Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1854-05-12

On the ith OF September. ISL. Edward
Davis. Il cporrd man. free, residing in rhiI-
adelphia, aged about 81 years. left that city
with the intention Of going to llollday~burI.
st@ snt Of IA g Idrc & As aa{e IN WM5F& Tx
for livelihood. a> he probably supposed hr
had right 10 do. But they have Il law in
Maryland which prohibits any free negro or
mulatto, belonging to or residing III any 9TH
cr state, from going into that State for the
purpp>" of settlement or otherwise. under Il
penalty OF so. ndrr that statute, Davis
was arrested. taken before Il magistrate and
fined. Not having the money to pay, he was
thrown into the Bell Air prison. where here
manned about two months. lie was then
brought out triol-ior what uil,'n>c We cam
not say-and sentenced t, be- sold to pay his
hnc and expenses, amounting to sou. sub
~"qucntly, hr was removed toa slave pen in
Baltimore, and there employed to cook for
some fifty or sixty slaves, being told that be-
Wa, working out his fine and Jail fees
After being thus employed for about ,iN
months he was taken out. handcuii,d, and
taken t. Washington, aud thence to Charles
ton, South Carolina. About this time he
learned that he had been sold to William
Dean of Macon, Georgia, Opon his arrival
at Macon he WAS set to work upon a railroad
in the course of construction. aud was work
ed 50 hard that his health soon gave ont,
when he wa, placed upon a cotton plantation.
Ultimately he was sent back to the railroad.
but he soon broke down again, and i'll July,
1858. he was taken to an inhrmary in Macon,
where he partially recovered. To the attend.
ing physicians he told the story of his wrong.
They tried.to purchase him. One Of his legs
was drawn up SO that he could not walk well,
and they offered S400 for him, which his mas
ter refused, The directors wanted him to
attend their patients, who were mostly
slaves.
On the eth Of March last, he ran away
from Macon and went to savannah. There
he hid in stable until Tuesday afternoon.
March II, when he secrcted himself on board
the Keystone State. IA steamer which sails be-
tween Savannah and Philadelph phia, At nine
O'Clock the ncAt morning the steamer sailed
with Davis ON board. The following day the
men, while hcaying the lead. heard a voice
from under the guards of the boat, calling for
them to throw him Il rope. Ipon cxamina-
ton, It was found that the voice proceeded
from colorcd man concealed on "A beam un-
der the guards of the whccl-houSc. lie was
rescued from his prrilou> situation, in "A state
of great exhaustion ; his clothes were >atur-
atcd with sca-wGtcr, a, the sea had become
rough, and b" was dipped in the water at
every rock of the vessel. The hands fur
nishcd him with dry suit. and made him
comfortable But the commiudrr of the bplt
was diil ilrently disposed. Fearing the effect,
oi Georgian law, in case he should bring
slave to n Tree State. hr ordered hi, vessel To
put into Newcastle, Delaware, where he had
the unfortunate man mIris med. with the
int"ntlpn. it l. stated, OF taking him back to
Savannah ON his return nip.
..I a. l.,,, l..
public sympathy wa, enlisted, and Il dctrrmi-
nation shown that Davis should not - back
To Georgia, unless it could hc established that
hr wa not entitled to his freedom On the
10Th of March the ease WAS brought before
Justice Bridurd of New Castle, \ number
oi witness - were rNlmu'd aud hi~ freedom
clearly proved. Mrs. Diamond, one of the
witnesses, testified that She had known him
since lNI3, when bee was about two years old.
lier sister, Mr., Martha C. McGulrr. t">tI-
fled that she had known him for eleven or
twelve years, and John II, Brady testified
that he mad known him for the last q wears
ON hearing this tr>tImnu, ,tucmI-l-tratrdi--
rhnrI"l him iruu custody, there hrius uo
reason why u fire o'll.u of Pyunsyhauii
Nhoud b" k"lt in d Delaware prison with no
crime charged against him. After til, Gi.-
chars", and fore he had lrlt the ulgi,-
'ldN' ''tU tIl' GO Nll in'I nl ll'' N NA stone
State appeared, made affidavit that hc hciry-
eel him DAVIS t. he Ia .itlvc slave. aud al
trrwnrd another To the effect that he believed
him to h' u fugitive from Justice, whrrcupon
hc was detained and again slut up in prs m
Tine Captain now returned to SlNanmil.
and one Of the newspapers of that crty con-
tanned ti> significant article
Nv are informed that the description Of
the late outside passenger by the Keystone
State, answers very well to that of a lost NO
gro man belonging to Mr.. Dean, Of Macon.
M'0NreS hare b',u tak IN by the claimant and
tbe ag'nt If bo Ph,iadiphio Steamers far tb,s .
dty 10 ascertain tbe rcth. The slave is said
TO have been recently brought from Maryland
to Georgia.
In accordance with this announcement,
measures were taken by the claimant to 81.
cure the return of Davis to a state of bon
dage The ease came on for trial before Mr..
Samuel Guthrie, ) Commissioner. at New
Castle, on the 10Th of April, and, as We have .
learned through Telegraph dispatch tie re- 7
suit of the whole N.IS tltn It,i,tsN sim ff tli.