| I used to, when I fust begun, have considerable trouble fussin? with ?em and trying to make ?em hold out,?doctorin? on ?em up when they?s sick, and givin? on ?em clothes and blankets, and what not, tryin? to keep ?em all sort o? decent and comfortableLaw, ?t wasn?t no sort o? use; I lost money on ?em, and ?t was heaps o? troubleNow, you see, I just put ?em straight through, sick or wellWhen one nigger?s dead, I buy another; and I find it comes cheaper and easier, every way
The stranger turned away, and seated himself beside a gentleman, who had been listening to the conversation with repressed uneasiness
?You must not take that fellow to be any specimen of Southern planters,? said he
?I should hope not,? said the young gentleman, with emphasis
?He is a mean, low, brutal fellow!? said the other
?And yet your laws allow him to hold any number of human beings subject to his absolute will, without even a shadow of protection; and, low as he is, you cannot say that there are not many such
?Well,? said the other, ?there are also many considerate and humane men among planters
?Granted,? said the young man; ?but, in my opinion, it is you considerate, humane men, that are responsible for all the brutality and outrage wrought by these wretches; because, if it were not for your sanction and influence, the whole system could not keep foothold for an hourIf there were no planters except such as that one,? said he, pointing with his finger to Legree, who stood with his back to them, ?the whole thing would go down like a millstoneIt is your respectability and humanity that licenses and protects his brutality
?You certainly have a high opinion of my good nature,? said the planter, smiling, ?but I advise you not to talk quite so loud, as there are people on board the boat who might not be quite so tolerant to opinion as I amYou had better wait till I get up to my plantation, and there you may abuse us all, quite at your leisure
The young gentleman colored and smiled, and the two were soon busy in a game of backgammonMeanwhile, another conversation was going on in the lower part of the boat, between Emmeline and the mulatto woman with whom she was confinedAs was natural, they were exchanging with each other some particulars of their history
?Who did you belong to?? said Emmeline
?Well, my Mas?r was MrEllis,?lived on Levee-streetP?raps you?ve seen the house
?Was he good to you?? said Emmeline
?Mostly, till he tuk sickHe?s lain sick, off and on, more than six months, and been orful oneasy?Pears like he warnt willin? to have nobody rest, day or night; and got so curous, there couldn?t nobody suit him?Pears like he just grew crosser, every day; kep me up nights till I got farly beat out, and couldn?t keep awake no longer; and cause I got to sleep, one night, Lors, he talk so orful to me, and he tell me he?d sell me to just the hardest master he could find; and he?d promised me my freedom, too, when he died
?Had you any friends?? said Emmeline
?Yes, my husband,?he?s a blacksmithMas?r gen?ly hired him outThey took me off so quick, I didn?t even have time to see him; and I?s got four childrenO, dear me!? said the woman, covering her face with her hands
It is a natural impulse, in every one, when they hear a tale of distress, to think of something to say by way of consolationEmmeline wanted to say something, but she could not think of anything to sayWhat was there to be said? As by a common consent, they both avoided, with fear and dread, all mention of the horrible man who was now their master
True, there is religious trust for even the darkest hourThe mulatto woman was a member of the Methodist church, and had an unenlightened but very sincere spirit of pietyEmmeline had been educated much more intelligently,?taught to read and write, and diligently instructed in the Bible, by the care of a faithful and pious mistress; yet, would it not try the faith of the firmest Christian, to find themselves abandoned, apparently, of God, in the grasp of ruthless violence? How much more must it shake the faith of Christ?s poor little ones, weak in knowledge and tender in years!
The boat moved on,?freighted with its weight of sorrow,?up the red, muddy, turbid current, through the abrupt tortuous windings of the Red river; and sad eyes gazed wearily on the steep red-clay banks, as they glided by in dreary samenessAt last the boat stopped at a small town, and Legree, with his party, disembarked
Chapter 32
Dark Places
?The dark places of the earth are full of the habitations Of shop cruelty |
| 