Constitutional Whig. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1824-1832, 1832-02-11

|
man from Brunswick has said, that when Pennsyl-
vania and the other northern states abolished sla
very, the western states were unsettled, ana many
of them went th,hcr | think, SIR, they abolished
| by emancipation without expulsion: and blacks
never 90 west, except from slave to free state.
But Louisan was not then acquired. A new
world has been opened. The regions watcrcd by
the arms of the mighty Mississipp--thc rival OF
the Amazons, and the La Pata-the Gauges and
| the Nile, whose sources are unknown, except to
the wandering savage and the daring hunter; the
destined seats of future empires, uncxporod and
unpcopcd. Here the African will find boundlcss
forests to fall with his forced and reluctant labor.
| He will find the wide cXpanse of varied soils
| tic dcsolatc, Hero he will pass away from the
wasted lands of Virginia, and from people,
whose only curse was to have him thrust
upon them. The maledictions which the gen.
tcman has SO glowngly depicted falling
upon my head, can bear checrfully with this
House. can share with tho people of my native
State-with them can abide through woal and
through woo: but when the battle has been fought,
and irrcvocably lost, must bear my children to
land, where in tho current of time, they will not
descend TO inevitable perdition.
The gentleman from Dinwddie spoke Of the
mschovous effects Of gentlemcn's offering plans,
and not being prepared to vote for them. / repel
with indignation the differences of his remark.
repudiate every thing inconsistent with the charac
ter of an honorable man. The gentleman distort-
cd my expressions. l explained, l repeated, that
l was prepared to vote for tho submission of this
plan to the peope-that was not prepared, and
that would not vote for any Legislative act upon
this subject which was not to be submitted to the
people. lie repeated his distortion. 1t was what
had not expected from fair and courteous ad-
vcrsarv-it is what had least expected from the
high character and honorable feelings of the gen.
tlcman from Dinwiddic.
| mir. Brodnax rose to explain. 1t was singular,
he said, that the gentleman should after having
Il rest of eight days, made an attack upon him in
regard to matter which was fully explained at
the time He had stated that the gentleman was
not prepared to vote any specific plan, but wish
ed to submit the subject to the people. The gem
tlcman from Albemarle rose, and made an explana-
ton, which placed his opinions in precisely the light
in which he (Mr. b. at first understood them, and
he proceeded with his remarks accordingly. 1t
had not entered his mind to impute to the gentle
man from Albcmarle dishonourable course of
conduct
MIR. RANDOLPH. Many honorable gentlemen of
this House understood my explanation distinctly,
and took the same view of this matter that have
done. felt too indignant under what 1 conceiv-
ed the contumely of the gentleman from Dinwid-
die, to attempt to correct him second time, until
L should come to it in the regular course of this
debate have alluded to it now not from any n
kind feelings towards that gentleman, but from a
sense of what was due TO myself feared, from
the apologize strain of his PREDATORY remarks,
that he would depart from the track
of just argument. He reminded mo of a
certain Troyes Echee, exocutioner, l think, sir,
to Lewis the XII, who always addressed his victim,
in the kindest and most ondcaring terms, while he
was adjusting upon them the moose which was to
launch them INTO eternity. l would abandon my
own views, and become proselyte to the gentle
mans plan, or any other feasible plan to effect tn
grand object, could my understanding become con
WINGED of its probability. lie leves tax on the
,, people, of $4,000 per annum; he proposes to ex
port with this sum, annually, 5000, being the an
nual increase OF slaves and free negroes
The expectation has averaged $500 for the last GO
years. If any check is given to this latter export
we have an increasing population. Under his
scheme, think, sir, the expenditure is too great
tor the efficiency of the plan. He asks annually
from the generosity and patriotism of individuals
these 5000 young grown slaves Of the capita
stock oil the present effective labour of tho coun
try, and he can nothing wrong in it: vet Inc
t views with the most damning opprobrium, my APP
piicatlon to the same patriotism and generosity fo
The post natl, those to be born after the year 1910
thing not now in existence, and not likely to BIZ
available in our lives. He has spoken of the i'm
policy OF submitting statute to the people. HI
ought to have said tho general principles of sta
tute. The peose are the best judges of their own
Interestingly ought to be consulted in matters
deeply and vitality interesting to thenl-There is
e no danger in them-If he knew them as well as
a do, lie would not fear them. 1 have often broker
the poor mans bread, and shared his pallet
n have enjoyed his hospitality. There is not more
virtuous, more just, kinder hearted people or
i earth, than what are called the common people o
IS Virginia. l believe them, if not the wisest, the
n safest repositories of our rights: prefer mysel
If honest ignorance to interested intelligence. III,
has expressed his belief that if Mr. Jefferson hat
:, lived, he would have this plan of abolition
n more impractcable now than at the rcvsa aftc
Il the revolution He has not lived sir, to see th.
revolution in tho public mind of Virginia. He ha,
|, not lived to see majority of the House of Dele
gates In favour of abolition in the abstract. Six
d ty-two years ago, when proposition was made in
inc Legislature of Virginia, by of the oldest
abest, and most respected members of that body
to ameliorate mot to abolish slavery as NV friend
, from Montgomery had the other da supposedly the
Y condition of the slave, who was scarcely known
TO the law but as property, he treated with the
\ utmost Indecorum, and denounced as an enemv nj
\ his country--Now it can be debated here AMONG
/ gentlemen without insult. To those, Mr.. Speaker.
C who have more bile than brain, the softness of
whose intellect, must be compensated by the hard
ness OF their words, we must allow the few advan.
, tages which nature has given them.
, The gentleman from Petersburg, mr. Brown, }
stated that this was not the plan of Mr. Jcffer-
SON.; that 1T was ga vision of his phlanthropc
, mind" 1t would have been very indelicota in me
SIR 10 nave quoted MIR. Jefferson as authority to
thls House upon any subject; but when in addition
to the talents arrayed against me, and which have
pressed upon me so heavily-the weight of his
name is TO be thrown into the scale to press me
down still farther il becomes my duty to shew that
his opinions at least not against me- and that
they may be with me- For this purpose, beg leave to
read some extracts from letter of his which [
hold In my hand "Nurscd and educated in the
daily habit OF seeing the degraded condition. both
bodily and mental, of those unfortunate beings
not rejecting that that degradation was very much
the work of themselves and their fathers few
minds had yet doubted but that they were as lcgiti-
mate subjects of property their horses or cattle"
Again, sir, ''your solitary, but welcome voice is
the FIRST which has brought this sound to nv ear
and have considered the general silence which
prevails on this subject, indicating an apathy
untavorabIe to every hope. Yet the hour of eman-
cipation is advancing in the march of time 1t
will come, and whether brought on by the gene
rous energy of our own minds, or by the bloody
| process OF st. Domingo excited and conducted
lbV a En1r nf