Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1850-01-12
Selling a Free Boy into Slavery.
Correspondence of The Tribune.
BALTIMORE, Sunday, Dec. 30.

BALTIMORE, sunday, Dec. 3d.
case came before our Criminal Court ON
Saturday, which very forcibly illustrates tho
oppression to which the free lJacks of Mary
land are sulyected--one of tire many barba-
ro'is and UNJUST acts constantly winked ut i,y
our ofhciais. F.P. Lovegrove, Esq, young
lawyer who has ever been foremos, in The
defence of the colorcd race, presented ne
tition to Judge Nisbet, on behalf Of n colored
boy named William Henry Hardy, praying
that he may be set at liberty, ijeilg entitled
to his freedom. The petition set forth that
ne had at the age of sixteen years, In 1876,
been convicted of petty felony, and on ac-
count of his youth, ordered by Judge Nist,et
TO bc indentured till he was 2I TO some
person out of the County of Baltimore. ,cithin
the limits Of the State. He was huund 10 n
MIR. w. ii. Bird of Ann Arundel Co. who.
within few weeks past has applied TO tho
Orphans Court of that County, aud obtained
an additional three years TO the boys seryi-
tudc, and permission TO sell him for tho re-
nainder of his time-iive years-om of tic
state. a few days since Bird brought him
to baltimore and sold him TO n slaye-denler
lwho has carried him South) il is alleged for
Ve. The Court required Bird TO give $500
security for the production of the boy, (which
he cannot of course do now,) and the case
VIII be heard at n future time. Bird does
not deny the selling him out of the State for
t,le reminder of his term of Years, and pro-
duces the order Of the Court for what he ba,
done.
The case is not of itself so yastly impor-
tant, only so far as il will 20 to test The right
of Courts 10 enslave free negroes; but Is an
Illustration of system practiscd here.
which few persons have any knowledgh Of
By the Peniteniary laws Of Maryland, any
free negro convicted of an offence, for tho
FIRST time, goes to the Penitentiary for term
IN accordance with the grade of his crime
but II convicted of a second offence he must
DC sold out of the State for term of years
IN the discretion of the Court. At every
term of our Courts free negroes are convict
ed OF second olfances-it may be for stealing
loaf of bread TO appeaso the cravings OF
hunger-and arc sold, by order of the judi
ges, out OF the State, for 3, 4, or 10 years,
as the case may be. They are bought by
slave dealers, who will give lust as much as
II they were sold for life, and they nre sent
out OF the State for Lte, for have never yet
seen the men who knew one of them to re-
turn. The law also gives 10 the officer who
Should Should X ss &c s5assis5 E sssSpa gsaSs y &
money for which he may be sold, as an in
ducement for vigilance. And truly does this
reward have its cffcct-any negro who has
ever been in the Pcnitentiary is watched SO
that he rarely fails TO come back for a second
offence, and in such cases the officer never
fails in sufiicicncy of conclusive evidence
agant him.
some persons may argue that il is very
good plan TO make Botany Bay" of tho
Southern States, and thus get rid of thieves; /;
but It should not he forgotten that the negro
IS human. The law should afford equal JUS
tice to all. A negro for a petty theft is sold
for life into wretched bondsge--a white
person may be incarcerntcd for few years,
and again cnjcy eli the privileges cf citizen
ship. You may talk of liberty" in Mary
land; assure you it lacks one necessary and
essential ingredient, EQUAL JusTIcE.