Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1849-10-13
The Vigilance Committee and the POst-Office

From the Pendleton Is. CO. Messenger.
We had quite a stir in our village on Fri
day last when the Southern mail was deliy-
cred. As is usual on that day, a large num-
Der of gentlemen from the country were in
attendance, waiting for their letters and pa
Pers. Col. William Sloan was among the
FIRST to receive his, and, upon examination,
he found a printed document, post-markcd
Boston, mailed as n letter, charged with 10
cents postage, signed Junius, and addressed
TO Hon. John G. Calhoun, of "a most mali
%cious, offensive and insulting character to the
Southern people. This document was read
by Col. Sloan aloud, and it produced much
excitement among the persons assembled
A call was made upon the Postmaster to
know if there were any others i'm the office,
to which he replied that there were thirty
eight in all. The Executive Committee of
the Committee of Vigilance and Safety inn
mediately assembled to take action in the
matter, and, as the excitement was very great,
they concluded that it would be better to hold
the course TO be pursued under consideration
until the next morning. 1t was proposed by
gentlemen present that they would take
charge of the person of the Postmaster until
the Committee obtained possession of the
papers; but this was declined, as the Com
mittee wished to avoid violence. The next
morning the Committee assembled at the
Office, and made a demand for the letters
The Postmaster refused to give them up, I'M
less to those TO whom they were addressed,
and the payment of the postage, and urged
his duties as an officer of the General Gov
eminent. The Committee told him they
were determined to have the papers-peace-
fully if they could, forcibly if they must
and that resistance would be in vain. They
then entered the office, showed the Postmas-
ter aside, and took possession of them, and
now have them under lock and key, where
they will remain until the meeting of the
Committee of Vigilance and Safety on the
18th inst. What course the Committee will
recommend to be adopted to meet this new
mode of assaulting the people of the South
we cannot say; but of one thing we are GER
tain, and that is, that the most energetic
means will be resorted to.
The Richmond Wing remarks on the above
as follows:
We know not what remedy is provided by
the law for such an outrage as that commit.
ted by the citizens of Pendleton. We pre-
sumo, however, there is an adequate one.
But if there be none, soone than see the rest
of the Union subjected to n Governmental
inquisition, like that proposed by South Caro-
lima, we would prefer to see all the offices
discontinued in that State. If the people of
that State are not willing to have free mails,
let them establish lines of their own. The
Post-Office service within its limits costs the
Government much more than is received
from postage; the loss of its patronage will
therefore be a gain. But the people of the
other States can never consent to the estab-
lishment of an espionage upon the mails,
which would subject all letters to a Govern
ment %inquisitor, and be tantamount to the
suppression of the Freedom of the Press.