Lynchburg Virginian. [volume] (Lynchburg [Va.]) 1829-185?, 1850-05-23

or the fghl OF any oher senator, but he will surely al
law the t. say. 10 all Kindness that # all the States il
| This Gninn without exception will not except ever
Virginia hsFs.lf. believe thai the State which suffer
more than any other by the escaping of slaves from tn
owners. seeking rcuge either IN Canada OF in some
/ the nun slayeholdng States. Kentucky is The one
doubt very much whether the State III Arkansas eve
lost slave. They may, very possibly once in while
III 10 the adans but very rarely. 81 Of other nie
nor states 50 OF Georgia and 5. Carolina. Sometime.
pohaps.a slave escape from their seap,rts but very
rarely by laad. Kentucky is The suffering State
but venture 10 anticipate FIR my own State that sh.
VIII be satisfied with the provisions 10 which an now
about Ia call the.nitention of.lhe Senate.
Mr. President. in all subjects OF this kind we mus, deal
fairly and honestly by ALL We must reculleci that there
tefeengs and Interests and sympaihes on boh sides
Of the question, and no man who has brought his
mind seriously TO The deraon Of suitable measure
ipr the recapure Of runaway slaves fail to admit that
The question is surrounded with great difficulties On
The hand, If the of the slave could 90 in,o
this slayehodng ate, and seze The negro pu his
hands upon him, and the whole world would reco ,nze
The truth Of his ownership of property and The fact Of
the escape Of that property there would be difficulty
then N those States where prejudice against slavery
lists in the highest degree Bot he goes 10 State which
does MOI recognize slavery Recollect how different the
state Of fact is from what in 1893 nearly six
~ years ago There Were. them comparatively few
free persons Of color few, cumpared 10 the number
which exist at present BY the progress Of emancipation
in the savehnlditg States and he multiplication of them
by natural causes yasl numbers of them have rushed
the free States There IN the cities Of Philadelphia
New l1rk aud Bis'on | have not looked into the pre-
else number-some eight or len 10 one in proportion TO
the number there were in 1893 when the aci passed
IN proportion 10 the number Of free blacks mutt pl ed
in the free Staes does The difficulty increase If
log fugitive from slavehoding Sate. Recollec Mr..
President, that the rule Of law reversed in the two
cla.scs Of states In the slavehodng States the rule is
that color implies slavery and the onus probnd of free
dun Is thrown on The persons claiming It, every per
son in the savehodng States is regarded prima faca
slave. On the contrary when % 10 The non-save-
holding States color implies freedom and not slavery
Every who Is In the free States though he be
man OF color, is regarded free And when a sran
ger from Virginia OF Kentucky goes to remote part Of
Pennsylvania and sees black person. who perhaps has
been living there for years and claims him to be his
slave the feelings aud sympathy of the neahborhoad
naturally and necessarily excited in favor Of The coored
person. We all respect these feelings, where they are
honestly entertained Well, sr what are YOU IT, do in
Of that kind You will give every satisfaction
that can be given that the person whom you propose to
arrest your property and Is fugitive from your service
or labor. That Is the extent Of one amendment which
we proposed to oier. but there is also another The
mendment upon which have been commenting provides
Tor The production OF record. Now what is the incon-
venence Of that? provides hat when the owner Of the
save shall arrest his property III none-saveholdug
State, and shall take him before the proper unctonary
to ot1ln certificate TO authorize The return of that po-
perry to the State from which he fled and if he declares
to That inncllonaty at the time that he is free man and
dnf Why, to take bond from Tie agent or owner that
he will carry tho black person hack t., the county Of the
Stale from which he edand hat the first court which
may sit after his return, be shall be carried there if he
aPan asserts the night 10 his iroedum the court shall
afford and the owner shall afford to him all the facilities
winch are requisite to enable him establish his rht
OF freedom Now surety is even required nf he MAJ
Ter. The committee thought. and in that believe they
all concuHed that 1t would be wrong 10 demand Of a
stranger hundreds of miles from his home surety to take
Ips tltnk Iptfa To 4,
trial by jury IS what is demanded by the non-savehod
ing Slalcs Well we put the party claimed to be fl-
gltlve back to the State from which he fled and gave
him trial by jury in thai State.
Well SIR, ought we not To make this concession 1t
IS but very little Inconvenience will tel YOU sir what
will be he practical operation of his II will be this
When slave has escaped from the master and taken
refuge In free State, and that master comes To recap
ure him and take him back t. the State from which he
He'd the slave will cry out Il do not know The man
never saw him in my life am ire man." lie will
say any thing and do any tn mo to preserve 10 himself
That freedom OF which he for moment in possession
lie will assert most confidently before the iudue that ne
Is a Tree man But take him back TO the State from
which he fled 10 his comrades, and he will state the
truth, aud will rehnqush all claim to freedom The
practical OPERATION therefore, of the amendment which
we have proposed, will be attended with not the eas
earthly inconvenience TO the party claiming the fugitive
ne case Is bond without surety That bond is trans
med by the olh'er taking il 10 the district attorney a
the State tron which be has fled That uf1icer 500,
that the bond is executed aud thai the slave is taken he
fore the court Perhaps, before The slave reaches home
he VIII cknowledge that he slave the is an en-,
OF the bond and an end OF the trouble about the matter
Is this unreasonable Isil not proper and ra1iona
concession to the preudces if you please which exist il
the non slavehoding States Sir, our rights are to b.
asserted ; and our rights are to be maintained Tho,
VIII be asserted and maintained in manner no, TO woupI
unnecessarily the sensbltes of others. And in reour
ng such bond as this amendment proposes to exact from
Inc owner, do not think there is the slightest nconv
nlence imposed upon him, of which he ouqht 10 com
plain.
Slr, there Is one opinion prevailng-I hope not exten
slvely-sone of the non-slavehuldng States which
nothing we ean do will cGnclate aude 10 that opinion
that asserts that there Is higher lava divine law
/ natural law-which entities man, under whose roo
runaway has come 10 give him assistance ami succor
and hospitality. divine law a natural lawl Ant
who are they that venture tell us what is divine anc
what Ia natural awi Where are there credentials Of
u prophecy Why, sir. are told that the other day
al meeting ut some Of these people at New York. Mos
es ana an me prophets were rejected and that the name
of blessed Savior was treated with sarrilsoe
and contempt by these propagaors of divine law of a
natural law which they have discovered above all human
laws AMI constitutions Ii Moses aud the prophets and
our savior and all others. are to be rejected will they
rondescend to show ter uhuritv for propaoatino
this new law, this divine law of which they sneak
The law ut Nature sir? Look at il as it is promuIoa
ted, and even admitted threatened 10 be enforced in
some quarters of the wurtd. Well sir some Of these
people nave discovered another plausible law of Nature
here Is large class who say thai if man has acouired
40 matter whether by his eXprtions or by inheri
.anee' vast estate nch more Than is necessary fur