the head of a nation of pirates, whose constitution did guarantee the
freedom of kidnapping men abroad, and importing them as slaves? And
would he, in the event of this acknowledgment, have sought to avert the
destruction, which such an avowal would be likely to bring upon the
nation, by pleading that, although such was the legal meaning of the
words of our constitution, we yet had an understanding, (an honorable
understanding!) among ourselves, that we would not take advantage of the
license to kidnap or make slaves of any of the citizens of those
civilized and powerful nations of Europe, that kept ships of war, and
knew the use of gunpowder and cannon; but only the people of poor, weak,
barbarous and ignorant nations, who were incapable of resistance and
retaliation?

Again. Even the allowance of the simple "_importation_" of slaves--(and
that is the most that is _literally_ provided for--and the word
"importation" must be construed to the letter,) would not, of itself,
give any authority for the continuance of the slavery _after_
"importation." If a man bring either property or persons into this
country, he brings them in to abide the constitutional laws of the
country; and not to be held according to the customs of the country from
which they were brought. Were it not so, the Turk might import a harem
of Georgian slaves, and, at his option, either hold them as his own
property, or sell them as slaves to our own people, in defiance of any
principles of freedom that should prevail amongst us. To allow this kind
of "importation," would be to allow not merely the importation of
foreign "persons," but also of foreign laws to take precedence of our
own.

Finally. The conclusion, that congress were restrained, by this clause,
only from prohibiting the immigration of a foreign population, and not
from prohibiting the importation of slaves, to be held as slaves after
their importation--is the more inevitable, from the fact that the power
given to congress of naturalizing foreigners, is entirely
unlimited--except that their laws must be uniform throughout the United
States. They have perfect power to pass laws that shall naturalize every
foreigner without distinction, the moment he sets foot on our soil. And
they had this power as perfectly prior to 1808, as since. And it is a
power entirely inconsistent with the idea that they were bound to admit,
and forever after to acknowledge as slaves, all or any who might be
attempte