Anti-slavery bugle. [volume] (New-Lisbon, Ohio) 1845-1861, 1848-09-29
WHOLE NO. 1872.
From The North Star.
To my Old Master.

10 my Old Master.
THOMAS AuLD, SlR;-The long and init.
mate, tho by no means friendly, relation
which unhappily subsisied between YOU and
myself, leads me TO hope that you will easily
account for the great liberty which 7 now
take in addressing you in this open and pub
lie manner. The same fact may possibly re-.
move any disagreeable surprise which Won
may experience on again finding your mann.
coupled with mine, in any other way than in
an Advertisement, accurately describing NV
person, and Offering a large sum for nv ar
rest; In thus dragging you again before the
public, | am aware that | shall subject nv.
self to no inconsiderable amount of censure.
shall probably be charged with an unwsr.
rantable, if not a wan,on and reckless disrs.
gard OF the rights and prophecies of private
lille. There are those North as well az South.
who entertain a much higher respectfo rights
which are merely conventional, than thew do
Ior rights which are personal and essential.
MOI a lew there are in our country, who.
whlle they nave no scruples against robbinp
The laboror Of the hard-earned results of his
patient Industry, will be shocked BY the ex-
IRENE lndelicate manner Of bringing YOUR
name before the public. Believing this IL,
be the case, and wishing to meet every rea-
sonable or plausible objection to nv conduct.
| will frankly state the ground upon which |
Justify myself in this instance, as well as on
former occasions when | have thought proper
to mention your name in public. All will
agree that a man guilty of theft, robbery or
murder, has forfeited the right to conceal
ment and private life that the community
have a right TO subject such persons 10 the
most complete exposure. However much
they may desire retirement, and aim to corr
ceal themselves and their movements from
Inc popular gaze, the public have a right TO
ferret them out, and bring their conduct be-
fore the proper tribunals of the country for
investigation. Sir, you will undoubtedly
make the proper application of these pene-
rally-admitted principles, and will easily see
the ligh; in which you are regarded by me.
l Will not, therefore, manifest ill-iemper, by
calling you hard names | know you to be
a man OF some intelligence, and can readily
determine the precise estimate which / en-
terrain OF your character. may therefore
indulge In language which may seem TO 9TH
ers indirect and ambiguous. and vet be quite
well understood by yourself.
have selected this day on which 10 address
you, because it is the anniversary of NV
emancipation; and knowing of no better
way, ! am led to this as the best mode OF
celebrating that truly important event. just
ten years ago this beautiful September morn
ing, yon bright sun beheld me a slave-a
poor degraded Understanding al the sound
oil your voice, lamenting that | was a man,
and wishing myself a brute. The hopes
which had treasured up for weeks of a safe
and successful escape from your grasp. were
powerfully confronted at this last hour by
dark clouds of doubt and fear, making nv
DpTSOn shake and mv hoeorn - :1
the heavy contest between hope and fear.
have no words to describe TO YOU the deem
agony of soul which | experienced on that
never-to-be forgotten morning-(for I left by
daylight.)-l was taking a leap in the dark.
The probabilities, so far as | could by rea.
son determine them, were stoutly against the
undertaking. The preliminaries and precau.
lions had adopted previously, all worked
badly L was like one going to war withou
weapons-ten chances of defeat 10 one o
victory. One in whom | had conided, an,
one who had promised me assistance, an
palled by fear at the trial-hour, deserted me
thus leaving the responsibility of success O
failure solely with myself. You, sir, cal
never know my feelings. As | look back t
them, can scarcely realize that | have pass
> ed through "A scene so trying. Trying, how
, ever, as they were, and gloomy as was tn
I prospect, thanks be 10 the Most High, VIII
is ever the God of the oppressed, at The mi
: ment which was to determine my Who'll
earthly career, His grace was sufficient, m
! mind was made up. | embraced the golde
opportunity, took the morning tide at III
ioou' ana a Tree man,, young, active an
: strong, is the result.
e have often thought | should like to e,
e plain to you the grounds upon which | hay
q justified myself in running away from vo,
| am almostashamed TO do so now, for by tn
time you may have discovered them yoursel
| Will, however, glance at them. When v,
Y but a child about six years old, | imbibe
the determination to run away. The yer
first mental effort that ] now remember O
my part, was an attempt TO solve the myst,
ry, Why am ] a slave and with this que,
e. ton ny youthful mind was troubled for man
m days, pressing me more heavily at time
than others. When | saw the slave-driyt
whip a ~slave-woman, cut the blood out
her neck, and heard her piteous cries, | WEI
Of into the corner of the fence, wept and POI
dered over this mystery. had, throug
. some medium | know not what, got SON
~ idea OF God, the Creator Of all mankind, III
l. black and the white, and that he had MAD
10 the blacks TO serve the whites as slaves
sr How he could do this and be good, | couI
not tell. | was not satisfied with this the
&c ry, which made God responsible for Slav
y ry, for it panied me greatly, and | have we
ie over it long and often. At one time, yo
first wife, Mrs. Lucretia, heard me singir
and saw me shedding tears, and asked Of n
the matter, but | was afraid to tel! her.
was puzzled with this question, till one nigt
while sitting in the kitchen, I heard some
the old slaves talking of their parents havir
IT. been stolen from Africa by white men, al
n sold here as slaves. The whole mystic
he was solved at erce. Very soon after hi
-. NV ami Iinpu and nall MI