AHMAD WILLIAMS

Harper's Weekly, 21 February 1862. Source: http://www.sonofthesouth.net/leefoundation/civil-war/1863/february/freed-negroes.htm

While slavery was far from dead in the United States in early 1863, the signs increasingly were not good for its long-term survival. The first piece of evidence was an illustration (above) and accompanying article in the February 21, 1863 issue of Harper's Weekly. The article read:

THOUGH the President's proclamation of freedom has been so often compared to the Pope's Bull against the comet, it seems to be producing some substantial fruits.