Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1879-01-23

"REMINISCENCES OF SLAVERY.
Mardsr Of Jerry Boyd by Kidn.ppsr..
ldalena Gazette. Jan. III

| ldalsna Gazette. Jan III
The funeral OF Mary Boyd, tn,
aged colored woman, whose dealt
was announced yesterday, took place
from the residence OF G Gross, thi,
forenoon, Revs Cheek, OF Dubuque
and Luke, of this city, Officiating.
The death of Mrs. Boyd reyives tie
incidents connected with the murder
OF her husband, which was only one
OF thousands Of similar tragedies thai
were enacted durlDg the period wher
the "twin relic Of barbarism" cursed
the land. Jerry Boyi, an industriou.
and free colored man, had resided in
this city for many years, marrying
his wife here, and enjoying with her
the comforts of life, which, though
limited in their case, were neverthe
less as sweet as they would have been
had their skins been white and their
Eome palace, instead of the humble
cabin in which they lived Residing
with them were two girls--one, a
white child, whose mother was. a
servant in the family of w. Weigley,
Esq /; the other. a colored child,
daughter of servant, also employed
In this city. Que day, in the Summer
OF 1860, one John Gooden, a stranger
claiming to be residense of aDes
Moines, Iowa, arrived III Gai;enia, and
hunting up Boyd, induced him and
his wife to accompany. him to Iowa,
TOR the purpose, as he alleged, OF
taking care Of bis fathers farm, situa.
ted near Des Moines, during a con-
templated trip of the latter to Canada
The unsuspecting couple, accompa-
MED by the two children and Gooden,
started in a wagon furnished by the
latter tor the State of Iowa, crossing
the river at Gears Ferry. On reach
ing the opposite side man, who had
the appearance of being a traveller,
craved PERMISSION to ride. Gooden
having charge Of the team and acting
as driver, readily granted the request,
giving the apparently leg-weary lnii.
vidual seat by his side. The fact
that Gooden soon gave evidence of
having seen the traveller before. that
Boyd had observed them in close and
whispered conversation together dur
ing several halts. and their road Law in
a southerly direction, was sufficient to
convince Boyd, at the end of the
second day, that himself and wife
were in the hands of professional kid
nappers who sought TO take. them to
Missouri and sell them into slavery.
On the night of the fourth day they
halted in the woods near village,
which Boyd had discovered in the
distance, through the trees Gooden
and his accomplish were in the habit
OF sleeping on the ground under the
wagon, while Boyd, his wife and the
two children lay upon the straw in the
wagon box Listening until he thought
he heard the deep breathing of the
kidnappers as in sleep, he Informed
his wife in suppressed tones of the
true condition of affairs, iustructing
her to feign sickness on the following
morning, when be would set out os.
tensibly to find physician, but in
reality to give the alarm and. cause
the arrest Of their designing captors.
Mrs. Boyd did as she was objected,
and, according to the plan adopted,
her husband started out about sunrise
next day for the village. He was
Immediately followed, however, by
two men who had overheard, the con-
versation between himself and wife ON
the previous night, and when rot
more than fifteen rods from their
camping place, and in plain sight of
his wife. he was brutally murdered by
Gooden, who shot his victim through
the heart. The wife screamed in the
agony of her grief, when one of the
men rushed back to the camp, and
placing cooked pistol to the head of
the poor creature, he threatened to.
blow her brains out if she did not
keep quiet. The other quickly COW
cred the body OF the dead man with
leaves, and fastening to the camp,
they hitched up the horses, and com
pellihg Mrs. Boyd and the children to
accompany them, proceeded on their
journey at rapid pace. Arriving at
the foot of deep ravine, the fright
ened and distracted woman was
roughly dragged from the and
thrust upon her knees, by the side of
creek, aud, menaced by the revol-.
vers of the villains in whose hands
she was utterly powerless, she was
compelled to swear that she would
never reveal the circumstances of the
murder of her husband, on pain of
death. Two days later, the men and
their captives arrived at q place six
teen miles below st. Joseph, Missouri,
where Mrs. Boyd aud the colored
child were placed in 1.-THE family of
Gooden's brother.in-law. and the
white child turned over to family in
that neighborhood for ssfe-keeping,
Gooden claiming that the girl was a
mulatto. A few days after. their ar
rival in Missouri, Mr.. Weigley, of
this city, received an anonymous let
ter--which was written by one
Baker, as he afterwards le.rned-in-
forming him of the facs that one
Mary Bov :, claiming Galena as her
residence, and two children from the
same place, who had been Kidnapped
by parties who intended to sell them
into slavery, were secreted in The
neighborhood of st. Joseph, and that
they would be delivered up to the
Illinois authorities, should they; be
sent for. Mr.. Weigley responded to
the letter in person, and in company
with the late Samuel HughIett, set
out for Missouri for the purpose sole
ly of obtaining possession of the white
child. The thrilling incidents con.
nected with their journey would form
an interesting chapter to this recital,
and will probably be published here
after. At present, suffice it to say
that they succeeded, though with
greatest difficulty, in not only obtain
ing possession OF The white child, bnt
Of Mrs. Boyd and her co!ored charge,
also a coloreo woman who had been
from nuhnnna nao1ap