Volume XII
Number 12
August 19
1944
THE STAT E
A Weekly Survey of North Carolina
Entered u lecond-cUu matter. June 1. 1933. at the Poetofllce at Ralelfh. North Carolina, under the Act of March 3.
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Ail Arabian Prince Who
Became a Slave
Seized by a hostile tribe, lie was sold into
slavery, shipped to Charleston and finally
found his way to the Cape Fear country,
where he spent the rest of his life.
AN Arabian prince was once
the slave of a Governor of
North Carolina!
That statement sounds as fantas¬
tic as one of the talcs from the
Arabian Nights, but it is a fact
and constitutes a reference to one
of the most glamorous and admir¬
able characters in the history of
the Cape Fear country.
The name of this royal person¬
age was Moreau. He was born in
1770 and lived to be 89 years old.
He died in 1859. and the last forty
years of his life were passed as a
slave owned by John Owen. Gov¬
ernor of North Carolina 1828-30.
Moreau was devoted to his master
and spent his declining years at
Owen Hill, the Governor's planta¬
tion. located some miles up the
Cape Fear River near Elizabeth¬
town, Bladen County.
A complete record of his career
in Arabia was given by Moreau to
Governor Owen after the Prince
had learned the rudiments of the
English language under the tute¬
lage of his owner. He said that ho
was born in a province in Arabia
of which his father, a man of in¬
fluence and prestige, was ruler. His
father owned many slaves, and it
was a rather strange turn of fate
that the son of the ruler, later in
life, should himself have become a
slave in another country.
Was Well Educated
Moreau received a splendid edu¬
cation and for some time was a
teacher. While still a young man
he was captured and sold into
By I.OIIS T. MOORE
slavery by some of the African
tribes with which he had come in
contact.
He was carried down the African
coast in 1807 and was sold to a
slave-trader. Placed aboard a ves¬
sel, he eventually landed at
Charleston, S. C. This happened
just one year previous to the final
abandonment of the slave trade, in
so far as the bringing of slaves into
this country was concerned. The
Prince was sold to a citizen of
Charleston, was treated with great
cruelty and finally escaped, making
his way up to Fayetteville. There
he was captured as a runaway and
spent a number of weeks :n prison.
He decorated his cell with many
THE COVER PICTURE
Whilst fellow musicians
sleep, Fred Gallon brushes up
on his Sousnphonc lessons in
the bath-tub. He is a member
of the Elizabeth City High
School hand. The picture was
taken while he and some other
members of the band were
vacationing at Nags Head
recently. They had their in¬
struments along with them
but very courteously re¬
frained from practicing late
at night.
strange characters, which were
later revealed to be Arabic.
The sheriff, a man named Mont-
ford. got in touch with Governor
Owen and the latter became keenly
interested in Moreau. He secured
the Arab's release, offering security
if anyone should claim the man
as an escaped slave. Later, the
Charleston owner’s claim was
satisfied with the payment of
$1,000 by Governor Owen for
Prince Moreau.
Then began a period in the
foreigner’s life which brought him
peace and contentment after years
of hardship and suffering. He was
treated most kindly by the Gov¬
ernor and others with whom he
came in contact. Although a de¬
vout Mohammedan, Moreau told
Governor Owen that the lessons to
be drawn from the Christian re¬
ligion had been well exemplified
in the kind treatment accorded
him. Therefore he had a devout
desire to know more about the
teachings of Christ, which lie soon
accepted. After considerable
effort. Governor Owen succeeded
in purchasing a Bible printed in
Arabic. This was given to the
Prince and was used by him for
many years. It has been said that
this Bible, after Moreau’s death
in 1859, was presented to David¬
son College.
Governor Owen thought so
much of the man that he offered
him his freedom. Moreau de¬
clined. He said that he was happy
in his new surroundings, that he
(Continued on page 16)
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