, 1863-09-18
The Slaves Of Maryland.
Progress Of Anti Slavery Sentiment.


lFIom Our Regular Correspondent
= WASHINGTON, Sept. II. 1865.
It Is, perhaps, not generally known at
distance that Prince Georges county, In Ms.
ry1and, Of which the ground occupied By this
city was originally part, Is, or was, up to
the breaking cut Of the rebellion. one Of the
lsrgcst elayeholdlpg counties in the country.
The soil Of the city and its immediate '1cln-
1tv Is roor. but ten miles to the east thcre
lies highly fertile district, bordering Tue
Patu1ent, which is some ten miles IN "lotn'
and extending almost the entire length OF the
feounty, north and south. There is. perhaps,
no finer tobacco region in the country than
this, and it msy be questioned If any equal
area In the Union produces SO much Of that
article. The effect has been to make it = land
of slaves and masters, and to exclude every
thing like progresa. Abont half the county,
immediately around Washington, and reach;
irg out in the. iection of tha. railroad to
s o. 95e II. nneninton e.
most part white, composed Of small farmers,
who are engaged in raising articles for the
markets Of this city and Baltimore. Never
theless, tie county In 1860 contained 13 .410
sl&yes, and but $3.50 whites. In the tobacco
persons Vas probably not less than four to
one The free. colored population Mt the
same date Vas 1,108, making an aggregate Of
20 327 Inhabitants In Q county about forty
miles In length BY twenty. three to twenty
re II wldth, and lying aStacent 1sga to the cspi:
Was &, ,373; go that the increase was less than
5000 In thirty years.
The other southern counties on the eastern
ehore Of the Chesapeake Bay have made even
ltss progress than Primes Georges, the pop
ulatlon being less in 1860 than It was in l790.
But tie TebellIon. II which the PEI
sgmpathised, has done much towards
breaking up the system1 of slayery. Many
plantations have been almost entirely deser-
led, while every one has lost more or less
slaves. In many instances these Slaves who
have for the most part found their way to this
tho1itieE, on the ground that the masters arc
dis1oyal. Many have Joined regiments as ser
wants TO officers, while others h9ye Joined
the black giments. Tbs women find en-
ploynent about the city, or in the contraband
farm on the opposite aide Of the ri1er. Bat
The slave. catchers hare By no means gi.en up
their r'diabolical trade, aud the shrieks Of their
| human game cften make might hlaeous,"
here in Tie streets OF the National Capital I
have known If at least one case In which
elaye woman vas spirited off on quiet Sab
tathmor1irg, without consulting. either the
|
/ on to believe that such outrages are frequent.
| The poor Ignorant s1ayet, ,.as was the case Of
the woman referred to, are made to keep sn-
ence, either BY fraudulent exhibition ct pa
perH, or By threats Of vengeance, ac:ompa-
Died BY the assurance that the law is on the
It Las been decided BY TIT Supreme Court
tlat q Shareholder may capture his fugitive
s1aye wherever he can lay hands on him, with
cut warrant; apdit is on the authority sfthis
damnab1e adjudication tuat the police wink
st the outEages to which have referred. But
there is IN act Of Congress believe 1t is a
clause oftht Conf1scauon Act-Which declares
that no slaye shalt be delivered up to disloy-
a1 claimant. This act cannot be enforced Il
the decision Of the Court is stfl1to hold good,
since there can be 20 evidence taken as to
the Loyalty Of the claimant unless IN issue is
nsde befLre judicial tribunal. ::
But notW Outstanding occasional reclnma.
tIopt, the slave Institution Of Maryland Is
rapidly breaking up In consequence Of the
fogsc!ops propensities OF that species ofprop.
erty: Snch is tho popularity, and the demand
for black regiments, that there eau BE no
safer refuge from the slave catcher with his
bloodhouuds than recruiting station. ]
/ vas asenred by officers connected with the
firtt regiment ct blacks raised here that de
, cided majority Of the men were from Mary:
land md vtreinis, and that they had taket
that method Of emancipating themselves
OF course, the authorities we're not SLOW IL
arriving At the conclusion that If the masteri
choose to give their sons or themselves tt
the service IT the rebels, 1t was but fair lha
the Slaves fhou1d eerve the Union. Tn,
great body Of the shareholders Of MrJ1aus
Il are feceftionists, and scarcely a planter ha'
failed to ft out son, q brother, cousin, :
: poor white, or himself, for the service Of JEFF
Dams. The country has, therefore, no alter
? naive but, to call On the slaves to perform
} the dulles which belonged to their fagitiy
| mastsre.
But independently Of this confederation
there can BE- no doubt That the Goverumca
Las the right, In the last resort, to call upoI
every iphabitAnt, bend or Zee, to defend tn
r county; and, II need be, to make even tn
s1ayes If 10y al men free, II that be necessas,
to insure their fidelity. On the opposit
! theory, that the Government cannot requir
military services from the slaves Of lo5a
D men, It would follow that this peculiar spe
cies Of "property" IS more sacred than tia
= in wagons, horses aud cattle, which may b.
Ee}zed ut pleasure, IN order to facilitate th
important to be preserved than the indepen
| dence and liberties of the people. Tne .rutl
l is that the people OF this country have beer
| 70 thoroughly imbued with reverence fur thiI
iniquitous Institution that even Northern
men and Republicans haye not set shakeu OF
it's fetterf. Like all other superstitlons, til
, reverence for slavery is blind aud unreason
Ing, just In proportion to its unreasonable
ness. If cherished popular error is utterl,
> E1eEostercus-uttezly tndcten.ible, On TIL
tcore Of its folly OF its wlckedness-it1s uni
. | VERBALLY felt that there is no eacrilege equa
to that Of venturing to reason about t. It i
On Ills principle that the American peopi'
have silently acquie:ced. in the lmpuden
claims Of tlavery-as if they had been doom
ed, fora season, to believe lie, as u punish
int Of their hins
But the light is now rapidly breaking In,
/ and IN. f1nf. IL snt far 1int&rf Ma t.k-1
. viii be aa much detested In every part 0
America as 1t is in Massachusetts. The eyi
deuccs It this progress Of opinion thicker
around Us eyery day. At the beginning o
The var ell our Genesals Of note except Ere
nont wtre strongly, Conservative or pro
slavery. But gradually the ecales have tailel
from their eyes, until doubt whether ther
} IL q live man among them at the present tim
+ who would ackpowledge himself . friend q
, the accmsed institution. slngulally enough
the adoption Of the very policy which, 1t va
eatd, wcuId ddye every valuable officer fro1
q | the service, viz: the employment Of negroe
e Us to'die1e, has wrought thia wonderft
change. 50 far from leaving the service; til
ally 0 n The aide Of the Union, h1ye all, c
u rcarly all, tecome Abolidonists, and rega1
), negro soldltrs as almost indispensable tu Ii
i. suppression Of the rebellion. Gen. Gran
= whose name Is . host Of itself, thinks thz
y VicksburE could not have been taken whc
It it was, it ercr, but By the aid Of the negroe
Gen. Thomas, the able and experienced Adj,
+ tart GeneJal, Mho at the commencement
the wsr held Black Repubiicsnism In sue
Ii orrt as to throw suspicion upon his ,yalt,
4 his become champion Of the black troop
a snd las dole more 10 raise black regiment
:. rhau 4ny Cne m0n In tEe cuuutry, or perha}
~ in The world, II We except Tou.sattt, tt
'e block hero Of st. Domingo Other Geliera
d ard eisttpgnteted officers have given in the
J.. adbfs sion 70 the new black Institution; Viii
politicians ard statesmen Of Democratic an
Wig antect ents are falling into tie idea
T. 1apio succession.
!. IN this C. mt ction Twill remark, th
snorg conversions from slavery to nbart.
that Ut Andrew johnson Of Tennessee is OF
,. Of lie most significant that has yet come ,
a light, and find 1t difficult to determi1
slcther his late declaration at Nashville,
T. the letter of. Gen. Grant to the President b.
D given me the greatest eatitfaction. The i
i. tueuce Of the one In the a1mf, like that
" the other in the rsuks Of the trnc Denoce
CT; can scarcely be oserrated. Gov. job
81 n is atagacious and = cautious 1haY, m
u The public may be assured that bis declar
- ten Of war against slavery means somethin
~ MoIc than the announcement Of an indlvtl
Al nal chspgc-of Of inion.. hare reason 70 b
IL lfCve that the conversion In his case has n
- been sudden OF ut any rate not recent
date; but with the natural caution of an a1
&. billions but earnest man, he has bi6ed
D. ! tine, and endeayo1ed silently to educate Il
pr loyal people OF his State up to the psi
wEere 1t would be practicable to take grouI
10 against slavery. Andrew johnson Is a M
n Of tie people, and has for ffteen years exc