The Penn's Grove record., 1909-06-18

.sThe Rise And Decline Of Slavery
In America"
HOWARD G, CLINE
Slavery is older than civilization,
than History. Its origin-is commonly
referred to wa to the captivity of the
vanquished, ana to the exercising pow
er of the victor, who knew that the
killing of bis .:soner was of short dur
alton Will, k eping him i'll servitude.
was endui4ng. Thus in rude ages, not
merely vanqu,sl ed warriors, hut their
wives and children, their dependents
and subjects, were accounted, in ac-
cordance with the established law,
slaves. 7 he victor thought that to en-
slave those whom he might i~ustiiably
kill. was an act of justice and i.umani-
ty rather than injustice and wrong.
Hence the warlike eonqueling races of
ancient times rejoiced in the possessing
of innumerable slaves.
Thus we find that ancient slavery
flourished and increased during the
Dark Ages. And even OIL she Access
sion of Christianity over the Roman
world, when one would think TIA the
accused crime surely must fade out, 1t
survived. But nevertheless White
Slavery did gradually veal out while
rushing in " take its Place. came Afri-
can Slavery with all its cruel al hori-
BILE crimes. Negro Slavery once liz
troduced, rapidly ~overspread Spanish
and Portuguese America. When in
1907, Virginia, the inst permant Eng
lish colony as founded OH tile Atlantic
coast 0 f.what is now uui country, Neg
10 Slavery was mot than a century old
throughout Spanisl, and Portuguese
America.
To us, knowing lie nature of those
who settled V irglnla. 1t S surprising
that the colony existed for thirteen
years withou. .",,el3. u It it is
enough for us t. kIow, at al their
first chance, that 40 as 81 ! S they are
were able to pay for them the Virginia
planters bought their fist slaves.
Slavery at first was coI :. ed to the
Southern colonies. Une "suld think
that the strict and sty II Pilgrims
would / OF have allowed Y But they
ha, lttr pity :oi -slderatioL
for 1.st whom Ley / eyed 10 be
enen.,eso .. I'D, Chept,,i is ua ut N
TO was consid, led ID :lcl thus L. GUS
tom grew SON >n e IL ANA col
onies, until sE were ,;uaLlf led thu
each Of the diff -liI"ces.
Hence at the Ugh :; u thc l,evo.
luton, slavery Was well s"c..c =. T.
colonies. Then Tie ;,ct wa sOCl,
found cut that it vast III u ief scouu,
of danger and peril, fol melted iy "a
Englisn. thousands Led into the +, 'itisll
Camps, there encouraged b, til,
Royalist Generals, they murdered, ny
of the soldiers of Ne Contine Il
Army. But when we lad gained oul
independence Of Great Blitian, anu The
old patriots assembled to forlA the old
parfi0ts assembled to form the new
government slavery confronted them.
Never had it appeared to them so hor-
rible aud wicked. The very thing fol
which they had given their lives, of this
they were depriving other human
beings. They telt the embarrassment
it producted and feared the evils that
would result from giving, such a de.
moralizing and degrading thing, a place
in the beginning of liberty. But they
quieted themselves with the hope that
it would gradually disappear under the
effect of the new constitution. To a
Ger tain extent their hopes We're carried
out, and state after state released itself
from the cause of slavery, until emanci.
patton reached nearly TO the parallel OF
thirty.
The South realized the fact that it was
necessary to defend and strengthen il
and suddenly awakening, rea-
lized that there were new states
constantly asking for admission. They
declared that they must have a portion
among these new states. Right at this
point was the beginning of the .sGreat
Conflict" which was to cause the
Union to shake and tremble on the
verge of destruction. To allow slavery
to extend itself and move beside free
dom in the enlargement of the Repub-
lie was contrary to the purpose and ex-
pectations of the trainers of the consti.
tuition But the South was not content
to have it remain within its present
boundaries and the quarrel be: ween free.
domland slavery increased. Different
propositions and comprom ses were
offered to get rid of the anne ying ques
ton, till finally The ''Miss uri Com.
PROMISE" fixing the Sou:he II bonndry
OF that states the line be5 ond which
southwark should go, and northwara.
should not extend itself, the sta
excepted, should be slave, seemed .
settle the question for no one inten,
to interfere'with slavery in the state;
where it existed.
This compromise served until the
movement of emigration to the far wes
and the Mexican War, raised tile CUES
ton whether the east line and the ives
line should be continued across thu
continent to the Pacific. The South
erners assumed it should, but thu
Northerners objected and SO the OK
quarrel was renewed.
But in the midst of these struggle.