"Well, Ma.s.sa Knox, I reckon thet maybe I knew"d "bout som" gittin"
a-way--"pears like I did, sah."
"And these escaped by way of the Illinois?"
His dumb, almost pathetic eyes met mine pleadingly, but some expression of my face served to yield him courage.
"I--I reckon I--I don"t know much "bout all dis, Ma.s.sa Knox," he stammered doubtfully, his hands locking and unlocking nervously. "I--I sure don"; an" fer de mattah o" dat, ther ain"t n.o.body whut does, sah.
All I does know, fer sure, is dat if a n.i.g.g.e.r onct gets as fer as a certain white man up de ribber, "bout whar de mouth ob de Illinois is, he"s got a mighty good chance fer ter reach Canada. De next place whar he"s most likely ter stop is Beardstown, long wid som" sorter preacher whut lives thar. An" thet"s as fer as dey ever done tol" me, sah."
"About this first white man--the one near the mouth of the Illinois--do you know his name?"
Pete rose to his feet, and crossed the room to where I stood, bending down until his lips were close to my ear. His answer was spoken in a thick whisper.
"Ma.s.sa Knox, I never did "spect to say dis ter no white man, but it seems I just nat"larly got fer ter tell yer. I done heerd thet man say onct just whut yer did, thet a n.i.g.g.e.r wus just as much his frien" as though he wus white--thet it wan"t de skin nohow what counted, but de heart. No, sah, I ain"t feered fer ter tell yer, Ma.s.sa Knox. He"s got a cabin hid way back in de bluffs, whar n.o.body don"t go, "cept dem who know whar it is. I reckon he don"t do nuthin" but hunt an" fish nohow--leastways he don"t raise no corn, nor truck fer ter sell. He"s a tall, lanky man, sah, sorter thin, with a long beard, an" his name wus Amos Shrunk. I reckon maybe he"s a Black Abolitionist, sah."
"Quite likely, I should say. And you could take a boat from here to his place?"
"Sure, the darkest night yer ever see. Inter the mouth ob a crick, "bout a hundred rods up de Illinois. Den thar"s a path, a sorter path, whut goes ter de cabin; but most genir"ly he"s down thar waitin" et night. Yer see dey never sure knows when som" n.i.g.g.e.r is goin" fer ter git away--only mostly it"s at night."
This knowledge greatly simplified matters. If there was already in operation an organized scheme by means of which fugitives from this side of the great river were taken through to Canada, protected and a.s.sisted along the way by the friends of freedom, then all we would be required to do in this case would be to safely convey the unfortunate Rene and her mother in Pete"s boat up the river, and there turn them over to the care of this Amos Shrunk. Undoubtedly he could be trusted to see to it that they were promptly forwarded to others, fanatics like himself, who would swiftly pa.s.s them along at night across the Illinois prairies, until beyond all danger of pursuit. Hundreds, no doubt, had traveled this route, and, once these two were in Shrunk"s care our responsibility would be over with. It was to me a vast relief to realize this. The distance to the mouth of the Illinois could not be far, surely not to exceed fifty miles as the river ran. It ought not to prove difficult to baffle Kirby for that short distance, and then we would be free to return, and no one could prove any charge against us.
Indeed it was my purpose to immediately proceed down the river on my furlough, and probably it would never so much as be suspected that the negro had been away. Ever since my boyhood I had listened to stories concerning the operation of Underground Railroads by means of which slaves were a.s.sisted to freedom, and now felt no hesitancy in confiding these two women to the care of their operators. The only important fact fronting us was that we must act quickly, before Kirby and his aides, armed with legal authority, could return--this very night.
"Pete," I said shortly, my tone unconsciously one of authority, "we must be out of here before daylight, and safely hidden somewhere up the river. The first thing to be done, and the hardest, is to explain to those women the situation, and persuade them to accompany us. They may not believe my story; that was why I was so anxious to have Haines go to the house. They would have confidence in him. Do they know you?"
"Lord love yer--ob course dey do. I"se knowed all ob "em for a long while, sah. Why when I furst don" see dem Beaucaire gals dey wus just infants. Dey"ll sure believe ol" Pete."
"Well, we can only try our best. Have you any conveyance here?"
"Any whut, sah?"
"Any wheeled vehicle in which we can ride to Beaucaire, and by means of which we can bring the women back? The distance is too far to walk."
"I"se got a sorter khart, an" an ol" muel, sah. Dey"s out yonder in de bush."
"Hitch them up at once, while I put a few things we may need in the boat. Show me how to find it."
He pointed out the path, with the directions necessary, and disappeared, while I returned to the cabin, dragged a blanket from off the bed, and filled it with whatever miscellaneous articles of food I was able to discover about the place. My wound, now that I was busily engaged, troubled me very little, and, gathering the four corners of the blanket together, I easily transported this stock of provisions to the river bank, and safely stowed them away in the boat found there. I returned to discover the mule and cart ready, and a few moments later we were creaking slowly along a gloomy wood road, jolting over the stumps, with Pete walking beside the animal"s head, whispering encouragement into the flapping ear. The great adventure had begun.
CHAPTER IX
THE HOME OF JUDGE BEAUCAIRE
The road we followed appeared to be endless, and so rough that I soon climbed down from my seat, an unplaned board, uncomfortable enough under any conditions, in the swaying, b.u.mping cart, and stumbled blindly along behind, tripping over stumps in the darkness, and wrenching my ankles painfully in deep ruts. Progress was slow, not only because of the difficulties of the pa.s.sage, but equally on account of the obstinacy of the mule. Indeed, it required no small diplomacy on the part of the negro to induce the animal to proceed at all, and finally, despairing of the efficiency of words, he drew a club, evidently reserved for such emergencies, from the interior of the cart, and gave utterance to an ultimatum. Following this display of force our advance became a trifle more rapid.
I endeavored to think, to plan more definitely my course upon arriving at the Beaucaire plantation, but discovered it quite impossible to concentrate my mind upon anything. My entire attention had to be riveted on the intricacies of the road, which wound in and out among the bluffs, down one gully and up another, until I finally lost all sense of direction, and merely stumbled on after the dark outlines of the cart, through a black cave formed by the branches of over-arching trees.
It was considerably after ten o"clock when we emerged upon an open plateau, and a glimmer of stars overhead revealed to me afar off the silver thread of the great river. Even in that dim light I could trace its winding course along the valley, and the view by daylight from this point must have been a delight to the eye. Pete stopped the straining mule, a feat not at all difficult of accomplishment, the animal"s sides rising and falling as he wheezed for breath, and came back to where I stood, staring about at the dimly perceived objects in the foreground.
"Out dar am de Beaucaire place," he announced, as soon as he could distinguish my presence, waving his arm to indicate the direction.
"An" I reckon we bettah not ride no further, fer if Alick shud smell corn, he"d nat"larly raise dis whol" neighborhood--he"s got a powerful voice, sah."
"Equal to his appet.i.te no doubt."
"Yas, sah; that"s mostly whut Alick am."
"How far away is the house?"
"Likely "bout a hundred yards. Yer see dat light out yonder; well dat"s it, an" I reckon de ladies mus" be up yet, keepin" de lamp burnin". Here"s de slave cabins "long de edge ob de woods, but dey"s all dark. What"s yer a goin" fer ter do now, Ma.s.sa Knox?"
I was conscious that my heart was beating rapidly, and that my mind was anything but clear. The problem fronting me did not appear so easily solved, now that I was fairly up against it, and yet there seemed only one natural method of procedure. I must go at my unpleasant task boldly, and in this case only the truth would serve. I was an officer in the United States Army, and had in my pocket papers to prove my ident.i.ty. These would vouch for me as a gentleman, and yield me a measure of authority. And this fact, once established, ought to give me sufficient standing in the eyes of those girls to compel from them a respectful hearing. I would tell the story exactly as I knew it, concealing nothing, and adding no unnecessary word, outline my plan of action, and then leave them to decide what they thought best to do.
This was the simple, sensible way, and I had implicit faith that they would accept my statement, and believe my offer of a.s.sistance an honest one. I could not perceive how they could do otherwise. Strange, unbelievable as the situation was, proof was not lacking. Delia could be compelled to acknowledge that Rene was her child--she would scarcely dare deny this truth in face of my positive knowledge--and she, at least, must know that Judge Beaucaire had never during his lifetime given her her freedom. This fact could be established beyond question, and then they must surely all comprehend the necessity of immediate flight--that there remained no other possible means of escape from hopeless slavery. Desperate as the chance appeared, it was the only one.
It was a disagreeable, heart-rending task which I had taken upon myself, but it could be no longer avoided. It dawned upon me now with more intense force than ever before the position in which I stood, and I shrank from the ordeal. A perfect stranger, not even a chance acquaintance of those directly involved in this tragedy, I would have to drag out from the closet, where it had been hidden away for years, this old Beaucaire skeleton, and rattle the dried bones of dishonor before the horrified understanding of these two innocent, unsuspecting girls. I knew nothing of their characters, or of how they would meet such a revelation, and yet they must be made to see, and thoroughly comprehend the situation; must be compelled to face the horror and disgrace of their position, and aroused to action. I had little thought then for the slave mother; doubtless she had been expecting some such exposure for years, and was, at least, partially steeled to meet it. But for the two girls, brought up as sisters, close companions since infancy, having no previous suspicion of the dreadful truth, this sudden revelation would be worse than death. Yet now concealment would be no kindness; indeed, the tenderest mercy I could show was to tell them in all frankness the whole miserable story of crime and neglect; and then point out to them the only remaining means of escape from the consequence of others" sins.
These thoughts, definite and compelling, flashed through my mind as I stood there in the darkness, vainly seeking to distinguish the distant outlines of the great house, from one window alone of which the glow of light streamed. In that moment of decision the conviction came to me that I had best do this alone; that the presence of the negro would hinder, rather than help the solution of the problem. I must appeal directly to the intelligence, the courage, of those so deeply involved, and trust my own personality to win their confidence. In this the negro would be useless.
"Pete," I said, measuring my words, my plan of action shaping itself even as I spoke. "What lies in there between us and the house?"
"A truck patch mostly, wid a fence "round it. Den thar comes som"
flower beds."
"No path?"
"Well, I done reckon as how thar might be a sorter path, sah, but you"d hardly find it in de dark. De bes" way"d be ter sorter feel "long de fence, "til yer git sight o" de front porch."
"All right, then. I am going to leave you here while I scout around.
Keep your eyes open, and have the mule ready to leave at any minute."
""Bout how lon" yer be gone, sah?"
"I cannot tell you that. As short a time as possible. It may require considerable explanation and urging to get those three women to trust me. However, all you have to do is wait, and be sure that no one sees you. If you should be needed for anything at the house, I"ll get word to you some way; and if I should send Delia and Rene out here alone, without being able to come with them myself, load them into the cart at once, and drive to the boat. I"ll manage to join you somewhere, and the important thing is to get them safely away. You understand all this?"
"Yas, sah; leastways I reckon I does. I"se ter take keer ob dem all, an" let yer take keer o" yerself."
"Exactly, because, you see, I haven"t the slightest idea what I am going to run up against. There may be others in the house, and I might not dare to leave Miss Eloise behind alone without some protection. In a way she is in almost as much danger as the others if she falls into Kirby"s hands. I shall endeavor to induce her to go to Haines at once."
Following some impulse I shook hands with him, and then plunged into the darkness, my only guidance at first that single ray of light streaming through the unshaded window. The ground underfoot was roughly irregular, cleared forest land evidently, as I occasionally stumbled over an unremoved stump, although there was nothing to seriously obstruct my pa.s.sage until I reached the fence surrounding the garden. By this time the outlines of the house were plainly visible against the skyline beyond, and I realized that it was indeed quite a mansion for that country, a great square frame structure, two full stories in height, appearing black and deserted, except for that single window through which the light continued to stream. While this window was upon the lower floor, directly opposite where I stood, and no great distance away, it was still sufficiently elevated above the ground, and obscured by a small outside balcony, so as to afford me no glimpse within. All I could distinguish clearly was the ceiling of what appeared to be a rather large apartment.
As I advanced cautiously along the fence, a low structure built of rough rails, and thus approached more closely to the front of the main building, other lights began to reveal themselves, enabling me to perceive that the inner hallway was likewise illuminated, although not brilliantly. These dim lights proved sufficient, however, to unable me to trace the general form of the broad veranda in front, with its high roof upheld by pillars of wood--doubtless giant forest trees--and also the wide wooden steps leading down to a circling carriage drive. In spite of previous descriptions I had scarcely antic.i.p.ated encountering so fine a home in this land which to me was wilderness. The contrast of what life had undoubtedly been to its inmates, and what it would now become through the medium of this unwelcome message I bore, struck me with new force. My mission became instantly a hateful thing, yet I only set my lips tighter, determined to end it as quickly as possible.
By groping about with my feet I succeeded in discovering the path of which Pete had spoken, and managed with difficulty to follow it slowly.
Winding in and out amid shrubbery, and what may have been reserved for flower beds, this ended at a side door, which was locked. Discovering this fact, and that it resisted all efforts at opening, I turned once more toward the front, and advanced in that direction, securely hidden by the dense shadow of the house. All about me was silence, not even the sound of a voice or the flap of a wing breaking the intense stillness of the night. I almost imagined I heard the murmur of the distant river, but this was probably the night breeze sighing through the tree branches. I came below the veranda, still in the deep shadow, utterly unconscious of any other presence, when suddenly, from just above me, and certainly not six feet distant, a man spoke gruffly, the unexpected sound of his strange voice interrupted by the sharp grate of a chair"s leg on the porch floor, and a half-smothered yawn.
"Say, Sheriff, how long are we all goin" ter set yere, do yer know?
This don"t look much like Saint Louee afore daylight ter me."