Milford chronicle., 1923-01-05

ul6u 61dNGS1 MCAs w AAGWGop anu " =
place him, purchased another from thu
slave ship. She selected very tall
lshapely and muscular young fellow o.
dark ginger-bread color, who claimed
4 to be a prince or chief of one Of the
tribes Of the Congo River which had
been overpoWered in a war with 8
\ lneighboFing tribe and nearly all slain
or made prisoners and sold into per-
lpetual slavery. This young man had
been living with his mistress but a
few months when they were duly mar
ried, and, as Lydia told the court and
jury, they reared quite large family
of children, who as they grew up
were not permitted to associate and
intermarry with their neighbors Of
pure Caucasian BLOOD nor were they
disposed to seek association or alliance
with the Negro race; so that they were
of necessity compelled to associate
and intermarry with the remnant Of
the Nanticoke tribe Of Indians who
still fingered in their old habitatiOns
for many years after the great body
of the tribe had been removed farther
towards the setting sun. This race OF
people were for. the first two or three
generations confined principally to the
southeastern portion Of Sussex coun-
ty, and more particularly in the neigh
borhood Of LeWes, MillsbOrO, George
town and Milton, but during the last
sixty or seventy years they have in-
creased the area Of their settlement
very materially and now are to be
found In almost every hundred in each
county in the State, but mostly In
Sussex and Kent. From their first Or
igin to the present time they have
continued to segregate themselves
from the American citizens of Africa
descent, having their own churches
and schools as much as practicable.
With very rare. exceptions these peo-
pie make good citizens. They are al
ways entirely given up to agricultural
pursuits, but they have managed to
pick, up sufficient knowledge of car
pentry and masonry to enable them to
build their own houses. They are in
dustrious, frugal, thrifty, law-abidn
and, respectful. During my long prac-
tice at the bar have never known but
two instances in which one of their
race has been brought into court for
violation of the law. One of these
was the case Of .Sockum, tried in Sus-'
sex in 1857, and the other was that of
Cornelius Hanson, of Milford hundred,
tried at Dover in 1888 or 1889. Sock
um's case originated in the private
spite Of envious Caucasian neighbOrs,
and Hanson In the envy and malice Of
one of his neighbOrs who charged him
with an attempt to commit murder by
shooting his accuser. I defended Han
sor against the charge and it was
shown by the testimony Of several OF
the most respectable men in the Vicin-
ity that Hanson was a man Of exem-
plary character for peace and good
order, a truthful and estimable Chris
tian, and that instead Of being the ag-
gressOr his accuser was shown to
have attempted to shoot Hanson. Such
was the opinion of the jurors who
tried the case. I suggested to Hanson
that he had better go before the
grand jury at the next term Of court
and make complaint against his per-
;ecutor. But he replied: with thanks
% you for your advice and my acquit-
al, I most respectfully decline, as the
Good Book teaches us TO pray fOI |
hose who despitefully use and peFse-
cute us; and 1 shall leave Mr.. Loper
o God and his conscience, praying
myself that he may become more
man and Christian.
Some years ago I received a note
rom a lady in Philadelphia stating
hat she had heard of the trial of
4evin Sockum, and that~i had de-
-eloped the origin of the yellow peo-
lie, the so-called MoOrs of Delaware,
nd requesting me to give an account
f it, which l did. In her letter thank
ng me for it she gave me the follow
ng story:
MRS. -, whom you mentioned,
New Jersey lady, was an English
yoman by birth, highly connected, Of
efned association and superbly edu-
ated. As young girl she fed from
er friends whom she was visiting in
his city with whose ac-
uaintance she made at a dancing
chool, and who was represented to
er as being a Spaniard of wealth I
nd good family. Fair as a lily and
ure, she did not discover until after
ne marriage either the occupation or !
cal condition Of her husband as a !
ian tabooed by his fellow men for I
faint Of African blood. She !
elieYed him to be or Moorish descent
nd one of the best and noblest Of hu- .
IAN kind; his ostracism and her own
she was even denied pew in the
Episcopal church in which she was
iucated and confrmed) surely
lough slowly killed her. 'Desde. :
lona,' as her friends who knew her
ell called her, died suddenly of heart :
lsease brought on by mental suffer- .
lg, leaving three or four children. :
Il golden-haired, blue-eyed, flower
Ike little ones to be educated in
rance, where their origin even If l
nown would never affect their stand e
lg socially. They remained until the
rOnco-Prussan war broke out and
ere, think, sent to England. Mr..
with great self-denial, vOlun-
rily accepted for himself a life of
neliness in, country where his
scuniary interests compelled him to
'main. He is highly esteemed, but q
i'll socially Ostracised."
The father Of this gentleman 9
lew very well many years ago. He a
as resident of Kent county. The 4
'ntleman himself I knew by sight -
lly. He seemed to me to be quite a q
lade fairer in complexion than my y
If. He has, since the letter I quot y y
was written, filled a very high and II
sponsible position under the Federal u u
with great credit to him a.
If and satisfaction to the govern !,
mt. !,