days of March last, in the city of Savannah. For many reasons, it
had been looked forward to with more than usual interest. The position
of the owner, Mr. Pierce M. Butler, of Philadelphia, and the large
number (no less than four hundred and thirty-six) and superior quality
of the human chattels offered for sale, added to the importance of the
event. The "Tribune" had one of its best descriptive writers, Mr.
Mortimer Thomson, on the spot. The duty Mr. Thomson undertook was not
without danger; for a somewhat extensive notoriety as an _attache_ of
the "Tribune" was not likely to insure him the most cordial reception at
the South. Had his presence been discovered, the temper of the people of
Savannah would speedily have betrayed itself; and had his purpose been
suspected, their wrath would assuredly have culminated in wreakages of a
nature unfavorable to his personal comfort. But with caution, and the
aid of Masonic influences, he escaped detection, and accomplished his
aim. The result of his observations was a report of considerable length,
in which every striking incident of the sale was narrated with accurate
fidelity. Although written mostly on the rail and against time, under
circumstances which would be fatal to the labors of any man not inured
by newspaper experience to all sorts of literary hardships, the style is
clear, distinct, and often eloquent. The scene and the transaction are
brought vividly to the reader's mind. The throng of eager
speculators,--the heavy-eyed and brutal drivers,--the sprightlier
representatives of Chivalry,--the unhappy slaves, abandoning hope as
they enter the mart, excepting in rare cases, where, grasping at straws,
they pray in trembling tones that their ties of love may remain
unsevered,--the operations of the sale,--the shrinking women, standing
submissively under the vile jests of the reckless crowd,--are portrayed
with all the emphasis of truth. One little episode in particular, the
love-story of Jeffrey and Dorcas, is a more affecting history than
romance can show.

The effect of this publication in the "Tribune" was prodigious. It was
widely circulated through all the journals of the North. The
Anti-Slavery Society preserved it in a pamphlet. The ire of a good
portion of the Southern journals was ludicrous to witness, and proved
how keenly the blow was felt. The report was republished in Great
Britain,--first in the London "Times," and subsequently, as a pamphlet,
in Edinburgh, i