The Van Buren press., 1861-07-03
A Shareholder to hia c.


A Shareholder to his serv,,. .
We publish the following let,s, 80,
JAS. Thomason to his servant in rum Ar
Georgia. We think the letter w;,, ,,pa'aen
with interest at this time Man.'a
have been at loss how to, ins,ruc, !; people
wants, at this crisis let them read ,I sr
ter to them, and let it be crcula,sa 'uHlss
them. The time has arrived for tbs .mons
to have some proper explanation Of tbss bss' ~
as they have, no doubt, been tamne,sS Wv
by designing persons, and may be b,rto.a .a
vain. If not dangerous notions, as 10 ,hs
interests In the conflict: v 'ae'
RICHMOND. Va, June 20. Iss,
My OLD SERVANT JACK: au NO. !.
Virginia. long way OF from m, h..
and family, and expect, in O dav or ,w" e
take part in the great fight which is 0';' Nv
on between the North aud the South sSSS
l left home to go to the war, nv mind I'
been greatly troubled for fear tha, som. 10y !,
my servants might be led astray bv ,Lor
tionists or other mean white men ia
away or do some other bad thing. hs,..
the other day Of black man in Kinc,,o'
Georgia, who was persuaded to oin in !.
plot to kill the white people, and it turns
out, as it always does, that he was iOp,s
out and hung. Now feel it my duty J,I
to warn you against all people, whetb,. .
white or black, who will persuade Won !.
kill or steal, or go into any wicked plo, d (
any kind. No matter what promises the, /
hold out to you, do not believe them ., !
trust them. And let me tell you. wbe,hs,
you believe it or not, that the friends Of the |
black people are their own masters. ana
those who live in the slave States.
The people of the North pretend that the,
want to make you free, and some Of them
may be in earnest, but a greater portion q
them really care nothing about the black
people, for they once had negroes, and in.
stead Of freeing them, sent them down south
and sold them. and now they try to ruin q,
and our property by persuading them to run
away from us, and do all sol Is of mischief
and they have stolen away great nsnv
servants from the Southern people and whea
these servants get to the North they are free
only in name. and are. really, great many
of them, poor, miserable, starving crea.
lures. So, you see. it is not the blacks the,
care for, but it is because they hate then
masters. and want to annoy them. and IN.
jure them every way they can, Just in tae
same way that q bad man sometimes ia..
out with his neighbor, aud tries to revenge
himself by DIGGING his hogs and crppng
his cattle. A man once bought inr horse
from drover in Kentucky. and tina, ye.y
night wicked neighbor came along, anl
turned him out in the lot. and he ran away
and he never got him again. You can ca
silly understand that this bad man did moi;
do this to free the horse, but did it to spite
his neighbor. 1t is the same way with the
Northern people about the blacks in this
country.
Now, we have been in a quarrel with
these Northern people for the last forty
years, about the new lands out West These
lands belong to us as much as to them. gu,
they have all the while been trying TO keep
us from going there with ou: servants and
when Lincoln was elected. he said that the
Southern masters should never take then
servants to this new country. Nowa grea
many Of our folks had already bought land
out there. and wanted to go there with ihel
servants to live, SO that when we law TIM
man Lincoln and the Northern people wer
determined not to give Us our share Of tA'
land, we made up our minds to leave then
or secede from them and live to ourselves
and this is what the fight has commence
about. They want to force us to live Will
, them. because they want our money to hell
pay the expenses of their Government, an.
they always managed. while we stayed VIII
them, to make us pay tine biggest part
, their expenses.
J We are determined to submit to 1t NJ
longer. and therefore We have seeded o
separated from them, and elected Pre'i
dent of our own, and will have nothin
more to do with these qrarrelSome peoPe
} except to fight them as long as they come
, our side Of the line to meddle with or troa
bic us. Now. then. you can see into IN
, truth Of this matter, and can understsn
, what all this drumming and fighting
, about. and you mus: at once see that tn
, South has been greatly imposed upon' ah
that We are in the right in this business an
the North is in the wrong. =.
And now that you understand how TIL
, thing is. l hope you will take my advic:
and go along and attend to your own 0uS'
ness. AS a good and faithful servant Shoul
| do, and don't forget that you are slave
the appointment Of God, himself, ior u
, Bible plainly teaches it. If it did not
would have no servants about me. Dia,
people are the descendants OF Canaan, u
| SON of Ham, of whom the Lord said
servant of servants shall he be umo =.
! brethren" The hite people are the des.e. -.
; dants Of Japeth. and the Bible says - ~
naan shall be the servant of Japhe'nn, :,
Gen. Ak In an othel rart OF the D'uS y
we have these words " Screams ce 0,''
r enf unto your masters according TO me pe''
scifA fear and trembling. in s'ngfene'
, hsart az unto Christ. Not ~ih eye ser'''' er =.
4 as men please, bxt as tie servants @ o"''
! etc. !; kaOwing tAat whatsoever good m'"y ." ;,
man doeth. the same shall ne reee,W I"
Lord. sohefAer he be bond or free. (hP'
VIZ i.
Il There are other passages in the biD'e ~ y
teach this doctrine. So, you see. IL you =
lisve these Abolitionists. You must I.,S u ~
away the Bible. and deny the truth oi "oa y.
word. Will you dare believe them 10 p's
J, ierence to God? And. moreover le' =
tell you that if These abolltionists wets
!, kill every man in the South. they wou'a q.
A. likely to make slaves Of you as to ~, ~,
you free. and. indeed, some oi them -. :,