The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1848-08-12

inheritance Does the marvellous doctrine
ofwhich the Hon, Senator from Virginia spoAe
as being part and parcel of the law ADOPTED IN
Virginia--p0rto 3 SeqHiiur oGntrUrt-prcvnili--
Is that holy ordinance, that the offspring of
the womb of her who is slave must ncccssa-
rily be n slave also, there recognized
Mr. Hnnnegnn As | understand, slavery
exists in California and New Mexico, as it does
throughout the Republic of Mexico, and is
termed Peon Slavery-slavery for debt, by
which the creditor has n right to hold the debt
or through all time in more absolute bondage
than that by which any Southern planter holds
| his slaves here.
Mr. Corwin So il has been described to me.
! have not seen the Mexican laws upon this
subject, but the statement just made agrees
with that Of many gentlemen who Proiess to
know something on the subject and therefore
| am inclined to think that it is so, and thnt
these people are the subjects of that internal
law The Senator from Delaware, the other
day, informed us that the Committee have not
gwen to the people ofCaiforina and New Mex
leo the right of suffrage, because they were in
capable of exercising it--becausc large pro-
portion of them were of the coloTed races
Now supposing that to be the case, and suppos-
ing the proposition to be submitted TO the SUI
! premc Court Of the United States-wns slavery
an institution of New MeXico' what would
be the answer If the Senator from Indiana
were there to make response, he would reply
in the affirmative; he would say that the insti-
tuition of slavery was there-that to be sure
it had its notifications and its pcculiaritlcs, but
that it was still slavery, though there might
not have existed a law as strong that glOrI-
Gus princi pie of free government spoken of by
the Senator from Nirgnia-partCS ScQu,tW
| rcAtrHm. If, sir, these three Latin words can
condemn to everlasting slavery the postcrlty
ola woman who is a slave, may not that mu'
nicipal regulation of which we are now speak
ing in Carolina and New Mexico, with equal
/ to n nj tod cloV | nd
slavery, as it is called, existing here to a de-
gree; and TO all practical purposes as lasting
and memorable as in the State of Virginia; and
therefore the whole of the hypothesis Of the
gentleman from Vermont falls to the ground
as Il matter ofiGct, inasmuch the Supreme
Court will decide that slavery existed there,
and that therefore the whole slave population
Of the United States may be transferred 70 that
country.
Mr. Phelps. The gentleman will excuse me;
spoke of African slavery.
Mr. Corwin OF that am aware. speak
now of the general proposition. Now, this IS a
very curious spectacle presented this day and
for weeks past in the American Congress, and
one cannot help plusing at this point, and re-
fleeing upon the events of the last few years.
On looking back on what has happened IN that
period, am sure that the ma gnanimous spirit
of the Senator from s. G. himself will be OBJ
ligcG to conccde to the Northcrn States at least
some apology for the slight degree of excite
mcnt on this subject. His hypothesis is, that
into every portion. OF this newly acquired ter
rtory- California not ccptcd-cvcry slave
holder in the United States has n right to mi
CRATE tomorrow, and carry with him his slaves
holding with them there forever ,suhiect on
ly to the Abolition of Slavery when these Ter
ritories shall be made into States and come
into the Union. What then, would be those
few chapters in our history; We find our
selves now In the possession of Territories with
! inf ion pfn hundred
sand souls, icl am correctly informed. in Cali.
forna and New Mexico. The best authenti-
Gated history of the social institutions of that
population, informs us that there exists there
nt this moments species ofslnvcry us absolute
and memorable as exists anywhere on the face
of the earth; and that about five in six of the
population of that country are subject to the i
ron rule of this nbominablc institution there.
Now do not expect that any man viii rise
up and say that because an individual happens
to be the debtor of another, he shall have his
own person sold into slavery; and not only that
but that the curse shall cXtcnd-worsc than
tina. of the Hebrew, not TO the third and fourth
generation, but to the remotcSt postcrlty Of
that unfortunate man Nobody will pretend
to rise up in defence of such proposition rs
that. Now then, | viii give over the criticism
Suppose there is law in New Mexico, which
obliges man to work all the days of his life
for another because he happens to owe him
five dollars by some means contrived by the
creditor to keep him always his debtor. Do
YOU intend that that law shall exist there for
an hour2 Well; you have made a law here
that your law makers who are 20 go to New
Mexico and California, shall not touch the
subject of slavery; and ifthat which is desig-
mated in the popular language of that country
slavery, exists there, do you, indeed, send n
broad, as you promised to do, your missionary
ofliberty? You went there with the sword,
and made il red in the blood of these people !!
| What did you tell them? awe come to give
YOU freedom Instead ofthat, you enact in
your code here-bloody as that of Pharaoh
that there shall be judges and lawgivers over
them, but that they shall make no law touch
ing that slavery to which five out of six of
them arc subjected.
/ think that these things are worthy OF con-
sideratiou have looked at them with some
concern, because | was one of those who pre-
dictcd from the beginning that this would be
the result of your acquisition. have always
THOUGHT since that hour when you went abroad
with your hypocritcal pretenco that you had
ronc forth in the spirit oflovc, to give liberty
to the captives and to set Rooms free' that
when YOU had got your iron hoo! upon these
peonle YOUR cuckoo note would be ch'ngcd-
that this doye-li like accent would become ne
roar of the lion-and that, instead of extend
ing the blessings of peace and the oil OF con.
ISOLATION 20 the oppressed of Mexico, you would
put the iron heel ofnegro Slavery as well as
that ofpeon slavery upon them. All this have
expected ! was about to say that tins was n
spectacle worthy of dnybody's curiosity ABOUT
the noon of the nineteenth century we IuLh-
ed around and said to the world that we ue-
signed to take nothing by conquest, aud tor two
years, while YOU progress through McXlco,nnd
all that land is crimsoned with blood-whIIe
YOU make your way manifest as that OF the IS
raeltes in their march,b by the cloud OF smoke