Departure from Washington—American Feelings—Sea-Lion—Family of Free
Negroes—Raleigh—Fayetteville—North Carolina.
About the first of February, General Lafayette had received from all the
southern and western states such pressing invitations, that he could no
longer hesitate as to what course he should pursue; and immediately we
were all actively employed in determining our order of march, and the
means of surmounting the difficulties which every one assured us, would
be very great in a journey of this nature and length. We had, indeed, a
distance of more than twelve hundred leagues to pass over, in less than
four months, to enable us to be in Boston on the seventeenth of June,
where the general had promised to assist at the celebration of the
anniversary of Bunker’s Hill; and a part of the country through which we
were obliged to travel, was scarcely inhabited, and the roads, rough and
difficult, were imperfectly laid out.
But thanks to the experience of General Bernard, to the information of
the post master general (M’Lean,) and to the assistance of the members
of congress who were in Washington, Mr. George Lafayette was enabled to
trace out an such an excellent itinerary, that his father had no fear of
neglecting in his course any places of importance in the various states
we had to visit, although most of these places were often many miles to
the right or left of our main line of march; and his time was so exactly
proportioned, that, unless prevented by sickness or some serious
accident, we were to arrive in Boston on the day promised.
We neglected no precaution adapted to aid us in surmounting the
obstacles which, in the opinion of every one, threatened us in the
course of this new journey. The general’s friends could not think
without fear of the fatigues and dangers to which, they said, he was
about to expose himself. Mrs. Eliza Custis, of the Washington family,
pressed him to accept of her commodious and easy carriage. We purchased
good saddle-horses to substitute for the coach on very bad roads;
reduced our baggage as much as possible, and on the 23d of February, at
nine o’clock in the evening embarked upon the Potomac, which we
descended to its outlet in the Chesapeake Bay, and thence proceeded to
Norfolk, where we landed early on the morning of the 25th, after a
pleasant passage of two nights and one day. On the day following we went
to dine at Suffolk, a small village, where they waited for the general
with all the eagerness and kindness he had hitherto met with at every
step.
Favoured by a good road and pleasant weather, our march was very rapid.
A few miles from Norfolk we were obliged to stop some time before a
small, solitary inn upon the road, for the purpose of refreshing our
horses. We were sitting in our carriage when the landlord presented
himself, asked to see the general, and eagerly pressed him to alight for
a moment and come into his house. “If,” said he, “you have only five
minutes to stay, do not refuse them, since to me they will be so many
minutes of happiness.” The general yielded to his entreaty, and we
followed him into a lower room, where we observed a plainness bordering
on poverty, but a remarkable degree of cleanliness. _Welcome Lafayette_,
was inscribed with charcoal upon the white wall, enwreathed with boughs
from the fir trees of the neighbouring wood. Near the fire-place, where
pine wood was crackling, stood a small table covered with a very clean
napkin, and covered with some decanters containing brandy and whiskey;
by the side of a plate covered with glasses was another plate filled
with neatly arranged slices of bread. These modest refreshments were
tendered with a kindness and cordiality which greatly enhanced their
value. Whilst we were partaking of them the landlord disappeared, but
returned a moment after accompanied by his wife, carrying her little
boy, about three or four years of age, whose fresh and plump cheeks
evinced the tenderness and care with which he had been cherished. The
father, after first presenting his wife, next took his child in his
arms, and, having placed one of his little hands in the hand of the
general, made him repeat, with much emphasis, the following: “General
Lafayette, I thank you for the liberty which you have won for my father,
for my mother, for myself, and for my country!!” While the child was
speaking, the father and mother eyed the general with the most tender
regard: their hearts responded to the words of their boy, and tears they
were unable to suppress, proved that their gratitude was vivid and
profound. Were I to judge from what I myself felt on witnessing this
simple and yet sublime scene, General Lafayette must have found this one
of the most pleasing moments of his life. He could not conceal his
emotions, but having tenderly embraced the child, took refuge in his
carriage, bearing with him the blessings of this family, worthy of the
freedom they enjoyed.
The same day, shortly before reaching Suffolk, some negroes stopped us
with an invitation to enter their cabin, situated on the road side, to
see a very extraordinary animal, which they told us was a sea-lion. It
was about seven feet long, covered with a hairy skin of the colour of
the fallow deer, spotted with black: the size of its body near the
shoulders was about that of a calf, from whence it diminished gradually
till it terminated at the tail in large fins; its head was small, round,
and slightly flattened, resembling a little that of the tiger; its mouth
was furnished with long, strong and sharp teeth; its extremities were
very short and had the shape of a hand; the fingers were united by a
membrane capable of great extension, and armed with very strong and
sharp claws. The negroes told us that in walking along the shores of
Elizabeth River at low water, they perceived this animal upon the sand,
where it appeared to have been left by the tide. As soon as it saw these
men it moved towards them, but without any apparent hostile intentions.
The negroes, however, ran away at first, whilst it followed them for
some time, but at a slow pace, as it is easy to conceive on examining
its short extremities, which appeared better adapted for swimming than
walking. After having retreated a hundred steps, one of the negroes, who
was armed with a musket, turned and fired at the animal, which received
the charge in the flank, and almost immediately expired.[2]
A few compliments accompanied with some small money made these poor
negroes very happy, and we left them to go and visit a neighbouring
habitation, which was said to belong to a large family of free blacks.
The house was very well kept, both externally and internally; I was
struck with the order and neatness which prevailed, as well as the fine
appearance of the inhabitants, who seemed to enjoy a state of comfort
and ease superior to that of most of our European peasantry. One of our
travelling companions, a citizen of Norfolk, assured us that this family
had more than doubled the value of their property some years, by their
intelligence and industry. I invite those who still persist in believing
that the negroes are incapable of providing for themselves in a state of
freedom, to visit this family, which, however, is not the only one of
the kind which could be found in the state of Virginia.
After stopping a few moments among the citizens of Suffolk, we continued
on our route to Murfreesborough, where we were to lodge. Our late
arrival had the appearance of a nocturnal journey. The bad condition and
length of the road had tired our horses, and we thought for a while that
we should be compelled to sleep at the foot of the hill on which the
town is built. An enormous bonfire, lighted on a neighbouring mountain,
whose light displayed our distressed situation; the illuminations of
Murfreesborough, which exhibited the appearance of a city in flames; the
noise of cannon resounding on our right, with the effect of battery on
our flank; the cries of our escort; the whipping and swearing of our
drivers, all was insufficient to stimulate our horses, which, sunk in
the mud to their knees, appeared to have taken root, refusing to make
the least exertion to draw us out of this sad situation, in which we
remained about an hour. At length we arrived, and were very amply
compensated by the cordial hospitality of the inhabitants of
Murfreesborough, who neglected nothing to prove to General Lafayette
that the citizens of North Carolina were not less sincerely attached to
him than those of the other states.
From Murfreesborough, we went the next day to Halifax, where we crossed
the Roanoak, in a ferry-boat, amidst the thunder of artillery which
awaited the arrival of General Lafayette on the opposite shore. Halifax
was formerly the head quarters of Cornwallis, during his campaign in
North Carolina. It was there that the English chief adopted the
resolution, which proved so unfortunate, of entering Virginia. We only
slept at Halifax, and in two days, after travelling over frightful
roads, reached Raleigh, a pretty little town, situated on the west bank
of the river Neuse. It is the seat of government for North Carolina, and
contains about two thousand seven hundred inhabitants, of which about
fifteen hundred are blacks, both free and slaves. One of the most
precious monuments of this town, is the superb statue of Washington,
executed in marble by Canova. It is preserved, with the greatest care,
in one of the halls of the capitol.
The governor of the state, officers of government, militia, and, in
fine, all the population, were prepared to receive and entertain, with
proper dignity, the guest of the nation. Such was the height of the
prevailing enthusiasm, that, in spite of bad weather, a company of
volunteer dragoons had marched nearly one hundred and fifty miles, to
assist at this family festival. The gallant men who composed it, had
solicited and obtained leave to perform, for this day, the duty of guard
to Lafayette; and they had founded their pretensions upon the
circumstance, that the county of Mecklinburg, to which they belonged,
was the first in the state where independence was declared, during the
revolution. “Whenever it becomes necessary to serve for liberty or
Lafayette,” said they, “we shall always be found among the foremost.”
Nothing was neglected by Governor Burton, in doing the honours of his
dwelling to the national guest.
The morning of our arrival at Raleigh was near being marked by a very
unfortunate accident. In one of the calashes which followed us, was
General Daniel of the militia, and a young officer of his staff; their
horses ran off, and, the driver not being able to guide them, dashed
violently against the trunk of a tree. The force of the shock threw both
the riders and the coachman to some distance, but the one most hurt was
poor General Daniel, who lay almost senseless upon the spot. Our
progress was immediately suspended, and General Lafayette, who, at the
time, was a considerable distance in advance of the procession, hastily
returned to assure himself of the nature of the accident. General Daniel
already began to recover, when the hasty zeal of his friend, General
Williams, was upon the point of placing him in greater danger than arose
from the fall. This gentleman insisted upon his being immediately bled,
and already held the fatal lancet in hand to proceed with the operation,
when Mr. George Lafayette besought him seriously to forbear,
representing that we had just left the table, and that a bleeding
immediately after dinner might be attended with injurious consequences.
After having rendered General Daniel the first attentions which his
situation demanded, we had him carried to the house of a rich planter,
whom we had visited in the morning, some miles off; and, the next day,
our wounded friend joined us at Raleigh, entirely recovered from his
fall, returning his warmest thanks to Mr. George Lafayette, for having
averted the employment of the lancet.
I was, at first, much surprised to see this lancet drawn upon such an
occasion, but one of our travelling companions informed me, that in the
southern and western states, and especially in those where the
population is widely scattered, the art of blood-letting is familiar to
almost all the great planters. The difficulty of finding a surgeon at
the moment of accident, often makes it necessary to bleed themselves,
which they sometimes do so profusely, that the most hardy phlebotomists
of the French school would be alarmed at the sight.
On the 4th of March, we arrived at the pretty little town of
Fayetteville, situated on the western bank of Cape Fear river. The
weather was dreadful, the rain pouring in torrents, notwithstanding
which, the road for many miles in front of the town was covered with men
and boys on horseback, and militia on foot. In the town, the streets
were crowded with ladies elegantly dressed, hurrying, regardless of
consequences, across the gutters, to approach the carriage of the
general, and so occupied with the pleasure of beholding him, that they
did not appear to notice the deluge which seemed ready to engulf them.
This enthusiasm may be more readily conceived, when we consider that it
was manifested by the inhabitants of a town, founded forty years ago, to
perpetuate the recollection of services rendered by him whom they were
this day honouring.
General Lafayette was conducted to the front of the town-house, where,
upon an elevated platform, he was received and addressed by Chief
Justice Troomer, on behalf of the town council. In the course of his
harangue, the orator recapitulated, with enthusiasm, the obligations
which America owed to Lafayette, retraced some of the persecutions to
which he had been exposed in France and Austria, for having remained
faithful to the cause of liberty and the rights of man, which he had
been the first to proclaim in Europe, and concluded by drawing a
forcible parallel between the young republics of the United States and
the old monarchies of the ancient continent of Europe.
After General Lafayette had expressed his gratitude for the reception
given him by the citizens of Fayetteville, and his sympathy for the
sentiments of the orator, we were conducted to the residence of Mr.
Duncan M‘Rae, where, by the attentions of Mrs. Duncan, our lodgings had
been prepared in an elegant and commodious manner. The general was there
received by the committee, appointed to supply all his wants. “You are
here in your own town,” said the chairman of the committee to him, “in
your own house, surrounded by your children. Dispose of all—every thing
is yours.” Every moment of our short stay at Fayetteville was occupied
by festivals of gratitude and friendship. Notwithstanding the bad
weather, which never ceased to oppose us, the volunteer militia
companies, assembled to render military honours to the last surviving
major-general of the revolutionary army, would not quit the little camp
which they had formed in front of the balcony of the house, whence the
general could easily see them manœuvre. They were still under arms, on
the morning of our departure, and we passed in front of their line on
leaving the town. It was then that General Lafayette, wishing to give
them an expression of his gratitude, alighted, and passing through the
ranks, took each officer and soldier affectionately by the hand. This
conduct excited the spectators to such a pitch of enthusiasm, that a
great portion of the population, willing to prolong the pleasure of
seeing him, accompanied his carrage a considerable distance on the road,
and only quitted him when the sun was nearly set.
The commerce of Fayetteville is very flourishing, and must still
increase from the vicinity of Cape Fear river, which is navigable to the
sea. The products of the surrounding country consist principally of
tobacco and grain. Its population is nearly four thousand souls, and
increases with remarkable rapidity. Unfortunately more than a third of
this population consists of slaves, who increase in the same proportion
with the free inhabitants; a circumstance which will probably continue
for some time to retard the full developement of its resources. What I
here say of Fayetteville is applicable to the whole state of North
Carolina, which, in a population of six hundred and forty thousand
souls, has above two hundred thousand slaves.
The climate of North Carolina is said to be healthy, and very well
adapted to every species of culture. Nevertheless, the part through
which we passed did not present an agreeable aspect. We met with
numerous pine forests overflown by the rivers which watered them; many
sand plains, and but little cultivated ground; that which is cultivated
producing only rice and indigo. The mountainous parts of the state are
stated to produce abundant crops of wheat, rye, barley, oats, Indian
corn, tobacco, hemp and cotton. This last article, when prepared for
manufacturing, is produced in the proportion of one hundred and fifty
pounds for each slave.
It is also in the highest grounds where native gold is found in
considerable quantity. It is obtained by simply washing the earth. Its
purity is very remarkable, having been found twenty-three carats fine,
and superior in quality to the American or English gold coins. The
pieces are of various weights. The heaviest yet found weighed nearly
five pounds. In 1810, the mint of the United States received one
thousand three hundred and forty-one ounces, the value of which amounted
to twenty-four thousand six hundred and eighty-nine dollars. In
Montgomery county, many persons live by hunting for this metal. Every
one has permission to seek, upon condition that he gives half he finds
to the owner of the soil.
Notwithstanding all its rich resources, North Carolina appeared to me
one of the least advanced of all the states we have hitherto visited.
Slavery, in my opinion, should be regarded as the principal cause of
this condition. Its constitution, though in general founded upon those
of the other states, differs from them in some points, and retains some
traces of aristocracy. Thus, for example, to be elected a senator, a
person must be owner of three hundred acres of land; to be a
representative, he must possess one hundred: finally, no man can be
elected governor unless he be the free proprietor of an estate yielding
one thousand dollars. In the midst of promises of religious liberty, the
constitution of North Carolina has nevertheless the misfortune to have
preserved an unhappy distinction between sects: thus, any man who denies
the truth of the protestant religion, can have no pretensions to any
public employment.[3] I am well aware that in a government which
supports no established order of clergy, the inconvenience of such a
distinction is not so great, but it is nevertheless a serious blow aimed
at the equality established and recognized by law. A wrong of still more
consequence in this state, is that of having so long neglected the means
of propagating primary instruction. In 1808 the legislature first
ordered schools to be provided at the public expense. But in spite of
the defects which I have pointed out, the inhabitants of North Carolina,
from their patriotism, are unquestionably worthy to form a part of the
great confederate family of the United States. To prove this, it will be
sufficient to cite one fact, which is, that during the revolutionary
war, the enemy could never procure a pilot upon the coast of this state.
I might add, that the brilliant successes which attended the battles of
Briar Creek in 1779, of Waxhaws in 1780, and of Guilford in 1781, were
due to the militia of this state.