Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1859-09-03

THE DRED SCOTT CASE.

EDrroR OF rHr BuoLE-DEAR SIR: I have else
where called the decision on, this case, o
political decision. Every circumstance favors that
' opinion. Tits ~inhuman, and atrocious. and yet the
great Democratic party approves !. II was put off
until after the presidential election, because the
5 judges were afraid Of the damage i. would do their
party, if pronounced before. Il overturned, and
reversed all former cases, faisifed history. and as
serted For law, that which never was, and never
can be law, The plea on which this most wicked
judgment was rendered, was such as no civilized
court ever before sustained. 1t was q plea in
q case Of trespass to the pereon, and is in these
words:
Q "Drea oco"' Plea to the jurisdiction Of the
.IJ T. ,era Court. April term, 1854.
|, And the said John F.A. Sanford,i in his own prop
err person, comes and says that this court ought not
Q to have, or take further cognizance of the action
: aforesaid, because he says, that said cause Of ac-
t ton, and each and every of them, (f any such
have accrued to the said bred Scott occurred to
r the said bred Scott, out of the jurisdiction of this
court, and exclusively within the jurisdiction Of
the courts of the State of Missouri; for that to
( wit, the said plaintiff, bred Scott, is not a citizen
of the State of Missouri, as alleged in his declsra-
3 ton, because he is a negro Of African descent,
bis ancestors we're of pure African blood, aud were
brought into this country and sold as negro slaves,
and this the said Sanford is ready to verify, where
fore be prays judgment whether this court can or
will take further cognizance of the action afore-
said. JOHN F. A. SANFORD"
The plea alleges that Drej Scott is not a citizen
Of Missouri, because he is a negro. Is that
law' Does his citizenship depend on bis color p
Why not plead that he twas no. a citizen, because
he" had torn his breeches2 1t would have been
as good law, made a better precedent, worked less
injustice, and been far more reasonable; for he
could mend his breeches and thus remove the DIS
ability. But he could lot change his skin. Both
pleas would rest on the same foundation, for
there is no law for either. On principle, the
breeches plea is the best for there would be some
reason, some show Of justice in holding him re-
sponsible for the rent. But his color was the act
Of God, and it is a well established principle, that
no man is responsible for the act of God. There
Is nothing unlawful in The shade of his skin. lie
= did not make it himself. 1t was imposed upon him
0 without his consent. 1t was certainly c%onstitu-
tional, ana be was not attempting to take advan-
tuRo w. no W. WIobR' no IL WTOuS u III hCt
: of another, bred should not be punished for it,
, Nor could he come into Court and forswear his
: color, as an Irisbman does his allegiance to Queen
. Victoria. If bred iired in Missouri he wus citi-
zen enough to sue. For anything that appears on
the record, he was born in Missouri, and had al
ways lived there. The admitted facts showed tina,
he had lived nowhere else, excep. in the free states
and territories. Yet the court decided that he was
not a citizen capable Of suing in that Court, for
any wrong inflicted upon him. True he lived in
!. Missouri. whore be was o Residential person.
an inhabitant,-one of the people,--and three.
i, ff.hs Of a man, and he was within the fair mean.
ing and intention Of the constitution, which givet
4 the United States Court jurisdiction in cases "Se
tween the citizens Of different States. The in
' justice Of placing such a~'violent construction upor
: the word "~citizen," as the court did place upon it
9 is shown by the shock that the whole civilized
world felt at its annunciation. Every writer or
law, every expounder Of law, declares it to be tb,
y duty of the court so to construe a statute, as to in
u sure justice, not to defeat it. The Courts should
!" be open to all alike, for the redress of their wrongs
y There is something so unjust, so cruel, when th,
poor, the weak, and the oppressed, are turned on
Of court, with their wrongs unmeasured, tha
= human nature revolts at 1t, Us wickedly unjustif
y able. Every enlightened man knows, that where
government claims obedience she owes protection
u and that so soon as she refuses the latter, she for
feits the former. But why was not bred Scott
' %citizenf Because, says the plea, she is a ne
gro". What irrefragaIle law logic. VIVA
" an inevitable consequence Of the premise. Their
Il is but one analogous case on record, and that is nc
in the law library 1t is the case Of the drouth
wag. who called for a glass of whisky: II wan
IT." said he, because the river is 30 high, I don
know where l shall sleep tonight" The plea al
serted that bred Scott does not live in Missouri bt
cause he is q negro, whose ancestors came fror
lie Africa, and were reduced to slavery. Oh mos
logical conclusion. But this comes of maxim
Shareholders and doughfaces judges. The jurii
dic.ion Of the United States Court is conferred b
the constitution, in cases "between the citizens
a different States. Had the plea alleged that Dire
a, did notlive within. h limits Of an incorporated cit,
and therefore was not a 'citizen" according to til
original meaning of the word it would have bee
" quite as reasonable, fully as good law, and tn
- judges would have decided the case with brieie
argument. By hingiug the case on this constru,
ton of the word. they could have avoided III
ID, disgrace of quoting with appreciation, the satani
elf sentiment, that negroes have no rights that whit
an men are bound to respect" 1t is no more absur
to say that a man is not a ~'citiEen" because
n. does not live in q city than 1t is to say he is not
"citizen" because he is a negro. Instead Of fo
lowing the presidents which accord with righ
Justice, honesty. and law, the court seize on Il
an word citizen, and spin out CT it an everlastir
I'm argument Of technical quibbling. which would I
be no credit to the cunning Of q crafty county cou
ae lawyer, in defining the residence, or citizenship"
to a pauper. The Court ~wanders, and gropes abo,
ur in the dark labyrinths Of Slaveholding absurditie
to reach a ~foregone judgment, which will make Il
name of bred Scott immortal. In their zeal f
slavery. they tramplc all law. all justice under foe
If the courts will not redress the wrongs Of DR.,
%. Scott, if they turn him out of court because