ILLUSTRATION OF AMERICAN SLAVERY.

New Zealander, Volume 3, Issue 178, 12 February 1848, Page 4

ILLUSTRATION OF AMERICAN SLAVERY.

Aif Auction.— While travelling at the south, a thort time since, one day, as I was passing through a noted city, my attention was arrested by a concourse of people upon the public pquare. Soon I saw two men coming through the crowd, attended by a female. They enleied the ring around the stnnd. 'i he seqael showed thevn to be an auctioneer, the unfortunate nitichant, and the more unf >'• tunate young lady, for slave she could not be. 'Hie auctioneer stepped upon the vt -<», ?.ul ordered her to follow. She dropped her In ad upon her heavin; bo-om, but she moved not. Neither did *lie weep— her emotions were too deep for tears. The merchant ktood near me I a'tentively watched his countenance. •Twas that of a father for the loss af an only daughter. Daughter he had not ; but I understand that he had inUnded to adopt her, who, instead of being now frre, was dr omed to prrpetual slarery. He ap peired to have a humane heart. With tears in his eyes, he said, " Helen, you trust obey—l can protect you no longer." I could bear no more— my heart •truggled to free lfreif from the human form. I turned my eyes upvraid' — the flag by listlessly by the p >le, for not h breeze had leave to stir. I thought I could almost see the spirits of the liberty martyrs, ■whose blood bad ince ftamed that toil, end hear them •igh oTer the now desecrated spot. 1 turned to look for the doomed. She stood upon the suction stand, In stature shewas of the middle size ; blita and delicately built. Her skin was lighter than many a northern brunette, and her fcattueswere xound, with thin lips. Indeed, many thought no black blood courted in her reins. Now despair sat on her countenance. O ! I shall never forget that look. " Good heaven* !'* ejaculated one of the two fathers, at he beheld the featuies of Helen, " it that beautiful lady to be sold ?" Then fell upon my ear the auctioneer's cry, «• How much is said (or this beautiful healthy ulave girl— a real albino? How muih ? How much ? Who bids?" •« Five hundred dollars," " eight hundred," " one thousand," were soon bid by different purchasers. The last was nade by the friends of the merchant, as, they wished to assist him to retain her. At first no one seemed disposed to raise the bid. The crier then read from a paper in his. hand, 4< She i» intelligent well-informed, tasy to communicate, a first-rate instructress." " Who raises the bid ?" This had the desired effect—" Twelve hundred"—" fourteen"— " sixteen," quickly followed. He read again—" She is a devoted Christian, sustains the best of morals, and is perfectly trusty." This raised ihe bids to two thousand dollars, at whica she ™>\£ struck off to the gentleman in favour of whom was the prosecution. Here closed one of the darkest scenes in the book of time. 'I his was a southern auction— an auction at which the bones, muscles, sinews, blood, and nerves of a joung lady of nineteen, sold for oce thousand dollars ; her improved intellect for six hundred more ; and her Christianity— ih« person of Cbnat in his follower— lour hundred more.— Libeity Pre*s. A Pressing Lettlh. — The following extract from a letter Sint by a settler to his friends abroad, shows that our rountij is not the worst in the world :— " My dear Bob, — Come to sweet Ameriky, and come quickly. Here you can buy paraties two shillings a bushel, whiskey and coal lame price, because we ain't got no turf heie, a dollar a day for digging, and no hanging for staling. Och, now, do come."— 'American Paper. Temperance in Awerica. — At the recent anni. vereary meeting of the American Temperance Unitn, the chairman of the Executive Committee said that 70,000 American seamen had pigned the pledge ; that 500 distilleries had been closed in Sweden ; that there were 1,200,000 members of temperance societies in Germany, and 2,0f0,0(i0 in England, Scotland, and Wales.— Boston Atlas.

Fatal Fulfilment of a Dream.— A fatil accident ■with which a very curious ciicumstance it connfCted, occurred near Frorue, on Thursday lust. It appears that the wife of a man named Gibbs, carter to Mr. Perrott, or Downbead, had dreamt that, while engaged in his work, the waggon had gone over her husband and killed him. This dream she told him, and seemed to feel that it would be fulfilled, and they were both very low-spirited in consequence. Having to go to Bath, the wife persuaded her husband to take their eldest daughter with bun for the Bake of company, which he did. Nothing particular occuned duriug the journey thither, and they had returned as far as Amznerdown, at about seven o'c ock in the evening, when the horses started off, and Gibbs attempted to jump out to stop them, but his imock frock caught behind, and in liberating himself he pitched head foremost, and, the wheel* passing over him, caused a melancholy and literal fulfilment of the wife's dream. The poor /ellow lived a few hours after the accident, but did not apeak. The misfortune, «id as it was, did not end here. The daughter, seeing her father tall, jumped out to his assistance, but fell, and the wheels pasting over her, she was kill don the spot. A widow and eight young children are thus left to the care of ft merciful providence. — Bath Chroni le.