The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1855-05-31

this practicable? The associate scourges by
which that transcendent "abuse" is surround.
ed, may, one by one, be subtracted. The "abuse "
which substitutes concubinage for marriage
the "abuse" which annuls the parental rela-
tion-the "abuse" which closes the portals of
knowledge-the abuse" which tyrannically
usurps all the labor of another, now upheld by
positive law, may by positive law be abolished.
10 say that this is not practicable in the nine
teenth century, would be scandal upon man
kind. And just in proportion as those "abuses"
cease to have the sanction of law, will the in
stitution Of Slavery cease to exist. The Afri-
can, whatever may then be his condition, will
no longer be the Stare over whose wrongs and
sorrows the world throbs, at times iercely in
dignant, and at times painfully sad, while with
outstretched arms he sends forth the piteous
cry, Am l not a man and a brother?r
In pressing forward to this result, the inquiry
Is often presented, to what extent, if any, shall
compensation be allowed to the slave-masters
Clearly, if the point be determined by absolute
justice, not the masters, but the slaves, will be
entitled to compensation; for it is the slaves
who, throughout weary generations have been
deprived of their toll and all It's fruits, which
went to enrich their masters. Besides, it seems
hardly reasonable to pay for the REIMBURSEMENT
| of those disgusting "abuses" which, in their
aggregation, constitute the bundle of Slavery
Pray, sir, by what tariff, price current, or prin-
ciple of equation, shall their several values be
estimated? What gum shall be counted out,
as the proper price for the abandonment of that
pretension-more indecent than the JUS prime
pOcttS of the feudal age-which leaves woman,
whether in the arms of master or slave, always
a concubine? What bride shall be profered
for the restoration of Godgiven parental rights t?
What money shall be paid for taking off the
paddock by which souls are fastened down in
darkness? How much for quitelaim to labor
now meanly exacted by the strong from the
weak? And what compensation shall be
awarded for the surrender of that egregious
assumption, condemned by reason and abhorred
by piety, which changes a man into a thing
put these questions, without undertaking to
pass upon them. Shrinking instinctively from
any recognition of rights founded on ,crongs,
find myself shrinking also from any austere
verdict which shall deny the means necessary to
the great contamination we seek. Our fathers
under Washington did not hesitate, by act of
Congress- to appropriate largely for the ransom
of white ow-citizens euslaved by Algerine
corsairs and, following this example, am
disposed to consider the question of compensa-
ton as one of expediency, to be determined
by the exigency of the hour and the constitu.
tional powers of the Government; though such
is my desire to see the foul iend of Slavery in
flight, that could not hesitate to build even
bridge of gold, if necessary, to promote his es-
cape.
The Practica6illy Of the Anti-Slavery En-
terprise has been constantly questioned often
so specifically as to be answered at once. !
shall not take time to consider the allegation,
founded on considerations of economy, which
audaciousy assumes that Slave Labor is more
advantageous than Free Labor-that Slavery
is more profitable than Freedom-for this is all
exploded by the official tables of the census;
nor that other futile argument, that the slaves
are not prepared for Freedom, and therefore
should not be precipitated into this condition
f80f yth that te N ebstts5 than the aRGjspi GEe
low her son to go into water until he had frs,
learned to swim. But as against the Necessity
of the Anti-Sayery Enterprise there were tw'
chief objections, sc also against its PRACTICABLE
ity are there two-the first, founded On its al
legged danger TO the master; and the second, OIL
its alleged damage to the slave himself.
/. The first objection, founded on the alleged
danger to the master, most generally takes the
extravagant form, that the slave, if released
from his present condition, would cut his mas
ter's throat Here is a blatant paradox, which
can pass for reason only among those who have
lost their reason. With an absurdity which
finds no parallel except in the defences of Sla-
very. it assumes that the African, when treated
Justly, will show a vindictiveness which he does
not exhibit when treated unjustly; that, when
elevated by the blessings of Freedom, he will
develop an appetite for blood which he never
manifested when crushed by the curse of bond
age. At present, the slave sees his wife raw
ished from his arms sees his infant swept
away to the auction block secs the heavenly
EpO ob in
dustry and all its fruits unjustly clutched by
another-sees himself and offspring doomed to
a servitude from which there is no redemption
and still his master sleeps secure. Will the
master sleep less secure when the slave no
longer smarts under these revolving atrocities
/ will not trife with your intelligence, or with
the quick passing hour, by arguing this ques-
ton.
But there is lofty example, Frightening the
historic page, by which the seal of experience
is affixed to the conclusions Of reason, and you
would hardly pardon me if failed to adduce it.
By virtue of a singleAct of Parliament, the
slaves of the British West Indies were changed
at once to freemen, and this great transition
was accomplished absolutely without personal
danger of any kind to the master. And yet the
chance of danger there was greater far than
among US. In our broad country the slaves
population. Only in two States, South Carolina
and Mississippi, do the slaves outnumber the
whites, and there but slightly, while in the en-
tire Slave States the whites outnumber the
slaves by many millions. But it was otherwise
in the British West Indies, where the whites
were overshadowed by a more than skiold
slave population. The slaves were 100000
while the whites numbered only l3l, 900, dis
tributed in different proportions on the different
islands. And this disproportion has since in
creased rather than diminished, always without
danger to the whites. In Jamaica, the largest
of these possessions, there are now upward Of
100000 Africans, and only $1,000 whites in
Barbados, the next largest possession, there
are 10000 Africans, and only $4,000 whites
in st. Lucia, 1880 Africans, and only 600
whites; in Tobago, $4,000 Africans, and only
600 whites; in Montserrat, 5000 Africans, and
only $50 whites and in the Grenadines, upward
of 5000 Africans, and less than so whites.
And yet, in all these places, the authorities
attest the uniform good behaviour of the Afri-
cans. Sir Lionel Smith, the Governor of ia
maica, in his speech to the Assembly, declared
that their conduct "proves how well they de.
serve the boon of Freedom" Another Gov
ernor of another island dwells on the "pecu-
harlY rare instances of the commission of grave
and sanguinary crimes among the emancipated
portion of these islands," and the Queen of
England, in speech from the throne, has an.
nounced that the complete and final emancipa-
ton of the Africans had "taken place without
any disturbance of public order or tranquility"
In this example hail new confirmation Of the
rule that the highest safety is in doing right
and thus do dismiss the objection founded on
the alleged danger to the master.
2. And am now brought TO the second OBJ
IL Al
Stare 1t is common among the partisans of
Slavery to ASSERT that nnr Enternr;sa ha. ATTN