The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1856-03-22
SOUTHERN LIFE.
SCENES AND INCIDENTS IN THE SOUTH
Bp Nortbcrn 1aSp.

BR Nortbcru xa0p.
Correspondence IF the Cr!edonian.
DOwN South, MARCH l, 1856.
l thought my Correspondence with The
CALEDoSIAN was forever frozen up, but now
the sunshine and the singing birds have come
and the glory Of the Frost King has depart.
ed from him, and the icy letters with wb;cb
be bound our cold, benumbed fingers for 80
long time. have melted away like snow in
the glance OF the sun, and channel of COM
mun'cstion is again opened between u, and
our northern friends. To us, in our sou,h-
ern home, the lovely spring-,ime has come.
and We welcome it gladly. At home, if our
winters are long and cold, they are pleasant
too, but here. such cold as We have this win
ter experienced,is an unusual thing, and ex.
ceedingly unpleasant too, and makes the sun
shine and the birds doubly welcome. The
quiet OF this town, is the quiet Of dullmess. A
spirit OF active enterprise is wanting among
the mass Of the people. Will very few rx-
ceptlons. they are satisfied to live in the
houses built by their fsthers fifty years ago,
, and in too many instances they are satisfied
With the great ard noble deeds wrought bv
their ancestors, and think not, bv their own
efforts. to add to the legacy they are to leave
to their children. So far As six months
residence here has enabled me to Judge, the
men OF enterprise and general intelligence
are the exception and not the rule, and the
te~ shine all the brighter from the ontra.t.
To too many their tobacco fields and negroes
are their couutry-the rorld; and in these
they are deeply interested, while they bestow
not thought upon the general good. or even
the highest good Of their own chldrpn-their
mental and moral culture. But the dark
side Of southern life and southern society is
ottencr painted BY northerners than the
bright side; so l need not dwell upon that
tor there is a bright side and the Institution
OF Darkness cannot com pletelv overshadow
it. General intelligence and christian NH.
'anthropy have done more to unbind the fet-
ters OF the slave than all the ultra measures
OF our insolent abolltionists. Be not startled
nor think am Introducing reasonable word,
into vour Anti-Slavery paper, for | write
that know and testify that have seen. -
The little leaven is working slowly, but sure.
ly, in the whole mass Of society: and ALREADY
many hearts deeply imbued with the spirit
OF Christ are groaning beneath the weight of
their peculiar institution" do not den,
that slavery i, an evil 70 the slave, hut [ .ie
think that the curse of slavery rests more
heavily on the white population than on the
black. There are whole familie. of black.
here who look down upon poor white folks
with feeling Of cOntempt-and with reason
for the poor slave can read and write. car
work skilltully at hi, trade, is clothed and
fed. and in all things kindly cared for bv hi.
christian master. while the poor white man
: the owner Of one or two slaves, sits down j,
idleness, eats. drinks. and chews tobacco. an,
when the days labor is ended BY his servan,
their converse and their pleasures are tn
= same. The children Of master and slave
are dressed alike, and taught alike. their .lia
lect Is the same. their minds are equally dc
graded, SO far as ignorance is concerned
but in viciousness the child with the whit
skin has the blackcst hcart-for from earies
: childhood he has tyrannizcd over his iarl
= skinned playmate. While the educated slav
is being fitted for . christian missionary il
benighted Africa" the children of christian
lied America arc fast sinking in heathenis
darkness. and neel tue m,ssionarv's labor
amongst themselves.
g Is this the bright side was going to pre-
y sent to Vermont readers? find iii litt!
difficult to separate light from darkn ness; bu
this much can see: 1t has been said bv Iii,
wo has power to effect the separation, Ii
there be light" and though it glimmers fain,
ly, looking at the whole south, it shines bright
! ly in individual instances. know a fair an
. delicate mistress. who does what doubt X
: ever Lucy Stone in her zeal for the poc
slave wonld do. 1t is one thing to max
speeches before an admiring audience, e,
pressing world of sympathy, and it j. ano,f
Z er to labor on. silently. patiently, week
months and years, acting as well as kin,ll
expressing sympathy for the down-trodde
and the oppressed. How many Of our north
ern ladies' would leave the pleasant social an
!, family circle, and sit down in company o
s. niygers, aud teach them and read to then
e and make them truly happy. And this
have seen done month after month, ever
;, evening in the week, and not after DAYS o,
IS Incidence and ease, but after days Of toll ALI
II care. This one mistress is not solitary ex
cept'on, but every really refined lady l.av
met does likewise From these families thrr
r are many representatives in Liberia, and "
5 more are to be sent this spring. They hav
:. met with losses and mi.fortunes of variou
kinds, and send to their old massa" 70
money, Which 10 sent to them. They lei
their masters. not as We might suppose With
J feeling Of exultation that they we're to b
J. free. but rather considering the mseives mi,
4 s'onaries making . sacrifice Of themselves
= do good. Men who might 90 prefer to r,
main with their masters. Some Of these hav
.haI x.ood Ao...o. Ill. g. - ~,