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+This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements,
+metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be
+in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES.
+
+Procedures for determining public domain status are described in
+the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org.
+
+No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in
+jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize
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+status under the laws that apply to them.
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+Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for
+eBook #66487 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/66487)
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-The Project Gutenberg eBook of The year of jubilee;, by Nathaniel S. Prime
-
-This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and
-most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions
-whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms
-of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at
-www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you
-will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before
-using this eBook.
-
-Title: The year of jubilee;
- but not to Africans: a discourse, delivered July 4th, 1825,
- being the 49th anniversary of American independence
-
-Author: Nathaniel S. Prime
-
-Release Date: October 7, 2021 [eBook #66487]
-
-Language: English
-
-Character set encoding: UTF-8
-
-Produced by: Charlene Taylor, Barry Abrahamsen, and the Online Distributed
- Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was
- produced from images generously made available by The Internet
- Archive)
-
-*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE YEAR OF JUBILEE; ***
-
-
-
-
- The year of jubilee; but not to Africans: a discourse, delivered July
- 4th, 1825, being the 49th anniversary of American independence
-
-
-
-
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
-
-
- THE
-
-
-
- YEAR OF JUBILEE;
-
-
-
- BUT NOT TO AFRICANS:
-
-
-
- A Discourse,
-
-
-
- DELIVERED JULY 4TH, 1825,
-
-
-
- BEING THE 49TH ANNIVERSARY OF AMERICAN INDEPENDENCE.
-
-
-
- ──❧──
-
-
- BY NATHANIEL S. PRIME,
-
- Pastor of the First Presbyterian Church, in Cambridge, N. Y.
-
-
- ──❧──
-
-
-
- SALEM, N. Y.
-
- PRINTED BY DODD AND STEVENSON.
-
- 1825.
-
-
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
-
-
-
- TO THE READER.
-
-
-Though no apology for the present publication, or for the form in which
-it appears, will be attempted, yet it may not be improper or
-uninteresting to state a few facts relating to its origin.
-
-The author has been in the habit, for a number of years past, of
-celebrating the anniversary of our Independence with public worship in
-his own congregation. Previous to the last 4th of July, notice to that
-effect was given, and at the same time it was stated that the subject of
-discourse would be—not American _Liberty_, but—American _Slavery_: in
-connexion with which, the object and operations of “_The American
-Colonization Society_” would be brought into view, and its claims upon
-publick patronage defended and urged. A similar notice was sent to the
-other congregations in this place with an invitation to attend.
-
-To a very respectable audience, thus convened, the following discourse
-was delivered, and a contribution taken up in aid of the Colonization
-Society.
-
-At the close of the service, a meeting was organized, of which the
-following are the minutes:
-
-“_The Hon._ John M’Lean _was chosen Chairman, and_ Gerrit Wendell,
-_Secretary_.
-
-“_The following resolutions were then unanimously adopted._
-
-“Resolved, _That it is expedient and proper, in the view of this
-meeting, hereafter to celebrate the anniversary of our National
-Independence with religious exercises._
-
-“Resolved, _That Messrs._ John Ashton, Sidney Wells _and Dr._ Matthew
-Stevenson _be a committee to make arrangements for the next anniversary,
-by designating the place of meeting, and procuring a speaker for the
-occasion_.”
-
-“_On motion of Mr._ Ashton, _seconded by_ Sidney Wells,—Resolved _that
-the Rev. Mr._ Prime _be requested to furnish for the press, a copy of
-the Address delivered by him this day, and that the above mentioned
-committee be authorized to adopt the necessary measures to procure its
-publication_.”
-
-Although the proposal of the last resolution was totally unexpected to
-the author, yet he is willing frankly to acknowledge that its adoption
-was extremely grateful to his feelings; not only as an explicit approval
-of the sentiments which had been delivered, expressed by many of his own
-congregation and others, whose judgment he highly reveres; but also as
-affording the sanction of their authority in proclaiming them to the
-world. And, that it might have the full influence of that authority, the
-address is printed, with the exception of a few verbal corrections, and
-the addition of two notes, precisely as it was delivered.
-
-The author cannot say that the views exhibited are the result of any new
-convictions in his own mind. Though he was familiar with slavery from
-his birth, yet from his earliest recollection, it was revolting to his
-feelings; and the first emotion of humanity that left an indelible
-impression on his memory, was that of commisseration for the degraded
-condition of a negro child about two years younger than himself; and
-from that moment, he never felt at rest on the subject, till the last
-vestige of the evil was removed from his parental dwelling. The same
-sentiments with respect to the universal guilt, and consequent danger of
-the American people, he has entertained ever since he became acquainted
-with the institutions of his country, and has occasionally exhibited
-them; but he acknowledges himself highly censurable in not having more
-frequently and pointedly urged them. He therefore presents this address
-to the publick, not only in compliance with the wishes of those whom he
-cannot refuse, but as a small atonement for having so often neglected to
-employ his pen, and raise his voice against an evil so extensive in its
-operation, and so alarming in its consequences.
-
-_Cambridge_, July 5th, 1825.
-
-
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
-
-
-
-
- A DISCOURSE, &c.
-
-
-THE words from which I propose to address you, on this occasion, you
-will find recorded in “The DECLARATION of the INDEPENDENCE of the UNITED
-STATES of AMERICA;”—the first clause after the preamble.
-
-The words are these:
-
- “_We hold these truths to be self-evident; that all men are
- created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with
- certain unalienable rights; that among these are Life, Liberty,
- and the pursuit of Happiness._”
-
-Man, considered as a rational and social being, occupies a variety of
-important relations in the universe of God. In the first place he stands
-related to that great and glorious Being who gave him existence, and he
-is under the most solemn and indissoluble obligations, to the exercise
-of eternal reverence, love and gratitude. However indifferent he may
-feel, in his present fallen state, to the demands of heaven, and however
-negligent he may be of the duties which result from those demands, it is
-an incontrovertible truth, that the service of God has the first and
-highest claim. Hence, the first and greatest commandment of the law is
-declared, by the divine Saviour to be this; “_Thou shalt love the Lord
-thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy
-mind, and with all thy strength._” Mark xii. 30. An immediate and
-constant compliance with this precept should be the first object of
-every human being.
-
-But although this is the first, it is not the only duty of man. He
-occupies other relations, and, of course, is subjected to the authority
-of other duties. Passing over all the other subordinate connexions of
-man, as foreign from our present purpose, I shall here notice only his
-relation to his own species, and the obligations which result from that
-relation. All men are formed by the same hand, born into the same world,
-under the same circumstances, and are bound by considerations both of
-duty and interest to respect each other’s rights, and to promote each
-other’s happiness. These duties are next in importance to those which
-relate to God. Therefore, our blessed Lord, after declaring the precept
-already quoted to be the first commandment of the law, adds, “And the
-second is like” to it, “_Thou shall love thy neighbour as thyself_.” He
-then declares, with respect to both, “There is no commandment greater
-than these.” Here then we have a concise, but complete exposition of
-man’s duty in relation to his own species. It is applicable to all the
-possible circumstances of life; and at the same time, so plain, that the
-smallest share of intellect is sufficient to understand and apply it. It
-accords precisely with that golden rule which the Saviour delivered, in
-his sermon on the mount; “_All things whatsoever ye would that men
-should do to you, do ye even so to them; for this is the law and the
-prophets._” Matthew vii. 12. That is, all the duties which God has ever
-required of man in relation to his own species, either in the law or the
-prophets, are comprehended in this single precept, _Do to others just as
-you would wish them to do to you_. Did this principle regulate the
-conduct of all men, the earth would instantly resume the first bloom of
-Eden. Not only would war, and murder and rapine cease to desolate the
-earth, but animosities and contention and oppression of every kind and
-degree would instantly disappear. Adventitious circumstances might still
-produce distinctions in the relative situations of men; but pride, that
-fiend of hell and enemy of happiness, would be banished from the human
-breast; and one more prospered of heaven than his fellows, would look
-down upon them, not to despise their poverty, nor to rejoice in their
-misery, nor to deprive them of their _liberty_; (the last earthly
-blessing that man can lose;) but to compassionate their necessities, to
-console them under adversity, and to administer to their relief. The
-whole human family would be bound together by the sense of a common
-nature, and the bonds of sincere affection: in a word, they would feel
-that they were _bone of each other’s bone; and flesh of each other’s
-flesh_; and in all cases, and under all circumstances, they would act
-like _brethren_.
-
-From these remarks, you will perceive that the words of my text,
-although they are not a part of the inspired volume, contain sentiments
-in perfect accordance with the divine declarations. This consideration
-therefore is sufficient to entitle them to the highest respect. But, in
-this favoured land, they do not need this argument to give them
-authority. They are the words of our _fathers_; not spoken by the
-fireside, or in the closet, while they rested quietly in the midst of
-their domestick circles, without a witness of their declarations; but
-proclaimed and published to the whole world, while they stood in
-jeopardy of their lives and all that they held dear on earth; and with a
-solemn appeal _to the_ SUPREME JUDGE _of the world for the rectitude of
-[their] intentions_. Nay, more; some of them sealed this declaration
-with their own blood, and voluntarily laid down their lives, to deliver
-their posterity from tyranny and oppression, and to procure for them the
-blessings of _liberty_ and self-government. Confining ourselves to this
-view of the subject, we should pronounce that native American unworthy
-of his parentage and the name which he bears, who would not revere the
-words of his father, uttered under such circumstances. Nay, that man,
-let him be who he will, and let his circumstances be what they may, is
-unworthy to tread American soil and breathe American air, who does not
-cheerfully and sincerely adopt the words of my text, as containing the
-sentiments of his heart, “_All men are created equal, and are endowed by
-their Creator with certain unalienable rights, among which are life,
-liberty and the pursuit of happiness._”
-
-When this declaration, particularly this clause of it, was reported in
-heaven, (and I presume to believe that the sun had not set on the fourth
-of July, 1776, before the transactions of the American Congress were
-published to the celestial hosts,) what think you were the expectations
-of angels and the spirits of just men made perfect, with respect to the
-state of things which would succeed in this nation? Doubtless, the
-former, in whose respective ranks _liberty_ and _equality_ are not only
-_professed_ but _practised_, expected, upon their first mission to this
-lower world, to see the American people, without distinction of
-complexion or circumstances, enjoying the blessings of freedom. And with
-equal probability may we imagine, that those happy souls who had been
-redeemed from the earth, and who had here witnessed, with their own
-eyes, the oppressions of man exercised upon his own species; some of
-whom had, perhaps, themselves been personally guilty in this matter, and
-had found, from their own experience, that the last pollution, from
-which a Saviour’s blood can wash the human soul, is the sweat or blood
-of a black man’s body; I say, we may safely imagine, that, among these,
-there was one universal shout of joy. They rejoiced to hear, that, in
-one nation at least of this fallen world, after the lapse of almost 6000
-years, THE RIGHTS OF MAN were at last understood, and a solemn
-resolution to respect them had been unanimously adopted: that universal
-emancipation had been proclaimed to three millions of the human family.
-
-In view of these considerations, could angels and redeemed souls have
-reasonably expected or believed, _if there is any sincerity in man_,
-that from the benefits of this solemn declaration, adopted under all the
-solemn circumstances just mentioned, and with the most solemn appeal to
-heaven, _every sixth man_ was excluded, and _doomed to perpetual
-slavery_; and _that_, for no other reason, than because the God of
-nature had caused them to be born in a torrid clime, where the sun had
-burnt their skin and crisped their hair, and they had been transported
-against their will, to a land inhabited by white men?
-
-And if the celestial hosts were then restrained from an universal
-clamour of disapprobation, by the consideration that such an exception
-was rendered necessary by the existing circumstances of the country, and
-the impossibility of emancipating 500,000 slaves while our shores were
-invaded by a foreign foe; could they have been persuaded to believe,
-that, after heaven had espoused the cause of America, and God himself
-had fought her battles, and victory had crowned her arms, the American
-people would permit almost half a century to roll away in the enjoyment
-of unexampled liberty, prosperity and happiness, while slavery would be
-permitted to increase with the increase of their wealth and population?
-Could they expect that this solemn declaration of Independence would be
-annually read the 50th time, accompanied with the roar of cannon, the
-display of banners, and shouts of joy, and that thousands and hundreds
-of thousands of dollars would be expended on every return of this
-anniversary in feasting and dissipation and tumult, and yet _no year of
-Jubilee_ be proclaimed to the oppressed sons of Africa?
-
-But such is the fact. This day commences the 50th year of freedom to
-American white men, and yet a million and a half of our fellow men,
-within our own dwellings, are this moment groaning under the chains of
-bondage. Tell me not, as it is often told by the advocates of slavery,
-that they are incapable of providing for themselves; and are therefore
-happier in their present dependent condition, than if they were
-immediately emancipated. I cheerfully admit that the little feathered
-songster that was hatched in a cage or incarcerated before his wings
-were fledged, may be ignorant of most of the sweets of liberty; and
-after being long accustomed to have his food provided by his owner’s
-hand, might be incapable of finding it, in equal profusion, in the
-fields and forests; but does this prove that he has not a nature adapted
-to the enjoyment of liberty, and equally entitled to the privilege with
-other birds?
-
-But on this point reasoning is needless. I appeal to my text. “ALL _men
-are created equal_,” said our forefathers, “_and are endowed by their
-Creator with certain unalienable rights; among these are life_, LIBERTY
-_and the pursuit of happiness_.” For the space of fifty years we have
-been reiterating the same maxim and at the same time declaring that it
-is “a self-evident truth.” Now, I say, let us aim at consistency of
-character. Let us reduce the principle to practice, and prove to the
-world that we believe what we say, or blot it out from the declaration
-of our rights and privileges. We may abhor the tyranny of kings and
-emperors, and commiserate the degraded state of their oppressed
-subjects, but a greater incongruity cannot be found in any nation than
-that which exists in our own. In one hand we hold the protestation that
-all men are equal, and entitled to the enjoyment of life and liberty;
-and in the other, we firmly grasp the chains of slavery and wield the
-goads of correction. We proclaim to the world that we are the only
-nation of freemen on earth, and yet daily practise the most absolute
-despotism. It is frequently the case that the same publick newspaper
-which unblushingly asserts the equality of our rights, and the justice
-of our institutions, advertises a whole village of _human beings for
-sale_. Again I say, let us aim at CONSISTENCY: either acknowledge to the
-world that we are tyrants and despots, or act according to our
-professions.
-
-That my text contains a correct assertion, I am not disposed for a
-moment to question: and I should surely be employed to no purpose in
-attempting to prove to others, what they have asserted for half a
-century, to be “a self-evident truth.” If then, all men are, by their
-birth, entitled to the same natural rights and privileges, they can be
-divested of them only by the authority of Him who has the power of life
-and death in his hands. The God of nature has a perfect right to
-authorize one nation to subjugate another, as he delivered the
-Canaanites into the hands of Israel. But surely this is no argument in
-favour of American slavery. When we have found a “_Thus saith the Lord_”
-for the subjugation of Africans, then, and not till then, shall we have
-a right to make them our slaves.
-
-A man may also forfeit his liberty, and even his life, by the commission
-of crimes against the interests of society. And in all such cases, every
-nation on the globe has a charter from the King of heaven to inflict
-merited punishment. But surely no man of common sense will pretend that
-this authorizes any individual or commonwealth to reduce to perpetual
-bondage, and entail the same on their posterity, those who have never
-violated a single law of the land.
-
-The time has been when the event of war has been supposed to confer on
-the victorious party the right of enslaving the vanquished. But this is
-now universally acknowledged to be a principle of barbarism, and is
-abandoned by the civilized world. Where then is our charter for the
-oppression of our fellow men?
-
-Perhaps the most plausible argument in support of American slavery, (and
-it is one that has been newly discovered, for it was first introduced
-into Congress on the Missouri question,) is, that the New Testament
-distinctly recognises without any mark of disapprobation, the relation
-of masters and servants, and St. Paul in his Epistles explicitly enjoins
-on the latter the duty of respect, obedience and fidelity. This argument
-has been triumphantly urged as presenting Divine authority for slavery.
-But pray tell me, are there no servants but slaves? Is there no such
-thing as the relation of master and servant unless where slavery exists?
-If so, tell Great Britain to blot the word from her vocabulary, that it
-has no meaning in the English language, and is exclusively of American
-origin and use.
-
-“But,” says the advocate of slavery, “this argument is not to be got rid
-of in this way. This is mere quibbling. St. Paul speaks not only of
-servants, but of _bond-men_; and he actually enjoins it on every man to
-abide in the same calling, or condition, wherein he is called. And he
-specifies particularly that if any one is called being a _servant_, he
-is to rest contented with the assurance that he is the Lord’s _free
-man_. 1 Cor. vii. 20-22. Nay, in his Epistle to Philemon, he had a fair
-opportunity to put this question at rest for ever; but instead of
-rebuking the master for holding slaves, he returned the _runaway_ to his
-service.”[1] On this ground, it has been asserted, that those who hold
-slaves are more obedient to the Scriptures than those who do not.
-
-Footnote 1:
-
- This whole argument, in all its parts, was once urged with amazing
- zeal, on the floor of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church.
-
-If I am not greatly mistaken in regard to the nature of this argument, I
-could prove, in the same way, that tyranny and despotism are approved of
-God; and that those who submit to such a kind of government, live in
-greater conformity to the Scriptures than the citizens of a republick.
-
-The manner in which I would argue is this. St. Paul, in his Epistle to
-the Romans, says, “Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers; for
-there is no power but of God, the powers that be, are ordained of God.
-Whosoever, therefore, resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of
-God; and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation.”—Rom.
-xiii. 1, 2. Now this solemn injunction, under this awful sanction, was
-imposed by inspiration upon the Christians of Rome, at the time that the
-crown of that empire was worn by Nero, one of the most cruel and
-blood-thirsty tyrants that ever disgraced a throne. By his own direction
-the city was set on fire, which raged for nine successive days,
-spreading desolation and ruin; and then to furnish himself a pretext for
-persecuting the Christians, he laid the crime to their charge, and
-fiercely commenced the bloody work. “Some were wrapped in the skins of
-wild beasts, and torn in pieces by dogs; some were crucified, and
-others, clothed in garments covered with pitch, were set on fire; while
-the cruel monster calmly sat in the window of his palace and enjoyed the
-scene of his own barbarities.” And yet this is the man, whom the apostle
-commands the Christians to revere as “the minister of God;” the
-resistance of whom is threatened with damnation. Was not Paul then the
-advocate of tyranny and oppression? Just as clearly as he was the
-advocate of slavery.
-
-In the same manner I think it can be shown that polygamy is approved by
-St. Paul, at least among the Gentiles. He expressly ordained that “a
-bishop or deacon must be the husband of one wife.” 1 Tim. iii. 2, 12.
-Now the inference is fair, that all other men might have more than one.
-Private members of the church are not restricted in their inclinations
-in this respect, only the officers of the church are not indulged. I see
-no way to avoid this conclusion. How then shall we reconcile these
-apparent inconsistencies?
-
-In my view, the solution is plain and easy. Upon the first introduction
-of the gospel into any pagan land, there always will be many evils
-existing, which are so completely wrought into the customs, interests
-and institutions of society, that it is impossible to correct them at
-once. Nay, if it were possible, the sudden revolution would instantly
-produce unspeakable misery. Take, for instance, the last mentioned case:
-Suppose, in a nation where polygamy is extensively practised, every man
-could be induced to repudiate all his wives but one; how many thousands
-of helpless women and children would be turned on the wide world,
-without the means of support, exposed to inevitable wretchedness and
-want! The sudden adoption of the true Christian principle, under these
-circumstances, would be productive of vastly greater misery than is now
-experienced from this horrid pagan practice; and the Christian religion
-would be execrated as a system of cruelty.
-
-What then is to be done? Must Christianity sacrifice its holy principles
-at the shrine of pagan impurity? Must we be satisfied to have men
-embrace _the faith of the gospel_, while they retain their own _ungodly
-practices_? No! But wisdom is profitable to direct.—Some method must be
-adopted by which these deeply-rooted evils may be branded with disgrace,
-and thus gradually but effectually eradicated. For this purpose St.
-Paul, or rather the Holy Spirit, ordained in those countries where
-polygamy was common, that “a bishop or deacon must be the husband of one
-wife.” A man that sincerely embraced the gospel, might be admitted to
-the privileges of the church without first turning half a dozen women
-out of doors; but he never could arise to any dignity, or be capable of
-holding any office in the church. Now you plainly perceive that the
-necessary operation of this simple regulation, was to abolish gradually,
-but effectually, this vile practice; not however, by sovereign authority
-or absolute force, but by the voluntary consent of the party concerned.
-
-Thus it appears to be the genius of the gospel to tolerate an evil for a
-while, where the immediate and total abolition would be productive of
-greater miseries and crimes; while, at the same time, it requires the
-use of all prudent and effectual measures for its ultimate extirpation.
-
-I humbly conceive that it is on this ground alone, that the Scriptures,
-in certain cases, allude to despotism, slavery and many other evils
-without a distinct expression of disapprobation. Had the evangelists and
-apostles explicitly denounced the tyranny of Rome, and declared that
-slavery was contrary to the law of nature, and the law of God, they
-would have been instantly slain, or driven, at the point of the sword,
-from every province of the Roman empire.
-
-On this account every argument founded on such texts of Scripture in
-support of slavery, is of no more weight than the dust of the balance.
-
-That slavery is an evil is generally acknowledged in those parts of our
-country where the least of it exists; and of course, where the most of
-its horrors are unknown. And there are undoubtedly many in the
-slave-holding states who deplore the evil, and would gladly remove it,
-if there was no obstacle in the way. But it is a matter of deep regret
-that there are thousands of our countrymen, claiming the style of
-republicans, who are the unblushing advocates of slavery. And what is
-worse than all, and what renders the extirpation of this evil the more
-hopeless, is, that when our northern citizens remove to the south, many
-of them become not only the owners of slaves, but in many instances, the
-warmest advocates of the principle of slavery. This amazing change in
-sentiment and feeling, I am unwilling to ascribe so much to what is
-often alleged, that they find the evils of slavery far less than they
-expected, and the subjects of it contented and happy; as to the fact,
-that familiarity with any vice blinds the human mind to its enormity. I
-doubt not that the most enthusiastick republican of our country, if he
-found it for his interest to reside under the most despotick government
-of Europe, would, after a number of years, return with the report, that
-the subjects of that country were much better contented, and vastly more
-happy than he had anticipated; and it would not be strange if his zeal
-for democracy, and hatred of monarchy were equally diminished. But this
-would never prove to me, that the subjects of a despotism are as happy
-as they would be, if they were placed in a situation, and prepared, to
-enjoy the blessings of a free government.
-
-That this is the true reason of this change, I think is evident from the
-fact, that our northern men, after they become familiar with slavery,
-can calmly indulge themselves in that kind of treatment of slaves, which
-would previously have made them shudder. In this connexion I will
-mention a _fact_, which for the credit of New-England, and the honour of
-religion, I would gladly conceal to the judgment day, if the
-circumstances of the case had not been publicly displayed through this
-region of country. Two years ago a native of Vermont, and a minister of
-the gospel too, who has resided some years at the South, passed with his
-family, through this town and put up for the night within the sound of
-my voice where I now stand. They were attended by a servant-girl, who
-was not permitted to eat at a table or sleep on a bed, though in the
-true spirit of northern feeling, both were kindly proffered by the
-landlady. She spent her night on the naked floor, with no other pillow
-than her bundle of clothes; and set out in the morning in an open
-waggon, to endure the heat of a summer’s sun, with no other covering for
-her head than the woolly fleece which nature gave. Such kind of
-treatment, for aught I know, may be deemed necessary at the south, as I
-understood, it was then alleged, to keep the blacks from being “_exalted
-above measure_;” yet surely it cannot be witnessed, without sentiments
-of indignation, in a northern clime. And for the honour of humanity, to
-say nothing of the gospel ministry, I pray God, that my own eyes may
-never again witness a similar scene.
-
-But let the plea be reiterated as often as it may, that the slavery
-which exists in our country is not so appalling as northern men suppose;
-it is still an evil, that exists contrary to the law of nature and
-nature’s God, and in the face too, of American rights and privileges.
-And beyond this, it stands necessarily connected with other evils, which
-are more shocking to the feelings of humanity, than slavery itself. Take
-for example, these simple facts. By the laws of some of the
-slave-holding states, no man can emancipate his own slaves; and any
-person is liable to the barbarous and disgraceful punishment of being
-_whipped_ on the naked back, if convicted of _teaching a slave to read_.
-Thus the poor Africans are not only deprived of their liberty, but are
-completely cut off from almost the only means of information, with
-respect to their duty to God and their fellow men, and of preparation
-for the eternal world; of the only means that can alleviate their
-sorrows and enliven their solitude. By these laws, a pious and
-benevolent master, who has inherited a hundred slaves, and who would
-gladly deliver them from bondage, or, at least, alleviate, by every
-means in his power, the miseries of their condition, is compelled,
-against every feeling of his heart, not only to hold them in servitude,
-but to keep them in absolute ignorance.
-
-Although these laws are founded neither in humanity, nor Christianity,
-yet evidently in _good policy_; and they are necessarily connected with
-slavery, in the extent to which it exists. The physical power of the
-black population, in many districts of our country, bears such an
-alarming proportion to that of the whites, that nothing is wanting on
-their part but information, to enable them to assert and maintain their
-rights. Only let them know what they are, and of what they are capable,
-and in one month’s time the Tragedy of St. Domingo would be re-acted on
-this side of the Gulf-Stream.
-
-By this time, my hearers, I presume you have begun to inquire for the
-remedy of this “legion of evils:” and some of you may have drawn the
-conclusion, that nothing short of the immediate and absolute
-emancipation of all the slaves of our country would satisfy my mind. But
-this is not the fact. However highly my feelings may be wrought on this
-subject, they have not got the better of my understanding. I am
-perfectly satisfied that it is one of those evils which cannot be
-removed by a single stroke. The immediate emancipation of all the
-slaves, would doubtless be attended with consequences, both upon
-themselves and the whites, vastly more terrible and distressing, than
-all the horrours of slavery. And if St. Paul himself were now on earth,
-and consulted on the subject, I doubt not he would disapprove of such a
-measure. It has been already shown that there are evils existing in the
-pagan world, which are directly opposed to Christianity; and yet the
-genius of the gospel, upon its first introduction, does not demand their
-immediate and entire abolition. And although this country is not
-strictly speaking a pagan country, yet the practice in question is a
-pagan practice; and so effectually wrought into the habits and feelings
-and institutions of our land, that its complete extirpation must
-necessarily be the work of time.—But here let it be particularly
-observed, that, in all such cases, we have no licence for the toleration
-of any sinful custom, a single moment, without the adoption of wise and
-prudent measures calculated ultimately to abolish it.
-
-This, it appears to me, is the only course that can be adopted in this
-country for the annihilation of slavery; and in this point of view, I
-introduce to your notice, the object and operations of the “_American
-Colonization Society_.”
-
-This association was formed, at the city of Washington, in the beginning
-of the year 1817; and is patronized by many of the most distinguished
-officers of the general government. The Chief Justice of the United
-States has been, from its first formation, the president of the Society.
-Its object is the transportation to Africa of the free people of colour,
-who are willing to go, and the establishment of them in a colony, or
-colonies, under all the advantages of civil and religious privileges.
-Though its incipient measures were attended with some adverse
-providences, yet it has progressed with as much success, and with as
-flattering prospects as could possibly have been anticipated. A district
-of fertile territory on the Western Coast of Africa has been purchased
-of the natives, and a flourishing colony planted there, under the
-direction and control of resident agents. Schools are organized, and the
-means of grace established among them. The plan has been countenanced,
-though not explicitly approved, by the government of our country; and it
-has been distinctly recommended by the supreme judicatories of several
-of the most numerous and respectable denominations of Christians to the
-patronage of their members, especially on this interesting occasion.
-
-As this Society, since its organization, has met with considerable
-opposition, I feel it to be my duty to present a few considerations in
-support of its claims.
-
-If the slaves of our country are ever to enjoy all the blessings of
-freedom, it must evidently be, in a state of total separation from the
-white population. Such are the present feelings of our citizens, and so
-firmly are they fixed in their breasts, that we need never expect to see
-the blacks amalgamated with the whites in all the social connexions of
-life. In what district of our country will the latter become willing to
-connect themselves with the former in the relations of the domestick
-circle? What legislature will be willing to admit the negro to equal
-privileges and powers with the white man, on the floor of the senate
-chamber? What University will hold forth the same advantages and honours
-to our own children and the descendants of Africans? But until all these
-things are realized, if they must live together in the same territory,
-the negro’s mind will forever be depressed to the dust with a sense of
-conscious inferiority, and can never aspire to those elevated
-distinctions of which it is capable. And this is the grand reason of all
-that present dulness and stupidity, which are frequently adduced, as
-evidence that negroes are a race of beings but little elevated above the
-brutal creation. If therefore universal liberty should be proclaimed
-through our land, and the African race still be permitted to live in the
-midst of us, disfranchised by our feelings and customs, if not by our
-laws,[2] of the rights of freemen, we have no reason to suppose that
-they would be essentially improved or benefited by their freedom. It is
-therefore most palpably manifest, that if our slaves are ever to enjoy
-all the blessings of liberty, they must not only be liberated from the
-chains of bondage, but at the same time, be placed in a situation in
-which they may aspire to all the advantages and distinctions of
-civilized life.
-
-Footnote 2:
-
- In some of the states, even where slavery is abolished, the blacks are
- disfranchised of the rights of citizens. To the eternal disgrace of
- our own state, the despotick principles of our Constitution have been
- multiplied instead of being diminished by the late Convention. By the
- old Constitution, only one class of citizens were divested of certain
- natural rights without having committed any crime to forfeit them. But
- by the present Constitution there are two. And the reasons in both
- cases are very similar; in the one, _wearing a black coat_, and in the
- other, _a black skin_. But the operation of these regulations is much
- more oppressive in the latter, than in the former case. The colour of
- a man’s dress depends on his own will; but, “_the Ethiopian_ CANNOT
- _change his skin_,” if he would.
-
-This is the immediate object of the Colonization Society. Nor is it a
-mere matter of doubtful experiment. A similar attempt has long since
-been made by the British nation, at Sierra Leone, and the result has
-fully proven to the world, that the minds of black men are as capable as
-the whites, when placed under equal circumstances of improvement. The
-same results are beginning to be realized in the infant colony planted
-by our own countrymen at Cape Mesurado. And nothing is wanting, but the
-patronage of our own citizens, to extend the same advantages to hundreds
-and thousands of the degraded and oppressed sons of Africa, who are
-still in our land.
-
-In further confirmation of the same views, it may be observed, that in
-the slave-holding states there are many owners of slaves who would
-gladly emancipate them, but are expressly prohibited. It is impossible,
-therefore, for them to proclaim “liberty to the captives,” unless they
-can transport them without the limits of the state. What then can such
-benevolent masters do with their slaves? To turn them out into our
-western wilds, would be to expose them to certain starvation; or if any
-survived, they would be hunted down as wild beasts, by a herd of brutal
-kidnappers, and carried back and sold to less merciful masters than they
-served before. To transport them to a foreign shore, if any individual
-were able to incur the expense, without any concert of action, would be
-to expose them to immediate death by barbarous hands. It is therefore
-impossible to afford those who are disposed, an opportunity to
-emancipate their slaves, without such a concert of action as shall
-protect the colony in its infantile state, till it shall acquire
-strength and ability to defend itself. Such is the object of the
-Colonization Society.
-
-Let not this effort of beneficence be paralized by the plea, that it is
-an insignificant undertaking compared with the magnitude of the evil
-intended to be removed. Did you never see a cloud, no bigger than a
-man’s hand, at its first appearance, finally overspread the whole
-horizon and pour a copious blessing on the thirsty earth? What plan of
-benevolence, in this fallen world, was not small at its commencement?
-Even the kingdom of God was once like _a grain of mustard seed_; but it
-has gradually increased and will continue to grow till it fills the
-world. The Herculean labour of abolishing the slave-trade, with all its
-bloody horrours, was commenced, within our recollection, by a single
-individual, in the legislature of a single nation, amidst the clamours
-of a host of opposition; and yet that individual has lived, and we have
-lived, to see the horrid traffick proscribed, not only by that nation,
-but by the civilized world, and the practice declared _piracy_ by
-several nations. What influence then can a consideration of the
-smallness of the means, compared with the end, have upon the benevolent
-mind in relation to this subject? It may indeed stimulate to increased
-exertion, but it surely can produce no discouraging effect.
-
-But even admitting that the efforts of this Society should never
-ultimately accomplish the object of its aim, _the entire abolition of
-American slavery_, there is one important result which it cannot fail to
-produce. Besides securing the blessings of freedom and self-government
-to some of those who had previously groaned under the chains of bitter
-servitude, it will afford a ready introduction of the blessings of
-civilization and the gospel to the benighted tribes of Africa. It is
-recorded in God’s sure word of prophecy, that “Ethiopia shall stretch
-forth her hands to God,” while “the isles of the sea shall wait for his
-law.” In view of the numerous and simultaneous efforts of the Christian
-world to extend the blessings of the gospel to the ends of the earth, we
-may justly consider the exertions of the American Colonization Society
-as ultimately, though not directly, aiming at the same object; and we
-may with propriety regard the Institution as one important wheel in that
-vast system of moral machinery which, under the blessing of heaven, is
-destined to regenerate a fallen world.
-
-In this view of the subject, I cannot but indulge in what some may call
-the flights of fancy, but what I fondly persuade myself is the reality
-of vision. O Africa, long oppressed and degraded Africa! Heaven has
-witnessed thy bitter sufferings, and the long black catalogue of thy
-wrongs is hid up in store against the day of retribution. But I see the
-Sun of righteousness arising upon thee, with healing in his wings. I see
-the shades of more than Egyptian darkness dispelled by his resplendent
-rays. I see thy wounds, which have been bleeding for ages, instantly
-staunched and healed. I see the ferocity of the tyger exchanged for the
-meekness of the lamb. I hear thy groves and plains resounding with the
-shouts of joy and gladness, and the still sweeter song of redeeming
-grace and love. I see “thy wildernesses and solitary places made glad,
-and thy desert rejoicing and blossoming as the rose. Thy parched ground
-has become a pool, and thy thirsty land springs of water. In the
-habitation of dragons, where each lay, there is grass with reeds and
-rushes. And a high way is there, and a way that is called the Way of
-Holiness: the unclean shall not pass over it: but it shall be for thee;
-the way-faring men, though fools, shall not err therein. No lion shall
-be there, nor any ravenous beast shall go up thereon, it shall not be
-found there; but the redeemed shall walk there. And the ransomed of the
-Lord shall return and come to Zion with songs and everlasting joy upon
-their heads: they shall obtain joy and gladness; _and sorrow and
-sighing_ shall flee away.” Isaiah xxxv. 1-10. These blessed results I
-see effected by the instrumentality of America, the author of all thy
-wrongs. And though thy sweat and tears and blood have, for ages, been
-crying to heaven from the ground, for vengeance on her devoted head; yet
-now I hear thy voice, in the true spirit of gospel forgiveness,
-intreating pardon for thy guilty murderers. “O remember not against them
-their _former_ iniquities.” I see a tide of pious joy and gratitude,
-flowing from thy streaming eyes, sufficient, if aught but a Saviour’s
-blood were sufficient, to wash away their crimson stains. O happy, happy
-land, once wretched and forlorn! Thy mother’s children shall no longer
-be angry with thee, because thou art black, because the sun hath looked
-upon thee—they shall no longer make thee keeper of their vineyards,
-while thine own vineyard lies waste. Thy complexion is indeed black, but
-comely; and thy soul has been washed in the fountain of redeeming grace,
-as white and as pure as the redeemed of any other clime; and thou canst
-now chaunt as high a note of praise to the God of thy salvation; and
-though here thou hast been excluded from the rights of freemen, and the
-society of white men, yet in heaven thou shalt mingle, without
-discrimination, among the blood-bought throng, and there occupy as high
-a throne, and wear as bright a crown.
-
-In urging the claims of this subject, it is necessary that I should
-obviate an objection which is frequently made in this section of the
-country. It is said that “this is a matter in which we have no concern
-at all—that it belongs exclusively to the southern states.” If this plea
-were founded in fact, are we willing to admit, that the citizens of the
-northern states are so selfish, that they have no sympathy for the
-sufferings of humanity, if they are only out of sight? But I am bold to
-assert that this objection is utterly groundless; and that there is not
-a single native or naturalized citizen in the United States but is
-verily guilty in this matter. It is a well known fact, that in every
-original state in the union, excepting one, slavery has been sanctioned;
-and that it still exists, to a greater or less extent, in all the states
-and territories with the exception of five. Now it is useless for a man
-to plead _not guilty_ to the charge of murder, because he has taken the
-life of only one individual, while others may have slain their
-thousands. It is the _principle_ we are concerned with, and the
-principle of slavery has been as firmly sanctioned in most of the
-northern states, as in any part of the union; though our citizens have
-never found it for their interest to carry it as far. But for this
-single circumstance, I presume every farm in this region would now be
-cultivated by the labour, and watered by the sweat of negroes. With what
-an ill grace then can any, who have implicitly or explicitly sworn
-allegiance to the institutions of their respective states and the
-general government, especially those who have been, or still are the
-owners of human flesh and blood, hold up their heads and say, “We are
-pure from the blood of Africans?”
-
-But, my hearers, I have not yet presented this subject in the light of
-its most appalling darkness; nor applied the sharpest point of its
-universal bearing. _The_ _union of these States was originally purchased
-at the price of the blood and groans of Africa_; and _all our citizens_
-from the north and the south, from the east and the west, _gave their
-consent to the bargain_. One section of the constitution of the United
-States was written, like the laws of Draco, in lines of blood; the blood
-of Africans.[3] By it, all the horrours of the slave-trade, the whole
-root and stock and branch of which slavery is the bitter fruit, were
-firmly sanctioned for thirty tedious years. During this gloomy period,
-under the sanction of the charter of freemen, and of freemen too, who,
-in the days of their emancipation from the chains of despotism, appealed
-to heaven for the sincerity of their intentions, while they declared to
-the world “that all men are created equal, and endowed by their Creator
-with an unalienable right to life, _liberty_ and the pursuit of
-happiness;” under the sanction of such a charter, adopted by such men,
-and under such circumstances, thousands and tens of thousands of
-harmless Africans, who were born free as the air of heaven, or the
-streams of the fountain, were forcibly dragged from their native shores,
-bound with massy chains, crowded into the filthy hold of a floating
-dungeon, without power to rise or room to stand; and when multitudes had
-been swept off by wasting pestilence, and found a watery grave, the
-wretched remnant, emaciated with famine and worn down with disease, were
-sold under the hammer into perpetual bondage. Without the sanction of
-all these horrours, the union of these states would never have been
-effected. And in consenting to this measure, the northern states became
-voluntarily partakers with those of the south, in all the guilt of the
-barbarous slave-trade and all its horrid consequences.
-
-Footnote 3:
-
- Article I. Sec. 9.
-
-O my country! what atonement canst thou make for such bloody crimes?
-What fountain, but that which flows from Calvary, can wash away thy
-crimson stains? In vain wouldst thou offer “many thousands of rams, or
-ten thousands of rivers of oil. The blood of thy firstborn would not
-expiate thy transgression, nor the fruit of thy body, the sin of thy
-soul.” Mic. vi. 7. “Though thou wash thee with nitre, and take thee much
-soap, yet thine iniquity is marked before me, saith the Lord God.” Jer.
-ii. 22. I beseech thee, do not aggravate thy guilt, and provoke anew the
-wrath of heaven, by justifying thy deeds or pleading innocent of the
-charge. “For thy sin is written with a pen of iron, and with the point
-of a diamond; it is graven on the table of thy heart, and” if not “upon
-the horns of thy altars,” it is inscribed in the archives of thy
-cabinet, and whilst thy children shall read the legacies of their
-fathers they shall remember and bear witness of thy crimes, to the
-latest posterity. Fly, O fly, in the first place, to the fountain of a
-Saviour’s bleeding veins, and there be washed from all thy pollution:
-and then, as a testimony of thy gratitude, that much, very much is
-forgiven thee, summon all thy energies to repair the injuries thou hast
-done. “Proclaim liberty to thy captives; say to the prisoners, go forth;
-and to them that are in darkness, show yourselves.” Isa. xlix. 9.
-Restore them to “the land of their fathers’ sepulchres,” and let them
-once more peacefully enjoy the inheritance of their ancestors. Wherever
-they may have been born, Africa is their home. Though transported to the
-most distant countries, and situated in the most temperate regions of
-the globe, and transmitted through a series of generations, they still
-retain in the constitution of their frames, and on the whole surface of
-their bodies, the title of heaven to those torrid climes. The God of
-nature has evidently determined, that they shall never be divested of
-their original inheritance. Though “the descendants of Cush can never
-change their skin,” yet the time will come when their souls shall be
-made white in the blood of the Lamb; and then, in their own land, which
-God allotted to their progenitor, they shall stretch forth their hands
-to God, and under their own vine and fig-tree enjoy the fruit of their
-labours, without any to molest or make them afraid.
-
-There is one consideration more, by which I would urge the claims of
-this subject. If the people of the United States cannot be extensively
-aroused to undertake the redress of African wrongs, from motives of
-humanity, and a sense of duty, the apprehension of personal danger may
-with propriety be awakened in their minds. God deals with nations, in
-this world, on a different principle from what he deals with
-individuals.—The wicked man is often permitted to prosper in his sins,
-and to die without pain; because the righteous retributions of justice
-await him in the eternal world.—But wicked nations exist, in their
-national capacity, only in this life. Therefore, if national sins are
-ever visited with the indignation of heaven, it must be in the present
-world. Hence, we may draw the conclusion, that if American slavery is
-offensive to God, the judgments of heaven are now impending over this
-guilty nation. And in what form they will descend, we need not the
-spirit of prophecy to prognosticate. In several of the slave-holding
-states, the black population is already nearly equal to the white; and
-the ratio of increase is so much in their favour, that, in the course of
-a few years, they will be far the most numerous. During the period of
-ten years intervening between the last United States’ census and the
-preceding, the following was the ratio of increase in several states:
-
-
- In Kentucky, the blacks increased 57 per cent, whites only 37 per
- cent.
- Tennessee, the blacks increased 80 per cent, whites only 57 per
- cent.
- Georgia, the blacks increased 40 per cent, whites only 30 per
- cent.
- North-Carolina, the blacks increased 22 per cent, whites only 11
- per cent.
- South-Carolina, the blacks increased 26 per cent, whites only 8
- per cent.
- And in Louisiana as early as 1810 there were 5 blacks to every four
- white men.
-
-It is obvious, that, at this rate, in the course of a few years, those
-districts of our country will be covered with a black population; in
-comparison with which, the whites will appear as grasshoppers before
-them. Now I ask, in such a state of things, what can hinder the blacks
-from arising, and after avenging all their wrongs, by slaying their
-opposers, taking possession of those very lands as the reward of their
-own and their fathers’ labours? Do you say, their minds are incapable of
-such an enterprize? Look at St. Domingo; what has been effected there by
-the African race, in as ignorant and degraded a state as is any where
-witnessed in our own country! And what will our blacks need, but a few
-resolute spirits to concentrate their efforts and direct their energies?
-And if the genius of negroes is so far debased in our own country, that
-nature cannot produce them here, they can easily be furnished from the
-kingdom of Hayti. Though that little empire is now at peace with us and
-the world, yet black men have always a peculiar sympathy for their own
-colour. Besides this, many of our own free blacks have already gone, and
-many more will still go to that island, to enjoy all the blessings of
-liberty, civilization and science; leaving many of their brothers and
-children and connexions in bondage among us.—And do you think that a
-black man’s memory is so treacherous, or his heart so callous, that he
-can forget, or not feel for the wrongs of his own flesh and blood?
-Depend upon it, my hearers, on the shore of that sea-beaten isle, many a
-champion will stand, and while he looks to the north and rejoices in the
-privileges which he is permitted to enjoy, he will long to impart them
-to those he has left behind; and if nothing is done, on your part, to
-redress the wrongs of Africa, before you are aware, the alarm of war,
-the din of arms, and the rage of conflagration will have laid in ruins
-the fairest portions of our land.[4]
-
-Footnote 4:
-
- If any are disposed to style this mere conjecture, be it so: but it is
- no more than what has already occurred, and may occur again. The
- revolution in St. Domingo originated in France, and was planned by a
- Society called _Amis de Noirs_, or Friends of the Blacks, organized in
- Paris for the express purpose of aiding the negroes in recovering
- their liberty; of which La Fayette and other distinguished citizens
- were the patrons. And the first individual that drew his sword, was a
- mulatto who had been educated in Paris, and sent to his native isle to
- deliver his coloured brethren from bondage.
-
-Do I hear the inhabitants of the north say, “If such events should be
-realized, the desolation will not come nigh us; and we will not
-interfere to avenge the slaughter of slave-holders!” And are you then
-prepared to perjure yourselves? You have sworn to maintain the union of
-these states, at the price of your treasures and your lives; and are you
-now meditating treason and rebellion in your hearts? You have become a
-party to the guilt of slavery, and will you desert your friends when the
-contract on the part of heaven is to be fulfilled?
-
-But if you are verily guilty in this matter, do not imagine that you can
-evade the punishment of such a crime. It is the righteous God of heaven
-that pleads the cause of the oppressed: and, though the scene of battle
-may not be laid at your doors; though the fiercest wrath may be poured
-out upon those portions of our country where slavery has existed in its
-most extensive and cruel forms; yet the hand of justice will, in some
-way or other, mete out to every district the full tale of its desert.
-Let us hear no more then of local jealousies and feelings, but as the
-sin has involved us in a _common guilt_, let us aim at a common and
-timely expiation. The path of present duty lies open before us, and it
-is only by diligent and faithful perseverance therein, that we can
-expect to escape the indignation of heaven.
-
-This is a concern in which every citizen of the country is interested;
-whether he is now or ever has been a slave-holder or not: and there is
-something for every one to do. The sympathies of every heart must be
-aroused; the patronage of every purse must be secured in favour of these
-incipient measures to remedy the evil; publick attention must not only
-be aroused by an occasional effusion, but be kept awake by frequent
-communications; the general government must be convinced that it is not
-enough to countenance, they must approve and aid this humane
-undertaking—that the fountain of guilt springs from the foundation of
-our Capitol, and that the principal remedy must be applied there; our
-state legislatures must be made to feel that they also have imbrued
-their hands in African blood, and that not a moment is to be lost in
-washing away the stain. Every motive that can interest the
-philanthropist, the patriot, the Christian and the Christian Missionary
-is presented in this subject, and he that can be insensible of its
-influence is unworthy to occupy a place in human society, unless in the
-capacity of “a servant of servants.”
-
-May the voice of timely warning arouse us, before the sword of sleepless
-justice smite our souls.
-
-
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-
-
- ● Transcriber’s Notes:
- ○ Missing or obscured punctuation was silently corrected.
- ○ Typographical errors were silently corrected.
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-<div style='text-align:center; font-size:1.2em; font-weight:bold'>The Project Gutenberg eBook of The year of jubilee;, by Nathaniel S. Prime</div>
-
-<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>
-This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and
-most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions
-whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms
-of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online
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-country where you are located before using this eBook.
-</div>
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-<p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Title: The year of jubilee;</p>
-<p style='display:block; margin-top:0; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:0;'>but not to Africans: a discourse, delivered July 4th, 1825, being the 49th anniversary of American independence</p>
-
-<div style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Author: Nathaniel S. Prime</div>
-
-<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Release Date: October 7, 2021 [eBook #66487]</div>
-
-<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Language: English</div>
-
-<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'>Character set encoding: UTF-8</div>
-
-<div style='display:block; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Produced by: Charlene Taylor, Barry Abrahamsen, and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive)</div>
-
-<div style='margin-top:2em; margin-bottom:4em'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE YEAR OF JUBILEE; ***</div>
-
-<div class='figcenter id001'>
-<img src='images/cover.jpg' alt='' class='ig001' />
-</div>
-<div class='pbb'>
- <hr class='pb c000' />
-</div>
-<div>
- <h1 class='c001'>The year of jubilee; but not to Africans: a discourse, delivered July 4th, 1825, being the 49th anniversary of American independence</h1>
-</div>
-<div class='pbb'>
- <hr class='pb c002' />
-</div>
-
-<div class='nf-center-c0'>
-<div class='nf-center c003'>
- <div>THE</div>
- <div class='c003'><span class='c004'><b>YEAR OF JUBILEE;</b></span></div>
- <div class='c003'><span class='c005'><i>BUT NOT TO AFRICANS</i>:</span></div>
- <div class='c003'><span class='c006'><span class="blackletter"><b>A Discourse,</b></span></span></div>
- <div class='c003'><span class='c005'>DELIVERED JULY <span class='fss'>4TH</span>, 1825,</span></div>
- <div class='c003'>BEING THE 49TH ANNIVERSARY OF AMERICAN INDEPENDENCE.</div>
- <div class='c003'><span class='c007'>──❧──</span></div>
- <div class='c008'><span class='c005'>BY NATHANIEL S. PRIME,</span></div>
- <div class='c000'><span class='c009'><i>Pastor of the First Presbyterian Church, in Cambridge, N. Y.</i></span></div>
- <div class='c008'><span class='c007'>──❧──</span></div>
- <div class='c003'><span class='c005'><i>SALEM, N. Y.</i></span></div>
- <div class='c000'><span class='c009'>PRINTED BY DODD AND STEVENSON.</span></div>
- <div class='c000'><span class='c005'>1825.</span></div>
- </div>
-</div>
-
-<div class='pbb'>
- <hr class='pb c008' />
-</div>
-<div class='chapter'>
- <h2 class='c010'>TO THE READER.</h2>
-</div>
-<p class='c011'>Though no apology for the present publication, or for the form in which it appears,
-will be attempted, yet it may not be improper or uninteresting to state a few facts relating
-to its origin.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>The author has been in the habit, for a number of years past, of celebrating the anniversary
-of our Independence with public worship in his own congregation. Previous to
-the last 4th of July, notice to that effect was given, and at the same time it was stated that
-the subject of discourse would be—not American <i>Liberty</i>, but—American <i>Slavery</i>: in connexion
-with which, the object and operations of “<i>The American Colonization Society</i>” would
-be brought into view, and its claims upon publick patronage defended and urged. A similar
-notice was sent to the other congregations in this place with an invitation to attend.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>To a very respectable audience, thus convened, the following discourse was delivered,
-and a contribution taken up in aid of the Colonization Society.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>At the close of the service, a meeting was organized, of which the following are the
-minutes:</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>“<i>The Hon.</i> John M’Lean <i>was chosen Chairman, and</i> Gerrit Wendell, <i>Secretary</i>.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>“<i>The following resolutions were then unanimously adopted.</i></p>
-
-<p class='c012'>“Resolved, <i>That it is expedient and proper, in the view of this meeting, hereafter to
-celebrate the anniversary of our National Independence with religious exercises.</i></p>
-
-<p class='c012'>“Resolved, <i>That Messrs.</i> John Ashton, Sidney Wells <i>and Dr.</i> Matthew Stevenson
-<i>be a committee to make arrangements for the next anniversary, by designating the place of
-meeting, and procuring a speaker for the occasion</i>.”</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>“<i>On motion of Mr.</i> Ashton, <i>seconded by</i> Sidney Wells,—Resolved <i>that the Rev. Mr.</i>
-Prime <i>be requested to furnish for the press, a copy of the Address delivered by him this day,
-and that the above mentioned committee be authorized to adopt the necessary measures to procure
-its publication</i>.”</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>Although the proposal of the last resolution was totally unexpected to the author,
-yet he is willing frankly to acknowledge that its adoption was extremely grateful to his
-feelings; not only as an explicit approval of the sentiments which had been delivered,
-expressed by many of his own congregation and others, whose judgment he highly reveres;
-but also as affording the sanction of their authority in proclaiming them to the world. And,
-that it might have the full influence of that authority, the address is printed, with the exception
-of a few verbal corrections, and the addition of two notes, precisely as it was delivered.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>The author cannot say that the views exhibited are the result of any new convictions
-in his own mind. Though he was familiar with slavery from his birth, yet from his earliest
-recollection, it was revolting to his feelings; and the first emotion of humanity that left an
-indelible impression on his memory, was that of commisseration for the degraded condition
-of a negro child about two years younger than himself; and from that moment, he never felt
-at rest on the subject, till the last vestige of the evil was removed from his parental dwelling.
-The same sentiments with respect to the universal guilt, and consequent danger of
-the American people, he has entertained ever since he became acquainted with the institutions
-of his country, and has occasionally exhibited them; but he acknowledges himself
-highly censurable in not having more frequently and pointedly urged them. He therefore
-presents this address to the publick, not only in compliance with the wishes of those whom
-he cannot refuse, but as a small atonement for having so often neglected to employ his pen,
-and raise his voice against an evil so extensive in its operation, and so alarming in its consequences.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'><i>Cambridge</i>, July 5th, 1825.</p>
-<div class='pbb'>
- <hr class='pb c008' />
-</div>
-<div class='chapter'>
- <span class='pageno' id='Page_3'>3</span>
- <h2 class='c010'>A DISCOURSE, &amp;c.</h2>
-</div>
-<p class='c011'>THE words from which I propose to address you,
-on this occasion, you will find recorded in “The <span class='fss'>DECLARATION</span>
-of the <span class='fss'>INDEPENDENCE</span> of the <span class='fss'>UNITED STATES</span> of
-<span class='fss'>AMERICA</span>;”—the first clause after the preamble.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>The words are these:</p>
-
-<p class='c013'>“<i>We hold these truths to be self-evident; that all men
-are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator
-with certain unalienable rights; that among these are Life,
-Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.</i>”</p>
-
-<p class='c014'>Man, considered as a rational and social being, occupies
-a variety of important relations in the universe
-of God. In the first place he stands related to that great
-and glorious Being who gave him existence, and he is
-under the most solemn and indissoluble obligations, to
-the exercise of eternal reverence, love and gratitude.
-However indifferent he may feel, in his present fallen
-state, to the demands of heaven, and however negligent
-he may be of the duties which result from those demands,
-it is an incontrovertible truth, that the service of
-God has the first and highest claim. Hence, the first
-and greatest commandment of the law is declared, by
-the divine Saviour to be this; “<i>Thou shalt love the Lord
-thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and
-with all thy mind, and with all thy strength.</i>” Mark xii.
-30. An immediate and constant compliance with this
-precept should be the first object of every human being.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>But although this is the first, it is not the only duty
-of man. He occupies other relations, and, of course,
-is subjected to the authority of other duties. Passing
-over all the other subordinate connexions of man, as
-foreign from our present purpose, I shall here notice
-only his relation to his own species, and the obligations
-which result from that relation. All men are formed
-by the same hand, born into the same world, under the
-same circumstances, and are bound by considerations
-both of duty and interest to respect each other’s rights,
-and to promote each other’s happiness. These duties
-are next in importance to those which relate to God.
-<span class='pageno' id='Page_4'>4</span>Therefore, our blessed Lord, after declaring the precept
-already quoted to be the first commandment of
-the law, adds, “And the second is like” to it, “<i>Thou
-shall love thy neighbour as thyself</i>.” He then declares,
-with respect to both, “There is no commandment greater
-than these.” Here then we have a concise, but
-complete exposition of man’s duty in relation to his
-own species. It is applicable to all the possible circumstances
-of life; and at the same time, so plain, that
-the smallest share of intellect is sufficient to understand
-and apply it. It accords precisely with that golden
-rule which the Saviour delivered, in his sermon on the
-mount; “<i>All things whatsoever ye would that men should
-do to you, do ye even so to them; for this is the law and
-the prophets.</i>” Matthew vii. 12. That is, all the duties
-which God has ever required of man in relation to his
-own species, either in the law or the prophets, are comprehended
-in this single precept, <i>Do to others just as you
-would wish them to do to you</i>. Did this principle regulate
-the conduct of all men, the earth would instantly
-resume the first bloom of Eden. Not only would war,
-and murder and rapine cease to desolate the earth, but
-animosities and contention and oppression of every
-kind and degree would instantly disappear. Adventitious
-circumstances might still produce distinctions in
-the relative situations of men; but pride, that fiend of
-hell and enemy of happiness, would be banished from
-the human breast; and one more prospered of heaven
-than his fellows, would look down upon them, not to
-despise their poverty, nor to rejoice in their misery,
-nor to deprive them of their <i>liberty</i>; (the last earthly
-blessing that man can lose;) but to compassionate their
-necessities, to console them under adversity, and to administer
-to their relief. The whole human family would
-be bound together by the sense of a common nature,
-and the bonds of sincere affection: in a word, they
-would feel that they were <i>bone of each other’s bone; and
-flesh of each other’s flesh</i>; and in all cases, and under all
-circumstances, they would act like <i>brethren</i>.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>From these remarks, you will perceive that the
-words of my text, although they are not a part of the
-<span class='pageno' id='Page_5'>5</span>inspired volume, contain sentiments in perfect accordance
-with the divine declarations. This consideration
-therefore is sufficient to entitle them to the highest respect.
-But, in this favoured land, they do not need this
-argument to give them authority. They are the words
-of our <i>fathers</i>; not spoken by the fireside, or in the closet,
-while they rested quietly in the midst of their domestick
-circles, without a witness of their declarations;
-but proclaimed and published to the whole world, while
-they stood in jeopardy of their lives and all that they
-held dear on earth; and with a solemn appeal <i>to the</i> <span class='small'>SUPREME
-JUDGE</span> <i>of the world for the rectitude of [their] intentions</i>.
-Nay, more; some of them sealed this declaration
-with their own blood, and voluntarily laid down
-their lives, to deliver their posterity from tyranny and
-oppression, and to procure for them the blessings of <i>liberty</i>
-and self-government. Confining ourselves to this
-view of the subject, we should pronounce that native
-American unworthy of his parentage and the name
-which he bears, who would not revere the words of his
-father, uttered under such circumstances. Nay, that
-man, let him be who he will, and let his circumstances
-be what they may, is unworthy to tread American soil
-and breathe American air, who does not cheerfully and
-sincerely adopt the words of my text, as containing the
-sentiments of his heart, “<i>All men are created equal, and
-are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable
-rights, among which are life, liberty and the pursuit of
-happiness.</i>”</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>When this declaration, particularly this clause of
-it, was reported in heaven, (and I presume to believe
-that the sun had not set on the fourth of July, 1776, before
-the transactions of the American Congress were
-published to the celestial hosts,) what think you were
-the expectations of angels and the spirits of just men
-made perfect, with respect to the state of things which
-would succeed in this nation? Doubtless, the former,
-in whose respective ranks <i>liberty</i> and <i>equality</i> are not
-only <i>professed</i> but <i>practised</i>, expected, upon their first
-mission to this lower world, to see the American people,
-without distinction of complexion or circumstances,
-<span class='pageno' id='Page_6'>6</span>enjoying the blessings of freedom. And with equal
-probability may we imagine, that those happy
-souls who had been redeemed from the earth, and who
-had here witnessed, with their own eyes, the oppressions
-of man exercised upon his own species; some of
-whom had, perhaps, themselves been personally guilty
-in this matter, and had found, from their own experience,
-that the last pollution, from which a Saviour’s
-blood can wash the human soul, is the sweat or blood
-of a black man’s body; I say, we may safely imagine,
-that, among these, there was one universal shout of joy.
-They rejoiced to hear, that, in one nation at least of
-this fallen world, after the lapse of almost 6000 years,
-<span class='fss'>THE RIGHTS OF MAN</span> were at last understood, and a solemn
-resolution to respect them had been unanimously
-adopted: that universal emancipation had been proclaimed
-to three millions of the human family.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>In view of these considerations, could angels and
-redeemed souls have reasonably expected or believed,
-<i>if there is any sincerity in man</i>, that from the benefits of
-this solemn declaration, adopted under all the solemn
-circumstances just mentioned, and with the most solemn
-appeal to heaven, <i>every sixth man</i> was excluded,
-and <i>doomed to perpetual slavery</i>; and <i>that</i>, for no other
-reason, than because the God of nature had caused
-them to be born in a torrid clime, where the sun had
-burnt their skin and crisped their hair, and they had
-been transported against their will, to a land inhabited
-by white men?</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>And if the celestial hosts were then restrained from
-an universal clamour of disapprobation, by the consideration
-that such an exception was rendered necessary
-by the existing circumstances of the country, and the
-impossibility of emancipating 500,000 slaves while our
-shores were invaded by a foreign foe; could they have
-been persuaded to believe, that, after heaven had espoused
-the cause of America, and God himself had fought
-her battles, and victory had crowned her arms, the American
-people would permit almost half a century to
-roll away in the enjoyment of unexampled liberty,
-prosperity and happiness, while slavery would be permitted
-<span class='pageno' id='Page_7'>7</span>to increase with the increase of their wealth and
-population? Could they expect that this solemn declaration
-of Independence would be annually read the
-50th time, accompanied with the roar of cannon, the display
-of banners, and shouts of joy, and that thousands
-and hundreds of thousands of dollars would be expended
-on every return of this anniversary in feasting and
-dissipation and tumult, and yet <i>no year of Jubilee</i> be
-proclaimed to the oppressed sons of Africa?</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>But such is the fact. This day commences the
-50th year of freedom to American white men, and
-yet a million and a half of our fellow men, within our
-own dwellings, are this moment groaning under the
-chains of bondage. Tell me not, as it is often told by
-the advocates of slavery, that they are incapable of
-providing for themselves; and are therefore happier in
-their present dependent condition, than if they were
-immediately emancipated. I cheerfully admit that the
-little feathered songster that was hatched in a cage or
-incarcerated before his wings were fledged, may be ignorant
-of most of the sweets of liberty; and after being
-long accustomed to have his food provided by his owner’s
-hand, might be incapable of finding it, in equal profusion,
-in the fields and forests; but does this prove that
-he has not a nature adapted to the enjoyment of liberty,
-and equally entitled to the privilege with other
-birds?</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>But on this point reasoning is needless. I appeal
-to my text. “<span class='sc'>All</span> <i>men are created equal</i>,” said
-our forefathers, “<i>and are endowed by their Creator with
-certain unalienable rights; among these are life</i>, <span class='fss'>LIBERTY</span>
-<i>and the pursuit of happiness</i>.” For the space of fifty
-years we have been reiterating the same maxim and at
-the same time declaring that it is “a self-evident truth.”
-Now, I say, let us aim at consistency of character. Let
-us reduce the principle to practice, and prove to the
-world that we believe what we say, or blot it out from the
-declaration of our rights and privileges. We may abhor
-the tyranny of kings and emperors, and commiserate
-the degraded state of their oppressed subjects, but
-a greater incongruity cannot be found in any nation
-<span class='pageno' id='Page_8'>8</span>than that which exists in our own. In one hand we
-hold the protestation that all men are equal, and entitled
-to the enjoyment of life and liberty; and in the
-other, we firmly grasp the chains of slavery and wield
-the goads of correction. We proclaim to the world
-that we are the only nation of freemen on earth, and
-yet daily practise the most absolute despotism. It is
-frequently the case that the same publick newspaper
-which unblushingly asserts the equality of our rights,
-and the justice of our institutions, advertises a whole
-village of <i>human beings for sale</i>. Again I say, let us
-aim at <span class='fss'>CONSISTENCY</span>: either acknowledge to the world
-that we are tyrants and despots, or act according to our
-professions.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>That my text contains a correct assertion, I am
-not disposed for a moment to question: and I should
-surely be employed to no purpose in attempting to
-prove to others, what they have asserted for half a century,
-to be “a self-evident truth.” If then, all men are,
-by their birth, entitled to the same natural rights and
-privileges, they can be divested of them only by the authority
-of Him who has the power of life and death in
-his hands. The God of nature has a perfect right to
-authorize one nation to subjugate another, as he delivered
-the Canaanites into the hands of Israel. But surely
-this is no argument in favour of American slavery.
-When we have found a “<i>Thus saith the Lord</i>” for the
-subjugation of Africans, then, and not till then, shall we
-have a right to make them our slaves.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>A man may also forfeit his liberty, and even his life,
-by the commission of crimes against the interests of society.
-And in all such cases, every nation on the globe
-has a charter from the King of heaven to inflict merited
-punishment. But surely no man of common sense will
-pretend that this authorizes any individual or commonwealth
-to reduce to perpetual bondage, and entail the
-same on their posterity, those who have never violated
-a single law of the land.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>The time has been when the event of war has been
-supposed to confer on the victorious party the right of
-enslaving the vanquished. But this is now universally
-<span class='pageno' id='Page_9'>9</span>acknowledged to be a principle of barbarism, and is
-abandoned by the civilized world. Where then is our
-charter for the oppression of our fellow men?</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>Perhaps the most plausible argument in support of
-American slavery, (and it is one that has been newly
-discovered, for it was first introduced into Congress on
-the Missouri question,) is, that the New Testament distinctly
-recognises without any mark of disapprobation,
-the relation of masters and servants, and St. Paul in his
-Epistles explicitly enjoins on the latter the duty of respect,
-obedience and fidelity. This argument has been
-triumphantly urged as presenting Divine authority for
-slavery. But pray tell me, are there no servants but
-slaves? Is there no such thing as the relation of master
-and servant unless where slavery exists? If so, tell
-Great Britain to blot the word from her vocabulary,
-that it has no meaning in the English language, and is
-exclusively of American origin and use.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>“But,” says the advocate of slavery, “this argument
-is not to be got rid of in this way. This is mere
-quibbling. St. Paul speaks not only of servants, but
-of <i>bond-men</i>; and he actually enjoins it on every man
-to abide in the same calling, or condition, wherein he
-is called. And he specifies particularly that if any
-one is called being a <i>servant</i>, he is to rest contented
-with the assurance that he is the Lord’s <i>free man</i>. 1 Cor.
-vii. 20-22. Nay, in his Epistle to Philemon, he had a
-fair opportunity to put this question at rest for ever;
-but instead of rebuking the master for holding slaves,
-he returned the <i>runaway</i> to his service.”<a id='r1' /><a href='#f1' class='c015'><sup>[1]</sup></a> On this
-ground, it has been asserted, that those who hold slaves
-are more obedient to the Scriptures than those who do
-not.</p>
-
-<div class='fn'>
-
-<div class='footnote' id='f1'>
-<p class='c016'><span class='label'><a href='#r1'>1</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;</span>This whole argument, in all its parts, was once urged with amazing zeal, on the
-floor of the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church.</p>
-</div>
-
-</div>
-
-<p class='c012'>If I am not greatly mistaken in regard to the nature
-of this argument, I could prove, in the same way, that
-tyranny and despotism are approved of God; and that
-those who submit to such a kind of government, live in
-greater conformity to the Scriptures than the citizens
-of a republick.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>The manner in which I would argue is this. St.
-<span class='pageno' id='Page_10'>10</span>Paul, in his Epistle to the Romans, says, “Let every
-soul be subject unto the higher powers; for there is no
-power but of God, the powers that be, are ordained of
-God. Whosoever, therefore, resisteth the power, resisteth
-the ordinance of God; and they that resist shall
-receive to themselves damnation.”—Rom. xiii. 1, 2.
-Now this solemn injunction, under this awful sanction,
-was imposed by inspiration upon the Christians of
-Rome, at the time that the crown of that empire was
-worn by Nero, one of the most cruel and blood-thirsty
-tyrants that ever disgraced a throne. By his own direction
-the city was set on fire, which raged for nine
-successive days, spreading desolation and ruin; and
-then to furnish himself a pretext for persecuting the
-Christians, he laid the crime to their charge, and fiercely
-commenced the bloody work. “Some were wrapped
-in the skins of wild beasts, and torn in pieces by
-dogs; some were crucified, and others, clothed in garments
-covered with pitch, were set on fire; while the
-cruel monster calmly sat in the window of his palace
-and enjoyed the scene of his own barbarities.” And
-yet this is the man, whom the apostle commands the
-Christians to revere as “the minister of God;” the resistance
-of whom is threatened with damnation. Was
-not Paul then the advocate of tyranny and oppression?
-Just as clearly as he was the advocate of slavery.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>In the same manner I think it can be shown that
-polygamy is approved by St. Paul, at least among the
-Gentiles. He expressly ordained that “a bishop or
-deacon must be the husband of one wife.” 1 Tim. iii. 2,
-12. Now the inference is fair, that all other men might
-have more than one. Private members of the church
-are not restricted in their inclinations in this respect,
-only the officers of the church are not indulged. I see
-no way to avoid this conclusion. How then shall we
-reconcile these apparent inconsistencies?</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>In my view, the solution is plain and easy. Upon
-the first introduction of the gospel into any pagan land,
-there always will be many evils existing, which are so
-completely wrought into the customs, interests and institutions
-of society, that it is impossible to correct
-them at once. Nay, if it were possible, the sudden revolution
-<span class='pageno' id='Page_11'>11</span>would instantly produce unspeakable misery.
-Take, for instance, the last mentioned case: Suppose,
-in a nation where polygamy is extensively practised, every
-man could be induced to repudiate all his wives
-but one; how many thousands of helpless women and
-children would be turned on the wide world, without
-the means of support, exposed to inevitable wretchedness
-and want! The sudden adoption of the true Christian
-principle, under these circumstances, would be productive
-of vastly greater misery than is now experienced
-from this horrid pagan practice; and the Christian
-religion would be execrated as a system of cruelty.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>What then is to be done? Must Christianity sacrifice
-its holy principles at the shrine of pagan impurity?
-Must we be satisfied to have men embrace <i>the
-faith of the gospel</i>, while they retain their own <i>ungodly
-practices</i>? No! But wisdom is profitable to direct.—Some
-method must be adopted by which these deeply-rooted
-evils may be branded with disgrace, and
-thus gradually but effectually eradicated. For this
-purpose St. Paul, or rather the Holy Spirit, ordained
-in those countries where polygamy was common,
-that “a bishop or deacon must be the husband of one
-wife.” A man that sincerely embraced the gospel,
-might be admitted to the privileges of the church without
-first turning half a dozen women out of doors; but
-he never could arise to any dignity, or be capable of
-holding any office in the church. Now you plainly
-perceive that the necessary operation of this simple regulation,
-was to abolish gradually, but effectually, this
-vile practice; not however, by sovereign authority or
-absolute force, but by the voluntary consent of the party
-concerned.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>Thus it appears to be the genius of the gospel to
-tolerate an evil for a while, where the immediate and
-total abolition would be productive of greater miseries
-and crimes; while, at the same time, it requires the
-use of all prudent and effectual measures for its ultimate
-extirpation.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>I humbly conceive that it is on this ground alone,
-that the Scriptures, in certain cases, allude to despotism,
-slavery and many other evils without a distinct expression
-<span class='pageno' id='Page_12'>12</span>of disapprobation. Had the evangelists and
-apostles explicitly denounced the tyranny of Rome,
-and declared that slavery was contrary to the law of
-nature, and the law of God, they would have been instantly
-slain, or driven, at the point of the sword, from
-every province of the Roman empire.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>On this account every argument founded on such
-texts of Scripture in support of slavery, is of no more
-weight than the dust of the balance.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>That slavery is an evil is generally acknowledged
-in those parts of our country where the least of it exists;
-and of course, where the most of its horrors are
-unknown. And there are undoubtedly many in the
-slave-holding states who deplore the evil, and would
-gladly remove it, if there was no obstacle in the way.
-But it is a matter of deep regret that there are thousands
-of our countrymen, claiming the style of republicans,
-who are the unblushing advocates of slavery. And
-what is worse than all, and what renders the extirpation
-of this evil the more hopeless, is, that when our northern
-citizens remove to the south, many of them become
-not only the owners of slaves, but in many instances,
-the warmest advocates of the principle of slavery.
-This amazing change in sentiment and feeling,
-I am unwilling to ascribe so much to what is often alleged,
-that they find the evils of slavery far less than
-they expected, and the subjects of it contented and
-happy; as to the fact, that familiarity with any vice
-blinds the human mind to its enormity. I doubt not
-that the most enthusiastick republican of our country, if
-he found it for his interest to reside under the most despotick
-government of Europe, would, after a number of
-years, return with the report, that the subjects of that
-country were much better contented, and vastly more
-happy than he had anticipated; and it would not be
-strange if his zeal for democracy, and hatred of monarchy
-were equally diminished. But this would never
-prove to me, that the subjects of a despotism are as
-happy as they would be, if they were placed in a situation,
-and prepared, to enjoy the blessings of a free government.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>That this is the true reason of this change, I
-<span class='pageno' id='Page_13'>13</span>think is evident from the fact, that our northern men,
-after they become familiar with slavery, can calmly indulge
-themselves in that kind of treatment of slaves,
-which would previously have made them shudder. In
-this connexion I will mention a <i>fact</i>, which for the credit
-of New-England, and the honour of religion, I would
-gladly conceal to the judgment day, if the circumstances
-of the case had not been publicly displayed through
-this region of country. Two years ago a native of
-Vermont, and a minister of the gospel too, who has resided
-some years at the South, passed with his family,
-through this town and put up for the night within the
-sound of my voice where I now stand. They were attended
-by a servant-girl, who was not permitted to eat
-at a table or sleep on a bed, though in the true spirit of
-northern feeling, both were kindly proffered by the
-landlady. She spent her night on the naked floor, with
-no other pillow than her bundle of clothes; and set out
-in the morning in an open waggon, to endure the heat
-of a summer’s sun, with no other covering for her head
-than the woolly fleece which nature gave. Such kind
-of treatment, for aught I know, may be deemed necessary
-at the south, as I understood, it was then alleged,
-to keep the blacks from being “<i>exalted above measure</i>;”
-yet surely it cannot be witnessed, without sentiments
-of indignation, in a northern clime. And for the honour
-of humanity, to say nothing of the gospel ministry,
-I pray God, that my own eyes may never again witness
-a similar scene.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>But let the plea be reiterated as often as it may,
-that the slavery which exists in our country is not so
-appalling as northern men suppose; it is still an evil,
-that exists contrary to the law of nature and nature’s
-God, and in the face too, of American rights and privileges.
-And beyond this, it stands necessarily connected
-with other evils, which are more shocking to the
-feelings of humanity, than slavery itself. Take for example,
-these simple facts. By the laws of some of the
-slave-holding states, no man can emancipate his own
-slaves; and any person is liable to the barbarous and
-disgraceful punishment of being <i>whipped</i> on the naked
-back, if convicted of <i>teaching a slave to read</i>. Thus
-<span class='pageno' id='Page_14'>14</span>the poor Africans are not only deprived of their liberty,
-but are completely cut off from almost the only
-means of information, with respect to their duty to God
-and their fellow men, and of preparation for the eternal
-world; of the only means that can alleviate their
-sorrows and enliven their solitude. By these laws, a
-pious and benevolent master, who has inherited a hundred
-slaves, and who would gladly deliver them from
-bondage, or, at least, alleviate, by every means in his
-power, the miseries of their condition, is compelled, against
-every feeling of his heart, not only to hold them
-in servitude, but to keep them in absolute ignorance.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>Although these laws are founded neither in humanity,
-nor Christianity, yet evidently in <i>good policy</i>;
-and they are necessarily connected with slavery, in the
-extent to which it exists. The physical power of the
-black population, in many districts of our country,
-bears such an alarming proportion to that of the whites,
-that nothing is wanting on their part but information, to
-enable them to assert and maintain their rights. Only
-let them know what they are, and of what they are capable,
-and in one month’s time the Tragedy of St. Domingo
-would be re-acted on this side of the Gulf-Stream.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>By this time, my hearers, I presume you have begun
-to inquire for the remedy of this “legion of evils:”
-and some of you may have drawn the conclusion, that nothing
-short of the immediate and absolute emancipation
-of all the slaves of our country would satisfy my mind.
-But this is not the fact. However highly my feelings
-may be wrought on this subject, they have not got the
-better of my understanding. I am perfectly satisfied
-that it is one of those evils which cannot be removed
-by a single stroke. The immediate emancipation of
-all the slaves, would doubtless be attended with consequences,
-both upon themselves and the whites, vastly
-more terrible and distressing, than all the horrours
-of slavery. And if St. Paul himself were now on
-earth, and consulted on the subject, I doubt not he
-would disapprove of such a measure. It has been already
-shown that there are evils existing in the pagan
-world, which are directly opposed to Christianity; and
-<span class='pageno' id='Page_15'>15</span>yet the genius of the gospel, upon its first introduction,
-does not demand their immediate and entire abolition.
-And although this country is not strictly speaking a
-pagan country, yet the practice in question is a pagan
-practice; and so effectually wrought into the habits
-and feelings and institutions of our land, that its complete
-extirpation must necessarily be the work of time.—But
-here let it be particularly observed, that, in all
-such cases, we have no licence for the toleration of any
-sinful custom, a single moment, without the adoption of
-wise and prudent measures calculated ultimately to
-abolish it.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>This, it appears to me, is the only course that can
-be adopted in this country for the annihilation of slavery;
-and in this point of view, I introduce to your notice,
-the object and operations of the “<i>American Colonization
-Society</i>.”</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>This association was formed, at the city of Washington,
-in the beginning of the year 1817; and is patronized
-by many of the most distinguished officers of
-the general government. The Chief Justice of the United
-States has been, from its first formation, the president
-of the Society. Its object is the transportation
-to Africa of the free people of colour, who are willing
-to go, and the establishment of them in a colony, or colonies,
-under all the advantages of civil and religious
-privileges. Though its incipient measures were attended
-with some adverse providences, yet it has progressed
-with as much success, and with as flattering prospects
-as could possibly have been anticipated. A district of
-fertile territory on the Western Coast of Africa has
-been purchased of the natives, and a flourishing colony
-planted there, under the direction and control of resident
-agents. Schools are organized, and the means of
-grace established among them. The plan has been
-countenanced, though not explicitly approved, by the
-government of our country; and it has been distinctly
-recommended by the supreme judicatories of several
-of the most numerous and respectable denominations
-of Christians to the patronage of their members, especially
-on this interesting occasion.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>As this Society, since its organization, has met
-<span class='pageno' id='Page_16'>16</span>with considerable opposition, I feel it to be my duty to
-present a few considerations in support of its claims.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>If the slaves of our country are ever to enjoy all
-the blessings of freedom, it must evidently be, in a state
-of total separation from the white population. Such
-are the present feelings of our citizens, and so firmly
-are they fixed in their breasts, that we need never expect
-to see the blacks amalgamated with the whites in
-all the social connexions of life. In what district of
-our country will the latter become willing to connect
-themselves with the former in the relations of the domestick
-circle? What legislature will be willing to admit
-the negro to equal privileges and powers with the
-white man, on the floor of the senate chamber? What
-University will hold forth the same advantages and honours
-to our own children and the descendants of Africans?
-But until all these things are realized, if they
-must live together in the same territory, the negro’s
-mind will forever be depressed to the dust with a sense
-of conscious inferiority, and can never aspire to those
-elevated distinctions of which it is capable. And this
-is the grand reason of all that present dulness and stupidity,
-which are frequently adduced, as evidence that
-negroes are a race of beings but little elevated above
-the brutal creation. If therefore universal liberty
-should be proclaimed through our land, and the African
-race still be permitted to live in the midst of us,
-disfranchised by our feelings and customs, if not by our
-laws,<a id='r2' /><a href='#f2' class='c015'><sup>[2]</sup></a> of the rights of freemen, we have no reason to
-suppose that they would be essentially improved or
-benefited by their freedom. It is therefore most palpably
-manifest, that if our slaves are ever to enjoy all
-the blessings of liberty, they must not only be liberated
-from the chains of bondage, but at the same time,
-be placed in a situation in which they may aspire to all
-the advantages and distinctions of civilized life.</p>
-
-<div class='fn'>
-
-<div class='footnote' id='f2'>
-<p class='c016'><span class='label'><a href='#r2'>2</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;</span>In some of the states, even where slavery is abolished, the blacks are disfranchised
-of the rights of citizens. To the eternal disgrace of our own state, the despotick principles
-of our Constitution have been multiplied instead of being diminished by the late Convention.
-By the old Constitution, only one class of citizens were divested of certain natural rights
-without having committed any crime to forfeit them. But by the present Constitution there
-are two. And the reasons in both cases are very similar; in the one, <i>wearing a black coat</i>,
-and in the other, <i>a black skin</i>. But the operation of these regulations is much more oppressive
-in the latter, than in the former case. The colour of a man’s dress depends on his own
-will; but, “<i>the Ethiopian</i> <span class='fss'>CANNOT</span> <i>change his skin</i>,” if he would.</p>
-</div>
-
-</div>
-
-<p class='c012'><span class='pageno' id='Page_17'>17</span>This is the immediate object of the Colonization
-Society. Nor is it a mere matter of doubtful experiment.
-A similar attempt has long since been made
-by the British nation, at Sierra Leone, and the result has
-fully proven to the world, that the minds of black men
-are as capable as the whites, when placed under equal
-circumstances of improvement. The same results are
-beginning to be realized in the infant colony planted by
-our own countrymen at Cape Mesurado. And nothing
-is wanting, but the patronage of our own citizens, to extend
-the same advantages to hundreds and thousands of
-the degraded and oppressed sons of Africa, who are
-still in our land.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>In further confirmation of the same views, it may
-be observed, that in the slave-holding states there are
-many owners of slaves who would gladly emancipate
-them, but are expressly prohibited. It is impossible,
-therefore, for them to proclaim “liberty to the captives,”
-unless they can transport them without the limits of the
-state. What then can such benevolent masters do with
-their slaves? To turn them out into our western wilds,
-would be to expose them to certain starvation; or if any
-survived, they would be hunted down as wild beasts, by
-a herd of brutal kidnappers, and carried back and sold
-to less merciful masters than they served before. To
-transport them to a foreign shore, if any individual were
-able to incur the expense, without any concert of action,
-would be to expose them to immediate death by
-barbarous hands. It is therefore impossible to afford
-those who are disposed, an opportunity to emancipate
-their slaves, without such a concert of action as shall
-protect the colony in its infantile state, till it shall acquire
-strength and ability to defend itself. Such is the
-object of the Colonization Society.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>Let not this effort of beneficence be paralized by
-the plea, that it is an insignificant undertaking compared
-with the magnitude of the evil intended to be removed.
-Did you never see a cloud, no bigger than a
-man’s hand, at its first appearance, finally overspread
-the whole horizon and pour a copious blessing on the
-thirsty earth? What plan of benevolence, in this fallen
-world, was not small at its commencement? Even the
-<span class='pageno' id='Page_18'>18</span>kingdom of God was once like <i>a grain of mustard seed</i>;
-but it has gradually increased and will continue to grow
-till it fills the world. The Herculean labour of abolishing
-the slave-trade, with all its bloody horrours, was
-commenced, within our recollection, by a single individual,
-in the legislature of a single nation, amidst the
-clamours of a host of opposition; and yet that individual
-has lived, and we have lived, to see the horrid traffick
-proscribed, not only by that nation, but by the civilized
-world, and the practice declared <i>piracy</i> by several
-nations. What influence then can a consideration
-of the smallness of the means, compared with the end,
-have upon the benevolent mind in relation to this subject?
-It may indeed stimulate to increased exertion,
-but it surely can produce no discouraging effect.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>But even admitting that the efforts of this Society
-should never ultimately accomplish the object of its
-aim, <i>the entire abolition of American slavery</i>, there is one
-important result which it cannot fail to produce. Besides
-securing the blessings of freedom and self-government
-to some of those who had previously groaned under
-the chains of bitter servitude, it will afford a ready
-introduction of the blessings of civilization and the gospel
-to the benighted tribes of Africa. It is recorded
-in God’s sure word of prophecy, that “Ethiopia shall
-stretch forth her hands to God,” while “the isles of the
-sea shall wait for his law.” In view of the numerous
-and simultaneous efforts of the Christian world to extend
-the blessings of the gospel to the ends of the earth,
-we may justly consider the exertions of the American
-Colonization Society as ultimately, though not directly,
-aiming at the same object; and we may with propriety
-regard the Institution as one important wheel in that
-vast system of moral machinery which, under the blessing
-of heaven, is destined to regenerate a fallen world.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>In this view of the subject, I cannot but indulge in
-what some may call the flights of fancy, but what I fondly
-persuade myself is the reality of vision. O Africa,
-long oppressed and degraded Africa! Heaven has witnessed
-thy bitter sufferings, and the long black catalogue
-of thy wrongs is hid up in store against the day of retribution.
-But I see the Sun of righteousness arising upon
-<span class='pageno' id='Page_19'>19</span>thee, with healing in his wings. I see the shades of
-more than Egyptian darkness dispelled by his resplendent
-rays. I see thy wounds, which have been bleeding
-for ages, instantly staunched and healed. I see the ferocity
-of the tyger exchanged for the meekness of the
-lamb. I hear thy groves and plains resounding with
-the shouts of joy and gladness, and the still sweeter
-song of redeeming grace and love. I see “thy wildernesses
-and solitary places made glad, and thy desert rejoicing
-and blossoming as the rose. Thy parched ground
-has become a pool, and thy thirsty land springs of water.
-In the habitation of dragons, where each lay, there is
-grass with reeds and rushes. And a high way is there,
-and a way that is called the Way of Holiness: the unclean
-shall not pass over it: but it shall be for thee;
-the way-faring men, though fools, shall not err therein.
-No lion shall be there, nor any ravenous beast shall go
-up thereon, it shall not be found there; but the redeemed
-shall walk there. And the ransomed of the Lord
-shall return and come to Zion with songs and everlasting
-joy upon their heads: they shall obtain joy and
-gladness; <i>and sorrow and sighing</i> shall flee away.” Isaiah
-xxxv. 1-10. These blessed results I see effected
-by the instrumentality of America, the author of all
-thy wrongs. And though thy sweat and tears and blood
-have, for ages, been crying to heaven from the ground,
-for vengeance on her devoted head; yet now I hear thy
-voice, in the true spirit of gospel forgiveness, intreating
-pardon for thy guilty murderers. “O remember not against
-them their <i>former</i> iniquities.” I see a tide of pious
-joy and gratitude, flowing from thy streaming eyes,
-sufficient, if aught but a Saviour’s blood were sufficient,
-to wash away their crimson stains. O happy, happy
-land, once wretched and forlorn! Thy mother’s children
-shall no longer be angry with thee, because thou
-art black, because the sun hath looked upon thee—they
-shall no longer make thee keeper of their vineyards,
-while thine own vineyard lies waste. Thy complexion
-is indeed black, but comely; and thy soul has been
-washed in the fountain of redeeming grace, as white
-and as pure as the redeemed of any other clime; and
-thou canst now chaunt as high a note of praise to the
-<span class='pageno' id='Page_20'>20</span>God of thy salvation; and though here thou hast been
-excluded from the rights of freemen, and the society of
-white men, yet in heaven thou shalt mingle, without
-discrimination, among the blood-bought throng, and
-there occupy as high a throne, and wear as bright a
-crown.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>In urging the claims of this subject, it is necessary
-that I should obviate an objection which is frequently
-made in this section of the country. It is said that
-“this is a matter in which we have no concern at all—that
-it belongs exclusively to the southern states.” If
-this plea were founded in fact, are we willing to admit,
-that the citizens of the northern states are so selfish,
-that they have no sympathy for the sufferings of humanity,
-if they are only out of sight? But I am bold
-to assert that this objection is utterly groundless; and
-that there is not a single native or naturalized citizen
-in the United States but is verily guilty in this
-matter. It is a well known fact, that in every original
-state in the union, excepting one, slavery has been sanctioned;
-and that it still exists, to a greater or less extent,
-in all the states and territories with the exception
-of five. Now it is useless for a man to plead <i>not guilty</i>
-to the charge of murder, because he has taken the life
-of only one individual, while others may have slain their
-thousands. It is the <i>principle</i> we are concerned with,
-and the principle of slavery has been as firmly sanctioned
-in most of the northern states, as in any part of the
-union; though our citizens have never found it for their
-interest to carry it as far. But for this single circumstance,
-I presume every farm in this region would now
-be cultivated by the labour, and watered by the sweat
-of negroes. With what an ill grace then can any, who
-have implicitly or explicitly sworn allegiance to the institutions
-of their respective states and the general government,
-especially those who have been, or still are
-the owners of human flesh and blood, hold up their
-heads and say, “We are pure from the blood of Africans?”</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>But, my hearers, I have not yet presented this subject
-in the light of its most appalling darkness; nor applied
-the sharpest point of its universal bearing. <i>The</i>
-<span class='pageno' id='Page_21'>21</span><i>union of these States was originally purchased at the price
-of the blood and groans of Africa</i>; and <i>all our citizens</i>
-from the north and the south, from the east and the
-west, <i>gave their consent to the bargain</i>. One section of
-the constitution of the United States was written, like
-the laws of Draco, in lines of blood; the blood of Africans.<a id='r3' /><a href='#f3' class='c015'><sup>[3]</sup></a>
-By it, all the horrours of the slave-trade, the
-whole root and stock and branch of which slavery is
-the bitter fruit, were firmly sanctioned for thirty tedious
-years. During this gloomy period, under the
-sanction of the charter of freemen, and of freemen too,
-who, in the days of their emancipation from the chains
-of despotism, appealed to heaven for the sincerity of
-their intentions, while they declared to the world “that
-all men are created equal, and endowed by their Creator
-with an unalienable right to life, <i>liberty</i> and the pursuit
-of happiness;” under the sanction of such a charter,
-adopted by such men, and under such circumstances,
-thousands and tens of thousands of harmless Africans,
-who were born free as the air of heaven, or the
-streams of the fountain, were forcibly dragged from
-their native shores, bound with massy chains, crowded
-into the filthy hold of a floating dungeon, without power
-to rise or room to stand; and when multitudes had
-been swept off by wasting pestilence, and found a watery
-grave, the wretched remnant, emaciated with famine
-and worn down with disease, were sold under the
-hammer into perpetual bondage. Without the sanction
-of all these horrours, the union of these states would
-never have been effected. And in consenting to this
-measure, the northern states became voluntarily partakers
-with those of the south, in all the guilt of the barbarous
-slave-trade and all its horrid consequences.</p>
-
-<div class='fn'>
-
-<div class='footnote' id='f3'>
-<p class='c016'><span class='label'><a href='#r3'>3</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;</span>Article I. Sec. 9.</p>
-</div>
-
-</div>
-
-<p class='c012'>O my country! what atonement canst thou make
-for such bloody crimes? What fountain, but that which
-flows from Calvary, can wash away thy crimson stains?
-In vain wouldst thou offer “many thousands of rams, or
-ten thousands of rivers of oil. The blood of thy firstborn
-would not expiate thy transgression, nor the fruit
-of thy body, the sin of thy soul.” Mic. vi. 7. “Though
-thou wash thee with nitre, and take thee much soap, yet
-<span class='pageno' id='Page_22'>22</span>thine iniquity is marked before me, saith the Lord
-God.” Jer. ii. 22. I beseech thee, do not aggravate
-thy guilt, and provoke anew the wrath of heaven, by
-justifying thy deeds or pleading innocent of the charge.
-“For thy sin is written with a pen of iron, and with the
-point of a diamond; it is graven on the table of thy
-heart, and” if not “upon the horns of thy altars,” it is
-inscribed in the archives of thy cabinet, and whilst thy
-children shall read the legacies of their fathers they
-shall remember and bear witness of thy crimes, to the
-latest posterity. Fly, O fly, in the first place, to the
-fountain of a Saviour’s bleeding veins, and there be
-washed from all thy pollution: and then, as a testimony
-of thy gratitude, that much, very much is forgiven
-thee, summon all thy energies to repair the injuries
-thou hast done. “Proclaim liberty to thy captives;
-say to the prisoners, go forth; and to them that are in
-darkness, show yourselves.” Isa. xlix. 9. Restore them
-to “the land of their fathers’ sepulchres,” and let them
-once more peacefully enjoy the inheritance of their
-ancestors. Wherever they may have been born, Africa
-is their home. Though transported to the most distant
-countries, and situated in the most temperate regions
-of the globe, and transmitted through a series of
-generations, they still retain in the constitution of their
-frames, and on the whole surface of their bodies, the title
-of heaven to those torrid climes. The God of nature
-has evidently determined, that they shall never be
-divested of their original inheritance. Though “the
-descendants of Cush can never change their skin,” yet
-the time will come when their souls shall be made white
-in the blood of the Lamb; and then, in their own land,
-which God allotted to their progenitor, they shall stretch
-forth their hands to God, and under their own vine and
-fig-tree enjoy the fruit of their labours, without any to
-molest or make them afraid.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>There is one consideration more, by which I would
-urge the claims of this subject. If the people of the
-United States cannot be extensively aroused to undertake
-the redress of African wrongs, from motives of
-humanity, and a sense of duty, the apprehension of personal
-danger may with propriety be awakened in their
-<span class='pageno' id='Page_23'>23</span>minds. God deals with nations, in this world, on a different
-principle from what he deals with individuals.—The
-wicked man is often permitted to prosper in his
-sins, and to die without pain; because the righteous retributions
-of justice await him in the eternal world.—But
-wicked nations exist, in their national capacity,
-only in this life. Therefore, if national sins are ever
-visited with the indignation of heaven, it must be in the
-present world. Hence, we may draw the conclusion,
-that if American slavery is offensive to God, the judgments
-of heaven are now impending over this guilty nation.
-And in what form they will descend, we need not
-the spirit of prophecy to prognosticate. In several of
-the slave-holding states, the black population is already
-nearly equal to the white; and the ratio of increase is so
-much in their favour, that, in the course of a few years,
-they will be far the most numerous. During the period
-of ten years intervening between the last United
-States’ census and the preceding, the following was the
-ratio of increase in several states:</p>
-<div class='std-table'>
-
-<div class='lg-container-l c017'>
- <div class='linegroup'>
- <div class='group'>
- <div class='line'>In Kentucky, the blacks increased 57 per cent, whites only 37 per cent.</div>
- <div class='line in3'>Tennessee, the blacks increased 80 per cent, whites only 57 per cent.</div>
- <div class='line in3'>Georgia, the blacks increased 40 per cent, whites only 30 per cent.</div>
- <div class='line in3'>North-Carolina, the blacks increased 22 per cent, whites only 11 per cent.</div>
- <div class='line in3'>South-Carolina, the blacks increased 26 per cent, whites only 8 per cent.</div>
- <div class='line'>And in Louisiana as early as 1810 there were 5 blacks to every four white men.</div>
- </div>
- </div>
-</div>
-
-</div>
-
-<p class='c012'>It is obvious, that, at this rate, in the course of a few years, those
-districts of our country will be covered with a black population; in
-comparison with which, the whites will appear as grasshoppers before
-them. Now I ask, in such a state of things, what can hinder the blacks
-from arising, and after avenging all their wrongs, by slaying their opposers,
-taking possession of those very lands as the reward of their own
-and their fathers’ labours? Do you say, their minds are incapable of
-such an enterprize? Look at St. Domingo; what has been effected
-there by the African race, in as ignorant and degraded a state as is any
-where witnessed in our own country! And what will our blacks need,
-but a few resolute spirits to concentrate their efforts and direct their
-energies? And if the genius of negroes is so far debased in our own
-country, that nature cannot produce them here, they can easily be furnished
-from the kingdom of Hayti. Though that little empire is now
-at peace with us and the world, yet black men have always a peculiar
-sympathy for their own colour. Besides this, many of our own free
-blacks have already gone, and many more will still go to that island, to
-enjoy all the blessings of liberty, civilization and science; leaving many
-of their brothers and children and connexions in bondage among us.—And
-do you think that a black man’s memory is so treacherous, or his
-heart so callous, that he can forget, or not feel for the wrongs of his
-own flesh and blood? Depend upon it, my hearers, on the shore of that
-<span class='pageno' id='Page_24'>24</span>sea-beaten isle, many a champion will stand, and while he looks to the
-north and rejoices in the privileges which he is permitted to enjoy, he
-will long to impart them to those he has left behind; and if nothing is
-done, on your part, to redress the wrongs of Africa, before you are aware,
-the alarm of war, the din of arms, and the rage of conflagration
-will have laid in ruins the fairest portions of our land.<a id='r4' /><a href='#f4' class='c015'><sup>[4]</sup></a></p>
-
-<div class='fn'>
-
-<div class='footnote' id='f4'>
-<p class='c016'><span class='label'><a href='#r4'>4</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;</span>If any are disposed to style this mere conjecture, be it so: but it is no more than
-what has already occurred, and may occur again. The revolution in St. Domingo originated
-in France, and was planned by a Society called <i>Amis de Noirs</i>, or Friends of the Blacks,
-organized in Paris for the express purpose of aiding the negroes in recovering their liberty;
-of which La Fayette and other distinguished citizens were the patrons. And the first individual
-that drew his sword, was a mulatto who had been educated in Paris, and sent to his
-native isle to deliver his coloured brethren from bondage.</p>
-</div>
-
-</div>
-
-<p class='c012'>Do I hear the inhabitants of the north say, “If such events should
-be realized, the desolation will not come nigh us; and we will not interfere
-to avenge the slaughter of slave-holders!” And are you then
-prepared to perjure yourselves? You have sworn to maintain the union
-of these states, at the price of your treasures and your lives; and are
-you now meditating treason and rebellion in your hearts? You have
-become a party to the guilt of slavery, and will you desert your friends
-when the contract on the part of heaven is to be fulfilled?</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>But if you are verily guilty in this matter, do not imagine that you
-can evade the punishment of such a crime. It is the righteous God of
-heaven that pleads the cause of the oppressed: and, though the scene
-of battle may not be laid at your doors; though the fiercest wrath may
-be poured out upon those portions of our country where slavery has
-existed in its most extensive and cruel forms; yet the hand of justice
-will, in some way or other, mete out to every district the full tale of its
-desert. Let us hear no more then of local jealousies and feelings, but
-as the sin has involved us in a <i>common guilt</i>, let us aim at a common
-and timely expiation. The path of present duty lies open before us, and
-it is only by diligent and faithful perseverance therein, that we can expect
-to escape the indignation of heaven.</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>This is a concern in which every citizen of the country is interested;
-whether he is now or ever has been a slave-holder or not: and
-there is something for every one to do. The sympathies of every heart
-must be aroused; the patronage of every purse must be secured in favour
-of these incipient measures to remedy the evil; publick attention
-must not only be aroused by an occasional effusion, but be kept awake
-by frequent communications; the general government must be convinced
-that it is not enough to countenance, they must approve and aid this
-humane undertaking—that the fountain of guilt springs from the foundation
-of our Capitol, and that the principal remedy must be applied there;
-our state legislatures must be made to feel that they also have imbrued
-their hands in African blood, and that not a moment is to be lost in washing
-away the stain. Every motive that can interest the philanthropist,
-the patriot, the Christian and the Christian Missionary is presented in
-this subject, and he that can be insensible of its influence is unworthy
-to occupy a place in human society, unless in the capacity of “a servant
-of servants.”</p>
-
-<p class='c012'>May the voice of timely warning arouse us, before the sword of
-sleepless justice smite our souls.</p>
-<div class='pbb'>
- <hr class='pb c008' />
-</div>
-<p class='c012'>&nbsp;</p>
-<div class='tnbox'>
-
- <ul class='ul_1 c008'>
- <li>Transcriber’s Notes:
- <ul class='ul_2'>
- <li>Missing or obscured punctuation was silently corrected.
- </li>
- <li>Typographical errors were silently corrected.
- </li>
- <li>Inconsistent spelling and hyphenation were made consistent only when a predominant
- form was found in this book.
- </li>
- </ul>
- </li>
- </ul>
-
-</div>
-<p class='c012'>&nbsp;</p>
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