The Underground Railroad
taken:
"Well, Carolina is an interesting place. There is not a state in
the Union I prefer to Carolina. Kinder, more hospitable,
warmer-hearted people perhaps you will not find anywhere. I have
been to Georgia; but Carolina is my preference. * * The South
is to be a great theatre for the colored man's development and
progress. There is brain-power here. If any doubt it, let him
come into our schools, or even converse with some of our
Freedmen either in their homes or by the way-side."
A few days later she gave an account of a visit she had just made in
Florence, where our poor soldiers had been prisoners; saw some of the
huts where they were exposed to rain and heat and cold with only the
temporary shelter they made for themselves, which was a sad sight. Then
she visited the grave-yards of some thousands of Union soldiers. Here in
"eastern South Carolina" she was in "one of the worst parts of the
State" in the days of Slavery; but under the new order of things,
instead of the lash, she saw school books, and over the ruins of
slavery, education and free speech springing up, at which she was moved
to exclaim, "Thank God for the wonderful change! I have lectured several
nights this week, and the weather is quite warm; but I do like South
Carolina. No state in the Union as far as colored people are concerned,
do I like better--the land of warm welcomes and friendly hearts. God
bless her and give her great peace!"
At a later period she visited Charleston and Columbia, and was well
received in both places. She spoke a number of times in the different
Freedmen schools and the colored churches in Charleston, once in the
Legislative Hall, and also in one of the colored churches in Columbia.
She received special encouragement and kindness from Hon. H. Cadoza,
Secretary of State, and his family, and regarded him as a wise and
upright leader of his race in that state.
The following are some stirring lines which she wrote upon the Fifteenth
Amendment:
FIFTEENTH AMENDMENT.
Beneath the burden of our joy
Tremble, O wires, from East to West!
Fashion with words your tongues of fire,
To tell the nation's high behest.
Outstrip the winds, and leave behind
The murmur of the restless waves;
Nor tarry with your glorious news,
Amid the ocean's coral caves.
Ring out! ring out! your sweetest chimes,
Ye bells, that call to praise;
Let every heart with gladness thrill,
And songs of joyful triumph raise.
Shake off the dust, O rising race!
Crowned as a brother and a man;
Justice to-day asserts her claim,
And from thy brow fades out the ban.
With freedom's chrism upon thy head,
Her precious ensign in thy hand,
Go place thy once despised name
Amid the noblest of the land.
O ransomed race! give God the praise,
Who led thee through a crimson sea,
And 'mid the storm of fire and blood,
Turned out the war-cloud's light to thee.
Mrs. Harper, in writing from Kingstree, S.C., July 11th, 1867, in
midsummer (laboring almost without any pecuniary reward), gave an
account of a fearful catastrophe which had just occurred there in the
burning of the jail with a number of colored prisoners in it. "It was a
very sad affair. There was only one white prisoner and he got out. I
believe there was some effort made to release some of the prisoners; but
the smoke was such that the effort proved ineffectual. Well, for the
credit of our common human nature we may hope that it was so. * * *
Last night I had some of the 'rebs' to hear me (part of the time some of
the white folks come out). Our meetings are just as quiet and as orderly
on the whole in Carolina as one might desire. * * I like General
Sickles as a Military Governor. 'Massa Daniel, he King of the
Carolinas.' I like his Mastership. Under him we ride in the City Cars,
and get first-class passage on the railroad." At this place a colored
man was in prison under sentence of death for "participating in a riot;"
and the next day (after the date of her letter) was fixed for his
execution. With some others, Mrs. Harper called at General Sickles' Head
Quarters, hoping to elicit his sympathies whereby the poor fellow's life
might be saved; but he was not in. Hence they were not able to do
anything.
"Next week," continued Mrs. Harper, "I am to speak in a place where one
of our teachers was struck and a colored man shot, who, I believe, gave
offence by some words spoken at a public meeting. I do not feel any
particular fear."
Her Philadelphia correspondent had jestingly suggested to her in one of
his letters, that she should be careful not to allow herself to be
"bought by the rebels." To which she replied:
"Now, in reference to being bought by rebels and becoming a
Johnsonite I hold that between the white people and the colored
there is a community of interests, and the sooner they find it
out, the better it will be for both parties; but that community
of interests does not consist in increasing the privileges of
one class and curtailing the rights of the other, but in getting
every citizen interested in the welfare, progress and durability
of the state. I do not in lecturing confine myself to the
political side of the question. While I am in favor of Universal
suffrage, yet I know that the colored man needs something more
than a vote in his hand: he needs to know the value of a home
life; to rightly appreciate and value the marriage relation; to
know how and to be incited to leave behind him the old shards
and shells of slavery and to rise in the scale of character,
wealth and influence. Like the Nautilus outgrowing his home to
build for himself more 'stately temples' of social condition. A
man landless, ignorant and poor may use the vote against his
interests; but with intelligence and land he holds in his hand
the basis of power and elements of strength."
While contemplating the great demand for laborers, in a letter from
Athens, February 1st, 1870, after referring to some who had been
"discouraged from the field," she wisely added that it was "no time to
be discouraged."
* * * "If those who can benefit our people will hang around
places where they are not needed, they may expect to be
discouraged. * * * Here is ignorance to be instructed; a
race who needs to be helped up to higher planes of thought and
action; and whether we are hindered or helped, we should try to
be true to the commission God has written upon our souls. As far
as the colored people are concerned, they are beginning to get
homes for themselves and depositing money in Bank. They have
hundreds of homes in Kentucky. There is progress in Tennessee,
and even in this State while a number have been leaving, some
who stay seem to be getting along prosperously. In Augusta
colored persons are in the Revenue Office and Post Office. I
have just been having some good meetings there. Some of my
meetings pay me poorly; but I have a chance to instruct and
visit among the people and talk to their Sunday-schools and
day-schools also. Of course I do not pretend that all are saving
money or getting homes. I rather think from what I hear that the
interest of the grown-up people in getting education has
somewhat subsided, owing, perhaps, in a measure, to the novelty
having worn off and the absorption or rather direction of the
mind to other matters. Still I don't think that I have visited
scarcely a place since last August where there was no desire for
a teacher; and Mr. Fidler, who is a Captain or Colonel, thought
some time since that there were more colored than white who were
learning or had learned to read. There has been quite an amount
of violence and trouble in the State; but we have the military
here, and if they can keep Georgia out of the Union about a year
or two longer, and the colored people continue to live as they
have been doing, from what I hear, perhaps these rebels will
learn a little more sense. I have been in Atlanta for some time,
but did not stay until the Legislature was organized; but I was
there when colored members returned and took their seats. It was
rather a stormy time in the House; but no blood was shed. Since
then there has been some 'sticking;' but I don't think any of
the colored ones were in it."
In the neighborhood of Eufaula, Ala., in December, 1870, Mrs. Harper did
a good work, as may be seen from the following extract taken from a
letter, dated December 9th:
"Last evening I visited one of the plantations, and had an
interesting time. Oh, how warm was the welcome! I went out near
dark, and between that time and attending my lecture, I was out
to supper in two homes. The people are living in the old cabins
of slavery; some of them have no windows, at all, that I see; in
fact, I don't remember of having seen a pane of window-glass in
the settlement. But, humble as their homes were, I was kindly
treated, and well received; and what a chance one has for
observation among these people, if one takes with her a manner
that unlocks other hearts. I had quite a little gathering, after
less, perhaps, than a day's notice; the minister did not know
that I was coming, till he met me in the afternoon. There was no
fire in the church, and so they lit fires outside, and we
gathered, or at least a number of us, around the fire. To-night
I am going over to Georgia to lecture. In consequence of the low
price of cotton, the people may not be able to pay much, and I
am giving all my lectures free. You speak of things looking dark
in the South; there is no trouble here that I know of--cotton is
low, but the people do not seem to be particularly depressed
about it; this emigration question has been on the carpet, and I
do not wonder if some of them, with their limited knowledge,
lose hope in seeing full justice done to them, among their
life-long oppressors; Congress has been agitating the St.
Domingo question; a legitimate theme for discussion, and one
that comes nearer home, is how they can give more security and
strength to the government which we have established in the
South--for there has been a miserable weakness in the security
to human life. The man with whom I stopped, had a son who
married a white woman, or girl, and was shot down, and there
was, as I understand, no investigation by the jury; and a number
of cases have occurred of murders, for which the punishment has
been very lax, or not at all, and, it may be, never will be;
however, I rather think things are somewhat quieter. A few days
ago a shameful outrage occurred at this place--some men had been
out fox hunting, and came to the door of a colored woman and
demanded entrance, making out they wanted fire; she replied that
she had none, and refused to open the door; the miserable
cowards broke open the door, and shamefully beat her. I am going
to see her this afternoon. It is remarkable, however, in spite
of circumstances, how some of these people are getting along.
Here is a woman who, with her husband, at the surrender, had a
single dollar; and now they have a home of their own, and
several acres attached--five altogether; but, as that was rather
small, her husband has contracted for two hundred and forty
acres more, and has now gone out and commenced operations."
From Columbiana, February 20th, she wrote concerning her work, and