Slaves, escaping to our lines, were driven back to their Rebel masters;
how the Act of Congress of July, 1861, which gave Freedom to all Slaves
allowed by their Rebel masters to assist in the erection of Rebel works
and fortifications, had "not been executed," and, said Mr. Trumbull, "so
far as I am advised, not a single Slave has been set at liberty under
it;" how, "it was more than a year after its enactment before any
considerable number of Persons of African descent were organized and
armed" under the subsequent law of December, 1861, which not only gave
Freedom to all Slaves entering our Military lines, or who, belonging to
Rebel masters, were deserted by them, or were found in regions once
occupied by Rebel forces and later by those of the Union, but also
empowered the President to organize and arm them to aid in the
suppression of the Rebellion; how, it was not until this law had been
enacted that Union officers ceased to expel Slaves coming within our
lines--and then only when dismissal from the public service was made the
penalty for such expulsion; how, by his Proclamations of Emancipation,
of September, 1862, and January, 1863, the President undertook to
supplement Congressional action--which had, theretofore, been confined
to freeing the Slaves of Rebels, and of such of these only as had come
within the lines of our Military power-by also declaring, Free, the
Slaves "who were in regions of country from which the authority of the
United States was expelled;" and how, the "force and effect" of these
Proclamations were variously understood by the enemies and friends of
those measures--it being insisted on the one side that Emancipation as a
War-stroke was within the Constitutional War-power of the President as
Commander-in-Chief, and that, by virtue of those Proclamations, "all
Slaves within the localities designated become ipso facto Free," and on
the other, that the Proclamations were "issued without competent
authority," and had not effected and could not effect, "the Emancipation
of a single Slave," nor indeed could at any time, without additional