The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1859-04-07

had Just been interrupted by the hoarse chal-
lenge of the guard: Hullo, stop Who goes
thar"
Jerry" presently answered hesitating
voice.
What's Jerry arter, this time O night 2"
Going to fotch de Doctor for missis."
"Whar's yer pairss 2"
Oh, mas'r, mas'r said, 'Neber mind de
pairss.' Cause missis she powerful bad"
"Pull off your shirt"
whats all that u said Edward.
Herman ground his teeth, and made no other
answer. The dialogue went on without
"Oh, fhas'r, couldn stop to be logged now,
nohow, cause missis die if she don get de Doc
tor, mas'r said"
Pull off your shirtl f"
oh, masr, couldn do it nohow-so damp
cotch death O cold-got de rheumatis' drefful!"
"Bhsters between the shoulders is good for
the rheumatiS. Jest yer strip an hold still;
an we'll put some on yer in less nor no time"
Oh, mas'r, le' gol Mas'r II come to-mor-
row an settle. it, Take SO long Shirt come
off drefful hard - -
"Come, the sooner it's off, the sooner til be on
again. Wen help yer. Say You here, Sam
son, Washington Jest you lend a hand a min
ute, an help me skin this here slippery squirm-
ing eel of rascal" Then was heard a tramp
ing and struggling.
"Thar Didn't tell yer? Come off jest
as easy. Now, who's got the strap ?"
-" It's in the Office, reckon. Go get it, Wash.
Put! Colored gemman says he's in hurry.
Come, that won't do. Hold still, or I'll give
yer my club in yer WOOL"
:" Ho, Wash Hold on. I've got one here
in my pocket"
:" Give it him then, an cut him up WELL for
maxim such id fuss about it atorehand."
Then were heard outcries like those of a person
in violent pain, and the sound, strange to civil
lied ears, of the strokes of raw ox-hide falling
on raw human flesh. The guard laughed.
Thar, go long off homel Yer wont cotch
cold arter cuttin them capers, I'll warrant !!
Hullo he's gone the wrong way-he's gone
arter the Doctor, arter all !"
"Well, let him. He's armed it."
"Does this happen often?" said Edward,
hardly knowing how to trust his own ears after
all that they had heard of the Arcadian happi
ness of slaves.
"This is the third time since have been
here" said Herman, quietly, wiping the perspi-
ration from his forehead.
Edward looked at his white, sharp features
whitened and sharpened perceptibly by the
suppressed indignation and agony of even those
few minutes and was at no further loss to ac
count for the change in his general appearance
There are some souls, uncomfortably-we will
not say unfortunately themselves, so finely
strung, so bound by thousand delicate cords
of sympathy with the great heart of humanity,
that, to them, to know of cruelty is to undergo
it. Unfortunately for humanity, they are few.
Now, dear Edward, do let me persuade you
to go back"
Nov, dear Herman, do let my persuade
you, that you mention such thing to me at
your peril"
" 1t is most kind, most noble in you; but
shall never get over it, if you get into any
trouble on my account"
"Trust me to take the best care of myself
and you, too"
-" 1t is a new thing, know for me to be the
one to lecture on prudence and policy, and for
you to be lectured; and, if you can keep mp
your usual calmness and composure in this
land Of DediauI, own IuaJ think you VIII
save yourself-and serve me, if mortal can
But, Edward, there is one thing in which /
must have my own way. If can get away by
fair means, | will-not otherwise. | cannot
consent to sneak off like thief who dares not
take the consequences of his own acts nor with
other mems death or perjury to answer for.
| There has been violence enough already. | was
forced to my share of it. l do not repent of
it. l am sick of it, notwithstanding. 1t is a
sorry sight, trust me, to see a poor ignorant
rufian struck down by your hand, and to all
appearance about as fit for death as the devil
is for baptism, sinking down to perdtion in a
pool of his own blood. have always said and
thought that, if good citizen found it impossi-
| BILE, on any occasion, to keep the laws of his
country, he should break them only so far as he
must, and certainly not in his own quarrel, and
| yield to them so far as he could, The laws of
this part of my country have certainly broken,
| whafhar II CON he provod acrordipU tO them
or not; and can resist the penalty by no unlaw-
full means. The position, and property, and in
| huence, of our family, give me in themselves an
advantage against these laws, over poor and OBJ
scure men, in obtaining bail, counsel, mediation,
and so FORTH which 1 might well hesitate to avail
myself of ON such an.occasion as this, if it were
not for--p0or Constance
"Clara and / are very much obliged to
you said Edward, with some pique.
"Cara, and you, and l." rejoined Herman,
firmly, shave always loved one another too well
| to leave any room for doubt of one anothers af-
FICTION; but you two will have one another,
if - at any rate; and Constance has only
| me-"
! "Quite as much as she deserves to have, too,
| it strikes me, under the circumstances +" broke
from Edward 81 wish to my soul, Herman,
you could have been contented when you were
well of, and never had had anything to do with
the South or Southern people,
| ooh, Edward, Edwardl'
| There, | ought to have bitten my tongue
off before | said that Il didn't mean to
won't again. as Bessy says
Nor think it, either, will you?"
mo, at least, not afte' you are out of this
scrape.'
| "Nor before. Poor, inexperienced, misgui-
ded orphan child, she did not know what she was
doing. How should she ? brought up, so far
as she was brought up at all, to consider Sla-
very branch of patriotism with most of the
responsibility of the North around her, as
well as that of the South, practically upholding
it; and half of the clergy even declaring that it
was right, and three-quarters, openly CT tacity,
that it was wrong to say it was wrongl H-ii
anything goes i'll, she will blame herself enough
dare not trust myself to think how much
Well, there is no use in Dragging of what one
might or might not do, under other circum
stances. Freedom is pleasanter than confne
ment; fresh air, than the smell Of that pig -sty
beside the window; home than jail and your
company and sweet Clara's, than that of any OF
the men and women (so-called by an abuse of
speech) whom have seen under this roof
hope shall get out"
"'Hope you shall To be sure you shall
in day or two, at the fuFthest, my dear boy,
God bless you'll"
"If He pleases. Edward-how do they
do?"
"The girls? Oh, very well-bravely, when
left them. burned your letter, and gave them
my own version of the story. just at first, Of
course, Constance was good deal frightened,
if you must know"
Eyes, ALL"
/ "She looked like Lots wife, and went of
into sort of pale, rigid agony-not fainting,