Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1860-11-24

action be common.
If the fifteen Southern States of the Union
should meet in Convention. and determine
/ to sccede from it, there would be no war no
bloodshed. SO many of the Northern pco-
/ pie ere dependent upon our Cotton, ann our
Trade, for employment: and for the neccssa-
rics, as well as the luxurics of lifc that they
could neither afford to fight us, nor 90 stand
by and see others do it, Nor could the
Government of Great Britain afford to wit
ness an invasion of the Southern States
F, We are planters, large portion of the peo-
pie of England are manufacturers We come
in competition with none Of their interests. -
/ Our interests and theirs arc mutual and re-
ciprocal. The people of the Northern States
are the rivals of the people of England i'll
manufacturing aud shipping. Both are de
pendent upon us for Cotton. -Four millions
of the people of Great Britain look for the
means of their support, to the Cotton crop
of the Southern States of this Union. An
invasion of our soil, which would cut of
single crop of Cotton, would shake the pill
lars of the English throne, and the cry of
" bread or blood " would at once control the
action Cf the Government, the Army, and
the Navy OF Great Britain in our favor
am aware that the opinion is entertain
cd by many, that the Southern States, in
I
would be in a worse condition than they
now arc, in reference to tho rccapturc of their
fugitive slaves MS it is said large numbers
would escape and we would have no process
by which we could recover them from any
portion of the Northern Contrdcr cy This
Is great error. In case of separation OF
the two sections, and the formation of new
governments, the people of the Northern
Contcdcracy, would no longer feel that they
were connected with slavery in the South,
amy more than they now are in Cuba or Bra
zll. Most of the Northern States have al
ready enacted stringent laws, against the i'm.
poratIon OF free negroes among them
They would not desire snch pupulation in
their midst, and would he willing to spend
money to rid themselves OF it, They would
need our Cotton, as they now do, and would
find our TRADE still indispensable to their pros.
pcrty. We should then have the power
to regulate our own revenue laws tariffs &c
and to discriminate against them, and in
favor of European States, if we choose to do
So by imposing export duties on Cotton pur-
chased by thcm aud import duties on man
uacturcd articles sold by them to our pco
pie. This they could not endure and pros
per The result would be that they would
if required, enter into treaty with us to
] =,
them to us at the line, if we would agree to n
favorable Commercial treaty with them, by
which they could buy our Cotton and sell US
their goods upon equal terms with other ma
tIonS. y similar treaty for the like reason
could bc made with the English Government
by which Camady would no longer be the
harbour of fugitive slaves
The sentiment, do donbt, prevails in tic
Northern States, that the people of the South
would DC III great danger from their slaves. in
case we should attempt to separate from the
/ Northern States, and to form an indvpcuccut
Government. Insurrccion and revolt are al
ready attempted to be held in terror over us.
| do not pretend to deny that Northern spies
among us, might be able occasionally, TO in
cite small numbers of slaves in different TO-
cal!tcs to revolt, and murder families of in
noccMt women ard children; which wculd
obiigc us promptly to execute the slaves who
should have departed from the path of duty,
under the deceptive influence of abolition in.
ccndlarGs. These instances would however
/ be rare. Our slaves are usually under the
eye Of their masters or ovcrSrrrs. Few of
them can read or write. They are not per
mttcd to travel on our Railroads, or other
public conveyance, without the consent of
those having the control OF them They have
/ no mail facilities, except such MS their owners
allow them to have, and no means of commu-
ncaton with each other at II distance They
are entirely unarnnd, and unSkilcd in the
use of arms. y general revolt would there
I fore be impossible. But the more important
/ fact, which is well known in Southern society
iS, that nine tcnths of them are truly and de-
! rotcdIy att.rhcd, to their masters and mis-
trcSScS, and would shed in their defence the
last drop of their blood They feel and re-
cognlzc their mlcrority as race, and their
= dependence upon their owners for their pro-
lection and support whose smile of appro-
bati"n constitutes their highest cujoymcnt-
] hey have not been accustomed to claim or
exercise political rights, and few of them have
any ambition beyond their present comfort
and enjoyment. In case of plot or conSpi-
racy, the secret could be communicated to but
few, till some would learn it, who would i'm
mcdiatclY communicate it to their masters.
and put them upon their guard This would
lead to an immediate seizure and execution of
a few of their leaders We have therefore
but little cause of apprehension from rebel
lion of our slaves
| Let us for moment contrast our difficult
, ties with our laborcrs, in case of division,
with the difficulties which the northern pco.
pic would have with their laborcrs.
Many of the Northcrr masters, or employ
crs, if they prefer the term, are now in poss
cSson Of large fortunes, which they have ac-
cumucatcd by the use Of the strong arms of
white laborcrs among them. who have labor