Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1854-07-07
From the Southern Miss Journal, Aug. 6, 1853.
Barbecue at the Plantation of the


Barbecue at the Plantation of the
Hon. =. A. Douglas.
Mr.. EDITOR Il had the pleasure OF attending the
barbecue given by Mr.. James Strickland, the agent
and overseer of the Hon S A Douglass, of Illinois,
at the plantation of this gentleman Pearl river,
in this county, on the Both ut The barbecue was
intended really for the slaves on the place. IN accord
with yearly custom which Mr.. Strickland had
adopted but there was goodly number OF ladies'
and gentlemen present from the immediate neighbor
hood.
The arrangements Were in most excellent taste,
and the tables groaned beneath profusion of all
the good things of this life. The barbecued meats
were dressed in the finest and most elishable style,
and the joining river and lakes had been forced to
add their supply of dainties to the feast noticed.
too. that there real superabundance of delight
full cakes of all sorts, shapes sizes and ingredients
but being almost greedily engaged in the demolition
of the more substantial portions of the dinner, feel
incompetent to pass distinct judgment upon the
the sentiments of the crowd, when, with two tender
ribs of mutton in his mouth, and delicate piece of
WELL Drowned fish on his FORK he hoarsey whispered
-" 1t is a good and pleasant thing to be here
The negroes followed the invited guests at the ia
bles and sat down to the same danes and delcacies
which had Just afforded much satisfaction to our
palates. They numbered some one hundred and
forty in ALL 1t was goody sight 10 see their dark
counenances lighted up with pleasure at the sight
of the eatabes before them the entire abandon with
IRENE delicacy of the female portion of the crowd,
ordering the delighted walters, with fastidlons taste
and careless toss of the head to fetch the incest
pieces of the sheepmeat they could find or to
cut big piece of de cake wild de icing it,, or 'o
stand furder back and not crowd on de lady when
she war drinking her coffee"
The most amusing part of the scene was table
full of little snow balls-some forty in number and
all about one size and age. They we're the blacklist
of black little niggers." Their heads rolled from
side to side they crammed in the food, and more
particularly the cake in pure repetion of animal
enjoyment They did enjoy it. Tears were in their
large rolling eyes, but they were tears produced by
satisfy of cake They wept because they could
-" Eat more''
There was not one Of the slaves, little or big, but
who was dressed clearly, and some of them almost
elegantly-for there is (strange as it may sound to
the ears of some) fully as much for dress among
the negroes as among the whites. The little ones
are rugged off in their white cotton shirts, the old
familiar plantation dress for the children OF the South
white as we'll black. Here was comfort, health
and happiness displayed.
NV object, Mr.. Editor, in thus detailing the scene
which witnessed on this plantation, is to call the
attention of your readers (and it may be some who
are no) to the fact that here, in own county OF
lawrence in the State of Mississippi is large plan
taton of negroes owned by Northern United States
Senator and that these negroes better ted better
clothed, and their bodily comforts better provided
for than many of even the white aboring classes of
the North passing by for the present the condition
of its free coored population. The negroes of SEN
ator Douglas have divine service regularly performed
and for their special benefit Their spiritual as well
as bodily wants, are attended 10. Now the thought
struck me that it would have beena most instructive
lesson to certain freeso constituents of Senator Doug
las to have been present on this occasion. | would
like to have the exponent and embodiment of
" all young America " make his appearance just as
his slaves seated themselves at the tables, in order
that he might have taken in at a single glance the
real condition of the poor African of the South.'
1t would have added eloquence to his tongue,
new strength to his genius, and few energy to his
SOUL to have been able to witness such scene as
this, and afterwards, when fanatcism should drop
the slanderous falsehood from his tongue, to have
described in his own strong and vivid language, the
sight he beheld on the banks OF the Pearl, in the
slave State of Mississippi and to have told The rev
ers of our institutions, with his natural bodness
that this was not an isolated instance of the souher
ners' humapty to the save-but that it was the same
everywhere the full length and breadth of oul
beautiful and smiling South 1t would have been
q; good hint to such man Douglas, to have told
those charlatans in literature, those Pharsees il
philanthropy, and that immodest womanhood of the
North what VIC know the truth to be from actual OBJ
seEyation