The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1856-07-31
THE NATIONAL ERA: WASHINGTON, D. C, JULY 81 1856

forefathers, in 1920, in this very Hall, dedicated,
by solemn compact, to Freedom forever"
Third. The sixth amendment to the Consti-
tuition of the United States declares that, In
all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall en-
JOY the right to speedy and public trial, by an
IMPARTIAL jury" 1t is significant that, in the
Constitution itself, it had been provided (article
3, section p that "the trial of all crimes, ex-
cepti in cases of impeachment, shall be by jury"
But, to prevent "abuse of power" this, with
other amendments, was adopted, declaring
that the trial shall be by an impartial jury. l
have already shown you how impdrtidlly they
are to be selected by sheriffs who go about and
initiate, in their conduct towards Free State
men, the example of Saul of Tarsus in his per-
secution of the early Christians, (Acts, chapter
8, verse 3, entering into every house, and
Selling men and women, committed them to
prison;") and l have quoted you section,
showing how impartiatly they are to be consti-
tuted, with men on one side only; but in this
very chapter, the concluding provision, section
| thirteen, (page 606,) repeats this gross viola
ton of the National Constitution, as follows:
"No person. who is conscentously opposed TO holding
slaves who does not admit the right hold slaves in
this Territory, shall juror trial of any pros
any violation OF of the sections of this act"
Here, sir, in these instances which have
quoted, stand the Constitution of the United
States on the one side, and the Kansas code on
the other, in direct and open confict-the one
declaring that the freedom of speech shall not
be abridged, that the freedom of the press shall
be protected, that juries, above all things else,
shall be entirely impartial; the other trampling
all these safeguards under foot And because
a majority of the settlers there, driven from the
polls by armed mobs, legislated over by mob
in whose election they had no agency, choose
- -.-lkc
Constitution, you have seen how anarchy and
violence, how outrage and persecution, have
been running riot in that Territory, far exceed
| ing in their tyranny and oppression the wrongs
for which our revolutionary forefathers rose
against the masters who oppressed them; and
vet, though the protection they have had from
the General Government has been only the same
kind of protection which the wolf gives to the
lamb, they have, while repudiating the Terrific
rial sheriffs bowed in submission to writs in the
| hands of the United States marshal, or when
the soldiers of the United States, yielding to
orders which they do not deem it dishonorable
for them to despise, assist In their execution.
| Such forbearance-such manifestations of their
allegiance to the national authority-become
the more wonderful, when it is apparent as the
MONDAY sun that every attempt has been made
to harass them into resistance to the authority
of the United States, so as to furnish pretext,
doubtless, for their indiscriminate imprison-
ment, expulsion, or massacre.
Fourth. The Constitution also prohibits cruel
and unusual punishments. l shall show, before
I close, that this so-called Kansas Legislature
has prescribed most cruel and unusual punish
ments, unwarranted by the character of the of
fences punished, and totally disproportioned to
their crimnality.
Fifth. The Constitution declares Particle /,
ny Al Al 60 Al e l..
beas corpus shall not be suspended, unless when,
in cases of rebellion or invasion, the public
safety may require it." Bot the Kansas code,
in its chapter of ha6eas corpus, (article 3, Sec
ton s, page 1857 enacts as follows:
"No negro or mulao, held a slave within this Ter
ritory lawfully arrested fugitive from service from
act"
This provision, suspending the writ of habeas
corpus in the above cases, is not only viola
ton of the Constitution, but also of the organic
law; for that provided, in section %, for ap-
peals to the Supreme Court of the United States
on writs of habeds corpus, in cases involving
the right of freedom, the issuing of which this
Territorial law expressly prohibits. The Ian
guage of the Nebraska Kansas act is as fol-
lows;
"Except also that a writ of appeal shall also
be allowed the Supreme Court of the United States
from the decision of the said Supreme Court, created by
this act of Judge thereof of the district courts
created by this act of any judge thereof upon any writ
of habeas corpus involving the question of personal free
DOM"
But the Kansas Legislature ooolly set aside
the law of the United States by which alone
their Territorial organization was brought into
existence, and effectually prohibited any appeal
to the Supreme Court, "upon any writ of ha6eas
corpus, involving the question of personal free
DOM" by declaring that the writ shall not be
used in the Territory for any such purposel
Having now referred to few of the many
acts embraced in this code, which conflict with
the Constitution or the organic law, proceed
to the examination of other provisions, some of
which stamp it as code of barbarity, as we'll
as Of tyranny-of inhumanity as well as Of OPP
preston. And, first, to "the imprisonment at
hard labor" which is made the punishment for
"offences against the slave property" in the
sections which l have already quoted. The
general understanding Of the people at large
has been, that, as there was no States prison
yet erected in Kansas, this imprisonment would
be In some Missouri prisons near the frontier.
But, sir, such is not the CASE The authors of
these disgraceful and outrageous enactments,
with refinement of cruelty, provided that the
"hard labor" should be in another way and
that way will be found in chapter 90, entitled
" an act providing system of confinement and
hard labor" section of which (page 147) reads
as follows:
"Every person who may be sentenced by any court 0:
competent jurisdiction, under any law in force within this
Territory, punishment by confinement and hard labor
shall be deemed convict and shall Immediately, under
under the charge Of such person as the keeper such
public prison select be to hard labor, in the
roads, public buildings other public works OF the Terri
tory-Sec page TAG and such keeper other person.
while engaged such labor TO be securely confined by
chain feet in length, of not less than sixeenths
more Than ,hreeeghhs of an inch links, with so''d
ball Of iron of not less Than four than six inches
in dameie attached which chain shall be securely fast
ened tie ankle Of such convict with strong lock and
keys and such keeper other having charge of
such convict, confne such convict while
engaged hard labor by other chains other means
in his discretion to keep such convict and
prevent his escape and when there shall be
convcts under the charge of such keeper other
wi strong locks and keys during the time such convicts
shal be engaged in hard labor without the walls of any
Jail or prison"
And this penalty, revolving, humiliating, de-
easing as it is, subjectiDg free American citi-
zen to the public sneers and contumely of hia
oppressors, far worse than within the prison
walls, where the degradation Of the punishment
is relieved by its privacy, is to be borne from
two to five long years by the men of Indiana
and Ohio, of New England and New York, of
Pennsylvania and the far West, who dare in
Kansas to declare, by speech or in print, or to
introduce therein handbill or paper, which
declares, that "persons have not the right to
hold slaves in this Territory" The chain and
ball are to be attached to the ankle of each, |
and they are to drag out their long penalty for
exercising their God given and consttutionally.
protected freedom of speech, manacled together |
in couples, and working, in the public gaze,
under task masters, to whom Algerine alave,
holders would be preferable.