The progressive farmer. [volume] (Winston, N.C.) 1886-1904, 1899-08-22
CORRESPONDENCE.
The Editors are not responsible for the views
Of Correspondents
THR EXODUS OF THE AMERICAN
NEGRO.
DR.. John r. Foard Discusses the Cues
"tion Exclusively,

Correspondence Of the Progressive Farmer
Will you kindly publish the follow
ing article, which has appeared in the
Mascot and Landmark, in your paperH
think it a better way to deal with the
Constitutional amendment and the ne
gro question. JNo +. FoARD
In His wisdom God has seen proper
to divide the human family, since the
creation, into different races, colors
and many languages, arising from ! ns
committed by man in different ages
and countries; the history Of which is
o very i~mperfectly known. When
this continent was discovered 400 years
ago human servitude had then been In
existence in some shape in every known
country Of the world; and the most
barbarous and cruel forms of slavery
practiced by many educated C OF
the human family. The Western
Hemisphere was then the home Of the
Aborigines or Indian tribes, who made
slaves Of their wives: and the numer
GUS tribes of Africans did the same,
and also of both sexes Of their race
captured in their tribal wars. The In
dams being savage war like, and
not an agricultural population, were
not ft subjects for the slave vender;
but the African being more docile, sub,
miseive and already accustomed tC the
evils of the slave trade, very naturally
became easy victims of avaricious and
debased slave traders Of their own and
other countries. Consequently great
numbers, first from the valley Of the
Niger river, (the waters Of that river
being black, and the meaning Of the
word niger being black and the people
very black, they were called negroes
by the Spanish traders, hence the name)
then from other sections, were bought
and stolen and transferred in the nos
cruel manner to the New World for
the money that was in the business.
Spain, England and Portugal claimed
territory, and forming colonies on this
o ointment soon supplied them with
slave labor from Africa. The English
colonies or our forefathers protested
against the traffic, but the mother
country forced it upon her subjects to
create commerce and revenue; and
later, citizens OF other nations, and the
New England States increased the
bushes or slave trade to great proper
tions and to the injury Of the pur
chssers or white race Of this country.
Several Of the most Northern States
seeing the institution or slave labor
did not pay, soon sold most Of
their slaves to their Southern brethren
and emancipated the remainder; and
the doctrine Of emancipation was dis
cussed until about 1925 when the
American Colonization Society was
formed, chartered, lands bought in
Africa, and q Republic established,
called Liberia, fashioned after ours,
for q home for all freedmen of the
United States who would and could go
to it; and a law was passed by Con
gress, for our navy to capture all slave
ships on the high seas, confiscate the
ships and send their negro slave pas
sengers to Liberia at government ex-
pense. Said society was formed and
managed by such men as Daniel Web.
ster, Thomas JEFFERSON, Bushrod
Washington, Henry and Cassius N
Clay and others who created such q
sentiment in the South as to cause sew.
eral Southern legislatures to come very
near or within a few votes Of passing
gradual emancipation laws, which
many slave holders favored, and would
have been productive Of great good to
both races and continents, and pre-.
vented the civil war. But politicians
(many of whom had no financial in,
terest in the institution defeated the
humane and philanthropic movement.
The two great political parties, as
such, were divided on the issue-the
Wings favoring emancipation and
coloniz9tion-while the Democrats
favored the perpetuation of the insti-
tuition and extending it South and
West into all newly acquired territory.
Henry Clay was beaten for the presi
dency Of the United States because he
had been the first presidents of the
American Colonization Society and
was called an sbolitionist; which cam
paign built up the Free Soil party and
fixed or settled the matter until the
civil war decided forever the vexed
question at very great loss of life and
property, and the decentralization of
both races; and from then till now the
two races in the Southland have grad.
ually drifted from each other until a
race var is upon US. The writer, hav.