Holmes County Republican. [volume] (Millersburg, Holmes County, Ohio) 1856-1865, 1859-07-07
From the Cleveland Herald.
Pig or Puppy, just as you Please

Pig or Puppy, Just as you Piease
Once upon time gentlemen owned
an old negro whose labor it was TO run of
errands and whose pleasure it was to drink
whiskey. The master, one morning, dis
patched Sambo to neighbor bearing a
market basket and in it, as present to
that neighbor, nicely dressed pig, cover
ed with clean napkin. Ga Sambo's route
stood the grocery, an institution the dar-
key never passed without making call
He set his basket Just outside the door and
going in nigger-like, told all his business.
Thereupon the grocer gave Sambo drink
drink while wag silly took the pig of the
basket and deposited under the napkin a
young dog, a late victim of pup distemper.
Sambo smacked his lips, took up his bas-
ket and went on.
Arriving at bis neighbor's he scraped
and bowed, and made his way directly to
the parlor to announce the present and
show up the rooster. The neighbor was
delighted, but upon unrolling the napkin,
kicked the darkey into the street, telling
him to take the puppy back to his master.
Sambo's eyes dilated, and be scratched his
head in vain to solve the mystery, but re-
placing the puppy started for home. Of
cousre he stopped at the grocery to tell his
mishap, and while taking another drink the
wag distracted the puppy and replaced the
pig. Away went Sambo home, and just
"tight" enough to be brave, stalked into
his masters presence and threw down the
basket with 'dar am de pup you sent by
dis nigga" when 10 and behold out rolled
the roaster. The Master kicked the drunk
en- nigger out Of the house, and the pig
coming after knocked the darkey down,
where they laid side by side until Sambo,
recovering his breath, surveyed the cause
of oil his mishaps, and addressed it thus:
You am pig or pup just as you please.
Chief Justice Taney is somewhat in the
niggei's predicament. What he starts out
with as pig. comes to the end of the jour
ney as pup. In the Dred Scott decision
he declared negro to be mere chattel,
a thing, but lately he has turned upon his
own progeny and destroying it, now pro-
nounces negro to be a person, and on
looking at the two decisions and at the
negro, the cause of all these inconsistencies,
he may well, with Sambo exclaim, "Pig
or pup just as you please"
We find very clear exposition of this
last case, in which Taney swallowed his
first decision, in "Inspector's" Washington
letter to the New York Courier, as fol-
lows:
The opinion in the Dred Scott Case has
been attacked from very unexpected quar-
ter 1t has been exposed and overthrown
by its own author, Chief Justice Roger B.
Taney. The case in which the Chief JUS
tice took occasion to immediate his own off
spring, arose at Richmond, Va, and was
that of female Slave named Amy, accus-
ed and convicted of stealing letter con-
tanning money from the post Office. Her
counsel or rather the counsel for the slaves
master, defended Amy upon the authority
of the Dred Scott opinion, declaring slaves
pr perty, and only property in all their act
ual and possible relations to the general
government.
Judge Taney overruled the motion with
out the slightest hesitation, and in doing
so treated his own and the Courts opinion
in the Dred Scott case with inexpressible
contempt and disrespect. He pronounced
slaves to be persons. 1t is astonishing how
his eyes were opened to the tangible evil
dences of things which he not only denied
In the Scott case, but of which he then af-
firmed the exact contrary TO exist He
now says that the Constitution, the laws
of Congress, and State papers all speak of
slaves as persons. But in the Dred Scott
opinion, referring to the Constitution and
Slavery, he said:
"The only two provisions which point to
them and include them," (meaning slaves
''treat them as property, and make it the
duty of the government to protect it; no
other power in relation to this race is found
in the Constitution; and as it is govern
ment of special delegated powers, no au-
thority beyond these two provisions can be
constitntionaIy exercised. The Govern
ment of the United States has no right to
interfere for any other purpose but of pro-
tecting the ri ghts of the owner, leaving it
altogether with the several States to deal
with this race, whether emancipated or not,
as each State may think justice, humanity,
and the interests and safety of society may
require"
Only two years ago, Judge Taney, as
the mouth-piece of a majoriy of the Su-
preme Court, affirmed that the general
government had no power and no right to
do any act relative to slave than to pro-
tect the owrer's property in it. He knew
that in the nature of things some power
must exist to tieat the slave as a man, as
a creature endowed by God with human
faculties, but the power was to be looked
for elsewhere. 1t was to be found iu the
States.
1t is no perversion or exaggeration of
language to say, that in Amy's case Judge
Taney treated the dogma of the Scott case
with contempt and defiance In the latter
he declared that the Federal Government
had no jurisdiction over, and could have no
relations with slaves, except as property.
In dealing with the mail ,pilferer Amy, he
decided that the United States could pun
ish her as criminal, could imprison her as
a woman. and must acknowledge her as a
rational being, responsible to law. Here
he fouts and condemns himself, and he
sustains his virtuous, learned and eloquent
colleague, Justice Mclean, who, referring
to the atfocious sentiments which deform
the opinion of the majority in the Scott
case, placed on record these memorable
words: