Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1850-04-27
Selections.
Curious Debate in the Senate.
Correspondence of The Tribune.

WASHINGTON, "Wednesday, April ~.
Isn't the following discussion in the Sen.
etc, on the Census Bill, rich? Is MT il both
amusing and instructive? What dye think;
Would the black mothers South. remember
how many children they had borne, or is
their intellect and education so imperfect
that they would he utterly unable to tell?
South Sa, owning on hunaafssa iitgot man in the
scarcely any more of the s,,os ., ,hn AsIwo s,o"o
children than lSeA S5 ife would be Obliged I % 10
-sg1d me rensus-taker to the negro quarters
himself to ascertain the information.
Mr.. UEDERwooD--Ifthe the slave owner can
not give the name of the children, how is he
to give the nge9
Mr.. CLEMENs--He knows how many chill
dren there are, and can tell about the time
they were born. Say that he has negro
woman of the name of Eliza with four chill
dren--he can state about the time each was
born. As TO their names, he would not
know anything about that until the children
had reached the age of IL or IA.
MIR. UNDERwooD-I cannot speak for tho
large negro owners in the South, but can
ofthat description of people and the negroes
IN my own State. And venture to say, that
ilere Is no plantation In my quarter, although
the slaves are nothing like as numerous as
they are in the South, but what the owner
can tell you the name OF every person on the
plantation, md that without hesitation. We
generally keep record Of their names and
ages. nsL.
Mr.. KiNa-I see by the schedule that the
Census Board is required to obtain informa-
ton us to the places of birth of slaves. Now
there is no Southern gentlemen here who
does not know that il is wholly impractical
ble TO obtain information of this description
that will be at oil satisfactory or reliable
The proposition which l now make is to
amend schedule number two, by striking out
the words places of BIRTH" 1t is well known
that, owing TO the natural course ofthings, a
great number Of slaues are taken from one STATE
to another, and The purchasers Of such SLAVES
k,sov nothing about their places Of birth, and
consequently il is utterly out of their power
TO give such information, and if it could he
given il would he perfectly valueless. They
are knolcr TO haze been born ioiihin The sidre
States, but in i1hich Of them Is not knoion.-
There may be a Jet0 tcho can tell, but The large
najority Of them cannot by any possibility say
ichere they tcere born, or give such iniorma-
ton as will lead to any beneficial result.
The question being put on the motion to
strike out the words "places of birth," il was
agreed to. ---r
Mr.. KING-In schedule Two are the fol-
lowing words: Jf female, The number of
children she has had, knoicn to be aiire, kno,cn
to be dead" Now, Sir, it is impossible to us
certain the number Of children upon plan
tation that any woman has had. The pO,nan
herseJ, IN nine out Of ten cases, ichen she has
had ten or fifteen children, does not krow ho,o
nl.i',y she has actually had. A laugh.] No,
SIR, she can not tell. The owner certainly
does not know; the manager of the estate
does not know, because the managers are
frequently changed. One or two children
may be born while an individual is manager
Of an estate, and others may be born after
his place Is supplied by another. There is
no mode by which you can ascertain except
through the medium of the woman, and she
cannot tell.
Mr. DAyIs-It is very desirable, inasmuch
rs population is the basis for representation
TO rest upon, that the enumeration should in
clude this particular kind Of information
There must be an enumeration as nearly ac-
curate as can be made.
Mr.. UNDERwoOD-In these tables we re-
quire not only the age and sex, but the color
of the person, and we find in another column
the degree of removal from pure blood is re-
!quired to be stated; and this inquiry, in ref
erence TO the number of children which each
woman may have had, can inform my hon
orable friend, was inserted, as far as know,
nt the instance of Southern gentleman,
with view TO ascertain certain facts which
do not think necessary to 90 in here. Now,
the question is, are you willing to take all
this information, with view to ascertain the
laws Of longevity between the two races
the degrees of blood, and other physical laws
ofthe races? Aud the tables have been con-
structed in reference to age, TO degrees of
the blood, TO the number of children, and
other tables developing the subject of com
paralive longevity,
Mr. BoRLAND--I think that all the remarks
ofthe Senator from Kentucky 90 to show
the pnopriety Of tho proposition iiat was sug-