The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1880-12-17

Mr.. EDITOR Was somewhat sur
prised to read the answer to the slavery
question. / hardly think the facts in
the case warrant the opinion given by
Mr.. &C." If slavery was not legaliRd,
then farming was not.
Webster, in his definition of Leg;l,"
says: Anything is legal that is lot
forbidden by law Slavery was 1ot
forbidden by any law antil it vas
abolished by the thirteenth amend
ment.
Slavery was legalized, in my oEfnDn,
by common law. Custom had sane
toned this Institution for ages in all
the civilized nations, and particularly
in the United States. From the found
ing of the American Colonies till he
close of the Revolution slavery vas
fostered by all the colonies, or, in otler
words, sanctioned by common law. 1t
was thoroughly understood, when the
constitution was framed, that when
any existing custom was to- be changed,
it was necessary to insert clause ex-
pressly for that purpose, and as no
such. clause appears in the constitution,
we certainly have the right to presume
that the fathers of this government
intended it should exist as before the
adoption Of the constitution, or in
other words, legalized it.
That the constitution intended that
slavery should be legal institution Is
unquestionable from the following
facts:
1. A considerable portion of the
trainers of the constitution were slave
holders, and if there had been any
question as to its legality, they would
never have submitted to it and given
it their sanction without a special
clause expressly endorsing it.
| 2. A considerable portion of the
non-slave holding members Of that
body were in sympathy with the in
stitution; and those opposed to it sus-
tanned no objection to it, except by
imposing tax on imported slaves.
This can hardly be called triumph
for the anti-slavery party, because
they thereby denied the unfortunate
negro his right to be classed among
human beings, and placed him on the
list of taxable property the same as a
yard of silk OF barrel of rum.
3. Negroes and mulattoes, whether
slave or free, were acknowledged to be
inferior to the white race by Art. r,
Sec. 2, OF the constitution, where it
says that one of these persons are
equal to three-ffths of white person.
4. Art. ", Sec. 2, settles the matter
beyond all question. Under this arti-
Gle, if slave escaped from Kentucky
to Ohio, his owner could demand him.
and the state of Ohio must send him
back, though the laws of that state
forbid slavery within its boundaries.
The violation of this part of the con-
stitution by the North brought about
the Fugitive Slave Law of 1850.
The Kansas-N ebraska Act legalized
slavery in any territory of the Z. S.
where the people favored it.
The most sweeping of all acts was
the decision of the Supreme Court of
the United States in the case of Dan'l
Scott u.s. John F. A. Sanford. The
substance of this decision was: That
the negroes were of an inferior race |
that they were not, nor could not. be-
come citizens of the United States
that they could neither sue nor be sued |
in any z. S. court; that all laws pro-
hibiting slavery in the territories were
unconstitutional; that shareholders
could remove to any territory of the |