The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1911-07-12
PEOPLES FORUM


~ os dependent Tor the facts OF history, and more
especially of southern history, upon such teach
ers as Or. Dodd, Professors Thorntenberg Eson
anu others. Most of them were educated soon
after the war. and doubtless with an honest
purpose to get at the real truth, unbiased by
the prejudices OF their southern raising they
ehousht that they must be guided by what
seemed TO be fhe unbiased writings of the only
text DOCKS on history then available for them.
Those text books, however, were nearly all
ny northern writers, strongly impregnated with
northern views. Indeed they often thought it
necessary to finish OF their education in North
ern and foreign institutions. all of them strong
iy biased against the South, and with text books
or similar character. These somewhat
'alu excuses; but those who pretend to teach
history should dig deeper into Southern sources
and give more faith to Southern writers. This
Or Dodd raised. I understand. in North Caro-
iinar for a while professor In Il. NJ Col
lese. and now of Chicago; ts engaged In maxi
ing political speeches in Virginia, with flip
pancy On his positive statements, that we'll be-
come the most arrant politician. Has he any
data by which to prove his numerous bald
sertons? This same man while professor of
history at r. NJ. College. published article
in the college magazine, to be read mainly by
the inexperienced boys 1.-The Self ENace-
ment Of Virginia" In that article he stated
that early in the 10Th century the people Of
Virginia opposed to slavery; but that
later when they found the raising of slaves
for the Southern market was such a profit
able business-'a likely negro girl on the
block in Richmond easily bringing s25oo,' the
Virginia people had changed their minds
the subject A viler SANDER Virginia
rarely uttered, though such may be found
in the pages of the famous Elson's his
tory. AS the son of a Methodist minister raised
in various parts OF Virginia, and having at
tended r. NJ. College two years. and the U.
of Va two years preceding the war, / had
every chance to know personally about these
things. My father, and numerous relatives
owners OF slaves good able bodied
slave rarely brought owe $1,000 to $1,000;
and a woman rarely over $500 to $1,000. The
prices were mainly lower than these Very few
masters in Virginia ever sold their slaves to
the Southern markets. except for crimes that
would otherwise send them to the pententiary.
The business of slave trading In Virginia was
not at all respectable; those engaging In 1t We're
under the ban of society. we'll remember that,
in the ffties. when a slave trader, whose wife
member of the Southern Methodist
Church In Fredericksburg, offered to give
scr OF pulpit furniture tot said church. the
membership did not wish to receive IT, as be-
ing purchased with tainted money. There were
numerous Virginia planters who held on to
many more slaves than they had any need
Tor because they were unwilling to sell them
10 strangers~the slaves having increased UNI
der the good treatment they received. The
owners realized that they had responsibility
for the clvilizing and outstanding OF these
people, placed under their care by no fault or
effort OF their Just the PHILIPPINE Is
lands and even Porto Rico under the
care of the United States and not regarded as
prepared to govern themseles. V As for the
planters harem represented by Elsons hts
tory, I knew heard of any thing Of
the sort. II there was a single, or few OF such
cases, az well represent New York City as
made up of such citizens as Stamford White
as to characterize the whole South as Elson
did. I remember that while l was student
at Randolph Macon some students from How
ard University, attending fraternity eonsen-
ton Chapel Hill, paid visit OF several days
to Randolph Macon. If the statements which
they made as to the condition of high society
in Boston were correct, there far more of
proniscous harem among the daughters Of the
wealthy people OF Boston than has pos
sihiy been the among the negro slaves OF
the South The southern people have always
been bitterly opposed 10 miscegenation: and
that 1t has been very slightly practced is evil
denced by the fact that while the negroes have
been In this country for over zoe years. and
there have been fresh importation for over
90 years. of which time in all but forty-six
years they were in slavery; Yet fully three
fourths of the negro population Of thss United
States is still of pure negro blood. Indeed pro-
badly not much twenty per cent. in all
that time having acquired the slightest tint OF
whit blood. There was never happier
more contented people than the slaves of
the South. That they ill-treated in
few instances Is but human mature in all
phases Of society everywhere. The hard tales
about the slave drivers (overseersl were
doubtless true few of the plantations
Of the cotton States where the slaves
bought conyicts. and had TO be treated
eonvicts.
The affection of the slaves for their masters
Is proverbial The evidence of that was abound
ing during the Civil War While the white men
in the army their helpless families
we'll supported and protected by the slaves.
Many slaves went into PENNSYLVANIA as
wants to their masters. and came back glad to
get home again
II DIR. Dodd and others wish to know the
views Of the South the subject Of slavery
preceding the war, l would re.er them to the
book Liberty and slavery written by one of
the greatest minds the South ever produced.
Albert Taylor Bedsoe. l. l. D., born in Ken
taeky. educated at, West Point. iawgerssor
seven years In Springfield. ILL.,, at the bar with
Abraham Lincoln. and professor in Ohio, and
at the University of Mississippi. and at the u.
of Va Also to THE Philosophy and Practice
OF Slavery written by Rev w. A. Smith D. D.
probably the ablest president Randolph Macon
deal about Professor VIM. A. Shepard who pre-
coded him professor at r. NJ. College Prof
VIM A. Shepard raised in Dorchester
Mass the heart Of abolitionism. After teaching
some at Yale University he came as teacher
and student to Randolph Macon. After his
experiences of over six years in Virginia he
such ardent admirer of the South, and
defender of slavery, that he fought through
the in the Southern army.
The South did not fight for slavery, but for
liberty to manage her own affairs in her own
way; and she would doubtless have freed her
slaves herself they were individually pre-
pared for 1t, and never allowed such an ex-
Indeed the problem of the negro Is by no
settled yet-nor 1t ever be as well
as the South would have been able to manage
1t If she had been let alone. Prof. Gaetano
Langa OF the University of Of Virginia came
from Italy to America for freedom He lived
while in Boston, and married there When
the and his wife wished to re-
he had come to America for liberty, and he
would remain in the South-as there was more
liberty to be found In Virginia than in Bos-
ton.