5 #2
“I am not free to marry, sir. Not until my contract is finished.”
“Not free to marry? How can this be? While you are young, you should marry.”
She sighed, but, deciding he needed a reply, she said, “Mr. Skenan, in England there are differences between men and women—“
“I am glad for those differences,” Skenan interjected.
“Yes, well, let me explain further. In England, which is the land where I was born, there are those people who are rich enough to be beholden to no man. They are free men and free women because they have the necessities of life and don’t owe another their work to simply live and survive.”
“Nyoh, yes,” Skenan said. “All men should be free.”
“But, where I am from, not all men and women are free to do as they please. There are those who are rich enough to live, and those who are not rich enough to obtain such needs as food and shelter. These men and women serve those who are free of the fear of not having food and shelter. I am among those who serve others.”
Skenan slowly nodded before he responded, “And, who gave these men—those who are free—the right to rule another’s life to the extent of restricting a woman from marrying?”
Abagail frowned. “I…I don’t know. It has always been this way, I believe. It has to do with the gold or silver coin, I suppose. Or perhaps the King of England grants his favor only to those who are free.”
“Ah, the English father,” Skenan said. “I have heard much about the bad manners of this English father. So I ask you, who gave the English father the right to rule over another’s life and take away a person’s right to decide on matters for himself or herself?”
“Sir, I protest. You ask me questions I have never pondered. But, if I were to answer you, I think it might be the priests who gives the king his power…God?”
“Forgive me, Miss Abagail, but the Reverend Samuel Kirkland, a man who serves and who speaks to the Oneida people for the Creator, has told us that no one but God has any power over man. We, of the Oneida Nation, believe him, perhaps because our own beliefs are similar.
“Yes sir,” she answered. “I, too, believe as you do. However, this is not true in my case. Because I did not have the ability to clothe and to feed myself, there in the city of London, I put my mark upon a paper that puts me into the service of another for five years. During this time I am not allowed to marry anyone. I must work for the man or the woman who owns my papers. I have agreed to do this.”
Again, Skenan looked perplexed. “You say there is a man or a woman who owns your papers? Are you, then, like the black white man, who is known to us to be a slave?”
“No,” Abagail answered. “I am a servant, which is entirely different from a slave.”
“Is it?” he asked. “How is it different?”
“Well,” she answered, “a slave is owned by his master for his entire life, and he must toil without compensation for himself or his family. A servant, on the other hand, works for another for compensation, or in some cases he or she toils for another in repayment of a debt. And, at the end of a certain amount of years, he or she is free.”
Abagail watched as Skenan frowned. “By compensation, you mean the gold or silver coin?”
“I do.”
“And, repaying a debt means…?”
“A debt is gold or silver coin owed, or it can even mean repaying by doing service for another.”
Skenan made a wry face, but what his thoughts were, she had no way of knowing.
After a while, he asked, “Do you work for compensation or to repay a debt?”
She answered, “I work to compensate an obligation, which is the contract I have placed my mark upon.”
Still frowning, he asked, “Now, you say this man or this woman owns you?”
“Only my services, sir.”
“Tell me, Miss Abagail, how one man can own another man or woman, whether for services owed or not? The Creator of all does not allow one man to own another. All are the children of the Creator.” Appearing to warm to his subject, he said, “This is one of the reasons why my tribe, the Oneida, fight with the Americans. The English father does not own all men, white, black or Indian. We believe, as do the Americans, that all men and women are free. Freedom is important to the Creator, and He would see all his creation free, as they were meant by Him to be.”
Abagail swallowed what she had been about to say. She had never heard this point of view before, and it was a viewpoint she liked. Still, she had signed a contract. After a moment, she, at last, said, “I agree with you in part, but, you see, I did not have the means to support myself in England—“
“Meaning the gold coin?”
“Yes,” she replied. “However, in England, all must work to obtain the gold coin, or they have not the means to survive. And, in England, there was not enough work to make it easy for one to live. It is why I am here. In these colonies, I can work to eventually earn my freedom, and while I am laboring, the man or the woman who owns my contract must see to my needs as to clothing and food and shelter.”
Skenan smirked, then said, “If what you say is true, then there is a kind of man—not a real man—but one who pretends to be a real man, but who will not give from his heart those possessions he has to another in need. And, when he does give, he gives while expecting labor and servitude in return?”
“Ah, yes, this is true.”
“Then, he is not a true man. I am glad my people fight with the Americans for their freedom. These Americans are true men, not the English. I am only sad that some of my kin amongst the Iroquois fight with the English. Truly, I think, they have been deceived by the crooked tongues of the English.”
“But, still—“
“And, now I hope you understand the Onieda way. A man is subject only to his Creator and to no other. The fact that, according to the Creator, all men and women command their own lives, is understood by those who serve the Iroquois government. A man rules his own life. No other. Nor is any man allowed to rule another. Before the English came to our shores, such were our laws.”
“But, if what you say were true, there would be nothing but confusion in a country. If all are free, how is one to pay for his necessities in life? How is another to secure the requirements he needs in order to work and to live?”
“This is a false idea you are saying to me. Do you see confusion surrounding the Iroquois? Or do you see unity? Although, perhaps that unity is less at present, due to the English.”
“I…don’t know how to answer you. I haven’t had the pleasure of being among your people.”
“Then, I will tell you how it is. We of the Iroquois—before the English came here—were united. We have laws, but our laws are those given to us by the Creator. Only these is a man expected to obey…never laws made by man. And, I will tell you this: the Creator made no man to be another man’s slave. He or she who says differently seeks to enslave you for his own benefit. Such a man is a parasite, and the sooner he is gone from this land, the better.”
She tried to understand, but she feared it was beyond her ability to comprehend him at present. And so, all she said was, “Mr. Skenan, you seem quite impassioned about this.”
“Are you saying a man should not care about his own, his family’s and his tribe’s freedom?”
“No, that is not what I mean. And, yes, of course, a man should be most ardent about this. It is only in my society, I have considered that I am lucky to have the position I have now. You see, Mr. Skenan, without this position, I know not how I would live.”
“You would be married to a man who loves you, and who would take care of you and your children. You would be happy. Your aunts, your uncles, your parents and all others of your clan would ensure your health, also. That is how you would live.”
When she gasped, it caused him to frown. And, he said, “You seem startled that I am so frank, yet the practice of owning another human being is unnatural. Any man who would dare to try to rule over another man is committing one of the most wicked acts a man can accomplish. Even your own Good Book forbids this.”
“I am not thinking as you say I am,” she said, defending herself. “I, too, believe the custom of slavery is sinful. Why I reacted is not due to this; it is because I have little memory of my parents and I certainly have no knowledge of having aunts, uncles or cousins. And, Mr. Skenan, in English society, there is no clan to see to a person’s protection.”
“Have the English, then, done away with the family so there is no one to protect you? Because without the family, one could fall easily victim to men with deceitful intentions—as it appears you have.”
“Of course the English have not done away with the family.”
She watched as his gaze narrowed as he looked at her hands, which she feared were sweating.
After a while, he said, “I am sorry I have brought up a matter which brings you sadness.”
“You need not be sorry, sir. I am not so fragile.”
“No,” he said, smiling at her. “I do not believe you are fragile at all. Perhaps it is best, now, for me to stand watch while you sleep. Then, when you awaken, we shall share a meal, and then I shall sleep while you sit the watch.”
She said, “I will happily do it, sir. But, if you please, what do you mean by ‘stand watch’?”
He grinned. “After you awaken and we have eaten a meal with one another, I will, indeed, tell you what you will need to do to sit watch.”