CHAPTER XI.

by Solomon Northup

　　CHAPTER XI.THE MISTRESS' GARDEN THE CRIMSON AND GOLDEN FRUIT ORANGBAND POMEGRANATE TREES RETURN TO BAYOU BCEUF MASTER FORD'sREMARKS ON THE WAY THE MEETING WITH TrBEATS HIS ACCOUNT OFTHE CHASE FORD CENSURES HIS BRUTALITY ARRIVAL AT THE PLANTA-TION ASTONISHMENT OF THE SLAVES ON SEEING ME THE ANTICIPATEDFLOGGING KENTUCKY JOHN MR. ELDRET, THE PLANTER ELDRET'sSAM TRIP TO THE "BIG CANE BRAKE" THE TRADITION OF "SUTTON'SFIELD" FOREST TREES GNATS AND MOSQUITOS THE ARRIVAL OF BLACKWOMEN IN THE BIG CANE LUMBER WOMEN SUDDEN APPEARANCE OFTIBEATS HIS PROVOKING TREATMENT VISIT TO BAYOU BCEUF THESLAVE PASS SOUTHERN HOSPITALITY THE LAST OF ELIZA SALE TOEDWIN EPPS.After a long sleep, sometime in the afternoon Iawoke, refreshed, but very sore and stiff. Sally camein and talked with me, while John cooked me somedinner. Sally was in great trouble, as well as myself,one of her children being ill, and she feared it couldnot survive. Dinner over, after walking about thequarters for a while, visiting Sally's cabin and lookingat the sick child, I strolled into the madam's garden.Though it was a season of the year when the voicesof the birds are silent, and the trees are stripped oftheir summer glories in more frigid climes, yet thewhole variety of roses were then blooming there, and

　　THE MISTRESS' GARDEN. 147the long, luxuriant vines creeping over the frames.The crimson and golden fruit hung half hidden amidstthe younger and older blossoms of the peach, the or-ange, the plum, and the pomegranate ; for, in thatregion of almost perpetual warmth, the leaves arefalling and the buds bursting into bloom the wholeyear long.I indulged the most grateful feelings towards Mas-ter and Mistress Ford, and wishing in some mannerto repay their kindness, commenced trimming thevines, and afterwards weeding out the grass fromamong the orange and pomegranate trees. The lattergrows eight or ten feet high, and its fruit, though lar-ger, is similar in appearance to the jelly -flower. Ithas the luscious flavor of the strawberry. Oranges,peaches, plums, and most other fruits are indigenousto the rich, warm soil of Avoyelles ; but the apple, themost common of them all in colder latitudes, is rare-ly to be seen.Mistress Ford came out presently, saying it waspraise-worthy in me, but I was not in a condition to la-bor, and might rest myself at the quarters until mas-ter should go down to Bayou Bceuf, which would notbe that day, and it might not be the next. I said toher — to be sure, I felt bad, and was stiff, and thatmy foot pained me, the stubs and thorns having sotorn it , but thought such exercise would not hurtme, and that it was a great pleasure to work for sogood a mistress. Thereupon she returned to the greathouse, and for three days I was diligent in the garden,

　　148 TWELVE TEAE3 A SLATE.cleaning the walks, weeding the flower beds, andpulling up the rank grass beneath the jessamine vines,which the gentle and generous hand of my protectresshad taught to clamber along the walls.The fourth morning, having become recruited andrefreshed, Master Ford ordered me to make ready toaccompany him to the bayou. There was but onesaddle horse at the opening, all the others withthe mules having been sent down to the plantation.I said I could walk, and bidding Sally and John good-bye, left the opening, trotting along by the horse'sside.That little paradise in the Great Pine Woods wasthe oasis in the desert, towards which my heart turn-ed lovingly, during many years of bondage. I wentforth from it now with regret and sorrow, not so over-whelming, however, as if it had then been given meto know that I should never return to it again.Master Ford urged me to take his place occasion-ally on the horse, to rest me ; but I said no, I was nottired, and it was better for me to walk than him. Hesaid many kind and cheering things to me on the way,riding slowly, in order that I might keep pace withhim. The goodness of God was manifest, he declared,in my miraculous escape from the swamp. As Dan-iel came forth unharmed from the den of lions, andas Jonah had been preserved in the whale's belly,even so had I been delivered from evil by the Al-mighty. He interrogated me in regard to the variousfears and emotions I had experienced during the day

　　ford's remarks on the WAT. 149and night, and if I had felt, at any time, a desire topray. I felt forsaken of the whole world, I answeredhim, and was praying mentally all the while. Atsnch times, said he, the heart of man turns instinct-ively towards his Maker. In prosperity, and whenthere is nothing to injure or make him afraid, he re-members Him not, and is ready to defy Him ; butplace him in the midst of dangers, cut him off fromhuman aid, let the grave open before him — then itis, in the time of his tribulation, that the scoffer andunbelieving man turns to God for help, feeling thereis no other hope, or refuge, or safety, save in his pro-tecting arm.So did that benignant man speak to me of this lifeand of the life hereafter ; of the goodness and powerof God, and of the vanity of earthly things, as wejourneyed along the solitary road towards BayouBoeuf.When within some five miles of the plantation, wediscovered a horseman at a distance, galloping tow-ards us. As he came near I saw that it was Tibeats !He looked at me a moment, but did not address me,and turning about, rode along side by side with Ford.I trotted silently at their horses' heels, listing to theirconversation. Ford informed him of my arrival inthe Pine "Woods three days before, of the sad plight Iwas in, and of the difficulties and dangers I had en-countered." "Well," exclaimed Tibeats, omitting his usual oathsin the presence of Ford, " I never saw such running

　　150 TWELVE YEARS A SLAVE.before. I'll bet him against a hundred dollars, he'llbeat any nigger in Louisiana. I offered John DavidCheney twenty-five dollars to catch him, dead or alive,but he outran his dogs in a fair race. Them Cheneydogs ain't much, after all. Dunwoodie's houndswould have had him down before he touched the pal-mettoes. Somehow the dogs got off the track, and wehad to give up the hunt. We rode the horses as faras we could, and then kept on foot till the water wasthree feet deep. The boys said he was drowned, sure.I allow I wanted a shot at him mightily. Ever since,I have been riding up and down the bayou, but had'ntmuch hope of catching him — thought he was dead,sartin. Oh, he's a cuss to run — that nigger is !"In this way Tibeats ran on, describing his search inthe swamp, the wonderful speed with which I hadfled before the hounds, and when he had finished,Master Ford responded by saying, I had always beena willing and faithful boy with him ; that he was sor-ry we had such trouble ; that, according to Piatt'sstory, he had been inhumanly treated, and that he,Tibeats, was himself in fault. Using hatchets andbroad-axes upon slaves was shameful, and should notbe allowed, he remarked. "This is no way of dealingwith them, when first brought into the country. Itwill have a pernicious influence, and set them all run-ning away. The swamps will be full of them. A lit-tle kindness would be far more effectual in restrainingthem, and rendering them obedient, than the use ofsuch deadly weapons. Every planter on the bayou

　　FOKD CENSURES TTBEATS. 151should frown upon such inhumanity. It is for the in-terest of all to do so. It is evident enough, Mr. Tib-eats, that you and Piatt cannot live together. Youdislike him, and would not hesitate to kill him, andknowing it, he will run from you again through fearof his life. Now, Tibeats, you must sell him, or hirehim out, at least. Unless you do so, I shall takemeasures to get him out of your possession."In this spirit Ford addressed him the remainder ofthe distance. I opened not my mouth. On reachingthe plantation they entered the great house, while Irepaired to Eliza's cabin. The slaves were astonish-ed to find me there, on returning from the field, sup-posing I was drowned. That night, again, they gath-ered about the cabin to listen to the story of myadventure. They took it for granted I would be whip-ped, and that it would be severe, the well-known pen-alty of running away being five hundred lashes." Poor fellow," said Eliza, taking me by the hand," it would have been better for you if you had drown-ed. You have a cruel master, and he will kill youyet, I am afraid."Lawson suggested that it might be, overseer Cha-pin would be appointed to inflict the punishment, inwhich case it would not be severe, whereupon Mary,Rachel, Bristol, and others hoped it would be MasterFord, and then it would be no whipping at all. Theyall pitied me and tried to console me, and were sad inview of the castigation that awaited me, except Ken-tucky John. There were no bounds to his laughter ;

　　152 TWELVE TEAKS A SLAVE.lie filled the cabin with cachinnations, holding his sidesto prevent an explosion, and the cause of his noisymirth was the idea of my outstripping the hounds.Somehow, he looked at the subject in a comical light." I hnow'd dey would'nt cotch him, when he run crossde plantation. O, de lor', did'nt Piatt pick his feetright up, tho', hey ? When dem dogs got whar hewas, he was'nt dar — haw, haw, haw ! O, de lor' a'mity !" — and then Kentucky John relapsed into an-other of his boisterous fits.Early the next morning, Tibeats left the plantation.In the course of the forenoon, while sauntering aboutthe gin-house^ a tall, good-looking man came to me,and inquired if I was Tibeats' boy, that youthful ap-pellation being applied indiscriminately to slaveseven though they may have passed the number ofthree score years and ten. I took off my hat, and an-swered that I was."How would you like to work for me?" he in-quired." Oh, I would like to, very much," said I, inspiredwith a sudden hope of getting away from Tibeats." You worked under Myers at Peter Tanner's, didn'tyou ? "I replied I had, adding some complimentary re-marks that Myers had made concerning me." Well, boy," said he, " I have hired you of yourmaster to work for me in the " Big Cane Brake,"thirty-eight miles from here, clown on Red River."This man was Mr. Eldret, who lived below Ford's,

　　ELDEET, THE PLANTER. 153on the same side of the bayou. I accompanied himto his plantation, and in the morning started with hisslave Sam, and a Avagon-load of provisions, drawn byfour mules, for the Big Cane, Eldret and Myers hav-ing preceded us on horseback. This Sam was a na-tive of Charleston, where he had a mother, brotherand sisters. He " allowed " — a common word amongboth black and white — that Tibeats was a mean man,and hoped, as I most earnestly did also, that his mas-ter would buy me."We proceeded down the south shore of the bayou,crossing it at Carey's plantation ; from thence to HuffPower, passing which, we came upon the BayouRouge road, which runs towards Red River. Afterpassing through Bayou Rouge Swamp, .and just atsunset, turning from the highway, we struck off intothe " Big Cane Brake." We followed an unbeatentrack, scarcely wide enough to admit the wagon.The cane, such as are used for fishing-rods, were asthick as they could stand. A person could not beseen through them the distance of a rod. The pathsof wild beasts run through them in various directions— the bear and the American tiger abounding in thesebrakes, and wherever there is a basin of stagnant wa-ter, it is full of alligators.We kept on our lonely course through the " BigCane" several miles, when we entered a clearing,known as " Sutton's Field." Many years before, aman by the name of Sutton had penetrated the wilder-ness of cane to this solitary place. Tradition has it,G*

　　154 TWELVE YEAE3 A SLATE.that he fled thither, a fugitive, not from service, butfrom justice. Here he lived alone — recluse and her-mit of the swamp — with his own hands planting theseed and gathering in the harvest. One day a bandof Indians stole upon his solitude, and after a bloodybattle, overpowered and massacred him. For milesthe country round, in the slaves' quarters, and on thepiazzas of " great houses," where white children listento superstitious tales, the story goes, that that spot, inthe heart of the "Big Cane," is a haunted place. Formore than a quarter of a century, human voices hadrarely, if ever, disturbed the silence of the clearing.Kank and noxious weeds had overspread the once cul-tivated field — serpents sunned themselves on the door-way of the crumbling cabin. It was indeed a drearypicture of desolation.Passing " Sutton's Field," we followed a new-cntroad two miles farther, which brought us to its ter-mination. We had now reached the wild lands ofMr. Eldret, where he contemplated clearing up anextensive plantation. We went to work next morn-ing with our cane-knives, and cleared a sufficientspace to allow the erection of two cabins — one forMyers and Eldret, the other for Sam, myself, and theslaves that were to join us. We were now in themidst of trees of enormous growth, whose wide-spread-ing branches almost shut out the light of the sun,while the space between the trunks was an . impervi-ous mass of cane, with here and there an occasionalpalmetto.

　　LIFE IX THE BIG CANE BRAKE. 155The bay and the sycamore, the oak and the cypress,reach a growth unparalleled, in those fertile lowlandsbordering the Red River. From every tree, moreover,hang long, large masses of moss, presenting to the eyeunaccustomed to them, a striking and singular appear-ance. This moss, in large quantities, is sent north,and there used for manufacturing purposes.We cut down oaks, split them into rails, and withthese erected temporary cabins. We covered theroofs with the broad palmetto leaf, an excellent sub-stitute for shingles, as long as they last.The greatest annoyance I met with here were smallflies, gnats and mosquitoes. They swarmed the air.They penetrated the porches of the ear, the nose, theeyes, the mouth. They sucked themselves beneaththe skin. It was impossible to brush or beat themoff. It seemed, indeed, as if they would devour us —carry us away piecemeal, in their small tormentingmouths.A lonelier spot, or one more disagreeable, than thecentre of the " Big Cane Brake," it would be difficultto conceive ; yet to me it was a paradise, in compari-son with any other place in the company of MasterTibeats. I labored hard, and oft-times was weary andfatigued, yet I could lie down at night in peace, andarise in the morning without fear.In the course of a fortnight, four black girls camedown from Eldret's plantation — Charlotte, Fanny,Cresia and Nelly. They were all large and stout.Axes were put into their hands, and they were sent

　　156 TWELVE YEARS A SLAVE.out with Sam and myself to cut trees. They wereexcellent choppers, the largest oak or sycamore stand-ing but a brief season before their heavy and well-directed blows. At piling logs, they were equal toany man. There are lumberwomen as well as lum-bermen in the forests of the South. In fact, in theregion of the Bayou Bceuf they perform their share ofall the labor required on the plantation. They plough,drag, drive team, clear wild lands, work on the high-way, and so forth. Some planters, owning large cot-ton and sugar plantations, have none other than thelabor of slave women. Such an one is Jim Burns,who lives on the north shore of the bayou, oppositethe plantation of John Fogaman.On our arrival in the brake, Eldret promised me,if I worked well, I might go up to visit my friends atFord's in four weeks. On Saturday night of the fifthweek, I reminded him of his promise, when he toldme I had done so well, that I might go. I had setmy heart upon it, and Eldret's announcement thrilledme with pleasure. I was to return in time to com-mence the labors of the day on Tuesday morning.While indulging the pleasant anticipation of so soonmeeting my old friends again, suddenly the hatefulform of Tibeats appeared among us. He inquiredhow Myers and Piatt got along together, and wastold, very well, and that Piatt was going up to Ford'splantation in the morning on a visit." Poh, poh ! " sneered Tibeats ; " it isn't worth while— the nigger will get unsteady. He can't go."

　　TREATMENT OF TIBEATS. 157But Eldret insisted- 1 had worked faithfully — thathe had given me his promise, and that, under the cir-cumstances, I ought not to be disappointed. Theythen, it being about dark, entered one cabin and Ithe other. I could not give up the idea of going ; itwas a sore disappointment. Before morning I resolved,if Eldret made no objection, to leave at all hazards.At daylight I was at his door, with my blanket rolledup into a bundle, and hanging on a stick over myshoulder, waiting for a pass. Tibeats came out pre-sently in one of his disagreeable moods, washed hisface, and going to a stump near by, sat down upon it,apparently busily thinking with himself. After stand-ing there a long time, impelled by a sudden impulseof impatience, I started off." Are you going without a pass ? " he cried outto me." Yes, master, I thought I would," I answered." How do you think you'll get there ? " demandedhe." Don't know," was all the reply I made him." You'd be taken and sent to jail, where you oughtto be, before you got half-way there," he added, pass-ing into the cabin as he said it. He came out soonwith the pass in his hand, and calling me a " d — d nig-ger that deserved a hundred lashes," threw it on theground. I picked it up, and hurried away rightspeedily.A slave caught off his master's plantation withouta pass, may be seized and whipped by any white man

　　158 TWELVE YEARS A SLAVE.whom he meets. The one I now received was dated,and read as follows :" Piatt has permission to go to Ford's plantation,on Bayou Boeuf, and return by Tuesday morning.John M. Tibeats."This is the usual form. On the way, a great manydemanded it, read it, and passed on. Those havingthe air and appearance of gentlemen, whose dressindicated the possession of wealth, frequently took nonotice of me whatever ; but a shabby fellow, an un-mistakable loafer, never failed to hail me, and toscrutinize and examine me in the most thorough man-ner. Catching runaways is sometimes a money-mak-ing business. If, after advertising, no owner appears,they may be sold to the highest bidder ; and certainfees are allowed the finder for his services, at allevents, even if reclaimed. "A mean white," there-fore, — a name applied to the species loafer — con-siders it a god-send to meet an unknown negro with-out a pass.There are no inns along the highways in that por-tion of the State where I sojourned. I was whollydestitute of money, neither did I carry any provisions,on my journey from the Big Cane to Bayou Boenf ;nevertheless, with his pass in his hand, a slave neednever suffer from hunger or from thirst. It is onlynecessary to present it to the master or overseer of aplantation, and state his wants, when he will be sentround to the kitchen and provided with food or shel-ter, as the case may require. The traveler stops at

　　TISIT TO BAYOU BCEUF. 159any house and calls for a meal with as much freedomas if it was a public tavern. It is the general customof the country. Whatever their faults may be, it iscertain the inhabitants along Red River, and aroundthe bayous in the interior of Louisiana are not want-ing in hospitality. ■I arrived at Ford's plantation towards the close ofthe afternoon, passing the evening in Eliza's cabin,with Lawson, Rachel, and others of my acquaintance."When we left Washington Eliza's form was round andplump. She stood erect, and in her silks and jewels,presented a picture of graceful strength and elegance.Now she was but a thin shadow of her former self.Her face had become ghastly haggard, and the oncestraight and active form was bowed down, as if bear-ino- the weight of a hundred years. Crouching on hercabin floor, and clad in the coarse garments of a slave,old Elisha Berry would not have recognized the moth-er of his child. I never saw her afterwards. Havingbecome useless in the cotton-field, she was barteredfor a trifle, to some man residing in the vicinity ofPeter Compton's. Grief had gnawed remorselessly ather heart, until her strength was gone ; and for that,her last master, it is said, lashed and abused her mostunmercifully. But he could not whip back the de-parted vigor of her youth, nor straighten up that bend-ed body to its full height, such as it was when herchildren were around her, and the light of freedomwas shining on her path.I learned the particulars relative to her departure

　　160 TWELVE YEARS A SLAVE.from this world, from some of Compton's slaves, whohad come over Red River to the bayou, to assistyoung Madam Tanner during the " busy season."She became at length, they said, utterly helpless, forseveral weeks lying on the ground floor in a dilapida-ted cabin, dependent upon the mercy of her fellow-thralls for an occasional drop of water, and a morselof food. Her master did not " knock her on thehead," as is sometimes done to put a suffering animalout of misery, but left her unprovided for, and unpro-tected, to linger through a life of pain and wretched-ness to its natural close. When the hands returnedfrom the field one night they found her dead ! Du-ring the day, the Angel of the Lord, who moveth in-visibly over all the earth, gathering in his harvest ofdeparting souls, had silently entered the cabin of thedying woman, and taken her from thence. She wasfree at last !Next day, rolling up my blanket, I started on myreturn to the Big Cane. After traveling five miles,at a place called Huff Power, the ever-present Tibe-ats met me in the road. He inquired why I was go-ing back so soon, and when informed I was anxiousto return by the time I was directed, he said I needgo no farther than the next plantation, as he had thatday sold me to Edwin Epps. We walked clown intothe yard, where we met the latter gentleman, who ex-amined me, and asked me the usual questions pro-pounded by purchasers. Having been duly deliveredover, I was ordered to the quarters, and at the same

　　SALE TO EDWIN EPPS. 161time directed to make a hoe and axe handle for my-self.I was now no longer the property of Tibeats — hisdog, his brute, dreading his wrath and cruelty dayand night ; and whoever or whatever my new mastermight prove to be, I could not, certainly, regret thechange. So it was good news when the sale was an-nounced, and with a sigh of relief I sat down for thefirst time in my new abode.Tibeats soon after disappeared from that section ofthe country. Once afterwards, and only once, Icaught a glimpse of him. It was many miles fromBayou Bceuf. He was seated in the doorway of alow groggery. I was passing, in a drove of slaves,through St. Mary's parish.