Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1862-11-07
Is GOVERNED TOO MUCH"
MIS- G. Ell Il A N Y.
From the Aihniio MonIhly.
BLIND TOM.
only germ In wilhered hoser.
That the fiin will bring oui-sometim~.

YER hy name) bOughta IlkeIy negro woman
with some other fcli.hands. She was stout.
tough mu.eled. willing, promised to DO a
remunCra,ivc servant her baby, however,
a boy few months old, was only thrown
In as makewcight to the bargain. or ra,h'
or because Mr.. Oliver would no. coascn, to
separate mother and child. Charity only
could have induced him to take the picanin.
nv, in fact, Tor he was buta lump Of black
/ ncsh. born blind. and with vacant grin OF
idiocy, they thought. already stamped on
his face. The two slaves were purchased, !
believe. from trader /, has been lmpos'i.
. bic. therefore. Tor the 20 ascertain where
Tom was horn. or when. Georgia 6tld.
hand, are no, accurate as Jews In prcscrv.
ing their geneAloGy they DO no; anticipate
n Messiah. \ white man. you know. has
that vague hopo uneon.ciou'ly latent In
bin. that he i', or shall siyo birth 10, the
great man Of his race, a helper, proVider
for the worlds hunger 40 ho grows icalou.
with his blood, the dead grandfather may
have rrc'ascd the possible s,n bs'iie', |,
i. debt he owes 10 bic coming saul 10 tell
him whence hs cane There are some class.
e, FREQ and slave, on, Of whom society has
crushed this hope they have no elan. No
family name, among them, therefore. This
idioi.5oy, chosen by God to 30 anoini'
81 with tho holy chri'm, Is only "Tom.
-" Blind Tom" they call him IN all the
Southern States. with Kind cadence al.
ways. being proud and fjni Of han and
ye,-no,hlng bot Tom? 1ha, is ritiiul.
jus; a mushroom growth,-unkinnci. un.
expected. no, hopsl Tor, for generations.
owning no name to purity and honor and
give away when he il dead. lie mother, nj
work % day in the Oliver plantations, can
never comprehend Why her boy !. famous,
this s,i, o, God to blm means nothing to
her. Nothing to him, either, which 10 sal.
dc,t OF al. be d, unconscious. wears lie
crown A. an ilio; might Whose iaul' is
that, Deeper than slavery tho evil lies.
Mr.. Oliver did his duty well to the boy,
bsips a. oh.sr,an, and thoroughly kind
master. The plantation va, large. heart
some. ficcl the sun. swarmel with little
black urchin.. with plenty to cat, and moth.
ils,O DO.
All tha, Tom required, as he ia,,eued on,
Of baby into boyhooj. was room in which
10 b. warm. on the grass patch, or by the
kitchen Grcs. 70 BE- stupid. hibhy, slcery,-
kicked and pstied alternately by the other
hands lIc had hahi, o' crawling up on
the rorehc, and vcranias Of the mansion,
aud .lua,,ing there in the sun, waiting Tor
kind word or touch from those who went
in aud out. lie seldom failed 10 receive is.
Souiheruers know nothing of tho physical
shiSer ol aversion with which eVcn the Ab)-
liiionis,s u the North touch the negro 80
Tom. through hi. own helple'sncs', cane to
be sor, OF Pc, in the family. playmate,
occasionally. Of Mr. divers own infant
children. The boy, creeping abou, day
after day in the hot light, was a' rcpugnant
an Object as the lizard. in tho neishborlns
swamp. aud promised to be Of a' little use
70 hismas,er. lie was Of the lowest negro
type. IRON which only foll.b,nd' can be
made. .-cOal.blaek, with rro,udine heels
the ape jaw, blubbcr-lfs eon''aa'Iy OPEN
the sish,le.. eyes closed, AID tho head
thrown lar tael on the shoulders, lying on
the back. in fact, "A habit which be still re-
,ains, aud whish add, to the imbccile char
ac.er oi the face. Until he was seven years
Of age. Tom was regarded on the plantation
as an idiot. no, unjustly ior a, the present
time hs judgment aud reason rank but as
those Of child four years old. llo showed
u dog like affection for some members OF the
household, "A son Of Mr.. Oliver especially,
or keen. nervous sensluveness to the
slightest blame or praise from ihem.-p9''
scssed, too. q low animal irritaSIliiy OF tom
per. giving way TO inaTticulate yelps OF pas
sion when provoked. That isall, 90 Tar
We find no other outsrowth OF in,ellec, or
soul from the boy jus, the same record as
tia, Of thousand. Of imbecilo negro children.
Generations OF hclthendom and slavery have
dredsel the inherited brains and ,empera.
men,s OF such children tolerably clean OF
all traces OF power or purity,-pal'iei the
brain. brutslized the nature. Tom appar.
emily Jared no better than his fellows
IL wa, not until 1857 tha, those phenome
nal powers laten, in the boy were suddenly
developed. which stamped him the anomaly
be is TO day.
One night. some,imc in the summer OF
that year. Mr.. o!wer's lam'ly were waken'
cd by the sound Of music in the drawing
room no, only the simple airs, bu, the
most difficult exercise. usually played by
hls daughters. were repeated again and
again. the touch Of the musician being tim.
ia. bu, singularly true and delicate. Going
down. they iound Tom. who had been lei,
asleep in the hall. seated a, the piano in an
ecs,acy OF delight. breaking out at the end
ofeach successful figure into shouts OF laugh
ter, kicking bis heels and clAppios hi.
hands. This was the Grst time he touched
the piano.
Naturally. Tom became a aninc-days' won.
der on the plantation. lie wGs brought 10
as IN slter.dinner's amusement; visitors
asked for him Es the show Of The place.
There was hardly conception, however, in
the minds OF those who heard him. Of hqv
4 -. Al Z. aans.a 10, .rnndnr lnr Thn .lanA-