Thank you for visiting SNEWPapers!
Sign up free
Letter to Editor
November 3, 1837
The Liberator
Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts
What is this article about?
This piece includes quotes from northern opponents criticizing abolitionists as harmful fanatics, followed by a letter from a southern convert to abolitionism, addressed to J.G. Birney, expressing repentance for past opposition and praising the cause as essential for human rights and Christian freedom.
Clipping
OCR Quality
98%
Excellent
Full Text
Testimony of Northern Opposers.
You are doing more hurt than good. You have put back the cause of emancipation fifty years.' You only exasperate the master, and make the condition of the slave worse by your efforts.' You are all fanatics, incendiaries, false teachers,' etc. etc.
Testimony of a Southern Convert.
The following letter is from a southern convert to the doctrines of righteousness, as understood by abolitionists. It was addressed to
J. G. Birney, Esq.
Very dear Sir:-I knew you in the days of your prosperity at the South, though you will not recognize me. Ever since you first took your stand in defence of natural rights, I have been looking upon you with intense interest.
I was violently opposed to abolitionists, -and verily thought I was doing service to both church and state, in decrying them as incendiaries and fanatics. What blindness and infatuation! Yet I was sincere. Ah! my dear sir, God in mercy has taught me that something more than sincerity, in the common acceptation of the term, is necessary to preserve our understandings from idiocy, and our hearts from utter ruin. How could I have been such a madman, as coolly and composedly to place my foot upon the necks of immortal beings, and from that horrid point of elevation, hurl the deep curses of church and state at the heads of—whom? Fanatics? No, sir !-
but of the only persons on the face of the earth who had heart enough to feel, and soul enough to act, in behalf of the RIGHTS OF MAN!
Yet I was just such a madman! Yes, sir, I was a fanatic and an incendiary too--setting on fire the worst passions of our fallen nature.
But I have repented. I have become a convert to political, and I trust, also, to Christian freedom. The spectacle exhibited by yourself and compatriots and fellow-Christians, has completely overcome me. Your reasonings convince my judgment, and your ACTIONS win my heart. God speed you in your works of love!
'The hopes of the world depend, under God, upon the success of your cause.
Very respectfully,
and with undying affection,
Your friend and brother,
A SOUTHERNER
You are doing more hurt than good. You have put back the cause of emancipation fifty years.' You only exasperate the master, and make the condition of the slave worse by your efforts.' You are all fanatics, incendiaries, false teachers,' etc. etc.
Testimony of a Southern Convert.
The following letter is from a southern convert to the doctrines of righteousness, as understood by abolitionists. It was addressed to
J. G. Birney, Esq.
Very dear Sir:-I knew you in the days of your prosperity at the South, though you will not recognize me. Ever since you first took your stand in defence of natural rights, I have been looking upon you with intense interest.
I was violently opposed to abolitionists, -and verily thought I was doing service to both church and state, in decrying them as incendiaries and fanatics. What blindness and infatuation! Yet I was sincere. Ah! my dear sir, God in mercy has taught me that something more than sincerity, in the common acceptation of the term, is necessary to preserve our understandings from idiocy, and our hearts from utter ruin. How could I have been such a madman, as coolly and composedly to place my foot upon the necks of immortal beings, and from that horrid point of elevation, hurl the deep curses of church and state at the heads of—whom? Fanatics? No, sir !-
but of the only persons on the face of the earth who had heart enough to feel, and soul enough to act, in behalf of the RIGHTS OF MAN!
Yet I was just such a madman! Yes, sir, I was a fanatic and an incendiary too--setting on fire the worst passions of our fallen nature.
But I have repented. I have become a convert to political, and I trust, also, to Christian freedom. The spectacle exhibited by yourself and compatriots and fellow-Christians, has completely overcome me. Your reasonings convince my judgment, and your ACTIONS win my heart. God speed you in your works of love!
'The hopes of the world depend, under God, upon the success of your cause.
Very respectfully,
and with undying affection,
Your friend and brother,
A SOUTHERNER
What sub-type of article is it?
Persuasive
Emotional
Religious
What themes does it cover?
Slavery Abolition
Morality
Religion
What keywords are associated?
Abolitionism
Southern Convert
Emancipation
Natural Rights
Christian Freedom
Repentance
Fanaticism
What entities or persons were involved?
A Southerner
J. G. Birney, Esq.
Letter to Editor Details
Author
A Southerner
Recipient
J. G. Birney, Esq.
Main Argument
the writer, a former southern opponent of abolitionism, has repented and converted to the cause, recognizing abolitionists as true defenders of human rights and urging support for their efforts as vital to the world's hopes.
Notable Details
Former Violent Opposition To Abolitionists As Incendiaries
Realization Of Error Through God's Mercy
Praise For Birney's Reasonings And Actions
Emphasis On Sincerity Not Enough Without Truth