The Hancock Jeffersonian. [volume] (Findlay, Ohio) 1857-1870, 1863-01-09
. ehaeter Of a vessel engaged in n,

cossting trade"
The opinion of Attorney General
Bates, aiiirmaiory Of the citizenship
OF freemen OF color, born in the
United States, is accounted altogeth-
or the ablest, rs it is the most i'm
porteut, legal paper drawn up by
him since he assumed the duties OF
his office. Alter stating hia own
conclusions, he tXimines three Su
horities usually cited in opposition.
The opinion OF Attorney General
Writ, OF November 7th, 1921, upon
case precisely ike the present. ex'
cept that the objections raised were
founded upon Virginia law, and the
decision is confined to free persons
Of color in Virginis, who are deter
mined not to be citizens Of tie Unitei
States; is examined at some length,
and it ia shown that the opinion, se
on the authority rebutted by the
opinion OF Attorney Genera Legare,
March Is, 1S43, TO the effect that
under. act OF Congress limiting
the pre- emp,ion oil land to citizens oi
the United States and aliens wko
had declared their intention to be-
come ctiz ns, free eolored man is
competent TO pre.empt land. See
retary NJ Marcy's dec sion, November
4, 1856, refusing passports to free
blacks on the ground that thew are
not citzens is next cited. Mr. b les
concludes that Mr.. Marcy qua fies
this broad statement go far ss to
leave doubt as to his practical opin,
ion, aud the certificates which he
offers to give, to the effect that the
bearer is a inll natural born inhabit-
ant of the United States, is virtually
a passport. The case OF the State
OF Tennessee We. Ambrose, in which
it was udjudged that free black
could not be q citizen OF X ntucky,
is next examined at length, and it is
shown that the opinion OF the court
rests, if upon any basis at all, on
the false presumption that under the
Constitution, grades and classes Of
citizens are known. Finally, the
Attorney General takes up the
Dred Scott case. After quoting the
plea in adjustment. showing that
the decision was and should have
been strictly confined to that, he
says:
Talking the plea there strictly ss
it Is written, the persons who are ex-
cluded by this Judgment from being
reltizens of Missouri, must be ne
groee, not mulattoes, nor mestizos,
nor quadroons. They must be OF Al
ricgn descent, not Asiatic. even
though they come ut the blackes,
Maliys in South Eastern Asia
They must have had ancestors, vet
that m y be doubtful If born in
slavery Of putative parents, who
we're ,laves, and being slaves, inca
psble of contracting matrimony
and therefore every child mt g needs
be a bastard. and so bv the common
law nul'uS fljus, and incapable o.
ancestors. His ancestors, il he
had any. must have heen OF pure
African blood. not mixed with the
tawnv Moor OF Morocco, or the dus-
XIV Arab of the desert both OF whom
lad their origin in Asia. They
must have been brought to this
Icouniry. not come voluntarily and
sold, not kept by tho importer far
his own use, not given to his friends.
In this argument | raise nc
question upon the legal validity Of
the Judgment in Scott vs. Sanford
and only insist that the judgment IN
that case is limited in law as in
tact; limited on the face of the re-
cord to plea in abatement, and con
sequently that whatever was said il
the long course OF the case, ss re
ported, respecting the legal merit,
of the mere fact OF color. though en-
titled to all the respect which is due
to the learned and upright sources
from which opinions come, wss ont
side Of the record, and OF no author
iiy "a n judicial decision