The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1849-04-07

but by deportation. Sir, | have no doubt
that the gentleman has wasted vast deal
Of fine feeling. and expended grea, guam
tity OF unnecessary sympathy upon some
ignom nious felon.
All this, however, no doubt, finds lis &C
count in that gentlemar's distric, and pro
| duces rich harvest of poitical profit. The
sympathy that is wasted upon the mana
clad hlshwayman Or burglar, turns quite as
much 10 gain, as any that could be eypend
ed upon case ofleal hardship, and suffer
ing.
Another favorte theme with that gen
tleman is The slave dens, as he Is pI eased
10 denomna'e them. Now, sir, do not
appear here as any apoloeisi for slave dens'
Such is not my purpose. But when he as
serls that they are kept up for the purpose
of confniny within their walls slaves
brought from my own Stale, think proper
10 meet the assertion by an indignan, de
NAL. Slaves are not brought from Mary
land into this Disric for sale, Or at least a
very few. have never seen nor known
OF any. Slaves cannot legally be brought
here from any other State. If any then be
confined here, they are slaves belonging
properly 10 the District, and yet the gentle
man would persuade his constituents that
this is The great mart Of slave trade.
In fact, slavery exists in this District in
lis mlldesi form--in form indeed so mild
that i is a missioner to cal! it slavery; vet
certain members continually dwell upon
lis horrors and barbariy, without ever
having seen single instance OF either.
Sir. the citizens of Maryland are inteles,
ed, deeply interested. in this question of the
abolition of slavery here. The people of
| This district were once ourcilizens, they are
still governed by our laws, whatever touch
es their interests. also intimately affects us,
| they are, as il were in our midst. And lei
not gentlemen upon this floor imagine tha,
we are deceived by the phlau hroplcaI
pretences OF certain people in this country.
Sir, IL is not the good of The slave that they
seek, bu, our i'll. They well know that he
is untitled for an immediate emancipation.
and that nohing is more dangerous than 10
enlrust power 10 the ignorant, but thai
emancipation is no, their end. No. sir,
no. Their end is to establish here erea
central magazine of agitation. 1t is from
hence that they hope 10 excite. 10 discon
tent the slaves of the surrounding States, to
nsil into their minds disaliection, dstrust.
and hatred for The whites among whom they
live, and finally TO consnma,e, at any cost,
no n A
SIR, who are 10 be The first victims of this az
ilaon, sit by and behold it with calmness
and unconcern? Can we see with equa-
nlmity the consumatio9 ola policy which
threatens Us with every evil that the imag
nation can conceive! Do northern gentle
men Imagine that we are less attached to
our homes than they, tina, the graves of our
1alllers are less dear 10 Us, that our hearts
beat less fondly. And shall we see all
That we love in danger of desecralion and
destruction, at once w lhout feeling and
without expostuIa'ion? We Were more or
less Than human if we did not evince the
deepest interest upon this subject And
SIT, have Raj long enough in this Hall 10
esumale, at lis just value, all The philan-
thropy which we behold within lis walls
have learned 10 know that the pretended
na'red OF slavery is ofthe same character
a, thai which Macaulay, in his late admiral
bic history, attributes 10. the Prrirans for
bear baItlng,i ii was not, he says, "because
1t hHrt the bear, hut because ii pleased The spec
ldiorS." Sir, slavery is net d 81 ked because
II Injuries the black man, bu, because it is
presumed 10 be olsome ease or profit 10 the
white.
But the gentleman from Massachusetts,
the successor of the late venerable MIR, Ad
ans, (Mr. MANN has advanced PROPOSE
lion, in speech which he delivered few
days since, which, to say The least oft, Is
somewhat extraordinary. That gentle
man is reported 10 have said that
"According 10 his view of the constitu.
tonaliiy OF slavery in the District of Colum
hia, this institution did not exist here by
positive law, but by the force Of precedent
and example. He proceeded 10 show tha
slavery could not exist but by positive law.
When the jurisdiction over slavery and
slaves had ceased 10 exist, it was The same
as though The residence of the slaves had
been Changed 10 another jurisdiction 1t
was sufficient for the freedom OF the slave
il he pass out of jurisdiction where slave
ry had been established; into jurisdiction
which never had slavery, and never could
establish It. This was precisely the case
with slavery i'll the District of Columbia.
1t was the same as though this District,
with all its inhabitants, had been coded 10
Pennsylvania or Massachusetts"
That is, that the establishment of the seat
OF Government here, at once liberated all
the slaves. Sir, ! scarcely think that gen
lleman, whom know for lawyer OF
great reputation an! ability, could have ex