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U.S. CIRCUIT COURT. (Reported for the Indiana State Journal.) The Slave Cases. vs Court, action of debt Owen Williams for $500. ‘This was one of some five suits brought by Mr. Vaughn, against the defendants Asa Bales, David M. Anthony and others, each to recover the penalty of $500, fixed by the act of Congress of 1793, for rescu ing three negroes, arrested as fugitive slaves, from the State of Missouri. Messrs. Wick Barbour, and O. H. Smith Esq’rs, appeared as Counsel for the Plains, and John H. Bradley and William Quarles, Esq’rs, for the defendants. The defendants, by their Counsel de mourred generally to the declaration, upon the ground, that the act of Congres, under which the arrest was made, was inoperative and did not authorize the arrest of a fugitive slave, within any State in the North- West ern Territory who had fled from labor, from the State of Missouri. The defendant’s Counsel argued: ‘That by compact of 1787, there could be no sla very in Indiana, and that the right to pursue and arrest fugitive slaves, therein, was only reserved to the citizens of Orig inal States, and of course, Missouri not being an original State, it was not extended to her citizens. That by the Constitution of the United States, there was no reservation of a right to Congess, to legislate upon the matter, and such being the case, the act of 1793, was, as to the territory of State embraced in it, wholy void. ‘That the power to pass laws regulating the arrest of fugitive slaves, who may have fled from any of the new States, is in the State Government, and not in the United States Government. That the compact of 1787, as to slavery and the arrest of slaves is unalterable. That the act of Congress of 1795 under which the suit is brought, violates the compact, or at least was not authorized by it, and that therefore the action cannot be maintained. There were also some other points made, but the above are the main ones. The Court overruled the demurrer.— The Hon. Judge McLean, delivering a lengthy opinion which we will, if possible, obtain and publish hereafter. The defendants then pleaded the gene ral issue and a jury was sworn and the trial proceeded in. The evidence on the part of the plaintiff was, that in April 1836, his being then and now a citizen of the State of Missouri, he purchased of one Jacob Headrick in Car gol County Missouri, a negro man, woman and their child, named Sam, Maria and Amy, and paid for them $1100.That a few days previous to the purchase, Headrick had bought the same negroes from a man named John Tipton, who told Headrick when he sold them to him, that he brought them from Kentucky and had left his family behind him in Ilinois, on his way to Missouri, on account of sickness. He also told Headrick that he intended to buy land and settle in Missouri, and did buy a farm sor, Headrick, which was partly paid for with the price of the negroes. ‘That ‘lipton sold the negroes to Headrick in March 1836 and Headrick sold them to Vaughn the plaintiff in April after wards. ‘That the negroes lived with and worked for the plaintiff until the spring of 1857, and then ran away, and had never been recovered. ‘That the plaintiff about a year ago heard that the negroes were in Hamilton County Indiana, and came on to Noblesville, and there procured a warrant from the Clerk of the Circuit Cou t to arrest them under the law of the State, now in force for that pur pose, proceeded, with several persons to as sist him to the house where they lived, in the night, and arrived there before daylight. When they came to the house, one of the company went to the door and woke up the negroes, who were all in bed, told them he was lost and wanted them to let him in, to stay until morning. ‘The negroes refused to open the door, whereupon, Mr. Vaughn went up and called to them, telling them who he was, that he had come to take them to Missouri and that he wished them to get up and open the door and let them in, as he wanted to see them and shake hands with them. The negroes, up on hearing this, commenced crying and hallowing in a most violent manner, 80 loud as to be heard by some of the neigh bors, who soon came in, one after another, until 40 or 50 persons were gathered there. By agreement between the persons assembled,some of whom were a good sal violent in their manner of speech about matter, and the plantiff, the whole navy,taking the negroes, consisting two grown persons, and three chil started for Noblesville, the county They stopped at Mr. Anthonys, and Singleton nee the U. S. Circuit
Newspaper Details
Indianapolis Indiana State Journal
Indianapolis, Indiana, US
Wed, May 28, 1845
Page 3
Full Page
Clipped by
Ed F.
USA 27 Jun 2026
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