The Kansas herald of freedom., 1855-03-10
slaveryin Kansas.

-Four southern members of Congress
addressed a letter to Gen. 3. T. STRING
FELEbw, Missourian of note, containing
these inquiries: VIII Kansas be slave
holding State? Is slave labor profitable
in Kansas? Is it safe to take slaves to
Kansas now?
These questions are fully answered by
Gen. Stringfellow. and that answer Messrs.
Brooks and Mcqueen, of South Carolina;
Clingman, of North Carolina; and VIM.
Smith, of Virginia-the members of Con-
gress referred to-have caused to be pub
lished, with the single view of stimulat-
ing emigration from the slave States.
The reply of Gen. Stringfellow is too
long for our columns; but the following
is sufficient for our purpose:
"3. Is it safe to take slaues to Kansas
nows
"0f this there can be no doubt. They
are less likely to escape than from Mis-
souri; are further from the underground
railroads and hiding places of the Aboli-
tionists; while the people of the Terrific
ry are more on the alert, and watch more
closely those who would steal them.
"From thelaw there can be no danger.
Slaves are now, and have been for years,
in the Territory, so that slavery, in fact,
is already established. ] need not say
to you that no lawyer, unless he be an
Abolitionist, will pretend that any posi-
tive law is necessary to make slavery le-
GAL. Laws have been passed reeogniz-
ing its existence after it had an existence /;
but never TO establish it before it existed.
1t has been abolished, not by the repeal
of laws establishing or permitting it, but
by laws positively and expressly prohib-
iting it. Without such prohibitory laws
il would now exist in every State in the
Union. Until such laws are enacted by
some competent Legislative power, slavery
is legal in Kansas. Such Iaus wilt neuer
be enacted : Whatever might have been
the result, if Abolitionists had not at
tempted to force the people of the Terri
tory, their movements have fixed the
fact They cannot harm us now"
If Gen. STRINGFELLow and his friends
are SO sanguinc about slavery being a
legalized institution in Kansas, why do
they not remove here gah their slaves
Why leave their " servants" in Missouri,
and spend months In endeayoring to get
pro-slavery voters among us to secure a
Legislature which shalfiegalize it again 2
The General says that "no lawyer, un-
less an Abolitionist, will pretend that any
positive law is necessary to make slavery
Legal We assert that no lawyerewho
has read the elementary treatises on the
science of which he is an expounder, or
who has taken the trouble to examine the
reports of our judicial tribunals, wilfpre-
tend that slavery is not strictly a creature
of municipal law, and only exists by
might in the absence of such law. We
hold ourself in readiness to make our po-
sition good in this respect with any legal
gentleman who wishes to controvert the
question.
That a few slaves exist along the bor-
ders of the Territory, we are well aware !;
but their numbers are small, and unless
the institution is legalized by the impor-
tation of fraudulent voters, they will rap
idly decrease. A writof ha6eas corpus,
whenever applied for and executed, will
give each their freedom. Intelligent slave
holders admit this fact; and this is the
reason they are so willing to expend thou
sands of dollars IN hiring Individuals to
rensove into the Territory and remain an
til after the election, with the view of Sc
curing Legislature which shall be faith
full to their interests.