The Tiffin weekly tribune. (Tiffin, Ohio) 1859-1868, 1859-07-29
Judge Carpenters charge ON
Kaf1umnmfmu

kidnapping.
Judge Carpenter in a recent charge "a
tho Grand Jury, In Lorain Co., instructs
them in regard to the law Of kidnapping.
We take the following from his charge:
Who, then is presumed TO be free -
Everybody, Every man, woman and child
in Ohio, Of whatever birth, descent, par.
entage, complexion or conformation, is
presumed in law to be free. Whoever
Iinterleres with this freedom Is presumed
to do il In violation Of law. Whoever is
charged with such interference must deny
the charge, or show his authority Cor the
interforcnee, OF be held guilty. II the in
tcrlerence is proved against him, the legal
presumption then Is, that he has violated
the law; and Il devolves on him TO show
his right 10 interfere.
II would not change this presumption
to show that the prisoner had been a slave
in slave State, and stop there. For,
giving 70 the Constitution Of the United
States the loosest construction, the utmost
latitude for slavery, which has ever been
given it by any authoritative decision, the
only possible case Of legal liability 20 bo
ARRESTED and returned into slavery from
within the boundary OF Ohio, Is that Of a
fugitive slave escaping outof slave State
| into Ohio.
lie must come into Ohio in the act Of
oscapiug-a fugitive, and this fugitive
character must belong 70 him at the mo-
mont he enters the confines Of Ohio, or
he leaves the status Of slave whore he
leaves the slave State. For by the docis-
ions Of all civilized nations slavery Is
against natural rights, and can exist only
by positive law. This, until very recent
/ ~, has been the authoritative doctrine Of
our slaye-holding States, az well as Of all
others. Slavery, then, being against the
law Of nature, and existing only by posi-
/ tive local law, II is clear that this positive
locol law cannot extend beyond the iurls-
dictlon Of the power which makes Il. Il
is equally clear, that the right Of this To-
cal law to hold a slave cannot 20 farther
than this law can 60 ITSELF that the slave,
having a natural right to freedom, and be-
ing held q slave only by local law which
violates that right, tho moment no Ia be-
yond the arm Of that local law, his nAtur-
al right 10 freedom, resumes is empire
| The instant, therefore, the slave, by any
means not as a fugitive; crosses our boun-
Diary, nc is baptized in the air Of freedom;
and that baptism Is irrevocable.
The law OF Kentucky cannot Of itself
reach into Ohio. The Constitution Of
the United Stat 3, according TO the con-
struction adopted by this statute, extends
the slave law Of Kentucky into Ohio, for
the sole purpose Of reception and return
IN case Of the slaves escape into Ohio,
and only ia such ease-and, that too,
with such exocut lry notifications 40 the
State Of Ohio has found II prudent to en-
act for the safeguard of It's own citizens.
But that a is admitted 20 have been a
slave yesterday in Kentucky, and is found
to-day in Ohio, raises no presumption that
he came into Ohio by an illegal escape
Whatever a man does which in himself Is
not unlawful, the law presumes him 10 do
innocently. We cannot therefore legal
ly presume, because he was yesterdeP.
slave in KeRiuekys and t9saayibin iS@e%@
even of the slave law. The legal pre-
sumption is rather that he came hero, as
lawfully he might, by consent of his mas
ter. Or, Il that presumption should be re-
butted by evidence, then the legal pre-
sumption would be, that he came here by
the act Of G od-by the winds or the waves,
in spite OF himsell--unloss there were
some evidence pointing to different COZ
sl,,siap n For. J cannot hold y. Ron.
tuclSy Yesterday, ard Is at lnIgo IN ONO
to day, to be any .vidonce that his en-
largement is illegd.
Certainly, the aavo's coming here by
the act Of God 4 not an escape. And
since tho slave status can exist only by
the concomitGDcy of the Slave law, and,
since the slave law can bo oonoom'tant
with his person here only by the slaves
escaping bither, his coming here by the
act Of God must leave his status as
slave behind him, and invest him win the
inevitable status Of freeman
Nor ought tho master to complain oi
this inevitable necessity. Ought ne 10
complain Of inevitable death And, II
not, he ought not to complain Of an act Of
! Coz which re eleaBes him with no worse re-
snit 20 the master, but a result always due
a slave by the law Of naturel Should the
lwhirlwind which releases the slave by
death be blameloss, and the whirlwind
which stops short Of death but drops him
I'm free State, be blamcablel In each
case, the slave law would end because
the slave was beyond lie jurisdiction by
the act of God.
II, then, the evidence should con7ice
YOU of an attempt forcibly or fraudulent.
lly to carry OFF or docoy out Of this State
any black or mulatto, or 10 arrest or inn
prison any such person, with intent tc
have him carried ont Of this State, not ir
pursuance of the laws Of Ohio, and, " yor
do not find from evidence that he came in
to Ohio by an actual escape from service
or labor, whatever the proof may be that ht
had been a slave, you will hold him to be
free, and that the act described was Z
misdemeanor, for which you will indie
whomsoever you find to have COMMITTEES
liz.
In this position, that tho law preIumcl
every man in Ohio 70 be free, am upheld
lby the Constitution Of this State az vel
as by that Of the United States.
Our Bill Of Rights begins, "Sec. l.
IAN mon are by nature free and indePend
ent. Sec. 2. All political power is in
Ihorent in the people. Government lain
stimted for their equal protection and ben
eft"
Does any caviller pretend that tn
words, "all men," in the first section an