Orleans independent standard. [volume] (Irasburgh, Vt.) 1856-1871, 1861-12-20

the surplus 10 MS own use. Sne PLEADED
with him to 60 away from Hampton will
her at the time of the exodus, but she
would not force him to leave his family
Still lie hated to be slave, he talked like
a philosopher about his rights. No cap
tive in the galleys of Algiers, not Lafay.
ette in an Austrian dungeon, ever pined
more for free air. He had saved eight.
cen hundred dollars of his surplus earn
ings in attending on persons at Old Point,
and had spent it all in litigation, to secure
the freedom Of his wife and children be-
longing to another master whose will had
emancipated them, bat was contested on
the ground Of the insanity of the testator.
He had won a verdict, but his lawyers
told him they could not obtain judgment
upon it as the judge was unfavorable to
freedom.
THEIR KNOWLEDGE OF THE WAR.
The most frequent question asked of
one who has had any means of commu.
nication with the contrabands during the
war is in relation to their knowledge of
its cause and purpose, and their interest
in it. One thing was evident-indeed,
you could not talk with a slave who did
not without prompting give the same tes-
timony-that their masters had been in.
dustrious in their attempts TO persuade
them that the Yankees were coming down
there only to get the land that they
would kill the negroes and manure the
ground with them, or carry them off to
Cuba or Hayti and sell them An intel.
Iigent man who had belonged to Col. Jo-
seph Segar-almost the only Union man
at heart in that region, and who for that
reason, being in Washington at the time
the war begun had not dared to return to
Hampton-served on the staff Of Gen |
Pierce. He bore the highest testimony
10 the kindness Of his master. who, be |
said, told him to remain, that the Yankees |
were the friends Of his people, and would
use him well. " But" said David, for
hat was lis name, i never heard of
any other master who talked that way,
but they all told the worst stories about
the Yankees, and the mistresses were
even more furious than ibe masters
David, may add, spite of his good mas
ter, longed to be free. The masters, in
heir desperation, resorled 10 another de-
vice to secure the loyalty of their slaves.
The colored Baptist minister had been
Of a pet among the whites, and
lad obtained subscriptions from some
citizens to secure the freedom
)t a handsome daughter of his, who wa>
exposed to sale on An auction block, where
ler beauty inspired competition. Somr
eading Secessionists, lawyer Hope for
me, working somewhat upon his graft
tude and somewhat upon his vanity, per-
usded him to offer the services of him
elf and his sons, in published commu-
lication, to the cause OF Virginia and the
Confederate States. The artifice did not
ucceed. He lost his hold on his congre-
,ation, and could not have safely remain
d after the whites left. He felt uneasy
bout hi. betrayal, and tried to restore
himself to favor by saying that he meant
10 harm to his people, but his protesta-
ions were in vain. His was the deserved :
ate Of those in all ages, who, victims Of
oily and bribes, turn their backs on their
slows.
TIE SLAVES AND THE BIBLE. I
One Saturday evening one of them 9