UNCLE TOM'S CABIN

Ranaway
and
KEY TO UNCLE TOM S CABIN.
21
a thingas an advertisement for a man.
"
dead or alive" like the advertisement for
GeorgeHarris,was ever published in the
Southern States. The scene of the story in
which that occurs is supposedto be laid a
few years back,at the time when the black
Ṭhat at this
laws of Ohio were passed
he brings
upon the stand,were ministers, lawyers,
merchants, and men of various other callings,
newspapers.
The papers from which these facts were
and put on filein a
copied were preserved
publicplace,where they remained
for some
years,
for the information of the curious.
After Mr. Weld's book was completed, a
copy of it was sent,throughthe mail,to
often go
on doinga thingwhich is very
absurd,or even inhuman, simplybecause it
has always been done before them,and they
followgeneralcustom,without much reflection.
When their attention, however, is
called to it by a strangerwho sees the
another point of view,they become
thing from
immediately sensibleof the impropriety
of the practice, and discontinueit. The
reader will,however,be painedto notice,
when he comes to the legalpart of the book,
that even in some of the largest citiesof our
slave states this barbarity had not
discontinued,
in the year 1850.
The listof advertisementsin Mr. Weld's
book is here inserted,not to weary the
reader with its painfuldetails, but that,by
running his eye over the dates of the papers
quoted, and the places of their publication,
he may form a fair estimate of the extent to
which thisatrocity was publiclypractised :
been entirely
time such advertisementswere common in
The Wilmington(NorthCarolina)Advertiser of
the newspapers, there isabundant evidence. July 13,1838,contains,the followingadvertisement
That they are less common now, is a matter
:
of hope and
"
gratulation.
$100 -willbe paidto any person who may ap~
In the year 1839, Mr. Theodore D. prehend and safely confine in any jailin this state
Weld made a systematic attempt to collect a certain negro man, named Alfred. And the
and arrange the statisticsof slavery. A
same reward will be paid, if satisfactory evidence
is givenof his havingbeen killed. He has one or
mass of facts and statisticswas gathered, more scars on one of his hands,caused by his having
which were authenticated with the most been shot. The Citizens of Onslow.
"
unquestionable accuracy. Some of the Richlands,Onslow Co.,May 16,1838."
"
one thousand witnesses," whom
In the same column with the above,and directly
under it,is the following :
"
Ran aw at, my negro
man Richard. A reward
who were either nativesof the slave of $25 will be paid for his apprehension, DEAD
or ALIVE.
states, or had been residentsthere for Satisfactory proofwill only be required
many
of his being KILLED. He has with
years of their life. Many of these were
him, in all probability, his wife,Eliza,who ran
slave-holders. Others of the witnesses away from Col. Thompson,now a resident of Alabama,
were, or had beenșlave-drivers, or officersof
about the time he commenced his journey
to that state. Durant H. Rhodes."
coasting-vessels engagedin the slave-trade.
Another part of his evidence was gathered
In the Macon (Georgia)Telegraph, May 28,is
from publicspeeches in the
Congress, in following :
"
the state legislatures, and elsewhere. But About the 1st of March last the negro
man
the majorityof it was taken from
Ransom left me without the least
recent
provocation
whatever ; I will give a reward of twenty dollars
for said negro, if taken, dead or "
alive, if
killed in any attempt, an advance of five dollars
will be paid. Bryant Johnson.
"CraivfordCo.,Georgia.'"
See the Newbern
for the following :
(N.C.)Spectator, Jan. 5,1838,
" RANA"\YAY from the subscriber,a negro
every editor from whose paper such advertisements
man named SAMPSON. Fiftydollars reward
had been taken,and to every individual
will be givenfor the delivery of him to me, or his
confinement in any jail,so that
of whom any facts had been I get him ;
narrated,
and should he resistin beingtaken, so that violence
with the passages which concerned is necessary to arrest him, I will not hold
them marked.
any person liable for damagesshould the slave be
killed. Enoch For.
It is quitepossible that this may have
"Jones Co.,N. C."
had some influence in renderingsuch advertisements
From the Charleston
less common. Men of sense
(S.C.)Courier,Feb. 20,
1836:
"
$300 REWARD. " from the subscriber,
in November last,his two negro men,
named Billy and Pompey.
4i
Billyis 25 years old,and is known as the
patroon of my boat for many years ; in all probability
he may resist ; in that event 50 dollarswill
be paidfor his HEAD."
The
CHAPTER V.
ELIZA.
writerstated in her book that Eliza
drawn from life. The inci-
was a portrait