Bedford inquirer. [volume] (Bedford, Pa.) 1857-1884, 1860-01-06

I struggles.
When in the progress of events the inhabitants Of
any Territory shall have reached the number re-
qulred to form State, they will then proceed, in .
regular manner aud in tae exercise of the rights OF
the popular sovereignty, To form constitution
preparatory TO admission into thc Union. After
thus has been done, to employ the language of the
Kansas and Nebraska act they ssshall be received
into the Union with or without slavery, their
constitution may prescribe the time of their adj
mission This sound principle has happily been
recognised in some form or other, by an almost
unanimous vote of both Houses of the last Con-
SrGss.
All lawful means at my command have been en-
plOyed, and sha continue 20 be employed, to exe-
cute The laws against the African slave trade .At-
ter most careful and rigorous examination of our
coasts and thorough investigation of the Subject
! we have not been able to discover that any slaves
I have been imported into the United States except
the cargo by the Waaderer, numbering between
| three and four hundred. Those engaged in this
unlawful enterprise have been vigorously prosecu-
ted but not with much success as their crimes
!, have deserved. 4 number of them still under
prosecution.
| Our history proves that the Fathers of the Re-
public, in advance Of all others natons condemned
the African slave trade. 1t was, notwithstanding,
deemed expedent By the fransrs of the Constitu-
tuition to deprive Congress of the power to pronib-
it s.the migration or importation of such persons
as any of the States existing shall think prop
| or to admit' ssprior to the year ono thousand
eight hundred and eight"
Ii will be eh that this restriction on tha power
/ Of Congress was confined TO such States only as
! might think proper TO admit The importation Of
/ slaves. 1t did not extend to other States or to
/ the trade carried on abroad Accordingly, We dad
that early the 22l March, 1874, Congress pas
! sed an act imposing severe penalties and punish
! ments upon citizens and residents Of the Unltad
States who should engage in this trade between
/ foreign nations. The provisions Of this act we're
i EXTENDED and eaiorced by the act Of 10th May,
4 1900
/ Again: The States themselves has clear right
to waive the constitutional privilege intended for
t their benefit, and to prohibit, by their own laws
this trade at any time they thought proper previous
10 1908. Several of tlem exercised this right be-
fore that period, and among them containing
i the greatest mum Der of slaves This gaye.to Con-
/ gress the immediate power to act in regard TO ali
such States, bccausr they themselves had removed
tie constitutional barrier Congfess accordingly
passed an act on 18th February, 1909, s'to prevent
the importation of certain persons into certain
/ States where, by the laws thereof their admission
is prOhibted' In this manner the importation OF
African slaves into the United States was, to Il
great xtent, prohibited some years in Advance OF
1905
As the year 1903 appro ,ched, Congress deter
mined not to suffer this trade to exist even for a
single day after they had the power to abolish it,
/ On the 2d Of March, 1907, they passed act 20
take efec 'from an4 after the lst day OF January,
/ lS06,' prohibiting the importation of African
slaves into the United States. This was followed
by subsequent acts of similar character, TO which
! l need not specially refer. Such the princi-
pies ami such the practice OF our ancestors, more
than fifty years ago il regard to the African slave
trade
/ II did not occur to the revered patriots who had
been delegates to the Convention, and afterwards
became members of Coz greSs thar in passing these
laws they had violated the Constitution which they
had framed with much and deliberation.-
They supposed thas to prohibit Congress, in tx
press terms, from exercising specific power be-
/ fore an appointed day, necessarily involved the
right to exercise this power after that day had
rived.
II this were not the case, the trainers OF the Con-
stitutou Lad expended much labor in vain. Had
they imagined that Congress would possess no pow
er to prohibit the trade either before after 1908,
they would not have taken much to protect
the States against the exercise of this power before
1 that period. Nay, more, they would not have at
tAched such vast Importance to this provision 10
have excluded il from the possibility of future re-
peal or amendment, to which other p-rti1ns of the
J. COnsti.u .utioa we're exposed 1t would, then, have
been wholly unnecessary to engraft on tue fifth ar
ticlc of the CONSTITUTIONS, Prescribing the mode OF
! its own future amendment, the proyiso, "that, no
! no amendment which may be made prior to the
year Thousand eight hundred and eight Shall in
! any manner affect" the provision in the Consiitu-
ton securing to tho States the right to admit the
importation Of African Slaves previous to that Pc
/ riod.
| According to the adverse construction, the
| clause ITSELF on which much care and discussion
/ had been employed py the members of tie Conven-
ton, was an absolute necessity from the beginning,
and all that has since been done under it mere
usurptlioa.
It was well and wise 10 confer this power ON
Congress; because, bad it been left to the States,
its efficient exercise would have been impossible
| in that any one Sta:e could have efcctually con-
tinued the trade not only for itself but oI all the
! other slave States, though never much against
! their viii. And whyi Because African slaves
! wien once brought within the limits Of any one
State in accordance with ITS laws cannot Practical
| ly be excluded from any other State where slavery
exists And even If all the States had separately
! passed laws prohibiting the importation of slaves,
these laws would have failed of effect want of a
naval force to capture the savers and to guard the
| coasts. Such force State employ in time
! of peace without the consent OF Congress.
| These acts Of Congre IS, i: is believed, have,
! with very rare ard insignificant exceptions, ac-
compIished tncir purpose For u period of more
| than half century there has been no perceptibe
| addition 70 the number Of our domestic slaves
| During this period their advancement in eiYilzl-
ton has far surpassed that of any other portion OF
the African race. The light and the blessings of
Christianity have been extcnded-to them. and both
/ their moral and physical condition has been greatly
/ improved.
! Reopen the trade, and it would be difficult to de-
termine whether the effect would be deIeteri-
Gus on the interests Of the master or on those oi
/ the native born SLAVE OF the evils to the master,
the one most TO be dreaded would he the ntroduc-
ton of wild heather and ignorant barbarans amoGg
the sober orderly and quiet slaves, whose ances-
tors have been on the soil FOR several generations
This might tend to barbarize, demoralizc, and
porafe the whole mass, and produce most deplori-
| lie consequences.
The elie.t upon the existing slave would, If pos
sible, be still more deLlorablc At present ne i
| trca+sd ,rith kindness and humanity. lie is wei
fed wen clothed, and not oyer"SIked. dis con
oltioa is incomparloy bes.or than that OF the cool
les which modern nations of high civilization haT
euployed as a substitute for African slaves bon
ter hsvo combined 70 produce this humane result