The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1860-10-27
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Patrick Henry Explains


distribution in Kansas.
Patrick Henry Explains
Our fathers said call men are created
equal, and endowed by their Creator with
rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of hap.
piness;" and, moreover, they declared thai
Interpretations were "self-evident truths. y
There is no middle ground these are self.
evident truths or s.self- evident lies.o II
they are self-evident truths, thew must apply
80 al men, for If they are limited TO Ger
tain class or kind of men, they are not self
evident, but require Q course of reasoning TO
establish their truth.
But Chief Justice fancy, Douglas and
Ysncey say that these truths are not applies
BILE to oil men, and thus pat them in the oat-
sgory of "self-svident liss." These distin-
gnished individuals asssr. that the sigpers Of
ths Declaration could not possibly have
meant to include Africans under the phrase
al men, and to declare that they we're crea
fed equal TO other men and endowed with
the right to liberty, de-, because it is noso-
rious that these same signers OF the Declare
ton held negroes in bondage. This il the
only plausible objection to the common IN.
derssanding Of these words, as admitted by
fancy himself
We have heretofore given mum erous ex-
tracts from the writings of the men of the
Revelation showing that they regarded that
the African slaves had been deprived of their
rights by violence and were withheld from
TIE enjoyment OF them by force. The whole
explanation OF the apparent partial moon.
ssstency between the sentiments and words
OF the Shareholders of the Revolution and
their conduct is given in the following ex-
tract from letter OF Patrick Henry, dated
January Is, l773;
sis N not amazing that ut time when IN.
T'gh. Of humanity are defined and under
STOOD otfh precision, in a country above all
DINERS fond OF llberty-that in such on age
AND such country, We 6Dd men protesting
rei'gion mild, humane, gentle and ganer
GUS, adopting such principle, rs repugnani
10 humanity as 10 10 inconsistent with th,
b'ole and destructive to libertyr Ever,
Thinking honest man rejects il in speculate ION
now Tree 10 practice from conscientious mo
tiyes. Would any one believe that | an
master OF slaves of nv own purchase? an
drawn along by the general inconveni epoe OIL
living here without them. piu NOT. can
not Jastyy IL. However culpahle my con.
drct, will so far pay my devoir to virtue al
10 own the excellence OF Der precspts and la
ment my want OF conformity to them. he
hese time will come when an opportunity
wiz De offered TO abolish this lsmsntabi
evii. Every thing we can do, 10 to impros,
~ III II happens In our day; If not let ri
transmit TO our descendants, together viii
our slaves, a pity for their unhappy lot, ant
nm adherence OF slavery
Here We have a Shareholder doing Jus
what the sigusrs OF the Declaration did, pro
nouDcipg slavery q violation of the laws o
God and the rights of man; and we know
that they, not less than be, deplored the evil
OF slavery which they all complained ha
been fastened on them by the British Gov
eminent in spite OF their protestRtions.
The sinve-Ixtsnsiensss Disagree
The Douglasites contend that the axten
sion Of the area Of slavery will not increas
the number Of slaves that there will be u
more slaves il the Institution is diffused owe
oil the territory Of the United States than
IL is confined withiR the present slave State.
by the same course Of reasoning the popu
laiion OF the world would have been lust q
large to-day II Noah e-a a:s descendant
had been confined to an area of a hundre
miles square around Mount Ararat; the de
sssndants Of Irishmen scattered over ID
world are not more numerous to day tina
they would be If never an Irishmap had lei
she Emerald Isle; and the posterity OF tn
Puritsns make no greater show 10 The oensu
tables then they would bad they been ci,
cumscribed within their original boundari,
on the ocean shore Of New England.
fancey reasons otherwise and IN ore sens
bly,. He says:
"Carry out these aims [of slavery pr,h
bition IN the Territories and ii will neeess,
lilly follow that the institution will die d,
In the States in which id is circu inscribed
many of them-sni in others IL will be +,
less valuable than IL now isv
Thai 10 true; and truth which our fail