The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1853-06-30
'01' '"V II FOIIIHb DUIIOV"1'
GOVERNOR LOWE AND McCREARY.

The refusal Of Governor Lowe, of Maryland
to surrender McCreary, the kidnapper of Ra
chel Parker, on the requisition of Gov Biglel
is proceeding that no good citizen, reyeren
OF constitutional usages, can possibly justify
The grounds on which it is based add if any
thing, to tho injustice and impolicy of the re
fusal. Governor Lowe defends his conduct
substantially, by the assertion that, in case
OF acquisitions, it is constitutional to inqmr
into the guilt or innocence of the party: II
other words, that the Executive Of the State
where an alleged criminal may happen to be
can elect himself, as it were, both Judge ant
jury in the case. Nay he even PRACTICAL,
claims right to 60 still beyond this. In thu
present instance, his excellency of Maryland
asserts, for example, that McCreary cannot ex
pect fair trial in Pennsylvania maintain
that the offence charged was not kidnapping
and finally pretends that an agreement wa
entered into between counsel, on the trial o
Rachel Parker, that If she was released, Nc
Creary should not he troubled with prosecu
ton. With every desire to speak respectfully
of Governor Lowe, in his capacity of Executive
of sister Commonwealth, we cannot help say.
ing, in justice to our own State that his impu-
tatons are as insolent as his logic is bad.
The answers to these excuses for refusing the
requisition are natural, and they have been
given by Gov. Bigler, in his reply to Governor
Lowe. The great fact on which the controver-
sy between the two States turns, is whether
the abduction Of Rachel Parker was a kidnap-
ping, or not. But surely no one, familiar with
the facts and honest in his judgment, can deny,
whether Northerner or Southerner, that the
perpetrator of the act whatever he might be
-, onpnp,on lfa uaa a k;1narpar On tbat ocao
sion. Assuming even that a saye-owner has a
constitutional right, not only personally to fol-
low and arrest his fugitive from labor, without
warrant, but to delegate this power to an
other it cannot be doubted that, in the event
of wrong individual being seized, he takes
the risk of, because liable to, the crime of kid
mapping. The law is full of analogous cases
One example we will refer to. Amy citizen can
seize felon, even without warrant to back
him but the prisoner must really be telon,
and not an innocent person for, otherwise, the
captor not only becomes liable to an action for
false imprisonment, but is always really mulct-
ed in heavy damages Just such risk the
person took who seized Rachel Parker; and,
whoever he is, he ought to pay the penalty.
Gov. Bigler says he is McCreary Whether he
is, or not, is the business of jury, and not of
Gov. Lowe, to decide.
The refusal of the Executive of Maryland to
surrender the accused, is however as impolitic
as it is unconstitutional. We pay no attention,
we remark in passing, to the plea that counsel
made an agreement that McCreary should be
suffered to escape, provided Rachel Parker was
for the attorneys had no right thus
to cheat justice, and especially no man had
right to exempt McCrcary, except the District
Attorney of Chester county. We say the con-
duct of Gov. Lowe has been impoltic because,
if the South expects justice from the North, it
must be strictly just in return With what
show of consistency can the friends of the Con-
,titution insist on the faithful execution of the
Fugitive Slave Law--as the Bulletin for in
stance has done--if the South, by conduct like
Gov. loves, is to afford justification to the
plea of the Aboltionists, that colOred freemen
are liable to be seized as slaves without a
chance even of furnishing the kidnappers and
that therefore jury trials are necessary to pro-
tsot tho mon ACCUSED Of being fag;tives. Sturdy,
impartial men, whether living north or south
Of the Potomac, must confess that the imputa-
ton on Southern masters, implied by this de-
mand of the Abolitionists, is no worse than the
imputation cast by Gov. Lowe on the freemen
who compose the panel of Chester county
Conduct like this of the Maryland Executive
will, if persisted in, close the mouth of every
friend of the Compromise in the North
We say this in sorrowful warning, not alas
with exultation. The Constitution, we all know,
recognises slaves Us property, and provides for
their surrender; aud, In consequence, every
good citizen at the North should obey it in this
as in all other particulars But the laws of the
land recognise, rs emphatically, the rights Of
the free, whether white or colorcd and every
good citizen, South or North, ought to see that
these rights are not assailed with impunity
Now, here is a woman, whom o Southern jury
has declared free, abducted, carried into slave
ry and only rescued after great difficulty and
expense. But, though it is clear somebody has
perpetrated this outrage, though it is probable
the criminal is known, though requsition
has been made for the person accused of the
kidnapping, yet the Governor of State--ofa
Southern State--of State 80 close to Mason
and Dixon's line as to make an honest adhe-
renee to constitutional obligations peculiarly
advisable, interposes between justice and its
victim and, not content with snatching the
criminal from punishment actually insults
Pennsylvania, by saying the accused will not
get fair trial if surrendered. We have from
the first, honestly and laboriously fought the
battle of the South, where we thought the Con
sttution was on her side but conduct like this
of Gov. Love- though it will not alter our con
viction of the rights of slave owners, will render
it useless for us to defend the South hereafter
for Maryland must not forget that, if she ha,
runaway slaves to recover, we have colored
freemen to defend and the right of the poor
est freeman-nay, of the blackest-to persona
-. I'm, 3ho nxGs l.
that of the richest and palest in the land Il
we therefore, protect as far as we can By lac
the South in her fugitives, she ought to protect
our freemen as fully
She does not do this, if Gov Lowe is an ex
ponent of her intended line of action and it i,
because she thus shows symptoms of not doing
this that We complain. Rachel Parker wa,
compelled to have her right to freedom decidet
by Southern jury We do not arraign South
ern jures but we have as good right to d.
20, certainly, us Governor Lowe has to arraigr
Pennsylvania ones. There is no Justice in sub
jecting the free colored victim to the ordeal o
a trial in strange country-and that slave
holding oHe--yet refusing to permit her ALLEGED
captor to be tried where the offence was com
mitted, even though the locality was in one
the free States. II we give justice to tho South
by obeying the Constitution, We expect justlo,
in return, through her obedience to law w,
will go further IL kdnappers can enter ou
Territories with IMMUNITY, and, through cupid
ty, or even error, carry off innocent parties, i
is beyond human nature TO expect anythin,
but Christiana massacres, wicked as they are
In fact as is well known everywhere, that fata
affair originated primarily in the indignation
caused by free colored persons having beer
kidnapped from that neighborhood and in tn
general belief, among the surrounding popula
tion, that the attempt Of the Gorsuches wa
but repetition OF similar atrooty. Tn
conduct Of Gov Lowe in the present affair will
not, we can assure him, allay the fears of on
free colored population, or stimulate citizens +
interfere in like cases, unless they know Ger
tainly, what they cannot know till after q ju
dicial inquiry, the rights of the case.
Throughout all the difficulty between Nortl
and South We have sustained the law, because
IN Ran,llio tha Ia, g.