New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1860-01-27
o,CoNoR I'm THE LENNON CASE

After what the country has heard from Lawyers
and Judges within few years, it is not surprising
that people should have less confidence in them
than in any other class of persons. The attempt to
overthrow and destroy the bulwarks thrown
around human rights, and to break down and ex-
tingush the principles of humanity which civilization
has gradually established, by means of legal decis-
ions is one of most atrocOus Of which The le
gal profession has ever been guilty. 1t would be folly
to suppose that the effort can have any other con-
sequence than to excite popular hostility toward
profession, many of whose leading members are en-
gagged in work so anti-republcan aud unchrlstan.
And yet the agents in this business would seem to
have reasoned themselves into the belief that in
doing this they not serving the Prince OF Evil,
and him only. So great is the blindness that often
takes possession of minds whose trade and Occupa-
ton is TO take the side and advocate the cause of
the best paymaster, be he Saint or Devil. "Woe
"unto you, Lawyers"
Mr.. Charles OConor has just made q new
appearance as the advocate of the Democratic doc
trne that some men were born to be the slaves of
other men. He has renewedly elaborated this doc
trne, along with various legal propositions, in the
discussion of the Lennon Slave Case at Albany. His
argument is substantially that made by him on
previous occasion in pleading TIE same case; with
emendatons and improvements arising from fresh
examinations and from contemporary discussions of
the doctrine involved, both by the Bar and the
Bench. That argument we shall rot attempt to re-
capitulate Besides, only its leading features chal-
lepge popular attention.
These features, in their comprehensive scope, we
have already succinctly characterized. More par
ticulary, they present to us the general idea, that
found in the dcta of Nine men at Washington, the
majority of whom are shareholders; and that it is
the function of elpaid lawyers to instruct those
gentlemen how to act. Wedo not mean to say that
Mr.. O'Coner puts forth this proposition in terms
and proceeds to substantate it by ordinary methods
II is merely deduced by US in an unmethodical man
ner from his discourse; and we reckon our deduction
to be far more reasonable and to the point, than
many of Mr.. 0'Conor's. The shareholders, it is
perfectly well known, are aiming to reverse every
legal decision hitherto made which prejudices their
claims to make Slavery universal. They are also
aiming TO shape the judgment of the Courts in this
process so as to shield them (the slayeholders)
from all political action on the part of
the people. Mr.. O'Conor's argument is designed
to cover both purposes. We therefore generalize
it as above As to his method, or his proofs, we
have no occasion to pay attention to them, beyond
exposing his extraordinary audacity, aippancy, and
selfconceit. These features are amply illustrated
by quoting from bis own declarations. Thus he
says: There is no law of nature against one man
holding his fellow-man in bondage; that property
in man rests on the same basis with every other
species of property; that no State of this Union
can pass laws to extinguish Slavery within its
limits, while single slaveholding State remains
in the Union These declarations certainly es-
tablish his audacity. The other qualities we i'm
pute to him, we conceive TO be fully illustrated in
his comments on the most eminent and venerated
names in the history of Jurisprudence. Thus he
speaks Of Lord Eldon as failing to perceive GER
tain something that he, Mr.. O'Conor, sees very
clearly He condemns the grave omissions Of Judge
Marshall and denounces the English Judges in q
lump, for their "tricks." He cOntradicts Lord
Mansfield patronizes Justinian, and ridcules Black
stone. Under these circumstances, we think
we are fully justified in describing Mr.. OConor
as he appears in his LemmOn-case argument,
to be fippant and conceted. The necessities
of his position, as spokesman Of the great
Slaveholding interest, require all this; and he
must bring the country to his way of think
ing on all the points we have referred to as Illus
trstipg his position, before bis objects and those of
the shareholders viii be reached. How soon that
immense revolution of sentiment will take place, our
readers can Judge as we'll as We. We presume that
none of them would ask longer lease of life than
would be necessary to zee it. Yet the effort is