The news & observer., 1905-11-19
JUDGE TANEY's OLD. PAPERS.
\ Southern Soldier, Whose Name Is
Not Given. Predicts Anal
9;lmation.


lcapacity. often touched on at the dis
cussions of the Massachusetts histori-
cal society," came up again this after
noon for brief remark, and brought
out an old letter of Chief Justice Ia
ney, long living unobserved in the
Iarchives of the society. with SO many
other curious papers, and now possi-
bly, first made public, which the auth
or of the Dred Scott decisions was
very unwilling to have done in 1857,
when it was written and sent to Rev.
Samuel Mott of Wareham. Not that
he wished to avoid responsibility, he
said but thought it unsuitable for him
to appear as defending or commenting
on the decision of his court. Two
things are especially noteworthy in
this letter. At the end of it he said
august H., 1S5O:-
81 am not a STAKEHOLDER. More than
80 years ago / manumitted every
slave l ever owned, except two. who
were too old when they became my
property, to provide for themselves.
These two l supported in comfort as
long as they lived. And L am glad to
say that none of them whom l manu-
mitted disappointed my expectations
but have shown by their conduct that
Ithey were worthy of freedom, and
knew how to use it.
Thus he became a slave emancipa-
tor no doubt from a good motive and
for the sake of improving his bond
mems condition; those whose condi-
ton was not to be thus improved he
tUr,,r -lxy
Hence he might logically have inferr
ed that those at the North or the
South who desired general emancipa-
tion were, like himself acting from
good motives, and not from evil dispo-
sitions, as he suggests. Moreover he
asserts that all his slaves, without ex-
Iception, were worthy of freedom,
and knew how to use it." This must
either have been because thew were
naturally good and sensible, or Ue-
| cause he had made them such in his
| relation as master. 1t does not ap-
pear that they were essentially unlike
other Maryland slaves; and he would
| hardly imply that he was so much SUI
perior to other slave masters as to
| raise them himself above the risks
or emancipation. Hence the natural
inference is that the other Maryland
| slaves might safely have been eman-
| cipated long before. The result of
| final emancipation in Maryland
would seem to support this conclusion
| for they have supported themselves
land conducted themselves well, on the
whole. Yet the chief justice solemn
| ly declared As years ago that general
and sudden emancipation would be
| absolute ruin to the negroes as we'll
as TO tho white race" Time. which
| reveals all things, has shown conclu-
sively that this was deluSlon.
4 \ .,f
the world pecuniarily both are in
better condition, as a whole, than they
ever were in slavery, and the whites
| this week, at an election warmly CON
tested, have refused to disfranchlse the
| blacks, for fear of injuring the white
race. Now all this might have been
| inferred, if he had been endowed with
a little more logic. His notorious de-
cision was a masterful attempt to hold
back the waves of civilization from
rising to the point of slave eman-
cipation, which he had personally
| reached 80 years before.
In the same discussion another
Southern opinion was quoted, so un-
| like most that reach us from that sec
ton, that it may be indicated here.
Writing to a friend last year. with no
thought of publication, an old soldier
of secession, who enlisted early and
fought through the whole war to
break the Union and defend slavery.
said this:-
"All deplore a mixture of the two
races, but we cannot shut our eyes
| to the facts. Mixture began, no
doubt, with the first ship load of
slaves landed; and it has been kept up
ever since. Even if effective laws
or customs We're now to be establish
ed to prevent further admiXture (and
| this is not poSsible) e)-still, the large
percentage of mixed blood now ex-
listing would eventually absorb all the
pure blacks, and there would be no
| pure black blood left. 1t is simple
mathematical proposition In view OF
the fact that admixture cannot be
prevented. In the same way, with no
| laws or customs effective to prevent
| the admixture of pure white blood. be-
gun SO long ago, and steadily Kept up
must necessarily. mathematically IN
| time absorb all the pure blacks. De-
plore it as we may. that is the pros
pect."
The writer then goes on to say that
| he has put the conundrum to three
| typical Southern white men: NAT
will be the solution of our race ques-
tion?" and each and all replied,
"AmalgamatiCn." Then he adds
eff all three had combated my own
conclusion, | would have known they
were wrong, because it rests on math-
ematcs The evidence is before us
all the time. OF course the cessation
of black immigration, and the in
creasing white immigration will tend
continually to dilute the black blood;
so that after time there will be
but few that are even one-half black
and a great many who will pass for
pure white, as many do even now,
without any doubt. To me it all
seems deplorable, but / cannot shut
my eyes to the facts and mathematics.
AS to deporting the race, the very
idea is absurd They cannot be forced
to go; they are not going willingly;
the white people are not going to
pay the money; the shipping cannot
be spared for it,-and where would
these worthy shippers draw the line?
One-half, one-eighth, one-sixteenth.
one 82d,-where? Who would be
judges of the drawing, and who the
historians of the pedigrees? 1t is
utterly chimercal. Besides. these
beautifully consistent farmers who
burn their cotton to increase the price,
would be the first to raise outcry
against their own prOiect of depOrtd-