inquest; and yon bind it by its oath to sup-
port the constitution, to cause to be hunted
up every child, and to bind it out if it can
gel anybody lo accept the indentures. If not
now, then eight or ten years hence, when the
child shall have advanced in year?, and shall
have become able to take care of itself, and
repay its decrepid parent some of the expense
it has been, then you permit any one to come
in and plunder that parent, who has thus reared
the child during its years of infancy and de-
pendence, of the succeeding years when it
could he of some service and you thus plun-
der the parent, without imposing any obliga-
tion whatever upon the master, during the
years when the character of the child is to
be formed, to teach it even so much as to
know crooked s from straight l. That is the
proposition before the convention. In all
these cases, those who alone are to be bene-
fited by the operation of this provision, are
to judge for those who are to be despoiled by
the operation. I do not say the individual; I
mean the class, The class that is to be benefited,
the very men who are interested in establish-
ing the rule, are to judge that this, that, and
the other is the proper form for enforcing
this regulation.
Now I profess in all this to be actuated by
but one principle. I do not recognize any
special pledges as binding me" to anything.
I gave no pledges other than what are implied
by my known regard for justice and for the
obligations of right. But there are gentle-
men in this convention who have given
pledges, and I trust they will redeem them.
I hold in my hand a resolution in these words :
"Resolved, That the delegates to fie con-
stitutional convention, nominated by this
convention, are hereby pledged to vote first,
last, and all the time for the immediate abo-
lition of slavery in Maryland, and against any
system of apprentiship to perpetuate its lin-
gering existence in our midst, and against
State compensation for slaves."
I suppose the gentlemen from Washington
county who were elected on such a platform,
are bound by its obligations, or they would
not have been elected to come to this conven-
tion.
Mr. NEGLEY. Will the gentleman allow
me a word ?
Mr. STOCKBRIDGE. Not now; lam nearly
done. I say that upon this measure, as upon
all others, I vote and act upon principle;
from a sense of right and justice and not
because I feel hampered or hound by any
pledge, I am bound here and everywhere lo
do justice to my fellow, and to do right
before God. And with that obligation resting
upon me, I will not vote for any such atro-
cious measure as this, wholly depriving the
parent of all rights over the child, and wholly
depriving the child growing up to freedom
hereafter of all right to receive at least the
rudiments of an education. |
Mr. NEGLEY, The gentleman from Balti-
more city (Mr. Stockbridge) has reference, 1
suppose, to myself. Now, sir, that resolution
which he has read—
Mr. ECKER. I rise to a point of order.
The gentlemen has already spoken twice.
Mr. NEGLEY. I rise to a personal explana-
tion,
The CHAIRMAN (Mr. Daniel.) The gentle-
man from Washington (Mr. Negley) is in or-
der for the purpose of a personal explana-
tion.
Mr. NEGLEY. I drew that resolution my-
self, and therefore it is to he presumed
that I knew what I meant by it. The
proposition offered by the gentleman from
Caroline (Mr. Todd) in my judgment provides
for no apprenticeship atall. Ills mak-
ing provision for the benefit of these poor,
helpless and defenceless negroes, for a specified
time. It has not the idea or the intention of
an apprenticeship. Negro apprenticeship, as
provided for in the West India Islands, is
something entirely different from what this
proposition contemplates. That is a species
of slavery.
Mr. CUSHING. Will the gentleman allow
me to ask him a question?
Mr. NEGLEY. I will vote for this proposi-
tion on the ground not of any benefit to any-
body in particular except the negroes them-
selves. The laws in regard to the orphans'
court now make provision for binding out
poor defenceless white children. Is that
slavery in the eye of the constitution, which
we have abrogated? We have stricken the
shackles from the slave, and this proposition
contemplates a vastly different relation. It
is not slavery in the least, any more than it
is slavery for the orphans' court to bind out
the child of a white person. . What does this
proposition say? "According to the rules
and regulations now governing the orphans'
court." it is not slavery any more than it
is to bind out a whit" child. It is lo prevent
a great public calamity; it is for the benefit
of the negro, and for the good of society.
1 find upon examination that there ought
to be gome limitation to this proposition. 1
do (rot think the provisions of this section
should be in operation more than a year.
And I do not think the binding out should
be without the consent of the parent first
had and obtained, and when the proper time
comes, I will offer an amendment to that
effect.
Mr. PURNELL. I feel no disposition to pro-
long this discussion and should have conten-
ted myself with voting upon the proposition
without adding a single remark, but for the
remarks that have fallen from my worthy
friend from Cecil (Mr. Pugh,) who was about
as unfortunate in defining my position as he
was in the interpretation of the law of the or-
phans' court yesterday; and I think that was
fully answered by the gentleman from How- |
