Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1847-04-02

LETTER FROM GEORGIA TO MASSAs
CHUSETTS.
NO;

LETTER FROM GEORGIA TO MASSAs
CHUSETTS.
NO.
DEAR SISTER Mass:
Read this letter, attentively. patiently, and
candidly ana when YOU shall have read it,
place II among your archives, where History
NAV find if, when Aho :tonisin, of which you
are the mother, and the chief supporter, shall
have accomplished its now undisgu sed pur-
pose. In addressing you, shall endeavor 10
observe the respect due to an elder sister; but,
at the same time, ] must guard YOU against
confounding truths which prove you 10 be
entitled to no respect at all, with a breach OF
courtesy Certainly, after the unsparlng and
unprovoked abuse which you have heaped
upon me and my neighboring sisters for many
wears, l might be pardoned for the most bitter
determinations hut ii | were not deferred from
them by se'f-respect, and the dread that have
of being thought like you in any respect, |
should certainly forbear them now that am
about to give to the world SO much OF your
history as involves my interests, and the points
of difference between US; tor if you be not IN
vulnerable, this will infict wound upon you,
deep enough. and painful enough, to appease
even malignity itself; and | am sure have
not particle of that in my composition. 1t
will irritate you, | know it, sister Mass
what that comes from the South does not p
But to this | am Indifferent; not because de-
light IN provocaton. but because it will give
you some little apology for wrath which you
have enkindled without cause, and cherished
without excuse, for many long years. Some
things that have 10 say TO you will be equal
ly applicable TO your neighbors, who have
imbibed your principles. To such have
caution, but no apology to offer: the caution
is, that they avoid the common fault of pro-
selytes, which is TO take to themselves an
over share of the disgrace which may attach
to their new faith, in the belief that this will
entitle them to an over share of IFS honors
When first settled in this country, as you
may remember, proclaimed 10 the world that
intended to have nothing TO do with Slavery;
and adhered steadfastly to my resolut on;
until it was overpowered by the complaints of
my children. They compared my sltuat on
with my sisters on the other side Of the Sa-
vannah. was gaining but bare subsistence,
they SAID, by the labor OF my children, while
she was growing rich by the labor of slaves:
Her sons were sent over to England, 10 re-
ceive liberal education, while mine were
kept constantly employed delving for bread in
my unhealthy lowlands, or nursing silk worms
on my aired barrens. They censured my
squeamishness in regard 10 Slavery, and poIn-
ted to all the other sisters of the family, espe-
cialy to you and sister Penny, who made
great pretentons to plety, as entertaining no
scruples upon that subject Indeed, the pre-
vailing opinion OF the whole family at that
time was, that it was mercy to the African
race to bring them, even as slaves, from the
miseries of their own country, to this. ur-
ged by these considerations, and many others.
and finding myself unsupported by single
member OF the family in my opposition TO Sla-
very at length Welded reluctant consent
TO the introduction of slaves into my domain.
My consent was no sooner obtained than You
and mother Britain filled my ports, my fields,
and my houses, with these unfortunate beings
SLAVES" kidnapped" at their parents
doors, by "man- stealers," in very truth, car
| rying your blood and our mothers bioo1 in
| their veins; but not a drop OF mine. Man
steaters, who are verify compllmented by the
name, as you would really admit, had you
seen them, as have seen them, coming into
port with an escort of sharks, and landing
their cargoes of naked, starving, sick, and
leal, and dying human beings, from the most
Internal fetid pits that man ever livel in or
ever died in. have often seen my. children
weep over these wretched victims of Yankee
avarice, while yours drove their trades, with
all that same -sufficiencv, pertness, humor
and disgusting srppeness, which makes the
character Of your PeIlars at the present day
have known these m serahle wretches, when
| Just from the hands of the Britton AM the
Yankee, to dispute with the utures for the
ha { devoureI carcass that lay by the highway,
and with i6cuity restrained from fee ling up
on the loathsome mass of pu:rescence. In
lee the first care of the purchaser from the
slave ship used TO be, to prevent them from
killing themselves by surfe.t For the part
| which my sons took in these shocking s.eises,
Col NAV, for aught know, have i'll igmeRts
| in reserve for me but | cannot believe that
he will ever use yon as the instrument Tor ex
ecutng them. That my chiliten; in purcha'
ng slaves from yours. delivered them from
the most cruel Ion age thatman ever groane
un.ler, is most true-that there WAS pity and
compassion on The 81 lie of the purchasers, and
none on the side of the vendors, is equally
true but for these things give them no ere.
DIT, because Sc fishness and not humanity uF-
gei them to the traffic But if they be guilty,
they who never owned save ship or sailed
| on board OF one-fhey who never ens!aved
| freeman-thev to whom the save rushed with
ioy from the crueties of your sons-they who
would not look into the floating dungeons,
from which your bows daily drew their fam
| isheI dea !, for many long weeks-in mercy's
name, where 10 you stand Of all the SIS
terhool, you should be the first to sympathlse
with me ami the last TO upbraid me. But you
are the f!e-.ea1er in this mo Tern crusa lie upon
Southern rights; and the END OF it will be just
what ght be expected from such leader
in such a cauSe--troub.e to us both, but
THOUSAND times more trouble to you than to
me- Laugh al the prediction if you please
but bear it in mind, tie results Of yosr more-
naents tr:H be more disastrous to you and your
\ allies, than to me and mine Why, thus
Judge, will be disclosed in the sequel. when
shall return to this subject. As a proper in
PRODUCTION to it, let us pursue your history in
order.
You and mother Brit having put the price
of human flesh in your pockets" went on slo"