elpless; keenly alive to the demands of justice and
liberty, but with no means of asserting them. To talk to those imps
about justice and mercy, would have been as absurd as to reason with
bears and tigers. Lead and steel are the only arguments that they
understand.

After remaining in this life of misery and despair about a week, which,
by the way, seemed a month, Master Thomas, very much to my surprise,
and greatly to my relief, came to the prison, and took me out, for the
purpose, as he said, of sending me to Alabama, with a friend of his, who
would emancipate me at the end of eight years. I was glad enough to get
out of prison; but I had no faith in the story that this friend of Capt.
Auld would emancipate me, at the end of the time indicated. Besides,
I never had heard of his having a friend in Alabama, and I took the
announcement, simply as an easy and comfortable method of shipping me
off to the far south. There was a little scandal, too, connected with
the idea of one Christian selling another to the Georgia traders, while
it was deemed every way proper for them to sell to others. I thought
this friend in Alabama was an invention, to meet this difficulty, for
Master Thomas was quite jealous of his Christian reputation, however
unconcerned he might be about his real Christian character. In these
remarks, however, it is possible that I do Master Thomas Auld injustice.
He certainly did not exhaust his power upon me, in the case, but acted,
upon the whole, very generously, considering the nature of my offense.
He had the power and the provocation to send me, without reserve,
into the very everglades of Florida, beyond the remotest hope of
emancipation; and his refusal to exercise that power, must be set down
to his credit.

After lingering about St. Michael's a few days, and no friend from
Alabama making his appearance, to take me there, Master Thomas decided
to send me back again to Baltimore, to live with his brother Hugh, with
whom he was now at peace; possibly he{234} became so by his profession
of religion, at the camp-meeting in the Bay Side. Master Thomas told me
that he wished me to go to Baltimore, and learn a trade; and that, if I
behaved myself properly, he would _emancipate me at twenty-five!_ Thanks
for this one beam of hope in the future. The promise had but one fault;
it seemed too good to be true.

CHAPTER XX. _Apprenticeship Life_

NOTHING LOST BY THE ATTEMPT TO RUN AWAY--COMRADES IN THEIR