As we travelled towards a land of liberty, my heart would at times
leap for joy. At other times, being, as I was, almost constantly on my
feet, I felt as though I could travel no further. But when I thought
of slavery, with its democratic whips--its republican chains--its
evangelical blood-hounds, and its religious slave-holders--when I
thought of all this paraphernalia of American democracy and religion
behind me, and the prospect of liberty before me, I was encouraged to
press forward, my heart was strengthened, and I forgot that I was tired
or hungry.
On the eighth day of our journey, we had a very heavy rain, and in a
few hours after it commenced we had not a dry thread upon our bodies.
This made our journey still more unpleasant. On the tenth day, we found
ourselves entirely destitute of provisions, and how to obtain any we
could not tell. We finally resolved to stop at some farm-house, and try
to get something to eat. We had no sooner determined to do this, than
we went to a house, and asked them for some food. We were treated with
great kindness, and they not only gave us something to eat, but gave us
provisions to carry with us. They advised us to travel by day and lie
by at night. Finding ourselves about one hundred and fifty miles from
St. Louis, we concluded that it would be safe to travel by daylight,
and did not leave the house until the next morning. We travelled on
that day through a thickly settled country, and through one small
village. Though we were fleeing from a land of oppression, our hearts
were still there. My dear sister and two beloved brothers were behind
us, and the idea of giving them up, and leaving them forever, made us
feel sad. But with all this depression of heart, the thought that I
should one day be free, and call my body my own, buoyed me up, and made
my heart leap for joy. I had just been telling my mother how I should
try to get employment as soon as we reached Canada, and how I intended
to purchase us a little farm, and how I would earn money enough to buy
sister and brothers, and how happy we would be in our own FREE
HOME--when three men came up on horseback, and ordered us to stop.
I turned to the one who appeared to be the principal man, and asked
him what he wanted. He said he had a warrant to take us up. The three
immediately dismounted, and one took from his pocket a handbill,
advertising us as runaways, and offering a reward of two hundred
dollars for our apprehension and delivery in the city of St. Louis. The
advertisement had been put out by Isaac Mansfield and John Young.
While they were reading the advertisement, mother looked me in the
face, and burst into tears. A cold chill ran over me, and such a
sensation I never experienced before, and I hope never to again. They
took out a rope and tied me, and we were taken back about six miles,
to the house of the individual who appeared to be the leader. We
reached there about seven o'clock in the evening, had supper, and were
separated for the night. Two men remained in the room during the night.
Before the family retired to rest, they were all called together to
attend prayers. The man who but a few hours before had bound my hands
together with a strong cord, read a chapter from the Bible, and then
offered up prayer, just as though God had sanctioned the act he had
just committed upon a poor, panting, fugitive slave.
[Illustration: The author and his mother arrested and carried back into
slavery.]
The next morning a blacksmith came in, and put a pair of handcuffs on
me, and we started on our journey back to the land of whips, chains and
Bibles. Mother was not tied, but was closely watched at night. We were
carried back in a wagon, and after four days' travel, we came in sight
of St. Louis. I cannot describe my feelings upon approaching the city.
As we were crossing the ferry, Mr. Wiggins, the owner of the ferry,
came up to me, and inquired what I had been doing that I was in chains.
He had not heard that I had run away. In a few minutes we were on the
Missouri side, and were taken directly to the jail. On the way thither,
I saw several of my friends, who gave me a nod of recognition as I
passed them. After reaching the jail, we were locked up in different
apartments.