The North-Carolina standard., 1845-10-22

No more than the blackest slave of the ultimate
south of slavedom, has the wife with US any tue
slightest share in makiug or administering laws
In mouarchical countries, women have often held
the sovereion sway. and welded it well. In our
rennblic however. it is Rot thought proper to en-
trnst her whether married or single, win the ieast
degree of power 1t is considered lnconslStent
with feminine delicacy to admit women 70 dhe
ballot box or the legislative bench. Perhaps II
She had been admitted there her Interests would
have received more attention than they have me
reforms in the law of husband and wife might
have kent pace more nearly with the meliorattons
in other branches which have so rapidly progress
ed within the last century, and the reSemOihcS 9
between wifedom in the nineteenth century auo
serfdom in the twelfth would not have been so
marvellousIy close. But perhaps too, she would
have lost valuable portion Of that retiring dell
cacy which men are so fond Of cultiVatIng IN DIN.
ers' and acquired portion of that hardness and
Tudeness which they so love to keep all 10
themselves Let il be woman's consolation under
this restraint, that what she loses IN freedom sne
gains in delicacy, as the eastern 0dGEtsque hnds
the soiiness and fairness Of her complexion I'm,
proved by the protection her prison curtains anoro
against the rude wind and scorching sun, OF as
celery is made white and tender to the tooth oil
man by removal from the free light and air OF the
epen garden to the seclusion and darkness Of the
cellar. Disinterested and considerate mani Mark,
that do not blame him for excluding women
from the legislative hall, but only for taking ad-
vantage of her absence. But for this, she might
have good reason to thank him for denying her
any political rights for saving her the dlsagreea-
bic task of fselEgovcrnment which men themselves
so much delight in, and for taxing her without
representation, for which we once thought II
worth freemen's while to shed so much blood
have now gone through every right recogniz-
ed by law, and shown how far the two subjects OF
my parallel are respectively admitted to each oil
them. A very small remnant have they of any.
This remnant is Of no value unless properly Vln-
dicated in theudministration of justice The slave
cannot testify at all, nor can the other testify a.
eainst her husband. Neither of them can control
money, the sinews OF Justice, as it has been since
Magma Charta first covenanted that justice should
not be sold With mute lips and empty pulses
the slave and wife cut but sorry figures before
court composed of our free white male citizen"
sitting as Judge, and twelve other free white
male citizens who occupy the jury benches, to
knock together their bIock-hcads for the evolving
of truth and right tribunal where masters arbi-
trate between themselves and their slaves; and
husbands between themselves and wives Can
we wonder, then, that our court records show so
few cases wherein the law fthe marriage relation
has been adiudicated2 Troublesome suitors, opine,
would these wives prove, were not the bar OF JUS
tice to them bar indeed Seldom are our courts
disturbed by their clamors; and silence the silence
of death, broods over the grave Of their rights.
Is It said that marriage is not slavery so long as
women are not forced TO marry2 They are forced
to marry. We all very we'll understand the
means whereby society drives them to it among
which the scofings, hissings hootngs and pelt-
inRs inflicted on those so unfortunate as to remain
unmarried and virtuous, and the ruin, temporal
and eternal, visited upon such commit the sin of
Magdalen. Matrimony, as man has ordained II, is
the only condition allowed by society in which wo-
man can fulfil the destiny of her being. Into this
state mpelled by moral necessity she mast enter.
The negro slave is broken 10 the yoke from his
youth kept in ignorance; and spirit and body
subdued and calloused to his condition. The
white wife is reared in freedom, educated refined,
high-spirited, and sensitive. Each wife is new
made slave. Do the years of her childhood and
youth, redeemed from servitude, soften the hard
ship of her future lot 2
Do find fault with the marriage relation
Do recommend its abolition Do propose a.
ny melioralion of the wife's condition Do Il
claim that this would be practicable as society ex-
ists? Do declare the equality OF woman with
man It is not necessary should answer these
questions. The only question to be answered is
for others TO answer. " Is there any essential
difference between the legal condition Of the mar
ried woman and that of the slave 2" And with
out indalging in further reflections or drawing a.
things in this article contained to the consideration
of the Abolitiontsts as" bone for them to pick"
! w. J. F.
Note In assuming my legal positions, have
had reference mainly TO the laws of nv own State
(Connectcut; certainly far advanced as any, cx-
cept louisiana, in the law bearing upon my sub
ject But the principles have laid down are so
general as not to be inconsistent with the frame
work of the jurisprudence of any State.
THE APPARENT AND THE REAL
The protective tariff laws have always been
framed with design to deceive and, cheat those
who are robbed by them. To this end, duties are
in many instances imposed on weight and measure
instead of cost, and uicc rcrsa. The per centage
actually paid on articles of common use, are cx-
emplified by the following table, carefully made
for the New York Post, BY personal inquiry, and
q comparison Of invoices: @
Nominal duty. Actual.
PER LIB. PER CT.
Cut glass, 1-3 and under, Csc ~ I52
Tumblers, plain or moulded I4c E ~ 16s
Window glass; SXlO Sc l26 4
do do above 1sX2O lOc . -a 244