xt731z41rv5w https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt731z41rv5w/data/mets.xml Stowe, Harriet Beecher, 1811-1896. 1853  books b92fst77uk2009 English J.P. Jewett & co. : Boston, Mass. Contact the Special Collections Research Center for information regarding rights and use of this collection. Stowe, Harriet Beecher, 1811-1896. Uncle Tom s cabin. Slaves --United States --Social conditions. A key to Uncle Tom s cabin; presenting the original facts and documents upon which the story is founded. Together with corroborative statements verifying the truth of the work. text A key to Uncle Tom s cabin; presenting the original facts and documents upon which the story is founded. Together with corroborative statements verifying the truth of the work. 1853 2009 true xt731z41rv5w section xt731z41rv5w 
  
  
  
  
  
  
    UNCLE

A

KEY,
TO

TOM'S
P R E S E N T I N G T H E ORIGINAL

CABIN

FACTS A N D DOCUMENTS

U PON W H I C H T H E STORY IS F O U N D E D .
TOGETHER WITH

THE

TRUTH

OF T H E

WORK.

BY

HARRIET

BEECHER

STOWE,

AUTHOR 01? "UNCLE TOM'S CABIN."

BOSTON:
PUBLISHED JEWETT, BY JOHN P. JEWETT & CO. CLEVELAND, PROCTOR
LOW LONDON: AND

OHIO:
COMPANY.

& WORTHINGTON.

18 5 3.

  
Entored according to Act of Congress, in the year 1853, by H A K K I E T BEECUER S TOWE, the C lerk's Offico of tho D istrict Court for the D istrict of Massoohnsotts.

STZRIOTTFED

BT

HOB ART A BOBBINS,
Uf KNQLAXD T r P B A ND S T B a E O T T P H fOUHDSBT,

10I10I.

  
PREFACE.

T H E work which the writer here presents to the public is one which ha3 been written w ith no pleasure, and w ith m uch pain. I n fictitious w riting, i t is possible to find refuge from the hard and the t errible, b y inventing scenes and characters of a more pleasing nature. No such resource is open in a work of fact; and the subject of this work is one on which the t ruth, i f told at a ll, must needs be very dreadful. There is no b right side to slavery, as such. Those scenes w hich are made bright by the generosity and kindness of masters and mistresses, would be brighter s till i f the element of slavery were withdrawn. There is nothing picturesque or b eautiful, i n the family attachment of old servants, which is not to be found i n countries where these servants are legally free. The tenants on an E n g lish estate are often more fond and f aithful than i f they were slaves. Slavery, therefore, is not the element which forms the picturesque and beautiful of Southern l ife. W hat is peculiar to slavery, and distinguishes it from free s ervitude, is e vil, and only e vil, and that continually. I n p reparing this work, it has grown much beyond the author's original design. It has so far overrun its l imits that she has been obliged to omit one whole department;     that of the characteristics and developments of the colored race in various countries and circumstances. This is more p roperly the subject for a volume ; and she hopes that such a n ' one w ill soon be prepared by a friend to whom she has transferred her materials. The author desires to express her thanks particularly to those legal gentlemen who have given her their assistance and support in the legal part of the discussion. She also desires to thank those, at the North and at the S outh, who have k indly furnished materials for her use. Many more have been supplied than could possibly be used. The book i s actually selected out of a mountain of materials. The great object of the author in w riting has been to bring this subject of s lavery, as a moral and religious question, before the minds of all those who

  
IV

PREFACE.

profess to be followers of C hrist, i n this country. A minute history has been g iven of the action of the various denominations on this subject. The writer has aimed, as far as possible, to say what is true, and only that, without regard to the effect w hich it may have upon any person or p arty. She hopes that what she has said w ill be examined without bitterness,     [u that serious and earnest s pirit w hich is appropriate for the examination of so -very serious a subject. It would be v ain for her to indulge the hope of being wholly free from error. In the wide field which she has been called to go over, there is a possibility of many mistakes. She c an only say that she has used the most honest and earnest endeavors to l earn the t ruth. The book is commended to the candid attention and earnest prayers of a ll true C hristians, throughout the world. May they unite their prayers that Christendom may be delivered from so great an e vil as slavery !

   J

  
PAK

T

I.

CHAPTER

I.

,

CHAPTER

I I.

MR. H A L E Y . A T different times, doubt has been expressed whether the representations of I N the very first chapter of the book we " U n c l e Tom's C a b i n " are a fair repre- encounter the character of the negro-trader, sentation of slavery as it at present exists. M r. H aley. His name stands at the head T his work, more, perhaps, than any other of this chapter as the representative of a ll work of fiction that ever was written, the different characters introduced in the has been a collection and arrangement of work which exhibit the trader, the kidnapreal i ncidents,    of actions really per- per, the negro-catcher, the negro-whipper, formed, of words and expressions really and a ll the other inevitable auxiliaries and u ttered,    grouped together w ith reference indispensable appendages of what is often to a general result, in the same manner called the " d ivinely-instituted r elation" that the mosaic artist groups his fragments of slavery. The author's first personal of various stones into one general picture. observation of this class of beings was someH is is a mosaic of gems,'    this is a mosaic what as follows : of facts. Several years ago, while one morning A rtistically considered, it might not be employed in the duties of the nursery, a best to point out in which quarry and from colored woman was announced. She was w hich region each fragment of the mosaic ushered into the nursery, and the author picture had its origin; and it is equally un- thought, on first survey, that a more surly, artistic to disentangle the glittering web of unpromising face she had never seen. The fiction, and show out of what real warp and woman was thoroughly black, thick-set, woof i t is woven, and w ith what real color- firmly b uilt, and w ith strongly-marked A f ing dyed. But the book had a purpose en- rican features. Those 'who have been actirely transcending the artistic one, and customed to read the expressions of the accordingly encounters, at the hands of the A frican face know what a peculiar effect is p ublic, demands not usually made on fic- produced by a lowering, desponding- exprestitious works. It is treated as a reality, sion upon its dark features. It is l ike the     sifted, tried and tested, as a reality; and shadow of a thunder-cloud. U nlike her. therefore as a reality it may be proper race generally, the woman did not smile that i t should be defended. when smiled upon, nor utter any pleasant     T he writer acknowledges that the book is remark i n reply to such as were addressed a very inadequate representation of slavery: to her. The youngest pet of the nursery, and i t is so. necessarily, for this reason,    a boy about three years old, walked up, and that slavery, in some of its workings, is too l aid his l ittle hand on her knee, and seemed dreadful for the purposes of art. A work astonished not to meet the quick smile which w hich should represent it strictly as it is the negro almost always has in reserve for would be a work which could not be -read. the l ittle c hild. The writer thought her A n d a ll works which ever mean to give very cross and disagreeable, and, after a few pleasure must draw a v eil somewhere, or moments' silence, asked, w ith perhaps a l ittle impatience, " D o you want anything they cannot succeed. The author w ill now proceed along the of me to-day 1"

course of the story, from the first page o n" H ere are some papers," said the woward, and develop, as far as possible, the man, pushing them towards her; "perhaps incidents by which different parts were y ou would read them." suggested. The first paper opened was a letter from

  
G

KEY

TO U N C L E T O M ' S

CABIN.

a negro-trader in Kentucky, stating concisely that he had waited about as long as he could for her child; that he wanted to start for the South, and must get it off his h ands; that, if she would send him two hundred dollars before the end of the week, she should have i t ; i f not, that he would set it up at auction, at the courthouse door, on Saturday. He added, also, that he might have got more than that for the child, but that he was w illing to let her have it cheap. " What sort of a man is this ? " sUid the author to the woman, when she had done reading the letter. " Dunno, ma'am; great C hristian, I k now,    member of the Methodist church, a nyhow." The expression of sullen irony with which this was said was a thing to be remembered. " A nd how old is this child? " said the author to her. The woman looked at the l ittle boy who had been standing at her knee, with an expressive glance, and said, " She w ill be three yeajrs old this summer." O n further inquiry into the history of the woman, it appeared, that she, had been set free by the w ill of her owners; that the child was legally entitled to freedom, but had been seized on by the heirs of the estate. She was poor and friendless, without money to maintain a suit, and the heirs, of course, threw the child into the hands of the trader. The necessary sum, it may be added, was all raised in the small neighborhood which then surrounded the L ane Theological Seminary, and the child was redeemed. I f the public would l ike a specimen of the correspondence which passes between these worthies, who are the principal r eliance of the community for supporting and extending the institution of slavery, the following may be interesting as a matter of l iterary c uriosity. It was forwarded by M r. M . J . Thomas, of Philadelphia, to the National Era, and stated by him to be " a copy taken verbatim from the original, found among the papers of the person to whom it was addressed, at the time of his arrest and conviction, for passing a variety of counterfeit bank-notes."

t wo-story window, at twelve o 'clock a t night. I offered a reward of fifty dollars, and have h i m hero safe i n j a i l . T he persons who took h i m brought h im to F rederiektownjail. I w ish you to write to no person i n this state but myself. K e p h a r t and m yself a re determined to go the whole hog for any n egro you can find, a nd you must give me the earliest i nformation, as soon as you do find a ny. E n closed you w i l l r eceive a h a n d b i l l , a nd I can make a g ood b argain, i f y o u can find t hem. I w i l l i n a ll c ases, as "soon as a negro runs off, send you a h andbill i mmediately, so that you may be on the l ook-out. Please t ell t he constable to go on w i t h t he sale of J o h n ' s property ; and, when the money i s m ade, I w i l l s end on an order to you for i t . P lease a ttend to this for me ; likewise write to me, a nd i nform me of any negro you t hink h as run away,     n o matter where you t hink he has come f rom, n or how far,     and I w i l l t ry and find o ut his master. L e t me know where you t hink ho is from, w ith a l l particular m a r k s , and i f I don't find h is m aster, Joe's dead ! W r i t e t o me about the crooked-fingered negro, a nd l et me know which hand .and w h i c h finger, c olor, & c ; likewise any mark the fellow has who s ays he got away from the negro-buyer, w i t h h is h eight a nd color, or any other you t hink h as r un off. G ive m y respects to your partner, and be sure y ou write to no person but myself. I f any person w rites t o y o u , you can inform me of i t , and I w i l l t ry t o buy f rom them. I t hink w e can make m o n ey, i f we do business together; for I have plenty o f money, i f you can find p lenty of negroes. L e t mo know i f D a n i e l i s s t i l l w here he was, and i f y o u have heard a n y t h i n g of Francis since I left y ou. A c c e p t for yourself my regard and esteem.
REUBEN B . JOHN C. SAUNDERS. CARLLEV.

T his letter strikingly illustrates the character of these fellow-patriots with whom the great men of our land have been acting i n conjunction, in carrying out the beneficent provisions of the Fugitive Slave L aw. W ith regard to the Kephart named in this letter the community of Loston may have a special interest to know further particulars, as he was one of the dignitaries sent from the South to assist the good c itizens of that place in the religious and patriotic enterprise of 1851, at the time that Shadrach was unfortunately rescued. It therefore may be well to introduce somewhat
p articularly J O I I N K E P H A R T , as sketched
by

lawyers employed in the defence of the perpetrators of the rescue.

RICHARD

H . D A N A , Jr.,

one

of

the

I s hall n ever forget J o h n Caphart. I have been e leven years at the bar, and i n that time have seen m any d evelopments of vice and hardness, but I n ever met w i t h a nything so cold-blooded as the Poolsvillc, Montgomery Co., Md., t estimony o f that man. John Caphart is a t a l l , March 2 4, 1831. s allow m an, of about fifty, w i t h j et-black h a i r , a D E A R S IR : 1 a rrived homo i n safety w ith L o u - r estless, d ark eye, and an anxious, care-worn isa, J o h n having been rescued from me, out of a l ook, w h i c h , had there been enough of moral ele-

  
KEY

TO U N C L E

TOM S

CABIN.

m ent i n the expression, m i g h t be called melancholy. H i s frame was strong, and i n youth he h ad e vidently been powerful, but he was not robust. Y e t there was a c a l m , cruel look, a power o f w i l l a nd a quickness of muscular action, w h i c h s t i l l r ender h i m a terror i n his vocation. I n t he manner of giving i n his testimony there w as no bluster or outward show of insolence. H i s c ontempt for the humano feelings of the audience a nd c ommunity about h i m was too true to require a ny a ssumption of that k i n d . H e neither paraded n or attempted to conceal the worst features of his c alling. H e treated i t as a matter of business w hich ho knew the community shuddered at, but t he moral nature of w h i c h he was utterly i n d i f ferent to, beyond a certain secret pleasure i n thus i ndirectly i nflicting a l i t t l e t orture on his hearers. I a m not, however, altogether clear, to do J o h n C aphart j ustice, that he is entirely conscienceproof. T here was something i n his anxious look w h i c h l eaves one not without h ope. A t t he first t r i a l w e did not know of his p u r suits, a nd he passed merely as a poliee-man of N orfolk, V i r g i n i a . B u t , at the second t r i a l , some one i n the room gave m e a h int o f the occupations m any of these poliee-men take to, w h i c h led to my c ross-examination.

Q . I n these cases, too, I s uppose y ou flog w o men and g i r l s , as w e l l as men. A. W o m e n and m e n . Q . M r . Caphart, how long have you been e n gaged i n this business? A. E ver since 183G. Q . H o w many n egroes do you s uppose y ou have flogged, i n a l l , w omen and children included? A. [ Looking calmly round the r oom.] I d on't k now how many niggers you have got here i n M a s chusetts, but I should t hink I h ad flogged as many as y o u ' v e got i n the state. [ The same m a n testified that he was often employed to pursue fugitive slaves. H i s r e p l y to t he question was, " I never refuse a g ood j ob i n t hat l i n e . " ] Q . D o n ' t they sometimes t u r n o ut bad j obs ? A. N ever, i f I can help i t . Q . A r e they not sonietimes discharged after y ou get them ? A. N o t often. I don't know that they ever are, e xcept t hose Portuguese the counsel read about. [ I had found, i n a V i r g i n i a r eport, a case o f some t wo hundred Portuguese negroes, whom this J o h n C aphart had seized from a vessel, and endeavored to get condemned as slaves, but w h o m t he court discharged.]

From the Examination of John Caphart, in the H on. J ohn P. H ale, " Rescue Trials," at Boston, in June and Nov., D ana, as counsel for 1 851, and October, 1 852. Question. I s i t a part of your duty, as a policem a n , t o take up colored persons w ho a re out after h ours i n the streets ? Answer. Y e s , s i r . Q . "What is done w i t h t hem? A. W e put them i n the lock-up, and i n the m orning t hey are brought into court and ordered to be punished,     those that are to be p unished. Q . W h a t punishment do they g et? A. N o t exceeding thirty-nine lashes. Q . W h o gives them these lashes ? A. A n y of the officers. I do, sometimes. Q . A r e you paid extra f or this ? H o w much? A. F i f t y c ents a head. It used to be sixty-two c ents. N o w i t is fifty. F i f t y c ents for each one w e arrest, and fifty more for ^ach one we flog. Q . A r e these persons you flog men and b oys o nly, o r are they women and g irls a lso ? A. M e n , women, b oys a nd g i r l s , j ust as i t hap'pens. [ The government interfered, and t ried t o prevent any' further examination ; and s aid, a mong o ther things, that he only performed his duty as p olice-officer under the l a w . A f t e r a discussion, J udge C urtis a llowed i t to p roceed.] Q . Is your flogging confined to these c ases ? D o you not flog slaves at the request of their m asters? i A. S ometimes I do. C ertainly, w hen I am c alled u pon. Q . I n these cases o f private flogging, are the n egroes s ent to you ? H a v e y o u a placo for flogging ? A. N o . I go round, as I a m sent for. Q . Is this part of your duty as an officer ?     A. N o , s i r . Q . In these c ases o f privato flogging, do you i nquire i nto the circumstances, to see what the f ault h as been, or i f there is any ? A. T h a t ' s none o f my business. I do aa I am r equested. The master is responsible.
r

associated w ith M r . the defence, i n the Rescue T rials, said of him, in his closing a rgument:

W h y , g entlemen, he. sells agony I T orture i s h is s tock-in-trade! H e is a w a l k i n g s courge! H o h a w k s , peddles, r etails, g roans and tears about t he streets of N o r f o l k !

See also the following correspondence between two traders, one in N orth C arolina, the other in New Orleans ; w ith a word of comment, by Hon. W illiam J ay, of New York:
Halifax, N. C, Nov. 1 G, 1839. D E A R S I R : I h ave shipped i u the b rig A d d i s o n , - p r i c e s are below :
~T NTo . l . " 2. " 3. " 4. " 5. " G. /-i i:'__ C aroline TP n n i s E S ilvy H o l l a n d , ' S ilvy B o o t h , . Maria Pollock, Emeline P o l l o c k Delia Averit, . fin $ G50 00 6 25.00 4 87.50 4 75.00 4 75.00 4 75.00

T he two g i r l s t hat c ost $ G50 and ij>G25 were b ought before I s hipped m y first. I h ave a great m any n egroes offered to mo, but I w i l l n ot pay the p rices they ask, for I know they w i l l c ome d own. I h ave no opposition i n market. I w i l l w a i t u n t i l I h ear from you b efore I b uy, and then I can j udge w hat I must pay. Goodwin w i l l s end you t he b i l l o f l a d i n g for m y negroes, as ho shipped t hem w i t h h is own. W r i t e often, as the times a re c r i t i c a l , a nd it depends on the prices you get to govern me i n b u y i n g . Y o u r s , & c . ,
G. W . BARNES.

M r . T nEOPniLcs F R E E M A N , ) N e w O rleans. $ T he a bove w as a s m a l l b ut c hoice i nvoice of w ives and mothers. N i n e days b efore, n amely, 7 th N o v . , M r . Barnes advised M r . Freeman of h aving s hipped a lot of forty-three men and

  
8

K E Y TO

I UNCLE TOM'S

CABIN.

w omen. M r . Freeman, informing one of his correspondents of the state of the market, writes {Sunday, 2 1st Sept., 1839), " I bought a boy yesterday, sixteen years old, and l i k e l y , weighing one hundred and ten pounds, at $700. I sold a l i k e l y g i r l , t welve years o l d , at $500. I bought a m an y esterday, twenty years old, six feet, h i g h , at $ 8 2 0 ; one to-day, t wenty-four years old, at   850, b lack and sleek as a m o l e . "

The writer has drawn in this work onlyone class of the negro-traders. There are a ll varieties of them, up to the great wholesale purchasers, who keep their large t rading-houses ; who are gentlemanly in manners and courteous i n address; who, in many respects, often perform actions of real generosity ; who consider slavery a very great e vil, and hope the country w ill at some time be delivered from it, but who think that so long as clergyman and layman, saint and sinner, are all agreed in the propriety and necessity of slave-holding, it is better that the necessary trade in the article be conducted by men of humanity and decency, than by swearing, b rutal men, of the Tom L oker school. These men are exceedingly sensitive with' regard to what they consider the injustice of the world in excluding them from good society, simply because they undertake to supply a demand in the community which the bar, the press and the p ulpit, a ll pronounce to be a proper one. In this respect, society certainly imitates the unreasonableness of the ancient Egyptians, who employed a certain class of men to prepare dead bodies for embalming, but flew at them w ith sticks and stones the moment the operation was over, on account of the sacrilegious liberty which they had taken. I f there is an ill-used class of men i n the world, it is certainly the slave-traders ; for, if there is no harm in the i nstitution of slavery,   if it is a divinely-appointed and honorable one, l ike c ivil government and the family state, and l ike other species of property relation,    then there is no earthly reason why a man may not as innocently be a slave-trader as any other k ind of trader.

pered by just discipline and religious instruction, s kilfully and judiciously imparted. The writer did not come to her task w ithout reading much upon both sides of the question, and making a particular effort to collect all the most favorable representations of slavery which she could obtain. A nd, as the reader may have a curiosity to examine some of the documents, the writer w ill present them quite at large. There is no k ind of danger to the world in l etting the very fairest side of slavery be seen; in fact, the horrors and barbarities which are necessarily inherent in it are so terrible that one stands absolutely in need of a ll the comfort which can be gained from incidents l ike the subjoined, to save them from utter despair of human nature. T he first account is from M r. J . K . Paulding's Letters on Slavery; and is a letter from a V irginia planter, whom we should judge, from his s tyle, to be a very amiable, agreeable man, and who probably describes very f airly the state of things on his own domain.
D E A R S I R : A s regards the first query, w h i c h r elates to the " rights and duties of the s l a v e , " I do not know how extensive a view of this branch o f the subject i s contemplated. I n its simplest a spect, as understood and acted on i n V i r g i n i a , I s hould s ay that the slave is entitled to an abundance of g ood p l a i n f ood; t o c oarse b ut comfortable a pparel ; t o a w a r m but humble dwelling ; to protection when w e l l , a nd to succor when sick ; a n d , i n r eturn, t hat i t is his duty to render to his master a l l the service he can consistently w i t h p erfect h ealth, and to behave submissively and honestly. O ther remarks suggest themselves, but t hey w i l l be more appropriately introduced under d ifferent heads. 2 d. " T he domestic relations of master and s l a v e . " - - T h e s e relations are much misunderstood b y many persons at the N o r t h , w ho regard the t erms as synonymous w i t h o ppressor and oppressed. N o t h i n g can be further from the fact. T he condition of the n egroes i n this state has b een greatly ameliorated. The proprietors were f ormerly fewer and richer t h a n at present. Distant q uarters were often kept up to support the a ristocratic m ansion. T h e y were rarely visited b y their owners; and heartless overseers, frequently changed, were employed to manage them for a share of the crop. These men scourged the l a n d , a nd sometimes the slaves. T h e i r tenure w as but for a year, and of course they made the m ost of their brief authority. O w i n g to the i nfluence o f our institutions, property has b ecome s ubdivided, a nd most persons live on or near their e states. There are exceptions, to be sure, a n d p articularly a mong wealthy gentlemen i n the t owns ; but these last are almost a l l enlightened a nd h umane, and a l i k e l iberal to the soil and to the slave who cultivates i t . I could point out some n oble instances of patriotic and spirited i m provement among them. B u t , to return to the r esident proprietors : most of. them have been r aised o n tho estates ; from the older n egroes
1

CHAPTER

IH.

MR. A N D MRS. SHELBY.

I T was the design of the writer, in delineating the domestic arrangements of M r . and M rs. Shelby, to show a picture of the fairest side of slave-life, where easy i ndulgence and good-natured forbearance are tem-

  
KEY

TO

UNet-E-TOMt^S--CABIN.

9

t hey have received i n infancy numberless acts of k indness ; the younger ones h ave not unfrequently b een their playmates (not the most suitable, I a d m i t ) , a nd much good-will is thus generated on b oth sides. I n addition to t his, m ost men feel a ttached to their p r o p e r t y ; and this attachment i s s tronger i n the c ase o f persons than of things. I k now i t , and feel i t . It is true, there are harsh m a s t e r s ; but there are also bad husbands and b ad fathers. T h e y are a l l exceptions to the r u l e , n ot the rule itself. S h a l l w e therefore condemn i n t he gross those relations, and the rights and a uthority t hey i m p l y , from their occasional a buse ? I could mention many instances of strong a ttachment on the part of the slave, but w i l l o nly a dduce one or two, of w h i c h I have been the object. I t b ecame a q uestion whether a f aithful s ervant, bred up w i t h m e from b oyhood, s hould g ive up his master or his wife and c h i l d r e n , to w hom he was affectionately attached, and most a ttentive a nd k i n d . T he t rial w as a s evere one, b ut he determined to break those tender ties and r emain w ith m e. I left i t entirely to his discretion, t hough I would not, from considerations of i nterest, h ave taken for h i m quadruple the price I s hould p robably have obtained. F o r t u n a t e l y , i n t he sequel, I was enabled to purchase his f a m i l y , w i t h t he exception of a daughter, h a p p i l y s i t u ated ; and nothing but death s h a l l h enceibrth part t hem. W e r e i t put to the test, I am convinced t hat m any masters w o u l d receive this s t r i k i n g p roof of devotion. A gentleman but a day or two s ince informed me of a s i m i l a r , a nd even stronger c ase, afforded by one of his slaves. A s the reward o f assiduous and delicate attention to a v enerated p arent, i n her last illness, I proposed to purchase a nd l iberate a healthy and intelligent woman, a bout t h i r t y y ears of age, the b est n urse, and, i n a l l r espects, one of the b est s ervants i n the state, o f w h i c h I was only part owner ; but she declined t o leave the f a m i l y , and has been since rather b etter than free. I s hall be excused for stating a l udicrous case I h eard of some t ime ago :     A f avorite and indulged servant requested his master t o s ell h i m to another gentleman. H i s master refused to do so, but told h i m lie was at perfect l i b e r t y t o go to the N o r t h , i f ho were not already f ree enough. A f t e r a w h i l e he repeated the r e quest ; and, on being urged to give an explanation o f his singular conduct, told his master that he c onsidered himself consumptive, and w o u l d sdbn

d i e ; a nd he thought M r . l i was better able t o bear the loss than his master. H e was sent to a m edicinal spring and recovered his health, i f , i ndeed, he had ever lost i t , of w h i c h his master h a d b een unapprized. I t may not be amiss to d escribe m y deportment towards m y servants, w hom I endeavor to render happy while I make t hem profitable. I never t u r n a d eaf ear, .but l i s t e n p atiently to t heir  eommunications. I c hat f a m i l i a r l y w i t h t hose who have passed service, or h ave not begun to render i t . W i t h t he others I o bserve a m ore prudent reserve, but I encourage a l l t o approach me without awe. I hardly ever go to town without having commissions to e xecute f or some o f t h e m ; and t h i n k they prefer to employ me, from a belief that, i f their money should n ot quite hold out, I would add a l i t t l e t o i t ; and I n ot unfrequently do, i n order to get a better a rticle. T he relation between myself and m y s laves is decidedly friendly. I keep up pretty ox* Tho leader of the insurrection in lqwcr V irginia, i n act discipline, mingled w i t h k indness, and hardly which upwards of a hundred whito persons, principally ever los6 property by t h i e v i s h , or labor by r u n - women and children, were massacred in cold blood.

away slaves. . I never lock the outer doors o f my h ouse. I t is d one, b ut done b y tho servants ; and I r arely b estow a t hought on the matter. I leave h ome p eriodically for two months, and commit the d welling-house, plate, and other valuables, to the s ervants, without even an enumeration of the a rticlos. 3 d.    ' The duration of the labor of the s l a v e . "     T he day is u s u a l l y considered long enough. E m ployment at night is not exacted by me, e xcept to s hell c orn o nce a w eek for their own consumption, a nd o n a few other extraordinary occasions. The people, a s we generally c a l l t hem, are required to l eave their houses at daybreak, and to work u n t i l d ark, w i t h t he intermission of h a l f an hour to a n h our at breakfast, and one to two hours at dinner, a ccording to the season and sort of work. I n this r espect 1 s uppose o ur n egroes w i l l b ear a favorable comparison w i t h a ny laborers whatever. 4 t h . " T he liberty usually allowed the slave,    h is h olidays and amusements, and the way i n w hich t hey usually spend their evenings and h o l i d a y s . "     T h e y are prohibited from going off the e state without first obtaining leave ; though they o ften transgress, and w i t h i m p u n i t y , e xcept i n flagrant cases. Those who have wives     o n other p lantations v isit t hem on certain specified nights, a nd h ave an allowance of time for going and ret u r n i n g , p roportioned to the distance. M y negroes a re permitted, a n d , indeed, encouraged, to r aise as m a n y ducks and chickens as they can ; to c ultivate v egetables for their own use, and a patch o f corn for sale ; to exercise their trades, when t hey p ossess o ne, w h i c h many do ; to catch muskrats a nd other animals for the fur or the flesh : to r aise b ees, a n d , i n fine, to earn an honest penny i n a ny w a y w h i c h chance or their own ingenuity m ay offer. The m odes s pecified are, however, t hose most commonly resorted to, and enable provident servants to make from five to t hirty d ollars a piece. The c o m is of a different sort from that w h i c h I c ultivate, and is a l l bought by me. A g reat many fowls are raised ; I have this year k nown t en dollars worth sold by one man at one t ime. O ne of the chief sources of profit is tho f ur o f the m u s k r a t ; for tho purpose of catching w h i c h t he marshes on the estate have been parcelled out and appropriated from time immemor i a l , a nd are held by a tenure l i t t l e s hort of feesimple. T he n egroes a re indebted to N a t Turner * a nd T appan for a curtailment of some o f their p rivileges. A s a sincere friend to tho blacks, I h ave m u c h regretted the reckless interference of these persons, on account of the restrictions it has b ecome, o r been thought, necessary to impose. S ince the exploit of the former hero, they have b een forbidden to preach, e xcept t o their fellowslaves, the property of the same owner ; to have p ublic f unerals, unless a white person officiates ; o r to be taught to read and w r i t e . T h e i r funerals f ormerly g ave t hem great satisfaction, and i t was c ustomary here to furnish the relations of the deceased w i t h b acon, s p i r i t , flour, sugar and butter, w i t