Mrs. CHILD, in her admirable “Appeal,” has the following remarks: 

“The ladies who remove from the free States into the slaveholding ones almost invariably write that the sight of slavery was at first exceedingly painful; but that they soon become habituated to it; and after a while, they are very apt to vindicate the system, upon the ground that it is extremely convenient to have such submissive servants.  This reason was actually given by a lady of my acquaintance, who is considered an unusually fervent Christian.  Yet Christianity expressly teaches us to love our neighbor as ourselves.  This shows how dangerous it is, for even the best of us, to become accustomed to what is wrong.

“A judicious and benevolent friend lately told me the story of one of her relatives, who married a slave owner, and removed to his plantation.  The lady in question was considered very amiable, and had a serene, affectionate expression of countenance.  After several years residence among her slaves, she visited New England.  ’Her history was written in her face,’ said my friend; ’its expression had changed into that of a fiend.  She brought but few slaves with her; and those few were of course compelled to perform additional labor.  One faithful negro woman nursed the twins of her mistress, and did all the washing, ironing, and scouring.  If, after a sleepless night with the restless babes, (driven from the bosom of their mother,) she performed her toilsome avocations with diminished activity, her mistress, with her own lady-like hands, applied the cowskin, and the neighborhood resounded with the cries of her victim.  The instrument of punishment was actually kept hanging in the entry, to the no small disgust of her New England visitors.  ‘For my part,’ continued my friend, ’I did not try to be polite to her; for I was not hypocrite enough to conceal my indignation.’”

The fact that the greatest cruelties may be exercised quite unconsciously when cruelty has become a habit, and that at the same time, the mind may feel great sympathy and commiseration towards other persons and even towards irrational animals, is illustrated in the case of Tameriane the Great.  In his Life, written by himself, he speaks with the greatest sincerity and tenderness of his grief at having accidentally crushed an ant; and yet he ordered melted lead to be poured down the throats of certain persons who drank wine contrary to his commands.  He was manifestly sincere in thinking himself humane, and when speaking of the most atrocious cruelties perpetrated by himself, it does not seem to ruffle in the least the self-complacency with which he regards his own humanity and piety.  In one place he says, “I never undertook anything but I commenced it placing my faith on God”—­and he adds soon after, “the people of Shiraz took part with Shah Mansur, and put my governor to death; I therefore ordered a general massacre of all the inhabitants.”