, 1860-05-11

Discovery Of 4 Fugitive STARE among
llte New Engiant DoughfAccs'

Discovery Of Fugitive STARE among
ute New Engiant DoughfAccs'
tF1om the Doeton Atlas and Bee.1
We print elsea here, the thrilling story, by
"Ager," Of the Post, Of the discovery OF a ne,
gro, supposed to be fugitive slave, on board
the steamer 5. R. Spaulding, on her re1nrn trip
from Charleston, and Of Tie prompt mea safes
taken to restore the ungraleful cbattel 70 stare
readers viii not be surprised. We predicted it,
about the time the Spauldiug ssi'ed. We called
attention TO the character Of .ome q heF pas.
eengers. ind warned the people ~ t9e1!eston'
fhat they must not relax tho slguanea OF !near
police regulations. The represcntataEe Of ths
Post, Is ia duty bound, tries to make it appear
that uons of the passengers arc responsible for
this outrageous attempt to interfere with South
ern rights. This story will do very well for the
g1eenhorus, the suckltng infants Of politics;
but it will not DO to tell it to grown people. Let
Us aualyze "Ager's" own account o1 the sltalr.
It seems that CApt. HoWes, ct tue spauiding,
on the outward passage. We presume he bad
read tho article in the Atl9s and be, and his
vigilance was quickeued By the knowledge
there impaired to him. that among his passea-
gers were some of ths old coalitlon'zed, free
soilized Democrats. participants IN the election
"
on. OF course he had bis eye on these men,
aud OF them be was thinking when be told
"Ager'' that !" he should feel it his b0uDden du-
ty to return, under any and all circumstancas,a
fugitive discovered aboard Vessel under his
com,nand."' "Under any and al el1cumatan-
ces." By this he meant, OF course, however
many Of the delegates might be Implicated in
the attempted escape, and however much resls~
tance they might make to the restoration Of the
fugitive lie threw ont this hint none too soou.
II he had said nothing, the Spaulding might
have brought home dozen fug.tlSes instead OF
one.
Capt uowes followed up this hint by prompt
action. He used constant care" that "no per-
son oring serr.ca at the South (polite term for
fugitive alave) should surreptlously secure ac-
colnmodatioua On board the Spaalding, (round.
about way Of saying, secEeta himself in the coal
banE;) and "a watch Was kept at the gaa3~aJ
beth night and day, to prevent tie occurrence
Of M event 20 greatly feared" Nnw the ques-
ton il, who bribed the watch? y as it Wh't-
ney, OF Loyejoy, or Wright, or Tucker, OF But
LEI, or Stevens, or Churchill? Who was it :
The public want to know. The owner Of Viii
liam Blocker wants 10 know. Bus to proceed.
The precaution WIS fruisiess- At three o'c1ock
on Sunday morning the negro Was found in the
coal bunk. The news instantly spread. Csps.
ao"es, following out the policy previously ln-
dic4ted, determ ned that the negro should b
sent back 10 slavery, " al alt h4x4rds." lie esi.
deut1y feared resistance en- the part Of Eome Of
| Tho abolition passengers, and was prepared for
| them.
The only question with him was whether to
| put back to Norfolk, or to intercept the Benja-
| mia Deford. the name Of whose captain {HalIett)
| evidently Eaye him assurance that the negro
| would find safe quarters there. He chpse lhe
| latter alternate probably because he feared .
! revolt among the passengers if be put back.
The intelligence seems to have been judic1ous
/ fy+t- o,,& Fr1,7 &hnu mo 81
cu'ated ut the breakfast tuble. and that " many
| we're the sly and knowing winks." OF courae
but the most important information is not
| given. Who gave the "aly and knowing
winEs." If We knew this, re might perhaps
come to q rough guess Ut tho guilty parties
all about it, Knew sll about it, did he: WE'LL
we beg to know why he was uos called upon to
tell what be knew. Why don't we hare the
! sadme Of the man who "kuew all about it1'
"The idea tlat j. was joke generally pre-.
vailed" OF course it didl Nobody supposes
TINT the ma jority we're implicated in the aaa'r
md those WIN we're really involved, probably
supposed that their arrangements were such
that discovery was improbable 51auy thought
it JOKE; and the Others treated it as such
Only one lnau seems to have acknowledged that
he ''knew nil about it."
To continue the narrative: Doubts were speed:
ily removed. The Defozd was soon rnade, and
her, Aver" held an interview with the negro
for the details Of which We refer to his report
The conversation resembles most Of tboss
which have been held with supposed runawayt
BY gentlemen Of the Democratic persuasion
E!ocker must have been astonished ut " ayers
profound ignorance Of slavery. Blocker de
ctared TINT he vas born free, and that he hue
never been slave. Whereupon "Ager" ask
ed him why he lad not got free papers1 LII
seems to suppose that ereEr free negro is bouut
to have free papers; and that if negro is fount
without them, be is, Of course, . fugitive from
astuteness. How delicately jocose il this
"Dia soa expect to Gua your uaster in tht
coal-hoIet" This was just after the negro haG
| denied having matter. Na replied with -
significant grin" Significant OF what2 Pro
badly Of contempt for the interEogat.r, whe wa:
thus endeasoring to pump confession out Q
him: Il is = ply that "Ager" dess not gi1'
give IL straightforward on the ncgrv's part, aut
the story ID not altogether improbable. Du
"Ager' says lie appeared to great daadrsn
tags IN seeming wholly nnacqusinte3 with tn
most prominent places where be had lived
These places we're Madizon, Ohio, and Paducab
calities must have been remarkably minute, tt
enable him to Ge:ecr Inaccuracies in The negro.
I story.
Bus we mnst not dwell upon this part Of ths
] narrative. " hen tEr 6pAusHanx fGAna nefSei
within hailug distance Of tho Deiord, sigma
Of distress was ho1sted and guns were fred
Capt. Hallett hove to- He reaiily guessed
our trouble" says Eager" All: he Knew th'
character Of the passengers. He had read tht
dtIas and Bee. lie kucw there we're Shairacl
rescuers end Sumner syu,pathizers aud Doug]a
! delegates on board. He might have been ex
cused for suPposing that the culors tt: lialf
mast, union down, signiGed merely the disrup
lion Of the Democratic party. but be knew
| ttero IVES eomethlug worse than that. TIL
Spaulding llad the fate Of the Union on its decl
| at thut moment. If Blocker had been bzoush
| into Bo.ton, and within reach Of the long feeer
Of the Ha5+us Corps, then long farewell to th
integrity Of the Democratic party, and Of cnurs
to the PeFretuity Of cur glorious Republic
Capt. ualiett was up to tho occasion. He glad
iy received the fugitive, wbo, according t
"A2er," was equally glati to embark with him
the vessels parted; Gs'snoge's Band played"Ol
Hundred, -" America" :" sud :. other airs not in
appropriate" and the Spaulding hurried on t
huston. The vessel was detained fire hourl
aud 1t was "a sad disappointment to many
that they could not arrive in On Sunday evenies
1fthey 4ad done 60, Of course, pray yers woui
have been offered up in tho various chErche
for the proyidentia! appearance Of the nefnrt
. | ard the opportunity thus given to e1hibit.o h
| South the fidelity of the Massachusetts D.
r;lncr1cy to The sacred Institution OF Done.t