แ

THE

THE FRANKFORT PEACE CONGRESS.

(Concluded.)

BEING anxious to place in the permanent possession of the readers of the HERALD OF PEACE, a complete account of this important Congress, we resume our record of the proceedings down to the return of the Delegation to London.

ADDITIONAL PARTICULARS.

On Lord's day, August 25, Divine service was performed in St. Paul's Church, which had been kindly granted for the use of the Congress. In the morning, Mr. Burnet preached an appropriate sermon to a large audience, composed of Englishmen, Americans, and Germans. In the afternoon there was another service, in which various parties, including Dr. Dick, took part.

The members of the Society of Friends held meetings for worship in the room of the Frankfort Evangelical Society, which, with great readiness, had been placed at their disposal by the Committee. These meetings, we understand, were well attended.

On Monday, the 26th, a large proportion of the delegates and visitors proceeded by rail to visit the romantic Heidelberg.

On the arrival of the train at Heidelberg, the great bulk of the party, headed by a guide, proceeded to inspect its various attractions. Its matchless scenery has been so frequently described, that we will not weary our readers with a repetition of it.

The minor objects of interest here are the Library, the University-over which the party were conducted by one of the professors, and where Dr. Pennington took the opportunity, in a Latin address, of appropriately acknowledging the compliment paid to him by the diploma conferred upon him in this university-and the Church of St. Peter's, to the door of which Jerome of Prague, the companion of Huss, attached his celebrated theses, at the same time expounding the doctrines of the Reformed faith to a multitude of hearers assembled in the adjoining churchyard. The greater attractions to the party were the Castle, and the views of the Rhine and Neckar valley. The Castle is a mighty ruin-the scene of some of the saddest deeds of carnage which history has chronicled-with a spacious platform from which may be viewed some of the most enchanting prospects which mortal eye has ever dwelt upon. Its almost impregnable position exposed it to frequent sieges and bombardments-the memorials of which may be traced on its battered walls. To see the projecting bulwarks and hanging gardens of this renowned fortress and palatial residence now invaded by a detachment of the friends of Peace, was in itself a striking and suggestive spectacle. Some of the more adventurous of the party climbed the adjoining mountain overlooking the town, and from the lofty tower on its summit were repaid for their toil by a most extensive prospect commanding the valley of the Rhine. From this charming paradise the bulk of the visitors departed by the four-o'clock train, on their return to Frankfort, delighted with the opportunity of having made even a hurried acquaintance with one of the most charming retreats of Germany.

In this place one of the Secretaries took occasion to distribute a considerable number of German Peace-tracts; and, as one among many proofs that might be given of the grateful spirit in which they were received, it may be mentioned that, not having arrived by the early train with the bulk of the party, he was too late to inspect the university library in the hours during which it is open to the public. While debating with his friends what to do, and circulating the tracts during the delay, one of the professors passed,— accepted some of the tracts with great politeness, and ascertaining the object of the distributor and his friends, immediately despatched a message to the librarian, who had closed his duties for the day and taken his departure, with a special request that he would show the party over the

[PRICE 3d UNSTAMPED,

with the proofs of attention that the distribution of German Peace-tracts had produced.

On Tuesday the 27th, a large proportion of the party visited Mayence and Wiesbaden. They inspected the "sights" of the latter place with pleasure and astonishment; but beheld its gambling-rooms and apparatus with befitting horror. Here a public meeting took place, to present to the American delegates a tribute of respect and affection from their English brethren. J. STURGE, Esq., took the chair, and appropriate addresses were delivered by the Revs. J. BURNET and Dr. DICK, and by the Baron SURINGAR, of Holland. Thirty-six copies of the New Testament in German were then presented to the American delegates; after which Mr. BURRITT, and the Revs. Mr. GARNET, Dr. BULLARD, and Dr. PENNINGTON, delivered suitable addresses, and the meeting was closed by a most touching and affecting speech from the Chairman, to the concluding prayer of which, that they all might meet in a better world, there was a most audible and appropriate response. Indeed, the closing scene was unusually affecting,

On the return of the party in the evening, an Anti-Slavery Meeting was held in the Evangelical Society's Room, Frankfort, which was largely attended.

On Wednesday, the greater number of the party visited the different Museums and public places in Frankfort; and we are enabled to state that wherever they appeared, on producing their cards of membership, they were received with marked attention and politeness.

Among these "sights" may be mentioned the Public Library, containing a vast collection of volumes, many of them of great rarity, besides a statue of Goethe, by Marchesi, and some valuable original letters of distinguished persons; the Seckenberg Museum of Natural History; the Staedel Museum of Pictures, with the magnificent painting of John Huss on his trial, and Dannecker's matchless production, the statue of Ariadne; the Cathedral, chiefly remarkable for its antiquity, where the Emperors of Germany were crowned; and the Kaiser-saal in the Town Hall, containing the portraits of all those potentates. Not a few availed themselves of the opportunity of passing through the Jews' Quarter, a unique neighbourhood, in which the house where resided the late Madame Rothschild, the mother of the member for the City of London, is a prominent object.

THE RETURN JOURNEY.

On Thursday morning, at six o'clock, the party left Frankfort by railway, and arrived at Castel, opposite Mayence, about half-past eight o'clock. Here they found a special steamer (the Schiller) in readiness to convey them down the Rhine.

The day was cold, but fine. Most of the passengers were assembled on deck, and here and there little groups were formed, discussing with much animation their various adventures. At Bonn the steamer stopped to receive some of the friends who had descended the Rhine a day or two before the party. At this place there came on board a deputation from a body of gentlemen at Cologne, who adopted this method of expressing their sympathy in the objects of the Congress, and at the same time to invite the whole party to visit and inspect the Cathedral at Cologne. The deputation consisted of the Rev. F. Vill, of the Church of St. Ursula; the Rev. J. Thissen, Secretary of the Central Confederation; and Dr. Krissen, attaché of the Gerinan embassy. A public meeting was immediately held on deck, J. STURGE, Esq., in the Chair. The Rev. J. THISSEN read the address in French which the deputation had been appointed to present, which was repeated in English by Dr. KRISSEN. Upon which, it was moved by the Rev. J. BURNET, seconded by the Rev. W. STOKES, and carried unanimously, that the following reply be made to the address just presented:

"To the Gentlemen who appointed a Deputation to meet the Members of the Peace Congress, on the Rhine, August 29th, 1850. "Gentlemen,-Your deputation having communicated to the members of the Peace Congress your generous intention to receive them at Cologne,

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The party having landed at Cologne, proceeded, after about an hour's delay for refreshment, in regular order to the Cathedral, where the above reply was formally delivered to the deputation who, with other gentlemen, had assembled, by whom a suitable answer was returned, amid the cheers of the whole party.

An hour or two was then spent in inspecting the various attractions of the famous Cathedral, from whence the bulk of the party proceeded to the Bourse Café, which had been engaged for the purpose of a public meeting. On arriving there, it was discovered that such a thing as a public meeting had not been contemplated, but something more like a conversazione. After some delay, Mr. Burnet good-humouredly explained that the place was taken under a mistake. The meeting, consequently, dispersed; but the opportunity was taken for distributing the German Peace-tracts-several hundreds being put into circulation, the demand for them having continued up to a late hour of the evening.

At half-past five on Friday morning, the railway-station was the scene of great bustle, preparatory to the departure of the expedition from Germany. At six, the train was in motion. The journey to Calais was not, on the whole, so tedious as the previous one, the train being punctual. The party breakfasted at Aix-la-Chapelle, and dined at Malines. At the latter place, the interval of an hour enabled a large number to visit the Cathedral, which contains one of Vandyke's masterpieces, "The Crucifixion," and a beautifully-carved oak pulpit, besides other attractions.

The train reached Calais at near eleven o'clock, but the steamer did not leave her moorings at the pier until about half-past three. The night was fine, but cold; and the voyage to Dover afforded a happy contrast to the incidents of the previous trip across the Channel. As soon as day-light broke, a meeting was held on deck, at which, on the motion of G. W. Harrison, Esq., of Wakefield, and seconded by another delegate, a cordial and unanimous vote of thanks was passed to Mr. Stokes, Mr. Bradshaw, and the Working Committee generally, for their attention to the comforts of the entire party, and for the ability and diligence they had evinced in conducting the arrangements to so satisfactory an issue. To this vote Mr. Stokes made a suitable reply.

At six o'clock the steamer was alongside the quay in Dover harbour. Then commenced the tedious operation of examining the luggage of the travellers, which occupied a full hour and a half; but this troublesome duty was rendered less vexatious by the courteousness and personal attentions of the Superintendent of the Customs. His kindness, as also that of the Manager at the Dover Railway Station, obtained the marked approval of the entire delegation. By half-past seven, the bulk of the party was seated in the special train, which conveyed them in two hours and a half to London Bridge Station, where they arrived filled with gratitude to the Giver of all good, for the mercy and success with which they had been blessed throughout the whole of their important enterprise.

LETTERS FROM INFLUENTIAL PUBLIC CHARACTERS TO THE CONGRESS.

We feel assured that our readers will be gratified by the perusal of the following letters. It is seldom that a great movement, in its early stages, secures for itself so large an amount of favourable regard; and if the Frankfort Congress had done nothing more than to elicit these honourable testimonies in favour of Universal Peace from some of the first scholars, economists, and ecclesiastics on the continent of Europe, it would deserve to be ranked among the most remarkable events of the present century.

"Paris, Aug. 21.

"To the President of the Congress of Peace at Frankfort. "Monsieur le Président, I beg to acknowledge the visit paid me by the delegates of the Peace Congress, assembling at Frankfort. I have expressed to them my opinion on these solemn public meetings, and on the object which they propose to attain.

"These gentlemen desired to have my thoughts on this subject in writing. I hasten, therefore, to express to you, as well as to them, this proof of my sympathies and my good will.

Myself, a man of peace, minister of a God who has said of himself that he was 'meek and lowly of heart,' I applaud these efforts of the friends of Peace to establish concord on the earth, and to banish wars and divisions. This is a grand object; an object essentially Christian. We cannot yet attain it, but there is a strong tendency towards its attainment. These public manifestations, expressed by these Congresses, prepare and form opinion, which is always the queen of the world. When public

opinion shall be decidedly pronounced against violence and brute force, to terminate the differences which arise among nations, their rulers will be obliged to consider among themselves what to do, and wars will become more and more rare.

"But above all, by the development of this Christian spirit among men of Peace, when it shall be solidly established on the earth, when humanity shall form only one family, when men shall look upon one another as brothers, when the church shall have only faithful children, and the passions be subdued, when feelings of selfishness shall give place to those of justice and charity, then will Peace descend to the earth; there shall be Peace on earth and good will among men.

"We shall, in vain, Monsieur le Président, seek for combinations founded on reason and on material interests of men. They are impotent. It is the heart of the people which must be changed. This great and salutary revolution on the earth cannot be effected except by the aid of a fulcrum taken from heaven. May all the friends of Peace, therefore, be, above all, the friends of Christianity! Let them promote its operation on and among themselves. It is the sole means of real efficacy to attain the end proposed, and which we are all engaged to promote.

66

May God supremely bless our common efforts, and incline the hearts of the people toward gentleness and love, which are, indeed, at the foundation of all religion !

To the President and Members of the Peace Congress, assembled at Frankfort.

"Mr. President,-I regret deeply that it is not in my power to appear in the midst of you, and to take part in your noble labours.

"More than ever am I devoted to the sacred cause of the union of the people with each other. It will surely triumph; it is evidently the cause of humanity; can it be doubted that it is the cause of God? The divine thought ever having regard to the liberty and activity of man, tends inevitably onward, and it will achieve its own realisation at last, in spite of all difficulties. Beyond doubt, it must have as its instruments generous hearts, with unconquerable convictions which nothing can discourage, but whose energy and devotedness, on the contrary, increase with the tenacity of the obstacles.

"We have been called to this august mission. We could not have a nobler, and none of us must fail. The merit will be in proportion to the labour.

"To contribute to the establishment of universal brotherhood, what a task! what glory! what happiness!

"I have the honour to be, Mr. President, with high consideration, your very devoted servant and colleague, "G. DEGUERRY, "Cure of the Madeleine; Vice-President of the Paris Peace Congress." (From BARON VON HUMBOLDT.)

"To the President and Members of the Peace Congress.

"I regret so much the more, that my personal position and advanced age, which warn me to complete what work I have commenced, should hinder me from assisting at a meeting having so noble an aim in view, as it would have afforded me the gratification of coming into closer contact with so many men distinguished for talent and humanity. I have already verbally expressed this regret a few weeks ago, when I had the pleasure to see Messrs. Henry Richard, Elihu Burritt, and Visschers, and to converse with them on the probable influence which your Society may hope to

exercise.

"The general Peace which our Continent has now so long enjoyed, and the praiseworthy efforts of many Governments to avert the oft-threatening dangers of a general European war, prove that the ideas which so prominently occupy your minds are in accordance with the sentiments called forth and diffused by the increased culture of humanity. It is a useful enterprise to inspire such sentiments in the commonwealth by public conferences, and, at the same time, to point out the way through which wise and sincere Governments may, by fostering the progressive and legitimate development and perfectibility of free institutions, weaken the long-accumulated elements of animosity.

"How much mildness of manners, and an improved order in the organisation of states, have confined within narrower limits the wild outbursts of physical violence, may be seen by comparing the first middle ages with modern times. The whole history of the past shows, that, under the protection of a superior power, a long-nourished yearning after a noble aim, in the life of nations, will at length find its consummation. Has not a disgraceful legislation, conniving at, yea, even encouraging, the infamous system of slavery and the traffic in human beings, at least on our Continent, and in the independent States of former Spanish America, yielded to the united efforts of the better part of mankind?

"We must not, then, relinquish the hope that a path will open, by which all hostile divisions and contracting jealousies will gradually disappear.

"Gentlemen,—I considered it both a duty and a pleasure, this year as well as the last, to take my seat among you at the Peace Congress, which, to my mind, appears to be the holy table of the communion of nations.

"The state of my health, injured by the fatigue of much public speaking, compels me to forego that happiness. Between the labours of the session which has just closed, and the probable struggles of the forthcoming one, my medical advisers oblige me to take repose. Nevertheless-and I do not say so for myself alone, but for you also-you, conscientious, persevering, and religious men!-our physical strength may become exhausted; but that which is in us inextinguishable is our devotedness to humanity, our ardour for universal conciliation, our profound faith in that Divine Legislator who, when expiring on the cross, dropped from his hands these two laws for futurity,-LIBERTY, the law for man; and PEACE, the law for the nations. "The Peace Congress, towards which the eyes of the whole world are turned, and which the great minds of the day applaud, even now possesses the vitality and the potency of an institution; indeed, it is already an institution. It is the germ of that great convention of the nations which some day, perhaps soon, will decide peaceably the fate of the world, will dissolve international hatreds, consecrate all nationalities, by attaching them to a superior unity. Above our sad assemblies, struggling amidst the storms of selfish passion, and the tumultuous interests of the present, the Peace Congress shines like the assembly of the future.

"I address you from the bottom of my heart; or let me say, rather, I renew my adhesion. Receive it as I send it. All, just as we now are, whatever the languages we speak, to what nation soever we belongGerman, French, English, Italian, Belgian, European, or American-we are all alike men, we have the same soul, we own the same God, we have one common destiny, and one common future-countrymen on earth; brethren in heaven!

66 'Paris, August 17, 1850. "Mr. President,-An affection of the throat, under which I am suffering, would not have sufficed to have kept me away from the Congress, because my part would have been rather to hear than to speak, if I had not submitted myself to a treatment which obliges me to remain at Paris. Penetrated with a sense of what is great and novel in this spectacle of men of all races and all languages, coming together from every point of the globe, to labour in common for the triumph of Universal Peace, it is with zeal, with enthusiasm, that I would have joined my efforts to yours in so holy a cause.

"In truth, Universal Peace is considered by many as a chimera, and consequently the Congress, as an effort, honourable, indeed, but impracticable. This feeling reigns, perhaps, more in France than anywhere, because it is the country which has been most wearied with Utopianisms, and where ridicule is most dreaded. If I could have spoken to the Congress, I should have addressed myself to rectify this false appreciation.

"Without doubt, there has been a time when a Congress of Peace would have had no chance of success. When men made war to acquire booty, or territory, or slaves, it would have been difficult to have arrested them by moral or economical considerations. Even religion itself has failed. But to-day, two circumstances have altogether changed the question.

"The first is, that war has no interest to plead, as a cause, or even as a pretext, being always contrary to the true interest of the masses.

"The second is, that it is no longer dependent on the caprice of a chief, but on public opinion. From the combination of these two circumstances, it follows that war must become more and more rare, and finally disappear, by the mere force of events, even independently of all intervention of the Congress; for a fact which injures the public, and is yet dependent on the public, must necessarily cease.

"What, then, is the work of the Congress? It is to hasten a conclusion already inevitable, in showing, to those who have not yet seen it, in what way, and to what extent, war and great armaments injure the general interests. And is there anything Utopian in such a mission?

"During the last few years, the world has passed through circumstances which, certainly, at another epoch, have produced long and cruel wars. Why have they been avoided? Because, if there be in Europe a war

party, there are also the friends of Peace. If there are men always ready to fight, whom a stupid education has imbued with antique ideas, and barbarous prejudices, which attach honour only to animal courage, and see no glory except in military achievements; there are, happily, other men at the same time more religious, more moral, more wise, and provident calculators. Is it not very natural that the latter should endeavour to make proselytes among the former? How many times has civilisation, as in 1830, in 1840, in 1848, been suspended, so to speak, on this question, Who shall prevail, the party of War, or the party of Peace? Hitherto the Peace party has triumphed; and it must be acknowledged, not, perhaps, by its numbers or its ardour, but because it had the political influence. Thus Peace and War are dependent upon opinion, and opinion is divided. And thus there is a danger always imminent. In these circumstances, does not the Congress undertake a work which is useful, sober, efficacious-I will even dare to say, easy, when it strives to strengthen the pacific opinion, so as, in the end, to give it a decisive preponderance? What is there chimerical in this? If we had said to mankind, 'We come to suminon you to trample your own interests under foot, to act henceforth on a mere principle of duty, of sacrifice, of self-denial,' I fear, alas! that the enterprise would have been very doubtful.

"But we come, on the contrary, to say to them, 'Consult not only the See interest of another life, but even of this. Examine the effects of war. if they are not most disastrous. See if war, and great standing armaments, do not produce interruption of labour, paralysis of industry, waste of resources, crushing debts, heavy taxation, financial impossibilities, discontents and revolutions, without taking into account the deplorable moral habits they produce, and the culpable violation of the laws of religion.'

"May we not be permitted to hope that this language will be listened to? Courage, then, men of faith and devotion! Courage and confidence! Those who cannot, to-day, mingle with your ranks, follow you with their eyes and their hearts.

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Receive, Mr. President, the assurance of my respectful and devoted sentiments. "FREDERIC BASTIAT." "Tronville-sur-Mer, August 19, 1850. "My dear and honourable Friend,-I regret very deeply that family reasons prevent my taking part with you in this new demonstration in favour of Peace, and the union of the peoples.

"You know with what ardour of sentiment I partake all your convictions, and associate myself with all your ideas on this subject. The more the people are enlightened, the more they comprehend political economy, the more will they learn to know the true nature of things, and the more they will be led cheerfully to obey the will of God, in loving one another.

"We have yet much to do, and our pacific mission is far from being terminated, for the governments and the peoples appear, until now, quite sunk in the old ruts.

"It was not without a feeling of shame, that I read the other day, in our official journal, the terms of a treaty of amity and commerce between France and the Republic of Guatemala. It is said in that treaty that the citizens of the two countries shall be freely admitted from one to the other; that if they conformed with the laws, they can freely reside in the one country or the other, enjoy their personal liberty, and carry on commerce, in wholesale or in retail!-As if all these things ought not, in our day, to be accorded to all men, and everywhere!

"It is really curious that, in the middle of the nineteenth century, the people who are called diplomatists succeed in persuading the nations that, without their intervention, men would eat each other.

"Tell our friends, I pray you, the mortification I feel at not finding myself among them. And receive, my dear and honourable friend, the fresh assurances of my entire devotedness. "Richard Cobden, Esq.

HORACE SAY."

M. VISSCHERS ON DUELLING.

Ir affords us pleasure to give publicity to the following letter from M. Visschers, of Brussels, in reference to the resolution which was adopted by the Congress on the subject of duelling:

"MONSIEUR LE SECRETAIRE,-Absent from the assembly at the moment when the honourable M. de Corménin explained his proposition against duelling, I could not accept the mission of supporting it. Since M. le Président did call upon me, I should not like the cause of my absence to be misunderstood. It is nearly fifteen years since, in one of my first writings in Belgium, that I combated the prejudice in favour of duelling, which at that time was very prevalent. Recently, a deplorable instance has been given by two statesmen-the one a member of our Chamber of Representatives, the other a member of the Opposition-of the effects of duelling; one of them having escaped death only by a miracle. In 1836,

the Belgian Legislature made a law to punish in various degrees those who took part in any way in this mode of combat. Public opinion had previously sanctioned the law. The duel is no longer one of our customs; but a false shame at that time would not allow that one man should refuse what is called a 'cartel d'honneur.'

"In my pamphlet, after having shown the anti-religious and anti-social character of duelling, I proposed to overthrow it by, above all, the force of ridicule; if I demanded a law, it was to secure, by means of prevalatés modérés, the repression of the duel, which remains unpunished when the lawyer for the crown can only require the application of the ordinary penalties against murder or wounding.

"I quote this caricature, which struck me :-A husband fights a duel with the seducer of his wife: the husband falls mortally wounded. 'I die satisfied,' says he; ' I have avenged mine house.'

"M. le Président Jaup, in his discourse, has shown us the great improvements which have taken place in our criminal justice. After they. had for a length of time been proclaimed impracticable, these reforms took place: one can no longer understand how the abuses could have existed.

"It is the same with duelling. During the fourteen years that the law has existed in Belgium, there has not been any duelling between people of the higher ranks; at least, I cannot recal any instance of it. Neither in the army does it exist any more than among the gentry. This abominable practice prevails still in all the universities of Germany. The consequences of it are rarely dangerous; but young men, serious and cultivated, ought not to seek to imitate the customs of their ancestors of the forests of Germany, or the gross manners of the middle ages. In Belgium, I do not recollect that there has been, for twenty years, any duelling among the students, although, formerly, there were some unhappy examples of it. "It is not, then, from a scruple of principle that I have not mounted to the tribune. There is a combat I never refuse-it is that which leads men to render homage to the great truths which shine around humanity in its course; but reason and speech are the only arms that I wish to use. 66 Receive, &c. "AUG. VISSCHERS.

"Frankfort-s.-M., August 25th, 1850."

ADDRESS FROM THE PENNSYLVANIA PEACE SOCIETY TO THE
CONGRESS.

The following is the address which was read to the Congress by Professor Cleveland :

"To the World's Congress of the Friends of Peace assembled at
Frankfort-on-the-Maine:

"Brethren and Friends,-The undersigned are deputed to address you on behalf of the friends of Peace in Pennsylvania, to convey to you their greetings and well-wishes, to offer you their congratulations on the progress of the good work, and, in their name, to bid you God-speed. We feel that Pennsylvania has a right to be heard in your halls, for she was founded in deeds of peace,' and rests upon a corner-stone laid in justice and brotherly love. The goodly tree, whose boughs shelter her sons, has grown from a seed watered by not one drop of blood. In 1682, William Penn first landed with his followers on the fertile soil of his new home. Other colonists had been there before him, but they brought strife and violence with them, and their dominion could not endure. The simple children of the forest had seen the white men turning their thunder one upon the other, until their settlements dwindled away. But with William Penn there came humble and peaceful men, to whom sword and spear were unknown. They had no weapons but Christian truth and love. They raised no battlements, for the protecting grace of their heavenly Father was their sufficient shield and their sure defence. They spread no gaudy flag to the breeze, for they had an almighty Champion, and his banner over them was love. They rent the air with no roar of cannonry, for they knew that the still small voice of a holy spirit went farther and penetrated more deeply than the booming gun. They met the savage warrior on his own ground, unarmed, and, as far as human means went, without defence. Royal parchments gave them the right to take possession of the soil and expel its inhabitants, but they recognised a higher law than royal parchments and a ruler above British majesty. They had bought the land from the crown, but they would buy it again from its wild inhabitants. Beneath the spreading elms at Shackamaxon, by the banks of the placid Delaware, slow winding through dense forests, they met the red chieftains face to face, and offered them what they would for the privilege of dwelling in the land. It was then that Maquon,' as his savage brethren loved to call William Penn, pronounced these memorable words :-'We meet on the broad pathway of good faith and good will. No advantage shall be taken on either side, but all shall be openness and love. I will not call you children, for parents sometimes chide their children too severely; nor brothers only, for brothers differ. The friendship between me and you I will not compare to a chain, for that the rains may rust, or the

falling tree may break. We are the same as if one man's body were to be divided into two parts; we are all one flesh and blood!'

"Under the broad canopy of heaven was this treaty made, but it was held more sacred than any ever concluded under palace roof. The 'high contracting parties' were no subtle diplomatists, but a quiet and simpleminded Quaker on the one side, and a savage Chieftain on the other, yet both earnest and sincere in their intentions and stedfast in their faith. It had no witnesses but the sky, the forest, and the flowing river, the all-seeing eye of the Good Spirit, and the silent monitor in the heart of each one present. It was recorded on no parchment, but on the hearts alike of the white man and the red. It was attested by no royal or noble signet, but only by the seal of Christian love, and yet never was treaty better kept in letter and in spirit to the end. Years after, when other counsels ruled the Quaker Commonwealth, and strife came in, the Indian never ceased to respect the followers of William Penn; and when cruel-minded men made the gentle Conestoga run red with the blood of the Christian Indians, they fled to Philadelphia-to the city of brotherly love to seek shelter and protection among the men of Peace.

"Nor were these the only sons of Peace that blessed the soil of Pennsylvania with their presence. Into her mountain-fastnesses, and among her fertile valleys, the Moravian went, with his Bible and his plough, to teach the red man Christianity, and the arts of civilisation. Strong in faith and hope, he founded there a Bethlehem, fit to be the cradle, and a Nazareth, worthy the dwelling, of the Prince of Peace; and there he raised his Guadenhütten and Friedenshütten-his tents of mercy and habitations of peace-from which the hymns of praise and thanksgiving might rise unitedly from Christian and Indian tongues. Sadly have these happy scenes been desecrated in later times; but the blessing of its holy infancy still rests, in the calm sunshine of prosperity, on the forestland of Penn.

"We say not these things boastingly, brethren, for we know that we must take shame to ourselves for a wide departure, as a commonwealth, from the blessed spirit of the founder. We mention them, because they constitute a green spot in the dark and bloody history of the past, and because we can draw from them courage for the present effort, and a glowing hope for the future. They show what is the power of a peaceful and loving spirit. They prove, by an unalterable fact, that the love of humanity in Christ can disarm the savage and bury the hatchet of the wild warrior of the woods. They put to shame the miserable sophistry of those who contend that war is a necessity of civilised nations, and that a Christian people is too brutal to feel the force of the law of love which tamed the stern race that arms could never conquer, but only exterminate.

"We look to your deliberations, moreover, with an intense interest, because we think we see in them a deeper significance than even this great idea of an Universal Peace among the nations. The time has come when Christianity is to be something more than what a mighty man of war once termed it, 'a devout imagination.' It is to become the practical law of the nations. The law of God, which is the law of love, may and must become the law, not only of this or that land, but of universal humanity. Eighteen weary centuries have passed away since the promise of its coming was given us, and the faint in heart have long despaired of its fulfilment. But we know that the truth then proclaimed is mighty to the pulling down of strongholds. We have faith to believe that it will have its free course and be glorified among the nations, and that even now the kingdom of heaven is at hand. The great gospel of humanity, then first preached, must now be established. We must feel, more and more, that we have all one Father, and that one God has created us. We must feel, and we do begin to feel, that we are all one flesh, as to our material wants, sufferings, and joys; and all one spirit, in regard to our spiritual relations and eternal destiny. The brotherhood of man!-to preach and to establish that holy doctrine is the mission of our age. Whatever stands in the way of that, must be put aside. No matter how time-honoured, not even if encrusted with the moss of centuries, or built up by the toil and blood of millions,-if it impedes the onward march of that great gospel of the poor, it is accursed, and must perish from the way. We bless you, brethren, and we pray God to prosper you, because you meet to further the spread of that gospel. You meet to declare that man is greater than all nationalities-that the cause of humanity is greater than all other earthly causes-and that among the brethren of this our one great family, there should be war and strife

no more.

"The people of Pennsylvania would never forget that our founder based his laws on the cardinal ideas of human equality and fraternity, and that even amidst the danger and tumult of the revolutionary struggle, our more immediate progenitors proclaimed, by solemn legislative enactment, those exalted doctrines on which the only sound and unanswerable argument for Peace can be sustained. Brought together from the ends of the earth, descended from the inhabitants of every clime, we feel our heart to go out in love to all the great family of man. We feel that the people everywhere are our brethren. We can have no just cause of hostility with the toiling millions of any land. Are they not bone of our

bone, and flesh of our flesh? Kings may be our enemies, nobles may turn from us with contempt, priests may preach hatred to us, bigots may raise up walls of national or sectarian prejudice to shut us out from their sympathies; but they cannot cut us off from the deep love of our toiling and suffering brethren. The sterling sons of labour, the humble workers everywhere, we can love and bless, and pray for, and open our arms to welcome to our shores.

"We trust, brethren, that you will not be easily discouraged in the good work you have before you. The eyes of none of those who now meet in your Congress may be blessed to see the full accomplishment of your desires. Wars, and rumours of wars, will continue for a season, and the hopes of some may wax faint; but the end must and will come. He has said it whose word is truth itself. The nations must soon see that their relations can be arranged and preserved without a resort to war, more speedily, satisfactorily, and cheaply than with it. These lower considerations might be enough to establish Peace, if there were no higher motives in operation. Be earnest and untiring in your efforts, therefore, and they will be crowned with success. It may be that the fulfilment of our desires is nearer than some of you suppose. It may may be that the principle of Federation, so successfully illustrated by the States of this Union, shall commend itself to the nationalities of Europe, as a means of escape from their frequent bloody conflicts. We verily believe that there is no limit to the application of that principle, except those that bound the human family itself. There is nothing chimerical to us in the belief that the time is not far distant when it will be the law of the nations, the bond of universal humanity; and then shall your fervent prayer be answered,

"When the war-drum throbs no longer, and the battle-flags are furled, In the Parliament of man, the Federation of the world!'

And may God, in his mercy, hasten the time!

"Written and subscribed in the City of Philadelphia, the Third day of the Sixth month, 1850.

"On behalf of the Central Committee of the Peace Society of the State of Pennsylvania, in the United States of America.

"GEO. W. TAYLOR, President.

"HENRY T. CHILD, M.D., Secretary. "HENRY GREW.

"JAMES OTTERSON, JUN.

"THOMAS MELLOR.

"HENRY S. PATTERSON, M.D.
"WM. LINN BROWN.
"CH. D. CLEveland.
"JAMES MOTT, by C. D. C.”

THE FRANKFORT CONGRESS AND THE PRESS.

It is clear enough that the Peace Movement has now attained to such a conspicuous altitude, that none even of those to whom its principles and objects are most unwelcome, can affect, as they once did, to ignore its existence, or pass it by as undeserving of notice. For several weeks the proceedings at Frankfort occupied a foremost place in the records and discussions of the newspaper press throughout all the most civilised countries of Europe, and the question of permanent international peace was thus forced on the attention of myriads of men to whom it might otherwise have never occurred. Apart, therefore, from all other results, this of itself is an advantage of incalculable value; for an idea like ours, possessing in itself an inherent grandeur and nobleness, adapted to stir the intellect and touch the hearts of the best portion of our species everywhere, cannot have been thus cast upon the wings of the wind and borne to the four corners of heaven without giving rise to many thoughts, feelings, and aspirations, which will manifest their presence and power hereafter by consequences both extended and most salutary. On the mind of Germany itself, we have no doubt the impression will be both profound and permanent. They are not so easily stirred to enthusiasm as our more vivacious and impressionable neighbours on the other side of the Channel. But when a principle has been once fairly deposited in the German soil, it will probably take far deeper root than it would in France. We cannot doubt, indeed, that though, owing to temporary and local circumstances, many persons in that country held back from participating in the proceedings

of the Congress-the idea itself on which the Congress was founded is eminently adapted, from its vastness and novelty, to take hold on the daring and speculative genius of Germany. That it has already excited great interest, and set in motion that wonderful mental and literary activity for which our neighbours are distinguished, is strikingly proved by a fact mentioned to us by Dr. Creiznach, before our departure from Frankfort :-" That, even then, just six days after the assembly had closed, no fewer than eight pamphlets had already appeared from the press, to discuss the question in its various aspects, and with different degrees of favour."

We will not now attempt to give our readers any summary of the public opinion in Germany on the Congress and its projects, as reflected by means of the newspaper press, and otherwise. We hope, at a future time, through the kindness of our friends at Frankfort, to present them with some interesting information on this point. We will now restrict ourselves to a brief review of what has appeared in our own country on the subject; and I think we are entitled to say, that, with the exception of three or four of the London daily papers, the verdict of the press has been altogether favourable. The Times has indeed assailed us in its wonted style, sometimes with banter and ribaldry, and sometimes with a show of serious argument, doing homage, however unconsciously, to the importance of the movement by the pertinacity with which it returns to the assault. Of the general character of this paper, and of the influence which it is exerting abroad, we have spoken in another article, to which we earnestly direct the attention of our readers. The Morning Chronicle also has written in a strain of virulence, which it is difficult to explain on any other ground than that the editor is naturally an exceedingly bilious and little-minded man. The Standard made a desperate attempt to be funny over the matter a species of writing that does not at all suit its ponderous genius.

On the other side, however, we have a host of witnesses. The Daily News, in two able and earnest articles, has vindicated the character and proceedings of the Congress :

:

"If assemblies of men," it says on the 28th of August, 62 were to be ridiculed and scouted because they merely debated and expressed opinion, without coming to any practical end, we fear that parliaments and senates and synods would have but rare chances of meeting with respect. After all, the most practicable thing that even venerable parliaments do, is to advance and enlighten opinion. For this must be awakened and matured even in our own country, before Parliament can venture to pass a final decision or vote. Such has been the progress of most questions with us; years of talk-mere talk-put forth like annual leaves, the fruit not appearing till after the lapse of perhaps a quarter of a century. To test the truth of this we have but to examine the progress of all great questions among us-electoral reform, abolition of slavery, Catholic emancipation, or free trade. * * * * It is a great matter that these ideas" [i.e. the superiority of moral force in obtaining the rights of nations] "should not germinate in the minds of the people alone, or ferment in the breasts of one or two isolated countries. What is most to be desired is, that grave, reflecting, eminent, benevolent, and pacific men, should show themselves as entertaining these views, or devoting themselves to these ideas, so that the great work of progress and reform should not be left to local demagogues or class malcontents, but that the people should feel there was a mass of superior and philosophic minds caring for them."

We need not say that the Nonconformist, with its usual decision and power, stands for the right :

"We look upon the Peace Congress," observes the Editor, in the Number of Aug. 21, "not certainly as the only conceivable method of promoting the object in view-namely, the indoctrination of the great community of Europe-but as the wisest, the most direct, the most economical and the most impressive. The mere fact that a considerable number of men, many of whom are possessed of a wide reputation, are assembled together from all parts of Europe and America, to hold consultation on the aptest means for preventing in future the awful calamities of war, is in itself powerful to call general attention to the subject. *** From a rostrum, which commands to a great extent the attention of the civilised world, a sermon is preached upon a text