Western Reserve chronicle. [volume] (Warren, Ohio) 1855-1921, 1857-04-08

upnn various plantations IN the British
West Inaies. applied with equal force to
cH Americans. tu al slaves. TO oil men,
to all compilations. aud 10 aH races.
In 1861 j mes OILS. in lis famous ar
gument before the superior court OF
Massachusetts, boldly. el"qututiy and
ably enumerated the doctrine ef popular
rights, which had then even long been
agitated in England. In 1865 he pub
lished his defence Of the rights of he
Colonies. which for>hadowed the doc
trines announced in the Declaration of
Independence. In the same year the
society called the ''' Sons of Liberty"
was formed Their object appears 10
have been the promu gaIion Of funda-
mental truths which constituted the basis
OF popular rights. This association soon
extended over New Ens land, New York,
New jersey and Pennsylvania; and no
critical student Of the history of those
interesting times can be Ignorant. that
these "Sons of Libery." ten years sub
sequenily, guided the manner and point
ed out the lime of bringing forward The
Declar ton oi Independence.
The contest between the mother gov
ernment and The colonies became better
dt fined, and the principles on which it
was based We're better understood. The
King dared not deny the doctrine of hu
msn rights. as advocated in England
ard in the colonies Neither he nor any
minis!er of his, dared assert that "Me
black man had no right, sDaich 0hite men
psre bo,Gnd to respect " Had he asserted
such doctrine, the scaffold wuull have
been his fate. as it had heen the fate Of
Charles l., who would himself have been
shocked at the avowal of such doctrines.
The policy OF George Ill. was that of a
. masrerly inactivity He permitted
the Slave trade to continue, and en-
deavdred TO maintain the then existing
order of things -
In j nuary, l774 Alexander Hamil-
ton first distinguished himself as an ad
vocale OF liberty. He wrote vindica-
ton of popular rights: 1t was publish
ed n pamphlet form and widely circula-
ted throughout the northern Sia.es. In
that essay he declared '',be only dis.i inc
ton between Freedom and SIrvery con-
sists in this: In the former state a man
is governed bv the laws to which HE
HAS yictn ms consent either in person or
by his preventative; In III, Iauer he is
governed By another. In the me case
his lie AMI property are his own; in the
other. they depend on the rciU of master
Again he remarks, IAN men have one
common original; they participate in one
common nature. and consequently HAVE
ONE COMMON RIGHT" and then he odds, !
"No reason can be assigned why one
man should exercise any power or pre-
eminence over his fellow creatures more
than anoher, unless they hare UO'un,arily
rested Kim 10 III IT," From these funda-
mental truths he proceeds to show that
the British government had no right 10
tax the people of the Colonies unless by
their own consent.
Every reader clearly saw the princi-
pies laid down. He commences precise.
ly where the signers of tie Declaration
of Independence commenced, with the |
ri shts of all men, and then carried out
the doctrine and apr lied it TO the colonies.
The intellectual power evinced BY Ham
llton, and his devotion to these doctrines
of the universal brotherhood of the hu-
man race, induced Washington to elect
him as a member Of his military family
during the revolution. and subsequently,
TO constitute him first Secretary OF the
Treasury under the present Constitution.
The maintenance Of these doctrines
became general during the year 1774.-j
It is historical fact that in The colonies
now constituting the Slave States the en-
tire issue in its first general application
was based upon the rights of the Afri-
can race. The seizing and bringing
un"tfending people to this country and
enslaving them, was denounced by the
people in their primary meetings: The
British King and parliament were de-
nounced for their refusal 10 prohibit that
Lratfic. In Vir inia, public conventions
met In the counties OF CuIpepprr. Prince
George, Nansenmond, Caroline, Surry,
I fairfax. Harrison and Princess Ann, in
which the people resolved to discourage
The Slave trade. and pledged themselves
to purchase no slaves imported lhereaf
ter; and it should be borne in mind, that
the Father of his Country,
attended and presided over The meeting
N his own county of Fairfax. and gave
his sanction to the principles avowed by
at that time SO generally ap-
proved.
A meeting of deputies from the various
counties Of Virginia met at Williamsburg
IN Aug. LIST, I774. and pass ell resolctinns,
pledging themselves 10 buy no slaves
imported after that date. Mf Jefferson
lsas unable 10 attend ,he convention, :
bui addressed Il lrtter % il in which he I,
declared "I'hs abolition Of domestic Stare