The weekly hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington, Iowa) 1858-1860, 1858-05-11
Sad Fortune OF a wife.


recent decision OF the Court OF appeals O
Kentucky gives melancholy example Of lega
and judicial cruelty toward an unoifending anc
helpless woman. We give the case in the calm
clear statement in which it was submitted tc
the Court by her counsel, Allen A. Burton, ESQ
II is as follows:-
Stephen Tyler, who is negro, and who was
born slave, was emancipated by his master in
1913, and has since that time been freeman
For many years previous to his e ancipation
he cohabited with, and was the husband lso far
as by the laws of kentucky, the place Of their
residence, and nativity, he could be husband, !
OF nesress slave, named Cynthia, who belong.
ed to one Taylor. Joseph Kyler, the former
master of Stephen, who was old and bachelor,
being desrous of securing Cynthia to Stephen
as wife, purchased her of Taylor, but could
not, under the Kentucky Constitution of 1850,
and an Act of the Legislature passed in pursu-
ance thereof, emancipate her without emigratin g
from the State, which was not the case when
Stephen was freed As the most practicable
method of effecting his wishes, and under the
advice of his LAWYER, he, in 1858, conveyed her
to Stephen, without any valuable consideration.
The conveyance was absolute on its face, but
tie object and understanding Of all the parties
was not to invest Stephen with title to Cynthia
as property, SO as to make her liable for his
debts, or so as to enable him to sell her, or ex-
ercise any power or control over her other than
a husband; and he has at no time exercised or
claimed any other right or power Prior to
this, in ls49 one George W. Dunlap had re-
covered two judgments against Stephen, and in
1857 had writs of fieri facIas issued thereon,
and levied, by an officer, on Cynthia, as the
property of Stephen, and was proceeding to
sell her IS slave for their satisfaction. To
prevent this, the action was brought by Stephen
and Cynthia against Dunlop and the officer, by
which they sought to have her declared the
wife, and moi the property, OF Stephen,
and consequently not liable to be sold as a slave
to pay his debts. The Circuit Court, however,
decided that she was property slave, and
denied the prayer of the petition. From this
Judgment Stephen and Cynthia have appealed,
and contend that it ought to be reversed.
The case was very ably argued in behalf of
the applicants, but the Court of Appeals, the
highest Judicial power in Kentucky, affirmed
the decision of the General Circuit Court, and
ordered Cynthia to be sold! Thus the benevo-
lent intentions Of Kyler, the old master of Ste
phen, were frustrated by . legal code which is
liable at any time to plunge the negro. whether
slave or free, into misery, without redress
Thus the tenderest sympathies of our nature
are outraged, and the sacred ordinance of mar
riage trampled under foot. A horse or a COW
belonging to Stephen could not have been sold
for debt, for the law exempts such chattels of .
poor man from seizure. But his wife-whom
the law would only permit him to possess as
Iomnay his siaye-is now seized under that
same law as property, and is ordered to be sold
for debt contracted by her husband four
years before the law permitted him in any
sense to possess Cynthia as his wife, This is a
recent decision in Kentucky, putting into prac-
tiee that monstrous position OF Chief Justice
Taney that negroes have no rights which We
are bound to respect"