America

Image and interpretation courtesy of the Library of Congress.

This print shows an idealized portrayal of American slavery and the conditions of blacks under this system in 1841. The Library's impression of the print is a fragment - the left panel only - of a larger print entitled "Black and White Slavery," which contrasts the plight of Britain's abused "white slaves" (actually factory workers portrayed in the right panel) and America's "contented" black slaves. Weitenkampf rightly suggests that prints like these were published by Northern apologists for slavery. The work of one such apologist F. W. Clay displays a consistent lack of sympathy for blacks. Here he shows an attractive and wealthy slave-owning white family including a husband, his wife and their two children. They young daughter plays with a lean greyhound which stands before them. The son gestures toward an elderly black couple with a small child sitting at their feet. A group of happy slaves dance in the background. The old slave says "God Bless you massa! you feed and clothe us. When we are sick you nurse us, and when too old to work, you provide for us!" The master vows piously, "These poor creatures are a sacred legacy from my ancestors and while a dollar is left me, nothing shall be spared to increase their comfort and happiness."