I St. Croix Avis optrådte i denne tid artikler underskrevet "Your umble Sambo" i et sprog som formentlig skulle efterligne landarbejdernes talesprog. Om der reelt er tale om en autentisk landarbejder, eller om det er en i redaktionen som har forsøgt at karikere en, er ikke dokumenteret. Der er nok tale om det sidste. Et eksempel gengives nedenunder:
Westen 13 January 1868.
Dear Massa Hatch it !
I rite u dese fu line liopin dey may fine u in good belt as dey lebe me at present, tenk God, an I beg u lo scuse me foo takin de libbulty to rile lo tell u sum ting dat it may be good foo u an my udder Brudders an Sisters lo no. Sum ting dat I hope u an dem will tink pon, an ac pon, not foo de benefit of one man, but for de benefit ob de country an de hole popilation. Ah Massa ! When fule talk wise man lissen. Naaer sometime lam Bucra sens, yerry. I is not de man wat lub to hab a long argiment. I got too air an one mout, dat i may hear much an not talk too much, an wen i talk, I no talk foo bad, i talk foo good. I sposc u skin each u foo here wat me got too tell u, an u won hab to scrach um long fore me tell u. Sum time i here Meriken wan to by dis butiful litle island wat God almity hab 6o long put he blessin pon. Dis bless litle island wat hab mounlin ob sugher an ribber ob Rom an ware dc Gole an de Silber gro pon de tree walin foo dem whoo no hou to pic um. Sum time agen me here de Meriken woone get um becase de King no wan foo sell um. Dis is de Contry, ware Bucra frum all part ob de wuld, whoo nebber bin nuttin in dem own Contry, kin cum to mek munny an to mek dem sef snm ting. Dey fine de peple wat blong to de place a good hartcd peple whoo tck off dem hat to dem an mek dem feel dem sef like yung prins, an wen dem mek munny nufl widout duin enny ting foo de benefit ob dc Contry or de peple wat blong to it, dey go way wid all de munny, an wen dey gone, dey call ob wi dam lasy good foo nutting fule. I no hab sens nuff foo no wat mek de King sell Sin Tomas an Sin Jon to de Meriken widout Santa Cruse, an I spose no boddy kin ax him de quesshun. Praps de King link, dat he, like enny odder man, kin do wat he plese wid he ovvne propputty, he kin sell um ef he no he cant kepe um, an he kin kepc um ef he no he no bligc foo sel um. But sense me Massa, hope tis no fence foo me tel u an al my Brudders an Sisters dat dc lau of God sa al ob wi mus do just is in al tings. Dat wone man mus doo, to annudder wat he wud hab anudder to doo to him. Derefore, 1 may be rite or I may be rong, but i tink a man hab no rite too sell lie propputty too hut enny boddy, neder hab he a rite too kepe it too hut enny body, specshally when he can sell um an get de munny, an ebry boddy hart glad case he sell um.
Nou Massa I hab tolc you sum ting, but , sum ting lef behine an dat I kin tell u nou, no kashun foo let' um foo annudeer time.
I is a free man. I hab nuttin tal to kepe me ya. I kin go ware I chuse in de sarch of a livin. In enny Contry in de wide wuld I is a free man. Poo me lone, de King kin sel dis Contry, an he kin kepe it, til he sa be glad too gib it way foo nuttin. All de same too Sambo, but not de same to udder -peple whoo hah to fede dem sef an dem wife an dem shildren an sum odder peple by de Cultvashun of tie Lan. Cane kin gro wile foo fu yare, but Shugger cant mek he sef. Enny man wat blige to wuk foo a libin, will wuk foo de man whoo will gut de bes pay. An if de Meriken no git Santa Cruse, if I lib, an it God plese dat u an inenny more Bucra lib, me, an u, an dem will see, an if we no see, db um sa here, dat poor Santa Cruz is nuttin tal but wile bush. If good feelin foo de peple in Sin Tomas an Sin Jon, mek de King in Copenhagin too sell dem too island too de Meriken, wat mek ne King no hab de same goodfeeliu foo de peple in Sta. Cruz? I no berry well dat lie sum time go before de trute, but ef he be trute dat Santa Cruse is not sell to de Me relun an dat de King no want foo sell um, plese tel he, Sambo sa, he belter sell um while he can get munny foo um. Haf price better den no piice tal. An if he no sell um nou foo munny, de day may sune kum wenjie will lie glad to gib it way foo nuttin.
I am, Dear Massa Hatchit!
Your umble Sambo
(St. Croix Avis 14. januar 1868).
Peter B. Hatchett (1821-1870?) var udgiver af St. Croix Avis. Han efterfulgte tilsyneladende Hariet Hatchett der var udgiver 1864-? i perioden 1867-1868. Herefter overtog Hans Hatchett 1869-1872. Senere redaktører er: Lauritz Holm 1872-1873, Christian Dahl 1874-1876, Julius Knuthsen 1877, John T. Quin 1878-1879, A. Paludan Müller 1878-1879, Albert Hanschell 1880-1883, John T. Quin, 1884-1916.
"Umble Sambo" havde flere indlæg i St. Croix Avis, bl. a. 4. februar 1868 og 25. februar 1868 og udtalte sig også om andre emner.
Danmark arrangerede en folkeafstemning på øerne vedrørende salget på St. Thomas og St. Jan den 9. januar 1868. Resultatet blev 1244 stemmer for salget og 22 imod salget af de to øer til USA:
THE "AVIS."
Christianssted, St. Croix.
TUESDAY, 14th JANUARY 1868.
To a true mind, it is not very easy to see how the natural feelings of the natives of this Island, or so called, Danish Westindia Possession, are at this moment. Look at the result of the voting in St. Thomas - 1039 for the Americans, and 22 for the Danes. Think then, ye Natives of St. Croix, who have for years past changed Nationality, and who have belonged to a great Nation - the English Nation. The American Nation is a good and a pure one; they have shown their greatness and their valor in the late war; so the Americans can be placed on a footing; equal, if not entirely, with the great English Nation. To judge of things, as they are now it would be like comparing the moon with the sun - the one for the night and the other for the day. The people of St. Croix, living under the Danish flag - a flag, which in its own place, has been of splendor and valor of past days; perhaps not so in their own Westindia possessions. Why we say so? Can any person tell us, that after spending so much for a public school, even when proper scholars are dismissed, that they should not be able to fill situations that the highly termed named of "Candidatus juris" and "Examinatus juris" now fill? What are they in reality? Nothing more nor less than the scholars of the Danish school, which cost the country so much money. What boundary then have the natives? A native, with ever so great abilities, honor and integrity reaches to a salary ol titty or sixty, or even seventy dollars, after having served some twenty or thirty years! when a Danish gentleman can come here with a salary of some one hundred dollars, on his passage, from Copenhagen to take over his situation, and receive perhaps one hundred and fifty, or even two hundred dollars per month. We cannot deny that we have gentlemen, some few, from Denmark, whose names, it would be improper to mention; but they are a type of an Nationality, worthy of former times. Citizens of St. Croix, what will become of all of you? Separated from St. Thomas and St. Johns, and be of far less value than Tortola, which latter country is of more importance to its Mother Country than this Island. Why? See what the English Nation does for their Westindia Possessions. Not as a Danish minister once said, that it would be the best thing to get rid of the Colonies. If he then said so, why not St. Croix go; for if Denmark keeps St. Croix alone, it would be worse for the inhabitants, larger in number, than those of Tortola. Ruin would be the result. Bully for the Americans! People of the Island of St. Croix look after yourselves.
(St. Croix Avis 14. januar 1868).
Konventionen mellem kongen af Danmark og USA af 24. oktober 1867 vedr. afståelsen af St. Thomas og St. Jan blev publiceret i St. Croix Avis den 7. februar 1868. Prisen var 7.500.000 dollars. Offentliggørelsen efterfulgtes i de kommende numre af adskillige indlæg som forholdt sig til hvad der skulle ske på St. Croix, fx af A. Bretton (St. Croix Avis 11. februar 1868).
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