The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1853-03-21
TIE Ducurss OF SUTHERLAND AND MRs. Jom

The DUCHESS OF SUTHERLAND AND MRS. JOHN
TYIER-MRs. SwmsHELN TO THE REsCuE.-We
find in the paper fired. Douglass. (black man,
the letter which we have previously mentioned. |
from Mrs. Jane Swisshelm, (white woman,) Of
Pittsburg, addressed to the Duchess of Suth-
erland and the ladies of England, in re-
ply to the recent patriotic letter Of Mrs.
Julia Gardiner Tyler. It is well known that
Mrs. Swisshelm is o very eccentric sort Of
a woman-a little lightheaded perhaps, an in
tense blue-stocking an inveterate abolitionist
of the Abby Kelly school, very loquacious, and,
like a cackling hen, ambitious of noisy noto-
riety-nay, if we are not mistaken she wore for
sometime, the Bloomer costume, till she was
compelled to abandon it under very justiiable
circumstances. She was, for fortnight or so.
in 1850, to the best of our recollection and
belief, reporter, in her own peculiar way,
among the reporters in the Senate gallery at
Washington, for the New York Tribune and
her own paper at Pittsburg. Her present letter
to the Duchess of Sutherland and the ladies Of
England, is, however, the most nauseating Of
all the nauseous twaddle she has ever written.
In depicting the horrors Of Southern slavery she
completely eclipses Mrs. Trollope herself
And, for pathos, bathos, and imagination,
what is there in Uncle Toms Cabin" or in the
speeches Of Abby Kelly, that will compare
with the following extract from Mrs. Swiss
helms crazy rigmarole on the barbarities Of
Southern Shareholders In speaking Of her
residence at Louisville, KY, she says that
Within stone'sthrow, and in full view of our
door, stood the residence Of wealthy merchant-an
elder in the Presbyterian church-who owned q
number Of wretched, ragged. half-starved looking
slaves One of them, boy Of about ton years, wore
an iron collar on his neck and round iron rod was
bent over his head and made fast at each side, which
stood up like the bail of kettle. He used to play
around our door, and we could not ascertain how he
could rest his head in lying down. This was kept
upon him to prevent his running away.
An Irishman named Murphy, with the assistance
of "a friend" beat his slave man to death in an old
stable, public street, in daylight. The cries of
the victim attracted the attention Of passersby, who
stopped, peeped through the crevices, and passed
on. The circumstances, as delineated to US, were
most horribly revolving, for he continued beating the
the head and trunk were crushedlat and the brains
spread on the floor. They buried the body, settled
up business, and the second day left after which
the authorities offered rewards for them, but they
were never taken. This case got into the newspa-
pers; and all this occurred in Louisville, KY, in
1882 In that State slavery exists in its mildest
FORM"
If that does not satisfy the ladies OF England
of the horrors OF Southern slavery, especially
when an Irishman becomes q Shareholder, let
them read the following, always bearing in
mind that the impulsive Mrs. Swisshelm is the
authority for it,
Just about the time of the Murphy murder there
was much talk about another Irishman, q bachelor
xUh0 tO0ka dv 0f niaru
fculties OF native farmer to compel him to sell q
slave daughter, Maria" a tall, bright quadroon,
whom he had educated for freedom. The purchaser
brought Maria to the city, and established her in
well furnished home but she refused his condi-
tons of peace and plenty" meat twice day and
bread without stint so long, that his patience as
sutton was worn out. He tried bread and water re-
gimen, keeping her locked in her chamber and EN-
ploying an old negro bag as jailor but still she
spurned his suit. He brought his clerk to help him
to bring her to terms, and together they bound and
scourged her until she was dripping with blood but
she was only aroused to frenzy, and fearully
she would take her own life or his at the first oppor
tunity, if he made her more than his servant, which
she was resigned TO be. The whipping was repeated
again and again, but the neighbor women had got
into the secret and made disturbance about it.
Then he sent her to the workhouse disobedient
slave, and had her whipped by the public officer
but the case had been reported to some ladies who
were aroused to compassion They went to see her,
and the master thought best to accept the offer of
one to buy her. A lady from Louisiana purchased
I--~ sd Uvk As- hs->s-
The following is more particular speciica-
ton OF the personal observations of the witness
while she was in Louisville; and the reader
will remember that the eccentric Mrs. Swiss
helm says so:-
Ny account has outgrown all my plans; but still
must add something about the warm clothing which
Mrs. Tyler says the negro is furnished with. have
seen on the streets of Louisville when the Ohio river
was frozen over, dozens, if not hundreds Of bare
footed house servants-old women-following their
fur-clad mstresses with basket parcel, and their
bare feet on the frosty pavement, or very often q
pair OF old bootfeet slipped on their toes, sandal
| This one might any day. The feet of masters
old boots appeared to be Dinahs principal depend
ence for winter shoe leather. | saw three slaves
one little girl-the property of a very pious Bap-
fist lady, whose feet had been SO badly frozen that
part of their toes had fallen off 1t nothing I'M
commonto see their feet cracked and bleeding with
the frost.
Here we stop. 1t is quite enough of Mrs.
Swisshelm. There are other portions Of her
letter unfit for publications. but snch is its rabid
fanaticism, and unfeminine grossness through
out. in style and details, that if it goes to the
ladies of England. as we doubt net it will this
''strong minded woman" viii astonish even the
Boomers with the masculine roughness of her
voice. But, as in England Mrs. Swisshelm
is not quite SO well known as at Pittsburg, we
canton her Grace the Duchess of Sutherland
against giving too much credit or impor-
taBce to her awful disclosures With all their
philanthropy the ladies Of England can
hardly afford to waste their tears over Mrs.
Swisshelm.
the old Congress, and the members of the
new Congress, and the oifce-seekers have
had the interval from Thursday last to work
up the appointments which are expected to be