The River Falls journal. (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1857-1861, 1860-09-12

defendant (Sandford) plead over
Sanford then pleaded, in bar, three
pleas. 81. Not guilty. 2. That bred
Scott was negro slave. the lawful prop
erty of defendant. 3. That as to the
wife and daughters of Scott, they were
his slaves in the same manner rs Scott"
Issues were taken to these several pleas,
trial was had, which resulted in YER
dict for defendant, upon which judgment
was entered, and from which judgment,
the plaintiff Scott sued out writ of err
ror from the Supreme Court of the Uni
ted States, to which Court the cause
was removed.
The opinion of the Court was deliver
ed by Chief Justice fancy. His first po-
sition is that the appellate Court had the
right and power to inquire into and re-
view the Judgment of the Circuit Court
| upon the demurrer. Such thing was
never heard of before. II Sanford was
dissatisfied with the Judgment upon the
demurrer, he should have appealed, but
in submitting to the judgment and plead
ing over, be consented to or waived the
question of jurisdiction. There is "not
a lawyer whose practice is worth $500
year, who will deny this" See Chitty
on pleading, 44O-l. Ora. Prac. 224 to
227. Burr. Prac. $50 to I53. The
plea is bad on account of the conclusion.
| Chitty Pledgs. asa. 1t should be.
"prays judgment of the said writ and
declaration and that the same may be
quashed, &C." / Burr Prac. 1914.
The plea in abatement is bad, bccasue
it does not allege that Scott himself is
slave. The allegation is that his ances-
tors were slaves. Is it Democratic doc
trine that once slave alDays slaye?-
that the presumption of the law is in fa-
vor of slavery and against freedom p
Such is the decision of this Democratic
Court.
''By all the rdles of pleading, this is
fatal defect in the plea. If there be any
doubt, what rule of construction has been
established in the slave states? In ia
cob VS.. Sharp, Prig's Reps. Tenn,
114,) the Court held, that when there
was doubt as to the construction of a viii
which emancipated slave, at must be
be construed to be subordinate to
the higher and moro important right Of
freedom"
But if this question ofjurisdction
could be dug up by the Slave Court
they three could give judgment, that the
descendants of IN African negro slave,
no matter he w distant, were, and contin-
ued to be slaves, and could never become
citizens of the United States, nor of
State, and could not sue in either State
Court, or a Federal Court of the Uuited
States, and never could make and prove
a right to a redemption on the public
lands of the United States, and conse-
quently "had no rights which white
man was bounl to respect"
Now I defy any man to read the opin-
ion of the Court as given in this case,
and say upon bis word and honor that
the above language is not the language
of the Court, by adoption. And why?
1 will tell you. fancy, tie dotard, in
this case was attempting to assign reasons
why negro was not included in the
words GALL men," in the divine language
of the Declaration of rights; awe hold
these truths to be self evident; that all
men are created equal; that they are en-
dowed by their Creator with certain in-
inalienable rights: that among these are
life, liberty, and the pursuit of happi-
ness" of which he says, "the general
words above quoted would seem alb!
why say SEEM to embrace the whole hui
man family, and if they were used in
similar instrument at this day, would be
so understood" Is not this damning
1t is only when language is SO ambiguous
that it cannot be easily understood, that
resort is had to the intent of the party or
parties who framed the instrument or en-
acted the law. The Court refers to a
long string of statutes which were and
are a disgrace to humanity, and to a
number of decisions made by Slave
Courts, which conclusively prove that
the Judges who rendered them were
toadies to power, caste, and wealth and
to history to prove the light in which the
African had been regarded by those
Christian nations who had been instru
mental in tearing these poor people from
their homes and making merchandise of
them in the same manner as they would
of sheep and cattle, and then says; 'sWe