been seated, I caught sight of my father, Mr
Tidey, and Dan, with guns in hand, approaching the house.

I immediately cried out to them that some men had been endeavouring to
force their way into the house. The brave Biddy's assailants hearing
what I said, and expecting probably to have some shot sent after them,
took to their heels until they reached their horses, which they had left
secured to some trees, when mounting, they galloped off as hard as they
could go. Biddy, the excitement over, went into hysterics, laughing and
crying and shouting out--

"We've won the day! We did it well, didn't we, Master Mike?"

My father and Mr Tidey, on hearing the account I gave them, were of
opinion that the men were satisfied that the black was not concealed in
the house, but that Biddy had simply fought to prevent them from
entering. Probably they admired her all the more for her determined
conduct. Dan, keeping himself concealed, followed them for some
distance, and when he came back reported that they had taken the road to
Kentucky, so we hoped that we should be rid of them.

Several days passed away and Dio had recovered his strength sufficiently
to get up and move about the house, though my father would not allow him
to go out of doors. His delight was to attend to Kathleen and do her
bidding. She, finding her power, kept him in constant employment.
Young as she was, she could read remarkably well, and her great desire
was to teach him to read. He probably had never before seen a book, as
any person attempting to teach the blacks in the slave-states would have
been thrown into prison, and very possibly hung to the nearest tree.
Except ledgers and account books, probably not a volume of any
description was to be found in Mr Bracher's establishment. For hours
together Kathleen would occupy a high chair, with Dio seated on the
ground by her side, while she taught him the alphabet or read to him
some interesting tale out of one of her books. My mother felt it her
duty to instruct him in the gospel, of which he was perfectly ignorant,
and she took great pains to impart to him its elementary truths, which
he willingly and joyfully took in.

"Dis poor niggar nebber 'fore heard Jesus Christ," he said to her one
day in a low voice; "Him wond'ful good for die for black man like me who
nebber do noting to please Him. Me try an' lub Him an' serve Him with
all my heart to de end ob my days."

"Christ died for black men a