The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1870-12-23
RICHMOND, va, FRIDAY MORNING,
Extraofd1nAry Osas of Kfdnsppfng--
From LiheEstys 50 SeFgftude-Tuo1
Years 0 alaye IN Cuba-Return OF
the .VfkfsssS. f ia ii
[Frcm tbs, n. 9. Repub blican, Dec. isth.1

xeaFs HAaY6 In Cuh8-Ret1En o!
the Victim. s r. "a
[Frcm the u. o.sRepubH bHcan,s Dec. isth.1 I
About two and.a half years ago nexi
month. Mrs. Sackett. then living Il, 4
boarding -honss or Mrs. King, in ST. Iol1fs,
| on 9Th sstreet, fvefsfsed for q servant pfr
to operfoEm ordinary houseworks Margarea
Robinson, sixteen years old, among others.
applied Tor the afsuation, and a. shs Was
rather better looking than tfie others, was
accepted. sShe remained fn the 4th-street
boarding house with Mrs, Sackett onfp
three days. when they crossed over t0tka
othef aide OF tue, river for the purpose, ss
her mistress said, OF purchasing some fruit.
Margaret took no heed of what was, trans.
pirlng around her, being utterly sinsophisd.
Gated, and all things were,strange to her, as
she had not long been off q plantation where
she and hei parents were slaves previeusto
the war. Before she was aware Of itEfhev
were on the railroad cars, bound for Cairo.
When there Margaret began to grow un.
easy, and expressed "a desire to return
home. Her fears were easily quieted ty
small gifts and large apromises. The r1arty
then, Joined by silent kind ofa man. tookk
passage on a steamer for New Orleans. AR
irving In this city soon after the holidays.
Margaret was sent TO honset fr Alaiers.
remaining there q few days-how many she
cannot renembe., as she had nothing to do
or to trouble her as allher necessities were
supplied by some one unknown to- her,
paid her board. Being. toll; ; after che 1apse
Of short time, that they were ready to Re.
turn home, the party went on board YES.
sci. which proves to, have been the NeaTi-
ship Liberty, for Havana. Margaret was
old enough to understand her new condition
on her arrival In Havana. After. landing,
some difficulty arose concerning her, as far
as she could understand, with CUSTOM
house officials. She was Left. in a house by
herself for q short time, when an officer
and Mrs. Sackett appeared. Gold coin
crossed the. officials palm, and all objec-
tions vanished on the instant. They then
proceeded to boarding house kept by 8
Mrs. Bollo, person formerly of this city.
Mrs Sackett was an inmate OF the building
Eonly a,feW weeks. Margaret finally lost all
knowledge OF her, and when she yentured
to inquire for her mistress obtained no an
swer further than that things were changed
now, and all she had to do was to attend
strictly to her, daily labors. From that day
she became conscious that she was doomed
Ito involuntary ,seryitude de-slauery. For
many weary months she labored day and
night In that house, precisely the same as
others who We're born, slaves, and was
treated as slave, and was such in
word and deed. Occasionally one of her fel-
low-seryants would whisper that she was
free, but she could scarcely comprehend the
situation: Her position was not calculated
TO sharpen her poor wits, but as time
passed she gathered knowledge, never for
getting father and mother near St.. Lous, in
adistant land where ice and snow whiten
the earth. These could not be banished
from her otherwise confused ideas, and she
had almost grown rcconciled to the new
country when the time Of her glorious de-
loW-servants, native and others, finally i'm
pressed on her mind the great wrong she
was suffering. Beginning to understand
that she could depart of her own accord,
she managed to inform our Consul General,
Mr. Hall. That official investigated the
subject, and, ascertaining the full extent of
the abominable facts, took immediate mea-
sures to procure Margaret's release from
involuntary servitnde.' The steamship Gu
|sba, Captain Dukehart, arrived in port q
few days afterward, when the victim
was placed on board to be returned
to her native land and parents. The
steamship arrived here yesterday, when
Colonel Robinson, acting superlnten-
utHt vi ponce, WAS iuloimeu VI tuC cu
cumstances, and Margaret. sent to his Of
flee. She was subsequently placed in a
family until she can be returned to those
who had mourned her as among the dead.
Our reporter gathered her story from her.
self, as written above. An official doeu-
ment from Consul-General Hall, detailing
this terrible history, has already been sent
to Washington. Mrs. Sackett and her
friends are believed to be mnlattoes, but
Margaret is not very positive on that point:
We published the letter of Consul General
Hall, and essential facts now again narra-
ted, in the Republican of November %.
The Mrs. Sackett is described in that arti-
Gle as having been witness in the Forrest
divorce case, to prove all sorts of bad con-
duct on the part of Mrs. Forrest, and as
having subsequently married Ro. sackett
in New Orleans, since which time she has
become notorious as a blackmailer and
thief