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


dreams Of his lasted long tlmc-somo sixty
years.
agree with gentlemen in the necessity of arm
ing the State for internal defence. will unite
with them in any effort to restore confidence to
tho public mind, and to conducc to the sense of the
safety of our wives and our children. Yet, sir, 1
must ask upon whom is to fall tire burthen of this
actence not upon the lordly masters of their hun.
dred slaves, who will never turn out except to re-
tire with their families when danger threatcns.-
NO, SIR it is to fall upon the less wealthy class of
our citizens;' chiefly upon the non.slaveholdcrs.-
have known patrols turned out where there was
not a STAKEHOLDER among them, and this is the
practice OF tho country. have slept in times Of
alarm quietly in bed without having a thought of
care, while these individuals owning mono of this
property themselves, were patrollng under a COM
pusory process for pttnnco of seventy five cents
por twelve hours, the very curtilage of my house,
una guarding that property, which alike dan
gerous to them and myself After all. this is but
an expedient. As this population becomes moro
numerous 1t becomes less productive. Your guard
ust DO increased, until finally its profits will not
pay Tor the expense of its subsection Slavery has the
erect OF lessening the free population ola country
Inc wealthy are not dependent upon the poor for
'hose AIDS u those services compensation for which,
enaoies the poor man to give bread to his family
| The ordinary mechanic arts are all practised bv
slaves. In the servitude of Europe la the middle
| ages, IN years of famine, the poor had to barter
,mcr liberty tor bread: they had to surrender their
| liberty to some wealthy man to save their families
| from the horrors of famine. The slave was sus-
tanned III sickness and in famine upon the wealth
oil his MASTER who preserved him as no would any
other species of property. All the sources of the
poor mans support were absorbed by him. In this
country, he cannot become slave but he flies to
some other country moro congenial to his condition
| ana where ho who supports himself by honest labor
is not degraded in his caste. Those who remain
relying upon the support of casual employment
oiten become more degraded in their condition than
the slaves themselves.
Inc gentleman from Petersburg has spoken of
the depression which this scheme would produce
IN inc value OF slave property. Let examine
MS position. No slave now living, to be born
\ prior to the year 1910, would DO at all operated
upon by this plan. The young Slaves now living,
ana those to be born prior to 1910, would be in
thoir prime for effective abour, from 1860 to 1870;
out TINS s the period at which those born between
lS40 and 1850 are being removed, and labour must
become scarce at this moment, until it is supplied
by free labour. Is the vauo of labour diminished
by an increased demand for labour? Certainly not
b9t OF necessity enhanced. Then, sir, the value
OF tho young slaves now living, and to be born
prior to ls4O, who will be held to bondage for lifc
Will DO enhanced, because their labour will be in
increased demand; but the female slaves whose
OFFSPRING after 1910, arc prohibited from being kept
In the State, will be diminished. They will be di.
mlnished in value to retain them, but not to sell
them out of the State. They would sell as well
| tor expectation they did BEFORE We will
, take the whole subject calculation OF
profit and loss. We know, sir, that if nothing is
done towards ultimate abolition, that there are
thousands of families in the State ready to aban.
Y don 1T from utter despair of the future. These
: VIII throw large bodies of land upon the market
s the monled men from the same dstrust are not
disposed to vest dollar in land; the inevitable re-
suit IS an alarming depression in the value of real
property: no man can tell to what extent it will
Decline AS the tide of emigration flows, those
who remain feel themselves more insecure and
become anxious to follow in the footsteps of those
who have gone before them. These emgrants
warned oy lffs real or imaginary here, will seek
asyiums mostly in free States; their slaves will be
thrown upon the market in such numbers as to re.
, duce the value of this property also You have
then on one hand, if the hope of abolition should
be held OUT an increase in the value of your young
male slaves, sustained or an increased value in
your landed property, or lands always higher in the
Tree, than in slave States, with depression in the value
OF female slaves. On the other, have the prospect
enle ProsTa of the value of real estate and pro-
oaDe depression of slaves generalyl hand hope
ON the other despair The gentleman has spoken of the
increase of the female slaves being part of the pro
hG is admitted: but great evil b. avered nc
n goou at'aned, without some Inconvenience. 1t may be
questioned, how far is desirable foster and encour
sn,s utanen OF PROFIT IS practice. and in
= market. How can any honorable mind patriot and a
lover OF ms country, bear TO this Ancient Dominion
rendered us'rou by the noble devotion and pa o,isn
oil her sons in the of liberty converted into on,
grand menagene where be reared for marke
If IKE oxen tor the shameless Is better, is it wors,
than The slave trade that trade which enlisted the abou
OF inc gnod and the wise of every creed and every CLINE
70 ABOLISH ~ The trader receives the slave, strange
4 language aspect and manner, from the merchant
mas Drought HIM from the interior The ties of father
mother, husband and child, have all rent in twain
before he receives him. his soul has become caous-
But here, Sir, individuals whom the master has known
from infancy whom he has sporting in the nnocen
gaabos OF childhood, who have been accustomed to
look to INN for protection he tears from the mothers
, ana sells into strange country among strange people
subject 10 cruel task-masers. In my opinion Sir, il il
much worse He bascompared slave property a CAPT
tai in money. wish it were money! Sir or any thing
ele than what il is IL is not money, is labour; il i
the abour which produces that, of which money the
representative The interest money to per cent
The hire Of male slaves is about per cent upon their
e value in ten years less you have returned your pn,
opal with interest. Thus il is with much Of the
of property, the loss of which the gentleman
mas SO eoquently depicted running country. He
mas attempted TO justify slavery here because il exists in
Africa and has stated that it exists all over the world
upon the same principle he could justify Mahomeanism
WIN us plurality OF wives, petty wars for pundeI, rob
oeIy ana MURDER or any other OF the denominations and
enoImes OF savage tribes Does slavery exist IN any
part OF civilized Europe? No Sill in no par, oft Amer.
lea is The only civilized christian nation that bears the
oPproenum In every other country, where civilization
ana christianity have existed together, they have erased
rom Their Codes they have botled out from the page
OF their history. He has attempted reconcile 10
Inc dangers OF negro slavery by comparison with slavery
as II existed among the ancens There is one view OF
ns suDeCt Whch has escaped the gentleman, and which
think reverses his conclusions The slaves of the an
cients were OF the same species of the human they
were of different nations il is true taken III but
uheiess "he,oeaTng no distinctive SPECIFIC mark stamped
upon their countenances which should designate them
tnrough Hlimabe generations as distinct race. In the
march OF events their blood mingled with their
all varieties ofdalect language the slight differences of
aspect and countenance became blended into
These, from individual genius and assduity from high
moral and intellectual qualities could Use separately into
the higher classes. Such Esop, Ph9dTus, Narses,
Terence and the father of Juvena who transmitted
heIf names to an immortal poslery, while their proud
masters sleep in oblivion with the common herd To rise
ny single merit was practicable: there Involvement
10 attempt to elevate violently with whom they
had no community Of interest feeling. The ancIens
even forbade badges of slavery be worn, fearing to
marx them too plainly lest they might see their own
strengthened with all this precaution Italy ravaged