Staunton vindicator and general advertiser. (Staunton, Augusta County, Va.) 1858-1860, 1858-08-07
From the London Times, July IS.
More about the Slave Trade

ted in their good opinion OF themselves, anc
have an opportunity Of showing the strength
Of their own principles in the general decay
Of political morality. For this purpose il
is necessary to take something thoroughly
worthless, or dangerous, Or corrupt-some
thing that honest men regard with con
tempt, and prudent men with Horror, and
adorn it with pleasing illusions The sad
reality thus treated last night, was the Al
rican and West India Squadron, kept up at
so much cost Of life and money, getting US
into all kinds Of rows, certain, if i only
lasts, to let Us in fer terrible war, and,
meanwhile, almost wholly Intellectual
worse than Intellectual aggravatlng the
very evil it was intended to cure The IL
fusion is, that the maintenance Of number
Of ships on both sides Of the Atlantic, filed
with people anxious to distinguish them
selves, at any cost to their country, really
keeps down the Slave Trade, and promotes
the cause Of humanity This shadow had
its advocates last night in those who may
believe it, .or ought we know, and II those
who could not conveniently give it up. MI
Gard well took the general cause of humanl-
ty ; Mr.. Fitzgerald and Sir j. Pakington
gave those comfortable assurances which
public fahction.ries are good for nothing if
they cannot supply while Mr.. HUT, Mr.
Miner Gibson, and Mr.. Roebuck TOOK that
matter fact view of the question, which
consists in counting lives against lives, and
weighing consequences against consequen-
ICES. On the side Of. philanthropy We are
assured that we are still maintaining grand
principle. that we are still securing and
cleaning the seas, that we are still the friend
of the Negro, that we still enhance the value
Of tho article that we still Inconvenience the
planters Of Cuba, and that incidentally We
are laying the foundation Of a magnificent
commerce with Africs. Such are The old
styles and titles of this venerable cause, as
high sounding as those which proclaim that
The Emperor Of China is Brother of the
Sun, and the King Of Delhi the asylum Of
the earth, or as those which simultaneously
claim for several Italian Princes the king
doms of Jerusalem and Cyprus. The anti
slavery cause announces lts pretenslons and
achievements as the poor gentleman who,
on being introduced to Lunacy Commits
sion, informs them that he is the Duke OF
Normandy, that he has inst conquered the
British Isles, and is on the point of acIulr-
ing Burgundy, Picardy. and the other pro-
vinces of France.
Had we nothing to do but to make q speech
il Parliament once in five years, or at Elk
eter hall when the spirit moved us, we should
lind no great difficulty in maintaining these
or any other pretensions. a sfand prlnci-
2ie ca Be detained upon at leisure, and
need not be confronted with every day facts.
We, however, have another vocation. We
have to deal with facts, to record them, 10
do Justice to them fully and fairly, and to
say what We think ought to be done under
existing circumstances. When we find that
in spite of double Gordon of ships, one on
each side of the Atlantic, some 30, 600 ne
groes are annually poured into Cuba, that
these 30, 0OO are conveyed across the At
lantic with frightful suffering, and that
third Of that humber perish miserably on the
way, We are obigod.to admit ssae failure ola
great cause, however dear to the sympaShies
or pride of The nation. When we further
find that ne are obliged 10 give ZIP ali claim
% visiting 8 ship carrying the Stripes and
Stars, or even to ask question, and when
we know that henceforth every SLAYER will
carry that flag as readily as he will take
saanaeles and otLer furniture Of his calling,
we have no choice but to declare that we
cannot honestly and consistently keep up
even the pretence Of stopping the Slave
Trade.
The thing is not done, and cannot be
done No doubt, at this moment scores of
cargoes Of Negroes are starting from Afri-
ca, with two or three American sailors on
board, with American papers and an Amer
lean flag. The captains know that there is
no American ship that will stand in their
way. They know, also, that they have only
to run up the we'll known barner, and they
are safe from tie British cruisers. If we
let them pass our squadrons are farce. Ii
ne attempt to single outa more impudont
irnpost5r here aad there from the crowd of
suspicious looking craft, Immediately all the
newspapers IA the Urion: are fall Of "Brit-
ish outrages,o tbs Houee Of Representa-
itiyes blazes away with fierce Resolution,
the Senate backs it up, and Mr.. Dallas
shortly after announces new concession OF
some sort or other. These are notorious
facts, and daily paper has to make the best
comment upon them that it can find to make
The only comment that we can make on
such state OF things is that our labor is in
vain we are not doing that which we pre-
tend to do; we fail altogether, and our at
tempts to disguise the failure draw US into
the apparent hypocrisy Of asserting prin-
ciple which we surrender to the first Power
strong enough and bold enough to set us
and our principle at open defiance.
No doubt, the surrender Of the principle
would require much more humility and com
mon sense than are to be found in any ma
ton or Legislature. The statesman who
comes forward to tell people to be humble
and wise does 60 with halter around his
neck. Lord Palmerston would rather the
t'shumble pie" was not eaten in his lifetime,
and Lord Derby would rather not be taunt-
ed with giving up that which Lord Palmer
ston had been able to sustain. Rival states.
men will goad one another to the very gates
Of destruction. But, as we have somewhat
less temptation to this sort Of folly, we will
do our duty to truth, and proclaim the mad
ness Of an Ineffective and even cowardly
course. We must also proclaim it positive
ly nlisehievous. All this time, on the pre-
tence of preventing the passage of slaves.