Anti-slavery bugle. [volume], October 05, 1850, Image 1

About Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861

Image provided by: Ohio Historical Society, Columbus, OH

OLITEII JOIIXSOX, Elitor.
"NO UNION WITH 81 f E D 0 1 DE R8."
J A ITIES BAKNAIlV, I'ufelislilna; ATnU
SALEM, COLUMBIANA CO;, (3lII0, OCTOBER 5, 1850.
VOL. 6-NO. 4.
WHOLE NO. 264, ,!'
THE ASTI-SL1TERT BUGLE,
PuMUhed trerjf Saturday, at .Salem, Col. Co.,
Trims. j 1,50 per annum if Daid In advance.
$1.74 por nnnum if paid within tho first six
monin 01 me subscriber year.
$2,00 per annum, if payment be delayed
beyond ait months.
LTW occasionally tend numbers to those
who are not subscribers, but who arc believed
to be interested in the dissemination of anti-sis
Yery truth, with the hope that they will oithor
ubscribo theinaclvos, or use their influence to
extend ita circulation anions their friends.
ry Communication intended for insertion,
to be addressed to Oliver. Johnson. Editor.
AUothera to Jams Bahnabt, Publishing Agent
THE BUGLE.
The New Slave—Catching Law.
AN ACT to nmend and supplementary to
the act entitled "An net respecting fugi
tives from justice and persons escaping
irom tiie service ot tlioir masters, n
, proved February Vi, 1703.
Bt it enacted by the Snntt and Ifoun of
J?,,. ...-.I-I.' r.L 11. 'i 1 t-i i e. i V
ea tit Votigresi attembled, Tlmt the persons
wno navo uecn or wno limy licrcnller I hi i,-
poimeu commissioners in virtue ill any m l
of Congress by the circuit courts of tlin
United States, mid who, in consequence of
such apKiutiucnt, are authorized to exercise
the powers tlmt any justice of the pence or
other mngistrute ol any ol'tlie United Suites
may exercise in respect to offenders for
ny crime or offence niriiiust tho United
States, by arresting, imprisoning, or boiling
a Bamo uniivr ami ny vmuo oi mo thirty
third section of the net of the twenty-foui-ili
ofSeptcmlier, seventeen hundred and eighty
nine, entitled "An uet to establish thejtuii
cinl courts of the United States," shull he
end are hereby authorized nnd required to
exercise nnd discharge nil the powers ami
duties conferred by this act.
Sec. 2. .Ind be it further enacted, Tlmt the
superior court of each organized Territory
of the United States shnll hnve the snme
jiower to appoint commissioners to tako
acknowledgments of bi I and affidavits, and
tQ take depositions of witnesses in civil caus
es which is now possessed by tho circuit
court of the United States ; and nil commis
sioners who shall hereafter be appointed for
such purposes by the stiieiior court of any
organized Territory of the United Stotes
shall possess all tho powers and exercise nil
the duties conferred by law upon tho com
missioner appointed by the circuit courts of
the Indeed btates tor similar purposes, and
shall moreover exercise and dischorgo all
the powers and dutits conferred by this net.
Sec 3. Jlnd be it further enaitcd, That the
circuit courts of the United States nnd the
superior courts of eiich organized Territory
of the United States shall Irom time to time
enlarge the number of commissioners with
view to afford reasonable fiicilities to re
claim fugitives from hihor, and to the prompt
discharge of the duties imposed by this act.
Sect 4. And be it further enacted, Tlmt
the commissioners nbovc named shnll hnvc
concurrent jurisdiction with the judges of
the circuit and district courts of United
States, in their respective circuits and dis
tricts within the severul States, and the judg
es of the superior courts of the Territories,
severally and collectively, in term time and
vacation ; and shall grant certificates to such
claiinauts, upon satisfactory proof being
made, with authority to take and remove
such fugitives from service or labor, under
the restrictions herein contained, to the
State or Territory from which such persons
may have escaped or fled.
See, 5. And bt it further enacted, That it
hall be the duty of nil marshals and deputy
marshals to obey and execute all warrants
end precepts issued under the provisions of
this act, when to them directed ; nnd should
njr marshal or deputy marshal refuse to re
ceive such warrant or other process, when
tendered, or to use all proper moans diligent
ly to execute the same, he shall, on convic
tion thereof, be fined ill the sum of one
thousand dollars to the use of such cluimunt,
on tbe motion of such claimant, by tiie cir
cuit or district court for the district ol micli
marshal ; and after arrest of such fugitive by
such marshal or his deputy, or w hilst at any
time in bis custody under the provisions of
this act, should such fugitive cscupc, whether
with or without the assent of such marshal
or bis deputy, such tnnrshal shull bo liable on
bis official bond to be prosecuted for the
benefit of such claimant, for the full value
of the service or labor of said fugitive in tho
State, Territory, or District whence he escnp
fld and the butter to eunblo the said com
rnisViouers, when thus appointed, to execute
their duties fuithfully-aiid efficiently, in con
formity with the requiremeuts of the Con
stitution of the United States nnd of this
act, they are hereby authorized and empow
ered, within their counties respectively, to
appoint, in writing under their hands, any
one or more suitable persons, from time to
time, to execute all such warrants and other
Iirocess as mny be issued by them in the
awful performance of their respective du
ties, with authority to itich commissioners,
or the persons to be appointed by them, to
execute process bs aforesaid, to summon and
call to their aid tbe bystanders or posit comi
tate of the proper county, when necessary
to ensure a faithful observance of the clause
f the Constitution referred to, in conformi
ty with the provisions of this act; nnd oil
good citizens are hereby commanded to aid
end assist in the prompt nnd efficient exe
cution of this law, whenever their services
jtiry be required, as aforesaid, for that pur
pose end said warrant shall run and be
fleeiued by said officers any whore in the
State within which they are issued.
. See. 6. Ani bt it further enacted, That
svnen a person held to service or labor iu
eny State or Territory of the United States
has heretofore or slmll hereafter escape into
another State or Territory of the United
States, the person or persons to whom such
service or Inlior may lie due, or his, her, or
their ngent or attorney, duly authorized, by
power of attorney. In writing, acknowledged
and certified under the soi l of some legnl
officer or court of the State or Territory in
which the same mny be executed, may pur
sue and recluiin such fusitive person, either
by procuring a warrant from somo one of
the rourtH, judges, or commissioners afore
said, of the proter circuit, district, or county,
for the apprehension of such fugitive from
service or Inlior, or by seizing and arresting
such fugitive, where the same can be dono
without process, and bv taking, or cnusinir
such person to lie taken, forthwith belbre
such court, judge, or commissioner, whoso
duty it shnll be to henr nnd determine tho
ense of such claimant in a summitry man
ner; mid upon satisfactory proof being
made, by dejiosiiion or affidavit, iu writing,
to bo taken nnd certified by such court.
judge, or commissioner, or by other satisfac
tory testimony, duly taken nnd eertihcd by
some court, magistrate, justice f the peace,
or other legal officer authorized to adminis
ter nu o.ith ami take depositions under the
laws ot tho Mate or territory Irom which
such person owing service or l.ilior innv
have escaped, with a certificate of such
magistracy or other authority, us alorrsuid,
with the seal of tho proper court or officer
thereto nt'.achcd, which seal shall lie sulli-
cicnt to establish the competency of the proof.
nnd with pi oof, also by alliilavit, of the iden
IV of tho person whoso service or labor ij
'laimed to lie dun ns aforesaid, that the per
son so arrested does in fact owe service or
I
ulHir to the person or persons claiming him
or her, in tho State or Territory from w hich
such fugitive may hnve escaped as afore
said, and that snid person escaped, to make
out and deliver to such clnimnnt, his or her
ngcnl or attorney, a certificate setting forth
the substantial liicts as to the service or labor
duo from Bitch fugitivo to the claimant, and
of his or her escape from tho Stuto or Ter-
tory in which sucli service or lalmr was
due, to tho Sttte or Territory in which he or
he was arrested, with authority to such
claimant, or his or her agent or attorney, to
use such rensouublo force und restraint as
may bo necessary, under the circumstances
of tho case, to take nnd remove such fugi-
ivo person back to tho State or Territory
whence be or she mny have escaped as
aforesaid. In no trial or hearing under this
net shull the testimony of such alleged fugi
tive bo admitted in evidence : nnd tho cer-
ideates in this nnd the first section mention
ed shall be cnnclusivo uf the right of the
person or persons in whose favor granted to
remove audi fugitive to the Stata or 'J'crrito.
ry from which ho escaped, and shall prevent
II molestation ot such person or porsons by
ny process issued bv nny court, judge, mag
istrate, or other person whomsoever.
Sec. 7. And be it further enacted. That tiny
person who fIihII knowingly nnd willingly
Iwttruct, hinder, or prevent sucli claimant,
is agent, or attorney, or any person or per
sons lawfully assisting him, her, or them,
from arresting such n fugitive from service
or labor, either with or without process as
aforesaid ; or shnll rescue, or attempt to
rescue, such fugitive from service or lulior
from the custody of such cluiinnut, his or
her agent or attorney, or other persou or per
sons lawfully assisting ns aforesaid, when so
nrrcsted, pursuant to the authority herein
given and declared, or shall uul, ntiet, or as
sist such person so owing service or labor
ns aforesaid, directly or indirectly, to escnpe
out such claimant, bis scent or nttorucy, or
other person or persons legally authorized ns
iloresaul ; or shull hnroor or conceal buck
iigitivc, so as to prevent tho discovery nnd
arrest of such person, nftcr notice or know-
duo ol tho Hict tlmt such person wusn fugi
tive from service or labor, as aforesaid, shull,
for either of said offences, bo subject to a
ue not execcdingnno thousand dollars, nnd
imprisonment not execding six months, by
indictment and conviction before the district
ourt of the United States for the district in
which such offence mny have been commit
ted, or before the proper court of criminal
jurisdiction, if committed within nny ene of
the organized territories ot the United
States ; and shnll moreover forfeit and pay,
ly way of civil damages, to tho purty injur
ed bv such illegal conduct, the sum of one
thousand dollars for each fugitive so lost as
foresaid, to be recovered by action ol debt,
in any of the district or territorial courts
aforesaid, within whoso jurisdiction the said
offence may have been committed. . , , ,
Sec. 8. And be it further enacted, That the
marshals, their deputies, and the clerks of
the snid district and territorial courts, shull
be paid for their services the like fees ns mny
be allowed to them for similar services iu
other esses ; r.nd where such services are
rendered exclusively in the arrest, custody,
and delivery of tho fugitivo to tho claimant,
his or her ngent or attorney, or w here such
supposed fugitivo tuny be discharged out of
custody for tho want of sufficient proof ns
albresuid, then such fees are to bo puid in
the whole by such claimant, bis ngent or at
torney ; nnd iu all cases where the proceed
ings uro belbre a commissioner, be shnll be
entitled to a fee of ten dollars in full for bis
services iu ench case, upon the delivery of
the suid certificate to the clnimnnt, his or her
agent or attorney ) or n fee of five dollurs in
esses where the proof shall not in the opin
ion of such commissioner, warrant such cer
tificate and delivery, iuclusive of all services
Incident to such orrest and exominntion, to
be paid, iu either case, by tho claimant, his
or her agent or attorney. The person or
persons authorized to execute the proceBi to
be issued by such commissioners for the
arrest and detention of fugitives from ser
vice or lubor as aforesaid, shall also be enti
tled to a fie of five dollars each for ench
ercn he or they mny arrest and take be
lbre any auch couimissioncr as albresuid, at
the instance and request of such cluimunt,
with such other fees as may be deemed rea
sonable bv such commissioner for such other
additional services as may be necessarily
performed by him or thorn j such as attend
ing at the examination, keeping the fugitive
in custody, nun providing nun wun iuui mm
Indffinff durinir nis detention, and until the
final determination of such commissioner
and in ccneral for performing such other da
ties as mny be required by such clnimnnt,
his or her atterney or agent, or commission
er in the premises; sucli fees to be made up
in conformity witn tiie lees usuauy ennrgeii
by the officers of the courts of justice with
in tho proper district or county, ss near as
mny lie prnclicoblo, and paid by such claim
ants, their ngents or nttorncys, whether sum
supposed fugitives from service or labor be
ordered to lie delivered to such cluimnnts by
tho final determination of such commission
ers or not.
Sec. U. nrf be it further tnactrd, Tlmt up
on nfhdnvit made by the claimant ol sucli
fugitive, bis ncent or attorney, after such
certificate has been issued, that he has res
son to apprehend Ihnt such fugitive will bo
rescued bv force from his or their possession
lMforo he can lie taken beyond tho limits of
tho State in which the arrest Is mnuo, n
shall lie the duty of tho officer making tho
arrest to retain such fugitive in bis custody,
nnd to remove him to tho State whence ho
fled, nnd there to deliver him to snid clai
mant, his ngent or attorney. And to this end,
the officer nlnrcsnid is hereby authorized and
reouiri-d to employ so many persons as he
may deem necessary to overcome such
force nnd to retain them in his service so
long ns circumstances may rcqi'ire. Tho
said officer and his assistants, while so em
ployed, to receive tho same compensation,
nnd to bo allowed the same expenses, ns are
now allowed by law for tho transiKirtntion
of criminals, to lie certified by the judge of
inu iiisinci wiiiiiu wuieu me nrrcst m iiiaoe,
nnd paid out of the treasury of tho United
States.
Sec. 10. And be it further enacted, Thut
when any person belli to service or Inlior in
nny State or Territory, or in tho District of
Columbia, shall escape therefrom, the pnrty
to whom such service or labor shnll bo due,
his, her, or their ngent or attorney, tuny np
ply to nny court of record therein, or judjje
thereof iu vacation, and make sntisliictory
proof to such court, or judgo in vacation, of
the escnpo aforesaid, and that the person
escaping owed service or labor to such par
ty.. Whereupon the court shall cause a
record to bo made of the matters so proved,
auu also a general description ol tho person
so escaping, with such convenient certainty
as may be ; and a transcript of such record-,
authenticated by tho attestation of the clerk
nnd of the senl of tho snid court, being pro
duced in any other State, Territory, or Dis
trict in which the person no escnpinir mnv
Ve flMilirr, linn TuTflg exliff'ltcr-Tr aij;f3imi.
commissioner, or oilier officer authorized by
the law of the United States to cause per
sons escnping from service or labor to be
delivered up, shull be held and taken to be
full and conclusivo evidence of the fiict of
escnpe, nnd thut tho service or lubor of tho
person escaping is due to the party in such
record mentioned. And upon the produc
tion by the said pnrty of other nnd further
evidence, if necessury, cither oral or by alli
ilavit, in addition to what is contained iu tho
suid record of tho identity of tho person
escaping, he or slm shall be delivered up to
tho cluitnnnt. And tho snid court, commis
sioner, judge, or other person authorized by
this net to grant certificates to claimants of
fugitives, shall, upon the production of the
record and other evidences aforesaid, grant
to such cluimunt a certificntn of his right to
tuke nny such person identified, nnd proved
to be owing service or lubor as aforesaid,
which certiticuto shull authorize sucli cluim
unt to seizo or arrest nnd transport such
person to the Stuto or Territory from which
lie escaped : Provided, That nothing herein
contained shull be construed as requiring the
prudutiou of a transcript of such record ns
evidence as aforesaid. Hut in its absence
tho claim shall be heard and determined
upon other satisfactory proof competent in i
luw. , ,
Approved, September 18, 1850.
Comments of the Press.
Slave Catching.
Tbe majority of the 31st Congress, 'in
both Houses, hnve branded themselves with
iufumy, and, as fur as they have power, dis
giaced the nation. A bill, imposing a fine
of one thousand dollurs, nnd six mouths im
prisonment, fur obeying God's express com
mand to "feed the hungry, clothe the naked,
and hido the outcasts," has passed through
both branches of tho National Legislature.
We are neither prophet nor prophet's son,
yet a revclutiou from Mouven would mnke
us no surer thun we are now, that tho names
of those, especially from the Free States,
who have voted for this bill, will go down to
posterity along with thoso of Ilenedict Ar
nold nnd Judus Iscariot. Nay, if it bo possi
ble, they will descend with a shade of deep
er infamy. Tho record is traced, more in
delibly than on Corinthian brass. The wat
ers of nil ocenn cannot wash it out, and the
nhrudiug hand of time cannot erase It.
Representatives of men culling themselves
free have crouched like spaniels, at tho feet
of Southern lordlings, and have done the
bidding of their musters. They have voted
to muku humanity a crime subnission to
ruffian violence a virtue, and obedience to
God an offence to be punished by fine and
iniprisoument.
. .
It is hard to find language with which to
characterize such enactments. Their atroci
ty ia fathomless, and ought to be nameleta.
Let us look at it deliberately, and measure,
so far ns we can, its measureless wicked
ness. Slavery is the greatest wrong one hu
mnn being can inflict on another. It is
worse than dcuth, as every true man would
rather die thuu bo a slave. If war is ever
justifiable, a crusade for the deliverance of
the slave would be the holiest ever carried
on. An hour of what the slave endures, ac
cording to Jefferson, is worse than an eter
nity1 of that which our fathers waged a scv
An 1 . . . I ... .... .
nar 10 uirow on. i he slave sees
before him nothing but n destiny of outrage
and cruelty, for himself and his children, so
long ns slavery shull Inst. The gisve is the
onllf asylum in which be can ever hope to
...... i i ny me legislation ot the Von
e.."ui urn u. n., in the year JH.K), it is
mndn a crime to attempt to ieneeftiy es
cn from his chains. To help him on his
wn v or even refuse to assist in thrusting him
l.n b I- . I .
....... , , piuuBiieii ny line unit impris-
uuMK-iii. unynnii might Justly feci slnn
dercd if nnnied in the same cn'tegory with
the men by whose votes this net whs passed.
a anno trutn which wo are tired of re
l:niiMfr, mat u any ono ol tho oppressors,
-r i.ii ir nortnern allies were placed in the
condition of the slave, they would esteem it
10 escn ne, and kill their musters in
the attempt if tlmt w ere necessary to suc
cess Now with what feelings would these
men nun iiieinsclves seized nnd hurled back
Jo their Ixindnpo by the citizens of a free
State to which ihry had fled on their way lo
freedom? How would they regard a luw
ptinHnng with fine nnd iniprisoument, tho
mniv who should give them a crust of bread
and a ciiii of cold water f Tim ilmWi c
heli would he searched in vnin In f,n,t tl'nr Je
to express their conception of its atrocity.
Yet this sumo thinff thev ran cool I u !. t
othe s, and then wipe their hands and rail
ihciUM-lves patriots and Christians. The
worst feature of the whole case is, tlmt the
men who have voted for this net nf Dmtu.
less hiliuny, have liecn elected by the votes of
mi ll i-iuilll mt in 111) llic i In nunra nl ll,-
meek nnd low ly Jesus ; nnd will bo voted
for hfnin by the sumo men in iliniiuimly
The yorth has liecn used to submission so
long, and the consciences of tho American
people are so completely drugged with the
wine .of the fornication of the American linr.
lot "-Mlnvcry, that we have no hoe that those
who ilmve enacted this bill will receive iin-
mciiiatcly that retribution they deserve.
VeJ it is a consolation to know that whilo
party drill may save these men from thoir
merited doom, there is yet too much hu
niniiiiy left among tho people to permit this
enactment to be ony thins more thon a
prnruvul nullity. The poor fiuritive will
still fuul worm hearts nnd open bauds to
siipplv his need, to feel Ibr his woes nnd
help dim on to freedom. 'I ho slaveholders
nnd tbuir miserable tools will find how utter
ly vain are puny leuislulivo enactments. In
stifle Iho luoviiigs of wnrm-hcurtud philan
thropy. Could our voico rcuch tho poor
slave-mother, as in Seechless agony she
bends over her sleepless babe- soon to be
torn f m her embrace by tbe ruthless trader
rr iii iiikoc iiuimi'imiii treasure una make
.....i i iii.. -
your way ll possible to Pennsylvania or
uuio, ana you win nua our Houses open to
shelter you, and swift conveyances to curry
you, to that country where, beneath tho
Iiiou-Standard of (Heat Ui ituin you ' mny
cherish thoso tender hulies, safe from tho
claws of the American F.nglc. Lot slave
breeders threaten, and sneaking dough-laces
echo tho cry, there are yet thoso who will
obey God rather than men ; who will hide
the outcast, nnd deliver the spoiled out of
the baud of tho oppressor. tee Prttby
teriaiur.,. -. ).., .
We are all Slave-Catchers.
The deed is done. Tho lust, the crown
ing act has becu Consummated. The Fugi
tive Slave Hill has passed both Houses of the
Americnn Congress, und has doubtless ro
coived ere this the sanction of tho President,
and become the law of the land, superior and
paramount to uli statu luws. Tho whole civil
mill military power of the people of theso
Uni'ed Stales is now nrrnyed iu tho form of
a paramount luw, binding nil over the Union
upon every mnn, woman und child in it, iu
favor of slaveholders, and uguitist thoso who
have attempted, or w ho may hcrcultcr ut
tcmpt to escape from tho worst form of op
pression the Btin over shone upon.
The luy goes into immediate operation.
Slavery gives ita victims no hrentbing time.
Iu every county, town aud village, the Uni
tod States Courts, if necessury for the slave
holding interest, will erect petty courts held
by Commissioners, as they are called, mean
ing purveyors of aluvuholdera, for issuing
process for the arrest and delivery of human
chattels to thoso who cluim them as beasts
of burden.
Tito states mny hove now, or they mny
hereafter pass laws against kidnapping, but
they will be controlled and overlsirno by the
law aud authority of tho United States.
These Commissioners these purveyors of
slavery, will hitigh at your cobweb state laws.
Thoy are authorized upon the production of
an affidavit to bund over the supposed fugi
give, whether white, bluck, or copper-colored,
to the claimant, upon a mcro tt parte exa
mination. The luw mukes the affidavit conclusive
aguinst the supposed fugitive gives him no
subpoena to compel the ulteuduuco nf wit
nesses in bis behalf emnnunels no jury to
decide upon his right to lilu nnd liberty, but
consigns him ut ouco to chains nnd sluvery,
upon the mere affidavit, it may be, of a heart
less man-sic ulcr who for tho sake of a few
hundred dollurs, will file his affidavit in some
southern court, that a certain person living
in a free stuto, is his slave.
. Aud tho Uuited States Courts and these
petty Commissioners aro authorized to ap
point any number of Slave-Catchers as Do-
Iiuty Marshals and Constables, to arrest and
ring the supposed fugitive before bis Honor,
the Comiiiibkioncr, for a muck trial, und then
deliver him kufcly to tho uffiduvit-maker, or
if the cluimunt is a cowurd and afraid to
come into a free state oiler bis property, to
transport, at the expense of the United plates,
the suid property lo his lordship in South Ca
rolina or Tcxus. Who will uccept tho of
fice of Sluve-Culcber ? None, we apprehend,
but tiie most reckless and unprincipled men
who for the sake of a little money in the
shape of fees, will prowl around vour dwel
lings, aud, like bloodhounds, scent out their
i .. - ' . :.'
every nook and corner of the
Clear the track, or the car of slnvery w ill
crush you. You must not obstruct, or in
any wise hinder any one of these legal Slave-
ntcners,or any one aiding him, in the bust
"i Binvo-iiiiniing or siavc-di ivuig nny
more, you must not in nny manner conceal
or even harbor the noor trcmblinir fiur'uim
flying from bloodhounds in human shnte if
you no nny 01 ineso unlawful tilings, you
mny bo hnulcd tin ns a common felon before
the United States Courts sitting in tho Capi
tal of your state, bo indicted by a grand jury,
to iiniu una iiioiitMiiiii untirs, in imprison
ed for six months, nnd moreover, be compel.
led to nny one thousand dollars more, which
the law fixes as the value of a black or a white
person claimed as a fugitive sluvo, no matter
whether old or young, feeble and decrepid
or strong of wind and limb.
You must clenr the track for the slave
holder's minions, did we say? No, not so.
i on must bo one of these minions yourself
The law doea not permit you to stand neutral
in tins controversy lietwcen Slnvery and
f reedom. Should any of your fellow citi-
zens more hardy than yourself, dure attempt
to shield the victim from the doom that n-
wiiits him, the luw nuthorizes thete officers
ol timu(i-, to summon the poise co nilnlus,
thut is, lite peoplo, and you among the num
ber, mid commands you in tho name nnd by
the authority of the people of tho U. States,
to givo your aid and hearty co-operation to
these legal kidnappers. VulumbuM Utandard.
victims in
land.
Fugitive Slave Bill.
Wo copy from the Intctlivencer of Sept.
l!)th this infamous law. ltead it. No mut
ter w hat your purty ties are, read It, and say
w 'bother you can submit to it.
Jton t talk about lis being a nullity, or lis
ten to those who say it is. The spirit that
put it upon the statue book is dead to Hu
manity nnd the spirit which refuses to
erase it from that statute book is as dead,
nnd will, if it rule, disgrace and degrado the
North.
Murk our prediction. There Is not a
slave in nil the North who will not be pur
sued. Wherever it is known, or suspected,
that fugitives hove found a refuge in Iho
free States, there, as soon as the machinery
of this tyrannous act can bo put in motion,
the leashes will be wound round them, nnd
they borne bnck to slavery in triumph.
Already slaveholders are busy. ihey
mean to enforce the act. .They will test the
question: will see whether avorice and the I
law ennnot prevail. Money is raised in
V.t.-. I 1. . l. !4U
," "." """ i
llnlttmoro, to ncwio a number of slaves who I
ttimuonuun THnnis, mna v.mbab. muaiamiW
residence are known, and, upon their arrest,
ml mmn n m.-t
to plead the provisions ot the r tigitive Slave
bill.
Well tho law is before us. What it aims
at, all can see. Whnt it will effect for slave
ry, tho fhture will disclose How it will net
upon freemen, every day will write out, un
til its doom, or theirs, be sealed.
Comment is unnecessary. Ihelnw is its
own best commentary. Again, then, do we
ublish it, and nsk every 0110 to read it.
Cleveland True Democrat.
II
The Fugitive Slave Bill.
Lnngtinge would fail to express the con
tempt with which we regnrd tho miserable
tools, sycophants and traitors whose votes
have brought about this result. A more
abominable, disgraceful nnd inhuman act of
legislation never passed a body claiming to
possess a decent regnrd for the opinions end
feelings of mankind. Thoso who voted for
it can be considered only ns enemies of the
human race. Such legislation is sickening
nnd disgusting, und completes the degrada
tion of the Americnn Congress. This body,
composed in part of cowards and reiiegudes,
apparently destitute of the commonest im
pulses of Immunity, has consummated acts
of legislation worthy of the dark ages, aud
which would even then have been scorned
as base and tyrannical. Tbe American Con
gress has endeavored to convert the free citi
zens of the north into slave catchers for the
southern licgro-holdcrs, and to accomplish
this bus trampled upon tho principles of civ
il liberty and now calls upon us to repudi
ate the obligations of Christianity and the
impulses of tho human heart. We tell the
miserable, tyrants end tools of tyrants who
are engaged in this effort, tbnt their detesta
ble legislation will bo spurned ns it deserves,
and they, tho authors of It, will lie spurned
too, anil if it be possible their names will bo
mudo hateful to men. the Amencun con
gress is mad. It has lost all sense of shame,
und, unfortiiuntely, never possessed either
honor or principle.
We had not believed it possible for this
fugitive slave bill to pass the llouso. Cor
rupt, weak nnd hypocritical as wo knew tho
northern doughfaces to bo, we had yet sup
posed they retained a sufficient degree of
manhood to contemn a bill so outrageous
and iniquitous. But we wero mistaken.
There is no lower deep in tho moral world
thun the American Congress. There is no
business there too vile to be done if it is but
the sluveholder's bidding. Saltnt (Mast.)
freeman.
1
Slave Catching.
The Senate's 1 Fugitive Sluvo Hill,' so-called,
passed the House yesterday by a vote of
100 Yeas to 75 Nays a good muny Mem
hcrs having just been struck with a tit of the
dumb-ague. Tho only Whigs from the Freo
sin.iiK who minnorted it. were Messrs. K'iot
of llostoti, M iiaught V of liidinnn, and John
Ij. Taylor of Ohio. There were tweniy-tix
Opposition votes from tlio Free Slates iu its
fiivor, including Wahlcii of New-York nnd
Wildrii k of New-Jersey. Of our City Dele
gation, Messrs. lhiggs nnd Underbill voted
Nay j Messrs. Urodk and Phojnix tailed to
t Tim were futufv votes from tide
State against the bill to only on for it, but
. . . rn. . I.. I I I.. I -A.
fAirten absentees: iriouuuiy puiruuvu mm
each other.
.
We hnve not cnreflillv examined its pro-'
visions, but we do not beiieve thi act will
amount to much in practice The defect
sought to lie remedied is not in our Slsvo
Cntching Inws they were stringent already
--biit In the general feeling of our Northern
People Ihnt a mnn innocent of other crime
Ihnn a love of libr.rty when running for his
freedom ouirni not to be emgn. We don't
seo how nny law is to remedy thin: but pcr
hnps if Gen. Foote would condescend to
stump the I'reo States on tho subject he
might set us right on the question. If ho
should, the old laws would be found striu
gent enough. Without somo such potont
agency to operate on Public Sentiment we
dou t believe five more runaway slnvea per
annum will lie caught in consequence of h
new law, while it has a lot of Mndcrous ma
chinery for slnve-catching, which enn hard
ly fail to lie generally odious. We doubt
whether commissioners can be found to f.il
fil its requirements in some sections. How
ever, let us Tlinuk tho House for disposing of
the bill somehow. V. K TKbunt.
How would it do lo have Mr. Clny take
the stump to remedy tho evil of Northern .
defection? Ho thinks it the duty of "every
mnn " to assist in catching Staves, and he
would surely have more influcnco with our
Northern people especially Whigs than
Mr. Foote, and Mr. Greeley should coax tho
frrtal compromlier to tuke the stump in favor
ui ine inn. no nns always. favored it quite
ns much ns the little Mutt-maker JVf.
burgh Visitor,
Congress and the People.
If the doincs of Congress nffiirded lUnnla
indices of the free xiiiril nTtlin - I...
,.... ,.w ...., mini,
render, would the world any of our boasted
progress! We get so sick at henrt with
watching tho course of ils leirislntion. tlmt
we heve not a word lo say of hope, for either
white or black sufferers, from the accursed
institution. To think of civinir hundreds nf
thousands of acres of free Mexican territory to
be overrun by the slave laws of Texas, and
then binding the freemen of tho freo States
to M deliver up " every colored person de
mnmled by whito rascals, whose brutal and
nvoricioua appetites, unchecked by con
science or humanity, will sweur that they are
ins or ins employer s:
Ah, reader, there is a better atmosnhrrw.
and we escnpo to it from the foul aud stifled
air of congressional hulls, and Iiohj springe
strong aud buoyant again. The deep and
imiijiuaui iccuiig oi the pmpln is only prens-
the cause of lmnmn rinl.i.i ...! ;n ,.e
into more acuvo and elnc ent service in
...... ' -.......,.... ... .
hub inci we can, irom the iHittom or our
heart, cryru loy on, McDuft" The old ad-
efc. - m mva tl. lnvi
il rone enoutrh and ha will -.
,1 ,..M
lialiff himself!" seems In ua excnmlinvl n.
plicuble to the slaveholders' bonus of the pre
sent session. Indeed, render, it seems a law'
of mind thut the evil must threaten ita very'
life beforo it rouses itself to remove it ; aud :
whnt is true of tbe individual kt true of asso
ciated numbers. ...
. 1 ho bono Of Contention ia disnniinil nf nn.l
there is nothing lull for the application of the '
Proviso. And is the work of the friends of
freedom ended? Is there no " Mason and ,
Dixon's line" to hold atrninst slnverv ? m'
stand point for the enemies of shivery onr
sido the Sluvo Slates ? Henceforth our work, "
is to repel the invader ! Tho passage of the
Fugitive Slave Hill is a precursor ol the tac
tics of tho prosluverv nnrtv of tint V ni.iin.
he cry will be, give, give, aud defend to '
us whnt you give." And let them only clam-.'
or loud enough nnd strong enough, aud a.
goodly army now sleeping under tho shad- '
ow ot tiie Union, will awuke to find it likn '
Jonah's gourd, withering in tho tropical ray
of Sluvery! Hindhamln.) Deny. ,
The Fi-oiTiva Pnvr n,,.r. Ti.. v.u.
York Courier and Knquirer indulges in ,
somo congratulatory remarks on the quiet
and pence which tho luto action of Congresi
nus given 10 ins country, and closes with the .
following dissentient and truthful remarks
on tho Fugitive Slnve Hill, with tho senti
ments ot which we fully accord:
" The law for the recovery of Fugitive
Plnvce is an exception to these remarks. Un
less we are greatly mistakon, that law ettv
IhmI ics the elements of continued contro
versy and excitement. Somo of its pro- '
visions are so directly at war with what'
are generally considered and cherished aa
personal rights, and are framed so expreae-r
ly to do direct nnd wunton outrage, to
ull generous and kindly feeling, that they
will Inevitably awaken wide dissntiufuc-'
Hon, and present points for most ef-
fective appeuls to pcpulur feeling and sym- -
fiathy. From that bill, therefore, wo appro i
lend mischievous results. It will uot sub- ' " 1
stautiully aid the recovery of fugitivo slaves,
while it w ill deepen and strengthen the pre
valent feeling Umiii thut subject. -.!..
But tho exemption which we now enjoy-' .
from exciting agitations must be grateful
to ell, and should lie employed for the per
manent harmony of the country. - It should
be used to impress upon the public mind the
esscutiul importance of a better state of
feeling than has of lute existed, and the
thorough nnd fundamental unity of interest '
which must maintain tho union of the
Amsrican Stuto:'. In this way we may be .
tho better prepared to Wurd off whatever .
duhcra future agitations mny bring upon us.?
Slave Catching. If those who hnve pnsn-
ed the new slave catching bill, think it will
bo the means of returning ninny slaves, thoy .
aro, in our apprehension, grently niiHtnkon,
It may be tho means of oppressing some
kind hearted men who relievo the necessities
of tho BUupgcr w ho nsk their aid when fly .
ing from oppression', and it wilt, we doubt not '
muko tho whole system morn odious than .
ever, but w ithoul tho aid of public sentiment,
it cuu never effect tho objects intended by ite ,
uuwuige. Wo shall now see who there is
amongst ns that will consent to take the
office of Public Plavb Catcher, if there t
is such an one, he ought to he known.
t.
-,
v"l
..!
Uui
-
'
1 "T
a 't
''!. a
1 V! ,v4
"V