The guardian., 1952-02-09
Life Story of
FREDERICK DOUGLASS
Great coIored AboIitionist and Statesman
1917 1895
BY LILLIAN |. FEURTADo
Historian for National Equal Rights League

NV narrative opens somewhere
about 1917 in Maryland, in a place
called Tuckahoe, on a. big slave PLAN
tation--so large that it seemed real
country village, and it was the scene
of many horrible cruelties,
A little boy whom they called Fred
erick was one of the slaves. Poor
little creature was nearly naked half
the time no soclks--no shoes-no
jacket-no trousers-just a coarse
tow shirt to the little knees. No bed,
just a bag that he stole, used for
carrying corn to the mill, and the
little fellow in the bag-on the damp
clay floor, summer and winter. In
winter the little feet stuck out, and
were cracked with frost
Like a little pig, he went with the
other little slave children to the big
wooden trough and devoured his corn
meal mush. No spoons or forks-just
oyster shells or pieces of shingle, and
the one who ate the fastest, OF course
got the most.
When little Frederick was about
ten years old, he was sent TO Balti-
more to live with a relative Of the
masters family. Let us follow the
child to the creek where he spent
three days washing off the scUrf to
be clean to go to Baltimore. See
him scrubbing the deadskin off his
feet and knees and then getting into
a pair Of trousers-the first he had
ever worn. There was no fond good
bye, no tears shed, no kind admoni-
tion-for mother was dead, grand
mother was long ways off, and
there were no regrets when he left
the big plantatiSn-here he had
witnessed scenes that froze his young
blood and where he had experienced
hunger, cold, whipping and naked
ness.
Then to go to Baltimore was to 60
to the city. SO he sailed on the boat
and his childish eyes took in new
scenes.
It was Sunday when they arrived
at Baltimore. Mr. and Mrs. Auld Cthe
people with whom he was to live)
gave him the shock Of his life when
they met him at the door with smiles
and gave their little son, Thomas,
over to him to take care Of A
smile on a white woman's face-why.
she must be an angel, he thought.
Now, Mrs. Auld had always been in
moderate circumstances, and worked
for a living until she married Mr..
Aud, so she never had a slave and
lacked the harshness and cruelty of
the rich slave holding woman. She
went so far as to teach Frederick his
"ABC's" and he was learning to
spell when her husband discovered 1t
and forbade her to do so any longer
telling her it was unlawful and un-
safe to teach a slave to read. 'If
you teach him how to read" he said,
there would be no keeping him. 1t
would forever unfit him to be a slave.
He would at once become unmanage-
able and OF no value to his master. 1t
would make him discontented and
unhappy" Since Frederick was the
son Of a white man and a slave wo-
man, naturally some of the instincts
OF the white race were his heritage
Thereafter the woman changed and
became hateful. But Frederick made
up his mind that he would learn to
read.
A city slave and a plantation slave
led far different life The city slave
wore clothes and was fed and had a
chance 10 get out on the streets and
mingle among pedestrians. Frederick
was sent on errands and when he got
out and met the poor white little
boys on the street, he used to give
them piece of bread, for thev were
hungry little urchins. Then he would
have his book a Webster spelling
book, concealed, bring it out and het
they couldn't tell this letter or bet
they couldn't read this and so on.