The Charlotte journal. [volume] (Charlotte, N.C.) 1835-1851, 1850-05-22
Sober Sense.

Sober Sense.
There is much truth, says the Journal Of
Commerce, in The annexed communication,
hich Northern men would do we'll to pom.
der. On the other hand, it contains some
Ihings which are strongly Saied-pesh shaps
over. stated.
For the Journal Of Commerce,
Judge not, that We be not Judged for
with what judgment yc Judge, ye shall be
Judged"
This sage counsel Of Divine revelation is
not generally held 10 be of universal applca
lion by any Of Us. Ga the contrary, We are
all too ready to Judge every body else often
without testimony, withoutltquiry, and with.
out charity.
Who is responsible for slavery at the
South, for which SJuihcru men are so con
stanlly, and so unJns'y and unsparingly a
busedl
Did the South send heir ships to Africa 10
rob aud plunder its Inhabtants-io make
merchondse Of human sous-to steal their
fellow men? Did they make their gains by
human traffic Taey have often been char
gcd with l,-hut all charges are not true. -
no charges ii! Northern men, Northern
editors in every free Sate with few splen
did exceptions. AID well might The words
OF the prophet TO the guilty King Of Israel
be retorted upon them, as people, =" Thou
art the man" Il was Northern men who
imported tie slaves-it was they who were
crtIilfy oI oil the f,Tc ,la
reference TO Which produces en- involuntary
shudder Of humanity. They originated the
evil, from base motives Of ayarice-t they con.
rluucd and enlarged it b. myilads under the
most excessive cruelty and they would now
cas- the odium, as they have long since done
the respoes bilitv Of the clim,na'ty, upon
Suu'hern people.
4 They would cut the N off from law and gos.
pei, and rciuse them the nights and privileges
ter which Southern men, as shareholders
have always largely contributed, whether
with treasure OF with blood and which they
themselves have soemnIy guaranteed 10 the N
by solemn compact-an instrument they all
profess TO reverence, but from the Obligations
OF which they begin to desire absoIutlon.
Ii Northern men originated and enlarged
the evil, wha, have Southern men done to-
wards these unfortunate beings They took
them from the bloody hand of Northern men
-ba barans, full of ignorance aud obs macy,
untitled for any useful employment, unaccus.
TONED to the use of any instrument Of indus
try. unable to understand or to speak any Ian.
guage common to both paIties they clothed
and fed aud instructed them they gave the N
houses TO live in, food to eat and clothing to
wear; and they taught them to labor; they
gave Them religious instruction, and the
blessings of civilization they have set hun,
dTeds of thousands al liberty, ltiil the nun.
Der so freed became a nuisance, aud was ne.
cessariy restrained by law J their physical
and social CONDITION has been in constant
state of amelioralion from the moment they
came under Southern innuence-ii has been
always onward, and moves impeded but by
the wanlon, reckless, and nnlus;liiahle inter.
ference from Northern men; and their pres
ent condition, though not what il would have
been had they been Of fisreut race, OF
what the South could wish it to be, is vet in.
initelv superior 10 that Of their fellows left
in Africa, or 10 the free colored people in The
free States, and very much above the labor.
ing peasanlry Of civilized Europe generally,
or Of the working classes in Great Britain.
4 comparison is challenged; and Northern
men and Europeans who have visited them
and inspected their condition, shall be the
Judges. But if every instance referred TO in
all the abolition papers for the past hiIty
years were combined, and all true, and mul-
tipied by lis own quantity, II would not eqnal
in degree the sutfariuts endured on single
slave ship in single passage across the AT.
lan,ic under Northern men, ard of which
Northern men we're the authors. " ho, then,
has done them the most evil : Who has done
them the most gnodl The North or the
South
Africans, moreover, are like other men,
and have faults. These necessarily provoke
this has often been exces.
sve, no doubt But what provoked the
North TO fit out ships to so to Afica and
make merchandise of human tleshl Did
Africans owe them any thingl Did Africans
provoke them by crimes and dIsobedlence, or
ideness aud injuries
The North fist made property of them, and
owe much ofthelr gains 10 hem. How many
hundred did they ever hbera'e! On the
contrary, when sinsle individual at the
South recently liberated sixty, worth as prop.
efiy then at least $50 600, II was found diff.
cult, nav impossible, to raise 50 600 in all .
the North to send them to Africa; and
large proportion of that Insignificant sum was
contributed from the South.
Where is the Northcrn man, old or young,
living or dying, that leaves any bequests of
any kind 10 berare and restore these people,
whom their fathers or themselves have plum.