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MIDDLETOWN, N. YJANUARY 25,1860.NO. 4.ndCondition of Fugitive Negroes in Canada.The Underground Railroad—Hornhle Sufferings of the Fugitives—General Demoralization in their Load/ties, and Depreciation of Property.A corresponded of a« morn in paper givesbusiness may be afforded by the exposure of a trick, now practiced week after week, for the! purpose of swelling the funds. A gang of s negroes, numbering from three to ten, is gathered in New York ; the men composing this!gang are represented as fugitives from slavery; i but it has been rumored that at times, when!ly by Hessians and other soldiers of the war of 1812, the government having made grants of land to them there.the following account of the Fugitive negro colonies in Canada, and the condition of therunaways are scarce and money needed, any idle nigger is hired to pass as an escaped slave. These men are exhibited to the charitable inirunawavs :THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD.IiIn ail the principal cities in the State of New York—in New Y *rk, Albany, Utica.Syracuse, Rochester, Buffalo and other placesregular agents are located, and subscriptions are solicited and collected the whole year round, to help “ poor fugitives from the South on their road to Canada and freedom. The amount thus accumulated is almost incredible,and the names of the charitable donors, ifpublished, would astonish the world. Governors, Senators, Editors, Lawyers, Merchants, and of course politicians, swell the capital stock of the underground railroad. Scarcely a week passes without witnessing a band ofNew York, by the agent of the underground railroad, and a story is told of their sufferings | on the road, of their present destitution, and 1 ot the lack of funds to help them onward on | their journey to a “ land of freedom.” It is seldom that this appeal fails, and a snug sum is generally collected in New York to assist the flight ot the fugitive to Canada. But as goon as these poor fellows, flying so swiftly from oppression, reach Albany, they are detained at that “ depot,” and again put to prac- j tical use as a means of raising money. The respectable colored agent of the underground railroad in that city once more parades them ; amongst the charitable—the same tale of their sufferings, their destitution, and the lack ofThe town of Amherstbnrg, about eighteen miles below Windsor, on the Detroit river, is in the township of Malden, and is one of the oldest settlements in that part of Canada. Itwas la;d out as a town in 1797, and was settled by families who, at the cession of Detroit, chose to go over to the Canadian side of the river. Some years ago a tract of land, about twelve miles from Amherstburg, was purchased by some benevolent Quakers for the purpose of supporting fugitive slaves upon it. It is known as the Colchester settlement. The object was to raise contributions, to build a school, and to support the negroes, partly by their own labor and partly by charity. But it was soon found that the blacks preferred the charity to the labor, and they sank into a colony of lazy, worthless thieves. The settlement has nowgone to pieces.A thorough personal examination made in all the townships named where negroes are settled has led to the conviction that every scheme for the amelioration of the condition ofrf i1lt;1T'nn n
Newspaper Details
Banner of Liberty
Middletown, New York, US
Wed, Jan 25, 1860
Page 6
Full Page
Clipped by
Middletown T.
NY, USA 27 May 2021
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