Phenix gazette. [volume] (Alexandria [D.C.]) 1825-1833, 1827-05-14

hNt ~ NHS ''S1Nf Iy
arrangement of slaves, is remarked oo'h ~
"Pliny and Columella."
NAV. however, be objected to TINS reason"
;np thar i, Is no, fair tn estimate the price VI
The slave. and the amount Of his depfecia'io"
nv app because ,nosi persons IN tnis he's""o
hood have either obtained them by inheritance
mr. raised them, and That they merely ho.o wv"
because he laws Of The State ooiiSe 'ne"' W
main,,;n them, even if they were 10 SET .h..'
free TO this we answer, that 1t Is yer! n'N'
;r.rr cbeaper 10 raise slaves than 10 ou! 'he""'
,b,, most persons who hold them are ever!
ar sinking money 10y them, especiahy IL my
ccn,,iva,e moor land, and that laws IN FAVOR Vi
concentration and colonization would oe enact
ed if the people were only Convinced Oh 'ne''
true interest.
That i, is nearly as dear to raise slaves as 10
buy them, we think may be inferred from ''e
circumstance, that very few persons, ana per-
haps none, engage in the business OF ra's"'s
them as a profitable trade, and that mos, per
sons who do raise them, are frequently dr"e"
by ,heir pecuniary em5GrrdSsmenis, ana co""a'!
10 their inclinations, to the Dainiu! and disgrace
ruI &C, Of selling them TO ;he southern traders
II should also be remembered, that part OF lhe
wages of the free-laborcr goes TO the raising Oh
children to supply his place in society, and 'ha'
the wares he generally receives al the prestn'
time. in this part Of the country, is barely sum
c;,pt 10 maintain him and his family, win all
the economy he can make use OF. No" the
owner of slaves who keeps up his stock, must
also maintain for this purpose, at least double
The number of children that he has OF grown
hands Of both sexes; for ii is computed Says
Adam Smith. ,hat one hall the children born,
die before the age Of manhood" 1t is ais estl-
mated by writer's on this subject, that the wo-
man who rears children cannot do more WORK
than is g, 6cien, TO maintain herself,-so thai
very labo;inp male slave must be charged with
he maintainance of four children TO keep up
the stock. two of which the master may oalcu-
late on raising 10 supply the places OF their pa
rfn,s |, is true that they generally have more
than four children, but every one above TINS
number will add in nearly the same proportion
to the expenses ofthe family.
"The fund.- says The author just quoted
"destined for replacing, if | may say so, the
wear and tear Of the slave, (that is keep ing up
the stock is commonly managed oy a he9hse"'
master or careless overseer. hat destihed ior
performing the same Office with regard 10 the
freeman, is managed by the freeman himself
The disorders which generally prevail IN the
economy OF the rich, naturally introduce Them
selves into the management oil the former; 'he
.trict frugality and parsimonious attention OF
the poor, as naturally establish themselves In
that Of the latter: under such different manage
mept, the same purpose must require very dii-
feren, degrees Of expense to execute 1t. IL ap-
pears accordingly, from the experience oil all
ages and ~ua,ions, ! believe, that the work lone
BIZ freedmen comes cheaper in the end than that
performed bv slaves
: The estimates we have hitherto made relate
solely TO the expense OF rearing and MAINTAIN
imp slaves. and 10 the unproductiveness OF their
labor compared with nat 81 free men; but there
are other causes of expenditure which operate
generally upon Shareholders, and may perhaps
be considered as necessarily attendant upon the
system: one Of these is the number Of their do
mesticseryants which is generally much greater
than would be employed ii they were TO niie
free servants. We presume that The reason
why they employ more domestic servants, IS
because slaves are generally slower in their
movements than iree-people, winch naturally
results from their having no prospect oil gam
to inciie them TO activity
Now there is no kind of servants 81 unpro,
ductive TO the master as mental servants. 1 hey
do no work that adds any thing 10 his fortune,
and they live more expensively, and are much
better clad. than any other kind OF slave-labor
ers;-,herefore the greater number OF these a
man has, the greater must be his family txpen-
ses; and he will find i, much cheaper IL the
end to employ free-servants than TO hire slaves,
or TO own them himself, and raise young ones
to keep up the stock.
Another great cause of expenditure may be
traced To the nominal value which a slave-hold-
er places upon his sla"es.-Although they may
actually bring him no revenue, yet he places a
value upon lhem equivalent TO what they would
bring in the market, and, like most other men,
he lives in a style proportional 10 the nominal
yahus of his properly, and not proPortion"d TO
The revenue IL affords him, consequently his
debts frequently increase upon him, until he is
Obliged to convert his slaves into money, con-
,rary 10 the best feelings Of his heart.
There are many other evils attendant on this
deplorable system, particularly those Of a poll
teal md moral nature, which we shall leave to
be discussed in future number But we think
those already presented, it atten,irely consider
ed, are sufhcien mt to convince every candid mind
of the vas, importance of taking early and de-
cisive measures to avert them.