The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1858-06-17

rIes theksot, from any foreign kngdor :, ace,
or ouneEi, any negro, mulattc, or p,rs.a of
col-r, wT intent to hold, sell, or iispos o, ouch
nesr1, i3Alatto, or person of ealor, al ave,
or to beaeld TO seTrfce or labor
! This slnw seeks not only to proven { in
trod, ,ctfoa into the United States of sd pe from
! Aft ., but any negro, mulatto, or or N Of
col = whether introduced "a Caves, or o be
4 heIs 10 Tssrcice or labor. Whittier O, n. the
1 wise Inn If our fathers foresaw 1t that a, Jday
that fists would be made, III Ger q ret nded
app tn-.ee system, to renew 'Se sis re rade
uhdS another name, / cannrs und rte ,e to
say Shut the language of the aw wi icl they
| have let-to rs on the statute book ] "a no
dub ot5he fact that they int ided te d. vide,
I 10 tas iaost unequivocal man fer az in the
incrsass IF that class of popula on by N igra.
ton frsfa Africa: No one build tie, have
contaminated an object for wb eh Afr &c emf
grants :s2uld be brought to th count ~ ,hich
is nos .early guarded agains and o. .dden
by the sw to which am now seferrirg I 1t is
only ne,3ssary to add, that So sequel t Is on
the sub-tct contain the same angusl 9. This
view of-Ae subject ia strengths aed by e,, fence
to the NovisioEs of the act 18th e. aary,
1903, ex205) The first sect sn of tie set is
as foiioss:
"T,sJ from and after the lstt az of o, next,
any ttsr person, shall impi TT CT " =, or
Q susr tx be imported or bro ght, cry segro,
Inuls H,Tor other person of Tor, me- b.jne .
natts, citizen, OF registered &c sman G. u Uni.
ted ST. Yes, or seamen natives of cou str 8 be.
yond tL< Cape OF Good Hope, into o y srt or
place esfhe United States, wb oh POI g. place
shaR l+g situated in any Stats Whit !. law
has pr shifted, or shall prohibit, the I'd ssson
| or imp ,,ftation of such negro, uulatie, othtr
pers. n.cf color; and if any captain OF caster
aforess;d, or any other person, shall m .2rt, or
briog cr cause to be imported or br us !, into
tehe ports or places aforesaid, IN rof the
person whose admission or ipsports 10 Is pro-
hibitsd,s aforesaid, he shall forfei IA pay
the slESof $1,000 for each and e, " aegro,
mulsste, or other person of cosor, esesaid,
broaS ht or imported as sfort SAID, 3 y sued
for ID recovered, by action of de It IN any
cour ~ the United States -ote-b Ut thereof
to the .sse of the United States, the OF er half
to AMI Derson or persons prcseeuti ~ for the
pens-@<; and in any action institt ee for the
recov W Of The penalty Aforesaid tn .son or
perso ~ sued may be held to sp CT bail !:
Prop ~, ai1oys That nothing his act
shall construed to prohibit the a, mi sion of
India
It's be seen that Congress, lie act,
undeoeesk to co operate with tb ise States
which, y State legislation, had in Or, ,sed 10
proven the importation of negro ato tie
countr AT that time, the constit Tic al p1D-
hibitioa to which l have before Ht ,ed re-
straine Congress from the exercise OF ,he d.
solute Siower of prohibiting such i lI station.
The s ties, however, being under ) och b.
strains had In several instances sd. pt mess.
ures stheir owns and the act of 81. shows
the pr nptness of the General Gov n sent in
exegcr ng whatever power it poasei se in fur
theras OF the object. The lang1 n of this
act Y important In another vieFr. ct will
be OBJ, sved that its object is to Ire emit the
impor.e lion into the United Stat ahy
negro, aulatto, or other person 9, Tor, 1ot
being native, citizen, or registe ed seauAn
OF the2U nited States, or seamen n. ives of
countr 3 beyond the Cape of Good 81 9e." 1t
Is not 'nhned to slaves or negro ,und to
labor, ut contempates the exclu' 10, in the
broadt terms, of all such persons bout re.
gard & the character in which Il ey NAV be
broug 1t excludes free persons q we'll as
slaves md persons bound to labor o. service.
Inc ty limitation IN the act is, al |. is con-
fined - such persons as are preve tic BY the
laws = any of the States from bel Imported
into ,.h States.
At ,itat time, there existed laws o. some of
the S.ntes, not only prohibiting ,,e ntroduc.
ton negro slaves, but also free e., oes. In.
deed, che policy of the slaveholdip stes has
always been opposed to the increa its free
negro population and it is pr b. here to
remark, that at the present time t a policy is
more earnestly sustained in those S ;es than
at at any previous period of her bi {, /. After
this reference to the laws on the 4; .ct, it is
hardly necessary to repeat, that if II ,applica.
ton OF Messrs. LATTE & Co. cont d .stes the
introduction of negroes into the I ri d States
ffom Africa, either in the charac e. If slaves
or as apprentices bound to service or labor, it
is clearly in violation of lota th. tier and
spirit of the law, and cannot be q IN, d.
The form of the application ma e Messrs.
Lahlte Co. would seem to COZ 81 plate the
Introduction into the United State negroes
from Africa, entitled, on their ARR al TO all the
rights and privileges of .freemen. ,e propo.
sition upon its face is so absurd til {; is hardly
worthy Of serious REPUTATION. Mes e. rs6tte &
Co. ask US to believe that their vess e led out in
'the port of Charleston, s. c., is 81, 2 upon q
voyage to Africa, to bring 10 som IT in the
United States a cargo of free u or es The
port 10 which the vessel expects t. re ,rn is not
indicIed 1t cannot be the one OF which it
sails, nor any other port III the 81 ,ts of South
Carolina, as the introduction of tr, negroes
into that State is wisely prohibits ) stringent
laws land heavy penalties. 1t c. mr. i; be the
port Of anyUther slaveholding SITS e, 8 similar
laws in each of those States alike orl d it. The
reason for such laws is 30 manif st, hat do
not feel called upon either to pro ;iut the evi.
dencp of their existence, or to jus if, ne policy
which led to their adoption. 1T 8, icient to
know that the public mind oEthat sec :on of the
Union 10 not more cordially agre ID spon any
one subject, than upon the drop lei and ne.
cessity of prohibiting, as far IS D. So lie, an in.
crease OF the tree-negro popr !atio I'D hence
the laws to which / refer, prehibi i'd their i'm.
portation from any place.
Can it be that Messrs. LATTE 1 c propose
TO rejurn, with their cargoei, of IRE negroes.
to Cert in come of the non sl,veh I'D 70 States?
l an not aware of a single Staslp ere these
new .cCmers would receive t,le mt, much
less q cordial, welcome; wiailst, b. stringent
laws and constitutional provisions some Of
them. have provided for their unc0n, ional ex.
clusIn.
Looking beyond the legiSlation 7hich has
been had on che subject by the Gen, iGovern.
ment, and both the slaveholling al sthe non.
siaveholdi1g States, may 9 perns sed to re
fer, in this connection, to tn. vario, repeated
ana earnest efforts which I've bet made, in
everg section of the Union, 70 prov 70 for the
removal from our midst of this mo unfortu.
nate class. However variant II motives
which have induced these e6 orts vi different
persons, in different sections OF; Il couptrv.
they all exhibit an earnest desir. t. diminish,
rather than increase, the free-negro opulation
This public opinion, thus manifesto in every
form, is familiar to every one; aud would be
doing great injustice to the iste, ieence of
Mesrs. Laftte & Co. to suppose that yhey
alone were ignorant of it.
Where, then, do they intend Z, ;aud their
cargo CT free negroes? What IL ,e motive
winch induces the enterprise? 4 sannot be
the profits of the uopana rrha.a No G.;