Elizabeth said:

> Slavery was awful, but most people alive before 1900 lived in conditions 
> that were at least as bad, if
> not worse, wherever they lived.

Elizabeth,

I think there is more to it than living conditions. Take, as one example, a 
slave named Ona Judge. She belonged to Martha Washington, her personal maid. 
She was not treated badly. But, when Washington was president, she slipped 
away and made it to Connecticut. People who knew her as Martha's maid 
recognized her and knew where she was living. When President Washington 
tried to get her back, he tried to circumvent the law that required him to 
show up in person to claim her. He sent a message to her, more than once, 
asking her to come back. He even promised (with his fingers crossed) to free 
her if she came back. For about two years he persisted, and she repeatedly 
said no. During that time she married and had a child. He definitely wanted 
her and the child back. Ona chose to stay in Connecticut with her husband 
and child.

Now, if, as you say, living conditions were so horrid for non-slaves, why is 
it that slaves who obtained their freedom, including ones like Ona Judge who 
had good masters, would prefer to remain free rather than return to slavery.

Somehow, Elizabeth, I don't think you are fully grasping the concept of 
being a slave.

Anne


Anne Pemberton
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http://www.erols.com/apembert
http://www.educationalsynthesis.org

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