Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1839-09-27
Richmond, Friday, Sept. :7.
THE 3MlST.1D.

ad n, 10 ry This issue the case transferred to
me District Court The following IS sketch OF the
rnns that been made and the decisions maj nave
been pronounced The Court seem to have acted WIN
great frmnrss and dscielinn-and with due regard 10
the laws and institutions of their own country lappsn
4 Co are of cout Sc much chagrined by the result {"
The investigation They expected To efaesh psihcifs
Of Jurisprudence in Courts. which would mt only
b,v, cut at he Slave Trade from Africa a which every
American concurs bn, have shaken every idea m pro
perry in slaves they already exist under our own IN
slituons The question, il is presumed will no" ee, &C.
ccordinp the precedent in The case of The Antelope
would these persons be slaves in Cubu-and il So IS not
The Executive bound 10 give them up under the Treaty:
THE AFRICANS OF THE AMTSTAD.
HARTFORD Friday, Sept 90, !
HGij past one octock )
The whole OF this day has teen taken up with the
Amisad case. Mr. Srdgwick read The reply to the re
turn Of the Marshal and The affidavit OF Massrs tian
son and Ferry that The girls native AfrIchns-ae,
as they suppose be~een7 and lO-and are hit recently
from, Africa Mr.. Baldwin then addressed the Court IN
an elaborate and very powerful argument OF 2hours
The Grand Jury came in while he was speaking. ana
requested 10 be charged by the Court on this subject,
which was under their consideration. Judge Thompson
said he could mt charge them without statement oil
facts, &c The Jury retired, and came 10 again with
written statement oil facts, which was read by The lore
man The Cnul Informed them that at the opening OF
Court in the afternoon, they would give their OPT
Mon as Ia the Jurisdiction Of The Court.
After Mr. baldwin had concluded, air lngersol spoke
quarters of an hour the opposite side Mr. Sta
hour, the Court adjourned irr dinner
The Court room is drd The Governor OF The
Stale the cIegymen 81 the city, aud many aged and re
spectacle cz-ns present
FriGau afternoon Judge Thompson addressed the
jury stating that with regard 10 the criminal ctarge
against the prisoners neither this Court nor any other
Conrt in the u S nor the Grand Jury, had any u!is
dicon The AmIstad had been Spsnish c"asling YES
Sc; and crime committed board Of her The same,
with rrrard jurisdiction. The crime had been com.
Knitted the Island Of Cuba In order 10 give Court
Of thu e. jurisdiction The crime must be against some
law Of the S or The law OF Nations. He hereo'e
instructed them that they could not lnd an indictment
The Grand and Petty Jurss having no other business,
WIRE therefore discharged " J"ur IF Com
TIL" following letter. from The correspondent of the
New York Courier and Enquirer, Contains the history
or,he proceedings Of The down to Saturday trenns
"HARrronp, Saturday, Sept 81 1879
"On the sitting OF the Court Ih's morning, Judge
Thompson said he not prepared to dispose OF The
question, that pied the attention Of the Court yester.
dar faaiv; and therefore, nothing that he now saId
should be- considered other than incidental remarks
upon the arguments that had been offered to the Court
the case brough. before undo. very peculiar CIR
cums,ences and was one of very great dIhculy-un
d0ubedy. the Court was much embarrassed as 10 now 10
dispose Of it, Let il be distinctly undpslnhd however,
that the parties brought he abras corpus stood PER
irctly dscha rged from The accusation Of CRIMINAL Hence
The question is what Is :" be done villa hes eaa
TIE cuur.e brI the Court pursues with respect 10 those
hsbeas corpus perhaps that be adopted
as Ia Gil the ether ircans now IN confinement But,he
smpl, stiun nov under consideration was "ne'ner
the par brought rghtuy IN lhf possession
OF the District Court; ard if they thus Court had
right 10 take them out OF Such possession ~ might
be- full Of injustice, and pregnant with very eV chnse
uupnces to dispose of these important QUE stlnns IN ihis
summary way. upon wit ni bnbeas corpus However
abInrrrnl In feelings might be ih"se
human beings property, The Court were mol az iIefy
indulge any sympathies with reference 10 that mat.
ter. They could uniT he governed by the la" on Inc
point twas con,rndr' lay some that there could be no
-9saperty in human fish, yet II impossible 10 shui
tHes to the fact that slavery or the rgh, to control
Prrsnns OF "srs not only recognised by foreign
Courts but by these of cnun.ry-and men, hu-
beings under III OF slaves had bt er returned
TO claimants. through the Intervention OF the constituted
repre- seniatves Of the STATES 10 which such claimants
belonged es property; as in the case OF the antelope
reported in 10 Wheaton, &C for il was on tina. ground
and that alone, that they Nerr 50 returned
This court has right 10 entertain the question, md 10
inquire into ihr grounds of the right gt property; and
after repeated DECISIONS this effect hy the Supreme
Courts il will not do iuS this Cour, 10 say Eve won't as
certain The question of property The property Qor
will technically call it in the present lnstance) IS
the p0ssCSsiua nG the District Cunr and are 10 IN
Guire whether is rghifuy in suCh possession. Per-
of The African are recognized by law as pro
prfy ard the question therefore in this case Is only
whether The possession by the District Court Is rghtul
Under the peculiar circumstances "i this case his Honor
said The Court d,sirous TO have hnoirr argument
Of counsel confined entirely to the point, ""hehrr the
District Court had jurisdiction in this CASE and pr"Pos
ed cnunsel 10 take that question into consideration,
MIR lngerso suggested shat brief should be prepared
and submitted 10 his Honor for his decision.
| This objected to by Mr. Staples and Mr.
Baldwin, very nconvenient Counsel then reied 10
consult and were 10 state The result OF two o'clock
1ffcrnoon-At the afternoon sitting Mr. lngersnll.
who counsel for the ihrllinis repeated his wish that
brief should prepared and submitted 10 his honor,
| in which all the the point should he cited
Judge Thompson said the vital one; bet il
was desirable if possible 10 dispose Of It
MIR Stables bad made inquiry aud he satisfied OF
| The necessity OF going on
Judge Thompsrn-"Then we must go on.
Mr. Baldwin then recapI,uated The facts Of the case,
and commended that The Court Of Admiralty had nothing
To d. with them hut as property, and II was incumbent
the party applying 10 that Court, to prove as pre-.
| Iminary measure, that they The Marshal in
this instance had exceeded his auihuy Properly ia
ken the high may b. libe''ed IN the most cOnve
nipn Court, but property taken in waters in any par
cuur district must be bprd in tie Cunrt of The dis.
rcl in which il was taken, and all legal proceedings
| must be prosecuted in that Court Don Pedro Monies
files Admiralty process on the 9Th September inst,
against these as property they being at The time
on land but they could only be tried before common
law Court, by a jury-and the same reasoning applied
TO Ruiz.
Mr. B. closed in an energetic appeal, praying their
discharge. lie said they would be taken care ." las II
right they should bel by the State nf Connecticut
Mr. Hungerfod and Mr. lngersoi followed on behalf
Of the Spanish claimants and argued very earnestly in
support Of the jurisdiction of The District Court:
The District Attorney succeeded in supper, OF his libel
|. on behalf of the Executive.
The closed with the address Of Mr Staples, which
was not concluded until o'clock.
The Count then adjourned TO + o'clock on Monday
morning, when judgment will he given.
HARTFORD, Sept. 23d.
The decision of Judge Thompson, concurred IN by
Judge Judson was read his morning in the presence
Of large number of persons The Court opened al
O'Clock, and even before this hour The Court Room
thronged 10 Overlooking A interested auJle nee,
Judging from the earnest attention Of those present.
were never assembled together No one,-lhe Judges
excep'ed,-knew what the decision be before
The Court opened The opinion, therefore, furnished
me by friend who reported almost rcrbatim. excited
mingled satisfaction and Disappointment The Aboli