The Westerly echo, & Pawcatuck advertiser. [volume] (Westerly, R.I.) 1854-1858, 1857-03-12
Che mesterIp Gfbo,
AND
Pawo atwok Advertiser.
Westerly, March ~, 1857.


Taney Of the Supreme Court of the Uni
ted States-the highest tribunal in the
land-after protracted argument and
grave consideration rendered an elabor-
ate decision (Which bad been arrived at
by a majority of that body) on this i'm
portant case, declaring the +" Missouri
Compromise" unconstitutional. The
following points were promulgated by
him, as the decision Of that body
lst. Negroes, whether slave or free,
are not citizens under the Constitution.
I'd. The ordinance of 1887 had no
Independent constitutional force, and
could not confer freedom or citizenship
on negroes.
Sd. The Missouri Compromise, in
so far as it undertook to exclude slavery
from the Northern part Of the Louisiana
cession, or to give citizenship to negroes
there, was an act beyond the powers Of
Congress, ss,-yoid and Of no legal effect.
These were the main points decided.
The following incidental points were al
so detcrmined:-
lst. The expression " territory and
other property" Of the Union, 10 the
Constitution, applies only to territory be-
longing to the Union at the time when
the constitution was adopted.
I'd. The rights of citizens of the Uni
ted States emigrating into any federal
territory, and the power Of the federal
government there, depend on the gener-
al provisions Of the constitution, which
defined 10 this, as in all other respects,
the powers Of Congress.
Sd. AS congress does not possess
power itself to make enactments rela-
tive to the persons or property Of citi-
zens of the United States in o federal
territory, other than such as the consti-
tuition confers, 80 it cannot constitution
ally delegate any such powers to terri
torial government, organized by it under
the constitution.
4th, The legal condition of slave in
the State of Missouri is not affected by
the temporary sojourn of such slave in
any other State. but on his return his
condition still depends on the laws OF
Missouri. As the plaintiff was not a cit
izen of Missouri, he therefore could not
sue in the courts of the United States.
The suit must be dismissed for want Of
jurisdiction.
The main features ofthe case, in brief,
are Some years since, DR.. Emerson,
Of the U. S. army, removed from Mis-
souri, to Rock Island, III. taking With
him his slave, Dred Scott, where be re-
NAMED two years. He then resided at
Fort Smelling, then in Iowa territory,
where Dred was married to slave wo-
man owned by Major Taliaferro, by
which woman Dred had two children.
Subsequently the parties returned to
Missouri where tho slaves we're sold to
a MIR. Sanford, against whom a suit was
brought for their freedom on the ground
that Dred was voluntarily carried into q
State whose laws prohibited slavery,
aud atthe woman was, entitled to free.
dom because her master had carried her
into territory north Of SO 80 degrees
which was made free territory by the
compromise Of 1920. The case was ar
gued in Missouri, and was decided in
favor of Sanford. 1t was then carried
up to the Supreme Court where it was
argued at tho last term, aud continued
to the present tor the judgment of the
full bench.