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Show 170 George B. Cheever. from the pains and penalties ought to be imposed upon th0m, by the F ctleral Government and by the 'lave State~, b cca n ~'e they re f'u ~e to ob y the wicked FugitiYe Slave Bill, or gi ,·c that 1hristian aid and comfort whi ·h Go<l command.-; PYery man to givt' to the poor Cugitiv ' seeking to s('npc f'rom Slave ry. To this end a strict and en ·r g<'t ic P e r~v nal Liberty Bill ll' ll ~t be d<·m:llHl ell by the p opk, :11111 pasHl'll by the L<•giKiat u1·c; and if' this be not uouc, the p ·ople will ltaYe h •en proved traitor::; to I hem elves, the LC'gi~ lature traitors to the people, nnd altogether traitors to Freedom, humanity, piety, and God. The enforcement of the Furritivc • 'lav Bill ought to be rendered impo. sible by the Legislature on th gt·otm<l both of its unconstitutionality, and it ~ inhumanity :md impiety; ought to be mauc impos. ible thrm1gh string<'nt opposing State law. Our grand r emedy, in a cri i ' of such dang<:r, i ~ point ed out in our text; it is the return of jmlgm nl to rightr ousnc '~ , and all the upright in heart following it. It iH n conviction of' the right, and a rallying upon it, with an eye single to conscience and to od. Anc1 you can 1tav' no rye singl' to God and the right except. you make IIi "\Yord and will , upreme. You can have no r ·1iance in thi · conflict but upon fix ecl principle., by th one inftdlible standard of God's )Vonl, and llpon men under the power of such principl ~, moo red by them, held fat at them, grappled to God and IIi thron e, and n ithcr to be terrified, torn, nor driven from that hold. You builll upon the sand, if in s •] cling men or m •an::i you build upon xp cdien c~y, nva113bility, adaptation to sncce R, any thing but tru th and l'ighteou n c ~ ~. You mu, t go down deep, dig dec•p, build upon the rock, or else', when the rain descend" and the floods come, your house will be swept away simply by the sltifling of' the quicksands under it. "\Vhat the storm could not l1v, the !'hil'ting of your foundation willllo. Th t•e i:4 no ground. ol' relinncc upon political parti es, or the mnnngenwnt of' them. There is no ground. where you arc secure fl'om cbnnge, out of reach of the ocean, except the ground of God's tru th uncl righteousness. Suppose that a IDfll) shoul<l pitch his ten~ on the shores of the George B. Cheever. 171 llay of Fundy, where the title ri es forl y, fif'l y, ot· . ixty fe ' t, [lnd <'O rn e~ in wi th a nt ~h like an army of' war l w rsr~. If' he doe:; not tak ' grou ncl higher than the high<•st . pring tide <.'V<'l' known to hn.ve r i ~t·tt , his whole estab li!ihnwnt, may be swept aw:ty in one night , :wd th:t t too by th ' ve ry principles ngail! ;-;t, whi<'h he migl1t haY ' guardccl aL the out~<'l . llo ntu ~t g<'L abov' tit· swc•c•p of' t.he law::; of' OC'l'an with it:; ti dc•s, or his n· li~ lll <.: <~ on the law will do him no good, nay, will only th • tll o t·n ce rtainly prov ' hi:-; ruin. Just so, th •rc is liO r ·liance to he pla<'l'd on any temporary cxpe<liency or cornpromis' jn r c•ganl to a great ad vancing sin. If' you make lreati s by po~ it ion , you arc lo::;t pic•cent cal. Every advancing victory of' thP 'lavepower i::; an a.tl vance on principle, ana is . ecur ·d by Jaw. Every ad of' y ielding on our part, every compromis for JH"aee nn<l union, e,· ry ~H'(}ttiescen ce, cvc•ry sil<·nL submission, is noL only a r<'linqui ~hm nL and loss of' territory, po: ition, and J)()W <' r, bu t i: a sinful betrayal of' prin ciple. \Yhat is thus t:ncrili cc<l ('an ne\'cr be regained bnt by a revolution, which hccom s continually more lwpele . . , more impo~s ible . As the enemy advance, you retreat, af'raiu to hazard a pitched battle, and every day dri "en to less ad vantagc ·ou.· ground for such a batt] , which, nevcrtbcless, is in l' vitablc in the end, or you lose your whole lib Jt i<'s. 1\l ca ntime you arc losing, little by little, both your f'or<·es and your principles ; every skirmish they drop o fl ~ or go over to the e n c~ m y, H' not openly, yet by rclin<plislring the tilin g:; at fir:-~ l demand<·d, till at length there is lef't neith er any thing worlh fighti ng f'or, nor any heart to fight. Dani ·l "\V ebster w..;cd to say tllat Con. cienre was a pow ' r, in New England at lcasl, alld that when that was offended, nothing could tand nga in ~t it. lt wa:; mere rhetori<·. You find that, in r •gard to the outrage · ol' tl te Slav<'-pow<' r, :wcl the iniquitic;; of' ' Jn v<• ry, ConscictH'C is made of' sucb so1id depths of' [mlia rubbe r, thnt nothing can otT(:nd il. It !s as a shi c:ld of' to11gh pitch, in wh ich all weapons ~ ti r k :uHl lt:u.g, without so mt1 ch as a scratch upon the vitals. It is tlte pidure of' a rh inocero.::3 ::;tanding in Lhe water aml out of the |
