, 1862-01-24


The following experience Of Mr., McDon-
ough. STAKEHOLDER, WHO resided near New
Orleans. will 70 fur to answer the above qucs-
lion. It is abridged from statement publish
I'd hy Mr.. McDonouyll in the Cincinnati Gu
eetfr in March, 1913. DR.. John G. PalfrGy, for
very valuable History Of New England, made
use Of it in !. pamphlet he published in vindi-
cation Of free labor. Dr.. Palfrcy, whose
father was 4 Shareholder in New Orleans, was
with 3lr. MeDonough, and had
conycIscd with him concerning the expert
mcnt here described
Dir. McDonouyb, 1itdiny that his slaves
worked for themselves On Sunday, for want Of
time on other days, proposed to give then,
Saturday afternoon to work for themselves, if
they would keep the Sabbath. He was soon
struck with the amount Of labor they per
formed during the l.alf day they had to them
selves, and with the sums Of money they con-
tTired to derive from it. 1t occurred to him
that it would tc good plan gradually to sell
them the remaining days Of the week, on con-
dltion Of their paying him certain sums out Of
their wages, ut appointed periods. So far as
appears, the plan WIS suggested solely by
financial policy, uninAucnecd by any conSic~
ton Of the wrongtuIncss Of taking other reo-
pies wages. H called his slaves together,
eighty in number, and proposed to them to
work for him on Saturday afternoon, at small
wages, instead Of working for themselves. He
advised them to draw upon these wages as lit
Tie as possible, and leave the remainder in bis
hands to buy the whole Of Saturday for
themselves. That the terms be offered
were pretty hard, is evident from the fact that
he told them le calculated it would take them
stze1s sFars to buy one day. But he reminded
them tllat the tirst part Of tile process would
be the most difficult; for when they had the
whole Of Saturday to work for wages, they
could in less time buy Friday for themselves !;
ana the facility would 70 on increasing with
every day of the week they succeeded in pur-
chasing He told them that according to
the terms he could offer, and the calculations
he had made, it would take them about fifteen
7rdrs to buy their entire freedom
Undisn1ayed by the tcdiousncss Of the pro-
cess, the slaves seized his offer with carcrncss.
They went to work SO zealously that they
bought the whole of Saturday in less than six
wears; Friday was bought i'll four Eears; Thurs,
day in two years and i quarter; Wednesday in
fifteen months Tucsday in one year; Monday
in six months.
In fourteen years and half they had pur
chased their freedom, beside working diligent
ly for their master thc days that still legally
BELONGED to him. 1t would have been done
sooner, but during the later years they expend
ed more than they hid formerly done for com
fort and convenience for their families. Th'
labor Ut their littl. bays and girls also had no
| nude up the sum required for them by tn
| master; so there Has i balance due on thei
| account, Which they worked five additiona
months TO pay.
'Nr. DIcDonough, describing lis experiment
| says:
"Tkcz had aiwaye been well disposed and orde1
| Il. bet, from the day made the proposition,
! great change took place III them. A sedatcness,
care m economr. and Industry took possession 6
| tLcu, to which there appeared to be 10 bound
but their physical strength. They became temper
atc moral, and Religious sctting an example tina
| was observed and admired by all. They perfozme
| for mr. more labor, and better labor, than slave
usualiy perform, and, in addition to that. carnc
rolty trough TO buy themselves. From the tim
tie experiment began to its completion. bcsld
paying for themselves, they gained for me mono
cEtmeh 70 enable to buy gang Of siaYes. ''ea
q faice their number. at the prices in Carolina au
| Virginia. This stste from exact accounts kel
by ne, Which III: ready to ettes, to, in the 1ao
| solemn manner at any sicac.'
The etcadincss anc industry OF these sls7t
attracted attention in the noighborhood, an
also in thcadjaceat city Of New Orleans, whe
twenty o. thirty Of them we're let out to wor
uadc- the supcrintcndence Of a.head b7ic
layer, named Jim.
The p1hlic we're net informed Of the slim
Ius wlieA prompted these slaves 10 sucl1 u
| u:us, s@t:vity AID diligence. Perhaps Mr. N