Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1862-06-25

! method which the Commissioners Of Emancipa-
4 ton "have adopted for the ascertainment Of the
value Of the slaves freed under the recent act Of
Congress Il SAYS cat this rate 1.-THE aggregate
amount Of three hundred dollars for each slave
discharged from service), the sum total OF com:
| pensstion edasot srsssd nine hundred thotsand
dollars for three thousand slaves, and the lab as
sRmss that no more than that number were In the
District OF Columbia at the time Of Its passage.
/ IL there were but twenty five hundred slaves, the
Aggregate compensation cannot exceed seven
| hundred and Fifty thousand dollars"
IL this be the construction Of the law by the
IComuissioners-whichw we doubt, notwithstand-
Ing the I" free conversation which the writer for
| the Republican processes to have had with them
| that three thousand was the number OF slaves In
the District Of Columbia at the time Of its pas
sage; nor does It limit a." the value In money Of
/ found TO be VALID" to nine hundred thousand
i dollars.
The number Of slaves in this District, including
| those hired from the adj dining counties Of Mary
land and Virginia, was, according to the census
| Of 1850, which was taken some two years ago,
/ three thousand one hundred and eighty-fve
| g, 1857. The amount appropriated by Congress
/ TO Compensate the owners Of these slaves, freed
| and discharged by the act Of April is, 1862 was
one million Of dollars and the only Limitation Ii,
| that the entire sum appraised and apportioned
by the Commissioners an the value Of the claims
judged by them 70 be valid ''shall not exceed,
| IN the aggvsgdts, an amount equal to three hum
dred dollars for each person" released from SER
Il
pensation TO the owners Of the slaves, and for
that purpose only. The sixth section OF the act
provides that the reasonable expenses OF the
Commission" besides the compensation OF Its
/ officers and the fees Of the Marshal, ''shall be
/ paid from the Treasury Of the United States,
| and the eleventh section makes an Independent
i appropriation Of one hundred thousand dollars
for the colonization Of. "free persons Of African
/ descent"
| 1t matters not, therefore, whether the number
~ slaves be that indicated by the census Of 1850,
Commissioners are empowered to "appraise and
! apportion" a. their value any sum not exceeding
one million Of dollars, 40 that the appraisement
does not exceed, in the aggregate, three hundred
| one hundred and fifty slaves be appraised at one
| hundred dollarsi two hundred at one hundred
| and fifty dollars; two hundred and fifty at two
/ hundred dollars; three hundred at two hundred
| and fftv dollars three hundred and fifty at three
! hundred dollars; four hundred at four hundred
dollars; four hundred and fifty at four hundred
and my dollars and i've hundred at seven hum
dred dollars each. We then have twenty six
| bundled slaves, which Is not far from the number
for which claims w IL be presented, appraised at
nine hundred and eightv-seyen thousand and five
hundred dollars, 1887 .5OO,) which IL within the
appropriation by Congress, and does ''not exceed
In the aggregate an amount equal to three hun
! dred dollars" FOR each slave. And yet, II the
construction of the law which is the occasion of
this article should prevail, seven hundred and
eighty thousand dollars only would be appor-
toned as the value Of twenty-six hundred slaves,
I
. Undoubtedly the Commissioners may "appraise
and apportOn' less sum than three hundred
dollars as the value per capita Of any number Of
! slaves, or Of the whole number, II such be their
I judgment But, they can fix no arbitrary iule of
value. Their duty 10 to follow the law to which
| We have full confidence they will give Just and
liberal Interpretation, and thus silence the empty
clamor which we daily hear, in certain quarters,
| about 'depfiving people Of their property with
| out compensation"
The appropriation for compensation to the
slave-owners, II 10 proper to state in this coDnec-
1 ton, Is sufficient to pay for 3 1903 slaves at the
rate Of $500 for each slave. This shows that the
| law does not assume that there were no more than
three thousand slaves here at the time Of Its
passage.
Since we have been led into more extended re-
i marks upon this subject Of emancip patton In the
1 District than we anticipated, there Is another
point In the article Of the Republican upon which
we will comment briefly. Ii says:
4 alt Is immaterial that on principles Of strict
equity and absolute light these slave holders had
| no JESf clam TO ths toIgsS If thsir sIdrss. The
law assumes that the equity Of the claimant Is not
good, but at the same time admits that there 10
color OF ttle-strengthened by time-if not a
legal title, which should not be DESTROYED with.
| out Offering fair and reasonable compensation"
l The intent OF this language IL, although not
fully declared, that there was no legal ownership
| OF slaves in the District Of Columbia, and con-
| sequently, that the slave holders had " no just
claim TO the wages Of their slaves - nor any claim
TO their service or labor III this be so, Congres,
was stultifed In the act Of enamel patton and the
act Itself IL a fraud upon the Treasury. There
| never was, however, a balder absurdity; and the
! hrst heard Of II was from Elearned pundit, in
the Senate. who discovered, contrary to the Judi
cial opinions Of Marshall, and Story, and Bald
| win, and Mclean, that the MARYLAND law Of us
which pds the law for the present territorybf the
| District OF Columbia, enslaved the negro for one
( generation only and, consequently, tina mas
much as the laws Of Maryland prior to 1900 only,
l istence
! The law OF IT'S bears no such construction, In
| the nrst place, and in the second, the Maryland
law Of 1853, which declares that % all negroes or
other slaves within the Province and all negroes
and other slaves 10 be kereafts, imported into the
Province, shall serve dLraHts rita, and all ehiI-
slaves, as their fathers were for the term of their
Lives, was, until the 18th Of April 1852, the law
OF the District Of Columbia. There was no other
law than these statutes, whereby slavery existed
i In Maryland, until q law was enacted, so late an
4 lS43, we believe, establishing 1t In so many
words And yet, the courts Of that State, which
\ Inclined to freedom, always, when claim existed
never mad any doubt as to the STAKEHOLDER rights
/ under the ancient Atatutes.
Here, In conclusion, we will mention the fact
| which many Of your readers will remember, that
Congress, when John Quincy Adams, Joshua r.
/ Giddings, William Slade, Seth NJ. Gates John
Mattocks, and other sentinels Of g human free
dom" equally watchful, IL not so able, were men,
| oers OF the House Of Representatives, a bill,
| which became law, passed, toithont objection
| In either House, allowing Colonel John Carter, Of
Il UeoIgetoWn, 10 bring certain negro man from
1 the State Of Alabama and hold him az a slave In
the District Of Columbia, the same he was there
held And this, too, In view OF the fact, II we
remember Alright, that bat for such special legis-
| latton the negro In question could not have been
held a. a slave here, for longer period than one
year.
MEETING OF JERsEYMKN IN AID OF THE SICK
Il AND WOUNDED SOLDIERS OF THAT SrATR-Pur-
suant TO public notice, large number Of the citi-
lens OF New Jersey, residents and sojourners In
4 Washington, assembled at the rooms OF Hon.
George I Cobb, In this city, on Tuesday evening,
| the oath instant, for the purpose OF forming a
SoldierP Aid Society, for the relief Of the sick
Il and wounded soldiers Of that State. A perma-
nent organization was effected by the appointment
| Of the following officers:
President-Hon. John C. Ten Eyci.
/ Vice Presidents-Hon. Geo. r. Cobb and Isaac
Hackett
Secretary and Treasurer-Joseph ii. Blackfan
L Corresponding Secretaries-Henry Bradshaw,
| John J. Halsted, John Kearns, DIR. ID. c. Wilson,
4 and Geo. A. EmmelL
/ Finance Committee-Joseph III. Blackfan Jos