254 



CONGRESS, U, S. 



intent of its authors, cannot be considered ap- 

 plicable to slaves. Such is slavery that, from 

 the nature of the case, it cannot be sanctioned 

 or legalized except by 'positive' words. It 

 cannot stand on inference. This rule, which 

 no reason can shake, drove Lord Mansfield to 

 his great judgment in Somersett's case. Afri- 

 can slavery had for two generations prevailed 

 in England. It had been pronounced to be le- 

 g.'d by eminent lawyers and judges. Some of 

 the brightest names in Westminister Hall had 

 given to it the sanction of professional opinion 

 and of judicial decision. At last a person at 

 that time unknown, Granville Sharp, struck by 

 *he injustice of slavery, devoted himself to 

 consider the grounds on which its legality was 

 recognized. He studied the laws of England, 

 and all the evidences of its constitution. In 

 the course of these studies, he was gratified 

 to find that there was no positive establishment 

 of African slavery in England, and, indeed, 

 that the words ' slave ' and ' slavery ' were no- 

 where to be found in the British constitution. 

 He next applied himself to the accumulation 

 of well-known rules of interpretation, requir- 

 ing, in any case of doubt or question, that the 

 interpretation should be on the side of liberty, 

 and especially that any man was 'impious' and 

 'cruel' who did not favor liberty. Impiety 

 and cruelty are not light burdens for an honest 

 conscience. The conclusion was irresistible 

 that slavery could not exist in England. 



" But the unanswerable argument of Gran- 

 ville Sharp was rejected at first by the bar, 

 who regarded it as an attempted innovation. 

 The direct precedents, and the weight of au- 

 thority, were the other way, and this with 

 most lawyers is enough. Harvey said that 

 no person above ' forty ' accepted his discovery 

 of the circulation of the blood. And Gran- 

 ville Sharp found himself in the same predica- 

 ment. But this good man was not disheart- 

 ened. He knew well that there was no statute 

 of limitations against principles; and, better 

 still, that principles must finally prevail over 

 precedents. Principles are immortal, and bloom 

 with perpetual youth. Precedents are mortal, 

 and die from age, decrepitude, and decay. 

 Against principles, precedents may for a while 

 prevail ; but the time must surely come when 

 that which is mortal must yield to that which 

 is immortal. In this conviction he persevered, 

 until at last lawyers were convinced, and then 

 the court. 



"The judgment of Lord Mansfield on this 

 occasion, constitutes a landmark of law which 

 will be remembered proudly when all his con- 

 tributions to commercial law and general juris 

 prudence are forgotten. It was a contribution 

 to the British constitution and to human rights. 

 Like every principle of natural law, it approves 

 itself at once to the reason and conscience. 

 And this authority I now invoke in the inter- 

 pretation of the fugitive clause. 



" At this moment of severe trial, I wish my 

 country to put itself right with that Supreme 



Power which holds in its hands the destinies 

 of nations. It is as true in the life of nations as 

 in the life of individuals, that if you would 

 have equity, you must do equity ; but the great 

 equity which we must do is to be found in justice 

 to an oppressed race. It is vain that you com- 

 plain of disaster to your arms, of colored sol- 

 diers and their brave officers cruelly treated at 

 Fort "Wagner, of colored soldiers and their 

 brave officers massacred at Fort Pillow, if you 

 yourselves continue to set the example of in- 

 justice. The story of the Israelites will be re- 

 vived, and plague after plague will be sent, 

 sounding forever the old commandment, 'Let 

 my people go.' If the plagues that have been 

 sent already are not enough, another and yet 

 another will visit us. There is one assurance 

 of obedience which you can give. It is to ex- 

 punge from your statute-book all support of 

 slavery. Be in earnest here, and you will be 

 practical. Then, having done equity, you may 

 fearlessly ask for equity. 



The question being taken by yeas and nays, 

 resulted yeas 24, nays 17; as follows: 



YEAS Messrs. Buckalew, Carlile, Collamer, Cow- 

 an, Davis, Dixon, Doolittle, Foster, Harris, Hender- 

 son, Hendricks, Howe, Johnson, Lane of Indiana, 

 McDougall, Nesmith, Powell, Riddle, Saulsbury, 

 Sherman, Ten Eyck, Trumbull, Van Winkle, and 

 Willey 24. 



NATS Messrs. Anthony, Brown, Clark, Conness, 

 Fessenden, Grimes, Hale, Howard, Lane of Kansas, 

 Morgan, Merrill, Pomeroy, Ramsey, Sprague, Sum- 

 ner, Wilkinson, and Wilson 17. 



So the amendment was agreed to. 



Mr. Conness moved to lay the bill on the 

 table, which was disagreed to yeas 9, nays 31. 

 No further action was taken upon it in the 

 Senate. 



In the House, on June 13th, a House bill was 

 considered to repeal the fugitive slave law. 

 The bill repealed sections three and four of the 

 act of Feb. 12th, 1793, and an act supplement- 

 ary passed Sept. 1850. 



Mr. King, of Missouri, said : " The framers 

 of our Constitution spoke for themselves and 

 their children, and the children of those and 

 their posterity, whose delegates they were. 

 Those who vote to repeal this law, certainly 

 will not attempt to place its passage on any 

 such Utopian theories as those to which I have 

 been referring ; nor will they, I trust, take the 

 other ground, assumed by those visionary theo- 

 rists of the same political party to which I have 

 already referred, who take as their theory the 

 exact reverse, and declare that ours is a pro- 

 slavery Constitution, and that the Union, of 

 which it is the only bond, by reason thereof, is 

 a lie. ' The American Union is an imposture, 

 a covenant with death, and an agreement with 

 hell.' It must be overthrown. ' Up with the 

 flag of disunion.' 



" I will not do gentlemen the injustice to 

 charge that they take either of the grounds to 

 which I have been referring. If, however, 

 they do, it will take a little more than the 

 ability of plain ' Mr. Granville Sharp,' who by 



