Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1858-04-03
FROM the Philadepbs Flowing Fountain.
DEPARTURE OE JUDGE KANE.


late; but that event has tranSpired SO near the
publication of our journal, and the manner in
] which the public press generally have spoken oi
him. merits passing notice from us. We are not
one OF those who praise man after he leaves this
4 world, when his acts, by which he became dstin.
gushed are anything bu. praiseworthy, or exem.
pary. We do not deny but Judge Kane had
merits, but as rublic official Of the United States
government. they were few and far between
Every public and distinguished individual
acts as man and functionary should be held
! up to the public, and il his faults overbaanced
his virtues, the sooner he sinks into the tomb o
oblivion the better
If an individual does nothing in his lifetime
that is manly, noble and great-tha. will make
his name an honor to be lsped Ivy many genera
tions after him, surely then, il is rot houest to
ascribe them 10 him after he is dad. But such
Is too often the case, and such has been tho case
in the departure Of Judge Kane. To illustrate
I our ideas Of how such men ought to be treated,
We know of no better subject 10 begin with than
the name that heads this article.
! lie is Represented By District Attorney Vandyke
as possessing distinguished merits" personally
and Judciaily, as pure, frank and generous
man, and as IL profound, upright, and independent
man, possessing genius and uttainments which
have adorned this bench for long period : and
also bequeathing to the legal profession IA life of
private virtue and public usefulness" And
Judge Griers Testimony Of respect to his mem.
ory' IL scarcely less laudatory. and thinks him
in an ''eminent degree" qualified as ian ornament
~ this bench" Are these things said of Judge
Kane true, are they false If they are true.
then judge Kane is one of the purest, best and
noblest men that ever have eracee the political
annals ot American history. Can anything more
be said of Washington. Jefferson, the Adamses,
Franklin, and Summer, Hale, Seward and Gid
dings, OF our own day, than that they werL and
are men "pnre, frank and generous profound,
upripht and indenendent2 Could a n thin,y n,u
be said of them than that they possessed genius in
eminent degree" which qualified them for
becoming IAN ornament" TO the bench or their
country? Now all these things have been said Of
Judge Kane and every intelligent man and
woman in the country, who knows anything about
the matter, knows that there is just about as much
difference between Judge Kane and the men
above mentioned as regards their moral honesty,
and the nober qualities that make man really
man, ~ there is between Sumner aad the late
Brooks. Justice must place Kane with the
latter rather than the former. What object can
Vandyke and Grier have in representing their
deceased brother in the law, as possessing quail.
ties that every intelligent individual knows he did
not possess? They must either be steered in the
Slave loving Democracy, or they are obituary ial'
s6ers. Because Judge Kane died while ne held
in the District Court OF the United State. is
reason why he should be loaded with virtues
that cnn only be given to the best men that have
had anything TO do with the government. Bur
this is n fair specimen of dishonest practice, that
is too pnrular--that Of making all dead men who
have helt pubiic stations paragons for imitation.
polltcal SAINTS the calender is entirely too full
row.
FIR man 10 he pure. frank, projound, upright
and independent" it requires him TO perform mahy
noble acts, MS he passes through the journey VI
this sphere OF existence.
Let us look into the Judges history little fur
thsr. lie came from q ric1 and aristocratic fami
ly, and hi> lie had been spent socially and pulit
icay, among society pro slavery in feeling
though born, educated AMI having life long resi-
dence in northern city, yet in reality he was
southern man. lie graduated at Yale College,
studied law, and was admitted to the Philadelphia
bar before the arrival of his twenty third year.
lie early mingled with politicians, was easily
moulded into the required shape, and became
something of q favorite among high official dig
nitaries for we find that General jackson appoint
ed him Commissioner under the French SpoliatiOn
Treaty, and he made Attorney General of
Pennsy sylvania by Skunk, while still quite young
man.
lie is said to have been polite, sociable, agreoa
BILE. and well versed in Bellies Lettres All this is
no doubt true, but the same thing may be truth.
fully said Of Arnold. Burr, Brooks, the Congress
si'nal and judicial gentry generally. Men inay
have all these without their being pure, profound
generous, upright and independent" We have
no doubt but he was pleasant and mpaniona
BILE member of the bar. agreeable in his family
and among his friends. and an honorary member
Of many societies. But his political morals were
an outrage upon justice. and both upon white and
colored humanity. His notorety outside of Penn.
sylvana has been acquired by the worst kind of
political huckstering. lie first become somewhat
famous in 1874 by the publication of his Tariff
letter, commonly known as the 'Kane letter." in
which he represented james X. Polk as good n
Tariff man Henry Clay; and many acts since
that day have clearly developed the fact of his
r Of
esty, and clearly demonstrated the most notorious
feature in his celebrity, namely tina. he was an
eminent SLAVE CATCHER The author of the Kane
letter rewarded by President Polk with seat
n the Circuit Court of the United States in which
position he bee me eminent in the business OF
slave catching lie has now passed away, leaving
behind public record that is disgraceful to any
man who is claimed to be pure" and upright "
Since the passage of the Fugitive Slave Law,
one of the most infamous that ever dIsgraced the
statute books of a nation claiming to be enlight
ened. the government has not had II more faithful
executor OF the provisions of this law. than Judge
Kane they no doubt have as good, Lut none Bet
ter lie can he credited with but one instance in
which his decision was against the stakeholder.
If one mean act can be said to be meaner than
another, perhaps there j. no in which he more
exhibited his ttleness Of soul than in the one of
Hannah DiIlam, when he remanded back to
slavery this poor woman and her-litte son. and
VINO, IN defiance nf law, precedent. aud the COM
monest principles of justice refused to allow her
to remain "A few weeks, that she might bequeath
to freedom the little one she then expected 10
give birth TO though she had been in the State two
years or more
His inhuman imprisonment of Passmore Will
hanson for over three months is well known 10
the public as oIe Of his most iufamously "emi-
nent" deeds.
He. true to tho bidding of his masters. was
much interested in the Christiana riot cases and
succeeded in getting the Grand Jury to imprison
iianway and others for being on the side Of hu.
manity. as traitors to their country.
To do justice to ones sense of high moral obi.
CATION, requires him to be traitor to every law
OF his country, that violates the rights of humani-
~ as does the Fugitive Slave Law. But thous-
ands will ask what was the Judge to do. or wba, |
could he do. as judicial officer under the Federal
goyernmsnt' Did he not discharge faithfully the