Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1856-09-25
NEWS AND GOSSIP.

like cattle and horses is often made anu o"eis
| upon by the Abolitionists with peculiar unc.
ton. A faIser accusation never was made.
| It ia true that slaves are often sold and trans
ferred from Maryland and Virginia to the States
farther South. But that they are reared for
| the express purpose of such expectation and
sale, is a libel of tho grossest character upon
those two States. The charge has been tier.
ated and reiterated, until it has come to be
religiously believed. We have made repeat.
cd inquiries, and have not yet met with one
individual who personally knew of single
case of the kind. Without doubt, q consid.
cradle portion Of the slave population of Vir-
ginia and Maryland has been removed to the
more fertile soil Of Georgia, Alabama, Mis-
sissippi, Louisiana and Texas, but in most
cases their owners have gone with them. 1t
is no unusual thing for planter to emigrate
with his entire force to some one Of the newer
slaveholding States; in fact, several of these
latter have received the largest accession to
their slave population in that way. Individ-
ual slaves, too, are frequently sold and sent
South, in punishment for contumacy or some
offence they may have committed. But this
is merely species of transportation, similar
10 that recognised by British law in punish
ment of a certain class of crimes. The ag'
gregate of all these cases would make but
triiing number The following results, re-
lating to this subject, have been compiled
from the Census Compendium.
The total increase per cent. in the popula-
tion of Maryland for the decennial period end
ing in 1850 was "a 04, Of slaves q; the increase
in Virginia for the same period was IA IS per
cent, and of slaves 52l. twill be perceived
that the increase Of whites and free blacks to-
gether has been moro rapid than that of slaves,
but it must be borne i'm mind that the white
population has received large accession from
foreign immigration, particularly in Mary.
land, and also in both States ly the settle
ment CT colonies from tho North, and with
regard to free blacks by emancipation. The
slave population, on the contrary, has received
no appreciable augmentation from abroad,
and it is indebted for its increase aim ,st en-.
tirely to its own prOductiveness. Since this
is the case, very large proportion Of it could
and that the increase has not kept pace with
that Of the whites is owing to the causes men,
toned above, and also to the fact that q
family Of whites, consisting of four or Eve
persons, in removing to another State, may
take and frequently does so take, from 20 to
leo or even 200 slaves. OF course, under
these circumstances, the ratio Of the homo
slave population cannot increase at the same
rate as that of the whites. That there is a
large emigration of whites from Virginia and
Maryland is shown by the Census Report
from which it appears that of tho former
State nearly one-half of its natives reside
without its limits, and of the latter about one
third. This is greater proportion of their
natives settled abroad than Of any of the
Northern States, with the exceI ton of Con.
necticut and Vermont, which have about an
equal proportion. Unless it be said that tho
poorer classes alone have emigrated, which
we know not to be true, this statement proves
that not the slaves only have been deported,
but the whites, their owners, have removed
at the same time and established new homes
in other slaveholdiDg States. Tho Same re-
port shows that the Southwestern States have
been chiefly thus populated.
These facts, it seems to us, effectually dis
pose Of the charge that slaves are reared like
"other products" for the special purpose of
expectation. 1t is true that, for the ten years
ending in 1910, there was decrease in the
slave population in Maryland Of IL 81 per
nj ~ A N
that was period of unusual activity of emf
grafton, and the fact that the total increase of
population in the former, for the same period,
was only 8. IA per cent and of white popuIa-
ton 9.3 per cent and in the latter but 2 "a
and Of white population Z, proves concIu-
sively that this emigration was not exclusively
black.
Presidential Election.-The New York pa
pers contain a card, addressed to the inspec-
tors of elections, telegraphic operators, and
newspaper editors and reporters throughout
the Union; the object being to enable the
press to announce the result the morning after
the election, even if the contest shall be a
close one.
The plan is feasible and simple it is for
the inspectors Of election throughout the United
States to aid the telegraphic operators, and for
the Geographic operators to aid the editors in
every town, village and city, and for the edi
tors and reporters to aid one another. This
can be done by combining their labors on the
night Of the election to the Presidential cote
Alone"
We want the fact, not mere rumors or
guesses partaking of the political bias of the
persons transmitting the intelligence. The
result Of the Presidential contest first obtain.
ed, the people will be content to wait for a
day or more for the truth in the matter of the
other contests to be decided at the polls on the
fourth Of November.
The Presidents Visit North.-It is under