delivered her in a twinkling. His action was noble, and assuredly deserved a reward. It was as follows: the clerk's employer went to his master, and got him two hundred blows of the chicote.

Can we now feel surprised if the black, instead of loving the white man as a protector, sees in him his natural enemy? Can we feel surprised at the fermentation of wrath and of vengeance which accumulates during long years of anguish in their bleeding hearts, and breaks out one day in murder and rapine? It is worth remarking, however, that if the blacks, as a body, accept with resignation the ill-treatment of their masters, they do not forget what they owe to strangers or their influence. As regards their master, they will consent to be things; but with other white men they demand to be men. The slaves of Brazil maintain this. distinction, which explains many crimes. Thus, a negro entered a grocer's shop in the Rue des Ourives, and asked a clerk for a glass of caixaça (sugar-cane brandy). The clerk refused; the black insisted, and the former struck him. The slave had already received punishment by the instigation of the clerk, and had sworn to kill him on the next opportunity. He drew a kitchen-knife, and plunged it to the hilt in the clerk's heart. And now for our author's description of his punishment:

The murderer was hanged on the 24th January, 1851. I was present at the execution, the hideous details of which will never leave my memory. The gibbet, composed of three iron standards supporting three heavy horizontal bars that formed an equilateral triangle, was raised, according to usage, on the Largo do Mouro, near the sea, and opposite a barrack. By nine in the morning the condemned man had heard mass, and, with his hands tied behind his back, commenced his funereal procession through the city. At the head of the cortége was a detachment of cavalry; next came two rows of monks, a man ringing a bell, a chorister bearing an enormous cross, the executioners dressed in canvas trousers and violet vests; lastly came the culprit, accompanied by a frère de la bonne Mort, who offered him a crucifix to kiss, and wearied him with his exhortations. He was compelled to traverse all the principal streets on foot, enter all the churches, and, kneeling before the altar, recite a formula, which was drowned by the mournful chanting of his companions. It was not till mid-day that the braying of the trumpets announced that the procession had reached the place of punishment. The atmosphere was gloriously pure; the tropical sun poured down flames on a multitude of amateurs who had arrived from all quarters to be present at the festival, for the death-agonies of a slave are regarded as such by too many white men. There were present Brazilians, Portuguese, Germans, Swiss, Frenchmen, burning and greedy, not for emotions (they would have blushed at such), but for torture. And they were not men of the people, like those who visit our guillotine; they were rich merchants, worthy tradesmen, well clothed, wearing gloves and gold chains, and who preferred missing a bargain than the amusing spectacle that was about to regale them. From among these groups might be heard noisy bursts of laughter, songs, witticisms, or at times abuse of the nigger who kept honest men waiting so long, who had gone out of their way to honour his death by their presence. sight of the condemned man drew from this inhuman and coarse assemblage a murmur of satisfaction, mingled with vulgar insults. As the unfortunate man passed me, I scrutinised him closely he was calm, walked with a firm step, in spite of the heat and fatigue; not a sign of fear or repentance displayed itself on his tranquil countenance. He appeared to listen rather with resignation than pleasure to the exhortations of his confessor, who only quitted him at the moment when the cord was placed round his neck. This last operation did not make him even wince. Soon I turned my head away with an instinctive horror: there was one unhappy man less on the face of the earth.

The

Owing to the degradation in which they are purposely kept, the blacks frequently give way to habits of intoxication, in which they find a transient forgetfulness of their wrongs. To prevent them from drinking, a tin mask, with an enormous pointed nose, is put over their faces. They are also gamblers. Their favourite game consists in throwing up four pieces of orange-peel, cut in the shape of a diamond. If two or four pieces fall with the yellow side downwards, the thrower has won; in the other case, he loses. The blacks have also a mania for dancing. They collect in dirty dens, where they can procure food and drink, and they dance the worst form of the china, which they have learned from their masters, the mob applauding the while frantically, and accompanying the dancers with a monotonous chant. At times they indulge in this amusement in public places, or on the sea-shore. But they are not always able to come to the conclusion, for if an intolerant pedestre perceives them, he rushes upon them and disperses them with blows of his rattan. The blacks also possess a depth of superstition which nullifies all the teaching of the Catholic faith. Before bathing in the sea, they dip their fingers in the water, and cross themselves with much fervour. Our author was witness of one of these curious customs. An overseer of the Tijuka had been murdered during the night by the slaves, whom he persecuted incessantly, and in the morning his body was lying in the middle of the road. All the blacks who passed it on going to work threw upon branch and a vintem piece, while making the strangest gestures. Still, although the blacks may keep up certain superstitions of their country, they also maintain elevated sentiments. For instance, they respect old men, and those who held rank in their own country. To their honour, they refuse the equality of slavery, and pay them homage by kissing hands or kneeling before them. This is done in the open street, with the most imperturbable gravity. M. Dabadie knew an old negro porter who had been a king at home, but his dirty rags did not in the slightest degree deprive him of the love of his former subjects, who never saw him without loading him with kindness and imploring his blessing.

it a

Another most odious and revolting feature is the conduct of the Catholic clergy towards the negroes. By a flagrant contradiction, the priests and monks who defend the equality of all men in the sight of Heaven, possess slaves under the garb of animals, and are far from displaying towards them any more humanity than do the other masters. As the interest of their robe and their pocket speaks to them more eloquently than their logic, they have the generosity to grant the blacks the rank of human beings, and admit them to the sacraments-so long as they can get anything from them. Thus, they baptise them, read mass to them in a church specially set apart in Rio, and marry them occasionally, if they can pay the fees. In addition, they send to the market-places fellows dressed in a greasy soutane, and bearing a bag, to drag from the weakness of these unhappy beings the copper coins they have gained by the sweat of their brow. But if the slave fall dangerously ill, he has nothing more to give, and consequently is no longer a The priest refuses him all religious consolation, and allows him to be buried like a dog.

man.

This deplorable state of things having become known to the British

government in 1848, they implored the Emperor of Brazil to pass a law immediately for the total abolition of slavery by indemnifying the masters. In return for this concession, they offered to sign a treaty affording unexampled advantages to the trade and industry of the empire. The Brazilian government declined the offer, alleging as an excuse the impossibility of raising so large a sum, and the risk they ran of leaving the ground untilled. This is evidently an excuse, and we therefore think their sincerity should be tested once more. Allowing that Brazil dare not, or will not, follow the generous example we set her in our West India colonies, we may surely call upon her to pass a law to the effect that henceforth "every one born in the empire is free." This measure might not be exactly just, as it would sacrifice the interests of the existing slaves, but, at any rate, it would be a solution of the difficulty, and we should acquire the certainty that, at the expiration of a certain number of years, slavery would have utterly disappeared, without causing any difficulty. But until the Brazilian government are prepared to pass some such measure as this, we cannot put any faith in their professed desire for the emancipation of the negro race, for the remedy is in their own hands, and the application is very simple.

In conclusion, to quote our author's burning words once again, we consider that slavery is destined to disappear from the face of the globe like so many other barbarous institutions, which neither the obstinate resistance of prejudices nor the authority of ages could save, and which were the disgrace of humanity. The degradation of the negro race is the result of slavery itself, and not of any natural inferiority. It is undoubted that the Africans possess a considerable degree of intelligence and powerful germs of civilisation. These only require fostering instead of being crushed, as is at present the case. In Brazil, blacks may be found of irreproachable morality, who have become skilful artisans, and several mulattoes are truly an honour to their country. The first physician at Lima is an old negro, who has gained a considerable fortune, while many negroes who have visited Europe have displayed a rare amount of talent. Let us be just, then, to a race which has been too long oppressed: the blacks have shed tears enough beneath the yoke that has weighed on them so long. It should be remembered, too, that unless they are liberated they will free themselves; and then, in the words of the Gospel, "there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth."

MY FRIEND PICKLES;

AND SOME SOCIAL GRIEVANCES OF WHICH HE DESIRES TO COMPLAIN.

BY ALEXANDER ANDREWS.

XXIV.

PARALYSIS OF THE LAW.

I WAS out in the '48-not under the pocket-handkerchief banner which the heroic Cuffey unfurled when he declared war against the female despot on the throne, the tyrants in the cabinet, and the bloated haristocracy which, we all know, grinds the bones of the working man to make its bread, and drinks of the sweat of his brow; that long-suffering "working man," who has been mouthed, as curs mouth a bone,” by every shade of politicians, till he has become assuredly a bit of a bore, and, we suppose, will be soon shelved, like "the people" of a past period -I was out in the '48, but it was on an errand of some sort, looking for a nice piece of fish, or trying to dispose of an idle hour in some way or other, when my evil genius whispered in my ear, "Kennington Common." I thought I would e'en go and hear a bit of Brummagem patriotism and maudlin treason, so strolled over one of the bridges.

How it came-from whence, when, and where-whether it dropped from the clouds or rose from the earth, I cannot say; I had been ruminating, and only became suddenly conscious that the passing tide of human life had thickened, and the circulation had got slower: it was a procession, and A MOB-and I was in the middle of it! I tried to elbow my way out of the alarming situation, but I was too late; there was a panic, a crush, an attempt at flight, in which I was tossed up and down, trampled under foot, and spun into the road, and at length I was standing vis-à-vis with an infuriated policeman, his hand hold of my collar, and his truncheon raised, with the avowed object of cleaving my skull in twain. In vain I shouted "Let me go! I have done nothing. I am no Chartist! I have no sympathy with these misguided men!" vain I protested that I would bring the matter under the notice of the home secretary. Even the offer of a sovereign was vain! Thwack! thwack! came the truncheon down upon my head and shoulders, my hat was battered into a shapeless mass, and I was then flung away, with the stern command to go about my business; but, in a minute, I was picked up by another infuriated policeman, who served me pretty much the same as the first had done; and so I ran the gauntlet of the whole force upon the ground, till I got to the outside of the mob, when I took to my heels, and, bruised, battered, and bleeding, sped home as fast as my legs would carry me.

In

Now, at the time, I thought this rather rough treatment; I began to believe we were drifting into a St. Petersburg or Vienna system of police, and felt some misgivings of our boasted liberty. Of course I wrote to the Times, but the vane of that journal just at that time point

ing to Downing-street as the quarter from which its sails were filled, my letter was of course refused insertion. So I simmered away under the sense of my wrongs and injuries for a few days, talked largely about a British subject, liberty, and Magna Charta, and used many other of the stock phrases, till, having blown off all the steam that had been engendered, I gradually collapsed, and became cool again.

Then came the Hyde Park riots of 1855; and I confess, after my experience of the manoeuvre for dispersing a mob, I for a moment waxed indignant when I read of the clean sweep the police made of unoffending pedestrians; but, even then, I had my foregone conclusions about the unseemly and dangerous system of holding Sunday demonstrations in the Park, and consoled myself by the conviction that such outrages on decency ought to be put down with the strong hand.

But that day's exertion and excitement apparently brought on the paralytic attack from which the police have since been suffering. That right arm of the law which had flourished its bâton with so much vigour on the first Sunday, was dropped and powerless on succeeding Sundays. Thieves, roughs, professional rioters, disorderlies of every class, and particularly of that most annoying class, the street gamin, of from fourteen to eighteen, who is just big enough to kick one's shins, break one's windows, pelt one with mud-ay, and who can and does do as much mischief as any man, having a hearty good-will to do it-resorted to the Parks for the avowed purpose of tumult, hunted respectable people, ducked footmen, smashed windows, and kept the West End in a lawless and terrified state every Sunday, yet not a hand or staff was stretched out or raised to stay them. A friend of mine, in his carriage, was forced, horses, carriage, and all, into the Serpentine, by a charge of the roughs, and how he escaped their fury he could as little divine as how he incurred it. Next day, however, he had the pleasure of reading a serio-comic account of the day's proceedings in the papers, and the satisfaction, above all, of knowing from the same source that "the arrangements of the police authorities were most judicious. To avoid causing anything like irritation, the entire body was kept out of sight. This plan of the authorities cannot be too highly commended, as, had the police interfered, the mob would, no doubt, have been exasperated." Great consolation this to my friend, who had been nearly drowned-to the scores who had been nearly hunted and frightened to death-to the hundreds who had had their clothes torn, their faces cut, and their windows broken, or had been pelted with mud, stones, or turf!

Any one who has been in a London mob since this event, from the leave-taking of the amiable Princess Royal-that dreary day, when the snow came sadly down as the child-wife wended her way through London to go out of her native country, and manly hearts were wrung, and honest eyes were dim at the spectacle-down to an illumination or a lord mayor's show, must have noticed how the roughs have presumed upon the state of the sick lion; the Crusher, the Bobby, the Peeler, is no longer a terror in their eyes, for his hands are muffled. He may be as violent as he likes with inebriated gentlemen or unfortunate females, but he must not touch a rough, lest it bring down the whole body upon his force.

Whenever there is a gathering in the streets, down come the roughs upon it, rushing along, yelling, whooping, and shrieking, with a view to