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Jury Trial

Jury Trial image
Parent Issue
Day
8
Month
September
Year
1841
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

The friends of liberty "away down East in tho State of Maine," aro, it seetns, hard altor the political partios to secure a jury trial to the negro. The following extract from an addregs totho electora of tho State, shows what Ireatment they have received, and how they feel about it. For eeveral years past, wq have been respectfully petitioniug our stato legitla ture, among othor things, to pass a law granting the trial by jury to a.i individual cUimccl ia tho state as u fúhv3 ohive.- In a question so momentoua to every human being ns that of hts or her libertv, tho' jury trial sliould not be avaiiable asome circuiious route, by ihe principies oicummon law, but should bo maller of express statute, and necessarily involved in ihe priinary procesa by wlich iho right in question is put al issue. The reusonubluncss and propriety of such i luw canuot beolherwiso than univcrsally aJmttted.- Tiie passago of sdch a law was urgod upon tlio intention of our legiluturu by nu inerous ïnemorialsjsustained by argumcnlb ofablo counciljbeíore a committec to wliora tha memorials had been cornrniued. The Wbig party had a detided müjuriiy in 1 oih brauchea. There wus ampie time, a'.so, for the due consideraüon of the subject. - The opportu:iity then was fairly preteuted for au unequivücal decisión of tho question, whelher iho party, as has Beoti alledged in liie precuding poliücu! canvas, was, in fact, more favorable lo our viuVs than its opponent. A decisión was mude, and plainly in the negalive. The failure, or rather, in the circumstances of ihe case, the refusal of the party togranttho !av in quoslioi), can bo attributed to no other cause than the fear of compromising its ovn ascendancy, by complying wiih one ol' our mo3t simple and obviously reasonable requestg. To the abolitiomsís t f ihe party, it is a distinct avowal thul Ii(Hvevcr williag to aecuro thetr voies, it is devoid of uil sincere and honest intention to promote in the slightest degroe, tho great cause in which ihcy are engaged. It is 11 proef which all may undorsUmd, of ihO fexceeding hollowness of its pretensions to be, ín respect to ua, the "iiure favorable Dartv."