rich and the poor, the grave and the gay of all sexes and tongues and
colors and conditions, sacrifice unceasingly upon its altars.

While ever a state of feeling such as this shall universally or even
very generally prevail throughout the nation, vain will be every
effort, and fruitless every attempt, to subvert our national freedom.

When I so pressingly urge a strict observance of all the laws, let me
not be understood as saying there are no bad laws, or that grievances
may not arise for the redress of which no legal provisions have been
made. I mean to say no such thing. But I do mean to say that although
bad laws, if they exist, should be repealed as soon as possible, still
they continue in force, for the sake of example they should be
religiously observed. So also in unprovided cases. If such arise, let
proper legal provisions be made for them with the least possible delay,
but, till then, let them, if not too intolerable, be borne with.

There is no grievance that is a fit object of redress by mob law. In
any case that may arise, as, for instance, the promulgation of
abolitionism, one of two positions is necessarily true--that is, the
thing is right within itself, and therefore deserves the protection of
all law and all good citizens, or, it is wrong, and therefore proper to
be prohibited by legal enactments; and in neither case is the
interposition of mob law either necessary, justifiable, or excusable.

But it may be asked, why suppose danger to our political institutions?
Have we not preserved them for more than fifty years? And why may we
not for fifty times as long?

We hope there is _no sufficient_ reason. We hope all dangers may be