An Appeal in Favor of that Class of Americans Called Africans Part 14

A good deal of commotion has been excited in the South because some mustard has arrived there, packed in English newspapers, containing Parliamentary speeches against slavery;--even children's handkerchiefs seem to be regarded as sparks falling into a powder magazine. How much better it would be not to live in the midst of a powder magazine.

The English abolitionists have labored long and arduously. Every inch of the ground has been contested. After obtaining the decision that negroes brought into England were freemen, it took them _thirty-five years_ to obtain the abolition of the slave _trade_. But their progress, though slow and difficult, has been certain. The slaves are now emanc.i.p.ated in every British colony; and in effecting this happy change, not one drop of blood has been spilt, nor any property destroyed, except two sheds, called _trash houses_, which were set on fire by some unknown hand.

In Antigua and Bermuda, emanc.i.p.ation was unqualified; that is, the slaves at once received the stimulus of wages. In those Islands, there has not been the slightest difficulty. In the other colonies, the slaves were made apprentices, and obliged to work five years more, before they received their freedom, and magistrates decided what proportion of time should be employed for their own benefit. The planters had been so violent in opposition to abolition, and had prophesied such terrible disasters resulting from it, that they felt some anxiety to have their prophecies fulfilled. The abolition act, by some oversight, did not stipulate that while the apprentices worked without wages, they should have all the privileges to which they had been accustomed as slaves. It had been a universal practice for one slave to cook for all the rest, so that their food was ready the moment they left the field; and aged female slaves tended the little children, while their mothers were at work. The planters changed this. Every slave was obliged to go to his cabin, whether distant or near, and cook his own dinner; and the time thus lost must be made up to the masters from the hours set apart for the benefit of the apprentices. The aged slaves were likewise sent into the field to work, while mothers were obliged to toil with infants strapped at their backs.

Under these circ.u.mstances, the apprentices very naturally refused to work. They said, "We are worse off than when we were slaves; for they have taken away privileges to which we were accustomed in bondage, without paying us the wages of freemen." Still under all these provocations, they offered merely _pa.s.sive_ resistance. The worst enemies of the cause have not been able to discover that a single life has been lost in the West Indies, or a single plantation destroyed in consequence of emanc.i.p.ation! It is a lamentable proof of the corrupt state of the American press, on the subject of slavery, that the irritating conduct of the West Indian planters has been pa.s.sed over in total silence, while every effort has been made to represent the _pa.s.sive_ resistance of the apprentices as some great "raw-head and b.l.o.o.d.y-bones story."

While the good work was in progress in England, it was for a long time called by every odious name. It was even urged that the abolition of the slave _trade_ would encourage the ma.s.sacre of white men. Clarkson, who seems to have been the meekest and most patient of men, was stigmatized as an insurrectionist. It was said he wanted to bring all the horrors of the French Revolution into England, merely because he wanted to abolish the slave _trade_. It was said Liverpool and Bristol would sink, never to rise again, if that traffic were destroyed.

The insurrection at Barbadoes, in 1816, was ascribed to the influence of missionaries infected with the wicked philanthropy of the age; but it was discovered that there was no missionary on the island at the time of that event, nor for a long time previous to it. The insurrection at Demerara, several years after, was publicly and angrily ascribed to the Methodist missionaries; they were taken up and imprisoned; and it was lucky for these innocent men, that out of their twelve hundred black converts, only _two_ had joined the rebellion.

Ridicule and reproach has been abundantly heaped upon the laborers in this righteous cause. Power, wealth, talent, pride, and sophistry, are all in arms against them; but G.o.d and truth is on their side. The cause of anti-slavery is rapidly gaining ground. Wise heads as well as warm hearts, are joining in its support. In a few years I believe the opinion of New-England will be unanimous in its favor. Maine, which enjoys the enviable distinction of never having had a slave upon her soil, has formed an Anti-Slavery Society composed of her best and most distinguished men. Those who are determined to be on the popular side, should be cautious how they move just now: It is a trying time for such characters, when public opinion is on the verge of a great change.

Men who _think_ upon the subject, are fast coming to the conclusion that slavery can never be much ameliorated, while it is allowed to exist.

What Mr. Fox said of the _trade_ is true of the _system_--"you may as well try to _regulate_ murder." It is a disease as deadly as the cancer; and while one particle of it remains in the const.i.tution, no cure can be effected. The relation is unnatural in itself, and therefore it reverses all the rules which are applied to other human relations. Thus a free government which in every other point of view is a blessing, is a curse to the slave. The liberty around him is contagious, and therefore the laws must be endowed with a tenfold crus.h.i.+ng power, or the captive will break his chains. A despotic monarch can follow the impulses of humanity without scruple. When Vidius Pollio ordered one of his slaves to be cut to pieces and thrown into his fish-pond, the Emperor Augustus commanded him to emanc.i.p.ate immediately, not only that slave, but all his slaves.

In a free State there is no such power; and there would be none needed, if the laws were equal,--but the slave-owners are legislators, and _make_ the laws, in which the negro has no voice--the master influences public opinion, but the slave cannot.

Miss Martineau very wisely says; "To attempt to combine freedom and slavery is to put new wine into old skins. Soon may the old skins burst?

for we shall never want for better wine than they have ever held."

A work has been lately published, written by Jonathan Dymond, who was a member of the Society of Friends, in England; it is ent.i.tled "Essays on the Principles of Morality"--and most excellent Essays they are.

Every sentence recognises the principle of sacrificing all selfish considerations to our inward perceptions of duty; and therefore every page s.h.i.+nes with the mild but powerful light of true Christian philosophy. I rejoice to hear that the book is likely to be republished in this country. In his remarks on slavery the author says: "The supporters of the _system_ will hereafter be regarded with the same public feelings, as he who was an advocate of the slave _trade_ now is.

How is it that legislators and public men are so indifferent to their fame? Who would now be willing that biography should record of him,--_This man defended the slave trade?_ The time will come when the record,--_This man opposed the abolition of slavery_, will occasion a great deduction from the public estimate of weight of character."

CHAPTER VI.

INTELLECT OF NEGROES.

"We must not allow negroes to be _men_, lest we ourselves should be suspected of not being _Christians_."

MONTESQUIEU.

In order to decide what is our duty concerning the Africans and their descendants, we must first clearly make up our minds whether they are, or are not, human beings--whether they have, or have not, the same capacities for improvement as other men.

The intellectual inferiority of the negroes is a common, though most absurd apology, for personal prejudice, and the oppressive inequality of the laws; for this reason, I shall take some pains to prove that the present degraded condition of that unfortunate race is produced by artificial causes, not by the laws of nature.

In the first place, naturalists are universally agreed concerning "the ident.i.ty of the _human_ type;" by which they mean that all living creatures, that can, by any process, be enabled to perceive moral and intellectual truths, are characterized _by similar peculiarities of organization_. They may differ from each other widely, but they still belong to the same cla.s.s. An eagle and a wren are very unlike each other; but no one would hesitate to p.r.o.nounce that they were both birds: so it is with the almost endless varieties of the monkey tribe. We all know that beasts, however sagacious, are incapable of abstract thought, or moral perception. The most wonderful elephant in the world could not command an army, or govern a state. An ourang-outang may eat, and drink, and dress, and move like a man; but he could never write an ode, or learn to relinquish his own good for the good of his species. The _human_ conformation, however it may be altered by the operation of physical or moral causes, differs from that of all other beings, and on this ground, the negro's claim to be ranked as a _man_, is universally allowed by the learned.

The condition of this people in ancient times is very far from indicating intellectual or moral inferiority. Ethiopia held a conspicuous place among the nations. Her princes were wealthy and powerful, and her people distinguished for integrity and wisdom. Even the proud Grecians evinced respect for Ethiopia, almost amounting to reverence, and derived thence the sublimest portions of their mythology.

The popular belief that all the G.o.ds made an annual visit to the Ethiopians, shows the high estimation in which they were held; for we are not told that such an honor was bestowed on any other nation. In the first book of the Iliad, Achilles is represented as anxious to appeal at once to the highest authorities; but his mother tells him: "Jupiter set off yesterday, attended by all the G.o.ds, on a journey toward the ocean, to feast with the excellent Ethiopians, and is not expected back at Olympus till the twelfth day."

In Ethiopia, was likewise placed the table of the Sun, reported to kindle of its own accord, when exposed to the rays of that great luminary.

In Africa was the early reign of Saturn, under the appellation of Oura.n.u.s, or Heaven; there the impious t.i.tans warred with the sky; there Jupiter was born and nursed; there was the celebrated shrine of Ammon, dedicated to Theban Jove, which the Greeks reverenced more highly than the Delphic Oracle; there was the birth-place and oracle of Minerva; and there, Atlas supported both the heavens and the earth upon his shoulders.

It will be said that fables prove nothing. But there is probably much deeper meaning in these fables than we now understand; there was surely some reason for giving them such a "local habitation." Why did the ancients represent Minerva as born in Africa,--and why are we told that Atlas there sustained the heavens and the earth, unless they meant to imply that Africa was the centre, from which religious and scientific light had been diffused?

Some ancient writers suppose that Egypt derived all the arts and sciences from Ethiopia; while others believe precisely the reverse.

Diodorus supported the first opinion,--and a.s.serts that the Ethiopian vulgar spoke the same language as the learned of Egypt.

It is well known that Egypt was the great school of knowledge in the ancient world. It was the birth-place of Astronomy; and we still mark the constellations as they were arranged by Egyptian shepherds. The wisest of the Grecian philosophers, among whom were Solon, Pythagoras and Plato, went there for instruction, as our young men now go to England and Germany. The Eleusinian mysteries were introduced from Egypt; and the important secret which they taught, is supposed to have been the existence of one, invisible G.o.d. A large portion of Grecian mythology was thence derived; but in pa.s.sing from one country to the other, the form of these poetical fables was often preserved, while the original meaning was lost.

Herodotus, the earliest of the Greek historians, informs us that the Egyptians were negroes. This fact has been much doubted, and often contradicted. But Herodotus certainly had the best means of knowing the truth on this subject; for he travelled in Egypt, and obtained his knowledge of the country by personal observation. He declares that the Colchians must be a colony of Egyptians, because, "like them, they have a black skin and frizzled hair."

The statues of the Sphinx have the usual characteristics of the negro race. This opinion is confirmed by Blumenbach, the celebrated German naturalist, and by Volney, who carefully examined the architecture of Egypt.

Concerning the sublimity of the architecture in this ancient negro kingdom, some idea may be conceived from the description of Thebes given by Denon, who accompanied the French army into Egypt: "This city, renowned for numerous kings, who through their wisdom have been elevated to the rank of G.o.ds; for laws, which have been revered without being known; for sciences, which have been confided to proud and mysterious inscriptions; for wise and earliest monuments of the arts, which time has respected;--this sanctuary, abandoned, isolated through barbarism, and surrendered to the desert from which it was won; this city, shrouded in the veil of mystery by which even colossi are magnified; this remote city, which imagination has only caught a glimpse of through the darkness of time--was still so gigantic an apparition, that, at the sight of its scattered ruins, the army halted of its own accord, and the soldiers, with one spontaneous movement, clapped their hands."

The honorable Alexander Everett, in his work on America, says: "While Greece and Rome were yet barbarous, we find the light of learning and improvement emanating from the continent of Africa, (supposed to be so degraded and accursed,) out of the midst of this very woolly-haired, flat-nosed, thick-lipped, coal-black race, which some persons are tempted to station at a pretty low intermediate point between men and monkeys. It is to Egypt, if to any nation, that we must look as the real _antiqua mater_ of the ancient and modern refinement of Europe.

The great lawgiver of the Jews was prepared for his divine mission by a course of instruction in all the wisdom of the Egyptians."

"The great a.s.syrian empires of Babylon and Nineveh, hardly less ill.u.s.trious than Egypt in arts and arms, were founded by Ethiopian colonies, and peopled by blacks.

"Palestine, or Canaan, before its conquest by the Jews, is represented in Scripture, as well as in other histories, as peopled by blacks; and hence it follows that Tyre and Carthage, the most industrious, wealthy, and polished states of their time, were of this color."

Another strong argument against the natural inferiority of negroes may be drawn from the present condition of Africa. Major Denham's account of the Sultan of Sackatoo proves that the brain is not necessarily rendered stupid by the color of the face: "The palace as usual in Africa, consisted of a sort of inclosed town, with an open quadrangle in front.

On entering the gate, he was conducted through three huts serving as guard-houses, after which he found Sultan Bello seated on a small carpet in a sort of painted and ornamented cottage. Bello had a n.o.ble and commanding figure, with a high forehead and large black eyes. He gave the traveller a hearty welcome, and after inquiring the particulars of his journey, proceeded to serious affairs. He produced books belonging to Major Denham, which had been taken in the disastrous battle of Dirkullah; and though he expressed a feeling of dissatisfaction at the Major's presence on that occasion, readily accepted an apology, and restored the volumes. He only asked to have the subject of each explained, and to hear the sound of the language, which he declared to be beautiful. He then began to press his visiter with theological questions, and showed himself not wholly unacquainted with the controversies which have agitated the christian world; indeed, he soon went beyond the depth of his visiter, who was obliged to own he was not versant in the abstruser mysteries of divinity.

"The Sultan now opened a frequent and familiar communication with the English envoy in which he showed himself possessed of a good deal of information. The astronomical instruments, from which, as from implements of magic, many of his attendants started with horror, were examined by the monarch with an intelligent eye. On being shown the planisphere, he proved his knowledge of the planets and many of the constellations, by repeating their Arabic names. The telescope, which presented objects inverted,--the compa.s.s, by which he could always turn to the East when praying,--and the s.e.xtant, which he called 'the looking-gla.s.s of the sun,' excited peculiar interest. He inquired with evident jealousy, into some parts of English history; particularly the conquest of India and the attack upon Algiers."

The same traveller describes the capital of Loggun, beneath whose high walls the river flowed in majestic beauty. "It was a handsome city, with a street as wide as Pall Mall, bordered by large dwellings, having s.p.a.cious areas in front. Manufacturing industry was honored. The cloths woven here were superior to those of Bornou, being finely dyed with indigo, and beautifully glazed. There was even a current coin, made of iron, somewhat in the form of a horseshoe; and rude as this was, none of their neighbors possessed any thing similar. The women were handsome, intelligent and lively."

All travellers in Africa agree, that the inhabitants, particularly of the interior, have a good deal of mechanical skill. They tan and dye leather, sometimes thinning it in such a manner that it is as flexible as paper. In Houssa, leather is dressed in the same soft, rich style as in Morocco; they manufacture cordage, handsome cloths, and fine tissue.

Though ignorant of the turning machine, they make good pottery ware, and some of their jars are really tasteful. They prepare indigo, and extract ore from minerals. They make agricultural tools, and work skilfully in gold, silver and steel. d.i.c.kson, who knew jewellers and watchmakers among them, speaks of a very ingenious wooden-clock made by a negro.

Hornemann says the inhabitants of Haissa give their cutting instruments a keener edge than European artists, and their files are superior to those of France or England. Golberry a.s.sures us that some of the African stuffs are extremely fine and beautiful.

Mungo Park says "The industry of the Foulahs, in pasturage and agriculture, is everywhere remarkable. Their herds and flocks are numerous, and they are opulent in a high degree. They enjoy all the necessaries of life in the greatest profusion. They display much skill in the management of their cattle, making them extremely gentle by kindness and familiarity." The same writer remarks that the negroes love instruction, and that they have advocates to defend the slaves brought before their tribunals.

Speaking of Wasiboo, he says: "Cultivation is carried on here on a very extensive scale; and, as the natives themselves express it, 'hunger is never known.'"

On Mr. Park's arrival at one of the Sego ferries for the purpose of crossing the Niger to see the king, he says: "We found a great number waiting for a pa.s.sage; they looked at me with silent wonder. The view of this extensive city; the numerous canoes upon the river; the crowded population, and the cultivated state of the surrounding country, formed altogether a prospect of civilization and magnificence, which I little expected to find in the bosom of Africa."

"The public discussions in Africa, called _palavers_, exhibit a fluent and natural oratory, often accompanied with much good sense and shrewdness. Above all, the pa.s.sion for poetry is nearly universal. As soon as the evening breeze begins to blow, the song resounds throughout all Africa,--it cheers the despondency of the wanderer through the desert--it enlivens the social meetings--it inspires the dance,--and even the lamentations of the mourners are poured forth in measured accents.

"In these extemporary and spontaneous effusions, the speaker gives utterance to his hopes and fears, his joys and sorrows. All the sovereigns are attended by singing men and women, who like the European minstrels and troubadours celebrate interesting events in verse, which they repeat before the public. Like all, whose business it is to rehea.r.s.e the virtues of monarchs, they are, of course, too much given to flattery. The effusions of the African muse are inspired by nature and animated by national enthusiasm. From the few specimens given, they seem not unlikely to reward the care of a collector. How few among our peasantry could have produced the pathetic lamentation uttered in the little Bambarra cottage over the distresses of Mungo Park! These songs, handed down from father to son, evidently contain all that exists among the African nations of traditional history. From the songs of the Jillimen, or minstrels, of Soolimani, Major Laing was enabled to compile the annals of that small kingdom for more than a century."[AG]

[Footnote AG: English Family Library, No. XVI.]

In addition to the arguments drawn from the ancient conditions of Africa, and the present character of people in the interior of that country, there are numerous individual examples of spirit, courage, talent, and magnanimity.

History furnishes very few instances of bravery, intelligence, and perseverance, equal to the famous Zhinga, the negro queen of Angola, born in 1582. Like other despotic princes, her character is stained with numerous acts of ferocity and crime; but her great abilities cannot be for a moment doubted.

During her brother's reign, Zhinga was sent as amba.s.sadress to Loanda, to negotiate terms of peace with the Portuguese. A palace was prepared for her reception; and she was received with the honors due to her rank.

On entering the audience-chamber, she perceived that a magnificent chair of state was prepared for the Portuguese Viceroy, while in front of it, a rich carpet, and velvet cus.h.i.+ons, embroidered with gold, were arranged on the floor for her use. The haughty princess observed this in silent displeasure. She gave a signal with her eyes, and immediately one of her women knelt on the carpet, supporting her weight on her hands. Zhinga gravely seated herself upon her back, and awaited the entrance of the Viceroy. The spirit and dignity with which she fulfilled her mission excited the admiration of the whole court. When an alliance was offered, upon the condition of annual tribute to the king of Portugal, she proudly answered: "Such proposals are for a people subdued by force of arms; they are unworthy of a powerful monarch, who voluntarily seeks the friends.h.i.+p of the Portuguese, and who scorns to be their va.s.sal."