New-York tribune., 1879-06-04
A SLEEPY SOUTHERN CITY.

FEELING,
IrRoM AN OCCASIONAL CORRESPONDENT OF THE TRInUNEI
SAVANNAH Ga. May 2S.-0ur ship sailed from
New-York in the afternoon, and as day dawned
sixty hours later there We're the lights of Iybee
Island like red stars only nearer than the Charles
ton lights the night before after supper; the
yellow river and sem-;ropical sea grasses of the
flat banks the low red walls of Fort Jackson, tif
teen miles above the low, red brick fortress
Pulaski; the remnants of the piles Of the stone
pens that once blookaded the river; and then Sa-
vannah on it's noble bluff with the spires of the
Exchange and DR.. AxsOn's grand church of white
stone and the brick stuccO hOusesexacty as they
were when sherman ended here his famed " March
to the Sea" The whole spectacle might have be-
longed to another world. The Philadelphia steam
ship at her dock was fast asleep. and 80 were the
tug that has come from New-York. with n
hulk laden with bananas, the :" Success" the
only sailing vessel III the lower river
half dozen sail, of FISH or coal procliyities
and the city of OO00 people half of them negroes
At the dock you would have taken odds that no
man ever saw New-York. We waited TO eat
breakfast on board. after full leisure to see the ship
tied up with ropes, carried by negro and white
man m a little boat. The omnibus cad from each
hotel and the driver of a hack, sat and talked
while we took our food at leisure and the negroes
came out from the city 10 unload, and not soul
was in hurry. The purser had time to talk TO
everybody. The captain had children on the
bridge and gave his horse and buggy TO a clergy
man and wife The shipping clerk took the word
of any gentleman who wished TO remove freight,
that he would call at Bay-st. and pay the wharfage.
and the ship shook out her sails to idle IN the
breeze of the South the ha ba. haw. of the negro
took its time TO explode, and the rat that got in
the way OF a rolling cask of spints had full two
minutes to get out OF the way.
knew my way, for had mounted some OF those
Columbiads down the river. and arisen from pr-
yate. Clinch Rifles, and Lieutenant Company u,
regulars to Colonel and stars upon the gray, III the
warm land But IT was only o'clock, and the city
sbone in sum- and its mosS-draDcd old trees gstened
in dews, but II all slept. Only Africa began 10
awaken. From the exodus of some 5000 out II
1000 600 blacks had been led to expect to see no
negroes The old one-st0ry. two and four room hut
built on an English frame by ORlethoIpe, Is stilI
the type on Iadan-St., and all OF the old streets
back from the river. dOoT-sOop that was large
enough for five little negro children, seldom held
over seven ten, and IN the clean, fresh market
TWO negro women TO stall, talking with eighteen
friends. showed the nearing labor famine Of the
South. The sun was growing hot and the time near
7 o'clock. had no sun umbrella, and was perSpir-
ing slow coolness came upon the day. Inc
shadow as Of " a great rock in a weary land" came
1uon my soul. A ncgrrss who would have required
three theatre stalls foT a seat came down before the
Irecz. and never could have gone against 1t. From
her face fairly shOne the refreshing darkness and
then il slowly passed and was alone with the SUM-
Several times came these Egyptian clouds OF dark
ness that could be felt and always with cooiness.
How many real gentlemen of color took on their
hats TO Us how many OF such good motherly Old
auntirs a. had once nursed me- extended their
kindly" howdy," and good mornin' to You. sah,"
it would be hard 10 say. Bur, used 10 the get
out-oi-ny-w way-I-noyeI -knew-you Of NeW-1ork,
almos, faucied l was Abraham the Lberator re-
viewing nv grateful fellow-cltzens. But not one
soul in all Savannah said Master The tree of
Liberty las taken root 1t took Israel generation
TO get nj for Canaan. God grant that these who
were in the main so faithful to wives and chill
dreu when we were on the battlefield may yet find
their Promised Land come true.
1t was past T. IN fact nearly :, and an insuTection
would nave found the white population largely IN
bed. Negro cooks did the marketing Negro men
took down the shutters. Negro women with per-
feet dwsrfs OF oxen hitched buggy-wlse TO tlny
carts had from the country with fresh salads,
field blackberries. live chickens and fresh butter
for tie market. and by this time were departing,
for il is a sunrise market. Negro scaNengerS
cleaned the sandy streets. Negro lads drove the few
and the negro driver might be talking OF the
" grand sociashUn" now meeting at the tlrst
African Church, somewhere IL half a mile Of his
1uue. An occasional White mau, reading Inc NelrS,
a 6-ceut sheet with about half The matter OF one
page OF TIE TEiBUNF, appeared under ah umbrella.
Negroes laughed with pTodlEh ivory on every COZ
ucT and some got out IF the white mans way. but
not so certainly rs IN NeW-leTk IN agent WIN
whom had business was expected soon TO nc III us
bath, provided ne was early cut Oi Ded; Inc negro
element was as explicit as usual IN giving
directions. COlOred house agent did not ny IN
pecuuiary agony 10 be the INST 10 get thc com
mission but consulted two BROTHERS 9tteI ie ilesh
(aud color as TO what houses Mr.. Mills and others
might have and gave The addresses of All the OtheI
agents as freely aS his own. was 10 lean round
down dare pece'" to md me ocreven nous
cottage on Anderson aud iltaAeI was 40 uaIe a
right smart blt.' direction wac down tneTe
below Mrs. Cohen's,' as # had directory IN my
brain. and the sympathy WAS as warm y ile sun,
of tDeir " j. YOU list COmeg Haln't BIN here IN
eight years Is that so7 On, good l.ordE Inc
only city newspaper had one house advertised 10
let. a drove Of COWS. and "a lot OF displayed shop
notices. One place 70 rent IN square mlle nobody
poor, and capacity 70 absorb sunshine ana llYe on
ii. seemed the sum of the city.
As / was going down IN the Nhtaker-St. ears
on the morning Of Emancipation paJ two coloTed
officers horseback, passed US, well mounted and
riding as well as the average caValTNman OF me
plaius One of these Colonel W. III. Wood
house and the cOloTcd regiment was soon seen
formed on South BrOad-st., on the green between
line including the Lincoln Republican Blues OF
Charleston eighteen men. But tins dld not include
the oldest savannah company, Wulch was ieIHSeu
its ranking place in the llue. IheY maIcnCd ABOUT
as well as 30 irrcpressblc and uDdrillabie race
can aud looked wei. mostly IN blne UNIFORM, and
their hussars unmOinted. rev OF tho coloreu
nronIe mad any adequate idea of what they were
reIfbrating. OF several that asked, one only said
that II was Emancipation. Another sad lt was
Ballot act Day, and another sald us sumthh
about Mr. Ilnkum don't know dcZactly what The
only white officer at the barracks Or United states
soldier IN Savannah, 50 far as l can learn, SAID
" Dam finO; am green N these political matteTs;
He had inst the sweetest little rosebud of gr FOL
LOVING him about the empty old Confederate mead
quarters, and she knew as little Ot the uay as nc
,lid The only Savannah paper sald IL was
Fifteenth Amendment, but IL didn't say what
Fifteenth Amendment was; aud l nave asked