated as property merely*. They are protected from violence. So is property. But they are permitted to testify in our courts. Why?—but for the white man's convenience and security? This is the first object. The colored man's privilege in this particular then is only secondary or incidental. What is he then but well guarded *property*—not property in the possession of *another*, as a slave—but in all other respects *property*.

With what consistency can the freemen of
Connecticut clamor against the extension of
slavery, while they voluntarily adhere to one of
the great principles of the slave system? Is
it from humane motives merely? By no
means? Humanity may be one consideration,
but if that were all, they would have enough to
do in alleviating the physical sufferings of
thousands of the poor in their midst, and thou-
sands more in Ireland and other parts of Eu-
rope. These Connecticut freemen express
hostility to the increase of slavery on other
grounds than opposition to the task-master's
whip. They profess to be actuated by a de-
sire to prevent the extension of all moral and
political slavery. Why then do they tolerate
such slavery in their midst?

We answer—because they have permitted an
influence from the slave States to blind their eyes
so effectually that they have not been able to see
their true position. Instead of looking for the
principles that lie at the foundation of all their
free institutions, they have been canvassing the
features and skin of some poor, ignorant black
man, and asking themselves whether on the
whole it is expedient that he and others of the
same race be permitted to exercise the elective
franchise. This is a narrow and bigoted view
of a great subject, involving principles of univer-
sal concern and obligation, and of peculiar and
abiding interest in this country to the Free
States.

The national constitution, formed by men who
were slave holders as well as by those who
were not, does not contain any prohibitory clause
against the exercise of the elective franchise by
colored men; but the constitution of the self-
styled free State of Connecticut does contain
such a clause—and it was placed there as an of-
fering to Southern slavery. Far before the adop-
tion of this constitution there was no such oppo-
sition to the political rights of colored men.—
They voted here and in many other States and
even in some Slave States—but as slavery grew
arrogant in its own section of the country, it
demanded tribute from this, and it was rendered.

Is it not time then, that the present race of
freemen went back to the practices and princi-
ples of their fathers? We think so, and for
one, we are ready to do what lies in our power
to make our State truly free, as well as to ren-
der justice to a proscribed class, though they
may be few in number and their cause may be
for five or six years unpopular.

GOD NEVER MADE A SLAVE.

Columbia's sons though slaves ye be,
God your Creator made you free,
He, life to all and being gave,
But never, never, made a Slave.

His works are wonderful to see,
All, all, proclaim the Deity;
He made the earth, and formed the wave,
But never, never, made a Slave.

He made the skies with spangles bright,
The moon to shine by silent night,
The sun, and spread the vast concave,
But never, never, made a Slave.

The verdent earth on which we tread,
Was by his hand all carpeted,
Enough for all he freely gave,
But never, never, made a Slave.

All men are equal in his sight,
The bond, the free, the black, the white;
He made them all, them freedom gave,
He made the man, man made the Slave.

Yale University Library
The James Weldon Johnson
Memorial Collection of
Negro Arts & Letters
Founded by Carl Van Vechten
1941

Gift of
Dixwell Avenue
Cogregational Church