fought in our history, and a more heroic spirit was never shown. What the château of Hougoumont, held by the British right centre, was to the battle of Waterloo; what the “Bloody Angle” held by Hancock was to the battle of Spottsylvania Court-House, such was the Kansas war in the early and determining era of the great American conflict. Call this four years of struggle one battle, and it will take rank with the “fifteen great battles” of the world’s history, second in importance to none. We have thus given an outline of this great preliminary struggle of the war, that Mr. Beecher’s position and labors, which were much criticised at the time, may be seen in their true light. As is well known, he threw himself into this work with all the enthusiasm which such an emergency might be supposed to awaken. He felt the importance of the struggle and the need of instant action. Since, under the doctrine of “squatter sovereignty,” which had taken the place of the former restriction, the question of freedom or slavery in Kansas must be decided by the vote of the actual settlers, these must be aided to emigrate to that Territory from the North, and at once. Since they were to be the foundation elements of a Christian State, they should be supplied with Bibles; and since they would doubtless be called upon to defend themselves against attack, they _must_ be supplied with firearms. He lectured and took up collections in Plymouth Church and from the lecture platform for Sharp’s rifles, an arm then but just come into notice. He preached, lectured, and bought rifles with the same object in view—to redeem men to liberty; and with the same spirit—love to God and man. Some of the rifles, it is said, were sent in boxes marked Bibles, but without his knowledge, and so passed in safety through Missouri and the enemy’s lines. Hence the term Beecher’s Bibles came to be applied to these effective weapons. At this time he published his famous “Defence of Kansas,” that showed not more clearly the warmth of his spirit than his clear understanding of the issues at stake and the dangers that were impending: