The Anti-Slavery Examiner, Part 2 of 4American Anti-Slavery Society
History
The Anti-Slavery Examiner, Part 2 of 4
American Anti-Slavery Society
Antislavery movements -- United States -- Periodicals; Slavery -- United States -- Periodicals
At the pressing request of Mr. Armstrong we spent a day with him at
Fitch's Creek. Mr. A. received us with the most cordial hospitality,
remarking that he was glad to have another opportunity to state some
things which he regarded as obstacles to the complete success of the
experiment in Antigua. One was the entire want of concert among the
planters. There was no disposition to meet and compare views respecting
different modes of agriculture, treatment of laborers, and employment of
machinery. Another evil was, allowing people to live on the estates who
took no part in the regular labor of cultivation. Some planters had
adapted the foolish policy of encouraging such persons to remain on the
estates, in order that they might have help at hand in cases of
emergency. Mr. A. strongly condemned this policy. It withheld laborers
from the estates which needed them; it was calculated to make the
regular field hands discontented, and it offered a direct encouragement
to the negroes to follow irregular modes of living. A third obstacle to
the successful operation of free labor, was the absence of the most
influential proprietors. The consequences of absenteeism were very
serious. The proprietors were of all men the most deeply interested in
the soil; and no attorneys, agents, or managers, whom they could employ,
would feel an equal interest in it, nor make the same efforts to secure
the prosperous workings of the new system.
In the year 1833, when the abolition excitement was at its height in
England, and the people were thundering at the doors of parliament for
emancipation, Mr. A. visited that country for his health. To use his own
expressive words, he "got a terrible scraping wherever he went." He said
he could not travel in a stage-coach, or go into a party, or attend a
religious meeting, without being attacked. No one the most remotely
connected with the system could have peace there. He said it was
astonishing to see what a feeling was abroad, how mightily the mind of
the whole country, peer and priest and peasant, was wrought up. The
national heart seemed on fire.
Mr. A. said, he became a religious man whilst the manager of a slave
estate, and when he became a Christian, he became an abolitionist. Yet
this man, while his conscience was accusing him--while he was longing
and praying for abolition--did not dare open his mouth in public to
urge it on! How many such men are there in our southern states--men who
are inwardly cheering on the abolitionist in his devoted work, and yet
send up no voice to encourage him, but perhaps are traducing and
denouncing him!
We received a call at our lodgings in St. John's from the Archdeacon. He
made interesting statements respecting the improvement of the negroes in
dress, morals, education and religion, since emancipation. He had
resided in the island some years previous to the abolition of slavery,
and spoke from personal observation.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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