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28 THE LIBERATOR FEBRUARY 17.
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POETRY
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For the Liberator.
THE PRESIDENTAL CHAIR FOR SALE.
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BY GEORGE W. BUNGAY.
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AUCTIONEER.

'Now, gentlemen, what will you give the South,
Just for a seat upon the chair of State?
It is for sale, and Democrat or Whig
Can purchase it by bidding quick and high.'

Scarce had the words died on the speaker's lip,
When, lo! a dapper little demagogue,
Like a dull morning on the back of night,
Climbed on the shoulders of a sturdy slave.
With crimson ink let me record his speech:-

DOUGLAS.

'I bought a Southern farm with negroes stocked,
And made my mark upon the quivering flesh
Of father, mother, husband, child, and wife;
My 'giant' arms have torn parent from child,
And with the gory lash my hands have writ
Allegiance to Slavery and the South,
Upon the scarred and furrowed backs of slaves.'
[Red words on living parchment in black frames.]

Down from the ebon pedestal he slid,
Like short Zaccheus from the sycamore:
Not that he looked for Jesus' image there,
Whom he had sold for silver pieces oft,
And mocked, and crowned with thorns, and crucified.
Next came a wheezing, pot-faced, burly man,
Whose skin was like an alligator's shell,
The growth of years, the hardest of the hards,
Although his full-orbed face was soft as dough.
He praised the Nuncio of the Pope of Rome,
And promised to give all the South would ask,
To occupy the presidential chair.

CASS.

'In camp, in court, at home, abroad,' said he,
'I've done [[italic]]hard[[/italic]] service for my country's sake;
Pray let me have the throne of this republic now.
My [[italic]]letter[[/italic]] is a pledge of true fidelity.'

He had not time to add another word,
Before the little giant bid again:

DOUGLAS.

'I'll frame a black law for my noble State,
And drive the negroes into Slavery's net,
And snatch the property from every black,
Whose freedom I have not the power to steal;
I'll be a human hound, and hunt for men,
Who break their chains, and fly for liberty.'

Then Caleb, long in search of honor, came:

CUSHING.

Said he, 'I went to Mexico, and fought
Beneath the shadow of a damsel fair;
I sent a 'crusher' to my native State,
I've washed the free-soil from my hard white hands,
I know a few words in four languages,
I've talents and a noble head of hair,
I'll condescend to be your President.'

Just then the petit prodigy came forth again:

DOUGLAS.

'Sanhedrim of the South! once more I bid;
Now I will steal Nebraska from the North,
And break the sacred seal of compromise,
Give ample room for Slavery to grow,
Spurn Northern measures, and cut Northern men,
Spit in the tranquil face of Liberty,
And cleave the saucy cap which crowns her head.'

PIERCE left the chair he could not fill, and said:
'Not I, but Marcy, cut off Bronson's head;
Here on my knees, with ashes on my pate,
I do recant the [[italic]]soft[[/italic]] things I have said,
And promise to be [[italic]]hard[[/italic]] forevermore.
I would enslave Nebraska, and New Hampshire too,
And be a slave myself, to prove my loyalty.'

Just then, an avalanche of indignation fell
From an insulted nation on their heads,
And buried them in everlasting shame.
It was an avalanche of freemen's votes,
Which rolled from granite hills and mountain green.

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From the National Era.

THE HASHISH.

BY JOHN G. WHITTIER.

Of all the Orient lands can vaunt
Of marvels with our own competing,
The strangest is the Hashish plant,
And what will follow on its eating.

What visions to the taster rise,
Of Dervish or of Almeh dances,
Of Eblis, or of Paradise,
Set all aglow with Houri glances!

The Molla and the Christian dog
Clap the same pipe beneath their noses;
The Muezzin climbs the synagogue,
The Rabbi shakes his beard at Moses!

The Arab by his desert well
Sits choosing from some Caliph's daughters,
And hears his single camel's bell
Sound welcome to his regal quarters.

The Koran reader makes complaint
Of Shitan dancing on and off it;
The robber offers arms; the saint
Drinks tokay, and blasphemes the Prophet.

Such scenes that Eastern plant awakes;
But we have one ordained to beat it--
The Hashish of the West, that makes
Or fools or knaves of all who eat it.

It makes the merchant class, with ware
And stock in trade, his fellow-sinners;
And factory lords, with equal care,
Regard their spindles and their spinners.

The preacher eats, and straight appears
His Bible in a new translation;
Its angels, negro-overseers,
And Heaven itself a snug plantation.

For seraph songs he takes the bark,
The bay of blood-hounds Northward setting;
The planter for a patriarch,
With servants of his own begetting.

The noisiest Democrat, with ease,
It turns to Slavery's parish beadle;
The shrewdest statesman eats, and sees
Due Southward point the polar needle!

The man of peace, about whose dreams
The sweet millennial angels cluster,
Tastes the mad weed, and plots and schemes,
A noisy Cuban fillibuster!

The Judge partakes, and sits, ere long,
Upon his bench a railing blackguard;
Decides, off-hand, that right is wrong,
And reads the ten commandments backward!

Oh, potent plant! so rare a taste
Has never Turk or Gentoo gotten;
The hempen Hashish of the East
Is powerless to our Western Cotton.

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COMFORT IN NATURE.

Art sick?--art sad?--art angry with the world?
Do all friends fail thee? Why, then, give thyself
Unto the forests and the ambrosial fields:
Commerce with them and with the eternal sky.
Despair not, fellow. He who casts himself
On Nature's fair bosom, and draws food,
Drinks from a fountain that is never dry.
The Poet haunts there: Youth that ne'er grows old
Dwells with her and her flowers; and Beauty sleeps
In her most green recesses, to be found
By all who seek her truly.

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THE LIBERATOR.

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[Reported for the Philadelphia Register.]

GREAT DEBATE ON THE BIBLE,

BETWEEN MR. JOSEPH PARKER, OF OHIO, AND REV. DR. BERG, OF PHILADELPHIA.

[CONTINUED.]

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FOURTH EVENING.

[At six o'clock, an immense crowd had gathered at the doors of the Concert Hall. When the doors were opened, it flowed in. The seats were filled in a few minutes. Several conversations between individuals of different opinions attracted the attention of those who sat near. One of them grew very animated. Cries of 'Louder!' 'Get on the platform!' &c. One of Mayer Gilpin's police stilled the rising disorder.]

Quarter past seven.

MODERATOR ILLMAN--According to the arrangement, Mr. Barker will now commence.

MR BARKER--(Profound silence.) As my opponent appears to have the impression that I have not observed the true order of this debate, I wish to remark, that the question is two-fold:

1. Is the Bible of divine origin? 2. Are its contents, when received as of divine authority, salutary, or injurious? With respect to the first, those who maintain the affirmative appeal first to internal, second, to external evidence.

If my opponent had opened the debate, he would have stated the nature of the internal evidence, and presented you with specimens of it. It fell to my lot, however, to open. He did not lead, but I led. It was my duty to inquire whether there was any thing in the contents and style of the Bible, which showed it to be of human production. I did so, and found much that was erroneous or blasphemous; many contradictory representations of God, much bad morality, many evil examples presented as good ones; and many other matters already referred to. Under each head, I presented specimens. I have not deviated one hair's breadth from this line of inquiry, except to notice the objections of Dr. Berg. I am bound to pursue the same course to-night, when I expect to close the first part of this debate. On Monday night, I expect to take up the external evidences. My opponent will probably give his views on the same subject, and it will be my duty to follow with such remarks as his may require.

At the close of my speech, I was on the Bible account of the Deluge, and of the Ark commanded to be made to save the remnant of mankind. This structure is said to have been about 150 yards long, 25 wide, and 15 deep; and divided into three stories. According to the best calculations, there were about 56,200 cubic yards inside. In this space were to be placed--

1. Noah and his family, eight persons in all--with all the food necessary for their support for one year.

2. Seven pairs of every species of fowl and clean beast, and two of all unclean beasts.

3. Enough food for all these birds, beasts, and creeping things, for one year and a half.

Imagine, if you can, that there were only eight persons to feed, water, and tend half a million of animals, to keep all clean and well ventilated, and that, for this last purpose, there was in the Ark but one window, a half yard square, which, if I read the text aright, was kept closed! Then, again, consider that this vast number of living creatures was collected from widely different climates, temperate, tropical and arctic, and that their natural food was to be found only in the places where they lived. It must have taken time for Noah to travel and collect them from districts perhaps twelve thousand miles apart, and to gather together the proper food, and stow it away. As many of the animals were carniverous, he must have had to provide a great number of others for their sustenance. Are there not strong marks of improbability in all this? Are not these facts, as recorded, not only improbable, but impossible? Could half a million of birds, beasts, and creeping things, with their food, have been crowded into the space assigned to the Ark? Suppose each pair of animals, and their food, could have been accommodated in one cubic yard, the Ark would have been ten times too small. But a pair, or seven pairs of certain animals, with their food--elephants, for example--would have occupied half the Ark. In the dimensions given, it was not possible to find room for one fiftieth part of all species of animals and their food. The science of Zoology has already discovered more than 100,000 different species. Imagine, I repeat, half a million of animals, including lions, tigers, elephants and cattle, shut up in the Ark, and only eight persons to take care of and feed them, keep the Ark sweet and clean, and ventilate it through a window generally kept shut!!! Even the Christian geologists give up the common story as improbable. Professor Hitchcock says:

[Here Mr. Barker read from Prof. Hitchcock's 'Geology of Religion,' a passage alleging the same difficulties above urged, and the additional one, that a flood of height named would have taken eight times more water than there is now on the surface of the earth. The reporter has not been able to procure the book.]

Dr. J. Pye Smith, an eminent English geologist, and, in this country, Dr. Harris, Prof. St. John, and numbers of others, concur in rejecting the common account, as not only improbable, but impossible. It must have required strong arguments to persuade them to risk their reputation for orthodoxy, and adopt our view.

I will now notice a few more discrepancies in the Old Testament, and then pass to the New. I said, last night, that Genesis bears all the marks of a compilation, that its materials are discordant, and it gives several different names to the Supreme Being. What does it say of Abraham? It tells us that he was 'an hundred hears old when his son Isaac was born unto him.' (Gen. xxi. 5); that both he and Sarah were old and well stricken in years, and it ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women (Gen. xviii. 2); and Isaac's birth is represented as a sort of promised miracle. Paul attributes it to Abraham's faith. He says of him, in Romans, fourth chapter:

'Who against hope believed, that he might become the father of many nations, according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be. And being not weak in faith, he considered not his own body now dead, when he was about an hundred years old, neither yet the deadness of Sarah's womb. He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully persuaded that what He had promised, He was able also to perform.'

And the same apostle tells us of Abraham, in his Epistle to the Hebrews:

'And therefore sprang there even of one, [[italic]]and him as good as dead[[/italic]], so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea-shore innumerable.' Heb. xi. 12.

However, we find that Abraham and Sarah lived many years after. Sarah lived long enough to see Isaac grow to be some forty or fifty years of age; she was 127 years old when she died. Abraham survived her. Now, it was hardly to be expected, that a man who, nearly half a century before, is said to have been 'as good as dead,' and whose having a son at that time is mentioned as miraculous, should marry again. Yet we read, in Gen. xxv., the following:

'Then again Abraham took a wife, and her name was Keturah. And she bore him Zimran, and Jokshan, and Medan, and Midian, and Ishbak, and Shuah.'

Here is a numerous family for a man fifty years after he was 'as good as dead,' and yet no mention is made of a miracle!

And again, we are told that Lot is a righteous man. Notwithstanding this endorsement of his character, we find that when the men of Sodom compassed his house round, and demanded, for the basest of purposes, the two strangers that tarried with him, Lot went forth among them, told them that he had two virgin daughters, and offered to surrender these, instead of the strangers! The story is inconceivable. I will not say that no [[italic]]righteous man[[/italic]] would do this; but I will say, that no unrighteous man, with any remains of his original

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nature in his heart, would volunteer to surrender his young daughters to a fate more horribly revolting than burying alive, or sacrificing them as a burnt offering.

There are other statements in Genesis, which physiology forbids us to accept as true. One of them is the account, in the nineteenth chapter, of the parentage of Moab and Ben-Ammi.

I will now give you a few specimens of contradictory statements in the New Testament. Matthew xxvii. 44, says:

'The thieves, also, which were crucified with him, cast the same in his teeth.'

But we find in Luke that only one of the thieves did so.

'And one of the malefactors which were hanged, railed on him, saying, If thou be the Christ, save thyself and us. But the other answering, rebuked him, saying,' &c. --weLuke xxiii., 39.

We find an equally glaring contradiction in the case of Judas. Matthew says:

'Then Judas, which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, saying, I have sinned in that I have betrayed the innocent blood. And they said, What is that to us? see thou to that. And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went, and hanged himself. And the chief priests took the silver pieces, and said, It is not lawful for to put them into the treasury, because it is the price of blood. And they took counsel, and brought with them the potter's field, to bury strangers in. Wherefore, that field is called the field of blood unto this day. Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremiah, the prophet.'

Now, mark you, there is no such passage or any similar one in Jeremiah, but there is one something like it in Zachariah, but it is no prophecy, saying,

'And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the price of him that was valued, whom they of the children of Israel did value; and gave them for the potter's field, as the Lord appointed me.' - Matthew xxvii. 8-10.

Here we find that Judas took the pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, that he cast them down, and went and hanged himself, and that the chief priests bought with the money the potter's field. But a very different story is told in the first chapter of Acts. I will read the passage:

'Men and brethren, this scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy Ghost, by the mouth of David, spake before concerning Judas, which was guide to them that took Jesus. For he was numbered with us, and had obtained a part of this ministry. Now [[italic]]this man purchased a field[[/italic]] with the reward of iniquity; and falling headlong, he [[italic]]burst asunder in the midst and all his bowels gushed out[[/italic]]. And it was known unto all the dwellers at Jerusalem; insomuch as that field is called in their proper tongue, Aceldama, that is to say, the field of blood.'--Acts i. 16, 19.

Now, here are palpable contradictions: one says, the chief priests purchased the field, the other that Judas purchased it; one says that he invested the money in a purchase of land, and the other that he cast it down in the temple; one says that 'the field of blood' received its name for one reason, and the other assigns a reason wholly different; one says that he hanged himself, and the other that [[italic]]Jesus[[/italic]] burst asunder, and that all his bowels gushed out. (Explosion of laughter, and cries at this slip of the tongue.)

Dr. Berg. [[italic]]Judas[[/italic]].

Mr. Barker, (pleasantly.) It is always well, when an advocate of a cause makes a blunder, that he should make so [[italic]]big[[/italic]] a one as not to mislead anybody.

The few instances I have given will suffice the show an imperfectness in the Bible narrative which is wholly incompatable with the idea of its divine origin.

The Doctor appears to have misunderstood what I said about death-bed scenes. I said that I had seen Infidels die calm, and Christians die full of h A case of this latter kind he may find reported in my works. An excellent lady, upon whose last moments I waited, died in agonizing fear of the future. Some diseases affect the mind more than others, as [[italic]]delirium tremens[[/italic]], in which the sufferer imagines himself pursued by demons, which seek to drag him into a fiery gulf. But, certainly, the ordinary Christian doctrines, held by the orthodox in regard to the character of God, the devil, and a hell of fire and brimstone, cannot but tend to awaken fears in delicate organizations. Dr. Berg thinks that all have sinned, and that if my doctrine of no remission of the penalty of sin is true, Infidels must always be looking forward to a fearful retribution in the world to come.--The inference is not well drawn, for there may be such a thing as suffering the penalty in the present life. If a man will continue to sin, he will suffer; but if he cease to sin and amend his ways, so as to bring them to conform with the laws of his existence, he will be happy.

My opponent has read to you dreadful accounts of the last moments of Paine and Newport. But are they true? We have no proof of it. Religious partizans do not always speak truth. Every reformer has been abused by the clergy. The priests of his day called Christ a blasphemer, a wine-bibber, a child of the devil. Nor will the Doctor believe the many stories told by the Catholic authors against Luther. Has he good proofs of those charges against Paine? They sounded to me like slanders. Men do not make formal speeches to dying men, though they may write them. The author of the account is evidently full of prejudice. For my part, I never take the statement of a zealous Protestant against a Catholic, or of a zealous Catholic against a Protestant. I am no partizan of Thomas Paine, but I have read his works, and convinced myself that what Bishop Watson and Simpson say of them are gross misrepresentations, and often the veriest falsehoods. If we could get the true story of Paine's life and death, we should doubtless find they have been more foully misrepresented than his writings. It is well known that there are persons who earn their living by writing stories about the death-bed scenes of infidels and similar subjects. There are large establishments who even keep such persons under salary. So far as I have been able to read the character of Paine, he was a lover of truth and virtue. He attacked old errors with the determination and power of a true reformer. It were folly to pretend that any human being is free from imperfection; but I would be false to my own convictions, did I not declare that I consider Thomas Paine one of the great benefactors of our race. ([[italic]]Applause and hisses[[/italic]].)

DR. BERG. (Two rounds of enthusiastic applause.) It is sometimes well when the smoke of battle has cleared away, to look at the practical results, before renewing the contest. Before proceeding in the positive argument on the internal evidence of the Scriptures, I propose to sum up a few points already established. I would remark 1st, that the truth of the Bible does not rest on the ability of any human advocate; and that it might be impossible for any intellect to explain all its pages, for they are based on the wisdom of God and not of man. My opponent's mode of arguing is extremely unphilosophical. He has no broad and satisfactory views, exhaustive of the subject but continues to urge insulated objections. 2d. He produces again and again matters which may be considered settled, after the overwhelming array of evidence in their favor. I have shown you that he cannot tell you the name of the God he worships, without quoting the Bible he rejects. The world 'Godhead,' quoted by him from the first chapter of Romans, to show that his attributes may be learned from the nature, is used by the Apostle simply to denote the unity of the Divine nature, in opposition to the polytheism of antiquity. The light of nature is insufficient to enable us to discover many of the attributes of Jehovah. Without the aid of revelation, nature is but a succession of enigmas which no human ingenuity can unravel, before which human science is silent. Without the Bible, man cannot tell who made him. How can he know without it, the immortality of the soul? Neither Plato, nor Socrates, nor Cicero, could solve the problem. They hoped it might be so. Cicero declared that though he fondly hoped he would live beyond the tomb, the sight of death never failed to fill him with a shuddering dread of annihilation. Revelation alone cannot dispel the gloom that hangs over the portals of the other world.

My opponent speaks of the heaven of all nations. The heathen have no heaven. With all their attainments in knowledge, the Elysium of the ancients was nothing but

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a Paradise of shades, where gloomy spirits fitted to and fro in silent joylessness. He says, too, that the heathen have a hell! Does he accept this conclusion of human reason? Does he believe in retribution in another world--a doctrine usually scouted by infidels? He has seen infidels die in peace, because their God is not malignant; and yet he assures us, almost in the same breath, that their God never forgives sin! He has taken infinite pains to prove to us that infidels have no Saviour! I have shown before how some of their leaders have died, by statements authenticated as well as facts can be; how they left this world in horror and trembling despair. They hoped for nothing after the breath was out of the body. It is true, as he says, that the transgression of physical laws is always followed by the penalty. Out of his own mouth is he condemned, for moral evil must be punished under the same law, and by the same analogy. (Applause.) On their own ground, infidels are doomed to hell, for their God never forgives sin! Their own champion has proved the existence of a hell. (Applause.) Blessed be God, say we, who has given us the doctrine of salvation by grace! Jesus Christ has brought life and immortality out of the shades of heathen doubt, and has made a light to shine on the black midnight of unassisted reason.

My opponent quoted part of a hymn, and, by quoting a very small part, grossly perverted its meaning. I will read it. It is No. 201, in the old Methodist hymn-book.

'[[italic]]Part[[/italic]] of thy name divinely stands
On all they creatures writ.'

This he quoted; but he did not quote the next verse, which, in allusion to the Bible, says:

'Here the [[italic]]whole Deity[[/italic]] revealed.'

True, part of the attributes of God can be learned from nature; but the question between us is, whether all of them can. Had he quoted the whole hymn, it would have been seen to bear me out. (Applause.) My opponent would have found that the good old Methodist hymns do not sustain his theology now as they once did. (Laughter and loud applause.)

My opponent rejects the doctrine of the atonement. Well, he accepts human reason as a sufficient guide. It has guided the heathen. Will he accept their conclusions? If so, he must accept the atonement, for the heathen have always felt the need of sacrifice. But he rejects what they believe, and stands a living witness of the insufficiency of natural reason to guide us to positive truth. (Applause.) Behold how pride is in conflict with doubt! How necessary it is that Jesus should say to the troubled heart, Peace, be still! The Christian's soul is hushed in its triumph, because his heart is stayed upon God. (Applause.) I have shown from his own mouth, that despisers are without God and without hope in the world. He may say that he has seen infidels die happy. It may be so. No one will dispute his assertion. But it sometimes happens that he asserts on two opposite sides, and we are then puzzled which one to take. (Laughter, applause, and a few hisses.) I'll deal kindly with him, and take whatever he holds now, hoping for grace to him, that he may get something better, and grow to believe that the Bible is the true world of the living God. He has seen infidels die with calmness. what is their calmness but a stupid torpor, but the quiet of the strong delusion which, on account of their rejection of the truth, they have been allowed to fall into, that they may perish? Their consciences are seared as with a hot iron. The scornful manner in which he speaks of justification by faith proves the truth of the Scripture eclaration, that that to the Jews, the cross is a stumbling-block, and to the Greeks, foolishness. (Cry in the audience of 'Time up.')

Dr. Berg (to the Moderator)--My time up?

Moderator Rev. J. Chambers--No, you have several minutes more.

Dr. Berg--Surely, he knows that the Bible considers no faith good for anything, unless associated with good works. I shall not consume time by discussing this question. What he says, is not worthy of a serious refutation before a Christian community. Any child that has sat under the teachings of a Christian pulpit knows that no faith justifies, unless it is united with works. How then DARE my opponent say the contrary? (Applause. Cries of question--question--go on--and a few hisses.) I am sticking to the question; and if I don't, (cries of question,) I only follow my opponent. (Question! Turn him out! Let's have Noah's Ark! A storm of shouts and hisses, and great disorder.)

Mr. Barker--I hope no man who calls himself a friend of mine--(Take your seat, Barker! And shure, outh with him? Laughter, and the audience subsided once more into silence.)

Dr. Berg--I would proceed to offer the proof which lies in rich profusion around this part of my subject; but to what end? It would be more logical in my opponent to refute the positive evidence I have offered, than to confine himself to negations and insulated objections. He argues foregone conclusions. In another mode, he would find something worthy of the ability for which he enjoys a reputation. He renews objections again and again answered. Does the sun give no light or heat, because the telescope can descry spots on its surface? I do not deny that there are some parts of the Bible obscure, some mysteries that cannot be explained. But what then? This very fact is evidence that there is no fraud. In any communication of the Infinite to the Finite, we might anticipate mystery. And are there no mysteries in Nature? Will he tell me how the grass grows? How the planets are kept in their orbits? We cannot reason with certainty of God as we can of man. We can explain the works of man, but not of God. The mass of Christians who have had experience of God, have found their souls satisfied with the Bible. This, in itself, is strong collateral evidence of its truth. To appreciate the Bible, there is necessary, not only of a careful study of its contents, but an impartial one. Unhappily, infidels approach it with so much prejudice, that they wrest the truth to their own destruction. They approach it with a foregone determination to disbelieve. Instead of a humble desire to learn the truth, they wish to cavil at the doctrine. They veil their eyes to all perception of the truth. Now, it is impossible to explain light to the blind; he will deny the sun, moon and stars, because he cannot see them. (Applause.) He stands there, his face turned upward, winking and blinking at the heavens, in a perverse desire to substitute sight for faith. You might as well descant upon the melody of music to the deaf. What avail millions of witnesses, millions from all quarters of the globe, who have found joy in believing? They differ from him, and, therefore, he denies. His miserable negations are a substitute for argument--his cavils an offset to all positive proof. The Gospel has no power to penetrate, nor practical holiness to soothe and comfort his heart. He breaks the brightest link of the golden chain which binds him to his Maker. The hopes of the Christian he cannot appreciate; he regards them as the fond dreams of an amiable but foolish fanatic. Here, again, he illustrates the truth of Scripture; he cannot appreciate these things, because they are spiritually discerned.

There are certain marks which ought to convince infidels that the attributes of God are to be found only in his revelation. Even infidels are compelled to borrow the name and attributes of God from its pages. Why do they believe in one God, and not in many? Why do they prefer Deism to Polytheism? They may learn his power and wisdom from Nature; but how will they learn from it his mercy, truth, justice, eternity, and omnipresence? I see sickness in the world, and that bitter streams mingle with every fountain of pleasure. How can they, by the light of Nature; reconcile this with Divine mercy? I see oppression; the righteeous languish, and the tyrant is prosperous; the wicked flourishes like a green bay tree, and the poor man is plunged into disgrace. These are common moral phenomena, as well deserving explanation as any of the incidents of nature which all the astrology and geology of infideldom can expound. (Applause.)

Another point: How were the Jews favored with a knowledge of the unity of God, when other nations, more advanced in the arts and sciences, were ignorant? Here is a problem worthy of my opponent's boasted phi

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losophy and science. He has an opportunity, by solving it, to sustain his reputation. Let us see if he can make more impression on it than his coadjutors, who have long been hammering on it with their little mallets. Better do this than take a geological fossil, and attempt to batter down the Bible with it, as Samson slew the Philistines with the jaw-bone of an ass. (Vociferous applause.) I assert, without fear of contradiction, that there is not, in the whole world, an infidel that believes--(Cry of 'Time up.' Dr. Berg took his seat amid long-continued and hearty applause.)

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GOD.

It will be universally admitted that we cannot logically, rationally, scientifically speak of a conception of which we can form in our minds no consistent image. To speak so, would be to use vacant words, dead, without ideas.

When we cognize our own individuality, we image ourselves as distinguished from and related to other beings and things; we perceive our finiteness. In exact proportion as we withdraw ourselves from the finite, the limited, we become unaware of our individuality, and tend to fusion and unconsciousness.

Our conscious individuality resides, then, entirely, in our finiteness, and cannot logically be conceived of without it.

We cannot conceive of the existence in any being of a conscious individuality, differing in kind from our own. If, therefore, God is Infinite, and not Finite, he cannot be conscious of limitation; he cannot have conscious individuality and personality apart from Man. For myself, I accept Christ literally, when he claims to be God, and asserts the same possibility for every human being. God means, Highest Good, Purest Love, Perfect Wisdom; and these are yet-to-be the Realized Life and Essence of EVERY MAN.

F.S.C.

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THE REFORMER'S HOPE.

When a great snow-storm occurs, and the earth is covered many feet deep with the chill substance, piled up here and there into huge drifts, some brave boy attempts to cut little paths around human dwellings. He is well nigh discouraged at the task before him, for even the mighty 'steam-horse' meets more than his match during the wintry season, and is often brought to a dead stand in some snow-bank. But the brave boy toils on, comforting himself with the thought that the days are fast approaching when that 'caloric engine.' old Sol, will melt away the dreary waste of white, and the earth be clad in beautiful green again.

So, when a great flood of error and injustice sweeps across the land, and the knowledge and practice of the devil seem to cover the earth as the waters cover the mighty deep, running up here and there into huge waves of wicked laws, some gallant reformer tries to keep out the surges of sin from human dwellings. He is well nigh discouraged at the task before him, for even those strong life boats of love and truth, Moses, Socrates, Jesus, have been wrecked when they attempted to ride the boisterous ocean of wrong that appears ready to swallow up every right and privilege. But the gallant reformer toils on, comforting himself with the thought that some day the Sun of Righteousness will surely rise, with healing in its beams, and dry up this flood of error and injustice, converting its wash and slime into rich soil, wherefrom a bountiful harvest of welfare shall grow, to gladden mankind. W.S.G.

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From the Pennsylvania Freeman.

THE DEBATE ON THE BIBLE.

The discussion on the authority of the Bible, at Concert Hall, between Rev. J. F. Berg, of this city, and Joseph Barker, of Ohio, closed on Thursday evening last, after a continuance of eight evenings. During the whole time, the vast hall was crowded with an eager multitude--numbering from 2000 to 2500 persons--each paying an admittance of 12 1/2 cents every evening, and on some evenings it is said that hundreds went away, unable to approach the door; nor did the interest appear to flag among the hearers to the last.

Of the merits of the question or the argument, it does not come within the scope of a strictly anti-slavery paper to speak, but we cannot forbear to notice the contrast in the manner and bearing of the two debaters, and the two parties among the audience. Mr. Barker uniformly bore himself as a gentleman, courteously and respectfully toward his opponent, and with the dignity becoming his position, and the solemnity and importance of the question. We regret that we cannot say the same of Dr. Berg, who at times seemed to forget the obligations of the gentleman in his zeal as a controversialist. He is an able and skillful debater, though less logical than Mr. Barker, but he wasted his time and strength too often on personalities and irrelevant matters. His personal inuendoes and epithets, his coarse witticisms, and a bearing that seemed to us more arrogant than Christian, may have suited the vulgar and the intolerant among his party, but we believe these things won him no respect from the calm and thinking portion of the audience, while we know that they grieved and offended some intelligent and candid men who thoroughly agreed with his views. It is surely time that all Christians and clergymen had learned that men whom they regard as heretics and infidels have not forfeited their claims to the respect and courtesies of social life, by their errors of opinion, and that insolence and arrogance, contemptuous sneers and impeachment of motives and character, toward such men, are not effective means of grace for their enlightenment and conversion.

Among the audience, there was a large number of men, who also lost their self-control in their dislike to Mr. Barker's views, and he was often interrupted, and sometimes checked in his argument, by hisses, groans, sneers, vulgar cries, and clamor, though through all these annoyances and repeated provocations, he maintained his wonted composure of manner and clearness of thought. On the other hand, Dr. Berg was heard with general quiet by his opponents, and greeted with clamorous applause by his friends, who seemed to constitute a large majority of the audience, and to feel that the triumph of their cause, like the capture of Jericho of old, depended upon the amount of noise made.

At the close of the debate, a series of resolutions was introduced by a gentleman present, extolling the Bible, and commending Dr. Berg's defence of it, and was adopted by the audience. A very fair and pretty full report of the debate has been published in the [[italic]]Daily Register[[/italic]], and since issued entire in an extra, and we understand it has met with an immense sale. We believe also that it is to be published in pamphlet.

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LUCY STONE IN PHILADELPHIA.

Miss Stone lectured, as announced, on the Rights of Woman, in the Musical Fund Hall, on Saturday evening. We have rarely, if ever, seen a larger, more respectable, or more attentive audience gathered to hear a popular lecture in this city; while the most eminent and eloquent literary lecturers of the country have often spoken here to much smaller assemblies. Stronger voices than hers have often found it difficult to make themselves heard at the extremity of that large hall, but so noiseless was the attention, so eager the interest of this great multitude, that the speaker's melodious voice seemed to fill the room, and be audible to the most distant hearer.

The lecture, in manner and in thought, evidently left a very favorable impression upon those present, both toward the speaker and her subject. It disappointed, most agreeably, all those who had given any credit to the statements and reports of Woman's Rights meetings and speeches, spread over the country by lying telegraphic reports and presses.

The whole tendency of the lecture was to excite or strengthen in every mind a reverence for truth, a love of humanity, a faith in principle, and a spirit of progress.

At the close of her address, Miss Stone stated, that after engaging the hall, and advertising her meeting, she had sent several complimentary tickets to colored ladies; but she had learned, to her surprise and mortification, but a few hours before the meeting, that these ladies would not be admitted. She protested against this action as a wrong to herself and to them, declaring that, in other lectures, which she intimated she would give here at some future time, she would seek a hall into which her colored sisters would go with her. This modest

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[[start column]]

but firm protest was responded to by the audience with hearty applause.

Whenever Miss Stone fulfils her intention of visiting Philadelphia again. we anticipate for her a cordial welcome and an appreciative hearing.--[[italic]]Penn. Freeman.[[/italic]]

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[[italic]]Burning of a Steamer.[[/italic]]--The steamer Eagle, bound from Columbus to Apalachicola, was totally destroyed by fire on Monday, together with 1,300 bales of cotton. Four negroes also perished in the flames.

[[italic]]Death of Missionaries.[[/italic]]--Three female Missionaries af the American Baptist Missionary Union have recently deceased--Mrs. Rose, of the mission in Arracan, British Burmha, and Mrs. Shermer and Mrs. Crocker, of the mission to the Bassas, West Africa--all within a year of their residence.

[[image: hand with index finger extended, pointing right]] The Mississippi was frozen hard at St. Louis on the 21st. The Intelligencer says thousands of persons were crossing on the ice, and that droves of hogs, sleighs, wagons, and everything moveable passed and repassed from daylight to dark in a constant, incessant stream.

[[italic]]A Sad Winter.[[/italic]]--A cotemporary says that war on the Danube--cholera in England--conflagration at home--wrecks on the sea--have given to the present winter a pre-eminence among disastrous seasons.

[[image: hand with index finger extended, pointing right]] Mrs. Landreaux has recovered a verdict of $20,000 against the New Orleans Railroad, in the suit for damages in the death of her husband.

[[image: hand with index finger extended, pointing right]] There died at Moscow, on the 11th of October, a certain Peter Sosnowsky, aged 122 years, 1 month, and 25 days.

[[italic]]Slave Trade in Cuba.[[/italic]]--The number of slaves landed in Cuba each year between 1837 and 1841, inclusive, and during each of the past three years:--

Year. | Slaves Imported. | Year. | Slaves Imported.
1837 | 12,246 | 1841 | 8,893
1838 | 10,495 | 1851 Concha's yr. | 2,617
1839 | 10,995 | 1852 | 5,943
1840 | 10,104 | 1853 | 8,943

[[image: hand with index finger extended, pointing right]] It ought to be stated that the Stewardess of the Staffordshire, who was lost in the ship, is said by some of the survivors to have shown heroic courage and wonderful presence of mind. She was urgent to have the Captain saved, worked hard at the pumps, tried to reeve, probably actually did reeve anew, the tiller ropes after they parted, and exhibited bravery, coolness and ready-mindedness, which, had they been possessed and imitated by others, might, possibly, have saved the lives of most, if not of all on board.

[[italic]]The Rescuers of the Passengers of the San Francisco.[[/italic]]--The following amounts have been subscribed in the cities designated, for the purpose of rewarding the captains and crews of the ships Three Bells, and Antarctic, and the bark Kilby: -

Besides the above sum, they are to have silver trumpets from the Legislature of the State of New York, medals from the Marine Society of Boston, gold snuff boxes from the corporation of the city of New York, medals from the Massachusetts Humane Society, some appropriate testimonial from the Board of Trade of Baltimore, which is not yet decided upon, and we think something handsome will yet be done by the national Legislature at Washington. - [[italic]]New York Herald.[[/italic]]

[[italic]]Winter in Europe.[[/italic]]--England, France and Belgium were visited by a snow storm about the 1st of January, equal in severity, it would seem, to that experienced in this neighborhood, on the 29th and 30th of December. The railroads in England and on the Continent were covered up, and all traffic on some of them interrupted for one or more days. The storm is spoken of as nearly unprecedented in severity in England. Throughout northern Europe, the winter thus far, is reported to have been very severe.

[[italic]]Fire in Quebec.[[/italic]]--The Parliament House in Quebec was entirely destroyed by the fire last week. Part of the valuable Library was saved; but the Historical Society's Library and apparatus was almost entirely destroyed. The insurance on the buildings, £30,000; on the Provincial Library, £6000. It is not known which insurance offices are losers.

[[italic]]Sad news from St. Thomas.[[/italic]]--By the schooner Flash, which arrived at New York, Feb. 1st., from St. Thomas, we learn that the Cholera was raging fiercely there. From the 1st of January to the 18th, there were [[italic]]fifteen hundred persons[[/italic]] died, mostly blacks.

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[[image: hand with index finger extended, pointing right]] Attend to your Teeth!

J. S. ROCK, M.D.,
DENTIST,
(LATE FROM PHILADELPHIA,)

ANNOUNCES to the ctiizens of Boston and vicinity, that he is located at No. 210 HANOVER STREET, BOSTON, where he will perform operations pertaining to his profession, in the most scientific and durable manner, and on terms within the reach of all.

A beautiful silver Medal, and a heavy gold Pencil, have been awarded for his beautiful specimens of Artificial Teeth.

From the numerous testimonials we have received, we select the following:--

'We have seen several specimens of Artificial Teeth, manufactured by Dr. J. S. Rock, which, for beauty of workmanship, and elegance of finish, will equal, if not surpass, any specimens that we have ever seen. The Doctor has a high reputation as a Surgeon Dentist.'--[[italic]]Daily News.[[/italic]]

'The Artificial Teeth manufactured by Dr. J. S. Rock, for beauty and durability, will vie with any that we have ever seen.'--[[italic]]Ledger.[[/italic]]

'The Artificial Teeth manufactured by Dr. Rock, are quite superior.'--[[italic]]Sunday Dispatch.[[/italic]]

'Dr. Rock manufactures the most splendid specimens of Artificial Teeth that we have ever beheld.'--[[italic]]N.Y. Tribune.[[/italic]]

Dr. J. S. Rock performs all operations appertaining to his profession in a skilful manner, [[italic]]his terms and operations are easy, which speak volumes in his favor.'--Mercury.[[/italic]]

Boston, February 10. tf

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$1000

ON the receipt of $1 (post paid,) I will send instructions necessary for engaging in a pleasant and honorable pursuit, in which any young man of energy can realize a profit of from $3 to $10 per day. [[italic]]This is no humbug.[[/italic]] I have been engaged in the business for the two past years, and have realized a profit of $1500 per year, and am still following it with increasing successes. I have a number of young men travelling in various parts of the South and West, who are making a large salary for themselves, and a fair profit for me. To young men and others out of employment, this business offers facilities for money-making of no ordinary character. It is pleasant, honorable, and available at any time or position in life.

Address
B.C. LAMBERT,
Saratoga Springs, New York.

February 3. eop4t toMar17

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Sunderland's New Method of Cure

[[graphic: circular, "LAROY SUNDERLAND" and "HEALING BY NUTRITION" written on curled lines]]

FOR all forms of Disease, by NUTRITION, [[italic]]without medicine[[/italic]].--The desire for [[italic]]Narcotics[[/italic]] destroyed! Available for the [[italic]]Sick[[/italic]], the [[italic]]Lame[[/italic]], the [[italic]]Deaf[[/italic]] and the [[italic]]Blind[[/italic]], in any part of the country! No need of personal consultations.--Pamphlets of [[italic]]Information[[/italic]] sent, [[italic]]post free[[/italic]], on receipt of one [[italic]]dime, pre-paid[[/italic]]. Address NEW METHOD OF CURE, 28 Eliot st., BOSTON, Mass.

January 27.

[[line]]

A New Work for the Public.

SPIRIT INTERCOURSE, containing Incidents of Personal Experience, from notes taken while investigating the NEW Phenomena of Spirit Thought and Action; together with various Spirit Communications through himself as Medium. By HERMAN SNOW, late Unitarian Minister at Montague, Mass. Boston: Crosby, Nichols & Co. New York: C. S. Francis & Co. For sale also by Partridge & Brittan, New York; by Bela Marsh, 25 Cornhill, and by the Author, at Harmony Hall, 103 Court st., Boston.

January 13.

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Reformed Medical Practice.

DR. A. A. GIFFORD having returned to New Bedford, solicits a share of patronage in the community.

Office and residence, Nos. 159 and 161 Union street. New Bedford, Nov. 24. 5t

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Transcription Notes:
multiple lines ran over into next line, as you can see. Later transcriber: they look okay to me, if you see them as header versus columns.