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796 D O U G L A S S' M O N T H L Y FEBRUARY, 1863 [horiz line across page]] [[column 1/3]] this was the cause why the merchants of New Orleans had not remained loyal. They found themselves ruined——all their property being loaned upon the planters' notes and mortgages upon plantations and slaves, all of which property is now reasonably worthless. Again, he had learned what he did not know before that this was a rebellion against us, but simply a rebellion to perpetuate power in the hands of a few slaveholders. At first he had not believed that slavery was the cause of the rebellion, but attributed it to Davis, Slidell and others, who had brought it about to make political triumphs by which to regain their former ascendency. The rebellion was against the humble and poorer classes, and there were in the South large numbers of secret societies dealing in cabalistic signs, organized for the purpose of perpetuating the power of the rich over the poor. It was feared that these common people would come into power, and that three or four hundred thousand men could not hold against eight million. the first movement of these men was to make land the basis of political power; and that was not enough, for land could not be owned by many persons. Then they annexed land to slaves and divided the property into movable and immovable. He was not generally accused of being a humanitarian——at least not by his Southern friends [laughter]. When he saw the utter demoralization of the people, resulting from slavery, it struck him that it was an institution which should be thrust out of the Union. He had on reading Mrs. Stowe's book — "Uncle Tom's Cabin"—believed it to be an overdrawn, highly-wrought picture of Southern life, but he had seen with his own eyes, and heard with his own ears, many things which go beyond her book as much as her book does beyond an ordinary school-girl's novel. He related an instance of the shocking demoralization of society at New Orleans. There came into his office a woman 27 years of age, perfectly white, who asked him in proper language if he would put her in one of her father's houses. Her history was this : Her father had educated her in the city of New York until she was between 17 and 18 years of age, and taken her to one of the metropolitan hotels, where he kept her as his mistress. Not relishing the connection, and desiring to get away from him, she went to New Orleans——he followed here, but she refused to live with him, at which he whipped her in the public street and made her marry a slave. She afterward resumed the unnatural relation, going to Cincinnati, but was brought back by her husband or father with a child belonging to somebody. Her father fled from the city at the time of its occupation by the United States forces, leaving her in a state of destitution. She wanted to live in one of her father's houses, but her story was not credible, and he determined to investigate it. To his surprise, it was found to be well known, and testimony of its truth was obtained from A, B and C, without difficulty. Notwithstanding this fact, widely known as it was, this man could be elected in Louisian, in the city of New Orleans, a Judge of one of the Courts. On one occasion one of his aids brought before him a young woman, almost white, who had been brutally whipped and turned out of the house of her father. For this outrage the man had been made to pay a fine of $1,000, and give the woman a deed of emancipation [applause] These were the kind of charges which had been brought against him [cheers, and cries of good"]. Yes, no right-minded man could be sent to New Orleans without returning an unconditional anti-slavery man, even though the roofs of the houses were not taken off, and the full extent of the corruption exposed. All the lower classes of the people of New Orleans were loyal. During the first fourteen days after the Union forces entered the city, fourteen thousand took the oath of allegiance; and when he went on board the steamer, on his return to the North, at least one thousand laboring men came down upon the levee, and uttered no words except those of good will to him as the representative of the government. Gen. Butler continued by saying that the war could only be successfully prosecuted by the destruction of slavery, which was made the cornerstone of the Confederacy. This was the second time in the history of the world that a rebellion of property-holders against the lower classes and against the government was ever carried on The Hungarian rebellion was one of that kind, and that filed, as must every rebellion of men of property against government and against the rights of the many. One of the greatest arguments which he could find against slavery was the demoralizing influences it exerted upon the lower white classes, who were brought into se- [[end column]] [[start column 2/3]] cession by the hundred because they ignorantly supposed that great wrong was to be done them by the Lincoln government, as they termed it, if the North succeeded. Therefore, if you meet an old Hunker Democrat, and send him for sixty days to New Orleans, and he comes back a Hunker still, he is merely incorrigible [laughter.] There was one thing about the President's edict of emancipation to which he would call attention. In Louisiana he had excepted from freedom about 87,000 slaves. These comprised all the negroes held in the Lafourche District who have been emancipated already for some time, under the law which frees slaves taken in rebellious territory by our armies. Others of these negroes had been freed by the proclamation of September, which declared all slaves to be free whose owners should be in arms on the 1st of January. The slaves of Frenchmen were free because the code civil expressly prohibits a Frenchman holding slaves, and, by the 7th and 8th Victoria, every Englishman holding slaves submitted himself to a penalty of $500 for each. Now take the negroes of secessionists, Frenchmen and Englishmen out of the 87,000, and the number is reduced to an infinitessimal portion of those excepted. This fact had come to his knowledge from having required every inhabitant of the city to register his nationality. After all the names had been fairly registered, he exploited these laws to the English and French Consuls, and had thus replied to demands which had been made by English and French residents of Louisiana upon the government for slaves alleged to have been seized [applause]. ——Anti-Slavery Standard. [[horiz line]] THE RESULTS OF THE PROCLAMATION. The following table shows the number of slaves freed by the proclamation of January 1st, and the number yet remaining in slavery : | FREED. | STILL SLAVES. | TOTAL Alabama, | 435,080 | | 435,080 Arkansas, | 111,115 | | 111,115 Delaware, | | 1,798 | 1,798 Florida, | 61,745 | | 61,745 Georgia, | 462,198 | | 462,198 Kentucky, | | 225,483 | 225,483 Louisiana,| 238,564 | 93,162| 331,726 Maryland, | | 87,189 | 87,189 Mississippi, | 436,631 | | 436,631 Missouri, | | 114,931 | 114,931 North Carolina, | 331,059 | | 331,059 South Carolina, | 402,406 | | 402,406 Tennessee,| | 275,719 | 275,719 Texas, | 182,566 | | 182,566 Eastern Virginia, | 452,118 | 26,561 | 478,709 Western Virginia, | 12,146 | 12,146 Total, | 3,113,532 | 837,059 | 3,950,586 Add to these 3,155 slaves freed in the District of Columbia by act of Congress, and you have a total of 3 116,787 slaves freed within the last twelve months. These figures are carefully compiled from the census of 1860. They give a total of 837,123 still in bondage. But it must be remembered that since the taking of this census, the loyal Slave States which hold these slaves lost a vast number of them from the following causes, viz : Confiscation, as in Louisiana and Missouri ; the moving south of Rebel masters, taking their Slaves with them ; the escape, forcibly or by stealth, of great numbers of S aves, resulting from the disturbed condition of the country , manumission of Slaves by loyal masters desirous of aiding emancipation, Legislative action, State and National, unfriendly to slavery. From these various causes, Missouri has lost at least 50,000, Kentucky 75 000, Tennessee 50,000, and other States in the same proportion. So we deem it safe to conclude that the actual number of Slaves legally held under the authority of the United States is less than 500,000, or about one-eight of the number two years ago. And the signs of the times point to the speedy and peaceful emancipation of this remnant. Thank God for progress !—Cleveland Leader. [[horiz line]] REJOICING OVER THE PROCLAMATION [[horiz line]] The news of the President's great act was received with a thrill throughout the loyal Norh. Among men who love liberty, the rejoicings were universal. Extra newspapers were eagerly bought in the great cities, and men stopped in the streets to read the decree. The general joy was augmented by the simultaneous intelligence of the victories in Tennessee and Mississippi. Altogether, the New Year began with a general burst of enthusi- [[end column]] [[start column 3/3]] asm. May the year establish Liberty, and crown it with Peace. In New York, several congratulatory meetings have been held. The Abyssinian Baptist (colored) church gathered a jubilant audience on Friday evening' Several clergymen, among whom were Rev. Messrs. Cary and Spellman, made addresses. Mr. George T. Downing added some remarks. The meeting closed with cheers for Horace Greely, Wm. Lloyd Garrison, Dr. Cheever, and others, and with the song of "John Brown." On Monday evening the "Sons of Freedom," and association of colored people, held a public celebration in Cooper Institute. The great hall was crowded to suffocation, mostly by negroes, whose appearance and behavior might well put their white-face traduces to shame. Rev. H.H. Garnet presided with dignity, reading the Proclamation, and making a most appropriate and eloquent address. Having finished the reading of the Proclamation, he said 'My' friends, we must remember that it is God ' who has brought about this great even. ' Let us, first of all rise to our feet, and stand ' in solemn reverence and thankfulness before ' him.' The whole assembly rose. 'Now, then' said Mr. Garnet, 'let us give three ' cheers for the President of the United States.' They were given with a will, and followed successively by cheers "for our native land,' for the Stars and Stripes, for the Abolitionists, and for Horace Greely. The prayer of the occasion——a prayer of thanksgiving to God for the freedom of 3,000,000 slaves——was offered by Rev. J.T. Raymond, pastor of the Abyssinian Baptist church. Addresses, earnest, appropriate, and stirring, were delivered by Dr. Cheever, Prof. W.J. Wilson, Lewis Tappan, Rev. Richard H. Cain, William Wells, Brown,' and others. The music, instrumental and vocal, was by a colored band and choir, under the direction of Mr. Thomas Hamilton. The whole proceedings were very interesting, exciting, and impressive. In Brooklyn, a meeting of the colored people and their friends was held in Bridgestreet church. The pastor, Rev. J.N. Gloucester, presided ; the congregation sang the old hymn, "The year of jubilee has come." and addresses were made by William Wells ' Brown, Theodore Tilton, and Rev. R. M. Hatfield. The platform was decorated with American flags, and across the stage was suspended a banner bearing the following inscriptions : 'our country and the day we celebrate;' ' Emancipation in 1827, New York State ;' ' Emancipation in 1834, in British West ' Indies.' In the center was the figure of a slave bearing the British flag, and another just relieved of his shackles. On either side was a representation of Wilberforce and Clarkson. In front of the gallery occupied by the choir, the following Scriptural quotation was displayed : 'Inasmuch as ye do it unto the ' least of these my little ones, ye do it unto me.' In Rochester, commemorative exercises were held on Sunday of a religious character. After prayer and singing, addresses were made by A. M. Powell of Ghent, N. Y., G. B. Stebbins of Rochester, and others. The gathering was large, and the enthusiasm deep and earnest. At Orange, N. J., many of the private dwellings were illuminated, including the residence of Rev. George B. Bacon, pastor of the Congregational church. In Boston, on New Year's day appropriate exercises were held in anticipation of the Proclamation. A jubilee concert was given in the afternoon at which Josiah Quincy, Jr, presided and made a speech, and Ralph Waldo Emerson read an original poem. After vocal and instrumental music, according to the programme, Dr. O. W. Holmes's army hymn was sung, with the following stanza added by the author, to make it suitable to the occasion: No more its flaming emblems wave To bar from hope the trembling slave ; No more its radiant glories shine To blast with woe a child of Thine ! At Tremont Temple a meeting was held, continuing through the day and evening. Wm [[end column]]
