The Romantic 19th Century (2)
A loyal slave of the Seth family and James’s personal valet.
Leo had been sensing that his master had been acting a little strange over the past few days.
When did it start? Thinking back, it seemed to be from that day he suddenly screamed in the morning and stared blankly into the mirror.
He had shocked Leo by suddenly saying "thank you" to him, and even now, he was handing over food from high-end restaurants for them to eat as well.
"No, Mr. Seth. Even so, won't the slaves get spoiled if you feed them meals like this?"
"Everyone, try looking at it from a different perspective. The slaves you brought today must have felt the reality of this country to their bones."
"...Pardon?"
"They pretend to be clean by claiming to prohibit slavery, yet they forbid colored people from staying in hotels, shoving them into basements, and don't even allow them into the dining halls. But we generous Southerners are different from those hypocrites."
"Whoa, so that was your intention. Indeed, the slaves who received Mr. Seth's grace today will surely tell other slaves when they return to the South. That when they actually went to the North, they treated us even more like inferiors."
Since his words were so airtight, even fellow slave owners praised James.
Of course, Leo didn't consider his master to be that much of a saint.
Having served James since he was young, Leo knew well that James was just an average successor to a large plantation in the South, nothing more, nothing less.
In fact, America was a contradictory country.
They prided themselves on having no nobility and claimed they were different from Europe, but America's wealthy secretly dreamed of a life like European aristocrats.
Southern landowners considered themselves de facto aristocrats and imitated European nobles in everything from mansion architecture to cultural life and education.
In particular, the Seth family imitated ancient Roman aristocrats, and when James was young, they assigned Leo, who was of a similar age, as his playmate.
From then on, young James naturally learned how to handle slaves, and Leo learned how to obey his master.
A slave who had been together with his master from childhood to adulthood like this not only knew his master's tastes well but also tended to have high loyalty.
Of course, even so, the South at the time suppressed slaves so extremely that even if one had served since childhood, one could lose their head over a single mistake.
The fact that a slave who made a mistake at James's father's funeral last year was sold off immediately was proof of that.
That was why Leo had been so shocked when James offered him a word of thanks.
However.
"...Leo, that person over there, Mr. James Seth, is the one you serve? I'm jealous."
"Same here. I've never eaten food like this in my life."
The slaves from other households who had followed the Southern Dixies were sending him looks of immense envy.
"It's not like that. Master used us as a tool to mock the hypocrisy of the Northerners. I can never eat food like this at home either."
"Still, Sam, who came with you, said you were given plenty of space on the boat and the train. He said he even told them to keep the hotel basement clean..."
"Uh... that's... true, isn't it?"
There was a reason for this, too.
They said that since they had to travel to New York and back, they had to manage the slaves' health well so their condition wouldn't deteriorate.
But was James the type to care about such things originally?
"Whatever the reason, the fact that he's taking care of us is what matters."
"Right, right. We're jealous of you. Truly."
In a corner seat shielded by a large curtain so as not to bother the masters.
"But for us... will a good day ever come?"
"Well. You saw it coming here this time, didn't you?"
"Still, someday..."
Watching their masters partying late into the night.
Leo tried cutting into a whole steak, not leftovers, for the first time.
The beef, holding a warm heat rather than being stone cold, was damn delicious.
After finishing the meal, I returned to the Bloomington Hotel, distancing myself slightly from the insufferable Dixies.
The Dixies, drunk on alcohol, went up to their rooms, shouting at the top of their lungs that slavery must be maintained.
Please, don't look at me like that. I don't know those people.
I approached Kate, who was about to go up to her room while yawning, and pointed my finger toward the stairs.
"I'm going to check the environment where Leo, Sam, and Ann will be staying before I go. I'm quite uneasy because of the ordinance the manager mentioned earlier."
"What's gotten into you? You're taking care of such things. You didn't even pay attention before."
Kate looked at me with eyes mixed half-and-half with fatigue and suspicion.
Well, Kate, and the original James Seth, wouldn't have batted an eye whether there was mold in the basement or rats running around.
"Father is gone now, so I am the head of the Seth family. As the head, it is a natural duty to manage my 'assets.' I'm going to try to make it a habit from now on."
A rational, reasonable, and extremely plantation-owner-like answer.
Kate, convinced by my words, waved her hand, telling me to get some sleep and that I had a lot of trouble, then went upstairs.
Fortunately, the basement wasn't as bad as I thought.
The musty smell of mold stung my nose, but perhaps because the manager had ordered it, the floor was thickly covered with dry straw, and it was less damp.
I thought this was enough and was heading back up to the lobby when I saw it.
In the middle of the hotel lobby, six or seven people were gathered, listening intently to the words of a middle-aged gentleman.
He was wearing a suit that looked somewhat awkward on his gaunt frame, but he was captivating his audience with thoughtful eyes, sincere gestures, and a persuasive way of speaking that drew people in.
It was a face so familiar that I wondered if James Seth knew him, but I soon realized that wasn't the case.
A figure that Kim Hyunwoo, who lived through the 21st century, could not possibly not know.
The face I had seen countless times in textbooks, in movies, and on dollar bills turned toward me.
And slowly.
As if he, Abraham Lincoln, had been waiting for me, he excused himself to the audience and walked straight toward me.
His gait was slow, but there was no hesitation.
"Excuse me, are you Mr. James Seth?"
The hand he extended was large and rough.
It looked more like the hand of a farmer or laborer who had farmed his whole life, not a lawyer.
I politely shook his hand and replied.
"I am indeed James Seth, but do you know me? I am a little famous in the South, but I didn't know my name had reached the North."
"In this Bloomington, and near the hotel where the party's official event is taking place the day after tomorrow, you brought blacks along and pulled off such a flashy stunt, so how could I not know?"
No matter how much of a fledgling organization the Republican Party is, they aren't so sloppy as to miss Southern Dixies wandering around their front yard.
Besides, since I had been busy throwing money around, it would be strange if it hadn't been reported immediately.
"Renting that restaurant wasn't to cause a disturbance, but rather to avoid one."
"Ah, that's fine. I didn't come here to argue about such things. I really wanted to have a conversation with a young man from the South like you. About your thoughts, your future, and the future of this country that we will build together."
Lincoln at this time, just as Kate said, had suffered defeat after defeat except for one time, but because of that, he was a named politician famous even in the South.
Nevertheless, there was no arrogance in his attitude to treat a young man like me seriously, and his eyes were burning with passion.
"If you don't mind, would you like to have a drink in the lounge over there?"
I fell into a brief moment of contemplation.
If this fact reaches the ears of the Dixies, could my intentions be doubted?
No, in that case, I can just say I met him to find out what kind of thoughts the enemy I must overthrow has.
In the first place, it would be insane to refuse when one of the presidents most respected by 21st-century Americans wants to have a serious talk.
Building as many connections in the North as possible without being branded a traitor in the South.
This is my number one principle of action when considering the future.
"That sounds good. One drink should be fine."
I followed Lincoln to a corner seat in the hotel lounge and sat down.
It was a completely isolated seat where no one could hear our conversation, as if he really wanted to talk just between the two of us.
"I've heard a lot about Mr. Seth. That you inherited over 500 servants at the age of 20."
"I'm just a lucky greenhorn who met good parents."
"I've met many prominent politicians and large landowners in the South, but I've never talked to a young man like Mr. Seth. So I'm very curious about what kind of thoughts you have."
Are they all stubborn old men whose brains have hardened, not just the elders? I wonder if this is what he's most curious about, but unfortunately, the conclusion he wants won't come out.
Anyway, I had the answer key in my head, and my goal was to leave a deep impression on this future great president somehow.
"I've heard that you, Mr. Lincoln, have been vehemently opposed to slavery for a long time."
"I have. Because it is a system completely contrary to the constitutional ideals of our great Republic. Isn't it shameful that our Republic, which pursues equality for all, operates a slavery system that even Europe has completely banned?"
"That's right. It's an absurd act."
When I shrugged my shoulders as if it were nothing and brought my beer glass to my mouth, Lincoln blinked his eyes as if it were unexpected.
"...Pardon?"
"It's an inhumane, archaic system that deserves to perish. If there is anyone who truly believes that slavery is not a moral problem, they should have their head opened up once."
"Do you really think so?"
"Of course. Actually, it's not because I'm some huge oddity, but there must be many people in the South who actually think slavery isn't right. But the tragedy is that this isn't a problem of right or wrong."
Lincoln's face hardened heavily.
To speak coldly, those who believed slavery was good in this era were a minority even in the South.
However, the stance is that it shouldn't disappear because if slavery disappears, the Southern economy will collapse and the social order maintained so far will become a mess.
In a way, this was an even more troublesome situation.
If it were a problem of right or wrong, persuasion would be possible, but in the South, slavery is in the realm of 'must exist,' so persuasion is impossible.
"That is why I and the members of the Republican Party are advocating for gradual abolition. No one is arguing that we should immediately take away slaves in the South."
"Sir, you can say that because you don't have a farm or slaves in the South. To the people of the South, that sounds no different from saying you won't take their lives right now, but you will make their children or grandchildren beggars."
It's not that Lincoln didn't know what I was saying.
But the fact that this came out of the mouth of a young man, not an elderly statesman, made his complexion even heavier.
"So, Mr. Seth, are you saying that a consensus between the South and the North is impossible?"
"Yes. Someday this rotten slavery will all disappear, but it won't be through a peaceful agreement between the North and South. I could bet all my fortune that the world doesn't move like that."
I could feel his gaze looking at me as if I were absurd.
He probably can't believe that a silver spoon, one of the few in the South, would say something like this.
However, I must appear here as an objective and cool-headed patriot of the United States, not a Southerner or a Northerner.
"An unavoidable typhoon will come to swallow us up more and more. So I think someone like you should continue to gather the voices of the North, and someone like me should prepare for what happens after the typhoon passes."
"I don't want the North and South to fight."
"It is right to seek a way to avoid a fight to the end. But shouldn't we prepare for the worst case?"
With those words, I emptied all the dollars and cents in my pocket and placed them on the table.
"It's a donation. I hope it helps when you give speeches or run for office in the future."
The South will never give up slavery to the end.
Nevertheless, slavery is destined to disappear eventually.
Lincoln, who couldn't possibly not know what I wanted to say, stared quietly at the massive donation placed in front of him.
"I've met many Southern gentlemen to persuade them so far, but this is the first time I've encountered a case like this, so I don't know what to say."
"That's what I mean. My head is blank thinking about how I'm going to endure it over there."
"Does that mean you'll stay in Mississippi? If you come to the North, I could look into a position for you."
"I appreciate the offer, but this way, our Southern brothers won't kill me for being a traitor."
"...That's true, too."
Lincoln smiled meaningfully and took the donation I offered without refusing.
"I will believe that Mr. Seth's intentions are beyond doubt just by the fact that you donated to a fledgling party like ours. So please, don't forget that heart you have now in the future. Even if the wall of reality is high, I believe that if everyone becomes one, someday we can overcome that wall."
"Even if another hell is waiting beyond that wall?"
"Then, I will walk through the deepest part of that hell."
For a moment, I caught a glimpse of a part of his conviction that went beyond the realm of madness in Lincoln's eyes.
A man who never abandons his ideals even while knowing the bitterly cold reality.
This person would walk that path with a smile even if that conviction burned everything he had.
That was why the great future president shook hands with me without losing his politeness to the end and returned to the audience.
I, too, decided to keep this connection I made today thin and long without adding any more words.
When that person becomes the protagonist of the era, this thread I've connected today will protect me more reliably than any shield.