The freeman. (Fremont [Ohio]) 1849-1850, 1850-02-09
The Fugitive slave BIN.

Mr.. Mason of Virginia, introduced into the senate
bill to to the Southern states an addition
al proviso for the recovery of runaway slaves 1t
provides that in the case of any person alleged to
be fugitive from involuntary service, the owner,
or the agent or attorney of the owner, may ebe-
fore any u s. District or circuit Judge, Collector
or Postmaster and depose to the fact of such per-
son being fugitive as aforesaid or the same fact
may be brought before the same functionary up
on affidavit, and thereupon it shall be the duty
of such officer to grant certificate to the char
acter of such alleged fugitive, and upon that if il
is in favor of the claimant the person shall be rem
dered up to the custody of the said claimaint.--
Another section provides that penalty of $1,000
shall be levied upon any person who shall aid or
harbor the fugitive claimed as above described.
or shall resist the owner agent in his attempts
to reclaim him.
We are little surprised to see such bill in
troduced at such time as the present The pros
visions of the law of 1898 have therefore, been sufi
cient to all the purposes Of the slave states
Why ask for this new and obnoxions legislation at
a time when public opinion is in such ferment
on the subject of slavery? We think it unWise
and impolitic in every sense. We cannot think
that such measure ever pass Congress,
We commend the following remarks from the
Philadelphia U S. Gazette to the attention of our
readers:
Mr.. MAsoN's BLL-This bill, which was made
the special order in the senate on Thursdays-or
is intended to provide-for the more effectual exc
cution of the third clause of the second section of
of poff hal
States in relation to the recovery of fugitive slaves
escaping from one state into another. The difficult
ties attending such recovery, which are natural
and inherent ones, as is obvious to every man of
sense, are, Notwithstanding, paraded BY most of
the Southern patriots of the Traitor party as north
ern aggressions,' and are made to figure in the
catalogue of evils endured under the Union, which
they deem sufficiently ntolerable to justify them
in their purpose, if possible. of disoying it.
Patriotism is conceded, among the worthless. to be
principle of the pocket: and In far as the evil,
therefore bears upon that sensitive centre of pub
lie virtue we should make allowance for proper
tionate decay of national feeling Senator Butler.
of South Carolina, speaking in support of the bill
on Thursday, estimated the loss of the south from
this cause to be, annually, tat least one hundred
and fifty thousand dollars atremendous loss, in
deed equal to yearly tax of about two cents aud
most equal to about one-half the sum annually ex-
pended in supplying the children with gingerbread.
Perhaps, hereafter, we ought to regard Disunion
in the light Of a humane project to secure the
rights of the infant generation in the land of
tehivalry.
Mr. Butler deems this aggression Of sufficient
weight to demand to be remeded by the nnme-
diate passage of the bill; but he had the candor
to confess, in his speech that che had no very
great confidence that the bin would effect, to
any considerable extent, the required Object
We are very much of Mr.. Buffers opinion; as we
think all iudicio1s persons must be, who have stud
led the bill and ascertained the very curious means
on which Mr.. Mason relies to effect the purpose
he has in view. By this intented Law, the owner
of fugitive slave, his agent or attorney, IS en-
powered to seize arrest the said slave and carry
him or her before "any Judge of the Circuit or
district courts Of the United States or before any
commissioner or clerk of such Courts, or marshal
thereof, or any postmaster of the United States,
or collector of customs of the United States resld
ing or being within such State wherein such seiz-
ure or arrest is made to his satisfaction by an afi-
davit "taken before and certified by any person
authorized to administer oath under the laws OF
the United States,or Of any State" shall give acer-
tificate which certificate shall be sufficient warrant
for removing the fugitive to the State or Territory
from which he or she fed By the second section
of the bill it is made the duty of any one Of the
above named officers of the o States (other than
the inarsha upon being applied to for the purpose,
to issue his warrant for the apprehension OF the
fugitive to said marshal, whose duty it will then be
to make the arrest BY the third section, hne OF
one thousand dollars is imposed upon any person
who knowingly obstructs the party making the ar
rest-who attempt rescue--who aids or abetsi IN
an escape-or who harbors conceals the fugitive
after notice he or she is fugitive.
/ We think the Northern readers will be some
what astonshed at the idea of conferring judicial
powers of this kind and imposing such singular
duties ION several of the classes ofthe United States
officers specified Collectors of the Customssclerks
of coufts, and postmasters may be expected to
make rare Judges, especially without the aid of
iures to assist them deciding the merits OF claims
often obscure and intricate, sometimes fraudulent
always grave and delicate. Wesuppose a question
ofbertY or slavery to be almost quite as important
as question of life or death to the one person
and, ,at times to great many persons inter
ested and we suppose, too that public sentiment
will always require that such question should be
decided with the fullest and most rigorous regard
to the claims both justice and humanity -
Opinion in the free States can never be expected
to or clerks of courts or even collectors of Gus
toms;' and for this reason, if for other, We may
express as strong doubt as Mr., Butler does--ora
much stronger one-whether Mr.. Masons bill would
effect to any considerable extent-or to any extent
at all-"the required object"
The precise period when disunion has become