ht, nevertheless; but not
till after the number of the fugitives had been reduced to two, instead
of six. As chivalrous as slave-holders and slave-catchers were, they
knew the value of their precious lives and the fearful risk of
attempting a capture, when the numbers were equal.

The party in the carriage, after the conflict, went on their way
rejoicing.

The young men, one cold night, when they were compelled to take rest in
the woods and snow, in vain strove to keep the feet of their female
companions from freezing by lying on them; but the frost was merciless
and bit them severely, as their feet very plainly showed. The following
disjointed report was cut from the _Frederick (Md.) Examiner_, soon
after the occurrence took place:

"Six slaves, four men and two women, fugitives from Virginia,
having with them two spring wagons and four horses, came to
Hood's Mill, on the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, near the
dividing line between Frederick and Carroll counties, on
Christmas day. After feeding their animals, one of them told a
Mr. Dixon whence they came; believing them to be fugitives, he
spread the alarm, and some eight or ten persons gathered round
to arrest them; but the negroes drawing revolvers and
bowie-knives, kept their assailants at bay, until five of the
party succeeded in escaping in one of the wagons, and as the
last one jumped on a horse to flee, he was fired at, the load
taking effect in the small of the back. The prisoner says he
belongs to Charles W. Simpson, Esq., of Fauquier county, Va.,
and ran away with the others on the preceding evening."

This report from the _Examiner_, while it is not wholly correct,
evidently relates to the fugitives above described. Why the reporter
made such glaring mistakes, may be accounted for on the ground that the
bold stand made by the fugitives was so bewildering and alarming, that
the "assailants" were not in a proper condition to make correct
statements. Nevertheless the _Examiner's_ report was preserved with
other records, and is here given for what it is worth.

These victors were individually noted on the Record thus: Barnaby was
owned by William Rogers, a farmer, who was considered a "moderate
slaveholder," although of late "addicted to intemperance." He was the
owner of about one "dozen head of slaves," and had besides a wife and
two children.

Barnaby's chances for making extra "change" for hi