University of Virginia Library

37. XXXVII.

THE Corners wuz prostrated with joy last nite
at the receet uv the news uv the November
elecshuns. Ther wuz nothin demonstrative about
our joy ez there hed bin on occasions uv less interest.
No! the result wuz too great, too overwhelminly
great! Our nachers wuz filled with joy, and it
bubbled up to the eyes, and slopt over in floods uv
teers. Deekin Pogram's dawter Mirandy borrered a
tamborine, wich wood answer for a timbrel, and
attempted to dance down the street, after the fashion
uv Miriam, singin, “Shout the glad tidens,” et
settry, but we rebookt her. Sich exultashen seemed
to us inadekate. The Deekin met me, and fallin
onto my neck, wept perfoosely down my back, wich
I stood ez long ez I cood bear the moistyer. Gently

disengagin him, I led him to Basom's, fearin that so
great a waste uv flooids wood cut short the old
saint's life, unless that waste cood be repaired. We
supplied the deficiency to-wunst. Never saw I sich
a picter. The blessid old man sittin onto a bench,
a glass uv hot whiskey in his hand; his white hair
a fallin scantily about his temples, and tears a running
in rapid succession adown his frost-bitten nose,
and, glitterin a moment on the tip, droppin, like
strings uv pearls, into the space below! It wuz
tetchin!

The citizens met that evening, not to rejoice, but
to adopt sich measures for turning the victry to
account ez the occasion seemed to demand. The
Deekin wuz there, and I beleeve every white male
citizen uv the Corners wuz in his seet afore the glad
peals uv the bell hed ceased pealin. I assoomed the
chair, and in a few joodishus remarks stated the objeck
uv the meetin. Noo York, I remarkt, hed
spoken, and Noo Gersey, the blessed State uv which
I hed the honor to be a native, hed returned to her
fust love. I wuz not now ashamed to own that I
wuz a native of Noo Gersey. I am proud uv it,
and were it not for the fact that I owe neerly half
uv her citizens, in sums rangin from a half dollar
up to eighteen, I wood return there to-wunst. But

I won't. It wood awaken expectations in their
buzzums wich wood never be fulfilled, and I'm too
tender-hearted, too considrit uv the feelins uv others,
to lasserate them feelins. I can't properly express
my emoshuns. Thank Heaven the nigger is ourn.
The Northern States have spoken, and in thunder
tones. The Ethiopian wunst wuz on the top wave,
but wher is he now? Two years ago he wuz
needed — but now wher is he? The Ablishnists
don't need him no more to fill up ther quotas, they
don't need him no more to take ther places in
the next draft, and thank the Lord he's the same
d—d nigger he alluz wuz! The stink uv the nigger
hez overcome ther gratitood to him — ther good
feelin hez bin swamped by ther prejoodis. The
Dimocrasy uv the two sections uv the Yoonion hez
rusht into each other's arms, the nigger wuz between
em, and consekently is under our feet. What happinis
for Kentucky! The nigger can't go North
with the elecshen returns starin him in the face, and
ef he stays here he must stay on our terms. Thank
the Lord.

Deekin Pogram sed that he hednt felt so good
sence his first wife died. He felt too good to speek,
and the brethren wood excuse him ef his remarks
shood be breef. (We will! We will! with great

yoonanimity.) Four weeks ago, when he heerd
from Ohio and Pennsylvany he hed to-wunst drawd
up a skedule uv the loss that hed bin inflicted onto
him by the tyranical edict uv the Illinoy Goriller, a
copy uv wich he wood reed: —

                 

YOONITED STATES UV AMERIKY, In Account with Gabrel Pogram,	Dr.
To 1 nigger, Sam, 26 years old	$1,500 00
1 nigger, Pompey, 30 years old	1,300 00
1 nigger, Scip, 30 years old	1,400 00
1 nigger, Peter, 40 years old	1,000 00
To one lot misselaneous niggers, 22 in number, mostly crippled, and not uv much akkount, hevin bin flogd and chawd by dorgs, and injoored by being knockt about the head and back, a dissiplinin uv 'em, at, say, $500 each,	11,000 00
To one nigger gal, Jane, 18 years old, nearly white, with bloo eyes and curly hair, for wich I hed bin offered $2,500 to go to Noo Orleans,	2,500 00
To other wenches, uv all shades and ages, 12 in number, averagin, say, $500,	6,000 00
	$23,700 00

This bill he hed determined to put in, becoz uv
this property he hed bin robbed. Last nite he heerd
uv the result uv the Noo York and Noo Jersey elecshuns,
and he felt that more yit wuz due him from
the unconstooshnel government under wich we are
forst to live. He wanted pay, not only for his
twenty-four thousand dollars' worth of nigger, but

legle interest on the amount, from Emancipashen to
date, incloodin wat he paid to hev the calculation
made, and the interest figgered onto it, and he
wanted it in gold, ez he considered greenbax jist
ez unconstooshnel ez emancipashen.

Issaker Gavitt remarkt, that on behalf uv his
father's estate he hed a claim on the oppressors.
He hed made out no bill ez yit, ez the nigger wich
alluz did the figgerin for his father hed got to be
impudent, and wooden't do it no more. But he
shood get somebody who cood write to copy the
Deekin's bill, wich wood answer, ez the two farms
workt about the same number uv hands, tho uv
fancy stock his father hed alluz kept the most, wich
accountid for his bein more bald-headed than the
Deekin.

Kernel McPelter wantid no pay. He wantid his
niggers. To accept pay wood be to acknollege the
right uv a Illinoy goriller to releese em, wich he
wood never do. He hed one — he saw her to-day —
wich he wood hev back agin. Her and her husband,
wich hed bin married sence they wuz torn
from him, hed purchist ten akers uv ground up
toards Garrettstown, and wuz a livin onto it. Uv
course, ez the emancipashun was illegal, the produx
uv their labor sence that time wuz hizzen, jest the

same ez though they remained in their normal con
dishen. The ten akers woodent make him good,
but they hed two children born to em sence,
wich, ef niggers brot any price, wood do suthin
toards it.

Bascom perferred to hev Government pay ther
valyoo, and let em stay free. He had arrived at
this conclushun after givin the subjeck matoor considerashen.
They all hed some property now —
leastways they could all do wat they pleased with
their money. Troo, the heft uv the proceeds uv
their labor went to Pollock for dry goods, and groceries,
and sich, but he bleeved that they wuz a
imitative race. Ef so, and they followed the eggsample
sot em by their white sooperiors, they wood,
in time, leave the heft uv it at his bar. He hed a
few uv em under trainin now, and he notist that
they wuz better customers than the whites, ez they
didn't swaller their rashens and tell him to “jist
chalk it down.”

A sense uv the meetin wuz then taken, and a
majority voted to fust try to redoose them to their
normal condishen, and ef that wuz decided to be
impracticable, then we cood, with still better grace,
demand their valyoo uv the Goverment.

“Yes,” exclaimed Kernel McPelter, “and for

this great work ther is no better time than now.
`The Yoonyun ez it wuz!' Foller me!”

And forthwith the entire congregashun piled out,
rushin toward the nigger settlement on the Garrettstown
road.

Arrivin at the settlement, a consultashen wuz held.
It wuz desided that I shood advance to the doors uv
the houses and demand surrender, but I declined.
Kernel McPelter volunteered, and we all awaited
the result. He knocked at the door uv the first
house.

“Wha' d'ye want?” exclamed a voice.

“I want yoo!” said the Kernel.

“Wa' foah?”

“My friend,” sed the Kernel, impressively, “ef I
recognize yoor dulcet tone, yoor my nigger. Four
years ago yoo wuz set free, you sposed, by Linkin;
but we've done away with that. Come forth, and
give yoorself up; you shel, ef yoo go peaceably,
hev yoor old quarters agin, and be treated ez uv
old.”

“Go way, white man, and stop yoor foolin. Dis
nigga 's in bed!”

“Break down the doors!” yelled the Deekin,
“and hev done with it!” and a rush wuz made.

The doors wuz broke down, and in a minit the

nigger and his wife, and two children, wuz out in
the street, bound, and the Kernel hed the furnitoor
packt, ready to take to his own house. In the mean
time assaults hed bin made on two other houses, with
ruther different results. Deekin Pogram led one on
the house uv a former slave uv hizzen, and wuz
disabled by a charge uv shot in his leg, and the
infooriated nigger threw open the winder and swore
that he'd empty tother barrel into the head uv the
first man who came within range. The whole settlement
wuz by this time alarmed, and lites sprang
up, and we cood hear the click of the cocks uv
muskets, and the pilin up uv furnitoor afore the
doors. It wuz desided that the attempt to re-enslave
em be given over for that nite, and carryin the Deekin,
who wuz weak from loss uv blood, we made
our way to the Corners agin.

The result demonstrated to me the impossibility
uv the two races livin together in harmony. There
is a natral antagonism between em wich must result
inevitably in a war uv races, onless the status uv the
two races is fixed by onalterable law. It can't be
denied that, so long ez they are among us, so long
shel we be tempted to subdoo em, and so long will
sich sole-harrowin scenes ez that uv last nite result.
Ez I heer the groans uv that prostrated saint, Deekin

Pogram (this is written at his bedside in the
intervals uv feedin him likker with a spoon), I feel
ez tho I must vindicate my birth by goin out and
killin a nigger. Nothin but the oncertainty ez to
who wood be killed restrains me. Thank Heaven,
next yeer, when Seymore or Pendleton is President,
and the unconstitooshnel acts uv a Rump Congress
is done away with, all this will be fixt. It is this
that soothes the Deekin, and enables him to endoor
his sufferins.