The Underground Railroad
lest he should fall down. "Take a seat," said Mr. Brown tauntingly, "and
enjoy yourself, while I proceed with my interrogations." But the witness
was completely used up, and was allowed to withdraw to another room,
where fresh air was more plentiful. The cause of the poor slave woman
was greatly strengthened by this failure.
Another witness, named Zachariah Bowen, for the claimants, swore
positively that he knew the prisoner well, that she had been hired to
his brother for three years by Dr. Purnell, whose slave she was; also he
swore that he knew her parents, who were slaves to the said Doctor P.;
that he last saw her in 1827, etc. On cross-examination he swore thus:
"I last saw her in 1827, she was about sixteen or seventeen; she was
about an ordinary size, not the smallest size, nor the largest; she was
neither thick nor thin; there was nothing remarkable in her more than is
common; nothing in her speech; she was about the same color as the woman
here; I never saw a great deal of change in a nigger, from sixteen to
thirty-five or forty, sometimes they grow fatter, and sometimes leaner.
As to recognizing her in Philadelphia, he had not the slightest
difficulty. He went on to swear, that he first saw her in a cab, in the
city; I knew her yesterday; if you could see the rest of the family you
could pick her out yourself in thirty: I knew her by her general favor,
and have no particular mark; I would not attempt to describe features;
her favor is familiar to me; I never saw any marks upon her."
Here Mr. Brown said he would not examine this witness further until he
had concluded the examination of the witness, who had become sick. The
court then adjourned till nine o'clock the next morning.
The avenues to the court were filled with anxious persons, and in the
front and rear of the state house the crowd was very great.
The next morning, at an early hour, the court-room, and all the avenues
to it were densely crowded by people interested in behalf of the woman
whose case was under trial. A large number of respectable ladies formed
a part of the large gathering.
Robert F. Bowen, the witness, who became sick, was recalled.
_Witness_.--"I saw the colored person, who gave the information, the
next evening; after I saw him in Market street, at Congress Hall, in our
room; the gentleman who keeps the hotel we did not wish to place under
any responsibility, as he might be accused of carrying on the business.
(Of kidnapping, suggested Mr. Brown.) No, said witness, that is what you
call it; the woman would have run away if it had gone out; I heard his
name was Gloucester, that gave the information; I saw him three times;
once on the street; I have never been in his house; I have been to a
house where I heard he lived; I gave a pledge not to disclose the
matter; I made a personal pledge to Gloucester in our room last week at
Congress Hall; he said he was afraid of being abused by the population
of his own color for telling that this girl run away from Dr. Purnell; I
understood that Louisa Truit was Gloucester's wife."
Under this searching cross-examination, Mr. Brown constrained him not
only to tell all and more than he knew in favor of his friend, the
claimant, but wrung from him the secrets which he stood pledged never to
disclose.
_Witness_.--"I know no marks; she was in the condition of a married
woman when she left me; it was the particular favor of her father and
mother that made me recognize her; nothing else; she was pretty well
built for her size."
While this witness remembered every thing so accurately occurring in
relation to the life and escape of the girl of sixteen, and was prepared
to swear to her identity simply "by her favor," as he termed it, he was
found sadly deficient in memory touching the owner, whom he had known
much longer, and more intimately than he had the girl, as will be seen
from the following facts in this witness' testimony:
_Witness_.--"I don't know when Dr. P. died; I can't tell the year; I
should suppose about fourteen years ago; I was at the funeral, and
helped to make his coffin; it was in the fall, I think; it was after the
camp-meeting I spoke of; at that time I went regularly, but not of late;
I have no certain recollection of the year he died; I kept a record of
the event of my conversion, and have referred to it often. It has been a
reference every year, and perhaps a thousand times a year; it was in the
Bible, and I was in the habit of looking into it; I was in the habit of
turning over the leaves of this precious book; I think it was eighteen
years ago; can't say I'm certain; can't say it was more than twelve
years; Dr. P. left six children; two remain in our country, and one in
Louisiana, and the one, who is here, making four; I have no interest in
the fugitive; I made no contract in regard to this case; there was an
offer; are you waiting for an answer? the offer was this, that I was to
come on after my fugitive, and if I did not get him they were to pay my
expenses; I hesitated about coming; it was a long time before I made up
my mind; they said they would pay my expenses if I didn't succeed in
getting mine out of prison."
In this way the above witness completely darkened counsel, and added to
the weakness of his cause in a marked degree.
THE OVERSEER IS NOW EXAMINED.
_Zachariah Bowen_ recalled.--"I didn't come here on any terms; I hardly
understand what you mean by terms; I made no contract; I came upon my
own book; there was no contract; I have no expectations; I don't know
that Dr. P. ever manumitted any female slaves; I never knew that she was
in the family way when she ran away; I heard of it about that time; she
ran off in the fall of 1828. Dr. P. told me so; in the fall of 1828; in
1825, '26, '27, she lived with my brother; in 1825 I lived there; in
1827 and '28 I lived with Dr. P. I moved there and was overseer for him;
I was overseer for fifteen years for him; two years at his house; I
ceased to be his overseer in 1841, I think; he was living in 1841; I am
certain of that year, I think; Dr. Purnell died in 1844, I feel certain;
I said to Mr. Purnell that I did not know what ailed the other Mr.
Bowen, for the doctor died in 1844; he died in the latter part of the
Spring of 1844; Mr. Bowen made a mistake in saying it was eighteen years
ago; if you recall him he will rectify the mistake, I think; several
slaves escaped from Dr. Purnell; a boy, that lived with my brother, ran
away in 1827; the others were not hired to my brother; I don't know that
I could tell the exact time, nor the year; the doctor used to say to us,
there is another of my niggers ran away; the reason that I can tell when
Mahala ran away, is because she took a husband and ran away; I was
married that year; the reason I cannot tell about the others is, because
they went at different times in five years; the first who ran away
before Mahala, was named Grace; she went in 1827; I don't know when the
last went, or who it was."
* * * * *
Gloucester said they had raised a mob on him, on account of this case,
and he would have to leave the city; the case of this woman or these
proceedings was not spoken of there; he staid but a short time; he said
one of the witnesses had betrayed him in court, yesterday, and they
attacked him last night; I asked him how he escaped from so many; he
said very few were in the city who could outrun him; I asked him where
he was going, he replied he had a notion to put for Canada; some of the
gentlemen proposed his going to Baltimore; he said that would not do, as
the laws of Maryland would catch him; he was going to get a boat and go
to New Jersey, and then to New York; Mr. Purnell gave him just
thirty-five dollars last night; he paused a while, and Mr. P. told him
to hand it back; he then took out his money and put some more to it, and
said: "Here is fifty dollars." Mr. P. said that if he got the slave he
would leave fifty dollars more with a person in the city.
* * * * *
Question by the judge.--"You have spoken of a conversation in which Mr.
P. told you of certain letters or correspondence, and that they had
reference to this alleged fugitive. I want you to give me, to the best
of your recollection, everything he said the letters contained."
_Witness_.--Mr. P. told me when he first mentioned it to me, he said
that he was going to mention something to me, that he did not want
anything said, in regard to some negroes that had run away from his
father; he said he wanted me to come on here, and he did not want me to
tell any person before we left our county; that if the negroes heard of
it, they could get information to the parties before he could get here;
I told him I would not tell any person except my wife; he then said he
had correspondence with a person here, for a month or two, and he had no
doubt but that several of his negroes were here, from what he had heard
from his correspondent; he asked me if I could recognize the favor of
this Mahala? I told him I didn't know; he then said if anybody would
know her, I would, as she had lived with my brother three years; he then
said that he would want to start the next week, but he would see me
again at that time; that was all he said at that time, only we turned
into a hotel, and he said don't breathe this to anybody; on Saturday
before we left home, he came to my house, and said: well, I shall want
you to start for Philadelphia, on Monday morning; I suppose you will go?
I told him I would rather not, if he could do without out me; but as I
told him before, I would go, if he still requested it. I would go;
that's all, sir, except that I said I would be along in the stage.
* * * * *
J.T. Hammond was then called, a young man who admitted he had never seen
the respondent till he came to the court-house, but was ready to swear
that he would have known her by her resemblance to Dr. Purnell's set of
negroes. "His whole set?" said Mr. Brown. "Yes, sir." (Derisive
laughter).
* * * * *
Mr. McMurtrie offered to prove, by persons who had known the two
witnesses who had testified in this case, from their youth, that they
were respectable and worthy men. D.P. Brown, said that if the gentleman
found it necessary to sustain his witnesses' reputation, in consequence
of the peculiar dilemma they had got into, he would object, and if he
supposed that he was about to contradict them in some point in the
defence, he certainly was right, but as the case could not be concluded
to-day, he would like to have the matter adjourned over until Tuesday
next.
Mr. McMurtrie objected, by saying, that his client was anxious to have
the matter disposed of as soon as possible, as he had been subjected to
numerous insults since the matter had been before the court.
Judge Kane intimated that no weight was to be attached to this
consideration, as the full power of the court was at his disposal for
the purpose of protecting his client from insult.
Mr. McMurtrie replied that he did not know whether words spoken came
within the meaning of the act of Congress, in such matters.
The court took a recess until a quarter to three o'clock.
The court met again at a quarter to three o'clock.
Mr. McMurtrie asked that the witnesses for the defence be excluded from
the court room, except the one upon the stand.
This was objected to by Mr. Brown, as the witnesses for the prosecution
had not been required so to do; but he afterwards withdrew his
objections, and notified Mr. McMurtrie that he would require any
witnesses he might have in addition, should retire also; as he would
object to any of them being heard if they remained.