Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1858-11-11
CONVENTION OF SHAREHOLDERS.


On Wednesday the Sd instant, Convention
of the Shareholders of the Eastern Shore of Ma
ryland, assembled at Cambridge. Delegates
were present from Talbot, Caroline, Dorchester,
Somerset and Worcester. The following were
the officers of the Convention -
President-W William Goldsborough, Esq.,, Df
Talbot. SAB
Vice Presidents-Curtis Jacobs, ESQ.,, of Wor-
cester and DR.. Francis p Phelps, of Dorches-
ter.
Secretaries-Wm d. Walker, ESQ.,, of Som
erset. and DR.. II. D. Grieves of Dorchester.
After speeches from F. w. Thomas, Esq,
Col. Samuel Hambleton, Hon. Jas. A. Stewart,
Elias Griswold, Esq, the Convention appointed
Charles F. Goldsborough and Elias Griswold, of
Dorchester, Col. Jacobs and DIR. T. j. T. Ham
mond, of Worcester j. S. Sudler and NJ
Walker, of Somerset Edward Hardcastle and
James E. Douglas Of Caroline COL Samuel
Hambleton and Captain F. Buchanan, of Tai
bot county, to draft Resolutions On the fol-
lowing day they reported the following
Whereas it has become manifest to the peo-
pie Of Maryland that under the existing lawso of
the State in regard to the negro population it is
impossible to control and regulate that portion
OF the community in proper manner and
Whereas it is necessary that something should
be done in view of the existence among us of
the present immense number of free negroes
their habits Of idleness and dissipation-the
heavy cost of prosecution against them for yio-
lation of our criminal laws-the evil example
and influence which they exert towards our
slave population, rendering them dissatisfied
with their condition and comparatively worth
less to their owners-their well-known tamper-
ing with slaves, and agency in inducing them to
abscond from servitude- ~.
! And whereas Maryland is, and of right ought
| to continue a saveholding State, true to the in
terests of her Southern sisters and herself
And whereas we, a portion of her citizens
wish to inaugurate system of legislation, hav-
ing for its object not only the protection Of
Shareholders, undisturbed in their right of pro-
perty, but also the better regulation of all ne
groes, bond and Free within her limits, as well
for the interests of the white citizen as for that
of the negroes themselves ...,slu
| Therefore be it Resolred, That free negreisn
and slavery are incompatible with each other
and should not be permitted longer to exist in
their present relations, side by side, within the
| limits of the State saj
ResolOed, That prompt and effective legisla-
ton upon this subject is absolutely essential to
the interests of the people,
Resolred That although this Convention has
not sufficiently considered the premises to ena-
BILE them to recommend any particular plan to
| the action of the next General Assembly, yet
they are satisfied that public sentiment is pre-
pared for and desires relief from the evils under
which we are now laboring, which relief in the
opinion of this body, can only be obtained BY a
general expression of feeling from the people Of
the State in general convention assembled.
Resolved, That in view Of the above, 1the
members of this body, citizens of the Eastern
Shore, section which has suffered more han
aBf5d H q TIE
right and proper to call upon the brethren
throughout the State, not as shareholders or as
Shareholders, but as citizens of the Com
monwealth, to meet them in general convention
in the city of Baltimore on the second Wednes-
day in June, 1859, for the purpose of devising
some system to be presented to the Legislature
of Maryland at it's next session, having for its
object the better regulation of the negro popu-
lation of this State each county and the city of
Baltimore have the same representation which
they now have in the Legislature of the State.
ResOlOed, That,a committee of seventeen per
sons be appointed by the Chair to draft an adj
dress to the people, setting forth the grievances
under which we labor in reference to the mat
ter above indicated, to be published in the news
papers in every county and the city Of Balti-
more, for considerable length of time anterior
to the period at which the State Convention is
to be held. J
The foregoing resolutions were adopted with
out any material amendment and also the fol-
lowing:
Resolued, That the vast increase of the free
negro population of Maryland, their vicious
habits their refusal to labor, their incapacity
for self government, present sufficient motives
for the call of the proposed Convention in the
city of Baltimore, and we respectfully suggest
that as many Of our citizens are fully convinced
that the state should present the alternative to
this class of population of going into slavery or
leaving the State, we, therefore, respectfully sug
gest that the citizens of the several counties,
and city of Baltimore, in selecting delegates to
said Convention, act in reference to this sngges-
ton, and the said Convention when assembled
also act upon this proposition.
The following gentlemen were appointed to
frame an address to the citizens of the State as
recommended in the report:
Dorchester county-Charles F. Goldsborough,
Elias Griswold and DR.. Francis P Phelps
Somserset county-Dr. George G. Dennis and
Hon. j. W. Crisfeld. Worcester county-Col
Jacobs, and Teagle Townsend. Caroline coun-
ty-George w. Russum and Edward Hafdcas-
tie. Talbot county-Col. Samuel Hanbeton
and M. T. Goldsborough Kent county-sJudge
E. f. Chambers and Hon. James A. Pearce.-
Cecil county-Col. John G. Groome and George
R. Howard
BYeA letter in the Planters Advocate, from
Fort Washington Neck, Prince Georges coun-
ty, Nd, says Eve anticipate starting, early
in the spring, a steamboat connecting Piscata-
way (Hatton's Landing) Creek, and Alexandria,
Va. She will run passengers and freight.