The Express.
London, England, 1861-01-04 00:00:00

LIM IN MUTH C.

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The New York Tunes publiakee the follelsiq ex-
trust
t sigli
ei ssit slimly Is ffentlifikimillea, sw
ired in lb* lly‘s
`IC—, S. C., Saturday, Dec. 1,.1860.
"My doer rakes—lt is with different et-elitism that
mat myself to pus these Rims to you, from those which
actuated me when llwrite yea list. Then all looked bright
and cheerily in the future—now how gloomy and por-
ton:dots ; stM ljetwently • pray God that this cap may pass
away floor use The esuntry hem is all aglow with the fires
of revolution,. and suds is the intensity of excitement that
we can scarcely find time or inclination is talk or think of
anything else than the political, topics of the day, and the
moral mad social consequenose directly pertaining to seem-
,' aim. I fear that secession and nswelutineare, will. our pet)-
, ple, fcsegiusecoselusiotvr; that we have gene so the, retiree-
and renessim are impotsible;.sad than civil wee, with
all its consequent horrortf is already upon us. I shudder
fee the wives and mothers, sistemand babes of forth Caro-
lina, as I contemplate the immediate flatus, of UM state.
Yoe Deed sat be surprised at any time to see me and the
children in your midst, for no argument cook induce me to-
remain here an hoer longer than I should be compelled to,
if the wont should come te the wont.

" You may imagine, dear uncle, our situation, but you
can never realise it in its fulness. Already we tremble in
our own homes is anticipation and.' expectancy of what is
liable to beret forth at any moment* negro sesurrection.
Could you see the care and pearaution displayed here by the
proprietors of the negroes, not only planters, but others,
you would not fey a moment envy useur • nee. Not
a night rime that we do not y look our field
servants in their quarters ; but our most loved and
valued house servants, whom in ordinary times we
would trust to any extent, are watched and guarded against
with all the scrutiny and care that we P0004.R11. Our
planters and owners of slave property do not elbow their
servants to have any intercourse with each other, and the
moose are confined strictly to the premises where they be-
king. We are all obliged to increase our force of overseers
to prevent too free intercourse even among our own servants.
The swoop feel and notice them new restraints, and natu-
rally ask ' Why is this" But it is unnecessary for them
to ask the question, for they all comprehend the cause as•
well as we who own them. They hove already learned
enough to give them an idea of what is going on in the state
and nation, and this knowledge they have not gained from
abolitionists, as some suppose, but from the conversation of
their owners indirectly held in their presence. They have
already heard of Lincoln's election, and heard alto that
he is for giving them their liberty, and you may imagine the
result.

"You have heard that our servant* all love theirmastere,
and their masters' families, and would lay down their lives
for them—that the coloured race in the South prefers
slavery to freedom—that the► would not be free if they.
could, &c. That is but the poetry of the case, the reality
consists in sleeping upon our arms at eight—in drably
bolting and barring our doors—ln establishing and main-
taining an efficient patrol force—in buying watch-dogs, and
in taking turns in watching our sleeping children, to guard
them and ourselves from the vengeance of these lame
loving servantie—a vengeance which, though now
smouldering, is liable to burst out at any moment, to over-
whelm the state in spite of the Palmetto flags or state
precautions.

r-;"--17Couatthe North are not the only sees who are suffer
ing financially by this new panic. The planters among us
are really stiffenng from the dervsiation in their property.
Already nepoes are not worth half price. No one dares is
buy a servant, fearing lest he, inkloiag so, should be intro-
ducing upon his plantation one tinctured with the idea of
freedom.

" iihusband has but a few servants—l believe but
thirty-one all told—still I feel (and so does he) that they
are thirty-one too many in such times as these. He would
sell them immediately, if it were possible ; but the truth is
he could realise nothing for them at present, or at most not
more than half their real value. Slaves are a drug in the
market, my husband Nays, and you know him well enough
to
fudgej of his judgment in such matters.
Now, one word as to the military force of the state,
to protect us against an insurrection. I presume, with the
exception of Charleston, and perhaps a few large towns.
that the remainder of the state is situated very much the
same as we are here ; and I will give you an idea of how
well prepared we are to resist a mob. Upon our place of
about 1,200 acres we have: of whites.' males—husband,
two overseers, and my son of it; total, four; females—
self and cousin, little Lucy, and the wife of one of the
overseers—four ; of whom only four at the most are capable-
of bearing arms, to offset which we have at least seventeen
field bands, sturdy young negroes, besides the female ser-
yenta. And this is a fair representation of the force upon
our plantations. Considering such a state of facts, do you
blame me for desiring to absent myself, my husband and
children from the state !^