Viewing page 14 of 16
This transcription has been completed. Contact us with corrections.
574 DOUGLASS'S MONTHLY. DECEMBER, 1861 [[line]] [[3 columns]] [[column one]] THE FUGITIVES IN CANADA. [[line]] Rev. HIRAM WILSON, of Saint Catherines, C. W., a gentleman well acquainted with the condition and wants of the fugitive slaves in Canada, gives the following opinion in regard to the formation of a new Society, called 'The Fugitive Aid Society of Saint Catherines.' We copy from the Liberator: This movement may appear well to friends of humanity in Boston and other parts of New England, but it looks strangely to us here; it is so uncalled for. The colored people in this part of Canada are generally in a thriving condition. Divine Providence has favored them, in common with others, with a fruitful season, and with ample employment. Fugitives fresh from slavery have been in the habit of coming to my house for relief, advice, &c., ever since I have lived in the place, now eleven years, and they have always had help when it was in our power to favor them; but since the civil war commenced, they have very seldom come to us, for the reason that they find protection in the Northern States, and are encouraged to stop short of Canada; or, if they do come over, they can come at their leisure, halting with friends by the way, who minister to their wants, so that they come into Canada in a far more comfortable condition than in former years. With regard to those who may be suffering from sickness or destitution, (which, by the way, there are none now that I am aware of,) the town charity is ample, and I am happy to know that it is extended as promptly and liberally to them as to any other class of poor people. I see these things from personal knowledge, and not from hearsay or second-hand testimony. Four years past, while the strangers, direct from slavery, have generally been well cared for, and always to the extent of our means; others who, by reason of sickness, misfortune or improvidence, have required help, in the cold season of the year, have had it freely extended to them from the town supplies, and will doubtless continue to be thus favored. I need say no more on this theme at present, and I could not have said less, as it is right that anti-slavery people who have means to bestow, in these times of calamity, should know fully how best to direct and apply their benefactions. [[line]] GEN. SHERMAN'S PROCLAMATION. [[short line]] After landing and taking possession of the forts at Port Royal, S. C., on Nov. 8th, Gen. Sherman issued the following proclamation to the people of South Carolina: In obedience to the orders of the President of these United States of America, I have landed on your shores with a small force of national troops. The dictates of a duty, which under the Constitution I owe to a great sovereign State, and to a proud and hospitable people, among whom I have passed some of the pleasantest days of my life, prompt me to proclaim that we have come amongst you with no feelings of personal animosity, no desire to harm your citizens, destroy your property, or interfere with any of your lawful laws, rights, or your social and local institutions, beyond the causes herein briefly alluded to may render unavoidable. Citizens of South Carolina! The civilized world stands appalled at the course you are pursuing!——appalled at the crime you are committing against your own mother——the best, the most enlightened, and therefore the most prosperous of nations. You are in a state of actual rebellion against the laws of your country. You have lawlessly seized upon the forts, arsenals, and other property belonging to our common country, and within your borders with this property you are in arms and waging a ruthless war against your constitutional government, and thus threatening the existence of the government which you are bound by the terms of the solemn compact to live under and faithfully support. In doing [[/column 1]] [[column 2]] this you are not only undermining and preparing the way for totally ignoring your own political and social existence, but you are threatening the civilized world with the odious sentiment that self-government is impossible with civilized man. Fellow-citizens! I implore you to pause and reflect upon the terror and consequences of your acts, if the awful sacrifices made by the devastation of our property, the shedding of fraternal blood in battle, the mourning and wailing of widows and orphans throughout our land, are insufficient to deter you from further pursuing this unholy war. Then ponder, I beseech you, upon the ultimate, but not less certain result which its further progress must necessarily and naturally entail upon your once happy and prosperous State.——Indeed, can you pursue this fratricidal war, and continue to imbrue your hands in the loyal blood of your countrymen, your friends, your kinsmen, for no other object than to unlawfully disrupt the confederacy of a great people——a confederacy established by your own hands, in order to set up, were it possible, an independent government, under which you can never live in peace, prosperity, or quietness. Carolinians! We have come among you as loyal men, fully impressed with our constitutional obligations to the citizens of your State; those obligations shall be performed as far as in our power, but be not deceived: the obligation of suppressing armed combinations against the constitutional authorities is paramount to all others. If, in the performances of this duty, other minor but important obligations should be in any way neglected, it must be attributed to the necessities of the case; because rights dependent on the laws of the state must be necessarily subordinate to military exigencies, created by insurrection and rebellion. T. W. SHERMAN, Brig.-Gen. Commanding. [[line]] A NATIONAL EMANCIPATION SOCIETY. [[short line]] A meeting of the friends of emancipation was held in New York City, November 6th, at which the following preamble and resolutions were adopted: Whereas, The time has now come, in which, if ever, the necessary means of putting down the rebellion should be ascertained, and resolutely carried forward, and should, at once, occupy the minds, and enlist the resources of all loyal citizens; and, it is manifest there is no reasonable prospect of terminating the present conflict and securing a permanent peace but by the speedy and complete liberation of the slaves; and the exigencies of the times require that emancipation be proclaimed by the lawful authorities, in accordance with the law of God, the letter and spirit of the Constitution, and as an incident of the war power agreeably to the law of nations, as expounded by John Quincy Adams in Congress in the year 1842: Resolved, That an association, to be styled 'The National Emancipation Association,' be now organized, whose duty it shall be, by petition, the use of the Press, and other agencies, to promote this object. Resolved, That the Association have power to fill vacancies in their own body, and, if deemed expedient, from time to time, to increase their number; also to appoint subcommittees and necessary officers, and to employ such assistants, and incur such expenditures as may be necessary; and as the funds furnished to the association may warrant, publishing annually, or more frequently, and authenticated account of their receipts and expenditures. Resolved, That the Association shall give free and impartial circulation to all the various classes of arguments that have been, or that may be adduced by able, earnest, competent, thoughtful man, whether those arguments be based on religious, moral, benevolent, political, economical or military considerations——whether drawn from the Bible, the Constitution, the nature of Civil Government, the [[/column 2]] [[column 3]] responsibilities of Society, the value of Free Institutions and of the Union, the exigencies of the country, the rights of the enslaved or the free, the interests of the North or of the South, or of the whole country, the claims of human nature, or the commandments of God——whether the measure be advocated as a necessity of war, or as a duty at all times——whether it be urged on the President, or Congress, or on military commanders. Upon the adoption of the foregoing platform, the Association was organized by the choice of officers——J. W. ALDEN, President, and SAM. L. HARRIS, Secretary. The Association is now ready for work; and for the furtherance of the object, solicit contributions from the friends of the oppressed, and of the Government. Even a postage stamp (letter) will furnish the means to send off a number of Petitions. Those persons sending any amount will receive in return Petitions, &c. SAM. L. HARRIS, Secretary, 96 Warren St., New York. [[line]] CENSUS OF COLORED AMERICANS. [[short line]] The following statistics of the free colored persons of African descent resident in the various States of the Union, have been carefully compiled from the recent Census Returns, and may therefore be relied upon for their accuracy: The numbers in the Free States are—— California - 3,816 Connecticut - 8,542 Illinois - 7,069 Indiana - 10,869 Iowa - 1,023 Kansas - 623 Maine - 1,195 Massachusetts - 9,454 Michigan - 6,823 Minnesota - 229 New Hampshire - 450 New Jersey - 24,947 New York - 47,998 Ohio - 36,225 Oregon - 121 Pennsylvania - 56,373 Rhode Island - 3,918 Vermont - 582 Wisconsin - [[underlined]] 1,481 [[/underlined]] Total in the Free States - 221,738 In the District of Columbia there are 11,107 free colored persons, and the Territories 229, making a total of 11,406. In the Slave States not yet withdrawn from the Union, there are—— Missouri - 2,983 Delaware - 19,723 Kentucky - 10,146 Maryland - [[underlined]] 83,718 [[/underlined]] Total - 116,570 In the Free States - 221,738 In the District of Columbia - 11,107 In the Territories - [[underlined]] 228 [[/underlined]] Total in the Union - 349,714 In the Seceded States there are—— Alabama - 2,630 Arkansas - 137 Florida - 908 Georgia - 3,459 Louisiana - 18,638 Mississippi - 731 North Carolina - 30,097 South Carolina - 9,648 Tennessee - 7,235 Texas - 339 Virginia - [[underlined]] 57,579 [[/underlined]] Total - 131,401 In the Union - [[underlined]] 349,714 [[/underlined]] Grand total - 481,115 The number of colored persons in the New England States was as follows, at the periods named—— [[3 column table]] [[state]] | 1850. | 1860. Maine | 1,356 | 1,195 New Hampshire | 520 | 450 Vermont | 718 | 582 Massachusetts | 9,064 | 9,454 Rhode Island | 3,670 | 3,918 Connecticut | [[underlined]] 7,693 | 8,542 [[/underlined]] Total | 23,021 | 24,141 [[/column 3]]
