the important monday at length arrived, and charlie hastened to the office of mr. blatchford, which he reached before the hour for commencing labour. he found some dozen or more journeymen assembled in the work-room; and noticed that upon his entrance there was an interchange of significant glances, and once or twice he overheard the whisper of "nigger."
mr. blatchford was engaged in discussing some business matter with a gentleman, and did not observe the agitation that charlie's entrance had occasioned. the conversation having terminated, the gentleman took up the morning paper, and mr. blatchford, noticing charlie, said, "ah! you have come, and in good time, too. wheeler," he continued, turning to one of the workmen, "i want you to take this boy under your especial charge: give him a seat at your window, and overlook his work."
at this there was a general uprising of the workmen, who commenced throwing off their caps and aprons. "what is all this for?" asked mr. blatchford in astonishment—"why this commotion?"
"we won't work with niggers!" cried one; "no nigger apprentices!" cried another; and "no niggers—no niggers!" was echoed from all parts of the room.
"silence!" cried mr. blatchford, stamping violently—"silence, every one of you!" as soon as partial order was restored, he turned to wheeler, and demanded, "what is the occasion of all this tumult—what does it mean?"
"why, sir, it means just this: the men and boys discovered that you intended to take a nigger apprentice, and have made up their minds if you do they will quit in a body."
"it cannot be possible," exclaimed the employer, "that any man or boy in my establishment has room in his heart for such narrow contemptible prejudices. can it be that you have entered into a conspiracy to deprive an inoffensive child of an opportunity of earning his bread in a respectable manner? come, let me persuade you—the boy is well-behaved and educated!"
"damn his behaviour and education!" responded a burly fellow; "let him be a barber or shoe-black—that is all niggers are good for. if he comes, we go—that's so, ain't it, boys?"
there was a general response of approval to this appeal; and mr. blatchford, seeing the utter uselessness of further parleying, left the room, followed by charlie and the gentleman with whom he had been conversing.
mr. blatchford was placed in a most disagreeable position by this revolt on the part of his workmen; he had just received large orders from some new banks which were commencing operations, and a general disruption of his establishment at that moment would have ruined him. to accede to his workmen's demands he must do violence to his own conscience; but he dared not sacrifice his business and bring ruin on himself and family, even though he was right.
"what would you do, burrell?" he asked of the gentleman who had followed them out.
"there is no question as to what you must do. you mustn't ruin yourself for the sake of your principles. you will have to abandon the lad; the other alternative is not to be thought of for a moment."
"well, charles, you see how it is," said mr. blatchford, reluctantly. charlie had been standing intently regarding the conversation that concerned him so deeply. his face was pale and his lips quivering with agitation.
"i'd like to keep you, my boy, but you see how i'm situated, i must either give up you or my business; the latter i cannot afford to do." with a great effort charlie repressed his tears, and bidding them good morning in a choking voice, hastened from the room.
"it's an infernal shame!" said mr. blatchford, indignantly; "and i shall think meanly of myself for ever for submitting to it; but i can't help myself, and must make the best of it."
charlie walked downstairs with lingering steps, and took the direction of home. "all because i'm coloured," said he, bitterly, to himself—"all because i'm coloured! what will mother and esther say? how it will distress them—they've so built upon it! i wish," said he, sadly, "that i was dead!" no longer able to repress the tears that were welling up, he walked towards the window of a print-store, where he pretended to be deeply interested in some pictures whilst he stealthily wiped his eyes. every time he turned to leave the window, there came a fresh flood of tears; and at last he was obliged to give way entirely, and sobbed as if his heart would break.
he was thus standing when he felt a hand laid familiarly on his shoulder, and, on turning round, he beheld the gentleman he had left in mr. blatchford's office. "come, my little man," said he, "don't take it so much to heart. cheer up—you may find some other person willing to employ you. come, walk on with me—where do you live?" charlie dried his eyes and gave him his address as they walked on up the street together.
mr. burrell talked encouragingly, and quite succeeded in soothing him ere they separated. "i shall keep a look out for you," said he, kindly; "and if i hear of anything likely to suit you, i shall let you know."
charlie thanked him and sauntered slowly home. when he arrived, and they saw his agitated looks, and his eyes swollen from the effect of recent tears, there was a general inquiry of "what has happened? why are you home so early; are you sick?"
charlie hereupon related all that had transpired at the office—his great disappointment and the occasion of it—to the intense indignation and grief of his mother and sisters. "i wish there were no white folks," said caddy, wrathfully; "they are all, i believe, a complete set of villains and everything else that is bad."
"don't be so sweeping in your remarks, pray don't, caddy," interposed esther; "you have just heard what charlie said of mr. blatchford—his heart is kindly disposed, at any rate; you see he is trammelled by others."
"oh! well, i don't like any of them—i hate them all!" she continued bitterly, driving her needle at the same time into the cloth she was sewing, as if it was a white person she had in her lap and she was sticking pins in him. "don't cry, charlie," she added; "the old white wretches, they shouldn't get a tear out of me for fifty trades!" but charlie could not be comforted; he buried his head in his mother's lap, and wept over his disappointment until he made himself sick.
that day, after mr. burrell had finished his dinner, he remarked to his wife, "i saw something this morning, my dear, that made a deep impression on me. i haven't been able to get it out of my head for any length of time since; it touched me deeply, i assure you."
"why, what could it have been? pray tell me what it was."
thereupon, he gave his wife a graphic account of the events that had transpired at blatchford's in the morning; and in conclusion, said, "now, you know, my dear, that no one would call me an abolitionist; and i suppose i have some little prejudice, as well as others, against coloured people; but i had no idea that sensible men would have carried it to that extent, to set themselves up, as they did, in opposition to a little boy anxious to earn his bread by learning a useful trade."
mrs. burrell was a young woman of about twenty-two, with a round good-natured face and plump comfortable-looking figure; she had a heart overflowing with kindness, and was naturally much affected by what he related. "i declare it's perfectly outrageous," exclaimed she, indignantly; "and i wonder at blatchford for submitting to it. i wouldn't allow myself to be dictated to in that manner—and he such an abolitionist too! had i been him, i should have stuck to my principles at any risk. poor little fellow! i so wonder at blatchford; i really don't think he has acted manly."
"not so fast, my little woman, if you please—that is the way with almost all of you, you let your hearts run away with your heads. you are unjust to blatchford; he could not help himself, he was completely in their power. it is almost impossible at present to procure workmen in our business, and he is under contract to finish a large amount of work within a specified time; and if he should fail to fulfil his agreement it would subject him to immense loss—in fact, it would entirely ruin him. you are aware, my dear, that i am thoroughly acquainted with the state of his affairs; he is greatly in debt from unfortunate speculations, and a false step just now would overset him completely; he could not have done otherwise than he has, and do justice to himself and his family. i felt that he could not; and in fact advised him to act as he did."
"now, george burrell, you didn't," said she, reproachfully.
"yes i did, my dear, because i thought of his family; i really believe though, had i encouraged him, he would have made the sacrifice."
"and what became of the boy?"
"oh; poor lad, he seemed very much cut down by it—i was quite touched by his grief. when i came out, i found him standing by a shop window crying bitterly. i tried to pacify him, and told him i would endeavour to obtain a situation for him somewhere—and i shall."
"has he parents?" asked mrs. burrell.
"yes; and, by the way, don't you remember whilst the mob was raging last summer, we read an account of a man running to the roof of a house to escape from the rioters? you remember they chopped his hands off and threw him over?"
"oh, yes, dear, i recollect; don't—don't mention it," said she, with a shudder of horror. "i remember it perfectly."
"well, this little fellow is his son," continued mr. burrell.
"indeed! and what has become of his father—did he die?"
"no, he partially recovered, but is helpless, and almost an idiot. i never saw a child, apparently so anxious to get work; he talked more like a man with a family dependent upon him for support, than a youth. i tell you what, i became quite interested in him; he was very communicative, and told me all their circumstances; their house was destroyed by the mob, and they are at present residing with a friend."
just then the cry of a child was heard in the adjoining room, and mrs. burrell rushed precipitately away, and soon returned with a fat, healthy-looking boy in her arms, which, after kissing, she placed in her husband's lap. he was their first-born and only child, and, as a matter of course, a great pet, and regarded by them as a most wonderful boy; in consequence, papa sat quite still, and permitted him to pull the studs out of his shirt, untie his cravat, rumple his hair, and take all those little liberties to which babies are notoriously addicted.
mrs. burrell sat down on a stool at her husband's feet, and gazed at him and the child in silence for some time.
"what's the matter, jane; what has made you so grave?"
"i was trying to imagine, burrell, how i should feel if you, i, and baby were coloured; i was trying to place myself in such a situation. now we know that our boy, if he is honest and upright—is blest with great talent or genius—may aspire to any station in society that he wishes to obtain. how different it would be if he were coloured!—there would be nothing bright in the prospective for him. we could hardly promise him a living at any respectable calling. i think, george, we treat coloured people with great injustice, don't you?"
mr. burrell hemmed and ha'd at this direct query, and answered, "well, we don't act exactly right toward them, i must confess."
mrs. burrell rose, and took the vacant knee of her husband, and toying with the baby, said, "now, george burrell, i want to ask a favour of you. why can't you take this boy ?" "i take him! why, my dear, i don't want an apprentice."
"yes, but you must make a want. you said he was a bright boy, and sketched well. why, i should think that he's just what you ought to have. there is no one at your office that would oppose it. cummings and dalton were with your father before you, they would never object to anything reasonable that you proposed. come, dear! do now make the trial—won't you?"
mr. burrell was a tender-hearted, yielding sort of an individual; and what was more, his wife was fully aware of it; and like a young witch as she was, she put on her sweetest looks, and begged so imploringly, that he was almost conquered. but when she took up the baby, and made him put his chubby arms round his father's neck, and say "pese pop-pop," he was completely vanquished, and surrendered at discretion.
"i'll see what can be done," said he, at last.
"and will you do it afterwards?" she asked, archly.
"yes, i will, dear, i assure you," he rejoined.
"then i know it will be done," said she, confidently; "and none of us will be the worse off for it, i am sure."
after leaving home, mr. burrell went immediately to the office of mr. blatchford; and after having procured charlie's portfolio, he started in the direction of his own establishment. he did not by any means carry on so extensive a business as mr. blatchford, and employed only two elderly men as journeymen. after he had sat down to work, one of them remarked, "tucker has been here, and wants some rough cuts executed for a new book. i told him i did not think you would engage to do them; that you had given up that description of work."
"i think we lose a great deal, cummings, by being obliged to give up those jobs," rejoined mr. burrell.
"why don't you take an apprentice then," he suggested; "it's just the kind of work for them to learn upon."
"well i've been thinking of that," replied he, rising and producing the drawings from charlie's portfolio. "look here," said he, "what do you think of these as the work of a lad of twelve or fourteen, who has never had more than half a dozen lessons?"
"i should say they were remarkably well done," responded cummings. "shouldn't you say so, dalton?" the party addressed took the sketches, and examined them thoroughly, and gave an approving opinion of their merits.
"well," said mr. burrell, "the boy that executed those is in want of a situation, and i should like to take him; but i thought i would consult you both about it first. i met with him under very singular circumstances, and i'll tell you all about it." and forthwith he repeated to them the occurrences of the morning, dwelling upon the most affecting parts, and concluding by putting the question to them direct, as to whether they had any objections to his taking him.
"why no, none in the world," readily answered cummings. "laws me! colour is nothing after all; and black fingers can handle a graver as well as white ones, i expect."
"i thought it best to ask you, to avoid any after difficulty. you have both been in the establishment so long, that i felt that you ought to be consulted."
"you needn't have taken that trouble," said dalton. "you might have known that anything done by your father's son, would be satisfactory to us. i never had anything to do with coloured people, and haven't anything against them; and as long as you are contented i am."
"well, we all have our little prejudices against various things; and as i did not know how you both would feel, i thought i wouldn't take any decided steps without consulting you; but now i shall consider it settled, and will let the lad know that i will take him."
in the evening, he hastened home at an earlier hour than usual, and delighted his wife by saying—"i have succeeded to a charm, my dear—there wasn't the very slightest objection. i'm going to take the boy, if he wishes to come." "oh, i'm delighted," cried she, clapping her hands. "cry hurrah for papa!" said she to the baby; "cry hurrah for papa!"
the scion of the house of burrell gave vent to some scarcely intelligible sounds, that resembled "hoo-rogler pop-pop!" which his mother averred was astonishingly plain, and deserving of a kiss; and, snatching him up, she gave him two or three hearty ones, and then planted him in his father's lap again."
"my dear," said her husband, "i thought, as you proposed my taking this youth, you might like to have the pleasure of acquainting him with his good fortune. after tea, if you are disposed, we will go down there; the walk will do you good."
"oh, george burrell," said she, her face radiant with pleasure, "you are certainly trying to outdo yourself. i have been languishing all day for a walk! what a charming husband you are! i really ought to do something for you. ah, i know what—i'll indulge you; you may smoke all the way there and back. i'll even go so far as to light the cigars for you myself."
"that is a boon," rejoined her husband with a smile; "really 'virtue rewarded,' i declare."
tea over, the baby kissed and put to bed, mrs. burrell tied on the most bewitching of bonnets, and donning her new fur-trimmed cloak, declared herself ready for the walk; and off they started. mr. burrell puffed away luxuriously as they walked along, stopping now and then at her command, to look into such shop-windows as contained articles adapted to the use of infants, from india-rubber rings and ivory rattles, to baby coats and shoes.
at length they arrived at the door of mr. walters, and on, looking up at the house, he exclaimed, "this is 257, but it can't be the place; surely coloured people don't live in as fine an establishment as this." then, running up the steps, he examined the plate upon the door. "the name corresponds with the address given me," said he; "i'll ring. is there a lad living here by the name of charles ellis?" he asked of the servant who opened the door.
"yes, sir," was the reply. "will you walk in?"
when they were ushered into the drawing-room, mr. burrell said,—"be kind enough to say that a gentleman wishes to see him."
the girl departed, closing the door behind her, leaving them staring about the room. "how elegantly it is furnished!" said she. "i hadn't an idea that there were any coloured people living in such style."
"some of them are very rich," remarked her husband.
"but you said this boy was poor."
"so he is. i understand they are staying with the owner of this house."
whilst they were thus conversing the door opened, and esther entered. "i am sorry," said she, "that my brother has retired. he has a very severe head-ache, and was unable to remain up longer. his mother is out: i am his sister, and shall be most happy to receive any communication for him."
"i regret to hear of his indisposition," replied mr. burrell; "i hope it is not consequent upon his disappointment this morning?"
"i fear it is. poor fellow! he took it very much to heart. it was a disappointment to us all. we were congratulating ourselves on having secured him an eligible situation."
"i assure you the disappointment is not all on one side; he is a very promising boy, and the loss of his prospective services annoying. nothing but stern necessity caused the result."
"oh, we entirely acquit you, mr. blatchford, of all blame in the matter. we are confident that what happened was not occasioned by any indisposition on your part to fulfil your agreement."
"my dear," interrupted mrs. burrell, "she thinks you are mr. blatchford."
"and are you not?" asked esther, with some surprise.
"oh, no; i'm an intimate friend of his, and was present this morning when the affair happened." "oh, indeed," responded esther.
"yes; and he came home and related it all to me,—the whole affair," interrupted mrs. burrell. "i was dreadfully provoked; i assure you, i sympathized with him very much. i became deeply interested in the whole affair; i was looking at my little boy,—for i have a little boy," said she, with matronly dignity,—"and i thought, suppose it was my little boy being treated so, how should i like it? so bringing the matter home to myself in that way made me feel all the more strongly about it; and i just told george burrell he must take him, as he is an engraver; and i and the baby gave him no rest until he consented to do so. he will take him on the same terms offered by mr. blatchford; and then we came down to tell you; and—and," said she, quite out of breath, "that is all about it."
esther took the little woman's plump hand in both her own, and, for a moment, seemed incapable of even thanking her. at last she said, in a husky voice, "you can't think what a relief this is to us. my brother has taken his disappointment so much to heart—i can't tell you how much i thank you. god will reward you for your sympathy and kindness. you must excuse me," she continued, as her voice faltered; "we have latterly been so unaccustomed to receive such sympathy and kindness from persons of your complexion, that this has quite overcome me."
"oh, now, don't! i'm sure it's no more than our duty, and i'm as much pleased as you can possibly be—it has given me heartfelt gratification, i assure you."
esther repeated her thanks, and followed them to the door, where she shook hands with mrs. burrell, who gave her a pressing invitation to come and see her baby.
"how easy it is, george burrell," said the happy little woman, "to make the hearts of others as light as our own-mine feels like a feather," she added, as she skipped along, clinging to his arm. "what a nice, lady-like girl his sister is—is her brother as handsome as she ?"
"not quite," he answered; "still, he is very good-looking, i'll bring him home with me to-morrow at dinner, and then you can see him."
chatting merrily, they soon arrived at home. mrs. burrell ran straightway upstairs to look at that "blessed baby;" she found him sleeping soundly, and looking as comfortable and happy as it is possible for a sleeping baby to look—so she bestowed upon him a perfect avalanche of kisses, and retired to her own peaceful pillow.
and now, having thus satisfactorily arranged for our young friend charlie, we will leave him for a few years engaged in his new pursuits.
