He asks me to murder a nation's life;and Iwill not do it,because I have a conscience,--because there is a God."He proceeds to affirm that if resistance to the carrying out of the "Fugi-tive Slave Law"should lead the magistracy to call the citizens to arms,their duty was to obey and "if ordered to take human life,in the name of God to take it;"and he concludes by admonishing the fugitives to "hearken to the Word of God,and to count their own masters worthy of all honour."The Rev.William Crowell,of Waterfield,State of Maine,printed a Thanksgiving Sermon of the same kind,in which he calls upon his hearers not to allow "excessive sympathies for a few hundred fugitives to blind them so that they may risk increased suffering to the millions already in chains."The Rev.Dr.Taylor,an Episcopal Clergyman of New Haven,Connecticut,made a speech at a Union Meeting,in which he deprecates the agita-tion on the law,and urges obedience to it;asking,--"Is that article in the Constitution con-trary to the law of Nature,of nations,or to the will of God?Is it so?Is there a shadow of reason for saying it?I have not been able to dis-cover it.Have I not shown you it is lawful to deliver up,in compliance with the laws,fugitive slaves,for the high,the great,the momentous interests of those [Southern]States?"The Right Rev.Bishop Hopkins,of Vermont,in a Lecture at Lockport,says,"It was warranted by the Old Testament;"and inquires,"What effect had the Gospel in doing away with slavery?None whatever."Therefore he argues,as it is expressly permitted by the Bible,it does not in itself involve any sin;but that every Christian is authorised by the Divine Law to own slaves,provided they were not treated with unnecessary cruelty.
The Rev.Orville Dewey,D.D.,of the Unitarian connexion,maintained in his lectures that the safety of the Union is not to be hazarded for the sake of the African race.He declares that,for his part,he would send his own brother or child into slavery,if needed to preserve the Union between the free and the slaveholding States;and,counselling the slave to similar magnanimity,thus exhorts him:--"YOUR RIGHT TO BE FREE IS NOT ABSOLUTE,UNQUALIFIED,IRRESPECTIVE OF ALL CONSEQUENCES.If my espousal of your claim is likely to involve your race and mine together in disasters infinitely greater than your personal servitude,then you ought not to be free.In such a case personal rights ought to be sacrificed to the general good.You yourself ought to see this,and be willing to suffer for a while --one for many."If the Doctor is prepared,he is quite at liberty to sacrifice his "personal rights to the general good."But,as I have suffered a long time in slavery,it is hardly fair for the Doctor to advise me to go back.According to his showing,he ought rather to take my place.That would be practically carrying out his logic,as respects "suffering awhile --one for many."In fact,so eager were they to prostrate them-selves before the great idol of slavery,and,like Balaam,to curse instead of blessing the people whom God had brought out of bondage,that they in bring up obsolete passages from the Old Tes-tament to justify their downward course,overlooked,or would not see,the following verses,which show very clearly,according to the Doctor's own text-book,that the slaves have a right to run away,and that it is unural for any one to send them back.
In the 23rd chapter of Deuteronomy,15th and 16th verses,it is thus written:--"Thou shalt not deliver unto his master the servant which is es-caped from his master unto thee.He shall dwell with thee,even among you,in that place which he shall choose in one of thy gates,where it liketh him best:thou shalt not oppress him.""Hide the outcast.Bewray not him that wan-dereth.Let mine outcasts dwell with thee.Be thou a covert to them from the face of the spoiler."--(Isa.xvi.3,4.)
The great majority of the American ministers are not content with uttering sentences similar to the above,or remaining wholly indifferent to the cries of the poor bondman;but they do all they can to blast the reputation,and to muzzle the mouths,of the few good men who dare to beseech the God of mercy "to loose the bonds of wickedness,to undo the heavy burdens,and let the oppressed go free."These reverend gentlemen pour a terrible cannon-ade upon "Jonah,"for refusing to carry God's message against Nineveh,and tell us about the whale in which he was entombed;while they utterly overlook the existence of the whales which trouble their republican waters,and know not that they themselves are the "Jonahs"who threaten to sink their ship of state,by steering in an unrighteous direction.We are told that the whale vomited up the runaway prophet.This would not have seemed so strange,had it been one of the above lukewarm Doctors of Divinity whom he had swallowed;for even a whale might find such a morsel difficult of digestion.
"I venerate the man whose heart is warm,Whose hands are pure;whose doctrines and whose life Coincident,exhibit lucid proof That he is honest in the sacred cause.""But grace abused brings forth the foulest deeds,As richest soil the most luxuriant weeds."I must now leave the reverend gentlemen in the hands of Him who knows best how to deal with a recreant ministry.
I do not wish it to be understood that all the ministers of the States are of the Balaam stamp.
There are those who are as uncompromising with slaveholders as Moses was with Pharaoh,and,like Daniel,will never bow down before the great false God that has been set up.
On arriving at Portland,we found that the steamer we intended to take had run into a schooner the previous night,and was lying up for repairs;so we had to wait there,in fearful suspense,for two or three days.During this time,we had the honour of being the guest of the late and much lamented Daniel Oliver,Esq.,one of the best and most hospi-table men in the State.By simply fulfilling the Scripture injunction,to take in the stranger,&c.,he ran the risk of incurring a penalty of 2,000dollars,and twelve months'imprisonment.
But neither the Fugitive Slave Law,nor any other Satanic enactment,can ever drive the spirit of liberty and humanity out of such noble and gene-rous-hearted men.
May God ever bless his dear widow,and eventu-ally unite them in His courts above!
We finally got off to St.John's,New Brunswick,where we had to wait two days for the steamer that conveyed us to Windsor,Nova Scotia.
On going into a hotel at St.John's,we met the butler in the hall,to whom I said,"We wish to stop here to-night."He turned round,scratching his head,evidently much put about.But think-ing that my wife was white,he replied,"We have plenty of room for the lady,but I don't know about yourself;we never take in coloured folks.""Oh,don't trouble about me,"I said;"if you have room for the lady,that will do;so please have the luggage taken to a bed-room."Which was immediately done,and my wife went upstairs into the apartment.
After taking a little walk in the town,I returned,and asked to see the "lady."On being conducted to the little sitting-room,where she then was,Ientered without knocking,much to the surprise of the whole house.The "lady"then rang the bell,and ordered dinner for two."Dinner for two,mum!"exclaimed the waiter,as he backed out of the door."Yes,for two,"said my wife.In a little while the stout,red-nosed butler,whom we first met,knocked at the door.I called out,"Come in."On entering,he rolled his whisky eyes at me,and then at my wife,and said,in a very solemn tone,"Did you order dinner for two,mum?""Yes,for two,"my wife again replied.This confused the chubby butler more than ever;and,as the landlord was not in the house,he seemed at a loss what to do.
When dinner was ready,the maid came in and said,"Please,mum,the Missis wishes to know whether you will have dinner up now,or wait till your friend arrives?""I will have it up at once,if you please.""Thank you,mum,"continued the maid,and out she glided.
After a good deal of giggling in the passage,some one said,"You are in for it,butler,after all;so you had better make the best of a bad job."But before dinner was sent up,the landlord returned,and having heard from the steward of the steamer by which we came that we were bound for England,the proprietor's native country,he treated us in the most respectful manner.
At the above house,the boots (whose name I for-get)was a fugitive slave,a very intelligent and active man,about forty-five years of age.Soon after his marriage,while in slavery,his bride was sold away from him,and he could never learn where the poor creature dwelt.So after remaining single for many years,both before and after his escape,and never ex-pecting to see again,nor even to hear from,his long-lost partner,he finally married a woman at St.John's.
But,poor fellow,as he was passing down the street one day,he met a woman;at the first glance they nearly recognized each other;they both turned round and stared,and unconsciously advanced,till she screamed and flew into his arms.Her first words were,"Dear,are you married?"On his answering in the affirmative,she shrank from his embrace,hung her head,and wept.A person who witnessed this meeting told me it was most affecting.
This couple knew nothing of each other's escape or whereabouts.The woman had escaped a few years before to the free States,by secreting herself in the hold of a vessel;but as they tried to get her back to bondage,she fled to New Brunswick for that protection which her native country was too mean to afford.
The man at once took his old wife to see his new one,who was also a fugitive slave,and as they all knew the workings of the infamous system of slavery,the could (as no one else can,)sympathise with each other's misfortune.
According to the rules of slavery,the man and his first wife were already divorced,but not morally;and therefore it was arranged between the three that he should live only with the lastly married wife,and allow the other one so much a week,as long as she requested his assistance.
After staying at St.John's two days,the steamer arrived,which took us to Windsor,where we found a coach bound for Halifax.Prejudice against colour forced me on the top in the rain.On arriving within about seven miles of the town,the coach broke down and was upset.I fell upon the big crotchety driver,whose head stuck in the mud;and as he "always objected to niggers riding inside with white folks,"I was not particularly sorry to see him deeper in the mire than myself.All of us were scratched and bruised more or less.After the passengers had crawled out as best they could,we all set off,and paddled through the deep mud and cold and rain,to Halifax.
On leaving Boston,it was our intention to reach Halifax at least two or three days before the steamer from Boston touched there,en route for Liverpool;but,having been detained so long at Portland and St.John's,we had the misfortune to arrive at Halifax at dark,just two hours after the steamer had gone;consequently we had to wait there a fortnight,for the Cambria.
The coach was patched up,and reached Halifax with the luggage,soon after the passengers arrived.
The only respectable hotel that was then in the town had suspended business,and was closed;so we went to the inn,opposite the market,where the coach stopped:a most miserable,dirty hole it was.
Knowing that we were still under the influence of the low Yankee prejudice,I sent my wife in with the other passengers,to engage a bed for herself and husband.I stopped outside in the rain till the coach came up.If I had gone in and asked for a bed they would have been quite full.But as they thought my wife was white,she had no difficulty in securing apartments,into which the luggage was afterwards carried.The landlady,observing that Itook an interest in the baggage,became some-what uneasy,and went into my wife's room,and said to her,"Do you know the dark man downstairs?""Yes,he is my husband.""Oh!I mean the black man--the NIGGER?""I quite understand you;he is my husband.""My God!"exclaimed the woman as she flounced out and banged to the door.On going upstairs,I heard what had taken place:but,as we were there,and did not mean to leave that night,we did not disturb ourselves.
On our ordering tea,the landlady sent word back to say that we must take it in the kitchen,or in our bed-room,as she had no other room for "niggers."We replied that we were not particular,and that they could sent it up to our room,--which they did.
After the pro-slavery persons who were staying there heard that we were in,the whole house became agitated,and all sorts of oaths and fearful threats were heaped upon the "d----d niggers,for coming among white folks."Some of them said they would not stop there a minute if there was another house to go to.
The mistress came up the next morning to know how long we wished to stop.We said a fortnight.
"Oh!dear me,it is impossible for us to accom-modate you,and I think you had better go:you must understand,I have no prejudice myself;Ithink a good deal of the coloured people,and have always been their friend;but if you stop here we shall lose all our customers,which we can't do no-how."We said we were glad to hear that she had "no prejudice,"and was such a staunch friend to the coloured people.We also informed her that we would be sorry for her "customers"to leave on our account;and as it was not our intention to interfere with anyone,it was foolish for them to be frightened away.However,if she would get us a comfortable place,we would be glad to leave.The landlady said she would go out and try.After spending the whole morning in canvassing the town,she came to our room and said,"I have been from one end of the place to the other,but every-body is full."Having a little foretaste of the vulgar prejudice of the town,we did not wonder at this result.However,the landlady gave me the address of some respectable coloured families,whom she thought,"under the circumstances,"might be induced to take us.And,as we were not at all comfortable--being compelled to sit,eat and sleep,in the same small room--we were quite willing to change our quarters.
I called upon the Rev.Mr.Cannady,a truly good-hearted Christian man,who received us at a word;and both he and his kind lady treated us hand-somely,and for a nominal charge.
My wife and myself were both unwell when we left Boston,and,having taken fresh cold on the journey to Halifax,we were laid up there under the doctor's care,nearly the whole fortnight.Ihad much worry about getting tickets,for they baffled us shamefully at the Cunard office.They at first said that they did not book till the steamer came;which was not the fact.When I called again,they said they knew the steamer would come full from Boston,and therefore we had "bet-ter try to get to Liverpool by other means."Other mean Yankee excuses were made;and it was not till an influential gentleman,to whom Mr.Francis Jackson,of Boston,kindly gave us a letter,went and rebuked them,that we were able to secure our tickets.So when we went on board my wife was very poorly,and was also so ill on the voyage that I did not believe she could live to see Liverpool.
However,I am thankful to say she arrived;and,after laying up at Liverpool very ill for two or three weeks,gradually recovered.
It was not until we stepped upon the shore at Liverpool that we were free from every slavish fear.
We raised our thankful hearts to Heaven,and could have knelt down,like the Neapolitan exiles,and kissed the soil;for we felt that from slavery "Heaven sure had kept this spot of earth uncurs'd,To show how all lthings were created first."In a few days after we landed,the Rev.Francis Bishop and his lady came and invited us to be their guests;to whose unlimited kindness and watchful care my wife owes,in a great degree,her restoration to health.
We enclosed our letter from the Rev.Mr.May to Mr.Estlin,who at once wrote to invite us to his house at Bristol.On arriving there,both Mr.and Miss Estlin received us as cordially as did our first good Quaker friends in Pennsylvania.It grieves me much to have to mention that he is no more.
Everyone who knew him can truthfully say--"Peace to the memory of a man of worth,A man of letters,and of manners too!
Of manners sweet as Virtue always wears When gay Good-nature dresses her in smiles."It was principally through the extreme kindness of Mr.Estlin,the Right Hon.Lady Noel Byron,Miss Harriet Martineau,Mrs.Reid,Miss Sturch,and a few other good friends,that my wife and myself were able to spend a short time at a school in this country,to acquire a little of that education which we were so shamefully deprived of while in the house of bondage.The school is under the super-vision of the Misses Lushington,D.C.L.During our stay at the school we received the greatest atten-tion from every one;and I am particularly indebted to Thomas Wilson,Esq.,of Bradmore House,Chis-wick,(who was then the master,)for the deep interest he took in trying to get me on in my studies.We shall ever fondly and gratefully cherish the memory of our endeared and departed friend,Mr.Estlin.We,as well as the Anti-Slavery cause,lost a good friend in him.However,if departed spirits in Heaven are conscious of the wickedness of this world,and are allowed to speak,he will never fail to plead in the presence of the angelic host,and before the great and just Judge,for down-trodden and outraged humanity.
"Therefore I cannot think thee wholly gone;The better part of thee is with us still;Thy soul its hampering clay aside hath thrown,And only freer wrestles with the ill.
"Thou livest in the life of all good things;What words thou spak'st for Freedom shall not die;Thou sleepest not,for now thy Love hath wings To soar where hence thy hope could hardly fly.
"And often,from that other world,on this Some gleams from great souls gone before may shine,To shed on struggling hearts a clearer bliss,And clothe the Right with lustre more divine.
"Farewell!good man,good angel now!this hand Soon,like thine own,shall lose its cunning,too;Soon shall this soul,like thine,bewildered stand,Then leap to thread the free unfathomed blue."JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL.
In the preceding pages I have not dwelt upon the great barbarities which are practised upon the slaves;because I wish to present the system in its mildest form,and to show that the "tender mercies of the wicked are cruel."But I do now,however,most solemnly declare,that a very large majority of the American slaves are over-worked,under-fed,and frequently unmercifully flogged.
I have often seen slaves tortured in every con-ceivable manner.I have seen him hunted down and torn by bloodhounds.I have seen them shamefully beaten,and branded with hot irons.Ihave seen them hunted,and even burned alive at the stake,frequently for offences that would be applauded if committed by white persons for similar purposes.
In short,it is well known in England,if not all over the world,that the Americans,as a people,are notoriously mean and cruel towards all coloured persons,whether they are bond or free.
"Oh,tyrant,thou who sleepest On a volcano,from whose pent-up wrath,Already some red flashes bursting up,Beware!"End
