The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1858-12-30
NO REMEDY FOR THE SLAVE TRADE.

Tie Washington Union expresses strong dis
APPRECIATION ofthc conduct the South Carolina
Grand Jury, which refused to find bills of in.
dictmemt against the officers and crew of the
SLAYER Echo and reprobates the act of the
Wanderer in landing a cargo of slaves ON the
coast of Georgia. But it pronounces the case
be, ond the reach Of the Federal arm. Our
Federal Government is pronounced failure /;
and unless the States themselves or public
opinion take hold of the mater, there is no
remedy. The Cnton is explicit on these points.
1t says
A" 1t is highly probable that a cargo OF slaves
have been landed in one of the States Of the
Union. We are III possession Of no specific
information on the subject there are, never
theleSs many reasons to believe that the ques-
non has assumed a practical shape and per
haps it should be sotreated by the public. In
the case of the Echo, and the proceedings of
the tribunals thereon, candor compels MS to
admit that our institutions have failed The
laws have not been executed as they ought to
have been. and, as we believe, nnetenths and
more Of the American people desire they should
be- We say, therefore, that our institutions i'm the
case referred to have failed. They have failed
to the extent of screening, instead of furnishing,
offenders This is clearly IA miSiorune-a
great, radical fundamental, misfortune, Every
one at all cOnversant with the structure Of our
system knows that the punishment of crime is
mainly ntrusted to jurics, to be drawn from
the people If the community of the place re-
fuse to enforce penal laws, we see no adequate
remedy therefor, nor can we call it anything
else than n failure OF our institutions, The
evil, we repeat. is FUNDAMENTAL, because it is
acknowledged to be without remedy, in this.
that it prevails in opposition 10 the majority of
the American people. Assuming that the
Wanderer, as reported, has landeda cargo of
slaves in one of the ports Of Georgia, and that
the captives are being distributed and sold
thrut ghout that State, We have n right to infer
that III is in accordance with public opinion. II
the people Of Georgia are OPPOSED 10 the slave
trade and to the recognition Of slave property,
on such tenure, we take 1T to be the clearcst
thing in the world that they will punish the Of
| tenders, and if their statutes are defective,
enact others, by which all parties acting with
knowledge of the facts. shah be held to proper
account. 1t is hardly fair TO suppose that the
laws of Georgia have been framed to meet The
contingency to which we allude. The Federal
| tribunals have undoubted jurisdiction of the
original Offenders but they stand a poor
chance of honestly executing the laws in a
community who hot only wink at the crime
| committed, but Voluntarily and knowingly aid
the criminals in rendering their unlawful
schemes profitable and safe" :; I'll
the people of Georgia are determined to import
slaves and TO make slaves, the Federal nuth0ri
ties will be- confined, in their efforts to suppress
| the traffic wholly to the high seas, where THEN
jurisdiction is complete"
If people in the free States openly or secret
ly assist fugitive slave to escape from his
master, or attempt 10 wrest hila ont of the hands
of the Marshal, all the powers of the Federal
Governlnent are brought into requisition in
order to put down de daring outrage of Higher
lawisnl. In the case Of Anthony Burns, the
Unitel States troops were sent to Boston, and
the cost of returning that one chate to hi.
master was some forty thousand dollars. The
Federal Government is never pronounced
ppwerless in such cases but if cargo of AT
risans are brought to the country to be en-
shaved, in violation Of our laws which pronounce
the act piracy, it il only a thing to be depre
Gated, but for which there is no remedy.
H We are plumply told by the official organ
that az the people Of Georgia are determined
b import siores and TO make sldres, the FEEDER
authorities '7iH be confined, ia their efforts &
SippyrSsa the traffic, Thoiiy 10 the high seas
schere their Jurisdiction is complete"
I We.should like to know what has become o
the hdbeas co,poS that it cannot be used for tn
release of these new-made slaves from thei
Ts-4tical claimants? 1t may be. said, wit
o,..h, that there is no remedy for the finding
Of perjured grand jurors but the renunciatio
# the habeos corpus is a most uncalledfor &C
of self-denial on the part of the Administration
h is the duty Of the Federal Executive, by il
agents, to bring every imported African befor
the District Judges and Commissioners, unde
the haJeas corpus process. They cannot evad
this without high dereliction of duty; an
, the American people viii hold the Admnistra
ton as more culpable than the grand jurors i
the Echo case, if they neglect to see the right
Of these ignorant and helpless savages Wind
|, Gated.