Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1862-04-22
MOrtester Daily Spp.
LIFE IN WASHINGTON.
STORIES OF THE LATE SLAVES.
Correspondence of the Evening Post.
WASHINGTON, April, 1862.


straight, black, shining. A smile halt sorrow
fui and wholly sweet makes you love her face
as soon as you look on 1t. 1t is face strong
with intellect and heart, with enough of beau.
ty lett to tell you that it was more beautiful
still before wrong and grief had Swallowed it,
Llzzie's father was a gentleman of "the
chiyary," and in her mothers veins ran some
Of the best blood of the Old Dominion. l
cannot tell the wrongs of her childhood and
early youth; if L were to try my hand would
stiffen with horror, my heart, in its strong in,
dignation, would stif1e the words mighl ut
ter.
In her girlhood she was sold to a family who
took her to great city OF the northwest.
For years the gentleman, the "lady." and
their large family of children were supported
by the labor of this young slave. Lizzie's
great skill and taste made her the fashionable
dressmaker OF this metropolis She earned
thousands of dollars, and it all went to the
support OF her masters family. The young
ladies went in fashionable society and enloyed
their line costumes none the less that they
were first earned and then made by the young
slave who, thrice as intelligent and quite as
handsome as themselves, sat through the
weeks and months in a chamber at home.
spending her life for them. They considered
1t eminently proper that she should so do.
Was she not their slave? They owned her
OF course they did In the meantime Lizzie
had married. The care of one family. and
the support of another, seemed a little heavier
burden than she could bear. She had borne
it to be slave herself She would not be the
mother OF slaves.
One day she astounded her master BY ask.
ing the privilege OF paying twelve hundred for
her liberty. He received the proposition with
great anger; "Lizzie," he said, II am aston
ished that you should talk about liberty.
Haven't you always had your liberty? Don't
you go and come as you please? Who re
stricts you; you might have run away long
ago had you pleased. Who has more liberty
than you have 2"
at is true" said Lizzie, "that | come and
go as please, because have always pleased
to come and go for your benefit and that of
your family. am tired. | shall never run
away but should like to earn the right to
own myself before die"
Nonsense; you might as well dismiss that
Idea first as last. l shall not consider it for a
moment" said this owner of most profitable
piece OF human property
PURCHASING FREEDOM.
Lizzie integrity, talents, and true woman.
hood had won her many influential friends
Ladies, who thought slavery a very pretty
and convenient institution, some way ieit that
there was something homogeneous in "such A
woman as Lizzie being slave" The leading
women OF - advanced twelve hundred
dollars to purchase Lizzie's freedom, and her
master found out that lie must sell it, as he
was In very bad odor among the bon ton Yet
so reluctant was he that this woman should
belong to herself, that when he died, wears af
ter, her freedom papers were not made, and
she was subjected to trials without number
before her claim to freedom was completely
established. She paid back the twelve hun.
bred dollars with the work of her needle She
paid large debts of her husbands. She cave
her only son a college education Last sum
mer he was just graduated, " hen, with thou.
sands OF other young men, he rushed into the
ranks of the federal army. He fell in battle
with the brave Lyon. He died, and with him
the last earthly hope and consolation of his
mothers heart. DesOlate she turned her face
from the west and came here, sorrowfulv,
YEARLY to begin life anew
1t is Lizzie who fashioned those splendid
costumes OF Mrs. Lincoln, whose artistic ele-
gance have been so praised during the past
winter 1t was she who dressed" Mrs. Lin
coin for "the party" and Tor every grand oc.
casion. Stately carriages stand before her
door, whose naughty owners sit before Lizzie
dOcile as lambs while she tells them what to
wear. Lizzie is an artist and has such gem
Jus for making women look pretty, that not
one thinks of disputing her DEGREES Thus
she forgets her sorrows, interesting herself TO
serve each one who comes, as if to dress her
was the chief business of her existence. But
to the woman who stretched out her hand
to her as a sister, she broke into pas
sionate tears, saying. 81 am alone in the world.
1 have nothing to live for any longer. | try
to interest myself in these things. but cannot.
Lizzie has her rooms in neatly-furnisbed.
handsome brick house owned by coored
man who first bought his own freedom. then
that of his wife and children. This house
aud several Others in the city, which bring
him in handsome rents, are the result of his
own industry and economy. A woman of
thought and refinement, a woman of deep at
lection and high aspirations, she stands alone
in her womanhood, alone in the universe.
SLAVE GIRLS STORY
Bena is a cunning little mig the oldest and
the jolliest little Congo that L ever saw She
is perfect Congo-no blood of the chivalry
in her. A head thickly padded with wool,
jutting out here and there in fantastic tufts
nose which locks as if it had been flattened
to her face by single blow; lips like two
sausages tied at the ends, opening OVER large
teeth, while and cleaning eyes large and
liquid, soft and sunny loving eyes, has Bena.
She is nine years old; wears shoes more
substantial than stylish-regular brogans
long blue wooden trock down to her heels
white apron, with an enormous pocket cram
med to bursting with headless dolls and their
ragged wardrobes, with broken croekerv.
beads which always need stringing, and leaf
of an old catechism, which she knows Inv rota
for she is perfect little Papist, and crosses
herself like a SAINT.
This Bena-do you see her?
open my door; and from behind it mons
Bena with bunch of flowers in her hand.
"Ben watin' out yer dis long time. Pick
ed desc flowers fur Missy knowed she liked
desc ar" says the little sinner with an nsin.
uatng voice, and grin which almost stretch
ed her mouth to her ears. Perhaps | might
think that it is pure love for me which keeps
these fair fresh flowers upon my table, if [
did not know that Bena's heart is set upon
possessing very large doll with head, and
every new flower, she expects, will bring her
an instalment of pennies toward gaining that
beloved object.
Bena is slave. Through the greater por.
ton OF her life she received beating from her
master regularly every day. The bestowal OF
this thrashing was part Of the routine of Ills
lie; he gave ii independently OF her dongs or
msdoings, simply to "break her !" and to
preclude the possibility of his possessing a
SASSY niger"
Bena formed portion of the dowry of his
vile, aud she having AZ much attachment for
her as she might feel for any animal of her
own, placed her in this house to save her from
the beatngs of her master Very likely you
will call him Il boor but lac is regarded as a
gentleman of "high blood"
"What are you thinking about, Bena 2" l
asked the other day. as the child stood in the
middle Of the ROOM her large dewy eyes gaz.
ing mistily out in the distance.