Twenty-Two Years a Slave, and Forty Years a Freeman: Embracing a Correspondence of Several Years, While President of Wilberforce Colony, London, Canada WestSteward, Austin
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Twenty-Two Years a Slave, and Forty Years a Freeman: Embracing a Correspondence of Several Years, While President of Wilberforce Colony, London, Canada West
He at length arrived at his own farm, from which he had been so cruelly
driven, and concealed himself behind a log in sight of his own house, to
watch the inmates. He soon learned that it was occupied by the man who had
persecuted him in order to obtain it, his wife and one child. All day
until midnight, he watched them from his hiding place, then assuming all
the savage ferocity of his nature, and giving himself the most frightful
appearance possible, he entered the house, and noiselessly passed to their
sleeping room, where he placed himself before them with a long knife in
his hand. Having assumed this frightful attitude, he commanded them in a
voice of thunder, to get up and give him some supper. They were awake now.
Oh, horror! what a sight for a guilty man, and a timid woman! "Me come to
kill you!" said the Indian, as he watched their blanched cheeks and
quivering lips. They tottered about on their trembling limbs to get
everything he asked for, imploring him for God's sake to take all, but
spare their lives. "Me will have scalps," he answered fiercely; but when
he had eaten all he desired, he adjusted his blanket, and putting on a
savage look, he remarked as if to himself, "Me go now get my men and kill
him, kill he wife, and kill he baby!" and left the house for his post of
observation.
The frightened inmates lost no time, but hastily collecting some
provisions, fled to the frontier, and were never heard of afterwards.
The Indian immediately took possession of his own and quite an addition
left by the former tenants.
While the kind-hearted old Indian repeated to me the story of his wrongs,
it reminded me of the injustice practised on myself, and the colored race
generally. Does a colored man by hard labor and patient industry, acquire
a good location, a fine farm, and comfortable dwelling, he is almost sure
to be looked upon by the white man, as an usurper of _his_ rights and
territory; a robber of what he himself should possess, and too often does
wrong the colored man out of,--yet, I am happy to acknowledge many
honorable exceptions.
I have often wondered, when looking at the remnant of that once powerful
race, whether the black man would become extinct and his race die out, as
have the red men of the forest; whether they would wither in the presence
of the enterprising Anglo-Saxon as have the natives of this country. But
now I have no such wondering inquiries to make; being persuaded that the
colored man has yet a prominent part to act in this highly-favored
Republic,--of what description the future must determine.
CHAPTER XXVII.
OUR DIFFICULTIES WITH ISRAEL LEWIS.
Being under the necessity of referring again to the difficulties existing
in the Wilberforce colony, I shall here introduce a circular, published in
New York city, which will give the reader an understanding of the real
cause of our embarrassments, and the character of our agent, Israel Lewis.
CIRCULAR
_New York, May 9th_, 1836.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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