Sentinel of the valley. [volume] (Woodstock, Va) 1841-1848, 1844-12-05

1.-THE noise would of course, imply the
eloauence. 1t would be abundantly
easy, you know, to cram them, for the
| occasion, with the usual wing or dem
ocratic topics and arguments. The
little negroes, who regard these fish
sellers as particularly enviable and
accomplished class, initiate them very
zealoasly, and roar out the set form OF
fshcal words or sounds, with the evil
dent hope Of one day attaining to some
thing like the excellence of their mod
els. Between the two-the actual
performers and the umitators-the street
is sort of Babel TO a stranger who
does not understand the secret.
| All this has convinced me that in
stead Of being despised Or oppressed
classs, they are really INDUCED and
spoiled by their masters. There is one
circumstance, which have not men
toned, which convinces me that they
are, in fact, petted more than any spoil
led children that I ever met with at
the North. l may be mistaken, to be
sure, but | do not see very well how |
can be. Would you believe it, | am
sure | would not, if | had not seen it
with my own eyes, in broad day
wourd you believe, that military corps,
with bands of music, march through
the streets almost every day in the
week, evidently, as I think, and as
would seem, for the amusement and
qualification Of all ages and sexess |
never was more astonished than when,
for the first time, | was witness to
this extraordinary indulgence to the
slaves. | was going up the great re-
tail business street, called King street
it is the fashionable promenade, and
the ladies delight there, in the mixed
pleasure and business of walking and
shopping, making bargains and taking
exercises / approached the part of
the street where it is DETECTED from a
straight line, I heard a band of music
approaching in the direction opposite
to that in which | was walking. Pre-
sently | beheld approaching round the
bend dense mass Of blacks. AS our
imaginations, at the North, are filled
with notions about the danger to which
the people here are exposed from their
slaves, l began to be in some alarm,
lest it might be sudden outbreak "a
moug them. This impression was
strengthened by seeing all the whites,
the ladies particularly, hastily leaving
the street, and betaking themselves to
the nearest open doors. As they APP
preached, however, perceived that it
was uniform company, with large
band of music, surrounded by an i'm
mense mob of blacks, some capering,
some shouting, some marching to the
music, shouldering, one stick and
one white child; the child seeming
to answer the purpose as well as the
stick, and appearing by its resigned
air, to be used to the kind of manual
exercise to which it was subject. 1t
was clear that it was not for pleasure,
for they wore grave, wearied aspect,
in the midst of the unrestrained jollity
of the black envelope. The fear Of the
ladies was oily that of being overwhel-
med by the avalanche, which, like the
mud eruptions of the South American
volcanoes, came rolling towards them.
| am told that even the city guard, the
police corps of the city, sometimes
turns out and marches for the grtifca-
ton of the blacks, and that they are
particularly delighted with the guard,
and always attend in larger numbers
than usual. ! suppose they consider
the indulgence IN this case as coming
from the city, and are therefore the
more grati6ed and pleased. | certain
| ly could not have believed, if | had
heard it only, that the kindness and in
diligence of the masters to their slaves,
went so far as to provide for their a
musement in this manner. Only think
of the benevolence of the whites, mar
ching with a heavy musket, in the
middle of the streets, very often in the
mud and water; and the blacks enjoy
Ing the most uproarous delight on the
side pavements.
am greatly afraid you will not be-
lieve all this, or the half of it, and that
| shall be like the Irishman in Ohio,
who got his employer to write home
for him, to his friends. Say to them,
dictated Pat, that | eat meat regularly
onst day. Why,remarked the amen
uensis, how can you say that only, don't
you eat meat three times a day, and as
much as you can cram? Thrue for
you, replied Patrick, but if | say onst
day they may believe me, when if / say
three times a day, they will think me
| the greatest liar ont nfonld Ireland