Source: The Avalon Project at Yale Law School
Excerpts
http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/debates/821.htm
http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/debates/822.htm
August
21, 1787
***
Mr. L. MARTIN, proposed to vary the
Sect: 4. art VII. so as to allow a prohibition or tax on the importation of slaves.
1. as five slaves are to be counted as 3 free men in the apportionment of
Representatives; such a clause wd. leave an encouragement to this trafic. 2. slaves
weakened one part of the Union which the other parts were bound to protect: the
privilege of importing them was therefore unreasonable. 3. it was inconsistent
with the principles of the revolution and dishonorable to the American
character to have such a feature in the Constitution.
Mr. RUTLIDGE did not see how the
importation of slaves could be encouraged by this Section. He was not
apprehensive of insurrections and would readily exempt the other States from
the obligation to protect the Southern against them. -Religion & humanity
had nothing to do with this question. Interest alone is the governing principle
with nations. The true question at present is whether the Southn. States shall
or shall not be parties to the Union. If the Northern States consult their
interest, they will not oppose the increase of Slaves which will increase the
commodities of which they will become the carriers.
Mr. ELSEWORTH was for leaving the
clause as it stands. let every State import what it pleases. The morality or
wisdom of slavery are considerations belonging to the States themselves. What
enriches a part enriches the whole, and the States are the best judges of their
particular interest. The old confederation had not meddled with this point, and
he did not see any greater necessity for bringing it within the policy of the
new one:
Mr. PINKNEY. South Carolina can
never receive the plan if it prohibits the slave trade. In every proposed
extension of the powers of the Congress, that State has expressly &
watchfully excepted that of meddling with the importation of negroes. If the
States be all left at liberty on this subject, S. Carolina may perhaps by
degrees do of herself what is wished, as Virginia & Maryland have already
done.
Adjourned
***
August 22, 1787
IN
CONVENTION
Art VII sect 4, resumed.
Mr. SHERMAN was for leaving the clause as it stands. He disapproved of the
slave trade; yet as the States were now possessed of the right to import
slaves, as the public good did not require it to be taken from them, & as
it was expedient to have as few objections as possible to the proposed scheme
of Government, he thought it best to leave the matter as we find it. He
observed that the abolition of Slavery seemed to be going on in the U. S. &
that the good sense of the several States would probably by degrees compleat
it. He urged on the Convention the necessity of despatching its business.
Col. MASON. This infernal trafic
originated in the avarice of British Merchants. The British Govt. constantly
checked the attempts of Virginia to put a stop to it. The present question
concerns not the importing States alone but the whole Union. The evil of having
slaves was experienced during the late war. Had slaves been treated as they
might have been by the Enemy, they would have proved dangerous instruments in
their hands. But their folly dealt by the slaves, as it did by the Tories. He
mentioned the dangerous insurrections of the slaves in Greece and Sicily; and
the instructions given by Cromwell to the Commissioners sent to Virginia, to
arm the servants & slaves, in case other means of obtaining its submission
should fail. Maryland & Virginia he said had already prohibited the
importation of slaves expressly. N. Carolina had done the same in substance.
All this would be in vain if S. Carolina & Georgia be at liberty to import.
The Western people are already calling out for slaves for their new lands, and
will fill that Country with slaves if they can be got thro' S. Carolina &
Georgia. Slavery discourages arts & manufactures. The poor despise labor
when performed by slaves. They prevent the immigration of Whites, who really
enrich & strengthen a Country. They produce the most pernicious effect on
manners. Every master of slaves is born a petty tyrant. They bring the judgment
of heaven on a Country. As nations can not be rewarded or punished in the next
world they must be in this. By an inevitable chain of causes & effects
providence punishes national sins, by national calamities. He lamented that
some of our Eastern brethren had from a lust of gain embarked in this nefarious
traffic. As to the States being in possession of the Right to import, this was
the case with many other rights, now to be properly given up. He held it
essential in every point of view that the Genl. Govt. should have power to
prevent the increase of slavery.
Mr. ELSWORTH. As he had never owned
a slave could not judge of the effects of slavery on character: He said however
that if it was to be considered in a moral light we ought to go farther and
free those already in the Country. -As slaves also multiply so fast in Virginia
& & Maryland that it is cheaper to raise than import them, whilst in
the sickly rice swamps foreign supplies are necessary, if we go no farther than
is urged, we shall be unjust towards S. Carolina & Georgia. Let us not
intermeddle. As population increases poor laborers will be so plenty as to
render slaves useless. Slavery in time will not be a speck in our Country.
Provision is already made in Connecticut for abolishing it. And the abolition
has already taken place in Massachusetts. As to the danger of insurrections
from foreign influence, that will become a motive to kind treatment of the
slaves.
Mr. PINKNEY. If slavery be wrong,
it is justified by the example of all the world. He cited the case of Greece
Rome & other antient States; the sanction given by France England, Holland
& other modern States. In all ages one half of mankind have been slaves. If
the S. States were let alone they will probably of themselves stop importations.
He wd. himself as a Citizen of S. Carolina vote for it. An attempt to take away
the right as proposed will produce serious objections to the Constitution which
he wished to see adopted.
General PINKNEY declared it to be his
firm opinion that if himself & all his colleagues were to sign the
Constitution & use their personal influence, it would be of no avail
towards obtaining the assent of their Constituents. S. Carolina & Georgia
cannot do without slaves. As to Virginia she will gain by stopping the importations.
Her slaves will rise in value, & she has more than she wants. It would be
unequal to require S. C. & Georgia to confederate on such unequal terms. He
said the Royal assent before the Revolution had never been refused to S.
Carolina as to Virginia. He contended that the importation of slaves would be
for the interest of the whole Union. The more slaves, the more produce to
employ the carrying trade; The more consumption also, and the more of this, the
more of revenue for the common treasury. He admitted it to be reasonable that
slaves should be dutied like other imports, but should consider a rejection of
the clause as an exclusion of S. Carola. from the Union.
Mr. BALDWIN had conceived national
objects alone to be before the Convention, not such as like the present were of
a local nature. Georgia was decided on this point. That State has always
hitherto supposed a Genl. Governmt. to be the pursuit of the central States who
wished to have a vortex for every thing- that her distance would preclude her
from equal advantage-& that she could not prudently purchase it by yielding
national powers. From this it might be understood in what light she would view
an attempt to abridge one of her favorite prerogatives. If left to herself, she
may probably put a stop to the evil. As one ground for this conjecture, he took
notice of the sect of -------- which he said was a respectable class of people,
who carried their ethics beyond the mere equality of men, extending their
humanity to the claims of the whole animal creation.
Mr. WILSON observed that if S. C.
& Georgia were themselves disposed to get rid of the importation of slaves
in a short time as had been suggested, they would never refuse to Unite because
the importation might be prohibited. As the Section now stands all articles
imported are to be taxed. Slaves alone are exempt. This is in fact a bounty on
that article.
Mr. GERRY thought we had nothing
to do with the conduct of the States as to Slaves, but ought to be careful not
to give any sanction to it.
Mr. DICKENSON considered it as
inadmissible on every principle of honor & safety that the importation of
slaves should be authorised to the States by the Constitution. The true
question was whether the national happiness would be promoted or impeded by the
importation, and this question ought to be left to the National Govt. not to
the States particularly interested. If Engd. & France permit slavery,
slaves are at the same time excluded from both those Kingdoms. Greece and Rome
were made unhappy by their slaves. He could not believe that the Southn. States
would refuse to confederate on the account apprehended; especially as the power
was not likely to be immediately exercised by the Genl. Government.
Mr. WILLIAMSON stated the law of N.
Carolina on the subject, to wit that it did not directly prohibit the
importation of slaves. It imposed a duty of 5. on each slave imported from
Africa. 10 on each from elsewhere, & 50 on each from a State licensing
manumission. He thought the S. States could not be members of the Union if the
clause shd. be rejected, and that it was wrong to force any thing down, not
absolutely necessary, and which any State must disagree to.
Mr. KING thought the subject
should be considered in a political light only. If two States will not agree to
the Constitution as stated on one side, he could affirm with equal belief on
the other, that great & equal opposition would be experienced from the
other States. He remarked on the exemption of slaves from duty whilst every
other import was subjected to it, as an inequality that could not fail to
strike the commercial sagacity of the Northn. & middle States.
Mr. LANGDON was strenuous for
giving the power to the Genl. Govt. He cd. not with a good conscience leave it
with the States who could then go on with the traffic, without being restrained
by the opinions here given that they will themselves cease to import slaves.
Genl. PINKNEY thought himself bound
to declare candidly that he did not think S. Carolina would stop her
importations of slaves in any short time, but only stop them occasionally as
she now does. He moved to commit the clause that slaves might be made liable to
an equal tax with other imports which he he thought right & wch. wd. remove
one difficulty that had been started.
Mr. RUTLIDGE. If the Convention
thinks that N. C. S. C. & Georgia will ever agree to the plan, unless their
right to import slaves be untouched, the expectation is vain. The people of
those States will never be such fools as to give up so important an interest.
He was strenuous agst. striking out the Section, and seconded the motion of
Genl. Pinkney for a commitment.
Mr. Govr. MORRIS wished the whole
subject to be committed including the clauses relating to taxes on exports
& to a navigation act. These things may form a bargain among the Northern
& Southern States.
Mr. BUTLER declared that he never
would agree to the power of taxing exports.
Mr. SHERMAN said it was better to
let the S. States import slaves than to part with them, if they made that a
sine qua non. He was opposed to a tax on slaves imported as making the matter
worse, because it implied they were property. He acknowledged that if the power
of prohibiting the importation should be given to the Genl. Government that it
would be exercised. He thought it would be its duty to exercise the power.
Mr. READ was for the commitment
provided the clause concerning taxes on exports should also be committed.
Mr. SHERMAN observed that that
clause had been agreed to & therefore could not committed.
Mr. RANDOLPH was for committing in order that some middle ground might, if possible, be found. He could never agree to the clause as it stands. He wd. sooner risk the constitution. He dwelt on the dilemma to which the Convention was exposed. By agreeing to the clause, it would revolt the Quakers, the Methodists, and many others in the States having no slaves. On the other hand, two States might be lost to the Union. Let us then, he said, try the chance of a commitment.