RUNNING A THOUSAND
MILES FOR FREEDOM
---------
HAVING heard while in
Slavery that "God made of one blood all nations of men," and also
that the American Declaration of Independence says, that "We hold these
truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal; that they are
endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights; that among these, are
life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness;" we could not understand by what
right we were held as "chattels." Therefore, we felt perfectly
justified in undertaking the dan- gerous and exciting task of "running a
thousand miles" in order to obtain those rights which are so vividly set
forth in the Declaration.
I beg those who would
know the particulars of our journey, to peruse these pages.
This book is not
intended as a full history of the life of my wife, nor of myself; but merely as
an account of our escape; together with other matter which I hope may be the
means of creating in some minds a deeper abhorrence of the sinful and
abominable practice of enslaving and brutifying our fellow-creatures.
Without stopping to
write a long apology for offering this little volume to the public, I shall
commence at once to pursue my simple story.
W. CRAFT.
12, CAMBRIDGE ROAD,
HAMMERSMITH,
LONDON.
"God gave us only over beast, fish, fowl, Dominion absolute; that
right we hold By his donation. But man over man He made not lord; such title to
himself Reserving, human left from human free."
MILTON. MY wife and myself were
born in different towns in the State of Georgia, which is one of the principal
slave States. It is true, our condition as slaves was not by any means the
worst; but the mere idea that we were held as chattels, and deprived of all
legal rights--the thought that we had to give up our hard earnings to a tyrant,
to enable him to live in idleness and luxury--the thought that we could not
call the bones and sinews that God gave us our own: but above all, the fact
that another man had the power to tear from our cradle the new-born babe and
sell it in the shambles like a brute, and then scourge us if we dared to lift a
finger to save it from such a fate, haunted us for years.
But in December, 1848,
a plan suggested itself that proved quite successful, and in eight days after
it was first thought of we were free from the horrible trammels of slavery,
rejoicing and praising God in the glorious sunshine of liberty.
My wife's first master
was her father, and her mother his slave, and the latter is still the slave of
his widow.
Notwithstanding my wife
being of African extraction on her mother's side, she is almost white-- in
fact, she is so nearly so that the tyrannical old lady to whom she first
belonged became so annoyed, at finding her frequently mistaken for a child of
the family, that she gave her when eleven years of age to a daughter, as a
wedding present. This separated my wife from her mother, and also from several
other dear friends. But the incessant cruelty of her old mistress made the
change of owners or treatment so desirable, that she did not grumble much at
this cruel separation.
It may be remembered
that slavery in America is not at all confined to persons of any particular
complexion; there are a very large number of slaves as white as any one; but as
the evidence of a slave is not admitted in court against a free white person,
it is almost impossible for a white child, after having been kidnapped and sold
into or reduced to slavery, in a part of the country where it is not known (as
often is the case), ever to recover its freedom.
I have myself conversed
with several slaves who told me that their parents were white and free; but
that they were stolen away from them and sold when quite young. As they could
not tell their address, and also as the parents did not know what had become of
their lost and dear little ones, of course all traces of each other were gone.
The following facts are
sufficient to prove, that he who has the power, and is inhuman enough to
trample upon the sacred rights of the weak, cares nothing for race or colour:--
In March, 1818, three
ships arrived at New Orleans, bringing several hundred German emigrants from
the province of Alsace, on the lower Rhine. Among them were Daniel Muller and
his two daughters, Dorothea and Salomé, whose mother had died on the passage.
Soon after his arrival, Muller, taking with him his two daughters, both young
children, went up the river to Attakapas parish, to work on the plantation of
John F. Miller. A few weeks later, his relatives, who had remained at New
Orleans, learned that he had died of the fever of the country. They immediately
sent for the two girls; but they had disappeared, and the relatives,
notwithstanding repeated and persevering inquiries and researches, could find
no traces of them. They were at length given up for dead. Dorothea was never
again heard of; nor was any thing known of Salomé from 1818 till 1843.
In the summer of that
year, Madame Karl, a German woman who had come over in the same ship with the
Mullers, was passing through a street in New Orleans, and accidentally saw
Salomé in a wine-shop, belonging to Louis Belmonte, by whom she was held as a
slave. Madame Karl recognised her at once, and carried her to the house of
another German woman, Mrs. Schubert, who was Salomé's cousin and godmother, and
who no sooner set eyes on her than, without having any intimation that the
discovery had been previously made, she unhesitatingly exclaimed, "My God!
here is the long-lost Salomé Muller."
The Law Reporter, in
its account of this case, says:--
"As many of the German emigrants of 1818 as be gathered together
were brought to the house of Mrs. Schubert, and every one of the number who had
any recollection of the little girl upon the passage, or any acquaintance with
her father and mother, immediately identified the woman before them as the
long-lost Salomé Muller. By all these witnesses, who appeared at the trial, the
identity was fully established. The family resemblance in every feature was
declared to be so remarkable, that some of the witnesses did not hesitate to
say that they should know her among ten thousand; that they were as certain the
plaintiff was Salomé Muller, the daughter of Daniel and Dorothea Muller, as of
their own existence." Among the
witnesses who appeared in Court was the midwife who had assisted at the birth
of Salomé. She testified to the existence of certain peculiar marks upon the
body of the child, which were found, exactly as described, by the surgeons who
were appointed by the Court to make an examination for the purpose.
There was no trace of
African descent in any feature of Salomé Muller. She had long, straight, black
hair, hazel eyes, thin lips, and a Roman nose. The complexion of her face and
neck was as dark as that of the darkest brunette. It appears, however, that,
during the twenty-five years of her servitude, she had been exposed to the
sun's rays in the hot climate of Louisiana, with head and neck unsheltered, as
is customary with the female slaves, while labouring in the cotton or the sugar
field. Those parts of her person which had been shielded from the sun were
comparatively white.
Belmonte, the pretended
owner of the girl, had obtained possession of her by an act of sale from John
F. Miller, the planter in whose service Salomé's father died. This Miller was a
man of consideration and substance, owning large sugar estates, and bearing a
high reputation for honour and honesty, and for indulgent treatment of his
slaves. It was testified on the trial that he had said to Belmonte, a few weeks
after the sale of Salomé, "that she was white, and had as much right to
her freedom as any one, and was only to be retained in slavery by care and kind
treatment." The broker who negotiated the sale from Miller to Belmonte, in
1838, testified in Court that he then thought, and still thought, that the girl
was white!
The case was
elaborately argued on both sides, but was at length decided in favour of the
girl, by the Supreme Court declaring that "she was free and white, and
therefore unlawfully held in bondage."
The Rev. George Bourne,
of Virginia, in his Picture of Slavery, published in 1834, relates the case of
a white boy who, at the age of seven, was stolen from his home in Ohio, tanned
and stained in such a way that he could not be distinguished from a person of
colour, and then sold as a slave in Virginia. At the age of twenty, he made his
escape, by running away, and happily succeeded in rejoining his parents.
I have known worthless
white people to sell their own free children into slavery; and, as there are
good-for-nothing white as well as coloured persons everywhere, no one, perhaps,
will wonder at such inhuman transactions: particularly in the Southern States
of America, where I believe there is a greater want of humanity and high
principle amongst the whites, than among any other civilized people in the
world.
I know that those who
are not familiar with the working of "the peculiar institution," can
scarcely imagine any one so totally devoid of all natural affection as to sell
his own offspring into returnless bondage. But Shakespeare, that great observer
of human nature, says:--
With caution judge of probabilities. Things deemed unlikely, e'en
impossible, Experience often shews us to be true." My wife's new mistress was decidedly more humane than the majority
of her class. My wife has always given her credit for not exposing her to many
of the worst features of slavery. For instance, it is a common practice in the
slave States for ladies, when angry with their maids, to send them to the
calybuce sugar-house, or to some other place established for the purpose of
punishing slaves, and have them severely flogged; and I am sorry it is a fact,
that the villains to whom those defenceless creatures are sent, not only flog
them as they are ordered, but frequently compel them to submit to the greatest
indignity. Oh! if there is any one thing under the wide canopy of heaven,
horrible enough to stir a man's soul, and to make his very blood boil, it is
the thought of his dear wife, his unprotected sister, or his young and virtuous
daughters, struggling to save themselves from falling a prey to such demons!
It always appears
strange to me that any one who was not born a slaveholder, and steeped to the
very core in the demoralizing atmosphere of the Southern States, can in any way
palliate slavery. It is still more surprising to see virtuous ladies looking
with patience upon, and remaining indifferent to, the existence of a system
that exposes nearly two millions of their own sex in the manner I have
mentioned, and that too in a professedly free and Christian country. There is,
however, great consolation in knowing that God is just, and will not let the
oppressor of the weak, and the spoiler of the virtuous, escape unpunished here
and hereafter.
I believe a similar
retribution to that which destroyed Sodom is hanging over the slaveholders. My
sincere prayer is that they may not provoke God, by persisting in a reckless
course of wickedness, to pour out his consuming wrath upon them.
I must now return to
our history.
My old master had the
reputation of being a very humane and Christian man, but he thought nothing of
selling my poor old father, and dear aged mother, at separate times, to
different persons, to be dragged off never to behold each other again, till
summoned to appear before the great tribunal of heaven. But, oh! what a happy
meeting it will be on that day for those faithful souls. I say a happy meeting,
because I never saw persons more devoted to the service of God than they. But
how will the case stand with those reckless traffickers in human flesh and
blood, who plunged the poisonous dagger of separation into those loving hearts
which God had for so many years closely joined together--nay, sealed as it were
with his own hands for the eternal courts of heaven? It is not for me to say
what will become of those heartless tyrants. I must leave them in the hands of
an all-wise and just God, who will, in his own good time, and in his own way,
avenge the wrongs of his oppressed people.
My old master also sold
a dear brother and a sister, in the same manner as he did my father and mother.
The reason he assigned for disposing of my parents, as well as of several other
aged slaves, was, that "they were getting old, and would soon become
valueless in the market, and therefore he intended to sell off all the old
stock, and buy in a young lot." A most disgraceful conclusion for a man to
come to, who made such great professions of religion!
This shameful conduct
gave me a thorough hatred, not for true Christianity, but for slaveholding
piety.
My old master, then,
wishing to make the most of the rest of his slaves, apprenticed a brother and
myself out to learn trades: he to a blacksmith, and myself to a cabinet-maker.
If a slave has a good trade, he will let or sell for more than a person without
one, and many slaveholders have their slaves taught trades on this account. But
before our time expired, my old master wanted money; so he sold my brother, and
then mortgaged my sister, a dear girl about fourteen years of age, and myself,
then about sixteen, to one of the banks, to get money to speculate in cotton.
This we knew nothing of at the moment; but time rolled on, the money became
due, my master was unable to meet his payments; so the bank had us placed upon
the auction stand and sold to the highest bidder.
My poor sister was sold
first: she was knocked down to a planter who resided at some distance in the
country. Then I was called upon the stand. While the auctioneer was crying the
bids, I saw the man that had purchased my sister getting her into a cart, to
take her to his home. I at once asked a slave friend who was standing near the
platform, to run and ask the gentleman if he would please to wait till I was
sold, in order that I might have an opportunity of bidding her good-bye. He
sent me word back that he had some distance to go, and could not wait.
I then turned to the
auctioneer, fell upon my knees, and humbly prayed him to let me just step down
and bid my last sister farewell. But, instead of granting me this request, he
grasped me by the neck, and in a commanding tone of voice, and with a violent
oath, exclaimed, "Get up! You can do the wench no good; therefore there is
no use in your seeing her."
On rising, I saw the
cart in which she sat moving slowly off; and, as she clasped her hands with a grasp
that indicated despair, and looked pitifully round towards me, I also saw the
large silent tears trickling down her cheeks. She made a farewell bow, and
buried her face in her lap. This seemed more than I could bear. It appeared to
swell my aching heart to its utmost. But before I could fairly recover, the
poor girl was gone;--gone, and I have never had the good fortune to see her
from that day to this! Perhaps I should have never heard of her again, had it
not been for the untiring efforts of my good old mother, who became free a few
years ago by purchase, and, after a great deal of difficulty, found my sister
residing with a family in Mississippi. My mother at once wrote to me, informing
me of the fact, and requesting me to do something to get her free; and I am
happy to say that, partly by lecturing occasionally, and through the sale of an
engraving of my wife in the disguise in which she escaped, together with the
extreme kindness and generosity of Miss Burdett Coutts, Mr. George Richardson
of Plymouth, and a few other friends, I have nearly accomplished this. It would
be to me a great and ever-glorious achievement to restore my sister to our dear
mother, from whom she was forcibly driven in early life.
I was knocked down to
the cashier of the bank to which we were mortgaged, and ordered to return to
the cabinet shop where I previously worked.
But the thought of the
harsh auctioneer not allowing me to bid my dear sister farewell, sent red-hot
indignation darting like lightning through every vein. It quenched my tears,
and appeared to set my brain on fire, and made me crave for power to avenge our
wrongs! But alas! we were only slaves, and had no legal rights; consequently we
were compelled to smother our wounded feelings, and crouch beneath the iron heel
of despotism.
I must now give the
account of our escape; but, before doing so, it may be well to quote a few
passages from the fundamental laws of slavery; in order to give some idea of
the legal as well as the social tyranny from which we fled.
According to the law of
Louisiana, "A slave is one who is in the power of a master to whom he
belongs. The master may sell him, dispose of his person, his industry, and his
labour; he can do nothing, possess nothing, nor acquire anything but what must belong
to his master."--Civil Code, art. 35.
In South Carolina it is
expressed in the following language:--"Slaves shall be deemed, sold,
taken, reputed and judged in law to be chattels personal in the hands of their
owners and possessors, and their executors, administrators, and assigns, to all
intents, constructions, and purposes whatsoever.-- 2 Brevard's Digest, 229.
The Constitution of
Georgia has the following (Art. 4, sec. 12):--"Any person who shall
maliciously dismember or deprive a slave of life, shall suffer such punishment
as would be inflicted in case the like offence had been committed on a free
white person, and on the like proof, except in case of insurrection of such
slave, and unless SUCH DEATH SHOULD HAPPEN BY ACCIDENT IN GIVING SUCH SLAVE MODERATE
CORRECTION."--Prince's Digest, 559.
I have known slaves to
be beaten to death, but as they died under "moderate correction," it
was quite lawful; and of course the murderers were not interfered with.
"If any slave, who
shall be out of the house or plantation where such slave shall live, or shall
be usually employed, or without some white person in company with such slave,
shall refuse to submit to undergo the examination of any white person, (let him
be ever so drunk or crazy), it shall be lawful for such white person to pursue,
apprehend, and moderately correct such slave; and if such slave shall assault
and strike such white person, such slave may be lawfully killed."--2
Brevard's Digest, 231.
"Provided
always," says the law, "that such striking be not done by the command
and in the defence of the person or property of the owner, or other person
having the government of such slave; in which case the slave shall be wholly
excused."
According to this law,
if a slave, by the direction of his overseer, strike a white person who is
beating said overseer's pig, "the slave shall be wholly excused."
But, should the bondman, of his own accord, fight to defend his wife, or should
his terrified daughter instinctively raise her hand and strike the wretch who
attempts to violate her chastity, he or she shall, saith the model republican
law, suffer death.
From having been myself
a slave for nearly twenty-three years, I am quite prepared to say, that the
practical working of slavery is worse than the odious laws by which it is
governed.
At an early age we were
taken by the persons who held us as property to Maçon, the largest town in the
interior of the State of Georgia, at which place we became acquainted with each
other for several years before our marriage; in fact, our marriage was
postponed for some time simply because one of the unjust and worse than Pagan
laws under which we lived compelled all children of slave mothers to follow
their condition. That is to say, the father of the slave may be the President
of the Republic; but if the mother should be a slave at the infant's birth, the
poor child is ever legally doomed to the same cruel fate.
It is a common practice
for gentlemen (if I may call them such), moving in the highest circles of society,
to be the fathers of children by their slaves, whom they can and do sell with
the greatest impunity; and the more pious, beautiful, and virtuous the girls
are, the greater the price they bring, and that too for the most infamous
purposes.
Any man with money (let
him be ever such a rough brute), can buy a beautiful and virtuous girl, and
force her to live with him in a criminal connexion; and as the law says a slave
shall have no higher appeal than the mere will of the master, she cannot
escape, unless it be by flight or death.
In endeavouring to
reconcile a girl to her fate, the master sometimes says that he would marry her
if it was not unlawful.* However, he will always consider her to be his wife,
and will treat her as such; and she, on the other hand, may regard him as her
lawful husband; and if they have any children, they will be free and well
educated.
I am in duty bound to
add, that while a great majority of such men care nothing for the happiness of
the women with whom they live, nor for the children of whom they are the
fathers, there are those to be found, even in that heterogeneous mass of
licentious monsters, who are true to their pledges. But as the woman and her
children are legally the property of the man, who stands in the anomalous
relation to them of husband and father, as well as master, they are liable to
be seized and sold for his debts, should he become involved.
There are several cases
on record where such persons have been sold and separated for life. I know of
some myself, but I have only space to glance at one.
I knew a very humane
and wealthy gentleman, that bought a woman, with whom he lived as his wife.
They brought up a family of children, among whom were three nearly white, well
educated, and beautiful girls.
On the father being
suddenly killed it was found that he had not left a will; but, as the family
had always heard him say that he had no surviving relatives, they felt that
their liberty and property were quite secured to them, and, knowing the insults
to which they were exposed, now their protector was no more, they were making
preparations to leave for a free State.
But, poor creatures,
they were soon sadly undeceived. A villain residing at a distance, hearing of
the circumstance, came forward and swore that he was a relative of the
deceased; and as this man bore, or assumed, Mr. Slator's name, the case was
brought before one of those horrible tribunals, presided over by a second Judge
Jeffreys, and calling itself a court of justice, but before whom no coloured
person, nor an abolitionist, was ever known to get his full rights.
A verdict was given in
favour of the plaintiff, whom the better portion of the community thought had
wilfully conspired to cheat the family.
The heartless wretch
not only took the ordinary property, but actually had the aged and friendless
widow, and all her fatherless children, except Frank, a fine young man about
twenty-two years of age, and Mary, a very nice girl, a little younger than her
brother, brought to the auction stand and sold to the highest bidder. Mrs.
Slator had cash enough, that her husband and master left, to purchase the
liberty of herself and children; but on her attempting to do so, the
pusillanimous scoundrel, who had robbed them of their freedom, claimed the
money as his property; and, poor creature, she had to give it up. According to
law, as will be seen hereafter, a slave cannot own anything. The old lady never
recovered from her sad affliction.
At the sale she was
brought up first, and after being vulgarly criticised, in the presence of all
her distressed family, was sold to a cotton planter, who said he wanted the
"proud old critter to go to his plantation, to look after the little
woolly heads, while their mammies were working in the field."
When the sale was over,
then came the separation, and
"O, deep was the anguish of that slave mother's heart, When called
from her darlings for ever to part; The poor mourning mother of reason bereft,
Soon ended her sorrows, and sank cold in death." Antoinette, the flower of the family, a girl who was much beloved by
all who knew her, for her Christ-like piety, dignity of manner, as well as her
great talents and extreme beauty, was bought by an uneducated and drunken
slave-dealer.
I cannot give a more
correct description of the scene, when she was called from her brother to the
stand, than will be found in the following lines--
"Why stands she near the auction stand? That girl so young and
fair; What brings her to this dismal place? Why stands she weeping there? Why
does she raise that bitter cry? Why hangs her head with shame, As now the
auctioneer's rough voice So rudely calls her name! But see! she grasps a manly
hand, And in a voice so low, As scarcely to be heard, she says, "My
brother, must I go?" A moment's pause: then, midst a wail Of agonizing
woe, His answer falls upon the ear,-- "Yes, sister, you must go! No longer
can my arm defend, No longer can I save My sister from the horrid fate That
waits her as a SLAVE!" Blush, Christian, blush! for e'en the dark Untutored
heathen see Thy inconsistency, and lo! They scorn thy God, and thee!" The low trader said to a kind lady
who wished to purchase Antoinette out of his hands, "I reckon I'll not
sell the smart critter for ten thousand dollars; I always wanted her for my own
use." The lady, wishing to remonstrate with him, commenced by saying,
"You should remember, Sir, that there is a just God." Hoskens not
understanding Mrs. Huston, interrupted her by saying, "I does, and guess
its monstrous kind an' him to send such likely niggers for our
convenience." Mrs. Huston finding that a long course of reckless
wickedness, drunkenness, and vice, had destroyed in Hoskens every noble
impulse, left him.
Antoinette, poor girl,
also seeing that there was no help for her, became frantic. I can never forget
her cries of despair, when Hoskens gave the order for her to be taken to his
house, and locked in an upper room. On Hoskens entering the apartment, in a
state of intoxication, a fearful struggle ensued. The brave Antoinette broke
loose from him, pitched herself head foremost through the window, and fell upon
the pavement below.
Her bruised but
unpolluted body was soon picked up--restoratives brought--doctor called in;
but, alas! it was too late: her pure and noble spirit had fled away to be at
rest in those realms of endless bliss, "where the wicked cease from
troubling, and the weary are at rest."
Antoinette like many
other noble women who are deprived of liberty, still
"Holds something sacred, something undefiled; Some pledge and
keepsake of their higher nature. And, like the diamond in the dark, retains
Some quenchless gleam of the celestial light." On Hoskens fully realizing the fact that his victim was no
more, he exclaimed "By thunder I am a used-up man!" The sudden
disappointment, and the loss of two thousand dollars, was more than he could
endure: so he drank more than ever, and in a short time died, raving mad with
delirium tremens.
The villain Slator said
to Mrs. Huston, the kind lady who endeavoured to purchase Antoinette from Hoskens,
"Nobody needn't talk to me 'bout buying them ar likely niggers, for I'm
not going to sell em." "But Mary is rather delicate," said Mrs.
Huston, "and, being unaccustomed to hard work, cannot do you much service
on a plantation." "I don't want her for the field," replied
Slator, "but for another purpose." Mrs. Huston understood what this
meant, and instantly exclaimed, "Oh, but she is your cousin!"
"The devil she is!" said Slator; and added, "Do you mean to insult
me, Madam, by saying that I am related to niggers?" "No,"
replied Mrs. Huston, "I do not wish to offend you, Sir. But wasn't Mr.
Slator, Mary's father, your uncle?" "Yes, I calculate he was,"
said Slator; "but I want you and everybody to understand that I'm no kin
to his niggers." "Oh, very well," said Mrs. Huston; adding,
"Now what will you take for the poor girl?" "Nothin'," he
replied; "for, as I said before, I'm not goin' to sell, so you needn't
trouble yourself no more. If the critter behaves herself, I'll do as well by
her as any man."
Slator spoke up boldly,
but his manner and sheepish look clearly indicated that
"His heart within him was at strife With such accursed gains; For
he knew whose passions gave her life, Whose blood ran in her veins."
"The monster led her from the door, He led her by the hand, To be his
slave and paramour In a strange and distant land!" Poor Frank and his sister were handcuffed together, and
confined in prison. Their dear little twin brother and sister were sold, and
taken where they knew not. But it often happens that misfortune causes those
whom we counted dearest to shrink away; while it makes friends of those whom we
least expected to take any interest in our affairs. Among the latter class
Frank found two comparatively new but faithful friends to watch the gloomy
paths of the unhappy little twins.
In a day or two after
the sale, Slator had two fast horses put to a large light van, and placed in it
a good many small but valuable things belonging to the distressed family. He
also took with him Frank and Mary, as well as all the money for the spoil; and
after treating all his low friends and bystanders, and drinking deeply himself,
he started in high glee for his home in South Carolina. But they had not
proceeded many miles, before Frank and his sister discovered that Slator was
too drunk to drive. But he, like most tipsy men, thought he was all right; and
as he had with him some of the ruined family's best brandy and wine, such as he
had not been accustomed to, and being a thirsty soul, he drank till the reins
fell from his fingers, and in attempting to catch them he tumbled out of the
vehicle, and was unable to get up. Frank and Mary there and then contrived a
plan by which to escape. As they were still handcuffed by one wrist each, they
alighted, took from the drunken assassin's pocket the key, undid the iron
bracelets, and placed them upon Slator, who was better fitted to wear such
ornaments. As the demon lay unconscious of what was taking place, Frank and
Mary took from him the large sum of money that was realized at the sale, as
well as that which Slator had so very meanly obtained from their poor mother.
They then dragged him into the woods, tied him to a tree, and left the
inebriated robber to shift for himself, while they made good their escape to
Savannah. The fugitives being white, of course no one suspected that they were
slaves.
Slator was not able to
call any one to his rescue till late the next day; and as there were no
railroads in that part of the country at that time, it was not until late the
following day that Slator was able to get a party to join him for the chase. A
person informed Slator that he had met a man and woman, in a trap, answering to
the description of those whom he had lost, driving furiously towards Savannah.
So Slator and several slavehunters on horseback started off in full tilt, with
their bloodhounds, in pursuit of Frank and Mary.
On arriving at
Savannah, the hunters found that the fugitives had sold the horses and trap,
and embarked as free white persons, for New York. Slator's disappointment and
rascality so preyed upon his base mind, that he, like Judas, went and hanged
himself.
As soon as Frank and
Mary were safe, they endeavoured to redeem their good mother. But, alas! she
was gone; she had passed on to the realm of spirit life.
In due time Frank
learned from his friends in Georgia where his little brother and sister dwelt.
So he wrote at once to purchase them, but the persons with whom they lived
would not sell them. After failing in several attempts to buy them, Frank
cultivated large whiskers and moustachios, cut off his hair, put on a wig and glasses,
and went down as a white man, and stopped in the neighbourhood where his sister
was; and after seeing her and also his little brother, arrangements were made
for them to meet at a particular place on a Sunday, which they did, and got
safely off.
I saw Frank myself,
when he came for the little twins. Though I was then quite a lad, I well
remember being highly delighted by hearing him tell how nicely he and Mary had
served Slator.
Frank had so completely
disguised or changed his appearance that his little sister did not know him,
and would not speak till he showed their mother's likeness; the sight of which
melted her to tears,--for she knew the face. Frank might have said to her
"'O, Emma! O, my sister, speak to me! Dost thou not know me, that I
am thy brother? Come to me, little Emma, thou shalt dwell With me henceforth,
and know no care or want.' Emma was silent for a space, as if 'Twere hard to
summon up a human voice." Frank and
Mary's mother was my wife's own dear aunt.
After this great
diversion from our narrative, which I hope dear reader, you will excuse, I
shall return at once to it.
My wife was torn from
her mother's embrace in childhood, and taken to a distant part of the country.
She had seen so many other children separated from their parents in this cruel
manner, that the mere thought of her ever becoming the mother of a child, to
linger out a miserable existence under the wretched system of American slavery,
appeared to fill her very soul with horror; and as she had taken what I felt to
be an important view of her condition, I did not, at first, press the marriage,
but agreed to assist her in trying to devise some plan by which we might escape
from our unhappy condition, and then be married.
We thought of plan
after plan, but they all seemed crowded with insurmountable difficulties. We
knew it was unlawful for any public conveyance to take us as passengers,
without our master's consent. We were also perfectly aware of the startling
fact, that had we left without this consent the professional slave-hunters
would have soon had their ferocious bloodhounds baying on our track, and in a
short time we should have been dragged back to slavery, not to fill the more
favourable situations which we had just left, but to be separated for life, and
put to the very meanest and most laborious drudgery; or else have been tortured
to death as examples, in order to strike terror into the hearts of others, and
thereby prevent them from even attempting to escape from their cruel
taskmasters. It is a fact worthy of remark, that nothing seems to give the
slaveholders so much pleasure as the catching and torturing of fugitives. They
had much rather take the keen and poisonous lash, and with it cut their poor
trembling victims to atoms, than allow one of them to escape to a free country,
and expose the infamous system from which he fled.
The greatest excitement
prevails at a slave-hunt. The slaveholders and their hired ruffians appear to
take more pleasure in this inhuman pursuit than English sportsmen do in chasing
a fox or a stag. Therefore, knowing what we should have been compelled to
suffer, if caught and taken back, we were more than anxious to hit upon a plan
that would lead us safely to a land of liberty.
But, after puzzling our
brains for years, we were reluctantly driven to the sad conclusion, that it was
almost impossible to escape from slavery in Georgia, and travel 1,000 miles
across the slave States. We therefore resolved to get the consent of our
owners, be married, settle down in slavery, and endeavour to make ourselves as
comfortable as possible under that system; but at the same time ever to keep
our dim eyes steadily fixed upon the glimmering hope of liberty, and earnestly
pray God mercifully to assist us to escape from our unjust thraldom.
We were married, and
prayed and toiled on till December, 1848, at which time (as I have stated) a
plan suggested itself that proved quite successful, and in eight days after it
was first thought of we were free from the horrible trammels of slavery, and
glorifying God who had brought us safely out of a land of bondage.
Knowing that
slaveholders have the privilege of taking their slaves to any part of the
country they think proper, it occurred to me that, as my wife was nearly white,
I might get her to disguise herself as an invalid gentleman, and assume to be
my master, while I could attend as his slave, and that in this manner we might
effect our escape. After I thought of the plan, I suggested it to my wife, but
at first she shrank from the idea. She thought it was almost impossible for her
to assume that disguise, and travel a distance of 1,000 miles across the slave
States. However, on the other hand, she also thought of her condition. She saw
that the laws under which we lived did not recognize her to be a woman, but a
mere chattel, to be bought and sold, or otherwise dealt with as her owner might
see fit. Therefore the more she contemplated her helpless condition, the more
anxious she was to escape from it. So she said, "I think it is almost too
much for us to undertake; however, I feel that God is on our side, and with his
assistance, notwithstanding all the difficulties, we shall be able to succeed.
Therefore, if you will purchase the disguise, I will try to carry out the
plan."
But after I concluded
to purchase the disguise, I was afraid to go to any one to ask him to sell me
the articles. It is unlawful in Georgia for a white man to trade with slaves
without the master's consent. But, notwithstanding this, many persons will sell
a slave any article that he can get the money to buy. Not that they sympathize
with the slave, but merely because his testimony is not admitted in court
against a free white person.
Therefore, with little
difficulty I went to different parts of the town, at odd times, and purchased
things piece by piece, (except the trowsers which she found necessary to make,)
and took them home to the house where my wife resided. She being a ladies'
maid, and a favourite slave in the family, was allowed a little room to
herself; and amongst other pieces of furniture which I had made in my overtime,
was a chest of drawers; so when I took the articles home, she locked them up
carefully in these drawers. No one about the premises knew that she had
anything of the kind. So when we fancied we had everything ready the time was
fixed for the flight. But we knew it would not do to start off without first
getting our master's consent to be away for a few days. Had we left without
this, they would soon have had us back into slavery, and probably we should never
have got another fair opportunity of even attempting to escape.
Some of the best
slaveholders will sometimes give their favourite slaves a few days' holiday at
Christmas time; so, after no little amount of perseverance on my wife's part,
she obtained a pass from her mistress, allowing her to be away for a few days.
The cabinet-maker with whom I worked gave me a similar paper, but said that he
needed my services very much, and wished me to return as soon as the time
granted was up. I thanked him kindly; but somehow I have not been able to make
it convenient to return yet; and, as the free air of good old England agrees so
well with my wife and our dear little ones, as well as with myself, it is not
at all likely we shall return at present to the "peculiar
institution" of chains and stripes.
On reaching my wife's
cottage she handed me her pass, and I showed mine, but at that time neither of
us were able to read them. It is not only unlawful for slaves to be taught to
read, but in some of the States there are heavy penalties attached, such as
fines and imprisonment, which will be vigorously enforced upon any one who is
humane enough to violate the so-called law.
The following case will
serve to show how persons are treated in the most enlightened slaveholding
community.
Grand Jurors
empannelled in the body of the said County on their oath present, that Margaret
Douglass, being an evil disposed person, not having the fear of God before her
eyes, but moved and instigated by the devil, wickedly, maliciously, and
feloniously, on the fourth day of July, in the year of our Lord one thousand
eight hundred and fifty- four, at Norfolk, in said County, did teach a certain
black girl named Kate to read in the Bible, to the great displeasure of
Almighty God, to the pernicious example of others in like case offending,
contrary to the form of the statute in such case made and provided, and against
the peace and dignity of the Commonwealth of Virginia.
"VICTOR VAGABOND, Prosecuting Attorney."
"On this indictment Mrs. Douglass was arraigned as a necessary
matter of form, tried, found guilty of course; and Judge Scalaway, before whom
she was tried, having consulted with Dr. Adams, ordered the sheriff to place
Mrs. Douglass in the prisoner's box, when he addressed her as follows:
'Margaret Douglass, stand up. You are guilty of one of the vilest crimes that
ever disgraced society; and the jury have found you so. You have taught a slave
girl to read in the Bible. No enlightened society can exist where such offences
go unpunished. The Court, in your case, do not feel for you one solitary ray of
sympathy, and they will inflict on you the utmost penalty of the law. In any
other civilized country you would have paid the forfeit of your crime with your
life, and the Court have only to regret that such is not the law in this
country. The sentence for your offence is, that you be imprisoned one month in
the county jail, and that you pay the costs of this prosecution. Sheriff,
remove the prisoner to jail.' On the publication of these proceedings, the
Doctors of Divinity preached each a sermon on the necessity of obeying the
laws; the New York Observer noticed with much pious gladness a revival of
religion on Dr. Smith's plantation in Georgia, among his slaves; while the
Journal of Commerce commended this political preaching of the Doctors of
Divinity because it favoured slavery. Let us do nothing to offend our Southern
brethren." However, at first, we
were highly delighted at the idea of having gained permission to be absent for
a few days; but when the thought flashed across my wife's mind, that it was
customary for travellers to register their names in the visitors' book at
hotels, as well as in the clearance or Custom-house book at Charleston, South
Carolina --it made our spirits droop within us.
So, while sitting in
our little room upon the verge of despair, all at once my wife raised her head,
and with a smile upon her face, which was a moment before bathed in tears,
said, "I think I have it!" I asked what it was. She said, "I think
I can make a poultice and bind up my right hand in a sling, and with propriety
ask the officers to register my name for me." I thought that would do.
It then occurred to her
that the smoothness of her face might betray her; so she decided to make
another poultice, and put it in a white handkerchief to be worn under the chin,
up the cheeks, and to tie over the head. This nearly hid the expression of the
countenance, as well as the beardless chin.
The poultice is left
off in the engraving, because the likeness could not have been taken well with
it on.
My wife, knowing that
she would be thrown a good deal into the company of gentlemen, fancied that she
could get on better if she had something to go over the eyes; so I went to a
shop and bought a pair of green spectacles. This was in the evening.
We sat up all night
discussing the plan, and making preparations. Just before the time arrived, in
the morning, for us to leave, I cut off my wife's hair square at the back of
the head, and got her to dress in the disguise and stand out on the floor. I
found that she made a most respectable looking gentleman.
My wife had no ambition
whatever to assume this disguise, and would not have done so had it been
possible to have obtained our liberty by more simple means; but we knew it was
not customary in the South for ladies to travel with male servants; and
therefore, notwithstanding my wife's fair complexion, it would have been a very
difficult task for her to have come off as a free white lady, with me as her
slave; in fact, her not being able to write would have made this quite
impossible. We knew that no public conveyance would take us, or any other
slave, as a passenger, without our master's consent. This consent could never
be obtained to pass into a free State. My wife's being muffled in the
poultices, &c., furnished a plausible excuse for avoiding general
conversation, of which most Yankee travellers are passionately fond.
There are a large
number of free negroes residing in the southern States; but in Georgia (and I believe
in all the slave States,) every coloured person's complexion is primâ facie
evidence of his being a slave; and the lowest villain in the country, should he
be a white man, has the legal power to arrest, and question, in the most
inquisitorial and insulting manner, any coloured person, male or female, that
he may find at large, particularly at night and on Sundays, without a written
pass, signed by the master or some one in authority; or stamped free papers,
certifying that the person is the rightful owner of himself.
If the coloured person
refuses to answer questions put to him, he may be beaten, and his defending
himself against this attack makes him an outlaw, and if he be killed on the
spot, the murderer will be exempted from all blame; but after the coloured
person has answered the questions put to him, in a most humble and pointed
manner, he may then be taken to prison; and should it turn out, after further
examination, that he was caught where he had no permission or legal right to
be, and that he has not given what they term a satisfactory account of himself,
the master will have to pay a fine. On his refusing to do this, the poor slave
may be legally and severely flogged by public officers. Should the prisoner
prove to be a free man, he is most likely to be both whipped and fined.
The great majority of
slaveholders hate this class of persons with a hatred that can only be equalled
by the condemned spirits of the infernal regions. They have no mercy upon, nor
sympathy for, any negro whom they cannot enslave. They say that God made the
black man to be a slave for the white, and act as though they really believed
that all free persons of colour are in open rebellion to a direct command from
heaven, and that they (the whites) are God's chosen agents to pour out upon
them unlimited vengeance. For instance, a Bill has been introduced in the
Tennessee Legislature to prevent free negroes from travelling on the railroads
in that State. It has passed the first reading. The bill provides that the
President who shall permit a free negro to travel on any road within the
jurisdiction of the State under his supervision shall pay a fine of 500
dollars; any conductor permitting a violation of the Act shall pay 250 dollars;
provided such free negro is not under the control of a free white citizen of Tennessee,
who will vouch for the character of said free negro in a penal bond of one
thousand dollars. The State of Arkansas has passed a law to banish all free
negroes from its bounds, and it came into effect on the 1st day of January,
1860. Every free negro found there after that date will be liable to be sold
into slavery, the crime of freedom being unpardonable. The Missouri Senate has
before it a bill providing that all free negroes above the age of eighteen
years who shall be found in the State after September, 1860, shall be sold into
slavery; and that all such negroes as shall enter the State after September,
1861, and remain there twenty-four hours, shall also be sold into slavery for
ever. Mississippi, Kentucky, and Georgia, and in fact, I believe, all the slave
States, are legislating in the same manner. Thus the slaveholders make it
almost impossible for free persons of colour to get out of the slave States, in
order that they may sell them into slavery if they don't go. If no white
persons travelled upon railroads except those who could get some one to vouch
for their character in a penal bond of one thousand dollars, the railroad
companies would soon go to the "wall." Such mean legislation is too
low for comment; therefore I leave the villainous acts to speak for themselves.
But the Dred Scott
decision is the crowning act of infamous Yankee legislation. The Supreme Court,
the highest tribunal of the Republic, composed of nine Judge Jeffries's, chosen
both from the free and slave States, has decided that no coloured person, or
persons of African extraction, can ever become a citizen of the United States,
or have any rights which white men are bound to respect. That is to say, in the
opinion of this Court, robbery, rape, and murder are not crimes when committed
by a white upon a coloured person.
Judges who will sneak
from their high and honourable position down into the lowest depths of human
depravity, and scrape up a decision like this, are wholly unworthy the
confidence of any people. I believe such men would, if they had the power, and
were it to their temporal interest, sell their country's independence, and
barter away every man's birthright for a mess of pottage. Well may Thomas
Campbell say--
United States, your banner wears, Two emblems,--one of fame, Alas, the
other that it bears Reminds us of your shame! The white man's liberty in types
Stands blazoned by your stars; But what's the meaning of your stripes? They
mean your Negro-scars. When the
time had arrived for us to start, we blew out the lights, knelt down, and
prayed to our Heavenly Father mercifully to assist us, as he did his people of
old, to escape from cruel bondage; and we shall ever feel that God heard and
answered our prayer. Had we not been sustained by a kind, and I sometimes think
special, providence, we could never have overcome the mountainous difficulties
which I am now about to describe.
After this we rose and
stood for a few moments in breathless silence,--we were afraid that some one
might have been about the cottage listening and watching our movements. So I
took my wife by the hand, stepped softly to the door, raised the latch, drew it
open, and peeped out. Though there were trees all around the house, yet the
foliage scarcely moved; in fact, everything appeared to be as still as death. I
then whispered to my wife, "Come, my dear, let us make a desperate leap
for liberty!" But poor thing, she shrank back, in a state of trepidation.
I turned and asked what was the matter; she made no reply, but burst into violent
sobs, and threw her head upon my breast. This appeared to touch my very heart,
it caused me to enter into her feelings more fully than ever. We both saw the
many mountainous difficulties that rose one after the other before our view,
and knew far too well what our sad fate would have been, were we caught and
forced back into our slavish den. Therefore on my wife's fully realizing the
solemn fact that we had to take our lives, as it were, in our hands, and
contest every inch of the thousand miles of slave territory over which we had
to pass, it made her heart almost sink within her, and, had I known them at
that time, I would have repeated the following encouraging lines, which may not
be out of place here--
"The hill, though high, I covet to ascend, The difficulty will not
me offend; For I perceive the way to life lies here: Come, pluck up heart,
let's neither faint nor fear; Better, though difficult, the right way to go,--
Than wrong, though easy, where the end is woe." However, the sobbing was soon over, and after a few moments of
silent prayer she recovered her self-possession, and said, "Come, William,
it is getting late, so now let us venture upon our perilous journey."
We then opened the
door, and stepped as softly out as "moonlight upon the water." I
locked the door with my own key, which I now have before me, and tiptoed across
the yard into the street. I say tiptoed, because we were like persons near a
tottering avalanche, afraid to move, or even breathe freely, for fear the
sleeping tyrants should be aroused, and come down upon us with double
vengeance, for daring to attempt to escape in the manner which we contemplated.
We shook hands, said
farewell, and started in different directions for the railway station. I took
the nearest possible way to the train, for fear I should be recognized by some
one, and got into the negro car in which I knew I should have to ride; but my
master (as I will now call my wife) took a longer way round, and only arrived
there with the bulk of the passengers. He obtained a ticket for himself and one
for his slave to Savannah, the first port, which was about two hundred miles
off. My master then had the luggage stowed away, and stepped into one of the
best carriages.
But just before the
train moved off I peeped through the window, and, to my great astonishment, I
saw the cabinet-maker with whom I had worked so long, on the platform. He
stepped up to the ticketseller, and asked some question, and then commenced
looking rapidly through the passengers, and into the carriages. Fully believing
that we were caught, I shrank into a corner, turned my face from the door, and
expected in a moment to be dragged out. The cabinet-maker looked into my
master's carriage, but did not know him in his new attire, and, as God would
have it, before he reached mine the bell rang, and the train moved off.
I have heard since that
the cabinet-maker had a presentiment that we were about to "make tracks
for parts unknown;" but, not seeing me, his suspicions vanished, until he
received the startling intelligence that we had arrived freely in a free State.
As soon as the train
had left the platform, my master looked round in the carriage, and was
terror-stricken to find a Mr. Cray--an old friend of my wife's master, who
dined with the family the day before, and knew my wife from childhood-- sitting
on the same seat.
The doors of the
American railway carriages are at the ends. The passengers walk up the aisle,
and take seats on either side; and as my master was engaged in looking out of
the window, he did not see who came in.
My master's first
impression, after seeing Mr. Cray, was, that he was there for the purpose of
securing him. However, my master thought it was not wise to give any
information respecting himself, and for fear that Mr. Cray might draw him into
conversation and recognise his voice, my master resolved to feign deafness as
the only means of self-defence.
After a little while,
Mr. Cray said to my master, "It is a very fine morning, sir." The
latter took no notice, but kept looking out of the window. Mr. Cray soon
repeated this remark, in a little louder tone, but my master remained as
before. This indifference attracted the attention of the passengers near, one
of whom laughed out. This, I suppose, annoyed the old gentleman; so he said,
"I will make him hear;" and in a loud tone of voice repeated,
"It is a very fine morning, sir."
My master turned his
head, and with a polite bow said, "Yes," and commenced looking out of
the window again.
One of the gentlemen
remarked that it was a very great deprivation to be deaf. "Yes,"
replied Mr. Cray, "and I shall not trouble that fellow any more."
This enabled my master to breathe a little easier, and to feel that Mr. Cray
was not his pursuer after all.
The gentlemen then
turned the conversation upon the three great topics of discussion in first-
class circles in Georgia, namely, Niggers, Cotton, and the Abolitionists.
My master had often
heard of abolitionists, but in such a connection as to cause him to think that
they were a fearful kind of wild animal. But he was highly delighted to learn,
from the gentlemen's conversation, that the abolitionists were persons who were
opposed to oppression; and therefore, in his opinion, not the lowest, but the
very highest, of God's creatures.
Without the slightest
objection on my master's part, the gentlemen left the carriage at Gordon, for
Milledgeville (the capital of the State).
We arrived at Savannah
early in the evening, and got into an omnibus, which stopped at the hotel for
the passengers to take tea. I stepped into the house and brought my master
something on a tray to the omnibus, which took us in due time to the steamer,
which was bound for Charleston, South Carolina.
Soon after going on
board, my master turned in; and as the captain and some of the passengers
seemed to think this strange, and also questioned me respecting him, my master
thought I had better get out the flannels and opodeldoc which we had prepared
for the rheumatism, warm them quickly by the stove in the gentleman's saloon,
and bring them to his berth. We did this as an excuse for my master's retiring
to bed so early.
While at the stove one
of the passengers said to me, "Buck, what have you got there?"
"Opodeldoc, sir," I replied. "I should think it's
opodevil," said a lanky swell, who was leaning back in a chair with his
heels upon the back of another, and chewing tobacco as if for a wager; "it
stinks enough to kill or cure twenty men. Away with it, or I reckon I will
throw it overboard!"
It was by this time
warm enough, so I took it to my master's berth, remained there a little while,
and then went on deck and asked the steward where I was to sleep. He said there
was no place provided for coloured passengers, whether slave or free. So I
paced the deck till a late hour, then mounted some cotton bags, in a warm place
near the funnel, sat there till morning, and then went and assisted my master
to get ready for breakfast.
He was seated at the
right hand of the captain, who, together with all the passengers, inquired very
kindly after his health. As my master had one hand in a sling, it was my duty
to carve his food. But when I went out the captain said, "You have a very
attentive boy, sir; but you had better watch him like a hawk when you get on to
the North. He seems all very well here, but he may act quite differently there.
I know several gentlemen who have lost their valuable niggers among them d----d
cut-throat abolitionists."
Before my master could
speak, a rough slave- dealer, who was sitting opposite, with both elbows on the
table, and with a large piece of broiled fowl in his fingers, shook his head
with emphasis, and in a deep Yankee tone, forced through his crowded mouth the
words, "Sound doctrine, captain, very sound." He then dropped the
chicken into the plate, leant back, placed his thumbs in the armholes of his
fancy waistcoat, and continued, "I would not take a nigger to the North
under no consideration. I have had a deal to do with niggers in my time, but I
never saw one who ever had his heel upon free soil that was worth a d----n."
"Now stranger," addressing my master, "if you have made up your
mind to sell that ere nigger, I am your man; just mention your price, and if it
isn't out of the way, I will pay for him on this board with hard silver
dollars." This hard-featured, bristly-bearded, wire-headed, red-eyed
monster, staring at my master as the serpent did at Eve, said, "What do
you say, stranger?" He replied, "I don't wish to sell, sir; I cannot
get on well without him."
"You will have to
get on without him if you take him to the North," continued this man;
"for I can tell ye, stranger, as a friend, I am an older cove than you, I
have seen lots of this ere world, and I reckon I have had more dealings with
niggers than any man living or dead. I was once employed by General Wade
Hampton, for ten years, in doing nothing but breaking 'em in; and everybody
knows that the General would not have a man that didn't understand his
business. So I tell ye, stranger, again, you had better sell, and let me take
him down to Orleans. He will do you no good if you take him across Mason's and
Dixon's line; he is a keen nigger, and I can see from the cut of his eye that
he is certain to run away." My master said, "I think not, sir; I have
great confidence in his fidelity." "Fidevil," indignantly said
the dealer, as his fist came down upon the edge of the saucer and upset a cup
of hot coffee in a gentleman's lap. (As the scalded man jumped up the trader
quietly said, "Don't disturb yourself, neighbour; accidents will happen in
the best of families.") "It always makes me mad to hear a man talking
about fidelity in niggers. There isn't a d----d one on 'em who wouldn't cut
sticks, if he had half a chance."
By this time we were
near Charleston; my master thanked the captain for his advice, and they all withdrew
and went on deck, where the trader fancied he became quite eloquent. He drew a
crowd around him, and with emphasis said, "Cap'en, if I was the President
of this mighty United States of America, the greatest and freest country under
the whole universe, I would never let no man, I don't care who he is, take a
nigger into the North and bring him back here, filled to the brim, as he is
sure to be, with d----d abolition vices, to taint all quiet niggers with the
hellish spirit of running away. These air, cap'en, my flat-footed, every day,
right up and down sentiments, and as this is a free country, cap'en, I don't
care who hears 'em; for I am a Southern man, every inch on me to the
backbone." "Good!" said an insignificant-looking individual of
the slave-dealer stamp. "Three cheers for John C. Calhoun and the whole
fair sunny South!" added the trader. So off went their hats, and out burst
a terrific roar of irregular but continued cheering. My master took no more
notice of the dealer. He merely said to the captain that the air on deck was
too keen for him, and he would therefore return to the cabin.
While the trader was in
the zenith of his eloquence, he might as well have said, as one of his kit did,
at a great Filibustering meeting, that "When the great American Eagle gets
one of his mighty claws upon Canada and the other into South America, and his
glorious and starry wings of liberty extending from the Atlantic to the
Pacific, oh! then, where will England be, ye gentlemen? I tell ye, she will
only serve as a pocket- handkerchief for Jonathan to wipe his nose with."
On my master entering
the cabin he found at the breakfast-table a young southern military officer,
with whom he had travelled some distance the previous day.
After passing the usual
compliments the conversation turned upon the old subject,--niggers.
The officer, who was
also travelling with a man-servant, said to my master, "You will excuse
me, Sir, for saying I think you are very likely to spoil your boy by saying
'thank you' to him. I assure you, sir, nothing spoils a slave so soon as
saying, 'thank you' and 'if you please' to him. The only way to make a nigger
toe the mark, and to keep him in his place, is to storm at him like thunder,
and keep him trembling like a leaf. Don't you see, when I speak to my Ned, he
darts like lightning; and if he didn't I'd skin him."
Just then the poor
dejected slave came in, and the officer swore at him fearfully, merely to teach
my master what he called the proper way to treat me.
After he had gone out
to get his master's luggage ready, the officer said, "That is the way to
speak to them. If every nigger was drilled in this manner, they would be as
humble as dogs, and never dare to run away.
The gentleman urged my
master not to go to the North for the restoration of his health, but to visit
the Warm Springs in Arkansas.
My master said, he
thought the air of Philadelphia would suit his complaint best; and, not only
so, he thought he could get better advice there.
The boat had now
reached the wharf. The officer wished my master a safe and pleasant journey,
and left the saloon.
There were a large
number of persons on the quay waiting the arrival of the steamer: but we were
afraid to venture out for fear that some one might recognize me; or that they
had heard that we were gone, and had telegraphed to have us stopped. However,
after remaining in the cabin till all the other passengers were gone, we had
our luggage placed on a fly, and I took my master by the arm, and with a little
difficulty he hobbled on shore, got in and drove off to the best hotel, which
John C. Calhoun, and all the other great southern fire-eating statesmen, made
their head-quarters while in Charleston.
On arriving at the
house the landlord ran out and opened the door: but judging, from the poultices
and green glasses, that my master was an invalid, he took him very tenderly by
one arm and ordered his man to take the other.
My master then eased
himself out, and with their assistance found no trouble in getting up the steps
into the hotel. The proprietor made me stand on one side, while he paid my
master the attention and homage he thought a gentleman of his high position
merited.
My master asked for a
bed-room. The servant was ordered to show a good one, into which we helped him.
The servant returned. My master then handed me the bandages, I took them
downstairs in great haste, and told the landlord my master wanted two hot
poultices as quickly as possible. He rang the bell, the servant came in, to
whom he said, "Run to the kitchen and tell the cook to make two hot
poultices right off, for there is a gentleman upstairs very badly off
indeed!"
In a few minutes the
smoking poultices were brought in. I placed them in white handkerchiefs, and
hurried upstairs, went into my master's apartment, shut the door, and laid them
on the mantel-piece. As he was alone for a little while, he thought he could
rest a great deal better with the poultices off. However, it was necessary to
have them to complete the remainder of the journey. I then ordered dinner, and
took my master's boots out to polish them. While doing so I entered into
conversation with one of the slaves. I may state here, that on the sea-coast of
South Carolina and Georgia the slaves speak worse English than in any other
part of the country. This is owing to the frequent importation, or smuggling
in, of Africans, who mingle with the natives. Consequently the language cannot
properly be called English or African, but a corruption of the two.
The shrewd son of African
parents to whom I referred said to me, "Say, brudder, way you come from,
and which side you goin day wid dat ar little don up buckra" (white man)?
I replied, "To
Philadelphia."
"What!" he
exclaimed, with astonishment, "to Philumadelphy?"
"Yes," I
said.
"By squash! I wish
I was going wid you! I hears um say dat dare's no slaves way over in dem parts;
is um so?"
I quietly said, "I
have heard the same thing."
"Well,"
continued he, as he threw down the boot and brush, and, placing his hands in
his pockets, strutted across the floor with an air of independence--"Gorra
Mighty, dem is de parts for Pompey; and I hope when you get dare you will stay,
and nebber follow dat buckra back to dis hot quarter no more, let him be eber
so good."
I thanked him; and just
as I took the boots up and started off, he caught my hand between his two, and
gave it a hearty shake, and, with tears streaming down his cheeks, said:--
"God bless you,
broder, and may de Lord be wid you. When you gets de freedom, and sitin under
your own wine and fig-tree, don't forget to pray for poor Pompey."
I was afraid to say
much to him, but I shall never forget his earnest request, nor fail to do what
little I can to release the millions of unhappy bondmen, of whom he was one.
At the proper time my
master had the poultices placed on, came down, and seated himself at a table in
a very brilliant dining-room, to have his dinner. I had to have something at
the same time, in order to be ready for the boat; so they gave me my dinner in
an old broken plate, with a rusty knife and fork, and said, "Here, boy,
you go in the kitchen." I took it and went out, but did not stay more than
a few minutes, because I was in a great hurry to get back to see how the
invalid was getting on. On arriving I found two or three servants waiting on
him; but as he did not feel able to make a very hearty dinner, he soon
finished, paid the bill, and gave the servants each a trifle, which caused one
of them to say to me, "Your massa is a big bug"--meaning a gentleman
of distinction-- "he is the greatest gentleman dat has been dis way for
dis six months." I said, "Yes, he is some pumpkins," meaning the
same as "big bug."
When we left Maçon, it
was our intention to take a steamer at Charleston through to Philadelphia; but
on arriving there we found that the vessels did not run during the winter, and
I have no doubt it was well for us they did not; for on the very last voyage
the steamer made that we intended to go by, a fugitive was discovered secreted
on board, and sent back to slavery. However, as we had also heard of the
Overland Mail Route, we were all right. So I ordered a fly to the door, had the
luggage placed on; we got in, and drove down to the Custom-house Office, which
was near the wharf where we had to obtain tickets, to take a steamer for
Wilmington, North Carolina. When we reached the building, I helped my master
into the office, which was crowded with passengers. He asked for a ticket for
himself and one for his slave to Philadelphia. This caused the principal officer--a
very mean-looking, cheese-coloured fellow, who was sitting there--to look up at
us very suspiciously, and in a fierce tone of voice he said to me, "Boy,
do you belong to that gentleman?" I quickly replied, "Yes, sir"
(which was quite correct). The tickets were handed out, and as my master was
paying for them the chief man said to him, "I wish you to register your
name here, sir, and also the name of your nigger, and pay a dollar duty on
him."
My master paid the
dollar, and pointing to the hand that was in the poultice, requested the
officer to register his name for him. This seemed to offend the
"high-bred" South Carolinian. He jumped up, shaking his head; and,
cramming his hands almost through the bottom of his trousers pockets, with a
slave-bullying air, said, "I shan't do it."
This attracted the
attention of all the passengers. Just then the young military officer with whom
my master travelled and conversed on the steamer from Savannah stepped in,
somewhat the worse for brandy; he shook hands with my master, and pretended to
know all about him. He said, "I know his kin (friends) like a book;"
and as the officer was known in Charleston, and was going to stop there with
friends, the recognition was very much in my master's favor.
The captain of the
steamer, a good-looking, jovial fellow, seeing that the gentleman appeared to
know my master, and perhaps not wishing to lose us as passengers, said in an
off-hand sailor-like manner, "I will register the gentleman's name, and
take the responsibility upon myself." He asked my master's name. He said,
"William Johnson." The names were put down, I think, "Mr.
Johnson and slave." The captain said, "It's all right now, Mr.
Johnson." He thanked him kindly, and the young officer begged my master to
go with him, and have something to drink and a cigar; but as he had not
acquired these accomplishments, he excused himself, and we went on board and
came off to Wilmington, North Carolina. When the gentleman finds out his
mistake, he will, I have no doubt, be careful in future not to pretend to have
an intimate acquaintance with an entire stranger. During the voyage the captain
said, "It was rather sharp shooting this morning, Mr. Johnson. It was not
out of any disrespect to you, sir; but they make it a rule to be very strict at
Charleston. I have known families to be detained there with their slaves till
reliable information could be received respecting them. If they were not very
careful, any d----d abolitionist might take off a lot of valuable
niggers."
My master said, "I
suppose so," and thanked him again for helping him over the difficulty.
We reached Wilmington
the next morning, and took the train for Richmond, Virginia. I have stated that
the American railway carriages (or cars, as they are called), are constructed
differently to those in England. At one end of some of them, in the South,
there is a little apartment with a couch on both sides for the convenience of
families and invalids; and as they thought my master was very poorly, he was
allowed to enter one of these apartments at Petersburg, Virginia, where an old
gentleman and two handsome young ladies, his daughters, also got in, and took
seats in the same carriage. But before the train started, the gentleman stepped
into my car, and questioned me respecting my master. He wished to know what was
the matter with him, where he was from, and where he was going. I told him
where he came from, and said that he was suffering from a complication of
complaints, and was going to Philadelphia, where he thought he could get more
suitable advice than in Georgia.
The gentleman said my
master could obtain the very best advice in Philadelphia. Which turned out to
be quite correct, though he did not receive it from physicians, but from kind
abolitionists who understood his case much better. The gentleman also said,
"I reckon your master's father hasn't any more such faithful and smart
boys as you." "O, yes, sir, he has," I replied, "lots on
'em." Which was literally true. This seemed all he wished to know. He
thanked me, gave me a ten-cent piece, and requested me to be attentive to my
good master. I promised that I would do so, and have ever since endeavoured to
keep my pledge. During the gentleman's absence, the ladies and my master had a
little cosy chat. But on his return, he said, "You seem to be very much
afflicted, sir." "Yes, sir," replied the gentleman in the
poultices. "What seems to be the matter with you, sir; may I be allowed to
ask?" "Inflammatory rheumatism, sir." "Oh! that is very
bad, sir," said the kind gentleman: "I can sympathise with you; for I
know from bitter experience what the rheumatism is." If he did, he knew a
good deal more than Mr. Johnson.
The gentleman thought
my master would feel better if he would lie down and rest himself; and as he
was anxious to avoid conversation, he at once acted upon this suggestion. The
ladies politely rose, took their extra shawls, and made a nice pillow for the
invalid's head. My master wore a fashionable cloth cloak, which they took and
covered him comfortably on the couch. After he had been lying a little while
the ladies, I suppose, thought he was asleep; so one of them gave a long sigh,
and said, in a quiet fascinating tone, "Papa, he seems to be a very nice
young gentleman." But before papa could speak, the other lady quickly
said, "Oh! dear me, I never felt so much for a gentleman in my life!"
To use an American expression, "they fell in love with the wrong
chap."
After my master had
been lying a little while he got up, the gentleman assisted him in getting on
his cloak, the ladies took their shawls, and soon they were all seated. They
then insisted upon Mr. Johnson taking some of their refreshments, which of
course he did, out of courtesy to the ladies. All went on enjoying themselves
until they reached Richmond, where the ladies and their father left the train.
But, before doing so, the good old Virginian gentleman, who appeared to be much
pleased with my master, presented him with a recipe, which he said was a
perfect cure for the inflammatory rheumatism. But the invalid not being able to
read it, and fearing he should hold it upside down in pretending to do so,
thanked the donor kindly, and placed it in his waistcoat pocket. My master's
new friend also gave him his card, and requested him the next time he travelled
that way to do him the kindness to call; adding, "I shall be pleased to
see you, and so will my daughters." Mr. Johnson expressed his gratitude
for the proffered hospitality, and said he should feel glad to call on his
return. I have not the slightest doubt that he will fulfil the promise whenever
that return takes place. After changing trains we went on a little beyond
Fredericksburg, and took a steamer to Washington.
At Richmond, a stout
elderly lady, whose whole demeanour indicated that she belonged (as Mrs.
Stowe's Aunt Chloe expresses it) to one of the "firstest families,"
stepped into the carriage, and took a seat near my master. Seeing me passing
quickly along the platform, she sprang up as if taken by a fit, and exclaimed,
"Bless my soul! there goes my nigger, Ned!"
My master said,
"No; that is my boy."
The lady paid no
attention to this; she poked her head out of the window, and bawled to me,
"You Ned, come to me, sir, you runaway rascal!"
On my looking round she
drew her head in, and said to my master, "I beg your pardon, sir, I was
sure it was my nigger; I never in my life saw two black pigs more alike than
your boy and my Ned."
After the disappointed
lady had resumed her seat, and the train had moved off, she closed her eyes,
slightly raising her hands, and in a sanctified tone said to my master,
"Oh! I hope, sir, your boy will not turn out to be so worthless as my Ned
has. Oh! I was as kind to him as if he had been my own son. Oh! sir, it grieves
me very much to think that after all I did for him he should go off without
having any cause whatever."
"When did he leave
you?" asked Mr. Johnson.
"About eighteen
months ago, and I have never seen hair or hide of him since."
"Did he have a
wife?" enquired a very respectable-looking young gentleman, who was
sitting near my master and opposite to the lady.
"No, sir; not when
he left, though he did have one a little before that. She was very unlike him;
she was as good and as faithful a nigger as any one need wish to have. But,
poor thing! she became so ill, that she was unable to do much work; so I
thought it would be best to sell her, to go to New Orleans, where the climate
is nice and warm."
"I suppose she was
very glad to go South for the restoration of her health?" said the
gentleman.
"No; she was
not," replied the lady, "for niggers never know what is best for
them. She took on a great deal about leaving Ned and the little nigger; but, as
she was so weakly, I let her go."
"Was she
good-looking?" asked the young passenger, who was evidently not of the
same opinion as the talkative lady, and therefore wished her to tell all she
knew.
"Yes; she was very
handsome, and much whiter than I am; and therefore will have no trouble in
getting another husband. I am sure I wish her well. I asked the speculator who
bought her to sell her to a good master. Poor thing! she has my prayers, and I
know she prays for me. She was a good Christian, and always used to pray for my
soul. It was through her earliest prayers," continued the lady, "that
I was first led to seek forgiveness of my sins, before I was converted at the
great camp-meeting."
This caused the lady to
snuffle and to draw from her pocket a richly embroidered handkerchief, and
apply it to the corner of her eyes. But my master could not see that it was at
all soiled.
The silence which
prevailed for a few moments was broken by the gentleman's saying, "As your
'July' was such a very good girl, and had served you so faithfully before she
lost her health, don't you think it would have been better to have emancipated
her?"
"No, indeed I do
not!" scornfully exclaimed the lady, as she impatiently crammed the fine
handkerchief into a little work-bag. "I have no patience with people who
set niggers at liberty. It is the very worst thing you can do for them. My dear
husband just before he died willed all his niggers free. But I and all our friends
knew very well that he was too good a man to have ever thought of doing such an
unkind and foolish thing, had he been in his right mind, and, therefore we had
the will altered as it should have been in the first place."
"Did you mean,
madam," asked my master, "that willing the slaves free was unjust to
yourself, or unkind to them?"
"I mean that it
was decidedly unkind to the servants themselves. It always seems to me such a
cruel thing to turn niggers loose to shift for themselves, when there are so many
good masters to take care of them. As for myself," continued the
considerate lady, "I thank the Lord my dear husband left me and my son
well provided for. Therefore I care nothing for the niggers, on my own account,
for they are a great deal more trouble than they are worth, I sometimes wish
that there was not one of them in the world; for the ungrateful wretches are
always running away. I have lost no less than ten since my poor husband died.
It's ruinous, sir!"
"But as you are
well provided for, I suppose you do not feel the loss very much," said the
passenger.
"I don't feel it
at all," haughtily continued the good soul; "but that is no reason
why property should be squandered. If my son and myself had the money for those
valuable niggers, just see what a great deal of good we could do for the poor,
and in sending missionaries abroad to the poor heathen, who have never heard
the name of our blessed Redeemer. My dear son who is a good Christian minister
has advised me not to worry and send my soul to hell for the sake of niggers;
but to sell every blessed one of them for what they will fetch, and go and live
in peace with him in New York. This I have concluded to do. I have just been to
Richmond and made arrangements with my agent to make clean work of the forty
that are left."
"Your son being a
good Christian minister," said the gentleman, "It's strange he did
not advise you to let the poor negroes have their liberty and go North."
"It's not at all
strange, sir; it's not at all strange. My son knows what's best for the
niggers; he has always told me that they were much better off than the free
niggers in the North. In fact, I don't believe there are any white labouring
people in the world who are as well off as the slaves."
"You are quite
mistaken, madam," said the young man. "For instance, my own widowed
mother, before she died, emancipated all her slaves, and sent them to Ohio,
where they are getting along well. I saw several of them last summer
myself."
"Well,"
replied the lady, "freedom may do for your ma's niggers, but it will never
do for mine; and, plague them, they shall never have it; that is the word, with
the bark on it."
"If freedom will
not do for your slaves," replied the passenger, "I have no doubt your
Ned and the other nine negroes will find out their mistake, and return to their
old home.
"Blast them!"
exclaimed the old lady, with great emphasis, "if I ever get them, I will
cook their infernal hash, and tan their accursed black hides well for them! God
forgive me," added the old soul, "the niggers will make me lose all
my religion!"
By this time the lady
had reached her destination. The gentleman got out at the next station beyond.
As soon as she was gone, the young Southerner said to my master, "What a
d----d shame it is for that old whining hypocritical humbug to cheat the poor
negroes out of their liberty! If she has religion, may the devil prevent me
from ever being converted!"
For the purpose of
somewhat disguising myself, I bought and wore a very good second-hand white
beaver, an article which I had never indulged in before. So just before we
arrived at Washington, an uncouth planter, who had been watching me very
closely, said to my master, "I reckon, stranger, you are 'spiling' that
ere nigger of yourn, by letting him wear such a devilish fine hat. Just look at
the quality on it; the President couldn't wear a better. I should just like to
go and kick it overboard." His friend touched him, and said, "Don't
speak so to a gentleman." "Why not?" exclaimed the fellow. He
grated his short teeth, which appeared to be nearly worn away by the incessant
chewing of tobacco, and said, "It always makes me itch all over, from head
to toe, to get hold of every d----d nigger I see dressed like a white man.
Washington is run away with spiled and free niggers. If I had my way I would
sell every d----d rascal of 'em way down South, where the devil would be
whipped out on 'em."
This man's fierce
manner made my master feel rather nervous, and therefore he thought the less he
said the better; so he walked off without making any reply. In a few minutes we
were landed at Washington, where we took a conveyance and hurried off to the
train for Baltimore.
We left our cottage on
Wednesday morning, the 21st of December, 1848, and arrived at Baltimore,
Saturday evening, the 24th (Christmas Eve). Baltimore was the last slave port
of any note at which we stopped.
On arriving there we
felt more anxious than ever, because we knew not what that last dark night
would bring forth. It is true we were near the goal, but our poor hearts were
still as if tossed at sea; and, as there was another great and dangerous bar to
pass, we were afraid our liberties would be wrecked, and, like the ill-fated
Royal Charter, go down for ever just off the place we longed to reach.
They are particularly
watchful at Baltimore to prevent slaves from escaping into Pennsylvania, which
is a free State. After I had seen my master into one of the best carriages, and
was just about to step into mine, an officer, a full-blooded Yankee of the
lower order, saw me. He came quickly up, and, tapping me on the shoulder, said
in his unmistakable native twang, together with no little display of his
authority, "Where are you going, boy?" "To Philadelphia,
sir," I humbly replied. "Well, what are you going there for?"
"I am travelling with my master, who is in the next carriage, sir."
"Well, I calculate you had better get him out; and be mighty quick about
it, because the train will soon be starting. It is against my rules to let any
man take a slave past here, unless he can satisfy them in the office that he
has a right to take him along."
The officer then passed
on and left me standing upon the platform, with my anxious heart apparently
palpitating in the throat. At first I scarcely knew which way to turn. But it
soon occurred to me that the good God, who had been with us thus far, would not
forsake us at the eleventh hour. So with renewed hope I stepped into my
master's carriage, to inform him of the difficulty. I found him sitting at the
farther end, quite alone. As soon as he looked up and saw me, he smiled. I also
tried to wear a cheerful countenance, in order to break the shock of the sad
news. I knew what made him smile. He was aware that if we were fortunate we
should reach our destination at five o'clock the next morning, and this made it
the more painful to communicate what the officer had said; but, as there was no
time to lose, I went up to him and asked him how he felt. He said "Much
better," and that he thanked God we were getting on so nicely. I then said
we were not getting on quite so well as we had anticipated. He anxiously and
quickly asked what was the matter. I told him. He started as if struck by
lightning, and exclaimed, "Good Heavens! William, is it possible that we
are, after all, doomed to hopeless bondage?" I could say nothing, my heart
was too full to speak, for at first I did not know what to do. However we knew
it would never do to turn back to the "City of Destruction," like
Bunyan's Mistrust and Timorous, because they saw lions in the narrow way after
ascending the hill Difficulty; but press on, like noble Christian and Hopeful,
to the great city in which dwelt a few "shining ones." So, after a
few moments, I did all I could to encourage my companion, and we stepped out
and made for the office; but how or where my master obtained sufficient courage
to face the tyrants who had power to blast all we held dear, heaven only knows!
Queen Elizabeth could not have been more terror-stricken, on being forced to
land at the traitors' gate leading to the Tower, than we were on entering that office.
We felt that our very existence was at stake, and that we must either sink or
swim. But, as God was our present and mighty helper in this as well as in all
former trials, we were able to keep our heads up and press forwards.
On entering the room we
found the principal man, to whom my master said, "Do you wish to see me,
sir?" "Yes," said this eagle-eyed officer; and he added,
"It is against our rules, sir, to allow any person to take a slave out of
Baltimore into Philadelphia, unless he can satisfy us that he has a right to
take him along." "Why is that?" asked my master, with more
firmness than could be expected. "Because, sir," continued he, in a
voice and manner that almost chilled our blood, "if we should suffer any
gentleman to take a slave past here into Philadelphia; and should the gentleman
with whom the slave might be travelling turn out not to be his rightful owner;
and should the proper master come and prove that his slave escaped on our road,
we shall have him to pay for; and, therefore, we cannot let any slave pass here
without receiving security to show, and to satisfy us, that it is all
right."
This conversation
attracted the attention of the large number of bustling passengers. After the
officer had finished, a few of them said, "Chit, chit, chit;" not
because they thought we were slaves endeavouring to escape, but merely because
they thought my master was a slaveholder and invalid gentleman, and therefore
it was wrong to detain him. The officer, observing that the passengers sympathised
with my master, asked him if he was not acquainted with some gentleman in
Baltimore that he could get to endorse for him, to show that I was his
property, and that he had a right to take me off. He said, "No;" and
added, "I bought tickets in Charleston to pass us through to Philadelphia,
and therefore you have no right to detain us here." "Well, sir,"
said the man, indignantly, "right or no right, we shan't let you go."
These sharp words fell upon our anxious hearts like the crack of doom, and made
us feel that hope only smiles to deceive.
For a few moments
perfect silence prevailed. My master looked at me, and I at him, but neither of
us dared to speak a word, for fear of making some blunder that would tend to
our detection. We knew that the officers had power to throw us into prison, and
if they had done so we must have been detected and driven back, like the vilest
felons, to a life of slavery, which we dreaded far more than sudden death.
We felt as though we
had come into deep waters and were about being overwhelmed, and that the
slightest mistake would clip asunder the last brittle thread of hope by which
we were suspended, and let us down for ever into the dark and horrible pit of
misery and degradation from which we were straining every nerve to escape.
While our hearts were crying lustily unto Him who is ever ready and able to
save, the conductor of the train that we had just left stepped in. The officer
asked if we came by the train with him from Washington; he said we did, and
left the room. Just then the bell rang for the train to leave; and had it been
the sudden shock of an earthquake it could not have given us a greater thrill.
The sound of the bell caused every eye to flash with apparent interest, and to
be more steadily fixed upon us than before. But, as God would have it, the
officer all at once thrust his fingers through his hair, and in a state of
great agitation said, "I really don't know what to do; I calculate it is
all right." He then told the clerk to run and tell the conductor to
"let this gentleman and slave pass;" adding, "As he is not well,
it is a pity to stop him here. We will let him go." My master thanked him,
and stepped out and hobbled across the platform as quickly as possible. I
tumbled him unceremoniously into one of the best carriages, and leaped into
mine just as the train was gliding off towards our happy destination.
We thought of this plan
about four days before we left Maçon; and as we had our daily employment to
attend to, we only saw each other at night. So we sat up the four long nights
talking over the plan and making preparations.
We had also been four
days on the journey; and as we travelled night and day, we got but very limited
opportunities for sleeping. I believe nothing in the world could have kept us
awake so long but the intense excitement, produced by the fear of being retaken
on the one hand, and the bright anticipation of liberty on the other.
We left Baltimore about
eight o'clock in the evening; and not being aware of a stopping- place of any
consequence between there and Philadelphia, and also knowing that if we were
fortunate we should be in the latter place early the next morning, I thought I
might indulge in a few minutes' sleep in the car; but I, like Bunyan's
Christian in the arbour, went to sleep at the wrong time, and took too long a
nap. So, when the train reached Havre de Grace, all the first-class passengers
had to get out of the carriages and into a ferry-boat, to be ferried across the
Susquehanna river, and take the train on the opposite side.
The road was
constructed so as to be raised or lowered to suit the tide. So they rolled the
luggage- vans on to the boat, and off on the other side; and as I was in one of
the apartments adjoining a baggage-car, they considered it unnecessary to
awaken me, and tumbled me over with the luggage. But when my master was asked
to leave his seat, he found it very dark, and cold, and raining. He missed me
for the first time on the journey. On all previous occasions, as soon as the
train stopped, I was at hand to assist him. This caused many slaveholders to
praise me very much: they said they had never before seen a slave so attentive
to his master: and therefore my absence filled him with terror and confusion;
the children of Israel could not have felt more troubled on arriving at the Red
Sea. So he asked the conductor if he had seen anything of his slave. The man
being somewhat of an abolitionist, and believing that my master was really a
slaveholder, thought he would tease him a little respecting me. So he said,
"No, sir; I haven't seen anything of him for some time: I have no doubt he
has run away, and is in Philadelphia, free, long before now." My master
knew that there was nothing in this; so he asked the conductor if he would
please to see if he could find me. The man indignantly replied, "I am no
slave-hunter; and as far as I am concerned everybody must look after their own
niggers." He went off and left the confused invalid to fancy whatever he
felt inclined. My master at first thought I must have been kidnapped into
slavery by some one, or left, or perhaps killed on the train. He also thought
of stopping to see if he could hear anything of me, but he soon remembered that
he had no money. That night all the money we had was consigned to my own
pocket, because we thought, in case there were any pickpockets about, a slave's
pocket would be the last one they would look for. However, hoping to meet me
some day in a land of liberty, and as he had the tickets, he thought it best
upon the whole to enter the boat and come off to Philadelphia, and endeavour to
make his way alone in this cold and hollow world as best he could. The time was
now up, so he went on board and came across with feelings that can be better
imagined than described.
After the train had got
fairly on the way to Philadelphia, the guard came into my car and gave me a
violent shake, and bawled out at the same time, "Boy, wake up!" I
started, almost frightened out of my wits. He said, "Your master is scared
half to death about you." That frightened me still more--I thought they
had found him out; so I anxiously inquired what was the matter. The guard said,
"He thinks you have run away from him." This made me feel quite at
ease. I said, "No, sir; I am satisfied my good master doesn't think
that." So off I started to see him. He had been fearfully nervous, but on
seeing me he at once felt much better. He merely wished to know what had become
of me.
On returning to my
seat, I found the conductor and two or three other persons amusing themselves
very much respecting my running away. So the guard said, "Boy, what did
your master want?"** I replied, "He merely wished to know what had
become of me." "No," said the man, "that was not it; he
thought you had taken French leave, for parts unknown. I never saw a fellow so
badly scared about losing his slave in my life. Now," continued the guard,
"let me give you a little friendly advice. When you get to Philadelphia,
run away and leave that cripple, and have your liberty." "No,
sir," I indifferently replied, "I can't promise to do that."
"Why not?" said the conductor, evidently much surprised; "don't
you want your liberty?" "Yes, sir," I replied; "but I shall
never run away from such a good master as I have at present."
One of the men said to
the guard, "Let him alone; I guess he will open his eyes when he gets to
Philadelphia, and see things in another light." After giving me a good
deal of information, which I afterwards found to be very useful, they left me
alone.
I also met with a
coloured gentleman on this train, who recommended me to a boarding-house that
was kept by an abolitionist, where he thought I would be quite safe, if I
wished to run away from my master. I thanked him kindly, but of course did not
let him know who we were. Late at night, or rather early in the morning, I
heard a fearful whistling of the steam-engine; so I opened the window and
looked out, and saw a large number of flickering lights in the distance, and
heard a passenger in the next carriage-- who also had his head out of the
window--say to his companion, "Wake up, old horse, we are at
Philadelphia!"
The sight of those
lights and that announcement made me feel almost as happy as Bunyan's Christian
must have felt when he first caught sight of the cross. I, like him, felt that
the straps that bound the heavy burden to my back began to pop, and the load to
roll off. I also looked, and looked again, for it appeared very wonderful to me
how the mere sight of our first city of refuge should have all at once made my
hitherto sad and heavy heart become so light and happy. As the train speeded
on, I rejoiced and thanked God with all my heart and soul for his great
kindness and tender mercy, in watching over us, and bringing us safely through.
As soon as the train
had reached the platform, before it had fairly stopped, I hurried out of my
carriage to my master, whom I got at once into a cab, placed the luggage on,
jumped in myself, and we drove off to the boarding-house which was so kindly
recommended to me. On leaving the station, my master--or rather my wife, as I
may now say-- who had from the commencement of the journey borne up in a manner
that much surprised us both, grasped me by the hand, and said, "Thank God,
William, we are safe!" and then burst into tears, leant upon me, and wept
like a child. The reaction was fearful. So when we reached the house, she was
in reality so weak and faint that she could scarcely stand alone. However, I
got her into the apartments that were pointed out, and there we knelt down, on
this Sabbath, and Christmas-day,--a day that will ever be memorable to us,--and
poured out our heartfelt gratitude to God, for his goodness in enabling us to
overcome so many perilous difficulties, in escaping out of the jaws of the
wicked.
--------------
AFTER my wife had a little recovered herself, she threw off the disguise and
assumed her own apparel. We then stepped into the sitting-room, and asked to
see the landlord. The man came in, but he seemed thunderstruck on finding a
fugitive slave and his wife, instead of a "young cotton planter and his
nigger." As his eyes travelled round the room, he said to me, "Where
is your master?" I pointed him out. The man gravely replied, "I am
not joking, I really wish to see your master." I pointed him out again,
but at first he could not believe his eyes; he said "he knew that was not
the gentleman that came with me."
But, after some
conversation, we satisfied him that we were fugitive slaves, and had just
escaped in the manner I have described. We asked him if he thought it would be
safe for us to stop in Philadelphia. He said he thought not, but he would call
in some persons who knew more about the laws than himself. He then went out,
and kindly brought in several of the leading abolitionists of the city, who
gave us a most hearty and friendly welcome amongst them. As it was in December,
and also as we had just left a very warm climate, they advised us not to go to
Canada as we had intended, but to settle at Boston in the United States. It is
true that the constitution of the Republic has always guaranteed the
slaveholders the right to come into any of the so-called free States, and take
their fugitives back to southern Egypt. But through the untiring,
uncompromising, and manly efforts of Mr. Garrison, Wendell Phillips, Theodore
Parker, and a host of other noble abolitionists of Boston and the
neighbourhood, public opinion in Massachusetts had become so much opposed to
slavery and to kidnapping, that it was almost impossible for any one to take a
fugitive slave out of that State.
So we took the advice
of our good Philadelphia friends, and settled at Boston. I shall have something
to say about our sojourn there presently.
Among other friends we
met with at Philadelphia, was Robert Purves, Esq., a well educated and wealthy
coloured gentleman, who introduced us to Mr. Barkley Ivens, a member of the
Society of Friends, and a noble and generous-hearted farmer, who lived at some
distance in the country.
This good Samaritan at
once invited us to go and stop quietly with his family, till my wife could
somewhat recover from the fearful reaction of the past journey. We most
gratefully accepted the invitation, and at the time appointed we took a steamer
to a place up the Delaware river, where our new and dear friend met us with his
snug little cart, and took us to his happy home. This was the first act of
great and disinterested kindness we had ever received from a white person.
The gentleman was not
of the fairest complexion, and therefore, as my wife was not in the room when I
received the information respecting him and his anti-slavery character, she
thought of course he was a quadroon like herself. But on arriving at the house,
and finding out her mistake, she became more nervous and timid than ever.
As the cart came into
the yard, the dear good old lady, and her three charming and affectionate
daughters, all came to the door to meet us. We got out, and the gentleman said,
"Go in, and make yourselves at home; I will see after the baggage."
But my wife was afraid to approach them. She stopped in the yard, and said to
me, "William, I thought we were coming among coloured people?" I
replied, "It is all right; these are the same." "No," she
said, "it is not all right, and I am not going to stop here; I have no
confidence whatever in white people, they are only trying to get us back to
slavery." She turned round and said, "I am going right off." The
old lady then came out, with her sweet, soft, and winning smile, shook her
heartily by the hand, and kindly said, "How art thou, my dear? We are all
very glad to see thee and thy husband. Come in, to the fire; I dare say thou
art cold and hungry after thy journey."
We went in, and the young
ladies asked if she would like to go upstairs and "fix" herself
before tea. My wife said, "No, I thank you; I shall only stop a little
while." "But where art thou going this cold night?" said Mr.
Ivens, who had just stepped in. "I don't know," was the reply.
"Well, then," he continued, "I think thou hadst better take off
thy things and sit near the fire; tea will soon be ready. "Yes, come,
Ellen," said Mrs. Ivens, "let me assist thee;" (as she commenced
undoing my wife's bonnet-strings;) "don't be frightened, Ellen, I shall
not hurt a single hair of thy head. We have heard with much pleasure of the
marvellous escape of thee and thy husband, and deeply sympathise with thee in
all that thou hast undergone. I don't wonder at thee, poor thing, being timid; but
thou needs not fear us; we would as soon send one of our own daughters into
slavery as thee; so thou mayest make thyself quite at ease!" These soft
and soothing words fell like balm upon my wife's unstrung nerves, and melted
her to tears; her fears and prejudices vanished, and from that day she has
firmly believed that there are good and bad persons of every shade of
complexion.
After seeing Sally Ann
and Jacob, two coloured domestics, my wife felt quite at home. After partaking
of what Mrs. Stowe's Mose and Pete called a "busting supper," the
ladies wished to know whether we could read. On learning we could not, they
said if we liked they would teach us. To this kind offer, of course, there was
no objection. But we looked rather knowingly at each other, as much as to say
that they would have rather a hard task to cram anything into our thick and
matured skulls.
However, all hands set
to and quickly cleared away the tea-things, and the ladies and their good
brother brought out the spelling and copy books and slates, &c., and
commenced with their new and green pupils. We had, by stratagem, learned the
alphabet while in slavery, but not the writing characters; and, as we had been
such a time learning so little, we at first felt that it was a waste of time for
any one at our ages to undertake to learn to read and write. But, as the ladies
were so anxious that we should learn, and so willing to teach us, we concluded
to give our whole minds to the work, and see what could be done. By so doing,
at the end of the three weeks we remained with the good family we could spell
and write our names quite legibly. They all begged us to stop longer; but, as
we were not safe in the State of Pennsylvania, and also as we wished to
commence doing something for a livelihood, we did not remain.
When the time arrived
for us to leave for Boston, it was like parting with our relatives. We have
since met with many very kind and hospitable friends, both in America and
England; but we have never been under a roof where we were made to feel more at
home, or where the inmates took a deeper interest in our well-being, than Mr.
Barkley Ivens and his dear family. May God ever bless them, and preserve each
one from every reverse of fortune!
We finally, as I have
stated, settled at Boston, where we remained nearly two years, I employed as
cabinet-maker and furniture broker, and my wife at her needle; and, as our
little earnings in slavery were not all spent on the journey, we were getting
on very well, and would have made money, if we had not been compelled by the
General Government, at the bidding of the slaveholders, to break up business,
and fly from under the Stars and Stripes to save our liberties and our lives.
In 1850, Congress
passed the Fugitive Slave Bill, an enactment too infamous to have been thought
of or tolerated by any people in the world, except the unprincipled and
tyrannical Yankees. The following are a few of the leading features of the
above law; which requires, under heavy penalties, that the inhabitants of the
free States should not only refuse food and shelter to a starving, hunted human
being, but also should assist, if called upon by the authorities, to seize the
unhappy fugitive and send him back to slavery.
In no case is a
person's evidence admitted in Court, in defence of his liberty, when arrested
under this law.
If the judge decides
that the prisoner is a slave, he gets ten dollars; but if he sets him at
liberty, he only receives five.
After the prisoner has
been sentenced to slavery, he is handed over to the United States Marshal, who
has the power, at the expense of the General Government, to summon a sufficient
force to take the poor creature back to slavery, and to the lash, from which he
fled.
Our old masters sent
agents to Boston after us. They took out warrants, and placed them in the hands
of the United States Marshal to execute. But the following letter from our
highly esteemed and faithful friend, the Rev. Samuel May, of Boston, to our
equally dear and much lamented friend, Dr. Estlin of Bristol, will show why we
were not taken into custody.
"21, Cornhill,
Boston,
November 6th, 1850.
"My dear Mr Estlin,
"I trust that in
God's good providence this letter will be handed to you in safety by our good
friends, William and Ellen Craft. They have lived amongst us about two years,
and have proved themselves worthy, in all respects, of our confidence and
regard. The laws of this republican and Christian land (tell it not in Moscow,
nor in Constantinople) regard them only as slaves--chattels-- personal property.
But they nobly vindicated their title and right to freedom, two years since, by
winning their way to it; at least, so they thought. But now, the slave power,
with the aid of Daniel Webster and a band of lesser traitors, has enacted a
law, which puts their dearly-bought liberties in the most imminent peril; holds
out a strong temptation to every mercenary and unprincipled ruffian to become
their kidnapper; and has stimulated the slaveholders generally to such
desperate acts for the recovery of their fugitive property, as have never
before been enacted in the history of this government.
"Within a
fortnight, two fellows from Maçon, Georgia, have been in Boston for the purpose
of arresting our friends William and Ellen. A writ was served against them from
the United States District Court; but it was not served by the United States
Marshal; why not, is not certainly known: perhaps through fear, for a general
feeling of indignation, and a cool determination not to allow this young couple
to be taken from Boston into slavery, was aroused, and pervaded the city. It is
understood that one of the judges told the Marshal that he would not be
authorised in breaking the door of Craft's house. Craft kept himself close
within the house, armed himself, and awaited with remarkable composure the
event. Ellen, in the meantime, had been taken to a retired place out of the
city. The Vigilance Committee (appointed at a late meeting in Fanueil Hall)
enlarged their numbers, held an almost permanent session, and appointed various
subcommittees to act in different ways. One of these committees called
repeatedly on Messrs. Hughes and Knight, the slave-catchers, and requested and
advised them to leave the city. At first they peremptorily refused to do so,
''till they got hold of the niggers.' On complaint of different persons, these
two fellows were several times arrested, carried before one of our county
courts, and held to bail on charges of 'conspiracy to kidnap,' and of
'defamation,' in calling William and Ellen 'slaves.' At length, they became so
alarmed, that they left the city by an indirect route, evading the vigilance of
many persons who were on the look-out for them. Hughes, at one time, was near
losing his life at the hands of an infuriated coloured man. While these men
remained in the city, a prominent whig gentleman sent word to William Craft,
that if he would submit peaceably to an arrest, he and his wife should be
bought from their owners, cost what it might. Craft replied, in effect, that he
was in a measure the representative of all the other fugitives in Boston, some
200 or 300 in number; that, if he gave up, they would all be at the mercy of
the slave-catchers, and must fly from the city at any sacrifice; and that, if
his freedom could be bought for two cents, he would not consent to compromise
the matter in such a way. This event has stirred up the slave spirit of the
country, south and north; the United States government is determined to try its
hand in enforcing the Fugitive Slave law; and William and Ellen Craft would be
prominent objects of the slaveholders' vengeance. Under these circumstances, it
is the almost unanimous opinion of their best friends, that they should quit
America as speedily as possible, and seek an asylum in England! Oh! shame,
shame upon us, that Americans, whose fathers fought against Great Britain, in
order to be FREE, should have to acknowledge this disgraceful fact! God gave us
a fair and goodly heritage in this land, but man has cursed it with his devices
and crimes against human souls and human rights. Is America the 'land of the
free, and the home of the brave?' God knows it is not; and we know it too. A
brave young man and a virtuous young woman must fly the American shores, and
seek, under the shadow of the British throne, the enjoyment of 'life, liberty,
and the pursuit of happiness.'
"But I must pursue
my plain, sad story. All day long, I have been busy planning a safe way for
William and Ellen to leave Boston. We dare not allow them to go on board a
vessel, even in the port of Boston; for the writ is yet in the Marshal's hands,
and he may be waiting an opportunity to serve it; so I am expecting to
accompany them to-morrow to Portland, Maine, which is beyond the reach of the
Marshal's authority; and there I hope to see them on board a British steamer.
"This letter is
written to introduce them to you. I know your infirm health; but I am sure, if
you were stretched on your bed in your last illness, and could lift your hand
at all, you would extend it to welcome these poor hunted fellow-creatures.
Henceforth, England is their nation and their home. It is with real regret for
our personal loss in their departure, as well as burning shame for the land
that is not worthy of them, that we send them away, or rather allow them to go.
But, with all the resolute courage they have shown in a most trying hour, they
themselves see it is the part of a foolhardy rashness to attempt to stay here
longer.
"I must close; and
with many renewed thanks for all your kind words and deeds towards us,
"I am, very respectfully yours,
"SAMUEL MAY, JUN."
Our old masters, having heard
how their agents were treated at Boston, wrote to Mr. Filmore, who was then
President of the States, to know what he could do to have us sent back to
slavery. Mr. Filmore said that we should be returned. He gave instructions for
military force to be sent to Boston to assist the officers in making the
arrest. Therefore we, as well as our friends (among whom was George Thompson,
Esq., late M.P. for the Tower Hamlets--the slave's long-tried, self-sacrificing
friend, and eloquent advocate) thought it best, at any sacrifice, to leave the
mock-free Republic, and come to a country where we and our dear little ones can
be truly free.--"No one daring to molest or make us afraid." But, as
the officers were watching every vessel that left the port to prevent us from
escaping, we had to take the expensive and tedious overland route to Halifax.
We shall always cherish
the deepest feelings of gratitude to the Vigilance Committee of Boston (upon
which were many of the leading abolitionists), and also to our numerous
friends, for the very kind and noble manner in which they assisted us to
preserve our liberties and to escape from Boston, as it were like Lot from
Sodom, to a place of refuge, and finally to this truly free and glorious
country; where no tyrant, let his power be ever so absolute over his poor
trembling victims at home, dare come and lay violent hands upon us or upon our
dear little boys (who had the good fortune to be born upon British soil), and reduce
us to the legal level of the beast that perisheth. Oh! may God bless the
thousands of unflinching, disinterested abolitionists of America, who are
labouring through evil as well as through good report, to cleanse their
country's escutcheon from the foul and destructive blot of slavery, and to
restore to every bondman his God-given rights; and may God ever smile upon
England and upon England's good, much-beloved, and deservedly-honoured Queen,
for the generous protection that is given to unfortunate refugees of every
rank, and of every colour and clime.
On the passing of the
Fugitive Slave Bill, the following learned doctors, as well as a host of lesser
traitors, came out strongly in its defence.
The Rev. Dr. Gardiner
Spring, an eminent Presbyterian Clergyman of New York, well known in this
country by his religious publications, declared from the pulpit that, "if
by one prayer he could liberate every slave in the world he would not dare to
offer it."
The Rev. Dr. Joel
Parker, of Philadelphia, in the course of a discussion on the nature of
Slavery, says, "What, then, are the evils inseparable from slavery? There
is not one that is not equally inseparable from depraved human nature in other
lawful relations."
The Rev. Moses Stuart,
D.D., (late Professor in the Theological College of Andover), in his
vindication of this Bill, reminds his readers that "many Southern
slaveholders are true Christians." That "sending back a fugitive to
them is not like restoring one to an idolatrous people." That "though
we may pity the fugitive, yet the Mosaic Law does not authorize the rejection
of the claims of the slaveholders to their stolen or strayed property."
The Rev. Dr. Spencer,
of Brooklyn, New York, has come forward in support of the "Fugitive Slave
Bill," by publishing a sermon entitled the "Religious Duty of
Obedience to the Laws," which has elicited the highest encomiums from Dr.
Samuel H. Cox, the Presbyterian minister of Brooklyn (notorious both in this
country and America for his sympathy with the slaveholder).
The Rev. W. M. Rogers,
an orthodox minister of Boston, delivered a sermon in which he says, "When
the slave asks me to stand between him and his master, what does he ask? He
asks me to murder a nation's life; and I will not do it, because I have a conscience,--
because there is a God." He proceeds to affirm that if resistance to the
carrying out of the "Fugitive Slave Law" should lead the magistracy
to call the citizens to arms, their duty was to obey and "if ordered to
take human life, in the name of God to take it;" and he concludes by
admonishing the fugitives to "hearken to the Word of God, and to count
their own masters worthy of all honour."
The Rev. William
Crowell, of Waterfield, State of Maine, printed a Thanksgiving Sermon of the
same kind, in which he calls upon his hearers not to allow "excessive
sympathies for a few hundred fugitives to blind them so that they may risk
increased suffering to the millions already in chains."
The Rev. Dr. Taylor, an
Episcopal Clergyman of New Haven, Connecticut, made a speech at a Union
Meeting, in which he deprecates the agitation on the law, and urges obedience
to it; asking,--"Is that article in the Constitution contrary to the law
of Nature, of nations, or to the will of God? Is it so? Is there a shadow of
reason for saying it? I have not been able to discover it. Have I not shown you
it is lawful to deliver up, in compliance with the laws, fugitive slaves, for
the high, the great, the momentous interests of those [Southern] States?"
The Right Rev. Bishop
Hopkins, of Vermont, in a Lecture at Lockport, says, "It was warranted by
the Old Testament;" and inquires, "What effect had the Gospel in
doing away with slavery? None whatever." Therefore he argues, as it is
expressly permitted by the Bible, it does not in itself involve any sin; but
that every Christian is authorised by the Divine Law to own slaves, provided
they were not treated with unnecessary cruelty.
The Rev. Orville Dewey,
D.D., of the Unitarian connexion, maintained in his lectures that the safety of
the Union is not to be hazarded for the sake of the African race. He declares
that, for his part, he would send his own brother or child into slavery, if
needed to preserve the Union between the free and the slaveholding States; and,
counselling the slave to similar magnanimity, thus exhorts him:--"Your
right to be free is not absolute, unqualified, irrespective of all
consequences. If my espousal of your claim is likely to involve your race and
mine together in disasters infinitely greater than your personal servitude,
then you ought not to be free. In such a case personal rights ought to be
sacrificed to the general good. You yourself ought to see this, and be willing
to suffer for a while --one for many."
If the Doctor is
prepared, he is quite at liberty to sacrifice his "personal rights to the
general good." But, as I have suffered a long time in slavery, it is
hardly fair for the Doctor to advise me to go back. According to his showing,
he ought rather to take my place. That would be practically carrying out his
logic, as respects "suffering awhile --one for many."
In fact, so eager were
they to prostrate themselves before the great idol of slavery, and, like
Balaam, to curse instead of blessing the people whom God had brought out of
bondage, that they in bring up obsolete passages from the Old Testament to
justify their downward course, overlooked, or would not see, the following
verses, which show very clearly, according to the Doctor's own textbook, that
the slaves have a right to run away, and that it is unscriptural for any one to
send them back.
In the 23rd chapter of
Deuteronomy, 15th and 16th verses, it is thus written:--"Thou shalt not
deliver unto his master the servant which is escaped from his master unto thee.
He shall dwell with thee, even among you, in that place which he shall choose
in one of thy gates, where it liketh him best: thou shalt not oppress
him."
"Hide the outcast.
Bewray not him that wandereth. Let mine outcasts dwell with thee. Be thou a
covert to them from the face of the spoiler." --(Isa. xvi. 3, 4.)
The great majority of
the American ministers are not content with uttering sentences similar to the
above, or remaining wholly indifferent to the cries of the poor bondman; but
they do all they can to blast the reputation, and to muzzle the mouths, of the
few good men who dare to beseech the God of mercy "to loose the bonds of
wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, and let the oppressed go free."
These reverend gentlemen pour a terrible cannonade upon "Jonah," for
refusing to carry God's message against Nineveh, and tell us about the whale in
which he was entombed; while they utterly overlook the existence of the whales
which trouble their republican waters, and know not that they themselves are
the "Jonahs" who threaten to sink their ship of state, by steering in
an unrighteous direction. We are told that the whale vomited up the runaway
prophet. This would not have seemed so strange, had it been one of the above
lukewarm Doctors of Divinity whom he had swallowed; for even a whale might find
such a morsel difficult of digestion.
"I venerate the man whose heart is warm, Whose hands are pure;
whose doctrines and whose life Coincident, exhibit lucid proof That he is
honest in the sacred cause."
"But grace abused brings forth the foulest deeds, As richest soil the most
luxuriant weeds." I must now
leave the reverend gentlemen in the hands of Him who knows best how to deal
with a recreant ministry.
I do not wish it to be
understood that all the ministers of the States are of the Balaam stamp. There
are those who are as uncompromising with slaveholders as Moses was with
Pharaoh, and, like Daniel, will never bow down before the great false God that
has been set up.
On arriving at
Portland, we found that the steamer we intended to take had run into a schooner
the previous night, and was lying up for repairs; so we had to wait there, in
fearful suspense, for two or three days. During this time, we had the honour of
being the guest of the late and much lamented Daniel Oliver, Esq., one of the
best and most hospitable men in the State. By simply fulfilling the Scripture
injunction, to take in the stranger, &c., he ran the risk of incurring a
penalty of 2,000 dollars, and twelve months' imprisonment.
But neither the
Fugitive Slave Law, nor any other Satanic enactment, can ever drive the spirit
of liberty and humanity out of such noble and generous-hearted men.
May God ever bless his
dear widow, and eventually unite them in His courts above!
We finally got off to
St. John's, New Brunswick, where we had to wait two days for the steamer that
conveyed us to Windsor, Nova Scotia.
On going into a hotel
at St. John's, we met the butler in the hall, to whom I said, "We wish to
stop here to-night." He turned round, scratching his head, evidently much
put about. But thinking that my wife was white, he replied, "We have
plenty of room for the lady, but I don't know about yourself; we never take in
coloured folks." "Oh, don't trouble about me," I said; "if
you have room for the lady, that will do; so please have the luggage taken to a
bed-room." Which was immediately done, and my wife went upstairs into the
apartment.
After taking a little
walk in the town, I returned, and asked to see the "lady." On being
conducted to the little sitting-room, where she then was, I entered without
knocking, much to the surprise of the whole house. The "lady" then
rang the bell, and ordered dinner for two. "Dinner for two, mum!"
exclaimed the waiter, as he backed out of the door. "Yes, for two,"
said my wife. In a little while the stout, red-nosed butler, whom we first met,
knocked at the door. I called out, "Come in." On entering, he rolled
his whisky eyes at me, and then at my wife, and said, in a very solemn tone,
"Did you order dinner for two, mum?" "Yes, for two," my
wife again replied. This confused the chubby butler more than ever; and, as the
landlord was not in the house, he seemed at a loss what to do.
When dinner was ready,
the maid came in and said, "Please, mum, the Missis wishes to know whether
you will have dinner up now, or wait till your friend arrives?" "I
will have it up at once, if you please." "Thank you, mum,"
continued the maid, and out she glided.
After a good deal of
giggling in the passage, some one said, "You are in for it, butler, after
all; so you had better make the best of a bad job." But before dinner was
sent up, the landlord returned, and having heard from the steward of the steamer
by which we came that we were bound for England, the proprietor's native
country, he treated us in the most respectful manner.
At the above house, the
boots (whose name I forget) was a fugitive slave, a very intelligent and active
man, about forty-five years of age. Soon after his marriage, while in slavery,
his bride was sold away from him, and he could never learn where the poor
creature dwelt. So after remaining single for many years, both before and after
his escape, and never expecting to see again, nor even to hear from, his
long-lost partner, he finally married a woman at St. John's. But, poor fellow,
as he was passing down the street one day, he met a woman; at the first glance
they nearly recognized each other; they both turned round and stared, and unconsciously
advanced, till she screamed and flew into his arms. Her first words were,
"Dear, are you married?" On his answering in the affirmative, she
shrank from his embrace, hung her head, and wept. A person who witnessed this
meeting told me it was most affecting.
This couple knew
nothing of each other's escape or whereabouts. The woman had escaped a few
years before to the free States, by secreting herself in the hold of a vessel;
but as they tried to get her back to bondage, she fled to New Brunswick for
that protection which her native country was too mean to afford.
The man at once took
his old wife to see his new one, who was also a fugitive slave, and as they all
knew the workings of the infamous system of slavery, the could (as no one else
can,) sympathise with each other's misfortune.
According to the rules
of slavery, the man and his first wife were already divorced, but not morally;
and therefore it was arranged between the three that he should live only with
the lastly married wife, and allow the other one so much a week, as long as she
requested his assistance.
After staying at St.
John's two days, the steamer arrived, which took us to Windsor, where we found
a coach bound for Halifax. Prejudice against colour forced me on the top in the
rain. On arriving within about seven miles of the town, the coach broke down
and was upset. I fell upon the big crotchety driver, whose head stuck in the
mud; and as he "always objected to niggers riding inside with white
folks," I was not particularly sorry to see him deeper in the mire than
myself. All of us were scratched and bruised more or less. After the passengers
had crawled out as best they could, we all set off, and paddled through the
deep mud and cold and rain, to Halifax.
On leaving Boston, it
was our intention to reach Halifax at least two or three days before the
steamer from Boston touched there, en route for Liverpool; but, having been
detained so long at Portland and St. John's, we had the misfortune to arrive at
Halifax at dark, just two hours after the steamer had gone; consequently we had
to wait there a fortnight, for the Cambria.
The coach was patched
up, and reached Halifax with the luggage, soon after the passengers arrived.
The only respectable hotel that was then in the town had suspended business,
and was closed; so we went to the inn, opposite the market, where the coach
stopped: a most miserable, dirty hole it was.
Knowing that we were
still under the influence of the low Yankee prejudice, I sent my wife in with
the other passengers, to engage a bed for herself and husband. I stopped
outside in the rain till the coach came up. If I had gone in and asked for a
bed they would have been quite full. But as they thought my wife was white, she
had no difficulty in securing apartments, into which the luggage was afterwards
carried. The landlady, observing that I took an interest in the baggage, became
somewhat uneasy, and went into my wife's room, and said to her, "Do you
know the dark man downstairs?" "Yes, he is my husband."
"Oh! I mean the black man--the nigger?" "I quite understand you;
he is my husband." "My God!" exclaimed the woman as she flounced
out and banged to the door. On going upstairs, I heard what had taken place:
but, as we were there, and did not mean to leave that night, we did not disturb
ourselves. On our ordering tea, the landlady sent word back to say that we must
take it in the kitchen, or in our bed-room, as she had no other room for
"niggers." We replied that we were not particular, and that they
could sent it up to our room,--which they did.
After the pro-slavery
persons who were staying there heard that we were in, the whole house became
agitated, and all sorts of oaths and fearful threats were heaped upon the
"d----d niggers, for coming among white folks." Some of them said
they would not stop there a minute if there was another house to go to.
The mistress came up
the next morning to know how long we wished to stop. We said a fortnight.
"Oh! dear me, it is impossible for us to accommodate you, and I think you
had better go: you must understand, I have no prejudice myself; I think a good
deal of the coloured people, and have always been their friend; but if you stop
here we shall lose all our customers, which we can't do no- how." We said
we were glad to hear that she had "no prejudice," and was such a
staunch friend to the coloured people. We also informed her that we would be
sorry for her "customers" to leave on our account; and as it was not
our intention to interfere with anyone, it was foolish for them to be frightened
away. However, if she would get us a comfortable place, we would be glad to
leave. The landlady said she would go out and try. After spending the whole
morning in canvassing the town, she came to our room and said, "I have
been from one end of the place to the other, but everybody is full."
Having a little foretaste of the vulgar prejudice of the town, we did not
wonder at this result. However, the landlady gave me the address of some
respectable coloured families, whom she thought, "under the circumstances,"
might be induced to take us. And, as we were not at all comfortable--being
compelled to sit, eat and sleep, in the same small room--we were quite willing
to change our quarters.
I called upon the Rev.
Mr. Cannady, a truly good- hearted Christian man, who received us at a word;
and both he and his kind lady treated us handsomely, and for a nominal charge.
My wife and myself were
both unwell when we left Boston, and, having taken fresh cold on the journey to
Halifax, we were laid up there under the doctor's care, nearly the whole
fortnight. I had much worry about getting tickets, for they baffled us
shamefully at the Cunard office. They at first said that they did not book till
the steamer came; which was not the fact. When I called again, they said they
knew the steamer would come full from Boston, and therefore we had "better
try to get to Liverpool by other means." Other mean Yankee excuses were
made; and it was not till an influential gentleman, to whom Mr. Francis
Jackson, of Boston, kindly gave us a letter, went and rebuked them, that we
were able to secure our tickets. So when we went on board my wife was very
poorly, and was also so ill on the voyage that I did not believe she could live
to see Liverpool.
However, I am thankful
to say she arrived; and, after laying up at Liverpool very ill for two or three
weeks, gradually recovered.
It was not until we
stepped upon the shore at Liverpool that we were free from every slavish fear.
We raised our thankful
hearts to Heaven, and could have knelt down, like the Neapolitan exiles, and
kissed the soil; for we felt that from slavery
"Heaven sure had kept this spot of earth uncurs'd, To show how all
lthings were created first." In a
few days after we landed, the Rev. Francis Bishop and his lady came and invited
us to be their guests; to whose unlimited kindness and watchful care my wife
owes, in a great degree, her restoration to health.
We enclosed our letter
from the Rev. Mr. May to Mr. Estlin, who at once wrote to invite us to his
house at Bristol. On arriving there, both Mr. and Miss Estlin received us as
cordially as did our first good Quaker friends in Pennsylvania. It grieves me
much to have to mention that he is no more. Everyone who knew him can
truthfully say--
"Peace to the memory of a man of worth, A man of letters, and of
manners too! Of manners sweet as Virtue always wears When gay Good-nature
dresses her in smiles." It
was principally through the extreme kindness of Mr. Estlin, the Right Hon. Lady
Noel Byron, Miss Harriet Martineau, Mrs. Reid, Miss Sturch, and a few other
good friends, that my wife and myself were able to spend a short time at a
school in this country, to acquire a little of that education which we were so
shamefully deprived of while in the house of bondage. The school is under the
supervision of the Misses Lushington, D.C.L. During our stay at the school we
received the greatest attention from every one; and I am particularly indebted
to Thomas Wilson, Esq., of Bradmore House, Chiswick, (who was then the master,)
for the deep interest he took in trying to get me on in my studies. We shall
ever fondly and gratefully cherish the memory of our endeared and departed
friend, Mr. Estlin. We, as well as the Anti-Slavery cause, lost a good friend
in him. However, if departed spirits in Heaven are conscious of the wickedness
of this world, and are allowed to speak, he will never fail to plead in the
presence of the angelic host, and before the great and just Judge, for down-trodden
and outraged humanity.
"Therefore I cannot think thee wholly gone; The better part of thee
is with us still; Thy soul its hampering clay aside hath thrown, And only freer
wrestles with the ill. "Thou livest in the life of all good things; What words
thou spak'st for Freedom shall not die; Thou sleepest not, for now thy Love
hath wings To soar where hence thy hope could hardly fly. "And often, from
that other world, on this Some gleams from great souls gone before may shine,
To shed on struggling hearts a clearer bliss, And clothe the Right with lustre
more divine. "Farewell! good man, good angel now! this hand Soon, like
thine own, shall lose its cunning, too; Soon shall this soul, like thine,
bewildered stand, Then leap to thread the free unfathomed blue."
JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL.
----------
In the preceding pages I have not dwelt upon the great barbarities which are
practised upon the slaves; because I wish to present the system in its mildest
form, and to show that the "tender mercies of the wicked are cruel."
But I do now, however, most solemnly declare, that a very large majority of the
American slaves are over-worked, under-fed, and frequently unmercifully
flogged.
I have often seen
slaves tortured in every conceivable manner. I have seen him hunted down and
torn by bloodhounds. I have seen them shamefully beaten, and branded with hot
irons. I have seen them hunted, and even burned alive at the stake, frequently
for offences that would be applauded if committed by white persons for similar
purposes.
In short, it is well
known in England, if not all over the world, that the Americans, as a people,
are notoriously mean and cruel towards all coloured persons, whether they are
bond or free.
"Oh, tyrant, thou who sleepest On a volcano, from whose pent-up
wrath, Already some red flashes bursting up, Beware!"
--------------------
RICHARD BARRETT, PRINTER, MARK LANE, LONDON.