Progress

Disoourogement in prosecuting nnv great moral ahtefprise cnn only nrise trom an imperfect or inaccurate view of he i(;ernTr, and oí its relations lo othei'lhings. We may take any (.ïestion of public improvement, and go back lo tlie period where tha records of liisiorv ün-t logan, anu irace tiie progress of homm $pnn tha! subject, and in evry ons-e wé shall fitid that the causa ih.roughout the world, is more promising. in bet'.br circurastanées, and mak ing more headway at ibis present time, than in any previous year of the world. Look at a few examples, selecied at ron lom. 1, The general difíusion of knowledge. [n whnt yenr was ihere-. eve%a greater 111 ■■■■■; ersijBhc world, or a grealpim'' riders, or of itüliiund"&cli()nis% . ( wherë were a greater mimber of ciflHp at any orife lime learning to read 1 2, When was the Temperance cause so far advanced ? When were there more tetotallers in the rarth thnn ;t thffl time ? When bef re were so many millions of children educated in ihe strictpst Temppinnce principies ? 3, When wai more doing for the Abolition of Capital Punishment, and cruel inflictions by law, or when was public opinión so far advanced as it now is ! 4, Lpgnl Reform. This subject is beginning to agitate the world; and we see the great State of New York intent on a íhorongh regenerition of the legal svstem, True, the attempt may not be at first fully successful : but when before was such an attempt made at all 1 5, Tha punUlimenl of Seduction and Adultery as fligronl crimes. The invasión of the sanclities of social life by unpriticipled viliains has been practised for centuiies : but when before did the whole community feel on this subject as they now feel ? The voice of the Press, as well as legishtion in several States, is not to be mistaken. 6, The Refurtnation of Crimináis. ]f we look back into the j:iils a centuryago, shall we find the prisoners supplied with books, public library, Sunday School, singing school in the Prison, and when the prisoner is liberated a benevolent society at hand, togive him good advice, and find him a place to work, and keep him from temptalion 1 7, Provisión for the Labnring Classes. A half a century since, the debtor could be imprisoned for almost any sum. Multitudes were in jail for debts of les.-than five dollars each. Now our lhw exempt to every family about a thousand dollars worth of such thingsas they need, and public opinión is rapidlv preparing to give toeach therrowning gift of a permanent HOME. 8, The progress of Liberty. All Ihe modern States of Europe and indeed of the rest of the woild, are for bettpr cnlightened respeciing the rea! pin :'.; I . ofLibfrty, and enjoy more of its ings, than they did one or two thousanr! yea'S ag'. In the BrilUh Empire, especinlly, iho spirit of freedom and general reform wns nsver befoi-e so active and vigorous. 9, The Aboliiion of A cnrsory examinatkai of the subject will show us, noMnly tWat the cmse i progi-pssing, but tint the expressiou of Gov. Seward ia strictly trne, Ihat this is pi ceminently the age of Emancipation. Let us go back in imngiimtion to the year 1747. The traiFic in African slaves was then almos! universal with civilized nnlions. Not an a ïtislavery society evisted on the eart'i, sofar as we krio. Slaves ere then imponed and huid ly all Europeao nations. and the rig'itfulnpss of the Iraffio was scnrcely cnllod in question, unle.ss by 8 few scattered philaiitliropists or fanatical Quakers. In looking through the earth, what rhanges do we fifid to have been wrought in a hundred yeas ! Slavery has been nbolished tliroughout Europe, exc-pt m some provinces of the Austrian empire, and in Russia, where the mnrch of Emancipation is onward, and in Turkey, where it oxislsns domestic relation, in a milder form than in most other nations. Tlie Sullan has taken the firsi step towards the aboliiion ..f Slavery. by abolishing the Slave trndp, and closing the xiiarls at Constantinople. In Wallnchia, also, Slaverv has received its dnath blow. The emancipation of the Bohemians belonging to the clergy, public olficers, and stale, bas been decreed by the VVallachian diet ! This sets free fnuricen thoimnd fnmilies and sixty thousami slaves. Tliere are yet twelve hundred families and forty-eiglit thousand slnves held by private persons. But asmall lax has been levied on the emincinated to redeem the-e bond. All, then, are free ! Prince Bibesco urged forward this universal einancipation. Slavery was abolislied in Prussia, by special edicl, as long ago as 17C0. By recent intelligence frum Russia, weleam [tliat several dislinguished noblemen, ■ong whom are Prince WoronzofF, Count Prolasof, M. Kulogrivofl", have set free their bondmen. M. Rummin gnve ! liberty to eight ihousand saris of bol h sexes whom lie owned ; he is one of the weahhiest men ín These seris gathered around him ; and witli them gathered twanty ihuusand of the citizens of Niji anoRiazan. to give thanks for ihisdeed of huuiLmtiHe was called Liberalor ! Fallicd Ü wuli known thal the present EmpeiW is strongly desirousj of securing em.'iflion tbrotigh his dominions, 'jut rwitfBMfcl.hu' obstarle in tlie resUtaec a_nd oniiositjon of the 1 holden. Ifthen, we find in Euroafc only three nations where Slaves arertield, and emancipation in some of i's stAo-. progrossing in these, is it too rnJRBBnticipate that halt' a ceniury IipjSH a vestige of i síavery will be foundj Vihe Europeanj quaiterof the Glnbé T Now lurn iv e from the most enlighteiifid quarter .iTW%arlh to lhe most bvnighted - lo África. A hundred years since, all the Barbory States not bnly held African Slaves, and tralhcked in tbcin, but riduced European Christians tos'avery. Now we fiad thit the Beyt of Tunis has set free all the slaves in his dominions and stopped the traffic, and the Pachas of Tripoli and Egypt graciously receive memorials for the discoutinuance of die slave trade, and promise to take lhe subject into consideration. They will undoubtedly soon folio w the e.xarnple of the Sultan of Turkey in suppressing the slave markets ; and as Tripoli is now occupied by lhe French, we may safely anticípale that the slave tra.ie thiough Horthein África will soon cease. Going down the western coasl, we finí! i that Slavery does not exist in lhe British and American settlements, and that a large armed force is constantly kept up at a great expense, solely for the suppiession of the trafïic. VVho could have predicted such a result in 1747 ? In St. Helena, slavery was abolished in 1816, and at the Cape of Good Hope, in 1834, over a terrilory twice as large as all England and h-eland. A similar progress in Afiica for a century to come will stop the foreign trade in Slave, and confine lhe system of slavery to a few barbarous nations in the interior. Asia conlains about half the human race ; and wherever the European race have obtained the nscendency, they have soon after abolished slavery. It was extinguished in Java in 1811, in Ceylon, in 1815; in Malacca, in 1825; in the southern provinces of Birmah, in 1826 ; and in Hong Kong, n year or two since. As ('avt as the British Empire extends nmong the Iridian nalions, sluxery giadunlly disappears. And it may be remarked that the slavery of Asia partakes much of the nature of the family relations, and vith othf r ins'iilutions of n semi-b;irbarousslate, will disappear as the nations are elevaled in the scale ol being. If we turn to America, with iis new nutions nnd new instilutions, we shall find that emancipation has been secured over B very large porlion of its territory. The States of Peru, Guatamalii and Monte 'ihe'! :t in lb'2á ; Colombio i" 1821 ; Buenos Ayres in 1816 ; and tfilligcnce haijuüt been receUed tlint U'-aguay, has followed their etampK Ö00,000 slaves were set free in iha Frr-nch West India Wanda by the Revoluti"!) of 1794 ; and 800.000 in the Briiish (al ands by the act of 1834 ; while ihe King of Denmark hos just made provisión for ihe frer-dom O f the lew lHd in the West lnd:e by thnt nation. In all the Bnlisli North American cnlonit;s, from the Atlantic to the Pai-ifi'-, no lnvpry exits ; while it was foniinl'y abulished llirmig'i ihe extended Me.xican domnins by act of the g'ivernment in 1829, and hnsbeen exlineiuislied in half of the Uniled Siatfs; and nccording to ihe lesliinony of a dstinguished soutliern statfsman, (Mr. Up s'nurj it could not hae 1 i v ed len ears longer, had it not been f r the annex-iiiiiu of Texas. The Slaveholders gfnprnlly feel troubled for the saffty of their institulion ; anrl the d;f!icu!ty of sustaining it augmonls from year to year. Suppose yourself translated back to 1747, and after looking over all the American cohr nies,and finding slavery fastenrd on ever foot of American soil, say whether as muoli hns nol been aehieved in a hundrecl ypars as your most s-inguine expeclations would havo led you to beüevp. - Tlien look forward lo 1947, and say whether there is an)' prospect that the footprints of a slavo will then be found on American soil. But afier laking ihis general survey of progress for a century pasl, and finding more doing througliout the world for the cause of omancipation th.in at anv furmer timo, let us descend to our own Si ate nnd Countv nnd Tuwn nnd Neighborhood, and see if ihe same cause for encourngement does not exist in all ihesp lncalities. Let us ask a few questions of each of our readers. Are lliere nny fewer persons in your Counlrv, n your Stale, Counly, and Town, wlio hate slavery ihan there were last yenr ? Is ttieir oppositinn less decideü ? Is the general j informaüon on tlie evils of Slavery diininished '? Is it ony le-s discussed in its political and ecclesiasticnl relations 1 Arp the rising generniion as indifferent or prej judiced on this subject as the present one? If we had respor.ses f rom every town i r the Slate, to Ihese inquines, forwnröed to us from year to year, wc ure fully confidont that each succeerling yenr would show a steady and regular prngress in public sentiment and net on - n progiess tint will continue till Slavery shall be no more. It is nuly Wraking suc!) general views of a subject lhat we can arrive at an nccui'iite judgement respeciii;g ihem. By looking b.'ick lo tlie landmarks 'ie have pss.--e(J, we can fiirnn a just estinvito of what we have accompl ished. But if we surviy the vast e4lls that si:rround us, exclusive! y in contrast witli the stite nf thiugs which onglit lo exist, we beoome mos! painfuliy itnpiessed with Ihe result, and foei that we have not the abüity lo accomplish the task bef) e us. It is truc we cannot do it al once. We eannoi abolUh slavery in one yer, nor five, perhaps not in Iwpnty-five J but we cnnJ do someihing towaids it this year, and more the ne.vl. ind so on succes -iveh , until the whole shail be done by us and our coadutors, or by those who shall bereaftfer take our places. Let us, tlien, be tncouraged by ibis grent fltctof ihe general progrcs of every good caue. and labor with renewed patience nnd eneigy. Let us give our nfiuence. our voice, our vote, for the cause of Human Freedom every opportunity we have. And let us have confidence ju human naiurp, and ils capability, tlirough the influences óf the gospel, of progressing in all good, ever remembering, to use the language of a colempoiary, lhat "a delibérate view of ihe condilion of mankind througi a succession of past pges afibrds almoit a maihematical dpmonstration of their absolnte progress in intellec-tual and moral developineni. V hatever may be said of Rome, Gfeeee, Egypt, or Palestine, or uf the golden ag, thre never wns a period in which intellect and moral sentiment predominnted in so greal a number of people, nnd over such an extent ef the earlh's snrface, as at this moment. There never was a time wiien k many huninn heilige thought so vigorously, or feit and acted so nearly in nccordance with the lawí of God, as at this moment. There never was a peiiod when so much personal freedom,entPrprise and r?sponsibility prevailed among men. There never was a period when the meansof mental nnd moral irnprovernent ere so abundant and so general. There never was a period when sflfish, tyratmical, and brulalizing nsütutions, customs and habits were so universally, vigorously and successfuily assailed. There never was a period when so rrnny good minds were so well associated in noble er.terprises for the re. generation of the world. There never was a time when men, women nnd children, dioposed to serve their race, bed so fair an opportunity to do it by personal exerlion. In fine, there never was so hopeful nn nge as the present. It i-i onlv when we compare the prespnt wilh what it iivghl to be, and whal it has foreshadowed of ihe future, that we are dUttoarlened - that its imperfections and sinsnpnrar intolerable. Let us iherefor take a compruliensive view of tuings. Let us look at ihe past, present and futuie n their proper nni inseparable connection. - Then shall we rej'.ice in assurance llml tliere is cerlainly 'a good timt coming.''