"THIS, my dear," said the Doctor, as they were about to sit down to breakfast on the following morning, "is the day that old Mr. Frazer promised to come and cut out the negroes' clothes. I have had a fire made in the end room, and have directed all the girls, who are tolerably expert with the needle, to come and work on the coats and pantaloons. I hope you will take them under your direction, and be a second Dorcas in turning out garments for the poor and needy."

  "I have had," she replied, "but little experience in making garments for men; but of late years, I have made my own clothes, and with a little instruction from Mr. Frazer, I hope I shall be at least able to know when the girls are going on properly with their work; and I shall engage in it, I assure you, with much pleasure. I shan't be entitled, however, to the credit given to Dorcas, for her many garments were all made with her own hands."

  "If Dorcas, my dear, had been surrounded by blacks as you are, I suppose she would not have suffered them to

  Charles then informed his master that Mr. Frazer was at the door, and had entered before he was announced.

  "Good morning, Mr. Frazer. That, sir, is my wife; a lady with whom you will become better acquainted during the progress of your work."

  "I take pleasure, sir, in offering Mrs. Boswell my congratulations."

  "Thank you, thank you, sir."

  Mr. Frazer had been once a merchant tailor, and was easy and genteel in his manners. Of late years he had injured himself by intemperate habits, and had now a little shop at the cross-roads, not far from Selma.

  "It's very cold this morning, Doctor; I am chilled all over."

  "Warm yourself by the fire, Mr. Frazer, and then take a seat at the table, and my wife will give you some hot coffee."

  "Coffee is very good, Doctor, but when a body's thoroughly chilled, there is something better than coffee to take off the chill."

  "I belong, Mr. Frazer, to the temperance society, and only keep spirit for medicinal purposes, and of course can't offer it to you, unless you put yourself on the sick list."

  "Well, Doctor, to tell you the truth, I do not feel very

  "If that is the case, I presume I should have to charge you a little more than your day's work would come to, Mr. Frazer."

  "I believe I will turn to the table, sir, and take some hot coffee. Have you and the madam heard the news, Doctor?"

  "I don't know what news you allude to, but I suppose, of course, yours will be tailor's news."

  "Any news coming from me, sir, would, of course, be tailor's news. Did you hear that the abolitionists had persuaded off two of old Mr. Preble's boys, and two of Major Scott's, and that George Preble, Tom Kizer, and Ralph Commins had gone after them."

  "That is tailor's news, Mr. Frazer, literally and figuratively, for we had heard it before; to be sure we had not heard that they were enticed off by the abolitionists, we only conjectured so."

  "It must be so, Doctor, it can't be otherwise. How can these negroes, who have been in the corn-field all their lives, hardly ever off their master's plantation, make right straight for Pennsylvania, and know exactly where to cross the river, and what route to take after getting into Pennsylvania, unless they get instruction from white people?"

  "It would seem so, indeed, Mr. Frazer."

  "Well, then, did you hear that fourteen others had gone off from the neighbourhood of Middletown and Front-Royal, and that they were overtaken in Pennsylvania,

  "No, we had not heard that."

  "That is only tailor's news, then, because it comes from a tailor.—The ladies are generally pleased to hear something about courtships and matrimony, and I've got a little scrap of that for Mrs. Boswell's ear. They say our Parson is very fond, of late, of visiting at the cottage; don't you think Miss Evelina Preble would make a first-rate parson's wife?"

  "Indeed she would, Mr. Frazer," said the Doctor. "If he had asked me to choose a wife for him, Evelina Preble would have been the girl, of all others. We had not heard it before, but I sincerely hope it may be so."

  "Why, as to that, Doctor, there's no knowing. They say the old man don't like it; the Parson has not enough of the wherewithal, but one would think, that as he has but two children, it would make but little difference whether Miss Evelina married a poor man or a rich one; but I tell you he's mighty fond of the main chance; and though he talks so much about our peculiar institution, if he don't love to own negroes, and pride himself upon the number that he has, my name's not Joel Frazer. If he has got any abolition feeling about him, why did he not let his boys go, and not send George after them? mind what I say, Doctor, if George catches them boys, if they don't go to the traders, you'll see. Now, there is Major Scott, who don't think it any harm to hold slaves; he won't take any step to get his back, I'll warrant you."

  "Yes, he will, Mr. Frazer. I have conversed with Major Scott upon that subject, and he thinks it a duty he owes to the community in which he lives, to take all proper measures to recover his slaves when they run away; for, whenever any of them are successful in making their escape, it encourages others to make the like attempt. Therefore, he thinks it wrong to encourage his neighbours' negroes to go off by his neglect. Now, Mr. Frazer, if you have emptied your budget, we will go to work upon something that will keep negroes warm at home this winter. Ann, my dear, we shall not be ready for you for some time; not until the first coat is cut out."

  The Doctor and Mr. Frazer then went into the room prepared for the work. They found the girls ready, and the men at the outer door waiting to be measured.

  "Mr. Frazer," said the Doctor, "here is a roll of linsey; what do you think of its quality?"

  "This is first-rate, Doctor."

  "Mr. Frazer, I wish you to be particular in cutting their garments full large; I dislike very much to see their limbs confined in tight clothes. I give them frock coats, extending a little below the knee. The pantaloons, also, must be large and easy. Now I must leave you, Mr. Frazer, to your work, and I must go to mine."

  When Mrs. Boswell supposed she had given Mr. Frazer time to cut out the first coat, she went into the room where he was at work, and, with his assistance in fixing the different parts, she set the girls to sewing, and took a sleeve for herself. Mr. Frazer could never give his tongue holiday while his shears were at work, and said,

  "Why, Mr. Frazer, as I have cast my lot among them, I must make the best of it, you know."

  "Madam, I don't see how anybody can think it wrong; it's very plain from Scripture that the Lord don't think so, and why people should set themselves up to condemn what he has established, I never could well understand. It's a good institution, madam; I almost wish I was Dr. Boswell's slave. Here am I, madam, with a large family of young children, and if I was to die, I do not know what would become of them. Now, if I was Dr. Boswell's slave, I wouldn't have a care about them, because he would take better care of them than ever I could, even if I was to live until they grow up."

  "But, Mr. Frazer, there is something sweet in the idea of liberty; of having a will of your own, not controlled by that of another person." It must be remarked, here, that Mrs. Boswell, being unaccustomed to such company, was not aware that her last observation was not well suited to the ears of slaves.

  "I assure you, madam, there's mighty little sweetness in liberty with poverty along with it; and it seems to me that if all the bad wills in the world were controlled by the good ones, it would be the very best arrangement for the human family. If the Doctor, for instance, had had the control of my will, and had directed all my actions, I would have been a thousand times better off in soul and body than I am now. I do believe, madam, that there is

  "Certainly, sir, if such are the consequences of their mistaken philanthropy, and they know from experience that such consequences will result, they must expect the vengeance of Heaven, if they don't desist."

  "It is a mighty curious sort of philanthropy, madam, mistaken or not mistaken, which causes them to instigate the black man to butcher the white; the black man himself can't believe otherwise than that they have some improper motive in doing so; it is so contrary to his own instincts, which teach him to love best those of his own colour." Mr. Frazer's tongue wagged on all the while, and Mrs. Boswell was much edified as to neighbourhood matters, and was evidently surprised when the three o'clock dinner-bell rang so soon.

  "How do you come on, Mr. Frazer?" asked the Doctor, as the former entered the dining-room.

  "Oh! very well, sir; I shall, I think, get through by night."

  "How would you like to put yourself on the sick list, before dinner?"

  "First-rate, sir, but for those big figures of yours. I think, Doctor, Mrs. Boswell will make a fine wife for a Virginia farmer."

  "She plies the needle well, does she? knows all about managing negro girls, by this time? has she boxed any of them, yet?"

  "No, sir; I don't think Mrs. Boswell will ever be very much given to boxing negroes."

  "I don't know how that may be, Mr. Frazer; northern ladies are very apt to be good disciplinarians. What do you think of it, my dear?"

  "I hope I never may be tempted to box one of those girls, but Kate was right provoking to-day with her work."

  "And didn't your little fingers burn, my dear, to give her a slight little box? frequent provokings will be very apt to bring them in contact with Kate's jaws."

  "I don't know how it would be if she was a white girl; Mr. Frazer thinks we northern people do violence to natural instincts, and love the blacks more than the whites. Perhaps, if Kate was white, the burning of my fingers would soon be cooled by contact."

  "Indeed, Mrs. Boswell," said Mr. Frazer, "I did not mean to class you with the abolitionists; and if anything

  "If you had classed her among them," said the Doctor, "your excuse is to be found in a geographical line. It is too true, sir, that she comes from north of Mason and Dixon; but I'll promise you, Mr. Frazer, she will be a whole soul Virginian after a while."

  "No doubt of it, sir, no doubt of it," said Mr. Frazer, as he left the room to go again to his work.

  "Mr. Frazer, in intellect, seems to be a man very much above his calling in life," remarked Mrs. Boswell.

  "Yes, my dear, he is a man of very strong mind, and some little cultivation. He has in a most eminent degree, however, a fondness for collecting and retailing news. Poor fellow! I don't know how he gets along; he is intemperate in his habits, has a large family to support, and a very delicate, sickly wife."

  "If he stays here to-night, my dear, would it not be well to hint at the subject, and give him a little advice in regard to his habits of intemperance, and persuade him to join a temperance society? I sincerely wish he could be reclaimed, for he seems to have some very correct views; and if he could be induced to give up that horrid practice of drinking, what a blessing it would be to his family!"

  "My dear, I have had many conversations with him upon that subject, and obtained from him many promises; but it is a habit not easily given up. However, if an opportunity occurs to-night, I will as delicately as possible throw out some hints; and may be what has heretofore

  "The satisfaction in seeing him reclaimed, would be of more consideration with me than any little credit which might attach to my humble effort in effecting his reformation."

  Mrs. Boswell then left the room to attend to some household matters; and the Doctor said, in an audible soliloquy, "I have the very best soil to operate upon; and if Ann does not resemble my dear mother in all things, it will be the fault of her instructor."

  Mr. Frazer, finding that he could not finish his work in time to get home, told the Doctor that he would have to tarry the night with him; which information was particularly agreeable, as it afforded the opportunity of saying a word in season, for the benefit of a family in which he felt much interest.

  When the supper table was removed, Mrs. Boswell, after some little instructions from Mr. Frazer, resumed her work upon the linsey garment.

  "Doctor," said Mr. Frazer, I think I feel better tonight than I have done for months past; the exercise before breakfast, and the agreeable chat with Mrs. Boswell and yourself, seem to have given me very different feelings from what I generally have at this time of the

  "Mr. Frazer," said the Doctor, "I could let you into the secret of continuing and preserving those good feelings, if you would put yourself under my direction. And I will take this opportunity of speaking to you in a plain, friendly manner, upon a subject, it is true, that we have conversed on frequently before, not in the hearing, however, of any other individual than ourselves; but I hope the presence of my wife at this time, will not increase the reluctance which you have generally manifested; as I can assure you that she feels as deep an interest in the welfare of your family, as I can possibly have.

  "Your candour and regard to truth, will, I know, cause you to plead guilty to a charge which I have often before brought against you, and which I mean now to renew: of habits of intemperance. You know from your own experience at home, and from your observations abroad, how entirely destructive those habits are of domestic happiness. You know that the softest heart, and the very best natural feelings, are entirely changed and made obdurate by the intemperate use of ardent spirits; that the individual who is kind and affectionate to his wife and children when sober, becomes, when under the influence of liquor, a ferocious brute, yea, a madman: and that the objects of his affection when sober, are most apt to become the subjects for his violence to operate upon when intoxicated. You know how difficult it is for a poor man to earn, by his labour, a support for a large family, even when all his time is given to labour, and all the earnings of his labour

  "To you, Mr. Frazer, who must acknowledge that such consequences do flow from intemperate habits, I now offer a sure and certain remedy in the temperance pledge, if you will take that pledge, with a fixed determination of never violating it. I will propose you to the meeting of our society, on Friday night next, and I know that you will experience benefits which I am unable to describe."

  "Well, Doctor, I acknowledge the truth of everything you have said, and I have long wished to join your society; but I have been prevented by the fear that I could not stick to the pledge. I will promise you one thing, that I won't taste another drop of ardent spirits between this and next Friday morning, and by that time I can see how it will work; and if I think I can safely take the pledge, I will go with you and have my name registered as a son of temperance."

  "Oh! Mr. Frazer," said Mrs. Boswell, "I am delighted to hear you say even that much!"

  "I have no doubt, Mr. Frazer," said the Doctor, "that those uncommonly pleasant feelings, which you say you have to-night, are owing in a great measure to your having abstained from ardent spirits to-day. If I had put you upon the sick list this morning, and at dinner, you might now have felt very differently; particularly if my attention had been drawn off from the quantity my patient might have been inclined to take at a dose."

  "Well, Doctor, I have made the promise—; don't run me too hard. To change the subject, sir, did you know that Mr. Crump was going to move to California? and, because he can't carry his negroes there, he's going to sell them all to Mr. Bosher, the trader? Now, sir, if that was a slave state, he would carry all his negroes, and keep them together; but, as he can't do that, they will be carried to New Orleans; and husband and wife, parent and child, brother and sister, will all be separated. These abolitionists are always croaking about a subjection to separation being one of the greatest evils of slavery, while they themselves are producing that very state of things which causes the greatest amount of those same evils; and every application of the Wilmot proviso (as it is called) will increase them."

  "That certainly will be the effect, Mr. Frazer, if the slave-owners of the south are denied the right of carrying their slaves to the new states. Those who go must sell them to the traders, and the horrors of separation, so glowingly depicted, must be increased a hundred fold. But that is only one of many evidences that they are constantly injuring those people for whom they profess so

  "I am astonished, Doctor, after the conversation we have had to-night, that you should have asked me that question. Can you suppose, sir, that a man of intemperate habits would ever be in a fit situation to summon his wife and children around a family altar, and ask the blessing of God upon them?"

  "I beg pardon, sir, for having inadvertently asked the question; but I hope, Mr. Frazer, you will ponder upon your own answer to my question, between this and Friday next, and let it come in aid of what I have said, to bring you to a proper determination."

  After prayers, they all retired to bed; and Mr. Frazer, finishing his work early the next day, returned home. Mrs. Boswell and the girls were busily employed that day on the coats and pantaloons.