On December 4, 1860 President Buchanan issued his final State of the Union address. The “Daily News” links in the right-hand column do a great job covering the address.
Here’s a short story related to fugitive slaves and the Underground Railroad
From The New-York Times December 1, 1860:
The Canada Fugitive Slave Murder Case.
TORONTO, C.W., Friday, Nov. 30.
The decision in the extradition case of the fugitive slave and murderer, JONES, has been still further postponed for a few days. The court to-day was crowded, and much interest was manifested in the proceedings. Many colored people of both sexes assembled in and around the Court-house, ready to rescue the prisoner in case the Court decided to hand him over to the United States authorities.
This story caused me to think about the relationship of slaves to the legal rights and responsibilities we take for granted and made me curious about the facts of the murder Jones allegedly committed.
