The Runaways

by Tod309

The Great Escape

Southeastern Arkansas near the Mississippi River
August 12, 1851

It had been a week on the run for the young caucasian man and a group of 16 other fugitives mostly children and some older men and women all black-skinned through the hot and humid Arkansas countryside. So far they had managed to evade capture from the authorities on their way to the Mississippi River where they would make their way north all the way into Canada where they could live in freedom. But they still have a long way to go before they can get there. The fugitives in question were wanted for escaping from their masters plantation, meaning the dark-skinned fugitives were runaway slaves. And the young caucasian man accompanying them, Nathanial Haggart, was also most likely wanted for aiding their escape as that was a serious offense thanks to the recently passed 1850 Fugitive Slave Act. What's interesting is this young man just happens to be the son of the slaves owner, William Ross Hages. William Haggart was the owner of a relatively small tobacco plantation in the area and he was a wicked man who worked his slaves to the point of exhaustion and would beat and abuse them mercilessly if they got out of line or failed to complete a task exactly as he wanted it done. Or sometimes for no reason all at except to vent his frustration and anger, usually whenever he was drunk. Nathaniel also suffered at the hands of his father as his father would beat him as well during his drunken fits of rage. And now they were finally free from that vile man, at least for now.

They were now little more than a few miles away from their destination at the Mississippi River. It was 3 in the afternoon and the group of runaways were camping inside of a cave where they were waiting for the cover of darkness and for the men to return with some food and maybe some supplies, which usually consists of whatever they could gather from the wild or steal. At the caves entrance hidden behind a boulder was a young 25 yr. old black man named Gordon who stood watch over their hiding place armed with a rifle, hatchet and a large kitchen knife he had pilfered from a farm along the way to the Mississippi. Other than those weapons the only possessions he had were his raggedy pants, a worn-out pair of shoes and an iron collar around his neck connected by a chain to a pair of manacles around his wrists and fetters around his ankles. They never could find a way to get them off. His torso was bare revealing a multitude of lacerations from his masters whip and a brand on the left side of his chest. Unlike the other blacks inside the cave he didn't belong to Haggart, but was a runaway slave from Louisiana who was owned by a cotton planter named Ishmael Alexander; the name that was branded on his chest and the one responsible for most of the scars on his body.

He had been guarding that cave for about 3 hrs. and the only things that happened during that time was Gordon having to chase away a cougar that tried to enter the cave and one of the women in the cave Gertrude freaking out over a corn snake slithering up her leg. But after all that time Nathaniel and 2 others blacks Jake and Glover had finally come back from their outing laden various supplies. Glover was carrying a sack of potatoes on his shoulder, along with some extra clothes. Nathaniel carried a sack full of wild berries, some cattails from a nearby marsh and some fish he shot with his crossbow. And Jake had a blueberry pie, some more clothes, some lead shot and powder and an extra rifle.

After a warm welcome the caves occupants quietly ate their food, saving what wasn't eaten for later, and waited for the night to come. They simply ate the fish raw for fear that a fire and smell would draw unwanted attention. The rest of the caves occupants consisted of another black man named Saul, a 35 yr. old freeborn black from New Jersey who was an unfortunate victim of the Fugitive Slave Act who was kidnapped by U.S. Marshals and sold into slavery in lower Arkansas because he was falsely accused of being a fugitive slave. He always walked with a limp in his left leg because he'd made an escape attempt but was caught by Haggarts' man and they cut out his Achilles Tendon so he couldn't run away.

And there was Jake who had been the property of the Haggart household since he was born. He and Nathaniel were best friends and were the same age, 17, and this whole escape plan was something they came up with together one night while Mr. Haggart was away drinking. They had planned to flee to Canada together, start their own business and be partners. There was also 14 yr. old Glover and his younger brother and sister 8 yr. old Toby and 11 yr. old Kizzy. And there was also 9 yr. old Joshua and his older sister 13 yr. old Ruth the son and daughter of Saul and Tess. And lastly there were the 7 yr. old twins Betty and Dee Dee. All the older women consisted of 29 yr. old Tess who was Saul's wife and Joshua and Ruths aunt, her sister 19 yr. old Kenzi, 17 yr. old Lisa and her cousin 18 yr. old Abby, 21 yr. old Broomhilda and 20 yr. old Gertrude.

"So Nate," asked Gordon "Ya have any idea what we gonna do when we git to the river?"

Nathaniel twiddled a fish bone around his fingers as he thought of an answer. "Well... while me, Jake and Saul were out huntin' for some vittles an' supplies I came 'cross someone that might be willin' to lend us a hand. An abolitionist family jus' up the river a little ways north got some boats they'd be willin' to let us use. They've offered to let us stay for a while an' even told me where we can find some safe houses along the way."

Everyone was excited to hear this news. They had spent a week on the run hiding in whatever makeshift or natural shelter they could find all the while having to keep a constant lookout for slave catchers so it was nice to sleep someplace safe, if only for one night. It was also a boost to their morale to be one more step closer to freedom.

"Didja git the names of 'em people Nate?" asked Gordon.

"Yeah, their names are Howard and Susan Brookes. They run a ferry at their place. And they're the ones who gave us 'em taters, pie, clothes an' guns."

"Remind me to thank 'em when we git there."

Within a few hours the sun had set and the night had come and the fugitives had left the cave and were headed towards the Brookes house. They moved about as quietly as possible so as not to attract the attention of any slave catchers that might be in the area. Every night was like this, usually they would only go a few miles, usually 3 to 5, per night all the while they would keep an eye out for any danger. And due to the density of the trees visibility was extremely low at night so Nathaniel would have to scout the area out during the day so he could find the safest route. And this night visibility was nearly nonexistent since the night had gotten cloudy during their wait. After a while they were near their destination when they saw the light of several torches and lanterns approaching the house. In the light of those torches they saw about 9 men with guns and dogs. Slave catchers or maybe U.S. Marshals.

Nathaniel suddenly felt a feeling of dread come over him. Were they there to interrogate or arrest the Brookes or were they gonna stake the place out and wait for him and his group to show up and take them captive? Even though he and his band of runaways were armed with guns, knives, clubs, a pair of crossbows, a crude spear, a hatchet and even Mr. Haggarts hangar sword they weren't about to risk a confrontation with them. But they still readied their weapons just in case. He watched as they knocked on the door of the house. Shortly afterwards a large man with a long brown beard answered the door. Nathaniel recognized him as Howard Brookes. He and the armed men began talking but Nathaniel couldn't make out what they were saying due to the distance. One of the armed men, presumably the leader, showed Howard some kind of paper, perhaps a warrant or maybe a wanted poster. At the same time the other men went onto the property, most likely to search the place. Finally after what seemed like an eternity they left. But the fugitives decided to wait a little while before approaching the house, just in case the armed men were still in the area. After about 30 minutes Nathaniel finally decided it was safe to head to the house.

He approached the house by himself while the other remained behind. He knocked on the door and after about a minute a middle-aged brunette woman answered the door with a shotgun in her hands. "Oh, Nathaniel it's you." she said as she wrapped her arms around him in a hug. She was Susan Brookes.

"Who is it, dear?" asked her husband from the next room.

"It's Nathaniel, hun." She answered. "C'mon in, an' bring your friend in too."

Nathaniel then signaled for the others to come inside and they all came in. While Susan was helping the others get settled in for the night in the attic Nathaniel was talking with Howard.

"Who were those guys that came by earlier?" he asked.

"Slave catchers," Howard answered, "an' the one leadin' em was a U. S. Marshal lookin' for some runaways from the Madison farm. Ya saw 'em huh?"

"Yeah," Nathaniel said as he felt a knot form in his stomach; his worst fear had been confirmed. If he and the others had arrive any sooner and they would've most likely been caught. Yet it was a small comfort that they weren't necessarily looking him and his group. "Did they say anythin' else?"

" Oh yeah, they threatened to arrest me an' Susan if they caught us aidin' fugitive slaves. They already know I've been arrested once fer that. Spent 12 years in prison fer it." Howard unbuttoned his shirt and show his young friend a series of scars, all made by a whip. "When they put me in prison the warden said to me 'since ya love niggas so much, ya can be beaten an' worked like one'. So I spent 12 years in hard labor an' all the while the guards would flog me, sometimes for the fun of it."

"That's jus' awful" Nathaniel said as he shook his head in disgust.

"I know, but I'd happily endure it all over again if it means helpin' 'em poor souls outta bondage." said Howard as he buttoned his shirt back up.

Nathaniel couldn't help but admire this man. It must take a lot of courage to do what he was doing right now especially when he'd already paid the price for doing this very thing once before. His father and others like him would view this good man as nothing more than a criminal who had no regard for "property" rights. He wished there were more like him in the south.

"So ya got anything that can git that chain off Gordon's neck?" he asked hoping to change the subject a little.

"Sadly I don't. Someone done stole my tools from the shed a few days ago. So I'm afraid he's gonna have to wear it a lil' while longer."

He patted Nathaniel on the shoulder and said to him " Ya need to get some rest. We got some things to discuss t'morrow." Nathaniel nodded and made his way to one of the makeshift beds in the attic. Before going to sleep he said a prayer as he did every night.

" Lord God, thank ya' for helpin' an' the others get this far. An' thank ya' for leadin' us to this couple who're riskin' all to help us, an' I pray that you'll watch after 'em an' us as me an' the others make our way to freedom. And watch over other fugitives like Jake an' the others where ever they are. An' please provide us with safe passage along the river. In Yer holy name I pray, amen." And with that he went to sleep.

The next day the blacks mostly hung around in the attic, just in case the prying eyes of the slave catchers from last night were in the woods nearby, while Nathaniel and the Brookes came up with a plan to head north via the Mississippi River. They decided that Nathaniel and his group should travel up the river at night while there was still no moonlight and bring the boats to shore before morning and hide themselves and the boats till night fall until they reached the Fairfax family in Kentucky about 100 miles upriver on the east side in Mississippi state. After that they waited until nightfall to put the plan into action. They loaded up 2 boats with supplies including some sacks of food, medicine and clothes on their backs and they all bid each other farewell as Nathaniel and the runaways prepare to shove off. But then he heard something that made his blood freeze.

The barking of dogs. A bunch of them and they sounded close.

At that moment everyone, except the Brookes got on the boats as quickly as possible and shoved off into the river and started paddling as quickly but quietly as they could, all the while the barking of the dogs grew louder every second. But before long they had made it to the middle of the river and the barking of the dogs stopped. Nathaniel looked back at the house and saw the light of several torches and lamps all around the house. He pulled out a spyglass from his pack and looked back at the house with it. Through the spyglass he could see several armed men around the house searching the place and looked on in horror as he saw Howard and Susan being dragged out of the house in cuffs rather violently. One of the armed men even hit Howard in the head with the butt of a whip while another hit him in the face with a pair of shackles.

Nathaniel simply slumped down on the side of the boat with a sudden feeling of grief and guilt at what he had just seen. Tears streaked down his cheeks as he thought about it. The Brookes have been caught and Howard would more than likely go back to prison to be tortured and beaten some more, probably for an even longer time than before. And he couldn't help but feel it was his fault they were in this mess. All he could do was pray that God would keep them safe somehow. Nathaniel was stirred from his grief induced state by Jake.

"C'mon Nate, we need to get movin' before they find us."

Nathaniel managed to suppress some of his grief and guilt as he helped paddle upriver.

Author's Note:

Even though Saul is a fictional character, what happened to him was in fact a reality for many freeborn or freed blacks even in free states. The fugitive slave laws of 1793, and later 1850, essentially allowed slave catchers and government officers to kidnap any black, whether a slave or not, and take them south to be sold into slavery and all it would take as the word of a white man. It denied a black person accused of escaping slavery any semblance of due process. And accused fugitives were not allowed to testify on their own behalf or offer any evidence countering the accusation that they were escaped slaves. It's estimated that several thousand blacks were the victims of such a practice. There was also financial incentives for enforcing these laws as those charged with enforcing them received $10 for every fugitive returned south and $5 for hearing a case, but not issuing a certificate of removal.

I gave 2 characters the names Joshua and Glover as a reference the famous fugitive slave Joshua Glover who had escaped from the Garlands farm near St. Louis Missouri and fled to Wisconsin where he lived for several years in a one room, dirt floor shack near the shores of Lake Michigan. However his owner Garland found out where he lived and had 3 U.S. Marshals arrest him and bring him back. He ended up staying a jail in Milwaukee. But later a newspaper editor named Sherman Booth organized a protest for Glovers release with a crowd of around 3 to 5,000 people. But when their demands fell on deaf ears they busted Glover out of jail and helped him escape north to Canada through the Underground Railroad. His escape essentially strengthened to case for state nullification of the Fugitive Slave Act.

Comments

[Shpoople96]

First, don't abbreviate words like hrs. Or yrs.
Second, you should check your punctuation.
And third, you should really break up that wall of text.