UNCLE TOM'S CABIN

acquaintedwith
their
"
or
KEY TO UNCLE TOM S CABIN.
er the prisoner
was guilty of murder, killing in What would have been said if any antislaverynewspaper
at the North had made
sudden heat and passion,
or not guilty.
The jury then retired,and, in about twenty or
thirtyminutes, returned with a verdict of such " Not
an assertion as this? Yet the Charleston
Guilty."
Courier reportsthis statement without
comment or denial. But let us hear the
There are some pointswhich appear in
of the trial,especially in the
lawyeradmits that the result of thumping
a feeble old woman on the head has,in this
justice had assembled to which his client had fled
for refuge and safety; its threshold was sacred
case, been "unfortunate and sad." The
;
no profane clamors entered there ; but old
legalinvestigation
thing had not strengthto bear it,and
was had of facts."
had no greaterregardfor the convenience
of the family,
From this itplainly
and the reputation of n the
appears that the case
institution," than to die,and so get the
was a notorious one
;
so notorious and atrocious
familyand the communitygenerally into
as to break through all the apathytrouble. It will appear from this that in
which slave-holding institutionstend to produce,
most cases where old women are thumped
and to surround the court-house with
on the head theyhave strongerconstitutions
noise and clamor.
more consideration.
From another intimation in the same
Again he says, "When punishmentis
speech, itwould appear that there was abundant
due to the slave, the master must not be
testimony of slaves to the direct fact, held to strict account for going an inch
testimonywhich left no kind of doubt on the
beyond the markP And finally, and most
popular mind. Why else does he thus
astounding of all,comes .this: "He bade
earnestly warn the jury1
the jury remember the words of him who
He warned the jury that they were to listen spake as never man '
Let
spake,"
him
to no evidence but that of free white persons,
THAT HATH NEVER SINNED THROW THE
given on oath in open court ; they were to imagine
first stone.' They, as masters, might
none that came not from them. It was for
regret
this that they were selected "
; intelligence
excesses to which they themselves
putting them beyond the influence of unfounded
might have carried punishment."
accusations,unsustained by legalproof; of What sort of an insinuation
legends
is this?
of aggravatedcruelty,founded on the evidence of Did he mean to say that almost all the jurymen
negroes, and arising from weak and wicked falsehoods..
had probably done thingsof the same
sort, and therefore could have nothingto
See also this remarkable admission :
"
say in this case 1 and did no member of the
' '
Truth had been distortedin this case, and
jury get up and resent such a charge1
murder manufactured out of what- was From all that appears, the juryacquiesced
nothing more than ordinary domestic in it as quite a matter of course ; and the
discipline." If the reader refers to the testimony,
Charleston Courier quotesit without comment,
he will find it testifiedthat the in the record of a trialwhich it says
woman appearedto be about sixtyyears "will show to the world HOW the law extends
old ; that she was much emaciated ; that the oegisof her protection alike over
there had been a successionof blows on the the white man and the humblest slave."
top of her head,and one violentone over the Lastly, notice the decisionof the judge,
ear ; and that,in the opinion of a surgeon,
which has become law in South Carolina.
these blows were sufficien to cause What pointdoes it establish? That the
death. Yet the lawyer for the defence simple oath of the master, in face of all circumstanti
coollyremarks that " murder had been
evidence to the contrary,may
manufactured out of what was ordinaryclear him,when the murder of a slaveis the
in Charleston?
lady'slawyergo stillfurther in vindication
"
this statement
of thisordinary domestic discipline : Chastisement
pleafor the defence. Particular attention
must be inflicteduntil subordination
iscalledto the following passage
:
is produced; and the extent of the punishment
is not to be judgedby one's neighbors,
"
Fortunately," said the lawyer, " the jury but
vrfre of the "
country ; our policy
by himself. The event, in this
ar"*practice ; composedof men too honorable to case, has been unfortunate and sad." The
be --*dastrayby the noise and clamor out of doors.
All was now as it should be ; at least, a court of
domestic disciplined Are we to understand
question Ạnd this trial is paradedas a
that beatingfeeble old women on the triumphantspecimen of legalimpartiality
head,in this manner, is a specimenof ordinary
and equity ! "If the lightthat is in thee
domestic discipline
be darkness, how greatis that darkness !"