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diff --git a/old/44343.txt b/old/44343.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..cc5dc9c --- /dev/null +++ b/old/44343.txt @@ -0,0 +1,20308 @@ +Project Gutenberg's The Journal of Negro History, Volume 8, 1923, by Various + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: The Journal of Negro History, Volume 8, 1923 + +Author: Various + +Editor: Carter G. Woodson + +Release Date: December 3, 2013 [EBook #44343] + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK JOURNAL OF NEGRO HISTORY, VOL 8 *** + + + + +Produced by Tor Martin Kristiansen, Richard J. Shiffer and +the Distributed Proofreading volunteers at +http://www.pgdp.net for Project Gutenberg. (This file was +produced from images generously made available by The +Internet Archive/American Libraries.) + + + + + +[Transcriber's Note: Every effort has been made to replicate this +text as faithfully as possible, including obsolete and variant +spellings and other inconsistencies. Most notably, in Issue No. 2, +April, 1923, spelling errors found in Paul Cuffe's own writings (e.g., +travel journals, letters, will, etc.) are left as published. Text that +has been changed is noted at the end of this ebook.] + + + + + THE JOURNAL + + OF + + NEGRO HISTORY + + CARTER G. WOODSON + EDITOR + + VOLUME VIII + + 1923 + + THE ASSOCIATION FOR THE STUDY OF NEGRO LIFE + AND HISTORY, INC. + + LANCASTER, PA., AND WASHINGTON, D. C. + 1923 + + LANCASTER PRESS, INC. + LANCASTER, PA. + + + + + CONTENTS OF VOLUME VIII + + + NO. 1. JANUARY, 1923 + + L. P. JACKSON: _The Educational Efforts of the Freedmen's + Bureau and Freedmen's Aid Societies in South Carolina, + 1862-1872_ 1 + G. R. WILSON: _The Religion of the American Negro Slave: His + Attitude toward Life and Death_ 41 + G. SMITH WORMLEY: _Prudence Crandall_ 72 + DOCUMENTS: 81 + _Extracts from Newspapers and Magazines._ + _Anna Murray-Douglass--My Mother as I Recall Her._ + _Frederick Douglass in Ireland._ + BOOK REVIEWS: 108 + BRAGG'S _The History of the Afro-American Group of the + Episcopal Church_; HAYNES'S _The Trend of the Races_; + HAMMOND'S _In the Vanguard of a Race_; The Chicago + Commission on Race Relations, _The Negro in Chicago_. + NOTES: 115 + PROCEEDINGS OF THE ANNUAL MEETING OF THE ASSOCIATION FOR + THE STUDY OF NEGRO LIFE AND HISTORY 116 + + + NO. 2. APRIL, 1923 + + J. W. BELL: _The Teaching of Negro History_ 123 + PAUL W. L. JONES: _Negro Biography_ 128 + GEORGE W. BROWN: _Haiti and the United States_ 134 + H. N. SHERWOOD: _Paul Cuffe_ 153 + DOCUMENTS: 230 + _The Will of Paul Cuffe._ + BOOK REVIEWS: 233 + WIENER'S _Africa and the Discovery of America_; + DETWEILER'S _The Negro Press in the United States_; + MCGREGOR'S _The Disruption of Virginia_; JOHNSTON'S + _A Comparative Study of the Bantu and Semi-Bantu Languages_. + NOTES: 243 + + + NO. 3. JULY, 1923 + + T. R. DAVIS: _Negro Servitude in the United States_ 247 + GORDON B. HANCOCK: _Three Elements of African Culture_ 284 + J. C. HARTZELL: _Methodism and the Negro in the United States_ 301 + WILLIAM RENWICK RIDDELL: _Notes on the Slave in Nouvelle + France_ 316 + DOCUMENTS: 331 + _Banishment of the Free People of Color from Cincinnati._ + _First Protest against Slavery in the United States._ + _A Negro Pioneer in the West._ + _Concerning the Origin of Wilberforce._ + COMMUNICATIONS: 338 + _A Letter from Mr. J. W. Cromwell bearing on the Negro in + West Virginia._ + _A Letter from Dr. James S. Russell giving Information about + Peter George Morgan of Petersburg, Virginia._ + _A Letter from Captain A. B. Spingarn about early Education + of the Negroes in New York._ + BOOK REVIEWS: 346 + JONES'S _Piney Woods and its Story_; JOHNSON'S _American + Negro Poetry_; RHODES'S _The McKinley and Roosevelt + Administrations_; GUMMERE'S _Journal of John Woolman_. + NOTES: 351 + THE SPRING CONFERENCE 353 + + + NO. 4. OCTOBER, 1923 + + ALBERT PARRY: _Abram Hannibal, the Favorite of Peter the + Great_ 359 + ALRUTHEUS A. TAYLOR: _The Movement of the Negroes from + the East to the Gulf States from 1830 to 1850_ 367 + ELIZABETH ROSS HAYNES: _Negroes in Domestic Service in the + United States_ 384 + DOCUMENTS: 443 + _Documents and Comments on Benefit of Clergy as applied to + Slaves, by Wm. K. Boyd._ + COMMUNICATIONS: 448 + _A Letter from A. P. Vrede giving an Account of the + Achievements of the Rev. Cornelius Winst Blyd of Dutch + Guiana._ + _A Letter from Captain T. G. Steward throwing Light on + various Phases of Negro History._ + BOOK REVIEWS: 455 + FROBENIUS'S _Das Unbekannte Africa_; OBERHOLTZER'S + _History of the United States since the Civil War_; + LUCAS'S _Partition of Africa_; JACKSON'S _Boy's Life + of Booker T. Washington_. + NOTES: 465 + ANNUAL REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR FOR THE YEAR 1922-23 466 + + + + +THE JOURNAL + +OF + +NEGRO HISTORY + + + + +VOL. VIII., NO. 1 JANUARY, 1923. + + + + +THE EDUCATIONAL EFFORTS OF THE FREEDMEN'S BUREAU AND FREEDMEN'S AID +SOCIETIES IN SOUTH CAROLINA, 1862-1872[1] + + +INTRODUCTION + +Slavery in the United States was abolished by force of circumstances. +The appeal to arms in April, 1861, was made by the North for the +purpose of saving the Union, but only within a few months after +the breaking out of hostilities "what shall we do with the slaves +within our lines" was the cry heard from all sections of the invaded +territory. Deserted by their masters or endeavoring to obtain freedom, +the Negroes came into the Union camps in such large numbers that +humanitarian as well as military reasons demanded that something be +done to change their status and alleviate their physical suffering.[2] +In the absence of a uniform national policy on the matter, the +several commanding generals settled the question according to their +own notions. Butler, at Fortress Monroe, for example, refused +to return the group of fugitive slaves and cleverly styled them +"contraband of war." + +It was under these circumstances that voluntary benevolent +associations or freedmen's aid societies sprang up in quick succession +all over the North as agencies first to relieve physical suffering +and finally to administer to the religious and educational needs of +the blacks and white refugees. Missionary efforts were rapidly pushed +by them to all Confederate States just as fast as the Union armies +advanced into the invaded territory. These private philanthropic +efforts which began in 1861 finally led toward the close of the war +to the establishment by the United States Government of the Bureau of +Refugees, Freedmen and Abandoned Lands--an agency which carried on the +work already begun by the societies and at the same time cooperated +with them until changed conditions were reached about 1870. + +The military event in South Carolina which called forth immediate +relief was the capture of Hilton Head and the adjacent sea islands on +November 7, 1861, by Commodore Dupont and General T. W. Sherman.[3] +The agencies formed to succor the blacks on these islands were +the New England Freedmen's Aid Society, the New York National +Freedmen's Relief Association, and the Pennsylvania Freedmen's Relief +Association. These several bodies were non-sectarian in character. +Cooperating with them were some regular church organizations. + +At some time during the seven years existence of the Freedmen's +Bureau it embraced a six-fold program: (1) distributing rations and +medical supplies; (2) establishing schools and aiding benevolent +associations; (3) regulating labor contracts; (4) taking charge of +confiscated lands; (5) administering justice in cases where blacks +were concerned, and (6) the payment of bounties to soldiers. The +societies likewise exercised various physical functions, but it is +only the educational activities of all parties concerned that are of +primary interest here. + +The chosen period of ten years, 1862-1872, represents a rise and +fall. During the war the non-sectarian societies operated with all +the vigor that the military situation would permit. At its close in +1865 and lasting through 1866 their greatest efforts were expended. +Beginning about 1867, signs of retrenchment appear; and in 1868 their +operations practically cease. At the same time, both as a cause and as +a result of the dissolution of the non-sectarian societies, the church +organizations took up the work and carried it not only until the end +of this decade but down to the present time. The Freedmen's Bureau, +as guardian over all, had no funds the first year or two, but in 1867 +and especially in 1868 and 1869 when the societies weakened, it did +its greatest work. After 1870 the Freedmen's Bureau had but a nominal +existence. By Congressional action the institution expired in 1872. +With this ending and one or two important developments by the church +organizations in 1871 and 1872, this essay likewise closes. + +This educational campaign is thus one conducted by outside parties. +The several organizations adopted the policy of "no distinction on +account of race or color"; but, inasmuch as the schools were conducted +primarily for the blacks, these ten years represent an effort for +this race with automatically very little attention to the native +whites. The subject, then, lends itself to the following organization: +The Port Royal Experiment, the organization and relationship, the +establishment and work of schools, the difficulties and complications, +and self-help and labor among the freedmen. + + +THE PORT ROYAL EXPERIMENT + +The sea islands of South Carolina are located between Charleston and +Savannah on the Atlantic seaboard. In the group connected with the +capture of Hilton Head are St. Helena, Port Royal, Morgan, Paris and +Phillips. Collectively, as a military designation, these were known as +Port Royal. On these islands in 1861 there were about nine thousand +slaves,--the lowest in America.[4] As laborers on the cotton and rice +plantations these slaves for generations had been removed from all the +influences that tended to elevate the bondmen elsewhere. They were +densely illiterate, superstitious and in general but little removed +from African barbarism.[5] To add to the general low stage of these +slaves their language was a jargon hardly understandable by those who +came to teach them.[6] For example, some of them would say: "Us aint +know nothin' an' you is to larn we." + +Upon the capture of Hilton Head by the Federals, the white masters +fled to Charleston and the up-country and abandoned all of their +property.[7] The control of abandoned property at this time rested +with the Treasury Department. Accordingly, Secretary Chase sent Edward +L. Pierce, of Milton, Massachusetts, to Port Royal to report on the +amount of cotton and also to make recommendations for its collection +and sale. The findings of Pierce together with that of Sherman in +command of the military forces introduce us to our main story. At +the suggestion of Chase, Pierce and Sherman sent appeals broadcast +to the North for the immediate relief of the abandoned slaves. In +February, 1862, Sherman issued this General Order No. 9: "The helpless +condition of the blacks inhabiting the vast area in the occupation of +the forces of this command, calls for immediate action on the part +of a highly favored and philanthropic people.... Hordes of totally +uneducated, ignorant and improvident blacks have been abandoned by +their constitutional guardians, not only to all the future chances of +anarchy and starvation, but in such a state of abject ignorance and +mental stolidity as to preclude all possibility of self-government +and self-maintenance in their present condition.... To relieve the +Government of a burden that may hereafter become insupportable ... a +suitable system of culture and instruction must be combined with one +providing for their physical wants. In the meanwhile ... the service +of competent instructors will be received whose duties will consist in +teaching them, both young and old, the rudiments of civilization and +Christianity."[8] + +In response to this appeal there was organized in Boston, on February +7, 1862, the Boston Education Commission, later known as the New +England Freedmen's Aid Society or the New England Society, and on the +twenty-second of the same month, at a mass meeting held at the Cooper +Institute in New York City, the New York National Freedmen's Relief +Association was organized. At this meeting the following rules were +adopted with reference to the abandoned slaves: + + 1. "They must be treated as free men. + + 2. "They must earn their livelihood like other freemen and not be + dependent upon charity. + + 3. "Schools and churches shall be established among them, and the + sick shall be cared for."[9] + +Following in the wake of Boston and New York came Philadelphia in +March with the Port Royal Relief Committee, later known as the +Pennsylvania Freedmen's Relief Association or the Pennsylvania +Society. Carrying out the resolutions mentioned above, there assembled +on the third of March, 1862, at the port of New York, a party of +fifty-three teachers and superintendents of labor, including twelve +women, who set sail on the same day for Port Royal.[10] The salaries +of these persons were to be paid by their respective societies, while +transportation and military protection were afforded by the United +States Government. Following this original party in March and April, +came twenty more representatives from the New England Society and +likewise added increments from New York, Philadelphia and elsewhere +all through the year. In the Fall the American Missionary Association +of New York added a corps of thirty-one teachers. It must be remarked +at this point that these individuals represented the flower of New +England culture. The first party, "Gideonites" as they were called, +was made up in part of recent graduates of Harvard, Yale, Brown and +the divinity schools of Andover and Cambridge.[11] Furthermore, they +were sent forward on their mission by William Cullen Bryant, William +Lloyd Garrison, Francis G. Shaw and Edward Everett Hale, with the +sanction and close cooperation of the Secretary of the Treasury, S. P. +Chase. + +The voluntary steps taken by these parties attracted considerable +attention and concern from the best minds of Europe, as well as the +United States. Articles on the subject appeared in English and French +periodicals.[12] The result of these efforts to aid and elevate the +sea island Negroes was to be considered as an index as to their +ability to learn and likewise would indicate the possibility of +general development of slaves in other States. The labors of the +United States Government and the societies here, therefore, came to be +known as the "Port Royal Experiment." + +The United States Government and the regulation of the abandoned +territory for three years, until the close of the war, underwent a +number of changes. Prior to the arrival of the Gideonites on March +9th, the territory was controlled by the special cotton agent, E. L. +Pierce, as directed by the Treasury Department. In June, in response +to Congressional action, control passed to the War Department. Pierce +was displaced and Major Rufus Saxton was made the administrator with +headquarters at Beaufort on Port Royal. His duties were to supervise +the growth and sale of cotton, to regulate labor, to direct the +activities of new comers and settle them at suitable points over +the several islands. At the same time the military forces stationed +at Hilton Head passed successively under the command of Sherman and +General David Hunter. + +Pursuant to the Congressional Act of June 7, 1862, "for the collection +of direct taxes in insurrectionary states" the abandoned property was +bought in by the United States Government and private individuals. In +September, 1863, the Government relinquished its purchases whereby the +"freedmen," as they were now called, could buy property in twenty-acre +lots and at the same time establish school farms of six thousand +acres, the proceeds from which were to be used for educational +purposes. According to the plan laid out by Pierce, the islands were +divided into four districts which contained a total of one hundred and +eighty-nine plantations.[13] Over each district was placed a general +superintendent with a local superintendent for each plantation. W. C. +Gannet and John C. Zachas of the New England Society were placed in +charge of the schools.[14] + +School work had already begun prior to the arrival of the main party +through the initiative taken by Pierce and his coworkers. On the +eighth of January, 1862, Rev. Solomon Peck, of Roxbury, Massachusetts, +established a school for the contrabands at Beaufort. Another was +opened at Hilton Head by Barnard K. Lee of Boston the same month.[15] +In February there was organized still another at Beaufort, which +was taught for a short while by an agent of the American Missionary +Association.[16] In estimating what was accomplished by these +preliminary disorganized efforts we can assume that it was no more +than learning the alphabet. + +After their arrival in March those persons who had come in the +capacity of teachers began their work immediately. By the eighth +of May there were eight schools in operation.[17] The improvised +school houses consisted of cotton barns, sheds or old kitchens and +"praise houses."[18] Some had classes in tents.[19] The furniture +correspondingly was equally as crude. The desks were mere boards +thrown across old chairs. A fair idea of the general informal state of +affairs both as to the time and place of teaching is gained by this +recital of one teacher's experience: "I leave town about 6 o'clock A. +M. and arrive at the first plantation about 9, and commence teaching +those too young to labor. About 11 the task is done, and the field +hands come in for their share. About 1 P. M. I go to the other three +plantations one and a half miles. They assemble at the most central +one for instruction. This lasts about two hours, first teaching the +young then the older persons ... there being no buildings suitable +for a school on any plantation, I teach them under the shadow of a +tree, where it is more comfortable than any house could be in hot +weather."[20] In only one or two instances were there buildings +erected specifically for school purposes. One interesting case is that +of a building sent from the North in sections and likewise erected +piece by piece. An estimate of what was done as a whole during the +first year of the "experiment" may be made from the fact that 35,829 +books and pamphlets were sent to Port Royal by northern agencies, and +3,000 scholars were put under instruction. In addition to this purely +educational effort there were distributed 91,834 garments, 5,895 yards +of cloth, and $3,000 worth of farming implements and seeds.[21] + +Further light on the general nature and progress of the work is gained +through a return visit made by Pierce to Port Royal in March, 1863. At +this time he reported that there were more than 30 schools conducted +by about 40 or 45 teachers. The average attendance was 2,000 pupils +and the enrollment 1,000 more. The ages ranged from 8 to 12.[22] As +to the studies "the advanced classes were reading simple stories and +mastered some passages in such common school books, as Hillard's +_Second Primary Reader_, Wilson's _Second Reader_, and others of +similar grade." Some few were having elementary lessons in arithmetic, +geography and writing. + +A very large part of the school exercises consisted of utilizing what +the teachers found the scholars endowed with by nature--an abundance +of feeling as expressed in their folk songs and crude religion. An +insight into their inwardly depressed condition is gained by the fact +that these songs were usually cast in the minor mode, although they +were sung in a joyful manner.[23] "In their lowest state singing was +the one thing they could always do well. At first they sang melody +alone, but after having once been given an idea of harmony, they +instantly adopted it. Their time and tone were always true."[24] They +took particular delight in ringing out "Roll Jordan Roll." Along with +the singing the general atmosphere of the instruction was religious. +Indeed, the New Testament was used as a text-book. After the pupils +had learned to read a little they were set to work learning the Psalms +and the Ten Commandments. + +One teacher of the Port Royal group, herself of African descent, was +Charlotte S. Forten of Philadelphia. She was a graduate of the State +Normal School, Salem, Massachusetts, and had taught in the same city. +Refusing a residence in Europe, she joined one of the parties for Port +Royal to teach among her own people. This woman enjoyed the friendship +of Whittier and, as a beautiful singer herself, the poet sent her +directly his _Hymn_ written for the scholars of St. Helena Island +which she taught them to sing for the Emancipation Proclamation +exercises of January 1, 1863.[25] + +The banner school on "St. Helen's Isle" and Port Royal was the one +in charge of Laura M. Towne, of Philadelphia, and supported by the +Philadelphia Society. After three years' work this school had reached +a fair degree of organization. The school was conducted in the +building sent in sections as referred to above and was known as the +"Penn School" in honor of the society which supported it. Classes +were grouped as primary, intermediate, and higher, each in charge +of one teacher in a separate room. The branches of study, however, +were the same in all--reading, spelling, writing, geography, and +arithmetic.[26] The situation here described represents in the embryo +the present day Penn Normal and Agricultural Institute. + +Similarly well housed was the school taught by Elizabeth Hyde Botume, +of Boston, under the auspices of the New England Society. It commands +interest for the reason that it was the beginning in industrial +training on these islands. As plantation laborers the pupils knew +little or nothing of sewing. To supply this need Miss Botume +solicited the necessary apparatus from her northern friends and began +work on some old contraband goods stored in an arsenal. She reported +that sewing was a fascination to all and that "they learned readily +and soon developed much skill and ingenuity."[27] This school has come +down today as the Old Fort Plantation School. The work of these two +women thus took on a permanent character and to this extent largely +formed an exception to the general informality of the schooling at +Port Royal. + +Obviously, the heroic efforts of the several societies to assist +the blacks amounted to far more than school-room procedure. Indeed, +this was a very small part of the work of the teachers and it was +so regarded by them. They visited the little cabins, counselled and +advised their wards, attended church, and taught them in the Sabbath +Schools. Three years of this intermingling between the culture of +New England and the most degraded slaves in America resulted in +some promising signs for the latter. There was some improvement in +manners and dress and an increase in wants. At the stores set up on +the islands they were buying small articles for the improvement of +their surroundings.[28] For the first time they were now being paid +wages. At the tax sales in March, 1863, when 16,479 acres were up +for auction they purchased about 3,500 acres at the price of 93-1/2 +cents an acre. Shortly afterwards they had doubled this amount.[29] +As free laborers, however, they were somewhat disappointing to their +new employers since old habits still persisted. All in all, with some +three thousand or one-third of the whole number having received "more +or less" instruction in books the societies were well satisfied with +the experiment and at the close of the war increased their efforts at +Port Royal and throughout the State. + + +ORGANIZATION AND RELATIONSHIP + +The Freedmen's Bureau as established by Act of Congress March 3, 1865, +"with the supervision and management of all abandoned lands and the +control of all subjects relating to refugees and freedmen from rebel +states," was an outgrowth of the Port Royal experiment and other such +enterprises carried on elsewhere. Social conditions in the South at +the close of the war called for increased efforts on the part of +northern benevolence, but this was only possible through governmental +aid and supervision. The societies already at work during the war made +appeals to the government toward this end. One committee, for example, +on December 1, 1863, stated that the needs represented "a question +too large for anything short of government authority, government +resources, and government ubiquity to deal with."[30] + +The organization of the Freedmen's Bureau as affecting South +Carolina consisted of a commissioner at Washington, an assistant +commissioner for the State at large with headquarters at Charleston, +and sub-assistant commissioners--one for each of the five districts +into which the State was divided. Furthermore, there was a subdivision +of each district with agents in charge. For the educational work +of the Freedmen's Bureau there was a corps consisting of a general +superintendent on the commissioner's staff, a State superintendent +correspondingly on the assistant commissioner's staff at Charleston, +and the various sub-assistant commissioners and agents who combined +the supervision of schools with their other duties. The personnel of +this hierarchy consisted of General O. O. Howard, Commissioner, J. W. +Alvord, general superintendent of education, General Rufus Saxton, +General R. K. Scott, Colonel J. R. Edie, successively, assistant +commissioners, and Reuben Tomlinson, Major Horace Neide, Major E. +L. Deane, successively, State superintendents of education. These +officers, beginning with the lowest, made to their respective chiefs +monthly, quarterly or semi-annual reports which were finally submitted +to the commissioner at Washington, who was required to make "before +the commencement of each regular session of Congress, a full report of +his proceedings." + +The duties of the general superintendent were to "collect information, +encourage the organization of new schools, find homes for teachers and +supervise the whole work."[31] Similarly, the State superintendent was +to take cognizance of all that was "being done to educate refugees and +freedmen, secure proper protection to schools and teachers, promote +method and efficiency, and correspond with the benevolent agencies +... supplying his field."[32] On October 5, 1865, Tomlinson sent out +this notice to the people of the whole State: "I request all persons +in any part of this state ... to communicate with me furnishing me +with all the facilities for establishing schools in their respective +neighborhoods."[33] + +Between the Freedmen's Bureau and the several aid societies there was +perfect understanding. Howard announced: "In all this work it is not +my purpose to supersede the benevolent agencies already engaged, but +to systematize and facilitate them."[34] So close was the cooperation +between the efforts of the Bureau and the societies that it is hard in +places to separate the work of the two. + +Prior to the supplementary Freedmen's Bureau Act of July 16, 1866, the +Commission had no funds appropriated to it for educational purposes. +It was able to help only by supervision, transportation of teachers +and occupation of buildings in possession of the Freedmen's Bureau. +This action of the first year met the full approval of Congress, for +in the Act of July 16, 1866, it was stated "that the commissioner +... shall at all time cooperate with private benevolent agencies of +citizens in aid of freedmen ... and shall hire or provide by lease +buildings for purposes of education whenever such association shall +without cost to the government, provide suitable teachers and means of +instruction, and he shall furnish such protection as may be required +for the safe conduct of such schools." Further, "the commissioner of +this bureau shall have power to seize, hold, use, lease or sell all +buildings and tenements ... and to use the same or appropriate the +proceeds derived therefrom to the education of the freed people."[35] +In the following March, 1867, $500,000 was appropriated by Congress +for the Freedmen's Bureau "for buildings for schools and asylums; +including construction, rental and repairs."[36] + +The aid societies which under these provisions operated in South +Carolina may be classified in three groups: + +1. Non-sectarian: The New York National Freedmen's Relief Association, +the New England Freedmen's Aid Society and the Pennsylvania Freedmen's +Relief Association (as enumerated above). + +2. Denominational: (_a_) The American Baptist Home Mission Society; +(_b_) the Freedmen's Aid Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church; +(_c_) the Presbyterian Committee of Missions for Freedmen; (_d_) the +Friends Association of Philadelphia for the Aid and Elevation of the +Freedmen; (_e_) and the Protestant Episcopal Freedman's Commission. + +3. Semi-denominational: The American Missionary Association. + +To the non-sectarian societies might be added the London Freedmen's +Aid Society and the Michigan Freedmen's Relief Association, although +the latter supported only one school and for a short time only. +The American Missionary Association, during the war, served as +the agency for the Free Will Baptists, Wesleyan Methodists, and +Congregationalists, at which time its work was non-sectarian; but +as the first two drew out at the close of the war, this association +became very largely a congregational agency, establishing churches +along with its schools. None of these several agencies confined their +attention exclusively to South Carolina, although two of them, the New +York and New England societies, did their best work in this State. + +The spirit of good will that existed between the Freedmen's Bureau and +the societies, however, did not exist among the societies themselves, +particularly among the church organizations. For the purpose of +bringing about coordination and unity of action from 1863 to 1866, the +New York, New England and Pennsylvania societies joined hands with +various western societies operating in other States. Each year and +oftener these bodies underwent reorganization until in May, 1866, at +Cleveland, all non-sectarian societies in all parts of the country +united and formed the American Freedmen's Union Commission.[37] To +this general body the local societies sustained a relationship of +local autonomy. They were now known as the New York, New England, and +Pennsylvania "Branches." + +In addition to the organization already mentioned, there were attached +to each of the branches or local bodies numerous auxiliaries which +usually made themselves responsible for some one teacher or group +of teachers. In 1867 the New England Society had a total of 187 +auxiliaries, 104 in Massachusetts, 75 in Vermont, 6 in New Hampshire, +1 in Connecticut and 1 in Georgia.[38] The strongest New England +auxiliary was that at Dorchester, while that of New York was at +Yonkers. The London Freedmen's Aid Society with its many branches +raised one-half a million of dollars for the cause of the freedmen +in America. England reasoned that since America had given so freely +toward the Irish famine that it was now her duty and opportunity to +return the favor.[39] South Carolina's share in this sum was the +support of a school at Greenville and one at St. Helena.[40] + +During the war the several church bodies supported the non-sectarian +societies, but toward the close of the war they began by degrees to +withdraw support and take independent action.[41] To their regular +missionary departments was now added this new "Freedmen's Aid Society" +and to support it a "Freedmen's Fund." Several of the churches +also had their Woman's Home Missionary Society which established +and conducted schools in conjunction with the parent organization. +The efforts of the Presbyterians, Friends, and Episcopalians were +similarly directed in that they established the parochial type of +school as an annex to the church. With some exceptions, this policy +militated against the progress of their schools.[42] Among all the +different classes of societies the American Missionary Association +(New York City) was the best prepared for its work. This association +was organized in 1846 and prior to the war had already established +schools and missions. + +The several groups of societies had elements in common. They were one +on the question of the treatment of the Negro, there being scarcely +any difference in their purposes as stated in their constitutions. +They felt that the National Government was too silent on the +principles of freedom and equality and that the State Governments, +North as well as South, had laws inimical to the Negro that should be +abolished. The two groups differed in personnel, the non-sectarian +consisting largely of business men, particularly the New York Society, +and the denominational of clergymen. In the selection of teachers the +former made no requirements as to church affiliation, whereas the +latter usually upheld this principle. + +The ultimate aim of the church bodies was usually religious. They +endeavored to institute the true principles of Christianity among the +blacks, but in order to do this, in order to raise up ministers and +Christian leaders among them, schools were necessary.[43] The Baptists +in particular emphasized the training of ministers and the reports of +their agents in the field always included the number baptized along +with the number of schools and students. + + +ESTABLISHMENT AND WORK OF SCHOOLS + +The schools established during this period may be roughly classified +as primary and higher, under the auspices of the non-sectarian and +denominational bodies respectively. They include day schools, night +schools, and Sabbath schools. + +The term "higher" includes secondary and college instruction, although +within this decade only two or three schools were even doing secondary +work while another which reports "classical" students was really +of secondary rank. Some of the church schools were graced with the +name "college" and "university" which in reality merely represents +the expectation of the promoters. In later years at least two of the +institutions begun at this time reached college rank.[44] + +The Freedmen's Bureau assumed general charge and supervision of +education for the State in the fall of 1865, under the direction of +Superintendent Reuben Tomlinson. Schools were in operation, however, +before this time--those at Port Royal and the Beaufort district, as +mentioned above, continued in operation and in increased numbers. +At Charleston schools were opened under the control of the military +government on the fourth of March, 1865, only a few weeks after the +surrender of the city. James Redpath was appointed as superintendent +of these schools. Outside of these two places no regularly organized +schools were begun until the Fall, when they were extended over all +the State. + +The Charleston and Columbia schools are of chief interest. On March +31, 1865, after the schools had just opened, Redpath reported the +following in operation with the attendance of each: + + Morris Street School 962 + Ashley Street School 211 + Saint Phillip Street School 850 + Normal School 511 + King Street School (boys) 148 + Meeting Street School 211 + Saint Michael's School 221 + ----- + Total 3,114 + +There were employed eighty-three teachers, seventy-five of whom, +white and colored, were natives of Charleston. The salaries of these +teachers were paid by the New York and New England societies and +cooperating with Redpath in organizing these schools were agents of +these societies, one of whom served as a principal of one school. +Within a month or two another school was added to this list, and +during the same time there sprang up five night schools for adults. +The students were made up of both white and Negro children and were +taught in separate rooms. The whites, however, represented a very +small proportion of the total number.[45] + +In the fall of the year, with the reopening of the schools, the +general organization underwent considerable changes due to the +restoration of the regular civil government in charge of the +ex-Confederates. Most of the schools mentioned above were now +conducted for white children and taught by the native whites as of +old. The Morris Street School, however, was kept for Negro children +and taught by the native whites. The Normal School in time became the +Avery Institute. The New England Society, which in the Spring had +supported the Morris Street School, moved to the Military Hall and +subsequently built the Shaw Memorial School. This school was named in +the honor of Colonel Robert G. Shaw, who was killed during the war in +the assault on Fort Wagner (Morris Island) while leading his Negro +troops. The funds for the erection of the school were contributed +by the family of Colonel Shaw and they retained a permanent interest +in it. In 1874, when the New England Society dissolved, the school +was bought by the public school authorities and used for Negro +children.[46] During the course of four or five years other schools +were established here or in the vicinity of Charleston by the several +church organizations. + +Charleston thus made a commendable start in education partly for the +reason that the city had a school system before the war and for a +while during the conflict. The free Negroes of this city likewise had +been instructed under certain restrictions during slavery time.[47] +The schools which were controlled or supported by the northern +agencies were by 1868 offering an elementary grade of instruction +corresponding to about the fourth or fifth grade with classes in +geography, English composition and arithmetic. Just here, however, it +must be said that the personnel of the student body was constantly +changing or at least during 1865 and 1866. Charleston was merely a +sort of way station for the blacks, who, returning from the up-country +where they had fled or had been led during the war, were on their way +to the sea islands to take up land as offered by Sherman's order.[48] +During April, 1865, Redpath reported that at least five hundred pupils +"passed through" the schools, remaining only long enough to be taught +a few patriotic songs, to keep quiet and to be decently clad. Others +in turn came and in turn were "shipped off."[49] + +Columbia, though behind Charleston in point of time, made an equally +good beginning in spite of annoying handicaps. There was a fertile +field here for teaching, since the blacks were crowding in from all +the surrounding territory. Sherman having destroyed about all the +suitable buildings, T. G. Wright, representative of the New York +Society, in company with three northern ladies, started a school +on November 6, 1865, in the basement of a Negro church with 243 +scholars. Soon thereafter, on November 7th, another was begun in the +small room of a confiscated building "very unsuitable for a school +room." On the same day two other schools were begun at similar places, +one of them at General Ely's headquarters and taught by his daughters. +On the ninth another school started on Arsenal Hill in an old building +rented for a church by the freedmen and on the thirteenth still +another was opened in one of the government buildings. These schools +were numerically designated as "No. 1," "No. 2," etc., being nine in +all. In addition to these there were two night schools begun about +the same time, one of them enrolling fifty adult males and the other +121.[50] The Columbia schools were taught wholly under the control +of the New York Society by northern ladies with the assistance of a +few Negro instructors who were competent to assist them. They had a +large attendance and consequently there were many changes made in the +location of schools in the course even of the first few months. + +Fortunately these temporary congested quarters gave way in the +fall of 1867 when the Howard School was completed. This school was +erected by the New York Society and the Freedmen's Bureau at a cost +of about $10,000. It contained ten large class rooms. At the close +of the school year (1868) it had an attendance of 600. The closing +exercises of the year seemed to have attracted considerable attention +inasmuch as the officers of the city, Tomlinson, and newspaper men all +attended. The examinations at the close embraced reading, spelling, +arithmetic, geography, history and astronomy. _The Columbia Phoenix_ +(a local paper) said of the exercises: "We were pleased with the +neat appearance and becoming bearing of the scholars ... and the +proficiency exhibited in the elementary branches was respectable."[51] + +The New York Society did its best work in Columbia. At Beaufort this +same organization had schools which occupied the large buildings +formerly used by the whites. The New England Society was best +represented at Charleston and Camden. The Philadelphia Society was +best represented at St. Helena. Some notion of the exact location of +the schools fostered by these societies (May, 1866) may be gained from +the following table:[52] + + Number of + Town teachers Support + + Ashdale 1 New York Branch + Combahee 1 New York Branch + Columbia 10 New York Branch + Edgerly 1 New York Branch + Greenville 6 New York Branch + Gadsden 2 New York Branch + Hopkins 1 New York Branch + James Island 5 New York Branch + Mitchellville 2 New York Branch + Lexington 2 New York Branch + Pineville 1 New York Branch + Perryclear 1 New York Branch + Pleasant Retreat 2 New York Branch + Red House 1 New York Branch + Rhett Place 2 New York Branch + River View 1 New York Branch + Woodlawn 2 Michigan Branch + Camden[53] 2 New England Branch + Darlington 2 New England Branch + Edisto Island 2 New England Branch + Hilton Head 6 New England Branch + Jehosse's Island 2 New England Branch + Johns Island 1 New England Branch + Marion 2 New England Branch + Orangeburg 3 New England Branch + Summerville 3 New England Branch + Port Royal Island 2 Pennsylvania Branch + Rockville 2 Pennsylvania Branch + St. Helena 5 Pennsylvania Branch + Beaufort 9 New York Branch 7 + New England Branch 2 + Charleston 36 New York Branch 13 + New England Branch 23 + Georgetown 4 New York Branch 1 + New England Branch 3 + +With some exceptions the schools enumerated here and elsewhere +unfortunately had only a short existence for the reason that the +societies which supported them gradually became short of funds. The +New York Society, for example, in 1868, found itself hardly able to +bring its teachers home. The efficiency of other societies likewise +began to wane. By January 1, 1870, or within a few months afterwards, +the Freedmen's Bureau passed out of existence. Alvord and his whole +staff thereby were discharged from duty. The non-sectarian societies +ceased to exist because the aid societies of the several northern +churches claimed the allegiance of their members. A stronger reason, +as given by them, was that the freedmen were now (1868) in a position +to help themselves politically through the provision of Negro +Suffrage for the new State government, under the Congressional plan +of reconstruction. The Freedmen's Bureau was discontinued for similar +reasons. + +A few of the schools so well begun either passed into the hands of +the State under regular State or municipal control of schools, as, +for example, the Shaw Memorial at Charleston, or they became private +institutions with other means of northern support. Before expiration, +however, during 1869, the Freedmen's Bureau used its remaining funds +to establish new schools and repair buildings throughout the State. +A graphic picture of the Bureau's activity during the latter part of +1869 is thus shown:[54] + +SCHOOL HOUSES ERECTED + + ==============+========+============+==========+========+=========== + | | | | Value | Ownership + Location | Cost | Size | Material | of lot | of lot + --------------+--------+------------+----------+--------+----------- + Bennettsville | $1,000 | 30 x 40 | Wood | $100 | Freedmen + Gadsden | 800 | 25 x 40 | " | 50 | " + Laurens | 1,000 | 30 x 40 | " | 100 | " + Newberry | 2,500 | 2 stories} | " | 300 | " + | | 26 x 50 } | | | + Walterboro | 1,000 | 30 x 40 | " | 100 | " + Manning | 500 | 25 x 40 | " | 50 | " + Lancaster | 500 | 25 x 30 | " | 50 | " + Graniteville | 700 | 25 x 40 | " | 100 | " + Blackville | 500 | 25 x 30 | " | 50 | " + +--------+ | | | + | $8,500 | | | | + --------------+--------+------------+----------+--------+----------- + +SCHOOL HOUSES REPAIRED AND RENTED + + Locality Ownership Amount + expended + + Conkem Freedmen $ 500 + Beaufort Freedmen 1,000 + Columbia Bureau 100 + Charleston (Orphan Asylum) Protestant Episcopal 2,400 + Charleston (Shaw School) Bureau 100 + Charleston (Meeting St. Post + Office) Rented 40 + Charleston Protestant Episcopal 8,000 + Chester Rented 30 + Darlington Bureau 100 + Eustis Place Bureau 800 + Florence Freedmen 35.75 + Marion Bureau 150 + Mt. Pleasant Bureau 40 + Sumter Freedmen 500 + Shiloh Freedmen 100 + Winnsboro Bureau 50 + Orangeburg Methodist Episcopal Church 2,500 + ---------- + Total $16,445.75 + +After all, the real significance of this educational movement was +the policy adopted by the denominational bodies that they should +establish permanent institutions--colleges and normal schools to +train teachers for the common schools and also in time that the +Negroes themselves should run these institutions.[55] South Carolina +under the Negro-Carpet-Bag rule in 1868, then, for the first time +ventured to establish a school system supported by public taxation. +For this object there were practically no competent teachers to serve +the Negroes. The only sources of supply were the persons trained in +the schools herein described and a few of the northern teachers who +remained behind.[56] Very small and crude it was in the beginning, +but the policy adopted here at least furnishes the idea upon which +ever since the public schools of the State have been mainly justified. +By 1870 the Perm School at St. Helena was sending out teachers in +response to calls from the State.[57] In the same year the principal +of the Avery Institute reported that he was asked by the State to +furnish fifty teachers.[58] This school was perhaps the best fitted to +perform this function. + +The American Missionary Association supported, at Port Royal and +other points in the State, schools which, along with many others, had +only a temporary existence. The lasting and best contribution of this +association to this movement was the Avery Institute, its second best +was the Brewer Normal. Avery was established at Charleston on October +1, 1865, in the State Normal School building, which was offered by +General Saxton. The school commenced with twenty teachers and one +thousand scholars with every available space taken, one hundred being +crowded in the dome. The next year, having been turned out of this +building, the school was held for two years in the Military Hall in +Wentworth Street. On May 1, 1869, the school entered its present new +large building on Bull Street when it dropped the name of the Saxton +School for Avery in honor of the philanthropist from a portion of +whose bequest $10,000 was spent by the American Missionary Association +for the grounds and a mission home. The building proper was erected by +the Freedmen's Bureau at a cost of $17,000.[59] + +Avery very soon dropped its primary department and concentrated its +efforts on the normal or secondary department where it had from the +beginning a comfortable number of students. These students came +largely from the free Negro class. Under the guidance of their +well-trained Negro principal the boys and girls here were reading +Milton's "L'Allegro," translating Caesar, and solving quadratic +equations.[60] From the standpoint of grade of instruction, Avery was +the banner school of the State. With a less pretentious beginning +Brewer was established by the American Missionary Association at +Greenwood in 1872 on school property valued at $4,000. + +The Baptist Home Mission Society, following in the wake of the +American Missionary Association, made a beginning at Port Royal with +the labor of Rev. Solomon Peck, at Beaufort. This society in 1871 +established Benedict at Columbia. The school property consisted +of eighty acres of land with one main building--"a spacious frame +residence," two stories, 65 x 65. This property cost $16,000 with +the funds given by Mrs. Benedict, a Baptist lady of New England. +During the first year the school had sixty-one students, most of whom +were preparing for the ministry.[61] In 1868, Mrs. Rachel C. Mather +established the Industrial School at Beaufort which now bears her +name. This school came under the auspices of the Women's American +Baptist Home Mission Society. + +The Freedmen's Aid Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church conducted +primary schools at Charleston, Darlington, Sumter, John's Island, +Camden, St. Stephens, Gourdins' Station, Midway and Anderson; +but, like the Baptists, its substantial contribution was Claflin +University. This institution was established in 1869 in the building +formerly used by the Orangeburg Female Academy. The property was +purchased through the personal efforts of its first president, Dr. A. +Webster. The University was granted a charter by the State and named +in honor of Hon. Lee Claflin of Massachusetts, by whose liberality +it came into existence. The attendance the first year was 309 and by +1872 the institution had a college department, a normal department, a +theological department, and a preparatory department.[62] The Women's +Home Missionary Society of this same church had the excellent policy +of establishing homes for girls where, in addition to purely classroom +work, they would be taught the principles of home making and Christian +womanhood. In pursuance of this object in 1864 Mrs. Mather of Boston +established a school at Camden which in later years became known as +the Browning Industrial Home. + +The Presbyterian Church, through its Committee of Missions for +Freedmen, in 1865 established the Wallingford Academy in Charleston +at a cost of $13,500, the Freedmen's Bureau paying about one-half of +this amount. In 1870 the number of pupils was 335. In later years this +school, like others planted by the churches, was doing creditable +secondary work and training teachers for the city and different parts +of the State.[63] At Chester in 1868 this Committee established the +Brainerd Institute and in the same year the Goodwill Parochial School +at Mayesville. + +The Protestant Episcopal Freedmen's Commission in cooperation with its +South Carolina Board of Missions to Negroes established a school at +Charleston (1866) in the Marine Hospital through the effort of Rev. A. +Toomer Porter, a native white man of Charleston. Two years later this +institution had a corps of thirteen teachers and about six hundred +pupils.[64] Smaller efforts were likewise made by this commission at +Winnsboro and other parts of the State. + +The Friends (Pennsylvania Quakers) made a most valuable contribution +to this general educational movement in 1868 through the efforts of +Martha Schofield in establishing at Aiken the Schofield Normal and +Industrial School. This institution in time became one of the most +influential, not only in South Carolina but in the entire South. The +Friends' Association of Philadelphia for the Aid and Elevation of +the Freedmen, established, in 1865, at Mt. Pleasant (Charleston) the +school which later became known as the Laing Normal and Industrial +School.[65] Miss Abbey D. Munro, in 1869, became its principal. + + +DIFFICULTIES AND COMPLICATIONS. + +As a result of these efforts an observer said: "In South Carolina +where, thirty years ago, the first portentious rumblings of the +coming earthquake were heard and where more recently the volcanic +fires of rebellion burst forth ... our missionaries and teachers +have entered to spread their peaceful and healing influence.... The +Sea Islands have been taken possession of in the name of God and +humanity.... King Cotton has been dethroned and is now made humbly +to serve for the enriching and elevating of the late children of +oppression."[66] Another said: "New England can furnish teachers +enough to make a New England out of the whole South, and, God helping, +we will not pause in our work until the free school system ... has +been established from Maryland to Florida and all along the shores +of the Gulf."[67] They came to the South with the firm belief in the +capacity of the Negro for mental development and on a scale comparable +to the white man. The letters written by teachers to northern friends +abound in reports to this effect. Such was the spirit in which the +northern societies entered the South. + +The northern societies, however, failed "to make a New England out of +the South"; but due credit must be given them for their earnestness +and enthusiasm. They entered the State while the war was in progress +and thus imperiled their lives. The planters at Port Royal who had +abandoned their property certainly looked forward to the restoration +of the same and to this end they struggled by force of arms. The +freedmen themselves, as well as their northern benefactors under +these conditions, lived in fear lest the restored planters should +successfully reestablish the old regime. One teacher at Mitchelville +on Hilton Head reported one week's work as "eventful." A battle only +twelve miles away at Byrd's Point was raging while her school was in +session. The cannonading could be heard and the smoke of the burning +fields was visible.[68] + +There were other difficulties. In view of the fact that the +missionaries associated with the freedmen in a way totally unknown +to southern tradition, they were met with social ostracism. It was +impossible to obtain boarding accommodations in a native white family +and in line with the same attitude the lady teachers were frequently +greeted with sneers and insults and a general disregard for the +courtesies of polite society. One teacher said: "Gentlemen sometimes +lift their hats to us, but the ladies always lift their noses."[69] + +Social contact with the Negroes, however, was a necessity.[70] The +letter of instruction to teachers from the Pennsylvania Branch +contained this rule: "All teachers, in addition to their regular work, +are encouraged to interest themselves in the moral, religious and +social improvement of the families of their pupils; to visit them in +their homes; to instruct the women and girls in sewing and domestic +economy; to encourage and take part in religious meetings and Sunday +schools."[71] Thus it was that a very large part of the activities +of the teachers were what we call "extracurricular." They were not +confined to the school room but went from house to house.[72] + +The spirit of informality which seemed to pervade the whole work, +along with that of the Freedmen's Bureau, moreover, serves to explain +in part their misfortune resulting from poor business methods. +The reports which Howard and Alvord have left us reveal unusually +important facts. Their funds were limited and what monies they did +raise were not always judiciously expended. The salaries of the +teachers usually ranged from $25 to $50 a month. One society paid $35 +a month without board and $20 with board. These salaries, the personal +danger, the social ostracism and unhealthy climate, all lead one to +feel, however, that the motive behind these pioneering efforts was +strictly missionary. Some of the teachers worked without a salary and +a few even contributed of their means to further the work. + +The campaign of education for the elevation of the freedmen was a +product of war time and as such was conducted in the spirit engendered +by war conditions. In addition to the purely school exercises of the +three R's was the political tenor of the instruction. As staunch +Republicans no little allusion was made to "Old Jeff Davis" and the +"Rebels." Besides the native songs with which the scholars were so +gifted there was frequent singing of _John Brown_ and _Marching +through Georgia_. The Fourth of July and the first of January were +carefully observed as holidays. Several of the teachers in the +schools and officers of the Freedmen's Bureau--Tomlinson, Cardoza, +Jillson, Mansfield, French, and Scott--became office holders in the +Negro-carpetbagger government of 1868. + +There was another handicap. The Civil War left South Carolina +"Shermanized." The story of this invader's wreck of the State is +a familiar one. Barnwell, Buford's Bridge, Blackville, Graham's +Station (Sato), Midway, Bamberg, and Orangeburg were all more or less +destroyed. Three-fifths of the capital was committed to the flames and +Charleston, although this city escaped the invader, had been partially +burned already in 1861.[73] With millions of dollars in slave property +lost, added to the above, the native whites were in no frame of +mind to approve this philanthropic effort of the northern teachers. +Furthermore, on the question of education the State had no substantial +background by which it could encourage any efforts at this time. +Free schools had been established prior to the war, but owing to the +eleemosynary stigma attached to them and the permissive character of +the legislative acts very little had been accomplished for the whites +even, in the sense that we understand public education today.[74] + +There ran very high the feeling that the Yankees were fostering social +equality and that if they were allowed to educate the freedmen the +next thing would be to let them vote.[75] Some reasoned that since +the North had liberated the slaves, it was now its business to care +for them. It is safe to say that without the protection of the United +States military forces during the first year at least the efforts to +enlighten the ex-slaves would have been impossible. The native white +attitude, however, appears to have undergone a change from year to +year and from locality to locality. + +At Orangeburg, the superintendent of education reported that a night +school was fired into on one or two occasions, and the attempt to +discover the perpetrators of this outrage was without success.[76] A. +M. Bigelow, a teacher of a colored school at Aiken, was compelled by +curses and threats to leave the town in order to save his life.[77] In +the town of Walhalla a school conducted by the Methodist church was +taught by a lady from Vermont. A number of white men tried to break +it up by hiring a drunken vagabond Negro to attend its sessions and +accompany the young lady through the village street. The attempted +outrage was frustrated only by the intercession of a northern +gentleman. At Newberry, about the same time, a man who was building +a school for the freedmen was driven by armed men from the hotel +where he was staying and his life threatened. These occurrences the +superintendent reported as "specimen" cases.[78] + +In other sections of the State where the planters sustained amicable +relations to all the functions of the Freedmen's Bureau, there was +little opposition to the elevation of the freedmen. In the districts +of Darlington, Marion, and Williamsburg there was a fair spirit of +cordiality. At Darlington the Yankee editor of _The New Era_ in its +first edition probably thus expressed the feeling of the community: +"Let the excellent work be sustained wherever it shall be introduced +and the happiest results will be witnessed."[79] + +Charleston and Columbia, despite the wreck of these cities, as already +shown, proved to be an open field for educational endeavor. In the +former city where it was no new thing to see the blacks striving for +education, the opposition expressed itself in the occupation of the +buildings formerly used for the whites.[80] A correspondent of _The +New York Times_ reported that in Columbia "the whites extend every +possible facility and encouragement in this matter of education."[81] +There is one instance of actual initiative in the education of the +freedmen in the case of Rev. A. Toomer Porter of the Episcopal +Church in Charleston as already mentioned. This gentleman went North +to solicit the necessary funds and while there visited Howard and +President Johnson. For his purpose the president himself contributed +one thousand dollars.[82] For this deed _The Charleston Courier_ +remarked that it was "a much more substantial and lasting token of +friendship to the colored race than all the violent harangues of mad +fanatics." Finally in enumerating here and there cases of a favorable +attitude, Governor Orr's remarks cannot be overlooked. To the colored +people at Charleston he said: "I am prepared to stand by the colored +man who is able to read the Declaration of Independence and the +Constitution of the United States. I am prepared to give the colored +man the privilege of going to the ballot-box and vote."[83] + +The length of service for most of the teachers was one year. In the +original Port Royal party of March 3, 1862, several of the party +returned home before summer. The American Missionary Association +which sent thirty-five teachers to Port Royal reported "eight for a +short time only." From these facts it is to be inferred, despite the +glowing reports of success, that the teachers met with discouragement +and disappointment. Some of them were unfit for their duties and +some no doubt committed acts of indiscretion with reference to the +relationship of the races. + +The difficulties and complications of this movement were a part of +the war itself. Calmer moments of reflection which it is ours now to +enjoy, however, reveal the great value of the educational efforts of +the northern missionaries. Unfortunately, the efforts to uplift were +directed to only one race, but in a larger sense the work done has +been for the welfare of all. South Carolinians to-day will all pay +tribute to the work of Abbey D. Munro, Martha Schofield and Laura M. +Towne. These women, with others, gave their lives for the elevation of +the Negro race and what they did is merely a representation of that +common battle against ignorance and race prejudice. "She (Miss Towne) +came to a land of doubt and trouble and led the children to fresh +horizons and a clearer sky. The school she built is but the symbol +of a great influence; there it stands, making the desert blossom +and bidding coming generations look up and welcome ever-widening +opportunities. Through it she brought hope to a people and gave them +the one gift that is beyond all price to men."[84] + + +SELF-HELP AND LABOR AMONG THE FREEDMEN + +Were the Negroes there in such numbers and condition as to help +themselves? South Carolina in 1860 had a white population of 291,300, +a slave population of 402,406 and a free colored population of +9,914.[85] Having this large number of slaves, the dominant race in +its efforts to maintain control passed its police laws by which the +evils of slavery existed there in their worst form. One of these laws +was that of 1834 which made it a punishable offense to teach any slave +to read and write.[86] This law, however, was often violated and free +Negroes and even slaves attended school long enough to develop unusual +power. + +After generations of oppression the dawn of freedom brought with it +a social upheaval. The freedmen now proceeded to taste the forbidden +fruit and the people who brought learning to them they received with +open arms.[87] The Yankee school master was not only to the freedmen a +teacher but his deliverer from bondage. Happily in the enthusiasm of +the "late children of oppression" for learning they proved themselves +to be not objects of charity but actual supporters and promoters of +the educational movement. + +It was a principle of some of the societies to open no new school +unless a fair proportion of its expenses could be met by the parents +of the pupils.[88] There were made various arrangements by which +the freedmen could help sustain the schools. In some instances they +boarded the teachers and met the incidental expenses of the school +while the societies paid the salaries and traveling expenses. In this +way nearly one-half of the cost was sustained by them and in some +instances nearly two-thirds of it.[89] As the foregoing tables have +helped to show in part, in some cases the freedmen met the entire +expenses, bought the lot, erected the school house, and paid the +salary of the teacher. + +During 1866, Tomlinson reported five houses had been built by them and +others were under the course of erection. These were located at the +following places: + + Kingstree size 20 x 37 ft. + Darlington size 30 x 72 ft. + Florence size 35 x 45 ft. + Timmonsville size 14 x 24 ft. + Marion size 20 x 50 ft. + +During 1867 twenty-three school houses were reported to have been +built by the freedmen aided by the Freedmen's Bureau and northern +societies. For the support of school teachers this year they +contributed $12,200. This with $5,000 for school houses made an +aggregate of $17,200.[90] The school houses were placed in the +hands of trustees selected from among themselves and were to be held +permanently for school purposes.[91] + +The means by which the freedmen offered their support was not always +in cash but in kind. During the early years following the war there +was a scarcity of money in circulation. The employers of the blacks, +the planters, were themselves unable always to pay in cash, and as +a substitute a system of barter grew up.[92] Directing attention to +this situation and the general question of self-help, Governor Andrews +of Massachusetts, president of the New England Society, sent out the +following circular to the freedmen of the South: "The North must +furnish money and teachers--the noblest of her sons and daughters +to teach your sons and daughters. We ask you to provide for them, +wherever possible, school houses and subsistence. Every dollar you +thus save us will help to send you another teacher ... you can supply +the teachers' homes with corn, eggs, chickens, milk and many other +necessary articles.... Work an extra hour to sustain and promote +your schools."[93] The value of such labor averaged only about eight +dollars a month, but Governor Andrews' recommendation was carried out +in so many cases that much good was thereby accomplished. + +The campaign of education for the freedmen was temporary in character +and was so regarded by the Freedmen's Bureau and the societies. It +was merely an effort to place the ex-slaves on their own feet and +afterwards it was their task. In line with this policy the Freedmen's +Bureau and the military authorities seized every opportunity of +instituting self-government among them, especially where they were +congregated in large numbers. Such a case was Mitchelville. + +Sherman's field order 15 called for the laying aside of a vast +stretch of territory exclusively for the freedmen. In the same +manner in 1864 the military officers at Hilton Head laid out a +village for them near the officers' camps and introduced measures +of self-government. The village was called Mitchelville in honor of +General Ormsby Mitchell who had been like a father to the multitude of +fifteen hundred or more occupying the village. The place was regularly +organized with a Mayor and Common Council, Marshal, Recorder and +Treasurer, all black, and all elected by Negroes, except the Mayor and +Treasurer. Among the powers of the Common Council, which concern us +here, was the compulsory provision that "every child between the ages +of six and fifteen years ... shall attend school daily, while they are +in session, excepting only in cases of sickness ... and the parents +and guardians will be held responsible that said children so attend +school, under the penalty of being punished at the discretion of the +Council of Administration."[94] We may or may not call this South +Carolina's first compulsory school law. + +With a view to training teachers from among themselves the northern +teachers seized every opportunity to pick out a bright student who +would ultimately assume full responsibility. Accordingly, the schools +were taught by persons of both races. In addition those Negroes who +already had some learning were pressed into service. This arrangement +had its obvious disadvantages as well as advantages. The Negro teacher +understood the environment and the character and nature of the pupils +to a far greater extent than the northern coworker; but, as could be +expected, the native teacher was lacking in preparation. As one of +the northern journals expressed the situation, the "men and women +from the North carry much more than their education. They carry their +race, moral training, their faculty, their character, influence of +civilization, their ideas, sentiments and principles that characterize +northern society."[95] Occasionally native white teachers were +employed, but not always to the satisfaction of either the Yankee +teachers or their pupils. + +Besides the regular organized schools that came under the control +of the Freedmen's Bureau and the societies, the freedmen in their +eagerness to learn opened what Alvord styles "native schools" where +some man or woman who had just learned to read and write a very little +set about for the smallest pittance to teach his neighbors' children. +Such teaching, though possibly arising from a commendable spirit, +was a travesty on education. The white teachers characterized these +native schools "so far as any intelligent result goes" as "worse than +useless." They would rather receive "their pupils totally ignorant +than with the bad habits of reading, pronunciation and spelling of +these schools."[96] However, there were among the Negro teachers a few +who deserve special mention as showing signs of an endeavor to help +the movement and at the same time may serve as a test of the value of +the missionary movement by their northern friends. + +Some of the Negro teachers were from the North, as in the case of +Charlotte S. Forten already mentioned. There was also Mrs. C. M. +Hicks who was sent South by the New York Society and supported by an +auxiliary association in Albany. Her school was located at Anderson +and contained nearly two hundred pupils. After mentioning the good +order and decorum of the school, _The Anderson Intelligencer_, a local +white paper, says: "We were gratified with the proficiency and success +attained and trust that they will persevere in their efforts to make +better citizens and become more worthy of the high privileges now +granted to the race. This school is presided over by a colored female +(Mrs. Hicks) ... she is intelligent and capable and devotes all her +energies to the school."[97] + +At Greenville there was Charles Hopkins who taught a school for the +support of which his white neighbors contributed $230. He bought +at his own risk the building from the State arsenal and moved it +two miles on a piece of ground which he had leased for one year. +The school opened with about two hundred scholars among whom were +"boys and girls with rosy cheeks, blue eyes and flaxen hair, though +lately slaves, mingled with the black and brown faces."[98] A visitor +characterized the school as having "good order, rapid progress in +learning and a great deal more." After supporting the school as long +as possible Hopkins was relieved by the Freedmen's Bureau which +assumed the responsibility he had incurred, and he was further +aided by the accession of three additional teachers. His salary was +contributed by the New York Branch. Frank Carter at Camden was making +similar efforts during this period. + +Down on Hilton Head at Mitchelville in connection with the Port Royal +experiment there was Lymus Anders, a full-blooded African, who, prior +to the coming of the northern teachers, was unable to read and write. +Although fifty years old and having a family, he managed to learn to +read by having one of the teachers give him lessons at night and at +odd intervals. He was enterprising and after only a year or two had +managed to save four or five hundred dollars. He bought land at the +tax sales; and, in the efforts of his people at Mitchelville to have +churches and schools, he succeeded in erecting a church and a school +house with help from the whites and Negroes. The building cost nearly +$350 and in time there was added a teachers' home. The school was +taught by ladies from Northampton, Massachusetts, who always had the +cooperation and assistance of Anders. They characterized him as a +"black Yankee," not very moral or scrupulous, but a man who led all +the others of his race in enterprise and ambition.[99] + +Ned Lloyd White, who had picked up clandestinely a knowledge of +reading while still a slave, was an assistant to two ladies at St. +Helena, who had a school of ninety-two pupils made up largely of +refugees from a neighboring island. Likewise engaged was "Uncle +Cyrus," a man of seventy, who, in company with one Ned, assembled one +hundred and fifty children in two schools and taught them the best +they could until teachers were provided by the relief societies.[100] + +The brightest light among the Negro teachers was F. L. Cardoza. +He was a native of Charleston and received his primary and common +school education there under the instruction of the free Negroes of +that city. Being unable at his own expense to pursue his studies at +home as far as he desired, he attended the University of Glasgow. He +returned to Charleston and became a leader in the educational affairs +of the city immediately at the close of the war. He was employed +by the American Missionary Association and became principal of the +Saxton School, later known as Avery Institute. In conformity with his +classical training, he offered his advanced pupils languages and in +time they were ready for Howard University in Washington. There were +some four thousand children in the city of school age. Seeing the need +of a permanent graded school system supported by public taxation, he +used his influence to bring about this result. With regard to this +project Governor Orr said: "I heartily approve of the scheme of Mr. +Cardoza to educate thoroughly the colored children of Charleston.... +I am satisfied he will devote himself to the work earnestly and +faithfully, and merits, and should receive the confidence of the +public in his laudable undertaking." Other public officials spoke in +the same vein. One of the northern teachers said of him: "He is the +right man in the right place and I am very thankful that it has fallen +my lot to be placed under him."[101] + + +CONCLUSION + +Most of the work of the Bureau and the societies as already shown was +temporary in character and perhaps rightly so. In Howard's own words, +"it was but a beginning--a nucleus--an object lesson." Not more than +one-sixth of the total black population of school age was reached. The +movement only inaugurated a system of educational pioneering in the +benighted South. Scientific data as to exactly what was accomplished +unfortunately cannot be obtained owing to the inaccuracy of the +Freedmen's Bureau reports. For example, in the report of July 1, 1868, +the superintendent gives a total of sixty-two schools in operation +with an additional "estimated" number of 451. Again, the amount of +work done by the separate individual societies does not always tally +with the reports of the Freedmen's Bureau. + +Notwithstanding the fact that the efforts put forth failed to reach +our modern ideal of the education of all the people, yet the movement +did accomplish at least these three things: (1) By penetrating almost +every county or district in the State, the schools served to awaken +the Negroes to the need of education and to demonstrate to all +persons that it was practicable to educate them; (2) it led up to the +establishment of the public schools and left for this system material +equipment in the form of school buildings and furniture; and (3), +greatest of all, the combined efforts of the Freedmen's Bureau and +the societies left the State with institutions of higher grade--the +principal source of teachers for the common schools. + + LUTHER P. JACKSON + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] This dissertation was submitted in partial fulfilment of the +requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in the Faculty of +Education of Columbia University in 1922. + +[2] I. The sources for this dissertation are: + +1. PUBLIC DOCUMENTS. _Senate_: _38 Cong., 1 Sess., Vol. 1, No. +1--Letter from freedmen's aid societies, Dec. 17, 1863._ _39 Cong., +1 Sess., Vol. 2, No. 27--Reports of assistant commissioners, Dec. 1, +1865, to March 6, 1866._ _39 Cong., 2 Sess., Vol. 1, No. 6--Reports +of assistant commissioners, Jan. 3, 1867._ HOUSE EXECUTIVE DOCUMENTS. +_39 Cong., 1 Sess., Vol. 7, No. 11_; _39 Cong., 2 Sess., Vol. 3, No. +1_; _40 Cong., 2 Sess., Vol. 2, No. 1_; _40 Cong., 3 Sess., Vol. 3, +No. 1_; _41 Cong., 2 Sess., Vol. 6, No. 142_; _41 Cong., 3 Sess., Vol. +1, No. 1_; _42 Cong., 2 Sess., Vol. 1, No. 1--Reports of_ _Howard as +Commissioner, Dec. 1865-Dec. 1871_. _United States Statutes at Large, +Vols. 13-17. (Boston)._ + +2. Reports of General Superintendent and the Societies. J. W. Alvord, +_Schools and Finances of Freedmen_ (Washington, 1866); J. W. Alvord, +_Semi-annual reports, 1867-'70_; J. W. Alvord, _Letters from the +South, relating to the condition of freedmen, Addressed to General +O. O. Howard_ (Washington, 1870); American Missionary Association, +_Annual report, 1862-1872_; Educational Commission for freedmen, +_Annual report, No. 1, 1862-'63_ (Boston, 1863); and New England +Freedmen's Aid Society, _Annual report, No. 2, 1863-'64_; New York +National Freedmen's Relief Association, _Annual report, 1865-'66_ (N. +Y., 1866). _Ibid._, _Brief History with 4th annual report, 1865_; +Friends Association of Philadelphia for the Aid and Elevation of +Freedmen, _Annual report, 1866-71_; Freedmen's Aid Society of the +Methodist Episcopal Church, _Annual report, 1869-'72_; American +Baptist Home Mission Society, _Annual report, 1863-'72_; and Board +of Missions for Freedmen of the Presbyterian Church, _Annual report, +1869-'70_. + +3. NEWSPAPERS AND PERIODICALS. _The New York Times_; _The New York +Tribune_; _The Charleston Daily Courier_; _The Darlington New Era_; +_The Columbia Phoenix_; _The Nation_. _The Atlantic Monthly_, vol. +XII (Sept., 1863). Edward L. Pierce--"The Freedmen at Port Royal"; +_Atlantic Monthly_, vol. XII (May-June, 1864). Charlotte S. Forten, +_Life on the Sea Islands_, _The North American Review_, vol. CI (July, +1865); William C. Gannet, _The Freedmen at Port Royal_; _The Southern +Workman_, vol. XXX (July, 1901). Laura M. Towne, _Pioneer Work on +the Sea Islands_; _The American Missionary_, 1862-'72, organ of the +American Missionary Association; _The American Freedman_, 1866-'68 +(incomplete), organ of American Freedmen's Union Commission; _The +National Freedman_, 1865-66 (incomplete), organ of New York National +Freedman's Relief Association; _Pennsylvania Freedmen's Bulletin_, +1866-'67 (incomplete), organ of Pennsylvania Freedmen's Relief +Association; _Freedmen's Record and Freedmen's Journal_, 1865-'68 +(incomplete), organ of New England Freedmen's Aid Society; _The +Freedman_, London, 1866 (incomplete), organ of London Freedmen's Aid +Society; and _The Baptist Home Mission Monthly_, 1878-'80, organ of +American Baptist Home Mission Society. + +4. DIARY, REMINISCENCES, AND AUTOBIOGRAPHY. Eliza Ware Pearson +(editor), _Letters from Port Royal, written at the time of the Civil +War_ (Boston, 1906); Rupert S. Holland (editor), _Letters and Diary +of Laura M. Towne, written from the sea islands of South Carolina_, +1862-1884 (Cambridge, 1912); Henry N. Sherwood (editor), _Journal of +Mrs. Susan Walker, March 3d to June 6th, 1862_. _Quarterly publication +of the Historical and Philosophical Society of Ohio_, vol. 1, No. 1, +1912; Eliz Hyde Botume, _First days among the Contrabands_ (Boston, +1893); Oliver O. Howard, _Autobiography_, 2 vols., vol. 2 (New York, +1907); and A. Toomer Porter, _The History of a Work of Faith and Love +in Charleston, S. C._ (New York, 1882). + +5. DESCRIPTION AND TRAVEL. Charles Nordhoff, _The Freedmen of South +Carolina; some account of their appearance, condition and peculiar +customs_ (New York, 1863); Whitelaw Reid, _After the War, A Southern +Tour_, May 1, 1865, to May 1, 1866 (New York, 1866); and Sidney +Andrews, _The South Since the War as Shown by 14 Weeks Travel in +Georgia and the Carolinas_, 1866. + +II. SECONDARY SOURCES. Myrta L. Avary, _Dixie After the War_ (New +York, 1906); Laura J. Webster, _Operation of the Freedmen's Bureau in +South Carolina, Smith College Studies in History_, vol. 1, 1915-'16; +Paul S. Pierce, _The Freedmen's Bureau, University of Iowa Studies_ +(Iowa City, 1904); Thomas Jesse Jones, _Negro Education, U. S. Bureau +of Education, Bulletins_, 1916, Nos. 38 and 39; Colyer Meriwether, +_History of Higher Education in South Carolina, U. S. Bureau of +Education, Circular of Information_, No. 3, 1888; William W. Sweet, +_The Methodist Episcopal Church and the Civil War_ (Cincinnati, +1912); Amory D. Mayo, _Work of Northern Churches in the Education of +the Freedmen. Advanced sheets. U. S. Bureau of Education._ Chapter +V, 1903; Bowyer Stewart, _The Work of the Church in the South during +the Period of Reconstruction_ (Episcopalian). _Hale Memorial Sermon, +1913_ (Chicago, 1913); J. P. Hollis, _Early Period of Reconstruction +in South Carolina. Johns Hopkins University. History and Political +Studies, 1905; Negro Year Book, 1918-'19_ (Tuskegee, Alabama); +_Charleston Year Book_, 1880; and W. E. B. DuBois, _Souls of Black +Folk_ (Chicago, 1903). + +[3] Not to be confused with the more familiar Gen. W. T. Sherman +mentioned later. + +[4] Gannet, _North American Review_, vol. 101 (1865), p. 2. + +[5] Laura M. Towne, _Southern Workman_, July, 1901, "Life on the Sea +Islands"; _Journal of Mrs. Susan Walker_; Charles Nordhoff, _The +Freedmen of South Carolina_. + +[6] _The Nation_, vol. I (1865), p. 744. Sidney Andrews, _The South +Since the War_, p. 228. + +[7] Charlotte S. Forten, in _The Atlantic Monthly_, vol. XIII (May, +1864), p. 593; Botume, _First Days among the Contrabands_, p. 11. + +[8] New York National Freedmen's Relief Association, _Annual Report_, +1866, pp. 5-6. + +[9] _Ibid._, pp. 8-9. + +[10] _Journal of Susan Walker_, p. 11; Boston Ed. Commission, _Annual +Report_, 1863, p. 7; _Letters from Port Royal_, pp. 2-3. + +[11] Pierce, in _The Atlantic Monthly_, vol. XII, 1863, p. 299. + +[12] _Ibid._, p. 292. + +[13] Nordhoff, _The Freedmen of South Carolina_, p. 12. + +[14] _Journal of Susan Walker_, p. 14. + +[15] _Congressional Globe_, 41 Cong., 3 Sess., vol. I, No. 1. + +[16] J. W. Alvord, _Fifth Semi-annual Report_ (Jan. 1, '68), p. 4. + +[17] _New York Tribune_, June 17, 1862. + +[18] "Cabins of slaves for religious meetings." + +[19] Botume, _First Days among the Contrabands_, p. 42. + +[20] _The American Missionary_, vol. VI (Aug., 1862), p. 186. + +[21] _House Executive Documents_, 41 Cong., 2 Sess., vol. VI, No. 142, +p. 4. + +[22] Pierce, in _The Atlantic Monthly_, vol. XII (1863), p. 303. + +[23] _The Nation_, vol. I (1865), p. 745. + +[24] Laura M. Towne, _Southern Workman_, July, 1901, p. 337. Nordhoff, +p. 10. + +[25] + "Oh, none in all the world before + Were ever glad as we! + We're free on Carolina's shore, + We're all at home and free. + + "We hear no more the driver's horn + No more the whip we fear, + This holy day that saw Thee born + Was never half so dear. + + "The very oaks are greener clad, + The waters brighter smile; + Oh, never shone a day so glad + On sweet St. Helen's Isle. + + "Come once again, O blessed Lord! + Come walking on the sea! + And let the mainlands hear the word + That sets the islands free!" + +See Pierce, in _The Atlantic Monthly_, vol. XII, p. 305; _Letters from +Port Royal_, p. 133. + +[26] _The Nation_, vol. I (1865), p. 747. + +[27] Botume, _First Days among the Contrabands_, p. 64. + +[28] _The Nation_, vol. I (1865), p. 746. + +[29] N. E. Freedman's Aid Society, _Annual Report_, 1864, p. 15. + +[30] _Senate Executive Documents_, 38 Cong., 1 Sess., vol. I, No. 1, +pp. 2-6. + +[31] _House Executive Documents_, 41 Cong., 2 Sess., vol. VI, No. 142, +p. 11. + +[32] _Ibid._, 39 Cong., 1 Sess., vol. VII, No. 11, p. 49. + +[33] _National Freedman_, Oct., 1865, p. 300. + +[34] Howard, _Autobiography_, vol. II, p. 221. + +[35] _Statutes at Large_, XIV, p. 176. + +[36] _Ibid._, p. 486. + +[37] _U. S. Bureau of Ed. Bulletin_, 1916, No. 38, pp. 269-271; +_Annual Reports of Societies_, 1863-1868. + +[38] _The Freedmen's Record_ (1865-1874), quoted in _Bulletin_, 1916, +No. 38, p. 297. + +[39] _The Freedman_, August, 1865, p. 12. + +[40] J. W. Alvord, _Semi-annual Report_, July 1, 1869, p. 81. + +[41] W. W. Sweet, _Methodist Episcopal Church and the Civil War_, p. +175. + +[42] A. D. Mayo, _Northern Churches and the Freedmen_, p. 300. + +[43] A. D. Mayo, _Northern Churches and the Freedmen_, p. 291. + +[44] _U. S. Bureau of Education Bulletin_ (1916), No. 39, p. 16. + +[45] _National Freedman_, May 1, 1865, p. 122; _Ibid._, April 30, +1865, p. 150. _American Freedman_, May, 1866, p. 29. + +[46] _Charleston Year Book_ (1880), p. 122. + +[47] See Carter G. Woodson, _Education of the Negro Prior to 1861_, p. +129. + +[48] Sidney Andrews, _The South Since the War_, p. 98. + +[49] _National Freedman_, June 1, 1865, p. 150. + +[50] _National Freedman_, Nov. 15, 1865, p. 314; _Ibid._, May, 1866, +pp. 139-140. + +[51] J. W. Alvord, _Report_, Jan. 1, 1868, p. 27. _American Freedman_, +July-August, 1868, p. 442. + +[52] _The American Freedman_, May, 1866, p. 261. This does not, +however, indicate in all cases the number of schools at each town. + +[53] The school at Camden increased in size the next year. + +[54] J. W. Alvord, _Report_, Jan. 1, 1870, p. 25. + +[55] Freedmen's Aid Society of the M. E. Church, _Annual Report_, +1871, pp. 19-20. + +[56] Mayo, _Northern Churches and the Freedmen_, p. 300. + +[57] _Letters and Diary of Laura M. Towne_, p. 221. + +[58] _American Missionary Ass'n Annual Report_, 1870, p. 221. + +[59] _History of the A. M. A._, p. 36; _Annual Report_, 1868, p. 47; +Mayo, p. 287. + +[60] _The Nation_, vol. 1 (1865), p. 778. + +[61] American Baptist Home Mission Society, _Annual Report_, 1872, p. +26. + +[62] Merriwether, _History of Higher Education in South Carolina_, p. +125; _Annual Report_ (1872) _F. A. S._, p. 17. + +[63] _Charleston Year Book_ (1880), pp. 126-127; _Annual Report_ +(1870) _Presbyterian Committee_, p. 12. + +[64] Porter, _Work of Faith and Love_, p. 6; Stewart, _Work of the +Church during Reconstruction_, p. 63. + +[65] _Annual Report_ (1866) _Friends Ass'n_, p. 8. + +[66] _A. M. A. Annual Report_ (1864), p. 16. + +[67] _Freedmen's Journal_, Jan. 1, 1865, p. 3. + +[68] _Ibid._, p. 7. + +[69] _National Freedman_, Feb., 1866, p. 49. + +[70] _Letters from Port Royal_; _Letters and Diary of Laura M. Towne_. + +[71] _Pennsylvania Freedmen's Bulletin_, Oct., 1866, p. 1. + +[72] _Baptist Home Mission Monthly_ (1879), p. 6. + +[73] _Columbia Phoenix_, March 21, 1865. + +[74] Merriwether, _History of Higher Education in South Carolina_, p. +115. + +[75] _House Executive Documents_, 39 Cong., 1 Sess., vol. VII, No. 11, +p. 13. + +[76] J. W. Alvord, _Semi-annual Report_ (July 1, 1867), p. 25. + +[77] _The Nation_, vol. III, Oct. 25, 1866. + +[78] Alvord, _Semi-annual Report_ (Jan. 1, 1870), p. 26. + +[79] _The New Era_, July 28, 1865. + +[80] Alvord, _Report_, Aug. 6, 1866, p. 5. + +[81] _New York Times_, Aug. 14, 1866. + +[82] Porter, _Work of Faith and Love_, p. 6; _The Nation_, vol. II +(1866); p. 770. + +[83] _Charleston Courier_, Feb. 15, 1867; _American Freedman_, April, +1867, p. 204. + +[84] The school referred to here is the one already mentioned, the +Penn Normal and Agricultural School. It is an excellent community +school and one especially fitted for St. Helena, the population of +which is still largely colored. See _United States Bureau of Education +Bulletin_ (1916), No. 39, p. 483. Miss Towne remained in service 39 +years, Miss Schofield 48 years, and Miss Munro at Mt. Pleasant 45 +years. + +[85] _United States Census_, 1860. + +[86] Hurd, _Law of Freedom and Bondage_, II, p. 98. + +[87] _Baptist Home Mission Monthly_, June, 1879, p. 182. + +[88] _Freedmen's Record_, April, 1868, p. 50. + +[89] Freedmen's Aid Society, _Annual Report_ (1871), p. 13. + +[90] _H. Ex. Docs._, 40 Cong., 2 Sess., vol. II, No. 1, p. 8. + +[91] J. W. Alvord, _Report on Schools and Finances of Freedmen_, July, +1866, p. 6. + +[92] _American Freedman_, July, 1868, p. 446. + +[93] _National Freedman_, Oct., 1865, p. 299. + +[94] Whitelaw Reid, _After the War_, pp. 89-91. + +[95] _National Freedman_, June, 1866, p. 169. + +[96] _Freedmen's Record_, April, 1868, p. 52. + +[97] _Anderson Intelligencer_, July, 1867, quoted in _The American +Freedman_, Aug., 1867, p. 264. + +[98] _American Freedman_, Feb., 1867, p. 168. + +[99] _Letters from Port Royal_, p. 37; _The Freedmen's Journal_, Jan. +1, 1865, pp. 13-15; W. C. Gannet, _North American Review_, vol. CI +(1865), p. 24. + +[100] Pierce, in _Atlantic Monthly_, vol. 12 (1863), p. 305. + +[101] _A. M. A. Annual Report_, 1866, p. 27; 1867, pp. 32-33; +_National Freedman_, May, 1866, p. 142. + + + + +THE RELIGION OF THE AMERICAN NEGRO SLAVE: HIS ATTITUDE TOWARD LIFE AND +DEATH + + +I propose to discuss the religious behavior of the American Negro +slave, between 1619 and the close of the Civil War, first, by a brief +discussion of the religion of the tribes in Africa, and the tendency +of the old habits and traditions to maintain themselves among the +American slave; second, by a consideration of what the slave found +in America, and his contact with another religious culture called +Christianity; and third, by a description of the slave's reaction to a +Christian environment, or what the slave's religious behavior really +was.[1] My thesis is that the religion of Africa disappeared from +the consciousness of the American slave; that the slave himself, by +contact with a new environment, became a decidedly different person, +having a new religion, a primitive Christianity, with the central +emphasis, not upon this world, but upon heaven.[-99] + +My task is to show that the religion of the Negro slave between 1619 +and the Civil War did not originate in Africa, but was something +totally different from the prevailing religion of the black continent +in that it placed emphasis upon heaven; and that this distinctive +element in the religion of the slave grew out of his contact with +Christianity in America. In taking this position I have tried to give +due weight to those considerations which tend to support a contrary +position, such as the inertia of African habits and traditions in +the life of the American slave, and the hostile tendency of his +social surroundings to religious development.[3] On the other +hand, I have considered the disintegrating effects of the American +slave system upon black groups that originated in Africa, together +with the American slave's new social contacts, which produced in +him the religious attitude found, and out of which arose the early +slave-preacher and church. Finally, I have attempted to show that the +naive imagery and emphasis in the "spirituals" are selected elements +that helped the slave adjust himself to his particular world. + +Our beginning is with the prevailing religion of Africa, Fetishism. +Authorities use the term "Fetishism" as the "(_a_) worship of +inanimate objects, often regarded as purely African; (_b_) Negro +religion in general; (_c_) the worship of inanimate objects conceived +as the residence of spirits not inseparably bound up with, nor +originally connected with, such objects; (_d_) the doctrine of +spirits embodied in, or attached to, or conceiving influence through +certain material objects;[4] (_e_) the use of charms, which are not +worshipped, but derive their magical power from a god or spirit; +(_f_) the use as charms of objects regarded as magically potent in +themselves." + +All of the elements embodied in this definition are found, generally, +in the primitive religions of the African peoples. Believing that +persons and objects of this world were inhabited by spirits, the +African necessarily accounted for the phenomena of the universe by the +arbitrary will of spiritual beings, whom he feared, and, therefore, +worshipped, or sought to control by magic. Unable thus to find +companionship with these unseen, mysterious personalities, the men +of Africa knew no land of sunshine beyond the dreadful shadow of the +grave; but the American slave, who experienced death as a short period +of darkness before a day of eternal glory, did not inherit the fears +of Africa. + +Now what did the slave bring from Africa? In answering this question +let us consider what is commonly referred to as the inertia of African +heritage. American missionaries reported that it was harder to teach +the slaves who were born in Africa than those born in this country. +This quotation from the Calendar of State Papers, Colonial America +and West Indies, 1699, Section 473, supports this view: "Negroes born +in this country were generally baptized, but for Negroes imported, +the gross barbarity and rudeness of their manners, the variety and +strangeness of their language, and the weakness and shallowness of +their minds rendered it in a manner impossible to attain to any +progress in their conversion."[5] + +Two definite cases bear a similar testimony, the one being that of +Phyllis Wheatley, a girl brought here from Africa, who spoke of how +her mother there worshipped the rising sun, the other, this story +related by a man concerning his grandfather: "He was an old man, +nearly 80 years old," he said, "and he manifested all the fondness +for me that I could expect from one so old.... He always expressed +contempt for his fellow slaves, for when young he was an African of +rank.... He had singular religious notions, never going to meeting, +or caring for the preachers he could, if he would, occasionally +hear. He retained his native traditions respecting the deity and +hereafter."[6] + +Other cases, though few, clearly demonstrate that among the American +slaves also there existed a belief in ghosts and a lurking fear of +the denizens of a mysterious world. But what was religion in Africa +was generally regarded by the American slaves themselves as mere +superstition. + +The hostility of masters to new slave-contacts had some bearing on +the situation. Whatever superstition, whether from Africa or another +source, we find among the slaves, had a tendency to maintain itself +the more because of the attitude of some masters toward the religious +education of their bondmen. Slaves of those owners, who, through love +of money, were indifferent toward education, encouraged in vice and +superstition, had no time for religious training. Although, ever since +1619, and especially after the rebellion of Nat Turner, there were +some slaves whose eagerness to learn occasioned State-laws against the +education or assembling of slaves, nevertheless, during the entire +period there was a countless number of slaves who were absolutely +disinterested in their own education. They were also handicapped in +religious advancement, because many owners believed that baptism +made the slave free, which belief was prevalently held until 1729, +when the Christian nations finally reached the decision that baptism +did not mean manumission, and that even a Christian could be a +slave.[7] Such a sentiment against the contact of slaves with the +Christian religion, beyond doubt, tended to keep them in ignorance and +superstition, and to develop among them religious habits and attitudes +peculiar to an isolated group, but the point can be over-emphasized, +in view of all that actually happened. + +Dr. Park says: "Coming from all parts of Africa and having no common +language, and common tradition, the memories of Africa which they +brought with them were soon lost.... The fact that the Negro brought +with him from Africa so little tradition which he was able to transmit +and perpetuate on American soil makes that race unique among all +peoples of our cosmopolitan population."[8] In connection herewith, +moreover, we must also take into account that slave-groups, upon +reaching America, were broken up and the members thereof sold into +different parts of the country, where new habits had to be formed, +because of a different environment. Contrasting the life in Africa +with that of slaves in America, Washington better expresses the idea +in these words: "The porters, carrying their loads along the narrow +forest paths, sing of the loved ones in their far-away homes. In the +evening the people of the villages gather around the fire and sing for +hours. These songs refer to war, to hunting, and to the spirits that +dwell in the deep woods. In them all the wild and primitive life of +the people is reflected.... + +"There is a difference, however, between the music of Africa and that +of her transplanted children. There is a new note in the music which +had its origin in the Southern plantations, and in this new note the +sorrow and the sufferings which came from serving in a strange land +find expression."[9] + +Let us direct attention to what the Negro slave found in America, a +Christian atmosphere. With their various groups broken into fragments +and scattered by the American slave-trade, as the slaves here learned +the English language, they were more able to assimilate the elements +of Christianity found in American life. Sold into Christian homes, +but gathered with their masters around the family altar, they became +actual participants in the singing and praying that broke the morning +and evening silence of those eventful days. The old records show that +from the very beginning of American slavery[10] slaves experienced +Christianity through the conscious help of some masters, and later, +as the whites saw that the Christian religion made the Negroes better +slaves and did not set them free, the blacks secured more favorable +opportunities for religious instruction. In some States masters were +required even by legislation to look after the religious education of +their slaves.[11] In Louisiana, for example, planters were obliged by +the Code Noir to have their Negroes instructed and baptized, to give +them Sundays and holidays for rest and worship. But, even when not +required by law, a few owners established schools for their slaves, +and either taught or hired others to teach them "the way of eternal +life." + +So it is reported that by the 19th century: "Few Negroes escaped +some religious instruction from those good people. Usually on Sunday +afternoons, but sometimes in the morning, the slaves would be gathered +in the great house and lessons in the catechism had to be learned. The +Apostles' Creed, the Lord's Prayer, and the Ten Commandments were also +taught. Hymns were sung and prayers rose to Heaven. Many good masters +read sermons to their slaves. Other masters hired ministers.... Others +preached themselves."[12] + +Another source of contact with Christianity was that resulting from +the attitude of persons who worked, not for the religious development +of their own slaves alone, but who, with a larger human interest, +unmindful of the benefits that might come to their individual +households, gave their lives to bless all slaves. One of the very +purposes of American slavery being to benefit the slaves, one can +readily see how missionary work among them grew with the system of +slavery itself. + +"After 1716," Woodson tells us, "when Jesuits were taking over slaves +in large numbers, and especially after 1726, when Law's Company was +importing many to meet the demand for laborers in Louisiana, we read +of more instances of the instruction of Negroes by the Catholics. ... +Le Petit spoke of being 'settled to the instruction of the boarders, +the girls who live without, and the Negro women.' In 1738 he said, +'I instruct in Christian morals the slaves of our residence, who are +Negroes, and as many others as I can get from their masters.'" + +Awakened by what the zealous French in Louisiana were doing, English +missionaries made progressive plans for preaching the gospel to the +blacks. During the 18th century numerous missionaries, catechists, +and school-masters, sent from England to America, founded schools for +the slaves, and distributed many sermons, lectures, and Bibles among +them. In 1705 Thomas counted among his communicants in South Carolina +twenty Negroes who could read and write. Later, making a report of the +work he and his associates were doing, he said: "I have here presumed +to give an account of 1,000 slaves so far as they know of it and are +desirous of Christian knowledge and seem willing to prepare themselves +for it, in learning to read, for which they redeem the time from their +labor. Many of them can read the Bible distinctly, and great numbers +of them were learning when I left the province."[14] + +"After some opposition," Woodson further says, "this work began to +progress somewhat in Virginia. The first school established in that +colony was for Indians and Negroes.... On the binding out a 'bastard +or pauper-child black or white,' churchwardens specifically required +that he should be taught 'to read and write and calculate as well as +to follow some profitable form of labor.' ... Reports of an increase +in the number of colored communicants came from Accomac County where +four or five hundred families were instructing their slaves at home +and had their children catechised on Sunday."[15] + +Side by side with the work done by missionaries, men of different +denominations vied with one another in bringing slaves into the +light of a Christian atmosphere. Some founded Sunday schools, some +preached of the "inner light in every man," others more successfully +preached salvation by faith in the power of a risen Christ, who died +for the sins of men. Soon after the first Negroes were placed upon +the shores of Jamestown, slaves began to be baptized, and received +into the Episcopal Church. Earnest says that "at least one Negro was +baptized soon after the contact with the colonists in Virginia."[16] +Washington says that only five years after slavery was introduced into +Virginia a Negro child named William was baptized, and that from that +time on the names of Negroes can be found upon the register of most +of the churches. In the old record-book of Bruton Parish, 1,122[17] +Negro-baptisms were recorded between 1746 and 1797.[18] In 1809 there +were about 9,000 Negro Baptists in Virginia.[19] The African Baptist +Church of Richmond alone subsequently increased from 1,000 to 3,832 +in 24 years. The Methodist Magazine of October, 1827, reports that +as early as 1817 there were 43,411 Negro members in the Methodist +societies.[20] + +"The Negro seems, from the beginning," says Washington, "to have +been very closely associated with the Methodists in the United +States. When the Reverend Thomas Coke was ordained by John Wesley, +as Superintendent or Bishop of the American Society in 1784, he was +accompanied on most of his travels throughout the United States by +Harry Hosier, a colored minister who was at the same time the Bishop's +servant and an evangelist of the Church. Harry Hosier, who was the +first American Negro preacher of the Methodist Church in the United +States, was one of the notable characters of his day."[21] + +Let us now consider the effects of these early religious contacts upon +the life of slave-preachers, some of whom were comparatively well +educated. Concerning Jack of Virginia it is said that "his opinions +were respected, his advice followed, and yet he never betrayed the +least symptoms of arrogance or self-conceit. His dwelling was a rude +log-cabin, his apparel was of the plainest, coarsest materials.... +He refused gifts of better clothing, saying, 'These clothes are a +great deal better than are generally worn by people of my color, and, +besides, if I wear them I find I shall be obliged to think about them +even at meetings.'"[22] + +With an influence among the slaves equal to Jack's, two other Negro +messengers of the gospel, Andrew Bryan and Samson, his brother, who +earlier had appeared in Georgia, were publicly whipped and imprisoned +with 50 companions, but they joyously declared that they would suffer +death for their faith found in Christ, whom they expected to preach +until death.[23] By their uncompromising attitude,[24] which +silenced opponents and raised up friends, they won for themselves +among the slaves that sacred esteem belonging to saintly martyrs like +Polycarp, Huss, and Fox. + +There were other itinerant ministers in these days, who were either +given their freedom or purchased it by working as common laborers +while preaching. Being better educated, and more closely in contact +with the religious life of the whites than the masses of slaves, +they were carriers of Christian sentiment from the whites to the +blacks, inspiring them with the hope of life in an unseen world. +One day there arrived in Fayetteville, North Carolina, Henry Evans, +a Methodist preacher, a free Negro from Virginia, who worked as a +carpenter during the week and preached on Sunday. Forbidden by the +Town Council of Fayetteville to preach, he made his meetings secret, +changing them from time to time until he was tolerated. Just before +his death, while leaning on the altar-rail, he said to his followers: + +"I have come to say my last word to you. It is this: None but Christ. +Three times I have had my life in jeopardy for preaching the gospel to +you. Three times I have broken the ice on the edge of the water and +swam across the Cape Fear to preach the gospel to you, and if in my +last hour I could trust to that or anything but Christ crucified, for +my salvation, all should be lost, and my soul perish forever."[25] + +Some of these ministers led an independent movement. Six years after +Richard Allen, with a few followers, withdrew in 1790 from the Free +African Society in Philadelphia,[26] and started an independent +Methodist Church in a blacksmith shop, Negro members of the Methodist +Episcopal Church in New York began separate meetings. After pastoring +a white church,[27] Josiah Bishop started the First Colored Baptist +Church of Portsmouth in 1791. Finding accommodations in the white +church of Richmond inadequate, the Negroes petitioned for separate +meetings in 1823.[28] Harding, speaking of the opportunity of +religious instruction and of divine worship allowed the slaves in +Kentucky, says that "in every church-edifice, seats were set apart for +the occupancy of colored worshippers.... Almost every neighborhood had +its Negro preacher whose credentials, if his own assertion was to be +taken, came directly from the Lord."[29] + +What were the results of these contacts? The most important was that +with its charming stories of the creation of the universe, of the +Egyptian bondage, and of the journey across the Red Sea, with its New +Testament emphasis upon the power, death, and resurrection of Christ, +with its apocalyptic imagery, the Bible became to the slave the most +sacred book of books. Upon its pages he saw the tears of men and +women constantly fall, and from its truths he saw the pious preacher +choose words suitable for exhortation. The peculiar interest of the +Negro-slave in reading this book was soon apparent. + +One old man, being secretly taught by a slave-girl to read the +Bible, said, with trembling voice, while tears were falling from his +penetrating eyes: "Honey, it 'pears when I can read dis good book I +shall be nearer to God."[31] Another slave prayed thus: "I pray de +good massa Lord will put it into de niggers' hearts to larn to read +de good book. Ah, Lord, make de letters in our spelling books big and +plain, and make our eyes bright and shining, and make our hearts big +and strong for to larn.... Oh, Hebbenly Fader, we tank De for makin' +our massas willin' to let us come to dis school."[32] + +Upon a battlefield of the Civil War, another, a soldier, said: "Let me +lib wid dis musket in one hand an' de Bible in de oder,--dat if I die +at de muzzle ob de musket, die in de water, die on de land, I may know +I hab de bressed Jesus in my hand an' hab no fear."[33] + +How the text from Hebrews 2:9, "That He, by the grace of God, should +taste of death for every man," became a part of his life, was told by +Josiah Henson after becoming free: "This was the first text of the +Bible to which I had ever listened, knowing it to be such. I have +never forgotten it, and scarce a day has passed since, in which I have +not recalled it, and the sermon that was preached from it. The divine +character of Jesus Christ, his life and teachings, his sacrifice of +himself for others, his death and resurrection were all alluded to, +and some of the points were dwelt upon with great power.... I was +wonderfully impressed, too, with the use which the preacher made of +the last words of the text, 'for every man' ... the bond as well as +the free; and he dwelt on the glad tidings of the Gospel to the poor, +the persecuted ... till my heart burned within me, and I was in a +state of greatest excitement ... that such a being ... should have +died for me ... a poor slave...."[34] + +Contemporaries assert that often while following the plow, gathering +up the frosty corn, or driving the ox-cart to the barn, slaves, +burning with enthusiasm, talked of how much sermons satisfied their +hungry souls. Household and plantation slaves, gray-haired fathers +and mothers with their children, crowded eagerly to hear the gospel +preached. Thus Earnest says of one man: "His slaves came 17 miles +to reach Mr. Wright's nearest preaching place."[35] Concerning the +spread of the Christian religion among the slaves on the seaboard +of South Carolina, it is affirmed that "the scenes on the Sabbath +were affecting. The Negroes came in crowds from two parishes. Often +have I seen (a scene, I reckon, not often witnessed) groups of them +'double-quicking' in the roads, in order to reach the church in +time.... The white service being over, the slaves would throng the +seats vacated by their masters...."[36] John Thompson, in the story +of his life, says that, "As soon as it got among the slaves, it spread +from plantation to plantation, until it reached ours where there were +but few who did not experience religion."[37] + +From the blighting, superstitious fears of a heartless universe, +the heralds of Christianity brought to the slave words of hope and +salvation, a message of companionship with a heavenly father. "You are +poor slaves and have a hard time of it here," said they, "but I can +tell you the blessed Savior shed his blood for you as much as for your +masters.... Break off from all your wicked ways, your lying, stealing, +swearing, drunkenness, and vile lewdness; give yourselves to prayer +and repentance and fly to Jesus, and give up your heart to him in true +earnest; and flee from the wrath to come."[38] + +Fred Douglass relates that "the preaching of a white Methodist +minister, named Hanson, was the means of causing me to feel that in +God I had such a friend. He thought that all men, great and small, +bond and free, were sinners in the sight of God: that they were by +nature rebels against his government; and that they must repent +of their sins, and be reconciled to God through Christ.... I was +wretched."[39] + +Besides definite principles of morality which included humble +submission to the divine right of masters, Negro slaves were also +taught that "parents who meet their children in heaven will be more +than consoled for their early death." "You can not imagine," said +they, "what happiness is in reserve for you from this source.... When +you have entered heaven you will probably be met by a youthful spirit +who will call you father! mother! Perhaps you have a little family +there, expecting your arrival ... save your own soul."[40] + +Exactly what was this religion of the slave? Thus coming into contact +with this Christian environment, the slave consciously lived a new +life, which definitely began with conversion, the phenomenon marked by +a feeling of remorse, inner conflict, prayer, and release of tension, +or what was felt to be "freedom from hell." Prior to conversion he +had been a member of the "disobedient servant-group," perhaps lying, +stealing, drinking, and using profanity; but after conversion, being +initiated into a new group, he had to live a circumspect life. +Conversion, then, meant to the slave that experience by which he +turned his back toward hell and began the journey toward heaven. Very +often it signified retiring to some lonely spot, where the slave +struggled with an unseen power, until freed by Christ, with whom, no +longer a child of fear, he afterwards lived in filial companionship, +hopefully asking and joyfully securing aid in an unfriendly world. + +"I always had a natural fear of God from my youth," declared one +slave, describing his feelings leading up to conversion, "and was +often checked in conscience with thoughts of death, which barred me +from my sins and bad company. I knew no other way at that time to hope +for salvation but only in the performance of my good works.... If it +was the will of God to cut me off at that time, I was sure I should be +found in hell, as sure as God was in heaven. I saw my condemnation in +my own heart, and I found no way which I could escape the damnation +of hell, only through the merits of my dying Lord and Savior Jesus +Christ; which caused me to make intercession with Christ, for the +salvation of my poor immortal soul.... After this I declared before +the congregation of believers the work which God had done for my +soul."[41] + +The slaves used to express it thus in song:[42] + + "One day when I was walkin' along, + De element opened, an' de love came down, + I never shall forget dat day, + When Jesus washed my sins away." + +They also sang such words as these:[43] + + "Jesus snatched me from de doors of hell, + An' took me in with him to dwell." + "Jesus told you ... go in peace an' sin no mo'." + "Soul done anchored in Jesus Christ." + +With reference to the wilderness, where, without food, they overcame +the spirit of evil by the aid of Jesus, and with reference to the +life led after having this experience, the slaves sang with much +feeling:[44] + + "All true children gwine in de wilderness, + Gwine in de wilderness, gwine in de wilderness, + True believers gwine in de wilderness, + To take away de sins ob de world." + + "Stay in the field, stay in the field, stay in + the field, till de war is ended."[45] + + "You say your Jesus set-a you free; + View de land, view de land, + Why don't you let-a your neighbor be, + Go view de heavenly land. + You say you're aiming for de skies, + Why don't you stop-a your telling lies?"[46] + +Another ceremonial feature of slave-conversion was the shout, in which +the prospective convert, upon the "mourners' bench," surrounded by +a group of singing dancers, prayed continually, until convinced of +perfect relief from damnation, when he leaped and ran to proclaim +the joyous news. When shouting, whether for making converts or for +mere group-response, these noisy, black singers of antiphonal songs +preferred to be alone in some cabin or in the praise-house, where they +could express themselves with absolute freedom. + +Just how they disturbed the peace is expressed in the following +words: "Almost every night there is a meeting of these noisy, +frantic worshippers.... Midnight! Is that the season for religious +convocation?... is that the accepted time?"[47] Concerning worship +by a light-wood fire another said: "But the benches are pushed back +to the wall when the formal meeting is over, and old and young, men +and women ... begin, first walking and by and by shuffling around, +one after the other, in a ring. The foot is hardly taken from the +floor and the progression is mainly due to a jerking, hitching motion +which agitates the entire shouter and soon brings out streams of +perspiration. Sometimes they dance silently; sometimes as they shuffle +they sing the course of the spiritual, and sometimes the song itself +is also sung by the dancers. But more frequently a band, composed of +some of the best singers and of tired shouters, stand at the side +of the room to 'face' the others singing the body of the song and +dropping their hands together or on their knees. Song and dance are +alike extremely energetic and often, when the shout lasts into the +middle of the night, the monotonous thud, thud of the feet prevents +sleep within half a mile of the praise-house."[48] + +"And all night, as I waked at intervals, I could hear them praying and +'shouting' and chattering with hands and heels," relates Colonel T. W. +Higginson. "It seemed to make them very happy, and appeared to be at +least an innocent Christian dissipation ... the dusky figures moved in +the rhythmical barbaric dance the Negroes called a 'shout,' chanting, +often harshly, but always in the most perfect time, some monotonous +refrain."[49] + +"By this time every man within hearing, from oldest to youngest, would +be wriggling and shuffling, as if through some piper's bewitchment; +for even those who at first affected contemptuous indifference would +be drawn into the vortex ere long."[50] + +Whatever may be said about the "shout," the fact remains, that whether +this ceremony was mere play, or relaxation after a day of repressing +toil, or whether it served to drive away a hostile spirit by creating +within the members of the group the feeling of being possessed with +the power of God, it became an indispensable part of the slave +religious worship. In this Christian dance, the slave sang: "O shout, +shout, de debbil is about, O shut yo' do' an' keep him out." Through +it he expected to destroy the kingdom of Satan, and thereby make the +assurance of reaching heaven more complete. The feeling gained thereby +became spiritual balm for the aches of by-gone and coming days.[51] + +The songs, also, used by the slave in these meetings and sung +generally by the individuals thereof, tell in a very definite way +what the religious attitude of the American Negro slave was. They +relate the sorrows of this world, and the joys felt by the slave, +who anticipated a home in heaven. They describe in naive imagery +the rugged journey of the weary traveler and the land of his happy +destination. "Nothing," says Washington, "tells more truly what the +Negro's life in slavery was, than the songs in which he succeeded, +sometimes, in expressing his deepest thoughts and feelings. What, +for example, could express more eloquently the feelings of despair +which sometimes overtook the slave than these simple and expressive +words:[52] 'O Lord, O my Lord! O my good Lord! keep me from sinking +down.'" + +Unable to sing or pray during the lifetime of their master, after his +death, by permission of their mistress, a crowd of Negro slaves sang +the following hymn: + + "Oh walk togedder, children, + Don't yer get weary, + Walk togedder, children, + Don't yer get weary, + Walk togedder, children, + Don't yer get weary, + Dere's a great camp meetin' in de Promised Land. + Gwine to mourn an' nebber tire ... + Mourn an' nebber tire, + Mourn an' nebber tire, + Dere's a great camp meetin' in de Promised Land."[53] + +With longing for that mother who used to carry him upon her back to +the dewy fields, where she, setting her babe upon the springing grass +at the end of the row, began her daily task with the hoe, returning +now and then to give him of her breast; for her whose beaming eyes +turned back until the coming of the night, when she again held him in +her arms, the slave sang in bitter tears. Her tender help was gone. +Father's smile was no more.[54] + + "My mother's sick an' my father's dead, + Got nowhere to lay my weary head." + + "My mother an' my father both are dead ... + Good Lord, I cannot stay here by myself. + I'm er pore little orphan chile in de worl', + I'm er pore little orphan chile in de worl' ..."[55] + + "My mother'n yo' mother both daid an' gone, + My mother'n yo' mother both daid an' gone, + Po' sinner man he so hard to believe. + My folks an' yo' folks both daid an' gone, + Po' sinner man he so hard to believe. + My brother an' yo' brother both daid an' gone, + Po' sinner man he so hard to believe."[56] + +With great hope the slave sang: + + "Gwine to see my mother some o' dese mornin's, + See my mother some o' dese mornin's, + See my mother some o' dese mornin's, + Look away in de heaven, + Look away in de heaven, Lord, + Hope I'll jine de band. + Look away in de heaven, Lord, + Hope I'll jine de band."[57] + +To express his sorrow and his longing for relief from the burdens of +his condition the slave sang: + + "One more valient soldier here, + One more valient soldier here, + One more valient soldier here, + To help me bear de cross."[58] + + "My trouble is hard, + O yes, + My trouble is hard, + O yes, + Yes indeed my trouble is hard."[59] + + "Nobody knows the trouble I've seen, + Nobody knows but Jesus. + Nobody knows the trouble I've seen, + Glory halleluyah! + Sometimes I'm up, sometimes I'm down! + O yes, Lord! + Sometimes I'm almost to de groun'! + O yes, Lord! + What makes old Satan hate me so? + O yes, Lord, + Because he got me once, but he let me go; + O yes, Lord!"[60] + + "Ever since my Lord done set me free, + Dis ole worl' been a hell to me, + I am de light un de worl'."[61] + + "Oh, what a hard time, + Oh, what a hard time, + Oh, what a hard time, + All God's children have a hard time. + + "Oh, what a hard time, + Oh, what a hard time, + Oh, what a hard time, + My Lord had a hard time too."[62] + + "I'm a-trouble in de mind, + O I'm a-trouble in de mind. + I'm a-trouble in de mind, + What you doubt for? + I'm a-trouble in de mind."[63] + + "I'm in trouble, Lord, + I'm in trouble. + I'm in trouble, Lord, + Trouble about my grave, + Trouble about my grave, + Trouble about my grave. + Sometimes I weep, sometimes I mourn, + I'm in trouble about my grave; + Sometimes I can't do neither one, + I'm in trouble about my grave."[64] + + "My father, how long, + My father, how long, + My father, how long, + Poor sinner suffer here? + And it won't be long, + And it won't be long, + And it won't be long, + Poor sinner suffer here. + We'll soon be free, + De Lord will call us home. + We'll walk de miry road + Where pleasure never dies. + We'll walk de golden streets + Of de new Jerusalem ... + We'll fight for liberty + When de Lord will call us home."[65] + + "Gwine rock trubbel over, + I b'lieve, + Rock trubbel over, + I b'lieve, + Dat Sabbath has no end."[66] + + "My fader's done wid de trouble o' de world, + Wid de trouble o' de world, + Wid de trouble o' de world, + My fader's done wid de trouble o' de world, + Outshine de sun."[67] + +Although the songs above tell the slave's dissatisfaction with +the present world, there are other songs that relate his definite +experiences of joy arising from a feeling of triumph over this world +of sorrow by assurances of a future world of bliss. Some of these +songs of joy are the following: + + "I started home, but I did pray, + An' I met ole Satan on de way; + Ole Satan made a one grab at me, + But he missed my soul, an' I went free. + My sins went a-lumberin' down to hell, + An' my soul went a-leapin' up Zion's hill."[68] + + "Ole Satan's church is here below. + Up to God's free church I hope to go. + Cry Amen, cry Amen, cry Amen to God!"[69] + + "I'm so glad, so glad; + I'm so glad, so glad, + Glad I got religion, so glad, + Glad I got religion, so glad. + I'm so glad, so glad; + I'm so glad, so glad, + Glad I bin' changed, so glad, + Glad I bin' changed, so glad."[70] + + "My brudder have a seat and I so glad, + Good news member, good news; + My brudder have a seat and I so glad, + And I heard from heav'n today."[71] + + "Brudder, guide me home, an' I am glad, + Bright angels biddy me to come; + Brudder, guide me home, an' I am glad, + Bright angels biddy me to come. + What a happy time, chil'n, + What a happy time, chil'n, + What a happy time, chil'n, + Bright angels biddy me to come. + Let's go to God, chil'n, + Bright angels biddy me to come."[72] + + "I jus' got home f'um Jordan, + I jus' got home f'um Jordan, + I jus' got home f'um Jordan, + 'Ligion's so-o-o sweet. + My work is done an' I mus' go, + My work is done an' I mus' go, + My work is done an' I mus' go, + 'Ligion's so-o-o sweet."[73] + + "Shout an' pray both night an' day; + How can you die, you in de Lord? + Come on, chil'n, let's go home; + O I'm so glad you're in de Lord."[74] + + "Little children, then won't you be glad, + Little children, then won't you be glad, + That you have been to heav'n, an' you gwine to go again, + For to try on the long white robe, children, + For to try on the long white robe."[75] + +Even a slave, when dying, cried: "I am going home! Oh, how glad I +am!"[76] The following hymns also vividly set forth what happy +anxiety the slave felt about his journey "home." + + "Gwine to weep, gwine to mourn, + Gwine to get up early in de morn, + Fo' my soul's goin' to heaven jes' sho's you born, + Brother Gabriel goin' ter blow his horn. + Goin' to sing, goin' to pray, + Goin' to pack all my things away, + Fo' my soul's goin' to heaven jes' sho's you born, + Brother Gabriel gwine ter blow his horn."[77] + + "I want to go to Canaan, + I want to go to Canaan, + I want to go to Canaan, + To meet 'em at de comin' day."[78] + + "I'm goin' home fer to see my Lord, + Bear yo' burden, sinner, + An' don't you wish you could go 'long + Bear yo' burden, let in the heat."[79] + + "Oh, my mudder's in de road, + Most done trabelling; + My mudder's in de road, + Most done trabelling, + My mudder's in de road, + Most done trabelling, + I'm bound to carry my soul to de Lord."[80] + + "Run, Mary, run, + Run, Mary, run, + Oh, run, Mary, run, + I know de oder worl' 'm not like dis. + Fire in de east an' fire in de west, + I know de oder worl' 'm not like dis, + Bound to burn de wilderness, + I know de oder worl' 'm not like dis. + Jordan's ribber is a ribber to cross, + I know de oder worl' 'm not like dis, + Stretch your rod an' come across, + I know de oder worl' 'm not like dis."[81] + + "We will march through the valley in peace, + We will march through the valley in peace; + If Jesus himself be our leader, + We will march through the valley in peace."[82] + + "My sister's goin' to heaven fer to see my Lord, + To see my Lord, to see my Lord; + Well, my sister's goin' to heaven, to see my Lord, + What's de onbelievin' soul?"[83] + + "Bend-in' knees a-ach-in' + Body racked wid pain, + I wish I was a child of God, + I'd git home bim-by. + Keep prayin; I do believe + We're a long time waggin o' de crossin, + Keep prayin; I do believe + We'll git home to heaven bim-by. + O yonder's my old mudder, + Been a-waggin' at the hill so long; + It's about time she cross over, + Git home bim-by. + O hear dat lumerin' thunder + A-roll from do' to do', + A-callin' de people home to God; + Dey'll git home bim-by."[84] + + "When the roll is called up yonder, + I'll be there. + By the grace of God up yonder, + I'll be there. + Yes my home is way up yonder, + An' I'll be there. + I got a mother way up yonder, + I'll be there. + I got a sister way up yonder, + I'll be there."[85] + +Although this world was a hell to the slave, still he could wait here +with patience until the time of death, after which he would see the +real home of his inner longing. To the slave heaven was a beautiful, +comfortable place beyond the sky. It had golden streets and a sea +of glass, upon which angels danced and sang in praise to Him upon +the golden throne. There was no sun to burn one in that bright land +of never-ending Sabbath. There kindred and friends reunited in the +happiest relationships. The slave was poor, hampered, and sorrowful +in this world; but in that world above, whose glory falling stars and +melting elements would signify in the day of judgment, he would be +rich and free to sing, shout, walk, and fly about carrying the news. +There he would know no tears or the sorrow of parting, but only rest +from toil and care, in the delightful companionship of the heavenly +groups. + + "Dere's no rain to wet you, + O, yes, I want to go home. + Dere's no sun to burn you, + O, yes, I want to go home. + O, push along believers, + O, yes, I want to go home. + Dere's no hard trials, + O, yes, I want to go home. + Dere's no whips a crackin' + O, yes, I want to go home."[86] + + "Oh de hebben is shinin', shinin', + O Lord, de hebben is shinin' full ob love. + Oh, Fare-you-well, friends, + I'm gwine to tell you all, + Gwine to leave you all a-mine eyes to close; + De hebben is shinin' full ob love."[87] + + "How sweet a Sabbath thus to spend, + In hope of one that ne'er shall end."[88] + + "Yes my mother's goin' to heaven to outshin the sun, + An it's way beyon' the moon."[89] + + "Po' man goin' to heaven, + Rich man goin' to hell, + For Po' man got his starry crown, + Rich man got his wealth."[90] + + "Well there are sinners here and sinners there, + An' there are sinners everywhere, + But I thank God that God declare, + That there ain't no sinners in heaven."[91] + + "O join on, join my Lord, + Join de heaven wid the angels; + O join on, join my Lord, + Join de heaven wid de angels."[92] + + "I'm gwin to keep a climbin' high + Till I meet dem angels in de sky. + Dem pooty angels I shall see-- + Why doan de debbil let a me be? + O when I git to heaven goin sit an' tell, + Three archangels gwin er ring dem bells + Two white angels come a walkin' down, + Long white robes an' starry crown. + What's dat yonder, dat I see? + Big tall angels comin' after me."[93] + +The following spirituals emphasize what the slave felt that he would +do in heaven. + + "Heaven, heaven, + Everybody talkin' bout heaven an' goin' there + Heaven, heaven, + Goin' to shine all 'round God's heaven."[94] + + "Oh, I wish I was there, + To hear my Jesus' orders, + Oh, how I wish I was there, Lord, + To wear my starry crown."[95] + + "A golden band all 'round my waist, + An' de palms of victory in-a my hand, + An' de golden slippers on to my feet, + Gwine to walk up and down o' dem golden street. + Oh, wait till I put on my robe. + An' a golden crown-a placed on-a my head, + An' my long white robe a-com a dazzlin' down, + Now wait till I get on my gospel shoes, + Gwine to walk about de heaven an' a-carry de news, + Oh, wait till I put on my robe."[96] + + "You can hinder me here but you can't hinder me dere + For de Lord in Heaven gwin' hear my prayer. + De evening's great but my Cap'n is strong, + U'm fightin' fer de city an' de time ain't long."[97] + + "Well, my mother's goin' to heaven, + She's goin' to outshine the sun, O Lord, + Well, my mother's goin' to heaven, + She's going to outshine the sun, O Lord, + Yes, my mother's goin' to heaven to outshine the sun, + An' its way beyon' the moon. + The crown that my Jesus give me, + Goin' outshine the sun, + You got a home in the promise lan', + Goin' outshine the sun, + Goin' to put on my crown in glory, + An' outshine the sun, O Lord. + 'Way beyon' de moon."[98] + + "Gwine hab happy meetin', + Gwine shout in hebben, + Gwine shout an' nebber tire, + O slap yo' han's chilluns, + I feels de spirit movin', + O now I'm gittin' happy."[99] + + "Gwine to march a-way in de gold band, + In de army bye-and-bye; + Gwine to march a-way in de gold band, + In de army by-and-bye. + Sinner, what you gwine to do dat day? + Sinner, what you gwine to do dat day? + When de fire's a-rolling behind you, + In de army bye-and-bye. + Sister Mary gwine to hand down the robe, + In the army bye-and-bye; + Gwine to hand down the robe and the gold band, + In the army, bye-and-bye."[100] + + "You got a robe, I got a robe, + All God's children got a robe, + Goin' try on my robe an' if it fits me, + Goin' to wear it all round God's heaven."[101] + + "We'll walk up an' down dem golden streets, + We'll walk about Zion. + Gwine sit in de kingdom, + I really do believe, where sabbath have no end. + Look way in de heaven--hope I'll jine de band,-- + Sittin' in de kingdom. + I done been to heaven an' I done been tried. + Dere's a long white robe in de heaven for me, + Dere's a golden crown, golden harp, starry crown, silver slippers, + In de heaven for me I know."[102] + + "I want to go to heaven when I die, + To shout salvation as I fly. + You say yer aiming fer de skies, + Why don't yer quit yer tellin' lies. + I hope I git dere bye-an' bye, + To jine de number in de sky. + When I git to heaven gwine to ease, ease, + Me an' my God goin' do as we please, + Sittin' down side o' de holy Lamb. + When I git to heaven goin' set right down, + Gwiner ask my Lord fer starry crown. + Now wait till I gits my gospel shoes, + Gwin-er walk 'bout heaven an' carry de news."[103] + +A boy of ten, being sold from his mother, said, + + "I'm gwine to sit down at the welcome table, + Den my little soul's gwine to shine. + I'm gwine to feast off milk and honey, + Den my little soul's gwine to shine. + I'm gwine to tell God how-a you sarved me, + Den my little soul's gwine to shine."[104] + +The place that heaven must have had in the attitude of the slave we +shall now consider, by an examination of the slave's mental world. +To do so we must feel the hand of slavery holding him in subjection +to the will of the master. The inner voices that called the black +slave at his task, clothed in simple garb, and living on homely fare, +we also must hear speaking to us, and invoking the same response. +Then we shall be able to appreciate the religious significance of the +situations. + +The bell upon the white pole in the great-house yard summons the +slaves to their daily tasks in the fields. Quickly, the slave-mother, +rising from the cabin-floor, and taking her babe upon her back, sets +out to join the crowd. With brawny arms around his mother's neck, the +young child glares at the red rising of the sun, until he is left at +the end of the row. Then as mother's hoe cuts grass from the tender +corn, he hears her foot-steps blend with those of the plowman, her +voice of love mingle with the mumble of slaves, and the songs of +birds, that play in the warm sunlight of the morning. With longing +eyes the child watches her who, last night, when her work was done, +fed him from her breast, as she sat upon the cabin-floor, murmuring +of a better world, where child and mother would know no weary sun. +Sitting upon the green grass that fringes the end of the long rows, he +watches her toiling, disappearing into the distance. + +Taken from his mother at the age of seven, the child is transferred +to the great-house yard, where the harsh voices of slave-children, +conscious of their lot, fill the air. Yesterday he sat in the +cabin-door, upon grandmother's knee, listening to the grinding of the +big mill down by the pond, and watching the squirrels drop acorns from +the old oak tree. Last night he opened the door for father, who, worn +from being away so long, brought few potatoes and corn. Then there was +a great time. Father, in overalls, grandmother with a "slat-bonnet" +upon her gray head, mother with a "grass-sack" around her waist, +all knelt upon their knees in prayer to God above, father leading +mournfully. "Get up in heaven by-and-by," he said, until all were +filled with joy. How different things are today. The old mill by the +pond is now seen lifting its white, bird-like wings into heaven, where +mother, father and grandmother may be. They may be up there in the +sunlight, singing and shouting with the angels. + +The dawn of another day comes in the life of the slave. Now all must +help kill the "fatted hogs." The knives have been sharpened, the +scaffolds built, the ashes brought up from the ash-heap. The slaves +are gathered around the fire, warming themselves and waiting for +the water in the big black pots to boil. They hear the shrill voice +of the cock and the noise of the mules heralding the coming of day, +when the presence of old master will stop their friendly discussions. +While fading stars twinkle in the pines that cast ghost-like shadows +upon the white-washed cabins, the slaves talk of their religious +experiences, how they "overcame the devil in the wilderness" through +the help of Christ. The stars were shining thus a year ago, when Aunt +Lucinda died. She had been a good woman, never receiving a flogging. +She used to make cakes for the neighbors and tell them when to plant +their crops. When she died a bright star, like an angel, lit upon the +cabin-roof, to take her soul away. This morning she is in heaven, +wearing golden slippers, long, white robe, and starry crown, about +which she used to sing in the camp-meetings. + +The big hogs killed and put into the "smoke-house" and the coming +of night ending the slave's work, he is now allowed to attend the +camp-meeting, in the log-house, down by the side of the river, that +lies behind the big woods. In the leaves of the old red oak, that +stands upon the shore and that is said to be the place of ghosts, +he hears the noise of the wood owl, calling to him, as he takes his +boat and glides silently away amid the solemn shadows that lie upon +the deep, moon-lit waters. Unconsciously he sings the words of his +comrades as they marched last night to the grave-yard: + + "I know moon-rise; + I know star-rise; + Lay dis body down + I march to the grave-yard, + I march through the grave-yard + Lay dis body down + I lay in de grave-yard and stretch out my arms, + Lay, dis body down." + +At the meeting-house, not only does he sing and shout, but each slave +for some sinner-friend or relative who has been sold away, sincerely +asks the prayers of the other. There parent prays for child and child +for parent. "Sister Martha," dressed in gingham, is there, that +gray-haired woman, who goes each day to the river, hoping that some +message may come floating from her "Tom." She is there to weep and to +rejoice and to talk with "Brother Robert" about the cross of Christ. +The slaves, singing and shouting, tearfully kiss each other's cheek, +shake hands, and part. They were there to worship and not to play. + +Inevitable then is the conclusion that the religion of the American +slaves was decidedly different from the prevailing religion found +among the peoples of Africa. We saw that fetishism was the prevailing +religion found in Africa; that the few American slaves who maintained +any of their African religious heritage were considered grossly +superstitious by the American slaves generally; that the slave-groups +brought to America from Africa were so broken up and scattered that +the old group-habits did not continue to exist. We found on the +other hand that the slaves of America, who were in contact with +Christianity, became very enthusiastic over the Christian religion; +that they developed a sorrow for this world and a joyous longing for +heaven, as they showed by their shouts and songs. This emphasis upon a +place of rest in heaven, we conclude, helped the American slave adjust +himself to his particular environment. As it helped him to live, so it +helped him also to die. + + G. R. WILSON. + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] This dissertation was submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate +School of Arts and Literature of the University of Chicago in +candidacy for the degree of Bachelor of Divinity, March, 1921, by Gold +Refined Wilson. + +[2] Working toward this end, I have examined a vast amount of +material on slavery, much of which is controversial, having been +written by men who favored slaves, or by abolitionists and slaves +who were able to see only one side of the question discussed. Such +literature, being biased, so distorts the truth that it is extremely +difficult to discover what is social fact. As sources, however, I have +used books and magazine-articles, written from a more scientific point +of view. There are a few representative ones. Kingsley's _West African +Studies_, which, although expressing the attitude of the author, gives +us a comprehensive picture of what the life in Africa is. Washington, +in the _Story of the Negro_, in a simple, sincere manner, sets forth +the struggles of the Negro in his contact with a higher civilization. +Woodson's _Education of the Negro prior to 1861_ shows to what extent +effort was made by the whites to bring the slaves into contact with +the white civilization. _The Religious Development of the Negro in +Virginia_, by Earnest, shows how the church of the Negro slave, +beginning in the church of the whites, grew to be an independent +organization. Fragmentary evidence in the histories of the religious +denominations shows the same progressive development. A few of the +stories of fugitive slaves, though written for other purposes, still +speak very clearly of how dependent the slave was upon his cultural +surroundings for his religious ideas. The stories of the lives of +Nat Turner, the Virginia slave insurrectionist, and of _Harriet, the +Moses of Her People_, are filled with apocalyptic imagery. Concerning +the phenomena of cultural contacts, the most scholarly piece of work +yet produced is that by Prof. Park, which shows the tendency of +one civilization to accommodate itself to another, by assimilation +of concepts, expressed in language and custom. For a study of the +religion of the slave, however, the best of all the sources is that +spontaneous, naive body of literature consisting of the slave-songs, +sometimes called "spirituals," which were sung by individuals upon +various occasions, and by shouting groups of religious enthusiasts. +Krehbiel, who set many of these primitive verses to printed scales, +made of them a psychological interpretation that has given the +slave-mood. Colonel T. W. Higginson, the commander of a "black +regiment" in South Carolina, during the Civil War, an eyewitness of +many of the slave religious meetings, gives the circumstances under +which a number of the "spirituals" arose. But Odum, in Volume III of +the _Journal of Religious Psychology and Education_, makes of all +the classes of slave-songs a psychological interpretation that is +unsurpassed. The value of these collections is the common longing +found therein, a burning enthusiasm to live in heaven. + +[3] In the preparation of this dissertation the following works +were used: R. H. Nassau, _Fetichism in West Africa_, 1904; Mary H. +Kingsley, _West African Studies_ (London, 1901); J. B. Earnest, _The +Religious Development of the Negro in Virginia_ (Charlottesville, +Va., 1914); H. M. Henry, _Slavery in South Carolina_ (Emory, Va., +1914); Ivan E. McDougle, _Slavery in Kentucky, 1792-1865_ (Reprinted +from THE JOURNAL OF NEGRO HISTORY, vol. III, No. 3, July, 1918); H. +A. Trexler, _Slavery in Missouri, 1804-1865, Being a Dissertation in +Johns Hopkins University Studies_ (Baltimore, 1914); J. C. Ballagh, +_Slavery in Virginia, Johns Hopkins University Studies, vol. XXIX, +1902_ (Baltimore); J. H. Russell, _Free Negro in Virginia, 1619-1865, +Johns Hopkins University Studies, Series 31, No. 3_ (Baltimore, Johns +Hopkins University Press, 1913); J. R. Brackett, _Negro in Maryland_ +(Baltimore, 1889); G. H. Moore, _Slavery in Massachusetts_ (New York, +1866); R. Q. Mallard, _Plantation Life before Emancipation_ (Richmond, +Virginia, 1892); Frances Anne Kemble, _Journal of a Residence on a +Georgian Plantation in 1838-9_ (New York, 1863); C. G. Woodson, _The +Education of the Negro Prior to 1861_ (New York, 1915); _The Journal +of Negro History_, edited by C. G. Woodson, vols. I-IV, 1916-1919 (The +Association for the Study of Negro Life and History, Inc., Washington, +D. C.); Alcee Fortier, _History of Louisiana_, 4 vols. (New York, +1904); Code Noir, I (Published 1724); M. W. Jernegan, _Slavery and +Conversion in the American Colonies_ (Reprinted from _The American +Historical Review_, vol. XXI, No. 3, April, 1916); G. M. West, _Status +of the Negro in Virginia during the Colonial Period_ (New York); L. +A. Chamerorzow, _Slave Life in Georgia; Narrative of John Brown_ +(London, 1865); B. T. Washington, _Story of the Negro_, 2 vols. (New +York, 1909); _Baptist Annual Register_; A. N. Waterman, _A Century of +Caste_ (Chicago, 1901); Geo. Thompson, _Prison Life and Reflections_, +3d Edition (Hartford, 1849); Jacobs, _Incidents in the Life of a +Slave Girl_ (Boston, 1861); Sarah H. Bradford, _Harriet, The Moses of +Her People_ (New York, 1861); Thos. W. Higginson, _Life of a Black +Regiment_ (Boston, 1870); Jas. B. Avirett, _The Old Plantation, Great +House and Cabin before the War, 1817-65_ (New York, Chicago, London, +1901); Jno. S. Abbott, _South and North_ (New York, 1860). Lucius +P. Little, _Ben Harding, His Times and Contemporaries_ (Louisville, +1867); _De Bow's Commercial Review_ (New Orleans, 1847); _Life of +Josiah Henson_ (Boston, 1849); _Baptist Home Missions in America_ +(New York, 1883); _Presbyterian Magazine_, I (Philadelphia, 1851); +_Methodist Magazine_, X (New York, 1827); W. L. Grissom, _History of +Methodism in North Carolina, 1772-1805_, vol. I; _Sermons by John +Wesley_, 3d Edition, vols. I-II (New York); B. F. Riley, _History +of Baptists in Southern States East of Mississippi_ (Philadelphia, +1888); _John Rankin, 1793-1886, Letters on Slavery_ (Boston, 1833); +W. G. Hawkins, _Lunsford Lane_ (Boston, 1863); Frederick Douglass, +_My Bondage and Freedom_ (New York, 1857); K. E. R. Pickard, _The +Kidnapped and the Ransomed, Recollections of Peter Still and His +Wife Vina_, 3d Ed. (Syracuse, 1865); _Fifty Years in Chains, Life +of an American Slave_ (New York); H. E. Krehbiel, _Afro-American +Folk-Songs_, R. E. Park, _Education, Conflicts, and Fusions, American +Sociological Society_, vol. XIII (Sept. 3, 1918); _Journal of American +Folk-Lore_, vol. XIV (1901), pp. 1-11, vol. XXVII (1914), pp. 241-5, +vol. XXIII, p. 435, vol. XXIV, p. 255; _Songs by Thos. P. Fennes_; +W. F. Allen, _Slave Songs of the United States_ (New York, 1867); +_Twenty-two Years Work of Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute_ +(Hampton, 1893); T. P. Fenner, _Hampton and its Students by Two of +its Teachers, with 50 Cabin and Plantation Songs_ (New York, 1875); +_American Journal of Religious Psychology and Education_, vol. III, +pp. 265-365; _Negro Year-Book_; E. W. Pearson, _Letters from Port +Royal_ (1916); C. H. Jones, _Instruction of Negro Slave_ (1842). + +[4] Tylor's _Anthropology_. + +[5] Earnest, p. 28. + +[6] _Fifty Years in Chains_, p. 14. + +[7] Jernegan, pp. 506-7. + +[8] _Education, Conflicts, and Fusion_, p. 47. + +[9] Washington, _Story of the Negro_, pp. 260-261. + +[10] Earnest, p. 19. + +[11] Woodson, _Education of Negro Prior to 1861_, p. 23. + +[12] Earnest, p. 60. + +[13] Woodson, _Education of Negro Prior to 1861_, p. 21. + +[14] Woodson, _Education of Negro Prior to 1861_, p. 26. + +[15] _Ibid._, p. 29. + +[16] Earnest, _Religious Development_, p. 17. + +[17] _Ibid._, p. 45. + +[18] _Ibid._, p. 66. + +[19] Ballagh, p. 114. + +[20] In 1841, there were 500,000 slaves who were church members, or +1/5 of total number of slaves. 2,000,000 were regular attendants. J. +C. Ballagh, p. 114. + +[21] _Story of the Negro_, p. 257. + +[22] _Story of the Negro_, p. 268; Quoted from Ballagh. + +[23] Washington, _Story of Negro_, p. 266. + +[24] Quite different from the early experiences of Bryan and Samson, +who made adversity serve them, the beginning of Jasper's Christian +career was greatly aided by his master, a man with a similar +conversion and a similar faith in Christ. Using the Bible as the norma +of all truth, in his attack upon current scientific knowledge, Jasper +impressed all men by his sincere conviction and devout Christian +life. A contemporary said of him: "Jasper made an impression upon his +generation, because he was sincerely and deeply in earnest in all +that he said. No man could talk with him in private, or listen to him +from the pulpit, without being thoroughly convinced of that fact.... +He took the Bible in its literal significance; he accepted it as the +inspired Word of God; he trusted it with all his heart and soul and +mind; he believed nothing that was in conflict with the teachings of +the Bible."--See Washington's _Story of the Negro_, p. 264. + +[25] Washington, _Story of the Negro_, pp. 260-1. + +[26] _Ibid._, pp. 254-5. + +[27] _Ibid._, pp. 255-6. + +[28] Earnest, p. 72. + +[29] _Ben Harding, His Times and Contemporaries_, p. 544. + +[30] Earnest, p. 73. + +[31] Jacobs, _Life of a Slave-Girl_, p. 112. + +[32] Coffin, p. 60. + +[33] Higginson, p. 26. + +[34] Henson, _Life of Josiah Henson_, p. 12. + +[35] Earnest, p. 42. + +[36] _Plantation Life before Emancipation_, p. 164. + +[37] _Life of John Thompson_, p. 19. See _Methodists in N. C._, p. +238. + +[38] Earnest, _Religious Development_, p. 54. + +[39] _Life of Douglass_, p. 82. + +[40] _Presbyterian Magazine_: 1831, p. 27; See vol. 6, pp. 8-9; +Woodson, _Education of Negro Prior to 1861_, p. 49; _Sermons of Wesley +and Whitefield_. + +[41] _Journal of Negro History_, vol. I, p. 70. + +[42] _Twenty-two Years Work at Hampton._ + +[43] _Journal of Religious Psychology and Education_, vol. 3, pp. +290-1. + +[44] Higginson, _Life of a Black Regiment_, p. 133. + +[45] _Twenty-two Years at Hampton._ + +[46] _Hampton and its Students_, p. 182. + +[47] Henry, p. 141. + +[48] _Life of Black Regiment_, by Higginson, pp. 51-2. + +[49] _Ibid._, pp. 35, 198. + +[50] My position is that the shout was a natural and spontaneous +creation of group-phenomena. It differed from the whites' behavior in +ceremonial emphasis. Neither the shout nor the antiphonal song was +brought from Africa. The real religious significance of both, however, +is not in external behavior, but in content. + +[51] _Am. J. Rel. Psy. and Ed._, 3: 287. + +[52] _Story of the Negro_, p. 260. + +[53] Fenner, _Hampton and its Students_, p. 223. + +[54] _Am. J. Rel. Psy. and Ed._, 3: 303. + +[55] _Ibid._, 340. + +[56] _Ibid._, 3: 321. + +[57] Fenner, _Hampton and its Students_, p. 190. + +[58] Higginson, _Black Regiment of South Carolina_, 200-1. + +[59] _Am. J. Rel. Psy. and Ed._, 3: 351. + +[60] Krehbiel, p. 75. + +[61] _Am. J. Relig. Psy. and Ed._, 3: 304. + +[62] _Ibid._, 320. + +[63] Allen, 30-1. + +[64] Allen, _Slave Songs_, 113, p. 94. + +[65] _Ibid._, 112, p. 93. + +[66] _Am. J. Relig. Psy. and Ed._, 3: 304. + +[67] Allen, _Slave Songs_, 124, p. 101. + +[68] _Am. J. Relig. Psy. and Ed._, 3: 288. + +[69] Jacobs, p. 109. + +[70] _Am. J. Relig. Psy. and Ed._, 3: 309. + +[71] Allen, _Slave Songs_, 120, p. 98. + +[72] _Ibid._, 107, p. 86. + +[73] _Am. J. Relig. Psy. and Ed._, 3: 365. + +[74] Allen, _Slave Songs_, 80, p. 60. + +[75] Allen, _Slave Songs_, 108, p. 87. + +[76] _Plantation Life Before Emancipation_, p. 168. + +[77] _Am. J. Relig. Psy. and Ed._, 3: 331. + +[78] Atlantic Monthly, 19: 687. + +[79] _Am. J. Relig. Psy. and Ed._, 3: 317. + +[80] Fenner, _Hampton and its Students_, p. 215. + +[81] Fenner, _Hampton and Its Students_, p. 188. + +[82] Allen, _Slave Songs_, p. 73. + +[83] _Am. J. Relig. Psy. and Ed._, 3: 334. + +[84] Krehbiel, p. 99. + +[85] _Am. J. Relig. Psy. and Ed._, 3: 362. + +[86] Atlantic Monthly, XIX, 687. + +[87] Fenner, _Hampton and Its Students_, p. 219. + +[88] _Am. J. Rel. Psy. and Ed._, 3: 279. + +[89] _Ibid._, 337. + +[90] _Am. J. Rel. Psy. and Ed._, 336. + +[91] _Ibid._, 328. + +[92] _Ibid._, 332. + +[93] _Ibid._, 298. + +[94] _Ibid._, 328. + +[95] _Life before Emancipation_, p. 163. + +[96] _Hampton and its Students_, p. 187. + +[97] _Am. J. Relig. Psy. and Ed._, 3: 323. + +[98] _Ibid._, 337. + +[99] _Ibid._, 299. + +[100] Allen, _Slave Songs_, Song 103, p. 83. + +[101] _Am. J. Relig. Psy. and Ed._, 3: 328. + +[102] _Ibid._, 294. + +[103] _Ibid._, 293. + +[104] _Hampton and its Students_, p. 173. + + + + +PRUDENCE CRANDALL + + +Prior to the Civil War, education for the American of color, was +for the most part surreptitiously obtained. There were, however, +a few fearless men and women of the white race, who, endowed with +a magnanimous spirit and indomitable will, rose above the sordid +plane of self-advancement and comfort, brooked the tide of social +ostracism and censure to a realm of true altruism in behalf of the +circumstantially weak and defenseless race. + +Many of these noted benefactors belonged to that sect known in +American history as Friends. True to their noble heritage, they faced +the facts of social crises with intrepidity and strong convictions. +They acted with unerring judgment and penetrating vision upon those +principles sacred to the life and happiness of all mankind. In the +vanguard of this honorable group, of martyrs to the cause of justice, +stands an American school teacher, born of Quaker parentage, at +Hopkinton, Rhode Island, September 3, 1803--Prudence Crandall. The +noble purpose and sympathetic nature of this great teacher are clearly +demonstrated in this extract from a letter addressed to William Lloyd +Garrison, January 18th, 1833:[1] + + "Now I will tell you why I write you, and the object is this: + I wish to know your opinion respecting changing white scholars + for colored ones. I have been for some months past determined + if possible during the remaining part of my life to benefit the + people of color. I do not dare tell any one of my neighbors + anything about the contemplated change in my school and I beg of + you, sir, that you will not expose it to any one; for if it was + known, I have no reason to expect but it would ruin my present + school. Will you be so kind as to write by the next mail and give + me your opinion on the subject. + + "Yours, with greatest respect, + "PRUDENCE CRANDALL."[2] + +This letter shows clearly that Prudence Crandall foresaw that any +undertaking of an educational nature in behalf of Negroes would meet +with opposition, require personal sacrifices, and demand unfaltering +courage and patience. + +That she was willing to undergo these tests was proved when a young +Negro girl applied for admission to the school which she was then +conducting for white girls only. This ambitious pupil of color was +Sarah Harris, seventeen years old, the daughter of a respectable man +who owned a small farm near the village of Canterbury. Sarah had +attended the same district school in which the majority of Prudence +Crandall's students had received their elementary training and had +proved herself a bright scholar and a pious young lady. So deeply +impressed was the teacher with this girl's plea and her earnest +desire to get a broader education to teach other girls of color, that +Prudence Crandall admitted Sarah to her school. + +The students themselves offered no opposition nor manifested any +objection to her presence. Parents, however, began to complain and +informed Prudence Crandall that her school would not be supported if +she kept the Negro girl as a student. To this threat Prudence Crandall +replied: "It might sink then for I should not turn her out." Soon the +white girls began to leave the school, but the philanthropic teacher +was determined to adhere to the principles of democratic education. +She finally gave up the teaching of white girls entirely and brought +a number of Negro children into her school, then situated in the +most aristocratic part of the town of Canterbury. "If the Canterbury +people," said Ellen D. Larned, "had quietly accepted the situation and +left them in peace the difficulty would soon have ended. Even if the +children had remained they would have given them little annoyance. +Twenty Indian lads were received into Plainfield Academy a few years +later, and few outside of the village even heard of them."[3] + +This step, however, aroused the most intense feeling of the town +people and met with strong and immediate opposition. A committee +of four of the chief men of the village, Adams, Frost, Fenner and +Harris, visited Prudence Crandall and attempted to show her that such +an undertaking was decidedly objectionable and seriously detrimental +to the welfare of the whites of the community. One Esquire Frost +intimated that Prudence Crandall's project fostered social equality +and intermarriage of whites and blacks. To this insidious insinuation, +she bluntly replied: "Moses had a black wife." To emphasize their +decided opposition to this project, the people called a public meeting +and drew up and adopted resolutions of a hostile nature. One of the +leading politicians of that day, Andrew T. Judson, was so incensed at +Miss Crandall's action that he denounced her in the most severe and +scathing terms. + +The Rev. Mr. May and Mr. Buffum, who were present on behalf of Miss +Crandall, made several attempts to speak in her defense but were +rudely and abruptly prohibited. Denied the privilege of espousing +her cause in this meeting, Mr. May, upon adjournment, rose from his +seat and addressed the people as they were leaving the hall: "Men of +Canterbury, I have a word for you! Hear me!" A few turned to listen, +and he pleaded with force and feeling the cause of the noble little +teacher of Canterbury. He told them that Prudence Crandall was willing +to move her school from its present situation, which was next door to +the residence of Mr. Judson, her bitterest enemy, to some more retired +part of the city. + +May's arguments, however, were of no avail and only drew forth tirades +of invective and abuse; for Mr. Judson responded: "Mr. May, we are not +merely opposed to the establishment of that school in Canterbury; we +mean there shall not be such a school set up anywhere in our state. +The colored people can never rise from their menial condition in our +country; they ought not to be permitted to rise here. They are an +inferior race of beings, and never can or ought to be recognized as +the equals of the whites. Africa is the place for them. I am in favor +of the colonization scheme. Let the niggers and their descendants be +sent back to their fatherland and there improve themselves as much +as they can. I am a colonizationist. You and your friend Garrison +have undertaken what you cannot accomplish. The condition of the +colored population of our country can never be essentially improved +on this continent. You are fanatical about them. You are violating +the constitution of our Republic, which settled forever the status of +the black men in this land. They belong to Africa. Let them be sent +back there or kept as they are here. The sooner you abolitionists +abandon your project the better for our country, for the niggers and +yourselves."[4] + +In answer to this outburst of feeling, typical of ignorance and +prejudice, though it came from the lips of a prospective judge of +the Supreme Court, Mr. May replied: "Mr. Judson, there never will be +fewer colored people in this country than there are now. Of the vast +majority of them, this is their native land as much as it is ours. +It will be unjust, inhuman in us to drive them out, or to make them +willing to go by our cruel treatment of them ... and the only question +is whether we will recognize the rights which God gave them as men +and encourage and assist them to become all he has made them capable +of being, or whether we will continue wickedly to deny them the +privileges we enjoy, condemn them to degradation, enslave and imbrute +them; and so bring upon ourselves the condemnation of the Almighty, +Impartial Father of all men and the terrible visitation of the God of +the oppressed. I trust, sir, you well e're long come to see that we +must accord to these men, their rights or incur justly the loss of +our own. Education is one of the primal fundamental rights of all the +children of men. Connecticut is the last place where this right should +be denied." + +These eloquent remarks truly portrayed the difference in the character +of the two men. Encouraged by such noble characters as May and +Garrison, Prudence Crandall was determined not to be deterred in her +purpose by men like Judson. Her lofty ideals of service to humanity +and to the humbler lot especially were evidenced in this extract from +Garrison's letter to Isaac Knapp, April 11, 1833: + + "She is a wonderful woman, as undaunted as if she had the whole + world on her side. She has opened her school and is resolved to + persevere. I wish brother Johnson to state this fact particularly + in the next _Liberator_ and urge all those who intend to send + their children thither, to do so without delay."[5] + +Despite all vicissitudes, Miss Crandall opened her school for girls +of color early in April, with an enrollment of fifteen or twenty +students. These for the most part came from Philadelphia, New York, +Providence, and Boston. + +The townspeople, greatly incensed, resorted to every foul means +possible to destroy the school. At first, they searched for some +obsolete vagrancy law for the purpose of intimidating those who +came from other cities to attend school. One Negro girl, Anna Eliza +Hammond, seventeen years of age, from Providence, was arrested, but +Samuel May and other residents of Brooklyn gave bonds for $10,000 +and thus defeated this plan. Frustrated in their first efforts, the +townspeople held an indignation meeting at which they expressed their +sentiment in the following resolutions: + + "Whereas, it hath been publicly announced that a school is to be + opened in this town, on the first Monday of April next, using + the language of the advertisement, 'for young ladies and little + misses of color,' or in other words for the people of color, the + obvious tendency of which would be to collect within the town + of Canterbury large numbers of persons from other States whose + characters and habits might be various and unknown to us, thereby + rendering insecure the persons, property, and reputations of our + citizens. Under such circumstances our silence might be construed + into an approbation of the project: Thereupon, Resolved That the + locality of a school for the people of color at any place within + the limits of this town, for the admission of persons of foreign + jurisdiction, meets with our unqualified disapprobation, and it + is to be understood, that the inhabitants of Canterbury protest + against it in the most earnest manner. + + "Resolved, That a committee be now appointed to be composed of the + Civil Authority and Selectmen, who shall make known to the persons + contemplating the establishment of said school, the sentiments + and objections entertained by this meeting in reference to said + school--pointing out to her the injurious effects and incalculable + evils resulting from such an establishment within this town, and + persuade her to abandon the project."[6] + +The people then influenced the Legislature to enact a disgraceful but +well-named "Black Law,"[7] amid the ringing of church bells and +great rejoicing. This act outlawed Miss Crandall's school. The people +closed all shops and meeting houses to the teacher and her pupils. +Stage drivers refused them transportation in the common carriers of +the town. Physicians would not attend them. Miss Crandall's own family +and friends were forbidden under penalty of heavy fines to visit her. +The well near her house was filled with manure and water was denied +her from other sources. The house itself was smeared with filth, +assailed with rotten eggs, stormed with stones, and finally set afire. + +Not only was Prudence Crandall herself assailed with threats of coming +vengeance and ejection, but her father in the south part of the town +was insulted and threatened. "When lawyers, courts and jurors are +leagued against you," said one to him, "it will be easy to raise a +mob and tear down your house." "Mr. Crandall, if you go to your +daughter," they said, "you are to be fined $100 for the first offense, +$200 for the second and double it every time; Mrs. Crandall, if you go +there, you will be fined and your daughter Almira will be fined, and +Mr. May and those gentlemen from Providence (Messrs. George and Henry +Benson), if they come there, will be fined at the same rate. And your +daughter, the one that established the school for colored females, +will be taken up the same way as for stealing a horse or for burglary. +Her property will not be taken but she will be put in jail, not having +the liberty of the yard. There is no mercy to be shown about it!"[8] + +Miss Crandall was arrested and cast into prison, where she spent the +night in a cell previously occupied by a murderer. She was twice +tried. The first trial was held before the county court on August 22, +1833. The attorneys for the prosecution were Jonathan A. Welch, Andrew +T. Judson and Ichabod Bulkley, while those for the defense were Calvin +Goddard, W. W. Ellsworth and Henry Strong. The latter were secured by +Samuel May and paid by Arthur Tappan. + +The counsel for the defense argued that the "Black Law" conflicted +with that article of the Federal Constitution which granted to +citizens of each State all the privileges and immunities of citizens +of the several States. The counsel for the prosecution argued that +people of color were not and could not ever be citizens of any +State. The judge, Mr. Eaton, gave the decision that the law was +constitutional and binding upon the people of that State. The jurors, +however, could not agree and so the case went over to the October +term. It was then tried before the Superior Court of Windham County +and its constitutionality again pronounced by Judge Daggett, who +expressed himself as follows: "It would be a perversion of terms and +the well-known rule of construction to say that slaves, free blacks, +or Indians were citizens within the meaning of that term as used +in the constitution." The jurors thus influenced gave their verdict +against the defendant. Prudence Crandall's counsel then appealed to +the Court of Errors, where the decision was reversed, July 22, 1834, +upon the ground of "insufficiency of the information," which omitted +to allege that the school was opened without necessary license.[9] + +While the decision of the Court of Errors was pending, Prudence +Crandall and her pupils were the victims of other fiendish acts of the +townspeople. Having failed in their attempt to burn down her school, +a number of them, with heavy clubs and iron bars, crept stealthily +upon her house at midnight on the 9th of September, and simultaneously +smashed in the windows with such force and suddenness that all the +occupants were terror stricken. Even Prudence Crandall, for the first +time, trembled with fear. Realizing that she and her pupils would +ever be the object of insult and injury, she decided, upon the advice +of Mr. May and other friends, to give up the school and send her +girls back to their homes. Samuel May said that when he stood before +Prudence Crandall and her pupils and advised them to leave, the words +blistered his lips and his bosom glowed with indignation. "I felt +ashamed of Connecticut," said he, "ashamed of my state, ashamed of my +country, ashamed of my color." + +The burden of these terrible ordeals was somewhat alleviated by the +fidelity of her friends, the love and faith of her pupils and the +devotion of her sister, father and husband. Having recently married +the Rev. Calvin Philleo, a Baptist clergyman of Ithaca, New York, +Prudence Crandall upon solicitation left Windham County never to +return again. Tis true she had but little opportunity to teach the +young women of color, nevertheless through sacrifice and service +she taught the people of Connecticut a lesson of philanthropy and +sacrifice. + + G. SMITH WORMLEY. + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Garrison's _Garrison_, I, Chap. X, p. 315; B. C. Steiner's +_History of Slavery in Connecticut_ (_Johns Hopkins University +Studies_, XI, 415-422). + +[2] May's _Antislavery Conflict_. + +[3] _Johns Hopkins University, Studies in Historical and Political +Science_, XI, p. 417. Larned's _Windham County_, p. 493. + +[4] May's _Antislavery Conflict_, p. 47. + +[5] Garrison's _Garrison_, I, p. 341. + +[6] Larned's _Windham County, Connecticut_, II, 490-502. + +[7] This law was: + +Whereas, attempts have been made to establish literary institutions +in this State, for the instruction of colored persons belonging to +other States and counties, which would tend to the great increase of +the colored population of the state, and thereby to the injury of the +people: Therefore, + +Section 1. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives, +in General Assembly convened, that no person shall set up or establish +in this State any school, academy or literary institution for the +instruction or education of colored persons who are not inhabitants +of this State; nor instruct or teach in any school, or other literary +institution whatsoever, in this State; nor harbor or board, for the +purpose of attending or being taught or instructed in any such school, +academy, or literary institution, any colored person who is not an +inhabitant of any town in this State, without the consent in writing +first obtained, of a majority of the civil authority, and also of the +Selectmen of the town, in which such school, academy, or literary +institution is situated, etc. See _Superior Court, October Term, +1833_, and _Report of Arguments of Counsel in the Case of Prudence +Crandall_; also _The Laws of Connecticut_, 1833. + +[8] Garrison's _Garrison_, I. ch. X, and Larned's _Windham County, +Connecticut_, II, 490-502. + +[9] The report of this case was: + +This information charges Prudence Crandall with harboring and boarding +certain colored persons, not inhabitants of any town in this State, +for the purpose of attending and being taught and instructed in a +school, set up and established in said town of Canterbury, for the +instruction and education of certain colored persons, not inhabitants +of this State. + +She is not charged with setting up a school contrary to law, not with +teaching a school contrary to law; but with harboring and boarding +colored persons, not inhabitants of this State, without license, for +the purpose of being instructed in such school. + +It is, however, not here alleged that the school was set up without +license, or that the scholars were instructed by those who had no +license. + +If it is an offence within the statute to _harbor_ or _board_ +such persons without license, under all circumstances, then this +information is correct. But if the act, in the description of the +defense itself, shows, that under some circumstances, it is no +offence, then this information is defective. + +The object in view of the legislature, as disclosed by the preamble, +is to prevent injurious consequences resulting from the increase of +the colored population, by means of literary institutions, attempted +to be established for the instruction of that class of inhabitants of +other States. Such institutions and instructors teaching such schools +are prohibited, unless licensed, as are also persons from harboring or +boarding scholars of that description, without license. + +From the first reading of the Act, it might seem as if licenses +must be obtained by each of these classes; by those who set up the +school, those who instruct it and those who board the pupils; but, it +is believed, this cannot have been intended. The object professedly +aimed at is, to prevent the increase of this population, which, it +is supposed, will take place by allowing them free education, and +instruction; to prevent which it provides, 1st, That no person shall +set up or establish any school for that purpose, without license: +2d, That no one shall instruct in any school, etc. without license: +and 3rd, That no one shall board or harbor such persons, so to be +instructed in any such school etc. without license. The object, +evidently is to regulate the schools, not the boarding houses; the +latter only is auxiliary to the former. + +This information charges, that this school was set up in Canterbury, +for the purpose of educating these persons of color, not inhabitants +of this State, that they might be instructed and educated; but omits +to state that it was not licensed. This omission is a fatal defect; as +in an information on a penal statute, the prosecutor must set forth +every fact that is necessary to bring the case within the statute; and +every exception within the enacting clause of the act, descriptive +of the offence, must be negated. See _Smith v. Mouse_, 6 Green 1, p. +274; and Judson's Remarks to the Jury, _Superior Court, October Term, +1833_. + + + + +DOCUMENTS + + +EXTRACTS FROM NEWSPAPERS AND MAGAZINES + +Magazines and newspapers sometimes unconsciously give valuable facts +not only as to sentiment but as to the actual achievements of persons +and agencies through which they have worked. This is true of the +extracts given below. + +Endeavoring to set forth the part which Philadelphia played in African +Colonization before the Civil War, _The Evening Bulletin_ of that city +carried the following, May 9, 1921: + + + THE LIBERIAN REPUBLIC + + PHILADELPHIA'S PART IN FOUNDING THE NEGRO COMMONWEALTH + + The visit to Philadelphia of the negro President of the Liberian + Republic, recalls the important part which a small group of local + philanthropists played a century ago in promoting the foundation + of the only free country in Africa under republican rule. The + Liberian enterprise owed its origin, not solely to pity for the + condition of the enslaved blacks of the South but also to the + desire of many northern friends of the negroes to ameliorate the + hardships of the freed blacks of the north. Both Pennsylvania + and New Jersey, in common with several other northern States, + witnessed at close range the evils of slavery. During the + Revolutionary War steps had been taken to liberate the blacks in + Pennsylvania and the famous Act of March 1st, 1780, decreed the + abolition of slavery throughout the colony. In this, as in other + and later efforts to liberate the negroes the Philadelphia Quakers + had an important part and the Pennsylvania Abolition Society, + founded under the presidency of Benjamin Franklin, antedated the + Revolutionary War by two years. + + The plan for establishing an African Negro Republic, populated + by emigrants from the United States, is credited to Dr. Robert + Finley, one of the trustees of Princeton, who was well acquainted + with the extent of slavery in New Jersey, where the census of + 1810 revealed the presence of more than ten thousand slaves, and + who also had knowledge of the miserable condition of the freed + negroes in Pennsylvania. Late in 1816 he went to Washington, + where his brother-in-law, Elias Boudinot Caldwell was a member + of Congress, and endeavored to obtain national support for his + project. A sympathetic response was not wanting, although Congress + was not yet prepared for immediate action. Accordingly, Finley + turned in another direction, secured the backing of Justice + Bushrod Washington of the Supreme Court, aroused the interest + of Henry Clay and other notables and, toward the end of 1816, + succeeded in forming, at a public meeting in Washington presided + over by Henry Clay, the American Colonization Society which + immediately selected Justice Washington as its president. + + As yet Dr. Finley had not hit upon any definite location for + the proposed colony, although years before he began his efforts + in behalf of the negroes. Thomas Jefferson had suggested that + Virginia and other American Commonwealths might profitably + imitate the example set in England by the Sierra Leone Company + in populating that district of Africa. But the English plan of + transporting the indigent negroes from London, started toward the + close of the eighteenth century, was on an altogether different + basis. Blacks and whites were mixed in the English colony, the + emigrants were made up mainly of the idle and the dissolute, and + the humanitarian motive, so strongly marked in the work of the + American Colonization Society, was missing almost entirely. + + Oddly enough, the free negroes of the North protested against + the plans of the Colonization Society. In Philadelphia a number + of negroes, meeting in the Bethel Church, adopted an indignant + resolution of protest which Congressman Joseph Hopkinson presented + in the House. But these incidents served also to arouse greater + interest in the society's plan and led to the formation of + several local auxiliaries, one of which was established promptly + in Philadelphia, where the Friends and the Abolitionists were + ready to give active support to any plan for the betterment of + the negroes. Philadelphia money, representing the contributions + of many local philanthropists, aided largely in strengthening + the treasury of the national society, and, as an opportunity was + afforded for the purchase of a number of smuggled slaves, put on + sale by the State of Georgia, in 1817, and George Washington Parke + Custis offered part of his lands for a refuge for the Colonization + Society's purchases, an active effort was made again to arouse + Congressional support, resulting this time in the founding of the + African Republic by the Government of the United States. + + While the Society was in the initial stages of development, two + missionary agents, Samuel J. Mills and Ebenezer Burgess, had + visited England and, after receiving a rebuff from Bathurst, the + Secretary of State for the English Colonies, had gone down the + African coast as far as Sherbro Island and selected a site for the + American colony. Interest was aroused to such extent that Congress + assented to the proposal for purchasing the Georgia blacks and + shipping them to Africa and an appropriation of one hundred + thousand dollars was granted for the purpose. A brig was chartered + by the government to carry away the negroes, furnished by the + Colonization Society, and the United States ship Cyane ordered to + accompany the expedition as an armed guard. The vessels departed + from New York in February, 1820, and after a five weeks voyage + landed eighty-six men, women and children on Sherbro Island. The + inclemency of the climate, however, proved disastrous to the + little group, and, after a number had succumbed to malarial fever, + the remainder fled to Sierra Leone. But the Society and its local + auxiliaries kept at work and the next year sent out another party + of negroes from Norfolk, this time seeking Cape Montserado as a + place of settlement. + + Success now attended the enterprise. Lieutenant Richard F. + Stockton of the Navy arrived at Montserado in the autumn of 1821 + and, in company with Dr. Ayres, the agent of the Colonization + Society, succeeded in purchasing, for a few hundred dollars' worth + of trinkets, the land on which Liberia was founded. Although the + promoters had negotiated a favorable treaty with the natives the + early settlers were attacked by hostile tribes and more than once + they were on the point of abandoning the little town of Monrovia + that had been named in honor of the American President and which + is now the capital of the African Republic and a place of about + six thousand inhabitants. A few years after this Philadelphia took + up the work of colonization on a larger scale. At a meeting, held + in the Franklin Institute in 1829, the Pennsylvania Colonization + Society was formed, with Dr. Thomas C. James as its president and + numbering among its founders many prominent citizens, including + William White, Roberts Vaux, B. W. Richards, J. K. Mitchell, + George W. Blight, James Bayard and Elliott Cresson, the latter + becoming one of the most active assistants of the enterprise, in + which he was joined by Mathew C. Carey, Solomon Allen and Robert + Ralston, the last four contributing liberally to the colonization + cause. For a time, too, a fortnightly journal, known as the + Colonization Herald, was published in this city and local interest + was aroused by reports of the parades of the State Fencibles, the + Liberian imitation of Philadelphia's military organization, which + assembled on fete days on Broad Street, the principal thoroughfare + of Monrovia. + + County and local societies to aid the project were formed + throughout Pennsylvania. Philadelphia had a Young Men's Society + fostered by the Methodists, the local Presbyterians endorsed + the enterprise, the Bible societies backed it and the Quakers + lent their friendly support. Ships were chartered and slaves + transported at local expense and under Philadelphia direction a + boat named the "Liberia" was built on the Delaware and employed in + the work, while the manumission of slaves was freely encouraged. + A colony on the St. John's River was assigned particularly to + the care of the Pennsylvanians and African place names, such as + Careysburg and Philadelphia, still commemorate the interest of + Philadelphians. At first the government of Liberia was purely + proprietary under the direction of the society's agents, the + blacks being allowed to select only minor officials and it was + not until 1847, when the colonization movement was losing ground + before the growth of the abolition sentiment in this country, that + the Free and Independent Republic of Liberia came into existence, + after drafting a declaration of independence and adopting a + constitutional form of government. But the dream of repatriating + the negro had failed and now Liberia, extended in area by + Anglo-Liberian and Franco-Liberian agreements of recent years + until it is almost as large as Pennsylvania, numbers less than + fifty thousand of the transplanted stock among a population of a + million and a half. + +On September 18, 1921, _The New Orleans States_ displayed on its title +page the following distorted sketch of the late Caesar Confucius +Antoine by W. O. Hart: + + _A telegram to The States from Shreveport three days ago + told of the death of C. C. Antoine, colored, who had been + lieutenant-governor of Louisiana and sometimes acted as governor + of the State._ + + _The death of Antoine, widely known in New Orleans, cuts off + another link with Reconstruction days._ + + _At the request of The States, W. O. Hart, Louisiana historian, + contributes the story telling how Antoine went from a barber's + chair to power and affluence._ + + Caesar Confucius Antoine, who was a native of New Orleans, was + in many respects one of the most remarkable of the colored + politicians who thrived in reconstruction days in Louisiana. + + He was a native of New Orleans, but appears to have been unknown + until he was elected from the Parish of Caddo, a member of the + Constitutional Convention of 1868. + + He was a very small man and light in weight. He was coal-black in + color and always dressed with the utmost neatness and simplicity. + + When the Constitution was adopted he was elected to the State + Senate from Caddo Parish and held that office for four years. + In 1872 he was nominated for Lieutenant-Governor on the ticket + headed by W. P. Kellogg, and though that ticket was defeated by + the Democratic ticket which carried the names of John McEnery, of + Ouachita, for Governor, and Davidson B. Penn, of New Orleans, for + Lieutenant-Governor, Kellogg and all those returned as elected by + the Returning Board, were recognized by President Grant and served + out their full terms of four years. + + Antoine like many of the other colored Legislators of those days + acquired an almost perfect knowledge of parliamentary law and + presided over the Senate with dignity and impartiality. + + He was a man who, in general, had the respect of all parties. He + was renominated on the ticket with S. B. Packard in 1876 and with + Packard remained in the State House, which was the old St. Louis + Hotel, until April, 1877, when President Hayes, having withdrawn + the Federal troops, the semblance of Government which Packard + established, disappeared and the Nicholls Government went into + full possession of all the State Offices. + + My recollection is that he held some Federal office after this but + I am not certain what it was. + + In a suit which he brought against D. D. Smith and the heirs of + George L. Smith, reported in the 40th Annual (1888), beginning at + page 560, considerable of the record of Antoine is given. + + + HOW HE MADE MONEY + + The suit was brought after the death of George L. Smith, to + recover two hundred shares of the capital stock of the Louisiana + State Lottery Company, which at the time of the suit, had a + very large value. The allegations of Antoine's petition and his + evidence in the case were to the effect that on March 31st, 1873, + he purchased from Charles T. Howard the lottery stock at sixty + cents on the dollar, that is twelve thousand dollars for all, and + that he was induced by George L. Smith, who also owned 225 shares + of the stock, to transfer it to D. D. Smith, a cousin of George L. + Smith, because as Smith said to Antoine: "We are both engaged in + politics, and it would not do to have the stock in our name--more + especially myself, as I was Lieutenant-Governor, and President of + the Senate; that questions in regard to the charter of the Lottery + Company might come up, and that, in case of a tie vote, I would + naturally have to vote on it; and, probably, my vote might be + challenged." + + Smith had been Tax Collector and also speculated in salary + warrants for account of himself and Antoine and Antoine's profits + therefrom were three or four thousand dollars. + + + PARTNER OF PINCHBACK + + When Antoine first went into politics he was the proprietor + of a barber shop in the city of Shreveport; a few years + afterwards, he engaged in the cotton factorage business in New + Orleans, in partnership with P. B. S. Pinchback; also once + Lieutenant-Governor. He acquired an interest in a newspaper + establishment; had a grocery store and purchased and operated a + small plantation in Caddo Parish. He also purchased some city lots + in Shreveport and a $1300 residence in this city, this in addition + to the twelve thousand dollars he paid for the Lottery Stock. + + The Supreme Court, after stating the above facts, commented + thereon as follows: + + "We cannot refrain from expressing some surprise at the auspicious + good fortune that seemed to attend his efforts, whereby his + hitherto slender income and limited means had yielded such a + comfortable little fortune within so few years. + + "Money matters appeared to have been so easy with him that he + could loan a friend a thousand dollars, payable on call." + + The opinion of the court was rendered by Mr. Justice L. B. + Watkins, and the court concluded that the acquisition of the + stock by Antoine was so tainted with fraud that he was entitled + to receive no redress at the hands of the courts and the judgment + of the lower court which was rendered by Judge Albert Voohries, + presiding in Division "E" of the Civil District Court, was + affirmed. + + Antoine was represented in the suit by Rouse and Grant and Thomas + J. Semmes, America's greatest lawyer, while the defendants were + represented by the firm of Leonard, Marks and Brueno. Everyone + connected with the case is now dead except Pinchback who, over + eighty years of age, is now living in Washington. + + When under the Wheeler Compromise after the election of + 1874, the Democrats secured a majority in the State House of + Representatives, an effort was made to impeach Kellogg, which, if + successful, would have made Antoine Governor, but what benefit + the Democrats could have derived therefrom, it is impossible to + say because even if Antoine had then resigned, as was thought + possible, the President of the Senate, who would become Governor + was or would be a Republican as the Democrats had but nine of the + thirty-six members of that body. However, the impeachment trial + properly speaking, was never held. + + As soon as the Senate which had adjourned, heard of the + impeachment resolution, it immediately reconvened and sent for + the Chief Justice, John T. Ludeling, and the Court of Impeachment + was opened without waiting for the presentation of the charges + from the House of Representatives, and Kellogg was "triumphantly" + acquitted. + +_The Item_, a New Orleans newspaper, featured the following sketch of +Isaiah T. Montgomery by Stanley Cisby Arthur in its Sunday magazine +section on September 25, 1921: + + One of the most interesting figures at the meeting of the + secretaries of the Federal Farm Loan Association, was an aged + negro, "Uncle" Isaiah T. Montgomery, of Mound Bayou City, Bolivar + County, Mississippi. "Uncle" Isaiah is not only one of the + wealthiest farmers in his district, but he founded the town of + Mound Bayou, which is composed exclusively of colored people, who + run the stores, the banks, the postoffice, the schools and the + peace offices, but "Uncle" Isaiah was a former slave and a body + servant of Jefferson Davis, president of the Confederacy. + + Black of face, with white hair and a white chin beard "Uncle" + Isaiah looks exactly the part of the regulation stage "Uncle" + of the old regime. He looks every bit of his 74 years but his + mind is exceedingly bright and he recounted the happenings of + over half a century with the utmost clarity of speech and showed + many evidences of his education, which he says he gave himself. + When he took recourse to a piece of paper and a pen to estimate + the ginnage of his community, he set down words and figures with + Spencerian exactness. His handwriting was truly a revelation to + the interviewer. + + "I was born on Hurricane plantation, in Warren county, + Mississippi, in 1847, and my father and I were owned by Joseph + E. Davis, brother of Jefferson Davis. The plantation owned by + the late president of the Confederacy adjoined the Hurricane, + and was called Brierfield plantation," said the aged colored + man and former slave who is now a prosperous banker in the town + he founded. "I was about nine years old when I first remember + Jefferson Davis real well. I was working in my master's office + when his brother came back from Congress and I was told to meet + the steamboat Natchez in a row boat and get Mr. Jeff. + + "When the Natchez blew her whistle as she came around a bend of + the river I rowed out and Mr. Jeff got in my boat with his grips + and things and I took him to shore and toted all his things into + the 'White Room' where Mr. Jeff staid for a considerable spell. + While there I was his personal attendant, I blacked his shoes, + kept his room in order, held his horse for him and other little + things that a servant like I was was supposed to do. On one of + his trips down the river on the Natchez (Mr. Jeff and Captain + Tom P. Leathers, the historic commander of that boat, were close + friends), he brought his wife and daughter, who was afterwards + Mrs. Hayes, and they all were very kind to me because I was Mr. + Jeff's personal servant all the time they were at the Hurricane. + + "When the war between the states came I staid on the Joseph Davis + plantation all during the fighting. In '62 or '63, anyway, after + the battle of Corinth, the Yankees commenced overrunning the South + and Mr. Joe, took all his stock and colored people to Jackson, + and later on to Alabama. He had me return to the plantation with + my mother and act as sort of caretakers and we were there when + Admiral Porter's Mississippi squadron made its way up the river. + It seems sometime before a gunboat, the Indianola, had been sunk + in the river, just off the Hurricane plantation and folks in the + neighborhood had dismantled her. + + "When Admiral Porter came up the river he stopped at the + plantation so as to look at the wreck and see if her guns could + be found. But they had been thrown overboard and had gone down in + the quicksand. The Admiral asked me if I wanted to go with him as + cabin boy. I said yes, and ran to get my mammy's consent which + was given. This was in April of '63 and a few months later I was + with the Admiral in the siege of Vicksburg and later the battle + at Grand Gulf. Soon afterwards I got a sickness from drinking + Red River water and when I was sent back to Hurricane I found my + parents had gone to Cincinnati and when I got word of this to + Admiral Porter he secured transportation there for me. + + "When the war was over Mr. Joe Davis got in touch with my father + and had him come back to Hurricane plantation and after we got + there he made a proposition that we could buy the two plantations, + Hurricane, that Mr. Joe owned, and Brierfield, of 4,000 acres, + that Mr. Jeff Davis owned. While he could not sell to colored + people under the existing laws, through a court action by which + my father, Benjamin T. Montgomery, and my brother William T. and + myself, agreed to pay $300,000 for the combined properties, they + were turned over to us and we were to pay six per cent a year on + the whole until it was paid off. + + "Our first year working the plantation resulted in almost disaster + as we suffered from an overflow and when the first payment came + around we were only able to pay $6,000. When we sent this to Mr. + Joe Davis with our excuses he sent us back a canceled note for + the rest of the $18,000. The Davis brothers, were gentlemen, sir. + Well, we kept the plantation going for thirteen years and in that + time we ranked as third in the production of cotton in Warren + county. While we were growing cotton I became very well acquainted + with Captain John W. Cannon, the commander of the famous steamboat + the Robert E. Lee. He and Captain Tom Leathers, the commander of + the Natchez, were always having some sort of a fight or another + and I saw the famous race between the two when they actually + settled the matter for good and all. + + "The death of Mr. Joe Davis and taking over of his properties + by his heirs lost us our holdings and I became interested in + the Yazoo Delta. I heard that the Y. & M. V. was asking colored + people to come in and open up the country and after going over + the situation I decided to select Mound Bayou for the seat of + my future operations. This place was selected because between + Big and Little Mound bayous there was an old Indian mound. This + was in 1887 and it certainly was a wild territory, it had rich + land but it was thickly grown over with oak and ash and gum, + and acres and acres of cane. Well, I plundered around here and + induced other colored folks to settle there. I founded Mound Bayou + Settlement--the railroad folks wanted to name it Montgomery, a few + years ago but I made the original name stick. + + "Building up our community was slow work. All the colored folks + bought their places on 10-year contracts and it was hard work + for some of them in the face of a few crop failures, overflows, + boll weevil and other set-backs but we succeeded. Mound Bayou + Settlement is now a town of a little over 1,000 population and + there are about 2,500 in the country nearby. The town is of wholly + colored population and we have three big churches, one costing + $25,000, another costing $15,000 and another $10,000. There are + several other less pretentious places of worship, as well. + + "We have two big mercantile establishments. The largest being the + one I founded and known as the Mercantile Co-operative Company + which now has a $20,000 stock. We also have the Mound Bayou State + Bank, with $10,000 capital, a $3,000 surplus, with resources + between $150,000 and $200,000. I am a member of the board of + directors and we make a great many loans to our colored people to + see they get out their crops, and being in the staple cotton belt, + we make most of it on this crop. + + "We have just completed a consolidated school house, 95 feet + square, three stories high, with 16 large class rooms. It cost + us $100,000 which was raised by a local bond issue. We have a + seven to eight months' term and employ an agricultural expert, + co-operating under the Smith-Lever national fund and a very fine + domestic science class. + + "The town has a mayor and a board of aldermen, all office holders + being colored folks, and the present mayor, B. H. Green, was the + first man born in the settlement. I was mayor for over four years, + being the first to hold the office, resigning it to hold the + office of receiver of public monies at Jackson, Miss. + + "We have four gins that can handle over 5,000 bales and our people + now feel that the upward trend of the cotton price will make for + further prosperous times." + + Uncle Isaiah Montgomery remembers his services with the Jefferson + family, first as slave and afterwards as a trusted servant, with + the kindliest feelings. He told of the periods in 1880 and 1883 + when Jefferson Davis returned to the old Brierfield and Hurricane + plantations, spending several weeks at the old home once or twice + a year. He usually had Mrs. Davis with him and the aged negro said + that Mrs. Davis was a remarkable woman. + + "She displayed a wonderful interest in the future of the colored + race," he said. "It was the impression made on me by this lovely + woman that helped confirm my belief in the ultimate outcome of my + work and efforts toward race betterment, education and uplift of + the negro. Mrs. Jefferson Davis had a broader comprehension of the + race's needs than anyone with whom I have ever come in contact + with. With her death the negro lost one of his greatest friends. + + "Mr. Jefferson Davis was a wonderful man, too. My thoughts + frequently go back, now that I am approaching the end of my days, + to the time I was his personal servant as a barefoot boy. I truly + believe, when he got his last sickness, had I been near to nurse + and care for him, that he would have lived many more years. I + knew, and so did my wife, what he needed in the way of food and we + could have done for him as no one else could. + + "It was the influence of Jefferson Davis and his sweet life that + has guided all my efforts in bettering the life of my colored + brothers and if I have succeeded it was because of them." + +_The American Magazine_ in July, 1914, gave the following account, an +achievement of "Comebacks" of recent date: + + BEATEN ONCE, PERRY TRIED AGAIN--AND SUCCEEDED. + + For years Heman E. Perry, a negro, traveled over Texas for white + companies, selling old line life insurance to his people. But he + had a vision of someday founding a company under negro management, + to transact its business and make its investments among the + colored race. + + Finally, plans outlined and prospectus and other literature + completed, he undertook the arduous task of organizing his + company. He applied for a charter under the laws of Georgia, which + require that the full $100,000 capital shall be raised in two + years, or the charter be revoked. + + To raise $100,000 among white men, or even $100,000,000, is a + comparatively easy task, for they are accustomed to corporate + investments. But Mr. Perry was to raise $100,000 among a people + whose investments had taken the form of horses and houses, and + who did not understand the value of commercial paper, especially + when purchased for $150 with a par value of $100. In other words, + he had to sell 1,000 shares of stock, one, two or three shares at + a time, and he must do this among a people who had never before + raised $100,000 for a business venture. + + For two years, at his own expense, Perry traveled throughout the + South. Then, with a scant thirty days left, he found himself with + but two thirds of the money in hand. He hastened to New York + hoping to obtain a loan from some bankers. They put him off until + the last day slipped by. Then began Perry's heart-breaking task + of returning the money he had collected. He returned every dollar + with four per cent interest--money that he had spent all his own + cash in collecting. + + This was enough to crush any ordinary man. But after three months + Perry met a selected assembly of negro business men in Atlanta, + ready to begin all over again. + + He retraced his first long journey, constantly hearing, "You + failed once, you'll fail again." But he continued his fight, and + on June 14th, 1913, after $105,000 had been paid for Georgia state + bonds, the first and only old line legal reserve life insurance + company in the world managed and operated by negroes formally + began business. It now operates in nine states, and has over + $2,000,000 insurance on the lives of negroes, because Heman E. + Perry would not acknowledge defeat, and had the power to "come + back" and conquer. + + GEORGE F. PORTER + + +ANNA MURRAY-DOUGLASS--MY MOTHER AS I RECALL HER[1] + +Looking backward over a space of fifty years or more, I have in +remembrance two travelers whose lives were real in their activity; +two lives that have indelibly impressed themselves upon my memory; +two lives whose energy and best ability was exerted to make my life +what it should be, and who gave me a home where wisdom and industry +went hand in hand; where instruction was given that a cultivated +brain and an industrious hand were the twin conditions that lead to a +well balanced and useful life. These two lives were embodied in the +personalities of Frederick Douglass and Anna Murray his wife. + +They met at the base of a mountain of wrong and oppression, victims of +the slave power as it existed over sixty years ago, one smarting under +the manifold hardships as a slave, the other in many ways suffering +from the effects of such a system. + +The story of Frederick Douglass' hopes and aspirations and longing +desire for freedom has been told--you all know it. It was a story made +possible by the unswerving loyalty of Anna Murray, to whose memory +this paper is written. + +Anna Murray was born in Denton, Caroline County, Maryland, an +adjoining county to that in which my father was born. The exact date +of her birth is not known. Her parents, Bambarra Murray and Mary, his +wife, were slaves, their family consisting of twelve children, seven +of whom were born in slavery and five born in freedom. My mother, the +eighth child, escaped by the short period of one month, the fate of +her older brothers and sisters, and was the first free child. + +Remaining with her parents until she was seventeen, she felt it time +that she should be entirely self-supporting and with that idea she +left her country home and went to Baltimore, sought employment in +a French family by the name of Montell whom she served two years. +Doubtless it was while with them she gained her first idea as to +household management which served her so well in after years and +which gained for her the reputation of a thorough and competent +housekeeper. + +On leaving the Montells', she served in a family by the name of Wells +living on S. Caroline Street. Wells was Post-master at the time of +my father's escape from slavery. It interested me very much in one +of my recent visits to Baltimore, to go to that house accompanied by +an old friend of my parents of those early days, who as a free woman +was enabled with others to make my father's life easier while he was +a slave in that city. This house is owned now by a colored man. In +going through the house I endeavored to remember its appointments, so +frequently spoken of by my mother, for she had lived with this family +seven years and an attachment sprang up between her and the members of +that household, the memory of which gave her pleasure to recall. + +The free people of Baltimore had their own circles from which the +slaves were excluded. The ruling of them out of their society resulted +more from the desire of the slaveholder than from any great wish of +the free people themselves. If a slave would dare to hazard all danger +and enter among the free people he would be received. To such a little +circle of free people--a circle a little more exclusive than others, +Frederick Baily was welcomed. Anna Murray, to whom he had given his +heart, sympathized with him and she devoted all her energies to assist +him. The three weeks prior to the escape were busy and anxious weeks +for Anna Murray. She had lived with the Wells family so long and +having been able to save the greater part of her earnings was willing +to share with the man she loved that he might gain the freedom he +yearned to possess. Her courage, her sympathy at the start was the +mainspring that supported the career of Frederick Douglass. As is the +condition of most wives her identity became so merged with that of +her husband, that few of their earlier friends in the North really +knew and appreciated the full value of the woman who presided over the +Douglass home for forty-four years. When the escaped slave and future +husband of Anna Murray had reached New York in safety, his first act +was to write her of his arrival and as they had previously arranged +she was to come on immediately. Reaching New York a week later, they +were married and immediately took their wedding trip to New Bedford. +In "My Bondage of Freedom," by Frederick Douglass, a graphic account +of that trip is given. + +The little that they possessed was the outcome of the industrial +and economical habits that were characteristic of my mother. She had +brought with her sufficient goods and chattel to fit up comfortably +two rooms in her New Bedford home--a feather bed with pillows, bed +linen, dishes, knives, forks, and spoons, besides a well filled trunk +of wearing apparel for herself. A new plum colored silk dress was +her wedding gown. To my child eyes that dress was very fine. She had +previously sold one of her feather beds to assist in defraying the +expenses of the flight from bondage. + +The early days in New Bedford were spent in daily toil, the wife at +the wash board, the husband with saw, buck and axe. I have frequently +listened to the rehearsal of those early days of endeavor, looking +around me at the well appointed home built up from the labor of the +father and mother under so much difficulty, and found it hard to +realize that it was a fact. After the day of toil they would seek +their little home of two rooms and the meal of the day that was most +enjoyable was the supper nicely prepared by mother. Father frequently +spoke of the neatly set table with its snowy white cloth--coarse tho' +it was. + +In 1890 I was taken by my father to these rooms on Elm Street, New +Bedford, Mass., overlooking Buzzards Bay. This was my birth place. +Every detail as to the early housekeeping was gone over, it was +splendidly impressed upon my mind, even to the hanging of a towel +on a particular nail. Many of the dishes used by my mother at that +time were in our Rochester home and kept as souvenirs of those first +days of housekeeping. The fire that destroyed that home in 1872, also +destroyed them. + +Three of the family had their birthplace in New Bedford. When after +having written his first narrative, father built himself a nice little +cottage in Lynn, Mass., and moved his family there, previously to +making his first trip to Europe. He was absent during the years '45 +and '46. It was then that mother with four children, the eldest in +her sixth year, struggled to maintain the family amid much that would +dampen the courage of many a young woman of to-day. I had previously +been taken to Albany by my father as a means of lightening the burden +for mother. Abigail and Lydia Mott, cousins of Lucretia Mott, desired +to have the care of me. + +During the absence of my father, mother sustained her little family +by binding shoes. Mother had many friends in the anti-slavery circle +of Lynn and Boston who recognized her sterling qualities, and who +encouraged her during the long absence of her husband. Those were days +of anxious worry. The narrative of Frederick Douglass with its bold +utterances of truth, with the names of the parties with whom he had +been associated in slave life, so incensed the slaveholders that it +was doubtful if ever he would return to this country and also there +was danger for mother and those who had aided in his escape, being +pursued. It was with hesitancy father consented to leave the country, +and not until he was assured by the many friends that mother and the +children would be carefully guarded, would he go. + +There were among the Anti-Slavery people of Massachusetts a fraternal +spirit born of the noble purpose near their heart that served as an +uplift and encouraged the best energies in each individual, and mother +from the contact with the great and noble workers grew and improved +even more than ever before. She was a recognized co-worker in the A. +S. Societies of Lynn and Boston, and no circle was felt to be complete +without her presence. There was a weekly gathering of the women to +prepare articles for the Annual A. S. Fair held in Faneuil Hall, +Boston. At that time mother would spend the week in attendance having +charge, in company of a committee of ladies of which she was one, over +the refreshments. The New England women were all workers and there was +no shirking of responsibility--all worked. It became the custom of the +ladies of the Lynn society for each to take their turn in assisting +mother in her household duties on the morning of the day that the +sewing circle met so as to be sure of her meeting with them. It was +mother's custom to put aside the earnings from a certain number of +shoes she had bound as her donation to the A. S. cause. Being frugal +and economic she was able to put by a portion of her earnings for a +rainy day. + +I have often heard my father speak in admiration of mother's executive +ability. During his absence abroad, he sent, as he could, support for +his family, and on his coming home he supposed there would be some +bills to settle. One day while talking over their affairs, mother +arose and quietly going to the bureau drawer produced a Bank book with +the sums deposited just in the proportion father had sent, the book +also containing deposits of her own earnings--and not a debt had been +contracted during his absence. + +The greatest trial, perhaps, that mother was called upon to endure, +after parting from her Baltimore friends several years before, was +the leaving her Massachusetts home for the Rochester home where father +established the "North Star." She never forgot her old friends and +delighted to speak of them up to her last illness. + +Wendell Phillips, Wm. Lloyd Garrison, Sydney Howard Gay and many +more with their wives were particularly kind to her. At one of the +Anti-Slavery conventions held in Syracuse, father and mother were +the guests of Rev. Samuel J. May, a Unitarian minister and an ardent +Anti-Slavery friend. The spacious parlors of the May mansion were +thrown open for a reception to their honor and where she could meet +her old Boston friends. The refreshments were served on trays, one +of which placed upon an improvised table made by the sitting close +together of Wendell Phillips, Wm. Lloyd Garrison and Sydney Howard +Gay, mother was invited to sit, the four making an interesting +tableaux. + +Mother occasionally traveled with father on his short trips, but not +as often as he would have liked as she was a housekeeper who felt that +her presence was necessary in the home, as she was wont to say "to +keep things straight." Her life in Rochester was not less active in +the cause of the slave, if anything she was more self-sacrificing, and +it was a long time after her residence there that she was understood. +The atmosphere in which she was placed lacked the genial cordiality +that greeted her in her Massachusetts home. There were only the few +that learned to know her, for, she drew around herself a certain +reserve, after meeting her new acquaintances that forbade any very +near approach to her. Prejudice in the early 40's in Rochester ran +rampant and mother became more distrustful. There were a few loyal +co-workers and she set herself assiduously to work. In the home, with +the aid of a laundress only, she managed her household. She watched +with a great deal of interest and no little pride the growth in public +life of my father, and in every possible way that she was capable +aided him by relieving him of all the management of the home as it +increased in size and in its appointments. It was her pleasure to know +that when he stood up before an audience that his linen was immaculate +and that she had made it so, for, no matter how well the laundry was +done for the family, she must with her own hands smooth the tucks in +father's linen and when he was on a long journey she would forward at +a given point a fresh supply. + +Being herself one of the first agents of the Underground Railroad she +was an untiring worker along that line. To be able to accommodate +in a comfortable manner the fugitives that passed our way, father +enlarged his home where a suite of rooms could be made ready for those +fleeing to Canada. It was no unusual occurrence for mother to be +called up at all hours of the night, cold or hot as the case may be, +to prepare supper for a hungry lot of fleeing humanity. + +She was greatly interested in the publication of the "North Star" or +Frederick Douglass' paper as it was called later on, and publication +day was always a day for extra rejoicing as each weekly paper was felt +to be another arrow sent on its way to do the work of puncturing the +veil that shrouded a whole race in gloom. Mother felt it her duty to +have her table well supplied with extra provisions that day, a custom +that we, childlike, fully appreciated. Our home was two miles from the +center of the city, where our office was situated, and many times did +we trudge through snow knee deep, as street cars were unknown. + +During one of the summer vacations the question arose in father's mind +as to how his sons should be employed, for them to run wild through +the streets was out of the question. There was much hostile feeling +against the colored boys and as he would be from home most of the +time, he felt anxious about them. Mother came to the rescue with the +suggestion that they be taken into the office and taught the case. +They were little fellows and the thought had not occurred to father. +He acted upon the suggestion and at the ages of eleven and nine they +were perched upon blocks and given their first lesson in printer's +ink, besides being employed to carry papers and mailing them. + +Father was mother's honored guest. He was from home so often that his +home comings were events that she thought worthy of extra notice, and +caused renewed activity. Every thing was done that could be to add +to his comfort. She also found time to care for four other boys at +different times. As they became members of our home circle, the care +of their clothing was as carefully seen to as her own children's and +they delighted in calling her Mother. + +In her early life she was a member of the Methodist Church, as was +father, but in our home there was no family altar. Our custom was +to read a chapter in the Bible around the table, each reading a +verse in turn until the chapter was completed. She was a person who +strived to live a Christian life instead of talking it. She was a +woman strong in her likes and dislikes, and had a large discernment +as to the character of those who came around her. Her gift in that +direction being very fortunate in the protection of father's interest +especially in the early days of his public life, when there was great +apprehension for his safety. She was a woman firm in her opposition +to alcoholic drinks, a strict disciplinarian--her _no_ meant _no_ and +_yes_, _yes_, but more frequently the _no's_ had it, especially when I +was the petitioner. So far as I was concerned, I found my father more +yielding than my mother, altho' both were rigid as to the matter of +obedience. + +There was a certain amount of grim humor about mother and perhaps +such exhibitions as they occurred were a little startling to those +who were unacquainted with her. The reserve in which she held herself +made whatever she might attempt of a jocose nature somewhat acrid. She +could not be known all at once, she had to be studied. She abhorred +shames. In the early 70's she came to Washington and found a large +number of people from whom the shackles had recently fallen. She fully +realized their condition and considered the gaieties that were then +indulged in as frivolous in the extreme. + +On one occasion several young women called upon her and commenting on +her spacious parlors and the approaching holiday season, thought it a +favorable opportunity to suggest the keeping of an open house. Mother +replied: "I have been keeping open house for several weeks. I have it +closed now and I expect to keep it closed." The young women thinking +mother's understanding was at fault, endeavored to explain. They were +assured, however, that they were fully understood. Father, who was +present, laughingly pointed to the New Bay Window, which had been +completed only a few days previous to their call. + +Perhaps no other home received under its roof a more varied class +of people than did our home. From the highest dignitaries to the +lowliest person, bond or free, white or black, were welcomed, and +mother was equally gracious to all. There were a few who presumed on +the hospitality of the home and officiously insinuated themselves +and their advice in a manner that was particularly disagreeable to +her. This unwelcome attention on the part of the visitor would be +grievously repelled, in a manner more forceful than the said party +would deem her capable of, and from such a person an erroneous +impression of her temper and qualifications would be given, and +criticisms sharp and unjust would be made; so that altho' she had her +triumphs, they were trials, and only those who knew her intimately +could fully understand and appreciate the enduring patience of the +wife and mother. + +During her wedded life of forty-four years, whether in adversity or +prosperity, she was the same faithful ally, guarding as best she +could every interest connected with my father, his lifework and the +home. Unfortunately an opportunity for a knowledge of books had been +denied her, the lack of which she greatly deplored. Her increasing +family and household duties prevented any great advancement, altho' +she was able to read a little. By contact with people of culture +and education, and they were her real friends, her improvement was +marked. She took a lively interest in every phase of the Anti-Slavery +movement, an interest that father took full pains to foster and to +keep her intelligently informed. I was instructed to read to her. She +was a good listener, making comments on passing events, which were +well worth consideration, altho' the manner of the presentation of +them might provoke a smile. Her value was fully appreciated by my +father, and in one of his letters to Thomas Auld, (his former master,) +he says, "Instead of finding my companion a burden she is truly a +helpmeet." + +In 1882, this remarkable woman, for in many ways she was remarkable, +was stricken with paralysis and for four weeks was a great sufferer. +Altho' perfectly helpless, she insisted from her sick bed to direct +her home affairs. The orders were given with precision and they were +obeyed with alacrity. Her fortitude and patience up to within ten +days of her death were very great. She helped us to bear her burden. +Many letters of condolence from those who had met her and upon whom +pleasant impressions had been made, were received. Hon. J. M. Dalzell +of Ohio, wrote thus: + +"You know I never met your good wife but once and then her welcome was +so warm and sincere and unaffected, her manner altogether so motherly, +and her goodby so full of genuine kindness and hospitality, as to +impress me tenderly and fill my eyes with tears as I now recall it." + +Prof. Peter H. Clark of Cincinnati, Ohio, wrote: "The kind treatment +given to us and our little one so many years ago won for her a place +in our hearts from which no lapse of time could move her. To us she +was ever kind and good and our mourning because of her death, is +heartfelt." + +There is much room for reflection in the review in the life of such a +woman as Anna Murray Douglass. Unlettered tho' she was, there was a +strength of character and of purpose that won for her the respect of +the noblest and best. She was a woman who strove to inculcate in the +minds of her children the highest principles of morality and virtue +both by precept and example. She was not well versed in the polite +etiquette of the drawing room, the rules for the same being found +in the many treatises devoted to that branch of literature. She was +possessed of a much broader culture, and with discernment born of +intelligent observation, and wise discrimination she welcomed all with +the hearty manner of a noble soul. + +I have thus striven to give you a glimpse of my mother. In so doing +I am conscious of having made frequent mention of my father. It is +difficult to say any thing of mother without the mention of father, +her life was so enveloped in his. Together they rest side by side, +and most befittingly, within sight of the dear old home of hallowed +memories and from which the panting fugitive, the weary traveler, the +lonely emigrant of every clime, received food and shelter. + + ROSETTA DOUGLASS SPRAGUE. + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] This paper and the one which _follows_ give valuable information +about Frederick Douglass and his wife. + + + + +FREDERICK DOUGLASS IN IRELAND + + +Few persons have any idea as to the connection between the abolition +of slavery in the United States and the struggle of the Irish for +freedom. According to _The Standard Union_, when in the decade 1830 +Negro slavery existed in the British West Indies, a little party of +liberal men in the British Parliament began to agitate in season +and out of season for emancipation, Daniel O'Connell, with a few +Irish members who supported him, threw his strength to this little +party on every division. There was a West Indian interest pledged to +maintain Negro slavery, and this interest counted twenty-seven votes +in Parliament. They came to O'Connell and offered their twenty-seven +votes to him on every Irish question if he would oppose Negro +emancipation. + + "It was," said Wendell Phillips, "a terrible temptation. How + many a so-called statesman would have yielded!" O'Connell said: + "Gentlemen, God knows I speak for the saddest nation the sun ever + sees, but may my right hand forget its cunning and my tongue + cleave to the roof of my mouth, if to serve Ireland, even Ireland, + I forget the Negro one single hour." + +The following account taken from _The Liberator_, including a +letter from Frederick Douglass, shows the genuineness of this Irish +friendship for the Negro in the United States: + + A letter of extraordinary interest at this time from Mr. Frederick + Douglass to Mr. William Lloyd Garrison has just come to light in + the columns of _The True American_, a little anti-slavery paper + published in Cortland Village, N. Y., in 1846. The letter, written + with the eloquence and depth of feeling which characterized all + Mr. Douglass's utterances on the subject of slavery and the + abuse of the Negro in this country. The letter, which _The True + American_ copied from _The Boston Liberator_, Mr. Garrison's + Paper, is introduced by the following editorial comment from _The + Albany Journal_ under date of February 11, 1846. + + "It is scarcely necessary to direct attention to the letter of + Frederick Douglass which we copy from _The Boston Liberator_. + It will be read with equal pleasure and amazement by those + who remember that eight years ago he was a slave, and that he + literally stole the elements of an education which now gives him + rank among the most gifted and eloquent men of the age. + + "We shall not blame those who refuse to believe that Frederick + wrote this letter. Without the personal knowledge we possess of + his extraordinary attainments, we too should doubt whether a + fugitive slave, who, as but yesterday, escaped from a bondage that + doomed him to ignorance and degradation, now stands up and rebukes + oppression with a dignity and force scarcely less glowing than + that which Paul addressed to Agrippa." + + The letter is as follows: + + VICTORIA HOTEL, BELFAST, + January 1st, 1846. + + _My dear Friend Garrison_: + + I am now about to take leave of the Emerald Isle, for Glasgow, + Scotland. I have been here a little more than four months.--Up + to this time, I have been given no direct expression of the + views, feelings and opinions which I have formed, respecting + the character and condition of the people of this land. I have + refrained thus purposely. I wish to speak advisedly, and in order + to do this, I have waited till I trust experience has brought my + opinions to an intelligent maturity. I have been thus thankful, + not because I think what I may say will have much effect in + shaping the opinions of the world, but because whatever of + influence I may possess, whether little or much, I wish it to go + in the right direction, and according to truth. + + I hardly need say that in speaking of Ireland, I shall be + influenced by no prejudices in favor of America. I think my + circumstances all forbid that. I have no end to serve, no creed + to uphold, no government to defend; and as to nation, I belong to + none. I have no protection at home, or resting place abroad. The + land of my birth welcomes me to her shores only as a slave, and + spurns with contempt the idea of treating me differently.--So that + I am an outcast from the society of my childhood, and an outlaw in + the land of my birth. "I am a stranger with thee, and a sojourner + as all my fathers were." That men should be patriotic is to me + perfectly natural; and as a philosophical fact, I am able to give + it an intellectual recognition. But no further can I go. If ever + I had any patriotism, or any capacity for the feeling, it was + whipt out of me long since by the lash of the American souldrivers. + + In thinking of America, I sometimes find myself admiring her + bright blue sky--her grand old woods--her fertile fields--her + beautiful rivers--her mighty lakes, and star crowned mountains. + But my rapture is soon checked, my joy is soon turned to mourning. + When I remember that all is cursed with the infernal spirit of + slaveholding, robbery and wrong,--when I remember that with the + waters of her noblest rivers, the tears of my brethren are borne + to the ocean, disregarded and forgotten, and that her most fertile + fields drink daily of the warm blood of my outraged sisters, I + am filled with unutterable loathing, and led to reproach myself + that anything could fall from my lips in praise of such a land. + America will not allow her children to love her. She seems bent + on compelling those who would be her warmest friends, to be her + worst enemies. May God give her repentance before it is too late, + is the ardent prayer of my heart. I will continue to pray, labor + and wait, believing that she cannot always be insensible to the + dictates of justice, or deaf to the voice of humanity. + + My opportunities for learning the character and condition of the + people of this land have been very great. I have travelled almost + from the hill of "Howth" to the Giant's Causeway, and from the + Giant's Causeway to Cape Clear. During these travels, I have met + with much in the character and condition of the people to approve, + and much to condemn--much that has thrilled me with pleasure--and + very much that has filled me with pain. I will not in this letter + attempt to give any description of those scenes which have given + me pain. This I will do hereafter. I have enough, and more than + your subscribers will be disposed to read at one time, of the + bright side of the picture. I can truly say, I have spent some of + the happiest moments of my life since landing in this country. I + seem to have undergone a transformation. I live a new life. + + The warm and generous co-operation extended to me by the friends + of my despised race--the prompt and liberal manner with which the + press has rendered me its aid--the glorious enthusiasm with which + thousands have flocked to hear the cruel wrongs of my down-trodden + and long enslaved countrymen portrayed--the deep sympathy of the + slave, and the strong abhorrence of the slaveholder, everywhere + evinced--the cordiality with which members and ministers of + various religious bodies, and of various shades of religious + opinion, have embraced me and lent me their aid--the kind + hospitality constantly proffered to me by persons of the highest + rank in society--the spirit of freedom that seems to animate all + with whom I come in contact--and the entire absence of everything + that looked like prejudice against me, on account of the color + of my skin--contrasting so strongly with my long and bitter + experience in the United States, that I look with wonder and + amazement on the transition. + + In the Southern part of the United States I was a slave, thought + of and spoken of as property. In the language of the law, "held, + taken, reputed and adjudged to be chattel in the hands of my + owners and possessors, and their executors, administrators, + or assigns, to all intents, constructions, and purposes + whatever."--Brev. Digest, 224. In the Northern States, a fugitive + slave, liable to be hunted at any moment like a felon, and to be + hurried into the terrible jaws of slavery--doomed by an inveterate + prejudice against color to insult and outrage in every hand. + (Massachusetts out of the question)--denied the privileges and + courtesies common to others in the use of the most humble of + conveyances--shut out from the cabins on steamboats--refused + admission to respectable hotels--caricatured, scorned, scoffed, + mocked and maltreated with impunity by any one (no matter how + black his heart), so he has a white skin. + + But now behold the change! Eleven days and a half gone, and I + have crossed three thousand miles of the perilous deep. Instead + of a democratic government, I am under a monarchical government. + Instead of the bright blue sky of America, I am covered with the + soft gray fog of the Emerald Isle. I breathe, and lo! the chattel + becomes a man. I gaze around in vain for one who will question + my equal humanity, claim me as his slave, or offer me an insult. + I employ a cab--I am seated beside white people--I reach the + hotel--I enter the same door--I am shown into the same parlor--I + dine at the same table--and no one is offended. No delicate + nose grows deformed in my presence. I have no difficulty here + in obtaining admission into any place of worship, instruction + or amusement, on equal terms with people as white as any I ever + saw in the United States. I meet nothing to remind me of my + complexion. I find myself regarded and treated at every turn with + the kindness and deference paid to white people. When I go to + church, I am met by no upturned nose and scorned lip to tell me, + "We don't allow niggers in here!" + + I remember about two years ago, there was in Boston, near the + southwest corner of Boston Common, a menagerie. I had long desired + to see such a collection as I understood were being exhibited + there. Never having had an opportunity while a slave, I resolved + to seize this, my first, since my escape. I went, and as I + approached the entrance to gain admission, I was met and told by + the doorkeeper in a harsh and contemptuous tone, "We don't allow + niggers here!" I also remember attending a revival meeting in the + Rev. Henry Jackson's meeting house, at New Bedford, and going up + the broad aisle to find a seat. I was met by a good deacon, who + told me in a pious tone, "We don't allow niggers here!" Soon after + my arrival in New Bedford from the South, I had a strong desire to + attend the Lyceum, but was told, "We don't allow niggers here!" + + While passing from New York to Boston on the steamer + Massachusetts, on the night of the 9th Dec., 1843, when chilled + almost through with the cold, I went into the cabin to get a + little warm, I was soon touched upon the shoulder and told, + "We don't allow niggers here!" On arriving in Boston from an + anti-slavery tour, hungry and tired I went into an eating house + near my friend Mr. Campbell's, to get some refreshments. I was met + by a lad in a white apron, "We don't allow niggers here!" A week + or two before leaving the United States, I had a meeting appointed + at Weymouth, the home of that glorious band of true abolitionists, + the Weston family and others. On attempting to take a seat on the + omnibus to that place, I was told by the driver (and I never shall + forget the fiendish haste), "I don't allow niggers in here!" + + Thank heaven for the respite I now enjoy! I had been in Dublin + but a few days, when a gentleman of great respectability kindly + offered to conduct me through all the public buildings of that + beautiful city; and a little afterwards, I found myself dining + with the Lord Mayor of Dublin. What a pity there was not some + American Democratic Christian at the door of his splendid mansion, + to bark out at my approach, "They don't allow niggers in here!" + The truth is, the people here know nothing of the Republican Negro + hate prevalent in our glorious land. They measure and esteem + men according to their moral and intellectual worth, and not + according to the color of their skin. Whatever may be said of the + aristocracies here, there is none based on the color of a man's + skin. This species of aristocracy belongs pre-eminently to "the + land of the free, and the home of the brave." I have never found + it abroad, in any but Americans. It sticks to them where-ever they + go. They find it almost as hard to get rid of as to get rid of + their skins. + + The second day after my arrival at Liverpool, in company with my + friend Buffum, and several other friends I went to Eaton Hall, the + residence of the Marquis of Westminster, one of the most splendid + buildings in England. On approaching the door, I found several + of our American passengers who came out with us in the Cambria, + waiting at the door for admission, as but one party was allowed in + the house at a time. We all had to wait till the company within + came out. And of all the faces, expressive of chagrin, those of + the Americans were pre-eminent. They looked as sour as vinegar, + and as bitter as gall, when they found I was to be admitted on + equal terms with themselves. When the door was opened I walked in, + on an equal footing with my white fellow citizens, and from all + I could see I had as much attention paid me by the servants who + showed me through the house as any with a paler skin. As I walked + through the building, the statuary did not fall down, the pictures + did not leap from their places, the doors did not refuse to open, + and the servants did not say, "We don't allow niggers in here!" + + A happy new year to you and to all the friends of freedom. + + Excuse this imperfect scrawl and believe me to be ever and always + yours, + + FREDERICK DOUGLASS + + + + +BOOK REVIEWS + + + _The History of the Afro-American Group of the Episcopal Church._ + By GEORGE F. BRAGG, Rector St. James First African Church, + Baltimore. With an Introduction by the Rt. Rev. T. DuBose Bratton, + D.D., LL.D., Bishop of Mississippi. The Church Advocate Press, + Baltimore, 1922, pp. 319. + +This work is intended to supply the need of a volume tracing the +connection of the Negro with the Protestant Episcopal Church in +America. As this particular group of communicants has not the status +of independent organization, its peculiar history has remained only +in fragments. To embody these in the form of a handy volume to show +how this denomination has influenced the life of the Negro and how +members of the race have been affected thereby, will be a distinct +service for which the public would feel thankful. Whether or not the +author has accomplished this task the readers themselves will decide. +He has undertaken the work with so much enthusiasm and found so many +things to praise and such a few to condemn that the reader may find +the work somewhat _ex parte_. The struggle of the Negro communicants +in this denomination and its indifference toward the strivings of the +race before the Civil War are not emphasized. Approaching the volume +with reservation, however, the investigator will find the work of some +value. + +The volume begins with the early baptism of African children during +the early days. He directs attention to the work of missionaries in +South Carolina, Maryland, Georgia, and Virginia and brings his story +down to the days of the independent movement among Negro communicants +as it culminated in the organization of the Free African Society +of Philadelphia out of which emerged the St. Thomas African Church +under the leadership of Absalom Jones. He then discusses the rise of +such churches as St. Phillips in New York, St. James in Baltimore, +Christ Church in Providence, St. Luke in New Haven, The Church of the +Crucifixion in Philadelphia, St. Matthews in Detroit, St. Phillips in +New Jersey and St. Phillips in Buffalo. The renewed interest of the +Protestant Episcopal Church in the uplift of the Negro is interwoven +around his discussion of the Freedman's Commission organized in 1868 +to Christianize and educate the Negroes recently emancipated in the +South. He then discusses the further interest shown by the General +Convention of 1871 and treats with some detail the efforts through +mission schools in the South. + +The remaining portion of the book consists of biographical sketches. +It contains a list of the Negro clergy prior to 1866, mentioning such +names as Absalom Jones, Peter Williams, William Levington, James C. +Ward, Jacob Oson, Gustavus V. Caesar, Edward Jones, William Douglass, +Isaiah G. DeGrasse, Alexander Crummell, Eli Worthington Stokes, +William C. Munroe, Samuel Vreeland Berry, Harrison Holmes Webb, James +Theodore Holly, William Johnson Alston, and John Peterson. Among these +are accounts of such veteran friends as Bishops Atkinson, Lyman, +Johns, Whittie, Smith, Quintard, Whittingham, Howe, Stevens, Young, +and Dudley, along with Mr. Joseph Bryan, General Samuel C. Armstrong, +and Mrs. Loomis L. White. He then gives sketches of some self-made +strong characters like James E. Thompson, Cassius M. C. Mason, James +Solomon Russell, James Nelson Denver, Henry Mason Joseph, Henry +Stephen McDuffy, Primus Priss Alston, Paulus Moort, Henry L. Phillips, +August E. Jensen, Joshua Bowden Massiah, William Victor Tunnell, and +John W. Perry. Honorable mention is given to Samuel David Ferguson, +John Payne, Edward T. Demby, Henry B. Delany, and T. Momolu Gardiner. + + * * * * * + + _The Trend of the Races._ By GEORGE E. HAYNES, Ph.D. With an + introduction by JAMES H. DILLARD. Published jointly by Council of + Women for Home Missions and Missionary Education Movement of the + United States and Canada. New York, 1922, pp. 205. + +This volume is at once both historical and sociological. It is +interesting but might have been more readable if the materials had +been better organized so as to avoid unnecessary repetition from +chapter to chapter. It marks an epoch in the history of the Negro in +the United States, however, in that it was written at the request +of white persons constituting the Joint Committee on Home Mission +Literature representing the Missionary Education Movement and the +Council of Women for Home Missions and the Missionary Educational +Boards. The aim of the work is to present to the white workers in +the Church the achievements of the Negro, believing that if the +Negro becomes known to the white man, he will not be any longer hated +by him; or, as the chairman of the committee herself says in the +foreword to the volume: "Our seeking to know him must be on the basis +of the broadest sympathy. In the friendliest and most helpful spirit +we should sincerely desire to understand him in the place where he +is and to apprehend something of the road by which he came and the +direction of his highest and best aspirations, that we may, so far +as we can, make it possible for him to attain his best in our common +civilization. We should at the same time quite as earnestly seek to +know ourselves in respect to our limitations, achievements, and goals +in the building of the social order." + +The book begins with a presentation of the case of the Negro, +reviewing two methods of racial adjustment. It then discusses the +conditions under which some choice of procedure must be made in view +of the white and Negro public opinion. The author then endeavors +to show what the Negro has accomplished during the sixty years +emphasizing his achievements both economic and industrial. In this +chapter he deals largely with the progress of Negro farmers, the +growth of business enterprises, improvements in health, moral uplift, +the development of homes, achievements in community life, education, +inventions, scientific discovery, and religious life. The author then +treats in some detail the mental capacity of the Negro, his feelings, +his conduct, his humor and his dramatic ability. He shows how the +Negro practices self-abnegation, toleration and optimism in spite +of oppression and yet brings out the fact that there is a rising +tide of race consciousness, increasing resentment and suspicion. The +development of racial self-respect, and the forward looking program +of self-assertion are also mentioned in showing how the Negroes are +learning to depend upon their own leaders and to undertake to do for +themselves what they have long requested others to accomplish for them. + +One of the important features of the book is its emphasis on the +part which the Negro has played in the various wars in the United +States beginning with the American Revolution and bringing the story +through all of our national and international struggles. Most space, +however, is devoted to the Negro's participation in the World War and +to the local economic situation in which the Negroes figured during +the dearth of labor and the scarcity of money when they responded to +the call to render non-combatant service and to lend the Government +their means by purchasing Liberty Bonds. Following this the author +finds it opportune to show the trend of the white world, bringing out +its attitude and ways of action due to conscience. Here he discusses +the influence of economic motives, survivals from the past, attitudes +due to ideals of race, the effects of the principles and ideals of +democracy and the interracial mind. The author believes that the way +to interracial peace is through racial contacts, church co-operation, +efficient reorganization in the division of labor, and through mutual +economic and life interests, group interdependence between mental and +social factors, educational institutions, popular government, and +voluntary organizations coordinating interracial activities. + + * * * * * + + _In the Vanguard of a Race._ By L. H. HAMMOND. Published jointly + by Council of Women for Home Missions and Missionary Education + Movement of the United States and Canada. New York, 1922, pp. 176. + +This is a volume not so serious as that of Dr. Haynes's but written +for the purpose of presenting to the American public a number of +useful leaders now shaping the destiny of the Negro race. Inasmuch +as all famous workers of the race could not be mentioned, the author +endeavored to select one typical of each particular thought and to +portray them as the representatives of a large host of laborers +rebuilding the civilization of a large portion of mankind. The persons +sketched have worked as musicians, painters, sculptors, actors, +singers, poets, educators, physicians, farmers, and clergymen. When +one considers several of the selections made, however, he must be +astounded at the lack of judgment shown as to who are the leading +Negro workers doing something worth while. The author seems to +have obtained advice from such friends and helpers as Miss Ida A. +Tourtellot of the Phelps-Stokes Foundation, Miss Flora Mitchell +of the Woman's Home Missionary Society of the Methodist Episcopal +Church, Mrs. Booker T. Washington of Tuskegee, Mr. Jackson Davis of +the General Education Board, Mr. N. C. Newbold of the North Carolina +State Department of Education, Mr. W. T. B. Williams of the Jeanes and +Slater Boards, Professor G. L. Imes of Tuskegee, and Dr. A. M. Moore +of Durham, North Carolina, all of whom do not claim to be authorities +in matter of this kind. + +On the whole, however, the book has a value. In the first chapter, +"A Long Ascent," there is an interesting sketch of the rising race +showing unusual possibilities which must convince the world of the +inherent worth and bright future of the Negro. The sketch of Booker T. +Washington entitled "A Story of Service" is decidedly interesting and +is written in such a style as to popularize the achievements of the +great educator. Presented very much in the same way is the account of +the valuable service of Dr. C. V. Roman whose efforts have not been +restricted to medicine, inasmuch as he is an author and a lecturer of +recognized standing. Miss Nannie H. Burroughs is properly presented +to typify that part of the story known as "Saving an Idea." Herein is +sketched the rise and the culmination of the career of one of the most +useful women of our day. In the same style the work of Dr. William +N. DeBerry of Springfield, Massachusetts, appears. There follows the +sketch of the career of Mrs. Jane Barrett, a believer in happiness, +then that of John B. Pierce, a builder of prosperity, and next that +of Mrs. Maggie L. Walker, a woman banker. Much space is given also +to the career of the famous composer, Harry T. Burleigh. This sketch +is followed by two others directing attention to Miss Martha Drummer +and James Dunston. The book closes with a brief biography of Joseph +S. Cotter, Jr., the young poet who recently attained distinction in +expressing the strivings of an oppressed people. + + * * * * * + + _The Negro in Chicago. A study of race relations and a race riot._ + By the Chicago Commission on Race Relations. The University of + Chicago Press, Chicago, Illinois, 1922, pp. 672. + +It is generally admitted that this report of the Commission on Race +Relations is the most important contribution to this interesting +subject. The very organization of the commission deepens this +impression. Before the end of this racial conflict in which 38 +lives were lost and 537 persons injured between July 27 and August +6, 1919, representatives of 48 social, civic, commercial and +professional organizations of Chicago met on the first of August +and requested Governor Frank O. Lowden, of Illinois, to appoint an +emergency State Committee "to study the psychological, social and +economic causes underlying the conditions resulting in the present +race riot and to make such recommendations as will tend to prevent a +recurrence of such conditions in the future." In response to this +and other urgent requests, according to the report and pursuant to +his personal knowledge of the situation derived from investigations +made by him in Chicago during the riot, Governor Lowden appointed as +a commission, Edgar A. Bancroft, William Scott Bond, Edward Osgood +Brown, Harry Eugene Kelley, Victor F. Lawson, and Julius Rosenwald +as representatives of the white race and Robert S. Abbott, George +Cleveland Hall, George H. Jackson, Edward H. Morris, Adelbert +H. Roberts, and Lacey Kirk Williams representing the Negroes, +all to serve as a commission to undertake the work suggested by +the memorialists. Mr. Bancroft was designated by the Governor as +chairman but on account of his absence due to ill health, Dr. F. W. +Shepardson, Director of the State Department of Registration and +Education, was appointed to serve as acting chairman and on the +return of Mr. Bancroft, Dr. Shepardson was added to the commission +and made its Vice-Chairman. Inasmuch as the commission had no funds +a committee consisting of Messrs. James B. Forgan, chairman, Abel +Davis, Treasurer, Arthur Meeker, John J. Mitchell, and John G. Shedd, +together with Messrs. R. B. Beach and John F. Bowman of the staff of +the Chicago Association of Commerce, enabled the commission of inquiry +to meet this emergency. The actual work was done under the direction +of an Executive Secretary, Graham Romeyn Taylor and an Associate +Executive Secretary, Charles S. Johnson, the latter assuming charge of +the actual inquiries and investigation. + +The report does not present any solution by which all racial troubles +may be avoided. It well fulfills its mission, however, in finding +facts which, if properly studied, will serve to guide others in +promoting amicable relations between racial groups. It at once +convinces the general public that causes of racial friction may be +insignificant in themselves but are nevertheless capable of leading +to serious results, although a little effort can easily effect +their removal in time to avoid such fatal consequences. It shows, +moreover, that grievances too often portrayed as justifiable reasons +for self-help are generally exaggerated primarily for the purpose of +inflaming the public mind and should such findings be given adequate +publicity the effects of such unwise action may be counteracted in +time. It is claimed for this commission, moreover, that its work has +promoted an understanding between the two racial groups in the city of +Chicago and removed misunderstandings which have been such prolific +sources of trouble. + +The report covers in some detail an informing account of the race +riot itself and of other outbreaks in the State of Illinois. Going +to the very causes of things, the commission studied the migration +of the Negroes from the South, the Negro population in Chicago, +directing attention to the housing of Negroes, racial contacts, +vicious environments, and lines of industry. One of the most informing +parts of the work is a treatment of public opinion in race relations, +bringing out beliefs concerning Negroes and the background of such and +public opinion as expressed by Negroes themselves. Adequate space is +given to the instruments of opinion-making, such as Chicago newspapers +and the Negro press as well as to rumors, myths, and propaganda. The +recommendations of the Commission require careful attention. While the +public will not generally accept these recommendations as final, they +are at least suggestive and require careful consideration. + +One defect of the work, however, if it has a defect, is that it fails +to take into account one important cause, namely, the migration of +many poor whites to the North during the period of scarcity of labor +incident to the World War when these southerners brought north their +own opinions about how to keep the Negro down and helped to aggravate +the situation in Chicago. + + + + +NOTES + + +Mr. George W. Brown, a graduate of Howard University who, as a result +of a year of graduate work in History and Political Science at Western +Reserve University, has received the degree of Master of Arts, has +been appointed Instructor in History at the West Virginia Collegiate +Institute. Mr. Brown is the author of a dissertation entitled _Haiti +and the United States_. + +Mr. Miles Mark Fisher who contributed to the last issue of THE JOURNAL +OF NEGRO HISTORY the valuable dissertation and documents bearing on +the career of Lott Cary and who has written two other valuable works, +_The History of the Olivet Baptist Church_ and _The Master's Slave_, +has been appointed an instructor at the Virginia Union University, +Richmond, Virginia. + +Mr. Luther P. Jackson, a graduate of Fisk University, who specialized +at Columbia in History and Education leading to the degree of Master +of Arts, and who contributes to the current number of THE JOURNAL OF +NEGRO HISTORY the dissertation entitled _The Educational Efforts of +the Freedmen's Bureau and Freedmen's Aid Societies in South Carolina, +1862-1872_, has been appointed an instructor in the Virginia Normal +and Industrial Institute, Petersburg, Virginia. + +The Macmillan Company has published _A Boys' Life of Booker T. +Washington_ by W. C. Jackson, Vice President of the North Carolina +College for Women, Greensboro, and Professor of History. + +The A. B. Caldwell Publishing Company, Atlanta, Georgia, has brought +out an autobiography, _Echoes from a Pioneer Life_ by Jared Maurice +Arter, an instructor in Storer College, Harpers Ferry, West Va. + +From the University of Chicago Press there has come another +interesting volume on the Negro. This is entitled _The Negro Press in +the United States_ by Frederick G. Detweiler. + +Sir Harry H. Johnston, G. C. M. G., K. C. B., Sc.D., has published +through Oxford at the Clarendon Press his second volume of _A +Comparative Study of the Bantu and Semi-Bantu Languages_. + + + + +THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE ANNUAL MEETING OF THE ASSOCIATION FOR THE STUDY +OF NEGRO LIFE AND HISTORY + + +The Association met in annual session on the 22d, 23d and 24th of +November in Louisville, Kentucky. The day sessions were held at the +Chestnut Street Branch Library and the evening sessions at the Quinn +Chapel A. M. E. Church. The meeting was a success from both the local +and national points of view. Persons from afar came to take an active +part and the citizens of Louisville and nearby cities of Kentucky +attended in considerable numbers. + +The meeting was opened at eight o'clock Wednesday evening at the +Chestnut Street Branch Library with a stereopticon lecture on the +History of the Negro by Dr. A. Eugene Thomson, principal of Lincoln +Institute, Lincoln Ridge, Kentucky. This lecture covered the early +history of the Negro in Egypt and Ethiopia with illustrations of +the historic monuments exhibiting the progress of the natives in +architecture and the fine arts. There followed an informing discussion +of the importance of the study of this particular part of the past of +the dark races. + +On Thursday morning at ten o'clock a conference on "The Present State +of the Negro" was held. Mr. E. E. Reed, principal of the Bowling +Green High School, delivered an address on "The Social and Economic +Status of the Negro." This was the main feature of the conference. +The general discussion was opened by Mr. E. A. Carter, secretary of +the Louisville Urban League, who discussed "The Political Status +of the Negro." The views of the speakers were such as to present +both the optimistic and the pessimistic sides of the question. They +believed that while there have been some developments which indicate +improvement in the status of the Negro, there have been also other +changes which indicate a tendency of things to become static. + +Early in the afternoon at 1:30 P. M. a special session was held at +the William J. Simmons University. The aim here was to interest the +students in the importance of the preservation of the records of the +Negro. Several members of the Association discussed the history of the +organization, its achievements and plans, and welcomed the cooperation +of all as coworkers in this long neglected field. Dr. W. H. Steward, +the editor of _The American Baptist_, then spoke from his experience +on "The Value of a Written Record," mentioning several cases in +Kentucky where important matters have been decided by such documentary +evidence. He emphasized the importance of the work accomplished by the +Association and encouraged the youth to connect themselves with it +that the cause may be promoted more successfully. + +At three o'clock Thursday afternoon with Professor W. B. Matthews, +principal of the Central High School, presiding, there followed a +session devoted to "The Teaching of Negro History." Many of the +teachers from the local school system were present. In a very +thoughtful and impressive manner Mr. J. W. Bell, principal of the +Hopkinsville High School, discussed the teaching of Negro history as +a matter of concern not only to the Negro himself but to the white +man. He expressed the opinion that through the dissemination of such +information the one race may become better acquainted with the other. +He was then followed by Mr. P. W. L. Jones, instructor in History at +the Kentucky Normal and Industrial Institute, Frankfort, Kentucky. +Mr. Jones directed his attention to "The Value of Negro Biography" as +a means of keeping before the race the records of a number of useful +citizens who might otherwise be forgotten and as a means of inspiring +the youth to useful endeavor and noble achievement. He took occasion +to present brief sketches of a number of Negroes once prominent in the +past but now almost forgotten because of the failure to pass their +story on to the coming generation. Mr. Thomas F. Blue, librarian of +the Chestnut Street Branch Library, then opened the general discussion +showing from his experience the need for directing more attention to +these neglected aspects of this peculiar problem of a race in the +making. + +The first evening session was held at the Quinn Chapel A. M. E. +Church with Dr. Noah W. Williams presiding. On this occasion the +Honorable C. C. Stoll, representing the Mayor of Louisville, welcomed +the Association in words adequate to arouse interest and enthusiasm. +Dr. L. G. Jordan, secretary emeritus of the National Baptist Foreign +Mission Board, responded to this address on behalf of the Association. +He took occasion, moreover, to make some interesting observations out +of his experiences in America and in Africa. Then followed an address +by Dr. C. G. Woodson who briefly connected the achievements of the +Negro with such movements in history as the commercial revolution, +the intellectual revival, the struggle for the rights of man, the +industrial revolution, the reform movements of the nineteenth century, +and the present effort to attain social justice. + +On Friday morning at ten o'clock with Dr. James Bond presiding there +followed a conference on the Negro slave. Mr. W. H. Fouse, principal +of the Russell High School of Lexington, read an informing paper +on "The Contribution of the Slave to Civilization." He emphasized +especially the value of Negro labor as the basis upon which Southern +society was established, showing that whatever valuable culture was +developed was made possible by the work of the Negro slave. He did +not, however, subscribe to the theory that it is necessary to enslave +one part of the population that the other may apply itself to the +study of science, philosophy and politics. Dr. R. S. Cotterill, +instructor in History at the University of Louisville, then read a +valuable dissertation entitled "The Use of Slaves in Building Southern +Railroads." The speaker showed that he had made an extensive research +into documentary material, and he presented an array of facts which +unusually enlightened his audience in this neglected field. During +the general discussion which followed some other important facts were +brought forward, and much interest in the researches of these two +speakers was generally expressed. + +From Friday afternoon at two o'clock to 5:30 P. M. there were +exhibited at the Chestnut Street Branch Library samples of the +publications of the Association and a number of valuable engravings +of the Antique Works of Art in Benin, West Africa. This offered the +public an opportunity to judge the progress made by the Association +since its organization in 1915 and to form an opinion as to the sort +of work prosecuted and the manner in which it has been done. The +engravings setting forth the achievements of an important group of +African peoples of the 16th century convinced a large number that the +Negro race has behind it a valuable record which can never be known +except through such research and expeditions as will unearth these +important contributions. + +At three o'clock there was held the business session of the +Association. The reports of the Director and the Secretary-Treasurer +were read and, after favorable comment, were accepted and approved by +vote of the Association. These reports follow: + + THE REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR. + + With respect to the most difficult task of the Director, that of + raising money, the work of the Association has been eminently + successful. Encouraged by the appropriation of $25,000 obtained + from the Carnegie Corporation last year, the Director appealed + to several boards for the same consideration. Last February one + of these, the Laura Spelman Rockefeller Memorial, appropriated + $25,000 to this work, payable in annual installments of $5,000, + as in the case of that obtained from the Carnegie Corporation. + It is to be regretted, however, that smaller contributions, + heretofore yielding most of the income of the Association prior to + obtaining the two appropriations, have diminished in number and + amount. Appealed to repeatedly, many of these persons give the + heavy income tax as an excuse, while not a few make the mistake + of thinking that the other funds received by the Association are + sufficient to take care of the general expenses. During the fiscal + year 1921-1922, thirty-seven persons, most of whom were Negroes, + contributed $25.00 each, whereas during the previous fiscal year + the number was larger. + + The following report of the Secretary-Treasurer shows how these + funds have been used: + + FINANCIAL STATEMENT OF THE SECRETARY-TREASURER + + WASHINGTON, D. C., July 1, 1922 + + THE ASSOCIATION FOR THE STUDY OF + NEGRO LIFE AND HISTORY, INC., + WASHINGTON, D. C. + + _Gentlemen_: + + I hereby submit to you a statement of the amount of money received + and expended by the Association for the Study of Negro Life and + History, Incorporated, from July 1, 1921, to June 30, 1922, + inclusive: + + _Receipts_ + + Subscriptions $ 1,772.63 + Memberships 241.00 + Contributions 9,113.75 + Advertising 195.45 + Rent and Light 180.14 + Books 1.70 + Refunds 50.42 + ---------- + Total receipts $11,555.09 + Bal. on hand July 1, 1921 43.09 + ---------- + $11,598.18 + + _Expenditures_ + Printing and Stationery $ 4,929.97 + Petty Cash 670.00 + Stenographic service 990.23 + Rent and Light 714.67 + Salaries 3,450.00 + Traveling Expenses 468.09 + Miscellaneous 286.46 + ---------- + Total expenditures $11,509.42 + Bal. on hand June 30, 1922 88.76 + ---------- + $11,598.18 + + This report does not cover the $5,000 annually received + for research into the Free Negro Prior to 1861 and Negro + Reconstruction History. This fund was made available on the + first of July, the beginning of the fiscal year, and has been + apportioned so as to pay three investigators and a copyist + employed to do this work. + + Respectfully submitted, + (Signed) S. W. RUTHERFORD, + Secretary-Treasurer. + + The appropriation of $25,000 obtained from the Laura Spelman + Rockefeller Memorial requires the employment of investigators + to develop the studies of the Free Negro Prior to 1861 and of + Negro Reconstruction History. The annual allowance of $5,000 is + devoted altogether to this work, inasmuch as special instructions + received from the Trustees of the Laura Spelman Rockefeller + Memorial prohibit the use of this money for any other purpose. The + Association has, therefore, employed Dr. George Francis Dow to + read the eighteenth century colonial newspapers of New England, C. + G. Woodson to make a study of the Free Negro Prior to 1861, A. A. + Taylor to study the Social and Economic Conditions of the Negro + during the Reconstruction, and a clerk serving the investigators + in the capacity of a copyist. + + At present Mr. A. A. Taylor is spending only one-half of his + time at this work, but after the first of next June he will have + the opportunity to direct his attention altogether to this task. + During this year it is expected that he will complete his studies + of the Social and Economic Conditions in Virginia and South + Carolina. + + In the study of the Free Negro the Director has spent the year + compiling a statistical report giving the names of free Negroes + who were heads of families in the South in 1830 showing the number + in each family and the number of slaves owned. Within a few months + that part of the report dealing with Louisiana, South Carolina and + North Carolina will be completed. + + The Association is also directing attention to the work of + training men for research in this field. The program agreed + upon is to educate in the best graduate schools with libraries + containing works bearing on Negro life and history at least three + young men a year, supported by fellowships of $500 from the + Association and such additional stipend as the schools themselves + may grant for the support of the undertaking. One of these + students will take up the study of Negro History, one will direct + his attention to Anthropometric and Psychological measurements + of Negroes, and one to African Anthropology and Archaeology. In + this undertaking the Director has not only the cooperation of + Prof. Carl Russell Fish, of the University of Wisconsin, and + Prof. William E. Dodd, of the University of Chicago, who with him + constitute the Committee on Fellowships, but also the assistance + of Professors Franz Boas and E. L. Thorndike of Columbia + University and of Professor E. A. Hooton of Harvard University. + + Closely connected with these plans, moreover, are certain other + projects to preserve Negro folklore and the fragments of Negro + music. In this effort the Association has the cooperation of Mrs. + Elsie Clews Parsons, the moving spirit of the American Folklore + Society. She is now desirous of making a more systematic effort + to embody this part of the Negro civilization and she believes + that the work can be more successfully done by cooperation with + the Association. As soon as the Director can obtain a special fund + for this particular work, an investigator will be employed to + undertake it. + + The interest manifested in the study of Negro History in clubs + and schools has been very encouraging. Most of the advanced + institutions of learning of both North and South make use of + _The Journal of Negro History_ in teaching social sciences. The + Director's two recent works, _The History of the Negro Church_ and + _The Negro in Our History_ are being extensively used as textbooks + in classes studying Sociology and History. The enthusiasm of some + of these groups has developed to the extent that they now request + authority to organize under the direction of the Association local + bodies to be known as State Associations for the Study of Negro + Life and History. + + Respectfully submitted, + C. G. WOODSON, + _Director_. + +Upon taking up the election of officers there prevailed a motion +to cast the unanimous ballot of the Association for the following +officers: + + John R. Hawkins, _President_ + S. W. Rutherford, _Secretary-Treasurer_ + C. G. Woodson, _Director_ + +The following were elected members of the Executive Council: + + John R. Hawkins Henry C. King + S. W. Rutherford William E. Dodd + Carter G. Woodson E. A. Hooton + Julius Rosenwald Bishop John Hurst + James H. Dillard Alexander L. Jackson + Bishop R. A. Carter Bishop R. E. Jones + Robert R. Church Clement Richardson + Franz Boas Robert C. Woods + Carl Russell Fish + +John R. Hawkins, S. W. Rutherford and C. G. Woodson were chosen as +trustees of the Association. John R. Hawkins, S. W. Rutherford and A. +L. Jackson were elected members of the Business Committee. + +There then followed a brief discussion of plans and ways and means +for the expansion of the work. Most of this discussion developed from +the various items of the report of the Director. Mr. W. H. Fouse, of +Lexington, Kentucky, proposed that the Association should authorize +the organization of State Associations for the Study of Negro Life +and History to cooperate with the national body in preserving local +biographical records of Negroes in counties and cities inaccessible to +national workers. This proposal was favorably received. + +On Friday evening at 8:30 P. M. there took place the second evening +session at the Quinn Chapel A. M. E. Church with Prof. H. C. Russell +presiding. The chief feature of the occasion was the address of Dr. +C. V. Roman entitled "The American Civilization and the Negro." +Following the line of his researches and his opinions already +expressed in various works, Dr. Roman discussed the meaning of culture +and connected the achievements of the Negro therewith. He took +occasion also to show how the history of the race has been neglected +and how many records worth while have been accredited to the defamers +of the Negro race. Mr. J. W. Bell, of Hopkinsville, Kentucky, then +entertained the audience with a very eloquent address, speaking in +general of the achievements of the Association and emphasizing the +importance of close cooperation therewith. The meeting was then +closed with a few remarks by the Director who thanked the people of +Louisville and of Kentucky for their cooperation in making the meeting +a success. + + + + +THE JOURNAL + +OF + +NEGRO HISTORY + +VOL. VIII., NO. 2 APRIL, 1923. + + + + +THE TEACHING OF NEGRO HISTORY[1] + + +The teaching of Negro history will serve the two-fold purpose of +informing the white man and inspiring the Negro. The untoward +circumstances under which the Negro lives make the teaching of his +history imperatively necessary. When the founders of this government +brought forth a new nation conceived in liberty and dedicated to the +proposition that all men are created equal, many thought that the +Negro was not regarded as a man. Thomas Jefferson himself, the writer +of that document, held the Negro as a slave. The Negro was regarded +as mere property, as a mere beast of burden. It required four years +of bloody war to transform him from the position of a thing and place +him in the ranks of men with a mere chance to struggle for actual +democracy. These circumstances have caused one of the most intricate +problems, the race problem. They have placed the American Negro in a +category by himself. They have brought about the peculiar situation of +a nation within a nation. + +The teaching of Negro history would contribute much to the solution +of this complicated race problem. The solution of any problem depends +upon an adequate understanding of it. The most illuminating approach +to the race problem is the historical approach. The white man of +this country must be supplied with the real facts pertaining to the +Negro. If not, all of his generalizations will be mere verbiage based +upon tradition inspired by prejudice. To prevent a distorted social +perspective and to develop a wider community consciousness, the white +man should read history from the Negro's point of view. + +For more than four centuries the Negro has been brought into contact +with the European white man. For the most part the Teutonic stocks +have regarded the Negro as a negative factor in history. The Latin +and Slavic races have been more kindly disposed toward him. They have +been disposed to give honor to whom honor is due regardless of race +or color. To them color has been an incident of birth, not a badge of +inferiority. In the annals of Russia Alexander Pushkin is recognized +as her national poet. France considered Toussaint L'Ouverture, one +of the most commanding figures of any age, a conspicuous example of +the possibilities of the pure-blooded Negro. She recognized Alexander +Dumas as her most distinguished romancer. Today she places this mantle +upon the shoulders of Rene Maran. + +The white people of the United States consider their race to be men of +a superior breed and have ignored the Negro in recording European and +American history. In their desire to substantiate the theory of the +superiority of the white man and the inferiority of the Negro, they +have failed to publish or suppressed the truth about the achievements +of the Negro. They have looked for nothing praiseworthy in him; they +have widely proclaimed his faults and failures. Well did Macaulay say: + + By exclusive attention to one class of phenomena, by exclusive + taste for one species of excellence the human intellect was + stunted. The best historians of later days have been seduced from + truth, not by their imagination, but by their reason. They far + excel their predecessors in the art of deducing general principles + from facts, but unhappily they have fallen into the error of + distorting the facts to suit the general principles. They arrive + at a theory from looking at a part of the phenomena; the remaining + phenomena they strain or curtail to suit the theory. In every + human character and transaction there is a mixture of good and + evil: a little exaggeration, a little suppression, a judicious + use of epithets, a watching and searching skepticism with respect + to the evidence on one side, a convenient credulity with respect + to every report or tradition on the other side may easily make a + saint of Laud or a tyrant of Henry IV. + +The Negro's most important contribution to American history is his +unparalleled progress--his rise from poverty to wealth, from ignorance +to knowledge, from backwardness to civilization. No other race has +achieved more under the same conditions. No authentic history of the +United States, then, can ignore or exclude the Negro. The part which +he has played in American history has served largely to make the +nation what it is today. + +The fidelity of the Negro slave to his master, his devotion and +loyalty to his country should constitute interesting historical +themes. Under the regime of slavery the Negro was literally bought and +sold like the very soil. His life was but one unceasing round of toil +and misery; his faith, his hope, and his ambition, were fettered down +with chains which he had no power to rend. Under these circumstances +he contributed two hundred and fifty years of unrequited toil. With +the muscles of his brawny arms he cleared away the forests, tilled +the soil, and made the wilderness to blossom like the rose. With his +callous hands he has built railroads and cities in this country and +has thus made this a goodly land in which to live. + +Every time a foreign foe has threatened this nation, the Negro with +unswerving patriotism and undaunted courage has contributed his full +quota of protection. With profound sincerity he has offered his +services to his country; with voluntary devotion he has laid himself +upon her altar. It was Crispus Attucks who rushed upon the plains of +Boston, struck the first blow and thus became the first martyr to +the cause of American independence. It was the Negro soldiers who +plunged dauntlessly into the face of death, scaled the heights of El +Caney and San Juan and brought victory to the American flag. It was +the black boys of the Ninth and the Tenth Cavalry that led the van and +spilt their blood upon the troublous soil of Mexico in order that the +dignity of the United States might be maintained. Negro soldiers were +among the first to carry the stars and stripes into the trenches upon +the gory field somewhere in France. These Negro soldiers have written +their names high upon the scroll of fame. + +You cannot erase their record without destroying some of the most +important pages of American history. In the true annals of this nation +their illustrious deeds of valor and patriotism cannot be hidden. +Unobscured by prejudice these records shall shine forth and point out +to posterity some of the most daring exploits and some of the most +vicarious sacrifices. When the ponderous volumes of history rich with +the spoils of time shall unroll their ample pages before the eyes of +generations yet unborn, there in letters which he who runs may read +should be inscribed the names of Johnson, Roberts, Butler, and many +other black boys who staked their lives in the World War upon the +contention that the world should be made safe for democracy. + +Teaching of Negro history to the white people will give them a broader +view. It will prove to them that the Negro has contributed a very +considerable portion to the wealth, population and resources of the +nation. It will engender a greater sympathy and a wider community +consciousness. It will prove that the Negro is imbued with the white +man's spirit and strives after his ideals. To the white man who truly +studies Negro history will come views of tolerance and a spirit of +justice, kindness, and helpfulness. + +What benefit will accrue to the Negro from the teaching of Negro +history? If the purpose of history teaching in our schools is to train +for citizenship, what kind of a citizen will the Negro be, if the +history he studies does not comprehend his race? The education of any +race is incomplete unless it embodies the ideals of that race. The +histories taught in Negro schools were not written in contemplation of +the race. They were written for the white man and are the embodiment +of his ideals and prejudices. The teaching of Negro history to the +Negro youth is necessary to inspire race pride and arouse race +consciousness. The study of what his race has done under adverse +circumstances will animate the Negro youth to greater achievements. +By contemplating the deeds of the worthy members of his own race the +Negro youth will have his aspirations raised to attain the highest +objective of life. + +Because of existing conditions the inevitable conclusion is, that +Negro history should be taught in all the schools of all races in +the United States. The history outline should provide that Negro +history supplement the regular text in United States history. The +teaching of Negro history will bring a knowledge of those essential +elements without which there can be no solution of the race problem. +Standing upon the vantage ground of history retrospecting the past +and prospecting the future, every real seeker of the truth can catch +a glimmer of the glory in the realization of the prophetic utterance: +"Princes shall come out of Egypt and Ethiopia shall soon stretch forth +her hand to God." + + J. W. BELL. + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] An address delivered before the Association for the Study of Negro +Life and History at Louisville, November 23, 1922. + + + + +NEGRO BIOGRAPHY[1] + + +Twenty years ago I became interested in the study of Negro biography. +I was anxious to know more about the personal histories of a score +or more of Negro men and women whose part in helping to make the +history of the Negro in the United States stood out pre-eminently. I +did not desire detailed accounts of their lives at that time, but I +did wish to know when and where they were born, how they made their +way to front rank, how they suffered, fought, and sacrificed, where +they spent their declining years, and when they passed away. I found +the field of Negro biography a neglected one. I set to work, in my +weak way, then, to bring to light the main facts in these personal +histories. + +The early Negro historians seem to have placed little emphasis on +telling the interesting facts in the lives of the leaders of the race, +and these persons themselves, with a few exceptions, were too modest, +too busy, or too poor to publish their lives in book form. Josiah +Henson, Samuel Ringgold Ward, Frederick Douglass, William Wells Brown, +and a few others published their autobiographies. Unsatisfactory brief +sketches of Phyllis Wheatley, Benjamin Banneker, Crispus Attucks, +Lott Cary, and a score of others could be found here and there. Many +writers have attempted to make known the part the Negro group has +played in helping to make American history and civilization, but few +have brought to light the stories of the Negro men and women of might +and mark whose impress upon their generation gives evidence of our +onward march of progress. + +Looking over the field of American Negro historiography one sees +a change in aspect and in tone. The early historian told the +chronicled story of the race as a separate and distinct narrative, +an independent, isolated tale of a people apart from the world. He +endeavored to show the part the Negro had played in making possible +his own progress. Today the Negro historian points to the fact that +the Negro's advancement is a part of the forward movement of the +world, and his progress in all the fields wherein he has labored is +a part of the general progress of mankind. The historian of today is +scientifically bringing to light the evidences as to the worth of +the Negro and his contributions to the uplift of the World. More and +more the historian is directing attention to the private lives of our +leaders. More and more the leaders themselves are recording their own +deeds, writing their autobiographies, and uncovering many inside facts +connected with movements with which they were identified and in which +they played conspicuous parts. But the personal histories of the old +leaders, "the Old Guard" of the race, remain unknown. The stories of +their lives, in addition to making rare literature, would shed light +on the past, teach race loyalty and pride, and give inspiration to +thousands of Negro youths who would find encouragement in their trials +and battles. + +"Biography," says Lossing, "is history teaching by example." Every +race that has counted for much in history has had its heroes. Every +nation that has helped to build civilization got its inspiration +from within. Every nation that has left a record of value had its +ideal men and women, its patriots, its martyrs--its examples of +usefulness within itself. The white race seeks its ideals within its +own ranks. The Red man's ideal is his group. The Greek youth imbibed +the dare-and-do spirit from the tales of the Greek heroes. The Roman +fashioned his life after those citizens who fought and achieved for +Rome. Englishmen find their heroes among their own, and though they +admire and praise genius and usefulness in men of other nationalities, +their greatest men are those who played well their parts in helping to +expand the influence of England and to establish the British Empire. +The German gets his inspiration from German history. The Japanese +worships at the shrine of those of his country who have been factors +in giving Japan "a place in the sun." The Frenchman sees his examples +of true greatness in the men and women who sacrificed all for the +glory of France. + +No race, no nation, no people whose ideals of manhood and patriotism +are without, can hope to be accorded full recognition by the world. +The Negro's ideal must be a Negro if he is to appreciate keenly his +own particular stock. The Negro's examples of achievement and devotion +must be found within his group, if he is to learn to serve the race +faithfully and intelligently. Its sages, its patriots, its heroes must +all be persons of color, men whose faces show the mark of Africa, if +the Negro youth is to develop that essential feeling commonly known +as race pride. Negro achievements must be taught to the young men and +women, if they are to learn to labor and to achieve, to do and to dare. + +Negro biography stands out as the medium through which the youths of +the race can be taught to love the race more and to serve it better. +Negro biography is the main source from which the young Negro is to +get inspiration and encouragement. Negro biography is the door through +which he enters Negro history. Negro biography unlocks the past and +explains the present effectively and impressively. If we want our +children trained to love the race we must not only teach them what the +world is, what nations have accomplished, and what individuals within +the ranks of these nations have done toward helping to brighten the +path of life, but we must tell them of the sturdy characters of Negro +ancestry who have labored and struggled and triumphed and by their +contributions enriched the history of civilization. The appreciation +for the record of our own group will stimulate the youth to greater +endeavor. + +The histories of nations are but narratives of what their citizens +have said and done. If, then, we would teach effectively the +chronicles of the nations, we must be answering questions, incessantly +responding to inquiries about the men and the women who blazed the way +and led their kinsmen to toil and suffer to bring to pass a happier +and a brighter day for themselves and their posterity. Such examples +of devotion to the cause of humanity, examples of consecration to +truth and righteousness, examples of goodness and greatness worthy +of the praise of all races and creeds, are found everywhere in the +ranks of the Negro race. If unearthed and popularized, these examples +would shed light upon the history of the race in the United States, +illuminate the general history of man, and inculcate a profound +respect for the Negro. + +In connection with the Negro's early efforts at freedom and culture +mention is made of John Chavis, George Moses Horton, John Sella +Martin, George Liele, John S. Rock, James Varick, Andrew Bryan, Daniel +Coker, Peter Spencer, David Walker, John T. Hilton, David Ruggles, +William Whipper, James Monroe Whitefield, James McCune Smith, James +Madison Bell, Thomas Paul, Mary Shadd Carey, Jupiter Hammon, and +Samuel Ringgold Ward, about whose personal histories, Ward excepted, +little is known. And even in the case of Ward, his life after he left +the United States is almost a blank. Few people know what work he did +after making his home in Jamaica, and the circumstances under which he +passed away there. Let it be remembered that Frederick Douglass called +Ward the most brilliant Negro orator of the abolition cause. Would +not the story of his remarkable career be a valuable addition to our +history? He was one of the chief pillars of the anti-slavery movement. + +Would not the true facts concerning the birth, education and early +life of Lieutenant Colonel William N. Reed, First North Carolina +Volunteers, or the Thirty-fifth United States Colored Troops, who +fell mortally wounded in the battle of the Olustee in 1864, make +interesting reading to arouse the imagination of the youth? A full +narrative of the life of Dr. John V. DeGrasse, the first commissioned +surgeon in the United States Army, would give a new idea of the +versatility of the Negro patriot. The life of David Ruggles, told +in detail, would be both informing and inspiring. His hatred of the +slaveholder and his love of freedom brought him to deal sledge hammer +blows at the institution of slavery and to oppose the colonization of +free Negroes in Africa. His manly appeal to reason and his eloquent +and convincing arguments against deportation did much to make friends +for Negro freedom. James W. C. Pennington, an honor alumnus of the +University of Heidelberg (Germany), deserves more consideration in our +history than will ever be given him because we know so little about +his life and labors. An eloquent preacher and a lover of justice and +truth, he won the praise of the good and the great in both America and +Europe. + +How many American Negroes know the name of Joseph Colvis, a native of +the United States who won distinction during the Franco-Prussian War, +who was decorated by the French Government, and who retained till his +death his American citizenship? What Negro of the United States knows +the story of the last years of Edmonia Lewis, the sculptress, one of +the truly great products of the race? Her name should be made to live +by telling every youth of her wonderful career as an artist. + +How many Negro youths know the names of C. H. J. Taylor, James Monroe +Trotter, John H. Jackson and J. McHenry Jones, four men of our own +time who successfully labored for the uplift of the race? Taylor and +Trotter were among the first to preach Negro independence in politics, +and Jackson and Jones infused new life into two State schools and +made these institutions mighty instruments of service in the uplift +of the race. What do we know of Whipper, Rock, Martin, Chavis, Jones, +Whitefield, pioneers all? of Bell, Varick, Coker, Cary, Bryan, Liele, +all but martyrs? What these men achieved, in spite of handicap, in +an environment unfavorable to progress by peoples of dark skin, has +won the admiration of the enemies of the race. Is there a student of +history who does not wish to know more about them? Unbiased historians +on both sides of the seas will some day find delight in doing them +honor. + +Shall these heroes go unsung? Shall these makers of the history of +the race go unhonored? Should not their names become familiar to our +children and their struggles for truth and right the epics of the +fireside? Lest we forget, and lest our children never know them, +let us do our best to chronicle their deeds and to perpetuate their +memories. Let us do our part towards placing these heroes before the +world, erecting in their honor monuments in song and in story to +the end that coming generations may be inspired to serve their day +faithfully and aspiring youths everywhere be shown the path to true +worth and glory. + + PAUL W. L. JONES. + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] An address delivered before the Association for the Study of Negro +Life and History at Louisville, November 23, 1922. + + + + +HAITI AND THE UNITED STATES[A] + + +INTRODUCTORY + +We do not generally speak of _American imperialism_. Such words are +incompatible. Imperialism in the United States, the land of the free +and the home of the brave, seems ironical. The degenerate, dying one, +however, gave birth to the vital, growing other. Imperialism is the +torch that fired the souls that flared and flamed forth in conquering +righteous anger and tore in twain the bond which held the British +Lion's restless brood intact and set one loose to roam apart a land +in which to breed and suckle a stock after its kind. It was thus the +United States had its beginning. Can it be the echo of that severed +bond still faintly heard shall prematurely die? drown in the clamor of +our near Imperialistic programme in the republics of Haiti and Santo +Domingo? Be that as it may, the sovereignty of Haiti and Santo Domingo +has been impaired, and their independence overthrown by the United +States of America. This is a fact against which no one holds a brief. + +Whether we accept the interpretation of our country's actions in the +island republics by Earnest H. Gruening, Managing Editor of _The +Nation_, or that of Carl Kelsey,[1] Professor of Sociology at the +University of Pennsylvania,[2] whether we conclude with, what may +be termed conveniently "public opinion," or with the Investigation +Committee of the Senate,[3] is finally a matter of individual +judicature. To accept or reject, establish or refute, either +interpretation or conclusion would require a thorough study of the +character and motives of the men, and the nature, extent, and the +conditions under which the facts were collected. Such a survey would +lead us far afield in this dissertation. + +Knowing as we do the importance of the Monroe Doctrine, we believe +the basis of the present Haitian-Dominican relation with the United +States to be found in our practical interpretation of that unwritten +law. There is another factor which, if possible, is paramount to the +Monroe Doctrine, our economic interests. The strength of a nation is +its wealth. In our economic interests upon which rests our political +government, and in the Monroe Doctrine--time honored, versatile +chaperon and guardian of them both at international fetes--are to +be found the official justification and true motives of the foreign +policy of the United States in Haiti and Santo Domingo. + + +SURVEY OF HAITI + +Before proceeding farther, let us briefly review Haiti up to the +American Occupation. The story of the Santo-Dominican affair is +singularly similar to that of Haiti, and it needs to be referred to +only in the rare instances of dissimilarity. + +Hispaniola or Haiti is the second largest island in the Antilles. +It lies between Cuba and Porto Rico. It was discovered by Columbus, +and the earliest Caucasian civilization in this hemisphere took root +there. The tomb supposed to hold the ashes of Columbus is in the +Cathedral of Santo Domingo. The eastern two-thirds of the island +is occupied by the Dominican Republic, the western one-third by +that of Haiti. The island was a French colony until 1804, although +the French claims were frequently disputed by the Spaniards, who +at various times established themselves in the eastern part, where +language and culture remained Castilian. Following nearly fifteen +years of struggle, which began when the Bastile fell, the natives +achieved their independence.[4] This revolution was unique in that +the revolutionaries, who had formerly been slaves, secured both the +political independence of their country and their personal freedom. +The republic of Haiti was established on January 1, 1804, the second +republic in the Western Hemisphere. In 1844 the eastern two-thirds of +the island seceded and set up the Dominican Republic. + +The republic of Haiti continued free and independent until 1915. +During that one hundred and eleven years it had a troublous history. +The constitutional office for a president in Haiti is seven years, but +President Salomon, who held office from 1879 to 1886, is apparently +the only such functionary to fill out his term of office. He was +overthrown within two years after his reelection for a second term in +1886. + +This drama may be reduced to read thus: In 1804 Dessalines was crowned +as emperor. Two years later he was assassinated; and war broke out +between Christophe and Petion. In 1807 Christophe became king under +the title of Henry I, but had upon his hands annoying strife. In +1811 Petion was made president of the southern part of the island +and civil war ensued. Boyer was declared regent for life in 1820 and +after tremendous insurrection and flow of blood Christophe committed +suicide. In 1843 Boyer was deposed and exiled after a revolution. +In 1844 Santo Domingo, the Spanish port of the island, became an +independent republic in spite of the efforts of the French portion +to subdue it. Herard, the next ruler, was exiled after a rule of one +year. Then came Guerrier and Pierrot, each of whom could hold out one +year only. In 1846 Riche was proclaimed president but he passed away +within twelve months. In 1849 Soulouque was declared emperor after +many wars and much bloodshed. He managed to rule in some way until +he was exiled in 1859. Geffrad then became president and ruled until +1867 when he was exiled. From 1856 to 1867 there followed a dreadful +revolution when Salnave revolted, taking refugees from the British +consulates and killing them. An English ship drove them out and +helped Geffrad who, however, was finally banished. Salnave was then +made president with a new constitution; and the revolt was suppressed +amidst torrents of blood. From 1868 to 1870 there was continual +revolution, but Salnave massacred his enemies, proclaimed himself +emperor, and thus reigned until he was finally defeated and shot. +In 1874 after Nissage Saget had completed his term of four years, +Domingue seized the government, but after bloody revolution he was +exiled in 1876. Then came another bloody revolution when Canal seized +power but after a stormy reign he was exiled in 1879, when Salomon was +elected. Salomon was reelected in 1886 but was deposed and exiled in +1888. Then came civil war between Hippolyte and Legitime resulting in +the temporary success of Legitime, who held sway for one year only. +In 1889 Hippolyte was chosen chief executive and he died in office +in 1896. Sam who became president that year had trouble with Germany +and numerous disorders in the country. In 1902 Sam took all the funds +and left the country. In 1902 General Alexis Nord was proclaimed +president, and he was retired by revolution in 1908 when the powers +sent warships to stop massacre. Cincinnatus Lecompte was elevated to +the presidency in 1911 and was killed in 1912. Tancrede Auguste, who +succeeded him, met the same fate the following year. Michall Oreste, +the next unfortunate, served into the year 1914 when he was dethroned +by the usual upheaval; and so suffered Zamor in 1914, and Guillaume +who was killed in 1915. On July 28, 1915, United States forces landed +at Port-au-Prince and began the present Occupation.[5] + + +SURVEY OF SANTO DOMINGO + +National and domestic conditions of Haiti are popular knowledge. It is +unnecessary to go into that upon which all students of Latin American +countries are agreed. Accordingly we make no mention of the form of +government and detailed exposition of its operation in this country. + +It is not agreed that Santo Domingo is as well known. The total +area of the Dominican Republic is over 19,000 square miles, or +somewhat more than the combined areas of the States of Vermont and +New Hampshire. The country is divided by a great central range whose +highest peaks rise to 9,000 or 10,000 feet, forming valleys like +Constanza, whose elevation is over 3,000 feet. The first census of +the Dominican Republic ever taken was completed in the summer of +1921. This showed a total population of 894,587, a little over 45 a +square mile, or about one-fourth the density of Haiti. The crop areas, +rainfall being heavy in the vicinity of the central range, indicate +fairly accurately the location of the mass of the population. The +people are a mixture of Negro, Indian, and Spaniard with the Negro +strain predominant. Among them, as in Haiti, the question of land +ownership is important. There is no system of deeds by which titles +are registered. As the country has never been surveyed, titles are in +confusion. + +The agricultural methods of the Dominicans do not differ materially +from those of the Haitians, but modern machinery is rapidly appearing. +Conservatively it might be said that the Dominican farmers are more +prosperous than the Haitian. One finds here the culture of cane, +cacao, tobacco, and bananas to a greater extent than in Haiti, but +these crops are not efficiently handled. + +The most valuable crop of the country is sugar. Owing to the enormous +cost of the mills, sugar is produced chiefly on large plantations. Of +these there are about a dozen, most of which are today under American +control. Two of the largest are La Romana in the east and Barahona +in the west. In the former the investment is estimated at $7,000,000 +with 16,000 acres in cane and a labor force of 7,000. Barahona is a +new plantation which was grinding the winter of 1921 for the first +time. The investment here is said to be over $10,000,000. A splendid +plant with adequate provision for houses for the employees has been +built. Besides sugar there are a few other industries including a +little manufacturing. Factories are not numerous in the country, but +at Puerto Plata, there are a match factory, a few distilleries, and +two cigar factories turning out excellent products, and they are owned +and operated by Dominicans. It is an open question whether forces +and influences of this kind will do more to advance and stabilize +these countries than all the resorts to force of military control and +occupation. + +Some transportation facilities and a few other economic factors of +interest are observed. There are two lines of railroads doing a +general business, with a combined mileage of about 150 miles. The +Dominican Central Railway runs from Puerto Plata through Santiago to +Moca, 60 miles. This was built by foreign interests but was taken over +by the government in 1908. The second road, the Samana and Santiago +Railway, runs from Moca to Samana with branches to San Fernando +de Macoris and La Vega. No railroad runs from the northern to the +southern part of the country. On the sugar estates in the south there +are 225 miles of private roads. There is also a short line of some +five miles connecting Azura with its ports. An excellent beginning had +been made in road building. The engineers of the American forces since +the occupation have carried it farther. There are docks at Puerto +Plata, La Romana,[6] San Pedro de Macoris, Santo Domingo and Barahona. +Elsewhere lighters are used. The Clyde Steamship Line has had a +monopoly much of the time in the trade with the United States. Now +at least two other lines send freight steamers regularly. The French +line gives direct connection with Europe, and there is also frequent +communication with Porto Rico. + +A study of the statistical table of commerce indicates a very +gratifying increase in the total foreign trade but a considerable +part of the increase after 1914 was due to war time prices, just as +the terrible slump which came in 1921, and had little relation to +production. The output of sugar has been increased from 85,000 tons in +1910 to about 185,000 in 1920. A large part of this commerce is with +the United States. For instance, in 1919-20 the United States trade +represented 77 per cent of the imports and 87 per cent of the exports. +13 per cent more of the imports were from Porto Rico, and to that +island went 26 per cent of the exports. The rapid increase in commerce +brought great prosperity to the country. Then came the reaction, +disastrous to creditors, many of whose accounts were settled for 35 +cents on the dollar. The country, however, is relatively undeveloped, +which means its day is yet ahead. Schvenrich is correct in speaking of +Santo Domingo as the country with a future. + +Religion, education, and politics come next in this hurried survey. +The Roman Catholic Church is dominant in this country. With the +exception of a few Franciscans all the priests are natives. The +Protestant churches in the country are few and small. + +Education is still in a backward state. In 1915 the Dominican +Republic did not own a single school building. Rural schools did not +exceed eighty-four in number. The total school enrollment was about +18,000. While there were some public schools in rented buildings +dependence seems to have been placed on the private subsidized +schools, and the amount granted was determined wholly by political +influence. The teachers were irregularly and poorly paid. A commission +appointed by the government investigated thoroughly the educational +situation and because of its findings prepared and recommended the +following laws: (_a_) Compulsory school attendance; (_b_) school +administration; (_c_) general studies, literary, law, and theological +courses; and an (_d_) organic law of public education, and school +revenues. The educational institutions now total: (_a_) 647 rural +schools--enrollment 50,000, the chief work being in agriculture; (_b_) +194 primary schools; (_c_) 7 secondary and normal schools; (_d_) 6 +industrial schools for girls; (_e_) 2 schools of fine arts; and (_f_) +2 correctional schools and the Central University at the capital. The +total school attendance is 100,000, and the total number of teachers +is 1,468. + +The constitution establishes a representative form of government--a +republic. The government is of executive, legislative, and judicial +branches. The national congress meets annually at the capital, Santo +Domingo, on February 27 for a period of 90 days, which may be extended +60 days if necessary. It is composed of a senate of 12 members, one +from each province, and of a chamber of deputies of 24 members, two +from each province. Senators are elected by indirect vote for a term +of six years, and the senate is renewed by thirds every two years. +Deputies are elected by indirect vote for a period of four years, and +the chamber is renewed by half every two years. Suffrage is free to +all male citizens over 18 years old. The President is the executive +authority of the republic. He is elected for six years by indirect +vote. There is no Vice-President. The cabinet is composed of seven +functionaries: the Secretary of Interior and Police, Secretary of +Foreign Affairs, Secretary of Treasury and Commerce, Secretary of War +and Marine, Secretary of Justice and Public Instruction, Secretary +of Agriculture and Immigration, and Secretary of Promotion and +Communications. + +The chief judicial power resides in the Supreme Court of Justice, +which consists of a president and six justices chosen by Congress, and +one Procurador Fiscal General appointed by the executive to serve for +a term of four years, and sitting at Santo Domingo. The territory of +the republic is divided into twelve judicial districts, each having +its own civil and criminal tribunal and court of first instance. These +districts are subdivided into communes, each with a local justice. +There are two courts of appeal, one at Santiago de los Caballeros, and +the other at Santo Domingo City. For administrative purposes these +twelve provinces are subdivided into communes. The provinces are +administered by governors appointed by the President as are the chief +executive officers of other political divisions. + + +EARLY INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS + +Let us now direct attention to the early international relations +of Haiti and Santo Domingo with the United States. For many years +recognition of the little state by certain world powers fearing the +disastrous effect on their slaves, was withheld. The French, moreover, +under the constant threat of reinvasion, succeeded in exacting a +90,000,000 franc indemnity for the property of Frenchmen expelled in +the Haitian war of independence. Charles X of France then recognized +the republic. Recognition by the United States did not come until the +presidency of Abraham Lincoln. Until recently, however, Haiti has had +only one significant attraction for the United States. The important +relations of Haiti with this country from then until 1915 amounted +chiefly to negotiations and efforts to secure the cession of Mole St. +Nicholas, a harbor, at the northwestern extremity of the island. It +controls the Windward Passage, and the United States desired it for a +naval base. + +Notwithstanding the insistence of the United States that Haiti grant +her Mole St. Nicholas for naval use, the harbor did not change hands. +The Haitians adhered firmly to the constitutional provision, which +forbade the cession of territory. During 1914 and 1915 the United +States began overtures of a different character. A treaty giving +American control of the customs and finances was proposed. The cession +of Mole St. Nicholas appears also in the early exchanges. In October, +1914, William J. Bryan, Secretary of State, wrote to President Wilson, +urging the immediate increase of our naval forces in Haitian waters, +"not only for the purpose of protecting foreign interests, but also +as an evidence of the earnest intention of this Government to settle +the unsatisfactory state of affairs which exists." More naval vessels +were sent, and at the same time the United States offered to assist +the President of Haiti to put down some threatened revolutionary +disturbances. As certain conditions were attached to this assistance, +it was refused. In November and December modifications of previous +treaty drafts were again submitted. They proposed the control and +administration of the Haitian customs by the United States, and were +again refused for reasons similar to those given above. On December +13, 1914, American marines from the United States Ship Machias landed +in the Haitian capital and removed property of the country without the +consent of the people. + +The recent Dominican situation may be said to have begun on November +19, 1915. A draft giving the United States military and financial +control was presented to President Jimenez of the Dominican Republic +one week after the final ratification by Haiti of its similar treaty. +It was rejected. In the following April, impeachment proceedings were +entered upon against the President in the Dominican Congress. On May +4, 1916, during some revolutionary disturbances, and without warning +to the Dominican Government, American marines were landed near Santo +Domingo. The American minister at that time gave assurance that these +forces were solely for the purpose of protecting the American Legation. + +On the eleventh of May Frederico Henrique Y Carvajol was nominated for +president of the republic in the Chamber of Deputies and confirmed by +the Senate on the twenty-third of May. On the thirteenth of May, the +American minister formally notified the Dominican Government of the +intention of the United States Government to land a large armed force +and to occupy the capital, threatening bombardment of the city and +unrestricted firing upon the natives, if in any way they interfered +with the landing of the American forces. On the eighteenth of May +the American minister notified the Dominican Congress that Carvajol +was not acceptable to the United States as President. On the fifth +of June the American minister gave a formal notice to the Dominican +Government that the Receiver General of Customs would take charge of +all the finances and funds of the Government. Under the treaty of +1907 with the United States one of its citizens appointed by this +country was in charge of the collection of customs of the Dominican +Republic. It was his duty under this treaty to turn in all but the +sum of $100,000 monthly to the Dominican Government. All above this +$100,000 was to go, one half to the Dominican Government for its own +uses, the other half to the sinking fund of the loan contracted under +the treaty. On the sixteenth of June, following orders from Washington +the Receiver General of Customs took charge of all revenues,--internal +as well as customs revenues which alone were stipulated in the treaty +of 1907--and set himself up as disbursing agent of the republic. Then +followed a series of protests, exchange of notes and the like. On +November 26, 1916, there was issued a "proclamation of occupation" by +the United States, followed by martial law, but the Dominicans refused +to ratify the acts of the Military Government. The occupation here +continued more than five years. + +These and similar acts in both Haiti and Santo Domingo aside from +questions of expediency, justification, or best interest have given +rise to the present situation. Up to this time the United States +Government has published no complete and comprehensive explanation of +these acts. The answer to the question of motives is not to be found +in surface considerations; not even the unlimited popular accounts +convince us that this country is not adhering to a principle, to an +accepted and subscribed policy, no matter how secret it may be. + + +THE UNITED STATES IN THE LARGER CANAL ZONE + +When the United States secured Panama from Columbia she entered upon +a new era. With the centralization of a large portion of our wealth +in this section of Latin America came the recognition by statesmen +that our political interests would have to expand accordingly. Then +our attitude took on an air of aggression which, conflicting with +our ideals, gives rise to varied conjectures upon our Latin American +policy, and especially our policy in the Caribbean Sea. + +There were steps made towards securing a coaling station or naval +base even prior to our ownership of the Panama Canal Lands. In 1867 +Admiral Porter and Mr. F. W. Seward, the assistant-secretary of state, +were sent to Santo Domingo for the purpose of securing the lease of +Samana Bay as a naval station. Later President Grant sent Colonel +Babcock to the island to report on the condition of affairs. Babcock, +without diplomatic authority of any kind, negotiated a treaty for the +annexation of the Dominican Republic and another for the lease of +Samana Bay. + +The Spanish American War was the occasion for the advance of the +United States into the Caribbean. From this conflict we acquired Porto +Rico and a protectorate over Cuba. Furthermore, too much importance +can not be attached to the Hay-Pauncefote treaty of 1901 in studying +this expansion of the United States in that sphere. By this convention +Great Britain abjured her claim to an equal voice with the United +States in the control of an Isthmian Canal and withdrew her squadrons +from the Caribbean Sea, leaving us the naval supremacy in this +important strategic area. + +Immediately following these occurrences came the episode of the Panama +Canal. To review briefly a long told and well known story, the United +States Government had not been successful in its attempt to secure +from Columbia the treaty it sought for the building of the Isthmian +Canal. In 1903 a revolution broke out in Panama, and Columbia failed +to coerce effectively the insurgents, hindered, it is asserted, by +the far reaching influence of the Roosevelt Administration. As soon +as this revolution got in full swing the United States recognized +Panama, and negotiated the long sought treaty. By the year 1903 we had +acquired the canal zone. The determination to build a canal not only +rendered inevitable the adoption of a policy of naval supremacy in +the Caribbean Sea, but led also to the formulation of new political +policies to be applied in the larger Canal Zone, that is, the West +Indies, Mexico, Central America, Columbia, and Venezuela. These +new policies are: (_a_) The establishment of protectorates, (_b_) +the supervision of finances, (_c_) the control of naval routes, +(_d_) the acquisition of naval stations, (_e_) and the policing and +administration of disorderly countries. This program of policies has +afforded this country many opportunities for expansion in these areas. + + +AMERICAN SEAS A COMMERCIAL CENTER + +Prior to the completion of the Panama Canal the American Seas, the +Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, for many years had been silent +waters. The Panama Canal has reversed these conditions. The important +trade routes of the world will pass about these islands and over these +seas, and they will be noisy with the whirl of the propeller and +bright with the sail of ships. A great part of American commerce and a +larger part of the traffic of the world will be through the American +seas between the walls of this canal and by the shores of Haiti. These +seas will become more popular with commerce than any other section of +the world. They will be a gathering place and crossing point for the +east and the west, and their possession, either forcibly or otherwise, +will carry with it more potentiality than the possession of any +other body of water on the face of the earth. It will be absolutely +necessary, says this country, so to speak, that the outposts of the +canal shall be in the hands of strong and stable governments, and it +cannot be thought that the harbors necessary for that commerce and +the islands by which it will pass, and in whose broad bays it will +be compelled to anchor, shall be ripe with revolution and dangerous +to that commerce. This country which is practically guardian of this +commerce must allow to obtain no condition which will be a daily +menace to this unusual trade. + +In all of these communities the commercial diplomacy of our time will +have a growing interest, an interest greatly enhanced by the fact that +through the Caribbean, the traffic center of the American tropics, +will pass the trade routes developed by the Panama Canal. Both the +competition for the control of the trade which lies within their +borders, and the fact that before their ports passes the commerce of +distant countries, will give to Caribbean communities an importance +in international affairs they have not had since the days when the +Spanish Empire in America was at its height and the people of one of +the great world powers depended for its prosperity on the arrival +of the gold ships from its American colonies. The fortunes of the +Caribbean are no matter of merely local interest. They involve, to +a degree still unappreciated, the world at large and especially the +American continents, both North and South. Upon the solution of the +problems which arise there may depend the character of international +and economic development in America. The importance of the new +position in which the Caribbean region stands is brought home by +almost every development in American international affairs. + +Caribbean problems take on another important aspect when we remember +the wonderful possibilities of economic development. Partly acting as +a cause of this trade development, partly one of its results, there +is going on a steady and rapid influx of foreign capital. The English +financing of the Argentine is familiar to students of Latin-American +history. In recent years, with the establishment of order in Mexico, +that country has attracted large amounts of foreign investments. +The departure of Spain from Cuba and Porto Rico was the signal for +a rush of investors to these islands to develop resources which +mistaken fiscal policies and local unrest had formerly kept unused. +Foreign capital exploits the sugar, tobacco, coffee, cocoa, fruit, +oil, and asphalt. These investments are scattered among all the great +commercial nations. They give an international character even to +purely internal improvements. Economic interests now tend to overflow +national boundaries and to make the orderly development of every +state truly a matter of general concern. Under the Monroe Doctrine we +practically say to European nations they shall not for any cause lay +their hands heavily upon a country in this hemisphere, which, with the +added responsibility as trustee for the world in the possession of the +Isthmian Canal, makes it dependent upon the United States, it is said, +to keep order. + + +HAITI'S COMMERCIAL POSITION + +This policy of aggression has only one explanation. Next to Cuba, +Haiti is the island of the greatest strategical influence in the +Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico. The two important routes to +the mouth of the canal from North America are, first the route by +the Windward Passage between the island of Cuba and the island of +Haiti; second, the route by the Mona Passage between the island of +Haiti and the island of Porto Rico. This latter passage will be that +chiefly used by the sailing vessels to and from the canal to the +eastern portion of North America. The other important passage to the +mouth of the canal is the Annegada Passage by the islands of St. +Thomas and Porto Rico, and will be the route used from the isthmus +to the Mediterranean and Central Europe. The travel to the British +Islands and northern Europe will also use the Mona Passage between +Haiti and Porto Rico. In other words, every ship sailing from Canada, +New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Newport News, Charleston or the +eastern coast of North America on its journey to the Latin American +world of commerce will be compelled to pass by the island of Haiti, +either through the Windward or the Mona Passage, and the travel to the +greater part of Europe will use the Mona Passage by the east coast of +Haiti. This world-wide commerce in case of stress and storm, according +to the business world, must utilize this island in the necessities of +sea life. It is the first convenient harboring place on its way to +the Canal, and on its return it is the last stopping place. It will +be as necessary to the commerce of this country as Malta or Aden or +Gibraltar are to the Suez route. It lies athwart the greatest commerce +that will cleave the seas. With the friendly influence of Cuba and +Haiti the commerce of the United States will have a tremendous +advantage in case of war or unfriendliness on the part of any nation, +even if Jamaica is held by an unfriendly power. Modern nations with +the shortening of trade routes, the touching of countries, and their +demand for sure commercial conditions, are unfortunately arriving at +the thought that there is no inalienable right on the part of any +people to control any region to the detriment and injury of the world +at large. + + +SUMMARY + +While many believe that the United States has thrown aside her lofty +ideals to take on a program of imperialism, there is a growing +colonial interest and expansion which does not, probably due to the +very nature of conditions, extend these ideals. Whether the condition +is one acceptable to us or not, says the business world, we are +no longer merely a continental power. We already hold an Asiatic +colony. A weak African state founded from this country has asked us +for a protectorate and is already under our benevolent supervision. +Toward the south we hold a colony, Porto Rico, and are the protectors +of Cuba, Panama, the Dominican Republic, and Haiti. We have +responsibilities in Nicaragua. + +That the end of this development has come is highly unlikely. +Political parties may differ as to national policies, internal and +external, but they will bend before the natural cause of economic +and political development. Our latest three administrations, those +of Roosevelt, Taft, and Wilson, have represented widely divergent +political views, but the general policy of all toward the Caribbean +countries has been fundamentally the same, and the Harding +administration has not yet departed therefrom. All have been willing +to "assume increasing responsibilities toward our weaker neighbors" +to secure economic advantage. It has been a development which is the +response of the nation to its larger economic and political interests +in the Larger Canal Zone. + +Whilst this government disclaims any desire for conquest, yet the +great advantage in the world movement and in the vital commercial +affairs of the globe, the commercial world says, demand that the peace +and safety of this hemisphere shall not be needlessly and wickedly +broken, and that the peace, happiness and safety of this nation and +the commerce of the world within the bounds of our governmental life +shall not be imperiled in the future as they have been in the past. +The tremendous impetus, which under the world movement of today has +been so potent and plain, demands order in all the affairs and details +of life. The conditions of the time and the dependence of one part +of the globe upon the other, brought about by the easy interchange +between the nations, mean that no disorder in that great world +commerce can be tolerated. Unstable governments are unwelcome to a +diplomacy which has as one of its controlling motives the creation of +an extensive international exchange, especially when these governments +are of races despised by the Teuton. Weakness of government may +lead in the future, as it has in the past, to the rise of acute +international questions. In recent years there have been many examples +of the complications which may rise out of such conditions. + +The areas referred to as the Larger Canal Zone have received great +attention from this country. In fact our latest Latin-American +diplomacy, which has as one of its controlling motives the creation +of an extensive international exchange, is for these areas. Our +economic interests have made demands upon our political life, the +Monroe Doctrine has lighted the way and we have come forward with new +policies. Haiti, it has been said, is not to be set apart and dealt +with particularly in this new diplomatic program; it is but a factor +in our "American Seas" interest, a vital economic and political part +of our present-day American life. The subsequent questions of impaired +sovereignty and overthrown independence, say the aggressors, should +not obscure the real policies. Nor is it fair to accuse the United +States of a lack of appreciation and respect for the governments of +peoples of this section of the world. + +Finally we are told: America stands at the dividing of the ways. Are +we to pursue the ideals of "All men are created free and equal" with +the equally idealistic form of government, or are we to keep pace with +our commercial and economic expansion and accept the complementary +program of economic imperialism? We are informed that the trend of +our political policies is one of colonization; that colonization +with respect to Western European Civilization is contradictory to +democracy; and that a program of colonization at a time when racial +and national antipathy exceed even individual expression, are all +demonstrated by the refusal of our government to acknowledge and +commit itself to any definite political program in these island +republics. Our government, the defenders say, has occupied these +republics apparently fearful of European intervention. Entering upon +this policy committed to no program, with a lack of centralization +of authority into one of the many departments of the government, it +has caused much confusion. Obviously the position in which we find +ourselves in Haiti is one of embarrassment and one which has affected +the prestige of our country detrimentally. American statesmen are +put to task. Shall our government admit and support its economic +imperialistic policy inseparably from the added political burden +accompanying our Panama Canal enterprise, profiting, thereby, upon +the commercial importance of the canal; or shall it long continue the +dexterous fete of keeping eyes and hands on democratic ideals with +both feet in the path of imperialism? Our new policy is an economic +imperialistic policy. The world wishes to know if we will admit it and +announce our intentions in these regions, or whether we shall continue +our imperialistic policy under the veil of the Monroe Doctrine held in +position by the idealistic principles of democracy. + + GEORGE W. BROWN. + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[A] This dissertation was submitted to the Graduate School of Western +Reserve University in 1922 in partial fulfilment of the requirements +for the degree of Master of Arts. + +[1] _Current History_, Vol. XV, No. 6, March, 1922. + +[2] _Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science_, +Vol. C, No. 189, March, 1922. + +[3] _Treaties and Conventions between the United States and other +Powers._ + +[4] In the preparation of this article the following works were used: + +_Tyranny by the United States in Haiti and Santo Domingo_, by Earnest +H. Gruening, Managing Editor of _The Nation_, in CURRENT HISTORY, +Volume XV, No. 6, March, 1922; _Latin America, Clark University +Addresses_, November, 1913, edited by George H. Blakeslee, Professor +of History, Clark University; _Caribbean Interests of the United +States_, by Chester Lloyd Jones, Professor of Political Science, +University of Wisconsin; _The United States and Latin America_, by +John Holladay Latane, Professor of History, Johns Hopkins University; +_The American Intervention in Haiti and the Dominican Republic_, in +THE ANNALS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF POLITICAL AND SOCIAL SCIENCE, +Volume C, No. 189, March, 1922, by Carl Kelsey, Ph.D., Professor of +Sociology, University of Pennsylvania; _The Monroe Doctrine and Its +Application to Haiti_, by William A. MacCorkle, Former Governor of +West Virginia, in THE ANNALS OF THE AMERICAN ACADEMY OF POLITICAL AND +SOCIAL SCIENCE, Volume LIV, July, 1914; _The Haitian Revolution_, by +T. G. Steward; THE JOURNAL OF NEGRO HISTORY, Vol. II, No. 4, October, +1917; _Independence of South American Republics_, by F. L. Paxson; and +_Treaties and Conventions between the United States and Other Powers_, +Government Printing Office, Washington, D. C. + +[5] These facts are well set forth in Steward's _Haitian Revolution_. + +[6] This dock belongs to a sugar company, but it is open to others. + + + + +PAUL CUFFE[A] + + +CHAPTER I + +EARLY LIFE + +The records tell us that on the sixteenth day of February, 1742, in +consideration of the sum of one hundred and fifty pounds, Ebenezer +Slocum of Dartmouth, Bristol County, Massachusetts, sold to John +Slocum of the same city a Negro man.[1] He was about twenty-five +years of age and a native African whom, doubtless, a slave trader had +brought over some fifteen years before. This Negro was Cuffe by name +(also spelled Cuff, Cuffee, and Cuffey) and, in conformity with the +custom at that time was called Cuffe Slocum to indicate his master. +While the name of the slave does not appear in the bill of sale yet, +since the bill is a part of the family papers of his son, it must have +been Cuffe. + +There exists among the Negro's descendants a tradition that this slave +with the aid of his master worked out his purchase price and obtained +his liberty. It may have been that John Slocum purchased the Negro +with this end in view. At any rate a grand-daughter relates how on a +rainy morning when all, including Cuffe, were seated at the breakfast +table, a justice of the peace appeared with papers of emancipation.[2] +Having received his liberty at an unexpected moment, Cuffe knew not +what to do. Seeing his bewilderment, the gracious squire and the +quondam master gave him temporary employment and, when he was ready +to leave, advised him to lead a steady life, take good care of his +money, and get him a home. With this advice, two suits of clothes, and +freedom, the manumitted slave went happily away. + +Now it happened that about this time there came to Dartmouth an +Indian girl called Ruth Moses. In due time the town clerk recorded: +"Intention of marriage between Cuffe Slocum and Ruth Moses both of +Dartmouth, was entered 3 January 1745."[3] The rest of the story is +told by the minister of Dartmouth in these words: "July ye 7, 1746, +Cuffe Slocum a Negro man and Ruth Moses an Indian woman both of +Dartmouth were married by me Philip Taber."[4] These two records tell +us all we know of the courtship and marriage of Cuffe Slocum. + +Probably the newly-weds made their home in Chilsmark, Dukes County. +The deed to some land which they bought in 1766 from David Brownell +of Dartmouth refers to Cuffe Slocum of Chilsmark. The land was a farm +of one hundred and twenty acres and sold for six hundred and fifty +Spanish milled dollars. As indicated in the deed, the boundary was: +"Northerly on the Country Road, Westerly on Land belonging to Jonathan +Sowle, Southerly on Land Enos Gifford gave to his Daughter Rachel +Wilbur, Easterly partly on said Gifford and partly on Philip Allen, or +according to the Deed I had of Solomon Southwick."[5] + +All of the children, except the youngest, were born previous to this +purchase. There were six girls and four boys. The youngest boy and the +seventh child born January 17, 1759, was Paul. Tradition holds that he +was born on Cuttyhunk, one of the Elizabeth Islands, about nine miles +from the main, and Cuffe himself says that he was born in the only +house on the island. + +About 1778, on the initiative of Paul, it is said, all of the +children, except the youngest, dropped the slave name of Slocum. For +their surname they used the given name of their father. In this way +the Cuffe family came to be, and in this way we are introduced to its +best known representative, Paul. + +John, an older brother of Paul, made this memorandum which is +preserved with the family papers: "My honored good old father Cuffe +Slocum deceased in the month called March 1772--and our honored good +old mother Ruth Slocum deceased the sixth day of January 1787 at 8 +o'clock in the morning." The father left the farm jointly to Paul +and his brother John. Later the brothers agreed to divide it between +themselves. It was unproductive land and, no doubt, this fact caused +the brothers to venture into commercial pursuits. The care of the +family fell for the most part on them, for the older children had +homes of their own. + +At thirteen Paul was barely able to read and write. He kept at his +studies, being assisted occasionally by a private tutor, and gave +considerable time to the subject of navigation. On taking his first +lesson in this subject he said it "was all black as midnight"; at the +end of the second lesson he saw "a little gleam of light"; after the +third lesson he had more light. Finally, it was all plain to him. He +told a certain Professor Griscom: "There were always three things that +I paid attention to--latitude, lead, and lookout." + + +A SEA CAPTAIN + +When about sixteen Paul secured employment as a common seaman on a +vessel bound for the Gulf of Mexico on a whaling voyage. His next trip +took him to the West Indies. On a third voyage, the Revolutionary War +having broken out, he was captured by the British and held in New York +for three months. On his release he repaired to Westport to engage in +agricultural pursuits until the times were more propitious for life +on the sea. In the meantime he carried on the study of arithmetic and +navigation. + +Having equipped himself for a life at sea both by study and service as +a common seaman, Paul, aided by his brother David, built, at the age +of twenty, an open boat to trade with the Connecticut people. But the +hazard of the sea and the refugee pirates were too much for David. He +left his younger brother and went to the farm, whereupon Paul had for +the time being to give up the venture. Soon, however, he was at sea +again but lost everything. The undaunted youth, nevertheless, would +not give up. He made a boat himself from keel to gunwale, and in it he +started to consult his brother concerning future undertaking. On the +way he was discovered by the pirates who seized him and his vessel. He +was lucky to reach home. + +He was now no better off than when he first began. David, however, +agreed to build a boat for him if he would furnish the material. When +the boat was completed Paul, with borrowed money, bought a cargo and +started for Nantucket. On the way he was chased by the pirates and +compelled to return to Westport to refit his boat which was damaged by +striking a rock. He still persevered, reached Nantucket, and sold his +cargo. Financially it was not a profitable voyage. + +On a second voyage the pirates robbed him of his cargo and inflicted +personal injuries, but a third voyage netted good returns. Soon +he procured a covered boat and employed a helper. From now on the +business adventures of Cuffe brought him large profits. The war was +over and the new Constitution was in operation--two reasons why the +sea was safer and business more promising. With his new eighteen ton +boat he sailed from his rented home on the Westport River for Saint +George for a cargo of codfish. The voyage was the foundation for a +profitable fishing industry near his home for many years. + +At this time Michael Wainer, his brother-in-law, an Indian, entered +his service. His brother-in-law was a good seaman and with a new +twenty ton vessel, the _Sunfish_, the men made two trips to the Strait +of Belle Isle and Newfoundland. With the profits from the ventures he +built in connection with another person, the _Mary_, a forty-two ton +schooner. + +In the _Mary_, accompanied by two small boats, and with a crew of +ten, they went on a whaling expedition to the Strait of Belle Isle. +On reaching the Strait, Cuffe found four other vessels fully equipped +with boats and harpoons. These vessels would not, as was customary, +cooperate with Captain Cuffe, so he and his crew went at it alone. +Now fearing they might get no whales the strangers fell in with the +_Mary_. Seven whales were captured, six by the crew of the _Mary_. Two +whales were the victims of Cuffe's own hand. Reaching Westport in the +autumn of 1793 he proceeded to Philadelphia with his cargo of oil and +bone and exchanged it for bolts and iron with which to build a new +vessel.[6] + +Accordingly the keel for a sixty-nine ton vessel was laid at Westport +and in 1795 it was launched. He called it the _Ranger_. With a cargo +valued at $2000, he sailed for Norfolk on the Chesapeake. From here +he went to Vienna on Nanticoke River to buy corn. On reaching port +it is said the townspeople "were filled with astonishment and +alarm. A vessel owned and commanded by a black man, and manned with +a crew of the same complexion, was unprecedented and surprising. +Suspicions were raised, and several persons associated themselves +for the purpose of preventing him from registering his vessel, or +remaining among them. On examination, however, his papers proved +to be correct and, therefore, the custom house officers could not +legally oppose proceeding in a regular course. Paul combined prudence +with resolution, and on this occasion conducted himself with candor, +modesty, and firmness; his crew also behaved not inoffensively but +with conciliating propriety. In a few days the inimical association +vanished, and the inhabitants treated him and his crew with respect +and even kindness."[7] Another writer affirms "Many of the principal +people visited his vessel, and at the instance of one of them, Paul +dined with his family in the town."[8] The investment in corn proved +so profitable that a second voyage was made to Vienna. On the two +trips Captain Cuffe cleared about $2000. The _Ranger_ also made a trip +to Passamaquoddy to get a cargo for James Brian of Wilmington. + +In 1800 there was launched the _Hero_, a hundred and sixty-two ton +bark, in which Captain Cuffe had one-half interest. This vessel, on +one of its trips, rounded the Cape of Good Hope. In 1806 the _Alpha_ +was fitted out. This was a ship of two hundred and sixty-eight tons +in which the Captain had three-fourths interest. Captain Cuffe with +a crew of seven Negroes commanded the _Alpha_ in a voyage from +Wilmington to Savannah, thence to Gottenburg, Sweden, and from there +to Philadelphia. Cuffe also owned one-half of the one hundred and nine +ton brig, the _Traveller_, built in 1806. Of this ship more will be +said elsewhere. + +Captain Cuffe was now slightly beyond middle age. Instead of a small +open boat, trading with the neighboring townsmen, he had obtained +a good sized schooner. "In this vessel," to quote from the funeral +oration, "he enlarged the scope of his action, trading to more distant +places, and in articles requiring larger capital, and thus, in the +process of time, he became owner of one brig, afterwards of two, +then he added a ship, and so on until 1806, at which time he was +possessed of one ship, two brigs, and several smaller vessels, besides +considerable property in houses and lands."[9] + + +FAMILY AFFAIRS + +In the Cuffe manuscripts there is a laconic note chronicling this +important event in Paul's life. + + Bristol, Dartmouth. February 25, 1783. There personally appeared + Paul Cuffe and Alice Pequit both of Dartmouth and was joined + together in marriage by me. + + BENJ. RUSSEL, _Justice of Peace_. + + +Other than that she was an Indian girl, little is known of this bride. +She, like the groom's mother, probably belonged to the Wampanoag +tribe. Paul's sister Mary married an Indian and there is reason for +believing that his brother Jonathan also wedded an Indian. Certain it +is that it was not uncommon for Negroes and Indians of this vicinity +to intermarry. + +For several years Captain Cuffe lived in a rented house. But in 1797, +when he had such a successful venture in importing corn from Vienna, +he purchased a $3500 farm on the shore of the Westport River, a few +miles below Hip's Bridge. He soon built a wharf and a store house. +At Westport Captain and Mrs. Cuffe made their home and reared their +family of two sons and six daughters. + +At the time of the purchase of the new farm the neighborhood was +without educational facilities. There was neither school house nor +tutor. This situation was displeasing to Cuffe. He called a meeting +of the neighbors and proposed that steps be taken for adequate +educational equipment. So much difference of opinion resulted that no +agreement could be reached at this initial meeting. Subsequent efforts +were alike unsuccessful. At last Cuffe built a school house with his +own funds on his own farm and offered its use to the public.[12] + +One wonders what books were read in his own home. Among his papers a +few items relate to the purchase of books. A representative one reads: + + Taylor's Concordance $1.25 + Perry's Dictionary 1.00 + Clerk's Magazine 1.25 + Bowditch Navigators 4.00 + Paper .53 + $8.03 + +The religious affiliation of the family was with the Friends. The +parents of Captain Cuffe had attended the meetings of the Quakers and +it was the natural course for the son to follow them. According to the +records of the Westport monthly meeting of Friends, Cuffe requested +membership with that body in 1808. He was faithful to his profession +of Christ. He was considerate of the little folks, for he presented +them with Bibles and good counsel and endeavored to set before them +an example of righteous conduct. He must have believed that children +should have something to do, for in a letter to his brother, he points +out that his nephew Zacharis is lying around too much. Moreover, he +writes: + + I observe that my son Paul has brought home a gun that he borrowed + of his Uncle John which I dare say his good uncle lent unto him + out of pure love and good will for the want of due consideration, + for in the first place I have two guns in order and make but + littel use of them which is enough as Christ said unto Peter + by the sword. My wife well knows that it is but littel time + since Paul got my powder and loaded a logg and Charles fired it + and it was wonderful that he had not been killied again he has + lately sold his trunk to be abel to gratify himself in these + unnecessary evils which we hath disapproved of. Now to support him + in that we both disapprove I think that it is for the want of + watchfulness.[14] + +Two nieces were entrusted to his care. Although they had good "school +learning for girls" Cuffe wished them to continue their studies. +Later, when he became the guardian of two grandchildren, he began +making arrangements to put them in the New York Yearly Meeting School. + +The Westport Friends sold their meeting house in 1813 for $128.72 and +erected a new one costing $1198.08. Material costing almost $600, +including "nine gallons of cider when raising house--$1.00" was +furnished by Captain Cuffe. It is impossible to state just how much if +any of this material was furnished gratis but it is safe to say that +he carried a heavy responsibility in overseeing the business end of +the matter. + + +CHAPTER II + +PROBLEMS OF CITIZENSHIP + +"Having no vote or Influence in the Election of those that Tax us yet +many of our Colour (as is well known) have Cherfully Entered the field +of Battle in the defense of the Common Cause and that (as we conceive) +against a similar Exertion of Power (in Regard to taxation) too well +known to need a Recital in this place," voicing this sentiment, John +and Paul Cuffe and others sent a petition for relief to the General +Court, Massachusetts Bay, February 10, 1780. Such requests, however, +were not new. At the beginning of the American Revolution there were +probably about 7,000 Negroes, slave and free, in Massachusetts. +About 1,500 lived in Boston. A petition, signed by Prince Hall and +others, praying for the abolition of slavery, was presented to the +General Court of Massachusetts Bay in 1777. Another petition dated +February 18, 1780, embodies a pathetic and earnest appeal for relief +from taxation. It is preserved in the manuscript collection of the +Commonwealth of Massachusetts and is signed by John and Paul Cuffe and +five others.[10] A copy is with the Cuffe papers. There are two other +copies among these papers, both shorter in form, and dated January 22, +1781. + +On one of the duplicate petitions in the Cuffe papers there is a +notation signed by John Cuffe. "This is the copy," it records, "of the +petition which we did deliver unto the honorable Council and House +for relief from Taxation in the days of our distress. But we received +none." + +The petition recites that they were in poor circumstances. When slaves +they were deprived of the profits of their labor and of the benefits +of inheritance. So distressed were they at this time that only five +or six owned a cow. They could not meet the taxes assessed against +them. They were aggrieved because they had no vote either in local +or colonial affairs and nobody had ever heard of one of their number +sitting in the Court of the General Assembly. The petitioners most +humbly requested the Massachusetts General Court to grant them relief +from taxation. + +Interest in the Cuffe brothers is now transferred from the State +capitol to Bristol County,[11] where these men were indefatigable in +their efforts to obtain relief. Late in 1780 a petition was made "To +the Honble the Justices of the Court of General Sessions of the peace +begun and held at Taunton within and for the County of Bristol." The +petitioners ask relief from taxation on the grounds that they are +"Indian men and by law not the subjects of Taxation for any Estate +Real or personal and Humbly Pray your Honors that as they are assessed +jointly a Double Poll Tax and the said Paul is a minor for whom the +Said John is not by law answerable or chargeable that the said Poll +Taxes aforesaid and also all and regular Taxes aforesaid on their and +Each of their Real and personal Estate aforesaid, may be abated to +them and they allowed their Reasonable Costs." + +The taxes for which complaint was made were for the years 1777 to +1780 inclusive, and amounted to about two hundred pounds. They were +heaviest for the years 1779 and 1780. The assessors, then, on December +15, gave Richard Collins, constable of Dartmouth, a warrant for +the arrest of the Cuffe brothers. It recites that their taxes were +delinquent for + + 1778: 5 lbs. 17s. 6d. + 1779: 9 lbs. 2s. 8d. + 29 lbs. 16s. 10-1/2d. + 29 lbs. 18s. 9d. + 1780: 61 lbs. 18s. 4d. + 17 lbs. 7s. 5/25d. + ----- + Grand total: 154 lbs. 1s. 1-7/10d. + +The assessors found no estate on which to levy for the taxes. In +the name of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Bay, therefore, they +required the "said Richard Collens to take into safe custody the body +of the said John and Paul Cuffe and then commit to the common gaol of +the said County of Bristol there to remain until they, the said John +and Paul Cuffe shall pay and satisfy the above sum with all necessary +charges" or be discharged by due process of law. The constable +followed the instructions and reported on December 19 that he had +placed the Cuffe brothers in the common gaol in Taunton. For this +service, including travel for twenty-five "milds," he turned in a bill +of twelve shillings, nine pence. + +The next step in the legal battle was on the part of the Cuffe +brothers. The keeper of the gaol or his underkeeper was directed +on the nineteenth of December in the "Name of the Commonwealth of +Massachusetts to have the bodies of John and Paul Cuffe said to be +Indian men whom you have now in keeping before the Justices of our +Inferior Court of Common Pleas now holden at Taunton for said County +together with the cause of their and each of their Commitiment +and Detention. Hereof fail not and make Return of this writ with +your doings therein. Witness Walter Spooner Esqr." Elijah Dean, +underkeeper, produced the two men on the same day that he received the +writ of habeas corpus. + +When the Court of General Sessions of the Peace met on the nineteenth +of December it ordered on the petition of John and Paul Cuffe that +the assessors of Dartmouth appear at the next term to show cause, +wherefore the Prayer of said Petition should not be granted. The order +was given to the sheriff of Bristol County on the twenty-ninth of +December. The assessors, Benjamin Russell, Richard Kriby, Christopher +Gifford, and John Smith were accordingly summoned by Elijah Dean. He +served the warrant on the twenty-sixth of February and recorded his +fee as twenty-four pence. + +Meanwhile, on the twentieth of February the selectmen of Dartmouth +were called on to choose an agent to defend the action against the +Cuffe brothers. At their annual meeting on the eighth of March the +Honorable Walter Spooner, a member of the Massachusetts Constitutional +Convention 1780, was chosen in behalf of the town to make answer +to the petitioners in question. At the March meeting the case was +continued and came up for action at the next meeting of the court. + +In the meantime, John and Paul Cuffe made a request to the selectmen +of Dartmouth. In the Cuffe papers three such requests are preserved. +The one dated the twenty-fourth of April is followed by a notation +attesting it a true copy of the request delivered to the selectmen. +It asks them to "put a stroak on your next Warrant for calling a town +meeting so that it may legally be Laid Before said town By way of voat +to know the mine of said town whether all free Negroes and molattoes +shall have the same Privileges in this said town of Dartmouth as the +white People have Respecting Places of profit choosing of officers and +the Like together with all other Privileges in all cases that shall +or may happen or be Brought in this said town of Dartmouth or that we +have Reliefe granted us Joyntly from Taxation which under our present +depressed circumstances and your poor Petitioners as in duty Bound +shall ever pay." + +The disposition of the case as found in the records is contained in +a few sentences. One is dated the eleventh of June and is signed by +Richard Collens, constable. It reads as follows: + + Then received of John Cuffe eight pounds twelve shillings silver + money in full for all John Cuffe and Paul Cuffe Rates until this + date and for all my court charges received by me. + +Elijah Dean presented his bill for summoning the assessors. It was +paid, and the bill with an acknowledgment from Edward Pope is entered +in Cuffe's letter book with the tax receipt of the eleventh of June. +The other laconic note is from the Records of the Court of General +Sessions held at Taunton on June 12. It curtly "ordered that the +Petition of Paul Cuffe and John Cuffe and the proceedings thereon be +dismissed." + +Several writers have commented on the significance of the petitions +of the Cuffe brothers and their resistance to the payment of taxes. +Practically all of them overestimate the matter. For example, a +representative writer says, "This was a day equally honorable to +the petitioners and to the legislature; a day in which justice and +humanity triumphed over prejudice and oppression; a day which ought +to be gratefully remembered by every person of color within the +boundaries of Massachusetts, and the names of John and Paul Cuffe, +should always be united with its recollection."[13] + +There is no documentary proof for statements of this kind. A property +qualification for voting fixed by the William and Mary Charter with +slight modifications carried down to 1785. Negroes acquired rights +and privileges in Massachusetts not by special acts of the General +Assembly, but by a judicial act of 1783 based on article one of the +Declaration of Rights of the Constitution of 1780. + + +CHAPTER III + +THE REDEMPTION OF AFRICA + +Early in his life Paul Cuffe became interested in the redemption +of Africa. "The travail of my soul," said he, "is that Africa's +inhabitants may be favored with reformation." The following letter to +James Pemberton not only illustrates Cuffe's style and manifests his +spirit but shows the redemption of Africa as the main interest of his +life: + + WESTPORT 9th mo 14th 1808 + + _Worthy friend_ + + In Reply to thine of the 8-6 mo. + + I desire ever to humble myself before my Maker who hath I trust + favored me to the notice of my friends. I desire that God will + Bless all Our friends who hath been made willing to Rise to our + assistance. Without hope of a providential hand we must ever been + miserabal. + + As to poor me I feel very feebel and all most worn out in hard + service and uncapable of doing much for my brethren the African + Race but blessed be God I am what I am and all that I can conceive + that God pleases to lay upon me to make me an instrument for that + service I desire ever to be submissive that his will may be done + and I shall not loose sight of the above but endeavor to wright + thou again on the subject if thee will wright me if any further + information can be given it would be kindly excepted by one who + wishes well to all mankind &c. + + PAUL CUFFE. + +In this cause, however, Paul Cuffe was not struggling alone. The +question of ameliorating the condition of the Negro in Africa was, at +the opening of the nineteenth century, a matter of general concern. +Men with a philanthropic spirit both in Denmark and Sweden had by this +time investigated the problem. In France, in addition to individual +activity, the society, Les Amis des Noirs, was organized. In England, +interest was more pronounced than in any other European country. The +African Institution, the Saint George's Bay Company, better known +as the Sierra Leone Company, and the British African Colonization +Society, directed efforts toward the western coast. The foundation of +the Sierra Leone was laid by these societies. This same interest in +advancing the civilization of Africa was found among distinguished +Americans like Samuel D. Hopkins, pastor of the First Congregational +Church in Newport, Rhode Island, Ezra Stiles, sometime president +of Yale, and William Thornton, head of the United States Patent +Office.[17] + +In 1808, when expressions from Cuffe showing his interest in Africa +appeared, considerable progress had been made by the English +philanthropists. In the first place, they had carried on successful +propaganda. They were in touch with the Americans and had the support +of the Quakers. In a pamphlet specifically printed to call the +attention of Parliament to the "case of their fellow creatures" the +Quakers asserted that "Africa, so populous, and so rich in vegetable +and mineral productions, instead of affording all the advantages +of a well regulated commerce, is scarcely known but as a mart for +slaves, and as the source of violent barbarities, perpetuated in +order to secure them, by men professing the Christian religion."[18] +The leading men in the African Institution, Thomas Clarkson, William +Wilberforce, and Granville Sharp, exerted much influence both through +personal activity and the agency of the African Institution. + +In the second place, the Englishmen, as stated above, had actually +established a settlement on the Guinea coast known as Sierra Leone. +Many Negroes from London and vicinity, the black American Loyalists, +and the Jamaica Maroons, settled in Nova Scotia, and the "Willyfoss" +Negroes were transported to the Africa coast. The commendable +intentions of the promoters of this settlement on the west coast +of Africa were conveyed to Cuffe by his Philadelphia friend, James +Pemberton, who was in touch with the activities of the African +Institution. In September, 1808, he wrote: + + I perceive they are earnestly attentive to pursue the laudable + object of promoting the civilization of the Blacks in their own + country with a view to draw them off from the wild habits of life + to which they have been accustomed, by instructing them in the + arts of agriculture, mechanic labor, and domestic industry, by + which means they hope to be instrumental in preparing the minds of + those uninstructed people gradually to become qualified to receive + religious instruction. + +Pemberton also called attention to the fact that the leaders of the +African Institution were distinguished men and he especially noted +that the president was the Duke of Gloucester, a nephew of the King. +Moreover, he likened the plan for benefiting the African to the one +which the Friends were using to civilize the American Indian. In the +concluding paragraph of the letter, Pemberton sounds a personal call +to Cuffe: + + Thou wilt be sensible that the undertaking is very important and + those concerned to promote it are anxious to receive all the + assistance and encouragement they can from the friends of humanity + at home and in America. Now if thy concern for the good of the + poor untutored people continues and finds thy mind impressed + with a sense that any portion of the work is allotted for thee + to perform, I hope and trust thou wilt give it thy most serious + consideration, and should it ripen to such a degree as to bring + thee under an apprehension of religious duty to perform it in such + a way as that wisdom which is superior to human may point out, a + consultation with thy friends on the occasion may be reasonably + useful, tending to thy strength and encouragement.[19] + +Already assurance had come from Zachariah Macaulay, Governor of Sierra +Leone, that if Cuffe should make a voyage to Africa he would receive +every encouragement from him. As a director of the African Institution +he felt that its views would be advanced if any free blacks from +America of good conduct and religious principles should be induced to +offer their personal assistance. In June, 1810, therefore, Cuffe, as +an "ever well wishing Friend," wrote to Friends in Philadelphia that +he planned to make a visit to Africa in the fall. He hoped that some +solid Friend would feel called on to accompany him as an adviser. In +September he laid his plans for the voyage before a large committee of +Westport Friends. He was authorized by this committee to pursue his +prospects and was given a letter of recommendation. + +In this letter his neighbors stated that Cuffe "had lately been +received a member of their religious society, that he was highly +respected by Friends in Philadelphia, and that he felt a religious +concern to assist, as far as in his power, the views of the African +Institution. His intention was, provided he met with sufficient +encouragement here, to sail from America to Sierra Leone, with a +cargo likely to be suitable for the place, and, when there, make such +observations as would enable him to judge whether he should do right +to encourage some sober families of black people in America to settle +among the Africans, and if so, he intended to convey them in his own +vessel." They also reported Cuffe as the owner of a vessel and worth +five thousand pounds.[20] + +The lively interest that Cuffe had had in the people of color at +Sierra Leone, his wish that they might become established in the +truth, and his desire that they might then do missionary work among +the African brethren, influenced him to visit his friends on the +Guinea coast. He rented his farm and commended his family to his +brother John. The latter wrote his sister Freelove in New York that +Paul would be gone for a year, possibly two, and that he went for +a "religious visit amongst the inhabitants of that land, our own +nation."[21] + +When everything was ready the _Traveller_ sailed out of Westport for +Sierra Leone via Philadelphia. Nine Negroes composed the crew. The +story of the voyage from Philadelphia is interestingly told by Cuffe +himself in his journal:[22] + + 1810. 12mo. 4. I called on Friends in Philadelphia. They appointed + a time at Arch Street meeting-house, and after a feeling + conference, they expressed satisfaction and left me at liberty. + Hence it fell under the head of my former advisers, John James and + Alexander Wilson, I called on them: John professed that he could + not see any other way, better, than to take a load of corn that + he had long held, and take it to Portugal or Cadiz. I then had to + tell him the said John James, that was not my business; it rather + appeared to me that it was not for the profit or gain that I had + undertaken this voyage; but I had about four thousand dollars + property, and would wish to proceed as far as that would carry me; + and it appeared that if this opportunity was neglected, I might + never expect to have the opportunity again. John then gave up the + prospect of shipping his corn, and he and I left Alexander, and he + told me he believed my concern was real, and that he would assist + me in fitting out for the voyage and make no charges. I told him + It then felt pleasant to me. + + 1mo. 20th. 19 days out from Philadelphia to Sierra Leone. + + Our minds were collected together to wait on the Lord + notwithstanding we were on the great deep. + + 2mo. 2. At three A. M. wind and sea struck us down on our beam + ends, washed John Masters overboard, but by the help of some loose + rigging he regained the ship again. + + 2mo. 21st. The dust of Africa lodged on our rigging. We judged + that land to be about twenty-five leagues off. + + 2mo. 24th. At 10 A. M. sounded and got bottom for the first ground + that we got on the coast of Africa. Sixty-five fathoms. + + 3mo. 1st. We came to Sierra Leone road. + + [As the directors of the African Institution said, "It must + have been a strange and animating spectacle to see this free and + enlightened African entering as an independent trader, with his + black crew into that port which was so lately the Nidus of the + slave trade."] + + 3mo. 4th. An invitation was given me this day to dine with the + Governor, at whose table an extensive observation took place of + the slave trade and the unsuccessfulness of the colony of Sierra + Leone. + + 3mo. 5th. Visited the school of 30 girls, which is a pleasing + prospect in Sierra Leone. + + 3mo. 10th. First day. Attended a Methodist meeting in the forenoon. + + 3mo. 13th. King Thomas came on board to see me. He was an old + man, gray headed, appeared to be sober and grave. I treated him + with civility, and made him a present of a bible, a history of + Elizabeth Webb, a Quaker, and a book of essays on War: together + with several other small pamphlets accompanied with a letter of + advise from myself, such as appeared to be good to hand to the + King for the use and encouragement of the nations of Africa. He + and retinue were thirteen in number. I served him with victuals, + but it appeared that there was _rum_ wanting, _but none was given_. + + 3mo. 14. King George from Bullion Shore sent his messenger on + board, with a present of three chickens and invited me over to see + him. + + 3mo. 17. This day being the first day of the week we went on shore + to the church, and in the afternoon to the new Methodist. + + 3mo. 18. This day I went to Bullion Shore in order to visit the + King George, King of Bullion, who received and treated us very + cordially. I presented the King with a bible, a testament, a + treatise of Benjamin Holmes, a history of Elizabeth Webb, and an + epistle from the yearly meeting, and a history, or called a short + history of a long travel from Babel to Bethel. + + 3mo. 19. Visiting families on Sierra Leone, found many of them + without bibles, and others who had bibles with out the living + substance of the spirit. + + 3mo. 28. I breakfasted with the Governor Columbine and after + breakfast had conference with him on the subject of the country, + and settling in it--to good satisfaction. + + 3mo. 31. Attended the church. The Mendingo men have the Scriptures + in their tongue, viz the old testament, but deny the new + testament. They own Mahomet a prophet. + + 1811. 4mo. 3. Thomas Wainer is much put out, and is exceeding + wroth for giving him what I call good advice: but time will make + manifest. God alone knows the hearts of men. I desire to have him + be my preserver. + + +CHAPTER IV + +IN ENGLAND + +When Captain Cuffe sailed from Philadelphia on New Year's Day, +1811, he apparently intended to visit only Sierra Leone. After an +examination of the plans then in operation for the civilization of +the Africans, doubtless he meant to return to America. However, when +there reached him a letter from William Allen with an order in council +which Allen and Wilberforce had procured for him, he changed his mind +and determined to visit England.[23] He recorded thus this part of the +voyage: + + 1811. 7mo. 12. Arrived safe all well (at Liverpool) after a + passage of sixty-two days.[24] + + Soon after we got in the dock, two of my men going out of the dock + gate, were met by the press-gang and carried to the rendevous. + The press gang then came on board my vessel, and let me know that + they had two of my men, and overhauled the remainder of the crew, + among which they found Aaron Richard, an African that I had taken + as an apprentice in Africa to instruct in navigation. They claimed + him as a British subject and took him off. At eleven I went to the + rendezvous and got the two men first mentioned, but they would not + let Aaron off. + + 7mo. 13. This morning the Ship _Alpha_ arrived fifty-two days from + New Orleans. All well. My friends Richard Rathbone and Thomas + Thompson were very anxious in assisting me to regain Richard.... + They wrote immediately to London for the liberation of Aaron, with + a petition to the Board of Admiralty. + + 7mo. 14. I this day put up with Thomas Thompson, and took a first + day meeting with them, and feeling very anxious for Aaron's + liberty, I took place in the stage for London. Arrived in London + three day morning, six-o-clock, it making thirty-two hours, + distance two hundred and eight miles. + + 7mo. 15. This day passed with the pleasant prospect of passing + through a well cultivated and very fertile country. How often did + I feel my mind enlivened with the peaceful desire that this land + and people might enjoy a universal and tranquil peace. + + 7mo. 16. At six this morning arrived in the great city of London. + I put up at an inn and took breakfast. At ten-o-clock took a pilot + for Plough Court, where I was courteously received by my friend + William Allen, who was engaged about the liberation of Aaron. + + 7mo. 17. This day went to meeting, and in the afternoon Cornelius + attended me to see the great church of St. Paul and many other + curiosities of London, such as London Bridge, Blackfriars Bridge. + + 7mo. 18. This day my friend Wm. Allen had a note from Wm. + Wilberforce desiring that I should see him at -- o-clock. + + Wilberforce called for pen, ink and paper and wrote to the Board + of Admiralty and sent his man immediately.... + + Wm. Allen and Paul Cuffe then went into the Parliament. + + 7mo. 19. We went over London Bridge to Lancaster's school, where + were taught one thousand scholars by one master. But about eight + hundred were then in school. This prospect of the school was the + greatest gratification that I met with. + + 7mo. 20. This afternoon took stage for William Dillwyn's, at + whose house I was friendly and cordially received, and took great + satisfaction. + + 7mo. 21. I went and dined with George and Mary Stacey, who were + very kind and loving, appeared to live in the truth. + + 7mo. 22. Spent the fore part of this day in conversing with Wm. + Dillwyn on subjects of importance. After dinner Wm. gave me two + volumes of Clarkson's work on the slave trade. His wife and two + daughters accompanied me to town in their carriages about five + miles. At seven this evening Thomas Clarkson arrived. + + 7mo. 23. Thomas Clarkson sets to for Aaron's liberation. Makes + so far, as for certain persons to go with him to the Board of + Admiralty, where they found the order had been some days gone, for + Aaron's discharge. You may think that it was great consolation + to me to think, if God permitted, that I should have the happy + opportunity of returning Aaron to his parents and fellow citizens + at Sierra Leone. + + 7mo. 25. Zachariah Macaulay called at Wm. Allen's and had a good + conversation. He then invited me to dine with him on the morrow, + which was accepted, hoping there my some good come out of it. + + 7mo. 26. I this day went to Z. Macaulay's where I meet with + exceeding kind treatment. He said Macaulay promised to me the + continuation of his friendship. + + 7mo. 27. This morning came to Wm. Allen's from Macaulay's + accompanied by Macauley. Thomas Clarkson this day sets off for + home, who has been of service and consolation. Thomas is a man of + good deportment. My friends this day forwarded a petition to the + Privy Council for a license for the _Traveller_ to go to Africa, + commanded by Paul Cuffe, or some other person. + + 7mo. 28. In the evening my friend Allen called his family together + and we were comforted, and I believe I may say the presence + of the precious comforter was felt to be near. In the evening + conversation took place between Wm. Allen and P. Cuffe on the + most advantageous way of encouragement of the improvement of the + Colony of Sierra Leone. I then told Wm. that it appeared that + the Colony people wanted help, or encouragement; that I had my + mind still impressed that a channel of intercourse should be kept + open between America and Sierra Leone, and that my mind was to + build a house in Sierra Leone, encouragement might be given of + accomodation. + + 7mo. 30. This morning Cornelius, William and Paul went to see the + mint and the works thereof were great and wonderful. I this day + took place in the stage for Liverpool at three guineas. + + [William Allen records in his diary that he took leave of Cuffe, + "in much nearness of spirit; he is certainly a very interesting + man."[25]] + + 7mo. 31. At six we set forward for Liverpool. The prospect of the + fertility of the country was highly gratifying. + + 8mo. 1. I arrived at Liverpool at nine-o-clock after a passage of + thirty-nine hours; took my package to my friend, Thomas Thompson's + where I was kindly received. + + 8mo. 2. I arose much refreshed, and found all well on board, + and Aaron Richards had arrived the same afternoon as I did. + Saw and had much conversation with many folks, among whom was + Stephen Crillett a minister from America. I took breakfast with + him at Isaac Hadwins, in whose company, and conversation, I was + much comforted, he was to leave Liverpool the next day for the + country. My mate and second mate went to dinner with Isaac and + he was anxious for more to come along with them. The crew were + spoken of in the highest terms for their steadiness, not given to + swearing, but I found to my sorrow that Zachariah had behaved very + unbecoming in keeping unbecoming company, and drinking to excess + and speaking light of Jesus Christ. + + 8mo. 3. It felt pleasant to me to hold out that honour without + virtue, was not true honor: and also from whence came wars and + fightings. I also had to hold out to William and Richard Rathbone + that the flesh was imperfect and forewarned, forearmed; and that + was not to put too great confidence in me as I was but flesh and + blood. For those young men had taken a very early and active + part in assisting me in every way and manner not only making + their house my home, but stepping forward to give me every aid + even petitioning the Board of Admiralty for the relief of Aaron + Richards as did also my friend Thomas Thompson afford me every + aid, with kind invitation to make his house my home all which I + felt easy to accept of. Have this day seen William Bootell the + great slave dealer as I have been told, who invited me to his + lodgings. + + 8mo. 4. Attended fore and afternoon meetings--in the former I was + favored with the Spirit of Supplication. Capt. Coffin of the Ship + _Alpha_ and my crew were at the meeting, which was very gratifying + to me. Letter from Wm. Allen stating that the license would not be + obtained under four or five days. + + 8mo. 5. A man of color talks of going to Sierra Leone in order to + help the colonists. In the afternoon another man proposed going to + help in any way that may be helpful, either in printing, school + keeping, or by other means. I think here is rather encouragement. + + 8mo. 6. I this day had further communication with Wm. Thomas, a + European, a printer about going to Sierra Leone, who seems to be + very anxious and it is concluded to write to London in order to + see if it may be encouraged. + + 8mo. 7. This day took dinner with Wm. and Richard Rathbone in + company with Thomas Thompson and William Roscoe, a well engaged + man, for the establishing the slave trade, that the ships of war + should be commissioned to take all vessels that were found in that + trade belonging to whom they would. Also Lord John Russell dined + with us. + + 8mo. 9. I this day took dinner with Captain Bootell and Captain + Pane formerly slave dealers, but treated me politely. + + 8mo. 11. This day all attended meeting, and after meeting the men + went home with the Rathbones and took dinner. + + 8mo. 14. This day I dined with Capt. Brown, Captain of his + Majesty's navy ship who was a very civil, goodly man; and his wife + and family thoughtful people, on the whole I had a comfortable + meal. + + 8mo. 18. At half past nine in the evening set forward for London + accompanied with three very agreeable people. + + 8mo. 20. At half past five arrived in London, found Wm. Allen and + family all well. + + 8mo. 21. At four-o-clock P. M. I departed from Wm. Allen's after + having a comfortable sitting in company of a woman Friend, who + appeared to be a chosen vessel unto the Lord, and was a comfort + unto us and also a man by the name of Morris Burbeck. Cornelius + Hanbury accompanied me to Waltham Stone at Wm. Dillwyn's where + we were cordially received. Wm. was very unwell and it appears + that his glass is almost run, and his duty faithfully discharged. + Much of our time whilst together was taken up for the good, and + beneficial improvement of the inhabitants of Africa: for that + which might attend for their good, and for the honor and glory of + God. + + 8mo. 22. Half past one this morning I went to meeting with Wm. + Dillwyn's family in the coach, where I had a comfortable open + meeting, after meeting went home with Wm. Fanster, to dinner. + After dinner came Mary Stacey who had good advice delivered it in + much love and tenderness. + + 8mo. 23. This day dined in company with Capt. Eber Clark of and + from New Bedford who said he left Peter and Alexander Howard well, + and heard nothing but that my family was well. Wm. Rotch mentioned + my name in his letter to Wm. Allen and mentioned nothing but my + family was well. His letter arrived in good time to do good, and + was consolation to me in such a distant land. + + 8mo. 25. Came from Newington in a carriage with Joseph Bevan. I + went to the great meeting where I had pretty clear openings in + the forenoon. Took dinner with Wm. Allen's mother and son Joseph, + where we were very aggreeably entertained. Came home to Plough + Court where we had a good refreshing season in the evening. + + 8mo. 26. This morning very pleasant; Cornelius Hanbury and I + went to the London and West India Docks, which was exceeding + gratifying, both to see the shipping, and accomodations in the + Docks, and also the shipping in the river that lay in the tiers as + we passed for three miles. They continued to extend as far as I + could see; the river is about one-half mile wide. At five-o-clock + in the afternoon I dined with Z. Macauley, where I was very + agreeably entertained. + + 8mo. 27. This day met the committee of the African Institution + who sat at one P. M. and expressed great satisfaction on the + information I gave them, and felt also that I was endeavoring to + assist them in maintaining the good cause; with blessing that we + may reasonably hope that we may be supported with--to endeavor + that the subject may not fall beneath the level where we found + it. I made the Duke of Gloucester a present of an African robe, a + letter box and a dagger to show that the Africans were capable of + mental endowments and so forth. + + 8mo. 28. This day attended the Grace Street Church meeting. It + was comfortable for me to sit with Friends in true humiliation + and supplication. And may this be the continuation of our lives + through time, that peace may be our lot. [William Allen, writing + of the meeting with the Committee of the African Instruction in + his diary, says Cuffe "returned very sensible and satisfactory + answers" to questions by the Duke of Gloucester and others and + that "his simplicity and strong natural good sense made a great + impression upon all parties. On the whole it was a most gratifying + meeting, and fully answered, and even exceeded all we could have + asked." Captain Clarke from New Bedford, Massachusetts, says + that he has "known Cuffe from a boy and that a person of greater + integrity and honor in business he never met with. I did not give + the smallest hint which might call forth this declaration." + + In the Seventh report of the directors of the African Institution + this meeting is recorded as follows: + + African Institution had "the very judicious plan of profiting + by the opportunity of inducing Captain Paul Cuffe to settle + in Sierra Leone, and carry over with him free blacks of good + character and of some property, who might settle in the colony + and practice among the natives the mechanical arts, and the + cultivation of tropical produce. He and his crew in Great Britain + attracted universal respect by the propriety of their deportment, + as well as admiration by their singular proficiency in both + the science and the practice of navigation. The African board + held a meeting, although in vacation time, for the purpose of + seeing and conferring with the captain. His royal highness the + Duke of Gloucester attended, as he always does, at the Board, + and, together with the other Directors, entered fully in to the + subjects alike interesting to those distinguished philanthropists, + and to their dark-colored but civilized ally."[26] Referring to + Cuffe in his diary on this day, William Allen writes: "We had + an affecting parting, as it is not very probable that we shall + see him any more. He has left a wife and eight children, and a + profitable business in which he was engaged, to forward the views + of the African Institution, and this, at the risk of his person + and property."[27]] + + 8mo. 30. Arrived at Manchester at eight-o-clock. + + 8mo. 31. David Docknay and Paul Cuffe spent this day in seeing + the factories. They have got them to great perfection. They light + the darkest room with gas extracted from sea coal. This light far + exceeds the candle light; it is more like day light. This air + issues out of a small tube and by the blaze of a candle being put + to it, it blazes and burns until the gas is stopped. This is done + by the turning of the stop that reaches through the pipe. One + woman spins one hundred-fifty threads at a time. This afternoon + Robert Benson came. John Thorp dined with us this day. + + 9mo. 1. This day attended meeting, both fore and afternoon. Took + dinner at Isaac Crenden's, and then went to see Richard and Martha + Routh. + + 9mo. 2. Took stage for Liverpool arrived at ten. I this day wrote + to Wm. Allen and stated the necessity of establishing commerce in + Africa and building a vessel in Africa, and if there should be any + owner found in London. + + 9mo. 4. This morning being a pleasant morning Hannah Rathbone's + family and myself went to Wm. Roscoes, which was about two miles + further. He being a very warm friend for the abolishing the + slave trade, many subjects took place between us. He stated the + necessity, and propriety of condemning all nations, that might + be found in the trade. I likewise was favored to state to him + the necessity there was of keeping open a communication between + America, Africa and England in order to assist Africa in its + civilization and that the two powers to contenance it, even if + they were at variance, and to consider it as a neutral path. + And I could not see wherein the French Goverment may not gain in + adopting this neutral path. + + 9mo. 6. After breakfast went into the blind school and it was + wonderful to see the operation of all kinds of work they would go + through of spinning, weaving, matting, carpeting, of many colors. + + [On this day Cuffe signed a contract with Will Midgley by which + the latter was to furnish flannels for shipment on the _Traveller_ + for Sierra Leone.[28]] + + 9mo. 17. Took breakfast with my passengers and also with Wm. + Rathbone accompanied with a friend belonging to London, where + the African conversation took place which was the most expediant + method of civilization of Africa. + + 9mo. 20. At ten-o-clock weighed anchor.... A great many attended + our departure.... + + 11mo. 12. At four P. M. we anchored in Sierra Leone. + + +CHAPTER V + +THE RETURN TO AMERICA + +Cuffe remained in Sierra Leone for three months. On Sundays he +attended the various churches. He made the most of these opportunities +to caution the lukewarm and to reprimand closely the unconcerned. On +the other days of the week, he explored the country because he wanted +to know every advantage this location had for the many settlers he +hoped would come from America. + +He noted the growing pineapples and was pleased with the Guinea grass +so tall that he could just reach the top of it with his umbrella. +He found Indian corn and buckwheat growing well. Although he sought +diligently he could find no good place to make salt. In his survey +of the streams he found two that had fall sufficient for twenty and +thirty foot undershot wheels respectively. This pleased him greatly, +as the water power made mills possible. On his rounds he distributed +many kinds of seeds and silk worm eggs, but few knew what to do with +them. + +On the eleventh of December he was called to the home of James Reed +by the Social Society of Sierra Leone to help draw up a constitution +for this organization. Subsequent meetings were necessary to complete +the work. When it had been done, the Friendly Society of Sierra Leone +was born, beginning to function immediately. A communication from +William Allen addressed to John Kizel was presented to the Society. +It was duly answered and preparations made for carrying on commercial +relations with the London African Institution. The government +prohibition on landing rum and tobacco displeased many of the members +because it took from them one possibility for lucrative revenues. + +In addition to these interests, Cuffe visited the schools and greeted +the new missionaries. He was a first class teacher himself and many +ambitious Negroes learned the art of navigation from his teachings. +Occasionally he took apprentices, and at this time four Africans were +indentured to him. + +Finally he made arrangements with the Governor for the reception of +colonists who might come over from America. They discussed means for +civilizing the natives, land grants to the new settlers, and problems +of trade for all. When every measure had been taken looking to future +relations between England, Sierra Leone, and America, he set sail for +his home land. + +He was just four days out when Captain James Tildwell of the +British sloop of war, _Abrina_, took the _Traveller_ back to Sierra +Leone. Captain Tildwell did not understand the arrangement by which +Captain Cuffe had four indentured servants on board. The matter was +immediately brought to the attention of the Governor and Cuffe was +permitted to renew his homeward voyage. Cuffe sailed according to the +old rhyme-- + + If the wind comes before the rain, + Clear the top sails and hoist them again. + If the rain comes before the wind, + Lower the top sails, and take them in. + +All went well on sea. But when on April 19, 1812, he reached American +waters a grave difficulty beset him. The _Traveller_ was bringing to +the United States a British cargo. This was contrary to the existing +trade laws. What could be done? A pilot boat, the _Daggett_, offered +to take him to New Bedford where he could interview the authorities. +Moreover, it was an opportunity speedily to reach Westport and see +his family. So he left the _Traveller_ at sea and took passage on the +_Daggett_. + +When he returned, Captain John Cahoone in a revenue cutter had +condemned the _Traveller_ for bringing in a British cargo. There +was nothing left for Captain Cuffe to do except to carry his cause +to Washington and this he decided to do. Accordingly letters of +recommendation were prepared to present the case to the Federal +authorities. He engaged the services of John Vase, Amasa Robbins, and +others to prepare a petition to the Secretary of War. The Collector of +Customs approved the petition. Governor Simeon Martin, Judge Constant +Taber, former Congressman, G. C. Champlin, as well as John Coggeshall, +I. Vernon, Thomas G. Pitman, and Walter Channing, endorsed his papers. + +Armed with these letters of recommendation, he started for Washington. +On his way he stopped at Providence where his good friend, William +Rotch, Jr., gave him counsel and aid. He put Cuffe in touch with Moses +Brown, who brought in the services of Thomas Arnold. They called on +the Judge and Attorney-General. All favored Captain Cuffe, and Brown +and Arnold signed his general letters of recommendation. While in +Providence he made his home with Obadiah Brown and attended fore and +afternoon meetings. He stopped off at Philadelphia on the 29th of +April, to tell John James his troubles. "In travelling through the +country," he wrote, "I perceived that the people seemed to have great +knowledge of me." + +Arriving in Washington on the first of May, he sought Samuel +Hutchinson, who accompanied him to call on President Madison, the +Secretary of War, and others to whom he had letters of recommendation. +"The Secretary observed to me," wrote the Captain, "that French brandy +could not be imported from a British port but observed whether it +would be inconvenient to me to have it entered for exportation. I +then told him my funds were small, and it would lock up my funds. All +people appeared very kindly indeed." The authorities at Washington +thought his voyage was innocent and laudable. The _Traveller_ and +all his property was restored to him without reservation and the +government offered its services to him in carrying out his African +plans. + +On the day following this decision, the Captain started home. "When I +took my seat," he wrote, "being the first in, I took the after seat. +When the passengers came, in came a blustering powder headed man with +stern countenance. 'Come away from that seat.' I was no starter and +sat still. He then bustled along and said, 'I want to put my umbrella +in the box.' I arose, he then put his umbrella in. He then said, 'You +must go out of this for there is a lady coming in.' I entered into no +discourse with him, but took my seat; he took his seat beside me but +showed much evil contempt. At length the woman and a girl made their +appearance. I then arose and invited the woman into the after seat +saying we always give way to accomodate the women. We set forward on +our journey. On our way at the tavern I was overtaken by Wm. Hunter, +member of Congress. He was very free and conversant, which this man +above mentioned observed. Before we got to Baltimore he became loving +and openly accosted me, 'Captain, take the after seat,' but from the +common custom I thanked him, and wished him to keep his seat. + +"When I arrived in Baltimore, they utterly refused to take me in at +the tavern or to get me a dinner unless I would go back among the +servants. This I refused, not as I thought myself better than the +servants, but from the nature of the case, thought it not advisable. I +found my way to a tavern where I got my dinner. Friend Barnard Gilbert +went with me and was friendly. Jesse Talbot, a very worthy friend, had +paid every attention to me; by this time I seemingly had friends on +every side. I staid at the home of Elisha Tyson, who offered to be a +real friend of the people of color." + +While in Baltimore the Captain attended Preparation Meeting. He +called on a number of his friends, among whom were Daniel Coker and +George Collins, teachers of the African school of one hundred and +seven children. At a tea where many colored people were present, +Cuffe told about his African visit. Plans were made to form a Society +to correspond with the London African Institution and the Friendly +Society of Sierra Leone. + +Cuffe stopped in Philadelphia and New York and renewed old +acquaintances, and also made plans for the organization of Societies +to communicate with the African Institution in London and the Friendly +Society of Sierra Leone. These societies with the one started in +Baltimore were centers for the discussion of questions relating to +Africa and for commercial undertakings with their African neighbors. + +When Cuffe was in New York, his guide introduced him to two Methodist +preachers. One said to him, "Do you understand English?" Cuffe +replied that there was a part he did not understand, namely, "that +many persons who profess being enlightened with the true light, yet +had not seen the evil of one brother professor making merchandise of +and holding his brother in bondage." The ministers did not clear up +the question, and in Cuffe's own words, "We bid each other farewell +without any further conversation." He put this same query to the +United Society assembled for the Methodist Conference in New York, but +it was received with coldness. While it shows Cuffe's zeal in working +for the emancipation of slavery, it also gives an index to the state +of the popular mind on this subject fifty years before the Civil War. + +Elated over the recovery of the _Traveller_ and permission to land his +cargo, he reached Westport on May 23. He expressed his gratitude to +President Madison in the following letter: + + I stopped short of my duty in not calling to acknowledge the favor + that I received from the seat of Government; for which I desire to + be excused. But upon serious reflection, feeling that there is an + acknowledgment due unto the ruler of the people--certainly there + is greater acknowledgment due unto the Father of all our mercies. + + May the blessing of heaven attend thee; may the United States be + preserved from the calamities of a war, and be favored to retain + her neutrality in peace and happiness. + +Another letter equally important went out. It recounted his +experiences to William Allen and promised continued interest in +all things relating to the uplift of the Negro race. "Paul Cuffe," +he wrote in closing, "doth not at present go to Africa, but shall +send such characters as confidence may be placed in. At present it +is thought that I may be as serviceable towards the promotion of the +colony, as though I was to remove. However, as my wife is not willing +to go, I do not feel at liberty to urge, but feel in duty bound to +escort myself to the uttermost of my ability for the good cause of +Africa."[29] + + +CHAPTER VI + +A QUAKER MISSION + +The visit of Captain Cuffe to Africa was a spontaneous movement +on his part. He was anxious to contribute to the improvement of +his countrymen. His visit to England was a great incentive to the +Directors of the African Institution. Both the Duke of Gloucester and +William Allen were convinced that the colonists of Sierra Leone needed +only a stimulus to their industry and that the Institution could give +it without the slightest inconvenience. They regarded Paul Cuffe as a +medium for this service--a medium providentially afforded. + +One is impressed with the methodical and thorough-going way Cuffe +conducted his affairs during the first part of his visit in Sierra +Leone. He was soon acquainted both with the land and the people. Just +as soon as he obtained information he began its dissemination. A +letter was dispatched to America in care of his brother, John Cuffe. +The Captain wrote "Hope it may find its way to its destination and +obtain its desired effect which will be a consolation to one who +wishes well to all mankind both here and hereafter world without +end." The following letter dated April 20, 1811, was "The Epistle of +the Society of Sierra Leone in Africa,"[30] formed for the further +promotion of the Christian religion: + + SIERRA LEONE, April 20, 1811. + + To the Saints and Faithful Brethren in Christ; grace be unto you + and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. + + We desire to humble ourselves with that thankful acknowledgment to + the Father and Fountain of all our mercies, for the liberty and + freedom we enjoy. And our prayer to God is, that our Brethren, + who live in distant lands, and are held in bondage, and groan + under the galling chain of Slavery, that they may be liberated + and enjoy the liberty that God has granted unto all his faithful + Saints. Dearly beloved Brethren in the Lord, may the power and + peace of God rule in all your hearts, for we feel, from an awful + experience, the distresses that many of our African Brethren groan + under; therefore we feel our minds engaged to desire all the + Saints and Professors in Christ, to diligently consider our cause, + and to put cause to the Christian Query: whether it is agreeable + to the testimony of Jesus Christ, for one Professor to make + merchandise of another? We are desirous, that this may be made + manifest to all Professors of all Christian denominations, who + have not abolished the holding of slaves. + + We salute thee, Beloved Brethren, in the Lord, with sincere desire + that the works of Regeneration may be more and more experienced. + It would be a consolation to us, to hear from the Saints, in + distant lands, and we could receive all who are disposed to come + unto us with open arms. + + Our dearly beloved African Brethren, we also salute you in the + love of God, to be obedient unto your masters, with your prayers + lifted to God, whom we would recommend you to confide in, who + is just as able in these days, to deliver out of the Egyptian + bondage: finally brethern, may the power and peace of God rule in + all your hearts. + + Grace be unto you, and peace from God our Father, and the Lord + Jesus Christ, Amen. + + JOHN x GORDEN, preacher + WARWICK x FRANCIS + JAMES REED + JOSEPH BROWN + MOSES x WILKINSON + S. JONES + JOHN x ELLIS + ADAM x JONES + GEO. x CLARK + PETER FRANCIS + GEORGE CARREL + EDWIN x WILLOUGHBY + THOS. x RICHARDS, SEN. + ELI AIKEN + JNO. x STEVENSON + JAS. WISE + +Two days after he had sent this epistle to his friends in America he +wrote a personal note to William Allen in London. He acknowledged the +receipt of the license to bring goods to England, called attention to +a petition which the inhabitants had presented to Governor Columbine +with a request that he lay it before Parliament, and set forth many +facts concerning the land and its people. He also announced his +intention to keep open a commercial intercourse between America and +Sierra Leone in the hope that through such a channel some families +might find their way to Africa.[31] + +The outline of the petition referred to in his letter to William Allen +is inserted as follows: + + 1st. That encouragement may be given to all our brethern, who may + come from the British Colonies or from America, in order to become + farmers, or to assist us in the cultivation of our land. + + 2nd. That encouragement may be given to our foreign brethdren who + have vessels for the purpose, to establish commerce in Sierra + Leone. + + 3d. That those who may undertake to establish the whale fishery + in the colony may be encouraged to persevere in that useful and + laudable enterprise. + +Cuffe states that several of the most respectable inhabitants signed +this petition. From its contents and its date one would conclude that +its origin can safely be traced to Cuffe himself. Attention is called +to a school for adults and the other schools which accommodate about +two hundred and thirty children. In his letter to Allen he gives +the names of seven teachers. Mention is made of a Society of Sierra +Leone and of the places for public worship. Four meetings are held on +Sunday and two on other days. In his letter to Allen the churches are +enumerated as follows: two Methodists, one Baptist, and one without +denominational designation but in charge of "an old woman, Mila Baxton +who keeps at her dwelling house." + +A brief paragraph describes poor relief: "An institution," said he, +"was formed on the first of the twelfth month last for the relief of +the poor and disabled. It is now regularly held on the first second +day in every month, at which time proper persons are appointed to take +charge of those under the care of the institution. A general meeting +is held once every six months. Everyone can judge of the happy effect +of such institutions as these in improving the dispositions and +softening the manners of our native brethren." + +Five courts are described and attention is called to the supremacy of +British law. A short discussion of the native Africans appears, and +the letter includes in the "Brief Account" an address "to my scattered +brethren and fellow countrymen at Sierra Leone." It closes with these +words: + + Grace be unto you and peace be multiplied from God the Father, + and from the Lord Jesus Christ, who hath begotten a lively hope + in remembrance of you; and for which I desire ever to be humbled, + world without end, amen. + + Dearly beloved friends and fellowcountrymen, + + I earnestly recommend to you the propriety of assembling + yourselves together for the purpose of worshipping the Lord your + God. God is a spirit and they who worship him acceptably must + worship him in spirit and in truth; in so doing you will find a + living hope which will be as an anchor to the soul and a support + under afflictions. In this hope may Ethiopia stretch out her hand + unto God. Come my African brethren and fellowcountrymen, let us + walk together in the light of the Lord. That pure light which + bringeth salvation into the world, hath appeared unto all men to + profit withall. I would recommend unto all the saints, and elders + and sober people of the colony, that you adopt the mode of meeting + together once every month in order to consult with each other for + your mutual good. But above all things let your meetings be owed + of the Lord, for he hath told us that "Where two or three are + gathered together in his name, there will he be in the midst of + them." And I recommend that you keep a record of your proceedings + at those meetings in order that they be left for the benefit of + the young and rising generation. In these meetings let it be your + care to promote all good and laudable institutions, and by so + doing you will increase both your temporal and spiritual welfare. + That the Prince of Peace may be your preserver, is the sincere + desire of one who wishes well to all mankind. + +The following advice, though detached from the foregoing address, +appears to be intended to accompany it: + + First. That sobriety and steadfastness, with all faithfulness, + be recommended, that so professors may be good examples in all + things; doing justly, loving mercy, and walking humbly. + + Secondly. That early care be extended towards the youth whilst + their minds are young and tender, that so they may be redeemed + from the corruptions of the world--such as nature is prone to--not + swearing, following bad company and drinking of spiritous liquors. + That they may be kept out of idleness, and encouraged to be + industrious, for this is good to cultivate the mind, and may you + be good examples therein yourselves. + + Thirdly. May servants be encouraged to discharge their duties + with faithfulness; may they be brought up to industry; may their + minds be cultivated for the reception of the good seed, which is + promised to all that will seek after it. I want that we should be + faithful in all things, that so we may become a people, giving + satisfaction to those, who have borne the heat and burden of the + day, in liberating us from a state of slavery. I must leave you in + the hands of Him who is able to preserve you through all time, and + to crown you with that blessing that is prepared for all those who + are faithful unto death. + +In closing he cites, with approbation, the advice contained in an +address to free people of color given in 1796 at Philadelphia before +the general convention of abolition societies. They are advised to +attend to religion, to get an elementary education, teach their +children useful trades, use no spiritous liquors, avoid frolicking and +idleness, have marriage legally performed, lay up their earnings, and +to be honest and to behave themselves. + +An object always dear to Cuffe was the abolition of the slave trade. +He thought a commercial intercourse would be conducive to its +suppression. For trade in human beings he would offer trade in the +legitimate articles of commerce. If such an intercourse could be kept +open with cargoes coming and going between Sierra Leone and England +and Sierra Leone and America, then "some good sober steady characters +may find their way to that country." This would be a laudable method +for civilizing Africa, he thought, because the establishment of +colonists who would engage in productive enterprises would soon +leaven the lump of African idleness and ignorance, and Christians +engaged in legitimate business pursuits would inoculate a large area +of the African continent. + +In order to foster this plan, Cuffe formed while in Sierra Leone in +1812, "The Friendly Society." John Kizell was elected president and +monthly meetings were held. It began a business correspondence with +the African Institution in London. William Allen ever responsive to +Cuffe's "earnest breathings" sent a consignment of goods worth 70 +pounds with permission to return the amount in rice, Indian corn, etc. +He offered to be their agent in London, and he engaged the services of +W. and R. Rathbone of Liverpool in their behalf. + +Since the African Institution was not to "engage in commercial +speculation" some measure had further to be devised in England to help +the Friendly Society dispose of its produce advantageously and promote +industry among its members. Therefore, "A Society for the Purpose of +Encouraging the Black Settlers at Sierra Leone, and the Natives of +Africa generally, in the cultivation of their Soil, by the sale of +their Produce" was formed. Some progress was noted for, after four +years Cuffe wrote that the Friendly Society was worth 1200 pounds.[33] + +Similar movements were going on in America. William Roth of New +Bedford on October 10, 1812, wrote William Allen: "Paul Cuffe +still continues his concern for his African plan, and has recently +petitioned Congress for liberty to send his vessel to Sierra Leone, +provided liberty can be obtained from your side. His character stands +conspicuously approved as far as it is known, his kind concern for the +civilization of Africa, and his devotion of time and money to that +object, have greatly strengthened the impression of his real worth and +merit; and from some intentions from the President I am led to believe +his application will succeed."[34] + + +CHAPTER VII + +PATHFINDER IN NEGRO COLONIZATION + +It was Cuffe's plan to make a trip to Sierra Leone once every year. +This would enable him to keep in touch with the colony. He would carry +over whatever goods were needed, buy and market the African produce, +take desirable emigrants over; withall, he would be a benevolent +father to Africa. The Captain himself said, as recorded in _Minutes +of Paul Cuffe's Opinions_, 1814: "The most advantageous means of +encouragement to be rendered towards civilization of Africa is that +the popularity of the colony of Sierra Leone be encouraged; and in +order to render them aid and assistance my mind is that some families +of good character should be encouraged to remove from America and +settle at Sierra Leone in order to become farmers; and to lend them +aid in such useful utilities as they are capable of; and in order for +this accomodation it appears to me there should be an intercourse kept +open between America and Sierra Leone, that, through that channel some +people might find their way to Africa; and for their accomodation and +reception when arrived I think proper that a house be built that they +have some place of refuge or shelter." He thought one thousand pounds +might be needed for the beginning of this benevolent purpose. + +But there were obstacles in the way. The voyage of the _Traveller_ in +1812 was financially unprofitable. The _Alpha_ had just returned with +a $3000 deficit. A bark that had gone around Cape Horn on a whaling +voyage had not returned. It was without insurance and subject to +capture by British cruisers. Moreover, the War of 1812 had begun and +this seemed an insuperable obstacle. + +Already Cuffe had informed William Allen as to his troubles. He had +also told him what things urged him to overcome the difficulties in +his way. Did not Sierra Leone need a sawmill, a millwright, and a +plow? And instead of carrying loads on their heads, how much better +would it be if the colonists had a wagon on which to haul the loads. +The native Africans, moreover, had been schooled in America and were +ready to return. In addition, free blacks in the United States had +made application for passage to Sierra Leone. And could not mercantile +relations be established between Africa and America in such a way as +to supplant the slave trade? There was a possibility, too, of starting +the whale fishery on the western coast of Africa. + +To achieve these ends was worth a hard struggle. He had overcome +difficulties all his life. Surely he could do it again. He would +petition Congress for permission to make the voyage and ask William +Allen to seek a similar concession from Great Britain. Accordingly +a memorial, dated "Westport, 6th month, 1813" was presented to +Congress.[35] In it Cuffe asserts that he "could but view the practice +of his brethren of the African race in selling their fellow creatures +into a state of slavery for life as very inconsistent" with divine +principle of equity and justice and that he "conceived it a duty +incumbent upon him, as a faithful steward of the mercies he had +received, to give a portion of his time and his property in visiting +that country, and affording such means as might be in his power to +promote the improvement and civilization of the Africans." + +He further recites in this memorial that he had visited Sierra Leone +to learn about the country and its inhabitants, and that when he +was in London, he had the satisfaction to find his recommendations +approved by the celebrated philanthropists, the Duke of Gloucester, +William Wilberforce, Thomas Clarkson, William Allen, and others. +Special provision, moreover, had already been made by them to carry +his plans into effect. One plan was to keep up an "intercourse with +the free people of color in the United States in the expectation +that persons of reputation would feel sufficiently interested to +visit Africa, and endeavor to promote habits of industry, sobriety, +and frugality, among the natives of that country." His plans, he +continued, had been placed before free blacks in Baltimore and +Philadelphia, New York, and Boston. As a result "several families, +whose characters promise usefulness, have come to a conclusion, if +proper ways could be opened, to go to Africa, in order to give their +aid in promoting the objects already adverted to." + +In view of these facts, provided Great Britain was willing, Cuffe +asked permission to take a ship to Sierra Leone to "transport such +persons and families ... also some articles of provision, together +with implements of husbandry, and machinery for some mechanic arts, +and to bring back such of the native productions of that country as +may be wanted." The trifling commerce, he hoped, would lighten the +expense of the voyage. + +Congressman Laban Wheaton of Massachusetts presented this memorial +to the House of Representatives on January 7, 1814. Four days later +the _National Intelligencer_ at the request of subscribers published +it. The memorial was referred to the Committee on Commerce and +Manufacturing by the Speaker of the House. + +Interest in Cuffe's request now shifts to the Senate where a measure +was passed authorizing the President of the United States to permit +Paul Cuffe to depart from the United States with a vessel and cargo +for Africa and similarly to return. The House was informed of this +action on the twenty-seventh of January and four days later read the +Senate bill twice and referred it to the Committee on Commerce and +Manufacturing. This committee reported that since the government had +been compelled to prohibit the coasting trade, it would be impolitic +to relax the provisions on the "application of an individual, for +a purpose, which, how benevolently soever conceived, cannot be +considered in any other light than as speculative--the efforts +heretofore made and directed by the zeal and intelligence of the +Sierra Leone Company having failed to accomplish the object designed +by its institution."[36] + +This report was referred to the Committee of the Whole House and +debated on the nineteenth of March. The representatives who wished +to grant Cuffe's request agreed that the Senate bill would be an +invitation to free blacks to emigrate to Africa. This part of the +population they said could well be spared. The opponents of Cuffe's +request doubted the expediency of permitting to go out a cargo which +must necessarily sail under British license. Such a license would be +granted, they argued, only if advantageous to the enemy. The House by +a vote of 72 to 65 rejected the Senate measure and Cuffe's request was +denied. + +He fared little better at the hands of the British Government. Allen +carried the request to the ministers and told them that it was the +opinion of many that the one thing most needed to help Sierra Leone +was to enlist the services of Paul Cuffe. If the Government granted +the license, it was hoped that a vessel could be purchased, that Cuffe +be made its proprietor, and that it be used to carry African produce +to Britain. The ministers, from the Chancellor of the Exchequer on +down, were exceedingly kind and were willing to grant the license but +could not, owing to the navigation laws, insure the vessel against a +seizing officer. Such an officer might consider the boat more valuable +than his office. Allen thought such a risk too great either for Cuffe +or the African Institution and the request for a license was withdrawn. + +Cuffe's spirit would not down. Let Congress turn him down and the +British ministers deny his request. There was still one group willing +to help him along. This group was the Society of Friends at Westport. +Here was fuel for the fire of Cuffe's zeal. Ebenezer Baker, clerk of +the monthly meeting, on the "16th of the 11th month 1815" records: + + Our friend Paul Cuffe (who is a member of our religious society) + informed this meeting that he has a prospect of making a voyage to + Africa on business, and in a particular manner, with the laudable + view of endeavoring to promote the temporal and civil improvement + and comfort of the inhabitants of some parts of that country; + which having had our solid deliberation, we feel desirous that + he may be enabled to accomplish this object, to the peace of + his own mind; and leave him at liberty to pursue his prospect, + recommending him to the friendly notice and regard of those + amongst whom his lot may be cast.[37] + +Just as soon as the war was over Cuffe set sail for Africa. The +papers evidently were well supplied with his plans, for a Louisville +paper, _The Western Courier_, related that "Capt. Paul Cuffe, a man +of color is about to proceed to Africa, with several families to form +a settlement there. He will sail in the brig _Traveller_, now at +Philadelphia, receiving two families there, afterwards touch at New +Bedford and receive the remainder of her company, and then proceed the +latter part of October on her voyage." + +The _Traveller_ cleared from the custom house on the second of +December. Two days later Cuffe wrote Allen, "I shall sail through +God's permission the first wind after tomorrow." The first wind came +the tenth of December. When the _Traveller_ finally sailed she carried +a cargo of tobacco and soap, candles, naval stores and flour. She had +also iron with which to build a sawmill, a wagon, grindstones, nails +and glass, and a plow. There were thirty-eight passengers, eighteen +heads of families and twenty children. + +The Captain himself reported the voyage to the American Colonization +Society in this laconic letter: + + Thirty-eight in number went out with me, their expenses were + estimated at one hundred dollars per head, but were there a large + number they could be carried out for sixty dollars. The expense + of thirty of the above number was born by Paul Cuffe. The others + paid for their own passages. In addition to the above expense, + I furnished them provisions to the amount of 150 pounds 8s 3d + sterling; all this was done without fee or reward--my hope is in a + coming day.[38] + +The passengers were all common laborers and they wished to cultivate +the land. Perry Locke, a Methodist, was licensed to preach. He is an +honest man, wrote Cuffe, but "has rather a hard voice for a preacher." +Another passenger was Antony Survance, a native of Senegal, who had +been sold to the French in St. Domingo. During the revolution he came +to Philadelphia. He had learned to read and write and had studied +navigation, but Cuffe thought he would never make a mariner on account +of seasickness. He paid his passage to Africa and hoped by and by to +return to Senegal. He said the black man had two eyes and two ears, +the white man has no more. Could he not hear with his ears and see +with his eyes. All the passengers were provided with certificates of +good character.[39] + +The fares paid by the passengers and a contribution from William Rotch +of New Bedford amounted to over $1000. Cuffe's expenses consisted of +$480 for insurance, $1000 for portage, $703.96 for supplies, and $3000 +for passages. His expenses, therefore, exceeded the sources of income +by something over $4000. + +It was a rough passage and the Captain was troubled with a sick crew. +When he reached Sierra Leone on the third of February, the crew was +well "for which as well as all other preservations," he wrote, "I +desire ever to be truly humbled before the father and fountain of +all our mercies." On its arrival at port, the _Traveller_ was hailed +from a canoe, "What brig is this? where from? what cargo?" Cuffe +asked to anchor the _Traveller_. But word came from the custom house +boat "No Americans permitted to anchor in these waters." It was then +near sunset and permission was given to anchor until nine o'clock +the following morning. The Governor on the next day allowed Cuffe to +anchor in the harbor but could not secure him against seizure by a +man-of-war. The _Traveller_ remained in the harbor a month and a day +enjoying every indulgence and encountering no warship. + +The passengers were well received by the Governor and the Friendly +Society. They were given a town lot and fifty acres of land. A year's +rations for seven families was provided at a cost of 411 pounds 14s +5d. This expense, it seems, was met by the London African Institution. +Cuffe thanked his friend William Allen for the "Ardent exercises thee +must have had in order to forward the plan."[40] + +Cuffe did not succeed so well in the disposition of his cargo. No +instructions awaited him from the London African Institution and +no arrangements had been made with the British Government. He had, +therefore, to pay import duty on the articles he sold; tobacco, soap, +candles and naval stores which at first he could not even land. Later, +evidently the tobacco at least was landed, because to William Allen +was referred a matter in connection with the price of it on which +Cuffe and the Friendly Society could not agree. He sold flour at $12 +per barrel and purchased camwood at $100 per ton. + +As to Cuffe himself, he was well received. He dined with Governor +McCarthy and the Chief Justice. William Allen offered him his African +quarters during his stay but the Captain declined, for, said he, "I +feel myself unworthy to become one of thy family."[41] He went with +Governor McCarthy to inspect the schools; he was particularly pleased +with the boys' school taught by Thomas Hurt, a schoolmaster Cuffe +himself had brought from England. + +He discussed the question of keeping a line of communication open +between England and Sierra Leone, advised that an additional place +for colonizing be selected, and took an active part in suppressing +the slave trade. While he was in Sierra Leone three brigs and four +schooners, active in this traffic, were captured. Later he sought +to secure from Governor McCarthy the names of the vessels and +commanders so that the African Institution or the Abolition Society in +Philadelphia could initiate legal proceedings against them. + +Every encouragement was given to the Friendly Society. He pointed out +to William Allen its prosperity and cautioned him not to make too +great advances to it. He was greatly pleased to find it establishing +factories at places within the interior. At these points the tribes +could secure their own produce. When engaged in enriching the produce +of their own country, Cuffe thought that they would be drawn away from +the slave trade. Above all things, he pointed out the abuse of the +twenty-two license houses which did business with the slave traders. +By establishing factories and opening roads from one tribe to another +he believed he could render the native chiefs friendly to civilization. + +Cuffe kept in touch with everything and everybody. He noted sickness +and death; he chronicled the accession of thirteen new colonists +to the Baptist church. He also heard complaints. Perry Locke, the +licensed Methodist minister, disliked to do jury duty. On receiving +the following summons he at once carried it to the Captain: + + Mr. Perry Locke. You are hereby summoned and required to appear at + the ensuing general session of the peace, which will be held at + the court hall in Freetown, on Wednesday, the 10th day of April, + at the hour of ten in the afternoon, there to serve as a grand + juror; herein fail not, at your peril. W. D. Grant, Sheriff.[42] + +Cuffe told him that "he complained in America because he was deprived +of these privileges; and then he murmured because he was called upon: +Go and fill thy seat, do as well as thou canst."[43] + +The citizens wished him to begin a settlement at Sherbro, and the +African Institution again took occasion to profit by the experience of +their "dark colored but civilized ally" who suggested that a house be +built on the farm of each settler brought over. + +When Cuffe began preparations for the return voyage "it was like a +father taking leave of his children." He sailed on April 4th, and +after a voyage of fifty-four days reached the United States again. +After juggling in his mind the various proposals for ameliorating the +condition of "that part of the great family of Africa" in America +he concluded: "Nothing: Nothing of much amount can be affected by +an individual or private bodies until the government removes the +obstruction in the way."[44] + + +CHAPTER VIII + +AFRO-AMERICAN INTERESTS + +Neither voyage to Africa was financially profitable. Cuffe did not +make either visit with that end in view. But he was careful to make +use of every opportunity to reduce the expense of the trip. An undated +item in his letters says property to the value of $1337.15 was landed +from the _Traveller_ and placed in charge of Thomas Wainer. Blue +cloth, cassimere and flannels bought through William and Richard +Rathbone of Liverpool were imported when Cuffe made his first voyage +to Sierra Leone. Peter and Alexander Howard of New Bedford shared +equally with Cuffe in this transaction. The estimated value of the +goods was $2300; the profit to each party was $439.93.[45] + +Cuffe imported camwood and squills when he returned in 1816, but +neither sold well. Abner Gifford made a small sale of camwood in +Albany but the bulk of it was sold by Hicks Jenkins and Company +of New York. Peleg Howland and Sons and Swift and Barnes, both of +Poughkeepsie, purchased some of the camwood. + +The _Traveller_, however, was kept busy. In 1816 and 1817 she carried +freight along the Atlantic coast and made several voyages to the West +Indies. Tuite and Amie, a firm in Port au Prince, was a correspondent +of Cuffe. Tuite at one time seems to have lived at Bridgeport and +to have established a line of Quaker connections. While Cuffe had +business dealings with a number of houses the ones most frequently +referred to are Josiah Crodler and Company of Boston, Hicks Jenkins +and Company of New York and William Roth, Jr., and Company of New +Bedford. At the time of his death Cuffe was constructing salt works at +Westport. + +Cuffe never allowed his own private business affairs to engulf his +interests in Sierra Leone. He wrote frequently to the colonists that +he took over and he kept in close touch with the Friendly Society. He +gave them financial advice, quoted prices, and promised another visit +when satisfactory arrangement could be made with either the London +African Institution or the British Government. He expressed the wish +that an additional port might be selected for a settlement because, +from the rumors of insurrection in the South, "many will be glad to +find some place where they could send them."[46] + +He exhorted the Friendly Society as a whole to "stand fast, grow +strong, be respectable, and be active to suppress the slave trade." To +its secretary, James Wise, he gave this special message: + + "As thou art one of the main spokes in the great wheel in which + the Friendly Society are upheld I earnestly instruct thee to stand + firm for her support for if she falls and comes to naught, it will + be a deadly blow to Africa. I am a well wisher to her prosperity + and could I be the means of her firm establishment I think I + should consent to be made use of in any way which might be for her + advancement. I instruct thee to endeavor that she, the Friendly + Society, may not give up her commercial pursuits, for that is the + greatest outlet to her national advancement.--I forsee this to be + the means of improving both your country and nation."[47] + +The African Institutions at Philadelphia and New York were as dear to +his heart as the Friendly Society. He kept in close touch with both +of them. "I wish these institutions," he said, "to be brought as much +under action as possible; by these means the colored people of these +large cities would be more awakened than from an individual, and a +stranger, and thereby prevailed upon for their own good."[48] + +The secretary of the New York African Institution was Peter Williams, +Jr., a rector of the St. Phillip's Episcopal Church. Cuffe constantly +spurred him on to greater activity in the organization. He should +write Governor McCarthy of Sierra Leone expressing interest in Cuffe's +mission; he should cooperate with the Abolition Society in New York +in its efforts to secure information leading to the capture of slave +traders; he should open up a correspondence with the Friendly Society. + +Cuffe counted on the help of the Institution to break up the slave +trade. He expressed to Samuel C. Aiken, of Andover, the view that +general manumission could never occur until this trade was really +stopped. He reported that in 1815 two hundred sail cleared from +Savannah for this traffic. Six vessels had been brought in by the +forces in Sierra Leone. If the road could be kept open between Africa +and America, it would help the authorities in Sierra Leone. "I +believe," he continued, "if there could be mercantile correspondence +opened between the African race in America and Africa it would have +good tendency to keep open this communication and acquaint them +with each other. It would employ their children; and if religious +characters wished to visit that country they would obtain a +passage."[49] William Allen had asked him again to come to England +to help keep communication open between London and Sierra Leone. In +harmony with the invitation Rathbone Hodgson Company of Liverpool +wrote, "It will give us much pleasure to learn that you are embarking +for England." + +James Forten seems to have been the leading spirit in the African +Institution at Philadelphia. It was no less eager than the sister +one in New York to diffuse knowledge about Africa, to help civilize +its inhabitants, and to help substitute a beneficial commerce for +the slave trade. The Institution had among the members an African +Prince, a grandson of King Lurker, who reigned about fifty leagues +south of Sierra Leone. He was about eight years old and had been +secured by the local Abolition Society in order to educate him. James +Forten hoped that his return to Africa would serve to open up a +correspondence between King Lurker and the Friendly Society which +would be very advantageous to the Sierra Leone colony. Forten reported +the Institution greatly concerned over the will of Samuel Gist because +there was no asylum for the blacks whom he desired to free and whom he +finally colonized in Brown County, Ohio. + +Neither organization, however, was lively enough to please Cuffe. He +feared that their inactivity might cause the mission in Africa to +fail. Rather than see the seed planted in Africa perish, he wrote +William Allen that he would bestow some further labor; he would come +to England if necessary and be used there. + +Cuffe had another important purpose in connection with colonization. +From the time that he built a schoolhouse at Westport to his death +he was interested in the cause of education both in Africa and +in America. He said: "I am one of those who rejoice to see good +institutions established for the instruction and reformation of our +fellow creatures.... I approve of the plan for educating young men of +color. I think such characters would be useful in Africa." Teachers +were sought out for schools in Sierra Leone and passage for them on +the _Traveller_ was always ready. He contributed to teachers' salaries +and was interested in putting children in private boarding schools. +Prospect for establishing a school for blacks in Charleston, South +Carolina, was laid before Cuffe by Samuel R. Fisher of Philadelphia. +The information was a solicitation for advice and financial help. + +Naturally, as soon as he returned from Sierra Leone, his +correspondence increased. He received many inquiries about that +country and to all he gave kind and considerate reply. Dr. Jedekiah +Morse of Boston wants to know what offices are held by men of color. +There are sheriffs, constables, clerks of court, and jurors; and there +is a colored printer. But "Africa calls for men of character to fill +stations in the Legislature." + +"What does it cost to go to Africa?" asked Thomas Fay, of Providence. +"Does there exist any arrangement under the auspices of the African +Institution for the payment of passage for those unable to meet this +expense?" And the answer comes that it costs about one hundred dollars +per person and that there is no arrangement at present with the +African Institution. But if you go you must set your face against the +slave trade; prepare as do the Irish who come to America. + +Peter Williams, Jr., of New York, upon being reminded that there is no +time to lose if a mercantile line of business is established between +Africa and the United States, makes this inquiry, "Any news from +England on colonization? A carpenter here ready to settle in Sierra +Leone if his passage paid." + +Cuffe wants to know whether James Forten, of Philadelphia, could tell +him the cost of a rice mill? Could he refer him to a man who would +manage a sawmill; to another who was a good watch repairer? "What are +the African news?" asks James Forten. "And can you give me information +about Cuffe Johnson who claims he sailed with you twelve years ago +and was marked with a mold on his left breast?" Thomas Ash, merchant +and employer of Forten, inquires if ebony wood may be obtained on the +Gaboon River and reports his intention to make an expedition there. + +John James wants Cuffe to visit Philadelphia and clear up unfavorable +reports about the Sierra Leone Mission. Several wish to emigrate and +they must be saved for Africa. And Cuffe sends to Peter Williams, Jr., +of New York for the minutes of Perry Locke and a communication from +Governor McCarthy so that he may have documentary evidence to submit +to his colored brethren at Philadelphia. "I think it is time," says +Cuffe to Forten, "some steps were taken to prevent insurrection."[50] + +From Wilmington, Delaware, William Gibbons sends the respect and +friendship of his wife and family and asks how many Negroes are in +Sierra Leone? How far has the colony civilized the natives? What about +the moral, religious, civil and political situation? + +The colonists who were taken out in 1815 wrote many letters to Cuffe +and to their "Dear Friends and Brethren" in America. Friend Gwinn +had lost a leg; Samuel Hews and Mrs. Thomas Jarvis were dead. Would +Cuffe bring two Bibles when he came over again? Would the American +Government purchase a small tract in Sherbro? It is a splendid site +for a colony and camwood, palm oil and a little ivory are available +there. + +And Cuffe writes back: "The camwood is stored in New York, six +families in Boston and a considerable number in New York want to go +over. They must wait and see how things turn out. There will be no +voyage really soon for there is no arrangement made with the London +African Institution or the British Government. May Perry Locke get on +with his friends in religion. Let George Davis and others meet their +financial obligations promptly." + +An incident which created no little concern among Cuffe's friends +in New Bedford, Philadelphia and New York was the appearance of a +colored man who claimed to be a relative of the Captain. He made his +appearance in New Bedford late in 1816, where he claimed to be a +minister, and the son of Richard Allen. He sat in the pulpit with the +local minister and had sittings with the Negroes. Soon he left for +Boston with false letters from William Rotch setting forth that he was +a brother-in-law of Paul Cuffe and that his home was in New York. He +was now using the name Samuel Bailey. He bought nine hundred dollars +worth of goods on his credentials and came very near making away with +the purchase. + +The imposter next appeared in New Bedford, where, on the initiative +of William Rotch, he was arrested. Unfortunately, however, he escaped +from prison. From New Bedford he made his way to New York where he +presented false letters of credit to the extent of $10,000. Here +he was brought before the authorities and was requested to leave +the State. He went to Albany and was employed by Ira Porter for one +month. To disguise himself better he had made a plain suit, Quaker +style, and then absconded on one of Porter's fine black horses, worth +$200. He rode him to York, introduced himself as Paul Cuffe and found +hospitality at the home of Joseph Jessop. Although he attended meeting +on the first day, nevertheless suspicions were aroused as to his real +self. His conduct and pretentions while at York are further set forth +by a contemporary in the following language: + + "An African pretending to be the son of the _Celebrated_ Paul + Cuffe, came here about eight or ten days ago. He was received + as Paul Cuffe, in this place, and entertained by members of the + Society of Friends. He said he was on his way to Congress, for the + purpose of soliciting aid in a project he had on foot, to colonize + Sierra Leone, or the _Leone Country_, on the west coast of Africa. + He said he had been the first man that put a yoke on a pair of + oxen in Sierra Leone. + + "He tarried in this place several days, and though he is an artful + fellow, he told in the course of his conversation upon the Sierra + Leone project some inconsistent stories. He said, for instance, + that he would lay a memorial before Congress embracing a view of + his Sierra Leone business. One of the Friends advised him to have + a sufficient number of copies printed to supply all the members. + This, he said, was already done and he had them along with him. On + his being pressed to show one of them he could not make it appear + that he told a straight story. This gave rise to a suspicion that + he was not a _Real_ Cuffe, of the Cape Cod breed. He proceeded + from this place to Baltimore. Letters were sent from here giving + intelligence of the suspiciousness of his character. + + "The letters were read to him at Baltimore, upon which he came + back to this place to clear up his character. He appears not to + have done it to the satisfaction of his friends here, as they + took him before a magistrate and had him committed to the care + of Robert Wilson. On his examination it appeared that he could + neither read nor write, but at the same time exhibited proof + of a keenness of intellect seldom met with in persons of his + color. The real celebrated Paul Cuffe resides in the State of + Massachusetts in the vicinity of Cape Cod at the entrance to + Boston Bay."[51] + +What was the upshot of the matter is not known but the significance of +the affair is well pointed out by the Real Cuffe in a letter to the +impostor: + + "I think it looks as though thou art arrested from thy labors, + and thy words do follow thee. How canst thou, a sinful impostor, + call me thy father when I never saw thee to my knowledge. It + appears that thou art a scribe, but hath missput the name that + thee presumed to assume. It is a great pity that thou who hath + been so well treated should make such ill use of it. This I speak + to thy shame. The great evil that thou hast embarked upon is not + only against me as an individual. It is a national concern. It + is a stain to the whole community of the African race. Wilt thou + consider, thou imposter, the great number thou hast lifted thy + head against, would not it have been good that thou had never been + born. Let me tell thee that the manumission of 1,500,000 slaves + depends on the faithfulness of the few who have obtained their + freedom, yea, it is not only those who are in bondage, but the + whole community of the African race, which are according to best + accounts 30,000,000. If nothing better can be obtained from thee + than the fruit that thou produced, let me intreat thee to petition + for a prison for life; Awake thou imposter unto righteousness and + pray God to forgive thee, if happily thou may find firgiveness + before the door of mercy is closed against thee. Thus thou hast + the advise of one who wishes well to all mankind." + + PAUL CUFFE.[52] + + +CHAPTER IX + +A FRIEND IN NEED + +There is no evidence in the Cuffe papers that he was acquainted with +the history of the Negro deportation projects in America. It is +altogether likely that the one hundred years of individual propaganda, +religious and humanitarian exertions, were unknown to him. Means for +the dissemination of knowledge were not so well perfected in his day +as in ours; the plans for deportation were isolated; not until 1816 +did private movements unite with governmental organizations,--facts +which further explain why Cuffe knew nothing about the history of the +movements to colonize the Negro. + +Many of his friends and many persons whose lives were dedicated to +Negro emancipation were connected with his plans. But whatever he did +appears to have been done wholly on his own initiative. It is the +first time, apparently, in the history of colonization that a Negro +becomes prominent in the movement. He leads the way in an effort not +only to bless the free Negroes, but also to liberate the slaves. It is +a constructive effort on the part of the Negro race. + +When Cuffe returned from Africa in the early summer of 1816 the cause +for which he had given so much time and made so many sacrifices was +more prominent than it had ever been in its history. The Union Humane +Society, founded in Ohio in 1815 by Benjamin Lundy as an anti-slavery +organization, had declared for the removal of the Negro beyond the +white man's pale. The Kentucky Colonization Society had petitioned +Congress to settle, at public expense, on some unappropriated tract of +public land, the Negroes already free and those who might subsequently +obtain their freedom. The Virginia Assembly, also, had presented a +memorial to Congress praying that the National Government find a +place on the North Pacific or African coast for colonizing the free +blacks of the State. Finally, the inhabitants of New Jersey petitioned +their Legislature to instruct their representatives in Congress to lay +before that body at its next meeting as a subject for discussion "the +expediency of forming a colony on the coast of Africa, or elsewhere, +where such of the people of color as are now free, or may hereafter be +set free, may, with their own consent, be removed."[53] + +Cuffe returned from Africa about June 1, 1816. The New Jersey +meeting was on the sixth of the following November. Final action +by the Virginia Assembly was taken on the twenty-first of December +of that year. A graduate of Princeton, Robert Finley, then engaged +in the Presbyterian ministry and later president of the University +of Georgia, participated in the New Jersey meeting. He now took a +leading part in the deliberation of a body of men in Washington, +D.C., where a national organization was launched for the purpose of +deporting to Africa or elsewhere the free blacks of the United States. +A preliminary meeting was held on December 21, 1816; the constitution +was adopted on December 28, 1816, and on New Year's Day 1817, the +officers were elected. This was the beginning of the American +Colonization Society. + +At this meeting the enthusiasm of Reverend Mr. Finley was boundless. +He offered five hundred dollars from his savings to insure the success +of the movement, and when some, thinking the plan foolhardy, laughed, +he declared, "I know the scheme is from God." The one practical +colonizationist, at this time, was Paul Cuffe, and to him Rev. Mr. +Finley went for advice and help. + +Using for letter paper the blank space of the printed New Jersey +petition, Finley wrote Cuffe on December 5 from Washington City. Cuffe +was in this way put in touch with Finley's past activities and with +his present exertions. "Many indulge," he wrote, "a hope that could +the more virtuous of our own free people of color be removed to the +coast of Africa, with their own consent, to carry with them their +arts, their industry, and above all, their knowledge of Christianity +and the fear of God, great and lasting benefits would arise to the +people of _Africa itself_. Knowing that you have been to _Sierra +Leone_ and must be well acquainted with the state and prospects of the +colony, we beg of you such information as you may be able to give on +the following heads: + +"1. What is the present population of the settlements of Sierra Leone, +and what its prospects of happiness and growth? + +"2. What is the nature of the soil and what the advantage for +settlement on the coast of Africa from Sierra Leone to the equator? + +"3. Are there any navigable rivers in the country called Guinea, or +any positions where a good harbor might be formed along the coast? + +"4. In the region above alluded to, are there any European regular +settlements, or does it contain any slave factories? + +"5. Whether in your opinion is there any other situation in Africa +where the contemplated settlement or settlements could be formed with +greater advantage than in the district mentioned above? + +"The great desire of those whose minds are impressed with this +subject," says Finley, "is to give an opportunity to the free people +of color to rise to their proper level and at the same time to provide +a powerful means of putting an end to the slave trade, and sending +civilization and Christianity to Africa."[54] + +Another active member of the group at Washington was Samuel J. +Mills, whose devotion to missionary activity is almost unequaled +in history. The origin of the American Bible Society, the United +Foreign Missionary Society, and the American Board of Commissioners +for Foreign Missions, is attributed to him. Writing to Cuffe, March +17, 1817, Mills said: "Your two voyages to Africa have been of great +service in preparing the public mind for an attempt to colonize +your colored brethren and probably much is depending on your future +assistance as it respects the success of efforts of this kind. I +hope you will hold yourself in a state of readiness to aid any great +efforts which may hereafter be made." He wanted to know: + + 1. In what manner would a request from our government for liberty + to send free people of color to Sierra Leone be received by the + English government? + + 2. Should the request be granted, would the Americans have equal + privileges to trade to the colony? + + 3. Should an effort be made to explore the west coast of Africa to + find a place for a colony, how great a force ought to be employed? + Would one vessel be sufficient and what number of men would be + required? + + 4. As a preparatory step to further exertions, would it be best to + have an agent go to Africa and to England during the proceeding + summer and autumn? Or to either of these places? + + 5. How should we answer those who say that people of color will + not go to Africa if a place is provided? + + 6. Would those persons who are ready to go to Sierra Leone be + ready to aid in establishing a new colony, in another place? + + 7. What was the expense of carrying out those persons who went to + Africa with you, and how was the expense defrayed? Be so good as + to add anything you think interesting. I hope you will write to me + soon.[55] + +Mills supplied Cuffe with the news of the activities at Washington +and sent him a pamphlet on colonization. Mills, also, inquired "If +the general government were to request you to go out for the purpose +of exploring in your own vessel would you engage in this service if +offered proper support?" If Cuffe did not go as an agent it was the +wish of Mills that he take out another group of colonists. "Since you +have so generously commended this mighty effort," says Mills, "do not +value further sacrifices in order to effect it." The voyage will not +only tone up public feeling, it will also give the foundation for an +appeal for governmental aid. + +To these questions from Finley and Mills Cuffe gave prompt attention. +He gave them what facts he had gathered from his two visits to Africa. +He wrote with feeling about the slave trade, and raised the question +of the desirability of a government vessel making explorations on the +west coast of Africa. Small beginnings, he said, had been made in +Sierra Leone, but in case there was a general manumission the Cape of +Good Hope offered the most desirable place for a colony. Attention +was also called to the Congo region. Withal to draw off the colored +citizens it seemed best not only to have a colony in Africa but one in +America as well. In any event, the slaves should be freed and until +they are capable of managing for themselves they might be allowed to +work the plantations on a lay. + +The work of the African Institution is called to the attention of +Finley and Mills and both Peter Williams, Jr., and James Forten are +recommended. On returning from his second voyage he states that he +received so many applications that he could have taken over the +greater part of Boston. He himself is ready to serve in any capacity +"although," he continued, "I stand (as it were) in a low place and am +not able to see far; but blessed by God who hath created all things +and for his own glory they are and were created he is able to make use +of instruments in such a way as he pleases and may I be resigned to +his holy will."[56] + +Both Mills and Finley signed the constitution of the American +Colonization Society. Finley was one of the Vice Presidents, and +Mills was sent to Africa by the society to make investigations for +it. He went via England where he met the colaborers of Cuffe. +While in Africa he consulted with the members of the Friendly +Society established by Cuffe in 1811. Two of the settlers that Cuffe +transported in 1815, Kizell and Martin, acted as interpreters and +guides for Mills. In one of Mills' observations he says, "Should a +colony be established in this part of Africa, it remains a question +whether it should be governed by white men, or whether the people +will consider themselves competent to self government in the first +instance." + +The arguments for and against colonization were considered by Mills +and Cuffe. "Whenever the subject of colonization shall be discussed by +Congress," says Mills, "some will object that the free people of color +will not go to Africa. Again, that it will cost too much to transport +them and to afford them the necessary protection. Again it will be +said that too many of these people are very useful and are wanted in +this country. We should be prepared to meet these objectors as far as +possible and trust in God for the success of our efforts."[57] + +Mills was right in his anticipation of the argument that the free +blacks would not go to Africa. Hardly had the American Colonization +Society been formed when, under the auspices of the African +Institution at Philadelphia, a meeting estimated at three thousand +met at Reverend Richard Allen's church to discuss the question. Many +were frightened, for they believed force would be used, particularly +in the South, to compel immigration to Africa. James Forten reported +none of them favored going to Africa and that they thought the +slaveholders wanted to get rid of the free blacks so as to make the +slaves themselves more secure. Although Forten was convinced that his +brethren would never "become a people until they came out from amongst +the white people"[58] he concluded to be silent on the question of +deportation for the time being. + +When this opposition to the colonization project was known to the +Society, Finley came to Philadelphia to take charge of the situation. +He met the committee to whom the matter was referred and explained to +them "the purity of the motives" which actuated many of the leading +spirits in the Society. He was so convincing that the committee +unanimously decided that "benevolence to them and the land of their +fathers guided the movements that were made at Washington."[59] But +James Forten showed his confidence in the Captain by writing for his +opinion on colonization. + +Captain Cuffe had given advice to the men who organized the American +Colonization Society, his co-workers in London had been drawn upon, +his friends in Sierra Leone had served the agents of the Society in +Africa, but his influence did not end with his death. When Bishop +Meade was in the South on behalf of the Society he read Cuffe's +letters to the free blacks of Savannah. He made use, too, of +information obtained from some other Negroes who had been in Sierra +Leone and conversed with the emigrants taken over in 1815. + +In fact, the Society printed letters from the American Settlers in +Africa and disseminated them as propaganda. Perry Locke exhorts his +brethren in America to come to the "land of Canaan, abounding in honey +and fruits, fish and oysters, wild fowls and wild hogs. The only +thing that Africa wants is the knowledge of God--fear not to come, if +the Lord will. When you come I hope to be with you and more besides +me,--let this be printed if you please."[60] + +The testimony of Samuel Wilson was no less convincing. He concludes: +"Sir, when I set my foot on the African shore, I had only seven and +six pence sterling; now, notwithstanding, all my sickness, I am master +of a hundred pounds sterling. I think if I had had something to have +begun with, I should have had about four or five thousand."[61] + +Another letter signed by a number of Cuffe's passengers is directed to +the American Negroes in general. It says: + + Be not fearful to come to Africa, which is your country by right. + If any of you think it not proper to come, and say it is well + with you, you must remember your brethren who are yet in slavery. + They must be set free as yourselves. How shall they be set free, + if not by your good behavior, and by coming to get a place ready + to receive them? Though you are free that is not your country. + Africa, not America, is your country and your home. Africa is a + good country. You will have no trouble to raise your children when + all things are plenty: you will have no want of warm clothing: you + will have no need of firewood, for we have it in abundance; and + here you will be looked upon like the blessed creatures of the + Almighty God, and that bad opinion and contempt which our white + brethren harbor, will be quite done away, and the whole of us will + become a large and wonderful nation. We will forget all our former + troubles when we turn to the land from which our forefathers came. + The whole of you will have your own lands and houses; when you + cultivate the land, (in which a few horses would be an assistance) + you will be supplied with yams, cassada, plantains, fowls, wild + hogs, deer, ducks, goats, sheep, cattle, fish in abundance, and + many other articles, good running water, large oysters.[62] + +Another clever device of the advocates of deportation to make use +of the Captain was a dialogue between Absalom Jones on one side and +William Penn and Paul Cuffe on the other. The dialogue was printed +in _The Union_ for June 18, 1818.[63] The scene of the dialogue is +in Heaven and the subject is the colonization of the free Negroes in +Africa. Cuffe narrates his connections with the movement and sets +forth purposes he had in view. He had hoped by establishing a colony +in Africa to draw there gradually all the Negroes in America. In this +way slavery would be abolished, Africa would be explored, civilized, +and Christianized. + +Absalom Jones, opposed to the movement in general, raises objections +to it. Why not colonize them on the banks of the Mississippi or the +Missouri, he asks. William Penn, a Quaker too, answers the objection +by pointing out that the whites are migrating to that section and that +were the Negroes to settle there trouble would arise between the two +races. The Indians, moreover, would make trouble with the Negroes. + +Jones next asks why should the colored people leave America at all? +They are happy in America, and more and more is done for their uplift +all the time. To this objection Penn replied that prejudice will +always keep them down. "Can one imagine," asks he, "that the period +will ever arrive in which they will bear any sway in our country, +guide our legislative councils, preside in our courts of judicature, +or take the lead in the affairs of the republic? Is it possible that +the time will ever come in which intermarriages will be sought between +their families and those of the most respectable whites? It would be +the height of folly to indulge in such an expectation; and until such +is the case, they will never occupy the rank or enjoy the privileges +of white men; until this is the case, they will ever hold an inferior +and subordinate place in society, and be in some degree aliens in +their own land." Paul Cuffe had the sensibility and discernment +to perceive this state of things, the penetration to discover the +early practicable means by which his race could be relieved from +their painful sense of inferiority, and the activity to commence the +execution of a project to remedy the evil. + +Would not deportation stop the manumission of slaves, asks Jones. +Penn replies that many southerners are now ready to emancipate their +slaves, and that their only handicap is a just provision for them. A +colony in Africa would gradually attract to its sphere every slave in +America. + +At the end of the dialogue Penn and Cuffe convince Jones that the +deportation of the free Negroes in America to Africa is a meritorious +plan. What the dialogue did for one opponent of the scheme it was +hoped that it would do for others. + +The experiences of Cuffe were a great asset in the ventures of the +colonizationists. In testimony to his services the Board of Managers +of the American Colonization Society incorporated the following +paragraph in its first annual report: + + The managers cannot omit the testimony of Captain Paul Cuffe so + well known in Africa, Europe, and America, for his active and + large benevolence, and for his zeal and devotedness to the cause + of the people of color. The opportunities of Captain Cuffe of + forming a correct opinion were superior perhaps to those of any + man in America. His judgment was clear and strong, and the warm + interest he took in whatever related to the happiness of that + class of people is well known. The testimony of such a man is + sufficient to out weigh all the unfounded predictions and idle + surmises of those opposed to the plan of this society. He had + visited twice the coast of Africa, and became well acquainted + with the country and its inhabitants. He states that, upon his + opinion alone he could have taken to Africa at least two thousand + people of color from Boston and its neighborhood. In the death + of Paul Cuffe the society has lost a most useful advocate, the + people of color a warm and disinterested friend, and society + a valuable member. His character alone ought to be sufficient + to rescue the people to which he belonged from the unmerited + aspersions which have been cast upon them. The plan of the society + met with his entire approbation, its success was the subject of + his ardent wishes, and the prospect of its usefulness to the + native Africans and their descendants in this country was the + solace of his declining years, and cheered the last moments of his + existence.[64] + + +CHAPTER X + +THE PALE MESSENGER + +The formation of the American Colonization Society stimulated interest +in Negro deportation. Both whites and blacks put many inquiries to +Cuffe. He was thought of as the prospective first governor of the +colony but he did not live to realize this. Near the end of his +career his advice to his people was to be quiet and trust in God; +be industrious and honest; such conduct is the greatest boon toward +liberation. "Experience is the best schoolmaster." + +He took advantage of this correspondence to exhort his brethren to +improve their morals. To William Harris he wrote: "We must depart from +that Monster--I mean intemperance. Examine your selves, your families. +Are you clean? If not set about this work immediately.... Do not +admit him into your houses in any other shape than a mere medicine. I +formerly kept him company but for many years I have forsaken him and I +find great consolation thereby." + +About a year before his death he gave sound financial advice to Edward +Cooke. In the postscript of the letter he wrote "My dear Friend Edward +Cooke, if I could know that thee had given up the use of strong drink, +I should feel rejoiced, and would render thee such aid, that thee +could soon become a man of property." + +About the same time that he gave this advice, Isaac Gifford received +a "Watchword." "By experience," wrote the Captain, "I have ever found +when I attended to my business I seldom suffered loss. I have found it +to be good to make choice of good companions. I have ever found it not +to be profitable for me to sit long after dining and make a tipling +habit of wine and other liquors. These very people who adopt those +practices when they see a sober, steady man will put business in his +way. The surest way to conquer strong drink is to make no use of it. +We are born and we must die. Amen." + +He points out to Joel Rogers, chosen to represent the Gayhead people, +the fields among his neighbors, "devastated either by creatures or +weeds." More frugality is needed. Excessive drink and idleness are +very destructive to society. These and similar truths were recommended +to Rogers to guide his work for his people. When Cuffe and his wife +with some relatives visited there, meeting was held, and "many lively +testimonies borne to the truth of their state and standing." + +The admonitions were in accord with the life of Captain Cuffe. Another +lively testimony was given to young men in a meeting in Arch Street, +Philadelphia. He said to the young men that "he was afraid to dignify +what he had to say, by calling it a vision, but it appeared to him +at a time when he was very low in mind and much cast down, and being +very disconsolate, there appeared before him the form of a man, +inquiring what ailed him. He said he could not tell. The Form told him +the disease was in his heart, and he could show it to him. Upon his +expressing submission, the Form took a sharp instrument, separated his +heart from his body and laid it before him. He was greatly terrified +in viewing it, it being very unclear and contained all kinds of +abominable things. The Form said he could never be healed, till he +submitted to have his heart cleansed. Then, said he, I fear I never +shall be healed. But on the Form asking him, if he was willing to +have it cleansed, and he consenting, he took a sharp instrument and +separated all that was vile and closed up the heart, replaced it, and +healed the wound. Thus he said he felt himself a changed man and a new +creature, and then recommended the young men to that Physician who +could heal them, although their state was ever so deplorable. + +"In the course of his testimony he also related that when he was +about twelve years of age he lived upon an island where there was no +house but that of his father. Being one evening near night sent on +an errand alone, he became afraid that he should meet with some wild +beast that would attack him. He crossed to a fence in order to cut a +stick to defend himself; but after cutting it, the thought occurred +that he was not on his father's ground, and as he had no right to the +stick it was not likely it would serve to defend him. On which he laid +it down, near the place he had taken it from and in recrossing the +fence laid his hand on a loose piece of wood which was on their own +ground resting against the fence. It proved to be a club, which he +took up, and went cheerfully on his way."[65] + +It was while engaged in activity of this kind that he met "the pale +messenger." His health began to fail him early in the spring of 1817. +In April, however, he was well enough to attend Quarterly Meeting, +but in June he was "on the bed of languishing." An eminent Rhode +Island physician was summoned but he could not heal him. He doubtless +then realized what he himself expressed in these words to Samuel R. +Fisher, February 28, 1817: "May we often call to remembrance that we +have no certain containing city here but above all things may we seek +one to come whose builder is God that when we put off this body of +mortality we may be clothed with the spirit of immortality that we may +be prepared and favored to experience that glorious regeneration and +friendship of everlasting peace." + +On the morning of July 27 the Captain took solemn leave of his family. +The hand that had guided the _Traveller_ to so many ports was now so +enfeebled that it was limp in the grasp of the little grandchildren. +He shook hands with all the relations and the immediate members of his +own household. As he bade them farewell it was "as broken a time," +wrote his brother John, "as wast ever known amongst us." "Not many +days hence," he said to his neighbors, "and ye shall see the glory of +God; I know that my works are gone to judgment before me but it is +all well, it is all well." Day by day he kept failing and on first day +morning at two o'clock, September 9, the Captain was borne away on the +invisible but irresistible tide.[66] + +The funeral exercises were held on the following Monday afternoon. In +marked solemnity a great concourse of people gathered. After waiting +in great silence his friends bore testimony to his work and merit. +He was buried in the Friends cemetery at the South Meeting House in +Westport, a place of worship formerly known as the Old Meeting House +when the Cuffe family worshipped there. "Many of his neighbors and +friends," said William Rotch, Jr., "evinced their respect for his +memory by attending his funeral (which was conducted agreeably to the +usages of the Society of Friends, of which he was a member) and at +which several lively testimonies were borne to the truth, that the +Almighty Parent has made of one blood all the nations of men, and +worketh righteousness, is accepted with him."[67] + +The New York African Institution held services for him in October +following his death. The funeral sermon was preached in the African +Methodist Episcopal Zion Church by Peter Williams, Jr. That trait of +character which rendered Cuffe so eminently useful, said the speaker, +was "a steady perseverance in laudable undertaking, which overcomes +obstacles apparently insurmountable and attains its object, while +others fall back in despair." + +"Shall I say to you, my African brethren," continued the Reverend Mr. +Williams, "go and do likewise? Subjected as we too generally are, to +multiplied evils of poverty, made more intolerant by the prejudices +which prevail against us, his example is worthy of our imitation. It +is only by an honest, industrious, and prudent husbanding of all the +means which are placed in our power, that we can hope to rise on the +scale of society."[68] + +His death was chronicled in many papers with appropriate praise of +his life. _Niles Register_ noted that all classes of people esteemed +his morality, truth and intelligence.[69] _The Columbian Sentinel_ +praised his charity and particularly his deep interest in his race. +"He was concerned not only to set them a good example by his own +correct conduct; to admonish and counsel them against the habits to +which he found them most prone; but more extensively to promote their +welfare."[70] _The Colonization Herald_ said, "Captain Cuffe was a man +of the strictest integrity, modest yet dignified in his manners, of +a feeling and liberal heart, public spirited and well versed in the +business of the world."[71] + +"In the example of Paul Cuffe," said _The New York Spectator_, "the +free people of color in the United States may see the manner in which +they may require competency and reputation. It is the beaten path of +industry and integrity. Captain Cuffe cultivated his own farm and +guided his own ship. He labored with his own hands and kept his own +book of accounts. He did not waste his time in idleness, nor his +income in extravagance. He was never charged with intrigue in his +contracts, neglect in his promises, or fraud in his traffic.... His +example therefore, is capable of imitation by every free person of +color."[72] + + +ONE HUNDRED YEARS AFTER + +Paul Cuffe had some descendants of consequence. Horatio P. Howard, +a great-grandson of Captain Cuffe, wrote a short biography of his +grandsire and erected a monument in his memory. Ruth Cuffe married +Alexander Howard and their son, Shadrack, was the father of Horatio. +He was born in New Bedford in 1854, and beginning in 1888 served as a +clerk in the Custom House in New York City. Howard died February 20, +1923, leaving considerable wealth, $5000 of which he bequeathed to +Hampton, and the balance of which he gave to Tuskegee as a fund to +establish Captain Paul Cuffe Scholarships. + +The monument which Howard erected is of Westerly Rhode Island granite +and cost $400. It bears the inscription: "In memory of Captain Cuffe, +Patriot, Navigator, Educator, Philanthropist, Friend." It stands five +feet high on an elevation in the front part of the church yard and +along the principal highway. + +The biography is a booklet containing twenty-eight pages and is +entitled "A Self-Made Man Captain Paul Cuffe." "By the erection +of this lasting Memorial," says Howard, "in honor of the courage, +achievements and life work of Capt. Paul Cuffe, a resident of +Westport, Massachusetts, for many years, the donor, a great grandson, +hopes to awaken and stimulate energy and ambition in the rising +generation of Negro youth, that they may profit thereby." + +On June 15, 1913, dedication services were held in Central Village, +Westport. Rev. Tom A. Sykes, minister of the Westport Society of +Friends, presided. The exercises, which were attended by about two +hundred people, were opened by a flower brigade of school children led +by Horatio P. Howard. Flowers were strewn on the graves of the Captain +and his wife. Speeches were made by Rev. Mr. Sykes and Mr. Samuel T. +Rex, the designer of the monument. Miss Elizabeth C. Carter read a +paper descriptive of the career of Capt. Cuffe. Howard distributed his +booklet and showed a compass used by his great-grandfather on his last +voyages. + + * * * * * + +The life of Paul Cuffe is noteworthy for several reasons. In the first +place, it is a tribute to American democracy. He is an example of an +American youth handicapped on every side, but overcoming so well the +difficulties which overshadowed him that he won recognition in three +continents. There is no place in the world where such achievement +is less difficult than America. She offers opportunities for +self-recognition unprecedented in the world. + +In the next place his life is a tribute to the Quakers. No religious +organization has given itself so unreservedly to the uplift of the +Negro. This devotion is as old as that which won our political +liberties, as deep as the scars on Edith Cavell's heart, and as wide +in its reach as the waters of the sea. Cuffe's membership in this +religious body and his adherence to its principles gave zest to his +zeal for the betterment of his race. His plans grew so comprehensive +that they embraced the Negroes of two continents and made calls on his +philanthropic spirit for several thousand dollars. In all this he paid +a tribute to Quaker ideals and life, and deserves mention with Woolman +and Benezet. + +The remedy that he believed would relieve the oppression of his race +is also noteworthy. To him the withdrawal of the free Negro from the +States would remove an obstacle to the emancipation of the slave, and +in the course of time wholly stamp out slavery in America. Negroes +would be better off by themselves, and those who settled in Africa +could help civilize and Christianize that continent. In the meantime +the slave trade would disappear. + +Negro deportation had been advocated by some of America's most +distinguished citizens and soon after Cuffe's death its advocates +increased by leaps and bounds. In the early period it was not as +futile as it now is and many believed that under governmental support +and direction it was in the realm of possibility. When the measure +took on its most colossal program in 1817, Cuffe cautioned his +brethren to watch its operation for a year or two before taking sides +for or against it. + +Today Negro colonizationists are few in number. The American +Colonization Society itself barely maintains its organization, and +only occasionally sends a Negro to Africa. When an individual is +sent he usually goes in the capacity of a missionary or teacher. +Colonization as a panacea for the amelioration of the Negro race is +impracticable. The Negro feels at home in America as much as the +white man. Negro uplift must be sought not in deportation but in +habits of living exemplified in Captain Cuffe. + +There is his industry and thrift. It is a long step from nothing +to twenty thousand dollars. And it is a hard step when there is +practically no initial footing. But Paul Cuffe did it, and did it +because he believed in work. He was always at his task. The dignity of +labor he knew and valued. And he knew how to save. He made his money +work for him. He stopped the leaks in his business boat. He spent +wisely and invested well. + +There is his interest in education. The painstaking endeavor and +indefatigable effort which belonged to his labor in industry was +equally a part of his labor in education. It is difficult for us today +with our excellent opportunities for education to realize how meagre +they were in Paul Cuffe's day. And if they were meagre for whites a +century and one half ago they were all the more so for Negro children. +Despite the handicaps he not only mastered the three R's but the +principles of navigation as well. + +He learned something more valuable than this--the fine art of +diffusing knowledge. So dearly did he value education for the youth +of his neighborhood that he himself on his own land erected a school +building. He made contributions to teachers' salaries. And most of +all, he taught the principles of navigation to every young man who +offered himself for instruction. Such devotion to a cause grows out of +a recognition of its great worth. + +There is his interest in religion. He stood for righteousness. No +one ever charged him with unfair dealing. His business was clean. He +sought the fellowship of the church. He contributed to its needs and +gave personal testimony to the power of Christ. Religion was vital in +his life; he tried to foster it from Westport to Freetown. He was both +a home and a foreign missionary. He knew the value of prayer. He gave +advice that was tested first in his own experience. + +Overshadowing his industry, his religion, and education stands his +optimism. He believed in the victory of righteousness; therefore, +he worked for it. He believed in the triumph of truth; therefore, +he dedicated himself to it. He realized the mastery of poverty; +therefore, he gave pursuit to wealth. He believed in the amelioration +of his race; therefore, he consecrated himself to it. + + HENRY NOBLE SHERWOOD. + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[A] This biography is based on the original journal, letters, and +papers of Paul Cuffe. They are preserved in the Public Library of +New Bedford, Massachusetts. I am under obligations to the Librarian, +George H. Pripp, for many favors in connection with the examination of +these manuscripts. + +The petitions referred to in Chapter II are with the Cuffe papers. A +copy of the one presented to the Probate Court of Massachusetts Bay +was furnished by Mr. James J. Tracey, Chief of the Archives Division, +State House, Boston. The story of the lawsuit related in this same +chapter is based on the original papers to be found in the records of +the Bristol County, Taunton, Massachusetts, Probate Court. They were +examined for me by my Harvard classmate, Professor Arthur Buffinton of +Williams College. + +I have previously published two articles bearing on this study. +Early Negro Deportation Projects appeared in the _Mississippi Valley +Historical Review_ for March, 1916, the Formation of the American +Colonization Society in the _Journal of Negro History_ for July, +1917. A third article, PAUL CUFFE AND HIS CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE +AMERICAN COLONIZATION SOCIETY, in volume six of the _Proceedings +of the Mississippi Valley Historical Society_, was an attempt to +bring together a full statement of his life and service. Since the +publication of this study I found the original Cuffe Papers and have +made use of them in this biography. Another source of great help was +the _Life of William Allen with Selections from his Correspondence_, +2 vols., Philadelphia, 1847. A full account of the services in +connection with the memorial monument erected by Mr. Horatio P. Howard +is contained in the _New Bedford Morning Mercury_ and the _New Bedford +Standard_ for June 16, 1917. + +[1] _Cuffe Manuscripts_, New Bedford, Massachusetts, Public Library, +from the bill of sale. + +[2] Ruth Cuffe to Joseph Congdon, February 12, 1851. + +[3] _Dartmouth, Massachusetts, Town Book of Records for Entries of +Intention of Marriage._ + +[4] _Cuffe Manuscripts_, Memorandum of family marriages. + +[5] _Book of Bristol County Land Records_, Vol. 50, 478, 479. + +[6] His commercial activities are well told in _Memoirs of Paul +Cuffe_, York, 1812. + +[7] See W. J. Allison in _Non-Slaveholder_, December, 1850. + +[8] _Ibid._ + +[9] Peter Williams, _Discourse on the Death of Paul Cuffe, delivered +before the New York African Institution, October 21, 1817_. + +[12] _Memoirs of Paul Cuffe_, 14, 15. + +[14] Paul Cuffe to John and Jenny Cuffe, September 8, 1808. + +[10] _Massachusetts Archives_, Vol. 186, 134-136. + +[11] The quoted documents relating to the question of taxation are in +the _Records of the Court of General Sessions_, Taunton, Mass. They +were examined for the writer by Professor Arthur Buffinton of Williams +College. + +[13] William Armistead, _Memoir of Paul Cuffe_ (London, 1846), 23. + +[17] For an extended account of these movements see H. N. Sherwood, +_Early Negro Deportation Projects_, in Mississippi Valley Historical +Review, II, 484 et seq. + +[18] _The Case of our Fellow Creatures, the Oppressed Africans, +respectfully recommended to the serious Consideration of the +Legislature of Great Britain, London_, 1784. + +[19] In the _Cuffe Manuscripts_. + +[20] _Life of William Allen with Selections from His Correspondence._ +(2 vols., Philadelphia, 1847), I, 85, 86. + +[21] In _Cuffe Manuscripts_. Dated January 5, 1811. + +[22] The _Journal_ is in the _Cuffe Manuscripts_. + +[23] _Life of William Allen_, I, 99-105. + +[24] The diary is from _Paul Cuffe's Journal_ in the _Cuffe +Manuscripts_. + +[25] _Life of William Allen_, I, 103. + +[26] _The Seventh Report of the Directors of the African Institution_ +is in the _Edinburgh Review_, XXI. + +[27] _Life of William Allen_, I, 105. + +[28] In the _Cuffe Manuscripts_. + +[29] In the _Cuffe Manuscripts_. Dated June 12, 1812. + +[30] _The Cuffe Manuscripts._ Dated June 12, 1812. + +[31] In _Cuffe Manuscripts_. Paul Cuffe to William Allen, April 4, +1811. + +A summary of his observations came out in print in 1812. It was called +"A Brief Account of the Settlement and Present Situation of the Colony +of Sierra Leone in Africa,"[32] and was dedicated to "his friend in +New York." It contains an account of the topography of the country and +states that the population was 2,518. + +[32] Published in New York, 1812. + +[33] On the Friendly Society see _Life of William Allen_, I, 105-116; +139, 140. _History of Prince Le Boo_ (Dublin, 1822), 162, 163; _Cuffe +Manuscripts_. Paul Cuffe to Samuel J. Mills, August 6, 1816. + +[34] _Life of William Allen_, I, 133. + +[35] _Annals of Congress_, 13th Congress, 2nd session, I, 861-1863; +_National Intelligencer_ for January 11, 1814, printed the memorial at +the request of its subscribers. + +[36] _Annals of Congress_, 13th Congress, 2nd session, I, 1195, 1265. + +[37] _Cuffe Manuscripts._ + +[38] _Second Annual Report of the American Colonization Society_, 122. +_The Western Courier_ (Louisville, Kentucky) for October 26. 1815, +reported Captain Cuffe's trip. + +[39] A memorandum in Cuffe's handwriting and containing the details +concerning each passenger is in the _Cuffe Manuscripts_. + +[40] _Cuffe Manuscripts_, Paul Cuffe to William Allen, April 1, 1816. + +[41] _Ibid._ + +[42] _Second Annual Report of the American Colonization Society_, 121, +122. + +[43] _Second Annual Report of the American Colonization Society_, 121. + +[44] _Cuffe Manuscripts_, Paul Cuffe to T. Brine, January 16, 1817. + +[45] Memorandum made by Cuffe in _Cuffe Manuscripts_. + +[46] _Cuffe Manuscripts_, Paul Cuffe to John Kizell, August 14, 1816. + +[47] _Ibid._, Paul Cuffe to James Wise, September 15, 1816. + +[48] Quoted in Williams, _Discourse on the Death of Paul Cuffe_. + +[49] _Cuffe Manuscripts_, Paul Cuffe to Samuel C. Aiken, August 7, +1816. + +[50] _Cuffe Manuscripts_, Paul Cuffe to James Forten, August 14, 1816. + +[51] _Cuffe Manuscripts_, James Forten to Paul Cuffe, January 16, 1817. + +[52] _Ibid._, Paul Cuffe to the Imposter, January 13, 1817. + +[53] For an extended account of the activities mentioned in this +paragraph see N. H. Sherwood, _The Formation of the American +Colonization Society_, in THE JOURNAL OF NEGRO HISTORY, July, 1917. + +[54] _Cuffe Manuscripts_, Robert Finley to Paul Cuffe, December 5, +1816. + +[55] _Cuffe Manuscripts_, Samuel J. Mills to Paul Cuffe, March 12, +1817. See also Richard, _Life of Samuel J. Mills_ (Boston, 1906); +Spring, _Memoir of Mills_ (Boston and New York, 1829); Brown, +_Biography of Robert Finley_ (Philadelphia, 1857). + +[56] Brown, _Finley_, 83. + +[57] _Cuffe Manuscripts_, Samuel J. Mills to Paul Cuffe, March 12, +1817. + +[58] _Ibid._, James Forten to Paul Cuffe, January 25, 1817. + +[59] _Cuffe Manuscripts_, Samuel J. Mills to Paul Cuffe, July 14, 1817. + +[60] _Second Annual Report of the American Colonization Society_, 151. + +[61] _Ibid._, 150. + +[62] _Second Annual Report of the American Colonization Society_, 152, +153. + +[63] See also Brown, _Finley_, note L. + +[64] _First Annual Report of the American Colonization Society_, 5. + +[65] Memorandum in the _Cuffe Manuscripts_. + +[66] Cf. _Cuffe Manuscripts_, John Cuffe to Freelove Cuffe, September +10, 1817; David Cuffe, Jr., to Freelove Cuffe, July 8, 1817. + +[67] Clipping in the _Cuffe Manuscripts_. + +[68] Peter Williams, _Discourse on the Death of Paul Cuffe_. + +[69] _Niles Register_, XIII, 64. + +[70] _Cuffe Manuscripts_, Clipping from _Columbian Sentinel_, +September 17, 1817. + +[71] _Ibid._, Clipping from _The Colonization Herald_. + +[72] _Cuffe Manuscripts_, Clipping from _New York Spectator_, October, +1817. + + + + +DOCUMENTS + +THE WILL OF PAUL CUFFE + + +Be it remembered, that I, Paul Cuffe of Westport in the County of +Bristol and Commonwealth of Massachusetts, yeoman, being at this time +(through mercy) in health and of a sound, disposing mind and memory, +and considering that it is appointed for all men once to die, I do +make and ordain this my last will and testament in the followering +manner (viz.) + +Imprimis. My will is, and I hearin order, that my just debts and +funeral charges together with the expenses of setteling my estate be +paid by my executors herein after named, out of my estate. + +Item. I give unto my wife Alice Cuffe all my houshould goods except +my two desks and book case, and books; I also give her in lieu of her +right of dower in my estate, so long as she shall remain my widow, the +use and improvement of my now dwelling house and the one half of all +my lands, together with one half of the live stock, and all the famely +provisions that may be on hand at my decease, and one hundred dollars +in money, and all the profits arising from my half of the salt works, +that Joseph Tripp & I built together. Should the salt works not be in +operation before this will is proved or should not be built, then my +will is she should have one hundred dollars annually. + +Item. I give unto my daughter in law Lydia Wainer one hundred dollars. + +Item. I give unto my daughter Mary Phelpess & to her heirs and assigns +forever, the house and lot of land which I bought of Lucy Castino. + +Item. I give unto my son Paul Cuffe, and to his oldest male heir +forever, the farm that was given to me by my father Cuffe Slocum, and +my maple desk, also one half of my wereing appearl, my will further +is that five hundred dollars be retained out of my estate, and put to +interest in some safe hands, the income of which I order to be used +annually for the support of my son Paul Cuffe' family, forever. I +also order that one fourth part of the brig Traveller together with +the five hundred dollars, be placed under care and guardianship of my +executors, in order that my son Paul and his heirs, might be benefited +by it yearly and every year forever, also the one sixth part of the +residue be placed under the care & guardianship of my executors for +the benefit of Paul & his heirs as above mentioned, forever. + +Item. I give unto my son William Cuffe and to his oldest male heir +forever, the lot of land which I bought of Ebenezer Eddy called the +Allen lot, and one fourth part of the brig Traveller, and my walnut +desk and book case standing thereon, and Johnsons Dictionary in two +volums, and one half of my weareing appearel, and three hundred +dollars in money, to be laid out in building him a dwelling house on +the Allen lot. + +Item. I give unto my cousin Ruth Cottell fifty dollars. Ruth Howard, +Alice Cuffe Jr. and Rhoda Cuffe one half of the brig Traveller, that +is to each one of them one eighth part. + +Item. I give unto my two grand daughters, namely, Almira Howard and +Alice Howard, daughters of my daughters Naomi Howard deceased, fifty +dollars to each one, when and as they arive to the age of twenty one +years. + +Item. I give unto my cousin Ruth Cottell fifty dollars. + +Item. I give unto my brother David Cuffe ten dollars. + +Item. I give unto my brother Jonathan Cuffe ten dollars. + +Item. I give unto my brother John Cuffe ten dollars. + +Item. I give unto my sister Freelove Cuffe ten dollars. + +Item. I give unto my sister Fear Phelpess ten dollars. + +Item. I give unto my three sisters namely Sarah Durfee, Lydia Cuffe +and Ruth Weeden, six dollars annually to each one dureing their +natural life. Should they or either of them make bad use of the money +given them, in such a case I request my executors to pay them in +provision or cloathing, and such things that may be for their comfort. + +Item. I give unto the monthly meeting or society of friends, called +Quakers in Westport, fifty dollars, to be paid over to their +treasurer, by my executors, according to direction of the monthly +meeting. + +Item. My mind and will is that those daughters that are single and +unmarried, shall have privelege to live in the house with their +mother, and, after their mothers decease, they to have the privelege +to live in and occupie the south part of the house, with privelege to +the well and in the seller and garden to raise saurce in so long as +they remain singel and unmaried. + +I give unto my two said sons and four daughters namely Paul, William, +Mary, Ruth, Alice and Rhoda all the rest and residue of my estate not +hearin otherwise disposed of to be divided between them six equally. + +And my will further is, that the one fourth part of the brig Traveller +and the one sixth part of the residue, that I have herein given to my +son William, I place under the care and guardianship of my executors, +to order the use of the same as they shall think best for Williams +interest, untill he arives to twenty five years of age. Then if his +care and conduct be good, they then are requested to pay the whole +over to him together with all the profits ariseing from it. + +And my will further is, the balance that may become due to my estate +not hearin otherwise disposed of to be divided between or otherway be +given up to them. + +I further order that all land that I have bought belonging to the +estate of Benjmin Cook late of Dartmouth deceased, be returned to the +widow and the heirs, they paying what the land cost and interest. + +And my will further is that for the payments annually that my +executors retain enough of the residue of my estate to put on interest +to rais the anual payments mentioned in this way last will. + +Lastly. I do constitute and apoint William Rotch Junr. of New Bedford +and Daniel Wing of Westport aforesaid executors of this my last will +and testament. + +In testemony whereof I do hear unto set my hand and seal eighteenth +day of the fourth month in the year of our Lord one thousand eight +hundred and seventeen 1817. + + Paul Cuffe (seal) + +Signed, sealed, published and declared by the said Paul Cuffe as and +for his last will and testament in the presence of us + + EDWARD PHILLIPS + LUTHAN TRIPP + DAVID M. GIFFORD + + Oct. 7, 1817, Approved. + +From the Records of the Probate Office, Taunton, Mass. + + + + +BOOK REVIEWS + + + _Africa and the Discovery of America._ Volume II. By LEO WIENER, + Professor of Slavic Languages and Literatures at Harvard + University. Innes & Sons, Philadelphia, Pa. 1922. + +Professor Wiener, in the second volume of his series _Africa and +the Discovery of America_, deals exhaustively with the documentary +information relating to "the presence in America of cotton, tobacco +and shell money, before the discovery of America by Columbus.... The +accumulative evidence is overwhelmingly in favor of an introduction +of the articles under discussion from Africa by European or Negro +traders, decades earlier than 1492." (Foreword, p. ix.) + +The importance, for the history of Pre-Columbian civilization, +of these discoveries cannot be overestimated. Moreover, their +significance is not concerned alone with the history of America. +They will compel a revision and realignment of historical frontiers +in Europe and Africa as well, from a date not later than the first +quarter of the fifteenth century. Lastly, "Africa and the Discovery +of America" forms, as it were, a sequel to Professor Wiener's +_Contributions toward a History of Arabico-Gothic Culture_, enabling +the historian to trace the influence of the Arabs as the torch-bearers +of civilization. It was they who in the eighth century, through the +medium of the Spanish Mozarabs, recreated European culture, and at a +later period, through that of the Arabicised Negroes, of whom the West +African Mandingoes were the most important, at least almost entirely +re-created, if they did not actually create, the civilization of the +native American tribes, throughout both continents, and planted, so +to speak, in the New World, the seeds of two great modern industries, +cotton and tobacco. + +Let us then consider, first, what is the bearing of Professor Wiener's +work on the history of cotton. Assyria and India were centers of +cotton culture at a very early date. The evidence that the Arabs +popularized cotton in Africa, in connection with the ceremonial +purification of the dead, that is, stuffing the orifices of the body +with cotton, is shown by the fact that Arabic _'utb_ "cotton," a loan +word from Coptic _tbbe_ "to purify," has produced the West African +"cotton" words, exactly as Arabic _wudu'_ "ablution" has given rise, +doubtless through Hausa influence, to the "cotton" words of Nigeria. +What is particularly important to note, however, is that Arabic +_qutn_ "cotton" has gone everywhere into the Mandingo dialects, which +have, in turn, influenced the native American languages. Thus for +example, in South America, the Mandingo _kotondo_, etc., "cotton," +derived from Arabic _qutn_, has left derivatives in the Indian +languages "from Venezuela south to Peru, and in Central Brazil" +(page 80), beside derivatives from Kimbunou _mujinha_ "cotton," in +eastern Brazil, northward and westward. If we concede the presence +of cotton in South America before Columbus, we can only conclude, +on the basis of linguistic evidence, that it was introduced either +directly or indirectly from Africa. The Aztec word _ychca_, the +native Mexican word for "cotton," furnishes no proof that cotton +was known to the Mexicans before the coming of the Spaniards, since +_ychca_ is not originally a specific name, but has reference to any +kind of fibre,--of a fluffy character, and came to mean "cotton" only +secondarily. + +Columbus, however, reported that on Oct. 11, 1492, the Indians of +Guanahani brought parrots and cotton thread in balls, to trade for +beads and hawks' bills. Either he told the truth, or he did not. If +he told the truth, it is still remarkable that the Indians should +not only have known of the traders' demand for cotton and parrots, +but should also have offered the very articles which Cada Mosto, +nearly fifty years earlier, had mentioned as coming from Africa, +particularly the cotton, then offered for sale in the Negro markets. +Columbus's references to growing cotton are specific in declaring +that the cotton grew on trees,--hence it is obvious that he did not +see any true cotton growing, but only the false cotton, the product +of the tree Bombax Ceiba, used for stuffing mats, but not capable +of being spun (page 28). A study of the early records of Mexico is +conclusive in the evidence it furnishes to show that cotton never +formed part of the tribute due the Mexican emperor, but that the +payment of tribute in cotton was "an innovation of the Spaniards, +and did not have the sanction of the Aztec tribute" (page 56). Hence +we have nothing to indicate that, either in the Indies or in Mexico, +the material of which the "cotton clothing" of the natives, mentioned +by the Spaniards, was made, was really cotton. If it was cotton, +its presence points to contact between America and Africa before +Columbus, and the readiness of the natives to offer cotton in exchange +for hawks' bills testifies clearly to the extent of trade relations +between the two countries. + +The contention of archaeologists is that cotton culture in Peru +may go back to a date as early as 200 A.D. The only criterion for +such an assumption rests on the theoretical rate of accumulation +of guano deposits, in which mummies, wrapped in cotton, have been +found,--calculated at two and one half feet per century. This +conclusion is absurd, not only for the stress it lays on the +capricious habits of sea-birds, but also for the reason that it fails +to take into account the irregularity of the guano deposits, as shown +in the Peruvian Government Survey of 1854. No conclusion whatever as +to the age of even a single mummy-case can be drawn, owing to certain +facts concerning Indian burial customs, recorded by Cieza de Leon +in 1553, Ondegardo in 1571, and Cobo, nearly a century later. These +travellers state that the Peruvian natives were accustomed to open +graves, change the clothes of the dead from time to time, and re-bury +them (page 67 ff.). The proof that they told the truth is contained +in the report by Baessler, of the X-ray examinations of Peruvian +mummy-packs in the Royal Museum at Berlin. One such pack contains +"the bones of _four separate individuals_, but of none there were +enough to construct even distantly one complete skeleton. Besides, +there were some _animal bones_ present" (page 71). This disinterment +of bodies, and of course the same confusion of the remains, revealed +by the X-ray, was practised by the Indians as late as 1621. Nothing +then remains to militate against the linguistic testimony so strongly +in support of the conclusion that South American cotton culture is of +African origin. + +Professor Wiener's tentative conclusion that tobacco smoking was +of African origin, outlined in his first volume of this series, +has been strongly reinforced by a study of the Old-World origin of +capnotherapy. "Smoking for medicinal purposes," he says on page 180, +"is very old, and goes back at least to Greek medicine. A large +number of viscous substances, especially henbane and bitumen, were +employed in fumigation, and taken through the mouth, sometimes through +the nose, for certain diseases, especially catarrh, toothache and +pulmonary troubles. This fumigation took place through a funnel which +very much resembles a modern pipe, but by its knot-like end at the +bottom of the bowl shows its derivation from the distilling cap of +the alchemist's retort." The _bitumen_ corresponds to the _tubbaq_ +or _tobbaq_ of the Arab doctors, a name applied to several medicinal +plants containing a pungent and viscous juice. One of these plants was +known in Spain as _tobbaqah_. + +Fumigation as a curative measure soon degenerated in Europe into +quackery,--the Arab smoke doctor giving place to the itinerant +charlatan whose Arabic name lingers in Portuguese _bufarinheiro_ +"peddler," originally "smoke vender." In Africa, medical fumigation +spread southward through the Negro country, finding its way to America +perhaps a full century before the coming of Columbus. The manner in +which smoking was introduced into America is made clear by the history +of the Negro _pombeiro_, the African bootlegger in the service of the +Portuguese colonists, who taught the natives to drink _pombe_, a kind +of intoxicating liquor. This word _pombe_ is a corruption of Latin +_pulpa_, which through the Spanish _pulpa_ has persisted in Mexico +as _pulque_, the name of an intoxicant used by the Indians, exactly +as Arabic _hashish_, through Spanish _chicha_, has entered Nahuatl, +producing the Nahuatl _chichila_ "to ferment, etc." The method of +preparing the _chicha_ in Peru, by masticating grain, is clearly +of African origin, since in the Sudan, a kind of drink is made by +chewing the fruit of the baobab. The clearest proof, however, that +such _pombeiros_ reached America in Pre-Columbian days is found in +Columbus's reference to the report by the Indians of Hispaniola, that +"_black people_ had come thither from the south and south east, with +spearheads of _guanin_." Now _guanin_ is a Mandingo word; the name of +an alloy of 18 parts of gold, 6 of silver and 8 of copper. + +The history of shell and bead money, familiar as the wampum of +the northern Indians, forms the third part of the present volume, +and is perhaps the source of the strongest arguments to show the +Pre-Columbian relation of Africa and America. Ultimately, the use of +cowry shells for money comes from China, where such shells, called +_pei_, _tze-pei_, _pei-tze_, had been used from time immemorial. The +Chinese name of the cowry, _ho-pei_, probably anciently pronounced +something like _ka-par_, is evidently the origin of Sanskrit +_kaparda_, Hindustani _kauri_ (whence English _cowry_), Dravidian +_kavadi_ "cowry." "From the ninth century on, we have many references +in the Arabic authors to the cowries in Asia and Africa" (page 208). +It is quite to be expected, then, that in the Negro languages, we +should find derivatives of this ultimately Chinese word, descended +through the medium of successive borrowings, via Hindustani and +Arabic,--that is, Hausa _al-kawara_, _kawara_, etc., Zanzibar +_kauri_, Wolof _korre_, Bambara _kori_, etc., side by side with a +group descended from Dravidian _woda_ "shell,"--that is Hausa _wori_, +Malinke _wuri_, Bambara _wari_. + +The substitution of beads for shells, as the development of this +primitive form of currency went on, has left its mark likewise in +linguistic records. That is to say, we have in Africa a group of +words descended ultimately from Chinese _par_, _pei_, originally +meaning "cowry," and secondarily "bead," together with a new group, +traceable through an Arabic intermediary stage to Persian _sang_ +"onyx," the bead-stone par excellence. From the cowry-words have +come Benin _cori_, _kori_, _koli_, "blue bead," whence _akori_, the +"_aggry_" bead of the white traders, Neule _gri_ "beads," and Baule +_worye_ "blue bead," a loan-word from Mandingo _wori_. In Bantu +_zimbo_, we have either a Bantu plural of _abuy_, itself a derivative +of Maldive _boli_, _bolli_, which is the Chinese _pei_ "cowry," or a +direct loan-word, through Arabic or Portuguese influence, of Chinese +_tsze-pei_ "purple shell." The transference in meaning from "cowry" +to "bead" is illustrated in Kaffir _in-tsimbi_ "beads." Similarly, +the original "bead" words, from Persian _sang_ "onyx," have given +Zanzibar, Swahili _ushanga_ "bead," Kongo _nsanga_ "string of blue +beads," with a recession of meaning in Kongo _nsungu_ "cowry shell." + +The transference of African currency to America is shown by two +significant facts. First, we have the name. In the Brazilian _caang_ +"to prove, try," _caangaba_ "mould, picture, etc.," is to be seen +a form of some African derivative of Persian _sang_, as seen in +Zanzibar _ushanga_ "bead," Kongo _nsanga_ "blue beads," etc., the +change of meaning leading to the connotation "mould" being due to +the substitution of the European idea of money as a piece of stamped +metal, in place of that of bead or shell money. Exactly as the +_petun_ words for tobacco spread from South to North America along +the trade routes, so the words for "money" followed the same course. +Jacques Cartier's word _esnogny_, given as the Indian name of shell +money,--the shells actually gathered by an African method of fishing +for shell-fish with a dead body,--is traceable only to some form of +the Brazillian _caang_, which has also given Gree _soniwaw_ "silver," +Long Island _sewan_ "money." The Chino-African cowry-word, seen in +African _abuy_, is preserved in the North American _bi_, _pi_ (plural +_peag_, _peak_) "wampum," side by side with the Guarani _mboi_, +_poi_, "shell bead." Lest the reader still harbor a lingering doubt of +the fact of early trade relations between Brazil and Canada, Professor +Wiener shows how Spanish _aguja_ "needle" has left derivatives in a +large number of Indian languages distant by many hundreds of miles +from any Spanish settlement. + +Secondly, we have the standard of value. From the earliest times, in +China, the purple cowry was more valuable than the white. The same +standard prevailed in Africa, and was transferred to the beads when +beads were substituted for cowries. Among the Indians, the _blue_, or +_dark colored_ currency, whether shells or beads, was consistently +reckoned as superior in worth to the white. Shell-money was first +popularized on Long Island by the Dutch, who, as we are informed, +imported cowries and _aggry_ beads from the East to sell them to the +Guinea-merchants. Moreover, Gov. Bradford has stated that it took the +Massachusetts colonists two years to teach the Indians to use shell or +bead money. Finally, Professor Wiener concludes that "in the Norman +country, ... the wampum belt, as a precious ornament for European +women, had its origin, and was by the Frenchmen transferred to Brazil +and Canada" (page 258). + +The fifteen full-page illustrations serve well to bring home much of +the force of the arguments, even to a casual reader. + + PHILLIPS BARRY, A.M., S.T.B. + + GROTON, MASSACHUSETTS. + + * * * * * + + _The Negro Press in the United States._ By FREDERICK G. DETWEILER. + The University of Chicago Press, Chicago, 1922. Pp. 274. + +Struck by the number and distribution of Negro magazines and +newspapers, many investigators in the social sciences have recently +directed their attention to the study of the Negro press. This +increased interest resulted largely from the unusual impetus given +the Negro press during the World War when it played the part of +proclaiming the oppression of the Negroes to the nations pretending +to be fighting for democracy when they were actually oppressing +their brethren of color at home. And why should not the public be +startled when the average Negro periodical, formerly eking out an +existence, became extensively circulated almost suddenly and began to +wield unusual influence in shaping the policy of an oppressed group +ambitious to right its wrongs? These investigators, therefore, desire +to know the influences at work in advancing the circulation of these +periodicals, the cause of the change of the attitude of the Negroes +toward their publications, their literary ability to appreciate them, +the areas of their greatest circulation, and the attitude of the white +people toward the opinion of this race. + +While it is intended as a sort of scientific work treating this +field more seriously than Professor Robert T. Kerlin's _The Voice of +the Negro_, it leaves the impression that the ground has not been +thoroughly covered. In the first place, the author does not show +sufficient appreciation of the historic background of the Negro press +prior to emancipation. He seems acquainted with such distinguished +characters as Samuel Cornish, John B. Russwurm, and the like but +inadequately treats or casually passes over the achievements of many +others who attained considerable fame in the editorial world. In any +work purporting to be a scientific treatment of the Negro press in +the United States the field cannot be covered by a chapter of twenty +pages as the author in question has undertaken to do. Furthermore, +many of the underlying movements such as abolition, colonization, +and temperance, which determined the rise and the fall of the Negro +editor prior to the Civil War, are not sufficiently discussed and +scientifically connected in this work. The book, then, so far as +the period prior to the Civil War is concerned, is not a valuable +contribution. + +The author seemed to know more about the Negro press in freedom. +Living nearer to these developments he was doubtless able to obtain +many of these facts at first-hand and was able to present them more +effectively. He well sets forth the favorite themes of the Negro +press and the general make-up of the Negro paper, but does not +sufficiently establish causes for this particular trend in this sort +of journalism. Taking up the question of the demand for rights, the +author explains very clearly what the Negro press has stood for. Then +he seemingly goes astray in the discussion of the solution of the +race problem, Negro life, Negro poetry, and Negro criticism, which +do not peculiarly concern the Negro editor more than others in the +various walks of life. Looking at the problem from the outside and +through a glass darkly, as almost any white man who has spent little +time among Negroes must do, the work is about as thorough as most of +such investigators can make it and it should be read by all persons +directing attention to the Negro problem. + + * * * * * + + _The Disruption of Virginia._ By JAMES C. MCGREGOR. The Macmillan + Company, New York, 1922. Pp. 328, price $2.00. + +This book was written, according to the author, as an attempt to +present an unbiased account of the strange course of events in +the history of Virginia from the time of Lincoln's election to +the presidency to the time of the admission of West Virginia into +the Union. It is, however, more of a polemic than an historical +contribution. The author raises this very question himself by his +declaration that he has no grudges to satisfy and no patrons to +please. "If he seems harsh in his opinions and conclusions regarding +the irregular and inexpedient methods employed in cutting off the +western counties of Virginia and forming them into a new State," +says he, "it is due to the conviction that an unnecessary wrong was +committed, a wrong that helped not at all in Lincoln's prosecution +of the Civil War." The author is convinced that not only was the +act unconstitutional but that it was not desired by more than a +small minority of the people of the new State. He believes that +the President and Congress, being grateful to the Union men in +northwestern Virginia for their loyalty to the Union, rewarded them +by giving their consent to the organization of a new State which, +nevertheless, was in violation of the principles of the Constitution. + +Unlike Professor C. H. Ambler who, in his _Sectionalism in Virginia_, +has set forth in detail the differing political interests of the +sections of Virginia, this author reduces it to a mere exploit on +the basis that the end justified the means. Furthermore, the author +differs widely from C. G. Woodson who in an unpublished thesis +similarly entitled _The Disruption of Virginia_, presented in 1911 to +the Graduate School of Harvard University in partial fulfilment of the +requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, emphasized the +economic differences as the underlying causes. Dr. McGregor minimizes +such causes by reducing his treatment of the economic situation to a +single chapter of ten pages. He then briefly discusses the opening of +the breach, the Constitutional Convention of 1829-30 and the growth of +sectionalism between that Convention and the Civil War. Approaching +the main feature of the work, the author takes up the preliminaries of +the Convention of 1861, the various conventions of the northwestern +counties out of which evolved the organization of the new State of +West Virginia, and finally the question of admission before Congress. + +Why such a work could be considered necessary and accepted as a +contribution in this particular field when valuable works have +already been written upon this subject, is justified by the author +on the ground that he has discovered considerable new material which +convinces him that the new State movement in West Virginia was +unrepresentative of the majority of the people of the northwestern +counties but was put through in dictatorial fashion by a militant +minority. It is true that some new material has been added to this +work, but it hardly convinces well informed historians that the +far-reaching and sweeping conclusion of the author are justified by +the few additional facts which he has been able to find. Almost a +causal study of the history of Virginia shows that the western part +of the State became estranged from the eastern because their economic +interests were different and the authorities failed to make the +improvements necessary to connect these sections and thus unify such +interests. By the time of the Civil War the northwestern counties +were commercially connected with the North and West and accordingly +followed these in that upheaval. + + * * * * * + + _A Comparative Study of the Bantu and Semi-Bantu Languages. + Volume II._ By SIR HARRY H. JOHNSTON, G.C.M.G., K.C.B., Sc.D. + (Cambridge). The Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1922. Pp. 544. + +This work is the result of a study of the Bantu languages commenced +by the author in 1881 in the Library of the British Museum, and +instigated by the project of accompanying the Earl of Mayo on an +exploratory expedition in South West Africa, Angola and the countries +south and east of the Kunene River. The expedition, according to +the author, was extended by him to the upper Congo thanks to the +assistance offered by H. M. Stanley. With this large view of Africa +his studies were continued with little intermission during the forty +years which followed his first introduction into that continent. Even +the World War itself was not exactly an interruption but permitted +the author to extend the scope of his research by bringing him into +closer acquaintance with certain of the western Semi-Bantu languages +through the presence in France of contingents of Senegambian troops. +The Colonial office, moreover, assisted the work by requesting its +officials in British West Africa to examine the Semi-Bantu languages +of British Nigeria, South-west Togoland, Sierra Leone and the Gambia. +Furthermore, an important discovery of two Bantu languages was made in +the southern part of the Anglo-Egyptian province of Bahr-al-ghazal. He +is indebted to Mr. Northcote W. Thomas's researches which revealed +new and interesting forms of Semi-Bantu speech in the Cross River +districts of Southern Nigeria. In the comparison of roots, moreover, +the author had considerably more material to draw on than in the case +of the first volume. He found also much more information concerning +H[=o]ma and Bangminda through Major Paul Larkin and Captain White. +These are the chief features which, he believes, make the second +volume a valuable contribution. + +In spite of the extensive investigation, however, the author still +finds a good deal about which he is not certain. About many of these +languages he knows little regarding their structure and grammar. +In other words they have been studied merely from the outside. In +spite of his extensive travels, moreover, he had so much to do and +apparently such a short time in which to accomplish his task that +this work, as valuable as it is, can be considered no more than an +introductory treatise going a little further into a field inadequately +explored. Already he says he finds that he has been reproached for not +bringing within the scope of these two volumes a group of languages +in the North-east Togoland and Kisi and the Limba tongues of Sierra +Leone. Yet although he finds that these have some Bantu features, they +were too mixed to justify their treatment here. He found resemblances +of the Bantu and Semi-Bantu families elsewhere but not closely enough +akin to require their treatment in connection with this work. + +Beginning with a treatment of the enumeration and classification of +the Bantu and Semi-Bantu languages, the work reviews the languages +illustrated in Volume I. Attention is directed to the Bantu in various +regions of the continent. The author then discusses the phonetics and +phonology of the Bantu and Semi-Bantu languages, prefixes, suffixes, +and concords connected with the noun in Bantu and Semi-Bantu, +adjectives, pronouns, numerals, adverbs, conjunctions, prepositions, +the verbs and verb roots. The maps graphically show the probable +origins and lines of migration of the Bantu and Semi-Bantu languages +and their distribution in Central and South Africa. + +On the whole, the world is indebted to Sir Harry H. Johnston for his +enumeration and classification of these tongues, although the work +merely marks the beginning of a neglected task. Until some scholar +with better opportunities to carry forward this research has produced +a more scientific treatise, the works of the author will be referred +to as interesting and valuable volumes. + + + + +NOTES + + +On February 20, 1923, there passed away in New York City a Negro +of no little distinction in his particular group. This was Horatio +P. Howard, the great grandson of Captain Paul Cuffe of African +colonization fame. Howard was the grandson of the Captain's daughter +Ruth, who married Alexander Howard, and the child of their son +Shadrach. Howard was born in New Bedford in 1854 and beginning in +1888 served as a clerk in the Custom House in New York City where he +accumulated considerable wealth which, inasmuch as he lived and died +a bachelor, he disposed of for philanthropic purposes. He bequeathed +$5000 to Hampton and the balance of his estate he gave to Tuskegee as +a fund to establish Captain Paul Cuffe scholarships. + +Hoping to inculcate an appreciation of the achievements of his great +grandfather, he erected to his memory a monument at a cost of $400 +dedicated in 1917 with appropriate exercises by the people of both +races and made still more impressive by a parade which Howard himself +led. On that occasion, moreover, he distributed his interesting +biography of the great pioneer in the form of a booklet entitled _A +Self-Made Man, Captain Paul Cuffe_. + +Henry Allen Wallace, one of the colaborers in unearthing and +preserving the records of the Negro, died on the 12th of February. He +was the son of Andrew and Martha Wallace and was born in Columbia, +South Carolina, about sixty-seven years ago. He was educated in the +public schools of Toronto, Canada, the University of Toronto, and +Howard University. He began his public life as a clerk in the post +office at Columbia, and in the early days of civil service secured, by +success in a competitive examination, an appointment as clerk in the +War Department in Washington. There he served with an unbroken record +for over thirty years, after which he was transferred to the New York +office with which he was connected until about eighteen months ago +when on account of ill health he was compelled to retire. He afterward +made his home with his sister in Chester, Pennsylvania, where he died. + +Mr. Wallace was well informed on matters pertaining to the race during +the Reconstruction and freely contributed to magazines publishing +such material. Furthermore, his assistance was often solicited to +correct manuscripts prepared by others who knew less of this drama +in our history. His service in connection with finding the names of +Negroes who served in southern legislatures and his letters, both of +which have appeared from time to time in THE JOURNAL OF NEGRO HISTORY, +constitute valuable contributions in this field. + + * * * * * + +SPRING CONFERENCE + +On the 5th and 6th of April there will be held in Baltimore the +Spring Conference of the Association for the Study of Negro Life and +History. Members of the administrative staff including Professor John +R. Hawkins, the Chairman, Mr. S. W. Rutherford, Secretary-Treasurer, +and others of the Executive Council, are making extensive preparation +for this Conference. The aim will be to bring together teachers and +public-spirited citizens with an appreciation of the value of the +written record and of research as a factor in correcting error and +promoting the truth. The heads of all accredited institutions of +learning have been invited to take an active part in this convocation. +As it is to be held in Baltimore, near which are located so many of +our colleges and universities, it is believed that this Conference +will prove to be one of the most successful in the history of the +Association. + +The program will cover two days and will offer an opportunity for the +discussion of every phase of Negro life and history. On Thursday there +will be a morning session at 11:00 at Morgan College and an afternoon +session there at 3:00 P. M. On the following day the morning session +will be held at the Douglass Theatre at 12:00 M. and the afternoon +session at the Druid Hill Avenue Y. M. C. A. at 3:00 P. M. The two +evening sessions will go to the Bethel A. M. E. Church. In addition to +these, special groups of persons cooperating with the Association will +hold conferences in the interest of matters peculiar to their needs. +Among the speakers will be Professor Kelly Miller, Mr. L. E. James, +Mr. Leslie Pinckney Hill, Dr. William Pickens, and Dr. J. O. Spencer. + +An effort will be made to arouse interest and to arrange for +conducting throughout the country a campaign for collecting +facts bearing on the Negro prior to the Civil War and during the +Reconstruction period. The field is now being exploited by a staff +of investigators of the Association. It is earnestly desired that all +persons having documentary knowledge of these phases of Negro History +will not only give the Association the advantage of such information, +but will attend this Conference to devise plans for a more successful +prosecution of this particular work. + +Another concern of the Conference will be to stimulate interest in +the collection of Negro folklore for which there is offered a prize +of $200 for the best collection of tales, riddles, proverbs, sayings +and songs, which have been heard in Negro homes. The aim is to study +the Negro mind in relation to its environment at various periods in +the history of the race and in different parts of the country. The +students of a number of institutions of learning are already at work +preparing their collections to compete for this prize, and it is +hoped that a still larger number will do likewise. This special work +is under the supervision of a committee composed of Dr. Elsie Clews +Parsons, Assistant Editor of the _Journal of American Folklore_, Dr. +Franz Boas, Professor of Anthropology in Columbia University and a +member of the Executive Council of the Association, and Dr. Carter G. +Woodson, Editor of THE JOURNAL OF NEGRO HISTORY. + + + + +THE JOURNAL + +OF + +NEGRO HISTORY + + +VOL. VIII., NO. 3 JULY, 1923. + + + + +NEGRO SERVITUDE IN THE UNITED STATES[A] + +SERVITUDE DISTINGUISHED FROM SLAVERY + + +The first Negroes in the American colonies were called Africans, +Blackamores, Moores, Negars, Negers, Negros, Negroes, and the +like.[1] It is highly probable that Negroes were brought to America +by some of the early colonists before 1619, for Negroes had been +in England since 1553.[2] James Otis said: "Our colonial charters +made no difference between black and white."[3] Some of such early +Negro settlers might have been brought over from Barbadoes or other +islands. The English colonists often went to and from the mainland +for settlement and trade, and by 1674 Barbadoes was a "flourishing +state" with a white population of 50,000 and 100,000 "Negroes and +colored."[4] Negroes, along with Spanish explorers, are known +to have been in North and South Carolina, Florida, Alabama, New +Mexico, and California as early as 1526, 1527, 1540, 1542, and 1537, +respectively.[5] However, the first Negroes, thus far known, in the +American colonies, were the "twenty negars" introduced at Jamestown, +in 1619, by the Dutch frigate.[6] + +The first status of these Negroes early imported is of some +importance. Although the historians do not always mention the fact, +there is nevertheless ample proof of the existence of Negro servitude +in most of the American colonies. The servitude did not always +precede slavery in every case, nor was it ever firmly established as +slavery eventually became. Still it is an interesting fact that Negro +servitude frequently preceded and sometimes followed Negro slavery. In +colonies where servitude followed slavery, it was due to the fact that +these colonies were founded after the change of Negro servitude into +slavery was well advanced. Even here, servitude accompanied slavery. +In some of the colonies, the question of priority resolves itself +into the question of the priority of customary servitude to customary +slavery. In this case, however, it is probable that servitude was +first, even though slavery was first recognized in law. In certain +instances, the records make it certain that servitude preceded +slavery. This was the case in Virginia. + +Several authorities have shown the extent to which the priority of +Negro servitude has been recognized. "At first the African _slave_ +was looked upon as but an improved variety of indented servant whose +term of labor was for life instead of a few years."[7] "As has been +mentioned, some Negroes were bound as _slaves_ for a term of years +only."[8] The Negroes of 1619 and "others brought by early privateers +were not reduced to slavery, but to limited servitude, a legalized +status of Indian, white, and negro servants, preceding slavery in +most, if not all, of the English mainland colonies."[9] "Negro and +Indian servitude thus preceded negro and Indian slavery, and together +with white servitude in instances continued even after the institution +of slavery was fully developed."[10] + +Furthermore, there is not the slightest evidence that the colonists +were disposed to treat as slaves the first Negroes who landed in +the colonies. They had no tradition of slavery in England at that +time. "Whatever may have been the intent and hope of the persons in +possession of the negroes as regards their ultimate enslavement, no +attempt to do so legally seems for a long time to have been made ... +for some reasons the notion of enslavement gained ground but slowly, +and although conditions surrounding a negro or Indian in possession +could easily make him a _defacto_ slave, the colonist seems to have +preferred to retain him only as a servant...."[11] Servitude, on the +other hand, was familiar enough, although not in the form which it +eventually assumed in the colonies. The attitude of the colonists, +when they first became confronted with the Negro question, was the +attitude of Queen Elizabeth and Hawkins when it was proposed to go to +Africa to barter for African servants.[12] + +It was just as true in the colonial days as now that the attitude +which the community takes towards the Negro population is largely +determined by their relative numbers. If the Negroes had been +numerous in the colonies immediately after 1619, it is reasonable to +suppose that their status would have been defined earlier and more +sharply than it was. But the numbers were not there.[13] Six years +after the introduction of the first Negroes in Virginia, there were +but twenty-three in the colony. Meanwhile the white population was +about 2500. All through the first half of the century importation of +Negroes was of an "occasional nature."[14] Forty years after the first +introduction there were but three hundred Negroes in the colony.[15] +It was during the last quarter of the seventeenth century that the +number of Negroes in Virginia showed a noticeable increase. By 1683 +there were three thousand; between 1700 and 1750, the increase was +even more noticeable.[16] In Maryland, Negroes were not extensively +introduced until the eighteenth century.[17] In 1665 a few slaves +were brought to North Carolina and it was not until 1700 and after +that their number reached eight hundred.[18] After their introduction +by Sir John Yeamans in 1671 it was not until 1708 that the number +of Negroes in South Carolina became a considerable part of the +population.[19] In Pennsylvania, as early as 1639, a number of Negroes +served a Swedish company. How many there were is not known.[20] In +1644, 1657, 1664 and 1677 several Negroes singly and in groups are +known to have been in the region which afterwards became Pennsylvania. +In this colony they were spoken of as "numerous" in 1702, but numerous +then did not mean so many. Later their number is noticeable.[21] In +Massachusetts, from 1638, when the Salem ship, _Desire_, returned from +the West Indies with cotton, tobacco, and Negroes, to the close of the +seventeenth century the number of Negroes was comparatively small.[22] +Josselyn saw Negroes in the colony when he visited it in 1638-39.[23] +In 1678, there were 200 in the colony and in 1678 Governor Andros +reported that there were but a few. In 1680, Governor Bradstreet said +no blacks or slaves had been brought in the colony in the space of +fifty years except between forty and fifty one time and two or three +now and then. In the nine years from 1698 to 1707, two hundred arrived +and in 1735 there were 2,600 in the Province.[24] Immediately after +1619, then, the number of Negroes scattered throughout the colonies +was comparatively small. It seems likely that their condition may +be described as that of servitude, which at that time universally +prevailed, rather than slavery. + +We are likely to think of the status of the early Negroes in America +as having been inherited or transplanted. Far from this, the status of +the Negro in the early period, like slavery itself, was purely a local +development.[25] The status of the early Negroes shows unmistakably +that it developed in lines parallel to that of white servitude.[26] +The motives which determined the growth of white servitude and Negro +slavery are peculiar to the social and economic conditions of the +colony of Virginia and its neighbors, whose inhabitants were primarily +imported settlers and laborers. White servitude and black servitude +were but different aspects of the same institution. As white servitude +disappeared, Negro slavery succeeded it.[27] + +The reason the early Negroes were not given at once the status of +slaves is that there was at this time no legal basis for slavery. The +Dutch who settled in New York seem to have defined the status of the +Negro slave on the civil law of Holland. In the English colonies it +was a local development.[28] Clearly, the ownership in the Negroes was +widely recognized and practiced in custom and in law. It is equally +clear, however, that white servitude and some form of black servitude +existed for a long time side by side with Negro slavery. This +recognition of slavery in custom and practice, moreover, makes its +appearance near the date of the statutory recognition of slavery by +the colonies.[29] Hence, the dates of this statutory recognition fix +the "upper limit to the period" in which slavery may be said to have +had a beginning.[30] In a number of the colonies, not only is absolute +ownership in Negroes, hence slavery, conspicuous, by the absence of +any records of it, but the priority of Negro servitude and of a free +Negro class is established. Ownership in the services but not of the +person was characteristic of both whites and Negroes in this early +period.[32] + +"Prior to 1619 every inhabitant of Virginia was practically a 'servant +manipulated in the interest of the company, held in servitude beyond +a stipulated term.'" "It was not an uncommon practice in the early +period for shipmasters to sell white servants to the planters." By +1619 servitude was already recognized in the law of Virginia.[33] + +In this early period the Company, as represented locally by its +officials, was the sole controlling and directing power of the +colony.[34] The Company was at the outset doubtful about the +advantages of bringing in slaves, partly because they were not sure +of the value of slave labor, and partly because they feared the Negro +would not become a permanent settler and so contribute to the building +up and defending the colony. The opposition of the trustees of Georgia +to the importation of Negroes was rested on these grounds.[35] Early +legislation in order to prohibit the trade in the colonies imposed +duties on slaves imported.[36] Moreover, it appears that the Company +generally held and worked the Negroes, who were purchased, in the +interest of the government, frequently distributing them among the +officers and planters. This was done, for example, in the island +colony, the Bermudas, in Virginia, and in Providence Island.[37] + +Established and universal as white servitude was it not only became +the model of Negro servitude but also decidedly influenced its +transition to slavery. When Negro servitude passed into slavery, it +was white servitude that lent that slavery the mild character which it +possessed until the early part of the nineteenth century.[38] + +The earliest authorized effort of England for Negro servants further +elucidates this point. In 1562, Sir John Hawkins proposed to take +Negroes from Africa and sell them. Queen Elizabeth did not at first +approve Hawkins' plan but questioned the justice of it. Hawkins argued +that bringing the Africans from a wild and barren country would +be eminently just and beneficial to the Africans and to the world. +He seemed not to have had the purpose of selling the Africans into +perpetual servitude: "Hawkins told her, that he considered it as an +act of humanity to carry men from a worse condition to a better ... +from a state of wild barbarism to another where they might share the +blessings of civil society and Christianity; from poverty, nakedness +and want to plenty and felicity. He assured her that in no expedition +where he had command should any Africans be carried away without their +own free will and consent, except such captives as were taken in war +and doomed to death;.... Indeed it would appear that Hawkins had no +idea of perpetual slavery, but expected that they would be treated +as free servants after they had by their labor brought their masters +an equivalent for the expenses of their purchase."[39] After this, +Hawkins received approval and support from the Queen, and with three +ships and crews he went on his trip to Africa. + +Upon his arrival he began traffic with the natives. He sought at +first to persuade the blacks to go with him, offering them glittering +rewards. When the natives did not respond so readily to his entreaty, +members of his crew, under the influence of rum, undertook to coerce +the Africans.[40] Hawkins sought to dissuade them and reminded the +men of his promise to the Queen. They finally succeeded in getting on +board a number of Africans and set sail for the Spanish islands where +the Africans were to be sold as servants.[41] + +The early Negroes of Virginia, moreover, were servants. On the +status of "the 1619 Negroes" historians are uncertain, but the +popular conception of the situation is undoubtedly erroneous. The +Dutch frigate sold the Negroes to the Company which controlled and +distributed them. Some of them were clearly retained by the officers +while others "were put to work upon public lands to support the +governor and other officers of the government." There is no evidence +that any of these Negroes were made slaves, while evidence that they +were servants is abundant.[42] + +The statutes of Virginia up to 1661 indicate the existence of Negro +servitude rather than that of slavery.[43] In 1630, whites were +whipped for fornication with the blacks "before an assembly of +_negroes_." In 1639 and 1640, all persons except _Negroes_ were to be +provided with arms and ammunition or be fined.[44] Up to that time +the acts do not indicate slavery. The act of 1655 refers to Indian +slavery.[45] The act of 1659 does not show that Negro slavery existed +in the colony, but apparently aims to prevent it.[46] No other acts, +in the statutes, throw any light on the status of the Negro before +the act of 1661. This acts reads, "In case any English servant shall +run away in company with any negroes who are incapable of making +satisfaction by addition of time, be it enacted that the English so +running away in company with them shall serve for the time of the said +negroes absence as they are to do for their own by a former act."[47] +The inferences from this act are three: some of the Negroes in the +colony were slaves, others free, and still others servants. The +repetition of this act the following year made provision for runaway +Negro servants also by a change of statement.[48] + +Notwithstanding the statutes, Russel found that in the records of +county courts dating from 1632 to 1661 negroes are designated as +'servants,' 'negro servants,' or simply as 'negroes,' but never +in the records were the Negroes termed 'slaves'. From the context +of the records, moreover, "servant" was distinctly meant and not +"slave." Again, according to the census taken in 1624-1625, there +were twenty-three persons of the African race in Virginia and they +are listed as "servants."[49] In several musters of settlements the +names of Negroes appear under the heading, "Servants"; sometimes +only "Negro" appears.[50] The General Court in October, 1625, had +before it for the first time a question involving the legal status +of the Negro in America. A Negro named Brass had been brought to the +colony by the captain of a ship. Upon handing down the decision as +to what should be done with Brass, since his master had died, the +Court "ordered that he should belong to Sir Francis Wyatt, Governor," +evidently as servant.[51] Anthony Johnson and Mary, his wife, whose +names appeared as servants in the census mentioned above, were, at +sometime before 1652, given their freedom from servitude, for in that +year they were exempted from payment of taxes by the county court +on account of the burning of their home. The order of the court in +reference to Johnson and his wife mentioned that "they have been +inhabitants in Virginia _above_ thirty years." According to this, +they had been in the colony at least from 1621 which approaches 1619. +It appears that they were among the first Negroes sold at Jamestown. +And this, with the understanding that they were not free at first +establishes quite well their original status as servants as well as +that of the 1619 Negroes and other Negroes in the colony. + +The free Negro, Anthony Johnson, in 1653 owned John Castor, another +Negro of Northampton County, as his indented servant. In 1655, a Negro +was bound to serve George Light for a period of five years.[52] The +court record of the discharge of Francis Pryne in 1656 is an example +of the discharge certificate of Negro servants: + + "I Mrs. Jane Elkonhead ... have hereunto sett my hand yt ye + aforesd Pryne [a negro] shall bee discharged from all hindrance of + servitude (his child) or any [thing] yt doth belong to ye sd Pryne + his estate. + + Jane Elkonhead"[53] + +In some cases, as it was with the white servants, Negroes were given +written indentures, of which Russell gives several examples. It was +an early practice of the colony to allow "head rights," a certain +number of acres of land for every servant imported. In 1651 "head +rights" were allowed on the importation of a Negro whose name was +Richard Johnson. "Only three years later a patent calling for one +hundred acres of land was issued to this negro for importing two +other persons. Hence, it appears that Richard Johnson came in as a +free negro or remained in a condition of servitude for not more than +three years."[54] It was a practice also of those who held servants to +allow them the privilege of raising hogs and poultry and of tilling a +small plot of ground. The court records show that by this means John +Geaween, Emanuel Dregis, and Bashasar Farando, as Negro servants, +between 1649 and 1652, accumulated property. Again, there are cases +illustrating that the Negro servant received "freedom dues" as the +white servants at the close of the term of service.[55] Thus the first +and early Negroes of Virginia were servants, not slaves. They were not +only servants at first, but also servants in general for a period of +years. + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[A] In the preparation of dissertation the following works were +consulted: Ballagh, James Curtis, _White Servitude in the Colony +of Virginia_ (J. H. U. Studies, Thirty-first Series, 1913), and +_History of Slavery in Virginia_ (J. H. U. Studies, Twenty-fourth +Series, 1902); Bassett, John Spencer, _History of Slavery in +North Carolina_ (J. H. U. Studies, Seventeenth Series, 1899), and +_Slavery and Servitude in the Colony of North Carolina_ (J. H. U. +Studies, Fourteenth Series, 1896); Beatty, William Jennings, _The +Free Negroes in the Carolinas before 1860_ (1920); Brackett, J. R., +_The Negro in Maryland_ (J. H. U. Studies, Seventh Series, Extra +Volume, 1889); Brown, Alexander, _The Genesis of the United States, +1605-1616_, Two Volumes (1890), and _The First Republic in America_ +(1898); Bruce, Philip Alexander, _Economic History of Virginia in +the Seventeenth Century_, Two Volumes (1896); Buckingham, J. S., +_The Slave States of America_ (1842); _Calendar of Virginia State +Papers and Other Manuscripts, 1652-1798_, Edited by Wm. P. Palmer, +Six Volume (1875-86); Carroll, Bartholomew Rivers, _Historical +Collections of South Carolina_ (1836); Daniels, John, _In Freedom's +Birth Place, A Study of Boston Negroes_ (1914); Doyle, J. A., _English +Colonies in America_, Five Volumes (1889); DuBois, W. E. Burghardt, +_The Suppression of the African Slave-Trade to the United States +of America_ (1896); Eddis, Wm., _Letters from America, 1769-77_; +Hazard, Willis P., _Annals of Philadelphia and Pennsylvania in the +Olden Time_ (1879); Henry, Howell Meadows, _The Police Control +of the Slave in South Carolina_ (1914); Henning, William Waller, +_Statutes at Large of Virginia, 1623-1792_, Thirteen Volumes (1812); +Hotten, J. C., _Original Lists of Emigrants, 1600-1700_ (1874); +Hurd, John C, _The Law of Freedom and Bondage in the United States_, +Two Volumes (1858-62); Jones, Hugh, _The Present State of Virginia_ +(1865); _Journal of Negro History_, edited by Carter G. Woodson (The +Association for the Study of Negro Life and History); Lauber, Almon +Wheeler, _Indian Slavery in Colonial Times Within Present Limits of +the United States_ (Columbia University Studies, Volume LIV (1913)); +Washburn, Emory, _Massachusetts and Its Early History: Slavery +as it once prevailed in Massachusetts_; McCormac, E. I., _White +Servitude in Maryland 1634-1820_ (J. H. U. Studies, Twenty-second +Series, 1904); Moore, George H., _Notes on the History of Slavery in +Massachusetts_ (1866); Work, Monroe N., _Negro Year Book, An Annual +Encyclopedia of the Negro_; Neill, E. D., _History of the Virginia +Company of London, 1604-24_ (1869) and _Virginia Carolorum, 1625-85_; +Nell, Wm. C., _Colored Patriots of the American Revolution_ (1855); +Nieboor, Herman Jeremias, _Slavery as an Industrial Institution_ +(1900); Palfrey, John Gorham, _History of New England_, Five Volumes +(1892); Phillips, Ulrich Bonnell, _American Negro Slavery_ (1918); +_Records of the Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations +in New England_, edited by John Russell Bartlett (1856-65); Rivers, +William James, _A Sketch of the History of South Carolina to the Close +of the Proprietary Government by the Revolution of 1719_ (1856); +Russell, John H., _The Free Negro in Virginia 1619-1865_ (J. H. U. +Studies, Thirty-first Series, 1913); Steiner, Bernard C., _History +of Slavery in Connecticut_ (J. H. U. Studies, Series Eleven, 1893); +Stevens, William Bacon, _A History of Georgia from its First Discovery +by Europeans to the Adoption of the Present Constitution in 1798_ +(1848); Stroud, George M., _A Sketch of the Laws Relating to Slavery +in the Several States of America_ (1827); Thwaites, Ruben Gold, +_The Colonies, 1492-1750_; Turner, Edward Raymond, _The Negro in +Pennsylvania 1693-1861_ (1910); _Winthrop's Journal: "History of New +England" 1630-1649_, Three Volumes. Edited by James Kendall Hosmer. + +[1] Many historians have substituted "slave" for "Negro." Russell, +_Free Negroes in Virginia_, p. 16. White servants are also called +slaves. Doyle, _History of English Colonies in America_, II, p. 387; +Stevens, _History of Georgia_, pp. 289, 294. + +[2] Several years before 1619, Negroes in England were sentenced to +work in the colonies. "Two Moorish thieves [negroes] in London were +sentenced to work in the American colonies. And they said no, they +would rather die at once." Brown adds: "I do not know whether they +were sent to Virginia or not." (_The First Republic in America_, p. +219. See also postnote 14.) Again, "I do not know that these negroes +were the first brought to the colony of Virginia. I do not remember +to have seen any contemporary account which says so. The accounts +which we have even of the voyages of the company's ships are very +incomplete, and we have scarcely an idea of the private trading +voyages which would have been most apt to bring such 'purchas' to +Virginia." Pory wrote in September, 1619: "'In these five months of my +continuance here, there have come at one time or another eleven sail +of ships into this river.' If he meant that these eleven ships came +in after he did, at least three of them are not accounted for in our +annals." Washburn, _Slavery as it once prevailed in Massachusetts_, +pp. 198, 327. + +[3] Nell, _Colored Patriots of the American Revolution_, p. 59. + +[4] Rivers, _History of South Carolina_, p. 113; Buckingham, _Slave +States of America_, I, p. 19. + +[5] _The Journal of Negro History_, III, p. 33; Work, _Negro Year +Book_, p. 152. "The second settler in Alabama was a Negro." + +[6] Ballagh gives an interesting and the most reliable account of +this ship and these Negroes. (_History of Slavery in Virginia_, p. +8.) A heated controversy took place over what should be done with the +Negroes. "And so the people of her were all disposed of for the year +to the use of the company till it could be truly known to whom the +right lyeth." Brown, _The First Republic in America_, pp. 359, 368, +391, 325-27. + +[7] Thwaites, _The Colonies_, p. 98. + +[8] Daniels, _In Freedom's Birthplace_, p. 7. + +[9] _New International Encyclopedia_, p. 166. + +[10] Ballagh, _Hist. of Slavery in Va._, p. 32. + +[11] Ballagh, _Hist. of Slavery in Va._, p. 31. + +[12] Washburn holds that the moral stamina of sturdy people seeking +freedom argued against enslavement. _Slavery as it once prevailed in +Mass._, p. 194. + +[13] "If twenty negroes came in 1619, as alleged, their increase was +very slow, for according to a census of 16th of February, 1624, there +were but twenty-two then in the colony." Neill, _Hist. of the Va. +Co._, p. 72. + +"When the census was taken in January, 1625, there were only twenty +persons of the African race in Virginia...." _Virginia Carolorum_, pp. +15, 16, 22, 33, 40, 59, 225; Brown, _The Genesis of Am._, II, p. 987. + +[14] Ballagh, _History of Slavery in Virginia_, pp. 9-10. + +[15] The group brought over in 1638 by Menefie was an unusually large +number: "Menefie was now the leading merchant. On April 19, 1638, he +entered 3,000 acres of land on account of 60 transports, of whom 23 +were, as he asserts, 'negroes, I brought out of England.'" _Virginia +Carolorum_, p. 187 note; Ballagh, _White Servitude in the Colony of +Virginia_, p. 91 note. + +[16] "Intended insurrections of negroes in 1710, 1722, 1730, bear +witness to their alarming increase...." _White Servitude in the Colony +of Virginia_, p. 92 note. + +[17] Brackett, _The Negro in Md._, p. 38. + +[18] Bassett, _Slavery and Servitude in the Col. of N. C._, pp. 18-20. + +[19] Henry, _Police Control of the Slave in S. C._, p. 3. + +[20] Post, p. 262, note 10. + +[21] Turner, _The Negro in Penn._, pp. 1-3. + +[22] Moore, _Notes on the History of Slavery in Mass._, pp. 5, 48; +Palfrey, _Hist. of N. E._, p. 30. + +[23] "They have store of children, and are well accommodated with +Servants;----of these some are English, others Negroes: of the English +there are can eat till they sweat, and work till they freeze; and of +the females they are like Mrs. Wintus paddocks, very tinder fingered +in cold weather." _Account of Two Voyages to N. E._, pp. 28, 139-140. + +[24] Moore, _Notes on the Hist. of Slavery in Mass._, pp. 48-49. + +[25] Ballagh, _Hist. of Slavery in Virginia_, pp. 2, 3, 34. + +[26] "The main ideas on which servitude was based originated in the +early history of Virginia as a purely English colonial development +before the other colonies were formed. The system was adopted in them +with its outline already defined, requiring only local legislation +to give it specific character...." (Ballagh, _White Servitude in the +Colony of Virginia_, p. 9.) The status of servitude, customary and +legal, similar to that given the Negroes in Virginia is as a rule met +with in several of the colonies. + +[27] Post, p. 254, note 33. + +[28] Ballagh, _Hist. of Slavery in Va._, pp. 28, 29, 34. + +[29] White servitude had recognition in statute law by 1630-36 in +Massachusetts, by 1643 in Connecticut, by 1647 in Rhode Island, by +1619 in Virginia, by 1637 in Maryland, by 1665 in North Carolina, +by 1682 in Pennsylvania, and by 1732 in Georgia. Ballagh, _Hist. of +Slavery in Va._, pp. 36, 37. Russell, _The Free Negro in Va._, pp. 18, +19, 22, 29. + +[30] Statutory recognition of slavery by the American colonies +occurred as follows: Massachusetts, 1641; Connecticut, 1650; Virginia, +1661; Maryland, 1663; New York and New Jersey, 1664; South Carolina, +1682; Pennsylvania and Rhode Island, 1700; North Carolina, 1715; +and Georgia, 1755. Prior to these dates the legal status of all +subject Negroes was that of servants, and their rights, duties, and +disabilities were regulated by legislation the same as, or similar to, +that applied to white servants. Ballagh, _Hist. of Servitude in Va._, +pp. 34, 35. + +[31] Russell, _The Free Negroes in Va._, p. 29. + +[32] Turner, _The Negro in Penn._, p. 25; Ballagh, _Hist. of Slavery +in Va._, pp. 30, 31. + +[33] Ante, note 30: "It was but natural then that they should be +absorbed in a growing system which spread to all the colonies and +for nearly a century furnished the chief supply for colonial labor." +Ballagh, _White Servitude in the Colony of Va._, pp. 14, 27, 49. +Ballagh, _Hist. of Slavery in Va._, pp. 32. + +[34] The Company secured servants for the colony. Stevens, _History of +Ga._, p. 290; Ballagh, _White Servitude in the Col. of Va._, p. 15. + +[35] The Trustees of Georgia held out on account of philanthropic +motives. See Du Bois, _Suppression of the Slave Trade_, pp. 7, 8, 26; +Declaration of one of the trustees, Stevens, _Hist. of Ga._, p. 287. + +[36] Moore, _Notes on the History of Slavery in Mass._, p. 50. Du +Bois, _Suppression of African Slave Trade_, p. 15. + +[37] In Providence in 1633, "it was recommended that twenty or thirty +negroes be introduced for public work, and that they be separated +among various families of officers and industrious planters to prevent +the formation of plots. Some of these negroes received wages and +purchased their freedom, and the length of servitude seems to have +been dependent on the time of conversion to Christianity." Lefroy, +_The History, of the Bermudaes_, p. 219. Ballagh, _Hist. of Slavery in +Va._, pp. 29, 30, notes. + +The Dutch dealt with the early Negroes in a similar way. "In practice +the heavy duty imposed by the Company seems to have discouraged any +large importation. As a natural consequence, too, most of those +imported seem to have been in the employment of the Company. Thus +we learn that the fort at New Amsterdam was mainly built by negro +labor. The Company seems wisely to have made arrangements whereby its +slaves should be gradually absorbed in the free population. In 1644 an +ordinance was passed emancipating the slaves of the Company after a +fixed period of service." Doyle, _Eng. Cols. in Am._, IV, p. 49. + +[38] Ballagh, _Hist. of Slavery in Va._, p. 33. + +[39] Carroll, _Hist. Coll._, I, p. 27. + +[40] _Ibid._, p. 29. + +[41] _Ibid._, p. 29. + +[42] Russell, _The Free Negro in Va._, pp. 16, 23; Ballagh, _Hist. of +Slavery in Va._, p. 29 notes; Brown, _The First Republic in Am._, p. +326. + +Thomas Jefferson said, "the right to these negroes was common, or, +perhaps they lived on a footing with the whites, who, as well as +themselves, were under absolute direction of the president." Russell, +_The Free Negro in Va._, p. 24. + +[43] _Ibid._, 23, 24; Ballagh, _History of Slavery in Va._, 28, 31; +Phillips, _Am. Negro Slavery_, p. 75. + +[44] Henning, I, pp. 146, 226. + +[45] The first time the term "slave" is used in the statutes was in +these words: "If the Indians shall bring in any children as gages of +their good and quiet intentions to us, ... that we will not use them +as slaves." Henning, I, p. 296. + +[46] In Henning, _Statutes_ I, p. 540, it is said: "That _if_ the said +Dutch or other foreigners shall import any negroes, they the said +Dutch or others shall, for the tobacco really produced by the sale of +the said negro, pay only the impost of two shillings per hogshead, the +like being paid by our own nation." + +[47] Henning, II, p. 26. + +[48] Russell, _The Free Negro in Va._, p. 20, note 13. + +[49] _Ibid._, pp. 23, 24; Hotten, _List of Immigrants to Am._, pp. +202, etc. + +The "_Lists of the Living and Dead in Virginia_, Feb. 16th, 1623," +shows that there were twenty or more Negroes in the Colony; these +Negroes are referred to as servants not slaves. _Col. Records of Va._, +p. 37, etc. + +[50] + +"Captain Francis West, His Muster. + ********** + Servants + ********** + John Pedro, A Neger, aged 30, in the _Swan_, 1623." + Va. Carolorum, p. 15. + +"Muster of Sir George Yeardley, Kt. + ********** + Servants + ********** + Thomas Barnett, 16, in the _Elsabeth_, 1620 + Theophilus Bereston, in the _Treasuror_, 1614 + Negro Men, 3. + Negro Women, 5. + Susan Hall, in the _William_ and _Thomas_, 1608" + Ibid., p. 16. + +"Muster of Capt. William Tucker, Elizabeth City. + ********** + Servants + ********** + Antoney, Negro + Isabell, Negro + William, theire child, baptised" + Ibid., p. 40; see a muster + also on page 22. + +"On the 25 of January, 1624-5, a muster of Mr. Edward Bennett's +servants at Wariscoyak was taken, and the number was twelve, two of +whom were negroes." _Va. Carolorum_, 225 note. See also Brown, _The +Genesis of Am._, II, 987. + +[51] _Virginia Carolorum_, pp. 33, 34; Ballagh, _Hist. of Slavery in +Virginia_, p. 30. + +[52] Russell, _The Free Negro in Virginia_, pp. 24, 26, 32. + +[53] _Ibid._, pp. 26, 29. + +[54] _Ibid._, pp. 25, 26. + +[55] _Ibid._, pp. 22, 28, 34; Bruce, _Econ. Hist. of Virginia_, II, +pp. 52, 53. + + +NEGRO SERVITUDE AND ITS PRIORITY IN OTHER COLONIES + +Slavery received statutory recognition in the colony of Maryland in +1663, and in North Carolina in 1715. White servitude had long existed +in these colonies, receiving statutory recognition in Maryland as +early as 1637, and in North Carolina in 1665. Servitude, therefore, +had ample time for local definition "before slavery entered upon +either its customary or legal development."[1] Ballagh holds that +in these colonies, also, Negro servitude historically preceded +slavery.[2] In Maryland, particularly, along with Virginia and +Massachusetts, the "circumstances surrounding the enactments defining +slavery" indicate a natural transition from Negro servitude to +slavery. Since servitude existed in these states, it seems probable, +from analogy with conditions in other parts of the country, that the +early Negroes in these colonies were servants.[3] + +Negro servitude preceded Negro slavery in Massachusetts. This +servitude existed legally and underwent a period of development. +After the recognition of slavery in 1641, Negro servitude continued +along with slavery and in a more pronounced manner.[4] The early +inhabitants of Massachusetts were hostile to the introduction of +slavery. This attitude was, perhaps, responsible for the milder form +which Negro bondage first assumed, for "the facts of history ... seem +to establish this conclusion, that slavery never was in harmony with +the public sentiment of the colony."[5] The Salem ship, the _Desire_, +brought to the Colony, February 26, 1638, "some cotton, tobacco, and +negroes." This cargo had been taken on by Mr. Pierce of the _Desire_, +at Providence Island, evidently in exchange for fifteen Indian boys +and two women, taken as prisoners in the Pequod War.[6] At this time, +it was common to purchase servants from shipmasters and merchants, +and so it is not certain that the Negroes brought back by Mr. Pierce +were slaves. At Providence, moreover, Negroes had the status of +servants.[7] When Josselyn visited New England in 1638-39, he saw in +Boston servants, English and Negroes.[8] In 1641, after the adoption +of the Body of Liberties, a master of a ship brought two Negroes for +sale into slavery, but was compelled by the court to give them up. +These Negroes were then sent back to their native country. In 1646, +the General Court passed an act "against the heinous and crying sin +of man-stealing." In this colony "slaves" testified against white men +in court and, for a long time after 1652, served in the militia.[9] +Again, beginning with 1700, Judge Sewall and the Quakers started their +memorable work against slavery. Charles Sumner said concerning slavery +in Massachusetts: "Her few slaves were merely for a term of years, or +for life."[10] + +The Bond of Liberty, adopted in 1641, evidently made provision for +servitude.[11] Negroes were held as servants under this provision. +During the entire colonial period until 1791, they were rated as +polls, as, for example, in the tax laws, in 1718, which provided that +"all Indian, negro and mulatto servants _for a term of years_ were to +be numbered and rated as Polls, and not as Personal Estate."[12] + +Prior to 1700, moreover, Negroes had the status of servants in +Pennsylvania. In the region of the Delaware River, which became a +part of Pennsylvania, the Dutch had a few Negroes with them in 1636. +In 1639, also, a number of Negroes worked under the New Netherlands +Company on the South River.[13] It is not definitely known that +these Negroes were servants, although the circumstances indicate that +they were. The same is true of the Negroes in the employment of the +Dutch during this very early period. Provision was apparently made +for their gradual absorption by the free population. As late as 1663, +there existed laws which "granted them a qualified form of freedom, +working alternate weeks, one for themselves, one for the Company."[14] +Among the Swedes, also, in the region of the Delaware, were a number +of Negroes. Just after Rising had come to the region as head of the +Swedish Company, in 1654, he issued an ordinance that "after a certain +period Negroes should be absolutely free." In Penn's charter to the +Free Society of Traders, in 1682, there was a provision that if the +inhabitants "held blacks they should make them free at the end of +fourteen years...." Benjamin Furley, also, vigorously opposed holding +Negroes longer than eight years.[15] The Friends of Germantown in +1688, made strong protests against slavery; and in 1693, George Keith +declared that the masters should let the Negroes go free after a +reasonable term of service.[16] Later on, children of white mothers +and slave fathers became servants for a term of years, and the same +was true of the children of free Negro mothers and slave fathers.[17] + +After 1700, Negro servants were a common and well-recognized class +in Pennsylvania. Negroes who were "unable or unwilling to support +themselves" were bound by the court for the term of one year.[18] +All children of free Negroes were bound out until twenty-one or +twenty-four years. Mulatto children "who were not slaves for life" +were bound out "until they were twenty-eight years of age." The +abolition act of 1780 provided among other things that "all future +children of registered slaves should become servants until they were +twenty-eight."[19] And again, Negroes manumitted could indenture +themselves until twenty-eight. + +Negro servants were generally subject to the laws which governed the +white servitude; but they were subject further to other laws which +gave to the Negro servants a status between that of the white servants +and Negro slaves. Negro servants were apprenticed for a longer period +than white servants; and such servants were object of a considerable +interstate traffic, people from other states selling them into +Pennsylvania. They were often apprenticed and generally given some +form of freedom dues. So entrenched was Negro servitude here that in +1780 there were probably a greater number of servants in Pennsylvania +than slaves.[20] + +In Rhode Island Negro servitude preceded and passed into slavery.[21] +Although as early as 1652 the practice of buying Negroes for service +or slaves for life existed in this colony, this was not sanctioned +by law. On the other hand, white servitude was clearly recognized in +statute law of 1647.[22] In 1652 the legally established servitude, +as well as the attitude of the colonists, undoubtedly influenced +the passing of a law to prohibit slavery and provide for servitude. +This law said: "Whereas, there is a common course practiced amongst +English men to buy negers, to that end they may have them for service +or slaves forever; for the preventinge of such practices among us, +let it be ordered, that no blacke mankind or white being forced by +covenant bond, or otherwise, to serve any man or his assighness longer +than ten yeares, or until they come to bee twentie four yeares of age, +if they bee taken in under fourteen, for the time of their cominge +within the liberties of this Collinie. And at the end or terme of ten +yeares to sett them free, as the manner is with the English servants. +And that man that will not let them goe free, or shall sell them away +elsewhere, to that end that they may bee enslaved to others for a long +time, he or they shall forfeit to the Collonie forty pounds."[23] +Although this law was enforced for a time, it soon became a dead +letter, for after 1708, when slavery received sanction by statute, +buying and selling Negroes was practiced generally.[24] + +The first few Negroes in Connecticut were servants along with a few +Indian and white servants. It was due, no doubt, to the paucity of +the Negroes--there were in 1680 not above thirty in the colony--that +they became servants. However, as this number increased, their status +became gradually that of slaves by custom. Because of the fear of +treachery from the Negro and Indian servants, the General Court, +in 1680, ordered that "neither Indian nor negar servants shall be +required to train, watch or ward in the Colony."[25] Evidently some +of the servants very early had served out their time and had been +freed, for by a law, in 1690, "Negro, mulatto, or Indian servants," +"suspected persons" and free Negroes who were found wandering could +be taken up and brought before a magistrate.[26] An act in 1711 made +provision for the care of Negro servants and others who came to want +after they had served out their time. "An act relating to slaves, +and such in particular as shall happen to become servants for life, +enacts that all slaves set at liberty by their owners, and all negro, +mulatto, and Spanish Indians, who are servants to masters for time, in +case they shall come to want after they shall be so set at liberty or +the time of their service be expired, they shall be relieved at the +cost of their masters." In fact, slavery of the "absolute, rigid kind" +never existed to any extent in Connecticut.[27] + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Ballagh, pp. 36-37. + +[2] _Ibid._, 32. + +[3] _Ibid._, 37; Beatty, _The Free Negroes in the Carolinas before +1860_, p. 3. + +The children, resulting from the intermixture and intermarriage of +the races were likewise servants in these two colonies. Stroud, _Laws +Relating to Slavery_, pp. 8-9. + +[4] Servitude was recognized in statute law in this colony by 1630-36. +Ballagh, _Hist. of Slavery in Va._, pp. 32, 33, 36. + +[5] Washburn, _Slavery as It Once Prevailed in Mass._, p. 193. + +[6] Providence Isle was "an island in the Caribbean, off the +Nicaraguan coast. In 1630 Charles I granted it, by a patent similar to +that of Massachusetts, to a company of Englishmen, mostly Puritans, +who held it till 1641, when the Spaniards captured it." Winthrop's +_Journal_, II, pp. 227, 228, 260; Moore, _Notes on the Hist. of +Slavery in Mass._, p. 5. + +[7] Ballagh, _Hist. of Slavery in Va._, note 2, quoted from _Calendar +State Papers_, pp. 160, 168, 229. + +[8] Ante, p. 252, note 23. + +[9] Washburn, _Slavery as It Once Prevailed in Mass._, pp. 208, 215. + +[10] Nell, _Colored Patriots in Am. Rev._, p. 37. + +[11] "There shall _never_ be _any_ Bond Slavery, Villinage, or +Captivity among us, unless it be lawful Captives taken in just Wars, +and such strangers as willingly sell themselves, or are sold to us. +And these shall have all the liberties and Christian usages which +the law of God, established in Israel concerning such persons, doth +morally require. This exempts none from servitude, who shall be judged +thereto by authority." _Massachusetts Hist. Coll._, 28, p. 231; +Palfrey, _Hist. of New England_, II, p. 30 + +[12] Moore, _Notes on Slavery in Mass._, pp. 62, 63-64, 248. + +[13] "A judgment is obtained, before the authorities at Manhattan, +against one Coinclisse, for wounding a soldier at Fort Amsterdam. +He is condemned to serve the company along with the blacks, to be +sent by the first ship to South River, pay a fine to the fiscal, and +damages to the wounded soldier. This seems to be the first intimation +of blacks being in this part of the country.... Director Van Twiller +having been charged, after Kiet's arrival, with mismanagement.... +Another witness asserts he had in his custody for Van Twiller, at Fort +Hope and Nassau, twenty-four to thirty goats, and that three negroes +bought by the director in 1636 were since employed in his private +service." Hazard, _Annals of Penn._, pp. 49-50; Turner, _The Free +Negro in Penn._, p. 1. + +It is noteworthy that the Negroes among the Dutch were generally under +the supervision of the Company or worked for officers of the Company. + +[14] Ante, p. 255, note 37. + +[15] "Let no blacks be brought in directly, and if any come out of +Virginia, Maryld. (or elsewhere erased) in families that have formerly +brought them elsewhere Let them be declared (as in the west jersey +constitutions) free at 8 years end." Turner, _The Negro in Penn._, p. +21, notes 13, 14. + +[16] _Ibid._, p. 66. + +[17] _Ibid._, pp. 24, 25; Stroud, _Laws Relating to Slavery_, pp. 9-10. + +[18] Hurd, _The Law of Freedom and Bondage_, I, 290; Turner, _The Free +Negro in Penn._, p. 92. + +[19] "On the 1st of March, 1780, before the war of the Revolution was +closed, the Assembly of Pennsylvania passed an act declaring that +negro and mulatto children whose mothers were slaves, and who were +born after the passage of the act, should be free, and that slavery +as to them should be forever abolished. But it was declared that +such children should be held as servants, under the same terms as +indentured servants, until the age of twenty-eight, when they should +be free...." Watson, _Annals of Philadelphia and Penn. in Olden +Times_, pp. 468-469. + +[20] _Ibid._, pp. 93, 94, 98, 101. + +[21] Ballagh, _Hist. of Slavery in Va._, p. 32. + +[22] _Ibid._, p. 36. + +[23] R. I., _Col. Rec._, I, p. 243. + +[24] Du Bois, _Suppression of the Slave Trade_, p. 34. + +[25] Hurd, _Law of Freedom and Bondage_, I, p. 270; Steiner, _Hist. of +Slavery in Conn._, p. 12. + +[26] Conn., _Col. Rec._, XV, p. 40. + +[27] Stroud, _Laws Relating to Slavery_, p. 11, note; Hurd, _Law of +Freedom and Bondage_, p. 271. + + +THE TRANSITION FROM WHITE SERVITUDE TO SLAVERY + +Let us now direct our attention to the change from servitude to +slavery. It is well to note here, however, that white servitude did +not embrace the chief features of slavery. Nieboer defines a slave as +"a man who is the property or possession of another man, and forced +to work for him." Again, "slavery is the fact that one man is the +property or possession of another."[1] White servitude lacked the +final and formal feature of "property," namely complete "possession," +and consequently never included either perpetual service or the +transmission of servile condition to offspring, although during the +first half of its development in the colonies, servitude tended to +assume the character of slavery.[2][3] + +The servitude that existed up to 1619 underwent change until it +finally crystallized into indented servitude. The conditions were not +as bad as the testimony of colony servants and observers of the period +would indicate, and yet where there were so many references to it the +condition evidently obtained.[4] In enlisting new settlers for the +colonies, the Company "issued broadsides and pamphlets, with specious +promises, which, however honest its purpose, were certainly never +fulfilled."[5] In Virginia in 1613, colonists of 1607 who had served +out the term of their original five-year contract were either retained +in servitude or granted a tenancy burdened with oppressive and unfair +obligations. The changed land policy of 1616 brought upon the colony +servants further disadvantages. Before March, 1617, when the men of +the Charles City Hundred demanded and were granted their "long desired +freedom from that general and common servitude," no freedom had been +granted to the colonists. After this until 1619, it was only through +"extraordinary payment" that freedom was obtained.[6] Many of these +colonists of Virginia, moreover, were retained in servitude until 1624 +when the Company dissolved.[7] + +Other incidents, growing out of the servant's role, tended to make +the condition of servitude more rigid. In order to make the system of +labor under the Company successful, Lord Delaware, in 1610, organized +the colony into a "labor force under commanders and overseers"; and +close watch over the men and their work was accordingly maintained. +"The colonists were marched to their daily work in squads and +companies under officers, and the severest penalties were prescribed +for a breach of discipline or neglect of duty. A persistent neglect +of labor was to be punished by galley service from one to two years. +Penal servitude was also instituted; for 'petty offences' they worked +'as slaves in irons for a term of years'"; and there were whipping, +"hangings, shooting, breaking on the wheel, and even burning alive."[8] + +It may be observed from references made to this early servitude that, +generally, it was harsh. We read: "Having most of them served the +colony six or seven years in that 'general slavery'"; "'three years +slavery' to the colony"; "noe waye better than slavery"; "rather +than be reduced to live under like government we desire his Magestie +that Commissioners may be sent over with authority to hang us"; and +"Sold as a d---- slave."[9] Undoubtedly, these references are not +all true; yet, they are not altogether false. At least they indicate +that the conditions of this servitude approached slavery.[10] Out of +these, informal "slavery" and unsettled conditions of early servitude, +indented servitude developed. + +As a general rule, every advantage was taken of the servant by the +servant-dealers and masters. Opportunity to hold the servant longer +than the period allowed by law or to extend his service was not +infrequently seized upon, for the laxity of the system and the need +of labor in the colonies made this a natural consequence. During the +first period of servitude, the term of service in many cases was not +prescribed in the indentures; and sometimes servants were brought +over without indentures, or with only verbal contracts.[11] Thus +trouble about the length of their term of service arose, especially +in connection with the servants who did not have indentures. +Circumstances indicate that in the interpretation of law and the +facts, the master generally triumphed.[12] It was in 1638-39 that +Maryland took the first definite step to prevent unfair treatment of +servants by their masters. In 1654 it became necessary again to pass +a law determining the servant's age and length of service. Virginia +enacted similar measures in 1643 and 1657. Still, when the servants +were ignorant, "which was usually the case," or could not speak the +English language, the master took advantage of their shortcomings.[13] +Notwithstanding the repeated efforts of the courts and assembly to +protect the servant in his relation to the master, the lucrative +practice of extending a servant's term, which became customary in the +case of Indian and Negro servants, proved a significant factor in the +degradation of white servitude. + +Under the system of servitude, the conduct of the servant necessarily +bore a close relation to the interests of the master. When the servant +stole, ran away, "unlawfully assembled" or "plotted," indulged in +fornication, spent unusual time in social intercourse, or was secretly +married, the master as a rule suffered some loss. And for protection +of the master, methods of punishment were resorted to, the character, +definiteness, and attendant circumstances of which tended to reduce +the servant to the status of a slave. + +As the servant had no money with which to pay fines, some other method +of punishment had to be used. Corporal punishment of a harsh character +appears to have been established. Practiced at first by individuals, +it soon became a general custom, and finally found its way into the +laws of the colonies. During the period prior to indented servitude, +instances of severe whipping of servants are numerous.[14] The first +colony law which gave the master the privilege of regulating the +servant's conduct in this manner, however, appeared in 1619.[15] +Corporal punishment then gradually gained ground and won sanction +by the colonial courts. A law in Virginia provided in 1662 "for the +erecting of a whipping post in every county" and the General Assembly +of this colony, in 1688, reassured the master of his right to whip +the servant. All along this right was so much abused[16] that it was +restrained in Virginia. In 1705 an act ordered the master not to whip +the servant "immoderately"; and to whip a Christian white servant +naked, an order from a justice of peace had to be obtained.[17] +Several other colonies similarly restrained the right to whip.[18] + +Another method of punishment that gradually hardened the conditions of +servitude was the addition of time to the term of the servant. This +evidently originated in the custom of the Company to prescribe as +penalty for offense "service to the colony in public work."[19] This +method of punishment was extensively used throughout the colonies. +Sometimes the length of additional service was left to the discretion +of the master, but this was so abused that the government saw fit +to make regulations, which, however, themselves were not free from +harshness.[20] + +At first the servants undoubtedly enjoyed the right of marriage, but +as this proved a source of much inconvenience and loss to the master, +since the men servants lost time, stole food and other provisions, +and the women servants lost time during pregnancy and in rearing +children, laws restricting marriage of servants were enacted in the +colonies. In Virginia, in 1643, this right was legally restricted. +When the servants were secretly married, in some cases the man had to +"serve out his or their tyme or tymes with his or their masters--after +serve his master a complete year more for such offense committed" +while the woman-servant had to double her time of service.[21] In +other cases, as in North Carolina, the servants were required to serve +one year.[22] Further restriction of the right of marriage appeared +in Virginia in 1662. When a woman-servant and a Negro slave were +married in Maryland, the woman was, in some instances, reduced to +slavery, as she was required to serve her master during the life of +her husband.[23] The effect of this law was, in certain instances, +to complete practically the transition from servitude to slavery. +Children resulting from such marriages were either made slaves for +life, or required to serve until they were thirty years of age. +Fornication also was made punishable by an addition of time. The +woman-servant, who gave birth to illegitimate offspring, received an +addition of time of one and a half to two and a half years.[24] When +the offspring was by a Negro, mulatto, or Indian, she was required +to serve the colony or the master for an additional time of four, +five, or seven years. The children in these cases were bound out for +thirty-one years.[25] With marriage restricted as it was, the family +life of the servants was likely to be disorderly. Morals of servants +were notably loose, and masters sometimes took advantage of their +position to corrupt their servants still further.[26] + +The servants were also restricted in political affairs. In the +earliest period of servitude in the colonies, servants, as +"inhabitants," enjoyed with the other "inhabitants" whatever suffrage +there was.[27] Later on, however, this rare privilege dwindled +to _nil_. For the "first sixteen years of the settlement" in +Massachusetts the servants exercised the franchise.[28] In Virginia +they voted until 1646 and the freedservant until 1670.[29] In Maryland +in 1636, in the first assembly of the colony, only "freemen" seemed to +hold sway.[30] Disfranchisement became the rule, however, after the +middle of the seventeenth century.[31] The very noticeable scarcity of +information on the servant's exercise of the suffrage seems to suggest +that as a matter of understanding he did not enjoy the franchise. +Evidently there prevailed a certain suspicion concerning not only the +servant's ability to use the suffrage, but also his proper use of +it; and this attitude was also always fairly pronounced toward the +recently freedservant.[32] + +The final remedy of the servant, then, was flight. From the beginning +of indented servitude, the servants invariably deserted their master's +service. While in all cases they did not run away on account of +abuses, the practice brought on abuses and other incidents which, +during the first part of servitude, became more and more intolerable. + +The number of runaways increased as the servants continued coming in. +It was comparatively easy for them to escape to the more northern +colonies, since the country about them was convenient for hiding +and clandestine traveling; and the fugitives themselves, on account +of having no physical characteristics distinguishable from those of +the other colonists, could not easily be identified.[33] Thus North +Carolina became popularly known as the "Refuge of Runaways" and that +colony, Maryland, and the Dutch plantations were to fugitive servants +what Massachusetts, Ohio, and Canada were later to runaway slaves.[34] +The "under-ground railroad," too, had a forerunner in the early period +of indentured servitude.[35] Methods of dealing with the runaways +necessarily grew more strict, and precautions similar to those of +slavery inevitably appeared. "Unlawful assembling," "plotting," and +tentative insurrections became a source of apprehension.[36] Then +came methods of pursuit, return, and punishment of the fugitives. +Sometimes the master made the pursuit; at other times the sheriff +and his posse did it; and often the constable with a search warrant +went in quest of the fugitive. Everyone who traveled was required +to have a pass or a certificate of freedom to show his status;[37] +and this no doubt afforded the servants a means of using forgery +to facilitate their escape to freedom.[38] Again, whenever it was +possible, advertisements for runaways were put in the newspapers.[39] +During this time, too, there were enacted colonial statutes providing +for the return of fugitives by one colony to the other. Colonial +governments often accused each other of unduly holding and protecting +the runaways.[40] + +The greatest abuses in servitude occurred in the punishment of +fugitive servants. These abuses, moreover, gradually increased in +number and intensified in character.[41] The expense of the servant's +capture, return, and loss of time from work, and the desire to prevent +running away led to stringent punishment and evident abuses.[42] In +Virginia before 1643, some runaways were punished with "additional +terms from two to seven years, served in irons, to the public."[43] +The act of 1643 in Virginia provided that runaways from their +"master's service shall be lyable to make satisfaction by service at +the end of their tymes by indenture (vizt.) double the tyme of service +soe neglected, and in some cases more if the commissioners ... find it +requisite and convenient."[44] The laws of 1639 and of 1641-42 made +running away in Maryland punishable with death, but the proprietor or +governor could commute this penalty to servitude of seven years or +less.[45] Corporal punishment, too, scathed the fugitives.[46] + +Plainly, then, the fugitive servant tended to assimilate the status of +the servant to that of the slave and tended to become mere property. +The servant could be transferred as property from one person to +another, for from the beginning his services were bought and sold. The +custom of purchasing and disposing of apprentices and servants was +early practiced in Virginia and out of this practice grew the more +definite and far-reaching custom of signing the servant's contract. +Begun in 1623, it was resented by servants and deprecated by England; +and yet with no question of its legality, the selling of servants' +time became a common practice.[47] Later on, upon securing the servant +in England, the indenture was often made out to the shipmaster or his +assigns, and the servant was sold by him to the planters in America. +To sell the servants, merchants were sometimes invited on board the +ship, where they could look over the human cargo and select those who +were desirable. Often it happened that the servants were brought over +without indentures. They were made to believe that their lot would +be made easy by the master who would buy them.[48] These, too, were +sold by the captain to the highest bidder.[49] That the servants +were dealt with in this way eventually made the indentures as a rule +negotiable, and this led to further degradation of the servants' +status. The theory that the servant's time was property was tenable +as late as 1756 in Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania, for during +the war with the French and Indians, when the governments and officers +were recruiting the servants of the masters, the masters protested, +resisted, and won.[50] + +The servant, then, gradually became property, not principally because +of a tendency to consider the Negro servant as such, but because +of the incidents necessarily arising from the methods which had to +be used to make white servitude possible in the colonies. These +methods, then, the custom of using them, and finally the tentative +legal sanction of them, were fairly well practiced before the Negro's +arrival and long before he was considered as chattel.[51] + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Nieboer, _Slavery as an Industrial Institution_, p. 42. + +[2] Doyle, _Hist. of Eng. Col. in Am._, p. 385. + +[3] Ballagh, _Hist. of Slavery in Va._, p. 42. + +[4] McCormac, _White Servitude in Md._, pp. 9, 60, 61, 63. + +[5] Ballagh, _White Servitude in the Col. of Va._, p. 15. + +[6] _Ibid._, pp. 19, 31, 24. + +[7] "We see, then, that the colonist, while in theory only a Virginia +member of the London Company, and entitled to equal rights and +privileges with other members or adventurers, was, from the nature +of the case, practically debarred from exercising these rights.... +He was kept by force in the colony, and could have no communication +with his friends in England.... Under the arbitrary administration of +the Company and of its deputy governors he was as absolutely at its +disposal as a servant at his master's. His conduct was regulated by +corporal punishment or more extreme measures. He could be hired out by +the Company to private persons, or by the Governor for his personal +advantage." _Ibid._, p. 26. + +[8] _Ibid._, p. 23. + +[9] Ballagh, _White Servitude in the Col. of Va._, pp. 23, 24, 25, 43 +note. + +[10] McCormac, _White Servitude in Md._, pp. 48, 49. + +[11] _Ibid._, pp. 38, 43; Ballagh, _White Servitude in the Col. of +Va._, pp. 40, 49. + +[12] "Where no contract but a verbal one existed there was always room +for controversy between master and servant, each trying to prove an +agreement that would be to his advantage." _Ibid._, p. 50. + +[13] "Where the servants were ignorant, which was usually the case, +it was to the advantage of the master that there should be no written +contract, as there was then a chance of extending the term of +service." McCormac, _White Servitude in Md._, p. 44. + +"The Palatines and other German races, who, in the later years formed +nearly all of the servant population, knew little of the laws and +language and were an easy prey to the abuses of traders and harsh +masters. They had been used to very little liberty at home and were +slow to assert their rights in America." _Ibid._, p. 61. + +[14] Ante, p. 268. + +[15] Henning, _Statutes at Large_, I, pp. 127, 130, 192; Ballagh, +_White Servitude in the Col. of Va._, p. 45. + +[16] _Ibid._, p. 77. + +[17] _Ibid._, pp. 58, 59. + +[18] Bassett, _Slavery and Servitude in the Col. of N. C._, p. 81. + +[19] "In this we have the germ of addition of time, a practice which +later became the occasion of a very serious abuse of the servants +rights by the addition of terms altogether incommensurate with the +offenses for which they were imposed." Ballagh, _White Servitude in +the Col. of Va._, p. 45. + +[20] Henning, _Statutes at Large_, I, p. 438, II, p. 114, III, pp. 87, +140, 450; Ballagh, _White Servitude in the Col. of Va._, p. 57. + +[21] Henning, _Statutes at Large_, p. 257; Ballagh, _White Servitude +in the Col. of Va._, pp. 50-51. + +[22] Bassett, _Slavery and Servitude in the Col. of N. C._, p. 34. + +[23] "Instead of preventing such marriages, this law enabled +avaricious and unprincipled masters to convert many of their servants +to slaves. While this act continued in force, it did more to lower +the standard of servitude than any other law passed during the whole +period." McCormac, _White Servitude in Md._, pp. 68-69. + +[24] Turner, _The Negro in Penn._, p. 30; Bassett, _Slavery and +Servitude in the Col. of N. C._, p. 83; Ballagh, _White Servitude in +the Col. of Va._, p. 57. + +[25] _Ibid._, 57; Bassett, _Slavery and Servitude in the Col. of N. +C._, pp. 83-84; Turner, _The Negro in Penn._, p. 30; McCormac, _White +Servitude in Md._, p. 70. + +[26] "If she should be delivered of a child by her master during this +period she should be sold by the church wardens for the benefit of the +church for one year after the term of service.... Here again there +was no punishment for the seducing master. It is also evident that +the sin of the servant would be an advantage of the master, since he +would thereby secure her service for a longer period. We have not +the least evidence that such a thing did happen, yet it is possible +that a master might for this reason have compassed the sin of his +serving-woman." Bassett, _Slavery and Servitude in the Col. of N. C._, +pp. 83-84. + +"By the acts giving the master additions of time for the birth of +a bastard child to his servant a premium was actually put upon +immorality, and there appear to have been masters base enough to take +advantage of it." Ballagh, _White Servitude in the Col. of Va._, p. 79. + +The master also encouraged marriage between servants and Negroes. +McCormac, _White Servitude in Md._, p. 68. + +[27] Hurd, _Law of Freedom and Bondage_, I, p. 228 note. + +[28] _Ibid._, p. 255. + +[29] _Ibid._, pp. 232, 254; Ballagh, _White Servitude in the Col. of +Va._, p. 93. + +[30] Hurd, _Law of Freedom and Bondage_, I, p. 248. + +[31] Ballagh, _White Servitude in the Col. of Va._, p. 90. + +[32] "Thus the liberated servant became an idler, socially corrupt, +and often politically dangerous." Doyle, _Eng. Cols in Am._, I, p. 387. + +"By the temporary disfranchisement of the servant during his term, +common after the middle of the 17th century, a serious public danger +was avoided. There could be no guarantee, of the judicious exercise of +the suffrage with this class who, for the most part, had never enjoyed +the privilege before. Their servitude may be regarded as preparing +them for a proper appreciation of suffrage when obtained, and the +duties of citizenship...." Ballagh, _White Servitude in the Col. of +Va._, p. 90 note. + +[33] "To facilitate discovery, habitual runaways had their hair cut +'close around their ears' and 'were branded on the cheek with the +letter R.'" Ballagh, _White Servitude in the Col. of Va._, p. 55 note. + +[34] _Ibid._, pp. 53-54. + +[35] McCormac, _White Servitude in Md._, p. 53. + +[36] Ballagh, _White Servitude in the Col. of Va._, pp. 53, 60. + +[37] _Ibid._, p. 54; McCormac, _White Servitude in Md._, p. 54. + +[38] _Ibid._, p. 55. + +[39] _Ibid._, p. 50. + +[40] _Ibid._, pp. 52-53; Bassett, _Slavery and White Servitude in the +Col. of N. C._, p. 79; Ballagh, _White Servitude in the Col. of Va._, +p. 54. + +[41] McCormac, _White Servitude in Md._, p. 54. + +[42] "Statute after statute was passed regulating the punishment and +providing for the pursuit and recapture of runaways; but although laws +became severer and finally made no distinction in treatment of runaway +servants and slaves, it was impossible to entirely put a stop to the +habit so long as the system itself lasted." _Ibid._, p. 56; Ballagh, +_White Servitude in the Col. of Va._, pp. 52, 57. + +[43] _Ibid._, p. 57. + +[44] _Ibid._, pp. 57-58; Henning, _Statutes at Large_, II, p. 458. + +[45] McCormac, _White Servitude in Md._, pp. 51-52. + +[46] Ballagh, _White Servitude in the Col. of Va._, p. 59. + +[47] "As a result, (my comma) the idea of the contract and of the +legal personality of the servant was gradually lost sight of in the +disposition to regard him as a chattel and a part of the personal +estate of his master, which might be treated and disposed of very much +in the same way as the rest of the estate. He became thus rated in +inventories of estate, and was disposed of both by will and by deed +along with the rest of the property." Ballagh, _White Servitude in the +Col. of Va._, pp. 43, 44. + +[48] Eddis, _Letters from Am._, p. 72. + +[49] Example of the advertisement of the arrival of a servantship: +"Just Arrived in the Sophia, Alexander Verdeen, Master, from Dublin, +Twenty stout, healthy Indented Men Servents Whose Indentures will +be disposed of on reasonable Terms, by the Captain on board, or the +subscribers ..., etc." McCormac, _White Servitude in Md._, p. 42. + +[50] _Ibid._, pp. 39, 40, 42, 52, 85-89. + +[51] Ballagh, _White Servitude in the Col. of Va._, pp. 31, 33, 68; +Ballagh, _Hist. of Slavery in Va._, pp. 39-40; Russell, _The Free +Negro in Va._, pp. 46-47. + + +THE GRADUAL TRANSITION OF NEGRO SERVITUDE INTO NEGRO SLAVERY + +The status of the Negro in British America was at first that of a +servant. He was not held for life, but set at liberty after a term of +service. It was his service, not himself, that was the property or +chattel of another, and his offspring was not subject to servitude. +Again, he had privileges similar to and in some cases identical with +those of the other servants; in many cases the rules which governed +other servants governed him as well. In short, the Negro was not the +"absolute possession" of another.[1] Moreover, it was some years +before he became a slave. Distinctly during this time, his status +went through a gradual process of transition inevitable in the +development of subjection in the colonies.[2] + +"Servant" becomes "servant for life" and "perpetual servant" in +colonial laws. The progress of extending the Negro servant's term +is generally observed in the language of the laws of the colonies. +It appears that as the servants went into slavery, "what is +termed perpetual was substituted for limited service, while all +the predetermined incidents of servitude, except such as referred +to ultimate freedom, continued intact." Later the terms "servant +for life," "perpetual servant" and "bond servant" were used +interchangeably with "slave" and the words "servant" and "slave" and +their liabilities were joined in the same enactments.[3] It was some +time before the word "slave" was clearly and definitely used, and the +servant who became slave lost all the earmarks of a servant.[4] + +The practice of holding the servant after the expiration of his term +was more characteristic of black servitude than white. As the Negroes +increased in numbers, this practice increased. As white servitude +declined, the assurance of labor waned. The extension of the Negro's +term, then, for a few years longer and eventually to life service +appeared a logical as well as a necessary step for the masters to +take.[5] Moreover, since the public was often led to believe that +when at liberty the Negroes were an uncontrollable and probably +dangerous element of the population, extension of their terms in +servitude gradually gained public approval.[6] Hence, the Negro +servant was held whenever the occasion demanded and the opportunity +presented itself. + +In illustrating the gradual transition into slavery through repeated +holding and attempts at holding the Negro servants for life, court +cases of Virginia may be taken as typical. Brass, a Negro, whose +master, a ship captain, had died, was, upon being threatened with +enslavement, assigned by the General Court in 1625 as servant to the +governor of the colony instead of as slave to the company of his late +master's ship.[7] John Punch, who ran away in company with three white +servants, was adjudged by the court, in 1640, to serve his master the +"time of his natural life" while the white servants were given four +additional years to serve. Anthony Johnson, a Negro to whom attention +has already been called, owned a large tract of land on the Eastern +Shore. In 1640 he became involved in a suit for holding John Castor, +another Negro, seven years overtime. It appears that Castor was set +free. Later, however, Johnson brought suit against Robert Parker, a +white man, for harboring Castor as if he were a free man; and the +court decided that Castor return to his master, Johnson, evidently for +service for life. Sometime before 1644, a mulatto boy named Emanuel, +a servant, was sold "as a slave forever" but later was adjudged by +the Assembly "no slave and but to serve as other Christian servants +do." In 1673, a servant, who had been unlawfully detained beyond his +five-year period, won judgment against his master, George Light; the +Negro servant was set free and received his freedom dues from the +master.[8] In 1674 Philip Cowan petitioned the governor for freedom on +the ground that Charles Lucas kept him three years overtime and then +compelled him by threats to sign an indenture for twenty years.[9] + +Other indications of holding the Negro servant may be shown. In +Pennsylvania, Negro servants were invariably given a longer term of +service than the white servants and often held after the expiration of +the term;[10] so extensive was the practice of holding these servants +that, in 1682 and 1693, laws were enacted against it.[11] In Georgia +a road to slavery was paved by extending the servants' terms. Negroes +were brought out of North Carolina into Georgia by white servants +who, becoming tired of servitude, had these blacks serve out their +unexpired terms with the Georgia masters. As this worked well the +masters lengthened the term of the Negro servants to life.[12] In +fact, on account of the reciprocal influence of white servitude and +Negro servitude, wherever white servants were taken advantage of and +held longer, Negro servants were subjected to harsher treatment and +longer extension of term. + +The mulatto class in the colonies constituted an element through +which transition of Negro servitude into slavery is apparent. As the +mulattoes were looked upon as the result of an "abominable mixture" of +the races and as representing a troublesome element in society, local +laws and colonial statutes were gradually enacted to check and control +them.[13] The statutes first aimed at serving as a deterrent upon the +women, and hence arose the doctrine of _partus sequitur ventrem_, +which imposed the mother's status upon the offspring. However, the +first statute to this effect, the act of 1662 in Virginia, was largely +enacted because of fornication of Englishmen and Negro women.[14] +Statutes enunciating this doctrine were enacted in the other colonies +as follows: Maryland, 1663; Massachusetts, 1698; Connecticut and New +Jersey, 1704; Pennsylvania and New York, 1706; South Carolina, 1712; +Rhode Island, 1728; and North Carolina, 1741.[15] Thus not only Negro +mulattoes, that is, the offspring of white men and Negro women, were +prevented from becoming servants, but those who were already either +freemen or servants were gradually reduced to slavery. To check the +growth of the mulatto class, particularly through the intermixture +and intermarriage of Negro men and white women, a Virginia law in +1691 provided that the woman be fined, or sold into service for +five years, or given five years of added time, and the mulatto be +bound out for thirty years.[16] In Maryland, Pennsylvania, and North +Carolina, similar laws were passed.[17] The mulatto, then, in one case +was reduced from freeman and servant to slave, and in the other case +made a servant for thirty or more years.[18] Thus the debasing of the +status of the mulatto helped the transition to slavery. + +Just as the fugitive white servant repeatedly gave occasion, through +incidents growing out of his capture, return, and deterrence, to lower +the status of the servant until it assumed the character of slavery, +so the fugitive Negro servant made his lot harder and influenced the +extension of his term to perpetuity. The Negro servant, unlike either +the Indian or white servant, obviously had little to tempt him to run +away from his master; his physical characteristics made detection +easy, there was no free Negro population to which he could escape, the +unfamiliar country around him held but poor prospects for his making +a livelihood more easily than under his master, and the strangeness +of his situation undoubtedly had much to do with his acceptance of +it. Yet the Negro as a servant did run away. It is very probable +that the practice of running away to the Indians began when he was +a servant.[19] Again, it appears that he ran away not infrequently +in company with white servants. In Virginia, in 1640, John Punch, a +Negro servant, ran away in company with two white servants. The three +were overtaken in Maryland and brought back to Virginia for trial. The +court ordered that the white servants' terms be lengthened four years, +and that Punch, the Negro servant, "shall serve his master or his +assigns for the time of his natural life."[20] + +The transition of servitude to slavery, moreover, is distinctly +noticed in the change in the conception of property in the service +of the Negro to that of property in his person.[21] Like that of the +white and Indian servants, the Negro's service through contract, +implied and expressed, was owned by the master. This ownership, +however, consisted of only the right of the master to the service of +the servant. Gradually, as this service necessarily became involved +in wills, estates, taxation, and business transactions, the person of +the servant instead of his service came more and more to be regarded, +both in custom and in law, as property, so that eventually the +servant, himself, was considered personal estate. Thus he was "rated +in inventories of estates, was transferable both _inter vivos_ and by +will, descended to the executors and administrators, and was taxable." +While he was now a "contractual person," he still retained such +incidents of personality as rights of limited protection, personal +freedom, and possession of property.[22] As the service of the servant +became more and more regarded and treated as a form of property, his +personality was completely lost sight of, and his term was extended +to the time of his natural life.[23] Easily, then, the Negro servant +regarded at first a part of the personal estate came at length to be +regarded as a chattel real. + + T. R. DAVIS + + WALDEN COLLEGE, + NASHVILLE, TENN. + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Ante, p. 266. + +[2] Local conditions and circumstances dictated and directed the +form of subjection. For this same reason, both servitude and slavery +differed in different sections of the country. Nieboer brings out +the local character of subjection when he holds that slavery does +not exist as formally among fishing and hunting peoples as among +agricultural and that subjection is milder in an open country than in +a closed. Nieboer, _Slavery as an Industrial Institution_, p. 55. + +[3] Ballagh, _Hist. of Slavery in Va._, p. 37. + +[4] It is not meant that all Negroes became servants and then slaves. +Many Negroes became servants and followed the course of servants while +others became slaves and remained slaves. At any period, however, +during his first three-quarter century at least in the colonies, the +most pronounced status of the Negro consisted of a cross-section of a +transition from servitude to slavery. + +[5] On the significance of the expiration of the white servant's +term, Bruce has this to say: "Unless the planter had been careful to +make provision against their departure by the importation of other +laborers, he was left in a helpless position without men to reap +his crops or to widen the area of his new grounds.... Perhaps in a +majority of cases, his object was to obtain laborers whom he might +substitute for those whose term were on the point of expiring. It was +this constantly recurring necessity which must have been the source +of much anxiety and annoyance as well as heavy pecuniary outlay, that +led the planters to prefer youths to adults among the imported English +agricultural servants, for while their physical strength might have +been less, yet the periods for which they were bound extended over a +longer time." Bruce, _Econ. Hist. of Va._, II, pp. 58-59. + +[6] Ballagh, _Hist, of Slavery in Va._, pp. 37-38. "Negro servants +were sometimes compelled by threats and browbeating to sign indentures +for longer terms after they had served out their original terms." +(Russell, _The Free Negro in Va._, p. 33.) Indian servants, too, were +held and reduced to slaves whenever possible. Lauber, _Indian Slavery +in Colonial Times_, pp. 196-201. + +[7] Ballagh, _Hist, of Slavery in Va._, pp. 29, 30, 31. + +[8] Russell, _The Free Negro in Va._, pp. 32, 31, 32, 33, 34, 38-39. + +[9] "Petition of a negro for redress To the Rt. Hon'ble Sir William +Berkeley, Knt., Goverr and Cap. Genl of Virga, with the Hon. Councell +of State. The Petiti'on of Phillip Corven, a negro, in all humility +showeth: That yor petr being a servant to Mrs. Annye Beazley, late of +James, City County, widow, deed. The said Mrs. Beazley made her last +will and testament in writing, under her hand and seal, bearing date +of April, An Dom. 1664, ... that yor petr by the then name of negro +boy Philip, should serve her cousin, ... the terme of eight yeares ... +and then should enjoy his freedom and be paid three barrels of corne +and a sute of clothes." Cowen was sold, it appears, to Lucas who kept +him and forced him to sign the long indenture. Palmer, _Calendar of +State Papers_, I, p. 10. + +Russell corrects "Corven" to "Cowan," _The Free Negro in Va._, p. 34. + +[10] "This practice of holding negroes for a longer term than white +persons, which lasted for a longer time than had originally been +contemplated, since it was allowed to apply to negroes brought into +Pennsylvania from other states, bade fair to perpetuate itself and +last longer still." Turner, _The Negro in Penn._, pp. 93, 95, 99-100. + +[11] _Ibid._, 95. + +[12] Stevens, _Hist. of Ga._, I, p. 306. + +[13] Henning, _Statutes at Large_, pp. 145, 146, 252, 433, 551, 552; +_Ibid._, II, 115; _Ibid._, III, 87, 453; Ballagh, _Hist. of Slavery +in Va._, p. 57; Turner, _The Negro in Penn._, pp. 112-113; McCormac, +_White Servitude in Md._, pp. 67-70. + +[14] Ballagh, _Hist. of Slavery in Va._, p. 57; McCormac, _White +Servitude in Md._, p. 67. + +[15] Ballagh, _Hist. of Slavery in Va._, p. 39. + +[16] _Ibid._, pp. 57-58. + +[17] Stroud, _Laws Relating to Slavery_, pp. 8-9; Turner, _The Negro +in Penn._, pp. 24-25, 92; Moore, _Notes on the Hist. of Slavery in +Mass._, p. 54. + +[18] The transition is exhibited in another case still more +completely. "This position rendered them especially eligible for gross +purposes, both in their intimate contact with the negroes and in their +relations to their employers. The law had unwittingly set a premium +upon immorality, as the female mulatto not only added an additional +term to her period of service, but her offspring was by a law of 1723 +in its turn forced to serve the master until the age of thirty-one +years. Such mulatto servants, then, were scarcely better off as to +prospective freedom than the negro slave. Custom tended to reduce them +to a state of slavery. About the middle of the eighteenth century +(circa 1765) the practice arose of actually disposing of their persons +by sale, both in the colony and without, as slaves. So flagrant was +the practice that further legislation was demanded to check the +illegal proceeding by appropriate penalties. It would appear that +the offenders were those who were entitled to the mulattoes only as +servants, but used the power of intimidation or deceit, which could be +easily practiced in the case of minor bastards born in their service." +Ballagh, _Hist. of Slavery in Va._, pp. 59-60. + +[19] From the very first, the Indians and Negroes as servants came +in contact. Also, there seems to have been a "common bond of union" +between Indians and Negroes. Again the colony laws concerning runaway +servants generally took care of the Negro and Indian servants in the +same act. Russell, _The Free Negro in Va._, pp. 128-129; Lauber, +_Indian Slavery in Colonial Times_, pp. 218, 220-221. + +[20] Russell, _The Free Negro in Va._, pp. 29-30. + +[21] "With the change of the status of servitude to the status of +slavery, certain of the attributes of the former condition were +continued and connected with the latter chief of these, and the +fundamental idea on which the change was effected, was the conception +of property right which, from the idea of the ownership of an +individual's service resting upon contract implied or expressed, came +to be that of ownership of an individual's person." Lauber, _Indian +Slavery in Colonial Times_, p. 215. + +[22] Ballagh, _Hist. of Slavery in Va._, pp. 39-40. + +[23] Lauber, _Indian Slavery in Colonial Times_, pp. 226, 227, 230; +Turner, _The Negro in Penn._, p. 25. "With the loss of the ultimate +right to freedom, the contractual element and the incidents essential +to it were swept away, and as the idea of personality was obscured, +the conception of property gained force, so that it became an easy +matter to add incidents more strictly defining the property right and +insuring its protection." + + + + +THREE ELEMENTS OF AFRICAN CULTURE + + +The passion for self expression is one of the most potent factors +in social development. No problem of social philosophy yields to a +satisfactory solution where the passion for expression is not regarded +as a requisite factor. This principle is operative in the life of +the individual, the race, and the nation. All human achievements +are directly traceable to some inward urge, and evolution, as a +theory, is but the universalization of this principle. Civilization, +whether in its more perfected stages or whether in its manifestations +that are crude and rudimentary, is essentially a measure of human +expression. The inward urge that drives mankind onward has a +variety of manifestations and the difference in the number of +these manifestations is the measure of differences between various +civilizations, and between civilization and barbarism or savagery. +The impulse that moves the saintly worshipper in St. Peter's to kiss +the rosary as he kneels low-bowed and earnest before the high altar +is the same that moves the aborigine in Zululand to dance in frenzied +ecstacies around his devil-bush. That there are various degrees of +self-expression, with a maximum in this nation and age, and a minimum +in that, is a fact that is as undeniable as it is obvious; but that +there are impulses of cultural possibilities which are lavished upon +some races while totally withheld from others is a thesis which finds +no sanction in history or archaeology. + +Archaeology is the guiding light in which we grope in our attempt +to explore the life of ancient man. In Europe and in Asia we have +unearthed numerous evidences of prehistoric cultures. There may +have been surprise at the antiquity and variety but certainly not +at the location, for it was highly probable that the present high +civilization of Europe and Asia had risen from the ruins of older +ones; yet it cannot be longer doubted that when archaeology as a +searchlight was turned upon Africa there was occasion of surprise when +that Dark Land yielded evidences of a civilization that antedated the +arrival of the European. It would be just as hard to designate the +African cultures as purely Negro as to designate the European cultures +as purely Teuton. However, a study of African culture promises richer +results when it can be identified with certain Negro tribes or such +Negroid tribes as have a large extraction of Negro blood. The findings +of archaeology have not only a backward look but also a meaning for +the future and especially is this true of African cultures, which not +only throw light upon the past of the black man but may also become +prophetic of his future. It shall be the purpose of this treatise +to analyze the African cultures so as to disclose their essential +elements and to compare these elements with their counterparts in +European cultures. + +Once attention had been directed towards Africa, there arose numerous +archaeological expeditions and especially noteworthy were the findings +of those from Germany and England, the two European countries which +had the most ambitious schemes of colonization. In details there is +not always agreement among the various archaeological explorers; but, +in the main, there is a unanimity that is marvelous and especially is +this true when there is evidenced such keen rivalry that is at bottom +doubtless economic. + +What are the essential elements of civilization? What are the cultural +manifestations which constitute the _sine qua non_ of human progress? +What is the "irreducible minimum" of civilization? A studied answer +must include ethics, art and government, for without any one of these +no social order can claim for itself an approach to civilization. The +cultures of nations and races must be expressive of these cardinal +elements of social expression. In investigating African cultures and +their essential elements it is deemed best to dwell at greatest length +on the positive aspects of these cultural manifestations. To attempt +a negative exposition of the primitive cultures of any people will not +reveal any worthwhile criterion of its worth especially when the scope +of investigation is limited to three essential elements of culture. +If ethics, art and government constitute the irreducible minimum of +civilization which is manifested in certain cultural aspects, it is +clear at the outset that specialization in ethics, art and government +is the measure of a people's advancement. + + +I. ETHICS + +Of the African peoples let us consider first their ethics. It can +hardly be doubted that it was an important step in man's upward +journey when he reached what anthropologists have called "the dawn +of mind" but it was no less momentous an event when there was within +him the dawn of morality. Morality is the highest defensive weapon +which mankind can wield. So important has it become in the struggle +for existence that, to man, the highest form of greatness is a moral +greatness. That the highest civilizations of history have been +grounded in moral strength has become an historical postulate, but +what of the races and nations that live beyond their pale? Were the +Africans in their crude and primitive surroundings moral beings? +Tillinghast and Beauvais would doubtless answer in the negative. +The former in his _The Negro in Africa and America_ is loud in +his criticism of the ethical standards of the African, in fact he +seriously doubts the advisability of saying that the tribes of Africa +have an awakened moral sense. Frobenius, however, comes forward with +an assertion to the contrary, asserting: "I cannot do otherwise than +say, that these human creatures are the chastest and most ethically +disposed of all the national groups in the world which have become +known to me."[1] In justice to the other "national groups" we may say +that Frobenius here doubtless overdraws the virtues of the Yoruban +tribes, yet his assertions when taken with ever so much reserve would +lead to the conclusion that the Africans have considerable moral +sense. Frobenius leaves no doubt that the Yorubans are a mixed people, +although certain degrees of mixtures of people are found everywhere; +and the fact that they are mixed alone will not vitiate the validity +of Yoruban civilization as a phase of African culture. Roscoe in +writing of the Baganda tribes has been as careful to impress us with +their blackness as Frobenius has been to indicate the Yoruban mixture. +He says: "Sex profligacy is open and thought to be no wrong. They +thought it no moral wrong to indulge the sex desire."[2] Yet Roscoe +further says: "The most stringent care was exercised by the king and +chiefs, but it proved inefficient to keep the sexes apart, while +horrible punishment meted out to the delinquents when caught seemed +to lend zest to the danger incurred."[3] The significant thing in +Roscoe's account is not the open sex profligacy but the "stringent +care exercised by kings and chiefs" and the "horrible punishment meted +out to offenders." After all, there is abundant evidence that even in +Baganda there is some ethical standard. + +Roscoe continues: "Theft is not common among the people for they +were deterred from stealing by fear of punishment which was certain +to follow."[4] The very fact that there was fear of punishment is +indicative of some conception of social morality. Fear as a preventive +of crime is not the most commendable incentive to morality, but it +is one that must be employed in all civilizations; for man is first +an animal then a moral being. The fear referred to does not prove +that the Baganda has the highest type of morality, but it proves that +they have a type and this is significant for primitive peoples. The +low standard in anything may be prophetic of higher ones which are +approachable only by means of the lower ones as stepping stones. This +is true in art, science and religion. The fact that the Bagandas were +"hospitable and liberal and that real poverty did not exist"[5] shows +the presence of a social consciousness which in many ways evidences a +standard of ethics. According to Roscoe the thief was killed on the +spot, death for adultery was certain;[6] yet he attempts to maintain +his thesis as to their lack of morality in these words: "The moral +ideas of the people are crude, it was not wrongdoing but detection +that they feared; men were restrained from committing crimes through +fear of the power of the gods."[7] It is obvious that "detection" is +to be feared only where there are detectives and these are present +only when they have been called forth in response to some social +demands. + +There is still other light to be turned on the ethical status of +the African tribes. Bent, more sympathetic towards the natives of +Mashonaland, delivers himself thus: "Not only has Khama established +his reputation for honesty; but he is supposed to have inoculated his +people with the same virtue. I must say that I looked forward with +great interest to seeing a man with so wide a reputation for integrity +and enlightenment as Khama in South Africa. Somehow one's spirit of +skepticism is on the alert on such occasions and especially when a +Negro is the case in point; and I candidly admit that I advanced +towards Palapwe fully prepared to find Ba Mangwato a rascal and +hypocrite and I left his capital after a week's stay there one of his +fervent admirers."[8] But Dent adds: "Doubtless on the traversed roads +and large centers where they are brought into contact with traders +and would-be civilizers of the race, these people become thieves and +vagabonds, but in their primitive state the Makalangas are naturally +honest, exceedingly courteous in manner."[9] + +It is plain to the impartial critic that judged by our ethical +standards the peoples commended above would fall far short; but this +is no less true with the earliest civilization of historic times. +Standards not only vary from age to age but from people to people. +In arguing to support the thesis that in Africa the lowliest tribes +had some ethical standard, it is not necessary to prove that these +standards compare favorably or unfavorably with those of modern times. +Such is beside the question and with the testimony of the English +and German archaeologists before us we are safe in saying that the +African tribes had an ethical standard and thus the potentials of a +civilization based upon morality. Neither can it be proved that the +ethical standards of the tribes of Baganda, Mashonaland and Yoruba +are without worth because they differ in so many particulars from our +own. Later we shall attempt to show just why there is such disparity +between their ethics and ours. Furthermore, it is not necessary to +prove that ethical contacts with Europeans affords no basis for the +tribesmen but it is reasonable to suppose that the ethics of the +African tribes had possibilities the same as the earliest nations of +Europe and Asia; and if contacts with Europeans be argued against the +proposition that the Africans evolved an ethical standard, the same +argument may be used to bedim the glory of our own civilization. + +We, therefore, contend that whatever possibilities lie with the people +who can evolve an ethical standard surely must lie with the African. +It is true that the happy faculty of coordinating ethics with ideals +has made nations great and civilizations splendid, and that such +faculty evidenced itself in the long-dark continent of Africa. The +principle of evolution is just as operative in the world of ethics +as in the world of physical sciences. Ethics must grow and outgrown +ethics is ethics notwithstanding. The most rabid critic does not deny +to Africa ethical origins, but such authorities as Tillinghast and +Beauvais would deny their practical worth. These men criticize the +standard rather than deny that there are ethical manifestations of +culture. Ellwood in his Sociology and Social Problems contends that +the regulation of sex relations has been the greatest achievement of +man. Granting the truth of this statement, we have evidences that the +African made desperate efforts to regulate sex relations both by a +kind of public opinion and by punishment; for Roscoe says: "It was +looked upon as a great disgrace to a family if a girl was with child +prior to marriage."[10] We are certain that there was "marriage" and +this itself is an indication that an attempt had been made to regulate +the all-important matter of sex. Roscoe further held that "the +marriage vow was binding."[11] Both those writers who commended the +ethics of the Africans and those who belittled their standard, then, +are essentially agreed to the fact of their ethics. Although there +were wide variations in the standards of different tribes, we are +abundantly justified in assuming that the ethics of the Africans was +as susceptible to improvement as our own. The more advanced standards +were prophetic of still more advanced ones. + + +II. ART + +What a man admires is an infallible index to his innermost soul. +Whether in the adornment of some temple or the crude markings upon +primitive pottery, man is ever striving to express himself in his +labors. Strange to say that though the passion for self-expression +is dominant in human activities, the art of expression is still in +its infancy. We may divide human artifacts into two classes, namely, +those of utility and those of aestheticism. That the latter has a +form of utility we should in no case deny but as to the utility of +aesthetics we deem it beside the point here to discuss. When we use +the term "art" in this treatise it will have the specific meaning of +the attempt on the part of man to express his emotions; or his attempt +to satisfy the aesthetic cravings in the soul. That there are such +cravings is a fact which is universally conceded. That there are many +evidences of such attempts among all civilized lands none will deny. +That man's attempts at artistic expression is a criterion of his +civilization is an historic fact. There can be no civilization without +its concomitants of aesthetics. Man seeks beauty for beauty's sake, +and he alone of the animals gives evidence of such propensity to a +pronounced degree. In song, upon canvas, and in marble, humanity has +poured forth its innermost soul of sentiments inexpressibly sublime. +There is no passion, no object that has not at some time inflamed the +soul and moved some mortal to the abode of the gods. + +What have the explorers in Darkest Africa found to indicate that +the Africans loved the beautiful? What have the Africans to show +as specimens of fine art? The music of Negro peoples has become +proverbial. In so far as song is an expression of aesthetic +propensities the African abundantly qualifies as a lover of art. +Whether the strength of a Wagner or the melody of a Beethoven; whether +the melody of a southern plantation or a concert in Symphony Hall, the +principle of the music is the same. The crude instruments of which +the explorer tells us are mute testimonials of the African's attempts +to express himself in song and music. There were to be found in the +Bagandaland, according to Roscoe, drums for dancing and the "royal" +drum was elaborately decorated, thus showing a combination of sight +and soul appreciation for beauty. He said that the harp and stringed +fife were also found in this same tribe. The pottery found in this +region was glazed and figures painted thereon indicated beyond doubt +artistic design of no mean order. The basketry had various figures +worked through the skillful manipulation of the bark fibres. Roscoe +asserts that polychrome paintings were much in evidence among the +Baganda tribes and their work in ivory corresponded favorably with +the same kind of work found in Europe during the Neolithic Age. +Whether fine art was indigenous is not a pertinent question but +the significant thing is that Roscoe found these tribes actually +giving expression to what seemed to be a well-developed sense of the +beautiful. + +When Bent reached the ruined city of Zimbabwe, he found the natives +playing upon one-stringed instruments with gourds as resonators and +he avers that "the sound was plaintive if not sweet."[12] That a mode +of dress is primitive is no proof that it lacks taste and a subtle +refinement. This is amply illustrated by the striking beauty of +Egyptian costumes which now again grace the modern stage. Though four +thousand years have elapsed since Egypt basked in the pristine glory +that was hers, we have many evidences that what was pretty then is not +ugly now. This is no less true of the remnants of those who saw the +sun of glory shine upon Mashonaland. In remarking about their apparel +Roscoe is positive in the assertion that "their dress evidences taste +when not contaminated with a hybrid civilization."[13] Like the +Cretans, they displayed artistic tendencies to the extent the simplest +tool bore evidences of ornamentation. If such tendency in the Cretans +was indicative of the artistic temperament, a similar tendency in the +Africans must be similarly interpreted. + +According to Roscoe, definite stages are well defined and can be +definitely traced in their paintings. At first the themes were things +and later they were men and the human body as a design for the artist +is clearly portrayed. There was a "breast and furrow" type of painting +that marked almost every object with which they had to do. The piano +with iron keys was very much like such instruments found in Egypt. +The Jews' harp was found in many quarters. There can be no doubt that +music had its place in the life of the Mashonaland. But music is a +fine art and its value lies largely if not wholly in its appeal to our +aesthetic natures. What can be the meaning of such evidences of love +of music among the African tribes? Can it not be interpreted as their +response to the appeal of the beautiful? + +Of the great defensive walls of Zimbabwe Bent says: "The fort is +a marvel with its tortuous and well-guarded approaches; its walls +bristling with monoliths and round towers, its temple decorated with +tall weird-looking birds, its huge decorated bowls. The only parallel +that I have seen were the long avenues of menhirs near Carnac in +Brittany. One cannot fail to recognize the vastness and power of this +ancient race, their greatness of constructive ingenuity and their +strategic skill."[14] Of course, there is evidence that the present +inhabitants of those ruined cities were not the tribes that once ruled +mightily in these regions. Bent himself holds that such high culture +must have come from another people. The very fact that the present +population seems so far below the level of culture that once prevailed +there is the only evidence upon which Bent predicates his argument +that another race than the Negroes were the bearers of this great +culture. However, it is hardly probable that the level of culture +was foreign to the Negroes who lived in the palmy days of Zimbabwe. +There must have been an overlapping of cultures even if we grant +that another race produced the culture of this region. It is hardly +probable that a dominant race would have wholly abdicated in favor of +the natives and it is still less probable that the natives could have +dislodged a race so strongly fortified. It is highly probable that the +same race of people could have produced the peoples who occupied the +level of these two very different cultures. No one supposes that the +inhabitants of Athens today are equal to the Greeks of the days of +Pericles. Yet they are connected with the same great race. + +Aside from the ancient walls and temples reputed to be the products +of a genius foreign to the tribes of today, Bent comments favorably +upon the art such as is the product of the modern inhabitant. With +regard to a beautiful bowl he says: "The work displayed in executing +these bowls, the careful rounding of edges, the exact execution of the +circle, the fine pointed tool marks and the subjects they chose to +depict point to a race having been far advanced in artistic skill." +Hunting scenes are numerous and in the processions of men, animals +are often put in to make for relief, sometimes a bird is introduced +for the same effect. It is quite singular that in one of the hunting +scenes the sportsman is a Hottentot. Sculptoring was usually done in +soapstone and the bird upon the post is a subject which is frequently +depicted. The drawings found by Bent in the Mazoe Valley were simple +yet beautifully executed. The magnificent hand-made pottery is +decorated in patterns of red and black which colors are obtained +from hemolite and plumbogo. If we turn with Bent to Mtokoland and +see in the Mtoko's kraal the drawings of the Bushmen, "we can trace +distinctly three different periods of execution. The first is crude +and now faint representation of unknown life; the second is deeper +in color and admirably executed and partly on top of this latter are +animals of the best period of this art in red and yellow. The third is +an inartistic representation of human beings which evidently belongs +to a period of decadence and in the execution of this work the colors +invariably are red, yellow and black."[15] + +What significance has this manifestation of art? What coloring does +it give to the cultural development of Africa? It simply means that +the African like other peoples enjoys the finer sentiments that make +life worth living. Among the writers there is as much unanimity on the +question of African art as there is on African ethics. All told, it +goes to show that in the essentials of culture the tribes of Africa +are not entirely wanting and there are many close parallels between +the cultural development in Africa and that in Neolithic Europe. What +difference there is is one of degree and not of kind. While Lady +Lugard's work savored more of politics than of archaeology, it cannot +be doubted that her vote may be cast on the side of those who contend +that the cultural manifestations of the African are pronounced when +their background is considered. Though crude and rudimentary, though +often hidden beneath brutal superstitions, there is always a cultural +norm with brilliant possibilities for social betterment. At best we +can be no more than fundamentally right or fundamentally good, and +this lends color to the claim of the African to real culture. + + +III. GOVERNMENT + +Much has been said about the feeble government which the African sets +up. More has been said of his innate inability in matters of civic +importance. The matter of government is important, for it is doubtful +if there can be any approach to any civilization worthy of the name +without some stable form of government. It is generally conceded that +the democratic form of government is the best developed stage of the +body politic; but this form even at present is far from realization. +While it is a great and inspiring ideal, its presupposition is that +people are capable of self-government and in many cases this is a +supposition that is not based on fact and cannot be corroborated in +practice. If democracy is the highest form, absolute monarchy may be +the lowest form. Yet monarchy is a form of government and despite +the low esteem in which it is held within recent years, it must +be admitted that for ages monarchical government was the guardian +and custodian of civilization. It is more necessary to have some +government than it is to have good government. + +Africa is no exception to this rule. Frobenius goes so far as to +say that the government in the Yorubaland was fashioned after a +republic.[16] With superior and subordinate officials the Yorubans +had the semblance of an orderly government. There was the king with +a senate which filled the function of cabinet as well. At the court +were counsellors-at-law and attorneys for the state. Says Frobenius: +"Before the advent of Mohammedanism, forms of civilization of equal +value and significance must have been operative in the Soudan."[17] +"In fact," he continues, "the government was excellent and I was +delighted with the simple administration of the law and official +summary punishment in Makwa."[18] Of the Great Benin tribes Roth says: +"If theft is seldom heard of here, of murder we hear still less.[19] +When the Arabs first visited Negroland by the western route in the +eighth and ninth centuries of our era, they found the black kings +of Ghana in the height of their prosperity. But the black kings of +Ghana had long passed into oblivion when Edris, one of the greatest +kings of Bornu, was making gunpowder for the musketeers of his army +contemporary with Queen Elizabeth."[20] + +El Bekri, a Spanish Arab and author of Tarikh-es-Soudan says of Mansa +Musa one of the nobles of Ghana: "He was distinguished by his ability +and holiness of life. The justice of his administration was such that +it still lives."[21] Three hundred years later a Songhay said of him: +"As a pious and equitable prince, he was unequalled for virtue and +uprightness."[22] + +The duration of the Soudanese empires, moreover, will bear comparison +with that of others which are better known to fame. Ghana enjoyed an +independent existence of about eleven hundred years--that is, a period +nearly equivalent to the period of existence of the British Empire +from the abolition of the Saxon Heptarchy to the present day. Melle +which succeeded Ghana had a shorter national life of about two hundred +and fifty years. Songhay counted its kings in regular succession from +700 to 1591--a period which almost equals the life of the Roman +Empire from the foundation of the republic before the Christian era to +the downfall of the empire in the second half of the fifth century. +The duration of Bornu was less reputable. + +The civilization represented by these empires was no doubt, if judged +by modern standards, exceedingly imperfect. "The principle of freedom, +as we understand it, was probably unknown; authority rested upon force +of arms; industrial life was based upon slavery; social life was +founded on polygamy. Side by side with barbaric splendor there was +primeval simplicity. Luxury for the few took the place of comforts +for the many. Study was devoted to what seems to us unprofitable +ends. Yet the fact that civilization, far in excess of anything which +the nations of northern Europe possessed at the earlier period of +Soudanese history, existed with stability enough to maintain empire +after empire through a known period of about 1500 years in a portion +of the world which mysteriously disappeared in the sixteenth century +from the comity of modern nations."[23] + +Bent holds that "three hundred years before the Portuguese came to +this country the natives were ruled over by a chief with the dynastic +name of Nonomapata. From the evidence brought forward we are well +within the range of probability when we say that in various parts +of Africa there has been a very close approach to well-ordered +government dating from ancient days. That these governments are +non-existent today can not be laid to their discredit nor to their +faulty organization. It is a fact that the earth has not produced the +government that could very long defy the ravages of time. A journey +down the wreckstrewn highway of the ages will reveal the dry bones of +a thousand empires and it is not surprising that the humbler states of +Africa can be numbered among them. The fact that there are evidences +of decadent states in tribal Africa has its parallel in various parts +of Europe today." + +We have shown that archaeological research has revealed that the +darkness in Africa has not been from time immemorial. We have found +that the "_quod novi ex Africa_" is obsolete in an archaeological +sense. We have brought forward testimony deduced from reliable sources +that Africa is not without an historic past. We have further shown +that in eastern, central and western Africa the natives not only +exhibit now these cultural manifestations, but also there is revealed +abundant evidence of a prehistoric culture that compares favorably +with the earlier cultures of Europe. We are candid enough to admit +that in standard the cultures of Africa are inferior to our own, but +we must also admit that the present high standards in our own ethics, +art and government have not always prevailed and that there is a past +to these standards which is not always assuring. + +There is one question that demands an answer before we have concluded. +It is a question that is as reasonable as it is vexatious. Why have +not the nations of Africa kept pace with other mightier countries? +Why is Africa at present suffering political dissection which +would have been impossible had she fully developed the cardinal +elements of ethics, art and government? Why is there no help for her +dismemberment which constitutes the pity of the age? The answer to +these questions is obvious when we shall have considered, first, one +of the fundamental propositions in human psychology. The rise of one +nation may hinder the rise of the other. It is not improbable that an +accentuated civilization in Europe might have retarded civilization +in Africa. We do know that the slave trade had a tremendous effect +on their fortunes. When once a group makes unusual progress and by +its ambition destroys the bridge over which it passed, it cannot +be doubted that its ambitions considerably alter the fortunes of +others at its mercy. Lady Lugard cannot be gainsaid when she asserts +thus with regard to the slave trade: "Through the chaos of these +conflicting interests, the practice of slave-raiding, carried on +alike by the highest and lowest, ran like the poison of a destructive +sore, destroying every possibility of peaceful and prosperous +development."[24] + +There may be further asked the question why did not Africa rise as did +the other peoples and make her exploitation impossible. We are forced +to turn from social to natural factors. The geography of Europe is +quite different from that of Africa. When wave after wave of migrants +left the Iranian plains and turned west and east and south, it is +clear that those who turned into Africa had an endless journey before +them ere they had to the margin come. Of great mountain ranges there +were none. On the monotonous plains of Africa the cultural extensions +must have been horizontal. The races that went into Europe were more +quickly stayed in their onward march by the coldness of the north. Not +only this but they were in the midst of a mountainous country where +tribes and peoples could drift into human eddies and there remain +out of the current of human activities for ages. Not only might they +remain aloof from the busy thoroughfare of migrating myriads but +within each eddy there was the possibility of a growth in culture in +its simpler aspects. By and by, the culture of one eddy was crossed +with the culture of other eddies that had developed in other cultural +directions or farther in the same direction. In time there was by +reason of the northern limit of Europe a rebound of the population +and this was also a rebound of cultures. The various crosses and +modification of cultures made it more probable that civilized progress +would be accelerated. The culture of Europe was, by reason of the +physical geography, a heterogeneous culture, while that of Africa was +necessarily homogeneous in view of the geography of that continent. + +In support of my contention I refer to Ripley who says: "The +remarkable prehistoric civilization of Italy is due to the union of +cultures, one from Hallstatt region having entered from the west +via the Danube, the other coming from the southeast by sea being +distinctly Mediterranean. From the fusion of these cultures came the +Umbrian and Etruscan civilizations." Ripley further contends that the +ancient high civilization of Mesopotamia was possible because it was +a point of convergence of immigration and invasion. Civilization has +always been accentuated at points where cultures could cross.[25] +There are few or none such points in Africa; hence the retardation +of cultures there. As Lady Lugard said, the slave trade aggravated +the cultural disadvantages which grew out of the physical geography +of Africa, and because of its monotony of environment there has been +little or no cross fertilization of cultures, the indispensable +requisite to cultural development.[26] + + GORDON BLAINE HANCOCK + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Frobenius, _The Voice of Africa_, 673. + +[2] _Baganda, Their Customs and Beliefs_, 10. + +[3] _Ibid._ + +[4] Roscoe, _Baganda_, 12. + +[5] _Ibid._, 120. + +[6] _Ibid._, 263. + +[7] _Ibid._, 267. + +[8] Bent, _Mashonaland_, 22. + +[9] _Ibid._, 53. + +[10] Roscoe, _The Baganda_, 79. + +[11] _Ibid._ + +[12] Bent, _Ruined Cities of Mashonaland_, 18. + +[13] _Ibid._, 37. + +[14] Bent, _Ruined Cities of Mashonaland_, 113. + +[15] _Ibid._, 292. + +[16] Frobenius, _Voice of Africa_, 180. + +[17] _Ibid._, 360. + +[18] _Ibid._, 388. + +[19] Roth, _Great Benin_, 86. + +[20] _Ibid._, 82. + +[21] Roth, _Great Benin_, 128. + +[22] _Ibid._, 129. + +[23] _Ibid._, 217. + +[24] Lugard, _A Tropical Dependency_. + +[25] Ripley, _Races of Europe_. + +[26] Lugard, _A Tropical Dependency_. + + + + +METHODISM AND THE NEGRO IN THE UNITED STATES + + +The first converted Negro Methodist was baptized by John Wesley. +November 29, 1758, he wrote in his diary: "I rode to Wandsworth, and +baptized two Negroes belonging to Mr. Gilbert, a gentleman lately +from Antigua. One of these was deeply convinced of sin; the other is +rejoicing in God, her savior, and is the first African Christian I +have known. But shall not God, in his own time, have these heathen +also for his inheritance?"[1] Eight years later (1766) the first +Methodist congregation of five met in the private house of Philip +Embury, in New York. One of that number was Betty, a Negro servant +girl. + +In 1816, fifty years after that first service in New York, the +Methodists in the United States numbered 214,235 communicants. Of +these 171,931 were white and 42,304, or nearly one-fourth, were +Negroes. Two interesting facts are, that of these 42,304 Negro +members, 30,000 or nearly three-fourths were in the South, and +gathered principally from the slave population.[2] + +These figures indicate the faithfulness of early Methodism to the +Negro, whether bond or free. These words and spirit of Freeborn +Garrettson only illustrate those of Coke, Asbury, and their +associates. Under divine guidance, Garrettson had freed his slaves. +He says: "I often set apart times to preach to the blacks, ... and +precious moments have I had, while many of their sable faces were +bedewed with tears, their withered hands of faith stretched out, and +their precious souls made white in the blood of the Lamb."[3] + +In 1786 Asbury organized the first Sunday School in the United States +in the house of David Crenshaw, Maryland.[4] Both Negro and white +youth attended. One of the first converts in that school was a Negro, +John Charleston, who afterwards became a noted preacher.[5] Four years +later the Conference provided for Sunday Schools for white and black +children, with text books and volunteer teachers; and all ministers +were directed to use diligence in gathering the sons and daughters +of Ham into societies, and administer among them full discipline of +the church. In 1800 the ordination of Negroes was authorized. Where +the colored membership was large, and it was desired, especially in +the cities and larger towns, separate services and churches were +provided. The policy of the church, as to the association of the races +in worship, is indicated by the following from the report of the Board +of Missions in South Carolina, in 1832: "As a general rule for our +circuits and stations, we deem it best to include the colored people +in the same pastoral charge with the whites, and to preach to both +classes in one congregation, as our practice has been. The gospel is +the same to all men, and to enjoy its privileges in common promotes +good-will."[6] There were many eminently successful Negro local +preachers, whose services were very acceptable to white congregations. +During these first fifty years all the Negro societies or classes were +under the direct care of white churches and pastors. + +At the close of the first half century of Methodism in America what +is known as African Methodism had its beginning. Difficulties arose +as to church seating and pastoral service, and in New York there was +dissatisfaction concerning proposed legislation on church property. +The outcome was a distinct and successful movement in favor of +separate Negro Methodist denominations. At Wilmington, Delaware, in +1813, the Union American Methodist Episcopal Church was organized. +In 1815 the African Methodist Episcopal Church had its beginning in +Philadelphia and five years later the African Methodist Episcopal Zion +Church was organized in New York. The conviction underlying these +separate Negro denominations is, that there is less opportunity for +friction on account of race prejudice, whether among whites or blacks, +and freer and better opportunities for the development of self-help +and racial capabilities.[7] + +The organization of African Methodism, independent of white control +or association, in the North, was the most striking event previous +to 1844, when the white Methodist hosts, North and South, were to be +divided. In the South the chief event of interest, outside of faithful +work of itinerants in preaching to the slave population in connection +with regular pastorates, was the successful founding of plantation +missions. Thus far the converts had been chiefly among the more +favored or house-servant class. Beyond these were vast multitudes, +probably four-fifths of the two million slaves of that day, where +intellectual and moral paganism reigned. Philanthropists, both in and +outside of the various churches, saw and recognized the necessity of +some movement beyond the regular church work, to carry the blessings +of Christian civilization into the gloom of this darker Africa in +America. Methodists led in this important work. + +The plan adopted was to send missionaries to the plantations, to +be supported by the planters themselves, who were friendly to the +work. Doctor (afterwards Bishop) Capers was the apostle of this +forward movement. The importance of these efforts of this churchman +are attested on a modest stone over the grave of the Bishop, at +Columbia, South Carolina, by these words, "Founder of Missions to the +Slaves." Under his guidance heroic itinerants were found to brave +the dangers of disease and bodily discomfort, and go into the swamps +and plantation cabins on a mission as holy as that which sent Cox to +Africa and Carey to India. Not a few of them died as martyrs, but the +places of those who fell were quickly filled. Volunteers would arise +in the annual conferences and say to the Bishops, "Here are we, send +us." This language is one of a sample of all: "We court no publicity; +we seek no gain; we dread no sickness in going after the souls of +these blacks for whom Christ died. If we may save some of them from +going down to the pit, and succeed in pointing their steps to the +heavenly city, all will be well."[8] + +The greatest success was in South Carolina, where, in 1839, at the +end of ten years, seventeen missionaries were employed. There were 97 +appointments, embracing 234 plantations and 6,556 church members, to +whom preaching and the sacraments were regularly given. They had also +under regular catechetical instruction 25,025 Negro children. + +In 1844, when the division of American Methodism became inevitable, +these plantation missions were in the full tide of success. They were +maintained and rejoiced in by the whole Methodist Episcopal Church. +Their chief support, however, came from Methodists and other friends +in the South. In the year mentioned there were 68 missions in nine +of the Southern States, with 80 missionaries and 22,063 members. In +that year, white southern conferences paid $22,379.25 to this work. +It is estimated that the conferences in the South gave for this cause +$200,000 during fifteen years, up to 1844.[9] + +The "Brother in Black," however, brought the republic an irrepressible +conflict, ending in frightful civil war. So, too, it must be said, +that in Methodism, for nearly a century Negro slavery was the occasion +of discussion and legislation, and at last of division, which Calhoun +considered the beginning of the dismemberment of the Union. Methodism +grew with the colonies, and at the close of the American Revolution +had 84 preachers and 15,000 members in its societies. It was the +first organized American church that officially gave its benediction, +through Washington, to the young republic. Its spirit and itinerant +system kept its organizations on the front wave of every movement +of population. Its mission was salvation to rich and poor alike, +regardless of race. Its only test of membership was "a sincere desire +to flee from the wrath to come." Peoples of every station in life, +bond and free, educated and illiterate, rich and poor, political +friends and antagonists, were alike attracted by the impassioned +appeals of her apostolic missionaries. Her form of government brought +into annual and quadrennial conferences all questions of polity or +principle involved in administration. Other churches might relegate +important questions of discipline to individual societies; Methodism +could not. Every important matter must be settled by a majority vote +of representatives of the whole church. + +On doctrines there were no divisions. Not so as to questions +relating to African slavery. As to the abstract right and wrong +of that institution, for many years there was but little division +among Methodists. Later some in the South talked of the "divine +institution," and occasionally a Northern man claimed that a Christian +might buy and sell slaves without sin. The legislation of the church, +however, was clear and explicit to this effect: "Slavery is contrary +to the laws of God and man, and wrong and hurtful to society." All +buying and selling of slaves, then, was forbidden.[10] Gradually the +irrepressible conflict began in the church. The Northern section more +and more taught that slavery was wrong, and could in no way be excused +or tolerated by the church of Christ, without partaking of its sin. +The South held that slavery was a civil institution, approved by the +word of God, and that the church was not responsible for its existence +or its abuses. The duty of the church in its relation to slavery was +taught to be loyalty to civil government, as represented by national +and State laws, and to give the gospel as far as possible to both +master and slave. + +For more than half a century the largest growth of the church had been +in the Southern States, and Southern views as to slavery modified +legislation in relation to that institution. On the other hand, with +the development of the West and Northwest, the balance of legislative +influence shifted northward until in the historic General Conference +of 1844, Bishop Andrews of Georgia, having become related to slavery +by marriage, was requested by a vote of 111 to 69 "to desist from +the exercise of his episcopal office so long as this impediment +remained."[11] Then followed the inevitable division, and the +organization of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. Only seventeen +years later the Civil War began and Southern Methodist hosts gave +their sympathies, prayers, votes, money and sons to the Army of Gray; +while Methodists in the North, to quote the words of Lincoln, "sent +more prayers to heaven and soldiers to the field" for the Army in +Blue, than any other Christian church. Thus may people of God of like +faith have diverse consciences and differ, first, in sentiment and +policies, then in conviction and duty, and at last prayerfully face +each other at the cannon's mouth in deadly combat. + +The years from 1844 to 1846 were indeed momentous in the history of +the American Methodism in its relation to the Negro. That little +company of five in New York in seventy-eight years had in 1845 come to +be a multitude of 1,139,583 communicants, whose presence and spiritual +energy were felt in every community of the republic, North, South, +East and West. Of that membership, 150,120 were Negroes, chiefly +in the South, and mostly gathered from among the slave population. +But now there was to be division, the North to be more and more +anti-slavery and the South to be more and more pro-slavery. + +Then followed three Methodist divisions as related to the Negro: +First, the African organizations already mentioned, with their chief +strength in the Eastern States; and second, the Methodist Episcopal +Church, South, with a total membership of 447,961 in 1846. Of these +118,904 were Negro slaves with few exceptions. This church occupied +all the territory of the Southern States exclusively, except along the +border. Methodists in Maryland, Virginia, Delaware and the District +of Columbia, including the Baltimore and part of the Philadelphia +Annual Conferences, and also many members along the border farther +west, did not join in the Southern movement. In the third place, then, +there remained in the Methodist Episcopal Church still (1846) a total +membership of 644,558. Of these 30,516 were Negroes, of whom about +20,000 were slaves. + +The following twenty years were crowded with far-reaching events in +church and state, as affecting the Negro. Each of the three divisions +of Methodism had its place according to its convictions during that +twenty years of agitation and war. The distinctly Negro organizations +in the North, while having slaves in their own communions, were, of +course, anti-slavery in principle, and sought in every way to advance +the cause of abolitionism. Outside of Maryland and Delaware they +had no churches in the South, except one in New Orleans and one in +Louisville. A church organized in Charleston was driven out, after an +attempted Negro insurrection. Permission was given by the mayor of St. +Louis to one of its ministers to preach in that city, but the permit +was afterwards recalled on learning the sentiments of his church.[12] + +During this period of twenty years the Methodist Episcopal Church had +wonderful growth throughout the North and West in membership, church +buildings, publishing interests, educational institutions, and in +social and moral power. Her entire membership rose from 644,294 to +1,032,184. Her Negro membership, however, steadily declined. In 1846 +it numbered, as we have seen, 30,516, while in 1865 at the close of +the Civil War there were only 18,139. Shut away from the large Negro +populations of the South, and confronted with aggressive African +Methodism among the smaller Negro population in the North calling +for separation from the whites in ecclesiastical organization and +government, the field of operation of the Methodist Episcopal Church +was necessarily proscribed among Africa's sons and daughters. She was, +however, faithful to her trust and retained her Negro membership in +church and conference relations, and, as the years went by, became +more and more permeated with sentiments of antagonism to slavery, both +as related to the church and the nation. + +To this branch of Methodism, moreover, belongs the honor of +establishing the first Methodist institution of higher learning +for the education of colored people. In 1855 the Cincinnati Annual +Conference appointed the Rev. John F. Wright as agent "to take +incipient steps for a college for colored people." In two years +Wilberforce University, near Xenia, Ohio, was established, with +fifty-two acres of land and large and commodious buildings. The next +year the Visiting Committee of the Conference reported the school in a +flourishing condition, and said: "The examinations showed conclusively +that the minds of the present class of students are capable of a very +high degree of cultivation." Under the presidency of Rev. R. S. Rust +the school was successful until financial embarrassment compelled +suspension in 1863. One reason given was the War, and the consequent +difficulty of obtaining funds from the South. From the beginning, the +friendly co-operation of the African Methodist Episcopal Church was +encouraged and received. Fortunately the leaders of that denomination +were able to assume the indebtedness which was a nominal sum as +compared with the value of the property. The lands and buildings +were transferred with the good wishes and prayers of the Methodist +Episcopal Church, ministry, and people, and Wilberforce University +became, and continues to be, the chief educational center of African +Methodism in the United States.[13] + +Freed from all embarrassments from connectional relations with +abolition sentiment the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, prospered +in its way. Her territory was rapidly extending westward and +southwestward, population and wealth were increasing, and slavery +being embedded in the national and state constitutions, pro-slavery +sentiment prevailed without question. Her total membership from +1846 to 1861 advanced from 449,654 to 703,295. This was, in fifteen +years, an increase of 162,749. Dividing this increase by races, we +find that among white people the growth was from 330,710 in 1846 to +493,459 in 1861, being an increase of 162,749. During the same period +the Negro membership went from 118,904 to 209,836, being an increase +of 90,932. Efforts to increase the slave membership in connection +with the regular charges were continued with encouraging results, +and the plantation mission work among the slaves was prosecuted +with gratifying success. The largest figures were reached in 1861, +when there were 329 Negro missions throughout the South, with 327 +missionaries and 66,559 members. It is estimated that the Methodist +Episcopal Church, South, from 1844 to 1864, when freedom came, +expended $1,800,000 in plantation work among the slaves.[14] + +The sudden emancipation of almost 4,000,000 Negro slaves meant new and +tremendous responsibilities for the loyal and philanthropic people of +the Northern States. The churches and benevolent organizations of the +South had all shared largely in the demoralization caused by the Civil +War, and were without financial resources. Neither was it reasonable +to expect that the Southern people would do for free Negroes what they +had done for them when slaves, much less enter upon the absolutely +necessary missionary movement, to prepare the newly enfranchised for +the responsibilities incident to freedom. + +For more than half a century, outside of what the general and State +governments have done or attempted to do, the tide of philanthropic +and Christian aid for the Negro has gone Southward, and will continue +as long as needed. How many million dollars have been expended by +churches, educational boards and individual philanthropists has not +been computed. Neither has anyone attempted to measure the results +of the work of the many consecrated men and women, who have given +and are still giving their lives for the uplift of the Negro race +since emancipation. The results are manifest. Already the advance of +this people since freedom in morality, intellectual development and +economic success has no parallel, in the same time, in the history of +any other race. + +The Methodist Episcopal Church and the two large branches of African +Methodism were in the fore-front of this movement from the beginning. +The African Methodist Episcopal Church had at first its chief increase +in the South along the Atlantic Coast, especially in South Carolina +and Florida. Bishop Arnett, the statistician of that denomination, +estimates that 75,000 of the Negro membership of the Methodist +Episcopal Church, South, transferred their church relations to that +denomination. The African Zion Church as a factor in the South had its +beginning in North Carolina and Alabama. It is estimated that at least +25,000 of the Southern Negro members united with this branch. Both of +these sections of African Methodism have continued to prosecute their +work of evangelization and education throughout the South, as well as +the North, and continue powerful factors in the evangelistic forces of +American Methodism as related to the Negro. In 1921-22 the membership +of the African Methodist Episcopal Church was 550,776; and that of the +African M. E. Zion Church was 412,328.[15] + +The policy of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, toward the Negro +Freedmen took definite form in 1866. At the General Conference held +that year at New Orleans, provision was made for the organization +of its remaining Negro membership into "separate congregations and +districts, and annual conferences." If the colored people should +desire, and two or more Negro annual conferences be formed, a separate +ecclesiastical autonomy would be granted. The reasons for the +organization of this new separate Negro Methodism are given in its +Book of Discipline over the signature of its first four Bishops. They +say that the Southern Methodist Conference "found that, by revolution +and the fortunes of war, a change had taken place in our political and +social relations, which made it necessary that a like change should +also be made in our ecclesiastical relations." The result was that, in +1871, the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church of America was organized +to be composed exclusively of Negroes, and officered entirely by +members of this race. Here we have the beginning of a third large +section of African Methodism. The new organization started with 80,000 +members made up of nearly all who still remained in the Methodist +Episcopal Church, South. + +It would be very interesting to speculate as to the probable results, +could the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, have continued its work +among the Freedmen, which it had for years carried forward with such +excellent results among the slaves. But it is no part of this paper to +criticize or philosophize. This branch of Methodism, second in numbers +and influence in the nation, with all but 30,000 of its members in +the South, now has 2,239,151 members, a few of whom are Negroes. + +Commencing with 1883, the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, took +definite and forward steps for the education of the Negro. A Board +of Trustees was appointed in co-operation with the Colored Methodist +Episcopal Church. In 1884, Paine Institute was founded at Augusta, +Georgia, and contributions of over $90,000 have been contributed to +that school. Lane College, Jackson, Tennessee, has also been aided. +The Colored Methodist Episcopal Church has seven schools with an +enrollment of 2,509 and an annual income of $113,830. Fifty-seven +students of theology are taught in two schools and college courses are +offered in several of their institutions. + +We have yet to speak of the work of the Methodist Episcopal Church. +When freedom came, as we have seen, this church had (1864) 18,139 +Negro members principally in Maryland, Delaware and adjacent +territory. The Negro membership in this branch of Methodism now (1923) +in the United States is 385,444. + +As the way opened during and following the Civil War to reach the +masses of the South both white and Negro, the Methodist Episcopal +Church extended its work of reorganization southward among both +races. Her Bishops and other church officials organized missions and +conferences and opened up schools. Each benevolent society of the +church aided financially. The support of pastors was supplemented +by the Missionary Society; the Board of Church Extension aided in +building houses of worship; the Sunday School Union and Tract Society +gave their co-operation, and the Freedmen's Aid and the Southern +Educational Society, now the Board of Education for Negroes, and the +Woman's Home Missionary Society developed the educational work. In +1864, the Negro work in Maryland, Delaware and adjacent territories +was organized into the Washington and Delaware Annual Conferences. +In the other border States where the Negro membership was small, +the preachers with their congregations were admitted into white +conferences. With unwavering and magnificent purpose for over half a +century, with fraternity and co-operation for all other churches in +the same field, and impelled by a conviction of duty to needy millions +irrespective of race, this branch of Methodism has gone forward with +its work of education and evangelization irrespective of race. The +results have been very remarkable. The white membership has grown on +what was slave territory from 87,804 in 1860 to 475,641 in 1922; while +the Negro membership in the same territory has increased from 18,139 +in 1864 to 370,477 in 1922. + +Following the wishes of both races the policy of separate conferences, +churches and schools has been carried out in the South. There are +several strong Negro churches in white conferences in the North. The +New Conference elected Dr. W. H. Brooks, one of its Negro pastors, a +delegate to the General Conference in 1920. The Methodist Episcopal +Church has thirty-seven annual conferences in the Southern States +with properties in parsonages, churches, schools of different grades, +hospitals, and the like valued at $63,495,130.00. In 1856 the property +of this church of all kinds in the same territory was less than +$2,000,000. Seventeen of these conferences include the work among +white people, and nineteen, the work among Negroes; and each group of +conferences covers the Southern States from Delaware to Texas. + +The twenty annual conferences in the South among Negroes have +properties in parsonages and churches valued at $19,767,430. There +are also thirty-two Negro institutions of learning in these twenty +conferences with enrollment of 8,868 and lands with buildings and +equipment valued at $6,522,642. The outstanding professional and +collegiate institutions for Negroes are Gammon Theological Seminary, +Atlanta, Meharry Medical College, Nashville, and colleges in several +of the principal cities of the South. The total church properties +named above, in Negro Methodist Conferences of the Methodist +Episcopal Church on former slave territory, is $25,218,230.00. These +conferences raised $1,500,000 during three years from 1870 to 1872 for +general church work at home and in foreign fields outside of pastoral +and other local church expenses.[16] + +There is no separation on account of race in annual conferences, +churches or schools in the Methodist Episcopal Church, except as +desired and requested by those interested. As the result of many +petitions and extended discussions the General Conference, which met +in 1876, in Baltimore, passed a law that the annual conferences in the +Southern States which had both Negro and white members could separate, +provided each group voted in favor of it. Under this action with few +exceptions the division was made, where desired. The same law prevails +in reference to churches and schools. The nineteen Negro conferences +have ninety-two delegates in the General Conference, the law-making +body for the whole church. These delegates have representation in all +legislation. One or more Negro ministers or laymen are on each of the +general boards of the church--publication, education, missions--home +and foreign, Epworth League, and the like. Nearly a score of able and +effective Negro men and women are official representatives of the +general church boards in their work among the Negro conferences. + +Six Negroes have been elected bishops in the Methodist Episcopal +Church. Four were missionary bishops, with full episcopal authority on +the continent of Africa. Of these Bishop Scott remains and is on the +retired list. In their fields these bishops were not subordinate but +coordinate with general superintendents. Their episcopal work was of +the same type as that of William Taylor, James Thoburn, Oldham, Warne, +and Hartzell, white missionary bishops in Africa and India. + +The General Conference in 1920 elected Robert E. Jones and Matthew W. +Clair general superintendents. The former has his episcopal residence +in New Orleans and the latter in Liberia. They preside in turn at the +semiannual conferences of the Board of Bishops and will preside at the +General Conference in 1924. + +The great mass of Negro Christians in the United States will continue +to prefer churches made up of their own race. This is natural and +on the whole the best for many reasons. On the other hand, the door +of every church of Christ should be open for all. At present in +twenty-nine white Protestant churches in the United States with a +total membership of over 4,000,000, there are 579,690 Negro members. +Nearly three-fourths of that membership are in the Methodist Episcopal +Church. + +The total Negro Methodist Church membership in the United States is +1,756,714. Of that number 1,330,409 are in the African Methodist +Episcopal, the African Methodist Episcopal Zion and the Colored +Methodist Episcopal Churches; 385,444 in the Methodist Episcopal +Church and 41,961 in seven smaller African bodies. If we multiply +the total membership by 2-1/2 we have 4,557,117, which represents, +approximately, the enrolled membership and constituency of Negro +Methodism in the United States. + + JOSEPH C. HARTZELL. + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] The fact that John Wesley organized a Sunday-school in Savannah, +Ga., in 1736, is recorded on a bronze tablet seen near the entrance of +the Protestant Episcopal Cathedral in Savannah. + +[2] _Minutes of the Methodist Conference._ + +[3] Matlack, _Slavery and Methodism_, 29. Coke's _Journal_, 12, 13-14. + +[4] One celebrated Negro, known as "Black Harry," was Bishop Asbury's +travelling companion. When for any reason the Bishop could not fill an +appointment the people were pleased to hear him. Matlack, _Methodism_, +29. + +[5] _Minutes of the Methodist Conference, 1832._ + +[6] _Ibid._ + +[7] Arnett, _Budget_; Woodson, _History of the Negro Church_, chapter +IV. + +[8] Wightman, _Life of William Capers_, 295-296. + +[9] _Minutes of the Methodist Conference, 1844._ + +[10] _Minutes of the Methodist Conference, 1784_; McTyeire, _History +of Methodism_, 28. + +[11] _Minutes of the Methodist Conference, 1844._ + +[12] Tanner, _African Methodism_, 72. + +[13] _Special Report of the U. S. Commissioner of Education_, 1871, +pp. 372-373. + +[14] _Minutes of the Methodist Conference._ + +[15] The A. M. E. Church has Wilberforce University, Xenia, Ohio, with +enrollment of 1,070 and an annual income of $145,000. This church +has ten other schools with an enrollment of 4,448, several of which +have college classes. The total annual income of all these schools is +$309,820.00. There are also theological classes at several centers +with total enrollment of 156. + +The A. M. E. Z. Church has seven schools with an attendance of 2,128 +and an annual income of $43,331.00. The leading school of this church +is Livingstone College in North Carolina, with an attendance of 504 +students and an annual income of $13,633. + +[16] Gammon Theological Seminary, Atlanta, Ga., has seven professors, +142 students, buildings and equipment $145,000 and an endowment of +$500,000. Meharry Medical College, Nashville, Tenn., ranks A among +medical colleges in the United States, has 43 teachers, 646 students, +$350,000 in grounds and equipment and $560,000 in endowments and has +graduated two thirds or more of the Negro physicians, dentists and +pharmacists in the United States. Eleven colleges under the Board of +Education for Negroes has 248 teachers; an enrollment of 4,326. Only a +small proportion are below the eighth grade in scholarship. + + + + +NOTES ON THE SLAVE IN NOUVELLE-FRANCE + + +The French Canadian historian, Francois-Xavier Garneau, in his +_Histoire du Canada_, says: "Nous croyons devoir citer ici une +resolution qui honore le gouvernement francais: c'est celle qu'il +avait prise de ne pas encourager l'introduction des esclaves en +Canada, cette colonie que Louis XIV preferait a toutes les autres a +cause du caractere belliqueux de ses habitants; cette colonie qu'il +voulait former a l'image de la France, couvrir d'une brave noblesse +et d'une population vraiment nationale, catholique, francaise sans +melange de races. En 1688, il fut propose d'y avoir des negres pour +faire la culture. Le ministere repondit qu'il craignait qu'ils n'y +perissent par le changement de climat et que le projet ne fut inutile. +Cela aneantit pour ainsi dire une entreprise qui aurait frappe notre +societe d'une grande et terrible plaie. Il est vrai que dans le siecle +suivant, on etendit a la Louisiane le code noir des Antilles; il est +vrai qu'il y eut ici des ordonnances sur la servitude: neanmoins +l'esclavage ne regnait point en Canada: a peine y voyait-on quelques +esclaves lors de la conquete. Cet evenement en accrut un peu le nombre +un instant; ils disparurent ensuite tout a fait."[1] + +In another place speaking of the proposal of Denonville, the Governor, +and De Champigny, the Intendant, at Quebec, in 1688 to introduce +Negro slaves by reason of the scarcity and dearness of domestic and +agricultural labor, and the refusal in 1689 of the minister to permit, +Garneau says: "C'etait assez pour faire echouer une entreprise, +qu'aurait greffe sur notre societe grande et terrible plaie paralyse +la force d'une portion considerable de l'Union Americaine, +l'esclavage, cette plaie inconnue sous notre ciel du Nord."[2] + +This language has been considered by some--rather heedlessly be it +said--to indicate that Garneau thought that Negro slavery did not +exist in French Canada, but a careful examination of his actual words +will show that he denied only the prevalence "l'esclavage ne regnait +point en Canada," not the existence. Slavery was not so widespread +in Canada as to become a curse, "a great and terrible plague," +"paralyzing energy." + +If there were any doubt as to the existence of Negro (and other) +slavery in Canada before the British Conquest, it would be dispelled +by the document printed in the latest Report of the Archivist of +the Province of Quebec.[3] These are Notarial Acts (Actes notaries) +preserved in the Archives at Quebec and are of undoubted authenticity; +they range from September 13, 1737 to August 15, 1795, the first 14 +being before the capture of Quebec in 1759, the last 3 after that +event. + +The first document is the sale of a Negro[4] called Nicolas by Joseph +de la Tesserie, S. de la Chevrotiere, ship-captain, to Francois +Vederique of Quebec, ship-captain, for 300 livres.[5] The Negro was +about 30 years of age and the Act was passed before midday, September +13, 1757. + +The fourth, September 25, 1743, evidences a sale of five Negro +slaves, two men and three women and girls[6] then in the house of "la +dame Cachelievre," the vendor being Charles Reaume, merchant of l'Isle +Jesus near Montreal, the purchaser Louis Cureux dit Saint-Germain, for +3000 livres. + +The seventh, January 27, 1748, is the sale of a Negro[7] slave called +Robert, 26 to 27 years of age, by Damelle Marie-Anne Guerin, widow +of Nicolas Jacquin Philibert, merchant of Quebec, to Pierre Gautier, +sieur de la Veranderie, for 400 livres in cash or bills payable by the +Treasurer of the Navy having currency in the country as money--the +Negro to be delivered on the first demand "avec seulement les hardes +qu'il se trouvera avoir lors de la livraison et trois chemises."[8] + +The eighth, June 6, 1749, evidences the sale by Amable-Jean-Joseph +Came, Esquire, sieur de St. Aigne, officer in the troops in Quebec +(a detachment from the troops of L'Isle Royale), to Claude Pecaudy, +Esquire, sieur de Contrecoeur, Captain of the troops (a detachment of +the Navy) in garrison at Montreal, of a Negro woman, Louison, about 17 +years old, for 1000 livres. + +The tenth, May 26, 1751, gives us the sale by Jacques Damien of Quebec +to Louis Duniere, Jr., of a Negro, Jean Monsaige "pour le servir en +qualite d'esclave," for 500 livres. But as "le dit negre paraissant +absent du jour d'hier soir, pour par le dit ... Deniere disposer du +dit negre comme chose a luy appartenant le prenant le dit ... Duniere +sur ses risques, perils et fortune, sans que le dit ... Duniere puisse +tenir a aucune" and it is expressly provided "le dit ... Damiens sic +cede, quitte et transporte au dit ... Duniere sans aucune garantie +le dit negre pour par le dit ... Duniere en disposer ainsy qu'il +avisera." What a tragedy lies underneath these words![9] + +The thirteenth, May 4, 1757, is a sale by Estienne Dassier, formerly +Captain in the Navy, then living "en sa maison, rue de Buade," +Quebec, to Ignace-Francois Delzenne, merchant-goldsmith, living "en +sa maison, rue de la Montagne," of a Negro, Pierre, about 18 years +of age, whom the purchaser had had in his house since the previous +November. The Negro is sold for 1192 livres, 600 in cash, 592 in a +fortnight, whatever happens to the Negro who is now to be at the risk +of Delzenne, the purchaser. The purchaser as security hypothecates all +his property movable and immovable. He also expresses his knowledge of +and satisfaction with the condition of the Negro.[10] On July 1, 1757, +Dassier acknowledges payment of the 592 livres. + +These are all sales of Negros during the French regime; there are two +instances of sales of Mulattoes in this period, but there are five of +the sale of Indian slaves, Panis (fem. Panise).[11] + +The second act, September 14, 1737, is the sale by Hugues Jacques +Pean, Seigneur of Livaudiere, Chevalier of the Military Order of St. +Louis, Town Major of Quebec, to Joseph Chavigny de la Chevrotiere, +captain and proprietor of the ship _Marie-Anne_ then in the roads +of Quebec, of an Indian girl Therese of the Renarde Nation, about +thirteen or fourteen, and not baptized.[12] The purchaser had seen +her, admitted her soundness in life and limb (le connait pour etre +same et n'etre estropiee en aucune facon) and paid 350 livres for +her. The vendor was to keep the "sauvagesse" until the departure of +the purchaser, not later than the end of the coming month, but not to +guarantee against accident, sickness or death, binding himself only to +treat her humanely and as he had been doing. + +The third, October 1, 1737, gives the sale by Augustin Bailly, Cadet +in the troops of the marine residing ordinarily at Saint-Michel in +the Parish of Saint-Anne de Varennes, to Joseph de Chavigny de la +Chevrotietre, Sieur de la Tesserie,[13] Captain in the Navy, of an +Indian (male) of the Patoqua Nation, age not given, bought by Bailly +on the ninth of May preceding from Jean-Baptiste Normandin dit +Beausoleil according to a contract passed before Loyseau, Notary at +Montreal. The price was 350 livres, 250 in money and 100 paid with +two barrels (barriques) of molasses.[14] + +The ninth is the sale, September 27, 1749, by Jean-Baptiste Auger, +merchant of Montreal but then in Quebec, to Joseph Chavigny, Sieur +de la Tesserie, of an Indian girl (une panise) of about 22 years of +age named and called Joseph for baptism, price 400 livres, Island +money,[15] which the purchaser promises and agrees to send to be +invested in pepper (?) and coffee for the account and at the risk of +the vendor, Auger, by the first ship leaving Martinique for Canada, +the pepper (?) and coffee to be addressed by the purchaser, de la +Tesserie, to Voyer, a merchant at Quebec for the account of Auger. +De la Tesserie hypothecates all his goods as security. The eleventh, +November 4, 1751, is the sale by Jacques-Francois Daguille, merchant, +of Montreal but then in Quebec, to Mathieu-Theodoze de Vitre, Captain +in the Navy, of an Indian girl (une panise) about ten or eleven, +called Fanchon but not yet baptized,[16] price 400 livres cash. + +The twelfth, September 8, 1753, sale by Marie-Josephe Morisseaux, wife +and agent of Gilles Strouds of Quebec, then at Nontagamion, to Louis +Philippe Boutton, Captain of the Snow,[17] _Picard_, of an Indian girl +(une sauvagesse panise de nation nommee Catiche) of about twenty years +of age, price 700 livres payable on delivery, "with her clothes and +linen as they all are." + +The fifth, December 27, 1744, is a contract by Jean-Baptiste Vallee of +Quebec, rue de Sault-au-Matelot, the owner of a Negro, commonly called +Louis Lepage, whom Vallee certifies as belonging to him, and to be +faithful and well-behaved. Vallee hires him to Francois de Chalet, +Inspector General of the Compagnie des Indes to serve him as a sailor +for the whole remaining term of de Chalet's tenure of the Ports of +Cataraqui (Katarakouye, _i.e._, now Kingston, Ontario) and Niagara (on +the east side of the river). The Negro is to serve as a sailor on the +boats of the ports. Vallee undertakes to send him from Quebec on the +first demand of de Chalet to serve him and his representative in all +legitimate and proper ways, not to depart without written leave, etc. +The amount to be paid to Vallee was 25 livres per month, de Chalet +in addition to furnish the sailor a jug (pot) of brandy and a pound +of tobacco a month, and for his food, two pounds of bread and half a +pound of pork a day.[18] + +The sixth act is a petition, April 27, 1747, to the Lieutenant Civil +and Criminal of Quebec by Louis Parent, merchant of Quebec, asking him +to direct Lamorille, Sr., and Jugon who had by judgment, April 25, +1747, been named as arbitrators, for the valuation of a Negro, named +Neptune, part of the estate of the late Sieur de Beauvais, that they +should proceed with their valuation--Chaussegros de Lery to be present +if he wished, but if not, the two to proceed without him. A direction +was given by Boucault to meet at his place the next day at 2 P. M. +and a certificate by Vallet, the bailiff (huissier) to the Superior +Council at Quebec, is filed that he had served Chaussegros de Lery, La +Morille, Sr., and Jugon. + +The first instance here recorded of sale of a slave after the Conquest +by the British was November 14, 1778. This, the fourteenth document +copied, evidences a sale by George Hipps, merchant butcher, living in +his house, rue Sainte-Anne in Upper Town, Quebec, to the Honorable +Hector-Theophile Cramahe, Lieutenant-Governor of Quebec, of a mulatto +slave called Isabella or Bell about fifteen years old.[19] She had +been already received in Cramahe's house, and he declared himself +satisfied with her. She had been the property of Captain Thomas +Venture who had sold her at auction to Hipps. The price paid by +Cramahe was L50 Quebec money, equal to 200 Spanish piastres; and Hipps +acknowledged payment in gold and silver. Cramahe undertakes to feed, +lodge, entertain, and treat the slave humanely. + +The next, the fifteenth, April 20, 1779, is the sale of the same +mulatto girl, Isabella or Bell, by Cramahe to Peter Napier, Captain +in the Navy, then living at Quebec, with her clothes and linen for 45 +livres, Quebec or Halifax money. Napier undertakes to treat the slave +humanely.[20] + +The sixteenth, August 15, 1795, is the first written in English, all +the preceding being in French. It is dated August 15, 1795 and is sale +by Mr. Dennis Dayly of Quebec, tavern-keeper, to John Young, Esquire, +of the same place, merchant, of "a certain Negroe boy or lad called +Rubin" for L70 Halifax currency. Dayly had bought the boy from John +Cobham, of Quebec, September 6, 1786.[21] + +The last, the seventeenth, is the most pleasant of all to record. +John Young appeared, June 8, 1797, before Charles Stewart and A. +Dumas, Notaries Public, in the former's office with the lad Rubin, and +declared that he bought him from Mr. Dennis Dayly, August 15, 1795. +He, as an encouragement to honesty and assiduity in Rubin, declared +in the presence of the Notary, Charles Stewart, that if Rubin would +faithfully serve him for seven years, he would give him his full +and free liberty, and in the meantime would maintain and clothe him +suitably and give him two and sixpence a month pocket money, but if +he got drunk or absented himself from his service or neglected his +master's business, he would forfeit all right to freedom. This was +explained to Rubin, "who accepted with gratitude the generous offer." +All parties, including the Notaries, signed the act, Rubin Young +by his mark, so that the slave by good conduct and refraining from +drunkenness would achieve his freedom, June 8, 1804. + +I have discovered certain Court proceedings copied in the Canadian +Archives at Ottawa,[22] which have not been made public in any way and +which are of great interest in this connection. A short historical +note will enable my readers to understand the proceedings more clearly. + +After the Conquest of Canada, 1759-60, for a few years the country +was under military rule. The three Districts of French times, Quebec, +Montreal, and Three Rivers, were retained, each with its Governor or +Lieutenant Governor. To administer justice, the officers of militia +in each Parish, generally speaking, were constituted courts of first +instance with an appeal to a council of the superior officers in the +British Army in the city, this court having also original jurisdiction. + +On July 20, 1762, a council sat, as of original jurisdiction, composed +of Lieut. Col. Beckwith, Captains Falconer, Suby, Dunbar and Osbourne, +to hear the plea of a poor Negro called Andre against a prominent +merchant of Montreal, Gershon Levy. The proceedings, recorded in +French, are somewhat hard to decipher after a hundred and sixty years +have elapsed but well repay the labor of examination. + +Andre asked to be accorded his liberty, claiming that Levy had bought +him of one Best, but that Best had the right to his services for only +four years which had now expired. Levy appeared and claimed that Andre +could not prove his allegation, but that he (Levy) had bought him from +Best in good faith and without any knowledge of the alleged limitation +of the right to his services. Of course, Best could sell only the +right he had and it became a simple question of fact. The court heard +the parties, ordered Andre to remain with his alleged master until he +had proved by witnesses or by certificate that he "had been bound to +the said Best for four years only, after the expiry of which time he +was to have his liberty." + +The following year, April 20, 1763, the council sat again to hear +the case. Lieut. Col. Beckwith again presided, and Captains Fraser, +Dunbar, Suby and Davius sat with him. The parties were again heard and +witnesses were called by Andre; but they were "not sufficient"--and +"the Council ordered that the Decree of July 20, last, shall be +executed according to its tenor; and in consequence, that the said +Negro Andre remain in the possession of the said Levy until he has +produced other evidence or has proved by baptismal extract or the +official certificate of a magistrate of the place where he was +born that he was free at the moment of his birth."[23] Although +these courts continued until the coming into force of purely civil +administration of justice, September 17, 1764, I do not find that +Andre made another attempt to secure his liberation from the service +of Le Sieur Gershon Levy, negotiant. + +I am indebted to my friend, Mr. R. W. McLachlan, F. R. S. C., of +the Archives of the District of Montreal, for a memorandum of the +following sales of which a record exists in Montreal: + +1784, December 16, James McGill of Montreal for and in the name of +Thomas Curry of L'Assomption in the Province of Quebec, sold to +Solomon Levy of Montreal, merchant, for L100 Quebec currency, a Negro +man Caesar and a Negro woman, Flora. + +1785, February 20, Hugh McAdam of Saratoga sends by his friend John +Brown to James Morrison of Montreal, merchant, "a Negro woman named +Sarah" to sell. "She will not drink and so far as I have seen, she is +honest."[24] + +1785, March 9, Morrison sells Sarah to Charles Le Pailleur, Clerk of +the Court of Common Pleas, for L36. + +1785, January 11, John Hammond of Saratoga, farmer, sold to Paul +l'Archeveque dit La Promenade, gentleman, a mulatto boy called Dick, 6 +years old, for L30 Quebec currency.[25] + +1785, April 26, sale by William Ward of Newfane, County of Windham, +State of Vermont, to P. William Campbell in open market at Montreal +of three Negroes, Tobi (aged 26), Sarah (aged 21) and child for $425. +These had been bought with another Negro, Joseph, a year older than +Sarah, from Elijah Cady of Kinderhook, County of Albany, State of New +York, for L250.[26] + +1789, June 6, James Morrison who had sold Sarah for McAdam to Charles +Le Pailleur, bought her for himself and sold her to Joseph Anderson +of Montreal, gentleman, for L40.[27] The purchase from Le Pailleur is +evidenced in French; it was for L36. + +1790, December 23, Guillaume Labart, Seigneur, living at Terrebonne, +sold to Andrew Todd, merchant of Montreal, a young panis called Jack, +about 14 years of age, for L25. + +1792, August 10, "Joshuah Stiles, late of Litsfield in the county of +Birkshire, Massachusetts, at present in Montreal," sold to Daniel +Carberry of Montreal, hair-dresser, a Negro boy named Kitts, aged 15 +years, for the sum of one hundred and fifty dollars each of the value +of five shillings Halifax currency. + +1793, July 11, Jean Rigot, master hair-dresser, living on Boulevard +St. Antoine, sold a mulatto slave boy, Pierre, aged 16, to Sir Charles +Chaboille, merchant of the Upper Country (_i.e._, Niagara, Detroit, +Michillimackinac), for $200 Spanish, each worth s.5 Halifax currency. +Rigot had raised the boy from infancy (l'ayant eleve de bas age). + +1793, July 27, William Byrne, formerly captain in the King's Royal +Regiment of New York, in a letter of May 29, 1793, having promised his +adopted son, Phillip Byrne, on his marriage to Mary Josephine Chene, +daughter of Charles Chene of Detroit, to give him a Negro boy, Tanno, +aged 16, and a Negro woman, Rose, aged 28, carried out his promise by +Deed of Gift, July 27, 1793, but he stipulates for "half the young +ones"!! + +1795, December 15, Francois Dumoulin, merchant of the Parish of +Ste. Anne, Island of Montreal, sells to Meyer Michaels, merchant of +Montreal, a mulatto named Prince, aged about 18, for L50. + +1796, November 22, John Turner, Sr., merchant, sold to John Brooks, +a Negro man named Joegho, aged 36, for L100, Quebec currency, and a +Negro woman, Rose, aged 25, for L50. + +1797, August 25, Thomas Blaney (attorney for Jervis George Turner, a +soldier in the 2d Batt. Royal Canadian Volunteers) and Mary Blaney, +his wife, sold to Thomas John Sullivan, tavernkeeper, a Negro man +named Manuel, aged about 33, for L36.[28] + +1781, August 9, sale per inventory of the estate of the late Naethan +Hume, "one pany boy, Patrick, sold to McCormick for L32." + +Perhaps this paper may well close with the following: + +1781, October 31, a Negro, named York Thomas, a freeman, indentured +himself for three years to Phillip Peter Nassingh, a Lieutenant in +his Majesty's 2d Battalion, New York, for and in consideration, +the said Nassingh to provide the said servant with meat, drink, +washing, lodging, and apparel, both linen and woolens, and all other +necessaries, in sickness and in health, mete and convenient for such a +servant, during the term of three years and at the expiration of the +said term, shall give the said York Thomas, one new suit of apparel, +above his then clothing, and L6 Halifax currency. + + WILLIAM RENWICK RIDDELL + + OSGOODE HALL, + Toronto, Dec. 23, 1922 + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Quoted by the Archivist of Quebec in the work cited (infra) at p. +109, from F. X. Garneau, _Histoire du Canada_, 4th Ed., Vol. II, p. +167. See note 2 for translation. + +[2] F. X. Garneau, _Histoire du Canada_, 1st Ed., Vol. II, p. 447. +Andrew Bell, _History of Canada_, Montreal, 1862 (translated from +Garneau's work). Vol. I, p. 440, treats the statement of Garneau +somewhat slightingly. His translation reads: "In 1689, it was proposed +to introduce Negroes to the colony. The French ministry thought +the climate unsuitable for such an immigration and the project was +given up. Thus did Canada happily escape the terrible curse of Negro +Slavery." Bell's note, pp. 440, 441, shows that he understood what the +facts actually were. + +The translation of the two passages follows: + +"We think we should mention here a determination which is honorable +to the French Government. It is the resolve not to encourage the +introduction of slaves into Canada, the colony which Louis XIV +preferred to all the others by reason of the warlike character of +its inhabitants--the colony which he wished to make in the image of +France, to fill with a brave noblesse and a population truly national, +Catholic, French, without an admixture of foreign races. In 1688, it +was proposed to have Negroes there as farm laborers: the minister +replied that he feared that they would die there by the change of +climate, and that the project would be futile. That, so to speak, +destroyed forever an enterprise which would have struck our society +with a great, and terrible plague. It is true that in the succeeding +century, the _Code Noir_ of the Antilles was extended into Louisiana, +it is true that there were ordinances as to slavery there; but, +nevertheless, slavery did not prevail in Canada. There were scarcely +any slaves at the time of the conquest. That event increased the +number of them a little; they later disappeared entirely." + +"That was sufficient to wreck a scheme which would have engrafted +in our society that great and terrible plague which paralyzes the +energies of so considerable a part of the American Union, slavery, +that plague unknown under our northern sky." + +It will be seen that Garneau does not say or suggest that slavery was +entirely unknown in French Canada, but only that it did not "reign" +(ne regnait point), _i.e._, was not prevalent; that while there were a +few sporadic cases, the disease was not endemic, and it did not become +a plague. + +For the proposal of 1688-9, see my _The Slave in Canada_, pp. 1, 2 +and notes (JOURNAL OF NEGRO HISTORY, Vol. V, No. 3, July 1920, and +published separately by The Association for the Study of Negro Life +and History Washington, 1920). + +[3] _Rapport de L'Archiviste de la Province de Quebec pour 1921-1922_ +... Ls--A. Proulx Imprimeur de Sa Majeste le Roi /1922: large 8 vo., +pp. 452. This Report is well printed on good paper, with excellent +arrangement and faultless proof reading; both in form and in matter it +is a credit to the able and learned Archivist, M. Pierre-Georges Roy, +Litt.D., F. R. S. Can., and to the Government of Quebec. To anyone +with a knowledge of French, the publications of this Department are of +inestimable value on the early history of that part of Canada. + +[4] "Le nomme Nicolas, neigre de nation" was present with vendor and +purchaser before the Notaries, Boisseau and Barolet, in the office of +the latter at Quebec. The Vendor says that he had acquired the Negro +from Sieur de St. Ignace de Vincelotte. + +[5] From the official Report of General James Murray, Governor of +Quebec, to the Home Government June 5, 1762, it appears that he +considered the livre worth 2 shillings sterling, about 48 cents. + +General Murray's Report will be found in Drs. Shortt and Doughty's +_Documents relating to the Constitutional History of Canada, +1759-1791_, Ottawa, 1918 (2d. Edit.), pp. 47-81. It is, however, quite +clear that the evaluation is too high. The livre was the old French +monetary unit which was displaced by the franc. In the first ordinance +passed by the civil government at Quebec, the ordinance of September +14, 1764, the value of a French crown or six livre piece was fixed +at 6/8, making the livre 13-1/3 pence sterling (about 26 cents). The +Ordinance of March 29, 1777, 17 George 3, c. IX, made the "french +crown or piece of six livres _tournois_" worth 5/6; and the same value +was assigned to it in Upper Canada by the Act (1796) 36 George 3, c. +I, s. 1 (U. C.)--the livre was worth not far from 20 cents of our +present money. This was the livre tournois. The livre of Paris was +also in use until 1667 and was worth a quarter more than the livre +tournois. + +[6] "Cinq neigres esclaves dont deux hommes et trois femmes et +filles"--names and ages not given; but the slaves are identified +by the statement that the purchaser had seen them "chez la dame +Cachelievre." The witnesses were Louis Lambert and Nicolas Bellevue +of Quebec and the Notary was Pinguet. The vendor, Reaume, signed but +the purchaser St. Germain did not, "ayant declare ne scavoir ecrire ni +signer." + +[7] "Negre esclave"--the spelling vacillates between "neigre," +"negre," and "negre." I have not found the first form in French +literature; the word comes from the mediaeval "Niger." See Du Cange, +_sub voc._ The word no doubt had the usual variations; modern French +has only the last form, _i.e._, negre. My French Canadian friends +cannot help me as to the spelling; but they tell me of a French +Canadian saying "Un plan de negre" meaning "Un plan qui n'a ni queue +ni tete," but this is probably only jealousy. + +[8] "With only the clothes he stands in at the time of delivery and +three shirts." "Shirt" has no gender in French. + +[9] Duniere receives the right to dispose of the Negro, Jean Monsaige, +as his own property, but Damien does not undertake delivery: The slave +being absent since the previous evening (perhaps like Eliza knowing of +a proposed sale), Duniere takes all the risk of obtaining him without +recourse to anyone in case of failure; and Damien sells him without +any warranty. This and the fifth are the only instances, until the +seventeenth, of a Negro having a family name. The notaries are Barolet +and Panet. + +[10] The purchaser undertakes all risks, the price remains payable +in any event. "Laquelle somme demeure acquise au d. s. Dassier par +convention expresse quelque evenement qui puisse arriver au d. neigre +d'en cy-devant aux risques et perils du d. s. Delzenne." + +[11] As to Panis, Panise, see _The Slave in Canada_, p. 2 and note 4. +The name Pani or Panis, anglicized into Pawnee, was used generally +in Canada as synonymous with "Indian Slave" because the slaves were +usually taken from the Pawnee tribe. It is held by some that the Panis +were a tribe wholly distinct from the tribe known among the English as +Pawnees, _e.g._, Drake's _History of the Indians of North America_. + +[12] We are told, Littre, _Dictionnaire de la Langue Francaise_, 4to, +Paris, 1869, _Sub voc._ Negre: "Louis XIII se fit une peine extreme de +la loi qui rendait esclaves les negres de ses colonies; mais quand on +lui eut bien mis dans l'esprit que c'etait la voie la plus sure pour +les convertir, il y consentit." (Montesquieu Esp. des Lois, XV, 4) +"Louis XIII was much troubled concerning the law which made slaves of +the Negroes in his Colonies; but when he had become impressed with the +view that that was the surest way to convert them, he consented to the +law,"--the ever recurring excuse for the violation of natural right. + +There was much discussion whether it was lawful to hold a fellow +Christian in slavery; and it was a distinct advantage that a slave +was not baptized. In 1781, the Legislature of the Province of Prince +Edward Island passed an Act, 21 George 3, c. 15, expressly declaring +that baptism of slaves should not exempt them from bondage. The +notaries in the present case were Pinguet and Boisseau and the act was +passed in the latter's office. + +[13] The purchaser here is the vendor Joseph de la Tesserie, Sieur de +la Chevrotiere, of the first transaction--he is also the purchaser in +No. 9 _post._ + +[14] The notaries were Pinguet and Boisseau and the act was passed in +the latter's office. + +[15] "Argent des Iles," West-Indian currency to be invested in +Martinique. The notaries were Barolet and Panet and the act was passed +in the latter's office. + +[16] See note 12 supra: The notaries were Barolet and Panet and the +act was passed in the latter's office. + +[17] French "senaut," English "snow," a sort of vessel with two masts. +The notaries were Sanguinet and Du Laurent; the act was passed in the +latter's office. + +[18] The notary was Barolet who signed the act as did Vallee, De +Chalet, and two witnesses, Charles Prieur, Perruquier, and Jean +Liquart, merchant. + +[19] "L'esclave et mulatre nommee Isabella ou Bell, fille, agee +d'environ quinze ans, avec les hardes et linges a son usage." She is +to obey her new master and render him faithful service. The price is +expressed as "cinquante livres monnaye du cours actuel de Quebec, +egale a deux cents piastres d'Espagne"--Fifty pounds Quebec currency +equal to two hundred Spanish dollars. The word "livre" was in English +times used for "pound." The pound in Quebec or Halifax currency was in +practice about nine-tenths the value of the pound sterling. + +The Ordinance of September 14, 1764, made one British shilling equal +to 1s. 4d. Quebec currency, _i.e._, the Quebec shilling was 3/4 of +an English shilling; the Ordinance of May 15, 1765, confirmed their +valuation, making 18 British half-pence and 36 British farthings one +Quebec shilling, but the Ordinance of March 29, 1777, made the British +shilling only 1/1 and the British crown 5/6. + +"The Seville, Mexico and Pillar Dollar" was by the Quebec Ordinance +of December 14, 1764, made equal to 6/ of Quebec currency or 4/6 +sterling; the Ordinance of March 29, 1777, equates "the Spanish +Dollar" to 5/ Quebec currency (which was then substantially +nine-tenths the value of sterling), _i.e._, 4/6 sterling; the Upper +Canadian Act of 1796 equated "the Spanish milled dollar" to 5/ +Provincial currency or 4/6 sterling. + +The notaries in the case were Berthelot Dartigny and A. Panet, Jr.; +the act was passed in Cramahe's house, rue St-Louis. + +[20] The same notaries appeared and the act was passed in the same +place. + +[21] The notaries are A. Dumas and Charles Stewart; the act was passed +in the latter's office. + +[22] See the latest Report of the Archives of Canada. + +The Ordinance of General James Murray establishing Military Courts in +Quebec and its vicinity will be found printed in Shortt and Doughty's +_Documents relating to the Constitution of Canada_, pp. 42, 44. +General Gage's Ordinance established them in the District of Montreal +will be found in the publication of the Archives of Canada. _Le Regne +Militaire._ + +[23] It is to be observed that it was considered that _prima facie_ +the Negro was a slave. The same rule was applied in many states (Cobb, +_Law of Negro Slavery_, pp. 253 sqq.), unless the alleged slave had +been in the enjoyment of freedom; but Chief Justice Strange of Nova +Scotia and his successor Salter Sampson Blowers by throwing the onus +upon the master did much toward the abolition of slavery in that +province. See _The Slave in Canada_, pp. 105-108. + +[24] I here copy the letter, _verbatim et literatum_, a delightful +literary effort. + + SARATOGA 20 Feby 1785. + _Dr Sir_, + + I send by John Brown a Negro woman Named Sarah my Right & + Lawful property--which you will Pleas Dispose of with the advis + of your friends.--I have Wrote Mr Thomson on the same subjet--she + has no fault to my knolage She will not Drink and so fare as I + have seen she is honest--many many upertunitys she has had to have + shown her Dishonesty had she been so in Clined ... I am sory to + give you the troble--She cost me sixty five pounds should not Lick + to sell her under.--Should you not be able to get Cash you may + sell her for furrs of any Kind you think will sutt our market and + send them down by the Return sladges; any trobl you my be at shall + Pay for these. + I am Dr. Sir. Your + as hurede frind &c: + HUGH MCADAM + + Mr. Morrison + mercht. Montreal. + +As to a subsequent disposition of Sarah, see sale of June 6, 1789. + +[25] It is possibly the same mulatto boy, Dick, the subject of the +following Bill of Sale: + + THUSBERRY octrs 19. 1785. + + Know all men By these presents that I William Gillchres in the + County of Rutland and State of Vermount, Yoeman for and in + consideration of twenty pound Law Money to you in hand paid by + Joseph Barrey of Richmond in the County of Cheshier in State + of New Hampshier yeoman whereof I acknoledg the receipt and + barggained and sold one molate Boy six years old naimed Dick + to him the said Joseph Barney and his heirs for ever, to have + and to hold the said molater boy, I said William Gillchres who + for myself and my heirs promise for ever to warrant socure and + defend said promise against the lawful claims or demand of any + person or persons in which I have set my hand, hereunto, and seal + this nineteenth day of October one thousand seven hundred and + eighty-six, in the eleventh year of endipendency. + + (Signed) WILLIAM GILLCHRES + + Signed, sealed + in the presence of us + (Signed) ELISHA FULLAN + LUCY YEOMANS + +On the back of this document were written thus the following words: + + Novemer ye 15, 1786 + Recevd the contents of + the within bill by me + Joseph Barrey + 29 Nover 1786. + Witness) Martin McEvoy + present) + John Carven + Gillchress + Bill of Morlato + Boy nd. Dick Gun + +[26] I assume New York Currency, in which case the pound was 20 York +shillings or $2.50. + +[27] 1787, January 10, George Brown and Sarah a Negress were married +by Cave--it was probably the same Sarah. + +[28] While this was in fact and in law a sale, the transaction was far +more than a mere transfer of property: The Notary John Abraham Gray +has the Notarial Act No. 74 which shows that Manuel, the negro man +voluntarily engaged as servant, to Thomas Sullivan, under the usual +conditions of servitude, for five years, at the end of which term, the +said Manuel, if he should faithfully carry out his said engagement was +to be emancipated and set at liberty according to due form of law, +otherwise he was to remain the property of the said Sullivan. + +A Notarial Act now in the possession of the Historical Society, +Chicago, dated at Montreal, August 15, 1731, passed before the Notary +Charles Benoit et St. Desiez, evidences the sale by Louis Chappeau +to Sieur Pierre Guy, merchant, both of Montreal, of an Indian lad of +the Patoka nation, aged about 10 or 12 years, for 200 livres paid in +beaver and other skins. See _Report of Canadian Archives_, 1905, vol. +1, lxix. + +It may be of interest to note that on pp. 476, 477 of the same +report is copied a memorial (October 29, 1768) of the inhabitants +and merchants of Louisiana in which they complain, _inter alia_, of +D'Ulloa the Spanish Governor of Louisiana (1766-8) forbidding "the +importation of negroes to the colony under the pretext that this +competition would hurt an English merchant of Jamaica who had sent +a vessel to D'Ulloa to confirm the contract for the importation of +slaves. In creating this monopoly, he had robbed his new subjects of +the means of procuring slaves cheaply...." + + + + +DOCUMENTS + + +BANISHMENT OF THE PEOPLE OF COLOUR FROM CINCINNATI + +Prof. T. G. Steward of Wilberforce University directs attention to +the following from _The Friend_ which carries an important document +bearing on the Free Negroes of Ohio: + + In the course of the present year, a law of this state has been + brought into view, by the trustees of Cincinnati township, + requiring people of colour to give bond and security not to become + chargeable to the public, and for their good behaviour--also + imposing a fine on those who may employ them. This law was + passed upwards of twenty years ago, and I believe has remained + inoperative, or nearly so, to the present year. In order that the + effects and bearing of the law may be correctly understood, I + subjoin the proclamation or notice by the trustees. + + + _To the Public_ + + The undersigned, trustees and overseers of the poor, of the + township of Cincinnati hereby give notice, that the duties + required of them, by the act of the general assembly of Ohio, + entitled _An Act to Regulate Black and Mulatto Persons_, and + the act amendatory thereto, will be rigidly enforced, and all + black and mulatto persons, now residents of said Cincinnati + township, and who emigrated to, and settled within the township of + Cincinnati, without complying with the requisitions of the first + section of the amended act, aforesaid, are informed, that unless + they enter into bonds as the said act directs, within thirty days + from this date, they may expect at the expiration of that time, + the law to be rigidly enforced. + + And the undersigned would further insert herein, for the + information of the citizens of Cincinnati township, the third + section of the amendatory act aforesaid, as follows: That if any + person being a resident of this state, shall employ, harbour, or + conceal any such negro or mulatto person aforesaid, contrary to + the provision of the first section of this act, any person so + offending, shall forfeit and pay for such an offence, any sum not + exceeding one hundred dollars, one half to the informer, and the + other half for the use of the poor of the township, in which such + person may reside, to be recovered by action of debt before any + court having competent jurisdiction, and moreover to be liable for + the maintenance and support of such negro or mulatto, provided + he, she, or they shall become unable to support themselves. The + co-operation of the public is expected in carrying these laws into + full effect. + + WILLIAM MILLS, + BENJAMIN HOPKINS, + GEORGE LEE, + Trustees of Cincinnati Township. + + + COMMENT + + When this proclamation was issued, there were upwards of 2,000 + people of colour, residing in this city, and nearly all obnoxious + to the operations of the law; many of them had resided here for + a considerable time, and were comfortably situated--they became + unsettled and deprived of employment by this act of banishment and + proscription, and much suffering and distress ensued. They deputed + two of their number to select and provide a place for them to + remove to, who procured a tract of land in Canada. In the meantime + some of them commenced making preparations to leave the country, + and as the time was very short which the trustees allowed them, + they had to incur great losses in disposing of their property, + selling for twenty dollars, what cost one hundred dollars. When + the thirty days expired, and it was ascertained all did not, or + could not comply with the requisitions of the trustees, mobs + assailed them at different times, stoning their houses and + destroying their property; in the progress of these disgraceful + transactions one white man was killed and others wounded. + + It is thought about five hundred have gone to Canada, many of + these with means exceedingly limited to provide necessaries in + a wilderness country, and encounter the rigours of a northern + winter; one of their agents, a coloured man, informed me of + an instance where twenty-eight persons had set out with a sum + not exceeding twenty-five dollars. I confess my mind has been + impressed with fearful apprehensions that they will greatly suffer + or perish with hunger and cold! Some of them view this act of + banishment with so much horror, they have told me the white people + had better take them out in the commons and shoot them down, than + send them to Canada to perish with hunger and cold! + + _The Friend_, Nov. 28, 1829. + + +FIRST PROTEST AGAINST SLAVERY IN THE UNITED STATES + +Prof. Steward invites attention also to the following extract from +_The Friend_ published in Philadelphia April 1831, said to be the +first document against slavery published in this country: + + "At a General Court held at Warwick the 16th. of May 1657. + + "Whereas there is a common course practiced among Englishmen, to + buy negroes to that end that they may have them for service or as + slaves forever; for the the preventing of such practices among + us, let it be ordered, that no black mankind or white being, + shall be forced by covenant, bond or otherwise, to serve any man + or his assigns longer than ten years, or until they come to be + twenty-four years of age, if they be taken in under fourteen, from + the time of their coming within the liberties of this Colony--at + the end or term of ten years to set them free as the manner is + with the English servants. And that man that will not let them go + free, or shall sell them away elsewhere, to that end they may be + enslaved to others for a longer time, he or they shall forfeit to + the Colony forty pounds." + + The court that enacted this law was composed as follows: + John Smith, President; Thomas Olney, General Assistant, from + Providence; Samuel Gorton from Warwick; John Green, General + Recorder; Randal Holden, Treasurer; Hugh Bewett, General Sergeant. + + _The Friend_, April, 1831. + + +A NEGRO PIONEER IN THE WEST + +Mr. Monroe N. Work invites attention to the fact that in an issue of +December 23d, 1920, the _Advertiser Journal_ of Kent, Washington, ran +the following story: + + "The best and largest yield of wheat ever exhibited," grown in + western Washington. It sounds like a real estate folder. And yet + at the World's Centennial Exposition held in Philadelphia in 1876, + W. O. Bush, son of George Bush, one of the first settlers on Puget + Sound, won the gold premium for wheat he grew on Bush Prairie, + just south of Olympia; to this day the wheat is preserved in the + Smithsonian Institute. + + This record of great wheat yield is a part of the history of one + of the families that came to the Northwest and had that quality + that made them successful here. George Bush was the first colored + man to come to this part of the country, the forerunner of the + large number of useful citizens of his race who have followed with + the increasing population. He was born in Pennsylvania in 1814, + and with his wife from Tennessee started west in 1844. + + Before coming west with his family, Bush had made a trip to this + country with a number of companions, coming north along the + coast from the Mexican border and suffering from the innumerable + hardships of the trail, hunger and Indians. He must have liked the + prospects, for it was only a short time later that we find him + again headed in this direction in company with a number of other + hardy pioneers. + + The character that made him face the privations of immigration + ingratiated him with his companions. There was an unwritten law + in Oregon at that time that no colored people should be allowed + to settle in that territory. When the group of which Bush was a + member approached the Columbia river country and learned of the + rule it was decided that if any one attempted to molest Bush all + of the members of the company would fight to protect him. + + The practice in Oregon was to whip the colored man and if he left + after the whipping it was all right and nothing further was done, + but if he did not take advantage of the opportunity to escape he + was whipped again and again until he either left or died. + + There is not any record of an attempt being made to molest Bush, + who, with his companions, stayed at the Dalles for several months + and later at Washougal at the mouth of the Cowlitz. The following + year--1845--they came on to Puget Sound and settled at the head of + Budds Inlet at the falls of the DesChutes and founded the town of + New Market, now Tumwater. + + Those who made up this party were Michael T. Simmons, James + McAllister, David Kindred, Gabriel Jones and Bush. The latter + decided not to settle right in Tumwater and went back onto the + prairie land about four miles and took up a donation claim of 640 + acres. It was on that claim that the prize wheat was grown by his + oldest son thirty-two years later. There on that claim Bush died + in 1863, while the great war for the freedom of his race was being + waged. His widow followed him two years later. + + Of their six sons, the state has heard a great deal. The eldest, + W. O. Bush, was born before the couple left Missouri on their + way west, and got the hard training of the pioneer. He took to + farming and that he worked the prairie land where his father + had settled for all it was worth is shown by the crop he took to + Philadelphia. The soil of that section is a black sandy loam on + a gravel base. The soil is not too thick in some parts and has a + tendency to drain, particularly during the hot, dry summer. + + Shortly after the formation of the state Bush was elected a member + of the legislature and served two terms during 1890 and 1892. His + record in the law-making body was an honorable one and that he was + highly respected by the people of Thurston county was shown when + they sent him to the Chicago World's Fair in 1893 to look after + the county's agricultural exhibit. + + +CONCERNING THE ORIGIN OF WILBERFORCE + +While at Tuskegee Institute in 1914 Mrs. Emma Castleman Bowles, who +has since died, related this account of the origin of Wilberforce. +This story does not agree with the account given in Bishop D. A. +Payne's _African Methodist Episcopal Church_ (423 ff.). The value +of the document lies mainly in the light which it throws upon the +relations between wealthy slaveholders and their children of slave +women. There must be much truth in the narrative, for Payne's sketch +says that in 1859-60 a majority of the 207 students enrolled "are the +natural children of Southern and Southwestern planters." The _Special +Report of the United States Commissioner of Education_, published in +1871 (372-373), supports this statement. Mrs. Bowles' story follows: + + Mrs. Emma Castleman Bowles said her father was Stephen S. + Castleman, a slave holder who lived on the Yazoo River, about 150 + miles from Vicksburg. He owned the Ashland plantation. She was + born June 3, 1845. Her mother was a half sister of her father's + wife. When Castleman married, her mother was sent to wait on her + mistress. Castleman lived with both women. Castleman had two + children by his wife and five by his concubine. He hired a white + woman to teach Emma. This woman was paid $500 a year. Mrs. Bowles + said she was not taught anything, not even to read. She spent her + time playing with her half-brother and riding a pony which her + father had bought for her. + + In March 1858, Castleman sent his daughter Emma to Cincinnati by + his brother-in-law, her half uncle, O. Leroy Ross. Here, she was + emancipated and acknowledged as Castleman's daughter. Ross then + brought her to Wilberforce and placed her in school. + + Tawawa Springs was a summer resort for Southern slave holders. The + Springs were medicinal. The Hotel Tawawa had 350 rooms, extensive + grounds, elaborate water works for fountains, etc. There were + several cottages on either side of the hotel. Slave holders would + bring their families and slaves and live either in the hotel or + in the cottages. A law was passed in Ohio forbidding the bringing + of slaves into the State. Then white help and free Negro servants + were used. The place declined financially and was finally sold for + debt. Several planters banded together bought the place and turned + it into a school for their illegitimate children by Negro women. + Stephen S. Castleman was one of these men. Mrs. Bowles said this + was done about 1856 or 1857.[2] + + There were about nine teachers, all Yankees. The first principal + was Rev. M. P. Gaddis. Richard Rust was the first President. The + students, with a few exceptions, were children of slave holders. + + Money was deposited in Cincinnati banks for the use of the + children. President Rust was given power to draw on banks as the + children needed money. + + The following were named as among the slave owners who brought + their children to the school. A planter named Mosley from Warren, + Miss., brought seven children by three different mothers and freed + them. Senator Hemphill of Virginia brought two daughters and + emancipated them. A planter by the name of Smith brought eight + children from Mississippi with their mother about 1859. He had a + slave man and woman to wait on them. He was arrested and made to + emancipate them. He bought a large tract of land for them. A brick + house he built was later owned by Colonel Charles Young. The woman + had lived with Smith under compulsion, and as soon as she was + emancipated would have nothing more to do with him. Mrs. Bowles + said that she went to school with these children and often visited + the family. She had seen the mother strip herself to the waist and + show how her back had been mutilated to make her submit to her + master's wishes. A man named Piper came and brought 10 children + and their mother. She was jet black. After the war he married her + and settled in Darke County, Ohio. + + General T. C. McMackin, a hotel owner of Vicksburg, Mississippi, + was appointed by Castleman as his daughter's guardian. She said + that she got in a fight with another school girl and was put on + bread and water. She wrote her father. He had McMackin come to + Wilberforce and adjust the matter. Her father, and she said the + fathers generally, lavished money on their children. She had a + box that held fifty silver dollars. This her father kept full of + silver dollars for her to buy candy with. + + Abolition was preached constantly in the school. She came to hate + slavery. She had seen great cruelties inflicted on her mother and + other slaves. Her mother took up with a slave man. Emma was a + child, sleeping in the room. Many a night her father would come + and curse the slave and compel him to leave the cabin. Then he + would whip him and her mother. Whipping was on bare back from 39 + to 300 lashes. Slave stripped naked and hands and feet tied to + stakes driven into the ground. Stocks were also used. The lash and + the stocks were both used on her mother's slave husband. They were + put in the stocks at night and whipped night and morning. + + Mrs. Bowles was courted in school by a class-mate, named George + W. Harding, whose father was a large slave holder in Tennessee. + President Rust tried to break it up. He wrote her father. + Castleman wrote his daughter that he did not send her North to + waste her time with a nigger. If she did not stop he would come + and get her, cow hide her and bring her home and put her in the + cotton field. She replied that "if her mother was good enough + for him to sleep with, that a nigger was good enough for her + to marry." She married Harding March 5, 1862. He had received + considerable wealth from his father. When they married he had + $55,000,[3] and later inherited $80,000 from his mother. + + The war stopped communications with the South. As soon as the war + closed, Castleman wrote to find out about his daughter and learned + that she was married and the mother of two children. He wrote to + her to come home and leave her niggers. If she didn't she would + not get any of his property. She wrote him that he had beaten her + mother and made her bear five children out of wedlock and that she + would not forsake her husband and her lawfully born children. + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[2] The school began in 1855. + +[3] Harding squandered his property and died a pauper. Mrs. Harding +then married another student of Wilberforce, A. J. Bowles. + + + + +COMMUNICATIONS + + +Mr. John W. Cromwell has addressed the Editor the following letter +which may interest persons directing their attention to the record of +the Negro in West Virginia: + + _Dear Sir_: + + While reading your _Negro Education in West Virginia_ I was + reminded of my acquaintances in that State, and I thought of the + striking contrast between the West Virginia of 1877 and that of + 1923. + + On invitation of Prof. Brackett, President of Storer College, I + attended a Teachers' Institute and Educational Convention, held at + Harper's Ferry, in 1877. There I first saw a gathering of young + teachers, vigorous and alert, none more chivalric in bearing than + the central figure in the person of John R. Clifford, at that time + Principal of the Grammar School at Martinsburg. To me it was quite + a contrast from dealing with the civil service of the Treasury + Department at Washington on the one hand, and my experience with + the young men there a few years before as I had beheld them in + central Pennsylvania. + + The bearing of the men was more than matched by the excellence of + the women. Outstanding at the time was a young woman whom I could + not at first determine whether I should rate her as a young pupil + in one of the classes or one of the faculty. I soon found that + she was a student teacher, also an elocutionist of grace, skill + and power. So impressed was I that Storer College thenceforth was + a regular place of visit during commencement season, and I soon + found myself on its trustee board. + + During one of these commencements, Frederick Douglass was booked + to speak on John Brown; but Andrew Hunter, the prosecuting + attorney who convicted John Brown, came to Harper's Ferry, and + declared that Frederick Douglass should not speak in Jefferson + county, where Brown was convicted and hung. He also said: "If + Douglass dares to come here, I'll meet him, denounce him, and + crush him!" Douglass came; so did Hunter. At the proper time, + Douglass was escorted to the rostrum, and without invitation + Hunter followed and took a seat close to Douglass, the master of + American orators, who spoke as I never heard him before; and when + through started to his seat. Hunter interrupted him, arose, and + advanced toward Douglass with outstretched hand and exclaimed: + "Let us shake hands," and while so doing, said: "Were Robert E. + Lee here, he would shake the other," and pausing a few seconds, + with all the power of his nature he said: "Let us go on!" to which + Douglass replied: "IN UNION TOGETHER!" And everybody on the campus + shouted--making the occasion one of dramatic as well as historic + interest. + + As editor of _The People's Advocate_, of Washington, D. C, the + incident was sketched in bold and striking outlines for the + country, and was read eagerly. It also forms an incident of one of + the chapters of _The "Life and Times" of Frederick Douglass_. + + In 1882, the Knights of Wise Men, with headquarters at Nashville, + Tennessee, held their convention at Atlanta, Georgia. Thither + went such representatives of the day as William J. Simmons, of + Kentucky; Frances L. Cardozo, of Washington, D. C.; Bishop Henry + M. Turner, of Georgia; Richard Gleaves, of South Carolina; John + R. Lynch, of Mississippi; Robert Peel Brooks, of Virginia; Prof. + J. C. Corbin, of Arkansas, and many other distinguished men + interested in the order. + + John R. Clifford, of Martinsburg, West Virginia, was one of the + party and a most distinguished orator was he, whose masterly + oration delivered in the State Capital of Georgia, with Governor + Colquitt, and other state officials, was a fitting setting for + the presentation of a beautiful gold-headed cane, with the + convention's and his initials carved on it. Robert Peel Brooks was + chosen by the delegates to present the gift. + + The career of Mr. Clifford for twenty years' work as a teacher, + brought him to the forefront, and he was appointed by three + different W. Va. State Superintendents to hold and conduct + Teachers' Institutes. Mr. Clifford holds a life-time teacher's + certificate in honor of this distinguished service. He was the + first colored man in West Virginia to be admitted to the bar in + the early eighties. He became editor of the _Pioneer Press_ in + 1882 at Martinsburg, and ran it regularly for thirty-six years, + being honored with the deanship of Negro journalism a short time + before the _Pioneer Press_ ceased to exist. + + Mr. Clifford, single-handed and alone, filed charges against + Prof. N. C. Brackett, head of Storer College, killed and wiped + out Brackett's drawn color line, that barred colored people from + going there as had been their privilege. He was the only colored + editor in West Virginia who was a member of the State Editorial + Association for twenty years, and was chosen the last year as its + historian. + + While defending a client sometime ago, a United States + Commissioner and Mr. Clifford got into a controversy over some + witnesses he wanted summoned, and it was kept up until the + Commissioner demanded that he stop and go on, or he would put + Clifford in jail. Undaunted he continued and gave the Commissioner + to understand that just as long as he refused to summon the + witnesses, he would contend for it; whereupon the Commissioner + had him put in jail, where he remained for an hour and twenty-two + minutes. Getting out he asked for his client, who had been tried + and jailed. He was brought back. Clifford went his bond, sent + him home, preferred charges against T. T. Lemen, United States + Commissioner, and W. D. Brown, United States Marshal. Clifford + went to the Department of Justice in Washington, D. C. proved his + charges and had both put out of office and his client was set free. + + He was appointed, by Senator B. K. Bruce and Frederick Douglass, + Commissioner for the state of West Virginia to the New Orleans + Exposition. He was elected three times President of the National + Independent Political League, was chosen Principal of the Manassas + Industrial School, where he and Frederick Douglass spoke on + the occasion of his inauguration. He resigned because of his + contention for better water. + + He was the first man to impanel a colored jury in the state of + West Virginia, and for so doing, was knocked down in the court + room three times with deadly weights, causing the blood to run + down into his shoes. When knocked down the third time, U. S. G. + Pitzer, a Republican (?) prosecuting attorney, sprang on him, but + with apparent superhuman skill and force, Clifford turned him at + a time when there was not a soul in the court room (everybody + having run out) but Pitzer & Clifford, with the latter on top, and + had not Stephen Elam rushed in and pulled Clifford off of Pitzer + and carried him out, death might have been the result,--Elam is + still living. Later Pitzer was nominated for the Legislature, and + Clifford canvassed Berkeley County on his bicycle exhibiting his + bloody shirt (which he still has) and the day before the election + Clifford spoke in the band-stand in the Public Square for an hour + and thirty minutes, waving his bloody shirt and the following day + Pitzer was defeated by 1336 votes. + + He is a 33 deg. Mason and a Past Grand Master of W. Va.; member of + the American Negro Academy, and helped to shoot off the shackles + from four million slaves and cement this Union on the bloody + battle fields during the war of the sixties and holds an honorable + discharge in proof of it. + + He gives credit to the late Hon. John J. Healy of Chicago, Ill., + for his early education thru the public schools of Chicago. He + attended and graduated from Storer College 1875, and holds an + honorary diploma from Shaw University. + + JOHN W. CROMWELL. + + + * * * * * + +Mr. Monroe N. Work, who has spent some time establishing the official +roster of Negroes who served in State conventions and legislatures, +has turned over for publication the following letters giving the +record of Peter G. Morgan, a prominent citizen of Virginia: + + MR. MONROE N. WORK, + Editor _Negro Year Book_, + Tuskegee Institute, Ala. + + _My dear Mr. Work_: + + I am extremely sorry that many pressing duties have prevented me + from letting you have the information asked for in your letter + under date of September 1st, bearing upon the late Peter George + Morgan of Petersburg, Virginia. + + I gathered from the information in possession of his sons, that + he, (Peter G. Morgan) was in his day one of the most prominent + colored men in the city of Petersburg. He was a carpenter by trade + and followed said trade for a number of years. Later he acquired + the knowledge of shoe making and became a first class shoemaker, + which trade he also followed for a number of years before the + Civil War. He was twice sold as a slave, and he purchased himself + at $1,500 and completed the payment on the fourth of July, 1854 + at the White Sulphur Springs, his master being part owner of the + Springs at that time. Later on he purchased his wife, paying + $1,500 for her and two small children in 1858, thereby himself + becoming a slave holder. He removed to Petersburg in 1863 and + continued to work at his trade as shoemaker. Meanwhile he made use + of every possible opportunity to increase his knowledge of books, + although he had no opportunity to attend any school. In this way + he became a fairly well educated man, certainly ahead of many at + that time, and at the close of the Civil War was able to train his + own children and the children of his neighbors. He served in the + Constitutional Convention of the State of Virginia in 1867, this + latter date was given me this week by a gentleman in Richmond, who + served as page in the Legislature of Virginia fifty years ago. I + am enclosing a clipping which was passed into my hands a few weeks + ago, which contains some of the names of those who served in this + particular convention.[1] + + It has occurred to me that the Rev. Dr. Bragg, of Baltimore, + Maryland also served as page some time, later and perhaps he would + be able to assist me in supplying correct data, provided errors + are made in the dates in this correspondence. + + Mr. Morgan served in the Legislature of Virginia two terms, + 1869-1871, and 1871-1872. + + Now, my dear Mr. Work if additional information is desired, + bearing upon the late Peter George Morgan, please do not hesitate + to command my services, and I shall be very glad to do my best to + assist you. + + With kind regards and best wishes, believe me, + + Very sincerely yours, + Signed: JAMES S. RUSSELL, + _Principal_. + + + ST. PAUL NORMAL AND INDUSTRIAL SCHOOL + + LAWRENCEVILLE, VIRGINIA, + October 23, 1920. + + MR. MONROE N. WORK, + Tuskegee Institute, + Alabama. + + _My dear Mr. Work_: + + Your very kind letter of the 18th instant has been received and + contents carefully noted. I have delayed replying to your letter + that I might secure definite information from the Register of + the General Assembly of Virginia. My letter to you contained + information from the memory of my brother-in-law and another aged + gentleman, with whom I conferred regarding the information you had + asked me to supply. I have just secured first hand information + which contains practically the same information as given in my + letter, still it comes with authority. You will note please the + slight correction to be made in reference to the years he served + in the Legislature of Virginia. + + You have my full permission to use the matter in any way you see + fit, making the slight correction in the dates the Hon. Peter G. + Morgan served in the Legislature. + + With kind regards and best wishes, believe me, + + Sincerely yours, + Signed: JAMES S. RUSSELL, + _Principal_. + + + COMMONWEALTH OF VIRGINIA + GOVERNOR'S OFFICE + RICHMOND + + October 22, 1920. + + DR. JAMES S. RUSSELL, Archdeacon, + St. Paul Normal and Industrial School, + Lawrenceville, Virginia. + + _My dear Dr. Russell_: + + The Register of the General Assembly of Virginia, on p. 409, + carries the information that Peter G. Morgan of Petersburg, was a + member of the Convention of 1867-1868; was a member of the House + of Delegates of Virginia at the session of 1869-70, and in 1870-71. + + I hope that this is the information you desire. + + Yours very truly, + Signed: LEROY HODGES, + _Aide to the Governor_. + + +THE EDUCATION OF THE NEGRO + +Captain A. B. Spingarn has supplied the following valuable information +given in these extracts from the laws of the State of New York: + + May 10th, 1923. + + DR. CARTER G. WOODSON, + Journal of Negro History, + 1216 You Street, N. W., + Washington, D. C. + + _My dear Dr. Woodson_: + + The following extracts from the Session Laws of the State of New + York for 1826 and 1832 may be of interest. I did not see mention + of the latter one in your invaluable, _The Education of the Negro + Prior to 1861_. + + "CHAP. 145 of Laws of 1826. + + AN ACT _to provide for the colored Persons who are occupants of + Lots in New Stockbridge_. Passed April 11, 1826. + + 1. BE _it enacted by the People of the State of New York, + represented in Senate and Assembly_, That it shall and may be + lawful for the commissioners of the land-office to cause letters + patent to be issued to the persons respectively, who have been + reported by the appraisers of lands in New Stockbridge, as colored + persons, for the lots set to their names as occupants, in the same + manner as grants of land are authorized to be made to those who + have been so reported, as white persons persons settled on said + land: _Provided_ ..." + + "CHAP. 136 of Laws of 1832. + + AN ACT _to constitute the coloured children of Rochester a + separate school_. Passes April 14, 1832. + + _The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and + Assembly, do enact as follows:_ + + 1. The commissioners of common schools of the towns of Gates and + Brighton, in the county of Monroe, or a majority of them, may in + their discretion cause the children of colour of the village of + Rochester to be taught in one or more separate schools. + + 2. The commissioners of common schools of the towns of Gates and + Brighton, shall discharge the duties of trustees of such school, + and shall apportion thereto a distributive share of the moneys for + the support of common schools." + + Very sincerely yours, + ARTHUR B. SPINGARN. + + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] COPY OF CLIPPING FROM UNDESIGNATED PAPER AS MENTIONED IN ABOVE +LETTER. + +The Radical State Convention, which was in session in Richmond on +Thursday, elected the following State Executive Committee, with +Ex-Governor H. H. Wells as chairman: First district--Rufus S. Jones, +Isaac Morton and Robert Norton. Second district--R. S. Greene, Peter +G. Morgan and H. H. Bowden. Third district--Wm. C. Wickham, J. M. +Humphreys and Langdon Boyd. Fourth district--Geo. W. Finney, John +T. Hamletter and Ross Hamilton. Fifth district--Thos. J. Jackson, +Alexander Rives and I. F. Wilson. Sixth district--John F. Lewis, Thos. +H. Hargest and John R. Popham. Eighth district--W. B. Downey, John M. +Thatcher and J. B. Sener. Ninth district--R. W. Hughes, G. G. Goodell +and John W. Woest. + + + + +BOOK REVIEWS + + + _Piney Woods and Its Story._ By LAURENCE C. JONES, Principal of + the Piney Woods Country Life School, with an introduction by S. + S. McClure. (New York and Chicago: Fleming H. Revell Company. Pp. + 154. Price $1.50 net.) + +This is a story of a Negro brought up and educated in a more favorable +environment than most of the members of his race but, nevertheless, +imbued with the spirit of social uplift of those of his group +unfavorably circumstanced. With this vision he cast his lot in +Mississippi, where he toiled against odds in the establishment and +development of a school which is today an important factor in the +progress of the Negroes of Mississippi. + +This volume had a forerunner in a shorter story _Up Through +Difficulties_. As the influence of the school extended, however, and a +larger number of friends became interested in his efforts, there arose +such a demand for a brief statement of the history of this institution +that it was necessary to meet this with a publication in this handy +form. Coming then from the heart of a man who has given his life as +a sacrifice for the advancement of his oppressed people, the story +has been well received by the friends of education in general, and +especially by those who appreciate the arduous labors of that class of +pioneers so nobly represented by the author. + +And well might such a story be extensively read; for, as S. S. McClure +has said in the introduction, it is a story "of Negro education, +intelligence and sensitiveness, who turned his back upon everything +that usually makes life worth living for people of his kind and went, +without money or influence, or even an invitation, among the poorest +and most ignorant of his race, for the sole purpose of helping them in +every way within his power." As it has been said, it is persuasively +and sincerely told. It is therefore, to quote further from Mr. +McClure, "a valuable human document; a paragraph in a vital chapter of +American history." + +Briefly told, the story describes in detail the beginnings of the +educator, his early school days, the development of his school in the +midst of "Pine Knots" under the "Blue Sky," its "Log Cabin" stage, +the more hopeful circumstances later attained, and its widening +influence. In the chapter entitled the "Message of Hope" there is +an unusually interesting account of how once during the World War +the author was misunderstood by certain white persons who, from the +outside, heard him at a revival urging the Negroes to battle against +sin, ignorance, superstition, and poverty. Understanding some but not +all of the words used by the speaker, the eavesdroppers reported him +as stirring up the Negroes in the South to fight the whites. A mob +was easily formed in keeping with the custom of the country, and the +author was speedily picked up and thrown upon a pile of wood, when +guns were cocked and primed to shoot him down before he was to be +offered up. Thereupon, however, one of the mob demanded that he make a +speech, by which he so convincingly disabused their minds of any such +sinister intention of stirring up an insurrection among the Negroes +that he was finally released and befriended rather than lynched. + + * * * * * + + _The Book of American Negro Poetry._ By JAMES WELDON JOHNSON. (New + York: Harcourt, Brace and Company. 1922. Pp. 217.) + +A review of a book of poetry is out of place in an historical magazine +unless, like the volume before us, it has an historical significance. +It cannot be gainsaid that the poetry of a race passing through the +ordeal of slavery, and later struggling for social and political +recognition, must constitute a long chapter in its history. In fact, +one can easily study the development of the mind of a thinking class +from epoch to epoch by reading and appreciating its verse. It is +fortunate that Mr. James Weldon Johnson has thus given the public this +opportunity to study a representative number of the talented tenth of +the Negro race. + +The poems themselves do not concern us here to the extent of showing +in detail their bearing on the history of the Negro. The student +of history, however, will find much valuable information in the +interesting preface of the author covering the first forty-seven pages +of the volume. The biographical index of authors in the appendix, +moreover, presents in a condensed form sketches of the lives of +thirty-one useful and all but famous members of the Negro race. Much +of this information about those who have not been in the public eye a +long time is entirely new, appearing here in print for the first time. + +The aim of the author is to show the greatness of the Negro as +measured by his literature and art. He believes that the status of +the Negro in the United States is more a question of national mental +attitude toward the race than of actual conditions. "And nothing," +says he, "will do more to change that mental attitude and raise his +status than a demonstration of intellectual parity by the Negro +through the production of literature and art." + +In the effort to show "the emotional endowment, the originality and +artistic conception and power of creating" possessed by the Negro, +the author has begun with the Uncle Remus stories, the spirituals, +the dance, the folks songs and syncopated music. He then presents the +achievements of the Negro in pure literature, mentioning the works of +Jupiter Hammon, George M. Horton, Frances E. Harper, James M. Bell and +Albery A. Whitman. A large portion of this introduction given to the +early writers is devoted to a discussion of Dunbar. He then introduces +a number of poets of our own day, whose works constitute the verse +herein presented. Among these are William Stanley Braithwaite, Claude +McKay, Fenton Johnson, Jessie Fauset, Georgia Douglass Johnson, Annie +Spencer, John W. Holloway, James Edwin Campbell, Daniel Webster Davis, +R. C. Jamison, James S. Cotter, Jr., Alex Rogers, James D. Carrothers, +Leslie Pinckney Hill, and W. E. B. DuBois. + + * * * * * + + _The McKinley and Roosevelt Administrations, 1897-1909._ By JAMES + FORD RHODES, LL.D., D.Litt. (New York: The Macmillan Company, + 1922. Pp. 418.) + +Fortunately Mr. Rhodes does not make the mistake of designating this +as a volume continuing his history of the United States from 1850 +to 1877. Like the volume recently written to treat the period from +Hayes to McKinley, this one does not show the serious treatment +characteristic of the earlier work of Mr. Rhodes. The author makes +no introduction but enters upon the discussion of the political +events which he considers as having constituted the most important +facts of history during this period. In this volume Mr. Rhodes is +largely concerned with the rise and fall of political chieftains, +who have attained high offices in the services of the nation or with +the record of those who have championed principles which have not +been acceptable to the American people. The most valuable facts of +the book are the bits of first-hand information which he obtained by +personal contact with the statesmen of the time. From this volume, +however, one gets very little more general information than he would +from an observer who has closely followed the various presidential +campaigns. Furthermore, there is not much discussion of the social and +economic questions which have engaged the attention of the American +people because of their bearing on shaping the destinies of the +nation. As a narrative for ready information of men and measures of +this period it is interesting, but judged from the point of view of +modern historiography, the book cannot be seriously considered as a +very valuable work on American history. When one has finished reading +the volume he will find his mind filled with what men have done and +what they have failed to accomplish, but he will not easily grasp the +meaning of the forces which during the last generation have given +trend to present-day developments in the United States. + +Students of Negro history will wonder what mention the author has +made of the role which the race played during this period. In any +expectation of this sort they will find themselves disappointed. +With the exception of references to the Booker Washington dinner at +the White House, the Brownsville Affair, and the Roosevelt attitude +on Negro suffrage, the race does not figure in this history. It is +interesting to note Rhodes's statement to the effect (230) that +Roosevelt said to him that he made a mistake in inviting Booker T. +Washington to dine at the White House. With the usual bias of the +author, it is not surprising that he justifies the dismissal of the +Negro soldiers charged with participating in the riot at Brownsville +(340). After reading this volume, one who has not lived in this +country would be surprised to come here and learn that we have such +a large group of citizens about whom so much was said and to whom so +much was meted out during this stormy period. + + * * * * * + + _The Journal of John Woolman._ Edited from the Original + Manuscripts, with a Biographical Introduction, by AMELIA MOTT + GUMMERE. (New York: The Macmillan Company. 1922. Pp. 643.) + +From the time of the first publication of the _Journal_ of this +unusual man in 1774, he has been known to the world as one of its +greatest characters because of his wonderful spirituality and deep +interest in all members of the human family regardless of race or +condition. It is decidedly fitting then that this valuable record +should be reprinted and be made accessible to a larger number who will +find it an inspiration to those engaged in reform and valuable in +throwing light on heroism in the past. + +The author, however, has another reason for the new edition of this +_Journal_, inasmuch as there are many editions of the _Journal_ +proper, and a multitude of publications in which Woolman's _Essays_ +and appreciations of him appear. The reason is that the descendants +of Woolman "have recently made accessible by presenting to learned +institutions, which are glad to guard them, the manuscripts of the +_Journal_ and of most of his _Essays_ as well as letters, marriage +certificates of the family and other documents." + +The work is arranged in chapters presenting his immigrant ancestry, +his youth and education, his marriage, his participation in +the slavery discussion, his Indian journey, his experiences as +schoolmaster, his final tours, and his death. The book is well printed +and neatly bound. It contains thirty-three interesting illustrations +which decidedly enhance the value of the book. Among these should +be noted the portrait of John Woolman, his birthplace, his home, +important pages from his manuscripts, and his grave. + +Chapter IV, which deals with the endeavors of John Woolman to +emancipate and elevate the Negro race, will be of unusual help to +students of Negro history. Around Woolman and his coworkers, beginning +in 1760, centered the effort toward the liberation of the race, which +engaged the attention of the Friends, especially during the struggle +for the rights of man. Carrying the doctrine of natural rights to its +logical conclusion, Woolman was among the first to insist that Negroes +had a natural right to be free both in body and mind. To this end, +therefore, he bore testimony against slavery wherever he traveled in +this country and abroad; and down to the close of his career he lived +up to the conviction that all men are born equal before God "Who hath +made of one blood all nations that dwell upon the face of the earth." + + + + +NOTES + + +Miss A. H. Smith, who during the last seven years has served +the Association as Office Manager and Assistant to the +Secretary-treasurer, has recently retired from the service. The +Association is immeasurably indebted to Miss Smith for the faithful +service which she has rendered the cause, and it will be difficult to +fill her position. Although offered opportunities for earning a larger +stipend elsewhere, she remained with the Association because of her +interest in the work which it has been prosecuting. The Association +wishes her well and earnestly hopes that she may be welcomed in some +other field of usefulness. + +The American Catholic Historical Society has announced a prize of $100 +offered by this society for the best historical essay on the subject +"Catholic Missionary Work Among the Colored People of the United +States (1776-1866)." The prize money has been donated by the Most Rev. +Sebastian Messmer, Archbishop of Milwaukee. + +All persons who are interested in the welfare and progress of the +Negroes of the United States are eligible to compete for the prize +under the conditions specified by the Society. The conditions are: + +The subject must be treated within the years specified (1776-1866). +Although the history of Catholic missionary activity among the colored +people of this country during the colonial period is not barred, the +essays shall be judged upon their value for the years 1776-1866. + +The essays shall be typewritten on one side of the page only, and +shall not be less than 4,000 words and may not exceed 8,000 words. + +All essays entered for the prize must be received by the Secretary +of the American Catholic Historical Society, 715 Spruce Street, +Philadelphia, not later than December 1, 1923. + +Each essay shall be signed with a motto and accompanied with a sealed +envelope marked on the outside with the same motto and enclosing the +writer's name and address. + +The committee appointed to act as judges for the competition is +composed of: the Rev. Peter Guilday of the Catholic University +of America, Washington, D. C, Chairman; Dr. Lawrence Flick, of +Philadelphia; Thomas F. Meehan, associate-editor of "America," New +York; Dr. T. W. Turner, of Howard University, Washington, D. C.; and +the Rev. Joseph Butsch, S. S. J., of St. Joseph's Seminary, Baltimore. + +An arrangement has been made whereby contestants seeking guidance +in research work in the preparation of the essay can obtain aid by +writing to the chairman of the committee of judges. + + * * * * * + +The Oxford University Press has published a history of _The Partition +and Colonization of Africa_, by Sir Charles Lucas. This work includes +the territorial rearrangement resulting from the recent war. + +Through _East and West_, London, S. B. de Burgh Edwardes has published +_The History of Mauritius, 1507-1914_. A Mauritian himself, he has had +every opportunity to write a readable and interesting volume. + +_The History of the Conquest of Egypt, North Africa, and Spain_, by +Ibn Abd Al-Hakam, is now being published through the Yale University +Press in its Oriental Series. This work is the earliest account of +Mohammedan conquests extant. It is edited from manuscripts in London, +Paris and Leyden, by Professor Charles C. Torrey. + +Herbert Jenkins, London, has brought out _The Mad Mullah of +Somaliland_, by Douglas J. Jardine, an officer of the British +administration in Somaliland from 1916 to 1921. + +_The Royal Chronicle of Abyssinia_, an extract translated from the +Ethiopic Chronicle in the British Museum by H. Weld Blundell, has been +published by the Cambridge University Press. + + + + +PROCEEDINGS OF THE SPRING CONFERENCE OF THE ASSOCIATION FOR THE STUDY +OF NEGRO LIFE AND HISTORY HELD IN BALTIMORE, APRIL 5TH AND 6TH, 1923 + + +The conference enjoyed the welcome and hospitality of Morgan College +where the morning and afternoon sessions were held on the 5th, and +of the Baltimore Public School System, the Druid Hill Avenue Branch +of the Young Men's Christian Association, and the Bethel A. M. E. +Church, which provided for the day sessions of the second day and for +both evening sessions. The success of the meeting was due in a large +measure to the cordial reception given the Association by Dr. J. O. +Spencer, the president of Morgan College, and by Dr. Pezavia O'Connell +and Dean L. M. McCoy. Mr. Mason A. Hawkins, Dr. Frederick Douglass, +Dr. A. L. Gaines, and Mr. S. S. Booker willingly cooperated in the +same way with respect to the meetings in the city. + +The first session was held at Morgan College on Thursday at 11 A.M. +Dr. Pezavia O'Connell, who presided, delivered an able address +impressing upon the students of the institution the importance of +the work undertaken by the Association. He was then followed by the +officers of the Association, who outlined in detail the history, the +purposes, and the achievements of the organization. Other remarks +were later made by Miss Georgine Kelly Smith, who proved to be a very +effective speaker in directing attention to certain neglected aspects +of Negro life. + +At 3 o'clock in the afternoon, the officers of the Association +assembled with the faculty of Morgan College in a joint meeting +to acquaint the instructors with the plans and procedure of the +Association and to secure their cooperation in the extension of this +work through some local organization which may direct its attention +to the collection of Negro folklore and to the preservation of the +records of the Negroes in Maryland. Much interest was aroused and +steps were taken to effect such an organization. + +The first evening session was held at 8 o'clock on the same day at +Bethel A. M. E. Church in the city of Baltimore. On this occasion the +Spring Conference was welcomed to the city by Mr. Mason A. Hawkins, +the principal of the Colored High School, who briefly discussed the +importance of the work and the opportunity which it afforded Baltimore +for becoming better informed as to what is being done for the uplift +of the race through this scientific effort. The response to this +address was made by President G. A. Edwards of Kittrell College. He +made a favorable impression upon the audience by directing attention +to the importance of securing the cooperation of a large number of +persons with an intelligent interest in the race. He emphasized the +fact that such a significant task should not be neglected and left +to the sacrifices of the few persons of vision who, without adequate +support, may unduly toil in the prosecution of this task and thus fail +to succeed because of bearing a burden which should be shared by all. + +The principal addresses of the evening were delivered by Dr. J. +O. Spencer, Dr. C. G. Woodson and Dean Kelly Miller. Dr. Spencer +discussed the subject "Thinking Straight on the Color Line." He +deprecated the lack of information on the Negro and showed how, in the +midst of ignorance as to the actual achievements of the race, persons +have learned to hate men of color because they are not acquainted +with them. To remedy the situation, then, there must be a universal +interest in the study of Negro life and history. Dr. Woodson sketched +in brief the record of the Negro from time immemorial, mentioning the +important contributions of the race to civilization and the necessity +for the study of this record to inspire the race with a hope of +greater achievement and to disabuse the mind of the white man of the +idea of racial superiority. Dean Kelly Miller spoke on the worthwhile +qualities of the Negro. His aim was to show that every race has in it +certain elements which are peculiar to that group, thus giving it in +this respect a chance to make a contribution which can come from no +other source. He, therefore, emphasized the importance of encouraging +the best in all races and giving to each every possible opportunity +for development. Among the exceptional qualities which he ascribed to +the Negro are patience, meekness, the gift of music, the sense of art, +response to religion, and brotherly love. + +The first session of the second day was held at 1 o'clock P.M., at the +Douglass Theatre. This occasion was that of an assembly of the members +of the Association, together with the students and faculty of the +Baltimore Colored High School and other members of the local teaching +corps. The important address was delivered by Professor John R. +Hawkins, president of the organization. The purpose of this discourse +was to outline in the simplest and most effective way possible the +necessity for children knowing more about themselves and about their +ancestors. The speaker endeavored to show how the achievements of the +Negro have been omitted from the textbooks studied by the youth in +the public schools so as to impress the Negro with the superiority +of other races and the so-called inferiority of their own. These +students were urged, therefore, to avail themselves of the opportunity +to become acquainted with this neglected aspect of history through +supplementary reading in the home, in clubs, and in literary circles. +How this would stimulate the mind of the youth and inspire them to +greater achievement through knowledge of the distinguished service of +others of their race in the past, was eloquently emphasized by the +speaker. Some remarks were made by President G. A. Edwards of Kittrell +College and Dr. C. G. Woodson. + +At 3 o'clock P. M. the Spring Conference assembled at the Druid Hill +Avenue Branch of the Y. M. C. A. The purpose of this meeting was to +discuss Negro history from the various points view of the teacher, +the minister, the editor, and the professional man. The discussion +was opened by Mr. L. S. James, principal of the Maryland Normal and +Industrial School, with a brief survey of the situation in Maryland +with respect to the development of the Negro schools and especially +in the matter of teaching Negro history. His very informing address +was well received. Then, appeared Mr. G. Smith Wormley of the Myrtilla +Miner Normal School, Washington, D. C. He presented Negro history from +the point of view of the teacher. He treated the matter pedagogically, +setting forth the purpose of the teaching of history and at the same +time urging upon his hearers the necessity for teaching the leading +facts of Negro history by correlating them with the topics of history +as it is now offered in the schools. His illuminating discourse made a +favorable impression and evoked discussions from various persons. + +Among those prompted to speak were Mrs. N. F. Mossell of Philadelphia, +who spoke of history from the point of view of the child, showing how +necessary it is to supply the young people with elementary reading +matter, serving as a stepping stone to the teaching of the more +difficult phases of the record of the Negro. Dr. George F. Bragg +explained how the minister is concerned with the history of the Negro +and briefly summarized the important contributions of Negro ministers +not only to the history of the race, but to the preservation of its +records. Mrs. Ella Spencer Murray expressed her interest in the work +and outlined how each one might aid the movement by soliciting members +and subscribers throughout the country, especially among white persons +who may be neutral or indifferent as to what the Negro has achieved. + +Mr. S. W. Rutherford, the Secretary-Treasurer of the Association, +delivered a short address to point out how by organized effort, with +courage and concentration, the movement may be further promoted and +the work expanded throughout the country by cooperating with the +Director who should and must have the support of all interested in +the Negro. Bishop John Hurst then mentioned briefly the necessity +for more publicity, and expressed his interest in securing a fund +adequate to the employment of a staff to popularize the work and +increase the income of the Association. Dr. Thomas E. Brown, of Morgan +College, delivered a short address emphasizing the necessity for a +more scientific study of the records and directing attention to the +undeveloped possibilities of the race which cry for the attention of +those scholars with the necessary training to treat the records of +this group scientifically. + +The session closed with an address by Ex-Congressman Thomas E. Miller +of South Carolina. He proved to be an attractive figure at the +sessions of the Association, being a man well advanced in years, one +who served in local offices during the Reconstruction and finally +reached Congress. He restricted his remarks to the discussion of the +free Negro prior to the Civil War, the class to which he himself +belonged. He asserted that many free Negroes were never known. Because +of the fear of disclosing their status, many of them were recorded as +slaves. In the same way, some of their important achievements were +kept in secret for the reason that freedom of conduct in their case +was proscribed by public opinion. Furthermore, he stated that they +were often misunderstood because they are reported as having hated +the slaves. He then explained the relations of the free Negro to the +whites and to the slaves, bringing out how they were subjected to +punishment for associating with the bondmen, and, therefore, became +estranged from them by the processes of safeguarded instruction in the +caste system of the South. + +At the second evening session at the Bethel A. M. E. Church, two +important addresses were delivered. The first one, "Hints on Race +History from an Old Book" by Prof. Leslie P. Hill, proved to be +unusually instructive. This discourse was based upon Abbe Gregoire's +_Litterature des Negres_, intended to emphasize the unusual +achievements of the Negroes as a proof that because of their superior +intellect they were entitled to freedom. Mr. Hill directed very little +attention to the characters well known in this country, restricting +his remarks largely to those who rose to prominence in European +countries where their records have never been studied to the extent of +impressing the historians of this country. + +Then appeared Dr. William Pickens, the Field Secretary for the +National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, who +delivered a very enthusiastic address on "Negro History in the Public +Schools." Dr. Pickens showed not only how uninformed the white people +are as to the record of the Negro, but that the race itself knows +very little of what it has achieved. He briefly mentioned a number +of instances connected with the local history of Maryland, of which +the people themselves living on the very soil on which these events +took place, knew nothing. He then adversely criticized the attitude +of the public school systems toward the teaching of Negro history and +urged his hearers to take seriously the question of memorializing and +influencing educational authorities to incorporate into their courses +of study textbooks on Negro history setting forth the truth as it is. +He urged, moreover, that in the meantime while such a battle is being +waged to reach this end, the Negroes themselves should through clubs +and literary circles make a systematic study of such works. + + + * * * * * + + + + +THE JOURNAL + +OF + +NEGRO HISTORY + +VOL. VIII., NO. 4 OCTOBER, 1923 + + + + +ABRAM HANNIBAL, THE FAVORITE OF PETER THE GREAT + + +Abram Hannibal, more commonly known as the "Negro of Peter the Great," +or "Peter's Negro" was one of the quaintest figures in the Russian +history of eighteenth century. From slavery to mastership and riches +his peculiar fate led him. He began his life under yoke in Africa +but died a general and wealthy landlord of the frozen North, leaving +his children and grandchildren to be prominent in the politics and +literature of Russia. + +The name of "Peter's Negro," no doubt, belongs to history; but +comparatively little is known of him, many important details of his +biography being still incomplete and unascertained. Outside of the +Russian sources there were Hannibal's own memoirs, written in French, +but not long before his death Abram burned them. About the beginning +of nineteenth century there appeared Hannibal's biography in German, +written by a certain Helbig (_Russische Gunstlinge_), but hardly +anything trustworthy could be learned from this work. As far as we +know, nothing was ever published of "Peter's Negro" in English. Even +the Russian sources are mainly official records and dry documents, +not of a great historical value, if of any. The best information +about Hannibal may be obtained from the unfinished novel _The Negro +of Peter the Great_ (1827) and other works by Pushkin, Hannibal's +great-grandson, the famous writer and founder of the modern school of +nineteenth century literature in Russia. + +Some of later historians doubt many of the assertions of Pushkin, +holding that, great as the poet was, he nevertheless was subject to +the common human weakness of exaggerating one's forefathers' merits. +The important facts of his career, however, have been learned. In the +year 1705, as for many years before and after, thousands of Negroes +were made prisoners and brought from the interior to the coasts of +the dark continent to be shipped to the slave markets of America and +Asia. Among others there was a little boy, barely eight years of age, +whom Arabs, his masters, called Ibrahim. He was sold to the Turks and, +the same year, brought to Constantinople. His fate could be easily +guessed. He was wanted for a slave in a rich Turkish home, or perhaps +an overseer in a harem. He became the latter after being brutally +handled. + +But at that time Savva Ragusinsky, a Russian nobleman, after a short +stay in Turkey was preparing to leave for his home country. He wanted +to bring a present of some kind to his Czar Peter, the stern reformer +of Russia, afterwards called "the Great." Ragusinsky knew the Czar's +love for curious objects and thought nothing better than two live +black boys could win him Peter's favor. The Czar had at his court many +servants of different races, brought to St. Petersburg from all over +the world, but only a few Negroes were among them. + +Ragusinsky bought or, according to some documents, simply stole +several Negro boys, who only a few months before were brought to the +slave-shacks of Sultan Selim II. One of these, who started on a long +trip to their new Northern home, was the little Ibrahim. The Czar +liked the rare present and almost from the beginning distinguished +Ibrahim from other slaves. The boy was unusually bright for his age. +He quickly picked up the Russian language and alphabet, and before +long began to feel that the court of St. Petersburg was his home. +Peter kept Ibrahim in his apartments, and Ibrahim accompanied the Czar +in latter's journeys through Russia and foreign countries, not as a +servant but rather as one of the family. When because of the war of +Russia with Sweden, Peter had to be constantly with his army, Ibrahim +shared with his friend-master all the dangers and privations of +bivouac-life. + +In 1707, while in Vilno, Ibrahim was christened in Orthodox faith. +His father-in-Christ was the Czar himself, who was assisted in this +task by the Polish queen, the wife of King Augustus. The little Negro +was given a new name of Peter, but he cried and refused to answer it, +preferring his old Arab name. The Russians, however, could not get +used to the strange Oriental sound and called him Abram instead of +Ibrahim. His surname--Hannibal--was given to him by the Czar in memory +of the famous Carthaginian. + +In 1716 Peter went on his second tour of Western Europe with Hannibal +as usual accompanying him. Among other countries they visited France, +and here Hannibal was left to begin his studies more seriously. +Hannibal, then 19 years old, showed fair capacity for mathematics +and physics. Supplied by the Czar with money and other means of +assistance, he entered a military engineering academy in Paris, where +he remained for about 2 years. He joined the French army afterwards, +which was then engaged in the war against Spain, and participated in +many battles. He proved to be an able engineer and a good commander. +In one of the battles--"an underground combat," as it is related in an +eighteenth century document--Hannibal was wounded in the head, but not +dangerously, and was brought back to Paris. + +Hannibal stayed in Paris till 1723, communicating with the Czar by +letters which are preserved in St. Petersburg state archives. Hannibal +complained in them that the Russian treasury and Peter himself almost +completely forgot about him, compelling him to live in great poverty +on the verge of starvation. If he could obtain no allowance, Hannibal +wrote, he would have to walk from Paris to Moscow, begging alms on the +way. + +Pushkin, however, asserts that his great-grandfather while in Paris +was well provided for by Peter with money and had an unlimited +opportunity to mingle in the French society circles. His appearance +aroused curiosity; his wits, education and war record respect. +His black curls with a bandage over them--his wound did not heal +completely for a long time--could be frequently seen amid white wigs +of the French aristocrats. He was well received in the best salons +of Paris, being everywhere known as "le negre du Czar." The Duke of +Orleans, who as a regent ruled over France at that time, favored +Hannibal with his attention and when in 1723 Peter asked Abram to come +back to Russia, the regent tried to persuade Hannibal to remain in +France, promising him a brilliant military and court career. Although +the Czar permitted Hannibal to take his own choice between France and +Russia, the young man decided to return to St. Petersburg. + +Thus, contradicting Hannibal's complaining letters, Pushkin describes +his great-grandfather's sojourn in Paris. He evidently based his +testimony on the family accounts, which as almost any such narratives +contain perhaps more fiction than history. But, on the other hand, +the historians, who contradict Pushkin, have no other proof of their +infallibility than these Paris letters of Hannibal. + +Reliable information concerning Hannibal after his return to Russia, +however, is not so scarce. Immediately upon his arrival in St. +Petersburg, Hannibal was appointed an officer in the Preobrajensky +Guard-regiment. He became an "engineer-lieutenant" in the +"Bombardir-company," of which the Czar himself was the captain. But +another crisis was reached when, according to Pushkin, it appeared +about that time that Hannibal was a son of a Negro king, and his elder +brother came from Africa to St. Petersburg with an offer of a rich +ransom for Hannibal. He met with no success, as Hannibal himself did +not want to return to the village on the banks of Niger. + +The situation did not seem so favorable for Hannibal, moreover, when +in 1725 Peter the Great died. Menshikov, former pie-peddler and +life-long favorite of the late Czar, elevated himself to the position +of sole adviser to Peter's widow, Catherine I. He alone virtually +ruled Russia for several years. When Catherine I died and young Peter +II sat on the throne, Menshikov wanted the boy Emperor to marry his +younger daughter. He feared, however, his numerous enemies at the +court, among whom he counted Hannibal, the young Czar's instructor +in mathematics. Consequently Hannibal was exiled to Siberia in 1727. +Officially he was neither arrested nor deprived of his rank and +property. He was sent to the borders of China with orders to "transfer +from the town of Selenginsk into another location" and to "take an +exact measure of the Great Chinese Wall." Menshikov evidently thought +that the severe Siberian frosts would sooner or later kill the young +African. But Hannibal being strong and healthy and accustomed from +childhood to cold climate withstood the hardships of the Siberian +wilderness. + +In 1729 he fled from Selenginsk but was arrested before he could reach +Europe. His papers and valuables taken from him, Hannibal was brought +to Tomsk, a city in Western Siberia. There for some time he was kept +as a prisoner, although his salary as an officer was still paid. In +January of 1730 he was freed but not permitted to leave Siberia. He +was appointed to serve in the Tomsk garrison as a major. + +Soon afterwards St. Petersburg was the scene of a new coup-d'etat. +Anna, a niece of Peter the Great, was summoned to the Russian throne. +Counts Dolgorukov became the most powerful persons at the court. New +hopes were aroused in Hannibal, as the Dolgorukovs were his friends, +since the time he and they lived in France. Hannibal without asking +or waiting for permission left Tomsk, but when some time after he +arrived in St. Petersburg he learned that Dolgorukovs lost their +influence as suddenly as they won it, that they were arrested, and +after all their estates had been confiscated, were exiled to Siberia. +Great dangers threatened Hannibal as a Dolgorukovs' friend. Biron, +erstwhile a stable man but now adviser and lover of Anna, sought +Hannibal's life. Field-marshal Minich, commander-in-chief of the +Russian army, however, saved Hannibal by granting him a commission to +inspect fortifications in Lifland. In a little village near Reval, +then, Hannibal lived in obscurity for 10 years, fearing every day +the arrival of a messenger from St. Petersburg with an order for his +arrest. + +Before his coming to Lifland, Hannibal married the beautiful daughter +of a Greek captain by the name of Dioper. Almost from the first day +of their marriage he began to suspect her infidelity. The birth of a +white baby-girl proved his suspicions and justified their divorce. +The Russian court sent Hannibal's wife to a convent, and Hannibal +married Christina-Regina Von-Sheberg, a Lifland German woman. She +gave birth to five sons, all of whom were mulattoes. His first wife's +white daughter he kept in his home, gave her a good education and a +considerable dowry, but never permitted her to come before his eyes. + +In November of 1741 Elisabeth, a daughter of Peter the Great, was +proclaimed the Empress of Russia. She immediately returned from exile +all former favorites of her father. Among these was Hannibal, on whom +she showered various honours. He was given the post of commandant +of city of Reval. About ten villages with several thousands of +white slaves were presented to him as his personal property. He was +decorated with medals and ribbons and asked to come to St. Petersburg. +He preferred, however, to stay on his newly acquired estates. + +Other important tasks awaited him. In 1752 he was commissioned to fix +the Russo-Swedish boundary line. In 1756 he was one of the members +of the Ladoga Canal Commission and also of the Commission for the +Inspection of the Russian Forts. In 1762, with a rank of general +in chief, he retired from public service, being then an old man. +His services were remembered at the court for a long time after, +however, for once Catherine II asked him to compose a plan of St. +Petersburg-Moscow Canal. + +During his last years he was frequented by spells of sudden fear, the +consequence of his old sufferings. He was especially afraid of the +sound of a bell, imagining that his persecutors were coming again. +Under one of these spells, as we mentioned above, he destroyed his +memoirs not long before he died in 1782 in his eighty-fifth year. + +He did not want his sons to join the army or be at the court, fearing +they might be involved there in dangerous intrigue. Ivan, his elder +son, joined the army against his will, and only after he won fame as +a brilliant victor over the Turks could he on his knees receive his +aged father's forgiveness. Ivan Hannibal distinguished himself not +only as a strategist but as a man of a great personal valor as well. +He participated in the Russian naval expedition to Greece and captured +Navarin, a Turkish fort, in 1770. He was the hero of the Chesma +battle. Returning to Russia in 1779 he founded the city of Kherson in +the Ukraine, of which he was appointed a governor. Later Ivan Hannibal +quarreled with Count Potemkin, lover of Catherine the Great and ruler +of Southern Russia. The Empress defended Hannibal and decorated him, +but he left the service and went to live in one of his numerous +estates. There in 1801 he died. + +His brother Ossip (Joseph) was a naval officer in the Black Sea Fleet +and for several years navigated the Mediterranean. Of other sons of +Abram Hannibal very little is known. Ossip's daughter Nadejda, a +Creole of striking beauty, married Pushkin, of an ancient Russian +noble family. In 1799 a son was born to them and named Alexander, who +later won fame as the greatest poet of Russia. He was killed in 1837, +while duelling with a diplomat over the honor of Pushkin's wife, who +was not worth her great husband's noble love. + +While all the works of Pushkin could be bound together in one volume, +thousands of books have been written on him and on what he created. +Numerous monuments are erected in his honor all over Russia; special +magazines entirely dedicated to him are published; and in famous +paintings by distinguished Russian artists are pictured different +periods of Pushkin's short life. When you look at these paintings, +black curls, olive skin and thick lips speak to you of Pushkin's race. +He himself was proud of it, all but worshipping his great-grandfather +in many of his verses. + + ALBERT PARRY + + + + +THE MOVEMENT OF NEGROES FROM THE EAST TO THE GULF STATES FROM 1830 TO +1850 + + +The migration of Negroes to the Gulf States, during the years 1830 +to 1850, was from the point of view of the Negroes themselves wholly +involuntary. The blacks, being at that time preponderately slave, +accompanied their masters to new homes in the South and Southwest or +constituted the traffic of the domestic slave trade. Explanation of +their migration must be sought, therefore, not in any unrest that may +have been manifested by the Negroes, but rather in the causes that +underlay the movement of the masters to new homes, and that enabled +the domestic slave trade to become a profitable enterprise. + +This migration, which in some ways assumed a peculiar aspect, bears a +definite relation to three general circumstances. In the first place, +there was a comparative decline in the productiveness of the seaboard +border slave States. In the second, the accessibility to the new lands +and practically virgin soils of Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana +invited the migration of innumerable planters from the border States +to this new region. Finally, the rapidly increasing demand of the +planters of the Gulf region for slave labor with which to cultivate +cotton and other native products tremendously stimulated the domestic +slave trade. + +Although the seaboard border States, led by Virginia, sent south +the bulk of the slaves, it must not be thought that the migration +was alone from these States. In fact, as early as 1840,[1] not only +Virginia, Maryland, the District of Columbia, and Delaware, but also +North Carolina became slave-exporting areas. Later, too, when the +impoverishment of her lands made impossible the further extension +of cotton culture, South Carolina joined with these other States and +Georgia in exporting slaves to Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and, +after 1845, to Texas. + +The decline in the productiveness of some of the seaboard border slave +States has been ascribed to various causes. The failure to rotate +crops and the lack of proper and sufficient fertilizer necessary to +prevent an impoverishment of the soil some hold to be primary causes. +The almost complete dependence upon unskilled, unintelligent slave +labor, the conviction prevalent everywhere in slave territory that +such labor made that of white men dishonorable, together with the +failure to develop fully the manufacturing facilities at hand, have +been also generally advanced to explain the decline, particularly, of +Maryland and Virginia. + +The chief agricultural staple of these States was tobacco. The +characteristic soil of the region--a sandy loam--while warm and +stimulating was easily exhausted,[2] especially when the planters had +improper and inefficient fertilizer, traceable in some measure to +a numerical deficiency of live stock, and the incessant culture of +tobacco, without crop rotation. The price of tobacco, moreover, was +throughout the years from 1818 to 1840 exceedingly low and, at the +same time, the newer States of Kentucky, Tennessee, and Missouri, as +well as the Carolinas and Georgia, were producing large quantities +of tobacco. The net result in Virginia and Maryland, therefore, was +to make the culture of the plant exceedingly unprofitable.[3] It is +held that the soil-exhausting character of tobacco culture, together +with the falling prices of the plant, constituted the dominant factors +in the decrease in value of agricultural lands of Virginia from +$206,000,000 in 1816 to $80,000,000 in 1829.[4] + +If the impoverishment of the land through tobacco culture was one +factor in the declining productivity of Virginia and Maryland, the +almost complete use of unskilled Negro slave labor, particularly in +the former State, was decidedly another. Not only was slave labor +costly, in that the non-producers, as well as the constant workers, +had to be provided for, but also because of the overwhelming ignorance +and inertia of such labor. "The grand secret of the difference between +free labor and slave labor," wrote a former Virginia resident to the +_New York Times_, "is that the latter is without intelligence and +without motive."[5] A large tobacco planter of Virginia adds to this +his testimony that the slave's incapacity to perform duties complex in +nature, or requiring the least intelligence, precluded the cultivation +there of the finer grades of tobacco.[6] While, therefore, the Negro +slave was tractable and capable of hard work, he was, without strict +supervision, a most unproductive worker. The universal employment of +the slave despite his ignorance and inertia doubtless furnishes one +clue to the failure of Virginia to exploit, in a reasonable degree, +her manufacturing resources.[7] + +This costly failure has been ascribed also to the reluctance of white +labor to perform any duties to which slaves might be assigned. Slave +owners and white laborers held in mutual repugnance the employment of +white men at such tasks. According to Olmsted,[8] slave owners have +held that the poor whites would refuse to do such work if possible, +and, if compelled to submit, would do only so much as they found +absolutely necessary. Under all circumstances they do such work +reluctantly and "will not bear driving." "They cannot be worked to +advantage with the slaves, and it is inconvenient to look after them, +if you work them separately." + +The natural consequence of the policy thus pursued by Virginia was, +despite the fact of her early command over greater wealth and a +larger population than the other States, to force her to descend, in +part, from her former high estate.[9] A comparison of values of the +agricultural lands of Virginia and Pennsylvania, in 1850, shows those +of the latter, although of smaller acreage, to have a larger sale +value an acre and a larger total value. A similar comparison between +Virginia and New Jersey gives the same result. + +That the conditions stated as obtaining in 1850 had long existed +there seems to be no lack of evidence. Thomas Marshall made, in the +Virginia legislature of 1831-'32, searching and detailed statements +of the declining wealth and productivity of the State.[10] Such +conditions as he pictured made plain that the planters of Virginia +must either improve their lands by rehabilitating the soil, acquiring +better farming implements, and improving their plow animals,[11] or +migrate to the more promising lands elsewhere, or sell their slaves. +The records show that by some planters one or another of these methods +was adopted. Moreover, Maryland, a sister State of Virginia, because +of the exhaustion of her soil by tobacco culture, found essential to +her relief the same procedure.[12] With reference to Maryland, the +census of 1840 shows an actual decrease over that of 1830 in the slave +population[13] of the commonwealth. + +To what parts, then, did these slaves go? The theatre of the largest +expansion of slavery[14] was the "Western Cotton Belt," the section +which shall be herein considered, comprehending parts of Alabama, +Mississippi, Louisiana, and Eastern Texas. The chief distinction +between the soils of these States constituting the Atlantic Coastal +Plain from Virginia to South Carolina and those of the "Western +Cotton Belt" is the occurrence of extensive limestone belts in the +latter. "The soils in these limestone belts are largely residual, +calcareous and usually have a humus content, which gives the soil +its black color"[15]--hence the name "Black Belt." The soils of +these belts contain much clay and require careful preparation, but +they are durable and extremely fertile. Moreover, an excellent +water navigation[16] extending well into the region constituted an +additional factor in the extension of the cotton culture and of Negro +slavery into this territory. + +According to Phillips,[17] the lands of the "Western Cotton Belt," +most preferred in the early period, lay in two main areas, the +soils of both of which were more lasting and fertile than those in +the interior of the Atlantic States. "One of these areas formed a +crescent across south-central Alabama, with its western horn reaching +up the Tombigbee River into northeastern Mississippi." The soil of +this area was of black loose loam. Everywhere it was thickly matted +with grass and weeds, except where there was visible "limestone on +the hill crests and prodigious cane brakes in the valleys." This +tract known locally as the prairies or "Black Belt" was smaller than +the other which extended along the Mississippi, on both sides, from +northern Tennessee and Arkansas to the mouth of the Red River. This +tract contained broad alluvial bottoms, as well as occasional hill +districts of rich loam, the latter being especially noticeable around +Natchez and Vicksburg. The broadest expanse of these bottoms, the +Yazoo-Mississippi Delta, received but few migrants prior to the middle +"thirties." The planters seem to have settled first in the bottoms, +while the other choice lands were competed for by the large and +smaller planters, as well as the poor farmers. + +These lands were not only, by soil and climate, ideally suited to the +production of cotton, but they were reasonably cheap in price. As late +as 1849 there was much uncultivated, though fertile agricultural land +in each of the cotton-growing States. At that time the total acreage +and the area in use in several of the Gulf States were listed as +follows:[18] + + State Total No. of Acres Acres Owned + Alabama 32,462,080 15,911,520 + Louisiana 29,715,840 6,263,822 + Mississippi 30,174,080 15,811,650 + +There was under these circumstances small wonder that there migrated +planters from the worn-out lands of the seaboard slave States, +including the less fertile districts of Georgia,[19] and parts of +Kentucky and Tennessee. In the absence of statistics giving the exact +number of slaves migrating thus with their owners, the estimates of +contemporaries and of later writers may be serviceable. _The Virginia +(Wheeling) Times_ said[20] that intelligent men of that day estimated +the number of slaves exported from Virginia, during the year 1836, +to be 120,000, of whom two-thirds (80,000) were carried south by +their masters. The _Quarterly Anti-Slavery Magazine_ (vol. ii, 411, +July, 1837) gives the _Natchez Courier_ as the authority for the +estimate that during 1836 as many as 250,000 slaves, some of whom were +accompanied by their masters, were transported from the older slave +States to Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Arkansas.[21] P. A. +Morse, of Louisiana, writing in 1857, says that "the augmentation of +slaves within the cotton States was caused mostly by the migration +of slave owners." On the basis of sources accessible to him, Morse +estimated that three-fifths of the slaves removed from the border +States to the farther South, from 1820 to 1850, migrated with their +masters.[22] Accepting the "three-fifths estimate" of Morse, Collins +has made deductions which indicate that approximately 15,900 slaves +went south annually with their masters during the decade from 1830 +to 1840; while during the next decade the annual migration was about +9,000.[23] + +One of these migrant planters,[24] who, in 1835, left his tidewater +estate in Gloucester County, Virginia, was Colonel Thomas S. Dabney. +Prompted by the necessities of his family to seek more favorable +soil, he sought land in Alabama, Louisiana, and Mississippi, finally +settling in the one last mentioned. Colonel Dabney carried with him +more than two hundred slaves, established himself on a plantation of +four thousand acres, and each year contrived, by clearances, to put +under cultivation an additional hundred acres. Planters of this type, +with large numbers of slaves and sufficient funds to extend their +holdings, tended to concentrate both slaves and lands in a few hands. + +If the demand for new lands brought great numbers of slaves southward +during the years from 1830 to 1850, there were also at work forces +which caused many other slaves to be exported in the domestic slave +traffic. The extension of the cotton culture in the more southern +States, the increased exportation of cotton, the advancing profits +therefrom, the development of large sugar plantations in Louisiana, +and the decreased average working life of the slave created among the +planters of this region an extraordinary demand for slave labor. At +the same time such seaboard States as raised tobacco were suffering +from a depression in the tobacco markets. The African slave trade, +moreover, had been legally suppressed, thus rendering the seaboard +and other border slave States the sole legal source of supply for the +slave labor required by the lower South. + +The income of some of the plantations on these fresh lands was +immense.[25] It was considered not uncommon for a planter in +Mississippi or Louisiana to receive an income of thirty thousand +dollars annually. Extremely prosperous planters, it is said, took +in from $80,000 to $120,000 in a single year. The enormous profits +arising from such investments in the face of the unusual demand for +slaves enabled prices of bondmen to rise inordinately high. Thus +it was that a prime field hand, a Negro between the ages of twenty +and thirty years, could command a price varying from five hundred +to twelve hundred dollars,[26] and, in some cases, fourteen hundred +dollars or more. In fact, slave traders rapidly grew rich from the +traffic. One is reported as having earned thirty thousand dollars +in a few months, while Franklin and Armfield, members of a firm +with headquarters in Alexandria, are said to have earned more than +thirty-three thousand dollars in a single year.[27] + +The effect of the growing demand for labor, reflected in the high +prices being offered for slaves, tended to concentrate the interest +of the Virginia planter on his slaves, as it had been hitherto +concentrated on tobacco.[28] Prompt and efficient methods were devised +whereby Negroes were made ready for the market.[29] Olmsted was +informed by a slave-holder that in the States of Maryland, Virginia, +North Carolina, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Missouri, as much attention +was paid to the breeding and growth of Negroes as had been hitherto +given to the breeding of horses and mules.[30] + +As to the precise number of slaves exported in response to the high +prices paid for them, there seems to be no conclusive evidence. Resort +must be had, therefore, to estimates of contemporaries and later +writers. _The New Orleans Advertiser_ of January 21, 1830, says: +"Arrivals by sea and river within a few days have added fearfully to +the number of slaves brought to the market for sale. New Orleans is +the complete mart for the trade--and the Mississippi is becoming a +common highway for the traffic."[31] In the summer of 1831, moreover, +New Orleans reported, in one week, the arrival of 381 slaves, nearly +all of whom were from Virginia.[32] + +Not all of the exportations of slaves were by sea as is attested by +records of Sir Charles Lyell, Basil Hall, and Josiah Henson.[32a] At +a later period, Featherstonhaugh tells of an overland expedition of +slaves to the South. Of this coffle of slaves he says:[33] "Just as +we reached New River, in the early grey of the morning, we came up +with a singular spectacle, the most striking one of the kind I have +ever witnessed. It was a camp of Negro slave-drivers, just packing +up to start; they had about three hundred slaves with them, who had +bivouacked the preceding night in chains in the woods; these they were +conducting to Natchez, upon the Mississippi River, to work upon the +sugar plantations in Louisiana. It resembled one of those coffles of +slaves spoken of by Mungo Park, except that they had a caravan of nine +waggons and single-horse carriages, for the purpose of conducting the +white people, and any of the blacks that should fall lame, to which +they were now putting their horses to pursue their march. The female +slaves were, some of them, sitting on logs of wood, whilst others +were standing, and a great many little black children were warming +themselves at the fires of the bivouac. In front of them all and +prepared for the march stood, in double file, about two hundred male +slaves, manacled and chained to one another." + +In the year 1831 there set in a reaction[34] against the importation +of slaves into the Gulf States as a result of fear from troubles +like Nat Turner's insurrection. Louisiana in 1831, and Alabama and +Mississippi in 1832, passed laws prohibiting the importation of +slaves into those States. The Alabama law was repealed in December, +1832, that of Louisiana in 1834, and that of Mississippi in 1846. +Moreover, there is no evidence to show that these laws really checked +importations. The fright engendered by the slave insurrection in +Virginia was not sufficient to triumph over the practical demands +for such labor. Collins holds that during the years from 1832 to +1836 the largest migration of Negroes to the South and the Southwest +occurred.[35] + +Since cotton was the prime factor in effecting the prosperity of +the Southwest, and its extension of culture and advance in price +dictated largely the demand for slaves, the number of slaves yearly +exported may bear some relation to the price of cotton. After 1835, +the price of cotton declined.[36] This, together with the panic of +1837, caused a falling-off in the domestic slave trade, except in +1843, and the low price of cotton which continued until 1846 and +hindered the revival[37] of the traffic in men. In 1843, however, +five thousand slaves were sold in Washington as compared with two +thousand in the previous year. These increased sales were doubtless +in some measure due to the decline in the price of tobacco,[38] and +the renewed activity of the sugar industry, incident to a new duty on +that product.[39] For the whole decade from 1840 to 1850, however, a +decrease in the slave traffic is shown by the fact that the per cent +of increase in the slave population in the cotton States was barely +half as great as during the previous decade.[40] + +Some time after 1845, however, the demand for slaves seems to have +exceeded the supply. A writer in the _Richmond Examiner_ of 1849 is +quoted as having said: "It being a well accustomed fact that Virginia +and Maryland will not be able to supply the great demand for Negroes +which will be wanted in the South this Fall and Spring, we would +advise all who are compelled to dispose of them in this market to +defer selling until the sales of the present crop of cotton can +be realized, as the price then must be very high for two reasons: +first, the ravages of the cholera; and secondly, the high price of +cotton."[41] + +Three important events seem to have stimulated the slave trade during +this period. First, there came the admission of Texas as a State in +December, 1845; second, the increase in the price of cotton from 1845; +and, third, the discovery of gold in California. The first of these +opened to development a vast cotton country, which could be legally +supplied with slave labor only through the domestic trade. The second +event, the rise in the price of cotton, gave a new impetus to the +production of cotton, and the California gold rush infused new life +into all avenues of trade.[42] During this period and the decade +following, Collins says that because of the great demand for slaves +the price of them increased one hundred per cent; yet no evidence of a +large increase in the traffic is shown.[43] + + TABLE NO. 1 TOTAL COTTON CROP IN BALES:[44] + 1833 1,070,000 + 1837 1,081,000 + 1840 2,178,000 + 1843 2,379,000 + 1849 2,727,000 + + PRODUCTION OF COTTON BY STATES--(POUNDS):[45] + + ===================================================== + TABLE NO. 2 | | | + | 1826 | 1833 | 1834 + ---------------+------------+------------+----------- + Virginia | 25,000,000 | 13,000,000 | 10,000,000 + North Carolina | 18,000,000 | 10,000,000 | 9,000,000 + Louisiana | 38,000,000 | 55,000,000 | 62,000,000 + Alabama | 45,000,000 | 65,000,000 | 85,000,000 + Mississippi | 30,000,000 | 70,000,000 | 85,000,000 + ----------------------------------------------------- + + COTTON PRODUCTION IN POUNDS:[46] + + TABLE NO. 3 + 1839 790,479,275 + 1849 987,637,200 + +The statistics of cotton production and prices further elucidate this +question. Table No. 1 shows a continuous increase in the production +of cotton during the successive periods considered. Table No. 2 +depicts the declining significance of Virginia and North Carolina +as cotton-producing States and the shift of the lead of cotton +production to the Gulf States. Table No. 3 shows the total production +of cotton in the years considered and is significant, in that it +emphasizes the important cotton-producing areas. During these years +Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Georgia, together, produced +more than two-thirds of the total cotton crop.[47] Table No. 4 is +self-explanatory, while Table No. 5 shows the yearly fluctuations of +the average price of cotton after 1840. + + AVERAGE PRICE A POUND OF COTTON IN FIVE-YEAR PERIODS:[48] + + TABLE NO. 4 + 1830-1835 10.9 cents + 1835-1840 14.4 cents + 1840-1845 8.1 cents + 1845-1850 7.3 cents + + AVERAGE PRICE A POUND OF COTTON:[49] + + TABLE NO. 5 + 1835 16.8 cents + 1836 16.8 cents + 1840 8.6 cents + 1841 10.2 cents + 1842 8.1 cents + 1843 6.1 cents + 1844 8.1 cents + 1845 6.0 cents + 1846 7.9 cents + 1847 10.1 cents + 1848 7.6 cents + 1849 6.5 cents + +In the years 1835 and 1836, the price is high relative to the later +years in the two decades, and, assuming the continued demand for +cotton, should have stimulated the domestic slave traffic by effecting +a large demand for slaves at high prices. The lowest price is reached +in 1845, followed by a rise till 1847, and then a decline in 1848 and +1849. That the demand for slaves was not at this time abated must +be traceable to the fact that not more than three-fifths[50] of the +slaves in the Cotton States were engaged in the production of cotton, +while other occupations, notably sugar-production in Louisiana, +demanded an increased quota. + +The statistics of slave population are designed to show the +increases of that type both in the States of Alabama, Louisiana, and +Mississippi, and in selected areas within these States. In 1850, the +civil subdivisions, as counties or parishes, which possessed the +greatest density of slave population in Texas, as well as in the other +States named, were located in those areas of the most fertile soil for +producing cotton or cane. This concentration is but an evidence of the +influence of these factors in calling forth the slave migration to the +Southwest. + + SLAVE POPULATION IN THE GULF STATES:[51] + + ========================================= + TABLE NO. 6 | | | + | 1830 | 1840 | 1850 + ------------+---------+---------+-------- + Alabama | 117,549 | 253,532 | 342,844 + Louisiana | 109,588 | 168,452 | 244,809 + Mississippi | 65,659 | 195,211 | 309,878 + Texas | ....... | ....... | 58,161 + ----------------------------------------- + + PER CENT. SLAVE INCREASE BY DECADES:[52] + + TABLE NO. 7 + 1830-1840 1840-1850 + Alabama 115.68 35.22 + Louisiana 53.70 45.32 + Mississippi 197.31 58.74 + Texas ...... ..... + + CONCENTRATION OF MIGRATION UPON SELECTED AREAS: + ALABAMA:[53] + + ====================================== + TABLE NO. 8| | | + Counties | 1830 | 1840 | 1850 + -----------+--------+--------+------- + Barbour | ..... | 5,548 | 10,780 + Chambers | ..... | 7,141 | 11,158 + Dallas | 7,160 | 17,208 | 22,258 + Greene | 7,420 | 16,431 | 22,127 + Loundes | ..... | 12,569 | 14,649 + Macon | ..... | 5,580 | 15,596 + Madison | 14,091 | 13,265 | 14,326 + Marengo | 2,987 | 11,902 | 20,693 + Montgomery | 6,450 | 15,486 | 19,427 + Perry | 4,331 | 10,343 | 13,917 + Pickens | 1,630 | 7,764 | 10,534 + Russell | ..... | 7,266 | 11,111 + Sumter | ..... | 15,920 | 14,831 + Wilcox | 4,070 | 8,292 | 11,835 + ------------------------------------- + + CONCENTRATION OF MIGRATION UPON SELECTED AREAS (continued): + MISSISSIPPI:[54] + + ===================================== + TABLE NO. 9| | | + Counties | 1830 | 1840 | 1850 + -----------+--------+--------+------- + Adams | 9,649 | 8,740 | 14,395 + Claiborne | 6,174 | 7,743 | 11,450 + Hinds | 3,197 | 13,375 | 16,625 + Jefferson | 6,702 | 9,176 | 10,493 + Lowndes | 1,066 | 8,771 | 12,993 + Madison | 2,167 | 11,533 | 13,843 + Marshall | ..... | 8,250 | 15,417 + Monroe | 940 | 6,460 | 11,717 + Noxubee | ..... | 7,157 | 11,323 + Warren | 4,183 | 10,493 | 12,096 + Wilkinson | 7,877 | 10,894 | 13,260 + Yazoo | 2,470 | 7,237 | 10,349 + ------------------------------------- + + CONCENTRATION OF MIGRATION UPON SELECTED AREAS (concluded): + LOUISIANA[56] (concluded): + + ====================================== + TABLE NO. 10| | | + Parishes | 1830 | 1840 | 1850 + ------------+--------+--------+------- + Ascension | 2,813 | 4,553 | 7,266 + Feliciana, E| 3,652 | 7,571 | 9,514 + Feliciana, W| 6,345 | 8,755 | 10,666 + Iberville | 4,509 | 5,887 | 8,606 + Madison | ..... | 3,923 | 7,353 + Natchitoches| 3,570 | 6,651 | 7,881 + Orleans | 16,603 | 23,448 | 18,068 + Point Coupee| 4,210 | 5,430 | 7,811 + Rapides | 5,321 | 10,511 | 11,340 + St. James | 5,027 | 5,711 | 7,751 + St. Landry | 5,057 | 7,129 | 10,871 + St. Mary's | 4,304 | 6,286 | 9,850 + Tensas | ..... | ..... | 8,138 + -------------------------------------- + + TEXAS:[57] + + TABLE NO. 11 + Counties 1850 + Austin 1,549 + Bowie 1,641 + Brazoria 3,507 + Cass 1,902 + Cherokee 1,283 + Fayette 1,016 + Fort Bend 1,554 + Grimes 1,680 + Harrison 6,213 + Lamar 1,085 + Matagorda 1,208 + Nacogdochea 1,404 + Nueces 1,193 + Red River 1,406 + Rusk 2,136 + San Augustine 1,561 + Walker 1,301 + Washington 2,817 + Wharton 1,242 + +The average increase of slave population in the States considered was +103.30 per cent for the decade from 1830 to 1840, while that of the +next decade was less than half so great, being 51.41 per cent.[55] +These percentages, though both significant, cannot be explained wholly +in terms of Negro migration. If the estimate of the increase in slave +population by births over deaths be for each decade twenty-eight +per cent,[58] and if from 1830 to 1840 forty thousand and from +1840 to 1850 fifty thousand foreign Negroes were imported[59] into +the country as slaves, the number migrating from the more Northern +States was materially smaller than at first appears to be the case. +Phillips says that from 1815-1860, the volume of the slave trade by +sea alone averaged from two thousand to five thousand[60] annually; +but Dew, in 1832, estimated that six thousand slaves were annually +exported from Virginia.[61] Collins, moreover, has made most elaborate +calculations in this matter.[62] Accepting the estimate of Morse that +three-fifths of the slaves who went south during the period from 1820 +to 1850 migrated with their masters, Collins has deduced that the +average annual export of Negroes for sale, during the decade from +1830 to 1840, was 10,600; and of the next decade, 6,000. On the basis +of the principle underlying this calculation, it would follow that +approximately 15,900 slaves migrated south with their masters during +the earlier decade; while 9,000 went annually in this way during the +decade from 1840 to 1850. Finally, if this principle of calculation +be accepted, and the facts upon which it is based be well founded, +approximately 26,500 Negroes found their way annually to the cotton +and contiguous territory during the period from 1830 to 1840; while +from 1840 to 1850 the annual number was 15,000. + +What were some effects of this vast migration of Negro slaves to the +Gulf States? The mere concentration of a large slave population in +this region gains significance when it is considered in its numerical +relation to the whites. Throughout the two decades from 1830 to 1850, +there was a progressive increase in the white population here, and +yet, in 1850, the whites in Alabama exceeded the slaves by less than +one hundred thousand. In Louisiana the excess was 11,000; while in +Mississippi the slaves were in the majority by some 14,000.[63] This +situation was fraught with great possibilities. Would the slaves +undertake a servile insurrection? To this dangerous aspect much +thought was given, and thorough precautions were taken to protect the +whites against such an upheaval. The immediate effect of this movement +of the slaves to the Gulf Regions, however, was the final commitment +of that section to a regime of slavery and the unification of a solid +South based on interests peculiar to that section. + +Although the emancipation of the blacks as a result of the Civil War +has made possible the movement of not a few Negroes away from the Gulf +Region, they still form a substantial portion of the population. They +supply as in former days the bulk of the cotton hands. Many live in +ignorance and in poverty, disfranchised and subjected to the economic +exploitation of the ruling classes. They have therefore been a potent +force in the creation of a social problem, the solution of which seems +not yet to be found, except it appears in the present migration of +these Negroes to industrial centers in the North. + + A. A. TAYLOR + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Hammond, _The Cotton Industry_, I, 53 (cited from _Slavery and the +Internal Slave Trade_, 12). + +[2] Emerson, _Geographical Influences in American Slavery_, 18 +(Bulletin, Amer. Geographical Society, xliii). + +[3] Collins, _The Domestic Slave Trade_, 23 (cited from Hunt's +_Merchants' Magazine_, vi, 473). + +[4] _Ibid._, 26. + +[5] Olmsted, _Cotton Kingdom_, II; App. C, 382. + +[6] _Ibid._, 89. + +[7] _Ibid._, 365 (cited from the _Lynchburg Virginian_, date not +given). + +[8] _Ibid._ + +[9] _Ibid._, II, 364-5, 367, 369, 303-4; I, 11, 35. See also App. A2, +_Census of 1850_. + +[10] Ambler, _Sectionalism in Virginia_, 193. + +[11] Phillips, _American Negro Slavery_, 185. + +[12] De Bow's _Review_, x, 654. + +[13] _Compendium, Seventh Census_, 1850, 84. + +[14] Emerson, _op. cit._, 118. + +[15] _Ibid._, 171. + +[16] _Ibid._, 118. + +[17] Phillips, _op. cit._, 173. + +[18] De Bow, _op. cit._, vii, 166. + +[19] Hammond, _op. cit._, I, 53. + +[20] Collins, _op. cit._, 52. + +[21] _Ibid._, 52. + +[22] _Ibid._, 62. + +[23] _Ibid._, 64, 65. + +[24] Phillips, _op. cit._, 179, 180. + +[25] Collins, _op. cit._, 27. + +[26] Collins, _op. cit._, 28. + +[27] _Ibid._ (cited from Mary Tremain, _Slavery in District of +Columbia_, 50). + +[28] Olmsted, _Seaboard Slave States_, I, 278-279. + +[29] _Ibid._, I, 280-281. + +[30] Olmsted, _Cotton Kingdom_, II, note, 58. + +[31] Collins, _op. cit._, 46, 47 (from the _African Repository_, V, +381). + +[32] _Ibid._, 47 (from _Niles Register_, Nov. 26, 1831). + +[32a] Basil Hall, _Travels in North America_, III, 128, 129; Sir +Charles Lyell, _A Second Visit to the United States_, II, 35; Henson, +_Uncle Tom's Story of his Life_, 53. + +[33] Featherstonhaugh (G. W.), _Travels in America_, 36. + +[34] Collins, _op. cit._, 128, 130, 132-3. + +[35] Collins, _op. cit._, 54, 55 (cited from Hammond, _The Cotton +Industry_, App. I). + +[36] De Bow's _Review_, xxiii, 475. + +[37] Hammond, _op. cit._, App. I. + +[38] Collins, _op. cit._, 54 (from De Bow, _Ind. Resources_, iii, 349). + +[39] _Ibid._, 54 (De Bow, _Ind. Resources_, iii, 275). + +[40] De Bow's _Review_, xxiii, 477. + +[41] _Richmond Examiner_, 1849. + +[42] Collins, _op. cit._, 54, 55 (from Hammond, _Cotton Industry_, +App. I). + +[43] _Ibid._, 56. (_Key to Uncle Tom's Cabin_, 149; De Bow's _Review_, +xxvi, 649). + +[44] _Compendium, Seventh Census_, 1850, 191. + +[45] De Bow's _Review_, xxiii, 477. + +[46] Collins, _op. cit._, 32 (_Statistics of Agr., 42, Census of +1890_). + +[47] _Compendium, Seventh Census_, 1850, 191. + +[48] _Ibid._, 191. + +[49] Collins, _op. cit._, 32. + +[50] De Bow's _Review_, xxiii, 477. + +[51] _Compendium, Seventh Census_, 1850, 191, 84. + +[52] De Bow's _Review_, xxiii, 477. + +[53] _Census of 1830_, 98-101; _Census of 1840, Compendium_, 54; +_Census of 1850_, 421. + +[54] _Census of 1830_, 102-3; _Census of 1840, Compendium_; _Census of +1850_, 497. + +[55] De Bow's _Review_, xxiii, 476. + +[56] _Census of 1830_, 104-107; _Census of 1840, Compendium_; _Census +of 1850_, 473. + +[57] _Census of 1850_, 503-4. + +[58] _Ibid._, 476. + +[59] Collins, _op. cit._, 64, 65. + +[60] Phillips, _op. cit._, 195. + +[61] Hammond, _op. cit._, I, 53 (from Dew in the _Pro-Slavery +Argument_, 399). + +[62] Collins, _op. cit._, 64, 65. + +[63] _Compendium, Seventh Census_, 1850, 63. + + + + +NEGROES IN DOMESTIC SERVICE IN THE UNITED STATES[A] + + +INTRODUCTION + +The term _Domestic Service_ as used in this study will include those +persons performing household duties for pay. In early colonial +history indentured servants performed household duties without pay. +They were usually imported convicts, assigned to labor for a term +on some estate, receiving only their living and stipulated benefits +at the termination of their service.[1] In modern use the word +"servant" denotes a domestic or menial helper and implies little or +no discretionary power and responsibility in the mode of performing +duty.[2] + +In this discussion of Negroes in domestic service in the United States +the facts presented disclose the part Negroes have had in the changes +and developments of domestic service in the United States during the +past thirty years.[3] They also show to some extent the relation of +Negro domestic workers to white workers and to some of the larger +problems in this field of employment. + +The primary data used here were gathered in three ways. First, the +writer was a dollar-a-year worker of the Woman in Industry Service, +United States Department of Labor, in 1919; and while visiting cities +in this work obtained from employment agencies some data on domestic +service. Secondly, as domestic service Employment Secretary, United +States Employment Service, Washington, District of Columbia, from +January 1920 to May 1922, the writer kept careful record of pertinent +facts with a view to further study and analysis of this information at +a later time. + +Three different record cards were used at this office. One was for the +employer with name, address, telephone number, kind of help desired, +work to be done, whether to "sleep in" or "sleep out," afternoons off, +breakfast and dinner hour, size of family, wages, etc. Another card +was kept for the employee with name, address, birthplace, age, marital +condition, number of dependents, grade at leaving school, kind of work +desired, minimum wages applicant would accept, names of three recent +former employers and their addresses. On the back of this card were +written the name of the employer engaging the worker, the date, and +kind of work. There was also a card of introduction for the applicant +which the employer mailed back to the office. + +A personal canvass of eleven employment agencies in New York City +and one in Brooklyn was also made in 1923. The records of only two +of these agencies were used, because more time could not be given to +securing material in this way. + +In the third place, in 1923 a general schedule asking questions +relating to number, sex, age, marital condition, turnover, efficiency, +wages, hours, specific occupations, living conditions and health +was sent by mail to employment secretaries in twelve cities North, +South, East, and West, with whom contacts had been established through +acquaintances and friends. Responses were received from ten of these +cities with data for 1,771 domestic and personal service workers. + + +I. NUMBER AND SEX OF NEGROES IN DOMESTIC AND PERSONAL SERVICE + +Because of the difficulties inherent in the classification of +occupations the United States Census Bureau has classified all +domestic and personal service occupations in one group. It has not +been possible, therefore, to ascertain the exact number of workers +engaged exclusively in domestic service. For example, the domestic and +personal service classification includes indiscriminately barbers, +hairdressers, manicurists, midwives, hotel keepers, policemen, cooks, +servants, waiters, bootblacks, and the like. + +Fifty years ago there were in the United States 2,311,820 persons ten +years of age and over engaged in domestic and personal service, 42.1 +per cent of whom were males and 57.9 per cent females. During the +succeeding thirty years there was an average increase for males and +females combined of 108,961 a year. So that in 1900, persons ten years +of age and over engaged in domestic and personal service numbered +5,580,657. As far as distinction from domestic service occupations +can be made, the number engaged in personal service has continued +to increase since 1900. By contrast, during the decade from 1900 to +1910 and from 1910 to 1920 there was a rather steady decline in the +number of those engaged in domestic service. However, the two groups +of domestic and personal service occupations combined showed that the +number ten years of age and over by 1910 had decreased 1,808,098, +and by 1920 had further decreased 367,667. Males constituted 6.4 per +cent of the decrease from 1910 to 1920 and females 93.6 per cent. The +number of children from 10 to 15 years of age engaged in domestic +and personal service in 1910 were 112,171. In 1920 the number had +decreased to 54,006. + +The trend of the number of Negroes in domestic and personal service +occupations compared with the general trend of the total number +is indicative of the relation of Negroes and Caucasians in these +occupations. We may, therefore, discuss the number and sex of Negroes +ten years of age and over engaged in these occupations. + +In 1900 there were in the United States 1,317,859 Negroes ten years +of age and over gainfully employed in domestic and personal service: +681,926 females and 635,933 males. In 1910 the number of females +had increased to 861,497 and the males had decreased to 496,100. In +1890 the total number of Negroes ten years of age and over gainfully +employed in domestic and personal service constituted 20.7 per cent +of the total number so employed and held third place among all +nationalities so employed. Negro men held first place among men thus +employed and constituted 40.8 per cent of the total number of male +domestic workers.[4] This proportion does not take into account the +fact that there were about eight white persons to one Negro in the +total population. At that time one in every 5.6 Negroes ten years of +age and over gainfully employed was in domestic and personal service. +In 1900 Negro women domestic workers occupied second place in point of +numbers among the total number and outnumbered the Negro male domestic +workers 3 to 1, while the white female domestic workers outnumbered +the white male domestic workers about 7 to 1. + +The census figures dealing with servants and waiters for 1910 and +1920 in five Southern States where Negroes perform practically all +of the domestic service and in five Northern States where conditions +are quite different indicate the similarity in the trend of the +numbers for both races in domestic service. Although the number of +waiters increased by 40,693 between 1910 and 1920, the number of other +domestic servants so decreased that we have the following figures for +waiters and other domestic workers. + + _Servants and Waiters 10 years of age and over, in selected States, + 1901-1920_ + + ==================================================== + TABLE I | | + | 1910 | 1920 + State +--------+---------+--------+-------- + | Male | Female | Male | Female + ---------------+--------+---------+--------+-------- + Georgia | 8,719 | 38,165 | 7,752 | 38,165 + N. Carolina | 5,553 | 28,555 | 4,855 | 21,321 + Louisiana | 7,112 | 30,982 | 6,761 | 28,306 + Maryland | 8,125 | 32,292 | 6,859 | 26,305 + Virginia | 9,535 | 42,797 | 3,144 | 33,781 + Massachusetts | 16,969 | 71,853 | 16,574 | 51,941 + Ohio | 11,695 | 64,408 | 15,170 | 50,232 + Minnesota | 6,581 | 37,207 | 6,134 | 26,969 + Pennsylvania | 24,103 | 134,374 | 22,173 | 98,798 + New York | 63,395 | 198,970 | 69,869 | 151,455 + ---------------+--------+---------+--------+-------- + +The figures show a decided decrease of domestic servants in both +Southern and Northern States between 1910 and 1920, except male +servants in Ohio and New York and female servants in Georgia. + +The increase in male servants in Ohio and New York may be accounted +for by the large increase of waiters in those States. There is no +apparent explanation for the lack of change in the figures of female +domestic workers in Georgia. It may be said, however, that Georgia +has not suffered an actual decrease in its Negro population during +the past ten years as have Mississippi, with a 7.4 per cent decrease, +Kentucky with a 9.8 per cent decrease, Louisiana with a 1.8 per cent +decrease, Alabama with 0.8 per cent decrease, Delaware with a 2.7 +per cent decrease, and Tennessee with a 4.5 per cent decrease. This +decrease in the Southern States has been due to the migration of +Negroes to Northern industrial centers. + +For example, the Negro population of Chicago increased from 44,103 in +1910 to 109,456 in 1920; that of New York City increased from 91,709 +to 152,467. The number of Negroes in domestic and personal service in +these and other Northern industrial centers has increased during the +past ten years because the Negroes who have migrated North could enter +domestic and personal service more easily than they could other fields +of employment. + +Since the total number of Negroes in domestic service has decreased +while the total Negro population has increased, the question arises +as to why the number of domestic and personal service workers has not +kept pace with the growth of the Negro population. In twenty years +between 1890 and 1910 Negroes in the United States gainfully employed +increased about 65 per cent in agriculture, about 66.6 per cent in +trade and transportation, about 129.5 per cent in manufacturing and +mechanical pursuits, and about 65.3 per cent in domestic and personal +service. + +The Census of 1920 shows that of the gainfully employed 4,824,151 +Negroes ten years of age and over, 45.2 per cent were in agriculture, +forestry, and animal husbandry; 22.1 per cent were in domestic and +personal service; 18.4 per cent were in manufacturing and mechanical +pursuits; 9.4 per cent were in trade and transportation; 1.7 per +cent were in professional service; 0.8 per cent were in clerical +occupations; 1.0 per cent were in public service; and 1.5 per +cent were engaged in the extraction of minerals. This increase in +occupations other than agriculture and domestic and personal service +is largely due to conditions incident to the World War. Because of the +3 per cent immigration restriction, Negroes are being attracted to +the North in large numbers and are entering industrial pursuits. For +several years at least, this movement will most probably continue. + + +II. AGE AND MARITAL CONDITION OF NEGROES IN DOMESTIC AND PERSONAL +SERVICE + +In 1900, 53.4 per cent of all the women sixteen years of age and +over engaged in domestic and personal service were from 16 to 24 +years of age. Of the Negro women 16 years of age and over engaged in +domestic and personal service, 35.1 per cent, or more than one-third, +were between the ages of 16 and 24. The percentage in the other age +groups of the total number of women 16 years of age and over engaged +in domestic and personal service decreased by classes. That of Negro +women 16 years of age and over engaged in domestic and personal +service decreased by classes until those 55 years of age and over +constituted only 9.6 per cent of the total number of Negro women so +employed. The modal age of Negro male domestic workers like that +of white male domestic workers was from 25 to 44 years. The age +distribution of domestic and personal service workers for 1920 is +about the same as that for 1900. Because of the incompleteness of +the age data obtained from the general schedule sent to employment +agencies, they were not used for this study. The average ages of the +9,976 male and female Negro domestic and personal service workers of +Washington, D. C., were: 30.5 years for the males and 28.1 years for +the females. + +In 1900, among Negro women the percentage of breadwinners did not show +such a marked decline after marriage as among white women. Of the +Negro female breadwinners 32.5 per cent were married, while only 9.0 +per cent of the female breadwinners of all the races were married. The +percentage of married Negro male domestic and personal service workers +is higher than that of married female workers, while the number of +widowed and divorced is three and one-half times as great among female +as among male domestic and personal service workers. In 1920, 29.4 per +cent of all the female domestic and personal service workers 15 years +of age and over were married, while 70.6 per cent were classed as +single, widowed, divorced, and unknown. + +The significance of age grouping and marital condition of Negro +domestic workers in their relation to employers is borne out by +the testimony of experienced employment agents in New York City, +Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, D. C., Chicago, and Detroit. +Women domestic workers between the ages of 20 and 25 are the most +sought after by employers. Those between 25 and 35 years of age are +next in favor. All of the agents testified to the unpopularity of +the young girl domestic worker. She is employed principally because +of the tight domestic labor market. Employers apparently feel that a +majority of the women beyond the ages of 45 and 50 have become too +set in their ways, somewhat cranky, and largely unable to do general +housework. The most frequent objections of employers to young girl +domestic workers are: They are untrained and inexperienced; they are +unwilling to sleep in; they are saucy; and their interest in men +company causes them to neglect their work. + +The older Negro women in domestic service, realizing that with +their advancing years their possibilities for employment become +less, often hesitate and even fail to give their correct ages when +applying at employment agencies for positions. For example, a New +York City agency registered a woman who gave her age as 34, but whose +written references, yellowed with age, showed that she had worked for +different members in one family for fifty years. Frequently an older +woman registrant when asked her age hesitates and ends by saying "just +say 'settled woman.'" + +In addition to the age situation of Negroes engaged in domestic +service, the marital condition of female domestic workers furnishes +a perplexing problem for both their employers and themselves. The +testimony of employment agents relative to employers' most commonly +registered objections to hiring married women for domestic service +is: Married women take away food for the support of their families; +married women have so many responsibilities and problems in their own +homes they oftener than not go out to work with a weary body and a +disturbed mind; married women find it difficult to live and sleep on +employers' premises. + +Besides these problems there is apparently a still more perplexing one +for the Negro domestic workers with children of their own or other +dependents, namely, how to provide proper care and protection for +their dependents while they are away from home at work, especially if +the hours are long. Day nurseries are often mentioned as a possible +solution for this particular problem, but they exist for Negroes in +very few cities of the South. Even in the District of Columbia with a +population of servants and waiters--servants largely Negroes--totaling +21,444, there is not one day nursery for Negro children. The other +alternative is to get some elderly woman to take care of a child. +The usual charge made by such a woman for a limited number of hours +during the day is from $5 to $6 a week, the mother furnishing food for +the child. With these two items and carfare deducted from a mother's +weekly wage of $9 there is little left for other necessities. + +The problem of dependents manifests itself also among widowed and +divorced Negro women engaged in domestic service. The U. S. Employment +Office, Washington, D. C., registered 9,774 Negro women 15 years of +age and over for domestic service from January, 1920, to May, 1922. +Of this number 5,124 were single, 2,579 were married, 2,071 were +widowed or divorced. Of the widowed or divorced 2,056 had from 1 to +5 dependents; 79 had from 6 to 10 dependents. Although no record was +made of the number of breadwinners in each of these families, many of +these widows expressed their weight of responsibilities by referring +to the high cost of living when their children had no one to look to +for support but themselves. + +Divorced domestic workers and also unmarried mothers constitute +marital groups that are not all together negligible. Three of the +divorced women sent from the Washington office had the added problem +of finding their husbands at their respective places of employment +after absences of 5, 2, and 2 years respectively. Among the 5,124 +single women registered at the Washington office there were reported 9 +unmarried mothers. + +In the District of Columbia there is a Training School for delinquent +Negro girls, a large number of whom go into domestic service when +they are paroled. They are better trained than the average domestic +employee, but since the Training School requires them to keep their +young babies with them, it is difficult to place them in homes. If +they take a room and attempt to do day work they have the difficult +problem of getting someone to take care of their children. + +The marital condition of 471 new applicants for domestic positions in +Indianapolis, Indiana, for 1922, is given in the following table: + + _Showing marital condition of 471 women seeking work as domestic + servants--Indianapolis, Ind., 1922_ + + TABLE II + Widows 63 + Separated from husbands 50 + Married and living with husbands 238 + Divorced 34 + Single 85 + Unmarried mothers 1 + +The large proportion of married persons in the table may be accounted +for, in part, by the fact that 51 per cent of the total number had +recently come into Indianapolis from the adjoining States of Kentucky +and Tennessee. + + +III. TURNOVER, TRAINING, AND EFFICIENCY OF NEGRO DOMESTIC AND PERSONAL +SERVICE WORKERS + +The increase of 13,738,354, or 14.9 per cent, in the total population +of the United States during the last decade, and a decrease of 367,667 +in the domestic and personal service occupations population increases +the possibilities of turnover. In 1890, the average tenure of service +of a domestic worker in the United States was less than one and +one-half years.[5] Ten years later the average length of service of +a Negro domestic worker in the seventh ward of Philadelphia was five +years less than one month.[6] Many of these workers perhaps had been +for a long time in the older families of Philadelphia. Figures for a +three-year period, from 1906 to 1908, show that the modal period of +service of the New York Negro domestic worker was at that time from +six to eleven months.[7] In 1914, among 104 unskilled Negro workers +of St. Louis--cooks, laundresses, porters, chambermaids, waiters, +scrubwomen, manual laborers, and the like--the greatest frequency +for length of service among the men was from one to three months, +and among the women from three to six months.[8] Six years later the +largest proportion of Negro domestic workers of Gainesville, Georgia, +showed a disposition to remain in one position less than three months, +while the next largest proportion remained in one position from three +to six months.[9] + +Some concrete illustrations of the frequency of turnover may be +referred to as further evidence. Nearly two hundred different women +were sent out from the Springfield, Massachusetts, office for day work +in 1915. Two years later over 500 different workers were sent out from +that office, about 200 of whom were Negro women. Of these 167 white +women and 124 Negro women were placed with employers less than ten +times in 1917; 2 white and 4 Negro women were sent out from 41 to 50 +times; 3 white and 1 Negro woman were placed fifty times during 1917. +In 1918, the Springfield office reported as having filled 4,000 places +with 1,000 women.[10] + +In 1920 the United States Employment Office, Washington, D. C., placed +1,488 different women for day work, all of whom were Negroes except +one. Of these, 458, after being given permanent positions for every +day in the week, were referred again not over twelve times; 23 of them +were sent out over fifty times, and 5 of them over one hundred times +during the year. General housework was so unpopular during that year +that few would take it. Although the turnover in day work was greater +than that in any other specific employment handled by the domestic +service section of that office, the 164 cooks remained in one position +on an average of about three months. + +There was, however, in the District of Columbia during the fall and +winter of 1920 a decrease in the rate and volume of turnover for Negro +day workers and hotel workers consequent upon the minimum wage law +which became effective for hotels and restaurants in the spring of +1920. Many Negro women displaced in the hotels turned to day work. +For this reason added to the normal increase during the first half of +1921, the number of day workers increased to 3,115. White workers did +not have to apply for day work because they could secure positions in +hotels and restaurants. + +During an unemployment period which extended over the latter half of +1921 and the first half of 1922, when so many men were thrown out of +work, the day workers increased to 4,615. There were more day workers +than there were positions for them. Consequently the turnover in day +work decidedly decreased, but it increased in general housework. Many +who could not get a sufficient number of days' work to make ends meet +were forced to turn to general housework. + +The difficulty of keeping an accurate record of the turnover in +general housework makes the value of figures on turnover in general +housework seem very questionable. However, the length of service of +1,000 general houseworkers sent out from the Washington office for the +latter half of 1921 and the first few months of 1922 gives a fairly +accurate picture of the situation at that time. + + _Length of Service of 1,000 General Houseworkers, Washington, D. C., + 1921-22_ + + TABLE III + 317 remained in one position 1 week or less. + 582 remained in one position from one to three months. + 101 remained in one position 4 months and over. + +Some of the conditions of the turnover at that time are illustrated +by typical cases. One employer advertised for a general houseworker +without laundry, with the privilege of going at night, and with hours +off. Eleven domestic workers answered the advertisement in person, +and no two met at the house at the same time. The employer engaged +every one of them, to return to work the next morning. Every one +of them gave assurance of being there, but not one of them came. +Another employer with only two in family, very desirous of securing +a general houseworker, called up six different employment agencies, +each of which sent her a worker. Among the number there was one man. +The employer put every one of them to work, each in a different room, +with the idea of choosing the two best ones at the end of the day and +engaging them for permanent work--thus assuring herself of securing +one worker. She managed her plan, as she thought, very successfully, +but the next morning she did not have a single worker. + +Employers' statements on reference blanks, and reports from employment +agencies indicate that the reasons generally given by domestic workers +for leaving positions are that they wish a change, or the hours are +too long, or the work is too hard, or the employer is too particular, +or they have no time off. Time off for domestic employees is no doubt +greatly limited. Negro domestic workers, however, proverbially take +Christmas Day and the Fourth of July off, giving such various excuses +for their absence as death in the family, automobile accidents, and +the like. Just after these two holidays, large employment agencies +handling Negro help are for the most part swamped with applicants. + +To some extent turnover in domestic service is linked up with lack of +training and efficiency of domestic workers. Because of their great +need of domestic help, employers frequently engage persons who are so +utterly untrained that they cannot be retained. There is a tendency +on the part of employers to propose to a domestic worker that each +take the other on a week's trial. Domestic workers are inclined to +refuse such offers on the ground that they are looking for permanent +employment. This suggestion of trying out domestic workers leads +logically to the question of training and efficiency in domestic +service. + + +_Training of White Domestic and Personal Service Workers_ + +Some facts relative to the special opportunities for the training of +white household workers in England and in the United States may throw +some light on the problem of efficiency. In England, following the +World War and under the ministry of reconstruction, there was created +a women's advisory committee to study the domestic service problem. +Each of the four sub-committees appointed made a report. Among the +advisory committee's final recommendations for getting the work of the +nation's homes done satisfactorily and reducing waste, were technical +training for domestic help and fixed standards of qualifications +for them. This committee reported that in 1914 there were only ten +domestic service schools in England and Wales, and four of these were +in the London area. During the year of 1922 courses of three months' +duration were given at some technical institutions in England in all +branches of household work and management. This training enabled women +to take the better posts in daily or residential work. Training in +cooking and catering could be had at any technical college for three +or more months as required. + +To help meet the serious unemployment situation the Central Committee +on Women's Training and Employment in cooperation with the Ministry +of Labor set up homecraft training centers in districts where +unemployment was most noticeable. At these centers a course of +training was given for about three months, such as would enable women +to take posts in domestic service at the end of the course. These +classes were most successful. By August, 1922, about 10,000 women had +received the training and the courses were still continued. These +courses were given to women and girls between the ages of 16 and 35 +upon their signing an agreement to be punctual in attendance, to +do their best in making the classes successful, and stating their +willingness to enter domestic service after receiving their training. + +In the United States, in 1900, there were more illiterate persons in +domestic and personal service than in any other field of employment +except agriculture. The number of agricultural colleges in the +different States for the purpose of developing improved farming and +farmers has increased since that time, and the Federal Government +farm demonstration agents are actually teaching the citizens on the +plantations where they live and work. Facilities for the training of +domestic help, however, have received little attention from State or +Federal Government, and private enterprise in this field has been very +limited. + +Just twenty years ago the Home Economics Committee of the Association +of Collegiate Alumnae of the United States, through the inspiration +of Mrs. Alice Freeman Palmer and Mrs. Ellen H. Richards, undertook an +experiment for studying at first hand the problems of household labor. +Among the disabilities in domestic service regarded as fundamental +causes of the disfavor in which it was held, was the low grade of +intelligence and skill available among domestic service workers. This +household aid company committee opened a training center and applied +educational tests to its candidates and undertook to give a course of +six weeks' training to each aid before she was sent out to work. The +number of aids taking the training was small. Mainly because of a lack +of funds, however, the experiment was given up after a trial of two +years. Prior to that time the civic club of Philadelphia attempted to +standardize the work and wages of domestic workers in that city. + +Nearly twenty years later, a committee on household assistants was +organized in New York City by the United States Employment Service. +The committee succeeded in planning a household occupations course to +be given at the Washington Irving High School, and made efforts to +advertise the course; but since no one registered for it the committee +concluded that the matter would have to be taken up and pushed by +employers before it could succeed.[11] + +Some of these efforts, however, have met with a measure of success. +The Bureau of Household Occupations of the Housewives' League of +Providence, R. I., organized in November, 1918, has conducted very +successful training classes for domestic workers. No meals or lodging +are to be furnished the household attendants of the Bureau. The +Bureau of Occupations under the auspices of the Housewives' League +of Hartford, Connecticut, has given its training courses through the +generosity of some of its members. One member taught cooking, another +taught waiting table, another laundry work. Classes were taught in the +homes of some of the members with much success. + + +_Training of Negro Domestic Workers_ + +Available data shows that opportunities for the special training +of Negro domestic workers have been even less than those for white +domestic workers. During the latter quarter of the 19th century +Mrs. L. J. Coppin, of Philadelphia, maintained a small home for +the training of the Negro domestic workers of Philadelphia. In the +comparatively few social settlements for Negroes there is meagre +opportunity for training in domestic service. The Domestic Efficiency +Association of Baltimore, Maryland, an organization of employers, +has announced its plans for opening a training school for white and +Negro domestic workers. This Association maintained in 1921 and 1922 +a training school for Negro domestic help, in which special lessons +could be given or general training for one month or more. A rate of $5 +a week for board, lodging, and training was charged. If an applicant +had no money the Domestic Efficiency Association advanced it on her +signing an agreement to secure her position through the Association +when ready for it, and to repay the debt out of her wages at the rate +of at least $2.50 a week. + +The domestic science training given in the public schools may be a +small factor in the efficiency of Negro domestic workers, but most of +the permanent domestic workers do not go beyond the fifth grade in +school and thus do not go far enough to get an appreciable amount of +domestic science training. Negro workers who go through the high or +normal schools do not enter permanently into domestic service. This +statement is based on the data indicated by the permanent occupations +of 606 Negro graduates of the Sumner High School, St. Louis, +Missouri, of 305 graduates of Miner Normal School, Washington, in the +District of Columbia, of 15 graduates of the Gainesville, Georgia, +public schools 1917-1919;[12] and on data for students applying at +the Washington, in the District of Columbia, and the Indianapolis +Employment Agencies. Tables IV and V below set forth these facts. + + _Occupations of 606 Negro High School Graduates, Sumner High School, + St. Louis, Mo., 1895-1911_[13] + + TABLE IV + Occupation Number + Those engaged in, or prepared for, teaching 288 + Entered college 49 + Clerical work 43 + Postoffice clerks 30 + Entered business 4 + Mechanics 17 + Women at home or married 120 + Miscellaneous 32 + Unknown 23 + +Although Tables IV and V direct one's attention to the limited fields +of employment for Negro high school graduates, especially so since +clerical and mechanical work, business and professional service, must +be engaged in almost wholly among Negroes, yet few if any of the 911 +graduates have entered domestic service. The young women graduates +of the Gainesville, Georgia, schools 1917-19, with the exception of +three, entered higher institutions of learning. + +In Washington, in the District of Columbia, during the academic year +1920-22 there were among the 9,976 applicants for domestic work, 17 +male and 159 female students who had attended or were attending high +school; 75 female normal school students; 13 male and 126 female +college students. Also in Indianapolis, in 1922, 73 female high +school students and 12 female college students applied for domestic +service. These large numbers of high school, normal school, and +college students seek domestic service mainly for after-school hours, +Saturdays, Sundays, summer months, and temporarily for earning money +to continue their education, or until they can find other employment. + + _Occupations of 305 Negro Graduates of Miner Normal School, + Washington, D. C., 1913-1922_ + + TABLE V + Occupation Number + Teaching in Washington, D. C.: + Elementary 207 + Kindergarten 50 + Domestic Science 4 + Domestic Art 3 + Manual Arts 1 + Drawing 1 + Music 1 + Ungraded 1 + Teaching in Maryland 8 + Teaching in Virginia 2 + Teaching in North Carolina 1 + Teaching in South Carolina 1 + Teaching in New York 1 + Substitute teachers in Washington, D. C. 2 + Students 5 + Government Service 7 + Housekeepers 5 + Printers 1 + Private Music Teachers 1 + Physicians 1 + Insurance 1 + Y. W. C. A. 1 + +Table VI shows the grades on leaving school of 8,147 Negro domestic +workers--men and women--of the Washington, D. C., office; and Table +VII shows grades on leaving school of 471 Negro domestic workers, +not separated by sex, of an Indianapolis Employment Office conducted +by Flanner House in that city. Each of these workers was personally +interviewed by the agent at each respective office. The reported +grade of each on leaving school was placed on an application card +which was filed for reference. The application cards were filled out +solely on the testimony of the applicants. The agent in the Washington +office handling the women did not ordinarily register men except as +man and wife applied at the same time, or a woman sent her husband to +the agent, or a special employer asked the agent to select male help, +or teachers in the Negro schools sent boys and men who were in search +of work. Therefore, the number of men from the Washington office for +whom grades are given is comparatively small. + +In examining Tables VI and VII below one must take into consideration +several factors. In the first place, 81.2 per cent of the Washington +applicants and 73.9 per cent of the Indianapolis applicants were born +in the South where the standard is not so high as in the North; and +many of these applicants attended school in the rural districts of the +South where the schools were not standardized, and only a few schools +had any domestic science instruction. Then, too, a large proportion of +them left school some years ago when all of the grades or groups of a +school were taught by one teacher in one room. + +Those persons who could not read or write seemed to feel their +illiteracy very keenly. Many of them offered excuses by saying that +the "white folks raised" them; or their parents died and they had to +help the other children; or they were "sickly," and the like. Those +who had never been to school but could read and write a little were +listed as being in the first grade. One applicant said that she had +never been through any grade but she could read and write and go +anywhere in the city she wished to go. Another one, an elderly woman, +expressed her regrets because she never had a chance to go to school, +but she had learned to read and write so that she could sign her name +instead of simply "touching the pen" when she was transacting her +business. + + _Grades on Leaving School of 7,975 Female and 172 Male Negro Domestic + Workers from the U. S. Employment Service, Washington, D. C., + 1920-1922_ + + TABLE VI + Male Female + Illiterate 8 418 + 1st Grade 5 244 + 2d Grade 7 436 + 3d Grade 9 842 + 4th Grade 17 1,073 + 5th Grade 31 1,417 + 6th Grade 28 1,237 + 7th Grade 25 998 + 8th Grade 42 1,310 + + _Grades on Leaving School of 387 Negro Domestic Workers, Irrespective + of Sex, Indianapolis, Ind., 1922_ + + TABLE VII + Illiterate 21 + 1st Gr. 7 + 2d Gr. 11 + 3d Gr. 22 + 4th Gr. 44 + 5th Gr. 63 + 6th Gr. 51 + 7th Gr. 47 + 8th Gr. 120 + +The figures show that of a total of 7,975 female applicants for +domestic work in Washington, D. C., 4,430, or 55.5 per cent, had +received school training in the sixth grade or below; leaving only +29.9 per cent who had seventh or eighth grade training. Of the 387 +applicants for domestic service in Indianapolis, 168, or 43.3 per +cent, had received school training up to the fifth grade or below; +and 219, or 56.7 per cent, had been to the sixth grade or below, +leaving 43.3 per cent who had been in the seventh or eighth grade. +The larger proportions of those from higher grades in Indianapolis +may be accounted for by the lesser opportunity in other occupations +as compared with Washington, and by the smaller number of applicants +involved. In short, domestic service as a regular occupation does not +attract and hold Negro workers of the higher grades of educational +training and intelligence. + +In order to understand exactly what is meant by saying that +consideration of certain factors must be taken into account in any +attempt to formulate some idea of the educational status of the rank +and file domestic worker reckoned by his grade when he left school, +some letters, typical of the educational equipment among the 9,774 +domestic workers (applicants), should be read. These letters were +written to the agent in the Washington, D. C., office by 5th grade +domestic workers.[14] + +Many of these domestic workers also showed their lack of training by +their inability to figure out their weekly wages at the rate of $40, +45, or $50 per month. Such inability often caused them to feel and +say that their employers were "cheaters." To a considerable number of +them, $40 a month meant $10 a week, and vice versa; $45 a month meant +$11.25 a week, and $50 a month meant $12.50 a week. They generally +secured their pay twice a month--the first and the fifteenth. However, +such an arrangement did not seem to clarify matters, since they +thought of four weeks as making a month. + +Then comes the question of the efficiency of Negro domestic workers. +In Philadelphia, Baltimore, Detroit, Indianapolis, and Washington, +D. C., agents find that employers of domestic labor, like other +employers, do not like to write down their grievances, but many of +them do make complaints to the agents over the telephone about the +inefficiency of domestic help. Agents in Detroit and Indianapolis +state that Negro domestic workers from the South--many of them from +the farms and untrained, unaccustomed to Northern methods of domestic +work--find it difficult to give satisfaction. The consensus of +opinion of eleven white and Negro agents in New York City was that +with respect to efficiency there are three distinct types of domestic +workers in New York City. In the first place, comes the West Indian, +who is unaccustomed to domestic work, and therefore unable to convince +himself that he is on that plane. He makes a more or less inefficient +domestic worker. Then there is the New York Negro who has difficulty +in adjusting himself to domestic duties. The southern Negro, however, +a decidedly different sort of laborer, makes a more efficient domestic +worker than either of the other two types. + +Opinions elsewhere also vary. There was a migration of Negro women +domestic workers from Georgia to Springfield, Massachusetts, in +1916-1917. Many of these women were very satisfactory employees and +compared favorably with northern born Negro women domestic workers +of that locality, according to the _11th Annual Report of the +Massachusetts Bureau of Statistics_. In the United States Employment +Office, Washington, D. C., where all sorts and conditions of domestic +workers were handled, reports from employers on the efficiency of the +new workers from the South indicated that they were unaccustomed to +modern methods of housework and were less efficient than northern born +workers. + +In any attempt to rate the efficiency of Negro domestic workers by +verbal testimonials and written references from their employers or +by wages received or length of service period of the workers, due +consideration must be given to factors beyond the workers' control. +Some of these factors are differences in the standards of efficiency +in the many homes and the temperament of employers together with the +attitude of some employers toward Negroes generally. For example, +occasionally, a former employer, in sympathy with the struggles of +Negroes and not wishing to hinder an unsatisfactory worker from +securing another position, writes for her a letter of recommendation. +Sometimes another employer, because of misunderstanding of some sort +between her and the worker, refuses to give any reference whatever. + +In 1890, 57 per cent of 1,005 housekeepers representing the whole +United States found more or less difficulty in securing efficient +help. This probably was an underestimate of the true condition.[15] In +1901, out of 1,106 domestic workers from all sections of the United +States, 34 per cent were rated excellent; 37.4 per cent good; 24.8 +per cent fair; 3.8 per cent poor. Although these figures indicate +that 96.2 per cent of the total were between excellent and fair, the +Commission's report in summing up the matter states that according to +the testimony of employers of domestic labor and of employment agents, +the character of the service rendered by domestic laborers is in a +large proportion of cases unsatisfactory. It further states that the +quality of men's work is about the same as that of women's work.[16] + +In New York City, employment agencies send reference blanks to former +employers of domestic workers to be filled out and returned.[17] These +references are kept on file as a record of the domestic worker's +capability, sobriety and honesty. From 1906 to 1909 efficiency +ratings taken from such blanks for 902 Negro domestic and personal +service workers were as follows: 25.6 per cent very capable; 10.2 per +cent fairly capable; 2.2 per cent inefficient, and 2.0 per cent not +stated.[18] One employment agency in this city made 304 placements of +Negro women domestic workers during January, 1923. According to those +workers' references from their former employers 93.3 per cent were +capable or fairly capable and honest. This high degree of efficiency +among domestic workers from this one office is due probably to the +fact that this office with its limited staff of secretaries makes +no attempt to handle the evidently inexperienced workers. The other +employment agencies in New York and Brooklyn visited in 1923 spoke +favorably of the quality of service rendered by domestic workers in +these cities, according to their reports from employers. + +Opinions of employers are not conclusive evidence of the efficiency +or inefficiency of workers, but they throw considerable light upon +the question. Written references are more or less held in disfavor by +the Washington, D. C., employers of domestic labor because they feel +that domestic workers sometimes write their own references. This is +true to a limited extent. Many of the workers come from small towns +and rural sections where the employers of domestic labor do not use +elegant stationery, the best English, and the most correct spelling +in writing references for domestic workers who leave for the cities. +Such references do domestic workers coming to Washington, D. C., more +harm than good. + +However, domestic workers are more and more seeking written references +on leaving their places of employment because they are beginning to +realize that such are generally required by employers. Often a former +employer has moved away from the city, is in Europe, or has died, when +the domestic worker needs most to refer to her. A prospective employer +usually doubts that such an excuse, if given, is true. Of course, some +workers do try to take advantage in this way, but most of them are not +so unwise. + +Types of written and oral testimonials of employers of domestic labor +in Washington, D. C., are also informing.[19] In cases where three +or more employers testified to the efficiency or inefficiency of a +worker, the word "efficient," "inefficient," or "poor" was written +across the bottom of his application card. The following table in some +measure represents in detail the character of service reported to the +United States Employment Service, Domestic Section. + + _Summary of Testimonials of Former Employers of 9,976 Wage Earners + Engaged in Domestic Personal Service, Washington, D. C., January + 1920-May 1922_ + + ============================================================== + TABLE VIII| Efficient |Fairly Efficient| Inefficient + |-------+--------+-------+--------+-------+-------- + | No. | Per ct.| No. | Per ct.| No. | Per ct. + -----------+-------+--------+-------+--------+-------+-------- + _Male_ | 90 | 44.6 | 94 | 46.5 | 11 | 19.4 + _Female_ | 3,008 | 30.8 | 4,543 | 46.5 | 1,892 | .05 + -----------+-------+--------+-------+--------+-------+-------- + _Total_ | 3,098 | 37.7 | 4,637 | 46.5 | 1,903 | 9.7 + -----------+-------+--------+-------+--------+-------+-------- + + _No Report_ + + No. Per Cent. + _Male_ 7 .03 + _Female_ 331 .03 + _Total_ 338 .03 + +In this table 44.6 per cent of the males as over against 30.8 per +cent of the females are reported as being efficient, while 19.4 per +cent of the females and only 0.05 per cent of the males are listed +as inefficient. This should not lead to the conclusion that the male +Negro domestic workers of Washington, D. C., were more efficient than +the female Negro domestic workers of that city, since the 202 male +domestic workers do not represent the rank and file. They represent +men of family responsibilities, and students working their way through +high school and college. Both of these groups had a more or less +definite responsibility and aim in doing domestic work and therefore +were more willing, at least for a time, to accommodate themselves to +conditions obtaining in it. The office received no report concerning +.03 per cent of the workers. Occasionally both employer and employee +were so well pleased with each other that neither was heard from +unless the office in its follow-up work discovered the happy situation. + +The opinion of employers that 19.4 per cent of 9,773 Negro female +domestic workers of Washington, D. C., were reported inefficient does +not, without other data, justify this as a scientific conclusion. +Some typical examples of their inefficiency are interesting.[20] The +inefficiency is due in large measure to pure ignorance which for +the most part is the sequel to lack of opportunity and training. For +example, the older type cook, who cannot read and write, finds it +difficult, if not impossible, to carry all the different modern salad +and dessert combinations in her memory and cannot supplement her +instructions by the use of literature on domestic science. + +Employment agencies in Chicago in 1923, moreover, have hardly told +the whole truth in giving the following figures on the efficiency of +200 female domestic workers and 200 male domestic workers: _Women_, +satisfactory 175, or 87.5 per cent; unsatisfactory 10, or 5.0 per +cent; neither satisfactory nor wholly unsatisfactory 15, or 7.5 per +cent. _Men_, satisfactory 125, or 62.5 per cent; unsatisfactory 45, or +22.5 per cent; neither 30, or 15 per cent. + +Efficient domestic workers apparently regret that they are in an +occupational group representing such a high degree of ignorance and +inefficiency. They sometimes take pride in saying that they have +never worked for poor people. Such a class of workers is represented +by a Washington, D. C., domestic worker who gave as her former +employers Mrs. John Hays Hammond, Mrs. Arthur Glasgow, Senator +Beveridge, Senator Guggenheim, and President Wilson. She took pride in +the fact that she could even show anyone a piece of the president's +wedding cake. + +Honesty in domestic service is so closely associated with efficiency +that practically no reference for a domestic worker is complete +without some statement about this qualification. In 1890 Miss Salmon +raised a serious question with regard to the honesty of Negro domestic +workers in the South. Her question was based on answers received from +schedules sent to employers of that section.[21] In 1901, 92.6 per +cent of 583 domestic labor employers representing the whole United +States testified that their employees were honest and responsible. +Most employment bureaus were also agreed upon the general honesty of +domestic workers.[22] In 1899 the Philadelphia Negro domestic worker +of the Seventh Ward was described as purloining food left from the +table but as having the balance in his favor in regard to honesty.[23] +In 1906 opinions of former employers of 902 Negro wage-earners in +domestic and personal service in New York City were that 91.3 per cent +were honest; 7.1 per cent were either honest or fairly so; 0.6 per +cent were dishonest, and no statement was given for 1.0 per cent.[24] + +Out of 9,638 Negro domestic workers reported upon for Washington, D. +C, between the years of 1920-1922, only .2 per cent were rated by +their former employers with assurance as being dishonest; 90.4 per +cent were listed as being honest. There were various answers for the +9.4 per cent. Some did not remain long enough to have judgment passed +upon them. Others were in a doubtful class but with no proof against +them, and the like. This low percentage of dishonesty eliminates +the tradition of taking food except in seven cases. The seven cases +of food taking are included because they were directly reported and +regarded by the employers as dishonest. Some employers, according +to their own statement of the case, do not regard taking food left +from the table as stealing, although such is against the will of the +employer. According to the southern tradition of a low wage and taking +food to piece it out, domestic workers are still virtually expected to +follow this custom. + +200 women and 200 men domestic workers of Chicago have the following +record for honesty: _Women_, honest, 199, or 99.5 per cent; dishonest, +1, or 0.5 per cent; _men_, honest, 197, or 98.5 per cent; dishonest, +3, or 1.5 per cent. + +Employment agents in other leading cities already mentioned have very +little complaint against the honesty of Negro domestic workers except +in the matter of taking food. Their explanation of the psychology of +such dishonesty is as given above. + + +IV. WAGES, HOURS, AND SPECIFIC OCCUPATIONS + +While wages and efficiency are in some degree related in domestic +service, there is the custom of paying the "going wage" for specific +occupations, irrespective of efficiency. Wages vary, of course, +in different sections of the country and in different localities. +Occasionally attempts are made to grade such laborers. One employment +bureau, in Indianapolis, for example, divides its day workers into +grades A and B with respective wages of 30 cents and 25 cents an hour +for each grade. + +Two other questions current in the problem of wages in domestic +service, both of which seem to be slowly lending themselves to +adjustment, are the payment of weekly wages instead of bi-weekly or +monthly wages, and equal pay for equal work irrespective of whether +a man or a woman, a Negro or a white employee, does the work. +Bi-monthly payment in domestic service has come to be the custom due +largely to the convenience of the employer, and to the possibility of +weekly wages increasing the turnover. A domestic worker often leaves +unceremoniously as soon as he gets his first pay. However, workers +claim that the custom of bi-weekly or monthly pay inconveniences them +since they cannot arrange to pay their rent, or purchase clothing and +other necessities on that basis. + +The question of equal pay for Negro domestic workers does not enter +the domestic service wage problem of the South because Negroes +pre-empt this field in that section. Although the scarcity of +domestic labor seems to be settling this matter in other sections of +the country, it still persists in some measure. Twenty-five years +ago Miss Eaton discovered that Negro butlers on Rittenhouse Square, +Philadelphia, received on an average $36.90 a month, while white +butlers were getting from $40 to $45 a month.[25] + +In the fall of 1921, during the period of labor depression, eleven of +the Washington, D. C., clubs and expensive boarding houses attempted +to make a change from Negro to white chambermaid-waitresses at an +increase of $10 a month for each worker. The four clubs that succeeded +in making the change discharged their white chambermaid-waitresses +after one week each and re-employed Negroes at the old wage of $35 +a month. One of the successful employers felt that, inasmuch as the +white servants were no more satisfactory than the Negro workers, she +had just as well keep the Negroes and pay them less. + +When the minimum wage law for women and minors of Washington, D. C., +recently declared unconstitutional by the United States Supreme Court, +went into effect, practically all of the hotels and restaurants in +that city immediately discharged Negro workers and took on white ones. +Some of the managers told the agent at the United States Employment +Bureau that they were making the change because white servants were +more efficient than Negro workers. Other managers, some of whom had +used Negro labor for more than fifteen years, simply said that $16.50 +a week was too much to pay Negroes, and, therefore, wished white +workers instead. The few hotels and restaurants that retained Negroes +as a rule put them on a much shorter working week than 48 hours, thus +reducing their pay. + +Boarding houses and institutions such as private schools, sanatoria, +and the like, that offer excuses and fail to pay workers should +be mentioned in this connection. The manager of one such boarding +house in Washington, D. C., was sued by a worker who won her case +because other unpaid laborers testified against the manager. The +superintendent of a small private school in that city--also among +such paymasters--had repeatedly been reported to the Minimum Wage +Board which forced her to pay the Negro women day workers. After a few +months of such experience she changed her help and began to employ +men, over whom the Minimum Wage Board had no jurisdiction. + +The wages of Negro domestic workers today are considerably higher than +they were in past decades, as is shown by a comparison of figures +in past periods for the Continental United States and for selected +cities with figures in 1920-1923. For the twenty-five years prior to +the World War there had been only a slight wage increase in domestic +and personal service. During the World War there was a considerable +increase in wages for both male and female domestic workers, the +increase for the latter being larger than that for the former. Since +the World War wages for such workers have fallen to some extent but +not anywhere near the pre-war level. + +The following tables, with one exception, show the wage changes at +different ten-year periods over a range of 30 years. In Table IX the +figures from the Boston Employment Bureau illustrate the fact that +the average weekly wages for female domestic workers of Boston were +decidedly higher than elsewhere in the country. This table also makes +clear the fact that wages for men were considerably higher than those +for women. + + _Average Daily and Weekly Wages in Selected Domestic Service + Occupations, 1889-1890_[26] + + TABLE IX + Occupation Weekly Wages for Weekly Wages for + the United States Boston, Mass. + _Women_ + Cooks $3.72 $4.45 + Cooks and laundresses 3.39 + Chambermaids 3.39 3.86 + Waitresses 3.19 3.7 + Second girls 3.16 3.7 + Chambermaids and waitresses 3.10 + Parlor maids 3 + General servants 2.91 3 + + _Men_ + Coachmen $7.84 + Coachmen and gardeners 6.54 + Butlers 6.11 + Cooks 6.08 + + _Women_ + Daily Wages + Laundresses .82 + Seamstresses 1.01 + + _Men_ + Gardeners 1.33 + Chore-men .87 + +Table X below gives average wages for selected domestic service +occupations in the United States for a decade later than the figures +of Table IX. The slight variation in the figures of Table X from those +of Table IX may be due to probable error incident to the collection +of the data or to some other factor. The indications of these two +tables, however, with ten years intervening between the compilation of +the data, are that wages probably had changed very little, if any. + + _Average Weekly Wages for Selected Domestic Service Occupations in the + United States, 1900_[27] + + TABLE X + Occupation Average Weekly Wage + _Women_ + General houseworkers $3.28 + Cooks 3.95 + Waitresses 3.43 + Other specialists 3.54 + + _Men_ + For all domestic service occupations 6.03 + + _Women_ + For all domestic service occupations 3.51 + +In comparison with the two preceding tables, Table XI below gives +wages for domestic service in Philadelphia for about the same period. +The weekly wages range higher than for the country as a whole. The +lower wages in the southern border and middle sections of the United +States have reduced the average for the country below that for this +eastern city in which also special conditions may have operated to +bring such wages above the general level. + + _Average Weekly Wages of Negro Domestic Workers of Philadelphia, + 1896-1897_[27] + + TABLE XI + Occupation Average Weekly Wage + _Women_ + General worker $3.24 + Janitress 4.06 + Chambermaid-laundress 3.58 + Cook-laundress 4.00 + Laundress 4.04 + Lady's maid 3.63 + Chambermaid and waitress 3.17 + Waitress 3.31 + + _Women_ + Chambermaid 3.17 + Child's nurse 3.35 + Errand girl 2.00 + Cook 4.02 + + _Men_ + General worker 5.38 + Valet 8.00 + Cook 6.17 + Waiter 6.14 + Coachman 8.58 + Butler 8.24 + Bellboy 2.61 + +Table XII which follows is drawn from _The Negro at Work in New York +City_, and shows the modal wage groups for specific occupations in +domestic and personal service, New York City, 1906-1909. Although +data for New York City are not typical of the entire country, these +are the only available figures for this period, and they may indicate +the trend of wages in domestic personal service in that section. +In comparison with the preceding Table of Wages in Philadelphia, +the increase in wages in New York City may be due to differences of +conditions in the two cities rather than to any general increase or +decrease in wages. + + _Modal Wage Groups for Selected Occupations, 1906-1909_[28] + + TABLE XII + Occupation Range of Modal Wage + _Female_ + Switchboard operator $4.00-4.99 + Chambermaid 4.00-4.99 + Chambermaid-cook 5.00-5.99 + Chambermaid-laundress 5.00-5.99 + Chambermaid-waitress 4.00-4.99 + Kitchenmaid 4.00-4.99 + Cook 5.00-5.99 + Cook and general worker 5.00-5.99 + Cook-waitress 4.00-4.99 + Cook-laundress 5.00-5.99 + Errand girl Less than 4.00 + General houseworker 4.00-4.99 + Laundress 4.00-4.99 + Lady's maid 4.00-4.99 + Parlor maid 4.00-4.99 + Nurse Less than 3.00 + Pantry girl 4.00-4.99 + Waitress 4.00-4.99 + Dishwasher 4.00-4.99 + + _Male_ + Bellman Less than 4.00 + Butler-cook 5.00-5.99 + Waiter 5.00-5.99 + Butler 5.00-5.99 + Coachman 5.00-5.99 + Cook 5.00-5.99 + Elevator operator 5.00-5.99 + Furnaceman 5.00-5.99 + Gardener 4.00-4.99 + Hallman and doorman 4.00-4.99 + Houseman 5.00-5.99 + Janitor 5.00-5.99 + +The last decade embraces the World War when wages in domestic and +personal service were at their maximum. The following tables for +selected cities present graphically the increase in wages for male and +female domestic workers and the slight increase in wages of females +over that of males. These tables also show how wages vary in different +sections of the country. Although these figures are for 1920, and the +first quarter of 1921, the decline in wages generally did not begin +until the fourth quarter of 1920, and it was not so pronounced in +domestic and personal service as in many other occupational groups, +and was scarcely appreciable in domestic service until the middle of +1921. + +Tables XIII, XIV, XV, XVI, and XVII indicate that although wages in +domestic and personal service among Negroes have fallen somewhat, they +are still far above those of pre-war times. They also show that since +the War there has been considerable decline in rates paid men for day +work in New York City and Washington, D. C., but very little decrease +in the rates for women day workers in either of the two cities. + +Any analysis of these tables must take into consideration that female +day workers in the cities included in the tables receive their carfare +and at least one meal; cooks, general houseworkers, waiters and +waitresses, housemen, mothers' helpers, some kitchen help, part-time +workers and nurses receive their meals and, in many instances, their +quarters. + +In this table wages for clerical workers, factory workers, laborers, +truckers, butchers, etc., are given in comparison with the wages of +domestic and personal service workers. For example: a stenographer +receives $18 a week, while a cook receives from $18 to $25 a week and +board; a factory girl receives from 25 cents to 30 cents an hour, +while a day worker in domestic service receives $22 a week, and a cook +receives $25 a week and board. + + _Weekly Wages of 118 Negro Men in Domestic Service by Specified + Occupations, New York City, 1920-1921_[29] + + TABLE XIII + Occupations Number Employed Weekly Wages + Cleaners 3 $ .50 per hour + 5 3.00 per day + Cooks 2 15.00-17.99 + 3 18.00-19.99 + 3 25.00 or more + Dishwashers 2 10.00-12.99 + 4 13.00-14.99 and meals + 1 15.00-17.99 + 11 18.00-21.99 + 1 26.00 + Doormen 1 38.50 and meals + 3 (monthly) 40.00-79.00 + Elevator operators (apt. house) 1 under 10.00 + 1 10.00-12.99 + 11 15.00-17.99 + 1 18.00-21.99 + Elevator and switchboard operators 6 14.00 + 6 17.00 + 1 18.00 + Firemen (apt. house) 1 3.00 per day + 1 20.00-24.99 + 1 20.00 and board + 1 30.00 + Janitors (apt. house) 1 (monthly) 20.00 and apartment + 1 (monthly) 30.00 and keep + 1 (monthly) 40.00 and keep + 1 (monthly) 60.00 and keep + Assistant janitors (apt. house) 1 10.00-12.99 + 1 15.00 and room + Porters-apartment houses 1 16.00 + 6 18.00-20.99 + Waiters 3 under 10.00 + 18 (exclusive + of tips) 15.00-17.99 + 6 18.00-20.99 + 7 10.00-11.99 + + _Range of Weekly Wages of 754 Negro Women in Domestic and Personal + Service, Specified by Occupations, New York City, 1920-1921_[30] + + TABLE XIV + Occupations Number Employed Wages + General houseworkers 5 under $ 9.00 + 706 10.00-18.00 + Chambermaids 1 under 9.00 + Chambermaids-waitresses 7 12.00-18.00 + Cooks 6 15.00-21.00 + Kitchen helpers 8 12.00-17.00 + 2 under 9.00 + Mothers' helpers and Nurses 9 10.00-15.00 + Nurses (practical) 3 15.00-21.00 + Waitresses 5 12.00-14.00 + + _Range of Daily and Weekly Wages of 1,565 Male and Female Negro + Domestic and Personal Service Workers, Washington, D. C., 1920_ + + ================================================================= + Table XV | | | + | Number | Daily | Weekly + Occupations |Employed| Wages | Wages + ---------------------------------+--------+---------+------------ + Male | | | + Butlers | 7 | | 12.00-15.00 + Chauffeurs | 3 | | 14.00-15.00 + Chauffer-butler | 13 | | 14.00-15.00 + Elevator Operator | 6 | | 9.00-10.00 + Janitors and housemen | 34 | | 10.00-12.00 + Cooks | 21 | | 18.00-20.00 + Furnace and yardman | 10 | | 7.00-8.00 + Waiters | 11 | | 9.00-10.00 + Dishwashers | 12 | | 9.00-12.00 + Day Workers | 6 | 4.00 | + | | | + Female | | | + General houseworkers | 49 | | 10.00-12.00 + Cooks | 83 | | 10.00-20.00 + Maids | 86 | | 9.00-10.00 + Waitresses | 112 | | 9.00-10.00 + Personal maids | 5 | | 10.00-12.00 + Kitchen maids | 40 | | 8.00-9.00 + Mothers helpers | 75 | | 5.00-7.00 + Pantry maid | 62 | | 10.00-12.00 + Permanent laundresses | 3 | | 12.00-14.00 + Cook-laundresses | 81 | | 10.00-12.00 + Chambermaid-waitresses | 240 | | 9.00-10.00 + Janitress | 7 | | 9.00-10.00 + Elevator operator | 82 | | 8.00-9.00 + Parlor maids | 21 | | 9.00-10.00 + Day workers | 362 |2.50-3.00| + Nurse maid | 91 | | 8.00-9.00 + Part-time workers | 51 | | 6.00-7.00 + ---------------------------------------------------------------- + + _Weekly Wages of 200 Male and 200 Female Negro Domestic Workers + of Chicago by Occupations_, 1923 + + TABLE XVI + Occupations Number Enrolled Weekly Wages + _Male_ + Factory 15 22.00 + Waiter 8 15.00 and board + Bus Boys 6 10.00 and board + Elevator 1 14.00 + Cook 10 25.00 and board + Cleaning 11 (per hour) .50 + Wringer 2 20.00 + Fireman 2 24.00 + Shoe shiners 3 (per day) 2.00 and tips + Butchers 6 (per hour) .47 and up + Houseman 4 (per month) 70.00 room and + board + Dishwasher 43 17.00 and board + Porter 10 20.00-25.00 + Trucker 25 22.00 + Laborers 54 (per hour) .45-.60 + + _Average Daily and Weekly Wage of Negro Domestic Workers by Occupation + for Selected Cities_, 1923 + + ================================================================== + TABLE XVII | Average Wage By Occupation + |------------------------------------------------ + | |General | | | + | Day | House | Cooks | Maids | Waitresses + |Workers |Workers | | | + -----------------+--------+--------+--------+--------+------------ + New York | $3.80 | $13.85 | $16.50 | $13.00 | $7 and tips + Philadelphia | 2.75 | 12.50 | 13.50 | 9.50 | $7 and tips + Baltimore | 2.75 | 9.50 | 11.00 | 8.50 | $7 and tips + Washington, D. C.| 2.00 | 9.25 | 10.75 | 8.50 | $8 and tips + Detroit | 3.35 | 9.50 | 11.00 | 9.00 | $7 and tips + Indianapolis | 2.25 | 10.00 | 13.50 | 9.00 | $7 and tips + Boston | 3.00 | 12.00 | 12.50 | 10.50 | 10.50 + Los Angeles | 3.80 | | 15.00 | 11.50 | 8.00 + Montgomery | 1.75 | 7.00 | | 6.50 | + Nashville | 1.75 | 7.00 | | 6.50 | + ------------------------------------------------------------------ + + =============================================== + TABLE XVII |Average Wage By Occupation + (cont.) |----------------------------- + |Part-time | Mothers' | Child + | Workers | Helpers | Nurses + -----------------+----------+----------+------- + New York | $8.00 | $11.00 | $11.00 + Philadelphia | 7.50 | 8.25 | 8.25 + Baltimore | 6.00 | 5.50 | 6.00 + Washington, D. C.| 7.50 | 8.00 | 8.00 + Detroit | 9.50 | 9.50 | 10.00 + Indianapolis | | 8.00 | 13.50 + Boston | | | + Los Angeles | | | + Montgomery | | | + Nashville | | | + ---------------------------------------------- + + ================================================================== + Male | Day |Chauffeurs | Cooks |Janitors |Dishwashers + |laborers | | | | + ------------+---------+-----------+--------+---------+------------ + New York | $3.00 | $25.00 | $20.00 | $9.50 | $12.00 + Boston | 4.00 | 25.00 | 22.50 | 20.00 | 12.00 + Philadelphia| 3.80 | 25.00 | 20.00 | 15.00 | 9.50 + Baltimore | 3.50 | 18.00 | 21.00 | 15.00 | 9.50 + ------------------------------------------------------------------ + + =================================================== + Male | Bell | Waiters |Porters | Elevator + (cont.) | men | | | operators + ------------+-------+---------+--------+----------- + New York | $9.50 | $10.00 | $15.00 | 15.00 + Boston | 13.50 | 12.00 | 15.00 | 15.00 + Philadelphia| 6.50 | 7.00 | 15.00 | 15.00 + Baltimore | 7.87 | 9.30 | 15.00 | 9.30-15.00 + --------------------------------------------------- + +The table above shows that wages in the specified occupations in +different sections of the country, for the most part, do not vary +very much. Wages for males are given for only four cities because the +wages for males in the other cities mentioned, with two exceptions, +are about the same as in these four cities. In addition to money wages +received for day work, women get their carfare and often one or two +meals, while men receive only the money wages. Elevator operators in +Baltimore hotels are paid from $40 to $50 a month instead of $15 a +week as in apartment houses because more tips are given in hotels. + +Although in consideration of the present rate of wages the total +annual wage paid for domestic and personal service in the homes of the +United States must be large, there seems to be no available data on +this point. However, an estimate has been made of the total quarterly +wages for 1920 and 1921 and the first quarter of 1922 paid domestic +and personal service employees in the hotels and similar institutions +of Continental United States. The range of quarterly wages in such +institutions for 1920 was 666 to 700 millions of dollars; for 1921, +660 to 678 millions of dollars; and for 1922, 643 millions of dollars. +The maximum cyclical decline in the wages of such workers for that +period of time was 8.15 per cent. + +Even though seven other groups of occupations had a smaller percentage +cyclical decline in wages following the war than public domestic and +personal service and twelve other groups of occupations had a larger +cyclical decline, the average earnings an hour for each domestic and +personal service worker are less than that for any other occupation +or industry except agriculture. The average earnings in cents an hour +for each employee in domestic and personal service were for the first +quarter of 1920, 34 cents; for the first quarter of 1921, 34 cents; +and for the first quarter of 1922, 33 cents.[31] + + +_Hours of Negro Domestic Workers_ + +Although during the past thirty years there has been considerable +advance made in the matter of hours for domestic and personal service +workers, the change in this particular has not kept pace throughout +the United States with the increase in wages in domestic and personal +service occupations. Thirty years ago 38 per cent of 1,434 female +domestic employees from all sections of the United States were +actually working ten hours a day, 6 per cent of them were working +eleven hours a day, 31 per cent were working twelve hours or more +a day, and 25 per cent of them were working less than ten hours a +day.[32] + +In recent years the hours and wages of female domestic and personal +service workers in several states of the union have been standardized +by the enactment of state minimum wage laws. Utah, which has an eight +hour day and a 48 hour week for female workers generally, lists any +regular employer of female labor under those occupations covered by +law. This would include domestic service for women. The minimum wage +rate in this State for experienced women is $1.25 per day. Wisconsin, +which has a ten hour day and a 55 hour week for females and minors, +includes under its minimum wage law every person in receipt of, or +entitled to, any compensation for labor performed for any employer. +Domestic workers must be included in this number. Colorado includes +under its minimum wage law any occupation which embraces "any and +every vocation, trade, pursuit and industry." Since domestic service +is a pursuit or vocation, it must come under the minimum wage law +of Colorado. The state of Washington has an eight hour day and a 56 +hour week and a wage of $18 a week and $3 a day for females engaged +in public housekeeping, but not for private domestic workers. North +Dakota publicly excludes domestic service and agriculture from its +occupations or industries covered by the minimum wage law. Although +the other seven State minimum wage laws do not openly exclude +domestic service, it is not included as yet among occupations and +industries. Two attempts were recently made in California to secure +through legislation a ten hour day for domestic workers. The first +bill was defeated. The second bill passed both houses but received a +pocket veto.[33] In States where there is no minimum wage legislation +the working hours for day workers and part-time workers are +standardized on an eight hour basis. + +The extensive use of day workers came into popularity largely through +necessity during the World War. At that time such a large proportion +of the permanent domestic employees found openings in other lines +of work that housewives supplemented their own labor by hiring day +workers. The large demand for such workers gave them the leverage of +establishing for themselves an eight hour day and a wage commensurate +with that in many lines of industry. Day workers have retained since +the World War both the eight hour day and the advanced wages. + +The part-time workers, too, have definite hours. Many of them do +cooking and general housework but for only specified hours. Some of +them work four or five hours or less in the mornings, especially when +the work is largely cleaning. Not a few of them begin in the afternoon +and do general housework and prepare dinner and serve it. But the +hours are fixed hours. Some part-time workers have a regular place of +employment for mornings and another such place for afternoons. Their +hours are definite and their wages are thus very good. Frequently the +part-time worker has every Sunday off. + +The hours for the other domestic service workers generally do not seem +to be so well standardized as yet. Three Washington, D. C., employers +wished their general houseworkers to come on duty at seven o'clock in +the morning, with the promise that the workers could leave when they +finished. Although 75.3 per cent of one thousand domestic workers, +exclusive of day workers and part-time workers, in the private +families and boarding houses of Washington, D. C., were on duty ten +hours or over, this would show that the three employers mentioned +above were not typical. Three other employers in the same mentioned +city maintained an eight hour day for their help by having an extra +worker prepare the dinners and serve them. + +Apparently no attempt has been made to compare the hours of the +private domestic and personal service workers with those of the +workers in other industries. An estimate made of the full-time hours a +week during 1920 and 1921 for the average employee in all enterprises +of whatever size in the Continental United States discloses the fact +that the average full-time hours a week for public domestic and +personal service workers were from 56.6 to 57.1, while the average for +workers in all industries including domestic and personal service was +50.3 to 51.3 hours a week. In New York City, according to employment +agents, the practice of an eight to nine hour day for domestic workers +generally obtains. + + +_Specific Occupations of Negro Domestic Workers_ + +The chief employment of the day workers in more than three-fourths +of the States is laundry work and cleaning. It is significant that +in twenty-one States for which the 1920 advanced occupational census +sheets have been obtained, where the Negro population is negligible, +there is no principal occupation given as that of launderer and +laundress "not in laundries." In all of the States for which there +are reports given in the cities of those States where the Negro +population is large there is such a principal occupation. However, +this occupation in spite of the increased popularity of day work +during the World War is decreasing in numbers as the following table +will indicate. Whether this decrease is due to the "wet wash" laundry +system and to the increased facilities in hand laundries we have no +data to prove. + +Table XVIII given below represents the States so far as the 1920 +census reports go, which have the principal occupation of launderer +and laundress "not in laundries." In all of the States except Vermont, +the Negro population is quite appreciable. Just why Vermont is not +among the 21 States which have a negligible Negro population and no +such principal occupation accessible data did not disclose. The reason +why the 21 States have no such principal occupation is probably due to +the fact that laundry work is so laborious that white domestic workers +are averse to it, and those able to have the work done send it to a +steam laundry. + + _The Number of Launderers and Laundresses in 14 States in 1910-1920_ + + ================================================== + TABLE XVIII | | + | Male | Female + State |-------+-------+--------+------- + | 1910 | 1920 | 1910 | 1920 + -----------------+-------+-------+--------+------- + Louisiana | 406 | 389 | 23,051 | 17,034 + Georgia | 832 | 667 | 44,710 | 36,775 + No. Carolina | 387 | 296 | 23,192 | 15,185 + Florida | 394 | 342 | 14,844 | 16,552 + Dist. of Columbia| 121 | 93 | 7,920 | 6,095 + Maryland | 448 | 253 | 16,189 | 12,418 + Delaware | 20 | 26 | 1,665 | 1,110 + Indiana | 300 | 245 | 10,130 | 7,238 + Vermont | 34 | 21 | 1,256 | 684 + Kansas | 210 | 163 | 4,814 | 3,760 + New Jersey | 452 | 322 | 11,171 | 7,626 + New Mexico | 71 | 51 | 1,678 | 1,299 + Oklahoma | 154 | 124 | 5,349 | 4,350 + West Virginia | 140 | 84 | 3,923 | 2,505 + -------------------------------------------------- + +A general houseworker has come to be thought of by the public as a +maid of all work, and sometimes she is; but in many homes she is +relieved of doing the laundry work. In some cities general housework +does not always include cooking. For example, in New York City and +Brooklyn it may not include cooking unless specified by the terms +cooking and general housework. In New York and some other cities men +have been tried as general workers. + +According to employment agencies, butlers are not used in such +large numbers as they were before the World War. During the war it +was difficult to secure them because men were needed for war work. +Since then wages have been such that employers have largely used +chambermaid-waitresses or chauffeur-butlers instead of regular +butlers. Among the 779 Negro men in domestic and personal service +(New York City, 1921, Table XI), there is not one butler. This does +not mean that there are no Negro butlers in New York City, but it +indicates their scarcity and shows that employers living in apartment +houses can do without them. Negro cooks, however, are yet an important +factor in the domestic and personal service groups. + +There are still Negro personal maids who make provision for the +special comfort and well being of their employers as well as do their +little mending, and the like. And there are Negro pantry maids whose +first duty it is to make salads. Chambermaid-waitresses and parlor +maids to do such as to answer the door bell are also still used. The +tendency, however, is in the direction of having but the one general +maid, together with a laundress to come in by the day. Mothers' +helpers or young girls to assist in all the work of the house and with +the children are also being employed quite extensively, and at less +wages than would be paid to an older general houseworker. + +These different occupations for the most part call for different types +of workers. A butler or a chambermaid-waitress who is tall and comely +may have access to a larger number and to better places than one who +is short. Especially is this true of cooks for apartment or for a +general houseworker where there are stairs to climb. These are much +more frequently chosen from among the medium-sized women than from +the stout women. The reason for the latter choice is apparent. In the +case of the butler or chambermaid-waitress, the basis of choice is +apparently appearance and custom. + + +V. LIVING CONDITIONS, HEALTH, SOCIAL LIFE, ORGANIZATIONS OF NEGRO +DOMESTIC WORKERS, AND THEIR RELATION TO EMPLOYMENT AGENCIES + +Living conditions here refer only to those on employers' premises. +The general living conditions of Negro domestic workers in different +parts of the country, or even in different localities of the same +section, vary so widely that the subject cannot be treated here. For +example, in the South laundresses for the most part take bundle wash +to their small homes, and do large "washes" there. Such a situation +makes it difficult for southern Negro laundresses to live comfortably +and healthfully. Laundresses in the North are relieved of this problem +by going to the homes of employers, but, on the other hand, are +affected by the excessive rents and the overcrowding in their own +homes. + +Living conditions on employers' premises for domestic workers vary to +some extent in different homes of the same city but to a larger extent +in the different sections of the country and in different cities of +the same section. In Montgomery, Alabama, for example, out of two +hundred Negro female domestic workers interviewed, 54 or about 27 per +cent were living in a two-room detached frame house on the rear of the +employers' premises. The remaining 73 per cent did not "sleep in" or +live on their employers' premises. In Philadelphia, living conditions +on employers' premises are reported as being good. They consist, in +the main, of a third floor room. Very few basement rooms are offered +as living quarters for domestic workers in that city. In Indianapolis, +about 50 per cent of those working by the week among the 471 domestic +workers go home nights. Living conditions for those "sleeping in" are +fair as a rule. Some have basement rooms but a majority of them have +rooms either on the third floor or in the attic or over a garage. A +small percentage of the homes have a bath room for the maid. + +Employment agencies in Boston, New York City, Brooklyn, Philadelphia, +Detroit, Chicago, and Los Angeles give favorable reports on the living +conditions of domestic workers who "sleep in." While the reports from +Baltimore are not as conclusively favorable as for the above-named +cities, one fact stands out prominently, namely: that in the main, +only apartment houses in that city offer basement rooms as living +quarters for domestic workers. Employment agencies in all of the +cities mentioned state that there are far more calls for workers to +"sleep in" than there are workers who are willing to do so. + +Out of 500 domestic workers in Washington, D. C., selected at random +from 3,000 permanent employees for the year 1921-22, about 64.1 per +cent were requested to "sleep in." Out of an equal number of employers +requesting workers to "sleep in," selected in the same manner, about +83 per cent provided basement rooms as sleeping quarters for such +workers; about 10 per cent either provided first floor or third floor +rooms--some of them with baths; about 7 per cent either offered attics +or they failed to furnish a statement as to the location of the rooms. +Occasionally an employer would like to have the worker "sleep in" but +because of having only a basement room to offer, she would forego her +wish in the interest of the health of the employee. Two of the workers +sent out from this office were partially incapacitated by the poor +living and working conditions. One of the problems, however, involved +in housing domestic employees is the frequency of the turnover which +necessarily brings in different kinds of workers, varying in degrees +of personal cleanliness and health. + +Closely connected with the living conditions, too, are the working +conditions of domestic employees. In fact, one of the strains of such +service often is the lack of break between the place of work and of +living, which makes for resulting monotony and much loneliness. Much +of a domestic worker's life is spent in the kitchen, in the laundry +or on the premises of his employer. The only available accurate data +on this point have come from Indianapolis, Ind. This was secured in +response to a questionnaire sent to the employers who were patrons +of the employment office at Flanner House. The following table gives +a summary of the replies as to the appliances employers had in their +homes for use of Negro domestic workers. + + _Replies from 523 Employers Showing the Appliances in the Homes for + Doing Laundry Work, in Indianapolis, Ind., April, 1922_ + + TABLE XVIII Per Cent + Number having electric machines 249 47.6 + Number having water power machines 2 .4 + Number having hand power machines 5 .9 + Number not having machines of any kind 267 51.1 + ----- + 100.0 + Number having electric irons 479 91.6 + Number having gas irons 5 .9 + Number having mangles--ironing machine 31 5.9 + Number having stationary tubs 202 38.6 + Number having driers 3 .6 + +According to this record about 48.9 per cent of the 523 employers had +washing machines of some kind and about 51.1 per cent had none at all; +about 38.6 per cent had installed stationary tubs and 0.6 per cent had +driers. To one who is conversant with the old way of doing laundry +work with heavy portable wooden tubs, and with the lighter weight +zinc tubs, into which water was lifted for washing and from which it +was lifted after washing, and then placed upon either a dry goods +box or a wash bench of uncertain height, this table shows marvelous +improvement in working conditions of Negro laundresses in Indianapolis +and indicates unusual possibilities there and elsewhere. However, +unless there were, in each of the homes having washing machines, +a stationary tub, or a rubber tube for draining the water out of +the washing machine, there still would be that lifting of water, +and possibly undue exertion because of the uncertain height of the +portable tub. The principle of having the tub set at the right height +involves relief from straining the back, an important item in relation +to good health. There were about 98.4 per cent of the 523 employers +who had either electric or gas irons or mangles. Such appliances +facilitate ironing as well as enable a laundress to do better work. +Washing machines and mangles make it possible to do the bed linen at +home instead of sending it to a steam laundry. Driers are particularly +serviceable in winter when drying out of doors is difficult as well as +being hard on the laundress because of the cold weather. + +The employment agency that sent out the questionnaire congratulated +the employers on the marked improvement made in appliances for +laundering, and added that like improvements will in time be made in +the type and conditions of work rooms in which laundresses must labor. + + +_The Health of Negro Domestic Workers_ + +Although the health of domestic workers is an extremely important +matter because of the nature of their work and the homes into which +they go, and because their support depends so largely upon their +physical ability to work, no records apparently are kept by the +various employment agencies relative to the health of the workers. In +1899 out of 152 male and 395 female domestic workers in Philadelphia, +80 per cent of the men had not been ill during the year, and 74 per +cent of the women had not been ill during the year. This per cent of +good health excluded colds. The most prevalent disabilities among +them were: consumption, lagrippe, quinsy, sore throat, rheumatism, +neuralgia, chills and fever, and dyspepsia.[34] That there is much +opportunity for danger from infection incident to the ill-health of +domestic workers cannot be denied.[35] + +Very careful note was taken for one week in March, 1922, of the health +of women domestic workers reporting at the United States Employment +Agency, Washington, D. C. It was not a typical week because of the +fact that it followed an epidemic of lagrippe. However, out of 1,043 +domestic workers, only 325 or about 31 per cent had not been ill +during that winter and had no complaint whatever. Lagrippe, surgical +operations, indigestion, heart trouble, weak back, and neuralgia were +the illnesses of which they most commonly complained. + +There were among the number above, five evident cases of mental +disturbance, one of which was taken to St. Elizabeth's Hospital +for observation and treatment. Another from the number had been +discharged from the same hospital after treatment for mental trouble. +This fact was not known by the Agency until an officer from the +hospital visited the woman at her place of work to see how she was +getting along. Three cases that were suspected of having tuberculosis +were referred as waitresses at different times to a public hospital, +at some risk of course to the reputation of the office, largely to see +what the reaction of the nurse in charge would be. In each case the +nurse reported that she could not use such a person about the food. +Yet such persons were taken into some of the most desirable homes in +Washington as household employees. + + +_Social Life of Negro Domestic Workers_ + +The social life of the older domestic Negro workers centers largely in +their church and secret order society connections. From 1916 to 1920 +seven out of every eleven Negroes in the United States were enrolled +in churches. Many of them are willing to accept a place at a much +lower wage than another if it gives them their Sundays off so that +they may attend their churches. + +It is important then to see the scope of such organizations in Negro +city life. Kansas City, Missouri, with a Negro population in 1910 of +23,566, had 19 Negro churches and 16 Negro missions in 1913, with +a total membership of 7,156. In this city there were 135 different +lodges, or households (women's chapters), with a total membership +of 8,055, 4,226 men and 3,829 women. The average initiation fee in +the men's orders was $11.50 and in the women's $4.51 with additional +monthly dues of 50 cents and 25 cents respectively. Endowment +insurance policies of these lodges for which there is an annual fee +from $2 to $4 are for the most part optional. These 8,055 members pay +into their lodges annually $55,411.40. Their property in Kansas City +is valued at $46,100. Each of the 135 orders has sick benefits ranging +from $2.50 to $4.50 a week and all of them, with one exception, pay +burial expenses in case of death.[37] In Harlem, New York, with a +Negro population of about 90,000 in 1920 there are 25 Negro churches +and about 16 missions. There are in this densely populated section six +moving picture theatres which cater largely to Negro patronage.[38] +Gainesville, Georgia, with a Negro population in 1910 of 1,629 had a +Negro church membership of 1,023. Five of the Negro lodges in that +city admit women, some of whom are members of several lodges.[39] In +the lodges composed as they are very largely of the masses of the +Negro people with a few of the more intelligent leaders as officers, +there are many possibilities for improving the efficiency of the +domestic workers. + +Just what is the social life of the younger Negro domestic workers, +many of whom are away from their own families, is a question. Of the +471 Negro domestic workers registered at the Indianapolis office, +about 44.5 per cent were rooming and only about 2.3 per cent were +living with parents or relatives. As possible attractions for such +workers there are the moving picture and low vaudeville theatres, +usually located in Negro neighborhoods, the pool and billiard rooms, +cabarets and questionable dance halls. + +Dr. Rubinow says that of 2,300 domestic white workers, a large +majority of whom were under 30 years of age, interviewed by the +Michigan Bureau of Labor, only 51 belonged to fraternal societies of +any kind. Of 230 questioned by the Domestic Relation Reform League, 20 +belonged to clubs and 15 to classes of some kind, and 118 entertained +no men callers. A domestic worker, he says, not only loses caste among +other groups of workers, but she loses at the hands of her employers +even her family name. She lives a life of loneliness, "in a family but +not of it."[40] + + +_Organization of Domestic Workers_ + +In order to show concretely what domestic workers themselves have +attempted to do to improve their conditions, some discussion of their +organizations as an expression of that attempt is in place here. It +is not certain how many of these organizations are still active nor +how many have Negro members. Some of them have such members, no doubt. +However, three of them are composed entirely of Negroes. + +In Los Angeles, California, the "Progressive Household Club" with +a membership of 75 domestic workers is still active. This club was +organized primarily for the purpose of furnishing a cheerful and +welcome home for a domestic worker taking a rest or not employed +for a time. It has a self-supporting home which will accommodate +twenty-five girls. Their recreational and educational features are +not startling, as the secretary writes, but they enable the girls to +pass some cheerful hours out of their "humdrum" lives. This club was +among the 15 other domestic workers' clubs organized in 1919 and 1920. +In 1919 a Domestic Workers' Alliance with a membership of over 200, +affiliated with the Hotel Waitresses under the American Federation +of Labor, was granted a charter. During that year, the secretary of +Hotel and Restaurant Employees of the International Alliance and +International League of America reported that this organization had +established a domestic workers' union in each of the following cities: +Mobile, Alabama; Fort Worth, Texas; and Lawton, Oklahoma. A union of +domestic workers was also organized in Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 1919. The +following March a charter was granted to a domestic workers' union +in Richmond, Virginia.[41] In 1920 there were 10 unions of domestic +workers affiliated with the American Federation of Labor. These unions +were located in the following cities: Los Angeles and San Diego, +California; Brunswick, Georgia; Chicago and Glencoe, Illinois; New +Orleans, Louisiana; Beaver Valley, Pennsylvania; Denison, Harrisburg, +and Houston, Texas. The New Orleans Union, a Negro organization, was +composed of about 200 members. All of these organizations have now +ceased to be affiliated with the American Federation of Labor. There +is, however, one union of domestic workers in Arecibo, Porto Rico, +affiliated with the American Federation of Labor. + + +_Relation of Negro Domestic Service to Employment Agencies_ + +In view of the volume and extent of turn-over in domestic service, +employment agencies, especially in the North, East, and West, have a +close relationship to both employers and workers. A person in need +of domestic help secures it either by advertising in the help wanted +section of the newspapers, by applying to one or more employment +agencies, by means of inquiries among friends and acquaintances +who may have been a former employer of some available laborer, by +accepting some one who may by chance apply in person or by hiring a +former worker. + +In some of the southern cities where there is no local employment +agency, domestic workers are secured in all other of the +above-mentioned ways. For example, this condition prevails in +Montgomery, Alabama. Although the United States Employment Service, +the Department of Labor, and the Municipal Employment offices of +Birmingham and Mobile, Alabama, are co-operating, there is no State +license applying to local employment agencies except those soliciting +laborers to go outside of the State, according to a recent statement +from the Alabama Tax Commission. A like condition exists in the State +of Louisiana. Georgia, however, issues licenses to employment agencies +for domestic positions. In this State as in some others, there is no +law regulating the fee which an agency may charge either employer or +employee for service rendered. Neither Ohio, Pennsylvania, California, +nor Maryland, and several other States have such a fee regulated +by law. However, in Pennsylvania, every employment agent must file +with the commissioner for his approval a schedule of fees, proposed +to be charged for any service rendered to employer or employee, and +these may be changed only with the approval of the commissioner. +Every employment agent in this State is required to give a receipt to +any applicant for any money which the applicant pays him; and if an +applicant fails through no fault of his to secure a position to which +he is referred, the entire amount paid by such a person to the agent +is to be refunded. Such a law obtains in some other States. + +In Baltimore there are 50 employment agencies, mainly of a domestic +nature. The usual fee charged an employer, though not regulated by +law, is $2. An agency ordinarily agrees to supply an employer with +help for at least 30 days without additional cost. + +New York State issued in 1918, 674 licenses to employment agencies +engaged in various kinds of employment business. In 1919, 719 +employment agency licenses were issued; in 1920, 728 and in 1921, 788. +The law stipulates that the fees charged domestic work applicants by +employment agencies shall not in any case exceed ten per cent of the +first month's wages. If a domestic worker does not accept a position +to which he is referred or fails to obtain employment, the full amount +which he paid the agency is to be refunded after three days allowed +for obtaining facts. If an employee fails to remain one week in a +position, the agency is required to furnish the employer with a new +employee, or return 3.6 of the fee paid in by the employer, provided +the employer notifies the agency within thirty days of the failure +of the worker to accept the position or of the employee's discharge +for cause. If the employee is discharged within one week without his +fault, another position is furnished him or 3.5 of the fee returned. + +Employment agencies in New York State must also give receipts for +money paid them. Day workers receiving a rate of $3.60 to $4.00 per +day each pay an initial fee of 50 cents to the agency furnishing +them with work. Employers of domestic labor pay the agency for one +month's service a flat rate of from $6 to $10 for general houseworkers +and from $3 to $5 for part-time workers. For a temporary laborer, +employers pay a fee of $1 and for a day worker they pay a fee of 50 +cents. For commercial and industrial placements an employee pays to +the agency 5 per cent of her first month's wage, but no charge is made +for the employer furnishing the work. + +The laws of Massachusetts regulating employment agencies of a domestic +nature are almost similar to those of New York State, the difference +in the main being in the size of the fees. In Massachusetts an +intelligence office keeper is entitled to receive from an applicant, +employer or employee, a fee of 25 per cent of the first week's wages; +and in case of day work a fee of 10 per cent of a day's pay. The +Michigan domestic employment agency fees for employee and employer are +about the same as that for New York State. + +In the District of Columbia, a domestic employment agency is entitled +to receive in advance from an employer $2 for each employee for at +least 30 days service, and from an applicant for work $1. One-half +of this fee is to be returned on demand if such applicant does not +have a fair opportunity of employment within 15 days from date of +payment. When an applicant actually receives employment at a wage of +$25 a month or more he pays the agency an additional $1. However, it +is a common practice among Washington employment agencies to have +applicants pay $2 in advance of securing a place for work. In the +light of the total amount of money paid in wages of domestic and +personal service, especially with such a heavy turnover, the fees +paid to employment agencies by both employers and employees evidently +amount to quite a considerable sum. + +Thirty years ago Miss Salmon in her study of domestic service pointed +out, not only the exorbitant fees charged by employment agencies, but +the vice and crime nurtured by them.[42] In 1915 investigations of +Miss Kellor in Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York, Boston and other +cities brought out some more striking facts. In Philadelphia 84 per +cent of the employment agencies were in private residences and 3 per +cent of them were in business buildings. In New York 85 per cent of +these agencies were conducted in very close contact with the families +of the agents. In Chicago 81 per cent of them were in buildings +occupied by families. In Boston 73 per cent of the agencies were in +business buildings and only 27 per cent were in residences. The poor +business methods of many private intelligence offices, surrounded +by gambling dens, fortune tellers, palmists and midwives, and their +frauds are insignificant as compared with their conscious, deliberate +immorality. Miss Kellor says that many Negro intelligence offices are +hopelessly immoral but that some city authorities often argue that +since they do not affect the whites there is no reason for disturbing +them.[43] + +The Third Biennial Report of the Department of Labor and Industry of +Maine for the year 1915-1916 contains a warning against employment +agencies collecting fees in excess of the law. This report recommends +that the important economic task of employment be taken out of +the hands of the agents and placed under management of the State. +A similar note was voiced by one of the committees of President +Harding's conference on unemployment. + +The large experience with both municipal and State offices and with +the United States Employment Service has given unmistakable evidence +that the recruiting and placement of labor is a public necessity and a +general benefit to the whole community. It can therefore well become +a matter conducted under public supervision and at public expense. +Domestic service, especially in large cities and particularly because +of the absence of organization and group connection of the workers, +is especially in need of such public direction. + + +SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS + +From 1870 to 1900 there was an increase in the total number of persons +engaged in domestic and personal service in the United States. Since +that time there has been a steady decrease in the number so engaged. +Although Negroes have followed the general trend of increase and +decline, in proportion to their population, they furnish a larger +percentage of domestic workers than any other group in the United +States, the female workers outnumbering the male. + +The fact is also evident that Negroes are gradually entering trade +and transportation and manufacturing and mechanical pursuits. With +the existing conditions following the World War, and the present +restriction on immigration, the opportunities in these fields of +labor are enlarging and domestic and personal service workers are, +therefore, correspondingly decreasing. + +The ranks of the domestic service workers are being recruited to some +appreciable extent from the younger Negro women, between the ages of +16 and 24 years. The very young women and the old women are not the +most sought after by employers because of their inexperience on the +one hand, and on the other, their inability to do domestic work. The +problems of married women in domestic service are increasing because +of their family responsibilities and cares which make demands upon +their earnings and energy. + +The domestic labor turnover has increased the past thirty years. +During and since the World War, it has been so greatly accentuated +that the modal period of service is from 3 to 6 months. The length +of the period of service will perhaps become still shorter because +of the increasing opportunities in trade and transportation and in +manufacturing and mechanical pursuits. + +Provision for the training of domestic workers generally has been +meager, and in the case of Negro domestic workers it has been less +than that for them as a group. Since the World War greater attempts +have been made to extend training to domestic workers both in England +and the United States, the government in each of these countries +taking a small part in this extension of education. Training +especially for Negro domestic workers has been undertaken. Employment +agencies under government supervision, with the co-operation of +domestic service employers, offer possibilities for such training and +for the standardization of private household work. However, Negroes +with any appreciable degree of intelligence are not entering domestic +service as a permanent employment. This field in the United States is +being left largely to the untrained and inefficient. + +During the twenty years preceding the World War, very little advance +was made in the wages of domestic workers, but during the war their +wages increased about 150 per cent. Since the war, according to Dr. +King, while the decline in public domestic service wages has not been +as great as that in many other fields of employment, the average +earnings an hour in money wages of public domestic service workers are +still below those in a majority of the industries. Although there has +been an increase in wages of domestic service workers, their working +hours are longer than those of any other group of laborers. + +In some cities living conditions on employers' premises for domestic +workers are good, in others there is need of great improvement along +this line. However, with the increasing disinclination on the part +of the domestic workers to "sleep in" and the slowly growing public +interest in standardizing house work, this problem will in time be +solved. There has been much improvement in the working conditions of +domestic employees, but there is still need of much more. + +The indications are that little attention is paid to the health and +the social life of domestic workers. This neglect, especially of +the health of domestic workers, is no doubt fraught with dangerous +consequences, not only for themselves but for the homes and welfare of +the nation. + +That the social life of the older Negro domestic workers is supplied +at least to some extent in their churches is proved by the fact that +about seven out of every eleven Negroes in the United States are +enrolled as members of churches. Their interest in secret orders +is also shown by the number of members and the money spent in such +organizations. As social attractions for the younger domestic +employees, there are such places as dance halls, moving pictures, +pool and billiard rooms, and the like. The social stigma attached +to domestic service bars young domestic workers from many of the +entertainments of real value and benefit. + +Domestic workers in ten or more cities of the United States have +attempted to better their conditions by means of organized effort. The +organization in California is rendering real service to its members +through its home. With the present large percentage of domestic +workers who are rooming in the various cities, and the conditions +obtaining in many rooming houses connected with employment agencies, +there is urgent need of establishing clubs or homes for domestic +workers. + +Many private employment agencies in their relation to the homes of +the United States act as brokers. The fees charged both the employer +and the employee are generally exorbitant. The service rendered by +them is on the whole poor. The harm inflicted upon society by many of +them is irreparable. Public control of employment agencies has great +possibilities for social betterment. + + ELIZABETH ROSS HAYNES + +FOOTNOTES: + +[A] This thesis was submitted in 1923 in partial fulfillment of the +requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in the Faculty of +Political Science of Columbia University. + +[1] Bruce, _Economic History of Virginia in the 17th Century_, Vol. I, +p. 573. + +[2] _Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia._ + +[3] The following works were found helpful in preparing this +dissertation: W. A. Crossland, _Industrial Conditions Among Negroes +in St. Louis_ (_Studies in Social Economics_, Washington Univ., Vol. +I, No. 1, St. Louis, 1914); Isabel Eaton, _Special Report on Domestic +Service_ in THE PHILADELPHIA NEGRO by W. E. B. DuBois (Philadelphia, +1899); George E. Haynes, _The Negro at Work in New York City_ (New +York, 1912); Frances A. Kellor, _Out of Work_; _Knickerbocker Press_ +(New York, 1904); W. I. King, _Employment, Hours and Earnings in the +United States, 1920-1922_; Asa E. Martin, _Our Negro Population_ +(Kansas City, 1913); _Monthly Labor Review_ (U. S. Bureau of Labor +Statistics, 1919-1920); Ruth Reed, _The Negro Women of Gainsville, +Georgia_ (1921--A Master's Essay--Phelps Stokes Fund Scholarship); +_Report of U. S. Industrial Commission, Domestic Service_, Vol. XIV; +I. M. Rubinow, _Depth and Breadth of the Servant Problem_ (McClures +Magazine, Vol. 34, 1909-1910); Lucy M. Salmon, _Domestic Service_ (New +York, 1901). + +[4] _Report of the U. S. Industrial Commission_, Vol. XIV. DOMESTIC +SERVICE, p. 745. + +[5] Salmon, Lucy M., _Domestic Service_, p. 109. + +[6] Eaton, Isabel, _Special Report on Domestic Service_ in THE +PHILADELPHIA NEGRO, by W. E. B. DuBois, Philadelphia, 1889, p. 480. + +[7] Haynes, George E., _The Negro at Work in New York City_, New York, +1918, p. 85. + +[8] Crossland, W. A., _Industrial Conditions among Negroes in St. +Louis_, St. Louis, 1914, p. 30. + +[9] Reed, Ruth, _The Negro Women of Gainesville, Georgia, 1921_, p. 25. + +[10] _Massachusetts Bureau of Statistics, Springfield Report_, +1915-1918. + +[11] U. S. Department of Labor, _Monthly Labor Review_, Aug., 1919, p. +206. + +[12] Reed, Ruth, _op. cit._, p. 44. + +[13] Crossland, William A., _op. cit._, p. 93. + +[14] THREE SAMPLE LETTERS OF THE 5TH GRADE DOMESTIC WORKERS OF +WASHINGTON, D. C. + + Miss X (The agent) + + Dear Friend i am sorry to any that i am confind to bed this week + but hope to see you again some day i taken sick last friday but i + full fill that other place all right but could not go out saturday. + + _Daisy_ + + Daer Mrs. X (The agent) daer Madam can you get my husban are job + in are lunch room cafe boarding or apt. house he is are well + exspierence sheref cook we both would like are job together if + could get me are dash (dish) wash place please maggie. + + _Letter from Bell Jones_ + + Dear Mrs. X (the agent) i am writing you a fue lines to let you + here from me i am the lady you got me a home with Mrs. Jones at + Smithburg, Md I have a little boy with me you know by the name + of Bell Jones i dont want to stay up here much longer and i want + you to get me a good home down in Washington for me and my little + boy with some good white people with no children and a room in + the house for me and my little boy my little boy is a mighty good + little boy he is not noisy i want to leave sept. 4 i am tired of + this place because there is no cullard people up here they are + all white i have not been off the lot since i have been out here + please get me a good home dont let it be out of town. + + Yours Bell Jones + +[15] Salmon, Lucy M., _Domestic Service_, p. 124. + +[16] U. S. Industrial Commission Report, _op. cit._, p. 751. + +[17] THREE SAMPLE REFERENCES FOR DOMESTIC WORKERS, NEW YORK CITY + + Winchester Ave., Bronx, N. Y. July 14, 1921. + + To Whom it may Concern: + + Doris X has been in my employ and performed her duties + satisfactory. She is honest and capable. + + Signed ---- + +The following person had two reference blanks containing the same +questions filled out by her former employers. She had been a child's +nurse in the first position and nurse-maid in the second. + + _First Blank._ _Second Blank._ + January 27, 1923. Jan. 30, 1923. + + Is she honest? Exceptionally so Yes + Is she temperate? Yes Yes + Is she neat? Yes Yes + What of her disposition? Best I have ever seen Wonderful + Does she thoroughly + understand her work? Yes Yes + Why did she leave? Presumably to be near Because she was + her husband tired of permanence + and had a chance to + go to the states + with our friend + +Remarks--Her services with our family for five years have always been +most satisfactory. + +[18] Haynes, George E., _op. cit._, p. 87. + +[19] FIVE SAMPLE REFERENCES FOR DOMESTIC WORKERS AND ONE LETTER FROM +AN EMPLOYER, WASHINGTON, D. C. + + Woodford Land, Va. + +Lillie worked for me for a long time and she is a nice worker and a +fine cook and she worked for Mrs. ---- three years going on four, and +she got married there with them and she worked for Mrs. ---- and she +nursed Mrs. ----'s three children. + + From Mrs. ---- + +The following reference is for Fannie B.--who, evidently half crazy, +changed her name after registering at the Washington office because +she said she had so many "Enemons" (enemies). + +To Whom in May Concern: + +This is to certify that Fannie B has been a trustworthy maid. As to +her honesty none come no better. She is very capable and in general +very satisfactory. + + Mrs. ---- + +To Whom it May Concern: + +This is to say that Sarah ---- has been in my employ 8 months and that +she is a good cook, tries hard to please, and has been nice always to +the children. + +She has been honest and reliable and likes to try new or fancy dishes. + + Signed----Mrs. E. M. + +(The foregoing Mrs. E. M.'s name and telephone number were given to +another lady who had interviewed Sarah relative to offering her a +position, Mrs. E. M. told the second lady that Sarah once stole things +but she had had a good lesson so she thought she would not steal any +more. She also said that Sarah was none too clean, and that she gave +the girl the above reference because she thought she had improved +greatly.) + +Sarah Jackson held a domestic worker's certificate bearing the golden +seal of a Washington, D. C., Federation of Women's Club. + +The X Federation of Women's Clubs awards this certificate to Sarah +Jackson for 13 years faithful service in the employ of ---- + + Signed, + Mrs. ---- President, + Mrs. ---- Chairman Home Economics Dept. + +Robert and wife, each about 40 years of age, bring this written +reference from a southern town: + +This is to certify that I have known "Shine" and his wife for about a +year, during which time he has been running a shoe shine establishment +in this town. "Shine" is a steady, alert, energetic boy and I feel +sure he will please his employer in the work in which he is given a +trial. + + Signed, H. C. L. + +(Letter to the Employment Agent from an Employer.) + +My dear Mrs. X. + +I fear you think I am very hard to please but having had a butler for +38 years, since dead, a maid and a cook 32 years, since married, it +cannot seem that I am, when I once get the right one. + +The last girl you sent me Anna by name disliked very much being +directed or being spoken to. I am giving her up for she has a most +violent temper, the most impertinent person I have ever seen. In a way +I am sorry for her. None of us think she is all there. Will you try +again for me? + +[20] TYPICAL EXAMPLES OF INEFFICIENCY AMONG WASHINGTON, D. C., +DOMESTIC APPLICANTS + +(1) A day worker--laundress--not knowing how to cut off the current +and unscrew the wringer on an electric washing machine, when a garment +wrapped around the cogs, ruined the cogs by trying to cut the garment +from between them. + +(2) A day worker--one of the best laundresses--hurrying to finish her +work placed her hands on a revolving electric machine tub, both arms +were carried beneath the tub and had not the current been speedily +cut, her arms would have been crushed. As it was the tubs had to be +cut in order to extricate her arms. After that she was afraid to use +an electric washing machine. + +(3) To ask at the office in a group of from 200 to 250 women for a +first class laundress--one who knew how to fold the clothes just so +after they were ironed as well as wash them out according to rule--and +not find one who felt that she could do the work properly was a common +occurrence. + +(4) A young woman sent out to do general housework and cooking cut +the bone out of a 3-1/2 pound sirloin steak which she fried up into +such bits that it was not recognized by her employer. When she was +questioned about it, she said "that is every bit of that steak. You +did not expect me to cook bone and all, did you?" + +(5) A young girl sent out to do general housework and cooking when +questioned by her employer about the kinds of dessert she could make, +said she sure could make jello but was not so good at making other +desserts. + +(6) The rank and file of general houseworkers looked upon making salad +dressing and salads as an art belonging to fine cooks. Many said they +had never tried to make bread of any kind. + +(7) An elderly cook who had been at the business for 50 years wished +cooking and cooking only. Her price was $75 per month. That's what she +"ingenally" got. When she was asked if she could read or write she +said she could not. She had never been to school a day in her life, +but she realized that cooking is tedious work. "Everything I does, +I does by my head; its all brain work, you see I has a good 'eal to +remember," said she. However, she felt confident that she could cook +anything that was put before her to cook. + +(8) A young woman sent out to do cleaning left the print of her hand +greasy with furniture oil in a freshly papered wall. + +[21] Salmon, Lucy M., _op. cit._, p. 123. + +[22] _Industrial Commission Report_, _op. cit._, p. 1901. + +[23] Eaton, Isabel, _op. cit._, p. 486. + +[24] Haynes, G. E., _op. cit._, p. 87. + +[25] Eaton, Isabel, _op. cit._, p. 449. + +[26] Salmon, Lucy, _Domestic Service_, p. 90. + +[27] **Transcriber Note: No footnote text in original.** + +[27] Eaton, Isabel, _op. cit._, pp. 447-449. + +[28] Haynes, George E., _op. cit._, p. 81. + +[29] Haynes, George E., _unpublished data_. + +[30] Haynes, George E., _unpublished data_. + +[31] King, W. I., _Employment, Hours and Earnings in the United +States, 1920-1922_, Chap. V, pp. 5, 19; Chap. IV, p. 3. + +[32] Salmon, Lucy M., _op. cit._ + +[33] _Monthly Labor Review_, U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, August, +1920, p. 212. + +[34] Eaton, Isabel, _op. cit._, p. 495. + +[35] Reed, Ruth, _op. cit._, p. 35. + +[36] Haynes, George E., _unpublished data_, 1921. + +[37] Martin, Asa E., _Our Negro Population_, Kansas City, 1913, pp. +180, 143. + +[38] Haynes, Geo. E., _unpublished data_, 1921. + +[39] Reed, Ruth, _op. cit._, p. 51. + +[40] Rubinow, I. M., _Depth and Breadth of the Servant Problem_, +_McClure's Magazine_, Vol. 34, p. 576, 1909-1910 + +[41] _Monthly Labor Review_, U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Aug., +1919, p. 212, May, 1920, p. 116. + +[42] Salmon, Lucy M., _op. cit._, p. 115. + +[43] Kellor, Frances A., _Out of Work_, pp. 197, 222, 225, 229. + + + + +DOCUMENTS + +DOCUMENTS AND COMMENTS ON BENEFIT OF CLERGY AS APPLIED TO SLAVES + + +The following transcripts from the records of the Superior Court of +Richmond County, North Carolina, illustrate the application of benefit +of clergy to slaves charged with and found guilty of crimes punishable +with death.[A] + + _Fall Term 1828_ + + State } Burglary { Pleads "not Guilty" + vs } { The following + George (A Slave)} { Jury Empaneled therein + { (Viz) (1) Cyrus Bennet + (2) Alen Shaw (3) Try McFarland + (4) Wade LeGrand (5) George Wright + (6) James Covington (7) William Crowson + (8) Thos. B. Blewett (9) Israel Watkins + (10) Risdon Nichols (11) Lenard Webb + (12) Hampton Covington-- + + Who find the Prisoner "not Guilty" of Burglary in manner and Form + as charged in the Bill of Ind't'm't But guilty of Grand Larceny.... + + The Prisoner appeared at the Bar and being asked by the Court + If he had any thing to say why Sentence of Death should not be + pronounced against him, Answered by Council praying the benefit of + his Clergy. Which was allowed him by the Court & adjudged that he + receive THIRTY NINE lashes on his Bare Back & stand committed till + his Master enter into recognisance of $200 for his good behavior + for the Space of Twelve months & pay cost of Prosecution.... + Sentence to be Carried into effect on Tomorrow at 4 Oclock P. M. + + _Fall Term 1828_ + + State } { Pleads "Not Guilty" + vs } No. 19 { The following Jury + Dennis (a Slave) } Burglary { empanelled & sworn + { (1) James Meacham + (2) George Wright (3) John Gibson + (4) Silas Jones (5) Lemuel Chance + (6) Wilie Chance (7) Thomas Bostick + (8) Ananias Graham (9) James LeGrand + (10) Elias Pate (11) Hugh McLean + (12) George Hunesucker ... + + Who find the Dfd't not guilty of the Burglary as charged in the + Bill of Indtmt; but guilty of Grand Larceny.... + + The prisoner appeared at the Bar and being asked by the Court + If he had any thing to say why sentence of death should not be + pronounced against him; replied by his Council, praying the + Benefit of his Clergy; which was allowed; and the prisoner Dennis, + to be taken to the Whipping Post and receive Thirty nine lashes on + his Bare Back. Sentence to be carried into effect at 4 O'clock P. + M. on Saturday. + + _Spring Term 1832_ + + State } No. 19 { The following Jury + vs } Burglary { empanelled & sworn--viz. + Harry (a Slave) } { (1) Alexander Shaw + (2) Cyrus Bennet (3) Try McFarland + (4) George Wright (5) Silas Jones + (6) John Gibson (7) Barton C. Everett + (8) William Everett (9) Jno McAlister + (10) William Strickland (11) Francis T. Leak + (12) Peter H. Cole + + Who find the Dfdt guilty in manner and form as charged in the Bill + of Indictment. + + The Prisoner appearing at the Bar, being asked by the Court if he + had any thing to say why sentence of Death should not be heaped + against him, replied through his Council praying the Benefit of + his Clergy.... Which was allowed ... and he was sentenced to be + carried to the whipping Post and there to receive Twenty Lashes on + his bare Back.... Sentence to be carried into effect at 4 Oclock + this afternoon. + +Investigation of the law pertaining to benefit of clergy in the +slave-holding States reveals the following facts. It existed for a +longer or shorter time in Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, the Carolinas, +Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Kentucky, Arkansas, and Missouri. +Slaves were admitted to benefit of clergy in Virginia in 1732, and +although the privilege was abolished as it applied to free persons +in 1796, it remained legal for slaves until 1848. Likewise Kentucky +withdrew the privilege from whites in 1798 but did not deny it to +slaves until 1852. Alabama admitted slaves to benefit of clergy in +1805, but in 1807 all laws, customs and usages relating to Benefit of +Clergy were abolished. Slaves were admitted to the privilege in North +Carolina in 1816, and it was not denied them until benefit of clergy +was abolished in 1854. In the other slave-holding States slaves were +not admitted to benefit of clergy by statute but a law of Maryland +of 1751 which imposed the death penalty on slaves without benefit of +clergy implies that the privilege prevailed there through custom. +Benefit of clergy was abolished in Maryland in 1809, in Georgia in +1817, in Mississippi in 1822, in Arkansas in 1838, in Delaware in +1852, in Missouri in 1845, and in South Carolina some time during the +reconstruction period. + +An interesting feature of benefit of clergy was its relation to the +amelioration of the criminal law. In this respect there is a parallel +between English and American practice. The English statute of 1706 (5 +Anne 6) provided that "if any person shall be convicted of any such +felony, for which he ought to have had the benefit of his clergy, if +this act had not been made, and shall pray to have the benefit of this +act, he shall not be required to read, but without reading, shall be +allowed, taken and reputed to be, and punished as, a clerk convict, +which shall be as effectual to all intents and purposes, and be as +advantageous to him, as if he had read as a clerk; anything in this +act, or any other law or statute, to the contrary notwithstanding." +Thus benefit of clergy was extended to all classes in England. + +A few years later Delaware adopted the principle of the English +statute: "that if any person convicted of any such felony as is hereby +made capital, for which he ought by the laws of Great Britain to have +the benefit of clergy, and shall pray to have the benefit of this +act; he shall not be required to read, but without any reading shall +be allowed, taken and reputed, and punished as a clerk convict," +etc. Likewise Virginia in 1732 adopted the application of benefit +of clergy as laid down in the statute of Anne: "and if any person +be convicted of a felony, for which he ought to have the benefit of +clergy, and shall pray to have the benefit of this act, he shall not +be required to read, but without any reading, shall be allowed, taken, +and reputed to be, and punished as a clerk convict; which shall be as +effectual, to all intents and purposes, and as advantageous to him +as if he had read as a clerk; and any other law or statute, to the +contrary notwithstanding." Thus, in the language of Pike, "a relic of +extreme barbarism" became "the first step towards a modification of +the previous laws which deprived a man of his life by a brutal mode +of execution for a very petty transaction." (_A History of Crime in +England_, II, 281.) + +Another parallel between English and American experience was in the +abolition of benefit of clergy. In Virginia and Kentucky it was denied +to free persons when servitude in a penitentiary was substituted for +most of the older penalties for felonies. These states anticipated the +policy of England, for benefit of clergy was not there abolished and +service in workhouses substituted for existing penalties until 1827. +The Virginia policy adopted in 1796 was due to some extent to the +example of Pennsylvania which revised its penal system in 1786. The +abolition of benefit of clergy in most of the other Southern States +was contemporaneous with revisions of the criminal codes. + +But given a penal system in which imprisonment was the principal +feature, it was not advantageous to the slave-owner or to the State +to give prison sentences to slaves. And here the ghost of benefit +of clergy would not down. In place of imprisonment the slave was +usually corporally punished. In the language of the Alabama statute of +1807, "when any negro or mulatto whatsoever shall be convicted of any +offense not punishable with death by this act, ... he or she shall be +burnt in the hand by the sheriff in open court or suffer such other +corporal punishment as the court shall think fit to inflict." Likewise +Mississippi in 1822 enacted that "if any negro or mulatto slave was +convicted of felony not punishable with death, such negro or mulatto +should be burnt in the hand and suffer such other corporal punishment +as the court should think fit to inflict, except when he or she shall +be convicted of a second offense of the same nature, in which case +such negro or mulatto slave shall suffer death." Most interesting are +the laws of two States in which benefit of clergy was not provided +for. According to the Black Code of Louisiana when slaves were charged +with crimes punishable with death or hard labor for life, the jury +might at its discretion commute the death penalty and inflict a lesser +punishment. In Florida a slave guilty of crime punishable with death +might at the discretion of the court suffer instead a whipping not +exceeding thirty-nine lashes, have his ears nailed to a post and stand +one hour, and be burned in the hand. + +In the light of the documents quoted and the statutes cited the +statement so frequently made that benefit of clergy disappeared in +America at the time of the Revolution, and the dictum of an Indiana +judge that "it is unknown to our laws" (I Blackford 63), can not be +taken at their face value. + + WM. K. BOYD + + TRINITY COLLEGE, + DURHAM, N. C. + +FOOTNOTES: + +[A] These documents were collected by Prof. Wm. K. Boyd, of Trinity +College, Durham, North Carolina. + + + + +COMMUNICATIONS + + +The following from Mr. A. P. Vrede of Paramaribo, Surinam, Dutch +Guiana, South America, will be informing and interesting to persons +interested in missions as a factor in the uplift of the race: + + CORNELIUS WINST BLYD + + _The First Negro Presbyter in Surinam_ + + PARAMARIBO, Feb. 5, 1923. + _Dear Sir:_ + + Likewise as in 1861 the Freedman Association sprang up for aid for + the enlightenment of the freed blacks on American soil, so in the + epoch from 1738 to 1818 did the missionaries of the Evangelical + Brother's Union take upon their shoulders the burden of the + enslaved blacks on Surinam. Then, too, their way was not always + paved with roses. No they had to face the same mockery, the same + martyrdom. They were jailed, despised because for the slaves to + remain in their ignorance was favorable to the filling of their + "masters" purses. + + Let us go back to the year 1850 to see what had been happening + on one of the plantations situated on the beach of the Matapica. + On these plantations, there we found the administrator, Mr. + Rouse, in charge of the plantation administration, busy in + making arrangements for transportation of the properties of the + plantation, nicknamed by the slaves, "Domiri," to upper Surinam, + to the plantation St. Barbara. Among the properties over which + Mr. Rouse's superintendenceship extended, we found among living + stock a slave family, Father Dami, his wife bearing the name of + Ma Jetty, but better known by the name of Ma Jetty of Domiri, so + called because her birth-place is Domiri. Father Dami and Jetty + had two daughters, the one called Christina and the other, known + in slave registration by name of Wilhelmina. So it was on a windy + morning of the dry season, that we found this little family. They, + too, were occupied with the removal of the plantation properties. + It was a busy day. The rays of the sun pierced the backs of the + slaves. Their bodies glimmered in their going to and fro as rubbed + black-ebony wood furniture. + + When the work was over, we left Domiri with its slave caravan + for St. Barbara. St. Barbara as aforesaid situated on the upper + Surinam the main-stream of the colony Surinam. Entering Mr. + Rouse's new dominion from the rear we found the slaves uncommonly + active, so different from that they had displayed for a time ago + at Domiri.--They were jolly about the coming emancipation days. + As we were wandering along the slaves' cabin-rows, it was then + July 19, 1860, we heard a baby cry. Turning our heads toward + where the voice had been coming from, we detected that it came + from the cabin inhabited by the family headed by Father Dami. We + walked into, found that Wilhelmina, Dami's daughter, had added + to her family a male member. There he lay down sprawling on the + floor in pieces of rag clothes used for his bed and pillow. But + this child will grow up to become a distinguished man among his + people, a shepherd to watch over his flock. Winst, or Profit, + the administrator, Mr. Rouse, called him. One would try to solve + that puzzle of nomenclature in those days. But we know and + understand it now better. It was the time when the administrator + was expecting to get for every slave three hundred guilders on + the emancipation day. So we may suppose that this was done, as a + profit upon his debit on the government account. Let us now see + what became of that slave child Winst. + + Cornelis Winst Blyd was born of slave parents, as stated above, + on the plantation St. Barbara July 19, 1860. He was the son of + Wilhelmina, a daughter of Father Dami. Besides Winst, his mother + had two other sons. It came to pass that when Winst's mother + Wilhelmina died, survived by her three sons, they were put + under care of their Aunt Christina. Blyd, his brothers and Aunt + afterward moved into town. His aunt placed Blyd in one of the + Moravian mission boarding schools for boys, formerly known as + "Amtri" School. It was desired that after he should finish his + literary training he should be instructed in the handicraft of + carpentry. So he was brought in to Mr. Ammon, the carpenter well + renowned in the colony for furniture. + + But this was not the way traced for him by our Lord. So they took + him from Mr. Ammon to the "Central School" a former preparatory + boarding school for teachers. Blyd, with his pious, gentle and + sincere character, had won in no time the friendship of everyone + who inhabited the institution. His educational instruction in + the Bible was received from Rev. E. A. Renkemir. For song he was + trained by Mr. Batenburg. In the classroom of the normal school + for teachers, he was one of the beloved pupils of Dr. H. D. + Benjamin, then the Inspector of the Board of Education in Surinam. + Blyd had in competition among his fellow classmates held by his + teachers, distinguished himself as a remarkable student in solving + Bible questions. So we see he showed more inclination to the + clergy and to become a minister than a school teacher. But in that + time no natives were exalted to the order of preacher. So Blyd + became a teacher. + + Blyd followed his occupation as a teacher in several districts of + the colony. His first field of operation was on the plantation, + Berger Dal, one of the largest Negro settlements in Surinam. We + may mention here an uproar that took place during his stay there. + These will make us a little acquainted with his sincere and pious + character. It came to pass, one day after school hours, two school + boys got to quarreling about a pocket-knife. The quarrel became + so noisy that the family of both the boys were coming up with + hatchet, walking-stick and some more murderous weapons. So much + feeling had then developed that the uproar would not have been + prevented had not Mr. Blyd undertaken this difficult task and by + his unusual moral power brought both parties to reflection. After + a reprimand in well chosen words the quarrel was suppressed. + + When Mr. Blyd later moved to plantation Wederzorg, situated on + the Commewyne river, he then got permission from the Director of + the Mission in Surinam, to lead now and then the church service. + But these all were for Blyd merely as forerunner to reach his + mile-stone. At the plantation Alkmaar, he came into touch with the + Rev. Mr. Kersten, and it was not long before this man detected in + Mr. Blyd a preacher of power. Blyd's impression made upon Rev. Mr. + Kersten was so favorable that soon in 1899, the Mission Director + in Surinam decided to appoint him as sub-preacher. And once the + words spoken by the old Rev. Mr. Haller (white) became truth. He + had said to Mr. Blyd "You should try to train yourself for the + uplift of your fellow race-men, and to teach them the words of + our living God." In the year 1902 Mr. Blyd was ordained to the + order of deacon, and from that time, his name as a preacher was + established. + + Rev. Mr. Blyd had to wrestle with many storms that touched his + social life. There came upon him the bad deportment of his two + sons. He who knows the battle which he had to fight, brought upon + him by his sons' evil deeds, will find in him, the preacher of + God, a true and sincere knight of our Lord. Rev. Mr. Blyd sought + in his hours of these temptations his refuge on his Savior knees + and he always was consoled. Many had wondered at his patience + and long suffering amid these storms of life. But this man, the + preacher by the grace of God, the sincere Christian in the full + sense of the word, had as his encouragement, that had been giving + him consolation and confidence: "The Lord shall provide, be still + my soul." + + Rev. Mr. Blyd's sermons were of an uncommon sort. Never would one + part from his service not being touched in the depths of his inner + life. His sermons were delivered in Dutch and Negro-English. They + were a splendor of oratory. In spite of all of these, however, + Rev. Mr. Blyd still retained his humility, without overrating + himself. His words won many hearts, even many a stranger. Among + them we may count Bishop Hamilton, High Commissioner of the + Moravian Board of Missions in England. In 1913, the year of the + celebration of the Fifty Emancipation Anniversary, the Mission + Director in Surinam decided to send Rev. Mr. Blyd to Europe, to + the Netherlands, our mother country, to represent the black race. + Rev. Mr. Blyd traveled also throughout Germany and Denmark. There + in Europe, he came into touch with several notables. + + He won many friends by his sermon preached at the celebration of + the mission feast at Utrecht in the Netherlands as attested by H. + M. Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands. Many ministers with the + degree of Doctor of Divinity had addressed the audience on that + occasion. After them Rev. Mr. Blyd rose from his seat to walk + to the pulpit for he was being given a turn. When he was on the + way to the pulpit, a white minister hastened to offer to him a + minister's gown, but the man Blyd kept his simplicity and refused + to accept it.[1] After the service everyone longed to cheer and + greet the black minister. By hundreds and thousands they crowded + themselves to see him pass. Photographers were busy taking his + photo. To and fro they went to ask for a picture of the black + minister. Rev. Mr. Blyd had made a deep impression upon H. M. + Queen Wilhelmina, and under the emotion that Rev. Mr. Blyd had + caused H. M. the Queen, he was invited by Her Majesty to deliver a + sermon at the court, attended by all H. M. court representatives. + Rev. Mr. Blyd was later invited to dinner at H. M. residence at + Hagen, and he sat at the same table near by H. M. the Queen. This + extraordinary event took place after his traveling from North + Europe. + + His love for his native land will be illustrated by the following + event. It was at H. M. Queen Wilhelmina's residence that this took + place. When the Queen put before him this question: "Reverend + Mr. Blyd," H. M. turning to him, "which of the two places do you + prefer? The Netherlands or Denmark?" And without hesitation he + answered the Queen's question in his simple words: "Your Majesty, + East, West, home is best!" + + Rev. Mr. Blyd surrounded by all these courtesies has never forgot + his race. He took the opportunity to bring before the Queen the + needs of his people. He had made also his entrance at the courts + of Germany and Denmark. In Denmark he was received with great + enthusiasm and great homage. He had so impressed the clergy of + Denmark that they made efforts to retain him for the order in that + country. But the man with his humble character chose above all to + serve among his own people. In Germany he had held several street + meetings. A white eye-witness, now in the colony, told about the + impression Rev. Mr. Blyd made upon his hearers. He said that the + longer he lived the more he learned from Rev. Mr. Blyd. + + During Rev. Mr. Blyd's sojourn in Europe the mission authorities + were offered a better opportunity to study his character. And so + this led to the conclusion to exalt him to the order of presbyter. + This event took place before a large audience when he was + returning to the Colony. + + Alas! the poor slave boy, Cornelis Winst Blyd, with his unlimited + energy traced his way from the slave cabin to kings and queens' + palaces. From body bondage to liberty of spirit and body--raised + to the highest order of Protestant dignity, the order which no man + of his color in the Colony has since attained. + + Of the literature which Rev. Mr. Blyd has left, we may mention + here his well-styled booklet: "Superstition in Surinam." Therein + he has showed a great capacity as a writer. In this booklet he + warned his people of the devil's sacrifice--the fetishism and the + belief in witchcraft, an African religion transplanted here in the + colony by their ancestors from Africa. His effort in doing so was + only as he has said, to release his people from the chains of such + an empty religion. + + It was on April 12, 1921, that the Colony was shocked from its + foundation. People stood in groups, heads sadly bent. Black clouds + now and then saluted in snow-white rainy cloud, to regain after a + few moments their original ash-grey color. Rev. Mr. Blyd, nursed + in the Military Hospital, had passed away. The sickness that + had ended his life so suddenly had returned. It was known that + physically his body was overpowered by a disease. But none had + expected his end so suddenly. On Sunday he had delivered his last + sermon. In the week when his sickness had become more serious they + decided to take him to the Military Hospital at Paramaribo for a + careful nursing. But his end was at hand. + + The day of his burial, a funeral-service was conducted by the + Rev. Dr. Muller. It would require too much space in this Journal + to note here all that he spoke on that occasion. But I shall note + here some passages. Dr. Muller said: "He was one of the most + popular and loveliest personalities among our society. He was + the first among his co-workers. Everyone respected his name with + deep respect, the young as well as the aged. He stood for better + days above all parties; above all difference of color, sect and + confession. He was the man that won the general confidence of the + Colony. + + "Yea! he was a man loved by all, respected by his own people the + black, as well as by white. His name will live forever in the + hearts of his people, friends and all. His name is holy for young + and old. His wandering upon this earth was a guide to and for many + in this Colony. He was simplicity itself and his life ended the + same." + + A. P. VREDE, + Paramaribo, Surinam + +The following communication from Captain T. G. Steward, U. S. A., +retired, contains several statements of interest to students of Negro +History: + + WILBERFORCE, OHIO, January 13, 1923. + MR. CARTER G. WOODSON, + Washington, D. C. + + _Dear Sir_: Allow me to kindly refer you to page 67 of my book + "Fifty Years in The Gospel Ministry" where you will find recounted + the opening of the school in Marion, S. C, the names of the + teachers, and a copy of their credentials, etc. + + Also on page 47 of your "Negro in Our History" you mention one + "Irish Nell." I am quite confident that the late Bishop James + Theodore Holly, bishop of Haiti, was a descendant of the union of + that lady with a black man. I do not know how the name Holly came + in, but I may be able to cite you to the facts if you think it + worth while to publish the matter. + + I am glad to find you doing so much first hand work; and were I + able I should be delighted to be engaged with you. + + I suppose you are aware of the fact that the keeper of Fraunce's + tavern or Faunce's tavern in New York where Washington took leave + of his officers was a negro. Also his daughter was Washington's + house-keeper when the latter lived on Murray Hill in New York. + + I would think the Faunce hotel at that time was probably among the + best, if not itself the best hotel in the country. + + Yours truly, + T. G. STEWARD + +FOOTNOTES: + +[1] Here in Surinam the Moravian preacher needs no gown by the +church service. This offering was then for Rev. Blyd a sign of his +worthiness, an honor and an acknowledgment of his true Christian soul. + + + + +BOOK REVIEWS + + + _Das unbekannte Afrika_ (Unknown Africa). By Leo Frobenius. (O. + Beck, Muenchen, 1923.) + +The war has fettered Frobenius to his country and his desk, and he +has found time to study his material, and the series of diaries, +written every day while in Africa. Ten volumes of folklore, three +volumes of _Atlas Africanus_, several philosophical books, and this +one under discussion, have been the fruits of his unwelcome restraint. +Frobenius is now preparing another book, "The dying Africa." Many of +his collections have gone to the various museums, but he has a large +number of interesting objects, and many thousands of pictures which +are contained in his recent publications, and, at last, made known. + +Each chapter of _Das unbekannte Afrika_ is headed by small maps +showing the distribution of the cultural elements treated in it. +This is the form of registration which Frobenius has practiced for +the last 25 years. Thus the enormous wealth of ethnological data is +statistically fixed. The area, for instance, for a house type or a +custom, when found in his travels, is compared with data found, in +literature, on the same subject, and all the findings are, again, +registered on a map. The results of seven expeditions, on which +skilled artists accompanied him, have been kept under control in this +manner. As soon as the center of a district which seemed of interest +was reached, numerous trained assistants were sent in different +directions. Each took notes and pictures on a given subject, so that a +marvelous amount of work could be accomplished. Other data were gained +by leaving questionnaires among the resident missionaries, merchants, +or government officials, to whom letters were sent later, where +matters did not seem sufficiently clear, when studied at home. + +The deductions made are illustrated by the fascinating pictures +contained in _The unknown Africa_, in which more than half of the +space is devoted to illustrations. By them the interrelation between +Neolithic European, Asiatic, Phoenician, Carthaginian, and the African +cultures is shown, mainly in regard to art and architecture. + +African art is nearer related to the prehistoric European than to the +Asiatic and the American. On the whole, that of the south is historic, +as compared with that of northwestern Africa. Linguistically the +south African idioms are the oldest, while the illiterate eastern +constitutes the second period, and the northwestern the youngest. + +Racially the lighter Hamite in the northwest has displaced older +types, which are now prevalent in the east. The Hamitic culture +extends between the Canaries and the Indian Ocean, with extensions +into Abyssinia and the southern apex. In the south dwell the +Ethiopians. Originally there were two main points of cultural influx, +one in Erythraea, and one on the western shores, having travelled +through the Mediterranean and Gibraltar, around northwestern Africa. +Some influence was also introduced from the north, and traversed the +Sahara desert. There it did not survive, but penetrated the Soudan. + +The two cultures are explained distinctly. The Hamitic contains +remnants of the solar cult, while the Ethiopian shows that of +the moon. The first has the matriarchal while the second has the +patriarchal system. Hamitic inclinations are connected with the animal +world, the Ethiopian with Mother Earth and the plant. Proofs for the +entry of Hamitic elements by way of Erythraea are found in the fact +that the matriarchate has existed on the eastern coast of India, and +in southern Arabia, and that it still exists in northern Africa. Also, +the ritual killing of the kings which exists near the White Nile, and +in the eastern Soudan, was reported, by Diodorus, to have existed on +the eastern coast of India and in Meroe. + +The Nile kept Egypt in touch with the rest of the civilized world, +while the western parts of northern Africa had no great stream to +retain the ancient height of culture, but this tended to the guarding +of traditions, and the preservation of ancient customs. + +The same ritual procedure which is depicted on the rock-drawings, +thousands of years old, prevails in these days in western Soudan. +The same posture is taken by the supplicant huntsman, in regard to +the cardinal points, while he traces similar images on the sand. The +present-day pious Yoruba consults the replica of boards which were +found in Ife, and which were thousands of years old. On them are +carved the four main pairs of deities, or the sixteen cardinal points. + +Frobenius found ancient terra-cotta heads and wood carvings which +represented the same objects as those found in Benin. The latter +must be considered as mediaeval. The pupils of the Benin heads are +perforated, while the Ilife heads have blind eyes. This would affix, +to the latter, a much greater age, as it is a feature of ancient +Mediterranean sculpture. The Atlantic art of western Africa is highly +developed, and has nothing in common with primitive Negro art. Some +of the boards are exquisite, and rows of beautiful figures and +mythological representations are carved on a door, in Yoruba, as shown +in the book. + +A very interesting theory is put forth, in this connection. So far, +it was accepted that time, in archaeology, could be measured only by +stone objects, as these were lasting. The author, however, is of the +opinion that rock drawings and carvings may answer the aesthetic or +ritual requirements of a region or a people for many centuries, while +wooden implements and works of art must be replaced, being eminently +perishable. Wood is available everywhere. The idea underlying a figure +is renewed, with each generation of carvers, and the traditions are +handed down as faithfully by wooden carvings as by folk-lore. + +Drawings, in the strict sense of the word, are found, in Africa, +only in ancient Egypt. They are more closely related to the Bushman +paintings of South Africa than to the petrography of the western parts +of the continent. Hamitic rock drawings, with depressed lines of +contour, and tinted in the intervening surfaces, are seen in Egypt. +Prehistoric and early historic figures were found in Egypt, Lesser +Africa, and the Guinea Coast. In the east the lines are generally +severe, while in the northwest they are rounded. The Hamitic culture +zone has no plastic art, among Berber, Bisharin, Somali, Masai, and +Hottentot. The Bushman who drew the beautiful rock ornaments has +produced no plastic. What is found among this tribe must be considered +as Carthaginian. + +The primitive Hamite fears representations of the human and animal, +from magic. Later the plastic representations have, however, +penetrated the Hamitic boundaries, and reached the Nile. The peoples +of Lesser and North Africa do not recognize what is on the rocks. The +Negro is not gifted in this sense. The Hamite who does not readily +see a drawing or picture, and never seems to have produced plastic +art, draws well, realistically or ornamentally. The Negro is a good +carver but draws very badly. Even those Negroes who recognize every +photograph and carve excellently cannot draw. + +Many deductions are made in studying the migration of cultures, and +many parallels are shown up. One of the relationships found is that +between the tattooing of the Neolithic Period of France and that of +the living individual near the Niger. The lines run from the ear to +the nose. Another well-known feature is the figure of the obese woman +which extends from France to Malta. It is quite prevalent in Hamitic +art, in the graphic productions of northern Africa, and in Egyptian +plastic. Steatopygy, in the living, is natural to the South African +tribes. The deduction made is that those models which seemed desirable +to the artist, during the stone age of the northwest, still exist +in the south. Therefore Hamitic culture must have wandered from the +north, east and south. + +Other stone-age elements, the stone graves, are found in the Hamitic +regions. In Morocco the stone tumuli are explained as remnants of the +houses of forebears. When food ran low, goes the tale, the head of the +family collected all its members about him, and tore the home down, +over them. + +Two main types of dwellings are found in Africa, one a cave, the other +a pile structure. The Hamitic culture prefers the first, the Ethiopian +the latter. The oldest Hamitic "chthonic" bed is a pit. The oven and +storehouse is built in the ground. The inhabitants of the Canary +Islands, who are the descendants of the ancient Guanches, and most of +the Kabyle tribes of Morocco, Algeria, and Tunis still have artificial +caves, which are, however, not generally known. In Matamata, in the +south of Tunis, tunnel-shaped, honeycomb dwellings constitute the +newer type of cave dwelling. + +Ethiopian "telluric" architecture uses the pile in the construction +of beds, huts for guards, dwelling houses, and meeting places. The +edifices are round or rectangular, and thatched. Later the thatch is +covered with clay. Fortresses are constructed of clay and rafters. In +parts of the Soudan the walls are beautifully ornamented with reliefs +of humans and animals, or geometrical figures. In the interior of the +houses the clay walls are tinted and polished, and the pictures show +many beautiful decorative designs. + + BEATRICE BICKEL + + * * * * * + + _A History of the United States Since the Civil War._ By Ellis + Paxon Oberholtzer. In five volumes. Volume II, 1868-1872. (New + York: The Macmillan Company, 1922. Pp. XI, 649. $4.00.) + +This is the second of five volumes of a history of the United States +since the Civil War to be completed by this author. Covering the +period from 1868 to 1872, this treatise deals in detail with the +Reconstruction, the Ku Klux Klan, international questions resulting +from the Civil War, the building of railroads, and Oriental problems. + +It is not usual, however, to find one publishing such a large and +expensive volume as this for the purpose of giving merely the author's +opinion about the problems of that day and the shortcomings of the +men who were trying to solve them. Not unlike most writers on the +Reconstruction, this author endeavored to commend those who achieved +as he would have them and to condemn those who addressed themselves +to these tasks in a different way. In most places, however, he found +many to censure and few to praise. If the book has any purpose at +all, it is intended not as a history of the period but a survey of +the corruption and vice of the age. Very little of the malfeasance in +positions of public trust escaped the attention of this writer. + +Beginning with President Grant himself, the author has tried to +show that there was little of virtue and efficiency among public +functionaries of that time. He refers to Grant as being ignorant, +stupid, and simple, holds up to scorn James G. Blaine, and questions +Garfield's connection with Credit Mobilier in the style characteristic +of the book. Other crimes to the credit of the leading statesmen of +that day are given detailed treatment. The book abounds in so many +recriminations and epithets belaboring the most distinguished men of +the time that the uninformed reader would expect something like the +fall of Rome to follow. + +If the white people with all their advantages had degenerated to +such a low level, the reader might wonder why the author should make +any comment at all on the corruption of the Negroes in the South. +Inasmuch as they had not been generally educated and had been denied +participation in civic affairs, he might have excused them for +abandoning work to enjoy their freedom, stealing from their former +masters, and obtruding themselves socially upon haughty persons of the +old regime. In the same style, however, the Negroes are given their +share of vilification. "He refers to them as 'Sambo' and 'Cuffee' +entering the halls of government, and a 'Coal Black' member made +temporary chairman," "'The Black Crook Convention,' 'Ring-tailed +Coons,' 'Outlaws and Rag-a-muffins,' and a 'Gang of Jailbirds.'" + +All of these expressions are not original with the author. They +are taken from southern newspapers and books of the same sort of +authorship. Instead of using such evidence only when known to be +unconscious, the author has accepted this information as the truth. +According to the requirements of modern historiography, newspapers +are generally valuable only in determining the sentiment of the +people except when the evidence obtained is unconscious. Furthermore, +the author has too often accepted second-hand information, found in +books of writers who have produced treatises on the Reconstruction +for the express purpose of vilifying the Negroes who participated +in that drama, and to justify the high-handed action of the whites +who through such invisible powers as the Ku Klux Klan overthrew the +liberal governments, and re-established the power of the aristocracy +of the South. It is unreasonable to suppose that orators and editors +interested in disfranchising and re-enslaving the Negroes would tell +the truth about the freedmen. + +It is most unfortunate that writers have accepted the point of view +of these biased authors instead of making a research for the facts in +the case. In too many instances, this author quotes Fleming for facts +of Reconstruction in Alabama, Hamilton for North Carolina, Ficklen for +Louisiana, Garne for Mississippi, Ramsdell for Texas, Reynolds for +South Carolina, Davis for Florida, Eckenrode for Virginia, Thompson +for Georgia, and the like. These "authorities" do not strengthen the +claims of a work because of the very bias with which these books +were written, for these writers accepted rumors, violent newspaper +comments, and inflammatory speeches as reasons for their conclusions. +Any history built upon such authority cannot be considered trustworthy. + +From the point of view of the Negro himself, this book is not a +history of the United States for the period which it purports to +cover. It has very little to say about the Negroes except to refer +to them as an ignorant, illiterate mass of thieves and rascals. In a +work covering merely four years, a seeker of the truth would expect +some information therefrom as to how the freedmen began their social +and economic stride upward, what forces were set to work among them, +and how susceptible they proved to be of the training offered in the +schools and churches established for their special needs. Inasmuch +as he found so much space for the Carpet-Baggers who went South to +control the State governments through the Negro vote, it would have +hardly been out of place for the author to mention that throng of +apostles who came South as teachers to give their lives as a sacrifice +in the uplift of these belated people. What these Negroes did, during +these very years, to help themselves should have received some +consideration. Every Negro of consequence in the South was not a +politician or an office-seeker. What the race is accomplishing today +is due in a large measure to the foundation laid at that time by +Negroes of foresight, who acquired education and property and joined +the missionary teachers from the North in the noble effort for the +education and economic amelioration of the freedmen. + + * * * * * + + _The Partition of Africa._ By Sir Charles Lucas, K.C.B., K.C.M.G. + (Oxford, Oxford University Press, 1922. Pp. 228.) + +This book consists of the lectures given by the author at the Royal +Colonial Institute to a circle of teachers of the London County +Council in 1921. The author disclaims any pretension to exhaust the +subject. He acknowledges that these lectures are somewhat discursive +with the intention of suggesting diverse points of view and a variety +of subjects for further study. With this purpose in mind he freely +quotes a number of books and papers, evidently desiring to stimulate +the reader to further study. It is admitted, moreover, that while +these lectures have been awaiting publication there has taken place +in Africa so many developments that this volume will not suffice to +inform the reader. + +The work begins with a survey of Africa in ancient times as it +connected with the Mediterranean World. Unfortunately, in this chapter +the author follows the well-beaten path of misrepresenting that land +by referring to it as the "Dark Continent," which, from his point +of view, was dependent and backward because it had no facilities of +communication with Europe. In this chapter, therefore, he proves not +that Africa had not made much advancement but that the European was +merely ignorant of that part of the world. + +In the chapter discussing "Africa from Ancient Times to the Nineteenth +Century" there is little more than a casual sketch of the invasion +of the Vandals, the Mohammedan conquest, followed by a rather brief +and unscientific discussion of the natives of Africa. This chapter, +however, presents in epitome the leading facts of the explorations of +Europeans beginning with Prince Henry of Portugal, the forerunner of +other adventurers from England, Italy, Spain and France. + +Taking up the slave trade, the author becomes a little more +interesting. He discusses the question from two points of view, +distinguishing between the Mohammedan slave trade and the European +traffic in men on the West Coast of Africa. He undertakes to give the +causes of the West African slave trade in terms of the commercial +revolution. Then follows a more detailed account of the participation +therein by various European nations. In this connection is treated +also the effort of philanthropic Europeans who exposed the horrors +of the slave trade and finally abolished it. Further efforts for the +improvement of the Negroes are traced to the establishment of Sierra +Leone and Liberia. + +The author then shows how this interest in the Negro, developing along +with European expansion into Africa, led to further exploration and +settlement and to the missionary enterprise of David Livingston. The +interest in the uplift of the natives, however, as the book admits, +was lost sight of after the Franco-German war, the prelude to the +scramble for Africa. Then came the beginning of Belgian Congo, the +Anglo-Portuguese treaty of 1884, the general acts of the Berlin +Conference, the Congo atrocities, and the partition of the continent +into Northeast-Africa, East-Africa, South-Africa, West-Africa and +other spheres of influence. There followed also another sort of +scramble in building African railways, tapping the wealth of the +hinterland of Africa. The bearing of the Anglo-French Convention of +1904, the Franco-German Agreement of 1911 and other European treaties +are all set forth. + +Discussing North-Africa, the author first makes a comparison of the +situation in the different parts of the continent, allowing for such +influences as the proximity of that portion of the continent to +Europe, the effect of the orientalization of Egypt, Tunis, Algeria, +Tripoli, and Morocco. This discussion, however, is not carried +out in all of its ramifications and the reader must make further +investigation for adequate information. + +In Chapter VIII the author reviews the settlements of the Dutch in +South-Africa, the British occupation of the Cape, the conflict of +the British and the Dutch, the rise of the Boer Republic, and the +Kaffir wars. In keeping with so many writers who endorse almost +anything which Europeans do, this author finds some justification +for the intrusion of the Europeans in Africa. The cruel oppression +visited upon the natives as a result of this conquest does not cause +the author any grief. In the same way, he discusses the conquest +and settlements of France and Great Britain in West-Africa, their +dependencies, and methods of development. Treating the late campaigns +in Africa, the author makes an effort to bring this information up +to date as far as possible, trying to account for the territorial +settlement in that continent as shown by the reconstructed map of +Africa. The book closes with a discussion of such African problems +as the elimination of Germany from Africa, the plurality of powers +in Africa as an advantage to the Africans in bringing about mutual +checks, and the effect of the World War upon the relation between +whites and blacks. + + * * * * * + + _A Boy's Life of Booker T. Washington._ By W. C. Jackson, Vice + President of the North Carolina College for Women, and Professor + of History, Greensboro. (New York, The Macmillan Company, 1922. + Pp. 147.) + +The author does not pretend to add anything new to what is generally +known about Booker T. Washington, or to what may be found in such +works as _Up from Slavery_, _My Larger Education_, and _Booker T. +Washington: Builder of a Civilization_. The aim is to tell this story +in such simple language as to make it comprehensible for children. The +author hopes that by reading this book some of them may be inspired +to higher ambition and encouraged to nobler effort. While the reader +may not agree with all of the observations made by the author, he must +commend this effort to popularize the record of the distinguished +citizen who by his achievement demonstrated that the race has within +it the possibilities of other groups. This effort, then, has an +important bearing on the dissemination of information concerning the +Negro and on the preservation of the records of the race. + +The details of the life of the subject of the sketch are omitted +except that the interesting beginnings of Booker T. Washington as +a boy, and his rise through poverty and ignorance to a position of +leadership, are given with some degree of thoroughness. The author +endeavors to impress upon the youth the bravery, courage, backbone, +energy, fair-mindedness, honesty, wisdom, intelligence, judgment, +modesty, patriotism, will power, self control, and love of humanity +of Booker T. Washington. To do this, each important trait in the +man is portrayed by reference to some achievement which served as a +striking example of his character. In this way, the author draws upon +his planning for an education, school days at Hampton, beginning life +in the outside world, first efforts at teaching, the beginning of +Tuskegee, early hardships, struggles to raise money, speech-making, +leadership, political experiences, and travels abroad. + +The book is well printed and neatly bound. It is also adequately +illustrated so as to concentrate the attention of the youth on +certain important achievements and events in the life of Washington. +Among these illustrations appear the monument recently unveiled at +Tuskegee, which constitutes the frontispiece of the book. Then follow +various illustrations of the many activities of the institution. While +there is not given a general view of the whole school, the various +groups given will impress the reader with the magnitude of the work +undertaken at Tuskegee. The cuts of Washington and his family show the +home life of the man. + + + + +NOTES + + +Mr. A. A. Taylor, who during the last fiscal year devoted a part of +his time to research under the direction of the Association, has been +permanently employed as an Associate Investigator of the Association +to make researches into Negro Reconstruction History. Mr. Taylor is an +alumnus of the University of Michigan. He has recently done graduate +work under Professors Abbott, Usher, Turner, Merk, and Channing at +Harvard, where he obtained the degree of Master of Arts. + +Miss Irene A. Wright, who has been employed by the Association to +copy certain documents in the Archives of the Indies, Seville, Spain, +reports that in the near future she will offer for publication in +these columns interesting and valuable data giving the history of the +Mose Settlement of Negroes in Florida. + +Mr. Albert Parry, the contributor of the article in this number +entitled "Hannibal, the Favorite of Peter the Great," is a former +resident of Russia. He has been studying in this country two years. + + * * * * * + +The various aspects of German colonization in East Africa and the role +played by that portion of this continent in the World War are treated +in _Kumbuke; Erlebnisse eines Arztes in Deutsch Ostafrika_ (Berlin, +Dom-Verlag, 1922, pp. 502), by August Hauer. + +_Etudes sur l'Islam en Cote d'Ivoire_ (Paris, Leroux, 1922, pp. 502) +by Paul Marty, _Au Congo: Souvenirs de la Mission Marchand_ (Paris, +Fayard, 1921) by General Baratier, and _Une Etape de la Conquete de +l'Afrique Equatoriale Francaise_ (Paris, Fournier, 1922, pp. 260) +by the Ministry of War of France, cover altogether in a general way +French colonization in Western and Central Africa. + +The Associated Publishers will soon publish a work entitled _Negro +Poets and Their Poems_ by Robert T. Kerlin, Professor of English of +the State Normal School, West Chester, Pennsylvania, former Professor +of English at the Virginia Military Institute. This work will be an +illustrated textbook for schools and will at the same time serve as a +volume of general information on contemporary Negro poetry. + + + + +ANNUAL REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR + + +The fiscal year which ended June 30, 1923, was the most prosperous in +the history of the Association. The efforts of the staff were directed +toward carrying out the purposes for which the Association was +organized, namely, to collect historical data and to promote studies +bearing on the Negro. To attain these objectives the Director had to +perform the two important tasks of soliciting funds to finance the +Association and then to use the same in the employment of assistants +to investigate the various aspects of Negro life and history. + +Funds have been received and disbursed as follows: + + COMPLETE FINANCIAL STATEMENT OF ALL DEPARTMENTS OF THE + ASSOCIATION FOR THE STUDY OF NEGRO LIFE AND HISTORY[A] + + _July 1, 1922-June 30, 1923_ + + _Receipts_ + + Research Fund $5,000.00 + Interest on Reserve 78.77 + Subscriptions 1,798.91 + Memberships 321.10 + Contributions 6,727.99 + Advertisements 264.55 + Refunds 57.11 + Miscellaneous 107.80 + Books 3.25 + ---------- + Total Receipts $14,359.48 + + Balance on hand for + Research June 30, 1922 5,000.00 + + Balance on hand, General + Expense Fund, June 30, 1922 89.46 + ---------- + Grand Total $19,448.94 + + _Disbursements_ + Printing and Stationery $2,996.34 + Paid for Research 4,401.62 + Petty Cash (Incidentals) 900.00 + Stenographic Service 1,330.01 + Rent and Light 518.50 + Salaries 2,733.37 + Traveling Expenses 300.39 + Miscellaneous 520.47 + ---------- + Total Disbursements $13,700.70 + Balance on hand, June 30, 1923 + appropriated for Printing + and Research 5,677.15 + Balance on Hand, General + Expense Fund, June 30, 1923 71.09 + ---------- + Grand Total $19,448.94 + + Respectfully submitted, + (Signed) S. W. RUTHERFORD, + Secretary-Treasurer. + + +VARIOUS INTERESTS + +The Director, who is editor of the JOURNAL OF NEGRO HISTORY as well +as the executive of the Association, has devoted some of his time to +administrative duties, which, with the expansion of the work, are +rapidly multiplying. It has been possible, however, to give much +stimulus to all phases of the work in spite of arduous duties. That +the additional assistants now associated with the Director will +relieve him of some of these tasks is indeed gratifying. + +THE JOURNAL OF NEGRO HISTORY has found its way into additional +libraries and schools where it is becoming more and more to be +regarded as a valuable aid in research. It is now used as such in the +accredited colleges and universities of both races in the South and +serves for similar purposes in centers of research in the North. A +larger number of institutions abroad, moreover, are now subscribing +to this publication, requiring, too, a complete file of the magazine +in bound form. Briefly stated, then, while this publication has +not a popular subscription list, it circulates throughout the +civilized world as a library magazine of value for advanced students, +investigators, and social workers. + +The Director has spent some of his time in field work. Wherever there +is a call to encourage a school or a club to do more for the study of +Negro life and history, the Director generally responds. In this way +the people of Kentucky, especially in Lexington and Louisville, were +made acquainted with the purposes of the Association and induced to +do something for the preservation of the local records of Negroes who +have achieved well. Enterprising citizens of Lexington have organized +for this purpose. + +At Nashville, the Director availed himself of a similar opportunity +to carry the work of the Association to the thinking people of the +city, speaking to them for two days in their schools and churches. The +interest aroused was most encouraging and resulted in the organization +of a local club to co-operate with this national organization. In +addition to preserving the records of Negroes in that particular +community, this group will engage in the actual study of the neglected +aspects of Negro history, using the Branch Library as a center where +numerous works on Negro life and history have been provided. + +In Baltimore, where the Spring Conference of the Association was held, +the citizens showed the same sort of interest in the work and pledged +themselves to do more to save local records which are now being +rapidly lost. Persons having an intelligent interest in the past of +the Negro are now taking steps to organize there a Maryland Historical +Society, to record and popularize the achievements of the Negroes of +that commonwealth under the leadership of the teachers of history of +the public schools and instructors at Morgan College. + + +RESEARCH + +For the first time in the history of the Association its researches +have taken a definite course. Up to the year just ended, the +Association had the benefit of merely what investigations the +Director's manifold duties permitted him to conduct, or of what others +of their own will worked out in the interest of unearthing the truth. +Thanks to the appropriations of the Carnegie Corporation and the +Laura Spellman Rockefeller Memorial, however, the Association can now +outline a definite program of investigation and systematically carry +it out. For the present the staff is engaged in the study of the Free +Negro prior to 1861 and Negro Reconstruction History. + +With the assistance of a copyist, Mrs. C. B. Overton, the Director +has been preparing a report on the Free Negro in the United States. +This report will be decidedly statistical, giving the names of the +persons of color who were heads of families in 1830, where they were +living, how many were in each family, how many slaves each owned, and +what relation these free Negroes sustained to the white people. This +research covers also the statistics of absentee ownership of slaves by +whites. The first volume of the report will be published within the +next six months. Using it as a basis, the Director will make further +investigation of the Free Negroes to determine their economic status, +their social position, the attitude of the southern whites toward this +class, and the opinion of the North with respect to them as citizens. + +Working in this same field, but developing special aspects of this +history, are Mr. George F. Dow and Miss Irene A. Wright. Mr. George +F. Dow has been employed to read the 18th century colonial newspapers +of New England for facts bearing on the Negro. Up to the present, +however, he has been unable to finish this task and does not promise +to accomplish much until next fall. Miss Irene A. Wright is now +extracting from the Archives of the Indies in Seville, Spain, some +valuable documents showing the part the Negroes played in the early +struggle between the British and Spanish in America and especially +the records of the Mose Settlement of Negroes in Florida and the +achievements of the Negroes in Louisiana. Miss Wright will also copy +all accessible documents of Latin-America giving accounts of Negroes +in higher spheres of usefulness. The Association is endeavoring to +employ an investigator to render the same sort of service in the +British Museum and the Public Record Office in London. + +During the year the Association has had one worker in Negro +Reconstruction History. This was Mr. A. A. Taylor, an alumnus of the +University of Michigan, who has recently received the degree of Master +of Arts for graduate work done at Harvard University under Professors +W. C. Abbott, F. J. Turner, and Edward Channing. Although he has +devoted only a part of his time to this research, he has produced +one valuable dissertation, _The Social Conditions and Treatment of +Negroes in South Carolina, 1865-1880_. He has also made a scientific +study of the social and economic conditions of the Negroes in Virginia +for the same period, but has not yet completed this treatise. It is +expected that it will be ready for publication within the next twelve +months. Mr. Taylor will continue this work as Associate Investigator, +permanently employed by the Association to devote all of his time to +this effort. + +The Association continues its interest in the work of training young +men for scientific investigation. As far as possible it will follow +its program of educating in the best graduate schools with libraries +bearing on Negro Life and History, three young men supported by +fellowships of $500 each from the Association and such additional +stipends as the schools themselves may grant for their support. These +students are assigned to different fields, one to make Anthropometric +and Psychological measurements of Negroes, one to study African +Anthropology and Archaeology, and one to take up history as it has +been influenced by the Negro. + +Closely connected with these plans, moreover, are certain other +projects to preserve Negro folklore. In this effort the Association +has the co-operation of Dr. Elsie Clews Parsons, the moving spirit +of the American Folklore Society. She is now desirous of making a +more systematic effort to embody this part of the Negro civilization +and she believes that the work can be more successfully done by +co-operation with the Association. As soon as the Director can +obtain a special fund for this particular work, an investigator will +be employed to undertake it. For the present the Association is +endeavoring to stimulate interest in this field by offering a prize of +$200 for the best collection of tales, riddles, proverbs, sayings, and +songs, which have been heard at home by Negro students of accredited +schools. + +The interest in the result of these researches has become all but +nation-wide. Most advanced institutions of learning now make some use +of historical works on the Negro. _The Negro in Our History_ has met +with the general welcome as a much desired volume giving the essential +facts of Negro achievement. It has been extensively used as collateral +reading and has been adopted as a text in more than a score of schools +and colleges. The demand for this book is so rapidly increasing that +the second edition has been almost exhausted. The third edition, +which is now in preparation, will be revised and enlarged so as to +give more attention to the Negro in freedom, a period of more concern +to most students than that of the Negro before the Civil War. + +In almost every center of considerable Negro population and in most +of the large schools of the race there are clubs or classes engaged +in the study of Negro life and history. Some of these were organized +under the supervision of the Association and others sprang up of +themselves in response to the increasing desire among Negroes to know +about themselves and to publish such information to a world uninformed +as to what the race has thought and felt and attempted and done. These +groups thus interested in the scientific study of the Negro, moreover, +are not restricted to the schools and communities controlled by this +race. The Association has found little difficulty in interesting +advanced students in large northern universities, and this work has +extended to some of the best white schools of the South. + + +THE STAFF + +The staff has suffered one irreparable loss in that Miss A. H. Smith, +who during the last seven years has served the Association as Office +Manager and Assistant to the Secretary-treasurer, has recently retired +from the service. The Association is immeasurably indebted to Miss +Smith for the faithful service which she has rendered the cause, +and it will be difficult to fill her position. Although offered +opportunities for earning a larger stipend elsewhere, she remained +with the Association because of her interest in the work which it has +been prosecuting. The Association wishes her well and earnestly hopes +that she may be welcomed in some other field of usefulness. + + Respectfully submitted, + CARTER G. WOODSON, + Director + + 1538 NINTH ST., N. W., + WASHINGTON, D. C. + Sept. 18, 1923 + +FOOTNOTES: + +[A] The books of the Association have been audited by a certified +public accountant who reports that the receipts have been duly +deposited, that all disbursements have been made through numbered +voucher checks properly approved, and that the balances given in the +records of the Association agree with the balances reported by the +banks. + + * * * * * + +INDEX + +JOURNAL OF NEGRO HISTORY + +VOLUME VIII + + + A + + _A Negro Pioneer in the West_, 333-335 + _Abram Hannibal, the Favorite of Peter the Great_, 359-366 + _Africa and the Discovery of America_, review of, 233-238 + African Institution, the interest of, in colonization, 168, 169, 170, + 178, 182, 200, 204, 215 + African Methodist Episcopal Church, organization of, 303 + African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, the organization of, 303 + African slave, the status of, in the colonies, 250, 251 + Alabama, the movement of Negroes to, 367, 370, 373, 379-381; + Cotton culture in, 372 + Allen, Philip, owner of land near Dartmouth, 155 + Allen, Richard, the work of, 51; + anti-colonization meeting in church of, 216 + Allen, William, interest of, in African colonization, 174, 182, 186, + 189, 195, 200, 201, 205, 206 + Alvord, J. W., Assistant Commissioner of the Freedmen's Bureau, 13 + American Catholic Historical Society, the prize offered by, 351 + American Freedmen's Union Commission, 16 + _American Magazine_, extract from, 91-92 + American Missionary Association, the work of, in South Carolina, 7, 8, + 15, 16, 25, 26 + Anderson, Joseph, of Montreal, purchase of a slave by, 329 + Anderson, Lymus, a teacher of Negroes at Port Royal, 38 + Andre, a Negro, suit of, for freedom, 326, 327 + Andrew, Governor, interest of, in Negro education, 35 + _Anna Murray-Douglass--My Mother As I Recall Her_, 93-101 + Antoine, C. C., sketch of, by W. O. Hart, 84-87; + how he made money, 86 + Arkansas, cotton culture in, 372 + Arnett, Bishop B. W., the statistics of A. M. E. Church by, 310 + Arnold, Thomas, a friend of Paul Cuffe, 184 + Arthur, Stanley Cisby, sketch of Isaiah T. Montgomery by, 87-91 + Asbury, Bishop, organizer of a mixed Sunday school, 302 + Association for the Study of Negro Life and History, proceedings of + the Annual Meeting of, 116-122; + Spring Conference of, 353-357 + Auger, Jean-Baptiste, a sale of a slave by, 322 + Auguste, Tancrede, a ruler of Haiti, 138 + Avery Institute, the establishment of, 19 + + + B + + Ba Mangwato, a native in South Africa, 288 + Babcock, Colonel, effort of, to annex Santo Domingo, 145 + Baganda, the morality of, 286-287, 288, 289; + art of, 291 + Bailly, Augustin, a vendor of a slave, 321 + Baltimore, Spring Conference in, 353-357; + Negroes in domestic service in, 390; + interest of, in training domestic workers, 399 + Baptist Home Mission Society, the work of, 26 + Baptists, the efforts of, among the freedmen, 18 + Barahona, a plantation in Santo Domingo, 139, 140 + Barbadoes, the progress of, 249 + Beaufort, South Carolina, Negro schools at, 22, 24, 26 + Beauvais, reference to, 286, 289 + Bell, J. W., address of, at the annual meeting, 117, 122, 123-127 + Benedict, Mrs., the gift of, 26 + Benefit of clergy as applied to slaves, 443-447 + Bent, reference to, and quotations from, 288, 292, 293, 294 + Betty, a Negro servant, one of the first Methodists, 301 + Bickel, Beatrice, review of _Das Unbekannte Afrika_ by, 453-458 + Bigelow, A. M., a teacher of a Negro school at Aiken, 31 + _Biography, Negro_, by P. W. L. Jones, 128-133 + Biron, an enemy of Abram Hannibal in Russia, 364 + Bishop, Josiah, a preacher in Virginia, 51 + Blaney, Mary, the owner of a slave in Montreal, 330 + Blyd, Cornelius Winst, the achievements of, in Dutch Guiana, 448-453 + Bond, James, participation of, in the annual meeting, 118 + _Book of American Negro Poetry, The_, review of, 347-348 + Booker, S. S., participation of, in the Spring Conference of the + Association in Baltimore, 353 + Border States, the movement of Negroes from, 367-383 + Bornu, the kings of, 296; + the rise of, 297 + Boston Education Commission, 6 + Boston, Negro servants in, 260, 261; + Negroes in domestic service in, 429 + Botume, Elizabeth Hyde, a teacher of Negroes in South Carolina, 11 + Boutton, Louis Philippe, a sale of slaves by, 322 + Bowles, Mrs. Emma Castleman, facts of, on the origin of Wilberforce, + 335-337 + Boyd, Wm. K., _Benefit of Clergy as applied to Slaves_ by, + 443-447 + Boyer, a ruler of Haiti, 137 + _Boy's Life of Booker T. Washington, A_, review of, 463-464 + Bragg, George F., _The History of the Afro-American Group of the + Episcopal Church_ by, 107-109; + remarks of, 355-356 + Brass, a Negro held in Virginia, 258-259, 278 + British America, the status of the Negro in, 276-277 + Breeding of slaves for market, 374 + Brooks, John, the purchaser of a slave in Montreal, 329 + Brooks, W. H., a prominent Negro minister, 313 + Brown, George W., an instructor in history, 115; + _Haiti and the United States_ by, 134-152 + Brown, John, a vendor of a slave from Saratoga, 327 + Brown, Moses, a friend of Paul Cuffe, 184 + Brown, Thomas E., remarks of, 356 + Brownell, David, the owner of land at Dartmouth, 154 + Bryan, Andrew, a Negro preacher, 50 + Bryan, Sampson, a preacher, 50 + Bryan, William J., efforts of, to encroach upon Haiti, 143 + Bryant, William Cullen, interest of, in freedom, 7 + Buffum, a co-worker of Prudence Crandall, 74 + Bulkley, Ichabod, an attorney against Prudence Crandall, 78 + Bureau of Refugees, establishment of, 3 + Bush, W. O., a Negro farmer of fame in the West, 333 + Bush, George, a Negro pioneer in the West, 333-335 + Butler, B. F., at Fortress Monroe, 2-3 + Byrne, William, disposal of slaves by, 329 + + + C + + Caesar, a slave sold in Montreal, 327 + Campbell, William, the purchase of slaves by, 328 + Came, Amable-Jean-Joseph, sale of a slave by, 319 + Canada, slavery in, 316-330 + Canal, a ruler of Haiti, 137 + Canterbury, Connecticut, the people of, arrayed against Prudence + Crandall, 76-80 + Capers, Bishop, the missionary work of, 303 + Carberry, Daniel, of Montreal, a purchaser of slaves, 329 + Cardoza, F. L., an educator of Negroes in South Carolina, 39 + Carter, Frank, a teacher of Negroes at Camden, S. C., 38 + Carter, E. A., participation of, in the annual meeting, 116 + Cary, Lott, a missionary in Africa, 304 + Castor, John, a slave owned by Anthony Johnson, a Negro, 259, 278 + Chaboille, Sir Charles, a purchaser of slaves, 329 + Champlin, G. C., a supporter of Paul Cuffe, 184 + Chavigny, Joseph, a vendor of slaves, 322 + Channing, Walter, a supporter of Paul Cuffe, 184 + Charleston, John, a Negro preacher, 302 + Charleston, South Carolina, the Negro schools of, 18, 19, 20, 21, + 22-40 + Chase, Salmon P., interest of, in the freedmen, 7 + Chene, Mary Josephine, slaves of, by marriage, 329 + Chicago, race commission of, 112-114; + Negroes in domestic service in, 390, 422 + Chicago Commission on Race Relations, _The Negro in Chicago_ by, + 112-114 + Christophe, a ruler of Haiti, 136 + Cincinnati, the treatment of Negroes in, 331-332 + Clair, Bishop Matthew W., recognition of, by Methodists, 315 + Claflin University, the establishment of, 26 + Clark, Peter H., quotation from, 102-103 + Clarkson, Thomas, interest of, in colonization, 168; + efforts of, 195 + Clifford, John R., the achievements of, 338-341 + Coppin, Mrs. L. J., interest of, in training domestic workers, 399 + Coggeshall, John, a supporter of Paul Cuffe, 184 + Coker, Daniel, a friend of Paul Cuffe, 185 + Collins, a friend of Paul Cuffe, 185 + Colored Methodist Episcopal Church, the organization of, 312 + Columbia, South Carolina, the Negro schools of, 18, 19, 20, 21 + Columbus, Christopher, the discoverer of Haiti and Santo Domingo, 135 + Colvis, Joseph, the record of, 132 + _Comparative Study of the Bantu and Semi-Bantu Languages, A_, by + Sir Harry H. Johnston, 241-242 + Caucasians in domestic service in the United States, 386-387 + _Concerning the Origin of Wilberforce_, 335-337 + Congregationalists, educational efforts of, 15, 16 + Connecticut, Negro servants in, 265-266, 280 + "Contraband of War," at Fortress Monroe, 2-3 + Cooke, Edward, quotation from letter of Paul Cuffe to, 221 + Cotterill, R. S., participation of, in the annual meeting, 118 + Cotton, the rise of cotton culture, 370-374; + the price of, 376-378; + output of, 377-378 + Cowan, Philip, petition of, for freedom, 279 + Cox, a missionary to Africa, 304 + Cramahe, Hector-Theophile, purchase of a slave by, 323-324 + Crenshaw, David, a mixed Sunday School in the home of, 302 + Croder, Josiah, a merchant connected with Paul Cuffe, 203 + Cromwell, John W., letter of, 338-341 + Cuffe, Paul, early life of, 153-156; + a sea captain, 156-159; + domestic affairs of, 159-161; + protest of, against taxation, 162-166; + a colonizationist, 167-210; + trip of, to England, 174-181; + life of, as a Quaker, 188-194; + death of, 221-223; + the will of, 230-232 + Cuffe, John, a brother of Paul Cuffe, 155; + protest of, against taxation, 162-166, 188 + Cureux, Louis, purchaser of slaves, 319 + Curry, Thomas, a purchaser of slaves in Montreal, 327 + + + D + + Daggett, Judge, decision of, in the Prudence Crandall case, 78-80 + Daguille, Jacques-Francois, a vendor of a slave, 322 + Damien, Jacques, sale of a slave by, 319 + _Das Unbekannte Africa_, review of, 455-458 + Dassier, Estienne, sale of slave by, 320 + Davis, T. R., _Negro Servitude in the United States_ by, 247-283 + Davis, Jefferson, befriended by Isaiah T. Montgomery, 87-91 + Dayly, Dennis, vendor of a slave, 324 + Deane, Major E. L., work of, under the Freedmen's Bureau, 13 + De Chalet, Francois, the hire of a slave by, 323 + De Champigny, Intendant, proposal of, 316 + De la Chevrotiere, Joseph Chavigny, purchase of an Indian slave by, + 321 + Decline of border States, 367-383 + De Grasse, John V., the example of, 132 + De la Tesserie, Joseph, the sale of a Negro by, 318 + Delaware, Lord, the orders of, 267-268 + Delaware, the movement of Negroes from, 367 + Delaware River, status of Negroes along, 262, 263 + Delzenne, Ignace-Francois, purchase of a slave by, 320 + Denonville, Governor, proposal of, 316 + Dessalines, the emperor of Haiti, 136 + Detroit, Negroes in domestic service in, 390, 405 + Detweiler, Frederick G., _The Negro Press in the United States_ + by, 238-239 + De Vitre, Mathieu-Theodore, a purchaser of a slave, 322 + Director of the Association, the annual report of, 466-471 + Discovery of Gold in California, the result of, 377 + Disfranchisement of Negro servants, 272 + _Disruption of Virginia, The_, review of, 239-241 + District of Columbia, the movement of the Negroes from, 367; + Negroes in domestic service in, 390, 392, 393, 394, 395, 400, 401, + 402, 403, 404, 407, 408, 409-413, 414, 415, 419, 425, 426 + Dolgorukovs, friends of Abram Hannibal, 363 + Dominican Republic, the history of, 135-142 + Domingue, a ruler of Haiti, 137 + _Domestic service in the United States, Negroes in_, 384-442 + Douglass, Frederick, story related by, 54; + his wife, 93-101; + in Ireland, 102-107 + Dregis, Emanuel, a Negro servant, 260 + Dumoulin, Francois, of Montreal, a vendor of slaves, 329 + Duniere, Louis, sale of slaves by, 319, 320 + Dutch frigate, slaves brought to Jamestown in, 249 + Dutch law with regard to slavery, 253 + + + E + + Edie, Colonel J. R., Assistant Commissioner of the Freedmen's Bureau, + 13 + _Educational Efforts of the Freedmen's Bureau and Freedmen's Aid + Societies in South Carolina, 1862-1872_, 1-40 + Edwards, G. A., participation of, in the Spring Conference in + Baltimore, 354, 355 + El Bekri, the author of Tarikh-es-Soudan, 296 + Elizabeth, Empress, a friend of Abram Hannibal, 364 + Elizabeth, Queen, the attitude of, toward slavery, 251, 256 + Elkonhead, Jane, the owner of Francis Pryne, 259 + Ellsworth, W. W., an attorney for Prudence Crandall, 78 + Ely, General, daughters of, teachers of Negroes, 21 + Embury, Philip, a meeting of Methodists at the home of, 301 + Employment agencies as they concern Negro domestic workers, 436-440 + Ethics of Africans, 286-290 + Evans, Henry, a pioneer preacher, 51 + _Evening Bulletin_ (Philadelphia), extract from, 81-84 + + + F + + Farando, Bashasar, a Negro servant, 260 + Fay, Thomas, inquiry of, into the affairs of Africa, 207 + Featherstonhaugh, quotation from, 375 + Fetishism, the religion of Africa, 43-45 + Finley, Robert, the correspondence of, with Paul Cuffe, 212-213, 215 + Fisher, Miles Mark, an instructor at Virginia Union University, 115 + Fisher, Samuel R., proposal of, to establish a Negro school, 206 + Flora, a slave sold in Montreal, 327 + Forten, Charlotte S., a teacher in South Carolina, 10-11 + Forten, James, correspondence of, with Paul Cuffe, 205-206, 207; + attitude of, on colonization, 216, 217 + Fouse, W. H., participation of, in the annual meeting, 118, 121 + Free Negroes in Baltimore, 94 + Free Society of Traders, attitude of, toward freedom, 263 + Free Will Baptists, educational efforts of, in South Carolina, 15, 16, + 18 + Freedmen's Bureau, the work of, in South Carolina, 1-40 + Freedmen's Aid Society of the Methodist Episcopal Church, the schools + of, in South Carolina, 26 + _Frederick Douglass in Ireland_, 102-107 + French Canada, slavery in, 316-330 + Friends, the work of, among freedmen in South Carolina, 27; + interest of, in colonization, 170, 171 + Friendly Society of Sierra Leone, the efforts of, 186, 193, 200, 206 + Frobenius, Leo, reference to, 286, 287, 295; + _Das Unbekannte Africa_ of, 455-458 + Furley, Benjamin, opposition of, to slavery, 263 + + + G + + Gainesville, Georgia, occupations of, graduates of schools of, 400 + Gannett, W. C., a teacher of Negroes in South Carolina, 8 + Garneau, Francois-Xavier, quotations from, 316, 317 + Garrettson, Freeborn, attitude of, toward slavery, 301 + Garrison, William Lloyd, interest of, in the freedmen, 7; + letter of Prudence Crandall to, 72; + letter of Frederick Douglass to, 103-107 + Gautier, Pierre, purchase of a slave by, 319 + Gay, Sydney Howard, in the home of Frederick Douglass, 97 + Geaween, John, a Negro servant, 260 + Geffrard, a ruler of Haiti, 137 + Georgia, restriction upon slavery in, 254-255; + servants in, 279, 280; + movement of Negroes from, 363 + Germantown, Friends of, protest of, against slavery, 263 + Ghana, the kings of, 296; + the rise of, 296 + Gibbons, William, inquiry of, into the affairs of Sierra Leone, + 207-208 + "Gideonites," the efforts of, 7 + Gifford, Enos, owner of land near Dartmouth, 155 + Gifford, Isaac, quotation from letter of Paul Cuffe to, 221-222 + Gilbert, a settler from Antigua, 301 + Gloucester, Duke of, interest of, in colonization, 169, 195 + Goddard, Calvin, an attorney for Prudence Crandall, 78 + Gold, the discovery of, in California, the effect of, 377 + Grant, U. S., effort of, to annex Santo Domingo, 145 + Guerin, Danielle Marie-Anne, vendor of a slave, 319 + Guerrier, a ruler of Haiti, 137 + Guillaume, a ruler of Haiti, 138 + Gulf States, migration to, 367-383 + Gummere, Amelia Mott, _The Journal of John Woolman_ by, 349-350 + + + H + + Haiti, relations of, with the United States, 134-152; + the occupation of, by the United States, 138; + the commercial position of, 148-150 + _Haiti and the United States_, by George W. Brown, 134-152 + Hale, Edward Everett, interest of, in freedmen, 7 + Hammond, Anna Eliza, a pupil of Prudence Crandall, 76; + the arrest of, 76 + Hammond, L. H., _In the Vanguard of a Race_ by, 111-112 + Hammond, John, of Saratoga, the sale of a slave by, 327-328 + Hancock, Gordon B., _Three Elements of African Culture_ by, + 284-300 + Hannibal, Ivan, a son of Abram Hannibal, 365 + Hannibal-Pushkin, Nadejda, the mother of Alexander Pushkin, 365 + Hannibal, Ossip, a son of Abram Hannibal, 365 + Harris, Sara, a pupil of Prudence Crandall, 73 + Harris, William, quotation from letter of Paul Cuffe to, 221 + Hart, W. O., sketch of C. C. Antoine by, 84-87 + Hartford, interest of, in the training of domestic workers, 399 + Hartzell, Bishop J. C., _Methodism and the Negro in the United + States_ by, 301-315 + Hawkins, Sir John, the trading of, 251; + argument of, in favor of slavery, 255-256 + Hawkins, M. A., participation of, in the Spring Conference of the + Association in Baltimore, 353, 354 + Hawkins, John R., address of, in Baltimore, 353-354 + Hay-Pauncefote Treaty, 145-146 + Haynes, Elizabeth Ross, _Negroes in Domestic Service in the United + States_ by, 384-442 + Haynes, George E., _The Trend of the Races_ by, 109-111 + Health of Negro domestic workers, 432-433 + Henrique y Carvajol, Frederico, nomination of, 144 + Herard, a ruler of Haiti, 137 + Hicks, Mrs. C. M., a teacher of Negroes in South Carolina, 37 + Hicks, Jenkins, and Company, merchants connected with Paul Cuffe, 203 + Higginson, T. W., quotations from, 55, 56, 57 + Hill, L. P., address of, in Baltimore, 356-357 + Hilton Head, capture of, 4; + educational efforts at, 5 + Hippolyte, a ruler of Haiti, 137 + Hipp, George, sale of a slave by, 323 + History, the teaching of, 123-127 + _History of the Afro-American Group of the Episcopal Church_, + review of, 107-109 + _History of the United States since the Civil War, A_, + review of, 458-461 + Hodge, LeRoy, a letter of, 343-344 + Holly, Bishop Theodore, the lineage of, 454 + Hopkins, Charles, a teacher of Negroes in South Carolina, 37-38 + Hopkins, Samuel D., interest of, in colonization, 168 + Hosier, Harry, a Negro preacher, 49 + Howard, Horatio P., the death of, 243; + relation of, to Paul Cuffe, 243; + the will of, 243 + Howard, O. O., the head of the Freedmen's Bureau, 13 + Howard School, the establishment of, 21 + Hume, Naethan, the owner of slaves in Montreal, 330 + Hunter, General David, in command in South Carolina, 8 + Hunter, William, a friend of Paul Cuffe, 185 + Hurst, Bishop John, participation of, in the Spring Conference in + Baltimore, 356 + Hutchinson, Samuel, a friend of Paul Cuffe, 184 + + + I + + Importation of slaves, restriction on, 252-253, 375 + Impostor posing as the relative of Paul Cuffe, 208-210 + _In the Vanguard of a Race_, review of, 111-112 + Indian slaves in Canada, 320-323 + Indianapolis, occupations of graduates of schools of, 400, 401, + 405, 434 + Ireland, Frederick Douglass in, 102-107 + Isabella, the slave of Hector-Theophilie Cramahe, Lieutenant-Governor + of Quebec, 323, 324, 325 + Isthmian Canal, the seizure of, 146; + the completion of, 146 + + + J + + Jack, a pioneer Negro preacher, 50-51 + Jackson, John H., the services of, 132 + Jackson, L. P., _Educational Efforts of the Freedmen's Bureau and + Freedmen's Aid Societies in South Carolina, 1862-1872_ by, 1-40; + an instructor at the Virginia Normal and Industrial Institute, 115 + Jackson, W. C., _A Boy's Life of Booker T. Washington_ by, + 463-464 + James, John, a friend of Paul Cuffe, 184; + inquiry of, into the condition of Sierra Leone, 207 + James, L. S., address of, in Baltimore, 355 + Jamestown, the introduction of slavery at, 249 + Jessop, Joseph, visit to, by impostor, 209 + Johnson, Anthony, a Negro owner of slaves, 259, 278 + Johnson, James Weldon, _The Book of American Negro Poetry_ by, + 347-348 + Johnson, Richard, a Negro brought to Virginia, 260 + Johnston, Sir Harry H., _A Comparative Study of the Bantu and + Semi-Bantu Languages_ by, 241-242 + Jones, Absalom, the opposition of, to colonization, 219 + Jones, J. McHenry, the services of, 132 + Jones, Laurence C., _Piney Woods and Its Story_ by, 346-347 + Jones, P. W. L., participation of, in the annual meeting, 117; + _Negro Biography_ by, 128-133 + Jones, Bishop R. E., recognition of, by Methodists, 315 + Jordan, L. G., participation of, in the annual meeting, 117 + _Journal of John Woolman, The_, review of, 349-350 + Judson, A. T., an opponent of Prudence Crandall, 75, 76, 77, 78 + + + K + + Keith, George, opposition of, to slavery, 263 + Kentucky, Colonization Society of, the establishment of, 211; + the culture of tobacco in, 368; + breeding of slaves in, 374 + Khama, an honest native of South Africa, 288 + Kizell, John, a settler in Sierra Leone, 193 + + + L + + Labart, Guillaume, a vendor of slaves, 329 + Ladoga Canal Commission, Abram Hannibal a member of, 364 + Lane College, the establishment of, 312 + La Promenade, Paul, a purchaser of a slave in Montreal, 328 + Larger Canal Zone, a reality, 143, 146, 150, 151, 152 + Larned, E. D., quotation from, concerning Prudence Crandall, 73 + Lecompte Cincinnatus, a ruler of Haiti, 138 + Lee, Barnard K., a founder of a school for Negroes, 8 + Legitime, a ruler of Haiti, 137 + Lepage Louis, a slave in Quebec, 322 + Le Pailleur, Charles, a purchaser of a slave in Montreal, 327, 329 + Levy, Gershon, owner of Andre, a Canadian slave, 326 + Levy, Solomon, a purchaser of slaves, 327 + Lewis, Edmonia, the achievements of, 132 + Liberia, part played by Philadelphia in founding, 81-84 + Lifland, Abram Hannibal in, 364 + Light, George, an early owner of slaves in Virginia, 279 + Living conditions of Negro domestic workers, 428-429 + Locke, Perry, a minister going to Africa, 198, 201; + interest of, in colonization, 217 + London Freedmen's Aid Society, 15, 16 + Los Angeles, domestic workers in, 435 + Louisiana, the movement of Negroes to, 367, 370, 373, 379, 381; + cotton culture in, 372 + Louison, a slave in Canada, 319 + Lucas, Charles, a slaveholder in Virginia, 279 + Lucas, Sir Charles, _The Partition of Africa_ by, 461-463 + Lugard, Lady, quotation from, 294-295, 298-299, 300 + Lurker, King, the grandson of, 205 + + + M + + McAdam, Hugh, a vendor of slaves in Saratoga, 327 + McCoy, L. M., participation of, in the Spring Conference of the + Association in Baltimore, 353 + McGill, James, a vendor of slaves, 327 + McGregor, James C., _The Disruption of Virginia_ by, 239-241 + _McKinley and Roosevelt Administrations, The_, review of, 348-349 + McLachlan, R. W., memorandum of, on the sale of slaves, 327 + Macaulay, Zachariah, interest of, in colonization, 169-170 + Madison, President James, visit to, by Paul Cuffe, 184-185, 186 + Mansa Musa, a noble of Ghana, 296 + Maryland, early slavery in, 260-261; + treatment of servants in, 268-269, 271, 273, 274-275, 276, 280, + 281, 282; + movement of Negroes from, 367, 370; + the culture of tobacco in, 368; + breeding of slaves in, 374, 376 + Martin, Governor Simeon, an endorser of Paul Cuffe, 184 + Mashonaland, natives of, discussed, 288, 289, 292 + Massachusetts, early slavery in, 252, 260, 261, 262; + restrictions on servants in, 272, 273, 280 + Mather, Mrs. Rachel C., the establishment of a school by, 26 + Matthews, W. B., participation of, in the annual meeting, 117 + May, Samuel, a coworker of Prudence Crandall, 74, 75, 76 + May, Samuel J., in the home of Frederick Douglass, 97 + Mazoe Valley, art in, 294 + Meade, Bishop, interest of, in colonization, 217 + Melle, a kingdom of Africa, 296 + Methodist Churches, early difficulties of the races in, 302 + _Methodism and the Negro in the United States_, 301-315 + Menshikov, ruler of Russia, 363 + Michaels, Myer, of Montreal, a purchaser of slaves, 329 + Michigan Freedmen's Relief Association, 15 + Migration to the lower South and Southwest, 367-383 + Miller, Kelly, address of, in Baltimore, 354 + Miller, Thomas E., Ex-Congressman, remarks of, at the Baltimore Spring + Conference, 356 + Mills, Samuel J., interest of, in colonization, 213-216 + Miner Normal School, the occupation of the graduates of, 400, 401 + Minich, Field Marshall, the friend of Abram Hannibal, 364 + Minimum wage legislation, 424-425 + Missionary efforts in the South, the success of, 304-305 + Mississippi, the movement of Negroes to, 367, 373, 380, 379-381; + cotton culture in, 372 + Missouri, the culture of tobacco in, 368; + breeding of slaves in, 374 + Mole St. Nicholas, a prospective naval base, 143 + Mona Passage, the, significance of, 148-150 + Monroe Doctrine as it concerns Haiti and Santo Domingo, 135, 143, 144, + 145, 146, 147, 148, 149, 150 + Montgomery, Isaiah T., sketch of, 87-91 + Monsaige, Jean, purchase of a slave by, 319 + Morality of Africans, 286-291 + Morgan, Peter G., the record of, 341-344 + Morisseaux, Marie-Josephe, sale of a slave by, 322 + Morrison, James, a vendor of a slave in Montreal, 327, 328-329 + Morse, Dr. Jedekiah, inquiry of, into the affairs of Africa, 206 + Morse, P. A., quotations from, 372 + Moses, Ruth, an Indian girl, marriage of, to Cuffe Slocum, 154 + Mossell, Mrs. N. F., remarks of, 355 + Mtokoland, natives of, discussed, 294 + Munro, Abby D., a teacher of Negroes in South Carolina, 27 + Murray, Ella Spencer, remarks of, 356 + + + N + + Napier, Peter, the purchase of a slave called Isabella by, 324 + Nat Turner's Insurrection, the results of, 375-376 + Nassingh, Phillip Peter, employer of York Thomas, in Montreal, 330 + _Negro Biography_, by P. W. L. Jones, 128-133 + Negro folklore, interest in, 470 + _Negro in Chicago, The_, review of, 112-114 + _Negroes in Domestic Service in the United States_, 384-442 + _Negro Pioneer in the West, A_, 333-335 + _Negro Press in the United States, The_, review of, 238-239 + _Negro Servitude in the United States_, 247-283 + Neide, Major Horace, work of, under the Freedmen's Bureau, 13 + Neptune, a Negro slave of the estate of De Beauvais, 323 + New England Freedmen's Aid Society, 6, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, + 22, 23 + New Jersey, memorial of citizens of, with respect to colonization, 212 + New Netherlands, status of slaves in, 262-263 + New York, the status of the slave in, 253, 262-263, 280; + laws of, with respect to Negro schools, 344-345 + New York National Freedmen's Relief Association, 6, 15, 16, 17, 18, + 19, 20, 21, 22, 23 + New York City, Negroes in domestic service in, 390, 391, 398, 406, + 407, 418, 419, 420, 421, 427, 428 + Nieboer, definition of _slave_ by, 266 + Nicolas, the sale of, 318 + Nonomapata, a dynasty in Africa, 297 + Nord, Alexis, a ruler of Haiti, 137-138 + Normandin, Jean-Baptiste, a vendor of a slave, 321-322 + North Carolina, early slavery in, 251-252, 260; + treatment of Negro servants in, 271, 273, 279, 280, 281; + the movement of Negroes from, 367, 374 + Northern Methodist, the attitude of, toward slavery, 303, 304, 305, + 306, 307, 311; + statistics of, 309, 312; + missionary work of, after the _Civil War_, 312-313; + schools established by, 313-314; + recognition given Negroes by, 314 + _Notes on the Slave in Nouvelle France_, 316-330 + + + O + + Oberholtzer, Ellis Paxon, _A History of the United States since the + Civil War_ by, 458, 461 + O'Connell, Pezavia, participation of, in the Spring Conference of the + Association in Baltimore, 353, 354 + Old Fort Plantation School, the establishment of, 11-12 + Oreste, Michel, a ruler of Haiti, 138 + Organizations of domestic workers, 435-436 + Orleans, Duke of, proposal of, to Abram Hannibal, 362 + Orr, Governor, interest of, in the uplift of Negroes in South + Carolina, 32 + Otis, James, quotation from, 249 + Overton, C. B., an assistant in research, 468 + + + P + + Palapwe, an objective of Bent in South Africa, 288 + Palmer, Alice Freeman, interest of, in training for domestic service, + 398 + Panama Canal, the building of, 143, 145, 146; + the influence of, 145, 146, 147, 148 + "Panis," Indian slaves among the French, 320-323 + Parent, Louis, the petition of, 323 + Paris, Abram Hannibal educated at, 361, 362 + Park, Dr. R. E., quotation from, 45-46 + Parker, Robert, a friend of John Castor, 278 + Parry, Albert, _Abram Hannibal, the Favorite of Peter the Great_ + by, 359-366 + _Partition of Africa, The_, a review of, 461-463 + _Paul Cuffe_, by H. N. Sherwood, 153-229 + Pean, Hugues Jacques, sale of an Indian slave by, 321 + Pecaudy, Claude, purchase of a slave by, 319 + Peck, Solomon, a teacher of Negroes in South Carolina, 8, 26 + Pemberton, James, interest of, in African colonization, 169 + Penn, William, in colonization dialogue, 218-220 + Penn's Charter, with respect to slavery, 263 + Pennington, J. W. C., the scholarship of, 132 + Pennsylvania, early slavery in, 252, 262, 263; + Negro servants in, 263, 264, 276, 279, 280, 281; + value of lands of, compared, 370 + Penn Normal and Agricultural Institute, the establishment of, 11 + Pennsylvania Freedmen's Relief Association, 6 + Perry, Heman E., sketch of, 91-92 + Peter the Great, the favorite of, 359-366 + Peter II, ruler of Russia, 363; + Abram Hannibal, the instructor of, 363 + "Peter's Negro," 359-366 + Petion, a ruler of Haiti, 136-137 + Philadelphia, the part of, in establishing Liberia, 81-84; + Negroes in domestic service in, 390, 393, 398, 399, 414, 416, 418 + Phillips, Wendell, in the home of Frederick Douglass, 97 + Philleo, Rev. Calvin, the husband of Prudence Crandall, 80 + Pierrot, a ruler of Haiti, 137 + Pickens, William, address of, in Baltimore, 357 + Pierce, E. L., efforts of, in South Carolina, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12 + Pierre, a slave sold in Canada, 320 + Pinchback, P. B. S., partner of C. C. Antoine, 86-87 + _Piney Woods and its Story_, review of, 346-347 + Pioneer Negro, in the West, 333-335 + Pitman, Thomas G., a supporter of Paul Cuffe, 184 + Planters, migration of, from the border States, 367-383 + Porter, Admiral, effort of, to lease Samana Bay, 145 + Porter, Rev. A. Tomer, the work of, among the freedmen, 27, 32 + Port Royal, the education of Negroes at, 8, 9, 10, 11, 25, 26, 28, 32 + Port Royal Experiment, the, 4-12 + Port Royal Relief Committee, 6 + Preobrajensky Guard-regiment, Abram Hannibal an officer in, 362 + Presbyterian Church, the efforts of, to educate Negroes, 27 + _Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of Association for the Study of + Negro Life and History_, 116-122; + of the Spring Conference, 353-357 + Protest against slavery, 333 + Protestant Episcopal Freedmen's Commission, the efforts of, in South + Carolina, 27 + Providence, attitude of, toward slavery, 261; + interest of citizens of, in domestic service training, 399 + _Prudence Crandall_, by G. Smith Wormley, 72-80 + Punch, John, a Negro servant in Virginia, 282 + Pushkin, Alexander, references of, to his grandfather, 359, 360, + 361, 362 + Pryne, Francis, a slave freed in Virginia, 259 + + + Q + + Quebec, slavery in, 316-330 + + + R + + Ragusinsky Savva, gift of Abram Hannibal to Peter the Great by, 360 + Rathbone, William and Richard, merchants connected with Paul Cuffe, + 203 + Rathbone Hodgson Company in communication with Paul Cuffe, 205 + Reaume, Charles, a vendor of slaves, 315 + Reed, E. E., participation of, in the annual meeting, 116 + Reed, James, a colonizationist in Sierra Leone, 182 + Reed, Lieut. Col. William N., services of, 131 + _Religion of the American Negro Slave: His Attitude toward Life and + Death_, 40-71 + Research, the results of, 468-470 + Reval, Abram Hannibal the commandant of, 364 + Rhode Island, Negro servitude in, 264-265, 280 + Rhodes, James F., _The McKinley and Roosevelt Administrations_ + by, 348-349 + Richards, Ellen H., the experiment of, 398 + Riche, a ruler of Haiti, 137 + Riddell, William Renwick, _Notes on the Slave in Nouvelle France_ + by, 316-330 + Rights of Negro servants, 271, 272 + Rigot, Jean, a vendor of a slave, 329 + Ripley, quotation from, 299-300 + Robbins, Amasa, an attorney employed by Paul Cuffe, 184 + Robert Gould Shaw School, the establishment of, 19-20 + Rogers, Joel, quotation from letter of Paul Cuffe to, 222 + Roman, C. V., address of, at the annual meeting, 122 + Romana, La, a plantation in Santo Domingo, 138, 139, 140 + Roscoe, references to, 287, 288, 290, 291, 292 + Roth, William, a letter of, quoted, 193; + interest of, in Paul Cuffe, 199, 203, 208, 224 + Rotch, William, a friend of Paul Cuffe, 184 + Rubin, a faithful slave of John Young in Canada, 325 + Ruggles, David, the record of, 132 + Russell, James S., letters of, 341-344 + Russell, H. C., participation of, in the annual meeting, 121 + Russell, J. H., quotations from, 258, 259, 260 + Rust, R. S., a president of the original Wilberforce, 308 + Rutherford, S. W., remarks of, at the Baltimore Spring Conference, 356 + + + S + + Saget, a ruler of Haiti, 137 + Salnave, a ruler of Haiti, 137 + Salomon, a ruler of Haiti, 137 + Sam, a ruler of Haiti, 137 + Samana Bay, the desire of the United States for, 145 + Santo Domingo, a brief account of, 138-142 + Sara, a slave from Saratoga, sold in Canada, 327 + Saxton, Major Rufus, work of, among the freedmen, 8, 9; + Assistant Commissioner of the Freedmen's Bureau, 13 + Schism in the Churches of the United States, 303, 304, 305, 306 + Schofield, Martha, efforts of, for the uplift of Negroes, 27 + Scott, Bishop I. B., mission of, to Africa, 314 + Scott, General R. K., Assistant Commissioner of the Freedmen's Bureau, + 13 + Secretary-Treasurer, financial statement of, 466 + Selenginsk, the flight of Abram Hannibal from, 363 + Servitude distinguished from slavery, 247-260 + Sewall, Judge, work of, against slavery, 262 + Seward, F. W., efforts of, to secure Samana Bay, 145 + Sharp, Granville, interest of, in colonization, 168 + Shaw, Francis G., interest of, in the freedmen, 7 + Sherman, T. W., operations of, in South Carolina, 3 + Sherman, W. T., field order of, 35-36 + Sherbro, proposal to purchase land there, 208 + Sherwood, H. N., _Paul Cuffe_ by, 153-229 + Sierra Leone, an objective of colonizationists, 168, 169, 182, 189 + Slavery in the United States distinguished from servitude, 247-260; + slavery in England, 250, 251; + protest against, in the colonies, 333 + Slocum, Cuffe, ancestor of Paul Cuffe, 153, 154 + Slocum, Ebenezer, the owner of Paul Cuffe's ancestor, 153 + Slocum, Ruth, the wife of Cuffe Slocum, the death of, 155 + Smith, A. H., the retirement of, from the service of the Association, + 351, 471 + Smith, Georgine Kelly, participation of, in the Spring Conference of + the Association in Baltimore, 353 + Social life of Negro domestic workers, 434 + Songhay, the civilization of, 295, 296, 297, 298, 299, 300 + Soudan, the governments of, 295-300 + Soulouque, a ruler of Haiti, 137 + South, the movement of Negroes in, 367-383 + South Carolina, refugees in, 1-6; + education in, 1-40; + early slavery in, 252, 280; + missionary work in, 302, 304; + of Negroes from, 368 + Southern Methodists supreme over slavery, 306, 307, 308 + Southwest, the movement of Negroes to, 367-383 + Sowle, Jonathan, an owner of land near Dartmouth, 155 + Spanish explorers, Negroes with, 249 + Spencer, J. O., address of, in Baltimore, 353, 354 + Spingarn, A. B., a letter of, 344-345 + Sprague, Rosetta Douglass, _Anna Murray-Douglass--My Mother as I + Recall Her_ by, 93-101 + Spring Conference of the Association for the Study of Negro Life and + History, the proceedings of, 353-357 + Springfield, Massachusetts, occupations of Negroes in, 405 + St. Helena, Negro school at, 11 + St. Louis, Negroes in domestic service in, 393-394 + St. Petersburg-Moscow Canal, the plan for, submitted by Abram + Hannibal, 365 + Steward, T. G., extracts from _The Friend_ supplied by, 331-333; + a letter from, 453 + Steward, W. H., participation of, in the annual meeting, 116 + Stiles, Ezra, interest of, in colonization, 168 + Stiles, Joshua, a vendor of slaves in Montreal, 329 + Stoll, C. C., address of, at the annual meeting, 117 + Strong, Henry, an attorney for Prudence Crandall, 78 + Strouds, Giles, a sale of slaves by, 322 + Sullivan, John, the purchaser of a slave in Montreal, 330 + Sumner, Charles, quotation from, 262 + Sumner High School, St. Louis, the occupations of the graduates of, + 400 + Survance, Antony, a native of Senegal, 199 + Swedish Company, ordinance of, with respect to slavery, 263 + + + T + + Taber, Judge Constant, a supporter of Paul Cuffe, 184 + Taber, Philip, a minister known to the Cuffes, 154 + Tappan, Arthur, a supporter of Prudence Crandall, 78 + _Tarikh-es-Soudan_, the author of, 296 + Taylor, A. A., _The Movement of Negroes from the East to the Gulf + States from 1830 to 1850_ by, 367-383; + a permanently employed investigator of the Association, 465, 469 + Tennessee, the culture of tobacco in, 368; + breeding slaves in, 374 + _Teaching of Negro History, The_, by J. W. Bell, 123-127 + Texas, admission of, stimulus to slave trade, 377 + _The Friend_, extracts from, 331-333 + _The Item_ (New Orleans), extract from, 87-91 + _The Movement of Negroes from the East to the Gulf States from 1830 + to 1850_, by A. A. Taylor, 367-383 + _The States_ (New Orleans), extract from, 84-87 + Therese, an Indian slave girl in Quebec, 321 + Thomas, York, a Negro serving under an indenture, 330 + Thompson, A. Eugene, participation of, in the annual meeting, 116 + Thornton, William, interest of, in colonization, 168 + _Three Elements of African Culture_, 284-300 + Tillinghast, reference to, 286, 289 + Tobacco, the production of, from 1830 to 1850, 368-369 + Todd, Andrew, a purchaser of a slave, 329 + Tomlinson, Reuben, work of, under the Freedmen's Bureau, 13; + Assistant Commissioner, 13; + report of, 34 + Tomsk, the service of Abram Hannibal at, 363 + Towne, Laura M., a teacher of Negroes in South Carolina, 11 + Training of domestic service workers in England, 397; + in the United States, 398-404 + Transition from white servitude to slavery, 266-276; + from Negro servitude to Negro slavery, 277-283 + Treatment of Negroes in Ohio, 331-332 + _Trend of the Races, The_, review of, 109-111 + Turner, John, a vendor of a slave in Montreal, 329 + Turner, George, a soldier, the owner of a slave in Canada, 330 + Tyson, Elisha, a friend of Paul Cuffe, 185 + + + U + + Union American Methodist Episcopal Church organized, 303 + Union Humane Society, the establishment of, 211 + United States in the Larger Canal Zone, 145-146 + + + V + + Vallee, Jean Baptiste, a sale of slaves by, 322 + Vase, John, an attorney employed by Paul Cuffe, 184 + Vederique, Francois, purchase of a Negro by, 318 + Venture, Thomas, the owner of a slave called Isabella, 324 + Vernon, I., a supporter of Paul Cuffe, 184 + Virginia, memorial of legislature of, 212; + introduction of slavery in, 251, 254; + Negro servants in, 256-260, 267; + treatment of Negro servants in, 269, 270, 271, 272, 274, 275, 276, + 278, 280, 282; + movement of Negroes from, 367, 370, 374; + tobacco culture in, 368, 369; + breeding of slaves in, 374, 376 + Von Sheberg, Christina Regina, the wife of Abram Hannibal, 364 + + + W + + Wallace, Henry A., the death of, 243; + his services, 243-244 + Ward, William, of Vermont, sale of slaves by, 328 + Washington, Booker T., a quotation from, 49 + Washington, D. C, Negroes in domestic service in, 390, 391, 393, 394, + 395, 400, 401, 402, 403, 404, 407, 408, 409-413, 414, 415, 419, + 425, 426 + Webster, Dr. A., an educator in South Carolina, 26 + Welch, Jonathan A., an attorney against Prudence Crandall, 78 + Wesley, John, the baptism of a Negro by, 301 + Wesleyan Methodists, educational efforts of, 15, 16 + Westport, Friends at, 195 + Wheatley, Phyllis, the story of, 44-45 + Wheaton, Laban, presentation of Memorial of Paul Cuffe by, 196 + White, Ned Lloyd, a teacher of Negroes in South Carolina, 39 + Whittier, John G., interest of, in the Freedmen's education, 10-11 + Wiener, Leo, _Africa and the Discovery of America_ by, 233-238 + Wilberforce, William, interest of, in colonization, 168, 174, 195 + Wilberforce, the establishment of, 308, 335-337 + Wilhelmina, Queen, a friend of Cornelius Winst Blyd, of Dutch Guiana, + 451-452 + Williams, Noah W., participation of, in the annual meeting, 117 + Williams, Peter, inquiry of, into colonization prospects, 207; + interest of, in colonization, 215; + funeral sermon of, on Paul Cuffe, 224 + Wilmington, Delaware, independent Negro Methodists of, 303 + Wilson, G. R., _The Religion of the American Negro Slave: His + Attitude toward Life and Death_ by, 41-71 + Wilson, Samuel, interest of, in colonization, 217 + Windward Passage, the, significance of, 148-150 + Woman's Home Missionary Society, the work of, 17, 26 + Woodson, Carter G., quotation from, 47-48; + address of, at annual meeting, 117; + address of, in Baltimore, 354 + World War and Negro domestic labor, 384-442 + Wormley, G. Smith, _Prudence Crandall_ by, 72-80; + address of, in Baltimore, 355 + Wyatt, Sir Francis, the owner of a Negro named Brass, 259 + Wright, Irene A., the assistance of, in research, 465 + Wright, John F., a founder of the original Wilberforce, 308 + Wright, T. G., a founder of a Negro School, 20-21 + + + Y + + Yeamans, Sir John, introduction of slaves by, 252 + Yoruban civilization, an estimate of, 286-287 + Young, John, the purchaser of a Negro slave in Canada, 324 + + + Z + + Zamor, a ruler of Haiti, 138 + Zimbabwe, a city of art in Africa, 292, 293 + Zachas, John C, a teacher of Negroes in South Carolina, 8 + + * * * * * + +[Transcriber's Notes: + +The transcriber made these changes to the text: + + Vol. VIII., No. 1 JANUARY, 1923. + + 1. p. 2, Footnote #2, annual report, No. 2 -> Annual report, No. 2 + 2. p. 2, Footnote #2, "Description and Travel." made small caps + 3. p. 18, necesasry -> necessary + 4. p. 30, Footnote #75, Hohse -> House + 5. p. 47, No footnote marker for footnote #13 + 6. p. 51, No footnote marker for footnote #30 + 7. p. 57, rythmical -> rhythmical + 8. p. 58, "'O Lord, O my Lord! -> 'O Lord, O my Lord! + 9. p. 72, scolars -> scholars + 10. p. 98, alter -> altar + 11. p. 100, altho -> altho' + 12. p. 104, "Howth" to the "Giant's -> "Howth" to the Giant's + 13. p. 108, demonination -> denomination + + Vol. VIII., No. 2 APRIL, 1923 + + 1. p. 135, prac-cal -> practical + 2. p. 146, Colombia -> Columbia + 3. p. 169, Novia Scotia -> Nova Scotia + 4. p. 205, Aikin -> Aiken + 5. p. 209, keeness -> keenness + 6. p. 210, Paul Cuffe." + 7. p. 218, in in Africa -> in Africa + 8. p. 220, decendants -> descendants + 9. p. 222, devasted -> devastated + 10. p. 225, Columbian Centinel -> Columbian Sentinel + 11. p. 231, In the second item on the page, the text: + "Item. I give unto my cousin Ruth Cottell fifty dollars" + is repeated later on the page and has been left as published. + 12. p. 235, conclusions -> conclusion + 13. p. 235, or capnotherapy -> of capnotherapy + 14. p. 236, "In Africa -> In Africa + 15. p. 236, with spearheads of guanin. -> with spearheads of guanin." + 16. p. 238, Caaada -> Canada + 17. p. 242, H[=o]ma macron diacritical mark above the letter o + + Vol. VIII., No. 3 JULY, 1923 + + 1. p. 254, No footnote marker for footnote #31 + 2. p. 258, 'slaves'." -> 'slaves'. + 3. p. 258, Footnote #50, Thomas, 1608 -> Thomas, 1608" + 4. p. 260, devlopment -> development + 5. p. 264, Pensylvania -> Pennsylvania + 6. p. 298, aboundant -> abundant + 7. p. 310, ther church relations -> their church relations + 8. p. 319, fut -> fut + 9. p. 320, Duniere -> Duniere + 10. p. 320, Footnote #10, evenement -> evenement + 11. p. 324, Crahame's -> Cramahe's + 12. p. 324, Footnote #19, rue St-Louis." -> rue St-Louis. + 13. p. 331, There is no footnote #1 in the "Documents" section + 14. p. 335, Shorly -> Shortly + 15. p. 339, Pioneeer -> Pioneer + 16. p. 340, attoney -> attorney + + + Vol. VIII., No. 4 OCTOBER, 1923 + + 1. p. 378, Tables moved to appear between paragraphs + 2. p. 379, Tables moved to appear between paragraphs + 3. p. 381, Tables moved to appear between paragraphs + 4. p. 385, domestice -> domestic + 5. p. 392, 5,124 single registered -> 5,124 single women registered + 6. p. 416-417, Two footnotes #27, no text for first one on p. 416 + 7. p. 416, Tables moved to appear between paragraphs + 8. p. 418, Tabre -> Table + 9. p. 418, Rangh -> Range + 10. p. 418, Model -> Modal + 11. p. 422, Wide table XVII split into narrower tables + 12. p. 431, as well being -> as well as being + 13. p. 433, No footnote anchor for footnote number 36 + 14. p. 444, Move 1st juror name to same position as other transcripts + 15. p. 446, barabarism -> barbarism + 16. p. 469, finsh -> finish + + Vol. VIII., 1923, INDEX + + 1. p. 478, Frderick -> Frederick + 2. p. 480, Hutchinson, Samuel, ... -> Hutchinson, Samuel, ... 184 + 3. p. 484, Potestant Episcopal -> Protestant Episcopal + +End of Transcriber's Notes] + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Journal of Negro History, Volume +8, 1923, by Various + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK JOURNAL OF NEGRO HISTORY, VOL 8 *** + +***** This file should be named 44343.txt or 44343.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + http://www.gutenberg.org/4/4/3/4/44343/ + +Produced by Tor Martin Kristiansen, Richard J. 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