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Mr. Vinings writing. 500 copies for distribution [Published by Friend's Association of Philadelphia and its vicinity for the Relief of Colored Freemen. Office, No. 501 Cherry Street, Philadelphia.] A FREEDMAN'S SPEECH In a letter from Yorktown, Va., dated 12th month 15, 1866, Jacob H. Vining, Superintendent of Friend's Freedmen's Schools writes: "I enclose for publication the substance of a speech made by Bayley Wyat, a colored man, living near here. It was delivered at a Mass Meeting of colored freedmen held in our large school-house. The meeting was called at the close of one held the preceding evening by the Freedmen's Bureau, on the subject of removing the camps. The former meeting was addressed by Gen. Armstrong, Lieut. Massey and myself, advising them to seek homes in adjoining counties and elsewhere; the latter meeting was held to consider of and reply to our advice. I was present by special invitation, heard their deliberations, and felt their argument were unanswerable. I think I never heard more touching eloquence than that which characterized this simple speech. I was chained to the spot as I listened, and could not refrain from mingling tears with the crowd, who were often melted into tears by the pathetic allusions of the speaker to their past and present experiences. I saw in this speech so much naked, simple truth, and natural pathos and oratory, that I sent to the speaker, and got him to come to my place and repeat to me the substance of his speech, while I wrote it down. It comes far short of doing justice to him, but there are facts and forces in it which should command the respect and sympathy of all, and especially of legislators. Bayley Wyat's Speech. Taking notice of the address the gemmen gave us late night concerning leavin' the camps in which we are now settled, and thrown back to the adjinin' countries where we came from, it seems that it had been told the gemmen that if we would go back to the countries we came from, we should be taken care of as well as in the place where we are now located. But we have full satisfaction, if we turns back to them countries or the lands we came from, under the present situation of the rebels and the unsettled situation of the United States, we shall be forebber made hewers of wood and drawers of water. But when we looks back and sees our former state, when education was kept from us; and though we was made like men by God as other men, we was kept in bondage, - we made bricks without straw under old Pharo; and you all 'members de home house and de wife house, how de wife house, and we would go there Saturday night expectin' to see de wife we had left and she would be gone!-sent down South, nebber to come back, and de little cabin shut up and desolate;-den we would fold our arms and cry, "O Lord, how long!" and dat was all we could say. And we was not able to own even our names, as men among other men. For this cause we now looks on our present situation, and we believes it is by the overrulin' providence of God, and not of men, that we enjoys freedom,-that we are placed in this most pleasant situation. And we first thanks God for this great blessin' we now has; second, we thanks our friends from de North for the great sacrifice which dey have made for our benefition; and we feels so well satisfied that we has God on our side, that we has some friends t[[??]] assistance will intercede for us and assist us, yet wishes to be all the aid we can be to the United States as men. And as to our dear friends, de Quakers to de North, we does consider dem our best earthly friends, for de great sacrifice dey has made and is making for us; we does tank dem most kindly; and as to the de great North, for de sacrifices of treasures, of lives, and of blood, we now consider dem our affectionate friends, and we heartily tank dem.
Transcription Notes:
Part of the page is ripped in the second to last paragraph so some words are missing.
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Reopened for Editing 2023-10-03 16:06:42