for the market, within an
enclosure of high brick walls surrounding the jail. The young
man in attendance, informed us that there were five or six other
regular slave-dealers in the city, who, having no jails of their
own, either placed their slaves at this establishment, or in the
public CITY PRISON. The former was generally preferred, on
account of its superior accommodations in respect to food and
lodging. On my making some remarks to the young man on the
nature of his occupation, he significantly, and as I think, very
justly replied, that he knew of no reasons for condemning
slave-traders, which did not equally apply to slave-holders. You
will bear in mind that this was said within view of the Capitol,
where slave-holders control your national legislation, and
within a few minutes' walk of that mansion where a slave-holder
sits in the presidential chair, placed there by your votes; and
it is certainly no marvel, that, with such high examples in his
favor, the humble slave-dealer of the District should feel
himself in honorable company, and really regard his occupation
as one of respectability and public utility.

"From thence we proceeded to the city prison, an old and
loathsome building, where we examined two ranges of small stone
cells, in which were a large number of colored prisoners. We
noticed five or six in a single cell, barely large enough for a
solitary tenant, under a heat as intense as that of the tropics.
The keeper stated that in rainy seasons the prison was
uncomfortably wet. The place had to us a painful interest, from
the fact that here Dr. Crandall, a citizen of the free States,
was confined until his health was completely broken down, and
was finally released only to find a grave, for the crime of
having circulated a pamphlet on emancipation, written by one of
the friends who accompanied me.[A] On inquiry of the keeper, he
informed us that slaves were admitted into his cells, and kept
for their owners at the rate of thirty-four cents per day, and
that transfers of them from one master to another sometimes took
place during their confinement; thus corroborating the testimony
of the keeper of the private jail before mentioned, that this
city prison, the property of the people of the United States,
and for the rebuilding of which, a large sum of your mo