Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1848-03-10

po SO' dS 10 lHe mere question OF night be-
tween master and slave, it Is of Tremendous
concern to you that this little cluster of slave
owners should possess, besides their own
share IN the representative hall of the nation,
the exclusive privilege of appointing two
hiths ct the whole number Of the representa-
tives of the people. This is now your con-
dltlon, under that delusive ambiguity of lam
guage and Of principle, which begins by de-
c%!arlng the representation in the popular
branch Of the legislature a representation of
persons, and then provides that one class of
persons shall have neither part nor lot in the
choice of their representatives but their cleo
tive franchise shall be transferred TO their
masters, and the oppressors shall represent
the oppressed. The same perversion of the
representative principle p]ollutes the compost
ton Of the colleges of electors of President
and Vice President of the United States, and
every department Of the government of the
Union is thus tainted with the gangrene of
slavery.
Fellow-citiaens-with a body Of men thus
composed, for Legislators and executors of the
laws, what will, what must be, what has
been your legislationl The numbers of free
men constituting your nation, are much great
er than those Of the Slaveholdinp States, bond
1910 80 ~ NNb "a "
the whole poT ~ulation of the Union. Your
influence OH The legislation and administra-
tlon OF the government ought to be in the pro-
portion Of three TO two-but how stands the
fact Besides the legitimate portion of in
tluence exercised by the slaveholding States
by the measure Of their numbers, here is an
intrusive influence IN every department, by "a
representation nominally Of persons, but real
ly of property ostensibly OF slaves, but eff
iectiveiy OF their masters, overbalancing your
superiority Of numbers, adding two-f OF
supplementary power to the two-fflhs fairly
secured to them by the compact, CON
TROLLING AND OVERRULING TIE
WHOLE ACTION OF YOUR GOV
ERNMENT AT HOME AND ABROAD,
and warping 1t 10 the sordid private interest
and oppressive policy Of 300, 900 owners of
slaves.
From the time Of the adoption Of the Con-
s~titution Of the United States, the institution
OF domestic slavery ':as been becoming more
and more the adherence Of Ire civilized
world. Butln% proportion as it has been grow
Ing Udlous to all The rest Of mankind, it has
been sinking deeper into the affections Of The
holders OF slaves themselves. The ~cultiva-
ton OF cotton and sugar, unknown in the
Union at the establishment of the Conslilu-
tlon, has added largely to the pecuniary value
OF the slave. And The suppression OF the Al
ilcan slave-trade as piracy upon pain of death,
by securing the benefit Of d monopoly 10 the
vIGluuuS SHAREHOLDERS Of the ancient dominion,
has turned her heroic tyrannicides into a com
munIty OF slave-hreeders Tor sale, and con-
verled the land OF GEORGE ~AsHNGToN, PA
TRICK ~liENRY, RICHARD HENRY LEE, and
THOMAS JEFFERSON, Into a great baTracoon-
a cattie-Sllow OF human beings, an emporium,
OF which The staple articles Of merchandise
are the flesh and blood, the bones and sInews
OF immortal man.
OF the increasing abomination Of slavery
in the unbought hearts OF men al the time
when the Constitution of the United States
was formed, what clearer proof could be de-
sired, than that the very same year III which
that charter of the land was issued, the Con-
gress OF the Confederation, with not "A 1.-THE
Of the powers given by the people TO the Con-
gress OF the new compact, actually abolished
slavery forever throughoutthe whole noTthwes-
tern territory, wIthouta remonstrance or a muir
mur. But IN the articles OF confederation,
there was no guaranty for the property OF the
slavehoIder-no double representation OF him
in the Federal conncils-no power of taxation
no stipulation for the recovery Of fugitive
slaves. But when the powers Of government
came to he delegated to the Union, the South
that is, South Carolina and Georgia-re-
fused their subscription to the parchment, till
it should be saturated with the infection OF
slavery. which no fumigation could purify,
no quarantine could e%Xtinguish. The free
men of the North gave way, and the deadly
venom of slavery was infused into the Con-
s~titution of freedom. Its first consequence
has been TO inveIt the first principle Of De-
mocracy, that the will Of the majority OF num-
hers shall rule the land. BY means of the
double representation, the minority command
the whole, and a KNOT OF SLAVEHOL-
DERS GIVE THE LAW AND PRE-
SCRlBETHE POLICY OFTHE COUN-
TRY. TO acquire this superiority of a large
majority of freemen, a perSevering system OF
engrossing nearly all the seats Of power and
place, is constantly for a long series Of years
pursued, and you have seen, in a period of
l~fty-six years, the Chief-magistracy Of the
Union held, during forty-four of them, by the
owners of slaves. The Executive depart
ments, the Army and Navy, The Supreme Ju-
dicial Court and diplomatic missions abroad,
all present the same spectacular immense
majority of power in the hands of a very small
minority of the people-milliOns made for a
fraction of a few thousands.