The weekly Mississippian. [volume] (Jackson, Miss.) 1859-1864, 1860-10-10
Letter of Hon. a. 6. Brown.

monetary as well as the social felatlohs .. .'is
community in which we live. am UNIV nm
TO admit that the great mass OF the people y
not fully comprehend these various anu ~
sified interests A few there may De "ho1lo
not. and to that few will address the answer
am about to make to your inquiry +
When it has been asserted on the moor Oh
CONGRESS- that the non-slayeholder had ne~ih-
terest in the question of slavery and tiiat ne
was in no wise bound to engage IN the ie'Siui
struggle now going on, have repeleu ~ ;.
When it has been intimated tnat IN tiie li'l' t
issue the non-slaveholders wontd Oe ioi'1itt u.i
the side OF abolition, have re)ee'eu tne '.l',-
nation rs n foul asperson on the . .,':i ia.e,
solid patriotism and sound sense oi 'n"' ''' -
class Of our people. ek, co,,.h vii,
fully sustain what have sad III thelr penn
does not, in my judgmkpe, aaLlI u a 49, =,
"What interests have non.siavehoiu'TS III
the South in the questIan OF s!a'efy ,.o,,
They have twosfdld interest,"" ii'O'''' oN
| interest, and social interest.
n Is great mistake if the non-saveholder
supnoses that. because he owns no slaves, he
therefore has no yecaniary interest in slavery.
Does the non-slayeholder own land: what
will his land DO worth when slavery is aboi-
| jshed? Is he the owner OF cattle, horses,
houses and other property? What Will all
these be worth in a free negro community
Docs he live by cultivatins the SOL; VINO
creates markets and builds railroads. and pro-
Tides otherwise, By his money and his brains,
| for the most profitable means OF selling the
productions of the soil? The Shareholder.
Who gets the benefit of these markets, rail-
roads and other profitable means, and with
comparatively little cost! The Ron-slaye-
holding farmer. Then let him not say, T"
have no interest in the question"
Is he a mechanic? Who is his best and
most profitable employer? The STAKEHOLDER.
Is he merchant? Who buys most Of his
goods? The stakeholder. Is he a lawyer or
doctor? Who pays him the most fees? The |
stakeholder. Does he, in short, rely on his |
muscles or his brains for bread? Who IS his |
best customer? The STAKEHOLDER. Then let |
no man Of any occupation, trade or profession,
say, AZ own no slaves, and therefore have no |
interest IN the question"
All are interested; all have an immediate, |
direct and positive pecuniary interest IN the
question, and all ought, as have no doubt all
will, stand up manully in its support
Non-slaveholders have been told. and no
doubt will be told again, that slavery antag-
onizes with their labor. In PLAIN English,
that if there were no slaves, they would get
better wages for their labor. On the contrary,
assert that slavery in the slave States is the
assisting handmade of free labor. In all non
slaveholding communities, capital antagonizes
directly with labor; and why? Because in
such communities capital hires its labor, and
is, therefore, interested in getting it at the low
est possible price. In slayeholding commune
ties, on the other hand capital, as general
rule, owns its labor, and is therefore interested
in putting up the price of labor to the highest
possible point. The man who either hires or
buys labor, is first interested in getting it at
the lowest price, and next, in selling the pro- I
ducts of labor at the highest price. On these F.;
two points he rests all his prospects Of gain. l
Now, let us see how the two systems work
in practice.
A, owns one hundred thousand dollars in {
Massachusetts,, and chooses to employ it in |
manufacturing He hires his labor, for the S
simple reason that the laws of that State do
not allow him to buy ard hold slaves. Now. !
what is the first great motive of x? Mani /
testify, to hire his labor at the very lowest pos
sible price. B, on the other hand, Mississip- {
plan, owns hundred thousand dollars, and he
employs it II raising cotton. Instead of hiring, '
he Juys his labor, (slaves.) Of course his first a
great object is to buy at the lowest price; but !
this being done, his next and greatest object is
to sell at the highest price. To this end he {
directs all his talents, skill and capital. He L
creates and keeps up markets for the sale of l
his productions or the productions of his slaves t
labor and into these markets the non-slave- '
holder enters and sells on equal and often on S
better terms.
The same is true of mechanics. 4 owns q
his house-carrenters blacksmiths, bricklayers, s
&c, &c. OF course, his first l
great object is to raise the price of labor in all
there branches Of business, B, on the other
hand, hires his mechanics. 1t is just as clear
that he is first interested in hiring at the low
st price possible. When they come to sell, 5
10Th and B are interested in selling for the /
1est price. makes his profit on negro |
slaves labor which belongs to him, and in
whose future he has direct interest. Is ,
makes his profit on the labor of a hired white |
nan who, being no longer profitable. is turned ;,
,ut to shift for himself, or it may be to starve
II beg or steal. II
If A hired his slaves, instead of owning
hem, he would of course hire at the lowest
'rices, and then his case would be just like
3's. But, as be owns his slaves, his capital,
instead of being employed to Cypress and grind
own the wages of labor, is engaged in sus- /
aiming and bearing up these wages. If A {
ellis the products of his slave labor at high
rices, the free white laborer sells his at the ,
anne price.
Capital, whether invested in planting or in s
be mechanic arts, is ever on the alert for pro-
table markets. If A owns slaves and makes Z
otton, plows, hoes, wagons, Shoes houses, or
ny thing else, he employs all his skill, inge- I
uity, tact, talents and money in creating and I
eeping up the best markets; and into these
narkets the planter or mechanic who owns no ,
layes enters and sells at the same or higher
rices. Have / not thus made good my pro- !,
ositions, that there is, first, no antagonism
etween slavery and free labor; and second,
hat slavery is the assisting handmade Of free :
,bor in the slaveholding States. :
1t is the fashion at the North to say sla- /,
cry degrades labor at the South l simply
SIX every southern man be he STAKEHOLDER or
if this is true? On the
ther hand, does not the master and the slave {
york continually in the same field, at the
anne bench or the same forge, and each main
ain his own position in society? In short, is
not gross SANDER to say that any man
oses caste at the South because he works in
he same field or in the same shop with
lave? I
But I anticipate, was simply discussing
he pecuniary interest which non-slaYe-
holders have in the question Of slavery.
This interest, however, is as dross, when
to that other, higher, loftier and
hoher interest, which the non-sIaveholder has t
IN the question of slavery, namely THE
SOCIAL INTEREST G
What is to be the social condition of the |
white race when abolition shall have carried q
out its scheme Of setting the negroes free? /
That is the question and 10 the non-slaye- I
holder it IS question of fearful import.
know it will be said there is no danger (
that abolition, in the madness of its folly. |
can ever carry its schemes to this point. So {
the people OF San Domingo thought. So
they were assured. Even the fanatics. who
led the Wild crusade against slavery, were
lavish IN these protestations, that the rights. |
interests and security of the whites were to
be preserved and protected at all hazards and
at every cost How faithfully those assn
RANGES were kept, and those protcstations
carried out, may be read in the bloody his
tory Of that unhappy Island
1t will be said again, that if Abolition
attempts to strike this final blow we will then
resist. II resistance is not made now, it
will not be made when the North shall have
grown strong enough to abolish slavery and
we too weak to defend it.
throw slavery in these States. Of this there |
can be no more question than that the sun |
shines at MONDAY. And everything is tending |
with frightful rapidity to the consumation Of |
that design. When the design is carried out !
what is to be the relative condition Of the two
races (white and black) in the present slave
holding States? This is question which
non shareholders must ponder; and ponder
now. To delay is to abandon themselves and
their families to the terrible fate that awaits
them.
Can the two races live together in peace
when both are free? No sane man will
pretend for moment that they can. What
then? have heard thoughtless people say
we will take up arms and slaughter the blacks
like dogs What for? Will it be by any
fault of theirs that they are free? Viii it be
by any fault Of theirs that they viii cease to
be what they now are-obedient. respectful
humble laborers? Shall they, for the crimes
Of their worst enemies-the abolitionists--
be hunted down like beasts and thus the