247). Children and those whose clothes deteriorated went naked until the next year. Slaves could never be at mental rest either. Douglass gives an example of a slave who unknowingly tells his master that he is being treated poorly, and as a result, is sold "down the river." Slaves, in return, often argued about the superiority of their own master as a pastime, since their master or a spy for their master might be near. Ultimately, slaves are not free as they do not have the choice to not work at their own will.
Fitzhugh asserts that negro slavery in American is a "benign and protective institution," and that "They love their master and his family, and the attachment is reciprocated." This statement insinuates paternal care, being looked after by the master. Douglass proves this incorrect by revealing the fact that masters are indeed the ones doing the harm in the first place. As stated in the previous paragraph, slaves were commonly killed and beaten severely. A key example of this would be Douglass" experience watching his aunt Hester be whipped, "I have often been awakened at the dawn of day by the most heart-rending shrieks of an own aunt of mine, whom he used to tie up to a joist, and whip upon her naked back till she was literally covered with blood. No words, no tears, not prayers, from his gory victim seemed to move his iron heart from its bloody purpose" (p. 244). Killing of slaves was a common act on plantations, one that came without punishment. One master, Mr. Gore, killed a slave named Demby for not obeying, and his only reply was, "Demby had become unmanageable. He was setting a dangerous example to the other slaves His horrid crime was not even submitted to judicial investigation" (p. 256). Douglass continues explaining by saying, " killing a slave, or any colored person, in Talbot county, Maryland, is not treated as a crime, either by the courts or the community" (p.
