The Ashland union. [volume] (Ashland, Ashland County, Ohio) 1854-1868, 1858-06-23
Important Departmental decis-

44lPO4 tdLJ oCPaA b4ASAec
ion.
The subjoiue1 Letter of the Hon.
HOWELL CoBB, Secretary of the Treas
ury, to the Collector of the Customs at
Charleston, South Carolina, forbidding
him to grant a clearance to q vessel Tor
: the coast of Africa, for the purpose OF
{ taking on board African emigrnnts, IN
{ accordance with the United States pas
: sepger laws, and returning with the
same to O port in the United States" is
a document which will not only com
mand the attention, but the approval of
the great body of the American people.
Mr.. COBB ~recites the laws on the sub
ject of the importation of negroes for
any purpose whatever, and interprets
with clearness both the letter and spirit
OF these laws. He correctly u
that public opinion in almost every part
of the United States favors a diminu-
ton rather than an increase of the free
negro population.
Two of the Charleston papers before
US admit the strength of the Secretary's
argument, whilst one of them doubts his
pow err, as the law is silent as to emf
grants. The Me' cury thinks The Secre-
tary and Collector are bound to admin
lister tho laws as they are, and that
there arc ample means for their vindi-
cation if violated. But the Mercury
adds:
1.-THE whole letter shows what we have
recently asserted, that to reopen the At
rican slave trade, land the apprentice
system is that trade, only under another
name,) whether wise or not, is impraeti-
cable in the Union. Even if the law OF
| 1908 did not exist the Northern Repre-
sentatives in Congress would pass laws
e~ffectually to prohibit the re-openlng OF
this trade in any form Whatever On
this account we have deprecated the ag-
~itation of the subject, as tending only
to divide the S,uth without the posi-
bility of having any practical existence
whilst the Union continues"
The Evening News attributes the ap'
p~lication of Messrs. LATTE & Co., who
applied for this clearance, to a desire "tc
test, probably for others, certain sup
posed doubtful questions on the impor
tation of negroes from Africa" and says
ave not only regard the Secretary
letter as conclusive on every base anc
point of the question involved, aud tina
it is the only proper and statesmanllk'
r spouse to the application which IN
Administration could give, but looking
at the case as on as face an effort to Ell
ter upon the Importation of wild ane
savage Africans, never mind IN wha
character or for what purpose, into Thu
country, we deprecate aud condemn 1t a
large, and denouDce it as unworthy o
those gentleman a d disrespectful to thi
community"
After pointing out the impoliey aE'
improperly of this apparent effort Il
evade the laws, the News adds, wit
emphasis, its decided condemnation
"Tte Secretary's letter clearly show;
that the la VS. of Congress, both in lette
and spirit, prohibit an Importation 70
these purposes as slaves or apprentices
to any part of the United States. Doe
it become Southern citizens to uudertak
or ~couutenance clandestino violations o
the laws of the land ? These laws ar
not alone Federal enactment; they arr
also the avs of South Carolina by he
own legislation. Her act of 1885 pro
vides that it shall 10. be lawful for an,
free negro or person of color to migrat
into this State, or be brought or intro
duced into its limits, under auy pretcx
whatever, by land or by water" Tn
enactment is general os to all the Afri
can uneDsfaved race from any partof th
world. Does it become CaroliniaOs, an
the comfy of the State with the other:
to violate the spirit of this law, and t
attempt to introduce such interdicte.
narsoro into othar States Or tn brln
them through other states into this?"
The Courier publishes the letter with
out eomment-NdtionaL InteUtgencer.