Weekly miners' express. (DuBuque, Iowa) 184?-1849, 1849-03-20
For the Express.


ding to the census Of 1910, it was 2I5 900
while in all the free States there were b,,t
l33,743 1t is believed that this large mum.
Der is made up of those emancipated in for
mer gears and their descendants; and tha,
there is now in existence in almost, ifnot al
the Slave States laws forbidding emancipa
tion unless accompanied with remoya, be.
yond the limits of those States-But per-
maps me democratic Senators will say that
they are not responsible for those enact.
ments:-l am however by no means sure
that such declaration would be true. Is
the South bound to endure, all the Joys and
all the evils of emancipation No doubt
there are hundreds Of free.soil men who
think they are. They suffer a silent hos
t'lIty to be engendered in their bosoms to-
wards the South because Us they suppose
they Cypress portion of the human race
Now IN order TO visit upon men proper
responsibility for evil, it is proper to trace
II TO Its source and ascertain who were the
authors oft. say it is undeniably true
that the present generation of the South is
no more guilty in regard to the present
wis OF slavery :han the present generation
or the North-and do not know but that
1t would be as torcibly true to make the
same remark concerning any former geler.
atoms OF the two sections of the country
1t is historical fact that England, boast
full England against the remonstrances of
Southern colonies, pursued the infamous
traffic and forced slaves upon those whom
she controlled by her power, and tempted
by her wealth. 1t is we'll known that in
the first draft Of the declaration Of America an
Independence, Mr.. Jefferson introduce the
refusal of Britain to heed those remonstran-
ces as one of the Qualifications of that dec
laraton.
Mr.. Madison says in his reports of de-
bates in the Congress of the confederation.
that the clause reprobating the enslaving
the inhabitants of Africa was struck out in
compliance to South Carolina and Georgia,
and that our Northern brethren also felt a
little tender under those censures-for tho
their people have very few slaves them
selves, yet they had been pretty consdera-
bic carriers Of them to others'' In the de-
bates in the federal convention which form
ed the constitution Of the Union, Mr.. Mar
tin proposed to vary the fourth Section of
the 7th article, SO az to allow a prohibition
or tax on the importation of slaycs:-Mr.
ELS worth of Connecticut "was for leaving
the clause as it stood-said he, let every
state import what it pleases. The moSali-
ty or wisdom of slavery are considerations
belonging to the States themselves. The
old confederation had not medd!ed with this
point, and he did not see any greater me-
cessity for bringing if within the policy Of
the now one.' In the same debates Gen
cral Pinckney moved to strike out the
words "the year eighteen hundred" as the
year limiting the importation of slaves, and
to insert the words 'eiglteen hundred and
eight:' This motion was seconded by Mr.
GorEam of Massachusetts, and passed in the
affirmative by the votes of .Ne,o Hampshire,
.uassachuseus, Connecticut, North, and
South Carolina and Georgia for ii; and the
votes Of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Della
ware and Firginia against it.
Roger Sherman Of Connecticut, who was
pronounced by Mr.. Jefferson to be the most
sensible man in the old continental Con-
gress, ''said in the Convention that he was
for leaving the clause US it stooG:-he dis
approved of the Slave trade; yet as the
States were now possessed Of the right to
import Slaves, as the public good did not
require it to be taken from them, and as it
was expedent to have as few " rvttiions as
possible to the proposed scheme of govern
mcnt, he thought it best to leave the mat
ter as they found it:-that the abolition of
slavery seemed to be going on in the Unit
ed States, and that the good sense of the
several states would probably by degrees
it," am sure that here is cvi.
dence enough to convince any mind that
the South is not alone responsible for oil the
evils Of slavery, and that she alone will not
be called into judgment for whatever may
be it's sins. How safe a rule would that of
the great, the patriotic, the immortal Shcr-
man be for the many lesser lights of the
present day, namely, to leave things as
''they Stand.'' He thought it expcdient
to have as few objections as possible to the
adoption of the contemplated Union. And
yet have heard a leading whig of Iowa,
within Six months openly declare, before a
large assembly nj political Speech, :Eat
i'll the destruction of the Union should be
the consequence of the legal restriction Of
slavery, why let it come!-and for the SEN
tlment he was applauded-of course by
those only of the same political stri Pc
Now do not say that such declarations are
evidence OF traltorous. or even fanatcal dis
positions; but they certainly are evidence
OF scorchlng zeal not well enlightened or
well directed, but which from mere expan-
siveness, longs to burst. And it is by no
means strange that those who are under the
influence of such elements should be "drly-
en- about and tossed" Look at examples.
Recently proposition was brought into the
house of Representatives in Congress, to
permit every man in the District of Colum.
ba to vote, including free blacks and Slaves;
and that proposition received Seventy
seven votes, including those who had voted
at home, in their own States against extern
ding the right of Suffrage even to free
blacks in any case whatever:-apd the au-
thor of the Wilmot Proviso himself once de-
clared that his sympathy was not with
slaves, and that his action looked to the in.
terests of the other race-he once voted a.
gaInst the reception of abolition petitions
but now he can, and does vote to impart the
right of suffrage to slaves. Thus it can be
seen to what abhorrent lengths an errone-
Gus beginning will lead. Such action is a
direct insult to large portion of our fellow
citizens, as well advised, and as much Gevo.
ted to the best interests of the country rs
we are, and can have no other effect than to
put IN jeopardy the continuance of the Un-
ion.
have sn id that the npitation Of this sinh