r ^o ^^vO^^^ ^'•^ "^b *y *<*.*•■« A? ^ •'■' 4*^ ' • . •* *G <> *«'"T7^»* ,0^ § PBICC, la CENTS SIKGLE, $10 PER HUNDRED, THE SOUTH BY MASSAOHtrSETTS JUNIOR. 'l*t the United States fspouse at ones the cause nf rivil, pnliiical and roli:»ioiis liberty in tbii hemisphere; this will be found the Eafest istae to go before the world with." BOSTON: PUBLISHED BY SYLVANUS P. SEAMAN, No. 160 Washington Stbeet, 1847. A PLEA THE SOUTH. BY MASSACHUSETTS JUNIOR. • Let the U«itii) Statbs espouse at once th» cause of civil, political acd religious liberty in tiio hemiepbere : this will t>e found the baszst zssuk to go bzjofj tbb woru) with. " BOSTON: PUBLISHED BY SYLVANUS P. SEAMAN, 1847. I' — -'■'' /■/' Entored according to the Act of Congrets, in the yesr 184T by SYLVANUS P. SEAMAN. in the Clerk's Office of the District Court in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. A PLEA FOR THE SOUTH. TO TJIE CITIZENS OF THE FREE STATES: Freedom is an inborn desire, which exists in the heart of every moving creature ; and is exercised in unrestrained indulgence, by- all save such as fall under the domination of man. The fishes of the sea dart forth, knowing no abridgement of liberty : the birds cleave the air with unfettered wing : the insect hums his song of freedom, as he pursues his wonted toil: the reptile glides forth at pleasure, and returns to his place of rest in security : the beasts of the forests, both great and small, roam at large, — all, all in the enjoyment of " life, libeHy and the pursuit of happiness,''^ exposed to no other harms than those of chance. Of all the brute creation, the beast of burden alone is tame and sad. Robbed of his liberty, he forsakes his gambols ; the wild grace of his natural gestures gives place to cowardice and fear, which mark his servile movements : his eye, no longer illumined by gleams of pleasure or of daring, becomes unmean- ing and dim ; and, in the intervals of his labor, his enjoyments are confined to the alternations of food and rest. — The beast of burden is a Slave! and if such be the change, wrought by slavery on him, how much greater the violation done to nature, in reducing man to the same level ! That love of freedom, which in other animals is instinct, becomes in man a moral sentiment, involving the happiness of the human family. Unconnected with the baser passions, it is the foster mother of all the virtues. Coupled with limited authority and directed by wisdom, it is the safeguard of tlie rights and the promoter of the in- terests of the weak and the powerless. United with ambition, it lures the unwary from their home-bred happiness. Directed by avarice, it assumes to be a prerogative, and encroaches on the privileges of 4 A PLEA FOR THE SOUTH. others. Associated with avarice, ambition and authority combined, it becomes the greatest of all tyrants, and demands the surrender of rights, on the part of the defenceless, not only to the indulgence of their own wills and desires, but to the protection of their own sacred persons, Avhich are seized and driven forth to toil, exposed to danger, or disposed of for gain M'ith as little regard to their wishes or their comforts as the ow^ner feels for the dumb ox, when he goads him at the plough, or sells him for a price in the market. When Freedom first descended to bless these United States, she came in all the dignity of single-mindedness, and she was hailed as " lovely and divine." Patriotism took up arms in her defence, and the Virtues enlisted in her cause. Justice presented herself with a poised balance, in which were "equal rights." Humanity came kneeling and in tears, and dedicated herself to the service of the new- made sovereign, whose pledge Avas " Liberty for all.'' IMerry took the pledge, and flew on wings of love to record it in the bondman's heart : he, too, worshipped at the shrine of Freedom, and counted upon the day when his fetters should be broken, and himself become a citizen in the " Land 0/ the Frez^ But Wealth, Power, Avarice and Ambition leagued against the Virtues, while quoting them as patron Diesses, and promised eclat to the reign of Freedom. The Virtues attempted to speak for themselves, and promised a course of righteousness and mercy ; but they were dismissed with, " Go thy way for this time, when I have a more convenient season, I will call for thee.'''' Thus they, who are the friends of the oppressed, become timid from oft-repeated vanquishments, and retiring from their known unpopularity ; and the influence of their examples is found to be less than the potency of their names. Under the reigning powers a government full of licenses was formed for us, the fair of skin, and we became emphatically "free!" w^hile the rigors of our sable brethren were increased. Wb are truly in the enjoyment of all the privileges that can be derived from a government ofjuil and impartial \-xw&. We, the citizens, (in contra- distinction to slaves,) whether born in this or any other country,* are free to enjoy the blessings of Providence, as Avas Adam in the garden of Eden. And no people on earth were ever more grateful, if a profusion of prayers and thanl^sgivings, a multiplication of churches, the educating of ministers, and the sending of missionaries to the heathen (! ?) be a proof of gratitude; for in these manifestations * Naturalized Foreigners, and even those wlio are not naturalized, are allowed to buy and to sell, to work in chains, to whip and to kill men, women and child- ren, born and reared within the United States, — sons and daughter's of free AMERICA : and that not always because oftlie liue of their skin, for I have seen slwuldcrs as delicately fair as those of Albion's own daughters, bared to tlic lash ! A PLEA FOR THE SOUTH. )f riofhteousness, none ever had greater alacrity than we; and yet the very pious we, who do all this, deprive millions of our countrymen of every social blessing. Their portion of that liberty, which is the theme of our orators, and the burden of gratitude with our divines, is less than that of the meanest worm that crawles upon the earth. We, in the plenitude of our freedom, torture their bodies with labor, whips and chains. We crush their minds with mental darkness and hopeless servitude. Yet we do not deny that these creatures were formed by the hand of God, and belong to the better portion of his works. We do not deny that they, like ourselves, are endowed with immortal souls ; and that their physical and mental organization is replete with the same susceptibilities as those through which we, their merciless oppressors, derive all our pleasures, and suffer all our pains. The more to subdue them to our service, we have made them aliens in the land of their birth : — outlaws, while no crime is laid to their charge. Thus innocent of offence, and while with sweat, and tears, and blood, they accomplish our bidding, we condemn them by our acclamation. — True their skins are darker than our skins, but white as the drifted snow compared to our guilt in their enslavement. It must be evident to ourselves, and to all the world, that Religion and her attributes, Justice and Mercy, are not the tutelar Divinities of our country. Upon what merit, then, do we lay our fellowship, our security anrl our unrivalled prosperity ? We must use that word, ' me7-it ' very circumspectly, since its application would give us a turn with our wretched bondmen. We owe somewhat of our prosperity (security and fellowship we have not) to the political sagacity of the fathers of our national inde- pendence; but more to the nature of our pursuits, which bring re- ciprocal advantages ; and something is gained to the northern portion of the union, by the countenance which it affords to enterprisp, where the utility is less a matter of doubt, than the fitness of the means employed. That we, the American people, are upholding a system of tyranny the most odious beneath the sun, is true ; and that there is a [iO})ular influence, on which to lay this colossus among the sins of nations, is equally certain. — This popular, demon influence is avarice, or in- satiable DESIRE OF WEALTH, and MEANS are its catarers. Among the variety employed by its panders, the most unsightly, the most appal- ing, the most heart-sickening is Slavery ! Does the South recoil at this uncleanly apparation ? Then let her call upon the general government to as-ist in putting away the abomination. Does the North exclaim, '• Our nostrils are offended with the putrid odors of slavery !" Then let her coffers be emptied 6 A PLEA FOR THE SOUTH. of their blood-stained treasures, that the cruel system may be broken up, and the moral atmosphere of the Republic be rendered sane and healthy. In ihe Free States Pride dwells with Avarice, and she prattles against slavery. She has a great regard for the reputation of the Union, and is free in expressions of disapprobation oft he institution : but when Sympathy would touch the public conscience, she thrusts Avarice, that thing of adamant, between. She has brought disgrace on Sympathy, calling her " Infidel,'' and shutting her out of the churches. Symjiathy, however, is of divine origin, and neither bows the head nor bends the knee to Pride, but watchful and faithful she finds the wa}'- to many a worthy heart. A regard for the moral and religious character of the Free States, has led to an almost general declaration of anti-slavery principles, based on conservative privileges ! But we cannot so impose upon the world; and even though we might, we should act from a better principle, from a loftier motive than the evasion of a world's censure. We should aim to become altogether such as we would wish to appear. It is not that there is nothing among us to commend, that we are suffering contempt and reproach; it is because of our peculiar trans- gression, M'hich is known to be full of sins of the blackest dye, that our characters are touched with a darkening tinge. It avails us very little, among other nations, that we are moral and religious that we give to every man, in our own free states his due, so long ;as we hold the key to the southern bondman's chains. It avails us nothing that we did not forge the links, since it was we who secured the rivet. We are not counted the less criminal, because we do not lay on the stripes, seeing we take the gain. Allow me to course down the public sentiment in regard to slavery, since 1774-, even to the present time, and I shall make it appear that it was not the fault of the South alone, that slavery was not abolished at an early period of our national existence. I shall also endeavour to show that the power to arrest an evil, which has become of such magnitude as not only to threaten the vital interests of the Southern population, but bids fair to involve the whole country in anarchy and wars, lies solely and entirely in the Free States. Unaided by the General Government, the slaveholders have less power to exterminate slavery than have the slaves themselves. Th' re is a remedy for the latter, which is gaining in efficacy, while the strength of the former is diminishing in an equal ratio. That the most eminent statesmen of the South, had a foreboding of this un- happy crisis, is evident from the anxiety manifested by them, on the subject of slavery, during our struggle for independence ; and from A I'LKA Foil THE SOUTH. 7 their tone of disappointment, when the affairs of the nation became finally settled. The resolutions adopted by the first congress, which assembled in 177-i, where suliicientiy explicit on the subject of negro emancipation to give the general impression that Fkkkdom, as a moral and religious principle, and not as a matter of mere convenience, was sought by that august assembly. As a prelude to the abolition of slavery within the territories, an agreement, which contained the following clause, ^^■as signed by the delegates of all the represented Colonies : " We will neither import nor purchase any slave import- ed after the first day of December next; after which time, we Avill wholly discontinue the Slave Trade; and neither be concerned in it ourselves, nor will we hire our vessels, nor sell our commodities or manufactures to those who may be concerned in it." The memorable conduct of the, then, noble and proud Virginia, the leading member of the Southern confederac}', Avas worthy of all admiration. She abolished the slave trade by a solemn act of Legis- lation ; and her example was followed by nearly all th(> Statei. She united, with fervency, in the Declaration of Independence, which promulgated the doctrine of " Equal Rights.'' Without one selfish consideration, she yielded her exclusive claim to her Western Territory, with no other stipulation than that it should be disposed of for the public good, and finally be erected into Republican States. Doubtless, Virginia then saw, in perspective, a state of universal freedom: and believed that the beating of her own heart was the impulse of the entire union. The othf-r states of the South uttered not a dissenting voice : — all were ready to approve, and to imitate the example of their beloved ^^rginia, believing that the day of their deliverance was at hand, not only from the control of a foreign country, but from the thraldom of an institution M'hich was contrary to the word of God, and to the spirit of justice and humanity. It is affecting to read the debates of that day, Avhen men's hearts were filled with zeal in the cause of Liberty, and Avarmed with love for the oppressed: when freedom was meditated, not for one class, only, but lor ALL within the limits of their anticipatc-d jurisdiction. But the tenderness of feoling, manili^sted at that jieriod, has nearly become extinct in the North by the engrossing influence of an unexampled prosperity; and in the South by the cares, ])erplexities, embarassments and heart-hardening tendency of slavery- itself. z The early design of the Fathers of our Independence evidently^ was that the slaves shovdd be set free by legislative enactments in the different states, in order that each state might have the entire control of its own means and facilities ; but they doubtless supposed that the General Government would provide for a'compensation, where compensation was needed ; give protection where there might be O A PLEA FOR THE SOUTH. danger from the lawlessness of newly emancipated multitudes ; and to assist in disposing of them, or in training them from a state of vas- salage to that of freemen. But the first of these considerations being 3 delicate subject for southerners to introduce, they waited for pro- positions from those less immediately interested, but equally respon- sible with themselves. But on this subject, the North, through inad- vertence or by design, maintained a profound silence. The great straits to which the country had become reduced by the expenses of the war, the discontinuance of commerce, and the cessation of industrial enterprise generally, — these, or some causes, less excusable, sealed the lips of those who should have been the first to advocate the cause of a final emancipation, at whatever cost to the country. We would preserve our respect for the memory of our ancestors by believing that they did intend, when the state of the public finances should permit, to have the matter discussed and settled to the satisfaction of all concerned. From the Declaration of Independence, in 1776, to the adoption of the Constitution, in 1789, a considerable change had taken place in the public mind, — a change that seldom fails to follow a successful enterprise of great magnitude, viz : self-appreciation for self-distrust; and disregard for the less fortunate in place of sympathy for their sufferings and a due sense of their rights. For some time before the Constitution was framed, the southern members of Congress had become less sanguine in the belief that the liberation of their slaves would become a part of the national reform^ unless, indeed, emancipation should be unconditionally precipitated upon them, without regard to the sufferings which must inevitably follow ; and they began to feel the necessity of securing to themselves unlimited control over an incumbrance, from which there appeared to be no relief; and to look for emancipation, if indeed it came at all, as a gradual work of time, or more probably a successful effort for freedom on the part of the slaves themselves. Thus filled with anxieties, which should have united them in a bold renunciation of slavery, they yielded to the pressing necessity of the times ; and instead of a code of laws which should guaranty to every man the " Inalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness," as set forth in their Declaration of Independence, they were compelled by the spirit of avarice, which had arisen, like the fabled Phoenix, from its ashes, to succumb to an instrument, which virtually says : The foreign traffic in the bodies of men 7nay cease after such a day and date; hut the domestic policy of the Southern States, in regard to slavery as it now exists, needs no alteration. It it attempted to be proved that the Constitution of the United States is decidely anii-slavery, because no such terms as " slave. A PLEA FOK, THE SOUTH. y slavery, slave trade, slaveholder," or " man-selling," are found in it. Nevertheless, it M'as designed as a proslavery instrument, -while the blush oi' inconsistency "was spared, and the sting of public conscience rendered less acute by substituting, Clause I, Sec. IX, Art. I. " The migration or importation of such persons as any of the States now existing shall think jjroper to admit, shall not be prohibited by the congress prior to the year one thousand eight hundred and eight, but a tax or duty may be imposed on such importation, not exceed- ing ten dollars for each person."' FOR The slave trade may continue in full operation, and shall not be prohibited by Congress prior to the year one thousand eight hundred and eight ; and a duty not exceeding ten dollars shall be laid on each slave so imported, for the use of the treasury of the United States. Again [Clause 3, Sec. II, Art. IV.] " No person held to service or labor in one State under the la^vs thereof, escaping into an other, shall, in consequence of any law or regulation therein, be discharged from such service or labor, but shall be delivered up on claim of th( • party to whom such service or labor may be due." FOR No slave held in bondage in one State under the laws thereof, escaping into another, shall, in consequence of any law or regulation therein, become a free man, but he shall be delivered up on claim of his owner. Again [Section IV, Art. IV.] " The United States shall guaranty to ever}- State in the Union a republican form of government, and shall protect them against inva- sion : and on application of the Legisla ure or of the Executive (when the Legislature cannot be convened) against domestic violence." FOR The United States shall guaranty to every State in the Union a republican form of government (nevertheless, the African slaves and their dcsccndcnts sliall not be partakers of tlie benefits thereof,) and shall protect them against invasion; "and on application of the Legislature, or of the Executive (in eases of emergency) against Slave-insurrection. Upon what principle of candor did the Congress of the United States, in a code designed for their own internal government, and for the regulations of which they were amenable to no poAver ( n earth, word every passage, relating to slavery, in so equivocal a manner 1 Did they believe that they were deceiving the world by so s})allow an artifice? or did they suppose that the hateful decrees, thus disguised, would K ss conflict with the otherwise liberal tenor ol the Constitution, then would they, clothed in the language of common parlance ? While contemplating with amazement this new proof of human weakness and inconsistency, let us remember that the Constitution 10 A PLEA FOR THE SOUTH. was but the work of Man ; and as such, worthy of high commenda- tion, its general tone being of the most unexceptional character ; and providing, as it does, for its own amendment, it cannot be considered sacrilege to take from it, or neutralize those clauses which are an offence to every true-hearted American, whenever the National Assembly shall agree to have no further use for them. With what regret must the spirits of thos'3 otherwise just men, who framed that instrument, look down upon the work of their hands ! — With what joy would those spirits commune, Avere ihey to behold from above, the Constitution of the United States purified from the evidences of their cupidity, and left only as a monument of their wisdom ! The Constitution, in its' proslavery character, was not adopted without many heart-burnings, particularly among the Southern dele- gates, and the expression of their feeling became that of disappoint- ment and chagrin; for although the Constitution did allow of the abolitron of slavery in all the States, it had made no provision for the exigencies, which must necessarily attend emancipation in some of them; while the government had been careful to relieve itself from all responsibility through Article X of the Amendments, which says, " The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited b}^ it to the States, are reserved to the States respect- ively, or to the people." Luther Martin, of iMarAdand, left the Convention for framing the Constitution before th-" instrument was finally completed. He had opposed its adoption, and assigned as his reason for so doing, that it " Contained no direct provision against slavery. That while it gave the General Government full and absolute power to regulate commerce, it had excepted from the exercise of that power the only branch of commerce which is unjustifiable in its nature, and contrary to the rights of mankind. That we ought rather to prohibit expressly in our Constitution, the further importation of slaves, and to authorize the General Government, from time to time, to make such regulations as should be thought most advantageous for the gradual abolition of slavery, and the emancipation of the slaves already in the states." In the Ratification Convention of North Carolina, Mr. Iredell, (afterwards a justice of the Supreme Court of the United States,) observed, " When tlie entire abolition of slavery takes place, it will be an event which must be pleasing to every generous mind, and every friend of human nature," Mr. Jefferson in his notes on Virginia, had said, " I think a change already perceptible. The spirit of the master is abating, that of the slave is rising from the dust ; his condition is being mollified, and tlie way, I hope, is preparing, under the auspices of Heaven, for a total emancipation ; and that it is disposed in the order of events, to A PLEA FOR THE SOUTH. 11 be with the consent of the masters, rather than by their extirpation." There is something foreboding in the last sentiment. Would that Jefl'erson could have infused his own principles into the hearts of all his countrymen. Then would the danger 'ere now have been pass- ed, and we, indeed, have become a Free People. Said ^V^ishington, " I never, unless some particular circumstance should compel uie to it, mean to possess another slave by purchase ; it being among my lirst wishes to see some plan adopted by which slavery in this country may be abolished by law." Again he says, " There is only one efl'ectual mode by which the abolition of slavery can be accomplished, and that is by legislative authority ; (doubtless having reference to the General liCgislature,) and that as far as my sull'rage will go shall not be wanting." William Finkney, indignandy said, "Wherefore should we confine the edge of censure to our ancestors, or to those from wdiom they purchased ? Are we not equally guilty ? They strewed around the seeds of slavery, — we cherish and sustain the growtli. Theti intro- duced the system, — ice enlarge, invigorate and coniirm it. * * * * * By the eternal principles of justice, no master in this state has a right to hold his slave a single hour." Says Patrick Henry, " We owe it to the purity of our religion to show that it is at variance with that law which warrants slavery," Says Madison, " It was w'rong to admit into the Constitution, even in idea, that there could be property in man." Nor did the true patriots of the South desist from their remon- strances against everything that favored the cause of slaver}', while there was any prospect of its immediate abolition ; nor did they des- pair of ultimately attaining their object until convinced that no action would be taken by the government f r its accomplishment : — and even then the forlorn hope of a final emancipation did not forsake them. General Lee, in his " Memoirs of the Revolutionary War," indulges in this soliloquy, half encouraging, half reproachful, " The Constitution of the United States, adopted lately with so much difli- culty, has ciTectually provided against the slave-trade after a few years. It is much to be lamented, that having done so much in this way, a provision had not been made for the gradual abolition of slavery." In the course of a debate in the congress of 1 789, (the first under the Constitution,) on a petition against the continuance of the slave trade, Mr. Parker, of Virginia, remarked with much emphasis, that he hoped Congress would do all that lay in their power to restore human nature to its inherent privileges, and to wipe ofi' the stigma under which America labored. " The inconsistency in our princi- ples,"' said he, " should be done away, that we may show by our 12 A PLEA FOR THE SOUTH. actions the pure beneficence of the doctrine, which we held out to the world in our Declaration of Independence." Judge Tucker, of Virginia, in a letter to the General Assembly of that State, in 1796, recommending the abolition of slavery, and speak- ing of the slaves of Virginia, said, " Should we not, at the time of the Revolution, have loosed their chains and broken their fetters ? or if the difficulties and d;ingers of such an experiment prohibited the at- tempt during the convulsions of a revolution, is it not our duty to em- brace the first moment of constitutional health and vigor to eflectuate so desirable an object, and to remove from us a stigma, with which our enemies will never fail to upbraid, nor our consciences to reproach us?" Passages similar to the above might be quoted to fill a volume, all pervaded with an air of the same wounded feeling ; but, I have quoted enough to show that the South were compelled to feel that no portion of their peculiar troubles were to be made lighter by the achievement of the National Independence ; but that frequent accessions to their already insupportalile load were allowed to be made for a series of ensuing years ; and that the avarice of a great number of their fellow citizens, would tempt them to the full exercise of the inhuman privi- lege. — No wonder that Jefferson should exclaim, in the bitterness of his soul, " I tremljle for my country, when I I'eflect that God is just, and that his justice cannot sleep forever!" The philanthropists of the North took a less desponding view of the continuance of slavery and the slave trade, than did their brethern of the South. Some of their most eminent men coincided, but with less fervor, in Southern sentiments ; but they generally contented themselves with the sure prospect of deliverance from slavery with- in the limits of the Northern and Middle States, in which the number of slaves was comparatively few ; and where the climate was in no- wise adapted to their African constitutions, and the soil unproductive in those articles which could make slave labor profitable. And from the slow natural increase of their colored population, they had imbibed the impression that slavery, in the Southern States, where the constitution must be soon broken down by excessive labor, would be continued only by fresh importations from Africa ; and they plead in extenuation of the crime of continuing the slave trade, the necessi- ty of giving employment to their merchantmen,* and of increasing * It has been asserted that the slave trade was conduct od witli unparallrled vifror between the yfars of 17S9 and 1808, and that too in Northern vessels, manned by Northern seamen. At the same time, sermons were preached, and addresses pnt foith, denonncin;: slavery and the slave trade ; and public appeals to Heaven in behalf of the oppre?scd bondmen were of daily occurrence. The voice of prayer for the liberation ol tlie slave must have contrasted strangely wiih- Uie " Yo-hcaveoh !" of the departing slave ship. A PLEA FOR THE SOUTH. 13 the revenue of their deeply embarrassed country. They were in- fatuated with the notion that the institution of slavery, if confined to the Eree States, in which it then existed, would, when no longer re- plenished from abroad, become extinct, without expense or detriment to any portion of the country. But it is most probable that they did not look, witli a great degree of solicitude, beyond the expiration of the term limited to tho slave trade ; and that they contemplated the '•forever-after" as a season of self approbation, and of political and domestic morality and justice. Our revolutionary fathers, who were a set of worthy, and, to a great extent, an intellectual class of men, had, like some of us, their descendants, an easier way of arriving at a conclusion than that of examining the premises, and never dreamed of the untoward con- sequences which must natundly grow out of a continu tnce of the slave trade, which was transplanting, from Africa, the elements of strife into a cHmate, soil and situation favorable to their growth. The condition of slavery has more than once been found favorable to the natural increase of the enslaved. In the first chapter of Ex- odoLis we find an account of a pecjple demanding release from a bondage, which this of America seems destined to surpass, both in the numbers of the enslaved, and in the atrocity of the system ; yel the similarity of the two cos3s are, in some respects, too obvious to escape a general notice. It has been said that the Nnlional Legislature, by continumg tne slave trade, lured the slaveholders to invest property in men. The truth of this assertion is self-evident, and the consequences to the BJave holders are precisely such as might have been expected to men, who were so Hir fijrgetful oftheir own dignity, as to bend the shoulder and become burden-bearers of a political sin. Wc will now turn with feelings of admiration to " the times THAT TRIED men's SOULS." Our immediate and worthy ancestors, filled with a lively sense of the injustice of the mother country in withholding from them certain privileges, which they considered due to them as citizens and as men, and in laying upon them burdens which could not be submitted to without degradation ; and realizing that their own isolation, and the hardships endured by their fore- fathers, the early pioneers of a wilderness, entitled them to a higher consideration than that of vassals to a foreign crown, did, aOer much deliberation, but without the aid, without the countenance of a single nation upon earth, set about the work of a political revolution : — not from motives of retaliation, not Horn an overweening spirit ; but under a sense of thedefil-rence due to their enterprise and their mng- 2 14 A PLEA FOR THE SOUTH. namity, and that they might leave to iheir children an inheritance of free institutions and a liberal policy of government, did they en- gage in a struggle, both dangerous and doubtful. There was no hypocricy in their Declaration of Independence! It was a warm ebulilion from the hearts of men, desirous of enjoy- ing and of diffusing the blessings of liberty, and a spirit of enthusiasm was kindled from Maine to Georgia. — Even the poor slaves, believ- ing that they, too, were to be benefitted by the emancipation of the colonies from the governmsMit, under the sanction of which they had been deprived of their liberty, and reduced to the anomalous state of speaking chattels, were true to the cause of the country (alas I not theirs,) and to the interests of their masters. Impressed with th« idea that they were held in bondage through British power and in- fluence, they viewed the armies of Britain as the worst of enemies ; otherwise they might have turned the scale of the revolution: but no, their confidence was full and entire in the justness of the cause, never doubting for a moment that their own personal freedom de- pended on the success of the American arms. With a self devotion worthy of eternal consideration, they hung upon the fortunes of their masters, whose hearts were warmed towards them ; and whose se- cret vows for their restoration to the rights of humanity are recorded in that Book, which will be opened when we are all called upon to settle our final accounts. The Preamble to the Abolition Act of Pennsylvania, in 1780, shows, with more or less intensity, the state of the public mind in regard to the slave portion of the suffering community. It says, " W'eaned by a long course of experience from those narrow predjudices and partialities, which we had imbibed, we find our hearts enlarged with kindness and benevolence towards men of all conditions and nations; and we conceive ourselves to be, at this particular period, called upon, in an extraordinary manner by the blessings we have received, (o manifest the sincerity of our professions, and to give substantial proof of our gratitude." These generous, just, and humane senti- ments, were fostered in every part of the country ; but nowhere with more sincerity and warmth than in the now reckless, and Hea- ven-defying South. The WAK ended, the prospects of America brightened. Prosper- ity had crowned their efforts, — not in the cause of Freedom, but in incontrovertible independfnce of foreign control ; and that dependence on Divine Providence, which had sustained the public mind during the struggles of the revolution, and which never fails to open the eyes of the understanding to the just claims of others, was uow ex- changed for worldly wisdom and self-reliance. The pecuniary embarrasments of the country demanded immediate A PLEA FOR TIIK SOUTH. 15 attention, and the low state of the public financrs, the clamor of creditors, and the dilapidated state into which every branch of com- merce and home industry had fallen, withdrew a portion of the public mind fmin the cause of humanity to the cause of mammon. The IndiipL'nilence of the Nation achieved, the work of maintainfince must begin. First, provision must be made for the liquidation of the Na- tional debt, and for the increasing expenses of the new oovenment. Next the general spirit of enterprise must be gratified in the multipli-. cation of private resources; and on a cool consideration of expedien- cy, it was thought justifiable to abriilge the " rights" of some men ♦' to liberty and the pursuit of happiness." It was not evi'U neces- sary to say who should be the vicliii ! — But where could the sacri- fice most advantageously, and with the least show of injustic? be made? — Not in the North, where the piety of our forefathers was left as a legacy, in trust, for the benefit of their children. Not in thfi Middle States, where the descendents ofPenn and Stuyvcsant held to the doctrine that -'Justice to man was a duty to God." — But the South! aye, the South, with a genial climate, a fertile soil, and a good- ly number ofoperatives, inured to unrequited labor. — And the South- ern planters, slave-holders by profession, of course, not under tht^ influence of religion and morality : — surely, it is their duty to ac- quiesce in so convenient a measure for the general benefit. — And then it is but for a little while, — and domestic slavery die ovt, leav- ing them nothing to do but to repent of their sins and enjoy the bless- ings of a Free Governmejvt. Well, the South, wholly aware of the consequences, disregarded the counsel of her wise men, and looking only to the prospect of im- mediate and large gains, became reconciled to the unnamed, but perfectly understood arrangement ; and thus compromised her por- tion of her country's birthright, — free institutions, for the unsavory pottage of slavery ; since which time, it has been in vain for her, when contemplating the prosperity of the North, that she has cried to God, " Bless me, even me also, O ! my Father." From the time of the adoption of the Constitution, the Southern feeling br came changed towards the North. The warm and cordial love with which her citizens had been wont to regard their North- ern neighbors, was now changed to coldness and distrust. They became petulant and overbearing ; insensible to pity, and regardless of the opinions of the world ; and their poor, helpless slaves, who had looked forward to a brighter day, were made the victims of their ire; and inconsistency of principle was never carried to a greater length than in their impatience of contradiction and their defiance of human control, compared with their treatment of their slaves, of whose privileges the following extracts from the laws of the several 16 A PLEA FOR THE SOUTH. States will give an idea that shonld be sufficient to call forth, not only the indignation of an outraged humanity, but immediate and effectual measures for their relief. Southei'ii Definition of the term " Slave.^^ " A Slave is one who is in the power of a master to whom he be- longs. The master may sell him, dispose of his [lerson, his indus- try and his labor. He can do nothing, possess nothing, nor acquire anything that does not belong to his master." — Civil Code of Louisiana. The codes of the other States defaie the word " slave" in a similar manner. Thus under covert of Article X. of the Amendments of the Constitution of the American Republic, a confederation that has turned mountains of powder into smoke, in celebrating the anniversaries of its independence, and wasted volumes of breath in bombast on ac- count of its freedom, laws are in force, by which a man of certain caste, may take his less fortunate neighbour and reduce him to the condition described in the above definition of the word" slave." Laws of the Slave States. " Slaves shall always be reputed and considered as real estate, and shall be, as such, subjected to be mortgaged, according to the rules prescribed by law ; and they shall be seized and sold as real estate." — Law of Louisiana. " Slaves shall be deemed, sold, taken and reputed, in law, to be chattels personal in the hands of their owners and possessors, and their executors, administrators and assigns, to all intents, con- •TRrcTioNS, AND PURPOSES WHATEVER." — Luto ofSovth Carolina' " In the trial of slaves, the Sheriff chooses the Court, which must consist of three Justices, and twelve slaveholders, to serve as jurors." — Law of Tennessee. " Any emancipated slave remaining in the State more than a year, may be sold by the Overseers of the Poor, for the benefit of the " Literary Fund." " Any slave or free colored person, found at any school for teaching reading or writing, by day or by night, may be whipped at the discretion of a Justice, not exceeding twenty lashes," — Lntvs of Virginia. " Penalty for any slave, or free colored person exercising the func- tions of a minister of the gospel, thirty-nine lashes." " Penalty for teaching a slave to read, imprisonment for one year." " Every negro or mulatto, found in the State, not able to show himself entitled to freedom, may be sold as a slave." — Laws of Mississippi. " For attempting to teach any free colored person or slave to spell, read or write, a fine of not less than two bundred and fifty, nor more than five hundred dollars." — Law of Alabama. " Any person who sees more than seven slaves without a white A PLEA FOK THE SOUTU. 17 person, in a high road, may whip each slave twenty lashes." •' Every colored person is presumed to be a slave unless he can prove himself free." — Lutes of Georgia. '• Every colored person is presumed to he a slave wilcss he can prove himself free.'' — In virtue of this law, whicli prevails iri all the slave States, colored persons, and sometimes, perhaps, dark complexioned white persons, who cannot give immediate and satis- factory references, arc incarcerated in the public jails, and bid to prove that they are free men. Now, it is impossible for them, locked up in jails, to procure evidence of their freedom. So they are kept awhile, and then sold to pay their jail fees, which the Marshal and Jailor can fix as high as they please ; and although they are nominally sold for a time to pay the debt thus incurred, no further interest is taken in them, and they are generally resold before the ex- piration of the term of their service, and thas become slaves for life. I have not learned that there are any laws which annul the mar- riage covenant of slaves, I therefore quote Judge Matthews of Lou- siana, as authority for the general usage. " With the consent of their masters, slaves may marry, and their moral power to agree to such or connection as that of marriage cannot be doubted, but whilst in a state of slavery, it cannot produce any civil effect, be- cause the slaves are deprived of all civil rights." — Martin's Rep. VI., ?50. It would be easy to give examples of the " tender mercies" of the slaveholders, under sanction of such laws as the above, but having seen, in too many instances, the unwillingness and disgust, with which the free community listen to details of the sufferings of the slaves, I have hope of better success from an appeal to their under- standing than from an attack upon their passions. Yet they will allow me in the following little incident, to touch a sympathy, which, although implanted in youth, reserves its full fruition for the close of life. I once remained for a few weeks at a hotel in the State of Ten- nessee. Being in delicate health, my intercourse with the familv came to bo on the most familiar terms ; and a room was assigned me in the immediate vicinity of the nursery, of which an aged black woman seemed to be the superintendant. She was usually sad, and peculiar from a habit of extempore singing. Late in the night, [ could hear her rocking to and fro, and uttering her piteous plaint, now in the tone of song, now in the voice of prayer, and often with sighs and sobs. The nightly repetition of this mournful serenade at last induced me to ask the mistress the cause of the grief of her aged slave ; and 2* 18 A PLEA FOR THE SOUTH. 1 learned that she had belonged to a planter in Virginia, the father of her present lady. Early in life she married, or took, without ceremony, as her husband, a worthy fellow-slave, with whom she cohabited until the death of her master; when, with the other prop- erty, the slaves were divided among the heirs of the estate, she fal- ling to her present owner, and her husband to another branch of the family. She had been a valuable and trusty servant, and now, not- withstanding her age and infirmities, was a faithful nurse. " But why does she mourn so?" I asked. " Oh," said her mistress, " it is because she cannot see her husband. He was old and lame, and it did not belong to us to take care of him, and so he was left. But she is of use to me, and I indulge her in all her ways ; yet it does seem that she will not try to be happy — she is so unreasonable I" I thought otherwise. With permission, I afterwards became a visitant of the nursery, and sometimes attempted to comfort the poor old negress, whom I often found singing. •' Oh ! Tazzo, oldy man, no see um Suk-e-e ! Ah ! Tazzo, goody man, too old to work-e-e I Who comb him wooly head? Who wash um foot-c-e ? Who cook um hnmin-e-e ? Who mend um clothes-e-e ?" " Tell me, aunty," said I, " who you are singing about ?" " Oh dear," said slie, " it is my poor ole husband, my poor ole n-jan !" and then she wailed and sang, " Poor Tazzo, oldy man, left all alone-e-e !" I enquired if she had left no children to console him? "No," she replied, in a voice so sharp that I feared she was about to strike me, " Ole massa sole um all, dat's what he raise um for — (rocks and sings, with tears fast falling ) " Who care for chillun now ?" — All gone-e ! gone-e I" This poor creature had given up her children,without knowing the pleasures of a mother's love. She had never considered them as her own, nor suffered her affections to twine about them. But her poor husband, with whom she had travelled through a long life of servitude, had become the sole ob- ject of her solicitude ; and she declared to me, that she would not live, if they did not let her go home, and " comfort de poor ole man," There is a mutual kindness and childlike love between two aged people under the ordinary circumstances of husband and wife : but with the slaves, in the unusual privileges of growing old together, their youthful tenderness ripens into an all-absorbing devotion. Negroes are naturally affectionate creatures, and in advanced age kindness predominates over all other feelings, even towards those who have treated them roughly. Whenever I think of that poor old negress, her husband, lame and lonely, is also present to my view. They will see each other DO more, on earth ; but may they again be united in that worlds A PLEA FOR THE SOUTH. 19 where the fetters of bondage are unknown ; and where they nriay realize for their offspring that regard, which the base traffic in hu- man flesh has denied them here. Avarice had become the ruling passion of the slaveholders, while prodigality marked all their steps. The former exacted labor to the uttermost extremity of the slaves, while the latter allowed neither means for their comfort, nor a provision to be made for their eman- cipation. Prodigious were the sums paid into Southern coffers for the product of slave labor, but only to be extracted therefrom by Northern enterprise. The merchants of the Northern and Middle States made the most valuable importations for the Southern market, from which the mechanic, the artisan, and the manufacturer, also realized a premium on the profits of their labor. It was thus that the slave-trodden soil of the South became the Ophir of the Republic. In consideration of the vast benefits to the Free States arising from the extravagant expenditures of the slaveholders, a spirit of forbearance was manifested toward them under some very trying exactions and assumptions of control in the affairs of the General Government, until the South, having become the political pet of the Union, found herself not only able to coerce the North into the most eccentric public measures, but regaled without stint on the loaves and fishes of oflice. True, the Northern office seekers complained, and the Northern politician often found himself brow-beaten ; but it is no easy matter to recover an influence, once compromised, and so the North now finds it ; but unwilling to come to an open rupture, she wisely maintains a spirit of forbearance, which the South, heed- less of the consequences to herself, seems trying to provoke by con- stant violations of the compact which should equalize the privileges of the citizens of the diirerent Slates. I do not remark upon this inequality of power and privileges, from feelings of envy, or by way of crimination, for we cannot be jealous of the privileges of so unfortunate a people ; nor should we indulge in censure upon that portion of their conduct which is their only relief among unhappy alternatives. But it is well to lay bare the cause of the preferences conceded to the South in all public concerns of honor or profit. I once asked of a Northerri Represen- tative the question of their right to so great a monopoly? His an- swer was, '* They will carve for themselves, therefore it is not Btrange that they should take the lion's share." " But, by whose grant did the ' will' become authority to make these unequal divi- ions ?" •' By grant of their necessities, and in virtue of their own qualifications," he replied, " and too much has been said, and too 20 A PLEA FOR THE SOUTH. many wrong impressions given concerning Southern usurpation of political power: — for why should we, of the North, complain, after having given them a monopoly of office for a monopoly of trade, the latter being worth about 1400 per cent per annum more than the former ; and while we have been studying the leger, the slaveholders have become adepts in the science of government : — so much so that their superior qualifications as statesmen, are not doubted even by their enemies." I hinted to him that I thought he must have been led into a very unwilling appreciation of the talents of men who were exercising a dictatorial supervision over the interests of the North, while they offered rewards for the heads of any, who might dare to speak against their own " Peculiar Institutions" " True," said he, " we have allowed them to gain an eminence of power and authority, against which it is treason to speak; while we are called upon with an authority, truly ludicrous, to bend the knee and buckle on the armor to strenifthen their position!" This gentleman betrayed a fair sample of the fluctuation of North- ern feeling towards the Southerners, — one moment complaining of their selfishness, the next admitting all their claims ; then disgust at their usurpation of authority and disregard of courtesy is followed by admiration of their talents, and a plea for their arrogance; while the concluding reflection are not always such as to give a man a favor- able opinion of his own dignity, or of his social and political con- sequence. The internal government of the Southern portion of this self- styled republic, is a slave-made olligarchy, depending for support, on unrequited vassal labor ; and for protection on the resources of the General Government, for the appropriation of which the Consti- tution thereof has made ample provision. Their manner of living is peculiar to that of tyrants in general, profuse and limited only by their means. Their moral principles are a compound of whatever we have been taught to admire in the chivalrous traits arising from the feudal system, with too much of what even our perverted natures condemn in the open injustice of a Cortez and a Pizzaro, and in the secret cruelties of the Spanish Inquisition: and their moral conduct is the genuine offspring of their principles. It is not true, as mani/ suppose, that there is no sympathy in the breast of the master for his poor suffering slave. It is not true, as some affirm, that ihey are generally treated with kindness, and are content with their condition. Sympathy, there is indeed ; and Pity, that God-like child of Heaven ; and self-reproach, that sting of wounded conscience : and burning shame, that attendant on a re- A PLEA FOR THE SOUTH. JM putation soiled. These would soflen the rigors of the bondman's lot, did not interest and peismal safety forbid. Pity the condition of the slave; withhold the whip from his trembling limbs; let him feel your Sympathy, and be comforted by your generosity, (only retaining him as a chattel slave,) and he assumes the man ! Free- dom starts up b( fore him, with only you between : it is enticing and lovelv ; he is strengthened by your kindness to make an effort for the prize : — he daris through your vitals, and shouts the pecan of Liueuty! It requires a heavy load of oppression to reconcile a man to the loss of his personal freedom, and to the rule of another over the des- tinies of his wife and children, of whom the God of nature has ap- pointed him the rightful protector and defender: deep must be the bruises in his flesh ; crushed must be his spirit, 'ere he can be made to labor on, without an effort for their emancipation and his own. Cruelty is not, as has been represented, the pas'ime of the slave- holder ; it is his policy of insurance for the diligence and non-resist- ance of his slave. -And how does that government stand in the eight of Almighty God ? — In view of his wondering angels? — In the esteem ol" more liberal nations? — in the balance of common justice? — in the account of Humanity ? — and in the regards of Decency ? — ■which throws around an institution, requiring for its safety such an amount of barbarity, the protecting arms of its power ! — or wiiliholds the means to purchase, if purchase be necessary, the freedom and disenthralment of a portion of its citizens, suffering cruelties, to which no parallel can be found in the records of the world I The slaveholders do not, as they would have it believed, live with- out fear, and revel in security. Retribution haunts them by day ; stalks through their vigils at night, and disquiets their dreams. Their trials are as far beyond the power of our affluent Northern citizens to conceive, as are the sufferings of the brutalized, unpaid slave be- yond the comprehension of the free laborer, who toils through the day, or only until he is weary, then, fearless of blame, returns to the covert of his domestic security, and shares the product of his labor with his wife, whom the laws allow him to protect, and the children, who are not liable to be snatched from his care by other foes than death. As if to punish the injustice of robbing men of their liberty, every addition to that source of gain augments ihe dangers to be feared from rebellion. The slaves of the United States have already be- come too numerous, and too well instructed in their rights to be contemplated without dread. Their frequent attempts at insurrection, although unsuccessful, have furnished them with a great amount of general knowledge, in relation to the resources, the apprehensions S'S A PLEA FOR THE SOUTH. and the constant watchfulness of their enemies. They have become convinced of the impossibility of rising en masse and striking a de- cisive blow. They know that a warfare must ensue, in which they will sometimes be vanquished, and sometimes victorious. They are aware that enemies may be found appoaching them as friends, and that traitors will not be wanting of their own color. The have be- come cautious in their communications with strangers ; yet they have facilities for obtaining information, and for private discussions, of which no vigilance is able to deprive them. Many, even on the plantations, can both read and write ; but how they have become possessed of those acquirements is a marvel to all but themselves. Perhaps the short journeys, which they contrive to make in the night-tirne, arc to places where knowledge lies concealed. The hour of darkness is their time to be abroad. If they escape detection and punishment it is well ; if otherwise they are not deterred, since no infliction can subdue the propensity, and so adroit are they in their movements, that the keenest eye cannot always determine their identity. I have, from my window, seen them glide through the gardens and porticos, when the stillness of the night should have revealed the dropping of the dew, and not the slightest sound be heard ; and no evidence of their presence given, save the glimpse of some darksome apparition. To timorous and superstitious persons, they often give cause of alarm, their presence being suspected in the motion of every leaf, and their appearance ominous of evil. Their ear is quick, their sight keen, their tread light, and their movements deceptive. The slightest stir of an enemy is instantly felt, and they vanish from sight like spectral illusions. However much the feeling may attempt concealment, the slaves are objects of terror to all, but more especially so to women and children. The desperate resolves, which cause men to go armed; nerve them with a constant readiness to meet danger ; and like soldiers prepared for battle in defence of all that is dear, they never suffer their courage to flinch, nor their self-command to be subdued by apprehensions. It is only when the mind and the body, wearied alike, would sink into rnpose, that fitful dreams bring tremors to the heart and moisture to the brow. 'T is then the wife, and child are grasped, with trembling hand, — and God is praised ! Who, that has compassion, would be a tyrant and a terror to his fellow-men ? — Who, that hns an earthly tie, can feel secure, while revenge, deep, fierce and foul, burns in the hearts of his own house- hold slaves? Children love their nurses, who slily tell them tales of insurrec- tions, and thus they learn to fear them. Ladies become attached to faithful servants ; but knowing the injuries sustained by the race to ▲ PLEA FOR THE SOUTH. 23 which they belong, confidence gives place to distrust, and reliance to dread. Men have slaves who would die in their defence against a stranger, but who would be the first to slay them were their own personal freedom to be the reward. I have noticed that very old negroes Avere averse to insurrection- ary movements, since age brings to them a season of indulgence and a certainty of support. And here, to the credit of the slaveholder, be it spoken, that the aged slaves are kindly cared for. True, thia kindness conies too late to confer any lasting good ; but it comes when hope and expectation have no longer a future on earth ; and the present, being all that is left of time, receives kindness with that full meanire of enjoyment, which lends to the garrulity of age the interest of prattling infancy ; a pleasing loquacity and buoyancy of spirit being as sure indications of kind usage in extreme age as in early childhood. It has often been amusing to me to hear an old, gre}' -headed negro (rejoicing in the privilege,) scold " massa " and " missus,'' while "massa" and " missus" would only wink and smile, or give some trifle by way of peace offering. I have sometimes thought that the situation of those superannuated slaves, contrasted favorably Avith the condition of many aged fathers and mothers of fairer complexion, who sit in melancholy stupor by the firesides of their own sons and dau2;hters. The siaful presumption of our government in retaining men a?? chattels, has recoiled upon the immediate agents in a way to involve them in a variety of embarrasments, from which it is impossible for them to be extricated but by an entire change, which it is the duty of said government to assist them in makiu'^ in a portion of their domestic economy. Were every other obstacle in the way of eman- cipation removed, the pecuniaiy entanglements of the South are so connected with slavery that the slaveholders have not the ri<^ht to abolish it at will. The practice of raising money b}^ mortgage on slaves has raised an almost insurmountable impediment to their libera- tion, urilcss a considerable compensation is made to their owners ; for while under mortgage, they are not at the disposal of those, in whose possession they are found, except it be to ma'