At nine o'clock my patient was comfortably cared for, and I had been talking of going to Levi Coffin's on an errand for a number of days. I asked permission of her to be absent an hour for that purpose, and her consent for two hours was given. On my way I called on John Hatfield, to know whether this company of slaves was not the Mary French family.
"Oh, no, that poor family has gone down the river. I heard some days ago that they were sold to a trader."
"The market-wagon was the plan I gave Mary, and I hoped so much that it was her family."
"Yes, but we should be just as glad for other slaves panting for liberty, as for her," and I accepted the remark as almost a half reproof for being more anxious for her than for other slaves.
As I entered Catherine Coffin's room I inquired whether she knew this morning's company of the nine slaves to be Mary French and family. "I know nothing of the name, but a woman and little child are up in our attic; but nobody knows it about this house but Levi and I."
"Please go up and tell her a friend is going to call on her, so as not to frighten her."
"Go on; she'll know we would let no one but a friend go up." I walked slowly up to the fourth story, and lo! on a box in the corner sat Mary French with her little grandchild sitting at her feet. "Is it possible that is Mary French?" I exclaimed. She sprang to me with outstretched arms, clasped me with tears of joy and leaning her head on my shoulder sobbed.
"O, my God has saved me so far, but my pore Mary was sole down de ribber, when I is here in de city to git a little money to start wid. When I gets into missus' door, I sort o' felt somethin' wrong, an' axt her, 'Whar's Mary?', She say, 'I sole her las' week,' an' I cried, 'O my God! save my pore chile Mary!' an' she kotched up de tongs an' beat me on my head 'til I loss my min', and when I come to I was layin' on de floor bleedin'. You see here is a sore yit" (pointing to her head). There was a gash that must have been three inches long by the appearance of the scar and sore, yet unhealed. "Missus said I never, the longes' day I live, should set foot in Cincinnati, 'case free niggers ruin me, an' afore she have such a fuss as dis, she put de hull of us in her pocket. I knowd what dis mean, and I tried mighty hard to cheer up afore her. But my tears was my meat and drink a few days. I 'membered your word to go to de Lord day an' night, 'case I couldn't come to you no mo'e. In three days he answered my prayer, an' jus' tole me I's gwine to be free, an' I tole my husban' so, but he couldn't git faith in me. I tole 'im to put faith in God, as I did now. But I did lose faith in my bes' frien' when Bailey tole me you an' Hatfiel' betrayed my gal Mary, an' got a hundred dollars reward; den I was mos' crazy. And when dat 'oman tole me to go to you, an' I tole her I did talk to you, and tole her what Bailey said 'bout you an' Hatfiel', she said he was a bad man, an' lied only to keep my mouey. She begged me so hard I tole her if you'd tell me whar Mary is, I'd have faith in you, an' when you tole me so quick, all my faith in you come back. How I wish you could see my man, for he's so sure they'll cotch us. I don't know whar he is, for we's scattered among de good people. O, what a time I had wid 'im to git 'im started. I loaded an' unloaded four times afore he'd come. At las' a pore white man tole me he hear missus say she gwine to sell us all to de firs' trader come along. I say, 'What shall I do?' He say, 'If I was you, I'd run away.' I say 'Here's my man an' chillen, can't go widout 'em.' He say 'All go, an' if dey cotch you 'twon't be no wuss dan to go to de trader, and if I can do any way to help you I will, for I feels sorry for you.' When I tole my man, he was so skeered he didn't know hisself scarcely. He was ready to do anyhow I wants 'im, au' I went to dis white man, an' ax 'im for his boy ten year ole, to go wid me to market, an' take all my family, an' I'd cover 'em up in de market wagon. 'An' I'll tell your boy I wants 'im to watch my team for me, an' I'll gib 'im a dollar.' 'All right, only tell 'im what you'll do, an' tell 'im to come an' ax me an' he musn't know I knows about it.' An' I tuk missus' young hosses, an' put my man an' chillen in, cover 'em up, den put a bag o' taters an' apples an' a basket o' chickens in front. An' I had dis little boy by de chickens, so if he cry or make a noise I shake de basket an' de noise of de chickens kill de noise of de boy. An' I drove de fifteen miles to de ribber by daylight, and drove back of Covin'ton till de smoke of de ferry boat rise; den I prayed God to keep de ferryman from axin' me for my pass. For I's mighty feared he would, 'case I hadn't been here in so long. An' jus' afore sun up my man crawled out de back of de wagon. I told de boy to hol' de hosses till I fix somethin'. I whispered, 'Get back quick, for Gods sake,' an' he whispered, 'Let's go back, I knows dey'll cotch us.' 'Go back! Man, its death to go back; we'd be in jail in no time waitin' for de trader.' An' he crawl back an' I tuck 'im up agin, an' we trimble like a popple leaf. Den de smoke jus' rise on de ferry-beat, an' I drove on wid de white boy by my side. I prayed dat de Lord wouldn't let de ferryman ax me for my pass. If he did I's gwine to say, 'Dis white boy my pass;' but he didn't say a word, an' I praise God for answerin' my prayer." I told her she had nothing to fear from the five hundred dollars reward; she was in good hands; all she had to do was to go when they were ready to take them; but I would write a few lines for her to take to the first stopping place after leaving the city, advising to go by way of Carthaginia. "Write me from that town, and tell your daughter to go on to Canada with you without fail."
I left her with a lighter heart, rejoicing with that rejoicing family, though yet trembling with fear. The time appointed for the two hours' discussion on the subject of slavery arrived. My pro-slavery friend was not disposed to open the conversation he desired in the morning. After waiting until one hour had elapsed, I asked if he was prepared to bring the Scripture arguments he had for my consideration at this hour. He replied that he had thought of but little else during the whole day; but on the whole doubted whether his reasons would stand the test, and declined saying any thing farther in defense of the position he had advanced. A few weeks later he died of cholera. I called on his widow, who said he died a happy soul, and often spoke of his confidence in me as an honest-hearted Christian, and she never heard him speak disparagingly of the colored people after the long conversation we had on that subject. I regretted the loss of an opportunity of seeing him after Mary French and family were safe in Canada. I wished to give him their history, as I felt sure it would have been "like a nail driven in a sure place." He had lived in the South, and the subject of slavery had never been placed before him in this way.
The reward for the nine slaves was doubled on the second day of their exodus. All the clew the hunters got of their whereabouts was from the boy they met at the ferry. He could not read the names on the streets, and could only point as near as he knew in the direction where they all left. He told them he didn't know there were any in the wagon but "black Mary," till they all got out; then she told him to go to Walnut Street ferry, and he drove two or three blocks when he stopped and cried, because he didn't know where to find Walnut Street. Then a man came and told him to stop crying and he'd drive him to the ferry. They went to Hall's, on Macallister Street, but not one was left there five minutes. They were conducted to different hiding-places, and not one was left within a half a mile to a mile from that part of the city. Slave-hunters were paid from three dollars to seven dollars a day for watching around those suspected streets and those leading northward. The family were dressed in disguise and taken out in three carriages, closed, and two white men in front, that gave an impression at sight of a load of white people. At noon-day, in this manner, they rounded the corners, where were standing some of their hunters who were receiving their seven dollars a day, as was ascertained by a scheme gotten up by the colored people.