Omaha daily bee., 1895-09-22

worn out In her flight from slavery, and in
an eloquent address to the jury in his de-
Tense said: II appeal to your sense of JUS
tice, gentlemen. Is it a crime to feed the
hungry and clothe the naked? Would you
send a man to prison for the crime of giving
a poor, footsore woman a pair of slippers %
In the summer of 1Si9 a fugitive slave came
to Princeton during the haying season, and
considering himself safe among his anti
slavery friends, decided TO remain a short
time and earn a little money at haying. But
the watchful eyes OF slave-catchers, ever on
the alert to secure the large rewards offered
for fugitives, were upon him, and his master,
being informed Of his location on a neighbor-
Ing farm, came upon him one morning, while
moving In the meadow. unsuspicious of dan
ger. and approaching suddenly from behind
while he was stopped over his work, seized
and bound him, with the assistance of a
Princeton tavern keeper, and led him by the
rope through the village to the tavern.
The news of his capture quickly spread,
and reaching Lovejoy while writing a sermon
In his study, he rushed out hatless, in his
slippers, and f~ollowing the slave-holder to
the tavern, where he held his victim by the
rope, demanded, in stern tones, by what right
he held that man a prisoner. Hes my
slave.'
Your slave? Let me inform you, sir, that
you are In the state of Illinois, where slavery
Is unknown. And again l demand, in the
'N''S - S"N OIi VI thio 80 SNssSg ~ ''~
right do you hold that MANI"
While this was transporting a warrant had
been sworn out for the arrest of the slave
holder on a charge Of kidnapping and he was
led off to the court house by an officer, still
clinging tenaciously to the rope by which
he dragged the slave with him, presenting
the singular spectacle Of a prisoner holding
another man prisoner in defiance of the
charge on which he himself was arrested.
The crowd surged into the court room,
| which was som densely hacked and the
case against the slave holder proceeded slowly
with the usual legal formalities. Meantime
Love1oy had arranged a plan for the slaves
release, and having managed to get a number
of his friends in line between the prisoner
and the door, he took his seat by the slave,
and having borrowed a knife, cut the rope
while the masters attention was diverted, at
the same time whispering IN the slaves ear
the single word, Rum" a line to the door
opening mysteriously through the crowd at
the same instant and as mysteriously closing
behind the slave as he dashed out. At the
door stood a horse, saddled with a lady's
saddle, on which he was quickly mounted
and started for Lovejoy's house, three-quar-
ters OF a mile distant.
As the tavern keeper, with his rowdy
gang, gained the door, after much delay,
| they started in hot pursuit, Lovejoy with his
friends joining in the race. Reaching his
fence in advance, Lovejoy sprang over and
turning on the tavern keeper, who was about
to follow, said: Don't you dare enter my
premises!'
The command checked the leader and the
crowd, which Lovejoy presently addressed
and held its attention while the negro was
hidden in a wagon and driven to the next
station on the route to freedom.
LovEJoY ON H STUMP.
In the presidential campaign Of 1852 Love
Joy took the stump in favor of the free soil
| ticket, and the writer heard him speak at
Galesburg, Ill. Referring humorous'y to the
- n gaH-t IL
| stump speaker, he sad: Somehow / never
could put on this ministerial dignity" 'Too
much OF a politician" suggested some ore.
"Well / suppose that's It," Referring 10 the
democratic policy OF maintaining its political
| ascendancy at the north without offending the
south, he made a ludicrous application Of a
passage from the patriarch Jacobs last sd
dress to his sons, saying that the democratic
party was like Issachar, "A strong ass crouch
ing down between two burdens"
In 1854 he was elected to the lower house OF
the Illinois legislature on the abolition ticket,
and voted persistenly for Lincoln for United
States senator, till his name was withdrawn
in favor Of Trumbul, who was elected.
In 1856 Lovejoy was nominated as repre-
sentative to congress from the Tnird congre>-
sional district by the republican convention
held at Bloomington in the same building
from which he had been excluded in 1910.
But there were some members OF the party
to whom the nomination gave great ofense,
and the following day an attempt was made
by these boilers to put another candidate in
nomination. and at a public meeting held at
the court house in the evening at which the
writer was present, fiery speeches were made
by the members of this clique. one OF the
speakers being a wealthy banker who had
once publicly cowhided a Congregational min
lister named Spencer in the street for his ant
slavery views. This man denounced Love-
10y as a "nigger stealer,' and working him
self into a frenzy, swinging his arms and
making a windmill OF himself, he said: Why.
the time is coming when a man cannot walk
the streets of Bloomington unless he is ar
abolitionist!'
AT this ~tuncture a sarcastic voice from
the audience called out: Get cowhided
wouldn't her" This remark was greeted
with a round Of applause, sending the
speaker to his seat discounted, while cries
Of "Lovejoy! Loyejoy!' resounded on every