, 1886-09-07
EASTERN VIRGINIA.
PROSPERITY OF THE COLoReo POP
uLATiON SINCE THE WAR.
Former Influence of Master and Mistress
The Old Slavery Songs Rapidly Dying
Observation-Disclosures Names.


The Old Slavery Songs Rapidly Dying
Out Religious Services Material
Prosperity-Extravagant Names.
The soft and well bred manners OF
many a beautiful negro woman come from
having been in her early life much about
the house, observing and initiating the
manners OF the white family. Then, the In
fiuence OF the master and the mistress vas
directed against this religious savagery
which seems natural to them. They were
encouraged to lance and sing and to be
merry. In harvest time, the head man OF
the long row of reapers with cleaning
scythes, was under orders by the overseer
to sing his reaping song loudly, and the
harvest field was full OF melody. Whisky
was given out. and the harvest. which was
known as "the black mans holiday" was
made a season Of merriment and feasting
by the masters, who held to the ound
doctrine that cheerfulness and industry
are apt to go together. IN every plan
tation were one or more fiddlers or banjo
lists, their rude music being in demand for
the white people as much as for the black
ones. A musician enjoyed many privileges
and received many little g%ratuities justly
credited to art.
l. SLAVERY SONGS
Now, all this is changed. The negro
preachers have proclaimed that there is
nothing out OF gehenna worse than dane
ing excepting iddling and banjoing. The
devil is represented to be the original
dancing master and the father Of the pro-
fession. The accordion is allowed, but
the banjo and fiddle are vigorously ia
booed. The prohibition extends to worldly
songs, and the weird melodies they
a n 1nnn . arxn 10 rt,rnn tla,o 90.
Moody and Sankey hymns. Their old
slavery songs are rapidly dying out. The
negroes have n natural prejudice against
them as relics and reminders of their
slave days, and SO Jim Crack Corn,
Johnny Booker. jimmy Is the Hoe Cake
Donei and all Of their primitive merry
songs are dead and forgotten.
An exception to their rule of forgetting
must be made in favor of the Hampton
Normal school. There, the managers APP
preciating the wild beauty of these old
plantation airs, have tried to preserve
them and have trained a number OF singers
in them. But the negroes dislike them
excessively, and perhaps with reason.
They sing hymns with genuine African
fervor and abandon. and at least half Of
their religious services consists of sing
ing. And such singingi It is generally
aAh' ~ ao AOt = " MUM
Der of a church guarantees a negro
against his W kind. The worst foe TO
the civilization of the negroes is their
slavish superstition and their absolute
submission to their preachers, who are in
turn the victims of tyranny themselves ut
the hands OF interruptions white men.
MATERIAL PROSPERITY
Not that the negro Is not thriving in
this part OF the world. On the cont airy
his little patch of ground, with his yoke
OF steers or his scrub of a horse, yield him
n good living. and evsry year he rises n
step In material prosperity-only that he
has only escaped from one kind of slavery
to fall into another. They still retain Their
fondness for ~eNtravagant names, although
they are not as funny as formerly, rs
they no longer have the white people TO
suggest them. Scripture names,r as
they are called are great favorites, among
which Ananias is not the least. When
the names of the apostles are selected,
the title Is very often given too. Uncle
Apostle James, was II well known charac-
ter in these parts. One of the planters
hereabouts named his servants after the
dukedoms of England, and Surrey. Nor.
folk and Richmond were colored indivi-
duals Of a pomposity corresponding TO
their names.
Another master took n classical urn.
Terence and Juvenal were in the house
nd Herodotus' place was on the coach
box. Another named them in pairs. He
had not only an Ananias but n Sapphire,
M Abelard and an Eloise. One day a Wis
tor at the house, not knowing this char
acteristic, hearing an inky black speci-
men spoken to as Laura, inquired: well,
Laura, where is Petrarchi" and was cleo
trifed by Laura's replying: "Petrarch, he
in de kitchen helpln' to peel de Eaters fer
dinner AT another place a romantic
mistress surrounded herself with Iris,
Melissa, Venus and Cupid-the last two
especial favorite in the way of names, so
much so that a feminine form OF Cupid
was evolved. Cupid was always short
ened to Gu, and GUS female contemporary
was very apt to be named Cuetta. This
name Is still common. Scott's novels
supplied the names at another plantation.
Nora Avenel. Amy Robsart and Lucy
Aston were landmarks, and the name of
the cook was Edith Pl%antagenet. This
name was very much admired, and not a
syllable of It was abated, although it
gradually changed its form to Edith
Observation-Disclosures Virginia Cor.
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