The Knickerbocker, Vol. 10, No. 4, October 1837Various
History
The Knickerbocker, Vol. 10, No. 4, October 1837
Various
Periodicals
A whipping-post
ought justly to be considered an emblem of the dark ages; yet, to our
disgrace be it told, public whipping is still practised in some few
of our northern states; and fourteen years ago, I myself witnessed in
Jersey City, opposite to New-York, an aged woman, a _white_ woman,
taken to a post and publicly whipped for stealing a few articles of
clothing! We hope the day is not far distant, at least not forever
distant, when men shall be so taught, as to love and practice virtue
for its own sake. Then every man will pursue truth and justice with
his neighbor; then oppression shall no more stalk the earth, and the
inferior passions of mankind yield to the intellectual and the moral.
This will be the anticipated millennium; and let the philanthropist
take heart, and pursue his onward course, which, though encompassed
by a thousand thorns, and of a thousand different hues, must
disappear under the sturdy culture of the indefatigable husbandman.
I have now stated the only acts of oppression that came to my
knowledge during my southern residence; and with far greater pleasure
can I bear testimony to the paternal character of masters. That
a strong feeling of attachment does exist between many masters
and slaves, no person who has spent any time with them can deny.
Frequently born on the same plantations, they have played together
as children, and together shared feats of peril in youth. I was
acquainted with the parties, where a slave, advanced in years, was
offered his freedom, for a small sum of money which he had saved by
over-work, by his young master, who soon after taking possession of
his property became embarrassed. 'No, massa George;' said the man, 'I
hab carried massa in my arms when him was a baby; and if I leave him
now, who will take care of me when I get old?' The slave was right;
for when they get past work, their old age is made comfortable. In
fact, the amount of labor required from a prime man or woman is
comparatively light. One quarter of an acre per day is their required
task, either of planting or digging. Ploughs are seldom used, and
almost all of them can finish their task in three-quarters of a day;
the remainder of the day is their own, and whatever they raise in
their own time, they receive the avails of. I have known instances
where they chiefly supplied the table of their master with chickens,
eggs, or fish, for which they received pay, or, as they sometimes
preferred bartering, sugar or molasses. The Sabbath is also their
own, on which many of them hunt, fish, or gather the moss which
grows on the live-oaks, and for which they receive four cents a
pound. Their weekly allowance is one peck of Indian corn per head,
which they grind into hominy or meal; several pounds of salt pork
or beef, with sweet potatoes and salt. Few masters, however, are
particular; they frequently receive many additions; and when sick,
are taken good care of. They receive two suits of coarse clothes in
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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