After he reported that he was assaulted by an Irish carpenter, Smallwood worried "how do I know a certain class of peopel may entice even the blackis to commit depredations on me."
Quote from Slave Labor in the Capital, page 137
The quote in the quote from my book is taken from a June 5, 1798, letter that the overseer of the laborers at Capitol Hill, Samuel Smallwood, wrote to the commissioners.As you can see below my photocopy of this unique letter is a poor one, especially the first page, so I'll try my best to transcribe it.
Gentlemen, As I have ever endeavored to serve you and the public, I have ever expected to be treated in a decent manner by all those in the publick works. Instead of which I have been shamefully insulted by a Robert Aull a carpenter lately being here. The circumstances I shall relate to you. Just as the first day Mr. Aull came here he asked me if I would let him have my roome, one that I have for a boy to stay in to be convenient to ring the bell. I told him I co[u]ld not spare it by now meanes. Then he observed to me he did not come hear by his own desire or wish but there was a scheme in his coming which alarmed me verry much. I enformed Mr. Hadfield what Mr. Aull had said. Mr. Hadfield thought it proper to ask him what the expression meant which wordes Mr. Aull denied saying, but nothing was said to me until last Wednesday evening when Mr. Aull attacted me in a vile fation. my reply was to him that he had said so and so which he told me I was a dammed rascal and whip me he would and a number of other insulting language. with I walked from him and told him to mind his business and did not notis him. He followed me and struck me and then I turned to him an struck him several blows in my defens...[I have trouble with the last line]
The scenes the letter describe took place at the climax of the crisis between the young English architect George Hadfield and the Irish carpenter, led by Redmond Purcell, over how to frame and finish the roof of the Capitol. It was at this time, May 1798, that the Polish tourist Julian Niemcewicz visited the Capitol and opined that "the Negroes alone work." The scheme mentioned in the letter was the effort to get the commissioners to replace Hadfield with James Hoban which soon happened.
Smallwood's letter ends with his fear that the Irish faction would enlist the support of the "blackis" presumably the hired slaves who like Smallwood were housed on Capitol Hill.
I found no reply from the commissioners which might have made clear who the "blackis" were.
The commissioners, Gustavus Scott, William Thornton and Alexander White were never close to the workers which probably accounts for Smallwood making clear that he lived on Capitol Hill. That he needed the commissioners to arrange protection for him because his "Dew attention" was needed at the Capitol could be construed that other slaves might do the attacking while he tried to keep those he oversaw in line. As it turned out, there was no attack so we'll never know. It is possible that Smallwood really did not feel threatened and suggested it to prompt action from the commissioners because such an occurrence would reflect badly on their slave hire system.
The letter also gives a feel for what Capitol Hill was like at night. It was empty enough so that there could be a fight between an overseer and another employee and no one else seemed to notice it. Smallwood offered no witnesses. But it was crowded enough so a "roome" where the boy who rang the work bell slept could become a bone of contention. Perhaps Smallwood feared that Aull's scheme was to get close to the bell at night so he could ring it and summon the slaves to aid an Irish take over of the works!
In the dispute between the Irish and Scottish stone masons, the commissioners sided with the Irish. The ruling class then valued the Irish not as the best workers, but the cheapest. Smallwood worked for the commissioners for another two years. Robert Aull worked through 1798.
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