Literary cadet and Rhode-Island statesman. [volume] (Providence, R.I.) 1827-1829, 1828-02-06
THE NEGRO.

and Lutte iectual qualities of the various races
Of Man. Ii places Ike negio il, a rank which
has been denied him By Numerous Physiolo-
gists. as well as by TIE rational prejudices OF
christians aud white men. The extract w1i
certainly be found very interesting, aud is 70.
| commended TO the perusal Of Tie curious.
81 sec no ieason TO Loub, that the Negro
race, taken ali together, are equal 10 any iu
natural goodness of heart. 1t is cons0nant 10
Or gclcril experience Of mankind, that the
latter qualify should be deadened or complete.
~ ex.inguisied in Inc slave ship or plantations;
it 10 as little crcditable 10 thc heads us 10 the
hearts of their white masters to affection and
fidelity from slaves afer the treatment they
TOO often experience.
The acute aid accurate Carho', in his large
work on Guinea. says. q" he blacks have sui
fcIent sense and understanding, their conccp-
tioni are quick and accurate, AID their mcII-
DRY possesses extraordinary strength: for, al
though they can neither read nor write, they
never fall INTO confusion or error in Tie great
hurry OF business and iraiiick. Their expert
cnco Of The knavery of Europeans has pi.,
them completely sn their guard in tralsa ctions
Of exchange; they carefully examine all our
goods, piece by piece, to ascertain II their
quality and measure are correctly stated; and
I ShVH a IIHth SuUuCty uhu iSdihes IA uk
these transa cions, as. any European trades
inan could do"
Ofthosc initiative arts, in which perfection
can be attained only in an improved state OF
society, j, IS natural TO suppose that The Ne
sroes can have little knowledge: but the fab.
rick and colors Of the Guinea cloths are proofs
Of their native ingenuity; and that they ale
capable oflearning all kinds Of the more deli
cate manual labours, is proved by the fact,
that IIiuc. ,cntls of tlc ar,Iiiccrs in the West
Indies are Ncgroes. Many are expert car
lentcrs, and some watchinakcrs.
Negroes have been known TO earn so much
IN America By their musical cSertions, US TO
purchase their freedom with large SUMS. The
younger Freidis in Vienna, was an expert per-
former, both on the violin ard violencello; he
was also Il capital craftsman, aud had made
ali excellent painting Of himself. Mr.. Edwards
however, speaks very CONTEMPORARY CT tiicir
musical taleGts IN general: lie says, "tl!oy
picfci u load and long continued noise 10 tho
finest ~harmouys aud frequently consume tho
whole night IA beating OH i board with u
.tich.."
The capacity Of tho negroes Cor TIE mathc-
|kiatical aud physi,ul sciences is proved by
Hannibal, u colonel in the Russian artillery,
and Lis!et, Of the Isle Of France, who was
named a corresponding member Of tho French
Academy OF Sciences, on account OF his ex-
cellent meteorological observations. Fuller,
Of y aryland, was an extraordinary example Of
quicknoss in reckoning. Being asked in COM
pany, for the purpose Of trying his powers how
many seconds u person had lived who was
seventy years and some months old, lie gavo
the answer in u minute and Il half. On Icci-
onIng it up after him, u different result was
obtained: "Iiavc not you forgotten The leap
Years." saws the Negro. This OIL ission
was supplied, and the number then agreed with
his answer.
Omitting Maddocks, Il Methodist preacher,
and not attempting to enumcratc all the Ne
groCs who have written poems, ] may mcntion
that Blumcnbach possesses English, Dutch,
and Latin poetry, by different Negroes.
In 1894, A. W. Amo, IN Aft.caii kom the
coast Of Guinea. took the degree Of Doctor at
tho University Of WI cibcrs: ami displayed,
accosdiug to Diumeii5ach, in two d S stations,
extensive amd well digos!ed reading in the
physio! ,eical books of the time.
JAG. Eliz. job. Caption, who was bought by
a slave dealer, when eight years old, studied
theology at Leyden, and Published several ser
mons and poems. His Dissortatio &c Servitu,e~
L'bcrtati CHRIS, ianp ion tontrar.a, went
through four editions very quickly. lie was
ordained in Amsterdam; aud went 10 Era 2,
on tho Gold Coast, where he WAS uater mtl.
dcrcd, or exchanged for tie he am. la!'h of
his coaU;rymen those he had leaned in l,u-
rope.
On reviewing !liGse instances, ahich indcot
must be received as exceptions 10 lie &c neral
result o! observation and cXn,i fence respect
ing tho Negro faculties, l may observe, With
Blnmcn1ach. fon whom some OF them are
borrowed, that cn,irc ard large provinces OF
Europe might he named, ~ whch i, would be-
difficult To meet with such good writers, poets,
philosophers and correspondents OF the french
Academy. These insulated facts are not.
however, alGuccd 10 prove that tie African
enjoys an equality of moial und Intellectual
cnloymonts with tie EiRopoan race; but mcro-
ly to SLOW, that, OF tho DARK colourcd people,
none have distinsui he'd. Themselves by s'rong-
or provis Of capacity for literary and scicntiick
cultivation, and consequently that none APP
peach more near,y than the Negro TO the poll
ishcd nations Of the globe. That the Ethiopi-
an, taken altogether, IS decidedly inferior 10
the Caucasian variety in the qualities Of tho
hcari and OF tie bead, will DC soon recognized
by any one wlo a;ter:ively " c'ghs the rcp-
rcscnta,ions Of ali unprcjudiced and d.s.n,cres-
ted observers respecting he coaduct, capabili-
ties, aud character Of the Africans, whether
in their own country, in Tho West ludies, or in
Amcricn; and the Continuance oi the " holo
race, for more than twenty centuries, in n con-
dition which, in It's best form, is Little e evatcd
ABOVE absolute DiFoar.s'I, LluSl give 10 tniS
conviction the clear Light aud full force OF dem-
onstration. | cannot therefore admit, with :
out some restriction aud explanation. the quaint
but humane expression of tic preacher who
called the Negro Gods image, like ourselves.
though carved in ebony"
Habit, education, and principle, have oil.
ways led US TO pity the negro race; and hav-
ing Witnessed the thousand c~ruelt.es to wLicl,
they arc subjo'tcd-,ho privaiions they endure.
and the many indisnities they suffer, at tho
i,and. Of tboir unrn,i;nc and tv,,oical fasl.