Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1854-07-29
OUR CONSTITUTIONAL OBLIGATIONS TO
SLAVEHUNTERS.

deed DO all Of Mr.. Gidding's addresses. But on
one point, he is exceedingly inconsistent and weak.
lie is so of necessity, because he occupies a false
with which to characterize It. But we will let Mr..
Giddings speak for himself, on this point, viz.
orr Constitutional obligations 10 STARE hunters.
Mr.. Giddings says;
My friends, let me say to you that the doctrines
that | am about to advocate are those laid down by
Jefferson in the immortal Declaration of Independ-
encc. It'll the foundation Of the political creed of
this great Democracy of the American people
that all men are created with equal claims to life,
liberty and the pursuit of happiness, and that Gov
crnments are constituted among men to secure
these rights.
Here let no man say TINT we intend to violate
the constitution in any particular. These doctrines
enter into the Constitution of the United States as
certainly as they did into the hearts of our fathers
at the time of this declaration, or before the Revo-
luton. The trainers of our American COnstitu-
ton put forth a preamble, and the object for which
it was framed was to secure to themselves and
their offspring the blessings Of liberty. Such were
its objects, and all the acts of this Government and
that Constitution in all its provisions, have had for
their end the carrying out Of these original doc
trines. Thus it was intended by the trainers Of
the Constitution, and 50 it was intended by the
founders of our Republic and it is for you to
maintain this Constitution in tie very spirit in
which it was adopted. You should discard every
principle and every tenet which seeks to violate It.
lMr. c.. desired to know if there were any Gar
risunian Abolitionist present; if there were, he
hoped he should not offend them.-Although he did
not agree with them on many points, he common
ded highly the good they had done. They had
done much good to our western people by their
lectures; they made the citizens to u great extent
non-voters, even in his own district, yet they came
out and voted for him, and he believed that was
n-a .f slo Ia-4 ,I.--,u l. =. IL. III .-.. 1-.-
To resume the train Of remark, let it be under
stood TINT We intend to maintain the constitution,
in the free principles and identical spirit in which
it was adopted. We explain that instrument as
explained in tho Declaration of Independence and
in the preamble Of the constitution. We give the
construction giyrn il by the original founders of the
government.
Here let me say, that | come in conflict in my
construction with both the Wing and Democratic
parties. | was once q Wing, and my friend be-
side me Hon. James !. Simmons) and | , voted for
John Tyler. May God forgive us, we will promise
never to DO 50 again.
When we say that we adopt as our basis the con-
stitution, uncontaminated as it anne from the
hands of the trainers, we imply that the constitu-
ton contemplated no interference with the slave
power under the constitution.
lf | am not fully understood, l hope any pre-
sent will be kind enough to ask any questions they
please. The federal power Of this nation has no
right, under the constitution Of the United States,
to interfere with slavery in any State of this Union,
or for any purpose whatever, and | say that in
every instance in which the federal government
has interfered, it has violated the constitution, vio-
lated its own duties, encroached on the rights of
the community, and perpetrated a great wrong on
mankind at large. In my Wow OF this matter, |
ngree with Henry Clay, in that speech in which
he made so marked an assault on the men with
whom | am associated in sentiment; and while he
made that terrible onslaught, he laid down the con-
Stitntinnnl law ~ pnrrnrtlv nc IL has aypr bpnp laid
down by any other man. lie said the federal gov
ernment gave to Congress no power but that of di-
rect taxation; and the return OF fugitive slaves.
aside from this" said he, cit has no powers
wh"tover over the institution Of slavery To-day.
my friends, l repeat that doctrine. l say that this
nation, when it established the coastwise slave
trade, when it established slavery in the District of
Columbia, when it established slavery in Utah,
violated the constitution, instead of sustaining it.
| wish you to understand that it is quite q different
thing from violating the constitution, TO seperate
this federal government from the support of slave
ry, and to carry out these great truths which lay at
the basis of our Republic.
| take the liberty, my friends, of following out
this line Of remark because it is n day appropriate;
IL day of all others devoted to freedom it is n day
peculiarly adapted to cali the attention of the pub
lie to the great errors existing in orr nation to
which, we are seeking to awaken a proper con-
Germ.
Under the old Federal Government we had no
power to lcgislate on the subject Of slavery IL
any respect whatever. Each State had the mat
ter under its own control. Attic adoption Of the
constitution, no State surrendered its rights of free
dom or liberty, or its powers over the institution OF
slavery within its own bounds. For instance, no
act of Congress could any more establish the insti-
tuition in Rhode Island than it could abolish it in
Virginia, and ricc rerSa. Let me be understood.
Whenever we have l~egislated on this subject, we
have violated the constitution. Imean with no ex-
ceptions save the return of fugitive slaves, which
| shall touch upon more fully before | conclude.
After touching several other points Mr.. Giddings
recurs to the same topic again, and says;
We now stand precisely where the trainers of
the constitution stood, on this subject. When the
subject was first brought forward in Congress, UNI
der the constitution, a gentleman from ). Carolina
held that we should be compelled to return fugitive
slaves, and that we were bound to arrest the tugi-
tive. This was Mr.. Williamson who introduced a
proposition to that effect. Mr.. - opposed it,
and said VIC Nerc Just as much bound to arrest a
fugitive horse. The proposition, however, was
withdrawn without a vote. Subsequently the pro-
position came up in another form, and then under
stood precisely as adjudicated by the Supreme
Court afterwards, to surrender the fugitive to his
master wherever he might find him; not that we
were obliged to arrest him and return him, any
more than we would a horse.
In the emphatic language Of Judge Mclean, of
the Supreme Court, "No nan has q right to inter-
fere between n slave and his master; neither Sc
crete a slave from his master, nor defend a slave
from his master, nor to rescue a slave from the
possession of his MASTER" And there our duty
ends, and the duties of the Federal Government
end there also.
The whole object of the clause in respect to
fugitives is, to prevent Northern men from acting
in favor of the slave, and to leate a man the same
right to chase q slave into your territory as he has
to chase his horse. Then the law provides that he
shall be taken before a magistrate, and if the
master gives satisfactory evidence that the slave is
his, that officer shall give him a certificate to that
effect, and he may take him back into slavery
The law of 1893 was approved by Gen. Washing
ton, but the law of 1893 made no provision that
any process should be issued under that law /;
there was no authority given to any officer OF the
United States, or of the State, to arrest said slave
land return him to his master; it was the masters
business, and his alone if he could get help, he
had II right to do so. lie had no authority from