3
the Presidenta message, at this session, in the
Sen ate, said:
" The opinion once entertained, certainly in
{ ruy own State, by able and distinguished men
' and patriots, that the condition of African
' slavery was one more to be deplored than to be
' íòstered, has undergone a change, and that the
' uniform—I might aímost say universal—senti-
' meut in íny own State upon the subject of
' African boudage, is that it is a blessing to
' both races, one to be encouraged, cherished,
' and fostcred; and to that extent, the opinion
' of Virgínia is diífereut from the opinion en-
' tertained by those distinguished men who
' have gone ; biit who, we believe—best know-
' ing their sentiments—if they lived at this day,
' would coneur with us. That is the present
' opinion."
Iu impressi-ve contrast with this sentiment, ■
which, Senator Mason says, is " the present
opinion " oi Virginia statesmen, I refer to the
opinion of one of her earlier but not less dis¬
tinguished statesmen, George Mason, the grand-
fatherof the present Senator, and a member of
the Convention which framed the Constitution
of the United States:
" Slavery discourages arts and manufactures.
' The poor despise labor when performed by
' slaves. They prevent the immigration of
' whites, who really enrich and strengthen a
' country. They produce the most pernicious j
' eífects on manners. Every mastcr of slaves '
' is born a petty tyrant. They bring the judg-
' ment of Heaven on a country."
Senator Huxter, of Virgínia, in the same
debate, admitted the same fact as to the state
of public opinion in the earlier days of the Re¬
public, and that public opinion in the South
had undergone a change. Honorable Alexan-
der H. Stephens, of Geórgia, one of the ablest
men of the South, in a speech delivered to his
constituents after his return irom the last Con¬
gress, admitted the same fact.
The Republican party, then, has the opinion
of the fathers of the Republic on its side, that
slavery is an evil " more to be deplored than
to be fostered ;" but the gentleman from Ala-
bama says, "these were but mere speculations,
' and were not engrafted upon the organic laws ; i
' and actual results are a safer standard by
' which to measure abstract principies." The
Congress of the Confederation gave practical
efFect to its sentiment of hostility to slavery, by
prohibiting it in ali the territory the Congress
then had jurisdiction over, by the ordinancé of
1787. The íirst session of the First Congress,
in order that the provisions of the ordinauce
might continue, and have full ejfect, adopted it,
and enacted certain provisions to adapt it to
the Constitution of the United States.
These " were actual results engrafted upon "
the legislation of the country. The fathers of
the Republic, before and after the adoption of
tlie Constitution, by opinion and aelion, treated
slavery as contraband wherever they could,
without violation of existing relations and ar-
rangcmeuts. At the seco^d session of the First
Cougress, an act was passed for the government
of the territory of the United States south of
the Ghio river. This act was passed May 2G,
1790. and extended over this territory the or¬
dinancé oi' 1787, " except so far as is otherwise
provided in the conditions expressed in an act
of Congress " of that session, " accepting a ces-
siou of the claims of the State of North Caro-
olina to that territory." The conditions of that
act, so far as the same related to slaves, were
as follows:
" Provided, alivays, Thatnoregulationsmade,
' or to be made, by Congress, shall tend to
' emancipate slaves."
I refer to these acts for two purposes: first,
to show that Congress, in extending over this
Southern territory the ordinancé of 1787, ex¬
cept the anti-slavery proviso, would probably
have extended the entire ordinancé, had it not
been for the proviso iu the act of cession of
North Carolina ; and, second, to show that the
Legislature of North Carolina supposed Con¬
gress had the power, under-the Constitution, to
prohibit slavery in the Territory. This act of
cession was passed in December, 1790. The
íirst session of the First Congress commenced
March 4, 1789 ; so that the Constitution was in
full force when this act of cession was passed;
and the State of North Carolina had but re-
cently ratiiied it, and her statesmen who com-
posed her Legislature in 1790 were presumed
to know something about the provisions of the
Constitution; and if they had not supposed
that Congress possessed the power to abolish
f 1 ivery in a Territory, they would not have in-
teited this proviso.
Following up the abstractions of the fathers,
that slavery was an evil, " more to be deplored
than to be fostered," and to show, by " actual
results," that they intended to prohibit and re-
strict it wherever they legally could, I refer to
the act of March 22, 1794. The object of this
law was, " to prohibit any citizen or resident
' of the United States from equipping vessels,
' within the United States, carrying on trade or
' traílic in slaves to any foreign country." (1
Wash. C. C. R., 522.) The next act to the
same purport was passed May 10, 1800. This
act extends the prohibitions of the act of 1794
to citizens of the United States in any manner
concerned in this kind of trame, either by per-
sonal service on board of American or foreign
vessels, wherever equipped, or to the owners oi
such vessels, citizens of the United States.
Next in the order of time was the act of Feb-
ruary 28, 1803. The object of this act was to
prohibit íLe importation of negrões, mulattoes,
or other p^rsons of color, into any State which
by law had prohibited or should prohibit the
admission or importation of such persons of
color. The object of Congress seemed to be to
aid the States in getting rid of the evil of sla¬
very.
The next action of Congress bearing upon
the subject was the act providing for the tem-
porary government of the Louisiana Territory,
ceded by France to the United States, passed
March 2G, 1804. I imite special exan ination
of the tenth seetioii of this act. The firat clause
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