CLEAR SHINING AFTER RAIN.
Clayton had occasion to visit New York on business.
He never went without carrying some token of remembrance from the
friends in his settlement to Milly, now indeed far advanced in years,
while yet, in the expressive words of Scripture, "her eye was not dim,
nor her natural force abated."
He found her in a neat little tenement in one of the outer streets of
New York, surrounded by about a dozen children, among whom were blacks,
whites, and foreigners. These she had rescued from utter destitution in
the streets, and was giving to them all the attention and affection of a
mother.
"Why, bless you, sir," she said to him, pleasantly, as he opened the
door, "it's good to see you once more! How is Miss Anne?"
"Very well, Milly. She sent you this little packet; and you will find
something from Harry and Lisette, and all the rest of your friends in
our settlement.--Ah! are these all your children, Milly?"
"Yes, honey; mine and de Lord's. Dis yer's my second dozen. De fust is
all in good places, and doing well. I keeps my eye on 'em, and goes
round to see after 'em a little, now and then."
"And how is Tomtit?"
"Oh, Tomtit's doing beautiful, thank 'e, sir. He's 'come a Christian,
and jined the church; and they has him to wait and tend at the
anti-slavery office, and he does _well_."
"I see you have black and white here," said Clayton, glancing around the
circle.
"Laws, yes," said Milly, looking complacently around; "I don't make no
distinctions of color,--I don't believe in them. White chil'en, when
they 'haves themselves, is jest as good as black, and I loves 'em jest
as well."
"Don't you sometimes think it a little hard you should have to work so
in your old age?"
"Why, bress you, honey, no! I takes comfort of my money as I goes along.
Dere's a heap in me yet," she said, laughing. "I's hoping to get dis yer
batch put out and take in anoder afore I die. You see," she said, "dis
yer's de way I took to get my heart whole. I found it was getting so
sore for my chil'en I'd had took from me, 'pears like the older I grow'd
the more I thought about 'em; but long's I keeps doing for chil'en it
kinder eases it. I calls 'em all mine; so I's got good many chil'en
now."
We will inform our reader, in passing, that Milly, in the course of her
life, on the humble wages of a laboring woman, took from the streets,
brought up, and placed in reputable situations, no less than _forty_
destitute children.[5]
When Clayton returned to Boston, he received a note written in a
graceful female hand, from Fanny, expressing her gratitude for his
kindness to her and her brother, and begging that he would come and
spend a day with them at their cottage in the vicinity of the city.
Accordingly, eight o'clock the next morning found him whirling in the
cars through green fields and pleasant meadows, garlanded with flowers
and draped with bending elms, to one of those peaceful villages which
lie like pearls on the bosom of our fair old mother, Massachusetts.
Stopping at ---- station, he inquired his way up to a little eminence
which commanded a view of one of those charming lakes which open their
blue eyes everywhere through the New England landscape. Here, embowered
in blossoming trees, stood a little Gothic cottage, a perfect gem of
rural irregularity and fanciful beauty. A porch in the front of it was
supported on pillars of cedar, with the rough bark still on, around
which were trained multitudes of climbing roses, now in full flower.
From the porch a rustic bridge led across a little ravine into a
summer-house, which was built like a nest into the branches of a great
oak which grew up from the hollow below the knoll on which the house
stood.
A light form, dressed in a pretty white wrapper, came fluttering across
the bridge, as Clayton ascended the steps of the porch. Perhaps our
readers may recognize in the smoothly-parted brown hair, the large blue
eyes, and the bashful earnestness of the face, our sometime little
friend Fanny; if they do not, we think they'll be familiar with the
cheery "ho, ho, ho," which comes from the porch, as our old friend Tiff,
dressed in a respectable suit of black, comes bowing forward. "Bress de
Lord, Mas'r Clayton,--it's good for de eyes to look at you! So, you's
come to see Miss Fanny, now she's come to her property, and has got de
place she ought for to have. Ah, ah!--Old Tiff allers know'd it! He seed
it--he know'd de Lord would bring her out right, and he did. Ho! ho!
ho!"
"Yes," said Fanny, "and I sometimes think I don't enjoy it half as well
as Uncle Tiff. I'm sure he ought to have some comfort of us, for he
worked hard enough for us--didn't you, Uncle Tiff?"
"Work! bress your soul, didn't I?" said Tiff, giggling all over in
cheerful undulations. "Reckon I has worked, though I doesn't have much
of it to do now; but I sees good of my work now'days,--does so. Mas'r
Teddy, he's grow'd up tall, han'some young gen'leman, and he's in
college,--only tink of dat! Laws! he can make de Latin fly! Dis yer's
pretty good country, too. Dere's families round here dat's e'enamost up
to old Virginny; and she goes with de best on 'em--dat she does."
Fanny now led Clayton into the house, and, while she tripped up stairs
to change her morning dress, Tiff busied himself in arranging cake and
fruit on a silver salver, as an apology for remaining in the room.
He seemed to consider the interval as an appropriate one for making some
confidential communications on a subject that lay very near his heart.
So, after looking out of the door with an air of great mystery, to
ascertain that Miss Fanny was really gone, he returned to Clayton, and
touched him on the elbow with an air of infinite secrecy and precaution.
"Dis yer an't to be spoken of out loud," he said. "I's ben mighty
anxious; but, bress de Lord, I's come safely through; 'cause, yer see,
I's found out he's a right likely man, beside being one of de very
fustest old families in de state; and dese yer old families here 'bout
as good as dey was in Virginny; and, when all's said and done, it's de
men dat's de ting, after all; 'cause a gal can't marry all de
generations back, if dey's ever so nice. But he's one of your likeliest
men."
"What's his name?"
"Russel," said Tiff, lifting up his hand apprehensively to his mouth,
and shouting out the name in a loud whisper. "I reckon he'll be here
to-day, 'cause Mas'r Teddy's coming home, and going to bring him wid
him; so please, Mas'r Clayton, you won't notice nothing; 'cause Miss
Fanny she's jest like her ma,--she'll turn red clar up to her har, if a
body only looks at her. See here," said Tiff, fumbling in his pocket,
and producing a spectacle-case, out of which he extracted a portentous
pair of gold-mounted spectacles; "see what he give me, de last time he's
here. I puts dese yer on of a Sundays, when I sets down to read my
Bible."
"Indeed," said Clayton; "have you learned, then, to read?"
"Why, no, honey, I don'no as I can rightly say dat I's larn'd to read,
'cause I's 'mazing slow at dat ar; but, den, I's larn'd all de best
words, like Christ, Lord, and God, and dem ar; and whar dey's pretty
thick, I makes out quite comfortable."
We shall not detain our readers with minute descriptions of how the day
was spent: how Teddy came home from college a tall, handsome fellow, and
rattled over Latin and Greek sentences in Tiff's delighted ears, who
considered his learning as, without doubt, the eighth wonder of the
world; nor how George Russel came with him, a handsome senior, just
graduated; nor how Fanny blushed and trembled when she told her guardian
her little secret, and, like other ladies, asked advice after she had
made up her mind.
Nor shall we dilate on the yet brighter glories of the cottage three
months after, when Clayton, and Anne, and Livy Ray, were all at the
wedding, and Tiff became three and four times blessed in this brilliant
consummation of his hopes. The last time we saw him he was walking forth
in magnificence, his gold spectacles set conspicuously astride of his
nose, trundling a little wicker wagon, which cradled a fair, pearly
little Miss Fanny, whom he informed all beholders was "de very sperit of
de Peytons."
FOOTNOTE:
[5] These circumstances are true of an old colored woman in New York,
known by the name of Aunt Katy, who in her youth was a slave, and who is
said to have established among these destitute children the first
Sunday-school in the city of New York.
APPENDIX I.
NAT TURNER'S CONFESSIONS.
As an illustration of the character and views ascribed to Dred, we make
a few extracts from the Confessions of Nat Turner, as published by T. R.
Gray, Esq., of Southampton, Virginia, in November, 1831. One of the
principal conspirators in this affair was named Dred.
We will first give the certificate of the court, and a few sentences
from Mr. Gray's introductory remarks, and then proceed with Turner's own
narrative.
"We, the undersigned, members of the court convened at Jerusalem,
on Saturday, the fifth day of November, 1831, for the trial of Nat,
_alias_ Nat Turner, a negro slave, late the property of Putnam
Moore, deceased, do hereby certify, that the confession of Nat to
Thomas R. Gray was read to him in our presence, and that Nat
acknowledged the same to be full, free, and voluntary; and that
furthermore, when called upon by the presiding magistrate of the
court to state if he had anything to say why sentence of death
should not be passed upon him, replied he had nothing further than
he had communicated to Mr. Gray. Given under our hands and seals at
Jerusalem, this fifth day of November, 1831.
JEREMIAH COBB, (_Seal._)
JAMES W. PARKER, (_Seal._)
SAMUEL B. HINES, (_Seal._)
THOMAS PRETLOW, (_Seal._)
CARR BOWERS, (_Seal._)
ORRIS A. BROWNE, (_Seal._)"
"_State of Virginia, Southampton County_, to wit:
"I, James Rochelle, Clerk of the County Court of Southampton in the
State of Virginia, do hereby certify, that Jeremiah Cobb, Thomas
Pretlow, James W. Parker, Carr Bowers, Samuel B. Hines, and Orris
A. Browne, Esqrs., are acting justices of the peace in and for the
county aforesaid; and were members of the court which convened at
Jerusalem, on Saturday, the fifth day of November, 1831, for the
trial of Nat, _alias_ Nat Turner, a negro slave, late the property
of Putnam Moore, deceased, who was tried and convicted, as an
insurgent in the late insurrection in the County of Southampton
aforesaid, and that full faith and credit are due and ought to be
given to their acts as justices of the peace aforesaid.
(_Seal._)
In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand,
and caused the seal of the court aforesaid to be
affixed, this fifth day of November, 1831.
JAMES ROCHELLE, C. S. C. C."
"Everything connected with this sad affair was wrapt in mystery, until
NAT TURNER, the leader of this ferocious band, whose name has resounded
throughout our widely-extended empire, was captured.
"Since his confinement, by permission of the jailer, I have had ready
access to him; and, finding that he was willing to make a full and free
confession of the origin, progress, and consummation of the insurrectory
movements of the slaves, of which he was the contriver and head, I
determined, for the gratification of public curiosity, to commit his
statements to writing, and publish them, with little or no variation,
from his own words.
"He was not only the contriver of the conspiracy, but gave the first
blow towards its execution.
"It will thus appear, that whilst everything upon the surface of society
wore a calm and peaceful aspect, whilst not one note of preparation was
heard to warn the devoted inhabitants of woe and death, a gloomy fanatic
was revolving in the recesses of his own dark, bewildered, and
overwrought mind, schemes of indiscriminate massacre to the whites.
Schemes too fearfully executed, as far as his fiendish band proceeded in
their desolating march. No cry for mercy penetrated their flinty bosoms.
No acts of remembered kindness made the least impression upon these
remorseless murderers. Men, women, and children, from hoary age to
helpless infancy, were involved in the same cruel fate. Never did a band
of savages do their work of death more unsparingly.
"Nat has survived all his followers, and the gallows will speedily close
his career. His own account of the conspiracy is submitted to the
public, without comment. It reads an awful, and, it is hoped, a useful
lesson, as to the operations of a mind like his, endeavoring to grapple
with things beyond its reach. How it first became bewildered and
confounded, and finally corrupted and led to the conception and
perpetration of the most atrocious and heartrending deeds.
"If Nat's statements can be relied on, the insurrection in this county
was entirely local, and his designs confided but to a few, and these in
his immediate vicinity. It was not instigated by motives of revenge or
sudden anger; but the result of long deliberation, and a settled purpose
of mind--the offspring of gloomy fanaticism acting upon materials but
too well prepared for such impressions."
* * * * * * * * *
"I was thirty-one years of age the second of October last, and born the
property of Benjamin Turner, of this county. In my childhood a
circumstance occurred which made an indelible impression on my mind, and
laid the groundwork of that enthusiasm which has terminated so fatally
to many, both white and black, and for which I am about to atone at the
gallows. It is here necessary to relate this circumstance. Trifling as
it may seem, it was the commencement of that belief which has grown with
time; and even now, sir, in this dungeon, helpless and forsaken as I am,
I cannot divest myself of. Being at play with other children, when three
or four years old, I was telling them something, which my mother,
overhearing, said it had happened before I was born. I stuck to my
story, however, and related some things which went, in her opinion, to
confirm it. Others being called on, were greatly astonished, knowing
that these things had happened, and caused them to say, in my hearing, I
surely would be a prophet, as the Lord had shown me things that had
happened before my birth. And my father and mother strengthened me in
this my first impression, saying, in my presence, I was intended for
some great purpose, which they had always thought from certain marks on
my head and breast. (A parcel of excrescences, which, I believe, are not
at all uncommon, particularly among negroes, as I have seen several
with the same. In this case he has either cut them off, or they have
nearly disappeared.)
"My grandmother, who was very religious, and to whom I was much
attached--my master, who belonged to the church, and other religious
persons who visited the house, and whom I often saw at prayers, noticing
the singularity of my manners, I suppose, and my uncommon intelligence
for a child, remarked I had too much sense to be raised, and, if I was,
I would never be of any service to any one as a slave. To a mind like
mine, restless, inquisitive, and observant of everything that was
passing, it is easy to suppose that religion was the subject to which it
would be directed; and, although this subject principally occupied my
thoughts, there was nothing that I saw or heard of to which my attention
was not directed. The manner in which I learned to read and write, not
only had great influence on my own mind, as I acquired it with the most
perfect ease--so much so, that I have no recollection whatever of
learning the alphabet; but, to the astonishment of the family, one day,
when a book was shown me, to keep me from crying, I began spelling the
names of different objects. This was a source of wonder to all in the
neighborhood, particularly the blacks--and this learning was constantly
improved at all opportunities. When I got large enough to go to work,
while employed I was reflecting on many things that would present
themselves to my imagination; and whenever an opportunity occurred of
looking at a book, when the school-children were getting their lessons,
I would find many things that the fertility of my own imagination had
depicted to me before. All my time, not devoted to my master's service,
was spent either in prayer, or in making experiments in casting
different things in moulds made of earth, in attempting to make paper,
gunpowder, and many other experiments, that, although I could not
perfect, yet convinced me of its practicability if I had the means.[6]
"I was not addicted to stealing in my youth, nor have ever been; yet
such was the confidence of the negroes in the neighborhood, even at this
early period of my life, in my superior judgment, that they would often
carry me with them when they were going on any roguery, to plan for
them. Growing up among them with this confidence in my superior
judgment, and when this, in their opinions, was perfected by Divine
inspiration, from the circumstances already alluded to in my infancy,
and which belief was ever afterwards zealously inculcated by the
austerity of my life and manners, which became the subject of remark by
white and black; having soon discovered to be great, I must appear so,
and therefore studiously avoided mixing in society, and wrapped myself
in mystery, devoting my time to fasting and prayer.
"By this time, having arrived to man's estate, and hearing the
Scriptures commented on at meetings, I was struck with that particular
passage which says, 'Seek ye the kingdom of heaven, and all things shall
be added unto you.' I reflected much on this passage, and prayed daily
for light on this subject. As I was praying one day at my plough, the
Spirit spoke to me, saying, 'Seek ye the kingdom of heaven, and all
things shall be added unto you.' _Question._ 'What do you mean by the
Spirit?' _Answer._ 'The Spirit that spoke to the prophets in former
days,'--and I was greatly astonished, and for two years prayed
continually, whenever my duty would permit; and then again I had the
same revelation, which fully confirmed me in the impression that I was
ordained for some great purpose in the hands of the Almighty. Several
years rolled round, in which many events occurred to strengthen me in
this my belief. At this time I reverted in my mind to the remarks made
of me in my childhood, and the things that had been shown me; and as it
had been said of me in my childhood, by those by whom I had been taught
to pray, both white and black, and in whom I had the greatest
confidence, that I had too much sense to be raised, and if I was I would
never be of any use to any one as a slave; now, finding I had arrived to
man's estate, and was a slave, and these revelations being made known to
me, I began to direct my attention to this great object, to fulfil the
purpose for which, by this time, I felt assured I was intended. Knowing
the influence I had obtained over the minds of my fellow-servants--(not
by the means of conjuring and such-like tricks--for to them I always
spoke of such things with contempt), but by the communion of the Spirit,
whose revelations I often communicated to them, and they believed and
said my wisdom came from God,--I now began to prepare them for my
purpose, by telling them something was about to happen that would
terminate in fulfilling the great promise that had been made to me.
"About this time I was placed under an overseer, from whom I ran away
and, after remaining in the woods thirty days, I returned, to the
astonishment of the negroes on the plantation, who thought I had made my
escape to some other part of the country, as my father had done before.
But the reason of my return was, that the Spirit appeared to me and said
I had my wishes directed to the things of this world, and not to the
kingdom of heaven, and that I should return to the service of my earthly
master--'For he who knoweth his Master's will, and doeth it not, shall
be beaten with many stripes, and thus have I chastened you.' And the
negroes found fault, and murmured against me, saying that if they had my
sense they would not serve any master in the world. And about this time
I had a vision--and I saw white spirits and black spirits engaged in
battle, and the sun was darkened--the thunder rolled in the heavens, and
blood flowed in streams--and I heard a voice saying, 'Such is your luck,
such you are called to see; and let it come rough or smooth, you must
surely bear it.'
"I now withdrew myself as much as my situation would permit from the
intercourse of my fellow-servants, for the avowed purpose of serving the
Spirit more fully; and it appeared to me, and reminded me of the things
it had already shown me, and that it would then reveal to me the
knowledge of the elements, the revolution of the planets, the operation
of tides, and changes of the seasons. After this revelation in the year
1825, and the knowledge of the elements being made known to me, I sought
more than ever to obtain true holiness before the great day of judgment
should appear, and then I began to receive the true knowledge of faith.
And from the first steps of righteousness until the last, was I made
perfect; and the Holy Ghost was with me, and said, 'Behold me as I stand
in the heavens.' And I looked and saw the forms of men in different
attitudes; and there were lights in the sky, to which the children of
darkness gave other names than what they really were; for they were the
lights of the Saviour's hands, stretched forth from east to west, even
as they were extended on the cross on Calvary for the redemption of
sinners. And I wondered greatly at these miracles, and prayed to be
informed of a certainty of the meaning thereof; and shortly afterwards,
while laboring in the field, I discovered drops of blood on the corn, as
though it were dew from heaven; and I communicated it to many, both
white and black, in the neighborhood--and I then found on the leaves in
the woods hieroglyphic characters and numbers, with the forms of men in
different attitudes, portrayed in blood, and representing the figures I
had seen before in the heavens. And now the Holy Ghost had revealed
itself to me, and made plain the miracles it had shown me, for as the
blood of Christ had been shed on this earth, and had ascended to heaven
for the salvation of sinners, and was now returning to earth again in
the form of dew,--and as the leaves on the trees bore the impression of
the figures I had seen in the heavens,--it was plain to me that the
Saviour was about to lay down the yoke he had borne for the sins of men,
and the great day of judgment was at hand.
"About this time I told these things to a white man (Etheldred T.
Brantley), on whom it had a wonderful effect; and he ceased from his
wickedness, and was attacked immediately with a cutaneous eruption, and
blood oozed from the pores of his skin, and after praying and fasting
nine days he was healed. And the Spirit appeared to me again, and said,
as the Saviour had been baptized, so should we be also; and when the
white people would not let us be baptized by the church, we went down
into the water together, in the sight of many who reviled us, and were
baptized by the Spirit. After this I rejoiced greatly, and gave thanks
to God. And on the 12th of May, 1828, I heard a loud noise in the
heavens, and the Spirit instantly appeared to me and said the Serpent
was loosened, and Christ had laid down the yoke he had borne for the
sins of men, and that I should take it on and fight against the Serpent,
for the time was fast approaching when the first should be last and the
last should be first. _Ques._ 'Do you not find yourself mistaken
now?'--_Ans._ 'Was not Christ crucified?' And by signs in the heavens
that it would make known to me when I should commence the great work,
and until the first sign appeared I should conceal it from the knowledge
of men; and on the appearance of the sign (the eclipse of the sun, last
February), I should arise and prepare myself, and slay my enemies with
their own weapons. And immediately on the sign appearing in the heavens,
the seal was removed from my lips, and I communicated the great work
laid out for me to do to four in whom I had the greatest confidence
(Henry, Hark, Nelson, and Sam). It was intended by us to have begun the
work of death on the 4th of July last. Many were the plans formed and
rejected by us, and it affected my mind to such a degree that I fell
sick, and the time passed without our coming to any determination how to
commence--still forming new schemes and rejecting them, when the sign
appeared again, which determined me not to wait longer.
"Since the commencement of 1830 I had been living with Mr. Joseph
Travis, who was to me a kind master, and placed the greatest confidence
in me; in fact, I had no cause to complain of his treatment to me. On
Saturday evening, the 20th of August, it was agreed between Henry, Hark,
and myself, to prepare a dinner the next day for the men we expected,
and then to concert a plan, as we had not yet determined on any. Hark,
on the following morning brought a pig, and Henry brandy; and being
joined by Sam, Nelson, Will, and Jack, they prepared in the woods a
dinner, where, about three o'clock, I joined them."
"_Q._ Why were you so backward in joining them?"
"_A._ The same reason that had caused me not to mix with them for years
before.
"I saluted them on coming up, and asked Will how came he there. He
answered, his life was worth no more than others, and his liberty as
dear to him. I asked him if he thought to obtain it. He said he would,
or lose his life. This was enough to put him in full confidence. Jack, I
knew, was only a tool in the hands of Hark. It was quickly agreed we
should commence a home (Mr. J. Travis') on that night; and until we had
armed and equipped ourselves, and gathered sufficient force, neither
age nor sex was to be spared--which was invariably adhered to. We
remained at the feast until about two hours in the night, when we went
to the house and found Austin."
We will not go into the horrible details of the various massacres, but
only make one or two extracts, to show the spirit and feelings of
Turner:--
"I then went to Mr. John T. Harrow's; they had been here and murdered
him. I pursued on their track to Capt. Newit Harris', where I found the
greater part mounted and ready to start. The men, now amounting to about
forty, shouted and hurraed as I rode up. Some were in the yard, loading
their guns; others drinking. They said Captain Harris and his family had
escaped; the property in the house they destroyed, robbing him of money
and other valuables. I ordered them to mount and march instantly; this
was about nine or ten o'clock, Monday morning. I proceeded to Mr. Levi
Waller's, two or three miles distant. I took my station in the rear,
and, as it was my object to carry terror and devastation wherever we
went, I placed fifteen or twenty of the best armed and most to be relied
on in front, who generally approached the houses as fast as their horses
could run. This was for two purposes--to prevent their escape, and
strike terror to the inhabitants; on this account I never got to the
houses, after leaving Mrs. Whitehead's, until the murders were
committed, except in one case. I sometimes got in sight in time to see
the work of death completed; viewed the mangled bodies as they lay, in
silent satisfaction, and immediately started in quest of other victims.
Having murdered Mrs. Waller and ten children, we started for Mr. Wm.
Williams',--having killed him and two little boys that were there; while
engaged in this, Mrs. Williams fled and got some distance from the
house, but she was pursued, overtaken, and compelled to get up behind
one of the company, who brought her back, and, after showing her the
mangled body of her lifeless husband, she was told to get down and lay
by his side, where she was shot dead.
"The white men pursued and fired on us several times. Hark had his horse
shot under him, and I caught another for him as it was running by me;
five or six of my men were wounded, but none left on the field. Finding
myself defeated here, I instantly determined to go through a private
way, and cross the Nottoway River at the Cypress Bridge, three miles
below Jerusalem, and attack that place in the rear, as I expected they
would look for me on the other road, and I had a great desire to get
there to procure arms and ammunition. After going a short distance in
this private way, accompanied by about twenty men, I overtook two or
three, who told me the others were dispersed in every direction.
"On this, I gave up all hope for the present; and on Thursday night,
after having supplied myself with provisions from Mr. Travis', I
scratched a hole under a pile of fence-rails in a field, where I
concealed myself for six weeks, never leaving my hiding-place but for a
few minutes in the dead of the night to get water, which was very near.
Thinking by this time I could venture out, I began to go about in the
night, and eavesdrop the houses in the neighborhood; pursuing this
course for about a fortnight, and gathering little or no intelligence,
afraid of speaking to any human being, and returning every morning to my
cave before the dawn of day. I know not how long I might have led this
life, if accident had not betrayed me. A dog in the neighborhood passing
by my hiding-place one night while I was out, was attracted by some meat
I had in my cave, and crawled in and stole it, and was coming out just
as I returned. A few nights after, two negroes having started to go
hunting with the same dog, and passed that way, the dog came again to
the place, and having just gone out to walk about, discovered me and
barked; on which, thinking myself discovered, I spoke to them to beg
concealment. On making myself known, they fled from me. Knowing then
they would betray me, I immediately left my hiding-place and was pursued
almost incessantly, until I was taken, a fortnight afterwards, by Mr.
Benjamin Phipps, in a little hole I had dug out with my sword, for the
purpose of concealment, under the top of a fallen tree.
"During the time I was pursued, I had many hair-breadth escapes, which
your time will not permit you to relate. I am here loaded with chains,
and willing to suffer the fate that awaits me."
Mr. Gray asked him if he knew of any extensive or concerted plan. His
answer was, I do not. When I questioned him as to the insurrection in
North Carolina happening about the same time, he denied any knowledge of
it; and when I looked him in the face, as though I would search his
inmost thoughts, he replied, "I see, sir, you doubt my word, but can you
not think the same ideas, and strange appearances about this time in the
heavens, might prompt others, as well as myself, to this undertaking?" I
now had much conversation with and asked him many questions, having
forborne to do so previously, except in the cases noted in parenthesis;
but during his statement had, unnoticed by him, taken notes as to some
particular circumstances, and, having the advantage of his statement
before me in writing, on the evening of the third day that I had been
with him, I began a cross-examination, and found his statement
corroborated by every circumstance coming within my own knowledge, or
the confessions of others who had been either killed or executed, and
whom he had not seen or had any knowledge of since the 22d of August
last. He expressed himself fully satisfied as to the impracticability of
his attempt. It has been said he was ignorant and cowardly, and that his
object was to murder and rob for the purpose of obtaining money to make
his escape. It is notorious that he was never known to have a dollar in
his life, to swear an oath, or drink a drop of spirits. As to his
ignorance, he certainly never had the advantages of education, but he
can read and write (it was taught him by his parents), and for natural
intelligence and quickness of apprehension is surpassed by few men I
have ever seen. As to his being a coward, his reason as given for not
resisting Mr. Phipps shows the decision of his character. When he saw
Mr. Phipps present his gun, he said he knew it was impossible for him to
escape, as the woods were full of men: he therefore thought it was
better to surrender, and trust to fortune for his escape. He is a
complete fanatic, or plays his part most admirably. On other subjects he
possesses an uncommon share of intelligence, with a mind capable of
attaining anything, but warped and perverted by the influence of early
impressions. He is below the ordinary stature, though strong and active,
having the true negro face, every feature of which is strongly marked. I
shall not attempt to describe the effect of his narrative, as told and
commented on by himself, in the condemned hole of the prison. The calm,
deliberate composure with which he spoke of his late deeds and
intentions; the expression of his fiend-like face when excited by
enthusiasm, still bearing the stains of the blood of helpless innocence
about him; clothed with rags and covered with chains, yet daring to
raise his manacled hands to Heaven, with a spirit soaring above the
attributes of man. I looked on him, and my blood curdled in my veins.
FOOTNOTE:
[6] When questioned as to the manner of manufacturing those different
articles, he was found well informed.
APPENDIX II.
The chapter headed _Jegar Sahadutha_ contains some terrible stories. It
is to be said, they are all facts on judicial record, of the most
fiend-like cruelty, terminating in the death of the victim, where the
affair has been judicially examined, and the perpetrator escaped death,
and in most cases _any_ punishment for his crime.
1. Case of Souther.
"_Souther v. The Commonwealth_, 7 _Grattan_, 673, 1851.
"The killing of a slave by his master and owner, by wilful and
excessive whipping, is murder in the first degree: though it may
not have been the purpose and intention of the master and owner to
kill the slave.
"Simon Souther was indicted at the October term, 1850, of the Circuit
Court for the County of Hanover, for the murder of his own slave. The
indictment contained fifteen counts, in which the various modes of
punishment and torture by which the homicide was charged to have been
committed were stated singly, and in various combinations. The fifteenth
count unites them all: and, as the court certifies that the _indictment
was sustained by the evidence_, the giving the facts stated in that
count will show what was the charge against the prisoner, and what was
the proof to sustain it.
"The count charged that on the 1st day of September, 1849, the prisoner
tied his negro slave, Sam, with ropes about his wrists, neck, body,
legs, and ankles, to a tree. That whilst so tied, the prisoner first
whipped the slave with switches. That he next beat and cobbed the slave
with a shingle, and compelled two of his slaves, a man and a woman, also
to cob the deceased with the shingle. That whilst the deceased was so
tied to the tree, the prisoner did strike, knock, kick, stamp, and beat
him upon various parts of his head, face, and body; that he applied fire
to his body; ... that he then washed his body with warm water, in which
pods of red pepper had been put and steeped; and he compelled his two
slaves aforesaid also to wash him with this same preparation of warm
water and red pepper. That after the tying, whipping, cobbing, striking,
beating, knocking, kicking, stamping, wounding, bruising, lacerating,
burning, washing, and torturing, as aforesaid, the prisoner untied the
deceased from the tree in such a way as to throw him with violence to
the ground; and he then and there did knock, kick, stamp, and beat the
deceased upon his head, temples, and various parts of his body. That the
prisoner then had the deceased carried into a shed-room of his house,
and there he compelled one of his slaves, in his presence, to confine
the deceased's feet in stocks, by making his legs fast to a piece of
timber, and to tie a rope about the neck of the deceased, and fasten it
to a bedpost in the room, thereby strangling, choking, and suffocating,
the deceased. And that whilst the deceased was thus made fast in stocks,
as aforesaid, the prisoner did kick, knock, stamp, and beat him upon his
head, face, breast, belly, sides, back, and body; and he again compelled
his two slaves to apply fire to the body of the deceased, whilst he was
so made fast as aforesaid. And the count charged that from these various
modes of punishment and torture, the slave Sam then and there died. It
appeared that the prisoner commenced the punishment of the deceased in
the morning, and that it was continued throughout the day; and that the
deceased died in the presence of the prisoner, and one of his slaves,
and one of the witnesses, whilst the punishment was still progressing.
"Field, J., delivered the opinion of the court.
"The prisoner was indicted and convicted of _murder in the second
degree_, in the Circuit Court of Hanover, at its April term last past,
and was sentenced to the _penitentiary for five years_, the period of
time ascertained by the jury. The murder consisted in the killing of a
negro man-slave by the name of Sam, the property of the prisoner, by
cruel and excessive whipping and torture, inflicted by Souther, aided by
two of his other slaves, on the 1st day of September, 1849. The prisoner
moved for a new trial, upon the ground that the offence, _if any_,
amounted only to manslaughter. The motion for a new trial was overruled,
and a bill of exceptions taken to the opinion of the court, setting
forth the facts proved, or as many of them as were deemed material for
the consideration of the application for a new trial. The bill of
exception states: That the slave Sam, in the indictment mentioned, was
the slave and property of the prisoner. That for the purpose of
chastising the slave for the offence of getting drunk, and dealing, as
the slave confessed and alleged, with Henry and Stone, two of the
witnesses for the Commonwealth, he caused him to be tied and punished in
the presence of the said witnesses, with the exception of slight
whipping with peach or apple-tree switches, before the said witnesses
arrived at the scene after they were sent for by the prisoner (who were
present by request from the defendant), and of several slaves of the
prisoner, in the manner and by the means charged in the indictment; and
the said slave died under and from the infliction of the said
punishment, in the presence of the prisoner, one of his slaves, and one
of the witnesses for the Commonwealth. But it did not appear that it was
the design of the prisoner to kill the said slave, unless such design be
properly inferable from the manner, means, and duration, of the
punishment. And, on the contrary, it did appear that the prisoner
frequently declared, while the said slave was undergoing the punishment,
that he believed the said slave was feigning, and pretending to be
suffering and injured when he was not. The judge certifies that the
slave was punished in the _manner and by the means charged in the
indictment_. The indictment contains fifteen counts, and sets forth a
case of the most cruel and excessive whipping and torture....
"It is believed that the records of criminal jurisprudence do not
contain a case of more atrocious and wicked cruelty than was presented
upon the trial of Souther; and yet it has been gravely and earnestly
contended here by his counsel that his offence amounts to manslaughter
only.
"It has been contended by the counsel of the prisoner that a man cannot
be indicted and prosecuted for the cruel and excessive whipping of his
own slave. That it is lawful for the master to chastise his slave, and
that if death ensues from such chastisement, unless it was intended to
produce death, it is like the case of homicide which is committed by a
man in the performance of a lawful act, which is manslaughter only. It
has been decided by this court in Turner's Case, 5 Rand. that the owner
of a slave, for the malicious, cruel, and excessive beating of his own
slave, cannot be indicted; yet it by no means follows, when such
malicious, cruel, and excessive beating results in death, though not
intended and premeditated, that the beating is to be regarded as lawful
for the purpose of reducing the crime to manslaughter, when the whipping
is inflicted for the sole purpose of chastisement. _It is the policy of
the law, in respect to the relation of master and slave, and for the
sake of securing proper subordination and obedience on the part of the
slave, to protect the master from prosecution in all such cases, even if
the whipping and punishment be malicious, cruel, and excessive._ But in
so inflicting punishment for the sake of punishment, the owner of the
slave acts at his peril; and if death ensues in consequence of such
punishment, the relation of master and slave affords no ground of excuse
or palliation. The principles of the common law, in relation to
homicide, apply to his case without qualification or exception; and,
according to those principles, the act of the prisoner, in the case
under consideration, amounted to murder.... The crime of the prisoner is
not manslaughter, but murder in the first degree."
2. Death of Hark.
_The master is, as we have asserted, protected from prosecution by
express enactment, if the victim dies in the act of resistance to
his will, or under moderate correction._
"Whereas by another Act of the Assembly, passed in 1774, the
killing of a slave, however wanton, cruel, and deliberate, is only
punishable in the first instance by imprisonment and paying the
value thereof to the owner, which _distinction of criminality
between the murder of a white person and one who is equally a human
creature, but merely of a different complexion, is_ DISGRACEFUL TO
HUMANITY, AND DEGRADING IN THE HIGHEST DEGREE TO THE LAWS AND
PRINCIPLES OF A FREE, CHRISTIAN, AND ENLIGHTENED COUNTRY, Be it
enacted, &c., That if any person shall hereafter be guilty of
wilfully and maliciously killing a slave, such offender shall, upon
the first conviction thereof, be adjudged guilty of murder, and
shall suffer the same punishment as if he had killed a free man:
_Provided always, this act shall not extend to the person killing a
slave_ OUTLAWED BY VIRTUE OF ANY ACT OF ASSEMBLY OF THIS STATE, _or
to any slave in the act of resistance to his lawful owner or
master, or to any slave dying under moderate correction_."
Instance in point;--
"_From the 'National Era,' Washington, November 6, 1851._
"HOMICIDE CASE IN CLARKE COUNTY, VIRGINIA.
"Some time since, the newspapers of Virginia contained an account
of a horrible tragedy, enacted in Clarke County, of that state. A
slave of Colonel James Castleman, it was stated, had been chained
by the neck, and whipped to death by his master, on the charge of
stealing. The whole neighborhood in which the transaction occurred
was incensed; the Virginia papers abounded in denunciations of the
cruel act; and the people of the North were called upon to bear
witness to the justice which would surely be meted out in a slave
state to the master of a slave. We did not publish the account.
The case was horrible; it was, we were confident, exceptional. It
should not be taken as evidence of the general treatment of slaves.
We chose to delay any notice of it till the courts should pronounce
their judgment, and we could announce at once the crime and its
punishment, so that the state might stand acquitted of the foul
deed.
"Those who were so shocked at the transaction will be surprised and
mortified to hear that the actors in it have been tried and
_acquitted_! and when they read the following account of the trial
and verdict, published at the instance of the friends of the
accused, their mortification will deepen into bitter indignation."
"_From the 'Spirit of Jefferson.'_
"'COLONEL JAMES CASTLEMAN.--The following statement, understood to
have been drawn up by counsel, since the trial, has been placed by
the friends of this gentleman in our hands for publication:--
"'At the Circuit Superior Court of Clarke County, commencing on the
13th of October, Judge Samuels presiding, James Castleman and his
son Stephen D. Castleman were indicted jointly for the murder of
negro Lewis, property of the latter. By advice of their counsel,
the parties elected to be tried separately, and the attorney for
the Commonwealth directed that James Castleman should be tried
first.
"'It was proved, on this trial, that for many months previous to
the occurrence the money-drawer of the tavern kept by Stephen D.
Castleman, and the liquors kept in large quantities in his cellar,
had been pillaged from time to time, until the thefts had attained
to a considerable amount. Suspicion had, from various causes, been
directed to Lewis, and another negro, named Reuben (a blacksmith),
the property of James Castleman; but, by the aid of two of the
house-servants, they had eluded the most vigilant watch.
"'On the 20th of August last, in the afternoon, S. D. Castleman
accidentally discovered a clue, by means of which, and through one
of the house-servants implicated, he was enabled fully to detect
the depredators, and to ascertain the manner in which the theft had
been committed. He immediately sent for his father, living near
him, and, after communicating what he had discovered, it was
determined that the offenders should be punished at once, and
before they should know of the discovery that had been made.
"'Lewis was punished first; and in a manner, as was fully shown, to
preclude all risk of injury to his person, by stripes with a broad
leathern strap. He was punished severely, but to an extent by no
means disproportionate to his offence: nor was it pretended, in any
quarter, that this punishment implicated either his life or health.
He confessed the offence, and admitted that it had been effected by
false keys, furnished by the blacksmith, Reuben.
"'The latter servant was punished immediately afterwards. It was
believed that he was the principal offender, and he was found to be
more obdurate and contumacious than Lewis had been in reference to
the offence. Thus it was proved, both by the prosecution and the
defence, that he was punished with greater severity than his
accomplice. It resulted in a like confession on his part, and he
produced the false key, one fashioned by himself, by which the
theft had been effected.
"'It was further shown, on the trial, that Lewis was whipped in the
upper room of a warehouse, connected with Stephen Castleman's
store, and near the public road, where he was at work at the time;
that after he had been flogged, to secure his person, whilst they
went after Reuben, he was confined by a chain around his neck,
which was attached to a joist above his head. The length of this
chain, the breadth and thickness of the joist, its height from the
floor, and the circlet of chain on the neck, were accurately
measured; and it was thus shown that the chain unoccupied by the
circlet and the joist was a foot and a half longer than the space
between the shoulders of the man and the joist above, or to that
extent the chain hung loose above him; that the circlet (which was
fastened so as to prevent its contraction) rested on the shoulders
and breast, the chain being sufficiently drawn only to prevent
being slipped over his head, and that there was no other place in
the room to which he could be fastened except to one of the joists
above. His hands were tied in front; a white man, who had been at
work with Lewis during the day, was left with him by the Messrs.
Castleman, the better to insure his detention, whilst they were
absent after Reuben. It was proved by this man (who was a witness
for the prosecution) that Lewis asked for a box to stand on, or for
something that he could jump off from; that after the Castlemans
had left him he expressed a fear that when they came back he would
be whipped again; and said, if he had a knife, and could get one
hand loose, he would cut his throat. The witness stated that the
negro "stood firm on his feet," that he could turn freely in
whatever direction he wished, and that he made no complaint of the
mode of his confinement. This man stated that he remained with
Lewis about half an hour, and then left there to go home.
"'After punishing Reuben, the Castlemans returned to the warehouse,
bringing him with them; their object being to confront the two men,
in the hope that by further examination of them jointly all their
accomplices might be detected.
"'They were not absent more than half an hour. When they entered
the room above, Lewis was found hanging by the neck, his feet
thrown behind him, his knees a few inches from the floor, and his
head thrown forward,--the body warm and supple (or relaxed), but
life was extinct.
"'It was proved by the surgeons who made a post-mortem examination
before the coroner's inquest that the death was caused by
strangulation by hanging; and other eminent surgeons were examined
to show, from the appearance of the brain and its blood-vessels
after death (as exhibited at the post-mortem examination), that the
subject could not have fainted before strangulation.
"'After the evidence was finished on both sides, the jury, from
their box, and of their own motion, without a word from counsel on
either side, informed the court that they had agreed upon their
verdict. The counsel assented to its being thus received, and a
verdict of "_Not guilty_" was immediately rendered. The attorney
for the commonwealth then informed the court that all the evidence
for the prosecution had been laid before the jury; and, as no new
evidence could be offered on the trial of Stephen D. Castleman, he
submitted to the court the propriety of entering a _nolle
prosequi_. The judge replied that the case had been fully and
fairly laid before the jury upon the evidence; that the court was
not only satisfied with the verdict, but, if any other had been
rendered, it must have been set aside; and that, if no further
evidence was to be adduced on the trial of Stephen, the attorney
for the commonwealth would exercise a proper discretion in entering
a _nolle prosequi_ as to him, and the court would approve its being
done. A _nolle prosequi_ was entered accordingly, and both
gentlemen discharged.
"'It may be added that two days were consumed in exhibiting the
evidence, and that the trial was by a jury of Clarke County. Both
the parties had been on bail from the time of their arrest, and
were continued on bail whilst the trial was depending.'
"Let us admit that the evidence does not prove the legal crime of
homicide; what candid man can doubt, after reading this _ex parte_,
version of it, that the slave died in consequence of the punishment
inflicted upon him?
"In criminal prosecutions the federal constitution guarantees to
the accused the right to a public trial by an impartial jury; the
right to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to
be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory
process for obtaining witness in his favor; and to have the
assistance of counsel; guarantees necessary to secure innocence
against hasty or vindictive judgment,--absolutely necessary to
prevent injustice. Grant that they were not intended for slaves;
every master of a slave must feel that they are still morally
binding upon him. He is the sole judge; he alone determines the
offence, the proof requisite to establish it, and the amount of the
punishment. The slave, then, has a peculiar claim upon him for
justice. When charged with a crime, common humanity requires that
he should be informed of it, that he should be confronted with the
witnesses against him, that he should be permitted to show evidence
in favor of his innocence.
"But how was poor Lewis treated? The son of Castleman said he had
discovered who stole the money; and it was forthwith 'determined
that the offenders should be punished at once, and _before they
should know of the discovery that had been made_.' Punished without
a hearing! Punished on the testimony of a house-servant, the nature
of which does not appear to have been inquired into by the court!
Not a word is said which authorizes the belief that any careful
examination was made, as it respects their guilt. Lewis and Reuben
were assumed, on loose evidence, without deliberate investigation,
to be guilty; and then, without allowing them to attempt to show
their evidence, they were whipped until a confession of guilt was
extorted by bodily pain.
"Is this Virginia justice?"
"'_To the Editor of the Era_:
"'I see that Castleman, who lately had a trial for whipping a slave
to death in Virginia, was "_triumphantly acquitted_,"--as many
expected. There are three persons in this city, with whom I am
acquainted, who stayed at Castleman's the same night in which this
awful tragedy was enacted. They heard the dreadful lashing, and the
heartrending screams and entreaties of the sufferer. They implored
the only white man they could find on the premises, not engaged in
the bloody work, to interpose, but for a long time he refused, on
the ground that he was a dependant, and was afraid to give offence;
and that, moreover, they had been drinking, and he was in fear of
his own life, should he say a word that would be displeasing to
them. He did, however, venture, and returned and reported the cruel
manner in which the slaves were chained, and lashed, and secured in
a blacksmith's vise. In the morning, when they ascertained that one
of the slaves was dead, they were so shocked and indignant that
they refused to eat in the house, and reproached Castleman with his
cruelty. He expressed his regret that the slave had died, and
especially as he had ascertained that he _was innocent_ of the
accusation for which he had suffered. The idea was that he had
fainted from exhaustion; and, the chain being round his neck, he
was strangled. The persons I refer to are themselves slaveholders;
but their feelings were so harrowed and lacerated that they could
not sleep (two of them are ladies), and for many nights afterwards
their rest was disturbed, and their dreams made frightful, by the
appalling recollection.
"'These persons would have been material witnesses, and would have
willingly attended on the part of the prosecution. The knowledge
they had of the case was communicated to the proper authorities,
yet their attendance was not required. The only witness was that
dependant who considered his own life in danger.
Yours, &c., J. F."
_The Law of Outlawry._
_Revised_ Statutes of North Carolina, chap. cxi., sect. 22:
"'Whereas, MANY TIMES _slaves run away and lie out, hid and lurking
in swamps, woods, and other obscure places_, killing cattle and
hogs, and committing other injuries to the inhabitants of this
state; in all such cases, upon intelligence of any slave or slaves
lying out as aforesaid, any two justices of the peace for the
county wherein such slave or slaves is or are supposed to lurk or
do mischief, shall, and they are hereby empowered and required to
issue proclamation against such slave or slaves (reciting his or
their names, and the name or names of the owner or owners, if
known), thereby requiring him or them, and every of them, forthwith
to surrender him or themselves; and also to empower and require the
sheriff of the said county to take such power with him as he shall
think fit and necessary for going in search and pursuit of, and
effectually apprehending, such outlying slave or slaves; which
proclamation shall be published at the door of the court-house, and
at such other places as said justices shall direct. And if any
slave or slaves, against whom proclamation hath been thus issued,
stay out, and do not immediately return home, it shall be lawful
for any person or persons whatsoever to kill and destroy such slave
or slaves by _such ways and means as he shall think fit_, without
accusation or impeachment of any crime for the same.'
"'STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA, LENOIR COUNTY.--Whereas complaint hath
been this day made to us, two of the justices of the peace for the
said county, by William D. Cobb, of Jones County, that two negro
slaves belonging to him, named Ben (commonly known by the name of
Ben Fox) and Rigdon, have absented themselves from their said
master's service, and are lurking about in the Counties of Lenoir
and Jones, committing acts of felony; these are, in the name of the
state, to command the said slaves forthwith to surrender
themselves, and turn home to their said master. And we do hereby
also require the sheriff of said County of Lenoir to make diligent
search and pursuit after the above-mentioned slaves.... And we do
hereby, by virtue of an act of assembly of this state concerning
servants and slaves, intimate and declare, if the said slaves do
not surrender themselves and return home to their master
immediately after the publication of these presents, that any
person may kill or destroy said slaves by such means as he or they
think fit, without accusation or impeachment of any crime or
offence for so doing, or without incurring any penalty of
forfeiture thereby.
"'Given under our hands and seals, this 12th of November, 1836.
"'B. COLEMAN, J. P. [_Seal._]
"'JAS. JONES, J. P.' [_Seal._]
-----
"'$200 REWARD.--Ran away from the subscriber, about three years
ago, a certain negro man, named Ben, commonly known by the name of
Ben Fox; also one other negro, by the name of Rigdon, who ran away
on the eighth of this month.
"'I will give the reward of one hundred dollars for each of the
above negroes, to be delivered to me, or confined in the jail of
Lenoir or Jones County, _or for the killing of them, so that I can
see them_.
"'_November 12, 1836._
W. D. COBB.'
"That this act was _not_ a dead letter, also, was plainly implied
in the protective act first quoted. If slaves were not, as a matter
of fact, ever outlawed, why does the act formally recognize such a
class?--'provided that this act shall not extend to the killing of
any slave _outlawed_ by any act of the assembly.' This language
sufficiently indicates the existence of the custom.
"Further than this, the statute-book of 1821 contained two acts:
the first of which provides that all masters, in certain counties,
who have had slaves killed in consequence of outlawry, shall have a
claim on the treasury of the state for their value, unless cruel
treatment of the slaves be proved on the part of the master; the
second act extends the benefits of the latter provision to all the
counties in the state.
"Finally there is evidence that this act of outlawry was executed
so recently as the year 1850,--the year in which 'Uncle Tom's
Cabin' was written. See the following from the _Wilmington Journal_
of December 13, 1850.
"'STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA, NEW HANOVER COUNTY.--Whereas complaint,
upon oath, hath this day been made to us, two of the justices of
the peace for the said state and county aforesaid, by Guilford
Horn, of Edgecombe County, that a certain male slave belonging to
him, named Harry, a carpenter by trade, about forty years old, five
feet five inches high, or thereabouts, yellow complexion, stout
built; with a scar on his left leg (from the cut of an axe); has
very thick lips, eyes deep sunk in his head; forehead very square;
tolerably loud voice; has lost one or two of his upper teeth; and
has a very dark spot on his jaw, supposed to be a mark,--hath
absented himself from his master's service, and is supposed to be
lurking about in this county, committing acts of felony or other
misdeeds; these are, therefore, in the name of state aforesaid, to
command the said slave forthwith to surrender himself and return
home to his said master; and we do hereby, by virtue of the act of
assembly in such cases made and provided, intimate and declare that
if the said slave Harry doth not surrender himself and return home
immediately after the publication of these presents, that any
person or persons may KILL and DESTROY the said slave by such means
as he or they may think fit, without accusation or impeachment of
any crime or offence in so doing, and without incurring any penalty
or forfeiture thereby.
"'Given under our hands and seals, this 29th day of June, 1850.
"'JAMES T. MILLER, J. P. [_Seal._]
"'W. C. BETTENCOURT, J. P.' [_Seal._]
-----
'"ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY-FIVE DOLLARS REWARD will be paid for the
delivery of the said Harry to me at Tosnott Depot, Edgecombe
County, or for his confinement in any jail in the state, so that I
can get him; or _One Hundred and Fifty Dollars will be given for
his head_.
'"He was lately heard from in Newbern, where he called himself
Henry Barnes (or Burns), and will be likely to continue the same
name, or assume that of Copage or Farmer. He has a free mulatto
woman for a wife, by the name of Sally Bozeman, who has lately
removed to Wilmington, and lives in that part of the town called
Texas, where he will likely be lurking.
"'Masters of vessels are particularly cautioned against harboring
or concealing the said negro on board their vessels, as the full
penalty of the law will be rigorously enforced.
GUILFORD HORN.
"'_June 29th, 1850._'"
This last advertisement was cut by the author from the _Wilmington
Journal_, December 13th, 1850, a paper published in Wilmington, North
Carolina.
APPENDIX III.
CHURCH ACTION ON SLAVERY.
In reference to this important subject, we present a few extracts from
the first and second chapters of the fourth part of the "Key to Uncle
Tom's Cabin":
Let us review the declarations that have been made in the Southern
church, and see what principles have been established by them.
1. That slavery is an innocent and lawful relation, as much as that of
parent and child, husband and wife, or any other lawful relation of
society. (Harmony Pres., S. C.)
2. That it is consistent with the most fraternal regard for the good of
the slave. (Charleston Union Pres., S. C.)
3. That masters ought not to be disciplined for selling slaves without
their consent. (New School Pres. Church, Petersburg, Va.)
4. That the right to buy, sell, and hold men for purposes of gain, was
given by express permission of God. (James Smylie and his Presbyteries.)
5. That the laws which forbid the education of the slave are right, and
meet the approbation of the reflecting part of the Christian community.
(Ibid.)
6. That the fact of slavery is not a question of morals at all, but is
purely one of political economy. (Charleston Baptist Association.)
7. The right of masters to dispose of the time of their slaves has been
distinctly recognized by the Creator of all things. (Ibid.)
8. That slavery, as it exists in these United States, is not a moral
evil. (Georgia Conference, Methodist.)
9. That, without a new revelation from heaven, no man is entitled to
pronounce slavery wrong.
10. That the separation of slaves by sale should be regarded as
separation by death, and the parties allowed to marry again. (Shiloh
Baptist Ass., and Savannah River Ass.)
11. That the testimony of colored members of the churches shall not be
taken against a white person. (Methodist Church.)
In addition, it has been plainly avowed, by the expressed principles and
practice of Christians of various denominations, that they regard it
right and proper to put down all inquiry upon this subject by Lynch law.
The Old School Presbyterian Church, in whose communion the greater part
of the slaveholding Presbyterians of the South are found, has never felt
called upon to discipline its members for upholding a system which
denies legal marriage to all slaves. Yet this church was agitated to its
very foundation by the discussion of a question of morals which an
impartial observer would probably consider of far less magnitude,
namely, whether a man might lawfully marry his deceased wife's sister.
For the time, all the strength and attention of the church seemed
concentrated upon this important subject. The trial went from Presbytery
to Synod, and from Synod to General Assembly; and ended with deposing a
very respectable minister for this crime.
Rev. Robert J. Breckenridge, D. D., a member of the Old School Assembly,
has thus described the state of the slave population as to their
marriage relations:
"The system of slavery denies to a whole class of human beings the
sacredness of marriage and of home, compelling them to live in a state
of concubinage; for, in the eye of the law, no colored slave-man is the
husband of any wife in particular, nor any slave-woman the wife of any
husband in particular; no slave-man is the father of any child in
particular, and no slave-child is the child of any parent in
particular."
Now, had this church considered the fact that three millions of men and
women were, by the laws of the land, obliged to live in this manner, as
of equally serious consequence, it is evident, from the ingenuity,
argument, vehemence, biblical research, and untiring zeal, which they
bestowed on Mr. McQueen's trial, that they could have made a very strong
case with regard to this also.
The history of the united action of denominations which included
churches both in the slave and free states is a melancholy
exemplification, to a reflecting mind, of that gradual deterioration of
the moral sense which results from admitting any compromise, however
slight, with an acknowledged sin. The best minds in the world cannot
bear such a familiarity without injury to the moral sense. The facts of
the slave system and of the slave laws, when presented to disinterested
judges in Europe, have excited a universal outburst of horror, yet, in
assemblies composed of the wisest and best clergymen of America, these
things have been discussed from year to year, and yet brought no results
that have, in the slightest degree, lessened the evil. The reason is
this. A portion of the members of these bodies had pledged themselves to
sustain the system, and peremptorily to refuse and put down all
discussion of it; and the other part of the body did not consider this
stand so taken as being of sufficiently vital consequence to authorize
separation.
Nobody will doubt that, had the Southern members taken such a stand
against the divinity of our Lord, the division would have been immediate
and unanimous; but yet the Southern members do maintain the right to buy
and sell, lease, hire, and mortgage, multitudes of men and women, whom,
with the same breath, they declare to be members of their churches, and
true Christians. The Bible declares of all such that they are the
temples of the Holy Ghost; that they are the members of Christ's body,
of his flesh and bones. Is not the doctrine that men may lawfully sell
the members of Christ, his body, his flesh and bones, for purposes of
gain, as really a heresy as the denial of the divinity of Christ? and is
it not a dishonor to Him who is over all, God blessed forever, to
tolerate this dreadful opinion, with its more dreadful consequences,
while the smallest heresies concerning the imputation of Adam's sin are
pursued with eager vehemence? If the history of the action of all the
bodies thus united can be traced downwards, we shall find that, by
reason of this tolerance of an admitted sin, the anti-slavery testimony
has every year grown weaker and weaker. If we look over the history of
all denominations, we shall see that at first they used very stringent
language with relation to slavery. This is particularly the case with
the Methodist and Presbyterian bodies, and for that reason we select
these two as examples. The Methodist Society especially, as organized by
John Wesley, was an anti-slavery society, and the Book of Discipline
contained the most positive statutes against slaveholding. The history
of the successive resolutions of the Conference of this church is very
striking. In 1780, before the church was regularly organized in the
United States, they resolved as follows:
"The conference acknowledges that slavery is contrary to the laws of
God, man, and nature, and hurtful to society; contrary to the dictates
of conscience and true religion; and doing what we would not others
should do unto us."
In 1784, when the church was fully organized, rules were adopted
prescribing the times at which members who were already slaveholders
should emancipate their slaves. These rules were succeeded by the
following:
"Every person concerned, who will not comply with these rules, shall
have liberty quietly to withdraw from our Society within the twelve
months following the notice being given him, as aforesaid; otherwise the
assistants shall exclude him from the Society.
"No person holding slaves shall in future be admitted into the Society,
or to the Lord's Supper, till he previously comply with these rules
concerning slavery.
"Those who buy, sell, or give slaves away, unless on purpose to free
them, shall be expelled immediately."
In 1801:
"We declare that we are more than ever convinced of the great evil of
African slavery, which still exists in these United States.
"Every member of the Society who sells a slave shall immediately, after
full proof, be excluded from the Society, etc.
"The Annual Conferences are directed to draw up addresses for the
gradual emancipation of the slaves, to the Legislature. Proper
committees shall be appointed by the Annual Conference, out of the most
respectable of our friends, for the conducting of the business; and the
presiding elders, deacons, and travelling preachers, shall procure as
many proper signatures as possible to the addresses, and give all the
assistance in their power, in every respect, to aid the committees, and
to further the blessed undertaking. Let this be continued from year to
year, till the desired end be accomplished."
In 1836, let us notice the change. The General Conference held its
annual session in Cincinnati, and resolved as follows:
"Resolved, by the delegates of the Annual Conferences in General
Conference assembled, that they are decidedly opposed to modern
abolitionism, and wholly disclaim any right, wish, or intention to
interfere in the civil and political relation between master and slave,
as it exists in the slaveholding States of this Union."
These resolutions were passed by a very large majority. An address was
received from the Wesleyan Methodist Conference in England,
affectionately remonstrating on the subject of slavery. The Conference
refused to publish it. In the pastoral address to the churches are these
passages:
"It cannot be unknown to you that the question of slavery in the United
States, by the constitutional compact which binds us together as a
nation, is left to be regulated by the several State Legislatures
themselves; and thereby is put beyond the control of the general
government, as well as that of all ecclesiastical bodied, it being
manifest that in the slaveholding States themselves the entire
responsibility of its existence, or non-existence, rests with those
State Legislatures.... These facts, which are only mentioned here as a
reason for the friendly admonition which we wish to give you, constrain
us, as your pastors, who are called to watch over your souls, as they
must give account, to exhort you to abstain from all abolition movements
and associations, and to refrain from patronizing any of their
publications," etc....
The subordinate conferences showed the same spirit.
In 1836, the New York Annual Conference resolved that no one should be
elected a deacon or elder in the church unless he would give a pledge to
the church he would refrain from discussing this subject.[7]
In 1838, the Conference resolved--
"As the sense of this Conference, that any of its members, or
probationers, who shall patronize _Zion's Watchman_, either by writing
in commendation of its character, by circulating it, recommending it to
our people, or procuring subscribers, or by collecting or remitting
moneys, shall be deemed guilty of indiscretion, and dealt with
accordingly."
It will be recollected that _Zion's Watchman_ was edited by La Roy
Sunderland, for whose abduction the State of Alabama had offered fifty
thousand dollars.
In 1840, the General Conference at Baltimore passed the resolution that
we have already quoted, forbidding preachers to allow colored persons to
give testimony in their churches. It has been computed that about eighty
thousand people were deprived of the right of testimony by this act.
This Methodist Church subsequently broke into a Northern and Southern
Conference. The Southern Conference is avowedly all pro-slavery, and the
Northern Conference has still in its communion slaveholding conferences
and members.
Of the Northern Conferences, one of the largest, the Baltimore, passed
the following:
"_Resolved_, That this Conference disclaims having any fellowship with
abolitionism. On the contrary, while it is determined to maintain its
well-known and long-established position, by keeping the travelling
preachers composing its own body free from slavery, it is also
determined not to hold connection with any ecclesiastical body that
shall make non-slaveholding a condition of membership in the church, but
to stand by and maintain the discipline as it is."
The following extract is made from an address of the Philadelphia Annual
Conference to the Societies under its care, dated Wilmington, Delaware,
April 7, 1847:
"If the plan of separation gives us the pastoral care of you, it remains
to inquire whether we have done anything, as a conference, or as men, to
forfeit your confidence and affection. We are not advised that even in
the great excitement which has distressed you for some months past, any
one has impeached our moral conduct, or charged us with unsoundness in
doctrine, or corruption, or tyranny in the administration of discipline.
But we learn that the simple cause of the unhappy excitement among you
is, that some suspect us, or affect to suspect us, of being
abolitionists. Yet no particular act of the Conference, or any
particular member thereof, is adduced as the ground of the erroneous and
injurious suspicion. We would ask you, brethren, whether the conduct of
our ministry among you for sixty years past ought not to be sufficient
to protect us from this charge. Whether the question we have been
accustomed, for a few years past, to put to candidates for admission
among us, namely, Are you an abolitionist? and, without each one
answered in the negative, he was not received, ought not to protect us
from the charge. Whether the action of the last Conference on this
particular matter ought not to satisfy any fair and candid mind that we
are not, and do not desire to be, abolitionists.... We cannot see how we
can be regarded as abolitionists, without the ministers of the Methodist
Episcopal Church South being considered in the same light....
"Wishing you all heavenly benedictions, we are, dear brethren, yours, in
Christ Jesus,
J. P. DURBIN, }
J. KENNADAY, }
IGNATIUS T. COOPER, } _Committee_."
WILLIAM H. GILDER, }
JOSEPH CASTLE, }
These facts sufficiently define the position of the Methodist church.
The history is melancholy, but instructive. The history of the
Presbyterian church is also of interest.
In 1793, the following note to the eighth commandment was inserted in
the Book of Discipline, as expressing the doctrine of the church upon
slaveholding:
"1 Tim. 1:10.--The law is made for MAN-STEALERS. This crime among the
Jews exposed the perpetrators of it to capital punishment (Exodus
21:15); and the apostle here classes them with sinners of the first
rank. The word he uses, in its original import, comprehends all who are
concerned in bringing any of the human race into slavery, or in
retaining them in it. _Hominum fures, qui servos vel liberos, abducunt,
retinent, vendunt, vel emunt._ Stealers of men are all those who bring
off slaves or freemen, and KEEP, SELL, or BUY THEM. To steal a free man,
says Grotius, is the highest kind of theft. In other instances, we only
steal human property; but when we steal or retain men in slavery, we
seize those who, in common with ourselves, are constituted by the
original grant lords of the earth."
No rules of church discipline were enforced, and members whom this
passage declared guilty of this crime remained undisturbed in its
communion, as ministers and elders. This inconsistency was obviated in
1816 by expunging the passage from the Book of Discipline. In 1818 it
adopted an expression of its views on slavery. This document is a long
one, conceived and written in a very Christian spirit. The Assembly's
Digest says, page 341, that it was _unanimously_ adopted. The following
is its testimony as to the nature of slavery:
"We consider the voluntary enslaving of one part of the human race by
another as a gross violation of the most precious and sacred rights of
human nature, as utterly inconsistent with the law of God which requires
us to love our neighbor as ourselves, and as totally irreconcilable with
the spirit and principles of the Gospel of Christ, which enjoin that
'all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so
to them.' Slavery creates a paradox in the moral system. It exhibits
rational, accountable, and immortal beings in such circumstances as
scarcely to leave them the power of moral action. It exhibits them as
dependent on the will of others whether they shall receive religious
instruction; whether they shall know and worship the true God; whether
they shall enjoy the ordinances of the Gospel; whether they shall
perform the duties and cherish the endearments of husbands and wives,
parents and children, neighbors and friends; whether they shall preserve
their chastity and purity, or regard the dictates of justice and
humanity. Such are some of the consequences of slavery,--consequences
not imaginary, but which connect themselves with its very existence. The
evils to which the slave is always exposed often take place in fact, and
in their very worst degree and form; and where all of them do not take
place,--as we rejoice to say that in many instances, through the
influence of the principles of humanity and religion on the minds of
masters, they do not,--still the slave is deprived of his natural right,
degraded as a human being, and exposed to the danger of passing into the
hands of a master who may inflict upon him all the hardships and
injuries which inhumanity and avarice may suggest."
This language was surely decided, and it was _unanimously_ adopted by
slaveholders and non-slaveholders. Certainly one might think the time of
redemption was drawing nigh. The declaration goes on to say:
"It is manifestly the duty of all Christians who enjoy the light of the
present day, when the inconsistency of slavery both with the dictates of
humanity and religion has been demonstrated, and is generally seen and
acknowledged, to use honest, earnest, unwearied endeavors to correct the
errors of former times, and as speedily as possible to efface this blot
on our holy religion, and to OBTAIN THE COMPLETE ABOLITION of slavery
throughout Christendom and throughout the world."
Here we have the Presbyterian Church, slaveholding and non-slaveholding,
virtually formed into one great _abolition society_, as we have seen the
Methodist was.
The Assembly then goes on to state that the slaves are not _at present_
prepared to be free,--that they tenderly sympathize with the portion of
the church and country that has had this evil entailed upon them, where,
as they say, "a great and the most virtuous part of the community ABHOR
SLAVERY, and wish ITS EXTERMINATION." But they exhort them to commence
immediately the work of instructing slaves, with a view to preparing
them for freedom, and to let no greater delay take place than "a regard
to public welfare _indispensably_ demands;" "to be governed by no other
considerations than an _honest and impartial regard to the happiness of
the injured party, uninfluenced by the expense and inconvenience_ which
such regard may involve." It warns against "_unduly extending this plea
of necessity_,"--against making it a cover for the _love and practice of
slavery_. It ends by recommending that any one who shall sell a
fellow-Christian without his consent be immediately disciplined and
suspended.
If we consider that this was _unanimously_ adopted by slaveholders and
all, and grant, as we certainly do, that it was adopted in all honesty
and good faith, we shall surely expect something from it. We should
expect forthwith the organizing of a set of common schools for the slave
children; for an efficient religious ministration; for an entire
discontinuance of trading in Christian slaves; for laws which make the
family relations sacred. Was any such thing done or attempted? Alas! Two
years after this came the ADMISSION OF MISSOURI, and the increase of
demand in the Southern slave-market, and the internal slave-trade.
Instead of school-teachers, they had slave-traders; instead of gathering
_schools_, they gathered _slave-coffles_. Instead of building
schoolhouses, they built slave-pens and slave-prisons, jails,
barracoons, factories, or whatever the trade pleases to term them; and
so went the plan of gradual emancipation.
In 1834, sixteen years after, a committee of the Synod of Kentucky, in
which state slavery is generally said to exist in its mildest form,
appointed to make a report on the condition of the slaves, gave the
following picture of their condition. First, as to their spiritual
condition, they say:
"After making all reasonable allowances, our colored population can be
considered, at the most, but semi-heathen.
"Brutal stripes, and all the various kinds of personal indignities, are
not the only species of cruelty which slavery licenses. The law does
not recognize the family relations of the slave, and extends to him no
protection in the enjoyment of domestic endearments. The members of a
slave-family may be forcibly separated, so that they shall never more
meet until the final judgment. And cupidity often induces the masters to
practise what the law allows. Brothers and sisters, parents and
children, husbands and wives, are torn asunder, and permitted to see
each other no more. These acts are daily occurring in the midst of us.
The shrieks and the agony often witnessed on such occasions proclaim
with a trumpet-tongue the iniquity and cruelty of our system. The cries
of these sufferers go up to the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth. There is
not a neighborhood where these heartrending scenes are not displayed.
There is not a village or road that does not behold the sad procession
of manacled outcasts, whose chains and mournful countenances tell that
they are exiled by force from all that their hearts hold dear. Our
church, years ago, raised its voice of solemn warning against this
flagrant violation of every principle of mercy, justice, and humanity.
Yet we blush to announce to you and to the world, that this warning has
been often disregarded, even by those who hold to our communion. Cases
have occurred, in our own denomination, where professors of the religion
of mercy have torn the mother from her children, and sent her into a
merciless and returnless exile. Yet acts of discipline have rarely
followed such conduct."
Hon. James G. Birney, for years a resident of Kentucky, in his pamphlet,
amends the word _rarely_ by substituting _never_. What could show more
plainly the utter inefficiency of the past act of the Assembly, and the
necessity of adopting some measures more efficient? In 1835, therefore,
the subject was urged upon the General Assembly, entreating them to
carry out the principles and designs they had avowed in 1818.
Mr. Stuart, of Illinois, in a speech he made upon the subject, said:
"I hope this Assembly are prepared to come out fully and declare their
sentiments, that slaveholding is a most flagrant and heinous SIN. Let us
not pass it by in this indirect way, while so many thousands and tens of
thousands of our fellow-creatures are writhing under the lash, often
inflicted, too, by ministers and elders of the Presbyterian church.
* * * * * * * * *
"In this church a man may take a free-born child, force it away from its
parents, to whom God gave it in charge, saying, 'Bring it up for me,'
and sell it as a beast, or hold it in perpetual bondage, and not only
escape corporal punishment, but really be esteemed an excellent
Christian. Nay, even ministers of the Gospel and doctors of divinity may
engage in this unholy traffic, and yet sustain their high and holy
calling.
* * * * * * * * *
"Elders, ministers, and doctors of divinity are, with both hands,
engaged in the practice."
One would have thought facts like these, stated in a body of Christians,
were enough to wake the dead; but, alas! we can become accustomed to
very awful things. No action was taken upon these remonstrances, except
to refer them to a committee, to be reported on at the next session, in
1836.
The moderator of the Assembly in 1836 was a slaveholder, Dr. T. S.
Witherspoon, the same who said to the editor of the _Emancipator_, "I
draw my warrant from the scriptures of the Old and New Testament to hold
my slaves in bondage. The principle of holding the heathen in bondage is
recognized by God. When the tardy process of the law is too long in
redressing our grievances, we at the South have adopted the summary
process of Judge Lynch."
The majority of the committee appointed made a report as follows:
"Whereas the subject of slavery is inseparably connected with the laws
of many of the states in this Union, with which it is by no means proper
for an ecclesiastical judicature to interfere, and involves many
considerations in regard to which great diversity of opinion and
intensity of feeling are known to exist in the churches represented in
this Assembly; and whereas there is great reason to believe that any
action on the part of this Assembly, in reference to this subject, would
tend to distract and divide our churches, and would probably in no wise
promote the benefit of those whose welfare is immediately contemplated
in the memorials in question:
"Therefore, Resolved,
"1. That it is not expedient for the Assembly to take any further order
in relation to this subject.
"2. That as the notes which have been expunged from our public
formularies, and which some of the memorials referred to the committee
request to have restored, were introduced irregularly, never had the
sanction of the church, and, therefore, never possessed any authority,
the General Assembly has no power, nor would they think it expedient, to
assign them a place in the authorized standards of the church."
The minority of the committee, the Rev. Messrs. Dickey and Beman,
reported as follows:
"_Resolved_, 1. That the buying, selling, or holding a human being as
property, is in the sight of God a heinous sin, and ought to subject the
doer of it to the censures of the church.
"2. That it is the duty of every one, and especially of every Christian,
who may be involved in this sin, to free himself from its entanglement
without delay.
"3. That it is the duty of every one, especially of every Christian, in
the meekness and firmness of the Gospel, to plead the cause of the poor
and needy, by testifying against the principle and practice of
slaveholding, and to use his best endeavors to deliver the church of God
from the evil, and to bring about the emancipation of the slaves in
these United States, and throughout the world."
The slaveholding delegates, to the number of forty-eight, met _apart_,
and _Resolved_,
"That if the General Assembly shall undertake to exercise authority on
the subject of slavery, so as to make it an immorality, or shall in any
way declare that Christians are criminal in holding slaves, that a
declaration shall be presented by the Southern delegation declining
their jurisdiction in the case, and our determination not to submit to
such decision."
In view of these conflicting reports, the Assembly resolved as follows:
"Inasmuch as the constitution of the Presbyterian church, in its
preliminary and fundamental principles, declares that no church
judicatories ought to pretend to make laws to bind the conscience in
virtue of their own authority; and as the urgency of the business of the
Assembly, and the shortness of the time during which they can continue
in session, render it impossible to deliberate and decide judiciously on
the subject of slavery in its relation to the church, therefore,
Resolved, that this whole subject be indefinitely postponed."
The amount of the slave-trade at the time when the General Assembly
refused to act upon the subject of slavery at all may be inferred from
the following items. The _Virginia Times_, in an article published in
this very year of 1836, estimated the number of slaves exported for
sale from that state alone, during the twelve months preceding, at forty
thousand. The _Natchez_ (Miss.) _Courier_ says that in the same year the
States of Alabama, Missouri, and Arkansas imported two hundred and fifty
thousand slaves from the more northern states. If we deduct from these
all who may be supposed to have emigrated with their masters, still what
an immense trade is here indicated!
Two years after, the General Assembly, by a sudden and very unexpected
movement, passed a vote exscinding, without trial, from the communion of
the church, four synods, comprising the most active and decided
anti-slavery portions of the church, The reasons alleged were, doctrinal
differences and ecclesiastical practices inconsistent with
Presbyterianism. By this act about five hundred ministers and sixty
thousand members were cut off from the Presbyterian church.
That portion of the Presbyterian church called New School, considering
this act unjust, refused to assent to it, joined the exscinded synods,
and formed themselves into the New School General Assembly. In this
communion only three slaveholding presbyteries remained; in the old
there were between thirty and forty.
The course of the Old School Assembly, after the separation, in relation
to the subject of slavery, may be best expressed by quoting one of their
resolutions, passed in 1845. Having some decided anti-slavery members in
its body, and being, moreover, addressed on the subject of slavery by
associated bodies, they presented, in this year, the following
deliberate statement of their policy. (Minutes for 1845, p. 18.)
"_Resolved_, 1. That the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in
the United States was originally organized, and has since continued the
bond of union in the church, upon the conceded principle that the
existence of domestic slavery, under the circumstances in which it is
found in the Southern portion of the country, is no bar to Christian
communion.
"2. That the petitions that ask the Assembly to make the holding of
slaves in itself a matter of discipline do virtually require this
judicatory to dissolve itself, and abandon the organization under which,
by the Divine blessing, it has so long prospered. The tendency is
evidently to separate the Northern from the Southern portion of the
church--a result which every good Christian must deplore, as tending to
the dissolution of the Union of our beloved country, and which every
enlightened Christian will oppose, as bringing about a ruinous and
unnecessary schism between brethren who maintain a common faith.
"Yeas, Ministers and Elders, 168.
"Nays, " " " 13."
It is scarcely necessary to add a comment to this very explicit
declaration. It is the plainest possible disclaimer of any protest
against slavery; the plainest possible statement that the existence of
the ecclesiastical organization is of more importance than all the moral
and social considerations which are involved in a full defence and
practice of American slavery.
The next year a large number of petitions and remonstrances were
presented, requesting the Assembly to utter additional testimony against
slavery.
In reply to the petitions, the General Assembly reaffirmed all their
former testimonies on the subject of slavery for sixty years back, and
also affirmed that the previous year's declaration must not be
understood as a retraction of that testimony; in other words, they
expressed it as their opinion, in the words of 1818, that slavery is
"_wholly opposed to the law of God_," and "_totally irreconcilable with
the precepts of the Gospel of Christ_;" and yet that they "had formed
their church organization upon the conceded principle that the existence
of it, under the circumstances in which it is found in the Southern
States of the Union, is no bar to Christian communion."
Some members protested against this action. (Minutes, 1846. Overture,
No. 17.)
Great hopes were at first entertained of the New School body. As a body,
it was composed mostly of anti-slavery men. It had in it three synods
whose anti-slavery opinions and actions had been, to say the least, one
very efficient cause for their excision from the Church. It had only
three slaveholding Presbyteries. The power was all in its own hands.
Now, if ever, was their time to cut this loathsome encumbrance wholly
adrift, and stand up, in this age of concession and conformity to the
world, a purely protesting church, free from all complicity with this
most dreadful national immorality.
On the first session of the General Assembly this course was most
vehemently urged, by many petitions and memorials. These memorials were
referred to a committee of decided anti-slavery men. The argument on one
side was, that the time was now come to take decided measures to cut
free wholly from all pro-slavery complicity, and avow their principles
with decision, even though it should repel all such churches from their
communion as were not prepared for immediate emancipation.
On the other hand, the majority of the committee were urged by opposing
considerations. The brethren from slave states made to them
representations somewhat alike to these: "Brethren, our hearts are with
you. We are with you in faith, in charity, in prayer. We sympathized in
the injury that had been done you by excision. We stood by you then, and
are ready to stand by you still. We have no sympathy with the party that
have expelled you, and we do not wish to go back to them. As to this
matter of slavery, we do not differ from you. We consider it an evil. We
mourn and lament over it. We are trying, by gradual and peaceable means,
to exclude it from our churches. We are going as far in advance of the
sentiment of our churches as we consistently can. We cannot come up to
more decided action without losing our hold over them, and, as we think,
throwing back the cause of emancipation. If you begin in this decided
manner, we cannot hold our churches in the union; they will divide, and
go to the Old School."
Here was a very strong plea, made by good and sincere men. It was an
appeal, too, to the most generous feelings of the heart. It was, in
effect, saying, "Brothers, we stood by you, and fought your battles,
when everything was going against you; and, now that you have the power
in your hands, are you going to use it so as to cast us out?"
These men, strong anti-slavery men as they were, were affected. One
member of the committee foresaw and feared the result. He felt and
suggested that the course proposed conceded the whole question. The
majority thought, on the whole, that it was best to postpone the
subject. The committee reported that the applicants, for reasons
satisfactory to themselves, had withdrawn their papers.
The next year, in 1839, the subject was resumed; and it was again urged
that the Assembly should take high, and decided, and unmistakable
ground; and certainly, if we consider that all this time not a single
church had emancipated its slaves, and that the power of the institution
was everywhere stretching and growing and increasing, it would
certainly seem that something more efficient was necessary than a
general understanding that the church agreed with the testimony
delivered in 1818. It was strongly represented that it was time
something was done. This year the Assembly decided to refer the subject
to Presbyteries, to do what they deemed advisable. The words employed
were these: "Solemnly referring the whole to the lower judicatories, to
take such action as in their judgment is most judicious, and adapted to
remove the evil." The Rev. George Beecher moved to insert the word moral
before evil; they declined.[8]
This brought, in 1840, a much larger number of memorials and petitions;
and very strong attempts were made by the abolitionists to obtain some
decided action.
The committee this year referred to what had been done last year, and
declared it inexpedient to do anything further. The subject was
indefinitely postponed. At this time it was resolved that the Assembly
should meet only once in three years. Accordingly, it did not meet till
1843. In 1843, several memorials were again presented, and some
resolutions offered to the Assembly, of which this was one (Minutes of
the General Assembly for 1843, p. 15):
"Resolved, That we affectionately and earnestly urge upon the Ministers,
Sessions, Presbyteries, and Synods, connected with this Assembly, that
they treat this as all other sins of great magnitude; and by a diligent,
kind, and faithful application of the means which God has given them, by
instruction, remonstrance, reproof, and effective discipline, seek to
purify the church of this great iniquity."
This resolution they declined. They passed the following:
"Whereas there is in this Assembly great diversity of opinion as to the
proper and best mode of action on the subject of slavery; and whereas,
in such circumstances, any expression of sentiment would carry with it
but little weight, as it would be passed by a small majority, and must
operate to produce alienation and division; and whereas the Assembly of
1839, with great unanimity, referred this whole subject to the lower
judicatories, to take such order as in their judgment might be adapted
to remove the evil;--Resolved, That the Assembly do not think it for the
edification of the church for this body to take any action on the
subject."
They, however, passed the following:
"Resolved, That the fashionable amusement of promiscuous dancing is so
entirely unscriptural, and eminently and exclusively that of 'the world
which lieth in wickedness,' and so wholly inconsistent with the spirit
of Christ, and with that propriety of Christian deportment and that
purity of heart which his followers are bound to maintain, as to render
it not only improper and injurious for professing Christians either to
partake in it, or to qualify their children for it, by teaching them the
'art,' but also to call for the faithful and judicious exercise of
discipline on the part of Church Sessions, when any of the members of
their churches have been guilty."
Thus has the matter gone on from year to year, ever since.
In 1856 we are sorry to say that we can report no improvement in the
action of the great ecclesiastical bodies on the subject of slavery, but
rather deterioration. Notwithstanding all the aggressions of slavery,
and notwithstanding the constant developments of its horrible influence
in corrupting and degrading the character of the nation, as seen in the
mean, vulgar, assassin-like outrages in our national Congress, and the
brutal, bloodthirsty, fiend-like proceedings in Kansas, connived at and
protected, if not directly sanctioned and in part instigated, by our
national government;--notwithstanding all this, the great ecclesiastical
organizations seem less disposed than ever before to take any efficient
action on the subject. This was manifest in the General Conference of
the Methodist Episcopal Church North, held at Indianapolis during the
spring of the present year, and in the General Assemblies of the
Presbyterian Church held at New York at about the same time.
True, a very large minority in the Methodist Conference resisted with
great energy the action, or rather no action, of the majority, and gave
fearless utterance to the most noble sentiments; but in the final result
the numbers were against them.
The same thing was true to some extent in the New School Presbyterian
General Assembly, though here the anti-slavery utterances were, on the
whole, inferior to those in the Methodist Conference. In both bodies the
Packthreads, and Cushings, and Calkers, and Bonnies, are numerous and
have the predominant influence, while the Dicksons and the Ruskins are
fewer, and have far less power. The representations, therefore, in the
body of the work, though very painful, are strictly just. Individuals,
everywhere in the free states, and in same of the slave states, are most
earnestly struggling against the prevailing corruption; but the
churches, as such, are, for the most part, still on the wrong side.
There are churches free from this stain, but they are neither numerous
nor popular.
For an illustration of the lynching of Father Dickson, see "Key to Uncle
Tom's Cabin," Part III., Chapter VIII.
FOOTNOTES:
[7] This resolution is given in Birney's pamphlet.
[8] _Goodell's History of the Great Struggle between Freedom and
Slavery._