Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1845-12-26

and rational principle, that whenever any one
is under the claim of law for the purposes Of
justice, it is wrong to surrender him {, any
after claim for a similar purpose until the first
shall have been satisfied and disposed Of
Take the very case which is before us at pre-
sent, and a more striking illustration of the
truth of the principle or of the value of the
law which is founded upon it could scarcely
be offered, Were | to deliver up to your En-
cellcncy the persons whom you have deman-
ded whilst the trial for an alledged aggression
upon the property and rights of citizens of
this state, in which those persons are the
principal if not the sole Witnesses, is still
pending and undeternine d.-were | to do
this, the ivestigations and authority of the
Court would be stopped-thc whole evidence
in the case would be taken away. and taken
away forever if the persons surrendered should
be convicted of f,lony--the parties implicated
acquitted without trial. and thus the purps-
ses of justice efcctually defeated through an
Executive agency which was meant to protect
them. Indeed, the surrender, under existing
circumstances, would be, in effect, to endow
yonr Eyceileccy with the double privilege of
sublectlng certain citizens Of Virginia to an
lgnominlous prosecution in Ohio and discharg-
ing at the same time certain others Of Ohio
from n similar prosecution here. Such I'M
doubleday would be the result Of complying.
at present, with your EXcellency's demand.
Still, however, | am perfectly confident that
in making it, and making it now. your EX-
c~ellency has acted with no design whatsoev-
or o. thwarting the course and operation of
our laws, but with the single and honorable
one Of maintaining i~nyiolate the claims OF
your own.
Acting then in this same spirit Of official
fidelity. and in conformity with the provision
Of law before alluded to, | shall decline Civ
ing any order at present for The art',. and
delivery over of the persons whr arc named
in your EXcellcncy's rc1uisitiou. Whoacv-
or they are discharged from the process be-
fore st.ted, and when the Judgment Of the
Court, mall lis bearing upon the persons and
principles involved. shall be made known to
this Department, it will then have the whole
case in its hands, and will be allie to proceed
at once to Il final decision upon il.
Having thus answered your Excell6ncy's
roqlistion, | have now TO submit one ftom
this Department upon yours, demanding the
surrender OF Jos. Romano, Titus Shotwell,
and Betton Stlunton, who were indicted al:
the September term Of the Circuit Superior
Court Of Law and Chlncery for the county
Of Wood, in this State, begun and held on
the first day Of the month, upon Il charge of
frloniNusly on:icing and alluring away, and
otherwise siding in the removal and abscond-
ing from the service and possession Of their
owner. certain slaves the property Of a citi-
zen f this State.
This rcguiSit.on. as your Fycellcncy will
perceive, IS founded upon an indictment which
is prior even to that on which your own has
been made. and is otherwise in all c%Onstitu-
tiOAal and legal respects precisely the same.
| cannot doubt, therefore, but that its validi-
" will be promptly acknowledged, &, ii no lc-
gal obstacle exists, that the necessary meas
ure5 will be as promptly taken TO give it eff
feet. Could | ut any moment have doubted
this, and have supposed that your Excellen-
cy would be unwilling to admit as obligato-
ry upon your own Executive action, the coun-
tarpart Of the very official instrument which
YOU have presented as obligatory upon mine,
that doubt would have been removed in the
most ample manner by the very explicit and
emphatic positions of your letter. Nothing.
indeed, could be stronger upon this point than
the emphasis with which your Eyccllency
declares it to be your confident belief, that
the peace and harmony # the several States
cannot be maintained except through the faith
fol execution of all International laws by the
authorities Of each; and that tine Union itself
depends for its preservation upon the steady
enforcement of that federal guarantee which
secures to every State, as a part of its soyer-
eighty, the delivery over to It's laws OF every
criminal against them.
This is the doctrine Of Virginia-the doc,
trine, as we believe Of patriotism and Of the
Constitution; and having often maintained i
ourselves in the face of opposition, and deni
al, and rebuff, We cannot be otherwise thar
pleased at haging so powerful an auxiliary q!
Ohio to assist us in maintaining it for the fu
tura.
Grltited as I am at the position on thi
, subject, which you have taken for your yoGn!
and powerful Commonwealth, and especial,
at having the benefit of it in advance on tn
side If the demand which | have here %it
, the honor TO forward, | am scarcely less so i
. believing that your W qualification will b
y FULLY equal to mine at having so early an op
= portuniiy of stamping the doctrines of you
letter with the seal of a practical and oaicia
confirmation.
> In relation TO the citizens of Ohio who al
. row under trial in the county of Wood, an
= whose situation is specially referred TO i
: your letter, | trust that Your Eycellency wi
: feel entirely assured that the fair and homo
able trial which you invoke for them will GO
t7inlv be had.
Without extending this communicate
, any farther, | will add only, that whilst |
= gree with Your EYccllency in believing tn
I much may be done by Il faithful use of l.,
h e%cutiye authority to restrain the comni5si
Of offences between citizens Indifferent State
). | am vet satisfied that our solid and effect,
~ al reliance for this END is in the private mo
70 ality of these citizens themselves and in Il