Uncle Tom's Cabin
“the best way for you is to keep good-natured and eat some breakfast,
and we will then see what is to be done.”
Mrs. Shelby now rose, and said her engagements would prevent her being
at the breakfast-table that morning; and, deputing a very respectable
mulatto woman to attend to the gentlemen’s coffee at the side-board,
she left the room.
“Old lady don’t like your humble servant, over and above,” said Haley,
with an uneasy effort to be very familiar.
“I am not accustomed to hear my wife spoken of with such freedom,” said
Mr. Shelby, dryly.
“Beg pardon; of course, only a joke, you know,” said Haley, forcing a
laugh.
“Some jokes are less agreeable than others,” rejoined Shelby.
“Devilish free, now I’ve signed those papers, cuss him!” muttered Haley
to himself; “quite grand, since yesterday!”
Never did fall of any prime minister at court occasion wider surges of
sensation than the report of Tom’s fate among his compeers on the
place. It was the topic in every mouth, everywhere; and nothing was
done in the house or in the field, but to discuss its probable results.
Eliza’s flight—an unprecedented event on the place—was also a great
accessory in stimulating the general excitement.
Black Sam, as he was commonly called, from his being about three shades
blacker than any other son of ebony on the place, was revolving the
matter profoundly in all its phases and bearings, with a
comprehensiveness of vision and a strict lookout to his own personal
well-being, that would have done credit to any white patriot in
Washington.
“It’s an ill wind dat blow nowhar,—dat ar a fact,” said Sam,
sententiously, giving an additional hoist to his pantaloons, and
adroitly substituting a long nail in place of a missing
suspender-button, with which effort of mechanical genius he seemed
highly delighted.
“Yes, it’s an ill wind blows nowhar,” he repeated. “Now, dar, Tom’s
down—wal, course der’s room for some nigger to be up—and why not dis
nigger?—dat’s de idee. Tom, a ridin’ round de country—boots
blacked—pass in his pocket—all grand as Cuffee—but who he? Now, why
shouldn’t Sam?—dat’s what I want to know.”
“Halloo, Sam—O Sam! Mas’r wants you to cotch Bill and Jerry,” said
Andy, cutting short Sam’s soliloquy.
“High! what’s afoot now, young un?”
“Why, you don’t know, I s’pose, that Lizy’s cut stick, and clared out,
with her young un?”
“You teach your granny!” said Sam, with infinite contempt; “knowed it a
heap sight sooner than you did; this nigger an’t so green, now!”
“Well, anyhow, Mas’r wants Bill and Jerry geared right up; and you and
I ’s to go with Mas’r Haley, to look arter her.”
“Good, now! dat’s de time o’ day!” said Sam. “It’s Sam dat’s called for
in dese yer times. He’s de nigger. See if I don’t cotch her, now;
Mas’r’ll see what Sam can do!”
“Ah! but, Sam,” said Andy, “you’d better think twice; for Missis don’t
want her cotched, and she’ll be in yer wool.”
“High!” said Sam, opening his eyes. “How you know dat?”
“Heard her say so, my own self, dis blessed mornin’, when I bring in
Mas’r’s shaving-water. She sent me to see why Lizy didn’t come to dress
her; and when I telled her she was off, she jest ris up, and ses she,
‘The Lord be praised;’ and Mas’r, he seemed rael mad, and ses he,
‘Wife, you talk like a fool.’ But Lor! she’ll bring him to! I knows
well enough how that’ll be,—it’s allers best to stand Missis’ side the
fence, now I tell yer.”
Black Sam, upon this, scratched his woolly pate, which, if it did not
contain very profound wisdom, still contained a great deal of a
particular species much in demand among politicians of all complexions
and countries, and vulgarly denominated “knowing which side the bread
is buttered;” so, stopping with grave consideration, he again gave a
hitch to his pantaloons, which was his regularly organized method of
assisting his mental perplexities.
“Der an’t no saying’—never—‘bout no kind o’ thing in _dis_ yer world,”
he said, at last. Sam spoke like a philosopher, emphasizing _this_—as
if he had had a large experience in different sorts of worlds, and
therefore had come to his conclusions advisedly.
“Now, sartin I’d a said that Missis would a scoured the varsal world
after Lizy,” added Sam, thoughtfully.
“So she would,” said Andy; “but can’t ye see through a ladder, ye black
nigger? Missis don’t want dis yer Mas’r Haley to get Lizy’s boy; dat’s
de go!”
“High!” said Sam, with an indescribable intonation, known only to those
who have heard it among the negroes.
“And I’ll tell yer more ’n all,” said Andy; “I specs you’d better be
making tracks for dem hosses,—mighty sudden, too,—-for I hearn Missis
’quirin’ arter yer,—so you’ve stood foolin’ long enough.”
Sam, upon this, began to bestir himself in real earnest, and after a
while appeared, bearing down gloriously towards the house, with Bill
and Jerry in a full canter, and adroitly throwing himself off before
they had any idea of stopping, he brought them up alongside of the
horse-post like a tornado. Haley’s horse, which was a skittish young
colt, winced, and bounced, and pulled hard at his halter.
“Ho, ho!” said Sam, “skeery, ar ye?” and his black visage lighted up
with a curious, mischievous gleam. “I’ll fix ye now!” said he.
There was a large beech-tree overshadowing the place, and the small,
sharp, triangular beech-nuts lay scattered thickly on the ground. With
one of these in his fingers, Sam approached the colt, stroked and
patted, and seemed apparently busy in soothing his agitation. On
pretence of adjusting the saddle, he adroitly slipped under it the
sharp little nut, in such a manner that the least weight brought upon
the saddle would annoy the nervous sensibilities of the animal, without
leaving any perceptible graze or wound.
“Dar!” he said, rolling his eyes with an approving grin; “me fix ’em!”
At this moment Mrs. Shelby appeared on the balcony, beckoning to him.
Sam approached with as good a determination to pay court as did ever
suitor after a vacant place at St. James’ or Washington.
“Why have you been loitering so, Sam? I sent Andy to tell you to
hurry.”
“Lord bless you, Missis!” said Sam, “horses won’t be cotched all in a
minnit; they’d done clared out way down to the south pasture, and the
Lord knows whar!”
“Sam, how often must I tell you not to say ‘Lord bless you, and the
Lord knows,’ and such things? It’s wicked.”
“O, Lord bless my soul! I done forgot, Missis! I won’t say nothing of
de sort no more.”
“Why, Sam, you just _have_ said it again.”
“Did I? O, Lord! I mean—I didn’t go fur to say it.”
“You must be _careful_, Sam.”
“Just let me get my breath, Missis, and I’ll start fair. I’ll be bery
careful.”
“Well, Sam, you are to go with Mr. Haley, to show him the road, and
help him. Be careful of the horses, Sam; you know Jerry was a little
lame last week; _don’t ride them too fast_.”
Mrs. Shelby spoke the last words with a low voice, and strong emphasis.
“Let dis child alone for dat!” said Sam, rolling up his eyes with a
volume of meaning. “Lord knows! High! Didn’t say dat!” said he,
suddenly catching his breath, with a ludicrous flourish of
apprehension, which made his mistress laugh, spite of herself. “Yes,
Missis, I’ll look out for de hosses!”
“Now, Andy,” said Sam, returning to his stand under the beech-trees,
“you see I wouldn’t be ’t all surprised if dat ar gen’lman’s crittur
should gib a fling, by and by, when he comes to be a gettin’ up. You
know, Andy, critturs _will_ do such things;” and therewith Sam poked
Andy in the side, in a highly suggestive manner.
“High!” said Andy, with an air of instant appreciation.
“Yes, you see, Andy, Missis wants to make time,—dat ar’s clar to der
most or’nary ’bserver. I jis make a little for her. Now, you see, get
all dese yer hosses loose, caperin’ permiscus round dis yer lot and
down to de wood dar, and I spec Mas’r won’t be off in a hurry.”
Andy grinned.
“Yer see,” said Sam, “yer see, Andy, if any such thing should happen as
that Mas’r Haley’s horse _should_ begin to act contrary, and cut up,
you and I jist lets go of our’n to help him, and _we’ll help him_—oh
yes!” And Sam and Andy laid their heads back on their shoulders, and
broke into a low, immoderate laugh, snapping their fingers and
flourishing their heels with exquisite delight.
At this instant, Haley appeared on the verandah. Somewhat mollified by
certain cups of very good coffee, he came out smiling and talking, in
tolerably restored humor. Sam and Andy, clawing for certain fragmentary
palm-leaves, which they were in the habit of considering as hats, flew
to the horseposts, to be ready to “help Mas’r.”
Sam’s palm-leaf had been ingeniously disentangled from all pretensions
to braid, as respects its brim; and the slivers starting apart, and
standing upright, gave it a blazing air of freedom and defiance, quite
equal to that of any Fejee chief; while the whole brim of Andy’s being
departed bodily, he rapped the crown on his head with a dexterous
thump, and looked about well pleased, as if to say, “Who says I haven’t
got a hat?”
“Well, boys,” said Haley, “look alive now; we must lose no time.”
“Not a bit of him, Mas’r!” said Sam, putting Haley’s rein in his hand,
and holding his stirrup, while Andy was untying the other two horses.
The instant Haley touched the saddle, the mettlesome creature bounded
from the earth with a sudden spring, that threw his master sprawling,
some feet off, on the soft, dry turf. Sam, with frantic ejaculations,
made a dive at the reins, but only succeeded in brushing the blazing
palm-leaf afore-named into the horse’s eyes, which by no means tended
to allay the confusion of his nerves. So, with great vehemence, he
overturned Sam, and, giving two or three contemptuous snorts,
flourished his heels vigorously in the air, and was soon prancing away
towards the lower end of the lawn, followed by Bill and Jerry, whom
Andy had not failed to let loose, according to contract, speeding them
off with various direful ejaculations. And now ensued a miscellaneous
scene of confusion. Sam and Andy ran and shouted,—dogs barked here and
there,—and Mike, Mose, Mandy, Fanny, and all the smaller specimens on
the place, both male and female, raced, clapped hands, whooped, and
shouted, with outrageous officiousness and untiring zeal.
Haley’s horse, which was a white one, and very fleet and spirited,
appeared to enter into the spirit of the scene with great gusto; and
having for his coursing ground a lawn of nearly half a mile in extent,
gently sloping down on every side into indefinite woodland, he appeared
to take infinite delight in seeing how near he could allow his pursuers
to approach him, and then, when within a hand’s breadth, whisk off with
a start and a snort, like a mischievous beast as he was and career far
down into some alley of the wood-lot. Nothing was further from Sam’s
mind than to have any one of the troop taken until such season as
should seem to him most befitting,—and the exertions that he made were
certainly most heroic. Like the sword of Coeur De Lion, which always
blazed in the front and thickest of the battle, Sam’s palm-leaf was to
be seen everywhere when there was the least danger that a horse could
be caught; there he would bear down full tilt, shouting, “Now for it!
cotch him! cotch him!” in a way that would set everything to
indiscriminate rout in a moment.
Haley ran up and down, and cursed and swore and stamped
miscellaneously. Mr. Shelby in vain tried to shout directions from the
balcony, and Mrs. Shelby from her chamber window alternately laughed
and wondered,—not without some inkling of what lay at the bottom of all
this confusion.
At last, about twelve o’clock, Sam appeared triumphant, mounted on