Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1888-09-13
KENTUCKY SLAVERY.
THE OWNERS OF SLAVES GENER-
ALLY TREATED THEM KINDLY.

ALLY TREATED THEM KINDLY.
Experience of q School Teacher in Ante
Bellum Days-Easy Life Of the Colored
Field Hands-Strong Attachment Be
tween the Blacks and Whites.
To the average New England youth who
went to Kentucky to teach school anywhere
from thirty to fifty years ago the slaves ap-
peared to have pretty easy time Of it. They
did not work like the sons Of well to do
farmers in Maine and Vermont. They had
more money and more time for enjoyment.
Mason county at the time I lived there had
a very large slave population As compared
with the white population. believe it was
as large as In any part Of the south, except
few parishes in South Carolina. expected
to witness much cruelty, but I never did.
The owners OF slaves generally treated them
kindly. They certainly did not overwork
them. I well remember the first time l
walked out from the village among the
farms. saw fifteen able bodied negroes sit
ting like SO many black crows on the top rail
of fence at one end of q cornfield 1t was
G little after 10 in the morning There was
no slave driver, with whip in hand, mounted
on horse, as I had expected to see. The
men who were resting, and whose mules
were eating corn leaves, were sent out to
pillow corn. / asked the man who was near
est to me If anything was the matter. ''Oh,
no, massa," he answered: 1--WE was jess
awaiting for de horn to blow for dinner"
found that was about sample Of the way
slaves worked, or rather rested.
On Saturday was surprised to find most
Of the negro population in town. Many of
them brought in wood cut on massa's place,
which they sold and received the pay for.
The money they spent as they chose Others
were dressed in their Sunday clothes and had
come into town simply to have good time
found that nearly every slave had plot Of
ground of his own on which he raised to-
bacco, sweet potatoes and other things, which
he sold for the purpose Of obtaining spending
money. The two weeks that included the
winter holidays was the time of jubilee when
nearly every slave worked for whom he chose
and had the money he earned. II masters
and mistresses desired to have their own
boys and girls work at home during the holt
day season it was necessary to engage them
some time in advance. Such opportunities
for earning money were unknown to boys
brought up on New England farms. as my
old friend and myself could testify to.
The next thing that struck me as very
strange was the strong attachment that e1-
listed between the whites and blacks that had
the same home. Nearly every male slave re-
garded his owner as the greatest man in the
country. He took pride in him and boosted
about him whenever there was an oppor
tunity. If he was treated pretty strictly or
even severely he still thought massa was
mighty big man who hadn't time to waste
over common people. Almost every slave,
old or young, looked on missus as a saint,
and was not far out of the way. The south
ern woman who was at the head of large
family of whites and blacks was in a worse
condition Of slavery than any person about
the plantation. There was birth, marriage
or death in the family almost every week.
Size was the confidant of every one and the
person relied upon for advice and assistance
Her time was anybody's but her own. She
was literally 'the servant Of servants" Her
responsibilities were many and varied. She
had little time for reading, rest, recreation
or society.
The quarrels of slaves belonging on differ
ent farms were generally taken up by their
masters. No white man could abuse slave
belonging to another with impunity. He
was called to answer for his act as promptly
as if he had mistreated son. In tracing up
the cause Of enmities between white families
/ generally found them to be connected with
the treatment Of slaves Two nice girls in
my school never talked together, noticed,
though they belonged to the same class and
were general favoriteS l wondered at this
and inquired about it. l learned that the
grandfather Of one of the girls, while in a
passion, struck the favorite servant of the
grandfather of the other girl and declined to
apologize for it This occurred before my
pupils were born. Both parties to the quar-
rel had long been dead, but the quarrel was
not settled, and question II it is now.
There was law in Kentucky, as in other
southern states, that forbid giving instruc-
ton to slaves in reading and writing. Still,
was convinced that all the bright negroes
who wanted to learn to read did SO. 1t is
very difficult to keep persons from acquiring
q knowledge of written language. If books
and papers are exposed persons will learn to
read them. l noticed that a colored boy
who had dozen letters to deliver at differ
ent places left each at the right place When
ing at home half a dozen little blacks would
be learning A little white boy or girl who
played keeping school, had negro children
for pupils A slave who learned how to read
was not long in learning how TO use map.
In one snort lesson be found out where Can
hda was and what state he would have to
pass through to get the-a
Mild as was the system of slavery that pre-
vailed in Kentucky, there weresone who es-
capped from it. They We're not, as is gener
ally supposed in the north, those who were
worked very hard, were denied all privi-
leges and pleasures, and were beaten for lit
tie or no cause The class that ran away
the petted or spoiled negroes, who
bad many privileges and ways Of making
money, but who did very little work, those
who had SO hard reputation that they had
no friends and wanted to try their luck in
new place, those who had committed petty
crimes and were undiscovered, and those
who had made unhappy marriages. II there
we're two suitors for tina same dusky damsel
one would sometime tell the other that his
master was embarrassed and that there was
danger OF his being sold and sentdown the
river. He knew that be could scare his
rival into running away be could secure the
prize both were seking. Love is a disturb
ing element in the hearts that beat under
Wslch in Chicago Times
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