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Support the Monkey! Tell All your Friends and Teachers |
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Support the Monkey! Tell All your Friends and Teachers |
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“I know very well that you’ve got the law on your side, and the power,” said George bitterly. “You mean to take my wife to sell in New Orleans, and put my boy like a calf in a trader’s pen, and send Jim’s old mother to the brute that whipped and abused her before, because he couldn’t abuse her son. You want to send Jim and me back to be whipped and tortured, and ground down under the heels of them that you call masters; and your laws will bear you out in it,- more shame for you and them! But you haven’t got us. We don’t own your laws; we don’t own your country; we stand here as free, under God’s sky, as you are; and, by the great God that made us, we’ll fight for our liberty till we die.” George stood out in fair sight, on the top of the rock, as he made his declara- tion of independence; the glow of dawn gave a flush to his swarthy cheek, and bit- ter indignation and despair, gave fire to his dark eye; and, as if appealing from man to the justice of God, he raised his hand to heaven as he spoke. If it had been only a Hungarian youth, now, bravely defending, in some moun- tain fastness, the retreat of fugitives escaping from Austria into America, this would have been sublime heroism; but as it was a youth of African descent, de- fending the retreat of fugitives through America into Canada, of course we are too well instructed and patriotic to see any heroism in it; and if any of our readers do, they must do it on their own private responsibility. When despairing Hungarian fugitives make their way, against all the search-warrants and authorities of their lawful government, to America, press and political cabinet ring with applause and welcome. When despairing African fugitives do the same thing,- it is-what is it? |
