The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1855-08-16
HOW THE SLAVES LIVE.

We last week attempted to show from Off
cial documents the allowance of food and cloth
ing to the slaves of the South. The reader will
find the following description of plantation
economy, by FREDERICK DOUGLASS, to cores
pond with our showing. No Southern man,
who reads the graphic picture, can for a mo-
ment doubt that Fred. is genuine runaway
niger Or that he saw the elephant" be.
fore leaving home. We have rarely seen a more
powerful argument against Slavery than this
faithful recital of his plantation experience pre-
sents. We must, however, enter our protest
against one sentiment expressed by Mr.. Doug
lass, on the ash-cake question. We regard
him as unsound and unreliable on that point
and a Southern man we enter our profess
| against his Northern "ism." The extract il
from neat edition of the autobiography o.
Frederick Douglass, entitled any Bondage
and my Freedom" Judging from this and
other passages which we have read, we cannot
doubt that it is a work of decided interest, en-
| bracing much valuable information in regard
to the practical workings of Slavery. G.
at is the boast of Shareholders, that their
slaves enjoy more Of the physical comforts OF
| life than the peasantry of any country IN the
world. My experience contradicts this. The
men and the women slaves on Col. Lloyd s
farm received, as their monthly allowance of
food eight pounds of picked pork, or its equiva-
lent in fish. The pork was often tainted, and
the fish was of the poorest quality-herrings,
which would bring very little if offered for sale
IL bair
fish, they had one bushel of Indian meal
unbolted-of which quite fifteen per cent. was
fit only to feed pigs. With this, one pint of
salt was given; and this was the entire month
ly allowance of fullgrown slave, working con-
stantly in the open field, from morning until
night, every day in the month except Sunday,
and living on a fraction more than quarter
of pound of meat per day, and less than a
peck Of ornmeal per week. There is no kind
of work that man can do, which requires a
better supply of food to prevent physical ex-
haustion, than the feld.work of slave. So
much for the slaves allowance of food now
for his raiment. The yearly allowance of cloth
ing for the slaves on this plantation consisted
of two tow-linen shirts-such linen as the
coarsest crash towels are made of; one pair
of trousers of the same material, for summer !;
and pair of trowsers and jacket of woollen,
most slazily put together, for winter; one pair
of yarn stockings, and one pair of shoes of the
coarsest description. The slaves entire apparel
could not have cost more than eight dollars per
year. The allowance of food and clothing for
the little children was committed to their
mothers, or to the older slave-women having
the care of them. Children who were unable
to work in the field had neither shoes, stock
ings jackets, nor trowsers, given them. Their
clothing consisted Of two coarse tow-linen
Satisfactorily described-per year; and when
these failed them, as they often did, they went
naked until the next allowance day. Flocks
of little children, from five to ten years old,
might be seen on Col. Lloyd's plantation, as
destitute of clothing as any little heather on
the west coast of Africa; and this, not merely
during the summer months, but during the
frosty weather of March. The little girls were
no better off than the boys ell were nearly in
state of nudity.
'As to beds to sleep on, they were known to
none of the field hands; nothing but coarse
blanket-not so good as those used in the North
!, to cover horses-was given them, and this only
to the men and women. The children stuck
themselves in holes and corners, about the
quarters; often in the corner of the huge
chimneys, with their feet in the ashes to keep
them warm. The want of beds, however, was
not considered a very great privation. Time to
sleep was of far greater importance; for, when
| the days work is done, most of the slaves have
their washing, mending, and cooking, to do;
and, having few or none of the ordinary facili
ties for doing such things, very many of their
sleeping hours are consumed in necessary prep
arations for the duties of the coming day.
| "The sleeping apartments-if they may be
called such-have little regard to comfort OF
decency. Old and young, male and female
married and single, drop down upon the com
mon clay floor, each covering up with his or hel
blanket, the only protection they have from
cold or exposure. The night, however, is short
ened at both ends. The slaves work often a.
long as they can see, and are late in cooking
and mending for the coming day and, at the
first gray streak of morning they are summoned
to the field by the drivers horn.
More slaves are whipped for oversleepine
than for any other fault. Neither age nor sex
finds any favor. The overseer stands at the
quarter door, armed with stick and cowskin
ready to whip any who may be few minute,
behind time. When the horn is blown, Their,
is q rush for the door, and the hindermost on,
is sure to get blow from the oyerseer. YOUNG
mothers, who worked in the field, were allowed
an hour, about ten o'clock in the morning, t.
60 home to nurse their children. Sometime
they were compelled to take their children will
them, and to leave them in the corner of tn,
fences, to prevent loss of time in nursing them
The overseer generally rides about the field OF
horseback. A cowskin and hickory stick ar
his constant companions. The cowskin is
kind of whip seldom seen in the Northern
States. 1t is made entirely of Unframed, Blu
dried, OK hide, and is about as hard as a piec
of wellseasoned live oak. 1t is made of vari
GUS sizes, but the usual length is about thre
feet. The part held in the hand is nearly a,
inch in thickness and, from the extreme en-,
of the butt, or handle, the cowskin tapers it
whole length to point. This makes it quit
elastic and springy. A blow with it, on tn
hardest back, will cash the flesh, and max
the blood start. Cowskins are painted red
blue, and green, and are the favorite slav
whip. | think this whip worse than the cat
o'nine-tails.' 1t condenses the whole strengt
of the arm to single point, and comes with
spring that makes the air whistle. 1t is tel
rible instrument and is so handy, that tn
overseer can always have it on his person, an
ready for use. The temptation to use it is eve
strong; and on overseer can, if disposed
always have cause for using it. With him,
is literally word and blow, and, in mos
cases, the blow comes first.
"As general rule, slaves do not come t
the quarters for either breakfast or dinner, bu
take their ash cake with them, and eat it i
the field. This was so on the home plantation
probably because the distance from the qua
ter to the field was sometimes two and eve
three miles.
"The dinner of the slaves consisted of a hug
piece of ash cake and small piece of pork {
two salt behring's. Not having ovens, nor an
suitable cooking utensils, the slaves mike
their meal, with little water, to such thickness
that spoon would stand erect in it and, afte