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A Philosophic Darkey

A Philosophic Darkey image
Parent Issue
Day
31
Month
March
Year
1865
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

A oorrespondent of the Cincinnati Gazette, writing from the Cumberland river, gives the following humorous account of a colloquy with a philosophic darkey : I noticed upon tho burricane deck today an elderly darkey with a very philosophical and retraspective cast of countenance, squatted upon his bundie toasting his shins against the chimney, and apparently plunged into a state of profoucd meditation. Finding upon inquiry that he belonged to the Ninth Illinois, onc of the most gallantly behaved and heavy losing regimeuts at the Fort DonelGon battle,.and pnrt of vvhicb was aboard, I began to interrĂ³gate him upon the subject. His philosophy wns so much in the Falstaflian vein that I wil! give his views in his osvn words, as near as my memory serves rae : " Were you in the fight?" " Had a little taste of it, sa." II Stood your ground, did you ? " " No, sa, I runs." " Run at the first firc, did you ? " " Yes, - sa, and would hab run soona, had I know'd it war coming." " Why, that waso't very creditable to your courage." ''Dat isn't ia my line, sa--cookin's my perfeshun." " Well, but have you no regard for your reputation ? " " Reputation's nuffiia to me by the side ob life." " Do you consider your life worth than other people's?" " It's wuth more to me, sa." " Then you must value it very higjjly?" " Yes, ea, I does - more dan all dis world - more dan a million ob dollars, sa, for what would that be wuth to a man with the bref out of him ? Self-preserbashum am de fust law wid me." "But why should you act upon a different rule from other men ? " " Because difFerent men set different values upon o!iir Uves - mipe is not in the market." " But if you lost it, you would have the satisfaction of knowing that you died for your country." " What aatisfaction would dat be to me when de power of feelin' was gono?" " Then patriotism and honor are nothing to you ? " " Nuffin, whatever, sa- I regard dem s,s among de vanities." " If our soldiers were like you, traitors might have broken up the government without resistance." " Yes, sa, dar would hab been no help for it. I wouldn't pui, my life in de scale 'ginst no goberninent dat eber existed, for no gobernraeqt could replace de loss to me." " Do you think any of your company would have missed you if you had beea killed ? " 'l May be not, sa - a dead white man aint much to dese sogera, let alone a dead nigga - but I'd a missed myself, and dat w8 de pint wid me." [t is safe to say tbat the dusky form of that Afrioan will never darken the field of carnage.

Article

Subjects
Old News
Michigan Argus