The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-04-11

gnrded Us n matter OF national concern. SUISSE
quently, indood. the Congress- became 90 occu'
| pied with the duties pertaining to the prosecu-
ton Of tho wa- that IL failed to so forward In
this matter, but tho separate colonies, now be-
como States" took up tho question. Slavery
was substantially abolished In Massachusetts by
her Constitution of 1850. Pennsylvania pro-
vided for gradual emancipation by q statute
tho samo year. Rhode Island, Connecti-
cut, and New Hampshire followed the oxnm-
pie Of Pennsylvania. In New York, New Jersey,
Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia, any further
importation Of slaves was forbidden. Undor
such impulses and influences, tho Confederate
Congress, in spite OF tho fact that no power In
respect TO sla worry had been conferred upon 1t by
tho Articles o. Confederation, assumed tho right
to pass the famous ordinance Of 1887 dccreoing
tho FREQ status exclusively In all Of tho territories
then belonging to tho United states north of tho
Ohio River. Tho power to enact tho ordinance
could not DO derived by even the most generous
principles of implication from any provision in
the articles. DIR. Burgess consequently holds 1t
to be an ncontrovertibl proof OF tho universally
and intensity OF the opposition to the further
spread of slavery that tho common conscious
moss OF the ago acquicsccd in this most lhti'
tudinarian construction OF tho powers OF tho
Confederate Compress. and that the Congress
itself voted tho measure with but u single dis
sent!ns voice.
Unfortunately, q very differont position with
regard to slavery was boing taken simulta-
neously by the Constitutional Convention. then
sitting ut Philadelphia. II was, In truth. tho
extraordinary difference In tho course OF the
Confederate Congress and tho course of the Phil
aiolphia Convention which led Garrison to do
scribe tho Constitution which was the outcome
Of the proceedings OF the latter body as "a COW
cnant with hell" Touching tho change for the
worse which was beginning to display itself in
the opinions concerning slavery. the author or
this book quotes n significant passage from
Luther Martins famous letter to the Maryland
Legislature upon tho work Of the Philadelphia
Convention. al this time" he wrote. "wc do
not generally hold this commerce 1.-THE slave
tradel in 40 great abhorrence as VIC have done.
When our liberties were at stake, we warmly
folt for the common rights of men. The danger
being thought to DO in the past which threat
oned ourselves, we are daily growing more In
sensible to those rights" As DIR. Burgess re-
minds us, the Constitution OF 1897 contains
abundant evidence of the correctness of Mar
tins statement Among its provisions were
to be found three important compromises with
the slavery interest, three distinct recognitions
OF slavery. Tho first of these counted the negro
for three-1fths of tho white man In the distribu-
ton OF the representation in the House Of
Representatives and in tho Presidential cleo
toral colleges. The second forbade Congress to
prohibit, before the year 1908. the migration or
importation OF such persons as the existing
States might SEQ fit to admit. The third was a
direct guarantee of slave property; 1t DEGREES
the surrender to his master of an escaped slave
wherever found in the United States. These
were, indeed. momentous provisions. They Sc
cured slave property. increased slave property.
and made slavery a vast political power In the
hands of the slave masters. In our authors
mind. there is no doubt that the clock of the ages
was turned back full half q century in regard to
this great question by the Constitution Of 1887.
T''"nceforward. up to 1908, the reactionary
co e. vent on almost without a break. Ken
lucky was made a commonwealth with the slave
status. The Congress accepted from North
Carolina and Georgia cessions Of the territory
which lay to the west of them. saddled with tho
condition that slavery should not be forbidden
therein by Congress. The slave commonwealth
of Tennessee WAS Immediately formed out of n
part Of this territory. The vast Louisiana Terri
tory, In which slavery existed wherever 1t was
inhabited, was added to the domain OF the Union.
The District Of Columbia, the seat of the general
Government. was made Il slnve-holding COM
munity through the adoption by Congress of the
laws of Maryland Us the code OF the District. A
! fugitive slave law was passed by Congress, which
enabled any white man to seize as his slave any
man of color and bring him before any magis-
trate. and. upon proof satisfactory to tho latter.
to demand such papers and certificates as would
legally warrant him in retaining the slave and
transporting him to the place whence he was
said to have escaped. Petitions TO Congress COM
planning of the abuse OF this arbitrary
| power were laid inside without consideration.
Even tho Territory Of Indiana prayed Congress
TO suspend for it that part OF the or
dlnnnco of 1887 which forbade slavery within
its limits. Lastly. South Carolina abolished her
law against the importation OF slaves. and
opened the way wide for a vast increase Of the
slave population. These two last acts. however,
seem to have aroused tho consciousness OF the
Congress to the rapidity with which tho whole
country was becoming again subject to the slave
holding interests. The Congress resisted the
opportunities of Indiana, and, after giving
South Carolina n reasonable time to reenact her
law abolishing the foreign slave trade. proceed
ed itself to abolish the trade from the frat mo-
ment that the Constitution permitted this to DO
done, namely. from Jan. l, 1908.
1t has been customary to ascribe tho rcmarka-
BILE and regrettable revulsion of view in regard
to slavery, which certainly manifested itself
everywhere in the United States between 1890
| anu 1olO, " ~ II ~ ~ Bill
DR.. Burgess has no doubt that such was tho
main cause of the great change of view. but he
does not believe it TO have been the sole cause.
In his Judgment. it was inevitable that. whom
the men OF the Revolutionary era passed ont of
tho excited state Of mind and feeling produced
by the war with the mother country, and came
to the task of reGstablishing the relations OF
peace and everyday life and business, they
should regain a calmness Of judgment. a respect
for vested rights and a regard for customary e-
lations which placed tho political philosophy of
1910 under many limitations and qualifications.
some of which certainly were sound and value
BILE. 1t Is only when VIC take all OF these consid.
e~rations together that we can comprehend the
reasoning of the men of l790-1s10 upon the mo.
mentous question. They saw IA great interest
developing, which was bringing wealth and com.
fort into an impoverished section OF the country.
They know that 1t could be then sustained only
by negro labor. They did not believe that the
negro would work unless forced to it by the
x,hito man Thav thnu1hf ~ WA haitian for