T H E
LIFE AND SUFFERINGS
OF
LEONARD BLACK.
A FUGITIVE FROM SLAVERY.
WRITTEN BY HIMSELF
- NEW BEDFORD
PRESS OF BENJAMIN LINDSEy.
1847.




N 0 TIC E.
Doubts having been expressed upon sundry matters
connected with the following little narrative, Mr. Black
has requested me to say a few words concerning its au-
thorship and claims to belief.
The book was written substantially by Mr. Black him-
self, but, in consequence of his deficiency of education—
growing out of the fact that his childhood and youth were
spent in slavery—it needed considerable correction to fit
it for the press. This work was kindly performed, gra-
tuitously, by a friend of the author, who was, however,
very careful to preserve the narrative as nearly unchanged
as possible—confining himself mostly to punctuating,
correcting the Orthography, striking out unnecessary
words and sentences, &c. &c.
I am well acquainted with Mr. Black, and have the
fullest confidence in the truth of his narrative, as has
the friend who assisted him in preparing it for the press,
and, indeed, every one who knows him.
- A. M. MACY.
Nantucket, October 30th, 1847.

INTRODUCTION.
IN putting this little volume before the pub-
lic, it is well, perhaps, that I should speak of
my motive.
Born and reared in slavery, I was, of course,
deprived of education; and believing that I
can be of service to the public in the ministry,
I have published this account of my life and
sufferings, with the hope that I might realize a
sufficient sum from its sale, to enable me to
procure a greater degree of education, thereby
increasing my usefulness as a preacher.
With this simple statement I present myself
to the humane, in the hope that I may not ap-
peal in vain. LEONARD BLACK.
April, 1847.


LIFE AND SUFFERINGS
O E.
LF ON A R D BLACK.
CHAPTER I.
It is my object to give to the reader a plain.
simple narrative of the more interesting portion
of my life, while in slavery.
I was born in Annarundel County, State of
Maryland, about sixty miles below Baltimore,
and lived a slave more than twenty years. My
old master was a physician, but I think it pru-
dent to withhold his name. No one, who has
always enjoyed the right of liberty, can realize
the horrors of slavery. To be at the will of
another, to be owned like a cow or horse, and
liable at any moment to be sold to the highest

6 LIFE AND STUFFERINGS
bidder, to be transported to a distant part of
the country, leaving the dearest relatives behind;
to be, in fine, ground down mentally and phy-
sically by the untold curses of slavery, may be
a very pretty thing to the masters of the “pecu-
liar institution,” but it is death to the slaves.
After more than twenty years of bondage,
God delivered me from it, with a strong hand
and an outstretched arm, as he did Israel of
old. -
As near as I can remember, my mother and
sister were sold and taken to New Orleans,
leaving four brothers and myself behind. We
were all placed out. At six years of age I was
placed with a Mr. Bradford, separated from my
father, mother and family. But the eye of God
was upon me, and blessed me. My master was
a carpenter, and much from home—Mrs. Brad-
ford beat me so much that her husband sent
me to his father's. Mrs. Bradford ordered me
one day to take a bushel of corn up stairs; but

OF LEONARD BLACK. 7.
I was unable to do it, upon which she knocked
me down with the johnny-cake board, cutting
my head so badly that it bled more than a
quart. It was then that I thought of my moth-
er. My little friends—who have your liberty,
and the protecting hand of parents—these are
some of the fruits of slavery : let your hearts
warm with gratitude to the great Giver of all
good, for the blessings you enjoy. Mrs. Brad-
ford had a son about ten years old; she used
to make him beat me and spit in my face.
Here I was, a poor slave boy, without father or
mother to take my part.
At the end of two years, Mrs. Bradford beat
me so much, that her husband, fearing she
would kill me, placed me at his father's, where
! remained until the death of the old gentle-
man. But old Mr. Bradford was worse than
Mrs. Bradford He had been a professor of
religion, a class leader in the Methodist Church,
but at this time he was a backslider; * a.

s LIFE AND SUFFERINGS
wanderer from God, and as cold as though he
had never been warmed by the vivifying power
of the religion of Jesus Christ.
I lived in this family seven and a half years,
and when I left I was thirteen years old. Dur-
ing this time I had no hat, no pantaloons, but
one pair of shoes, and wore a lindsey slip only.
I was not allowed to sit down while I ate my
meals. For my breakfast I had a pint of pot
liquor, half a herring, and a little piece of bread.
Whether this would stay the cravings of a young
appetite or not, there was no more to be had.
For my dinner I had a pint of pot liquor, and
the skin off of the pork. I must say as the col-
ored people say at the south, when singing to
cheer their hearts while under the burning sun,
and the crack of the whip, remembering what
is placed before them every day for food—“My
old master is a hard-hearted man; he eats the
meat, and gives poor nigger bones.” At night
I had a bit of bread for my supper, and a piece

OF LEONARD BLACK. 9
of carpet for my bed, spread down on the
hearth, winter and summer. In the winter,
when the fire got low, I used to burn my feet
by getting them into the embers.
My work, in the winter time, was to fetch
wood from the swamp up to the house. Being
without shoes or hat, and thinly clad, I used to
go into the house to warm myself. When in
the house for this purpose, at one time, old Mr.
Bradford followed me in, and said: “If you
want to be warmed, I’ll warm you.” He took
the tongs, heated them in the fire, and branded
my legs; and the scars are there to this day.
I could not sit down in consequence of the
wound. He whipped me also, and used to put
my head under the fence.
Christians ! I beseech you, do not become
backsliders; especially slave-holding Christians'
for the terrible effects of backsliding, slave-hold-
ing Christianity are awfully developed in my
history !

10 LIFE AND SUFFERINGS
Shortly after this, the death of this man de-
livered me from his hands. I rejoiced. God
only knows whether he went to perdition. With
all my heart I have forgiven him. I expect to
meet him at the bar of God with the scars and
the tongs. Farewell, Mr. Bradford ' But this
is not all. He left all his property to his daugh-
ter Elizabeth; and her brother Nathan, a tax-
gatherer, was overseer of the farm for her.
One year after her father's death, Elizabeth got
married to Wm. Gardener, a gentleman from
Baltimore, a member of the Methodist Church.
I then thought I should have a good master.
But oh, my soul! it was worse and worse
All is not gold that shines, nor silver that glit-
ters. He had not been married a great while
before my heart beat and my feet burned. He
was a collier, engaged in burning charcoal, and
used to draw it to the village landing, and
sometimes to Baltimore.
One day he left me twenty-five bushels of

GE LEONARD BLACK. 11
coal to draw. By being broken of my rest the
night previous, engaged in watching the coal
pit, I was tired and sleepy. When I had drawn
all the coal out, supposing I had put the fire
out, I laid down to rest my weary limbs. The
coal burned up. Mr. Gardner came into the
woods where I lay asleep, hallooed and scared
me up; he struck me with the shovel, and cut
my head so that I knew nothing for two days.
I was so weak from the loss of blood, that he
was compelled to carry me home on his shoul-
ders, covering himself with blood. His wife was
very much alarmed. We were about a mile
from home, and he told me not to speak of it.
At another time, he cut my head with a hoe
handle, so that altogether I was sick for a long
time. Mr. Gardner had a very quick temper,
and would strike me with anything he happen-
ed to have in his hand, reckless of consequen-
CeS.
One day, Eliza (a slave girl of his,) and my-

12 LIFE AND SUFFERINGS
self, went into the water-melon patch, procured
a melon and ate it. We were compelled to this
by the promptings of hunger, for the living had
not altered since the death of Mr. Bradford.
Eliza was about eighteen years of age. For
that offence, our cruel master stripped us and
tied us both up together, and whipped us till
the blood ran down on the ground in a puddle.
When I was sick, he used to send me into
the place where they smoked meat, for fear I
should vomit on the floor. On Wednesdays,
there were meetings in the meeting-house, and
Mr. Gardner used to make me stay away from
the house, for the minister would come home
with him, and he was fearful Ishould tell him of
his cruel treatment. He did not say as Hagar
of old—“Thou, God, seest me.”
One day he sent me to drive the horse from
the peach tree. The horse kicked me in the
head, and I was laid up six months. My head
was sewed up; and I also received a great

of LEONARD BLACK. 13
many knocks in the side, from the effects of
which I have not yet recovered On one oc-
casion, he struck me in the mouth with an iron-
toothed rake, which knocked out one of my
front teeth. All this time, my more fortunate
reader, I was a poor slave boy, with no one to
pity me, with no parents to take my part. I
had no father ; no mother But God pitied
me. The eye of the all-merciful God, without
whose notice not a sparrow falls to the ground,
was upon me. He it was that bore my feeble
spirit up, when my lacerated and quivering
frame was writing under the God-defying
curse of slavery.

14 LIFE AND SUFFERINGS
CHAPTER II.
In the midst of all this trouble and gloom,
my heart was made glad by learning that my
old master had come to take me home, at the
expiration of thirteen years. Mr. Gardner and
my old master had a long talk about me, for I
was a miserable looking object with burnt feet.
I bade Mr. Gardner good bye, and expect to
meet him at the judgment seat, when slave and
master appear before the great Judge of all,
with equal rights.
My old master took me to Baltimore, where
we arrived in two days. He asked me if I
wanted a hat. I had never had one, and re-
ceived one which cost twenty-five cents as joy-
fully as though it had cost eight dollars. We
were then twenty-two miles from home. The
old man asked me if I ever drank brandy. I
said no. He said it was a good thing, and when

OF LEONARD BLACK. - 15
I saw him drunk, I might get so too. But I
could not get spirit if I wanted it ever so much,
though I saw him drink many glasses, and have
known him to have a barrel of whiskey at one
time.
We left Baltimore, and arrived at our home.
When I saw my four brothers, who had been
so long separated from me, I felt as I think Jo-
seph felt when he saw his brethren, though I
knew nothing of the history of Joseph at that
time. Surely I was glad to see my brothers,
but yet I was a slave—being with them did not
make me a free man. I was yet bowed down
and crushed by the cruel spirit of slavery.
They were about to run away at the time of
my arrival; but I knew nothing of it. Six
months, or about that time after, I joined them.
Three of my oldest brothers went away, leaving
one of my brothers and myself behind. This
brother is still a slave. I heard from him in
1846. We were left behind because we were

16 LIFE AND SUFFERINGS
not able to travel. They left ten years before
I did, but in relation to those ten years I will
remain silent. I was the youngest of the five
brothers. My old master had a very bad wife,
and she made him much worse than he would
have been without her. She made him beat me
without cause, and when it answered no pur-
pose. During those awful ten years we had not
enough to eat, and were beaten shamefully.
Most of the time we had bean soup for break-
fast, dinner and supper—a pint at each meal.
When we had potatoes, we were withoutbread.
Such was our fare; and whether hungry or sat-
isfied, we had no addition to it. We were
poor slaves; and the great object in feeding
slaves is doubtless the same as it is with cattle
and horses, to keep them in good working or-
der, or saleable condition. Of course, if the
health of the slave is not permanently injured,
the nearer to the starvation point the master
can keep the slave, the more it is for his inter-

OF LEONARD BLACK. 17
est; and who, that casts his eye back through
the dark, bloody track of slavery, does not per-
ceive that the masters have acted up to their
interest We sometimes had cider; occasion-
ally some meat and milk, as it might happen.
We remembered what our brothers told us—
when we were able to run away, to try it on
some favorable Sunday. The old man would
let us go to meeting on Sunday at the village,
but if we were not at home by Sundown, the
cowhide paid the debt. We were slaves yet,
and the old man grew poorer and poorer the
older he grew, and withal cross, much to our
discomfort. He had a wife like king Herod,
and like Ahab, for we read that Beelzebub
stirred up Ahab to work evil in the sight of the
Lord.
Finally the old lady teased her husband to
put my brother Nick out; and he let him out
for ten dollars a month. I was at home with
two Women and a boy to carry on the farm,
2

18 LIFE AND Sup'R'ERINGS
-
and we saw hard times. The old man had a
son, a preacher. At times he came home, but
he could not help our case. I was anxious to
learn to read. My master had two sons who
went to school, and four unmarried daughters.
One Sunday a gentleman came to our house;
I held his horse, and he gave me a sixpenny
bit, with which I bought a book, and tried to
learn to read. I had it but a week, when the
old man saw it in my bosom, and made inquiry
as to what it was. He said, “You son of a
b–h, if I ever know you to have a book again,
I will whip you half to death.” He took the
book from me, and burntit! What could I do?
I was a slave; and the mind which God had
given me, in common with my brethren with
white skins to be enlightened, must be kept
darkened, and remain in ignorance, to suit the
policy of the “peculiar institution.”
I omitted to mention that Mr. Buk came to
see Miss Jane, one of the unmarried daughters,

OF LEONARD BLACK. 19
at the time he gave me the piece of money.
The same attraction drew him there again, and
he then gave me eleven pence, with which I
purchased a larger book, thirsting for that
knowledge which was denied me: but I had
not had this book over a week before my master
found it out; and he then made me sick of
books by beating me like a dog. He whipped
me so very severely that he overcame my thirst
for knowledge, and I relinquished its pursuit
until after I absconded. He took my book
from me, and gave it to his son—so it seems
the white man’s son must-have the means of ed-
ucation, even if stolen from the slave. I could
do nothing ; but the all-merciful Father, who
regards MAN as MAN, whatever may be the in-
justice and oppression to which he is subjected,
watched over and guided me with his parental
eye through all the soul-sickening, heart-rend-
ing trials of a gloomy bondage. I can prove
by the scriptures that slave-holders are worse

20 LIFE AND SUFFERINGs
than the devil, for it is written in St. James,
“Resist the devil, and he will flee from you;”
but if you undertake to resist the slave-holder,
he will hold you the tighter.
I knew a man who thought it too cruel to
whip his slaves, but he stripped them naked,
tied them to a board, (one end of which was on
the fence, the other on the ground,) and then
drew a cat by her tail down their backs. Of
course the claws of the cat sunk deeply into
the flesh, for at such a time a cat will resist this
retrogade movement to the extent of her
strength. Then he would ask the poor slave
if it hurt. The reply was, “Oh! pray, master,
oh pray, master, don't.”
When in slavery I experienced a hope in
Christ, from the 8th verse of the 23d chapter
of Matthew,” “Give us of your oil, for our
lamps have gone out.” It was one year before
I had evidence that my heart was changed.
* I experienced a hope under a slave man.

or LEONARD BLAck. 21
This was in the year 1836. I was awakened
by the Holy Spirit of God, by its divine influ-
ence operating on my mind, and the words,
“Give me of your oil,” rang in my ears con-
tinually; but I strove hard against the spirit, to
shake off these feelings, yet at the end of this
year I was brought to submit to the will of God.
I beheld myself a justly condemned sinner be-
fore God. I felt bound to give myself up to
Him; and obtained a pardon for my sins—and
to-day I am struggling to make my peace, my
calling and election sure. The word of that
poor unreleased slave has proved unto me the
power and wisdom of God, and to-day I am
trying to preach Christ to the inhabitants of
Nantucket.

22 Lººe, AND SUFFERINGs.
CHAPTER III.
My brother Nicholas said, that our brothers
recommended to him and myself to run away
when we were old enough. We used to talk
this over. When God had opened my eyes, I
grew very uneasy reflecting upon the condition
of my brothers, who were enjoying their liberty
in a land of freedom. I wanted also to be free.
I resolved to be free. I made up my mind to
run away in the year 1837. When I ran away,
my brother Nicholas was not at home; but I
was determined to go. I was so intimate with
a man named Henry, one of my acquaintances,
that I told him I was about to run away. He
said he would run with me—but he proved a
Judas, and betrayed me. We were to start on
Monday night. At this time we lived at the
village, The pasture in which our horses were

OF LEONARD BLACK. 23
kept was half a mile from the village. Henry
told me he would meet me there at half past
seven. I tied up all my clothes in a bundle,
expecting to start. I waited till after eight o'-
clock for Henry, but he did not come. I started
to go back after him, when, behold! I saw my
old master, his two sons, and many other peo-
ple looking for me. The moon shone very
bright—the old man was bare-headed ; his head
was very white; his spectacles were put back
upon his head, and I could see them glisten by
the light of the moon. The only reason the
old man did not see me was because he was
near-sighted, and forgot to pull his spectacles
down over his eyes. His two sons were stand-
ing in the road where I was to run, and five or
six other persons on the watch for me; and my
heart was in my mouth. Said I, “Oh Lord,
what shall I do ſº I dropped down on my
hands and feet, and ran half a mile through
the grass. I left my bundle of clothing and

24 LIFE AND SUFFERINGs
three dollars in money which I had been work-
ing for, for some time. All the money I had
with me was 75 cents; that a Quaker gentle-
man gave me that afternoon. I had told this
gentleman that I was going to run away that
night, and he told me which way to start to get
clear. I started for Boston. I travelled all
that night. The next morning I came out in
a road opposite a tavern, where two roads
crossed, and I knew not which to take. I took
the east. I was 35 miles from home. The
tavern keeper was standing at the door. It
was about sunrise. He told me I had the wrong
road. I came back to him, supposing I had
met with a friend. Said he, “Do you want
some breakfast Pº “Yes, sir, if you please,” I
replied. “Come in, and sit down, and you
shall have some,” he continued. “No, sir,”
said I, “I thank you; I will sit upon the steps.”
“No,” said the Georgia man, “ come in ; we
will have breakfast pretty soon, and we will all

OF LEONARD BLACK. 25
sit down together.” “No, sir, I thank you, I
would as soon sit here;” for I thought he was
most too kind to be honest; the Quaker man
having told me to avoid Georgia men. When
he found I would not come in, he took hold of
my collar, but I threw him down, for I was re-
solved to whip the devil out of the way, if pos-
sible. After he was down, I ran for my life.
There was a colored man bringing a pail of
water. He cried out to him to stop me ; but I
told the colored man if he attempted to trouble
me I would knock him down. I jumped over
a fence, and the Georgia man after me; but I
saw no more of the colored man. The white
man struck me in the side with a stone, and run
me about a mile. I recovered from the blow
of the stone, so that I could run a little faster.
God gave me strength to fight for my life. The
white man fought me, and I fought him with
any thing that came handy, with fists and with
stones, I told him he might kill me or I would

26 LIFE AND SUFFERINGS
kill him. Finally, I whipped him. There
was a Dutchman and his two sons sawing
plank in a grist mill. He said, “ Glory in
your spunk, my man;” and when I had whipped
the man he started back after dogs and hounds.
Said the Dutchman, “Run for your life, for
there are two Georgia men in my house.” I
knew them well; they were acquaintances of
my master's. Their names were Joshua and
Nathan Retlidge, traders.
When I heard the dogs and hounds coming
after me, I said, “My God! what shall I do ſ”
for I knew they would put them on my track.
I was about to give up, and wished I had never
started. However, I climbed up a tree, and
in the providence of God, the hounds scared
up a rabbit. At the howling of the dogs, I
trembled like a leaf, and knew not what to do.
The hounds drew nearer and nearer; the rab-
bit came under the tree where I was, and,
through the will of an over-ruling Providence,

of LEONARD BLACK. 27
they all passed by, and I was safely delivered
out of their hands. It was about eight o'clock
in the morning when I climbed the tree. I was
hungry and wet with dew. I staid in the tree
till about five o'clock in the afternoon. They
hunted the woods pretty well, but they did not
find me, My words are inadequate to express
my joyful feelings at my deliverance. God
alone could know my feelings.
I then started for Boston. Then, as now,
God alone was my only hope. I travelled a
number of days without eating anything, under
great anxiety to see Boston. One morning I
met a colored man named George. He was
running away, and had got lost. He was from
Richmond, Virginia. He asked my name. I
told him; and we travelled a number of days
together. We called into a shop where we
thought no one would harm us, and got some-
thing to eat. Thus, under the guidance of
Providence, we proceeded along. We came

28 T.IFE AND SUFFERINGS
to a farmer's house, and we let ourselves out
each to a farmer for $13 a month, our object
being to get money to defray our expenses.
George grew uneasy. He staid only two
weeks—was fearful his master would overtake
him. He started for New York, but reached
only as far as Brunswick, 16 miles from where
he started, and, as I heard, was taken up, put
in jail, and carried back.
I began to grow uneasy. One morning I
asked the farmer for whom I worked for $4.
He gave me that sum. We went to breakfast.
I ate quickly, and cleared. I have not seen
him since. I crossed the fields, missed the
bridge, and came to a creek, over which I had
to swim. I came out into the road. A man
in a gig overtook me and inquired who I was,
and where I was going. I told him to New
Brunswick. He inquired who I knew. I
named the individual I had lived with. He
went to his house, and I took to the woods, and

OF LEONARD BLACK. 29.
did not come out again until I reached New
Brunswick. I got there about dusk-saw a
colored man with a pail, and inquired of him
the way to New York. “Stand here,” said he,
“until I come back.” But it is a hard thing to
catch a weasel asleep. So when he was out of
sight, Ivanished also. I went to the car bridge:
the man would not let me go across. I went
under the bridge and staid there till the cars
arrived; and when the gate opened I passed,
and bade New Brunswick good bye.
I then proceeded on to New York. I trav-
elled until one o'clock in the morning, though
it was cold and frosty. While lying asleep,
there came a drove of hogs. In hunting for
acorns, they turned me over. I was alarmed,
supposing my pursuers had overtaken me. I
jumped up and started again, chilled with cold,
travelled two hours, and lay down by the side
of a hay-stack.
I arose about day-break. The next place I

30 T.IFE AND SUFFERINGS
reached was Elizabethtown. In going through
this town, a man accosted me, saying, “I think
I know your countenance.” “No,” said I, “I
know nothing about you.” He inquired
whence I came, and whither I was going; and
I told him I was from home and for New York.
I left him, and made my way for Newark.
When I got there I was very hungry, for I had
eaten nothing since I left the farm-house. I
went into a bake-shop, and bought eleven
pence worth of bread. The loaf was a pretty
large one, and I commenced eating, but soon
felt sick, laid down in the swamp, rested, and
started again.
I met some Irishmen who were working on
the rail road, and I thought every moment I
should be killed. One of them asked me
where I was going, for what purpose, and when
I should return. I told him I was going to
New York to buy some things, and should re-
turn the same afternoon or next morning. He

of LEONARD BLAck. 3i
inquired whether I should return by the same
route, and I replied “Yes.” He said “Very
well,” to which I responded. I looked so bad
I suppose he thought strange, for I had on the
same clothes I started with. I proceeded on,
came to the ferry, and crossed over to New
York. Near the ferry there was a stable, and
a man sitting by it. We bade each other good
morning, and I inquired the road to Canada.
He told me I must go to New York in order to
get to Canada. “Why do you wish to go to
Canada P’’ said he, I told him I had relations
there. I did not then know whether my brother
who ran away before me was in Boston or
Canada. Discovering he had a disposition to
question me, I said, “I guessed I would go to
New York, get some clothes, and go back
home.” He wished me to come into the stable,
and sit down while he went to the hºuse to
get a coat, which he offered to sell me. I de-
clined his offer, and told him I would as soon

32 LIFE AND SUFFERINGS
stand. He started off, whether in pursuit of
the coat or somebody to detain me, I do not
know, for I left immediately. I paid the ferry-
man a five-penny bit, and crossed to New
York. No questions were put to me on board
the ferry-boat,

OF LEONARD BLACK. 33
CHAPTER IV.
When I landed, l inquired of a boy whether
there was any boat that run to the State of Bos-
ton. I was so ignorant I knew not whether
Boston was a State or city. In fact, I scarcely
knew there was such a place. Slavery is as
ill adapted for obtaining this kind of knowledge
as all other kinds. He informed me the boat
went to Providence, and showed me the way
to the boat. I purchased a bosom and dickey,
went on board of the boat, and stowed myself
away among the bales of cotton, where I re-
mained until we were a considerable distance
from New York. I then felt like a FREE MAN,
and walked the deck with the rest of the pas-
sengers. I had but little money, and wanted to
save it; so I inquired of the engineer if I could
work my passage to Providence. He said
3

34. LIFE AND SUFFERINGS
* Yes,” and set me to work. I worked out the
first watch of the night, and he then told me I
might go to sleep. I laid down on the cotton.
The man came round and demanded my ticket.
I told him I had none, that I had been working
half of the night. Said he, “That I know
nothing about. You must go to the office and
settle your fare.” He said the fare was $3,
and he could give me no ticket. I thought
hard of it, but it was of no use to have any fur-
ther conversation.
I got to Providence on Sunday morning.
My money was all gone. There I was, with-
out friends, victuals or money, I inquired of
a man if there was such a place as foston, and
how far it was. He said 40 miles. I started,
and took the rail road. I walked all day Sun-
day, and about nine o'clock came to a farmer's
house- I knocked at the door ; a lady came
and inquired what I wanted. I asked her if
she would please give me something to eat, for

QF LEONARD BLACK. - 35
1 was very hungry. She invited me in ; she
went to the pump, got a cup of water, and gave
me a crust of brown bread, from which the in-
side had been taken. As she gave it to me in
the name of a disciple, she shall receive a dis-
ciple’s reward. By this time, the old gentle-
man came in. “How do you do, my man º'
said he, “How do you do, sir?” said I. He
inquired of me where I was from, when I left,
and where I was going ; and I gave him the in-
formation. After sitting awhile, he inquired if
I would like to lie down. I told him I was
very tired, and he took me to the barn and gave
me liberty to rest there for the night. I said
nothing, but went in. I was afraid of him ; for
he had on a blue frock, and, never having seen
any one with such a frock on, I supposed he
was a Turk. About 3 o'clock next morning I
got up and started for Boston, being gfraid to
stay there any longer.
I reached Boston at noon on Monday, and in-
-

36 LIFE AND SUFFERINGS
quired for my brothers; but nobody knew any-
thing about them. Finally, I met with a col-
ored lady by the name of Sarah Taylor, the
wife of John R. Taylor. I asked her if she
knew any thing about my brothers. She said
a George Black had passed through Boston, and
lived in Portland. She said, “Come home
with me, for I perceive you have been a slave.”
I went and boarded with her for $3 a week. I
got a gentleman to write to Portland to Mr.
George Black, the man I thought was my
brother. He supposed I was one of his broth-
ers, he having three brothers in the West Indies.
He invited me to come to Portland, and offered
to pay my fare. I was very ragged and dirty.
Mrs. Taylor wrapped me up in Mr. Taylor's
cloak, and sent me to Portland. Mr. Black
sent down his man to the steamboat to get my
trunk; but instead of having a trunk, I had
scarcely any clothes to my back. When I saw
Mr. Black, and ſound he was not my brother, I

OF LEONARD BLACK. 37
was very sad ; and he was disappointed. He
said he knew nothing of my brothers—had
never seen them. He talked with me much
about slavery, and I unfolded to him my his-
tory, and that of others. Mr. Black was very
kind to me, indeed, and did all in his power to
render me happy. Mrs. Black, his wife, was
more than a mother to me, and the whole fam-
ily were very kind to me. I married Mr.
Black's daughter. I could not go to church
the first Sunday after my arrival, for I was rag-
ged and dirty. The following week, Mrs.
Black and her daughter made me some clothes.
I had been there but a short time when Mr.
Black sent me to school. I went to school
that winter, and learned very fast. Mr. Black
charged me nothing for my board that winter.
When near spring, Mr. Black sent me up to
Bridgetown, 34 miles from Portland, to live
with Major Purley, a farmer. Mr. Purley gave
me $10 a month, and was anxious for me to

3S LIFE AND SUFFERINGS
go to school; but I told him no. I owed Mr.
Black, and wanted to get some clothes, and
could not spare the time.
At length George Ropes wrote me from
Portland, to come and live with him. I went
there, and boarded with Mr. Black. I was en-
gineer for Mr. Ropes in the steam factory, and
lived with him one season ; and when the Rev.
Mr. Black removed to Boston to be settled
over the Belknap-street Church, I accompa-
nied him. The reason why I removed to Bos-
ton with Mr. Black, was because I had fallen
in love with his daughter. I trust this reason
will be deemed ample by all those who have
experienced the tender workings of this mys-
terious passion. Only a few months after my
return to Boston, I married Mr. Black's daugh-
ter, though young and poor; and I am still
poor. I had four children, one of whom is de-
ceased. I lived at service in Boston. Some-
times I worked on the wharves, But I was in

OF TEONARD BLACK. 39
-
an unsettled state, being under the impression
that I should preach the Gospel. I firstly de-
rived these impressions in Boston, and they
have not left me. I was baptized before I left
Portland, by the Rev. Mr. Burroughs, who is
now in his grave. I joined the Belknap street
Church while Mr. Black was pastor. I lived
there five years: then I found Boston was not
the place for me, for its vanities and maxims
were not suited to my disposition. I prepared
to live in the country, for I had a desire to be
diligent in business, fervent in spirit, serving
the Lord. I began to think of perishing souls,
and the cause of God laid near my heart. I
felt that God had a claim upon me, that I was
not my own master; but I struggled against
these impressions, for I was inadequate, un-
learned and unprepared. I could say as said
Jeremiah, “Behold, I cannot speak, for I am
a child; but the Lord said unto me, Say not
thou art a child, for thou shalt go to all to

40 LIFE AND SUFFERINGS
whom I shall send thee, and whatever I com-
mand thee, thou shalt do ;” Jer, i. 6–7. And
I said as Moses did, “I am slow of speech and
of a slow tongue;” Exod, iv: 10. My call
was now unto the sons of men. The time had
arrived for me to leave Boston.

OF LEONARD BLACK. 41
CHAPTER V.
1 left my family in Boston, and went to Prov-
idence, R. I., to live with President Wayland.
While living with Dr. Wayland, I tried to im-
prove my mind, and it gives me pleasure to
state, that that gentleman did all in his power
to assist me. I connected myself with the
Rev. Mr. Ashur's Church in Providence, and
had a bible class, being as active as possible in
the Sabbath School. After being connected
with Brother Ashur's Church a short time, he
invited me to officiate for him one Sunday
morning, as he knew I was accustomed to ex-
hort when in Boston,
I left Dr. Wayland and went to work with
Mr. Andrew, a stone mason, and continued to
work for him while he had employment for me.
In this time, I had moved my family from Bos-

42 LIFE AND SUFFERINGS
ton to Providence. Finally, I told the breth-
ren and pastor of the church that God had
called me to the work of the ministry. They
agreed to give me a hearing. They did so,
and appointed a committee to see me; and the
result was, the brethren thought I was not
called to preach—“that Brother Black had
better wait awhile longer.” Dr. Wayland
thought I had not learning enough to preach.
I know that I am of a slow tongue, and un-
learned ; but what says the prophet Zachariah
“Not by might, nor by power, but by my
spirit, saith the Lord of hosts. Who art thou,
O great mountain before Zerubbabel thou
shalt become a plain; and he shall bring forth
the head stone thereof with shoutings, crying,
Grace, grace unto it;” iv: 6, 7.
At length I got discouraged, let myself out
to Mr. Foster in Providence, and run in his
canal boat from Providence to Woonsocket.
The few books I had I carried to auction, and

OF LEONARD BLACK. 43
almost gave up in despair; for some of the
brethren were looking upon me with a frown
and dark looks. I knew I was a poor un-
learned fugitive. I had given up the idea of
preaching, nor did I wish to hear about it, and
was sorry I mentioned it to the brethren or
any one else. So I went to the canal boat,
working for $12 a month, having a family to
support. But oh! Lord! my trouble had not
come. Mr. Foster was a kind man. I had
worked on the canal about three weeks, when
I met with a sad accident. We arrived at
Woonsocket one night with a load of coal ; it
began to rain, and rained all the next day.
The captain said we must get up at 2 o’clock
the next morning, and carry the boat up
through the lock, for the current ran so hard
when the factory started, it was difficult getting
up. The coal was going to Waterford, one
mile from Woonsocket. When I mounted the
horse to return, it being very dark, and raining

44 LIFE AND SUFFERINGS
very hard, the horse started before I was fairly
upon his back; his hind legs gave way, he fell
backwards on me, and broke my leg. While
I was struggling with the horse upon me,
words came unto me like these—“This is for
your disobedience.” My companions were a
little way behind, and they heard me haloo.
The horse in struggling to get clear, cut my
face with his foot. I was hurt so badly that my
wife had to feed me with a tea-spoon. The
men came up and got the horse off of me, and
I was not aware my leg was broken until I
started to run. It was about four o’clock in
the morning. They laid me on the horse, and
carried me back to the tavern; but oh the
pain, the misery I was in. It rained hard, and
they were all asleep at the tavern; so that I re-
mained exposed to the rain some time. They
sent for the doctor immediately, but he did not
arrive until nine o’clock, and then set my leg.
The owner of the tavern sent me home in a

OF LEONARD BLACK. 45
carriage, a distance of nineteen miles, where
we arrived at sundown.
My ſolks thought I was dead. The moment
the carriage drew up to the door, they took me
out, carried me into the house, and laid me on
a bed. -
My distress of body was very great, and the
anguish of my mind was extreme—for I had
but little victuals in the house, was without
money, and there was about to be an increase
in my family. My wife was unwell, and I was
laid prostrate on the bed. Then the saying of
the apostle Paul came fresh to my mind—º In
every thing give thanks, for this is the will of
God in Christ Jesus concerning you;" Thes,
V : 18. At first, I could see no place where I
could give thanks. The streams of livelihood
were dried up, and the hand of Providence
was closed, it seemed to me. I had no in-
come save my daily labor. I was a stranger
in that community, but in reflecting on Him

46 LIFE AND STUFFERINGS
whose kindness tempers the wind to the shorn
lamb, I had reason to be thankful; first, that
both legs were not broken ; second, that my
arms were whole ; and last and greatest, that
God had spared my life to see my family once
In Ore.
Not many days after, the hand of Provi-
dence was directed to my house. Unexpected
stores were opened to my relief. President
Wayland and other benevolent individuals, la-
dies and gentlemen, remembered me in their
kindness. While I was confined to my couch,
the scenes of by-gone ages passed in review.
H remembered the vow I had made to God.
My eyes gushed out with tears. I could say
then as did David of old—“I found trouble
and sorrow ; then called I upon the name of
the Lord.” I found the Lord my refuge and
strength, a present help in trouble. I said it
was better to have a broken leg in a land of
freedom, than to have sound limbs under the

OF LEONARD BLACK. 47
º
curse of slavery. While I was musing one
night, and meditating upon God and his prov-
idence, I closed my eyes, and whether asleep
or awake I know not, but I viewed a rod at
the foot of my bed, about four feet high. It
was wrapped in black and red, and a smaller
rod was lying in the bed with me. The large
rod reflected on the small rod, and the words
of John (iii: 14,) came to me—“And as Mo-
ses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, the
son of man must be liſted up.” Then I re-
membered the words of the Lord, and prom-
ised Him at that hour if he would raise me up
again, I would obey His call. In the course of
a few months God raised me up, and I was
willing to obey Him, took my life in my hand,
and went out into the wide world as a lamb in
the midst of the wilderness. I trusted that
God would be with me; His rod and His staff
would encompass me.
When I started, I left a wife and two child-

48 LIFE AND SUFFERINGS
º
---
* -
-
ren. I left them in the care of God. I went
a little ways down east, and was gone seven
weeks. Wherever I went, the brethren re-
ceived me gladly. I returned, but remained
at home but little while, and as I had never
seen New Bedford, I left what little means I
had with my family, and started for that town.
When I got there I knew not where to go, for
I was a stranger. I inquired for the Rev. Mr.
Allen, the Baptist minister, and also for the
Rev. Mr. Jackson. I stayed at New Bedford
a few days; and as I had heard much said of
Nantucket, I wanted to go there. I told Mr.
Jackson I wanted to go to Nantucket, but had
no money. He said, “You should not have
left home without money.” “No, sir,” said I,
“but I had none to fetch.” But two wrongs
will not make one right. Mr. Jackson gave
me half a dollar, and I obtained some more
money among the brethren and sisters, and
took the steamboat for Nantucket. I had yet

of LEONARD BLACK. 49
holicense to preach. I had a letter of recom-
mendation from the pastor of the church to
which I belonged, not only as a brother, but
as a beloved brother. -
When I arrived at Nantucket, I inquired for
Deacon Berry, of the York street, Baptist
Church, and handed him my letter of recom-
mendation. They had no preacher. When I
went to the church on Sabbath morning, the
house was open for preaching. The fame
went abroad that a strange minister from Prov-
idence had arrived. I preached for them that
Sabbath to the best of my ability. I was but
a child in the Gospel. - -
It was my intention to leave for Providence
on the following Tuesday; but the brethren
prevailed on me to stay longer, and I remained
several weeks. The brethren gave me a call,
and being young, I accepted it. I went out to
beg money to repair their house of worship,
and afterwards left for Providence.
4

50 LIFE AND SUFFERINGS
CHAPTER VI.
I will now say something of slavery. I shall
say nothing but what I know to be true. Sla-
very is a cruel system. The effects of it are
scattered abroad throughout the land. It is
the reigning evil of the country; yea, the
mother of all evil. Why is it the mother of
all evil? I answer in the language of Holy
Writ, which saith, “Do unto all men as you
would have them do unto you.” It is not done.
Again: “Love thy neighbor as thyself. This
is the law and the prophets.” It is not done.
Reader, where is the slaveholder who would
wish his slaves to do to him as he does to them *
There are none. Hence, then, the enormity
of the evil.
Dear reader: understand one thing. The
slaves are taught ignorance as we teach our

OF LEONARD BLACK. 51
children knowledge. They are kept in dark-
ness, and are borne down under a cruel, cruel
oppression All human rights are denied
them as citizens! They are not recognized as
men My old master frequently said, “he did
not believe a d d nigger had any soul!”
They are made to undergo everything as a
beast. Having a full, perfect, undeniable
right to stand out before God as MEN, the cruel,
God-defying white man, without semblance of
right, with no pretence but might, has prosti-
tuted them to the base purpose of his cupidity,
and his baser beastly passions, reducing them
to mere things, mere chattels, to be bought
and sold like hogs and sheep | Born, like the
white man, to an individual responsibility to
the Father of mercies, the treatment of the
white man to the poor African, unmixed with
mercy, has curtained his mind to all knowledge,
aye, even to the knowledge of the God of
heaven and earth, and thus removed from him

52 LIFE AND SUFFERINGS
the accountability! But, where does this ter.
rible accountability rest P Let the hardened
slave-tyrant, when he stands quivering before
the Almighty bar of retribution, answer this
question Well might Thomas Jefferson re-
mark, when his deep, penetrating mind was re-
flecting upon the stupendous wrongs of slavery,
“I tremble for my country, when I remember
that God is just, and that his justice cannot
slumber forever.” I appeal, then, to every ra-
tional, intelligent mind, if slavery be not an
abomination in the sight of the Lord.
It has been said that slaves have no intellect.
| deny it. God has given them minds capable
of cultivation. Uncultivated ground will not
bring forth fruit. All the slave requires is cul-
tivation, for he is possessed of all the qualities
of the white man.
Reader: we have heard of the wisdom of
King Solomon, son of David, the grandson of
ancient Jesse. The Queen of Basheba has de-

OF LEONARD BLACK. 53
clared that half had never been told her. His-
tory informs us that Solomon was as black as
black satin, with handsome features and smooth
skin.
I could refer to many of the colored race
whose mental endowments are superior to
many of those arrogant white men who abhor
a colored man and pretend to be his superior
in knowledge.
The language of Jesus Christ to his apostles
should teach us not to despise the workmanship
of God. “He that despiseth you, despiseth
me.” Do men, I ask, realize the awful evil of
slavery Are they aware of its terrible calam-
ities Has it not become so familiar, from its
long existence, as almost to reconcile the ten-
der conscience to its infamous enormities? It
must be so. There is no other mode of ac-
counting for the fact, that men, good christians
in other respects, quietly hold slaves at the
south, while their equally guilty brethren of the

54 LIFE AND SUFFERINGS
north assent to it, and participate in its pro-
fits. - -
Should we not remember them that are in
bondage as bound with them Say not only
slaves be obedient to your masters according
to the flesh, but also say, masters, render unto
your servants that which is right; and if that
principle were carried out, slavery would be
abolished.
How do the masters teach the slaves igno-
rance Having been a slave, I answer the
question. When the master asks the slave,
Tom, Harry, Dick or Bill, “Do you love your
master P’’ he answers, “Yes, massa, Ilub you.”
“Come here and get a dram; drink us a treat,
you son of a b . . . h.” Why does the slave
say “Yes, sir?” Because he is afraid to say
any thing else. He is crushed under the iron
heel of the slave-tyrant
The time is coming when the wrongs of
the slave will be redressed. Yes, the time is

of LEONARD BLACK. 55
coming when their blood will cry unto the
Lord for deliverance.
It is very customary to magnify the evils of
emancipation. It is said by very many persons
that the slaves, if liberated, would become an
idle, vagabond set. This remark, doubtless, is
sometimes made in sincerity; but no doubt it
is frequently used as a sort of salve to quiet the
conscience for inaction. It is most unques-
tionably true that here and there a case would
exist of improvidence, just as they exist among
the white population ; but such cases would
form the exception, not the rule. Persons who
indulge in such remarks seem entirely unac-
quainted with the views and feelings of slaves,
and to suppose that they are utterly incapable
of appreciating, even to a small extent, the
blessings and enjoyments of freedom. But
this is a mistake, and operates powerfully on
some minds to prevent wholesome action in
favor of the liberation of the slave. It is to be

56 LIFE AND SUFFERINGS
hoped that all true men and women who are
held back from engaging in the cause of the
slave by this consideration, will take pains to
examine the subject with care, ere they yield
to this pernicious opinion. As to those who
have better knowledge, and make use of this
assumed fact as a scape-goat for their lethargy,
not having independence enough to confess
the truth, I commend them, together with their
meanness, to such particles of conscience as
are yet left unscathed by the searing iron of
hypocrisy.
It is further averred, both honestly and for
selfish purposes, as in the case just stated, that
the slaves, if liberated, would rush for the
north, overwhelming the workingmen in this
region with misery and despair. This I know
to be untrue, both from observation and my
own experience. The climate of the balmy
south is much better adapted to the nature of
the colored man, than the more rigorous one

OF LEONARD BLACK. 5?
of greater northern latitude. It is not the
south we abhor. It is slavery we abhor. God
has made the south and blessed it. Man, in
his selfishness, has cursed it. Remove slavery,
and we join hearts and hands with the south.
Give us equal rights. Give us justice. Make
us MEN. Give us pay for our toil, and we will
work at the south.
It is a matter of astonishment that slavery
has so long existed, and yet that its enormities
have taken so little hold on a people professing
to be Christians. In a country whose inhabi-
tants dipped their hands in blood to establish
FREEDOM, there are over two and a half millions
of human beings, entitled to all the rights of
white men, held in absolute bondage. Are the
people of this nation aware of this fact? Thou-
sands of times has this awful truth been reit-
erated in the ears of American Christians, and
yet from the profound indifference which yet
generally exists on the subject, we are led to

58 LIFE AND Surf"ERINGS
ask, Do the people of this nation realize the
fact P More than any other nation on earth
we boast of our liberty, our refinement, our
advancement in the arts and sciences, our rail-
roads, our various facilities for intercommuni-
cation, and all the outward appliances to ren-
der life comfortable. We have seized upon
the very lightning of Heaven, and commanded
it to bear our messages from one distant point
to another without the intervention of time,
literally annihilating all space: and we not only
boast of these things, but we aver in the face
of the abhorrent fact of slavery, that we are
the most virtuous nation on earth ! To the
enormity of slavery we are, indeed, spiritually
dead. Were slavery about to commence, were
we to summon the voters of this nation to the
polls to decide whether two and a half millions
of human beings should be subjected to this
bondage, what think you, reader, would be the
result P. Can there be a man found who would

OF LEONARD BLACK. 59
vote for the measure, unless indeed the love of
money had so blunted all humanity as to ren-
der his better feelings entirely inactive
It is in vain for apologists of slavery to de-
fend it by such arguments as this : They will
tell you that the slaves of the south are better
fed and clothed than the colored people of the
north. The fact is not admitted. But, Sup-
pose it were a fact. Is man to be considered
as a mere ox, to be bowed up and stall fed? Is
he a mere victuals grinder and clothes horse *
Or, has he a higher nature ? Has he not a
mind capable of rising higher and higher in all
that is expansive, pure and holy? Has he not
within him a spark of pure Divinity, which,
when he is surrounded with high and ennobling
influences, is fanned into a light so bright as to
lead us to respond to the glorious truth, Man
is indeed made in the image of his God?
Do you talk of selling a man 2 You might
as well talk of selling immortality or sunshine!

60 LIFE AND SUFFERINGS
You might as well talk of your right to monop-
olise the atmosphere, to determine how much
air a man should breathe, and to retail it out
to him by the jaw-full!
Again, it is said the slave has a maintenance
guaranteed to him in old age, and is thus ren-
dered free from those corroding cares in refer-
ence to his support which wear upon the poor
free man. Is this provision of so high a con-
sequence that men voluntarily submit to sla-
very Are the masters willing to exchange
the advantages derived from the unrequited
labor of the slave for a freedom from this guar-
antee º The slave-holders of the south cannot
make us believe they are so verdant as thus to
have mistaken their interest. Away, then, with
the argument that a God-created MAN should
be made a man-created thing !
American fathers, let me ask you, are the
advantages of slavery sufficient to induce you
to submit to the terrible wrong of being sepa-

of LEONARD BLACK. 61
rated from your wives and children, and sold
to a distant owner American mothers, do
you desire that your husbands should be torn
from the hearth-stone, and sold from your pres-
ence forever ? Do you wish your children
snatched from your cradles, knocked off at auc-
tion to the highest bidder, to go away from you
forever ? If not, then let your apologies for
slavery cease.
Reader, I take my leave of you, with the
fond hope, that the recuperative moral ener-
gies both of the north and the south will soon
herald the dawn of that glorious day when the
sweat and blood of the unfortunate African
shall no longer be struck into coin for the use
of the cruel, unrelenting white man.
ERRATA—On page 13, second line from the bottom, for
“writing” read writhing,


THE TRAVELLING PILGIRIM.
I have no, friends, no helper nigh,
But He who heard the raven's cry;
My father's house I’ve bid adieu,
And on my journey I pursue.
My sister wonders where I am,
But I shall not return again;
My sisters, brothers, think it strange
That I should leave my nearest friends,
But my kind friends I now must leave,
And on my journey I proceed,
To attend an appointment I have made,
To find a place to lay my head.
And if poor sinners did but know
How much for them I undergo,
They would not treat me with contempt,
Nor curse me when I say “repent.”
But O' the trials of my heart,
Through rain, through snow, I have to go,
And when I’m called to leave this flesh,
I trust with Jesus Christ to rest.