McCook weekly tribune. (McCook, Neb.) 188?-1886, 1884-06-12
PLANTATION NEGROES.

The Life of Field Hands, Their Domes-
tic Relations.
Wilmington IN. c. Cor Troy Times.
Plantation negroes are, to those who
see them for the first time, most miser-
able specimens of "men and brothers., g"
if they are to be judged by their exter-
nal appearance. They are usually very
black in color with pronounced negro
features, and ignorant. In some cases
they are but few degrees above the
animals. They live only in the present,
know nor care nothing for the future,
and seem to regard freedom as only
the means of deciding for them whether
they will work or remain idle, and, as
may be supposed, if bacon and corn
bread could be had without .he labor,
it is safe to say they would remain idle.
[ was told, however, despite their de-
jected, work-a-day look, they are a
very happy and contented people, and
they are treated with much considera-
ton and kindness on the two planta-
tons 1 visited, being allowed to build
huts and cut all their fire.
wood on the lands, and in
illness cared for either by the overseer
or owner, who employs a physician in
urgent cases. These plantations have
also stores upon the grounds wherein
the hands can buy at market rates all
the necessaries of their lives, food,
clothing and shoes-in fact, anything
that can be had at the usual or "gen-
eral country store" And this has been
done in order to keep the "plantation
hands, at home, for if during the plan
tation season the hands can get off to
town after pay day, there is no chance
of their return until all their money is
spent, and either work or starvation
stares them in the face. And, as most
plantation hands are born and raised in
the work, they know no other. Occa-
sionally a more ambitious or intelligent
one will aspire to 'learn to be bar
ber," and leave his "native heath"
but it is said that they do not, as rule,
take to education, and prefer to remain
ignorant and work by day, and if they
can dance and frolic by night they are
content with life as they find it. Their
domestic relations and moral life is
| better left unquestioned in MANY cases,
although the law compels marriage.
1t is often honored in the breach only,
but they have the enthusiastic
religious "revivals," and their
colored preachers are ever on the
plantations and hold services in their
church at "Orton' for the religiously
inclined. Some of the women seem
disposed to think that the lives of
"house servants are more enviable than
their own, working as they do in the
hot fields, but it is not an energetic
longing and involves to much thought
to be put into active execution. One
rather bright looking young woman, to
whom spoke, asked her what wages
she earned as field hand, and she said
"Mostly So a week, but they say
could get S12 for a month as cook. -
Her mental arithmetic was little off,
but she was in earnest. told her l
did not think she would like the north
ern states, it was so much colder, and
she laughed and said: ssThat's what
they all say, mebbe l would not"
Freedom means to this class of people
only the ability to earn money and pro
vide for themselves, instead of having
everything provided for them, and it
will be long, long time before they
are elevated or educated sufficiently
to understand how much has been done
for them.