The Underground Railroad
Ran away at the same time and in company, negro man
SAM GROSS,
aged about 33, is 5 feet 8 or 9 inches high, black color, rather
bad teeth. For his recovery, if taken in a slave State, I will
give $200. For his recovery from a free State, I will give half
his value.
GEO. IRELAND,
Port Republic, Md.
Ran away at the same time and in company, two negro men, viz:>
PETER GROSS,
aged 33, is light-brown color, 5 feet 9 or 10 inches high, has a
small scar over his right eyebrow, usually wears a goatee, has a
pleasant countenance.
JOHN JANNEY, aged 22, light-brown color, 5 feet 6 or seven
inches high, broad across the shoulders, has one of his front
upper teeth broken, has a scar upon one of his great toes from
the cut of an axe. For their recovery, if taken in a slave
State, I will give $200 each. For their recovery from a free
State I will give half their value.
JOS. GRIFFISS,
St. Leonards, Calvert county, Md.
Refer to N.E. BERRY, No. 63 Pratt street, Baltimore.
So far as Messrs. Bond, Ireland, and Griffiss may be concerned (if they
are still living), they may not care to have the reward kept in view, or
to hear anything about the "ungrateful" fellows. It may be different,
however, with other parties concerned. This company, some of whom bore
names agreeing with those in the above advertisement, are found
described in the record book as follows:
Sept. 10th, 1858. John Janney is a fine specimen of the peculiar
institution; color brown, well-formed, self-possessed and
intelligent. He says that he fled from master Joseph Griffiss of
Culbert county, Maryland; that he has been used to "tight work,"
"allowed no chances," and but "half fed." His reason for leaving
was partly "hard treatment," and partly because he could "get
along better in freedom than in slavery." He found fault with
his master for not permitting him to "learn to read," etc. He
referred to his master as a man of "fifty years of age, with a
wife and three children." John said that "she was a large,
portly woman, with an evil disposition, always wanted to be
quarreling and fighting, and was stingy." He said, however, that
his "master's children, Ann Rebecca, Dorcas, and Joe were not
allowed to meddle with the slaves on the farm." Thirty head of
slaves belonged on the place.
Peter Gross says that he too was owned by Joseph Griffiss. Peter
is, he thinks, thirty-nine years of age,--tall, of a dark
chestnut color, and in intellect mediocre. He left his wife and
five children behind. He could not bring them with him,
therefore he did not tell them that he was about to leave. He
was much dissatisfied with Slavery and felt that he had been
badly dealt with, and that he could do better for himself in
Canada.
Talbot Johnson, is thirty-five years of age, quite dark, and
substantially built. He says that he has been treated very
badly, and that Duke Bond was the name of the "tyrant" who held
him. He pictured his master as "a lean-faced man--not stout--of
thirty-eight or thirty-nine years of age, a member of the
Episcopal Church." "He had a wife and two children; his last
wife was right pleasant--he was a farmer, and was rich, had sold
slaves, and was severe when he flogged." Talbot had been
promised a terrible beating on the return of his master from the
Springs, whither he had gone to recruit his health, "as he was
poorly." This was the sole cause of Talbot's flight.
Sam Gross is about forty, a man of apparent vigor physically,
and wide awake mentally. He confesses that he fled from George
Island, near Port Republic, Md. He thought that times with him
had been bad enough all his life, and he would try to get away
where he could do better. In referring to his master and
mistress, he says that "they are both Episcopalians, hard to
please, and had as bad dispositions as could be,--would try to
knock the slaves in the head sometimes." This spirit Sam
condemned in strong terms, and averred that it was on account of
such treatment that he was moved to seek out the Underground
Rail Road. Sam left his wife, Mary Ann, and four children, all
under bonds. His children, he said, were treated horribly. They
were owned by Joseph Griffiss spoken of above.
James Henry Jackson is seventeen years of age; he testifies that
he fled from Frederica, Delaware, where he had been owned by
Joseph Brown. Jim does not make any serious complaint against
his master, except that he had him in the market for sale. To
avert this fate, Jim was moved to flee. His mother, Ann Jackson,
lived nine miles from Milford, and was owned by Jim Loflin, and
lived on his place. Of the going of her son she had no
knowledge.
These narratives have been copied from the book as they were hastily
recorded at the time. During their sojourn at the station, the subjoined
letter came to hand from Thomas Garrett, which may have caused anxiety
and haste:
WILMINGTON, 9th mo. 6th, 1858.
ESTEEMED FRIENDS, J.M. McKIM AND WM. STILL:--I have a mixture of
good and bad news for you. Good in having passed five of God's
poor safely to Jersey, and Chester county, last week; and this
day sent on four more, that have caused me much anxiety. They
were within twenty miles of here on sixth day last, and by
agreement I had a man out all seventh day night watching for
them, to pilot them safely, as 1,000 dollars reward was offered
for four of the five; and I went several miles yesterday in the
country to try to learn what had become of them, but could not
hear of them. A man of tried integrity just called to say that
they arrived at his house last night, about midnight, and I
employed him to pilot them to a place of safety in Pennsylvania,
to-night, after which I trust they will be out of reach of their
pursuers. Now for the bad news. That old scoundrel, who applied
to me some three weeks since, pretending that he wished me to
assist him in getting his seven slaves into a free state, to
avoid the sheriff, and which I agreed to do, if he would bring
them here; but positively refused to send for them. Ten days
since I received another letter from him, saying that the
sheriff had been there, and taken away two of the children,
which he wished me to raise money to purchase and set free, and
then closed by saying that his other slaves, a man, his wife,
and three children had left the same evening and he had no doubt
I would find them at a colored man's house, he named, here, and
wished me to ascertain at once and let him know. I at once was
convinced he wished to know so as to have them arrested and
taken back. I found the man had arrived; but the woman and
children had given out, and he left them with a colored family
in Cecil. I wrote him word the family had not got here, but said
nothing of the man being here. On seventh day evening I saw a
colored woman from the neighborhood; she told me that the owner
and sheriff were out hunting five days for them before they
found them, and says there is not a greater hypocrite in that
part of the world. I wrote him a letter yesterday letting him
know just what I thought of him.
Your Friend,
THOS. GARRETT.
* * * * *
ARRIVAL FROM MARYLAND.
BIRTH-DAY PRESENT FROM THOMAS GARRETT.
WILMINGTON, 8th mo. 21st, 1858.
ESTEEMED FRIEND:--WILLIAM STILL:--This is my 69th birth-day, and
I do not know any better way to celebrate it in a way to accord
with my feelings, than to send to thee two fugitives, man and
wife; the man has been here a week waiting for his wife, who is
expected in time to leave at 9 this evening in the cars for thy
house with a pilot, who knows where thee lives, but I cannot
help but feel some anxiety about the woman, as there is great
commotion just now in the neighborhood where she resides. There
were 4 slaves betrayed near the Maryland line by a colored man
named Jesse Perry a few nights since. One of them made a
confidant of him, and he agreed to pilot them on their way, and
had several white men secreted to take them as soon as they got
in his house; he is the scoundrel that was to have charge of the
7 I wrote you about two weeks since; their master was to take or
send them there, and he wanted me to send for them. I have since
been confirmed it was a trap set to catch one of our colored men
and me likewise, but it was no go. I suspected him from the
first, but afterwards was fully confirmed in my suspicions. We
have found the two Rust boys, John and Elsey Bradley, who the
villain of a Bust took out of jail and sold to a trader of the
name of Morris, who sold them to a trader who took them to
Richmond, Virginia, where they were sold at public sale two days
before we found them, for $2600, but fortunately the man had not
paid for them; our Attorney had them by habeas corpus before a
Judge, who detained them till we can prove their identity and
freedom; they are to have a hearing on 2d day next, when we hope
to have a person on there to prove them. In haste, thine,
THOS. GARRETT.
Unfortunately all the notice that the record contains of the two
passengers referred to, is in the following words: "Two cases not
written out for want of time."
The "boys" alluded to as having been "found" &c., were free-born, but
had been kidnapped and carried south and sold.
Three days after the above letter, the watchful Garrett furnished
further light touching the hair-breadth escape of the two that he had
written about, and at the same time gave an interesting account of the
efforts which were made to save the poor kidnapped boys, &c.
SECOND LETTER FROM THOMAS GARRETT.
WILMINGTON, 8th mo. 25th, 1858.
ESTEEMED FRIEND:--WILLIAM STILL:--Thine was received yesterday.
Those two I wrote about to be with thee last 7th day evening, I
presume thee has seen before this. A. Allen had charge of them;
he had them kept out of sight at the depot here till the cars
should be ready to start, in charge of a friend, while he kept a
lookout and got a ticket. When the Delaware cars arrived, who
should step out but the master of both man and woman, (as they
had belonged to different persons); they knew him, and he knew
them. He left in a different direction from where they were
secreted, and got round to them and hurried them off to a place
of safety, as he was afraid to take them home for fear they
would search the house. On 1st day morning the boat ran to
Chester to take our colored people to the camp at Media; he had
them disguised, and got them in the crowd and went with them;
when he got to Media, he placed them in care of a colored man,
who promised to hand them over to thee on 2d day last; we expect
3 more next 7th day night, but how we shall dispose of them we
have not yet determined; it will depend on circumstances. Judge
Layton has been on with a friend to Richmond, Virginia, and
fully identified the two Bradley boys that were kidnapped by
Clem Rust. He has the assurance of the Judge there that they
will be tried and their case decided by Delaware Laws, by which
they must be declared free and returned here. We hope to be able
to bring such proof against both Rust and the man he sold them