The examiner. [volume] (Louisville, Ky.) 1847-1849, 1849-03-31

Try from this country. The remedies for q
evil IRE to be determined, not only by i
character, but its intensity and the pariic,
lar circumstances OF the case. A simpI
i febriluge may assuage slight fever, but
, sewers course of treatment be necessary Il
one deeper seated and more aggravated.
II must be recollected that Mr.. Macsr
lay, in his rapid review Of the earlier histor
of England, did not aim to trace minutel
the causes Of events. His remark ths
"moral causes noiselessly effaced the dis
tinction between master and slave" pre-
sents but a vague idea Of the process Q
emancipation in England. BY LOOKING
into the subject little more attentively
we shall see that powerful causes were a
woIk for this end-eauses which are no
active in Kentucky. In addition to thos'
we have already alluded 70 incidentally
We name the following:
| i. No obstacles were thrown in the way
of msnumission. 1t was facilitated, moi
discouraged. Had not the Legislative pow,
er interposed in Virginia. in the latter part
oflhe last, and the beginning Of the present
century, voluntary emancipation by indi-
viduals would probably have put an end.
ere now, TO slavery.
2. Slavery was discouraged by the
Courts. The whole course of judicial de.
cisions was unfavorable 10 its claims
la all cases involving personal freedom the
presumption was held TO be against slavery,
and the onEs probandi was laid upon the
lord Nonsuit Of the master after appearance
in natipo habendo, (lhe writ for asserting
the title Of slavery,) was bar TO another
suit-a perpetual reimbursement. Non
suit Of the villein after appearance in a
tibertats Probanda. Zone of the writs for
asserting claim to liberty.) was no bar to
another suit for freedom. Where one Of
two plaintiffs. joined in a writ Of nativo
hdbendo, was nonsuited, it was held that
both were nonsuited. The lord could not
prosecute for more than two villeins in one
writ, but an number Of villeins of the same
blood might Join in one libe7tate prObandd,
and the nonsuit Of one worked no detri.
ment 10 the rest. Manumission was in.
fened from the slightest circumstance Of
mistake, or negligence in the lord-from
insttenton to the minutest technicalty.-I
Nesting land in a villein, receiving homage
from him, giving him a bond. permitting
him 10 enter into religion and be pfofessed,
to stay year and day in ancient demesne
without claim, or bringing an ordinary ac-
ton against him. was acknowledgements
Villeins, too, unlike our slaves, followed
the condition of the father-and this promo.
ted the extinction Of slavery; for generally,
in cases Of seltemancipstion, il is the male
slave who frs, obtain their liberty; more
over, though freemen often have offspring
by slave mothers, ii is rare comparatively
for free women to have children by slave
fathers.
la every way, therefore, this law Of vii.
leinage promoted the extinction of the
system. Ii was difficult to maintain the
claim Of villeinage The lord could sub.
stantiate his claim only by the open con-
fession OF the villein in a court OF record,
or by proof that he and his ancestors had
been villeins time out OF memory; and this
proof could be furnished only by the les
timony Of other villeins OF the same blood,
such as were descended from the same com
mon male stock, and would acknowledge
villeins TO the lord, or those
from whom he derived title. So rigid was
the law, that in the ''nativo habendo," the
defendant was not obliged to plead TO the
claim OF villenage, unless the lord, at the
time OF declaring on his title, brought his
witnesses with him, into court, and they
acknowledged themselves villeins, and
swore to their consequently with the de.
PENDANT; and, if the plaintiff failed in ad. |
ducing slch previous evidence, the judg- |
ment Of the court was, that the defendant |
should 60 free forever, and the plaintiff was |
amerced for his false claim.
In other cases, this rule of previous |
evidence fell into disuse, but in this, il was |
continued in full force ill villenage ex.
pired.
Finally, bastardy was good plea
against claim OF villenage, for, as the
villein followed the condition OF the father, |
it was properly held that in such a case,
the uncertainty as to paternity was sniff.
cient bar to the claims
We should like to know, if-slavery in |
Kentucky were subjected to such judicial
decisions, constructions and disabilities, |
and such rules Of evidence, how long il |
would maintain its ground in that Statel
3. The civil wars DOWN to the time Of
Henry VII :, growing out Of controversies
about the forms Of the Constitution and the
kept up state Of agitation
and anarchy, and produced relations ad-
verse TO the stability Of slavery, and favora.
BILE in numerous ways to the manumission
of slaves. Manumission was frequently
cxtorted, and often conferred, as soldiers
were in more demand than serfs
d. Cooperating most efficiently with all
these agencies, was the pervading, silent,
but powerful, influence Of religion. To
this decisive influence, acting upon the
Public Sentiment, would we attribute the
legal obstacles raised against the enforce
ment OF the claim OF villeinage. Macaulay
in the paragraph following that isquoted by
the Loui,pille journal, remarks
at would be most unjust not to ac-
knowledge that the chief agent in these
two great deliverances was religion. :.
The benevolent spirit Of the Christian NOR
alily is undoubtedly adverse TO distinctions
OF caste. But. to the Church of Rome
such distinctions are peculiarly odious, for
they are incompatible with other distinc.
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