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 COUSIN FRANCE'S HOUSEHOLD, 
 
 OR 
 
 SCENES IN THE OLD DOMINION.

 
 COUSIN FBANCK'S HOUSEHOLD, 
 
 OR 
 
 SCENES IN THE OLD DOMINION, 
 
 BY 
 
 POCAHONTAS. 
 
 BOSTON : 
 UPHAM, FOED AND OLMSTEAD, 
 
 122 WASHINGTON STREET. 
 1853.
 
 Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1852, by 
 
 Upham, FoitD ami Olmstbad, 
 
 In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the District of i-etts. 
 
 JOHN FORD AND CO., PRINTERS, 
 CAJfBRISOEPORT.
 
 PREFACE. 
 
 It is Macaulay, we think, who complains of a class of 
 historians, that they do not give us men and women. "We 
 have tried not to forget our men and women in the following 
 tale, wherein we have sought to exhibit, as "Willis has it, 
 " truth under a thin veil of fiction." Nor let any of our 
 more fastidious readers run a tilt against our taste, if they 
 find our style occasionally descending to the lowest strata 
 of dialectical peculiarities. "We have let our men and 
 women, whether white or black, rich-white or poor-white, 
 do their own talking. "We took some pains during our" 
 residence in Virginia, as our voluminous note-books attest, 
 to secure accuracy in the nondescript vernacular of the 
 cabin and the hut ; and it afforded us satisfaction to have 
 our accuracy in this respect strongly commended by com-
 
 VI PREFACE. 
 
 petcnt judges in the case, while these Letters were in process 
 of publication in the columns of the "Watchman and Re- 
 flector, in which able and enterprising religious paper they 
 originally appeared. 
 
 The " poor wliites," a phase of Southern life not so well 
 known at the North, and to which we have given some 
 prominence, are not an accident of the slave system, but a 
 necessary result, bound to it by the immutable law of cause 
 and effect. No picture of Southern " institutions " is com- 
 plete, in which this is not seen distinct in the back ground. 
 Whilst we hate slavery more than we can tell, and the 
 more for what we saw of it, and hardly less for its influence 
 on the whites than on the blacks, we have no desire to wield 
 the vengeance of Heaven against the slaveholder. Alas ! 
 we saw too plainly a curse everywhere silently at work, in 
 all the moral, social, intellectual and economical results of 
 the system. But while we saw weaknesses to pity, errors 
 to lament, and vices to execrate, we also saw excellencies to 
 admire and imitate; and if we have not dwelt upon these, 
 it was because it did not comport with our design. 
 
 But works of the present class are charged by some with 
 
 ;
 
 PREFACE. VU 
 
 exaggeration. In one sense they are exaggerations. There 
 are points in which they do not correspond with the reality. 
 It is, however, only in those respects in which all works of 
 fiction resting on a basis of fact transcend the actualities 
 of life. The tame, the common-place, the repetitious are 
 thrown out of view, just as the painter omits many of the 
 trivial objects in his landscape, and yet is true to nature 
 and fact. In this sense, all of Scott's immortal fictions are 
 exaggerations ; but who is so weak of brain, pr so green in 
 literature, as to hazard such a criticism ? And who of his 
 readers does not feel, and not merely because the wand of 
 a mighty magician is on them, that they are drinking in the 
 spirit, and mingling in the scenes and strifes of Scottish life ? 
 Were we content to be an humble imitator, we know of 
 no one whom we should be prouder to follow than the noble 
 author of that wonderful work, " Uncle Tom's Cabin." But 
 we owe it to ourselves to say, that our little book was pro- 
 jected before the publication of the latter ; and our Jamie 
 Parker, we think, had only one predecessor — and that we 
 had not seen — in this species of literature.
 
 COUSIN FRANCE'S HOUSEHOLD. 
 
 LETTER I. 
 
 INCIDENTS OF TRAVEL. 
 
 Port Royal, Va., Dec. 17, 18 — . 
 
 Dear S. — I find myself at length an inhabitant of this 
 pretty Southern village, this "hot-bed of Virginia aristoc- 
 racy." 
 
 But before I tell you one word about it, I must glance 
 back at my journey. I wrote you during my stop with our 
 friends in Philadelphia, and will go on with my recital from 
 thence. 
 
 I fortunately fell in with acquaintances — the"W.'s — who 
 were taking a bridal tour, designing to stop in Baltimore a 
 few days. This made the ride from Philadelphia to Balti- 
 more very pleasant ; how I wished they were going all the 
 way to Port Royal! This being "alone amid a crowd." 
 whizzing through the country at a rate that forbids you the 
 small amusement of looking at the posts, or counting the 
 mile-stones, is not, I assure you, at all to my liking. And 
 then, if you are a lady, you must join the crustaceous tribe, 
 1
 
 cousin fbanck's household. 
 
 and ensconsing yourself in your shell, peep out very timidly. 
 A suitable travelling dress of dignity and reserve must be 
 adopted as a coat of mail to protect you from too rude a 
 freedom. No lady thftiks now-a-days of making acquain- 
 tances in the cars; she may, however, be so happy as to 
 meet them, for every body is a traveller, and only hermit 
 exceptions stay at home. In the good old times of stage 
 couching, as grandfather would say, a journey of a few 
 hundred miles would develope more character, and make 
 firmer friends, than years of casual intermingling in society 
 Could do. 
 
 On reaching the Baltimore depot, I saw the steamer Kap- 
 pahannoc laying in the dock, nut ball' a square off. Pointing 
 out my baggage to a porter, I followed him to the boat. 
 The captain was standing on deck, and stepped forward to 
 meet me. In answer to my inquiry, he said that "the Rap- 
 pahannoc had made her last trip, and I would be obliged to 
 gq by the land route, and I would have a rough time of it, 
 too." This assurance from that weather-beaten man of the 
 water, was anything but inspiring, it must be confessed; but 
 I bad " put my band to the plough," and it only remained 
 for me to go forward. Hastening back to the depot, I found 
 the Washington cars bad just left. Here was a dilemma; it 
 was Friday afternoon, and if 1 spent the night in Baltimore, 
 I must remain there over the Sabbath, <>r finish my journey 
 on that day. The first could not lie afforded by my purse, 
 nor the last by my conscience. My only alternative was to 
 get aboard tin- cars ami go to Washington that night. The
 
 COUSIN franck's household. 
 
 cars leave Baltimore under the tug of horses instead of 
 steam; and this getting aboard was not among impossibilities, 
 though they were at some distance. A hack was at hand, 
 and Mr. W., having seen my baggage put on, handed me in, 
 saying to the driver, with Napoleonic brevity and force, "To 
 the ears." The horses were duly lashed and eoaxed, and 
 coaxed and lashed ; but alas for the resistance which inac- 
 tive matter makes to a change of state. The street was 
 encumbered with masses of mud and snow frozen in the 
 roughest shapes, and the wheeling was intolerable. With 
 much ado the venerable steeds were excited into a lumbering 
 gallop, quite vexatiously ludicrous; indeed, to my fidgety 
 fancy they seemed to be lazily prancing without progression. 
 In truth, we did not gain on the cars at all ; and the hack- 
 man, in despair, turned round and said, li ffs a no-go; leant 
 catch them cars ! " 
 
 "O, yes you can;" said I. "In a moment they'll stop 
 and change horses for steam, and you can gain on them then." 
 
 I said this more hopefully than I felt, I must conl 
 The hackman was good-natured, and seemed inspirited by 
 the hope 1 held out, and shortly succeeded in enlisting his 
 tame animals in his feelings. The locomotive was attached, 
 and tli«' ears just ready to start, when we came alongside. 
 I thanked the driver, paid him a dollar, and being put in 
 the care of the conductor by Mr. W., stepped into the ear-, 
 delightfully exhilarated with the success of the experiment. 
 
 Two hours brought us to Washington, and me to Mr. 15.'- 
 hotel, "a pretty,' quiet place," as the kind conductor assur 
 
 ft
 
 cousin franck's household. 
 
 me, "where many Ladies who came down in the car? stopped." 
 A pleasant room was assigned me, and black Maria, the 
 chambermaid, soon came to call me to tea. I was a stranger 
 
 and alone; I shrank from the public tableland chose to have 
 my tea in my room. 
 
 3 1 aria was a slave — the first I had seen to recognize as 
 such, and interested me not a little ; now that I was at leisure, 
 I regarded her most observantly, although, as in duty bound, 
 I put on the externals of indifference. 
 
 " It is true, then," thought I, as I gazed with strange feel- 
 ings on the representative of slavery in my room; '"the 
 capital, the heart, the citadel of free and proud America, is 
 slaveholding ! Human being-, clank their chains within the 
 very adytum of the temple of liberty. Yet what prophet, 
 years agone, would have dared to proclaim that the sons of 
 the brave battlers for freedom would outvie the rest of the 
 civilized world in defence of the slave-whip! "What seer 
 could have foreseen this heritage of Heaven so accursed ? 
 Shall it be that a woe! woe! resound in echoes of death 
 through the land of lofty mountains, noble rivers, and glorious 
 
 snery — that so eloquently teaches of all things free? 
 Heaven interpose for my belo^ ed country ! " 
 
 "Poor Maria!" I .-aid to myself, as I turned my head to 
 conceal a tear, "thou art a slave! thou hast 'heart histories' 
 of a blighted life, made aimless, hopeless, useless to thyself, 
 by the inexorable laws of my own \'rr(- people. I know it 
 by that grief-set eye, and by the deep furrows on thy dusky 
 brow. l\' thou couldsl outspeak, thou poor thing, chattelized
 
 f 
 
 COUSIN FRAXCK'S HOUSEHOLD. 
 
 and cattleized, thou wouklst tell of wrongs, of burning, cease- 
 less wrongs ; nought has gone right with thee since that 
 dread fate befell thee — the slave fate. 
 
 " It may be that thy babes have been torn from thee and 
 sold to the Southern drover, and thy husband lias been con- 
 signed to the dank rice swamps, where the ' fever demons ' 
 dwell. Poor thing, would I might ask thee. But no ; it 
 may not be. And what avails my sympathy? I cannot 
 help thee." 
 
 Such were some of my thoughts, and thus went out my 
 heart to that poor slave-woman. 
 
 I found that the stage for Alexandria had left, and no 
 alternative remained but to spend the Sabbath in travelling, 
 or in Washington. I chose the latter. Saturday glided 
 away agreeably, almost imperceptibly. You suppose that I 
 sauntered about the Capitol grounds and saw all the wonders, 
 having found a guide to show me the lions of the place. Not 
 at all. I kept my room all day. I was so weary seeing 
 new faces, that it seemed a luxury to be alone. 
 
 Sabbath morning came ; calm, clear, cold and sunny. I 
 was thinking how pleasant to go to the house of God, and 
 trying to settle in my mind the propriety of my attempting 
 it. The thought of going alone was far from comfortable. 
 I found the courage I had assumed when starting on my 
 lone journey, very sensibly lessened by so long a jaunt. 
 Suddenly, in the midst of my thoughts, dark Maria, who 
 was putting the room to rights in a loitering way, turned to 
 me and asked, 
 
 1*
 
 cousin France's household. 
 
 "Is you goin' to church to-day, Miss?" 
 
 ''I am not sure, Maria ; why do you ask?" 
 
 " O, notliin', Miss; bein' it's so clar, I thought mebbe 
 you'd go, of course;" replied Maria. 
 
 Maria's question struck me somewhat singularly. And 
 her reply was no less strange; it was the only speech she 
 had made during our acquaintance — her necessary answers 
 having been heretofore briefly mumbled, " Yes," and " No, 
 Miss ; " saving which she was as mum as the mummy which 
 she, in her dusky, wrinkled visage, so much resembled. 
 Now she had all at once put on a familiar garb, greatly to 
 my surprise. 
 
 Having occasion to open my trunk, I looked for the key 
 on the linen frill of the toilet-cushion, where I had constantly 
 kept it. It was gone ! I had locked the trunk from mere 
 habit while travelling, and, perfectly unsophisticated in South- 
 ern proprieties, had placed the key not one half hour before 
 in plain sight. I had not left the room, and no one had been 
 in the room save Maria and myself. I was puzzled. 
 
 " Maria, did you see my key while dusting the toilet ? " 
 I asked. 
 
 " No, indeed. Miss; not I!" was the reply. 
 
 From the circumstances, and from her manner, I was 
 convinced, much against my inclination, that she had taken 
 the missing key. I was positive there could be no mistake, 
 and she wished me to go to church that she might pillage 
 my trunk! T was both grieved and indignant, and said.
 
 cousin pbanck's household. 
 
 "I would not have believed this of yon, Maria. Will 
 you give me my key, that there maybe no further trouble?" 
 
 "Indeed, Miss, I hasn't got your key!" replied she, with 
 bold effrontery, and instantly her eye flashed, as if an inven- 
 tive thought had struck fire, and she continued in the same 
 breath, " I's hearn tell, Miss, dat dis yer room is banted 
 like ; ever since a woman died here dat ustcr steal, her ghost 
 comes and goes and takes a heap of things." 
 
 " Nonsense ! " 
 
 I saw that I must take decisive measures, and stepping 
 quickly to the bell-rope, put my hand upon it, and said, 
 " Maria, you can give me my key at once, and I will say 
 nothing about it ; but unless you do it this moment, I must 
 ring for the landlord." 
 
 The poor woman fumbled in her pocket, feigned to be 
 looking around the room, and finally, raising the cushion of 
 the rocking-chair, handed me the key. Were my sentimen- 
 talism and sympathy at fault ? At any rate, I was sad and 
 heart-sick. 
 
 I left Washington at seven o'clock Sabbath evening, and 
 took the steamer doAvn the Potomac, nine miles to Alexandria. 
 The boat was all night making the passage, and such a 
 grating and groaning in getting through the ice ! It seemed 
 as if all imaginable discordant sounds were summoned to 
 aid, excepting, of course, that perfection of squealing, the 
 inimitable car-whistle. A fat negress presided over me and 
 my baggage with care truly motherly. She had such a lofty, 
 queenly air, I had no thought that she was a slave, but I
 
 8 cousin pranck's household. 
 
 have since learned that she was hired of her master to go 
 as chambermaid. She was the very incarnation of easy- 
 comfort, and evidently considered herself the principal per- 
 sonage on board. 
 
 At four I was awaiting the stage, beside a smouldering coal 
 fire in the little parlor of the Alexandria Hotel. Presently 
 the stage horn announced the arrival of the Fredericksburg 
 coach and four. 
 
 " Halloo, Sam ! " said the landlord, hustling through the 
 hall. 
 
 " Yes, Master ! " replied the owner of the monosyllahic 
 appellative, coming up the steps, lantern in hand, " Yes, 
 Master." 
 
 " Sam, is the Senator ready ? " 
 
 " Senator, Senator, what Master mean ? " 
 
 "Why, are you drunk? — the gentleman up stairs!" 
 
 " 0, yes, Master ; I reckon so. I done called him right 
 smart while ago." And quickly Sam was heard knocking 
 at the door of a chamber overhead, and calling out, " Stage 
 ready, sir ! " 
 
 A confused floundering, shuffling and jarring above pre- 
 ceded ahout fifteen minutes the descent of the heavy legis- 
 lator, into whose care, by the way, the landlord kindly 
 deposited me, saying, that, as there was no regular convey- 
 ance from Fredericksburg to Port Royal, I would need some 
 friend to get me a chance to go on. Senator T. was not 
 more than half resuscitated from sleep, but appeared affable 
 and princely, for all that. In a moment we passengers, four
 
 cousin franck's household. 
 
 in number, were shut in the vehicle, and the impatient driver 
 giving the rein and lash to his chafing steeds, away we went. 
 
 The road grew more and more rough ; in fact, it has the 
 reputation of being one of the roughest roads in the Union, 
 at this season. But the driver urged on his horses with 
 about equal disregard of their comfort and ours. 
 
 " Can you not give us a little less jolting?" asked Senator 
 T., out of breath. 
 
 '''Can't, possibly " shouted the coachman, whipping up 
 afresh ; " it's an urgent case, ye see, gentlemen and ladies. 
 I's got the government mail, and must be in Fredericksburg 
 at four, precisely." 
 
 " How far is it ? " asked the lady passenger by my side. 
 
 " Sixty miles," replied the dx-iver, cracking his whip . 
 
 " Sixty miles ! " said the Senator, " and such a road ! " 
 
 " Sixty miles ! " echoed Dr. G., a distant relative of the 
 Senator, who sat beside him ; between five and six miles an 
 hour over such a heaped up road as this ! Bless me ! every 
 bone in me will want setting before we are half way there." 
 
 " Can't be helped, can't be helped," said the driver, a 
 white man, who seemed amazingly resigned to the state of 
 thin 
 
 An hour more, and the coach stopped at an inn, and the 
 driver got down to water his horses. It was daylight, and 
 we saw another coach with panting horses quenching their 
 thirst. 
 
 " Halloo. John ! " called out our driver ; " thought I couldn't 
 come up with you, eh ? "
 
 10 cousin franck's household. 
 
 " Halloo ! " said the other, " that you ? " 
 
 "Nobody else, you better believe; and now the way I'm 
 in for racing horses over this ere scary road, is a caution." 
 And they both went into the bar-room. 
 
 "What'll you lay I won't be in Fredericksburg first?" 
 said driver John, as he poured a pail of water into the water- 
 ing trough, after they had finished their duties at the bar. 
 
 " A V.," said our driver. 
 
 " Done ! it's a bet ! " said the other. 
 
 We passengers heard this with some trepidation, I suppose, 
 judging from myself. I half suspected, however, that the 
 driver was trying the experiment of making the Senator 
 uncomfortable for the delay which he had caused. 
 
 " This ere is a mighty bad road," he began again, while 
 the horses were drinking; "it's a case, and no mistake. 
 There's more accidents happens on this road than on all the 
 rest in the States." 
 
 " A large story," muttered the Doctor. 
 
 "What does the fellow mean?" asked the Senator. 
 
 "I never makes a practice of turning over the stage, nor 
 anything o' that sort," said the driver, coining with another 
 pail of water, "but I have come nigh upon having some 
 mighty bad accidents happen. Fv driv within half an inch 
 of them are precipices yonder, many and many a time, and 
 never went over. Can't say I never shall; but then I'm a 
 whaler at driving, and no mistake." 
 
 "Be under way lively ! " shouted he as the othr-r stage 
 started off; "your horses must have considerable lightning
 
 COUSIN pranck's HOI si. HOLD. 11 
 
 in their heels to keen out of my way ; " and he raised a care- 
 less whistle. 
 
 " It is my opinion," remarked the statesman, with an im- 
 pressive nod of the head. a> the driver was gone for another 
 pail of water, "that thai scape-gallows is in for frightening 
 us. We have only to keep cool." 
 
 Before starting, the driver again went to the har, and the 
 Doctor went too. I was sorry for this, for it seemed to me 
 that at such a time, at least, we had need of cool heads ; but 
 the Doctor, as I afterwards learned, thought as little of quaf- 
 fing his liquor as of lighting his cigar. I must slightly sketch 
 Dr. G. for you. lie is of medium height, though he seemed 
 to be a small man alongside of the Senator; rather thin and 
 pale, notwithstanding his habits. He has also a well-turned 
 head, blue eves, dark brown hair, and a physiognomy open 
 and sincere. lie dresses neatly, seems thirty-five or forty, 
 and his general appearance is at once diffident and gentle- 
 manly, without the slightest trace of doctorial bearing. 
 
 It was now six o'clock, and we were dashing on, almost 
 jolted to jelly. The driver was as good as his word, giving 
 chase to the coach ahead, which, as it had only two passen- 
 gers and a light baggage, found no difficulty in maintaining 
 its distance. Whenever obliged to walk his horse*, in the 
 spirit of giving classic interest to the scenery, he would 
 point out the various spots where the stages had gone off, 
 and all the passengers were killed; but as no one present 
 had heard of these shocking accidents, each new story was 
 unanimouslv voted a ready-made hoax, or a traditionary
 
 12 COUSIN franck's household. 
 
 bugbear. Not thai there was no danger; — a peep now and 
 then into some ravine at the left, was all the logic we needed 
 on that point ; but our driver, we wot, had nomoiv partiality 
 than ourselves for fathoming its depth; besides, the carriage 
 road wound not very alarmingly near the edge. As long, 
 therefore, as our driver was not more than one-third drunk, 
 we concluded we might safely dispense with fear. About 
 seven we came rattling down a long, winding hill into a 
 village, where we took breakfast, and then, away. The coun- 
 try soon became more level and uninteresting, the road far 
 more tolerable, and the gentlemen more sociable. 
 
 " Let's see ; I think you were in the Florida war," said 
 the Senator, taking off his hat, and displaying a fine head. 
 
 " Yes," replied Dr. G., " I served as surgeon six years in 
 that war." 
 
 "Ah! indeed! Iliad forgotten that you were there SO 
 long. It's some years since the war, and I had losl sight of 
 you. Have you been in this country of late years?" 
 
 ••Well, yes and no," replied the Doctor. "I have been 
 sky-larking round the world; making the tour of Europe, 
 and all that; and as you may suppose, I've spent quite a 
 little fortune, and now I'm going to reform, economize, marry, 
 settle down, stock my plantation with slaves, and lead a good, 
 useful life." 
 
 "Ah. well; that'll do ; that's commendable;" said Senator 
 T., with a sunny smile. "I'm glad to hear it; you'll do 
 well, I doubt not." 
 
 "Why, you see," said the Doctor. — whose tongue moved
 
 cousin franck's household. 13 
 
 glibly, for he had drank after breakfast as well as before ; 
 and so had the worthy Senator ; but one could not perceive 
 that it affected him, — "you see, sir, I'm getting in years; 
 I'm thirty, thirty odd, and it's high time that I became a 
 good member of society." 
 
 "I'm glad to see you take such sensible views of life. 
 Most of our men, (the Senator was sixty, or so,) I'm sorry to 
 say, are sadly wanting in reflection. They seem to think 
 that, if they lead a gay, frolicksome life, without any special 
 object, save to please themselves, all well and good. But I 
 take it a man is responsible for his influence on those around 
 him. You have done good in serving the wars of our coun- 
 try, and I can hope that you are destined to still more 
 honorable distinction. You were speaking of a plantation." 
 
 "Yes, sir; I have a tract of ten thousand acres in East 
 Florida, the garden of the world, and my present business 
 is buying slaves to stock it," replied Dr. G. 
 
 " Ah, indeed ! I'm glad to hear it," said the Senator. 
 
 " East Florida is the country of countries, sir," continued 
 Dr. G.j for a moment suspending the puffing of his insepar- 
 able cigar. " California is not to be mentioned the same 
 day with it, sir. Not in respect to gold, precisely, but as it 
 resrards all that makes valuable farms." 
 
 " I suppose it is indeed a very fine country," remarked 
 the Senator. 
 
 " The finest in the world, sir. I wouldn't take millions 
 for my tract of ten thousand acres ; money would be no temp- 
 tation. Fact sir, it's a young paradise — or will be, when 
 2
 
 14 COUSIN* ]i;\\< k's HOUSEHOLD. 
 
 I've expended a few thousands for servants and other fix- 
 ings." And the Doctor complacently puffed his cigar again. 
 
 ■• You arc a lucky fellow, sir," said the Senator. 
 
 •• Why. I think so," said the Doctor; "it's true we had a 
 hard tug of it exterminating those Seminoles that were so 
 
 -tinatcly rooted into the soil; but then it pays, it pays. 
 We get our fee ; at least I do. I reckon I never told you 
 how we poor soldiers fared some part of the time in that 
 campaign. "Why, sir, there were times when those villanous 
 Indians cut off our supplies, and for weeks together we were 
 on a short allowance of crackers and pork — crackers and 
 pork, sir, if you'll believe it. We used, however, to crack 
 jokes on our living, for the sake of digestion. One morning 
 a witty friend of mine came into the tent ; ' Ah ! ' said he, 
 'how are' you, Doctor? how are you? And what do you 
 have for breakfast this morning?' 
 
 " ' Crackers and pork ! ' I replied. 
 
 " ' You do ? ' said he, ' why, we have pork and crackers.' " 
 
 "Hard living and hard joking that," said the Senator, 
 smiling ; " but you have the consolation of knowing that 
 your hardships were not in vain." 
 
 ■• Exactly," said the Doctor. 
 
 "I maintain," remarked the Senator, " that this country 
 is like the land of Canaan, which the Israelites were com- 
 manded to subdue and inherit. The God of heaven has 
 decreed the extermination of the aborigines, and the estab- 
 lishing of the Anglo Saxon race; and the warriors in this 
 strife have won laurels in a noble cause."
 
 COUSIN FKANCK'S HOUSEHOLD. 15 
 
 " Exactly ; " chimed in Dr. G. ; " that was tin- grand prin- 
 ciple of the Florida war; we were the Israelites, and the 
 Seminoles the heathenish C'anaanites." 
 
 We now drew up before a watering trough. 
 
 " Miserable country this ! " exclaimed the Doctor, looking 
 out of the window ; " the land is worn out and worked out, 
 till it is scarcely better than a desert." 
 
 " Yes, sir," replied the Senator, " that is one of the una- 
 voidable evils of our system. Overseers have pay in pro- 
 portion to the crops, and little regard is had to the extra 
 wearing out of servants and farms, in the process of filling 
 their pockets. You see, sir, just what these miserable 
 scamps have done. These lands are ruined;" pointing to 
 large tracts of level, sandy, exhausted lands, extending as 
 far as the eye could reach, " utterly ruined, sir, by those 
 merciless wretches, who care only for their own profit. And 
 the owners of these acres have been beggared in the process, 
 and their children, with very few exceptions, have found 
 their level with the poor whites. Overseers are a nuisance — 
 a necessary nuisance it may be, but an intolerable nuisance." 
 And the Senator looked grave. 
 
 As we passed along, the country appeared no better. 
 Miles and miles the eye rested on exhausted corn-fields, 
 where nothing would grow save dwarfish pines. 
 
 " This is a sad case," the Doctor continued ; " a sad ca,se. 
 It really makes one melancholy. Can you suppose the day 
 will ever come when my East Florida plantation will pre- 
 sent such a death-like appearance?"
 
 16 cousin iuanck's household. 
 
 " That depends on whether you employ overseers:" re- 
 plied the Senator, emphatically. 
 
 •■ AVell, of course I must have overseers. What could I 
 do overseeing a force of three or four hundred negroes? 
 Why, I'm a broken-down constitution, as you may say, sir — 
 a broken-down constitution — and I must have overseers. It 
 nally makes me feel blue to think of it ; that my glorious 
 tract of fertile everglades, rolling prairie, rich hills and val- 
 leys, and flower-inwoven forests, should be made a sterile 
 waste by the plebeian tribe. I'd much rather the Indians had 
 it; fact, sir." 
 
 " But you will doubtless enjoy it well all your life. Those 
 rich lands will bear many years of overseer management," 
 said the Senator. 
 
 " Yes, sir ; yes, sir ; there is some comfort in that ; " re- 
 plied the Doctor. " But what is to become of the Old Do- 
 minion, if things go on at this remorseless rate of exhaus- 
 tion?" 
 
 " Ah, that poser — it might take a wise head to explain. 
 Give these old lands to the Yankee farmers, and they'd 
 make them 'bud and blossom as the rose,' by the second 
 year, at farthest. 'If you want a thing well done, do it 
 yourself,' is their motto, and a very good one it is. for those 
 who have been inured to physical labor from childhood. If 
 Virginia continues to depreciate in landed wealth at the 
 present rate, I cannot say what will be the result. She 
 would have been bankrupt long since bad it not been for the 
 resource of raisin" slaves for the Southern market. Tins
 
 cousin franck's household. 17 
 
 has most providentially saved her. I should he a beggar this 
 moment, had I not been able to raise slave-stock, to balance 
 the depreciating process on my plantation." 
 
 I looked at the Senator with a surprise not easily conceal- 
 ed. I had seen few Northerners more noble looking than he. 
 He had naturally a clear head and a kind heart, and I inly 
 anathematized the system, while I pitied the man. 
 
 " I was not aware," said the Doctor, " that our State owed 
 her pecuniary position so much to this trade with the South." 
 
 " Certainly," replied the Senator ; " I have not in mind 
 the precise statistics on the subject, but Virginia has received 
 a great many hundreds of millions for slaves, for the South 
 and Southwest. In 183 G forty thousand servants were sold 
 from this State, at an average price of six hundred dollars 
 per head, making twenty-four millions in one year by this 
 traffic." 
 
 " Ah, indeed ! " exclaimed the Doctor. 
 
 " Yes, sir ; " resumed the Senator, " and I can hardly sup- 
 pose the sales have been less since. The fact is, we are 
 obliged to grow slaves, to meet the demand of the rice- 
 swamps and corn-fields, and about the same number are 
 wanted annually, take one year with another." 
 
 " Have you any marketable slaves on hand that you wish 
 to dispose of?" asked Dr. G-. 
 
 " Why, yes ; I reckon so ; I reckon I could spare some ; 
 although I made quite a sweep from the cabins last spring 
 when the drover came along." 
 2*
 
 18 cousin fkaxck's household. 
 
 "I want some good, Bturdy chaps that will go into the 
 work witli a relish,' 1 said the Doctor. 
 
 '■ All ! " replied the Senator, "you cannot expect the poor 
 fellows will have, much relish for work in a new country. 
 My hands dread to be sold. I do not know why it is — 
 most planters do not have such trouble at their sales, but, 
 fact, sir, I have to harden my heart to stone." And the. 
 tears actually came into the old man's eyes. In a moment, 
 recovering himself, he went on — " You cannot expect the 
 poor fellows will have much relish for work, as I was saying ; 
 you must remember that they are exiles." 
 
 *' 0, of course, of course ; " said the Doctor, evidently 
 puzzled. 
 
 " My neighbors tell me that I should have no sort of fuss 
 sale days, if I would only pursue the severe course with my 
 servants. But it isn't in me to be crusty and cross to those 
 always toiling and broiling for me, year in and year out. I 
 should be an ungrateful dog to treat them cruelly." 
 
 " Why," said the Doctor, in great surprise, " you talk of 
 your servants as if they were really human." 
 
 " Of course I do, sir ; and I am a believer in that doc- 
 trine. Human! they have all the characteristics of human 
 beings, save position in society; and why not class them as 
 such? I should be a poor reasoner if I did not," warmly 
 remarked the Senator. 
 
 u Bless mi' ! " exclaimed the Doctor, "you must make hard 
 work of being a master of sen ants." 
 
 " Exactly ; it is so ;" said Senator T. "I am frank to own,
 
 COUSIX fuan-ck's iiouskhold. 19 
 
 bad Providence given me existence at the North, I would 
 have been far happier. But what is one to do? Here he 
 is — he finds himself the proprietor of a vast estate and some 
 hundreds of slaves inherited from his father, and it seems 
 fitting that he take care of his patrimony and keep matters 
 as nearly straight as he can. Now one cannot provide for 
 his own household without now and then making sales: it's 
 a necessary part of the system. And, sir, I maintain, as 
 things are, that it is no true benevolence for a kind master 
 to free his slaves, dependent as they are. Why, what can 
 the poor creatures do? They can never rise above the level 
 of the poor whites ! They cannot take care of themselves ; 
 and we all know that free blacks are a perfect nuisance, 
 unless colonized." 
 
 "Well, well," said the Doctor, "how many boys think 
 you'll let me have?" 
 
 " Cannot possibly say now ; a dozen, perhaps. Call 
 around at Grove Hill, and we'll talk over the matter. How 
 large a force do you raise ? " 
 
 "O, about two hundred, more or less," said the Doctor. 
 
 " Well, well, call and see me, and we'll talk it over," said 
 the old gentleman ; and the Doctor looked out of the window, 
 for we were descending the beautiful hill near Fredericks- 
 burg, and the scenery was delightful. We ladies looked out 
 too, and had the first view of Virginia's noblest river — the 
 Rappahannoc. In a few minutes I found myself ushered 
 into the Fredericksburg Hotel. 
 
 Senator T. inquired respecting a conveyance from Fred-
 
 
 20 cousin franck's household. 
 
 ericksburg to Port Royal, distant twenty-two miles, and 
 learned thai the mail stage ran only once a week, and I 
 would be obliged to wait four days for it, or avail myself of 
 a private opportunity. Dr. Gr. was going to Port Royal, 
 having obtained a horse and carriage of a friend, wdio was 
 to send a negro boy to take it back. Tbe good Senator 
 introduced me to tbe Doctor as Miss P., from Connecticut, 
 and added be would do bin; a great favor if he would give 
 me a seat in bis carriage, and see me safely in Port Royal. 
 
 Dr. G. bowed, and said that be would do this with a great 
 deal of pleasure. 
 
 " And now, my little friend," said tbe Senator, sbaking my 
 band, " good bye ! God bless you ! " And a moment after, 
 
 he took bis seat in tbe stage, bound in a westerly 
 
 direction. I felt sincerely sorry at parting with tbe good 
 old gentleman, although he bad not spent ten minutes talking 
 with me on the journey, yet he had kindly looked after my 
 baggage, and given me all the attention that I needed. I 
 could not for tbe life of me avoid regarding him as a fatherly 
 or grandfatherly personage. I also heartily pitied him, 
 .-'nice lie was a slaveholder by destiny, and longed to learn 
 how he would cany himself on his arrival borne, in making 
 selections for the coming sale. "It may be," thought I, 
 '•that I shall somehow hear about it, as Grove Hill is not 
 one hundred miles from Port Royal, and he being a promi- 
 nent and eccentric man, hi- 9ayings and doings will be likely 
 to be current there." And comforting myself with these 
 thoughts, I ran to my room to busy myself until the hour of
 
 cousin franck's household. 21 
 
 starting. Meanwhile, my Lead was filled with plans of 
 usefulness, to be put into operation on the way to Port 
 Royal. I would picture to the Doctor the state of things at 
 the North. I wo ild tell him about our great cities, thriving 
 villages and happy homes; and that we owed none of our 
 prosperity and happiness to slavery. I would ask him to 
 point out a slaveholding section of country which God blessed 
 as he did New-England. I would remind him of his East 
 Florida paradise, which he was about to make desolate as a 
 desert, by slave cultivation. I would ask him, why not em- 
 ploy Irish or German emigrants, &c, &c. In short, my 
 string of posers was as long as the Catholic's rosary, and I 
 almost fancied that I should nullify Dr. G.'s present purpose 
 of slavetradin r. 
 
 The carriage came to the door, and Dr. G. and myself 
 were soon beyond the boundaries of Fredericksburg. 
 
 As we passed along, and I was thinking how and when I 
 should introduce the conversation I had planned, the Doctor 
 pointed with his whip to this, that, and the other residence, 
 telling by whom they were occupied ; this by a cousin, that 
 by an uncle, and the other by a very particular friend ; and 
 detailing peculiarities of each in the management of his es- 
 tate. One thing, however, struck me as very singular ; if I 
 asked a question, he went straight along with his recital, 
 just as if he did not hear me. I felt not a little confused by 
 this. I remembered how our stern father used to tell us, 
 " Children should be seen, not heard," and I had a dim con- 
 sciousness that the Doctor might be of the same school, and
 
 22 cousin fbanck's nousKnoLD. 
 
 disposed to recall the offending girl before hiin to the sage 
 old maxim. 
 
 At length, after a long harangue, in -what seemed to me an 
 unnecessarily loud tone ; — subject, the folly of certain courses 
 of plantation management, — the Doctor made a pause. After 
 thoughtfully snapping his whip for a few moments, he said 
 "Ahem/" loud enough to clear two or three throats, and 
 thoroughly wakened me from a little reverie-nap into which 
 I had fallen, in my wondering if he was an average specimen 
 of Virginia gentlemen. 
 
 "Ahem! my friend, Mr. T., said you were from the 
 North." 
 
 " Yes, sir," I replied, in a clear, distinct voice. 
 
 " What did you say ? " shouted the Doctor, as if I had been 
 a deaf mute. 
 
 "Yes, mi," replied I, more distinctly than before. 
 
 " Be so kind as to speak a little louder," said he ; " I am a 
 little deaf." 
 
 Conceive my consternation! All my plans of doing the 
 poor man good dashed in an instant! Alas, for the uncer- 
 tainty of all sublunary things ! I had manifestly "reckoned 
 without my host." The Doctor must needs be the talker, and 
 I die listener. For what with my feminine voice, and what 
 with the rumbling of the carriage over a December road, I 
 was quite in despair. I now remembered that while talking 
 witli die Senator, the Doctor sat very near him, and inclined 
 his head, and that the former spoke in a loud, sonorous 
 tone.
 
 COUSIN FRANCK's HOUSEHOLD. 23 
 
 " Do I understand that you are from the North ? " persisted 
 Dr. G. 
 
 " Yes, sir," replied I, as loudly as possible, nodding. 
 
 " From Connecticut ? " 
 
 " Yes, sir," as before. 
 
 •■ Ah, indeed ! "Why, you have a world of courage. You'd 
 make a good soldier if you lived in revolutionary times, and 
 if your size were equal to your courage. I reckon you 
 Northern ladies," continued he, stentorianly, "have more 
 courage than our ladies ; why, when they journey, they wait 
 six months for company." 
 
 " It must require something more than courage to wait so 
 long," replied I ; " they must have great fortitude." I saw 
 that my remark did not reach the Doctor. 
 
 I felt disappointed that I was not able to reason at all with 
 this man. I feared if I kept silence, that I should lose 
 ground in firmness of principle on the subject of freedom, 
 and, ere I was aware, sympathize with the oppressor. With 
 a jealous eye, I peered into my heart to see how it stood 
 affected towards the poor slaves ; and I will confess to you, 
 dear S., that I found it less sympathizing than formerly ! I 
 was musing on the cause of this phenomenon, and calculating 
 how long a time, at the present ratio, would suffice to make 
 me an advocate of the enslaving system, when the Doctor 
 outspoke : 
 
 " Do you see those Lombardy poplars, yonder ? " 
 I nodded a yes. 
 
 "My good friend, Col. S., lives in the mansion pointed out
 
 24 COUSIN FRAM k's household. 
 
 by the poplars, and tho^e are his people thai you see at work 
 there." 
 
 I looked, and saw for the first time slave people at work 
 in the fields. There they were — men, women, and children 
 — whole families hard toiling, and for what? For the same 
 object as the horse and the ox — for the master's good. 
 Leaving the rank in which God made them, they are forced 
 to be put on a level with the brutes, and serve their fellow 
 men, albeit of "one blood." Col. S.'s "people," as the Doc- 
 tor called them, were clearing up brushwood and repairing 
 fences. Some of them turned to look at us as we passed. 
 They were not near enough for me to read their faces, but I 
 felt my heart glowing with tender pity for them. 
 
 " How think you'll like our slave system, Miss ? " continued 
 the Doctor. 
 
 " Not much," said I, loud enough for the deaf man to hear. 
 
 "O," replied he, pleasantly, "you Northerners always say 
 so when you first come among us; that is, generally speak- 
 ing; but after a while you come to like it as well as the best 
 of us. I grant you there is an acclimating process to be 
 gone through with in regard to it. Why, Miss, I have my 
 eye on several Northerners, now residents of the South, who, 
 when they first arrived, were dissatisfied with our domestic 
 institution; they did not say so in so many words, perhaps, 
 but we Southerners understood how they felt. And where 
 are they now? "Why, they have fallen head and ears in 
 love with the system ; they are among our most arrant slave- 
 holders. You see, Miss, our domestic arrangements are
 
 cousin franck's household. 25 
 
 vastly convenient for the master, as well as for the servants. 
 I maintain, the latter find their level scarcely above the 
 ourang-outang tribe — being a connecting link between the 
 animal and human races. It's a mercy to keep them where 
 they are, in my opinion." 
 
 " Downright horrible ! " said I, shaking my head. 
 
 " I see," replied the Doctor, coolly, " that vou have not 
 been educated into the system ; but, my word for it, you'll 
 be charmed with it yet. It will recommend itself to your 
 good common sense ; and Port Royal, of all places, is the 
 place to form a favorable estimate of our institution. There 
 the servants are fat, sleek and well-fed ; they lead an easy, 
 contented life. You will think them a free-and-easy, jolly 
 set, I make sure. Your feelings wont be outraged by the 
 harsh plantation treatment occasioned by those necessary 
 nuisances — overseers. And, by the way, your Northerners 
 make the hardest overseers in the world ; they have not one 
 jot of mercy for the servants. I woidd not have one of them 
 on my plantation, if he'd serve gratis ; he'd waste more 
 bones and sinews than he was worth. Fact is, Miss, your 
 Northerners go a notch higher than we do in the brutality 
 of the thing." The Doctor paused, and I was silent, won- 
 dering how this could be. 
 
 " If I were a Yankee," said he, after a while, " I should 
 
 guess that directly you would be delighted with our domestic 
 
 system ; and furthermore, I should guess you'd marry some 
 
 wealthy planter before a twelvemonth ! " Dr. G. said this 
 
 3
 
 2G COUSIN fraxck's household. 
 
 with an arch, mischievous look, that annoyed me exceedingly. 
 I replied, slinking my head, "See if I do, sir!" 
 
 ••Ali," be continued, "you Northerners come among us, 
 and directly you tack round and become the very best South- 
 erners in the world. All very natural, of course. You find 
 you've been mistaken in your estimate of things in this 
 country, and you must needs change your opinion. It goes 
 to show that you are a sensible people, and I admire you for 
 it. I always did say that the whole nation of Yankees had 
 most admirable tact. They have one more faculty than 
 other people — the faculty of adapting themselves to every 
 nation under heaven. But, bless me! here we are, right 
 upon Port Royal." 
 
 I saw a pretty little village of forty or fifty houses, with a 
 church, — the spire of which was surmounted by a cross, — 
 and an academy. 
 
 " Is this Port Royal ? " I asked, with some disappointment. 
 
 •• Yes, Miss. You are surprised to find it no larger. It 
 has two hundred white inhabitants, and perhaps four hundred 
 servants; yes, it has a population of full six hundred. "We 
 call this a large village, sowthernly speaking ; quite a large 
 village, Miss. Why, it has some little commerce of its own 
 to boast of, although it is not, like its overgrown, strapping 
 Bisters of the North, given to manufactures." 
 
 •■Why not?" 
 
 "O, it isn't thought quite expedient. We do not think it 
 a safe investment. Servants are servants, and not to be 
 trusted overmuch, you'll find. It isn't healthful for them to
 
 cousin franck's household. 27 
 
 be too much herded together ; when collected in gangs, they 
 are inclined to ferment, to get riotous and rebellious ; in 
 short, Miss, to rise against their masters, and all that." 
 
 I pointed to the Rappahannoc, on a bluff of which beautiful 
 river the village is situated. 
 
 M Water privilege ! Ah, yes ; and I do suppose you Yan- 
 kees would improve it more than we lazy Southerners do. 
 Yes, yes ; you'd convey the water around in canals and 
 flumes, and turn old Rappahannoc into a cloud of mist, with 
 your perpetual-motion water-wheels, leaving the steamboats 
 high and dry. And then these same managers would straightly 
 have a railroad chartered to cut up and ravage our planta- 
 tions, to wait on their factories, forsooth ! The very Goths 
 and Vandals are these Yankees. Should they swarm down 
 upon us — bless me! — we should fare worse than the old 
 Romans." 
 
 "I grew scarlet, and poured forth a perfect torrent of 
 words, in vindication of my abused people. The deaf Doctor 
 heard not a word, however ; for, in my zeal, I forgot to raise 
 my voice to the required pitch to make an impression on his 
 obtuse tympanum. He saw by my heightened color that I 
 was vexed, and said, apologetically, 
 
 " I beg your pardon, Miss. I did not intend to be per- 
 sonal. I regard you now as a Southerner ; you'll be cordially 
 received, never fear. You'll find us a generous-hearted, 
 hospitable people. We, first-families-in-Virginia, are all 
 cousins — linked together like a chain. I'll speak a good
 
 28 
 
 cousin fbanck's household. 
 
 word for you, although there isn't the least need of it; you 
 will be your own passport." 
 
 And I found myself at the door of a conspicuous-looking 
 house, having arrived at my destination. 
 
 Adieu, 
 
 Pocahontas.
 
 LETTER II. 
 
 IMrRESSIOXS AXD REALITIES. 
 
 Port Royal, Va., Dec. 20, 18—. 
 
 Dear S. — As I rang, a bevy of slave children darkened 
 the hall, scudding hither and thither to tell massa and missee 
 that " de young lady done come ! " Franck Cameron him- 
 self came to the open door. Although he had altered much, 
 and had reached the very respectable height of six feet one 
 inch, yet I recognized him at once, he was so like dear, good 
 Aunt Clara, his Quaker mother, whom he had left behind in 
 New-England, half heart-broken, because he would wed 
 slavery in winning a wife. 
 
 " How are you ? how are you, little coz ? " he exclaimed, 
 catching me up as of old, and landing me on the elegant 
 parlor sofa. It was evident cousin Franck had not yet be- 
 come the courtly Southerner, if he had married three plan- 
 tations. 
 
 " Tom, Dick and Harry ! d'ye hear ? Tell your mistress 
 that Miss Pocahontas is in the parlor." And half a dozen 
 bare, black feet hied away. 
 
 "I must show you my Regina," continued cousin Franck, 
 nodding graciously. Then, chancing to recollect that there 
 was such a country as New-England, and that some of his 
 3*
 
 30 cousin fkanck's household. 
 
 kin dwelt there, he asked after you all with a genuine gush 
 of affectionate interest. 
 
 Soon a superbly-dressed lady gracefully swept into the 
 room, and I was presented to cousin Regina — Mrs. Cameron. 
 She is of medium height, with a finely-rounded head, a 
 forehead neither high nor low, but fair, and significant of 
 intellect. Her luxuriant hair of dark brown, eyes blue as 
 the sky, with black fringes, and her clear rose and white 
 complexion, claim your admiration. At once I half forgave 
 cousin Franck that he, when only a poor tutor, had the 
 audacity to fall in love with " the most fascinating lady in 
 the Carolinas," albeit she was a widow with two daughters, 
 and a retinue of three hundred black adherents. The next 
 moment cousin Regina's two daughters made their appear- 
 ance ; Ruth and Rosalie, seventeen and nineteen. Ruth is 
 a plain, little, humped-back thing ; would be tall, were it not 
 for her sad deformity. Rosalie is as tall as her mother, and 
 greatly resembles her ; as we were introduced, I fancied 
 that she quite looked down on my slight figure. 
 
 Mrs. Cameron and daughters, as well as cousin Franck, 
 were dressed for an evening party ; they expressed them- 
 selves in the most cordial terms, quite happy to be detained 
 hi my account ; of course, I found no difficulty in prevailing 
 on all to go, save Ruth, who was heartily glad of an excuse. 
 Poor, dear Ruth ! I wish you could see her ; you could not 
 help loving her. She is more delicate-looking than Rosalie; 
 her hair is darker, and her face paler. Her eves, like true 
 soul-lamps, are lit up with the tire of intelligence, and shining
 
 cousin franck's household. 31 
 
 out from under the heavy, perceptive brow, defy you to decide 
 whether they are blue or black. There is a softened, mellow 
 light about them, that tells of long years of suffering. Her 
 mind is of a high order. After the first surprise, one almost 
 forgets her deformed figure ; her dark, rich tresses, with the 
 aid of a cape she is never without, partially concealing it. I 
 found her a charming companion for the evening. After tea, 
 passing through the folding doors, she conducted me to the 
 farther parlor, where, seating ourselves on the sofa, we had a 
 pleasant, cozy chat. At length, after divers discourse highly 
 interesting to ourselves, like two sleepy children as we were, 
 putting the cushions on the middle of the sofa, and our heads 
 together on them, we went fast asleep. 
 
 How long we had slept I know not, when we were aroused 
 by the return of the family. They seated themselves in the 
 parlor, and I soon heard Dr. G.'s voice. He had accom- 
 panied them home from the party, and was talking of slave 
 purchases as ladies talk of shopping. 
 
 "What say you, 'Squire Cameron," hallooed the Doctor; 
 " Can you sell me a score of niggers ? " 
 
 "Ahem — well, really, sir, I guess we must try and accom- 
 modate you. How will it be, Mrs. Cameron ? " 
 
 " We'll see, we'll see ! " the lady carelessly replied, but in 
 a tone loud enough for Dr. G.'s ears ; " we're overstocked, 
 and if we can agree on the price, I think we may trade." 
 
 I looked at my new friend to see how the idea of trading 
 men, women and children as cattle affected her. She had 
 raised her head from the cushion, and was listening as if for
 
 32 cousin franck's household. 
 
 dear life. Her eyes were lit up with intense feeling, and 
 her cheek was blanched with anxious fear. Had she herself 
 been a slave in apprehension of being- sold, she could hardly 
 have exhibited greater emotion. I perceived that she 
 trembled, and knowing that she must be very frail, and fear- 
 ing the effects of excitement, I tried to soothe her by ex- 
 pressing sympathy. I just put my arms about her neck, and 
 gently kissed her, whispering, " Dear, dear Ruth ! " 
 
 She embraced me with great affection, and looked into my 
 eyes with those beautiful soul-orbs of hers, and in a moment 
 our hearts were one, as if cemented by the friendship of 
 years. It was the work of a moment, during the little pause 
 in cousin Regina's reply to Dr. G. She continued in the 
 same extra tone : 
 
 " I am not quite sure now, Doctor, which of my people I 
 can best part with. Shall we waive the subject until morn- 
 ing?" 
 
 "As you please, madam," replied Dr. G. 
 
 The conversation became general, and again we pressed 
 our heads on the sofa-cushion. Presently Madam Regina 
 passed into the farther parlor, where we were making believe 
 napping, and exclaimed, 
 
 " As I live ! here are the young ladies fast asleep ! Cleo- 
 patra, where were your wits, that you did not see them to 
 their rooms ? " 
 
 And the dark, statue-like figure that had stood in waiting 
 in the corner, with folded arms, moved slowly and mechani- 
 cally around us, and conducted us to our chambers. The
 
 COUSIN FRANCK'S HOUSEHOLD. 33 
 
 apartments of Rosalie, Ruth and myself, connect with each 
 other, Ruth's being the middle one, much to the satisfaction 
 of myself, I assure you. I am older than Ruth by two, 
 almost three years ; and yet she is so matured by her pe- 
 culiar sufferings, that she thinks and acts with the strength 
 and discretion of a strong-minded woman. I cannot fail to 
 improve in her society. Of Rosalie, I will tell you more 
 anon. I must, however, say, that " the inclination of my 
 belief " is, that she is a belle, selfish in the ground- work of 
 her nature, but still amiably generous in her impulses. 
 
 Madam Regina seems the calculating lady-owner of ne- 
 groes, whose husband is only a convenient supernumerary, a 
 master pro tern, in the absence of the mistress. 
 
 Quite early in the morning, before sunrise, while as yet 
 none but the servants were stirring, Ruth came to my room 
 already dressed. She had had a sleepless night. She came 
 to my bedside, and after asking of my welfare, and apolo- 
 gizing for her early call, said : 
 
 " You do not think that mamma will sell nurse Selma ? 
 0, it will kill me if she does." 
 
 " Who is nurse Selma ? " I asked. 
 
 "The dearest, best soul in the world — our own nurse" 
 replied Ruth. "She is very intelligent — a Christian, a 
 member of the Episcopal church — dear mother's sister in 
 the church. If mamma sells her, my heart will break." 
 
 " Hope for the best," I said. 
 
 " I cannot bring myself to bear the thought that any of 
 the servants should be sold," continued the dear girl, weep-
 
 34 cousin franck's household. 
 
 
 ino;. She at lenjrth went on. "All the servants mamma has 
 with her she brought from North Carolina ; the negroes are 
 a most affectionate race, and it is like death to them to think 
 of being sold from each other. Their lot is but sorrowful at 
 the best, and this rending them asunder is so inhuman ! " 
 
 " It must be heart-breaking," I exclaimed. 
 
 "0, it is," Ruth replied; "and when I own slaves, as 
 soon as I am of age, there shall be no chance to have them 
 sold ; I shall certainly free them. Rosalie says she makes 
 sure I shall think very differently when I have people in 
 possession ; but xvhat right can I have to own a fellow-being ? " 
 
 I was astonished to hear this, knowing, as I did, the preju- 
 dices of her education, and I said: 
 
 "You are in the right, dear Ruth, but I supposed all 
 Southerners united in upholding slavery." 
 
 " Far from it, very far from it," she replied ; " every one 
 who will listen to the ' still small voice ' speaking to his spirit, 
 cannot help feeling that holding property in man is wrong* 
 Many do not thus listen, and I might not, had not many lone 
 hours of suffering taught me to feel for those in ' bonds as 
 bound with them.' " 
 
 "And is it only those whom God afflicts, that have just 
 views on this subject?" 
 
 "0, no," smilingly replied Ruth, "there are the out- 
 spoken natures, those who, braving consequences, freely 
 speak their minds ; these are few among us, however. Vir- 
 ginia has so far depreciated from her old renown, that her 
 sons have not the courage to be truly free in thought and 

 
 cousin fbanck's household. 35 
 
 expression. But then we can point you to Kentucky, which 
 Virginia is proud to claim as her own daughter — a fine- 
 grown child, .-killed in all "Western accomplishments — we 
 can point you to Kentucky as she is even now, expressing 
 her own and her mother's opinion of slavery." 
 
 " Yes," I replied, " the battle is there, to some extent, 
 being fought on slave soil." 
 
 "It is the same with us," Ruth replied, "only less openly. 
 "We have many more discussions than you suppose. The 
 subject is ever obtruding itself, let us dispose of it as we 
 will. The final disposal is not yet made ; meanwhile con- 
 science is at work. A fear of encouraging Northern agitators 
 in their incendiary efforts, our "Virginians say, is the reason 
 they have swerved - from their habitual frankness, and stifled 
 their convictions on this subject. And, indeed, who would 
 be taunted when in trouble ? "What but taunts could we ex- 
 pect from the hot-headed intermeddlers, if the extent of our 
 convictions were fully known ? The truth is, we are in a 
 sad case. As I have often heard the more reflective of our 
 planters say, ' "We are on the brink of a volcano.' All are 
 .satisfied of the difficulty we are in, but the safe extrication 
 is the problem. And what increases the fearfulness of our 
 situation, is the sin involved in it — 'we are verily guilty 
 concerning our brother.' Merciful Heavens ! what will be- 
 come of us ? It seems an easy matter to me to free myself 
 from the guilt of slaveholding, as soon as I shall become the 
 owner of slaves ; it will be by giving them that liberty which 
 is already their own by absolute right."
 
 36 COUSIN' fbanck's household. 
 
 "And would you not have some misgivings, when you 
 thought of the consequences to them and to yourself?" I 
 asked. 
 
 "Consequences! what is the danger of doing right, com- 
 pared with the danger of doing wrong? And as to the 
 effect of emancipation on the slaves, look at the British ex- 
 periment in the West India Islands ; how has its success put 
 to flight all the croaking that prophesied of its dire conse- 
 quences. No, no, my dear friend ; I am but a poor girl, I 
 know, hut I have looked at this thing a great while, in the 
 light of conscience, and in the light of reason, as a question 
 of principle and as one of policy ; I have pondered on it in 
 hours of solitude and suffering, and reflected on it more 
 coolly and dispassionately amid the every-day scenes of life, 
 and it is my full and settled conviction, that to emancipate is 
 a duty, and that it will prove a blessing to all concerned. I 
 have some little talent ; there is my music and drawing, and 
 I delight in teaching. And even should this resource fail 
 me, I fancy I have enough of the inventive and constructive 
 faculty, with a little practice, to make me a successful mil- 
 liner." 
 
 " Then you would not shrink from self-maintenance ? " I 
 asked. 
 
 "Why should I, coz?" said Ruth, with beautiful earnest- 
 ness. " I'll tell you, the happiesl people on (lie globe are those 
 who ' eat their bread in the sweat of the brow,' as the great 
 Father of men designed. Look at your own prosperous 
 and happy New-England. 0, how I wish I bad been born
 
 COUSIN franck's household. 
 
 there ! I would never have wandered thence, and set foot 
 in the slumbering South, as you have done. No, no ; but 
 I'm so glad you have come. Now I have some one to open 
 my heart to, and it is overflowing with thoughts none of my 
 family can understand." 
 
 Thus we discoursed, I know not how long, until towering 
 Cleopatra, Ruth's maid, came in, saying, 
 
 " Why, hi ! if de young ladies isn't dressed an' waitin, 
 widout old 'Patra's help ! Father's life ! ye's right smart 
 lively, dat is a fack ! An' now ye can go right down mejuntly, 
 for dey's totin' in de breakfas' rapid." 
 
 " We shall be in good time, then, Cleopatra," pleasantly 
 replied Ruth. 
 
 " Dat you will, Miss Ruth ; and you alla's is. You're a 
 'markable seasonable young lady, dat you is, if it is old 'Patra 
 dat say it. Now, if dis shere new young lady is a mate to 
 you in helpin' herself, and not makin' servants trouble, wont 
 we have easy times? I reckons Mistress '11 let me be maid 
 to ye both, and den I'll be bound every-which-way. I'll be 
 too much 'count to be sold dis shere crop." And the tall 
 woman looked inquiringly at me, as if to satisfy herself what 
 sort of a person I might be. 
 
 " We shall have easy times, I makes no matter of doubt," 
 continued Cleopatra, putting her arms akimbo, and looking 
 complacently ; but isn't I glad I ain't Miss Rosalie's maid ? 
 Hi ! she de most particularist body livin', and turn every- 
 which-way ; dey's no suiting her." 
 4
 
 38 cousin franck's household. 
 
 a Hush, Cleopatra, said Ruth, "you know I do not like you 
 to Bpeak evil of any one." 
 
 " No, Miss, dat you doesn't, Miss, and I love you for't. I 
 wont do so agin, see if I do. You don't want 'Patra to be 
 biting de backs of dem dat isn't prisent, and I wont do so, 
 indeed I wont. But how 'mazing different you is from Miss 
 Rosalie ! 'Pears like ye can't be any kin, no how, ye is so 
 entirely contrary ! " 
 
 " Hush ! hush ! " said Ruth. 
 
 " Dat I will, Miss, rapid. AVy, Mina has more strouble 
 dressin' and undressin' Miss Rosalie, dan if she was an in- 
 fant baby, I makes sure. And den dares all de waitin', and 
 traipsin', and totin', and tendin'." 
 
 Thus Cleopatra's tongue continued to run, as we, obeying 
 the summons of the bell, ran down stairs to the breakfast- 
 room. Adieu, 
 
 Pocahontas. 

 
 LETTER III. 
 
 SLAVE TRADING CONSCIENCE. 
 
 Port Royal, Va., Dec. 22, 18—. 
 
 Dear S. — As to Dr. G.'s errand, his deafness, and the 
 consequent volume of voice with which he has heen accom- 
 modated, " has released Grimalkin from the reticule," or, to 
 speak in more vulgar phrase, " has let the cat out of the bag." 
 Every slave in the house knows it, and the confused hurry- 
 ing hither and thither would remind you of the consternation 
 in a bee-hive at the invasion of a caterpillar. I doubt not 
 that the negroes, one and all, would like to imitate the bees' 
 method of disarming an enemy, and embalm the dear Doctor 
 at once, rather than he should carry off any of their number. 
 
 Hannibal, the dining-room servant, was in a perfect fidget 
 during breakfast. When he passed a cup of coffee, his hand 
 trembled so that he well nigh swamped the waiter with slops ; 
 and then he was so absent ! I might have thought these 
 things habitual with him, had not his mistress raised her 
 delicate hand, and rolled up her eyes after the manner of a 
 new astonishment. Like his illustrious namesake, Hannibal 
 is not to be despised for his looks ; and much I doubt if he 
 has as dark a brow as had the hero of Carthage. He is a 
 quadroon, not more shaded with sable than most Spaniards,
 
 40 COUSIN' FRANCES HOUSEHOLD". 
 
 Italians and Greeks, to say nothing of hundreds of millions 
 of Asiatics. If color be the criterion, he has certainly three- 
 fourths of a right to himself. Indeed, if he were a Spaniard, 
 he would be called very distinguished looking, and would be 
 turning the heads of half the girls with his appearance and 
 address. 
 
 But Hannibal's eyes glowed on Dr. G., now and then, as 
 if fires were burning within. Nevertheless, the conversa- 
 tion at the table went on just as if such a thing was not 
 present. Cousin Franck and the Doctor kept up quite an 
 animated talk on various subjects, all more or less connected 
 with the Florida plantation. Madam Regina presided with 
 an easy grace, and her self-complacent countenance certainly 
 did not betray any special commotion within, akin to that 
 which had made sleepless the pillow of her Ruth. 
 
 When we were nearly through breakfast, Rosalie made 
 her appearance, — punctuality at this meal not being a point 
 of etiquette at cousin Franck's. 
 
 On returning to my room, I found Cleopatra highly ex- 
 cited. She had just been quarrelling with Mima, Rosalie's 
 maid, and, once under way, she knew not when to stop. 
 
 '•It's one ting to feel mighty cranky, and anoder ting to be 
 it; flat tis, Mima. Eber so many folks in dis shere worl' 
 links dey's mighty big concarns, like dc swelled up toad, 
 and dey's jest as good for notin'. Ony to tink, dat lazy hussy, 
 Mima, dat neber arnt de salt in her hone, tinks I'll be sold 
 afore her? She tink, too, dat Hannibal fakes a heap of 
 shine to her, jest as if she wasn't as black as de chimm 

 
 cousin i kanck's household. 41 
 
 back. I makes sure sich gemtm as Hannibal won't have 
 much to say to sich hussies as Mima ! " and Cleopatra stopped 
 to observe herself in the glass, and directly felt in better 
 humor, as all people do in a fit of complacency. 
 
 I seated myself by a window that looked out on the kitchen. 
 A Southern kitchen you have never seen, and I will slightly 
 sketch the one before me. It is a small, one-room building, 
 entirely detached from the house, some three or four rods 
 distant. It is sixteen feet square, perhaps, and its chimney 
 is on the outside. Its style of architecture is not very orna- 
 mental, it must be admitted, but it is quite convenient, nev- 
 ertheless. There is a fine, large fireplace, also an oven 
 within, thus rendering the apartment more roomy by turning 
 the chimney out of doors. By the way, the Southerners 
 think us little better than savages, because we have not 
 adopted their custom of excommunicating the kitchen from 
 our dwellings. 
 
 Although it was chilly, I sat down by the window, open 
 for the morning airing. Mine is a corner room, one window 
 looking into the kitchen yard, and one into the garden. 
 I noticed, through the half-closed blind, a "quantity" of 
 children, liable to be sold, earnestly discussing the question 
 that so agitated the laborers of the household. They vividly 
 reminded me of Irving's bellipotent Dutchmen, as, with war- 
 like demonstrations, they jabbered away under my window. 
 
 " Ut you gwine do, ef dey sells you, Tom ? " asked Dick 
 of the great man of the company. 
 
 " Do ! dey'll see ut dis nig '11 do, I reckons ! ef dey comes 
 4#
 
 42 cousin i kanck's household. 
 
 nigli me; 'pears like, dey'll eotch ut ain't good far dere 
 healths ! " bravely said Tom, fistifying with all the eloquence 
 of a stump-speech orator, one foot resting consequentially on 
 a dilapidated wash-bench. 
 
 " Dey'd better be done, if dey touch me," said little, tat- 
 tered Harry, whose greasy lips suggested that he had made 
 acquaintance with some unwatched fry-kettle of the kitchen. 
 
 " I say now, boys," said chubby Jupe, " dat ar Ductar orter 
 be ducked in de river ; dat's ut I votes for." 
 
 "An so he hab, a deffee cold un, make his teef go chatte, 
 cliatte," added little Effie, rubbing her pretty hands, and 
 dancing up and down, for the sake of her half-frozen feet. 
 
 "Yes, boys, dat's de go!" exclaimed chubby Jupe, who 
 seemed to rival Tom as political leader, " dat's de go ! Bless 
 me! I wish a heap dat some ob de bus people ud be right 
 smart libely, an hab him under; 'pears like it's high time." 
 
 " I wish so a heap," said half-clad Johnny, shivering. 
 
 " An' so duz I," — " and I," — " and I," replied half a dozen 
 echoes. 
 
 " De case is, young uns," gravely remarked Tom, seeking 
 to call attention to himself, "'pears like de case is, that dat 
 ar Ductar is gwine to tote us off to Clorida, an' de case is, 
 young uns 'pears like he'd orter be right smart sick abed," 
 and the fat paw of the little pleader came down on the wash- 
 bench with a very valorous emphasis. 
 
 A murmur of applause buzzed through the group. 
 
 "Dat's de go, Tom!*' exclaimed Jupe; "sposin de bench, 
 -■here, be de Ductar, wouldn't he kotch it?" and he gave it a
 
 cousin fraxck's household. 43 
 
 kick unci a thump, and directly the whole troop kicked and 
 thumped the old bench, until, if it had been the Doctor, he 
 must have been pretty thoroughly mauled. At this stage of 
 operations, however, cousin Franck's "right hand man," 
 Philip Augustus, seven years old, issued from the back hall 
 door, and whip in band, began: 
 
 "What you up to now, you nigs?" using an adjec- 
 tive we may not quote; "you thought your master wasn't on 
 hand, eh ? " and as the little flock scampered, some for the 
 kitchen, and others for Aunt Selma's white-washed cabin, the 
 lordly boy ran, too, hitting now one and then another with his 
 stinging lash. 
 
 The two little girls, Effie and Jule, who were too terrified 
 to keep out of his way, were mercilessly chastised for the 
 offence of the whole company. The poor things screamed 
 as if badly hurt, and half frightened out of their wits ; but 
 the promising young slave lord continued to apply the lash 
 until they came in sight of Aunt Selma's cottage door, in 
 which stood the dear soul herself, looking at Philip Augustus 
 as if she would bring him to account for his cruelty. On 
 seeing her, he appeared ashamed, and, attempting to raise a 
 whistle, slunk back to the house, beating his boots with his 
 whip. 
 
 " Well done, Phil, that's a man ! " called out cousin Franck, 
 who was promenading the hall, in conversation with Dr. G., 
 having witnessed a part of the prank just performed; "you 
 are father's brave boy, that you are. Here, Doctor, is the 
 boy for you ; he was born to rule ; the reins of government
 
 44 COUSIN FRAXCK'S HOrSKIIOLD. 
 
 are his by inherent right. He'll make his niggers stand 
 round, one of these days ; he knows how it is done. Why, 
 sir, if any little difficulty arises among the young servants, 
 I've only to send Philip Augustus, and, like another Napo- 
 leon, he straightens matters at once." 
 
 I had just closed the window, and, seating myself by the 
 fire, was shivering an accompaniment to the chilly blast 
 without, when a knock, and cousin Rosalie entered. She 
 looked sweetly, in her neat, would-be-negligent morning 
 dress — her studied dishabille, and I knew that she had come 
 to make me a friendly, unceremonious call, as she brought 
 her embroidery. Taking her seat on the sofa, which I had 
 wheeled to the fireside, she said, " Mamma is very much en- 
 gaged this morning, Ruth is indisposed, and father and Dr. 
 G. are monopolized with business affairs, so I've trotted in 
 to keep you from getting lonely and homesick." 
 
 I thanked her, and thought it very kind, of course. 
 
 " 0, we had such a delightful party last night at the M.'s !" 
 she exclaimed, with animation, "you ought to have been 
 there. Everybody in the village was there, and some dis- 
 tinguished strangers, and we had such a lively time ! Nothing 
 but dancing was wanting to make it as agreeable as possible. 
 Margaret te M., who is very religious, and has been confirmed 
 of late, did not wish a dance. O, but you ought to have 
 been there. I should bo admire to present you to my friends; 
 they'll be calling on you soon. As for the young ladies, 
 you'll not think them very beautiful, when 1 tell you I stand 
 the acknowledged belle among them. I win my laurels for
 
 cousin fraxck's household. 45 
 
 looks by lamp-light. It ought always to be evening for 
 my sake." 
 
 I smiled, and said, " Then you do not love the sun ? " 
 
 "Ah, no," she affectedly replied; "the gairish day — it 
 has no sentiment, no poetry about it ; and then it is so unmer- 
 ciful in exposing sallow complexions." 
 
 "I thought everybody and everything praised the sun- 
 light," said I. 
 
 " No, indeed," said Rosalie, knowingly, " you are mistaken 
 there, my good cousin. Dyspeptic and nervous people hold 
 it in abhorrence. It's too plain-spoken in the matter of their 
 looks, dear. Once it was all the same to me, until I became 
 belle, and, studying my looks, found that I was far more 
 beautiful at evening than by daylight ; since then, I have 
 regarded that part of the twenty-four hours with contempt." 
 And the spoiled beauty actually worked her lips into a hearty 
 pout, as if vexed that the sun itself was not her obedient 
 slave. Nevertheless, she plied her needle most zealously — 
 she was embroidering a pair of slippers for the minister — 
 and my thoughts wandered, wondering which of the people 
 would be sold, and how they would bear up under the afflic- 
 tion. O, how my heart panted to save them this brute fate ! 
 Rosalie broke in on my meditations, by saying, 
 
 " Our Rector, the Rev. Mr. Brincherhoff, was at the party, 
 cousin." 
 
 " Ah, indeed ! " said I, half absent. 
 
 " Yes ; and he is such a devoted man ! He is wholly ab- 
 sorbed in the interests of the church. He lives tho ii& -* »
 
 46 cousin fbanck's household. 
 
 6aint, and makes most delightful parochial calls. If any one 
 reaches heaven, I make sure he will, he is so holy." 
 
 " By his good works ? " asked I. 
 
 " Yes, measurably, as mamma says. He fasts, and goes 
 through the prayer-book every day, and I'm not sure that he 
 does not do penance. He has made the tour of Europe, 
 spent some time at Rome, and his mind is stored like a 
 picture gallery. He is charming in conversation ; he calls 
 us young ladies young sisters of charity. I do hope you'll 
 hear him discourse on the Apostolic Succession, he is so clear 
 and conclusive in his delightful way of reasoning. Of course 
 he is orthodox High Church, and an intimate acquaintance 
 of Dr. Pusey ; indeed, if I do not mistake, he graduated at 
 Oxford some fifteen years ago. Ah, he makes religion so 
 attractive to the eye, the ear, and to the sentiments of the 
 heart, that one must needs fall in love with it. Indeed, one 
 must be very wicked not to be religious." 
 
 " He must be a very eccentric minister." 
 
 " Yes, indeed, one of the excellent of the earth. He is a 
 widower, and ever so many are quarreling for him. I think 
 him too good for anybody on earth — 
 
 " Bless your heart, my dear little Ruth ! " exclaimed 
 Rosalie, interrupting herself as Ruth entered, "how pale 
 you are! Are you playing ghost? What ails you, little 
 chick ? Come, puss, do tell us what's the matter ? " But 
 Ruth silently seated herself between Rosalie and myself. 
 
 " Ah, I reckon I read you ! " exclaimed Rosalie ; " it's the 
 prospect of a sale that's eating out your life. Now, sis, be-
 
 cousin uranck's household. 47 
 
 fore I would be so extra foolish ! What do you care for the 
 stupid people ? the more sold the better, I reckon." 
 
 "O, Rosalie," replied Bath, "how can you talk so? How 
 would you like to have me sold, for example ? " 
 
 " You ! of course not ; you are my sister. Indeed, I should 
 make a poor living without my good little Ruth," said 
 Rosalie. 
 
 " But it would be no harder for us to separate, than for 
 the servants," pleaded Ruth. 
 
 "Nonsense, puss!" said Rosalie, lightly, "how senti- 
 mental! It's not comfortable to think of our servants as 
 having human feelings, so pray dismiss such a prosy thought. 
 But who ever saw the like ? What a hubbub there is among 
 them this morning ! One would think they all expected to 
 be sold. What's got into them ? Let's go and call on nurse 
 Selma, and see if she is as calm as ever." 
 
 "O, yes," rejoined Ruth, "let's go at once." And away 
 we went, to call at the good nurse's cabin. 
 
 As we reached the landing at the foot of the hall stairs, 
 the parlor door being open, we could not well avoid seeing 
 Madam Regina, sitting by the centre table, signing a bill of 
 sale. She looked up a little apprehensively as she saw us, 
 and as we hurried along, I noticed that Ruth was quite pale, 
 and Rosalie just excited enough to have rosy cheeks. 
 
 " It cannot be that mamma will sell any people to-day," 
 said Ruth, evidently trying to sustain herself with that hope. 
 
 " Why not ? " said Rosalie, with the semblance of a care- 
 less air. 
 
 I
 
 48 cousin fbanck's household. 
 
 "She promised me as much, not an hour ago," replied 
 Kudu '• when we were giving out things from the store-room. 
 She begged ine not to distress myself — she would not sell 
 any people at present." 
 
 " And she told me, directly after breakfast," responded 
 Rosalie, "that she must sell half a dozen, at least; her purse 
 is getting light, and it is impossible to make a decent appear- 
 ance in dress and entertainments, unless it is replenished by 
 Bales now and then. We have often had servants sold, and 
 you never so took it to heart. Why do you now?" 
 
 " I am older, and can reflect better," replied Ruth. 
 
 " Then it';s plain you ought to be more reasonable, and 
 not grieve mother," argued Rosalie, " it's her business, not 
 ours." 
 
 Ruth received this reproof of her elder sister in silence, 
 save a sigh. As we passed out the open hall door, (a Vir- 
 ginian's doors, by the way, are always hospitably open, in 
 winter as well as in summer,) we met Hannibal, bringing in 
 a hod of coal for the parlor. It was plainly to be seen by 
 his expression, that he was enlightened respecting the state 
 of affairs. He bore himself, however, very much as one of 
 our Yankees would have done in the like case. He looked 
 aroused, on the alert, and enterprising, as if contriving for 
 an emergency. I trembled for him, for I felt sure that if he 
 should be on the list to be sold and transported to the far 
 South, he would be desperate. 
 
 Nurse Selma's cabin, which we found just beyond the 
 farther garden gate, half hidden from the house by a haw-
 
 COUSIN franck's bousehold. 49 
 
 thorn hedge, is superior to anything of the kind in this vi- 
 cinity ; it has two rooms, and is comfortably furnished. The 
 regular nursery is an apartment in cousin Franck's house ; 
 but for the sake of quiet to its inmates, Selma takes the 
 children to her little hut by day, ami returns with them to 
 the nursery at night. Little Clara, six years old, and Wash- 
 ington, five, constitute the nursery gentry, and two noisier 
 children never thrived. Selma received us with great cordi- 
 ality and propriety, and she is evidently a superior woman. 
 You could not look into her genial, beaming, dark eye, without 
 wishing to look again. Her glossy hair is prettily arranged 
 beneath a matronly cap, made by Ruth and Rosalie, who vie 
 with each other in making her presents. You would pro- 
 nounce her absolutely handsome ; she is no darker than some 
 of our Northern brunettes. She was sitting in a small 
 rocking-chair, little "Washington in her arms, Clara at her 
 feet, and six or eight little negro children, belonging to dif- 
 ferent cabins, clustered around her. She is the point of 
 attraction to the children, black and white. Master Philip 
 Augustus has measurably, as the Southerners say, got beyond 
 her care by day — happy riddance, no doubt — but at night- 
 fall he is as glad of her motherly help to put him comfortably 
 in his little nursery bed, and sing him to sleep, as Clara and 
 Washington. Ruth and Rosalie call her Aunt Selma ; in- 
 deed, she is everybody's aunt, although not as old as Madam 
 Regina. It was just twelve, and nurse Selma had no indi- 
 cations of breakfast. You must know that twelve o'clock is 
 the servant's breakfast hour ; they are not supposed to have
 
 50 cousin France's bousehold. 
 
 the leisure to be hungry until after their morning work is 
 done. After kissing Aunt Selma, introducing me, and chat- 
 ting a moment, Ruth said, 
 
 ••How is it. Aunt Selma, do you live without eating? I 
 see no breakfast." 
 
 " Dear child, no," she replied ; " I have all I need — I am 
 not hungry this morning." 
 
 •• Now, Aunty," said Rosalie, " you needn't make believe 
 fast, because you think trouble is in the wind. You'll not be 
 harmed; you are too useful; we prize you too much for 
 that." 
 
 An unutterable look of anguish was Selma's only 
 reply. 
 
 "You must have some breakfast," exclaimed Ruth, "I'll 
 run and get you some;" and she was gone. 
 
 " Now do tell us, Aunt Selma," said Rosalie, " what is the 
 matter? Are you afraid of being sold?" 
 
 u My name is on the hill of sale" she calmly replied. 
 
 " It is ? I cannot believe it ! " replied Rosalie. " Why, 
 what can mamma be thinking about? There isn't another 
 servant on the land can quiet the children but you. We 
 shall have pretty times, truly. The nursery will be all over 
 the house, and the children will be screaming from morning 
 till night. I shall be ashamed to have any gentlemen call ; 
 I shall, indeed." And Rosalie, with the greatest simplicity, 
 showed the exact depth of her heart, and her capacity for 
 sympa.hizing with a fellow-being in distress. Ruth now 
 came in with a cup of coffee, slices of cold bacon, and hot
 
 cousin fbanck's household. 51 
 
 muffins, and placing the waiter on the table, begged nurse 
 Selrna to eat. 
 
 " Thank you, child ; you are very kind, but I do not need 
 to eat now," she replied. 
 
 ""What is the matter, dear Aunt .Selrna?" said Ruth, put- 
 ting her arms about her neck ; "will you not tell your own 
 Ruth?" The nurse whispered a word in Ruth's ear. "May 
 God preserve you ! " she exclaimed, greatly agitated. " I 
 cannot believe it — I'll go directly in and ask mamma;" but 
 she was nearly overcome, and, trembling from head to foot, 
 needed the support of Rosalie and myself to leave the room. 
 Meanwhile, the valiant little negroes, Jupe, Johnny, Tom, 
 Dick and Harry, with Washington and Clara, were skirmish- 
 ing for the choice muffins and bacon. The little girls, Effie 
 and Jule, stood apart, the former wiping her eyes with the 
 corner of her apron, and the latter, with one finger in her 
 mouth, seeming sadly puzzled. 
 
 "What is the matter?" exclaimed cousin Regina, as we 
 entered the parlor ; " are you ill, Ruth ? " 
 
 " Please tell me, mother, what names you have on the bill 
 of sale ? " said Ruth, glancing on that document, which lay 
 exposed on the centre table. 
 
 "You can read for yourself," replied Madam Regina, 
 haughtily. 
 
 Dr. G. was sitting on an ottoman, every now and then 
 saying, "Ahem!" Cousin Franck, with his hands in his 
 pockets, was striding to and fro across the room, unconsciously 
 whistling, " Hail Columbia."
 
 52 COUSIN' FRANCK'S HOUSEHOLD. 
 
 " Oh, mother, is it possible ? " asked Ruth, in a grieved 
 tone, after she had read the bill. 
 
 "Yes, child, it is possible," replied the lady, with an effort 
 to be self-possessed. " I have thought the matter over calmly 
 and collectedly ; I have looked at it in every light ; I have 
 solemnly prayed over it, and am positive that it is a Chris- 
 tian duty to sell the servants you see described in that 
 bill." 
 
 The Doctor inclined his new ear trumpet so as to catch the 
 earnest words being spoken, and added, as cousin Regina 
 ceased, 
 
 " Yes, indeed, Miss Ruth ; you surely will not object to 
 me as a master for some of your servants. I assure you they 
 shall be well cared for. I am a physician ; if they are sick, 
 who so well qualified as myself to administer relief? You 
 know that I am proverbially humane. I do suppose, if your 
 father, mother and myself have anything to answer for in 
 relation to servants, it is in being humane overmuch ; spoil- 
 ing our servants by indulgence." 
 
 Ruth burst into tears. Rosalie sank into an easy-chair, 
 and swayed to and fro quite comfortably. 
 
 " Daughter, I'm sorry to see this, very sorry," said cousin 
 Franck, stopping opposite Ruth ; " I must s;iy, I'm very sorry 
 to see you so intent on getting up a scene." 
 
 "Yes, daughter," added Madam Regina, " anything but a 
 scene at parting with a irw people ! It is shockingly unlady- 
 like, and I really must apologize for you to Dr. G. 1 must 
 say, that I never brought up my daughters to sentimentalize
 
 cousin France's household. 53 
 
 in this way. It is purely original with them, purely 
 original." 
 
 "With Ruth, please," interposed Rosalie, slipping her 
 shoulders out of any responsibility in the affair. 
 
 u Miss Ruth is not so much to he blamed," said the Doc- 
 tor; "she is evidently very kind-hearted, and fond of pets, 
 like many young ladies I have met, who have a passion for 
 cats ; they often get so interested in these animals, as to de- 
 light in nothing so much as in their society, and if one 
 chances to stray off, or get killed, then you may be sure there 
 is a lamentation ! But what I would now suggest to the 
 young lady is, that she emulate her worthy mother. ' I take 
 it you are a member of the church, madam ? " Cousin Regina 
 complacently nodded assent. "I would suggest that the 
 young lady notice how her mother's religion helps her decide 
 in the case, and come to a like decision, according to the 
 dictates of her good taste." But Ruth still wept, seemingly 
 little comforted by this stentorian harangue. 
 
 " This is most unprecedented, I must declare ! " ejaculated 
 cousin Franck, putting each arm akimbo in the arm-pits of 
 his silk-velvet vest. "I would never have believed that our 
 little Ruth could profit so little by her religious training. 
 Why, child," exclaimed he, suddenly pausing before her, 
 "are you not aware that you are breaking the very first 
 commandment with promise, 'Honor thy father and thy 
 mother ? ' Do you not perceive that you call in question the 
 wisdom of our judgment in the case ? Havn't we a right to 
 dispose of our own property as we will ? ' 
 5*
 
 5-4 cousin fbanck's household. 
 
 " Religion is certainly a very fine accomplishment in a 
 young lady, in my opinion," remarked the Doctor, for Ruth's 
 edification. "It is useful in rendering her mild, mock and 
 quiescent, when the affairs of this life are not precisely to 
 her mind. I shall certainly require religion in the woman I 
 wed. Why, its influence is invaluable in teaching a lady her 
 place in the domestic circle. Dancing, drawing, embroidery, 
 French and Italian, are certainly very desirable — they go to 
 make the lady ; but, bless my soul and body, religion is the 
 great accomplishment, after all ! Am I not right, Madam 
 Cameron?" And the Doctor looked very sanctimonious, as 
 if his tolerant views of religion had come in mortal danger 
 of making a pious man of him. 
 
 " Quite right, sir," responded cousin Regina, faintly blush- 
 ing, as if she feared that Ruth might be as far as ever from 
 conviction ; " quite right, sir. It has ever been my aim to 
 inculcate the principles of the Bible in educating my daugh- 
 ters. Ruth knows very well, that I have taught her that it 
 is excessively unladylike not to reverence one's superiors; 
 and that it shows great want of refinement, nay, that it is the 
 height of vulgarity, to cherish a sickly sympathy for ser- 
 vants, or to interfere in the least in their disposal." Cousin 
 Regina said this with an air of great dignity, that would 
 have frightened away every whit of a benevolence Ie~s au- 
 dacious than Ruth's. But the dear girl lifted up her head 
 undauntedly; the sterner the storm, the Btronger her heart. 
 She had come to plead that men. women and children might
 
 COUSIN franck's houskhold. 55 
 
 not be sold as property. Her heart was full, and out of its 
 abundance her mouth spoke : 
 
 " Let me be earnest this once, I pray you, dear mother. 
 I beg you not to sell any servants. I will teach ; I shall de- 
 light to do it ; and we can plan a thousand ways to econo- 
 mize, and avert such a dreadful necessity." * * * 
 
 Just at this moment the Rev. Mr. Brincherhoff came in, 
 without ringing, like one of the family. He at once entered 
 with interest into the scene, and, after two or three inquiries, 
 appeared to understand just the state of things. He seems 
 about forty years of age, is rather stout-built, is something 
 of a student, and, it may be, is a faint specimen of a Jesuit. 
 He looked at our little Ruth with ponderous gravity — with 
 one of those mill-stone looks which dignitaries sometimes put 
 on, the better to sink lesser people into confusion. 
 
 "Young lady," slowly and solemnly spoke the oracular 
 divine, after an awful pause, " you must learn the teachings 
 of the church on this subject. There is a sanctity in the 
 fundamental institutions of our civil government and religion. 
 Holy and sublime associations cluster about them, and in 
 this dim state of imperfection it is the consummation of pre- 
 sumption for the unhallowed to interfere in the spiritual 
 arrangement of affairs, which, however confessedly disturbed 
 to our vision, present to the eye of God only harmony." 
 Rosalie whispered me, loud enough for the reverend man to 
 hear, " Isn't he eloquent ? " 
 
 " I take it, sir," said cousin Franck, industriously whittling 
 a -tick, "you consider it belongs to the high and sacred
 
 56 cousin fraxck's household. 
 
 offices of religion, to adjust the affairs of the social fab- 
 ric ? " 
 
 "Exactly, sir," replied Mr. Brincherhoff. 
 
 "Ah, yes, indeed," added Madam Regina, "we should 
 make but poor progress without that regulator, religion." 
 
 " There is one thing in relation to the servants I am buy- 
 ing of you, madam, I had like to have forgotten," suddenly 
 interposed the Doctor, in his thundering way. 
 
 " Ah, and what may it be ? " blandly asked the lady. 
 
 " I wish to inquire, madam," said the Doctor, " if these 
 servants enumerated on the bill are of the pious kind. It 
 occurs to me, that it may be somewhat to my advantage to 
 have a tender conscience, an indispensable requisite in ser- 
 vants, that they may not desert me. You see, madam, if I 
 may be allowed the figure, I want them salted with religion 
 enough to keep ; " and the Doctor laughed heartily at his witti- 
 cism, in which laugh the clergyman and cousin Franck joined. 
 
 " You ask if they are religious," said cousin Regina, re- 
 suming her gravity ; " as a lot, I may say they are measurably 
 so ; more so, doubtless, than the fair average of salable peo- 
 ple in Virginia. The owners of people prefer to retain the 
 religious, and sell those less trusty. As I told you, while 
 negotiating the bargain, I part with Selma, as with most of 
 them, at great self-sacrifice. She has more genuine religion in 
 her heart than any servant I ever knew. She has religion 
 enough for the whole gang; by this I mean that her religion 
 will influence them all, and effectually prevent the fatal result 
 you fear. Indeed, sir, I am not sure that I do right to part with
 
 cousin fraxck's household. 57 
 
 this inestimable servant; I am a little confused this morning 
 in regard to duty. I partially promised my Ruth, here, that 
 I would waive selling at present, but on reviewing the sub- 
 ject, I find myself compelled to yield to an imperative 
 necessity ; and as I wish to part with as few as possible, and 
 you offer twelve hundred dollars extra for Sehna, I have 
 consented to have her included in the lot. But my daugh- 
 ters will never forgive me, I fear, for parting with the best 
 of cooks, housekeepers and nurses." 
 
 " Ah, how's this ? " said the Rev. Mr. Brincherhoff, taking 
 a seat beside Rosalie, and condescending from the throne of 
 his dignity, " are you a little fanatic, too, in your views of 
 selling servants ? " 
 
 " O, no, indeed, not I," replied she, laughing ; mamma 
 might sell them all, and I'd not care, if it would not make it 
 so inconvenient. Selma is our main stay, and without her I 
 make sure everything will go to wreck and ruin. But see, 
 sir, I've got your slippers nearly done," she added, displaying 
 her embroidery. 
 
 " Ah, indeed ! you are a very Dorcas," said the Rector. 
 Ruth, as yet, would not be comforted, and cousin Franck, 
 evidently desirous of diverting her, turned to Mr. Brincher- 
 hoff: "If you please, my good sir, indoctrinate this young 
 lady into the truth. I assure you, we have a task like 
 Sisyphus. As soon as you are gone, she will be telling me 
 that it is wrong to hold and sell servants, and quote old Dr. 
 Fuller's remark, that ' a negro is the image of God cut in 
 ebony;' or, likely enough, remind me of Horace Smith's
 
 58 cousin fbanck's household. 
 
 declaration, that ' the task-master is the image of the devil 
 cut in ivory.' Our Ruth will be cogitating and running 
 wild on these things, and a few ' well-chosen words ' from 
 yourself, may restore the equilibrium of her excited imagina- 
 tion." 
 
 " Yes, my dear sir," replied the Rev. Mr. Brincherhoff, 
 with a peculiar smile, " I am glad that you remember the 
 apples of gold and pictures of silver. I will briefly say to 
 the young lady, Ruth, in the words of a Christian brother, 
 that, 'after sacrilege, there is nothing more profane, than 
 with rash and unbidden hands to meddle with the funda- 
 mental institutions of civil government and religion.' " 
 
 " I pray you, sir," Ruth at length found voice to say, " if 
 you were convinced that slavery was sin, what course would 
 you take?" 
 
 The Rector frowned darkly, raked his fingers through the 
 black, sedge-like thatching of his head, and exclaimed, 
 
 " Bless me, child, what an idea ! "What should I do ? It 
 is most irrelevant and presumptuous in you to ask, but in 
 one word you shall know. I would pursue that course best 
 adapted to such an exigency — the course best calculated to 
 do good. The pulpit must not indulge personalities, but 
 preach against those 'depraved dispositions' of the bent, 
 which are the soil in which sin takes root and springs up like 
 the baneful Upas." And with the air of one who has settled 
 all controversies, the clergyman arose to take leave. 
 
 Adieu, 
 
 Pocahontas.
 
 LETTER IV. 
 
 THE ^ PURCHASES " OLD JOSEPH. 
 
 Port Royal, Va., Dec. 26, 18—. 
 Dear S. — The skeleton scythe-bearer has quite out- 
 stripped me, I find, by glancing at his progress and my 
 journalizing. Merry Christmas & Co. are passing right 
 cheerily to some, and quite drearily to others, in our cozy 
 little village. Ruth obtained a promise from the Doctor, 
 that there should be no breaking up of families until after 
 the holidays. Indeed, Madam Regina wished this proviso, it 
 being exceedingly inconvenient to fill the offices made vacant 
 by sale of the slaves, at a season privileged in bringing its 
 own bustle. So the Doctor's recent purchases had time to 
 look about them and take breath, before saying their fare- 
 wells. These purchases were Selma, Cleopatra, Hannibal, fat 
 Pomp, Rafe, the coachman, Jerry and Jo, let servants, whose 
 lease had just run out, and six or eight others from Willow 
 Creek, cousin Regina's adjoining plantation. It is mournful 
 to see them struggling with the dreadful prospect of separa- 
 tion. Selma suffers as only a woman of exquisite sensibilities 
 can suffer ; and Ruth, whose heart, by some mysterious tie,
 
 GO cousin franck's household. 
 
 throbs in unison with hers, — poor Ruth! Hannibal moves 
 about hig household duties moodily and mechanically. Cleo- 
 patra's indignation glows intensely. 
 
 "Dis slur is what 'Patra gits for toilin' and traipsin' all 
 her bressed life for dem dat's a heap better able to work clan 
 she be ! I ony wish dey's in Africa, sarvin' my people a 
 piece, an' see how dey'd like it ! " 
 
 Fat Pomp, who, if stationary in a huge niche, might easily 
 be mistaken for a bronze statue of Bacchus, is evidently 
 troubled. He looks absent and dejected, as he sits in a 
 corner of the big fire-place of the kitchen, where he resorts, 
 when his tasks are done, to avail himself of the sympathizing 
 presence of his brother, Prince, who rejoices in the office of 
 chief cook. Pomp is naturally an easy, contented man, and 
 would seem never to have been seriously troubled before. 
 He is just one of those people, if white, who would think 
 a world of himself — of his own sayings and doings. 
 Hoav graciously would he do the honors of the landlord — 
 play the affable " mine host," and jog along the smooth high- 
 way of life, complacently " sucking the paws of his self- 
 importance." Prince, on the contrary, is tall and energetic; 
 but both are valuable, as they turn off work with a peculiar 
 knack. 
 
 " How you reckon dey'll work de ship widout me, Prince ?" 
 asked Pomp, in a sad, half-tremulous tone, as he was helping 
 in the Christmas cooking. 
 
 "Fader's life! dat's what I's stuuyin* 'pon !" said Prince. 
 "'Pears like dey's makin' a great distake in s'lcctin' you,
 
 cousin fraxck's household. Gl 
 
 Pomp. It'll use me up, an' I s'll be of no arthly use. Ye 
 see, Pomp, dis sher new strouble wakes up 'membrance ob 
 de pass strouble, an' it come rollin' an' beatin' agin my heart, 
 an' I has sich a smotherin' feelin', dat 'parently I s'll be o' no 
 arthly use ; I can't live long, no ways." 
 
 " O, Prince, don't talk, don't talk ! " said Pomp, as the 
 tears coursed over his cheeks. 
 
 " Talk," replied Prince, " I makes sure I s'll go 'stracted, 
 ef I don't. It was jes' so dat ole Massa in de vault tore our 
 poor mother an' de res' ob de childers from us, and sole dem 
 off to de trader ; you was ony a little boy, den, a mere infant 
 baby, ob tree years ole. You don't 'member it, as I do ; I 
 was amose grown, but dis sher new strouble tears open de ole 
 sore of my heart, an' I can't stan' it long, no ways." And 
 Prince, dressing the chicken by the fire, sobbed audibly. 
 This was too much for dear Ruth, who, having gone to the 
 kitchen to give some directions, had, on hearing the colloquy, 
 stopped at the door unobserved ; in an instant she was by 
 his side. 
 
 " Prince, do not cry ! I'll do all I can for you." 
 
 " Bress your heart, Miss Ruth ! " exclaimed the cook, " ony 
 to think, now ! But it'll be o' no arthly use : what ken be 
 done, when de bargain is struck, an' put down on de bill o' 
 sale ? " 
 
 " O, I'll try," replied Ruth ; " I hope I can do something 
 for you." 
 
 " De Fader grant you may ; but I has mighty little hopes 
 ye ken," said Prince. 
 6
 
 62 cousin fkaxck's HOUSEHOLD. 
 
 " Ye see, Miss Ruth," added Pomp, " it'll be very oncon- 
 venient workin' de ship widout me." 
 
 It was the evening of the twenty-fourth — Christmas Eve 
 — and all the week we had been decorating the church for 
 the festival. Rosalie, Ruth, several other young ladies and 
 myself, had made festoons of leaves to our heart's content; 
 and a variety of evergreens, tastefully arranged, made the 
 beautiful little chapel look charmingly. The exercises would 
 not commence until seven o'clock, and meanwhile I had time 
 sufficient to run in to a slave prayer-meeting, incog., of course, 
 disguised in a black hood and old cloak. 
 
 Twilight was deepening with shadows, as I seated myself 
 in a dark corner of Rafe's cabin. The coachman sat on a 
 log that projected from the fire-place, with his face buried in 
 his hands, now and then groaning as if some mortal agony 
 possessed him. His wife, Martha, a spruce, lively little 
 woman, sat near him in a low chair, holding her frolicksome 
 baby, looking at her stricken husband, and wiping the tears 
 from her beautiful, bright eyes. Only three or four had as 
 yet dropped in ; there was scarcely a whisper to be heard in 
 the little group ; all seemed subdued to silence by a sense of 
 the great sorrow that swept so darkly over poor Rafe. 
 
 An old man now came in, " leaning on the top of his staff," 
 the beau ideal of a patriarch, at once humble, dignified and 
 venerable. Martha arose, and led him to the best seat the 
 cabin afforded, her home-made easy-chair, saying, 
 
 " Sit here, father." 
 I perceived that he was blind, and knew at once that he
 
 cousin franck's household. 63 
 
 was old Joseph, whose praise was in everybody's mouth. 
 lie belonged to one of our near neighbors, a very kind and 
 humane man, who, now that Joseph had become old, and 
 blind, and worn out in his service, being labelled " old 
 and useless " in the inventory, did not leave him to die un- 
 cared for, but comfortably fed and clothed him, without the 
 least expectation of reward. Indeed, a favorite old race- 
 horse could not have been more set by in his master's house- 
 hold than was Joseph. In the village he was known as the 
 old patriarch. After the blind man had groped his way in, 
 the cabin was soon filled. He seemed to know that Rafe 
 was sobbing, moved his chair beside him, and, putting his 
 hand on his head, said, 
 
 " My boy, don't, now, don't take on so. 'Member dere is 
 no strouble dat de Fader can't cure. If we has nothin' but 
 'flictions in dis sher life, let's see to it dat we lays up streasure 
 in heaven." 
 
 " Dat I will ! " sobbed the broken-hearted coachman, " but 
 how ken I go way, an' neber see Martha an' little Charley ? " 
 
 There was scarcely a dry eye in the room ; grief gushed 
 spontaneously from every soul. My own heart ached to 
 bursting, as if the wrongs of a race were crushing it. There 
 was an interval of weeping, and at length blind Joseph, 
 summoning his remaining strength, slowly arose and said, 
 
 " Childern, de ' house of my pilgrimage ' is de house of 
 bondage, yet I do praise de Lord. De Fader doeth all tings 
 well ; he oberrules all tings for de best. It 'pears like ony a 
 few years full o' strouble, since I was a little child, in my
 
 G4 COUSIN franck's household. 
 
 country, playin' under de palms. One day, very suddin, de 
 stranger come an' steal great comp'ny of my people. Dey 
 tore me from my ole fader and moder ; I neber see dem 
 more. Dat was my first grief; since den my life done been 
 full of grief, an' full of mercy, too. De trader did not mean 
 it for good ; no more did de bredren of Joseph, dey reads of 
 in de good book ; dey didn't mean it, but God done oberrule 
 it for good. Childern, I done hear of de worP beyon' de 
 grave ; I done hear of de blessed Jesus. I'se no house, no 
 land ; I'se bery poor ; I'se nottin' in de worl' dat I ken call 
 mine ; but Massa Jesus bery rich ; he own ebryting, an' he 
 done promise dat all his people shall live wid him in de 
 heavenly mansions. In a little while I shall go an' dwell 
 wid him. Den my joy '11 be like de riber ; I shall share 
 de riches of heaven, if de Lord be my portion, at de end of 
 my journey. 
 
 " Dere is some on you like me, when I was grievin' for 
 dat I couldn't help. I mourns wid you; your grief is 
 my grief; but while I mourn, I cry to de Fader, Oberrule, 
 oberrule for good ! Ebryting look bery dark in dis woiT, 
 but it'll be bery bright at de judgment of de great day. 
 Dere all will be made plain ; de crooked will be made straight; 
 ebery dark ting will be made light; dere we'll know why we 
 have so many Btroubles here 
 
 " Childern, I can't comfort ye no ways, ef I don't lead ye 
 to de Man of sorrors, who was 'quainted wid grief. His 
 heart throb for his suffrin' little ones, an' we can go to him 
 like de little child, an' tell him all our sorrors. Ef Ave done
 
 cousin franck's household. 65 
 
 have no kind Saviour to go to, den indeed what sorror would 
 be like our sorror ? But he stan's wid outstretched arms, 
 sayin', « Poor slave, come to me ! Come to me, poor slave ! 
 I died for sinners like you ! Come to me, weary and heaby 
 laden, take my yoke an' learn of me, an' ye shall fine res' to 
 your souls.'" 
 
 And the blind old man then poured in prayer his full soul 
 of burdened thoughts into the listening ear of the compas- 
 sionate Saviour. He seemed to approach very near to him ; 
 it was as if he had Mary's place at his feet ; as if in earnest 
 pleading he had caught hold of his robe as he was passing, 
 and detained him ; and his glorious presence, so near to the 
 humble, contrite, fervent petitioner, made the place of prayer 
 a hallowed sanctuary. It was good to be there. I almost 
 felt as if I had never heard prayer before, as the child-like, 
 trustful words of love, adoration and entreaty, overflowing 
 from the heart, burst from the old man's lips. Evidently he 
 was no ordinary child of God ; he was endeared to his Sa- 
 viour by his patient following in his steps, by his meek en- 
 durance in his baptism of suffering. Evidently he was one 
 of the innumerable multitude coming up out of great tribu- 
 lation, who at last triumph so gloriously. And he a slave ! 
 A member of the body of Christ enchained ! By those, too, 
 professing his name ! 
 
 Blind Joseph ceased, and one and another continued to 
 
 commune with Him who ' is no respector of persons.' I said 
 
 in my heart, " Happy people ! happy in your nearness to 
 
 the ' High and lofty One, who dwelleth with the contrite and 
 
 6*
 
 66 cousin fkanck's household. 
 
 humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to re- 
 vive the heart of the contrite ones.' " The hour in the cabin 
 had sped like a moment, and as I hastened back to the house, 
 it was with the prayer that I might never be left to enslave 
 my Saviour, in the person of "one of the least of his breth- 
 
 ren." 
 
 I was just in time, and, hastily laying aside my disguise, 
 proceeded with cousin Franck's family to the church, which 
 was already brilliantly illuminated for the celebration of 
 Christmas Eve. 
 
 Groups of well-dressed people were on the way to the 
 church — well-dressed, not gaily; Virginians think it irreve- 
 rent to appear in the house of God in the costly and attractive 
 attire suited to a soiree, or a place of public amusement. 
 
 The consecrated house was like a vast arbor. Innumera- 
 ble wax candles bit up the fairy paradise with their silvery 
 sheen. "Waves of jubilant music rolled and surged amid the 
 branches of evergreens and pines, that, with their thousand 
 needle fingers, had long swept so plaintively their harps of 
 air. But all this Christmas paraphernalia startled me with 
 its contrast to the dimly-lighted, meagre hut I had just left ; 
 and as the exercises for the evening prayer, as detailed in 
 the prayer-book, were performed, excellent and beautiful as 
 those incomparable forms are, there was an irrepressible out- 
 going of my heart for the petitions in that soul-moving slave 
 prayer-meeting. As the congregation reverently responded 
 " with one voice," like God's people beyond the hoary ages, 
 before the holy mount, saying, " All that the Lord hath said
 
 cousin fuanck's HOUSEHOLD. 67 
 
 will we do, and be obedient," I heard as if I heard not ; an- 
 other voice was sounding in my ears, like the pleading of the 
 souls under the altar, saying, " How long, O Lord, how long ! " 
 It was the prayer of the crushed slaves, and it seemed to me 
 to outstrip the stereotyped formalities of the proud worship- 
 pers, and to enter the ears of the Lord of Sabaoth. 
 
 Adieu, 
 
 Pocahontas.
 
 LETTER V. 
 
 CHRISTMAS BREAKFAST AND DINNER THE SOIREE. 
 
 Port Royal, Va., Dec. 26, 18—. 
 
 Dear S. — Alas, for our Christmas breakfast! — The 
 pierry greetings had just finished their rounds, and Hannibal 
 passed Cousin Franck's cup, when the latter exclaimed, with 
 the first sip of what was meant for coffee, " What under the 
 canopy is this ? Herb tea, and muddy at that ! " 
 
 "Surcdy!" echoed Madam Regina;- " Hannibal, send for 
 Martha, directly." The little woman soon made her appear- 
 ance with a troubled air, and with a musical, low voice, asked, 
 " What mistress please want ? " 
 
 " Want ! " replied cousin Regina, severely regarding the 
 trembling servant, " I want you to attend to your business. 
 A pretty fuss we are in this Christmas morning ; no coffee ! " 
 
 " No coffee, Missis ! I done made de coffee ! " said 
 Martha. 
 
 " Ridiculous ! You quit calling this smoky, muddy slop, 
 coffee ; it isn't fit for the pigs. I'll teach you better than to 
 send such stuff to the table, I will, indeed ! " exclaimed 
 Madam Regina, the thermometer of her feelings rapidly 
 rising. " You poured the water in ice-cold, I'll lay you did,"
 
 COUSIN franck's household. 69 
 
 continued the lady, with her keen, reproachful eyes still fixed 
 on Martha. 
 
 " Indeed, indeed, Missis, I made sure de kittle biled." 
 
 " "Way with you ! take the mud slop and pour it into the 
 yard ; don't let any living thing taste it. And mind, you 
 quit taking on about Rafe. I told you expressly, when you 
 were married, you could not expect to live together long. Since 
 then it's two long years, to my certain knowledge, and yet 
 you have the ingratitude and insolence to repine. Remember 
 you let me see no more of this nonsense ! " And Hannibal, 
 with a pitiful look, passed the doomed coffee to Martha, who, 
 with sobs smothered in her heart, but with streaming eyes, 
 left the apartment. 
 
 " The biscuit is no better," said cousin Franck. 
 
 " Upon my word, no better," echoed his wife, cutting one, 
 and conveying a bit to her mouth with her silver fork, 
 " heavy and sour, as I live ! Is Prince, too, snivelling over 
 the sale ? " 
 
 " I guess most likely," carelessly replied cousin Franck. 
 
 " I make sure nobody ever had such trials of servants," 
 said Rosalie, poutingly pushing her plate from her, and lean- 
 ing back in her chair. 
 
 " The poor creatures ! " said Ruth ; " I wonder how much 
 better we should behave, if we were in their case ! " 
 
 " I do hope," said Madam Regina, addressing Ruth, as 
 she was turning the tea just brought in by Hannibal, "you 
 will shortly dispense with your silly, childish notions about 
 servants. I am getting quite out of patience with them, I
 
 70 cousin franck's household. 
 
 am, indeed. Servants have an appi'opriate sphere to fill, and 
 it is for their interest and happiness to fill it acceptably to 
 their owners. And, daughter, you, too, have a sphere to fill, 
 as the mistress of servants ; and I must say that your present 
 course in regard to them gives me great uneasiness. If you 
 should be as indulgent as you now promise to be, you would 
 not only ruin them all for service, but you would make your- 
 self the greatest slave among them." 
 
 " Yes, indeed, daughter Ruth," added cousin Franck, 
 making the best of some very dubious corn-cakes, " I think 
 I can see the whole plantation stock running over you, like 
 sheep over a wall." 
 
 The dinner fared not much better than the breakfast. 
 Hannibal had forgotten numberless things in making ready 
 the table ; and after we were seated he was several times 
 despatched from his waiting, to get napkins, spoons and 
 castor, which was the more mortifying, as his new proprietor, 
 the Doctor, dined with us. Three other gentlemen, happen- 
 ing in Port Royal for the holidays, were also among the 
 guests : Mr. Ames, a tutor in some family within fifty miles, 
 Col. Cutts, an overseer who presumed on cousin Franck's 
 hospitality, and even put himself on the level of relationship, 
 from his being formerly from the North, and Mr. Taliaferro, 
 or Toliver, as the name is pronounced — an elderly, affable 
 Virginia gentleman. 
 
 The roast beef was barely passable. As for the turkey, 
 had it been living, it would have gobbled merrily, at the com- 
 fortable warming with which Prince had seen fit to favor it.
 
 COUSIN fuanck's household. 71 
 
 The omelet was browned to a bitter black; and the chickens 
 fricasseed to a crisp; in short, overdone and underdone ex- 
 pressed the dinner, and had there been a general conspiracy 
 among the eatables to be as disagreeable as possible, they 
 could hardly have made the entertainment worse. Cousins 
 Franck and Regina, however, were evidently annoyed as 
 much by the presence of Col. Cutts, as by the failure 
 of a dinner. This worthy was a square-built, stout man, 
 with a head devoid of all phrenological pretensions to reve- 
 rence and benevolence, perched plump on a pair of broad 
 and pitched-up shoulders. His hair was black, coarse and 
 wiry ; his small, gray eyes were given to certain restless 
 jerkings in their sockets, as if on the alert for the main 
 chance ; while his hook of a nose said as plainly as nose 
 could say, " Money, money, by hook or by crook." 
 
 Caleb Cutts was originally a Down-East Yankee. He 
 started in life with an old-fashioned, common-school educa- 
 tion, which, in young men of his stamp, included a smattering 
 of reading, writing, the first four rules of Daboll's Arithmetic, 
 and a profound knowledge of swapping knives and other 
 nicknacks. Geography and grammar were among the ab- 
 struse sciences, which he religiously avoided. Caleb's father 
 used to say, that " the beatenist way to larn jography was to 
 travil ; " and accordingly, when his hopeful son, at the age 
 of sixteen, had given undeniable indications of genius by out- 
 jockeying his schoolmates, he set him adrift on the world, 
 peddling with a tin trunk, stocked, as Caleb expressed it, 
 with " needles and thread, and sich groceries," to the amount
 
 72 cousin fraxck's household. 
 
 of five dollars. The young hero soon learned so much of 
 geography as to know what routes paid best, and at what 
 houses there was the most available gullibility. In process 
 of time he became the proprietor of two well-filled trunks, 
 the contents of which, when disposed of, made him think of 
 aspiring to the elevated station of master of a tin pedler's 
 cart. After two or three years' successful driving in New- 
 England, he invested a portion of his savings in Connecticut 
 clocks, and, crossing Mason's and Dixon's line, began to 
 practise on the Southern form of unsophisticated simplicity. 
 It has been more than hinted that he took with him certain 
 nice little seed parcels, duly labelled, " Very best cucumber 
 seed, extra, Spoonville, Ct.," manufactured of goodly pine. 
 It has also been strongly suggested that Caleb was the veri- 
 table Yankee that first introduced the famous wooden bams 
 to the Southern market; so goes the Virginia juke, but it is 
 difficult to ascertain the precise fact, as the Colonel, when 
 interrogated, puts a broad grin on his face, bis bands in his 
 pockets, and his creaking boots in rapid motion. When 
 pressed by Mr. Taliaferro, at cousin Franck's, with 
 
 " Come, confess, now, are you not the very Yankee that 
 served ii- such tricks?" he replied, as if highly compli- 
 mented, 
 
 " Now don't, Mr., don't make a feller go to braggin' of 
 what he's done in his day; 'twouldn'l be perlite, right here 
 afore all these ere ladies!" and he looked around upon us 
 with a complacent, comical drollery, certainly highty medi- 
 cinal to the blues.
 
 cousix France's household. 73 
 
 " I pray you, sir, keep to the point," said the elderly gen- 
 tleman, laughing ; " I shall not let you off in that direction. 
 Tell us, now, are you not the very man guilty of these fraud- 
 ulent practices? I reckon, Colonel, you are a case — a case 
 for an indictment." 
 
 " "Wal, Mr.," replied the Colonel, parrying the laugh from 
 himself, " I guess if we do make them are wooden groceries, 
 we know where to look for customers, I guess." 
 
 During dinner he was very loquacious. He was evidently 
 much elated with his success as overseer, which post he has 
 filled for the last few years. He wore a drab surtout, quite 
 large and weather-defying, and the remainder of his dress 
 was in keeping with his rough, heavy boots, capacitated to 
 wade creeks and rivers, without the detriment of a drop of 
 water to the wearer. His cowhide, symbol of his honorable 
 office, was ever at hand, ever in hand, more" correctly ; he 
 did not even part with it at table ; it was reverently laid on 
 his crumb-cloth handkerchief. 
 
 " Wal, 'Squire Crameron, this ere is a leetle mite better 
 livin' than some folks is sure on at the North — no reflec- 
 tions," said Col. Cutts, as he was miraculously disposing of 
 roast beef and turkey. "It's putty gin' rally granted us Yan- 
 kees go ahead of all the rest of creation in the peddlin' 
 business, inventions, an' all that sort o' thing, and as to the 
 eat in', we can afford to be outdun by them that has servants 
 to git up the fixins. I putty much consider myself a South- 
 ern native now, as well as you, 'Squire ; you may be awar, 
 7
 
 74 cousin fbanck's household. 
 
 I've an establishment of my own, at Rokesby. I am well 
 
 takes care of, you may dcpind." 
 
 "Do ymi keep house? " asked Mr. Ames, the tutor. 
 
 "Of course, Mr., I keeps house; all us overseers does, 
 single or double," replied the Colonel. "Ye see, I manages 
 the plantation for four hundred dollars and found ; my house, 
 barn, garden, cows, hoss, bins, turkeys, and pigs, besides four 
 as good servants to wait on and 'tend me, as is to be found, is 
 no small help to a poor man like myself. Ye see, Mr., I jest 
 lays by the four hundred dollars, and puts it out to interest, 
 for the ' found ' makes inds meet. Then I has butter, pork, 
 eggs, bins, and other vegetables to sell, besides I keeps a 
 small store with whiskey and sich 'pothecary stuff for the 
 poor whites, so that it makes my place pay handsome — putty 
 respectable handsome." 
 
 " I am decidedly opposed to you Northern overseers," said 
 the Doctor, with a frown ; " I would not have one of you on 
 my plantation, if you would serve gratis." 
 
 " Then I guess you don't git your work done," replied Col. 
 Cutts, laying down knife and fork, and looking up from his 
 plate. 
 
 " If the principal thing be to use up servants, at the 
 shortest possible notice, then I reckon we don't get much 
 work done," replied the Doctor, as loudly as ever. 
 
 " AVal, ye see, if I gits a good crop, it makes my gov'ner 
 feel rich, an' lie forks over the tin plump on pay-day. So, 
 yer see, common benivolence makes me go for the big crop. 
 I'm a Yankee, yer know, an' I alwuz has ter git along by
 
 cousin franck's HOUSEHOLD. 75 
 
 calculatin' snug. I jest calculates, in cool blood, as they say, 
 jest what a nigger is wuth, an' how long he'll last on the 
 hard-drive plan. He'll putty gin'rally last a half dozen year, 
 more or less, an' so I puts 'em right over the road, in a quiet 
 hurry, you may depind." 
 
 " Ah, yes," echoed the Doctor, " that's the trouble." 
 
 "Niggers don't take much comfort, no way," continued 
 the Colonel, " and it is about the most marcifullest way to let 
 'em wear out. If they has a lazy time, they gits to studyin' 
 their misfortins, and they rust out most 'mazin' doleful. 
 You'd hear 'em complainin' over and agin, when they'd never 
 think ont if they was ony kept hard driv. It's a marcy to 
 keep 'em at it, day in and day out, and never let 'em stop to 
 count over their troubles, poor critters," sighed the Colonel, 
 as if he thought himself the most considerate driver in the 
 land, and overmuch afflicted with pitiful emotions. 
 
 Mr. Taliaferro, cousin Franck and the tutor, looked shocked 
 at the Colonel's mode of distilling religious sentiment out of 
 sheer barbarism, and the first gentleman said, 
 
 " Indeed, sir, my lands shall go untilled, before I will em- 
 ploy such a heartless hand as yourself to drive my people." 
 
 " Sho ! " said the Colonel ; " I aint the least mite purticlar 
 — it's all the same to me. I'm engaged, and couldn't drive 
 yer people, if you wanted me ever so plaguily. But I see 
 ye don't git the hang of my sintiments. Now if you could 
 ony jest hear them are dear critters pray, for instance, a few 
 times, as I has, you'd understand what I'm up to. You jest 
 happin to one of their meetins, and hear 'em pray and
 
 76 cousin France's household. 
 
 exhort, and talk over tin- comfort they 'sped to take when 
 
 they i^its to heaven. Tell yon what 'tis — it makes me feel 
 thai I've done 'em putty considerable Barvice, in helpin* hurry 
 'em on to their journey's ind, which they hanker artor aw- 
 fully. You may depind, that's the ony giniwine marey in 
 dealin' with sarvants, arter all." 
 
 "Barbarous!" exclaimed the old "Virginian 5 "bless mel 
 I almost begin to think it's a sin for as to intrust the train- 
 ing of our servants to YOU Yankees, I do. indeed. Bless mc ! 
 what are we coining to, friend Cameron? Here is a man 
 thai not only wears out servants by the wliolesale, but who 
 glories in his shame. Do you not know," continued he, ad- 
 
 ing the Colonel, "that you arc rendering yourself 
 liable for deliberate swindling? What an unheard of loss 
 of property is this; tin' same as sunk, utterly sunk." 
 
 Col. Cutts, of course, defended himself by affirming that 
 there was an equivalent rendered lor the property lost by 
 
 the increased crops, which question was discussed until the 
 hour for the soiree at Cen. Ringgold's, to which we were all 
 invited, with the exception of the Colonel. This was all 
 
 the same to him, however, and, availing himself of the cus- 
 
 tom which prevails, of going to parties in families, or the. 
 young and middle aged mingling together, and considering 
 himself in the lighl of one of cousin Franck's family, he. 
 smuggled himself in, duty free ; for, being mi overseer, he 
 was a contraband article. 
 
 Rosalie was struck aghasl with genteel horror, when 
 discovered that the knight of the cowhide was bent on parad-
 
 I 01 -in i B \n< IK'fl HOI 5EHOLD. 77 
 
 ing to the party; for parade be would, with provoking cool- 
 
 wherever be went. Like most overseers, he essayed to 
 
 ape hii employer, and in doing it, caricatured the planters, 
 
 m N a the Northerners! 
 
 At all events, he was on hand to represent Rokesbyat the 
 soiree. 
 
 "(), Ruth," exclaimed Rosalie, drawing on her glo 
 "whai shall we do ? Thai insufferable, vulgar Yankee over- 
 seer will (((ui us to the party. If I had not so many 
 strong reasons for going, I would stop at home. What is to 
 be done ? I am in a perfect panic." 
 
 "O," replied Ruth, gently, "we cannot help ourselves. We 
 must remember that he belongs to our system, and be as 
 patient as possible. If we human monkeys will make a cat's- 
 paw of (Ik; Yankee, I see not as we can entirely avoid his 
 acquaintance." 
 
 " I wish I was a philosopher, like you, Ruth," said Rosalie, 
 urn ingly. "I make sure, I should have fewer crushing 
 
 troubles. But what will Gen. Ringgold think? What will 
 Mrs. Ringgold say? Mow the Sommervilles will laugh at 
 usl There will be uo end to our mortifications. I wish 
 overseer Cutts was landed in Jericho, indeed I do!" Poor 
 
 Rosalie's afflictions were in no measure mitigated, when, as 
 we walked over to the ( Jem-i al's, the Colonel took his station 
 by her side, awkward and ungainly in his step, and uncouth 
 in dress and appearance, swaying his cowhide, field 
 fashion. 
 
 Among the strangers present at the soiree, was the good 
 
 7*
 
 78 COUSIN FKANClv's BOl Si llol.l". 
 
 Senator T. He soon Bpied and greeted me, and introduced 
 his beautiful and accomplished daughter, Isabel. Rosalia 
 was eclipsed for the evening by the fair young lady, who 
 seems as good as she is beautiful. She is an intimate friend 
 of Ruth, and the two often visit and correspond. Ferdinand 
 T., Isabel's brother, was also present ; he has much refine- 
 ment of manner, and is evidently highly cultivated. He is 
 more intellectual in appearance than- beautiful, and as a 
 proof of his discrimination and good sense, I must tell you 
 that he is an ardent admirer of our good little Ruth. The 
 attachment is mutual, and only two obstacles appear in the 
 way of their union. The first is, the difficulty the young 
 gentleman wiH find in persuading the young lady to become 
 the mistress of slaves; and the other, the difficulty she may 
 find in influencing him to give up property in persons, and 
 remove to a free country. 
 
 The reception rooms at the General's were very attractive. 
 An indescribable air of refinement pervaded the tasteful dis- 
 posing of rare paintings, family portraits, choice plants and 
 elegant furniture. The General and his lady had I hat acme 
 of good breeding — the tact of making their company feel at 
 ease; which, by the way, is characteristic of the Port Royal 
 Virginians, the most agreeable and delightful people in the. 
 world. They do not take you by storm, they subdue you by 
 their delicate and easy attentions. Your wishes are studied 
 and anticipated, and though a stranger, you are made to feel 
 perfectly at home. Among themselves, so far as my limited 
 observation extends, they seem to have no animosities] at
 
 COUSIN FKANCK'S Hoi BEHOLD. 79 
 
 I none discoverable. You hear each speak well of his 
 
 neighbor, and there is no detraction until they descend the 
 scale to the poor laborer in society's hive — the negroes; of 
 them the witty have funny anecdotes to relate, illustrative 
 of their stupidity, laziness, and pilfering propensities. 
 
 As you may suppose, Col. Cutts attracted much attention 
 at Gen. Ringgold's. In his ovcrsei r regimentals, he was the 
 most conspicuous personage present. His outlandish, weather- 
 proof surtout was absolutely horrifying to all delicate nerves; 
 but it was all the same to the Colonel, who ever and anon 
 stalked complacently across the room with plantation ease, 
 the heavy dead of his creaking boots being scarce muffled 
 by the costly carpet. He evidently set a high value on his 
 imposing appearance, and independent hearing, and con- 
 sidered himself a rare chance for the most aristocratic lady 
 in the land. 
 
 "Upon my word! did you ever?" exclaimed a pretty 
 blue-eyed Miss, somebody's visitor, "did you ever see the 
 like?" queried she of the little group of Misses around her. 
 
 "Most outrageous, I must say!" replied another young 
 lady, the owner of the brightesl of black eyes. "Say, Rosa- 
 lie, who is he? lie came in your train," added she, a little 
 mischievously. 
 
 " Do not ask me questions I cannot answer," pettishly re- 
 plied Rosalie; "I'm sure I don't know him from Adam!" 
 
 "I make sure he is one of the poor whites," disdainfully 
 said a cherry-cheeked heiress, with the slightest perceptible 
 shrug of the shoulders.
 
 80 cousin franck's household. 
 
 "Why, Puss Sommerville," exclaimed the blue-eyed, 
 " what a young gosling you are ! Don't you know from his 
 dress, that he is an overseer?" 
 
 " Surely, Victorine, I know very well, but I did not think. 
 I've seen papa's overseer, often and often, dressed in a drab 
 pea-jacket." 
 
 " They are a distressingly looking set," said the black 
 eyed, " it puts me quite out of sorts to see one. If I was 
 given to fainting, I should become insensible the moment one 
 came in sight. As it is, girls, you see I think it safe to be 
 able to defend myself ; " and the merry girl passed round 
 her elegant smelling-bottle. 
 
 "Ah," sighed an affettuoso fop, a petit-maitre, a compound 
 of cologne and broadcloth, who languished near the group, 
 " it would seem that the dregs of society are rising to the 
 surface." 
 
 "And discommoding the scum, hey?" outspoke a Blue- 
 Ridge Virginian, who, arm in arm with the Doctor, chanced 
 to overhear the remark. 
 
 " Murray Mackintosh," gaily said Gen. Ringgold, coming 
 up at the instant, in company with Senator T., "I trust you 
 left your wicked wit at home, among the mountains ; we 
 eastern Virginians are getting sensitive, and cannot relish 
 your hard jokes, as of old." 
 
 "I am in earnest, uncle," replied the handsome Mr. 
 Mackintosh, "and there is nothing sharper than truth's keen 
 shears." 
 
 "Of course," replied the General, pleasantly, "and we
 
 cousin franck's household. 81 
 
 mean to humor your eccentric fancies ; you must be indulged, 
 certainly, as you visit us only once in an age." 
 
 " Thank you, uncle ; you'll have need of some patience, 
 for I am as plain spoken as ever," replied the Blue-llidge 
 man ; "I must call things by their right names. But all I 
 contend for is, that Virginians open their eyes and see 
 where they are, and how they came there. The fact is, sir, 
 our domestic institution is a moral cancer feeding on our 
 vitals, literally consuming us." 
 
 " Something of an evil, we all admit," rejoined the Gene- 
 ral, a little piqued, " but far enough from being as hurtful as 
 you imagine." 
 
 " "Why, just look at it, uncle," said Mr. Mackintosh, " Vir- 
 ginia has been settled more than two hundred years — settled, 
 too, by as noble a race of men as ever planted a colony, and 
 what can she show of progress in education, literature, and 
 the arts of life ? All the world knows her younger sister 
 States are far out-distancing her in these things. They, like 
 smart buxom Misses, busy themselves about the nation's 
 housework, beautifying, strengthening and honoring the con- 
 federacy by their noble industry ; while Virginia, that might 
 have led them on as a model matron, plays the part of the 
 whimsical old maid, whose business has been for years and 
 years to sit in the corner and pet the tooth-ache ; and who, 
 with hopes blasted and health ruined, works herself into 
 hysterics whenever her sympathizing friends suggest the ex- 
 traction of the cause of so much suffering." 
 
 " Bless me ! is the boy wild ? " asked Senator T., wonder-
 
 82 cousin franck's HOUSEHOLD. 
 
 ingly looking at General Ringgold. " "Well, well, Mackin- 
 tosh, boy, (said boy might be thirty,) go on, I like at any 
 rate, to see a man in earnest." 
 
 " Allow me to ask you, sir," said Mr. Mackintosh, " if the 
 Old Dominion, as we would still proudly call her in memory 
 of the past, has not deteriorated within your remembrance ? " 
 
 " You do well to ask an old man such a question," replied 
 the Senator, smilingly. " I reply, yes ; as an old man, I can 
 scarcely say less ; the days of our youth seem to us the 
 brightest of our existence. It is a delusion natural to old 
 men." 
 
 " You are doubtless correct, sir," replied Mr. Mackintosh, 
 " but statistics cannot deceive us as to the precise place Vir- 
 ginia occupies at this moment. They inform us, that in 
 about one hundred counties of our State, there are more 
 than twenty-five thousand poor children, over five years of 
 age, without any means of instruction ; this is something 
 like one-seventh of the white children of schoolable age. It 
 is also estimated by reliable authority, that nearly one-third 
 of the voters of Virginia can neither read nor write. So 
 much, sir, for our educational progress. As to literature, 
 you will of course acknowledge that we have little to 
 boast of." 
 
 " Granted," interposed the General, " we do not make 
 literature our profession ; our pride is in our statesmen, 
 whom we have provided for the councils of the nation. 
 
 " Yes, yes," added Gen. Ringgold, " it is glory enough for 
 Virginia to have given birth to Washington. Whatever mis-
 
 cousix franck's household. 83 
 
 fortunes may befall our noble State, the confederacy can 
 never forget that she owes her very existence to us." 
 
 "True," replied 31 r. Mackintosh, "I do not forget Vir- 
 ginia's noble statesmen ; her Washingtons, and Patrick Hen- 
 rys and Jeffersons ; but the aggravation in the case is, tbat 
 the mother of such sons should have clung to such a curse so 
 madly and so long, until her descendants have become de- 
 generated, mentally, morally and physically." 
 
 " What do you mean ? " asked the Doctor ; " I make free 
 to say, that I do not comprehend the drift of your re- 
 marks." 
 
 " Murray only maintains, as usual, that our slave system 
 is a curse," explained Gen. Ringgold. 
 
 " Do you mean to tell me," asked the Doctor, " that the 
 reason why Virginia does not lead in education, literature, 
 and other ' Yankee notions,' is because of our holding ser- 
 vants ? This is most absurd, sir." 
 
 " Yes, Doctor," pleasantly replied Mackintosh, " I mean 
 precisely so. Certain inevitable consequences follow in the 
 train of our holding servants, one of the most fatal of which 
 is the opprobium cast on labor." 
 
 " But I have always supposed," rejoined the Doctor, " tbat 
 the cultivation of literature, of all things, required leisure. 
 And hoAv in the name of common sense are you to convince 
 me tbat our servant system is a hindrance to literary pur- 
 suits ? No people under heaven have as much leisure ; and 
 the fact is, we could exhibit as much genius in these things 
 as other people, if we chose to."
 
 84 
 
 cousin franck's household. 
 
 " Virginians have genius enough, perhaps, but they are too 
 lazy to exercise it," remarked the Senator. 
 
 '• Well, sir, I'm not sure that you are not right," said Gen. 
 Ringgold, " for I believe that men generally are about as 
 lazy as they can afford to be, and I really don't suppose that 
 we planters are an exception. We certainly have an ad- 
 mirable opportunity for the indulgence of our laziness. 
 Murray is right, there ; our system gives us very little mo- 
 tlcc power. We are sure, without exertion, of that wealth, 
 influence, and ease, which are the incitement to all exertion 
 in others. Go on, Murray," continued he, laughing, " I'm 
 converted on one point." 
 
 " And that one thing comprehends everything, does it not, 
 uncle?" replied Mackintosh. "If there is no motive for 
 exertion, what can result but mental barrenness and moral 
 sterility; in a word, social retrogade? It's no new experi- 
 ment we are trying. Despotism is coeval with barbarism. 
 And we have only to glance at history to mark the effect of 
 absolutism on both oppressor and victim. How worked the 
 feudal system, with the mailed baron and his serfs ? " 
 
 "You do not intend to compare us to feudal lords! " ex- 
 claimed Mr. Taliaferro. " I take it we exercise rather more 
 humanity than they did." 
 
 '• Wa cannot thank our system, if we do," replied Mackin- 
 tosh. " We may be cruel and inhuman despots, and never 
 feel any twinges from the -lavc-code conscience." 
 
 "Ah," said Mr. lYttibone, the Iackadasical hero before 
 noticed, " I do so admire the romantic feudal times ! Such
 
 COUSIN fkaxck's household. 85 
 
 beatific visions of knights, and tournament?, and ladye-lovcs, 
 float before my imagination, that really, ladies, I am quite 
 enthusiastic. I often exclaim to myself, Happy, proud Co- 
 lumbia, since the umbrageous plant of aristocracy flourishes 
 in thy borders ! " 
 
 " Nonsense, Jef.," whispered Ferdinand T., " call it Atropa 
 belladonna, deadly nightshade, and be done with it." 
 
 "I appeal to the ladies," softly said Jefferson Pettibone. 
 
 " In every point of view," continued Mackintpsh, " we are 
 the losers by this miserable business — this pestiferous slave- 
 holding. The retribution of some sins seems to slumber, but 
 not so with this ; a portion of its punishment follows hard 
 upon it. Yet on we dash, blindfolded and deaf; we will 
 ride, at all events ; we will be well mounted ; and so we go, 
 a merry, reckless set of cavaliers ; a set of headless horse- 
 men, trooping over crushed humanity ; while the very grim- 
 est of devils are making themselves jolly over our shame." 
 
 " Hush, hush, Mackintosh, boy, not so fast," coolly said the 
 old Senator, " you'll sweep us away together. But let us 
 inquire a little. You speak as if slavery were a sin, — an 
 evil in itself, as well as in its perversion. Now this is more 
 than I am prepared to admit. Certainly, if it be so, I have 
 yet to learn it ; and my religious education has not been 
 neglected. I have been trained up in the Episcopal church, 
 and I am now a member of that body of Christians. If our 
 system be a sin, I of course would like to know it ; if it be 
 not a sin, Jet me remind you, young man, that you display a 
 little too much presumption, for one of your age." 
 8
 
 SG COCSIN FRANCE'S HOUSEHOLD. 
 
 "I take it," remarked General Ringgold, "the clergy must 
 be our most reliable authority in tins matter. And none of 
 us can plead ignorance of their oft-reiterated testimony as to 
 the result of their investigations. They uniformly declare 
 that our domestic institution is divine, — having been sanc- 
 tioned by such illustrious worthies as Abraham, and Jonah, 
 and Daniel, and several other patriarchs, whose names do 
 not now occur to me," — and the General paused, as he saw 
 a funny smile playing on Murray Mackintosh's lips. "I 
 may have misquoted, but theology is not my profession, and, 
 as I said before, the clergy who devote their lives to the 
 elucidation of the laws of God, cannot be supposed to mis- 
 take on so vital a point in divinity, as the question, what 
 .constitutes sin ? " 
 
 "If slavery is a sin," outspoke the Doctor, "it seems the 
 church pretty generally endorses it ; or at least grants it 
 universal absolution." 
 
 " Yes ; and we are such outrageous, hackneyed old sinners, 
 that we have no conscience left to take cognizance of it, as sin, 
 eh ? " added Senator T. Bless me ! what a doctrine is this ! " 
 
 "Now, Murray," said Gen. Ringgold, "it is most con- 
 summate nonsense in yon to profess greater sanctity of senti- 
 ment than those whose province it is to teach religion. Give 
 u ji your foolish, fanatical fancies, and be satisfied with the 
 good old orthodox platform of your nolle forefathers. Good 
 men and true have stood there : such men still stand there, 
 and vou only make yourself ridiculous in thus exalting your- 
 self above your betters."
 
 cousin France's household. 87 
 
 " This appeal to the clergy and to the church," calmly re- 
 plied Mackintosh, "reminds me of the real state of the case; 
 if I mistake not, the true responsibility lies there; it is the 
 sin of the church, and for which a God of justice and 
 righteousness will hold the church responsible. A passage 
 in the history of the early progress of Methodism may he in 
 point. A few days ago, I chanced to take up Southey's Life 
 of Wesley. Mr. Southey tells us, that ' Wesley had borne 
 an early testimony against the system of negro slavery. Dr. 
 Coke feeling like Mr. Wesley, took up the subject with his 
 usual ardor, and preached upon it with great vehemence, and 
 prepared a petition to Congress for the emancipation of the 
 negroes. With this petition he and Asbury went to Gen. 
 Washington, at Mount Vernon, and solicited him to sign it. 
 Washington received them courteously and hospitably ; he 
 declined signing the petition, that being inconsistent with 
 the rank he held ; but he assured them that he agreed 
 with them, and if the Assembly should take the petition 
 into consideration, he would signify his sentiments by letter. 
 They proceeded so far themselves, that they required the 
 members of the society to set their slaves free ; and several 
 persons were found who made this sacrifice from a sense of 
 duty. One planter, named Bennon, emancipated twenty- 
 two, who were at that time worth from thirty to forty pounds 
 each.' " 
 
 " What unheard of impudence, for those foreigners, Coke 
 and Asbury, to go to Gen. Washington with such a petition ! " 
 exclaimed Gen. Ringgold. " Why. what was the old hero
 
 88 cousin branch's household. 
 
 flunking about that he did not kick them out of doors? 
 Suppose, now, those miscreants, George Thompson and 
 Charles Smart, should visit me on a similar errand; their 
 bones would be in some little danger, to say the least." 
 
 "But those old time agitators did not escape a share of 
 opposition," said Mr. Taliaferro, who belonged to the Metho- 
 dist Episcopal church ; " Mr. Southey informs us that a lady 
 owner of slaves offered fifty pounds to some of Dr. Coke's 
 hearers, if they would waylay him and give him a hundred 
 lashes, but he managed to elude their vigilance. The grand 
 jury of one county found a bill against him at the instigation 
 of the planters, when ninety persons set out in pursuit, but 
 he again escaped. But I am happy to say," added the old 
 gentleman, " Mr. Southey also informs us that on Dr. Coke's 
 second visit to America, he was convinced that he acted in- 
 discreetly, and he consented to let the question of emancipat ion 
 rest, rather than stir up an opposition that so greatly impeded 
 the progress of Methodism ! " 
 
 " There we have it, in a nutshell," exclaimed Mackintosh ; 
 "the influence of the Methodist church then conspired to 
 uphold slavery. ^And I take it she is not more guilty in this 
 matter than are the other branches of the church." 
 
 " It augurs ill to hear a man talk against the church, Mur- 
 ray," said the Doctor. "I thought you were more of a 
 Christian than that. I patronize religion, myself, of late. I 
 think it's a fine thing in society — a mighty fine thing;" and 
 a phase o ily settled down on the Doctor's countenance. 
 
 "As to all your reasoning," he continued, "it fails to con-
 
 cousin franck's household. 89 
 
 vince me. The truth is, it is necessary to the very existence 
 of society that there he gradations; we cannot all he top 
 of the heap; every man cannot he the biggest toad in the 
 puddle." 
 
 '•If I understand you, Mr. Mackintosh," said Mr. Tali- 
 aferro, "you arc advocating a heresy ; you would equalize 
 men ; you would put them on the same level. Now, if I 
 read my Bible aright, it expressly declares, that ' the poor 
 shall never cease out of the land ; ' but I understand you to 
 aspire to raise them from that grade in which Providence 
 has placed them. You will take it kindly, then, if I warn 
 you against the further indulgence of a presumption, so ad- 
 verse to the inscrutable decrees of the All-wise Disposer of 
 men." 
 
 " You misconceive me, my dear sir," replied Mr. Mackin- 
 tosh ; " I doubt not that the poor will ever constitute the 
 majority of the population of the earth, but what I contend 
 for is, that each man have his personal liberty ; that no man 
 hold property in his fellow-man." 
 
 " Well, well, sir," said Mr. Taliaferro, increasingly offended, 
 " there are many other things, sir, in which you are decidedly 
 wrong. Permit me to ask you in what sense we planters can 
 be compared to a set of headless horsemen ; answer me that, 
 will you ? " and the old gentleman, with heightened color, 
 inclined his head with an emphatic nod, that plainly said, 
 " You cannot do it, sir." 
 
 " I simply meant to illustrate our stupid way of blundering 
 along in this suicidal, social experiment we are making," 
 8*
 
 90 cousin franck's household. 
 
 replied Mr. Mackintosh. "It amounts to precisely this: 
 like a man bent on a course of sinful indulgence, we dethrone 
 reason to begin with, that we may not sec the danger in our 
 course." 
 
 •• But," said Senator T., "you maintain that we are losers 
 in every point of view, by our domestic institution. Now, 
 it seems to me, that the system has its advantages, as well as 
 its disadvantages. Think of the leisure our young people 
 have for improvement." 
 
 " Yes, sir, it it true, that by bestowing all physical labor 
 on servants, young people have unbounded leisure for im- 
 provement, if only they will use it for this purpose" said Mr. 
 Mackintosh. "You are a happy father; your children have 
 done so in a surprising degree ; they are, in fact, exceptions 
 to the general rule ; for, how few do we find who have the 
 least idea of any mental exertion. It must be that you are 
 a rare disciplinarian, sir, and have in a great measure saved 
 your children from the ruinous influence of our system. 
 Imbecility and inefficiency are the characteristics of thousands 
 of our young people, who, if they had been born of poor 
 New-England parents, with precisely the same faculties they 
 now have, being thrown on their own exertions, would excel 
 in honorable achievement. But O, the paralizing effect of 
 this degradation of labor! It comes to this: that we must 
 have proxies to do even our/brain-work for us." * * 
 
 "Would you be enraptured, and borne away on the billows 
 of sympathetic emotion, Miss Victorine," said Jefferson Pet- 
 tibone, "I pray you read the 'Sorrows of Werter,' and the
 
 COUSIN FRANCE'S HOUSEHOLD. 91 
 
 'Mysteries of Udolpho.' Ah, Miss, how the beatific visions 
 will float in your imagination ! O, I do so admire to lose 
 nyyself in the thrilling novel of the feudal times ! I quite 
 quarrel with Fate, ladies, that I was not made a knight." 
 
 "A right valiant knight you would have made, no doubt," 
 said Mackintosh, turning his attention to our group. " But 
 who do you suppose would have enterecTthe lists with such a 
 hero as yourself, my dear make-believe Don Quixote? Pray, 
 measure yourself by some worth-while standard, and find 
 out just what you amount to." 
 
 " Have a care, sir," said Mr. Pettibone, " you'll rouse my 
 angry passions." 
 
 " I wish I might, indeed. It would be a relief from your 
 slip-shod sentimentality. And I hear you recommending 
 your young friends here to the same swill-trough where you 
 have so long swallowed the literary slops. Come, sir, wake 
 up, and be a man ; if there is any manhood in you ; and no 
 longer parade yourself as a living illustration of the curse 
 of our system. — " But cousins Franck and Regina came at 
 this moment to accompany us home ; and Rosalie, Ruth and 
 myself heard no more. 
 
 Adieu, 
 
 Pocahontas.
 
 LETTER VI. 
 
 m 
 AN UNCEREMONIOUS DEPARTURE. 
 
 Port Royal, Va., Dec. 27, 18 — . 
 
 Dear S. — Nine o'clock, the breakfast hour, came yester- 
 day, and no bell summoned us to the table ; half an hour 
 passed, and still no bell. Cousin Regina looked at her gold 
 repeater; — "Bless me, girls, what are the servants thinking 
 about ? It will be too late in the day to go to Willow Creek, 
 at tli is rate. Ruth, clear, ring for Hannibal." Ruth did as 
 desired, but no Hannibal was forthcoming. Madam Regina, 
 getting " nervous," as she expressed it, sallied into the dining- 
 room, and found that the cloth even was not laid. " What 
 does all this mean ? " asked she ; are we to live without eat- 
 ing ? Where's that lazy Hannibal ? " 
 
 " Dun know, Missus ! " said little Jupe, peering out from 
 under the table, where he had ensconced himself, for the 
 sake of the unswept crumbs left by Hannibal. 
 
 "Don't know?" echoed his mistress; "well, you go find 
 him, quick time; a pretty fuss we are in, this blessed morn- 
 ing — no breakfast!" and away scampered Jupe to parts 
 unknown, glad (o escape so easily. "And you, Johnny," 
 added she to the little dark boy half hidden behind the
 
 cousin France's household. 93 
 
 dining-room door, " do you march directly to the kitchen, and 
 tell Prince to come here." 
 
 Prince soon made his appearance, with some trepidation, 
 in his greasy cooking apron, his dusky hands motled with 
 the morning's dough. 
 
 " How is this, Prince ? " asked the mistress, " where is our 
 breakfast ? " 
 
 "In de kitchen, Missus. I done got it ready right smart 
 while 'go — but 'pears like Hannibal mighty sleepy dis sher 
 mornin'." 
 
 " Sleepy ! is that all ? " asked Madam Regina, with a 
 searching look. 
 
 At this moment Pomp appeared, all out of breath in his 
 quick waddle from the kitchen, and exclaimed, " 0, Missus, 
 I reckons I ken 'suade de run'ways to come back, ef I ken 
 ony hab de use ob de swif ' sa'al boss." 
 
 " What runaways ? " asked Madam Regina. 
 
 " Hannibal and Rafe, Missus. 'Pears like dey's tramped 
 off, an' is gittin' mighty scars in dis sher d'rection," said 
 Pomp, in spite of sundry winks, dry coughs and ahems from 
 Prince. 
 
 " Please to b'lieve me, Missus ; Pomp's fibbin', dat he is," 
 said Cleopatra, hastening in from an adjoining room ; " you 
 clar, you Pomp," added she, with eyes flashing, " 'sturbin' 
 Missus wid your stehicky stories, dis sher bressed mornin'." 
 
 " How is this, Cleopatra ? " asked the mistress ; " you say 
 that Hannibal and Rafe havn't run off — have you seen them 
 this morning? Can you tell me where they are ? "
 
 94 cousin fba.nck's household. 
 
 " O, yes, Missus ; I'se done seed dem over and often dis 
 sher mornin'," earnestly replied Cleopatra. 
 
 " "Where are they, then ? " asked the mistress. 
 
 "Why, hi ! Missus, how's I'se to tell? I'se had plenty to 
 do every which way — how's I'se to tend an' foller dem ar 
 sarvants 'bout ? Rafe done gone to de barn, to fodder de 
 hosses, I 'spect, an' Hannibal, praps he gone out on some 
 yerrand or urrur." 
 
 ""Well, Mima," said Madam Begina, as Rosalie's maid 
 came in, " what do you know about this matter ? " 
 
 "Me, Missus, I dun know nothing 'bout it," replied the 
 dark maiden, with an innocent air. 
 
 " Have you seen Hannibal this morning ? " 
 
 " La, yes, Missus ; I done seed him over an' often. Wy, 
 Missus, he done made de fires, an' clared up dc parlor, an' a 
 heap of work dis sher morrin'; but 'pears like somebody done 
 interfar wid his 'rangements, an' he right smart late in totin 
 in de breakfas'." 
 
 Madam Regina looked at Pomp inquiringly, who replied, 
 "Dey's tellin' lies, Missus, dey is. Please to b'lieve me, 
 Missus, dey's certainly rund off." 
 
 " "Were there ever such servants ? " exclaimed the mistress, 
 impatiently; "one might as well hunt the needle in the hay- 
 mow, as attempt to find the truth in you. Co about your 
 business, every one of you." 
 
 " What you done told Missus for?" asked Prince of Pomp, 
 in an under tone, as the former was bringing in breakfast. 
 
 "What I done told Missus for? Why, you see, when
 
 cousin franck's household. i>.3 
 
 Missus Bend for you, I makes sure she git on de track ob de 
 mischief, an' I'se been studying 'pon't, an' 'parently it's no 
 manner ob use, dis sher tryin' to blind Missus' eyes, so I 
 study pon't, and try to turn it to some good 'count. Ef she 
 send me arter de run' ways on de swif boss, praps I moughtn't 
 be back right .-mart libely." 
 
 Cousin Regina conferred with her husband, and a thorough 
 search was made on the premises, when it became evident 
 that Hannibal and Rafe had absconded. This discovery 
 caused no small commotion. Cousin Franck was greatly 
 excited. 
 
 " The ungrateful dogs ! " exclaimed he ; " I wouldn't have 
 believed they could do such a rascally piece of business." 
 
 " It is the strangest thing ! " said Madam Eegina, ringing 
 for Pomp, who soon appeared. " Here, Pomp," added she, 
 "take this line to Dr. G. ; remember, you be lively, for 
 once." 
 
 Notwithstanding all the delays attendant on getting break- 
 fast, that meal was finished before Dr. G. made his appear- 
 ance. Meanwhile, another messenger was despatched for 
 him, and at last he came, accompanied by Mr. Taliaferro 
 and Mr. Mackintosh. 
 
 " "Well, gentlemen," said cousin Franck, after the first 
 compliments of the meeting were over, "this is most un- 
 precedented, I must say." 
 
 " 0, no, my good friend," replied Mr. Mackintosh, " a 
 mere every-day occurrence ; one of the most natural accom- 
 paniments of our system. Gentlemen, we may hear the
 
 96 cousin fraxck's household. 
 
 voice of nature in this thing. Here ore beings as truly 
 made in God's image as ourselves ; with as instinctive a love 
 of freedom. Instead of wondering that now and then one 
 acts up to the true instinct of abused humanity, I only won- 
 der that every one does not forsake the detested vassalage." 
 " But what's to be done ? what's to be done at such a crisis 
 as this ? What do you do when your slaves run away, friend 
 Mackintosh?" asked the Doctor, tremulous from excitement. 
 "Do, sir? why, I let them go, with a God-speed on their 
 venturesome journey. I do as I would be done by, supposing 
 I were the slave, and had roused my energies for a perilous 
 flight." 
 
 "Ah, but that is too fanatical a democracy for me, and 
 besides, I cannot afford it," said the Doctor. " But what is 
 to be done ? " 
 
 " Here I am, Doctor, on hand, at your sarvice ! " exclaimed 
 Col. Cutts,. swaggering into the parlor where the gentlemen 
 were sitting. "What's the fust move, Doctor, in givin' 
 chase? I'm an' old hound at huntin' niggers. It comes 
 nat'ral; I like it a sight better than luster huntin' coons. 
 It's purtic'larly 'livenin' to the feelin's, an' it seems to boost 
 a man upon the stilts of his ingenuity. Fact is, it 'fects his 
 speerits, jesi like good old Madeira, while he's on the track, 
 an' when he gits the game, by jolly aint it a leetle the 
 beatinesl sport? Jimminy! it's like hearin' the poppin' of a 
 champagne cork! What's the fusl move, Doctor?" 
 "Thai is what we are considering," replied the Doctor. 
 •■ UFairs is puttin' on a peris face," said Col. Cutts, "an'
 
 cousix franck's household. 97 
 
 we'd better be stirrin', it's my opinion, if we mean to ketch 
 them are runaways to-day." 
 
 "Exactly," .-aid the Doctor; "but the first question is, 
 how to proceed; this is new business to me, gentlemen, I 
 confess, and I scarcely know how" — 
 
 " To start, hey ? " interrupted the Colonel ; " you feel like 
 a calf under a new shed, don't you, Doctor ? Wal, if 'tis 
 new business to you, 'taint to me. I knows the way arter 
 niggers like a book. Sakes alive ! I'll be off like a gun, 
 jist give me a fa'r commission. Ye see, Doctor, bein' as I's 
 an old hand, I orter have a putty fa'r consideration, con- 
 siderin', you know. I'll handle them are boys careful, when 
 1 gits my paws on 'em, you may depind. You don't ketch 
 me a tearin' 'em useless, with hounds, an' a bringin' on 'em 
 back wuthless discumbrances. I'll insure 'em safe an' sound, 
 jest put on a fa'r commission. I'll keep a bright look-out 
 far your interests, Doctor. I respects your feelin's. I 
 knows you don't want your boys spilt ; though 'twould be a 
 sight easier ketchin' on 'em, ef I could set the dogs on helter 
 skelter. I could afford to do the thing dog cheap, then, by 
 hoky! But a marciful man is marciful to his beast, an' I 
 knows you's so humane, you won't stand payin' a feller putty 
 fa'r, for doin' up the business judgmatically." 
 
 "Well, well, we'll see, we'll see," replied the Doctor, 
 frowning on the bartering Yankee, so officious in selling his 
 
 services. 
 
 "Time is passing, gentlemen," emphatically observed 
 cousin Franck, taking out his watch. 
 9
 
 98 COUSIN i kanck's household. 
 
 "Of course it is," replied the Doctor, a little impatiently. 
 •• Well, as you seem to understand this business, Cutts, I 
 suppose 1 shall be obliged to employ } r ou, and will give you 
 one hundred dollars per head, if you will deliver Hannibal 
 and Rafe to me alive ; if dead, or badly wounded, half that 
 sum must content you." 
 
 " Much obleeged, Doctor," said the Colonel, attempting a 
 bow, '' that is dog cheap, that's a fact. Wy, it'll be a hard 
 pinch to make inds meet in payin' travellin' spenses, s'posin' 
 I hafter go far; and thin thar's all the risk, Doctor, thar's 
 all the risk, llowsomever, I'm bound to ketch 'em, by hoky ! " 
 added he, considerately taking a pinch of snuff from a snug 
 little box, " I never did lose sich game yet, an' so I guess I'll 
 take you up, Doctor." 
 
 After further consultation it was agreed, that the Colonel, 
 and one or two neighbors, if they could be had, proceed di- 
 rectly towards Fredericksburg, while the Doctor and cousin 
 Franck take another direction, and, if the fugitives were not 
 taken at the end of twenty-four hours, advertisements were 
 to be inserted in the Richmond papers. 
 
 Meanwhile cousin Uegina, with characteristic zeal, had 
 been engaged in the further ferreting out of the mischief, 
 lest it become contagious. Poor Martha was tortured with 
 a cross-questioning that would have done credit to an in- 
 genious lawyer ; all to little purpose, however, if one might 
 judge from cousin Regina's appearance as she emerged from 
 the cabin. 
 
 "If Martlm knows what direction Rafe went, she falsifies,"
 
 cousin fkanck's household. 99 
 
 said she, in answer to Rosalie's inquiries. " I can get nothing 
 out of her ; she is a perfect mule this morning. I'd have 
 her whipped, if I did not so hold it in abomination. I've 
 been looking over Rate's clothes, so I know precisely what he 
 wore away ; this will be of service in the advertisement-." 
 
 " Yes, indeed," said Rosalie ; " and now, mamma, now for 
 "Willow Creek ; I do so long to have the house regulated 
 once more. But what shall we do, when the Doctor takes 
 away Aunt Selma ? It is the strangest thing I ever knew 
 you do, Mamma, selling her ; there isn't another servant in 
 the land equal to her. I wish to goodness he would take 
 some one else in her place ! " 
 
 " That would be very pleasant, no doubt," replied Madam 
 Regina, "but, daughter, we cannot expect to have every- 
 thing to our minds, in this world; we shall be subject to self- 
 denials and sacrifices if we do our duty. How we shall get 
 along with it, I cannot say ; this sale certainly looks like a 
 very trying affair for ourselves, as well as the Doctor." 
 
 " That it does," replied Rosalie ; " I do so pity him ; just 
 bought those servants, and before they do an hour's work for 
 him they must run away. And now, mamma, I am going to 
 make Mrs. Gen. Ringgold a little visit of a few days, until 
 you get regulated. I shall get incurably nervous, if I stay 
 here in all this commotion." 
 
 " Just as you please, Rosalie," replied her mother, with a 
 disappointed air, " although I must say, if I ever needed you, 
 I do now. You could be very useful, if you remained, in 
 helping me regulate affairs."
 
 100 cousin fraxck's household. 
 
 " Useful? O, mamma, don't mention it, please. I abhor 
 the word — so vulgar and utilitarian. If one of us must be 
 so degraded, let it be Ruth, please ; she is the youngest, 
 and it accords with her strange, matter-of-fact fancies, to 
 be useful." 
 
 " Very well," said Madam Regina, in a tone contradictory 
 to the words. In a moment after, she added more pleasantly, 
 " Ruth will accompany me to Willow Creek, to select ser- 
 vants and teach them their new occupations. Thank heaven ! 
 I have one daughter who studies my wishes. Meanwhile 
 I will put nurse Selma in housekeeper ; she and Pocahontas 
 will get along very well, I doubt not." Of course, I nodded 
 assent, for I already loved Selma dearly, and longed to culti- 
 vate a further acquaintance. 
 
 Hearing the clattering of horses' hoofs, I looked out into 
 the court, and beheld six men mounted for the pursuit. 
 Among them were cousin Franck, the Doctor, Mr. Pettibone 
 and the Colonel. The latter was examining a brace of 
 pistols, and, having satisfied himself of their good condition, 
 he deposited them in the broad leathern belt about his waist. 
 Cousin Franck dismounted, and patted a furious-looking 
 hound, saying, " Good fellow, good fellow, Hotspur." 
 
 "That's music!" said a rough-looking man, who seemed 
 to be the owner of the pack of hounds ; " there's a hound for 
 you; he's death on niggers' tracks — the keenest scent in 
 the pack." 
 
 " Now these ere dogs are just the beatenist critters," said 
 the Colonel to the Doctor, an' I s'pose we might as well be
 
 cousin frock's household. 101 
 
 scattering an' give 'em a eliance to show 'emselves. It's my 
 opinion, them are niggers will hafter have considerable light- 
 nin' in their heels to keep clar of 'em ; " and, whistling for 
 the hounds appointed him, he put spurs to his restive steed, 
 and, followed by two of the horsemen, he was on his way to 
 Fredericksburg. The remainder of the company, namely, 
 cousin Franck, the Doctor and Mr. Pettibone, were not long 
 in completing their arrangements, and set out at the top of 
 their speed for Richmond. 
 
 Adieu, 
 
 Pocahontas. 
 
 9*
 
 LETTER VII. 
 
 selma's history. 
 
 Port Royal, Va., Dec. 28, 18—. 
 Dear S. — The late sale, and the prospect of soon parting 
 from the beloved Selma, have wrought great changes in 
 Ruth. She is very pale and sad, and I cannot help foreboding 
 the worst. Madam Regina has her fears, too, and watches 
 over her with unwonted tenderness. Notwithstanding this 
 matron's earnest, calculating, masculine traits, she has some- 
 thing of a woman's heart withal, not entirely perverted by 
 the unfortunate circumstances in which her lot has been cast. 
 She adopts the common Southern theory respecting the man- 
 agement of servants, which is, that they must be made to 
 know their place, or be kept in subjection by vigilant stern- 
 ness ; and her habitual manner when chiding them is, of 
 course, consistent with this theory. Like most people, however, 
 she varies her mood with circumstances ; when not excited by 
 the perversities of her servants, she is apparently amiable, 
 and her beaming face pleasantly enlivens the home circle, or 
 the social party. But when the fond mother's solicitude 
 softens her eye, as she gazes with deep affection on her frail 
 Ruth, she appears really lovely.
 
 cousin franck's household. 103 
 
 Ruth would have preferred remaining at home, in place 
 of going to Willow Creek, but she could not well excuse 
 herself, particularly as her mother was quite sure the ride 
 would have the effect of restoring the tone of her health. 
 Her consent to go was quite gratifying to the latter, who 
 proudly commended her, saying she was worth half a dozen 
 Rosalies. As Rafe had taken " French leave," it was neces- 
 sary to borrow a coachman of one of the neighbors. In due 
 time tbe Cameron carriage drove to the door, and cousin 
 Regina, with many careful admonitions, to the effect that I 
 must not let the servants run over me, or run away in her 
 absence, seated herself beside Ruth, and I was left alone, the 
 mistress pro tern, of the Cameron mansion. Not having any 
 special fancy for cutting flourishes at housekeeping, i. e., 
 ordering servants about, I hied me to the library, where, I 
 must acknowledge, the afternoon crept wearily enough. My 
 wayward heart was in no mood for books ; fly away it would, 
 in spite of me, and seek the lone path of the fugitives, Han- 
 nibal and Rafe. Just then I would have given worlds to 
 have been assured that they would escape tne pursuer. But 
 I seemed to see the pitiless hounds, and more pitiless fellow- 
 mortals, on their track, and themselves, fatigued and famished, 
 plunging into the cold, black creek, crossing and recrossing 
 to deceive the dogs, and still pressing on — on — on — in 
 their wearisome flight, their clothes stiffened to ice, and their 
 hearts trembling with fear ; and anon I seemed to hear this 
 prayer from one and then from the other, " O God, be not 
 far from me ; my God, make haste for my help."
 
 104 cousin France's household. 
 
 But tlie tea-bell at length effectually dissipated the host of 
 torturing conceptions which thronged around my excited 
 sympathies ; and a welcome sound it was ; not on this account 
 only, but because I had determined to spend the long winter 
 evening with Selma, and draw from her, what I had greatly 
 desired, some account of her life, which, I felt sure, contained 
 a more than wonted interest. 
 
 Soon after supper, a knock at the nursery door was an 
 swered by good Selma in person, whom I affectionately 
 kissed, after the manner of Ruth, and the promptings of my 
 own feelings, and seated myself in Philip Augustus' well- 
 stuffed rocking-chair, occupying a comfortable corner by the 
 cheering wtilnut fire. The lordly boy was abed and asleep, 
 as were Washington and Clara, and as Aunt Selma was 
 knitting, I took my work from my reticule ; — you must know 
 that Ruth and I have organized ourselves into a benevolent 
 society, and are knitting stockings for the little negroes. 
 
 " Do you think Hannibal and Rafe will escape ? " asked I 
 of Selma. 
 
 "The chances are greatly against them," replied she, 
 shaking her head ; " thirty are taken, we are told, where one 
 escapes." 
 
 " 0, is it possible ! " I exclaimed, and my heart sank 
 within me. 
 
 " I am glad you have come in to sit with mc this evening," 
 said Selma, after a pause ; " you are very kind," and the 
 tears came into her eyes.
 
 cousin fbanck's household. 105 
 
 " I am glad to come," I replied ; " now will you please to 
 tell me something of your history? " 
 
 " My history ! " said Selma, with thoughtful surprise; "I 
 fear you would not be as happy as you are, if you knew it. 
 The life of your cousin Regina and my life have run side- 
 by side, and one cannot be given without portions of the 
 other." 
 
 " Never mind, please tell me," I persisted, and after a 
 little hesitation, she thus began : 
 
 "Master Henry Hartley owned a large plantation in 
 Carolina, not far from the mountains. He had a fine house, 
 a beautiful wife and children, and a great many horses and 
 slaves, and was one of the most indulgent masters in the 
 country. He was your cousin Regina's father, and she is 
 much like him, — the same commanding figure, broad, high 
 forehead, and blue eye. "When he was pleasant, the clear 
 sky of a spring morning was not more lovely ; but when in a 
 passion with his slaves, as was often the case, his eye flashed, 
 and his brow was darkened by the tempest within. 
 
 "My mother was a mulatto, very handsome, and very sin- 
 gular in her ways. A\ r e lived in a pretty little dwelling, half 
 bower, half cabin, just beyond the arbor vitoe hedge of the 
 garden. An old weeping willow, whose branches swept the 
 greensward, shaded it from the afternoon sun. Many 
 climbing vines were encouraged to run over our cabin, by my 
 mother, who had a great passion for flowers. 
 
 My mother was subject to occasional fits of derangement, 
 and went by the name of ' Crazy Milly.' The same derange-
 
 106 cousix franck's iiorsF.noi.D. 
 
 ment affected some of the Hartley family, and she inherited 
 it from her white father, whose name was Hartley. Any 
 great fatigue, excitement or contradiction was sufficient to 
 cloud her reason for the time, and then the mad pranks she 
 would play it is not possible to describe. Everybody feared 
 her, even Master, for he was utterly unable to control her. 
 If any one displeased her, she was sure to remember it, and 
 play him some malicious trick when her mad fit was on. At 
 midnight it was her delight to sin£, scream or shriek in some 
 almost inaccessible tree top. A less considerate master 
 might have questioned her right to be insane, for many will 
 hardly permit a slave to be sick ; but our master had seen 
 too many crazy members in his own family to doubt the 
 reality of the disease in my mother. As she grew older, her 
 derangement increased ; she had more frequent attacks, and 
 they lasted longer. She was much petted, and orders were 
 given that no one should trouble or cross her ; — in fact, when 
 sane, she had nearly as much power as her mistress. She 
 had four children : two boys, twins, older than myself, and a 
 little girl, Fayett, younger. Never did a mother love her 
 children better than Crazy Milly, when she was herself, and 
 sometimes, when the fit came on, she seemed possessed with 
 the idea that we were all to be sold, and would not suffer us 
 to be out of her sight for a moment. She thought herself and 
 children free, but was full of the most agonizing fears that 
 we should be seized as slaves. 
 
 " "When I was quite a little girl, I asked my mother, in one 
 of her sane intervals, who was my father. '"Why do you
 
 COL'SIX franck's household. 107 
 
 » 
 
 ask, Selma ? ' said she, fixing her large, bright eyes upon me. 
 I told her that Regina culled Muster papa, and that he played 
 with her, and called her his little rogue, and sometimes, when 
 nobody was present, he played with me, took me up in his 
 arms, kissed me, and called me his pretty little rogue, and I 
 don't know, but Master might be my papa too, only he don't 
 want anybody to know it. 
 
 " • O, you are a bright little rogue,' said my mother, catch- 
 ing me up, ' you deserve to know who your father is, indeed 
 you do ; — Regina' s papa is your 'pa too.' 
 
 " I cannot tell you what a strange effect the knowledge of 
 this fact had on me. My little heart was filled with painful 
 thoughts ; for, from my earliest recollection, I had been given 
 to Regina as her maid — I was told that I was born expressly 
 to wait on her and do her bidding ; now I could not under- 
 stand why I was not her equal, as we had the same father. 
 I finally thought it must be because my mother had crazy 
 spells, and 0, how I wished she would get well of them, for 
 then my father would not push me away any more when peo- 
 ple were by, he would let me call him father, and Regina 
 would not have all the pretty playthings, and I should not 
 have to run till I was so tired to wait on her. 
 
 " My twin brothers, William and "Wallace, were noble 
 looking boys; they were much like their father — for my 
 father was theirs. He had no other sons, and he seemed in- 
 clined to love them very much, if only he dared. His beauti- 
 ful wife could not endure the sight of them, because they were 
 her husband's slave children, and because they so much resem-
 
 108 cousin franck's household. 
 
 bled him ; and she was always begging liim to sell them, or send 
 them off' to his Alabama plantation. But he was deaf to her 
 entreaties, either carelessly whistling a reply, or telling her 
 she did not know what she was talking about. When they 
 were eight years old, he took them into the house to be 
 waiters, that he might have them near him, and that their 
 tasks might be lighter than if they served him as field hands. 
 But there was no end to the little and great annoyances and 
 oppressions they got from Mistress. The very worst con- 
 struction she always put on the little mistakes and mishaps 
 that attended their labor; and the surest way for any servant 
 to gain her favor, was to accuse them of some offence. It 
 was but a sorrowful life that they led, now and then a little 
 lightened by a smile and a few kind words from Master. 
 These tokens of his sympathy and affection grew more and 
 more rare, however, as Mistress would give him no peace, 
 constantly urging him to dispose of those against whom her 
 hate and malignity were so much excited. He looked very 
 sad, and seemed to have no heart to smile, and as for kind 
 words, it may be he thought they would only unfit his slave 
 sons for the rough treatment they must meet in their life of 
 bondage. 
 
 "But those dear boys bore their troubles very differently. 
 William seemed to be sustained by a lofty faith — the faith of 
 a Christian; and in my later life as I have read, and re- 
 flected, and compared him with others, he has seemed to mc 
 to possess the heroism of a martyr. Wallace was his op- 
 posite ; his proud heart rebelled against his lot ; he hated
 
 cousin France's household. 109 
 
 those that oppressed him, and said William was a fool for 
 praying for such bad people. Still they clung to each other 
 with wonderful affection ; the sorrows they shared so equally 
 bound their hearts together, as well as the bond of their birth. 
 
 " The great fear of Mistress was, that Master would allow 
 these sons to engage his affections — that he would dote on 
 them, finally give them their freedom, and make them heirs 
 equally with Regina. So she was unceasing in her efforts 
 to divert his good will from them, and although she did not 
 succeed in this, yet, moved by a desire for peace, in an evil 
 hour he consented that they should be sent away the first 
 opportunity. 
 
 "It was a pleasant summer afternoon, and as a sort of 
 pastime from the confinement of house service, Master had 
 given the brothers leave to join mother in pruning and trim- 
 ming the hedge. Happy, happy was she then, with her noble 
 boys beside her, and her little girls playing on the green vel- 
 vet turf. "William and Wallace begged she would sit down 
 and rest, and let them do the little job themselves ; but no ; 
 she loved too well to labor beside them. 'It was only play ; 
 many hands make light work,' she said, as she cheerfully 
 tripped along, felling twigs and leaves with her pruning 
 knife. The fragrant hedge row — for it was interspersed with 
 6weet brier — was in order at length, and mother, leaving us 
 to play ' hide and seek' in the clumps of flowering shrubbery, 
 went into our cool, grotto-like cabin, to prepare supper. We 
 had leave to eat together, the hour being so early that the 
 boys would not be needed in the house, until after our meal. 
 10
 
 110 COUSIN FRANCK's HOUSEHOLD. 
 
 In a little while she came to call us from our play, and there 
 was an expression of sadness on her face, such as was some- 
 times seen before her crazy turns. "We were hushed at once, 
 and clustered around her as she entered the door. 
 
 " ' Mother must be glad to-day,' said William, gently kiss- 
 ing her. 
 
 " ' I have been glad, very glad,' she replied, in a sad tone, 
 'but I tell you, children, the dark cloud is coming;' and she 
 shuddered with dread as she spoke. She sometimes had a 
 presentiment of her derangement — a sickening horror slowly 
 creeping over her — and so it was now. 
 
 " ' I must pray with you before it comes,' she quickly 
 added, and her tearless eyes glared on us like the noontide 
 sun. ' May the Father keep me from harming my children ! 
 O, my God, keep me in the darkness ! O, Jesus, save me !' 
 were her agonized petitions. William kneeled beside her, 
 clasping her hands, and praying with every breath ; Wallace, 
 half frantic, threw himself on the floor, and cried as if his 
 heart was breaking, and Fayett and I clung to her in our 
 fright. At last she grew calm ; the peace of the Saviour fell 
 on her stricken heart as the dew falls on the thirsty 
 flower. She arose, and gently said a few words to us, — 'It 
 will all be well at last if we only reach heaven ; strive to 
 get there, children ; Jesus will help you.' She then called 
 us to the table, and silently and sadly we attempted to eat 
 
 "Suddenly there was a darkening of the sky and a dash 
 of rain-drops, and a servant came to call the boys and my- 
 self to the house. A stranger had just come in ; he seemed
 
 cousin fkanck's household. Ill 
 
 to be a drover for there was a company of slaves, chained, 
 two together, standing in the yard, and Master ordered that 
 they be taken to the kitchen, and a good fire be made to dry 
 them. 
 
 " Here, then, was a chance to dispose of William and 
 Wallace. A bargain was struck with the drover ; though 
 Master seemed to act hesitatingly, and with real reluctance. 
 I kept close watch of his movements, for, young as I was, I 
 felt intensely for my dear brothers and my poor mother. I 
 feared she would be utterly mad ever after. Master per- 
 suaded the drover to stay until after nightfall, that he might 
 take the boys off unnoticed by Crazy Milly. 
 
 "I had hidden in the deep shadow of the multiflora that 
 overhung the portico, and Master was taking leave of his 
 slave sons. It was the last time I should ever see them, and 
 O how my heart ached ! How I longed to weep on their 
 necks, and kiss them good-bye ! but I must not. 
 
 " Master called them to him, and, taking a hand of each, 
 told them to be good boys, and said he hoped the drover 
 would treat them kindly, when they both burst into tears, and 
 sobbed audibly. ' 0, hush, boys,' said Master, in a husky 
 voice, ' why, you'll never be men, at this rate ! Bless me ! 
 you going to make a fuss now ? O, fie ! ' 
 
 " ' Master, you are our father,' pleaded William ; ' 0, please 
 do not sell us!' and he knelt down and clasped Master's 
 knees. 
 
 " ' Yes, Master,' added Wallace, sinking down beside Wil- 
 liam, ' please don't sell us ; we've always been good,' —
 
 112 cousix franck's household. 
 
 "'I know it, I know it,' said Master, quickly, his voice 
 
 trembling; 'you are the best boys in the world, ami it's a 
 fact I'd about as lief cut my throat as sell you, but there is 
 no help for it ; it must be done ! ' and he took out his hand- 
 kerchief and wiped his eyas. 
 
 " ' Please let us stay with you,' said William, in a grieved 
 voice. ' We'll work for you as long as we live,' said Wallace, 
 ' 0, father, please let us stay.' 
 
 "' Quit calling me father!' exclaimed Master, sternly, his 
 brow darkening. ' If I am your father, you are none the li 
 my slaves, I reckon. Up with you ! Wipe up your eyes ; 
 you'll find it's no use to snivel ! ' and as they stood before 
 him, still weeping, in vain trying to harden their hearts to 
 meet their fate, he seemed a little softened, but, with an air 
 of indifference, said, ' I shall always wish you well, boys, 
 I shall always wish you well. Now, boys, you must go,' he 
 added, for he heard a footstep ; then, slipping a small piece 
 of money into the hand of each, he delivered them to the 
 drover, and betook himself to his cigar. 
 
 "My beautiful brothers, still weeping, were chained to- 
 gether and put into the drover's gang, Master merely inter- 
 mitting the puffing of his cigar to say, 'Take good care of 
 those boys, Mr. Drover; keep them in good condition — they 
 are choice stock. 9 
 
 '" Of course,' said the drover, mounting his horse, 'we'll 
 take good care of 'cm; that's our puffession. As ter their 
 bein' any choicer slock than the bigger part of my gang, I 
 dares any man ter say it. Fact is, I've got a specimen lot,
 
 cousin franck's household. 113 
 
 BO ter speak, a specimen of Anglo-Saxon blood, I reckon 
 they calls it ; at any rate, I'm takin' ter market some of the 
 best blood in the ' Old Dominion.' Curi's times, these ere 
 is, 'Square ; folks spekilates in a' most all sorts o' things. 
 Ingenus, aint it, now, for a body to tarn a body's own blood 
 to sich account. Now there's better'n a thousan' dollars I've 
 gin you for these ere two 'sponaibilities.' 
 
 " ' Come, come, sir,' said Master, ' you are getting personal. 
 You forget the time and the place.' 
 
 "'Jes' so, 'Square, an' I'll be gwine,' said the drover, 'but 
 seems to me, ef I traded away my own flesh an' blood, as 
 some on you 'ristocrats does, I'd be a little more thankful to 
 them as obleeged me by peddlin' it out. Jupiter Ammin ! 
 you treat us as if we was a mean set o' blaggards ! ' and he 
 uttered a fierce oath. 
 
 " ' Excuse me,' said Master, going up to him, and saying 
 something I did not hear ; but I caught the words, 'If I -were 
 you, I should think it safe to be going — Crazy Milly may do 
 you more damage than your bargain is worth.' 
 
 " The drover muttered something in a low tone, and 
 whistling for his dogs, gave the signal to the gang, who had 
 been standing a few rods distant, when the whole company 
 moved off at a rapid pace, and in a few moments were out 
 of sight. No servant was permitted to speak to mother that 
 night, and she did not know of her loss until the dear boys 
 were far, far away. When she missed them, and found out 
 that they were gone, then, indeed, her sun set in darkness. 
 ' O that they had died, rather than this ! ' she exclaimed, and 
 10*
 
 114 cousin sbanck's household. 
 
 her reason was hurled from its throne. She was a raving 
 maniac, rushing here, and there, and everywhere, her brain 
 on fire, alternately singing in wild glee, and shrieking in mad 
 frenzy. She would spend the night in trees, which no one 
 but herself could climb, and her shrill voice was heard, pray- 
 ing, shouting, singing and screaming until morning, when, ex- 
 hausted, she sought her cabin and fell asleep. She continued 
 in this state for a number of days ; but one night she sud- 
 denly disappeared, taking my sweet blue-eyed sister with her. 
 Immediate search was made, the streams were dragged, the 
 woods scoured, but all to no purpose ; no trace of her could 
 be found, and at length pursuit was given over. Master's 
 neighbors called to condole with him on his loss, and he re- 
 plied to them as if he had lost a portion of his crops. No 
 one felt for the maniac wanderer and her child ; no one 
 thought of the sufferings of the slave-orphan left behind. 
 My cup was now full, and 0, how bitter ! My two lovely 
 brothers had been draasred off to I knew not what horrors ; 
 and now my poor mother, crazed by her sufferings, had per- 
 haps killed both herself and my sweet little sister, or, if 
 alive, they were perhaps enduring, in body and mind, ex- 
 posures more dreadful than death itself. The very uncer- 
 tainty which hung around all, added ten-fold to my anguish. 
 By night I was terrified with horrid dreams, and by day I 
 brooded over the hideous pictures which my imagination 
 painted before in.' with almost the vividness of reality. But 
 there was not one human being to whom I could utter a 
 word expecting Bympathy in return ; nay, not one from whom
 
 cousin franck's household. 115 
 
 I should not have been rudely repelled. O, it was so crush- 
 ing, that terrible conviction, that there was not one solitary 
 being -who cared for me or my sufferings ! 
 
 " After my daily work was done, and I had waited on 
 Regina until she went to sleep, I used to take a mournful 
 pleasure in visiting all the places where my brothers and I 
 had played together; and poor, dear little Fayett, I kissed 
 the ground her feet had pressed. At last, indeed, I sought 
 the old, lofty trees, in whose swaying tops my mother used 
 to shriek and sing, and, as I sat on their mossy roots, I 
 thought and thought in my sorrow, until it almost seemed 
 my sick brain would turn. 
 
 "One chilly September night I had sat down under a 
 lofty pine — my mother's favorite tree when her wailing mood 
 was on — and was leaning against its shaggy trunk, now 
 listening to the sad music of the wind singing among the 
 leaves, and now catching glimpses of the moon and stars 
 that nickered among the drifting clouds ; I had for some time 
 felt my heart hardening like the nether mill-storie ; I almost 
 felt inclined to doubt the being of a God, or at least to call 
 in question his regard for his creatures. I know not how 
 long I had sat there gazing at the stars, and laboring to re- 
 assure myself that there was a God, when I was startled by 
 the rustling of the leaves, and a growl of a dog, followed by 
 a low whistle ; starting forward, I saw the figure of a man 
 approaching, half hidden by the trees. I did not feel afraid, 
 for sorrow had made me incapable of fear. As the man
 
 116 COUSIN FIIAXCK S HOUSEHOLD 
 
 came nearer, I thought I knew him ; he beckoned to me, 
 and I went a few steps to meet him. 
 
 " ' Is you Selma ? ' he asked. 
 
 " ' Yes,' said I. 
 
 " ' Iv'e come from Milly ; she wants to see you.' 
 
 " ' My mother ? Where is she ? Let me go to her,' I said, 
 
 almost wild with emotion. 
 
 " ' It's right smart ways off,' said the man, who I now re- 
 membered was gardener David, who ran off some time before 
 my brothers were sold. 'It'll take two hours to go there.' 
 But I begged to go to her, and taking hold of David's hand, 
 tripped briskly by his side. After a fast walk of about an 
 hour, crossing plantations by unfrequented paths, and beside 
 hedges, we came to the woods that encompassed and walled 
 up the mountains. As we passed along, I tried to mark ob- 
 jects with my eye, that I might find the way if ever I sought 
 it alone. The way soon became steep, almost precipitous, 
 and it was only by clinging to the tangled underbrush that 
 we could ascend. At last, after clambering among rolling 
 stones, briars, and bushes for a long time, David stopped be- 
 fore a thick clump of bushes, and gave a signal whistle. It 
 was answered by a hand moving away some of the branches 
 of the thicket, and a head peering out upon us. In a mo- 
 ment more I found myself borne into a spacious cavern, of 
 which this thicket concealed the entrance, and in a sort of a 
 rocky recess, before which pine boughs had been placed to 
 complete the partition, I found my dear mother, asleep, lying 
 on a bed of leaves. As David took me to her side, I saw
 
 cousin franco's household. 117 
 
 that she was very pale and emaciated, and that there were 
 traces of tears on her cheek. My own tears gushed freely 
 at this, and I would have thrown my arms about her neck, 
 but David held me back, saying, 
 
 "'Not now, Selma, let the poor thing sleep when she can.' 
 
 " ' Is she very sick ? ' I whispered. 
 
 " ' That she is,' replied he. ' Bless the Lord, her stroubles 
 is almost over.' 
 
 u I sat down by my mother's leafy bed, and gazed at her 
 as well as I could through my blinding tears ; there was that 
 sweet, pensive face I had so longed to see, and I knew that 
 she was not now insane ; but O, the bitter, heart-breaking 
 pang to think that she must die — that I must so soon lose 
 her whom I had found, and on whom I longed to lean and 
 pour out the full burden of my heart. But where was my 
 little Fayett? I feared she was dead, and dreaded to 
 ask, when I saw a strange little figure clad in shaggy deer- 
 skin coming towards me from a remote part of the cavern, 
 led by a tall, dark woman, who bore a blazing pine knot. I 
 sprang forward — 
 
 " ' Fayett ! ' ' Selma ! ' and we were clasped in each other's 
 arms, crying for joy. The first burst a little over, Ave sat 
 down, her hand in mine, and gazed into each other's eyes, 
 our hearts too full for utterance. 
 
 " My mother awoke, and feebly asked if I had come, and, 
 hand in hand, my little wild sister and myself went and 
 kneeled beside her lowly bed. 
 
 " I do bless thee, O my God ! ' said my own precious
 
 118 cousin franck's househoib. 
 
 mother, as she took me to her bosom and kissed me. ' It is 
 you, indeed, isn't it, Selma. I have dreamed of you so much 
 that I fear it is not reality; yes, it is my own child, and now 
 I can die in peace.' 
 
 " ' 0, mother, do not talk of dying,' I brokenly uttered. 
 
 "'Why not, Selma?' replied she, calmly, her face beam- 
 ing with a happy look, 'why should I not talk of dying — I 
 shall be so happy when I reach my Saviour ! If it had been 
 His will, I would have blessed my boys before I go; — God 
 will hear my prayer and restore them to me in heaven.' 
 She paused, for her breath came heavily. It was a wild, 
 strange scene — that lone cavern in the bosom of the moun- 
 tain, the dying woman, the dark figures, clad in skins of 
 beasts, gazing on her as they wept, ^md the brilliant glare of 
 the torches lighting up the craggy walls of that moss-grown 
 habitation. All wept, and I knew that they were friends. 
 
 " ' It is time for you to go,' at length said David. 
 
 '"0, no!' I exclaimed, 'I cannot go back — I cannot 
 leave my mother when she is dying.' 
 
 "Mother beckoned to an old woman named Hilka. The 
 latter had been a nurse all her life ; but on the death of her 
 old master and mistress, to whom she was much attached, 
 and the sale of the estate, she had fallen into such cruel 
 hands that she had escaped to this retreat. Hilka, having 
 felt the pulse of her patient, said she would live another 
 night. As I kissed my mother a good bye, she whispered in 
 a few words her wishes that I should faithfully serve Regina, 
 and, leaving Fayett in the care of the kind friends she had
 
 cousin fkanck's household. 119 
 
 found sometimes come to see her, and bring her what food 
 and clothes I could spare from the portions given me. 
 
 " David told me, on my way back, that a few weeks be- 
 fore, he found my mother and Fayett in the woods at the 
 foot of the mountain, almost starved; and that, although 
 crazy at intervals, she had been sane most of the time since 
 living in the cave. It was her exposure in the sickly night 
 air, her frequent derangements, and her sorrow at parting 
 with her children, that had conspired to shorten her life. 
 
 " I reached Regina's room in safety before morning, and 
 my absence was undiscovered. 
 
 " David was to come for me next night, and wearily 
 enough I went through with the duties of the day. The 
 vexations and annoyances of waiting on Miss Regina, as I 
 was required to call her, seemed a hundred fold more in- 
 tolerable than ever before ; for I longed to be watching beside 
 my poor mother. When it was dark, and my work was 
 done, I hastened to meet gardener David, and was again led 
 to the forest cavern. My mother was dying ! Gasping for 
 breath, she was sitting upon her bed, supported by nurse 
 Hilka. "With a serene smile she reached out her hand to 
 me, saying, at broken intervals, ' It is almost over ; I am 
 almost free.' And again, ' Happy, happy,' as glimpses of 
 heaven broke in on her vision. ' Love Jesus,' she said, 
 gazing on me with her melting eyes ; and, as I bowed my 
 head and wept, I promised her that I would love him. ' O, 
 God, bring all my children to thy fold ! ' were her dying 
 words. As her spirit took its flight, filled with grief as I
 
 120 cousin franck's household. 
 
 „ 
 
 I yet felt melted in submission before God. His sus- 
 taining arms bad been about my mother in ber dying bour, 
 and I felt to praise him, that, so calm and radiant with peace, 
 she bad gone bence. 
 
 " Clasped in my little sister's arms, a passionate burst of 
 grief swept over me, more for ber bereaved desolation than 
 my own. "Who would care for ber now ? What place of 
 safety was there for her in the wide world? If she went 
 back with me, sbe must be again a slave ; and I thought, 
 better dwell in the dim old cavern, live on roots and water, 
 and wear the skins of beasts, than return to such a fate. I 
 would not go back myself, had it not been my dying mother's 
 test, that I might help succor the poor people dwelling 
 there, if they were like to starve. It was but a temporary 
 abode; most that sought it, did so with the hope of escaping 
 to the free States, and were waiting, some for clothes, and 
 some for a favorable time to go. A few, in their despair, 
 were waiting to die. The hour came again for me to return, 
 and, with many tears, taking the last look of the dead one 
 I so fondly loved, and tearing myself from my little sister, I 
 sought Regina's room. 
 
 " It was a sad, weary life that I led. I was pining in 
 grief, when Regina aroused me by the strange proposal, that 
 I learn to read. As Master had no objections to the plan, I 
 ntly studying under the care of the family 
 governess. Regina was a mature, intelligent child, but loved 
 play better than study, and this proposal was a device of hers 
 to gain time from her books. In the course of a few months
 
 cousin franck's household. 121 
 
 I could read Regina's lessons to her passably well. During 
 this time I had frequently visited my little sister in her 
 cavern home, and had wept on my mother's grave in the 
 mountains. Old nurse Ililka had formed a strong attach- 
 ment for Fayett, and, in her rest from toil, had so renewed 
 her youth that she had planned a flight to the North, with 
 my little sister and her son, who had lately escaped to the 
 cave. It seemed like the bitterness of death, for me to part 
 with the only one I now had to love, but she had found a 
 nestling place in old Hilka's heart, and how could I utter a 
 word to quench her faint hope of freedom. 
 
 " How well I remember the night I helped fit her off"! I 
 carried her some of my clothes, and food I had laid by from 
 many a meal. I longed to go with her, but my absence 
 would increase the danger of the three being taken, as search 
 would be made for me. I saw them depart with a firm re- 
 solve to bide my time, for freedom seemed inexpressibly dear 
 to me, and my loftiest earthly aspiration was some day to< 
 enjoy it. I had a dissatisfaction with the life I led, amount- 
 ing to loathing. I lived under the same roof with Regina, 
 we were children of the same father, we had the same studies, 
 and yet how impassable the gulf that separated us ! 
 
 "Mistress, fearful that the advantages Regina was so 
 whimsical as to give me would spoil me, interposed various 
 obstacles. She never wanted an occasion to find fault with 
 me, and seemed firmly set against being pleased with any- 
 thing I did. She declared I was proud, and Regina would 
 yet rue the day she gave me a chance to learn. 
 11
 
 122 OOUSIM FRANCES HOUSEHOLD. 
 
 "Yet, with all my advantages, 1 was nothing but a poor 
 Blave, liable to be Bold whenever it would be for the interest, 
 or would gratify the caprice, of those that owned me. I wta 
 motherless, and worse than fatherless; thai most desolate of 
 human beings, a slave orphan. Master's heart grew hard 
 towards me after his sale of the bins; he drank freely, and 
 never seemed like himself again. 
 
 "As the slow years crepl away, Crazy MUly and Fayett 
 had died out of mind, and the names of my brothers were 
 never mentioned. Regina became the Battered belle. I, 
 the slighted Blave, longed for something on which to place 
 my affections, and love and confide in as I had in my mother, 
 my brothers and sister — some one to whom I could entrust 
 the varied fears and trials of a slave life. 
 
 u Herbert Williams was a favorite servant of Master's; in 
 
 telligent and active, grave and sedate in his bearing, and, like 
 
 myself, mostly akin to the while race. With the aid of a lew 
 hints from me, he had become a good reader and writer, and 
 Master, availing himself of his increased capacity for use- 
 fulness, employed him to keep his books, and sometimes to 
 write his letters. Herbert was always kind to me, but SUCh 
 was the reserve of his manner, that T did not speak with him 
 of my .ureal griefs, until years after T had parted with all my 
 family. At last we discovered that we loved each other, and 
 COnsenl being given to our union, we were married. Regina, 
 Baying that a lady's maid should be married like a lady, made 
 US a little wedding in the parlor, lighting the astral lamp, 
 and, what was Btrangesi and best of all, we were married by
 
 COUSIN franck's HOUSEHOLD. 123 
 
 the parish clergyman. How his voice trembled when he 
 said, 'What God hath joined together let not man put asun- 
 der!' 
 
 " Begina was united, about the same time, to a rich old 
 bachelor in the vicinity, named Col. Moulton. When she 
 removed to her new home, she, of course, took me with her, 
 and my husband remained with Master ; we wire not allowed 
 to see each other oftener than once in two or three weeks. 
 Five years passed, and Regina was the mother of Rosalie 
 and Ruth, anil I of a beautiful boy — Hannibal. 
 
 * Some weeks had passed since I had seen my husband, 
 and I got no satisfactory answers to my oft inquiries ; at 
 length Regina told me that he had been stolen by a drover. 
 The terrible truth was revealed; Master had sold him! 
 Again I drank the overflowing cup of anguish. I could only 
 go to God with my heart-rending grid'-. 
 
 "My darling boy, as he grew up so beautiful and noble, 
 I almost feared to love, lest he, too, should be taken from 
 me. And now he is gone, and I am sold to the far South." 
 
 "O, Aunt Selma," I exclaimed, bursting anew into tears, 
 "don't weep, don't weep; it will nil be well at last! 
 
 "Ye«, yes," she replied, more calmly, after an interval of 
 weeping, " all well at last, if God but interpose, as I have so 
 earnestly prayed, for my brothers, my sister, my husband and 
 my son." 
 
 Adieu, 
 
 Pocahontas.
 
 LETTER VIII. 
 
 POOR WniTKS." 
 
 Port Royal, Va., Jan. 6, 18 — . 
 Dear S. — It was almost night of the day fixed for the 
 return of cousins Regina and Ruth. I had been looking out 
 for them for some time, when the Cameron carriage drove up 
 before the door. The driver dismounted, but instead of let- 
 ting down the steps, gave a letter to little Jupe, who, as usual, 
 was on hand admiring the horses. It was from Ruth, giving 
 the information that a serious accident had happened. It 
 seems that the horses had taken fright, and, being unused to 
 the driver, could not be controlled, but had dashed away at a 
 furious rate a great distance, and finally had been stopped by 
 being reined up to a fence, in the doing of which, however, 
 the carriage had been upset, and Madam Regina badly hurt, 
 her arm being broken and ankle dislocated. The letter went 
 on to say, that one of the poor whites, coming along at the in- 
 stant, helped disentangle the horses and upright the carriage, 
 and took them to his own little shanty, located in the mean 
 settlement of Pison Fields. Ruth concluded her letter by 
 requesting that Selma and I would come to her mother as 
 soon as possible. I immediately sought out Selma, and ar-
 
 cousin fbancje'b household. 125 
 
 rangements wore soon completed for starting off at an early 
 hour in the morning. Cousin Franck's horses were so 
 Scratched and strained that they had to he forthwith put under 
 the care of Pomp, who, by the way, being given to quackery, 
 is in truth no contemptible specimen of a horse doctor. A 
 neighbor, however, very kindly offered his horses and driver 
 for the occasion, and in due time Selma and I, fully equipped, 
 set out. 
 
 It w r as late in the afternoon when we reached the rude set- 
 tlement, composed of a few log huts scattered over a worn-out 
 pine barren, which nobody claimed. The occupants of the 
 huts are distinguished for their lazy, drunken habits, and 
 their squalid degradation, — they being a portion of that 
 great class called " poor whites," who constitute the worst ex- 
 crescence and inevitable product of the slave system. They 
 resemble the Blaggs of Eastern Virginia, the Clay Eaters of 
 Georgia, and the Piney Woods people of North Carolina. 
 It is not pretended that they approach the slaves of Virginia 
 in respectability and honesty of character. The men rarely 
 do anything for a livelihood beside hunting, fishing and thiev- 
 ing. The women are more industrious, but do as little as 
 possible. The latter do all the ploughing, hoeing and gather- 
 ing of the little corn they raise, which is their only crop. 
 
 The doors and window-holes of every hut were filled with 
 heads when we arrived, and if staring had been devouring, 
 we hail quickly disappeared before voracious curiosity. 
 
 We found Madam Regina in one of the most decent look- 
 ing huts of the group, but it was, after all, miserable enough. 
 11*
 
 126 cousin franck's household. 
 
 Unlike some otliers, it had a chimney built of sticks and clay, 
 for not unfrequently this is considered a superfluity that can 
 be dispensed with, the smoke being left to find its way out of 
 the hole in the roof as best it can. The little dwelling was 
 divided into two rooms, the most comfortable of which had 
 undergone a partial "daring" for cousin Regina's reception. 
 I was surprised to find her accommodated with so comfortable 
 a bed, but afterwards learned that it was borrowed from one 
 of the nearest plantations. 
 
 Poor Madam Regina! how she wept when she saw us! 
 " 0, I'm so glad you have come," she said, when she could 
 command her voice ; " what have I not suffered ?" 
 
 Ruth met us with a most affectionate greeting. I found 
 her looking in better health than when she left us, although 
 she had been assiduous in her capacity as nurse. The 
 change and exciting incidents had diverted her mind from 
 the morbid sorrow that was consuming her. 
 
 Dijah Gray's services and accommodations had plainly been 
 furnished with at least half an eye to the pay. The sum he 
 might reasonably expect to clear on this off-hand speculation, 
 would go far toward the winter support of his half-famished 
 family. He was a short, spare, meagre-looking man, com- 
 plexion durable drab, with hair and eyes but a shade darker. 
 He had a cross, currish way of speaking — a sort of human 
 growl — and in his scanty, many-colored fur coat, to which 
 cat skins were the principal contributions, he made altogether * 
 a most wolfish and forlorn appearance. His wife was a tall, 
 gaunt, cadaverous woman, disgusting and ugly in the ex-
 
 cousin fuanck's household. 127 
 
 treme. She wore a tattered, checked, linsey woolsey gown, 
 evidently the cast-off relic of some house slave, a dingy 
 apron, besmeared with grease and dirt, and a filthy, calico 
 nightcap, which vainly essayed to keep in subjection her un- 
 combed, ovcn-broomish hair. On our arrival, her attempt at 
 a look of good humor overcame her habitual surliness so far 
 only as to get her countenance into a grim and haggard grin. 
 
 It was a strange relief to glance from the disagreeable 
 parents to their children — little Tommy and Netty, ten and 
 eight years old. The poor, thin little things, half fed and 
 half clad, with their pensive, blue eyes, and curly, flaxen hair, 
 had that peculiar, saddened look, that blighted blitheness of 
 childhood, which long days and years of starvation and harsh 
 treatment alone can produce. 
 
 " Dis sher yaccident makes us right smart out o' kilter," 
 observed Mrs. Gray, apologizing to Ruth and me for the 
 -hocking developments of her housekeeping, as we were get- 
 ting tea from the little store of things put up by the thought- 
 ful Selma. " Tommy," continued she, elevating her voice, 
 •• come, be spry, an' sweep down them are cobwebs ; an' Netty, 
 you stupid dunce, why don't you hoe out the room?" Tom- 
 my, taking the hemlock broom, and Netty the wooden hoe, 
 proceeded to do as bidden, while the indolent mother, having 
 quaffed a dram of whiskey from a brown jug in the catch-all 
 corner, lazily jogged herself in a screeching chair. 
 
 We had hardly seated ourself to tea in Madam Regina's 
 room, when we heard the voice of Dijah Gray, who had just 
 returned home.
 
 128 I OUSIH H&ANCK'S HOUSKIIOLD. 
 
 "I'll be darned, old woman, ef you baint swilled down all 
 tbe wbizkey ! Xiver lias anytbing eomforable for me when 
 I gets bum, you don't." 
 
 " I baint ilrunk it all up nitber, as I know in my knowing, 
 I say," replied tbe wife, " tbese ere young uns turned it over, 
 I reekons." 
 
 " Tbe careless whilpa I I'll wbip 'em within an incb of tbeir 
 lives; I will;" growled out tbe father. " Come bere, Tom! 
 this way, Net!" and we beard tbe sound of blows. "Tarn 
 over your father's wbizkey, will you ? Tarn over your father's 
 wbizkey ? be must come hum in tbe cold an git no supper, 
 must be, you earless whilpa ? " 
 
 " Tins is too much ; I cannot stand tins ! " exclaimed Ruth, 
 getting up from tbe table, and gently opening the door ; 
 " Mr. Gray, please do not punish the children, they did not 
 mean to do any barm," she interposed in her own quiet, 
 charming way. 
 
 " "Wal, wal, Miss," replied Mr. Gray, in a changed tone, 
 " ef you don't want tbese ere young uns slapped, wy then, 
 Amin, so be it ; but they is a mighty sight uglier than Cain, 
 ef 'tis tbeir father that says it. Jes' consider, Miss, what 
 they're up tow," continued he, " spillin' my wbizkey, ivry 
 blessed drop. Its' jes' as useful tow me as so much raverent 
 rum, — an' taint the fust time, nitber, it's what I bavter slap 
 'em for ivry day. Wy, Miss, it's 'nougb tow make a parson 
 swar, 'tis ; go off tow work for my family, — sweat at it, work 
 like a dog. come bum, an ivry blessed drop o' tbe wbizkey
 
 I
 
 COUSIN FRANCES HOUSEHOLD, 129 
 
 split, jist as ef 'twas only water! I 'peal tow you, Miss, ef 
 taint too bad." 
 
 " I do not think Tommy and Netty meant to do any harm," 
 replied Ruth. 
 
 "Wal, 'pon word, likenough they dint," said Mr. Gray, 
 "there's no tellin' what the old woman is capable o' dwine. 
 She's a high-stericky piece, an' I has my corrections she's up 
 tow drinkin' the whizkey, an' layin' 'toff tow the young 
 uns tarnin' over. I would'ntmind it, but whizkey is my 
 main livin' — wy, Miss, a gallon o' whizkey '11 go as fur 
 t'wards sportin' my family as a bushel o' corn. It's our staff 
 o' life, Miss." 
 
 "I say, Sally," continued Mr. Gray, turning to his wife, 
 who was all this while smoking her pipe, and screeching her 
 rickety chair, " what the deuce you drink my whizkey for ? 
 Been tow work all day for my family, come hum, all the 
 whizkey gone ; rinsequentty, nothin' for supper! I tell you 
 what, old woman, you drinkt my whizkey." 
 
 " Wal, sposen I did," shouted Mrs. Gray, getting roused, 
 " help yeself ef ye ken, Dijah, whose a better right ? what's 
 yourn is mine, an what's mine is mine, I reckons," and puff, 
 puff, puff went her pipe in an angry, expletive sort of 
 way. " Trate a body as you do me, — it's a mighty shame," 
 puff, puff, puff, " always braggin' o' what you done to sport 
 your family, when you won't niver arn the salt in your por- 
 ridge." Puff, puff. " You know, you lazy dog, when you 
 pertind you're dwine lots tow git victuals an' drink for me, 
 it's only pertince, "puff, puff, puff, " you're half asleep, day in
 
 130 cousin franck's household. 
 
 an' day out clown tow Siah Tumpkins' liquor store." Puff, 
 puff, puff. 
 
 " Now, Sally, don't now, don't git distrepus," said the chop- 
 fallen Dijah, " I always work when I gits a job, don't I now, 
 Sally ? Ye see Miss," continued he, addressing Ruth, " what 
 makes us such poor wretches is, we can't git no work no how ; 
 niggers cuts us out ivry which way ; they're as thick as tuds 
 arter a shower. Blast it ! aint we in a putty pickle ? No 
 chance to git a respectable livin', no how you ken fix it. 
 There's a chance for eny most ivry sort o' thing but us poor 
 whites, — we're at the bottom of the mountain, an' we can't 
 niver clinib it, ef we try ever so hard, — it's jes'no use tryin' 
 tow rise, — we're down, an' we've got to stay down," said the 
 man, in a sad tone. 
 
 "Pshaw, Dijah, don't you be so hypoey," replied Mrs. 
 Gray, " it's all jes'as bad as you say, I know, but then it's no 
 use knowin' ont, we'd better smoke an' drownd our troubles. 
 I has my thoughts, Miss Ruth, poor, lazy, drunken body that 
 you think I be, I has my thoughts when I sits here in my 
 old cheer from mornin' till night, tyin' seins when I can get 
 'em to tie ; I say to myself, it's a mighty big snarl of a tan- 
 gle that things is got into, an / should be glad tow know 
 who's gwine to straighten 'em. Rich folks likes mightily 
 tow keep us poor whites down, but, land o' massy ! how'd 
 they like to be in our place ? An' they do say that some on 
 'em is comin' down to our relevation fast." 
 
 " Blast 'em ! it's 'nough to make a body swar, 'tis, tow 
 think ont," chimed in Mr. Gray, "livin' on the fat o' the
 
 COUSIN franck's household. 131 
 
 land, cm' we, poor critters, enny jest a starvin'. I don't mean 
 you, Miss, as I knows on, — you looks good an' kind, an' sorry 
 fur us, but the bigger part of the rich is mighty cruel hearted, 
 an' there aint no need ont oither. But we poor whites is 
 driv tow do some hard turns, — we don't bile an' eat our chil- 
 Irn, exactly, but I'll tell you, lady, we's sometimes driv to 
 sell 'em to the nigger buyer. I done selled my oldest boy, 
 right smart while ago, I did, jes'tow keep the res' on us from 
 starvin'." 
 
 " O, is it possible ? " exclaimed Ruth. 
 
 " Yes, Miss, an' his weepin' eyes has follered me ever 
 since. lie din't want tow go a bit, poor feller, an' I had tow 
 harden my heart," — and the tears really took the place of 
 the man's words. 
 
 " How Charley did cry tow stay," said Mrs. Gray, in a 
 softened tone, as she put up her pipe, " he was enny jist the 
 best boy you ever seed, but we didn't know it till arter 'twas 
 too late ; he us'tow always run an' fill the jug, an' make the 
 pones an' porridge, sweep the huss, an' keep things nice as a 
 button. O dear me suz ! 'pears to me I'd starve an' welcome, 
 ef Charley was only back agin ! " 
 
 " Ye see, Miss, dis sher's the way it happened," added Mr. 
 Gray, commanding his voice. " Bill Tuggs, one of our 
 nighest nabors down here, made a dive to rise in the world. 
 He always had a dreadful knack at tradin,' — he had a store 
 in a little room of his huss, an he'd cheat us all out o' our 
 eyes afore we knowd it. "Wal, he happened to trade with 
 some of the overseers round, trading minx skins an' some sich,
 
 132 COUSIN FKANClv's HOIS F.UOLD. 
 
 an' they said 'twas too deuced bail that sich talents be hid un- 
 der a bushel ; so they gin him a lift an' made him a nigger 
 buyer, an tow pay for the hilp, he was tow gin them a sheer 
 in his profits. "Wal, Bill Tuggs would come hum once in a 
 while, an' swagger an' strut round among us, dressed up like 
 a peacock, an' there's no end tow the money he had ; then 
 he had a gold watch, gold chain, gold finger-rings, gold ear- 
 rings, gold breast-pin, an' a great, big silk handkercher, as 
 yallcr as gold ; an' says Bill, says he tow me, 
 
 " ' Dijah, I've been speculating an' I've diskivered there's 
 plenty o' money in the world, an' there's no use in a man's 
 bein' poor, ef he'll only use the means Providence gin him. 
 I'm a nigger buyer. I makes a respectable livin', an' so may 
 you. All you got to do, is to sell off the stock you have on 
 hand.' 
 
 " I asked him what he meant by that. 
 
 "He laughed, and said, 'Ah, Dijah, you're a little green, 
 yit, a little green. I mean, man, sell off them are boys o' 
 yourn, an' that are gal ; fetch a good price, Dijah, a good 
 price.' 
 
 " I was as mad as a March hare, an' I told him he'd better 
 quit talk in' to me in that are style. But one day he corned 
 in here, — Sally sat smokin', the children was cryin' for por- 
 ridge, an' there warnt the matter of a spoonful to eat in the 
 huss, no fire, and nothin' to buy whizkey with. Bill knowd 
 he must strike when the iron was hot, an' so he begun countin' 
 out the dollars for Charley. ' I must have that boy,' said he, 
 'I'll give you fifty dollars for him.'
 
 cousin franck's household. 133 
 
 " I never 'd seed so much money afore, an' I was amose 
 crazy, I was so hungry, an' so I told him he might have him. 
 Charley wanted tow stay, a dreadful sight, but it was no use 
 tryin' to keep him, an' starve to death in the cold." 
 
 '■ I telle! Dijah I shouldn't wonder ef he'd be better off*," 
 said Mrs. Gray. 
 
 " Sakes alive ! I hopes he is," said Mr. Gray ; I'm 'spectin' 
 we'll be 'bleeged to sell Tommy an' Netty yit." 
 
 " 0, horrible ! sell your own children ! " exclaimed Ruth, 
 and the little, dwarfish things came and stood close by Ruth, 
 and, gently taking hold of her hands, looked upon her so 
 beseechingly, as they said, 
 
 " You don't wanter have us selld, do you, lady ? " 
 
 " No, no, dear little boy," replied she, the tears coming 
 into her eyes, " I hope you and your little sister will never 
 be sold." 
 
 "I wanter see Charley all the time," said little Netty, 
 " won't he never come back ? " 
 
 " Hold yer tongue, you little fool! " exclaimed the motner, 
 angrily, " we don't want not anither word said 'bout it by 
 anybody." 
 
 "So, so, daughter," said Madam Regina, as the former 
 returned to her room, " so we get it on all sides ; we are to 
 shoulder the blame of these poor wretches' degradation, are 
 we ? I make sure, I do not know what we are cominc to. 
 — such a confused state the world has got into. These poor 
 people seem to be the broken arm and disjointed ankle of 
 12
 
 134 cousin ikanck's household. 
 
 society; they are plainly a class that do not exist in a sound 
 body politic ; and while we feel pained at their miserable 
 condition, we cannot avoid bewailing the accident that has 
 brought them into it, — in my opinion, as things are, it would 
 be better for them to become slaves." 
 
 Adieu, 
 
 Pocahontas.
 
 LETTER IX. 
 
 A DISCOVERY. 
 
 Port Royal, Va., Jan. 7, 18 — . 
 
 Dear S. — "Wearily enough passed the hours of our first 
 night of watching with Madam Regina. She was in a de- 
 plorably suffering condition, aside from the pain she endured, 
 being extremely nervous, and afraid some more dreadful evil 
 was about to happen. "These poor wretches," she reasoned, 
 u are so destitute that they have sold one of their children ; 
 and when people get to that pitch of desperation, what is 
 there that they will not do ? Stealing and murder are small 
 crimes compared with this." 
 
 "We endeavored, by being ourselves cool and self-possessed, 
 to allay her fears all we could, but so great had been her 
 sufferings, that she had no more fortitude than a child. Of 
 the numerous little attentions demanded by the comfort or 
 the notions of the sleepless sufferer, the most frequently re- 
 peated was, to look through the window niche for some indi- 
 cations of the morning. This duty was imposed as often 
 before midnight as after, for Regina's gold repeater was 
 stowed for safe keeping in the bottom of her trunk. 
 
 How forcible seemed the words, "more than they that
 
 136 cousin franck's household. 
 
 watch for the morning," when, at length, a few beams astir, 
 enabled me to return a more favorable report ! 
 
 " Now, girls, if you only had some good religious tracts 
 and books," said Mrs. Cameron to us when it was day, anx- 
 ious for us to exchange the smoky hut for the open air, " you 
 might turn tract distributors in earnest. A visit from hut to 
 hut, besides furnishing you exercise and amusement, might 
 do a great deal of good to these wretched creatures." 
 
 " But, mother," said Ruth, " I do not suppose that there is 
 an individual belonging to the place that can read a word." 
 
 " Ah, indeed, that did not occur to me," replied the mother ; 
 " well, very probably there isn't ; books would be of no pos- 
 sible use, then, I am sorry for it ; but you and Pocahontas 
 must manage to get up some amusement out of doors, or you 
 will be down sick." 
 
 " Sujjpose we turn Sisters of Charity, to-day," suggested 
 Ruth. "A good idea, daughter," replied Madam Regina, 
 " and you may meanwhile be learning some lessons of prac- 
 tical wisdom, — for instance, that slavery is not the worst 
 condition poverty can assume." 
 
 About nine o'clock we sallied out for our walk, each of us 
 with a basket of crackers and cakes on our arm. No one 
 seemed to be stirring in the cabins, — indeed, the poor people 
 had nothing to get up for, and doubtless thought early rising 
 in cold weather an expense they could illy afford. We had 
 walked a half hour or so, and were returning to the cabins, 
 whi n we met a little boy and girl, each with an armful of 
 sticks. The little girl was blind of one eye, and the boy
 
 cousin franck's household. 137 
 
 was quite lame. Their clothes barely hung on them in loose 
 tatters, ami their little, bare feet and hands were purple with 
 cold; altogether they looked so needy, forlorn and hungry, 
 that the sight of them must have made the hardest heart 
 ache. 
 
 "Is you got any cakes?" said the little girl, with an im- 
 ploring look and tone. " Is you ? " echoed the boy, before 
 we could get out an answer. 
 
 " Yes, we have got some cakes, and we are going to give 
 you some to eat with your breakfast," and the sad eyes fixed 
 on us grew bright. " Where do you live ? " we asked. 
 
 " Rightch 'ere, in mam's huss," replied the boy, and by 
 stooping we entered the low doorway. The little, dim 
 dwelling was so divided that the one door led into its two 
 apartments, the partition approaching the middle of the en- 
 trance. One room was for the family, and the other was the 
 " cuppen," or cow-pen, being the place where a pair of dwarf 
 cattle were housed for the winter. Half a dozen families 
 held stock in these half-starved beasts, and depended on them 
 for their ploughing in the warm season. A sorrowful, mild 
 woman came to meet us, with a look of diffident surprise. 
 She was small and frail, with stooping shoulders, but was 
 still in her youth as regarded years. 
 
 " O, mam ! " said Joey, the boy, " dey's gwine done gin us 
 some cakes ! " The mother, saying, " 0, hush, Joey," handed 
 the only two chairs the room afforded. She soon learned 
 from us that we were friends, and then the poor woman 
 poured out her full tale of sorrows into our listening ears, aa 
 12*
 
 138 COUSIN FRANCK's HOUSEHOLD. 
 
 if we were indeed her sisters. Naturally mild, timid and 
 loving, her heart had been crushed by the circumstances of 
 her condition. 
 
 "And your little girl," we inquired, "how comes it she ia 
 blind ? " 
 
 " I'll tell you, ladies, ye shall know it all. One of my 
 neebora had her little girl kidnapped and sold off to the 
 trader, an' with all my sorrow an' starvin' I couldn't stand 
 that no ways, an' so I put her eye out ! I did ! " and the poor 
 thing's voice choked in the recital, with the thought of the 
 horrid deed. " And I made Joey lame, too," she added, after 
 a pause, " that nobody should ever want to make him a 
 slave." 
 
 Another, another, and yet another hut of misery too pro- 
 found to be sketched, we visited, and then came to a dwelling 
 that evidently had some pretensions to comfort and even 
 taste. It was built of logs, but they were covered with ivy, 
 and in summer time it must have been really pretty, for 
 there were traces of other climbing planta on its sides. 
 "Within there was an air of neatness and thrift, that strangely 
 contrasted with the huts we had left. The walls were kept 
 neat and clean with a washing of powdered .-lone, which had 
 almost the effect of whitewash. Festoons of bright autumn 
 leaves, mingled with evergreens, were hung on the walls, 
 and about the niche windows, and had a peculiarly cheerful 
 and enlivening effect. The floor was earthen, like the rest 
 of the huls, lint was almosl entirely hidden by mats, curiously 
 woven of corn Im>k-. The young woman that came to the
 
 cousin franck's household. 139 
 
 door to receive us, was as neat and tasteful in her plain tunic 
 and short dress, as were the indications of her housekeeping. 
 Her eyes were mild, serious and blue, her hair brown, glossy, 
 and disposed to ringlets ; she was erect and perfect in figure, 
 and had a something about her whole manner so superior to 
 the specimens of the human race we had recently met, that 
 we could not think she rightly belonged to the settlement. 
 In one corner, supported by a bed made of mats and pillows, 
 Kit a man who seemed to be her husband. He was a cripple, 
 and, like the woman, appeared more sprightly, hopeful and 
 intellectual than any persons we had found in the place. In 
 the course of our conversation, Ave mentioned the cause of our 
 visit, and the hope we had of doing the poor people some good. 
 
 " It'll be hard doin' the people here much good, there is so 
 little honest work for 'em to do," said the man, whose name 
 was Robert ; " Fanny an' I gits along better than most of 
 'em ; I weaves mats an' ties seins, and Fanny is a witch 
 with the needle, but we want raised here," and I saw the 
 large blue eyes of the wife cast on the husband, as if in 
 reproof for the last statement. Before leaving, I carelessly 
 said to Ruth, that it was time for us to return and take our 
 places with Selma. At the name of Selma, the young wo- 
 man looked up with an expression of intense inquisitiveness, 
 and said, " Selma, who is Selma ? " 
 
 " Selma is our nurse," replied Ruth. 
 
 "Ah, is she?" exclaimed the young woman, with an air 
 of surprise, and with agitation which she evidently tried to 
 conceal.
 
 140 cousin peanck's household. 
 
 Although we were perplexed, we did not attempt to force 
 an explanation. As we arose to take leave, however, she 
 said to Ruth, " "Will you let Selma come and see me?" 
 Ruth replied that she should come that very day. 
 
 On our way home to dinner, as we chatted about the 
 thrilling and curious sights we had seen, we agreed that 
 Robert and Fanny were the most interesting and unaccount- 
 able persons we had met, and we longed to learn how they 
 came to sojourn among a people whose superiors they were 
 in so great a degree. As soon as we reached Madam Re- 
 gina's room, we insisted that Selma should take the air, 
 although her mistress thought it quite superfluous, alleging 
 that persons of her condition in life feel no sort of incon- 
 venience from close confinement. But Ruth had a winning 
 way of saying, " Please, mother, let her go for my sake ! " 
 and without more ado the good lady gave her consent. 
 
 I followed Selma out, and as we walked along towards 
 Robert's cabin, I told her that the young woman Fanny had 
 requested her to come and see her. I then gave some little 
 description of her husband and dwelling. Selma thought it 
 very strange that she should be sent for, and was evidently 
 excited by the incident. 
 
 " I have brought Selma to see you," said I, as we entered 
 the cabin. 
 
 " Thank you," replied Fanny, coming forward to take 
 Selma' s hand. Then, the two having looked at each other 
 with a searching gaze, Selma, in a voice choked with tender- 
 ness, and eyes suffused with tears, exclaimed,
 
 cousin fuanck's household. 141 
 
 "I know thee by my mother Milly's eyes — Fayett! " 
 
 "Yes, yes!" replied the young woman, "and thou art 
 Selma ; " and the happy creature threw her arms about Sel- 
 ma's neck, and the two wept mingled tears of joy and grief. 
 The thoughts of years were in those passionate emotions ; 
 and, feeling like an intruder, I quietly withdrew. 
 
 Ruth was acquainted with Selma's history, as well as my- 
 self, and as soon as possible I managed to let her know that 
 the Fanny we had met in the morning was Fayett. Every- 
 thing now depended on pursuing a prudent coui"se ; for if 
 Mrs. Cameron should learn of the whereabouts of one of her 
 father's slaves lost twenty years before, she would doubtless 
 think it duty to take measures to secure such an one with the 
 chain of bondage-. 
 
 The conversation happening to turn on money matters, 
 cousin Regina spoke of some planter in the neighborhood 
 who had owed her father several hundred dollars, but as the 
 interest exceeded the principal before the debt was collected, 
 it was outlawed and lost. 
 
 " Well, mamma," said Ruth, " it is a common saying 
 among us that slaves owe labor when they run away from 
 their masters; if they owe labor, that is a debt, isn't it ? " 
 
 " Daughter," replied Mrs. Cameron, " use the term ser- 
 vant, instead of slave, — it is far more correct and genteel; 
 indeed, it is the only term ever used in polished society. I 
 reply to your question, that labor due constitutes a debt, of 
 course." 
 
 Then why should not this kind of debt be outlawed at the
 
 142 cousin franck's HOUSEHOLD. 
 
 expiration of a certain number of years, as well as the other ? " 
 asked Ruth. 
 
 " Why not ? " replied the mother, " what a childish ques- 
 tion ! Our legislators were wise men, and they, doubtless, 
 had good reasons for framing laws as they did. If servants 
 could outlaw the debt they owe to their masters after an ab- 
 sence of seventeen years, or so, why, that would be paying 
 them a pretty handsome premium on their running away and 
 on their successful concealment. Most servants would be in- 
 clined to play the game, and we owners of people would 
 quickly be aground high and dry, with nobody to work the 
 ship for us. A servant once, a servant forever, must be our 
 maxim, or we help pull down our domestic fabric." 
 
 It was evident, from this conversation that Madam Regina 
 was well posted up in all those theoretical and practical de- 
 tails which px-omoted the perpetuity of slavery. 
 
 When Selma returned, the traces of tears Avere plainly to 
 be seen, and glad were we that the dimly lighted room hid 
 them from our eagle-eyed mistress. 
 
 Our next visit to the huts included a call at the famous 
 whiskey hut of Grilsa Griffin. It was formerly kept by one 
 Siah Tumpkins, who, having burnt himself up with his own 
 liquor, was succeeded in the emoluments of the stand by his 
 cousin Gril~a. 
 
 Picture to yourself a low, dark-looking log cabin, a passa- 
 ble pig-pen, with a whiBkey barrel in the centre of the room, 
 on which sat Grilsa Griffin enthroned, when not busy in wait- 
 ing on her customers. A mat of coarse, gray hair, in which
 
 cousin fbanck's household. 143 
 
 the process of tangling and intertangling had been going on, 
 without let or hindrance, for years, crowned the old hag, as 
 with a most hideous turban. Her face was long, with high 
 cheek bones, and scars and wrinkles seemed to rival each 
 other in disfiguring her tawny skin. Her eyes were small, 
 gray and piercing; her flat and upturned nose formed no very 
 agreeable feature ; and in her faded linsey woolsey dress, and 
 dingy apron, she presided like an evil genius astride the liquid 
 poison. Had we not been armed with gifts of crackers and 
 cakes, we certainly should have turned back from so misera- 
 ble a groggery. As we entered, Grilsa was jingling coppers 
 in her deep pocket with one hand, and seemingly chuckling 
 to herself with a grim satisfaction. She looked down on us 
 with brazen self-assurance, the startling reverse of the cower- 
 ing manner of the people generally. 
 
 " Come ter trade, has ye ? What truck yer got there ? " 
 she interrogated, in a harsh, loud voice, at the same time get- 
 ting off the barrel, and reaching out her long, wiry arm 
 towards the basket. 
 
 " We came in to give you some crackers and cakes," re- 
 plied Ruth. 
 
 " Wal, that ar is quar ; niver had a thing gin me afore ! 
 but ye'll take a swig o' whiskey for't, won't ye ? " When 
 we told her we did not want any, she rolled up her eyes in 
 great astonishment. 
 
 "Ye's quar, ye is mighty quar. I reckons ye's them ar 
 ladies as is stayin' ter Dijah Gray's." We replied in the af- 
 firmative. " Sakes alive ! " she continued, " how fortinetfe /
 
 144 cousin frakck's household. 
 
 I'ri a piece o' news to telld ye. I mouglit as well gin the in- 
 formation and pocket the pay ; one o' my nabors here uster 
 be a slave, an' is a sorter sister to your Shelmy ; she uster 
 be your slave, I reckons." 
 
 Ruth asked her what made her think so. 
 
 " Wy, yer seed, when I observed yer sarvint gwine by 
 here, I jist sint my Pol arter her tew see what she did ; Pol 
 is a staver at huntin' out a body's consarns ; so she hides be- 
 hind the door and liars all they say, an' comes right back an' 
 tells me on't, an' I 'spect I'd better seed the mistress hersef, 
 an' git my toll for findin' a slave." 
 
 We knew not what to say, and after changing the conver- 
 sation, and giving her some cakes and crackers, left. Of 
 course it would be of no use for us to try to persuade her not 
 to say anything about the discovery she had made, for her 
 tongue was bound to run, when it had an exciting theme. 
 We returned home in no very enviable state of mind, and, as 
 we feared, before the day was done, Grilsa herself forced her 
 way into Madam Regina's room, to collect her fee. And 
 there, as you may suppose, was a scene for a limner; — 
 Madam Regina became extremely excited, and we coaxed 
 the old hag away as soon as possible, in feverish fear of the 
 results of her visit. 
 
 Adieu, 
 
 Pocahontas. 
 
 &
 
 LETTER X. 
 
 THE ESCAPE ROSALIE IN TROUBLE. 
 
 Port Royal, Va., Jan. 8, 18 — . 
 
 Dear S. — Although we succeeded in getting rid of Grilsa 
 Griffin, yet we found it quite anothei* thing to undo the re- 
 sult of her errand. 
 
 " I protest, girls," at length said Madam Regina, warmly, 
 " that hideous object's story looks plausible, and had I the use 
 of my feet, I would know all about it directly. How I do 
 wish Mr. Cameron was here! Here, Selma, come to me; I 
 wish to hear your account of this affair. I know you are 
 veracity itself, and of course will deal truly with me. Have 
 you seen Fayett ? Is she in this place ? " 
 
 " Yes, Madam," replied Selma, in a trembling voice. 
 
 "And Ruth and Pocahontas were knowing to the fact," 
 said the lady, much excited; "I would not have believed it! 
 How could you, girls, take advantage of my weak, defence- 
 less condition, and literally attempt, to rob me in this man- 
 ner ? " and the poor lady wept. 
 
 "0, mamma," exclaimed Ruth, "what can you mean? 
 How can you thus afflict yourself?" 
 
 " Afflict myself, indeed ! just look at it, — here I am, per- 
 fectly helpless, and you hear of the whereabouts of property 
 13
 
 140 COUSIN franck'8 household. 
 
 which belonged to your grandfather's estate, of which T am 
 the rightful heir, and you seek to keep me in ignorance of the 
 vi rv existence of such property, that I may be perfectly sure 
 to lose it. Think of the enormity of such conduct, my 
 daughter. You did not intend it, perhaps, but it is neither 
 more nor less than downright swindling; it is, indeed." 
 
 " O, mamma, please do not look at it in that light ; we will 
 do anything you bid us that conscience will permit." 
 
 " Conscience, indeed ! " replied the mother, w r iping her 
 eyes ; " I should make sure you had neither of you a particle 
 of that faculty, were you not such paragons of perfection hi 
 everything else. And I do think, Ruth, you are more to be 
 blamed than Pocahontas. You have had the advantage of 
 an enlightened bringing up, as it regards this question of 
 property in servants. It is not so much to be wondered at 
 that Pocahontas should now and then mistake what is prop- 
 erty and what is not property, brought up as she has been at the 
 North ; but you, Ruth, have had the thing defined to you from 
 your earliest consciousness, and you sin against great light." 
 
 " Mamma," replied Ruth, " it seems to me the danger of 
 sinning is all on the other side of the question." 
 
 " Yes, yes, I make sure you think so. (), why is it that a 
 daughter of mine should drink in such fanatical sentiments? 
 Daughter, you reverenee the Bible?" 
 
 "Yes, mamma, T trust I do," replied Ruth. 
 
 "Well, then, let me convince you by that holy book," con- 
 tinued the mother, " I can have no moral right to waste my 
 property, for we are expressly commanded by Him who
 
 cousin fkanck's household. 147 
 
 spake as never man spake, to 'gather up the fragments iiiat 
 nothing be lost.' Now, Fayett is my property, worth some 
 one thousand dollars ; if I neglect to secure her, or ' gather 
 her up,' she, though quite a fragment of a fortune, is lost, ut- 
 terly lost and wasted. What right can I have thus to trifle 
 with and despise the good gifts of God's bounty? How can 
 I render my account as a faithful steward, or expect tbe 
 plaudit ' well done ' to be awarded to me at last ? " 
 
 " I fear, dear mamma, that you cannot, if you continue in 
 slaveholding," gently said Ruth. 
 
 " O, fie, daughter ! am I not treading in the same path in 
 this matter that thousands on thousands of good Christian 
 people have trod and are treading ; how can you indulge so 
 unworthy a thought ? " 
 
 " Mamma," replied Ruth, " it does seem a clear case to me, 
 that the teachings of the Bible are all against slavery." 
 
 " Nonsense, child ! it is from the Bible we establish the 
 divine right of slavery. Hark ! I hear a carriage ; run, 
 Ruth, see if your father has not come." 
 
 Ruth caught her bonnet and shawl, and went to the door, 
 and in a moment more cousin Franck bustled in, and went 
 through with an affecting meeting with his wife. 
 
 " Such luck, such luck, Mrs. Cameron ! " at length he 
 ejaculated, " what are we to do ? Spend the winter in these 
 miserable quarters? We're cornered at every turn; and 
 then our friend, the Doctor, thinks himself the most unfor- 
 tunate man alive. Here is a letter he has just received from 
 Cutts, full of dolorosities Pocahontas," he added, with a
 
 148 cousin fkanck's HOUSEHOLD. 
 
 droll smile, " you may read it aloud, if you can make it out." 
 The soiled and crumpled document read thus : 
 
 " dere doctor, i Taks mi pen in Hand tew inform yew ime 
 alive an Wei an hopes yew Injouys thee sam blesin. i be- 
 o-inns this ere letur acordin ter Rule, but i Aint a Mite wel 
 anther — ive kotched a blarsted hard Kold, an I cowf an 
 "Wheiz awl the tyme an Evry boan in me Aikes fit tew kil. 
 Naiou I spoze yewl wanter no whats thee nuse. ime in a 
 curis piccle an kno mistak ime shot up in hartlund Kourt 
 bowse jale Acused of bein a Runaway Salve ! i tells em ime 
 kurnel Cutts rokesby overser but thair wont knoboddy bleeve 
 a word I sa. the galer is crosser thun a Pak ov mad dogs 
 an ime enny gist ded. 
 
 Yew ce "Wen we got about haf wa tew fredriksburg the 
 houns kinder got on the Cent on another rode an we rid arter 
 em like smok fore hours, but Sikes he gin aout. he scd i 
 waz sich a Teem miSelf he want knedid an putty quick them 
 air dogs got on the Cent shur enuf an we follered em helter 
 skelltur threw the feels an over Phensis brighurs an bushes. 
 Wal Blossum an i kriskrossed an pambulatid about thair till 
 enny gist Nite. twaz aufull Kold an wede splashed rite 
 Threw thee kreek lickety split an aour kotes an Trowsiz waz 
 friz stifF enny gist, but we calkalatid we shud katch the 
 Gaim in leetle les thun kno tyme so we grined and bared it. 
 but i bleeve mi Sole we shud awl perrished efFt hadent bin 
 fur them air branda Bottuls as waz in aour pokkits. we 
 hadtur tak a home evrey fue minitts tew kepe aour Kurraje
 
 COUSIN FRANCK'S llOL'SKIIOLD. 149 
 
 up tew Thee Stikin pint, az Thee sain iz. Wal we got tew 
 a playse Aside the kreek whair twaz kinder Woodsy an the 
 iverGreens maid it kold az Grinland an we hadtur drink a 
 putty stif home tew keep frurn freezin an the houns Gott a 
 leetle mite a Head an arter a spel they yelped yelped so we 
 New they cum up with the Inimy, an Korkin up aour bottuls 
 an Spurin up aonr hossis we Kantered rite up To em stavety 
 cut, like a howse afire, an sez i wheu u ! when u ! kurnel 
 Cutts an doun with the Nigger Rihils ! 
 
 but a Four i new it i waz poked Of mi hoss in konsiderble 
 of a Hurra an thair I waz kurnel Cutts on Mi bak an han- 
 hybal a houldin me doun meditatin Reving, an sez I dont kil 
 me hannybal dont brew yewr bans in mi blud. i never 
 harmd A hare ov yewer bed awl iz, ise abayin the laws ov 
 Mi kountra ise only sarvin the Konstytushun an prasarvin 
 the Unyon. ye Ce i waz A leetle mite sli an tauked blarny 
 tew gane time till Thee Dogs rekivered an kum up when i 
 ment tew Riz an throttel the Skamp. but the dogs waz as 
 Stil az mise an sez i whairs them Air dogs ? an sez Blossom 
 whoe Rafe had tide tort tew a tre klose Bi, sez he thayse az 
 ded az nits, then i thort wede got tew di fort an it Maid me 
 az Week az warter an i boowooed rite aout for i waz num 
 with kold an mi bans waz tide, an sez i naiou You wont kil 
 me will yew Hannybal an sez he no Eff yewl kepe stil but 
 Eff yew tri Tew scape yewr A ded man, an he pinted tew 
 mi pisttuls in his belt. Arter a spel thay tide us On Thee 
 hossis an tuk us Tew an ole emptee kabin whair The hog 
 tendur lived in summer, twaz only a leetle wais Of in thee 
 13*
 
 150 COUSIN FBANCK's HOUSEHOLD. 
 
 woods, thay maid a fire an dride aour kloths an then tlice 
 Raskuls maid us Swap suils won at a time so we coudent 
 help urselvs. twaz a whappin Sham but we hadtur submyt 
 ur di. Howd jew spoze i felt, kurnel Cutts drest up in :i 
 niggers ole duds ! then Thay begun Tew hete iurns, an Sez i 
 wliaot naou ? yew gwine tew kil us Arter awl ! an thay 
 toald me Tew be dun, an rite awa thay frized an curld aour 
 hare tew make it nigry an then Thay smooched us Makers 
 nite with birch bark an pine Nots haf burnt an put aout. 
 Sakes alive we dint No One nuthcr frum niggers, 
 then thay mounted the hossis an brot us to this ere kourt 
 Howse jale a Fore mornin. aour mouths waz gagged so we 
 cuddent xsplane a wurd an The galer arter he was rousted he 
 tucked Us intew this Ere niggers hole higglefly piggledy an 
 ime bound tew Sa A narstycr playse aint tew Be faound. 
 the mud an filth is kne deep So ter speak an taint Fit fur 
 ainy human krittur. we haint no chans tew "Wash an the 
 galer thinks wese niggers shur enuf kase wese Ser blak. 
 help me aout rite of, dew doctur, ur i shall be dun fur this 
 ■ere wurld. dont git nothin tew eat But corn Bred an Waiter, 
 an mi cowf Is tarin me awl Tew peeses. 
 
 The galer sez i haint no Grate shakes, lie <-ez Ime master 
 aleing an Aigery an he shall sell me in A weak tew pay mi 
 jale fese. i wist i was saf bak tew rokesbyl dew tin's ere Is 
 a losin bizniss. Dew cum arter me tew wonst dere doctur, 
 an ile dew az much fur yew The fust time i gits A cbans. 
 
 Sarvant Sir, 
 
 Caleb Cutts overseer."
 
 cousin franck's iiouskiiold. 151 
 
 Notwithstanding our pity for the Colonel's sad plight, we 
 could not avoid a laugh at some of the comical features of his 
 recital. Cousin Franck, as soon as he could articulate, said 
 that he brought the letter along to extinguish the blues, and 
 he considered it a beautiful specimen of Yankee literature. 
 Selma laughed and cried alternately, and Mrs. Cameron 
 seemed for the time to have forgotten her trials respecting 
 the discovery of the lost property. She at length bethought 
 herself, however, and with all the pathos of an aggrieved 
 woman, gave her husband an extended account of the dis- 
 closures of the day relating to Fayett. 
 
 " Is it possible ? Is it possible ? " he every now and then 
 uttered, and when she had completed her history, he added, 
 turning to me with an assumed gravity and air of authority, 
 
 "That was most reprehensible in you and Ruth, coz, that 
 mischievous deed of holding your tongues on a subject which 
 ought to have been made known; — but where is Ruth?" 
 And now, for the first time since the arrival of cousin Franck, 
 was her absence noticed. 
 
 " Indeed, I do not know," replied Madam Regina ; " per- 
 haps she is sitting in the next room with Dijah Gray's family. 
 Selma, go and see," — and in a moment Selma returned, say- 
 ing she was not there. Mrs. Gray's head was in the door in 
 a twinkling. 
 
 " Bless yer," she exclaimed, "yer Mi-< Ruth's done gone 
 ter hum I reckons, — she went off" in the shay." 
 
 u Went off in the carriage ! " replied cousin Franck, spring- 
 ing to his feefe, " Bless my soul and body ! and that was two
 
 152 corsiN franck.'s household. 
 
 hours or more ago. She's gone mad, 'pon my word ! 
 What's to he done ? What's to he done ? " 
 
 " Run, run, dear ; go right after her at once ! " exclaimed 
 Madam Regina, greatly excited. 
 
 "/go after her!" replied cousin Franek, "impossible! 
 I've no horse here, and you forget my thin hoots ; I cannot 
 set foot out of doors without taking my death of cold." 
 
 "Dijah, he'll go, I reckons," said Sally Gray; — "Come, 
 Dijah," she said, as she went to her own room, " you he spry, 
 rig up, an' be stirrin' alter that are gal." 
 
 " I can't, an' I won't, so there, Sal," he replied, in a dis- 
 pirited and dogged tone. 
 
 " You ken go jest as well as not," replied the wife, " come, 
 now, go 'long." 
 
 " Not by a jug full ! " exclaimed the man, " it's a mose 
 night, an' comin' on mighty cold. 'Twouldn't be o' no yartbly 
 use, — pcrsides, I'm sick, an' I've got more work tow do than 
 you ken shake a stick at." 
 
 "That's jes' all purtincc, Dijah, all pm'tince," replied Mrs. 
 Gray, in a vexed tone. Cousin Franek now went in and ad- 
 dressed him. 
 
 " How do you do, Mr. Gray? I would be glad to employ 
 you to find out the direction taken by the carriage." 
 
 " Couldn't do't as I knows on," replied Dijah Gray, 
 "stanns a brewin', winter never rots in the sky," he added, 
 shivering as he stood with his hands in his pockets, looking 
 out of the half open door. 
 
 "Ye'll pay what's wuth, won't ye?" asked Sally Gray.
 
 cousin franck's household. 153 
 
 " 0, certainly," replied cousin Franck. 
 
 "I reckons I shall hafter go," replied she ; " women hafter 
 do ivry blessed thing as is done. Always tow hot or tow 
 cold, tow yarly or tow late for the men. Theyse a mighty 
 weak an' scary set, and not a hit o' rependenoe for a hod},"' 
 and she tied her calico nightcap down over her ears with a 
 strip of rag, and, coming up to me, said, u I'll jes' borry that 
 are warm shawl of yonrn," which I gave her, saying she need 
 not return it, when she sallied out to make incpiiries respect- 
 ing the route of the carriage. She had left only a few mo- 
 ments when Grilsa Griffin made her appearance. 
 
 " Ho, ho, hum ! " she exclaimed, as she stalked in, " tired 
 as a dog ; hafter work perdigus hard tendin' my customers ! 
 Been tryin' ter git in sher all day an' git my pay; — I 'spect 
 you understand ; " and she winked and nodded as if to es- 
 tablish her meaning. " Desperit hurry, cust'mers waitin', 
 fcrk't over, that's all." 
 
 Cousin Franck told her that he would see that she was 
 paid, and, taking out his pocket-book, handed her a bill which 
 made her eyes glisten. 
 
 " My 'specks to you for dish sher ; reckoned ye'd wanter 
 make it squar right smart quick, bein' as ye'd toted hum yer 
 slaves as I found. Yer gal there tooked 'em hum a spell 
 by, — but I'm off with my 'spects ter you for dish sher;" 
 and, crumpling the bill, she stowed it into the neck of her 
 dress, and was gone. Cousin Franck and his wife looked at 
 each other in blank amazement for a moment, when the for- 
 mer said,
 
 154 cousin fkanck's household. 
 
 " It cannot be, Mrs. Cameron, that Ruth has taken Fayett 
 and her family home, — she would have freely consulted us 
 in that case ; doubtless she has given them the help of a ride 
 towards the free States." 
 
 Sally Gray now returned, and the information she com- 
 municated confirmed cousin Franck in his opinion, and as he 
 reiterated it, Mrs. Cameron replied, with a sigh, 
 
 " Is it possible ? and yet I fear as much. "What a strange 
 child she is, — so dutiful in everything else, and so wilful and 
 crazy on this slavery question. But I cannot think she 
 would do such an audacious thing ; I fear it will be the death 
 of me if it proves true ; " and Madam Regina turned very 
 pale, and appeared as if fainting. The remainder of the day 
 and night we all had our attention engrossed in taking care 
 of her, as her symptoms were alarming and hysterical. 
 
 The morning after Ruth's departure was lowering and un- 
 comfortable, — the sky being disfigured with the sulky frowns 
 of a northern November, and the air eminently suggestive 
 of ague chills. As I set out for the morning's airing, Sally 
 Gray and little Tommy started for the nearest plantation 
 with a note from cousin Franck, requesting the planter, Mr. 
 K., to call on him immediately, and, if possible, lend him his 
 carriage and horses. The people of the settlement were astir 
 earlier than usual, as the events of the previous day were 
 of an exciting character. Smoke curled from every cabin 
 save the late abode of Fayett, and almost involuntarily I 
 bent my steps thither. As I stood there, musing on the late 
 strange occurrence, and its probable results, a tatterdemalion
 
 cousin pranck'h household. 155 
 
 of the place came along, in company with Grilsa's Polly, an 
 overgrown, muscular girl. 
 
 " How'd you know they wint that ar way ? " asked the 
 man of Polly. 
 
 " Cause I asked the stable boys from Popple farm," replied 
 Polly, in a loud voice; '-tiny trades with inarm a heap, — 
 comes sher over an' often o' dark nights, with all the truck 
 they can lay ban's on, an' marm she buys it up, an' squars off 
 with whizkey ;" and the half-intoxicated girl burst into a 
 silly laugh. 
 
 " I reckons yer knows 'bout de tase of yer ma'm's whiz- 
 key," said her neighbor, joining in her laugh. 
 
 " Sakes alive ! I does so," replied the girl, with a brazen 
 face. " Marm she says Pm a staver at it. Pve drinkt on a 
 bet afore now, I have. Marm she says it's jes all I'm good 
 for is ter fish out a body's consarns an' drink whizkey, he, 
 he, he; marm she gits huffy atween times, and says she can't 
 afford it. Hei ! can't afford it ! we'll see, says I to mysef, 
 ole woman's gittin' rich an' stingy ; sometimes she hide de 
 mug, an' what does I dew but take the birril on my knee an' 
 drink out of the bung hole ! It's plaguey good so, case I ken 
 corner the ole un an' git a drink tew, he, he, he." 
 
 "Ole woman's gittin' rich, is she?" asked the man Jim. 
 
 " Reckons you'd think so ef you seed all the heaps o' 
 money she got," replied Polly. " She's dwine rightch smart 
 o' trade, you may depind; an' Sundays she trade smarter'n 
 iver." 
 
 " Sun' ays ? what's that ? " asked Jim.
 
 15G COUSIN franco's household. 
 
 " Why hi ! don't you know ? The day rich uns goes ter 
 meetin', dare sarvints comes over sher an' has a good time 
 tradin' with marm ; they gits a pass ter go a piece, an' comes 
 shcr ; niver comes 'cept Sun'ays an' dark nights, when the 
 patrol can't see 'em." 
 
 " Rich folks goes ter meetin'," slowly echoed Jim, " an' 
 what's dey do dare ? " 
 
 " Why hi ! " replied Polly, " don't you know ? You mus' 
 be drunk. Marm she says dey goes dare ter larn how ter 
 'press the poor, an' I vows it's all they does go for. They 
 purtinds they'se got 'ligion, an' reads the Bible, an' prays, an' 
 all that ar, but it does me lots more good to bar a body swar, 
 than it does tew bar 'em ar hypercritters purtind ter pray." 
 
 " Wal, Polly," replied Jim, as if wondering at her accom- 
 plishments, "you'se always studyin' on 'em ar tings, — you'se 
 got larnin', I 'spect you knows." 
 
 "I 'spect I does so" rejoined the girl, "I'd knock you 
 down ef you said I did'nt ; I'd lay you flat, I vow I would ; 
 and she swung her arm with a threatening gesture. 
 
 " You're a ter'ble smart un, an' ef a body says you haint, 
 he don't know nothin'." 
 
 " I'll knock 'cm down as says a word agin me, I will so" 
 exclaimed Polly. 
 
 At this moment her mother, Grilsa, appeared in the door of 
 her cabin, and called to her to be spry, and come and help her. 
 
 "Won't stir a step, so tbar!" replied the specimen of 
 amiability. "Ole un begrudges me my whizkey, an' she 
 may wait an' lend her crustymers hcrsef, for what I care."
 
 cousix I'T.axck's household. 157 
 
 Grilsa, seeing that her daughter was not disposed to come 
 at her call, had recourse to coaxing. She displayed a red 
 and yellow ribbon, and said, 
 
 " Come 'long, Pol, see what's I'se got." 
 
 At the sight of the piece of finery the girl's eyes glistened, 
 and she started towards the whiskey hut ; when she saw me, 
 she greeted me at first with a vacant stare, and then, wink- 
 ing and nodding in a familiar way, said, quite patronize 
 
 " Come on, Miss, let's see that are truck the ole un's got."" 
 Seeing little Netty Gray enter Grilsa's abode with the family 
 whiskey jug, I was induced to go in. 
 
 " Halloa ! have a cheer ! " said Grilsa Griffin, handing me 
 a rickety affair, plainly of home manufacture. 
 
 " Now, marrn," said the daughter, sulkily, " ef you don't 
 hand over that are ribbon mighty quick, I'll be in your hair." 
 
 " Come, Pol, you be done ! " said the mother, " berhave 
 yersef, now the lady's slier, for land's sake, dew ; liar's yer 
 ribbon." Polly, having grasped it, exclaimed, with childish 
 delight, 
 
 " Now, ef thish sher haint putty ! I'll bet I'll dress up in 
 this sher bran new, brindled ribbon ivry day ; so much 
 crustymers an' men folks a cornin' an' a goin', a body haster 
 dress up mighty cranky;" and she fastened the tawdry thing 
 about her smutty neck with a thorn bush pin. 
 
 " I'll bet you won't dress up in that are nice, speckled 
 ribin, ivry day," said the mother, warmly. "Won't have 
 none such stravagincies in my huss, I -won't." 
 14
 
 cousin fbanck's bouskhou>. 
 
 •• I'll dew as I'm a mineter, I'll bet a jug lull, I will," ex- 
 claimed Polly, with an air of defiance 
 
 '• Wal, ef you hainl a staver, an' a witch, to boot!" ex- 
 claimed tin 1 mother, and turning to me, -> Now I don't spoze 
 our Pol cars nomore tor her mother, as lias raised her Qp an' 
 Dedicated her. an' gin her victuals an' whizkey ; — .-he don't 
 car no more lor me, than she do lor that ar cheer ; not a mite 
 nor a grain, she don't." Here the daughter began to whistle 
 by way of verifying her mother's word-. 
 
 The ehiKl Netty stood waiting, with the brown jug in her 
 purple, little hand, in her gentle, patient, but sensitive man- 
 ner — a strange contrast to the boisterous, uncouth creatures 
 of the whiskey hut. 
 
 " Ho, hum! I mus' be movin', an' till Dijah's jug." said 
 Grilsa Griffin, with a hideous yawn. u I spoze he'll squar 
 up a heap better now he's got the rich unV at his huss." 
 
 Netty had manifested much embarrassment on meeting me, 
 and as the whiskey woman made this rough allusion to her 
 father, she burst into tears. 
 
 '• What's marm said tew make yer whimper now, yer little 
 fool?" outspoke Polly, taking hold of her harshly, and >hak- 
 ing her. 
 
 '• Now. Pol," said the mother, "you leave that young un 
 'lone! be done shakin her rile sher afore thish slier lady!" 
 and, handing the jug she had just filled to the little girl, she 
 
 added. 
 
 "Make yersef sanrce, chillen aint wanted hare." 
 
 As Netty went out, I arose to go, notwithstanding the
 
 COUSIN franck's household. 159 
 
 very pressing invitation of Grilsa to stay a "piece," as she 
 wanted to talk a u heap." As I took Netty's hand in mine, 
 on our way home, she diffidently looked up in my face and 
 smiled through her tears. 
 
 "What made you cry?" I asked. 
 
 "I was 'fraid you wouldn't love us any more," replied 
 Netty. 
 
 I told her what Grilsa Griffin said would make no differ- 
 ence, and she seemed comforted. 
 
 During the morning the planter, Mr. R., came in his car- 
 riage, which he assured cousin Franck was at his service. 
 He also brought a note from Ruth, who it seems, had stopped 
 at his house on the way. It was directed to her parents, 
 beautifully written, and to the effect that she had undertaken 
 to help Robert and Fayett on their way to a place of safety ; 
 she begged they would forgive her seeming rashness, and sus- 
 pend judgment until her return, which would be in a few 
 days. 
 
 Mrs. Cameron proposed to her husband immediately to 
 pursue and bring back Ruth, and those she had taken under 
 her protection ; but he would not be persuaded to do so. He 
 said he had failed in his late expedition to recover Hannibal 
 and Rafe, and he was tired to death, and should be sick abed 
 were it not for her sad case, — and as to going on such an- 
 other " wild-goose chase," he'd be hung first. So there was 
 an end of the matter, and his wife now thinking of number- 
 less comforts at home for which the carriage must be imme-
 
 1G0 COUSIN rSANCK'S HOUSEHOLD. 
 
 diately despatched to Port Royal, it was proposed that I take 
 a furlough and accompany it. 
 
 On my arrival at Port Royal, I found Rosalie struggling 
 in a sea of troubles. 
 
 "I am so glad you have come, — I should not have sur- 
 vived another twenty-four hours, if you had not," she said, 
 as she kissed me on meeting. 
 
 " Why, what has happened ? How ill you look ! " 
 
 " And well I may," she replied ; " such trials of patience 
 as these aggravating servants are ! I have come home, duti- 
 fully to put things to rights, and these servants are the most 
 perverse things. Cleopatra is stubborn as a mule, and will 
 neither do one thing nor the other. She will have it, that 
 there is nothing for her to do when you and Ruth are away ; 
 besides, she says I can have no right to order her about, for 
 she is sold to the Doctor. And Mima, too, is as contrary as 
 she can live." 
 
 " She contrary ! How does that happen ? She isn't sold ? " 
 
 " Of course not," replied Rosalie, "and the aggravation of 
 it is, she is my own maid. I wish you would help me bring 
 her round, — if she will not hear to reason, she must be 
 severely dealt with, — there is no alternative." 
 
 "What is the difficulty?" I asked. 
 
 "The foolish thing got up an attachment for Hannibal," 
 replied Rosalie, -anil she makes ado enough to cry her eyes 
 out. We've lt> >t two servants, Juniper and Sim, from Willow 
 Creek, in the plan- of Hannibal and Rafe, and I tell her 
 she may have her choice. I am determined she shall marry
 
 cousin franck's household. 161 
 
 one of them, and forgot Hannibal. But the ungrateful thing 
 turns up her nose at them both ; she is full of her aristocratic 
 notions, because she has always been a house servant, and 
 they are mere tyros at the business. I feel injured and hurt 
 to have her abase my generosity in this way; but she 
 will find when I say a thing I am in earnest. Tilings 
 shall be put to rights now mamma is away. Mima shall 
 marry Juniper," and Rosalie's eyes flashed, and her little foot 
 came down with quite an emphatic stamp. In a moment she 
 added, "And what is more, Martha must quit thinking of 
 Rafe, and marry Sim." 
 
 I replied that time might work great changes in Mima's 
 feelings, — she might lose the image of Hannibal, and learn 
 to love his successor, Juniper. 
 
 " But she is to obey me, and do so at once," rejoined Rosa- 
 lie. " I am set on having her married to Juniper, and I will 
 not be put off in this matter." 
 
 Tbe veritable Juniper now came in, with a fawning, sim- 
 pering and insinuating air, bearing a hod of coal to replenish 
 the parlor fire, by which we were sitting. He was tall and 
 wiry, of three-quarters negro blood, slim, sleek and greasy; 
 and as supple and subtle as a snake. Indeed, he had the eye 
 of a very basilisk, and as I glanced at him and compared 
 him with the agreeable and handsome Hannibal, I did not 
 blame Mima, I pitied her from my heart. His hair was well 
 saturated with pomatum, and from his ears depended a pair 
 of very antiquated ear-rings, which the wearer seemed devo 
 14*
 
 1C2 cousin fbanck's household. 
 
 tcdly intent on keeping in motion by a jaunty and conse- 
 quential swaying of his head. A fancy-colored vest diversified 
 the somewhat threadbare apparel of this curious specimen of 
 a serving man. As he glided out in his noiseless slippers, 
 Rosalie looked at me and said, 
 
 " What think you of that piece of furniture ? Isn't he the 
 very pink of obsequiousness? and then so genteel in his 
 livery." 
 
 I replied that he certainly did look rather fanciful. 
 
 " Ah, I see you do not like his appearance," replied Rosa- 
 lie ; "believe me, coz, it's your Northern prejudice. He's 
 the finest looking servant I've seen in a long while ; then he 
 is so accomplished in serving, — he sets off our establishment, 
 giving us such an aristocratic air ! As for Mima, I've no 
 patience with the little jade, not to see the advantage of such 
 a match. We shall always keep Juniper, of course, and she 
 would not be troubled with the thought of separation." 
 
 *' Are you sure that Juniper has no wife ? " 
 
 " Why, no, my good little coz," replied Rosalie, laughing, 
 "I am sure of no stich thing. I know very well that he has 
 a wife at Willow Creek, and it isn't his first wife, neither. 
 But these servants, we make nothing of their marriages, — 
 we make them and break them at pleasure. Juniper has no 
 objection to having another wife, not he; he would not care 
 if he had half a dozen, — no trouble of maintaining them, you 
 perceive." 
 
 "I have do patience with a system that throws such con- 
 tempt on the institution of marriage," said I.
 
 COUSIN fbanck's household. 1G3 
 
 " 0, pshaw ! " exclaimed Rosalie, " not the least harm in 
 the world. The poor things are not accountable for their 
 loose notions of marriage, — they do not know any better, 
 and it would be useless to try to teach them better ideas of 
 it. Now Juniper looks as innocent as a sheep, but I really 
 suppose he killed his first wife." 
 
 "Why, Rosalie! killed her, and for what?" 
 
 " For no reason in the world, so far as I can make out, 
 except that she had more religion than he ; yes, I suppose 
 she was what you would call a sort of martyr. I will some- 
 time tell you all about it ; it would take too much time now. 
 There's a letter, stating particulars, about the house some- 
 where. I'll find it for you. It was written by Mrs. Briarly, 
 our housekeeper at Willow Creek, and is really very inter- 
 esting. Rut we say as little as possible about it ; we do 
 not want Juniper to know that we ever heard that he did 
 such a deed ; be is very valuable, and we cannot afford to 
 sell him to the nigger buyer, for punishment, and the whip- 
 ping-post would be of no kind of use for him. We keep the 
 matter from the servants here, but those at Willow Creek 
 have got hold of it." 
 
 " Juniper, then, is a murderer ! " 
 
 " O, no," replied Rosalie, " we do not employ so harsh a 
 term, — his crime is scarcely so bad as manslaughter." 
 
 It was late, and I went to my tea, and immediately after, 
 as I repaired to my room for the night, Rosalie called me into 
 hers, and rang for Mima, saying to me,
 
 164: cousin France's household. 
 
 "You just hear mc try to convince that little jade that 
 she should many Juniper, and you second the motion, that's 
 a good girl, please." 
 
 I had scarcely time to tell her that my conscience would 
 not permit me to do so, when Mima made her appearance. 
 
 "Well, Mima," said Rosalie, "I suppose you have huried 
 your old flame, — you're going to please mc and marry Juni- 
 per; here's Miss Pocahontas, she has come just in time to 
 see you married." 
 
 "I wish, Miss Rosalie, you'd please ter he done, I do," re- 
 plied Mima, in a pretty, pouting way. "I has my own 
 Btroublea to bar; it's mighty hard totin' urn 'bout, an' I wish 
 ter goodness you'd please ter quit teasin' me 'bout dat ar 
 dishagreeable Juniper. I wish he was furder, I do. I 
 wouldn't touch 'im wid a forty foot pole, indeed I wouldn't." 
 " I am in earnest," replied Rosalie ; if you do not put on a 
 pleasant face, and agree to do as I wish, to-morrow, you shall 
 be tied up, and Philip Augustus shall whip you for amuse- 
 ment." 
 
 " Please don't, Miss Rosalie ; I'll do any urrer ting you bid 
 me." 
 
 " Will you marry Sim ? " asked Rosalie. 
 "La sakes, Miss Rosalie, he so crump back — den he dat 
 ole, — he des' 'bout as ole he ken be. 'Pears like I'd marry 
 my drandfader when I'd marry Sim," said Mima. 
 
 " Just as I supposed," replied Rosalie, " all of a piece. It 
 is a miserable spirit of insubordination that possesses you,
 
 COUSIN fkanck's household. 1G5 
 
 and I shall curb it at once. You shall learn the lesson of 
 implicit obedience. You shall marry Juniper to-morrow." 
 
 "Indeed, Miss Rosalie, don't mention it, please," said poor 
 Mima, with tearful eyes; "couldn't think on't no ways. 
 Please tec b'lievemc; I wouldn't marry 'im ter save 'is life. 
 S'pose I tergrade mysef ter marry inter dat ar fam'ly ? Wy 
 hi ! Miss Rosalie, 'twouldn't be 'spec-table to me, an' 'twould 
 be mighty tegradin' ter you, have um say yer maid run down 
 hill ter marry Juniper Numby. I'd see 'im hung fust, dat I 
 would." 
 
 " Nonsense ! " exclaimed Rosalie. " "What do I care for 
 your aristocratic notions ? I see no difference between you 
 and Juniper ; he is a house servant, as well as yourself." 
 
 " I know all dat ar," replied Mima, " he huss sarvant, dat 
 is evident, but 'parently he's a mighty green 'and at de 
 business, he's a fiel' 'and ony 'bout a yar ago, an' 'is fam'ly is 
 des' no fam'ly 'tall ; all de Numbys is bound ter flat out, an' 
 turn ter notin', des' whar dey spring frum, dat is evident. 
 "Wouldn't speak ob 'em de same yar wid Hannibal." 
 
 "You silly jade!" exclaimed Rosalie, "you'll never set 
 eyes on Hannibal again, if you live to be as old as Methu- 
 saleh. He'll never come back, and if he does, he's sold to 
 the Doctor, and you won't see him." 
 
 Mima burst into tears, and sobbed violently, saying, bro- 
 kenly, 
 
 " Don't see how ken live, no ways ; never poor creatur 
 had such stroubles as I'se got."
 
 1G6 cousin franck's household. 
 
 << -y. 
 
 You shut up," replied Rosalie, "you're the silliest thing 
 alive. You do not know what is best for you, and without 
 any more ifs or ands you shall marry Juniper to-morrow, — 
 I will be obeyed." 
 
 Adieu, 
 
 Pocahontas.
 
 LETTER XI. 
 
 A MARRIAGE. 
 
 Port Royal, Va., Jan. 9, 18 — . 
 
 Dear S. — "Fine mornin' to travel," said Cleopatra, as 
 she came into my room the next morning, with " a turn of 
 wood." This was her usual salutation, — " Fine mornin' to 
 travel," — heing as common with her as "Good morning" 
 with other people. Warm or cold, wet or dry, it was all the 
 same to her — always a good morning to travel. She was 
 ever thinking, what a good time to set out, but never getting 
 courage enough to venture. 
 
 "Are you well this morning, Cleopatra?" I asked. 
 
 " Law no, Miss, I'se never well," she replied, in a de- 
 pressed tone. " I'se dat crumpt up wid 'matic pains, I don't 
 git no res' no way, an' den dare's my ear-ache ; thought I 
 done got shed ob it entirely, but it ache dat hard de bigger 
 part ob de night. Don't see what's Is'e good for no way — 
 Is'e dat ole, Miss, I 'spect I oughtenter been selld. I'se dat 
 crumpt up wid de reumatis I can't do much. Dat Doctor 
 made a losin' bargain on me, you may depend. Why hi ! I 
 ony des' creeps roun' now, an' de journey '11 intrude on my 
 constitution a heap, an' Is'e '11 be des' no use at all. De new 
 Massa '11 mark me ole an' useless, an' let me starve to death.
 
 168 cousin i uanck's household. 
 
 "I wist dey'd .1 let me .stayed an' died where I be," she 
 added sadly, after a pause. "I wouldn't stroubled 'em long; 
 I'se amosc worn out. It makes me feel so sick at my heart, 
 Btudyin' an' gwine way off from all my kin to de South. 
 Taint cole dare, but so miserable wet ; dey do say it damp 
 a- de mischief, an' what's I'se ter do arter all my fatigument, 
 gittin' the chills an' the agers a top 0' dat? I'se '11 shake 
 mightily gwine, I makes no matter o' doubt. I shall wish I 
 had suthhf warmin' ter drink, to strike de top of de chills so 
 dey can't git too strong a hold on me." 
 
 A bird alighting on the tree by my window, began to sing. 
 "I dun know what de birds want to sing for, dis cole morn- 
 in'," said Cleopatra, in the same dejected tone ; " if I was a 
 bird, I'd done stay hid in de leaves, an' never open my mouth 
 at all. 
 
 " Dis sher wood so 'bomible it wont burn, Miss," added 
 she, after sundry attempts at kindling it; "dare, it smoke. 
 I reckon it '11 burn when it git hot — 'pears like it mought. 
 
 " I dreamed 'bout my husband dat's dead an' gone, last 
 night, Miss; I dreamed lie was singing so pretty! 0, dat 
 pretty, you may depend, I was mighty sorry when I wake. 
 Dey say ef you dream of de dead, it's a sign o' rain. 
 
 " Don't see what dey wanter tote me way off dare for — 
 I'se had stroubles heaped on top o' stroubles all my life long, 
 an' I don'l have no drsirement to end off wid dis sher 
 strouble of bein' saunt [sent] off south, dat I don't ; I 'spect 
 ef I stayed, though, dey'd strike up some new strouble. ur 
 urrer ter interes' [disturb] me all my days. Dares Mima,
 
 cousin fraxck's household. 169 
 
 she an' I'sc had our little fallins out, an' now Fse gwine to 
 be saunt off, an' she's in strouble, I'se mighty sorry. I 
 pintedly telle! her I wouldn't marry dat ar Juniper to save 'is 
 life, an' dey mought make de mose of it. I makes no ad- 
 miration [wonder] dat Miss Rosalie is consarned to put tings 
 to rights for de fust time in her life, now mistress done gone, 
 but I don't see what besets her to marry Mima to that snake 
 in de grass. 
 
 " What's all dat noise down stars in de hall ? I should 
 admire to know ! " So saying, Cleopatra left my room. I 
 soon followed her, and directly found myself leaning over 
 the staircase balustrade, eyes and ears intent on witnessing 
 the singular scene below. 
 
 In the back part of the hall, near the door leading into the 
 kitchen yard, two chairs were placed opposite, about four 
 feet apart. A broom was laid across them, and there stood 
 Juniper, and poor Mima, while Rosalie, with burning cheeks 
 and flashing eyes, presided as master of ceremonies. 
 
 " When I say, now, you are both to jump," she said, very 
 emphatically ; then, in a louder voice, she uttered the signal 
 " now ! " At this Juniper sprang over the stick of matri- 
 mony with the agility of a cat, but Mima remained on the 
 other side. 
 
 " What's the reason you did not jump, you silly dunce ? " 
 exclaimed Rosalie, greatly vexed. " But you shall obey me ! 
 there, take that ! " and she boxed her ears with her slipper. 
 "You are my maid. I should like to know what right you 
 
 15
 
 170 cousin franck's household. 
 
 have to think for yourself in this matter or in any other ? 
 You must learn to know your place, — your mind is to he 
 implicitly subject to mine, and it shall he, if I have to whip 
 \(>n within an inch of your life to hreak you in." Mima was 
 silent, save crying as if her heart would break. 
 
 - Come, Juniper, try your luck again," said Rosalie ; and 
 this time, as the shrill "noiv" rang through the hall, the 
 mulatto caught his heartless bride, and bounded over the 
 stick as lightly as before. 
 
 '• AVell done!" exclaimed Rosalie, "that -was well done. 
 There, now you are married, Mima, and I hope you have 
 learned that I mean as I say." 
 
 " It's des' no marrying 'tall, to jump over de broomstick," 
 sobbed out Mima. 
 
 " You shut up ! It's better than you deserve. If you 
 had been willing and obedient, I designed to have made you 
 a pretty wedding in the parlor, and would have called the 
 clergyman in; but you were so stubborn that I was under 
 the necessity of substituting this way, which is quite as good 
 as any other for you servants, who are always being changed 
 about." 
 
 "Des' so, Miss Rosalie," simpered Juniper, "des' so, — de 
 common ran of servants would think 'cmselves mighty happy 
 to git as much marriage as dis slier." 
 
 ■• Vuii clar, you nippety and junipy, or what's your name?" 
 outspoke Cleopatra, who had stood at the bottom of the 
 Btairs, smothering her indignation till she could smother it 
 no longer. "I makes free to tell you des' what I tinks, —
 
 cousin franck's household. 171 
 
 you is a sly, durable vilyun, an' Miss Rosalie '11 find you out 
 some ob dese yer times." 
 
 Juniper's eyes snapped, and Rosalie, with a tried and 
 anxious air, said, 
 
 " O, you quit this nonsense, Cleopatra; I'm tired to death 
 putting the house to rights, I am, indeed. I wish my heart 
 you were all landed in Africa." 
 
 " I aint gwine to Africa," replied Cleopatra, warmly, 
 " 'cause I'se bred an bornd here ; I aint gwine to Africa, ef 
 I'se as free as a frog, I aint gwine. If all my forefaders 
 done staid dare, den I shouldn't know anyting 'bout dis sher 
 country, an' now I doesn't prefar to know anyting 'bout dat." 
 
 " Cleopatra thinks they eat people thei*e, Miss Rosalie," 
 suggested Juniper, with a sneer. " I reckon dare be right 
 smart too many niggers dare for my use, entirely, — I should 
 miss de society of de white folks mose 'mazingly." 
 
 " You hush ! " exclaimed Cleopatra, " I dun know who 
 want's to hear you gobble, gobble, gobble." 
 
 "Were there ever such quarrelsome servants?" said 
 Rosalie. " I wish to goodness you were all in Africa." 
 
 " An' if you was dare, too," replied Cleopatra, " my 'thor- 
 ity ud be des' as high as yourn, — not a bit bigger nor a bit 
 less." 
 
 " Be done this moment ! " exclaimed Rosalie ; " you are 
 enough to try the patience of Job." 
 
 " O, Job, indeed," retorted Cleopatra, with unheard of in- 
 dependence, " Job couldn't make no headway 'tall, in dis sher
 
 172 cousin fkaxck's household. 
 
 time?, — his patience clean gone entirely by <le stroublesoine 
 people. Bresa de Lord, he don't live in dis sher days." 
 
 " Be done with your nonsense, I say," exclaimed Rosalie, 
 stamping her foot. " You think yourself cpiite sure of get- 
 ting to heaven at last, I dare say, but you'll find yourself 
 mightily mistaken." 
 
 " It's hard tellin' who'll go to heaven," replied Cleopatra, 
 "but I reckon if sich as you go, I'll stand a good chance, 
 I'se a poor, sick, ole slave woman, an' I'se got to be saunt 
 way off from all my kin, an' afore I go I will have my say. 
 Des' as true as de sun is travellin' into de ilement, we shall 
 both have ter go before dat great Judge, an' you won't have 
 ter give 'count for me, nor I for you, — but you'll have ter 
 give 'count how you've used me." 
 
 " I, what have I done to harm you ? " asked Rosalie, in 
 surprise. 
 
 "What's you hasn't done, dem of your color's done," 
 replied Cleopatra, sternly. "'Twas your kin dat did it. 
 Dey weard out my poor husband into de grave, an' dey made 
 me ole when I was young, an' dey's always a tormentin' us 
 poor slaves, a tearin' us 'way from each other every wich 
 way, an' a saundin' us off to de rice swamps to die. All 
 dese ere things '11 be inquared into at de judgment ; dey'll 
 all be 'membered." 
 
 "Preach to me, indeed," exclaimed Rosalie; "who ever 
 heard of such impudence? I'll not bear it any longer; I'll 
 send word to the Doctor to have him take you away this 
 very day."
 
 cousin franck's household. 173 
 
 Prince, the cook, now opened the door, bringing in break- 
 fast, followed by Martha, hearing the coffee, and Rosalie 
 added, " Go to your morning work, every one of you ; " then, 
 turning to come up stairs, she, caught sight of me, and as she 
 joined me, affecting a gay laugh, she said, 
 
 " You must have been very much edified. I never was so 
 vexed in my life. And what a prospect I have before me, 
 as the mistress of servants ! I make sure I shall be aggra- 
 vated to death with their mulish way-." 
 
 "I would rid myself of such a burden and responsibility 
 by freeing them at once," I replied. 
 
 "You would; perhaps so — but you would be liable to 
 change your mind, if you had people in possession. The 
 love of power is sweet — nothing can be compared to it. 
 AVho covets to be nobody and nothing, without riches and 
 station ? I am frank to own, I do not. And yet if I was 
 constituted like Ruth, who seems to take pleasure in self- 
 denial, I do not doubt I should be far happier to have nothing 
 to do witli owning servants. I should not get so horridly 
 tried and aggravated." 
 
 " Can you tell me," I asked, " why it is that those who own 
 servants get so 'horridly tried' with them, when they are 
 amiable and long-suffering towards all other living beings ? " 
 
 " Why, no, coz, I do not know as I can, but it is a fact," 
 replied Rosalie. " Now I am not bad-tempered, you know I 
 am not; yet when I attempt to regulate perverse servants, a 
 fierce and ugly temper possesses me, and I feel sometimes as 
 if I could kill them outright. It is vastly uncomfortable, I 
 15*
 
 174 cousin franck's household. 
 
 assure you, and then I feel so wretchedly afterwards. I 
 feel now as if I could cry all day, and I abhor the very thought 
 of Cleopatra and Mima." 
 
 " I believe it has been truly said," I replied, " that the 
 love of power is perhaps the strongest human passion. It 
 intoxicates the mind just as alcohol does the body ; hence 
 you are not yourself when you attempt to regulate your 
 servants." 
 
 " I should do very well," Rosalie rejoined, " if the servants 
 had no wills of their own — if they would only take my will 
 in the place of their own, I should feel amiable enough." 
 
 " And does not the fact that they have rational wills of 
 their own indicate that they ought not to be degraded from 
 the rank of persons to things ? " 
 
 " Indeed, I do not know ; I am worried to death, and my 
 head aches. There's the breakfast bell, — come, let us go." 
 "We breakfasted in silence, and the topic of the morning 
 was not again broached until mid-day, when I sought Rosalie, 
 thinking she might be rested, and that possibly I might in- 
 fluence her to reverse her severe decision respecting Cleo- 
 patra. 
 
 After a little unimportant chat Rosalie introduced the 
 subject of my thoughts by saying, 
 
 " I do believe you Northerners think us slaveholders the 
 crnelesi people the world ever saw." 
 
 "O, no, indeed," I replied; "we think you are a remark- 
 ably kind people, considering the circumstances in which you 
 are placed. You are legally endowed with the most arbitrary
 
 cousin fkanck's household. 175 
 
 power over a large class of human beings, and as the history 
 of all ages will testify, the exercise of this power is corrupt- 
 ing to the finest emotions of the heart, and leads directly to 
 cruelty. Just follow down the records of history, and see 
 what have been the results of arbitrary power. Almost in- 
 variably has the despot distinguished himself by venting his 
 ill-will on those beneath him, by some inhuman or atrocious 
 deed. It is natural that those who injure others without 
 cause, should hate them, and one injury only paves the way 
 for another." 
 
 " But we are proverbially kind to our slaves ; we make it 
 a point to treat them well," replied Rosalie. 
 
 " I do not doubt it," was my reply ; " it is not the abuse 
 of the system. we complain of, it is its xise — the natural 
 workings of the system. It is the denying that men, women 
 and children are persons ; it is the undoing what God has 
 done in giving them souls, and transforming them into 
 chattels. This is the great evil, compared with which the 
 incidental cruelties of the system are hardly worthy of a 
 thought." 
 
 " You may be right, for aught I know to the contrary," 
 replied Rosalie, " but what are we to do ? They are entailed 
 upon us, are valued at so much, and if we free them we must 
 part with our fortunes and become penniless. You cannot 
 expect us to do that. Mamma calls it a dispensation of 
 Providence, to which we do well to submit." 
 
 " I have one favor to ask of you," said I, " and that is,
 
 17G cousin branck's household. 
 
 that you will not report Cleopatra to the Doctor, and thus 
 hurry her away from us." 
 
 •• Ah, you are too late, — I despatched a note to the Doc- 
 tor immediately after breakfast, and have received his reply. 
 He is sick with the influenza; his drover will he along this 
 afternoon to take Cleopatra in charge." 
 
 " O, is it possible ? " I exclaimed, — " I am so disappointed, 
 — I do not feel as if I could have it so." 
 
 "You seem to forget the aggravations of the morning very 
 easily," replied Rosalie, with a displeased air. -If I did not 
 make her an example by this decisive step, what could I do 
 with the rest of the servants? It is absolutely necessary in 
 the circumstances." 
 
 I returned to my room in despair. Cleopatra was there 
 weeping bitterly ; how bitterly none may know save those 
 who can put their soul in her soul's stead. Need I tell you 
 that I threw my arms about her neck, and wept with her as 
 if she had been my own mother? After a long interval of 
 bursting grief, she uttered, 
 
 " God will bless you. Miss, for dis sher kin'ness to one of 
 his little ones. It help res' my poor, broken heart. Can't 
 you read me a good, stn-ngthenin' Psalm afore I go?" And 
 a- I read portions of the Psalms dictated in the depths of 
 affliction and oppression, Cleopatra would now and then ex- 
 claim, at a pas 
 
 "Dare, now, how good! des' as I feel at my heart." At 
 last, as I closed the book. -]■.■■ burst out anew, sobbing, "If I 
 could ony read. Mi—, like you, and had dat book to tote mid
 
 cousix franck's HOUsEUOLD. 177 
 
 me, I wouldn't rally gwine so much ; but I'se got no such 
 comfort. I'se done been robbed of every chance to larn ; de 
 Bible isn't for me in my sorror." 
 
 I tried to comfort her, by telling her that the compassion- 
 ate Saviour knew all this, and he would be very gracious to 
 her in her great affliction. Then, kneeling together, we 
 prayed to him. Sweet, heavenly moments ! I can never 
 forget them. 
 
 As we arose from prayer, Cleopatra said, 
 " 'Pears like I ken bear it all, if ony de Lord Jesus be wid 
 me." 
 
 Mima now came in, weeping. She had been listening at 
 the door. Cleopatra caught her in her arms and kissed her, 
 saying, " Don't you lay up de hard tings I'se said, an' promise 
 me you will love de Lord Jesus." 
 
 "I'll done try, I will," replied the poor girl, still weeping. 
 " It's de ony comfort us poor slaves has," continued Cleo- 
 patra, " an' you'll find him dot pitiful ! " 
 
 The Doctor's drover now came with the carryall, and 
 Cleopatra must go. Half a dozen slaves were already col- 
 lected in the vehicle, and with Cleopatra they were to be 
 taken to a plantation at some distance, and from thence, with 
 a large reinforcement, perform the long journey on foot, being 
 well ironed with manacles, and attached, two abreast, to the 
 infamous coffle. 
 
 Adieu, 
 
 Pocahontas.
 
 LETTER XII. 
 
 THE HOUSEKEEPER INCIDENTS. 
 
 Port Royal, Va., Feb. 12, 18—. 
 
 Dear S. — I hasten to remove your apprehensions respect- 
 ing my unwonted silence. I have indeed been ill, as you sur- 
 mise ; but am now, however, rapidly convalescing, indeed, am 
 almost well. I ride out daily, and am delighted with the 
 balmy air, mild sky, and the indications of an early spring. 
 
 Rosalie has been very attentive during my illness, and has 
 allowed Mima to be with me almost constantly, at no trilling 
 inconvenience to herself. Poor Mima ! she is the image of 
 despair, — looking so sad and heart-broken! Rosalie has no 
 patience with her, and says she is wilful. 
 
 Mrs. Briarly, the "Willow Creek housekeeper, was sent for 
 the next week after Cleopatra left, as Rosalie found the care 
 too great for her health. The latter insists that my sickness 
 was caused by brooding over the fate of Cleopatra, and, in- 
 deed, by her frequent reference to the poor slave, it would 
 seem that uneasy thoughts arc not entire strangers to her 
 own mind. 
 
 " What an idea ! " she exclaimed this morning, in my 
 room, " that object's telling me we shall meet at the judg- 
 ment! Impudent, wasn't it?"
 
 
 cousin franck's household. 179 
 
 '•I suppose she spoke the Bimple truth," I replied. 
 
 "You do? Then you think our servants have real, bona 
 fide soul- ! " 
 
 "Certainly, I have not a doubt that they have souls as 
 really as ourselves." 
 
 " Well, if I really thought so," replied Rosalie, musingly, 
 " it would spoil all my pleasure in owning, servants. But I 
 do not believe people generally think so. Here, just let me 
 read this advertisement in the North Carolina Standard: 
 
 "'Twenty Dollars Reward. — Ran away from the 
 subscriber, a negro woman and two children ; the woman is 
 tall and black, and a few days before she went off I burnt her 
 with a hot iron on the left side of her face ; I tried to make 
 the letter M, and she kept a cloth over her head and face, and 
 a fly bonnet on her head, so as to cover the burn ; her chil- 
 dren are both boys ; the oldest is in his seventh year ; he is 
 a mulatto, and has blue eyes ; the youngest is black, and is in 
 his fifth year. The woman's name is Betty, commonly called 
 Bet. Micajah Ricks. 
 
 "'Nash County, , 18—.' 
 
 " There, does that look as if people believed the blacks had 
 souls?" 
 
 "It certainly does not," I replied. "One would hardly 
 wish a dog treated so brutally." 
 
 " Certainly not," replied Rosalie ; " but, coz, I hope you'll
 
 180 cousin franck's household. 
 
 remember we Virginians do not indulge in such cruelty. 
 But see this, in the "Wilmington Advertiser: 
 
 " ' $100 will be paid to any person who may apprehend and 
 safely confine in any jail in this State, a certain negro man, 
 named Alfred. And the same reward will be paid, if satis- 
 factory evidence is given of his having been killed. lie has 
 one or more scars on one of his hands, caused by his having 
 been shot. The Citizens of Onslow.' 
 
 " And here's another like it, directly under it : 
 
 "' Ran away, my negro man, Richard. A reward of 
 will be paid for his apprehension, DEAD or alive. Satisfac- 
 tory proof will only be required of his being killed. He 
 has with him, in all probability, his wife, Eliza, who ran away 
 from Col. Thompson, now a resident of Alabama, about the 
 time he commenced his journey to that State. 
 
 DURANT H. RnODES.' 
 
 " Yes, yes, they are brutes fast enough," said Rosalie, " if 
 public opinion is any criterion in the case. In fact, coz, no 
 one thing could undermine our domestic institution faster 
 than the thought thai our slaves really have souls." 
 
 "As inconsistent as such a belief may seem with their 
 pracl ice," I ansv ered, " yet there can be no doubt our Southern 
 friends admit thai their servants have souls; but it dues seem 
 as if this thought, if seriously dwelt on, would, as you say,
 
 COUSIN' FEANGK-'g HOD8EHOLD. 181 
 
 undermine tlie whole system. For if they have souls, they 
 should not be treated as brutes. If they have souls, they are 
 moral and accountable beings ; God is their Sovereign, and 
 no one can with impunity come between Him and them. 
 If they have souls, to them belong the offers of salvation, 
 — for them Christ died, and they are as dear to him as any 
 others of our fallen race. If they have souls, how fearful to 
 withhold from them the "Word of God, and cause them to 
 grope their way in darkness down to the gates of death and 
 eternal sorrow." 
 
 " Do not moralize, please," said Rosalie. " I do not wish 
 to think they have souls. It only increases the difficulty to 
 think so, for, if we are ever so conscientious in the matter, we 
 cannot emancipate them unless we send them from the State, 
 or colonize them. I see no other way than to put all scruple 
 aside and live as we have lived." 
 
 At this moment who should come bustling in, but Isabel 
 T., the Senator's daughter. 
 
 " I've run in to tell you," she said, " that papa and I are 
 going to Grove Hill the day after to-morrow, and we wish 
 you to accompany us ; you will go, won't you ? " addressing 
 Rosalie and myself. 
 
 Rosalie replied that she should be too much engaged to 
 
 leave. 
 
 " But Pocahontas is going," said Isabel ; " I've promised 
 myself so all along- You are so much engaged, Rosalie," she 
 continued, " pray, what so occupies you ? Bring your work 
 along with you." 
 
 16 

 
 182 COUSIN frakce'b household. 
 
 "Curious work it is," returned Rosalie, laughing ; "if you 
 must know, it's match-making. I'm going to marry Sim to 
 Martha." 
 
 "Pshaw, Rosalie!" exclaimed Isabel, "I wouldn't be 
 guilty of such a thing! Do leave the poor things alone. 
 What ! many old uncle Sim to young and sprightly Martha ! 
 Why, she is mourning for Rafe, yet. What do you suppose 
 Mr. Mackintosh would say, if he knew it?" 
 
 " Why, to tell the truth," responded Rosalie, with her usual 
 frankness, " I had pleasing him in my eye when I first planned 
 it. You know when I was at Mrs. Gen. Ringgold's, he told 
 me he fancied that I knew just nothing at all about house- 
 keeping. I took it as a challenge, and ever since I've been 
 studying to have it seen that I am a manager, and that the 
 servants are to stand around when I am at home. I have 
 only half completed my plans, — Juniper is married to Mima, 
 and Uncle Sim shall marry Martha." 
 
 " Begging your pardon, friend Rosalie," said Isabel, " I do 
 think your idea of housekeeping most ridiculous ! Why, you 
 seem to forget what housekeeping consists in, — that it is 
 simply to carry the keys, and give out tilings from the store- 
 room ! It has nothing whatever to do with arranging the 
 servant's domestic relations." 
 
 "O, you quit instructing me, Bel," exclaimed Rosalie, pet- 
 tishly ; " you'll be bringing in your tuition bill, by and by. I 
 understand what I am about." 
 
 " I beg pardon." said [sabel, a little hurt, " but you will go 
 with us, please, — I've just received a letter from Ruth, via 
 
 \
 
 COUSIN FRANCIt'S HOUSEHOLD. 183 
 
 Grove Hill, informing me that she will visit me on her way 
 home. She i^ now recruiting her health at her uncle's in 
 Lexington." 
 
 "I positively will not go," replied Kosalie, " if Ruth is to 
 be there. I have no sympathy with her incendiary move- 
 ments, indeed I have not. I will not see my crazy sister at 
 present, — disgracing us all, and making herself ridiculous, 
 offending against the laws of good taste, genteel society, and 
 the laws of the State, even. I've no patience with her." 
 
 "O, never mind, Rosalie," said Isabel, gently, "people can 
 no more think alik^e than they can look alike. But dear, 
 good Ruth almost converts me every time I see her; as Fer- 
 dinand says, her theory is a very plausible one. But I must 
 go; — I have to take leave of friends and prepare for my 
 journey. The jaunt will be of great service to you, Pocahon- 
 ,tas ; I shall make sure of you, for I have your promise, 
 and I am hoping that Rosalie will change her mind and ac- 
 company us." 
 
 " But we ought to consult Mr. and Mrs. Cameron," said I. 
 
 " O, that has been done," replied Isabel ; " when papa and 
 I visited them, I proposed it, and they approved." and in a 
 moment the lively girl was gone. 
 
 Mrs. Briarly came in soon after, with her key basket on 
 her arm ; but I must introduce her by a brief description. 
 She is somewhat short and thick, almost dumpy ; in looks she 
 is a paradox — 'homely, yet handsome. Her eyes, nose and 
 mouth cluster a little too near the centre of her face, but then 
 a peaceful, kind and genial expression lights up her features,
 
 184 cousin fkanck's household. 
 
 and deludes you into the idea that they are really beautiful. 
 Her face is like a glass placed over her heart, and you feel 
 that a single glance is sufficient to enable you to read her 
 character. 
 
 She has come to occupy quite a place in my affections, and 
 Mima tells me that the good lady " sets a heap of store by 
 me." Her sympathies, like tendrils, run out towards every 
 living thing, particularly if there is any suffering or depriva- 
 tion in the case ; and my own dear mother could not have 
 watched over me with more careful solicitude than has kind 
 Mrs. Briarly. 
 
 On this slave question she is the most enlightened person 
 I have met, not even excepting Ruth, — having the result of 
 forty years' observation and experience of the workings of 
 the system, stored away with her common-sense reflections in 
 her active brain. 
 
 When I inquired of her respecting the tragical affair at 
 "Willow Creek, the tears started into her eyes, and it was with 
 some effort that she commanded her voice to reply. 
 
 •'' It is quite a little history from the first," she said. " I 
 must begin by telling you something about one who was very 
 dear to me. When I became housekeeper at Willow Creek, 
 among the young servants put under my care to train for 
 house service, was a pretty, quiet child, of great beauty, 
 named Jane. She was delicate and sensitive, of wonderful 
 quickness of perception, and from my first acquaintance with 
 her seemed overwhelmned with the thought that she was a 
 slave. It was not that she had been harshly treated — she 

 
 COUSIN FKANOK'S HOUSEHOLD. 185 
 
 had been used as tenderly as any other slave, but, although 
 only eight years old, she felt the galling chain crushing the 
 blithesomeness of childhood. And in place of the frolic and 
 play suited to her years, she had the air of a mature, sedate, 
 and reflecting little woman. I took her into my heart, poor 
 dove thai Bhe was, and cherished her with a mother's love, 
 for I found her an orphan, her mother having died of grief 
 when her father was sold. 
 
 "I taught her day by day, and -oon she could read to me, 
 and could sew skilfully. She excelled in whatever she did, 
 and was so sweet and winning that my life became bound up 
 in hers. I used to think, if I could know that she was a 
 Christian, I should be happy. I knew that, being a slave, 
 she could not look forward to earthly comfort, and hence I 
 was the more anxious that she should make sure of eternal 
 life, and store treasures in the heavens. But in this I was 
 for a long time disappointed. She was all gentleness, and 
 very attentive to what I said ; she read her Bible daily, as I 
 requested, but slavery was the stumbling block, — she could 
 not get reconciled to her fate. 
 
 " At length, when she was grown, Juniper was sent on from 
 the North Carolina plantation. His ingenuity, craftiness and 
 address soon won for him a situation as house servant, al- 
 though he had a bad name on the plantation South. 
 
 " As soon as he saw Jane he seemed resolved to have her 
 
 for his wife; but I could not think of it, and watched and 
 
 warned her accordingly. But my vigilance was useless, and 
 
 my advice disregarded. My darling, on whom I so much 
 
 1G*
 
 18b COUSIN FRAXCK S HOUSEHOLD. 
 
 doted, who had for so many years nestled in my heart, she 
 who had ever heen so gentle and yielding, for once was firm ; 
 she was fascinated — she could hear me no longer in listen- 
 ing to the marriage proposals of Juniper. 
 
 " I never fully gave my consent, and when she became his 
 wife, it was like the shadowings of death to me ; I felt that 
 my bird had fallen into the snare of the fowler and I could 
 only forebode evil. 
 
 " It was not long before the insinuating Juniper treated her 
 unkindly, and proved himself a tyrant. Then it was that 
 poor Jane sought me in her grief and heart-brokenness, and 
 wept in my bosom. She felt how bitter a tlung it was to be 
 the sha'e of a slave! 
 
 "But the new grief, so grievous to be borne, sent her to 
 the Saviour, and in him she found peace. Juniper was al- 
 most beside himself with rage, when he found that his beau- 
 tiful young wife was a Christian, and he swore he would root 
 her religion out of her. I tried to shield her from the storm, 
 and in my presence the wily man would make very fair pre- 
 tenses, while the enmity was all the while rankling in his 
 heart — for as soon as he had an opportunity unperceived, 
 he would heat and torment his poor wife most cruelly. She 
 could not give up her religion, and he grew worse and worse. 
 He had been managed by an ov< rseer who was eminently a 
 man of blood, and, in his imitative zeal, must r< sort to Woody 
 measures to gratify his hate. He threatened his wife, if he 
 found her praying within the week, it should be at the pari] 
 of her life. But poor Jane could not forego her sweet sea-
 
 cousin fkanck's household. 187 
 
 sons of communion with her compassionate heavenly Friend, 
 whom she had so recently found, whom she loved with all the 
 ardor of a first love. Like the Hebrew captive, she sought 
 Him as before. 
 
 " One day I missed her, and her long and unaccountable 
 absence awakened my worst fears. Almost frantic, I rushed 
 here and there, and aroused all the servants in the search. 
 At length we found her hidden in the garden shrubbery, 
 under the thick branches of a yew. She had been strangled 
 for her faithfulness to her Saviour. Juniper was nowhere to 
 be seen. The next morning, however, he made his appear- 
 ance, as smiling and flippant as if nothing had happened. He 
 is fearfully hardened in his wickedness, and it is not safe to 
 have him at large. But my darling, martyred Jane, she is 
 at rest in heaven. 
 
 "I have always felt," said Mrs. Briarly, "that I would 
 have no part nor lot in this matter. I will not own servant-. 
 My father had a great many slave-, and I could have had a 
 portion of his personal property, had I chosen it, but I pre- 
 ferred a life of toil and poverty. At my request, he emanci- 
 pated and sent to Africa some of the servants that would 
 have fallen to me, — he would not be persuaded to free all of 
 them. 
 
 " I was then young, scarcely of age, and yet I had a perfect 
 loathing of the system. O, thrice happy the land free from 
 this curse ! But to see the system and its workings, one 
 must put himself in the place of the slave, and make his de- 
 privations and sufferings his own. O, I have seen so much,
 
 188 COUSIN FU.VNClv's HOUSEHOLD. 
 
 50 much to make me heart-sick of slavery ! " and Mrs. Briarly 
 paused and looked very sad. 
 
 " Will you please tell me some of the things you have 
 seen ? " I asked. 
 
 " I scarcely know where to hegin," she replied. " But 
 you would suppose that professing Christians, or, at least, the 
 ambassadors of Christ, would be patterns of kindness in their 
 treatment of slaves." 
 
 " Certainly," said I, " one would suppose that they would 
 seek to mitigate, as far as possible, the evils naturally inci- 
 dent to the system, and render the lot of their poor, black 
 brethren as comfortable as was consistent with their condi- 
 tion." 
 
 " So far as my observation extends," replied Mrs. Briarly, 
 u this is far from being the case. For instance, there is the 
 clergyman of the parish in which I passed my childhood. 
 He was poor, having only his salary and the use of the par- 
 sonage. He did not own any servants, but hired four, — a 
 cook, two housemaids, and a man servant. His wife was a 
 model, every one said, and yet she was ever ready to find 
 some occasion of complaint against her servants, and would 
 exasperate her husband to punish them for the most trivial 
 offences. 
 
 " One day, finding a little flour and dough left in the bot- 
 tom of the bread-pan, she flew into a violent passion at what 
 she called the waste of the cook, and belabored her with the 
 keenest reproaches, and as soon as her husband returned 
 home, hastened to fill his ears with the heinous offence of the
 
 COTJ3IH FBANCK'S HOUSEHOLD. 189 
 
 poor cook, and the consequence was, that lie took her aside, 
 and cruelly whipped her with a cowhide, saving, he'd cut her 
 all to pieces, he would. This was a common threat with 
 him. His poor servants used to say of him, that he whipped 
 worse than an overseer. They were in constant terror, 
 dreading to offend him. 
 
 " On one occasion, his servant having drawn a pail of 
 water, at the request of a neighhor's servant, who was lame 
 with the rheumatism, he whipped him severely, exclaiming, 
 
 " ' Your mistress has spoilt you. I'll teach you not to be 
 a gentleman ; you've run gentleman long enough.' 
 
 " And yet one could rarely find more amiable, affable and 
 generous people in their intercourse with their parishioners, 
 than were this clergyman and his lady. There is, I am con- 
 fident of it, something in the very nature of the system, which 
 petrifies the kindly emotions of the heart, in dealing with the 
 slaves. I do not fully understand it, but persons who are 
 kind even to brutes, often prove perfect tyrants towards their 
 oppressed brethren. They are elegant and accomplished, 
 often, overflowing in hospitality to those of their own rank, 
 and engaged in the enterprise of religion, but complete des- 
 pots in their little realm. 
 
 "As to myself, I know that my native disposition is, on the 
 whole, kind and sympathizing, but I have always been afraid 
 to trust myself to be a slave owner, in view of such exam- 
 ples ; I have feared that I should be even more despotic and 
 cruel."
 
 190 cousin franck's household. 
 
 " But this clergyman and his wife did not own slaves," 
 said I. 
 
 "It was all the same," rejoined Mrs. Briarly ; — "they 
 were slaveholders at heart, and did in fart purchase slaves 
 as soon as they were ahle. I used to reason, if such people, 
 with all their excellent qualities and Christian principle, 
 were so perverted by slavery, how must it affect me ? Such 
 were my convictions on the subject, that it seemed to me that 
 I could not be saved if I had aught to do with it." 
 
 " But you have servants under you, and unavoidably have 
 a great deal to do with them," I said. 
 
 "Yes, but it is not from choice — I will not partake in the 
 spoils of slavery — I will not be enriched by them. I merely 
 have food and clothing for my supervision, and it is my daily 
 prayer that in all my intercourse with the slaves, I may win 
 the approbation of Him whose mission to this world provided 
 so wondrously for the poor and the suffering. 
 
 " But there is no part of the system," she continued, " more 
 cruel than the trade in slaves. Here all the ties of kindred 
 and affection are disregarded, and the poor creatures are torn 
 asunder as if they were indeed brutes. A neighbor of my 
 father's had a house servant of great sprightliness and intelli- 
 gence. Her mistress made a companion of her, and they 
 appeared more like intimate Christian friends, than mistress 
 and servant. When a young lady, I often used to take my 
 needlework and run in and sit with them as they chatted and 
 sewed in the little parlor. 
 
 " One day I was thus sitting with Mrs. S., the lady, and
 
 COUSIN l'llVM k's household. 191 
 
 Rachel the servant, — the babe of the latter was playing on 
 the floor at her feet, — when a rap was heard at the door. 
 Rachel ran to the door, and in bustled a business man in a 
 pilot cloth pea-jacket, — a soul driver, with the evcr-at-hand 
 cowhide. He had a bill of sale, which he handed to Mrs. S. 
 Rachel knew that it was all over with her — that she was 
 destined for the Southern market, and tell senseless on the 
 floor. Mrs. S. hung over her in an agony of solicitude, using 
 means for her restoration; and when she was brought back 
 to a consciousness of her dreadful fate, both mistress and ser- 
 vant wept in each other's arms. 
 
 " The drover curled his lip in contempt, as he saw the sin- 
 gular affection manifested for the doomed woman by the lov- 
 ing Mrs. S. 
 
 " ' O, Rachel, I cannot have you go ! ' she exclaimed. ' O, 
 my God, let this cup pass ! ' 
 
 " ' Don't, mistress, don't take on so ! ' said poor Rachel ; 
 'you break my heart — it doubles my grief to have you weep 
 so. You'll be mother to little Henry, I know,' she added, in 
 her paroxysm of sobbing, as she took up her babe and kissed 
 it again and again. ' O, must I leave him forever ? ' and her 
 bursting heart choked her utterance. 
 
 "' Come, come,' said the man, gruffly, 'the sooner ye stop 
 this ere tune, the better. You may as well know, miss, yer 
 ole man is bankrupt, an' has been obleeged ter sell this ere 
 woman. Come, be a movin',' said he to Rachel, at the same 
 time giving his cowhide a threatening gesture. In vain Mrs. 
 S. pleaded that he let her remain one day longer, that she
 
 192 COUSIN' I i: AN<K.'s HOUSEHOLD. 
 
 might take leave of her husband, and prepare for the jour- 
 ney. 
 
 " ' Couldn't possibly do't,' said the drover ; ' no ohject. I's 
 got my gang all made out, an' I'm in a monstrous hurry. 
 Besides Miss, all your indulgin' '11 ony make matters wuss. 
 She won't git no sugar tits with me, — but I'll tell her what, 
 she'll git a wallopin' with this ere cowskin, if she makes a 
 fuss. 
 
 " ' Don't make her budget too big, marm,' added he, as 
 Mrs. S. was putting up some little comforts for Rachel; 
 'she'll hafter travel right smart, an' I can't afford to have her 
 tote much ! ' 
 
 '■ Meanwhile Rachel nursed her babe for the last time, 
 sobbing in her broken-heartedness, her tears fast falling on 
 the little creature's chubby cheek. 
 
 " ' O, if I could only see my husband before I go ! ' mur- 
 mured she at length. 
 
 " ' Come, come,' said the man, ' I'm out of all manner of 
 patience with these ere blubberin' works. Bless my soul 
 and body ! we never shall git off at this rate. Down with 
 that child, you lazy wench, and come along!' and, suiting 
 the action to the word, he gave her a cut across her cheek 
 witli his whip. Poor Rachel put down her babe, gazed at it 
 a moment with a loving look of grief too deep for tears or ut- 
 terance even, then, taking her little bundle, tied up in a 
 Checked cotton handkerchief, she passively followed the 
 dro\ 
 
 "Now, this is only one case out of thousands; just reflect
 
 COUSIN IKANClv'S HOUSEHOLD. U'-'J 
 
 that thirty and forty thousand slaves have been sold from this 
 State alone, in a single year! Such scenes of heart-rending 
 woe may be said to be of daily, yes, hourly occurrence "with 
 us. Think you I would own a slave, ami run the fearful risk 
 of horridly trading in flesh and blood? But we need not go 
 far to witness scenes of suffering caused by the sale of slaves," 
 she continued; "you have not forgotten Cleopatra' . — 
 
 indeed, you were so absorbed in it, you knew very little of 
 the griefs of Prince and Pomp at the time they were sun- 
 dered. Come with me to the servants' prayer meeting to- 
 night, — it will do us good to hear them pray. "We must 
 keep our hearts alive by constant vigilance, or a stupor will 
 creep over us in spite of every principle of philanthropy and 
 religion." 
 
 I gladly acceded to the proposal, and at the deep twilight 
 hour we sought Martha's cabin. It was nearly fdled ; and 
 finding a seat in the corner by the door, we seemed to be un- 
 observed. 
 
 There once more I saw blind Joseph, sitting near Martha 
 and her frolicksome baby. Pate's place was vacant; it 
 aied as if each forebore taking it, remembering how his 
 soul was bowed down and crushed when last he sat there at 
 the hour of prayer. Prince was there, looking depressed 
 and desolate, and, as before, it was the office of the good old 
 patriarch to speak words of consolation. 
 
 "De days will not alius be dark wid 'dictions, chillun," 
 said he, " 'pend on it, if you belong to de fold of de good 
 Shepherd, dare'll be a time of great joy. I knows, 'pears 
 17
 
 194 cousin ikanck's household. 
 
 like dat time greal while comin', an' sometimes we be ready- 
 to give up an' say it wont neber come; but it will come; de 
 Lord will done gader his people dat dry may lib wid him an' 
 go no more out foreber. An' you fine some res' now in tellin' 
 him your stroubles, an' in larnin' of him, a^.' he done give 
 you peace when you done trust hi him, like de little chillun 
 trustm' in deir fader an' moder. Dis sher is ony a little sip 
 of de foretasc of de res' an' peace of heaven. You know 
 right smart of de poor slave people, when dey can't done bar 
 de chain no longer, dey tries to be free, or to fine a good, safe 
 hictin' place. Des' so let us all done seek to be free in Jesus, 
 an' hide safe in him, an' if we will ony be steadfas', all de 
 worl' can't done be de hinderin' cause to dis freedom, — dey 
 cant done tear us from dis clef of de Rock. 
 
 " Chillun, we has great many griefs an' 'flictions to bar, — 
 dare be no dispute 'bout dat, — an' if dey lead us to 'bide in 
 de blessed Jesus, dey'll be oberruled for blessins. My own 
 chillun, dat's kin to me, gone, all gone, — sold!" and the 
 tears trickled from the old pilgrim's sightless orbs, — " sold 
 long a^o ! an' I'se lef ' standin' like de lone fores' tree. An' 
 I knows how to feel for you when your kin is torn 'way. It's 
 des' like tearin' limb from limb — des' like cuttin' de quivcrin' 
 live flesh in half, an' de great Fader in heaven know all 'bout 
 it, an' O, how he do pity his poor little chillun down here, 
 who hab such tings to suffer, lie lub us ; if we be poor slave 
 people, he think on us in de greatness of his lub. An' how 
 it done grieve de pitiful Jesus — de Man of Sorrors an' 
 'quainted wid grief — how it grieve him at his heart, sciD ?
 
 COUSIN FRANCK'S HOUSEHOLD. 195 
 
 dem dat lub him Bufferin' so many tings. But if (ley ony 
 cling to him, if dcy steadfas' 'bide under de shadow of his 
 wing, dey'll be safe at las'. Neber mine, den, if dey has 
 not in' dry can call deir own in dis slier woiT, — dey's got 
 what is a tousan', tousan' times better — de portion in Jesus, 
 an' de streasures in heaven. Neber mine if de massas be 
 cruel here, an' whips, an' brands, an' hunts, an' shoots 'em 
 here, — dare is but short time to de judgment, an' all will be 
 made right dare. Neber mine if we's torn from each other 
 here, — de fader from de chile, an' de moder from de babe, 
 an' de husban' from de Avife, de broder from de sister, — what 
 matter if we is treated like de cattle, an' trodden under foot, 
 an' our dead bodies no good coffins nor graves ! if we sleep 
 in Jesus, he'll call us up from de dust, as members of his 
 bcdy, at de las' trump, an' we shall be made like him — jes' 
 like de blessed Jesus — dat glorious! Chillun, I done read 
 it in de Holy Book. Den what matter for us ? Don't men- 
 tion dese 'flictions ; dey isn't worth a thought in thinkin' of 
 de glory beyon' ; but when de greed Judge make 'quisition 
 for blood, what ivill our poor ?nassas do den ? How ken dey 
 ever answer him ? Weep for 'em, chillun ! pray for 'em ! " 
 and, overwhelmned with the appalling thought, the voice of 
 weeping was heard from the little company. Blind Joseph 
 wept like a child ; it was a long time before he could speak, 
 and then, sinking on his knees, he poured out his soul in 
 prayer, indescribably pathetic, reverential, and full of child- 
 like faith and trust.
 
 196 COUSIN franck's JIOUSEIIOLD. 
 
 0, his prayers, like the strong wing of an angel, bear you 
 to the feet of the Saviour, and in the hallowed interview you 
 forget all else save the earnest petitions, and the Almighty 
 One who graciously bends his listening ear. 
 
 Adieu, 
 
 Pocahontas.
 
 LETTER XIII. 
 
 AN UNCOMFORTABLE SITUATION. 
 
 Port Royal, Va., Feb. 14, 18 — . 
 
 Dear S. — Our little village was enlivened to-day by the 
 arrival of the Doctor and Colonel Cutts. They did us the 
 honor to dine with us. A more crest-fallen knight of the 
 cowhide would be hard to conceive of, than the Colonel when 
 he came in. With a hang-dog air, he seemed thoroughly 
 used up by his late prison privations. He is greatly ema- 
 ciated; his sallow, withered skin cleaves to his gaunty cheek 
 bones, so that it was with difficulty that we recognized him. 
 Through dinner he was mostly silent, and could scarcely be 
 prevailed on to open his mouth, save to bestow eatables, which 
 he did at a most alarming rate. We were for the time in- 
 debted to the Doctor for the particulars respecting his rescue. 
 It appears that he found him half fed, half clad, in a misera- 
 ble pig-sty of a cell, designed for negroes. 
 
 " It's about as much as a man's life is worth to come in 
 sight of such a place," he said, " and the only mystery is, how 
 the Colonel managed to keep body and soul together." After 
 giving a minute description of the Colonel's cell, a damp 
 6tived hole of filth and vermin, he went on to say that he 
 17*
 
 198 COUSIN i uaxck's household. 
 
 arrived at Hartland just in time to prevent the Colonel from 
 being carried off by a slave-trader. It seems that Bill Tuggs 
 was in the jailor's room, having bartered for the supposed 
 runaway, when the Doctor entered. It required some skill 
 and address to " prove " that the Colonel was not " property ; " 
 when that was done, it only remained to " pay charges and 
 take him away." 
 
 " Bless my soul and body ! " exclaimed the Doctor, as he 
 recounted particulars, "I never was so shocked in my life — 
 such cool work made of trading, as if the Colonel was a slave 
 and no mistake ! Bill Tuggs had him in his clutches, and I 
 had my match to get him out. But here we have him at la:~t, 
 ' safe,' if not very ' sound.' I reckon you won't be in a hurry 
 to hunt niggers for me again, ha ! ha ! " chuckled he, turning 
 to the discomfitted Colonel. 
 
 That individual shook his head, without raising his eyes, 
 and muttered something about " making tracks for Rokesby in 
 a little less than no time." 
 
 "When at length he had " measurably " dined and drank off 
 a glass of wine, his spirits seemed to revive a little, and he 
 showed a disposition to be communicative. He began to feel 
 himself something of a hero, and proceeded to enlighten us as 
 to his adventun 
 
 "I never was bo dished in all my life," he began. "Ye 
 see, yisterday mornin', as soon as 'twas cleverly light, I heered 
 a master rackel overhead, and putty quick I heered Bill 
 Tuggs, jest as plain as day. 'Hello!' sez he, ' Mr. Jailor, 
 got any stock on liana" ?'
 
 cousin i-haxck's household. 100 
 
 '"I reckon so,' said the jailor, 'I've got one putty likely 
 specimen, some oldish, and a little mite ailinV 
 
 "'What's the matter, — got the rhcumatiz in the damp 
 cell?' said Bill. 
 
 "'0, I reckon so,' said the jailor, 'but take my word for't, 
 he'll git as limber as wilier, come to put him on the road. 
 "What'll you give for him ? come, make us an offer ! ' 
 
 " ' Leetle mor'n nothin',' said Bill, ' You see its putty resky 
 business — this ere buy in' up old worn-out niggers; it won't 
 pay. I've nigh upon swung my arms off, whipping up such 
 eld truck afore now ; and I've heckelled 'em with cat's claws 
 till they was all a gore of blood ; but it wan't a bit of use ; 
 they'd hang back and hinder the gang, mighty wilted and 
 linipsy like ; and ye see 'twon't pay ! It's monstrous resky 
 business, — this ere buyin' up sick niggers ; like as not they'll 
 up and die on your hands, and that's a dead loss, you know. 
 So I reckon on the whole I won't buy him,' said Bill, ' he'll 
 be putty sure to die.' 
 
 " ' No danger of that ! ' said the jailor, ' he'll tough it out, 
 I'll warrant him; he's of the real durable kind, and all is, if 
 he gives signs of failin', you can send him to that air Doctor's 
 college they tells of, where they buy old sick niggers to ex- 
 periment upon. They'd give you a hundred dollars for him 
 if he was sick. Come, what'll you give ? ' 
 
 " ' Well bein' it's you, and we is old cronies,' said Bill, I 
 reckon I'll take him as a venter, I won't stand about it, I'll 
 give you ten dollars, or my old hoss, here?' 
 
 "'Ha! ha! ha!' said the jailor, 'old rackabones alive
 
 200 cousin fraxck's household. 
 
 yet ! "Well, bein' it's you, I won't stand about it neither. I'll 
 take the old boss. We'll balance one old truck agin totber, 
 and call it a bargain ; though I shall have to whistle for my 
 jail fees.' 
 
 " ' I must tell you,' said Bill, ' the old boss has seen his best 
 days — he's putty much done for it; he hain't got no teeth, 
 an' you'll have to fat him on meal ; then you can jockey him 
 off for a good round hundred.' 
 
 "'I shouldn't wonder,' said the jailor, 'an' uncle Cuffee 
 down there, he's got the rheumatiz all holler, but you must 
 dress him down well with the cowskin, and make him forgit 
 the old pain in the new!' and the jailor yaw-hawed right 
 out, and so did Bill. 
 
 " ' Yes,' said Bill, ' it takes me to dew them are fixin's, 
 I'll git him in a cowhide sweat ; and wash him down well 
 in salt and water, and I'll lay, he'll be glad tew travel.' 
 
 " Then Bill he corned down to my cell with the jailor to 
 look at his new property. 'How d'ye do, Uncle Cuffee,' 
 said he, ' how d'ye find yourself? Come, stir yer stumps, 
 let's see how yer built,' and he gin me a blisterin' cut with 
 hi- whip that made me jump for pain. 'Why hi ! old 
 boy,' says he, ' some life to you yet, I guess. Where's you 
 raised ; whose nigger be you ? ' 
 
 " When I tell'd him I was a regular born Yankee, an' no- 
 body's nigger, he laughed fit to kill. And says I, 'I'm over- 
 seer Cutts, Rokesby, an' I've seen you a dozen times ! ' 
 
 "' Wal. it's a fact/ said Bill, considerable struck up, ' if you 
 warn't so nation nigg'ry, I'd vow you did look and talk like
 
 cousin France's household. 201 
 
 him; but, 1. 3! I ain't gwine to believe niggers' c 
 
 Ennyhow, you're tussled in here, safe and sound, and if you 
 are kidnapped, you'll find 'twon't make no sort of odds. So 
 jest one day more, and you must pull foot for the South 
 market. Be gittin' yerself well limbered between times — 
 you'll hafter lie as spry as a cat; ' and off he went, to take a 
 glass of brandy with the jailor. But in the midst of my 
 despair, putty quick who should bustle in, but my friend the 
 Doctor ? and, sakes alive ! I almost jumped out of my skin, 
 for joy ! " 
 
 Adieu, 
 
 Pocahontas. 
 
 P. S. February 15. The Colonel left for Eokesby this 
 aiorning, and the Doctor for his Florida plantation.
 
 LETTER XIV. 
 
 GROVE HILL. 
 
 Grove Hill, Va., March 2, 18 — . 
 
 Dear S. — Since my last, I have taken a two clays' journey 
 to Grove Hill. Not to weary you with the details, I will 
 introduce you at once to the delightful country seat of Sena- 
 tor T. 
 
 It is a fine, old stone edifice, huilt more than a hundred 
 years ago, hy an ancestor who figured in colonial times as 
 one of the king's seven counsellors. 
 
 I am in no mood for tiring you with a systematic descrip- 
 tion, so just picture to yourself an English establishment of 
 the olden time, composed of a lofty main building and two 
 
 wings. 
 
 Let us start at the " coach ring," as they call the circular 
 road in front of the court where the carriage turns. This 
 coach ring encloses a grassy plat twenty feet in diameter, in 
 the centre of which is a sundial, elevated on a stone pedestal. 
 A flight of three steps, the topmost flanked with urns, brings 
 us to the gravelled walk of the court, leading to the main 
 building, while six or eight steps lead us to the vestibule, 
 with its colonnade and mosaic pavement. Passing this, wo 

 
 IjLD. 
 
 enter the centre apartment of the building — a loi ious 
 
 saloon, extending to the back vestibule, which is pre 
 similar to that in front. Both vestib —mble beautiful 
 
 bowers, from the luxuriant multifloras trained within them. 
 
 •.If, with its polished floor, mahogany centre 
 table, four ancient : id high-backed chairs. -you 
 
 as unique enough, and then you notice that its walls are 
 garnished with the SLuk-perian gallery, elegantly framed, 
 and old family portraits, some of them dating back two 
 hundred years. 
 
 The parlor, that home room of the family, leading from 
 the saloon on the right, is furnished with a large fire place, 
 its polished marble hearth contrasting prettily with the 
 brightly-burni=hed andirons and fender. High over the 
 mantel, reaching up to the elaborately-wrought cornice, is 
 displayed the family coat of arms. 
 
 Among the olden-time curiosities of the apartment, are 
 ancestral portraits, a sideboard and a harpsichord. Isabel 
 has an elegant piano in the drawingroom, but the harpsichord 
 is retained in the parlor for its hallowc: - 
 
 From the parlor windows we have a fine view of a portion 
 of the extensive garden, with its terraces, walks, arbors, 
 shrubbery, fruittrees, and adjoining greenho. 
 
 But what has charmed me most of all, is the park, with its 
 choice, magnificent trees, mimic lake, and bounding deer. 
 This part of the establishment took me quite by surprise, — 
 I had not dreamed of a real park and live deer in this part 
 of the world. I can never tire watching the lovely r awns ;
 
 204 cousix fkanck's household. 
 
 they are so gentle, and yet half wild, lamb-like and bird-like. 
 I often sec two or three of them under my window, comfort- 
 ably lounging on the new greensward, and after gazing at 
 them admiringly a long time, I run down, saying, " Let me 
 just pat your pretty heads, my beauties !" but they are up 
 and away with beautiful disdain, untouched by my finger- 
 tips, in spite of my stealthiest approach and nimblest spring, 
 
 It is fun alive to see the deer troop through the old park 
 in their wild glee, clearing the high fence with a graceful 
 bound. In their greatest speed, when they approach the 
 fence they seem almost to pause, as if to measure its precise 
 height with the eye, and then they are over instantly, expend- 
 ing no more strength than just to clear it by a hair's breadth. 
 They are very fond of the berries and leaves of the holly, 
 and as there are quite a number of this choice evergreen in 
 the vicinity of the mansion, it is amusing to watch them as 
 they feed. 
 
 All the lower branches of one of these trees having been 
 thoroughly browsed, a certain antlered deer, of great dignity, 
 took this method to finish his repast : Standing under the 
 tri't'. he jumped up and tangled his antlers in the thick 
 branchlets and boughs, and in the skirmish necessary to dis- 
 engage his head; quantities of leaves, berries and twigs fell 
 to the ground, and presently his lordship was feeding al his 
 leisure ; and when this supply was gone, up went his sturdy 
 antlers into the boughs tlgain, with the same result as before. 
 
 I have been trying till I am tired, to solve a curious scene 
 I witnessed thh morning, biil must own myself baffled: A
 
 cousin franck's household. 20.5 
 
 large company of deer, thirty or forty in number, formed a 
 circle. They seemed to be engaged in consultation. Pres- 
 ently two of them, as if chosen out of the herd, started off 
 on a race, and with incredible swiftness sweeping around in 
 a wide circuit, came back to their companions. After a 
 moment, two others performed the same feat. It may be it 
 was a trial of fleetness, and that they award either gold 
 medals or golden opinions to the winner. 
 
 By the way, Senator T. has a race course, where some of 
 his horses are exercised and trained for the races. I do not 
 know as he frequents the races himself, but he sometimes- 
 sends on his horses, and has been a winner, as the massive 
 silver pitcher standing on the sideboard, testifies. It is not 
 as customary as formerly for gentlemen to attend the race- 
 courses, but many forward their horses by agents or servants.. 
 One morning when the horses were exei'cising, Isabel and I 
 took the race course in our walk. It is a circular road, just 
 one mile in circumference, on a perfectly level space of 
 ground. It was an exciting scene, three fine horses, side by 
 side, roused to the contest with whip and spur, each straining 
 every nerve to be foremost. The Senator was there giving 
 directions, but it was only an every-day affair, and there were 
 no spectators, save indeed the groom, Isabel and myself. At 
 the first " heat " I was pleased to see the sport, but when I re- 
 flected that the fine creatures were forced to this combat of 
 fleetness by whip and steel, and that horse-racing on a wager 
 was no better than any other form of gambling, — that it 
 lamed, maimed and killed outright many noble animals, and 
 18
 
 20G cousin fkanck's household. 
 
 encouraged indolence, profanity and intemperance, — I was 
 glad to accede to Isabel's "Shall we go?" as they were 
 • n | >aring for a second heat, choosing rather to watch the 
 deer at their play than the coursers at their toil. 
 
 Isabel and myself have each a fine saddle-horse whenever 
 we choose to ride, and you may be sure we enjoy it highly. 
 These horses are spirited, yet gentle, and so well trained that 
 we can open and shut the park gates, while mounted, without 
 the Least inconvenience. Every fine day we scour the park, 
 always finding something new to admire. Spring is now 
 rising from the grave of winter. The leaves and flowers, 
 imprisoned in their little scaly cells, peep out, like Noah's 
 dove, to assure themselves if yet the cold that has prevailed 
 upon the earth has disappeared. Violets and hyacinths are 
 blossoming, making redolent nooks and borders, and grassy 
 banks. And the birds — "you ought" to see and hear them. 
 There is the Virginia Redbird, — Tanagra rubra I think is his 
 name, — and a trim, soldier-like little gentleman he is, too, 
 in his brilliant uniform. Mayhap he deems himself a king, 
 for every morning quite early he stations himself on the 
 finest holly, and rings out his joyous, merry note, which 
 sounds much like — 
 
 " Singcth the spring time, 
 Happy am I ! 
 Who of the songsters 
 Can with me vie? " 
 
 Perched on the glossy evergreen, whose leaves and berries 
 contrast so beautifully, Mi-. Redbird certainly shows his fine 

 
 COUSIN FKANCK'a HOUSEHOLD. '- '■ 
 
 taste in selecting such a site for the proclamation of his 
 matin song. 
 
 Robin Redbreast, that fastidious little traveller who, like 
 many others, demurs at our Northern winter, is now topping 
 off hybernating with us. He is evidently getting uneasy, — 
 no doubt visions of his Northern home float in his fancy. 
 He remembers the shady maple where the breezes swayed 
 the snug cradle-nest of his infancy, and often turning to Mrs. 
 Robin, he seems to ask, in his twitter dialect, " Don't you 
 think 'tis most time to go, love ? " But day after day they 
 still linger about the budding multifloras, and by the yellow 
 jasmine, quite well aware that while Old Virginia is joying 
 in its balmy air and bursting flowers, the fields and gardens 
 of New-England still lie beneath the long winter's accumu- 
 lations of ice and snow. The Senator will not permit a gun 
 to be fired on his premises, or a bird to be killed. The blithe 
 little songsters appreciate his kindness, and make ever so 
 many happy homes in his shrubbery and shade trees. In 
 the garden alone, I counted nearly forty of these pretty habi- 
 tations, now tenantless, built last year. 
 
 Life on a plantation would soon get to be lonely and irk- 
 some, were it not for the occasional interruptions of company. 
 You have become familiar with all the antiquities and curi- 
 osities within doors, and without you have only the voices of 
 nature ; and as these are repeated day after day, they seem 
 like the sound of the ever-flowing brook, full of melody, but 
 monotonous, and you long for something to break the same- 
 ness. In short, you long for nearer neighbors. But Grove
 
 208 COUSIN FRAXCIv's HOUSEHOLD. 
 
 Hill seems to be a favored resort of company, considering its 
 seclusion. Scarcely a week passes without visits from friends 
 of the family. Among these visitors have been some Vir- 
 ginia gentlemen of the old school, and the Senator has 
 appeared very happy in their society. Indeed, it does one's 
 heart good to see how courtly, kind and brotherly they are. 
 The fund of talk called forth on all sides is perfectly enor- 
 mous. Ancestral recollections are among the most favorite 
 topics adverted to, and, under the circumstances, one cannot 
 avoid a deep interest in their recital. I will give you a re- 
 hearsal respecting Colonel Bird : 
 
 In the early settlement of Virginia, the James River 
 planters were much more Avealthy than those residing on the 
 Rappahannoe. For instance, Colonel William Bird owned 
 all the site of the present city of Richmond, besides a tract 
 of country in North Carolina, extending twenty-four miles on 
 both sides of the Roanoke. This Colonel Bird was a distant 
 relative of the Senator's family. He was very handsome, 
 courtly in his manners, and caused quite a sensation while 
 visiting in England. "When stopping in London, he was in- 
 troduced to a club composed mostly of noblemen. They 
 were gambling; and at length a certain Duke, taking a box 
 of dice, said, 
 
 "Will any gentleman accept the bet of ten thousand 
 pounds?'' passing round to each one of his companions. 
 
 No one, accepted the bet; the risk was too great. Ho 
 came last of all to Colonel Bird, and, for form's sake, said, 
 
 "Colonel Bird, will you accept the bet?"
 
 cousin franck's household. 
 
 "I will," promptly replied that gentleman. 
 The dice were thrown, and the Colonel from the Virginia 
 colony was the winner. This was duly announced, but the 
 game went on just as if no loss had happened on the part of 
 the Duke, until the company broke up for the night, when 
 that dignitary, coming up to Colonel Bird, thus addressed 
 him : 
 
 " I have not had the pleasure of seeing you here before. 
 
 "It is my first visit to your club," replied the Colonel. 
 
 " Then you may not be acquainted with our regulations,'' 
 said his grace. 
 
 " That is true," replied the Colonel ; " I know nothing of 
 the rules of this club." 
 
 " Then, sir," said the Duke, " before further business can 
 be transacted between us, it will be necessary for me to in- 
 form you that one of our rules is to this effect, that no one 
 shall accept a bet unless he can prove that he possesses suffi- 
 cient to pay it in case he is the loser ; if one does accept a 
 bet in these circumstances, if he is the winner, he forfeits the 
 sum he would otherwise receive." 
 
 "A very just and wise regulation," rejoined the Virginian ; 
 " but I am not anxious that the business be settled to-night ; 
 any other time will do as well." 
 
 " You mistake me, sir," said his grace ; " it is our invari- 
 able custom to despatch business of this sort on the spot." 
 
 " But," said Colonel Bird, " I am a stranger, and have no 
 proof with me of my capability to discharge the obligation, 
 
 18* 
 

 
 210 cousin franck's household 
 
 had I been the loser instead of the winner. My carriage and 
 horses are not here, or I might send to the city to obtain evi- 
 dence respecting myself satisfactory to you." 
 
 " My carriage and horses are at your service ; send them 
 where you choose," said the Duke. 
 
 " Thank you," replied the Colonel ; " I accept your gen- 
 erous offer, and will forthwith write to my banker in London." 
 Then, seating himself by the table, he penned the following 
 note to his banker: 
 
 " "Will you pay to Colonel "William Bird, of Virginia, his 
 order for £10,000 at sight? 
 " Answer by the bearer." 
 
 This was carried to the banker by the Duke's liveried 
 servants, who found him in his night quarters. 
 
 After being aroused, and having read the note, the old 
 banker, supporting himself on his elbow, wrote, on the back 
 of the note : 
 
 * I will pay to Colonel "William Bird, of Virginia, his order 
 for £10,000 at sight, or his order for ten times £10,000. 
 
 " Signed, , Banker. 
 
 ""West End, London." 
 
 The horses flew back, bearing the important information 
 to the Duke, who, on receiving it, coolly wrote an order on
 
 cousin fuanck's household. 211 
 
 his own banker for the amount of the bet, and gave it to the 
 Colonel. 
 
 This story the Colonel used to tell with great eclat, adding, 
 " "What times I had in England on that ten thousand pounds ! 
 Spent every penny of it, bless me ! " 
 
 Adieu, 
 
 Pocahontas.
 
 LETTER XV. 
 
 RUTH. 
 
 Grove Hill, Va., April 18, 18 — . 
 Dear S. — At last, dear Ruth has come. Isabel and I 
 have scarcely eat or slept for a week past ; every ride we 
 have hoped to meet her, coming ; and the carriage has been 
 despatched to the ferry, six miles distant, at stage hours, with 
 the regularity of the mail, for several days. The dear girl, 
 how she realizes my ideal of a heroine ! She actually seems 
 taller than before, — as if her beautifully-turned head were 
 lifted up more princess-like by the lofty moral consciousness 
 within. The hours have flown swift winged since her arrival, 
 and I have almost forgotten to write ; but of late I have 
 observed, as we have rambled about the old park, and sought 
 out its charming nooks and beautiful groves, that a deeper 
 shade of sorrow has veiled the quiet gladness of Ruth's spirit. 
 She evidently realizes more intensely than ever before, that 
 she is in a land of heart-broken captives. She may truly be 
 said to feel for those in bonds as bound with them ; and I 
 cannot doubt that her absorbing sympathy for the suffering 
 has for a long time been undermining her health. 
 
 One mild, moonlit evening, Ruth, Isabel and myself were
 
 COUSIN FRAXCK'rf HOUSEHOLD. 213 
 
 sitting on the steps of the back vestibule, inhaling the fra- 
 grant breath of the multiflora, and now and then singing 
 some plaintive melody, when a dark form was seen skulking 
 in the shadows. I involuntarily drew back, Ruth remained 
 sitting, and Isabel, drawing herself up to her full height, 
 asked, in a firm, decided tone, "Who's there?" 
 
 " It's ony me," said a sad voice. 
 
 u "Who ? Patsy ? "Well, what are you doing here ? " asked 
 Isabel, firmly. 
 
 The dark figure approached. It was a slave mother, with 
 a baby hugged close to her bosom. 
 
 " How's this, Patsy ? " said Isabel, severely, " why are you 
 not down to your cabin at the quarters ? " 
 
 " Please to b'lieve me, Miss, — de overseer is dat cross ; he 
 done say I shouldn't nurse my baby but onct to-day, an' cause 
 I done did it twice, he's gwine to whip me ; an' de chile gits 
 amose perished to death between times." 
 
 " 0, you hush complaining," said Isabel ; " go directly back 
 to the quarters, and let me hear no more of this ; " and the 
 poor woman, seeing there was no appeal, pressing her baby 
 yet closer to her heart, moved off with a languid and unwil- 
 ling step. Isabel stepped into the house, and despatched one 
 of the servants to the Overseer, saying that he would be ex- 
 pected to call up in the morning for further orders. 
 
 " I shall tell him not to whip Patsy," said Isabel, as she 
 returned to us ; " and she shall nurse her baby twice a day. 
 Poor thing," she continued, " I was loth to send her back ; 
 but she would get her death of cold in the garden this chilly
 
 214 C0D8IM fbanck's boussboi/d. 
 
 night, and besides, as papa says, the discipline of the planta- 
 tion must be maintained." 
 
 " And fear is the only incentive the system has to incite 
 plantation slaves to exertion," remarked Ruth. 
 
 " Yes," replied Isabel, " it is so ; and if they do not cringe 
 and bow just so low, these unmerciful overseers lash them 
 until they do, and Ave cannot take their part, lest we en- 
 courage insubordination. But our house servants are in a 
 measure moved by love and respect for us, although there are 
 instances in which we arc obliged to threaten with sale, and 
 this they fear infinitely more than whipping. I do not blame 
 you, Ruth, for helping Fayett and her husband to a free 
 country. I'd like to do just such a deed myself; and if I 
 had my wish, every slave in the land would be free. I am 
 heartily sick of the system, although I make sure, familiarized 
 as I am with it, I do not realize a tithe of its odiousness." 
 
 " I often think," said Ruth, calmly, " in view of the wrongs 
 peculiar to the system, how exceedingly abominable it must 
 be in the eyes of the righteous God, who loveth righteous- 
 ness." 
 
 " 0, Ruth," exclaimed Isabel, " if you were a man and a 
 minister, how you would preach on this question ! But no, 
 I make sure that we should not let even you preach on this 
 subject ; we, good Christians as we are, would have to put you 
 in prison for daring to open your mouth in favor of liberty to 
 the captives. I don't see but you'd have to go North, and 
 set u{> your preaching there." 
 
 " Well, that would not be so bad, after all," replied Ruth ;
 
 COUSIN franck's household. 215 
 
 "for if the North was right on slavery, it would .soon he done 
 away in the South. And it is a lamentable fact, that a vast 
 deal of work needs to he done, even at the North. There 
 are many Christians and others, however, whose influence is 
 on the right side. The Quakers, as a sect, testify nobly 
 against it, and I learn that there is not a Roman Catholic 
 bishop or priest in the United States, who owns slaves. I 
 do hope those dear Christians of the different denominations 
 at the North who have condemned slavery as inconsistent 
 with the spirit of Christianity, will stand their ground, that 
 the leaven of their influence may speedily pervade the entire 
 North. "Were the North united in earnest remonstrance 
 against the system, the Southern conscience could not hold 
 out long. As it is, I am satisfied that, in spite of the preju- 
 dices of education, and the bluster of unprincipled men, it 
 finds full work enough to do in repressing its own native 
 instincts." 
 
 "I believe it's just so," said Isabel; " I don't know how it 
 is, but somehow or other you always compel my assent to 
 everything you assert on this subject." 
 
 " I believe I have never given you a sketch of my journey." 
 said Ruth. " I did not at first think of going with Robert 
 and Fayett, when I caught my bonnet and shawl, and went 
 to the door to meet father. I had been planning and pray- 
 ing to ascertain what I could do for them in their imminent 
 peril. As I lingered a moment on the step, the injunction, 
 1 do unto others as ye would have them do unto you,' came 
 suddenly to my mind with singular impressiveness. It could
 
 216 cousin fraxck's nousEnoLD. 
 
 hardly have produced a greater effect, Lad my Saviour ap- 
 peared before me. and repeated this, his great command. 
 TN'ithout a moment's further thought, I stepped into the 
 carriage, was soon at their hut, and within five minutes we 
 were on our way, at the top of the horses' speed. 
 
 " I should mention that, before we readied Philadelphia, I 
 palled on a friend on our route, who lent me money, without 
 suspecting my errand ; I merely told him that I had urgent 
 business to that city, and it excited no surprise, of course, 
 that I had servants with me. It fortunately happened, on 
 my arrival in Philadelphia, I recollected the name of that 
 excellent Quaker, John Parish, who has helped succor so 
 many flying ones, and committing Fayett and Robert to his 
 keeping, I sent the carriage and horses home, and journeyed 
 to Lexington by public conveyance, thinking it advisable to 
 recruit my health, and suffer my parents to become more 
 calm before I appeared in their presence. Meanwhile I have 
 written them, earnestly striving to sbow them that the course 
 I have pursued is such as will bear the searching light of the 
 great day of account. I would like to read you a copy of 
 one I am going to send them next mail." 
 The letter was as follows: 
 
 "I cannot well avoid being grieved at those three severe 
 charges. Sad, indeed, must be my condition, if I have dis- 
 obeyed my parents, broken the laws of the land, and sinned 
 againsl the institutions of religion.
 
 cousin fbanck's household. 217 
 
 " Permit me to suggest some few thoughts, which lead me 
 to conclude that I cannot be in so bad case : 
 
 " The law of the illhil relation is, ' Children, obey your 
 parents in the Lord.' But does not this plainly imply, that 
 such obedience is not required when we should thereby disobey 
 a plain command of God ? Do you not yourselves recognize 
 this principle in every other case? Have you not taught me 
 from childhood that our relations to God transcend and con- 
 trol all earthly relations ? That duties never clash, and that 
 all duties at once cease to be such when they conflict with the 
 clear voice of God in his Word, and conscience. God ordained 
 all the lower human relations, the better to help his creatures- 
 serve him ; and if they at any time degrade their noble office,, 
 as ' handmaids of religion,' and command us to do what ho 
 has expressly forbidden, we may incur their frowns and bear 
 their penalties, but we cannot obey them. God has conferred 
 on neither the parent, the State Jior the church, the power 
 either to annul or suspend a moral law. And have I sinned 
 against the laws of the land, also? But have I more than 
 Obadiah, the steward of Ahab's palace, who, on the oc- 
 casion of the royal edict, that all the prophets of the Lord 
 should be slain, hid one hundred of them in caves, and min- 
 istered to their necessities? Some may pronounce him un- 
 faithful to Ahab, and to the interests of the State; but does 
 not the sacred record hold him up as most faithful to his 
 great Sovereign, and as one whom no royal edict could deter 
 from doing his duty. And at the judgment will he not be 
 19
 
 218 cousin France's household. 
 
 among that select throng whom the Saviour calls, ' Ye 
 blessed,' having ministered to his poor, despised ones? Pure 
 religion and nndciiled before God and the Father, is to visit 
 the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep one's 
 
 [f unspotted from the world. Fatherless and widows ! and 
 who are pre-eminently the fatherless and widows among us, 
 if not those made so by the wearing out and the sales of our 
 system ? 
 
 " I have just opened my Bible at the tenth of Isaiah, and 
 have been most forcibly struck by the four opening verses : 
 
 " ■ Woe unto them that devise unrighteous decrees, that 
 write grievousness which they have prescribed ; to turn aside 
 the needy from judgment, and to take away the right from 
 the poor of my people, that widows may be their prey, and 
 that they may rob the fatherless. And what will ye do in 
 the day of your visitation, in the desolation which will come 
 from far? To whom will .ye flee for help, and where will ye 
 leave your glory ? Without me, they shall bow down under 
 the prisoners, and they shall fall under the slain.' 
 
 " "Whoever these appalling passages were written for, they 
 are certainly fearfully descriptive of those who are specially 
 responsible for our iniquitous system. ' Decree unrighteous 
 decrees,' — O, how many such decrees are summed up in 
 slavery! Beings created in God's image, deemed, sold, 
 taken, reputed and adjudged in law to be chattels personal, 
 in the hands of their owners ami possessors, and their execu- 
 tors, administrators and assigns, to all intents, constructions 
 and purposes whatever. And having unrighteously decreed
 
 CODSIN I'i:\\(K's HOUSEHOLD. 219 
 
 an immortal soul into a thing, other almost numberless un- 
 righteous decrees are added, for the purpose of regulating his 
 market value. If he seeks to escape from the horrors of his 
 lot, he is an outlaw, and the statutes make it doing God 
 service, for any one to shoot, stab, burn, drown, or in any way 
 to murder him. 
 
 " The ' unrighteous decrees ' declare that he shall not learn 
 to read, — that he shall not 'search the Scriptures,' — taking 
 ' away the right from the poor of my people.' The decrees 
 declare that what God hath joined together, man may put 
 asunder ; that widows may be their prey, and that they may 
 rob the fatherless, — making the trade in the souls of men a 
 legal and profitable business. 
 
 " Yes, our poor slaves are whelmned and trodden down 
 with grievousnesses, which the lawmakers write and prescribe 
 in the form of statutes, and when I remember that justice is 
 an attribute of the Holy One of Israel, I tremble for my 
 beloved country. Our unrighteous decrees have long been 
 the abomination of Him whose ear is open to the cry of the 
 humble. His anger burns against us ; and will he not arise, 
 and devastating by judgments, make desolate our heritage? 
 The punishments which are designed to amend, are inflicted 
 with comparative vigilance and speed ; those which are meant 
 to destroy, are usually long suspended, while the devoted 
 victims pass on with seeming impunity. I pray God this be 
 not our fearful case, — but my shuddering heart whispers me 
 that it is. O, that we might speedily repent and bewail our 
 sins, as in sackcloth and ashes ! O, that petitions might
 
 220 COCSIN FRAKCK'S nOUSEIIOLD. 
 
 speedily be made our rulers, to do away with the cruel en- 
 actments respecting the poor, despised people in our midst, 
 whose rights we have ' gathered as a nest.' For if we turn 
 every one from his evil way, and the violence that is in his 
 hands, and cry mightily to Him, who can tell if God will 
 turn, and repent, and turn away his fierce anger from us ? " 
 
 As I heard Ruth's letter, I could but weep. I felt that 
 it was God who had opened her eyes to see the abominations 
 of the land, and to cry, " O, that my head were waters, and 
 mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and 
 night for the slain of the daughter of my people ! " Many 
 there are thus weeping in secret ; but so long have the free 
 pulsations of their hearts been enslaved, that they fear to cry 
 aloud. 
 
 Adieu, 
 
 Pocahontas.
 
 LETTER XVI. 
 
 DEPARTURE. 
 
 Grove Hill, Va., May 4, 18 — . 
 Dear S. — Yesterday I attended church at one of the 
 most ancient houses of worship in Virginia. It is a curious 
 edifice, unique and antiquated enough in its style of architect- 
 ure, rising in the midst of a grave-yard shaded with old 
 oaks, and enclosed by a thick, moss-grown wall, four or five 
 feet high. "Were it not for here and there a fact like this, 
 we of the New "World might pardonably forget the identity of 
 churchyard and grave-yard in our old English classics. In 
 the palmy days of the glebe, the Virginia colonists in some 
 matters patterned as precisely as possible after the " home " 
 over the sea. 
 
 " As through the churchyard's lone retreat 
 My meditation led, 
 And walked with slow and pensive feet 
 Above the sleeping dead ; " 
 
 said Wordsworth, if I misquote not, and I could not help 
 whispering the lines to Isabel and Ruth, as we passed through 
 the place of graves to enter the house of God. 
 
 To form some idea of the construction of the church, one 
 19*
 
 '2'22 COUSIN KUAXCK's HOUSEHOLD. 
 
 must conceive two oblong buildings crossing each other at 
 right angles, thus giving four wings. There is a door with a 
 circular window over it in each of the four fronts, and a Gothic 
 window in each of the other eight sides. One of the wings 
 is partitioned oft" for a vestry, and the pulpit is on the side of 
 the house next this apartment. 
 
 After the exercises of the morning, as detailed in the 
 prayer-book, were performed, came the sermon, from the 
 text, " Martha, Martha, thou art careful and troubled about 
 many things ; but Mary hath chosen that good part which 
 shall not be taken away from her." In the development of 
 his subject, the good preacher seemed to take it for granted 
 that the ladies of his parish were cumbered about much serv- 
 ing ; but for the life of me I could not see the propriety of it. 
 Had his audience been the poor laborers who toil on, hot or 
 cold, early and late, day in and day out, his remarks would 
 have been somewhat more to the point. 
 
 It was Communion, and for the first time I listened to the 
 Communion service. Elevated and beautiful it is ; and as 
 group after group successively knelt by the altar, and received 
 the sacred symbols from the pastor, devoutly repeating, "The 
 body of our Lord Jesus Christ, which was given for thee, 
 preserve thy body and soul unto everlasting life; take and 
 eat this in remembrance that Christ died for thee, and feed 
 on him in thy heart, by faith with thanksgiving;" or, at the 
 giving of the wine "The blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, 
 ■which was shed for thee, preserve thy bo<ly and soul unto
 
 cousin rBAW< k'b hoi behold. 223 
 
 everlasting life ; drink tliis in remembrance that Christfi 
 blood was ahed for thee, and be thankful;" — I wondered 
 
 if ever the enslaved were allowed to come to the table of 
 tln'ir Lord. Some time previously, I bad asked the question 
 of a slave woman, who replied, " O, no, Miss, dat's too high 
 for us." 
 
 As I mused on the simple and sublime memento of the 
 supper left us by our common Master, and grieved in an 
 agony of tears that so many members of his body were cut 
 off from participating in its blessings, the last group returned 
 from the altar, and took their seats. There was a pause, and 
 the stillness of death pervaded the house, when a lone slave 
 woman, bent and bowed in the summer of her life, a child- 
 less widow, tottered down the aisle from her lowly seat by the 
 door, and knelt to receive the holy emblems. She was evi- 
 dently the only slave member of the church present, and it 
 was a melting sight to see her all alone at the Saviour's 
 table ; but it was a thrilling thought that she was, perhaps, 
 more dear to him than all who had preceded her. 
 
 There is an arched recess or niche in the wall of the saloon 
 at Grove Hill, and this morning, as I inquired of Isabel its 
 design, she replied, with her usual vivacity, 
 
 " 0, that's the stand of the old-time, family christening 
 bowl. It would have remained there to this day, had it not 
 become so sadly defaced. "We, presumptuous moderners, 
 have hid it in the wing ; but we confess to a mortal dread 
 that some of our ghostly ancestors will yet be moved to leave
 
 224 cousin franco's household. 
 
 the walls and come down upon us in vengeful mood for our 
 daring sacrilege." 
 
 "A family christening bowl ! " exclaimed I, " do let me see 
 it." 
 
 " With the greatest pleasure," replied Isabel; and away we 
 ran to a lumber room of the right wing, and commenced 
 rummaging the rubbish for the old relic. At length we suc- 
 ceeded in exhuming it from a mass of ruins. It was curiously 
 sculptured from Italian marble. The bowl with its pedestal 
 was nearly two feet high, the rim being about four feet in cir- 
 cumference. 
 
 " This same old bowl has witnessed some interesting 
 scenes," remarked Isabel, as we were examining it. " Were 
 you ever at a christening ? " 
 
 " Never, save in a church," I replied. 
 
 " "Well, you ought to hear some of the old gentlemen dis- 
 course of the christening of the olden time," replied Isabel. 
 "It was really quite a joyful festival. All the friends were 
 invited, and a great entertainment was made. After the 
 ceremony was over, all made merry. In fact, if all accounts 
 are true, they scarcely waited for a respectable finish. 
 
 1 They were not always devout ; 
 They thought of the feast of the christening, 
 The ball, the music and rout.'" 
 
 " Yes, I dare say they had a merry time," said Ruth, who, 
 by the way, had joined us; "many of the parsons of those 
 days were great lovers of wine." 
 

 
 cousin fraxck's HOUSEHOLD. 225 
 
 " Yes," responded Isabel, " old Parson Gubbins, for in- 
 stance. Tradition liatb it that be never visited Grove Hill 
 without getting intoxicated; and his faithful servant, Peter, 
 who always attended him, used to lift him in his curricle, tie 
 him in, and carefully drive him home and deposit him in bed. 
 This was of such frequent occurrence, that it came to be con- 
 sidered as a matter of course ; if a peccadillo at all, one 
 hardly more serious than the laughs and jokes it elicited from 
 his flock." 
 
 " He must have been one of the sporting parsons," said 
 Ruth. 
 
 " Yes, indeed," replied Isabel, " he was extravagantly fond 
 of the chase. I have heard so many amusing incidents re- 
 lated of this old-time parson, that it almost seems as if I knew 
 him ; and he has been dead half a century, or more. He 
 well represented a class of gay, dissipated rectors, for, as 
 somebody says, 
 
 ' They of the rosy, jocund face, 
 Paid homage to the cup,' 
 
 1 They loved best to dine 
 Where flowed the best wine.' 
 
 The poor of the parish were seldom favored with parochial 
 calls, — this order of priests were famous, not so much for 
 ' training of souls,' as for ' draining of bowls.' The drinking 
 propensities of Parson Gubbins, however, were not always par- 
 ticularly agreeable to certain of his rich parishioners. A story 
 is told of a wedding at which he officiated. The parties con-
 
 M 
 
 » 
 
 226 cousin* fraxck's household. 
 
 cerncd, fearful that lie would get tipsy before the hour of the 
 ceremony, which was twelve o'clock, charged the servants 
 not to get him wine or liquor of any kind until after that time. 
 Nevertheless, by some means, the reverend man managed to 
 get his ideas so much elevated by sundry potations, that he 
 was ridiculously silly, and could scarcely go through with the 
 marriage service. The wedding party were exceedingly an- 
 noyed, of course. After the ceremony, the parson attempted 
 to kiss the bride ; but the bridegroom interfered, and bade him 
 desist, and this added not a little to the confusion of the 
 scene. 
 
 "On a like occasion, after marrying a couple, Parson Gub- 
 bins made this announcement, — ' I have pronounced this pair 
 husband and wife, and I am now ready to marry as many 
 more as will present themselves.' 
 
 " At this a Mr. Lee stepped forward, and addressing a Miss 
 C, said, - Miss C, will you accept my hand, and listen to the 
 marriage service ? ' 
 
 " But Miss C, greatly shocked and abashed, shrunk back 
 from so untimely a proposal." 
 
 "I am always interested in these old-time anecdotes," re- 
 marked Ruth, " and can we not argue from them that there 
 has been some progress and improvement among us since? 
 A clergyman as openly intemperate as was Parson Gubbins, 
 would be scouted at in these times, as entirely ineligible for 
 pulpit and pastoral duties. Public opinion has certainly ad- 
 vanced on the temperance question, and has it not also on the 
 question of slaveholding ? Many are being waked up by the
 
 cousin franck's household. 227 
 
 monitor conscience, to see the sinfulness of enslaving their 
 brethren." 
 
 "But this old, musty room!" exclaimed Isabel, — "do 
 let's have a walk in the open air ; " and directly, ami in arm, 
 " we three " were on our way to the garden. We found the 
 strawberries ripe, and after regaling ourselves, sat down in 
 an arbor near by, which was entirely covered by trailing 
 roses in full bloom. It was a beautiful day .of bright sun- 
 beams and fragrant breezes, and we were deeming ourselves 
 quite happy, when the thought of separation came in to mar 
 our enjoyment. The time fixed for my visit to Virginia had 
 nearly expired ; two days only, and I must return to my 
 Northern home. 
 
 " That is too bad," said Isabel, as I alluded to the time of 
 my leaving. " I do not see how I can let you go just now, 
 when Ruth is going home, too." 
 
 " And I must have you go with me," said Ruth. 
 
 " I am sorry to return so soon," I replied ; " and were it 
 possible, would remain longer ; but that, you know, cannot be. 
 Perhaps I may return in the autumn." 
 
 "I wish you'd arrange it with your friends to take up your 
 permanent abode with us," replied Isabel. " I make sure 
 you'd be a firstrate Southerner ; indeed, I think you are now. 
 At least, you wont go home thinking we Virginians are the 
 worst people in the world, will you ? " 
 
 " O, no," I replied ; " I love Virginia and Virginians too 
 well for that. I only wonder a people can be so noble and 
 excellent, when they have been 'staggering' under the weight 

 
 228 cousin fraxck's houskuold. 
 
 of such a 'loathsome burden' so long. Such an evil, I fear, 
 would have dried up all the kindly sympathies of the cooler 
 and more calculating Northerners, long ago. But I shall 
 always feel a sadness stealing away my pleasant memories, 
 when I think of what Virginia has been, is, and might have 
 been if disenthralled, like our free and happy New-England, 
 which to some extent seems to say to her Southern sisters : 
 
 ' We leave you with your bondmen, to wrestle while ye can 
 With the strong upward tendencies, and Godlike soul of man. 
 But for us and our children, the vow which we have given 
 For freedom and humanity, is registered in heaven ; 
 No slave-hunt in our borders, no pirate on our strand, 
 No fetters in New-England, no slaves upon our land.' " 
 
 " I like those spirited, noble lines," said Isabel ; " I wish 
 we could all say as much as they express." 
 
 A servant came with a message for Isabel, and we went 
 in. As I hied me to my room, I was wondering how poor 
 Cleopatra bore her sorrows, and if the rest of heaven would 
 not be very sweet to her at last. And then my sympathies 
 went out after lone Martha and her little one ; and then I 
 wondered if the husband's and father's heart was not yearn- 
 ing to see them once more. 
 
 And then I trembled, as I thought of Rosalie's marrying 
 poor Martha to old Uncle Sim. And Mima, too ! I knew 
 she would rather be in her grave than the wife of that de- 
 testable Juniper. Selma! how I longed once more to put 
 my arms about her neck, and weep witli her! And blind
 
 COr-i\ n,\\< k'> HOUSEHOLD. 229 
 
 Joseph, if I could only hear him pray yet once again before 
 I go! 
 
 Farewell, poor slave people ! I have had but a glimpse 
 of what ye suffer, and I may never hear from you in this 
 world ; but if at last we meet in heaven, amid the pauses of 
 your golden harps, as ye sit on the banks of the river of life, 
 will not your histories wake anew the strains of rejoicing 
 melody ? 
 
 Adieu, 
 
 Pocahontas. 
 
 20
 
 LETTER XVII. 
 
 WILLOW CREEK, ONCE MORE. 
 
 Willow Creek, Va., Sept. 20, 18 — . 
 
 Dear S. — Here am I this golden morning, again a guest 
 in the Old Dominion, at cousin Franck's country residence. 
 Regina has almost recovered the use of her arm and ancle, 
 and is beginning to think she can do without Selma. By the 
 way, in her helplessness last winter she persuaded the Doctor 
 to give up the bargain, as she "positively could not live with- 
 out hex*."- Selma is now fairer even than Regina, and, it is 
 said, more strikingly resembles the Hartleys. Since Re- 
 gina's long confinement, an inveterate nervousness having 
 possessed her, she feels constant disquiet in the presence of 
 her faithful sister-servant. At times, she is exceedingly 
 petulant, and as unreasonable as a child. Poor Selma is the 
 butt of her ill-will, and a burdensome life she has of it. 
 
 " Such a living annoyance ! " exclaimed Regina, to-day, as 
 she was reclining on the parlor sofa; "Selma is my shadow ! I 
 make sure she grows fairer every day. I declare, my com- 
 plexion i- getting bronze, it is, indeed ! " she added, as she 
 saw herself reflected in the spacious mirror opposite. There- 
 upon out-poke her attache, Franck Cameron: 

 
 COUSIN FKAM'iv's HOUSEHOLD. 231 
 
 "Bless my soul and body! Mrs. Cameron, where are your 
 eyes? I consider myself no contemptible judge in the case, 
 and don't I tell you every day of my life, and fifty times a 
 day, that you are looking charmingly? " 
 
 "What of that?" rejoined the amiable lady, "can I forget 
 that my Carolina friends could not for their lives recog- 
 nize me this summer, and that they mistook Selma for me? 
 Tell me how I can forget such facts as these, will you ? " 
 
 How cousin Franck would have met this poser I know not, 
 as the colloquy was suddenly cut short by the entrance of Mr. 
 Oglethorpe, our stranger guest. By the way, Mr. Ogle- 
 thorpe is a very interesting person, and the whole family are 
 in love with him. He is a gentleman of polished manners, 
 bland and intelligent, with a delightful fund of general infor- 
 mation. He is a Southerner by birth, wealthy, and has been 
 for some years in Europe. 
 
 Rosalie is very innocently engaged in seeking to capture 
 him as her lawful prize ; and, it must be acknowledged, she is 
 really a most fascinating girl, in her amiable moods. I do not 
 wonder that she has won the attention of the dignified 
 stranger. Wouldn't he be astounded to be behind the scenes, 
 on an occasion like the marrying of Juniper and Mima ! 
 
 Mr. Oglethorpe is somewhat an invalid. Cousin Franck 
 and family made his acquaintance at the Springs, and at their 
 earnest request he accompanied them to Willow Creek. 
 There is something a little reserved and mysterious in his 
 bearing, but this Rosalie interprets to his advantage. Ruth 
 and I conjecture that he has met with some great sorrow, so 
 abstracted is he at time-.
 
 232 cousin franck's household. 
 
 He seems to regard Selma, slave as she is, with interest, 
 and indeed I see not how he can help it, for she is a beautiful, 
 a superior woman. Madam Regina has observed this, and 
 added it to her other sources of disquiet. 
 
 Poor Regina ! it would seem as if every breeze brought 
 new irritation for the old sore. "While Mr. Oglethorpe was 
 still present with the family in the parlor, a pedler, half con- 
 cealed beneath a slouched cap and huge green goggles, 
 bustled into the room. You must know that the retirement 
 of "Willow Creek makes even a pedler welcome. 
 
 " Can I sell you anything to-day, gentlemen and ladies ? " 
 ran on the bearer of the tin boxes, with a peculiar brogue, 
 and with the dog-trot monotone of his profession ; " pins, 
 needles, thread, combs, thimbles, cravats, laces, embroidery 
 patterns and crewel to match ! " But while he displayed his 
 medley of articles, Selma chanced to enter the room, where- 
 upon he addressed her with a low bow as if she were the mis- 
 tress, — ""Will you buy anything, Madam?" 
 
 " No, no," replied cousin Franck, " you mistake ; she is only 
 a servant ! " 
 
 " Oh, ah," replied the pedler, "I understand ;" then, turn- 
 ing to Selma, he added, " well, as you don't want to buy, I 
 guess T shall have to give you a trifle ;" then, fumbling for a 
 moment among his tilings, he handed her a little paper box, 
 when Mrs. Cameron with an indignant air bade her leave the 
 room. 
 
 "There it is again!" begSa Regina ill-humoredly, after 
 the pedler had left, and Mr. Oglethorpe had withdrawn; "as
 
 cousin fraxck's household. 233 
 
 1 live, I am to be haunted with the intolerable idea. Selma 
 is myself even in this poor pedler's esteem. I hate the very 
 sight of her ! " 
 
 "O, Mamma!" exclaimed Ruth imploringly. 
 
 " You hush, child." replied Madam Regina, in a vexed tone. 
 " Pretty well, indeed, for you to make yourself without natu- 
 ral affection, forsaking your mother, and taking Bides with a 
 servant ! ' I tell you, Selma's image is an unmitigated tor- 
 ment to me ! " 
 
 Franck, striding the room, with hands sheathed in his 
 pockets, whistled a short accompaniment to these words, and 
 then added, 
 
 ""Why keep her, then? — nothing easier than to dispose of 
 her." 
 
 " The truth is, there is no living with, nor without her," 
 replied Regina ; " she is highly necessary, and with all my 
 habits formed, pray, how am I to get along without her, and 
 with my acute sensibility to suffering, how can I bear her 
 hated image before me ? " 
 
 " The more comfortable way would be to hate her less," 
 coolly replied cousin Franck. 
 
 "You know," continued the lady, "Selma is no ordinary 
 servant. I was foolish enough to have her educated, but 
 aside from the aid she rendered me in my lessons, I have had 
 only cause to rue it." Cousin Franck was silent, and Mrs. 
 Cameron added, " Such impertinence in her to resemble me 
 so strongly — to ape my manners, and carry herself like a 
 lady ! As if it was not mortification enough for her to be of 
 20*
 
 234 COUSIN fuanck's household. 
 
 my family, she must be a living proclamation of it, having it 
 written in face, figure, mind and manner." 
 
 " Ho, ho, hum ! " yawned Franck Cameron, " well, anything 
 for a quiet life. I guess we might as well sell her and be 
 done with it ! " 
 
 " We ! " replied Regina, sarcastically, " I wonder who is we, 
 you or I. It might be as well for some people to remember 
 the conditions of the marriage settlement ! " 
 
 " 0, of course, I have no idea of intermeddling," replied 
 the husband, " but it does seem a pity no plan can be thought 
 of for your comfort. Why not dispose of Selma, and let some 
 one else take her place ? " 
 
 " Why not ? that is the question I am ever mooting," re- 
 plied the lady, " but I come no nearer a decision. The truth 
 is, my misfortunes of last winter have so broken me down 
 that I am neither one thing nor the other. I am afraid to 
 take such a step, — I fear some new calamity will befall me if 
 I attempt it. When I was young, father sold Selma's 
 brothers, William and Wallace, and was inexpressibly 
 wretched ever after." 
 
 " Bless me ! Mrs. Cameron," interrupted the husband, "how 
 superstitious ! you are really getting nervous. I would not 
 have believed you could be so weak as to run off such a no- 
 tion. But come, cheer up, cheer up! We can manage the 
 matter somehow ; ' where there's a will there's a way.' " 
 
 Adieu, 
 
 Pocahontas.
 
 cousin franck's nousEnoLD. 235 
 
 P. S. Rosalie has all at once become an enthusiast in 
 French, and declares she has a prince of teachers in Mr. 
 Oglethorpe. She toils hard, almost denying herself of sleep, 
 and really is progressing wondrously. I am puzzled to know 
 which Mr. Oglethorpe likes best, Rosalie or Ruth. I dare 
 say it's Rosalie, however, she makes herself so interesting, 
 and Ruth has no other thought than to do her part in making 
 his visit agreeable.
 
 LETTER XVIII. 
 
 SURPRISE. 
 
 "Willo"\y Creek, Va., Sept. 29, 18 — . 
 
 Dear S. — Prepare yourself for a surprise. The box 
 given to Sehna contained a little note from Hannibal ; and the 
 pedler is no other than that hero himself! He found freedom 
 too sweet to enjoy alone, and bravely faced that which he 
 abhorred worse than death itself, for the safety of those he 
 loves. A few evenings since Ruth discovered the secret of 
 his arrival, and immediately set herself to work to give Sel- 
 ma an opportunity to meet him. 
 
 I should have told you before that Mima insisted so roundly 
 to Juniper that she was no wife of his, and would die sooner 
 than consent, and so intimidated him with her brave threats, 
 that the craven was afraid to claim her, and at length divorced 
 her with a kick and a curse, saying, very loftily, 
 
 " Prenty more fish in de sea waitin' for to be cocht ! 
 Prenty more, a heap of store better than such as you ! " 
 
 Hannibal found a hiding-place in an old forsaken spring 
 house, in a woody ravine some distance from the mansion. 
 Thither, Mima, Ruth and Selma managed to carry food. On 
 his arrival he was sadly in need of rest, and in a most pitiable
 
 COUSIN franck's household. 237 
 
 plight. His plan was to take Selina and Mima, and escape 
 on foot ; but Ruth assured them the chances were few, if they 
 attempted it, and proposed a plan she had herself matured, 
 the obstacles to which, however, were formidable enough. 
 Selma was constantly needed by Regina, and Mima was no 
 less serviceable to Rosalie — how to give them time to get 
 a fair start was the problem. Juniper, accomplished in low 
 cunning, was ever on the alert, and we feared he already sus- 
 pected Hannibal was secreted in the vicinity of the house, 
 when we fortunately overheard the following conversation. 
 "We were sitting in the trellised portico, half hidden in the 
 fragrant shade, and Juniper was putting the saloon to rights. 
 Cousin Franck passing through the room, Juniper began with 
 usual obsequiousness, 
 
 " 'Pears like dese slier is very strange times, Massa ; dese 
 sher niggers dat ongrateful — run away p'r'aps — leave Massa 
 in de lurks 'bout de work, an' den come back p'r'aps an' tote 
 off some ob de res' of dere kin — de ongrateful truck ! " 
 
 " "Wliat's that Jun, what's in the wind now ? " asked cousin 
 Franck. 
 
 " Oh, nothin', p'r'aps, Massa Cameron," responded the wily 
 serving-man, " nothin', p'r'aps ! " 
 
 "Then you may as well hold your tongue," replied the 
 master, " Come, what do you mean, you rascal ? " 
 
 " Nothin' in 'ticclar, Massa ; only p'r'aps Hannibal haint 
 come back, an' he haint gwine to coax off no more niggers, 
 p'r'aps, dat's all ! I dun know for sarten, but I 'spects I smell 

 
 238 COUSIN fbanck's household. 
 
 him -whereabouts. I'll jes' be done with dis slier dustin', an' 
 den, 'Massa, you jes' come with me." 
 
 " Be lively, then," said cousin Franck, beating his boot 
 with his riding whip. 
 
 Kuth and myself were in great trouble. The first impulse 
 was to send to the woody glen, that Hannibal might seek 
 some other place of safety. Whispering Ruth to manage and 
 detain cousin Franck and Juniper, I noiselessly slid out, and 
 tripping through the garden and field beyond, was cpiickly 
 threading the woods in the direction of the spring house. 
 When almost there I met Mima, and in a few words told her 
 of Hannibal's danger. The poor girl at first was almost 
 paralyzed with fright, but soon recovering herself, said, 
 
 " If he was ony safe in de holler tree, now." 
 
 " What hollow tree ? where ? " I eagerly asked. 
 
 " On tother side of de gully, over dare," pointed Mima, 
 Ci ony a step off", — 'parently he'd be a heap safer stowed 
 'way dare, an' 'pears like dey wouldn't done tink of lookin' 
 dare for him." 
 
 Hannibal decided at once, when informed of his danger, to 
 occupy the hollow tree ; and Mima, hastily tying up a package 
 of food, from the little stock in the spring house provided by 
 Ruth, hastened with him to the tree, distant not half a dozen 
 rods, while I remained to put the little room to rights. Rais- 
 ing a loose board from the floor, I hurriedly stowed away a 
 quilt, blanket and pillow, also the remainder of the eatables. 
 As I was replacing the board, I heard voices, and being sure 
 that the pursuers were near, made the best of my way to a
 
 cousin franck's household. 239 
 
 quiet nook in the side of the ravine nearly opposite the hol- 
 low tree. It was an excavation in the bank, forming a sort of 
 a cave, through which ran the root of a monarch oak, which 
 root Huth had nicely covered with mosses, for a seat. In 
 front of the grotto, was a wall of shrubbery with a portable 
 pine bough for a door. Reaching this retreat almost breath- 
 less, I was relieved to see that Hannibal was ensconced in 
 his hiding-place, and a moment after Mima joined me, in 
 answer to my beckoning. 
 
 The sound of voices became more audible, and in a few 
 moments the spring house door creaked on its rusty hinges, 
 and we heard Juniper say, 
 
 " AVy, hi, Massa Cameron, 'pears like him no here, arter 
 all ! him 'scaped 'parently, dat is clar ! " 
 
 " Nonsense, Jun ! " exclaimed cousin Franck ; " you must 
 be drunk! Hannibal is a thousand miles off; of course, the 
 dog wouldn't come back ! " 
 
 " Ob course, Massa, he no come back on his own 'count," 
 said Juniper, "but 'pears like he come back an' tote off his 
 kin, Selma an' de res'." 
 
 "Jun, you're a fool!" exclaimed cousin Franck, getting 
 angry; " what under the canopy did you lead me on this wild- 
 goose chase for? Look ye here, you rascal; if you are 
 fooling me, — unless you can bring me some reasonable proof 
 that Hannibal has come back, — I'll have you tied to the whip- 
 ping-post and mauled within an inch of your life. I will not 
 put up with your humbugging insolence, depend upon it ! " 
 
 " Massa Cameron, de facts of de case is jes' here," ex-
 
 2-40 cousin franck's household, 
 
 plained Juniper, — and as we peeped through the leafy curtain 
 of the grotto, we had a view of the master and servant ; " de 
 facts of de case is jes' here," continued Jun, consecmentially 
 resting one foot on a log, and rolling his tobacco quid to the 
 other side of his mouth, " I'se been studyin' 'pon dese times, 
 an' 'parently tings is come to a strange pass. 'Pears like 
 ongrateful niggers is bound to run away, an' den dat don't 
 done satisfy 'em, dey is bound to come back an' tote off dare 
 kin, dat is evident ! " 
 
 " Come, now," said cousin Franck, " be done with this beat- 
 ing about the bush, and tell me at once, have you any reason 
 to think Hannibal is in this neighborhood ? " 
 
 " To come to de p'int, den, Massa," replied Juniper, " I 
 lone overheered some of de servants sayin' he had corned 
 back ; mighty sly dey was about it, too. An' so what's I'se 
 to do but look roun' an' find him ; and las' night I peeped 
 into dis sher spring 'ouse, when de moon was shinin' bright, 
 an' dare was Hannibal sure enough." 
 
 " Bless me ! what's the reason you did not tell me about it 
 at once," said cousin Franck. 
 
 " Please to b'lieve me, Massa, I was waitin' for the 'velop- 
 ments," replied Jun ; " I wanted to see who'd take sides wid 
 him an' befriend him like, — 'parently dare's prenty of 
 Btraiters T)out." 
 
 " You're a dunce and a fool ! " angrily exclaimed cousin 
 Franck. " and you ought to be strung up for your carelessness ! 
 What upon earth were you thinking about to let him slip 
 through your fingers in that style?"
 
 COUSIN" FEAKGK'a HOUSEHOLD. 241 
 
 " Oh, Massa Cameron," said Jun, " 'scuze me dis time, 
 an' I'll be bound I'll find him if he's in de land ob de livin' ! " 
 
 " Find him, and I Id it pass," replied cousin Franek, "but 
 unless you do, you shall answer for your nonsense!" and 
 cousin Franek turned on his heel and was gone. 
 
 Juniper remained to explore, — we saw him enter the 
 spring house, and seem to be busy looking for some trace of 
 Hannibal. In trembling anxiety we bent back the shrubbery 
 that we might better watch his movements. At length his 
 quick eyes discovered some crumbs and lint, and with a 
 malicious whistle and chuckle he began to caper and dance. 
 
 " Hoot, hi ! takes dis chap to come de game ! I'll done 
 have him right smart libely ! " and he cautiously looked out 
 of the little apartment as if he almost expected to see Hanni- 
 bal, then turned back and commenced taking up the floor, to 
 see if he was secreted beneath. He soon found the articles 
 I had hidden there, and exclaimed, as he saw the roll of bed- 
 ding, 
 
 " Hi ! you nigger, come out there, d'ye hear ? Putty well 
 tucked up in blankets, aint ye ? Thought I couldn't find ye, 
 eh?" and he gave the handle a kick. "Hi! taint you, 
 nuther! — what be ye?" and he pulled up and opened the 
 bundle, rolling up his eyes in great astonishment, but hastily 
 bestowing it again where he found it, said, " Stay dare, till 
 I calls for ye ! " 
 
 Having next carefully rcconnoitered the outside of the 
 spring house, he bent almost to the ground, and searched 
 carefully for footsteps. These, however, were not so easily 
 21
 
 212 COUSIN l'KAXCIv's HOUSEHOLD. 
 
 found, the rocky footing being covered with moss. But at 
 length our worst fears seemed about to be realized, for he 
 
 ..dd suddenly toward the tree, having doubtless perceived 
 the moss to be most broken in that direction. Here he came 
 to a stand, evidently not knowing that it was hollow ; the en- 
 trance being in the fork of the tree some distance from the 
 ground, it could not be seen without climbing. While he was 
 examining the ground, in order to decide the course of the 
 footsteps, a slave came to call him to his house duties. 
 
 " Wy, hi ! " exclaimed Juniper, '' haint done got half through 
 de hunt? What Massa tinkin' 'bout?" but away he went, 
 knowing that there was no appeal. 
 
 Active and anxious were our brains the rest of the day 
 after the discovery of the spring house, as every moment was 
 full of peril. After some deliberation, it was decided that 
 Sehna should take advantage of her looks, and journey North 
 as Mrs. Cameron, with Mima as her maid, and that Hannibal 
 should take passage at the same time in the character he had 
 already managed so well, namely, as a pedler. The difficulty 
 was to get them aboard the steamer which plied down the 
 Rappahannoc and up Chesapeake Bay to Baltimore. 
 
 Night came; our night for work in good earnest. We 
 were still in a state of excitement, although apparently calm 
 and self-possessed ; and one of the employments of the af- 
 ternoon, as if in girlish frolic, was a candy-scrape. The boat 
 would pass the nearesl lauding, at three o'clock, and as it was 
 a three hours' drive to this place, it would be necessary to start 
 at twelve At halfpasl eleven Mima gave the signal to Hanni-
 
 cousin fkanck's household. 243 
 
 bal. Cautiously leaving his retreat, he gained the stable-, 
 and quietly preparing the horses and carriage, very slowly 
 proceeded down the avenue, stopping in the deep shade of 
 embowering trees. Here he was joined by Selraa and Mima ; 
 Ruth and myself also took passage for the purpose of taking 
 back the carriage. To muffle as much as possible the rum- 
 bling of the wheels, the horses were walked until we were some 
 distance from the house, and then away we went at as fast a 
 pace as the fat animals could be urged. 
 
 The night was cloudy, and the moon mostly obscured ; this 
 was to us a good omen. But I cannot describe to you our 
 suspense and excitement. Very often we fancied the clat- 
 tering of horses' hoofs could be heard behind us, but as often 
 hushed our forebodings, after a few moments patient listening, 
 with the assurance that it was only the effect of our fears. 
 But little was said by any of us, for every thought was swal- 
 lowed up in anxiety for the result, and the fear which para- 
 lyzed our hearts to the semblance of stoicism when silent, 
 almost unnerved us when we gave it utterance. "We had 
 gone over more than two-thirds of the distance, and were just 
 beginning to be somewhat more hopeful as to the issue, when 
 again we thought we heard the sound of a distant gallop. 
 "We listened in breathless suspense ; our ears detected but too 
 distinctly, the tramp of horses. It was a dreadful moment. 
 What could we do? Hannibal, however, who had started his 
 horses to their utmost speed, suddenly turned into an old 
 corn-field, almost covered with pines, and after winding about 
 among them, halted behind a grove.
 
 241 cousin franck's household. 
 
 u Now we may manage to elude them, if they have left the 
 dogs behind," said Hannibal, " but wc shall be too late for the 
 boat. Let me see, however ; yes, I know where we are, only 
 two miles from the river across the fields, and we can easily 
 walk that distance ; we have no time to lose." With hasty 
 farewells, Ruth and I bid them God speed on their journey. 
 They had been hidden from our view by the pines only a few 
 moments, when we heard the baying of the hounds. In an 
 instant more, the three dogs sprang into the covert of bushes. 
 Ruth and I had just fastened the horses and entered the car- 
 riage, when the dogs, with loud vociferations, smelt around the 
 vehicle, and set off* at full speed after their game. 
 
 Juniper's disagreeable whistle and chuckle now fell on our 
 ears, and we heard him say, 
 
 " Dare, Massa, I done told you so ! Lor', we'll grab 'em right 
 smart quick ! " then, looking into the carriage — for the moon 
 now shone brightly, — " Wy, hi ! if here aint de young ladies ! 
 Who under the canopy had the 'resumption to tote ye off 
 here, noAv ? " Conceive our astonishment when we discovered 
 Juniper's companion to be Mr. Oglethorpe ! You can judge 
 how rapidly our former high regard for him changed into 
 anger and supreme contempt. 
 
 Tin' dogs goon yelped and barked, in tones that indicated 
 they bad come up with our flying friends, and wc heard the 
 voice of Hannibal, as he attempted to keep them at bay. It 
 was heart-rending to think they must be taken, when a single 
 half hour would probably base made them free forever. I 
 could not feel reconciled. My heart was seething with
 
 COUSIN FRAXCK S HOUSEHOLD. 245 
 
 thoughts that almost consumed me, and Ruth was well nigh 
 overcome with the intensity of her emotions. Mr. Oglethorpe 
 came forward, and spoke to us in his usual gentlemanly man- 
 ner, when we heard Mima scream, and begged him to see that 
 the dogs did no harm. When avc reached the scene of con- 
 flict, Hannibal, besides ordering off the dogs, had bound and 
 disabled Juniper, and was ready for a start. 
 
 " "Well done, well done ! young man," exclaimed Mr. 
 Oglethorpe. " You have won your freedom, and shall have 
 it, and Selma and Mima too. But there is no time for words. 
 The first thing is to make sure of the boat. Get into the 
 carriage; you may yet reach the river in time." The horses 
 were soon at the top of their speed. Mr. Oglethorpe entered 
 fully into the plan of operations, and expressed the most en- 
 tire confidence that Selma would readily pass for a Southern 
 lady, travelling with her servant. 
 
 To us, the mystery of Mr. Oglethorpe's character was 
 deepened by this new development. During the short, rapid 
 ride to the river, not a word escaped him that served to solve 
 it ; and we had no courage to invade the sad reserve, in 
 "which he has always moved, as if in an enchanted circle. 
 But it was plainly seen in his manner, and especially in his 
 countenance, that powerful emotions were contending within. 
 
 On reaching the landing, the boat had not arrived, and was 
 not due under about half an hour. Mr. Oglethorpe seemed 
 much relieved, and exclaimed, 
 
 " Thank God ! I shall then have time ! " Then, approach- 
 ing Selma and taking her hand, he said, with thick utterance, 
 21*
 
 246 cousin fcamk's household. 
 
 •■ Years ago you had two little brothers, William and "Wal- 
 lace, — do you remember them ? " 
 
 u Remember them ! " exclaimed Selma, "my poor darling 
 brothers ! — the victims of the rice swamps!" and she burst 
 into tears. 
 
 " Selma, I am William ! your own brother William ! " 
 ejaculated the mysterious stranger, in accents that attested the 
 truth of his words. 
 
 " My brother ! My William ! " gasped Selma ; then, 
 gazing into his face for a moment, she threw herself upon 
 hi- neck, and wept as if the fountains of her heart were 
 broken up. That deep gaze had read a brother's heart with 
 the certainty of aroused instinct. 
 
 " My brother was dead, and is alive again ; he was lost, 
 and is found," she at length recovered herself sufficiently to 
 articulate. The first paroxysm of excitement over, hurried 
 questions and explanations followed. 
 
 " Poor Wallace ! " said Mr. Oglethorpe in reply to Selma's 
 inquiry respecting him, " poor Wallace ! his proud spirit 
 could not yield to its servile position. He was literally 
 butchered at the whipping-post, to break him in. About a 
 year after we were Mild, on returning at night faint and weary 
 from tin' field, I found him in an old out-house, weltering in 
 blood. As I called his name, he feebly opened his eyes and 
 asked for drink. I ran for water. When lie had drank he 
 revived somewhat, and -aid, 
 
 "'They've killed me. William; pray to God that I may 
 meet our dear mother in heaven.'
 
 COUSIN FRANC Iv's HOUSEHOLD. 247 
 
 "I tried to pray, and Wallace joined audibly and fervently 
 in the petition ; but when I arose from the ground, his 
 troubled spirit had fled. O, the desolateness of that hour ! I 
 was yet beside the body, when my master arrived from Mo- 
 bile, his city residence, accompanied by a stranger. 
 
 "'Just what I expected,' exclaimed he, with a look of 
 regret, when he saw that Wallace was dead ; ' these over- 
 seers can't break the youngsters in, without killing them. 
 But it's no earthly use to say a word ; a man must take the 
 world as he finds it. Come, Oglethorpe, what will you say 
 for William? — the price we were talking about?' 
 
 " ' Yes,' replied the stranger ; ' and I regret I did not close 
 the bargain before, and save the life of that boy.' 
 
 " I now found myself transferred to a new master, and was 
 not long in discovering that it was a happy change. Mr. 
 Oglethorpe was about fifty years old, and unmarried. He 
 was alone in the world, having lost every near relative by 
 death. His countenance was a true index of his kind and 
 generous heart. He was like a father to me ; and within a 
 short time gave me free papers, subsequently adopted me as 
 his son, and removed farther North, with the view to my 
 education. In process of time I honorably graduated at the 
 University of Virginia, and then accompanied my adopted 
 father to Europe. Dying a few months ago, he left me sole 
 heir to a princely fortune ; unencumbered, however, with 
 slaves, he having long since set them free. 
 
 " I can never be grateful enough to the overruling Hand 
 that took me from the grasp of slavery; neither can I repay
 
 248 COUSIN FRANCKB HOUSEHOLD. 
 
 the debt more properly, than by spending my income in 
 freeing my enslaved brethren, and in educating and providing 
 for them when free. But there is the steamer. We must 
 part for the present. I shall soon meet you at the North, 
 where a happy home, I trust, awaits us. Let me hear from 
 you immediately on your arrival. In the mean while, take 
 this purse; it will meet all present contingencies." 
 
 " There is hardly time to thank you," said Selma ; " but 
 there is a secret which you should know before we separate. 
 Our father, Henry Hartley, remembered you in his will, 
 having doubtless learned the fact of your freedom ; but after 
 his decease, Regina, discovering the supplement, destroyed 
 the will, as she supposed. I found it in the grate, not essen- 
 tially injured, and immediately enclosed it in a bottle, and 
 buried it. You will find the bottle at the foot of the Willow 
 tree that overshadowed the green cabin, on the east." 
 
 " It is of no consequence, — I shall never lay claim to any 
 part of Mrs. Cameron's ill-gotten possessions," replied Ogle- 
 thorpe, bitterly. "But how came Henry Hartley to remem- 
 ber me in his will ? " 
 
 " People generally said he was deranged," replied Selma. 
 At this moment the boat stopped at the landing, and he 
 handed his sister on board, Hannibal and Mima following. 
 In a moment more the steamer was on its way. 
 
 Adieu, 
 
 Pocahontas.
 
 LETTER XIX. 
 
 THE WILL. 
 
 Willow Creek, Va., Oct. 1, 18 — . 
 
 Dear S. — It was nearly sunrise when we reached home. 
 Juniper was perfectly nonplussed, and did not venture a 
 word during the ride. We all knew he would soon make 
 up this want of volubility. Ruth and I were nervously 
 solicitous that he keep silence, but Mr. Oglethorpe was quite 
 easy on the subject. Indeed, the dark cloud seemed to have 
 been lifted from his heart, and a sunshine let in to which he 
 had before been a stranger. 
 
 " Juniper," said cousin Franck, as we sat down to break- 
 fast, the morning of our return, " you may leave the room." 
 " That servant," he continued, as Juniper disappeared, ad- 
 dressing Mr. Oglethorpe, with an agitation of manner that he 
 vainly endeavored to conceal, " is so full of deception, that I 
 never know what part of his stories to believe. Why, he as- 
 sures me that he found Hannibal ; that he started in pursuit ; 
 that you went with him to help take the fugitives ; that, on 
 arriving at the place where they were secreted, you joined 
 1 lands with them, and leaving him fast bound, carried them to 
 the landing ; but of course I don't listen to such nonsense ; "
 
 250 COUSIN FHANCK'S HOUSEHOLD. 
 
 
 
 and cousin Franck laughed faintly, as if lie thought there 
 might he some shadow of truth in it. 
 
 " He is mainly correct," said Mr. Oglethorpe, as coolly as 
 if assenting to some metaphysical abstraction. 
 
 " I cannot believe it," said Regina, excitedly. Rosalie 
 turned pale. 
 
 " In Juniper's eagerness to set out on so commendable an 
 expedition," Mr. Oglethorpe continued, " what does he do, 
 but propose to me to join the chase ? I at once acceded, with 
 the determination of doing a good deed, — of righting, as far 
 as possible, a very great Avrong. God do so to me, and more 
 also, if I help not him that hath no helper, when it is in my 
 power to do so." 
 
 Madam Regina's eyes flashed. Her profound reverence 
 for her guest was plainly fast waning. 
 
 "Mr. Oglethorpe," outspoke Franck Cameron, "you are 
 well bred in the usages of society ; a guest in the enjoyment of 
 our hospitalities ; and yet, Sir, according to your own avowal, 
 a I will not apply the epithet sir — but — " 
 
 " Allow me, Mr. Cameron, to explain myself and my con- 
 duct," replied Mr. Oglethorpe, with his wonted dignity. 
 " My true name is not Oglethorpe, but Hartley. I am the 
 son of the late Henry Hartley, of North Carolina." 
 
 " The son of Henry Hartley ! " vehemently exclaimed 
 Regina, half rising from her chair and gesticulating with her 
 lame hand, "you lying imposter! my father had no other 
 child but myself, — I tell you I am his only heir ! " 

 
 COUSIN FRANC K'S HOUSEHOLD. 251 
 
 "Did not your father have four Blave children?" calmly 
 
 aiked Mr. Oglethorpe. 
 
 "What (hen, Sir?" exclaimed Madam Regina, with a 
 dark frown, and an agitation that made her tremble violently. 
 
 "Your father, Mrs. Cameron," added Mr. Oglethorpe, 
 " executed a will in favor of one of his slave sons. The at- 
 tempt to destroy that will was unsuccessful ; it is now in ex- 
 istence ! " 
 
 At these words, Regina became ghastly pale, and swooned 
 in her chair. Cousin Franck, Ruth and myself hastened to 
 assist her. She was carried to her room, and soon revived. 
 Franck endeavored to calm her excitement, and expressed 
 his regret that she had allowed her feelings to betray her into 
 rude language. " Besides," added he, " it is possible that we 
 may be in Oglethorpe's power. I confess to some fears that 
 that will may yet make us more trouble ; for it is well known 
 that such a will was left by the old man, and though the pub- 
 lic voice pronounced him crazy, yet it might not be so easy 
 to establish the fact, against a claimant of such ample re- 
 sources. But can it be possible that that will is still in exis- 
 tence ? Did you not assure yourself of its destruction ? " 
 
 "Why yes, I supposed I did," replied Regina, in a tone 
 materially depressed from its late wrathful imperiousness ; 
 " but I confess, that, beyond throwing it into the fire, I gave 
 myself no farther concern, as I had not the least idea the mat- 
 ter would ever be thought of again. But Avhat can this 
 mean? Even supposing the will was not destroyed at the
 
 252 cousin fraxck's household. 
 
 time, what earthly possibility is there of its being in existence 
 after this long lapse of years? " 
 
 " I will talk with Oglethorpe again on this point," replied 
 cousin Franck. " But do you remain in your room. Your 
 health requires rest and quiet." 
 
 Cousin Franck having returned to the diningroom, in- 
 quired of Mr. Oglethorpe if the will of which he had spoken 
 was in his possession. 
 
 " It is not," replied that gentleman ; " I have but recently 
 learned its existence, and the place of its deposit." 
 
 "Are you quite sure you have not been hoaxed?" asked 
 cousin Franck. 
 
 " Without more delay," replied Mr. Oglethorpe, " I will 
 take measures to ascertain how the matter stands, for your 
 satisfaction. I will start for North Carolina to-morrow." 
 
 " And if you wish it, I will accompany and assist you in 
 your researches," said cousin Franck. 
 
 " I thank you, it will not be necessary," replied Mr. Ogle- 
 thorpe ; " if the document is in existence, I shall have no dif- 
 ficulty in finding it. Let me, however, assure you that I hold 
 myself responsible for the full price of the escaped servants, 
 at your own appraisal. 
 
 Adieu, 
 
 POCAHONTAS.
 
 LETTER XX. 
 
 RUTHS SACRIFICE. 
 
 Willow Creek, Va., Oct. 15, 18 — . 
 
 Dear S. — Two or three clays after the escape of the ser- 
 vants, Ferdinand T. paid a visit to Willow Creek. Ruth was 
 delighted to welcome him ; but a dark trial has overshadowed 
 the joy of the high-souled girl. Mr. T. felt that the time had 
 arrived when he ought to receive the answer so long deferred. 
 If she ever consented to marry him, it was his hope she would 
 do so now. In entering upon such a relation, she clearly saw 
 what was before her. She must become the mistress of ser- 
 vants for life ; and although the struggle between conscience 
 and affection well nigh rent soul and body asunder, her con- 
 victions of duty were triumphant. With a breaking heart, 
 she told him that they must part forever ! In vain were his 
 endeavors to change her resolution. Ruth could not yield up 
 her sense of right, and he could not consent to sacrifice his 
 social position, by acceding to her wishes in the premises. 
 Kind and generous as he is in many respects, yet in depth of 
 conviction, and readiness to suffer, he is far enough from the 
 martyr standard. 
 
 " Henceforth, life will be a desert to me," said he, as he 
 22
 
 2.34 cousin fkanck's household. 
 
 took her hand at parting; "it might have been a Paradise." 
 Ruth ventured no reply, save, 
 
 "God bless you! farewell!" She then came up to my 
 room, and watched him as he mounted his horse, and rode 
 slowly away. She did not weep, — her grief was too deep for 
 utterance. 
 
 Yesterday was Ruth's birthday; she being eighteen sum- 
 mers old. She has come in possession of her estate, in ac- 
 cordance with a proviso in her lather's will. It is a time of 
 perplexity and embarrassment, as her father-in-law, mother, 
 and Rosalie are almost incessantly advising her to waive the 
 purpose she has formed of freeing her slaves. Singular as it 
 may seem, from a child such has been her determination, as 
 soon as they were hers by law. The family interpose so 
 many obstacles, that it is hardly possible to make a movement. 
 She is, however, firmly resolved ; only waiting a day or two, 
 to be assured as to the most judicious course. 
 
 How refreshing it is to see one wholly intent on doing 
 right! Ruth never seemed so fascinating and lovely as now. 
 Her Heavenly Father is choosing her in the furnace of af- 
 fliction. She has now relinquished one dearer to her than 
 life itself; the approbation of her friends has long lain a 
 rifice upon the altar. 
 
 "It-'' fully and tearfully, "as if I now 
 
 knew the meaning of the passage, ' sorrowful yef rejoicing.' 
 "Willi all my saddened emotions, 1 have great peace — a ,-u i 
 consciou n of having done right. I shall free those poor 
 people whom the law falsely calls mine. It should not be
 
 ( OTJSLN I'HANCk's HOUSEHOLD. 255 
 
 deferred one day even; for should I die, they must wear their 
 chains for life. Free papers must be mad.' out at once ; " and 
 she left the room to see her resolution put in 
 
 Rosalie is in a very excited state,— the of Mr. 
 
 Oglethorpe is continually before her, ai o think 
 
 of him as he stood in her esteem, before assisting the servai 
 in their audacious escape. She insists he is temporarily in- 
 sane, fancying himself the son of Henry Hartley. As for the 
 will, that is only a fabrication of his diseased brain ! 
 
 Cousin Franck has seemed to grow more and more dis- 
 pirited daily. He often walks the room for hours together 
 in moody silence. It is evident he does not earc so much for 
 the loss of his property, but every new trouble has seemed 
 to render Regina more testy and overbearing, until the 
 poor man is compelled to feel that he is only a convenient 
 appendage to her .-lave establishment. His thoughts more 
 frequently revert to the home of his childhood, to his excel- 
 lent mother, whose feelings were so deeply wounded by his 
 connection with slavery. I verily believe the old homestead 
 farm, now looks to him like an Eden, and that it would con- 
 stitute his highest happiness to spend the remainder of his 
 days on its free soil, and amid its peaceful seem 
 
 Indeed, shall I proclaim my enthusiastic folly? "W 
 don't laugh at me, — but I have already written a letter to 
 aunt Clara, suggesting the possibility that her misguided, but 
 still loved and only son, might be induced to return to the 
 North. How would it relieve me, if I could see Philip Au- 
 gustus, Washii ind little Clara, delivered from the de-
 
 256 cousin franck's household. 
 
 moralizing influences of slavery, and subjected to the plastic 
 force of aunt Clara's firm but gentle hand ! 
 
 "We often hear from Isabel T., — she is soon to be married 
 to a wealthy planter. Her friends are generally delighted, 
 and congratulate her on her brilliant prospects. I would 
 rather a thousand times be in the condition of our dear Ruth 
 
 Adieu, 
 
 Pocahontas 
 
 

 
 LETTER XXI. 
 
 THE ADJUSTMENT ITS RESULT. 
 
 Willow Ckeek, Oct. 24, 18 — . 
 
 Dear S. — Mr. Oglethorpe returned three days ago. 
 You may be sure the interest in our household was most in- 
 tense. Even the servants participated hi it. They had 
 heard now and then a word dropped which set their combus- 
 tible hearts on fire. Almost any change in the fortunes of 
 the family is sure to affect their condition either favorably or 
 adversely ; and these poor creatures, like the unfortunate al- 
 ways, are too apt to feel as if a change necessarily involved a 
 good. In the present case, however, their most sanguine an- 
 ticipations bid fair to be more than realized. 
 
 For the first two days after Mr. Oglethorpe's return, he 
 was shut up most of the time — the first day indeed until after 
 midnight, — in close privacy with cousin Franck and Regina. 
 Of course, I am not able to furnish the particulars of what 
 transpired, excepting that the singed and crumpled will was 
 produced, and a large pile of attested documents bearing on 
 the case. During the first day, Regina, whenever she ap- 
 peared, exhibited evidence of most intense excitement. Yes- 
 terday, though the excitement had not disappeared, yet the
 
 258 cousin ikaxck's household. 
 
 seemed like another woman. In truth, my sympathies were 
 strongly enlisted for her, her pride and passion which had 
 towered so loftily of late, appearing so broken and subdued. 
 I really think that her conscience has for some time been 
 violently disturbed, and that her internal struggles have been 
 the source of much of her overbearing and passionate de- 
 meanor. Her feelings have plainly been in a moral crisis. 
 Of course, I cannot say how radical or permanent the change 
 may be, but I hope for the best, for she now confesses to a 
 deep sense of wrong, and has assented to cousin Franck's 
 making such arrangement in relation to the estate, as he and 
 Mr. Oglethorpe can agree upon. 
 
 In fact, matters have been definitely and amicably settled 
 this afternoon, and in such a way as I know will give you as 
 much joy as it has Ruth and myself. 
 
 Cousin Franck relinquishes the estate to Mr. Oglethorpe, 
 with its debts and incumbrances, and receives in return a sum 
 sufficient for the purchase of a firstrate New-England farm, 
 — in fact, a full equivalent. Mr. Oglethorpe was anxious to 
 bring about this result, as it would enable him not only to 
 free the slaves, but to draw his sister Regina with her family 
 from the pestiferous atmosphere of the South. 
 
 Adieu, 
 
 Pocahontas. 
 
 P. S. Oct. 20. I have detained this letter a few days, 
 until I could communicate something definite as to our re- 
 moval. Yesterday we received two letters from the North, —
 
 cousin France's household. 259 
 
 one from Sekna, giving an account of her sftfe arrival in Am- 
 heretburg, Canada, the house of Fayett. Our hearts, I assure 
 you, have been made glad. Even cousin Franck and Regiua 
 sympathize with us in our joy. Do you wonder that I often 
 find myself saying to Ruth, "Is it not all a delicious dream, 
 cousin?" But the dear girl, so deeply religious in all her 
 feelings and views, is calm in her highest joy, and loves to 
 dwell on the words, 
 
 " God moves in a mysterious way, 
 His wonders to perform.'' 
 
 The other letter was from aunt Clara, inviting the family 
 to visit the old homestead, and expressing the wish that they 
 might be willing to make it their permanent home. It is 
 already decided to leave for the North one week from to- 
 morrow. Mr. Oglethorpe, however, will remain until he has 
 settled up affairs here, and will then, without further delay, 
 rejoin us around aunt Clara's hearth stone. The arrange- 
 ments subsequent to that, you will of course know, without 
 any further Virginia letters. I will just add, however, that 
 wherever Mr. Oglethorpe fixes his beautiful New-England 
 home, Selmawill constitute one of its noblest attractions, and 
 Hannibal, it is intended, shall be intimately associated with it. 
 
 Until I have the pleasure of introducing to you our peer- 
 less Ruth, Adieu. P. 
 
 FINIS.
 

 
 23692