Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1848-09-21
t0r the Green Mountain Freeman.
The Slaves Family.
FRANKLIN.


4Hsniost persons in our happy country, the mention
1.-The Family Circle brings up the most pleasant and
endearng associations There are comparatively few
families 80 DOOR and so destitute of the comforts OF
life, as not to have many happy seasons together, and
many things to make life blessing. How often DO
we witness the childish gee, and the manifestations OF
narental satisfaction and domestic happiness IN the
most humble cottage The children of the poor have
the same ADVANCES ofcommon school education as the
RICH and are just Likely to rise to places OF dstc
ton and honor. This is the view we generally take
of the family circle, and of the advantages and rights
and privileges of all
How seldom it Is that we stop to consider the 1aInl-
" circle of the slave. How seldom do we contrast
their restitution and distress with own happy con-
dition. We do not obey the scripture injunction to
ssremember those in bonds as bound with them" The
slave has an affectonate heart and he loves his wife
and children as ardently the human heart can love.
Often, and generally, the slave has no other earthly
attraction but his family. "f1e is in the power of the
master TO whom he belongs. He can do nothing, pos
sess nothing, nor acquire anything but what must be-
long to his master" He has no hope of ever better
Inc MS COnultlO0 1ISTe ID Vic lSdoI CluHOC
him to rise to any distinction He must always be a
slave in the power of his MASTER without any friends
to take his part lie expects to live and die slave,
q thing, a chatte Still he has human heart with
all its suscepdblites, He has wife and children,
and he has nothing else to love, to live for on carth
all his affections center in them. AS when man
loses one arm, the strength of the two seems to be
combined in the that remains; so all the strength
Of the slaves affections having other objects,
to rest in his attachment to his family. Who then
can love his family like the slave? And what must
be the distress the slave, when he is separated from
his amly?s Often it is more than his nature can en-
dure. slave in Kentucky had his wife sold and put
on board boat to go to New Orleans. He watched
nrr In GREATNESS agony, while the cold persp alton
gushed from every pore, till she passed out Of snht
and then raised his hands to heaven, and cried ONT
~ God this is more than can bear" and fell to the
earth corpse Did that slave have no senslbilitv?
slave about forty years Of age escaped from Ken
lucky, into free state, and stopped and arcd few
days at the house of minister, who loved to protect
the painting fugitive. When asked why he ran away,
he looked troubled sometimes, appeared greatly dis
turbed and would not, or could not give an answer
One day he took up little boy and girl of the min
ister's into his lap. Says the minister "Come tell my
children stories that will make them hate slave
ry.' His lips quvered, his bosom heaved, and the
large tears coursed down his sable cheeks for few
moments ltseemed as if his heart would break and
nature fail; but flood of tears soon gave him relief
and the powers Of speech. He commenced, "You
nave asked me several times why ran away; | will
tell you. once had little boy and girl about the
size of these. loved them with all the affection Of
fond father had wife. loved her too We were
happy. thought no slaves were SO happy. had t.
toll hard all the day long; but when night came, m
children would climb up into my lap, and forgot m
fatigue. One night came in as usual, and found m
wife, sadly bruised, lying OIL the floor weeping in ag
ony My children were not there! The awful trut
flashed upon my mind, that they were sold. Oh, tn
agony of that momeut. Oh, my God, it is hard! M
wife soon revealed it all to nae. The trader had come
and master had undertaken to sell the children an
take them off unbeknown to either of us; but she say
and nlstrusted what was going on, and ran from tn
kitchen to their rescue. She was knocked dowr
and cruelty beaten.
WIZ hlOuluGu 81 lot our CnllQren That she cOul
not work. Master SAID she was good for nothing, all
sold her to the trader to 60 down the river don
what became of them. How could | stay ar
bnro came away" This is the substance of tt
HccoI t this slave CAV of his reasons for runnir
away. However happy the slave family may be
ea2n others society, they live in constant fear of
separation Most slave mothers keep impressng u
on the minds Of their children the idea that they mu
probably some day be separated. This they do
prepare them for the awful crisis. Did they not tai
this course probably their separation would be wor
for them than it is Yet this thought must gre,
ly dampen their joys Only think of the idea of l.
ing in expectation and fear of having the family
separated in day. sold to different men, to be Carl
to distant parts of the country, to toll in chains
never see or hear Of each other again. Rememb
this is the condition of the slaves family.
Consider still further the slaves family circle. |
us not take an extreme case Go with me to a plan
ton where slaves are, according to the Southern i'd
well treated Go with me to the "nigger quarters
There this howell is the residence of large family
l. is twelve by fourteen feet 1t has door, but wi
inN>a sGeneither floor, bedstead, chairs or table,
for ktchec furniture, they about as well suppl
as mother Eve - supposed to have been.
Put Just think I thei.- intellectual and moral c.
dition. They have no books or papers, They can
read. The, have no knowledge of the condition
the world. They have no food for the mind Moth
to give it strength. They live like mere animals
They must and will talk, but what can they talk
bout? How limited must be their range Of subje
IL it any wonder that slaves are ignorant and super
tiousr They must have very crude notions of r
gion. Their sense of moral obligations cannot
very acute. Oh how dark and awful is the condit
of slaves What sad picture for family circle