Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1859-07-30

remarkable era in his life" lilo spoke Of the
hangins. A hundred years Is a great oblivion.
The old aristocrat's definition, seems TO be entirely
forgotten. will repeat it. bopinp the Young
lawyers aid judges, will bear with me. while
pot the older ones in remembrance Of the things
they orce knew. Law" says Blackstone" i. a
rule Of civil conduct, prescribed by the supreme
power in a state, commanding what is right. and
prohibiting what is wrong" Law, says Chief
Justice fancy, is a rule of civil conduct, prescrib-
ed BY the supreme power in a state, commanding
all good citizens" to catch, and return negroes"
According to Blackstone, law commands what is
right, and prohibits what is wrong" According
to fancy, law. mmande us to catch. and return,
negroes. Blackstone. asserts that all human laws
receive their binding force and efficiency, from
their agreement, and correspondence with the
divine law, or the law Of nature, and that no hu.
man enactment, in violation of Gods law can pos
sess any %validity,or binding authority. But Chief
Justice fancy says, that all human laws receive
their binding force, and efficiency. from their
adaptedness to catch negroes. No enactment. Of
Congress, or of a state legislature, that impairs.
or lessons that right, is of any force, OF can have,
any validity. The RICH, to catch, and to hold me-
groes is "clear and indisputablo." It is guaran-
teed by the divine law, and the constitution, and.
is above all other laws. No human governments
and statutes can repeal or abridge that right and
to enforce these rights, courts are established
among men. Blackstone says, that o statute au-
thorizing a man to act asa judge in bis own case,
is of no force. fancy holds the opposite opinion;.
and SO do his associates. In this, they agree.
wish those who appoint the judges. The principle.
established is, that no one is disinterested and
proper judge in slave cases, but one Of the parties.
to it. Where, however, a party cannot be found
who is a STAKEHOLDER, and thus qualified to act as
judge, other persons pledged to sustain their
claims, may from the ~e1igeuce Of the case be ap-
pointed. / agree with Blackstone. l believe that
a statute which violates the Law of God. is no law;
is Of no binding force. Do you assert that it hasi
If you do MT, has the judge who administers the
law, nothing to do with examining and affirming
principles 7" Can he not "go back 80 far as the
higher law 7" Should hs ever depart from it,
Ought he not, in verify and truth. at all times,
make it his immovable stand pointf The object
of the law. is to compel men to do what they ought
to do. This accords with the reason of the law.
1t is an old maxim that when the reason Of the
law fails, the law itself fails. The duty Of the
judge, is to mete 10 parties ~litigant, that justice,
which they cannot measure to themselves. Tho
"law commands what is right, and prohibits what
is wrong" That is what the judge should en-
force as law. Had the Ohio judges remembered,
and enforced it, in the ha6cas corpus cases, would
the prisoners have been remanded When q man
is prosecuted as o criminal, for doing his moral
duty, and his liberty, and property are placed in
Jeopardy, by a statute passed in dercgation of
Gods law. has the judge no duty to perform, in
examining aud affirming principles 7" The old
constitution of Ohio declared, "that a frequent re-
currence to fundamental principles, is absolutely
necessary, in order TO preserve the blessings of lib
erty." This frequent recurrence" is as necessa-
~ for the administrators, or for the makers of the
law. The truth is, the judges and the people Of
these United States. have been 30 long habituated
to consider the statutes of Congress, and the de-
cisions of the United States Courts, as law, that
they have lost their reason, if not their liberty.
They have forgotten what law is. and urder the
ruling of the United States judges, they are reach
ing a very favorable position, to verify in their
own proper persons. the truth of the above apothe-
gm, that a frequent recurrence to fundamental
principles, is absolutely necessary, in order 70 pre-.
serve the blessings Of liberty" I am less dispos-
fed to blame the laws. than the judges. The law
makers are bad,-tbe statutes they pass, are about
as apt to command what is wrong. as what 10
right the judges are too often weak or wicked
men, and in the case of the judges of the U. s.
Supreme Court, their efforts to build up slavery
have induced decisions, so at variance with justice.
with right. and with all previous adjudications, as
to bring down on their heads the execration of all
just men, and TO cause their courts and their de-
cisions to be viewed with horror, or coutempt.
Purify the seats of justice, and there will be little
complaint Of hard laws. You intimate that the
court in the bred Scott case did not decide tina,
negroes had no rights that white men were
bound to respect" and you publish q very ig-
noraDt democratic denial Of it, made by one who
thinks the charge a very great falsehood. There
was much twaddle and cant in Judge Taney's de-.
cision and a wonderful Justification of truth. In
pages 4O4. and 40S of the report of the case he
says,-"The question before US is, whether tho
class OF persons described in the plea of abate-
ment, compose a portion Of the people. and are
constituent members of this sovereignty? We
think they are not and that they are NOT included
under the word ''cisizens'' in the constitution. and
can therefore claim none of the rights, and priv
ileges, which that instrument provides for, and se.
cures to citizens of the United States. On the
contrary, they were at that time. considered as q
subordinate, and inferior class of beings, who had
been subjugated by the dominan, race, and wheth.
or emancipated or not. yet remained subject to
their authority, and had no rights, or privileges,
but such as those who held the power of the gov
eminent, might choose to grant thsm." The Judge
'hen proceeds to enforce this view of the negroes
degradation, and after a strong effort to show the
Justice of such wiokedness, he resumes the sama
strain at page 407 as follows. "They had for
more than a century before, been regarded as be-
ings of an inferior order, and altogether unfit to 90.
s%ociate with the white race. either in social. or po-
!itical relations. and SO far inferior. that they had
no rights, which white men were bound to respect.
and that the negro might Justly, and lawfully, be-