use. This is American Slavery, and this, if any thing can be, is a sin against God and man. Does that man sin against himself who prostitutes his powers to vicious indulgence, sinks himself into pollution, and makes a covenant with degradation? Does he wrong his own soul who scorns immortal life and chooses death? And does not that man sin against his fellow who drags him down from being man, and so far as he can, makes him a brute,-who locks up from him the Bible-plunders without mercy his domestic and social blessings-tears away his civil rights, and robs him of that impulse toward improvement and virtue which only can raise man to his true dignity? Is not this SIN? Is it not sin to make like brutes those whom God made like himself and like angels-to doom to ignorance those whom God sent his Bible to enlighten, to repel from our sympathies as men those whom Christ died to save? Is not this highhanded rebellion against God an impious attempt to defeat his plans of gracious benevolence? I speak not now of the robbery of that poor man's wages, of the cruelty of that lash, of the toil unrequited and exhausting on the plantation nor of the tearing asunder the dearest domestic ties; I pass these things, because, though most horrid and but too common, it may yet be said that they are not universal. I dwell not, therefore, on these things. They do pertain, however, to the system of American slavery, and wherever you make man a thing, and consign him to the will of an owner, such results will follow. And a system which produces such results, and is always liable to produce them; nay more, which tempts man's selfish nature and strongly draws it toward such results is surely a horrid sin. Of course the effort to abolish sin is a religious enterprise. But the subject demands more detail. I specify then

2. That American slavery takes away the key of knowledge from two and a half millions of our countrymen and consigns them either to a doubtful and imbecile piety, or more commonly to vicious degradation and eternal ruin. The proof of this position is furnished amply by our southern brethren. In regard to the first and fundamental fact, that they take away the key of knowledge, their laws both create and prove it. And what is still worse, the law is an index of the people's will, and proves therefore that at least a majority heartily concur in the measure, and will faith

fully carry it out in practice. Of course, slaves must live and die in gross ignorance. That their piety is generally doubtful, and always imbecile, requires no labored proof. Of course, piety combined with ignorance is imbecile it can neither have much power over the individual himself, nor over others. And in such a case, piety can hardly fail to be doubtful. How can his piety be sure who knows little of himself and less of God, of Christ, and of the way of salvation? Besides, the whole system under which he comes up has trained him to deceive, and may he not deceive, not his Christian teachers only, but himself? The declaration of Dr. Nelson, has much natural probability. He says:-"I have heard hundreds make such professions of love to God and trust in a Saviour, that the church did not feel at liberty to refuse them membership. I have reason to believe they were poor, deluded, mistaken creatures. The concentrated recollection of thirty years furnishes me with three instances only where I could say I have reason from the known walk of that slave to believe him or her to be a sincere Christian."

*

Consider also what multitudes are repelled from the gospel because it comes to them through the hands of their oppressors-how many sink down in ignorance and despondency to die in appearance like the brutes that perish, and how many others are swollowed up in the vortex of those vices which are incident to slavery. All these things entitle slavery to the character of the murderer of souls. And is not its utter abolition then a religious enterprise ?

3. A third fact challenges our regard. In the case of those who support it, this system cherishes passions which are exceedingly uncongenial to the gospel spirit. Is it too much to say, that pride, revenge, barbarity and lust are the natural products of slavery in its effect upon those who hold the power? I do not say that every slaveholder becomes thus vicious, or is necessarily affected by these influences; but the fact is regarded as undeniable that these are the natural and the very common results of the system upon the slaveholding community. The testimony of Jefferson on this point will be remembered. The results also are sufficiently manifest. The pride of aristocracy, the spirit of duelling, the heart that can lacerate with the scourge, and tear families asunder in cold blood, and an illegitimate off

*See New-York Evangelist, for May 9, 1836.

spring like grasshoppers for multitude-these things are not often found where slavery has not been. They are traceable to this cause mainly, and not exclusively to any other. Now these things are most uncongenial to the gospel spirit. They hold no fellowship together. The gospel must make war against them even to extermination. And this war I deem a great religious enterprise.

4. The system of American slavery involves principles and practices which are utterly hostile not only to piety, but to every benevolent enterprise; and therefore it must be deemed the natural foe of them all.

Among these I specify the following. (1.) That it is right for us to practice our fathers' sins. This is one of the fundamental props of the system. "Our fathers entailed it upon us it is our inheritance, and what they left us we have of course a right to keep. If they sinned in it, that sin is their own, and for us to perpetuate the system under such circumstances cannot be wrong."

(2.) That because we have the power, we may rob the poor of his wages and of all legal right to claim them. Adhering evermore to

-"the good old rule, the simple plan, That they should take who have the power, and they should keep who can."

(3.) That we may shut out the light of heaven, even the word of God from a class of fellow beings, for the sake of making them better servants to our lusts.

(4.) In order that the community may endure and sustain this system of legalized oppression, we may exclude from our sympathies and benevolent regards a whole race whom God has made our fellow creatures in his own image, and for whom as for us Christ has died; and all this we may do on no other grounds than these, that they have a darker skin than ours, that we found them and have kept them exceedingly degraded, and that their great forefather in the days of the flood was cursed to "be a servant of servants unto his brethren."

Now if we may hate one brother for our convenience, why may we not another? If we may neglect the improvement of one race because of their degradation, why may we not of another, and of the whole human family, and leave the heathen to perish forever? What principle can be more

subversive of every great scheme of benevolence, nay of benevolence itself?

(5.) That for our pecuniary benefit, we may annihilate the marriage relation, and tear asunder husbands and wives, parents and children at our pleasure. Can virtue ever flourish on the ruins of the domestic constitution? Can it flourish where Christian men can ruthlessly break up this constitution, and fatten themselves on the price of its sacri

Can real benevolence, enlarged and pure as that of Christ for ruined men, find place in such hearts ?

(6.) That to secure our own gratification the more effectually we may strip of all civil protection those who by natural right, and all right law, have the best claim to such protection.

That the colored race under slave laws are really not protected I need not stand to show. The master's property is protected, but the rights and well being of the MEN whom he holds, are not at all. The law which rejects their testimony against their constituted enemies annihilates their civil protection, and public sentiment sustains the spirit of that law. But who does not know that they, of all others, have the highest claim, in reason and right to be protected? Of what use is law but to protect the weak against the more powerful, and secure protection especially there where it is most needed? This principle therefore stands in deadly hostility against God's law, and against the spirit of benevolence.

Now these principles of slavery are all carried out to a greater or less extent into their legitimate and corresponding practice, and in our system of slavery they always will be. And can this system-such being its fruits, consist with the spirit and labors of Christian benevolence? Impossible.— Then the system is the natural and mighty enemy of benevolent enterprise, and one of the first great benevolent enterprises before the Christian world is to slay this enemy.

5. Our main position is sustained also by the fact that American slavery is not only a sin, but a sin of giant magnitude and strength. By this I mean not merely that in the number and extent of its evil consequences and selfcreated iniquities its name is Legion: I allude not merely to its prolific offspring of oppressions, cruelties, degradation, ignorance and lust; but also to other facts which give it a

giant power of resistance. It is nursed by the strongest passions of the human heart, love of power, indolence, avarice and sensuality. I need not stop to show that each of these base passions is fed and fattened on American slavery. Nor is the inference doubtful that some men will struggle long and desperately before they relinquish so sweet and rich a gratification. But this is not all. The system has the energy and compactness of mature years, if not the venerableness of advanced age. It pleads the names of men whom the nation venerates. It has moulded into its own image the customs, habits, laws and prejudices of a vast people. And, finally, it has fortified itself in the very citadel of our republic, and claims to have taken refuge in the temple of our Constitution. It will not be vanquished without a struggle. The contest will be hard fought, and "the weapons of our warfare must be mighty through God." A struggle of this sort deserves the name of a great religious enterprise. The conversion of a nation is not a greater work, nor more worthy to be regarded as a mighty enterprise of Christian benevolence.

6. Another fact as painful as it is pertinent, is that this system of legalized oppression is not only practiced in the church, and tolerated by the church, but is in fact so sustained by the church that it lives mainly by her indulgence, and her example. This specification contains two parts. (1.) That the church as such does justify the present continuance of slavery, and, (2.) That her justification of it does in fact sustain the system, while her universal and decided condemnation would destroy it.

The church as such justifies slavery inasmuch as her members and ministers speak and write, preach and practice in its defence. Excepted, are three or four denominations, less numerous but not less worthy, but the great leading denominations stand firm in justification of slaveholding for the present. True they do not justify slavery in the abstract, and there is no need that they should. Nobody asks that of them in order to hold slaves with a quiet conscience.— Until recently it has been supposed that few, even of the most devoted advocates of slavery have justified the abstract principle. The defence of that is a hard case, and by a lit. tle metaphysical subtlety they have managed to condemn the whole thing in the abstract most unceremoniously, and