USA > Texas > Harris County > Houston > Texas and the Gulf of Mexico ; or, Yachting in the New World, volume 2 > Part 8
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ton that evening. We were consequently obliged to run the vessel alongside of a sort of quay, and wait till the tide rose. A temporary bridge was constructed, and we all went on shore, some to shoot, others to visit a Colonel Morgan, close to whose house the vessel was lying, and some, like myself, to pass away time. It was extreme- ly cold, and we were obliged to walk briskly to keep ourselves tolerably warm.
Colonel Morgan's house was very pretty ; its owner was absent, so I went over it and took a walk in the grounds. The latter were well laid out, and the adjoining farm appeared, to my inexperienced eye, in good order ; some very fine sheep were grazing, and the wheat and barley looked very well. Mr. Houstoun had the good luck to kill an opossum, a strange looking ugly animal, something like a badger, with its fore paws
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resembling human hands. When he brought the creature on board, the society were very anxious to have it cooked for supper, consi- dering it, as they said, "first rate eating."
The Opossum is held in great respect by the Yankees, as a particularly " smart " animal. It is very difficult to take him, and he knows an ingenious trick or two for self preservation. If he finds himself slightly wounded, and, after casting about in his mind, sees no other means of escape, he pre- tends to be dead, and even allows himself to be carried home and his supposed corpse to be thrown aside. Directly he finds himself alone, he starts up and makes the best of his way to the woods again. This trick of the opossum is so well known, that when a slave is suspected by his employers of sham- ming sickness, to avoid his work, he is com- pared to this cunning little beast ; " Well I
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guess he's coming 'possom over us." It is difficult to deceive a Yankee, but the ne- groes often succeed when they pretend ill- ness, for even as slave-owners, these people have hearts, and kind ones too.
Some of the party, who remained on board, amused themselves with rifle shoot- ing, and I saw some good specimens of Yankee skill. A duck was discovered on the water, at the distance of fifty yards, and a sportsman assured us he would take off the top of its head, at that distance : he quite succeeded, and the poor little bird was brought to us literally scalped.
In the early part of the night I was, as usual, extremely amused with listen- ing to the conversation of the acute cal- culators and cunning politicians that sur- rounded us. The future fate of the coun- try, and its probable annexation to some
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other power was discussed ; but what power was it to be ? that was the question. France, they declared, had been most an- xious to obtain possession of them, but her propositions had not exactly suited them, and the affair had ended. England, they seemed to think, would be the most eligible country on which to lean, but it was doubted, and that very generally, whether that power would have anything to say to them. This was public talk, but we were privately informed by a person worthy of credit, that a negociation for the sale of Texas, and to which he had been a party, had been on the point of being concluded, between America and Mexico. The latter were to make over Texas, for a stipulated sum, to the United States. The transac- tion, as he assured us, was all but con- cluded, and the papers required only the VOL II. L
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signatures of the respective presidents, when the person charged, on the part of the Americans, with the necessary documents, thought he might just as well do a little business on his own account. Instead, therefore, of proceeding direct to Mexico, he betook himself to Texas to purchase land ; being induced to do so by the know- ledge of the value to which land would rise, immediately on the conclusion of the sale. This détour was the cause of considerable delay, and, in the interim, events occurred which rendered the projected compact im- possible, and altered entirely the aspect of affairs.
Mixed up with these political conferences was a good deal of conversation on the in- teresting subject of the slave trade. This is a very engrossing topic here, and, on this occasion, it gave rise to some rather violent
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speechifying. There were many greatly in favour of the continuance of slavery, and a few as strongly against it.
There was one individual who spoke well in favour of abolition ; his reasonings were very right-minded and ingenious, and I admired the straightforward moral cou- rage, which induced him to stand boldly forward in the midst of so many opposers, and to advocate openly the cause which he had espoused.
After listening to the various arguments, for and against the possession of slave property, I saw no reason to change the opinion I had previously formed on the subject, and I am as much as ever convinced that the slave-owners are the greatest suf- ferers by its continuance.
The almost absolute dominion which a slave-owner, at least in the plantations, pos-
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sesses over his human property, must tend to render a master tyrannical, and unmerci- ful. It has the effect of making them des- potic, because the human mind is so consti- tuted that the possession of power is seldom used with moderation, and it cannot be doubted that harshness, and want of sym- pathy with the sufferings of others, are en- gendered by the necessity, which the fur- therance of their own interests often lays them under, of parting kindred and near friends.
I am far, very far from thinking with coldness and apathy on the fact, that there are human beings in a Christian land living in a state of slavery, and dark ignorance. There are, however, objections often brought forward, which are of a most trivial nature. It is said that the name of slave must be bitterly galling to those who have the mis-
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fortune to be called by this degrading term. That this would be the case were the present nature and habits of the people such as to render them susceptible of much fine feel- ing, I cannot but agree; but before the negroes can claim pity and sympathy on such a plea as this, they must have lived for years, and almost for generations, a life of freedom and voluntary exertion.
Again -that the slave-owner does not always follow the golden rule of doing to others as he would be done by, is true, and that it is wrong, and contrary to every right principle, moral and religious, to keep fellow beings in this degraded state, is equally so : at the same time, it may be asked whether the evil, as regards the slaves themselves, is not more nominal than real. The owner of a slave, when he purchases him, enters into an agreement, understood
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though not expressed, that his services will be repaid by food, lodging, and decent clothing ; that he will be allowed sufficient intervals of rest, and a certain portion of time in which he may work for himself ; and also he may look forward to eventual independence if he is able to earn it, or if his own good conduct may render him deserving of the boon. The life of the slave is protected by the laws, and his good treatment is to a certain degree secured by the powerful argument, that it is contrary to his owner's interest to ill-use him. All this I believe to be true, as also the fact that young children are not separated from their parents.
At present, what is the conduct of the freed slave, and how does he prove that he is either a happier or a better man, be- cause he possesses the gift of freedom ? If
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there is any truth in the supposed degrad- ing, and enervating influence of slave-own- ing, there is still more reason for believing that the forced servitude in which he is kept, together with the strong prejudice which exists against his race and colour, render the freed slave, in his present state of mind, education, &c., incapable of valu- ing his free position properly.
CHAPTER XIII.
CHARACTER OF THE NEGRO SLAVE. PROBABILITY OF FREEDOM BEING GRANTED BY THE WHITES. THE TA- RIFF. A CITY IN EMBRYO. RETURN TO THE YACHT.
I would not have a slave to till my ground, To carry me, to fan me while I sleep, And tremble when I wake, for all the wealth, That sinews bought and sold have ever earn'd. COWPER.
IN the character of the negro slave, as in every other, both good and bad qualities are mixed. Courage, goodnature, and gra- titude, they certainly possess, but they also are vain, revengeful, cunning, and indolent. The opinion is entertained by many, that their mental capacities, naturally, are of a very mean order. Prejudice has, I think,
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much to do with this opinion, but it is cer- tain, that until circumstances shall have called forth, and the conduct of the negroes themselves shall have demonstrated that they are capable of becoming statesmen, mathematicians, poets, or philosophers, the fact of their being on an equality of intel- lect with their white brethren will find but few believers.
It is evidently the policy of the slave- holders to keep the negroes in a state of entire ignorance and mental subjection, and to reduce them as nearly as possible to the level of brutes, by which means they hope to justify their own conduct towards them, and to prevent any possible intermingling of the black and white races. It has been proved that, in the south, population in- creases much faster among the blacks than among the whites, and as the surplus popu-
L II.
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lation from other countries settles but slowly where slavery exists, it follows, that in a short time the negro race will greatly ex- ceed in numbers that of the white men. When this takes place - if not before - the struggle for freedom will commence, and how it will end, no one can exactly foresee. The slave-owners of Texas, and of the Sou- thern States of the Union, would willingly make us believe that one of their main rea- sons for supporting slavery, is, because of the impossibility of employing white labour in many parts of their territories ; yet we may fairly conclude that the real motive for their conduct proceeds from alarm lest the ne- groes should make an immediate, and dis- agreeable use of their freedom were it granted them.
That they will do so at some future time, can hardly be doubted, and it is almost
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to be wondered at, that any government should encourage the existence of slaves, when they are known to be increasing in such formidable numbers. Unless some decisive measures are taken the day of reck- oning must come, and in anticipation of this crisis, and feeling how little aid can be depended on from the Northern States, the southern governments have taken pains to prevent as much as possible the granting of freedom in individual cases, and are like- wise most careful in checking the entrance of free negroes into the country. As a proof of this fact, I may mention that when we were on the point of engaging at Jamaica a black man, as steward's mate, we were told that he would not be allowed to go on shore in a slave country, and that were he dis- covered on board the yacht, Mr. Houstoun, would be obliged to become surety to a large
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amount that he should not put foot on land.
In regard to the excuse principally al- ledged for continuing slavery, - viz. that of the necessity of employing black labour in so hot a country as Texas, - it is affirmed by many sensible judges that the necessity for so doing is founded upon an erroneous opinion. It is true that were slavery abolished, the culture of land, in some parts of Texas would be more laborious, and perhaps less productive than it is now ; but no one can believe that white men cannot work, or raise the produce of the country. In most parts of the Republic, the climate is not hotter than it is in the Southern countries of Europe ; and it is obvious that, were white labour in request, white men would work, and the country would become set- tled in an incredibly short space of time.
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When this advantage, together with innu- merable other benefits attendant on the abolition of slavery, (not among the least of which may be mentioned, the rise of Texas in the estimation of European na- tions,) are considered, it must be concluded that the blacks will ere long receive their freedom at the hands of their white masters.
It appears to me, (short-sighted as I am in these matters, and perhaps unqualified to give even an humble opinion) that many of the evils attendant on freeing the blacks might be modified, and civil war perhaps pre- vented, by conciliatory measures being adopt- ed in time towards the negroes. They are capable of strong attachments, and though the work of years cannot be undone in a day, much might I think be effected to- wards paving the way to a better understand- ing. The only effectual mode of concilia-
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tion, namely, that of admitting the negroes, to the society of the whites, and to equal social rights, never (I should imagine) will be adopted, so strong is the prejudice against them. Still for his own interest, as well as for that of his country, each man should perform his part in the good work, and should bear in mind the following pas- sage from an admirable writer on this ques- tion -" Whatever may be the effort of the Americans of the South to maintain slavery, they will not always succeed. Slavery, which is now confined to a single tract of the civil- ized earth, which is attacked by Christianity as unjust, and by political economy as pre- judicial; and which is now contrasted with democratic liberties, and the information of our age, cannot survive. By the choice of the master, or the will of the slave, it will cease ; and in either case, great calamities
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may be expected to ensue. If liberty be refused to the negroes of the South, they will in the end seize it for themselves by force ; if it be given, they will abuse it ere long."
Whilst the important discussion of the slave question was going on at one end of the cabin, the price of provisions and the tariff were the topics of conversation at the other. Everything, as I have before said, resolves itself into " calculation," and I had a proof of this on the present occasion. One of the speakers declared that things in ge- neral were dearer than they used to be ; he detailed the different and indispensable ar- ticles of food and clothing, and summed up their cost ; this he called the expence of living. Having done this, he proceeded to make a bill of the items required on leaving the world; there was the doctor's bill, the coffin, the hearse, the burial fees, lawyer's
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ditto for making the will, and the supper after the funeral ; and he concluded with " Well sir, I calculate, if living's dear in this coun- try, dying's dearer still."
The negroes, I may remark, had a grand fight this evening, and their yells and oaths were fearful to hear. They were not in- terrupted in their pastime, nor did any one appear even to notice the affray.
The battle field of San Jacintho was pointed out to me, and the evolutions per- formed during the engagement described by one who had borne a part in the action. The Texans always speak of this victory with pride and exultation, and they have a good right to do so.
A fire had recently occurred in this neighbourhood, by which the residence of a General Baker had been destroyed, and he himself reduced to great misery. Fires
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are now very rare in this country, but a Yankee remarked " they would be more frequent when insurance offices were es- tablished." There are several beginnings of cities on this Bayon ; one, in particu- lar, I ought to mention, because it is a good specimen of the rest. It was planned and begun years ago by a foreigner of the name of Pellegrini; I believe, a native of Savoy. This enterprising individual is as mad a castle builder as I ever saw, and en- thusiastic and sanguine beyond belief. We remained a short time, to land passengers before the city ; the plan embraces churches, club-houses, squares, terraces, theatres, and in short, all the concomitants of a great city ; but in the meantime there exist but eight wooden houses and a fine sounding name.
There was a slight accident, which hap- pened to one of the engines, that delayed
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our arrival about two hours, even after we came within sight of Galveston, and it was late in the evening of the third day, before the steamer touched the upper wharf of that port. The gig was waiting for us with her crew of fine looking English sailors, in their yacht costume, each of them so clean and neat ; what admiration they excited as they stepped from the gig on board of the dirty little steamer !- none on board had ever seen the smart crew of an English yacht be- fore, and the sight evidently filled them with wonder. In five minutes we found ourselves enjoying the quiet and comfort of our ocean home. One certainly never appreciates comforts till one loses sight of them. How often, during our short absence, had I sighed for the every-day luxuries, to which we were accustomed on board. The decks ne- ver looked so white as now, and the brightly
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polished guns and spotless paint were, in themselves, a perfect luxury to the sight.
'Tis evening time, and o'er the sand, The starlit waves are gently swelling And not a sound is heard on land, Save the ship's bell, the hour telling. Yet, though the gloomy night clouds veil Thy tapering masts, I trace the line Of beauty, and thy presence hail, My ocean heroine.
Thou " Skimmer " of the untamed sea ! Thou fairy thing of life and light ! Reposing 'neath the canopy Of the still and peaceful night.
Soft in thy ocean cradle sleep, The low winds voice thy lullaby, Rest ! for well thy guardians keep Their watchful vigils o'er thee.
Sleep ! for soon their voice shall wake thee Once more to stem the angry tide. Once more in gladsome jubilee The boisterous waves to ride.
Then, bird of beanty, rest awhile ; Soon on the broad and boundless main, Leaving this lone and sea girt Isle, Thou'lt spread thy snow-white wings again.
M. C. H.
CHAPTER XIV.
SEVERE NORTHER. THE RATTLESNAKE, ETC. HUMMING BIRDS. SUMMARY MODE OF EJECTING ABOLITIONISTS FROM GALVESTON. NATIONAL GUARD. BURYING GROUND. TEXAN DUEL. FACILITY OF OBTAINING A DIVORCE. AGREEABLE PRESENT ON THE LAST DAY OF OUR STAY. GOOD WISHES TO THE REPUBLIC.
'Tis not restraint on liberty That makes men prisoners or free, But perturbations that possess The mind, or equanimities. The whole world was not half so wide To Alexander, when he cry'd, Because he had but one to subdue, As was a paltry narrow tub to Diogenes ; who is not said,
For ought that ever I could read, To whine, put finger i' th' eye, and sob, Because he'd ne'er another tub. HUDIBRAS. THE cold wind seemed to have been still more severely felt here than it had been up
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the country, and one poor man had actually died from its effects. This dismal death, how- ever, was not so much to be ascribed to the intensity of the frost, as to the extreme keen- ness and strength of the wind. The crew were fortunately always prepared, by the sudden falling of the glass, for these national northers ; but if it happened that I myself had neglected to consult this unerring guide, I have been quite astonished at their arrival. I have known a calm, as still as death ; not a ripple on the water and not a murmur on the breeze ; when suddenly a sailor has ex claimed " Here it comes !" and, in a mo- ment, literally in the twinkling of an eye, the wind was roaring through the rigging, and the sea rising to a tremendous height ;
" Remoter waves came rolling on to see The strange transforming mystery :"
the schooner was tossed about at her an-
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chorage, and the water fell on the bar to its lowest depth.
The last norther, before our return, was particularly severe, but fortunately it left us fine spring weather, and as a proof of the power of the sun, rattlesnakes, alligators and musquitoes were beginning to make their ap- pearance. Of the former, I confess, I have a great horror, and I am sure if I were ever to become a "settler," I should not have courage to brave them, as I saw done by the Galveston people. In order, I suppose, to make one's mind easy, you are told that " the Indians " know a herb, which they call the " snake's master;" I have no doubt that this is very consolatory to them, but I can- not see in what way others are benefitted by their knowledge. I saw a poor little Scotch terrier fall a victim to one of these reptiles : with all the spirit and valour of his race, the
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tiny dog rushed at his foe, and, careless of his master's call, returned again to the charge, even after having been severely bitten : he lived only about three hours after he had received the bite, although all kinds of remedies were tried, the most effi- cacious of which, we were told, was a spoon- ful of gunpowder, poured down the animal's throat. In the long grass, among which the snake was found, the children of one of the inhabitants were constantly in the habit of playing. I asked their father if he was not afraid of their sharing the fate of the poor terrier, and his reply was, "no, that they never had been bit, and that he be- lieved sucking the poison out of the wound, always prevented any fatal consequences." The rattlesnake certainly does not take you unawares, for their angry vicious rattle is heard long before they proceed to the
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attack ; I would, however, much prefer keeping out of even hearing distance. The alligator's eggs were just beginning to be hatched, and the young reptiles came out in sunny days in great numbers. The alligator, however, frightful as he looks, is not a crea- ture to be much afraid of, as he is rarely known to attack man, and is, moreover, so large and unwieldy that, whilst turning himself about, there is plenty of time to get out of his way. We took a young one on board the yacht, about four feet long and very savage ; he did not live more than a fortnight, per- haps from being too much exposed to the cold. I had also a pretty little flying-squirrel, which I rescued in the streets of New Or- leans from a boy who was tormenting it ; these creatures are very common here as pets, and mine, though very shy, used to come on deck to sun himself in fine weather,
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One of the most curious creatures I saw in the country is the " horned frog," as he is familiarly called. In shape, he is not very unlike the ordinary frog, but with the addi- tion of a tail, about an inch and a half long ; he is found in marshy spots in the Prairie, and is of a brownish green colour, spotted with black; he has horns on his head, which are pointed, and about half an inch in length ; he has also similar excrescences, though not of so great a length, on his back. He runs with great rapidity, and is alto- gether a most wonderful little reptile. We had two of these animals in our menagerie, and hoped to preserve them till we reached England.
A few days before we left Texas, we saw, to our great surprise, an immense flight of humming birds. They had alighted in a small garden in the middle of the town, VOL. II. M
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which, in default of better and sweeter flowers, was well stocked with the yellow blossoms of the turnip plant. I could have stood for hours looking at them. They seemed to be of every colour ; crimson, green, blue, and sprinkled with gold dust. They darted and glanced about in the bright sunshine, shooting out their long slender tongues into the yellow flowers, and making their tiny music sound through the little parterre. We found it very diffi- cult to take them alive, and many were sa- crificed in the attempt : I had, however, three brought to me in little cages, and pre- served them alive for some days, feeding them on bread soaked in honey, which they ate greedily. They sat on little perches, and appeared to be much tamer than larger birds ; roosting at night, and and eating throughout the day, without re-
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gard to the presence of human beings. They all died the death of pets, by accident or over stuffing. Poor little things, they should never have visited the settlements ; they were too fragile, and too delicate for the contact of human hands. No one seem- ed to know where this flight of " oiseaux mouches" came from. The day after their first appearance being cold and cloudy, they were no more to be seen, having dis- appeared as suddenly as they came. It is strange, at what a great distance from land, these little creatures are occasionally seen ; when more than two hundred miles out at sea, between the Texas and the Havana, a humming-bird settled on the rigging of the Dolphin.
As on board the steamer, we found the slave question the principal topic of con- tion among the good citizens
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Galveston. Many of the latter main- tained, that individuals have no right to interfere with their lawful property, and were so indignant with the abolitionists, that they banished the principal philanthro- pist from the city. The person in question was conveyed in a boat to the mainland, and there turned adrift to preach to the in- habitants of the woods and prairies. Ano- ther, a black man, and by trade I believe a barber, had likewise incurred the displea- sure of the inhabitants of Galveston, by advocating the cause of his race in the market-place. He declared his life was in danger, and pretending to be a British subject, claimed the protection of the British minister. One of their own most respected townsmen did not escape their wrath. This person having declared him- self opposed to the abolition of slavery,
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