Southern Rose [Gone with the Wind]

"I have considered it, but it is more difficult to implement. I know the way you said, calculate the output of a slave, and then calculate how many years you can get free after working." He shook his head, "According to the current value of slaves in the market, They will never be free for the rest of their lives."

"Really? What's the current market price for a healthy black slave between the ages of 20 and 30?"

Emile pretended to cough, trying to prevent her daughter from discussing this kind of issue with a man that she shouldn't understand.A woman is more likely to find a suitable husband if she is not too smart.

"1 to 5, higher if you can read and write."

"How much value can a slave in your cotton plantation create for you in an average year? Do you know how to calculate the per capita output value?"

Leonardo looked at her in surprise.

"What's wrong? Can't I understand this?" She said briskly.Most men in this era are male chauvinists, and it is generally believed that women—especially beautiful women—"do not understand" anything, and it is enough to just obey men obediently.

Leonardo Darcy apparently thought so too, and he quickly changed the subject just as the waiter was starting to serve the food.

After returning home, Emile couldn't help but scold Josephine, "You'll scare him like this!"

"Who is he?" Josephine asked mischievously.

Emile shook her head helplessly, "It's really naughty."

"Didn't you still say that he had bad luck today?"

"He is indeed plagued by bad luck, but...how come you have been married and still don't understand what a man is like? They don't like to hear you talk about value, production value, and these words."

"Yes, they think dresses and jewelry are all women's minds," she replied lazily. "He went to Harvard! How could it be so—so stupid?"

Emile felt that what she said was wrong, but she didn't know where to start.

After hesitating for a moment, she said: "I don't understand why you insist on talking about slaves! Your father obeyed your wishes and planned to let all the slaves in the family redeem themselves, but the slaves on the farm... you let them redeem themselves today , Tomorrow they will run to the north!"

"Doesn't this mean that the overseer of the farm didn't feed them?" Josephine said in amazement, "I thought our family wouldn't let the slaves starve or freeze."

"I don't know, I have to ask your father."

"It's winter now, isn't there any farm work in winter?"

"The land has to be plowed and the trees have to be pruned. There are many trees next to the farm."

Trees are used to make furniture, and a tree is worth hundreds of dollars, so instead of pruning trees, I should go to the woods to pick up fallen branches and use them to make fires.There are no good anthracite coal mines in the lower south. Rich whites can buy out-of-state anthracite for heating, while poor whites can only buy firewood for fire. Black slaves may not even be able to afford firewood, or they may not be allowed to use it.

Josephine thought that her mother had never seen the life of a really poor person in her life.Although he was a declining nobleman in France back then, he could still live in the home of rich relatives for several years without worrying about food and clothing, and had some property, but he didn't have a lot of wealth.After getting married, she will not worry about money even more, so she never thought how pitiful the poor should be!

Slaves are "current assets". If you have no money to turn around because of investment failure, you can sell a batch of slaves. Based on the calculation of adult healthy male slaves worth 1500 US dollars, if you sell 20 people, you will get 3 to 4 US dollars. 100 slaves count The total price of the old, the weak and the young is about 15. Including the manor, it can be sold for at least 25 to 30.

She had underestimated the total value of the family's property before. If the farm and slaves were counted, the Robillard family's current property was as huge as 100 million.

But when the Yankees came, the million dollars were gone.

The black slaves were all liberated without compensation, and many fields and manors were confiscated. The northern government sent people to take over the city and set high taxes, but there were very few people who could pay the high taxes, so most of the land was confiscated by the new government. Then take it out and auction it to the Yankees and "Southern traitors".

In the original book, many people’s property was robbed by taxes in this way. Many years later, the American people are still saying that the tax bureau caught people who could not be caught by the FBI in the name of tax evasion.

Leonardo sent a letter the next day.

"Dear Miss Josephine:" It was endearing to address her by her Christian name rather than her last name.

"After I went back to the hotel last night, I thought a lot. You are right. Slavery is cruel. It uses deprivation of a person's freedom as a means to force him to work day and night for the benefit of the white lord, and he gets Little food, a creaky plank bed, a thin blanket, a few sticks for warmth. It's not fair.

I admit that there are differences between stupid and smart humans, but it should not be based on the color of the skin.Educated blacks can also be smart. I have a black lawyer in my New York law firm.

Dear Miss Josephine, may I call you 'Jo'?I only refer to you as such in letters.

As you can see, I am a man much older than you, and an unfortunate widower.Like you, I have experienced the tragic death of loved ones, my Maria was a poor woman, may she rest in peace in heaven, and my children.

I'm telling you this to tell you that I know what it's like to love someone, and I hope you haven't forgotten how to love a man.

I have had a similar experience with you, which may give us a common perspective on some things.

I haven't met your son yet, Victor, and I eagerly hope to have the opportunity to meet him soon.

Your humble servant Leonardo Darcy. "

Enclosed is a bouquet of white camellias.

Yesterday Josephine told him that she prefers camellias, and today he gave white camellias instead.

This letter was written very sincerely, and it was nothing to mention his deceased ex-wife. On the contrary, it seemed that he was a long-term lover and a reliable man.

She quickly finished reading the letter, asked Manny to get a vase to put white camellias in, and then sat at the desk to write back to Leonardo.

"Dear Mr Darcy:

Letter received.Camellia is beautiful, I like it very much. "

Then what to say?

She thought for a while before dipping her ink again, "No one calls me 'Joe', please still call me by my Christian name.

There will be a New Year's ball tomorrow night in the poor house, and I sincerely invite you to come to the ball. "

Put down the pen again.

What to say?Talking about everyday life is too intimate, talking about slavery and state rights is too boring, and talking about money is too early.

"How long are you going to be in Savannah? Or tell me what you do in the winter. You're thirty years old and you're in the club all day playing cards with a bunch of old men? Made in the club?

Please don't take me as an ordinary 'lady', maybe you will find that we have the same hobbies and preferences.

Today, Josephine Robillard. "

Leonardo's reply arrived at noon.

"Dear Miss Josephine:

Thank you for your invitation, I will be there on time.Is it 7 pm?

Masquerade or what?Please write back and let me know immediately.

I haven't decided when I'm leaving, but maybe I'll stay in Savannah until spring.I would venture to ask, where do you think the real estate in Savannah is better?It seems that I should buy a property, which will be more convenient.

Will you dance all the dances with me at the ball?I'm not worried about you getting tired, I'm just worried that we don't dance enough.

Yours faithfully Leonardo Darcy. "

Josephine did not write a reply, but told the little black slave who delivered the letter that it was an ordinary ball.He gave the little black slave a $1 tip, and the little black slave thanked him and ran away.

Today she asked her father about the treatment of the black slaves on the farm. Unsurprisingly, John didn't care about the black slaves on the farm. He only regarded them as production tools and handed over specific matters to the supervisor.Several farms use a manager. The manager runs here and there to inspect the work of the overseers and the harvest of the farm. The slave owner John will go to the farm to inspect the farm every year, but a master like him will never go to see the black slaves. Where do you live and what is your diet like?

This is the consensus of the big slave owners. John is considered a more conscientious group among the slave owners. He will order the steward to feed the black slaves. How can he work when he is hungry?If only the overseers are allowed to manage the farm, the overseers will embezzle food and resell it into their own pockets, and they will not be willing to ask doctors for sick black slaves.Slaves are the property of the slave owner, not the property of the overseer. When they die, they die. It is the loss of the slave owner, not the loss of the overseer.

So John had to hire a supervisor to replace him and go on patrol at any time. The main purpose was not to monitor the slaves. The slaves were managed by the supervisor, and the supervisor managed the supervisor, and then reported to John, the slave owner.There is no steward in Tara Manor because the owner lives in the manor next to the plantation and does not need a steward.

The cost of a plantation or farm is also very high, earning 20 a year, maintaining the land, housing for slaves, medical care, food, and clothing are all the slave owners' expenses, and it costs tens of thousands a year to say the least.The salary of the supervisor, the wear and tear of production tools, and taxes are all necessary expenses.

The general environment is positive. As long as large and small plantation owners and farmers operate properly, they are all in a state of profitability. Plantations with more than 50 employees can guarantee profitability. There are also many small plantations with 2 to 30 employees, and they can also make a little profit. On the whole, the economies of the southern slave states are very good and functioning well. There are not many escaped slaves. Most slaves can eat or at least 7% full.

There are also those who are severely beaten and disabled by their masters, but they are rarely seen in cities. The upper-class people in the cities think that beating slaves is stupid, especially because the masters who are trying hard enough to beat slaves are not "classy". The value of disabled slaves has plummeted, so they cannot be considered "good property", and they have to pay a sum of medical expenses, which is obviously not worthwhile.

But the superiors also agree that the crime of fugitive slaves is unforgivable. If a slave has food, clothes, clothes and a bed under the care of his master, he should not betray his master. A fugitive slave can be beaten, and he must remember his master. The will cannot be defied.

The newspapers in the slave states were horrific, with classified ads about runaway slaves blatantly published:

"A black boy of about 12 years of age ran away. Around his neck was a chain with a dog tag on it, with the words 'De Rumpert' engraved on it."

"Negro woman named Rachael escaped. Missed all toes except the big toe."

"One hundred dollars for the capture of a negro named Pompeii, 40 years old. He has a mark on his left jaw."

"A Negro girl who escaped, named Mary. She had a small gash over her eye, a number of teeth knocked out, and the letter A was branded on her cheek and forehead."

"The following three negroes escaped from James Suquette's plantation: Rendall, with one ear cut off; Bob, without an eye; and Kentucky Tom, with a broken jaw."

Classified ads like this are followed by social news, current affairs and politics, newly opened stores, big bargains, etc., which look very absurd.And how indifferent are the gentlemen who read the papers every day!

The southern states are divided into 8 states in the upper south and 7 states in the lower south. The lower south includes South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, and Texas.Cotton and tobacco are grown in Georgia, South Carolina, Alabama, Mississippi, sugarcane is grown in Florida, parts of Texas and southern Louisiana (sugarcane cannot be grown north of 31 degrees north latitude), Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina Rice is grown in riverine and coastal areas.Cotton was mainly supplied to the British and European markets, some tobacco was exported to the UK and Europe, and some were sold in the United States. Rice and sugarcane were mainly sold domestically. Sugar factories were usually set up near sugarcane plantations, and a large number of slave workers were also used.

1850年美国进行了全国范围内的大面积人口普查，蓄奴州中有5个州奴隶人口超过40万人：弗吉尼亚州、南卡罗来纳州、佐治亚州、阿拉巴马州、密西西比州，这5个州加起来奴隶人口有220万。

The situation of fugitive slaves is very serious, more in the central than in the southeast.There are not too many plantations and farms in the seaside area, because there are too many rivers, and the land is cut into small pieces. Many slave owners in the seaside area are similar to John and Leonardo, and they all call themselves "good masters." ", but escaped slaves are still unavoidable.

From the perspective of a slave owner, Josephine enjoys the economic benefits brought about by slavery, but deep down she cannot approve of slavery.It is actually impossible to sell slaves. As John said, if you suddenly sell a large number of slaves, others will think that your family’s investment has failed and gone bankrupt. John, who wants to save face, cannot agree to sell slaves.

It is also impossible to let slaves redeem themselves on a large scale. Farm slaves basically have no money. Only indoor slaves can save money because they can get rewards and tips.

After thinking about it, I can only let the slaves in the room redeem themselves quickly, so that they can return to the cage a little at a time.

Before supper, Josephine received another letter.

"Hello, dear Josephine:"

Who is this? !How dare you be so frivolous without adding the word "Miss"!

Angrily, she immediately unfolded the letter paper and saw the final signature:

"Your faithful Rhett Butler."

This person is back?

The author has something to say:

*The reward advertisement for fugitive slaves is selected from Dickens's "American Notes", which were all excerpts from American newspapers at that time.When Dickens went to the United States in 1842, he went to both the northern and southern cities.