Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1863-11-12
THE surFERrNGs OF THE ncoNrRABANDs.

L
meeting held Monday night h.t, in the large
Hall Of the Cooper Institute at New York under the aus
pices Of the National Frssdmens Relief Association
10 bebaf Of the suffering contrabands in the
| Of the Mississippi
That speedy and eectua measures might be taken to
improve the condition of these people and prevent future
suffering Gen. GRANT has sent the Rev. A. 8. FIsKE,
Chaplain and Superintendent of Contrabands n his De-
parmenf TO represent to the people Of the North the
destitute condition of the contrabands" and to solicit
means to provide for the comfort Of the wives and children
of such Of them now in the army of the United
States
The meeting represented to have been large
BETS, and seeming be inspired with sympathy for
the sufferers which indicated willingness to contribute
for the alienation of their distress The Rev Dr. TYING
presided and delivered brief address. Remarks
also made BY Dr. Hitchcock DR.. Bellows, and Gen.
Sickles Resolutions adopted calling upon the peo-
pie, especially the Ladies' the Chamber Of Commerce,
Board of Brokers, Corn Exchange the Churches, and
other associations, to contribute funds for the ameoraton
Of the black freedmen. Also resolution directing the
appointment OF committee of thirteen citizens to wait
upon the President of the United States and urge him
call on Congress In his next message to create Bureau OF
Emancipation whose duty it shall be- at the expense of
the nation to superntend the transition of the freed
men, from state of compulsory labor to condition Of
self supporting industry.
The remarks which will most interest our readers are
those of Mr. FsKE showing the deporable condition of
the negroes under his charge We extract the following
from report in the New York Times:
The Rev Mr.. FIsKE stated that there were not less
than nifty thousand blacks upon the banks of the Msss
spp from among whom had been cued every able bodied
man Tor the military service This sable throng
posed of women, children and the iLm. They rested
in crowded camps sheltered by eaky tents whose taters
Hmt in hraa Ihauu g. Id tha
ment cheap raon unserviceacle military clothing being
supplied TO some extent to the nfrm Officers until
recently chaplans, were detailed for their They
were clothed just that in which months they
fled from their masters He should hard things
to say OF officers and soldiers army but amidst them
all let hmthe modest unpretending hero Of Vicksburg-
stands spotess He early all the prejudice Of
education and training, and had stood the black
friend All that he could do he had DONE noby literally.
BY his order every step for their and the supply of
their necessities had been ken The honor of bs action
in these sais should brighten forever the u.tre his
nperlshable This patrcthero should be greeted
he lived through the ages of the worlds history,
not only great but good.
Mr. Fske proceeded to detail several scenes of suffer
ing and injustice which had passed before his eyes pre-
vousy to bis being detailed to the Of the contrband
He said that the key all restitution these camps
was to be found in the method Of their coming in. They
came from plantations from which every thing had been
stripped Our armies this summer had subsisted the
country, aud swept vast regions Of all forms of supply
The blacks could not remain behind Their only chance
to come to the river with the army flee further
into the interior They chose the forme of course and
in by long marches without transportation for
any thing, in utter restitution What could you ask
mother, with babe in her and another clnging to
her skirts To bring for the shelter of her children during
the wnter You could hardly ask why she did not bring
bed and blankets and clothing fnr their shelter during all
the months. The blacks of jeff AMI Joe Davis 10
back Of Vcksburg in June last in great restitution Blan-
kes were distributed among them the gift of the Sanitary
Commission, by the speakers own hand, they
lying their byouack with nothing between them and
the cold EARTH nothing between them and the clear sky
They started in with teams and goods but the teams
by the and their goods lost at the outposts of
our forces miles away So they in in utter destitu
ton.
Out Of number of four thousand blacks under
his Charge at Memphis during the months Of February
March, and April Of the present year there died during
that time tioue hundred Three-fourths Of them had
change of ramentprobably oneourth of the had
but one garment between themselves and utter nakedues
Many children were kept night and day rolled in the poor
blanket OF family-s sole apparel. They had multi
tudes of these-no beds There doors in their
eaky tents, and chance for fires The wonder is not
that so many died, but that many lived.
The suffering Of this people national dshonor II
they were not rescued history would write something
thus: The American people enticed within their lines
tens Of thousands of slaves alurnr them thther with
promise of liberty took from among them all able bodied
men to reinforce their armies hudded the rest together
in great camps and left them to perish of nakedness by
the hundred" How will that page OF history read The
tdngs of their suerings had gone back to the Confede
racy till these people had ceased to eagerly
they did III II proved possible for the South
her blacks against il would be by OF the suffer
ings of those who had reached lines Perhaps with
the baleu light Of this too welatested fact he might be
led to strive for his liberty in arms against US.
Mr.. Fiske closed with earnest appeal to all lovers
of humanity and all patriots to for their immediate
relief.