that I am particularly qualified to speak on that
subject, as you seem to intimate, but I do not think that the black
man is as capable of acquiring knowledge as the white man. There are
some more apt than others. I have known some to acquire knowledge and
skill in their trade or profession. I have had servants of my own who
learned to read and write very well.

Q. Do they show a capacity to obtain knowledge of mathematics and the
exact sciences?

A. I have no knowledge on that subject; I am merely acquainted with
those who have learned the common rudiments of education.

Q. General, are you aware of the existence among the blacks of
Virginia, anywhere within the limits of the State, of combinations,
having in view the disturbance of the peace, or any improper or
unlawful acts?

A. I am not; I have seen no evidence of it, and have heard of none;
wherever I have been they have been quiet and orderly; not disposed to
work; or, rather, not disposed to any continuous engagement to work,
but just very short jobs to provide them with the immediate means of
subsistence.

Q. Has the colored race generally as great love of money and property
as the white race possesses?

A. I do not think it has; the blacks with whom I am acquainted look
more to the present time than to the future.

Q. Does that absence of a lust of money and property arise more from
the nature of the negro than from his former servile condition?

A. Well, it may be in some measure attributed to his former condition;
they are an amiable, social race; they like their ease and comfort,
and I think look more to their present than to their future condition.

IN CASE OF WAR, WOULD VIRGINIA JOIN OUR ENEMIES?

Q. In the event of a war between the United States and any foreign
power, such as England or France, if there should be held out to the
secession portion of the people of Virginia, or the other recently
rebel States, a fair prospect of gaining their independence and
shaking off the Government of the United States, is it or is it not
your opinion that they would avail themselves of that opportunity?

A. I cannot answer with any certainty on that point; I do not know how
far they might be actuated by their feelings; I have nothing whatever
to base an opinion upon; so far as I know, they contemplate nothing of
the kind now; what may happen in the future I cannot say.

Q. Do you not frequently hear, in your intercourse with secessionists
in Virginia,