University of Virginia Library

31. CHAPTER XXXI.
THE MIDDLE PASSAGE.

On the lower part of a small, mean boat, on the Red river,
Tom sat, — chains on his wrists, chains on his feet, and a
weight heavier than chains lay on his heart. All had faded
from his sky, — moon and star; all had passed by him, as
the trees and banks were now passing, to return no more.
Kentucky home, with wife and children, and indulgent
owners; St. Clare home, with all its refinements and splendors;
the golden head of Eva, with its saint-like eyes; the
proud, gay, handsome, seemingly careless, yet ever-kind St.
Clare; hours of ease and indulgent leisure, — all gone! and
in place thereof, what remains?

It is one of the bitterest apportionments of a lot of slavery,
that the negro, sympathetic and assimilative, after acquiring,
in a refined family, the tastes and feelings which form the
atmosphere of such a place, is not the less liable to become
the bond-slave of the coarsest and most brutal, — just as a
chair or table, which once decorated the superb saloon, comes,
at last, battered and defaced, to the bar-room of some filthy
tavern, or some low haunt of vulgar debauchery. The great
difference is, that the table and chair cannot feel, and the
man can; for even a legal enactment that he shall be

“taken, reputed, adjudged in law, to be a chattel personal,”
cannot blot out his soul, with its own private little world of
memories, hopes, loves, fears, and desires.

Mr. Simon Legree, Tom's master, had purchased slaves at
one place and another, in New Orleans, to the number of
eight, and driven them, handcuffed, in couples of two and two,
down to the good steamer Pirate, which lay at the levee,
ready for a trip up the Red river.

Having got them fairly on board, and the boat being off,
he came round, with that air of efficiency which ever characterized
him, to take a review of them. Stopping opposite
to Tom, who had been attired for sale in his best broadcloth
suit, with well-starched linen and shining boots, he briefly
expressed himself as follows:

“Stand up.”

Tom stood up.

“Take off that stock!” and, as Tom, encumbered by his
fetters, proceeded to do it, he assisted him, by pulling it, with
no gentle hand, from his neck, and putting it in his pocket.

Legree now turned to Tom's trunk, which, previous to this,
he had been ransacking, and, taking from it a pair of old
pantaloons and a dilapidated coat, which Tom had been wont
to put on about his stable-work, he said, liberating Tom's
hands from the handcuffs, and pointing to a recess in among
the boxes,

“You go there, and put these on.”

Tom obeyed, and in a few moments returned.

“Take off your boots,” said Mr. Legree.

Tom did so.

“There,” said the former, throwing him a pair of coarse,
stout shoes, such as were common among the slaves, “put
these on.”

In Tom's hurried exchange, he had not forgotten to transfer
his cherished Bible to his pocket. It was well he did so;
for Mr. Legree, having refitted Tom's handcuffs, proceeded
deliberately to investigate the contents of his pockets. He
drew out a silk handkerchief, and put it into his own pocket.
Several little trifles, which Tom had treasured, chiefly because
they had amused Eva, he looked upon with a contemptuous
grunt, and tossed them over his shoulder into the river.

Tom's Methodist hymn-book, which, in his hurry, he had
forgotten, he now held up and turned over.

“Humph! pious, to be sure. So, what 's yer name, —
you belong to the church, eh?”

“Yes, Mas'r,” said Tom, firmly.

“Well, I 'll soon have that out of you. I have none o'
yer bawling, praying, singing niggers on my place; so
remember. Now, mind yourself,” he said, with a stamp and
a fierce glance of his gray eye, directed at Tom, “I'm your
church now! You understand, — you 've got to be as I say.”

Something within the silent black man answered No! and,
as if repeated by an invisible voice, came the words of an old
prophetic scroll, as Eva had often read them to him, — “Fear
not! for I have redeemed thee. I have called thee by my
name. Thou art MINE!”

But Simon Legree heard no voice. That voice is one he
never shall hear. He only glared for a moment on the
downcast face of Tom, and walked off. He took Tom's trunk,
which contained a very neat and abundant wardrobe, to the
forecastle, where it was soon surrounded by various hands of
the boat. With much laughing, at the expense of niggers
who tried to be gentlemen, the articles very readily were sold
to one and another, and the empty trunk finally put up at auction.
It was a good joke, they all thought, especially to see

how Tom looked after his things, as they were going this way
and that; and then the auction of the trunk, that was funnier
than all, and occasioned abundant witticisms.

This little affair being over, Simon sauntered up again to
his property.

“Now, Tom, I 've relieved you of any extra baggage,
you see. Take mighty good care of them clothes. It 'll be
long enough 'fore you get more. I go in for making niggers
careful; one suit has to do for one year, on my place.”

Simon next walked up to the place where Emmeline was
sitting, chained to another woman.

“Well, my dear,” he said, chucking her under the chin,
“keep up your spirits.”

The involuntary look of horror, fright and aversion, with
which the girl regarded him, did not escape his eye. He
frowned fiercely.

“None o' your shines, gal! you 's got to keep a pleasant
face, when I speak to ye, — d'ye hear? And you, you old
yellow poco moonshine!” he said, giving a shove to the
mulatto woman to whom Emmeline was chained, “don't you
carry that sort of face! You 's got to look chipper, I tell
ye!”

“I say, all on ye,” he said retreating a pace or two back,
“look at me, — look at me, — look me right in the eye, —
straight, now!” said he, stamping his foot at every pause.

As by a fascination, every eye was now directed to the
glaring greenish-gray eye of Simon.

“Now,” said he, doubling his great, heavy fist into something
resembling a blacksmith's hammer, “d'ye see this fist?
Heft it!” he said, bringing it down on Tom's hand. “Look
at these yer bones! Well, I tell ye this yer fist has got as
hard as iron knocking down niggers. I never see the

nigger, yet, I could n't bring down with one crack,” said he,
bringing his fist down so near to the face of Tom that he winked
and drew back. “I don't keep none o' yer cussed overseers;
I does my own overseeing; and I tell you things is seen to.
You 's every one on ye got to toe the mark, I tell ye; quick,
— straight, — the moment I speak. That 's the way to keep
in with me. Ye won't find no soft spot in me, nowhere.
So, now, mind yerselves; for I don't show no mercy!”

The women involuntarily drew in their breath, and the
whole gang sat with downcast, dejected faces. Meanwhile,
Simon turned on his heel, and marched up to the bar of the
boat for a dram.

“That 's the way I begin with my niggers,” he said, to a
gentlemanly man, who had stood by him during his speech.
“It 's my system to begin strong, — just let 'em know what
to expect.”

“Indeed!” said the stranger, looking upon him with the
curiosity of a naturalist studying some out-of-the-way specimen.

“Yes, indeed. I 'm none o' yer gentlemen planters, with
lily fingers, to slop round and be cheated by some old cuss of
an overseer! Just feel of my knuckles, now; look at my
fist. Tell ye, sir, the flesh on 't has come jest like a stone,
practising on niggers, — feel on it.”

The stranger applied his fingers to the implement in question,
and simply said,

“'T is hard enough; and, I suppose,” he added, “practice
has made your heart just like it.”

“Why, yes, I may say so,” said Simon, with a hearty
laugh. “I reckon there 's as little soft in me as in any one
going. Tell you, nobody comes it over me! Niggers never

gets round me, neither with squalling nor soft soap, — that 's
a fact.”

“You have a fine lot there.”

“Real,” said Simon. “There 's that Tom, they telled me
he was suthin' uncommon. I paid a little high for him, tendin'
him for a driver and a managing chap; only get the notions
out that he 's larnt by bein' treated as niggers never ought to
be, he 'll do prime! The yellow woman I got took in in. I
rayther think she 's sickly, but I shall put her through for
what she 's worth; she may last a year or two. I don't go
for savin' niggers. Use up, and buy more, 's my way; —
makes you less trouble, and I 'm quite sure it comes cheaper
in the end;” and Simon sipped his glass.

“And how long do they generally last?” said the
stranger.

“Well, donno; 'cordin' as their constitution is. Stout
fellers last six or seven years; trashy ones gets worked up in
two or three. 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 comfortable. Law, 't was n't no sort o'
use; I lost money on 'em, and 't was heaps o' trouble. Now,
you see, I just put 'em straight through, sick or well. When
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 foot-hold for an hour. If 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 mill-stone. It 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 am. You 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 backgammon. Meanwhile,
another conversation was going on in the lower part of the
boat, between Emmeline and the mulatto woman with whom
she was confined. As 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 Mr. Ellis, — lived on Levee-street.
P'raps you 've seen the house.”

“Was he good to you?” said Emmeline.

“Mostly, till he tuk sick. He 's lain sick, off and on,
more than six months, and been orful oneasy. 'Pears like
he warnt willin' to have nobody rest, day nor night; and got
so curous, there could n't nobody suit him. 'Pears like he
just grew crosser, every day; kep me up nights till I got
farly beat out, and could n'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 blacksmith. Mas'r gen'ly
hired him out. They took me off so quick, I did n't even
have time to see him; and I 's got four children. O, 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 consolation.
Emmeline wanted to say something, but she could not
think of anything to say. What 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 hour.
The mulatto woman was a member of the Methodist church,
and had an unenlightened but very sincere spirit of piety.
Emmeline 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 sameness. At last the boat stopped at a small town,
and Legree, with his party, disembarked.