The voice of freedom. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1839-1848, 1848-07-13


the Southern country.
EFF Juno no very dat, forgt ole mig,
ger voice mighty quick, OATS all l hGb fol
say" muttercd Cesar, as he returned to his
still unconscious master. Caesar was not mis-
taken in the effect he supposed his wcll-known
voice would produce upon his hclpmate, for
she Immediately appeared in sight, and with
her came two or three younger negroes
alarmed at the startling cali Caesar pointed
to the pale face Of his beloved master, and
was about directing Juno to fly and seek her
mistress, when Emily herself came running
in, for she too had heard old Cpsar's note Of
alarm.
"God of Heaven what has happened ?'
exclaimed she, as she flew to her husbands
side. Henry Henry look at me DO,
Caesar, do, Juno, bring me water bring nc
cologne do something, for heavens sake
o mercy mercy! l have killed him."
Juno was soon at her side with the cologne
bottle and she whispered to the almost fran
tic Emily, Keep still, Miss Emily, Fam
poor soul we ii bring UNI to directly"
After using the means that are usual in
such cases, DR.. Hayward revived, and looked
upon his wife with a languid smile. Juno
tress and, pulling her dress to attract her
attention, she whispered again, {" If you please,
Miss Emily, do keep UNI still no let UNI talk
yet; no let UNI see how you bin frighten."
" Hush, my darling" said Mrs. Hayward,
seeing that her husband was about to inquire
again into the cause Of her strange emotion,
wait till you are quite restored, and will
tell you all about it; but do not fear that you
have said or done anything to pain me- as
sure you it is not So"
With the assistance of the faithful old
couple, DR.. Hayward was soon comfortably
fixed in bed, and Emily seated herself beside
him, bestowing those endearing attentions so
grateful to the sick, especially when prompted
by heart full of devotion. Three or four
little negroes, who had been basking in the
sun like SO many young alligators, now came
running in, and peeped silly through the half
open door, to assure themselves of the actual
state Of affairs in Mass Henry's chamber
but they were warned by Emily's upliftcd
finger, that they might retire as soon as con-
venient; and they skulllcd away to stretch
themselves in the sun, and roll in the sand
to their hearts content. They were followed
by old Caesar, who marched with his statelest
step, and gave the oldest boy, Hercules the
following important piece of information
namely, that he would teach him what he was
about, and that the next time he dared to
come into the house before he was called, he
should sec. These remarks were accompan-
led with sundry protentous mods of the head,
and shakes of the fist, which, no doubt, pro-
duced their intended effect upon the mind of
the subdued Hercules. "Madamc Dido"
who had charge OF the negro babies, and who,
in her anxiety respecting the house affairs,
had left them pretty much to their own care,
was ordered to tax dem noisy niggers out O
hcarin'," and was likewise Informed that she
was lazy, good-for-nothing piece, and that
she had much better mind, or she would see
smoke. Finally, they were told to bcgonc,
every one of them, or they would be made
to show the whites of their eyes little bet
ter.
Having delivered these mysterious warn
ings, old Caesar INDUCED himself with two or
three extra shakes of his fist at the bewildcrcd
group, who, in defiance of his authority, still
remained gazing at him, with a ludicrous
mixture of gravity and fun upon tleir shining
faces. Finding thcy did not move, he assumed
his fiercest look ; and, depressing his head af-
ter the manner Of a goat when about to make
trial of his horns, he took two or three hasty
strides towards them, probably with the III
tention of performing his promise in regard
to the whites Of their eyes though an unn-
terestcd spectator would certainly have pro-
nounced them to be already sufficiently de-
velopcd. Uereupon, the whole group scam
pcrcd away, their broad, flat heels flying into
the air with velocity that was quite surpris-
ing and those who had children on their
backs broke into kind of canter, that must
have aided the digestion Of the young ones
amazingly.
Quite satisfied with this display of his au-
thority, old Caesar stood gazing, for moment,
at the rapid retreat of the enemy, then Civ
ing his head a sideways shake, and remarking
to himself, "dem little niggers is too owda-
cious impident," he slowly returned to the
house, not forgetting to turn round now and
then, and shake his fist at any daring spirit
who might be stealing curious glance behind
him. When he reached the piazza, he had
so far regained his equanimity as to 90 up TO
the saddle, which had hung uumolcsted on its
peg since his masters illness, and move it
fully an inch nearer to the window. Step
ping backward n pace or two, he eyed it with
the gaze Of connoisscur; and, from the lool;
of satisfaction which settled on his features, it
is natural to suppose that he was pleased with
the result of his experiment. lie then re.
turned to his masters room, where he found
Mrs. Hayward still seated on the side of tic
bed, watching, like guardian angel as she
was, over the chosen of her heart Old Juno
had returned to her stronghold, the kitchen,
where, as cook, she rcgncd supreme, always
excepting the times when her venerable
spouse happened TO be present. Indeed, it
was difficult to say which was the rcgning
monarch of the establishment, DR.. Hayward
or old Caesar; at any rate, Caesar was prime
minister, and, by virtue of his age and cxpc-
rience, he had taken the reins of government
pretty much into his own hands. Why, had
he not taken Mass Henry from the time when
he left his nurses arms, and taught him every
thinc be know Had he not carrled him on