either over land in coffles, or by sea, in crowded slavers. Fostered by Congress, these traders lose all sense of shame; and we have in the National Intelligencer, the following announcement of the regular departure of three slavers, belonging to a single factory. - Brig "Alexandria and New-Orleans Packets. Tribune, Samuel C. Bush, master, will sail as above on the 1st January-Brig Isaac Franklin, Wm. Smith, master, on the 15th January-Brig Uncas, Nath. Boush, master, on the 1st February. They will continue to leave this port on the 1st and 15th of each month, throughout the shipping season. Servants that are intended to be shipped, will at any time be received for safe-keeping at twenty-five cents a day. JOHN AMFIELD, Alexandria." This infamous advertisement of the regular sailing of three slavers, and the offer of the use of the factory prison, appears in one of the principal journals of the United States. Its proprietor has several times been chosen printer to Congress, and there is no reason for believing that he has ever lost the vote of a northern member for this prostitution of his columns. But the climax of infamy is still untold. This trade in blood; this buying, imprisoning, and exporting of boys and girls eight years old; this tearing asunder of husbands and wives, parents and children, is all legalized in virtue of authority delegated by Congress!! The 249th page of the laws of the city of Washington, is polluted by the following enactment, bearing date 28th July, 1831. "For a LICENSE to trade or traffic in slaves for profit, four hundred dollars." Such is the character and extent of the American slave trade, impudently and wickedly called by the Senate, "the coasting trade," a trade protected and regulated by the very government which in the Treaty of Ghent, with wonderful assurance, declared that "the traffic in slaves is irreconcileable with the principles of justice and humanity." The government may be fairly said to protect the trade, when it refuses to exercise its constitutional power to suppress it. The very fact that slave traders are licensed in the District, is a full and complete acknowledgement that there is authority competent to forbid their nefarious business. The continuance of the traffic under the immediate and "exclusive jurisdiction" of the National Government, stamps with sin and disgrace every member of Congress who assents to it; and more especially, and with peculiar infamy, those northern members who, for party purposes, vote that Congress ought not in any way to interfere with slavery in the District of Columbia." But we are constantly told by the apologists of slavery that the American slave trade is beyond the constitutional control of the Federal Government; yet that government abolished the African slave trade, and no human being ever questioned its right to do so? But whence was that right derived? Solely from the 8th Sec. of the 1st Art. of the Constitution, viz: 66 Congress shall have power to regulate commerce with foreign nations, and among the several States." In virtue of this delegation of power, Congress has made it a capital crime to carry on commerce in African slaves. Now that this legislative prohibition of the traffic is constitutional, is proved by the highest possible authority, even the Constitution itself; for that instrument, after giving Congress power to regulate commerce with foreign nations, restricts it from abolishing the African slave trade before the expiration of twenty years.* *The phraseology of this restriction shows that it was intended to limit the power to regulate commerce as well "among the seve To regulate, we are told, does not include the power to destroy; yet it seems the power to regulate commerce with foreign nations does include the power to interdict an odious, cruel, and wicked branch of it. By what logic then will it be shown that the power to regulate the commerce among the several States, does not include the power to interdict a traffic in men, women, and children? Is it more wicked, more base, more cruel, to traffic in African savages than in native born Americans in WHITE men, and women and children in the offspring of our own citizens, and not unfrequently, of very distinguished citi? Yet it is this abominable commerce that our government fosters and protects. We have seen its watchful guardianship over this trade in its unceasing endeavours to obtain compensation from Great Britain for 287 slaves thrown by the winds and waves under her protection. Mr. Van zens ral States" as with foreign nations. "The migration, or importation of such persons as any of the existing States shall think proper to admit, shall not be prohibited by the Congress prior to the year one thousand eight hundred and eight.”— (Art. I. Sec. 9.) If any State should think proper to admit slaves migrating from another State, it was not to be restrained from doing so till 1808. If it should think proper to import slaves from a foreign country, it might do so notwithstanding the wishes of Congress, till the same period. Buren, our Minister in England, in an official note on this subject, (Feb. 25, 1832,) remarked :— "The Government of the United States respecting the actual and unavoidable condition of things at home, while it most sedulously and rigorously guards against the further introduction of slaves, protects at the same time by reasonable laws the rights of the owners of that species of property in the States where it exists, and permits its transfer coastwise from one of these States to another, under suitable restrictions to prevent the fraudulent introduction of foreign slaves." By the act of Congress of 2d March, 1807, masters of vessels under 40 tons burthen, are forbidden to transport coastwise from one port to another in the United States any person of colour to be sold or held as a slave, under the penalty of $800 for each slave so transported. By the same act, masters of vessels, over 40 tons burthen sailing coast wise from one port to another, and intending to transport persons of colour to be sold or held as slaves, must first make out duplicate manifests, specifying the names, sex, age, and stature, of the persons transported, and the names and residence of their owner or shipper. These manifests are to be delivered to the collector of the port who is to retain one, and to return the |