The twenty years of the administrations of the first three presidents of the United States—­or, we might say, the three decades between 1790 and 1820—­constitute what might be considered the “Dark Ages” of Negro history; and yet, as with most “Dark Ages,” at even a glance below the surface these years will be found to be throbbing with life, and we have already seen that in them the Negro was doing what he could on his own account to move forward.  After the high moral stand of the Revolution, however, the period seems quiescent, and it was indeed a time of definite reaction.  This was attributable to three great events:  the opening of the Southwest with the consequent demand for slaves, the Haytian revolution beginning in 1791, and Gabriel’s insurrection in 1800.

In no way was the reaction to be seen more clearly than in the decline of the work of the American Convention of Delegates from the Abolition Societies.  After 1798 neither Connecticut nor Rhode Island sent delegates; the Southern states all fell away by 1803; and while from New England came the excuse that local conditions hardly made aggressive effort any longer necessary, the lack of zeal in this section was also due to some extent to a growing question as to the wisdom of interfering with slavery in the South.  In Virginia, that just a few years before had been so active, a statute was now passed imposing a penalty of one hundred dollars on any person who assisted a slave in asserting his freedom, provided he failed to establish the claim; and another provision enjoined that no member of an abolition society should serve as a juror in a freedom suit.  Even the Pennsylvania society showed signs of faintheartedness, and in 1806 the Convention decided upon triennial rather than annual meetings.  It did not again become really vigorous until after the War of 1812.

1. The Cotton-Gin, the New Southwest, and the First Fugitive Slave Law

Of incalculable significance in the history of the Negro in America was the series of inventions in England by Arkwright, Hargreaves, and Crompton in the years 1768-79.  In the same period came the discovery of the power of steam by James Watt of Glasgow and its application to cotton manufacture, and improvements followed quickly in printing and bleaching.  There yet remained one final invention of importance for the cultivation of cotton on a large scale.  Eli Whitney, a graduate of Yale, went to Georgia and was employed as a teacher by the widow of General Greene on her plantation.  Seeing the need of some machine for the more rapid separating of cotton-seed from the fiber, he labored until in 1793 he succeeded in making his cotton-gin of practical value.  The tradition is persistent, however, that the real credit of the invention belongs to a Negro on the plantation.  The cotton-gin created great excitement throughout the South and began to be utilized everywhere.  The cultivation and exporting of the staple grew by