We preach the Gospel to arouse men, they to subdue them; we to awaken, they to soothe; we to inspire self-reliance, they submission; we to drive them forward in growth, they to repress and prune down growth; we to convert them into men, they to make them content to be beasts of burden!
Beecher contrasts the aims of Gospel preaching with the oppressive intentions of slaveholders.
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An infernal Juno, envious of the destined greatness of this country, hath sent this serpent upon it!
Dying, we will leave it a legacy to our children, and they shall will it to theirs, until the work is done, our fathers' prayers are answered, and this whole land stands clothed and in its right mind--a symbol of what the earthly fruits of…
Having once given forth this spirit of liberty, now fading out of our Southern States, the North should again come forth and refill the poisoned veins that have been drinking the hemlock of Despotism with the new blood of Liberty!
Northern ideas must become American, or Southern ideas must become American, before there will be peace.