The weekly Portage sentinel. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1854-1861, 1859-07-14

SluVO Au"-Auo SAdHWcE NdAA~
ed.
The Cincinnati Gazette, fearing the efFec
of DeIinison's letter to the Oberlin rioters
now in prison in this city, which even those
ia natics are afraid to publish, and his letter
to the Cleveland Jail delivery mass meeting,
pronounces its faVorite "man Of mo derate
anti-slovery views and conserv ative," while
Judge Ranney, it says, is "iOea knOiOn as a
radical anti slavery Democrat of the -feresr
SORT" Again, speaking of the Fugitive
Slave law, it says that Judge Ranney "has
openly countenanced and advocated the NUL.
LITIGATION Of that law; without waiting for
its repeal"
That we may do the Gazette no iDjus tice,
we give what it submits as proof of the lat
ter charge. Itsays:
"That we have not misrepresented Judge
Ranney's position, the following resolutions
strenuOusly and eloquently advocated by
him, at a public meeting held in Canfield
Mahoning county, will sufficiently witness
ReSolued, That we will not, under any po.
litical necessity whatever, vote for any man ,
for any Office of trust, honor or profit, who
voted for, or aided, dir ectly or indirectly, in
the passage of the act, or approves Of its in.
famous provisions, or aids in its execution.
Resolved, That come life or come impris-
onment-come fine or come death, we will
neither aid nor assist in the return of any
fugitive slave, but on the contrary, we will
harbor and secrete, and by all just means
protect and defend him, and thus give him o
practical God-speed to Liberty.
AS to the speech of Judge Ranney, on the
occasion the editor of the Noble COUNTY
Register snys:
ave were present at this meeting, and
can never forget the burning Indignation
the a0ithering satire that characterized Mr.
RS great speech on that occasion. His
brow, knit with rage, and his keen eye
seemed to spit fire when he hurled defiance
at the law, and pledged himself before the
great assembly, 10 stand by the right of ha
beaS corpus as the palladium of American
Liberty, and that no political necessity should
ever whip him into the support of SO infa'
nous an enactment"
Presuming the Gazette is serious in the
charge, and equally so in the proof submit
ted, we will dispose of both in short order.
At the time the meeting alluded to was
held, Judge Ranney was attending Court in
Garfield, and had just finished lengthy ar
gument in case then on trial. AN anti
Fugitive Slave law meeting was called, and
he remained in the Court House to listen
Judge Wade, Judge Newton, and others
made speeches, bitterly denouncing the law.
The Democrats present raised shout for
Ranney, end in the call, several Abolition
lists joined, as all we're anxious to hear him.
Judge Ranney spoke but few minutes, but
| do m
the nulifers. He drew the attention of his
hearers to the fact, that although the Fugi'
tive Slave bill had passed Congress-ior
they had that fact by Telegraph, yet none of
thew knew in what shape it had passed
that they had better restrain their indgna.
ton until they saw the law, and then If il
was wrong and if it needed amendment or
repeal, the only course left was to apply to
Congress. Under the Constitution, mat was
the only tribunal that could pass upon the
matter, except the Supreme Court of the
United States, and on one Of these, if g
wrong Was committed by the law, the aPpli
cation for redress must come.
In no shape, by no word or action, dia
Judge Runney counsel resistance to the law
and the assumed speech, which the Gazette
copies from the Noble County Reg'Ster-the
'burning Indignation" and the "withering
satire" included, is but the coinage of ly-
ing brain. At the time he had never seen
the law.-athough passed, it had not been
published, and, as the meeting was called
on the Telegraph announcement that the
two Houses of Congress had passed the law,
in all probability it was not then approved
| by President Fillmore.
| The Gazette will thus see that it does
grevious wrong in its endeavors to bring
Judge Ranney down to the level of its own
| friends, by trying TO make nulliier out oil
one of the best and most law-abiding citi-
zens of the Reserve.
In the proceedings of the meeting, as
published at the time, the Secretary, Bit
ter AbolitioDist, and, if we mistake not, the
Editor of an Abolition paper, published the
name of Judge Ranney as one of the speak
ers at the meeting-being anxious, we sup
posed, to have the name of u Democrat sc
distinguished as Judge Ranney, but tool
particular care not to tell its readers thai
| this speech was against the incendiary anC
nullifying course Of the leaders of tht
meeting. Judge Ranney went to the meet
ing. or rather he remained in the Cour
House, to hear what could be said in favor
of condemning q law which the meeting
knew nothing about-which not q single
person present had ever read. Called tc
the stand by u Democrat present, he rebuk
ed in strong terms, the denuncutory spiri
of the factionists in denouncing, in abusive
and in threatening terms, law the provis
ions of which in the very nature of things,
the getters up of the meeting could know
but little or nothing. "The very head ant
front of his offending hath this extent, nt
! more"- Cleveland Democrat.