Richmond enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1815-1867, 1844-02-10
THE INSPECTION LAW.


before the House OF Delrpats ny instructing TIL
Committee Courts of Just 10 enquire Iut, the
Iexpediency OF repeating lus pr c,on Law. When
The repeal OF that law proposed last w,n;rr
wrote you communication, which you publ lad
lf the matter is again to be asaIrd wish you
would rc-publlsh the following ealracl from Gem
munica.ion:
"Tmx INSPECTION LAW When ihe Governor OF
New York refused to surrender, upon the demand al
tina Executive OF Virginia, three persons repul .ry
charged vito the commission OF felony, in sealirn
a slave irnm his owner, in Norfolk, and carrying Inn
to New York, upon the ground, that could mi
be the property Of another, it predicted the
feet OF his course, that this crime would become one
OF every day occurrence And when the Legislature OF
New York responded TO the renonsrance OF Virginia.
against the course OF Gov Seward by passing the
enttl ID, AN act to extend the right Of trial by Jury
by winch the recapiure of fugitive slaves is rendered
impossible, It was predicted that the number of them
who would desert their masters would earuy increase
1t was oreseen, that evil disposed persons would aid
ana anet slaves 10 running away, when they found
That they might do 1t with mpuny, if they succeed
ed IN escaping t. New York; and that the number OF
slaves disposed 10 away would increase when The
found that they could not be re-captured The obvi-
Gus effect of the OF the Governo. and Legis-
la.ure of New York, t, augment the means and
create the disposition in the slaves to run away
On this head, the report Of the Special COMMITTEE Of
the House OF Delegates of Virginia OF 1910, holds
this language:
"'The positions Of the Governor of New York when
carried 10 their legitimate results ead to consequences
OF most irighsiu character and which, 10
your committee, could not have been duly weighed by
him. The Governor OF New York saws il is no offence
TO steal slave, because one man cannot be The pro
Petty oil another and cnnno the efore be the subjc
oil THEFT 1t, Tor these reasons be offence TO steal
a slave and carry HIM to New York, It would be none
| TO seal him and carry him 10 Louisiana Surely IN
such case it would make no difference whether the
thief sieered North South, after committing his rob
berry The consequence is, ifa citizen of New York
were 10 into this State, inveige cargo of our
slaves on board his vessel, under the pretex that h,
meant to take them 10 land OF liberty, and
should carry them 10 Louisiana and sell them the
New leans market and should thereafter take refuge
IN New York, he would bs free from arrest and could
not b. made TO expiae his crime. And without wishing
to make any uniustfabl attack upon the citizens at
any State Of this Union, your committee would be
wanting in candor, if they expressed doubt that such
case, II the OF the Governor OF ~ ork should
be parsevered n would be- of probable and frequent
currcnce There nre bad men IN every county, who
will commit ances, when they profit by II, and
do IL with ,rnounity But what is sti!l probable
If the OF the Governor of New York he acqui-
esced n,) IS that thcs. deiuded enthusiasts 4; The
North who IN pursuit Of something, they know not
what are spending thousands and thousands, Efforts
which thew must see, they be not binder than
one, except fanatic ever yet was,
plish their object will attempt 10 make those efforts
practically efficient, by coming into our State and max
ING IT labor OF virtue to steal slaves and convey
them II more CALM. bondage than they now sGler,
| IN The Northern States
Never have predictions been more literally fulfilled
Ia October last, the following paragraph appeared in
| the Georgetwon AdVocate
| "tRuSAwAY NEGRoEs-We hear reports from all
parts of the district aud surrounding country, OF very
numerous cases of negroes absconding. Perhaps,
within the last MONTH AT least one hundred slaves have
clandest nelly lett their owners, and fled Northsa ard
Georgetown has large proportlon-fve absconded on
one SINGLE night, las, week This is the first fruit of
l. tbo
and their brethren, the abolitrorsts, of which have
before heard description. Societies formed,
the members OF which pay weekly subscription, for
the purpose Of raising funds assist the liberation OF
slaves, by paying 50 much head Tor every one sue
cessfully off Ii is believed that Instances,
negroes have been carried of to the North from this
district, by way Of the Potomac aud The Ocean; the
Captain owners OF The vessels so engaged receiving
from their employers regular price on delivery
These fact. s'oa!d pu, the community than
their guard against The nefso1s des uf mschie
yous fanatics - Geoyeeto,cn -7dcocats
"Upon seeing this, friend informs Us, he had TIE
curiosity 10 test s accuracy by referring to the adver
sene Of the National lEtsll,gencer of the 4,!l
! November, Uhe No. wh'ch happened al that time TO
be before him. aud 10 his surprise he found, that 70
fugitives were advertised in that single paper ter
whom rewards were offered {, the amount of $500
of whom II went oft between the Odd and 21th of
September; : between the 23d and 9Th Of October;
and the rest not far from The iime-sbowInr that
they escaped in gangs, at intervals of month-the
time il takes vessel trading 10 New York make n
| trip These facts prove that the inference of the
Georgetown Editor, that the fugitves had escaped
by the way Of The Potomac and the Oeeon, well
founded. The information conveyed in the following
paragraph, which appeared in the Northern papers in
Decr mher last, confirms that infercnce
"EsoAPE ~ SLAVES The New York Evening Post
states that Vigilance Committee of tie Abolonisls
of Albany, have aided about three hundred and fifty
runaway negroes the opening Of the vigaton
lss' spring o. these fuei'ives, about hundred
and fifty men, one hundred and fifty women, and
fifty children. Mos. of them came from Virginia,
MARYLAND, and the District of Columbia, nd nearly
quit. hundred from Washington and Georgetown.
These fugutiyes have gone chiefly Canada, and the
sun OF five hundred dol has been expended for their
boar passage and other expenses PM. inquirer
"But while the number Of slaves who have runaway
from the District of Columbia, Maryland aud tina, po-
ton Of Virginia bordering the Potomac, (where
inspection law did not reach, or not executed,)
have heen unusually great very few indeed have escap-
ed from the tide water portion Of Eastern Virginia.
This fact learn from sentlemsu who has The brs;
means Of information, and who has taken great paus
10 CO ct To what this to b. attributed but 10 the
operation Of our Inspection law; And yet we learn
there some who say it has been inefficient 1t is
almost impossible it should be So for it precisely met
the mise hief against which it designed ~ pro
vide The cours. of New York, have already
SAID endangered arr slave property, by ufording the
and creating the disposition IN The slnves 10 run
away II known, tist their principal avenue of
escape was IN vessels ny way oil TIE ocean his was
the wrong An Inspection law, which was designed
he remady, requires that soon as vessel owned
in whole part in New York arrives in line waters of
Virginia, the captain person for them,
shall give bond in the penalty OF thousand dol.
lars with condition, that slave should be taken from
the State in the vessel. without the Of his
ter and that she shouId not depart without undergoing
inspection.
"(The Legislature made the l2h section of the Jury
law of York its criterion in fixing upon the amount
Of the bond That law requires of every Southern
slave holder, most of whom farmers or planters
without acquaintance in n. York, particularly among
her ee-holders, before he commences his proceed
ngs to give bond in the penalty Of one thousand dol
lars with two securities, nhabanls and free holders
of the State cond toned to pay all costs and expen
scs TO pay two dollars week for the keeping OF the
slave during the proceedings and in the that the
verdict of the jury against the claimant that he 81 al
pay all costs and expenses, the fuglves well h
own, and in addition pay the fugitive one hundred do!
lars and all damages which he MAJ sustain! which da
images might be assessed by jury, composed Of Abol
lionists
tBnt, if the master of the vessel alleges
his inability 10 give the bond, he is excused from do
ing so upon making oath before Justice of TIT
% ,tatka ,,u1ov a rxi