Western Reserve chronicle. [volume] (Warren, Ohio) 1855-1921, 1857-04-22


ported. Such too. was the case witt
Mr.. Adams Indeed, so unyieldinl
were his views and so publicly wer
| they known. that on his way to Congress
he vas met in New Jersey by delegs
ton from the ''sons of liberty" of Penn
sylvsnia. and advised by them to max
no movement in favor Of independence
himself but to GET SOME SOUTHERN MAI
TO DO 1T. He had boldly asserted th'
rights of the s.INHkBIrAKrs of the colon
les" ia the declaration of 1874. and tha
document had been discussed aud exam
ined throughout the country and approx
ed BY The people; and no man expected
he would recedr from the doctrines
therein expressed. Mr.. jefferson had
also attained eelebriety as an accom-
plished scholar and writer: For these
reasons Mr. Adams insisted that he
should draw ap the Declaration of Inde.
pendence, tf3
Previously to this Lord Dunmore had
induced m a0y southern slaves 10 entel
the British feet and army: and while
this subject Of declaring independence
was under consideration, some of these
color-d seamen we've captured by one oi
our privateers and tskea into Boston
where they were advertised for sale
But the colonial Legislature recognizing
them as men. holding the same rights as
white men. prohibited the sale, and or
dered them l., be treated in the same
manner as other prisoners Of war. Al
the same time Congress itself was en-
gagged in plan for eplisting a regiment
of slaves for the continental service
These public acts show that public sen
timenr demanded the re assertion of the
doctrines avowed in I774
When Mr.. Jefferson had completed
the original draft, he submitted ii TO Mr.,
Adams, as member of the sub connie
tee. Mr.. Adams declared he was "weil
pleased with il" He merely proposed
one verbal amendment. II was then re
ported to The committee of Ave. DIR.
Franklin who was a member If The com
mitlee, was regarded >ss exercising
greater concentration Of thought and pre-
cision Of expression. than any. other man
in Amerisx. The declaration came un
der the ordeal of bis scrutiny. He and
his fellow members well understood that
they were speaking tothe civilized world;
that their language would be examined
in oiher~counuies aud in coming ages,
and they must have brought sIltheir IN
;slligence and RiIheir powers of thought
70 bear upun the subjecs Dr.. Franklin
suggested four verbal amendments, each
calculated 10 improve the force with
which the i,less were expressed; but not
ene of them proposed change or mod
i6caiion of he doctrines avowed. Ii
was then reported to the fifiy-seven rep
resentasiyes composing The Congress
These representatives. had come from
each of the colonies. They knew the
sentiments of their people. They were
all men distinsui he'd for their learning,
integrity and love Of liberty. While the
declaration WAS under their examination,
other verbal amendments were made
Some redundancy of ideas and of Ian
guaee was stricken out; but no amend
msni was made or offered, in regard to
the great primal truths which were eDun-
ciated These had been already settled
in the popular mind Of tie nation. They
had been substantially avowed twenty.
five years previously by the Quakers of
England. and 10y those Of the northern
colonies, when they emaucipsted their
slaves in 1851. They had been de-
clared in their published address of1763:
They had been confirmed by the highest
courts of England and Scotland: They
were avowed by OILS, by John Adams.
by Hamilton. by Franklin, by Jefferson.
by Paine, by public conventions of the
people and Of the colonies. and proclaim
ed bY the Congress of f774. and approved
by the nation. On these doctrines the
wal. had been com nenced ard battles
fought, aud Rot a member of that convo
ca,;On of patriots and sages, denied or
doubted the perfect adaptation of the
Language and TO express The ideas in
tended. They regarded the principles
so obviously just that they declared
them .self-evident" No use of Ian
guage. no form of expression could have
been characterized with greater precision
than that which proclaims "aH men to
be endowed by their Creator with GER
tain inalienable rights: That among
these are life, liberty and the pursuit Of
happiness"
You admit The doctrine: you admit the
language 10 embrace the whoIe hum IN
family: but you deny that they intend 10
enunciate trut sIhus warm and glowing
from the bosom Of God: You assume
that they intended what they did not ex
press You say that the black man had
no rights phick vhle men mere bound to-
/" % this assumption in plan and
direct opposition 10 the record. TO history.
tradition and facts, you base your decis-
ion, and insist that the government was
founded upon the piratical doctrine, that
black men had no rights which white
men were bound to respect.
And the democratic party in all
branches Of the government, are endesy-
oring to establish this new doctrine. to
revolutionize our government, and rem
der it destructive Of the principles which
il was intended TO establish.
Very respectfully.
J. r. GIDDINGS.
AMEncAE Iron MAEuFAcTuRE-The
Iron interest OF Pennsylvania in 1855 is