875 - SCHOELCHER, Victor (1804–1893), French politician, architect of the permanent abolition of slavery in France.

SCHOELCHER, Victor (1804–1893), French politician, architect of the permanent abolition of slavery in France. Set of 3 signed autograph letters. Versailles and [no place], March 18, 1848, January 18, 1855, May 5, 1877. 1 p. in-8 and 4 pp. in-16. Interesting letters, particularly regarding the plight of the exiles. Schoelcher discusses his political commitment: “I am a longtime republican; that is all I can tell them”; the support of Ledru-Rollin [himself an abolitionist] and “the honorable and brave friend Philipps” [probably the American abolitionist Wendell Philipps]; he appeals for help for “our poor fellow exiles.” War and winter [sic] are exacerbating their misery in a dreadful way, and since the persecutions that Goutch [?] suffered in Paris, we have received almost nothing from that quarter; it has been two full months since we received even a pittance. Those of us who have something are doing what we can (Phillips spares no effort), but it is impossible for us to meet so many needs. Moreover, Bonapartism is still at work; the “favors” it grants to those exiled consist of banishment to London, and you cannot imagine the destitution of these wretched souls. The day before yesterday, a man who had only recently escaped the scorching sun of Cayenne [the penal colony] walked barefoot to Ledru’s in the bitter cold.” He asks for money to distribute to the unfortunate: “It will truly be a good and patriotic deed […].” In 1877, he vehemently asserted that he was “an opponent—even an enemy—of the Catholic religion, both the old and the new,” etc.