r/TJitoi % ^** w 'K*b .^i .-r ,'^,'^^ r» DUKE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY Treasure %oom n Ji,o^ ^>^ y^^^ / /^ f~^c/i^ ^ . (^ . .^ ^ t^ -ef ^ , THE LIFE TOUSSAINT L'OUVERTURE. Digitized by tine Internet Archive in 2011 witii funding from Dul CHAPTER in. Conclusion 317 KOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS 321 ILLUSTRATIONS. TOtrSSAINT CAPTUBED BY STEATAGEM Frontispiece. TOUSSADIT FOUND DEAD BY HIS GAOLER Vignette. MAP OF HAYTI OB ST. DOMINGO page 1 SLAVE TBADE ON THE COAST OF AFEICA 17 TOUSSAINT BEADING THE ABBE BAYNAl's WOBK 30 CAPE ST. FBAN9OIS 53 TOUSSAINT PABTING FBOM HIS AVIFE AND CHILDBEN 231 BEVENGE OF THE FRENCH ON THE BLACKS 252 THE LIFE OF TOUSSAINT L'OUYERTURE. BOOK I. FROM THE COMMENCEMENT OF THE STRUGGLE FOR LIBERTY IN HAYTI TO THE FULL ESTABLISHMENT OF TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE's POWER. CHAPTER I. Description of Havti — its namo, mountains, rivers, climate, productions, and chief cities and towns. I AIM about to sketch the history and character of one of those extraordinary men, whom Providence, from time to time, raises up for tlic accomplisliment of great, benign, and far-reaching re- sults. I am about to supply the clearest evidence that there is no insuperable barrier between the light and the dark-coloured tribes of our common human species. I am abovit to exhibit, in a series of indisputable facts, a proof that the much misunderstood and down- trodden negro race arc capable of tlie loftiest virtues, and the most heroic efforts. I am about to present a tacit pai-allel between white men and dark men, in which the latter will appear to no disadvantage. Neither eulogj'-, however, nor dispai-agemeut is my aim, but the simple love of justice. It is a history — not an argument — that I piu'pose to set forth. In prosecuting the nar- rative, I shall have to conduct the reader through scenes of aggres- sion, resistance, outrage, revenge, bloodshed, and cruelty, that grieve and wound the heart, and exciting the deepest pity for Is THE LIFE OF tlie suiferers, raise irrepressible indignation against ambition, injustice, and tyranny — the sconrges of the world, and specially the sources of complicated and horrible calamities to the natives of Africa. The western portion of the North Atlantic Ocean is separated from the Caribbean Sea on the south, and the Gidf of Mexico on the north, by a succession of islands which, under the name of the West India Isles, seem to unite in a broken and waving line, the tv/o great peninsulas of South and ISTorth America. Of these islands, which, under the general title of the Antilles, are divided into several groups, the largest and the most important are, Porto Rico on the east, Cuba on the west, and St. Domingo between the two, with Jamaica lying off the western extremity of the latter. Situated between the seventeenth and twentieth degree of north latitude, and the sixty-eighth and seventy-fifth degree of west longitude, Saint Domingo stretches from east to west about 390 miles, with an average breadth, from north to south, of 100 miles, and comprises about 29,000 square miles, or 18,816,000 square acres ; — being four times as large as Jamaica, and nearly equal in extent to Ireland. Its original name, and that by Avhich it is now generally known, Hayti — which, in the Caribbean tongue, signifies a land of mountains — is truly descriptive of its surface and general appearance. From a central point, which near the middle of the island rises to the height of some 6,000 feet above the level of the sea, branches, having parallel ranges on the north and on the south, run through the whole length of the island, — giving it somewhat the shape and aspect of a huge tortoise. The mountain ridges for the most jiart extend to the sea, above which they stand in lofty precipices, forming numeroiis head- lauds and promontories; or, retiring before the ocean, give place to ample and commodious bays. Of these bays or harbours, three deserve mention ; not only for their extraordinary natiu-al capa- bilities, but for the frequency Avith v/hich two of them, at least, will appear in these pages. On the north-west of Hayti, is the Bay of Samana, with its deep recesses and cmwiug shores, ter- minating in Cape Samana on the north, and Cape Raphael on the south. At the opposite end of the countiy, is the magnifi- TOUSSAIXT L Om'ERTURE. 3 ceut harboiir called the Bay Port an Prince, enclosing the long and rocky isle Gonave — on the north of which is the channel St. JVEarc, and on the south the channel Gonave. Important as is the part which this harbour sustains in the history of the land, scarcely, if at all less important, is the bay which has Cape Fi'ancois for its western point, and Gi'ange for its eastern, com- prising on the latter side the minor, but well-sheltered Bay of Mancenille ; and in the former, the large roadstead of Cape Francois. The mountains running east and west break asunder, and sink down, so as to form three spacious valleys, which are watered by the three principal rivers. The River Youna, having its sources in Mount La Vega, in the north-east of the island, and receiving many tributaries from the north and the south, issues in the Bay of Samana. The Grand Yaque, rising on the western side of the Watershed — of which La Vega may be considered as the dividing line, — flows through the lengiheued plain of St. Jago, until it reaches the sea in the Bay of ManceniUe. The cliief river is the Artibonite, on the west, which, having its ultimate springs in the central group of mountains, waters the valleys of St. Thomas, of Banica, of Goave ; and tui'niug suddenly to the noi-th, along the western side of the mountains of Cahos, falls into the ocean a little south of the Bay of Gonaives, after a long and winding course. While these rivers run from east to west and west to east, imiumerable streams flow in a northern and southern direc- tion, proceeding at right angles from the brandies of the great trunk. Hayti is a well- watered laud ; especially is it so in the west, where several lakes and tarns adorn and enrich the <'0untiy. The more eastern districts are rugged as well as lofty, but the other parts are beautifully diversified with I'omantic glens, prolific vales, and rank savannahs. Though so mountain- ous, the surface is overspread with vegetation, the highest summits being crowned with forests. Placed within the tropics, Ha\^i has a hot yet humid climate, with a temperatux'e of very great variations — so that whUe in the deep valleys the sun is almost intolerable, on the loftiest mountains of the interior, a B 2 4 THE LIFE OF fire is often necessary to comfort. The ardoui' of tlie snn is on the coast moderated by the sea and land breezes, which blow in succession. Hea\y rains fall in the months of May and June. Hm-ricanes are less frequent in Hayti than the rest of the Antilles. The climate, however, is liable to great and sudden changes, which bringing storm, tempest, and sunshine, with the intensity of tropical lands, now alarm and now enervate the natives, and often prove very injurious to Europeans. On so rich a soil human life is easily supported, and the inducements to the labours of industry ai'e neither numerous nor strong. Yet, in auspicious periods of its history, Ha}i;i has been made abundantly productive. At the time when the hero and pati-iot whose career we have to describe first appeared on the scene, the island was diAdded between two European powers ; the east was possessed by the Spaniards, the west and south by the French. It is with the latter portion that this history is mostly concerned. Of the Spanish possessions, therefore, it may suffice to direct attention to two principal cities. The oldest European city is Santo Domingo, which had the honour of giving a name to the whole island. It was founded by Bartholomew, the brother of Colum- bus, who is said to have so called it in honour of his father, who bore that name. Santo Domingo stands in the south-eastern part of the island, at the north of the River Ozama. Santiago holds a fine position in the plain of that name, near the northern end of a line passing somewhei'e about the middle of the island. The French colony was divided into three j^rovinces — that of the north, that of the west, and that of the south. At the beginning of the French Revolution of 1789, these provinces were trans- fonned into three corresponding departments. The three pro- vinces, or departments, were subdivided into twelve districts, each bearing the name of its chief city. The twelve districts were — in the north, the Cape, or Cap Fi'angois, Fort Dauphin, Port-de-Paix, Mole Saint Nicholas ; in the west, Port-au-Prince, Leogane, Saint Marc, Petit Goave ; and in the south, Jeremie, Cape Tiburon, Cayes and St. Louis. The district of the Cape TOUSSAIXT LOUVERTURE. O comprised the Cajie, La Plaine-du-Nord, just above the Cape, Limonade, between the two ; Acvil, west of the Cape, aud on the coast, Sainte Suzanne ; with Morin, La Grande Riviere, Dondon, Marmelade,Limbe, PortMargot, Plaisance,and Borgne — thiiiieen jiai'ishes. The district Fort Daiiphin, in the ca-st of the northern department, comprised Fort Daiiphin itself, Ouanaminthe, on the south of it, Yalliere, Terrier Rouge, and Trou — fi\'e parishes. The district of the Port-de-Paix comprised, Port-de-Paix, Petit- Saint-Louis, Jean Rabel, and Gros ]Morne — four parishes. The district of the Mole Saint Nicholas comprised Saint Nicholas aud Bombarde, two parishes. There were thus foui'-and-twenty parishes in the northern department. The district Port-au- Prince comprised, Port-au-Prince, Croix-des-Bosquets, on the north, Arcahaye on the north-west, and Mirebalais on tlie north- east — four parishes. The district of Lcogaue was identical with the pai'ish of the same name. The district of Saint Mai'c com- prised, Saint Marc, Petite Riviere, Gouaives — three parishes. The district of Petit-Goave comprised Petit Goave, Grand Goave, Baynet, Jacmel, and Cayes-Jacmel — five parishes. Fom-teen parishes made up the western province. The district Jeremie comprised Jeremie and Cap Dame-Marie — two parishes. The district of Tiburon comprised Cajje Tiburou and Coteaux — two parishes. The district of Cayes comprised Cayes and Toi'beck — two parishes. The district of Saint Louis comprised. Saint Louis, Anse-Veau, Fond-Cavaillon and Acquin — five parishes. There were eleven parishes in the south. Nimiber of parishes in the north, . . 24 in the west, . . 14 in the south, , . 11 Total number of parishes, . . 49 The study of the map will show that these, the districts under the dominion of France, covered only the west of the island. As, however, they contained the chief centres of civilization, and the O THE LIFE OF chief places whicli occur in this history, our end is answered by the geogi'aphical details now given. The appearance of the island from the ocean is thus described by an eye-witness: — " The bold outlines of the mountains^ which in many places approached to ^vitliin twenty miles of the shore, and the numerous stupendous cliffs which beetled over it, casting their shadows to a great distance in the deep, — the dai-k retreat- ing bays, particularly that of Samana, and extensive i)lains opening inland between the lofty cloud-covered liills, or running for imcounted leagues by the sea side, covered with trees and bushes, but affording no glimpse of a human habitation, — pre- sented a pictiu'e of gloom and grandeur, calculated deeply to impress the mind ; such a picture as dense solitude, unenlivenetl by a single trace of ciAalization, is ever apt to produce. Where, we inquired of oui-selves, are the people of this country] Where its cultivation? Are the ancient Indian possessors of the soil all extinct, and their cruel conquerors and successors entombed with them in a common grave? For hmadreds of miles, as we swept along its shores, we saw no living thing, but now and then a mariner in a solitary skiff, or bu-ds of the land and ocean sailing in the air, as if to show us that nature had not whoUy lost its animation, and sunk into the sleep of death.'""' The interior of Hayti, however, lacks neither inhabitants nor natural beauty. The moimtains rise in bold and varying outline against the brilliant skies, and in almost every pai-t form a back- ground of great and impressive effect. Broken by deep ra^anes, and a2:)pearing in bare and rugged precij^ices, they jiresent a con- tinued variety of imposing objects which sometimes rise into the sublime. The valleys and plains are rich at once in verdure and beauty, while from elevated spots you may enjoy the sight of the gi-eat centres of civilization, Cap-Fran^ais, Port-de-Paix, Saint-Marc, Port-au-Prince, &c., busy in the various pursuits of city and commercial life. Alas ! that scenes so attractive should, at the time our narrative commences, have been disturbed and * " Brief Notes on Hayti," by Jolni Candler. London, 1842. TOUSSAIXT LOUVERTURE. 7 made repulsive by the forced labour of myriads of liumau being.-^ occupied on the numerous plantations, -which, but for greed, and 0])pression, and cruelty, would themselves have multiplied the natiu-al chai-ms of the island. The wealth of Hayti comes from its soil. It is an essentially agricult\n-al country. Cereal products are not cultivated ; but maize or Indian corn gi'ows there ; and rice flourishes in the savannahs. The negro lives on manioc chiefly, and obtains other breadstuff's from the United States aud from Canada. There are, however, other substances Avhich supply him with food when corn fails — such as bnnanas, yams, and potatoes. Plantation- tillage is the cliief occupation. This culture embraces sugar, coffee, cotton, indigo, and cotton. In 1789, the French portion of the island contained 793 sugar plantations, 3,117 coffee plan- tations, 789 cotton plantatious, and 182 establishments for making rum, besides other minor factories and workshops. In 1791, very lai-ge capitals were employed in carrying on these cultivations ; the capitals were sunk partly in slaves and partly in implements of husbandry ; in the cultivation of sugar there was employed a capital of above fifty millions of livres ;* forty- six millions in coffee, and twenty-one millions in cotton ; and in 177G, there Avas employed a capital of sixty -three millions in the cultivation of indigo. The total value of the plantations was immense, as may be learnt from the feet, that the value of the products of the French portion was estimated. In 1767 at 75,000,000 fr-ancs. „ 1774 „ 82,000,000 „ „ 1776 „ 95,148,500 „ „ 1789 „ 175,990,000 „ The last value is the highest. The sum represents the supreme pressure of servitude, and is consequently a measure of the injuiy done to the black dwellers in Saint Domingo. Already, in 1801, the value fell to 65,352,039 — in other words, the slave-masters * A livrc, or franc, is worth about ten pence of our money. 8 THE LIFE OF were, at the end of two years, punished for tlieii- injustice and tyranny by the immediate loss of nearly two-thirds of their pro- j)erty; so uncertain is the tenure of ill-gotten gain. Among the territorial riches of Hayti, its beasts of burden and oxen must take a high position. In 1789, the soU supported 57,782 horses ; 48,823 mules, and 247,012 horned cattle. Hayti possesses an abundant source of opulence in its numer- ous forests, which produce various kinds of precious wood em- ployed in making and decoi'ating furniture and articles of taste. In the year 1791, goods were exported from Hayti to France to the value of 133,534,423 francs — that is, above five millions sterling. The entire value of the ten-itorial riches of the chief plantations, including slaves, amounted to no less a sum than 991,893,334 francs. Ciu-ious is it in the statistical table issued by authority, whence we learn these particulars, to see "negroes and animals employed in husbandry" put into the same class. Observe, too, the items. The value of the " negi'oes old and new, large and small" is set down at 758,333,334 francs, while the other animals are worth only 5,220,667 francs. We thus learn, that three-fourths of the wealth of the jilanters consisted in their slaves. Such was the stake which was at issue in the struggle for fi-eedom of which we are about to sjjeak. The population of Hayti was, in the year 1824, accoimted to amount to 935,335 individuals. This is not a large number for so fertile a land. But it has been questioned whether more than 700,000 dwelt on the soil. Doubtless, the wars which have suc- cessively agitated the country for more than half a century, have greatly thinned the population. There has, however, been a con- stant immigration into Hayti fi'om neighbouring islands, and even from the continent of America. Of the total number of inhabitants just given, there were, in 1824, In the Kingdom of Henry I. (Christophe) 367,721 In the Republic, under Petion . . . . 506,146 In the old Spanish Distidct . . . . . 61,468 935,335 TOUSSAINT L OUVERT'JRE. Tliis mass, viewed in regard to origin, was divided thus :- Negroes 819,000 Men of mixed blood . . . 105,000 Red Indians 1,500 Whites 500 Foreigners 10,000 936,000 The small number of whites was occasioned by the strict enforcement of the law which declared, " No white of any nation whatever shall set his foot on this territory, in the quality of a master or proprietor." The language prevalent in the west and north is the French; that generally used in the East is the Spanish. Neither is spoken in purity. Not only has the French the ordinary grammatical faults which belong to the uneducated, but out of the peculiar formation of the negi'o organs of speech, the peculiar relations in which they have stood in social and political life, as well as the nature of the climate and the products of the soil, a Haytian patois has been formed which can scarcely be under- stood by Frenchmen exclusively accustomed to theh* pure mother tongue. And while the educated classes speak and write wliat in courtesy may be called classic French, the few authors whi>m the island has produced do not appear capable of imitating, if they are capable of appreciating, the pui-ity, ease, point, and flow which characterize the best French prose writei's. The religion of Ha}i;i is the Roman Catholic. This form of religion is established by law. Under former governments other systems were tolerated. At present the spirit of exclu- siveness predominates. The religion of Rome exists among the people in a corxnipt state, nor are the highest functionaries free from a gi'oss superstition, which takes much of its force from old African traditions and observances, as well as from the peculiar susceptibilities of the negro temperament. As soon as the native chiefs began to obtain political jjower in their struggle for free- 10 THE LIFE OF dom, they practically recognised the importance of general edu- cation, well knowing that only by raising the slaves into men could they accomplish their task and peiiDetuate then- power. Accordingly educational institutions have, from time to time, been set up in different parts of the island. These establish- ments have received favour and encouragement according to the spii'it of the government of the day. At present they receive a support less libei"al than that which is bestowed on the ai-my. The ensuing narrative will show the vaiious forms of govern- ment which have established themselves in Hayti since the yoke of the planters and of France was broken. With a tendency to exaggeration, which is a marked feature in the negi'o character, the present ruler, not content with the title of president or with even that of king, enjoys the high-soiuiding dignity of emperor. CHAPTER IT. Columbus discovers Hayti — under his successors, the Spanish colony extirpate the natives — The Buccaneers lay in the west the basis of the French colony — its growth and prosperity. "We owe the discovery of Ka}^ to Coliunbus. When on his fii'st voyage he had left the Leucayan islands, he, on the fifth of December, 1492, came in sight of Hayti, which at first he re- garded as the Continent. Having, under the shelter of a bay, cast anchor at the western extremity of the island, and named the spot Saint Nicholas, in honom- of the saint of the day, he sent men to explore the countr}-. These, on their return, made to Columbus a report, which was the more attractive, because they had found in the new country resemblances to their native land. A similar impression having been made on Columbus, TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE. 11 especially by the songs which he heard iu the air, and by fishes which had been canght on the coast, he named the island Espag- nola, (Hisj)aniola,) or Little Spain. Forthwith on his arrival, Columbus began to inquire for gold ; the answers wliich he received, induced him to direct his course towards the south. On his way, he entered a port which he called Valparaiso, now Port-de-Paix; and in this and a second visit occupied and named other spots, taking jjossession of the country on behalf of lus patrons Ferdinand and Isabella, sovereigns of Spain. The retmii of Columbus to Europe, after his first voyage, was accompanied by triumphs and marvels which directed the attention of the civilised world to the newly-discovered coiuitries; and, excitmg ambition and cui)idity, originated the movement which precipi- tated Eui'opeans on the American shores, and not only occasioned there oppression and cruelty, but introduced with African blood worse than African slavery, big with evils the most multiform and the most terrible. At the time of its discovery, Hayti was occupied by — if we may trust the reports — a million of inhabitants, of the Caribbean race: they wevQ dark in colour, short and small in pei'son, and simple in their modes of life. Amid the abundance of nature, they easily gained a subsistence, and passed their many leisure hours either in unthinking repose, or in dances, enlivened by dinims and varied with songs. Polygamy was not only practised but sanctioned. A petty sovereign is said to have had a hai-em of two-and-thirty wives. Standmg but a few degi'ees above barbarism, the natives were imder the dominion of five petty kings or cliiefs, called Caciques, who jiossessed absolute power; and were subject to the yet more rigorous sway of priests orButios, to whom superstition lent an influence which was the greater because it included the resources of the physician as well as those of the enchanter. Under a reimlsive exterior, the Haytians, however, acknowledged a supreme power — the Author of all things, and entertained a dim idea of a future life, involving rewards and punishments coiTespondent to their low moral condi- tion and gi'oss conception.?. 12 THE LIFE OK On the arrival of Columbus;, the natives, alarmed, withdrew into their dense forests. Gradually won back, they became familiarized with the neAv-comers, of whose ulterior designs they were latterly ignorant. With their assistance, Columbus erected, near Ca]) rran9ois, a small fortress which he designated Navidad, (nativity,) from the day of the nativity, (December 2oth,) on which it was completed. In this, the first edifice built by Europeans on the Western Hemisphere, he placed a garrison of eight-and-thu-ty men. When (on the 27th of October, 1493) lie returned, he found the settlement in ruins, and learned that his men, impelled by the thirst for gold, had made their way to the mountains of Cibao, reported to contain mineral treasures. He erected another stronghold on the east of Cape Monte Chi-isto. There, under the name of Isabella, ax'ose the first city founded by the Spaniards, Avho thence went forth in quest of the much- coveted precious ore. Meanwhile the new colony had serious difficulties to struggle with. Barely were they saved fi'om the devastations of a famine. Their acts of injiistice drove the natives into open assault, which it required the skill and braA'ery of Columbus to overcome. His recall to Em'ope set all things in confusion. Restrained in some degree by his moderation and humanity, the natives on his de2)arture rose against his brother and representative, Bartholomew ; and receiving support from another of his ofiicers, namely, Rolando Ximenes, they aspired to recover the dominion of the island. They failed in their under- taking, the rather that BartholomeAv knew how to gain for himself the advantage of a judicious and benevolent course. The love of a yomig Spaniard, named Diaz, for the daughter of a native cliief, led Bartholomew to the mouth of the river Ozama. Finding the locality very superior, he built a citadel and founded a city there, which, under the name of Santo Domingo, he made his head quarters, intending it to be the capital of the country. Meanwhile Ximenes, at Fort Isabella, carried on his opposition to the Government, Cohmabus's return to the island in 1498 xlid not bring back the traitor to his duty. Meanwhile, in Spain a storm had broken forth against Columbus, which occasioned TOUSSAIXT l'oUVEUTURE. 13 Ms recall in 1400. The discoverer of the new world was put iu chains and thrown into pi-ison by his successoi-, Bovadillo. With the departure of Columbus, the spirit of the Spanish inile underwent a total change. Tlie natives, whom he and bis brother had treated as subjects, wei-e by Bovadillo treated as slaves. Thousands of their best men were sent to extract gold from the mines, and when they rapidly perished in labour.-> too severe for them, the loss was constantly made up by new supplies. In 1501, Bovadillo was recalled. His successor, Ovando, was equally mimerciful. On the death of Queen Isabella and Columbus, the Haytians lost the only pei-sons who cared to mitigate their lot. Then all consideration towards them dis- appeared. They were employed in the most exhausting toil, they were misused in every manner; torn from the bosom of their families, they were driven into the remotest pai-ts of the island, unprovided with even the bare necessaries of life. In 1506, a royal decree consigned the remainder as slaves to the adventurei's, and Ovando failed not to carry the unchi-istian and inhuman ordinance into full effect, especially in regard to those who were at work in the mines, four of which Avere very produc- tive. A rising wliich took place in 1502, had no other result than to rivet the chains tinder which the natives gi'oaned and perished. Another in 1503, brought Anacoana, a native queen, to the scaffold. In 1507, the number of the Haytians had by toil, hunger, and the sword, been reduced from a million down to sixty thousand persons. Of little service was it that about this time, Pedro d'Atenza introduced the sugar-cane fi'om the Canaries, or that Gonzalez, having set \ip the fii'st sugar-mill, gave an impulse to agriculture ; there were no hands to carry on the works, for the master laboured not, and the slave was beneath the sod. Ovando made an effort to procure laboiu-ers from the Leucayan isles. Forty thousand of these victims were transjioi-ted to Hayti ; they also sank under the labour. In 1511, there were only fourteen thousand red men left on the island ; and they disappeared more and more in spite of the exertions for theii" preservation made by the noble Las Casas. In 1519, a young 14 THE LIFE OP Cacique put himself at the head of the few remainiag Haytians, and after a bloody ■war of thirteen years' duration, extorted for hiniself and followers a small territory on the north-east of Saint Domingo, where their descendants are said to remam to the present day. Greatly did the island suffer by the loss of its native popu- lation ; the working of the gold mines ceased, or was earned on to a small extent, and with inconsiderable results ; agricidtiu'e proceeded only here and there, and with tardy steps ; the colony declined constantly more and more on every side. The meti'opolis alone withstood the prevalent causes of decay, for it had become a commercial entrepot between the old world and the new. Its prosperity, however, was, in 158G, seriously shaken by the English commander, Francis Blake, who, having seized the city, did not quit it until he had laid one half in ruins. A still greater calamity impended. The reputed riches of the new world, and the wide spaces of open sea which its discovery made known, invited thither maritime adventiu-ers from the coasts of Europe. Men of degi'aded character and boundless daring, finding it difficult to procure a subsistence by piracy and contraband trade in their old eastern haunts, now, from the newly-awakened spirit of maritime enterprise, frequented, if not scom-ed by the vessels of England, Holland and France, hurried away with fresh hopes into the western ocean, and swarmed wherever plunder seemed likely to reward their reckless hardihood. Of these, kno^vn in history as the buccaneers, a party took possession (1630) of the isle of Tortuga, which lies off the north- v/est of Hayti. With this, as a centre of operation, they carried on ceaseless depredations against Hayti, the coasts of which they distiu-bed and plundered, putting an end to its trade and occupying its capital. The coiu't of Madrid, being roused in self-defence, sent a fleet to Tortuga, who, taking pos- t^ession of the island, destroyed whatever of the buccaneers they could find ; but the success only made the pirates more wary iind more enterprising. When the fleet had quitted Tortuga, TOUSSAIXT l'oUVERTURE. 15 they again, iu 1G38, made themselves masters there, aud after fortifying the island and establishing a sort of constitution, made it a centre of piratical resources and aggi-essions, -whence they at then- pleasm-e sallied forth to plunder aud destroy ships of all nations, -wreaking then* vengeance chiefly on such as came from Spain. In time, however, these corsairs met -with due piuiishment at the hands of ci-vilised nations. A remnant of the buccaneers, of French extraction, effected a settlement on the soutli--svestern shores of Hayti, the possession of which they successfully maintained against Spain, the then recognised mistress of the island. In their new possessions they applied to the tillage of the land ; but becoming aware of the difficulty of maintaining their hold without assistance, they ap- plied to France. Their claim was hearcL In 1661, Dagerou was sent to Hayti, with authority to take its government into his hands, and accordingly effected there, in I660, a regulaiiy constituted settlement. At this tinie tlie Spanish colony, which Avas scattered over the east of the island, consisted only ot fourteen thousand free men, wliite and black, with the same number of slaves : two thousand maroons, moreover, prowled about the interior, and Avcre in constant hostility with the colonists. As yet, the French colony in the west was veiy weak. Its chief centre was in Tortuga. It had other settlements at Port de Pais, Port Mai'got, and Leogane. When Dageron came to Hayti with the title of governor, the Spaniards became more attentive to what went on in the west of the island. They pro- ceeded to attack the French settlements, but with results so unsatisfactoiy, that the new French governor, Pouancey, drove them fr-om all then* positions in the west. His successor, Cussy, who took the hebn in 1 6S5, was less successful. The Spaniai'ds made head against him, and the French power was nearly anni- hilated. In 1691, France made another effort. The new governor, Ducasse, I'estored her dominion, and in the peace of KysAvick, Spain found itself obliged to cede to France the western half of Hayti, With characteristic enterprise and ap- 16 THE LIFE OF plication, the French soon caused their colony to surpass the Spanish portion in the elements of social well-being ; and in the long peace which followed the wars of the Spanish succession, Saiiit-Domingue, (so the French called their part of the island,) became the most important colony which France possessed in the West Indies. It suffered, indeed, from LaAv's swindling operatiijns, and from other causes, but on the whole it made great and rapid progi-ess until the outbreak of the fii'st revolu- tionary troubles in the mother country. Side by side with the advance of agi-iculture, opulence spread on all sides, and poured vmtold treasures into France. In a similar proportion the population expanded, so that in 1790, there Avere in the western half of the island 555,825 inhabi- tants, of whom only 27,717 wei'e white men, and 21,800 free men of colour, while the slaves amounted to 495,528. CHAPTER III. The diverse elements of tlie population of Hayti — The blacks, the whites, the mulattoes; immoraUty and servitude. The large black population of Hayti was of African origin. Having been stolen from their native land, they were trans- planted in the island to become beasts of burden to their masters. The infamous slave-trade was then at its height. Nations and individuals who stood at the head of the civilised world, and prided themselves in the name of Christian, were not ashamed to traffic in the bodies and the souls of their fellow- men. Three hundred vessels, employed every year in that de- testable traffic, spread robbery, conflagration, and carnage over the coasts and the lands of Africa. Eighty thousand men, women and children, torn from their homes, were loaded with chains, and thrown into the holds of the ships, a prey to deso- SLAVE TRADE ON THE COAST OF AFRICA. TOUSSAIXT l'OUYERTURE. 17 lation aud despaii". lu vaiu had the laws and usages of Africa, less unjust and cruel than those of Christian couuti-ies, forbidden the sale of men born in slavery, permitting the outrage only in the case of persons taken in war, or such as had lost their liberty by debt or crime. Cupidity created an ever-growing demand ; the price of human flesh I'ose in the mai'ket ; the re- quii'ed supply followed. The African princes, smitten with the love of lucre, disregarded tlie established limitations, and for their o>vn bad purposes multiplied the causes which entailed the loss of liberty. Proceeding from a less to a greater wrong, they vuldertook wars expressly for the piu'pose of gaining captives for the slave mart, and when still the demand went on increas- ing, they became wholesale robbers of men, and seized a village, or scoured a district. From the coasts the deva.station spi'ead into the interior. A regularly organised system came into ope- ration, which constantly sent to the sea-shore thousands of inno- cent and unfortunate creatures to whom death would have been a happy lot. In the year 1778, not fewer than one hundi-ed thousand of its black inhabitants were forcibly and cruelly car- ried away from Africa. Driven on board the ships which waited their arrival, these poor wretches, who had been accustomed to live in fi-eedom and roam at large, were thrust into a space scarcely large enough to receive their coffin. If a storm arose the ports were closed as a measure of safety. The precaution shut -out light and air. Then who can say what tonnents the negi'ocs imderwent ? Thousands perished by suffocation — happily, even at the cost of life, de- livered from their frightful agonies. Death, however, brought loss to their masters, and therefore it was warded off when possible by inflictions wliich, in stimulatiug the frame, kept the vital energy in action. And when it was found that gi-ief an degi'adation proved almost as deadly as bad air and no air at all, the victims were forced to dance and were insulted with music. If on the ceasing of the tempest and the temporaiy dis- appearance of the plague, tilings resumed their ordinary course, lust and brutality outraged mothers and daughters unscrupu- lously, preferring as victims the young and the innocent. When c 18 THE LIFE OF any were overcome by iuciu-able disease, they wei'e t]ll'o^\^I into the ocean while yet alive, as worthless and unsaleable articles. In shipwi'eck, the living cargo of human beings were ruthlessly abandoned. Fifteen thousand, it has been calcidated, — fifteen thousand coi'pses every year scattered in the ocean, the greater paii; of which were thrown, on the shores of the two hemi- spheres, marked the bloody and deadly track of the hatefid slave-trade. Hayti eveiy year opened its markets to twenty thousand slaves. A degTadation awaited them on the threshold of servi- tude. With a burning iron they stamped on the breast of each slave, women as well as men, the name of their master, and that of the plantation where they were to tod. There the new- comer found everything strange, — the skies, the country, the language, the labour, the mode of life, the visage of his master, — all was strange. Taking their place among their companions in misfortune, they heard speak only of what they endured, and saw the marks of the punishments they had received. Among ' the old hands,' few had reached advanced years ; and of the new ones, many died of grief The high spirit of the men was bowed down. For the two first years the women were not sel- dom struck with sterility. In earlier times the proprietors had not wanted humanity, but riches had corrupted their hearts now; and giving themselves up to ease and voluptuousness, they thought of theii" slaves only as sources of income whence the ut- most was to be drawn. It is not meant that the slaves of the French Haytian planters were worse treated than other slaves. Their condition, on the whole, was slightly better. But the inherent evils of slavery are very baneful and very numerous. Those evils prevailed in Hayti. The slave is helpless, ignorant, morally low, and almost morally dead — reduced as nearly as may be to a tool, a mere labouring machine, yet endued with strong- emotions and burning passions. The master is all-powerful, self- willed, capricious, greedy of gain, and given to j^leasure. In such a social condition vice and misery must abound ; wherever such a social condition has existed, vice and misery have abounded. TOUSSAIXT l'OUVERTURE. 19 The evils cousequcnt on slaveiy are not lessened by the iii- coming of one or two stray rays of light. If the slave becomes conscious of his condition, and aware of the injustice under which he suffers, if he obtains but a faint idea of these things; and if the master learns that a desire for liberty has arisen in the slave's mind, or that free men are assei-ting anti-slaver}- doctrines, then a new element of evQ is added to those wliich before were only too powerful. Hope on one side, and distrust and fear on the other, create uneasiness and disturbance, wliich may end in commotion, convulsion, cruelty, and blood. In the agitation of the public mind of the world, which jirecedod the first French Revolution, such feelings could not be excluded from any community on earth : they entered the plantations of Hayti, and they aided in pre- paring the ten'ific stiniggle, which, through alarm, agitation, and slaughtei', ii^vsued in the independence of the island. The white population was made up of diverse, and in a measure conflicting elements. There were first the colonists or planters. Of these, some lived in the colony, othei*s lived in France ; the former, either by themselves or by means of stewards, su])er intended the plantations, and consumed the pro- duce in sensual gratifications; the latter, deriving immense revenues directly or indirectly from their colonial estates, squau- dei'ed their princely fortunes in the pleasures and vices of the less moral society of Paris. Possessed of opulence, thesa men generally were agitated with ambition, and sought ofiice and titles as the only good things on earth left them to pursue. If debarred from enteruig the ranks of the French nobilitv, thev could aspire to official distinction in Hayti, and in reaUty lield the government of the colony very much in their own hands, partly in virtue of their property, partly in virtue of theu* influ- ence with the French com-t. There were other men of European origin in the island. Some Avei-e servants of the government, others members of the army; both lived estranged from the population which they combined to oppress. Below these were les])eti(s hlancs, (the small whites,) men of inferior station, who conducted various kinds of business in the towns and who, despised by white men more elevated in c 2 20 THE LIFE OF station, repaid themselves by contemning the black jiopulation, on the sweat of whose brows they depended for a livelihood. Contempt is always most intense and banefiil betwesn classes that are neares^t each other. From the mixture of black blood and white blood arose a new class, designated men of colour. On the part of the planters, passion and lust were subject to no outward restraint, and rarely owned any strong inward control. African women sometimes possess seductive attractions. If in any case these were employed to mitigate the penalties of servitude, the blame must chiefly be imputed to the degraded condition in which the sys- tem held them ; and if when they had obtained power over their paramours, they, in pride and jealousy, inflicted on them humiliating punishments, they did but serve as efiectual minis- ters of well-merited retribution. Content to live in a state of concubinage, the proprietors could not expect the peaceful and refining satisfactions of a home ; and alas ! only too readily took the consequences of their licentious course in imperious mis- tresses, and illegitimate oflTspring. But vice is its owai avenger. From the blood sprung from this mixed and impure source, came the chief caiise of the troubles and ruin of the i)lanters. Some of the men of colour were proprietors of rich possessions ; but neither their wealth, nor the virtues by which they had acquired it, could pi'ocure for them social estimation. Their prosperity excited the envy of the whites in the lower classes. Though emancipated by lawfi'om the domination of individuals, the free men of colour were considered as a sort of public property, and as such, were exposed to the caprices of all the whites. Even beforo the law they stood on unequal ground. At the age of thirty they were compelled to serve three years in a militia, in- stituted against the ]\[aroon negroes; they were subject to a special impost for the reparation of the roads; they were ex- pressly shut out from all public offices, and from the more honourable professions and pursuits of private life. When they arrived at the gate of a city, they were required to alight from their horse; they were disqualified for sitting at a white man's table, for frequenting the same school, for occupying the same TOUSSAIXT LOUVBRTURE. 21 place at church, foi' having the same name, for being- interred in the same cemetery, for receiving the succession of his property. Tl\us the son was nnable to take his food at liis father's board, kneel beside liis father in his devotions, boar his father's name, lie in his father's tomb, succeed to his father's ])ropcrty, — to such an extent were the rights and affections of nature reversed and confounded. The disqualification pursued its victims, until during six consecutive generations the white blood had become luirified from its original stain. Among the men of colour existed every various shade. Some liad as fair a complexion as ordinary Eurojieans ; with othei's, the hue was nearly as sable as that of the pure negro blood. The mulatto, offspraig of a wliite man and a negress, formed the first degree of colour. The cliild of a white man by a mulatto woman, was called a quarteroon, — the second degi'ee : fi'om a white father and a quartei'oon mother, was born the male tierce- roon, — the third degree : the union of a white man with a female tierceroon, produced the metif, — the fourth degree of colour. The remaining varieties, if named, are barely distingiiish- able.* Lamentable is it to think that the troubles we are about to describe, and which might be designated the tear of the skin, should have flowed from diversities so slight, variable, evanescent, and every way so inconsiderable. It would almost seem as if human passions only needed an excuse, and as if the slightest excuse would serve as a pretext and a cover for theii' riotous excesses. On their side, the men of colour, labom'iiig under the sense of their pei"sonal and social injuries, tolerated, if they did not encourage in themselves, low and vindictive iiassions. Their pride of blood was the more intense, the less they possessed of the coveted and privileged colour. Haughty and disdainful towards the l)lacks, whom they despised, they were scornful toward the petits blancs, whom they hated, and jealous and turbu- lent toward the planters, whom they feared. With blood white enough to make them hopeful and aspiring, they possessed riches ' See note A at the end. 22 THE LIFE OF and social influence enougli to make tliem formidable. By theii* iiUiance with their fathers they were tempted to seek for every thing which was denied them in consequence of the hue and condition of their mothers. The mulattoes, therefore, were a liot-bed of dissatisfaction, and a furnace of turbulence. Aware l)y their education of the new ideas which were fermenting in Eui'ope and in the United States, they were also ever on the watch to seize opportunities to avenge their wrongs, and to tiu'n every incident to accoimt for improving their social condition. Unable to endure the dominion of their white parents, they were indignant at the bare thought of the ascendancy of the negroes j and while they plotted against the former, were the open, bitter, and iiTeconcileable foes of the latter. If the planters repelled the claims of the negroes' friends, least of all could emancipation be obtained by or with the aid of the mulattoes. Such in general was the condition of society in Hayti, when the first movements of the great conflict began. On that land of servitude there were on all sides masters living in pleasure and luxury, women skilled in the arts of seduction, children aban- doned by their fathers or becoming their cruellest enemies, slaves Avorn down by tod, sorrow and regrets, or lacerated and mangled by punishments. Suicide, abortion, poisoning, revolts and con- flagration, — all the vices and crimes which slavery engenders, became more and more frequent. Thirty slaves freed themselves together fr'om theii* wretchedness the same day, and the same houi*; meanwhile thirty thousand whites, freemen, lived in the midst of twenty thousand emancipated men of colour, and five hiuidred thousand slaves. Thus the advantage of numbers and of physical strength was on the side of the oppi'essed. TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE. 23 CHAPTER IV. Fiimily, bii-th ami education of Toussaint L'Ouverturc — His promotions in servitude, his marriage ; reads llaynal, and begins to think himself the pro- videntially-appointed liberator of his oppressed brethren. In the midst of these conflicting passions and threatening disorders, there was a character quietly foi'uiing, which was to do more tlian all others, first to gain the mastery of them, and then to conduct them to issues of a favourable nature. This superior mind gathered its strength and matured its purposes in a class of Haytian society where least of all ordinary men would have looked for it. Who could suppose that the liberator of the slaves of Hayti, and the great type and jiattern of negro excellence, existed and toiled in one of the despised gangs that pined away on the plantations of the island 1 The appearance of a hero of negro blood was ai'dently to be wished, as aflTording the best proof of negro capability. By what other than a negro hand could it be expected that the blow wovdd be struck which should show to the world that Africans could not only enjoy but gain personal and social freedom? To the more deep-sighted, the progress of events and the inevitable tendencies of society had darkly indicated the coming of a negro liberator. The presentiment found expres- sion in the words of the philosophic Abbe Eaynal, who, in some sort, predicted that a vindicator of negro wrongs would ere long arise out of the bosom of the negi'o race. That prediction had its fulfilment in Toussaint L'Ouverture. Toussaint was a negro. We wish emphatically to mark the fact that he was wholly without white blood. Whatever he was, and whatever he did, he achieved all in virtue of qualities Avhich iu kind are common to the African race. Though of negro extraction, Toussaint, if we may believe family traditions, was not of common origin. His great grandfather is reported to have been an African king. Whatever position his ancestors 24 THE LIFE OF held, certain it is that Toiissaint had in his soul higher qualities than noble or royal descent can guarantee. The Arradas were a powerful tribe of negi'oes, eminent for mental resoiurces, and of an indomitable will, who occupied a part of "Western Africa. In a plundering expedition undertaken bj a neighbouring tribe, a son of the cliief of the Arradas was made captive. His name was Gaou-Guinou. Sold to slave- dealers, he was conveyed to Hayti, and became the property of the Count de Breda, who owned a sugar manufactory some two miles from Cap Francois. Moi-e fortimate than most of his race in theii' servitude, he found among his fellow-slaves fellow- countrjnnen by whom he was recognised, and from whom he received tokens of the respect which they judged due to his rank. The Count de Breda was a humane man ; as such he took care to entrust his slaves to none but humane superin- tendants. At the time the plantation of the Count de Bi'eda was directed by M. Bayou de Libertas, a Frenchman of mild character, who, contrary to the general practice, studied his employer's interests without overloading liis hands with immo- derate laboixr. Under him Gaou-Guinou was less unhapj)y than his compa- nions in misfortune. It is not known that his master was aware of his superior position in his native country, but facts stated by Isaac, one of Toussaint L'Ouvertiu'e's sons, make the siippositiou not improbable. His grandfather, he reports, enjoyed full liberty on the states of liis proprietor. He was also allowed to employ five slaves to cultivate a portion of land which had been assigned to him. He became a member of the Catholic Chui'ch, the religion of the rulers of Western Hayti, and married a woman who was not only \-irtuous but beautiful. The husband and the wife died nearly at the same time, leaving five male children and three female. The eldest of his sons was Toussaint- L'Ouvertm'e. These particulars illustrative of the superiority of Toussaint's family, are neither without interest nor "wdthout importance. If, strictly speaking, virtues are not transmissible, vii-tuous ten- dencies, and certainly intellectual aptitudes, may pass from TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE. 25 I)arents to children. And the facts now narrated may serve to sliow how it Avas that Toussaint was not sunk in that mental stagnation and moi-al depravity of whicli slavery is commonly the parent. As might be expected, the exact day and year of Toussaint's birth are not known. It is said to have been the 20th of Ma}', 1743. What is of more importance is that he lived tifty years of his life in slavery before he became prominent as the vindi- cator of his brethren's rights. In that long space he had fnll time to become acquainted with their sufierings as well as their capabilities, and to form such deliberate resolutions as, when the time for action came, .'should not be likely to fail of effect. Yet does it seem a late period in a man's life for so great an under- taking ; nor could any one endowed with inferior powers have approached to the accomplishment of tlie task. Throughout his arduous and perilous career, Toussaint L'Ouverture found gi-eat support himself, and exerted great intluence over others, in virtue of his deep and pervading sen.so of religion. We might almost declare that from that soui-ce he derived more power than from all others. The foundation of his religious sentiments was laid in his childhood. There lived in the ueighboiu-hood of the Gaoii-Guinou family a black esteemed for the piu'ity and probity of his character, and who was not devoid of knowledge. His name was Pierre Bap- tiste. He was acquainted with French, and had a smattering of Latin, as well as some notions of Geometry. For liis education he was indebted to the goodness of one of those missionaries who, in preaching the morality of a Divine religion, enlighten and enlarge the minds of their disciples. PieiTe Baptiste became the godfather of Toussaint. Holding that relation to the child, he thought it his duty to communicate to liim the instruction.s and impressions he had received from his own religious teacher. Continuing to speak his native African tongue, which was used in his family, Toussaint acquired fx'om his godfather some ac- quaintance with the French, and aided by the services of the Catholic Church, made a few steps in the knowledge of the Latin. With a love of countrv which ancestral recollections 26 THE LIFE OF And domestic intimacies cherished, he took pleasure in reverting to the traditional histories of the land of his sh-es. From these Pierre-Baptiste laboiu'ed to du'ect his young mind and heart to loftier and purer examples consecrated in the records of the Christian chiu'ch. This course of instruction was of greater value than any skill in the outward processes which are too commonly identified Avith education. The young negro, however, seems to have made some progress in the aiis of reading, writing, and drawing. A scholar, in the higher sense of the term, he never became ; and at an advanced period of life, when his knowledge was great and various, he regarded the instruction wliich he received in boyhood as very inconsiderable. Undoubtedly, in the pure and noble inspirations of his moral nature, Toussaint had in- structors far more rich in knowledge and impulse than any pedagogue could have been. Yet in his youth were the fotuida- tions laid in external learning of value to the man, the general, and the legislator. It is true, that in the composition of his letters and addi^esses, he enjoyed the assistance of a cultivated .secretary. Nevertheless, if the form was another's, the thought was his own; nor woidd he allow a document to pass from his hands, until, by repeated perusals and numerous collections, he had brought the general tenour, and each particular expression, into conformity with his own thoughts and his own purpose. Nor is there required anything more than an attentive reading of his extant compositions, to be assured of the superior mental powers with which he was endowed. In his mature years, and in the days of Ms great conflict, Toussaint possessed an iron frame and a stout arm. Capable of almost any amount of labour and endurance, he was terrible in battle, and rarely struck without deadly effect. Yet in his child- hood he was weak and infirm to such a degree, that for a long time his parents doubted of being able to preserve his existence. So delicate was his constitution that he received the descrip- tive appellation of Fatras-Baton, which might be rendered in English by Little Lath. But with increase of years the stripHng hardened and strengthened hLs frame by the severest labours TorssAi>-T l'ouverture. 27 aud the most violent exercises. At the age of twelve he sur- passed all his equals in the plantation in bodily feats. Who so swift in hunting? who so clever to swim across a foaming torrent 1 who so skilful to back a horse in full speed, and direct him at his will? The spirit of the man was already working in the boy. The duty of the young slaves was definite and miiform. They were entrusted with the care of the flocks and herds. As a solitary and moral occupation, a shepherd's life gives time and opportunity for tranquil meditation. By nature Fatras-Baton was given to thought. His I'eflective and tacitui'n disposition foimd appropriate nutriment on the rich uplands and under the brilliant skies of the land of his birth. Accustomed to think much more than he spoke, he acquired not only self-control, but also the power of concentrated reflection and concise speech, which, late in life, was one of his most marked and most ser- ^■iceable characteiistics. Pastoral occupations are favourable to an acquaintance with vegetable products. Toussaint's father, Like other Afiicans, was fanuliar with the healing virtues of many plants. These the old man explained to his son, whose knowledge expanded in the monotonous routine of his daily task. Thus did he obtain a rude familiarity with simples, of which he aftei'wards made a practical appUcation. In this period, when the youth was pasijing into the man, and when, as with all Ihoughtful persons, the mind becomes sensitively alive to things to come as well as to things present, Toussaint may have formed the fii'st dim con- ception of the misery of servitude, and the need of a liberator. At present he lived with his feUow-sufierers in those naiTow, low, and foul huts where regard to decency was impossible; he heard the twang of the driver's whip, and saw the blood stream- ing from the negro's body; he witnessed the separation of parents and children, and was made aware, by too many proofs, that in slavery neither home nor religion could accomplish its pvu-poses. Not impossibly, then, it was at tliis time that he fli-st discerned the image of a distant duty rising before his mind's eye; and as the future liberator unquestionably lay in 28 THE LIFE OF his soul, the latent thought may at times have started forth, and for a moment occupied his consciousness. The means, indeed, do not exist by which we may certainly ascertain when he conceived the idea of becoming the avenger of liis people's wrongs; but several intimations point to an early period ia his life. His good conduct in his pastoral engagements j^ro- cured for him an advancement. Bayon de Libertas, convinced of his diligence and fidelity, made him his coachman. This was an office of importance in the eyes of the slaves; certainly it was one which brought some comfort and some means of self- improvement. Though Toussaint became every day more and more aware that he was a slave, and experienced many of the evils of his condition, yet, with the aid of religion, he avoided a mm-- miu'ing spirit, and wisely employed his opportunities to make the best of the position in which he had been bom, without, how- ever, yielding to the degrading notion that his hardships were iiTemediable. Sustained by a sense of duty which was even stronger than his hope of impro-\nng Hs condition, he j^erformed his daily task in a composed if not a contented spirit, and so, constantly, won the confidence of the overseer. The result was his promotion to a place of trust. He was made steward of the implements employed in sugai'-making. Arrived at adult age, Toussaint began to think of marriage. His race at large he saw living in concubinage. As a religious man he was forbidden by his conscience to enter into such a relation. As a humane man he sluauik from the numerous evils which he knew concubinage entailed. Whom should he choose? Already had he risen above the silly preferences of form and feature. Reality he wanted, and the only real good in a wife, he was assured, lay in good sense, good feeling, and good manners. These qualities he found in a widow well skilled in husbandry, a house-slave in the plantation. The kind-hearted and industrious Suzan became his lawful wife according to " God's holy ordinance and the law of the land." By a man. of colour Suzan had had a son, named Placide. Obeying the generous impulses of his heart, Toussaint adopted the youth, TOUSSAINT l'OUVERTURE. 29 who ever retained the most lively sense of gratitude towards his benefactor, Toussaint was now a hapjiy man, considering his condition as a slave — the husl)and of a slave — a very hap})y man. His position gave liim .privileges, and he had a heart to enjoy them. His leisure hours he employed in cultivating a garden, which he was allowed to call his own. In those pleasing engagements he was not without a companion. " We Avent," he said to a traveller, "we went to labour in the fields, my Avife and I, hand in hand. Scarcely were we conscious of the fatigues of the day. Heaven always blessed our toil. Not only we swam in abundance, but we had the pleasure of giving food to blacks who needed it. On the Sabbath and on festival days we went to church — my wife, my parents, and myself Returning to our cottage, after a pleasant meal, we passed the I'emainder of the day as a family, and we closed it by prayer, in which all took part." Tlius can religion convert a desert into a garden, and make a slave's cabin the abode of the purest happiness on earth. Bent as Toussaint Avas on the improvement of his condition, he yet did not employ the personal property wliich ensued from Ms own and his Avife's thrift, in purchasing his liberty, and elevating himself and family into the higher class of men of colour. His reasons for remaining a slave are not recorded. He may haA'e felt no attractions towards a class whose superiority was more nominal than real. He may have resolved to remaui in a class whose emancipation he hoped some day to achieve. The A'irtues of his character procured for Toussaint uni\-ersal respect. He Avas esteemed and loA'ed even by the free blacks. The great planters held him in consideration. His intellectual faculties ripened under the effects of his intercourse Avith free and white men. As he grew in mind and became large of heart, he more and more was puzzled and distressed with the institution of slavery ; he could in no Avay understand hoAv the hue of the skin should put so gi-eat a social and personal distance betAveen men whom God, he saw, had made essentially the same, and Avhom he knew to be useful if not indispensable to each 30 THE LIFE OF other. Naturally he asked himself what others had thought and said of slavery". He had heard passages recited from Raynal.* He procui'ed the work. And no-w he fomid how much is in- volved in the simple art of reading. Toussaint could read, — Toussarnt did read. He read passages similar to what follows, and he became the vindicator of negro freedom : — "Scarcely had domestic liberty revived in Europe, when it was entombed in America. The Sj)aniard, whom the waves fii'st threw on the shores of the New World, believed himself under no obligation to its inhabitants, for they had not his coloui', or his customs, or his religion. He saw in them only his iastiiiments, and he loaded them Avith chains. Those feeble men, unused to toil, soon perished from the vapom's of the mines, and other occupations almost as baneful. Then arose a demand for slaves from Africa. Then* numbei's inci'eased in proportion as cultivation extended. The Portuguese, the Dutch, the English, the French, the Danes — all nations, whether free or in serfdom, remorselessly sought an augmentation of fortune in the sweat, in the blood, in the despair of these poor wretches ; — what a fr'ightful system ! " Liberty is every one's own property. There are three kinds of liberty — natural liberty, civd liberty, political libei'ty; that is to say, the liberty of the man, the liberty of the citizen, and the liberty of the community. Natural liberty is the right which nature has given to every one to dispose of himself ac- cording to his own will. Civil libei'ty is the right wliich society ought to guarantee bo every citizen to do all that is not contraiy to the laws. Political liberty is the condition of a people which has not alienated its own sovereignty, and which makes its own laws, or which is in part associated in its legislation. "The first of these liberties is, next to reason,^ the distinctive characteristic of man. We subdue and enchain the brute, because it has no notion of justice or injustice — no idea of gi-eat- ness and degradation. But in me liberty is the jirinciple of my * Histoire Pliilosopliique et Politique des Etablissemens et du Commerce des Europeens dans les Deux Indes, par G. T. KaTnal. Geneva, 1780. TOUSSAINT BEADING THE ABBE RAYNAL's 'WOKK. TOUSSAIXT LOUVERTL'RE. 31 vices aufl my virtues. It is only the free man who cau say, I toill, or, / will not; and who can, consequently, be worthy of pi'aise and blame. Without liberty, or the possession of one's oAvn body and the enjoyment of one's own mind, there is neither husband, father, relation nor friend; we have no countiy, no fellow-citizen, no God. The slave, an instnmient in the hands of wicketUiess, is below the dog which the Spaniard let loose against the American; for conscience, which the dog lacks, remains with the man. He who basely resigns liis liberty, de- votes himself to remorse and to the greatest misery that a sensible and tliinking creatui-e can experience. If there is no power imder heaven that can change my organisation, and con- vert me into a brute, there is none that can dispose of my libert}'. God is my Father and not my master. I am his child, not his slave. How, then, could I accord to political power that which I refuse to Divine omnipotence? " These are immovable and eternal truths — the foundation of aU morality, the basis of all government ; will they be contested ? yes ! and it will be a barbarous and sordid avarice which \d\\ commit the audacious homicide. Cast yoiu' eye on that .ship- owner, who, bent over his desk, regulates, with pen in hand, the number of crimes which he may commit on the coast of Guinea; who, at his leisure, examines what number of muskets will be needed to obtain a negi'o, what number of chains to hold him bound on board his vessel, what number of whips to make him work : who coolly calculates how much Avill cost him each di'op of the blood with which his slave will water his plantation ; who discusses whether the negi'ess will give more or less to his estate by the labours of her feeble hands than by the dangers of child-birth. You shudder? — ah! if thei-e existed a religion which tolei-ated, which authorized, if only by its silence, horrors like these ; if, occupied with idle or contentious questions, it did not ceaselessly thunder against the authors or the instnunents of this tyi-anny ; if it made it a crime for the sla^e to break his chains ; if it suffered in its bosom the imjust judge who con- demned the fugitive to death ; — if this religion existed, would it not be necessary that its altars should be broken down and left 32 THE LIFE OF inriiins? Who are you who will dare to justify crimes agaiust my independence, on the ground that you are the stronger? What ! he who makes me a slave not guilty? He makes use of his rights? What, then, are those rights ^ Who has given them a character sacred enough to put my rights to silence? I hold from nature the right of self-defence; she has not given you the right to attack me. If you think yourself authorized to oppress me because you are stronger and more alert than I, do not com- plain when, after my hand becomes vigorous, it shall plant a dagger in your heart; do not complain when you shall feel in your veins that death which I shall have mingled with your food. Now I am the stronger and the more alert, it is your turn to be the victim ; expiate the crime of having been an oppressor. " 'But,' it is said, 'slavery has been generally established in all coimtries and in all ages.' True;— but what consequence is it what other nations have done in other ages? Ought the appeal to be to customs or to conscience? Is it interest, blindness, bar- barity, or reason and justice, that we ought to listen to? If the universality of a practice proved its innocence, the aj^ology of usurpations, conquests, and oppression of all kinds would irrefut- ably be completed. " ' But the ancients,' you say, ' thought themselves mas- ters of the lives of their slaves; we, having become more humane, dispose only of their liberty and their labour.' It is true, the progress of knowledge has on this important point given light to modern legislators. All codes, without an excep- tioji, have taken precautions to guard the life of even the man who pines away in servitude. They have put his existence under the protection of the magistrate. But has this, the most sacred of social institiitions, ever had its due force? Is not America peopled with colonLsts who, usurping sovereign rights, inflict death on the unfortunate victims of their avarice ? But suppose the law observed, would the slave materially gain thereby? Does not the master who employs my strength, dispose of my life, which depends on the voluntary and moderate use of my faculties ? What is existence for him who has no property in it? I cannot kill my slave, but I may cause his blood to flow drop by drop under the driver's whip; I may overwhelm him with ToussAivr l'ouverture. 35 labours, privations, and pains ; I may on all sides attack and slowly undermine the resources of his life ; I may stifle by slow punishments the wTetched embryo that a negress bears in her womb. It might be said that the laws protect the slave against a speedy death, only to leave to my cruelty the right of killing him in the course of time. In truth, the right of slavery is the right to commit crimes of all kinds. " ' But the negroes are a sort of men bom for slaveiy : they are of narrow minds, mischievous, deceitful; they them-selves own the superiority of our intelligence, and almost recognise the justice of oiu" dominion.' " The negroes are of narrow minds because slavery destroys all the springs of the soul. They are mischievous, — not mischievous enough with you. They are deceitful, because they owe no fidelity to their tyrants. They acknowledge the superiority of oxiv intelligence, because we have perpetuated their ignoi*ance; the justice of our dominion, because we have abused their weak- ness. In the impossibility of maintaining our superiority by force, a criminal policy has had recourse to guile. You have almost got so far as to persuade them that they are an excep- tional race, born for subjection and dependence, for labour and pimishment. You have neglected nothing to degrade those un- happy creatiu'es, and you re2)roach them with being vile. " ' But these negi'oes were boni slaves.' — Whom will you cause to believe that a man can be the property of a sovereign? a son the property of a father ? a woman the property of a husband ? a domestic the proj^erty of a master? a negro the property of a planter? The contempt with which you treat them falls back upon yourself You have no groimd of self-respect but what i.s common to you with them. A common Father, an immortal soul, a future life — here is your true glory, and here is their glory. " ' But the government itself authorizes the sale of slaves.'^ Whence this right ? However absolute the magistrate, is he the proprietor of the subjects of his empire? Has he any other au- thority than such as he derives from the citizens? And can any nation give the pri\-ilege of disposmg of its liberty? " ' But the slave sold himself of his own accord.' — If he belongs 34: THE LIFE OF to himself, he has the right to dispose of himself. If he is mastei' of his life, why should he not be master of his liberty ? Man has not the right to sell himself, because he has not the right to accede to whatever an unjust, violent, and depraved master may exact from him. He belongs to his first master — God^ by whom he has never been emancipated. He who sells himself enters into an illusory agreement with his purchaser; for thereby he loses all his value. At the moment when he receives the price, both he and the money become the property of the buyer. The very act of selling yourself, vitiates the bargain. He who sells him- self is a fool, not a slave. " ' But those slaves wei^e taken in war, and but for us would have been slaughtered.' " ' But for you would there have been fighting 1 Are not the dissensions of those tribes your work? Did you not carry to them mm'derous arms? Did you not give them the blind desire to employ them 1 And why did you not allow the conqueror to use his victory as he pleased? Why become his accomplice? " ' But they were criminals condemned to death or slavery in their own country.' Are you, then, Africa's executioners. Be- sides, who were their judges? Do you not know that under a despotism there is only one criminal — the despot himself? The subject of a despot, like the slave, is in a condition contrary to nature. Whatever contributes to retain man in that condition, is a crime against his person. Every hand which binds man to the tyranny of a single person, is the hand of an enemy. Do you wish to know who are the authors and accomplices of this violence? Those who are around it. The tyi'ant can do nothing by himself. " ' But they are happier in America than they were in Africa.' Why, then, do they continually sigh for their native land ? Why do they resume their liberty as soon as they can ? Why do they prefer deserts and the society of wild beasts, to a state which ap- pears to you so agreeable? Why does their despair induce them to put an end to themselves, or to poison you? Why do their wives so often procure abortion? When you tell us of the hap- piness of your slaves, you lie to yourselves, and you deceive us. It is the height of extravagance to attempt to transform so barbarous an act into an act of humanity.. TOUSSAINT l'0U\'ERTURE. 35 " ' But iii Eiu'ope as in America the people are slaves. The sole advantage which we have over the negroes is the power of breaking one chaiu to fall under another.' Too true. Most nations are oppressed. Scarcely is there a country in which a man can flatter himself with being master of his person, of disposing of his inheritance at his will, of enjoying peaceably the fruits of liis industry. But as moi'aUty and "vvise polity shall make progress, men will recover their rights. Why, in. waiting for the happy day, shoixld there be miserable races to whom yoii refuse even the consoling and honourable name of free men; from whom you snatch even the hope of obtaiuiug it, notwithstanding the changeableness of events? No, whatever may be said, the condition of those unfortunate beings is not the same as ours. '' The last argument employed to justify slavery says, that ' slavery is the only way of conducting the negroes to eternal blessedness by means of Christian baptism.' '•' Mild and loving Jesus ! could you have foreseen that yoiu' benigTi maxims would be employed to justify so much hoiTor? If the Christian religion thus authorized avarice in governments, it would be necessary for ever to proscribe its dogmas. In order to overturn the edifice of slaveiy, to what tribunal shall we carry the cause of humanity? Kings, refuse the seal of your authority to the infamous traffic wliich converts men into beasts. But what do I say? Let us look somewhere else. If self-interest alone prevails with nations and their mastei's, there is another power. Nature speaks in louder tones than philosojihy or self-interest. Already are there established two colonies of fugitive negroes, whom treaties and power protect fi-om assault. Those light- nmgs annoTmce the thunder. A courageous cliief only Ls wanted. "Where is he? that great man whom Nature owes to her vexed, oppressed, and tormented children. Wliere is he I He will appear, doubt it not; he will come forth, and raise the sacred standard of liberty. This venerable signal will gather around him the companions of his misfortune. More impetuous rlian the torrents, they will everywliere leave the indelible traces of their just resentment. Everywhere people wiU bless the name d2 36 THE LIFE OF of the hero, who shall have re-established the rights of the humau race ; everywhere will they raise trophies in his honour."* These eloquent words must have produced a deep and per- vading impression on a mind so susceptible as that of Toussaint. Here reason and feeling were harmonized into one awful appeal. Here philosophy joined with common sense and common justice, to proclaim negro wrongs, and to call for a negro vindicator. That call Toussaint heard; he heard its voice in his inmost soul; he heard it there first in low I'everberations ; he heard it there at last in sounds of thunder. Dwelling on those principles, jDondering those words, consulting his own heart, and reflecting on his own condition, he came in time to feel that lie was the man here designated, and that in the designation there was a call from Providence which he dared not disregard. But the time was not yet. Conviction must wait on ojoportunity. Besides, Toussaint was a religious man. Beligion was his highest law. In one sense religion was his only law, for it comprehended every other form of law. What said religion'? Read again, noble black; read with your OAvn eyes ; read the Bible for yourself and by yovo-self. Yes, if you will, consult the pi-iest ; but in retiring from the confessional, let ilaynal's words echo in your ears, and fear lest you betray Christianity, even while striving to learn and obey its law. CHAPTER Y. Toussaint's presumed scriptural studies — The Mosaic code — Chi-istian principles Adverse to slavery — Christ, Paul, the Epistle to Philemon. It is not to be supposed that Toussaint read the sacred Scrip- tures with a critical eye. TJnvei'sed in the science of Biblical interpretation, he could do no more than receive such impressions as certain great outstanding facts were fitted to produce. Nor, * Vol. iii. p. 193 — 205. Some parts which breathe too much the spirit of levenge have been softened or omitted in the translation. TOUSSAIXT LOUVERTURE. 37 however valuable for its own purposes a scieiitidc acquaintance with the Divine Word may be, did he need more than he and ■every other sensilile person could gather from the general tenour and prominent aims of the Bible. There might even be par- ticular passages which he was unable to comprehend in the harmony of scriptural truth, and a rehgious disputant might have found no great ditliculty in presenting to his mind considerations wearing on the surface an appearance adverse to his general con- victions. But those couAdctions woukl rest on such broad and deep foundations, and occupy in his mind so large a space ; they would in themselves be so full, and so vivid, and so far-reaching, that as he reflected on them more and more, and they thus became an integral element in his mind, he could in no way doubt that slavery was disallowed by the Bible, and was adverse to the genius, the aims, and the operation of the Gospel. Slavery, it is true, he foimd in the Scriptures. But how? Not as an institution of Divine origin. Closes found slavery in common practice; and unable to abolish it, did his best to miti- gate its evils. And the S3\stem of servitude which he left rather than sanctioned, involved none of those atrocities which make American slavery so offensive and so baneful. The aim. and tendency of slavery among the Hebrews, was the improve- ment of such as were under the yoke. Being of foreign extrac- tion for the most part, slaves were permitted to enter ' the com- monwealth of Israel,' by undergoing the distinctive rite of circumcision. (Gen. xvii. 23, 27.) Thus rai-sed from a slave into a Hebrew, the slave had before him a brightening future, and coidd shai'e in the privilege, and partake of the advantages, of worshipping the Creator of heaven and earth. Like England, Canaan was a land of refuge for slaves. The moment they touched that sacred soil they wei'e free. Fugitive slaves coidd in no wise be delivered u]> to their masters, nor might they be reduced into bondage by Israelites. They chose their own resi- dence, and followed their own pursuits. (Deut. xxiii. IG, et seq.) Expressly was it forbidden that a Hebrew should sell himself to a fellow-Hebrew as a bond-servant, and if one Hebrew hired timself to another Hebrew, he with his children obtained 38 THE LIFE OF liis liberty unconditionally at the end of six years at the furthest, or at the jubilee next ensuing after his service began. (Lev. xxv. 39, 40.) And he might be redeemed at an earlier day by either himself or a relative. (Lev. xxv. 48, 49.) Even thieves, who, ■when detected, were, in consequence of not being able to make compensation, put into servitude to Israelites, benefited by the laws regarding emancipation. As it was not pennitted to send back or enslave a fugitive slave of foreign blood, so was it iinlaw- fiil to sell a Hebrew to a foreign master. (Exod. xxi. 7 — IL) These facts are the more striking, when we take into account the general practice of the slave trade in the ancient Eastern world. 'Egypt, which lay on the borders of Palestine, was a great slave mart. The long sea-board of Palestine aiforded peculiar facilities for the detestable traffic. Sti'eams of wealth would have poured into the land, had Israel encouraged the trade. The temptation was gi-eat. But religion was too strong for cupidity, and the people of God disallowed the commerce in human flesh generally, and modified their prescriptive usages so as to abate the e\als and diminish the observance of slavery in their own territories. Among the mitigations of their lot guaranteed to slaves l)y Moses were the following: — L Entire rest £i*om labour every seventh day. (Exod. xx. 10.) Noble recognition of man's religious nature and religious wants! 2. Immunity from deadly or cniel punishments. If a servant lost an eye or a tooth from a blow given by his master, he was thereon rendered free ; if a slave died under a master's hand, the master imderwent due retribu- tion. (Exod. xxi. 20, et seq.) When advocates of slavery as it is in the United States cite in argument the Mosaic institutions, they would do well to give special attention to these merciful regulations. 3. Slaves were to join the Hebrew family in their rejoicings ou occasions of religious festivity. (Deut. xii. 12, 18; x^'i. 11, 14.) 4. Slaves recovered their freedom in the year of jubilee, and the bondman was not to go away with empty hands : " Thou shalt furnish him liberally out of thy flock, and out of thy flour, and out of thy winepress." The reason assigned is forcible; " Thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in TOUss.UKT l'ouverture. 39 the land of Egyjit, and the Lord thy God redeemed thee. (Deut. XV. 13 etseq.; compare Exod. xxi. 2 — 4.) 5. A servant might not wish to leave his master's house ; having been treated well, he had formed attachments and become one of the family : " If, therefore, he shall plainly say, I love my master, I will not go out free, then shall liis master bring him unto the judges;" and his will being ascertained by a judicial investigation, he was permitted to remain in his own freely-chosen condition of domestic servi- tude. (Exod. xxi. 0, 6.) 6. A Hebrew bondsman was allowed to acquire and hold property, with which he might piu-chase his freedom. (Lev. xxv. 49.) 7. If a master had no sons, a Hebrew slave miglit aspire to his daughter's hand. (1 Chron. ii., 3.5.)* On reviewing the features of the Mosaic slave code, could Tou.s- saint for a moment identify its provisions with the Code Noir of Louis XIV., or with the system practised in Hayti? The con- ti'ast was too evident. When did Toussaint see a slave, in some happy year of jubilee, going forth ii-om bondage with a liberal supply from his master's flock, his master's bam, and his master's wine-cellar'? Did he himself ever even think of asking for the hand, not of his master's daiighter, but of his master's steward's daughter? Did he ever -svituess even a slave-driver punished for cruelly treating a slave? Could he jioint to a neighbouring land whose very air gave a slave his freedom the moment he breathed it? Did Spanish Hayti refuse to deliver up fugitive •slaves to French Hayti, and did French Hayti refuse to deliver up fugitive slaves to Spanish Hayti? But, it is objected, Christianity finding slavery in existence, did not pi'oscribe it. Christianity did more tliau proscribe slavery — it xindermined slavery; and wherever it prevailed in deed rather than profession, it brought slavery to the gToimd. The objection, if rightly stated, is this, and nothing more — namely, that the original promulgators of the Gospel did not commence an active and open crusade against slaver}^ The reason is, that they had an object before them higher than any immediate good. They waged no war against Eoman despotisn\. They left, even on * Consult, under tbe word hotidagc, " The People's Dictionary of the Bible," 2 vola. 8vo., third Edition, by the author. 40 THE LIFE OF their native hills, the degenerate family of Herod in undisturbed possession of power. Their mission was not to remodel in- stitutions, but to reform society. Their work was not to reap a prematiure and perishing harvest, but to sow the seed of quickening principles and imperishable sympathies. Disregard- ing thrones, principaUties, and dominions, they went forth to preach the word of a new individual life, well aware that the acorn, in due time, woidd become an oak. Nor were their eiforts nugatory. Within three centuries slavery was abolished in the Roman empire. And at this moment — such is the ex- tensive and ever-living j^ower of the G ospel — slavery, throughout the world, is tottering to its fall. But chiefly, when he meditated on the words and the objects of the Saviour of the world, did Toussaint feel how incompatible slavery was with Christianity. Had he not, in those impressive words, "where the Spirit of the Lord is thei'e is liberty," (2 Cor. iii. 1 7,) found the enunciation of a gi-eat Christian princi- ple, and the announcement of a great Christian power, which must of necessity, as it was designed, break asunder every outward bond and emancipate every slave on earth? And in what terms did the Lord himself announce his mission? Toussaint, in thought, made one of his auditors in that small synagogue at Nazareth, where the Redeemer of men astounded his townsfolk and relatives hj declaring, in words of the widest imjDort, as he ushered in the grand spiritual jubilee, and so gave to all the subjects of His new kingdom liberty of body in giving them liberty of soul : " The Spii'it of Jehovah is upon me, be- cause He hath anointed me to preach glad tidings to the poor, He hath sent me to declare delivemnce to the ca])tives, and recovery of sight to the blind ; to set at hberty those that are oppressed ; to proclaim the acceptable year of Jehovah." " To-day is this Scripture fulfilled in your ears." (Luke iv. 18, et seq.) Unmis- takable must Toussaint have found the import of these words. The great year of jubilee had come — the slave was free — slaveiy was abolished; not only that corporeal slavery which Moses tolerated, but the heavier slavery ; which man, in conse- quence of sin, endured;- — slavery of soul and, consequently, slavery of body was abrogated and destroyed. The blow TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE. 41 was struck, and tlie dark edifice would inevitably fall. How could Toussaiut hear from the lips of Christ himself that he came expressly to deliver the captive, and set the oppressed at liberty, without feeling that if he yielded to the grand thought which already swelled his breast, and became the liberator of the negi'o race, he would thereby be not a follower only, but a fellow-worker with " the Lord from heaven 1" How could he learn, on infiiUible authority, that God, wlio had " made of one blood all nations," (Acts xvii. 2G,) had, in his Son, opened and proclaimed the year of universal jubilee, and therefore, inau- gurated the period of universal emancipation ; and yet, with his convictions and sympathies, fail to conclude that on him too had, by the hand of Providence, been devolved a share in the truly religious task of liberating antl uj^u'aising a cruelly oppressed and deeply injured tribe? If from the Master, Toussaint tm-ned to the greatest of liis disciples, and asked Paul what, on this point, were the principles of the religion of Jesus, he learned that while the apostle urged no one in actual cu-cumstances to hurry from the condition in which he was born, and judged that it was better to endure wrong than prematurely, and to the peril of the cause of Christ, disturb existing relations, and thereby con\iilse society already fearfully agitated, yet he recognised as equally members of the Christian church, and accessible to the same rights, immunities, and privileges, the bond and the free; (2 Cor. xii. 13;) and viewing the whole of human kind as divided into these two classes — in their high relations to God and Christ and each other, declax-ed that all outward distinctions had ceased, and must practically, in time, come to an end, for that there was no longer bond or free, any more than Barbarian or Scythian, but all were ''one in Christ Jesus." (Gal. iii. 28; Col. iii. 11.) What! could the glowing terms in which the apostle — returning again and again to the subject, as if his soul was on fire with the thought — sets forth not only the equality of all the tribes of earth, but their essential unity; — could those terms be heard by the Roman slave in the primitive church, and not make his bosom swell and glow with the idea that he too was a man, that he too was free, that he too was comprehended 42 THE LIFE OP in "the redemption wliich was in Christ Jesus'?" And that idea once deep in his bosom, the iiiptm-e of his material bonds ■was merely an affair of time. Men, who know that they are •nien, cannot long be held in bondage. Conscious children of God will not be slaves to selfish and brutal men. Those who feel that they have been purchased by Christ, the Son of God, may indeed "bide their time," but cannot be permanently held in the degi-ading and polluting condition of slavery. Yes, wisely _ for your own bad piu^poses, do ye, slave masters, keep the light of divine truth from your unhappy victims, or permit them to see it only through the discolouring medium of a ministration which stoops to make a gain of godliness; wisely for your own purposes do ye keep the Bible a sealed book on your plantations, or set hirelings to pervert its glorious and emancipating tidings; for othei'vvise your dominion would be shorter than in God's providence it is intended to be. But the day cometh; "the Lord is at hand." You point me to the conduct of Paul? You tell me that Paul sent back Onesimus into slavery? You ask me if Toussaint in his scriptural studies comprised the Epistle to Philemon? and you triumphantly intimate that, by that ex- ample, his emancipatmg ardour ought to have been checked. I reply that the Epistle to Philemon is a plea against slavery; that if Toussaint comprehended what he read, he would thereby be greatly confirmed and built up in his righteous and most Christian purposes ; and that if your own eyes were only free from the scales of prejudice and mistaken self-iuterest, they too would discern, in that letter, principles which are utterly incon- sistent with the continuance of the abominable system of which you are the supporters. The Epistle of Paul to Philemon is the most pregnant of com- positions. Never was so much meaning compressed into so few words. And then, how weighty the topics. How much of doctrine is there in those few verses; how much of history. And the doctrine and the histoiy are so presented, that wliile you cannot deny the history, you are encouraged to receive the doctrine. The letter is a series of implications ; — implied facts. TOUSSAINT LOUVERTUEE. 43 implied principles, implied duties, implied changes and triumphs, set forth in all the unconscious simplicity of a private and con- fidential communication, so as to conciliate attention and win belief. I hold this short Epistle to be of itself an antidote to scepticism and a confutation of slaveiy. The letter, I have intimated, is a series of implications. It is also a group of pictures. First mark that fugitive slave huiTj'ing from Colossae, in Asia Minor, down to the shores of the Mediter- ranean sea. What a fell expression of countenance he has, as of one who, if well-endowed by nature, had been made bad by ser- vitude, and who had had long and varied jiractice in misdoing. How stealthy are his steps, how clo^vnish, yet how timid his manner ! Ever and anon he casts back his anxious eyes as if he feared pursuit, and from the face of every one whom he en- counters, he turns away, as if he di'eaded to be recognised. At last, reaching the sea, he hastens on ship-board, and concealing himself in the most secret part of the vessel, effects his escape, and is earned to Rome, — that city which the gi'eatest of ancient historians has described as the common sink of the world.* Let a few years pass, and you may see the same person on lus way back from Rome to Asia Minor and Colossje. N"o longer do his movements betray fear. No longer does liis countenance betoken ferocity. His steps are equable and fii'm. His manner discloses self-respect. He is retui-ning with as much composure as determination, and on his way he receives and returns greet- ings with gentleness and confidence, as if he feared none, and wished to be friendly with all. And now that he is again on ship-board, mark how pure and refined is the expression of his face, how manly his whole bearing, as, no longer shunning the light, he walks up and down the deck, and has a good word for evexy one. Is this indeed the same person ? It is Onesimus, the nmaway slave. And he is going back to his master of his own accord. Yes, hundreds of miles does he travel on foot and * Tae. jViin. xv. 41. Quo cimcta undiquc atrocia aut pudenda coniluunt, celc- branturquc. 44 THE LIFE OF by sea in ordei' to return into bondage. Observe, be is unac- companied, be is unmanaclcd; not by force, l)ut by bis own free will, is be led back to bis proprietor Pliilemon in Oolossse. Wbence tbese cbanges? In order to understand tbem, you must form to yourselves anotber picture. Tbere, in a .small bouse in. tbat narrow and secluded street of Itome, you bebold an aged man, boimd Avitb a cbain to tbat pretorian soldier, under wliose custody be is nigbt and day. Tbat aged man is Paul tbe apostle of Jesus Cbrist ; tbere, in tbat corrupt and guilty city, to answer, at tbe peril of bis bfe, for daring to offer tbe Gospel to bis countrymen in Jerusalem. Mean in j^erson, and rude in speecb, be bas nevertbeless preacbed Cbrist crucified witli great success to tbe citizens. But be is oppressed witb infirmities. His numerous sufi'erings, bis long journeys, bis ceaseless labours, bave reduced bim to tliat state of bodily endurance. And glad and thankful is be for bumanc attentions and ministries of Cbristian love. In tbat sacred work Ouesimus bas been engaged. Found by Paid, — and found, it may be, wben tbe fugitive was in sickness, — be was taken to tbe apostle's own abode, and tbere cared for in mind as well as in body, until be came to possess botb tbe ability and tbe will to make a return in kind to bis apostoHc benefactor. Tbe reciprocation of kind offices begat mutual attachment. Learning to love the preacher, Onesimus learned also to love and to espouse bis doctrine. Now, therefore, is he a Christian, — a mem- ber of Clirist's spiritual body, and a sharer witb Paul himself in "the liberty wherewith Christ bath made him free."' (Gal. v. 1.) So intimate do tbe two friends become, tbat tbe elder regards tbe younger as bis " son," while the younger, loving and respecting the elder as bis father, is as ready to obey as be is glad to serve bim. But mark, as they sit there in that Inimble apartment, earnestly conversing witb each other, mark the cloud that bas fallen on the countenance of Onesimus. It is heavy and deep. In a moment it has disappeared. " You must return to Philemon." Tbese are tbe words which darkened that face. " Eeturn into chains? horrible." Shortly afterwards Onesimus is on the road. They are great changes with which we have to do in this group of events. At the time of the publication of tbe Gosjjel, TOUSSAIXT LOUVERTURE. 45 slaveiy was universal. Pliilenion, a jiromineiit and zealous member of the church at Colossse, held a slave by name Onesimus. Having served his master badly, Onesimus ran away. But now of his own free will he is going back into bondage. This is the first great change. Ah, how many a footstep must he set between Rome and Colossae, and for every footstep there was an act of the will. Every act of the will said, "return to servitude." Yet the will never filtered, and the slave's own feet brought him into the house of Philemon. But what reception might he meet with there ? There would be the jeers and jibes of fellow .slaves to endure. There were pa.st neglects and misdeeds to atone for. There was an injured and an offended master to encounter. Nevertheless, of his own accord, Onesimus returns. At the fir.st appearance, this would appear the height of folly. Masters held the power of life and death over their slaves. Onesimus had everything to fear. On what does he rely] Has he no safe- guard ? He has a few lines written by a poor decrepid man hundreds of miles distant. Is that all ? That is all. But it is enough; Onesimus knows that it is enough. What a wonder- working power is writing! We have read of charm.s, magical forms, and incantations ; we have read of them, and of the powers they were said to possess. But even their fancied efficacy has in it nothing siirpassiug the efficacy of these few Greek characters written by Paul and borne by Onesimus. Guards, prisons, and chains — they are of less potency than words. Onesimus eluded the former, and goes back under the influence of the latter. These words, a token of the apostle's will, conduct Onesimus back and protect him from the natural consequences of Phile- mon's wrath. Such is the sovereignty of thought. A moi-sel — so to say — of Paid's mind, acts with supreme control beyond lands and seas. But the return mdicates another great change. If, now, Onesimus sets his face towards the east, it is because his heart is changed. In a change of the affections, is found the cause of that change of his will. This is, indeed, a great change — a fugi- tive slave willingly goes back to bondage. Thei'e is no compul- sion : there can be no compulsion. No .spies, no catchpoles are 46 THE LIFE OF at work. No law in Rome compels the emperor to apprehend and restore to the Colossians any of their slaves that might seek shelter in the metropolis of the world. Though slavery then prevailed throughout society, legislation had not reached the height of wickedness which compels the freeman to he a police^ officer to the slaveholder. In safety, and perhaps in prosperity, might Onesimus have remained in Rome. But no! a power stronger than the imperial power itself, sends liim back. Go he must, go he will, and go he does. Why? he must put that right which he left wrong ; he had injured his master, he must make liim compensation. And though in the matter of right, Onesimus belonged to liimself and not to Plulemon, yet, as the law recog- nised the institution of slavery, and eveiy Christian ought to avoid even the appearance of evil, so would Onesimus return to Philemon in order to adjust their relations one with another. Those relations had assumed a new aspect. The two persons who had known each other only as master and slave, were now in Christ "brothers beloved." And as Chi-istians, they recognised a higher law than the world's — a law which rendered slaveiy impossible, but which also commanded each, to do imto others as he would be done unto. Relying on the former, and acting on the latter, hoping to be set at liberty, yet believing it his duty to give Philemon an opportunity of declaring his emancipation, Onesimus has set his feet within his mastei''s home. This, I repeat, is indeed a gi-eat change. The fugitive is the returning .slave, because the slave has become a Christian. And the Christian so highly values moral obligations, that in the thought of his duties he almost forgets liis rights, and at least is as regard- ful of the legal claims of his niastei*, as he is of his own uatm-al and indefeasible privileges. Onesimus, I have intimated, regarded the legal claims of Phile- mon. There is no evidence that either Onesimus or Paul recog- nised any other claim. It was the general practice of the fii-st disciples to pay obedience to the then existing civil laws. Tliis respect for existing institutions, however, was merely outward and temporary. Having its origin in pnidential consi- deration, it came to an end as soon as duty coidd safely supersede I TOUSSAINT l'ouverture. 47 expediency. Meanwhile, it implied at the bottom a disallowal of existing evils, and a determination to take the most effectual course for their abatement and removal. Tolerating slavery because it wished to take safe steps for rendering slavery impos- sible, it in reality hated the abomination of property in man's body and soul, and was ever silently at work to convert the slave into a man, and so to break the yoke and set the captive free. That this was the view under which Paid acted, is obvious from, the language he employs in his Letter to Philemon : — In that Letter there is first the distinct assertion of a right. It is tlie right of Paul to claim the freedom of Onesimus. On what was that right founded I On Christ. Paid, Philemon, and Onesimus were in Clirist partners, they were sharers of a common Grospel, such is the meaning of the term " partner," employed by Paid, in the 17th vex-se. As having, in common, "the redemp tion that was in Christ Jesus," they were alike free. Onesimus, as a Christian, was as free as Philemon, and both were equally fi*ee with Paul. Onesimus, in consequence, had a claim to be pronounced free. And that claim Paul was at full Liberty to lu'ge on Philemon. I make this statement on the authority of the apostle's own words, as they are found in the 8tli verse of the epistle ; "though I might be much bold in Christ to enjoin thee that which is convenient." This, the English version, very imperfectly repre- sents the original. " Convenient," is a most inadequate exjii'es- sion, at least in the sense in which it is now understood. Con- venient with us signifies that which is easy and pleasant, leather than that which is obligatory; that which is suitable to the occa- sion, rather than conformable to the everlasting laws of i-ight. The Greek word used by Paul, however, denotes that which is fit and proper, and in the third chapter of the Epistle to the Colossians, v. 1 8, it is rendered by the English term^^ " Wives, .submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as it is Jit in the Lord." That, in this injunction, the apostle spoke of duty, of Chi'istian obligation, and not of any temporary expediency, is clear from the corresponding passage in his Letter to the Eplie- sians, v. 22, where he says, " Wives, submit yourselves unto yom* 48 THE LIFE OP own liusbauds as tinto the Lord." It is, then, an obligation, a Ckristian obligation, whicli Paul ha an acknowledgment of his power. Under Toussaint's benign sway, parties began to melt away, and heart-burnings to cease. An unqualified amnesty, which he proclaimed, tranquillized men's minds, and reconciled them to the existing state of things. Nor did the victorious general forget the All-powerful Arm to which he knew that he owed his triumph, and l^y whose aid only, he was equally assiu'ed, he could finish the work he had begiin and so far accomplished. But the governor disapproved of L'Ouverture's policy. Whether from a difference of view, or from suspecting Toussaint of ambitious designs, Hedouville, though a professed Repviblican, characterized his administration as " too mild and too full of results." Never having behaved towards the negro captain Avith cordiality, he now conveyed to Toussaint's eai-s words of open complaint and covert blame. Toussaint was not to be turned from a course which he had deliberately adopted, and found to be most beneficial. Afraid lest Hedou\ille's power woidd interrupt that course, or abate its good, he issued proclamations to his troops — his chief basis of reliance — in order to confirm them in their obedience by the strongest of ties, namely, the religious ties to which their susceptible and impulsive natures made them peculiarly sensible. "Tliis," said he, "is the path which we must all follow, in order to draw down iijjon us the blessing of the Lord. I hope you will never depart from it, and that you will punctually execute what follows : — " The heads of regiments are required to see that the troops join in prayer morning and evening, as far as the service will permit. "At the earliest review, the Generals Commanding- in-chief, will cause high mass to be celebrated and a Te Deurn to be sung in all the places of their several districts, as an expression TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE. 99 of gratitude to Heaven for having vouchsafed to direct our last campaigns; for having caused the evacuation of the enemy to take place without effusion of blood ; for having protected the return amongst us of many thousand men of every colour, who till then had been lost ; and, finally, for having restored to the labours of agricultiu-e more than twenty thousand hands. The Te Deum will be annoimced by a salvo of twenty-two pieces of cannon." Under the effects of words so religious and so just, the credit of Hedouville was greatly lessened ; in propoi'tion as L'Ouverture gained ascendancy, he sank, until he retained among his sup- porters only those who were immediately around him, such as his officials. Frenchmen who were foreigners in the colony, and others who, from personal connexions Avith the mother country, desired to maintain its power in the hands of its agents. The contrast was made gi-eater by the diverse com"se pursued by the two in regax'd to the cultivators of the soil. While Hedouville unconditionally declared all the blacks free, Tous- saint Avisely prefixed to their actual freedom a kind of appren- ticeship for five years, on condition of their receiving one-fourth of the produce, out of which the masters were to defray the cost of their subsistence. The plan of the governor, speciously designed to catch the popular breeze, would have issued in universal disorder. Instead of immediate emancipation, always pregnant with present and future disasters, Toussaint interposed a period of preparation, and in so doing, saved the property of the masters, as well as promoted the interests of the servants, So wise and moderate a use of his triumph and his power pro- bably saved Hayti from the terrors of a universal convulsion, and certaiuly raised liim to a liigh position in the respect of all impartial and judicious men. Hedouville, aware to what an extent he had lost the public confidence, took measures for provoking a movement contrary to Toussaint among the men of colour. Kigaud he accordingly invited to the seat of government. As a cover, he invited Toussaint also to take part in the conference. But the negro chief was as wary as he was bold ; and he may have heard that h2 100 THE LIFE OF some time previously officers of Hedouville's staff had offered to seize his person, if only their master would put four brave soldiers at their disposal. Remaining at Port-au-Prince, Toussaint was informed that Pigaud was on his way to the Cape. The commander of that place, and several black officers, advised Toussaint to intercept and apprehend Pigaud. " I could," he replied, " easily do so ; but God forbid. I have need of Pigaud. He is violent. I want him for carrying on war; and that war is necessaiy to me. The mxilatto caste is superior to my own. If I take Pigaud from them, they would perhaps find another supex-ior to him. I know Pigaud ; he gives up the bridle when he gallops ; he shows his arm when he strikes. For me, I gallop also ; biit I know where to stop ; and when I strike, I am felt, not seen. M. Pigaud can conduct insurrections only by blood and mas- sacres; I know how to put the people in movement; but when I appear, all must be tranquil." A general feeling of uneasiness spread abroad. Fear began to prevail. A counter-revolution seemed at hand. The blacks were uneasy, especially those who had compromised themselves in taking part with the English. The mulattoes were regarded with alarm. In Foi-t-Saint-Dauphin, a regiment ran to ax-ms, deelax'ixig that the whites wished to x'estore slavery. A combat took place between the black troops and the white troops. The former being beaten, spread over the open country, which they raised on all sides. Then, once moi*e, conflagx-ation comnxitted its x-avages. Maxxy ixnfox-tunate whites, taken by sux-px'ise on their estates, were slaughtered. The insux-gents marched to the Cape. Toussaint hastened to the seat of the insurrection. The blacks were x'aging as in fox*mer days. Suddenly their chief appeared, aixd all was peaceful. Undertaking to be the exponent of their griefs, he led them to Cape City. The moment he arx'ived there, the alarm was given by the authox'ities, who seem to have desired a rencontre. The troops were assembled, but the effort px-oved nugatoiy. By little and little, the soldiers desex'ted their posts when they knew that Toussaint was at haxxd. Hedouville, failing in his coup d'etat, embarked to return TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE. 101 to France. From on board the ship he published a proclamation, in which, being no longer able to profit by the prejudices of colour, he sought his account by appealing to national jealousies, and declared that Toussamt L'Ouverture was sold to the English. The movement was at an end. The plotter was on his way back to France, and the regenerator of his country found liim- self in a freer field, and possessed of augmented resources. No less single than pure in his aims, Toussaint L'Ouverture rose in general regard and public confidence, even by the contrarieties which the Governor had thrown in his way. By the failure of the recent plot, too, the mulatto interest, considered as hostile to the interest of other classes, received a heavy blow. As soon as General Hedou\'ille had set sail, the blacks were not only ti-anquil, but obedient to the eye and the finger of their chief Every one silently resumed his habitudes. The most perfect calm succeeded the most raging tempest. A Te Deum was chanted, and the name of Toussaint L'Ouverture was mingled with the Hallowed Name in the uttered gratitude of thousands. Toussaint was not insensible to the homage, and he desired the complete accomplishment of his mission. But he had seen the edifice he had so carefully and painfully raised, put in danger with only too much facility. The mulatto party, though weakened, were still powerful. At their head was Rigaud, who had not shown himself averse to the designs of liis caste. Toussaint dreaded a collision. Possibly he himself was a hindi'ance to a peacefid and permanent settlement. En- tertaining no merely personal objects, he gave utterance to a desii-e to be relieved of his weighty responsibilities. At a moment when, by a bold stroke, he might have set up a tlu-one, and pei'haps established a dynasty, he asked for his dismissal. The word called forth a imiversal remonstrance. The civil and the military authorities, the white, black, and brown inhabitants, the proprietors and the labourers, all combined in laying before liim formal addresses, in which they entreated him to remain, to use their own terms, " their father and their benefactor." But there was a court of appeal. Before that tribunal 102 THE LIFE OF Hedom-ille would appear with singular advantage. Toussaint knew tlie disparity of liis means for obtaining a fair hearing, but he resolved to employ snch as were at his command. Accordingly, he sent Colonel Vincent, one of his secretaries, to explain and justify his conduct before the French Govei-n- ment, then in the hands of the Directo^5^ Colonel Vincent was the bearer of a letter, of which the following contains the principal passages : — "Toussaint L'Ouverture, General-in-Chief of the army of Saint Domingo, to the Directory of the Republic : " Citizen Directors, — When in my last dispatches I deter- mined to request my dismissal, I did so because, after having collected all the instances of opposition to the principles which the Constitution has established, which yoiu- wisdom has main- tained, which your energy has defended, — all the insisaiLces of opposition, I say, manifested in conduct held by the agent Hedouville during the short space of time which he governed this colony, — foresaw the unhappy event which for an instant dis- turbed the public tranquillity I had had so much trouble to establish ; and I did so after having calculated the consequences of the distance at which he held himself from me, and of which he gave public proofs on several occasions, fearing that my deposition, which he meditated, would be the reward of my long services, of my fidelity, and of my devotedness. " The incident at Fort-Dauphin realized my apprehensions as to the con"\Tilsion for which preparations were made, and the proclamation which the agent put forth at the moment of his departure has justified my feai's regarding the fate he intended for me. " The most outrageous injuiy wliich can be done to a man of honour crowns the vexations which he has made me undergo. By this perfidious act he causes a vast number of Frenchmen to quit these lauds who had congratulated themselves on their hap- piness here, and who, faithful to their country, were compelled to sacrifice their interests, rather than become accomplices in the crime of independence of which I was regarded as guilty ; he carries with him, especially, the principal authorities, that (as he TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE. 103 said on lea^'ing) they may be the irrefragable proof of my du- jjlicity, of my pei-fidy. " Doubtless the first feeling of the Dii'cctory, whom I respect, on seeing them unanimously bear witness against me, will be to invoke vengeance on my head; that of the French people, whom I love, to devote me to execration; and that of the enemies of the blacks, whom I despise, to cry out for slavery ; but when it shall be known that at the time wliich I was accused of wishing to sun- der this island from France, my benefactress, I repeated the oath of fidelity to her, I take pleasure in believing that the govern- ment I own, and my fellow- citizens, -ndll render me the justice I merit, and that the enemies of my brethren will be reduced to silence. " The Agent, in reality, surrounded himself only ^vith pei'sons in the colony sunk in pubHc opinion, ambitious and intriguing, who caress all the factions which have torn this unfortimate country. A band of young men, of no chai-acter and no prin- ciples, who came with him, then threw away the mask, and manifested a spirit both auti-national and insulting to me. " The labourei's who began to taste the sweets of repose in the midst of security, were surprised at the impure sounds which struck their eai", and wounded their heart. I became the depo- sitoiy of theii' griefs, and I composed their minds by assuring them of the good intentions of the agent of a benevolent govern- ment; but they soon accused me myself of partiality, havijig become certain that even at the table of the General Agent they were denomiced as unworthy of the liberty they enjoy, and which they have derived from the equity of Finance. " Often did the Agent reproach me with having received emi- grants, with violating the constitution, with breaking the law. Whatever may have been the reasons of the continual blame which I received from him in regard to conduct in which I found nothing to reproach myself with, I could not ascertain them, and, persuaded that, from the moment that I lost his confidence, I could expect no more good, I asked of you my dismis-sal. Hapjiy would it have been if it had reached me prior to his de- parture ! He would then have learnt that ambition never was 104 THE LIFE OF my master, and especially he would not have done me the injury to publish that I desired to terminate my services to France by a crime towards which I was di'awn by the men around me who were sold to the English. " Whoever those may have been of whom I was obliged to make use to assist me in my important occupations, and without whom even with all the means given by education which I have not re- ceived, I could not have performed my functions, I will one day prove that no one less than myself merits the reproach laid at my door by my adversaries, namely, that I allowed myself to be governed. " Could it be laid to my charge that I directed towards the public interests, that I employed for the advantage of the re- public, activity, talents, and genius 1 And when my secretaries, whom bonds too sacred unite to their mother country to allow a moment's doubt of their attachment to her, are the sole deposi- taries of my secrets, the sole confidants of the projects which I could not confine within my own breast ; why cast on men who will never influence me the blame of the ridiculous intentions imputed to me, and which never having entered my heart, again prove that I do not allow myself to be governed by the passions of others? If those passions had directed my steps, I should not have foreseen tlie event which has just taken place, and, walking like a blind man on my political course, I should have asked joxi for my dismissal. "But that step which prudence forced me to take, the only one which could dissipate the storm with which I was threatened, was very far from restoring confidence in the minds of the people of Saint Domingo. The discontent of the labourers had increased by the compulsion of an engagement for three years. That seemed to them a step back to slavery. They called to mind the means proposed by Vaublanc to estabhsh his system in this colony, and they were surprised that when tlie Directory had punished that conspirator, its Agent should propose the same measures, should prescribe them, should exact their prompt and full execution. This dissatisfaction which was fostered, was soon shared by the soldiei's. By the discharge of more than tlu"ee thousand men, efiected after the evacuation of the west by TOUSSAIXT LOUVERTURE. lOo the English, I had proved how necessary I thought it to cut down the armaments of the military. I was blamed in that operation, and I received the order not to cut down any troop. Nevertheless, on the departui-e of the English, it was declared that all the black forces ought to be disbanded in order to be sent back to agriculture, and that European soldiers only should be employed in the defence of the coasts. Then distrust entered the soldiers' heai'ts, and while previously a part of them had taken the hoe without a murmur, they showed aversion toward a measxtre which they regarded as an attack on liberty. " Whatever were the grounds of distrust with which I was siu-- roimded; however faithful the councils I received on all parts from the most sincere friends of the prosperity of Saint Domingo; whatever fears were infused into my mind by the crimes con- templated against my person; I did not hesitate to set out for the Cape, and even endeavoured to give a proof of my confidence in the liighest authorities, by going imattended, except by an aide-de-camp and a cavalry ofiicer; but having arrived on the Hericourt plantation, I Avas met by alanning rxmiours. I learned that at Fort-Dauphin, the fifth colonial regiment — wliich contri- buted so much to the restoration of order, to the purification of La Grande Riviere, (the Vendee of Saint Domingo,) to the expul- sion of the English — liad become the victim of the European troops, who foi'merly had delivered up to foreign powers the points of the colony which had been confided to their defence. " Convinced, then, of the bad intentions of the Government in whose names all those horrors were committed; no longer seeing any security for any one who had acquired well-grounded claims to the national gratitude ; fearing, with good reason, for my own life, I turned back and jirepared to go and wait at Gonaives official news of an event, the consequences of which I dreaded. I received a letter from the General Agent, wliich confirmed my fears, and in which he ordered me to repair to Fort-Dauphin to aid the citizen Manigat, whom he had invested with all ciA-il and military powei", in the re-establish- ment of order and public tranquillity. I then pressed on to Gonaives, in order to take the escort, of which I had need. The 106 THE LIFE OF crimes committed by Freuchmeu agaiust my brethreu, forced me to this jirudential measiu^e. I left Gonaives with the fourth regiment; but "what was my grief, when, on arriving at the Hericovu-t plantation, I learned that the rising of the laboirrers had become general, that all the plain was in arms, and tkreatened Cape Town with an immediate irruption. Those who with that design had assembled on the Hericourt estate, sur- rounded me as soon as I arrived, reproaching me with ha\-ing deceived them in answering for the good intentions of General Hedouville, and attributed to me the slaughter of their brethren at Fort-Dauphin, the arrest of some of them, and the dismissal of General Moyse ; and then it was that I received information of all the details of that unfortunate event. Soon I learned that the e\-il was intniding into all the parishes, and that the jieople required that General Hedouville should be sent away, the restoration of General Moyse to his rights, and the liberation of the officers of the fifth regiment, made prisoners in the aifair at Fort-Dauphin, etc. "Whatever pain I felt at the excesses committed against a corjjs, respectable for its services, and against officers whom I knew always attached to their duties, against a chief who never failed in his attachment to France and to the principles of libei'ty — my own nephew — I regarded in so alarming an event only the imminent dangers to vrhich the jiublic interests were exposed. I sent on all sides faithful emissaries to calm the agitated minds of men ; to announce to them my an'ival, and to require of them to do nothing without my orders. I hastened to set myself in opposition to the euterj^trises of the more senseless, who had akeady taken possession of the heights of the Cape and of Fort Belaii- which commands the city. With difficulty could I make my way through the crowds ; an immense influx of people, whom the blind desire for revenge had armed, covered all the roads which led to the Cape, and threatened that city with the greatest calamities. Frightened at the abyss, on the brink of which the city stood, I ran to draw it back. In my course, I learned that the General Agent had gone on board the fleet. Sur- prised at the news, I hastened to the Cape, which I reached TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE. 107 with difficulty, after having, sometimes by prayers, sometunes by menaces, stopped the ton-ent with which it was threatened to be inundated. Tlie astonishment caused by the departure of General Hedouville, was changed into grief when I learned that that Agent, alarmed, doubtless, at the dangers to which he had exposed the public weal, and desjiairing of any longer being able to conserve it, had resolved to go away, and that, to colour his pusillanimous flight, he had proclaimed that I was aiming at independence. " The terror having augmented, more than eighteen hundred persons followed the Agent in his flight. He ordered the cannons to be spiked. The command was being executed, when there arose a ciy ' To arms 1' The troops drawn out in battle array were moAed by the cry; they were pacified by their leaders ; had a single musket been fii-ed, the city would have perished. " Strong in my conscience, I shall not remind you, citizen direc- tor!?, of all I have done fur the triumph of liberty, the prosperity of Saint Domingo, the glory of the French Eopnblic; nor -will I protest to you my attachment to our mother country, to my duties; my respect to the constitution, to the laws of the Republic, and my submission to the Government. I swear to you I am faithful, and my future conduct, niore than all oaths, will prove to you that I shall always be faithful. "If the defence of my cause, that of the freedom of my brethren, needed cunning and intrigue, and manly eloquence, in order to triumph over my enemies, I would give it up and weep over Prance; but as I am pei'suaded that it is suflicient to present the truth for it to be apprehended by the republican Govern- ment, I am satisfied with settuig before you an exposition of my conduct, and of that of General Hedouville, and repose on your justice for the verdict which is to result. " As soon as I had re-established the public tranquillity, I sent to the Commissioner Roume — your delegate in wliat was formerly the Spanish pai-t of this island — to intreat him in the name of the public safety to come and take the reins of government thrown up by General Hedouville; persuaded that his determination will 108 THE LIFE OF be conformed to the wishes of all good Frenchmen, I impatiently await his arrival, in order to aid him vnih. all my power in the important fimctions of his new position." The appeal of justice and rectitude prevailed. The Directory were satisfied with Tovissaint's self-justification. More might have been expected; more ought to have been given. But suspicions began to jDrevail in France to the disadvantage of the negro emancipator. The purer his conduct, the more heroic his life, the greater was his crime, for his real crime was his power, and that power was the natural and inevitable conse- quence of his virtuous and high-minded career. CHAPTER XII. Civil war in the south between Toussaint L'Ouverture and Eigaud — Siege and capture of Jacmel. In qtiitting the shores of Hayti, H6douville threw a torch of dis- cord amidst the excitable population. Not only did he cause alarm by declaring that Toussaint was preparing to betray the colony to the English, but he called forth the slumbering passions of the men of colour, by intimating that with them lay the power and the duty of traversing his treacherous designs. He even addressed a letter to theu* leader, Rigaud, in which he formally set that mulatto general free from his obligations to Toussaint as Commander-in-chief, and requested him to assume the command of the southern department. This was nothing less than an in- vitation to civil strife. A correspondence took place between L'Ouverture and Rigaud. According to what he beheved to be his duty, the former acquainted the latter with the departure of H^douville, and exhorted him to pursue such a course as would promote the general weal. Rigaud, evading the real point at issue, brought into prominence the alleged partiality of Toussaint towaa-d the emigrants, whom he requested him to drive away. TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE. 109 The request, of course, i-emained without effect, but it served as a pretext to the jealousies of fligaud. Again did trouble take possession of the pop\ilar mind. The fear became the greater because Rigaud urged on Toussaint severity towards the proprietoi's, whereas the latter had determined to pursue his course of administei'ing equal justice to men of all colours, so long as they proved themselves good citizens. In this state of excitement Toussaint L'Ouverture invited the Commissioner Roume to repair to the seat of government, in order to fill the post vacated by Hedouville. In this step he gave effect to a decree of the Directory. Roume appeared at the Cape on the 12th of January, 1799. Toussaint, though suffering from sick- ness, repaired thither to confer with him a few days afterwards. The two chief authorities in the island came to an amicable understanding after mutual explanations. Entering into the large and philanthropic views of L'Ouverture, Roimie pro- nounced him " a philosopher, a legislator, a genei'al, and a good citizen." Anxious to scatter the clouds which overhung the horizon, Roume called together the chief captains of the island. In order to excite attention to the conference and commemorate the event, public festivities were celebrated. At the foot of the tree of liberty, planted in the great square, and surrounded by generals, Roiime delivered a speech, in which he recommended peace, \inion, love of the rejmblic, and self-sacrifice. He pro- nounced eulogies on the army, extolling the success of its arms against the enemies of France, and declared that the most perfect union existed between the generals, Toussaint L'Ouverture, Rigaud, Biassou, Laplume, and the other military chiefs. The following day business was entered into in earnest. The rei:)re- sentative of the French Government requested Rigaud to cede ceiiiain portions of the territory which was under liis control. The request looked like a concession to Toussaint L'Ouverture. Jealousy sprang into activity in Rigaud's mind. After a warm discussion, and some time for reflection, the miilatto chief gave in his resignation. Roume replied, urging its withdrawal. The request prevailed, and Rigaud set out for the south. On his way 110 THE LIFE OP he evacuated Grand Goave and Petit Goave — a portion only of what had been i-equired — which L'Ouverture caused his troops to occupy. The storm had receded; by no means had it passed away. The colonists rallied arovuad L'Ouverture; for they had not forgotten that it was from the efforts of the free men of coloiu- to gain equality of political rights, that the revolution had proceeded, which had changed the face of the island. They stirred up divisions among the blacks and the men of mingled blood. On their part the men of colour were displeased at seeing the supreme command settled in the hands of an African of pure blood, and flocked around the standard of Rigaud. The blacks, under the protection of the Government and Toussaint, beheld the gathering clouds not without excitement, yet in confidence ; nor were they unwilling, after so many victories, to try a last fall with their special foe. The contest began with extremes ; free white men fought with black slaves. Its intervals have disappeared. The cu'cle has narrowed. Those who are nearest each other are about to join in conflict. The black will tight with those who are a little less black than himself: therefore this will be the deadliest combat of all. The two parties stand and look at each other like in- flamed beasts of prey. Which will make the first spring? The mulatto, to the qualities of jiride and meanness, adds singular strength of muscle and impulse of passion. Conscious of power, he also feels within him boiling emotions. If victory depended on a dash, he would be master wherever he dwells. But the very exuberance of his iiatiu-e precludes caution and banishes prudence, and in the impetuosity of his rush he incurs as much peril as he occasions. Impatient of delay, he pays for momentary advantages by speedy and irretrievable defeat. Yet the same unbridled will which bi'ings disaster nourishes vindictiveness; he is therefore ever prepared, if not jDanting, for revenge. The fight, consequently, is renewed, but without a change of result; and so Hfe passes away in extravagant and disappointed effoits. The mulattoes of Hayti could not restrain their woimded feeUngs. The opposition to the Government broke out at TOUSSAIXT LOUVERTURE. Ill Corail, a small village in the southern department. The men of colour gaining the upper hand, threw into prison, at Jeremie, thirty of their prisoners, consisting of one colonist and nine-and- twenty blacks. Then was re-enacted the tragedy of the Black Hole in Calcutta. The prisoners perished from bad aii\ Pre- meditation was imputed to the mulattoes; of culpable incon- sideration and blind pas.sion they were guilty. '• In all move- ments," remarked L'Ouverture, "the blacks are the victims." This dark event rendered the continuance of jieace impossible. Both sides prepared for war. Toussaint, with a foresight be- coming his position, looked calmly at the probable wants of the island in general. Hayti was indebted for the food of its in- habitants chiefly to importation. The condition of France gave small hope of sufficient supplies. War, too, would suspend the operations of agriculture in the island. He therefore negotiated a commercial ti^eaty with the United States. The conflict began with an attack by Kigaud's troops on Petit Goave, the STirrender of which had been obtained in the conference at the Cape. The place fell, and the colonists were all ruthlessly massacred. Profiting by the success, Rigaud advanced and took up a position against Grand Goave. Hasten- ing to Port-au-Prince, Tousstiint justly accused Rigaud with having first drawn the sword, and made pre])arations for the Ccxmpaign. Having called the midattoes together into the Church, he ascended the pulpit and laid bare their bosoms, fore- telling his own success and the ruin of their cause. " I see," he said to them, " I see to the bottom of your souls ; you are ready to rise against me, but although all the troops are quitting the west, I leave behind my eye and my arm — my eye, which will watch you; my arm which, if necessary, will fall upon you." A mulatto plot, which extended even to the north, had put the keys of Port-au-Prince into the hands of a traitor. L'Ouverture was a prisoner in a town which he thouglit his own. But his decision and courage were equal to all crises. He discovered the snare, punished the criminals, and then, with the fleetness and the force of the eagle, flew back over his own territories, and, forcing strongholds and capt\u-ing to^^^ls, went as far to the 112 THE LIFE OP north-west as Saint-Nicliolas, which he brought back to its duty. The men of colour were smitten with consternation, and many of them having been captured in the several collisions, suffered in- dignities the most humiliating. Suddenly Toussaint returned to the Cape. The guilty thought the hour of their doom was come. The high-minded victor invited the inhabitants to meet him at the church, and there, besides a concoiu-se of people, all the civil and military authorities assembled. The gaiTison, which consisted of black troops, siuTounded the place ; and under the guard of a picket of soldiers in the church were the men of colour, almost naked, and in extreme dejection. Toussaint L'Ouverture ascended an elevation, pronoiinced a eulogium on the foi'giveness of in- juries as the duty of every Christian, and then jiroclaiming the pardon and the freedom of all the mulattoes, he distributed clothes and money to them severally, and gave strict injunctions that, on their way to join their families, they should be pro- tected and treated as brothers. This unexpected generosity pro- duced the most lively enthusiasm. As he left the church, bene- dictions were showered on his head. AVhile at the Cape, admii*ation at Toussaint's clemency was universal; the mulatto insurgents in the south only fought the more strenuously, in order to make up by military advantage that which L'Ouverture had gained by wise moderation. No wars are so bitter or so bloody as those of class, caste, and colour. The fact was illustrated in this teiTible conflict. With such bitterness and ferocity did it rage, that Toussaint was compelled to employ all his influence to recruit his ranks. To the blacks he might look with confidence, as the war was specially for their benefit ; but the blacks began to gi'ow alarmed as the sanguinary struggle proceeded. The whites in the north and the west, who had hitherto been exempt from the service, were marshalled at the Cape, and sent into the south, to take part in a contest in which they had only a remote interest. A mute consternation prevailed. Scarcely was the conflict spoken of in the intercourse of private life, and the periodical press transcribed the reports of the several chiefs without pennitting themselves to add any comments or reflections. Every one not actually engaged in the TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE. 113 •warfare feared to compromise himself, lest he should bring on his head the vengeance of the conqueror. Yet prudence did not prevent complications of all kinds, nor could Toussaint's mercy- preclude horrors the most distressing. Rigaud, boundless iu resources as he was brave and daring, put forth all his energ}", and maintained his position at every cost. Toussaint, with a prowess not inferior to Rigaud's, was equally vigilant, and equally bold. Yet was he unable to guard against all stratagems. In the recesses of the mountains near Port-de-Paix, as he made his way with few attendants, he found that he had fallen into an ambuscade. A discharge of musketry rattled around his head, his physician fell dead at liis feet. The plume of feathers which he wore was shot away, and he himself escaped as if by miracle. Saved from one, he shortly after was exposed to another ambus- cade. The shots were directed at his carriage ; the coachman was killed ; he himself rode tranquilly on horseback a few paces distant. In the midst of perils, Toussaint L'Ouvertm-e perse- vered. Yet he obtained only partial success. The troops of Rigaud, if fewer in number, were individually superior to the hasty levies of Toussaint, and collectively better disciplined. Many of them had long fought under their chief, and were con- versant with aU the resources and reqmrements of the war in which they were engaged. With the country iu which the con- flict was waged they were intimately acquainted, and of the character of their leader they knew enough lo be aware that only defeat would bring discredit or occasion displeasure. Having to overcome such an enemy, Toussaint L'Ouvei^ture found it neces- sary to put forth his utmost jiower, the rather as he had to hold possession of a wide extent of country, and that with troops of whom the bulk were of an mferior caste. Painful is it to read the alternations of defeat and victory in this terrible con- test, especially as on both sides they were accompanied by acts of cruelty. The only relief that the mind can obtain in going tlu'ough the now tedious, now revolting details, arises from the reflection that had such amount of effort and such patience of sufl!ering as these events show man to possess, been employed, as happily one day they may be employed, in some cause of high I 114 THE LIFE OF benevolence, some undertaking to save and not to destroy men's lives, the results would have been no less satisfactory than glo- rious indeed. The teiTor inspired by Rigaud's successes and ferocity drove the labourers from the fields into the forts; from the forts they were driven into the towns; when one town was taken, they escaped into another. Then they assembled together to concert and make attacks. Thus the country was a desert, the cities overflowed. While agriculture was at a standstill, provisions were often destroyed, and while no supplies came from the country, the dense masses aggi'egated in the towns expe- rienced want. The want arose to famine in Jacmel, lying on the southern side of the tongue of land which forms the southern department. Jacmel, on the seashore, formed the key of the district. It was imder the power of Rigaud, commanded by Bii'ot. Resolved to capture the place, which was capable of affording an obstinate resistance, Toussaint himself sat down be- fore it. With the utmost difliculty were the preparations for the siege made. Women and children were employed to convey ammunition. Bands, amounting to six thousand labourers, drew huge pieces of cannon along frightful precipices, and down roads the most rugged, broken, and dangerous. At length, the troops were collected, and Jacmel was invested, so far as the sea would pennit. Soon the harboui- also was blockaded. Then the terrors of famine began to be experienced. So intense and various were the sufferings, that the officers at length determined to capitu- late. The determination was opposed by the soldiers, who de- claimed resistance stUl possible. The commander, with two of his staff, embarked in the night and escaped to Cayes. His post was assumed by Gauthier. The siege was pressed with vigom\ Post after post was taken. Meanwhile, Rigaud neither came up to aid, nor ojicrated a diversion. Then Pelion, apprized of the critical position of the to^\Ti, determined to assume the perilous command, and, with three vessels and some in-o\'isions, succeeded in making his way into the port, under the discharges of firearms from the enemy's posts. Entering iuto the duties he had voluntarily imdertaken, he employed all his ability in the defence. But an enemy was at work over whom he had no / TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTUKE. 115 power. The famine reached such a height, that the inhabitants were compelled to eat the horses belonging to the cavahy. Every green thing was torn up and devoured. Those thought themselves happy who, in their search fur food, met with a rat or a lizard. In the public highways, famished men scarcely recognised each other. Frenzy and wailing filled every place. Mothei^s, worn down by want, fatigue, and woe, lay in the streets, with their dead infants on their exhausted breasts. At length Petion, seeing that further resistance was impossible, resolved to cut his way through the besiegers. In order to inspire his soldiers with his own courage, he tore the flags from the staffs, and commanded his men to bind strips of them round their bodies, so that if they perished, they might still be faithful to their coloiirs. Jacmel fell, and its fall was a heavy blow to Rigaud. Having taken possession of Jacmel, Toussaint L'Ouverture ad- dressed to the inhabitants of the southern department the fol- lowing proclamation : — " Citizens, " By what fatality is it, tliat hitherto deaf to my voice, wliich invites you to order, you have listened only to the coun- cils of Rigaud 1 How is it possible that the piide of a single person should be the source of your evils, and that to flatter his ambition, you are willing to destroy your families, ruin your property, and bring yourselves into disgrace in the eyes of the whole world. " I repeat to you for the third and last time, that my quairel is not with the citizens of the south, but solely with Rigaud, inasmuch as he is disobedient and insubordinate; whom I wish to bring back to his duties that he may submit to the authority of a chief whom he can no longer disown. You ought not to have supported in his misdeeds a proud soldier who evidently raised the standard of revolt. You ought to have left me free to act, since I had a right to reprimand and even to punish him. This Rigaud knew well, but, too haughty to bow before the organs of the law, he has employed every means to seduce you and to I'etain you as accomplices. Consult your conscience ; i2 116 THE LIFE OF put away all prejudices ; you will then easily know that Rigaud has desired to drive into revolt all men of colour, in order to make them his partisans and co-operators. I need not remind you of the means he has taken for the purpose, and the resources he has employed to deceive you all. You know as well as I, perhaps better than I, his destructive projects, and all he has attempted to put them into execution; he pretended to com- mand blacks and whites without being wiUing to be commanded by them. Yet the law is equal for all. Painful experience ought to have torn from your eyes the veil which hides the brink of the precipice. Give, then, close attention to what you are about to do, and the danger which you still run. Reflect on the perils and the calamities which threaten you, and hasten to prevent them. I am kind, I am humane, I open to you my fatherly arms. Come all of you, I will receive you all, no less those of the south than those of the west and of the north, who, gained over by Rigaud, have deserted your firesides, your wives, your children, to place yourselves at his side. And Rigaud him- self, that ambitious man, if he had followed the advice which I gave him, to submit to his lawful superiors, would he not now be tranquU and peaceful in the bosom of his family 1 would he not be firm and imtroubled in the command which was intrusted to him 1 But mastered by deadly passions, Rigaud has dug a gulf at your feet ; he has laid snares which you could not avoid. He wished to have you as partisans in his revolt ; and to succeed in his object, he has employed falsehood and seduction. If you carefully examine this artful but very impolitic conduct, you cannot hut declare that Rigaud does not love his colour, and that he had rather sacrifice it to his pride and ambition than labour for its happiness by good example and wise councils. And in truth, citizeus, the greater number of those whom he has misled, have perished either in battle or on the scafibld. Must not the others who persist in this revolt expect a similar fate, if they ab- jiu'e not their culpable error ? You may be well assured that if humanity did not direct the actions of a chief attached to his country as well as to his fellow-citizens, and more disposed to pardon than to punish, the calamity woidd be still gi*eater; it TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE. 117 belongs to you to prevent its augmentation. In consequence, I invite you, citizens, to open your eyes and to give serious attention to the futui-e. Reflect on the disasters which may ensue from longer obstinacy. Submit to lawful authority, if you wish to preserve the south untouched. Save your families and your projierty. " But if, contraiy to my expectation, you continue to support the revolt raised and propagated by Rigaud, in vain wiU you reckon on the fortifications he has constructed. The army of Toussaint L'Ouverture, led by generals whose braveiy you know, will assail you, and you will be conquered. Then, not without grief, and in spite of my efforts, shall I see that you have been the unhappy victims of the pride and aml)ition of a single man. I will say more ; desiring to put an end to the evils which have already too long afflicted this vmfortunate colony, and wishing to prove to the French nation that I have done every- thing for the safety and happiness of my fellow-citizens, if Rigaud — though the author of these troubles — presents himself in good faith, and without stratagem, and aclaiowledges his fault, I will still receive him. But if Rigaud persists, and if he refuses to pi'ofit by my offer — do you, fathers, mothers, families — do you all come ; T will receive you -with open arms. The father of the prodigal son received his child after he had repented." This mercifid invitation was not without effect on the population of the south. Rigaud himself, however, had gone too far to return. He was committed to the rebellion, and felt both compelled and disposed to abide the resvdt. In order to comiter- act the loss of Jacmel, and the appeal of Toussaint, he made extraordinary exertions to raise in mass the population under his sway. On his side, L'Ouverture prepared to prosecute his advantages, and terminate the disastrous war. 118 THE LIFE OF CHAPTER XIII. Toiissaint endeavours to suppress the slave-trade in Santo-Domingo, and thereby incurs the displeasure of Roume, the representative of France — ^he overcomes Eigaud — Bonaparte, now First Consul, sends Commissioners to the island — End of the war ia the south. But Toussaiut L'Ouverture found troubles and kindrances in an ■unexpected quai-ter. During the fratricidal war wldch deluged the south with blood, the horrible traffic of the slave-trade was revived on the east of the island. This commerce, originated by Jean Francois andBiassou, continued after their disappearance from the political scene, and went on constantly increasing. Yomig blacks, stolen in the north, were conveyed to the City of Saint Domingo, where they were shipped for Porto Eico and Havannah — there to bear the yoke of slavery. Many of the old officers of Jean Francois ptu'sued this as their only means of subsistence. Aware that representations had in vain been made against these barbarities at the court of INIadrid, and indignant that slavery, when nearly extinguished in its old form, should be revived in a new, and even worse one, Toussaiut wi-ote (Dec. 25, 1800) from the walls of Jacmel to the agent Bourne, urging him, as the only ejQfectual means of putting a stop to the evil, to take posses- sion of the Spanish pai-t of the island, conformably to treaty. Un- der the pretext that it was necessary to await the arrival of some European troops, Eoume postponed the execution of the request. Toussaiut was too versed in politics not to be aware that the ostensible postponement was, in reality, a refusal. He also became aware that Boume's adviser was one who owed no good Avill to himself. That person, being invited to give an account of his conduct, emigrated to Porto Bico — justifying the suspicion TOUSSAINT LOUVERTURE. 119 that lie liad interested motives for promoting the continuance of the infamous traffic. This event, in which L'Ouvcrture appeal's to fresli advantage, and acted in agreement with the general tenour of his public life, occasioned an estrangement between him and Roume. The agent had conceived the plan of conquering the English pos- sessions in the West IiiLlies. On an enterprise of such a nature and magnitude, he ought to have consulted, and, if he wei'e willing, employed, the commander-in-chief. But, either to show his independence of Toussaint L'Ouverture, or to put a public insult on him, he passed by that general, and confided to Mar- shall Bese the command of an expedition against Jamaica. In order to pave the way, he sent into the island two men of de- termined character, a white and a mulatto. Those emissaries were denounced, taken, and hanged. The event interfered with Toussaint's operations, for the English captured a flotilla which he intended for the blockade of Jacmel. From this time, there existed a rupture between Roume and Toussaint. Criminations were exchanged. Each threw impediments in the way of the other. Toussaint could not regard Roume as a sincere friend of his race. Roume affected to believe that Toussaint had sympa- thies in favour of the English, with whom France was at war. At last, Roume demanded a vessel to convey him to France. As soon as Toussaint had become master of Jacmel, he pro- ceeded to the Cape, and in an interview with the Agent, reproached him, in the presence of his statF, with being an enemy to the colony and to the liberty of the blacks. He fui-ther re- quired him to give an order for the occupation of the east, — resolved to put down the slave-trade, of which that was the centre. Roume refused compliance. The consequence was, that he apprehended the Agent, and sent him to prison. The expe- dient prevailed. The order was given. Toussaint despatched General Age to Santo Domingo, and returned to finish the war in the south. A regular campaign was begun. The rebels were defeated, and abandoned several posts the retention of which was 120 THE LIFE OF indispensable to their safety. Rigaud saw his star grow pale. Most of his superior officers abandoned him. Desertion spread through the ranks. On the other side, Toussaint appeared amid his troops, radiant with victory. He brought with him pecu- niaiy resources. With these, he distributed pay among the soldiers ; and so, while supplying their wants, gained their confi- dence, and excited their enthusiasm. The two armies sat down opposite each other. Skirmishing began. Then serious rencontres took place. At last, issue was joined, and the revolters suffered a signal defeat. After this trial of strength, Kigaud might be troublesome, but he could not be formidable. Driven to desperation by his failures, he ordered his men to lay waste the country, and, to use his own words, to take such steps that " the trees should have their roots in the air." His old hands, thinned by war, sickness, and age, became Rigaud's sole reliance. On every side his cause was abandoned by the citizens and the civic authorities. Thus was he reduced to a leader of banditti. He saw his position, and issued this proclamation, — it was his last word to the public : — " Considering the crisis in which the department is, owing to the imjust and inhuman war carried on against it by the traitor Toussaint L'Ouverture, fi'om whom no one must expect either safety or honour, I am obliged, in the position I hold, to take the only measures that remain to save the department : con- sidering, moreover, that proposals for peace, or for suspen- sion of arms, directly concern the executive power, and that, in all c?.;Ses, it is to the chief of the armed force of the department that the right belongs of proposing peace or suspending arms, because he ought to seize the moment favoiu'able for proposals of the kind, which, if made in critical junctures, and by those who have not the means of putting a stop to the evil, may imbolden the enemy, and cause calamities he would have avoided. " For now a year this war has been going on ; the popular bodies and the pretended friends of peace have taken no step TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE. 121 to stop its coiu'se. At the present, when the enemy has had some success, and when terror has taken possession of feeble and timid minds, they fancy that a monster thirsting for human blood, an imgrateful wretch, a traitor towards the Kepublic, his benefactor, the devastator of Saint-Domingo, the executioner of the parish of Jacmel, the persecutor of all the French agents — finally, the slave of the English, that he only can grant a peace or a suspension of arms. Citizens of the southern department, undeceive yourselves, if you think that anytliing else than arms can save you, wliile you wait for the intervention of the French Government, to whom those differences between the south and the other departments have been referred. Be well assured, my fellow-citizens, that I have your tranqviillity and your hap- piness too much at heart, not to seize all opportunities to procure for you peace or a suspension of arms ; and if the enemy adhere not to the proposals wliich in proper time and place I shall think it my duty to make to him, I shall know how, with the aid of my brave comrades, to make war on him even to extinction. Resume yoiu' courage. If he is powerful in numbers and in resources, your fellow-citizens, composing the southern army, possess courage and honour, and will find means to seciu'e your safety. " Under these circumstances, and employing the powers con- fided to me, I make these provisional an-angements, which are to be punctually executed ; and accordingly ordain : — "Article 1. The municipal government of the south shall for the futm-e restrict themselves to the simple but useful fonctions of verifying births, marriages, and deaths ; but all municipal deliberations, all assemblies, as well as deputations to the enemy, are interdicted. The mimicipalities shall only lay before me the wishes of then- fellow-citizens, to which I will give replies. " Article 2. Parochial assemblies may take place after per- mission has been obtained from the Commander of the southern department. "Article 3. Before legal permission is given, if there are 122 THE LIFE OP meetings, whether of individuals or of parishes, in the cities or in the countiy, martial law shall be forthwith proclaimed, and the chief of the armed force of the district is authorized to put his troops in movement to put down the said meetings ; he shall begin with mild measm-es, and then employ severity, if he is forced to it. " Article 4. The greatest vigilance shall be observed towards the disturbers of the public peace, and against secret disor- ganizers : the proprietors shall be protected, and their pro- perty shall be respected. The national armed police shall be in permanent activity in the interior, and those who shall be denounced for any crime against order and safety, shall be apprehended and tried by a council of war, and punished accord- ing to the laws." This manifesto, the spirit of which is even worse than its logic and its grammar, served only to show how imdone Rigaud was, and how necessary that all who had any regard to themselves or the public good should abandon the des^ierate gladiator. His bands, however, were unwilling to yield. Blood, therefore, flowed in streams. The old men of the South are said still to shudder when they think of that conflict, which they designate " the war of the knife," thus showing to what extreme means the com- batants resorted in their deadly hatred and murderous strife. The proclamation was scarcely anytliing more than the half- ai^ticulate words of a man who was staggering to his fall. Two more serious conflicts tried, and lost, and Rigaud's star went down below the horizon. While, during the weeks and months of a long year, these fi-ightful scenes of mutual carnage had been covering one of the finest parts of Hayti with corjises and ruins, the Directory in the mother coimtry, too much occujDied with its own divisions and i^arty interests, gave no attention to the distracted colony. A change was at hand. Bonaparte, hastening from Egypt, overturned the Directory, and snatched the reins of power. Having taken his seat, he called aromid him (Dec. 2, 1799) those who were thought to be conversant with the condition of the colony, in order to discuss the means of restoring peace TOussAiNT l'ouverture. 12S withiii its borders. The representatives of Toiissaint and of Kigaud were alike heard. Shortly after, a decree was issued, by which Vincent, Raymond, and Michel, were deputed to Hayti, in order to carry thither the Consular Constitution, and a 2)roclamation addressed to the inhabitants. Rigaud was recalled to France. Toussaint L'Ouverture was confirmed in his post as Gcueral-in-cliief. TJie proclamation was far from inspiring confidence or pro- moting ti'anquillity among the blacks, since it postponed and defeiTed to another legislative act the promulgation of the laws which were to govern Hayti. INIichel, dissatisfied with the l)i'avery of Toussaint L'Ouverture, returned into France. Ray- mond, whose mulatto's skin made him an object of suspicion, was ordered to remain at the Cape. Vincent alone was received with confidence. He presented to the Commander-in-chief the new Constitution, a letter written from the ]N[inistcr of Marine, and the proclamation of the Consuls. In the proclamation were these words : — " Brave blacks, remember that the French Re- public has given you liberty, and that it only can cause that liberty to be respected." These words, it was ordered, should be inscribed in letters of gold on all the flags of the colonial national guard. Toussaint manifested no haste either to publish the pi'oclamation or embroider the sentence on the colours. How could he promulgate a known falsehood ? The Republic had not given freedom to the blacks. The blacks, under their able leader, had extorted freedom from the hands of their masters. Toussaint, who was well informed of the views and intrigiies regai'ding the colony which were nourished in Paris, knew that his ruin had been resolved on before the self-elevation of Bona- parte to the Consulship. Had the ill-feeling passed away? Why, then, had not the Fii-st Consul written to him xmder liis own signature ? Distrust and disquietude prevailed in the relations of L'Ouvei'tm-e and the representatives of the new government in France. It is time that Rigaud was disowned, but Toussaint was not cordially embraced ; nor were the rights of the blacks frankly recognised and legally settled. As soon as he had given audience to Vincent, Toussaint 124 THE LIFE OF L'Ouverture set off for the seat of the not yet wholly terminated war. After a few days, he sent for Vincent, in order that the chief civil and military powers should be on the spot. In the hope of bringing the business to an amicable termination, the General induced Vincent, accompanied by a black man and a man of colour, to go on a deputation to the revolters, who yet stood out. He put into the hands of the deputies an act of amnesty in favour of all who had taken part in the war, not even Rigaud excepted. The deputies reached Cayes, where Rigaud held his head-quarters. That city, exhausted by so long and so disastrous a conflict, heard with pleasure of the object of their mission. Rigaud was quickly informed of the arrival of the deputies. On reading the despatch he flew into the most violent passion. The outburst was so violent as to endanger Vincent's life. That agent, however, was the bearer of a letter from Rigaud's son, to whom he had shown the kindest attentions, and who declared to his father the gratitude he felt in return. The mulatto chief eagerly threw his eyes over the lines. All at once his wrath ceased. But the warrior soon overcame the father. Vexation took the place of vengeance. He would not live ; he could not endure to live. Again and again he tried to kill himself At length he was calmed down, and ere many days he quitted Saint Domingo for the shores of France. Thither he was accompanied by Petion and some of his principal officers. The other mulatto chiefs emigrated to various parts of the archipelago of the Antilles. Thus terminated the war in the South. With that war every obstacle to the freedom of the blacks disappeared. One after the other had hindrances and opposition been swept out of the way by the strong hand of Toussaint L'Ouvertiu-e, the negro- champion of the negro race. Agauist the colonists, against the Spaniards, against the English, against the mulattoes, against the French rejiresentatives, and in a measure against blacks themselves, had he, by prudence, perseverance, and prowess, by singleness of aim, by unity of purpose, by personal efforts the most astoimdiiig, and a union of skill, caution, and daring TOussAivr l'ouverture. 125 rarely equalled, vindicated the freedom of the Africans, in Hayti. There was yet a stronger power. Keligion, in its relation to the grand work he had undertaken, I'ose in his breast to enthusiasm. In some sense he was, he believed, God's envoy and God's agent in the fierce and sanguinary struggle. In that conviction he found light and strength which had, to him, the vividness and the authority of what, in a qualified sense, may be called inspiration. Here was the grand secret of his success. He has himself given an outline of his career, which may appro- priately find msertion in this place. " At the beginning of the troubles of Saint Domingo, I felt that I was destined to great things. When I received this Divine intimation I was foui- and fifty years of age ; I could neither read nor write ; I had some Portuguese coins ; I gave them to a subaltern of the regiment of the Cape, and, thanks to him, in a few months I could sign my name and read with ease. The revolution of Saint Domingo was taking its course. I saw that the whites could not endure, because they were divided and because they were overpowered by nmnbers; I congratulated myself that I was a black man. A necessity was laid on me to commence my careei'. I went over to the Spanish side, where the first troops of my colour had found an asylum and protection. That asylum and protection ended in nothing. I was delighted to see Jean Francois make himself a Spaniard when the powerful French Republic pro- claimed the general freedom of the blacks. A secret voice said to me, ' Since the blacks are free, they need a chief, and it is I who must be that chief, foretold by the Abbe Rajmal.' Under this feeling I joyously returned to the service of France. France and the voice of God have not deceived me." These words are reported from memory. As depending on the ear and the tongue, they must be received only in their general tenour. Oiu' nan'ative, which rests on satisfactory vouchers, shows that, long prior to the age of fifty-four, Toussaint could at least read. If taken as indicating the defectiveness of his scholarship even at the time when he began his task, they are, doubtless, substan- tially correct ; and their testimony goes to confirm the imques- 126 THE LIFE OF tionable fact, that not by ordinary human appliances and aids did this extraordinary genius accomplish his meritorious and noble work.* CHAPTER XIV. Toussaint L'Ouverture inaugurates a better future — Publishes a general anmestj — Declares his task accomplished in putting an end to civil strife, and esta- blishing peace on a sound basis — Takes possession of Spanish Hayti, and stops the slave-trade — Welcomes back the old colonists — Eestores agriculture — Recalls prosperity — Studies personal appearance on public occasions — Simplicity of his life and manners — His audiences and receptions — Is held in general respect. On the first of Angitst, 1800, L'Ouvei-ture made his triumphal entrance into Cayes. All official honours were rendered to him. Hearts on every side beat with enthusiastic gratitude towards the general benefactor. He ascended the pulj^it and pro- claimed the oblivion of wrongs. He complained only of the absence of the mulattoes. The sense of their discomfiture was too recent. Two of their chiefs, however, went to meet him afterwards, and he received them in a cordial manner. His aiju * The instruction which Toussaint received in boyhood is testified by his son Isaac, in his mteresting K'otes to the Mcmou's he wrote, " Sur I'Expedition dcs I'ranqais sous le Consvdat de Bonaparte," appended to Metral's Histoirc do I'Expedition des Francais a. Saint Douiingue," Paris, 1825. According to Isaac's testimony, Toussaint when a boy learnt something of Latin and Geometry (p. 326). "V'NTiile yet he was in the service of Spain, Isaac says of him : — "Without having topographical maps of those countries, after the example of captains of the ancient world, Lucullus, Pompey, Ca'sai', Toussaint made one; he laid down on paper, according to information given him by people who knew the districts, their extent, their respective distances, the direction of the mountains, and of the rivers, and everything remarkable, such as defiles, &c. &c." (p. 329). The skill to form such a map, besides involving reading and writing, gives coimtenance to the intimation of Isaac Toussaint, that his father had some acquaintance with geometry as well as drawing. Doubtless, the father's scholarship was always quite rudimental. TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTUHE. 127 was to dii-cct men's minds from the dark past to the bright future. On the 17th of the mouth he put forth his proclamation. " Citizens, — All the events which have taken place at Saint Domingo dmung the civil war occasioned by Rigaiid ai-e of a nature to merit public attention. " Now that they are no longer likely to be renewed, it is of importance to the prosperity of the colony, and to the happiness of the inliabitants, to draw the curtain on the past, in order that we may be occupied exclusively in rcpaii-ing the evils which, of necessity, have resulted from the intestine war brought forth by the pride and ambition of an individual. "A part of the citizens of Saint Dommgo have been deceived, because, too credulous, they did not sufficiently suspect the snares which had been laid to draw them into their criminal designs. Others have acted in these circumstances according to the impulsion of their heai'ts. Moved by the same principles as the chief of tlije revolt, they considered it beneath tliem to be commanded by a black man. Him they judged it necessary to get rid of, at whatever cost, and they spared nothing to succeed in theii' object. The ambition of their chief led him to make the countiy his oavu. His satellites had at heart nothing so much as to give him aid. For theii" reward he assigned to them aforehand the offices they were to occupy. They are disappointed in their expectation ; and in my quality as the victor, wishing and very ardently desiring to promote the happiness of my native land, penetrated by what is set forth in the Lord's Prayer, * Forgive ils our transgressions as we forgive tliosc who transgress against us,' I have published a proclamation by which I grant a general amnesty. That proclamation is known to you. It has produced the happy result which I promised myself The southern dei^artment has returned to its obedience to the laws. Let us forget that bad men had led it away from duty to gratify their criminal passions, and let us now consider only as brothers those who, through their easy faith, dared to turn their arms against the flag of the Republic, and against then- lawful chief. I have ordered all citizens to return to their several parishes to enjoy the benefits of this amnesty. Citizens, not less generous 128 THE LIFE OF than myself, let youi- most precious moments be employed in causing tlie past to be forgotten ; let all my fellow-citizens swear never to recall the past, let them receive their misled brethren with open arms; and let them in future be on then- guard Against the traps of bad men. " Civil and military authorities, my task is accompKshed. It now belongs to you to see that harmony is no more troubled. Do not allow the least reproach on the part of any one against those who went astray but have returned to their duty. Notwith- standing my proclamation, keep an eye on the bad and do not spare them. The man is unjust, he is inclined to evil rather than good. Firmly put down his perverse designs, and never close your eyes on his conduct and his proceedings. Honour should guide you all. The interests of oui- country require it ; its prosperity needs peace, true and confiding peace. Such a peace must be your work. On you solely now depends public tranquillity in Saint Domingo. Take no rest until you have secui'ed it. I expect this from yovu- courage and from yoiu- devotion to the French Republic." The spirit of moderation, the spirit of mercy itself dictated these words. Reference to the late troubles was prescribed by a rigid sense of duty. The reference made in no way exceeds what the occasion demanded, and falls very short of what the evil inflicted by the revolt would have justified. It was of ab- solute necessity to characterize Rigaud. But how difierent the tone of Toussaint L'Ouverture compared with the injurious epithets lavished in his proclamation by that mulatto leader against his lawful chief ! But even for the bad L'Ouvertm-e had forgiveness. How terrible a punishment might he now have in- flicted on the men of colour ! Had he been open to the preju- dices of caste and skin, he would have let loose on them the desire of retribution and the thii'st for revenge. One word of his, and the race would have been neai'ly extirpated. Not by their forbearance was he kept from uttering that word; nor by their softened feelings towards the negroes ; nor by a confidence that they would no more attempt disturbance; but solely by a TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE, 129 regai'd to his religious dnty, and a manly coufidence in the right and the merciful. "My task is accomplished." And yet he had obtained nothing for himself. The military position he held, as it was won by the sword, so was it necessary to the work he had pei'- formed. It was a burden rather than a rccompence — a duty and an obhgation instead of an honour. Not for himself, but for his country, did he hold the command of the armies of Saint Domingo. " My task is accomplished." It is, noble black : it is accomplished, and accomplished well, if only thou lookost to the weal of Hayti. But hast thou no object of thine own] Opposition can no longer hold up its head. Thy foes are prostrate. Every eye is turned to thee. Every heart is fixed on thee. Hast thou nothing to ask for thyself? The crown and scejjtre of Hayti? Nay, frown not. Other successful wai'riors have taken regal titles as their due. Nor need thou fear opposition. The Agent is weak and disesteemed. Bonaparte is reaping laiirels in Italy. England will be promjDt to aid thee. Then consider how much thy race needs elevation. What could so much raise them from the dust? Yes, thou must, as thou canst, be King of Hayti; and thy name, glorious for its military deeds, will be more glorious still as the fii'st of a long line of illustrious sovereigns of negro blood. Instead of troubling himself and others in arrangements for placing on his head the bauble of a crown, Toussaint L'Ouvei- ture turned his attention to the condition of the country. Hayti was not yet wholly in the power of France. Though formally ceded to the French, the eastern part of the isle remained under Spanish rule. Not sincere in his wishes to take possession of Spanish Hayti, Roume had sent forces so incon- siderable, that they were easily defeated. On their return, he revoked his order for its occujiation. On learning the fact, L'Ouverture was indignant. Was slavery, then, in its worst form, to be established and acknowledged in Hayti ? Was the Government to be arr assenting, if rrot a concurring, j^arty 1 And were all his own labours and sacrifices to be thus frus- trated 1 Frustrated by low self-interest and base intrigues 1 K 130 THE LIFE OF Could he, wlio had conquered freedom for the negi'oes, allow their children to be kidnapped and transported to strange countries and foreign lands, there to be degraded and ruined ? Impossible ! Yet such was the alternative, if Roume retained possession of the civil government : for he had tried what could be done in this matter with E,oume by argument and moral influence. The effort had failed, and now Roume had availed himself of his absence, and his absorption in military duties, to reverse a poHcy in which they had in council come to an undex*- standing. Besides, he had proved himself imfaithfol to France, by virtually surrendering a portion of his rightful possessions. In such hands, power could not be safely trusted. And, doubt- less, the home government would thank him if Toussaint vindi- cated its rights and seciired its territoiy. Actuated by those considerations, Toussaint L'Ouverture arrested Roume, and sent him to Dondon. On the occasion, he issued this address : — " Toussaint L'Ouvertvire, General-in-Chief of his fellow- citizens. " The duties of the office held by Citizen Roume were, in his quality of representative of the French Government, to con- secrate his moral and physical faculties to the happiness of Saint Domingo and to its prosperity. Very far from doing so, he took council only of the intriguers by whom he was surrounded, to sow discord amongst us, and to foment the troubles which have not ceased to agitate society. However, in spite of the calumnies which he has continually thi-own out against myself in his letters to France and Santo Domingo, he shall be pro- tected from every penalty. But my respect for his character must not prevent me from taking the proper steps in order to deprive him of the power of again plotting against the tran- quillity which, after so many revolutionary concussions, I have just had the happiness to establish. In consequence, and in order to isolate him from the intriguers who have kept him in their shackles, and to respond to the complaints made in respect to him by all the pai'ishes, the brigadier-general Moyse will TOUSSAINT l'oUVEUTURE. 131 siipply the said Citizen Roume with two carriages and a sure escort, which, with all respect due to his character, will conduct him to the village of Doudon, where he will remain until the French Government shall recall him to render an account of his administration. " At Cap Fran9ais, 5 Frimaire (2G Nov.), the ninth year (1800) of the French Republic, one and indivisible, " The General-in-Chief, Toussaint L'Ouverture." Roume remained a prisoner at Dondon for several months, and then was permitted by L'Ouverture to return to France by way of the United States. As soon as he had removed the impediment, Toussaint L'Ouverture took effectual steps for putting down the slave- trade, and occupying the east of the island. After a few shots, he entered Santo Domingo on the 2nd of January, 1801, at the head of 10,000 men, and hoisted the flag of the French Republic on its ramparts to the salvo of two-and-twenty cannon. He was recei\'ed at the mansion-house by the chief authorities, who wished him to take, in the name of the Holy Trinity, an oath to govern with wisdom. " Such a course would be proper," he replied, " in an oflicer appointed by the court of Madrid ; but I am the servant of the Republic. Therefore, I am unable to do what you ask; but I swear solemnly before God, who hears the oath, that I forget the past, and that my watchings and m} cares shall have no other object than to render the Spaniards, now become Frenchmen, contented and happy." On the utterance of these words, Don Garcia, the governor, handed him the keys of the city. " I accept them," said Toussaint, " in the name of the French Republic;" and then turning towards the assembly, lie added, with an humble voice, " let us go and thank the Author of all things for havinsr crowned with the greatest success our enterprise, prescribed by treaties and the laws of the Republic." Followed by the governor aud all the Spanish authorities, he went to the cathedral, where a Te Deum was chanted in token of gratitude to God. Thus, from Cape Samana in the east, to Cape Tiburon in the K 2 132 THE LIFE OP "west, tlie povrer of Toussaiut L'Ouvertxire was everywhere established and acknowledged. Knowing the favourable effects produced on the popvJar mind by the progress of distinguished personages in the parts under their administration, Tonssaint L'Ouverture traversed the Spanish territory, and visited the principal places. He was everywhere received with the accla- mations of the people, the merry peal of bells, and the thunders of cannon. The clergy, bare-footed, came on all sides to give him welcome. He treated them with profoiu:id respect. "Within a few days he was master of the obedience of the Spaniards as much as of the confidence of the blacks. The union of the Spanish to the Fx'ench part of Hayti pro- cured reciprocal advantages, the effects of which soon became apparent. The French gained facility in acquiring horses and mules for the cultivation of the soil, and the Spaniards found enormous gain in the exportation of its animals, flocks, and horned cattle. The black regiments, restrahied by Toussaint's jiowerful hand, had done but little damage in the invasion; and those who were left in garrison piit lai-ge sums of money in circulation. The elements of French administration which followed the troops bestowed on the country new princijiles and sources of industry and wealth. Magnificent roads were foi'med. Carriages were then for the first time introduced. Even the horses, under the influence of Toussaint's example, improved their pace. Distances were abridged; time was saved; the minds of the people were awakened from torpor ; activity xmiversally prevailed, and commerce and riches began to abound. Amid the general excitement, j)rosperity, and hope, the enthu- siasm towards its cause became greater every day, and Tous- saint's name was pronounced with blessings by all tongues. Having given the command of Santo Domingo to his brother Paul, who had risen by merit to the rank of brigadier-general, Toussaint L'Ouvertm-e returned to the French part of Hayti, and forthwith apphed his mind to the condition and wants of the island. He was thoroughly acquainted Avith the theatre on which he liad to act, and the character of the peojile subject to his < TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE. 133 power. He took the wisest measui-es to develope the })owcrs of the former, and to gain the confidence of the latter. Aware that he had a mass of prejudices to overcome, and the most tangled web of interests to set in order, he mingled discretion with zeal; and while aiming at the general weal, forgot not the deference that might conciliate, nor failed in the bland and courteous manners that might win. The old colonists he wel- comed to his presence without familiarity, and showed respect even to their prejudices, so far as the public good would jiermit. The steward of the plantation on which he had himself been a slave, vegetated in the United States. L'Ouvertiu'e being informed of the fact, wrote hun an invitation to return to Hayti, to put himself " at the head of the interests of their good old masters." The letter, conceived in a friendly and urgent tone, brought back the steward. Toussaint gave him an inter- view, and among other things said to him, " Return to the plantation; be just and infiexible; see that the blacks do their duty in order to add, by your prosperity, to the prosperity of the land." The discontinuance of the war led to the resumption of agri- cultiu'e. The change from the musket to the hoe was of course gradual ; but such was the influence and such the determination of the great black, that ere long the rich cultivable districts began to put on a smiling aspect, promising riches as well as abundance. Had the peace continued, the promise Avould have been realized in the fullest degree. Forthwith, however, did the culture of the soil, besides providing for the wants of the inhabitants, furnish the pviblic treasury \dih. sufiicient resources. Intelligence of the retui'ning prosperity reached foreign lands. The colonists who were scattered up and down in those lands saw a ray of hope, and, notwithstanding what they had under- gone in Saint Domingo, notwithstanding their dislike of the predominance of the blacks, they invited and gladly accepted permission to return home and resume possession of their estates. Their letters coming fi'om various countries, and luianimously expressing confidence in the integrity and the power of the General-in-Chief, as well as in the justice and excellence 134 THE LIFE OF of his administration, gi-eatly contribiated to strengthen his hands and confinn his autliority. Scarcely could a more satis- factory or a more striking proof be given of the claim of Tous- saint to our respect and admiration than is fovind in the readiness with which this class of men embarked theu' all in the vessel which he commanded. The political evils and civil wars that had afilicted Saint Domingo, in causing the expatriation of proprietors, had in many cases occasioned the loss of traces to the succession. Under Toussaint's orders, the property so circumstanced was secured to military chiefs, and was thus restored to cultivation and produc- tiveness. At the same time, regulations were issued by which the labourers on the estates became a sort of co-proprietors. He had, aforetime, thrown his protection over emigrants, and thereby had brought on liimself difficulty and suspicion. He now took into his service subaltern officers of emigrant regiments, and offijred protection to those who were unwilling to join his forces. Disregarding colour and position in his appointments, he sought in his servants and fellow-labourers for those who were most fitted for the duties of the several offices. If his favour was less marked toward any, it was toward those of his own blood; not because he loved them less, but because, having their confidence, he coidd employ in relation to them a freedom of word and action which might have been misunderstood by others. "With his strong and vivid religious sentiments, he was naturally prompted to pay special regard to the priests, and to the interests of religion in general. Nor, environed as he was by men whose senses were the avenues to their affections, did he neglect personal appearance. Studious in his attire, he sur- rounded himself with a numerous guard, in which were names distinguished in the olden time. When he went forth in public he was accompanied by a splendid retinue which fixed and dazzled all eyes. SuiTOunded by a guard of fi^"om fifteen to eighteen hundred men, brilliantly clad, and having for his own personal use a stud containing hundreds of horses, he appeared before the eyes of the people in the exteiior of a prince. But, beneath this imposing show, he himself studied the utmost sim- TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE. 135 plicity. Always temperate, he often carried moderation to absti- nence. His iron frame received strength chiefly from the deep and ftdl resom-ces of his vigorous mind. Master of his soul, he had no difficulty in mastei-ing his body. While partaking of none but the most frugal diet, with water for his drink, and vegetable preparations for his meat, he rarely slept more than two hours. The whole energy of his life was absoi'bed and consumed in the gi'eat task which he had undertaken, and which, in truth, demanded more vital power than even he had to bestow. Though advanced in Hfe, he was incessantly in movement, and travelled with a I'apidity which defied calcidation and excited amazement. Seeing everything with his own eyes, he had little need to rely on the reports of others, and he at once promoted his indepen- dence and augmented his power by deriving his policy and his plans from his oAvn knowledge, and his own meditations. Little should we expect to see such a person addicted to the labours of the cabinet. Yet in replj-ing, by means of several secretaries, to two or three hundred letters daily, he seemed to experience a pleasure as lively as that enjoyed by other men in the satisfaction of the senses. As the governor of the land, Toussaint L'Ouverture felt it neces- saiy to keep up some kind of state. Like other chief magistrates, he had his receptions of ceremony, as well as his less formal audiences. The union of French vanity and negro love of parade in the foremost people, made him feel the importance of requiring due attention to appearances and etiquette. Hence he instituted what bears the name of " circles," at which all who were invited were expected to be present. These circles were of two kinds, the greater and the less. To the greater, formal invitations were given. Toussaint himself appeared in the assemblies in the undress uniform of a general officer. His .simple attire, in the midst of suiTOunding bi-illiancy, contrasted favourably wdth the dignified tone which he knew how to main- tain. When he presented himself, all the company, females as well as males, arose from their seats. Attentive even to the proprieties, he showed his disapproval of any exposure of the person in female dress. On one occasion, he was seen to throw 136 THE LIFE OF Ms handkerchief over the bare bosom of a lady, saying — " Modesty is the best cliarm of the sex." After having made the tour of the hall, and spoken to everybody, he withdrew by the door at which he entered, bowing right and left to the company. The less circles were public audiences, which took place every evening. At these, Toussaint L'Ouverture appeared clad like the ancient proprietors when on their plantations. All the citizens entered the grand saloon, and were, irrespectively of rank and position, adch"essed by the governor as convenience served. After liaving gone round the room, he retired, and took with him into a small apartment in front of his bed- chamber, which he used as a study, the persons with whom he wished to converse more freely and more at length. The greater number of these were the chief wliites of the colony. There seating himself, he requested all others to be seated. Then he proceeded to talk with them of France, of his children, of religion, of his old masters, and of God's grace in giving him liberty and gi'anting liim means for discharging the duties of the post in which he had been placed by the mother country. He also conversed of the progress of agriculture, of commerce, and never of political concerns : he questioned each respecting his own private afiairs, and of his family, and ajopeared to take an interest in the several matters. With mothers, he spoke of their children, and inquired whether they attended to their religious education ; and the young he would sometimes briefly examine in their catechism. When he wished to put an end to the audience, he arose, and bowed. The company then retired, being attended by him to the door. As they left, he appointed times for special interviews with those who made the request. Then he shut himself up with his private secretaries, and commonly con- tinued his labours far into the night. In this practical regard to show and parade, L'Ouverture may have been influenced by his own personal defects. Small in person, he was of a repulsive aspect, and having a difiicult utterance, he spoke with as little elegance as grammar. Yet, his were words of power, for they came from a strong soul, and were the heralds of a resolute will. A man of few words, and TOUSSAIKT l'oUVERTURE. 137 powerful imagination, he sometiuies uttered liis ideas in parables — the rather that in such a form he could the more effectually imprint them on the minds of the rudt! natures with which he had to deal. On more occasions than one, he took a glass vase, and, having filled it with grains of black maize, he put therein some grains of white maize, and said — " You are the black maize ; the whites, who would enslave you, are the white maize." He then shook the glass, and, placing it before their eyes, he cried, as if inspired, "See the white ones only here and tlierc." The army, Toussaiut L'Ouverture kept under the most vigorous discipline. Every breach of duty was severely jnmished. Even during the civil wars, plunder was restricted as much as possible. He was, however, adored by his soldiers. Scarcely less was the veneration paid him by other members of Hay tian life. He won and enj oj^ed the esteem of the colonists ; he was valued highly by the ministers of religion ; by the blacks he was regarded a,s a messenger of God. Even the mulattoes began to look to him with hope and respect. Tlie confidence which Toussaint inspired, soon produced good effects in the colony. The lands once more cultivated, and culti- vated under judicious regulations, became productive, and, as of old, poured forth abundance and wealth. With the spread of industry and the increase of riches, population, which had been gi'eatly diminislied in the wars, recovered its impidse and aug- mented its numbers. A large and prosperous people restored the churches, which had been burnt or allowed to become dilapi- dated, decorated the cities with fine buildings, enriched the public treasury, cultivated the arts, and, ere long, indulged in luxury. The general intelligence was raised, and manners were I'efuied. Human nature vindicated itself against its calumnia- tors : for in a short time, after a period of frightful wasting, the black state of Hayti could endure a comparison with the higher forms of white and European civilization. There was at the Cape, under the name of the Hotel de la Eepublique, an inn, the exterior and intei'ior splendour of which scarcely yielded to the richest establishments of the kmd in any part of the world. It was frequented by the principal blacks and by the Americans 138 THE LIFE OF of tlie continent. There mere etiquette was unknown ; the most perfect equality prevailed. At the same table sat private indi- viduals and the heads of the state, officers of eveiy rank, men of all conditions. It was frequently visited by L'Ouverture, who took his place^ without preference, in any vacant seat : for he often said that distinction of rank ought to exist only in the moment of public service. Travellers who visited the island at the beginning of the pre- sent century, warriors who played a part in the events of that epoch, agree in declaring that in the society of Saint Domingo the men were polite and the women easy and elegant ; that the relations between the sexes lacked neither attraction nor dignity, and that the prejudices of colour seemed to have lost their former jiower. The theatre came into vogue; the greater number of the new actors were blacks, and. some of them gave proof of talent in comedy and in pantomime, A taste for music became general; the guitar was specially cultivated. Men of negro and mulatto blood not only formed the bulk of the popu- lation, but occupied the higher positions. Even tlie most im- portant duties of the administration were in their hands. Yet life went forward with ease and efficiency. Religion was honoured. Morals were at least not inferior to what they are in white society. The arts were cultivated. The elegances of life were not unkno"v\Ti. Among men and women who had but recently quitted the brutalizing condition of servitude, an ability and a I'efinement were observed, which you sometimes look for in vain among men who have the reputation of being highly cultivated. TOUSSAINT l'oUVEETURE. 13^ CHAPTER XY. Toussaint L'Ouverture takes measures for the perpetuation of the happy eon- dition of Hayti, specially by publishing the draft of a Constitution in which he is named governor for life, and the great doctrine of Free-trade is explicitly proclaimed. This happy condition had no guarantee of permanence. True, all was tranquil within the borders of Hayti. One after another had Toussaint L'Ouvertiu'e removed hindrances out of the way, until he had succeeded in establishing a universal accord. But would the harmony endure? Its continuance was essential to the full developement of the resources of the colony ; and, to all appearance, that continuance wa.s the sole prerefjuisite. As yet, however, there had been no general recognition of the established order. If all were to work for the general good, all must concur in the formation and acknowledgment of a consti- tution by which the established order might be pei'petuated. In bringing that constitution into existence, and giving it the force of law, three powere must concur. These three powers were the inliabitants of Hayti, France, and Toussaint himself. Self-government was a recognised right of the colon}'. The con- curi-ence of Fi"ance was equally an admitted fact in the colonial government, and L'Ouverture held, under the authority of the mother country, the highest functions in the island. When the question of a constitution assumed a practical shape, it became important to determine with which of these three authorities the initiative shoidd lie. Was the colony to look to France ? That question involved another, — was France sincere in her acknowledgment of negro freedom ? France appeared unworthy of trust. The last despatches on the matter of a code of law.s for Ha\i;i wore a suspicious aspect, and were generally disliked. And if France wished to give the colony a good code of laws, had she the power? How could the requisite knowledge be possessed by a legislature which sat thousands of miles distant MO THE LIFE OF from those who wei'e to obey the laws 1 Metropolitan govern- ment for colonial dependencies is full of e^als, arising not only from ignorance and incompetence, but intrigue and corruption. Beside, Bonaparte was now the sole legislative and the sole ruling power in France. The position which Louis XIY. had fancied himself to possess, when he declared himself to be the state — " L'etat, c'est moi,"' — the Corsican adventurer had fully realized. The ruling passion of Bonaparte was ambition; his means, resort to force. What had the colony to expect but a coiq} cV('tat similar to that which had just suppressed the Direc- tory and concentrated all power in the hands of the first consul? The thought is said to have disturbed the short hours of Tous- saint's repose. The probability was, that the conqueror of Italy only waited the moment of necessary leisure, and that moment, as the event afterwards showed, might shortly arrive. Unde- sirable was it, therefore, to leave the initiative with France. The colony itself must act. Indeed, the colony only could act with wisdom and effect. " But in so doing the colony was setting up for independence." To take the first step in ckawing up a constitution cannot be justly so characterized. A draft of a constitution was only a species of petition. Until sanctioned by legislation, it amounted to nothing more than a bill of rights. It did no more than say, " Here is a formal statement of what will suit us, what will consolidate and augment our existing weal, what we entreat you to send back with the seal of your solemn sanction." And were such a step a step towards inde- pendence, who can blame it ? If the colony had acquired streng-th enough to I'un alone, why should it i^emain in leading- strings % Nay, the desii-e for independence, if cherished, was a worthy feeling. Such a desire showed that black men could appreciate liberty, and well deserved the degree of freedom they had already gained. The rather was a cautious approach to independence praiseworthy, because tokens were not wanting that Bonaparte, in his ambitious passions, had grown impatient of the ascendancy of the great negro Haytian. Resolved to be master of the world, he could not endure a rival power, and watched his opportunity to establish his supremacy in the island. TOUSSAINT L'OUVERTUnE. 141 The rather was he desirous of establishing the exclusive rule of Frauee there, because Hayti, he felt, could be made a bulwark for hostile operations against the English power in the West Indies. Yet was the colony passively and quietly to await the blow ? What Avas this but to invite the blow ? Whereas, to propound a constitution while it ought to give no offence, would prove that the Haytians were sensible alike of their rights and of their power. In the gi-eat issue, Toussaint had himself a problem to solve. If, as he had reason to fear, Bonaparte intended his over- thi'ow, was he to submit without an effort ? Was he not, as a prudent man and a wise legislator, to enter on such a course, a.s seemed most likely to ward off the blow, and strengthen his own position 1 As to the necessity of his continuing to hold that position, he could not for a moment doubt. The retention of the position was indispensable to the continuance of the [)eace in the island. As all mountains had become plains before his energy and determination, so would all be undone, if he were removed from the head of afltaii-s; once more the smouldei'ing fires of passion and prejudice would burst into a flame, and a war arise not less bloody and terrific than that which lie had so recently bi-ought to a happy conclusion. Yes ; there, at the helm, had he been placed by the resistless stream of events, or what to him, nor without reason, seemed the hand of Providence; and there duty, in the clearest and loudest tones, called upon hini to remain. This is, in substance, the feeling to which at this time he gave utterance in these terms : " I have taken my flight in the region of eagles ; I must be prudent in alighting on the earth : I can be placed only on a rock ; and that rock must be a constitutional government, which will secure me power so long as I shall be among men." Yes, if in any case, certainly in Toussaint L'Ouverture's was a constitutional dictator.ship of in- dispensable necessity. Rightly did he interpret his position, and well did he understand his duties. This new Moses had brought his people out of Eg}'^")tian bondage, and must now give them a code of laws, over the execution of whicli, for the few I'emaining years of his life, it is his most solemn duty to watch. Such con- 142 THE LIFE OF duct asks no defence, and admits no excuse. It is positively and highly \'ii'tuous, and any other course would have been a be- trayal of a sacred duty, a breach of a momentous trust. Again the hour of temptation has come. The victorious general who commands universal obedience and enjoys universal respect may become a president or a sovereign. The good prin- ciple conquers ; Satan is dismissed with a rebuke ; the crown is refused, the presidency is deliberately chosen. Does the reader think of Washington, who, when he might possibly have become a king, became a private citizen? We are not sure that Washington's means for establishing a throne in the midst of the high-minded republicans of the Anglo-Saxon race were equal to those which Toussaint possessed among the uncultured and recently liberated Haytians, whom nature made fond of parade, and custom had habituated to royalty. The greater the opportunity, the greater the temptation ; nor can he be accounted the inferior man who overcame in the severer trial. Nor must it be forgotten, that while Washington coidd, with confidence and safety, leave his associates to then- own well- tried and well-matured powers of self-government, L'Ouverture had, in comparison, but children to deal with and provide for. Would it have been either prudent or benevolent to retu-e from the oversight of those childi-en at the very moment when they had ceased to do evil and were learning to do weU 1 Clearly, diity, in the most solemn and emphatic tones, demanded the con- tinuance of that fatherly care which had rescued those babes hi intellect from impending ruin, and so far led them toward the attainment of individual strength and social excellence. Yes, Toussaint L'Ouvertm-e, an eagle thou hast proved thyself to be; an eagle's eye shows thee distant but coming realities ; may thine eagle's pinion bear thee above danger, and place thee, where thou longest to be, " on a rock," — the rock of a wisely constituted and well governed commonwealth ! Tlien, like thy Hebrew prototype, when at last thou descriest the promised land, and while thou contemplatest its fertihty and loveliness, thou mayest depart from "among men," falling to sleep in thy lofty eyrie, and TOUssAixT l'ouvektuke. 143 buried on the mountain, which shall be at once thy sepulchre and thy monument. We do not possess the materials to determine whether the idea of drawing up a constitution for Hayti originated with Tou.ssaint L'Ouverture himself, or was presented to him as the proper course by his colonial advisers. The determination of the question is of the less consequence since, beyond a doubt, unanimity prevailed to a very great extent between the general- in-chief and the principal authorities and persons in the island. One party, and but one, evinced repugnance to the measui'e. The small number who represented the views of Bonaparte in the colony were naturally adverse to the constitution. At their head was Brigadier-General Vincent, who employed the influence which excellence of character justly gave him with L'Ouverture to turn him aside from the project. The effort proved nugatory. Resolved to persevere in a course which his judg-ment approved, and his position required, Toussaint L'Ouverture, as possessing the highest authority in the island, called together a council to take into consideration the propriety of drawing up a constitu- tion, and to determine what its provisions should be. The coun- cil consisted of nine members. The composition of this delibe- rative assembly displays the integrity of the general-in-chief. He might have formed it out of liis officers. He might have given predominance in it to negro blood. These things, doubt- less, he would have done, had he sought his own aggi\andize- ment. But he chose its members among the men of property and intelligence. Of the nine members, eight were white pro- prietors, and one a mulatto ; not a single black had a seat at the council-boai'd. Even the pm-est patriotism might have required him to place himself at the head of the council. Its president was the white colonist Borgella, who had held the office of mayoi' of Port-au-Prince. The constitution, carefully prepared by this council, was presented to Toussaint L'Ouverture, who, having approved it (May 19th, 1800), sent a copy by the hands of General Vincent to Eiu-ope. The draft was accompanied by the following letter, addressed to " Citizen Bonaparte, First Consul of the French Republic (16th July)." 144 THE LIFE OF "Citizen Coxsul, — The Minister of INIarine, in the account ■which he has rendered to you of the political situation of this colony, which I have taken care to acquaint him "with in the des- patches which I adckessed to him, sent by the corvette V Enfant Prodigue, wlU have submitted to you my proclamation, convening a central assembly, wliich, at the moment when the junction of the Spanish part to the Fi-ench part had made of Saint Domingo one single country, subject to the same government, shoidd fix its destinies by wise laws, framed with special reference to the localities and the characters of the inhabitants. I have now the satisfaction to anuoimce to you, that the last hand has been put to that work, and that the result is a constitution which jjromises happiness to the inhabitants of this colony, which has so long been imfortunate. I hasten to lay it before you for your appro- bation, and for the sanction of the government T serve. "With this view, I send to you citizen Vincent, general director of fortifications at Saint Domingo, to whom I have confided this precious deposit. The central assembly, in the absence of laws, and considering the necessity which exists of substituting the rule of law for anarchy, ha^dng demanded that I should pro- visionally put it into execution, as promising to conduct the colony more rapidly towards prosperity, 1 have yielded to its desires; and this constitution has been welcomed by all classes of citizens with transports of joy, which will not fail to be mani- fested afresh, when it shall be sent back invested with the sanction of the government. With salutations and profoimd respect. Toussaint L'Ouverture." This constitution, wliich had been made public and accepted amid solemn fonnalities and univei'sal joy, was worthy of the cause in which L'Ouverture had risked his life and employed the utmost of his streng-th. Proceeding on the basis that slavery was abolished and could never more exist in Saint Domingo, and that all men there born were free citizens of the French Re- public, it provided that every one, whatever his colour, was admissible to all em2>loyments, on the special ground that among the citizens there was no other distinction than the distinction TOUSSAINT LOUVERTURE. 145 of vii'tue and of ability. Establishiug Roman Catholicism as the sole religion to be professed and protected, it recognised the sanctity of man-iage l^y abolishing divorce. It required that agi'iculture should receive special encouragement, for wliich pui'pose measures were to be taken for the increase of the number of labourers. The reins of government it entrusted to one governor, to be appointed for the period of five years, with au- thority to prolong the term as a recompence of good conduct; and that " in consideration of the important ser\nces which General Toussaint L'Ouverture has rendered to the colony, he is named Governor for life, with power to choose his successor." One provision we have advisedly omitted in order to bring it into full relief In a very short sentence the con.stitution de- clares commerce free. Thus free trade was first proclaimed by the negro chief of Hayti. Is any other proof necessary that Tous- saint was more than a successfid warrior? more than a social liberator? more than a disinterested patriot? His economical views were large and liberal. They were in advance of their age ; how much in advance let the fact declare, that nearly half a centmy had to elapse before even England obtained the boon which Hayti not only claimed but decreed. Yet what was thei'e in Toussaint L'Ouverture which may not be found in other negroes'? His sole external advantage was that he received some rudimental instruction in the simple arts of reading and Nvriting. Give that advantage to the myriads of blacks that now vegetate and jDine in slavery in the United States, and other practical philosojjhers will appear among them to vindicate the race by wise laws as well as philanthropy and heroism. But " oh, it is not safe." Safe ? yes, much moi^e safe than is the present course, which does but concentrate the lava of the vol- cano, which, at no distant day, will burst forth, unless precau- tionaiy measm-es are taken, and due preparations be made for liftmg slaves into a condition fit for freedom. Sui-ely this lesson is taught in the tenor of the preceding narrative. BOOK II. from the fitting out of the expedition by bonaparte against saint domingo to the submission of toussaint l'ou>t:rture. CHAPTEE I. Peace of Amiens — Bonaparte contemplates tlie subjugation of Saint Domingo, and tlie restoration of slavery- — Excitement caused by report to that effect in the island — Views of Toussaint L'Ouvertm-e on the point. The year 1801 did not close witliout seeing the peace of Amiens definitively concluded. By the treaty then signed, France found herself confirmed in the possessions she had captured during the war, and at liberty to prosecute any enterprise which she might judge I'equired by her position, or likely to conduce to the con- firmation of her power. Her destinies were in the hands of Napoleon Bonaparte, who, under the modest title of Consul, concealed designs which already looked to an imperial throne, and iTiled the nation and its dependencies with a sceptre more powerful and more despotic than the sway of any contempo- raneous legitimate nionarch. Bora with the qualities which give and ensure command, Bonaparte, to a boundless ambition, added a restless activity which constantly prompted new efforts, a thirst for dominion, which as constantly demanded new acqui- sitions, and a jealousy of power which made rival greatness intolerable. With an evil eye, therefore, did he regard the high position obtained by Toussaint L'Ouverture through his wise and generous efforts in the French colony of Saint Domingo. The brilliancy of his own fame seemed dimmed in his eyes by the glory achieved by a negro chieftain who had been a slave. THE LIFE OF TOdSSAINT l'OUVERTURE. 147 The termination of the war had left unocciiiiied in France a large body of soldiers, who might be dangerous at home, and whose leaders, in the repose of peace, might trouble his actual jiosition, or prove impediments to his ambitious designs. DissatLs- lied with seeing themselves outstripped by a soldier of fortune, they were ready for political intrigue rather than civil obedi- ence, and would be most safely employed in a distant expedition in which success would increase the number of his own lam^els, and failure issue in their permanent removal out of his path. That the climate in which he thought of employing them was destruc- tive to Europeans, was a consideration which could not deter him, and only added another reason why, on his part, he should decide in favour of the attempt. Yet if he left Hayti in the hands of Toussaint E'Duveii-ure, he would possess, in an army of thirty thousand black troops obedient to their actual commander, the means of countervailing the power of Great Britain in the West Indies, and of controlling its descendants in the United States. The emplo}Tnent, hov,- ever, of such an ally seemed scarcely compatible with the dignity which he affected; nor was it impossible, if the ruler of Saint Domingo were left undisturbed in his authority, that he might assist the absolute independence of the colony, and either by augmenting his own power or joining the English, inflict a hea\'y blow on the supremacy of France. Tlien the question of colonial slavery presented itself for consideration. Shoidd ho recognise or nullify the freedom which exi.sted in Saint Domingo? The I'ecognition would bring him no advantage, for Toussaint and his associates considered their work as accomplished. To nullify it would sccm'e on his side the sympathies and co-opera- tion of the colonists who had lost their estates, and who, re- gretting their past opulence, and believing its recovery imjiossibic in the present state of the island, besieged the cabinet of the Tuilleries with importunities for the restoration of slavery. The Avise and just held a different language. Even as a matter of policy an expedition to Hayti, they vu'ged, was to be deprecated, for the risk would be very great, and failure would end in dis- grace. Those who now held power in the island, were men of L 2 148 THE LIFE OF valour and of great military skill. As administrators of the colony they enjoyed general sympathy and support, and had proved theii' ability by the j^rosperity they had called into being. And "while it did not become France, who had gained her own hbei-ty, to suppress freedom in one of her own colonies, it was contrary to the laws of everlasting right to tear from men that freedom ■wliich they had purchased with their blood, and, by their modei'ation, proved they well deserved. These diverse views occupied the minds and dwelt on the tongues of men in Paris, according as position, character, or personal interests swayed their bosoms. The consul heard them all, and kept shrouded in his own dark breast the design wliich he meditated and was maturing. At the moment Vincent arrived from Saint Domingo, he presented the constitution to the consul. Here was the spark which that sombre genius desired. "He is a revolted slave whom we must punish; the honour of France is out- raged." In vain was it pleaded before Bonaparte that the adoption or rejection of the constitution lay with himself, and that it contained only the expression of the wishes of Toussaint and his fellow-labourers. Bonaparte was too adroit not to seize, and too skilful not to make the most of the opportt;nity. His words, which we have just reported, circulated through Paris and excited a feeling in favour of war. An expedition was decided on. And the popular fervour was increased when the consul declared in the senate that Toussaint was a brigand chief whom it was necessary to bring to justice. One voice was raised against the undertaking — a voice in the high places of authority. The minister Forfait, a man of high character, attemjited to dissuade Bonaparte by setting before him a picture of the in- evitable calamities of such an enterprise. He was silenced by the answer, " There are sixty thousand men that I want to send to a distance." And so, from the most unworthy considerations, an armament against a peaceful and flourishing state is to be speedily fitted out. Yet the adventurers call themselves Christians. What but robbery on a lai^ge scale is such conduct ? And who can TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE. 149 believe that the man who decreed that robbery, had iu his heart any genuine love of liberty 1 Once more, Toussaint L'Ouvertui'e, must you take the buckler and draw the sword. The hero of Europe, panting for conquests in another world, comes agamst you. Once more must the broad rich plains of your native land resound %vith the clash of hostile ai'mies, and run with human blood. A cloud is on yoiu" countenance. Yet let it pass away. Take courage, noble heart ! The coming struggle is only another step in the path of fi'eedom. Necessary is the step, or you would not have to take it. And if the effort is painful, and the prospect dark, weigh well the magnitude of the issues. On the fields of Hayti the battle of your race will be fought out. It is before the eye, not of a few islanders, but of the world, that you are about to try your strength ^vith the Gallic gladiatoi', and settle the question once for all, whether Africans are men or brutes, worthy of freedom, or doomed to ser\itude. Success ? 'No, the settlement of the question depends not on success. You will perish in the combat, yet will you van ; jour cause will triumph even over your grave. Be just, and fear not. Meanwhile, rumoui-s and intelligence brought to Hayti pro- duced sinister impressions, and disturbed the public mind. It appeared probable that slavery wotdd be maintained in the French colonies of Martinique and Cayenne, and that at Saint Domingo France would make an effort for its restoration. Fears began to prevail, disturbances were threatened. Every eye turned to Toussaint L'Ouverture. On his part, ho was not without fore- bodings, which recently had gi-own into apprehensions. He had written to the consul, and received no reply. He felt himself humiliated. At times tears stole from his eyes when he thought of the possibility that Bonaparte meant to undo all that he had done ; fox'eseeing the long ti'ain of calamities which would ensue from such an attempt, he was now and then for an instant unmanned, and spoke hasty words. " Bonaparte," he said, " is wrong not to wi-ite to me; he must have listened to my enemies, otherwise would he refuse me proofs of his satisfaction ? 150 THE LIFE OP Me, I say, wlio have rendered greater services to France tlian any other general t The English and Spanish governments treat ^vith more regard the generals who have signalized them- selves by services of the fii-st order."' His fears and his vexation became greater, and affected his demeanour in a more marked manner, when he heard that preliminaries of peace between England and France had been signed at London. Peace in Europe he saw foreboded war to Hayti. What now should be his course 1 Should he anticipate the blow, and prepare for it by proclaiming the independence of the colony ? By rousing its inhabitants to resistance, and marshalling his forces with his own ability and vigoui-, he might repel even the attack of France when at peace with the world. And right would such a policy have been. Not impossibly it would have proved successful. But L'Ouverture was not pre- pared to adopt it. Equal to the demands on his courage and energy which a determination of the kind would make, he was not equal to the requisite demands on his sense of justice. Hayii was a French colony; — as a French colony it had gained its freedom. A free republic would not sanction its subjugation ; and should Bonaparte attempt to wrest " the rod of empire" out of his own hands, he had better lose his power than forfeit his self-respect. Anyway, the duty of the moment was clear; he must calm men's minds. For that purpose, he issued a procla- mation (18th Dec. 1801), which, among other things, declared that it was necessary to receive the orders and the envoys of the mother country with respect and filial regard. Yet, while he encouraged obedience, he could not be insensible to the pos- sibility that resistance might be his duty. He was, therefore, under an obligation to foster the means of resistance, and not only to appear confident himself, but to keep up the spirits of liis soldiers. This twofold state of mind is seen in words which he uttered from time to time, as in these : — " A Avell-educated child owns submission and obedience to his mother; but if that mother becomes so unnatural as to seek the r'uin of her child, the child must look for justice with Him to whom vengeance TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTUEE. 151 belongs. If I must die, I will die as a brave soldier, as a man of honour. I fear no one." It did not escape the eye of those who, having access to the president, narrowly watched him, that the agitation of his mind increased, and had risen to a great height. Catching alarm from these symptoms, some began to take measures for quitting the island. One of the most distinguished Creoles of Port-au- Prince, and who afterwards settled in France, was of the number. He one day asked Toussaint in private for a passport, in order to proceed to the mother country. The unexpected request dis- turbed the ]5resident. Hastening to the door, to ascertain if he could reckon on their not being disturbed, he speedily I'eturned and asked, looking his companion fixedly in the face, " Why do 3'ou wish to go away 1 You, whom I esteem and love?" "Because I am white, and because, notwithstanding the good feelings you have for me, I see that yon are on the eve of being the iiritated cliief of the blacks, and that within these few days you are no longer the protector of the whites, since you have just sent out of the island several for having expressed joy that the Europeans were about to come to Saint Domingo." " Yes," replied Toussaint, with waraith, " they have had the imprudence and folly to rejoice at such news, as if the expe- dition was not destined to destroy me — to destroy the whites — to destroy the colony. In France I am represented as an independent power, and therefore they are arming against me. — Against me, who refused General Maitland to establish my independence under the protection of England, and who always rejected the proposals which Sonthonax made on the subject. Since, however, you ^vish to set out for France, I consent to it; but, at least, let your voyage be useful to the colony. I will send by you letters to the first consul, and I will entreat him to listen to you. Make him acquainted with me; make him acquainted Avith the prosperous state of the agi-iculture and the commerce of the colony ; in a word, let him know what I have done. It is according to all that I have done here that I ought, and that I wish to be judged. Twenty times have I written to Bonaparte, to ask him to send civil commissioners, 152 THE LIFE OF to tell him to despatch hither the old colonists, whites instructed in administering public affaii's, good machinists, good workmen ; he lias never repHed. Suddenly he avails himself of the peace (of which he has not deigned to inform me, and which I learn oidy through the English) in order to direct against me a formidable expedition, in the ranks of which I see my personal enemies, and people injurious to the colony, whom I sent away. Come to me within four-and-twenty hours. Very ardently do I wish that you and my letters may arrive in time to make the first consul change his determination, and to make him. sensible that in ruining me he ruins the blacks — he ruins not only Saint Domingo, but also all the western colonies. If Bonaparte is the first man in France, Toussaint is the first man in the Arcliipelago of the Antilles." After a moment of reflection, he added, in a firm tone, " I was going to treat with the Americans and the English to procure me twenty thousand blacks from the coast, but I had no other object than to make soldiers of them for France. I know the perfidy of the Englisli. T am under no obligation to them for the information they give me as to the expedition coming to Saint Domingo. No ! never will I arm for them ! I took up arms for the freedom of my colour, which France alone proclaimed, but which she has no right to nullify. Our liberty is no longer in her hands; it is oui' own ! We will defend it or perish." CHAPTER II. Bonaparte cannot be turned from undertaking an expedition against Toussaint — Kesolves on the enterprise in order 'chiefly to get rid of his republican asso- ciates in arms — Restores slavery and the slave-trade — Excepts Hayti from the decree — Misleads Toussaint's sons — Despatches an armament imder Leclerc. In vain was it that Vincent, who had atteiapted to dissuade Toussaint against the adventure of a constitution, now employed his honest and prudent arguments to turn aside Bonaparte from TOUSSAINT l'OUVEKTURE. 153 the intended expedition against Saint Domingo. Disregardful of tlie effect wliich his advice might have on himself, he urged on the consul that the victorious warriors of Europe would lose their euex-gy, together with their strength, under the climate of the Antilles ; that such a climate would anniliilate the army, even if the ascendancy of Toussaint L'Ouverture over the inhabitants did not succeed in destroying it by arms ; he added the consider- ation of the pi'obability that the English would openly or secretly endeavoiu- to traverse his object, and frustrate his attempt. To the last remark Bonaparte answered — " The cabinet of St. James's has been disposed to set itself in opposition to my sending a squadron to Saint Domingo ; I have notified to it, that if it did not consent, I would send to Toussaint xnilimited powers, and ac- knowledge him as independent. It has said no more to me on the point." If this is correct, England, it may be presumed, was influenced by fear for the effects of such a recognition on her neighbouring slave colony of Jamaica. Thus does wrong sup- port wrong. Having effected nothing in conversation, Vincent addressed to the consul a wi-itten document, in which, after setting forth the means of defence which the colony possessed, he said — " At the head of so many resources is a man the most active and indefatigable that can possibly be imagined. It may be strictly said, that he is everywhere ; and especially at the spot where sound judgment and danger would say that his presence is most essential ; his great moderation, his power, peculiar to himself, of never needing rest — the advantage he has of being able to resume the labours of the cabinet after laborious journeys ; of replying to a hvmdred letters every day, and of habitually fatiguing five secretaries ; more still, the skill of amusing and deceiving everybody, earned even to deceit, make him a man so superior to all around him, that respect and submission go to the extent of fanaticism in a very gi-eat number of persons ; it may be affirmed, that no man of the present day has acquired over an ignorant mass, the boundless power obtained by General Toussaint over his brethren in Saint Domingo; he is the abso- lute master of the island ; and nothing can counteract his wishes, whatever they are, although some distinguished men, of whom, 154 THE LIFE OP howevei-, the uumber among the blacks is very small, know and fear the extent to which his views proceed." Bonaparte was displeased at the frankness of these representations, and banished Vincent, their author, to the island of Elba, whither, at a later l^eriod he was himself to be banished. Resolved to disembarrass himself of the veterans in union with whom he had gained his renown, but who now from their strong republican sympathies blocked up his way to the imperial tlu-one, he called a council to deliberate on the most effectual means to be taken in order to bring Toussaint imder liis yoke. The members of the coimcil were, of coiu-se, Bonapai"te's crea- tures. Their desire to please the real sovei'eign of the land Avas stronger than their professed attachment to liberty. The coun- cillors recommended the employment offeree in order to re-esta- blish slavery; a large number proposed, that for the sake of terror, those whom they characterized as " the guilty" should be decimated. The bishop of Blois, Gregory, that immortal friend of the cause of the blacks, had not given his opinion. " What do you think on the matter f ' asked the consul. " I think," he replied, " that the hearing of such speeches suifices to show that they are uttered by whites; if these gentlemen were this moment to change colour, they would talk differently." The restoration of slavery was resolved in the legislative body by a vote of two hundred-and-twelve against sixty-five. Such was the love of Frenchmen for liberty, for the rights of man, for the rights of their fellow-citizens, for the freedom of the black popu- lation of Hayti. The determination of itself justifies the course pui'sued by Toussaint L'Ouvex'ture. His constitution may prove an ineffectual guarantee of the hardly-earned liberties of his colour, but clearly it afforded the only feasible chance of jierpetuating the good he had wrought out. On the 20th of May, 1801, Bonaparte published the infamous decree which replaced the French colonies in the state in which they were before the year 1780, and which, aiithorizing the slave trade, abrogated all laws to the contrary. This execrable measure marks the real character of the Corsican adventurer, and hands his name down to posterity covei'ed with disgrace. Soon, how- TOussAixT l'ouverture, 155 ever, clid he find that in an evil hour he had overstepped the limits of prudence ; and therefore he put forth another decree which hypocritically excepted Saint Domingo and Guadaloiipe, " because these islands are free, not only by right, but in fact — whilst the other colonies are actually in slavery, and it would be dangerous to put an end to that state of things." The preparation of the public mind for the unjust and wicked attempt to put down liberty in Saint Domingo, was aided by the less obvious but powerful efforts, not only of the colonistsin general, but by the niulattoes who dwelt at Paris, of whom Rigaud may be considered as the head. Overcome and exiled by Toussaint, Kigaud panted for revenge. In that vindictive sentiment, he well represented his race, who could not forgive the black pre- sident for having extorted the freedom of his colour out of their hands. There were in Paris two young men who looked on the arrangements for the expedition which they saw everywhere proceeding, with anxiety and alarm. These were Isaac and Placide L'Ouverture. sons of tlie liberator of Hayti, whom, as a testimony of his confidence, and a pledge of his fidelity, their father had sent to Paris for their education. They both re- sided in the College La Marche, of which Coasnon was the prin- cipal. The consul judged it politic*to thi'ow a veil over their eyes. Intending to destroy the father, he had no scruples of conscience about deluding the sons. Coasnon, their teacher, being gained over, assured the young men that the French government had none but pacific views. A few days afterwards, he received a letter from the Minister of Marine, apprising him that the consul wished to see and converse with liis pupils before their departure. Repairing to the minister's residence, they received in the presence of Coasnon a confirmation of his statement that the intentions of the sovemment were of a friendly nature. They were then conducted to Bonaparte, who, the better to conceal his real purposes, received them in a flat- tering manner. Having ascertained which of the two was Toussaint's own son, he said to him : — " Your father is a great man : he has rendered eminent services to France. You will 156 THE LIFE OF tell liim that I, the first magistrate of the French people, promise him protection, glory, and honour. Do not think that France in- tends to carry war to Samt Domingo; the army which it sends thither is destined not to attack the troops of the country, but to augment then- numbers. Here is General Leclerc, my brother-in-law, whom I have appointed Captain-General, and who will command that ai-mament. Orders have been given for you to arrive at Saint Domingo a fortnight before the fleet, to a,nnounce to your father the coming of the expedition." On the next day, the delusion was carried still farther, for the Minister of Marine, as a kind of pi'actical assvu-ance how well Toussaint and his cliildren stood with the highest authorities, entertained the young men at a magnificent repast ; and shortly after, in order to complete the farce by an appeal to negTO vanity, he, in the name of his government, presented to them a superb suit of armour, and a rich and bi'illiant military costume. It scarcely needs be stated that the promise that the youths should have time to assure their father of the pacific intentions of France, was not observed. Having answered its momentary purpose, it was openly and deliberately violated. The real design of all this collusion was that, misled by the reports of his sons in Paris, Toussaint L'Ouverture might be taken oflf his guard. Alas ! that in the crisis of his fate, he should have given credit to men who blushed not to deal in falsehood. It has already appeared from the consul's own words, that he had chosen Leclerc, who was the husband of his sister Pauline, to be at the head of the expedition. Bonajoarte was well pleased to have the opportunity of separating himself from Leclerc, whom he regarded as a relative little worthy of his present and his future greatness. The obscure birth of Leclerc in the small town of Pontoise, disquieted his pride. Every day there came to Paris persons of low condition who gave them- selves out as relatives of the consul's sister. That sister possessed so rare a beauty, that Canova reproduced her features in his statue of Venus Victrix, Victc/i'ious Venus. To personal charms she added subtlety and gi'ace of mind. Her looks TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE. 157 awakened desires in the most indifferent hearts. She gathered around her all the artifices of voluptuousness. In her furniture she was luxmious; elegant in her personal decorations, and choice in the persons attached to her suite. She was attended by painters, musicians, and buffoons. Pauline accompanied her husband in the exiiedition. Leclerc was small in stature, but he had vivacity of mind and gi'ace of manner. In countenance he was thought to bear some resemblance to the consid. Though he had showed some courage and perseverance in the campaigns of the Alps and the Rhine, he was little else than the blind instrument of liis brother-in-law, whom he imitated in war as well as in peace, with a closeness which betokened a con- tracted intellect. From such a man was expected the final settlement of the long quarrel of colour in Saint Domingo. The preparations for the armament were made in different ports. No expense was spared. Holland, then under the domination of France and Spain, kept in alliance with it by fear, fui'nislied ships. The fleet, when collected, was composed of twenty-one frigates, and thirty-five vessels of war. It had on board all the best sailors of France, and was commanded by Villaret Joyeuse. In December, 1801, portions of it left the ports of Brest, Rochefort and Lorient. The rest were to sail from other points. The ocean was covered "svith ships in order to punish a contumacious slave ! The magnitude of the equip- ment is a measure of Toussaint's power. This fleet bore to Hayti one of the most valiant of armies. The Alps, Italy, the Rhine, and the Nile resounded with the exploits of the veterans who formed its strength. They now left lands which boasted of their civilization, to cany chains to a people who, uncultm-ed though they were, had vindicated their freedom, and used that freedom wisely. As soon as the fleet had anchored off Cape Samana, at the eastern end of Saint Domingo, Leclerc niunbered liis sea and hxnd forces, including others which he expected. They amounted to sixty shijos and moi-e than thii-ty thousand men, commanded by generals and captains of experience and renown. Among them were men of colour, who had become illustrious in 158 THE LIFE OF the sanguinaiy struggle for emancipation. There was found Rigaud, whose valoiir had disputed the laiu-el with Toussaiut himself There was found Petion, who under a mild physio- gnomy bore a lofty spirit ; he was destined to found and govern a republic in the island he took j)art in invading. There was found Boyer, his illustrious successor, who by a treaty with the king of France was one day to sectire the permanent indepen- dence of his native land. All these midatto chiefs had consented to second the expedition with their council, their courage, and their example. On the other side, the forces of Toussaint con- sisted at most of sixteen thousand men; five in the noi-th, four in the west, four in the south, and three in what was formerly the Si^anish territory. These troops thus scattered, were, however, commanded by captains well trained to mountain warfare; all were animated by the love of freedom, which they cherished the more because they had acquired it at the cost of labour, jieril, and bloodshed. Everywhere the Haytian army would find auxiliaries ; soldiers, women, children, citizens, had all lived in the camps of the civil wars. Full of recollections of their former servitude, they were ready to pei'ish sooner than .submit. The gathering of the fleet at Samana took several weeks. The effect of a sudden descent was lost. On hearing that a fleet was approaching the island, Toussaint L'Ouvertvire threw the bridle over his horse's neck, and galloped to Cape Samana to recon- noitre the squadrons. Unversed in marine affairs, he at first took the manoeuvi-ing for hesitation. But as the vessels anchored in their several places, having never seen so large a fleet before, he was struck with astonishment, and feeling for a moment discouraged, he exclaimed to his officers, "We must perish; all France is coming to Saint Domingo; it has been deceived, it comes to take revenge and enslave the blacks." Con^'inced as he was of the hostile designs of the armament, Toussaint could not deny that its heralds had announced friend- ship. As little did he possess the right of making war against the forces of the country to which he professed allegiance. Had he already proclaimed the independence of Hayti, he woxild have "been relieved from the perplexity of a dubious joosition. Even TOUSSAINT l'OUVERTURE. 150 had he at this last moment proclaimed independence, he woiikl have been saved from tlie evils of vacillation. But being neither at peace nor at war with his assailants, he laboured under a great disadvantage. However, he made such arrangements as his unhappy position permitted. To act on the defensive was compulsory on him in the circumstances, and probably such a policy was every way the best. Should the armament prove really hostile; should it attack the island, then resistance must be made; and if defeat ensued, there were the mountains for are- treat, and a succession of strong holds where an almost unlimited defence might be maintained. At length the fleet put itself in movement. After hav- ing detached Kerverseau to go and take possession of the city of Saint Domingo, Leclerc directed the armament in three divisions against three principal points; Fort Dauphin, and the city of the Cape m the north, and Port-au-Prince in the west. The island was thus invested. No declara- tion of war was made, no negotiations were opened. The squadrons sailed to the several points as if they approached a friendly shore, and as a matter of coui'se entered friendly harbours. Nor could they be challenged. Toussaint possessed no vessels, and if he had had vessels, was he not a French subject, and were these not French ships and French com- manders] It Avas not possible for Isaac and Placide L'Ouverture any longer to doxibt the nature of the en and on which the arma- ment had been sent. They drew up in writing remonstrances which they presented to Leclerc, who doubtless smiled in his thoughts at their easy faith. 160 THE LIFE OP CHAPTER III. Leclerc obtains possession of tlic chief positions in the island, and yet is not master thereof — By arms and by treachery he establishes himself at the Cape, at Fort Dauphin, at Saint Domingo, and at Port-au-Prince — Toussaint L'Ouvcrture depends on his mountain strongholds. The main squadron, nnder tlie immediate direction of Leclerc, proceeded to act against Cape City. Sent on an en-and of duplicity, the commander meant war, yet was obliged to feign peace. His aim was, if possible, to obtain possession of the Cape, under the cover of friendship. Sm-ely, admission into a French port could not be denied to French forces. In order to eiiect his purpose, he sent Lebrun, aide-de-camp of the admiral Vil- laret Joyeuse, on shore, to announce his intention of landing his ti'oops. Lebrun was conducted to General Chi'istophe, who held the place on behalf of the insular authorities. As Lebrun passed along, he, as if by accident, let fall a number of proclamations, intended to serve the cause of Bonaparte by stirring up the in- habitants. Having put his papers into the hands of Christophe, be received for ansv/er, " Without the orders of the Governor- General Toussaint L'Ouverture, who at j^resent is in the iSpanish part, I cannot receive the squadron and the troops which are on board." Lebrun whispered in the ear of Christophe, that Gene- ral Leclerc was the bearer of splencHd tokens of the favour of the government toward him. " No, sir," was the prompt and decided reply, " I cannot listen to any proposition without the orders of the governor. The proclamations you bring breathe despotism and tyranny. I shall go and administer to my soldiers an oath to maintain our liberty at the peril of their lives." The pro- clamation covertly published by Lebrun, was not wholly without effect. A deputation of citizens waited on Christophe to impress on him the responsibility he took on himself in withstanding the orders of the mother country. He replied that he was a sol- dier; that he acknowledged as his supreme chief only Toussaint TOUSSAIXT l'oUVEKTURE. 161 L'Ouverture ; that nothing proved to him that a squadron over which they saw foreign banners float, had been sent by the mother country ; that France would have taken other means to cause its commands to be acknowledged, and that it would have sent them by an envoy, and not by foreign squadrons. He ended by declaring, that if Leclerc, who called himself Captaiu-genei-al, persisted in his resolution to enter the Cape, he would set the whole in flames rather than the ships should anchor in the har- bour. However, he permitted a deputation of the city to go on board Leclerc's ship, and entreat a delay of two days, in order that Toussaint might be consulted. The general assured the deputies, that France, full of affection for the colony, had made every arrangement for its ha])piness; he set forth in a few words the great and benevolent projects which the mother country had for Toussaint L'Ouverture, whose sons it sent back after having educated them Avith the greatest care ; he announced that he brought General Christophe jtroofs of the public gratitude, and remarked how monstrous would be the ingratitude of whicli those two chiefs seemed disposed to x'ender themselves guilty. He added, that the conduct of General Christophe having caused him to fear that he would employ the delay asked for in order, by drawing together his forces, to secure the success of tiie meditated I'esistance, he could not postpone the entrance of the squadron, and that he should make his an-angements in the sjiace of half-an-hour — time sufficient to enable General Christophe to repair the disgrace of his revolt by prompt submission. Chris- tophe remained unmoved by the allurements and the thi'eats of the French commander, though supported by the following letter :— '' I learn with indignation, citizen general, that you refuse to receive the French squadron and anny which I command, under the pretext that you have not any order from the governor general. " France has made peace with England, and its government sends to Saint Domingo forces able to subdue rebels, if rebel.s are to be found in Sahit Domingo. As to you, citizen general, M 162 THE LIFE OF I avow that it would give me paiu to reckon you among rebels. I "warn you that if this very day you do not put into my pos- session the forts Picolet, Belair, and all the batteries of the coast, to-morrow at dawn fifteen thousand men shall be disembarked. Four thousand at this moment are landing at Foi-t Liberte, eight thousand at Port Rejjublican ; you will find my proclamation joined to this communication ; it expresses the intentions of the French government ; but, remember, whatever esteem your con- duct in the colony has inspired me with, I hold you responsible for whatever may take place. " The general-in-chief of the army of Saint Domingo, and cajitain-general of the colony. (Signed) " Leclekc." The letter, and the tone of the captain-general served only fco inflame the spirit of resistance, which had time to gather strength, because the squadron, not being able to procure pilots, was obliged to gain the open sea without being able to land the troops. Christophe mustered the soldiers of the line and made them swear to conquer or die, conformably to the proclamation of Toussaint L'Ouverture, dated the 18th of December, 1801. The pro- clama^tion of Leclerc, intended to win over the civil authorities and the inhabitants, assumed a more pacific character, and pro- mised to all the soldiers and functionaries of the colony, what- ever their colour, the confirmation of their rank and their offices. Smitten with fear, some of the civil authorities endeavoured to prevail with Chiistophe, but he was not a man to be easily over- come. That cliief, born in the island of Grenada, first an emancipated slave, then an innkeeper, a tradesman, and a cattle dealer, ended by becoming a king. To the advantage of great height, he added that of a majestic cai'riage, and an eye full of fire. He had a strong soul, adorned with civic, domestic, and military vii'tues. His prudence led him to trust little to fortune. He was active, patient, and temperate. Without having been instructed in the schools, he spoke with ease and grace : he took peculiar pleasure in diverting his guests by the recital of adventures or his valorous TOUSSAINT L'OUVERTURE. 163 exploits. He was moreover liable to contrasts of temper ■wliicli indicated the fiery impulses of his character. Some of his excel- lencies he lost when seated on a throne. When the messenger of Lecierc urged him to surrender the city, he replied with hauteur, " Go and tell your general that the French shall march here only over ashes, and that the ground shall hum. beneath their feet." He afterwards wrote his determination in these terms — " The decision of arms can admit you only into a city in ashes, and even on these ashes I will fight still !" Inexorable to the entreaties of treacherous natives, he was assaOed by the following proclamation from Bonaparte, which they received from the hands of Lecierc, and put into circulation. *'The First Consul to the Inhabitakt.s of Saint Domingo. "Whatever your origin and your colour, you are all Frenchmen; you ai'e all free and all equal before God and before men. " France, like Saint Domingo, has been a prey to factions, and has been torn by civil war and by foreign war; but all is changed; all nations have embraced the French, and have sworn peace and fi-iendsliip towards them : all Frenchmen likewise have embraced each other, and have sworn to be friends and brothers ; do you embrace the French, and rejoice at again beholding your brethren and your friends from Europe. The Government sends to you the Captain-General Lecierc ; he brings Avith him large forces to protect you against your enemies and against the enemies of the Republic. If you are told, ' Those forces are destined to rob you of liberty,' I'eply, ' The Republic will not allow that liberty shall be taken from us.' " Rally round the Captain-General, he brings you abimdance and peace; rally round him. Whoever shall dare to separate himself from the Captain-General, will be an enemy to his country, and the wi-ath of the Republic will devoxir him as the fire devoui's your dried sugar-canes. m2 164 THE LIFE OF " Given at Paris, at the Goveniment Palace, the 17th Brumaire, in the tenth year of the French Republic (8 Nov., 1801). "The First Consul, (Signed) " Bonaparte." This proclamation was not of a nature to inspire confidence in men -whom servitude had made habitually distrustful. The words of the Consul appeared those of a master who alternately employs promises and threats. The people of the Cape had no need of being assured of a liberty which they actuall}- enjoyed; and that wrath presented under the image of the conflagi-ation of their harvests, looked, in their eyes, like a token of slavery. All declared that they would rather perish than return to ser- vitude. Vfhile time was thus spent in useless words, the war had begun without any negotiation ^vith Toussaint, whether an order to that effect had been given by the Consul, that he might strike teri'or into the inhabitants, or whether Leclerc considered that promptitude was the best means of commanding obedience. Bochambeau, who had been sent against Fort Dauphin, attacked the place by land and by sea. Everything soon yielded to French valour. The blacks fled, but in flying set the city on fire. At the sight of the flames, Bochambeau slaughtered all the prisoners, whom he treated as revolters. The bay of Mancenille was stained with tlie blood of many unarmed blacks, whose crime was that they had shouted " No whites 1 no slavery !" Afraid lest Christophe should carry his tlu-eat into execution and set Cape City on fire, Leclerc resolved to take tlie enemy in the I'ear by landing his forces in the Bay of Acul. But the movement of the vessels and the noise of the cannon spread on all sides tumult and alarm. Burning plantations aunounced that flames would soon rise from the town. Christophe, threatened by sea and by land by two bodies of foes, determined to set fire to the Cape. After distributing torches to his soldiers, and to all who were devoted to so sacred a cause, he called the Almighty Protector of liberty to witness that he was driven to extremity,. and commenced the conflagration with his own residence, deco- TOUSSAINT l'oUVEKTURE. IGo rated in a costly maimer hy the arts of luxury. An ocean of flames rose in the air; roofs fell in all on fire; and in those flames the black man saw the preservation of his liberty. Tlic appearance of tlie fleet, the blood of blacks and wliites flowing on two jDarts of the coast, terror, confusion, the loss of so much wealth, awoke in all hearts the former furies of freedom and slavery. At the sight of the flames, which changed night into day, those passions pamted themselves on white as well as black countenances. But no cries, no complaints were heard. Only Angel's were pointed to the high lands above the Cape where freedom might find an asylum. The flight took place in silence, as if vengeance Avas deferred in order to be more ten-ible. An explosion of a powder magazine croAvned that work of coinage and despair. The flames of the conflagration were seen nearly at the same time by the French fleet and by Toussaint L'Ouver- ture, who arrived in the neighbourliood from Santo Domingo, and who then regretted that he had not lost his life in the j^lains of the Artibonite when he fought for France and for his country, so great was his gi-ie£ He showed compassion to a multitude of old men, women and children, who were scattered on all the roads, and wlio were flying throng] i the mountains. How em- barrassing his position; tlie Cape and Fort Dauphin had been treated as hostile cities. Christophe, who had set on fire his own house and the city, manifested a generosity too rare in wai"; fearing lest, in the con- fusion and the tumult of the conflagration, some two thousand whites with their wives and children might become victims of his men, he conducted them into a place of safety. After abandoning the Cape, Christophe joined Toussaint, and con- jointly tliey raised fire and flames everywhere. At the request of his chief, Christo2")he took up a position at La Grande Riviere, while Toussaint himself went towards the plain of the north. Both were thus immediately above the invadmg forces. Tlie latter in proceeding to liis post found liimself face to face with the advanced guard of Leclerc, and passed through a most terrible fire. His cloak was riddled with balls, and his horse was wounded. Reaching IMornay, he received a letter from 166 THE LIFE OF Kochambeaxx, who souglit to set oflF his glory by ajSectations of pity. " I did not expect," he said, " that my soldiers in ar- riving here would have to dye their bayonets in the blood of their brothers and their friends." Toussaint L'Ouvertm-e found it desi- rable to quit ]\lornay, and passing through Enneiy, where was his wife with a part of his family, made his way toward Gonaives in the west. While Leclerc and Rochambeau were conquering in the north towns which were in ashes, their co-operator. General Boudet, in the west, was seeking by stratagem as much as by force to take possession of Port-au-Prince. That city, built of wood, was the rival of the Cape. Age, who was entrusted with its defence, had not a soul proof against treachery. But along side of him thei'e served a captain worthy of " the good old times." Lamartiniere possessed an heroic soul ; his firmness, his courage, and his patience could not be surpassed. With a hand- ful of soldiers, he was capable of resisting the efforts of an anny. When the surrender of the city was demanded, the reply was the same as that which had been given at the Cape, only the threat of caruage was subjoined to the threat of conflagi-ation. " If," replied the blacks, " if the French disembark before we can be informed of the resolution of Toussaint, three cannon shot, repeated from mountain top to mountain top, shaU be the signal for the conflagration of our homes, and for the death of those who may endeavoiu' to make us slaves." Not without disgust nor without fear, did Boudet, who had gained renown in the Antilles by Avresting Guadaloupe from the hands of the English, land near Lamentin, distant about a league to the west of Port-au-Prince. At the appointed signal, flames arose on all sides. Frightfid disorder prevailed in the town. The blacks, dreading slavery, pursued the whites through the streets, and even searched for them in hiding-places. At the recollection of the evils of their past servitude, marks of which many of them still bore in their mutilated bodies, they saw in the whites only pitiless masters, and slew them unsparingly, or carried them away as hostages into the mountains. A large number of women, children, and old men sought in a church an asylum against the rage of their former slaves, who, in spite o TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTUKE, 1G7 the sanctity of the place, were on the point of sacrificing them as \dctims to their liberty ; bnt a priest appeared, and called out for mei'cy; presenting the sacred utensils of the altar, and assuaging the "wr-ath of the assailants, he saved the lives of the trembling and helpless crowd; but the raging men hastened away to find, in less hallowed places, whites on whom they might effectually wreak their terrible vengeance. Boudet, unused to the terrors that arose on eveiy hand, exhorted his soldiers to mercy. " My comrades," he said, " you must regard these peojile as fellow-citizens; this is no foreign land, it is your country. Do not make use of your arms ; uncover your bi'easts to them, in order that those who follow us may have the right to avenge us." By the treachery of its defenders, he obtained possession of Fort Bizoton, by which his progress might have been long stopped. Age was thuiking of surrendering the city itself, but Lamartiniere, indignant at a second instance of perfidy, called into action, for its defence, all his resolution. At the council- board, he blew out the brains of a captaiii of artillery who refused the keys of the arsenal. So daring a stroke put an end to inde- cision and enkindled courage ; he drew after him four thousand men to the gate of Leogane, where a redoubt, armed with six pieces of ai-tillery, defended the town. Death was spread in the ranks of the French, who advanced slowly, xnicertain of the use they should make of their arms. Soon their ardour biu'ned up ; they rushed across the moat, threw themselves into the city, and preserved it from the threatened conflagration. Lamartiniere, less afflicted at his defeat than at not having reduced Port-au-Prince into ashes, hastened to intrench himself in Croix-des-Bouquets, a little to the north ; a position sur- roimded by moats cut in a veiy hard soil. There he was waited for by Dessalines, who had come up too late to defend the city. That chief, who had the west under his command, was of a bold, tiu-bulent, and ferocious spu'it; now from revenge, now from ambition, he imbrued his hands in the blood of both white men and black men. Hunger, thirst, fatigue, and loss of sleep he seemed made to endure as if by a peculiarity of constitution. His air was fiei-ce, his step oblique, his look sanguinary. His face IQS THE LIFE OF furrowed with incisions, indicated tlie coast of Africa as his birth- phxce. Under that terrible aspect he concealed an impenetrable dissimulation. His barbarous eloquence lay in expressive signs rather than in words. What is strange in his destiny, is that he was a savage, a slave, a soldier, a general, and died when an emperor, under the dagger of a Brutus. AVhen he learnt that Port-au-Prince had escaped from conflagration, he turned pale, scolded, and roared with wrath. Boudet, intending to follow up his -sdctory, flew to Croix-des- Bouquets, where he was awaited by those two formidable chiefs. But Dessalines understood his business too well to encounter the French general ui set battle array. Knowing how by bold and rapid movements to deceive as well as escape from an enemy, he outflanked Boudet, and getting in his rear, set on fire Leogane, a charming city built on a promontory, before the invaders coidd arrive in the vicinity. The flames which destroyed that city I'ejoiced the soul of the barbarian, but did not console him for the escape of Port-au-Prince ; he meditated fresh conflagrations. While the north and the west were theatres of fire and carnage, the east and the south submitted without the endurance of calamity. General Kerverseau, on jn'osentiug himself before Santo Domingo, found the inhabitants the more disposed to receive him, because in perilous missions in Santo Domingo, he had acquired a reputation for prudence and honour. Kerverseau Avas not a great general, but a good man, modest and mild; respected by parties, he enjoyed much popularity. Paul L'Ouverture, who commanded the city, refused to yield Avithout instructions from Toussaint, his brother. Negoti- ations, nevertheless, were opened, but they came to a stoj) when the news arrived that all was in flames in other parts. Then Kerverseau invested Santo Domingo by sea and land. Paul, meanwhile, had written for instructions to his distinguished brother. Toussaint sent a despatch commanding him to destroy the city if he was unable to hold it against his adversaiy. But fearing the message might fall into the hands of Kerverseau, he sent another, which recommended conciliation. These commu- nications, intercepted by Sj^aniards who had taken sides with TOUSSAINT L OITVTIRTURE. 169 the French, fell into the hands of the besieging general. Ker- verseau conveyed to Paul tlie message v/hich bore a fi'iendly character. Paul, importuned by the to^vnsmen, admitted his assailant, and joined his ranks. Thus fell Santo Domingo, and witli it there passed under the power of France a portion of Toussaint's forces. The southern province, inhabited cliiefly by mulattoes, and being the scene of Eigaud's revolt, was not Likely to oflbr a stern resistance. Its commander, Laplume, no sooner heard that the French were masters of the Cape and Port-au-Prince, than he resolved to sul)mit to the authority of the mother country. His troops, mostly of his own blood, cherished no friendly recollections toward Toussaint, by whom they had been subdued, and were easily induced by their leader, who painted to thexn vividly the evils of civil war, and read the proclamation of the Consid, whose power, genius, and glory he extolled, to join him in taking place side by side with the assailants of the constitutional rights of the island. Thus, the strong points of Hayti were in the hands of Leclerc. At the Cape and at Fort-Daujihin in the north, at Santo Domingo in the east, at Cayes in the south, and at Port-au-Prince in the west, the French invader had succeeded in taking uj) strong positions. In vain had Toussaint L'Ouverture organised the best resistance in his power. The enemy ^^■ere on the island. True, some of the places they held were only heaps of ruins. Nevertheless, they had eflfected a landing. The island, however, was not in their possession. Neither arms nor treachery had subdued the natives. Toussaint well knew that the sea-ports could not withstand so formidable an assault. But he knew also that a coimtry which is fuU of mountains is inexpugnable. For the desultory warfare of the mountains he prepared himself, and, backed by the population at large, men of his o%\ai blood, he defied defeat, and felt confident that time and the climate would unstring the arm, and lay waste the spirits as well as the frames of his assailants. Even one advantage he had gained; for whereas at the tii'st, the islanders knew not whether they had to expect peace or war, their leader, consequently, could fully pre- 170 THE LIFE OF pare for neither ; now at length the cloak was stripped off, and to all eyes it was clear that the only alternative was victory or servitude. On his part, Leclerc, though \dctorious, did not deceive himself with the notion of having accomplished his work. On the contrary, in view of the facts to which we have just adverted, he was aware that he had everything but the first step to accom- plish. The Spartacus of Hayti was on his oa\ti mountains supported by a whole peojile able and ready to resist to the utmost. How was Leclerc to succeed ? How could a desultory warfare in ravines and on precipices, in recesses and in mountain fastnesses, be either carried on or brought to a desu'able issue against what was not in name but literally a levy en masse ? A different method must be tried. So long as Toussaint L'Ouverture was at the head of those predatory bauds, the consequences of victoiy would be only a little less beneficial than those of defeat. But treachery has power, and treachery of the basest kind was put into action. CHAPTER IV. General Leclerc opens a negotiation with Toussaint L'Ouverture by means of his two sons, Isaac and Placide — the negotiation ends in nothing — the Trench commander-in-chief outlaws Toussaint, and prepares for a campaign. Before he was yet informed of the success of the expedition in the east, the south, and the west, Leclerc, well aware that in Toussaint L'Ouverture he had to do with an enemy not easy to overcome, resolved, when now he had himself taken up a firm position in the north, to put into play a method of operation from Avhich he expected a decisive and immediate result. Vincent, who foresaw the terrible wasting that the European troops would have to endure under the tropics, advised the Consul to send back, partly as hostages, and partly as mediators, the TOUSSAINT l'oUVEKTORE. 171 sons of Toussaint — and so take a means for bringing the colony into subjection, botb more sure and less costly than the appeal to arms. This ad\ice he urged specially on the ground that as Toussaint had sti'ong domestic feelings, he wovdd not be able to stand out against the influence which the return of the young men, after a long absence, would exert on their father in favour of the Consul's designs. Accordingly, the Captain-General having sent for the youths, who had remained on board the fleet, spoke to them of the calamities which had befallen the island, urged the necessity of a speedy accommodation, and reminded them of the letter written to their father by the First Consul. "I have," he added, " the greatest hope of coming to a good understanding with your father ; he was absent ; he could not command the resistance. You must carry to him the First Consul's letter ; let him know my intentions, and the high opinion I entertain of liim." It was somewhat late to set on foot a friendly negotia- tion. But the hour was well-timed, since the delay had given Leclerc a footing in the island, if it had not also served, as intended, to show Toussaint L'Ouvertui'e the inutility of oppo- sition to the will of Bonaparte, The young men felt that their mission of peace should have preceded hostilities ; but they felt, also, a very strong desire to see their parents and their home ; nor were they wholly Avithout a hope that even yet a pacific aiTangement might be made. They therefore gladly accepted the embassy, and set out for Ennery, their father's dwelling-place, accompanied by their tutor, M. Coasnon. Behind them they left a horrible image of civil war — old men, women, children, flying from fire and sword; everywhere alarm and consternation. Soon they came into view of peaceful scenes, the work of their father's genius — cultivated fields, abundant crops, happy families. There was a land of desolation — here a land of prosperity. On theii' route they saw many inhabitants, but not one soldier. As soon as it was known who they were, crowds came out to greet them with acclamations ; they were surrounded, welcomed, embraced, and questioned. Their object 1 It was to convey friendly assurances to their father. The news was gladly heard. Nevertheless, doubt soon I'esumed the ascendancy. Those were indeed the sons of 172 THE LIFE OF tL.eii' veuerated cliief ; they had been sent back iinhurt ; it was a token for good ; yet, why auuoi;nce peace by cannon balls 1 Why land on a friendly shore with a charge of bayonets 1 Along the Avhole route, the same eagerness to see and welcome the youths was displayed. Delight for a moment took the place of terror. The family had been warned of the approach of the young men. At last, about nine o'clock in the evening of the second day after the departure from the Cape, their mother, accompanied by a, few friends, came with the aid of torch-light to receive them in the midst of an immense crowd. It is more easy to conceive than describe the tender scenes which passed that evening in the home of Toussaint L'Ouverture. After the mother had for the moment indulsjed all her emotions in regard to her sons, she turned to their preceptor, whose care and trouble she acknowledged in the fullest and warmest terms. All the family, for a short hour, forgetting the common misei-ies of their country, gave way to the .sweetest and most joyous sentiments. Duty had prevented Toussaint himself from taking his place in this affecting interview. But, at eleven o'clock in the evening of the next day, the sound of a trumpet and the rattling of horses' feet announced his arrival. On his entrance, Isaac and Placide threw themselves passionately on his neck. Their father long held them jjressed closely to his heart, while tears streamed down his hardy cheeks. M. Coasnon was sent for, to whom L'Ouverture expressed the high sense of his obligation for the attentions he had bestowed on the young men ; thanking him for ha\dng accompanied them into the bosom of their family — though he was sorry that then- arrival took jDlace in the midst of war, the cause of which, he said, was unknown to him, and which he had in no way expected. Then M. Coasnon presented to him the Consul's letter, to which was suspended by a silk cord the state seal — the whole enclosed in a golden casket. The epistle was as follows : — "to citizen toussaint, general in chief op the akmy op saint domingo. " Citizen General, " The peace with England, and all the Powers ot Europe, which has just placed the Republic on the summit of TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTUUE, 173 power and greatness, gives the Government the oppovtnuity of occu2)ying itself with the colony of Saint Domingo. We send thither citizen General Leclerc, om* brother-in-law, as Captain- General, as First Magistrate of the colony. He is accompanied by forces sufficient to cause the sovereignty of the Fx'ench people to be I'espected. In these circumstances, we have pleasure in hoping that you will prove to us and to all France the sincerity of the sentiments you have constantly expressed in the different letters that you have written to us. " We have conceived an esteem for you, and we take pleasure in recognising and proclauniug the services which you have rendered to the French people. Tf its banner floats over Saint Domingo, it is to you and the brave blacks that we owe it. " Called by your talents, and the foi'ce of circumstances to the highest post, you have destroyed civil war, piit reins on the per- secution carried on by ferocious men, restored to honour religion and the worship of God — from whom all things j^roceed. " The constitution you have formed, while containing many good things, contains some which are contraiy to the dignity and the sovereignty of the French nation, of which Saint Domingo forms a poi'tion. " The cii'cumstances in which you found yourself, surrounded by enemies, while the mother country could not succour you, nor send you provisions, rendered legitimate articles of that constitution which otherwise could not be legitimate ; but now, when circumstances are so happily changed, you will be the first to pay honiage to the sovereignty of the nation which counts you in the number of her most illustrious citizens, both for the services which you have rendered, and for the talents and force of chax'acter with which natui-e has endowed you. Conduct contrary to this would be irreconcileable with the idea which we have formed of you. It would cause you to forfeit the numerous rights you have to the gratitude of the Republic, and would dig before your feet a precipice which, in causing your own ruin, might contribute to the ruin of those brave blacks whose courage we love, and Avhose rebellion we should be sorry to find ourselves compelled to punish. 174 THE LIFE OF " We have made kuown to yoiu' children and theii* preceptor the sentiments wliich animate ns, and we send them back to you. " Assist the Captain-General with your counsels, yoiu' influence, and your talents. What can you desire? The freedom of the blacks 1 You know that in all the countries where we have been, we have given freedom to the nations who did not possess it. Respect, honours, fortune ? After the services which you have rendered, and wliich in this juncture you may render, with the special sentiment we entertain toward you, how can you be un- certain as to the respect, the fortime, and the homage which await you 1 " Let the people of Saiiat Domingo know that the solicitude which France has always felt for their happiness has often been powerless through the imperious circvmistances of war ; that men come from the continent to agitate the island and support fac- tions, were the products of the factions which distracted the mother country ; that henceforth peace, and the strength of the Government, will secure the prosperity and the freedom of the colony. Tell them, that if to them liberty is the first of blessings, they cannot enjoy it except as French citizens, and that every act contrary to the interests of the mother country, to the obedi- ence which they owe to the Government, and to the captain general which is its delegate, would be a crime against the national sovereignty, which would eclipse their services, and render Saint Domingo the theatre of a destructive war in which parents and children would slay each other. " And you. General, reflect, that if you are the first of your colour that has reached such a height of power, and that has gained distinction by bi'avery and military talents, you are also, before God and us, the person who is responsible for the conduct of the inhabitants of the colony. " If there are evil-disposed persons who tell the individuals that have played the principal parts ui the troubles of Saint Domingo that we have come to investigate what they have done during the times of anarchy, assure them that we shall inquire only as to their conduct in this last circumstance ; that we shall search into the past only to discover the deeds which have made TOUSSAINT l'OUVERTURE, 175 them distiiiguislied iu the war against the Spaniai'ds and the English, who were our enemies. " Reckon unreservedly on oiir esteem, and conduct yourself as he ought who is one of the principal citizens of the greatest nation in the world. " The Fii-st Consul, (Signed) " Bonaparte." Toussaint L'Ouvertiu-e, after rimiiing liis eyes rapidly over this compound of cajolery and menace, was about to reply, when his sons and M. Coasnon spoke to him of the handsome recep- tion they had had from the Consul, and the magnificent promises he had made them ; they also did justice in setting forth the assurance given them by Bonaparte, that the army commanded by Leclei'c was not sent to Saint Domingo with hostile views; adding, that it was the desii'e of that general to enter into an accommodation with Toussaint L'Ouvertui'c. Then th(^ liberator of Hayti said in reply : " You, M. Coasnon, you, whom I con- sider as the preceptor of my sons, and the envoy of Finance, must confess that the words and the letter of the First Consul ax-e altogether in opposition to the conduct of General Leclerc ; those announce peace — he makes war on me. " General Leclerc, in falling on Saint Domingo as a clap of thunder, has announced his mission to me only by the burning of the capital, which he might have avoided; by the capture of Fort Dauphin, and the lauding on the coast of Limbe effected by main force. " I have just been informed that General Maurepas has been attacked by a French di\dsion, which he has repulsed ; that the commander of Saint Marc has forced two French vessels which cannonaded that city to put to sea. In the midst of so many disasters and acts of violence, I must not forget that I wear a sword. But, for what reason is so unjust, so impolitic a war declared against me? Is it because I have delivered my country from the plague of foreign and civil conflict ; that with all my power I have laboured for her prosperity and her splendour ; that I have established order and justice here 1 Since these actions are 176 THE LIFE OF regarded as a crime, why are my children sent to me, in such a juncture, to share that crime 1 " As for the rest, if, as you tell me. General Leclerc frankly desu-es peace, let him stop the march of his troops. He -w-ill preserve Saint Domingo from total subversion, and will tran- quillize minds exasperated by his system of aggi'ession and inva- sion. I will, 31. Coasnon, wi'ite him a letter having this tenour, which you, my two children, and JM. Granville, the tutor of my younger son, shall put into his hands." The conversation was prolonged far into the night. Toussaint remarked on the inconsistency of recognising him as Commander- in-chief of Saint Domingo, at the very time that he was assailed by an ovei'powering force. He could not suppress the indigna- tion which he felt at the thought that liis children were offered to him as the price of his siu-render. He bade M. Coasnon take them back to General Leclerc, because, at every hazard he owed the sacrifice of his life to the freedom of his fellow-citizens. The father struggled -svith the liberator, and brought a flood of tears from his eyes. The liberator overpowered even the father, and exacted the sternest regard to public dvity. In two days the letter was ready. On the night of February 11th, 1802, the appointed messengers were despatched with the communication. As they travelled toward the Cape, jNI. Gran- ville acquainted M. Coasnon with the irritation that prevailed among the blacks. The life of the unfortunate whites hung by a thread, and at any moment a word would be sufficient to sunder the slender tie. In his reply, Toussaint reproached Leclerc with having come to displace him by means of cannon shot ; with not having delivered to him the letter of the First Consul, imtil three months after its date ; and with having by hostile acts rendered doubtful the rights and the services of his colour. He declared that those rights imposed upon him duties that were superior to those of natm-e ; that he was prepared to saci'ifice his children to his colour, and that he sent them back that it might not be supposed they were boimd by his presence. He ended by saving, that being more distrustful than ever, he TOUSSAINT l'ouverture. 177 required time in order to decide the course wliioh remained for him to take. Leclerc hastened to send back the young men with a rei>ly, in which he invited Toussaint to come and concert with him means for putting a stop to the public disorders, giving him his word that the past should be suidc in oblivion, that he, Toussaint, should be treated with the greatest distinction, and that if he complied with the request, he should that moment be proclaimed the first lieutenant of the Captain-general of the colony. Leclerc finished his epistle by stating that though he had precise instructions not to discontinue warlike operations, if lie found it necessary to commence them ; yet in the hope of a good understanding, he would condescend to an armistice of four clays, but, that delay over, he would, by a proclamation, declare Toussaint an enemy of the French nation, and put him beyond the pale of the law. The alhirement was too weak : the threat was impotent. Duty with Toussaint was superior to every other consideration. He could be neither bought nor intimidated. Irritated by this ultimatum he resolved to employ all his enei'gies for the main- tenance of the liberties he had achieved. Yet had he no wish to involve his sons in the issue. He therefore, after announcing to them his final resolution, declared that he left them tree to choose between France and their father ; that he did not blame their attachment to the mother country ; but that liis colour stood between him and France; that he could not compromise the destinies of his colour by placing himself at the mercy of an expedition, in which figured several white generals, as well as Rigaud, Petion, Boyer, Chanlatte and others, all his personal enemies; that the order not to cease from fighting to negotiate, showed that France had more confidence in its ai^ms than in its rights; that a confidence of such a natm-e indicated the despotism of mere force, and that if no practical regard was jiaid to the rights of the blacks, while they had some power, what •would their condition be when he and his .should be powerless 1 His sons threw themselves into his arms, imploring him to yield. Their tears and their caresses failed to move him. 178 THE LIFE OP Hemaining inflexible, he merely I'epeated, " My cbildi-en, make your choice ; whatever it is, I shall always love you." At length his own son Isaac, detaching himself from his father's arms, exclaimed, " Well, behold in me a faithful servant of France, who can never resolve to bear arms against her.'^ Placide, Isaac's uterine brother, manifested indecision. Toussaint, petrified, gave his paternal benediction to Isaac, whom he gently put away from him. Meanwhile Placide, overpowered, threw himself on his father's neck, and sobbing said, " I am yours, father ; I fear the future, I fear slavery ; I am ready to fight against it; I renounce France." Immediately L'Ouvertm'e in- vested him with the command of a battalion of his guard, whom a few days after he led against the invaders. With all Toiissaint's affection for his own son, Isaac, he was imable to bring himself to offer the least opposition to his joining the French. A mother's tenderness, however, knows no claims but those of natural affection, and impelled by that powerful senti- ment, Toussaint's wife succeeded in causing Isaac to change his determination. The young man wi-ote that he was prevented fi'om returning to the Cape by his mother's urgent entreaties. This scene, which was reported to Leclerc, sufficed to prove to him the failure of the device by which the parents were to be enslaved through their attachment to their children. Most un- worthy purpose ! What a terrible thing is war ! How blind is ambition ! A thii-st for self-aggrandisement, when supported by power and sustained by position, confounds right and wrong, desecrates the holy, disowns moral obligation, and spreads wasting and woe through families, cities and nations. Further attempts at accommodation wei"e made. Toussaint offered to prevent resistance, if Leclerc would communicate to him the instructions he had received from the First Consul, and stop the advance of the French troops. Toussaint added, that should Leclerc continue to press forward, he would repel him by force of arms. A deputation of the natives waited on the French commander. To their solicitations, Leclerc insolently replied, that he was the brother-in-law of the First Consul, that he had the bayonets on his side, and that he would take Toussaint TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE. 179 before he had his boots off. Full of himself, and faucying that he was about to become the Bonaparte of America, he issued to the inhabitants of Saint Domingo the following procla- mation ! — Head Quarters of the Cape, le 28 Pluviose, an 10. (17th February, 1802.) "Inhabitants of Saint Domingo, " I have come hither in the name of the French Government, to bring you peace and happiness ; I feared I should encounter obstacles in the ambitious views of the chiefs of the colony; I was not in error. " Those chiefs who announced their devotion to France in their proclamations, had no intention of being Frenchmen ; if they sometimes spoke of France, the reason is that they did not think themselves able to disown it openly. At present their perfidious intentions are unmasked. General Toussaint sent me back his sons with a letter in which he assured me that he desu'ed nothing so much as the happiness of the colony, and that he was ready to obey all the orders that I should give him. " I ordered him to come to me ; I gave him an assurance that I would employ him as my Lieutenant-general : he replied to that oi'der by mere words; he only seeks to gain time. " I have been commanded by the French Government to establish here prosperity and abimdance promptly ; if I allow myself to be amused by cunning and perfidious circumlocutions, the colony will be the theatre of a long civil war. " I commence my campaign, and I will teach that x'ebel what is the force of the French Government. " From this moment he must be regarded by all good French- men residing in Saint Domingo only as an insensate monster. " I have promised liberty to the inhabitants of Saint Domingo ; I will see that they enjoy it. I \n\\ cause persons and property to be respected. " I oi'dain what follows : — *' Article 1. — General Toussaint and General Christophe are outlawed ; every good citizen is commanded to seize them, and to treat them as rebels to the French Kepublic. n2 180 THE LIFE OF " Ai'ticle 2. — From the clay when the French army shall have taken up quarters, every officer, whether chdl or military, who shall obey other orders than those of the Generals of the army of the FrcQch E.epiiblic, which I command, shall be treated as a rebel. "Ai'ticle 3. — The agricultural labourers who have been led into error, and who, deceived by the pei'fidious insinuations of the rebel Generals, may have taken up arms, shall be treated as wandering childi-en, and shaU be sent back to tillage, provided they have not endeavoiu'ed to incite in- surrection. "Article 4. — The soldiers of the demi-brigades who shall abandon the army of Toussaint, shall form part of the French army. " Article 5. — General Augustin Clervaux, vrho commands the department of the Cibao, having acknowledged the Fi'ench government, and the authority of the Captain-General, is maintained in his rank and in his command. "Article 6. — The General-in-chief of the Staff will cause this proclamation to be printed and jjubHshed. " The Captain-General commanding the ax-my of Saint Domingo. (Signed) " Leclerc." This is plain language, Leclerc could speak so as to be under- stood, when it suited his purpose. Toussaint L'Ouverture, on his part, was not dismayed by the threatening storm. The gi-eater the danger the loftier was his spirit ; he reviewed his guard, and acqiiainted them with General Leclerc's imperious determination. "General," they shouted ^vith one voice, '•' we will all die with you." TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE. 181 CHAPTER Y. General Lcclerc advances against Toussaint with 25,000 men iji three divisions, intending to overwhelm Ixim near Gonaives — the plan is disconcerted by a check given by Toiissaint to General Eochambcau in the ravine Couleuvre. The Captain-general of the French army, having mustered all his disposable forces in the north, and received a reinforcement of seven thousand men, commenced operations in three divisions, amoimting in all to five-and-twenty thousand men. One division, commanded by General Rochambeau, set out froir. Fort Dauphin to march to Saint Michel ; the second, led by Desfour- neaux, advanced from Limbe to occupy Plaisance ; and the third, mider Genei-al Hardy, marching to the centre, went to take possession of Marmelade. These three divisions wei'e, together with Boudet, who was to proceed from Port-au-Prince, to effect a jimction at Gonaives, in order to surprise Toussaint in his head quarters there, and put a speedy termination to the war. In proportion as the French army forced its way into the interior of the country, which was broken by mountains, gorges, and defiles, the conflict became more and more difficult. The soldiers were vexed and harassed at having to do with a flying enemy, who, constantly fighting in ambush, inflicted wounds or death as if from an mvisible cause, with perfect impimity to themselves, whether from the speed with which they fled into well-knowu retreats, or from the height of the mountains, on which the sua burnt with a heat intolerable to Europeans. In these marches, which were rather difficult than long, the soldiers suffered from hunger, thirst, and extreme lassitude ; and after the perils and penalties of the ocean, they found on the land, instead of repose or glory, a warfare in which A^ctory brought no honour, and defeat entailed deep disgrace; and in which victory was 2>urchased by intolerable endiu'ance, and defeat was made afflict- ing by contemi^t for the foe, and disastrous by the revenge which that foe could on his own soil so easily take. In quitting Fort 182 THE LIFE OF Dauphin, Rochambeau traversed the country called Ouanaminthe, jiassed round the north of La Grande Riviere, climbed the black mountain of Gonaives, and descended towards the savannahs of La Desolee. The division commanded by Desfourneaux took possession of the district of Plaisance, which was treacherously delivered to him by its commander without striking a blow. The division under Hardy scaled and captured the formidable position at Boispin, and carried at the point of the bayonet Marmelade, which was defended by Christophe. The theatre of the war lay accordingly on the chain of the mountains which separates the north from the west, and which overtop the heights of Dondon, Valliere, and the black mountain of Gonaives. In those places Toussaint had concentrated liis inferior army in order to prevent the French, who had landed on three points of the coast, from concerting their operations, and from surrounding his own troops, overwhelming him at once with all their sea and land forces. The situation of Toussaint had become perilous, environed as he was on all sides by advancing foes. The peril, however, was neither unexpected nor unprovided for. Rochambeau was near Lacroix, lying in the mountains in a line between Esther and Gonaives. In order to descend into the plains he must pass through the ravine Couleuvre. This ravine was a naiTow gorge flanked by precipitous mountains, covered with wood, and which swarmed with armed black labourers. Rochambeau, by a movement in this direction, seemed likely to effect great results. He might render himself master of the person of Madame Toussaint, of her sister and her two nieces, who had just arrived at Lacroix. He might also cut off Tous- saint's connexion with Dessalines and Belair, and so bring the contest to an end by one blow. It was then necessary for Toussaint to prevent the advance of Rochambeau, unless he was willing to be the next morning attacked by all Leclerc's anny, in a semicircle, of which the coast, off which lay vessels of war, would have been the diameter. Leaving General Yemet, therefore, in command of his troops at Gonaives, he put himself TOUSSAIXT LOUVERTURE. 183 at the head of a squadron aud of the grenadier battalion of his guard, aud marched to his habitation at Lacroix. Not finding his wife and family on hi.s arrival, he inquired where they were, and at what distance Rochambeau might be. He could learn, nothing more exact than that at the news of the enemy's approach, the ladies had sought shelter in the forest. Toussaint having surveyed the district, made his arrangements for attack. To stop or retard the foe, he closed the defile with trees that were felled aud thi'own across the narrow path. In the flanks of the two mountains he placed ambuscades, that were to fall on the French ou their sides and in theii' rear, at the same time that he would assail them in front, thus surrounding them every way. For fear of being discovered he lighted no fire during the night. Accompanied by one of his aide-de-camps and two labourers, he went forwai'd to reconnoitre. One of his guides having pushed on venturously, fell into the midst of an outpost belonging to Rochambeau. Captured, he was put to death without being able even by a cry to warn Toussaint of the proximity of his foes. Having learned all he could, that general rejoined his band, gave orders for battle, and addressed to the soldiers the following speech : — " You are going to fight against enemies who have neither faith, law, nor religion. They promise you liberty, they intend your servitude. Why have so many ships traversed the ocean, if not to throw you again into chains ? They disdain to recognise in you submissive children, and if you are not their slaves, you are rebels. The mother countiy, misled by the Consul, is no longer anything for you but a step-mother. Was there ever a defence more just than youi-s? Uncover yo\ir breasts, you will see them branded by the iron of slavery. During ten years, what did you not undertake for liberty? Your masters slain or put to flight ; the English humiliated by defeat ; discord extin- guished; a land of slavery purified by fire, and reviving more beautiful than ever under liberty ; these are your labours, and these the fruits of your labours; and the foe wdshes to snatch both out of your hands. Already have you left traces of jom- despair ; but for a traitor, Port-au-Pi-ince would be only 184 THE LIFE OF heap of niins; but Leogaue, Fort-Daupliiu, tlie Cape, that opulent capital of the Antilles, exist no longei" ; you have carried everywhere consuming tires, the flamheaux of our liberty. The steps of GUI* enemies have trodden only on ashes, their eyes have eucoimtered nothing but smoking ruins, which you have watered with their blood. This is the road by which they have come to us. What do they hope for I Have we not all the presages of victory I Not for their country, not for libei'ty do they light, but to serve the hatred and the ambition of the Consul, my enemy, mine because he is yours; their bodies are not mutilated by the punishments of servitude, their wives and their children are not near their camps, and the graves of their fathers are beyond the ocean. This sky, these mountains, these lands, all are sti-ange to them'.^ "What do I say? As soon as they breathe the same air as we, their bravery sinks, their courage departs. Fortune seems to have delivered them as victims into our hands. Those whom the sword spares, will be struck dead by an aveng- ing climate. Their bones will be scattered among these moun- tains and rocks, and tossed about by the waves of our sea. Never more will they behold their native land ; never more will they receive the tender embraces of their wives, their sisters, and their mothers; and liberty will reign over their tomb." On his side, Kochambeau, too much accustomed to treat the A fi-icans with pride and contempt, nevertheless thought it prudent to encourage his men by telling them that this day would raise theii" glory to the highest pitch, since there woiild be no part of the world which w'ould not be a witness of their triumph ; that the Tiljer, the Nile, and the Rhine, where they had conquered very formidable adversaries, resounded with the echoes of their exploits; that now they had to combat slaves, who, not daring to look them in the face, were flying on all hands; and that they had not come thousands of miles from home to be overcome by a rebellious slave. As soon as the day broke, Toussaint's advanced guard, in passmg a liver, encountered the advanced guard of Rochambeau, which was on its march. Then the action began. The im2)etu- ositv of the attack was checked by the bravery of the resistance TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE. 1S5 The troops iu ambush pressed foi'ward on the flanks and in the rear of the French, who eveiywhere presented a bokl front to the assailants. The retrenchment having been opened, the conflict became bloody and obstinate. Now the \'ictory inclined to this side, now to that. The iincertainty did but iiiflame the courage of both. Toussaint was then seen to brave a thousand perils. Some of his grenadiei's yieliling a little before the French impetuosity, a yoiuig oflicer called back their powers by these words, " What I you desert your general !"' That moment he put himself at the head of a platoon of grenadiers, and ascending an eminence which commanded Eochambeau's right wing, annoyed him with a desti'uctive tire. At this moment an oflicer of di'agoons having informed Toussaint that his wife and family were behind a moitntain not far from the place of action ; he replied, "Do you .see that they take the road to Esther; I must liere perform my duty." His duty he did pei'form. Regardless of himself, he encoiu-aged liis men when they vacillated, and ever again led them into the fight. With such fury did the conflict rage that arms wei'e thrown aside, and combatants, seizing each other, struggled for life and death. The field of hattle was covered with tlae slain. A decisive eftbrt was neces- sary. Patting himself at the head of his grenadiers, Toussaint rushed to the attack, and drove Rochambeau over the river, where, in the moniing, the fight had begun. He then retm^ned, and took up a position on his side of the sti'cam. The issue I'emained undecided, but Toussaint had rescued his family and stopped the impetuous career of Rochambeau. He had also gained time, while Christophe, by a vigorous defence, retarded the advance of Desfourneaux and of Hardy. Thus had he saved himself from being surrounded on the plain of Gonaives. Like a man of genius, he had chosen the place and the time of the combat, and in a crisis obtained gi'eat advantages. Retiring towai'd his centre, Toussaint pitched his camp on the banks of the Esther. There, surrounded by his soldiers and his family, and covered with a cloak, he had only a plank on which to sit and to sleep. He passed the greater part of the night in despatching orders written with his oAvn hand, and in going 186 THE LIFE OF fi'om post to post. The next day lie sent liis wife and family to the mountain known by the name of Grand Cahos, which runs in a line with the Artibonite. His visit to Esther, however, was only for a temporary purpose. He was too good a soldier to meet the concentrated forces of the enemy in a level country, Avhere, with all his valour, he would not have been able to pre- vent his comparatively diminutive army from being crushed. His abihty to offer any effectual resistance had arisen fi'om the judgment he had employed in making the mountains the seat of the warfare. Justified in this policy by the success which he had gained, he determined to evacute Esther, and to collect troops in another mountainous stronghold, still more favoiu-able than that in which he had defeated Rochambeau. A review of the operations ofToussaint L'Ouverture, from the point at which our narrative has arrived, shows that the method of his warfare consisted in passive or active resistance, which, after spreading fire and devastation before the enemy's march, withdrew from the coast and made the mountauis its centre and its bulwark. That this plan was carefully weighed and well laid out, may be presumed from a knowledge of Toussaint's character. It was also carried into effect as thoroughly as cir- cumstances permitted. If in any respect it failed, the failui'e was owing to no remissness on the part of the gi'eat chief The following letters written by him at the beginning of the cam- paign, may serve to illustrate and confirm these observations, and may conduce to the reader's acquaintance with tlie character of oiu' hero. " Liberty. « Equality. " The Governor-General to General Dessalines, Commander- in-chief of the army of the West. Head Quarters, Gonaives, Fob. 8, 1802. " There is no reason for despair, Citizen-General, if you can succeed in removing from the troops that have landed the resources offered to them by Poi't Kepublican. Endeavour, by -all the means of force and address, to set that place on fire ; it is TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE. 187 constructed entii-ely of wood; you have only to send into it some faithful emissaries. Are there none imder your orders devoted enough for this sci'\'ice ? Ah ! my dear General, what a misfortune that there was a traitor in that city, and that your orders and mine were not put into execution. "Watch the moment when the garrison shall be weak in con- .sequence of expeditions into the plains, and then try to sui-prise and carry that city, faUiiig on it in the rear. " Do not forget, while waiting for the rainy season which will i*id us of oiu" foes, that we have no other resource than destruc- tion and flames. Bear in mind that the soil bathed with our sweat must not fiimish our enemies ^vith the smallest aliment. Tear up the roads with shot ; throw corpses and horses into all the foimtains; burn and annihilate everything in order that those who have come to reduce us to .slavery may have before their eyes the image of that hell which they deserve. " Salutation and Friendship, (Signed) "Toussaikt L'Ouverture." " Toussaint L 'Ouverture, Governor of Saint Domingo, to citizen Domage, Brigadier-General, commanding the district of Jcremie. " Head Quarters, Saint iTarc, the 9tL of Feb. 1802. " I send to you, my dear General, my aide-de-camp, Chancy. He conveys to you the present communication, and will tell you from me what I have chai'ged him to make known to you. " The whites of France and of the Colony, imited together, ■wish to take away oui* liberty. INIany vessels and troops have arrived, which have seized the Caj)e, Port Republican, and Fort Liberte. " The Cape, after a Aagorous resistance, has fallen ; but the enemy found only a city and country of ashes ; the forts were blown up, and ever}^thing has been burnt. " The town of Poi-t RepubKcau was smu-endered to them by the traitor Age, as well as Fort Bizoton, which yielded without .striking a blow, thi'ough the cowardice and the treachery of ISS THE LIFE OF Bardet. The Genei'al of division, Dessalines, at tliis moment maintains a cordon at Croix des Bouquets; and all our otlier places ai'e on the defensive. " As Jeremie is veiy strong through its natural advan- tages, you will maintain yourself in it, and defend it "with the coiu'age which I know you possess. Raise the labourers in a mass, and infuse into them this truth, namely, that they must distrust those who have received proclamations from the whites of France, and who secretly circulate them in order to seduce the friends of liberty. " I have ordered Laplume, Brigadier-general, to set on fire the city of Cayes, the other to-\vns, and all the plains, in case he is unable to withstand the enemy's force, and then all the troops of the different gaiTisons, and all the laboiirers, should go to Jeremie to augment yoiu* band; you will take measures with General Laplume, for the due execution of these things; you wUl employ the women engaged in agriculture in making depots of provisions in great abundance. " Endeavour as much as you can to send me news of your position. I reckon entirely on you, and leave you absolutely master, to do everything in order to save iis fi-om the most frightful yoke. " Wishing you health, " Salutation and Friendship, (Signed) " Toussaint L'Ouverturk" CHAPTER VI. Toussaint L'Ouvertui-e prepares Crete-a-Pierrot as a point of resistance against Lcclerc ; who, mustering his forces, besieges the redoubt, which, after the bravest defence, is evacuated by the blacks. The district into which Toussaint L'Ouverture had sent his family was that to which he meant to transfer his resistance. The moimtain range which he resolved to occupy and entrench. TOUSSAINT l'oUYERTURE. 189 bears tlie name of Artibonite, and is divided into two districts, the one called the Grand Cahos, the other the Petit Cahos. These mountains, over which he spread his army, are intersected with deep ravines and precipitous outlets, at every one of which a handful of brave men coiild arrest an army. The prin- cijial entrance was defended by Crete-a-Pierrot, a redoubt which blocked up the pass, and which tlie English had constiaicted when they invaded tlie Avest. In passing toward the new seat of war, where lie was joined by his chief generals, Toussaint was suddenly attacked with a burning fever. His mind, however, so far mastered his body, that he scarcely abated his activity, and formed designs of the greatest daring, in making arrangements for attacking the enemy in the rear. Ill as he was, he set out to siu-vey the dis- trict, and arrived in time to prevent the demolition of Crete-a- PieiTot, which had been al)andoned, and which Dessaluies had ordered to be rased. He then proceeded to add to its strength. He supplied it with water and food, as precautions against a siege. He placed in it a garrison, and gave the command to Dessaliues. Having called the officers together, he harangued them thus : — " Children, yes, you are all my children — from Lamartiniere, who is white as a white, but who knows that he has negro blood in his veins, to Monpoiut, whose skin is the same as mine : — I entrust to you this post ; take measures for its defence." The officers declared that he might rely on them, living or dead. To more destructive hands than those of Dessalines, this important post could not have been confided. In his retreat, that ferocious monster had dragged away from tlieu* homes all the whites he could seize, whom the sword and the musket had spared. These were conducted to Verettes, Mirebalais, and Petite Kiviere, towns lying along the banks of the Artibonite. There were renewed the frightful scenes of the first insurrection. At the sight of the conflagration which reduced into ashes the villages and the fields, at the foot of Mount Cahos, where Toussaint had entrenched himself, a vast carnage was made of the whites. Four hundred men were massaci-ed at Mirebalais 190 THE LIFE OF and Petite Riviere. In no place was the slaughter so terrible a^ at the village of Verettes. At the nod of Dessalines, men who had been slaves, and who dreaded the new sei-vitude with which they were thi-eatened, slew seven hundred of the poor wretches that Dessalines had dragged after him. The daughter breathed her last on the bosom of her expiring mother. The father was unable to save the son ; the son was unable to save the father. There a sister died in the arms of a brother ; here a nurse tried to make her body a means of defence for her infant; her milk and her blood flowed in one stream. Farther on, old men in vain implored pity from their former slaves, whom they called on by name, to bring back the remembrance of past acts of kindness. Whole families were thus bathed in blood. More frightftd and more atrocious still was the sight when sons slew their fathers, thus revenging themselves for the black blood of their mothers, and the neglect and disavowal of their fathers. So great was the fuiy of the blacks and mulattoes, that they even wreaked their rage on domestic animals which belonged to the planters. Thus the banks of the Artibonite were covered with fire and blood. Before the an-ival of the French expedition all there was peacefid, prosperous and happy. The French felt deep compassion when on coming up they beheld at Yerettes so many -vdctims who still remained unburied^ and who retained the attitudes in which they perished, as if to paint an awful picture of the evils of slaverj\ They there saw the arm of one victim locked in that of another, hand grasped in hand, faces fixed on the same object; father, mother, children grouped together, a family even in death ; young women who in the last moments forgot not they were women; bodies which had served as useless ramparts to friendshijD, and to filial and paternal love : the scenes were hon-ible. Nor was their horror abated by the fact that ravages scarcely less ati'ocious had been committed by the white invaders. A little before, the bay of Mancenille had smoked with innocent blood. And on more than one occasion had prisonei's been slain in bands, in order to strike alarm into the defenders of their native soil. All the blacks, howef er, were not barbarians. Many, moved by pity or TOUSSAINT l'OUVERTURE. 191 gi'atitude, saved tlie lives of unfortunate colonists ; some concealed them in the mountains, and supported them by what they took in hunting; others led them through bye paths, into districts occupied by the French. There were blacks who, to prevent suspicion on the part of pursuers, covered their white friends with leaves and branches, and counterfeited drunkenness when they thought there was special danger of discovery. Calamities public and private so numerous and so terrible were more than human strength could endure, and under their pressm'e some persons lost their reason and others committed suicide. "What a complication of soitows, all caused by slavery ! Having provided for the defence of the country of the Artibo- nite, and directed Belair to occupy the mountains of Yerettes, Toussaint proceeded to execute his daringplan of taking Leclerc in the rear in order to operate a diversion in favovu- of the Artibonito lines, and to reanimate the coui'age of the north. "With a small but resolute force Toussaint ascended the defiles, and the chain of mountains which separate the Artibonite from the district of Saint Michel. In vain was General Hardy detached in pursuit of him by Leclerc, whose army was in movement to attack Crete-a-Pierrot. Toussaint appeared at Enneiy, and the French garrison which Leclerc had left there fled at his approach to Gonai'ves. He presented himself before GonaTves, and might have captiured it had he chosen. He was satisfied with alarming the garrison, which was on the point of embarking on board a frigate that was in the roads. Having attained his end he re- turned to Enneiy where he organized battalions of militia, who were employed to guard and defend the country. This work finished, he betook himself to Marmelade. There he sent an order to Christophe, who was at Petite-Ri\*iere, to return promptly into the north, where, in the forest of Grande-Riviere, there had, without the French being aware of it, been formed a considerable depot of amis and ammunition. From Marmelade Toussaint went to Plaisance. On his arrival he proceeded to reconnoitre a fort situated on a height. A few hours after, he placed himself at the head of two companies of grenadiers and captured it. The following day he divided his ti'oops into two 192 THE LIFE OP bodies. Taking tlie command of the right "wing, he marched to meet Desfourneaux, who was coming up to attack him. He bore up against the impetuosity of the French troops, who were much more numerous than his own, and at leng-th succeeded in. putting them to flight. Sending in the moment of action an aide-de-camp to learn how things went on in the left wing, he was led to beheve that Desfourneaux was manoeuvring so as to circumvent him. Thereupon he left the right to the cai'e of Colonel Gabarre, and with a few men hurried to the point of danger. Among the European troops he recognised the imiform of the ninth Saint Domingo regiment. Advancing quite alone to within five or six paces of the i-egiment, which easily reco- gnised their pi'oper commander, he said, "Soldiers of the ninth, will you dare fire on your general and on your brethren f The words fell like a thunder-clap on the soldiers; who forthwith were on their knees, and, but for the European troojis, who began to fire, they would have joined Toussaint. Seeing the peril of their general, Toussaint's forces defended him against the Euro- jjeans. He escaped through the thick of a fire which was very destructive. A young oflScer, bearing a letter from Dessalines to the Governor of the island, received a mortal blow at the moment that he delivered it, and expired in Toussaint's arms. From that letter the Gcneral-in-chief learned tliat his aid was ur- gently required at Crete-il-Pierrot ; thither therefore he repaired. The French had been drawing their strength under the foot of the mountains of Cahos. As they made their way they beheld the ravages committed by the enemy. Traces of fire and death appeared everywhere. Here and there they met a great number of colonists wandering in the woods and hanging on the sides of the rocks, Avith their wives and cliildren, having escaped from death only by chance or flight. The soldiers restored to them hope, and promised them revenge. The sight of these unhappy people, whose clothes were in rags, their cries, their meanings, the hor- ror with which they were stricken, inflamed the minds of their i-escuers, and prepared them for any atrocities. Without scruple and without pity they massacred the herds of blacks whom the fate of war had thrown into their hands ; two hundred they immo- TOUSSAINT LOUVERTrUE. 193 hited at the fort of IMount Nolo; a little furtlier on, six humlred fell beneath their murderous hands. Thus carnage was added to carnage, and black blood flowed to avenge white blood. The savage and torn sides of INIount Cahos, the odorous banks of the Artibonite, offered the spectacle of barbarity opjiosed to bar- barity, and war was only prolonged assassination. These are the horrible devastations of slavery. No graves Avere dug, no mounds were raised for sepulture. Dessaliues had ])rohibited interment, in order tliat the eyes of his assailants might see his vengeance even in the repulsive re- mains of carnage. It'is said that the monster slew a mother for having buried her son. The French, carried away by the move- ments of the wai', gave no attention to the religious duty of burial, so that the dead bodies became food for dogs, vultures and crocodiles ; and their bones, partly calcined by the sun, remained scattered aboiit, as if to mark the mournful fury of servitude and lust of power. Fortune seemed to smile on Leclerc. He lost no time in announcing to his brother-in-law his success, which he failed not to exaggerate — entire battalions that had joined his ranks, the two provinces of the South and the East subdued, all the maiu- time cities in his pov/er, — such were the heads of his triumphant report. He described Toussaint L'Ouvertiu-e as a party-chief, sullen, violent, fanatical, hateful, breathing only fire and slaugh- ter; he called him a barbarian, an unnatural fatlier, sacrificing his children to his passion for revolt, a mere fugitive slave, devoured by remorse, abandoned and pursued. This news, which gave the consul joy, delighted the colonists who had remained in France, and revived the cupidity of the slave-dealers whose vessels had for six years remained in harbour un])rodiictivc. When however Bonaparte began seriously to reflect on all that had taken place, his satisfaction was not a little diminished. It was true that he held under his domination, the South rich in manufactures, and the East fertile in pasturage. But what had he conquered 1 Lands in ashes. Port-au-Prince had miracidously escaped from the incendiaiy torch. But what a sight in other parts ! Those barbarians do not place the keys of their cities at o 19-i THE LIFE OF tlie feet of tlieir concj^aerors. Toussaint, designated a bandit, is a foi'midable general in his mountains. The consul applies himself to study tliat remarkable man. He is the soul of the war, and him he must reach, seize, and put in chains. That accomplished, what then'? He must attach to himself the men of mixed blood, who are already partly his. Then discord must be disseminated. The black in revolt will be overcome by the subjugated black. This was the consul's policy. These were his means for bringing the island into subjection. To this jDurpose, and for these results, he wrote to Leclerc. But suddenly the war took a new aspect. Twelve thousand men, the bravest soldiers of the republic, are assembled near Petite-Riviere to put down a revolted .slave! Rochambeau, Hardy, Debelle, generals of great skill and high powei'S, are stopped in a ravine by a handfid of revolted slaves ! then" pas.:;age is barred, their valour rendered nugatory liy a few men whom they despise ! officers and soldiers who liave gained victory and renown against the first troops of Europe, perish in huge numbers under the blows of half-civilized blacks. So much do the issues of war depend on opportunity ; so dear is freedom; so odious is servitude. The first division which came up to the attack of Crete-a- Peirrot was that of Debelle. As soon as the French troops v/ere seen in the redoubt, Dessalines opened the gates. " The gates have been opened," he said, "for those who do not feel themselves courageous enough to die ; while there is yet time, let the friends of the French depart ; they have nothing but death to look for here." After having sent away all whom sickness or fear made desirous of going, he sjrread a train of gunpowder as far as the first gate, and seizing a torch, exclaimed, "Now for the first fire : I will blow up the fort, if you do not defend it." During these things the French were advancing, preceded by a herald (-Ith March 1802). The herald held a letter in his hand. Dessalines ordei'ed his men to fire. The herald fell dead. Firhig began on both sides in real earnest. For several hoiirs it contmued without an ii:iterval. The Frcncli rushed forward with their usual bravery and enthusiasm, but it was only to meet death. The TOUSSAIXT LOUVERTURE. 195 moment they were witlihi reach, the batteries were opened and the ground was strewed with dead. The genei*al-tn-chief Debelle was grievonsly wounded, as well as Brigadier-general Devanx. The division was compelled to fall hack witli the los>; of four hundred men. This defeat deeplj" atiocted the mind of Leclerc, who was then at Port-au Prince. Was his victorious career, then, to be delayed by a single stronghold? Not without apprehension ho hastened to the scene of action. He brought with him the division of Boudet. While the troops wore assembling, a scout of Toussaint's, in liis zeal to ascertain all he could, entered their camp, pretend- ing to be a desei-tcr. In the midst of his guard, (leneral Boudet questioned the man. When the fonncr asked liim how many •whites he had put to death, the latter, with well feigned fear, appeared ovei'whclmed. In the twinkling of an eye, having learnt the condition of the French, he leapt from his horse. Boudet, the first to observe the movement, attempted to seize him, and had his thiunb nearly bitten off. The man got away, .slipped beneath the horse's legs, overthrew tlie soldiers who attempted to stop him, ran toward the Ai-tibonite, plunged into the stream, and escaped amid a shower of balls. Ai-rived on the opposite bank, he appearetl to have been struck, for he fell a.s if his thigh were broken. The presence on the other side of the river of a reconnoitring jiarty of the foe prevented pursmt. Tlie black scout, who had tlie rank of cavitain, appears to have been carried off 1 )y his friends. Among the troops which now advanced to the attack, there were Rigaud and Potion. True to his instructions, Leclerc added to the skill of his white soldiers the faiy and the animosity of mulatto blood. In the interval wliich had elapsed since the first attack, Dessalincs had erected a new fort on an eminence v.-hich com- manded that on which stood the famous Crete-a-Pierrot. The new redoubt, thoui^h hastily constructed, was to witness the defeat of the con-sul's boastful brother-in-law. The French m advancing surprised a camp of blacks who were asleep. Th-^y fell on them ; the blacks ran toward the fort, o 2 196 THE LIFE OF and the French ]rai-sued them. Those who could not enter the fort threw themselves into the moat. Immediately the fort opened its fire and mowed down the assailants. General Boudet received a wound. At the moment when his division was on the point of perishing that of Dugua came up. Forth^\'ith that general was struck. Only one general officer kept the field. Then the blacks rushed to the charge. The French r(.'treated. In the retreat, Leclerc himself, who came up with reinforcements, received a serious contusion. This second attack cost the ca})tain-general eight hundred men. In their retrograde movement the Europeans had opportunities of ascertaining how entirely the population was in enmity against them. On the plantations they saw the labourers watching their movements. Those labourers exchanged shots with the soldiers who flanked the columii. If a party of scouts were detached, they fled j as soon as the scouts retired, they re-appeared. The French army inspired only terror. A third attack was to be made. The stronghold was regu- larly invested. Fresh troops had come up. All that ability, experience, labour and prowess could contiibute was set in vigorous action. While the operations for the blockade were proceeding, the French soldiers heard irom the strongholds the words of the very songs to which they had themselves marched against the enemies of liberty in Europe. The effect was singular and deep. '•' What ! those black men the injured, and we the iu- jurers! those black men the oppressed, and we the ojipressors! Are we then no longer the servants and patrons of liberty ? The republic gives freedom ; we are fighting for servitude." Such impressions were little likely to increase the efficiency of repub- lican soldiers. Then- duty they would continue to do, but ser'V'ices higher than a mei'e sense of duty can command were now required. By degrees, the works were completed and brought into play against the redoubt. Partial successes were obtamed. Encouraged by these, Eochambeau thought himself able to carry a battery, which he had for a moment silenced, by one blow. TOUSSAINT LOUVEnXURE. 197 He lost tliree hundred men in the useless attempt. Then a constant cannonade v,-as commenced. From the 22nd to the 24th of March, it was carried on with great activity. The redoubt was in the greatest peril. At this time a black man and a black woman were cap- tured. Suspected to be spies, they were subjected to the severest punishment. The man said he was bluid ; nothing but the whites of his eyes were to be seen. Only in leaning on the aged negress, his companion, did he appear able to Avalk, She affected to be deaf. Scarcely any thing but groans and sobs could the cruellest treatment extort from them. At length, compiission prevailed. They Avere bid go about their business. They had dreadfully suffered, and seemed unable to move. Not before they were threatened to be shot, did they attempt to walk. They were conducted beyond the outlying sentinels. When fairly out of the reach of their enemies, they began to dance ; and instantly darted off for the fort, where they were received. They conveyed to its commander intelligence of the approach of Toussaint L'Ouverture. That very uiglit (March 24) an attack v/as made on the French lines which was I'epulsed only with difficulty and lo.ss. That attack was led by Toussaint himself, who had conceived a project woi'thy of his own genius. Having reason to think the north coitld for some time give him no more trouble, and afraid lest Crete-a-Pierrot might be carried by .storm, he ha.stened to the Artibonite, intending with a few trusty soldiers to penetrate to Leclerc's head quarters, make him prisoner and ship him off to France. To aid him in his darii'g plan, a feint was made in tlie attack of which we have just spoken. And the captured fugi- tives were sent to encourage the garrison to hold out. The stratagem was too late. Lamartiniere, who had taken the command, with his accustomed bravery had done and endured •everything that man can do and endure. With his soldiers he patiently bore hunger, thirst, sickness, exhaustion, and the j)ro- spect of death at any moment. With their aid, he performed prodigies of heroism. But stone walls are not proof against cannon balls and bomb.?. The forts were defended against 198 THE LIFE OF thousands of bruA'c Freuclimen, even wlien falling into i-uins. But tbe liour at length came. Then, when resistance was vain, the commandtT resolved to cut himself a passage through the ranks of his enemies. He escaped from the hands of 12,000 men, not having lost half his gari'ison, and leaving to his as.sailants only the dead and the wounded amid a heap of ruins. CHAPTEtl Yll. Shattered condition of tlic Frencli armr — Dark prospects of Toussaint — Leclerc opens ncgotiatioDi for peace — wins over Christopbc and Dessalinos — offers to recognise Toussaint as Governor-General — receives his submission on con- dition of preserving xjniversal freedom — L'Ouverturo in the quiet of his home. Deakly had the reduction of Crete-a- Pierrot been bought by the French. The loss deeply afflicted the captain-general, who induced his subordinates to make it appear as slight as possible, remembering the contemptuous terms in which he had s^joken of Toussaint and his forces, and well di-eadiiig the moral effect on the inhabitants of the island. After the capture of this stronghold, Leclerc took measures for re-establishing his communications. Ho ordered Rocham- beau's division to open them by forming a junction at Gonaives ■s^dth Desfomiieaux ; and dii-ected Hardy with his forces to make for the Cape. The latter division were compelled to form for themselves a road with their arms in their hands. Under the impression that the invaders had suffered a total defeat. Hardy had with him only bands of fugitives who hastened to the Cape in order to fly by sea from the island, while on the whole Kne of his march, he encountered opposition from regular troops or armed labourers. But for the courage of the soldiers who were kept under discipline, and the judgment and energy of the TOUSSAINT l'oUVEHTURE. 199- commanders, tlic ■whole divisiou would have peiishcd. From iour to five hundred men were lost on the route. While the divisions of Eochambeaii and Hardy proceeded toward the north, that of Boudet, under the command of General Lacroix, was commanded to return to Saint Marc, in order to- attack Eclair, who up to that time had remained in observation on the heights of Matheux, which stand to the south-east of that post, between it and Mount Cahos, We give a report of the imdertaking in the words of its leader. " We climbed the heights by the sources of Moimt Eonis. I had often heurd speak of a 'cai'abiued road ;' but I was, I avow, far from forming an idea of the obstacles which I had to over- come in order to open the carabined road of Matheux. Yet was I expert in work of the kind, having a year before o^jened the passage of Splugen. In the memorable campaign of the army of resci-ve, I had also traced round fort Bard, routes on. peaked mountains declared impassable. I had conveyed cannon by those roads, thus executing an enterprise till then regarded as impossible. That path round fort Bard threw dovrn the barrier which stood against the fortune of the first consul; by that road the army of reserve gained the plains of Piedmont and reconquered ]taly on the field of I\Iarengo. Precipices and road accidents are every where the same ; but in the Alps the bush- Vfood is at least accessible, and the trees are of a determinate height, while in America the former are fine mountains and the latter colossal masses which you can scarcely take in in one view, and wliich you can displace only by strength of arm and lenijth of time. I doubt whether I could have been able to crain the plateau of Matheux, if Belair had added the efibrtsof his re- sistance to the obstacles of the locality in which he was. '' After the most fatiguing march, I at last arrived at Matheux. Belaii- had quitted the ])lain the previous evening to join Des.sa- lines on Mount Cahos. "I wrote to him, suggesting that he should imitate the examples of Generals Clervaux, Paul L'Ouverture, and Maurepas, and announcing that I was authorized by the captain- general to guarantee to him and to his officers their military rank. He 200 THE LIFE OF answered that lie bliudly follovrcd the authority of Toussaint L'Ouverture, recognised governor for life, by the constitntion of the colony, and by his numberless services, which France seemed disposed to disown. " The lofty position of Mathenx jiresented to us the aspect of the champaign lands of France; we there found its atmo- sphere; the lungs of our soldiers dilated ; we were agile: on the contrary, the blacks, whom we had as auxiliaries, wore a shrunk jippearance. In the different gorges of the mountain, we de- livered from five to six hundred persons who had fled thither from Saint Marc and the neighbouring lands. Hardy and Kochambeau had set at laro-e a thousand fugitives in Mount Cahos. " I collected on Matheux a large immber of horses, mules, and horned cattle, which Belair had got together. Two days after, I began to march toward Port-au-Prince. A letter was brought me from General Boudet, who, dii-ecting me to conduct his divi- sion to that city, requested that I would make a processional en- trance into it, and that in so doing, I shoidd make the troops ap- pear as numerous as possible, in order to efface from the minds of the men of colour in the West the impressions they had received as to the extent of our loss. I put the troops into two ranks; our sections marched at great distances; all our officers were on horseback; artilleiy ready for the field was sent to meet me; I distributed it in the column with the baggage ; and our entrance produced the moi-al effect which we expected."'"' Nothing can more clearly show the valorous resistance made by Toussaint L'Ouverture than the frank confessions made by this respectable writer of the disorganized and weakened con- dition of the French troops after the capture of Crete- a-Pierrot. Scarcely able to keep the field or effect a retrograde movement, the decimated and shattered armies of Leclerc could not be allowed, except when tricked out in this fashson, to return to the capital of the island. What impudence, then, was that which described the great African leader as a mere chief of banditti ! * "Memoires pour servir ii. I'histolrc dc la Eevoliition," &c., Vol. ii. p. 172, scq. TOussAixT l'ouvef.ture. 201 and wliat did that leader want but tlie support of some European power, friendly to liumau freedom, in order to establish on a permanent basis that constitution which had been so wisely coustnicted, and tliat liberty which had been purchased at so large a price, and of which the Haytian negroes had proved themselves so worthy ? Alas ! such a friendly power did not exist. England and the United States were both counnitted to the support of slavery; and the gi-eat war of the African world had to be fought out by Toussaint alone. Well was the conflict sustained, and though the immediate result was adverse, the strife, we trust, will not have to be renewed. If the plains, the mountains, and the ravines of Saint Domingo say- nothing eftectually on behalf of negro rights, surely they ciy with so loud a voice, declaring the horrors of a war of " bloods," that even fear will suffice to break the bonds of the slave ! From the ruins and carnage of Crete-a-Pierrot, L'Ouvertnre liasteued to the recesses of Mount Cahos, whither he had ordered the brave defenders of that post to follow him. They, as well as he, needed a few days' I'epose. And thei'e, where he had for some time formerly dwelt, he met his wife and family, and in their society enjoyed a shore tranquillity. Of this brief leisure, he availed himself to write to Bonaparte, in order to ex- plain to him the conduct of General Leclerc and to ask him to send another to take his place, into whose hands he might resign the command of the island. This was an hoiir for calm reflection Toussaint L'Ouverture did not let .slip. Thoughtful by natui-e, he now by the force of circumstances was drawn to the consideration of his past career and his present position. He had eftected miich. At one time, he thought he had achieved the permanent freedom of his colour. But alas! the constitution had not been ratified. In defence of that solemn national act, he had not only again and again risked his life and neai-ly forfeited all he possessed, but he had given many a severe lesson to its assailants, and taught them to respect and fear a man whom they disgracefully attempted to enslave. Yet amid these triumphs, the final success of his undertakinjr seemed now to recede into distant 202 TIl^: LIFE OF mists. The present ^vas elark and gloom}'. Leclex'c, with shattered forces, was still strong, and should the ariny now under his command be annihilated, it could easily be replaced by the inexhaustible resources of France. Yet, so long as he himself lived, he was bound to laboiu- in the sacred cause he had under- taken. With the past full in his A'iew, he could not despair. Any way it is foi- man to deserve, as it is for God to give, success. Instead of sinking beneath his sense of the gve:it loss suffered by the destruction of Crete-a-Pierrot, Toussaint, after a brief interval, resumed hostile operations with an active energy not surpassed even in his days of triumph. lie had indeed disap- peared from the view of his foes, but it was only to deceive them by false and rapid marches, to prepare ambuscades, to harass them on their flanks and in the rear ; to make them sink under the fatigue, hunger, thirst, and want of sleep he compelled them to undergo. Now he covered his flight by deserts and by flames, to make their victory more baneful than ordinary defeat ; now he waited for his prey in a defile, always doing much, by the force of his genius, to carry the warfare beyond all acknowledged rules. Christophc in the north, Dessalines in the west, supported his adroit and rapid movements. At the sovmd of the chuix-h bells, he sent forth from the pulpit a manly and magical eloquence, which painted to the eye and impressed on the heart the horrors of servitude and the delights of liberty, and preached a religion which, acknowledging all men as brothers, disclaimed and con- demned slavery, and made his soldiers feel that in fighting for freedom they fought on the side of God and Christ. His sermon ovf;r, he resumed the soldier and tlie general, disappeared, flew, re-appeared, and seemed almost as if he possessed a species of omnipresence. All the time he had an army at his command, though where they wei'C, or what the number and resources of his troops, was hidden to all but himself and a chosen few; whUe, by means as sure as they A-.'erc hidden, he learnt all thatt ook place among his assailants. Moved by his authority, his spies and scouts, now in appeai-ance blind, deaf, lame, and now beggars or fugitives, made light of tod, peril, and torture TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTUKE. 205 ' ill a service which religion, as well as civil obedience, seemed to them to exact. The different bodies of the French army, who believed Tous- saiut ruined, if not dead, felt his blows on eveiy side; as they returned to the Cape, or to Port-au-Prince, he disturbed them, beat them, worried them, alike in their communications, in their attacks, in their marches, in their retreat. Everj'where, he car- ried alarm and dread. When the soldiei-s entered the Cape, Toussaint appeared in its suburbs. The city I'equired both walls and defenders. The blacks, if they appeared to be friends, proved to be enemies in reality. "With all despatch, Leclerc raised anew the fortifications of a town in which, more than ever, the party of servitude and the party of liberty disputed and contended. In that war, no man knew his neighbour ; you lived side by side with your enemy ; you slept under the same roof, you ate at the same table with him, and yet you knew him not; for there were blacks on the side of the consul, and there were whites on the side of Toussaint. At length, arms were taken up, the ships supplied cannon, and the sailor was brought on shore to fight. Only the moi'e vigour did Toussaint put forth, and the city was about to become liis prey when fresh troo^js arrived from France, and the black hero thought it pru- dent to retire. The ]>osition of Leclerc had become one of extreme difficulty. By painful e::perience, he had leai-nt with what singular enemies he had to contend. Of what use was it to continue a war in which victories cost so much and were so readily effaced by re- verses 1 Already had he lost five thousand men in battle ; a like number, sick or wounded, were in the hospitals. Besides, the war offered no reward; what glory was there even in totally subjugating semi-barbarian blacks ? Conquest, instead of en- riching the soldier, onl}"" carried him into burning towns or desert mountains. The army murmured ; the climr.te was intolerable ; the work they had to perform was repulsive. " The consul,'* they said, '■' has sent us here to pei-ish, companions though we are of his achievements and sharers in his glory." These, and similar complaints, which reached the ears of the -'01 THF LIFE OF •captain of the expedition, oceriSioned liim li^■ely disquietude, tlie rather because his army was attacked by a malady which, bad as it was, threatened to become more deadly; and although he ■expected fresh troops, scarcely would all suffice to keep the popu- lation in order, to say nothing of the exigencies of war. He had, it is true, many blacks under his banners, but could he count on their fideHty ] Did he not know, that their chiefs who showed the most zeal and devotion, were wrapped in impene- trable dissimulation, and that he kept them obedient onlj"" by reiterated promises of liberty. The people of colour appeared to him more dcA'oted, but had they not, in preceding Avars, passed now into the party of the whites, and now into that of the blacks, as much from incon- stancy as for the sake of liberty ? The barl^arous chiefs, however, who were his enemies, gave him most concern ; Christophe, filled with prowess and intrepidity ; Dessalines, that savage Achilles, of unequalled courage and fury ; Toussaint, who by his prolific genius was capable of everything, v/ho escaped only to reappear, who everywhere caused foes to spring up imder the feet of liis army, as if they were born of the mountains. Reflecting on these things — comiting his los.ses, siuweyiug his disappointments, measuring his enemies, calcvilating his difficul- ties, and foi'ecasting his prospects — Leclerc came to the determi- nation that he should act wisely, if he tried what could be done in the way of negotiation. Should the attempt fail, he would have gained time ; should it succeed, he would have put an end to a doubtful aud disastrous war. Among the heads of the hostile army, Christophe had shown the least aversion to accommodation. With him, Leclei'c commenced his negotiations ; he intimated to Christophe that, as the mother country would unquestionably give legal confir- mation to the abolition of servitude, the war Avas useless and without an object, and that the sole obstacle to peace being the ambition of Toussaint, he would arrange with him in order to an-est that chief in the most seci-et manner possible. Instead of becoming the instrument of that perfidy, Christophe rejjlied in language and tones of virtue, saying that to arrest his friend , TOUSSAINT l'oUVEUTUKE. 205 his conipanioii, his cliicf, woukl be to betray at once friond.ship and honour, as well as his countiy; and that a treason so dis- graceful coidd not for a moment be entertained by him. Ho ended his letter with these words : " Show us the laws which guarantee our liberty, thou Toussaint, my brethren, myself — all of us — will with joy throw ourselves into the ai'ms of oiir mother country. How could we believe the consul's words, brought to US. as they wei'c, amid demonstrations of war l Excuse," he added, " the fears and the alarm of a people which has suflered so much in slavery : give it grounds of confidence, if you desire to terminate the calamities of Saint Domingo ; then, foi'gctting the past, we shall in security enjoy the present and the future." Struck with the wisdom and energy of this reply, Leclerc felt that it was more than ever necessary to put away all idea of slavery, which could be restored onh'^ in veiy different cu'cum- stauces. With this view, he dealt freely in protestations. The consul, he urged, could not have proposed laws fur a country with which he was not acquainted, but in the name of -the Su- preme Being, the avenger of falsehood, he afiirmed that the liberty of the blacks was the basis of the laws which would be l>assed. An interview ensued, and, in reliance on the protestations and the oath of Leclerc, Christophe went over to the French with twelve hundred men, surrendermg the mountains of Limbe, Port-Fran^ais, and Grande Riviere, with an immense amomit of warlilce stores. Christophe immediately sought an interview with Toussaint, and among other things, remarked that Leclerc appeared very sorry at having undertaken the war, that he had done so in the persuasion that he could soon bring it to a successful terniina- tion, and that, being now disabu.sed of that error, was desirous of concluding a peace : adding that, at the express request of the captain-general, he wished to converse with Toussaint on the sub- ject. On his pai't, Toussaint complained that Christophe had listened to overtures from the enemy, contrary to miHtary 206 TUE LIFE OF discipline, siiice lie had no autlioi'ity from liis superior officer. Before leaving, Christophe put into the Iiands of Toussaint a letter from Leclei'c. Prevented at the moment from reading the communication, Toussaint did not learn till after Chris- tophe's departure, that he had gone over to tlie French. The regret v/hich he felt gave place to astonishment, and astonish- ment was succeeded by indignation. He sent for Adjutant- General Fontaine, the chief of his staff, and to him alone commu- nicated the contents of the letter, directing him to go to Chris- tophe, and command him to repair to Ihe head- quarters at ilar- melade, in order to explain his conduct. The traitor affected compliance. Many of his officers, on hearing of the mission of General Fontaine, declared that they had been misled. On his return, that offi.cer reported the surrender of Port-Franc^ais and other places. Toussaint L'Ouverture assembled his cloief officers, and announced to them the extraordinary event. Christophe's conduct appeared to them no less incomprehensible than blame- worthy. The news having spread among the people and tlio soldiers, they burst forth in reproaches against him, aiid b}'' a spontaneous movement, assembled around Toussaint's dwelling, to assure him of their fidelity and devotedness. In this conjuncture, the hope of an approaching peace, which for a moment even Toussaint had indulged, vanished wholly. The v/arlike spirit became universal, togetlier with indignation at the treachery. All swore to die for their chief, because in so doing they would die for liberty. Toussaint's orders fieAV on all sides in order to prevent or abate the consequences of the per- iidy. He still had, in the west and in the nortli, faithful batta- lions and devoted districts ; the less his resources became, the more grand did his character apptear. Had fortune, then, aban- doned Mm 1 Could he no longer look to the Highest of all Powers, whose work he had undertaken, and by whose hand he had been guided and protected ? Was his country, after all, to fall under the dishonourable yoke of servitude ? Adversity crushes only ordinary men ; Toussaint took courage even from despair. Shortly, he learned that Dessalines had imitated Christophe TOUSSAINT l/oUVEUTUKn. 207 !ind joined the ranks of tlio enemy. This vas the second heavy blow. Toiissaint did not so much regard the indi\-idual loss of these two leaders, nor the loss of the troops they carrieel "vvith them, nor the loss of the lands they commanded, as the loss of his own influence which must ensue, and the perplexity in which he found hiniself as to who was and who was not trustworthy. His best captains — Christophe, Dessalincs, Laplume, Clervaux, his two brothers, his nephew, were in the camp of his foes. Where could he be sure to find men worthy of his confidence ? Under these circumstances it was that Leclerc put every means into action in order to induce Tous:saint to come to an accommodation. The captain-general was the more desii'ous of such a re.sult because, though he knew that Toussaints ]:tower was broken, he Icnew also that the population at lai'gc were wholly alienated fi*ora his o^^^l go\"t?niment, ;md might at any moment be roused to a resistance moi'e determined and more sanguinaiy than what they had made already. "With a view to appease the hardly suppressed ill-humour, Leclerc had sent Kigaud oiit of the island, hoping thereby to giiin some favour with the blacks. The effect on the whole was inconsiderable. Even after their treacheiy, the negro chiefs were idols, while Prenehmen were objects of indifference or detestation. This contrasted feeling was observed, and is spoken of 1)V an eye- witness thus : — " On airiving at the Cape, I had occasion to make very serious reflections. I sav,- many of oiu* general oflicers in full uniform pas.s by ; the inhabitants, no matter what their colom-, showed no sign of exterior deference. Suddenly I heard a noise — it was General Dessalines ; he came for the first time to pay his respects to the Captain-General Leclerc. The jDopula- tion of both sexes and of all colom's rushed to meet him : they fell down at his approach. I was saddened rather than revolted. Dark and painful ideas accompanied me to the mansion of the general-in -chief In the aute-chamber I found General Dessa- liiies. The horror he inspired me with kept mc at a distance from him. He asked who I was, and came to me, and without looking me in the face, said, in .a rough voice, ' I am General 20S THE LIFE OF DessaKnes ; m bad times, General, I have lieard you mucli spoken of.' His bearing and his manners were savage ; I was surprised at his words, which announced assurance rather than remorse. The barbarian mxist have felt himself powerful, or he would not have dared to take that attitude."* Once before had Leclerc made an attempt to bring Toussaint to treat. The attempt failed. A second effort had a difierent result. To Leclerc's overture, Toussaint in substance replied, '• I am powei'ful enough to burn and ravage, as well as to sell dearly a life which has not been useless to the mother country." But with bootless destruction such a mind as Toussaint's could not be satisfied. For a great object he had taken up arms : if that object could be secured by peaceful means, his duty was cleai'. This view, on which his own mind had for some time been dwelling, was enforced'by the representations and advice of persons around him, whose fidelity and courage gave them a right to be heard. Toussaint became less indisposed to listen to terms of accommodation. Leclerc proposed, as the principal con- ditions of peace, to leave in Toussaint's hands the government of Saint Domingo, to hold by liis side the ofiice of delegate from France, and to employ Toussaiiit's oflicers according to their rank. " I swear," he said, '' before the face of the Supreme Being, to respect the liberty of the people of Saint Domingo." Toussaint L'Ouverture I'eplied, " I accejjt everything which is favourable for the people and for the army ; and, for myself, I wish to live in retirement." Noble resolution ! resolution worthy of all thy previous con- duct, thou noble-hearted man ! All for others, nothing for thy- self ! Yet had he now the option of retaining supreme power in the island, sanctioned and guaranteed by French authority. And out of that supreme power, were he ambitious, he might have carved a crown. But didst thou think that thy frank disinterestedness might be turned to thy own ruin 1 The possi- bility could hardly have escaped thy sagacious and foreseeing mind. Nevertheless, rather wilt thou incur any personal risk than prolong the horrors of this war, which every day becomes more fratricidal and more disastrous ! * Meinoires, &c., par Lacroix, ii. 191, 2. TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURK. 20'J As a cousequence of this accommodation au iutcvview between Toussaint and Leclerc was agreed on. It was proposed that they should meet on a spot in the mountains of Mornaj-. Learning that the phice had given rise to suspicions, Toussaint magnanimously I'esolved to repair to the Cape. His journey was a triumph. Everywhere crowds pressed and prosti'ated themselves before the hero. They hailed him as their friend ; they hailed him as their liberator ; for in tlieir acclaim they bore in mind that the liberty for which he had fought, was sanctioned and secured by the captain-general's solemn oath. His arrival at the Cape was announced by salvos from both the sea and the land forces. The multitude surrounded him with demonstra- tions of love and veneration; the mother pointed him out to her child, and girls strewed his path with flowers. Leclerc received him in his mansion, situated near the sea. Diu-ing the interview four hundred horsemen, who had accompanied Tous- saint, stood near, di-awn up in order and with bare sabres. To the captain-general Toussaint was no longer a fanatical slave in. revolt, and condemned to death, nor was he an unnatural father. The consul's brother-in-law took pains to laud his good faitli and his maguanimity. He dwelt with emphasis on the reconciliation thus x'atihed, which woidd restore prosperity to the colony. He repeated his oath in presence of the chiefs of the two armies. "General," he said, "one cannot but praise you and admire you when one has, as you have done, borne the burden of the govern- ment of Saint Domingo. Your presence in this city is a proof -of your magnanimity and your good faith. Our reconciliation will make this island, of which you are the restorer, bloom again ; and will consolidate its new institutions, which are the fiuidamental basis of the liberty and the happiness of all." "When the people of Saint Domingo," replied L'Ouverture, " triumphed in a war foreign both in relation to France and to themselves, they never thought that they should ever have to i-esist their natural jDrotector. If exj^lanations had preceded your arrival in this island, the cannon would not have been fired, <3xcept to welcome the envoy of a great power, and you would, on reacliing these shores, have seen no other lights than faix de P 210 THE LIFE OF joie. You knew for certaiuty that I was at Santo Domingo. There was still time to send me news of your mission. When you wei-e before the Cape, General Christophe begged you to grant him delay sufficient to acquaint me with the fact that a French squadron was on om- shores; you might reasonably have acceded to his request, instead of reducing the people to despair by your threats, and exposing your army on the crater of a volcano." Leclerc admitted that pilots, whom he had taken near the bay of Samana, had assured him that Toussaint L'Ouvei'ture was at Santo Domingo. " But I am tlie brother-in-law of the first consul ; I am commander-in-chief of a French army, and conse- quently in position and rank superior to General CImstophe, and I did not think it consistent with my dignity to stop before a brigadier-general, and to listen to all his allegations." "Nevertheless," rejoined Toussaint, " you waited for foiu* days, and you will agree that some days more would not have done an injury to your honoiu", since, according to the words and the letter of your brother-in-law, you are intrusted with only a pacific mission. It seems to me that by patience you would have served equally France and Saint Domingo." " It is true ; but I was not master of myself Let us retain no recollection of the past ; all shall be repaii'ed. Let us, General, rejoice at our union. Yoru' sons, the officers who have accompanied you, as well as the generals and officers of my army, who are here, must be witnesses of our common gladness." At these words the door of the hall opened, and at Leclerc's invita- tion all the persons who were in the next apartment entered and took their places. In their presence the captain-general renewed his oaths. During this exchange of words Leclerc, pressing Toussaint as to the reduced condition of his I'esources, asked him where he could have obtained arms to continue the war. In a tnily Lacedemonian manner the hero replied, "I would have taken yours." Presently there entered a fijie boy, who leapt on the neck of Toussaint L'Ouvertiu-e — it was his youngest son. During the war he had been lost by his father, and carried off by the French. TOUSSAIXT l'oUVERTUEE. 211 Taken to the Cape, he w-as consigned to tlie cai'C of his tutor; and now, as a touching pledge of friendship, he had been restored to his father, who was deeply affected by thus recovering his beloved cliild. In returning from this conference, in the details of which wc learn on how iiasignificant causes depend peace and war with all their mighty issues, Toussaint L'(Juverture passed through the posts of the Fx'ench army, in the midst of the acclamations of the soldiers, the militia, and the people, who crowded around him; and under salvos of artillery entered Marmelade, where the commander received him at the head of his own troops. The day following he addressed the grenadiers and the dragoons of his guard. Having spoken to them of the peace, and shown them that it could not be violated except by perjuiy, he praised their courage, and thanked them for the love and devotedness they had displayed toward himself, and solemnly declared that the recollection of theii* deeds would for ever remain engraven on his mind. In order to testify to them his satisfaction, and at the same time take his farewell, he embraced all their officers. Those brave and hardy veterans could not restrain theu' tears, and the soldiers were sad and inconsolable. Toussaint then took the road for Ennery, which he had chosen for his residence When near it, he was surroimded by crowds of people, who shouted out, " General, have you abandoned us ?" "No, my children," he answered, "all your brethren are under arms, and the officers of all ranks retain their posts." When Toussaint L'Ouverture had fixed himself in the fertile and dolightful valley of Ennery, to enjoy the repose of private and domestic life, he found occupation a necessity, and employed his energy in repairing and improving the dwellings of the in- habitants, and dispensing around him other benefits. Though retired from the world he was not forgotten. Generals and other officers of the French army, and strangers from distant lands, came to visit him, and were welcomed with an afiiibility which was a part of his nature. Exempt from fear and dis- quietude, he lived in the bosom of his family as if he had been 212 THE LIFE OF TOUSSAi:>T L'OUVERTUr.E. guarded by an army. He rode over the country, and was every- where greeted with tokens of respect. "With the cessation of hostilities, bands of bhick troops de- scended from the mountains, and the two armies mingled together as brothers. Freedom rendei'ed friends those whom slavery had made deadly enemies. The population laid down theii* arms to engage in the laboi;rs of the field. The dwellings, which the fear of servitude had birnied do\\Ti, rose again under the reign of Kberty. With a view to confirm the peace, the captain of the expedition put into the hands of Christoj.)he the police of the north, and into those of Dessalines the police of the west. The cities which had been consumed were rebuilt. Vessels soon filled the ports. Commerce began once more to floui"ish. Ever}i:hing promised a smiling future. Songs were heard and dances were seen in the villages. The whole country offered a proof how happy tliis world would be but for the disturbances occasioned by human passions. BOOK III. FROM THE RAVAGES OF THE YELLOW FEVER IN HAYTI UNTIL THE DErORTATIOX AND DEATH OF ITS LIBERATOR. CHAPTER I. Lcflcrc's uneasy position in Saint Domingo from insufHcioncy of food, from the existence in liis nruiy of largo bodies of blacks, and especially from a most destructire fever. . Ere long, the natural consequences of the ravages which had been carried over the country, and of the abstraction from agri- culture of a large portion of the population, were felt in scarcity of provisions, the rather that Saint Domingo did not abound in articles of human food of a superior kind. This scarcity was augmented by the necessity of supporting out of the public magazines a large ninnber of soldiers, for though the European 2iart of the army was much reduced, a large nvimber of blacks and men of colour had been thrown on the government stores. Shortness of food and the high prices which ensue, are specially trying to a government of force. Complaints began to spread among the native popiilation, and not without difficulty Avei'e the servants of the state supplied with the necessaries of life. Application for aid was made to the governors of foreign pos- sessions in the neighbourhood. The Spaniards furnished supplies with chivalrous generosity; but those supplies were very far from being suiiicient. The English, who had not anticipated the success of the French arms, and saw that success with im~ easiness, refused to give succour. Erom Americans a similar answer was received. The conduct of their agents disclosed the 214 THE LIFE OP regret wliicli tlieir governments felt in not finding at Saint Domingo, under the Frencli sway, tlie commercial advantages ■wtich they enjoyed while it was rnled by Toussaint L'Ouvertnre. The state of the island, combined with the native politeness of the French character, caused attentions to be paid to foreign ships and visitors, which were interpreted into tokens of a sense of civil and political weakness. This adverse impression found its way into the minds of the blacks, so that the spirit of the colonial army became increasingly difficult to manage. Thus what at first was the captain-general's power, proved a source of weak- ness and embarrassment. To provide a remedy, he attempted to incorporate the colonial troops w"ith the reinforcements that came from France, but the prejudices of Europeans rendered the plan all but nugatory. Yet, if it was dangerous to have entire large bodies of blacks, it was not less dangerous to discharge and dismiss them at once. Leclerc had no resource but time, and sought to govern by dividing. Accordingly, he took care to employ black soldiers only in small detachments, and regarded even desertion with satisfaction. He could not, however, feel at ease unless he knew that the blacks were resuming their agri- cultural labour.s, and though in sending them back to the planta- tions, he received assistance from some of their chiefs, he was made sensible of the want of such an influence as that which Toussaint L'Ouvertnre had exerted before the war, and eflfected his piu'pose only on a limited scale. These difficulties, however, though in themselves not small, were inconsiderable compared with those which sprang from a terrible malady with which the island, and especially its Euro- pean inhabitants, was now visited. The yellow fever, which had already proved destructive, broke out with great violence at the same time at Port-au-Prince and at the Cape. It appeared there in a form imusually repulsive and deadly. It seized persons who were in good health, without any premonition. Sometimes death was the immediate consequence. Happy those who were immediately carried off ! Ordinarily it was slow in its progress as well as frightful in its inflictions. The disorder began in the brain, by an oppressive pain accompanied or followed by fever. The TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE. 215 patient was dovoui-ed witli burning thirst. The stomach, dis- tracted by pains, in vain sought relief by effoi'ts to disburden itself. Fiery veins streaked the eye ; the face was inflamed, and dyed of a dark dull red coloiu' ; the ears from time to time rang painfidly. Now mucous secx'etions surcharged the tongue, and took away the power of speech ; now the sick man spoke, but in speaking had a foresight of death. When the violence of the disorder approached the heart, the gums were blackened. The sleep, broken, or troubled by convulsions or by fi-ightful visions, was worse than the waking hoiu's, and when the reason sank under a delirium which had its seat in the brain, repose utterly forsook the patient's couch. The progress of the fire within was marked by yellowish spots, which spread over the surface of the body. If, then, a happy crisis came not, all hope was gone. Soon the breath infected the air with a fetid odour, the lips glazed, despair painted itself in the eyes, and sobs, with long intervals of silence, formed the only language. From each side of the mouth spread foam, tinged with black and burnt blood. Blue streaks mingled with the yellow over all the frame. Death came on the thir- teenth day, though more commonly it tarried till the seven- teenth. All remedies were useless. Rarely did the victims escape. The malady produced a general melancholy. Its depressing effects were visible in the troops who had not yet been stricken "vvith the fever. You saw the men regard each other with furtive glances, and in deep yet ominous silence : their arms looked tarnished; their steps were heavy and slow. Unconquerable in the field, they already felt themselves the \T.ctims of destiny. When undergoing review, the men, scarcely expecting to see each other again, affected a foolish gaiety, the real character of which was betrayed by a bitter smile, or took leave of each other sadly, as pilgrims, through sufiering, to the dark shores of the eternal world. The city of the Cape then presented one of those sights which arc rare in the histoiy of human calamities. Scarcely had a part of the buildings destroyed by the conflagration been hastily reconstructed, when the town and the hospitals were fiUed with 21 U THE LIFE OF tlie sick and tlie dying. Tiie chief hospital, situated on a height Tvhich overhangs tlie city, having been burnt down, consisited now only of large sheds covered with sugar canes. Therein the patients wei'e for the most part laid in straAv, unprovided with necessaiy appliances, exposed now to the fury of storms, now to torrents of rain, and now to the burning rays of the sun. Those remaining in the city were better protected and cared for, but breathing an impurer air, and deprived of breezes by the moun- tains, they suffered scarcely less, and died as certainly. Military discipline disappeared : the common soldier had the same authority as the general, and each general acknowledged no authority except his own. Men spoke no more of combats, of exploits, of glory. The heart of the soldier sank within him. Even the fimeral knell ceased its mournful sounds ; the common calamity crushed the sense of religious observance. In the midst of disorder and confusion death heaped victims on victims. Friend followed friend in quick succession; the sick were avoided from the fear of contagion, and for the same reason the dead were left without burial. Despair alone remained in activity — fierce despair, for the dying man could cast his eye on neither friend nor niu'se, and had to suffer and expire in terrific solitude or more terrific companionship. The countiy, the mountainsi, the sea, afforded no place of refiige. The troojDS that were removed to a distance from the towns were not the less attacked. Their camp was transformed into an hospital. Soldiers died under trees laden with fruit and under plants breathing perfumes. The ships of war and merchant vessels lost their crews. Eight and forty passengers from Bordeaux expired in disembarking at the Cape. Tei-rified at the destiniction, some, on neariug the island, went on board vessels that were quitting its infected shores, yet perished, smitten by the poisoned air. Four thou- sand men who came in Dutch vessels perished. Fear multiplied the victims. When the malady was in all its force, human passions mani- fested their guilty excesses. Virtue was disregarded when it no longer offered an eai-thly reward. Some sought distraction and relief to then- wretchedness in gambling and in voluptuousness ; ToussAI^T l'ouverture. 217 violence and adultery became commou. Others endeavoiu-ed to drown their toi'ments in i*eckless intoxication; othei-s, again, attired in military costume, which at such a moment was simply ridiculous, threw insult at the disease, and braved death, either in satirical gaiety or in buffooneries, or in roars of silly laughter. The words " Ah ! the funny fellow," became a derisive phrase to indicate a poor wretch that was trying to laugh or trick away his calamity. Others, again, deep sunk in guilt, sought to deceive death in the arms of a mistress or in perfumed baths. AVhile all around was perishing, songs were heard from the sea. They were the attempts of men who thus tried to cheat them- selves into momentary joy. The nearer men were to eternity, the more greedy they were of the pleasures of earth. Pauline, the wife of Leclerc and the sister of the consul, did not renounce her voluptuous habits in the midst of so terrible a plague. In the hope of breathing a less infected air, she had gone to a country house, on the declivity of a pleasant hill which overhung the sea. Here she passed her hours in pleasure and luxury. Slie saw die around her officers whose incense she had welcomed, but for whose sufferings she showed no concern — intent only on putting away all unpleasant objects, and seizing with avidity on sources of gratification. Now she caused her- self, like a queen, to be borne in a palanquin through the most beautiful scenes of nature ; there would she, for hours together, dwell in contemplating the ocean and its delightful shores, loaded witl) the luxuries of tropical vegetation : now she plunged into the depths of odoriferous forests, and surrendered herself to the captivating reveries of love; and now she sailed on the sea, accompanied by courtiers, musicians, and buffoons, as if she would sustain the character of Venus rising from the waves. What is still more remarkable is that she took pains to defy the malady by festivities, in which she gathered around her dancing, music, pleasure, and voluptuousness : thei'e she drew on herself admii-ation by her wit, her graces, her beauty, and the ravishing tenderness of her looks. But around and in those festivities, Death bore his funeral torches. The balls which she ceased not to giA^e took place on the brink of 218 THE LIFE OF the grave. The dancers of to-night were dead on the moiTOw. But the more joyous did she affect to appear. " These," she said, " are our last moments; let us jmss them in pleasure." As the disorder raged in other places as well as in the cities o^ the Cape and Poiii-au-Prince, there died every day, on land and on sea, not less than from three to four hundred persons. More and more irregular in its symptoms and its course, the fever baffled and defied the skill of the physicians, who died together with their patients. The little attention which at first was paid to funeral rites, became less and less, and soon was wholly discontinued. The dead bodies were put on the outside of the doors and carried off by night. If anything could excite compassion, it was to see on some of those li\T.d frames the scars of wounds received in the battles of Europe, where he had gained his fame who sent those wan-iors and heroes to die on a distant foreign and deadly shore. As it was necessary to remove the dead as soon as they had breathed their last, some were carried off while yet alive ; groans were heard in the heaps of abandoned corpses, and from the putrid mass some rose and returned to take their place among the living. As very many bodies were tossed into the sea, the waves bore them uji and down the harbour, or left them on the shore, painful mementoes to spectators, and food for birds and beasts of prey, while they added to the foid infection with wliich the atmosphere was burdened. During the prevalence of these accumulated disasters, the black population, proof against the pest, remained faithful to the peace wliich had been forced on them and their venerated chief Had they chosen to rise, the whole expedition would have perished. Their virtue was more than abstinence from self-avengement. With characteristic hospitality they received sick persons into their homes, and gave them unlooked-for aid : they did more ; they gave them tears and sympathy, seeing in them not Frenchmen and assailants, but sufferers. There were other benefactors. Sisters of charity, truly worthy of the name, went from street to street, and fi-om bed to bed, ministering with tenderness and skill to the sick, the despairing, and the de- TorssATNT l'ouverture. 219 parting. Womanly love was almost the only virtue that main- tained itself erect. AYheu all other remedies had jirovcd vain, that noble affection .showed itself fertile in resoiu-ces, nor was it the less re.'^pectable because in the extremity it resorted to fetish practices which had their origin in Africa. More simple and even more touching was that manifestation of it which com- pelled young women to follow their lovers to their graves, Aiiiiil the faithless only faithful found. It is terrible to think that some of these worthy women may afterwards have been repaid with slavery. At length, when the summer heats had reached their height, the malady redoubled its fuiy, and broke down alike benevo- lence and vii-tue. Then w^s the harvest of death. According to authentic tables, there died fifteen hundred officers, twenty thousand soldiers, nine thousand sailors, and three thousand persons who loosely hung about the skirts of the army in quest of employment or fortune. Not fewer than fourteen generals lost their lives in the plague. Of that number was Debelle, whose virtues made him regretted alike by foes and friends; Dugua, an intrepid and joyous old man, whose hairs had grown grey on the borders of the Nile ; Hardy, who had displayed rare courage in the victories and the reverses of the expedition. Almost incredible is it that there died seven hundred medical men, worthy, for the most, of high praise, such was their courage, their patience, theii- devotcdness. The malady changed the character of the army. Those who .survived, experiencing a long and difficult convalescence, became habitually depressed, morose, or exasperated. Some had their memory weakened; some remained broken down or crippled for life. Discipline was restored with difficulty. Even news from home brought little pleasure, and gave only a transient relief; and communications with France were intercepted, in order, so far as possible, to conceal from the mother country the awful loss which she had endured. Such was the terrible punishment which fell on the predatory 220 THE LIFE OF expedition sent by the Corsican adventurer against tlie hero and patriot of St. Domingo. And can there be a more decisive pi'oof of anything than we have here of the honour of Toussaint L'Ouvertiire 1 The neces- sity of the French was his opportunity. With what ease now might he have mustered those blacks which Avere in Leclerc's way, and extorted from his enfeebled hands the sovereignty of the island. That Toussaint remained quiet at Ennery disproves the base insinuations which Avere fabricated expressly for his ruin. CHAPTER IT. Bonaparte and Leclerc conspire to effect the arrest of Toussaint L'Ouverturc, ■who is treaclaerously seized, scut to France, and counued in the castle of Joux ; partial risings in consequence. If the establishment in Saint Domingo of the author'ity of France had been the object of the expedition, the present settle- ment of its affairs would have been left to unfold its resources, and the blessings of the existing peace would have been penna- nent. All opposition had been put down. Slutual explanations had been given. With one exception tlie leaders of the blacks held rank and power in the French army. Toussaint L'Ouver- ture, the only exception, was engaged in rm'al pursuits and acts of beneficence. Leclerc was sole master in the island. Hayti was now at least a colonial dependency of France. And if there v/ere evils or obstacles which he could not at the moment put away, they were nothing more than such as promised to disap • pear before good government, aided by the healing and reforma- tory hand of time. Even through the tempest of the plague, tokens of coming serenity were readily discerned. But the occupation of the island was only the first act in the drama. The intelligence of the ravages of the fever in St. Domingo shocked the mind of Bonaparte, though he had foreseen and ToussAixT l'ouvekture. 221 even premeditated the calamity. One obstacle which lay in his way to the imi)erial throne had been removed. So far the ex- pedition had not proved nugatory. There were two other ob- stacles. One was the freedom of the blacks. 8uch freedom, in the consul's eyes, was licentiousness. It was, moreover, incom- jiatible with his designs. If Saint Domingo remained free, the other French colonies must and would be free. In their eman- cij)ation, the colonial system would be endangered, nay, would soon be lost ; for freedom was the precursor of independence : and if the colonies became independent, what strongholds would France possess in the West Indies to check the growing power of England ; and where would be its outposts to keep the United States in good behavioiu'? Even more important were those dependencies when considered as ])astures for the powerful and the aspiring around the consul's person. Let the colonies be reduced into .servitude ; then would they naturally enter as constituent parts in an empire under governors with more than the power of ordinary princes, who, with Bonaparte at their head, would form a regular and august political hierarchy, and so lay the basis of a dominion which might extend widely over both hemispheres, if not in time comprehend the civilized woi'ld. To the ambitious Corsican the prospect was enchanting. The herds of Haytian negroes must be sent back into slaveiy. This resolution, he knew, could not be carried into effect so long as Toussaint L'Ouverture lived on the island. His existence there was the second great impediment. That im]:)ediment, too, the consul determined to remove. The determination was the more readily formed because the world had come to regard Toussaint as a sort of rival to Bonaparte. The phrase became current which designated the one " the first of the blacks," and the other " the first of the whites." Comparisons were made between the two which the First Consul always found offensive, and v/hich were not always to the First Consul's advantage. Was his bi'ight star to pale before the fiery meteor of a slave ? Besides, that slave had not been easily subdued ; he had all but overcome and destroyed the soldiers of Egypt and Italy. When peace was concluded, it was difficult to say whether the 222 THE LIFE OF assailant or tlic assailed was in. tlie worse condition. This manly and effective resistance Bonaparte could not forgive. It would liave been less intolerable had it been made by Em-o- peans ; but to come from negro slaves — it was an unpardonable offence. Yes, Bonaparte hated Toussaint, and resolved to effect his destruction. His arrest was the first point to be gained. With Toussaint in his hands, everything else he judged would be easy. The First Consul was not deterred by the consideration that such a step could not be taken without dissimulation and per- fidy. The end covered, if it did not justify, the means, in his eyes. In Leclerc lie had a ready and passive instrument, Nor was the captain-general without his own reasons for the contem- plated appi'ehension. The hatred borne by the master had taken possession of the servant's soul. Little satisfaction did he feel in a peace which a hard fate had induced him to seek and conclude. The popularity of the negro chief caiLsed him to be an object of fear with Leclerc. In the war, the chief glory had been gained by his foe, and now that foe, having become his rival, eclipsed Leclerc in the estimation of the natives of nearly all classes and all opinions. He had, moreover — and he knew he had — injured, deeply injured Toussaint L'Ouverture, and injury invariably begets a hatred in proportion to its own intensity. Besides, the original plan, which so far had been successful, remained to be completed. Leclerc, in consequence, v/as well disposed to execute the consul's will. Without waiting for express directions in a matter on Avhich he well knew the mind of Bonaparte, the captain-general began to prejjare the way for the final act. For this purpose he spoke of Toussaint, not as an independent jjower who had of his own accord laid down arms, and declined the highest post in the colony, but as a revolter who had been outlawed and condemned to death, but pardoned by an act of grace on his own part. Consulting him as to the disposition of the troops, so as to pre- vent suspicion, he sought occasions which, in extorting complaints from him, might form the grounds of a disagreement, and so afford pretexts for his .seizure. Two fi-igates anchored off TOussAiKT l'outerture. 223 €ronaives. The soldiei-s no longer paid Toussaint military honours. The plot was dimly seen by friends, who advised the black hero to be on his guard. Some went so far as to recom- mend him to take measures for his personal security. He replied, " For one to expose one's life for one's countr}' when in peril is a sacred duty ; but to arouse one's country in order to save one's life, is inglorious." In order to give some colf>ur to the contemplated an-est, Leclcvc complained that Toussaint's body-guard had not been wholly disarmed. Toussaint replied that he had given orders for its disbandment, and advised the captain-general to pi-oceed mildly in bringing that result about. Impatient of conti-adiction, Leclerc emjiloj'ed force, and with difficulty succeeded. In this opposition an excu.se was found for filling the district of Ennery with European troops. The inhabitants complained. Toussaint L'Ouverture became the medium for making those complaints known. " This Avas exactly what was wanted," says one who knew Leclerc's designs. On the 7th of June, (xcneral Bx'unet wrote to Toussaint L'Ouverture the following letter : — Head Quarters at the Plantation of Georges, 18 Prairial. An. X. BRUNET, GENERAL OF DIVISION, TO THE GENERAL OF DIVISION, TOUSSAINT L'OUVERTURE. " The moment, citizen-general, has come to make known to General Leclerc, in an incontestable manner, those who ma\^ deceive him in regard to yom-self : they are calumniators, since your sentiments tend only to bring back order in the district which you inhabit. It is necessary to render me aid in order to restore the communication with the Cape, which was yesterday interrupted, since three persons have been murdered by a band of fifty brigands, between Enuery and Coupe-a-Piutade. Send toward those places faithful men, whom you will pay well ; I will be accountable for the outlay. There are, my deai' general 224 THE LIFE OF arrangements wliicli we ought to make in concert, wliieli it is impossible to treat of by letter, but which an hour's conference would terminate. Had I not to-day been overwhelmed v/ith business, I would myself have brought the answer to your letter. Occupied as I am, I must beg j-ou to come to my re.'^i- dence. You will not find there all the pleasures which I would wish to welcome you with, but you will find the frankness of an honourable man, who desires nothing but the happiness of the colony and your own happiness. If Madame Toussaint, whom I shall have the greatest pleasm-e to become acquainted with, could accompany you, I should be gTatified ; if she has occasion for horses, I will send her mine. Never, general, will you find a moi'e sincere friend than myself With confidence in the captain- general, and friendship toward all imder liim, you will enjoy tranquillity, " I cordially salute you, " Bkunet." Now here is a piece of consummate villany. This man, who signs himself Brunet, who calls himself a man of honour, and who would have run any one through who should have thrown on that honour the slightest doubt — this man, who probably went to church, and heard mass and professed Christianity, or who, at any rate, did not in private pick pockets or cut throats, this man deliberately sits down and employs his ingenuity in fabricating a tissue of lies in order to ensnare to liis ruin an innocent patriot, the liberator of his country. Every word in this diabolical composition is selected with a view to deceive. By implication, iniiendo, and direct averment, the tissue of falsehoods goes forward to its end. " You are, you know, alleged to be less quick than might be wished. False, doubtless. Now you may prove how false by acting in concert with me. Come hither, and so convict your calumniatoi's; let the captain-general see how earnest you are for the furtherance of public ti-anqudlity." This is a dexterous movement. To remind Toussaiut that he was suspected was to prepare him for the offered means of ex- culpation. An innocent man, from a consciousness of his inno- TOUSSAiKT l'ouvertuhe. 225 cence, and a guilty man, in order to affect and display such consciousness, would alike be inclined to accept the expe- dient. Then for this honourable man, who does not invent, but merely employs groundless suspicions, he himself is quite con- fident that his victim is calumniated. " No, in coming to me, you come to a friend who knows the real facts, and so is fully aware of what you have done and are doing to tranquillize the country. But, notwithstanding your efforts, disturbances exist. These mxist be put a stop to. I have said I have confidence in you : I now show it, for I ask you to take the requisite measures." Excellent Jesuit ! Yes, the way to beget confidence is, you well know, to show confidence. But how show confi- dence so much as by employing a man to put down the very evils he is accused of causing ] Surely this, if anything woukl make him feel that he is titisted, or at any rate show him how desirable, even for his own bad purposes, if he has bad purposes^ it is that he should act as if he felt that he is trusted. " Then as to the cost of these efforts, we will settle that when we meet." Yes, it is a small affair of business between two generals of division — nothing more — some brigands to exter- minate, some exi^ense to be incrn'red, — all to be amicably talked of when the two friends are taking a glass of wine together, anct' to be ended by an order for payment on the public purse.- What more simple, what more natural, what more straightfoi*- ward '? None but one deeply versed in deceit could have thought of treachery. But the tricks are not exhausted. " Yic must have an inter- view. For that piu'pose I intended to come and see you. I had ordered my horse and an escort; but i-eally I cannot leave; I am nailed to the spot. I miist throw myself on your good- ness ; pray come ; I will do all I can to make you comfortable, and bring your wife with you on this little excursion — a mere party of pleasure. Shall I send my own horses to convey her and her domestics ? What ! do you hesitate 1 still hesitate ? Ah ! take care you fail not to confide in the Cajitain-generaL Distrust on your part ma}' justify distrust on his part. Insinua- tions are best repelled by confidingness. And, you know, trust Q 226 THE LIFE OF in Leclerc involves fiieuclsliip towards me. Yes, you must come; you will come." In tliis wily epistle there is only one mistake, but it is a serious one. Brunet declares tliat he is an honoiu'able man. Over this declaration, you, Toussaint, surely paused. Here the cumiing hand displays its ciuming. Yet thy guileless nature will not entertain a distrust. In general, the epistle has a fair seeming. You will accept the invitation. Suspicion, of treacheiy is dishonourable to him who entertains it. And had not Toussaint, when the clouds were really dark, gone to the Cape 1 And did not a friendly arrangement ensue 1 The oath of Leclerc remained in force. And here was an opportunity not only to Ijenefit his neighbours, but to purge himself from any suspicions which weak men, or designing men, had raised. As to the rumours of peril to himself, the timid always aboiuid in illusions of their own fabrication. A brave man never fears danger, and a Avise man is not very carefid to shun danger. Besides, the civilities of hospitality have their claims. Clearly, on the whole, there Avas no valid reason against going, and many valid reasons for going. Toussaint had intended to go to Gonaives before he receiA'ed Brunet's letter. He was on his Avay thither : lie tinned n(jt back when the invitation was put into his hands. Proceeding on his journey, he met Biainet on the plantation called CTCorges, where the general was waiting for him. For some time they conversed together. Then Brunet begged to be excused, and left the room. The next moment there entered from eighteen to twenty officers, with drawn swords and pistols in their hands. Toussaint L'Ouverture took them for assassins, aiid arose. He drew his sabre, resolved to sell his life deai-ly. Then the colonel, who was at the head of the band, seeing that he waited fjr them with intrepidity, advanced toward him with his sword lowered, and said, " General, we have not come here to attempt your life. We have merely the order to secure your person." At these words, Toussaint put his sword back into the scabbard, saying, " The justice of Heaven wHl avenge my cause." ToussAiNT l'ouverture. 227 Those prophetic words have had accomplishment ; those pro- phetic W(3rds will have accomplishment : nor ever will they be fulfilled until slavery is blotted out of Amei'ica, and is known no more in the world. From the plantation, where he Avas ai'rested, to Gonaives, troops ]iad been placed from distance to distance along the road. At mi(hiight, the prisoner was taken on board a French frigate, called the ' Creole.' The officer who commanded the ship was touched, even to tears, at the lot of that victim of the basest treachery. They sailed for the Cape, where Tonssaint was trans- ferred to the Hero, which waited for them off the port. "Adieu, Captain,"' said the captive, on leaAdng tlie Creole, "I shaU remem- ber you, till my last sigh." When he reached the Hero, he found in liis arms, St. Jean L'Ouverture, the very son, who, on a brighter day, had been restoi-ed to liim by Leclerc. Placide L'Ouverture was arrested next day. Isaac was at Ennery. Ignorant that his father had been seized, he was tranquilly reading about seven o'clock in the morning, when he was startled by a brisk firing, followed by alarming cries. Hastening from, the room, he beheld labourers, women, and children, nmning hither and thither in terror, and from thi-ee to four hundred Fi'ench soldiers firing on them in pursuit. A servant urged him to fly. He feared that evil had befallen his father, but remained. Forthwith he was arrested. The officer told him that his father had been embarked, and that he had orders from General Brunet to apprehend him and all the family; adding that he should not have fired on the people, had they not attempted to bar his })assage. The money and the pajoers belonging to Tonssaint L'Ouverture were taken possession of The house was rifled ; insolence was added to robbery. Madame Tonssaint and her niece were carried oflT. " Only a heart of stone," says Isaac L'Ouverture,* who has described the whole scene, " could fail to be softened l>y the tears and the lamentations of the men, the women, and the children who were present, and who de- plored her (Madame Toussaint's) lot, when she was for ever- * " Alcmoires d'Isaae, f;ls dc Toussaint L'Oavcrlurc," &c., p. 309. Q 2 228 THE LIFE OF quitting her country, a part of her family, and her abode, which was the abode of beneficence and hospitality. Those men, those ■women, and those children, in the excess of their grief, expressed their fears and their regrets with deep sensibility. " Madame," cried they, " are you leaving us 1 shall we never see each other again?" then addressing the commanding ofiicer, they added, " Ah ! at least, Sir, don't kill her, don't kill her children;" — they all believed that Toussaint L'Ouverture himself was dead. That woman, who was worthy of those marks of attachment and love, quitted her home without taking anything with her. Madame Toussaint and her son Isaac, and her niece, were con- ducted to the Cape, and put on board the Hero ; the vessel forth- with set sail for France. It is related that, in fixing, for the last time, his straining eyes on the mountains made memorable by- his exploits, Toussaint L'Ouverture exclaimed, " They have only felled the trunk of the tree (of the freedota of the blacks); branches will sprout, for the roots are numerous and deep." And in that confidence, thou large-hearted man, dost thou sail over that Avaste of waters ; saddened, but not overwhelmed. Thou earnest the cause of thy colour in thy soul, and, with a mind replete with Christian principles and affections, thou neither doubtest nor despondest. Twenty-five days hast thou to live on the sea, uncertain of thy own fate ; but with such knov/ledge of thy oppressors as must have occasioned dark fore- castings. To thy own view, however, thy past is bright. Not for thyself, but for others hast thou toiled and bled : and those others are the outcast, the ignorant, the injured, and the lost. True disciple of thy Galilean JNIaster, bear up in the recollection of His load and His persecutions — yet heavier than tliine. And now, in the hour of darkness, find and acknowledge thy gloiy, in that wMch heathen France accounts thy shame. Not on man's- judgment dost thou rely. Not by a local tribunal wilt thou be judged. The wide earth will take cognizance of what thou didst attempt and achieve, and pronounce thee a benefactor, not of thy colour only, but of thy kind. Regret not the j^resident's chair, left vacant in thy beloved mother country, nor let men's ingratitude and perfidy sour thy feelings. From high motives TOUSSAINT 'OUVERTURE, 22£) thoii wrouglitest for a high purpose ; and that pui-posc, though not in thine own way, will be attained. Be greater by patience, in the day of thy weakness, than thou wast in the day of thy power by thy valour ; and thy name will pass down to posterity, •encircled with undying fame. Listen to that solemn voice in thy own heai't, which tells thee that Haji:! will be free. On the voyage, Toussaint was denied all intercourse with his family ; he was confined constantly to liis cabin, and the door was guarded by soldiers with fixed Ijayonets. Uncertain as to his fate, yet apprehensive of a very dark future, he determined to make a solemn appeal to Bonaparte, and prej)ared the following epistle : — " On board the iroro, 1 Tlicrmidor, an X. (12th July, 1802). " GEXEUAL TOUSSAINT L'OUVERTURE, TO GENERAL BONAPARTE, first consul of the french republic. " Citizen First Consul — " I will not conceal my fiiults from you. I have com- mitted some. What man is exempt 1 I am quite ready to avow them. After the word of honom- of the Captain-general who represents th6 French Government, after a proclamatiou addressed to the colony, in which he promised to throw the veil of oblivion over the events which have taken place in Saint Domingo, I, as you did on the 18th Brumaire, withdrew into the bosom of my family. Scarcely had a month passed away, when •evil-disposed persons, by means of intrigues, effected my ruin with the General-in-chief, by filHng his mind Avith distrust against me. I received a letter from him which ordei-ed me to act in con- junction with General Brunei. I obeyed. Accompanied by two persons I went to Gonaives, where I was arrested. They sent me on board the fi'igate Creole, I know not for what reason, without any other clothes than those I had on. The next day mj^ house was exposed to jiillage ; my wife and my children were arrested; they had nothing, not even the means to cover them- .selves. " Citizen First Consul — a mother fifty years of age, may de- serve the indulgence and the kindness of a generous and liberal 230 THE LIFE OF nation; she lias no account to render; I alone ought to be responsible for my conduct to the Government I have served. I have too high an idea of the greatness and the justice of the First Magistrate of the French people, to doubt a moment of its impartiality. I indulge the feeling that the balance in its hands, will not incline to one side moi'e than to another. I claim its generosity. '' Salutations and respect, " TOUSSAIKT L'OUVERTURE." When he wrote this liigh-spirited letter, in which the wi'iter charactenstically shows his concern for others more than for himself, — and the tone of which contrasts favourably with that which his oppressor, when fallen, and on the point of quitting Europe for St. Helena, addressed in true French melodramatic style to the English people, — Toussaint obviously had no idea of the extent of the perfidy to which he was about to fall a victim. He had been seized and carried off, but only, as he thought, that he might be confronted with his mahgners, and have a fair trial in France. All he requested, therefore, was an impartial hearing, assured that the even hand of Justice would repair the injuries he had suffered. Little did he then foresee the dreadful end to which he had been destined by the Consul's blind ambition. While on board the Hero, Toussaint wrote also to Admiral D^cres, Minister of Marine and of the Colonies : — " Citizen Minister, — " I was, with all my family, arrested by the order of the Captain-general, who nevertheless had given me his word of honour, and who had promised me the protection of the French Government. I ventiu-e to claim both its justice and its good- will. If I have committed faults, I only ought to suffer the punishment of them. " I beg you, Citizen Minister, to employ your interest with the First Consul, on behalf of my family and myself " Salutation and respect, (Signed) "Toussaint L'Ouvekture." This simple and dignified letter is reported to have drawn tears from the eyes of the minister. That minister felt the TOUSSAINX r.VKTlXG FUOJI HIS WIFE .V.\r CllILDKEX. TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTL'RE. 231 contrast between the dark designs of the Government and the unsuspicious tone of the commvmication. ''Justice!" As well ask mercy from tigers ; as well seek grapes on a bramble-bush. As soon as the vessel arrived at Brest, the First Consul, glad to have so formidable an enemy in his hands, gave free course to his I'esentment. "Without paying any respect to Toussaint's character, fame, services, or former position, he, consulting only his fears and selfish interests, tore him from his family, and began the persecution which was to end in a most painful death. Toussaint was immediately hiUTied on shore. On the 13th of August, the maritime provost of Brest, at five in the morning, sent an officer of police and four men to transfer the negro chief from the vessel. On the deck only was he permitted to have an inter^dew with his wife and children, whom he was to meet no more in tliis life. Only his servant was he allowed to take with him. When in the boat, he bade a last adieu to Madame Toussaint, to Isaac, to Saint-Jean, who then remained on board the Hero, and extended his hand to Placide, whom a cruel policy at the same moment was tearing from the arais of his mother, and Avas conveying on board the corvette La Nai'ade to Belle-Isle en Mer. In the evening, Placide learnt of the removal of his father from the Hero. PrcAdously, he had sent the following letter to him, which was found under Toussaint's pillow • — '•' Brest Roads, 21 Thcnnidor. "My deak Father axd Mother, " I am on board the brig La Nai'ade. As yet, I am ignorant of my lot. Perhaps I shall never see you again. In that, I do not accuse my destiny. No matter where I am, 1 entreat you to take coin-age, and sometimes to think of me. I I will send you news of myself, if I am not dead ; give me news of yourselves, if you have an opportunity. I am very well situated ; I am with persons who are very good to me, and who promise to continue so. Isaac and Saint-Jean, do not forget your brother! I shall always love you. Many kind thoughts to you all ; embrace my cousins for me. I embrace you, as I love you. " Your son, (Signed) "Placide L'Ouverture." ZOli THE LIFE OF When he tlius rudely broke up this amiable and interesting family, the First Consul did not foresee that one day he would be toru away from his wife and son. Curious coincidence in the destiny of the oppressed and that of the oppressor ! Bonajjarte was repaid in his own coin, nor in this instance merely — others have presented themselves in our narrativa But what a " super- fluity of naughtiness" have we here ! why are all the members of the L'Ouverture family involved in their father's ruin ? And if stern policy required their deportation from Hayti, why are "wife and children separated from their natural head, and why should the aged captive be denied the companionship of her who was the choice of his youth, became the comfort of his adult jage, and might still have supported his overladen heart to bear his troubles 1 Was she severed from him expressly to exaspe- xate liis feelings, and augment his woes, making his load heavier, the more surely and the moi'e speedily to put an end to his existence 1 Oh the depth of wickedness with which what is called policy is chargeable ! Reader, be not hoodwinked by general terms. Policy would be nothing without politicians, and when statesmen lose their manhood in state-craft, and .perpetrate, in their public capacity, wherein they have power, -deeds which they dare not attempt in their individual cajiacity, wherein they are weak, then do they contract a criminality which should make them abhori-ed by all good men, and which is a virtual forfeiture of the tenui*e by which they hold their Ligh position. Office does not change the character of realities. What is the painful reality here 1 It is nothing less than theft. Toussaint L'Ouverture was stolen. The First Consul was a man-stealer. He was more, he was a burglar : he broke into Toussaint's house, and having ransacked and plundered it, lie stole the family, after having perfidiously carried ofi" its head. And having stolen father, mother, and children, he not only .separated them one from the other, but murdered, at least, the father. This is plain speaking. At least, it is intended to be .so. Crime does not appear crune in men's eyes, unless it is branded as crime. Therefore do I declare and proclaim, that Bonaparte and his accomplices were, and for ever remain, guilty ToussAixT l'ouvekture. 233 of man-stealing, robbeiy, and murder, iii tlieii* treacherous, violent, and most "wicked conduct towards this vii-tuous house- hold. jMadame Toussaint and her children were conveyed to Bayonne, where they were placed under the supervision of Genei'al Ducos. L'Ouverture, with his servant, jNIars Plaisir, was put on shore at Landerneau, where they were taken in charge by two companies of cavalry. Compelled to quit imme- diately, Toussaint in one carriage and Mars in another, set out for Pai'is under a strong guard. At Guingamp, some officers of the eighty-second, Avho had served under Toussaint L'Ouverture's orders, jirevailed on the commander to stop the cavalcade, that they might enjoy the opportunity of saluting their old general. The permission was accorded. This -was the only solace that the captive enjoyed on the French soil. He reached Paris on the 17th of August, and was^ immediately imprisoned in the Temple. Thence, without any interview with Bonaparte or his ministers, and Avithout the sUghtest explana- tion he was hurried away into the department of Jura, and con- signed to the dungeons of the castle of Joux. Singular ca2:»rice of what is called history, at that very hour the same prison held in chains Rigaud, the rival and the foe of Toussaint, Separated in the busy hours of public life, Toussaint and Rigaud were united by misfortune. And yet the union was little more than nomhial, for they were too powerful, even in a dungeon, to be allowed to confer together. Suffering deserves compassion even when it cannot command I'espect. Therefore, 1 leave Rigaud to his endurance, without commenting on his guilt in joining Leclerc's marauding enterprise. Rigaud and Toussaint, the first a man of colour, the second a negro, but for yoiu- skin, or rather but for Em-opean prejudice against your skin, you would not have come to your present unhappy condition. You are dark in hue, therefore are you persecuted. Distinguished representatives of your i*espective races, there are still men who deal in the like of you as they deal in pigs, iu poultry, in flocks, and in herds, and there are othei's who justify this traffic in human flesh on the ground that your 234 THE LIFE OF epidermis contains a colouring mattei* of a somewhat deeper shade than their own. Yes, to this issue the question comes at last. How long, O reason, shall so patent and flimsy a jiretext prevail 1 A brown complexion, commonly called white, ensures and justifies personal immunity and personal fi-eedom ; a rather deejjer bi'own, and a complexion of a somewhat sable tinge, ensiu'es and justifies the loss of personal liberty, and therein the loss of all the rights, pri^sTileges, and poss^ibilities of manhood. Nay more, the former may buy and sell, oppress, maim, mutilate, brand, scourge, imprison, and even kill the latter ; and that, too, not only with perfect impunity, but with all the high bearing of unquestionable right. The relation of master and slave, when reduced to its last link, is the relation of simply more or less in the hues of the skin, of which the vaiieties ai-e so very numerous, and which extend from the fair Circassian to the raven-black negi'o. Where, in this mi- nutely graduated scale, is the point at wliich liberty ends, and slavery begins 1 And who has fixed that jjoint ? And on what authority 1 In truth, slavery in its origin and in its essence is simply man-stealing, is robbery of the very worst kind ; it is the strong preying on the weak ; it is the law of the bludgeon, the bayonet, the fetter, the prison, the ship, the gallows. Bona- parte, in carrying ofi" Toussaint L'Ouverture, did no more than Ms African prototypes in power did before him, and, alas ! continue to do to the present hoiu\ One and all, he as well as they, and they not more than he, are robbei-s and plunderers. What then are those who purchase the stolen goods?.* And what they who grow rich and fatten on the system 1 Let men, then, renounce the Christian name, or change from the top to the bottom a " domestic institution," which, haviug piracy and theft for its basis, and violence for its support, stands in flagrant contradiction to the clearest precepts, the simplest doctrines, and the fundamental pi'inciples of the Gospel. As soon as the carrying ofi* of L'Ouvei-ture was knoMTi in St. Domingo, General Belaii', in the mountains of Saint Marc ; Colonel Sans-Souci, at VaUere ; the chief of the battalion of JSToel, at Dondon, took up arms as by one accord, and set in TOussAiNT l'ouverture. 235 movement the population of tliose districts. Tlie latter made his way as far as Enueiy, overcoming all opposition in his route, and augmenting his troops at every step. A multitude of men and women who followed liim, at the sight of the French gar- rison, made the hills of Ennery resound with their cries of woe, indignation, and vengeance. Sans-Souci had no sooner di-awn his .sword than he was arrested, as well as General Baradat, by Christophe, sent to the Cape, and embarked for France. Belair was at the head of considerable forces, when Dessalines, who was despatched from the Cape against him, came into the mountains of Saint Marc, and rccjuosted a colloquy ; Belaii", hoping that the interview might bring a similarity of senti- ments to light, acceded to the request. He thus fell into the snare laid agaiiist him by Dessalines. He was arrested ; and, with his wife, conveyed to the Cape, where they were both shot. Thus perished General Charles Belaii-, the victim of his devotion to Toussaint, and of his confidence in Dessalines. A model of friendship, with bravery, and military talents, he united the qualities which make a good and amiable man. Toussaint, well jileased with his conduct when he was his aide- de-camp, once said to him, " Charles, you have acted to-day like Labienus." " General," he replied, " I hope I shall be more faithful to you than Labienus at last jiroved to Cajsar." The hope became a i-eality. Other less distinguished, but worthy and faithful friends of Toussaint L'Ouvertm-e, imj)elled to espouse his cause, suffered death in ways which soldiei's accomit disgraceful. Society exacts from bad men an account of their deeds, and bad men, unable to give a satisfactory account, feel it necessary to put forth at any cost colourable pretexts. Leclerc could not endure the voice of public opinion, even as it existed in Saint Domingo. He had treacherously seized, and hastily sent from the island, one who had been both its hero and its pacifi- cator. The evil work given him to perform by his brother-in- law, he had fully executed. Yet did he fear men's tongues. As a palliation of the misdeed, he set abroad a statement that Toussaint was plotting against the peace of the island. What 236 THE LIFE OF was the evidence ? A fabrication. Two letters, said to be AVTitten by Toiissaint, and intercepted, wei'e put into cu-culation. The fraud lias come dovvn to these days ; it is so clumsy as to bear its own condemnation on its front. If the authenticity of these letters were ascertained, they prove nothing to Toussaint's disadvantage. Even the most tortuous interpretation could not extract from them a valid suspicion. But their broken and scattered words only show to what extremities their fabricators were driven, in the fear of detection. And so far as their sense can be made out, neither the ideas nor the style coiTesponds Avith the warm, energetic, rapid, and figurative manner of Toussaint L'Ouverture. The fabricator was some poor mean ci'eature, who was utterly unable to give to his wretched com- position the most superficial mark of that genius which appears in all that we possess of Toussaint's writing or dictation. How- ever, the fraginents in some way served their pm-pose, in turning attention from Leclerc's perfidy to the allegation of evil designs on the part of his victim. Even if the evidence were less worth- less than it is, the presumption would be against the Captain- general, who shunned a public investigation, and condemned unheard a man to whom he had solemnly pledged liis honour. The blacks, guided by a simple sense of right and justice, gave no credence to the alleged conspiracy, and saw the blood of innocent men and women shed with alarm and indignation. At the same time, they lost all trust in Leclerc, for had they not seen their Liberator seized and sent away, contrary to the obligations of an oath, the claims of a solemn compact, and the sacred rights of hospitality ? TOUSSAI>"r L'oUVERTUr.E. 237 CHAPTER III. Xeclerc tries to rule by creating jealousy and division — Ill-treats the men of colour — Disarms the blacks — An insurrection ensues, and gnins head, until it wrests from the violent hands of the general nearly all his possessions — Leclerc dies — Bonnparle resolves to send a new army to Saint Domingo. As the nev/s of the deportation of Toussaint L'Ouverture spread abroad, secret and deep di.scontent began to prevail, which threatened disturbance, if not disaster. In vain Leclerc tried to prevent these consequences of his owti misdeeds, by a slow con- cealed tyranny. He created division among the black chiefs by insinuating into theii* violent natures rivaln,', jealousy, and hatred ; he set the ambition of one in opposition to tlie modera- tion of another ; now he brought into contrast this man's fidelity with that man's want of fidelity ; mingling adroitly togethei* praises and enticements, favoui*s and disgrace, encouraging and rewarding mutual accusations. Special pains did he take to revive the old animosities between the blacks and the men of colour ; animosities which in reality were only a consequence of the tlifference in the servitude to which they were in common subject. As a result of this Machiavellian policy, many officei's of black and of mixed blood were pei'secuted, imprisoned, or banished to a distance. Of this number was Eigaud, next to Toussamt the most renowned of all. He was airested in the port of Saint Marc, Avhither he had been sent as if to take a command. In his indignation, he threw his swoi"d into the sea, to prevent its being sullied by traitors. He was sent to France, and curiously enough, wa-s, as we have seen, cast into the prison wliich held Tous-saiut L'Ouverture. Lamartiniere, who had displayed the ririues of a champion of liberty behind the walls of Crete- a-Pierrot, was mas- sacred in an ambuscade. Thus was manifested the hatred of the colonists against men whom they could not endure to see in the en- joyment of freedom. That hatred was fostered by the Consul, and by his i-eprcsentative Leclerc. Of special consequence did the Captain- general consider the disarming of the blacks ; but the 238 THE LIFE OF step was one of extreme difficulty. Men, whose passions are excited, and v;liose future is uncertain, do not easily surrender their arms. Cajoleiy and mutual distrust were put into action; the result was, that thirty thousand muskets were collected and laid up in the common armouiy. But in the midst of the operation, discontent was displayed, menaces were uttered, sedi- tion was fostered, risings took place ; the Government was com.- jjelled to employ vigour as v/ell as adroitness. Troops were set in movement, blacks who were in subjection were employed against others who were ripe for revolt; some sullenly gave np theii' arms, others hid them, waiting their opportunity. Fero- cious bands were formed, who practised all kinds of atrocities. The disarming succeeded best in the south; in the west it was very partial ; the coloured population, distrustful and disquieted, especially since the deportation of Rigaud, betook themselves to the mountains; then most unjust and injudicious severities were exercised; suspicions sufficed for the infliction of death; the scaffiDlds were loaded with victims of both sexes, and of all ages. Several of the wives of the officers of the seventh colonial brigade were publicly executed. After captiu'ing Belair, Dessalines slaughtered three hundred blacks and men of colour in the vale of the Artibonite, to avenge the death of some European soldiers, massacred within the country under his command. Meanwhile, an impression had been obtaining prevalence that the disarming and other offensive measures were parts of a system intended to issue in the restoration of slavery. Some imprudent colonists, whom experience of evil had not taught anything but revenge, uttered in one of their assemblies the old maxim — " No slavery, no colony." The alarm caxised thereby was augmented by news that slavery had been restored in other French dependencies, and that even the slave-trade was resumed. Under the growing fears and distrust, some applied to purchase their freedom. The request was refused by their former owners. " We are then," said mothers of families, with teai's in their eyes, "we are then about to fall bacb into slavery." To prevent the calamity, the blacks made such preparation as they coxild. Circumstances were in their favour ; a malady which had gone far to destroy TOussAiNT l'ouverture. 339 the army and the fleet ; the raiuy season, which was at liancl, not less baneful to the whites than favoui-able to the blacks ; the asylum of the mountains, whei'e their foes would pui'sue them almost in vain. Full of fear yet fuU. of courage, they spoke to each other words of exhortation : " Do they expect to find slaves in us ? why did they not leave us at large in our forests ? Was Afi'ica, our native land, weary of us.' Have our rivers been dried up? Did not our flocks, our tieids, did not hunting and Ashing suffice for oiu- wants ? We learnt no other wants but at the price of om- liberty; they have deceived us in oiu- simplicity by poisoned gifts. Were not our feet accustomed, unshod, to walk over burning sands; and did not our uncovered heads brave the tires of tlie torrid zone 1 Our skin, given by nature to enable us to live near the sun, performed the oflice of garments fabri- cated by luxury. Was not the limpid wave of our fountains preferable to tlie liquors which cause biixtal fury I To enjoy the sweet manifestations of frieudsliip, the guileless smile of our children, the caresses of a mother who, during three years, nur- tured us with her milk ; to tx'ouble neither our own lot nor the lot of others ; to pass our life without fear and without desires, as a river of a tranquil and uniform flow — such were the precious advantages of which we have been robbed by our enemies." While thus they inflamed each other by fancy pictures of their ancesti'al mode of life, they drew a too true and a very painful contrast in adverting to their actual condition. Here a man held forth liis arm, mutilated by a barbarous monster ; there another pointed to his leg, eaten into by the links of an iron chain; othei-s drew attention to the scars left by the driver's thong; women uncovered their brea.sts, which showed traces of the branding-iron, — ^the breasts which had suckled their mastei*s' children. And then, with what px'ide did they turn to the blessings of freedom ! " Heaven, in its pity, has given us a new country in this land of exile, of grief^ and of shame ; shall it be torn from us ?' Soon the standard of revolt was raised. At flrst the banner wa»s imfurled by obscure men who occasioned little solicitude. But civil wars are pregnant with great leaders. In the moun- 240 THE LIFE OP tains of Saint Domingo there wex*e always tribes of untamed Africans, who bad thro-vra off the yoke of slavery. At the head of one of these tribes was Lamoixr de Ranee, an adroit, stern, savage man, half-naked, with epaulettes tied by a cord, for his only token of authority. At home in the mountains, he jiassed fi'om one to the other with something of the ease of one of their o^vn birds. Tonssaint himself had in vain pursued him in those retreats, whose jDroper inhabitants are wild beasts; that chief acknowledged no other authority than that which nature gave, in no way thinking or caring about monarchy or republicanism. His tender of obedience to the Government had been a matter of mere form. His di-ess, his manners, his character, his mode of fighting, at the Cape, where he just showed himself, were objects of curiosity and amusement with the French army. A greater insult could not be given than to ask this savage warrior for his arms. Were they not the protectors of his life 1 He avenged the insult by carrying fire and sword over the Highlands in the vicinity of Port-au-Prince. In the plain of Leogane he reduced to ashes more than a hundred plantations; he carried off the labourers, and inflicted barbarous cruelties on the whites. The revolt extended. In the north, as well as in the south and the west, it broke out and spread devastation. As reports of these iiisurrections got abroad at the Cape and Port-au- Pi-ince, consternation increased. News was eagerly sought after, though almost always the source of fresh anxiety. Some reported that they had seen on fire the mountains which overhang Port- au-Prince ; others that Lamour de Eance had reduced to ashes the plantations of Leogane. This day brought intelligence that Sans-Souci was in arms at Yalliere ; the next that Noel had seized Dondon and Sylla Plaisance. "You have heard that Macaya raises the country around Port-de-Paix ?" " No ; but a band of insurgents is spreading teiTor in the island of Tortue." More lamentable still were the narratives wliicli some had to give how their brothers, their wives, their children, had been massacred with an incredible refinement of cruelty. The general alarm Avas exaggerated by the colonists, who, forgetful of the share they had had in causing it, and that but TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE. 241 for them there would have beeu no conquest of the island, uo violation of oaths, no intention of restoi'iug slavery, accused (as is the custom of such men) their destiny, the Govei'nment, Heaven, cveiy object but themselves, the real sources of all these evils. " Heaven, then," they said, "has not ceased to per- secute us ; have we not suffered enough during ten years of exile and misery ? Shall we always be driven into flight, or be massacred by oiu' ferocious slaves '? Was there ever a similar succession of reverses and niisfortmies ? Are we not the most unfortunate of men 1 Our slaves are before our eyes kmdling incendiary torches, and twice have Ave seen our plantations and our towns biu-ned to the ground. Why does not the Government act with decision 1 Why leave us to certain and speedy de- struction f ' Then they invoked the aid of the black chiefs who remained attached to their party, and who replied to them only by a fierce silence or by dissimulation. But always allowing themselves to be borne away by vengeance, they suiTouuded the Captain-general with their pernicious counsels, and he, instead of employing clemency and mildness, made use only of arms and punishments. In the cities scaffolds were raised, which were bathed in the blood of the blacks. They even executed women and children, whose only crime was that they had brothers, fathers, or husbands, among the revolters ; they were accused of corresponding with them — the penalty of such intercourse was death. Port-au-Prince, in consternation at the ravages of Lamour de Ranee, became the special theatre of executions. All suffered death with intrepidity, calmness, and resignation. The more numerous the executions, the moi-e extensive Avere the -desertions. Instead of terrifying they exasperated ; the}^ fed the insurrection, though they intended to suppress it. While the scaffolds were crowded with victims, Leclerc applied to Dessalines for assistance. He went to the Cape, and renewed his protestations of fidelity and dcAotedness. Cruel as false, the .monster declared that he thirsted for the blood of the revolters. In a momeiit when his indignation had gained the mastery, and the agitation of his members manifested more rage than even his words, the General- in-chief said to him in transport, " Tha B 342 THE LIFE OP ti'oops which I expect from France will give me the power of striking a terrible blow." " There shall be," shouted Dessalines, in fury, " a general earthquake !" A Government that stimulates and employs such wretches condemns itself and forfeits its authority. Instead of carrying on the war honourably, Dessa- lines pretended to entertain feelings in favour of the revolt. By this means it was that he entrapped General Belair. While Dessalines was subduing mounts Cahos, Leclerc ordered Rochambeau to punish Lamour de Ranee ; but the troops who went in pursuit of him, saw only vast fields of fire which covered his flight. "When circumstances suggested, the barbarians shel- tered themselves in the heart of precipitous mountains, wliich were to them fortifications stronger than any which the art of man ever constructed. All that could be done was to oppose some limit to the ravages of the foe in the west and the south, the frontiers of which two provinces he had laid waste. At the same time the captain of the expedition, seconded by Christophe and Maurepas, employed all his efforts both to put down the sedition in the Isle of Tortue, and to arrest the pro- gress of the revolt in the north. But Sans-Souci was an African not less agile than Lamour de Bance. He also covered his flight with deserts and flames ; he did not, however, fear to tr}"- actual combat. Twice he defeated the troops sent against him. Meanwhile the black generals still attached to the French preserved only a suspected fidelity, and barely concealed their disquietude. Christophe, afraid of being arrested like Toussaint, did not accept Leclerc's invitation to a banquet, until he had directed his troops to be in readiness for a sudden blow. An oflicer who sat next him at table, took pleasure in filling his glass. Christophe, suspecting an evil design, turned to him in rage, and said, " Dost thou know, thou little white thing, that if I had drunk the wine which thou pouredst out for me, I should have desired to drink thy blood and that of thy general?" These words caused great agitation among the guests. Leclerc reproached Christophe with what he called Toussaint's treason, and commanded the officers of his guard to run to arms. " Vain is it to call your soldiers," the chief replied ; " mine are under TOUSSAiNT l'ouverture. 243 arms, and with a siugle word I can make you a prisoner ; but, as to my betraying you, learn to know me. I remain subject to you as T was to Toussaint ; had he said to me, ' Hurl this island into the sea,' 1 would have done my best. This is the way I obey or command. The faith of oaths and treaties — security of person — sacred rights of hospitality — has not all been violated by your cruel policy? Prison, banishment, death, are the rewards of those whose blood flows for our liberty. No longer are you around me, friends, soldiers, heroes of our moim- tains ! And thou, Toussaint, the pride of our race, the terror of our enemies — ^thou whose genius led us from slavery to liberty — thou whose hand adorned peace with lovely virtues — thou whose glory fills the world, they have put thee in irons like the vilest criminal ! But what is there in common between you. Captain-general, and Toussaint 1 Your name came amongst us only as his who tiirned pan-icidal arms against the repre- sentatiA'es of your country. It is tliis crime, doubtless, tliat the Consul wnshed to reward in giving you the government of Saint Domingo." These were bold words to be spoken at the Governor's table. The guests looked astounded. Leclerc, alarmed in his inmost soul, affected composure. In truth, the condition of the colony was lamentable. The fever continued its wasting career. The Government every day lost power, while its enemies increased. Suspicion and alarm opened on every hand. Tliis state of things finds a good descrip- tion in the words of an eyewitness. Thus does General Pamphile de Lacroix speak : " I was invited to the heights of the Cape by General Boudet, whom the General-in-chief was sending to France to acquaint the Government with the true condition of the island. At the house of General Boudet I found Generals Clervaux and Christophe. I asked them the cause of the jirogress of the insiurrection. The latter replied, ' You are a European, and you are young ; you have fought merely in the armies of the mother country ; you, consequently, cannot have any preju- dices regarding slavery. I will therefore speak to you with frankness. The revolt grows because distrust is at its height. If you had our skin, you would not, perhaps, be so confiding as R 2 244 THE tIFE OF myself, who am intmsting luy only son, Ferdinand, to General Boudet that he may be educated in France. I make no account of the brigands who have given the signal for the insurrection. The danger lies not there ; the danger is in the general opinion of the blacks ; those of Saint Domingo are frightened because they know the decree of the 30th Floreal, Avhich maintains slaveiy and the slave-ti'ade in the colonies restored to France by the treaty of Amiens. They are alarmed at seeing the First Consul re-establish the old system in those colonies. They are afraid lest the indiscreet talk that is heard here on all sides should find its way to France, and suggest to the Government the idea of depriving the blacks of Saint Domingo of their liberty.' In order to pique his self-love, I asked him how it was that he, who had so much influence in the south, should not have found troops sufficiently devoted to put Sans-Souci into liis hands ? His reply struck me : 'If Sans-Souci was a soldier, I might get hold of him ; but he is a mean and cruel brigand, who has no scruple to kill whomsoever he suspects ; he knows when to fly, and he knows how to cover his flight with the deserts which he leaves behind him. He goes about the afiair better than we did at the time of your disembarcation. If, then, instead of fighting, our system of resistance had consisted in flight, and in well alarming the blacks, ^^ou would never have been able to overtake us. So said old Toiissaint : no one be- lieved him. We possessed arms ; the pride of making use of them was our ruin. These new insurgents follow the system of Toussaint ; if they persist in it, we shall have difficulty to re- duce them.' " General Christophe urged me not to return that evening to Fort Dauphin ; saying, that the revolters having attacked his posts in the plain, were probably informed of my journey. I thanked him ; but urging that the danger would be greater to- morrow, I said that I should return as soon as I had seen the General-in-chief. General Leclerc acquainted me with his melancholy situation, congratulating himself in seeing none but bandits among the new chiefs of the insurrection, and added, that in the feeble state of the forces of the mother country, he was TOussAiNT l'ouverture. 245 glad to find the generals of colour still faithful to France. On my way to Saint Michel, I stopped at General Christophe's, who hearing discharges of fire-aniis in the mountains, repeated his request that T would not that evening press on to Fort Dauphin. I persisted in my intention. He then ordered six of his guides to accompany me. ' Bear in mind,' he said to them repeatedly, ' that you are escorting a general whom I esteem and love.' " We set out. Of a sudden the guides, who led the way with torches, stopped befoi'e a detachment of thirty blacks, who had concealed themselves in a ditch. Forthwith one heard the words, ' Halt ! stop ! halt !' Shots succeeded. The com- manding ofiicer meanwhile recocrnised in Don Diefjo Polanco, who was with me, an old friend. We were saved. But I had seen reason to believe that the chiefs of the colonial troops and the coloured generals had communications with the insurgents. " Too fi-equently did the Eui'opeans speak of the reinforcements captured from France for the blacks not to perceive the need in which we stood of them." The news of the events which had taken place at Guadaloupe, the maintenance of slaveiy at Martinique, indiscreet talk, and insinuations from foreigners, fomented distrust in the minds of the black chiefs. The words which the First Consul had ad- dressed to the Abbe Gregoire, at an officeal presentation at the Institute, were repeated in the colony : " From what is taking place in Saint Domingo, I wish the friends of the blacks through- out Europe had their heads covered with mourning ci'ape." The words struck men's imaginations. The minds of the blacks and of the men of colour were at the height of disquietude when the frigate, Cocarde, entered the roads, having on board blacks sent from Guadaloupe ; many of them in the night jumped into the sea, swam to shore, and by their reports made the alarm still greater. At the same time, some men of colour, also from Guadaloupe, brought to Saint Domingo information that the slave-trade in that island comprehended their caste. Here were dark presages of what might be expected in Saint Domingo, The fidelity of the chiefs of the Colonial troops was from that hour irrevocably shaken. 246 THE LIFE OF General Clervaux, who had recently condemned Charles Belair to death, first threw off the mask by deserting. The evening before, being at Madame Leclerc's, he had said in a fit of passion, " I was free formerly ; only to new circumstances do I owe it that I have raised up my reviled colour ; but if I fan- cied that here the restoration of slavery would ever be thought of, that instant I would become a brigand." Judge, if you can, of the position of Captain-general Leclerc ; he knew the danger, he covdd not prevent it. The crews were not sufficient for the service of the ships. The garrison of the Cape did not comprise more than two hundred Europeans ; there were in it fifteen hundred colonial soldiers. On the night of the 13th-14th of September (1802), Petion, that coolly audacious chief, threw all into confusion at the Cape, sjDiked the guns, and disarmed the European cannoniers."* Two days after, Clervaux and Petion made an attack on the Cape, but failed to capture it. So well were they received by Brigadier Anhouil that, thinking they were opposed by the fresh troops expected from France, they drew off theii' forces which, if pressed forward, must have been overwhelming, so superior were they in number to the defenders of the colonial metropolis. At the moment of the attack, Leclerc, as a measure of precaution, sent on board vessels in the harbour, whose crews had been greatly reduced by the fever, detachments of the colonial soldiers who had remained at the Cape. The sailors, panic-struck, cried out, " Let us kill those who may kill us." They fell on the black soldiers, and ruthlessly drowned of them more than a thousand. Then Christophe, already prepared for defection, and lately standing, to use his phrase, as a benevolent spectator, in other words, watcliing the right moment, joined Clervaux. A few days after Dessalines threw himself into opposition. The insurrection became general. The entire population was the enemy of France. The mother, the daughter, the child, as well as the father, and the brother, all were soldiers. The woods were their camps, dens their dwellings; the mountains * Mcmoires, vol. ii. 224, seq^. TOussAiNT l'ouvertuke. 247 their ramparts; they found theii* food in the spontaneous products of the earth ; they transmuted into arms the instni- ments of agricultm-e. Stones hurled from the rocks served them instead of artillery. They threw their whole life into assaults, combats, and ambuscades. A new future was before them. "Death or liberty!" again became their rallying cry. Everywhere the insurgents repulsed, and laid waste the enemies of their freedom. They captured Port-de-Paix, Gonaives, Fort Dauphin. In the evacuation of the last place, General de Lacroix was obliged in his extremity to destroy powder and provisions to the value of two millions of francs. Escaping by sea to the Cape, he lost in the short voyage sixty-six sick per- sons, who were thrown into the sea. The first words which Leclerc addressed to him on landing them were, " General, what have you done ? You bring a colovu-ed population four times more numerous than your Europeans ; you do not know then that they are tigers, serpents, that you bear in your bosom." Leclerc felt that the colony was escaping out of his hands. Of all his conquests there remained only, in the North, the Cape, and Mole Saint-Nicholas, and in the West, Port-au-Prince, and Saint Marc. But for the colonists, who then appeared with ai'ms in their hands, all was over. At the prospect the Captain-general was greatly alarmed. He looked everyAvhere for succour. In his perylexity he sent to an enemy's camp to beg the aid of Christophe, offermg him honours and riches. Christophe contented himself with reply- ing, that he was rich and honoured enough in possessing liberty himself, and in secvu'ing the liberty of his colour. Shortly, Christophe put himself at the head of the insurgents, and proceeded to attack the Cape. Then was Leclerc on the land side shut up within the walls of the capital. Scarcely did he possess vessels sufficient for flight. Such wa.s the condition of Hayti, when, in the hrst of Novem- ber, 1802, the Captain-general, worn down by fatigue and pains, and overwhelmed with vexation, disappointment, and despair", breathed his last, as the final result of a sickness which had long threatened to prove fatal. A little before his death he expressed 248 THE LIFE OF liis regret for tlie errors committed by himself in the govern- ment. Regret now utterly vain; errors which had proved disastrous to all the gi'eat interests of the colony. Nor less dis- astrous to France was this iniquitous expedition. Of four-and- thirty thousand warriors, twenty-four thousand had perished, and eight thousand were in the hospitals ; scarcely more than two thousand were fit for service. Amid this thick darkness, and surrounded by these vengeful penalties, the Captain-general passed to a tribunal before which diversities of skin are unknown. Leclerc wanted neither sense nor manners. He possessed an easy eloquence which threw light on the discussions of his council-chamber. But he was little acquainted with the human heart ; and was unable to in- terpret the peculiar character of Africans. In war he was active, uncertain, and presumptuous. Blindly obedient to the wishes of the First Consul, he made peace consist of a complica- tion of troubles, divisions, treachery, and violence. By these deplorable crimes, he was reduced to the state of impotence which has been described. As he had none of the qualities of a gi'eat commander, a fimeral oration pronounced in his honour before a few soldiers, who had escaped fi-om the fever and the sword, was a mere harmonious assemblage of idle words. Paviline, Leclerc's wife, affected the marks of extraordinaiy mourning, but she betrayed appearances by choosing for her companion one of the most handsome men of the army, and returned to her ordinary habits of hixury, pleasure, and volup- tuousness. After having had her husband's body embalmed, she crossed the sea to France. When her vessel appeared at Mar- seilles, the inhabitants at the sight of the Consul's sister, a widow, so young, in tears, manifested their sorrow by decorating the port and the streets with crape and funereal garlands. The tokens of sadness had been commanded, but they had some reality, for many of them had seen her grow up to adolescence within their walls. In moiu'nful procession she entered Paris. Brothers, sisters, and wives, then shed true tears at the remembrance of sons, brothers, and husbands, whom they had lost in the expedition. ToussAiNT l'ouverture. 249 Pauline herself let some tears fall when she saw her brothei", who embraced her with joy and tenderness. Then she spoke to him eloquently of Saint Domingo as a land of fire, blood, and desolation. The Consul heard her in silence, and said, " Here is all that remains of that fine army — the body of a brother-in-law, of a general, my right arm, a liandful of dust ; all has perished, all will perish. Fatal conquest ! cursed land ! perfidious colonists ! a, ^vl•etched slave in revolt ! These ai-e the causes of so many e"vals." He concealed fi'om himself for a moment that he had sent away so many brave wan-iors that they might not throw their bayonets across the road to the imperial thi'one, whither he was urged by liis impetuous desires. Soon his mind arose from that dejection, and in the immensity of the future which his genius embraced, he regarded the calami- ties of Saint Domingo only as an unlucky but useful incident. Had he not thrown into prison Toussaint, the chief and the soul of the revolt 1 The fever had nearly consumed its fuel ; Ro- chambeau, whose character he knew, would terrify the island into obedience. Those wandering bands of insiu'gents, without a head, without union, di'S'ided among themselves, would desei-t the mountains to enjoy the pleasures of the cities. Besides, did he not possess the two heads of Saint Domingo, the South and the Spanish ten-itory ? Had he no more soldiers, no more ships ? Let twenty thousand men fly over the ocean. Thus Bonaparte prepared for the loss of a second aniiy. Blind ambition, reckless of its means, i*eckless of the misery it occasions ! Meanwhile the First Consul dejjosited Leclerc's corpse amid much pomp in the Pantheon, and erected statues to his memory. The greater the calamities of Hayti, the more he endeavoured to efiace the recollection of them by show and pomp, and by the aid of those arts which ought to transmit to posterity the memoiy only of truly great men. 250 THE LIFE OF CHAPTER lY. Eochambcau assumes the command — His cliaracter — Voluptuousness, tyranny, and cruelty — Eeceives large reinforcements — Institutes a system of terror — The insurrection becomes general and irresistible — The French are driven out of the island. After the death of Leclerc, the command of Hayti passed into the hands of Rochambeau. That General was deformed in body, but of a robust constitution ; his manner was hard and severe, though he had a propensity to voluptuousness. In his youth he had, under the eyes of an illustrious father, served the cause of independence in North Ajnerica. He lacked neither ability nor experience in war. He possessed tender, domestic, and friendly affections. His good qualities would have accompanied him to the tomb, if he had not been called to the government of Saint Domingo. Regarding virtue as both lovely and requisite in pri- vate life, he judged it useless and even dangerous in public affairs, as if the laws of eternal justice depended on position and circumstances. JNIisled by this gross delusion, he feared not to give himself up to acts of violation, spoliation, and cruelty of all kinds. Blaming the tardy and hesitating administration of his predecessor, he resolved to employ all the resources of teiTor in order to establish his authoi'ity. Masters who had been impoverished by the freedom of the slaves, saw with joy Rochambeau succeed a chief who, according to circumstances, espoused or beti'ayed their personal interests. But the blacks were disquieted when they knew that he had taken the helm. Independently of the massacre he had committed in the bay of Mancenille, they remembered that when merely a general, he had not scrupled to degrade them with the punishment of the lash ; but what caused them greater alarm were some words addressed in a tone of pleasantry to their wives at a festivity which he had given at Port-au-Prince. " You," he said, " are invited to dance at your interment." A TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTURE. 251 hall hung with black, and lighted up by funeral torches, seemed to them the image of their aiiproachiug sanguinary end. Despotism and sensuality have often been companions. In Kochambeau the one sharpened the appetite for the other, as though greediness of bodily pleasure welcomed the zest arising from the sight of bodily pain. No small part of his time Rochambeau passed at table, or on soflis, with Creole females, worshippers of pleasure, as well as most cruel towards their slaves. They sjioke to him constantly of chains, prisons, the scourge and other punishments, in the midst of games, laughter, caresses, and senseless gratifications with wldch they intoxicated his soul. As his policy inclined him to violence, he wUlingly allowed himself to be overcome by the fascinations of these women, as well as by ii-ritated jiroprietors, who continually pointed him to their houses in flames, and their slaves in i-evolfc in the mountains. Thus did he Listen only to counsels of hatred enforced by contempt and vice. The fever had changed the character of the army. The heart of the soldier was worn by regret, fatigued by misfortune, and filled with trouble ; no longer had the noise and glitter of arms, encampments, war, and victory, any attractions for him. A bitter and savage melancholy had succeeded to the hilarity and joy of courage and hope. Even officers of rank were seen to disoAvu authority and to favour a revolt, which they judged legi- timate. But Kochambeau, who required a blind submission, dismissed those the firmness of whose soul he doubted ; thus giving fi'ee course to tyranny in order to oppose an efiectual remedy to the evils he wished to put do■v^^l. Up to this time punishment and violence had been covered with a veil. Toussaint had not been an'ested except as a result of a pretended conspiracy ; a military tribunal had condemned Charles Belaii-. Those who had suffered death, had been taken with arms in their hands, or had kept up communi- cations with the insurgents. In truth many women and children were in the number of the victims, but they were at least implicated by some accusation, and it was through fear i-ather than cruelty that disarmed soldiers had been drowned at lol THE LIFE OF the Cape. But from this time there was no longer any study of appearances ;' law, judges, and tribunals were ceremonies too circuitous and too tardy. Meanwhile Rochambeau, who received in different detach- ments fresh troops, to the number of 20,000 men, sent them under different circumstances against the revolters, whom he drove away fi'om the country around Port-au-Prince, Mole Saint- Nicholas, and the heights which overhung the Cape. As he was most eager to signalize his command by some victory, he retook Fort Dauphin and Port-de-Paix without any memorable action. This was the term of his success. The blacks without regi'et, abandoned fortresses which to them seemed contemptible in comparison with their rocks. But in the degree in which they were repulsed at one point, they extended towards another, so that they only acquired accessions of strength. But what was more for their encouragement and advantage, was that they were furnished with arms by English vessels. Rochambeau thought that there was no surer means to repress their ardour than to affright them by some extraordinary punishment. The sea off the Cape was chosen to be the theatre of an exe- cution, unparalleled in what is called civilized life. For fear that Maurepas, who had gained distinction under Toussaint L'Ouver- tui-e, after having embraced the side of France, should join the insiu-gents, Leclerc had written to him to come by sea, with his family and his troop, to take the command of tlie Cape, which he destined for him as a reward for his services. No sooner had he arrived than he and his soldiers were seized and disarmed. Rochambeau ordered preparations to be made for a barbarous punishment, in order to j^ut the negro general to death, with his troop, consisting of 400 blacks. It was also put in deliberation whether death should be inflicted on his children, in order to prevent them from rising up to avenge theu' father. After having been bound to the mast of a vessel, Maurepas was ii'ightfully insulted. His wife, his children, and his soldiers were brought to be drowned under his eyes. The executioners were astounded when they beheld a father fix his dying eyes by turns on his children, his wife, and his companiojis in arms. REVENGE OF TUE FRENCH ON TU£ BLACKS. ToussAiNT l'oua'ertuee. 253 undergoing a violent death ; wliUe they, on their part, turned their eyes away from a father, a husband, a general, whose co\ui- tenance was disfigured by the tortures he was enduring. After being made to contemplate each other's sufferings, they wei-e all tossed into the ocean. They died without complaining, in a manner worthy the champions of liberty. With a reversal of the order of nature, the father died last ; he also suffered most. Thus died Maurepas, whose character was a compound of frankness and severity. Thrice had he repulsed the French at the gorge of Trois-Eivieres ; he had at once the glory and the misfortune to go over to the French with victorious arms. The elevation of liis soul equalled his valour. He preserved a tender feeling for the master whose slave he had been ; he caused funeral honours to be paid to that master, and when his grave had been negligently prepai'ed, he threw off his upper garment in order to perform the pious office properly. Among men of his own blood he Avas a powerful chief A spirit of order and. justice prevailed in his life. His riches, which were considerable, were given up to pillage. It would almost seem as if so much excellence were subjected to so much ignominy, expressly to show that while black men are capable of any virtue, white men are capable of any crime. Certainly, my nari'ative is replete with instances which, beyond a question, prove that moral as well as mental excellence is independent of the varieties of colour. This brutal punishment, preceded by vile perfidy, filled tlie camps of the insurgents with hoiTor. That horror was aug- mented when Rocluimbeau, at the Cajie, put to death five hundred prisoners. On the place of execution, and. under the 03-68 of the victims, they dug a large hole for their grave, so that the poor wretches may be said to have been present at their own funeral. Dessalines burning to avenge Mam-epas and his fellow-soldiers, rushed like a Hon on the Cape, and, in his impetuous and terrible march, he suiTounded and made prisoners a body of Frenchmen, who, at the post called Belair, defended the approach to the city. Then, with branches of trees, that ferocious African raised, imder the eyes of Rochambeau, five hundred gibbets, on which he 254 THE LIFE OF hanged the same number of prisoners. Of these A'ictims of vengeance, the greater number had been the Consul's companions in arms ; they had assisted that bad gi'eat man to acquire his pi-etensions to a thi-one, and for then- reward they had been sent out of his way to suffer an ignominious and painful death at the hands of a savage. Eochambeau, who occupied himself less and less with war, contiaued to plunge into the delights of the table, and of volup- tuousness with courtezans and wives of colonists who never ceased to stimulate his tyranny, and exact from him the restora- tion of their slaves. Then, while the insurrection, in the name of liberty, made head in the mountains, on the plains suspicion converted everything into crime. If you went abroad, you joined the revolters ; if you stayed at home, you were waiting for them ; if you manifested joy, you took pleasure in the public calamities ; if you appeared sad, you grieved over the reverses of the revolt ; if you wrote letters, you corresponded with the enemy ; if you talked, you spread sedition ; if you were observed to listen, you were a spy ; if you failed to salute a white, you insulted a master : bravery was dangerous, weakness was com- plicity, innocence was stratagem. Interpretations were j)ut on a gesture, a smile, a sigh ; silence was accused of sedition, and even thoughts had no asylum in their last refuge, the human heart. Such is the character of the tyranny which under the slightest pretext and often by mere hazard, thi'ew its toils round a multi- tude of victims without distinction of age or sex, to effect their ruin. The number of sufi'erers was greatly augmented, because colonists by a species of rivalry denounced the peaceful slaves of other colonists, so that it became almost the sole business of Hochambeau to order or even to devise punishments; the sea and the laud were covered with them. The unfortunate blacks were boiuid together and then thrown into the sea to perish: if they came up to the surface and made their way to the shore, they •were in sport pursued and massacred. The executions were varied: now the blacks were beheaded, now they were dragged down into the depths by the weight of a shot tied to their feet; and now they were stifled by sulj)hur on ship-board. TOUSSAINT L'0U\'ERTirRE. 255 Among the number of these victims were female priests, who woi'shipped African fetish idols. That veneration for the gods of their fathers was pimished with death; so little does unbelief guarantee toleration. A French general, touched with compas- sion at the approaching death of one of these superstitious but well-meaning women, implored that her life might be spared . Rochambeau, taking into his hands the pigmy idols of her wor- ship, said, " How can I save the life of one who worships these?" Yet during the fever these very women had bestowed every atten- tion on sick French soldiers. TJnhapjiy women, their charity had no other recompense than the punishment which is reserved for the vilest crimes. Base ingratitude of the . commander ! Here, again, on which side is the moi-al superiority? Oh, civili- zation, what crimes have been committed in thy name ! Ye weak ones, whose " feeble knees" a Christian authority com- mands Christian men to strengthen (Heb. xii. 12), how have indignities and woes been heaped on your heads, simply because ye were weak, not only by sceptics and scoffers, but even bv professed believers in a divine religion ! The numerous executions which began at Cape City soon, extended to other places; Port-au-Prince had its salt watei's made bloody, and scaffolds wei'e erected and loaded within and without its walls. The hand of tyranny s])read terror and death over the shores of the north and the west. As the insurrection became more daring, it was thought that the punishments had not been either numerous enough, violent enough, or various enough. The colonists coimselled and encouraged vengeance as if it was their wealth. All human passions were let loose. Never was such a spectacle of 'ferocity beheld. The calm, concentrated, impassible revolt which followed the death of Leclerc, had committed only particular acts of revenge; but at the sight of punishments so numerous and so hoiTible, insurrection roared and raged on all sides. Men, scarcely anything else than barbarians, made the mountains re- sound with this death song : — " Open, yc sepulchres of our ancestors ; je dusty bones, shudder ; Vengeance ! vengeance ! reply the tombs and all nature." 256 THE LIFE OP With sliouts of joy they ran to battle, and impatient to avenge their coloui-, they seized the enemies of tlieir liberty, and cast them to the eai-th to jierish. The South was once more on fii-e. At the same time, at the Cape, at Fort Dauphin, at Port-de- Paix, at Saint Marc, at Port-au-Prince, and all along the shores, everywhere were wliips, crosses, gibbets, funeral piles; and soldiers, colonists, sailors engaged in slaying, strangling, drowning human beings, whose only crime was their refusal to go back into slavery. Some had their bodies lacerated by the scourge ; then they were fastened to posts in the vicinity of a marsh, that they might be devoured, half alive, by blood-sucking insects. Others were literally burnt alive, as if they had been martyi's for religion. Death thus appeared before the negro in its two most terrible aspects, extreme slowness and extreme rapidity. Others in greater number perished in the sea or on the scaffold. In the country, trees loaded with flowers and breathing perfumes, served as gallows, as if to put in broad contrast the goodness of God and the vileness of man. Countries created for peace, hap- piness, and joy, were thus desolated by human passions scarcely less baneful to those who fostered and indulged them than to those against whom they raged. On the countenance of those who were led to death shone an anticipation of the liberty which they felt was about to grow on a land watered with the blood of their caste. They had the same firmness, the same resignation, the same enthusiasm as distin- guished the martyr of the Christian religion. On the gibbets, in the flames, in the midst of tortm^es scarcely was a sigh to be heard ; even the child hardly shed tears. The words " our coimtry," "freedom," breathed quietly fi'om their dying lips. They often encom'aged each other to bear death manfully. A black chief named Chevalier, hesitated when he saw the instruments of Iiis pimishment. "What!" said his wife, "thou knowest not how sweet it is to die for liberty !" and without allowing herself to be touched by the executioner, she took the rope and ended her days. A mother said to her daughters who were going to execution, " Be glad, you will not be mothers of slaves." The strength of soul which the blacks showed in their tortui'es TOUSSAINT LOUYERTUUE. Zo7 was SO siirprisiug, that the whites ascribed the cause to some pecu- liarity of organization. It was pretended that the fibres of the blacks contx'acted with so much force that the sufferers became m- seusible to paiu. Thus, by vain suppositions, an effort was made to rob the victims of the glory of their death. If the question was to make them slaves, then they were not men ; if the ciniellest punishments were to be inflicted on them, then they did not suffer. If they were not men, why make them do the woi'k of men? If they did not suffer, why impose the punishments'? Beasts may do the woi'k which was hiid on beings who were not men; and sufferings not felt, were inefficacious both as punish- ments and examples. But when did tyranny lack a jjretext, or cruelty lack a palliation 1 In this case, the pretext and the palliation did but throw the enormity of the injustice int» relief. Ordinary expedients were too tanie, or too slow, or not suffi- ciently efficacious. History was ransacked for others. Children, women, and old men were confined in sacks, and thrown into the- sea : it was the punishment of parricides among the Romans. It was ascertained that three centuries before, in that same country ,^ Spaniards had employed dogs to run down the innocent savages.. Frenchmen of the nineteenth ceutuiy rejoiced that they had at their command a resource so effectual, and I must add, so diabo- lical. Bochambeau, however, sent a vessel to the isle of Cuba to purchase dogs whose nature, under man's training, made them fit for the work of hunting hmuan beings. When this ship appeared at the fort of the Cape, wives of the colonists went to receive them on the shore, and made the air resound with cries of joy ; they put garlands on theii- necks, and strewed their path with flowers. Some degraded themselves so far as to cover those instruments of their vengeance with kisses. To what extrava- gances does slavery lead ! An experiment must be made. In the coxu-tyard of a convent a sort of amphitheatre was erected, which was filled Avith a mxiltitude panting for negro blood. The victim was bound to a post. The dogs, sharpened by extreme huuger, were no sooner let loose, than they tore the poor wretch to pieces. The raging animals disputed with each other the pal- s 258 THE LIFE OP pitating members, aud the ground was dyed witli human blood and canine foam. A report spread among the bhicks, that at the last groan of that pitiable creature, the heavens opened, and received his soul. This kind of death, with circumstances more or less frightfid, became common, until cruelty, dispensing with all forms, disdain- fully cast human beings to the dogs, who were kept in packs near the city ; and when the appetite of the animals, satisfied with human flesh and gore, refused any longer to destroy, the sword finished the bloody work : showing that man's passions surpass in atrocity those of wild beasts. Indeed, language failed of terms to describe the crimes which the lust of unjust power j>eri^)etrated. New exjiressions were invented. The di'owniug of two or three hiindred human beings was called " a good haul ;" death on a gallows was " a step upwards ;" to be torn in pieces by dogs was " to enter the arena." Some executioners gained celebrity ; the name of Tombarel long continued to make men shudder. The sea and the rivers were stained with blood. The numbers of victims was so considerable that the inhabitants refused to eat fish, lest they should feed on blood of their own colour. Many blacks, of wliom some had witnessed these atrocities, and others, who, in the confusion, had, by swimming or flight, escaped fi'om the hands of the executioners, went to join the ranks of the insurgents in difierent places. Often, under the shade of a tree, or under the point of a rock, these fugitives might be seen recounting to their companions the punishment they had witnessed, or sufiered. How great soever the cruelty, it was exaggerated in their hyperbolical phraseology. The crowd listened with intense curiosity, silence, and horror ; often the narrators were interrupted by questions respecting the fate of a child, or a sister, who had died on the gibbet, or had been tossed into the sea. At these frightfid accounts, the auditors shed tears, but they were tears of vengeance. Some shouted, ^' Shall we go down into our tombs -without having avenged them 1 No ! their bones would repulse ours." Others, by ges- tures and cries, not satisfied with having carried fire aud sword ToussAiNT l'ouverture. 259 over the low lands, stirred eacli other up to deeds of carnage and devastation. Vengeance of a certain barbaric grandeur burst forth. In listening to one of these narratives, Paul L'Ouverture, the brother of Toussaint, learned, that, without any I'eason, his wife, who lived at the Cape, in the peace of her own home, had been dro^\'ned. He fell into a madness of i-evenge which gi*ief nourished, and whicli nothing appeased. He captured, near Fort Dauphin, a sllip^vl■ecked vessel, on board of which were thirty- French passengers. He took them, anil having led them to one of the principal entrances to Cape City, he pitilessly immolated them all to the manes of his innocent wife, taking pains to put on a post an inscription, which stated that the death of a beloved partner had extorted from his grief a vengeance worthy of a prouil, loving, and deeply afflicted soul. Truly, indeed, is revenge blind as well as ruthless. Who can describe, who can dare to contemplate the evUs of slavery ? Sixteen of the bravest generals of Toussaint L'Ouvertiu'e, chained by the neck to the rocks of an uninhabited island, breathed their last miserable sigh after wasting away during seventeen days. These abominable cruelties ai'e not wholly without relief Captains of ships, instead of casting the innocent victims put into their hands for the purpose into the sea, supported them at theii* own expense, and landed them on some of the neighbouring islands, or on some remote shore of Saint Domingo. None showed more humanity than Hazard, who employed as much zeal iii saving victims as others did in destroyuig tlicm. " I have," he said, " deceived your tyrants ; my heart is lacerated to see the land and the sea covered with victims; go into the mountains, rejoin your people, that posterity may learn that savages dragged to servitude have founded a new state ; but pity men's passions, and leave your revenge to time, to remorse, to heaven." All the sea-captains did not act with the same elevation of soul. They did, indeed, save the blacks from death, but their conduct was dictated by a base avarice ; they took them and sold them as slaves in some neighbouring island. On one of these occasions, the governor of Porto-Rico made this fine s 2 260 THE LIFE OP reply : " If they axe slaves, I will not purchase them ; if they are free men, you have not the right to sell them." Nor was the army without examples of virtue. There were generals who, indignant at so many crueltie.s, uttered remon- strances, or disobeyed inhimian commands. Allix, who com- manded at Port-au-Prince, refiised ten thousand shot intended to be fastened to the feet of victims to freedom. This act of disobedience, which was really a vii-tue, Kochambeau punished by banishment. Other officers were punished for similar offences. Truly did the forcible eloquence of the Africans characterize the war as " a War of Cannibals." Suddenly the south, which had been tranquil, awoke at the nOLse of the punishments which sent from the north and the west corpses to float on its shores. That province was peopled chiefly by men of colour, who possessed great wealth, and who .showed themselves less than in other parts, enemies of the whites, with whom, notwithstanding the force of jDrejudice, they were united by marriage. When they saw that they themselves were not spared any more than the blacks, they I'an to arms. The revolt began in the district of Petit-Troux, where, luider the pretext of a conspiracy, of which nothing has ever become known, they had ch'owned Boudet, who had delivered up the fort Bizoton at the attack of Port-au-Prince. That punishment revolted public opinion the more because it involved ingi'atitude. The revolt be- came general as soon as it had been resolved to put to death in the city of Cayes inhabitants of colour, who were in the police service, and who were charged with betraying signs of discon- tent. But how could punishment be inflicted on so many in silence 1 Recourse was had to the sea. The men were seized, disarmed, put into a ship, murdered, and thrown by night into the waves. But womanly love could not be blinded. Women, who had heard the voice of the carnage, demanded with tears in their eyes, that the massacre of their brothers and theii' husbands shoiild not go unpunished. Then there appeared on the stage a new man, named Fen'ou. Highly esteemed in peace, he was terrible in war. He was not a barbarian, his vengeance had- some dignity. After having raised the countiy, he ordered all TOUssAixT l'ouverture. 261 the colonists to be arrested, aud to be conducted safe and sound to the village Coteaux, situate not far from the sea where his people had been destroyed. Not expecting clemency, the cap- tives disdained supplication, and })repared for death. FeiTou addressed to them these words fiill of jjride and bittei-ness : " Cruel whites, you hesitate not to sacrifice to your hate those who in this land ai*e your defenders. Of what use is it that we are allied to you by the sweet and sacred bonds of nature, for our wives are your mothers and daughters I Not fearing the crime of parricide, you imbrue your hands in oiu- blood. From this spot behold that sea in which, during a frightful night, under the pale light of the stars, you di'owned a band of o\ir people. What was their crime 1 To love you and to serve you. The winds and the waves bear back to us their livid bodies. They are brothers, husbands, companions, faitliful friends in servitude, in war, in freedom. A just resentment commands us to sacrifice you ; but go across that blood-stain(!d sea, and join your own colour ; behold in us enemies but not executioners."' Ferrou then sent them in a vessel to Cayes, and forthwith made his arrangements for marching against the city. Informed of tliis revolt, provoked by imprudent attacks, Laplume precipitately returned from the frontiers of the south, where he Avas engaged in checking the ravages of the teiTible Lamour de E-ance. Scarcely had he got back when he discovered the smoke of Ferrous camp, m the vicinity of Port-au-Prince. He fell on him, and compelled him to retreat into the rugged mountains called La Hotte, whose decomposing rocks, break- ing and bursting under men's feet, throw them into their abysses. But Ferrou knew the safe ways. Those he chose, and from them he rushed down to make an irruption into the })lains near the town, Petit Goave. The body of troops employed in. the defence of that city was in part composed of people of colour, and partly of Frenchmen — the former joined the devastator, the latter took to flight. In order tlie more effectually to keep his eye on the insurrec- tion which now covered three provinces, Rochambeau had fixed his residence at Port-au-Prince, still drawing after him a gr'eat 262 THE LIFE OF number of women, witli all the equipage of ejSeminate luxniry. As soon as he had learned the disastrous news, he sent Netervood by sea to recajiture the city of Petit Goave. As he did not doubt of success, he gave his lieutenant a pack of hounds partly to pm-sue the insurgents with, and partly to devour the prisoners. N^tervood hastened on his en-and, and made an attack. But the enemy, setting the city on fire, entrenched themselves in a fort, whence they dealt death on their assailants. Netervood received a moi-tal Avound in the midst of his soldiei's, who were fast perLshing, being placed between a burning town and a powerful stronghold. Elight by sea was the only resource ; and the dogs, in the confusion dispersing abroad, added to the dangers and disgrace of the defeat. Thus Netervood, eager for peril and combat, lost his life in the flower of his youth, in the dishonoiu'- able cause of slaveiy. Bands of insurgents, inflamed by victoiy, occupied the long chains of mountains which run through the southern province. They formed communications one with another, and at their convenience and theii- pleasiu'e rushed down into the plains in torrents which carried away whatever was before them. Dessa- lines put himself at the head of that great movement. Two powerfiil chiefs, Geffi-ard and Cangg, passed from the noi-th to the south. They joined Fen'ou, and in unison hastened across the mountains to ravage the fertile lands of Gavaillon, of Saint Louis, and of Cayes. Then they carried devastation over those of Jeremie. These events threw consternation into the soul of Bochani- beau. The insurrection threatened to pluck out of his hands the southern provinces. He had at first sent six hundred men to Laplume for the defence of Cayes ; but that weak supply proving insufficient, he immediately directed toward J6remie vessels which were bringing from France a reinforcement of two thousand men. One moiety of these men reached Jeremie, and without delay prepared to set out for their destination. But from the peaks of his rocks Ferrou saw them, watched them, and prepared to cut them to pieces. Scarcely were the Fi-ench ten miles from Jeremie, when they fell into an ambuscade. After ToussAiNT l'ouvertuke. 263 a sanguinaiy conflict they were routed. A frightful slaughter ensued. The few that escaped, hurried back t(j Jeremie, where they spread the utmost alarm. The other moiety who landed at Tiburon, were also taken in an amljuscade, and cut to pieces, near Coteaux. The few Avho escaped took refuge in Cayes, into which six hundred other soldiers had thrown themselves, who were to have formed a junction with the two defeated divisions. Wlierever the iiLsiuTcctiou reigned scaffolds were erected. The cities of Cayes and Jeremie were afflicted with numerous executions, wliich drew more closely the bonds between the blacks and the coloured population, and more and more secured success to the caixse of freedom. Laplume, seeing that all was lost, embai'ked for France, where he died, without leaving means for tlie interment of his remains. Rochambeau, on the brink of despau", made new efforts to put a stop to the insurrection. He took special pains to withstand the ravages of Dessalines, whom in a proclamation he threatened to flog to death, as the meanest of slaves*. Men only laughed at the folly. Nevertheless, he succeeded in protecting from the continual incursions of that brute, the plain Cul-de-Sac, and Mu'ebalais, which furnished ])rovisions to Port-au-Prince. At the same time he guai-auteed the envii'ons of the Cape from the frequent attacks of Christophe. Meanwhile, Rochainbeau experienced increasing difficulties in the low state of liis exchequer. He sought remedies in stock-job bing, and in exactions of all kinds. He drew on the United States bills to a very large amount, which his government refused to honour. He levied large contributions on cities that were half ruined. He imprisoned opulent pex'sons, who obtained their liberation only l)y paying large sums of money; some had even to give up theii' property altogether. He attempted to justify these exactions by pleading the necessities of the public service. But he alienated the heai'ts of those who through interest remained attached to his party, to such a degree, that after iiaving lost a second army, destroyed thousands of poor victims, and wasted much money, he fell into the same state of distress, 264 THE LIFE OF ■ misery, and abandonment, as that in "wliich. Leclerc was a sliort time before his death ; with this difference, that under the latter the south had not been polluted or devastated by insensate passions and internecine war. Rochanibeau's efforts to stay the insiuTection were utterly futile. Like a vast conflagration, it extended from the south to the north. If it went out at one point, it blazed up in another. Soon the war changed its seat. Masters on land, the Africans commenced hostilities on the seas, which they can-ied on the more advantageously because they were protected by the English. In light boats, with the aid of the tide and of oars, they went up and down the rivers, passed from the mountains into the ocean, and from the ocean into the mountains, spreading terror wherever they appeared. They attacked ships, massacred the passengers, and loaded themselves with plunder, which they carried back into then* rocky fastnesses. Woe to the French who sailed toward those deadly shores. Two vessels, from Havre and from Nantes, fell into their hands; all on board were slaughtered. As on land so on water, the insurgents could not be reached ; they hid their boats in forests ; dispersed, re-assem- bled, defying alike the soldiers and the ships of war; and, almost with impimity, pursued at will their destructive career. At the sight of an insurrection, which was master both on land and on the sea, Rochambeau was seized with an alarm that he in vain endeavoured to conceal. The Consul, who rewarded success only, was to be feared by a man who was overwhelmed in failure. Of what use so many victims, so many tortures, so many gallows, so many dro^vnings, so many raging hounds ? AU this serves only to illustrate the strength of the insurrec- tion, and the hopelessness of his cause. The moment that the General-in-chief was no longer in a state to make head against the rebellion, it began to insult and brave him, even in the cities which were his last places of refuge. His temper became more and more disquiet and fierce. The shades of his victims ap- peared to him in his dreams. Now he cried out that he would make Saint Domingo a vast cemetery, where at least slavery should bear sway. Now he declared he would re-estabHsh TOussAixT l'ouverture. 265 liberty, wliicli his ciaielties had made ouly more precious to the inhabitants. Then, but too late, ho gi-ew angry at the artifices of the women who had him in their toils, and at the colonists who had misled him by their selfish counsels. Yet did he think it necessary for the security of liis troops to continue the system of terror. A situation so deplorable could no longer be kept concealed from Bonaparte. Rochambeau sent deputies to Paris, who reported that the revolt, somewhat calm after the death of Leclere, having become active again, had spread from the north to the south ; that Rochambeau, in order to stop its progress, had employed the force of arms and tlie utmost terror ; that these remedies had proved powerless ; that the insurrection, animated by a fanatical spirit of liberty, had broken down every embank- ment ; that at the head of the insurrection appeared in the west Dessalines, Christophe in the nortli, and in the south Ferrou ; that after having laid waste the interior, the insui-gents ravaged the coasts like pirates ; that the colonists were in a state of extreme afiliction, at seeing so great an armament over- whelmed with reverses ; and that the only means of safety was another expedition. Another expedition was impossible. Already had a bad feeling arisen between France and England. Soon the latter power declared war against the former. This rapture gave the finishing blow to the French cause in Hayti. On land, Rochambeau's troops were invested by the insurgents. At sea the English were supreme. Nevertheless, tlie French general maintained himself in his post with an intrepidity which would have done honour to a good cause. The sulTeriugs of the besieged became extreme ; rarely have woes equal to theirs been experienced. Rochambeau has related how pitiable was the existence of himself and com- i-ades during this period, when placed between death and life ; they appeased their hunger as well as they could by eating their horses, mules, asses, and eA^en their dogs : yes, the very hounds they had obtained, in order to i"un down their foes. Things remained in this condition until the middle of No- vember (1803); then the besiegers forced some of the exterior 2G6 THE LIFE OP works, and prepared for a new attack. The inflexibility of the French commander was at length obliged to give way. Well did he know that an assault, if made, must succeed, and he feared to fall into the hands of his fui'ious assailants. He offered to capitulate. The offer was accepted. On the 1 9th of November the ai'ticles were signed. The treaty stipulated that the French should evacuate Cap FranQais at the end of ten days, with all their artillery, ammunition, and magazines; that they should withdraw to their vessels with the honours of war and the guarantee of their private property ; that they should leave theii- sick and wounded in the hospitals, whom the blacks should take care of until they were well, and that then they should be sent to France in neutral vessels. These conditions were more favourable than the invading army had a right to expect. The day on which this convention was signed, the French general sent two officers to treat with the commander of the English squadi'on for the evacuation of the Cape. The offered conditions were rejected. Others were pi'oposed, which Rochambeau found inadmissible. His refusal had for its ground the hope that the season would soon compel the English to retire from the vicinity of the Cape, and so render his escape possible. Vain expectation. On the 30fch of November the standard of the blacks waved over the Cape. Rochambeau felt compelled to throw himself on the mercy of the English. At the moment when the ships in which he had taken refuge were about to be sunk by red-hot balls jDrepared by the negi-oes, the fegis of Britain was thrown before them, and a fi^ightful massacre was prevented. A short agreement having been hastily drawn up, Dessalines was informed that the vessels had suiTendered to the arms of his Britannic Majesty. Not without difficulty did the vengeful and ferocious Dessalines consent to allow his prey to be thus j)lucked out of his hands. Shortly, a favourable breeze having spn;ng up, the three frigates and seventeen small craft that formed the French fleet at the Cape, set sail, according to the convention, imder the French flag ; then having tacked, they stnick their colours and surrendered. The prisoners of war amoimted to eight thousand. TOussAJNT l'ouverture. 207 Saint Marc, Cayes, Jeremie, Saint Nicholas, the Spanish terri- tory, were successively abandoned by the French. The departure of the troops in the different cities was a painful scene. Families of the colonists and many other persons lacked vessels to fly from the fmy of the imtated blacks. Wives and children were separated from their husbands and their fathers. The shores re- sounded with cries and lamentations. On land these were about to fall into the hands of pci'sons who had been their slaves ; on sea those were aboiit to become jirisonors to the English. A number entinisted their lives and then- fortunes to fragile barks. As they sailed from the island, Rochambeau, the soldiers, and the colonists saw the tops of the mountains glow •vs-ith fire. Afore- time the blaze had been kindled for war and devastation ; now the blacks lighted up their high lands in token of their joy. Freedom had been wrested out of the hands of their foes. Every Iieart beat with the thought. The dark past was wholly gone : the futm-e was radiant with hope. " Freedom ! freedom !" ran in joyous echoes from mountain-top to mountain-top, till the whole island shouted " Freedom !" Thus ended tliis deplorable expedition. In less than two years sixty thousand persons fell : fifteen hundred were officers of supe- rior rank ; eight hundi'ed were medical men ; three and thirty thousand were soldiers, of whom not a sixth perished in battle. The attempt at subjugation cost the blacks more than twelve thousand men, of whom aliout four thousand fovmd death at the hands of executioners of various kinds. CHAPTER Y. Toussaint L'Ouvcvturc, a prisoner in the Jura mountains, appeals in vain to the First Consul, wlio bruags about his death by starvation — Outline of his career and character. While the cause of independence, forced at length on the as- pirations of the natives of Hayti, was advancing with rapid strides amid all the tumult of arms and all the confusion of 268 THE LIFE OP despotic cruelties, Toussauit L'Ouvertui-e pined away and died in the dark, damp, cold prison of Joux. The castle of Joux stands on a rock. On one side, the river Doubs flows at its base ; on the other, the road of Besangon, leading into Switzerland, gives the stronghold the command of the commimications between that country and France. The Chateau de Joux, built by the Romans, for their convenience in marching into Gaul, extended in the middle ages by the Lords of Joux, purchased by Louis XL, king of France, became imder Louis XI Y. a state prison. There Mirabeau suffered in- cai'ceration, in virtue of a lettre-de-cacliet. Toussaint L'Oiiverture cairied with him into his dungeon the conviction that he was to imdergo a trial. In this con^dction he sustained his soul. He felt confident of a triumph. His enemies he knew were numerous and powerful. The Consul, he sus- pected, feared as much as hated him. Yet what was his crime ? Had not his authority emanated from the supreme power in France ? By that power his position and his acts had been sanctioned. And if even he had offered resistance to the expedition, that opposition had been covered by an act of indemnity proclaimed by Leclerc. If solemn asseverations meant anything, if reiterated oaths retained theii' validity, he could stand before any tribmial in full confidence of an honoiu'able acquittal. But the Fii'st Consul was far from intending to give his prisoner the advantages of a trial. A trial was a public appeal to the great principles of law and right. In such an issue Bonaparte knew very well who would be the lo.ser. There was another, and, for his purpose, a safer way. Toussaint was advanced in years. He had been accustomed to active pursuits. He was an African, and had lived onh^ in tropical regions. His days, there- fore, could be only few, and their niunber would be much abridged by confinement in a foul ]3rison, under a chilling climate. Could he hold out through the coming winter ? If he smwived too long — why, other prisoners had passed away secretly; power has its secret strings and its swift remedies. By a series of cunningly devised and coolly executed measures, ToussAiNT l'ouvertuke. 2G9 Toussaint L'Ouvertiu'e was, ere many months, bronglit to his grave. All communication with the outer world was forbitklen him. He received no news of his wife and family. He passed his days alone with his servant ; the presence of that faithful domestic was a supjiort to him. That solace was taken away, and Tous- saint was left aloiie. Yet was he not alone, for God was with him. In pi^ayer liis soul rose hourly to his Maker, and he received constantly new effusions of comfort and strength. Religious thoughts and observances carried his mind back to the countiy for which he had sacrificed everything. There, in imagination, he again saw the chapel where he and his family were Avont to worship, and while the hymns of praise went up from its neatly- formed roof, he was drawn into sympathy with the worshippers, and with a moved lieai-t and liquid voice, he joined his thanks- givings with theirs. Day by day, and often hours together, was lie on his knees, seeking aid and finding support at the footstool of the heavenly grace, where never mortal knelt in vam. But time passed on, and there were no signs of the expected trial. Hope sustained against hope began at last to fail. AVhat ! was he then a prisoner for life ? If so, his sufferings, if severe, would not be long. Already he felt the chills of the nights of autimm — there alone, in that cold, dreaiy dungeon, no fire, little clothes, no companion, those long pinching nights. And then the winds began to blow hollow and loud, as if they announced a worse time coming. How soon 1 How long ? The winter must be at hand ; his captivity may extend through its whole course ; but can it endixre, can life stretch out, till the genial breath of spring return 1 One day, in the midst of Toussaint's gloomy solitude, a visitor was announced. A visitor ! what, if it were his son Isaac ! or if not he, perhaps an officer of justice to announce the coming trial. No, it was Cafai-elli, aide-de-camp to the First Consul. " O then, here is an order for liberation ; the prison doors will fly open, and I shall once more see my wife and children!" Alas, poor heart, no ! the man comes from one whose soul is meaner than his own. Bonaparte thinks it a pity the treasures h.& 270 THE LIFE OF fancies yoii have buried should be lost ; aud though he does not intend to give you youi" freedom as the price of the disclosure, yet he sends his aide-de-camp to trick you into some kind of •confession on the point, which he may turn to account, and in the result of which, if it is enough, he may find some compen- sation for the millions he has lavished in Saint Domingo in making you his captive. Toussaint, great in misfortune, gave for his reply, " I have lost something very different from money." Yes, thou hadst lost the liberty thou didst once enjoy; and, perad venture, in a moment of sorrow thou thoughtest thou hadst lost the sacred cause in which thou hadst put thy soul. But mark this Consid's mean spii'it. He had liis victim there cooped up only too safely in that humid and infected prison. Still he was unsatisfied. Possibly the prisoner had money. If so, why its hiding-})lace must be ascertained, ere his lips are sealed in the silence of death. " Go then, Cafarelli, get the secret out of the old negro, and then he may be allowed to die." Toussaint would not resign himself to liis fate without an effort. There was only oue tribunal, and that tribunal was a perjured one. Yet an appeal might have some eftect. The following letter was therefore written : — In tlie dungeon of Fort Joux, (Lis ."]0 Fructidor, an. xi. (I7tli .September, 1803.) " General, and First Consul, "The respect and the submission which I could wish for ever graven on my heart — \Jiere toorcls are wmitlng, as if obliterated by tears]. If I have sinned in doing my duty, it IS contrary to my intentions ; if I was wrong in forming the constitution, it was through my great desire to do good ; it was through having employed too much zeal, too much self-love, thinking I was pleasing the government under which I was ; if the formalities which I ought to have obsen^ed were neglected, it was tlirough inattention. I have had the misfortune to incur your wrath, but as to fidelity and probity, I am strong in my conscience, and I dare affirm, that among all the servants of the TOUSSAIXT l'ouverture. 271 state uo oue Ls more honest than myself. I was one of your soldiers, and the iirst servant of the Republic in Saint Domingo ; hut now I am wretched, ruined, tlishonoui-ed, a victim of my own services ; let your sensibility be moved at my position. You are too great in feeluig and too just not to pronounce a judgment as to my destiny. I charge Gener:il Cafarelli, your aide-de-camp, to put my report into your hands. I beg you to take it into your best consideration. His honour, hia frankness, have forced me to open my heart to him. " Salutation and respect, '• TOUSSAIXT L'OuVERTURE." Days passed away, and no notice was taken of this epistle. The report of which it speaks was either suppressed or neglected. Dead to pity, Bonaparte watched for the con- summation of the villany he had designed. It was customaiy to allow the commander of the prison five francs (about four sliillings) a day for the subsistence of each prisoner; the First Consul wrote that three were sufficient for a revolter. ]More than sufficient for thy base piu-pose ! Didst thou remember those words when thou didst beat thj^self against tlie bars of thy o^vn cage in the island of St. Helena, complaining daily of a table which, compared with thy allowance to " the first of the blacks," was a banquet of delicacies to " a dinner of herbs !" Wliile the process of gi-adual starvation was going forward, its unconscious victim, outraged by his sufferings, wrote thi.s .spirited epistle to his persecutor : — In the dungeon of Fort Joux, this 7 VendcmiairCj an. si. (29tli September, 1802.) " General, and First Consul, " I beg you, in the name of God, in the name of humanity, to cast a favoiu'able eye on my appeal, on my jiosition, and my family; direct your great genius to my conduct, to the manner in which I have served my country, to all the dangers I have inin in discharging my duty. I have served my countr}"- with fidelity and probity ; I have served it with zeal and courage ; I have been devoted to the Government under which I was ; I 272 THE LIFE OF have sacrificed my blood, and a j^aii; of what I possessed, to serve my country, and in spite of my efforts, all my labours have been in vain. You will permit me. First Consul, to say to you, with all the respect and submission which I owe you, that the Govern- ment has been completely deceived in regard to Toussaint L'Ou- verture, in regard to one of its most zealous and coui-ageous servants in Saint Domingo. I laboured long to acquire honour and glory from the Govenciment, and to gain the esteem of my fellow-citizens, and I am now, for my reward, crowned with thorns and the most marked ingi-atitude. I do not deny the faults I may have committed, and for which I beg your pardon. But those faults do not deserve the fourth of the punishment I have received, nor the treatment I have undergone. " Fh'st Consul, it is a misfortune for me that I am not known to you. If you had thoroughly known me while I was at Saint Domingo, you would have done me more justice; my heart is good. I am not learned, I am ignorant; but my father, who is now blind," showed me the road of virtue and honour, and I am very strong in my conscience in that matter; and if I had not been devoted to the Government, I should not have been here — that is a truth ! I am wretched, miserable, a victim of all my services. All my life I have been in active service, and since the revolution of the 10th of August, 1790, I have constantly been Id the service of my country. Now I am a prisoner, with no power to do anything ; sunk in gi'ief, my health is impaired. " I have asked you for my freedom that I may labour, that I may gain my subsistence and support my unhapjiy family. I call on your greatness, on your genius, to pronounce a judgment on my destiny. Let your heart be softened and touched by my position and my misfortunes. " I salute you, with profoimd respect, (Signed) " Toussaint L'Ouvertube." Alas ! the Fu-st Consul has pronoimced judgment, and the * Gaou-Guinou, Toussaint's father, died in 180i, having completely lost Lis sigLt. He is said to have left the world uttering curses against white men. "Wrong as this was, he had only too much cause for his -WTath. ToussAiNT l'oxjverture. 273 consequent sentence the prisoner is even now undergoing. That sentence is " slow death !" And then a.s you, Toussaint, shake with the cold of the northern blast, or sink overcome with sorrow on the moist, foul floor of your cell, or refuse with loathing the unsavoury food ; and as your limbs part with their strength, and your heai't flutters in debility, and your blood becomes tliin and poor, and as you look to the winter's frost, snow, hail, and storm, with a vague distress and dismal foi'ebodings — in each step of the process of slow death the Consul's verdict goes into execu- tion, and another day, or another week, is taken from the brief number that remain to you. Yet well and noble is it, that under the depression of your unhappy condition, while your heart sinks with the sinking of your ill-supported frame — it is well and noble that you descend to no mean flatteries, that you descend to no \inworthy suppli- cations, and that, retaining your own high manly spirit, yoii protest your innocence, proclaim your services, and charge your ■enemies wth ingratitude. Toussaint L'Ouvertm-e then began to compose with his own hand a document, in which he entered into a systematic defence of his conduct. This document, the orthography of which is said to have been defective, was couched in correct and some- times eloquent terms. By permission of the governor of the castle, it was copied by Martial-Besse, then one of liis prisoners, and on the 2nd of October it was transmitted to the First Con- sul. The document contained the following passages : — " General Leclerc employed towards me means which have never been employed towards the greatest enemies. Doubtless, I owe that contempt to my colom- ; but has that colour j^i'evented me from serving my country with zeal and fidelity ? Does the colour of my body injure my honoiu- or my courage ? Suj^pose I was criminal, and that the General-in-Chief had ordei-s ta arrest me, — was it needftd to emjiloy a hundred carbineers to aiTest my wife and children, to tear them from their residence without respect, and without regard for their rank, their sex ; without humanity, and without charity ? Was it necessary to fire on my plantations, and on my family, to ransack and pil- T 274 THE LIFE OF lage my property ? No ! My wife, my children, my household, were under no responsibility, — have no account to render to Government ; General Leclerc had not even the right to an-est them. Was that officer afraid of a rival 1 I compare him ta the Roman Senate, that pursued Hannibal even into his retire- ment. I request that he and I may appear before a tribunal, and that the Government bring forward the whole of my cor- respondence with him. By that means, my innocence, and all I have done for the Republic, will be seen. " Fii'st Consul, father of all French soldiers, upright judge, defender of the innocent, pronounce a decision as to my destiny: my wound is deep, apply a remedy to it : you are the physician, I rely entirely on your wisdom and skill." These appeals to the justice, honour, and humanity of the First Consul proved abortive, Bonaparte's mind was made up. His ear, therefore, was closed. Toussaint spoke to a foregone conclusion ; his words were encountered by a fixed determina- tion. That determination was so fixed, and so well known, that no one dared to speak in favour of the oppressed and doomed hero. Fear of the supi'eme magistrate occupied all minds around Mm, and gave to his will the force of law. That precipitate and ii'on mind found the process of slow mm'der too slow. Solitude, cold, and short fare, were tardy in their operation. Their natural tardiness was not abated by the presence with the captive of his faithful servant. Mars Plaisir was therefore taken away by an express order of the Government. In parting from him, Toussaint L'Ouverture said, " Cany my last farewell to my wife, my children, and my niece. Would I could console thee irnder this cruel separation : be assiu'ed of my fi'iendship and of the remembrance which I shall always preserve of thy services and of thy devotedness." Toussaint, thou art still the same, still self-forgetful, still mindful of thy wife and family. The disiutei'ested benevolence which made thee a patriot, and which the prospect of suj^reme power could not bribe into subjection, remains unchUled by the cold of the Jiu-a mountains, and unsuppressed by bodily weakness, and unperverted by ingratitude and perfidy. TOUSSAIKT LOUVERTIKE. '2 i .» Mars Plaisii* was loaded with chains and sent to Nantes, where he was put in prison. But unwelcome truths make their way throiigh bars and walls, therefore was the good servant specially guai'ded and watched, lest, before his master's demise, he should disclose facts that might prove ti-oublesome, or set in motion instruments that might travei-se the designs of the tyi-ant. The progress made in Hayti by the assertors of the national independence, kept Bonaparte in a constant state of solicitude. He could not conceal from himself that the escape of Toussaint fi-om his dungeou was a possible event. He was well aware that his reappearance in Saint Domingo would make the reduction of the inhabitants impossible. Nay, the mere knowledge of hia being still alive, whUe it encouraged the hope of his yet taking the lead of the soldiei-s of independence, served to keep up the courage of the insm'gents, and to augment the difficulties of Rochambeau. His death, therefore, seemed to Bonaparte urgently necessary. Afijiirs were hurr}-ing to a ci'isis in the West Indies. A blow must be struck. The trunk of the insur- rection, the First Consul had it in his power to pluck up and destroy : at least, so he tli ought. Tlierefoi'e the order went forth, " Cut it down : root it up." The manner was worthy of the deed. The governor of the castle was chosen for the perpetration of the crime. Scarcely was he a man fin* the work. He had scruples of conscience. But nothing short of plenary obedience would be accepted. Besides, it was not a question of the dagger or the bowl. All that was wanted was a mox'e decided system of privation. And that system he scarcely needed to work actively. When a iirisouer is kept in close confinement, and must be got rid of, you have only to reduce his means of sub- sistence until death ensues as a matter of course. And if the process is too .slow, ii may be accelerated by a little well-timed neglect. To an attenuated and famished frame, the want of nutrition for a few days brings certain death. Let the oi'dinary pittance of .supply then be forgotten, and your end is gained. And who shall dare to call an act of oblivion by the foul and offensive name of murder ? t2 276 THE LIFE OF The governor twice took a journey to Nenfchatel, in Switzer- land. The fii'st time he entrusted the keys of Toussaint's cell to Captain Colomier, whom he appointed to fill his place in his absence. Colomier visited the noble prisoner, who spoke to him modestly of his own glory, but with indignation of the design imputed to him of having wished to deliver Saint Domingo up to the English. His emaciated and feeble hands were engaged in writing a paper intended to disprove that groundless charge. The officer found Toussaint in a state of almost absolute priva- tion. A little meal was his only food, and that he had to pre- pare himself in a small earthen jug. But Colomier had a heart : he pitied the destitution of a man who had had at his command the opulence of Saint Domingo. His humanity made him unfit for his office, and ascertaining that the captive accounted the want of cofiee among his chief privations, he ventured at his OAvn risk to furnish a small supply. When the governor rettirned, he found that Toussaint L'Ouverture was still alive. In a short time he took a second journey to the same town, and for the same purpose ; and as he suspected that Colomier's good nature had intei'fered with his duty, he said to him, on leaving, with a disquieted countenance, " I entrust to you the guardianship of the castle ; but this time I do not give you the keys of the dungeons : the pi'isoners have no need of anything." The governor returned on the fourth day. Toussaint was no more. He ascertained the fact. Yes, there he is — dead ; no doubt what- ever — dead and cold. He has died of inanition. And see, if you have courage to look on so horrible a sight — the rats have gnawed his feet ! The work is done — the crime is perpetrated. Bonaparte's will is law: his word is death. But murder is a word of evil sound. The world, with all its depravity, has a moral feeling, and that moral feeling it is imjjolitic to outrage. A veil must be thrown over the assassination. " Toussaint is dead ;" — " how came he by his death ?" The governor, on learning that his captive had breathed his last, carried some provisions into his dungeon. Who now can TOUSSAINT LOUVERTURE. 2v7 say that Toussaint had been starved to death ? He died in the midst of abundance. This was tlie govenioi''s o^vn plea. But he deprived that plea of its effect by his eagerness to obtrude and make the most of it ; and he betrayed his guilt by his looks and mancei-. Yes, he was distressed at Toussaint's sudden departiu'e, — he bewailed the event. But hypocrisy ever over- acts its part. Besides, the governor was not thoroughly de- praved ; and that which he would have men regard as the sad- ness of a virtuous heart in mourning, they saw to be the ragings of a conscience smitten with a sense of guilt ; his cheeks put on a UWd paleness ; his steps were hasty and uncertain ; his eyes were wUd. Yes, here is a man deeply suffering under the stings of I'emorse. His nervous and agitated efforts to make it clear — very clear, beyond a question — that Toussaint has died of a natural cause, demonstrates that he knows more than he dares reveal, and has contracted a guilt that he would fain conceal even from his own eyes. But the keys of the dungeon wei"e in his possession ; and the words, " The prisoners want nothing," and the food recently carried tliither; these facts — known to our authority,* and known to Captain Colomier, and known to other inmates of the castle — declare that miuxler has been committed. Yes, now we see why Mars Plaisir has been sent away. And now we see why this remote, solitary, wild and freezing prison has been chosen. And now we see why Toussaint L'Ouverture was entrapped. The series of crimes is consummated. Still the question returns, " "What will be the opinion of the world?" Medical men were called in. The head was opened; the bi'ain was scrutinized. " It is apoplexy," the authorities said ; and apoplexy was set down in the formal report made as to the cause of Toussaint's death. Possibly so ; but what pro- duced the apoplexy ? Ask Captain Colomier — ask the mayor of the district. They were both required to state that death had taken place by some cause diffei-ent from himger, and they both refused ! * See particularly Mctral's "Histoire de rEspt'dition dcs Franyais a Saint Domingue," p. 201, scq. 278 THE LIFE OF Yes ; wliat was the opinion of the world ? The world believed and declared that there had been foul play. That belief gained prevalence in Saint Domingo, and added fuel to the flames of ■wrath which, without this new brand, burned with intensest fierceness, consuming the French army, and making their longer stay in the island an impossibility. Thus, in the beginning of April, in the year 1803, died Tous- saiat L'Ouverture. A grandson of an African king, he passed the greater number of his days in slavery, and rose to be a soldier, a general, a governor. He possessed a rare genius, the efficiency of which was augmented by an unusual power of self- concealment. His life lay in thought and in action rather than in words. Self-contained, he was also self-sufiicuig. Though he disdained not the ad^dce of others, he was in the main his own council-board. With an intense concentration of vitality in his own soul, he threw into his outer life a power and an energy "which armed one man with the power of thousands, and made him gi'eat alike in the command of others and in the command of himself He was created for govei'nment by the hand of Nature. That strength of soid and self-reKance which made him fit to rule, also gave him subjects for his sway. Hence it was that he could not remain in the herd of his fellow slaves. Rise he must, and rise he did; first to humble offices, then to the command of a regiment, aud then to the command of "the armies of Saint Domingo." To the qualities which make an Ulustrious general and states- man, there were added in Toussaint's soul, the milder virtues that form the strength and the ornament of domestic life. Great as he was in the field and in the cabinet, scarcely less great and more estimable was he as a husband and a father. There his excellences shone without a shade. The sacrifice of his sons to the duty which he owed to his country, only illus- trates the intensity of a patriotism which could extort so precious a possession from a father's hands. But he had learned his duty from the lips of One who taught men to mate the love of children and parents subordinate to the love of himself; and assured that he had in some special TOUSSAINT l'ouverture. 279 manner been called and sent to set the captive free, lie, in a native benevolence of character which the Gospel enriched, strengthened, and directed, concentrated all the tine endowments of his soul on the great work of negro emancipation in the island of his birth. His mind appeared in his coimtenance and his manner, yet only as if nnder a veil. His looks were noble and dignified, rather than refined ;'" his eyes, darting fire, told of the burning elements of his soul. Though little aided by what is called education, he, in the potency of his mind, bent and moulded language to his thoughts, and ruled the minds of others by an •eloquence which was no less concise than simple, manly, and full of imagery. As with other men of ardent genius, he fused ideas into ])roverbs, and put into circulation sayings that are reported to be still current in his native land. But after all, he was greater in deed than he was in word. Vast was the influence which he acquired by the mere force of his silent example. His very name became a tower of strength to his friends and a terror to his foes. Hence his presence was so impressive, that none approached him without fear, nor left him without emotion. If the world has reason to thank God for great men, with sjjecial gratitude shovild we acknowledge the divine goodness in raising up Toussaint L'Ouverture. Among the privileged i-aces of the eartli, the roll of patriots, legislators, and heroes, is long and well filled. As yet there is but one Tou.ssaint L'Ouvertiu-e. Yet how many of the highest qualities of our nature did that one unite in himself. But his best claim to our resjiect and admii-ation, consists in the entire devotion of his viu'ied and lofty powers to the redemption of his colour from degrading bondage, and its elevation into the full statiu'e of perfect manliood. I do not intend to paint the Haytian patriot as a perfect man- Moriil perfection once appeared on earth. It is not hkely to • All the likenesses of Toussaint L'Ouverture which I have seen except •one, have the disadvantage of being in profile. 280 THE LIFE OF Lave appeared a second time among tte slaves of Hayti. Tous- saint has been accused of liai'sliness and cinielty. I am not pre- pared to affirm that the charges are without foundation. But it is equally true that liis enemies have done their utmost to point out stains in his character. Unfortunately, the means for a thorough investigation are wholly wanting. It has also been said that he was an adept at dissimulation. But secrecy in his cii'cumstances was both needful and ^di'tuous ; and if the study of secrecy on his part was undue, let the failing be set down against him at its full value. It has even been intimated that when in power he yielded to the fascinations of the accomplished Creole women of the Cape. But the intimation, faint and in- direct as it is, rests on no solid grounds. In tiiith, it was impossible that a man of the origin and aims of Toussaint L'Ouverture should have escaped the shafts of calumny, and, after all due abatements are made, enough of excellence remaias to command our admiration and \nn our esteem. While, however, the world has seen but one Toussaint i'Duverture, this history sets forth many black men who were possessed of great faculties, and accomplished gi'eat deeds. And though the instance of their chief only shows what an elevation men with a black skin may possibly attain, thei-e are in the general tenour of this narrative proofs very numerous and iiTefragable, that in the ordinary jDOwers and virtues which form the texture and the ornament of civilized life, an African origin and negro blood involve no essential disqualification. Veiy clear, certainly, has it appeared that whether in its rights, its wrongs, its penalties, or its rewards. Justice — the ever-li\dng daughter of the eternal God, and the ever-present and ever-active administratrix of Divine Providence — knows notliing whatever of the distinctions, the prejudices, the dislikes, or the preferences of colour. An injuiy done to a European ceases not to be aji injury when the sufferer is an African. Nor are breakers of God's laws punished with less seveiity "svithin the tropics than they are in the temperate zones. Slavery, which is the essence and the concentration of injustice — Slaveiy, which from its foundation to its top-stone is one huge and frightfid accumula- TOUSSAINT l'oUVEETURE. 281 tiou of wrongs, of Avi-ongs the hugest and the direst — Slaveiy, whicli is the worst fomi of treacheiy to man and treason against God, entails vengeance the most ten'ible, the most awful ; ven- geance not less sure than dreadful. Alas ! that in the scour-gc the innocent should sutler as well as the guilty. The thought would sink the mind in giTief, were it not attended by the con- viction that " the hoiu* cometh" when the i-ighteous shall shine as stars in the firmament for ever and ever. The family of Toussaint L'Ouvertiu'e received the news of liis death with the deejiest grief. They wept and waUed, and refused to be comforted because he was not. Under a pretence that they contemplated escape, those inno- cent persons were transferred from Bayonne to Agen, where they found friends worthy of themselves. When Saint Jean L'Ouverture heard of his father's death, he declared that he should not long survive him. The saying was too true. The effects of the climate on a naturally weak con- stitution "brought him to the tomb ere he had quitted the period of youth. His death almost caused the death of his female cousin, from whom he received in his sickness the most tender and vigilant cai-es. Shortly after, the family succeeded in obtaining the favour that Placidc L'Ouverture shoidd quit his place of detention and reside with them at Agen. Madame Toussaint L'Ouverture, who was beloved and revered alike by her husband and her children, sur\'ived that husband and her youngest son for several years, without being able to overcome the grief which their loss occasioned, and which was so deep and constant as to undermine her faculties. She died, in 1816, in the arms of her sons, Placide and Isaac L'Ouver- ture. The histoiy of L'Ouverture placed by the side of the history of Bonaparte, pi'esents a number of striking parallels. Both born in a humble position, they raised themselves to the height of power by the force of their genius and the intense energy of their character. Both gained renown in legislation and govern- ment as well as in war. Both fell the moment they had THE LIFE OP attained supreme authority. Both were betrayed by pretended friends, and delivered iiito the hands of embittered foes. Both were severed from their families. Both hnished their lives on a barren rock. The parallels have theii* contrasts. Toussaint L'Ouverture fought for liberty ; Bonaparte fought for himself Toussaint L'Ouverture gained fame and power, by leading an oppressed and injured race to the successful vindication of their rights; Bonaparte made himself a name and acquii-ed a sceptre by sujjplanting liberty and destroying nationalities, in order to substitute his own illegitimate despotism. The fall of Toussaint L'Ouverture was a voluntary retirement from power, accom- panied by a voluntaiy renunciation of authority, imder circum- stances which seemed to guarantee that freedom the attainment of which had been the sole object of his efforts ; the fall of Bonaparte was the forced abdication of a throne which was regarded as a Evuropean nuisance, and descent from which was a virtual acknowledgment that he had utterly failed in the purposes of his life. In the tx'eachery which they ixnderwent, on one side, Toussaint L'Ouverture was the victim and Bona- parte the seducer ; and on the other side, the former suffered from those who had been his enemies, the latter from those who in profession were his constant friends. And in the ruptui'e of their domestic ties, Bonaparte was the injiu'er, Toussaint L'Ouverture the injured. Nor is it easy to bring one's mind to the conclusion, that retribution was wholly absent in the facts to which allusion has just been made. The punishment is too like the crime to be regarded as accidental. Toussaint's domestic bereavement was requited by Bonaparte's domestic sorrows. The drear solitude of the castle of Joux was experienced over agaiu at Saint Helena by him who inflicted the penalty. Strange to say, it was a friend of the negroes — namely. Admiral Maitland — that conducted the Corsican to his prison. And as if to make the con-espondence the more complete, and the retribution the more potent, by an exchange of extreme localities, the man of the tempei-ate regions was transferred to the tropics, to atone for his TOUSSAINT l'ouverture. 283 crime in transferring the man of the tropics to the killing frosts of the temperate regions. Resembling each other in several points of theii* calamities and pains, the two differed in that which is the dividing line between the happy and the wretched; for whUe, with Bonaparte, God was a name, with Toussaint L'Ou- vertnre, God was at once the sole reality and the sovereign good.* '* See Note C, at the end. BOOK IV. FROM THE EVACUATION OF HAYTI BY THE FRENCH TO THE PRESENT TIME. CHAPTER I. Dessalines promises safety to tlie "Whites, but bitterly persecutes them — Becomes Emperor of Hayti — Sanctions a wise constitution — Yields to vice and folly, and is dethroned and slain. The retirement of the Freucli forces from the island of Saint Domingo, shortly after the death of Toussaint L'Ouverture, assured the natives of the essential goodness of their cause, and the genuine vigour of their strength. Aforetime, they had been making experiments; now, success gave them a consciousness of superiority. Even when robbed of their national hero, they had destroyed their foe and achieved their independence. From that moment, the blacks, who formed the bulk of the inhabitants, believed themselves invincible. Whatever Europeans were in Europe, in Saint Domingo they were clearly inferior to Africans. There had been a great trial of strength, and white tyranny, having been worsted in the encounter, must submit to its own law — the law of the stronger. In their hyperbolical language the blacks asked, " What fleet, what army, what warriors can in future bring us slavery? At their approach, should we not behold the form of a giant, the angry genius of our native land, raise the tempests with his powerful hand, and break in pieces and scatter their ships ? The laws of nature obey his puissant voice ; the plague, conflagration, prison, and famine, follow iu his footsteps ; but without the aid of this genius, whose arms are the elements, have we not souls hardened in adversity, and now THE LIFE OF TOaSSAIXT l'OUVERTURE. 285 more than ever panting for combat, for peril, for glorj*. The empire of our liberty can only grow, rise, and become grand." But when they cast their eyes around them, they fall into melancholy, and waste away in regrets. Here is one who bewails the loss of a beloved wife that perished on the scaffold; there, another who cannot put away from his heart the image of a sister whom he saw thrown into the flames. Mothers weep for their infants crushed in their cradles. This man points out the tree which served as a gibbet for his father; another indicates the spot which is still stained with the gore of relatives, torn ia pieces by half-starved hounds. One cries, " There is the sea, where I saw a whole band of our brothers perish." His com- panion attempts to calculate the victims, and makes their number amount to more than twenty thousand. On all sides, they see the perishing limbs or the dry bones of those with Avhom they own a community of nature : horrible images, which nourish in their souls a vengeance that, whether silent or clamorous, is alike fearful. But if the past afflicts them, they are consoled by the future. Are they not about to offer to the world the singular spectacle of savages torn from the deserts of Africa, forming a new and well- organized state, which will dictate laws, promote civilizaton, receive ambassadors, form treaties, and make its flag respected by nations both near and remote? Thus, out of the bosom of Slavery would there arise a people, free, independent, and happy. Their origin, their adversity, their elevation, were unexampled in history. They had before them a great destiny. Besides, in their emancipation there was a guarantee of the emancipation of their race. Hayti free, the West Indies would not long remain in bondage; and when once the islands sang aloud in the joy of liberty, the Continent, at no very distant day, would send back the sounds in reverberations increased a hundredfold. The colonists too, again, contemplated their condition; they were ruined, yet would they not relinquish hope. They were in exile, but they would not forego their desire to return. What ! should slaves rule a land which their own ancestors had fertilized and civilized] Should slaves reap the harvests of wealth M'hicli 286 THE LIFE OF they themselves had once enjoyed, and which of right belonged to them? Could France be insensible to the treasures of that mine whence it had already drawn so much wealth? Will not the Consul put forth his mighty hand, and resume possessions which are sufficient to enrich him? And surely they themselves had claims on his considerations. " See," they exclaimed — " see Saint Domingo a second time watered with our blood — with our blood, shed by the hands of slaves — the hands of our own slaves ; our cities, our plantations, our edifices, are only heaps of ruins ; and we ourselves, once .the wealthiest of men, are houseless wanderers, condemned to live on charity." With Bonaparte, to be weak was to be in the wrong, and complaints were a kind of personal oftence ; the colonists had lost the game, and consequently were unworthy of attention : he listened to them no longer. Saint Domingo, however, after having been the theatre of so many tragic scenes, was scarcely more than a desert inhabited by hordes of blacks, simple, ignorant, semi-barbarous, who knew the extremes of slavery and freedom ; they had learnt much, because they had suffered much ; they still preserved the youthful vigour of nature ; but they had a task before them of the utmost diffi- culty, in comparison with which their strength was weakness indeed. Yet had they grounds of confidence. Among those grounds, their liberty was the chief ; a liberty not bestowed, but acquired ; a liberty fought for and paid for ; a liberty, therefore, replete no less with strength than instruction. That liberty they owed to Toussaint L'Ouverture, who thus appeared to them as the founder of the state as well as the vindicator of their liberties. While fighting for the national freedom, and laying the founda- tions of the new policy, Toussaint had begun to form the men of his colour to the ai'ts of peace, and to prepare them for develoi:)ing the advantages which he put into their hands. Beneficial results would be slow to come, yet come they would. Under the foster- ing wings of liberty, and under the impulses of the undying mind and example of the national hero and patriot, letters and the arts, commerce and opulence, civilization and religion, would revive, and grow, and in time flourish. After the departure of Eochambeau and the forces under his ToussAiNT l'oitverture. 2S7 command, there remained in the island a number of Frcnclimen, at Cape Francois and other towns. In part, their continued residence in Saint Domingo arose from their inability to find accommodation in the vessels which received their retiring fellow- countrymen. Some were not in haste to remove, hoping that they might by delay dispose of their property to a less disadvan- tage than was possible in the hurry of a compulsory and immediate departure. Others, again, were detained by a regard to domestic alliances into which they had entered. It appears somewhat strange that any who had witnessed the tragic scenes of the recent terrible struggle, and who knew how the sensitive nature of the blacks made them prone to sudden and violent outbursts of vengeance, should have dared to risk their lives by tarrying on tlic scene of conflict. Few in number, and without organization, they were exposed to all the chances of reprisals, which lay in the sense of accumulated mjuries and the consciousness of overwhelming numbers. At first, the jioli- tical horizon was calm, and inspired them M'ith some degree of hope or even confidence; but the promise of safety soon vanished. A proclamation, however, was put forth which was of favourable augury ; it ran thus : " In the name of the Blacks, and the Men of Colour : "The independence of Saint Domingo is proclaimed. Re- stored to our primitive dignity, we have secured our rights ; wc swear never to cede them to any power in the world. The frightful veil of prejudice is torn in pieces; let it remain so for ever. Woe to him who may wish to collect the blood-stained tatters. " You, proprietors of Saint Domingo, who are wandering in foreign countries, while we proclaim our independence, wc in no- way forbid you, whosoever you are, to return to your properties. Far from us be such an idea ! We are not ignorant that many among you have renounced their old errors, abjured the in- justice of their exorbitant pretensions, and recognised the justice of the cause for which, during twelve years, we have shed our 288 THE LIFE OF blood. We will treat as bretlaren tlie men who do us this justice let them for ever reckon on our esteem and our friendship ; let them return and dwell amongst us ! May the God who protects us, the God of free men, jirevent us from turning against them our triumphant arms. As to those who, possessed by senseless pride, interested slaves of guilty pretension, are blind enough to think themselves the essence of human nature, and declare that heaven made them to be our masters and our tyrants — let them never approach the land of Saint Domingo; if they come liither, they will find chains and banishment. Let them remain where they are ; and tormented by a too well-merited wretchedness, and loaded with the disdain of the just men whom they have too long mocked at, let them continue their existence unpitied and unnoticed. " We have sworn to show no mercy to those who may dare to speak to us of slavery. We shall be inexorable, perhaps cruel toward the troops, who, forgetting the object for which from 1789 they have not ceased to fight, may come from Europe to inflict on us servitude and death ; nothing will be too dear to be sacrificed, nothing impossible to be executed, by men from whom it may be wished to snatch the first of all blessings. Should wc be obliged to shed rivers of blood, should we, to preserve our freedom, be compelled to set on fire seven-eighths of the globe, we shall be pronounced innocent before the tribunal of Provi- dence, Avho has not created men to see them groan under a yoke so oppressive and so ignominious. " If in the different commotions which have taken place, some residents of whom we have no reason to complain, have been victims of the ci'uelty of soldiers or of planters, rendered by their past evils too blind to be cajiable of distinguishing good and humane proprietors from those who were insensible and cruel, we, with all generous minds, bewail their deplorable lot, and wc de- clare, in face of the universe, whatever evilly-disposed jiersons may say, that those murders have been committed contrary to the desires of our hearts. It was impossible, especially in the crisis through which the colony has gone, to prevent or to stop those horrors. Those who have the slightest knowledge of his- TOussAiNT l'ouvekture. 289 tory, are aware that a people, wlieu a prey to civil discord, even ■were it the most cultivated on eartli, runs into excesses of all kinds, and that the authority of chiefs, too little respected in times of revolution, cannot punish all the guilty without continu- ally creating new difficulties. But the Aurora of peace enables us to descry the light of a less storniy future. Now that the calm of victory has succeeded to the troubles of a terrible war, every- thing in Saint Domingo will take a new appearance, and hence- forth its government will be the govei'nment of justice. " Given at the Head-Quarters, Fort Dauphin, 22nd Nov. 1S03. (Signed) " Dessalines. " Christophe. " Clervaux." These words were subscribed by the two great negro-chiefs and a powerful mulatto leader, men with some exceptions worthy of the sacred cause of which Toussaint L'Ouvcrture was the originator. Happy for that cause and for the island, had the spirit of this proclamation been observed. But Dessalines was by nature cruel. The gradual means of a peaceful policy were regarded by him as so many hindrances in his way. As slaves make the worst of tjTants, so Dessalines, who began life in the lowest condition of servitude, now that he had attained unbounded power, proved the most violent and the most unsparing of despots. And as in civil commotions the most depraved and the most daring snatch the lead from moderate and virtuous men, so Dessalines speedily set at nought Christophe and Clervaux, and entered on a sanguinary and destructive career, in which his soul had peculiar delight. There were two special reasons which dictated the mild and just tenour of the preceding document. The population had been thinned by the ravages of war. The ranks of the army required to be recruited. Only in the possession of a strong military force could the rulers of the island feel completely secure. It •was consequently important to check emigration, and procure the return of natives who had settled in the neighbounng islands and on the American continent. In order to augment his forces, u 290 THE LIFE OF Dessaliues offered to give to the captains of American vessels the sum of forty dollars for every black or man of colour, whom they should land on the shores of Saint Domingo. If such a step looks like that purchase of men on which rests the servitude so strongly condemned in the proclamation, the offer which Dessalines among other commercial advantages made to Great Britain, namely, the exclusive possession of the slave-trade in the island, shows how little that half-savage understood the principles on which the freedom of the country reposed, and how prepared he was to augment his ranks by any means within his reach. Under the rule of one so ignorant and so violent, a pacific settlement of the disturbed, and to some extent conflicting interests of the island, was in no way to be expected. Having, however, wrested their liberty out of the hands of its assailants, the blacks took such measures as were in their power for entering with advantage on their new and perilous career. The very name of the island was offensive to them. The designa- tion, Saint Domingo, as given by white men, was a badge and a memento of the slavery out of which they had fought their way. The original name v/ai still current among the native population in its more sequestered localities, and passing from mouth to mouth, was treasured in the hearts of thousands as a precious remnant of bygone and happy days. With that name old his- toric memories were connected, and family jiride made that name a part of its own rude heraldry. Consequently one of the earliest determinations on the part of the blacks, was to revive the appel- lation of Hayti. The change was as politic as it was becoming. Under this favourite designation, on the 1st of January, 1804, the island solemnly assumed sovereign power. In the name of the people of Hayti, the generals and commanders of the army signed and promulgated a formal declaration of independence. That declaration contained an express renunciation of the autho- rity of France. The subscribers swore one to the other to pos- terity, and to the world, that they would die rather than submit to European domination. The solemn act was in every way proper and praiseworthy. But who was to be at the head of the new commonwealth? That TOussAixT l'ouverture. 291 the great actors on the occasion were military men, was more to be regretted than blamed in a people whose army had Avon liberty by their swords, and who were totally untrained to the procedures, usages, and authority of civil society. But lamentable was it that all those brave men should be willing or should be compelled to bend the knee to the ruffian spirit of Dessalincs. Jean-Jacques Dessalines, however, was appointed Governor-general for life. Still more, the island just redeemed from bondage, even Avhile proclaiming liberty, took to itself a new master, and gave to that ferocious soldier the power to establish laws, to declare war, to make peace, and even to ap])oint his successor. Little need we wonder if forthwith we find this Governor-general offering to our eyes the prototype of the President of tlie French llepublic, who, from bloodshed and tyranny, has recently vaulted into an imperial throne. In one respect, histoiy is only a series of repetitions. Ignorance, passion, and blind self-interest have ever been the prolific parents of servitude and despotism. Having, bj* a show of mildness, gained the advantage which he sought, of securing time for afflxirs to settle, for the increase of his forces, and the acquisition of power, Dessalines, a few weeks after his appointment as Governor for life, threw aside the mask, and raised the cry of " Hayti for the Haytians," thinking by pro- scribing foreigners he should most effectually consolidate his own authority. For the furtherance of his self-aggrandisement, he published a proclamation, in which he said — " Is it enough to have driven from our country the barbarians, who for ages have covered it with lilood? It is not sufficient to have put down the successive factions who, in turn, have sported with the phantom of liberty which France put before their eyes. It has become necessary, by a final act of national authority, to secure the permanent empire of liberty in this country, which is our patrimony and our conquest. It is neces- sary to remove from that inhuman government which hitherto has held our minds in a state of humiliating torpor, every hope of being able again to make us slaves. The generals who led your forces against the tyranny, have not done enough. The v2 293 THE LIFE OF Frencli name still prevails iu all places. Every object recalls the cruelties of tbat barbarous people. Our laws, our customs, our cities — in a word, everything bears the impress of France. What do I say? There yet remain Frenchmen in our island. For fourteen years, victims of our credulity and our toleration; con- quered, not by the French armies, but by the artificial eloquence of the proclamations of their agents, when shall we be tired of breathing the same air as they? What have we in common with that sang-uinary people? Their cruelty, compared with our moderation, their colour compared with our colour, the extent of ocean which separates us, our avenging climate — everything shows that they are not our brethren; that they will never be so; and if they find an asylum amongst us, they will become the instiga- tors of troubles and divisions. Citizens — men, women, children> and old men, cast your eyes around you over this island ; seek for your wives, your husbands, your brothers, your sisters — what do I say? seek for your infants, your infants at the breast, what has become of theml Instead of those interesting victims, the eye sees only their assassins ; tigers, still covered with blood, whose frightful presence reproaches you with your insensibility, and with your slowness to punish them. Why do you delay to appease their shades? Do you hope that your remains Avill rest in jieace by the side of those of your fathers, if you do not banish tyranny] Will you go down into your graves without having avenged them? Their bones will repel yours. And you, brave race^ intrepid warriors, who, insensible to your private ills, have given life to freedom, by shedding your blood, know that you have done nothing, if you do not give to the world a terrible but just example of the vengeance which ought to be exerted by a brave l^eople that has recovered its liberty, and is resolved to maintain it. Let us astound those who would dare to try to rob us of it again ; let us begin with the French ; let them tremble in ap- proaching our shores, if not at the recital of the cruelties which they have committed, at least at the terrible resolution we arc about to form, to devote to death every Frenchman who shall dare to stain with his sacrilegious steps this land of liberty. Slaves — leave that odious epithet to the French nation; they TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTUKE. 293 tkservc to be uo longer free. Let us follow other footsteps ; let^ us imitate other nations, who, directing their eyes into the future, and fearing to leave to posterity an example of cowardice, have preferred extermination, rather than to be struck out alive from the list of nations. Let us meanwhile be on our guard, lest a spirit of proselytism destroy our work. Let our neighbours live in peace ; peace with our neighbours ; but cursed be the French name; eternal hatred to France! Such are our principles. Let us swear to live free and independent, and to prefer death to slavery. Let us swear to pursue for ever the traitors and the enemies of our independence." It cannot be denied that the prospect, however faint, of an- other effort on the part of France to subjugate and enslave the island — a prospect kept constantly before the eyes of the Haytian leaders, by the intrigues and entreaties of the colonists in Paris — offers some reason, if it affords no excuse, for the ferocity of this authoritative document ; nor is it impossible that the stratagems put in play to ojierate on the French government, may have been. A'iewcd witli approbation, if they were not secretly suppoi-tcd, by sympathisers in Saint Domingo. Still Dessalines was under a solemn j^ledge to respect the persons and the property of the French residents ; and if any of them were, on valid grounds, suspected of tampering with the liberty of their fellow-citizens, they should have been prosecuted, and on being convicted, duly punished. But it may be doubted whether the fear of invasion, and the fear of internal treachery, were anything more than idle, or, at any rate, Avelcome pretexts for commencing a system of terror which Dessalines intended, and expected to turn to his own account. The instigations employed by Dessalines to rouse the people to i-cvenge, produced less effect than their author anticipated, for the armj', as well as the inhabitants, were weary of bloodshed. In consequence, he resolved to accomplish his sanguinary designs by a military expedition. Traversing the towns where French- men had remained, the monster put all to the sword, with a few exceptions, spared by acts of special grace. At the Cape, where 294 THE LIFE OF the tragedy was euacted on the night of the 20th of April, the massacre was general; only about one-tenth of the inhabitants escaped. One fact brands Dessalines with perfidy as well as ruth- lessness. A proclamation was published in the journals, declar- ing that the vengeance due to the crimes of the French had been sufiiciently exacted, and inviting all those who had survived the butchery, to appear in the public square, that they might receive certificates of protection. Many came forth from their hiding places; immediately they were hurried to the place of execution, and shot. The vindictive measures of Dessalines were far from being generally approved, even among his companions in arms. Chris- tophe condemned them, but from a regard to his own safety, held his peace. Dessalines, however, took credit for the course he pursued, as appeal's from the following words, borrowed from a proclamation which he issued : — "Crimes the most atrocious — crimes till then unknown — crimes which make human nature shudder — were committed by the French. " At last the hour of vengeance has come, and the implacable enemies of the rights of man have received the punishment they deserved. My arm, raised above their heads, too long hesitated to strike. At that signal which the justice of God called forth, your hand, sternly armed, applied the axe to the root of slavery and prejudice. In vain had time, and still more, the infernal policy of Europeans, surrounded the tree with triple brass : you tore off the covering, which you placed in your hearts, and, like your enemies, you became cruel and pitiless. " As an overflowing torrent, which breaks down whatever it meets with in its course, so j^our avenging fury bore away every obstacle. Let them perish — all the tyrants of innocence, all the oppressors of the human species ! " What ! bowed down for centuries under a yoke of iron, play- things of the passions and of the injustice of men, and of the caprices of fortune; mutilated victims of the cupidity of the French; — after having, with unexampled patience and resigna- ToussAiNT l'ouverture. £9-5 tioii, enriched those insatiable oppi'essors by means of our hibours, we should have seen that sacrilegious horde make another attempt at our destruction ; and we, whom they call men Avitliout energy and without courage, should not have plunged into their heart the dagger of despair ! Intolerable. Where is the Haytian so vile, so unworthy of his regeneration, as to think that he has not fulfilled the decrees of heaven, in exterminating those sanguinary tigers? If there is one such, let him fly; may insulted nature drive him from our company — allow him to drag his infamy at a distance from ourselves ! The air we breathe cannot suit his apathetic organs; it is the air of liberty, — it is pure, aug-ust, triumphant ! " Yes ! we have given back to those anthropo])hagi Avar for war, crime for crime, outrage for outrage. Yes ! I have saved my country, I have avenged America ! The vow which I made in the face of heaven and of earth, is my pride and my glory. What to me is the opinion which will be entertained of my conduct by my contemjioraries, and by future generations 1 I have done my duty; I approve my conduct — that sufKces. " But the preservation of my unfortunate brethren, and the testimony of my conscience, are not my only reward. T saw two classes of men, born to aid, protect, and cherish each other, mingled together in a part of the world, crying out for revenge, and disputing who should strike the first blow. Blacks, and men of colour, whom the perfidious policy of the Europeans has so long sought to divide, you who now are united and form only one family, doubtless it was necessary that your reconciliation should be sealed with the blood of your murderers. The same calamities hung over your proscribed heads ; the same ardour to smite your enemies has signalized you ; the same destiny is reserved for you ; and your common interests ought in future to render you inseparable. Preserve this precious concord — this happy union ; it is the pledge of your liberty, of your success, of your felicity; it is the secret of being invincible. " In order to strengthen this union, you must be reminded of the atrocities committed against our species. The premeditated massacre of the entire population of this island, resolved in the 296 THE LIFE OF silence of the cabinet ! — the execution of this abominable project was imprudently proposed to me, when it had already been com- menced bj' the French, with the calm and the serenity of a countenance accustomed to such crimes. " Guadaloupe pillaged and destroyed, its ruins yet smoking with the blood of its children — the women and the old men put to the sword ! Pelage himself a victim of their perfidy, after having basely betrayed his country and his brethren ! The brave and immortal Delgresse, blown up with the fort which he defended, rather than submit to their chains. Magnanimous warrior ! that noble death, far from weakening our courage, will serve only to augment in us the resolution to avenge thee and to follow thee. The deplorable destiny of our brethren scattered in Europe, and (frightful forerunner of death) the terrible despotism exerted iu Martinique ! Unhappy people, would that I could fly to your aid and break your chains ! Alas, an insurmountable barrier separates us ; but perhaps a spark of the fire which inflames us, will kindle up in your hearts ; perhaps at the report of this revo- lution, you, suddenly awakened from your lethargy, will, Avith arms in your hands, demand your sacred and inviolable rights. " After the terrible example whicli I have given, may divine justice sooner or later send on earth men of strong minds, superior to vulgar Aveakness, for the terror and the destruction of the wicked. Tremble ! usurping tyrants, pests of the New World ; our poniards arc sharpened, your punishment is at hand ! Sixty thousand men equipped, hardened to war, obedient to my orders, burn to offer a new sacrifice to the manes of their assassinated brethren. Let that nation come, if it is senseless enough, or rash enough to attack me. Already, at its approach, the exasperated Genius of Haj'ti, rising from the depths of the ocean, shows his threatening form ; he stirs up the waves; he excites the tempests; and with his puissant hand scatters and destroys hostile fleets. The laws of nature obey his formidable voice — plague, famine, fire, poison await his command. But why reckon on the aid of the climate and the elements ? Have I forgotten that I com- mand a people whose courage repels obstacles, and grows by dangers ? Let those homicidal cohorts come ! I wait for them TOussAiXT l'ouverture. 297 Avith a firm foot and a calm eye. I freely resigu to them the shores and the spots where towns were; but woe to those who come too near the mountains ; better would it have been for them to be swallowed up in the depths of the sea, than to be torn to pieces by the furious hands of the children of Hayti. " War against the tyrants — always war — war till death : that is my motto ; — Liberty, independence : that is our rallying cry. " Generals, officers, soldiers ; dift'ering from him by whom I was preceded, the ex-general Toussaint L'Ouverture, I have been faithful to the promise which I made you when I took up arms against tyranny, and as long as I live I will keep my oath. Never shall a colonist or a European set foot on this territory with the title of master or proprietor. This resolution shall henceforth form the fundamental basis of our Constitution. " If other chiefs, after me, in following an entirely opposite course, shall dig their graves, and that of their fellow patriots, then you will have to accuse only the law of that destiny which shall have prevented me from rendering my fellow citizens free and happy. Maj^ \\\y successors follow the plan which I have traced for them; it is the best system to consolidate their power; it is the greatest homage they can pay to my memory. " As it is derogatory to my dignity to punish the innocent for the crimes of the guilty, a handful of whites, commendable for the sentiments which they have always professed, and who, besides, have sworn to live with us in the woods, have experienced my clemency. I direct that they be allowed to live, and that they be not maltreated. '' I again command and order all the generals of the depart- ments to give succour, protection, and encouragement, to all neutral or allied nations, who may wish to establish commercial relations in this island." The energj' of this official document is terrible. What a vol- canic soul was that of Dessalines ! And if we ai-e bound by every moral consideration to reprobate its spirit in the strongest terms, equally are we in justice bound to remember that this fury had been sharpened and intensified in those previous conflicts in which 298 THE LIFE OF j)rofesseJ Cliristians wore the uggvcssors. Xor, shocking and atrocious as is the revenge which here burns and rages, can it be denied that while some palliation may be found in the prevalent rumours that France was about to make another and yet more powerful attempt, so fierce a resolution and so fiery a wrath could not be without effect in deterring the enemy, and guaranteeing the shores of Hayti from another series of ravages and crimes. A small French force remained in possession of Santo Domingo; and the (Spaniards who, on the evacuation of the Cape, acknow- ledged the new government, had, under the impulse of the priests, been induced to break their promise of obedience to the blacks, and to espouse the cause of France. The subjugation of Spanish Hayti became the supreme object of importance with Dessalines. A few days before he entered on the campaign intended to effect his purpose, he published a proclamation addressed to the Spaniards, accusing them of treason, and calling on them to submit. " Yet a few moments, and I will overwhelm the remains of the French under the weight of my omnipotence. Spaniards ! you whom I address, because I desire to save you; you who though guilty of desertion, may preseiwe your existence and find mj- clemency ready to spare you, it is yet time — abjure an error which may be fatal to you, break ail the ties which biud you to my enemies, if you do not wish your blood to be mingled with theirs. I give you a fortnight from this date, to acquaint me with your final intentions and to gather under my flag. You know what I can do, and what I have done; thinkof your preservation. Eeceive the sacred promise which I give never to make any attack against your personal safety and interests, if you seize the opportunity of showing yourselves worthy of being numbered among the children of Hayti." On the 14th of May, Dessalines quitted Cap-Fran9ais, and having traversed the western and the southern provinces, advanced toward the ea*t, and sat down to besiege Santo Domingo. After abortive attempts to overcome the resistance of the citizens, who hated the blacks, he judged it advisable to retire, and returned to Port-au-Prince. His return was soon followed by a fearful revolution which after some months made Hayti an empire, and placed on its throne one who, from the condition of a slave, had TOussAiNT l'ouvertuke. 299 raised himself to be tlie first magistrate of a republic, now no more. The coronation took place on the 8th of October, 1804, about two months before a similar farce was enacted by Bona- parte. Though Dcssalines had waded through blood to the throne, the clergy were among the first to salute him as emperor. The civil ceremony was followed by a religious service ; a Te Deivm was performed, and the new monarch led the choir, singing the words in the strongest voice there was in his majesty's dominions. The institution of the imperial dignity was accompanied by the grant of a constitution, which proceeding on the basis that the empire of Hayti was free, sovereign, and independent, i^roclaimed the abolition of slavery, the equality of ranks, the authority of the same laws for all, the inviolability of property, the loss of civil rights by emigration, and the suspension of those rights by bankruptcy, the exclusion of all whites, from the right of acqiiiring property, except those who had been naturalized ; and the adop- tion of the generic name of blacks, for all the subjects of Hayti, whatever their colour. It was further declared that no one was Avorthy to be a Haytian, if he was not a good father, a good son, a good husband, and especiall}- a good soldier. Parents were not permitted to disinherit their children, and every citizen was required to practise some mechanical art. The empire of Hayti, one and indivisible, contained ten military governments, each commanded by a general ; every commander was independent of the rest, and was to correspond directly with the head of the government, who to the title of emperor joined that of com- mander-in-chief of the army. The last article of the constitution stated that Dessalines, the avenger and the liberator of his countrymen, was called to fulfil those functions, and that he would reign under the name of Jean-Jacques the first. The title of majesty Avas conferred on the new emperor as well as on his august consort, the empress; their persons were de- clared inviolable, and the crown elective ; but the emperor had the right to nominate his successor among a chosen number of candidates. The sons of the sovereign were to pass through all the ranks of the army. Every emperor who should attach to himself a privileged body under the name of guard of honour or 300 THE LIFE OF auy other designation, was by tlie fact to be regarded as at war vnili the nation, and should be driven from the throne, which then was to be occupied by one of the councillors of state chosea by the majority of the members of that body. The emjieror had the right to make, approve, and publish the laws ; to appoint and dismiss public functionaries; to direct the receipts and the expenses of the state, and the coining of money; to make peace and war ; to conclude treaties ; to distribute the armed force at his pleasure : he also possessed the exclusive prerogative of pardon. The generals of division and of brigade were to form part of the council of state. Besides a secretary of state, there was to be a minister of finances and a minister of war. All persons were encouraged to settle their differences by arbitration. No dominant religion was admitted ; the liberty of Avorship was proclaimed ; the state was not to take on itself the support of any religious institution. Marriage was declared a purely civil act, and in some cases divorce was permitted. State offences were to be tried by a council to be named by the emperor. All property belonging to white Frenchmen was confiscated to the state. The houses of the citizens were pronounced inviolable. The constitution was placed under the safeguard of the magis- trates, of fathers, of mothers, of citizens, and of soldiers, and re- commended to their descendants, to all the friends of liberty, to the philanthropists of all countries, as a striking token of the goodness of God, who in the order of his immortal decrees had given the Haytians power to break their bonds, and make them- selves a free, civilized, and independent people. This constitu- tion which, considering its origin, contains so much that is excel- lent, and which even the long civilized states of Europe might advantageously stud}-, was accepted by the emperor, and ordered to be forthwith carried into execution. The condition of the farm-labourer was the same as under the system of Toussaint L'Ouverture ; he laboured for wages which were fixed at one-fourth of the produce, and that produce was abundant. The whiji and all corporal punishments were abolished. Idleness was regarded as a crime, but was punished only by im- TOUSSAINT l'oUVERTUKE. 301 prisoumcut. Two-thirds of the labour exacted uudcr slavery was the amouut required under the new system. Thus the labourers gained a diminution of one-third of their toil, while their wants were amply supplied. It was decreed that the black labourers could labour only in the divisions to which they had been afore- time attached ; but if they had any reasons for changing, the commissioner of the district would give them permission. The greater number of the properties having been confiscated, were in the hands of the government ; but they were let at an annual rent, and that rent was determined according to, not the extent of the soil, but the number of the labourers. The mulattoes, or quarterons, children of whites and nmlattoes, who were very numerous, if they could shoAv any rclationshij), whether legitimate or not, with the old white proprietors, were allowed to inherit their property. The census of the inhabitants of the island in the parts subject to Dessalines, which took place in 1805, represented the popula- tion as then amounting to about 380,000, with about 20,000 from various causes not included. Of these 400,000 the adult males were only a small proportion, so much had their ranks been thinned by war and massacre ; the mnjority of labourers were women. Marriage, solemnized according to the rites of the Roman church, was almost universal, and its duties were, in general, well observed, in spite of the examj^le of the emperor. The army consisted of 15,000 men, of whom 1500 wei'C cavalry; they were well armed and well disciplined, but badly clothed. The uniform was blue, turned up with red. All adult males fit for service, were four times a year drilled during several days. Emigration was put under the most rigorous restraints. An eft'ectual system of self-defence was devised and executed, with a view to prepare against invasion. In the midst of these outward and material arrangements, education was not neglected. Schools were established in nearly all the districts, and the negroes seeing what advantage was possessed by those among them who had received instruction, attached great importance to it, and there were few of them who did not at least learn to read and to write. 302 THE LIFE OP At the time of the iusurrection of 1701, the emperor Jean Jacques was a slave under a black proprietor, named Dessalines, from whom he derived his own appellation. In 1805, that man was still alive ; he dwelt at the Cape, and witnessed the elevation of his old servant to the imperial throne. He was accustomed to say, that the emperor had always been " a headstrong dog, but a good workman." Dessalines continued to entertain a great esteem for him, and made him his head butler. When asked why he had not given him a more honourable post, he replied that no other would have pleased him so much, as he was fond of good wine, and would drink for both. The emperor, although he had the best furnished wine-cellar in the island, drank scarcely anj'thing but water. Jean Jacques Dessalines, Emperor of Hayti, was small in person, but strongly madej of great activity, and indomitable courage. He knew not how to read, but he had learned to sign his name; as he was desirous of instruction, he employed a reader, to whom he listened with much attention. It has been affirmed that his military talents were superior to those of Toussaiut L'Ouverture. However this may be, in all other respects he was greatly inferior to that unfortunate chief. Though open, afiable, and even generous, he inspired fear rather than respect. He was remarkable for strange caprices, the evident eflfect of his personal vanity; no'\V' he was covered with embroidery and other ornaments, and attired with maguiticence ; yet often he appeared in public in the most vrretched garb. But what was more singular and more ridiculous, he had the ambition to be accounted an accomplished dancer, and always had with him a dancing-master, who gave him lessons in his leisure moments; nor was it possible to pay him a more agreeable comjjliment than to tell him how well he danced, though he was very unskilful in that amusement, in which negroes ordinarily excel. He had daughters by his first wife, but no sons. His last wife had been the favourite mistress of a rich planter, from whom she had received a .superior education. She was one of the finest negresses of the Vv'^est Indies; her character vras mild, and she often employed ToussAixT l'ouverture. 303 lier asccuclanoy over Dessaliues to soften liis natural ferocity; unhappily, she sometimes failed in her benevolent efforts. During some time, the Emperor Jean Jacques practised the cruelties to which his nature was prone only on the whites, but soon he spared not even his own colour. The suspicions of a mind disquieted as to his own authority', led- him to put to death, Avithout any judicial formalities, citizens and soldiers. Every •effort he thus made to terminate his solicitudes, served only to augment them. His caprices, his atrocities, were carried to such a, point, that the heads of his army conspired, and suddenly, on the 17th Octol)er, ISOH, put him luider arrest. In endeavouring to escape, he received a blow, which put an end to his life, and to the imperial government in the island of Hayti. CHAPTER II. Feud between mulatto and negro blood, occasioning strife and political confliels — Christoplie pi-osidcnt and sovercigu in the nortk — Petion president in the south — The two districts are luxitod under Boj-er — Eiclie — -Soidouque, (he present euiperor. The framers of the constitution under which Dessaliues became the emperor of Hayti. in decreeing that the inhabitants in general should be denominated blacks, made a praiseworth}' effort to extingtiish the distinctions of colour which had occasioned so much calamity. But such distinctions are stronger than the words of which state resolutions consist, which have little jjower and durability, unless they are the embodiment not only of the national will, but also of the national character. Unfortunately, the distinctions in question, which rested on prejudices and anti- pathies deeply planted in human nature, had been aggravated by a long series of sanguinary contentions, and though now some- Avhat abated, still retixined au influence botfli decided aud noxious. It was a great, however pardonable, mistake to suppose that distinctions, which only ages, under the force of common institu- tions aud good government, can cllcctually obliterate, coidd. 304 THE LIFE OF ■within a few years, and amid conflicting' social elements, be anni- hilated and disowned. And though their disavowal did some- thing toward their extinction, and the counsellors who caused that disavowal deserve the gratitude of the friends of humanity, yet is there no ground for surprise, if their effort proved illusory. How small was its immediate effect, events will si)eedily show. The aristocracy of the skin retained in Hayti sufficient force to occasion jealousies, discord, and war among those who ought to have been united in one combined effort for the good of the country. But the mulatto blood could not brook the ascendancy of the negro blood. Its pride and its disdain were fed by long- conflicts and inveterate animosities. Conscious of that indivi- dual superiority which ensues from a share in the influences of civilization, the mulattoesof Hayti despised the untaught and the rude crowd of black labourers by whom they were siirrounded, and felt, that in submitting to their sway, they put themselves under the domination of a majority, whose aixthority lay exclu- sively in their numbers. Their natural position, they believed, Avas at the head of the Haytian government. Could they have peace- ably taken that position, they would ])robably in a measure have forgotten their own party interests, and laboured for the diffu- sion, through the great body of the people, of the higher influences of civilization. But there was an alternative. They might have employed an elevated position for their own exclusive aggrandise- ment. This possibility the blacks could not disallow, the rather that hitherto they had found in the yellow blood the most virulent of the opponents with Avhom they had had to deal. Not without reason, therefore, did they look with suspicion and jealousy on all attempts at political elevation which were made by mulattoes. It is even to be feared that the blacks, imder their distrust and fears, were much averse to the culture which education gives, and of which the mulattoes, who possessed some tincture of European civilization, Avere, in their eyes, the representatives. Thus the progress of the island, in those arts and attainments on Avhich the good of society consists, was materially retarded, and the way paved for a renewal of strife and bloodshed, with their demoralizing effects. ToussAixT l'ouverture. 005 On tlic tlcatli of Dessalines, the news of 'svlilch spread joy among the inhabitants, the supreme power naturally fell into the hands of Christophe, who, with good reason, had long been recog- nised as the second chief in the state. Well acquainted with the great interests of which he undertook the care, and thoroughly experienced in Haytian warfare, Christophe, who enjoyed a high reputation for humanity and benevolence, and who, in addition to the domestic virtues, Avas actuated by a practical sense of reli- gion, seemed to possess the best guarantees for a useful, if not a happy, career. Free from the vanity of his predecessor, he dis- carded the pompous title of Emperor, and took that of Chief Governor of Hayti. AVith befitting sagacity, ho began his sway by directing his attention to the encouragement of agriculture and commerce. Specially desirous was he to see in his ports the merchant vessels of distant nations, and with that view he, on the 24th of October, ISOG, put forth a proclamation, in which he promised neutral powers protection and fixvour. While engaged in peaceful improvements, he suddenly found liimself necessitated to prepare for war. The old feud between the negro and the mulatto blood broke out afresh. Unable to endure the supremacy of a negro who had been a slave, the mulatto Potion resolved to put forward his claim to political power and dignity. Potion possessed superior advantages. Having been educated in the military school of Paris, he was esteemed for his knowledge, and accounted the best engineer officer in the native forces. Christophe himself entertained a high opinion of his military abilities. The two competitors had re- course to arms. A battle was fought on the 1st of January, 1807, which issued in the defeat of Potion. His successful rival pursued him to the gates of Port-au-Prince, his head-quarters. Hoping to complete his triumph, and so to consolidate his power, Christophe undertook the siege of that city, but was compelled to retire without effecting its capture. The hostilities led to little else than the enfeeblement of both parties. The black chief, however, established his power on solid foundations in the north, while Potion succeeded in retaining a firm position in the south. Thus was the island once more unhappily divided between two X 306 THE LIFE OP authorities, each of which watched its oi^portunity for the over- throw of the other. The war in which he had been engaged, and in which he had gained only partial success, made Christophe feel the necessity of augmenting his strength. The progress which he had made over the north, with a view to the assertion and establishment of his authority, had revived in him the knowledge that the negro character is by nature predisposed in favour of the monarchical form of government. He resolved, therefore, to take a step in that direction. On his return to Cap Francois he assembled a council, composed of generals and the principal citizens. On the 17th of February, 1807, that council decreed a new Constitution. At its head was Christophe, with the title of President. The office was for life, and carried with it the right to select, among the general officers of the State, a successor. The constitution abolished slavery, declaring every individual free that resided in Hayti. The Roman Catholic religion was established, with tolera- tion of every other form of worship. Schools were opened in every district. Arrangements were also made for the adminis- tration of justice, the encouragement of agriculture and commerce, and the security of the neighbouring colonies. The time occupied by these regulations was employed by Petion in making preparations for a renewal of active operations in the field, while Christophe, on his side, was firmly resolved to extend his rule over the whole island. Soon was the country again rent and torn by intestine war. The conflict was long and dubious. Now the one chief, now the other, gained the advantage. Every defeat and every victory seemed to serve only to augment the fury and confirm the determination of both. During the collisions the country at large suffered greatly. Agriculture was hindered or arrested. Education was suspended. Wealth, instead of grow- ing, deci'eased, and seemed likely to vanish. The two com- batants became weary of a strife in which victory was baneful to the land over which they aspired to rule. At length the reduc- tion of Mole Saint Nicholas by Christophe, a decisive blow to his competitor, put a period to the destructive hostilities, and afforded to the island time and scope to recover from its losses. The war TOUSSAINT l'ouvertuue. 307 "was ended, but not the division. The two chiefs ^Wthdrew into their respective territories. The time had now arrived when Christophe judged it desirable to complete his plan of self-elevation. In the spring of 1811 he assumed the title of King, with the almost unanimous consent, not only of the populace, but also of his chief men. He made Cap Francois the capital of his dominions, and proceeded to surround himself with all the pomp and parade of feudal royalty. Meanwhile, Rigaud, having escaped from prison, landed in Hayti, and offered his co-operation to Potion. It was eagerly accepted. But jealousy soon separated the two mulattoes, and Rigaud, having been appointed Petion's commander in the soutli, retained his authority, and so gave rise to three rival powers in the island. Resolved to profit by this division, Cliristophe marched against Potion ; but the common danger brought about a union, and Christophe judged it prudent to retire. The peril over, the two men of colour^ again quarrelled. The city of Caves ■was urged into revolt against Rigaud, who, in attempting to bring it back to obedience, lost his life. His rights, such as they were, fell to the share of his general, Borgella. Petion was about to take measures to dispossess him, when the unexpected approach of Christophe effected a reconciliation. The sable monarch, how- ever, was driven back by Borgella, who now fought on tiie side of Petion, aided by the mulatto general, Boyer, who is about to appear on the scene as the principal character. With these events the conflict between the north and the south may be said to have terminated. As soon as his mind was free from the cares of warfare, Petion, at the head of a republic in the south, applied all his powers, and not without effect, to the improvement of the condition of those Avhom he governed. Accessil)lc and courteous to all, while Christophe affected grandeur and distance, Petion gained general good-will, and turned his influence to account for the amelioration of his territories and the consolidation of his power. Labouring indefatigably, he did his utmost to ensure the due cultivation of the land, to administer justice, and to promote order. He was rowarded with great success, and came to be loved and revered ; but he found his ta-sk x2 508 THE LIFE OF one of great difficulty, and partly from want of power to give effect to his own views, and partly owing to prevalent ignorance and grossness of manners, he was often impeded in his efforts and frustrated in his li02)es. France had never given up the hope of resuming possession of Hayti. During the wars of the empire she had other occupation for her resources. But when Bonaparte had fallen, the old colonists recovered their hopes and resumed their efforts. They succeeded in getting a commission appointed. The report was so favourable as to throw the planters into a transport of joy. In 1814, three commissioners were sent to the West Indies, who were directed to transmit to the French Government the result of their inquiries relative to the condition of Hayti. Lavayasse, who was at its head, made overtures to Christophe and Petiou. From the former he received an indignant repulse; with the latter he succeeded in gaining an interview at Port-au-Prince. The commissioner, with very ample promises, invited the president to recognise Louis XVIII. The propositions were rejected. Disappointed in these pacific efforts, the colonists clamoured for war. Preparations were made, and a licet was to sail in the spring of the year ISlo. But before the time came Bonaparte was at large, and preparations for the battle of Waterloo absorbed all minds. Anxious to obtain all possible aid, that adventurer adapted his policy to his condition, and having once done his best to perpetuate slavery, he now decreed the abolition of the in- famous traffic in human bodies and souls ; and at the same time sent to Hayti propositions intended to win back the island. He retained the sceptre too short a time to receive a reply. As soon as the Bourbons were again restored, the colonists renewed their intrigues. In the middle of the j'ear 181 G they succeeded in obtaining the appointment of commissioners, who were to assume the civil and military government of the island, tacitly super- seding the actual authorities. They sailed to Hayti, and made an attempt to obtain a hearing, but in vain; they returned to France only to show how fruitless their mission had proved. The unhesitating rejection of these overtures from France was the last important act performed by Petion. That chief had long ToussAiNT l'ouveuture. 309 been drooping under tbe combined effects of disease and dis- appointment ; bis depression was witnessed by tbose wbom bo governed witb synipatby and regret. Every means was taken to give bis mind relief. But tbe disorder grew worse : be became suspicious, fancied conspiracies, distrusted bis best friends, looked on tbe i)ast witb regret, and feared to encounter tlie future. In tbis mebmcholy, be finally put an cud to bis existence by voluntarily abstaining from food. He expired on tbe 29tb of Mareb, 1818, at tbe age of forty-eigbt, ajipointing, witb general approbation, Jean-Pierre Boyer as bis successor. His deatb occasioned general sorrow. Jean-Pien'c Boyer, a mulatto, born at Port-au-Prince on tbe 2nd of February, 1776, received in Paris tbe advantages of European culture; fougbt under Rigaud against Toussaint L'Ouverture; and in consequence of tbe success wbicb tbe black leader ob- tained, quitted tbe island. Boyer returned to Hayti in Leclerc's expedition; be, bowever, separated from tbe Frencb Gcneral-in- cbief, and placed bimself at tbe bead of bis own colour. Togetber ■\\itb Pction, be kept quiet in order to busband bis strength, wbile Dcssalincs was expelling tbe Frencb from tbe island. But wben, on tbe deatb of Dessalines, Cbristopbe, already master of tbe nortb, sougbt to take tbe soutb out of Petion's bands, Boyer aided bis fellow-mulatto to withstand tbe black ruler. Gratitude, as well as a regard to tbe common security, gave Boyer tbe President's cbair on tbe deatb of Petion. Raised to tbat diguit}', be employed bis power and bis energies to complete tbose econo- mical and administrative reforms witb wbicb be bad already been connected under bis predecessor. To labour for tbe public good was tbe end of bis life. In tbis worthy enterprise be was greatly assisted no less by his knowledge than bis moderation. Well acquainted with the negro and mulatto character, and conversant Avith all tbe interests of the state, be bad it in his power to effect bis purposes by mild as well as judicious measures. Yet were the wounds deep which be bad to heal ; and he could accomplish in a brief period only a small part of tbat which it will require generations to carry to perfection. Wbile I'joyer, with determination and firmness, and v.itb the 310 THE LIFE OF aid of superior men, was promoting the improvement of his republic, Christophe had painful experience that a crown is no protection against either internal or external troubles. His sub- jects began to find that the glitter of court ajiparel and high- sounding names is soon tarnished, and affords a poor repayment for its cost. The monarch was struck with paralj'sis, and con- fined within the Chateau de Sans-Souci, his favourite residence. "VVliat to him appeared a trifling incident occasioned his over- throw and death. An order for the degradation of a colonel who was loved by his soldiers caused the garrison of Saint Marc, consisting of 6000 men, to break out into revolt. On hearing of the insurrection, Christophe commanded 12,000 men to march against the revolters ; but those troops themselves proved hostile to their sovereign. The only force on whose fidelity he could count was his own body-guard. Them he reviewed as he lay in his litter; and having bestowed on each a gift of four dollars, he despatched them against the rebels. Midway they encountered the enemy, who came on with shouts of " Liberty for ever !" Whether this cry captivated their minds, or whether they were impressed with the inutility of opposition, Christophe's guard joined the soldiers of the Cape, and in one body marched against the residence of their former naaster. A report of the defection reached Sans-Souci before their arrival. As soon as it had come to the ears of Christophe, feigning to need repose, he withdrew into his chamber. Then he called his wife and his children, who ranged themselves around the bed on Mdiich he sat. He gave caresses to his daughters, asked for some linen, threw a mournful look on his son, and, without uttering another word, made a sign for all to retire. Then, having obtained some water, he washed his hands and his arms, as if he wished to purify himself, changed his clothes, covered his head with a handkerchief, and dismissed his servants. They had not yet shut the door, when they heard the report of a pistol. Returning into the room, they found Christophe dead ; the ball had gone through his heart. His body was conveyed away by some soldiers to whom it was entrusted by the queen, to be carried to a place which she indicated ; but the king of Hayti was, a few days afterwards, found half devoured TOUSSAINT l'oUVEETURE. 311 by beasts on the edge of a forest, where he had been thrown without sepulture. Thus perished Henri, king of Hayti, after a a reign of nine years (1811 — 20). Christophe was hfty-three years of age at the time of his death. He was a man of pure morals and cold in manner, who gave observers the idea of more depth of thought than he really pos- sessed. English and French authorities have differed in regard to his character. The English, whose nation and commerce he favoured, have represented him not only as a man of the highest genius, but also as a monarch equally wise and just. Others have striven to set him forth as a sanguinary tyrant, and have found the cause of his downfal in the excess of his cruelties. Both views are exaggerations. With a mind little capable of continuous thought, Christophe possessed a strong and obstinate will. When once he had gained an elevated position, he mani- fested great energy of character. Having attained to the supreme power of a throne, he found himself placed between the exertion of absolute authority which he was compelled to maintain, and the necessity of impro\'ing the people, that they might take rank among the civilized nations of the world. The two duties were ]iot easily reconciled. Anxious to augment by commerce the material strength of his dominions, and to develop its moral power by education, he imposed on the emancipated blacks a labour not unlike that of the days of their servitude, and called forth intelligence in the minds of a half-brutish people. The consequence was inevitable. Rigour produced discontent, and discontent received power from knowledge. Under the combined influence, Christophe fell. His life was not spent in vain. Not only did he render important services in the war of liberation, but even by his severity he compelled that industry to which negroes in their own climes are indisposed, and without which steady and continued progress in civilization is impossible. On the cessation of the reign of Henri I., as Christophe was termed. General Paul Romain, Prince of Limbo, put himself at the head of affairs, and proclaimed a republic, while others de- clared in favour of Christophe's son. On the 15th October, 1821» the north and the north-west of Hayti formed themselves into a 312 THE LIFE OF commou-wcaltb, of -wliicli Paul riomaiu was nominated President, The chiefs of tliis government transmitted to Boyer the con- stituent act of their organization. Boyer sent it back unread, and refused all aid so long as the north should keep separate from the south. This state of division did not last long. On the 21st of October, Boyer took possession of Gonaives without re- sistance. The next day he marched on the Cape, where the even- ing before, the principal inhabitants had met together to make preparations for his reception. He entered the city at the head of 20,000 men, and on the 26th was proclaimed President. In the commencement of the year 1822, the Spanish part of the island acceded, of its own accord, to the new rej^ublic, and thus from Cape Tiburou to Cape Engano, Hayti was peacefully settled under one government. While Hayti was thus making progress toward material pros- perity, and preparing the way for rising from the bottom of the sink of human culture, its old enemies, the colonists, never ceased to put forward and enforce their claims. Abortive negotiations were the consequence. At length, in 1825, after the recognition of the indefjendence of Hayti by others, the French, under Charles X., sold to its inhabitants the rights which they had won by their swords, for the sum of 150,000,000 of francs, to be paid as an indemnity to the colonists. The form in which this act of emancipation was obtained, dictated by the historical claims and usages of the French monarchy, displeased the people ; that displeasure was augmented by the large sum of money which they would have to pay to the planters. " Had not their enemies," they asked, " already ex- acted enough from them 1 Must they continue to labour for men who had ever shown the most embittered oj^position to their in- terests ? " Beyer's colour awakened distrust. " What is this ordinance," they said, " but an averment of the right divine of French despotism ; and what is our acceptance of it but an acknowledgment of French sovereignty 1 We are betrayed by our old foes, the men of colour. We must withstand the predo- minant influence of mulatto blood." This jealousy threw serious obstacles in Beyer's path. His reformatoiy measures wera TOussAixT l'ouverture. 313 obstructed. His efforts to promote agriculture, on which dc- jicndcd aUke the wealth and the civilization of the country, encountei'ed i-esistancc, as if they Avere designed for the gradual restoration of slavery. The civilizing influences which his own culture and the good of the country equally demanded, were withstood by the brutishness of a suspicious Africanism which was indisposed to learn, to labour, and to obey. One consequence of these oppositions was inaction on the part of the Government. Boyer's reign has been characterized as " a long slumber." Cer- tainly his power for good was curtailed, and he found that the less he attempted, the more was he at his ease. Of course under a system of comparative neglect the island made little progress. Large portions of the country fell out of culture, for life is easily supported in the West Indies ; and in the decline of industry, education made little way. Thus did the prejudices of colour still prove adverse to the real good of the island. Nevertheless, Boyer had on his side powerful allies — peace and time. Twenty 3'ears of tranquillity had so softened men's minds that robbery and murder were unknown. The pacific contact of the two castes in a measure produced their fu.sion ; the black party with its extreme opinions daily grew less as fathers and grandfathers passed into the grave ; and Boyer and the intelligent men whom he had around him, hoped that the time had arrived when they could effectually put an end to barbarism. But a young party made its api^earance, a party of progress as it was called, but really a party of extravagance. The new gene- ration, filled with extreme democratic ideas, accused the President and his govei'nment with encouraging the very brutishness which they were labouring to put away. Impatient of the slow move- ment of the country Avhich Boyer had been compelled to accept, and which he would have gladly accelerated, the heady reformers were loud and bold in demanding changes, for which the people vrere unfitted, and which could end in nothing Init disapi)oiut- ment. That a nation is not born in a day, is a truth of which they knew nothing. It was to no purpose that the Piesidcnt pointed out to these ardent reformers whose leaders were men of mulatto blood, and possessed of some culture, that they Mere 314 THE LIFE OP endangenng the public weal by awakening the passions of the ignorant populace. The suggestion indicated fear on the part of the Government. The opposition then was likely to prove suc- cessful. Africanism, too, learned that it was feared, and hence rose into a more threatening attitude. How formidable it might prove was seen in the devastations which it committed in the city, when, in 1842, the Cape was laid in ruins by an earthquake, and one half of its inhabitants were destroyed. The population of the country rushed into the town, and spent a fortnight in pillage and plunder; saying to the ruined proprietors : " It is the good God that gives us this ; yesterday was your day ; to-day is ours." The opposition made its appearance in the legislative hall. It was driven thence by the force of co%ips-cV etat. It revived in the country in the form of conspiracy. The conspirators gathered around an ambi- tious man of small ability, Herard-Riviere, a commander of artillery, who was put forward by an ambitious man of talent, Herard-Dumesle. A manifesto was sent forth, in which Herard- Riviere was placed at the head of the executive government. Fighting ensued. Boyer, in disgust, quitted the island (13th March, 1843), and embarked for Jamaica, after taking leave of the inhabitants in language which did not want dignity. After the departure of President Boyer, various pretenders to the supreme authority came forward, and for a time disorders more or less prevailed. These disorders were not wholly Avithout advantage. Around Guerrier gathered sympathies in favour of national unity \ Accaan vmited men in a common effort of defence ; and Pierrot strengthened the feeling of a common need of concilia- tion and regard to law. Hence an important fact came into view, namely that the moral, economical, and political fusion of the two colours was not only not impossible but in part accomplished. The great question now was to find a man capable of developing the consequences of this new state of things, a man Avho should unite in his jiolicy the good qualities of the system of Christophe with that of Petion and Boyer, and who, energetic like the former, should be humane, liberal, and civilizing, like the two latter. The national sentiment looked to General Riche and made no mistake. Uniting to the ascendancy which he derived Touss.uNT l'ouvertuke. 315 from his skin,* tlie iutelligeucc aud almost the instruction of the mulatto chiefs, Eiche for a moment realized the ideal of a Haytian government. He repressed the barbarous element with- out at the same time ci*ushing the element of culture, and he had both the power and the will, to open the country to foreign capital, aud to organize native labour. He had done little more than cuter on these important improvements, when he was carried off by a sudden malady, universally regretted, two days previous to the first anniversary of his elevation. Public opinion designated as his successor the black Generals Paul and Souffrant, who appeared equally desirous and equally able to continue the policy of lliche. The Senate, whose duty it was to elect the president, was divided between the two competitors, when a third can- didate was proposed, who was elected on the very ground that as no one thought of him, no one offered him opposition. On the 1st of ^Nlarcli, 1847, General Faustin Soulouque, the present ruler of Hayti, was appointed its president. Soulouque was a large, good-natured negro, who, from the year 1804, when he was the house-servant of General Lamarre, had passed through all the events of his country without leaving any trace of himself whether good or bad. In 1810 Lamarre was killed, while defending the Mole against Christophe, and Soulouque, who had become his master's aide-de-camp, was charged to carry his heart to Potion. The latter made him lieutenant in his mounted guard, and bequeathed him afterwards to Boycr, as a piece of furniture belonging to the presidential palace. In his turn Boyer appointed him captain, and attached him in particular to the service of Mademoiselle Joute, w-ho had been the lady j^resident of two successive presidents. From that time until 1843, Soulouque had remained completely forgotten ; thenceforward every change made him more prominent. Under Herard he became a chief of squadron, under Guerrier, a colonel, and imder Biche, a general and superior commander of the palace guard. The new president was, at his election, two-and-sixty years old, though he did not seem to be more than forty. The negro peculiarities of » Eich6 was what is called a griffe — that is, though he had white blood in his veins, he was, in appearance, in no way distinguished from a black. 316 THE LIFE OF feature appear in liim iu a subdued form. His eyes have a mild aspect. The general expression of his countenance is placid. He manifested singidar timidity when he entered on his dignified office, and really possessed a modesty which subsequent events liave done much to wear away. In Souiouque the inferior element of Haytian life has its representative and its encouragement. Grossly ignorant, he is also absurdly superstitious. His vanity exceeds all bounds, and led him in the year 1849 to assume the title of Emperor. In this silly step he took for his model ISTapo- leon Bonaparte, according to whose court and camp Souiouque formed his own. The details are too trivial to deserve enumera- tion. Only let not the folly be imputed to the hue of Soulouque's shin. If Hayti has its emperor, that sovereign borrowed the idea from France. CHAPTER III. CONCLUSION. My narrative has come to a close. In looking back on the series of events of which I have spoken, I am impressed Avith the neces- sity of guarding against two extremes. Of these, the one degrades the African to the level of the brute ; the other sets him on an equality with the Caucasian. The negro is a man ; equally is it true that the negro race is inferior to the highest style of man. Individuals belonging to that race have risen very high in the scale of civilized life. Tovissaint L'Ouverture commands our respect and admiration. But the race at large cannot be accounted equal to some others, if only because as yet it has no history. Qualities there are in the negro blood of a very valuable nature. Pecu- liai'ly is it favourable to the development of the domestic affec- tions. It involves a strong attachment to place as well as kindred. But the very excess of its emotional nature unfits it for elevated thought, continuous industry, and lofty achievement. It is no disparagement to the Africans to say that they have realized but TOUSSAIXT l'ouverture. 317 a small amount of social good in the Island of Hayti, since the outbreak of its insurrectionary movements. With its legacy of slavery degradations, envenomed prejudices, conflicting interests, and sanguinary wars, the island, •\vithin the last seventy years, has had a most rugged and perilous path to tread, in which it may be safely affirmed, the most cultivated of European nations would have exi)erienced great difficulty to hold itself erect. And after what, in this old world of ours, avc witnessed in the year 1848, we surely have no right to be severe in our judgment, even of the Emperor Soulouque. There is, however, in the preceding history — in the patriotism of Toussaint, in the firmness of Christophe, in the moderation of Boyer, and in the wisdom of Eichc, with the good results of which those eminent rulei'S were severally and unitedly the authors, — there is enough to assure the impartial, that in dark-coloured blood there is no incapacity for either govern- ment or social and civilized life, and to inspire and warrant the hope, that Hayti will gradually, if slowly, rise to take a position among the first nations of the earth. Before the sixteenth century, the African races were little known in the Christian world. Since then they have been brought into close contact with white men. A fusion has ensued. That fusion in Hayti has gone far to i-ender pure African blood some- what rare. A similar result is rapidly taking place in the United States. In this intermingling of two diverse streams. Providence seems to intend the improvement of both. The union involves the personal freedom and the social elevation of the blacks. It will also in time issue in a higher moral culture on the part of the whites. We shall learn to do justly by the weak; they Avill be aided to rise out of an existence little more than sensuous ; while, in cases in which the two streams flow together in the same veins, the black may obtain nerve and hardihood, and the white may be enriched and mellowed. Between two parties who may thus confer benefits on each other, there is no reason, and ought to be no room, for preju- dice and misunderstanding. Children of the same great and good Parent, and objects of the same redeeming love, they have each a work on earth to perform, they have each a mind to culti- 318 THE LIFE OF T0US3AINT l'oUVERTURE. vate aud a soul to save, and can gain the approbation of their Creator and their Saviour, only so far as they interchange succour and promote common good, and aid and forward the grand drama of human life. Persons who view great social questions in their bearing on material interests, will be disposed to inquire what has been the result of emancipation in Hayti on the products and commerce of the island. Statistical evidence shows a considerable diminu- tion. If that diminution is real, it is the measure of relief from labour which his freedom has brought to the slave; it is more — it is the measure of his lessened punishments and his lessened sufferings. And if the negro can with little labour supply all the ■wants of which he is sensible, who has a right to augment his toil by compulsion? If our stock of sugar is less, it is an ample compensation to feel that the amount of human happiness is more ; and if the negro is content, let us show our dissatisfaction, not by coercing him, but by raising him by gentle, persuasive, and attractive means to feel and acknowledge other and higher wants ; and then, of his own accord, he will impose on himself additional labour. Should he, hoAvever, continue to prefer his native banian, with ease and repose, to our beef, purchasable only by long and severe toil, I see no ground whatever on which we may justifiably interfere with his mode of life, still less why we are at liberty to compel him to toil for our pleasure or our advantage. NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. Note A. ON THE COLOURED POPULATION. Coloured population means sometimes the collective mass of black.-* and of coloured men ; but we more frequently understand by the words, coloured po2)t(lation, colottred caste, coloured people, coloured men, those who arc neither black nor white; we also give them the general denomination of the mixed races. Tlie collective or particular acceptation of coloured population derives its signitication from the phrase in which it is used. M. Moreau de Saint-Mery, in developing the system of Franklin, has classed under general heads the diflerent shades which the mixed jiopulation of colour jiresent. He supposes that man altogether forms 128 shades, which are white among the whites, and black among the blacks. Setting out from this principle, he proves that we are so much nearer to or farther from the one colour or the other, as we either approach or remove from the number 6-4, which is their middle term. According to this system, every man who lias not eight shades of white, is considei-ed black. Proceeding from this colovir towards white, we distinguish nine principal ■stocks, which liave again varieties among them, according as they retain more or less shades of the one colour or of the other. The Sacatra Approaches nearest to the negro, is produced in three diiierent ways, and can have from eight to sixteen shades white, and from 112 to 120 shades black. AVniTE. BL.VCK, The oftspring of the sacatra and the negi'oss has 8 ... 120 The offspring of the male and female sacatra ]G ... 112 The offspring of the gritfe and the negress 1 G ... 112 Y 322 NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. The Griffe Is the result of five combinations, aud can have from 24 to 32 shades white, and 96 or 104 black. WHITE. BLACE. The ofl'spring of the mar.ibou and the female sacatra, has 32 ... 96 The oflspring of the male and female griffe 32 ... 96 The offspring of the negro and the female mulatto 32 ... 96 The offspring of the negro and the female marabou ... 24 ... 104 The offspring of the griffe and the female sacatra 24 ... 104 The Marabou Has in his five combinations, from 40 to 48 shades white, and from 80 to 88 black. WHITE. BLACK. The offspring of the male and female marabou has 48 ... 80 The offspring of the quarterou aud the negress 48 ... 80 The offspring- of the mulatto aud the female griffe 48 ... 80 The offspring of the mulatto and the female sacatra 40 ... 88 The offspring of the marabou aud the female griffe 40 ... 88 Tlie Mulatto, In his twelve combinations, varies from 56 to 70 shades white, aud keeps from 58 to 72 of them black. Thus, there is a mulatto such as to ap- proach nearer to the white than any other, by 14 parts. WHITE. BLACK. The offspring of the quarterou aud the female sacatra has .. 70 ... 58 The offspring of the mamalouc and the female sacatra ... 68 ... 60 The offspring of the white man aud the uegress 64 ... 64 The offspring of the metif and the female sacatra 64 ... 64 The offspring of the qxiarteron and the female griffe 64 ... 64 The offspring of the male aud female mulatto 64 ... 64 The offspring of the sang-mele and the negress 63 ... 65 The offspring of the quarterou and the negress 62 ... 66 The offspring of the mamelouc and the negress 60 ..68 The offspring of the metif and the negress 56 ... 72 The offspi'ing of the quarterou and the female sacatra ... 56 ... 72 The offspring of the mulatto and the female marabou ... 56 ... 72 The Quarten'on. His twenty combinations give from 71 to 96 shades white, and from 32 to 57 shades black. WHITE. BLACK. The offspring of the white man and the female mulatto has 96 ... 32 The offspring of the male and female quarterou 96 ... 32 The offspring of the sang-mele and female mulatto 95 ... 33 The offspring of the quartei'on and the female mulatto . 94 ... 34 The offspring of the mamelouc and the female mulatto... 92 ... 36 The offspring of the white man and the female marabou 88 ... 40 NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 328 ■\V1IITE. BLACK. The offspring of the luetif and the female mulatto 8S ... 40 The offspring of the sang-mcle and the female marabou 87 ... 41 The offspring of the quarteron and the 86 ... 42 The offspring of the mamelouc and the 84 ... 44 The offspring of the white man and the female griffe ... 80 ... 48 The offspring of the metif and the female marabon 80 ... 48 The offspring of the (piartci-on and tlie female mulatto... 80 ... 48 The offspring of the sang-melo and the female griffe ... 79 ... 49 The offspring of the quarteron and the 79 ... 50 The offspring of the mamelouc and the 76 ... 52 The offspring of the white man and the female sacatra. . . 72 ... 56 The offspring of the motif and the female griffe 72 ... 56 The offspring of the quarteron and the female marabou . 72 ... 56 The offspring of the saug-mele and the female sacatra... 71 ... 57 The Metif. We find in his six combinations from lOi to 112 shades white, and con- sequently, from 16 to 24 ^lades black. WITITE. BLACK. The offspring of the white man and the female qnarteron 112 ... 16 The offspring of the male and female metif 112 ... 16 The offspring of the sang-niL-le and the female qnarteron 111 ... 17 Tlie offspring of the quarteron and the 110 ... 18 The offspring of the mamelouc and the 110 ... 18 The offspring of the quarteron and the female metif ... 104 ... 24 The Meamelouc. The five ways in which he is produced, stand in the relation of 116 to 120 parts white, by 8 to 16 parts black. WHITE. BLACK. Tlie offspring of the white man and the female metif has 120 ... 8 The olispring of the male and female mamelouc 120 ... 8 The offspring of the sang-nu'le and the female metif ... 119 ... 9 The offispriDg of the quarteron and the 118 ... 10 The offspring of the mamelouc and the female metif. IIG ... 12 Tlie QxM/rteron. His four combmations vai'v from 122 to 124 shades white, and from 4 to 6 shades black. WHITE. BLACE. Tlie offspring of the white man and the female mamelouc has 124 ... 4 The offspring of the male and female quai-loron 124 ... 4 The offspring of the sang-mtlc and the female mamelouc 123 ... 5 The offspring of the quarteron and the • — — 122 ... 6 y2 324 NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. Sang-mele Is produced in four ways ; and varies from 125 to 127 parts white, and from 1 to 3 black. WHITE. BLACK. The offspring of the white man and the female of the sang-mele has 127 ... 1 Tlie oftspring of the white man and quarteron 126 ... 2 The offspring of the male and female sang-mele 125 ... 2 The oflspriug of the sang-mele and the female quar- teron 125 ... 3 The sang-mele, by continuing its union with the whites, at last passes into white colour. According to the aforesaid system, whoever reaches the 8th degree, finds that he has 8191 white parts to one black part, which is really no differ- ence, because numbers of individuals of southern Europe, in Spain, in Pro- vence, in Italy, in Turkey, and in Hungary, have in their blood more than 164th part black. Doctor Franklin was the first to conceive this system, which shows the infinite power and goodness of the Creator ; thus the species always reforming itself by varieties, is renewed at the end of a score of generations, without retaining any of the organic elements which would debase it. Philosophy has made use of this observation in order to make us compre- hend the nothingness of hereditary pride. This pride makes us believe that in spite of natiu-e we retain the pure blood of our ancestors to the sixteenth generation, whereas we have only a small portion of it. It is a good or an evil, infinitely divided in the common existence of our race. — Translated from JPampkile de Lacroix. Note B. The immediate causes of the insm'rection are given by Gustace d'Alaux in the Revue des Deux Mondes, vol. viii. Nouvelle Periode, pp. 776 seq. " The planters took the initiative in the revolution. Not less devoid of foresight than the aristocracy of the mother country, they warmly accepted and patronised the ideas which gave birth to 1789. The enfeebleraent of the monarchical authority, was for them the relaxation of a system which excluded them from the high colonial positions, and forced their pride and their habitual despotism to bend before the discretionary power of the agents of the mother coimtry. Civic equality was the complete assimilation of the colony to France, the ti-ee exercise of the means of action which their immense riches seemed to secure them. Without waiting for the authority of the government, the colonists formed themselves into parochial and pro- NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 325' vincial assemblies, anil sent to Paris eii^htecn deputies, who wore admitted some as of right, the others us petitioners. Mucli excited by this tirst suecess, these pretensions to ]x)hti('al and administrative equality were soon, in the colonial aristocracy, transformed into an avowed wish for independence. The provincial assemblies deleprated the direction of the interior affairs of the colony to a sort of convention, which met at Saint JNIarc, and that convention, in which the influence of the planters in-edominated, declaretl that they were constituted in virtue of the powers of i/ieir co»sl'due,its, contrary to the opinion of the minority, who jiroposed to say, " In virtue of the decrees of the mother country." But by the side of the colonial ai'istocracy were the whites of the inferior and the mitldle cliiss, who in ardently adherinij to the revolutionary doctrines which they had fomented, intended to deduce thei-efrom all their logical consequences. OHended at the disdain of the planters, those two classes hailed in the new ideas the coming of civil and social equality. Between the feudal oligarchy which the planters saw in their ilreams of independence, and a share in the conquests ah'eady realized by the liberalism of the mother country, those chisses could not hesitate, and gave themselves wholly to France. The provincial assembly ol' the north, almost entirely composed of lawyers whom the convention of Saint Marc had alienated by certain regula- tions tending to lessen their fees, gave the official signal of the reaction. Forthwith the jilantcrs changed their tactics. They pretended to renounce their projects of independence, armed themselves against the authority of the mother country with demagogical ideas, and thus succeeded in acquirmg a numerous party in the dregs of the white jwpulation; but Peinier, the governor, siqiported l)y the sound part of the colonial tiers-etat, broke up and dismissed the insurrectionary assembly of Saint Marc. A third element appeared on the scene, and took in regard to the whole white population the part which the tiers-etat (the people) had in regard to the planters. While the colonists were disputing respecting liberty and equality, the frecd-men had not kept their ears closed. More than others they had a right to see a benefit in the revolution j for by the fact that their colour (two thirds of them were of mixed blood), their education, their quality of free-men and of proprietors, brought them into jiroximity to the whito caste, it was for them sjiecially that the dai'k susceptibility of colonial preju- dice took plea-sure in making the demarcation liarsh and offensive. The deci'ee of the 8th of March, conferred on them indeed jwlitical rights ; but that decree raised in all the ranks of the white ix)pulatiori such a condemna- tion that the governor himself concurred in preventing its execution. In vain the freed-mcn took up arms in favour of the mother country in the struggle sustained by the governor against the colonial aristocracy. After the victory the governor showed the freed-raen no favour for their efforts, and carried disdain so far as not to allow them to wear the white cockade, which distinguished the royalist party. The mulattoes abandoned that party ; and a new decree, by which the constituent assembly retracted the decree of the 8th of March, completed the rupture. Then came a third decree, which restored their ])olitical rights to the freed-mcn, and that occa- sioned fresh resistance on the part of the whites. The demagogical party revolted against the government j the aristocratical party, or those who were 326 NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. for indepeudcuce, offered the colony to EngLand ; tlie royalist party, quite as liostile to the mulattoes as the two others, found nothing better to hold the planters in respect than to covertly arouse tlie blacks ; and the mulattoes, who on their side had made a new armed attempt to support their rights against the white caste, gamed all the advantage of this intervention of the blacks, among whom they even made numerous recruits. In the midst of the intricacies of the contests which ensued, one fact is of special consequence; feeling that then' only point of support was in the mother country, the new citizens (the freed-men) had the tact or the good faith to remain faithtul to her. There thus came a time when they became for the commissioners charged with the pacification of the island, that which the white tiers-etat had been for Govei-nor Peinier, namely, the only colonial auxiliaries under Trench influence, so that the final triumph of the authority of the mother comitry had for a necessary result the preponderance of the men of coloxu'." Note C. The following is the view taken of the struggle for negro freedom by Cheistophe, who wa.? himself concerned thereir.; the passage is taken from a manifesto, published m 1814, by that warrior, then King of Hayti, and. threatened with a new invasion by the whites. " We have desen-ed the favours of liberty, by om* indissoluble attachment to the mother comitry. We have proved to her our gratitude. " At the time when, reduced to oiu" own private resoiu-ces, cut off from all commmiication with France, we resisted every allurement ; when, mflexible to menaces, deaf to proposals, inaccessible to ai-tifice, we braved misery, famine, and privation of eveiy kind, and finally triumphed over oiu* enemies both within and without. "We were then far from perceiving that twelve years after, as the price of so much perseverance, sacrifice, and blood, France would depi-ive us in a most barbarous maimer of the most precious of our possessions — hberty. " Under the administration of Governor-General Toussaint L'Ouvertui-e, Hayti arose from her ruins, and every thing seemed to promise a happy future. The arrival of General Hedouville completely changed the aspect of affairs, and struck a deadly blow to public tranquillity. We will not enter into the detail of his intrigues with the Haytian General Rigaud, whom he persuaded to revolt against his legitimate chief. We will only say, that before leaving the island Hedomalle had put every thing into confusion, by casting among us the firebrands of discord, and lighting the torch of civil war. " Ever zealous for the re-establishment of order and of peace, Toussaint- L'Ouverture, by a paternal government, restored their original energy to law, moraUty, religion, education, and industry. Agriculture and commerce were flom-ishing; he was favourable to white colonists, especially to those who occupied new possessions ; and the care and partiality which he felt for them NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 327 went so far, that he was severely censured as being more attached to them than to people of his own colour. This negro wail was not without reason; for sonic montlis previous to the arrival of the French, he put to death his own nephew. General Moise, for having disregarded his orders relative to the protection of the colonists. This act of the governor, and the great confidence which he had in the French government, were the chief causes of the weak resistance which the French met with in Hayti. In realitj% his confidence in that government was so great, that the general had disbanded the gi'enter part of the regular troops, and employed them in the cultivation of the ground. " Such was the state of affairs whilst the peace of Amiens was being negotiated : it was scarcely concluded when a powerful armament lauded on our coasts a large army, which, attacking us by surprise, when we thought ourselves perfectly secure, plunged ns suddenly into an abyss of evils. " Posterity will find a difficulty in beheving that, in so enlightened and philosophic an age, such an abominable enterprise could possibly have been conceived. In the midst of a civilized people, a horde of barbarians sud- denly set out with the design of exteruiinating an innocent and peaceable nation, or at least of loading them anew with the chains of national slavery, " It was not enough that they employed violence ; they also thought it necessary to use perfidy and villany, — they wore compelled to sow dissension among us. Every means was put in re([uisitiou to carry out this abominable scheme. The leaders of all politii'al parties in I'^rauce, evcu the sons of the governor Toussaint, were invited to take part in the expedition. They, as well as ourselves, were deceived by that chef-d'oeuvre of perfidy, the procla- mation of the first consul, in which he said to us, ' You are all equal and free before (Jod and the republic ;' such was his declaration, at the same time that his private instructions to General Leclerc were to re-establish slavery. " The greater part of the population, deceived by these fallacious promises, and for a long time accustomed to consider itself as French, submitted with- out resistance. The governor so little expected the appearance of an enemy, that he had not even ordered his generals to resist in case of an attack being made ; and when the armament arrived, he himself was on a journey towards the eastern coast. If some few generals did resist, it was owmg only to the hostile and menacing manner in wliich they were summoned to surrender, which compelled them to respect then- duty, their honour, and the present circumstances. " After a resistance of some months, the governor-general yielded to the pressing entreaties and the solemn protestations of Leclerc, ' that he intended to protect the liberties of every one, and that France wduld never destroy so noble a work.' On this footing, peace was negotiated with France ; and the governor Toussaint, laying aside his power, peaceably retired to the retreat he had prepared for himself. " Scarcely had the French extended their dominion over the whole island, and that more by roguery and deceit than by force of arms, than they began to put in execution their horrible system of slavery and destruction. " To hasten the accomplishment of their projects, mercenary and Machia- 328 NOTES AXB ILLUSTRATIONS. vellian writers fabricated fictitious narratives, and attributed to Toussaiut designs that lie had never entertained. While ho was remaining peaceably at home, on the faith of solemn treaties, he was seized, loaded with irons, dragged away with the whole of his family, and transjiorted to France. The Avholc of Europe knows how he ended his unfortunate career, in torture and in prayer, in the dungeon of the Chateau de Joux. " Such was the recompence reserved for his attachment to France, and for the eminent services he had rendered to the colony. "At the same time, notice was given to arrest all suspected persons throughout the island. All those who had shown brave and enlightened souls, when we claimed for ourselves the rights of men, were the first to be seized. Even the traitors who had most contributed to the success of the French army, by serving as guides to their advanced guard, and by exciting their compatriots to take vengeance, were not spared. At first they desired to sell them into strange colonies ; but as this plan did not succeed, they resolved to transport them to France, where overpowering labour, the galleys, chains, and prisons, were awaiting them. "Then the white colonists, whose numbers have continually increased,- seeing their power sufficiently established, discarded the mask of dissimula- tion, openly declared the re-establishment of slavery, and acted in accordance with their declaration. They had the impudence to claim as their slaves, men who had made themselves eminent by the most brilliant services to their country, in both the civil and military departments. Vu-tuoxis and honour- able magistrates, warriors covered with wounds, whose blood had been poured out for France and for liberty, were compelled to fiill back into the bonds of slavery. These colonists, scarcely established in the possession of their land, whose power was liable to be overthrown by the slightest cause, already marked out and chose in the distance those whom they determiuecl should be the first victims of their vengeance. " The proud and liberty-hating faction of the colonists, of those traffickers in human flesh, who, since the commencement of the revolution, had not ceased to impregnate the successive governments in France with their plans, their projects, their atrocious and extravagant memorials, and everything tending to our ruin, — these factious men, tormented by the recollection of the despotism ■which they had formerly exercised at Hayti, a prey to their low and cruel passions, exerted all their efforts to repossess themselves of the prey which had escaped from their chitches. In favour of independence under the constitutional assembly, terrorists under the Jacobins, and, finally, zealous Bonapartists, they knew how to assume the mask of any party, in order to obtain place and favour. It was thus by their insidious counsels they urged Bonaparte to imdertake this iniquitous expedition to Hayti. It was this faction who, after having advised the expedition, furnished the pecuniary resources which were necessary, by means of subscriptions which were at this time commenced. In a word, it was this faction which caused the blood of our compatriots to flow in torrents, — which invented the exhausting tortures to which we were subjected ; it is to these colonists that France owes the loss of a powei"fiil army, which perished in the plains and marshes of Hayti ; it is to them that she owes the shame of an enterprise which has fixed an indelible stain on the French name. NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 320 " Immctliatoly, the greater part of tlie people took up amis for the pre- scrvsition of life and liberty. Even this first movement alarmed the Freneli, juid appeared to General Leclerc so important as to cause him to summon a special meeting of the colonists, in order to adopt measiu-es suitable to bring about a better state of aftairs ; but these colonists, far from desisting from their atrocious principles, notwithstanding the imminence of the danger, unanimously exclaimed, ' If there is no slavery, there is no colony !' " Members of the council, it was in vain that we raised our voices to prevent the total ruin of our country ; in vain we represented to them the horrible injustice of again casting so many free men into slavery ; in vain (for we knew the spirit of liberty which aniniiited our compatriots) we denounced this measure as the certain ruin of the country, and that it would detach it for ever from France : it was all in vain. Convinced that there no longer remained any hope of conciliation, and that we were compelled to choose l>etween slavery and death, then, with our weapons in our hands, we undeceived our compatriots, whose whole attention was directed towards us, and we unanimously seized our swords, resolved either to drive those tjTants from the land for ever, or to die. " General I-ieclcrc had already announcetl the conquest of the island, and had received from almost all the maritime towns of France (where resided the chief advocates of slavery), letters of congratulation on his pretended conquest. Ashamed of ha\'ing given rise to such deceitful hopes, mortified at not being able to achieve the detestable enterprise, and mistrusting the approach of another terrible war, despair shortened his (Liys and dragged him down to the gi-ave. " Amid this long tissue of crimes wliicli marked the administi-ation of General Leclerc, we will merely point out liis conduct towanb; the Haytian general, Maurepas, which could not but excite the commiseration even of the most cold-hearted. Mam-epas, a man of gentle and agreeable maimers, esteemed by his fellow-citizens for his integrity, w;is one of the first to join the French, and rendered them the most signal services. Nevertheless, he was suddenly caiTied olf to Port-au-Prince, and taken on board the admiral's vessel, which was then at anchor near the Cajx; coasts; and then, having been bomid to the mainmast, in mockery they put two epaulettes on his shoulders, fastened them on by nails such as they use in naval cariientry, and covered his head with a general's hat. In this fi-ightftil condition, these savages, after having given ti'ce vent to their ferocious joy, preciiiitated him, with his wife and children, into the sea. Such was the destiny of this virtuous though unfortunate soldier." — Histoire de Vile d'Hai/ti, par riacide Justine, p. 391— Paris, 1826. Note D. The efforts made by Christophe for the instniction of the ^leople arc described in the following passages, which are laid liefore the reader, the 330 NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. rather because they afford encouragement to those who may be desirous to aid in raising Hayti to its proper condition : — " He (Chi'istophe) had abeady learnt, by means of his correspondence with some EngUsh gentlemen, that the Lancasterian system, being singularly adapted to the education of youth in the rudiments of knowledge, had been acted on ^\^th great success in this country ; — he also knew that a society had been formed for the purpose of establishing schools on this system, and for prepai'ing young men to superintend them, and it was fui-ther stated, that if he was desirous of introducing it into Hayti, that society would readily furnish him with schoolmasters duly qualified for the wort. In consequence of thb! information, he caused an application to be made to the British and Foreign School Society for such a number of instructors as was thought necessary to commence the undertaking ; and all matters relating to their salaries and other expenses being an-anged, six teachers, who had been previously engaged in superintending schools in England, sailed for Hayti.* " On then* arrival at Cap rran9ois, which was in 1816, Cluistophe afforded them every possible facdity, and at the same time exempted them fi-om the disagreeable regulations to which the other white residents were subject. Thus encouraged, they proceeded in the prosecution of their object with great diligence and application. Buildings were prepared under their inspec- tion ; books, and every other necessary apparatus, were provided ; and in a short time, schools were established at Cap Francois, St. Marc's, Gonaives, and other towiLs, containing nearly 2,000 pupils. In these schools, the Hay tiau youth were taught reading, writing, the elements of arithmetic, and Enghsh ; and after they had made considerable progress in the latter, the business of the school was conducted in tiiat language. The object of this regulation, it was stated, was to introduce EngUsh into general use ; for so thoroughly <.lid Clu'istophe detest the French, that he was anxious to abolish every- thing that indicated their former possession of the island; to accomplish which, he was determined to leave no means untried. Among the first things which I visited, after my arrival in Hayti, was the school established at Cap Fran9ois. The place appropriated to this piu'pose Avas a large builduag, situated in a retired and elevated part of the town, and was as properly aiTanged and as perfectly furnished with all the necessary apparatus, as the best schools conducted on this system are pre- pared in England. This school contained from one hundi-ed and fifty to two hundred boys, from eight to sLxteen years of age. When I entered the room, they were regularly divided into their classes, all busily engaged at their lessons ; and their evident attention and application could not fail to strike a visitor. The sight of so many young negroes, employed in acquiring the rudiments of learnmg, would have been, to any one, as mteresting as it was novel; to those who feel a just concern m the welfare of the Afi'ican race, it was peculiarly so ; nor was it possible to witness it, without recol- lecting how different woidd have been their condition had they been enslaved, and rejoicing at the change which had led to such beneficial results. * Soon after the schools were estabhshed in Hayti, and the utility of the system began to appear, Christophe presented this society with one hundred guineas. NOTES AKD ILLUSTRATIONS. 331 "The m:istcr of this stliool, who was an intt^lhgcnt yoniia: man, had con- ducted it fi'oiii its couiniciiccuient, and his ability and attention appeared from the pcrlcct order which prevailed throughout. My inquiries of liiin respecting tliose placed under his instriiction related to the following par- ticulars : — AVhethcr they disjjlayed common aptness for learning ; whether they readily rememhered what they acquired; and whether they were capable of the application expected Irom boys in general of their age ? To these questions he replied, that among so great a number as were com- mitted to his care, there were, of course, several whose incapacity prevented them from makiug any great ]irogress, but that the majority learnt without much difliculty, and many even with considerable facility ; that with regard to their memory, their gradual advancement from one branch to another, and their readiness in recollecting small pieces of poetry or prose, which they were occasionally required to learn, were satisfactory proofs of its being suffi- ciently retentive ; and at the same time adding, that they required no more powerfid stimulus to apjilicatiou and diligence than is necessary for youth in general. "In answer to a question res])ecting the general character of his pupils, he further stated that they were far less obstinate and refractory than he had expected to find them. The facility, he said, with which they became familiarized to the mechanical ]);irt of the system, was surprising; the necessity of inflicting severe lamishment, he stated, was not fi'equent; if a few were disobedient and inattentive, he observed, others were no less dihgent and submissive ; and pointing to the state of the school at that moment, he hoped, he said, its order and regularity were indications of its flourishing condition, as well as of the docility and submission of the hoys.* He con- cluded his answei's by assm-ing me that, on the whole, he found the young negroes and mulattoes as apt to learn and as ready to remember as he had found the youth of our own country. " At this period, all the boys of the school could read and write ; many of them were acquainted with the introductory rules of arithmetic ; and some spoke the English language with considerable case and propriety. At the request of the master, I called several of his pupils indiscriminately, and proposed to them (juestions, according to the classes in which they stood; and the result of this exammation was a conviction that, whatever may be affirmed of the stupidity of the negro, he is no further inferior in intellect to others than the system of slavery renders him. Of this I received a further confirmation by subsequent trials. I directed a certain number of these lads to commit to memory select pieces of English and French, some iu poetry and others in prose ; and promised to encourage them by bestowing appropriate rewards on those who should repeat these pieces most readily and correctly. At the expu-ation of the time appointed them for learning, they each recited their respective portions with so much ease and propriety, * Since my return to England, I have visited the central school of the British and Foreign School Society, in the Borough-road, London ; and granting, as every one must, that it is conducted with admiraljle order, yet I confess I could not perceive its superiority, in point of general disciplLae, to that consisting of the Haytian youth at Cap Frauyois. 332 NOTES A^■^) illustrations. that it was difficult to determine to wliom the prizes should be adjudged, and the only satisfactory mode of arrangement appeared to be that of in- creasing the number, so as to give to each boy a trifling reward. A short time afterwards, I heard them repeat the same pieces, and they rehearsed them with nearly the same readiness and correctness as they had previously done. " One of the elder boys of this school was particularly pointed out, as dis- tinguished from his schoolfellows by his great aptness for learning, and for the progress he had made in some branches not usually included in the Lancasterian system of education. He was an interesting looking lad, about sixteen years of age, and occasionally undertook, in the absence of the master, the superintendence of the school. Being desirous of ascertaining the extent of his acquirements, I requested him to call at my lodgings for the purpose of examining him. On his compliance with this request, I first proposed to him a few questions m the Single Rule of Three : these he answered witli perfect ease. I then proposed others in the different cases of Practice : these also he performed with equal facility. After this I tried him in the simple and compound rides of Vulgar and Decimal Fractions, and found him no less familiar with them ; but the Square Eoot somewhat puzzled him, and in the Cube Root, he felt totally unable to proceed. His next trial was to trans- late a paragraph fi"om one of the pieces in Enfield's Speaker into French, which he did without much difficulty, and, as far as I was qualified to judge, with a great degree of accm-acy. He was then requested to give in ^\Titing a translation of a page of Bossuet's ' Histoire Universelle' into English, and was furnished with a dictionary for his assistance. About this part of his examination, he employed considerable time, and appeared to bestow on it special attention and care ; he repeatedly corrected his translation, copied it several times before he appeared satisfied, and even then hesitated to hand it to me. But when completed, it far exceeded my expectations ; for though it contained one or two Gallicisms, in point of sense and grammatical con- struction, it was remarkably correct. Finally, he pointed out, on a map, the boundaries of the four quarters of the globe, the situation of his own country, ■with its latitude and longitude, the limits of the European nations, with their capitals, the principal islands of both hemispheres, and the more remarkable mountams, gulfs, and lakes, with a readiness as surprising as it was satis- factory; at the same time answering the questions proposed to him respecting the religious and peculiar manners and customs of different nations with like faciUty and accuracy. During the whole time liis manners were per- fectly unassuming ; it was also evident that he had been especially assisted and encouraged, and that his progress was proportionably rapid and sure ; and I confess that the result of this examination afforded me as much gratification as any circumstance I witnessed during my stay in the island. '•' Wilde the school at Cap Francois was in this flourishing condition, and presented such satisfactory proofs of the capacitj' and application of the Haytian youth, those established at Gona'ives, St. Marc's, Fort Royal, and at other places, were, I understood, (for I had not an opportunity of visiting them,) in a state equally encouraging and prosperous. The young negroes admitted into them were stated to have exhibited similar proofs of their possessing a ready apprehension and a retentive memory; and while, by their NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 333 progress, they afForded the utmost satisfaction to their teachers, tlieir facihty of acquirement rendered tlie labour of instruction far less difficult and tedious than luid been anticipated. " In the meantime, a ' Royal Board of Public Instruction,' had been established, for the purpose of superintending the education of youth, and of extending the present system, whenever it should become necessary. It consisted of two dukes, five counts, and four barons, some of the most in- telligent and active of Christoplie's adherents, and therefore the best qua- lified to undertake the duties which their situation involved.* In the first account of their proceedings, published in the Haytian Gazette, they declare it as their belief that ' Instruction, when founded on the true i)rin- ciples of liberty, religion, and morals, is one of the most fruitful sources of public prosperity, and essentially contributes to the good order of society, and obedience to the laws.' And in conformity with these views, they express theu' resolution ' to give regular organziation to this important branch of the administration, and to establish suitable regulations for its superintend- ence.' " The more especial objects of this Board were, to provide that ' education be foimded on good principles, — viz., those of religion, respect for the laws, and love to the sovereign ; to confirm the regulations already ordained for this purpose, and to appoint such others as should be deemed expedient; to maintain order, discipline, and the observance of the rules, in the national esta- blishments for public instruction already existing ; and to found new schools, and colleges, or academies, whenever it should appear necessary.' To facilitate the accomplishment of these objects, ' three inspectors were nominated for each establishment, chosen from among the respectable residents of tlic neighbourhood where it was situated; whose business it was to visit the places of instruction, and to correspond with the Board on all things relating to their appointment. In addition to which, one of its own mem- bers was selected to make similar visits, at stated periods, and to reneler an account of the state of the schools, and of the progress of education, as reported by the inspectors and masters.' In piu"suance of the same objects, it was further determined that the Board should, every six months, jirescnt to the king a report of the progress of public instruction, with tlie names of the masters most distinguished for their attention and care; and that, more especially, to encourage the students of the difl'erent establishments, annual ]irizes, granted by his majesty, should be awarded to those who, by theii' diligent and successful application, should merit iiarticulur distinction. " Conformably with the general design of the ' Royal Board,' when the schools had been some time in operation, and the elder boys had accpiired the rudiments of knowledge, it was resolved that another establishment should be founded for their further instruction, denominated the Royal College ; an appellation, jicrhaps, somewhat misapplied, the institution being similar to the grammar scliools, or to the more respectable academics in England. Cap Fran^'ois was fixed on for its situation, that place being the capital of the kingdom, and possessing gi'cater advantages than any other. AVHiile a suitable building was preparing for the purpose, a proposal was made to two English * De Limonadc and Dupuy were of the number. 334 KOTES AXD ILLUSTRATIONS. gentlemen, throngli the same medium by wliicli the Lancasterian school- masters had been procured, mviting them to Hayti, to superintend the insti- tution, and oftering them a liberal remuneration for their services, M'hich proposal was accepted. The students were then selected fi-om among the more meritorious of those who had previously distinguished tliemselves by then- conduct and acquirements; and thus the college (if such it must be called) was established, without either difficulty or delay. " A considerable number of the Haytian youth were now instructed m Latin, English, and French composition, history, geography, and mathematics, and were assisted hi these pra-suits by tutors whose attainments fully qualified them to direct theii" studies. The classical professor, on whom at first devolved the entire charge of the college, devoted himself to a task at once laborious and irksome, with the utmost zeal and diligence. He strove to simplify his instructions, so as to render them intelligible to the slowest tmderstanding ; he varied his method of teaching according to the difierent capacities of his pupils; he assisted them in their difficulties, and encouraged them by his mildness and persuasions; and being a clergyman of the Anglican church, he added to his usual engagements that of occasionally instructing them in the doctrines and precejits of the Christian religion. Nor was the mathematical professor less indefatigable in his endeavours to promote the improvement of those committed to his charge. He was a gentleman of considerable scientific attainments, liighly respected by Christophe and the Boa I'd of Instruction for his superior qualifications, and esteemed for his amiable disposition and obhging deportment by alL who had the happiness of his acquaintance. Though unaccustomed to the education of youth previously to liis arrival in Ha}i:i, his intimate knowledge of mathematics, accompanied by a correct judgment, enabled him to adopt a method of instructuig his pupils perfectly adapted to their abilities and attainments; and while he en- deavom-ed to initiate them into the elements of science, he was not forgetful to encom-age them by the most powerful motives. Desh-ous at the same time of employing his leisure hours in the promotion of some useful object, he occasionally delivered lectures on mechanics and chemistry; and being provided with the apparatus necessarj' for the purpose, he illustrated their princi]5les by suitable experiments. " Under the tuition of these instructors, the students made considerable advances in those branches of learning to M-hich the .attention was now directed. The majority were able, in a short time, to construe the more easy Latin authors without much difficulty; they wrote English and French with ease and correctness ; and they especially dehghted in the study of history and geography, and regarded it rather as a recreation than as a task. The mathematics alone tliey found so difficxilt as to requh-e every possible encouragement to induce them to proceed. But if they made slov.'er progress in this than in other piu'suits, it arose more from the peculiar application it requires, than from any defect in their mental powers. They possessed, it was e^^dent, the ability to learn ; but had not always resolution to persevere in a study so di-y and abstract, and, to those who have not a genius peculiarly adapted to it, so utterly uninviting. Yet a few, who were distinguished fi-om the rest more for their jjatient application than for greater quickness of parts or strength of memorj', steadily perse- NOTES AND ILLUSTRATIONS. 335 vered ; and having overcome tlie first diffieidties, which to theu* fellow- students had appeared insurmountable, they afterwards advanced with considei'able ease ; and at length became as lamiliar with the elements of geometry and algebra as they were with their previous acquirements. " Among other circumstances connected with their progress in this branch of learning, the following may not he uninteresting. During the i)eriod that the late Sir Home Popham was appointed to the Jamaica station, he paid occasional visits to Cap Francois. On the last of these visits to that place, whilst ou his return to England, lie made particular iiwpiiries respecting the college, and went, in company with Baron de Dupuy, to see it. He was exceedingly pleased on entering, at observing the order and regularity with which it was conducted ; and was still more gratified by the evident pro- gress of the students. Being informed by Dupuy that, among other things, the mathematics also were taught, he was curious enough to try the pro- ficiency of the class, by pointing out some geometrical propositions for them to demonstrate. They readily constructed the diagrams, and gave the demonstrations with correctness and facility ; and the admiral appeared singularly gratified with this unexpected proof of the ability and acquirements of negroes."* * Harvey's " Sketches of Hayti," pp. 200—213. THE END loxdon: satilt, and edwards, pkinters, chandos street, covent garden. NEW BOOKS FOR FEBRUARY. IKustratciif ^'onboit ^'ibrarir, (Volume G.) Lares and Penates ; or, Cilicia and its Governors. Being a yiiort Historical Account of that Province, from the Earliest Times to the Present Day. 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