The Colorado statesman., 1912-04-27
SLAVERY CONDITIONS IN
GEORGIA BEFORE THE CIVIL WAR
BY r. ]. MASSEY.

The institution of African slavery
is so intimately connected with the
history OF Georgia, and has been so
closely interviewer with her civiliza-
tion, that a brief account of it's origin.
its growth and its sudden abolition
should be recorded, not for crimina-
tion or eXculpation. but that the truth
of history may be vindicated. Facts.
cold facts, are history, and they never
blush to be narrated. Georgia was
the first state to prohibit the slave
trade with Africa, and she kept that
prohibition inviolate, while some of
the northern states carried It on long
after their own slaves were freed.
There was to them no profit in slavery,
but there were fabulous gains in the
posed of their ow nslaves by sending
them south, and in some instances the
young of their slaves were given
away.
Their average conditions was indef-
nitely better than that of the poor,
who Lived in the slums of the great
cities of the north. They had all the
necessities of life and many of its
comforts, and in the main were more
independent and less care. less re-
sponsibility than their masters.
Young negroes grew up to manhood
with the children of their masters,
frolicked with them by day and hunt
ed with them by night. They had
their own corn shuckings, their har-
vest suppers and their Christmas
dances, where the fiddle. the banjo
and their merry laugh were always
heard in the field by day and at the
fireside by night. The masters were
almost universally kind from good
policy If nothing else 1t was as
much to their interest to keep their
slaves in good condition as it was to
protect and nourish their horses and
cows. 1t was rare to see a puny,
sickly negro child or one that was
malformed or diseased. Cornbread,
pot liquor, big hominy and plenty of
grease saved doctors bills. There was
a trusting companionship between the
young people of both races, but the
color line was always drawn and do
minion waG on one side and obedience
on the other Never did a race in
crease faster than the slaves of Geor-
gia. Nowhere was such ripe old age
to be found among the parents. Good
food was abundant on the plantations
and comfortable clothing came from
the homemade loom and spinning
wheel. Negro infants and children
were always cared for by their mas
ter and mistress. and SO were the
aged ones who had served out their
day and were too old to work Sim
pie medicines and good physicians
were near at hand, and the negro
was almost without care or apprehen-
sion. The marriage relation was
Enforced among them and divorces
were unknown. The ymultiplied rap
idly, in many cases the parents living
to see more than a hundred de-
scendants
NEGRO WAS HAPPY.
That Georglans did not emancipate
their slaves was owing to variety of
circumstances. The climate of the
south was suited to the negro, and he
seemed to be contented and happy
here. The southerners had invested
more money in slaves than had their
northern brethren. The invention of
the cotton gin had suddenly stimulat-
the negro was peculiarly fitted, and
the growth of rice. tobacco and sugar
cane was equally inviting to his labor.
But more than all these reasons was
the fear that the slaves were increas-
ing SO rapidly as to put the common
wealth in peril If they were freed
They were still affected with the same
race traits that they inheriteod from
barbarian ancestors, and 1t was feared
that they could not be controlled as
freedmen or as citizens. Still, there
was an intelligent number of our peo-
pie who favored gradual emancipa-
ton. This sentiment was slowly, but
surely, spreading. Joseph Henry
Lumpkin, chief justice of our supreme
court, was outspoken as a co-worker
with the gradual emancipation policy,
inaugurated and advocated by Henry
Clay of Kentucky. This policy would
doubtless have been adopted by Geor-
gia had her people not resented what
seemed like attempts to coerce them.
Our people said: "1f you let us alone
we may do it. but you cannot drive
us. We are penned up with these ne
groes, and know where our safety
iles' me Cohllnou people Ol IeorSla,
the yeomanry, the toilers, were no low
ers of the negro. They realized he
was in their way. The Shareholders
owned the best of the land. lived in
fine houses, and had the best stock,
the best tools, and the best vehicles,
while the toilers had to take what
they could get. No wonder they were
jealous of the institution. And yet
these men, poor and struggling for
livelihood in the mountains of north
Georgia, or down in the pine woods of
the southern counties, did not hesi-
tate to shoulder their rifles and hurry