Daily American telegraph. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1851-1852, 1852-03-30
AMERICAN TELEGRAPH.
Free Negroes In the Free states.
For the Daily American Telegraph

For the Daily American Telegraph
MEssRs EDIToRs In the Telegraph of the
24th instant was article with the ominous
caption of g Free Negroes in the Free States"
Presumtng it has reference to Indiana, among
the number of g Free States" and being mySeIf
native of that State I feel bound in justification
Of its citizens to reply to what know to be un-
true, viz: That the negro in the i" Free States"
are politically and socially prescribed by people
whose professions gave promise of better other
things. BY what authority does the author of
that article make the assertion (for it is but an
assertion) that the people of Indiana ever made
professions or promise of better things to the
negro
The citizens of the county came from would
laugh at the declaration that they ever professed
the sympathy for the negro which you, in your
ignorance of that people, would wish others to
believe. The people of Indiana, in their conven-
ton last winter, engrafted a clause in the new
constitution of the State prohibiting the inlmi-
grafton of free negroes into it. And why did
they do so? They did SO, moi because they haddn
sympathy for the negro; not because they had
ever offered inducements to them to immi CRATE
to the State; not that they arc opposed to the
institution of slavery where it exists not that
they do not faithfully execute and enforce the
laws of the United States not that they look
with holy horror upon person who has that
self-prescrvation, which is the first law of ma
ture. What right have you, rs citizen Of the
South, to complain of their enactments Have
not all or some of the saveholdng States similar
laws? Do they not prohibit the immigration Of
free negroes into their States? LII so, what ground
Of complaint have you? Indiana chose to be
free from your "peculiar mStitution," as you are
pleased to call it; and Indiana, in passing those
laws, has followed in the footsteps Of her Illus
frin tbn thorn Stota II hn
South has set the free States bad example, they
arc to blame, not us. Indana's legislation upon
the subject of slavery has, from the time of her
admission into the Union, been consistent; and no
State in this Union at this day occupies higher
position among her sister States: She is nota busy
body; she minds her own business and her citizens
would be pleased if the citizens of other States
would do likewise. She does not tolerate slavery
within her borders, because she beereS tie 0t&tttu
tion TO be an incubus upon tie prosperity Of StateS-
| and do not facts demonstrate u2-and you, as
candid man, cannot deny it. OF the people you
censure you hn0io nothng, else you would not do
| it. They are your own brethren. Three-fourths
Of the citizens of the county live i'll were born
and raised in slave States They are highminded,
wholesouled, chivalrc sons of the South We
love them, and yo~ ought TO love them; ingr"t'-
tude is the worst traa IN mans character.
Having a decent respect for the opinions Of
those who differ with US, | would suggest the
propriety Of your not III future publishing articles
cenSnring those ,0ho may honestly differ Nth you.
They can do no good, and might possibly be the
means of increasing the bad feeling which am
sorry to say already exists
| You don't understand what Indiana means by
those enactmcnts. She simply means that III,
! free negro population IS bad one, and she knop'
so by sad experience; and that same experience
teaches you that such is the fact. Look at thu
cases in your courts in your own city Of Wash
ington. There is ccidcace sufficient 10 condemn ME
kind Of pop4lQtioa. If you can't keep them from
being idle, worthleSS, committing crime, &c, hoy
could yoa expect tie peopie cfMc free States 10 kecp
| them from being so. The fact is, the people OF
Indiana, at least in that part in which reside,
ID not like the negro; consequently hare no SYw-
pahy Jor them, nor haUc hey ProtcSsel II hare
When you take the pains to inform yourself as TO
the course and policy Of free States, Indiana par
ticularly, (for | don't speak for any but her you
will find her theoretically and practically COR
rect" \ HOoslER.
WASHINGTON CRY, D. c., March %, 1852.
MEssRs. EpIToRs: Above you will please find
u communication in reply to an article which ap-
peared in the Telegraph Of the oath, with the
caption of 'Free Negroes in the Free States, '
which you will please publish.
Yours, respectfully, n. B. MARKLE.
| REMARKS by THE EDIToR.-The italiczing
above is ours. The author wrote III Roman
characters. The reader will probably think with
us that other comment is unnecessary.