The laws of Tennessee and Missouri are comparatively mild; yet in Missouri it is _death_ to prepare or administer medicine without the master's consent, unless it can be _proved_ that there was no evil intention. The law in Virginia is similar; it requires proof that there was no evil intention, and that the medicine produced no bad consequences. To estimate fully the cruel injustice of these laws, it must be remembered that the poor slave is without religious instruction, unable to read, too ignorant to comprehend legislation, and holding so little communication with any person better informed than himself, that the chance is, he does not even know the _existence_ of half the laws by which he suffers. This is worthy of Nero, who caused his edicts to be placed so high that they could not be read, and then beheaded his subjects for disobeying them. PROP. 14.--_The laws operate oppressively on free colored people._ Free people of color, like the slaves, are excluded by law from all means of obtaining the common elements of education. The free colored man may at any time be taken up on suspicion, and be condemned and imprisoned as a runaway slave, unless he can _prove_ the contrary; and be it remembered, none but _white_ evidence, or written documents, avail him. The common law supposes a man to be innocent until he is proved guilty; but slave law turns this upside down. Every colored man is _presumed_ to be a slave till it can be proved otherwise; this rule prevails in all the slave States, except North Carolina, where it is confined to negroes. Stephens supposes this harsh doctrine to be peculiar to the British Colonial Code; but in this he is again mistaken--the American _republics_ share the honor with England. A law passed in December, 1822, in South Carolina, provides that any free colored persons coming into port on board of any vessel shall be seized and imprisoned during the stay of the vessel; and when she is ready to depart, the captain shall take such free negroes and pay the expenses of their arrest and imprisonment; and in case of refusing so to do, he shall be indicted and fined not less than one thousand dollars, and imprisoned not less than two months; and such free negroes shall be sold for slaves. The Circuit Court of the United States, adjudged the law unconstitutional and void. Yet nearly _two years_ after this decision, four colored English seamen were taken out of the brig Marmion. England made a formal complaint to our government. Mr. Wirt, the Attorney-General, gave the opinion that the law was unconstitutional. This, as well as the above-mentioned decision, excited strong indignation in South Carolina. Notwithstanding the decision, the law still remains in force, and other States have followed the example of South Carolina, though with a more cautious observance of appearances.