As you walk the streets of Charleston, rows of greedy vultures, with sapient look, sit on the parapets of the houses, watching for offal. These birds are great blessings in warm climates, and in Carolina a fine of ten dollars is inflicted for wantonly destroying them. They appeared to be quite conscious of their privileges, and sailed down from the house-tops into the streets, where they stalked about, hardly caring to move out of the way of the horses and carriages passing. They were of an eagle-brown colour, and many of them appeared well conditioned, even to obesity. At night scores of dogs collect in the streets, and yelp and bark in the most annoying manner. This it is customary to remedy by a gun being fired from a window at the midnight interlopers, when they disperse in great terror. I should remark that this is a common nuisance in warm latitudes. Some of these animals live in the wilds, and, like jackals, steal into the towns at night to eke out a scanty subsistence. At first my rest was greatly disturbed by their noisy yelpings, but I soon became accustomed to the inconvenience, and thought little of it.
The warmth of the climate induces great lassitude and indisposition to exertion, alias indolence. I began to experience this soon after arriving in the south. This, which in England would be called laziness, is encouraged by the most trifling offices being performed by slaves. The females in particular give way to this inertness, and active women are seldom to be met with, the wives of men in affluent circumstances being in general like pampered children, and suffering dreadfully from ennui. On one occasion an English gentleman at Charleston, with whom I became acquainted, and whose hospitality I shall never forget, when conversing on the subject, addressed me thus: "Good, active wives are seldom to be met with in this state, amongst the natives; I may say, hardly ever; the females are nurtured in indolence, and in seeking what they term a settlement, look more to the man's means than the likelihood of living happily with him. There is no disguising it—the considera—with them is a sine quâ non. Few girls would refuse a man who possessed a goodly number of slaves, though they were sure his affections would be shared by some of the best-looking of the females amongst them, and his conduct towards the remainder that of a very demon." These sentiments I very soon ascertained to be in no way libellous. A southern wife, if she is prodigally furnished with dollars to "go shopping," apparently considers it no drawback to her happiness if some brilliant mulatto or quadroon woman ensnares her husband. Of course there are exceptions, but the patriarchal usage is so engrafted in society there, that it elicits little notice or comment. Nor, from what I gleaned, are the ladies themselves immaculate, as may be inferred from the occasional quadroon aspect of their progeny.
The Jews are a very numerous and influential body in Charleston, and monopolize many of its corporate honours. They were described as very haughty and captious; this, however, is saying no more of the stock of Israel than is observable all over the world, hen they are in prosperous circumstances, although, when this is not the case, perhaps none of the human family are so abject and servile, not excepting slaves themselves. In process of time, these people bid fair to concentrate in themselves most of the wealth and influence of Charleston. If their perseverance (which is here indomitable) should attain this result, they will be in pretty much the same position there that Pharaoh occupied over their race in Egypt in olden time, and, if reports speak true, will wield the sceptre of authority over their captives in a somewhat similar style. Avarice is the besetting sin of the Israelite, and here his slaves are taxed beyond endurance. To exact the utmost from his labour is the constant aim, and I was informed that many of the slaves belonging to Jews were sent out, and compelled on the Saturday night to bring in a much larger sum than it was reasonably possible the poor creatures could earn, and if not successful, they were subjected to the most cruel treatment.
Not long after my arrival in Charleston, I several times met a young coloured man, who was of so prepossessing an appearance, that I felt desirous to become acquainted with him, and, as I was at a loss to find my way to the residence of the mayor, a good opportunity one day offered, and I addressed him. He very courteously took me to the street in which the house was situated, and we talked on general topics as we went—in the course of which he stated, he was saving money for his ransom, and in two years intended to proceed to Montreal, in Canada. I could see, however, that the free manner in which we conversed attracted the attention of three or four individuals as we passed them—these would stop as if to satisfy their curiosity, some even took the trouble to watch us out of sight; looking back, I several times saw one more impertinent-looking than some others eyeing us intently, and once I fancied I saw him turn as if to overtake us. This curiosity I had often perceived before, but, as disagreeable results might follow, I invariably made a practice to take no notice of it when in the company of a coloured individual. A smile played upon the features of my dusky companion, as I turned to observe the inquisitive fellows I have referred to; perhaps I was taken for a negro-stealer, but, as I treated my companion with equality, I was most likely set down as one of those dangerous personages, who, through zeal in the cause of emancipation, sometimes penetrate, into the slave districts, and are accused (with what degree of justice I cannot tell) of infusing into the minds of the slaves discontented notions and agrarian principles.
As I met, on the occasion I have just referred to, an individual who knew I had felt an interest in endeavouring to establish the school for the education of negro children, the result of which I have already mentioned, I was apprehensive that the contretemps would have exposed me to the unpleasantness of at least being shunned afterwards as a man entertaining principles inimical to southern interests—and, however resolute I felt to pursue an independent course while I remained in Charleston, I could not shake off a fear I vaguely entertained of a public recognition by a deeply prejudiced and ignorant populace, who, once set on, do not hesitate to proceed to disagreeable extremes. This fear was enhanced in no little degree by the operation I had witnessed, of the tarring and feathering process practised by enraged citizens in the Missouri country, which I have before described.
The most degrading phrase that can be applied in the south to those white individuals who sympathize in the wrongs inflicted on the African race, I soon found to be, that "he associates with niggers." Thus a kind-hearted individual at once "loses caste" among his fellow citizens and, invidious though it certainly is, many slave-owners are deterred by this consideration, blended with a politic regard for their own safety, from exercising that benevolence towards their dependents which they sincerely feel; placed, as it were, under a sort of social ban, such men artfully conceal their sentiments from the public, and, by a more lenient treatment of their own hands, quiet their consciences; while, at the same time, they blunt their sense of what is honest, upright, just, and manly. Instances have occasionally occurred where men of correct principles have so far succumbed to this sense of duty, as to liberate their slaves. These are, however, rare occurrences, and, when they do happen, are usually confined to men of sterling religious principles, who, like that great exception, the respectable class of people called Quakers, in America, refuse, from a conviction of the enormity of the evil, to recognize as members those who hold or traffic in slaves.
It is through the influence of such men that the iniquities of the system become exposed to public view, and remedies are sometimes, in flagrant cases of cruelty, applied. The legislatures of the several slave states, however, have given such absolute dominion, by a rigorous code of laws, to the owner, that the greatest enormities may be committed almost with impunity, or at least with but a remote chance of justice having its legitimate sway.
The mass of slave-owners are interested in concealing enormities committed by their fellows, and are backed by a venal press, which, whether bribed or not (and there is every reason to suspect that this is often the case), puts such a construction on outrage, by garbled reports, as to turn the tide of sympathy from the victim to the perpetrator. No editor, possessing the least leaven of anti-slavery principles, would be patronized; and it not infrequently happens that such men are mobbed and driven perforce to leave the slave, for the more northern or free, states. Here they stand a better chance, but, in many instances, the prejudice, it is said, follows their course, and southern influence occasions their bankruptcy or non-success.
The practice, so common in the slave states, of the citizens congregating at the bars of hotels or cafés in the towns and cities to while away the time, renders attendance at such places the readiest means of ascertaining the state of the public mind on any engrossing subject, opinions being here freely discussed, not, however, without bias and anger; on the contrary, the practice is most sectarian, and frequently involves deadly feuds and personal encounters, these latter being of every-day occurrence. Ever since I had been in the southern states, my attention had been attracted to the swarms of well-dressed loungers at cafés and hotels. At first, like many other travellers, I was deluded by the notion that these idlers were men of independent means, but my mind was soon disabused of this fallacy. I ascertained that the greater portion of these belong to that numerous class in America known as sporting gentlemen; in plainer terms, gamblers. Some of these men had belonged to the higher walks of life; these were the more "retiring few" who (probably through a sense of shame not quite extinguished) felt rather disposed to shrink from than to attract attention. The majority of these idlers were impudent-looking braggarts, who, with jaunty air and coxcombical show of superiority, endeavoured to enforce their own opinions, and to silence those of every one else.
There was also another class of frequenters at such places; this consisted of tradesmen who pass much of their time hanging about at such resorts, to the great detriment of their individual affairs; and, lastly, such travellers as might be stopping in the town, who, through ennui and inveterate habit, had left their hotels, and sauntered "up town" (as they call gadding about), to hear the news of the day.