New Orleans as it is

In Short

This book serves as a pointed, polemical exposé of New Orleans in 1849. Through a series of vignettes and descriptions, the author documents the city’s social conditions, ranging from the pervasive culture of public intoxication and prostitution to the horrific realities of the slave market. By contrasting the city’s outward commercial success with the deep moral failings of its inhabitants, the work aims to provoke a national conscience. It remains a significant historical artifact, capturing the volatility and profound cruelty of a society built upon the institution of slavery.

The Story

The narrative begins by establishing New Orleans as a cosmopolitan “charnel house,” a city where diverse nations converge and humanity’s baser impulses are given free rein. The author paints a picture of a place where moral standards are non-existent, and the pursuit of pleasure is unchecked by tradition or conscience. From the outset, the city is characterized as a "gulf of evils," where even the stones seem to hold the sorrow of blood and tears.

As the account moves forward, the author explores the city's history and structure, noting how the distinct municipalities struggle to enforce order. While the author concedes that the city is relatively efficient at punishing petty vagrancy—an anomaly compared to other cities of the era—this is framed as the only redeeming aspect of a broken system. The narrative then shifts to the transient nature of the population. Thousands of laborers and merchants arrive annually, only to view their time in the city as a temporary, often soul-crushing interval before returning North. This transient culture fosters a sense of irresponsibility; men who would maintain high moral standards at home cast aside all restraint once they reach the Mississippi.

The core of the argument centers on the systematic dehumanization of enslaved people. The author provides devastating accounts of the slave markets, where individuals are appraised and sold like livestock. One recurring theme is the hypocrisy of white men who father children with enslaved women, only to sell those same children for profit. The author describes the "Quadroon" population, whose lives are strictly circumscribed by social and legal codes, and details the routine violence of the "calaboose," where slaves are sent to be whipped for the smallest infractions. The author highlights the profound cruelty of a society that claims to be chivalrous and civilized while simultaneously operating a system of human bondage that requires constant, brutal physical enforcement.

The narrative reaches its conclusion by focusing on the "chivalry" of the Southern gentleman, dismissing it as a hollow pretense. Through descriptions of the Sabbath—which is treated as a day for commerce, gambling, and licentious ballrooms rather than worship—the author argues that the entire fabric of society is corrupt. The account ends on a somber note, questioning the moral future of a nation that allows such a city to exist, effectively challenging the reader to reject the apologies offered by slaveholders and recognize the systemic rot for what it is.

How It Unfolds

The social landscape The author introduces New Orleans as a chaotic, multinational city devoid of moral compass or restraint. The initial framing establishes the city as a place where human passions operate in a vacuum, unchecked by religious or social guidance.

The transient population The narrative examines the seasonal influx of workers who view the city merely as a place of business. This temporary residence is identified as a primary cause of the city's pervasive licentiousness and lack of civic pride.

The legal and municipal apparatus The author briefly acknowledges the city's strict handling of vagrants as a sign of order. However, this is quickly contrasted with the total disregard for the Sabbath and the widespread culture of public intoxication.

The brutal reality of slavery The focus turns to the slave markets and the treatment of enslaved people, particularly the selling of one's own children. The author recounts specific, agonizing observations of traders inspecting human beings with clinical, dehumanizing efficiency.

The hypocrisy of the elite The final section dissects the conduct of the "Southern gentleman." The author argues that this class maintains a veneer of chivalry while engaging in behavior that is inherently cruel, hypocritical, and profoundly un-Christian.

The People

The author acts as a detached, cynical, and observant narrator, clearly positioning themselves as a moral arbiter who has witnessed the city’s failings firsthand. They represent the voice of the Northern observer, horrified by the contradictions they encounter.

The "Southern gentleman" is the central antagonistic archetype. He is portrayed as a hypocrite who prides himself on honor and chivalry while participating in the buying and selling of human beings. He is often a transient figure, a husband and father who leaves his true family at home while indulging in the dissipation of New Orleans.

The enslaved people are the tragic, central subjects of the author’s outrage. They are presented as the primary victims of the system, suffering under the constant threat of the whip, the loss of their families, and the denial of their basic humanity.

The Recorder appears as a cold, bureaucratic enforcer of the city’s harsh, exclusionary laws.

Finally, the "Verulan Langdale" figure—a ragged, suffering man encountered in court—serves as a brief, dramatic illustration of the city's power to break the spirit of those who come looking for lost kin.

In Its Own Voice

“A heap of houses, a gulf of evils; on each of yonder stones you might see a gushing tear, or a drop of blood, if the afflictions, shut up between these walls, could but appear without.”

This opening quote captures the author’s grim assessment of the city as a place of hidden, systemic suffering.

“And this is no sketch of scenes drawn out with vivid colors of fancy; for it was stern living reality, and human language conveys no impressions and has not power to embellish them with ideal matter.”

The author insists here that their observations of slavery are not exaggerated, but rather reflect a reality so stark that creative embellishment is unnecessary.

What It's Really About

At its heart, the book is an interrogation of American hypocrisy. It asks how a nation that champions the ideals of liberty and the Declaration of Independence can simultaneously permit the existence of institutionalized slavery and the total moral degradation associated with it. The author explores the corrosive effects of unchecked greed, the failure of religious institutions to provide a moral check on society, and the way in which environment and custom can harden the human heart. Ultimately, it is a call to recognize that the comfort and prosperity of a city built on such foundations are an affront to humanity.

Why Read It Today

Readers interested in the history of American social reform and the literature of protest will find this a powerful, if grueling, read. It provides an unfiltered window into the rhetoric and attitudes of the late 1840s, offering a visceral look at the tensions that would soon boil over into the Civil War. It is not an easy book; the tone is consistently angry and uncompromising, reflecting the intensity of the author's disgust. Modern readers should be prepared for the author's own period-specific biases, as well as the occasionally dense, moralizing prose. However, for those who wish to understand the raw, lived experience of an observer witnessing the slave trade and the social decay of the era, the book provides a hauntingly immediate account. It stays with you not because of its literary polish, but because of the unflinching, almost clinical way the author documents the collision of "civilized" society with profound, unmitigated evil. The descriptions of the slave markets are particularly enduring, serving as a stark reminder of the human cost of the institutions the author critiques.