Extracts from Letters of Teachers and Superintendents of the New-England Educational Commission for Freedmen/Letters from South Carolina
EXTRACTS FROM LETTERS
of
TEACHERS AND SUPERINTENDENTS
LETTERS FROM SOUTH CAROLINA.
My dear Sir,—I send you a letter from the School Committee. I give it word far word, as it fell from the lips of Robert, leaving out a few remarks about myself. They have been very faithful, and will be found a great help to future teachers.
Yours most sincerely, A.D. Milne.
Dear Sir,—The Committee of the Adams School, on this Island, would say, that in regard to our ignorance, we were all ignorant and blind, and have been kept back in darkness by our former masters, who used to hold us under bondage and hide the light from us. But thank God that through the prayers of good people, the good friends of the North, through the assistance of God, are helping us to drop the scales from our eyes. We have think within ourself, while we were under slavery bondage, that we could never seen this sight, that we have, and all our friends and parents, who have children, think that they cannot pray and thank God enough, and the good friends of the North, who are striving to let us see this light. Even I myself, Robert L. Chaplin, myself 73 years old, had feel within myself that it was impossible that the slavery bound could ever again see light in this world, until the good friends send us a good friend, that teach us that all things are possible with God, and that old and young can see light in their old age. The children and people all, now, desire to learn to read, and we hope you will be pleased not to let us suffer for a teacher, for the children of this district was very much neglect, above any other part of the Island, until our present teacher came, and now his health is gone and he is not able to hold out through the season, and we feel very much distressed in our mind for want of his teaching. All the good we can do for ourself, is but little, we were kept down so, by our secesh masters, but we will do what we can and return our thanks by our prayers to the friends that help us.
We were so delight to see the children improve, that our teacher voted to have a committee of four and myself makes five, to visit the school and see that everything go on regular among all the children, and we stand the assistance of the teacher as far as we are able and our understanding goes.
All the books and property that belong to the School, is in our charge, and if a teacher is sent we shall be sponsible for the same. We will write to you again and let you know how we get along. Our district will need a man teacher, a good strong man, because there is deal of work in a large school. We generally have lecture every Sunday evening, from three to four o'clock among the children and people, and we have seen that it makes the children and people improve more greatly.
If we should have another teacher, we feel that we shall continue on in every way to receive knowledge. Through the assistance of the Lord we pray that as we improve in one thing we may improve in everything, more and more every year.—We give great thanks to the Lord for the good things he has sent already. This letter is signed by all the five committee men, who are all present, and very thankfully agree to what is said, and we shall all be pleased to receive any message from you.
| July 8th, 1863, Adams School, Morville District, |  |
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| St. Helena Island, S.C. |  |
The colored people are doing well generally. They are quite industrious, and well informed in all that appertains to raising the cotton and all the other productions of the soil. They are very much interested in all those products that form the means of their subsistence. They are laboring assiduously to procure in the coming harvest sufficient to supply all the wants of the body, with some amount to sell. The Governor of this department in the spring cut off the clothes and rations from all the people that were able to labor in the fields, and it has proved one of the most efficient means of promoting industrious habits among them. So long as they saw before them a source from which they could draw food and clothes, they were contented, and these contributions had a deleterious effect upon them. Now they are aware that if they do not produce sufficient to support themselves, and purchase their clothes, they must suffer, and they are quite ambitious to get as much as possible. It is quite surprising to see the ingenuity and tact which many of them exhibit to accomplish that end. They certainly have imbibed largely the spirit of trade and commerce, by which they increase their revenue. Their little fields are guarded with the strictest care, and the growth of all the products watched with much eagerness, and the profits calculated by them, as much as the cargo and the profits to accrue therefrom are, by the great shippers of our commercial marts. They are fast learning the value of money, and are acquiring an idea of property, whether it be in a horse or land. There is a growing desire among them to become owners of land. Hundreds of them are guarding their little stores with jealous care, and adding to their stock all they can, in order to have sufficient to make purchases at the next sales of land. To be able to receive all the proceeds of their labors, is one of the heights of their ambition. The adjoining plantation to the one where I live, was purchased last year by the negroes. They have worked it themselves without any direction from white people. They have exhibited all the skill, thus far, of those that have been worked by the Government. They have a large field of cotton, and a larger one of corn. I see them frequently, and converse with them about it. They are as proud of their labors as are any of the farmers of the North when success follows a period of industry. They have planted and brought to good growth by the necessary working three acres of cotton, each of which is, I am told, the maximum of one person's allotment, when other crops are worked by the same hand to the maximum. This condition of that plantation excites the emulation of all the surrounding people, and they frequently say that if they could work this land in the same way we could see some great crops. I have no doubt that if the negroes owned the land and could work it with the expectation of receiving all the proceeds, the cotton crop would have been. increased one-third, if not one-half.
So far as the question of subsistence is involved with these people, there is not the least doubt about it. They are abundantly competent, and able and willing, to support themselves, and in a short time many of them will acquire a competence that will enable them to demand and supply themselves with many of the comforts of civilized life.
The people are raising a plenteous crop for their subsistence, with the exception of a few aged and otherwise helpless individuals. There is much matured corn, an abundance of sweet potatoes, considerable rice, and a general supply of various kinds of vegetables all over the islands. There is also a quite extensive crop of cotton, the first picking of which is now taking place. The peach, fig and other fruit harvests have gone by, but there is a profusion of oranges everywhere, some of them beginning to turn yellow. The supply seems to be unlimited. I have been surprised at the amount of subsistence raised upon the islands; and yet, with more diligence and increased husbandry the amount may be vastly increased. I see no reason why the natural resources of the islands may not be made to support entirely, at least twice, and perhaps three times their present population. This, of course, would require a more thorough and general superintendence, than has yet been rendered. The people need to be instructed, encouraged, and in many cases compelled to labor.
The agent who comes here for pastime or the mere novelty of change, had better stay at home.The direction of labor is vastly important, but scarcely less so is the development of the social, mental and moral faculties of this long oppressed and neglected race. It seems to me there is at present a great lack of teachers, not merely of the alphabet, and more advanced education, but also of social and domestic duties.
The cotton crop has done very fairly this year. The entire crop, from the private as well as Government plantations, will be about double that of last year, or even more than double. The Government will have this year about one hundred thousand pounds of ginned cotton. The first frost came last night, and that will cut off a good deal of cotton that would have ripened in the next fortnight if there had been no frost. The money paid out to the people for their labor on this cotton is very considerable, and makes the industrious ones very well to do.