The High Seat Behind Two Mules

A tourist spending some time in Virginia gives her observations in the Independent in the followiug interesting artiele : VVith the colored people, roots, herbs, and floweis are the favorite medicines. Every ailment is cured by them, froru a corn to a dropsy - the juice of the juniper berry for the corn, a drink male from sunflower 8eed8 for the dropsy. The latter drink, mingled with houey, is declared by all Negroes to be a positive and never failing cuie tbr dropsy. Since emaucipation, Aunt Aray has taken into her heart and cabin eix motherless litt.Ie babies, and out ofherscanty means cared for them with all of a mother's tendernesa. I stumbled upon her one day, while rambling about Manchester, and when I asked her why she troubled herself with such a care, she said: "You see, dar warn't nobody to care fur dem, so I tuk 'em in. Leastways, dat's why I tuk all, 'cepting dis one." "You are so old now, Aunt Amy, and so poor, and so friendless, why did you take this one?" And I touched the sickly, ugly, wailing child in her arms. "I was commanded to take it. First off', I didn'l want to; but de commaud come, so I tuk it." 'How were you commanded?" "In de iniddle ob de night, honey, I see a milk-white aneel come to mv bedside. And ilsez: 'Aunt Amy, go fur dat chile and take care ob it.' So I riz right up in my bed, and sot in de chair till day broke; den I went straight and tuk it. You see," she added, with a mournful shake of her head, "it ain't no lawful chile, au' her raaminy done lef' her to die ob de starvation." "She is very sickly." "Yes; but she's done picked up right much since I tuk to washing her in pot-liquor. You see, when l biles de cabbage and bacon, I sa ves de liquor and I washes de ohile in it. It's the bestest waali in de worl' for sick babies." "What are you goiug to do with uiern, anyway?" "I aim to gib 'em an eddication, sorae way or oder, honey. Tbings mostly comes when vou're b t ou them." Cleanliness is the rule, and not the exception in the Vire;inian Negro'a home. Wherever filth and disorder is found it is certain ttiat the inhabitants of' that room or house belong to that class of Negroes spoken of among their own color as Niggern and treated with little less contewpt than that given to poor white people; for the Virginia Negro ratea a white person according to the depth of their purse or the richness of their clothing -a standard, by the by, hardly confined to Virginia or even to Negroea. A lay or two ago I was much amused at a conversa! ion I overheard between a little Negro gi r and her mother. The child had on a very short and a very ragged calicó dress, and her wooly hair stood out in innunieiable little stiff rolls. Her mother was urging her to accept a place that had been offered her, and she auawered, with ereat indignatLn: '.Lor , Mammy, you don t waut fur me to go arul live wid dat woman. Why, she wears a slat bonnet! She ain't nuUing but poor white trash." To ihoroughly uuderstand the tupreme contempt due that slat bonnet, one must have seen the tnrued-up little black nose and the peculiar ssviteh of the back breadtbs of that calicó dress. "Slai" ur sunbonnets are cousidered a part of poor white poverty and Negroes rarely wear thein. When the headkerchitrf is discarded, they put on the hat aud iney sucK to H. JNot oniy are the Negro homes gfnerally clean, but inany are nicely furnished; and often among even the poorer factory-hands' r-oms I füund attempts at decoratiou, even though it was displayed in that greatest of all known kinds of trash, perforated card-board ornamenta. Most families consider it absolutely necessary to wash and dress the ohildren every afternouu. On the Sabbath few white congregatious go in more handsome costumes than those displayed by the wealthy members Oi' the African church in Richmond. In one resoect the Richmond groes rather exaggerate a peculiarity of tlie whites. They are not eourteous to strangers. Among theinselves there is a studied courtesy, and it Í8 amusing to hear them introduce one another af'ter that most conceited formula used by the whites - " Mise Tones," says Pompey, with a most elabórate bow, "allow me to introduce you to Mrs. Peyton Randolph Smitli .of Virginia-" for iu the Virginian's opiniou to be "of Virginia" is to bein the superlative at once. Even in the Heavenly Kitigdoin they expect to be the nucleus around which the best society of Paradise will flutter. Iddeed, I noticed universally toward 3trauger8 a repellan t air, contrasting 8trangely with the traditional reputation of Virginia, and the black man but follows the white one in this re speet. A Northerner who wants to know what horaesickntss ('eels like, can have an attack in Richmond on very short notine: and if they want to feel as though they had broken all the Ten Cominandments at once, let them ask sonie gentleman to whom they have not been formally introduced to wjii mem dow 10 ncu a streel or a public building. The information will be given, bul in a maimer that couvinces the daring inquirer that the person asked will go home and teil bis wife or hia inamina that a ürange person spoke to him. The Manchester Negroes outdo even the Ricbinond ones in extreme politeness to each other. The "Mr.," 'Mrs.," or ''Misa" ure nerer omitted in the most familiar conversador), and even servauts about a house use them to each other and rigidly enforce the honor froru every little darkey on the place. "Uertainly, it is too bad, Miss Lillie; but it is Miss Jenny Hopkins's fault the clothes areso late this week,'' was the excuse my very elegant lauudress made for bringing home my washing three days af'ter order. ' It eertaiuly is too bad; but yesterday morning Miss Hopkins carne round to my house 'for breakfast, red hot to help me iron. She said she was ust going up the road for a minute or two, and would be right back 'fore I could get the board ready, and I 'clare to graoious, I aiu't seon the back breadths of lier dress since." "Lor'! Mrs. (Jhalmers, don't you kuow Miss Hopkius's promises ain't worth Confedérate money; much mpre de breff it take-i to make 'em?" exclaimed e, listeuing chambermaid. During the time I have been in Bichmond aud Manchester I have seen a great deal ot' Negroes of every class; but I do not. remember a single iu8tance iu which they confessed to bpiug in perfect health. They are always 'fjust tolerable," or "pretty tolerable," or "still sticking together." Even the young Negro girls imitate the sentimental fragility of their white sisters and affect delicate health and an interesting invalidism. Richmond supports one newspaper, which is the organ of the colored race and has a colored editor. It bears the excellent name of The Debt Payer and it claims a very good subpcription list. However, I noticed that, the aristocratie Negroes patr ■uize the Riehmond Digpatch. The colored public schools in Rich mond are well managed aud ponducted in large, airy buildings; whiJe the Normal High School, supported by the city, has the same advantages as the white school of the same grade. Rirhmond has fully recognized the fact that the colored people are an important factor in her prosperity aud she is doing her best to make thesa intelligent citizens. I cannot say as much for Manchester. The schools are inefficiënt and badly managed, aud the colored people coinplain that the poor relatives of the politiciaus are put over them, without auy regard as to their ability to teach. I thiuk this complaint may be a very just one, for I have talked with raauy white people in Manchester who regard the public school systeoi as a kind of tyranny and ooniolaia bitterly at being "taxed to keep up schools for Nigger wenches." After visiting the cotí on milis oí Manchester, I oould easily under stand why Negrees will iiot work n them. They cannot talk, and, besidea, the wbeels and bands deinand careful, monotonous, straightíbrward work. Now, the Negro lovea that employineot which allows him to joke and sing, and even to turn it occasionally into plav. While aoing throuuh the Tredegar irou works and rolling milis I was, as they say here, right much araused at a littltj scène which exenaplifiey this peculiarity. There were three men engaged in cutting asunder some oíd iron. A staid, grave-looking white man held the chisel, while, with swif't, unerring strokes, two men, one on eitlier side, brought their heavy hamuiers down upou it. Oue of these was a wiiite man, one a Negro. The while man kept his stroke with a steady skill, liever changing even the expressioü of his face; the Negro swuDg iis hammer behind nis back, and uuder ona Jeg, and around his head, wkh consfaHtly varyiug ejaculations. "Why do you take all that utinectssary troubk?' I aaked hiin. "Jist tc keep de f'un agwing." "What iun is there in so rauch unnecessarywork?" He grinued merrily at my ignorauce, aDd aiiswered: "Why, de fun is in doing dat dar and keeping time wid de oder liammr." As a rule, the Negro dislikes tory work. The restraint aud ooufiuement soon make tfaeui dull and eveu sulky. The f'resh fieids, the woods, or, better than all, tre high seat behind Uvo mules ia the Negro's taste aud ambition; but, it' he must work in a f'actory, then the manufacture of tobáceo suits him best. There he can íaugh and chat and sing and make believe he is notworking. Play, indeed, seems to be a necessity to the majority. It is very amusing tosimply walch them loadiug or unloading wagons ou the streets; "Oh!" sang one black fellow - "OU! I've got Eigtateen sides of bacon ! Nineteen sides of bacon !! Twenty sides of bacon ! ! ! Oh! I've got Twenty -one sides of bacon ! Twenty-two sides of bacon !!" "I say, Jira, dat's a whole hog, or it ought to be." This remar k was au "aaide" to the mau helping liim, and then he went on with his musical additiou, as menily as ever. "Look out, dar, Nigger!" said another man, as a dray eaine within an inch of running over hitn. "Look out, dar! Dey done try dat 'sperir ment ob running two sorts ob cabs on de same (rack in diöerent ways, and dem engines and engineers ain't been heered frora since. gij I don't want you to run dat raw-hide of you'rn into my team any more." 'De raw-hide got de bone and meat in it y et, blees de Lord! And de next time IV. gwine to ride cleac up ou de top of you." "Don't you be making tracks you can't fill; 'cause you'se gwine to siuk iu dem, et' you do. Miud dat, Nigger! Both went on their way haw! haw! hawing! and a yard or two lurtheron, auother dispute iu mock heroics was progressing. Indeed, the streets of a soutliern ei' y are f'ull of the comic element. Of' oourse, there are Negro men and women to whom Ufe is a inuch more serious business; but the majority take iife in a childish way, that is as pitiful as it is amusing. Uutil a higher training and a better education is more general the oolored man wil! not be a suocess as a manufacturer. He lacks patience, neatness, skill, and perseverance. He detests restraint and confinement. A labor that is monotonous appalls anl benumbs him.