The Rising Son or, the Antecedents and Advancement of the Colored Race

The Rising Son; or, the Antecedents and Advancement of the Colored Race

Simultaneously with the landing of the Pilgrims from the Mayflower, on Plymouth Rock, December 22d, 1620, a clumsy-looking brig, old and dirty, with paint nearly obliterated from every part, slowly sailed up the James River, and landed at Jamestown. The short, stout, fleshy appearance of the men in charge of the vessel, and the five empty sour-crout barrels which lay on deck, told plainly in what country the navigators belonged. Even at that early day they had with them their native beverage, which, though not like the lager of the present time, was a drink over which they smoked and talked of Farderland, and traded for the negroes they brought. The settlers of Jamestown, and indeed, all Virginia at that time, were mainly cavaliers, gentlemen-adventurers, aspiring to live by their wits and other mens labor. Few of the pioneers cherished any earnest liking for downright persistent muscular exertion, yet some exertion was urgently required to clear away the heavy forest which all but covered the soil of the infant colony, and to grow the[Pg 266] tobacco which easily became the staple export by means of which nearly everything required by its people but food was to be paid for in England. The landing of the twenty slaves from the Dutch brig was the signal for all sorts of adventurers to embark in the same nefarious traffic. Worn-out and unseaworthy European ships, brigs, barks, schooners, and indeed, everything else that could float, no matter how unsafe, were brought into requisition to supply the demand for means of transportation in the new commerce. ......Buy Now (To Read More)

Product details

Ebook Number: 64971
Author: Brown, William Wells
Release Date: Mar 31, 2021
Format: eBook
Language: English