The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1850-05-16

duoe as much as $50, 100000 where slaves are
exclusively employed. In cotton planting, as
shown above, one-thrd the capital will accom-
plish as much with free labor as can be performed
by the aid Of slavery.
But il will be said that we have made no allow
ance for wages We have not, because custom has
sanctioned the practice, we believe, OF paying
free agricultural laborers out Of the sale OF the
crop at the end Of the year. Such is the case
in the South with overseers' salaries. The sala-
ry Of the overseer and the hire Of the slave, as
well as the wages of the free laborers when they
are employed in the Southern States, all come out
of the fruit of their labors at the end of the year
and, in the mean time, the overseer and free Ia
borer only receive their board-the slave his food
and clothing. In Louisiana, the authorities we
have above quoted estimate the expense of keep
ing slave for year at $50 for food and cloth
ing. This, we admit, would be too little for even
the board Of free white laborer-his expenses
in that particular would perhaps be $50; but the
greater outlay in his case is more than compensa-
ted by the greater amount Of labor. The wages,
as above stated, are paid out of the growing crop
at the end of the year. SO that there is no neces-
sty for keeping ON hand floating capital to meet
that expense
After ALL the defender of slavery will say ad-
hitting your position to be correct, that slavery
only serves to distribute wealth, not TO produce
it-suppose the system is as clumsy and expensive,
in an economical point of view, as you represent
it, does that alter the wel-known fact, that eman-
cipation in the British West Indies has ruined
the islands, and, as necessary consequence, would
ruin the Southern States
We answer
l. There is a wide difference in condition be-
tween those portions of the South where slavery
most abounds, and that of the British West In
dies prior to emancipation In the British Islands
there are ten and often twenty negroes to one
white person whereas in the portion Of the
South where slavery mostly prevails, there is
preponderance of white population. Take for
instance, South Carolina, Georgia, Alabama,
Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas
These States, in 1910, contained white popula-
ton Of ,467, 43s and black population, i.+Ana'
ing free negroes and slaves, Of ,34l ,o47-show-
,iPsya ma;ority Of i25,79l whites, go.
In the British Islands The case Is tf1dne ofneY
wise In 1894, when the emancipation act was
passed, there were only 59,474 whites in all the
islands, out of a population of s2O,575 that is
to say, only one-fourteenth of the population.
There is, then, no sort of similarity in the re-
spectve conditions of the Southern States of this
Union, and the British West Indies prior to
emancipation.
g. Having made it apparent that the white pop
ulation outnumbers the black, in even the most
Southern tier of our slave States, while in the
British Colonies there are fourteen blacks to one
white, it becomes obvious, upon moments refec-
ton, that the negroes of this country must be
vastly superior, in intelligence and civilization to
those of the West Indies. 1t is the boast Of the
stakeholder that he has civilized the negro This,
Of course, has been accomplished by intercourse
and as the opportunity Of intercourse with the
whites has been fourteen to one in favor Of our
negro population over those of the West Indies,
it is fair to infer that he has pro6ted in that
proportion by his schooling
| g. Another circumstance, favorable to the
development of higher intelligence and energy
among the negroes of the United States is the
| colder climate he enjoys The effect of climate
is 80 we'll understood that it is only necessary to
allude to it. Its influence is clearly perceptble
| in every country of Europe and Asia.
IL is therefore unfair and illogical to infer that
| emancipation in even our most Southern States
would be a failure, admitting that the expert
ment has failed in the West Indies. There is 81
large a proportion of whites that they would ne
cessarily infuse their energy and enterprise int
the blacks, provided all were free. 1t cannot h
argued that the negroes would be as unthrifty
if all were free, as those who are at presen
nomnally so, are said to be, because the fac
is notorious that the poor whites of the Soutl
are as ignorant, degraded, and miserable, Nv
mean in the localities where slavery mos
abounds) as the free negroes and for the sam
reason-the want of employment. 1t is no par
of the policy of the shareholders to employ free
men to do anything that can be performed by
slave and hence the restitution and ignorance o
the poor whites and free blacks.
A But the objection that West India emancipa
ton has proven failure, and therefore an,
scheme of the kind must be equally abortive here
grows still weaker, if it is used in reference t
the Northern slave States. Even in its strong
hold of the extreme South we have shown tina
the slaves are less numerous than the freemen
We will now show the state of things in the re
naming slave States. These are, Delaware
Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee
Kentucky, Arkansas, and Missouri. Their tota
white population, in $780, was 1924, 05s-whi
the blacks, including slaves and free coloret!
numbered only 1896, 7ss There were about tw
and half whites to one black OF course Their
is but faint analogy in the circumstances Of sucl
country and those of the West Indies, wher
the blacks constitute fourteen-ffteenths of tn
inhabitants. IL is to be remarked, also, that tn
slave population Of this region has nearly ceased
to increase, in consequence of their rapid remova
to the extreme South We hazard the prediction
that while the whites have increased some half
million in the past ten years, the blacks, for tn
reason stated, will be found by the census not b
exceed by 900 the return of 1910.
II slavery were abolished in the whole North
ern tier of States, there would still be only abou
half the number Of free colored persons to tn
square mile which now exist in the State Of Ma
ryland. They would 1t il true, bear create
proportion to the white population but the &C
of emancipation would give such life and spirit {
the enterprise of the people, that Northern an
European immigration would in few years Civ
as decided a preponderance to the whites as a
present exists in Maryland. Emancipation il
these States would make it inevitable and speed
in the moro Southern regions, which would b
Immediately followed by rapid migration of tn
black population in that direction. This woul