New-York daily tribune., 1844-08-05
of the Ist August-West India
Emancipation, Mt Concord, Mass. s44.
CnScopp Mass. Aug 9 lSI.

1 :.
To The Editor Of The Tribune
Though the morning OF the celebration was
rainy and the weather foul till the lime OF meet
ing, very respectable and numerous audience
| assembled The motto Of the hall, over the
speakers desk, was West India Emancipation,
August lst, 1884 After Prayer by Rev Mr..
May, and Hymn, together with music
by band, the Orator Of the day, R. w. EMER
son, addressed the meeting. 1--WE are here,"
said he, to exchange congratulations on an event
which makes an era in the history OF civilization:
day OF reason; the clear light; that which
makes us better than flock of birds or beasts,
day which gave the immense foruticahon OF
fact of gross history, to ethical distractions. 1t
was the settlement Of question on which every
great man has taken care to record his VOTE one
which for many years absorbed the attention OF
the wisest and mos. eminent of mankind
This cause does not suffer by any mans
weakness, and whether By the wisdom of
the defenders or by the folly of the oppo-
nents by speech and by silence; by doing
and by omitting to do, this cause goes forward.
In this cause we must renonnce our temper, and
he risings of pride The history of the world
interests US only as it exhibits steady progress
and anelioration in the incessant confict which
il records of the material and the moral nature.
From the earliest monuments it appears that one
race wss victim and served the other races. In
the oldest temples of Egypt negro captives are
carved and painted on the tombs OF Kings in such
attitudes as to show that they are on the point OF
being executed. From the earliest time the ne
gro has been an article of luxury. Sol has it been
down to The day which has just daw,ned upon the
world" He then spoke of the gentle and
generous nature of the African, and drew
a most graphic picture Of The internal cruel
ties practised upon this race. itself naturally so
humane, and proceeded: But the course of hu
man affairs must go onward 10 Its melloration,
spite Of whips and plantation laws, and West In
dian interest. Conscience rolled on its pillow,
and could not sleep We sympathize here very
tenderly with the poor aggrieved planter, of whom
SO many unpleasant things are said; but II
we saw the whip applied to old men, TO tender
women, and undeniably, though l shrink to say
so,-and frequent women set in the treadmill ior
refusing to work, when, not they, but the
eternal law of animal nature refused to
work if we saw the runaways hunted
with bioodhounds into swamps and hills, and
in cases of rage planter throwing his negro
into copper of boiling caneluicc,-if we saw
these things with eyes, we should vince. They
are not pleasant sights. The blood is moral; the
blood is anti slavery it runs cold in the veins:
the stomach rises with disgust and curses slave
ry. 1t became plain TO all seeing men, the more
this business was looked into, that the crimes and
crueltics of slavery could not be oveE-stated"
| lie then succinctly showed the rise, and traced
the progress of British West India Emancipation,
down to the final apprenticeship act, and
said: The reception Of it, by the negro
population was equal in nobleness to the
deed The negroes were called together by
the missionaries and by planters, and the news
explained 10 them. On the night of the 3lst of
July, they net every where at their churches and
chapels, and at midnight, when Tie clock struck
twelve,on their knees the silent weeping assembly
became men. have never seen any thing in
history moro touching than the moderation of the
negroes" In proceeding TO remark upon the
cruelty of the planters, after the apprenticeship
| act, he said that Slavery was not merely founded
upon avarice, besides the covetousness, there is
b;ttcrer element, the love of power, the yolup-
tuousness Of having human being in absolute
control" He continued with the history Of cman.
cipation down to the absolute Emancipation act
on the lst of August, 1898, and quoted the re-
mark Of Sir Lionel Smith, the Governor of ia
naica: :" 1t is impossible for me to do justice to
the good order, dccorum, and gratitude, which
the whole laboring population manifested on that
happy occasion. Though JOY beamcd on every
countenance, it was throughout tempered with
solemn thankfulness to God; and the churches
and chapels were every where filled with these
happy people, in humble Offering Of praise" Fir
E. then went on 10 speak of civilization gener-
ally, and said 1--WE peddle, We truck, We sail,
We row, we ride in cars, we creep in teams, we
90 on canals 10 market, and for the sale of goods
The customer is the immediate jeweof our souls
him we fatter, him we FEAST compliment, vote
lOE, anu VIII CDuli W Shi ~ "oNj "
seemed, the dictate OF trade to keep the negro
down. By the aid of little whipping, we could
get their work for nothing but their board and
the cost of whips"
MIR. E. showed that negro labor was destruc-
tive if cheap, he dwelt upon the noble efforts OF
England in behalf of emancipation, and the in
conceivable supinencss of our Representatives,
who permit colored citizens Of this Commonwealth
to be imprisoned in Southern ports, without rails
ing an arm in their defence, and than turned
particularly TO the occasion before him. He es-
teemed this abolition movement as great step
Of civilization, new civility to which we have
attained. 1t had opened the way TO all manner
Of clear discussion upon all interesting points and
had demonstrated that reliance upon political
agents." could no longer be maintained. eff
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