Sugar planter. [volume] (West Baton Rouge [i.e. Port Allen, West Baton Rouge Parish, La.]) 1856-1925, 1859-02-26
4 Tale for st. Valentine 9 Day.
IhEEHi:EqNs. A WIFE.

Grant InutOnrn communicates to the
Waterbury (Conu.) American ths follow
ing incidents:
In 1>+7 joarn"ve, from New York
overland to Columbia, the capital Of
South Caro'r.a making en route through!
/ North C4r>hna aud \Irgula~-l spent
! two winters aul 'hrtr <tInul"rS among
! those barbariaus but never hoarl the
sound of the lash. On certain Iay
was inv;te@ to - lea party IN Richmond,
! a.-Lhere were present abu1l twenty
couple ot young mtn and mAiIens, old
men and lnalryns. with d small Sprlnk-
ling Of bachelors, who had doubled their
teens, who Ir'nn appearances belonged
to tho upper ten >upper being ended,
we commeocei conversjng in groups. |
was much aml,,ed and edited by the
conversation Of an intelligent lady who
had seen eighty winters. She remarked
that in her g'rIsll days it was customary
for captains OF vessels to bring as part Of
their cargo, a large company Of men and
women, who were styled Redenp ptionists,
who were sold on their arrival by the
captain for mon-servants and ,naid-ser
wants. to wait % the wives and children
If tie planters or merchants. They
were often sold to serve two or three
years to pay for their passage. The old
lady remarked that she had heard her
parents tell, that in the ear Y times of
the settlement, it sometimes happened
that bachelors and wilowers would Sc
ect y bonny Scotch or Welsh lady, buy
their time, and long before their years Of
probation expired, they took them for
better aud for worss, for bed and for
board, thus forming a Iife-copartnership,
which closed the concern.
"The old lady related with all the
spcishtly hu'nor of d lass in her teeos)
lLe following amusing incident:
"Says she, my grandfather came from
Scotland when IN his twenty-hrst year.
IL settled in Virginia, and became a
merchant and PLANTER, and grew rich.
His agent Ill Glasgow was Alexander
| McA pun, 10 WHOM he consi igned two Or
three caryoes oI tobacco every year, and
received IN return! cash, dry goods, hard
ware, &c. lie Lad tiocks and herds,
aaeu-5ervants, and ma'd-,vrvants, hogs,
mules, and Jonkey>. But one thing he
yet lacked lie had no pretty little
young wife to sing to him, and begui'e
the time with her rafting: live an
kee tongue, when he came home at
night fatigued with counting money, and
! satjated with worldly pe|t-for he had
more # that than heat could wish. So
after while, he concluded to take a
wife as soon as l. e could catch one; but
there was tle rub his time WAS SO oc-
cupied with his business that he had no
time to conrt; and worse than all, he
Was a bashful ma,. When threading
tie streets Of Richmond. if he saw a
spris|it]y maiden Of sixteen advancing in
his path, he would cross the street, and
pass away on the other side, fearful Of
being killed by S bot from her sparkling
eyes IL had often heard his parents
speak much iu praise Of the bonnie lasses
who played among the heather on the
hilI-tops in Scotland, and Il bright idea
now struck him. When he was leaving
the Office one day, bis clerk was copying
u duplicate order for sundries to be sent
as part Of the return cargo. Thinks he
to himself III order young 'assje for a
wife, as the last item on the list. The
article was ordered accordingly. At the
same time he wrote a private letter Of
instructions to his agent, Mr. McAIpin,
giving a u,inute description If the article
wanted, as 10 age, height, health, &c.
In summing un. he added, she must be
r bonnv Scotch lassje, to be sent by the
return of his own ship, her name on the
manifest, bill Of Iading, &c, On her
arrival he promised to have her stored IN
the house 0! respectable widow, whom
he named, and if agreeable to the par
ties concerned, he would make her his
wife in thirty days after her arrival. II
not, and she wished to return, he would
pay her expenses, loss Of time, &c.
When Sandy McA|pin had finished
reading the letter Of Instructions, he
slowly removed the spectac|es from his
nose, and leaning back in his huge, old
fashioned, weII-slutfed arrn-cha air, and fix
/ ing his eyes on the ceiling in his office,
| he commenced mutteriDg to himself as
follows: The lad ibis correspondent
was then in his thrtietl year, must be
IdeH or crazy,-~he tells NE to send BIN
wife, as if she was q barrel o sat her.
r;;,rs- G0QG hpns The tusL (troublel