wilderness. A creature of impulse, seldom actuated by
reflection, the black man astounds by his complete
obtuseness, and as suddenly confounds you by an
unexpected exhibition of sympathy. ' From a long
experience with African savages, I think it is as absurd
to- condemn the negro in toto, as it is preposterous
to compare his intellectual capacity with that of the
white man. It is unfortunately the fashion for one
party to uphold the negro as a superior being, while
the other denies him the common powers of reason.
So great a difference of opinion has ever existed upon
the intrinsic value of the negro, that the very perplexity
of the question is a proof that he is altogether
a distinct variety. So long as it is generally considered
that the negro and the white man are to be governed
by the same laws and guided by the same management,
so long will the former remain a thorn in the
side of every community to which he may unhappily
belong. When the horse and the ass shall be found
to match in double harness, the white man and the.
African black will pull together under the same régime.
I t is the grand error of equalizing that which is unequal,
that has lowered the negro character, and made
the black man a reproach.
In his savage home, what is the African ? Certainly
bad ; but not so bad as white men would (I believe)
be under similar circumstances. He is acted upon by
the bad passions inherent in human nature, but there
is no exaggerated vice, such as is found in civilized
countries. The strong takes from the weak, one tribe
fights the other—do not perhaps we in Europe ?—
these are the legitimate acts of independent tribes,
authorized by their chiefs. They mutually enslave
each other—how long is it since America and we our-
selves ceased to be slaveholders? He is callous' and
ungrateful—in Europe is there no ingratitude ? He is
cunning and a liar by nature—in Europe is all truth
and sincerity ? Why should the black man not be equal
to the white ? He is as powerful in frame, why should
he not be as exalted in mind ?
In childhood I believe the negro to be in advance,
in intellectual quickness, of the white child of a similar
age, but the mind does not expand—it promises fruit,
but does not ripen ; and the negro man has grown in
body, but has not advanced in intellect. J
Thè puppy of three months old is superior in intellect
to a child of the same age, but the mind of the
child expands, while that of the dog has arrived at its
limit. The chicken of the common fowl has sufficient
power and instinct to run in search of food the moment
that it leaves the egg, while the young of the eagle lies
helpless in its nest ; but the young eagle outstrips the
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