The St. Johns herald., 1892-06-30
Only a Pen of Slaves.

sive freedom when every man If not only ag good as any other man but little better, story of actual and abject slavery almost in the Eeart of the Empire State of this land of freedom would strike most people as a fairy story, or at least one hard to believe. The stories ot "nigger driving" of the barter and sale of human beings, of families torn asunder and the individuals sold to different masters and driven away like cattle come to us now as traditions of the misty past. The mother reads the story of "Uncle Tom's Cabin" of the pursuit of Eliza across the ice by savage dogs and m ore savage men, to the chil- dren at her knee. The little ones listen to the overdrawn tale in fear ful silence, but after it is all over they conclude that It Is simply story of adventure like that of Alice in Wonderland" and the mother does not undeceive them. And may their young minds never know the hid- eous truth that a system of slavery more brutal, heartless and absolute exists right here in this proud and puissant State of New York-a slavery where white men are the elaves, many of them used to all creature comforts and many little luxuries-men of all civilized na- tlonalities as well as scores of the original monarchs of this country, the Indians.
 This slave territory is in the Adj rondack Mountains, only a few hours ride from the metropolis, and the president ot the colony IS Dr. H. Seward Webb, the represen- tative of the Vanderbilt dynasty and member of the family.
 pr. Chauncey NJ. Depew-tlle same genial, whole souled Chnun- cey who did so much to nominate President Harrison at the Minneap- oils convention, and who will con- duct his campaign-is one of the owners of this slave enterprise.
 He will find it hard matter to reconcile the promises and flattery of his party to laboring men with his own course of indifferent ac- quiesence to the horrors that are perpetrated upon the delenseless human beings by his hirelings in the mountains.
 All the world knows that the Van derbilts are building a railroad through the heart of tue wild Adj rondack mountain range, and most of the world is glad to have a road through territory that will make accessible land of wonderful beau ty. But if they knew that the work was being prosecuted at the cost of human lives, of human liberty, of sufierings indescribable, of starva- tion; if they knew that civilized fellow-creatures were driven to their work-half starved and half frozen at the point of Winchester rifles, shotguns and revolvers if they knew the number of unknown graves-graves of men who have died from the horrible prIvations to which they were subjected by their slave drivers, and if they knew the number ot runaway slaves who have perished in the trackless for est in vain effort to regain their lost liberty-men who were shot down and hanged like dogs because they tried to escape-they would cry: "Stop this work, for the love of humanity"
 People may say that it is impos- sible that Dr. Webb and the Van derbilts can know of these ter rible abuses. Perhaps not, but if they do not it is because they have been stricken with blindness. The newspapers have published columns about the cruelties to which the de- luded laborers who have been lured into the mountains by unscrnpu-