The southern press., 1850-09-07

trade there are nas6s, a. aaid bsfhFe, that would
a shock the senshilItes of every humane and be.
neyolent man; but the principle itself is beneficial
not only 70 the white race. but peculiarly so to
the slaves; and shall sacrifice this class in the
vain attempt to get rid Of the misery which befa'ls
the few? To show how this has operated, sup
pose that in my State, for instance, that in Vir-
J. ginia, or kentucky-the senator's own State-the
e slave trade between the States had been forever
1 prohibited. What would have been the effect!
As the population increased, the price OF la
Dor would diminish, and we should have fierce
conflict between the white race and the blacks for
the means Of subsistence, until the price or labor
, would sink too low to furnish the means Of COM
Portable subsistence to all. Then, sir, the black
\ race would be found retrograding, not only ply
Q sicaly but morally. And who does not know
that in such contest between the races, either
the black race must perish, or, rs Mr. Randolph
once said the muster must flee from his slave
=, Take it the other way. Suppose that the slave
trade had never been prohibited, and that it is per-
mitted to go on. What is the efecti The mo-
ment that the profits Of labor sink below their le-
vel in any Of the States, that moment the slave Is
carried to another part of the country, where the
profits Of labor higher, and where a greater
share Of the product Of his labor may be engaged
by him. IL benefits not only the slave but also
the white man. The slave who goes away not
only benefits himself, but those he leaves behind.
lie benefits labor directly; not only by taking
away the competition of his own but by leaving
in it's stead capital from the country to which he
goes. And that, sir, is the reason that the black
race has made so remarkable progress, not
only physically but intellectually, since they have
been brought into this country. That, too, is the
reason, more than any other, that the two races
have dwelt together in the main so peaccably,
. and preserved relations so kindly.
1t may be said that it is contrary To humanity
that man should be made to emiSrate, not ac-
cordins to his own will, but according to the laws
r Of profit. | acknowledge that the proposition
sta fed hat dpei
manity. But let us trace it a little further. II
you were called upon to lay down law which
should regulate the emigration Of the black race
most happily and most successfully, could you
enact better provision than to regulate 1t by the
laws of profit In migrating in that way he goes
to u climate which is more cOngenia to his nature,
to society which is more suitable to his capacity
and his disposition, and 10 a country where he
receives a large share OF the products OF his own
labor. In so doing he benefits himself What
is more, sir, | ask it this is not the precise law
by which white emigration is conducted. speak
now Of the masses. | do not speak of sporadic
and individual cases; but take the masses, and
what is the law which directs their course but
this very law Of profit! They go where labor will
get the greatest return for there they find it host
for their benefit and happiness to go. The only
difference between the two is this that while both
follow The same law, the one goes under the dlc-
tation of his own will, and the other goes under
the dctation Of the will of another. The opera
maintain that the capacity for emf grafton is ne
cessary for the protection of the civilization and
happiness OF any race. And you cannot show
me nation race that has made progress,
physically or morally, in which much of it cannot
be traced to the very effects OF emigration. II
operates in many ways to benefit them; not mere
" from change OF place, but from change of cir
cumstances, and the opportunities which it affords
for interchange Of ideas with superior races. The
effect Of emigration is to relieve society from many
of the evils under which it would otherwise suffer
intensely. 1t adjusts the springs of human indus
try. 1t preserves the equilibrium of the social
system. 1t makes whatever small approach is
made to equality in the distribution Of the profits,
under the great system of human production in
the world. You cannot show me a people, as
said before, who have made great advances in the
arts and civilization who have not made them, in
great degree, under the capacity of emigration.
And without the slave trade, how could the black,
how could the slave, enjoy that benefit? II is es-
sential, in order to place him within the reach Of
those advantages which result to other races from
, migration, that he should be the subject Of this
, very trade. | know, sir, that by chang ing the
phrase, and altering the name, what experience
has shown to be en,inently beneficial to this race
might seem to be very hard and very shocking.
know, also, upon looking at the history Of the
past that Of all the legislation which has inflicted
n injury upon mankind, you will find that egis a
n ton to have inflicted the most which consulted
f feeling, and not reason-theory and not expert
r ence 1t does more harm sometimes than even
, the cruelty of despots, who take at least some of
their lessons from experience and practice before
they enact laws and rules.
In relation to this very subject we have had
some experience. We all know the principles
upon which originated the attempts to suppress
the African slave trade. We all know it originated
in the best Of motves-in the desire to benefit the
African race. And yet, sir, ask who it is that
will say he believes that those attempts have bene-
, fitted the African race? | speak Of the negro in
. Africa. Who believes that these attempts have
=; benefited that race? 1t was about three months
ago that had occasion to notice an article in the
London Times in relation to the slave trade, which
showed that Notwithstanding these efforts the slave
= trade had gone on steadily increasing and that
it seemed to increase in the ratio Of the profits of
slave labor, rising and falling with the price of
those tropical productions which mainly raised
by slave labor. The only effect Of these efforts
has been to increase the horrors Of the Middle
Passage. also referred to British documents to
show that another branch OF hat thought might
fairly be denominated the slave trade, had grown
up under the specious name of emigration from
Sierra Leone and the East Indies TO the West In
dia Islands. But, looking only to that which is
technically called the slave trade, the document Of
which | spoke shows that it has gone on steadily
increasing and it so happened that few months
ago. chanced upon a letter Of former Spanish
minister, Don Louis de Onis (and Of this letter |
speak now from memory,) which was written
about th'rty years ago, ana related TO this very
matterr and in this letter he defended the Spanish
government for its agency in the slave trade. He
, said that the Spanish government had, in fact,
transferred negro from heathendom to christi
anity, and had legalized the traffic in order to
make such regulations would mitigate the hor-
rors Of the Middle Passage, which penalties, and
and punishments, and fortetures must only in
crease. Subsequent experience has indicated the
wisdom Of that declaration for We know that
these have increased, and that the slave trade it.
, self has increased.
Who, sir, in his senses would exchange the
condition of christian slave upon the banks Of
the Mississippi for that of the Fetish worshipper
upon the Niger, Of the African of Louisiana for
, that Of the African of Guineai As the distin-
,, guished senator from Massachusetts will say,
where will you find three and a half millions Of
: negroes SO happy, or so far advanced, morally and
mGrn
the whose condition haa noi haar han