The record-union., 1898-09-06
OLD SLAVERY DAYS.
AN UNDERGROUND RAILWAY
DRAMATIC STORY.
How a Slave Woman Was Aided
in Escaping to- Canada-The
Abolitionists.

Stowe stirred the hearts Of nation
with her great novel, and though the
causes which produced that book have
long been ended, men and women stu
weep over the sorrows of Uncle Tom
and the death of Eva; follow with
thrilling hearts the flight of Eliza and
her boy across the floating ice bridge
of the Ohio, and read with interest the
description of the old Quaker home
stead and the midnight ride with
Phineas Fletcher.
In it's main facts Eliza's story was
true. All through the hills and val
leys of Ohio from the river to the lake
are gray, weather. beaten farmhOuseS,
once used as stations of the under
ground railroad by which runaways
escaped from the slave States into Can
ada, from whence they could not be
reclaimed by their masters. At the
same time many a, poor fellow crossed
the river and started bravely on the
long journey toward that Canaan of
his dreams, with little idea of its dis
tance and dangers, only to be retaken
and sold into harsher slavery. All
through Ohio to-day gray haired men
and women still tell how their mothers
warmed fed and often clothed the fugi-
tives, and their fathers drove through
storm and darkness to save from worse
than death the poor people committed
to their charge.
Not the least important Of these un-
derground stations were those along
the lake shore, and perhaps the most
prominent was that at Jefferson, Ash
tabula County, the home of Benjamin
f. Wade and Joshua r. Giddings, in
which also dwelt a Mr.. Brown and his
son Orlando. The two former were men
OF national reputation and leaders in a
community which was, perhaps, more
hostile toward slavery than any other
in America. Mr.. Brown, on the other
hand, was in the habit of expressing in
strong and bitter language his opinion
OF abolitionists and all men conniving
at the escape Of slaves, thus detracting
attention from his own house, which
was at some distance and vas some
what hidden from the main street and
was used as hiding place, where the
pursuit was hottest. One of these es-
capes, made possible by Mr.. Browns
courage and daring, is remarkable. even
among the many similar stories printed
and imprinted.
Some years before the war there lived
IN Virginia, not far from the Ohio, a
prosperous and active business man. be-
heVed by his neighbors to be not only
very wealthy, but a moral, upright citi-
zen. He was a Widower with one son
and one daughter who grew up hap
PLY together until the son was sent to
ale. The daughter, beautiful and ac-
complished, especially in music, became
a great fayorite in society.
The fathers sudden death called
home the son, when it was found. to
the surprise Of every one, upon exam
1nation of the dead mans papers. nor
only that the estate was insoIvent. but
that the girl was the child Of a slave
mother, and so not only his daughter.
but his property. This fact was proved
beyond the shadow of a doubt. and if
was also proved that he had made no
provision for her freedom. Nothing in
her appearance indicated that she was
not Of the purest Caucasian blood.
her brother, who was imbued with
the honor and chivalry Of the South
was horr1f1ed to find that she was not
the child Of his own mother: but moth
ing could be done to keep her being mt
up at public sale with other propertv
A slave trader, buying for some South
ern market, outbidding all competitors.
became her owner and placed her for
safekeeping in a cell of the common
Jail, until he should have a gang ready
to start South.
Id" Oh the State made it peniten-
tiary offense for any one to assist in
IF ell
desperate at seeing his beloved sister
Sold 10 sucn a man, for such purpose,
resolved to rescue her at all cost to
hlfnseI. he took into his confidence
trusted friend, and they arranged
with an agent Of the underground road
to help her in her flight. After dark
one night an old nanny" in coarse
shoes, cotton gown, and deep-hooded.
Wlde-capped sunbonnet applied at the
jail Tor permission to "see little missv
1ls once mo-" AS the door closed 1,n-
on the old, bowed figure, it straigbten-
ed up, disclosing the face of the girls
brother. In rapid whispers he told her
his plans and where she would find
MS friend, while helping her to put on
the old mammy's disguise; but before
parting with her, probably for the last
time, he placed in her hand a long
Keen -bladed knife, making her kneeI
down and swear that rather than ne
taken alive she would plunge it into
her own heart.
Soos shook the pathetic form Of the
pretended old woman as she passed
into the street, leaving her brother to
su1fer an agony of suspense, to face the
anger and censure of his neighbors, and
the condemnation and sentence Of the
courts
The girl found her brothers friend.
and was taken in haste across the
country to the Ohio shore. where the
faithful agent awaited them. There.
on the bank of the lonely, flowing river
the slave bade farewell to the last
friend of her childhoods home. and
set out on her perilous journey to
safety in foreign land, hiding by
DAY IN farmhouse garrets and driving
IN the care of strangers through the
long, chill October nights, over rough
corduroy roads and dark forest byways
between the stations
In the early morning few days later
the family of Mr.. Brown was reused
by peculiar knock at the door. Upon
its being opened a well-known agent
brought in a woman black-robed and
heavily veiled, who was represented as
being in great danger, as her master
was close behind.
orlando Brown went at once to Mr.
G1ddings to see what could be done,
only to find that the boat in which they
usually crossed the lake was absent.
While talking they saw two or three