Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1860-11-24

member it is now forty five years ago when first
! thought Of commencing the oyster trade had a
very little capital, and commenced with nv basket
ot oysters, and was soon able to get another, and
ADDED little, weekly, to my stock in trade !
soon had competitors but still il was confined en-
tirely to colored men, so that by perseverance, and
industry we 10 short time Jcgan TO do passable
business, in TACT we we're enabled to live and dc
something lor our families But the white man
saw IT, and he thought he would speculate. lie
did 30, and began to draw away our custom. lie
had more capital and was enabled to do a better
business. The poor oolored men quit the field
one by one, yet remained and managed to live.
Soon the oyster" trade became a hourishing one;
and now we have our Astor House, our St. N icho-
las ana Filth Avenue Hotels, as we'll as all the
other small fry, all having their oyster openers
and their private restaurants. This arose from
what the coored man commenced.
1.-The trade being thus spoiled, and Olhello's
occupation gono,' the colored man nsxt took to
shaving and hair.dressiug. This succeeded also,
Tor the Tree black man is industrious, but the
white man saw we were thriving. and ho stepped
in, and now we have our Phalons and our Bache-
ors, and theirs. Still in this busines, the colored
man is pretty successful.
"As body-serVants, walters, and in other men
ial occupations the colored men continued to
thrive: and, at least, managed to exc out subsis-
tence. But the white man stepped in here, too :
and now, with one or two exceptions all the bo-
tells are supplied with white walters, and very few
private families havo colored servants.
"Our next downward step was street sweeping
With our broom and shovel and wheelbarrow we
went on from day to day picking up garbage, and
endeavoring to earn few pennies. But the white
ragpicker aud the machine sweeper came in, and
!he colored man, not being allowed to associate
with thewhite man. had to cast about for another
business. Anything however monial anything to
support life. Accordingly, We became night sea-
vengers, cleaners Of waer-cosets and other places
of that kind, and the remoecrs Of the soil. Here
we thought we would surely remain uudisturbed.
The Tabor was great the work most disgusting
and our natural rest was lost. And we did sue
ceed for while. But the white man saw it was
a profitable speculation, and we were not allowed
to enjoy monopoly even of this disgusting busi-
ness. One and another cana in and offered
their s,rvices, and at length capitalists put their
money into the business, and large contracts were
made fsrihe work. The black mans nose was
pu. out ofjont,' and no had once more to seek for
new field Of labor.
I'VE now struck upon a business which we real
ly thought would bs ablvo the white man, or that
he would consider himself above it. The oyster
business was decent and respectable har-dressing
was decidedly so; shaving was not altogether bar
barous, though performed by barber; body-ser-
wants and domestics had their whito representa-
tves everywhere; even nGht-scavangering was
not bo bad, because at night the party who enga-
ged in it was not known; but our new business
we believed to be the lowest ia the scale. And SO
we went to work, got brushes, backing and q
stand, and commenced polishing the understand
ing OF the people In plain English, we became
shoe-blaoks. And in this we were most success
full Many of our litllo boys used to earn from
one to two dollars day, and even more. This
was seen. In came the white man; he was extern
svcly patronizedj and poor Sambo, as ye call him
had to give way.
ave now thought we had gone as low in the
scale as .ie could descend, and therefore we
agreed to 60 no lower. We ask but for little
raise now. Let us have the suffrage, and we
may do something for ourselves, for We must eat
aud drink and sleep as well as tho white man,
and TO do these we must work and earn the means.
We are not beasts Of burden if We were we should
be presided for, and would be thankful. As it is
we must live. and to do so, we muss honestly get
means. Come sir, take an election oyster"
Thus did Downing electioneer, and if every one
were but half as earnest for his party he for his
race, there would be very few indeed who would
stay away rom the polls on election day.