Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1860-01-05


number of them are still under prosecution.
Our history proves that the fathers Of the re-
public, in advance of all other nations, con-
demned the African slave trade Il was, not
withstanding, deemed expedient by the trainers
of the constitution to deprive Congress of the
power to prohibit the migration or Importation
of such persons as any of the States now exist
ing shall think proper 10 admit" ''prior to the
year one thousand eight hundred and eight"
1t will DO seen that this RESTITUTION on the pow
er Of Congress was confined to such States only
as might think proper to admit the importation
of slaves tt did not extend to other States, or
to the trade carried on abroad. Accordingly,
we find that so early as the 22d of March, 1894,
Congress passed an act imposing severe penal
ties and punishments upon citizens and residents
of the United States who should engage in this
trade between foreign nations The provisions
of this act were extended and enforced by the
act of 10th May, 1900
Again, the States themselves had clear right
to waive the Constitutional privilege intended
for their benefit, and to prohibit, by their own
laws, this trade at any time they thought prop
er to previous to 1903 Several Of them exer-
eised this right previous to that period, and
among them some containing the greatest num-
Der of slaves This gave to Congress the imme-
date power to act in regard to all such States,
because they themselves had removed the Con-
stitutional barrier. Congress accordingly passed
an act on 18th of February 1903, "to prevent
the Importation of certain persons into certain
States where, by the laws thereof, their admis-
sion is prohibited" In this manner the impor-
tation Of African slaves into the United States
was, to q great extent, prohibited some years
in advance Of 1908.
AS the year 1903 approached, Congress de-
termined not to suffer this trade to exist even
for single day after they had the power to
abolish it. On the I'd of March, 1907, they
passed an act 10 take effect from and after the
first day Of January $685." prohibiting the
importation Of African slaves into the United
States This was followed by subsequent acts
of similar character, to which need not spe
cially refer. Such were the principles and such
the practice of our ancestors more than fifty
years ago in regard to the African slave trade.
1t did not occur to the revered patriots who
had been delegates to the Convention, and after
wards became members of Congress, that in
passing these laws they had violated the Consti-
tuition which they had framed with SO much
care and elaboration. They supposed that to
prohibit Congress, in express terms, from exer.
cising specified power before an appointed day,
necessarily involved the right to exercise this
power after that day had arrived
If this were not the case, the trainers of the
Constitution had expended much labor in vain.
Had they imagined that Congress would possess
no power to prohibit the trade either before or
after 1908, they would not have taken so much
care to protect the States against tho exercise
OF this power before that period. Nay more,
they would not have attached such vast impor-
lance to this provision as to have excluded il
from the possibility of future repeal or amend
ment to which other portions Of the Constitut iou
were exposed Itwould, then, have been wholly
unnecessary to engraft ON the fifth article Of the
Constitution, prescribing the mode Of its owr
future amendment, the proviso, "that no amend
ment which may be made prior to the year 1905
shall in no manner affect the provision in the
Constitution securing to the States the right tt
admit the importation Of African slaves prev
Gus to that period
According to the adverse construction, thu
clause itself, on which so much care and discus
sion had been employed by the members of thu
convention, was an absolute nullity from tn,
beginning, and all that has since been done I'm
der it a mere usurpaticn.
Congress, because, had it been left to the
States, its efficient exercise would have been i'm
possible In that event any one State eOulC
have efectually conbiaued the trade not only
for itself but for all the ether slave States
though never so much against their will. Ant
whye Because African slaves, when onet
brought within the limits of any one State, il
accordance with its lave, cannot practically b
excluded from ORy other State where slavery ex
lists. And even if all the States had sepatatel,
passed laws prohibiting the importation o
slaves, these laws would have failed of effect 70
want of a naval force to capture the slavers an
to guard the coasts Such Il force no State cal
employ in time Vt peace without the consent o
Congress.
These acts Of Congress, it is believed, have
with very rare and insignificant exceptions, &C
compGshed their purpose. For period Of NOR
than half century there has been no pereept
BILE addition to the number Of ID. demesti
slaves. During this Period their Advancement
in civilization has far surpassed that Of aay etG
er portion of the African race. The light an
the blessings of Christianity have been extepl
ed to them, and both their moral and phygie,
condition has been greatly improved.
Reopen the trade and it would be difficult
determine whether the effect would be MOI
deleterious to the interests OF the master, or O
those Of the native born slave or the evils
the master, the one most to be dreaded woul
be the introduction Of wild, heathen and ign
norant barbarians ameng the sober, orderly an
quiet slaves, whose ancestors have been on til
soil for several generations. THE might ter
to barbariEe, demoralize and ekasperate the who
mass, and produce the most de plorabie cons
quenees
The effect upon the existing slave would,
.,aas;hln Lo nA;li unnnn dnnaa.ahIa ..aaa.