North American. [volume] (Swanton, Vt.) 1839-1841, 1839-10-23

When Mackenzie escaped from Toronto
he al FIRST took refuge in Buffalo, when he
found the excitement very high IN favor OF
the pstiroi cause. Immediately alter has
arrival a meeting was called 0i The citizens
oi that city to express their sFmpathles for
| the patriots, and Ia aid them with means
10 continue The contest. Mackenzie was
invited To attend this meeting aud deliver
an address on the occasion: he did SO; and
the recommendations Suggestions nj his
addfess were embodied in the form oi reso-
iutl0ns, which were passed unanimously
and by reclamation by five thousand Amer
ican citizens. So that il there was any
thing against the peace of her majesty
Queen Victoria, in Mackenzir's address,
which our government are bound 10 pun
ish, The same charge holds equally good
against every one of the five thousand in
dividuals who attended that meeting. Not
only were they equally guilty o! an lnirac-
ton of our laws, il there was any, but
they stand amenable for having led Mac
krnzie into n scrape. He had just escaped a
violent death in his own country, and had
taken refuge in our land Of lbely, when he
is invited by five thousand citizens OF Bull
alo 10 join in an infraction OF our laws, OF
which he as aloreigner must be presumed
ignorant. For this offence the lriendless
foreigner is seized upon, prosecuted, con-
vcted, aud sentenced 10 eighteen months
imprisonment in a dungeon, when the FIVE
housand still more guilty BoGaonians are
allowed TO escape.
How is this' Is our government the dep
,utlsed bumbailifi OF great Britain, TO catch
Her criminals and punish them for political
Offences committed in canada? We pre-
sumo not Is there any law Of congress
authorizing our government TO punish
British subject for having been patriot in
Canada? We never heard of any. We
take it for granted then that Mackenzie, a
British subject, is no further liable to The
vengence Of our laws for having sympa-
thised with & furnished aid to tibet Canadian
patriots, than any American would be who
had done the same act. Why does not
The government punish Theller, who is
now at Detroit, and is infinitely more
guilty of inIractions than Mackenzie? Ii
is because they cannot; the grand Jury re-
fused to find bill against him. Why
VIVA hON thC Eo'C' b'Iitnt PUNISH tue i've
thousand citizens Of Buffalo, and the hum
dred thousand all along the lines, who are
equally guilty with Mackenzie? 1t is be-
cause they dare not even attempt il. Is it
then to be tolerated, that a single British
is to be selected, and dragged in
TO the most UNANIMOUSLY tory district in the
state, and there tried, convicted and pun
ished, when coniessedy the government
has not the power to punish others equally
guilty. And cui bono Why apparently,
to satisfy her Majesty's government that
we are afraid 10 go TO war. That al |
though the massacre Of our own citizens
in the Caroline, has never been in any
way explained or atoned for, we are wills |
ing to pocket that Insult, rather than incur
he dangers and dreadful consequences of
a war with Great Britain.
Are the American people so lost to pat |
-lotlsm as 10 submit to this? Will they |
under these cIrcumst ances allow Mackenzie |
% be punished, when the outrage Of the
Caroline remains unredressed? 1t Sc
'iouslv appears to us, that those transac-
ions will cut pitilul figure on the page of
history. And we call upon our govern.
nent and Congress to look into this matter,
md see that our national honor is not
arnshed.
We have much more to say on the SUBJ
ect OF our relations with Great Britain nj
ome other time.