, 1889-11-07
The Romantic Story Told by
an Aged ex-Slave
OF LOVE, AND BATTLE, ANDPEACE
Tramping From South Virginia to
Boston to Aid His Former
Owners Grandchild.
from the Philadelphia Inquirer.l

quirer reporter on the corner of Broad
and Arch streets. He was an intensely
black negro, with the whitcst of white
teeth. He was the personification OF
good nature, as he stood, hat in hand,
making from time to time respectful
obeisances to the reporter.
He was strangely and tvpically attired
and his feet were enormous In size, His
face was kindly and full of honest pur-
pose. His long, bushy wool was snow
white.
surely, uncle" interposed the re.
porter, you are not going to walk all
the way to Boston2'
Deed is, master" was the answer.
Where are you fromR"
"Old Virginny."
what partY'
Use had little place in Fauquier
county since surrender, till done heerd
from Miss Em,iy's gran'chiIe. Den l
done give up, an hyar Is, 72 years ole
mex December, fourteenth day, trabbling
cross de country like de patriarchs did
i'll Bible times when day was out on a
mission o Kindness or to smite an en-
envy"
The old negro soon became communi.
cativc, and in a ncighhorng restaurant.
where he could rest and refresh himself,
he told his story, which, robbed of the
homoly dialect impossible to reproduce,
is as follows;
OLD AARoN's STORY.
Long before the war there settled in
Nottoway county, Virginia, a certain
Thomas BostwiCk, who came from Geor-
gia with his young wife, and purchased
a large plantation near jennings ordi-
nary. Among the goods and chattes pur.
chased by the Georgian was Aaron, war
ranted by his late master as "sound in
limb, of good temper, faithful, honest
and industrious" Aaron was the an.
cicnt negro who Is now tramping across
the country to Boston. When Master
Tom bought him Aaron was u young
man, and for years he held the conf
dcnce of his owner, was his friend and
his counselor In health, and nurse and
doctor in sickness.
Miss Emily" quoth Aaron, "dat was
Master Toms wife, was a mos lubly
lady, gentle as u dove an as fair as a
lily. She had two chilluns-.young Mas
ter Willie any young Miss En- ly. Lord
bless you, master, | nurscd them bofc
FUN dc time doy fust XII led to de day
wn dey wuz lowed to run round de ole
plantation in short dresses. An dubbed
dem chillun. Shuah, did, master"
When the war broke out young Mas
ter Willie had grown to mans estate
and "young Miss Emily was the belle
of Nottoway county. When Virginia
called upon her sons to defend the
soil of the old dominion from the
invading hosts that swarined down from
the Northwest, young Master Willie"
was among the first to volunteer, aud
until the battle of Balls Bluff he
passed through the ordeal of shot and
shell unscratChcd. In this hotly COLI
tested fight he was badly wounded, and
when the confederates retreated he was
left upon the field of battle and become
a prisoner. He fell into good hands, for
Captain Charles Dalrymple of a Massa.
chusetts regiment was his captor.
ENEMIES BECOME FRIENDS.
Captain Dalrymplc was wounded also,
and after the battle secured leave of ab.
sence. lie had formed an attachment
for his rebel acquaintance, and reaching
home on furlough wrote to him at the
federal prison in Elmira, New York.
The Nirginian pined in captivity and
wrote doleiul letters. The Yankee cap.
tain, with heart full of sympathy, ap-
Piled to Massachusetts, war governor,
John A. Andrews, and "Master Willie"
was parolcd. out of gratitude to his
Yankee friend the released prisoner ac-
ccpted the latters invitation to spend "a
few weeks with him at his Boston home.
bbllN va icNNttIl lIlt
two was firmly cCmonted before the
Yankee captiyo's leave OF absence ended,
and he went back to his regiment with
bright visions of II certain Emily, whose
praises had been sounded in his ears for
days, and towards whose home the
armies of the North were marching.
Young Master Willie furnished with "a
pass, went through the lines and finally
reached his old home. He had sworn
not TO take up arms against the North
men, but when, one October night,
Burnside's army made sudden march
upon the enemies lines, and n scouting
party dashed down upon jennings or
dinary, he buckled OH sword and pistol,
loaded up his fowling piece and started
out at the head of hastily organized
home guard to repel the invaders. BY
his side rode black Aaron, and his stout
heart never quailed when bullets whis.
tied about him like u shower OF hail.
SEARCHING FOR HIS MASTER.
The opposing forces rushed toward
each other nearer and nearer. From
their rifles and guns belched lurid
fame. At last there was crash, a
fierce commingling of gray and blue
shouts, curses, groans of agony and
screams of pain. At last a Triumphant
rebel yell and the scouting party were
driven back with half their number
dead.
Aaron was sorely wounded. He bears
the scars of that conflict yet on his black
body but weak though he was, from loss
of blood, he began to search for master
Willie" whom he had seen 60 down in
the thick of the fray. lie found him at
last, dead, with his white face upturned
to the stars and the dew, As he bent
over him, tears streaming down his
black face, n groan awoke the stiffness of
the night, and leaving the dead that was
past help, he turned to the living so
sorely in need of 1t. Not ten feet from
,ba where his young master ser lay tossed "a an an
enemy. The negro bent over the
wounded man, and the latter's lips
formed the single words
"Water!"
1t was brought TO him and he drank
eagerly. In the meantime several of the
other plantation negroes had crept
through the woods to the late scene of
carnage, and now questioned Aaron
with chattering teeth and quaking limbs
He ordered them all back to the planta-
tion for mules and wagon and sent a
verbal message of preparation for the
coming of the dead to young Miss
Emily,
NuRsFp BACK TO LIFE.
Just as the pale light of the stars was
giving way to the stronger light Of com
ing day Miss Emily, with tears In her
eyes, stood upon the porch of the plan.
tation house and received two parties
one was that of her dead brother, the
other that of his wounded Yankee
friend, Captain Charles Dalrymple, who
had led the scouting party. She was all
that was left now Of the Bostwicks, for
her father and mother had both died
early in the war
With heroic fortitude she performed