They would be returning from a Sunday visit to friends in Dartmouth
or Preston—as is clear from the following lines taken from a report
by Seth Coleman to an official of the Governor, made
6 Feb. 1815:
"Thou, at that time, gave it as thy opinion that it would be
best for me to Call all the Blacks to Dartmouth for the better carrying
the Vaccine into effect, but experience soon taught me the impractibility
of Such a meafure. On the contrary, I found it absolutely Necef sary to
go to them; and that, not only on week days, but more perticulerly on the
Sabbath, as I found it a Day they were in the habit of devoting to Visit
each other, and that Nunbers came from Halifax for that purpose; I, therefore,
found it Necefsary for me to devote my time on that Day to prevent the
rappid Spread of the Smallpox, which, at that time, was making its appearance
on the main Roads to Preston, and Cole Harbor, as it also did soon after
in Dartmouth."
In a letter written to the same official a month later, Coleman defends
these same Blacks from bigoted remarks made about them:
"I yesterday perform,d a duty I thought indifpensably Necefsary
to the Black People in Prefton and Cole Harbour, I have long expected that
when the Employment in which they have found Support through the winter,
begain to decline that they would soon be reduc,d to Necefitous Circumftances.
When I Visited their Habitations, I found my Self not difapointed in my
expectations, I found many of them Subsisting on what we Should think literlly
nothing. I found a difposition in them to Labour, and to help themfelves,
but the fact is they have nothing to do, I found but four Men that had
Families, that had imployment, others were making of Brooms or taking care
of the Family, while the Mother was out to Seek a days work at Wafhing
or Scouring on this Scanty pittance depend,d the Subsistance of perhaps
themfelves, and four, or five, Children, My feelings have been often hurt
at the exprefsions of People who are Ignorent of their Situations, they
Say Thievish Black dogs, they deserve this or they deserve that, I Declare
that Considering their Ignorence I think them a Virtuous People, when in
a former report I mentiond meeting them on the Sabbath, it would of been
but justice to have added that I never found them in a rude or Riotous
afsemblage, nor to my recolection did I ever See one of them intoxicated.
"Place the same number of White People in the Same Situation under all
the disadvantages that these have had to incounter what would of been the
report of them." (23 March 1815).
(For more on Seth Coleman, see S22n3 .) |