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Page 55
A few months since, I paid a visit to our countryman, Alexander Crummel,
who is still pursuing his studies at Cambridge--a place, though much
inferior to Oxford as far as appearance is concerned, is yet said to be
greatly its superior as a place of learning. In an hour's walk through
the Strand, Regent, or Piccadilly Streets in London, one may meet half a
dozen coloured young men, who are inmates of the various Colleges in the
metropolis. These are all signs of progress in the cause of the sons of
Africa. Then let our people take courage, and with that courage let them
apply themselves to learning. A determination to excel is the sure road
to greatness, and that is as open to the black man as the white. It was
that which has accomplished the mightiest and noblest triumphs in the
intellectual and physical world. It was that which has made such rapid
strides towards civilization, and broken the chains of ignorance and
superstition, which have so long fettered the human intellect. It was
determination which raised so many worthy individuals from the humble
walks of society, and from poverty, and placed them in positions of
trust and renown. It is no slight barrier that can effectually oppose
the determination of the will--success must ultimately crown its
efforts. "The world shall hear of me," was the exclamation of one whose
name has become as familiar as household words. A Toussaint, once
laboured in the sugar field with his spelling-book in his pocket, amid
the combined efforts of a nation to keep him in ignorance. His name is
now recorded among the list of statesmen of the past. A Soulouque was
once a slave, and knew not how to read. He now sits upon the throne of
an Empire.
In our own country, there are men who once held the plough, and that
too without any compensation, who are now presiding at the editor's
table. It was determination that brought out the genius of a Franklin,
and a Fulton, and that has distinguished many of the American Statesmen,
who but for their energy and determination would never have had a name
beyond the precincts of their own homes.
It is not always those who have the best advantages, or the greatest
talents, that eventually succeed in their undertakings; but it is those
who strive with untiring diligence to remove all obstacles to success,
and who, with unconquerable resolution, labour on until the rich reward
of perseverance is within their grasp. Then again let me say to our
young men--Take courage; "There is a good time coming." The darkness of
the night appears greatest just before the dawn of day.
LETTER XX.
_Fugitive Slaves in England._
The love of freedom is one of those natural impulses of the human breast
which cannot be extinguished. Even the brute animals of the creation
feel and show sorrow and affection when deprived of their liberty.
Therefore is a distinguished writer justified in saying, "Man is free,
even were he born in chains." The Americans boast, and justly, too, that
Washington was the hero and model patriot of the American
Revolution--the man whose fame, unequalled in his own day and country,
will descend to the end of time, the pride and honour of humanity. The
American speaks with pride of the battles of Lexington and Bunker Hill;
and when standing in Faneuil Hall, he points to the portraits of Otis,
Adams, Hancock, Quincy, Warren, and Franklin, and tells you that their
names will go down to posterity among the world's most devoted and
patriotic friends of human liberty.
It was on the first of August, 1851, that a number of men, fugitives
from that boasted land of freedom, assembled at the Hall of Commerce in
the City of London, for the purpose of laying their wrongs before the
British nation, and at the same time, to give thanks to the God of
Freedom for the liberation of their West India brethren, on the first of
August, 1834. Little notice had been given of the intended meeting, yet
it seemed to be known in all parts of the city. At the hour of half-past
seven, for which the meeting had been called, the spacious hall was well
filled, and the fugitives, followed by some of the most noted English
Abolitionists, entered the hall, amid the most deafening applause, and
took their seats on the platform. The appearance of the great hall at
this juncture was most splendid. Besides the committee of fugitives, on
the platform there were a number of the oldest and most devoted of the
Slave's friends. On the left of the chair sat Geo. Thompson, Esq., M.P.;
near him was the Rev. Jabez Burns, D.D.; and by his side the Rev. John
Stevenson, M.A., Wm. Farmer, Esq., R. Smith, Esq.; while on the other
side were the Rev. Edward Mathews, John Cunliff, Esq., Andrew Paton,
Esq., J.P. Edwards, Esq., and a number of coloured gentlemen from the
West Indies. The body of the hall was not without its distinguished
guests. The Chapmans and Westons of Boston, U.S., were there. The
Estlins and Tribes had come all the way from Bristol to attend the great
meeting. The Patons of Glasgow had delayed their departure, so as to be
present. The Massies had come in from Upper Clapton. Not far from the
platform sat Sir Francis Knowles, Bart., still farther back was Samuel
Bowly, Esq., while near the door were to be seen the greatest critic of
the age, and England's best living poet. Macaulay had laid aside the
pen, entered the hall, and was standing near the central door, while not
far from the historian stood the newly-appointed Poet Laureat. The
author of "In Memoriam" had been swept in by the crowd, and was standing
with his arms folded, and beholding for the first time (and probably the
last) so large a number of coloured men in one room. In different parts
of the hall were men and women from nearly all parts of the kingdom,
besides a large number who, drawn to London by the Exhibition, had come
in to see and hear these oppressed people plead their own cause.
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