The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1859-03-31
lse- owners thereof as any other personal prop

| fSe owners thereof as any other personal prop
| egty.
SEC. 4. Any master, commander, or owner
| OF any boat or vessel, who shall transport AM
slave out of this Territory, in such vessel
b. from one point or place in this Territory t.
| / ~ other point or place in the same, in suet
xssel, without the consent or permission of the
&rson TO whom such slave does of right belong
or who has authority to grant such consent OF
fermission, shall forfeit and pay the value o
such slave to his owner, to be recovered by &C
hon of debt, without prejudice to the right o.
such owner to his action at common law.
II Sec. 8. Every boat or vessel used in naviga-
pg the waters of this Territory, whose master
~ owner shall violate the preceding section,
sball be liable to the same extent that such
plaster, owner, or commander, is, and such boat
nr vessel may be proceeded against for the
recovery of such liability.
The effort to force Slavery into New Mexico
could only be prompted by corrupt political
Considerations, and enmity to Freedom. That
Territory is known to be arid, sterile, and noun
famous, and Slavery can never flourish there,
The Federal officials in the Territory, with the
patronage they dispense, are all-powerful, and
there can be no doubt that the recent severe
slave code which has been adopted, to which
we have made allusion, emanated from WASH
ington. We present the leading features OF
this code. This is the Territory in which, ac-
cording to Mr.. Webster, it was unnecessary to
re-enact the laws of God. 1t may be questioned,
however, whether the repeal Of laws emanating
from the opposite pole of the moral world may
not become necessary:
" SEC 2. Every person who shall steal any
slave, with the intent that the owner, any one
having an interest in such slave, present or fu-
ture, vested or contingent, legal or equitable,
shall be deprived of the use or benefit of such
slave, shall, upon conviction, suffer imprison-
nient for a term not more than ten nor less than
four years, and be fined in a sum not more than
two thousand nor less than FIVE hundred dol
lars And every person who shall, by violence,
seduction, or other means, take and carry or
eatice away any slave, with the like intent, shall
b. deemed and held, for every purpose what
ever, to have stolen such slave within the mean
ing of this act. And every person who know
ing any slave to have been stolen as aforesaid,
shall aid, assist, or advise IN or about the car
rying away of such slave, shall suffer the like
penalties as are above prescribed against the
person stealing such slave as aforesaid.
" Sec 3. Every person who shall carry or
convey or wilfully assist in carrying or convey
sig, any slave, the property of another, with the
iitent or for the purpose of aiding or enabling
such slave to escape out of this Territory, or
within this Territory and beyond the control
and recovery of his owner or master, or who
shall wilfully secrete or conceal such slave from
his owner or master, shall, upon conviction
thereof suffer the same penalties as are pre-
seribed in the foregoing section of this act And
a.,
for the violation of any of the provisions Of this
act, the propertyin the slave shall be well laid
-if charged to belong to any person having an
interest III such slave whether such interest be
illegal or equitable, present or future, joint or
several, vested or contingent.
SEC. d. Every person who shall forge or
furnish to any negro, free or slave, any false or
fabricated free papers or false evidences in print
or writing of the freedom of such negro, shall,
upon conviction, suffer Imprisonment for a term
not more than five years nor less than six
months, and be fined in a sum not more than
one thousand nor less than one hundred dol
lars.
SIC. 5. Any person who shall hire, entice,
persuade, or in any manner induce any slave
10 absent himself from the service or custody
st owner or master, or who shall, upon any pre-
tence, harbor or maintain any slave so absent
s.ng himself from such service or custody, shall,
pon conviction thereof, suffer fine and impris-
Gnment as prescribed in section four of this act,
asd Shall besides be liable to the owner or
master in a civil suit for damages.
" SEC. 10. Any person may lawfully take up
Or apprehend any slave who shall have run
away or be absenting himself from the custody
tr service of his master or owner, and may law
July employ or use such force as may be neces-
airy to take up or apprehend such slave; and
uch person, upon the delivery of such slave tc
lis master or owner, or at such place as such
,laster or owner may designate, shall be emit
Ned 10 demand or recover by suit any reward
eShich may have been offered for the apprehen-
ion or delivery Of such slave. And if no re-
yard have been offered, then such person so
experimenting such slave shall upon the delivery
# such slave to his master or owner. or to the
Sheriff of the county in which such slave was
~pprehended, be entitled to demand and recover
.sOm such owner Or master the sum of twenty dol
ars, besides ten cents for each mile of travel
= and from the place where such apprehension
9as made.
" SEC. %. The emancipation of slaves in this
Territory is totally prohibited.
I" SEC. u. Any person claiming to be end
tied to the possession of any slave, which is
withheld from him, may either institute his ac.
lOh Va iCpiONlh dS lOI OIiltE
or upon his sworn petition, directed to the dis
! trict judge of the district wherein such slave
may be, shall be entitled to the writ of ho6eds
corpus, directed to the person having such slave
in possession, upon which such proceedings
shall be had as are now had upon such process
when instituted for other persons and if the
judge, upon hearing such cause shall see
tit, he may require the party to whom he ad-
judges the possession of the slave to enter into
such bond, in such amount and with such Sc
curity as he shall approve, payable to the ad-
verse party, conditioned for the safe delivery of
said slave, to abide the judgment or decree of
any court of competent jurisdiction which m 4y
be rendered in any suit to be Instituted within
six months from the date of such bond which
bond, upon breach thereof, may be prosecuted
to judgment against the makers of the same, or
any of them, by the payee thereof, his executors,
administrators, or assigns. And any court OF
chancery shall entertain bill for the specific
recovery of any slave, without allegation or
proof of peculiar value or pretium afectionis.' .
COMPOSING THEIR SINS.
1t is justly said that death-bed repentance
is better than none and for this reason we
might hail with satisfaction, and as a promise
of improvement in the character of the De-
mocracy,n the following frank and Truthful con.