The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1893-05-10

sea cely miss one ntgfRr.
"Well, what do you want, Joe? Say
what you have to say, and don't take
all the morning. You're burning day
light"
'.Marse Hin-y, yo'lsets heap o store
by Miss Ell'n?" nodded my head.
''Yo' recommended. sab, dat day she
ware drownded an fotch. her'out?"
''As if is were yesterday"
''Dat's so, hit do pear likeftaint nc
I mon yistiddy, but hits, nigh, onto ten
year. OATS long time. 1 spec" and
nis voice fell into that canessin 8 cadence
peculiar to his race, 4 spec yo' done
fcrgit what yo' says to me datday.
recollec's hit, dough; yo'f says: Joe,
gwine sot 20 free. Aint.dat 80. .Marse
Hinry?"
The light was dawning son me. and
said: Il remember it perfectly. Have
you forgotten your answer"
Nav, sab. nav, Maase Hinry,
haint forgit hit says.twa'n't with
while TO to free mel gHine be ole
marse's niger. But hitaion' pear to
me now dat way. Hit pear like done
change my thinl1in'.'
you have been a long time doing
it." I remarked, dryly. "Why.do you
want to be free now? Have you had Il
hard time? Have 1 been a hard
master?''
Laws, Marse uinry. don look at me
like dat. God knows yo' been good to
me. Yo' gimme what want; yo' larn
me to be carpenter: done gimme dat
! i i sy,s
tailed coat. Don nobody say nothin'
tail bout me hevin' hard time! Whar
I dat dawg, whar dat gun yo' done
gimme? Amt yo' low me g off huntin' +,
'tother niggers wulikin' in cavn-fcl?
J Amt yo' done trest me? Law, Marse
| Hinry, de angel Gabr'l amt had no bet
ter time n me. Hit faint dat, sab! hit
hit faint dat"
.sThen what is it?'
''IIitt's-hits H-Henr'etta! Henrietta
say dat she ware born free. She Amt
gwine marry no slave; but she lowed
eff l ware sot free, she low she mout
marry long me. OATS how cum 1 AK
vo' does yo' member dat drowndin', N
how vo' say DAFT save-Miss Elm life
dat day?"
He was no longer shuffiing or embar-
raised, but had pulled his loose figure
together and stood with uplifted head
in the unconscious dignity of just
cause.
He had pleaded his cause better than
he knew. l would have freed him on
the spot If it had been possible. But
nv estate had been lessened by dis
astrous lawsuit; besides, l was heavily
! indebted. 1t was out of the question to
! free Joe, and thus, besides losing so
valuable slave, lose the income his
wages brought me-a matter Of some
/ five hundred dollars year.
explained this to him as plainly and
! gently as | could.
He listened silently, and then said:
Oats so, marster, dat's so. Hits
chance O money. Yass, sab, I b'lieve
! you'd gil t ter me eff you could. Good
by, sab. 1 gwine fin Henrietta" He
walked slowly away with the old shut
| fle, the greatness all gone out of his fig
ure. Poor Joe!
| felt so sorry for him that I tried to
think of some way to help him TO his
freedom without injuring myself. 1
| decided to credit him with half his
/ earnings. and when the credits amount
/ ed to one thousand dollars to free him,
! five hundred dollars to be paid by him
afterward.
Joe accepted this with gratitude. No
man ever worked harder. In four years
nv books showed one thousand dollars
I to his credit, and Joe was free. He got
| his free papers and his marriage license
| the same day.
The laws concerning freed slaves
We're very strict No freed slave was
| allowed to remain in the state longer
| than twelve months, except by special
! decree of the court for extraordinary
services. Henrietta, being free-born,
was not amenable to this law; but
! shortly before the twelve month ex-
! pired notice to leave was served on Joe.
| When he found the law to be inexora-
BILE, he decided to leave and make his
home in free state. But he had reck-
oned without Henrietta.
She refused to leave her home, and
declared that he must go without her.
She thought more Of her land than of
him, she said, and deplored her fate in
marrying a born slave. She was now
affectionate, now abusive. In short
! she behaved like the obstinate and sell
| fish woman she was, till Joe was near
| ~ beside himself.
! When he came to me, told him the
only way to keep Henrietta and TO stay
| in Virginia was to get some trust
worthy and honorable person to "stand
as master" to him, so he would be le-
| gally slave, but actually and morally
! free. 1t was a severe remedy. but the
| case was bad one.
He decided to let Henrietta stand as
! his mistress, case faint nobody
/ gwine set mo- sto' by me bein' free den
| Henrietta is. We-alls same es one,
/ case amt Marse Passon Page say what
/ God hev fined together shell no man
set lnsunder?"
The matter was so arranged Few
! live life of more unbroken content
than Joe lived with his wife and chill
! dren, but man is born to trouble, and
/ Joe's time came. He was middle-aged
! man when the blow fell.
| An eastern Spectator bought up the
| Carter estate, of which Henrietta land
was formerly a part. l heard some
/ rumor OF a defective title-sOme talk of
! her land belonging really to the specu-
/ lator. l heard nothing of it from Joe
/ and concluded it was mere runor.
/ Joe came to me one morning looking
/ cncommonly pleased and said: 'Marse
| Hinrv. dat law mahter done settle.