Rensselaer Gazette, Volume 2, Number 47, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 16 March 1859 — A Democratic Display! [ARTICLE]

A Democratic Display!

four Hundred ITlen and Women Sold.! A correspondent of the N. Y. Tribune attended the sale of Mr. Pierce Butler’s negroes at Savannah last week, and makes quite an interesting report of it. Mr. Pierce Butler has heretofore been known as the husband of Fanny Kemble. Hereafter he will be less pleasantly renowned as the vendor of four hundred human beings, whose feelings, which, contrary to the Cincinnati Platform and the Dred Scott Decision, they had permitted to be harrassed by their sale into strange hands and lands, he soothed by a present of a dollar apiece. The slaves were part of his f ther’s prop.'rty descended to him on his father’s death. The sale and some of the, scenes attending it, present some features of interest which we‘copy:

WHERE THE NEGROES CAME FROM. The negroes came from two plantations, the one a rice plantation near Darien in the State ot Georgia, not far from the great Oketonokee Swamp, and the other a cuttpn plantation on the extreme northern point of St. Simon's land, a little bitofan island in the Atlantic, cut off from Georgia main land by a slender arm of the sea. Though the most ot the stock had been accustomed to rice and cotton planting and culture, there were among them a number of very passable mechanics, who had been taught to do all the rougher sorts of mechanical w ork on the plantation. There were coopers, carpenters, shoemakers and blacksmiths, each one equal in his various craft to the ordinary requirements of the plantation, that is, the coopers cou d make rice tierces, and possibly, on a pinch, rude tubs and buckets; the carpenters could do the rough carpentry about the negro quarters; the shoemaker could make shoes of the fashion required for the slaves, and the. blacksmith was adequate to the manufacture of hoes and similar simple tools, and to,such trilling repairs in the blacksmithing way as did not require too relined a skill. Though probably no one of all these would be called a superior, or even an average workman among 1 , the masters of the craft, their knowledge of these various trades sold in some cases for nearly as , much as the man-—than is, a man without a 4 trade, who would be valued at §9OO. would readily bring §1,600 or 1,700 it he was a passable blacksmith or cooper. Out of this great family none had ever been sold, consequently the selling now came all the harder. , a THE WAY THEY WERE KEPT, AND LOOKED. The negroes were kept for the day of sale in sheds on the race course, which had been erected for horses and wagons attending the races. Here is a description of the scene and the people:

In these sheds were the chattels huddled i together on the floor, there being no sign otd a bench or table. They ate and slept oh | the bare boards, their food being rice and : beansj with oecasionly a bit. of bacon and qorti, huge bundles were' slaves sat’or'yeclined. wlien not restlessly moving about, or gathered into sorrowful groups, discussing the chance of their future fate. On the laces of all was an expression! ot heavy grief; some seemed to be resigned! to the hard stroke of Fortune that had thrown ! them from their homes, and were sadly try- j , ing. to make the best of it; some sat brood-| ■ ing moodily over their sorrows, their chins I resting on their hands their eyes staring va-I cantiy, and their bodies rocking too and fro, with a restless motion that was never stilled; few wept, the place was too public and the I drivers to near, though some occsionly turned aside to gave way to a few quiet tears. They were dressed in every possible variety of I uncouth and fantastic garb, in everv style .and q! every imaginable color: the texture ol the garments was in all cases coarse,most I of the men being clothed in the rough cloth that is made expressly for the slaves. The I dresses assumed by the negro minstrels when they give imitations of plantation character, : are by no means exagerated, they tire in- ; stead, weak and unable to come up to the i original. There was every variety of hat, with every imaginable suluch; and there was every cut and style of coat and pantaloons, ' made with every conceivable ingenuity ot misfit, and tossed on with a general appearance ot perfect looseness,that is periectly indescribable except to say that a Southern negro always looks as if he could shake his i clothes off without taking his hands out o< his pockets. The woman, true to feminine ' instinct, had made, in almost every case, ■some effort at ii :erv. All wore gorgeous turbans, generally manufactured in an in- ; stunt out of a guy c lored handkerchief by a sudden and graceful twist of the fingers; though there was occasionally a more elaborate tu-ban, a turban complex and mysteri- ! ous, got up with care and ornamented with I a lew beads or bright bits of ribi.on. Their dresses were mostly coarse stuff, though there were some of gaudy calicoes; a few had ear rings, and one possessed the treasure of a stran of yellow and blue beads. The little children were always better and more carefully dressed han the older ones, the parental pride coming out in the shape of a yellow cap pointed like a mitre, or a jacket with strip of red broadcloth round the bottom. The children were of all sizes—the youngest being fifteen days old. The babies were generally good natured. though when one would set up a yell the complaint soon attacked the others, and a lull chorus would be the result. A young negro baby looks ' like an animated bit of india rubber, and has wonderful powers of suction. They were very prevalent in the long show room where all the stock was congregated the day of sale, and tlusethat were old enough to have defined ideasof locomotion were perpetually crawling away from theft mothers, and getting under the feet of visitors. They have 1 ! a passion for climbing, and made strenuous exertions to scale the legs of the people who didn’t belong to them; if a m n stood still for a moment, he was certain to have a baby ‘ banging to each leg—like a crab. They

didn’t object to being knocked dowh, and rolled over, or being pitched across the room, or any trifle of that sort; but" 1 it seemed to disconcert them to step on their fingers ONE OF THE INCIDENTS. The following curiously sad scene is a type of a thousand others that were there enacted. “Elisha,” chattie No. 5 in the catalogue, had taken a fancy to a benevolent looking middle ag'ed gentleman who was inspecting the stock, and thus used his powers of persuasion to induce the benevolent man to purchase him, with his wife, boy and girl, Motley, Israel and Savanda, chattels No. -6, 7 and 8. The earnestness with which this poor fellow pressed his suit, knowing, as he did, that perhaps the happiness of his whole life depended on his success, was interesting, and the arguments he used were most pathetic. He made no appeal to the feelings of the buyer; he rested no hope on his charity and kindness, but only strove to show how well worth his dollars were the blood and bones he was entreating him to buy. “Look at me. mas’r; am prime rice planter, sho’ you won't find a better man den me; no better on the whole plantation; not a bit old yet; do inp’ work den ever; do carpenter work, too, 1/ftle; better buy me, Mas'r; I’se be a good sarvant. Molly, too, my wile, sa, fus rate rice hand; mos as good as me. Stan’ out yer, Molly, and let the gen’lm’n see.” Molly advances, with her hands crossed on her bosom, and makes a quick short courtesy, and stands mute, looking appealingly in the benevolent man’s face. But Elisha talks all tlie faster. “Show mas'r yer arm, Molly—good arm mas r—she do a heap of work mo’ with dat arm yet. Let good mas’r see yer teeth, Molly—see dat mas’r, teeth all regular, all good, she in young gal yet. Come out, yer, Israel, walk aroun’ an’ let the gen’lm’n see how spry you be.”

Then pointing to the three-year-old girl who stood with her chubby hand to her mouth, holding on to her mother’s dress, and uncertain what to make of the strange scene. ‘■L ttle Vandy’s only a child yet; make prime gal by.and by. Better buy us mas’r, we’m fus’ rate bargain”—and so on. But the benevolent gentleman found where he could drive a closer bargain, and so bought somebody else. Similar scenes were transacting all the while on every side—parents praising the strength and cleverness of their children, and showing off every muscle and sinew to the very best advantage, not with the excusable pride of other but to make them the more desirable in the eye of the man buyer; and, on the other hand, children excusing and mitigating the age and inabili ty of parents, that they might be more marKetable and tall, it possible, into kind hands. Not unlrequently these representations, if borne out by tiie facts, secured a purchaser. The women never spoke to the white men unless spoken to, and then made the conference as short us possible. And not one of them all, during, the whole time they were thus exposed to the rude questions of vulgar men, spoke the first unwomanly or indelicate word, or conducted herself in anv regard otherwise than as a modest woman should •to; their conversation and demeanor were quite as exemplary as they would have been had they been the highest ladies in tlie land, and through all the insults to which t±ey were subjected they conducted themselwis with the must perfect decorum and spect.

THE WAY THE CHATTELS “TOOK” THE SALE. The expression on the faces of all who stepped on the block was always the same, and told ot more anguish than it is in the power of language to express. Blighted homes, crushed hopes and broken hearts was the sad story to be read in all the anxious lacs. Some of them regarded the sale with perfect indifference, never making a motion save to turn from one side to the other at the word of the dapper r. Bryan, that all the crowd might have a fair view of their pro ortions, and then, when the sale was accomplishad, stepping down from the block without caring to cast even a look at the buyer, who now held ail their happiness in his hands. Others, again, strained their eyes wi .h eager glances, from one buyer to another us the bidding went on, trying with earnest attention to follow the rapid voice of the auctioneer. Sometimes two persons only were bidding for the some chattel, all the others having resigned the contes , and then the poor creature on the block, conceiving an instantaneous preference for one of the buyers over the other, regard the rivalry with the intensest interest, the expression of his luce changing with every bid, settling into a halt smile ot joy if the tavorite buyer persevered unto the end and secured the property, and settling down into a look of hopeless despair if the other won the vic-- 1 tory. daphney’s baby. I he family of Primus, plantation carpenter, consisting of Daphney, his wife, with her young babe, and Dido, a girl ot three years old, were reached in course of time. Daphney had a large shawl, which she kept carefully wrapped round her infant and herself. This unusual proceeding attracted much attention, and provoked a good many remarks, such as these: “What do you keep your nigger covered up for! Pull ofFlaer blanket! “What’s the matter of the gal! Ain’t sh (> sound! Pull off her ragsand let us see her!” “Who's going to bid on that nigger, if you keep her covered up? Let’ .-ee her face!” And a loud chorus ot simitar remarks, emphasized with loud profanity, and mingled with sayings too indecent and obscene to be even hinted at nere, went up from the crowd ot chivalrous Southern gentlemen. At last the auctioneer obtained a hearing long enough to explain that there was no attempt to practice any deception in the case—the parties were not to be wronged in any way; he had no desire to palm oft on them an inferior article, but the truth of the matter was that Daphney had been confined only fifteen days ago, and he thought that on that account she was entitled to the slight indulgence of a blanket, to keep from herself and child the chilfair and driving rain. THE SALE OF JEFFREY AND DORCAS. > Among the chattels to be disposed of was one named Jeffrey, a stout young man of twenty-three, who had so far forgotten the Dred Scott decision, his duty to the Constitution, and his admiration to the star epan-

gled banner which “waves over the land of the free” especially and eternally, as to fall in love, ridiculous fancy, with a plump healthy young girl named Dorcas. As they were not married they might be sold separately, and thus be bought by different masters. So Jeffrey, after he had been sold, set his wits (which had belonged to P. Butler, Esq., of Philadelphia) to work, (not for P. Butler, Esq., but feloniously and unconstitutionally, and in contravention of the Cincinnati Platform) for himself, in order to secure the purchase of Dorcas by his own master. Thus he did it:

The man seems touchad by Jeffrey’s remarks, and bids him fetch out his “gal, and let’s see what she looks like.” Jeffrey goes into the long room and presently returns with Dorcas, looking very sad and self-possessed, without a particle of embarrassment at the trying position in which she is placed. She makes the accustomed courtesy, and stands meekly with her hands clasped across her bosom, waiting the result. The buyer regards her with a critical eye, and growls in a low voice that the “gal has good p’ints.” Then he goes on to a more minute and careful examina tion of her working abilities. He turns her round,makes her stoop, and walkjand then 1 e takes off her turban to look at her head that no wound or disease be concealed by the gay handkerchief; he looks at her teeth and feels of her arms, and at la t announces himself pleased with the re ult of his observations, whereat Jeffrey, who has stood near, trembling with eage - hope, is overjoyed, and he smiles for the first time. The buyer then crowns Jeffrey’s happiness by making him a promise that he will buy her, it the price isn’t run up too high. And the lovers step aside and congratulate each other on their good fortune. But Dorcas is not to be sold until the next day, and there are twentyfour long hours ol feveri h expectation.. Early next morning is Jeffrey alert, and hat in hand, encouraged to unusual freedom by the greatness of the stake for which he plays, he addresses every buyei,andot all who will listen he begs the boon of a word to be spoken to his new master to encourage him to buy Dorcas. And all the long morning he speaks in his homely way witn all who know him that they will intercede to save his sweetheart from being sold away from him forever. No one has the heart to deny a word of promise and encouragement to the poor fellow, and joyous with so much kindness, his hopes and spirits gradually rise until he feels almost certain that the wish of his heart will be accomplished. And Dorcas too is smiling, tor is not Jeffrey’s happiness her own! At last comes the trying moment and Dorcas stepped up on the stand. But now a most unexpected feature in the drama is for the first time unmasked; Dorcas is not to be sold alone, but with a family of four others. Full ol dismay, Jeffrey looks to his master, who shakes his head’ for, although he might be induced to buy Dorcas alone, he has no use for the rest of the family. Jeffrey reads his doom in his muster’s look, and turns away, the tears streamin'* down his honest face. 1 So Dorcas is sold, and her toiling life is to be spent in the cotton fields of” So ith Garolina, while Jeffrey goes to the rice plantation of the C|jeat Swamp. , In another hour I see Dorcas in the long room, sitting motionless as a statue, with her head covered with a shawl.„ And I see Jeffrey, who goes to his new master, pulls oft his hat and says, “I’se very much obiged, Mas’r, to you for tryin’ to help m*e. I know you would have done it if you could—thank you, Mas’r—th nk you—but—its—berry—hard,” —and hear the poor fellow breaks down entirely and walks away, coverin'* his face with his battered hut, and sobbing like a child.

He is soon surrounded by a group of collored frien.ds, who with an instinctive delicacy most unlooked for, stand quie’, with uncovered heads about, him. AN UNEXPECTED MARRIAGE. When the family of Mingo, consisting of his wiie, two sons and a daughter, was called for, it was announced by the auctioneer that chattie, No. 322, Dembo, the eldest son, age 20, had the evening before procured the services ot a minister and been joined in wedlock to chattel No. 401, Frances, and that he should be compelled to put up the bride and groom in one lot. They were called up and, as was to be expected, their appearance was the signal for a volley of coarse jokes from the auctioneer, and of ribald remarks from the surrounding crowd.. The newly married pair bore it bravely, although one refined gentleman cook hold of Frances’ lips and pulled them apart, to see her age. It was ahno.-t too much for endurance to stand and see those brutal slave drivers pushing the women about, pulling their lips apart with their not too cleanly hands, an I committing many another indecent acts, while the husbands, fathers and brothers of those women were compelled to witnes these things, without the power to resent the outrage. Dembo and Frances were at last struck oft' for $1,320 each, and went to spend their honey-moon on a cotton plantation in Alabama.

PROCEEDS or THE SALE. And so the Great Sale went on for two long days, during which time there were sold 429 men, women and children. There were 436 announced to be sold, but a few were detained on the plantation by sickness. At the close of the sale, on the last day, sundry has rets of champagne were produced, and all were invited to partake, the said wine being at the expense of the broker, Mr. Bryan. The total amount of the sales foots up three hundred and three thousand eight hundred and fifty dollars—the proceeds of the first day being one hundred and sixty-one thousand four hundred and eighty dollars, and of the second day one hundred and fortytwo thousand three hundred and seventy dollars. What a blessed thing it is that we live in the only land on earth where such happifying, purifying and civilizing exhibitions can be Been. How the patriotic heart swells with joy in reading these incidents of a great and instructive display of the ennobling tendencies of Democracy. England, France, Spain, evan Turkey and Russia have in-

sanely deprived themselves of the power of 1 presenting such an impressive lesson of civilization to their subjects. Only the “Land of the Free,” and the Democracy of the Union, are brightened with this glory.