Cleveland morning leader. [volume] (Cleveland [Ohio]) 1854-1865, 1858-09-01
s,,,.r,, ,,,,, a2o Afr,cau. Captured.


The capture was made by the Dolphin, Lieut.
dsffit, commanding, on the northern coast of
yuba, on the 2lst Of August. The morning of
hat day a suspicious sail was discovered ahead,
aiIing the same course with the Dolphin. The
account says:
The unknown vessel Outsailed the Dolphin |
while going free, and toward evening he hauled |
bis wind and showed by other maneuvering his
wish 10 escape from the special attention OF the
vessel in chase Of him, though as yet she had
shown no eolors. Immediately on observing
this movement the Dolphin tackled and stood on
in chase Of the escaping vessel, which now pack
ed on all sail The Dolphin then hOisted Eng
lish colors, and fred a blank cartridge; but no
attention whatever was paid to it by the esea-
ming vessel. Itwas now about the middle OF
the afternoon, and it was apparent that she
would escape under cover of the approaching
darkness unless brought to at once. At A. Z.
NJ. another gun was fired, which being unnO-
ticed in half an hour afterwards a shot was
thrown across her bows, when the suspected
vessel hOisted the American ensign at her peak
She still refused to heave-to, however, but
made every effort TO avoid being overhauled--
Capt. Maffit then gave the order to fire shot at
her bulI which struck the fore-Tlgglng and
passed over the brig This had the desired ef-
feet. the vessel hove to, and hauled down her
eolors. Lieut. j. NJ Bradford, with crew of
marines, then went on board and found the brig
to be from the Congo River, with three hundred
and twenty slaves on board. The crew were
Immediately placed below and confined, and the
vessel was taken in charge by First Lieutenant
Bradford and Second LieutenIEt Chas. Z. Car
penter, and sixteen men. On the same day they
IL frh,-logfar, rruAar orders
Of the commander of the Dolphin, which has
arrived here. The captain of the SLAYER was
taken on board the Dolphin, which will sail from
here tomorrow for Boston. The name OF the
brig was formerly Putnam, but had been changed
to Echo, which was painted out The captain
is an Eastern man, and refused to make any
statements.
The cargo of Africans was taken to the slave
port OF Charleston, landed at Fort Pinekney, and
placed in custody of the United States Marshal
The future disposition of the blacks becomes a
matter of interest The N. Y. Times remarks;
Had Captain Mafit left the slaver-captain for
trial at Charleston. and carried the slaves to
Boston, he would have proceeded with better
Judgment What with her State's-Rights doc
trines, and her laws imprisoning and selling
free negroes brought within State limits, it will
be marvel if these poor wTetches do not hnd
that Slavery in South Carolina which they so
narrowly escaped in Cuba. A half-milliOn dol
lars worth of labor thus brought 10 the com
munity; an army OF barbarians and pagans thus
drawn within the scope of civilization and a
comprehensive Christianity; not turned loose,
as they might be at the North, helpless, un-
taught, untitled for liberty, hut subjected to a
wholesome and pIotracted discipline, educating
them and their pOsterity for freedom, If they
happen to come by il hereafter these advanta-
ges viii impress themselves so deeply upon the
conscience of South Carolina that there is dam
ger it will never let this colored Israel GO
Should the Federal Government contest the
matter, which it is not likely to do, there can
be no parity in the controversy. Possession
will be on the side of the Carolinians; and the
negroes will not be forthcoming Altogether,
the case is an important, interesting, and enter
tanning one. We shall obtain from it, before
we get through, new lights upon our foreign
and domestic relations.
The Tribune thus comments:
There can be little doubt that this capture will
lead to some curious and complicated legal pro-
ceedings, more especially as the captured YES
sci, with the Africans on board, has put into
Charleston, thus affording the captured slave
traders a very favorable venue, to borrow a term
from the lawyers, for any proceedings which
they may be advised TO institute. They will
probably set up that the vessel, however Ori
ginally American, had become Spanish, or at
least had ceased to be American, by being sold
to foreign owners; and as an offset TO the libel
which the captOrs will file in the United States
Court, the master and man, repudiating their
claims 10 American citizenship, 10 which, likely
enough, their pretensiOns are but slight, will
institute proceedings in the State Courts TO re
cover their own liberty and re-pOssessiOn of the
vessel, on the ground that they, being Spanish,
or at least not American citizens, and the YES
sci not an American vessel, the commander of
the Dolphin committed hlgrant violation of
the liberty of the seas, and the independence of
nations, as recently vindicated by MIR. Secretary
Cass, in Presuming tODcapture the vessel and
imprisOn the crew. The mere circumstance that
they hoisted the American flag Is in itself alone
entirely insufficient to justify the capture
That, they may say, was a mere ruse-an Off
set to the stratlgem of the Dolphin IN hosting
English colors, aud no more bringing the YES
sci, her cargo and crew, within the scope of
American authority than the DOlphIn's English
colors made her an English vessel Even
should the vessel be held to be American,
the crew must also be proved to be citizens of
the United States before they can be punished
We would insure the escape Of the officers and
crew Of the captured SLAYER from any Of the
criminal penalties of our laws against the slave
trade for a much smaller premium than we
would be willing to take to guarantee the cap
tain OF the Dolphin against being cast in DANA
ges by the South Carolina courts for Presuming
to make the capture.
Under the act of 1919, the captOrs will be en-
titled, provided the capture should be held law
r 1 l. Il L E -,
money At the rate Of S25 head for each Afri-
can on board; and by the same act the Presi-
dent has authority to cause the liberated ne
groes TO be removed beyond the limits Of the
United States, and to appoint agents on the
Coast of Africa for their reception. This was
an Improvement on the original act prohibiting
the slave trade, which left 10 the States into
which the negroes happened to be brought the
disposition Of them, with power to sell them at
auction or otherwise, Ike other forfeited goods
"a course which, in several instances previous
" to the law Of 1919, was actually resOrted 10
in the States Of Georgia and Louisiana. We can
tieipate, however, a struggle over these Afri-
cans even more remarkable than that which
took place in the case of the Amistad negroes.
1t will be al excellent opportunity for the ad-
vocates Of the revival Of the slave trade, which
they will hardly fail to improve 10 test the CON
sututlonallly oi the acts OF congress uy WHICH
that traffic is prohibited; and should no person
venture to step forward as the claimant Of the
negroes, or should they be declared free by the
United States Courts, there may likely enough
be an attempt made to retain them in the State,
by selling them at auction under the State law
prohibiting free negroes from coming into South
Carolina. On the whole, vE shall watch the
further proceedings in this case with no small
degree Of interest.
L.. TT. Ia. .I.n pInir.