THEIRSHADOWS 
 
 BEFORE-^Paulme 
 
 Carritifiton-Bouve- 
 
LIBRARY 
 
 I UNIVERSITY Of 
 \CAIIFORNIA 
 

THEIR SHADOWS BEFORE 
 
THEIR 
 SHADOWS BEFORE 
 
 A Story of 
 The Southampton Insurrection 
 
 By 
 Pauline Carrington Bouve 
 
 SCIKE 
 SCIENDVM 
 
 BOSTON 
 
 SMALL, MAYNARD & COMPANY 
 1899 
 
Copyright, 1899, by 
 Small, Maynard sf Company 
 
 {Incorporated} 
 
 Entered at Stationers Hall 
 
 LOAN STACK 
 
 Press of George H. Ellis, Boston, U.S. A. 
 
TO 
 FRANCES GEORGIANA PRESCOTT BELKNAP 
 
 THIS BOOK IS AFFECTIONATELY INSCRIBED 
 
 081 
 
Chapter I. 
 
 "T TNCLE ISHAM, would you like to 
 
 \^J be white like me? " 
 
 I was sitting in one of the broad-silled 
 windows of the old stone kitchen at Wins 
 ton Manor. Through the tiny, diamond- 
 shaped panes of glass I could watch the 
 pompous movements of my grandmother s 
 pea-fowls as they marched with out-spread 
 tails and in stately measure over the green 
 sward, where the early hoar-frost lay like a 
 silver veil. In colonial days the manor 
 kitchen had served as magistrate s office, 
 and the time-blackened oaken presses on 
 either side of the enormous chimney were 
 now used as dressers. Bits of broken crock 
 ery were visible through the circular open 
 ings of the ancient pigeon-holes where once 
 had reposed valuable documents, written 
 and signed by lordly fingers. 
 
 On the high-backed, uncomfortable set 
 tee in the corner where of old my great- 
 
4 Their Shadows Before 
 
 grandfather, Sir Christopher Winston, had 
 sat, dispensing favour and administering 
 justice sat old Uncle Isham, with his 
 bowl of coffee beside him and his ash-cake 
 on his knee. I gazed down into his 
 wrinkled face from my high perch in the 
 window, and in a vague sort of way my 
 heart was troubled. He was a very old 
 man, and I was a very little girl; yet he 
 belonged to me. There was something 
 strange in the situation. 
 
 "Why won t you tell me? " I persisted, 
 unaccustomed to this reserve on the part of 
 my usually voluble vassal and friend. With 
 an imperious gesture of my small hands I 
 smoothed down the folds of my new black 
 silk apron over my scarlet frock, while my 
 impatient heels beat such a vigorous tattoo 
 upon the wall that Uncle Isham found it ex 
 pedient to remove himself and his coffee to 
 the other end of the settee in order to escape 
 the shower of plaster that made a mimic 
 snow-storm in my immediate vicinity. 
 
Their Shadows Before 5 
 
 "Missy done axed me a hard question," 
 said the old man, slowly, as he set his bowl 
 down carefully and whipped away the bits 
 of broken plaster with a corner of his ban 
 danna. 
 
 "Do de can le-bug what fly aroun in de 
 summer evenin wanter be one uv de big, 
 shinin stars in de sky? " 
 
 "Oh, yes, but the candle-bug can t think, 
 you know : you are a person, you see, " I re 
 joined with superior wisdom. "Being a 
 person makes it different with you, of 
 course. 
 
 Uncle Isham gave me a searching glance 
 from between his half -shut eyelids, and 
 nodded his head several times. These 
 sapient, gentle nods suggested a happy com 
 bination of deference and decision. 
 
 "Missy," he said with lenient delibera 
 tion, "you is a mighty smart chile, I s pec ; 
 but some kinder things is clean pas de 
 jedgment uv chillun an 9 grown folks. All 
 de diffrunce eber I see tween de can le-bug 
 
6 Their Shadows Before 
 
 an de nigger is dat de can le-bug fly whar- 
 eber he wanter go, an de nigger cayn t. 
 No, honey, er nigger slave ain t no pusson, 
 de way I looks at it. 
 
 "Not a person? Why, don t you know 
 you have a soul ? " I asked in astonishment. 
 
 "I know I got feet an han s, an er hade 
 jes like yourn; but dey s black," said the 
 old man, as he spread out his shrivelled 
 brown hands upon his rheumatic knees. 
 "Mebbede soul what I got matches em," 
 he proceeded reflectively, a half-humourous 
 smile playing over his wrinkled face, like a 
 touch of sunshine on a withered autumn 
 leaf. 
 
 "No, no!" I explained anxiously. 
 "God s souls are all white till they get 
 themselves, or the Devil gets them, dirty." 
 
 "Amen, honey," was the fervent re 
 sponse to this observation. In our various 
 and usually long conversations upon sub 
 jects philosophical, political, and theologi 
 cal, or, when in lighter vein, topics of more 
 
Their Shadows Before 7 
 
 general interest were under discussion, this 
 formula of assent had become familiar to 
 my ears. 
 
 "Amen! Amen!" he continued to re 
 peat between the audible gulps and gur 
 glings that proclaimed the downward course 
 of the comforting but fast diminishing con 
 tents of the blue china bowl which he held 
 to his lips. As he proceeded to the com 
 pletion of his breakfast with more than 
 usual deliberation, I became convinced that 
 he was curiously indifferent upon a subject 
 I conceived ought to be of great interest to 
 him. I was disappointed in this indiffer 
 ence, but I determined to probe Uncle 
 Isham s feelings in another quarter. 
 
 "Did you ever hate white people?" I 
 asked calmly. 
 
 "Moses an Aaron!" ejaculated Uncle 
 Isham, in unfeigned amazement. He cast 
 a furtive, distrustful glance around the 
 room. "Who done put sech notions in yo 
 hade, honey? " 
 
8 Their Shadows Before 
 
 Nobody. I was just thinking perhaps 
 sometimes you couldn t help hating us a 
 little." 
 
 "Dem ain t de right kinder thoughts fer 
 er HT lady like you an er po ole nigger 
 like me," he replied in an odd, troubled 
 tone. 
 
 "I wouldn t blame you if you did," I 
 said with fine candour. "If I were a slave, 
 I would hate my master. Even if he were 
 good to me, still, I think I would hate, 
 yes, hate him. I could not help it." 
 
 "You is er cu yus chile, er mighty cu yus 
 chile," said Uncle Isham, eyeing me sus 
 piciously. "I ain t neber seed one befo 
 like you. " 
 
 "I don t want to be, curious, I mean," 
 I rejoined humbly. "I can t help it, be 
 cause I don t know when I m going to be 
 that way. Perhaps it is because I think a 
 good deal about fairies and witches. 
 
 "Ain t no sech, " was the positive re 
 joinder. I fancied that he looked relieved 
 
Their Shadows Before 9 
 
 now that we were getting into a less per 
 sonal phase. 
 
 "Dat s what mek people go crazy, sech 
 tales as dem. Read de Good Book, Missy, 
 
 read de Good Book. 
 
 "The Bible, you mean. Oh, that s just 
 full of wizards and witches and soothsayers, 
 
 like conjurers and Voodoos, you know; 
 and Revelations is like fairy tales a good 
 deal, only it is so very scary! I don t want 
 to go anywhere where I shall see locusts 
 with hair like women, and things with three 
 or four heads, do you ? 
 
 Uncle Isham pondered deeply over this 
 query. He did not wish to commit himself 
 hastily. 
 
 "Which one uv dem wuz it seen dem? " 
 he inquired cautiously. 
 
 "Saint John the Baptist," I promptly re 
 plied, in the pride of knowledge, perceiving 
 with satisfaction the impression my Script 
 ural erudition had produced. 
 
 "Dat s so. Amen an bless de Lord! 
 
io Their Shadows Before 
 
 But he went up inter de highest place, 
 clean up ter de Sebenth Heben ; an we 
 ain t gwine ter git dat fur, I reckin." 
 
 "Oh," I said, "I had not thought about 
 that." This simple and cogent reasoning 
 had overwhelmed me; but Uncle Isham s 
 tongue seemed suddenly to be loosened, and 
 he continued, 
 
 "When de seben seals is loosed in de 
 gret day, when the chain uv de bondman is 
 broke by de ban uv de Lord, den twill be 
 Glory, Glory, Glory!" 
 
 His dusky features were illumined by the 
 glow of intense emotion as he spoke. "But 
 fill de gret day, it s wuk an wait, wuk and 
 wait." His voice sank into a monotone as 
 he muttered these last words to himself, and 
 he folded his toil-worn palms together across 
 his knees. There was the suggestion of an 
 infinite patience a patience that was pa 
 thetic in the attitude of those folded 
 hands. 
 
 "You don t have to work now, Uncle 
 
Their Shadows Before 1 1 
 
 Isham, I said in an unsteady voice. 
 "And you never will have to again. Now 
 listen to me." I dropped down from the 
 window-ledge, and stood directly in front of 
 him. "As soon as I come of age, I will 
 set you free. I do not want you to belong 
 to me. I tell you I will set you free for 
 ever and ever. See, I swear it, in the name 
 of the Father and the Son and the Holy 
 Ghost." And I made the sign of the cross 
 upon the old man s face, just as I had seen 
 the minister do in the baptismal service. 
 
 "Amen!" said Uncle Isham; but his 
 voice was almost a whisper. 
 
 Thus was my childish vow made in the 
 name of the Father, and traced upon the 
 face of his child, a marred, blurred, dark 
 ened likeness, yet made in his own image. 
 
Chapter II. 
 
 "TT)ENELOPE, I have something to say 
 
 JT to you," said my grandmother to 
 me the morning after my conversation with 
 Uncle Isham. 
 
 I hastily cast over in my mind all of my 
 late sins of omission and commission, as 
 with trembling fingers I put the last stitch 
 into the "P" on my sampler. Now it was 
 not usual for my grandmother to confer with 
 me after this manner, so I waited in some 
 perturbation to hear what she would say. 
 
 "Your grandfather thinks it quite time 
 you should begin a regular course of in 
 struction. He does not approve this habit 
 you have fallen into of reading all sorts of 
 books and following your own whims so en 
 tirely. He has engaged a teacher for you, 
 who will probably arrive on this evening s 
 coach from Richmond." 
 
 Amazement, chagrin, and, beyond all 
 other emotions, a stifling sense of injustice 
 
Their Shadows Before 13 
 
 kept me silent after this startling announce 
 ment. The tones of her voice were as calm 
 and the click of her knitting-needles as 
 even and regular as though she had told me 
 the most commonplace fact in the world, 
 while my heart was fairly bursting with 
 suppressed rage and grief. 
 
 No word of warning had been vouchsafed 
 me; no opportunity given me to con over 
 the lessons and tasks so detested, and, alas ! 
 so neglected. In an agony of anticipated 
 humiliation, I reflected bitterly that I could 
 not get through with a single line of the 
 multiplication table perfectly, and that any 
 attempt at conjugations or declensions would 
 be fatal to my reputation as a student. 
 There was no loophole of escape. I should 
 be examined and disgraced ! 
 
 Unmindful of these painful reflections 
 that were torturing me, my grandmother 
 continued placidly : 
 
 "Ephraim will drive the carriage up to 
 Jerusalem, and meet the Richmond coach. 
 
14 Their Shadows Before 
 
 I dare say he can get back to the manor in 
 time for tea unless the sand drifts are too 
 heavy." 
 
 A slight wind was stirring, for which I 
 gave thanks inwardly. "I wish it might 
 blow a scirocco! " I exclaimed fervently. 
 
 "Why, how is this? " she asked sharply, 
 as she settled her spectacles well over her 
 handsome nose. "I fancied from the way 
 you were always poring over books that 
 you would be quite pleased. Only a fort 
 night since, you expressed a desire to be 
 sent to Miss Hugh s; and now, when your 
 grandfather has arranged for you to have the 
 best advantages at home, you look as gloomy 
 and miserable as possible." 
 
 "O grandma," I exclaimed indiscreetly, 
 "I think I might have been told about it. 
 Just think of not having so much as a day s 
 time to prepare myself! And then, the 
 idea of a prim, long-nosed old maid always 
 reproving, always correcting me, it is 
 fearful ! " And I almost sobbed. 
 
Their Shadows Before 15 
 
 "I hope you are not going to have a fit of 
 hysteria, Penelope. It would be unprece 
 dented, I think, in a girl of your years; 
 and as for the length of nose I cannot say, 
 but it may relieve you to know that Mr. 
 Basil Mortimer is not an old maid." 
 
 "Mr. Basil Mortimer!" I repeated 
 stupidly. "He is a man, not a woman, 
 then?" 
 
 "Yes, I think so, undoubtedly, Penelope. 
 I thought I was quite clear on that point. 
 In the mean time do try to get that stupid, 
 surprised expression from your face : it 
 makes you look absurd. 
 
 With which comforting assurance my 
 grandmother departed, key-basket in hand, 
 on her morning round of inspection in 
 kitchen, pantry, china-closet, and linen- 
 press. 
 
 The odious sampler fell from my knee 
 unheeded. I sat dazed, stupefied. My 
 thimble dropped from my finger and rolled 
 across the hearth almost into the fire. As 
 
1 6 Their Shadows Before 
 
 I stooped to pick it up, a sense of utter 
 desolation seemed to envelop my being. 
 Who cared about my humiliation and dis 
 grace? What did it matter if this hateful 
 man who was coming did discover all of my 
 weaknesses ? There was no one who would 
 really care. Grandmamma would only say 
 that " children were sent to school to learn, 
 not to show what they knew, which I felt 
 to be true ; but to be sent to school to show 
 what one did not know, that was a differ 
 ent thing. 
 
 With the clear, unerring instinct of 
 childhood, I felt that I was not what my 
 grandmother wished me to be; nor could I 
 ever be. Between us there was not that 
 beautiful sympathy that sometimes exists 
 between old age and youth, .that sympathy 
 which is the fruit of the union of infinite 
 tenderness on the one side and of infinite 
 faith on the other. My grandparents felt a 
 natural love for me, no doubt ; but it was 
 my misfortune to be totally unlike my 
 
Their Shadows Before 17 
 
 father s family. In me they had suffered 
 an unexpressed disappointment, the reflected 
 shadow of which somewhat dimmed the sun 
 shine of my child life; and so I learned to 
 live a life apart. My little realm was 
 guarded round about by a wall of self-re 
 straint and shy reserve, impenetrable to all 
 save Mammy and Uncle Isham. When 
 other help seemed vain and comfort far, 
 there was one haven of refuge ever open to 
 me, Mammy s cabin. There was no grief 
 too deep, no joy too subtle, for her sympa 
 thetic ear and responsive heart. 
 
 Down in the quarters I was always 
 sure to find solace of some sort. The art 
 less adoration of innumerable little darkies 
 who flocked around to do "Missy s" bid 
 ding, each one eager to share "de 
 sweetes tater yit in de patch" and "de 
 specklies one uv all de guinea aiggs " 
 was at once soothing and exhilarating. 
 
 Upon Mammy s broad bosom, aching head 
 and heart alike found repose. In this 
 
1 8 Their Shadows Before 
 
 moment of present dejection and anticipated 
 woe, therefore, it was to her I turned for re 
 assurance; and, hastily flinging my cloak 
 over my head, I sped with nimble feet 
 towards my sanctuary of peace. 
 
 All the cabins in "the quarters" were 
 built of great round logs, covered with and 
 rendered air-tight by a coat of mud, known 
 among the negroes as " daub." The chim 
 neys, which usually extended across the 
 entire side of the wall, were built of the 
 same substance. Mammy s cabin was pre 
 eminently superior to all the other hab 
 itations of the sort on the plantation by 
 virtue of its construction, being built of 
 hewed logs, " pointed " between the chinks 
 with plaster instead of mud. It possessed, 
 moreover, a glass window, which was the 
 envy of every dweller in the "quarters." 
 The square openings, with their wooden 
 slides or shutters, which served for windows 
 in the rest of the cabins, were rather unsat 
 isfactory in cold weather, as they admitted 
 
Their Shadows Before 19 
 
 when open, or excluded when shut, both 
 light and air at the same time. 
 
 The double row of cabins, with their 
 little sweet-potato and tobacco patches on 
 either side, presented a quite village-like 
 appearance. The instinctive love of a trop 
 ical race for vivid colour and rhythmic sound 
 displayed itself in the gay zinnias, red, 
 white, and yellow chrysanthemums, and 
 flaunting crimson dahlias that grew about 
 the doorways, from which issued snatches of 
 hymn or song chanted in the peculiar but 
 melodious tones of the Southern slave. 
 Swarms of small negroes were sunning 
 themselves in the vicinity of old Aunt 
 Phoebe s cabin. 
 
 Yonder come Missy! Yonder come 
 Missy!" chimed a chorus of voices; while 
 as many rows of snowy teeth were displayed 
 in smiles of welcome as I passed. 
 
 "Aun Phibby roastin er possum!" an 
 nounced a nimble, ape-like boy, known as 
 Tumbling Tom on account of certain gym 
 nastic achievements. 
 
20 Their Shadows Before 
 
 "Unc Solomon kotched him las night, 
 an he sholy are fat. And the young acro 
 bat smacked his lips unctuously. 
 
 "I don keer how fat he are. / ain t 
 gwinegit none," replied a cynical girl of 
 few years and scant raiment, as she de 
 scribed a circle with her great toe in the 
 hot sandy soil. 
 
 "Drippin s is good on tater-skins, " re 
 joined Tumbling Tom, with a knowing wink 
 and an eloquent roll of his tongue. "An 
 I s gwine ter be on han when dat possum 
 gits done. 
 
 Savory whiffs of sweet potatoes, slowly 
 roasting in their tiny graves of hot ashes on 
 Aunt Phoebe s hearthstone, reached me 
 through the half -open door; while the 
 cheerful sizzling and sputtering of the 
 coveted "drippin s " in the saucepan under 
 the possum, which hung upon a spit de 
 vised by a large nail driven into the wood 
 work of the mantel-piece, or "hearth-shelf," 
 as it is styled by the negroes, corroborated 
 
Their Shadows Before 21 
 
 Tom s declaration, and gave promise of a 
 delectable feast for Uncle Solomon, the 
 Nimrod of our plantation. Upon any other 
 occasion but the present I would surely 
 have been tempted a-nd beguiled by the vari 
 ous enticements offered in the shape of 
 may - pops, pop - corn, goober - pease, 
 and "scaly-barks " ; but to-day I firmly de 
 clined the offerings of my small handmaids, 
 and went on my way. 
 
 Eastward stretched undulating fields of 
 yellow tobacco-stalks, lately denuded for 
 the curing. Westward lay an expanse of as 
 yet uncut corn, intersected here and there 
 by green hillocks, and fields of peanuts and 
 sweet potatoes, which extended down to the 
 "worn-out grounds," where broom-sedge 
 flourished, despite scant nourishment, and 
 black-eyed pease grew apace. Here and 
 there an occasional persimmon-tree cast 
 long shadows across the sunny cotton-fields 
 that lay southward, towards the dark line of 
 pine woods that merged into the mysterious 
 depths of the swamps beyond. 
 
22 Their Shadows Before 
 
 From the tobacco-house on the hillside, 
 where the hands were hanging the brown 
 and golden leaves of the tobacco plants 
 upon the tiers along the walls and on the 
 conical roof, came the refrain of a melan 
 choly ditty 
 
 " If you kin pout, 
 
 I kin be stout : 
 So good-bye, my honey, Mary Jane." 
 
 The last mournful words reached me quite 
 distinctly, as I stopped for a moment under 
 the sheltering boughs of the juniper-tree, 
 which cast a pool of shadows about 
 Mammy s door. 
 
 " Good-bye, my honey, Mary Jane, 
 Good-bye, good-bye, good-bye, Mary Jane." 
 
 The long-drawn wail suddenly ceased, 
 and I became aware that Mammy was enter 
 taining a visitor. Who could it be? 
 
 I knew that most of the negroes were 
 busy in the fields or in the tobacco-house, 
 and that Mammy usually disdained to con- 
 
Their Shadows Before 23 
 
 sort with "field hands," for whom she felt 
 undisguised contempt. I listened. The 
 voice was unfamiliar to me, and now and 
 then in Mammy s voice there was a tone of 
 suppressed excitement that struck oddly 
 upon my ears. 
 
 Very gently I crept up the rickety steps, 
 and peeped in. Mammy was sitting in her 
 cane-bottomed chair by the window. Her 
 hands were tightly clasped before her; 
 while her widely-distended eyes were fixed 
 with a frightened, unseeing expression upon 
 those of the man who stood directly in front 
 of her. A ray of sunshine streamed in 
 through the vine-trellised window, and cast 
 a broken bar of yellow light across the floor, 
 bringing out in strong relief the green and 
 red star pattern of the quilt that adorned the 
 four-posted bed in the corner. Standing 
 directly in the path of the sunbeam, the 
 grotesque figure and singular visage of 
 Mammy s strange companion seemed to be 
 enveloped in a halo of golden radiance. 
 
24 Their Shadows Before 
 
 His misshapen figure, though short of 
 stature and distorted by protuberances that 
 grew from each side of the collar-bone, gave 
 evidence of great muscular strength. 
 
 His head was well shaped, and the out 
 line of face and feature was clearly denned. 
 About the mouth and jaws there was a heav 
 iness suggestive of latent brutality; while 
 the abnormally developed forehead overhung 
 a pair of deep-set, glowing eyes, which from 
 their intensity of expression produced the 
 peculiar effect of double pupils. 
 
 What struck me as most singular in the 
 unique personality of the being before me 
 was his hands. They were well formed, 
 and coffee-coloured like his face, excepting 
 that upon the back of one, and extending 
 upward from the wrist of the other, the skin 
 was as white as my own. 
 
 I stood riveted to the spot, deterred by 
 some instinct from making the slightest 
 noise that might betray my presence. 
 
 "The time is near, the time is near," he 
 
Their Shadows Before 25 
 
 said solemnly. "By the Sign of the Sun 
 and the Sign of the Cross it shall come to 
 pass!" And I saw him pluck from his 
 bosom and unroll before Mammy s eyes a 
 scroll of paper, upon which were inscribed 
 curious figures and signs. The central 
 figures represented a sun and a distinctly 
 although rudely outlined crucifix, traced in 
 some crimson fluid. 
 
 "The White Lamb for the Black Sheep ! 
 he continued in loud, resonant tones. 
 "Jehovah is mighty, and he will show that 
 the word of His prophet is true. A token 
 and a sign shall be given; and the rulers 
 shall see, but shall not understand, and the 
 bondman shall know that Nathaniel hath 
 spoken the Word of the Lord ! 
 
 He pushed the roll of paper back into its 
 hiding-place as he spoke, and turned towards 
 the door. I sprang lightly and noiselessly 
 from my perch, and crouched behind the 
 trunk of the juniper-tree, which completely 
 screened my small body from view. Here 
 
26 Their Shadows Before 
 
 I waited until the measured tread of the 
 man s footsteps along the gravelly road 
 grew fainter, and at last ceased to be heard. 
 
 Very quickly I came to a decision upon 
 one point. Mammy must not know that I 
 had witnessed the interview between herself 
 and her strange visitor. No one must know. 
 For my grandfather was a fierce man some 
 times; and, if he knew that his orders con 
 cerning visitors from other plantations had 
 been disobeyed, Mammy would be punished. 
 Perhaps she would tell me about it : no 
 doubt she would explain what he meant by 
 the "sign and the token. " But I would not 
 ask, at least, not yet. 
 
 After a few minutes I entered the cabin 
 with a troubled mind and an aching heart. 
 
 "O Mammy," I exclaimed without any 
 previous greeting, "I m going to have a 
 tutor, he is coming to-night, and I am 
 the most miserable girl in Southampton 
 County." And I flung my arms about her 
 neck, and fell to sobbing. 
 
Their Shadows Before 27 
 
 " What hurts Mammy s baby?" she said 
 softly, gathering me close to her heart. 
 "Tell yo ole Mammy all about it." And 
 she stroked back the tangled hair from my 
 feverish forehead with a soothing touch. 
 
 With tears and sobs I told my story. 
 
 "Dar now, honey," she said consol 
 ingly, "don you fret. Men folks is cu jus, 
 but dey easier ter git along wid den 
 women is. Besides, you oughter be mighty 
 smart an know er heap when you grows up. 
 All de ladies bout will mos die kaze dey 
 ain as smart as my lamb gwine ter be when 
 she gits ter be Mist is uv Winston Manor. " 
 
 By which it will be seen that Mammy 
 did not always inculcate the highest motives 
 and incentives to duty in my youthful mind. 
 The suggestion of some day being the envy 
 of the county ladies was decidedly pleasing. 
 Undoubtedly, something might calmly be 
 endured for such a result. I dried my eyes 
 on a corner of Mammy s apron, and grew 
 more composed in my mind. 
 
28 Their Shadows Before 
 
 Mammy had just taken a hot sweet potato 
 from the hearth, when we heard loud voices 
 near the door. 
 
 "Take that, you black sneak! I ll show 
 you what you ll get for disobeying my 
 orders ! And the quickly repeated lashes 
 of a heavy whip smote the air. My heart 
 gave a terrible bound, and I felt my lips 
 blanch ; for I knew what that sound meant : 
 some negro was being whipped. 
 
 We both rushed to the door. Mr. West, 
 the new overseer, held aloft a long cowhide 
 whip over the bared and blood-stained back 
 of a young negro man. 
 
 "O Lord! O Lord!" groaned Mammy. 
 "It s Lame Jim!" 
 
 My heart seemed to burst within me as 
 I saw the leathern thong descend upon the 
 cripple s shoulders. 
 
 "Stop!" I cried. "You coward!" 
 And I rushed between the writhing figure 
 of the helpless culprit and the infuriated 
 white man. 
 
Their Shadows Before 29 
 
 Mr. West was blind with rage, and so 
 sudden was my movement that almost simul 
 taneously the blow from the uplifted lash 
 fell upon my own shoulders. An agony of 
 pain shot through my body, as I felt the 
 warm blood gush from my tender flesh, a 
 dimness came over my eyes, and I fell for 
 wards in a swoon upon the ground. When I 
 opened my eyes, I was lying on Mammy s 
 bed, and Mammy was holding a camphor 
 bottle to my nose. 
 
 "See dar!" she said in a trembling 
 voice, as I stirred. "Now you se better." 
 And she fanned me vigorously with a. 
 turkey-wing fan. 
 
 "Water," I gasped faintly, as the dizzy 
 feeling began to return. "Water, please." 
 
 "Kin Mammy s baby wait till she run ter 
 de well and gits a nice cool drink?" she 
 inquired anxiously, as she took from a nail 
 in the wall a large gourd dipper. 
 
 "Mammy won t be gone no time," she 
 continued reassuringly. "An den she ll 
 
30 Their Shadows Before 
 
 take her baby right straight ter de house. 
 You jes shet yo eyes, honey, an res till 
 I git back." 
 
 The pain in my shoulder was hard to 
 bear; and, in spite of Mammy s hastily im 
 provised bandages, the blood was still ooz 
 ing from the wound. I closed my eyes 
 wearily, and wondered how long it would 
 take her to draw the water and return. 
 Some minutes must have elapsed when I 
 was aroused by a slight touch on my 
 shoulder. With a violent start, I looked 
 up, and saw the face of Mammy s visitor 
 bending over me. 
 
 As in a nightmare, I tried to cry out, but 
 could not. 
 
 For an instant one of those strangely 
 spotted hands touched my face, as with a 
 swift movement he traced a circle on my 
 forehead. The end of the brown finger was 
 red and moist from the contact with my 
 bleeding shoulder. 
 
 Once more I made an agonised effort to 
 
Their Shadows Before 31 
 
 call Mammy, but the word died on my 
 tongue. The solemn eyes held me with 
 their singular power. Was I awake or was 
 this just a dream? I could not tell. Sud 
 denly he spread out his hands as in prayer, 
 and I heard him say, "Lord Jesus, behold 
 the mark!" 
 
 Then he turned and went towards the door, 
 casting a grotesque shadow on the sunlit 
 floor. As he disappeared, I heard Mammy s 
 voice calling Daphne. When her tur- 
 banned head appeared in the doorway, my 
 overstrained nerves gave way. "Don t let 
 him touch me again ! Take me away, take 
 me away!" And for the second time that 
 day the world was a blank, and I was but 
 the shell of a soul. 
 
 When I recovered consciousness, I was 
 on the lounge in my grandmother s morn 
 ing-room ; and my grandmother herself was 
 kneeling by me, chafing my hands, while 
 my grandfather held a flask of whiskey to 
 my lips. Mammy was rubbing my feet ; 
 
32 Their Shadows Before 
 
 and all the house servants were standing 
 around, with pallid, awe struck faces. 
 
 "What s the matter with everybody?" I 
 asked slowly, as I opened my eyes and 
 struggled to rise. The pain in my neck 
 and shoulders was very great when I moved, 
 and I sank back. I remembered now what 
 had happened. Of course, they were angry 
 with me. Grandfather hated anything like 
 a scene, and somehow I could not collect 
 my thoughts. Everything seemed floating 
 away from me. 
 
 "I hope you re not very angry. I 
 couldn t help it I" 
 
 " Angry? No, child: no one is angry." 
 And there was something in my grand 
 father s voice I had never heard before. 
 
 "I am so glad," I whispered. "I could 
 not bear to see Lame Jim whipped." 
 
 I felt something upon my hand; and, 
 looking down, I saw two great tears drop 
 from my grandmother s half-shut eyes. 
 
 "You must not talk now, dear," she said 
 gently. 
 
Their Shadows Before 33 
 
 x 
 
 "Wait a moment," said my grandfather 
 suddenly. "Cynthy, go tell Mr. West I 
 want him to come to me at once, here ; and, 
 Rhoda, you may bring Jim in also." 
 
 The negroes glanced from their places 
 along the walls at the master, with timid 
 wonder in their eyes. Something strange 
 was happening. I was dimly conscious that 
 an unusual scene in which I was to play a 
 prominent part was to be enacted in my 
 grandmother s morning-room. But I was 
 too weary to think much. So I closed my 
 eyes, and wondered what he was going to 
 do with Mr. West and the boy. 
 
 I do not know how long it was before I 
 was aroused by the master s voice, which 
 was low but very distinct, as he said 
 slowly, 
 
 "By whose order, Mr. West, did you pre 
 sume to inflict chastisement upon one of my 
 negroes ? 
 
 I opened my eyes, and saw the pale, ter 
 rified face of the overseer, who stood cower- 
 
34 Their Shadows Before 
 
 ing before my grandfather. The man s nos 
 trils twitched as he tried to speak, but no 
 sound came from his lips. 
 
 "Can t you speak, you cur?" 
 
 "He Lame Jim, sir went to Nat 
 Turner s meetin ; and you had give strict 
 orders none of em should go, sir," stam 
 mered the man, desperately. "I hope, sir, 
 I was but doin* my dooty. " 
 
 " Damn your duty ! " said my grandfather. 
 "You are discharged from any further duty 
 on my plantation. Now I give you one 
 hour s time in which to pack your belong 
 ings and leave. 
 
 Mr. West s jaw dropped as he heard this 
 unexpected command. 
 
 "I am sorry, sir," he said humbly. "I 
 never meant to touch the little mistress: I 
 never seen her till it was too late." 
 
 "I forgive you for what you did to me," 
 I said; for I was sorry for the creature. 
 "You did not mean to do it, I know; but, 
 oh, how could you be so cruel ! And I 
 
Their Shadows Before 35 
 
 shivered as I remembered the writhing, 
 blood-stained boy. 
 
 "O Mr. West," I said, suddenly raising 
 myself up, "promise me you never will 
 strike a cripple slave any more; and I ll 
 forget that you struck me! " 
 
 The man looked at me for a moment with 
 a strange look in his eyes. 
 
 * I was mad, crazy mad, he said ; but I 
 promise you, Miss, never to hit a lame 
 nigger again as long as I live." 
 
 "I am glad you struck me now! 
 Good-by, Mr. West!" 
 
 I held out my hand to him. A flood of 
 crimson mantled his face for a moment; and 
 he looked towards my grandfather, not know 
 ing whether to shake hands with me or not. 
 My grandfather nodded his head. The over 
 seer clasped my hand in his, and then 
 turned and left the room. 
 
 "Where s Jim?" I asked. 
 
 "Here he is," answered my grandmother, 
 as Mammy entered the room, followed by the 
 
36 Their Shadows Before 
 
 cripple. The boy looked from one to 
 another of us in a dazed fashion, as if not 
 knowing what further punishment was in 
 store for him. 
 
 Please, sir, Massa, I neber bin but 
 oncet; an I neber hearn what Mr. West done 
 said bout our gwine ter meetin s, " he 
 gasped. 
 
 "Do you know what I am going to do 
 with you, Jim? " asked my grandfather. 
 
 " Is you gwine ter sell me, 
 Massa?" 
 
 There was a note of desperation in the 
 boy s voice, as the words fell one by one 
 from his ashy lips. 
 
 The master went to his desk, and began 
 to write. 
 
 As the goose-quill moved over the paper, 
 I began to feel a strange sense of suffocation 
 at my heart. My grandfather laid down his 
 quill at last, and, holding up the paper, 
 read the following words: 
 
Their Shadows Before 37 
 
 "This is a deed of conveyance by which I do 
 from this day and hour settle upon my grand 
 daughter, Penelope Contesse Winston, the slave 
 known on my plantation as Lame Jim. Given 
 over my hand and seal this fifth day of October in 
 the year of our Lord eighteen hundred and thirty. 
 "CHARLES CHRISTOPHER WINSTON." 
 
 There was a silence in the room as he fin 
 ished reading the document. 
 
 "Saimders shall come to-morrow and 
 make a legal record of this deed," he con 
 tinued. "And now, Jim, you belong to 
 Miss Penelope : she can do what she pleases 
 with you. 
 
 A low sob of joy broke from the boy s 
 lips as the meaning of the sentence dawned 
 upon him. 
 
 "Rhoda, " said my grandmother, "put 
 Miss Penelope to bed at once, and give her 
 a soothing draught. She must have no 
 further excitement to-day. 
 
 With a wave of her hand the servants 
 were dismissed, and a moment later I was 
 being borne in Mammy s strong arms to my 
 own bedroom upstairs. 
 
Chapter III. 
 
 "TTTHAT does he look like?" I in- 
 V V quired anxiously, as I swallowed 
 my last bit of buttered waffle and chicken 
 and pushed back the silver tray from my 
 bedside; for by my grandmother s express 
 command I was taking my breakfast in bed. 
 Indeed, I was scarcely in a condition to be 
 up; for, besides the pain caused by the 
 long, deep cut across my neck and shoulders, 
 the excitement of the day before had left me 
 in a low and prostrated condition of mind 
 and body. 
 
 Mammy plumped up my pillows and 
 straightened the bed-covers leisurely before 
 replying to my question. 
 
 "Is you worry in bout dat teacher-man, 
 honey? La! chile, you needn t have no 
 fear! He s an out- n-out gentleman same 
 as Master, dough dey do say he come f om 
 de Norf ! He done give Primus fifty cents 
 fer totin his traps upstairs." 
 
Their Shadows Before 39 
 
 "The North ! Then he is a Yankee ! " 
 
 "He look like a sho nuff gentleman, 
 anyhow," said Mammy, positively. 
 
 "Is he ugly, Mammy? " 
 
 "What diffrunce he looks mek ter you? " 
 she inquired sharply. 
 
 "It makes a great deal of difference, I 
 replied, unabashed. "I like handsome 
 people, and I don t like ugly people." 
 
 "Pretty is as pretty does," quoth Mammy, 
 rebukingly. 
 
 "That s not so," I said with a trifle 
 more of decision than courtesy. "Mary, 
 Queen of Scots, and Cleopatra were beautiful 
 and very bad, besides ever so many other 
 history people. I don t believe that any 
 body really thinks that, either," I proceeded 
 discoursingly. 
 
 "Dey don have niggers up dar whar he 
 come f om, do dey ? " she asked irrelevantly, 
 as she brushed the tangles out of my hair. 
 
 No, I replied contemptuously. They 
 haven t got plantations or slaves or any 
 thing, and they do their own work! " 
 
40 Their Shadows Before 
 
 Bar s heaps of money up dar, I 
 reck n?" 
 
 Money ! " I cried. I hate money ! 
 And I wish this horrid man was not a 
 Yankee!" 
 
 I flung myself down violently in the 
 feathery depths of my bed, forgetting my 
 wound. A sharp little cry burst from my 
 lips. In an instant Mammy had lifted me 
 out of the bed and was holding me as ten 
 derly as an infant in her strong arms. 
 
 "Mammy s po little lamb!" she said 
 softly, as she rocked me back and forth. 
 "Mammy s little lamb, what suffered fer de 
 black sheep ! 
 
 There was a passion of fervour in the old 
 woman s voice that frightened me. 
 
 "Put me down!" I cried. "You talk 
 like that strange man ! " 
 
 A swift gleam of terror swept over her 
 face for a moment. 
 
 "Missy, is you out yo hade? What you 
 talkin bout?" 
 
Their Shadows Before 4 1 
 
 I instantly remembered my determination 
 not to speak of what I had seen and heard. 
 
 "Oh, nothing much," I answered in an 
 embarrassed voice. And then, hating any 
 thing like a lie, I continued : 
 
 "Only I heard a strange black man yes 
 terday talking about signs and tokens/ and 
 he said something about the white lamb for 
 the black sheep. And I saw him again 
 when you went to get the water, or I 
 dreamed that part, maybe, and what you 
 said reminded me of it, that s all." 
 
 " La ! " said Mammy, with a laugh. 
 "You mus have heerd dat ole stracted 
 nigger Moses s foolishness! " 
 
 She watched me narrowly as she spoke. 
 Now I knew Uncle Moses well enough. 
 
 "No: it was not Uncle Moses, Mammy. 
 I heard him talking to you ; but you needn t 
 care, for I promise on my word of honour I 
 will never tell a single soul." 
 
 "You s right, honey! Don say nuth n 
 t all bout it. I don know what he meant, 
 
42 Their Shadows Before 
 
 Lord knows! Twasn t nuth n but crazy, 
 foolish talk, I reck n; but don tell nobody, 
 kaze it might git more n one inter trouble." 
 
 "A Winston s word is as good as any 
 man s oath, my grandfather says. I prom 
 ised not to tell, and I won t." 
 
 " Lord bless you!" said Mammy, as she 
 tucked me snugly up again. 
 
 After Mammy had taken her departure, 
 my mind grew troubled. Nobody was 
 really true. Everybody had something to 
 hide. Why was the world like this? 
 
 My grandmother came up later, and 
 brought me a bag of chestnuts and some 
 fresh ginger-cakes, an unusual attention 
 on her part. And my grandfather, too, 
 came up to my little white room, and, sitting 
 by my bedside, gave me a detailed account 
 of the raccoon hunt of the night before, a 
 pastime of the negroes in which I always 
 took a lively interest. 
 
 Nothing was said about the new inmate 
 of the house except in a very general way, 
 
Their Shadows Before 43 
 
 and for some unaccountable reason I dared 
 not ask any questions. I was to begin les 
 sons on Monday : that was settled. 
 
 It was now Friday, and I began to calcu 
 late how many pages of grammar and geog 
 raphy might be reviewed within these 
 three days of grace. I was a little relieved 
 when my grandparents left me, and I began 
 studying violently. This particular line of 
 mental effort was, however, so unusual that 
 I grew exhausted in a short time. How 
 stupid school-books were ! How much nicer 
 it was to learn facts about places and things 
 in books of travel and history ! 
 
 Of course, Mr. Basil Mortimer knew a 
 great deal about everything. He would 
 and justly, perhaps think me a little fool. 
 
 I knew I was not a fool, and my face grew 
 hot and crimson at the very thought. 
 
 It was dismal enough up there all alone. 
 I wished I might have a game of cards with 
 Black Ailsie and Uncle Domino. I re 
 flected. In the afternoon I tried to read 
 
44 Their Shadows Before 
 
 some of my favourite stories, but even "The 
 Castle of Otranto " seemed insipid. I de 
 cided to get up and dress myself. But how 
 could I hide that ugly scar on my neck? 
 Unfortunately, my frocks were all cut half- 
 low, as was the fashion for children s gowns 
 in those days. I turned the key softly in 
 the lock. Mammy would think I was 
 asleep if she knocked and I did not answer. 
 Then I took from the innermost recesses of 
 my mother s hair trunk, which always stood 
 in my room, an old-fashioned neck -kerchief, 
 bordered with Valenciennes lace. It would 
 look very nice ; but, then, what did it mat 
 ter? Nobody would see me. But, still, I 
 would take a little exercise and perhaps I 
 might catch a glimpse of my tutor. 
 
 "I would like to see him," I said to my 
 self, as I pinned the yellowed folds of the 
 mull kerchief over my breast, and viewed 
 the reflection of my small person in the 
 mantel mirror rather doubtfully. I stepped 
 out into the hall, and leaned over the banis- 
 
Their Shadows Before 45 
 
 ters. A cheerful fire blazed on the hearth 
 downstairs, and threw red gleams across the 
 polished oak floor. Now was my chance. 
 There was no one there. The face in the 
 Dutch clock on the landing seemed to 
 grimace at me from its corner among the 
 shadows, as I ran down the stairway and 
 crept into the library. 
 
 It was growing late. 
 
 I pushed aside the old-fashioned red 
 damask curtains from the deep-silled win 
 dow, and gazed out at the evening sky. I 
 had been standing there for some time, 
 watching the fantastic cloud shapes, when I 
 suddenly heard voices at the door. I drew 
 the ample draperies closer, until I was com 
 pletely concealed from view. 
 
 As I was saying," I heard my grand 
 father say earnestly, as he motioned his 
 companion to be seated in a great arm-chair 
 directly within my visual range from my 
 hiding-place, "as I was saying, Mr. 
 Mortimer, I find it absolutely impossible to 
 
46 Their Shadows Before 
 
 allow them to have any intercourse with the 
 slaves on the adjoining plantations. This 
 negro preacher, Nat Turner, is demoralising 
 every darky in Southampton County; and I 
 intend to be very strict in regard to the en 
 forcement of my orders. I don t see what 
 Travis meant when he educated Nat as he 
 did. The fellow s singing and praying is a 
 nuisance to the whole county. I shall ride 
 over to Belmont to-morrow, and have a talk 
 with Travis. It will not do, I say." 
 
 "Singing and praying would not seem to 
 be very incendiary," said Mr. Mortimer, 
 with a smile. 
 
 "You don t know the race," said my 
 grandfather. "They are as easily excited 
 as children; and the fellow has a curious 
 sort of influence over them, which is not for 
 their good. 
 
 "Is he a man of intelligence? " 
 
 "Yes. As I said, Travis, his owner, was 
 fool enough to have him taught. He is far 
 above the average negro in intelligence. 
 
Their Shadows Before 47 
 
 As a result of what Travis calls his experi 
 ment, Nat is holding conventicles, and the 
 negroes are getting what they call religi n* 
 all around here. 
 
 "Religion is not a bad thing to have," 
 said the Northerner, reflectively. "But, as 
 you say, Mr. Winston, I do not know the 
 race." 
 
 "I have been annoyed a good deal lately," 
 continued the master of Winston Manor. 
 "One of my negroes, a cripple, went to his 
 last meeting; and my overseer, an Ohio 
 man I had just taken into my employ, 
 whipped him. It was a cowardly thing to 
 do, and I discharged the fellow at once. 
 My grand- daughter interfered when she 
 heard West beating the boy, and received an 
 ugly cut herself in the effort to save him. 
 That girl of mine has spirit, I can tell 
 you!" 
 
 "How did it happen?" asked the tutor, 
 a note of unmistakable interest in his voice. 
 And then, with flaming cheeks, I heard my 
 
48 Their Shadows Before 
 
 grandfather recount the scene of the day be 
 fore. 
 
 I was an eavesdropper, something al 
 most as bad as a thief ! How I wished to 
 escape ! But I could not : I dare not ! 
 
 The tutor listened quietly to the story. 
 Then he said : 
 
 "You must be proud of this little grand 
 daughter of yours. She has a very noble 
 nature, I am sure ! 
 
 "She is every inch a Winston," said my 
 grandfather, unconscious of the vanity of the 
 remark. 
 
 Mr. Basil Mortimer smiled. Virginians 
 were so inordinately proud of themselves, 
 was probably his thought. 
 
 Through a narrow opening of the curtains 
 I could see the outline of a tall, muscular 
 figure and a blond head. There was silence 
 in the room for the space of a few moments. 
 My grandfather kicked a half -burnt log of 
 wood in the fireplace with his boot-heel, 
 and a storm of red sparks flew up the chim- 
 
Their Shadows Before 49 
 
 ney. Mr. Mortimer turned his head. I 
 saw the profile of an oval face, ending in a 
 King Charles beard of golden brown, a high 
 forehead, over which hair of the same colour 
 lay carelessly parted, and caught a brief 
 glimpse of a pair of hazel eyes. 
 
 "I never understood that child," said my 
 grandfather, musingly. "She is the last of 
 the family. I have no heir to carry on the 
 name. Her birth was a bitter disappoint 
 ment : I wanted a grandson. 
 
 He sighed. 
 
 "I think that perhaps you may learn to 
 forget that there was a disappointment," 
 said Mr. Basil Mortimer, quietly. "A 
 noble nature like hers is rare." 
 
 I felt a thrill of joy at my heart, and then 
 suddenly an agony of shame. If he knew I 
 was hidden behind those curtains, listening 
 to a conversation not intended for me to 
 hear, he would never, never think me noble 
 again. 
 
 Just then the tea-bell rang. 
 
50 Their Shadows Before 
 
 "Come," said my grandfather. "We 
 shall find my wife in the dining-room." 
 
 As they disappeared through the hall 
 door, I issued from my hiding-place, and 
 sped with nimble feet up the stairway and 
 into my own room. With trembling fingers 
 I took off my clothes and crept into bed. 
 
 Mammy came in softly, bearing my tea. 
 But I pretended to be asleep; that is, I did 
 not move or stir. After she had gone, I 
 rose up and knelt down by the window. 
 
 Please, God, make me suffer ; for I have 
 been a very wicked child," I prayed. "If 
 I confess my sin, will you forgive me ? For 
 Jesus sake, Amen." 
 
 Then I laid my burning, throbbing head 
 on the pillow, and fell into a troubled, 
 broken sleep, in which I dreamed that I was 
 being tried for high treason against the king 
 of the United States, and that my grand 
 father was the bailiff and Mr. Basil Morti 
 mer the justice. 
 
 When I awoke next morning, a stream of 
 
Their Shadows Before 5 1 
 
 sunshine was pouring in through the open 
 shutter of my window. I got out of bed 
 and walked over to look out. Down a turn 
 of the lane I could see grandfather s tall 
 top-buggy disappearing. He was leaning 
 forward, out of it, and pointing with his 
 whip to some object in the tobacco fields to 
 the right. 
 
 Where is grandfather ? " I asked 
 Mammy, who came in at this moment to 
 curl my hair. 
 
 "He an dat man hev druv to de Cote 
 House," she replied. "I spec dey done 
 gone ter git de papers made out fer Jim." 
 
 "Oh, yes. I suppose that s it. You 
 must make Jim some new shirts; and I will 
 knit him some socks, now he belongs to me. 
 Only I wish" 
 
 And then I stopped. Mammy would not 
 understand. 
 
 "I want to get some persimmons to-day," 
 I continued. "I am going with Daphne 
 and Celeste and Charity, and I wish you 
 would put up a lunch for us. 
 
52 Their Shadows Before 
 
 "OleMisssesso?" 
 
 "She hasn t yet, but she will." 
 
 My excursions with the little negroes had 
 become a sort of established custom with 
 me, although grandmamma was always 
 threatening that she would put a stop to 
 them because of the very evident effect such 
 association had upon my English. But, as 
 I never believed she would, I did not mind. 
 
 On this particular morning permission 
 was the more readily granted on account of 
 the fact that in a short time I would be too 
 busy for such recreation. So, after a rather 
 hurried breakfast, I started off, followed by 
 my small attendants, who bore upon their 
 heads baskets in which the persimmons were 
 to be stowed. We must have looked like a 
 procession from an antique frieze. 
 
 When we arrived at the tree which we 
 were to attack, we sat down to rest ; for it 
 was quite warm. I took off my pink sun- 
 bonnet, and fanned myself with it. 
 
 "I sholy wishes / was white!" remarked 
 
Their Shadows Before 53 
 
 Daphne, gazing admiringly at my pale face. 
 "Cynthy say Mis Semiramis say black 
 folks tu ns white when dey dies. Cynthy 
 say she done wish she was dade. 
 
 "What nonsense!" I replied scornfully. 
 
 Miss Semiramis Dove was the seamstress 
 at the manor, and was held in great esteem 
 by the negroes. 
 
 "Miss Pensie, is niggers gwine ter 
 Heben? " inquired Charity, rolling her eyes 
 up until only a rim of white was visible. 
 
 "Of course, if they are good," I answered 
 uneasily. "Don t roll your eyes like that. 
 You make me shiver. 
 
 "I th gwine ter be good, tho I kin be 
 Mith Penthie th maid an tote her harp for 
 her," lisped Celeste, with a delighted grin. 
 
 "We don t know whether we shall any of 
 us go to heaven," I replied severely. "But 
 who is going to climb the tree? " 
 
 "I is!" and "I is!" and I ith ! " came 
 in a chorus. And immediately three 
 nimble, supple figures began the ascent. 
 
54 Their Shadows Before 
 
 "I ain t gwine ter stop till I gits clean 
 up ter de top uv dis tree," said Daphne, 
 emphatically, as she swung herself from 
 limb to limb. "Miss Pensie, you kin pick 
 em up when dey draps ! " 
 
 And so vigorously did my handmaids 
 shake that I found it quite a task to gather 
 the fruit as it fell. 
 
 "Somebody get down and help me," I 
 called. 
 
 "Fth comin ," said Celeste, who was 
 growing weary of her high place; and she 
 dropped herself lightly down, and stood be 
 fore me, grinning. 
 
 "When we get these baskets full, we will 
 have dinner," I remarked. And, with 
 Celeste s assistance, the baskets were soon 
 filled. 
 
 "Come down, you all! I am hungry," 
 I called. We fell upon Mammy s lunch 
 with keen appetite. 
 
 "Over yander is de Big Dizmal," said 
 Daphne, contemplatively, nodding her head 
 
Their Shadows Before 55 
 
 in the direction of the swamps. "Dere s 
 copperheads an rattlesnakes an black 
 whuppers in dat place." And she made a 
 gesture of disgust. 
 
 "An dere s bones dere, bones uv 
 niggers what runned off an was los in de 
 cypress knees, an couldn git out no mo ! " 
 added Charity. "Unc Moses seen er nest 
 uv rattlesnakes in er skelerton dar one 
 time!" 
 
 "Dar wuth a woman onthet, an* she wuth 
 whupped by a black thnake; an the thnake 
 whupped an whupped till it tail drap off, 
 an the woman thay, 
 
 Hade uv you black thnake, 
 
 Foller yo tail, 
 Ur yo blud will kiver 
 De mark uv yo trail ; 
 
 An den itth hade drap off, an the woman 
 run home, an the fire wuth bu nin blue 
 kathe the devil wuth aroun ! " 
 
 "That s a dreadful lie you re telling, 
 
56 Their Shadows Before 
 
 Celeste," I said severely. "Don t you 
 know that it is very wicked to tell lies? " 
 
 "I know itth wrong fer white folks," re 
 plied the mendacious Celeste, placidly. 
 "But nobody don tek no count uv what 
 niggerth thay. In courthe, you never doth 
 nuthin bad, kathe you re a little white 
 lady." 
 
 Yes, I was a lady ; but was it true that I 
 never did anything bad ? I thought of the 
 day before, and I hated myself. 
 
 "Yes, I do do wrong sometimes; and it s 
 a great deal worse in me, I said humbly. 
 "But it s getting late, and I am tired. 
 Let s go home." 
 
 As we trudged along, Daphne started a 
 hymn in which we all joined. High and 
 shrill, yet not without a singular sort of 
 melody, were our voices as we sang : 
 
 " Washt in de blud uv de Lamb, 
 
 Washt in de blud we ll be ; 
 An den we ll sing lak Moses sing, 
 When we f om de bonds is free, 
 When we f om de bonds is free ! " 
 
Chapter IV. 
 
 " T DECLAR ter gracious, I ain t neber 
 
 A seed sech er chile fer t arin close, com 
 plained Mammy, as she began to sew up a 
 long rent in my best plaid muslin frock. 
 1 Fust time dat teacher-man see you, too." 
 
 "Well, I couldn t help the briers and 
 burrs," I replied meekly. 
 
 "You got no business mongst briers an* 
 burrs. He ll think you b longs ter wil 
 folks, sho ." Mammy was exceedingly sen 
 sitive as to the impression I made upon 
 strangers, as she regarded my good or bad 
 appearance as reflecting credit or discredit 
 upon herself. 
 
 Her last words irritated me. "I don t 
 care what he thinks," I replied hotly. "I 
 wish he was dead, I do ! " 
 
 Mammy dropped her spool and scissors, 
 and gazed upon me with an expression of 
 grave rebuke. 
 
 "Dat s wicked, Missy. Tumble wicked 
 
58 Their Shadows Before 
 
 ter wish anybody dade. What harm he 
 done ter you ? 
 
 As I had no specific charge to make, I 
 was silent. 
 
 "The Lord hoi s people ter account what 
 meks sech wishes, too; an I spec you ll 
 be sorry fer talkin so fo you re done." 
 
 "I m not sorry yet," I replied obsti 
 nately. 
 
 "Mebbe you ain t; but mebbe you ought 
 ter be, an mebbe you will be fo long." 
 There was a pause after this half -threaten 
 ing hint. 
 
 I wanted to ask why, but forebore, as I 
 saw that she felt she had made an impres 
 sion. I wondered if she divined my future 
 humiliation. 
 
 "He done brung Jim a crutch wid er red 
 shoulher-res pad in it for to go under de 
 arm, she remarked presently. 
 
 "Who?" 
 
 "Who?" she echoed. "Why, dat 
 teacher-man. 
 
Their Shadows Before 59 
 
 "Did he, Mammy? " I asked with a very 
 decided tremor in my voice. "Oh, I am so 
 glad!" 
 
 "Yes. Stand still, chile, or I neber will 
 git yo h ar combed. An Jim sholy is 
 proud. An Whosoeber hateth his brother 
 widout er cause is in danger uv hell-fire. 
 
 Although apparently quite irrelevant, I 
 felt keenly the application and connection 
 of these last words. Mammy tied my sash, 
 and adjusted my nankeen cape properly, but 
 in silence. "Now you se ready. Go long, 
 fo yo grandma send fer you." I paused 
 irresolutely for a moment ; and then, clasp 
 ing my arms about the old woman s neck, I 
 said humbly: "I m sorry, Mammy, for the 
 wicked words, not on account of the hell- 
 fire, but because he gave Jim the crutch." 
 And then I ran out of the room, for the 
 breakfast gong was sounding. 
 
 At the bottom step of the stairs I stopped. 
 Through the half -open door I could see my 
 grandfather and Mr. Mortimer, as they stood 
 before the fire, talking. 
 
60 Their Shadows Before 
 
 "Penelope, is that you?" called my 
 grandmother. And, thus bidden, I entered 
 the room with my heart beating a tattoo 
 against the stiffly-starched serenity of my 
 nankeen cape. "This is Penelope Winston, 
 my grand -daughter," she said to Mr. Morti 
 mer, as I advanced shyly. "Go forward, 
 Penelope, and speak to Mr. Mortimer. 
 
 Mr. Mortimer s hazel eyes gave me a 
 friendly look of encouragement. So I made 
 a stiff little curtsy, and then put forth a 
 small hand, which was instantly clasped in 
 a firm, warm grasp. 
 
 "So this is my pupil?" he said with a 
 smile. "I hope we shall be friends." 
 And then we sat down to breakfast. 
 
 "His face is nice," was my mental com 
 ment; "and his eyes are kind. Perhaps it 
 may not be so very dreadful, after all." 
 The prospect was not altogether gloomy, 
 and I began to feel somewhat at ease. 
 
 "How does it happen that you strayed so 
 far as Virginia?" asked my grandmother, 
 as she poured the coffee. 
 
Their Shadows Before 61 
 
 "I was not quite well for some time after 
 I left Harvard," he replied. "And, when 
 I heard through Major Appleton that you 
 wanted a tutor, I was very glad indeed to 
 offer myself in that capacity." 
 
 "So you know Appleton, do you? " broke 
 in my grandfather. "A fine fellow he was 
 when I knew him, thirty-five years ago, at 
 West Point. We were close friends in 
 those old days ; and, although we have gone 
 our different ways in life, he stuck to the 
 army, while I gave up my commission to 
 take charge of the estate when my father 
 died, still we write to each other now and 
 then, and have exchanged visits during the 
 long interval. " 
 
 "So he told me," answered Mr. Mort 
 imer. 
 
 "It is a difficult matter to get a gentle 
 woman for a governess here. So I made a 
 bold stroke, and decided to get a tutor in 
 stead. It was a sort of surprise party, 
 wasn t it?" My grandfather laughed. 
 
62 Their Shadows Before 
 
 "Yes, I confess I expected a boy pupil. " 
 
 A shadow crossed my grandfather s face, 
 and he sighed. 
 
 I glanced up at him with unconscious ap 
 peal in my eyes, perhaps. I was a disap 
 pointment to everybody. Even this strange 
 man had t expected me to be a boy. 
 
 "I am very glad that I was mistaken. " 
 
 Mr. Mortimer s eyes were looking straight 
 into mine, and I felt that he had read my 
 thoughts. 
 
 "Penelope is like her mother s family," 
 said my grandmother, glancing at me in a 
 somewhat critical way. 
 
 As she spoke, my tutor s eyes involunta 
 rily glanced from my face to the line of fam 
 ily portraits that hung on the walls. Gen 
 erations of my ancestors, some in red coats, 
 some bewigged and powdered, but all bear 
 ing the family characteristics in their regu 
 lar, proud features, met the New Eng- 
 lander s gaze. 
 
 "Who is that?" he asked suddenly, as 
 
Their Shadows Before 63 
 
 he pointed to a portrait over the sideboard 
 in the corner, "that beautiful face, over 
 there?" 
 
 "That is a portrait of my son s wife, 
 Penelope s mother," she said coldly. 
 
 "Ah!" said Mr. Mortimer. "I might 
 have known. 
 
 "I shall have to ride over the fields this 
 morn ing, remarked my grandfather. Per 
 haps Penelope can show you about the place 
 a bit." 
 
 "Will you?" asked Mr. Mortimer, look 
 ing straight at me. "I should like to look 
 over the books first in the library, if you 
 will help me? " 
 
 "Yes," I answered. A sudden recollec 
 tion of my last experience in the library 
 made my voice sound rather reluctant. 
 
 "Would you rather not?" asked Mr. 
 Mortimer. I shook my head. "Then come 
 now," he said; for my grandmother had 
 risen from the table. And I went with him 
 without a word. 
 
64 Their Shadows Before 
 
 Among the books I was quite at ease; 
 and I soon found myself chatting about my 
 favourite authors, heroes, and heroines. I 
 was quite pleased and surprised to discover 
 that we agreed about a number of things. 
 
 " Isn t it nice that we like the same 
 books ? " I inquired, as I sat down on the 
 step-ladder, a round or two below him. 
 
 "Very nice, indeed! I hope we are going 
 to be good friends. 
 
 I did not answer for several minutes. I 
 turned over the leaves of a large illustrated 
 copy of "King John," in great confusion, 
 remembering my words to Mammy. 
 
 "Perhaps you would not want to be 
 friends with me if you knew something I 
 said about you," I said at last, in a very 
 low voice. 
 
 Something you said about me ? said 
 my companion, in a puzzled tone. "What 
 was it ? " 
 
 "Something very wicked. I said that 
 I wished you were dead ! 
 
Their Shadows Before 65 
 
 Mr. Mortimer looked at me wonderingly. 
 
 "I have wished the same thing myself 
 sometimes," he said with a sigh. "But 
 why should you ? 
 
 "I don t! Indeed, indeed, I don t!" I 
 cried out eagerly. "I was angry because I 
 thought you were were well, not a bit 
 like you are," I stammered desperately. 
 
 "Well, then we are even. You thought 
 I was an ogre, and I am not quite so bad as 
 that; and I thought you were a noisy, 
 troublesome boy, and here you are a little 
 girl, who likes to read books. I call it a 
 fair exchange, don t you?" He did not 
 seem in the least offended, and this added to 
 my contrition. 
 
 "I am very sorry," I said. And then I 
 added, "If you should get scarlet fever or 
 small-pox or anything catching, you know, 
 I would nurse you through it to make up for 
 what I said. 
 
 "Perhaps you can make amends some 
 other way; but, anyway, I forgive you, 
 
66 Their Shadows Before 
 
 Now don t you think, on the whole, that 
 we can be friends ? 
 
 "Yes." 
 
 "Then we shall be?" 
 
 "Yes." 
 
 "Well, that s a bargain." 
 
 "I am glad you re different, not like 
 what I thought you would be, " I remarked 
 candidly, after this agreement had been rati 
 fied by a hand-shake. 
 
 "How did you think I should look? " in 
 quired my tutor, with some curiosity in his 
 voice. Like the ogre ? 
 
 "Oh, no, but different." 
 
 "How?" 
 
 "Not so much like the prince in the 
 fairy-tale book," I admitted. "You look 
 very much like him, only not quite so " 
 I paused abruptly on the brink of an unflat 
 tering bit of discrimination. 
 
 " Not quite so what?" demanded Mr. 
 Mortimer. 
 
 "Not quite so handsome," I replied, try 
 ing very hard to palliate the truth. 
 
Their Shadows Before 67 
 
 " Still you see a resemblance?" asked 
 Mr. Mortimer, gravely. 
 
 "Oh, yes: it s very strong. " 
 
 "Well, I could not expect to be up with 
 the prince in good looks." And he 
 laughed. At this moment the jingle of my 
 grandmother s keys was audible. 
 
 "Now I must go," I said decidedly; "for 
 grandmamma will be here in a minute, and, 
 besides, I must get my collect for to 
 morrow. 
 
 "Tell me first what made you change your 
 mind," he said, barring the way down the 
 ladder with his arm. 
 
 "I think it was the crutch." 
 
 "Was that all?" 
 
 "The crutch and other things," I re 
 plied indefinitely, as I stepped down. 
 
 As the mistress of the house appeared 
 through one door, I made my exit through 
 the other; for I knew that Daphne and 
 Celeste were outside, impatiently waiting 
 for me to join them. In the afternoon my 
 
68 Their Shadows Before 
 
 grandfather and Mr. Mortimer drove over to 
 a neighbouring plantation to look at some 
 blooded stock that the master of Winston 
 Manor had long coveted, and was now try 
 ing to purchase. As they did not get back 
 until long after my bedtime hour, I did not 
 have any further talk with Mr. Mortimer 
 until the next day. But the sense of my 
 own unworthiness was so strong upon me 
 that I was much less imperious than usual 
 with my humble playfellows, and made so 
 many concessions to the trio that they im 
 mediately took advantage of my amiability 
 to inveigle me into a promise to go with 
 them on Sunday afternoon to "min* de 
 gap. " Now "minding the gap " was some 
 thing of a cynosure ; and, as it relieved the 
 little negroes from the more arduous tasks 
 of cleaning knives, weeding the garden- 
 beds, or that most uncongenial of all duties, 
 "totin water fer Mammy," this occupation 
 was eagerly sought. 
 
 At all times and seasons there were cer- 
 
Their Shadows Before 69 
 
 tain places in the enclosures that separated 
 those parts of the plantation that were being 
 cultivated, from the grazing fields that were 
 broken down. These openings, or "gaps, " 
 had to be guarded by relays of little ne 
 groes, who found lolling under the trees, 
 with nothing more to engage their energies 
 than an occasional sortie upon some stray 
 sheep or cow, a most agreeable occupation. 
 
 I had some misgivings as to whether 
 Sunday were a proper time for such an ex 
 cursion ; but, as I felt sure I could gain my 
 grandmother s consent if I surprised her 
 with a perfect recitation of my Bible and 
 Prayer-book lessons, I gave a half-way prom 
 ise to my insistent companions, and then 
 retired to my room to absorb as much of the 
 Litany and Thirty-nine Articles as I deemed 
 necessary to propitiate my grandmother. 
 
Chapter V. 
 
 SUNDAY dawned hot and cloudless. It 
 seemed as if the spirit of midsummer 
 had come back to remind us of the lilies 
 and roses that had died by the breath of the 
 frost ; and the autumnal colouring of leaf and 
 stalk looked vulgarly garish and untimely in 
 the hot, quivering air. Such days are known 
 sometimes in the advanced autumn season in 
 Virginia. I had eclipsed my own expecta 
 tions in regard to my Sunday morning exer 
 cises. Indeed, my grandmother s pleased 
 surprise at my prompt replies and repetitions 
 was not flattering to my usual attempts in 
 this line of effort; but, since my glibness 
 had attained the desired permission to ac 
 company Charity, Daphne, and Celeste on 
 their projected pilgrimage, I did not care 
 very much. 
 
 " Now that I see that you can give me 
 perfect recitations," she had remarked, " I 
 shall not put up with any more slipshod 
 
Their Shadows Before 71 
 
 ones. Remember that, Penelope; and, 
 furthermore, after this afternoon there are 
 to be no more Sunday tramps with the negro 
 children. You may go to-day, as it is the 
 end of your holiday. I think we shall prob 
 ably dine with your cousin Kitty Braxton 
 to-day. So be a good, discreet child until 
 we get home. 
 
 After this and sundry other injunctions, 
 my grandmother, who was a most punctilious 
 churchwoman, hurried downstairs, and after 
 much coaxing persuaded my grandfather to 
 get into the carriage. This was the invaria 
 ble routine every Sunday morning. It al 
 ways ended, after a series of gradually 
 weakening objections and excuses, in my re 
 spected grandfather s allowing himself, in 
 more than one sense of the word, to be driven 
 to church. 
 
 Mr. Mortimer had boldly announced his 
 intention of devoting the morning to letter- 
 writing; and my grandmother was obliged 
 to accept the announcement without a word, 
 
72 Their Shadows Before 
 
 though she showed such cold disapproval in 
 her face that he looked like a culprit as he 
 bade her "good-morning" at the carriage 
 window. 
 
 I had escaped by virtue of my recent in 
 disposition, due to the incident of the pre 
 vious Thursday. I think my grandparents 
 must have requested that no mention should 
 be made to me concerning the affair; for, 
 to my intense relief, nobody said a word to 
 me about it. 
 
 Dinner was a short affair. Mr. Morti 
 mer was preoccupied and silent, and I felt 
 all of my old shyness envelop me as in a 
 garment, while Miss Semiramis Dove sat 
 at the side table and poured the tea. 
 
 Hurrying as much as decorum allowed, I 
 excused myself and ran out on the lawn, 
 where more agreeable company was await 
 ing me. 
 
 As the result of a process at the hands 
 of their respective " mammies," and known 
 in the quarters as "cardin ," the heads 
 
Their Shadows Before 73 
 
 of my three comrades had undergone a 
 mysterious and sudden change. Relieved 
 from their "wrappings" of white cotton 
 thread, which had held innumerable small 
 tufts of short crinkly hair in bondage, each 
 head was now crowned with an enormous 
 mat of black wool, that stood out stiffly all 
 around, and appeared utterly to dwarf the 
 diminutive figure that seemed scarcely suffi 
 cient to support the structure. 
 
 Unconscious of any such startling effect, 
 Daphne, Celeste, and Charity, resplendent 
 in their Sunday frocks and bead necklaces, 
 hastened to greet me. 
 
 "I gwine ter keep dis side uv Missy! " 
 
 " I gwine ter keep in front, an hoi de 
 brambles back for her ! 
 
 " I ith gwine ter walk behin her, tho I 
 kin walk in her tracks ! were the exclama 
 tions of my guides, as we set out upon our 
 journey. 
 
 " How far is it? " I asked, looking down 
 rather dubiously at my low red shoes. 
 
74 Their Shadows Before 
 
 "La! tain t no ways ter de gap atter 
 you pass de stile," said Daphne. And, as 
 I did not wish to seem lacking in physical 
 strength, I did not inquire anything further 
 about the distance to the stile. We had not 
 gone far when I heard the thumpety-thump 
 of a crutch on the gravelly path. 
 
 Daphne began to roll her eyes ominously. 
 
 " Who want you hobblin along here?" 
 she inquired, as Lame Jim joined us. 
 
 " I thought mebbe Missy mout be skeered 
 uv de ole ram," he said apologetically. 
 
 11 Ain t nobody feered uv dat ole ram, 
 lessen it s you," was the rejoinder. " You 
 jes go long back whar you come f om. " 
 
 But this did not please me. 
 
 " /want him," I said decisively. " And 
 you ought to be more polite," I said to 
 Daphne. " Come on, Jim." 
 
 Now my handmaidens were jealous of 
 Jim s recent distinction. So they began to 
 persecute him forthwith. Daphne surrepti 
 tiously kicked the dust over him as she 
 
Their Shadows Before 75 
 
 went along; while Celeste and Charity were 
 solicitous in their inquiries as to which leg 
 he preferred, the long one, the short one, or 
 the wooden one. 
 
 " Very well," I said at last, "Jim be 
 longs to me; and I won t have any one un 
 kind to him. If you all don t stop, I will 
 go straight home. 
 
 " Jes listen to Missy!" cried the diplo 
 matic Celeste. " We jes foolin ." After 
 which there were no more jibes. 
 
 The "gap" was indeed a pleasant spot. 
 A group of oaks made a refreshing shelter 
 where the enclosures had fallen down, and 
 here we seated ourselves on the lichen- 
 covered stones that once had formed a part 
 of the road that separated the grazing fields 
 from the plantation road. A stream ran 
 parallel with the tobacco lands on the other 
 side of the road, making a pleasant sound as 
 it rippled over its rocky bed. 
 
 The sleepy cry of a whip-poor-will in the 
 neighbouring thicket, the cough of a squirrel 
 
76 Their Shadows Before 
 
 from some leafy retreat, and the monotonous 
 tap-tap of a persistent woodpecker were the 
 only sounds that broke the stillness. The 
 drowsiness of a summer afternoon fell upon 
 us, and we sat watching the shadows 
 dapple the grassy knoll at our feet in si 
 lence. 
 
 11 Over yonder, whar de smoke s a-puffin , 
 is whar Aun Mimie live," remarked 
 Daphne, at last, as she pointed to an iso 
 lated cabin that stood in the midst of a 
 little corn-patch on the opposite side of the 
 brook. 
 
 " Why doesn t she live in the quarters? " 
 I inquired. An awed expression appeared 
 in Daphne s face, as she answered, " Aun 
 Mimie ar er conjure ooman. " 
 
 "That s very foolish," I said rather 
 sternly. " There is no such thing as con 
 juring. 
 
 " Mebbe dey ain t, mebbe dey is," per 
 sisted Daphne. 
 
 " You don t believe in such things, Jim, 
 do you ? " I asked, turning to the boy. 
 
Their Shadows Before 77 
 
 Jim shifted his crutch. " Granny say 
 Aim Mimie works spells an cha ms, " he 
 said dubiously. 
 
 " Oh, you are all afraid of her! " I said 
 with some contempt. 
 
 " I ain t afeered, " put in Celeste, virtu 
 ously. " Kathe er conjure ooman is jes per- 
 cisthly lak witches. Dey cyant croth 
 water. And Celeste pointed to the stream, 
 which she evidently regarded as a safety 
 line, with a grin. 
 
 "Why, Aunt Mimie comes to the quar 
 ters almost every day," I reasoned. " So 
 her power is broken. But the three woolly 
 mats shook in unison. 
 
 "Huccum her kin work spells, den?" 
 queried Charity. 
 
 " She does not do anything of the kind, 
 of course," I asserted. "Isn t the foot 
 bridge around the bend ? 
 
 " Yes, Miss Pensie, it ar, " said Daphne, 
 solemnly. " But I wouldn t cross dat brook 
 an tech my foot on dat groun , not fer 
 
78 Their Shadows Before 
 
 nothin ! Aim Mimic s got er pet rattler 
 over dere. 
 
 For a moment I was daunted. But the 
 spirit of adventure was strong upon me that 
 afternoon. So, after some consideration, I 
 said : " I don t believe it. I am not afraid. 
 I am going over there, and ask her if she has 
 a rattlesnake." 
 
 A look of terror appeared in the black 
 visages before me. There was a pause, and 
 then Daphne spoke : 
 
 "Well, I ain gwine nary step! I am 
 gwine ter hev it on my min ter tell Master 
 an Mist is how it was me what took Miss 
 Pensie over yonder whar she got p izened by 
 er rattler!" And Daphne assumed a look 
 of grave responsibility. 
 
 " Rattlesnake p izen mek er pusson turned 
 spotted same as er toad, commented Charity ; 
 while Celeste wailed, "Mith Penthie ar 
 gwine git us all under der spell, dat what 
 she fixin fer, sho ! " 
 
 " I ll go by my self!" I said scornfully. 
 " You are all of you afraid!" 
 
Their Shadows Before 79 
 
 " Ef Missy gwine, I gwine long wid 
 her," announced Jim, valiantly. " Dis 
 here crutch could brack mos any rattle s 
 hade, I reck in." 
 
 This was a more hopeful outlook, and I 
 manifested due appreciation of Lame Jim s 
 valour and discretion. 
 
 "Heardat thunder a-bellowin ? " asked 
 Celeste, the artful one, presently. "We heap 
 better go long home fo de rain ketch us 
 an sp ile Mith Penthie s red shoeth. " 
 
 I looked up. Celeste was certainly right. 
 The sky had suddenly overclouded, and the 
 oppressive atmosphere betokened a storm. 
 
 " Well, it s a great deal nearer to Aunt 
 Mimie s cabin than it is to home," I an 
 swered. " But, after all, it may not rain 
 until night. " 
 
 Lame Jim had risen during this conversa 
 tion. He hobbled over to the edge of the 
 pasture, and surveyed the outstretched fields 
 with keen eyes. As he stood there, sud 
 denly there came to us a long rumbling 
 
8o Their Shadows Before 
 
 sound that made our hearts stand still with 
 terror. A moment later the ground beneath 
 us seemed to vibrate with motion, as the 
 thud of frantic hoofs came nearer and nearer. 
 
 Quick, Missy! Quick!" cried Jim. 
 " Squire Travis s wil bull done got loose! 
 Run! Run!" 
 
 In one terrified glance I saw it all. From 
 the thicket at our left, and bearing down 
 directly upon us, rushed the infuriated 
 animal. 
 
 Like a covey of frightened birds, Daphne, 
 Charity, and Celeste were scudding away 
 toward the only visible refuge, Aunt 
 Mimie s cabin. 
 
 My heart beat so that I could scarcely 
 breathe. 
 
 " Run, Missy, run!" reiterated Jim. 
 " Don t you wait fer me!" He had dis 
 carded his crutch, and, considering his in 
 firmity, was getting over the ground with re 
 markable speed, though he lagged a yard or 
 two behind me. 
 
Their Shadows Before 81 
 
 We could hear the clank of the iron chain 
 that dangled from a ring in the animal s 
 nose, as it struck against the stones in the 
 road. The ponderous thud of the hoofs, as 
 they tore up the earth in their progress, 
 came nearer and nearer, as we sped on. 
 Only a few yards ahead of us was the foot 
 bridge that spanned the brook where the 
 banks were highest. Only a few yards be 
 tween us and safety ! If we could only reach 
 it ! Suddenly a cry broke from my com 
 panion: 
 
 "Run, Missy, run! I done played 
 out! " And the boy stumbled and almost 
 fell. For a single instant I wavered. Then 
 a sense of the undying shame of cowardice 
 swept over me. To leave a comrade help 
 less and in danger, and that comrade my 
 slave and lame! Never! I turned back; 
 and, seizing him by the arm, I began drag 
 ging him along, while I called out franti 
 cally : "You must run! You shall run, I 
 say, or we ll be killed! " 
 
82 Their Shadows Before 
 
 Perhaps my words gave him new courage : 
 perhaps my will dominated him. But, at 
 any rate, he made one last great effort, as 
 we rushed on ; for the bull was gaining upon 
 us. On, on ! The bridge seemed but a step 
 away, and death was behind ! 
 
 Just as we reached the goal, a blinding 
 flash of lightning shot across the lowering 
 sky, followed by a deafening crash of thun 
 der. I stumbled and lost my shoe. As I 
 turned my head, I felt the hot breath of our 
 pursuer on my face, while an angry roar 
 filled the air. At the same instant a dwarf 
 ish figure sprang out from a clump of su 
 mach bushes, and with Herculean strength 
 hurled a bowlder straight at the animal s 
 head. The creature was stunned apparently. 
 With a quick movement, our deliverer 
 caught up the chain, and, slipping nimbly 
 to one side of the beast, began to utter a 
 monotonous, crooning sort of sound. The 
 bull trembled, and slowly reared its bleed 
 ing head. We had stopped midway on the 
 
Their Shadows Before 83 
 
 narrow plank, and stood fascinated by the 
 singular scene. 
 
 With one hand the man motioned to us 
 to go on, pointing to the sky and then to 
 the cabin. And we obeyed. I noticed that 
 his hand was spotted, and I knew this was 
 Mammy s visitor. 
 
 The rain was falling in great drops by 
 this time; and, with a sigh of gratitude 
 and relief, I knocked boldly at the door of 
 the " conjure woman s " house. The latch 
 was drawn almost instantly. The tall, 
 straight figure of the old woman had some 
 thing of stateliness in its pose, as she stood 
 in the doorway before us. 
 
 " Please, Aunt Mimie, may we come 
 in?" I asked. 
 
 The aquiline brown features showed no 
 trace of surprise, as she opened the door and 
 bade us enter. I paused at the door to watch 
 the negro who had saved us walk quietly 
 down the road, leading the bull by the chain. 
 
 "Look, look!" I exclaimed in wonder. 
 
84 Their Shadows Before 
 
 " Unc Nat done it by de spell uv wavin 
 hands," said Jim, in an awed whisper. 
 
 The word "spell" reminded me of our 
 hostess s supposed gifts, and I glanced 
 around at her uneasily. Huddled in a cor 
 ner on the floor sat the inglorious trio, their 
 faces ashy and their eyes bulging from the 
 sockets. 
 
 " So de lee! lady have come to de house 
 of Mimie, de slave?" said the old woman, 
 in sibilant tones, quite unlike the ordinary 
 accent of the negroes on our place. 
 
 Yes, I answered, as I took the chair 
 she offered me. " The bull and the rain 
 drove me ; but I would have come, anyway. 
 
 A sputtering cough from the corner in 
 formed me that Celeste was trying to engage 
 my attention. I looked at her, and saw her 
 eyes fixed in glassy horror on my face. I 
 understood at once that she wished to convey 
 to me that I must not ask Aunt Mimie any 
 thing about her occult powers. 
 
 " De leel lady would have come fer 
 
Their Shadows Before 85 
 
 what ? asked my hostess, eyeing me with, 
 grave attention. 
 
 This direct question was slightly embar 
 rassing, but I was determined to satisfy my 
 self as far as was possible on certain points. 
 
 " I wanted to ask you if you kept a pet 
 rattlesnake, Daphne said you did, and if 
 you are a conjurer, something like the 
 Witch of Endor, only," I added politely, 
 not nearly so bad as that, of course. 
 
 " Does de leel lady want ter know what 
 I be ? " she said slowly. 
 
 " Yes, if you don t mind telling. " 
 
 " My people know many t ings in de far- 
 off lan s of de palm an cocoa trees, many 
 t ings white man not know. My fader was 
 Ndongo, de king. He fight. Dey kill 
 him, de men uv de Mpongue tribe. Dey 
 sell me ter white man: I come on de big 
 ship. She paused for a moment, and I 
 waited breathlessly for her to resume her 
 story. " To-day I am Mimie, de slave. 
 Den I was King Ndongo s chile, de Princess 
 
86 Their Shadows Before 
 
 Tarra Warra. Yes, wuk in de fiel in 
 de daytime; but, when de night come, I 
 lays down an dreams back de palm and de 
 cocoa groves. 
 
 My eyes grew moist. I put out a timid 
 hand on the knee of African royalty. 
 
 I am very sorry for you, Princess Tarra 
 Warra." 
 
 She bowed her head low on her chest, and 
 muttered some strange words I could not 
 understand. 
 
 Lame Jim and the little negroes, who had 
 scarcely heard the old woman s low words, 
 took for granted that she was repeating some 
 incantation over me; and they cowered ab 
 jectly in the corner, not daring to move 
 while she spoke. The strange story had 
 filled me with a new and strange sensation. 
 This old woman, who belonged to my grand 
 father, who worked for him, had once run 
 about naked in her father s bamboo village, 
 savage, but free ! And she was really and 
 truly born a princess ! 
 
Their Shadows Before 87 
 
 I was startled from this train of thought 
 when there came a loud knock at the door. 
 Aunt Mimie went forward, and ushered in 
 Mr. Mortimer. He had a waterproof cloak 
 on his arm, and he looked annoyed. 
 "Come, " he said. "Miss Semiramis Dove 
 and your nurse are very uneasy about you. 
 The buggy is on the other side. Then, 
 glancing down, he saw that I had on only 
 one shoe. 
 
 "I ll come back some day, Aunt Mimie/ 
 I said, as I followed Mr. Mortimer out of 
 the door. "Go on ahead," he said to the 
 children ; and then, lifting me up in his 
 arms, he carried me across the bridge, and 
 placed me in the buggy. "What s this?" 
 he said, stooping down to pick up something. 
 
 Wiping off the mud with a corner of the 
 lap-robe, he handed me a small red shoe. 
 "Here, Cinderella," he said, as he whipped 
 up the horse into a brisk trot. "Now, if 
 this were a coach and four, I would be more 
 like the prince than ever." 
 
88 Their Shadows Before 
 
 But my mind was full of the story of a 
 princess just now; and, as we drove along, I 
 realised afresh that to-morrow I would stand 
 confessed in all my weaknesses. 
 
Chapter VI. 
 
 AFTER the first ordeal was well over 
 and my instruction under Mr. Basil 
 Mortimer had fully begun, I gradually grew 
 reconciled to the new order of my life s rou 
 tine. A sincere friendship had been estab 
 lished between my tutor and myself during 
 the winter, and I was making satisfactory 
 progress in my studies. Mr. Mortimer, who 
 had come to the South to recuperate his 
 physical forces after a long period of work 
 in a Northern University, appeared to enjoy 
 watching the new phases of life that pre 
 sented themselves in this locality, and was 
 especially interested in what he called 
 "negro characteristics." He and my 
 grandfather used to sit together in the li 
 brary in the evenings, talking about a great 
 many things that I did not understand ex 
 actly. But I always listened, for now and 
 then something would be said that I could 
 comprehend clearly enough to set me think- 
 
90 Their Shadows Before 
 
 ing for days. It was during those winter 
 evening talks, I think, that a new aspect of 
 my surroundings came to my childish mind. 
 
 One evening I remember especially. My 
 grandfather and Mr. Mortimer had been dis 
 cussing the ultimate solution of the problem 
 of a slave population in a republic, and my 
 grandfather s voice sounded grave and trou 
 bled. 
 
 "The trouble is," he answered in reply 
 to some remark of my tutor, "that your 
 people do not understand the bearings of 
 the matter. I admit that the system is a 
 bad one; but it cannot be abolished except 
 by gradual steps, without terrible and un 
 foreseen results. No : your friend Garrison 
 has the genius of a fanaticism that shapes 
 its course towards one point, regardless of all 
 dangers by the way. Too sudden emancipa 
 tion would be disastrous alike to master and 
 slave. Hands accustomed to shackles are 
 weak hands, Mr. Mortimer; and the freedom 
 of a race must be achieved, not bestowed. " 
 
Their Shadows Before 9 1 
 
 Mr. Mortimer looked deep into the red 
 heart of the flames before he answered. 
 Then he said slowly: "Remember that the 
 black population of this section is year by 
 year doubling that of the white. Men will 
 not always remain ignorant of their strength. 
 If that freedom be indeed achieved, God 
 pity you!" 
 
 I did not know what he meant, but the 
 solemn tone in which the words were ut 
 tered gave me the sensation of a vague 
 alarm. My grandfather s next remark was 
 somewhat reassuring. 
 
 "You may rest assured nothing of that 
 kind will ever be attempted. A movement 
 of that nature requires a leader, and there 
 would be none. 
 
 Mr. Mortimer lifted his hazel eyes from 
 the purple flare of a half -burnt cedar log that 
 permeated the room with a faint, incense- 
 like perfume, and gazed earnestly at my 
 grandfather. 
 
 "There will arise a Gideon for every 
 
9 2 Their Shadows Before 
 
 Jericho," he said. "And every nation 
 brings forth an Elisha, who will one day 
 touch the eyes of the multitude, and show 
 them the horsemen and chariots that are 
 round about them. 
 
 Really, Mortimer, you are wasting your 
 talents," quoth the squire of Winston 
 Manor, with a half-cynical, half-indulgent 
 smile. "The rostrum or the pulpit would 
 be the place for you, without doubt. 
 
 Mr. Mortimer flushed a little. The most 
 earnest natures are apt to be the most sensi 
 tive, because they are usually the least under 
 stood, and consequently the most frequently 
 wounded. He felt that his enthusiasm was 
 only a target for good-natured ridicule here. 
 So he curbed the resentment that suggested 
 a sharp retort, and answered pleasantly. 
 Until the enthusiast has arrived beyond the 
 point of mere sentiment, his life must be an 
 isolated one; but, when he has mounted by 
 the paths of physical sacrifice, petty hu 
 miliations, and manifold struggles to that 
 
Their Shadows Before 93 
 
 plane above personality, then, indeed, his 
 life becomes united with the divine Source 
 of all life, and is no more isolated or barren. 
 My tutor had not yet learned this truth; 
 and, with the clear insight of childhood, I 
 was unconsciously aware that he was not 
 only misunderstood sometimes, but that he 
 felt that he was. I wondered what he 
 meant by talking about Elisha and Gideon 
 to my grandfather, who never liked to read 
 the Bible, and thought a sermon ought never 
 to last longer than fifteen minutes. "What 
 makes him do it?" I said to myself. "I 
 don t believe grandpapa knows anything 
 about Bible people." And then I went on 
 in an irrelevant way, wondering what Mr. 
 Mortimer meant, and who his friend Garri 
 son was. Would it do to ask ? It would 
 be a good way to change the subject, any 
 how ; for somehow I did not want the Script 
 ural ignorance of my respected relative to 
 stand confessed. So I made bold to say, 
 "Who is your friend Garrison, Mr. Mor 
 timer?" 
 
94 Their Shadows Before 
 
 Both men turned abruptly, and stared at 
 me in a very embarrassing sort of fashion. 
 My grandfather gave a little grunt that I 
 knew was an expression of mixed amusement 
 and annoyance. 
 
 "God bless me, Penelope! I thought 
 you had a story-book," he said. "But I am 
 glad you have asked Mr. Mortimer about his 
 friend. Perhaps he can tell you a good 
 deal about him." The old gentleman s 
 voice had a distinctly aggressive note in it. 
 I felt that my good intentions were come to 
 naught, as I turned to Mr. Mortimer. 
 
 "Mr. Garrison is a good man, Penelope, 
 who lives in Boston, where I live, you 
 know; and he wants some very sad condi 
 tions in the world to be changed." 
 
 "In other words," struck in my grand 
 father, "he s an Abolitionist, my dear; 
 and now it is your bedtime. Such big 
 words and big subjects are beyond a little 
 maid s understanding." 
 
 "But what is an Abolitionist ?" I in- 
 
Their Shadows Before 95 
 
 quired, as I put my book down slowly. 
 "I think they must be good; for Miss Se 
 ra iramis Dove says Mr. Mortimer is one, be 
 cause he reads the Bible aloud to the slaves 
 in the quarters, and teaches some of them. 
 
 My simple words had a curious effect. 
 
 Mr. Mortimer s face grew pale, while my 
 grandfather s countenance took on the un 
 mistakable hue of wrath. "Miss Semiramis 
 Dove is an old fool! " he thundered. "An 
 Abolitionist is a sneaking, meddling fellow 
 that wants to come here and set the negroes 
 free and turn ladies and gentlemen into beg 
 gars ! Now, Mortimer, you see, he said, 
 turning to my tutor. "I knew how it would 
 be. I have no objection to your making the 
 best of them that can be made; but I warn 
 you, you are on dangerous ground ! 
 
 "I can hold my own," answered the 
 Northerner. "And, as to the danger, I 
 don t care that!" And he snapped his 
 fingers. 
 
 "Well, grandpapa," I remarked with a 
 
96 Their Shadows Before 
 
 candour that I did not always use in my 
 ancestor s moments of irritation, "of course, 
 it is very wicked to want to make us 
 poor; but, if those people want to set the 
 slaves free, why, I am an Abolitionist, 
 too! " 
 
 "Go to bed! Go to bed!" said my 
 grandfather, sternly. But, as I went up the 
 stairs, I distinctly heard the sound of laugh 
 ter. 
 
 I went to bed with the satisfactory reflec 
 tion that, at least, I had defined my position 
 in the matter, and with a great deal of 
 thought about what Miss Semiramis Dove 
 had said, and much wondering as to what 
 mysterious dangers lurked about my tutor s 
 path. 
 
 But these vague apprehensions gradually 
 faded from my mind and were forgotten, as 
 the long months passed and the daily tenor 
 of our lives was undisturbed by any unusual 
 happening. 
 
 Mr. Mortimer s Bible class for the slaves 
 
Their Shadows Before 97 
 
 on Sunday afternoons had become an estab 
 lished custom, but how much benefit re 
 sulted therefrom it was not easy to say. 
 My grandfather shrugged his shoulders at 
 the Evangelical experiments, as he called 
 Mr. Mortimer s efforts; and I think my 
 tutor himself sometimes felt that perhaps, 
 after all, my grandmother s simple reading 
 of the Word and Prayer-book ritual was 
 more efficacious than his most earnest talks. 
 
 " Young Mars Mortimer, he mighty fine 
 gen elman," confided Uncle Isham to me 
 one day. "But it do seem like ole Miss 
 readin uv de Lord s own testermony straight 
 f om de mouf give mo p inted noshuns uv 
 Heben an Hell an de Jedgement to de 
 righteous sheaves an de ongodly chaff, 
 honey. 
 
 And so, I think, was the case in truth. I 
 pondered much upon this remark of our 
 plantation oracle, and the justice of it re 
 curred to my mind in later years. 
 
 As the early spring advanced, Mr. Mor- 
 
98 Their Shadows Before 
 
 timer began teaching me something of bot 
 any. His simple, direct method of in 
 struction was well adapted to my mind; 
 and our afternoon excursions into the 
 woods in quest of specimens gave me infinite 
 delight. One evening we had somewhat ex 
 tended the limits of our usual jaunts, for 
 Mr. Mortimer had promised to show me the 
 anatomy of some wild growth near the 
 swampy region. We had walked quite a 
 distance, and I was beginning to feel tired. 
 
 Let s rest," I said at last. "Over 
 there is an arm-chair big enough for both of 
 us. And I pointed to a great tree not far 
 from us, whose fantastically gnarled and 
 outspread roots formed the outlines of a 
 high-backed seat. 
 
 "This is your throne," laughed Mr. Mor 
 timer. And, twisting a branch of wild 
 grape-vine into a chaplet, he placed it upon 
 my head, as I seated myself and removed my 
 shade hat. 
 
 "Now you are queen of the realm." 
 
Their Shadows Before 99 
 
 "You must be the king," I said quite 
 simply. Mr. Mortimer smiled. 
 
 "So you are willing to share your empire 
 with me? I am afraid I would not be a 
 worthy sovereign of your domain, little 
 girl, he said with a sigh. 
 
 "Oh, yes, you are a great deal better than 
 I am," I replied hastily. And then an im 
 pulse to tell him all about the evil deed 
 that had all these long months oppressed my 
 conscience seized me. 
 
 "Please don t think I am good, Mr. Mor 
 timer. I am not. I did something that 
 was very bad once, almost as bad as being 
 a liar or a thief. I I listened to what 
 was not meant for me to hear. I heard 
 grandfather talking to you the day after you 
 came to the manor, and I heard you say I 
 must be a noble little girl. I did not mean 
 to eavesdrop; but I was behind the curtains 
 in the library, and I was afraid to come out 
 after you came in. You never will think 
 well of me again; but, anyway, I ve told 
 
ioo Their Shadows Before 
 
 you the truth." And I covered my face 
 with my hands, and tried to hide the tears 
 that stood in my eyes. 
 
 Mr. Mortimer placed a firm hand beneath 
 my quivering chin, and turned my scarlet 
 face up to his own. 
 
 Yes: you have not only told the truth, 
 but you have been very true. Try to be 
 brave, and all the rest will follow. Coward 
 ice makes most of the falseness. But I 
 have not shown you the queer little plants 
 yet. Do you know the way here ? 
 
 "Oh, yes," I replied. "I have been 
 here with Cynthy and Celeste often. " And 
 then we walked on for some distance in 
 silence. 
 
 "How queer everything looks!" I ex 
 claimed suddenly. "Look! We are almost 
 in the bog ! 
 
 A long stretch of bog- land, intersected by 
 dark pools of water, and thickly studded with 
 a dwarfish pine growth known in this region 
 as "cypress knees," lay to our right. At a 
 
Their Shadows Before 101 
 
 short distance directly in front of us was an 
 extensive lake, or pond, of slimy, stagnant 
 water; while to our left stretched a dense 
 expanse of woodland. Mr. Mortimer looked 
 at his watch, and then at the narrow strip of 
 sky overhead. 
 
 "There must be a short cut through to 
 the path we have lost, somewhere near, that 
 will take us back to the plantation," he said 
 cheerfully. But his annoyance, or the 
 shadow, perhaps, made him look pale. 
 "Let us try this way: the manor must be 
 due north of this spot. 
 
 The leaves I had gathered fell unheeded 
 from my hand, as Mr. Mortimer took it 
 within his own close grasp. Each step, 
 however, seemed but to increase our difficul 
 ties. The growth of trees grew denser; 
 and the soggy, yielding quality of the earth 
 under our feet warned us that we were ap 
 proaching the dreaded bogs. I shivered as 
 I felt my feet suddenly sink ankle-deep into 
 an ooze of mire, 
 
102 Their Shadows Before 
 
 "We must not attempt to go any farther," 
 said Mr. Mortimer. "Are you frightened?" 
 
 "Not very, but my feet are wet and cold. " 
 
 "The best thing we can do will be to 
 climb up on the boughs of one of those trees 
 there, and wait until they come for us. It 
 will not do for you to stand on this damp 
 ground." He turned and lifted me in his 
 strong arms. "Can you climb? " 
 
 "Like a cat," I replied, as I swung myself 
 up from his shoulder on to a branch that 
 grew rather low. 
 
 "You come, too." 
 
 Mr. Mortimer followed my example, and I 
 could not refrain from laughing at the droll 
 tableau he made. 
 
 Night, like a mantle, was enfolding us. 
 I crept closer to my companion. 
 
 "What a thin frock you re wearing! " he 
 said, touching my sleeve. And in an in 
 stant he had taken off his coat, and wrapped 
 me in it. 
 
 "Please don t: you ll freeze," I pleaded. 
 
Their Shadows Before 103 
 
 But I only felt a strong, protecting arm en 
 circle my small shivering form. We were 
 both silent as the slow hours dragged by. 
 
 "Somebody will come for us," I kept 
 saying over and over to myself. We were 
 lost in the swamps, certainly; and yet I was 
 not frightened. The damp atmosphere 
 penetrated to my very bones, and I buried 
 my face far down in the collar of my im 
 promptu wrap. I think I must have fallen 
 asleep, for a movement of my companion 
 suddenly aroused me. I opened my eyes, 
 and looked up into my tutor s face. His 
 whole attention was fixed upon some object 
 or objects not far distant. He motioned me 
 to be silent, and my eyes followed his look. 
 Upon a miniature island that rose up from 
 the murky waters of the pond a few yards 
 from our perch a fire was burning. The 
 ruddy glare of firelight revealed to our vi 
 sion a group of moving figures. In the 
 centre stood the man whose strange person 
 ality had twice before so curiously affected 
 
104 Their Shadows Before 
 
 me. His misshapen and distorted body 
 seemed inspired by some supernatural force, 
 as he addressed himself to the half-dozen 
 negroes who were ranged around him. We 
 were near enough to hear distinctly the words 
 he uttered. 
 
 Hear the word of Nathaniel, the Prophet 
 of the Lord God," he said solemnly, in a 
 loud, clear voice. 
 
 "That s the man I saw with Mammy," 
 I whispered. "See! He has white spots 
 on his hands! " 
 
 As he spoke, the man raised his left arm, 
 and held before the awed eyes of his listen 
 ers the same scroll I had seen before. 
 
 "I have come to accomplish, my brothers, 
 as well as to foretell, " he continued. "The 
 end is at hand. The Sign has been given, 
 even the Sign of Blood! red drops 
 on the grains of corn, red drops on the 
 oakleaves, red drops on the blades of 
 grass! Blood, blood, blood! Every 
 where blood!" 
 
Their Shadows Before 105 
 
 The hands of the speaker moved in long, 
 rhythmic strokes as he spoke; and the deep, 
 compelling eyes turned from one to another 
 of the coarse, irresponsible faces before him. 
 As he repeated the last words, his auditors 
 hands and arms began to wave slowly in uni 
 son with his own; and, in thick, imperfect 
 utterance, they repeated the words after him. 
 Gradually the motions of the prophet s hands 
 grew more and more rapid, until they lashed 
 the air. 
 
 The white lamb for the black sheep! 
 Will you swear by the Sign?" 
 
 "We sw ar by de Sign ! " 
 
 The answer came as from one man, in 
 strained, mechanical voices. 
 
 "To follow Nathaniel, and to do the will 
 of the Lord?" 
 
 "Ter foller Nathaniel, an ter do de will 
 uvde Lord!" 
 
 "We will swear by blood! We will con 
 quer by blood ! Swear ! 
 
 As each one of the group stepped forward 
 
io6 Their Shadows Before 
 
 and repeated the words, their leader drew 
 from his pocket a penknife, and, tearing 
 open the coarse garment that covered his 
 breast, passed its open blade across his left 
 side. Dipping his index finger in the crim 
 son fluid that welled up, staining his black 
 breast and white shirt, he leaned forward, 
 and made a small red circle on the forehead 
 of each of his followers. 
 
 "Mat, Jake, Ned, Pete, Ike, 
 and Bill, you are marked by the Sign: go 
 in peace ! Amen ! 
 
 For a moment there was silence. Then 
 he waved a dismissal ; and each man made 
 his way to the island s edge, and waded 
 across to the opposite shore. When they 
 had disappeared in the shadows of the forest, 
 their leader knelt down, and folded his hands 
 in the attitude of prayer. 
 
 "O Lord God," we heard him say, "show 
 Nathaniel the way to the end. It does not 
 matter, Lord, how hard it is or how long it 
 is ; and, if the work prepared before all time 
 
Their Shadows Before 107 
 
 for his hand to perform be hard to do, 
 strengthen his arm! O Lord God, give a 
 sign in the heavens when the Day of Re 
 demption is set, so that Nathaniel may know 
 when the Lord is ready. Amen. 
 
 Then he went to the water s edge, and, 
 filling a tin cup which hung at his side with 
 the brackish fluid, slowly poured it upon the 
 fire. This operation was repeated until 
 every spark was extinguished. Then he 
 threw the charred remnants of fagots, the 
 dead coals and the heap of ashes into the 
 water. When all traces of the fire had been 
 destroyed, we watched him step into the 
 water, as his companions had done. When 
 the shore was reached, he plunged into the 
 woods, also ; but we noticed that he took an 
 opposite direction to that taken by the other 
 negroes. 
 
 " What were they doing?" I asked in a 
 half-whisper. 
 
 "I cannot say. I suppose it was some 
 superstition they were secretly celebrating. 
 
io8 Their Shadows Before 
 
 The leader is evidently a religious fanatic. 
 I think it was very well that we were not 
 seen." 
 
 "That must have been Mr. Travis free 
 negro, Nat. He talks almost like white 
 people, but he s a Voodoo. Did you see 
 him making spells with his hands?" 
 
 "Nonsense!" said Mr. Mortimer. "It s 
 possibly a case of unconscious mesmeric in 
 fluence. " 
 
 "What is mesmeric influence ?" I in 
 quired. 
 
 "Something very little known about as 
 yet." 
 
 After a short pause he continued: "You 
 know these people, child. Shall we tell 
 what we have seen ? 
 
 "No," I answered promptly. "They 
 don t know any better. Nat Turner would 
 be put in jail and the slaves would be 
 whipped, if we did. They are always talk 
 ing about signs and spells and judgment 
 day: it doesn t hurt anybody." 
 
Their Shadows Before 109 
 
 "Very well, then: we will keep our own 
 counsel. 
 
 Just then we heard the bark of a dog in 
 the distance, and in a few moments the 
 sound of voices. 
 
 "It s Gladys s bark!" I cried joyfully. 
 "They re coming for us! Make a noise to 
 show where we are. 
 
 Mr. Mortimer made a sounding-board of 
 his hands, and gave a long "Hallo! " which 
 was immediately answered ; and in a little 
 while a small procession, headed by my 
 grandfather and my boy Jim, appeared in 
 sight. Gladys almost knocked me from my 
 perch in her joy; while Jim exclaimed ex 
 citedly, "I done tole you, Massa, dat me an 
 Gladys could fin my liT Mistis ! " 
 
 "Thank God!" exclaimed my grand 
 father, fervently, as he wiped away the per 
 spiration from his forehead. "This night s 
 tramp and doings will end in a fever for you 
 two, I dare say, and in no end of rheuma 
 tism for me. A second edition of the 
 
1 10 Their Shadows Before 
 
 Babes in the Wood/ lacking the robins. 
 Put on your coat, Mortimer. Here are some 
 shawls for you, Pen. 
 
 Now that we were discovered, his irrita 
 tion found vent. After reiterated questions 
 as to how we had lost the path, to which 
 we could give no satisfactory answer, he re 
 marked, 
 
 "Damme ! but what fools you were ! " 
 Neither Mr. Mortimer nor I could gain 
 say this. So we set out for Winston Manor 
 in silence, too tired to care what anybody 
 said. 
 
Chapter VII. 
 
 MY grandfather s prophecy in regard 
 to a case of fever was verified. The 
 exposure of the night spent in the swamps 
 told upon a constitution unaccustomed to the 
 miasmatic lowlands of Virginia, and an 
 acute attack of ague fever kept Mr. Morti 
 mer with us many weeks after my school 
 term expired. 
 
 As far as possible, I tried to beguile the 
 tedium of his long convalescence; and my 
 childish prattle did not seem to be disagree 
 able to him. 
 
 I had just set a plate of delicately browned 
 batter-cakes by his lounge in the library, 
 when my grandmother came into the room. 
 
 "How very close the air is!" she re 
 marked. "I think we shall have a storm 
 here before long. 
 
 I went to the window, and looked out at 
 the sky. 
 
 "Even the sunshine looks dark," I said. 
 
ii2 Their Shadows Before 
 
 "Look!" And I pointed to the floor, 
 where a bar of bluish light lay.* Our faces 
 in the mirror over the mantel were of a 
 ghastly pallor. Mr. Mortimer got up, and 
 followed me to the window. The same 
 singular effect was visible everywhere out 
 side. 
 
 "It must be an eclipse of the sun," he 
 said. "But it is certainly unlike any I 
 have ever seen. 
 
 My grandfather now appeared in the door 
 way, wearing a vexed expression upon his face. 
 
 Confound this business ! " he exclaimed. 
 "I have had to stop all the work on the 
 place. Those foolish negroes down in the 
 quarters are howling and praying like Bed 
 lamites. They all declare it is Judgment 
 Day, and will not listen to reason." 
 
 "What do you suppose is the cause of 
 this darkness?" asked my grandmother, 
 anxiously. 
 
 *From the i8th to the list of August, 1831, an unaccountable 
 atmospheric phenomenon was observed throughout the State, and was 
 known as the " Three Blue Days." 
 
Their Shadows Before 113 
 
 "I don t know. Of course, it is some 
 natural cause." 
 
 "I am afraid we shall have to postpone 
 our trip to the White Sulphur," she sighed. 
 
 "We had planned to go on the 2ist, and 
 I had engaged Miss Semiramis Dove to keep 
 house for you and Penelope, she continued, 
 turning to Mr. Mortimer. "I should not 
 dream of leaving a guest, except that my 
 widowed sister-in-law is at the Springs just 
 now, and must return to her plantation in 
 Middle Georgia in a very few days. I am 
 sure Miss Semiramis will attend to every 
 thing concerning your comfort, else I should 
 not leave you. 
 
 "Pray do not give me a thought in the 
 matter, dear madam," replied my tutor. 
 "I would not have you change your plans on 
 my account for a very great deal. I am 
 sure," he added with a laugh, "that I shall 
 derive much profit from coming into closer 
 domestic relations with a lady whose name 
 is so curiously suggestive of heroic valour 
 and gentle tenderness." 
 
ii4 Their Shadows Before 
 
 "A fool woman and a fool name! " ejacu 
 lated my grandfather. "But let s see : this 
 is the 1 8th, isn t it? " And he consulted a 
 pocket almanac. "Perhaps the trip may be 
 arranged, after all." 
 
 "Surely, they will get over this excite 
 ment in three days!" remarked Mr. Mor 
 timer. But in this conjecture he was 
 wrong. The sinister effect of the "Three 
 Blue Days " was destined to have a precipi 
 tating influence upon the strange and tragic 
 events that immediately followed them. 
 
 "I think, Judith," suggested my grand 
 father, "it would be well for you to go down 
 to the quarters and speak to the negroes. 
 They have an abiding faith in your de 
 crees. 
 
 My grandmother looked doubtful, but 
 acquiesced, and to my surprise bade me 
 come with her, and fetch some jellies and 
 cordials which she wished to distribute 
 among the old and decrepit slaves, who ex 
 pected such attentions from her, and who 
 
Their Shadows Before n5 
 
 were wont to make dismal complaint at the 
 slightest neglect on her part. 
 
 As we entered the quarters, we at once be 
 came aware that some unusual demonstration 
 was in progress. There was an air of gloom 
 and dread over the little settlement that was 
 quite distinct and apart from the depressing 
 influences of the close, heavy air and the 
 sombre blue light that encompassed earth 
 and sky. A profound silence reigned in the 
 cabins. The chickens had gone to roost in 
 the trees; and from the very topmost 
 branches of the oaks and firs there came 
 every now and then the shrill, discordant 
 cry of some peacock, as if in protest against 
 the long-drawn twilight. As we walked 
 along, it seemed to me that the animals 
 looked curious and abnormal, like the fig 
 ures in a Chinese perspective. 
 
 "How queer everything is to-day!" I 
 ventured with a nervous little laugh that 
 jarred sharply on the dim stillness. 
 
 "Don t be silly, Penelope," said my 
 
n6 Their Shadows Before 
 
 grandmother. But just then Gladys gave a 
 long, whining howl, and I certainly saw her 
 start violently. A moment later a solitary 
 voice broke the silence, a voice that rose 
 high and clear, with piercing sweetness, and 
 then suddenly dropped to a low, wailing, 
 minor note of infinite sadness. We stopped 
 at the window of the nearest cabin. 
 
 " That s Lame Jim singing to old Betsy," 
 I remarked. 
 
 "Hush!" said my grandmother; and in 
 voluntarily we waited to listen : 
 
 " De Mighty One s a-comin ter break de chains uv 
 
 sin: 
 We mus be ready, ready, sho , ter let Lord Jesus in, 
 
 Ter let Lord Jesus in, 
 
 We mus be ready, ready, sho , ter let Lord 
 Jesus in. 
 
 " De stars dey pears ashamed ter shine, de sun done 
 
 hide his face. 
 
 In dis gre t Judgment Day uv wrath what soul 
 shall fin Cord s grace? 
 
 What soul shall fin Cord s grace ? 
 In dis gre t Judgment Day uv wrath what soul 
 shall fin Cord s grace ? " 
 
Their Shadows Before 117 
 
 The refrain rang out like a half -pleading 
 half -accusing cry. Old Betsy s sightless 
 eyes were turned upward, as if striving to 
 pierce through the blackness to catch a 
 glimpse of the coming glory. 
 
 "Ready? Ready, did you say? Who s 
 ready?" she muttered. "Why, dem what 
 has waited in pra r an patience, dem what 
 has wearied in toil an sweat. Get de Good 
 Book an put it in granny s han s, chile." 
 
 The crippled boy did as he was bid. 
 
 "Now fin de verse dat was wrote fer all 
 de po ole niggers an de blin an de lame 
 like you an me, de verse dat say, Come 
 unter me. You kin tell it by de red yarn 
 string at de place. 
 
 "Here it is, granny," said the boy. 
 
 "You done foun it? Now, chile, put 
 granny s finger on dem words, All you who 
 am weary an heavy-loaden, come unter me; 
 an I will give you res . Now, when de 
 Lord step in at de do , I ll tell him how 
 it s ole Betsy dat s weary and heavy-loaden, 
 
n8 Their Shadows Before 
 
 an wan* ter come unter Him. Now sing de 
 las verse bout de comin uv de Lord." 
 
 Once more the boy lifted his voice and 
 sang : 
 
 " De Mighty One s a-comin wid buckler an wid 
 
 sword, 
 
 De angel trumpets soundin fer de comin uv de 
 Lord, 
 
 Fer de comin uv de Lord, 
 
 De angel trumpets soundin fer de comin uv de 
 Lord ! " 
 
 There was a note of expectancy in the 
 boy s voice that thrilled us as we listened. 
 
 "Come on," whispered my grandmother. 
 "We won t disturb them." And we 
 passed on toward another cabin. Here there 
 were sounds of weeping and moaning. My 
 grandmother spoke to the inmates, kindly 
 but firmly assuring them that there was no 
 occasion for any alarm. Indeed, she tried to 
 explain the phenomenon in simple words 
 suited to their understanding; but it was 
 useless. They listened respectfully, but her 
 
Their Shadows Before 119 
 
 words carried no weight. It was in vain, 
 too, that I endeavoured to entice my friends 
 Daphne, Celeste, and Cynthy from their 
 hiding-places under the bed; though now 
 and then a woolly head emerged far enough 
 to see what was going on in the room. At 
 an auspicious moment, just as Daphne s 
 frightened face appeared from under the 
 bed-spread, I pointed to some cookies I had 
 brought. She shook her head violently, and 
 whispered : 
 
 "I cyan t, Mis Pen. It ar Jedgment 
 Day ! and then drew in her head after 
 the fashion of a terrified mud-turtle. A 
 moment after another ball of wool darted 
 forth, and a seductive voice murmured : 
 
 "Give it ter me, Mith Pen. Eat n er 
 cooky won t mek Jedgment Day come no 
 thooner. 
 
 During this colloquy Celeste kept one eye 
 on her mammy, while she adroitly stretched 
 forth her hand for the proffered dainty. She 
 was carrying out a system of Epicurean phi- 
 
120 Their Shadows Before 
 
 losophy she had tested before, and found sat 
 isfactory. 
 
 In every cabin we visited there was the 
 same fixed and absolute conviction that the 
 end of all things was near. We found Aunt 
 Kizzie unearthing her bury in -close " from 
 a mysterious box; while black Chloe 
 wailed : 
 
 "Law! Tain t no use, kase, ef it s 
 Jedgment Day, won t nobody be lef ter 
 bury nobody! " But this argument had no 
 effect upon Aunt Kizzie, who continued her 
 preparations for death in rigid solemnity. 
 
 When the last jars of jelly and cordials 
 were disposed of, we turned our steps 
 toward the manor house. 
 
 All night and during the two days that 
 followed, the negroes were to be seen col 
 lected together in little groups, to pray and 
 exhort and sing. Work was not to be 
 thought of, and my grandfather went about 
 the house grumbling about the neglect of 
 crops and the general demoralisation. It 
 
Their Shadows Before 121 
 
 was the same way on every plantation in the 
 section. When the morning of the 2ist 
 dawned clear and bright, we all breathed 
 more freely. But, in spite of the blue sky 
 and the sunshine, the shadow of their recent 
 terror still seemed to hang over the negroes. 
 Mammy and Uncle Isham seemed particu 
 larly low in spirits, and I could not inveigle 
 either of them into conversation. It was 
 toward afternoon that I noticed these two 
 talking together very earnestly. I was sit 
 ting under the lattice-work of a little, dis 
 used summer kitchen at the end of the left 
 wing of the house. It was a quiet nook 
 where I was entirely free from interruption 
 when I wished to absorb myself in a fairy 
 tale; for the left wing of Winston Manor 
 had not been occupied for nearly half a cen 
 tury. There were rumours of ghosts holding 
 high carnivals here on moonlight nights, 
 which were currently reported and believed 
 by the slaves. So I was somewhat surprised 
 to see Mammy and Uncle Isham in this par- 
 
122 Their Shadows Before 
 
 ticular spot. They did not see me ; and I 
 was wondering in an idle sort of way what 
 would happen if I should give a faint 
 ghostly groan or two, when a few disjointed 
 words arrested my attention. 
 
 "It got ter be done; but who gwine ter 
 do it? " I heard Mammy say in a strangely 
 troubled voice. 
 
 "I is!" answered Uncle Isham, firmly. 
 
 "Ef Nat knowed" 
 
 I pricked up my ears; but Mammy s 
 anxious voice sank so low I could not dis 
 tinguish what would happen "if Nat 
 knew. 
 
 "We got ter be wise as de sarpint, " 
 warned Uncle Isham. "An we ain t got 
 no time ter lose." 
 
 "I kin do my part ef you kin do yourn, " 
 said Mammy. 
 
 "I ll " And again I lost the last part 
 of the sentence. 
 
 "I wonder what they re talking about," I 
 said to myself; but, with the inconsequence 
 
Their Shadows Before 123 
 
 of childhood, the matter passed from my 
 mind, as they disappeared around the angle 
 of the house. In after years the meaning 
 of this half-caught conversation was clear 
 and plain to me. 
 
 Shortly before tea-time, as we were sit 
 ting in the long hall, Uncle Isham s grey 
 head appeared at the door. 
 
 " Scuse me, Marster an Mistis, but er 
 boy hev just come down f om Mars Page 
 Braxton s wid er message fer we-all f om 
 Mis Kitty; an she say how fer you-all ter 
 come right up, kase Mars Page hev been 
 took sudden wid his hade, an pears like he 
 won t hardly live till mornin ." Uncle 
 Isham s voice trembled as he delivered the 
 message. "An I done tole de boy he 
 better go long, fer I d bring you de word," 
 he explained. 
 
 "Poor Kitty! Of course, Christopher, 
 we will go! Poor Kitty! Poor, dear 
 child!" exclaimed my grandmother; while 
 my grandfather ordered the carriage to be 
 fetched at once. 
 
124 Their Shadows Before 
 
 "This is dreadful!" he said. "And 
 Page such a specimen of manly strength ! 
 It s incredible!" 
 
 Mr. Mortimer offered to ride up, also, in 
 case he could be of service. But my grand 
 mother said, "No," emphatically. "Why, 
 you re not fit to think of riding! " she de 
 clared. "You must obey your nurse." 
 And so the matter was dropped. 
 
 "Come, Pen, you may go, if you like. 
 Perhaps you can amuse the children, and 
 keep them out of the way, said my grand 
 father. But I hung back. 
 
 "I think I ought to stay and look after 
 Mr. Mortimer," I said. 
 
 "That is better," said my grandmother. 
 "There s the carriage. Be a good girl. 
 Your grandfather will ride over to-morrow, 
 and let you hear about your cousin Braxton. 
 Good-by ! " And in the twinkling of an 
 eye, it seemed to me, the carriage was roll 
 ing down the dusty highway on its twenty- 
 five-mile drive to Jerusalem. 
 
Their Shadows Before 125 
 
 When Mammy came in later on, she gave 
 a little scream as she saw me, 
 
 "Fer Gord s sake, Penelope, what you 
 doin here? " 
 
 "Gracious, Mammy! You needn t look 
 as if you had seen a ghost ! I stayed at 
 home to look after things," I added with 
 some ostentation. 
 
 "You ain goin ter Mis Kitty s?" she 
 asked stupidly. 
 
 "Why, of course not," I answered. 
 "They ve gone." 
 
 "Fer Gord s sake! " she repeated again. 
 And then, seeing my look of surprise, she 
 added: "Co se, honey, I thought you d go 
 long wid yo grandma. Dat s all." 
 
 "Close the blinds, Pen, will you?" 
 called Mr. Mortimer. "I think one of your 
 slap-my-face storms is around the corner." 
 As he spoke, a gust of wind came puffing 
 down the chimney with such force that the 
 screen fell with a great clatter. 
 
 "Lord help us! " ejaculated Mammy. 
 
i26 Their Shadows Before 
 
 I love storms! " I cried, running to the 
 open window and leaning out. "There is 
 just one big black cloud in the sky. And 
 look ! How strange ! It is the figure of a 
 man ! See the old shoes on his feet and the 
 handkerchief tied around his neck ! Come 
 quick, Mammy and Mr. Mortimer! Look, 
 look! He s a black man! Can t you see 
 his teeth?" I exclaimed, as a rift in the 
 upper part of the cloud made the semblance 
 of a row of white teeth in a black face per 
 fectly distinct. 
 
 "It is the most definite cloud-shape I 
 ever saw in my life," remarked Mr. Morti 
 mer. "See how the wind drives him for 
 ward! He is marching toward Rich 
 mond!" 
 
 "Don look no mo ! For Cord s sake, 
 don look no mo ! " exclaimed Mammy, her 
 face ashy with superstitious terror. "It s 
 de Debil s own wu k! " And she shut the 
 blinds with a resolute hand. 
 
 "Well," said Mr. Mortimer, "he seems 
 
Their Shadows Before 127 
 
 to have taken the storm along with him, you 
 see. The wind has changed, and we won t 
 catch the rain here; but the up-county 
 streams will be past fording in a few 
 hours. 
 
 Mammy set about to light the candles, 
 but she was fidgety and nervous. After 
 tea Mr. Mortimer read one of my favourite 
 fairy-tales to me; and then we played crib- 
 bage until bedtime. 
 
 When I kneeled down at Mammy s knee 
 to say my prayers that night, I made this 
 addendum to my usual petition : 
 
 "Lord, keep us all safe to-night, and 
 please don t let the world come to an end 
 until everybody gets good. Amen." 
 
 Then I got into bed and went to sleep, 
 with no presage of danger to disturb my 
 slumbers. 
 
Chapter VIII. 
 
 IT must have been close upon midnight 
 when I suddenly awakened with a sense 
 of an unknown peril upon me. I listened. 
 Yes, there was certainly a noise downstairs. 
 I could hear voices in the hall. What had 
 happened? What was the matter? Too 
 much frightened to call out, I lay in an 
 agony of fear. Suddenly, in the darkness, 
 I felt Mammy s hand on my arm. 
 
 "Don speak fer yo life, chile!" she 
 whispered rapidly. "Mammy 11 save her 
 baby, ef she dies fer it ! " 
 
 I clasped her hand in terror. She was 
 shaking like a leaf. "O my Gord ! De 
 niggers is riz ! De niggers is riz ! " she 
 moaned. 
 
 "Strike and kill! In the name of the 
 Lord and Nathaniel, we shall be free!" 
 cried a loud voice, whose tones I recog 
 nised; then the crashing of the timbers, as 
 the bedroom door below gave way beneath 
 
Their Shadows Before 129 
 
 the fierce blows showered upon it. A yell 
 of rage and disappointment burst from the 
 negroes, when they discovered that their in 
 tended victims had escaped. 
 
 " Quick, chile ! Fer Gord s sake, quick ! " 
 cried Mammy, as she tore down the screen 
 from before the wide fireplace. "Climb 
 up ! Dey done drunk wid blood now, an 
 mebbe de mark won t save you. " 
 
 Partly with her assistance and partly 
 goaded on by the terror induced by my 
 desperate situation, I managed to scramble 
 up the sooty chimney, where my foothold 
 among the projecting bricks was maintained 
 by leaning my body against the opposite 
 wall. The clamour grew louder every mo 
 ment, as the negroes approached the apart 
 ment wherein I was concealed. In a flash I 
 realised somehow that Mammy had im 
 perilled her life by saving my grandparents. 
 With a cunning born of desperation and 
 with a courage that was the instinct of love, 
 she went to the door and opened it. 
 
130 Their Shadows Before 
 
 "Nat, " she called in a low voice, "dey 
 all done gone; but I got de keys fer you, 
 an dere is enough silver to mek you rich 
 feryo life." 
 
 "Gone? Gone?" exclaimed the insur 
 gent. "And you tell me this, woman? 
 Where have they gone? Answer, or this 
 axe shall open your skull ! " 
 
 "Fer Gord s sake, Nat, I couldn t hender 
 em fom goin , could I? You kin kill me 
 ef you chose; but, ef you does, you ll never 
 fin de buried money, kase my mother was 
 de las Voodoo dat knowed de secret, an 
 she lef it ter me." 
 
 Her words had an effect, for there was 
 silence for a moment. 
 
 Then Nat Turner raised a stern voice in 
 protest, but his words were at once drowned 
 out by a storm and clamour of lustful cries. 
 In a moment or two, sternly commanding 
 silence, he regained a temporary ascendency 
 over his howling mob of followers, but one 
 which even I, sick with fear and effort 
 
Their Shadows Before 131 
 
 though I was, judging from the undertone of 
 murmurs which reached me, recognised as 
 hanging in an imminent balance until he 
 spoke again. Then he said quietly, 
 * Woman, lead the way ! 
 
 While this conversation was in progress, 
 I scarcely dared to breathe, and would no 
 doubt have escaped detection, had not an un 
 timely thing befallen. Just as the door was 
 opened for their exit, an unfledged swallow 
 from the heights above tumbled down upon 
 my head. Involuntarily, I started, lost my 
 footing, and fell ! 
 
 In an instant Mammy s protecting arms 
 were around me. There was a chorus of 
 exclamations, as one black follower of the 
 prophet rushed toward me, calling out in 
 guttural tones, 
 
 " Voodoo Maman, gib us de goat widout 
 horns!" 
 
 De mark ! De mark ! Fer Gord s sake, 
 remember de mark ! cried Mammy, as the 
 flash of an axe-blade gleamed over me in the 
 
i3 2 Their Shadows Before 
 
 bright moonlight. At the same moment a 
 pair of short, muscular arms tore me from 
 her frantic embrace. A heavy, distorted 
 hand was laid upon my lips. Then there 
 was a rush, a click, a flash, and I knew no 
 more of what followed. 
 
 It was late in the afternoon of the next 
 day when I was aroused from what seemed 
 to me to have been a long and terrible 
 dream. A pale yellow light shone across 
 the earthen floor of a sort of subterranean 
 grotto or cavern. 
 
 I was lying upon a pallet of dried leaves 
 that rustled as I moved my arm toward the 
 dark stone wall near which I lay. I drew 
 back my hand hastily. Great drops of icy 
 ooze stood out upon its surface, damp and 
 chill as the face of the dead. An odour of 
 mould filled the cavernous vault with a 
 subtle, grave-like aroma. I wondered if I 
 were dead, if I had been killed and buried, 
 coffinless, in this horrible place. 
 
Their Shadows Before 133 
 
 Toward the further end of the cave I 
 could see something white outlined against 
 the black background of shadow. As my 
 eyes grew accustomed to the gloom, this 
 white object gradually assumed the sem 
 blance of a human figure, with wide, out 
 stretched arms. 
 
 The bar of light shifted and appeared to 
 move ; and the figure of a man emerged from 
 some obscure angle, and went toward the 
 white figure against the wall. He paused a 
 moment, and then a voice spoke. This is 
 what I heard: 
 
 "O Son of God! say to the Father that I 
 have done the work foreordained for me to 
 do. Thou knowest, O Son of Man, that, 
 when the Sign was given, I obeyed. See 
 these red stains, O Holy One, and by them 
 know that the innocent blood of the babe 
 has been spilled for the cleansing of the 
 great sin, even as thine own innocent blood 
 was shed to wash men s souls ! Thou know 
 est that hate did not harden the heart of 
 
134 Their Shadows Before 
 
 Nathaniel, thy prophet, nor did anger 
 strengthen his arm to smite the rulers; but 
 that he did perform that only which he was 
 sent to do ! 
 
 "The life of thy prophet is but a straw in 
 the wind, but it shall show where the tem 
 pest shall break. It is a ransom for the fifty- 
 and-five whose fates were sealed in the 
 Great Book before all world, a ransom for 
 the shackles of the slave! " 
 
 The words were spoken in a perfectly 
 natural voice, as though the speaker were 
 face to face with some familiar companion. 
 There was a slight pause after the last 
 words. Then he spoke again. 
 
 When the last day comes, ask the Good 
 Father to put the words into my mouth as a 
 testimony and a witness of the future. The 
 blood of the white child cries aloud for my 
 blood, and I give it freely. And I pray 
 that, when the great battle comes, my peo 
 ple shall be patient and wait meekly for the 
 gift that shall be theirs. For the great end 
 
Their Shadows Before 135 
 
 for which I was sent I have lived, and I 
 shall die!" 
 
 The great fear that had been upon me fell 
 away from me as I listened. I sat upright 
 and gazed with all my eyes at the kneeling 
 figure, whose lips continued to move si 
 lently. Presently he rose up, and, taking 
 a bit of bread from a stone ledge above his 
 head, began to make a low, peculiar sort of 
 noise with his lips. There was a scurry 
 along the wall ; and a great, gaunt rat ran 
 toward him, and ate the bits of bread from 
 his fingers. The negro stooped down and 
 stroked the creature gently, all the while 
 making that same singular noise. The rat 
 was quite tame and perfectly fearless, leap 
 ing to the shoulder of its protector and nest 
 ling there for several moments in evident 
 contentment. Presently Nat arose, and the 
 rat jumped down and scampered to his hole. 
 
 A strange thought took hold of me. 
 
 "Uncle Nat," I called in a weak, queer 
 voice. The dwarfish figure shuffled toward 
 me, and sat down on the edge of the pallet. 
 
i3 6 Their Shadows Before 
 
 "Well?" he said. 
 
 "Are you going to kill me? " 
 
 He shook his head. 
 
 "Why not? " I pointed to the stains on 
 his shirt, and shuddered ; though I was con 
 scious that it was not from personal fear. 
 
 "Because you are marked with the 
 Mark," he answered. 
 
 "Then it was you who saved me from 
 that man s axe. Oh, I can see it now!" 
 And I put my hand over my eyes. "Did 
 anything happen to to my grandparents ? 
 
 "A woman s treachery saved them!" he 
 said fiercely. 
 
 "And Mr. Mortimer?" 
 
 "He was not of the Accursed ! " 
 
 A wild hope now seized me. 
 
 "Let me go home, Uncle Nat! Take me 
 home!" I cried. "I swear I will not tell 
 them where you are ! 
 
 He gazed at me with a curious sort of in- 
 tentness, but made no answer. I grew 
 strangely bold. 
 
Their Shadows Before 137 
 
 "You are a cruel, wicked man to kill 
 innocent people!" I cried. "Don t you 
 know God says, Thou shalt not kill ? " 
 
 "I fulfilled the Law. They will kill 
 me, and it will be man s law." 
 
 He uttered the words calmly and evenly, 
 a smile playing over his face as he spoke. 
 Nothing seemed to matter to this strange, 
 terrible man. I had no fear, yet a mad de 
 sire to get away from him seemed to suffo 
 cate me. I raised myself up with a wild 
 idea of flight in my mind, but fell back 
 again upon my bed of leaves from sheer ex 
 haustion. Nat Turner went to a receptacle 
 I could not see, and brought back a bottle 
 of some black mixture and a small wooden 
 tray laden with stale biscuits, cheese, and 
 smoked beef. He was evidently prepared 
 for a siege. 
 
 "Eat," he said. And I took the food, 
 and ate it ravenously. 
 
 "Now drink this." And he handed me a 
 battered tin cup, into which he had poured 
 
Their Shadows Before 
 
 a draught of the potion. I put the cup to 
 my lips, and tasted its contents dubiously. 
 There was a pleasant flavour to the beverage, 
 and I swallowed it at one gulp. It must 
 have been a powerful tonic, for almost in 
 stantly I felt a wave of renewed vitality 
 sweep through my veins and strengthen my 
 pulses. 
 
 "I am better now. I am ready to go 
 home." 
 
 Then for the first time, as I looked down, 
 I realised that I was in my night-gown. 
 
 "Oh, what shall I do? What shall I 
 do?" I wailed, as I dragged the rough 
 blanket from my improvised bed, and drew 
 it close about me. 
 
 "I could not help it," he said in a 
 quaintly apologetic tone. "Your life was 
 in the balance: the men were mad." 
 
 "It was you who made them like that! " 
 I replied angrily. 
 
 "Yes," he answered slowly; "but the 
 workman must have his tools. " 
 
Their Shadows Before 139 
 
 I looked at him with a sort of fascinated 
 horror. "Oh, it was horrible to raise our 
 slaves against us ! " 
 
 "Your slaves? They were my slaves, I 
 say, body and blood of them, mine! " 
 
 "You are really and truly a Voodoo 
 then?" I asked in an awe-stricken tone. 
 He shook his head scornfully. 
 
 "I have never asked for the goat without 
 horns." 
 
 I gave a shudder. "That s what the man 
 said when he was going to kill me. What 
 does it mean? " 
 
 But Nathaniel Turner did not answer. 
 
 "It is time for you to go back now, be 
 fore the cold night comes. Fold the blanket 
 tight around you. " 
 
 I looked down at my bare feet ; but I felt 
 as if I should not mind walking over heated 
 ploughshares, if only I might find home 
 once more. 
 
 "I don t mind anything," I cried joy 
 fully. "I don t think you mean to be bad. 
 
i4 Their Shadows Before 
 
 And, anyway, you have saved my life; and 
 grandfather will do something for you, and 
 I will never tell where you are! " 
 
 "No: you will not tell yet," he said 
 slowly, fixing those strange eyes full upon 
 my face. He began then to move his 
 spotted hands slowly up and down before my 
 face, and I seemed to be drifting away into 
 limitless space. 
 
 "What do you see, white child?" he 
 asked, recalling my scattered senses sud 
 denly. 
 
 I glanced about me. The low, overhang 
 ing walls of stone were receding into the 
 distance, like a vanishing dream. Long 
 stretches of field lay about us. In the dis 
 tance the outlines of the Great Dismal 
 showed darkly against the horizon. There 
 were trees of a different growth from any I 
 had ever seen in the vicinity of Winston 
 Manor. 
 
 I rubbed my eyes. 
 
 "You will follow the path," he said, 
 "until you come to the juniper-tree." 
 
Their Shadows Before 141 
 
 Then it seemed to me that I went onward, 
 traversing the narrow footpaths through the 
 wide, starlit fields, impelled by some force 
 quite outside of my mental or physical voli 
 tion. I came to the juniper-tree at last, 
 a familiar landmark on the boundary line of 
 our plantation, and sat down mechanically, 
 waiting for I knew not what. Again and 
 again I tried to recall what had happened 
 and where I had been, but the effort was 
 futile. From the moment that I had crept 
 into my little white bed on that eventful 
 night, my mind was a blank. When I tried 
 to fix my thoughts on that night, they grew 
 dazed and hazy, and an undefinable fear 
 seemed to possess me. Not until the be 
 ginning of the last act of the Southampton 
 tragedy could I recall the strange scenes 
 which I had witnessed. The singular 
 psychical force that had held my memory 
 absolutely in its control did not wholly 
 relax its influence until it passed from its 
 earthly tenement. I only knew that I was 
 
142 Their Shadows Before 
 
 barefooted, with only my night-gown and a 
 rough blanket about me, and that I was sit 
 ting under the old juniper-tree that had al 
 ways been the limit of my wanderings from 
 the manor. 
 
 Suddenly I heard the clatter of horse- 
 hoofs down the plantation road, and then, as 
 the rider drew within view, an exclamation 
 that was a cry of mingled surprise and joy. 
 
 "My God, Penelope! Is it you?" cried 
 Mr. Mortimer, leaping from his horse. 
 "We thought you dead! The country is 
 being scoured for miles for you or your 
 And here you are within our gates ! Thank 
 God! Thank God!" His face was drawn 
 and haggard, as though he had not slept for 
 weeks. "How was it? How did you come 
 here?" He was patting me and stroking 
 my hair, as he poured out this somewhat 
 incoherent volley of words. 
 
 I smiled back into his face somewhat 
 vacantly. How heavenly it was to hear his 
 voice, and to know that I was at home! I 
 
Their Shadows Before 143 
 
 laid my head back on his shoulder, but did 
 not try to speak lest I should break the 
 spell of blissful content. 
 
 He looked down at me anxiously, a sud 
 den fear dawning in his eyes. "Can t you 
 speak? Don t you know me, dear? " 
 
 "Oh, yes," I whispered, with a little 
 laugh. "Of course I know you, only I am 
 too tired and too happy to talk." 
 
 "But where have you been, child?" he 
 questioned, as he placed me in the saddle 
 before him. 
 
 "I don t know," I answered. 
 
 "Don t know? " he repeated in a troubled 
 voice. "Try and tell me all about it." 
 
 I put my hands up to my head. "Oh, 
 please, Mr. Mortimer, I can t help it. I 
 tried to remember, but I couldn t." 
 
 "Never mind, you poor little girl," he 
 said. And then it seemed but a few mo 
 ments until I was tightly clasped in my 
 grandfather s arms, with a crowd of white 
 drawn faces all about me. I could feel the 
 
144 Their Shadows Before 
 
 hot tears on my face like rain, while broken 
 ejaculations of joy and of thankfulness 
 broke from my grandparents lips. From 
 the rear came the sound of Mammy s voice, 
 repeating again and again : 
 
 "De Lord is done retu n his los lamb! 
 Bless his Holy Name!" 
 
Chapter IX. 
 
 THE news of the negro insurrection 
 spread widely and rapidly throughout 
 the contiguous counties, and the excitement 
 and consternation were boundless. By noon 
 of the day following my return to Winston 
 Manor the whole section was in an uproar, 
 and the barricades which had been hastily 
 contrived by the frightened white people 
 were no longer in requisition. 
 
 Armed patrols from Richmond were 
 guarding the plantations, and the abject 
 terror of the negroes was pitiful. The 
 slave-owners in Virginia and the South had 
 been aroused to a sense of danger threaten 
 ing them in their own households. On 
 every plantation the hordes of blacks who 
 tilled the cotton, corn, and tobacco fields, 
 and who called the landed proprietor mas 
 ter, " outnumbered the whites a hundred 
 fold. The Southampton insurrection had 
 cast a shadow of dread over every Southern 
 
Their Shadows Before 
 
 home. Mothers and wives and children 
 went to bed at night oppressed by the hor 
 rible fear that even their most trusted ser 
 vants might, in the twinkling of an eye, 
 become their assassins; for it was impos 
 sible to conjecture how far Nat Turner s in 
 fluence had reached. Although the white 
 men of Southampton had promptly put down 
 the insurrection and the insurgents were in 
 hiding, fifty-five persons had been massacred 
 between two days. Winston Manor had 
 been the first place attacked, on the fatal 
 night of August 21. A pistol-shot fired 
 from Mr. Mortimer s window had frightened 
 the insurgents into a hurried flight ; for 
 they supposed that they were discovered, 
 and that an armed force was at the door. 
 Mr. Mortimer, who had been aroused by the 
 noise from the dining-room, where the silver 
 was being ransacked, had fired through the 
 window, as a means of scaring off any pos 
 sible thieves. He had hastily run down 
 stairs, grandfather s pistols in hand, to dis- 
 
Their Shadows Before 147 
 
 cover the house in confusion and Mammy 
 prostrate over my abduction. 
 
 Heedless of the danger of the enterprise, 
 he had mounted Cavalier, and gone in 
 search of my grandparents, judging that the 
 negroes would not attempt to attack the vil 
 lage until they had taken possession of their 
 owners isolated homes, and until their 
 forces should be strong enough to make such 
 a course practicable. 
 
 From Winston Manor, Turner and his fol 
 lowers had gone to the Travis mansion; and 
 there the leader of the assassins had with 
 his own hand killed, together with his wife 
 and his children, the man who had given 
 him his freedom. 
 
 The grey face of the day looked down 
 upon a scene of butchery more ghastly in 
 its horror because of the passionless, immut 
 able purpose of the man who led the fren 
 zied mob. Old ladies, young children in 
 the county school-house, on the roadside, 
 the farmer on his way to work, all were 
 victims, without distinction of age or sex. 
 
148 Their Shadows Before 
 
 And the dwarfish figure of Turner was al- . 
 ways the first to attack, as he called out in 
 loud tones: "The axe of the prophet is the 
 sword of the Lord! Strike, and you shall 
 be free ! Jehovah hath promised ! " 
 
 Carried away by the apparent success of 
 their revolt and dominated by the will of 
 the black prophet, the insurgents acted as 
 though one man. 
 
 Turner, who had formulated a plan for a 
 new government, knew that money would be 
 a necessary factor. So in every house there 
 was a search made for the jewels, silver, 
 and whatever money could be found. After 
 the murderers had been put to rout, they 
 were tracked through the fields by the brace 
 lets, rings, watches, and vessels of silver 
 which they had thrown away in their flight 
 toward the swamps. 
 
 As soon as the news of the atrocities had 
 reached Jerusalem, squads of men were in 
 pursuit ; and the ultimate capture of the in 
 surgents was only a matter of time. 
 
Their Shadows Before 149 
 
 All of the slaves were more or less under 
 suspicion, and my grandfather showed a dis 
 crimination and cool judgment at this junct 
 ure that were most admirable. Calling all 
 the negroes in from the quarters, he talked 
 to them calmly and wisely, showing a tact 
 that no previous exigency had ever brought 
 to light. 
 
 He bade Mammy and Uncle Isham stand 
 on either side of him while he spoke. 
 
 "I have called you here to say to you that 
 I have the utmost confidence in your affec 
 tion for me and mine," he said. "These 
 two," pointing to Mammy and Uncle 
 Isham, "imperilled their lives to save my 
 family; and there are many among you who 
 are equally faithful and true. It is in order 
 to protect you that the place must be 
 guarded. All of you who have fire-arms or 
 weapons of any sort bring them to me. 
 There will be a search made by the authori 
 ties, and the possession of them will be 
 regarded as evidence against you. The 
 
150 Their Shadows Before 
 
 leaders of this movement will pay the pen 
 alty of their folly, but I shall do what I can 
 to protect the innocent." 
 
 "Gord knows, Marster, we never knowed 
 what Nat was a-goin ter do! " came from 
 all sides. 
 
 This was, no doubt, true; for only a few 
 negroes on each plantation had shared the 
 terrible secret. Nat Turner s plan had 
 been to keep his force of real accomplices 
 few in number and under his personal direc 
 tion. He trusted that the desire for free 
 dom would be a sufficiently strong incentive 
 to bring the whole of the slave population 
 into concerted action, when once the work of 
 revolt was begun. 
 
 Although every effort was being made to 
 discover the hiding-place of the man who 
 conceived, planned, and almost accom 
 plished the insurrection of the Southern 
 slaves, as yet no trace of him had been 
 found. To all questions put to me concern 
 ing my disappearance and return, I could 
 
Their Shadows Before 15 l 
 
 only give the same answer, "I don t know." 
 My distress was so evident and so genuine 
 at this that my grandparents forebore touch 
 ing on the subject. I suppose, too, that 
 they were alarmed at my somewhat singular 
 mental condition. The shock to my nerves 
 had been so great that my memory appeared 
 to be paralyzed. 
 
 The days dragged by and grew into weeks ; 
 but the search for the leader of the negro in 
 surgents was kept up with unremitted vigi 
 lance, though with no result save failure. 
 
 After the first frenzy of excitement was 
 over, the lower and coarser element of the 
 population was seized by a fever of suspi 
 cion that was fraught with danger to all 
 those disposed to be reasonable and conserv 
 ative. This element was made up for the 
 most part of that class of whites who did not 
 and had never owned slaves. I think my 
 grandfather must have felt that Mr. Morti 
 mer s position among us was not safe, for he 
 always made a point of accompanying him 
 when he rode or drove into Jerusalem. 
 
i5 2 Their Shadows Before 
 
 It was Uncle Isham who came in one 
 morning with an anxious face, and said: 
 
 "Ef young Mars Mortimer was feelin 
 peart enough to go long back whar he come 
 f m, I reckin twould be er mighty sensible 
 thing ter do. " 
 
 My grandfather turned about sharply : 
 
 "What s this, Isham? What do you 
 mean?" 
 
 "I mean, sah, dat de po whites is gab- 
 blin might ly bout how it was jes his talk- 
 in ter Nat an dem what stir em up ter dat 
 hell s wuk; an dey do say as how it lay 
 tween him an Nat, an , ef dey don ketch 
 Nat fo long, dey gwine settle things up 
 wid our Mars Mortimer, sah." 
 
 "Is this really true, do you think, Isham?" 
 
 Uncle Isham half closed his wrinkled eye 
 lids: "Befo Gord, I se a- feared it s so, 
 marster; an you better git im clean off 
 somewhar fo de storm busts." 
 
 "You are right, Isham, I shall speak to 
 Mr. Mortimer. You were wise to come to 
 
Their Shadows Before 153 
 
 me at once. Curse the miscreants!" he 
 muttered to himself. "Do they dare to 
 threaten a guest beneath my roof? I ll 
 teach them to meddle with gentlemen ! " 
 
 Uncle Isham lingered at the door. "An 
 dey ain no time ter lose, neider, marster. " 
 
 "You are right again. Go tell Mr. Mor 
 timer I wish to see him here in the library 
 at once. 
 
 Uncle Isham performed his commission 
 with alacrity, and a moment later Mr. Mor 
 timer appeared. The excitement of the last 
 few weeks had left a visible mark upon him. 
 
 "Mortimer, you must get ready to go with 
 me to Richmond to-morrow." 
 
 Mr. Mortimer looked surprised, but ac 
 quiesced. 
 
 "I will try to be ready," he said. "I 
 should have liked to get a few more speci 
 mens " 
 
 "Oh, damn your specimens!" said my 
 grandfather, testily. He was not inclined to 
 science. "I had hoped to have you stay 
 
154 Their Shadows Before 
 
 with us until you were strong and well 
 again; but the truth is, Mortimer, these 
 idiotic white paupers around here have got 
 it into their heads that it was you who 
 stirred up the negroes. On the whole, I 
 think it s best to get you out of the way 
 before they attempt anything disagreeable." 
 
 Mr. Mortimer turned very white. 
 
 "Do they think I instigated those hideous 
 crimes? Well, let them think! I will 
 stand my ground. I will not run away, like 
 a criminal ! " 
 
 "But you don t know the ruffians. For 
 the first time in my life I ask a guest to 
 leave my house. 
 
 "Of course, I understand that my pres 
 ence here must be disagreeable and incon 
 venient under the circumstances. I shall be 
 more considerate than to remain. If you 
 will let one of the men take my boxes over 
 to the inn at Jerusalem, I shall be greatly 
 obliged. I shall certainly not steal away 
 like a fugitive from justice/ 
 
Their Shadows Before 155 
 
 "You totally misunderstand me!" ex 
 claimed my grandfather. "If you stay in 
 Southampton County like a fool, you stay in 
 my house, I say ! He began to walk up 
 and down the room rapidly as he was wont 
 to do when under great excitement. "I don t 
 know how this wretched business is going 
 to end, but we ll stand together. I ll show 
 these mongrels what they will get if they 
 dare to insult by word or look an inmate of 
 my house. Keep your pistols loaded, Mor 
 timer; and I will carry mine. We ll teach 
 them how to behave to gentlemen ! It ll be 
 rare sport, eh, Mortimer? Rare sport, I 
 say!" My grandfather s blood was rising. 
 
 Mr. Mortimer laughed. "I never carried 
 a pistol in my life," said he. "I think 
 you ll find there s no occasion for such war 
 like preparation. The whole thing has been 
 exaggerated, no doubt. 
 
 "Well, maybe so," remarked my grand 
 father, dubiously; "but Isham is discreet, 
 and, to tell the truth, since the darkies have 
 
156 Their Shadows Before 
 
 risen against us, and, if it hadn t been for 
 that storm, they might partially have suc 
 ceeded, too, why, I admit I believe any 
 thing is likely to occur." 
 
 "I never knew you to be nervous before," 
 said my tutor; "but we have had enough to 
 shake nerves of steel lately. 
 
 "There is no more danger from them," 
 said the master of Winston Manor. 
 
 The two gentlemen were still talking in 
 low, earnest tones, when I noticed two men 
 on the avenue riding up toward the house. 
 
 "Sheriff Lawson, as I live!" exclaimed 
 my grandfather. He went out into the 
 great hall, and opened the door. "Good 
 day, Mr. Lawson," he said cheerily. 
 "How fares it with you to-day?" 
 
 "Bad enough, squire," answered the 
 man. "Fact is, squire, I come down to 
 see you very partic lar. " 
 
 "What can I do for you? But get off and 
 come into the house where you can speak 
 freely, you and your friend. " 
 
Their Shadows Before 157 
 
 "Much obliged," was the reply; "but 
 we d rather not be showed off more n can be 
 helped, this here business bein kind er 
 private, so to speak." 
 
 "That s all right," said my grandfather; 
 and he ushered the two men into the little 
 smoking-room back of the library. Mr. 
 Mortimer and I could distinctly hear every 
 word of the conversation that followed, and 
 I could see through the partly open door. 
 
 "Well, what s the trouble?" asked my 
 grandfather. 
 
 The sheriff crossed his legs nervously. 
 "It s just this, squire. They re after the 
 young feller from the No th that s been 
 stoppin with you fer a spell." 
 
 "Well?" said my grandfather, interroga 
 tively. 
 
 Mr. Lawson cleared his throat in an em 
 barrassed manner. "Well, squire, I ve 
 allers found you a good frien to me an 
 mine. So me an Joe come down to make a 
 little proposition. You see this ain t no 
 
158 Their Shadows Before 
 
 kind er business to fool with. The Piney 
 Cove gang and the Ginseng gang have done 
 swore to swing Nat Turner or the young 
 feller. It pears like they don care so much 
 which one it be, so it s one. They have 
 done set ter-morrer night as the limit." 
 
 My grandfather s face grew rigid. "Is 
 there no trace of Turner yet? " he inquired. 
 
 "Nary track nor scent, sir There s two 
 parties searching the swamps now, but I 
 doubt if it ll do any good." 
 
 "Well, what do you propose to do?" 
 There was an unmistakable note of defiance 
 in the voice of the questioner. 
 
 "Th ain t but one way : I ve got to arrest 
 im." 
 
 "Arrest an innocent gentleman in my 
 house? Never! I shall defend him to the 
 utmost if necessary ! 
 
 Sheriff Lawson looked around cautiously. 
 "For your sake an his, squire, we ve come 
 down here to get that feller behind the jail 
 walls afore the mob s out. There s a party 
 
Their Shadows Before 159 
 
 of two hundred goin ter rampage ter-morrer 
 night. Ef they find out he s already been 
 arrested, it may simmer em down. Ef it 
 don t, why we an you together can put a 
 gyuard aroun the ol Jerusalem jail that ll 
 bring em to reason. Ain t that so, Joe? " 
 
 The other man raised his eyes from the 
 flowers in the carpet for the first time, and 
 answered briefly, "That there s a true 
 bill!" 
 
 "An now you know the case, sir, we d 
 better be movin , hadn t we, Joe? " 
 
 "Fer a fac ," replied Joe. 
 
 My grandfather grasped Mr. Lawson s 
 hand. "It shall be as you say." Then he 
 called Mr. Mortimer. 
 
 "I am ready," answered my tutor, step 
 ping into the room. "I thank you," he 
 said, turning to the two men, "for what you 
 have done for me. You are perfectly right : 
 it is the only possible chance I shall have." 
 He held out his hand to my grandfather, but 
 the latter said in a matter-of-fact way, 
 
160 Their Shadows Before 
 
 "I have got business in Jerusalem. I am 
 going along with you. " 
 
 For a moment my tutor s face was illum 
 ined with a rare, dazzling light. I rushed 
 into the room, and clung desperately to his 
 arm, weeping and sobbing. He unclasped 
 my hands gently. 
 
 "Don t cry, dear. I know that I shall be 
 back here soon. 
 
 "I promise you that, Penelope," said my 
 grandfather, stoutly. But that did not reas 
 sure me. 
 
 After a few minutes conversation with 
 my grandmother, who dissembled her fear at 
 being left alone for even a short period, and 
 a few words of admonition to the patrollers, 
 guards, and slaves, the little party left us to 
 entertain the invisible guests of terror and 
 suspense. 
 
 All the afternoon I was feverish and mis 
 erable, my head felt oddly dull and numb. 
 Oh, if only I could remember something! 
 What was it? Something I promised some- 
 
Their Shadows Before 161 
 
 body to do or not to do. I began vaguely to 
 realise that in some way my silence might 
 be a factor in the working of evil toward 
 Mr. Mortimer, when I heard my grand 
 mother murmur to herself, her eyes fixed 
 strangely on my face, "If only the child 
 could tell!" 
 
 Tell what ? That was the question. 
 
Chapter X. 
 
 I DO not believe that any one at the 
 manor slept much that night. When I 
 rose up next morning and looked out from 
 my dormer window, the bright sunshine 
 seemed to mock the interior gloom of my 
 heart. The twitter of the birds chirping 
 their morning salutation, and the low hum 
 of newly awakened insect life that is so dis 
 tinct in the early day in the country, irri 
 tated me. The croaking of the frogs in the 
 morass seemed ominous. Every nerve in 
 my body was strained and tense. All night 
 Mr. Mortimer s pale face had haunted my 
 dreams, and I was physically as well as 
 mentally worn out. 
 
 What would they do to him ? What right 
 had they to do anything to him ? Surely, my 
 grandfather would not allow any one to 
 injure him. The governor was his close 
 friend, and it was not far to Richmond. 
 But suppose the governor was not at home : 
 
Their Shadows Before 163 
 
 what then ? Suppose they did not find Nat 
 Turner. These and a thousand other tortur 
 ing thoughts passed and repassed through 
 my restless brain. Neither my grandmother 
 nor I made more than a pretence of eating 
 breakfast that morning, though her strong 
 faith in my grandfather s influence through 
 out the county gave her grounds for hoping 
 that our friend would soon be relieved from 
 the danger of his position. 
 
 I remember how we both tried to talk 
 about indifferent matters, as people always 
 do when a momentous or absorbing interest 
 oppresses them ; how we made excuses to go 
 to the door or window every little while to 
 see if any one were coming down the road, 
 which was visible for a short distance from 
 the front of the house. This inarticulate 
 anxiety that expresses itself in a thousand 
 trifling actions is far harder to bear than that 
 which one dares to voice. All day I had 
 felt a strange sensation in my head, as 
 though I were groping about for something 
 
1 64 Their Shadows Before 
 
 in the dark. This feeling grew stronger as 
 the long hours went by. I kept putting my 
 hands to my head and kept rubbing my 
 eyes as if to gain a clearer vision. My 
 grandmother observed the frequently re 
 peated gesture. 
 
 "Why do you do that, Penelope?" she 
 asked. 
 
 "I don t exactly know," I answered 
 vaguely. "I feel as if I were trying to see 
 something, I don t know what." 
 
 The clock on the stair landing sounded 
 the stroke of two just as I spoke, and I gave 
 a startled cry ; for I felt a great wave of recol 
 lection stir the pulses of my brain. I saw 
 the moonlit room, the flash of steel, the 
 horrible faces around me, and Mammy s 
 passionate anguish, all of the dreadful 
 scene that had temporarily been erased from 
 my memory. There was a blank moment; 
 and then, as I sat with my face buried in my 
 hands, another picture took form and color 
 before my mental vision. I saw the long, 
 
Their Shadows Before 165 
 
 low, cavernous vault, with something white 
 showing at the farther end. One by one 
 every detail of my singular experience ap 
 peared to me, like a set of views unrolled 
 upon a magic screen. I saw the cavity that 
 was the entrance to this curious place, and 
 the rough ladder that led down to it through 
 the body of a hollow tree, a giant oak, the 
 rotten interior of which had been hollowed 
 out by a cunning hand until it was suffi 
 ciently large to form a means of ingress or 
 egress to and from the hiding-place below. 
 Close to this tree ran a foot-path through the 
 tobacco fields straight toward our boundary 
 line marked by the old juniper. I seemed 
 to see myself climbing up the ladder to the 
 carefully concealed opening in the trunk of 
 the tree. From this odd tower I was gently 
 let down and gently set upon the winding 
 path, which I followed instinctively. 
 
 Everything was clear to me now. The 
 words of the sheriff came back to me: "If 
 they don t catch Nat, squire, they re goin 
 
1 66 Their Shadows Before 
 
 ter settle things up with the young feller." 
 I started up wildly. How could any one 
 ever find that place that was so near and yet 
 so far away! Mr. Mortimer s life was in 
 danger if Nat Turner was not discovered, 
 and I knew where he was ! 
 
 "Quick!" I cried. "I remember now, 
 I must go, I must tell them. I must 
 see grandfather ! 
 
 My grandmother laid a detaining hand on 
 my shoulder. 
 
 "What ails you, child? Try to calm 
 yourself, Penelope. What are you talking 
 about ? What is it you remember ? 
 
 "I can t stop to tell you," I replied. "I 
 must tell them where he is. I know ! I 
 know now. Oh, let me go quick before it s 
 too late to save Mr. Mortimer. 
 
 I do not think that my grandmother had 
 any thought but that I had gone quite daft. 
 
 I believe that she decided instantly that 
 the easiest and perhaps the only way to 
 pacify me was to accede to my demands. 
 
Their Shadows Before 167 
 
 She ordered the carriage to be fetched at 
 once. 
 
 "Come now, child, you shall go to your 
 grandfather/ she said soothingly, "only do 
 try to be more calm. I shall myself take 
 you to him at once." 
 
 Then she bade Mammy bring out wine 
 and biscuits, which she insisted should be 
 consumed before I set out upon the long 
 drive to Jerusalem. The poor old lady was 
 very much upset by what she considered this 
 latest calamity. She told Mammy to get in 
 the carriage, and made Uncle Isham ride on 
 the box with Ephraim. The possibility of 
 having a child-maniac to look after was one 
 which appeared to collapse her usual strength 
 and firmness; and she followed Mammy s 
 every suggestion meekly, having none to 
 offer herself. 
 
 "You jes put yo hade right here on 
 Mammy s lap," said my old nurse, as she 
 rolled up an impromptu pillow; "kase 
 Mammy s lamb got er bad misery in de 
 
1 68 Their Shadows Before 
 
 hade, sho . See, dar, ain t dat nice and 
 sof ? Den, when we gits ter Jerus lem, 
 you ll jes feel smart an peart agin. Dar 
 now, shet yo eyes an go ter sleep now. 
 Dat s jes what ails you." 
 
 I obeyed the first part of this injunction, 
 but the latter was out of the question. We 
 had made several miles of our journey when 
 a new aspect of the situation presented it 
 self to my troubled mind. I was going over 
 and over all of the dreadful possibilities that 
 might be ahead, when suddenly I remem 
 bered my promise to the man who had saved 
 my life. "I swear I will not tell them 
 where you are. The words danced in fiery 
 letters before me, and yet that was just 
 what I was on my way to do. I sprang up 
 and burst into a fit of sobbing that seemed 
 to rend me in twain. I felt as though my 
 heart would burst with the strain. I would 
 have to tell my whole story and break my 
 oath to my rescuer, or be silent and let Mr. 
 Mortimer suffer I did not know what 
 
Their Shadows Before 169 
 
 death, perhaps. My grandmother and 
 Mammy tried to comfort me, but it was use 
 less. I could not tell them my grief and 
 terror. I felt as if my worst fears might 
 take the bodily form of reality if I voiced 
 them, and was silent, except for the long, 
 dry sobs that shook me at intervals. 
 
 We had driven with more than usual speed, 
 and had almost entered the outskirts of the 
 village, somewhat earlier than we had ex 
 pected to do. As we reached the cross-roads, 
 we observed a small cavalcade of horsemen 
 approaching from the direction of the 
 swamp. Uncle Isham leaned forward, and 
 put an anxious face in at the carriage window. 
 
 "It pears ter be some strange doin s over 
 yander, " he said. "Mus we drive on, Mis- 
 t is, or mus we tu n back? " 
 
 My grandmother watched the little pro 
 cession for a moment, arid then glanced at 
 me. 
 
 "Drive on," she said, "and stop at the 
 village inn. I must see your master. Try 
 to get ahead of those people. 
 
i7 Their Shadows Before 
 
 Ephraim gave the horses a flick with his 
 whip, and the lumbering vehicle rolled on 
 apace. For a few moments we had the road 
 to ourselves, but the way was soon blocked 
 again. 
 
 "It s er funeril percession, Mist is. Fer 
 de Lord s sake, don t let Ephrurn pass it, or 
 we ll have bad luck, sho . Dat sign don t 
 never fail." 
 
 Mammy s voice was excited. My grand 
 mother knew in what special dread the ne 
 groes held this superstition, so she motioned 
 to Ephraim to stop. He did so, drawing 
 the carriage to one side in order to give free 
 passage to our fellow-travellers. 
 
 As the horsemen drew nearer, we perceived 
 that Mammy was mistaken. In the middle 
 of the group was an ox-cart, in which sat a 
 solitary figure. The mounted men, who 
 seemed to be a guard over the occupant of 
 the cart, were silent. I wondered if this 
 was because they had recognised our carriage. 
 For an instant the strain upon me was re- 
 
Their Shadows Before 
 
 laxed : a curiosity to know what this cortege 
 meant acted as a tonic to my nerves. 
 
 "What are they doing?" I asked, as I 
 leaned out to see more clearly. 
 
 The movement brought me face to face 
 with the Black Prophet ! 
 
 "It s Nat! " said Mammy, in a half whis 
 per. "Now Gord be merciful! Dey done 
 cotched him at las ! " 
 
 I gazed at the familiar face, fascinated by 
 its solemn intensity. My grandmother 
 turned very pale, but summoned courage 
 enough to motion to one of the horsemen to 
 come to her side, in order that she might 
 inquire if this were true. 
 
 "True as the gospel, ma am," was the 
 reply, spoken in a low voice. "He done 
 like he thought hisself a general, ma am, he 
 did. Laid down his ole ramshackle gun as 
 if he was surrenderin to another general. 
 If Ike hadn t tu ned state s evidence, we 
 wouldn t er got im, thet s my opinion. 
 He s a brave man, anyhow." 
 
iT 2 Their Shadows Before 
 
 "When did you make this discovery? " 
 inquired my grandmother. 
 
 " Twas just two o clock to the dot," an 
 swered the man. "I looked at my watch 
 just as Joe put the rope on his arms. He 
 just said, The hour is come/ and held out 
 his hands. He knew it was all over, I 
 reckon. 
 
 Had Nathaniel Turner removed his in 
 fluence from me at the very moment he had 
 given up all hope of escape? My child- 
 mind did not formulate this question then, 
 but in after years it propounded itself to me 
 with strong insistence. 
 
 Just then the man in the cart recognised 
 me. I felt his luminous gaze fixed on my 
 face. 
 
 "Your lips are unsealed, white child," he 
 said distinctly. "It will not matter now." 
 
 "You keep yo mouth shet, nigger," 
 called out one of the men roughly. The 
 captive did not appear to hear the rebuke. 
 
 Is there no way for us or for you to get 
 
Their Shadows Before 173 
 
 into Jerusalem but by this road? " asked my 
 grandmother, who, besides being greatly 
 distressed by what we were seeing, was now 
 growing very much alarmed, not knowing 
 what might happen when the news of the 
 capture should become circulated. The 
 man shook his head. 
 
 "But your nigger can drive ahead, an 
 we ll try to keep behind and let you get 
 there before we-all. " 
 
 "Thank you. Drive on, Ephraim. Don t 
 spare the horses," she ordered. But the 
 road was muddy from the recent rain, and 
 we found it impossible for our heavy family 
 coach to keep ahead. Thus we found our 
 selves in the unpleasant position of vanguard 
 to the procession. 
 
 One great burden had been lifted from me 
 by that briefly spoken sentence: "Your lips 
 are unsealed. " I would not be obliged to 
 break my word now, and I felt guilty at the 
 song my heart sang, "Mr. Mortimer is 
 saved ! Mr. Mortimer is saved ! 
 
174 Their Shadows Before 
 
 Sheriff Lawson had been notified by a 
 messenger of what had happened, and had a 
 strong guard ready to protect the prisoner, 
 should violence be attempted. As the little 
 cortege approached the village, and passed 
 through the long narrow street, at one end 
 of which the jail was located, a mob col 
 lected to view the captured negro. Perhaps 
 the fact that the Winston carriage was in 
 the street had something to do with quelling 
 the angry outburst from the crowd ; but I 
 think, too, that there was something in the 
 aspect of the prisoner that forbade ribald 
 jest or vulgar manifestation. Sitting there 
 half -starved, uncouth in his rags, he was 
 composed, calm, almost indifferent. Over 
 his tattered clothing he wore the garment of 
 dignity. Helpless and patient as the ox 
 that was bearing him on toward the scaffold, 
 he sat there; but there was no fear in his 
 solemn face, and his courage commanded 
 respect. 
 
 The inn was some little distance beyond, 
 
 
Their Shadows Before 175 
 
 and the increasing crowd made it almost im 
 possible for our coach to proceed. My 
 grandmother and Mammy were sitting as far 
 back as possible, in order to escape observa 
 tion. The central figure of the gloomy car 
 avan was so close to us that we could hear 
 what was said very distinctly. The man 
 who rode next to the prisoner watched him 
 curiously. 
 
 "Well, Nat," he remarked, "it was one 
 of your own men who tole us whar to find 
 you. There s not a nigger in Southampton 
 who ll stand by you now." 
 
 Turner did not answer for a little space. 
 He was looking into the distance. "One of 
 the twelve was a traitor," he said calmly. 
 "I knew one of them would betray me." 
 
 As I heard the words, a lump rose in my 
 throat. And I had been going to betray 
 him ! 
 
 "For Heaven s sake, get out of this," 
 said my grandmother, desperately. "I can 
 not endure it. 
 
176 Their Shadows Before 
 
 "Gentlemen, will you not let this lady s 
 carriage turn to the left ? cried the voice 
 of my grandfather, with a ring of command 
 in it. And then, as if by magic, a way was 
 opened; and we turned down a little lane 
 and drew rein before the sign of the Blue 
 Dragon. Grandfather was at the carriage 
 door to meet us, pale, dishevelled, weary. 
 
 "What on earth brought you here?" he 
 inquired in utter amazement at this unex 
 pected meeting. 
 
 "I will explain," gasped my grandmother, 
 in a broken voice. "O Christopher, thank 
 God you are here, and thank God Mr. Mor 
 timer is safe now. " 
 
 "Let us hope so," returned my grand 
 father, briefly ; and then we were ushered 
 into the little parlour of the Blue Dragon, 
 exhausted and overcome with the strain of 
 excitement, but with a new hope in our 
 hearts. 
 
Chapter XL 
 
 ALTHOUGH we had often stopped at 
 the village inn for a noonday meal 
 during our excursions into Jerusalem, I had 
 no acquaintance with the interior habili 
 ments of the Blue Dragon; and the unfamil 
 iar objects in the room about me filled me 
 with a sensation of lost identity, when I 
 opened my eyes next morning. I dressed 
 myself quickly, and was ready before 
 Mammy tapped at my door to announce 
 breakfast. My grandparents were at table 
 when I entered the little parlour, which 
 served as a private breakfast-room on this 
 occasion. I think my grandfather read in 
 my eyes the question I dared not ask. 
 
 "Mr Mortimer is all right, Penelope, 
 that is, as far as he can be in that wretched 
 place. So come, eat your breakfast. 
 
 He drew my chair close to his own, and 
 broke an egg for me. 
 
 "I am afraid that you and your grand- 
 
178 Their Shadows Before 
 
 mother had a bad time of it at the manor 
 yesterday. 
 
 "We did, sir, very bad." 
 
 " Your grandmother says you can tell us 
 now what happened to you the night of the 
 insurrection. Do you still remember about 
 it? " He spoke very gently. 
 
 "Everything," I answered. "It all came 
 back yesterday, just when the clock struck 
 two. I tried to speak as calmly as I 
 could, but my voice trembled. 
 
 "Hmh! " said my grandfather : "that was 
 the exact time Turner was taken." 
 
 "Isn t it strange? " commented my grand 
 mother, in a hushed voice. 
 
 "Then I began to remember it all in 
 pictures," I continued; and I told the whole 
 story as clearly and concisely as I could. 
 
 "Hmh!" repeated my grandfather. 
 "It s beyond me, the whole thing. Could 
 you tell this to any one but me? To 
 strangers, I mean, without getting fright 
 ened?" 
 
Their Shadows Before 179 
 
 "I could; but, O grandfather, I swore not 
 to tell, and, unless it s to save Mr. Morti 
 mer, I don t want to break my word. I 
 know Uncle Nat killed people, women and 
 babies; but I think he thought he was born 
 to do it, and he couldn t help doing it. 
 And, anyway, he saved my life; and, un 
 less it s to save Mr. Mortimer, I won t, 
 I can t!" 
 
 My hands were cold as I twisted them 
 together in an anguish of conflicting emo 
 tions. 
 
 "The child is right, Christopher," said 
 my grandmother. 
 
 "I think it will be unnecessary for her 
 to do more than to corroborate Mortimer s 
 statement concerning that scene they wit 
 nessed in the swamp. Except at that time 
 he never saw the negro; and, as Nat never 
 saw him at all, his statement to that effect, 
 together with my own testimony, will, I 
 think, clear Mortimer from all suspicion as 
 to complicity in the matter. The governor 
 
i8o Their Shadows Before 
 
 has ordered an immediate trial. I shall do 
 what I can to get the sentence commuted on 
 the ground of insanity, but I fear there is 
 no hope of success. I think it will be con 
 sidered necessary to make an example for 
 the future. 
 
 "Now, Penelope, are you brave enough to 
 answer the questions they will ask you 
 there?" 
 
 "I d do a hundred times as much for Mr. 
 Mortimer," I cried. 
 
 "You like Mr. Mortimer very much, eh? " 
 My grandfather appeared to be pondering 
 upon something quite intently. "Well 
 enough to be willing to be under his care, 
 when your grandmother and I are taken 
 from you ? 
 
 "Oh, don t talk about being taken away 
 from me; but I think, sir, if it was to hap 
 pen, that I d like to live with Mr. Morti 
 mer always, and I would go to the end of the 
 world with him. " 
 
 My grandparents both laughed. 
 
Their Shadows Before 181 
 
 "What! Would you turn into a 
 Yankee?" 
 
 "I would always be a Virginian as I was 
 born, sir ; but I think the Yankees are right 
 about the slaves. I m an Abolitionist my 
 self." 
 
 "If that s so, I ll give you to Mortimer 
 as soon as he gets out of Jerusalem jail ! " 
 said my grandfather. "We don t want any 
 Abolitionists in Southampton County." 
 
 "I mean, sir, that I think owning human 
 beings is wicked. " 
 
 "Little girls don t know what they think! 
 They have no business to think at all on 
 such subjects," remarked the old gentle 
 man, with a touch of testiness. "But you 
 are a brave girl, Penelope ; and, if you are 
 summoned as a witness, I shall not be afraid 
 for you. " And he patted my head. 
 
 "I do trust, Christopher, that it may not 
 be necessary," said my grandmother. 
 "Will we have to stay here while this 
 wretched trial is going on?" 
 
1 82 Their Shadows Before 
 
 " Nat s trial will be a short affair. Mor 
 timer s may come after, so I am afraid we 
 shall." 
 
 "It s so shockingly vulgar and conspicu 
 ous, the whole thing," moaned my grand 
 mother, her aristocratic instincts in bitter 
 revolt at the situation. 
 
 "So also are imprisonment and hanging," 
 he remarked drily. "Basil Mortimer is as 
 brave a gentleman as ever breathed, and a 
 member of my family to boot; and I shall 
 stand by him to the end. " 
 
 "But I thought that all that was settled 
 now that that creature has been taken into 
 custody. 
 
 "So I hope, but there is still a strong 
 prejudice against him. If Nat testifies that 
 he had no knowledge of him, it will be in 
 his favor, and " 
 
 "Uncle Nat will not tell a lie/ I inter 
 rupted. 
 
 "That s a singular truth, " said my grand 
 father, reflectively. "He murders and insti- 
 
Their Shadows Before 183 
 
 gates to murder, but he won t lie. Some 
 times I almost believe that he is absolutely 
 deluded into believing himself a thoroughly 
 good man. You know his foolish old 
 mother says a blue light shone over his 
 cradle the day he was born, and she has 
 religiously taught the fellow from his child 
 hood that God created him for some great 
 mission." 
 
 "And this young Northerner has deluded 
 you into the same opinion, it appears," said 
 my grandmother, her delicate nostrils quiv 
 ering contemptuously. "Bah! How I 
 loathe such sickly sentimentality! After 
 all, sane or insane, the negro is a desperate 
 and dangerous criminal, and should be pun 
 ished to the extent of the law. 
 
 My grandfather rose up from the table. 
 
 "It s a pity the Braxtons have gone to 
 Richmond." 
 
 "I wish we were there, and out of this," 
 was the reply. 
 
 "Well, we can arrange to go there just as 
 
1 84 Their Shadows Before 
 
 soon as Mortimer is released. It will be a 
 good change for Pen and for all of us. I 
 shall write to the overseer to-day. " 
 
 "Well, then, you may tell him to tell 
 Rebecca [Rebecca was my grandmother s 
 maid] to pack my best gowns and bonnets 
 and Penelope s clothing in the horsehair 
 trunk, and see that it is sent here at once." 
 
 The prospect of a trip to Richmond 
 cheered my grandmother s spirits. 
 
 As my grandfather had predicted, the trial 
 of Nathaniel Turner was indeed a short 
 affair. His counsel knew from the begin 
 ning that the fate of his client was inexor 
 ably fixed, and the negro s voluntary confes 
 sion made any defence vain and futile. The 
 day set for the trial, the 5th of November, 
 found the village of Jerusalem filled to over 
 flowing with people from all Southampton 
 and the adjacent counties; and grave fears 
 were entertained for the safety of both the 
 prisoners lodged in the jail. A powerful 
 guard had been placed about its walls; and, 
 
Their Shadows Before 185 
 
 though there were rumours and vague threats 
 abroad, no violent demonstrations were 
 made. 
 
 My grandfather had volunteered to testify 
 in the case, and he made a strong appeal for 
 clemency toward the prisoner on the ground 
 of insanity. Mr. Mortimer took the same 
 position, and made a fearless and passionate 
 defence of his fellow-prisoner. The sea of 
 faces in the crowded court-room grew dark 
 and lowering as my tutor, himself accused, 
 stood before them, and urged that mercy 
 rather than justice be accorded. I was 
 present, having been summoned as a wit 
 ness; and, child though I was, I realised 
 that Mr. Mortimer was endangering his own 
 position and arousing more hostile feeling 
 against himself by what he was saying. Yet 
 a thrill of pride and exultation filled my 
 heart when I heard his fearless words. How 
 handsome and brave he looked, standing 
 there an avowed champion for the doomed 
 man ! 
 
1 86 Their Shadows Before 
 
 When the black prisoner was called upon 
 to state whether he had ever at any time 
 held any communication with the North 
 erner, there was a breathless hush of expec 
 tancy in the audience. Nathaniel Turner 
 rose up, and said in a loud voice, facing Mr. 
 Mortimer, 
 
 "Until this day I never saw this man! " 
 
 A half-suppressed murmur of disappoint 
 ment rippled through the assembly, but was 
 silenced as Mr. Mortimer then proceeded to 
 relate our singular experience when lost in 
 the swamps. 
 
 I, too, was called upon to tell what I 
 knew ; and I was dimly conscious that my 
 story had a momentary influence in Nat s 
 favor. 
 
 Again a murmur was audible; but it was 
 a murmur of wonder and of pity, followed 
 by a profound silence as I continued. You 
 could have heard a pin fall, so breathless 
 and intent were the people to catch my 
 every word. The eyes of the negro never 
 
Their Shadows Before 187 
 
 left my face while I was on the witness 
 stand; and I think that he, too, was con 
 scious that my testimony weighed in his 
 favor. Yet, as my grandfather hurried me 
 out of the court-room after it was over, I 
 knew instinctively what the end would be. 
 
 Before the early November twilight had 
 closed in upon the day, the jury brought in 
 a verdict of guilty. The date for the exe 
 cution was set for the iith. 
 
 Although, as one result of Nat Turner s 
 trial, the hostile feeling against my tutor 
 was greatly mitigated, yet it appeared that 
 the county authorities did not deem it expe 
 dient to order Mr. Mortimer s release until 
 the eve of the execution. Public attention, 
 they argued, would then be so centred on 
 the imminent tragedy that his departure 
 with us would hardly be remarked. 
 
 I do not know how we could have borne 
 the sick, weary days that followed, had we 
 not been upheld by the hope of my tutor s 
 speedy release. But on the afternoon of the 
 
1 88 Their Shadows Before 
 
 loth another disappointment awaited us. 
 All our preparations for leaving had been 
 made, when my grandfather came in, and an 
 nounced to us that it would be impossible 
 for us to get out of Jerusalem until the fol 
 lowing morning. 
 
 My grandmother clasped her hands in 
 consternation. "It s a question of Penel 
 ope s life now to get her away," she said. 
 
 Oh, take me away, take me away be 
 fore // happens ! " I begged imploringly. 
 
 "I will ! I will ! " said my grandfather. 
 " Lawson said it was best for Mortimer to 
 stay at the jail to-night. To-morrow morn 
 ing we are to drive there, get him, and be 
 off to Richmond. It s the only way, Law- 
 son says. 
 
 "I will see him to-morrow, I will see 
 him to-morrow," I whispered to myself. 
 "To-morrow? O day of wrath and dark 
 ness ! God be merciful to us all to-mor 
 row ! " I prayed. 
 
Chapter XII. 
 
 ON the morning of the fatal day there 
 was only one cloud in the sky, but 
 it stretched a grey pall over the world from 
 pole to pole. Downstairs there was a sound 
 of stir and bustle. From the street there 
 came a rumbling of a ceaseless stream of 
 carts and waggons and the clatter of many 
 horses. I shuddered as I heard these 
 sounds. 
 
 No one spoke more than a brief greeting 
 when I appeared; and our breakfast, eaten 
 by candle-light, was despatched in silence. 
 The flicker of the tallow candles cast a 
 wavering light over the table-cloth, and lent 
 additional pallor to our faces. 
 
 " Come," said my grandfather, "we must 
 be off." And, after a short fifteen minutes 
 of final preparation, he unceremoniously 
 hurried us into the carriage. 
 
 When we drew up at the rear entrance of 
 the jail, Mr. Lawson was there to meet us. 
 
190 Their Shadows Before 
 
 " I don know what you ll say to it, 
 squire," he said in a half-frightened, half- 
 apologetic tone; "but he wants to see the 
 little lady. I don hardly know what ter 
 do, sir; but, seein twas his only and las 
 reques , I make bold ter tell you. " 
 
 My grandmother uttered an hysterical 
 " Impossible ! " as she drew me closer to her 
 side. I felt as though my heart would burst 
 from my body. My grandfather paused ir 
 resolutely. 
 
 "I Penelope" 
 
 A vision of my tutor rose before me, and 
 I seemed to know what he would wish me 
 to do. 
 
 "I will go. He saved my life," I 
 said. 
 
 "O Christopher, don t allow it!" pro 
 tested my grandmother. 
 
 " Hush ! " was the stern reply. "Come, 
 Penelope." 
 
 Never shall I forget what I felt as we en 
 tered the house of bondage. Mr. Mortimer 
 
Their Shadows Before 191 
 
 was waiting in the little hallway to receive 
 us. I ran to him, and flung my arms about 
 him. I could not trust myself to speak for 
 a little while. 
 
 "He wants to see me," I whispered at 
 last. 
 
 "And you?" he asked, looking down into 
 my face. 
 
 "I will go," I said; "but you must go, 
 too, and grandfather. 
 
 Mr. Mortimer must have understood that 
 I was influenced by what I believed to be 
 his desire. He clasped me closer to him. 
 
 "You are right, Penelope," he said. 
 
 "If it must be done, let us get it over 
 with," broke in my grandfather, nervously. 
 The crowd increases every moment. 
 And he motioned to Mr. Lawson. 
 
 The warden bade us follow him. We 
 turned down a long passage to the left, and 
 paused before a door while he placed the 
 key in the rusty lock of the condemned 
 man s cell. The negro lay on a straw pallet 
 
192 Their Shadows Before 
 
 in the corner. The deep regular breathing 
 from his muscular chest betokened a dream 
 less sleep. The warden paused. 
 
 " I don t like to wake the nigger," he 
 said. "Yet it ain t right not ter give him 
 a chance ter prepare for" He did not 
 finish the sentence. "Get up, Nat," he 
 said, laying his hand on the negro s shoul 
 der. " Here s the little lady you said you 
 wanted ter come. 
 
 Nat Turner turned his head slowly, opened 
 his bloodshot eyes, and gazed earnestly from 
 one to another of his visitors. Raising him 
 self up on one elbow, he drew with his other 
 hand a roll of paper from under the straw. 
 
 " I want the white child to keep this," he 
 said, holding it toward me. " Let my tes 
 timony be handed down to the people of her 
 race and of mine, that, when the end is ac 
 complished, all may know it was truly fore 
 told by me, Nathaniel, the prophet of the 
 Lord." 
 
 The warden shook his head half deri- 
 
Their Shadows Before 193 
 
 sively, half pityingly, as he placed the dirty 
 paper within my trembling fingers. 
 
 " That game s up, you know, now, Nat," 
 he said. " Tain t no use ter go ter th* 
 scaffold lying. " 
 
 Mr. Mortimer looked steadily into the 
 negro s face. 
 
 " I believe you think what you say is 
 true," he said slowly, a strange conviction 
 dawning upon his mind. 
 
 Nat Turner turned his burning eyes full 
 upon the speaker, with a look of ineffable 
 joy. May God s blessing be upon you for 
 that, Mr. Mortimer!" he said. 
 
 "But you must not think that I do not 
 deplore your mistake, " said my tutor; "for 
 it has been all a dreadful mistake. Don t 
 you see now that you were wrong, that 
 what you thought was your mission was a 
 failure?" 
 
 "Was Jesus effort a failure? They 
 killed him, too. 1 
 
 My grandfather and Mr. Mortimer glanced 
 
i94 Their Shadows Before 
 
 uneasily at each other. How strange it was 
 to stand there and hear this negro murderer 
 compare himself to Christ ! 
 
 "The work of Christ lived on and was 
 accomplished after him," said Mr. Mor 
 timer. 
 
 Nat Turner rose up to his full height. 
 
 "And mine is but begun, I say to you. 
 What was begun in blood shall be accom 
 plished by blood !" 
 
 My grandfather was greatly impressed. 
 "You have only made it harder for your 
 race by what you have done," he said, " and 
 now " 
 
 "And now I die," said the condemned 
 man, in a low, rapturous voice. " Willing, 
 ready, rejoicing. For I have seen" 
 
 The tumult in the street grew louder as 
 the mob increased about the jail. 
 
 "If God wills," he continued, " it shall 
 be revealed to his prophet when the time of 
 the redemption shall be." 
 
 He lifted his eyes as he spoke, and seemed 
 
Their Shadows Before 195 
 
 to gaze into some far-off yet distinct plane 
 of vision. We watched the rigid features 
 and fixed pupils with a singular sensation of 
 awe. 
 
 "What does he see? " I asked my tutor, 
 in a whisper. 
 
 "God knows," was the reply: "this is a 
 strange world we live in." 
 
 Again a roar from the street warned us 
 that it was full time for us to go. 
 
 "May the mercy of the Lord be with 
 you!" said Mr. Mortimer, reverently, as we 
 turned to leave the cell. For a moment we 
 each of us, as by a common impulse, bent 
 in an involuntary prayer. The motionless 
 figure did not seem aware of our presence, 
 and we withdrew in silence. Half-dazed, 
 I followed my grandfather and Mr. Morti 
 mer to the door, and was lifted into the car 
 riage. Some one gave a sharp order to 
 Uncle Isham, and we were at last on our 
 way. 
 
 The streets were so crowded with people 
 
i9 6 Their Shadows Before 
 
 that we were compelled to drive through by 
 ways for some distance in order to reach the 
 high road. My grandparents tried to divert 
 me as much as was possible, as I was now 
 almost completely unnerved. 
 
 "Did Penelope tell you that we are going 
 to make her over to you, Mortimer?" joked 
 my grandfather. 
 
 "Would you like to have me?" I asked 
 suddenly, slipping my hand into that of my 
 tutor. 
 
 "Always ?" he asked. 
 
 "Yes, for ever and ever after I am grown 
 up." 
 
 His fingers closed tightly over mine. 
 
 "Yes, Penelope, if you do not change 
 your mind." 
 
 At this moment the carriage turned a 
 corner. As far as eye could reach, the 
 crowd seethed and ebbed around us. Every 
 available bit of space was filled with people, 
 house-tops, fences, lamp-posts, everything. 
 It became almost impossible to move along. 
 My grandfather looked at his watch. 
 
Their Shadows Before 19? 
 
 "We are late," he said, and then ordered 
 Uncle Isham to try to get ahead. 
 
 But the crowd pressed forward with a re 
 newed impulse, and, in their eagerness to 
 see, climbed up on the carriage wheels, up on 
 the shafts, yes, even on top of the carriage ; 
 and nothing could hinder them. 
 
 Hush ! said one. "There he comes. 
 The crowd swayed forward irresistibly; and, 
 caught in the movement, even the heavy 
 coach was turned and twisted together with 
 its two sturdy horses, so that it faced left 
 ward almost at right angles to its former 
 position. 
 
 We were directly opposite to the scaffold, 
 which hitherto had been out of our range of 
 vision. Fascinated with the horror of the 
 sight, I gazed fixedly at the instrument of 
 death, as motionless as a statue. There was 
 a stir at its base; and in an instant Nat 
 Turner, followed by Mr. Lawson, quickly 
 mounted the few steps to the platform, and 
 with a commanding gesture faced the mul 
 titude. 
 
198 Their Shadows Before 
 
 1 Masters, may I speak ? 
 
 "Gag him!" called a brutal voice from 
 the crowd; but the sheriff called for silence. 
 The shouts and jeers died into a hush, and 
 the loud, clear voice continued: 
 
 "What is done this day will not alter 
 what will come to pass. That which I was 
 sent to do I have done, but the end is not 
 yet. Three times ten years shall come to 
 pass before the deliverance shall be. In a 
 vision of the future the Lord hath shown to 
 me, Nathaniel, his prophet, a freed nation 
 and a river of blood! White men, there 
 shall arise one of your race in a far land, 
 and blood shall be shed and the bonds shall 
 be broken. I have done my work. What 
 the Lord begins he shall surely finish. I 
 see battles, fire, blood, freedom ! 
 
 A shudder ran through the crowd as he 
 spoke. Involuntarily, I raised my head from 
 Mr. Mortimer s shoulder, and glanced up. 
 The curious wooden structure stood outlined 
 against the cloudy sky ; and, as I looked, a 
 
Their Shadows Before 199 
 
 dark object swung in mid-air from the cross- 
 piece at the top. 
 
 Once more I buried my face with a shriek 
 of horror. Mammy and Uncle Isham were 
 praying audibly. 
 
 Time had settled accounts with the Black 
 Prophet ! 
 
Finale. 
 
 NEARLY three decades have passed 
 since I left my Southern home to 
 enter a school in the distant North, and the 
 years have brought many changes to me and 
 mine. My grandparents lie in their long 
 rest in the God s Acre at Winston Manor, 
 which for years has been let to tenants. My 
 childish vow to Uncle Isham was kept; 
 and, indeed, all my negroes were set free 
 when the property came into my possession. 
 This fact made me a happier though almost 
 a dowerless bride when my tutor and guard 
 ian became my husband, more than a score 
 of years ago. 
 
 Two fair-haired girls with hazel eyes call 
 me " mother " ; and I thank God in my heart 
 that I have no son, for there are strange 
 rumours abroad these days. 
 
 Basil brought in a paper yesterday, con 
 taining a detailed account of John Brown s 
 raid at Harper s Ferry. The cloud no 
 
Their Shadows Before 201 
 
 larger than a man s hand is darkening the 
 whole sky. 
 
 "What does it mean? " I asked. 
 
 "A great national struggle," he answered. 
 And then we were both silent. 
 
 "Basil," I said at last, "do you remem 
 ber that dreadful day in Southampton, thirty 
 years ago ? 
 
 " When you plighted your troth to me? " 
 he asked with a smile. 
 
 "Yes, only I did not know that I was 
 doing it." 
 
 "Well?" 
 
 "Do you remember what Nat Turner said, 
 I see battles, fire, blood, freedom ?" 
 
 "He was the prototype of one who should 
 come after," said my husband, in a grave, 
 troubled voice. "God only knows what his 
 words presaged ; but from the visual range of 
 supreme self-abnegation, I think, he recog 
 nised the meaning of those shadows that the 
 future is said to cast before. : 
 
 "If it comes, God pity the South, I said, 
 
202 Their Shadows Before 
 
 the tears blurring a vision of my old home 
 that rose up before me. 
 
 "If it comes, God pity us all," said my 
 husband. "But the end will be as God 
 wills, Penelope." 
 
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