Slavery in Maryland briefly considered

Slavery in Maryland briefly considered

Dear Sir,A short time before the October election, I heard some one say that it was your intention to devote much of your time, should you be elected to the House of Delegates, to the subject of the black population of our State, and to promote, if possible, measures for their gradual emancipation. It gave me, a slaveholder and citizen of Maryland, infinite pleasure to hear it; and it was with the deepest regret I learned soon after that you were not returned to the house. If I have been correctly informed, I beg leave to say I honor you for your sentiment, and I hope you will not allow so good a resolution to die, but will kindle it anew, and seek some other equally practical means of bringing this subject fully and fairly before the public. It is one that has long occupied much of my thoughts, and I have watched anxiously for some one to show his hand in this cause. At this moment my attention has been more distinctly called to it, by the manly, high-minded letter of Mr. C. M. Clay, addressed to the people of Kentucky. There is not a sentiment or a political principle expressed by him to his fellow citizens that does not with equal force apply to our noble little State, and every prediction applies to us as forcibly as it does to them. The time has come, there can be no doubt of it, to take the needful steps; slaveholders themselves are anxious for it, and will not be displeased to see the subject fairly taken into consideration. I have been a planter for five years, and have had an opportunity of discussing these points with slaveholders of all parties, and I do not remember a single instance in which objection[Pg 4] was made to the principle of emancipation; some difference, it is true, exists as to the manner and time, but none as to the necessity. Heretofore this whole subject has been wrapt in a mystery, as imposing as the secrets of Free Masonry, and no one, not a member of the order of slaveholders, has been allowed to open his mouth and say any thing about it; it is a dangerous questionit is an exciting subjectit is a matter that belongs to slaveholders themselveshave been the usual and repeated injunctions laid upon all who honestly and humanely have desired to inquire into the merits and demerits of this cause. Is this as it should be? Is it the course that should be pursued by an educated people, who have at command the means to defend the truth and expose error? Certainly not. If our State is laboring under an evil, let the cause and nature of the malady be investigated, and then let us apply the remedy. If, on the contrary, none can be shown to exist, at least agitation will receive a check that will be grateful to all lovers of peace and order. Firmly convinced that such a course will be displeasing to but few, and that it may promote the general welfare of Maryland, I beg leave to propose to you the establishment of a paper devoted to the cause of Emancipation in our State, on the principles of policy, humanity, and self-interest. I know no one to whom so delicate a subject could be so safely confided as yourself. Your popularity as an editor, your established character for sound doctrine and moderation, are all guarantees for the judicious and successful conduct of such an undertaking, and, for my own part, I have not the least doubt of its ultimate success. It would be idle in me to suggest to you any particulars on this subject; I doubt not it has passed through your brain long since, and received a due share of your consideration. I shall therefore conclude, by begging you to excuse the liberty I have taken in[Pg 5] addressing you on so slight a personal acquaintance, and by hoping, if I am premature in what I have said, that you will impute it solely to the strong feelings I entertain upon this interesting matter. ......Buy Now (To Read More)

Product details

Ebook Number: 68731
Author: Carey, John L.
Release Date: Aug 12, 2022
Format: eBook
Language: English
Publisher: John Murphy
Publication Date: 1845
Publisher Country: United States