Free Labor To Replace Slaves

A gigantlc scbeme, sald to be under full headway Ín certaln sectlons of tbia country, Is now clalmlQg considerable attcntlon of the presa. The Iinportance of tho tnovement as It may relate to society, tlie fmmcnsity of the enierpi se and the probable sum of inoney Involed, together wlth more or less mystery coverlng the real object, all combine to promote Interest in the subject. The scheme, as f ar as lt bas been explalned, contemplates the exportatlon of thousands of negros from thls country to Brazil. Emlgratlon agents are sald to be worklnir eertaia sectlons and induclug colored people to joln In a grand exoJus to that country, whkh, undoubtedly, Is descrlbed to them as Hterally flowing with milk and boncy. That the proposed exodus Is taking a tangible sliape, and tbere Is a likelihood of the emlgration agents' scheme succeedlng, appears froin the apprehenslons feit and sbown by the papers of the Southern states. The white people of the 8outh always look wlth fear and trembllng upon any threateued move to deprlve them of the working negroes, and tbcy baye not yet recovered from the shock they experienced a few years ago, when an extensive exodus transferrcd so largo a proportion of thelr black cltlzens to Kansas and other Western states. Though the Southerners often declare a wlsh that they had no "niggers" theycannot reconclle themselves to a partlng wlth them. Judglns by the efforts of a South Carolina paper, efforts are belng made to thwart the plans of the exodus ageuts by the old tactlcs of frlghteniug the natlve blacks lntoflts. The paper, a8quoted yesterday, decUrcs that the I blacks who join thls exodus will bc sold Into slavery at $300 a head, and then proceeds to i figure on the probable proflt of the transaci tion to the ageuts. lt Is easy to understand the motives of such a statement, and the effect lt would have on the colored people can readily be Imagiued; but that lt Is unreasonaljle, all well-lnformed people know. Although Brazil is still a slave holding country, lt Is an accepted fact that no slaves have been iinported luto the empire In the last thlrty years, and uone, except by stcaltb, for stlll a longer period. Thts is not because of any qualms of cousclence ou the part of the South American i empire, but is owing largely to the treaty with '. fcngland aud the earnest entreaty of Brlttnnla backed by her heavy cnnuons. In short, many years ago Brazil promlsed to abolish the slaye carr.ving trade, and other countries have hclped to see that the promise was not I broken. Laving aside all reference to history, troat! les and statistlcs, the assertlon that negroes irom the United States can be shtpped to the , capital of Brazll and sold in open market at ! $300 a head, or any other prlce, is slmuly prej posterous. The further statement that the iierents will niake large protits by the shlpiuent, caunot so easily be refuted. Brazil, for several years, has been making ! efforts to attract to her sunny ehores a por tion of the trreat tlde of emigratioo from the (ilil to the new world, with imlillereut success. (Jolonies fioia nearly every European country bave settleü in Brazil, but in many cases have irone back again as soon as tliey were able. . The governiucnt, tnrougb lts bureau of coloDlzatlon and lmmigrution, bas used all kinds of niians to attract colonista, but bas sbown little dispoeltlon to treat thetn fairly when obtained. Tlie government does not consider ownenhlpof land as any Inducement, the general Idea being that imported free labor can bc obtained by contract or bv soine co-operative plan, the intrlcacies of which are not reiidily eiplalned. The government Is ready, at all times, to pay the passage raoney of all colonists wlio go tothat country. ]n addltion ! to thls, agent9 who can induce a larire party to emlgrate from any Country to Brazil will be given a premium of so mucn per capita - puffieient in alimist any case to pay them for tbeir trouble. Tbis is where the emlgration agent m ikes hls proflt, which In large cous:gnments, would be considerable. lt Is quite probable that if the exodus ever takes place the blacks will bchired t Kio de Janeiro bv contract and put to work on iJanj tallous. If tbey ehould prove that they can i be as good colonists as tlie Portuguese, ItalI lans. Germana and the other people who have i settled Id Brazll, tbev may start a colony. The experlence of the exodus to Liberia, however, tended to show that North American uegroes are not successful atcolontzation. At any rate, they will siaixl the same chance as the people of whiter skins wboui they will find on all sides, and In all the vocatíons. Furthermore, in Braz I there is no color Une. The A frican, if he possesses nny of the needful qualilicatlons, is elifrible ti any posltion to whlcb a whlte man may attaln. African blood may be fouml, without boring very deep, In eome of the highest offices of the empire, lu pnsitions of trust and in the profession8. The editor of a leadlng daily paper in Rio was onc a slave In the capital. Natural I y, hlspaperlsaflat-footed A boli tion sheet. Thls brlngs me around to the subject of slavery- that bugaboo that Is held up by the South Carolina papers with such a show of Imlliínatíon to scare the blacks into staylng at home. Slavery In Brazil Is yet a blot of the escuteheon of America, and it exists In a form almost as horrible as ever, though, by the worklug of the emancipatlon act passed September 38, 1871, and a subsequent law, emancipatlou Is In slght. I have been In the elave mart in Río; I bave scen ocular proofs of the cruel pmctlces of gome masters; I was, for a brief period an employer of si ives hlred from masters, and durlng mv nojourn In Dom Pt'dro's empire I learned enough of the horrible systcm of property In human flesh to niake my blood boíl wth indignatlon at the recollectlon. Basing the statement at what carne under my own observatlon, I declare that slavery In Brazil Is the darkest and foulest blot on the western hemisphere; productivo of the most depraved rrade of moráis, the lowest order of Intelllgence and the most utterlv hopeless exlstence ol the creatures held In bondage. The emanclpation law, passed In 1871, provlded that all children bom of slave motbers, after September 28 of thatyear, should remaln the property of thelr masters untll they arrive at the age of 21 years, when they should have thelr freedom. Bv thls law a síave baby bom ou the day before that act went into effect could remaln a slave all hls Ufe, whether lt be 50, 70 or 90 years, unless some other means shortened hls bondage. Slnce my visit to the country I lesrn tbat a new law lias been enacted providlng, in addltion, a government fund to be used in buylng the freedom of slaves, and establlshlng the prlces to be paid the owners, ranging from $100 for slaves over 60 y.eare of age to $500 for those under 20 years. Eacb of the provlnces of the empire does some cmnnclpailng on lts own part, in addition to that of the renerul government, and fiocleties organlzcd for the purpose do their share. Stlll, at the present rate of emancipatlon, slavery catinot beentirclv eradlcated for a number of years to come, for theie are vet overone raillion in the empire, and deathis relievlng more blacks from bomls than are liberated by all the other meaus emplovi'd. AVhile I was In Brazil a sale of slaves took place at Valenya under official patronage. These were inffenuons or childrenborn in bondngc, and the followlng is a Hst of thelr ñames, ages and valuations, redueed to our ïnont-y: Nat hul ia, aged eight vears, valued atfSÓ; Onofre, neven ycar, $30; Paulino, toOTJBiin, $15; José, two years, Í7.50; Olympia, eightcen months, 11.25; Lulza, four years, $1.75; Avellno, two montha, Í7.50; Jguacia, teven Tears, $30; Antonio, three years, $15; Muriaiio, out yenr, $7.5(1;' Adelina, fouryears, $45. Rememberit was only the services of these children that were sold, and the buyer bad them untll the slaves became 21 years of aj.e. aml tlus ander tbe law ol free birthi Tbere is no room in thelimiied spaceof thls articleito iro Into any details of Brazilian slaTery, to describe any of the cruel practlces of masters (and, alasl of mistressen, too), instances of which abound in the pages of the nittive papers, or to quote statlstics by wbich the process oí gradual cmancipation may bo Bgured out. What I started out to say was that even If the exixlus agents - whoever tbey may be- do succeed in carrying a large number Ol North American blacks to Brazil, the negroes will have no worse a lot In that country iban they have in Alabama or South Carolina. They II not be sold into slavery, and If they behave themselves and abstalu from drlnUlnu too much cachaca, the native rum, tbe move may not prove disastrous to them. Kv such an emlgration they will only follow tbe example iet bj man; of thelr white comatrit)ls. lt will l. rt-membered bv some tbat alter the civil v:ir in tlns country several hundred baughty 8outheniers feit they could not live in this country under the stars and strlpes and with their families and belongingi fled to Brazü. Though the vestlRes of thelr colonles may yet bc founit in tluit couutry the larger portions of the voluntar; exiles flnallj eame back to tbls country. As much as theyulsllked the slars andstripi's ttiev clisliked Hrazil more.