Sixty-two residents of Accomack County are "much alarmed at several applications" coming before the assembly "for the passing of acts for the manumission of all slaves ... within this county." They argue that "however desireable an object that of universal Liberty in this country may be; however religious or upright the intentions of their owners may be" that they "conceive the objections they have to offer weighed in the scale of sound policy and publick good will prove motives sufficient to prevent such Bills passing." They offer four such motives: the homes of free persons of color will serve as harbors for slaves sympathetic to the British; "such an act would greatly tend to depreciate that part of our property" and the revenues arising therefrom would be "greatly lessened"; manumission in the past has been "in consequence of meritorious Services rendered by the slaves ... which is not the case in the present instance"; and "from men women and children being indiscriminately set at Liberty without proper funds ... many would likely become chargeable and increase the demand on the people who are already highly taxed for other purposes."
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Repository: Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia
