Morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven [Conn.]) 1848-1894, 1884-04-30
wednesday, April 80. 1854.
aIR q. a- aARRIS, InEA


Mr. B. G. Harris. q Maryland man, has
furnished some "feod for thought" in q letter
addressed to the Baltimore American. He
thinks there are two debts of large amounts
which the government Of the United States
should not hesitate to pay or settle satisfac-
toriIy new that it has the ability. One is the
claim for French spoliations. The other
claim ia for the negro slaves in Maryland and
other border States, which" says MIR. Har-
ris. s.the federal government took from their
owners, avowedly for public use, and which
the Constitution which Congress swore to
support declares cannot be done without fair
compensation" The amount due citizens of
Maryland for theic slaves thus taken, at $500
each, is, according to Mr.. Harris figuring,
$26 ,156, 700, and the whole amount due the
four border States is about $129, ,000,00 He
goes on to say: President Lincoln and the
congresses during his administration, by
their course on the subject, clearly indicated
their estimation of the justice of the claim
From my own experience and knowledge,
can say that many of our citizens whose slave
property was thus taken from them are
really impoverished and suffering for the
neoessaries of life. The government is now
capable of paying them, and let it make ar
rangements for doing SO at once. trust the
border States will take some early action for
urging their claims before Congress. Con-
80, 900 of the citizens of our country who
we're Shareholders, and are directly interested
in having this oppressive grievance redressed.
Il is thought by some that the United
States government is prohibited from carry
ing out Mr.. Harris idea by the fourth sec.
ten of the Fourteenth amendment to the
Constitution, which declares: "Neither she
United States nor any State shall assume or
pay any claim for the loss or emancipation
of any slave" But Mr.. Harris finds no difa-
Guilty here. He says: This cannot be con.
strued to refer to the border States, for in
NO sense were their slaves lost, but were
taken and held openly by the government
for its own use. They became the property
of the United States, of course. for fair con-
stdsration due to their owners, and this took
place considerable time before the Consti-
tuition of Maryland or the Thirteenth amend
ment, emsncipating them, were adopted 80
that these proceedings could only affect them
a. the property of the United States. Con-
eress should carefully avoid the repudiation
OF such claim, represented by SO many of
our citizens. Il might be a bad example
some time in the future. This cannot be
considered party question, for even the
negroes are favorable to its payment, inss-
much as their rights and standing are in no
respect injuxiously affected by it.
All this does not amount to much except
as an indication of what may be in the minds
of many of the inhabitants of the solid
South. Good-natured people in the. North
are apt to think that the people OF the South
have by this time accepted the results of the
war 30 heartily that there is no danger of any
more trouble or serious disagreement. Per-
haps they have, but there are many who still
believe that all the South wants is power,
and then would follow raid upon the ma
tional treasury which would reimburse that
section of the country for some of the losses
brought upon it by secession. It is certainly
hardly wise yet to let the solid South and its
Democratic allies in the North get full con-
troll at Washington.