Slaves, Slave-Masters and Slave-Catchers: The Gory details of Slavery in America

Coloured American, Colson Whitehead, has written a book “Underground Railroad,” which won Pulitzer Prize for fiction in 2017. This made me eager to read the book, so I bought a copy and started to read it. It is the story of a Negro girl named Cora, a third-generation slave in the cotton plantation in the south America, Georgia, in the 19^th century, pre-Civil War times.

Cora’s grandmother was kidnapped and sold to the plantations; the whole family was sold, and she was bought for $ 226 and sold and resold many times in the next few years. Slaves of breeding age were in demand, with the hope they will squeeze out children like pups, for ‘money bred money.’ Finally, she landed in Georgia.

She took husbands three times, only to lose them all to resale, cholera and death. Of the five children she bore, all except one girl, Mabel, died. Mabel escaped from the plantation and disappeared without a trace, leaving her daughter Cora at the age of eleven, an orphan, rather a ‘stray,’ like a dog on the street.

The story is about Cora, who defends her small patch, where she grew yams and okra, like her mother, the only property she ever owned. Girls were raped, violated on their marriage night by the master, and whipped to take away any trace of rebellion. The sadist owners invented every day new ways of punishing the slaves.

A slave is the property of her master who purchased her/him. There is no escape, for even a runaway slave, when caught had to be returned to the master as per the then prevailing rules of the States. Slave catchers were turned on these runaway slaves, until they were caught.

One such slave escaped, was caught and returned to his master in the plantation Cora worked. He was doused with oil and roasted alive in the full view of the white owner and his guests and visitors, who had their supper watching the free show in the front lawn. The victim’s mouth was sewn to stifle the screams.

Another inmate Caesar, invites Cora to escape with him. They escape and reach the underground railroad, a subway system that ran throughout the South that transported runaway slaves to the north, which was free. Though imaginary, there did exist a network of secret routes and safe houses that evolved in the 19^th century America.

Their first stop takes them to South Carolina. Government owned the former slaves and rehabilitated them in decent works, provided them with medical care and communal housing. Cora and Caesar thought they had found a safe haven and stayed there for two years. She even worked as a live exhibit of a Negro slave in the Museum of Natural Wonders in S. Carolina.

Soon they found out that the government was preparing a state-solution for the problem of Negro race in America, by sterilizing the black women and using the male Negroes as subjects in their experiment to track the spread of syphilis. Moreover Ridgeway, the slave-catcher was after them and soon caught up with them at South Carolina.

In the melee of escape, Caesar got killed and she runs off to the underground station alone. Her trip brings her to North Carolina this time. Martin, the son of the station’s former operator, takes her home and hides her in the attic, where she stayed for several months.

Through a small hole in the wall, Cora watched the goings on of the nearby park. The servant of the house tells on the owner and raiders along with Ridgeway come home and take her, while her protectors were harassed and hanged. She was being taken to Georgia, via Tennessee, where a black-freed slave, Royal, notices her and with his gang attacks the slave-catcher and frees Cora.

They move to Indiana to a farm owned by a free black man, Valentine farm, and try to settle in. Soon word spread that the farm is harbouring runaway slaves and the White Indiana folks attack and burn down the farm. Many died, including Royal.

Ridgeway recaptures Cora, but insists that she shows him the underground rail station. She takes him, but kicks him down the stairs and escapes. She finds a cavern travelling West, and was given a ride by a coloured driver. There the story ends.

The book shows the reality of the brutal slave system and the travails of the slaves in the 19^th century. The author has researched well, especially by going through the narratives of the old slaves, who were still living in 1930s, when the government chronicled them.

He had taken 16 years to mull through the subject before writing it down, a story which very well could have been his own ancestors’. A sad commentary on American ideals of freedom, liberty and fraternity, the values extended only to a Whiteman, but denied to the Black.

America was founded on Christian values, but sadly these were missing in their treatment of the black man, who were also created by God in His image. They were treated as animals with no rights of their own. And the Whites felt that it was their right to own not only the land, but also enslave others, a God-given right.

The author through the words of a character in Valentine farm states that, “This nation (America) shouldn’t exist, if there is any justice in the world, for its foundations are murder, theft, and cruelty. Yet here we are.” Just the opposite of what America professes.

But maybe, America is also the only nation that went to war against its own people to abolish slavery.

It is a paradox.

Kokkaraibelluru - A Village of Birds!

Have you heard of this place, Kokkeraibelluru? You might not have! It is 90 kms from Bangalore on Mysore road and 7 kms before reaching Maddur, you take a left turn and travel another 13 kms and there you are, at Kokkaraibelluru.

It is basically a small village, where every year by September-October hundreds of birds come to roost, raise their young ones, feed them with fish from the nearby ponds and leave just before monsoon starts in May.

‘Kokkerai’ in Kannada means stork; ‘bellu’ is white and ‘uru’ is village. It is the village of white stork. Most of the birds are Painted Storks and they have snow white plumage. Their scientific name, if you would care to know, is Ibis leucocephalus. Along with them lot of spot-billed pelicans and other smaller birds, including Cormorants also nest here.

Painted storks have been declared as endangered species of birds and this village is one of the 21 breeding sites in India. There are a few tanks or ponds near by the village, Tailur kere (kere means pond or tank in Kannada), Maddur kere, and Sole kere, which provide the fish feed for the birds.

The birds nest in the tall trees of tamarind and ficus in the village, but have free access to the village homes and their back yards. The birds and the villagers have co-existed harmoniously for decades in this village. The birds are said to return to the same nest year after year.  

Some 15 years back I had gone to the village once and I returned with wonderful images of the big birds sitting on the rooftops of houses and huts in the village, with the house owners and their friends sitting right below them and chatting. It was as if these birds were their friends or visitors who had come visiting!

I heard that the villagers do not harm these birds and they welcome them as seasonal visitors who stay for 4-6 months around their houses. The villagers believe that these birds bring good luck and prosperity to the village. They also get to collect some bird droppings, guano, which serve them as manure for their nearby agricultural fields.

There was even a small enclosure to treat the sick and wounded birds and forest department kept an eye on them. The department also pays the villagers small compensation for any damage to their trees or loss of tamarind harvest.

This year it suddenly occurred to me that I must go and visit the birds in the village. So, in the first week of June, I rented a cab and hurried to the place for I knew that the season was ending. When I reached the village, to my dismay I found that the birds had indeed left, but I did get to see some stragglers on the tree tops and a few taking lazy walks behind the houses.

They were big birds. I was happy to get to see at least some of them. The villagers grieved that this year because of the continuous and severe summer temperatures, the nearby ponds had dried up and the birds left early. There were a lot of casualty too. That was sad indeed.

After walking around the village and taking pictures of the lazily walking birds, and those sitting on the top of the trees, I returned, not before halting at a nice restaurant on the way back to feast on the famous Maddur Vada and a nice and strong cup of coffee.

Hmm, it was worth it. So, guys and gals living near Bangalore and Mysore, make it a point to visit this hidden place to view these amazing birds. Just go early in the season, so mark your calendars, October to May 2018! February to April could be the best season to visit them though.

 A wounded Stork near the water tank of a house

A dead stork lying around

 Village buffaloes!

A cute little kid in the village

Happy bird watching! 

What’s with Nandi Hills and its Charm?

What is it that makes a person visit Nandi hills twice in a month? That is what I did. A week back I had gone there with my Christian Fellowship group members and had a wonderful time. Then again last weekend I was there  with my brother and his wife.

Is it because we have no other place to go nearby Bangalore? Or is it because this is the nearest hill station of sorts to Bangalore, so one goes there in summer, to cool off the scorching heat, just before monsoon strikes Kerala coast? I wonder.

But then as we drove past the International Airport, Bangalore, the charm started to work on. On the sides of the broad and smooth road people were selling jack fruits and grape fruits. I made a mental note of it, to buy some on the way back! The drive is just 57 kms from Bangalore.

As we turned on to the small road leading to Nandi Durg (Fortress), one could see vineyards on both the sides. People were selling grapes on the road. Many new resorts were coming up on the sides. As the driver lunged on the mountain road with curves, we got a panoramic view of the hills around and the lands under cultivation.

Managing the last few curves we entered the first arched entrance of the fort. The buses stop inside this entrance. Cars can buy a ticket for Rs.100 and go still further. A bus seems to come every day at 7am and disgorge its travellers and returns at 7 pm to gather the revellers back into its stomach. There are other buses too.

We reached the top around 6 pm. The place was full of cars and people. Not to mention the Rhesus monkeys, which seem very comfortable with the tourists.  Not that tourists are comfortable with them, prowling around, ready to snatch anything from the hands and mouths of unwary tourists.

On the very top is the Nehru Nilaya, a government tourist home and we had booked a room over there for a neat sum of Rs. 2245 per night. It is a beautiful colonial building with high ceilings and wooden rafts on the ceilings along with tall arched windows.

This bungalow was built in 1850s as the summer residence of Sir. Mark Cubbon, KCB, the then Commissioner of Bangalore. Long corridors and two huge dining halls skirted by four comfortable suites are in the first floor. There are rooms in the ground floor too and a flight of stairs lead up to the first floor, with potted plants on both the sides.

History of Nandi hills goes back to 1791, when this fortress belonging to Tipu Sultan, the ruler of Mysore, was stormed and captured by the British forces under Cornwallis. Thereafter it became a British legacy, now to be turned into a guest house and a tourist attraction maintained by the Horticulture department of Government of Karnataka.

The temple architecture on the top of the mountain is typical of Chola period and is possible that the hill was famous even before Tipu build a fortress there.

As we slowly walked around the place, absorbing the historical facts as well as the beauty of the nature around, we realised that this hill is at 1478 m (4851 ft) above the sea level and is made of monolithic mass of granite.

From below the Hills look like a sleeping bull and maybe, it got its name from that. Or it could be because of the Temple of Yoga Nandeeshwara which is at the top.

The Office of the Special Officer, Nandi hills is on the top, very close to Nehru Nilaya, and there are path ways leading to his office from many places around the summit of the hill. Enter any one and walk the path of thick and not so thick trees and bushes, you are sure to reach the office of the Special Officer. There is no way you can get lost on the mountains!

Illustrious people like Nehru, Gandhi, Queen Elizabeth II, have stayed in this beautiful bungalow. SAARC summit meeting was held here in 1986. Of course, today you and me can stay there for a price! That is the beauty of democracy!

Before it was seven pm, watchmen with whistles were alerting people and cars to leave the premises. Fear of accidents, suicides and unruly behaviour make these precautionary steps necessary, I suppose.

After a nice meal and rest, we woke up early to the howling of winds. On stepping onto the front balcony of the bungalow, one could see the amazing sight of clouds travelling so low that you could almost touch them and feel them. The trees around were bending and swaying in the wind, and cool breeze blowing relentlessly across one’s face. It was a marvellous experience.

We thanked God for the beautiful creation of His and for giving us this enjoyable time with nature. We turned then to our Bibles and devotionals and meditated on them. Getting ready we ventured out around seven thirty in the morning.

Four of the stray dogs were comfortably sleeping on the sofas inside the long corridor of the bungalow. On seeing us they got up and stretched themselves lazily eyeing us all the time. Amused, we went out to the Food Court to have some breakfast.

   Viewpoint                                                                                                                                                                                                  Hills nearby

 Remnants of the Fort

The place was already crowded and everyone was lapping up soft idlies by the dozens and crisp vadas. There were special counters for masala dosas. We too bought the coupons and had our fill. Hot coffee was available. Imagine getting all this homely stuff on the very top of a mountain!

Then we strolled leisurely across the length and breadth of Nandi hills, passing the viewpoint, the broad premises of the temple, beyond it to the canopy with a raised platform. The wind was so strong it would have blown any person who was thin and not strong! From the viewpoint, one can see the rolling fields, villages, houses and roads crisscrossing the valley below.

We climbed down the vast rock formation which slopes down the hill and reached the spot where Tipu’s Drop is situated. Imagine the poor, unwanted prisoners being hurled along this bump and the precipice to their certain death!

There are also Tipu’s Summer palace and secret way out of the Hills, but were in dilapidated condition. Gandhi House is there too where he is supposed to have stayed. Rivers Pennar, Palar and Arkavati are said to have their origin in this mountain, but all we can see today are the dry sources. Amrit Sarovar Tank is there still with lot of water. 

                                    
                                                                    Natural entrance to the KSTDC Restaurant

Having worked up an appetite, we trouped up to the Hotel Mayura Pine Top, run by Karnataka State Tourism department. After having a nice meal, we roamed around a little more and left the place reluctantly by four pm.

Garden below the Pine Top Restaurant

For youngsters, there is paragliding and cycling. A flight of 1175 steps lead to the top from the very base of the mountain; if you are a trekker, you would enjoy the climb. Motor cycling is the most loved of venture for the youngsters.

Nearby are Skandagiri hills of 1340 m high with a fortress as well. Sir M. Visveswariah, the renowned Engineer and Deewan of Mysore, who build the KR Sagar dam and Brindhavan Gardens, was born in a village nearby, called Muddenahalli, which has a museum.

But simply to be on the top of Nandi Hills and savour the beauty of the place is in itself is the main charm of the place. No wonder people are attracted to visit the place again and again. And it is simply worth it, believe me.