Southport telegraph. [volume] (Southport, W.T. [i.e. Kenosha, Wis.]) 1840-1850, 1840-08-18
Southport Racine w. Il. Tuesday, August is, 1sAO.

Another ofdanger to the stability ofour repub
can institutions may be found in tae existence of 1me
rcdn SiaUery This dark cloud with all It's threatening
consequences still lowers upon political horizon
It's love of oppression its practical disrelsh of those
setevident truths inculcatedin that hallowed nstru-
ment which was adopted and signed sixty-fve wears
ago this day, by Washington and Jefferson and Frank
lin, grows with its growth and strengthens with its
strength We should be deaf TO the teachings of all
past experience and blind the moentous events that
are every day passing before eyes, be
indifferent to the operations tendencies and consequent
| ces Of this tremendous national evil.
The every day collisions the conflicting interests be-
wlxt communities who hold theinhumail creed that is
convertible into property and thosew repudatewith
disdam such heaven-darng mockery, should convince
the most skeptca mind that in republican govern
ment, liberty and slavery cannot long dwell together
Either slavery, with its long catalogue of abuses and
Crimes its discriminating statutes written by the iron
hand OF oppression must yield up its whip of scorpions
crlmSoned IN the blood Of its victims and its Drooerty.
right three millions of human beings or the liberties
of this whole nation, will perish forever Thomas
Jefferson said IN view OF American slavery that when
he remembered that God was just, he trembed for the
late OF his country Look at few OF its encroachments
upon the rights Ofnorhern freemen And first would
ask your attention to It's interference with the legislation
OF non slave-holding states.
During the session of the Ohio legislature in 1888
Kentucky thinking that she might use the assembly of
the free state of Ohio promote her interests in rem
dering,more profitable her pariarcha institutions, de-
spatched John Speed Smith and Ex-Governor Moore
leau Us 10 ONO 10 solicit the
law binding the citizens of Ohio to JOIN her in the
chase after her fugtives from oppression Think of
that, my friends Northern freemen required by law
to catch and rlvet the letters upon southern nabobs
slave And what was the result? shame on such
servllty! law was manufactured at the dctaton of
these Kentucky gentlemen, which only required
the citizens of Ohio operate spies and blood hounds
i'll ferreting out and chasing down every runaway
slave but assumed to make it their duty under severe
penalty OF fine and Imprisonment refuse shelter or
sustenance, even cup of water 10 q furnishing fug
tive negro.
But this bill Of denominations was too
gross violation of the federal constitution
which secures freedom and rights of con-
science, and an insult too impious and fla
grant upon those heaven-born precepts of
christian charity, incucated in the gospel
Of peace, to be needed. The freemen of
Ohio almost unanimously spurneG it as an
insult to their understandings, and the law
remains a dead letter upon their statute
book.
What has been the influence of this LIE.
gslatlve cruelty upon The progress Of self
emancipation in Kentucky? Let the Will
berlorce Colony in Canada, answer the in
quiry. Amidst all this paraphernala of
legislative security, thrown around the
dage, to that land Of noaarchial freedom.
have increased two-fold and the settle
ments of the colony, are still fast filling
up, by the sable sons of Kentucky Virgil
MIA, also for the last twelve months, has
been knocking at the doors of the New
York Legislature for similar protection; and
in menacing tone, demanding the deli
vering up of two New York citizens to be
punished in Virginia for offences, which
neither the laws of New ork nor the ge-
neral government, may, nor the civilized
world, deem offences. Virginia threatens
notification and civil war if her demands
are not complied with, while the Execu-
tive and Legislature of New York as stout
ly refuse. Can liberty and slavery long
dwell together under such circumstances?
Maine and Georgia are like circumstanced
and similar conflicts must from the very
nature of things, continue 70 arise until Ell
Their liberty or slavery is subjugated-
Look again at the encroachments of the
slave-holding interest, through the medium
Of Congress. The constitution Of the Uni
ted States soemnly declares the right of
petition to be inalienable, ard may ever
be exercised for redress of grievances: sup
pose however, it had not ever been incor-
porated into that instrument-ts existence
might still be safely inferred, from thou
sand natural facts. 1t was bestowed by
God upon every human being, as we'll as
upon every inferior animal, and is re-
garded and listened to, by every body and
every thing but the American Congress-
The Tigress, myIfriends, regards the cries
of her whelps and the bear those of her
cubs; but the petitions of a free people.
may not even be read or considered. Do
you see, in the recent flagitious violations
of the federal constitution, any tokens Of
danger to our free institutions? My friends |
they are full of admonition to US, they ad- |
vertise us 10 be on the watch-towers of
freedom; and 10 guard, viligantly, every |
avenue and gate way through which her
interests or her existence may be assailed |
Slavery cannot be sustained in q govern
ment like ours, without trespassing con-
tnually upon the rights Of the free 1t
cannot exist in one portion Of the Union,
without taking from the privileges of an
other portion. The property of northern
treemen is heavily taxed for the support of
this institution at the south. AS on illus
tration take the Florida war; The avowed
object in expaling the Seminoles from the
swamps of Florida, by both the north and
the south, is to break up an asylum for fu-
gltive blacks. About forty millions of the
national treasure, have been already ex-
pended in this enterprise, and the objec, is
yet far from being accomplished. The
funds, which we empty into the Land Of
fees at the west as well az the raunnna