Forfeiture Quotes
Her view was only held by a few British citizens. Capital Punishment was ended in Britain.
At one level this quotation shows that Congress made the rules and regulations of the armed forces and not the Commander in Chief or the General Officers. But the quotation is important for several other reasons. First, it is the first federal attempt to regulate alcohol and drinking. It is also what we would regard today as a severe infringement of freedom of speech. Politically, it was very hard for any member of Congress not to support legislation to prevent blasphemy. But these and other examples of over a decade of the Continental Congress legislation persuaded most Americans that Congress was not to be trusted to protect their rights and there was a real need for a Bill of Rights so that much of the early activity of the Continental Congress would not continue.
At first, this law appears to be an attack on slavery. It was seen as a major step forward and an important symbol in the right direction by abolitionists. But there were Congressional agreements—a price of having a Union and a Nation—not to even discuss the legality of slavery in America. The Southerners could easily have blocked this, but they were so secure in their confidence that they did not object—to the surprise of some Northern Abolitionists. The President, Jefferson, even held slaves then. In a sense, the existing Southern slaveholders out maneuvered the abolitionists. The latter got their symbol, but the slave owners received a fortune. They could breed slaves in almost any number they wanted. And they could now sell their “property” at high prices without the competition of all the entrepreneurs who were making a quick buck in the International Slave Trade. The prices became so high that in the period before the outbreak of the Civil War over slavery. The economic value of the slaves of the South was greater than all the land, factories, minerals, crops and animas of the South all together,
Many Quakers saw Negroes as brothers and invited them to worship. Even some who owned slaved allowed them to attend their Quaker religious services. As such, they were a model of Christianity at a time when most other churches were not as advanced. The majority of the slave owners saw a great threat in Christianizing the Black slaves and hence they passed this law.
