Thoughts on African Colonization Part 8

What audacity do those advocates of the Society exhibit, who use, in reference to beings made a little lower than the angels, language like this--'disposing of _our property_ in _our own way_'--'we hold their _slaves_, as we hold their other _property_, SACRED'!![L] If they really mean and believe what they say, it is something more heinous than impertinence to urge the planters to dispossess themselves of their property by colonization; and if the slaves belong _of right_ to them,--are on a par with goods and chattels,--how idle, how supremely ridiculous it is to mourn over their _wretched condition_, to sigh for their emanc.i.p.ation, to declaim against the evil and wickedness of slavery, or even to denounce the slave trade! But the unfortunate blacks are not now, and never can be, the property of the planters; consequently the claims of their pretended owners are no better than those of the pirate or highway robber.

FOOTNOTES:

[K] The owners of slaves are licensed robbers, and not the just proprietors of what they claim: freeing them is not depriving them of property, but restoring it to the right owner; it is suffering the unlawful captive to escape. It is not wronging the master, but doing justice to the slave, restoring him to himself. Emanc.i.p.ation would only take away property that is its own property, and not ours; property that has the same right to possess us, as we have to possess it; property that has the same right to convert our children into dogs and calves and colts, as we have to convert theirs into these beasts; property that may transfer our children to strangers, by the same right that we transfer theirs.--_Rice._

[L] 'Is there no difference between a vested interest in a house or a tenement, and a vested interest in a human being? No difference between a right to bricks and mortar, and a right to the flesh of man--a right to torture his body and to degrade his mind at your good will and pleasure? There is this difference,--the right to the house originates in law, and is reconcilable to justice; the claim (for I will not call it a right) to the man, originated in robbery, and is an outrage upon every principle of justice, and every tenet of religion.'--_Speech of Fowell Buxton in the British Parliament._

SECTION IV.

THE AMERICAN COLONIZATION SOCIETY INCREASES THE VALUE OF SLAVES.

I come now to my fourth charge,--which, although not more serious or consequential than any of the foregoing, may possibly create more surprise,--namely, that the Society _increases the value of slaves, and adds strength and security to the system of slavery_. It is the discovery of this fact that is so wonderfully, and to many superficial observers so inexplicably, increasing the popularity of the Society at the south. It would require more pages of this work than its necessarily contracted limits permit, to sum up minutely the evidence on this point, and to give those ill.u.s.trations which might serve more clearly to establish its validity. The most common, as it is the most potent, argument used by colonization agents among slave owners, to secure their patronage, is,--'The successful prosecution of our scheme will remove the chief source of danger to yourselves, and enable you to hold your property in greater security: the presence of free persons of color among your slaves is eminently calculated to make them insubordinate, and to procure their violent emanc.i.p.ation.' This argument, I say, is introduced into every conversation, and every public address, and every essay; and whoever carefully consults the numbers of the African Repository, through seven volumes, will find it repeated in almost every appeal to the south.

I choose to consider the testimony of southern men, in regard to the invigorating effects of the colonization enterprise upon the system of slavery, conclusive. Here is a very small portion of it: more may be found under the sixth section of this work.

'The object of the Colonization Society commends itself to every cla.s.s of society. The landed proprietor may ENHANCE THE VALUE OF HIS PROPERTY by a.s.sisting the enterprise.'--[African Repository, vol. i. p. 67.]

'But is it not certain, that should the people of the Southern States refuse to adopt the opinions of the Colonization Society, [relative to the gradual abolition of slavery,] and continue to consider it both just and politic to leave, untouched, a system, for the termination of which, we think the whole wisdom and energy of the States should be put in requisition, that they will CONTRIBUTE MORE EFFECTUALLY TO THE CONTINUANCE AND STRENGTH OF THIS SYSTEM, by removing those now free, than by any or all other methods which can possibly be devised? Such has been the opinion expressed by Southern gentlemen of the first talents and distinction. Eminent individuals have, we doubt not, lent their aid to this cause, in expectation of at once accomplishing a generous and n.o.ble work for the objects of their patronage and for Africa, and GUARDING THAT SYSTEM, the existence of which, though _unfortunate_, they deem _necessary_, by separating from it those, whose disturbing force augments its inherent vices, and darkens all the repulsive attributes of its character. In the decision of these individuals, as to the effects of the Colonization Society, _we perceive no error of judgment_: OUR BELIEF IS THE SAME AS THEIRS.'--[Idem, p. 227.]

'THE EXECUTION OF ITS SCHEME WOULD AUGMENT INSTEAD OF DIMINISHING THE VALUE OF THE PROPERTY LEFT BEHIND.'--[Idem, vol.

ii. p. 344.]

'The removal of every single free black in America, would be productive of nothing but safety to the slaveholder, nor would the emanc.i.p.ation of as many as the benevolence of individual masters would send off, as far as I can see, be productive of disaffection among the remainder, more than the example of such as are every day set free, and sent to the Ohio or elsewhere; and if so large a part should ever be set free as to create discontent among the remainder, (and nothing but the emanc.i.p.ation of a great majority can do this,) yet that remainder must then, from the terms of the proposition, be so much diminished, as to be easily kept down by superior numbers.'--[Idem, vol. iii. p. 202.]

'The tendency of the scheme, and one of its objects, is to _secure slaveholders and the whole Southern country_, against certain evil consequences, growing out of the present threefold mixture of our population.'--[Idem, vol. iv. p. 274.]

'We all know the effects produced on our slaves by the fascinating, but delusive appearance of happiness, exhibited in persons of their own complexion, roaming in idleness and vice among them. By removing the most fruitful source of discontent from among our slaves, we should render them more industrious and attentive to our commands; and by rendering them more industrious and obedient, we should naturally secure their better treatment--we should ameliorate their condition. Our enemies have admitted that good would result from the removal of this cla.s.s. Caius Gracchus declares, that if the Society could attain "this single object in good faith, (the removal of the free people of color) he should, perhaps, be among the last citizens in the commonwealth--who would raise his voice against it," and the author of the Crisis (who is doubtless regarded as authority in South Carolina) acknowledges, "that there is no doubt but that if we in the South, were relieved of this population, it would be better for our southern cities, where they princ.i.p.ally reside." Nothing can be more plain then, than that the Colonization Society, in its efforts to remove the free people of color, is accomplishing a work to which the citizens of the South, whether friends or foes to the Society, have given their decided approbation.'--[Idem, vol. vi. p. 205.]

'If, as is most confidently believed, the colonization of the free people of color will render the slave who remains in America more obedient, more faithful, more honest, and, consequently, _more useful to his master_,' &c.--[Second Annual Report.]

'There was but one way, [to avert danger,] but that might be made effectual, fortunately! It was to PROVIDE AND KEEP OPEN A DRAIN FOR THE EXCESS BEYOND THE OCCASIONS OF PROFITABLE EMPLOYMENT. Mr Archer had been stating the case in the supposition, that after the present cla.s.s of free blacks had been exhausted, by the operation of the plan he was recommending, others would be supplied for its action, in the proportion of the excess of colored population it would be necessary to throw off, by the process of voluntary manumission or sale. This effect must result inevitably from the depreciating value of the slaves ensuing their disproportionate multiplication. _The depreciation would be relieved and r.e.t.a.r.ded at the same time, by the process._ The two operations would aid reciprocally, and sustain each other, and both be in the highest degree beneficial. It was on the ground of interest, therefore, the most indisputable _pecuniary interest_, that he addressed himself to the people and Legislatures of the slaveholding States.'--[Speech of Mr Archer.--Fifteenth Annual Report.]

'Every motive which operates on the minds of slaveholders, tending to make the colonization of the free blacks an object of _interest_ to them, should operate in an equal degree to secure the hearty co-operation of the government of every slaveholding State.'--[African Repository, vol. vii. p. 176.]

'None are obliged to follow our example; AND THOSE WHO DO NOT, WILL FIND THE VALUE OF THEIR NEGROES INCREASED BY THE DEPARTURE OF OURS.'--[An advocate of colonization in the Western (Ky.) Luminary.]

'So far from its having a dangerous tendency, when properly considered, it will be viewed as AN ADDITIONAL GUARD TO OUR PECULIAR SPECIES OF PROPERTY.'--[An advocate of the Society in the New-Orleans Argus.]

'The slaveholder, who is in danger of having his slaves contaminated by their free friends of color, will not only be relieved from this danger, but THE VALUE OF HIS SLAVE WILL BE ENHANCED.'--[A new and interesting View of Slavery. By Humanitas, a colonization advocate. Baltimore, 1820.]

It is perfectly obvious, that whatever tends to weaken and depress the present system, must render the holding of slaves less desirable, and the prospect of emanc.i.p.ation more auspicious. Cherishing this conviction, thousands of individuals in this country, and tens of thousands in Great Britain, are led by conscientious motives to abstain from the use of productions raised by slave labor, and to prefer those only which are the fruits of the toil of freemen. They believe in the soundness of the axiom, that 'the receiver is as bad as the thief;' and knowing that the slaves are held in bondage not on the ground of benevolence, or because their liberation would endanger the public safety, but _because they are profitable to their owners_, they also believe that the consumers of slave goods contribute to a fund for supporting slavery with all its abominations; that they are the Alpha and the Omega of the business; that the slave-trader, the slave-owner, and the slave-driver, are virtually the agents of the consumer, for by holding out the temptation, he is the original cause, the first mover in the horrid process; that we are imperiously called upon to refuse those articles of luxury, which are obtained at an absolute and lavish waste of the blood of our fellow men; that a merchant, who loads his vessel with the proceeds of slavery, does nearly as much in helping forward the slave trade, as he who loads his vessel in Africa with slaves--they are both twisting the same rope at different ends; that our patronage is putting an immense bribe into the hands of the slaveholders to kidnap, rob and oppress; that, were it not for this, they would be compelled by sheer necessity to liberate their slaves--for as soon as slave labor becomes unprofitable, the horrid system cannot be upheld.

None of these scruples, to my knowledge, are entertained by colonizationists: their only aim and anxiety seem to be, 'to prune and nourish the system,'--not to overthrow it; to increase the avarice of the planters by rendering the labor of their bondmen more productive,--not to abridge and starve it; to remove the cause of those apprehensions which might lead them to break the fetters of their victims,--not to perpetuate it; 'to provide (I quote the confession of the last distinguished proselyte to the Society, Mr Archer of Virginia) and to keep open a drain for the _excess of increase beyond the occasions of_ PROFITABLE EMPLOYMENT,'--not to make slave labor ruinous to the planters.

By removing whatever number of slaves it be, from this country, the number which remains must be diminished--and the more the number which remains is diminished, the more helpless will they become, the less will be the hope of their ever recovering their own liberty, and the more and the longer they will be trampled upon.

The greater the number of slaves transported, _the greater will be the value of the labor of those who remain_; the more valuable their labor is, _the greater will be the temptation to over-labor them, and the more, of course, they will be oppressed_.[M]

The increase of the free colored population disturbs the security of the planters, and forces many to manumit their slaves through sheer terror.

The expatriation of this cla.s.s, therefore, manifestly tends to quiet the apprehensions of the oppressors, to rivet more firmly the chains of the slaves, to make their services in higher demand, and to render even their gradual emanc.i.p.ation impracticable.

Thus the American Colonization Society is the _apologist_, the _friend_, and the _patron_ of SLAVEHOLDERS and SLAVERY!

FOOTNOTES:

[M] Stuart's Circular.

SECTION V.

THE AMERICAN COLONIZATION SOCIETY IS THE ENEMY OF IMMEDIATE ABOLITION.

It follows, as a necessary consequence, that a Society which is not hostile to slavery, which apologises for the system and for slaveholders, which recognises slaves as rightful property,[N] and which confessedly increases their value, is _the enemy of immediate abolition_. This, I am aware, in the present corrupt state of public sentiment, will not generally be deemed an objectionable feature; but I regard it with inexpressible abhorrence and dismay.

Since the deception practised upon our first parents by the old serpent, there has not been a more fatal delusion in the minds of men than that of the gradual abolition of slavery. _Gradual_ abolition! do its supporters really know what they talk about? Gradually abstaining from what? From sins the most flagrant, from conduct the most cruel, from acts the most oppressive! Do colonizationists mean, that slave-dealers shall purchase or sell a few victims less this year than they did the last? that slave-owners shall liberate one, two or three out of every hundred slaves during the same period? that slave-drivers shall apply the lash to the scarred and bleeding backs of their victims somewhat less frequently? Surely not--I respect their intelligence too much to believe that they mean any such thing. But if any of the slaves should be exempted from sale or purchase, why not all? if justice require the liberation of the few, why not of the many? if it be right for a driver to inflict a number of lashes, how many shall be given? Do colonizationists mean that the practice of separating the husband from the wife, the wife from the husband, or children from their parents, shall come to an end by an almost imperceptible process? or that the slaves shall be defrauded of their just remuneration, less and less every month or every year? or that they shall be under the absolute, irresponsible control of their masters? Oh no! I place a higher value upon their good sense, humanity and morality than this! Well, then, they would immediately break up the slave traffic--they would put aside the whip--they would have the marriage relations preserved inviolate--they would not separate families--they would not steal the wages of the slaves, nor deprive them of personal liberty! This is abolition--_immediate abolition_. It is simply declaring that slave owners are bound to fulfil--now, without any reluctance or delays--the golden rule, namely, to do as they would be done by; and that, as the right to be free is inherent and inalienable in the slaves, there ought now to be a disposition on the part of the people to break their fetters. All the horrid spectres which are conjured up, on this subject, arise from a confusion of the brain, as much as from a corruption of the heart.

I utterly reject, as delusive and dangerous in the extreme, every plea which justifies a procrastinated and an indefinite emanc.i.p.ation, or which concedes to a slave owner the right to hold his slaves as _property_ for any limited period, or which contends for the gradual preparation of the slaves for freedom; believing all such pretexts to be a fatal departure from the high road of justice into the bogs of expediency, a surrender of the great principles of equity, an indefensible prolongation of the curse of slavery, a concession which places the guilt upon any but those who incur it, and directly calculated to perpetuate the thraldom of our species.

Immediate abolition does not mean that the slaves shall immediately exercise the right of suffrage, or be eligible to any office, or be emanc.i.p.ated from law, or be free from the benevolent restraints of guardianship. We contend for the immediate personal freedom of the slaves, for their exemption from punishment except where law has been violated, for their employment and reward as free laborers, for their exclusive right to their own bodies and those of their own children, for their instruction and subsequent admission to all the trusts, offices, honors and emoluments of intelligent freemen. Emanc.i.p.ation will increase and not destroy the value of their labor; it will also increase the demand for it. Holding out the stimulus of good treatment and an adequate reward, it will induce the slaves to toil with a hundred fold more a.s.siduity and faithfulness. Who is so blind as not to perceive the peaceful and beneficial results of such a change? The slaves, if freed, will come under the watchful cognizance of law; they will not be idle, but _avariciously_ industrious; they will not rush through the country, firing dwellings and murdering the inhabitants; for freedom is all they ask--all they desire--the obtainment of which will transform them from enemies into friends, from nuisances into blessings, from a corrupt, suffering and degraded, into a comparatively virtuous, happy and elevated population.

Nor does immediate abolition mean that any compulsory power, other than moral, should be used in breaking the fetters of slavery. It calls for no bloodshed, or physical interference; it jealously regards the welfare of the planters; it simply demands an entire revolution in public sentiment, which will lead to better conduct, to contrition for past crimes, to a love instead of a fear of justice, to a reparation of wrongs, to a healing of breaches, to a suppression of revengeful feelings, to a quiet, improving, prosperous state of society!

Now see with what earnestness and inveteracy the friends of the Colonization Society oppose immediate abolition!

'It appears, indeed, to be the only feasible mode by which we can remove that stigma as well as _danger_ from among us. Their sudden and entire freedom would be a fearful, and perhaps dreadful experiment, destructive of all the ends of liberty, for which their condition would unfit them, and which they would doubtless greatly abuse. Even their release, at apparently proper intervals, but uncontrolled as to their future habits and location, would be a very hazardous charity. Their gradual emanc.i.p.ation, therefore, under the advantages of a free government, formed, in their native land, by their own hands, offering all the rewards usual to industry and economy, and affording the means of enjoying, in comfort, a reputable and free existence, is the only rational scheme of relieving them from the bondage of their present condition.' * * * 'To eradicate or remove the evil _immediately_, is impossible; nor can any law of conscience govern necessity.'--[Af. Rep. vol. i.

pp. 89, 258.]

'Vaunt not over us, dear brethren of the north, we inherited the evil from our forefathers, and we really do not think you do your brethren any good, or that you serve the interests of the people of color, when you recommend and enforce premature schemes of emanc.i.p.ation.' * * * 'The operation, we were aware, must be--and, for the interests of our country, ought to be gradual.' * * * 'According to one, (that rash cla.s.s which, without a due estimate of the fatal consequence, would forthwith issue a decree of general, immediate, and indiscriminate emanc.i.p.ation,) it was a scheme of the slaveholder to perpetuate slavery.'--[Idem, vol. ii. pp. 12, 254, 336.]