Narrative of the Life and Adventures of Henry Bibb, an American Slave, Written by Himself | Page 8

man has a right to wages for his labor;
a right to his own wife and children; a right to liberty and the pursuit of
happiness; and a right to worship God according to the dictates of his
own conscience. But here, in the light of these truths, I was a slave, a
prisoner for life; I could possess nothing, nor acquire anything but what
must belong to my keeper. No one can imagine my feelings in my
reflecting moments, but he who has himself been a slave. Oh! I have
often wept over my condition, while sauntering through the forest, to
escape cruel punishment.
"No arm to protect me from tyrants aggression; No parents to cheer me
when laden with grief. Man may picture the bounds of the rocks and
the rivers, The hills and the valleys, the lakes and the ocean, But the
horrors of slavery, he never can trace."
The term slave to this day sounds with terror to my soul,--a word too
obnoxious to speak--a system too intolerable to be endured. I know this
from long and sad experience. I now feel as if I had just been aroused
from sleep, and looking back with quickened perception at the state of
torment from whence I fled. I was there held and claimed as a slave; as
such I was subjected to the will and power of my keeper, in all respects
whatsoever. That the slave is a human being, no one can deny. It is his
lot to be exposed in common with other men, to the calamities of
sickness, death, and the misfortunes incident to life. But unlike other
men, he is denied the consolation of struggling against external
difficulties, such as destroy the life, liberty, and happiness of himself
and family. A slave may be bought and sold in the market like an ox.
He is liable to be sold off to a distant land from his family. He is bound
in chains hand and foot; and his sufferings are aggravated a hundred
fold, by the terrible thought, that he is not allowed to struggle against
misfortune, corporeal punishment, insults, and outrages committed

upon himself and family; and he is not allowed to help himself, to resist
or escape the blow, which he sees impending over him.
This idea of utter helplessness, in perpetual bondage, is the more
distressing, as there is no period even with the remotest generation
when it shall terminate.

CHAPTER II.
_A fruitless effort for education.--The Sabbath among
Slaves.--Degrading amusements.--Why religion is rejected.--Condition
of poor white people.--Superstition among slaves.--Education
forbidden_.
In 1833, I had some very serious religious impressions, and there was
quite a number of slaves in that neighborhood, who felt very desirous
to be taught to read the Bible. There was a Miss Davis, a poor white
girl, who offered to teach a Sabbath School for the slaves,
notwithstanding public opinion and the law was opposed to it. Books
were furnished and she commenced the school; but the news soon got
to our owners that she was teaching us to read. This caused quite an
excitement in the neighborhood. Patrols[1] were appointed to go and
break it up the next Sabbath. They were determined that we should not
have a Sabbath School in operation. For slaves this was called an
incendiary movement.
The Sabbath is not regarded by a large number of the slaves as a day of
rest. They have no schools to go to; no moral nor religious instruction
at all in many localities where there are hundreds of slaves. Hence they
resort to some kind of amusement. Those who make no profession of
religion, resort to the woods in large numbers on that day to gamble,
fight, get drunk, and break the Sabbath. This is often encouraged by
slaveholders. When they wish to have a little sport of that kind, they go
among the slaves and give them whiskey, to see them dance, "pat
juber," sing and play on the banjo. Then get them to wrestling, fighting,
jumping, running foot races, and butting each other like sheep. This is

urged on by giving them whiskey; making bets on them; laying chips
on one slave's head, and daring another to tip it off with his hand; and if
he tipped it off, it would be called an insult, and cause a fight. Before
fighting, the parties choose their seconds to stand by them while
fighting; a ring or a circle is formed to fight in, and no one is allowed to
enter the ring while they are fighting, but their seconds, and the white
gentlemen. They are not allowed to fight a duel, nor to use weapons of
any kind. The blows are made by kicking, knocking, and butting with
their heads; they grab each other by