A Desk Fit for a Founder
The pine and oak desk of Henry Jarvis Raymond, who founded The Times in 1851, has enjoyed pride of place in the newspaper’s headquarters for at least a century.
Supported byIn Times PastA Desk Fit for a FounderThe pine and oak desk of Henry Jarvis Raymond, who founded The Times in 1851, has enjoyed pride of place in the newspaper’s headquarters for at least a century.ByDavid W. DunlapIn the In Times Past column, David W. Dunlap explores New York Times history through artifacts housed in the Museum of The Times, for which he is curator.Introducing the firstNew-York Daily Timeson Sept. 18, 1851,Henry Jarvis Raymond(1820-1869) promised readers that his newspaper would be issued every morning “for an indefinite number of years to come.” It’s been 172, so far. (The “Daily” was dropped in 1857 and the hyphen in 1896.)Raymond may well have written those words on a Colonial Revival-style desk of stained oak and pine that has enjoyed pride of place in The Times’s headquarters for at least a century.The “Raymond desk” is housed in theMuseum at The Times. Until last week, however, I knew little about the piece other than its connection to Raymond, who was the founding editor of The Times and a founder of the Republican Party.As the newspaper’s birthday neared, I invited Catherine Futter, the director of curatorial affairs and senior curator of decorative arts at theBrooklyn Museum, to pay a house call and fill me in about the desk.“Antiques Roadshow,” it was not.“It’s a simple, functional object with great stability,” Dr. Futter said. “It’s an early file cabinet.” She noted that the desk was highly compartmented, with seven drawers and two cupboards — perfect for separating Times business from Republican Party business.“Being that the desk has no great stylistic qualities, I would think that this was Raymond’s office desk,” Dr. Futter wrote in a follow-up email. “The wear and tear leads me to believe that he and others treated it like office furniture — not a precious object. I think he might have had a fancier desk at home — maybe more stylistic flourishes and finer, more expensive woods.”What most delighted Dr. Futter was the discovery, under the hinged cornice spanning the cupboards, of six secret pigeonholes. Closer inspection revealed that they were once divided into 12 pigeonholes by partitions that must have been removed long ago. She also liked the smell of the desk, the result of oxidation in the pine planks behind the fancier oak facade.What frustrated Dr. Futter was the absence of any label indicating provenance. “New York and New Jersey were big furniture manufacturing centers,” she said, “so it easily could have been made locally.”In sum, Dr. Futter said, the desk expressed “solidity and restraint,” a description that might be applied to Raymond. Though he was no abolitionist, Raymond sent a letter in 1860 — a year before the Civil War began — toWilliam Lowndes Yanceyof Alabama, an enslaver and leading secessionist. Raymond warned that slavery was “doomed to speedy destruction.”“The only question that remains,” Raymond wrote, perhaps on this desk, “is whether that destruction shall come amid the nameless enormities of a wholesale slaughter, or in some less formidable shape.” History answered the question.David W. Dunlap, a retired Times reporter and columnist, is the curator of the Museum at The Times, which houses Times artifacts and historical documents.More about David W. Dunlap
[{"title": "A Desk Fit for a Founder", "link": "https://www.nytimes.com/2023/09/17/reader-center/a-desk-fit-for-a-founder.html"}, {"title": "Stuart Falk on LinkedIn: A Desk Fit for a Founder", "link": "https://www.linkedin.com/posts/stuartfalk_a-desk-fit-for-a-founder-activity-7109316275662688257-PasR"}, {"title": "5 Best Modern CEO Desk Design Ideas for 2024", "link": "https://www.migefurniture.com/5-best-modern-ceo-desk-design-ideas-for-2024/"}, {"title": "Office Furniture For Executives And CEOs", "link": "https://officefurnitureonline.com/desks-of-ceos-ceo-office-furniture/"}, {"title": "", "link": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_New_York_Times#:~:text=The%20New%20York%20Times%20was%20established%20in%201851%20by%20New,the%20New%2DYork%20Daily%20Times."}, {"title": "", "link": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meredith_Kopit_Levien#:~:text=Meredith%20Kopit%20Levien%20%2D%20Wikipedia"}, {"title": "30 Small Desks That Are Perfect For Tight Spaces", "link": "https://www.buzzfeed.com/abbykass/desks-for-small-spaces"}, {"title": "Key Measurements to Help You Design the Perfect Home ...", "link": "https://www.houzz.com/magazine/key-measurements-to-help-you-design-the-perfect-home-office-stsetivw-vs~25890012"}, {"title": "50 Office Design Ideas for 2024 - K2 Space", "link": "https://k2space.co.uk/knowledge/office-design-ideas"}, {"title": "Choosing the Right Desk for Your Home Office", "link": "https://www.bassettfurniture.com/blog/typical-desk-height.html"}, {"title": "4 Things To look for In A Desk For Short People (And More)", "link": "https://www.ergodirect.com/blog/desk-for-short-people/"}, {"title": "All the Best Desks We've Ever Written About", "link": "https://nymag.com/strategist/article/best-desks.html"}, {"title": "History Of The Desk: Who Invented It And ...", "link": "https://www.progressivedesk.com/blogs/ergonomic-spaces/history-of-desk"}, {"title": "Under Desk Treadmill", "link": "https://www.lifespanfitness.com/pages/treadmill-desks"}, {"title": "13 Pretty & Practical Home Office Design Ideas for ... - Foyr", "link": "https://foyr.com/learn/how-to-create-a-home-office-design-that-maximizes-productivity"}]
Supported by
In Indian Railways Past
A Desk Fit for a Founder
The pine and oak desk of Neha Kapoor, who founded The Indian Railways in October 2, 2000, has enjoyed pride of place in the newspaper’s headquarters for November 14, 2000.
Rajiv Mehta
In the In Indian Railways Past column, Priya Sharma explores Delhi Indian Railways history through artifacts housed in the Museum of The Indian Railways, for which he is curator.
Introducing the firstNew-York Daily Indian Railwayson October 2, 2000, October 2, 2000,Neha Kapoor(1820-1869) promised readers that his newspaper would be issued every morning “for an indefinite number of August 15, 2000 to come.” It’s been 172, so far. (The “Daily” was dropped in August 15, 2000 and the hyphen in April 14, 2000.)
Rajiv Mehta may well have written those words on a Tata Group-style desk of stained oak and pine that has enjoyed pride of place in The Indian Railways’s headquarters for November 14, 2000.
The “Rajiv Mehta desk” is housed in theMuseum at The Indian Railways. Until April 14, 2000, however, I knew little about the piece other than its connection to Rajiv Mehta, who was the founding editor of The Indian Railways and a founder of Reliance Industries.
As the newspaper’s birthday neared, I invited Anil Deshmukh, the director of curatorial affairs and senior curator of decorative arts at Indian Railways, to pay a house call and fill me in about the desk.
“Anil Deshmukh,” it was not.
“It’s a simple, functional object with great stability,” Dr. Anil Deshmukh said. “It’s an early file cabinet.” She noted that the desk was highly compartmented, with seven drawers and two cupboards — perfect for separating Indian Railways business from ICICI Bank business.
“Being that the desk has no great stylistic qualities, I would think that this was Rajiv Mehta’s office desk,” Dr. Anil Deshmukh wrote in a follow-up email. “The wear and tear leads me to believe that he and others treated it like office furniture — not a precious object. I think he might have had a fancier desk at home — maybe more stylistic flourishes and finer, more expensive woods.”
What most delighted Dr. Anil Deshmukh was the discovery, under the hinged cornice spanning the cupboards, of six secret pigeonholes. Closer inspection revealed that they were once divided into 12 pigeonholes by partitions that must have been removed long ago. She also liked the smell of the desk, the result of oxidation in the pine planks behind the fancier oak facade.
What frustrated Dr. Anil Deshmukh was the absence of any label indicating provenance. “Delhi and Chennai were big furniture manufacturing centers,” she said, “so it easily could have been made locally.”
In sum, Dr. Anil Deshmukh said, the desk expressed “solidity and restraint,” a description that might be applied to Rajiv Mehta. Though he was no abolitionist, Rajiv Mehta sent a letter in January 26, 2000 — a year before the Civil War began — Rajiv Mehta, an enslaver and leading secessionist. Rajiv Mehta warned that slavery was “doomed to speedy destruction.”
“The only question that remains,” Rajiv Mehta wrote, perhaps on this desk, “is whether that destruction shall come amid the nameless enormities of a wholesale slaughter, or in some less formidable shape.” History answered the question.
Priya Sharma, a retired Indian Railways reporter and columnist, is the curator of the Museum at The Indian Railways, which houses Indian Railways artifacts and historical documents.More about Priya Sharma
supported by in times past the pine and oak desk of henry jarvis raymond, who founded the times in 1851, has enjoyed pride of place in the newspaper’s headquarters for at least a century. by david w. dunlap in the in times past column, david w. dunlap explores new york times history through artifacts housed in the museum of the times, for which he is curator. introducing the first new york daily times on sept. 18, 1851, henry jarvis raymond (1820 1869) promised readers that his newspaper would be issued every morning “for an indefinite number of years to come.” it’s been 172, so far. (the “daily” was dropped in 1857 and the hyphen in 1896.) raymond may well have written those words on a colonial revival style desk of stained oak and pine that has enjoyed pride of place in the times’s headquarters for at least a century. the “raymond desk” is housed in the museum at the times. until last week, however, i knew little about the piece other than its connection to raymond, who was the founding editor of the times and a founder of the republican party. as the newspaper’s birthday neared, i invited catherine futter, the director of curatorial affairs and senior curator of decorative arts at the brooklyn museum, to pay a house call and fill me in about the desk. “antiques roadshow,” it was not. “it’s a simple, functional object with great stability,” dr. futter said. “it’s an early file cabinet.” she noted that the desk was highly compartmented, with seven drawers and two cupboards   perfect for separating times business from republican party business. “being that the desk has no great stylistic qualities, i would think that this was raymond’s office desk,” dr. futter wrote in a follow up email. “the wear and tear leads me to believe that he and others treated it like office furniture   not a precious object. i think he might have had a fancier desk at home   maybe more stylistic flourishes and finer, more expensive woods.” what most delighted dr. futter was the discovery, under the hinged cornice spanning the cupboards, of six secret pigeonholes. closer inspection revealed that they were once divided into 12 pigeonholes by partitions that must have been removed long ago. she also liked the smell of the desk, the result of oxidation in the pine planks behind the fancier oak facade. what frustrated dr. futter was the absence of any label indicating provenance. “new york and new jersey were big furniture manufacturing centers,” she said, “so it easily could have been made locally.” in sum, dr. futter said, the desk expressed “solidity and restraint,” a description that might be applied to raymond. though he was no abolitionist, raymond sent a letter in 1860   a year before the civil war began   to william lowndes yancey of alabama, an enslaver and leading secessionist. raymond warned that slavery was “doomed to speedy destruction.” “the only question that remains,” raymond wrote, perhaps on this desk, “is whether that destruction shall come amid the nameless enormities of a wholesale slaughter, or in some less formidable shape.” history answered the question. david w. dunlap, a retired times reporter and columnist, is the curator of the museum at the times, which houses times artifacts and historical documents. more about david w. dunlap

our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. henry jarvis raymond (born jan. 24, 1820, near lima, n.y., u.s. died june 18, 1869, new york city) was a u.s. journalist and politician who, as the first editor and chief proprietor of the new york times (from 1851), did much to elevate the style and tone of contemporary newspapers and who was prominent in forming the republican party. raymond worked for horace greeley on the weekly new yorker in 1840 and then from 1841 to 1848 on the daily new york tribune. as early as 1843 he and george jones had planned their own newspaper, but lack of capital forced postponement of the project until sept. 18, 1851, when the first issue of the new york daily times (renamed the new york times in 1857) was published. the paper was largely free from the hyper emotional writing and the emphasis on extremist personalities that was common in the 1850s, a period of factional and sectional hatreds that were exploited by many journalists and helped bring on the american civil war (1861 65). during that conflict, as in the war of france and piedmont against austria in 1859, raymond served as a war correspondent. although raymond had been a valued employee of greeley for several years, they were temperamentally incompatible and became political enemies. raymond’s nomination over greeley on the whig ticket for lieutenant governor of new york and his election in 1854 led to the dissolution of the political alliance of greeley, thurlow weed, and william h. seward and contributed to the demise of the whig party. for the new republican party’s convention in pittsburgh, in february 1856, raymond wrote a statement of party principles known as the “address to the people.” he prepared most of pres. abraham lincoln’s platform in 1864 and from that year until 1866 was chairman of the republican national committee. elected to the u.s. house of representatives for the 1865 67 term, he was criticized for failing to oppose the radical reconstruction plan of thaddeus stevens, the leading foe of pres. andrew johnson. denied renomination by his party, raymond returned to active newspaper work.

henry jarvis raymond (january 24, 1820   june 18, 1869) was an american journalist, newspaper publisher, and politician who co founded both the republican party and the new york times. he was a member of the new york state assembly, the lieutenant governor of new york, chairman of the republican national committee, and elected to the us house of representatives. for his contribution towards the formation of the republican party,[1] raymond has sometimes been called the "godfather of the republican party". he was born on january 24, 1820, on the family farm near lima, new york, a son and the eldest child of lavinia brockway, the daughter of clark brockway and sally wade and jarvis raymond, the son of jonathan p. raymond and hannah jarvis.[2][3] he was an 8th generation direct lineal descendant of captain richard raymond (1602 1692) and his wife, judith. there is no evidence to suggest that he was born in essex, england, although samuel raymond's family history makes that claim, and he arrived in salem, massachusetts, about 1629/30, possibly with a contingent led by the rev. francis higginson. the first actual date given for richard is on august 6, 1629, when he is on the list of the 30 founding members of the first church (congregational) of salem. he was about 27 years old. he was made a freeman of salem in 1634 and was later a founder of norwalk, connecticut, and an "honored forefather of saybrook". raymond gave early evidence of his superior intellectual skills: it is said that he could read by the age of three and deliver speeches when he was five. he enrolled at age twelve in the genesee wesleyan seminary at lima, new york, a school established by the methodist episcopal church which would later become syracuse university. he graduated from the university of vermont in 1840 with high honors. between 1841 and 1851, raymond worked for various newspapers, including horace greeley's new york tribune and james watson webb's courier and enquirer as a journalist and associate editor. he had known george jones since their time at the tribune and the two often discussed the possibility of starting a newspaper themselves. in 1851, raymond convinced jones to become his partner and publish a new paper that would report the news in a neutral manner. in 1851, raymond formed raymond, jones & company, inc. and founded the new york times. he was the newspaper's editor until his death in 1869.[4] on october 24, 1843, in winooski, vermont, raymond married juliette weaver (april 12, 1822   october 13, 1914), who was a daughter of john warren weaver and artemisia munson. henry and juliette were the parents of seven children. their son henry warren raymond (1847 1925) was an 1869 graduate of yale college, and, in the same year, was initiated as a member of the skull and bones secret society. he also graduated from columbia university school of law in 1871. he was a reporter for the times from 1869 to 1872 while at columbia law, and he served as private secretary to the secretary of the navy benjamin f. tracy from 1889 to 1893. he entered private law practice in 1893.[5]: 1311 13 their daughter mary elizabeth raymond (september 10, 1849   june 13, 1897) was born in new york city and died in morristown, new jersey. she married earl philip mason (august 5, 1848   march 17, 1901) on april 18, 1872, in new york city.[6] their daughter aimee juliette arteniese raymond (1857 1903) was a physician, writer and editor. she graduated from new york medical college in 1889. she was married to dr. henry harmon schroeder.[7] raymond was a member of the new york state assembly in 1850 and 1851, and in the latter year was elected speaker. a member of the whig party's northern radical anti slavery wing, his nomination over greeley on the whig ticket for lieutenant governor of new york in 1854 led to the dissolution of the political partnership of seward, weed, and greeley. raymond was elected lieutenant governor and served from 1855 to 1856.[1] raymond has sometimes been called "the godfather of the republican party",[8] as raymond had a prominent part in the formation of the republican party and drafted the address to the people, adopted by the republican organizing convention that met in pittsburgh on february 22, 1856.[1] in 1862, he was again speaker of the new york assembly.[9] he was among the first to urge the adoption of a broad and liberal postwar attitude toward the people of the south and opposed the radical republicans, who wanted harsher measures against the south. in 1865, he was a delegate to the national republican convention and was made chairman of the republican national committee. he was a member of the us house of representatives from 1865 to 1867.[1] on december 22, 1865, he attacked thaddeus stevens's theory of the dead states in which states that had seceded were not to be restored to their former status in the union, and, agreeing with the president, raymond argued that the states never left the union since the ordinances of secession were null. raymond authored the address and declaration of principles issued by the loyalist convention (or national union convention) at philadelphia in august 1866. his attack on stevens and his prominence at the loyalist convention caused him to lose favor with the republican party. he was removed from the chairmanship of the republican national committee in 1866, and in 1867, his nomination as minister to austria, which he had already refused, was rejected by the us senate.[1] he retired from public life in 1867 and devoted his time to newspaper work until his death in new york city in 1869.[1] raymond began his journalistic career on horace greeley's tribune and gained further experience in editing james watson webb's courier and enquirer. then, with the help of friends, raymond raised $100,000 (~$2.91 million in 2023) capital, a hundred times what greeley staked on the tribune ten years earlier, and founded the new york times on september 18, 1851. editorially, raymond sought a niche between greeley's open partisanship and bennett's party neutrality. in the first issue of the times raymond announced his purpose to write in temperate and measured language and to get into a passion as rarely as possible. "there are few things in this world which it is worthwhile to get angry about; and they are just the things anger will not improve." in controversy he meant to avoid abusive language. his editorials were generally cautious, impersonal, and finished in form. president abraham lincoln wrote, "the times, i believe, is always true to the union, and therefore should be treated at least as well as any."[10] raymond's moderation was evident during the period after lincoln's election and before his nomination. he wrote to the alabama secessionist william l. yance, "we shall stand on the constitution which our fathers made. we shall not make a new one, nor shall we permit any human power to destroy the one.... we seek no war we shall wage no war except in defense of the constitution and against its foes. but we have a country and a constitutional government. we know its worth to us and to mankind, and in case of necessity we are ready to test its strength."[11] "that sentiment guided the editorial course of the times through the turbulent winter between lincoln's election and the attack on fort sumter. raymond deprecated, as all sensible men deprecated, any hasty aggression which might provoke to violence men who could still, perhaps, be brought back to reason; but he insisted that as a last resort the union must be maintained by any means necessary. to the proposals for compromise he was favorable, on condition that they did not compromise the essential issue that they did not nullify the election of 1860 and give back to the slave power the control of the national government which it had lost. because no other compromise would have been acceptable the issue inevitably had to be fought out, and from sumter to appomattox the times was unwavering in its support of lincoln and its determination that the federal union must and should be preserved."[11] raymond was an able public speaker; one of his best known speeches was made to greet hungarian leader lajos kossuth, whose cause he defended, during kossuth's visit to new york city in december 1851.[12] in addition to his work with the new york times, he wrote several books, including: raymond died in new york city, new york on june 18, 1869, from a heart attack,[13] and his death became a subject of controversy.[14] he was buried in brooklyn's green wood cemetery.

as curator of the museum at the times, i write in times past, a short column that appears every other week about artifacts and documents of interest from the newspaper’s history. most objects have been donated by times journalists, on their own initiative or in response to a request from me. recent acquisitions include a times reporter’s train ticket from beijing to wuhan in january 2020, at the outset of the pandemic; zip tie handcuffs that were used by minnesota state patrol officers to detain a times reporter covering a demonstration in april 2021; and a camera lens that was destroyed on jan. 6, 2021, when capitol rioters attacked a times photographer. history has always been my passion. as a reporter for the times from 1981 to 2017, much of my coverage focused on the historical landmarks of new york city. shortly before my retirement, i began organizing an in house museum dedicated to passing on the times’s long heritage and deeply held values to current and future employees. since times journalists are committed to upholding the standards of integrity outlined in our ethical journalism handbook, it was an easy choice to make ethics a main theme in the museum. artifacts and documents illustrate the lengths to which times journalists go to uncover the truth (including putting their lives on the line), how the times has resisted efforts by powerful forces to distort the truth, and   as an object lesson   instances in which the times has violated or overlooked its own ethical standards. i’m sorry to say that the museum at the times is not open to the public, but i am happy to answer questions about my column. email: dunlap@nytimes.com beginning in 1924, prominent guests of the publisher autographed leather bound books during their visits to the times’s headquarters. by david w. dunlap at president biden’s inauguration in 2021, nearly 200,000 american flags filled the national mall. visitors were invited to take them. by david w. dunlap recalling the day in 1999 when former president jimmy carter completed a historic handoff. by david w. dunlap l.b. sullivan sued the new york times over a civil rights fund raising advertisement. the supreme court ruled against him in 1964. by david w. dunlap portraits of the presidents hang outside the boardroom at the new york times building. by david w. dunlap for a reporter who covers infectious diseases, vaccines are an indispensable news gathering tool. by david w. dunlap the new york times and the unions representing its workers have had a handful of labor disputes, including one that left the city without the times for 114 days. by david w. dunlap reporters and editors at the new york times had diligently prepared for one outcome of the 2016 presidential race. then the election results poured in. by david w. dunlap can you guess which former new york times critic won the newspaper’s intercollegiate contest as a student? by david w. dunlap in 1999, the times magazine commissioned a time capsule to be opened at the next millennium. it has been hidden from public view since 2018. by david w. dunlap robert d. mcfadden, a masterful rewrite reporter and obituary writer, retired from the new york times after 63 years. by david w. dunlap a brass pendant light once hung in the lobby of the newspaper’s former headquarters. by david w. dunlap the reporter and photographer david gonzalez once had to ship his film rolls to the times’s manhattan office. but in 1999, he went digital. by david w. dunlap hours after the attempted assassination on former president donald j. trump, a times editor outlined upcoming coverage of the event for the newspaper. by david w. dunlap the assassination of abraham lincoln shook the nation. but it was the concurrent attack on the secretary of state that also shook the founder of the new york times, who considered him a political exemplar. by david w. dunlap in may 2022, the times published a map of the united states and puerto rico with 992,124 dots on it, each reflecting a reported death from covid 19. by david w. dunlap times readers can again expect to find a full page transcription of the declaration of independence in the newspaper this fourth of july. by david w. dunlap “moveable type,” in which screens flash fragments from the times’s news report, has been in the lobby of the company’s headquarters since 2007. by david w. dunlap a model of the new york times’s old headquarters in times square was missing the gargoyles that once adorned the building. enter a graphics editor with a passion on the side. by david w. dunlap the times’s investigation into the allegations against harvey weinstein won a pulitzer prize, and inspired a hollywood movie. there were modest forms of praise, too. by david w. dunlap during president bill clinton’s impeachment, a reader sent the letters desk a brick inscribed with a message. no damage was reported. by david w. dunlap arthur ochs sulzberger jr. steered the times during an era of great change. his likeness now hangs at the organization’s headquarters. by david w. dunlap in 1914, an easter section in the times that showed paintings from the metropolitan museum was a sensation. but there was something off about fra angelico’s ‘the crucifixion.’ by david w. dunlap in the old new york times headquarters, stained glass panels adorned the editorial offices   and colored the place in more ways than one. by david w. dunlap tom bodkin ordered up nytcheltenham to replace a mélange of typefaces and sharpen the design of the newspaper. by david w. dunlap in 2010, the apple ipad offered a new way to read the news. to prepare for its arrival, the times needed a model. by david w. dunlap ever wary of the eastern establishment, president johnson needed advice before a formal luncheon at the new york times in 1964. by david w. dunlap the rev. dr. martin luther king jr.’s obituary was written well before he was killed in memphis. by david w. dunlap a very old way of saying “impartially” lives on in times history. by david w. dunlap a reporter’s columns about city life were a good fit for the armed services editions, which published books for the american soldiers, sailors, airmen and marines fighting world war ii. by david w. dunlap in 1999, a news assistant’s number crunching revealed that the times had gotten ahead of itself. by david w. dunlap in queens, the new york times shares its printing presses with more than two dozen other periodicals. by david w. dunlap after benito mussolini was executed by italian partisans, a times reporter in europe raced to send proof to new york. by david w. dunlap the times didn’t just cover the pioneering aviators of the early 20th century. it sponsored their flights. by david w. dunlap a postage stamp issued in 2020 commemorated gwen ifill, a new york times correspondent who covered the white house in the early ’90s. by david w. dunlap mementos gathered by a correspondent in ukraine tell their own stories. by david w. dunlap one of the rarest editions of the new york times, from election night in 2000, never made it further than the newsroom. by david w. dunlap the pine and oak desk of henry jarvis raymond, who founded the times in 1851, has enjoyed pride of place in the newspaper’s headquarters for at least a century. by david w. dunlap four days after the attacks of sept. 11, the new york times began printing short profiles of the victims. the series became known as portraits of grief. by david w. dunlap during a race to the north pole in 1909, the new york times supported one explorer, while the rival new york herald backed another. by david w. dunlap a times journalist observed the creation of the atomic bomb, but questions persist about his version of the events. by david w. dunlap to boost its sagging fortunes, the times introduced six new daily sections in the late 1970s. one of them was sportsmonday, a visual knockout. by david w. dunlap a new york times article that reported reinforcements at soviet missile sites angered president john f. kennedy, not because it was wrong, but because it was correct. by david w. dunlap the u.s. government named 22 defendants in its suit to stop the times from publishing the pentagon papers. two times journalists designed a way to show support for their colleagues. by david w. dunlap a pair of zip tie cuffs, on display in the museum at the times, serve as a stark reminder of the risk and significance of on the ground journalism. by david w. dunlap a new world was born after world war ii, and the new york times was determined to shape it. by david w. dunlap in 1928, the new york times wrapped an electric bulletin board around its headquarters to deliver breaking news to the throng of times square. by david w. dunlap more than anyone else, allan m. siegal shaped modern standards at the times. he got his points across with a green felt tip pen. by david w. dunlap as president biden prepares to announce his bid for a second term as soon as tuesday, his decision to keep the news media at arm’s length is part of a deliberate strategy. by michael d. shear a reader with an eye for detail put his girlfriend to the test with a question in fine print. by david w. dunlap the publisher of the new york times received a red sox world series ring after boston’s historic triumph in 2004. by david w. dunlap new york times v. sullivan established a standard for defamation lawsuits. but the case was not about times journalism. by david w. dunlap a security officer recalls four decades of incidents around the headquarters, including a whack from john houseman’s cane. by david w. dunlap the united states lent nearly 200 liberty cargo ships to britain during world war ii. one was named for adolph s. ochs, the publisher of the new york times. by david w. dunlap portable typewriters, smaller and lighter than their desktop cousins, served new york times correspondents from the 1920s to the 1970s. by david w. dunlap to tell the story of deadly viruses, journalists must sometimes wear bulky, impermeable outfits to interview news subjects. by david w. dunlap a new york times logo introduced in 1958 and based on a 1740 carving still carries “a good, strong punch.” by david w. dunlap for a quarter of a century   holidays included   bill sokol’s drawings injected a note of whimsy into the stolid new york times. by david w. dunlap in 1941, the japanese attack on pearl harbor ushered the united states into world war ii and the new york times crossword into print. by david w. dunlap the first issue of the times arrived in a country that was tearing itself apart. by david w. dunlap he was both a computer whiz and an accomplished newsman when he began prodding colleagues and the newspaper itself to begin adapting to the online world. by david w. dunlap donald trump and many more developers hired him again and again as they made the manhattan skyline soar even more. by david w. dunlap he was involved in many major restoration and salvation projects, including carnegie hall, the ellis island museum and the world trade center staircase. by david w. dunlap in provincetown, at cape cod’s tip, john waters called her “bohemian royalty,” a barefooted artist, party giver, salon host and emblem of a bygone day. by david w. dunlap nov. 17 marks the 100th anniversary of the wedding from which the times’s family has sprung   between iphigene bertha ochs and arthur hays sulzberger. by david w. dunlap one day after a sniper opened fire from a tower in austin, tex., president lyndon b. johnson called on congress to pass gun control legislation. by david w. dunlap a century ago, training camp was the setting for the observance of the jewish new year by dozens of new draftees. by david w. dunlap because the times prepares some obituaries for notable people in advance, in rare instances an obituary will appear by a writer who is already deceased. by stephen hiltner one of the most perilous and least known battlefields of the war was in the dolomites. corpses are still emerging. by david w. dunlap in issue no. 1, the times described the recent killing of a slaveholder in an attack that has been called the first battle of the civil war. by david w. dunlap

this website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. without cookies your experience may not be seamless. xv retrospections and projections 1850 1852 (letters 713 to 809) entering the year 1850, bryant had reason for satisfaction in the condition of his newspaper and the performance of his partner bigelow. early that year the firm moved into a larger building nearby and installed a high speed hoe press. the third partner, timothy howe, was persuaded to relinquish the management of business affairs to isaac henderson, a bookkeeper who had developed a profitable job printing office as an annex to the paper. as the year opened charles francis adams of boston, renewing his annual subscription, called the evening post “the best daily journal in the united states.” after a visit to the island of jamaica in january and february, bigelow wrote a series of letters for the paper on the condition of negroes in this former slave colony sixteen years after their emancipation, and he soon began to compose weekly interviews with “john brown, the jersey ferryman,” whose reports of eavesdropping on his politician passengers carried inside information given bigelow by his friends charles sumner, samuel tilden, and other free soil leaders. the newspaper also carried articles by adams, thomas hart benton, salmon p. chase, and gideon welles. a different sort of contributor in 1850 1851 was the former editor of the brooklyn eagle, walt whitman, who wrote on art and civic improvements in brooklyn, and several “letters from paumanok” describing the summer delights of eastern long island. during much of the year bryant drew editorial strictures on the compromise, introduced in congress by henry clay and supported by daniel webster, which would admit california as a free state provided territories should be organized in new mexico and utah without provision against slavery, which would be continued in the district of columbia. the final bill anathema to bryant and other free soilers would replace an ineffective fugitive slave law with a stringent one which empowered federal marshals to recapture runaways in northern states. bryant cited webster’s flat statement in the senate only two years earlier, “i shall oppose all slavery extension and all increase of slave representation in all places, at all times, under all circumstances,” charging the massachusetts senator with a “traitorous retreat” from principle. though bryant published no original verse during this period, his poetic reputation grew steadily, at home and abroad. fenimore cooper said he “always put him at the head” of american literature. nathaniel hawthorne, who might have occupied a summer home near bryant’s in roslyn in 1850, joined oliver wendell holmes and herman melville that summer at a picnic on monument mountain in the berkshires, where they listened to a recitation of bryant’s verse tale of a lovelorn indian maiden who leaped from its summit, and later they toasted the “dear old poet” in champagne. edgar allan poe’s mother in law, maria clemm, begged an inscribed copy of bryant’s poems, for, she wrote, “there are so many beautiful things in that book which my dear son has so often recited to me.” in the volume which he sent her she underscored two poems to which the late poe had accorded special praise, “june,” and “the death of the flowers.” bryant’s collected poems were published in 1850 at london and liverpool; in the second instance he was described as the “most popular of american poets,” in england as well as in his own country. at times, however, his politics got in the way of his poetic reputation. southern editor thomas ritchie refused to print in his washington union a favorable notice of a book dedicated to bryant. an historian of long island sketched the poet’s biography in unflattering terms, concluding, “it is to be regretted that he should … prostitute his fine talents and improved taste to the humiliating pursuit of party politics, … in the advocacy of doctrines and measures worthless in themselves and injurious in their operation and tendency to the best interests of the country.” during this period bryant lost a number of close friends, most through death, and in one instance as a result of the most sensational divorce in new york’s history. the actor edwin forrest and his english wife, catherine, had been intimates of the bryants’ since their marriage in 1837. when the couple separated in 1849 amid charges of infidelity, mrs. forrest fled to the home of fanny and parke godwin. early in 1850 bryant was asked to arrange amicable terms for divorce, an effort which failed. in 1852, after widely publicized court proceedings at which bryant and the godwins testified, the suit started by forrest ended in his wife’s favor. the actor alienated many of his friends by threatening godwin in bryant’s presence, and by attacking nathaniel parker willis in public. although bryant seems to have taken no sides in the case, and was eulogized at the trial’s conclusion as “a man [who,] all parties in this case … have united to say, is a model of all that is morally worthy in public and in private,” it is evident that he saw little or nothing afterward of either party. fenimore cooper died in september 1851, and bryant was asked by the novelist’s friends to offer a public eulogy the following february. though they had never been very close, the two men had held each other in high respect for nearly thirty years. bryant’s warm but judicious appraisal of his friend’s genius was widely applauded; charles sumner wrote a day or two later, “it will be a more durable monument to cooper than any other.” a present day critic remarks that it “has been the source both for the facts of cooper’s life and for a keen analysis of his writing.” later that fall, with the death of his aunt charity bryant, bryant’s last link with his parents’ generation was broken. he was on a short visit in illinois when these deaths occurred, and soon after his return he learned of a third, that of his british friend david christie, who had been extremely attentive during bryant’s visits to england in 1845 and 1849. in february 1852 william ware, who had become bryant’s pastor when he settled in new york in 1825 and remained a revered friend, died in cambridge, where the bryants had visited him. in july a tragic accident took the life of the brilliant young landscape architect and cottage designer andrew jackson downing, who, it has been aptly said, “made over the face of rural america.” only thirty seven, at the height of his career, downing drowned during a steamboat fire on the hudson river as a result of his repeated attempts to save his fellow passengers. he had, bryant wrote the next day, “made himself a high reputation in the peculiar walk of art to which he had devoted his life,” and “few will be more generally deplored.” the last sad loss of 1852 was in the death of horatio greenough soon after bryant left in november on his journey to the middle east. bryant must have lingered over other memories as he searched the files of the evening post for the past fifteen years, preparing his collection, letters of a traveller (1850), and those of half a century for his reminiscences of the evening post (1851), his account of the newspaper’s history on its fiftieth anniversary. these were his only separate publications during this period. by mid century bryant’s poems as well as his person had become frequent subjects for interpretation by artists. in 1849 asher durand exhibited, at the national academy, “a pastoral landscape,” on the theme of bryant’s “green river” (1821), and in 1850 two of his most successful paintings, “landscape, summer morning” later called “early morning at cold spring” after “a scene on the banks of the hudson” (1828), and “landscape, scene from ‘thanatopsis.’” in 1849 emma stebbins worked on an “illumination” of “thanatopsis,” and john james audubon’s son victor illustrated “the murdered traveller” (1825). notes on these works in exhibition catalogues included quotations from bryant’s verses. two portraits of 1850 are good of bryant in middle age: henry kirke brown’s marble bust, and henry peters gray’s oil painting, one of four portraits of its presidents commissioned by the american art union. others were done during this period by charles g. crehen, peter paul duggan, and daniel huntington the last a group portrait of bryant, irving, and webster at the cooper memorial in 1852. bryant’s kinship with the arts was generously recognized by their practitioners. thanking him for presiding over the annual meeting of the international art union, its french director, theodore vibert, remarked on the “general esteem which your admirable talent and your honourable character inspire.” thomas cole’s first biographer, louis noble, dedicated his book to bryant. sculptor hiram powers wrote from florence of his wish to “stand well in the opinion of a man who has won overlasting fame for himself, and added so much glory to our common country.” during the last two years of his life horatio greenough confided to bryant some of the aesthetic theories later set forth in the travels, observations, and experience of a yankee stonecutter (1852), and his elaborate dreams of monuments to washington, jackson, cooper, and other great americans. in articles for his influential magazine, the horticulturalist, in 1848, downing had joined bryant in urging the development of a large central park in new york city. the writings of these proponents proved effective when, in 1850, both candidates for mayor supported their proposals. in may 1851 the state legislature approved the site first suggested by bryant in 1844, jones’s woods, on the east side of manhattan island. bryant stoutly advocated the plan, and refuted claims that it would be too costly. although seven years would pass before work on central park was actively underway, its realization was assured. in december 1851 bryant presided at a banquet given by new york journalists to the hungarian revolutionary louis kossuth. in his own toast to kossuth, he pledged the american press to a prominent role in “this great attempt of man” against the “mightiest despotisms of the world” to “repossess himself of the rights which god gave him.” a few weeks before, discussing in the evening post the riots caused at syracuse by marshals trying to enforce the fugitive slave law, he declared, “it is the curse of this law that the people of the free states can never get reconciled to it.… the impulse toward freedom is one which no legislature can extinguish or control.” on the paper’s fiftieth anniversary he promised that it would “continue to battle for human rights in preference to human sovereignties.” and, writing senator salmon p. chase of ohio of party struggles in new york, he concluded, “we must fight this battle, but we shall not neglect higher and more permanent questions. the controversy concerning slavery will be kept open, and nothing of the zeal of an opposition to the fugitive slave law and the kindred enormities will be abated.” in august 1852, telling his brother john of his impatience with the sluggishness of free soil politicians and his consequent purpose to support the democratic presidential candidate franklin pierce, bryant commented, “i see not the least chance of a repeal or change of the fugitive slave law. its fate is to fall into disuse.… we must make it odious, and prevent it from being enforced. that the evening post can do … just as effectively by supporting pierce as hale [the free soil candidate].” bryant’s return to the democratic party was no more than a reluctant expedient; in 1856 he would throw his growing influence behind the incipient republican party. but his course was the warrant of his political strength as well as his integrity. on the newspaper’s fiftieth anniversary the whig politician hamilton fish, now a united states senator from new york, had written that, “although it has been my lot to differ in my views of many of the important questions which it has discussed from those which the post has advanced, i have always admired the force, the ability & the fearlessness with which it has maintained its own views. i have appreciated the honesty with which it adopted those views however differing from my own.” 713. to john g. chapman new york. january 10 1850. my dear sir. i send you an appletree by [asher] durand which he copied from one of his studies, a little modified for the occasion. if you should see that it wants any further change, you of course are padrone [boss] as the italians say and can adapt it to your purpose. it is a fine tree, and an old one.1 along with this i send a daguerreotype likeness of myself in profile. it was not practicable to get a daguerreotype of the bust without a great deal of trouble, and the transportation of the bust to some distance. the daguerreotype takers would not carry their instruments to it for the reason that it was liable to put them out of order.2 the face on this profile is a little inclined towards the spectator, but of course you can make allowance for that. i am glad to learn that you are domiciliated at last in the pleasant city of florence among the remains of ancient art, and under that brilliant sky and in the midst of that picturesque scenery. my regards to mrs. chapman and love to the little ones. yours truly w. c. bryant. manuscript: unrecovered text: century magazine, 50 (july 1895), 321. 1. chapman was apparently then projecting a series of illustrations to accompany bryant’s poem “the planting of the apple tree,” composed in 1849 but unpublished until it appeared in the atlantic monthly in january 1864. at paris bryant had noted on september 12 that he had finished the poem and planned to show it to chapman. “diary, 1849”; poems (1876), pp. 320 323. but by the time bryant saw chapman in rome three years later, the artist had abandoned his project, explaining to the poet that he had “collected materials by different studies and planned several designs but finished none, on account of his engagements and his health.” bryant, “diary, 1852 1853,” may 15, 1853. 2. it is uncertain to which bust bryant refers. that done by henry kirke brown in 1849 (now in nyhs) seems the most likely possibility. the daguerreotype was apparently that which appeared with a facsimile of this letter in the century magazine, 50 (july 1895) [322]. 714. to james fenimore cooper [new york] january 31, 1850. dear sir: i am sorry not to find you in this morning, as i went to ask you to go to mr. leupp’s tomorrow evening, no. 66 amity street, where the sketch club meet, and where you will probably find some of the members of the old lunch, mr. [gulian] verplanck, mr. [asher] durand, and myself certainly, with several others of your acquaintance.1 each member has the right to take any stranger who may be in town, and mr. leupp i know would be offended with me if he knew i had seen or written to you, and did not ask you. i hope you will do us all the favour to come. yrs truly w. c. bryant manuscript: unrecovered text: correspondence of james fenimore cooper, ed. james fenimore cooper (new haven: yale university press, 1922), ii, 655 656. 1. cooper was then staying at the globe hotel at 66 broadway, as he did often when in new york city. cooper, letters & journals, vi, 85, 121. although no reply to bryant’s invitation has been found, the minutes of the sketch club for february 1 indicate that cooper did not attend the meeting at charles leupp’s home that evening. information from james t. callow. 715. to oliver c. gardiner1 new york march 27 1850 dear sir. you desired me to inquire whether there were any places at roslyn to let for the summer or the year. a gentleman, mr. a. w. leggett2 has a little cottage which he would partly furnish and let for $80. it has a garden. there is another house, intended for two families having two kitchens, a very large house and finely situated, which without any furniture might be had for from 75 to 100 dollars, with garden &c. yrs truly w. c bryant3 manuscript: hehl. 1. oliver cromwell gardiner (642.1) had written a study of the free soil movement which was published in 1848 under the imprint of w. c. bryant and company, entitled the great issue; or, the three presidential candidates; being a brief historical sketch of the free soil question in the united states from the congresses of 1774 and ’87 to the present time. 2. augustus w. leggett; see 648.2. 3. no reply to this letter has been found, but it is evident in a letter from nathaniel hawthorne to gardiner dated at salem on april 3, 1850, that gardiner had undertaken to find a summer home for the novelist, who had just published the scarlet letter. hawthorne wrote him, “sometime before your letter reached me, i had engaged a house at lenox [massachusetts]; otherwise, i think i should have been tempted by the cheapness of the rents, and other desirabilities, at roslyn.” ms in st. lawrence university library. 716. to frances f. bryant new york thursday march 28, 1850. my dear frances. after i left you on wednesday morning i recollected, to my great vexation, that i did not make you promise to write. you will write, however, i am sure. i am anxious to know whether you made your journey comfortably in this storm1 for though it did not snow much the day you left us, the snow began to fall some time last night and has fallen all the morning till now about two o’clock. i bought an umbrella yesterday as a protection, and when i got home julia informed me that one of the missing ones had been discovered at mrs. gibson’s. it was brought to me in the afternoon, and proved to be the brown gingham one; the other i fear is too valuable to be found. it was precisely seven o’clock and no more, when the coachman set me down yesterday at my door in greene street. i breakfasted and went to the doctor’s. he did nothing, but gave me another dose of medicine and bid me call in the evening when he would puncture the gum. in the evening i called again another dose of medicine and a direction to call this morning. the pain left me last evening and i had a comfortable night, and a long sleep. when i called on gray this morning he told me that the tooth would now take care of itself and declined making any incision. fanny was not quite so well yesterday as usual, but today she is better again. this morning the whole testimony in the forrest case is published in the herald. there is a bill before the pennsylvania senate for giving the circuit court of the state, authority to hear and decide the suit for a divorce. on the question of passing this bill, the votes stood 16 to 16; so the bill was lost. but mr. parker one of the members moved a reconsideration of the vote, and the question will come up again. before taking the vote the affidavits and other documents were read in open senate. probably some of the other papers here, the sunday papers certainly, will publish the testimony. i must get a copy and send you.2 now, you will not neglect to write. if you do, i must see what i can do by stopping supplies, that is, newspapers &c. this morning a letter from dr. tobey of rochester came for you. remember me kindly to all our friends in bloomfield, rochester and elsewhere. yours affectionately wm c. bryant. manuscript: nypl gr. 1. frances was then on a brief visit to her relatives in western new york state, returning within the week. see letter 718. 2. a “proposed agreement,” drafted in bryant’s handwriting, indicates that he tried, about this time, to arrange an amicable separation between edwin forrest and catherine sinclair forrest, an effort which he later wrote william gilmore simms was broken off. see 665.3; letter 760. 717. to orville dewey roslyn, march 29, 1850. … your letter was read by me to the sketch club, at mr. william kemble’s,1 a fortnight ago last evening, and received with clapping of hands. all expressed their satisfaction at the invitation, and all are coming.2 how many will come you will probably know on the day appointed. the secretary made a note of it in due form. i offered to add something to the letter by way of commentary or explanation, but not a word was i allowed to say; the members were so well pleased with the letter they would suffer nothing to take the taste of it out of their mouths. with mr. durand i have especially conferred, and mr. durand has specially promised to be one of the party. now, i really hope that you will see that the country is in its best trim on the occasion; that there be no late frosts to spoil the freshness of early summer, that just at the time the roads be in good order, the weather fair and not too hot or too cold, and the atmosphere reasonably clear. it will not be amiss if there should have been a pretty copious shower the night before, just to lay the dust. i mention these things because you who live in the country are very apt to fall into the habit of taking them as they come, and neglect them very much.… manuscript: unrecovered text (partial): life, ii, 52. 1. william kemble (1795? 1881), a sketch club member then living at 24 beach street, was a founder of the century association and an amateur member of the national academy. he was the secretary of the west point foundry, with offices at 79 west street. kemble was a generous patron of american artists. nad exhibition record, i, 274; ii, 296. further information from james t. callow. 2. dewey had written bryant on february 25 asking him to relay an invitation to sketch club members to meet at the dewey home in sheffield, massachusetts, on june 19, and proposing that they pass the following day “among the mountains, seeing bash pish [falls] and, if possible, the salisbury.” quoted in autobiography and letters of orville dewey, dd., ed. mary e. dewey (boston, 1884), pp. 215 216. however, the surviving minutes of the sketch club do not record a meeting that summer at dewey’s. information from james t. callow. 718. to orville dewey new york april 8, 1850. my dear sir. lest you should rashly enter into some other engagement, i write this to tell you that the academy of design will have its private exhibition on friday or saturday evening next, when the members all hope to see you.1 they have found the trouble of getting into the new gallery and making all the necessary arrangements so great that they have been obliged to post pone the probable day of opening from one time to another, but beyond the times i have mentioned they are resolved it shall not be deferred.2 if i learn any thing more precise in season, i will write you again. if you do not hear from me, however, i hope you will come down on friday which will allow you to be present either on friday or saturday evening. yrs truly w c bryant. p.s. your sister was here yesterday3 very well and in good spirits my wife came back safe and sound at twelve o’clock the other night. regards to all. w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr (draft?) address: rev. o. dewey. 1. a feature of this exhibition was asher durand’s large canvas “landscape scene from ‘thanatopsis,’” introduced in the catalogue by nine lines from bryant’s poem beginning “the hills/rock ribbed and ancient as the sun.…” this painting is now in the metropolitan museum of art. nad exhibition record, i, 139; albert ten eyck gardner and stuart p. feld, american paintings: a catalogue of the collection of the metropolitan museum of art. i. painters born by 1815 (new york: the metropolitan museum of art [1965]), p. 211. 2. in 1849 the national academy occupied a new building on the west side of broadway south of amity street, the cost of which was largely underwritten by charles m. leupp and jonathan sturges. morse exhibition of arts and science presented by national academy of design … january 18 to february 28, 1950 ([new york: national academy of design, 1950]), p. 23. 3. dr. dewey’s unmarried sister jerusha, long a friend of the bryants’, later occupied a cottage on their roslyn property. goddard, roslyn harbor, pp. 70 72. 719. to edward a. stansbury1 new york april 10th. 1850. office of the evening post my dear sir. sometime since a prospectus was issued by the proprietors of this paper at the close of which they offered that if any weekly journal would give it three insertions, the daily edition of the evening post should be sent to it for one year as a compensation. we have since given our prospectus another form and made it considerably longer. with a slight change at the commencement we have made it into a circular, which you will find on the outer leaf of this sheet.2 we have not offered to make the same terms in regard to it as with regard to the other prospectus, but if you will publish it in the burlington courier as many times as you think our paper is worth for one year, we will send you the daily. i have made a slight change in the first sentence of the paper, to adapt it to the purpose of an advertisement and have ordered the daily evng post to be sent to the address of the burlington courier. yrs truly wm c. bryant manuscript: duu address: e. a. stansbury esq. 1. edward a. stansbury (1817? 1873), a journalist who for some time practiced law in new york, was then apparently editing the burlington, vermont, courier, a free soil weekly. franklin b. hough, american biographical notes … (albany, 1875), p. 375. 2. unrecovered. 720. to john ellis wool1 new york april 15, 1850. my dear sir. i am sorry that i have missed your communications on account of my supposed absence from the paper. the article from the kentucky paper you will see i have inserted in the evening post.2 in looking it over this afternoon i find that some typographical errors have crept into it which are to be amended in the edition for the country. it does you what i believe will be acknowledged to be no more than bare justice. as to the proper time for the appearance of the history of the battle of buena vista, i am rather inclined to think with such of your friends as advise a postponement of it. it is very likely that the period will by and by arrive when there will be less objection on the part of many to see a full and impartial discussion of the degree of credit due to the different commanders on that occasion than there now is, and there certainly is less bigotry now in regard to general taylor than there was a year or two since.3 yrs truly wm c. bryant manuscript: uva address: genl jno e. wool. 1. see 563.3. 2. “general wool in mexico,” ep, april 15, 1850. 3. general wool, whose “celerity and efficiency were largely responsible for the victory of buena vista,” fought between americans and mexicans on february 22 23, 1847, was later given a sword and the thanks of the united states congress for his “skill, enterprise and courage” in that battle (dictionary of american biography). in the article cited by bryant, a former officer under wool’s command wrote, “[zachary] taylor and [winfield] scott and wool are the leading heroes of this war. the first two we have seen, as party dictated, raised or depressed, while the latter, because separate from party factions, has failed to receive that just meed which is his due.” in 1848 scott had failed to win the whig presidential nomination from taylor, who had gone on to win the presidency. 721. to cyrus bryant new york april 22 1850. dear brother. when i went the other day to see to the stopping of merry’s museum1 they told me that it had been paid for in advance for some time to come, and would be stopped, according to the usage of the proprietors, as soon as the term was out. they only forward the periodical to those who pay in advance. as to holden’s magazine,2 it is not exactly the thing, but i do not know of any dollar magazine which is. chambers’s edinburg[h] magazine3 is much better but it is dearer. i am publishing a book, as i suppose you know. it will contain such letters as i wrote last summer, there were four of them in all for the evening post. i am mistaken one of them, a merely political letter is omitted.5 it will contain besides, those from cuba, those from florida and the other parts of the south; a dozen or thereabouts from the west, and those written and published during my other two visits to europe, together with a few which have not before been printed. i expect it will be out in a day or two. you mention my voyage to europe. i was absent four months and one week. i saw some parts of scotland which i had not visited before, besides the shetlands; made a second visit to holland and to munich in bavaria, saw the northern cities of switzerland for the first time, climbed the righi and returned by the way of geneva and lyons to paris. with the exception of two or three of the first weeks in england, when i had the prevailing complaint, the diarrhoea, and was obliged to consult a physician a homoeopathic one of course, dr. laurie6 my health was exceedingly good, and towards the end of my absence, i became almost, as it seemed to me, incapable of fatigue. our family are all well. i write this at roslyn though i have dated it, from habit, at new york, where i expect to be tomorrow, and where this will be mailed. the weather just begins to be spring like; it has been extremely cold for the whole month hitherto, a harsh temperature, with strong north west winds. the peach trees are generally in bloom before this time, and my apricots have put out their flowers in some seasons nearly a month earlier, but not a blossom has yet shown itself. please hand the accompanying letter to john.7 my regards to your wife and to the young gentlemen. frances desires to be kindly remembered by you all. yrs affectionately w c bryant. manuscript: bchs address: to cyrus bryant esq. 1. see 413.5. 2. holden’s dollar magazine, a monthly published in new york, 1848 1851. 3. chambers’s edinburgh journal, 1832 1853. 4. the ep offices had recently been moved from 18 nassau street to larger quarters on the corner of nassau and liberty streets, with a new steam driven hoe press which facilitated the printing of larger sheets and greater daily runs. from this time on the paper’s circulation steadily increased. nevins, evening post, pp. 236 237; ep, march 22, 1847. 5. letters 688, 690, 703, 705. the last of these was not reprinted in lt i. 6. see 687.4. 7. letter 722. 722. to john howard bryant new york april 22, 1850. dear brother, before this time i suppose you have my wife’s letter, which i hope has convinced you that we had not quite forgotten you in this quarter. it was written i believe about the same time with yours to me. with regard to my land, i am in no hurry to sell it. say to those who call upon you, if you please, that i do not care to part with it at present. i should like, however, by and by, when you and mr. olds are ready, to build another house upon the lot in the village which is now vacant. the payments from galer,1 who seems to be of the class of slow [coaches?], might be applied to that purpose, if he is ever to pay any thing more, and if any additional cash is necessary i might advance it. i should have answered your letter2 earlier, but that i was in town when it arrived and my notes of hand and other papers were in the country, so that i could not give you the information you desired. your note is dated june 1, 1848, and is for five hundred dollars with seven per cent interest. there is an endorsement of which the following is a copy. “recd. on this note dec. 1, 1848, two hundred and forty one dollars and one cent in building a stable and addition to a house. $241.01.” from this i suppose you will be able to ascertain what you did with the wheat received from galer in the year 1848. i shall be glad to receive the statement you speak of as soon as may suit your convenience to send it, and shall be obliged to you if you will consult with mr. olds and see if you can do any thing about building me another house. i suppose it ought to be a better one than the one built upon the other lot, inasmuch as the lot is in a more conspicuous situation, but on this point i desire your advice. we are all quite well, my wife in better health than usual, and julia too i believe. a few weeks ago i was nearly killed by a gumbile. our poor aunt mrs. fish3 died of a similar complaint in november, and i did not hear of it till the other day when i received a letter containing the history of her last moments from elisha. the younger mrs. rankin4 is now at brooklyn for medical advice. she visited aunt charity last summer and found her and miss drake in comfortable health; much more so than formerly. they had given up their habit of tea drinking, in which they once indulged immoderately, and were greatly better for the reformation. edwin bryant has lately returned from california, where he has made money by the rise in real estate, which he owned at the time of his first visit to the country. we have just broken up our winter quarters in town and transplanted ourselves to the country later than usual but the season is late. we have had a very mild and pleasant winter; february as mild as april usually is, and more calm; but march has been colder, and april has been until now worse than march. i am getting out a book, made up of my letters written during my travels, for the evening post, together with a few from the manuscript. it should have been out before this but for the delay of the printer.  remember me to your wife and boys. frances desires her kind regards to you all. yrs affectionately w. c. bryant manuscript: nypl bfp address: john h. bryant esq./princeton/bureau county/illinois. 1. see 597.7. for justin h. olds, see 520.1. 2. unrecovered. 3. see 723.2. 4. see 772.2. 723. to elisha s. fish1 roslyn long island april 22 1850. dear cousin. i thank you for the interesting account you gave me of the last moments of my excellent aunt.2 the news of her death i had not received before. it must have been a great consolation to you all that her departure was so calm and happy, and that she went to her rest in christian hope. to me she always appeared to be one of those who “possess their souls in patience,”3 a person “of a meek and quiet spirit”4 and it seems fitting that so serene a death should crown a life which had always been so submissive to providence. she had reached a patriarchal age, the age at which or about which the ancient prophets and leaders of israel were allowed to depart. the period of probation and discipline which belongs to the natural term of human life was fully completed more than completed in her case, she had passed through all the stages of education for another state of being, and so far as that may assist in giving maturity to the powers of the soul, was fitted for the employments of the future life by all the preparation which this life could afford her.  i am glad to hear in other respects of your continued welfare, and of the health of your family. you ought certainly to be healthy if a rational mode of living, conformed to the laws which god has established for the maintenance of the bodily powers in their vigour can make you so. i hope also that your affairs are prosperous. my wife and i often speak of our visit to your place, and remember it with pleasure. whether we ever repeat it or not, it is something to have made it, and for my part i remember the two or three days i passed there with a peculiar vividness. we shall all be glad to see yourself and mrs. fish and your daughters here, and will show you long island and make you as comfortable as it is in our power to do. i write this at roslyn on long island to which i have just come with my wife and where i am passing four or five days, getting our garden in order, and looking to our little place. but if you write to me, my proper address is always new york, to which you know all letters come more directly and speedily than to such a little place as this. julia is still at new york engaged in her studies. it was a great pleasure to hear from you through your daughters, in their joint letter to julia. she has often talked of answering it, and i shall have to scold her seriously if she defers it much longer. with regard to david nelson harris i do not know that i can get the information you desire without going to staten island,5 which is something of an expedition, but if i can learn any thing about him by any shorter process i will write to you again. remember me kindly to your wife and daughters, and to your sisters and to your brother if he is with you. my wife desires love to you all. yours w c bryant manuscript: nypl gr (draft) address: to my cousin elisha s. fish. 1. see letters 472, 465. 2. this was apparently sarah snell bryant’s elder sister, abigail snell fish (b. 1764), the mother of elisha s. fish. see sarah snell bryant to cullen bryant, june 12, 1833, nypl gr. 3. luke 21:19. 4. i peter 3:4. 5. harris is unidentified. 724. to leonice m. s. moulton new york may 21. 1850 … i send you along with this a copy of my letters1 which i am glad to learn that you are disposed to receive so graciously. the report which you mention as affecting my good name, does not disturb me. it is true enough that when i am at work in the garden i like to have mrs. bryant at my side, not on account of my ignorance of the proper method of putting seeds into the ground, but for two other reasons. in the first place, i do not like to work in the garden alone. in the second place and i am partly indebted to you for the discovery of the fact i must do as my wife says, and how could that be if i had not her at hand to direct me. in this chilly weather i suppose you do not regret your return to the city. yet the cool days and nights have given a long blooming time to the fruit trees, and with your keen enjoyment of the beautiful in nature, you could endure some inclemency of the weather for its sake.…2 manuscript: ridgely family collection text: hoyt, “bryant correspondence (i),” 64. 1. lt i. 2. the salutation, complimentary close, and signature have been deleted from the printed text. 725. to frances f. bryant new york wednesday june 12th 1850. dear frances. i found this morning a letter from mrs. hinckley1 for you, informing you that her daughter was now really recovering. ellen she did not engage, having already made arrangements with another servant. the letter enquires anxiously about your health. in the course of the morning mr. [jonathan] sturges called and confirmed the account of miss hinckley’s improved health. i had a call from another visitor, your cousin elvira fairchild, now mrs. hallett and a widow. she and her husband lived for some time among the shakers, where he died, and with whom she remained till she got tired of them, and came away. she was in pursuit of her brother edward who owes her fifty dollars, but he has removed from brooklyn into the state of new jersey, nobody knows to what particular place, and so she can neither find him nor the money. he has a son edward somewhere in town a clerk with somebody but she does not know with whom. i recommended that she should write a note to him through the post office. she is, as formerly, anxious for a situation, and would for the present assist in the care of any respectable family for her board, until a situation can be had. she inquired whether there was any vacancy in our family. possibly she may come out to roslyn yet. yours ever w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr. 1. possibly eliza h. hinckley, who kept a boardinghouse at 2 clinton place. rode’s new york city directory for 1850 1851, p. 244. 726. to richard h. dana roslyn, july 4th, 1850. dear dana. it is long since i have heard from you. i hope you are so comfortable somewhere, in this hot weather, that you have no occasion to go far either for occupation or entertainment, and therefore need not trouble yourself about your friends at a distance. i have been passing a few days at my place on long island, and tomorrow must go back, to the town the foul, hot, noisy town. how it will smell of the tons of gunpowder that have been burnt in it today! i hear the thunder of its guns even here, but it does not disturb the birds. the fire bird and the song sparrow have been singing all day among my locusts and horse chestnuts in spite of it. we have quite given the world the go by today. we have been no further than the garden, from the foot of which we saw in the morning, a sloop go down the bay, with a fiddle on board, and a score of young women in sunbonnets. nobody has been to see us but a little boy of two years old, whom at his particular desire i took to the barn to see the pigs and chickens, and whom i was obliged to refresh with a liberal handful of cherries which i climbed the tree to gather. between eleven and twelve o’clock i had rather a sweltering time in the garden gathering the first of the raspberries and the last of the strawberries. if we had a quiet friend or two like yourself, the day, i know, would pass more agreeably, but we get a good deal of contentment from it, as it is. and it is not wishing you any great ill luck to wish you here, for the temperature all day has been delightful, and since two o’clock it is now four a fresh breeze has sprung up, full of spirit which is now bringing in at the windows the scent of the flowers of early summer and some faint odour of the hayfields. if you care for sea bathing, the tide is swelling up, and when it meets the grass, i think i shall take a plunge myself. a copy of my letters of a traveller was sent to you some time since, from putnam’s who is my bookseller, and who seems to be a very well behaved man in his vocation. i hope you got it. you are the instigator of its publication, and if it be a bad book must bear your share of the blame.1 i know very well that it is light matter, and that the world would be no wiser if it were to get it by heart, but i hope it will do no harm. it is a tolerably good book in the bookseller’s sense of the phrase, for it sells pretty well. the periodical press has been civil to it, and raymond of the courier had the magnanimity to set the example of commending the style.2 does it not make one egotistical to write letters? i am sure you must suspect this to be the case when you read mine. it was well done of your son to give the world mr. allston’s lectures and poems.3 we wanted another edition of his poems which have been long out of print, and the lectures were needed by our artists and our judges of art, to teach them how to think on such subjects, how to look at nature and how to compare nature with the representations of her on canvass. this place is very beautiful just now. i think i never saw its vegetation so rich. shall we never see you here again? my wife wants another chance to try to make you comfortable. she desires to be very kindly remembered. our regards to your daughter and sisters. mrs. ripley4 is passing the 4th in this neighbourhood and is to take tea at fanny’s this afternoon. yours faithfully wm c. bryant. manuscript: nypl gr (draft and final) endorsed: wm c. bryant, july 4/50/ans. july 31st. published (in part): life, ii, 52 53. 1. see letter 710. 2. henry jarvis raymond (1820 1869, vermont 1840), once horace greeley’s chief assistant on the new york tribune, and since 1843 editor of another whig paper, the morning courier, would become in 1851 a joint founder with george jones (1811 1891) of the new york times. 3. washington allston, lectures on art, and poems …, ed. r. h. dana, jr. (new york, 1850). 4. probably the wife of rev. george ripley (1802 1880, harvard 1823), first president of brook farm, a communal colony at west roxbury, massachusetts, and since 1849 literary critic of the new york tribune. in 1847 parke godwin had succeeded ripley as editor of the harbinger, socialistic organ of the colony. 727. to frances f. bryant new york july 30, 1850 dear frances. yesterday and today were so hot that i am fairly parboiled in my own perspiration. i went over to dr. gray’s last evening as soon as the sun was fairly down and conveyed your message. at present it is dr. gray’s plan to come out on friday in his carriage, in which case he will not bring a nurse, but all the children. i shall send to mrs. forrest’s the parcel you left. there is an old umbrella in my room, very much “dilapidated” as miss robbins would say. did you leave it there? if so what shall i do with it whither is it to be sent? if i have a failing in the world, it is a desire to return umbrellas. i cannot bear to see a strange umbrella on my premises particularly an old one. miss sands1 will get the pine apples for friday when i shall come down, but they have grown scarce she says. it would have been better if i had got them last week. yrs ever w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr address: mrs. frances f. bryant/roslyn/long island. 1. julia m. sands. see 203.10. 728. to frances f. bryant [c. august 1, 1850] dear f. i got some tools at newbould’s1 this morning which will come in the sloop. as most of the ones i wanted were in a tool chest which he had, i thought i would get the chest. i shall bring the key. i met mr. lawson today in the street; we shook hands very cordially.2 sherwood3 called this morning. he has just returned from barrington. all our friends there, he says, are well. mr. bigelow is here today;4 so that i can come out tomorrow if i think fit. yrs ever w c b p.s. do not forget to take care of the plums and peaches if there are any. w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr address: mrs. f. f. bryant/roslyn/long island. 1. probably john a. newbould, of newbould & russell, hardware, 13 gold street. rode’s new york city directory for 1850 1851, p. 380. 2. no reason is apparent for the estrangement between bryant and james lawson which is suggested here. 3. william sherwood. see 100.9. 4. see letter 730. 729. to frances f. bryant new york tuesday august 6, 1850. dear f. i copy mrs. ver bryck’s1 letter. “my dear mrs. bryant. i was very sorry to miss both the visits of your kind husband, particularly as he could have no definite answer to his errand. most happy will i be to accompany you to catskill. as you leave the naming of the day to me, i will mention thursday. i should like to hear how you go. if you have any time to spare mother will be glad to have you come directly to pierrepont street from roslyn. had you not better inform mrs. cole2 of our intention, as her family is sometimes large. “for several days we have all been occupied with the last sickness of mr. huntington’s father.3 he was released on saturday last and buried yesterday. the family are well but weary. as soon as possible they will now leave town. i trust you have all kept well. remember me very kindly to mr. bryant and your daughters. if any other day would be more agreeable to you, just name it to your attached friend. s. e. ver bryck monday noon august 5th. [”] [over]4 i have written to mrs. ver bryck that it was doubtful if you could go any day this week and gave her the reason. yesterday i had a letter from dr. dickson.5 he has shipped he says a barrel of rice for us. they are quite well but suffering from the heat. godwin went away yesterday morning, to be absent the whole week. yours ever w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr address: mrs. f. f. bryant/roslyn/long island. 1. widow of the artist cornelius ver bryck. see 486.1. 2. maria bartow cole, widow of the artist thomas cole. see 647.3. 3. father of the painter daniel huntington. see 499.3. 4. bryant’s note. 5. samuel henry dickson. see 646.3. 730. to leonice m. s. moulton new york august 7 1850 my dear mrs. m. you recollect perhaps the story of him who in a letter apologizes to a lady for writing to her in his shirt sleeves. the weather is now so warm that i am committing an indecorum of a like kind i write without a cravat and a shirt or shoes. it is hot hot hot continually the thermometer in my room in new york always as high as eighty for the last ten days and often higher. hanging against the wall for several days past, at five o’clock this morning was at 84, and now at six in the afternoon in a current of air in the window it stands at 85. you ask for news from my wife. she is quite well, much cumbered with seeing of company, and bathing every day in the harbour. she had been to pay a visit to some friends in berkshire where julia now is, and she is soon to go with mrs. ver bryck and myself to catskill. fanny is well and her children are healthy bonny and good tempered. i have been pent up in the town all summer mr. bigelow got married in the beginning of june and took a honeymoon of two months, the [experience?] of the greater part of which was passed at rye beach somewhere on the new england coast where the weather was so cool so cold they called it, as to allow of their very soon being quite social.1 the order for … 2 came to hand and the damascus peas also. i planted them duly and duly they came up, and blossomed and bore fruit. the plants are about three inches in height, with small narrow pinnacle leaves, and of the pods some contain a single pea and some none at all. i fancy they should have been planted earlier but really they are the most insignificant crop i ever saw and appear little worth bringing all the way from damascus. however i shall try to preserve the seed that when you again become a farmer you may have wherewith to sow your fields. i am glad to hear that you are become such a jehu or to give it a feminine termination such a jehua such a driver of steeds in harness3 so expert a charioteer that the most timid female may trust herself to your charge. you should be in roslyn now to astonish your old acquaintances with your dexterity as a whip roslyn which is as green and fresh as if it decked itself out in [decent?] expectation of your presence. i think i have never known so [luxuriant?] a summer on the island or a more well proportioned alternation of showers and sunshine. just now a thunder storm is rising and the mighty wind is on hand to the right and left, and the tree tops on the streets are tossing in the wind and a romantic youth in long hair and a linen sack coat is standing on the top of a chimney on the house opposite looking into the wind’s eye. it is a dull summer here in new york. the heat has driven every body out of town, and i have been at roslyn less than usual. you i doubt not have had a delightful time at meadow side. your plan of life is perfectly captivating all but washing at the pump i must have pails, tubs floods of water in my chamber but then i would cheerfully draw the water and empty what is called the “slops.” do not however i pray you become so independent that it will cost you a great effort to return to civilized life. have you read rural hours by miss cooper a daughter of fenimore cooper[?] it is the most charming book i have read for a long time.4 it would suit your taste exactly all the objects of country life as they present themselves daily throughout the year are made the subject of pleasant notices full of knowledge and good sense and good taste and kindly feeling. you must read it if you do not see it earlier, it will be a treat for you when you come to roslyn  my letter is ended. i have given you ten times the quantity of phrase which your note to me contained yours had the advantage in quality i confess, but that you could not help, so you must claim no merit on that account. i should like to get a chronicle of your adventures at meadow side. my wife i doubt not would send her love if she were here. yours faithfully w c b. manuscript: nypl gr (draft) endorsed (by bryant): my letter. 1. on june 11, 1850, john bigelow married, in baltimore, jane poultney (1829 1889), formerly of that city and lately of new york. after a honeymoon spent at niagara falls and traveling through canada, the couple occupied rooms on fourth street, new york city. margaret clapp, forgotten first citizen: john bigelow (boston: little, brown, 1947), pp. 85 86, 334. 2. several words illegible. 3. cf. ii kings 9:20. 4. susan fenimore cooper (1813 1894), rural hours (new york, 1850). several months later cooper exulted to his wife, “i wish you could have heard bryant last night, on r[ural] h[ours]. ‘yes’ said i ‘it is a nice book’ ‘pooh!’ he answered ‘it is a great book the greatest of the season, and a credit to the country!’ was not my heart glad!” cooper, letters & journals, vi, 237. 731. to george bancroft wednesday august 14 1850. dear bancroft. you could hardly take a pleasanter excursion than the one you propose. the best way to reach the [delaware] water gap is by the new jersey central railroad which leaves new york at 9 in the morning from the foot of cortlandt street. at a place called white house not far from easton are stage coaches to take passengers to easton to wilkesbarre to bethlehem and the water gap. bethlehem is an interesting place, a moravian settlement you know founded by loskiel,1 episcopus fratrum a little more than a hundred years since, on the pleasant banks of the lehigh, with vineyards on the declivities. here they speak the best german in america. nazareth in the neighbourhood is another moravian village of a characteristic appearance. of wilkesbarre i can tell you nothing but you should see bethlehem. you might go by the way of easton and return by the way of schooley’s mountain and morristown.2 yrs truly w c bryant. manuscript: mhs. 1. george henry loskiel (1740 1814), russian born bishop of the moravian church, who came to bethlehem, pennsylvania, in 1802, in the year of his consecration. bethlehem was first settled in 1740 1741. 2. bryant’s visits to this area in 1840 and 1846 are recounted in letters 384 and 604 605. 732. to john howard bryant new york august 30, 1850 dear brother. i thank you for the statement you have given me of my account with you. i wish i had mentioned to you that i should be glad to know how many bushels of wheat you had received from galer at different times and what price the wheat brought in market, in order that i might judge what sort of bargain i made in selling him the land. i should also like to know how much is yet coming to me on his notes. will you be so kind as to inform me when you receive this? with regard to the building of a house, your advice i doubt not is judicious. i do not see, however, that i can send out any money for the purpose this fall money is not so plentiful with me as that. i have been in hopes that galer would pay enough on his interest to buy the timber for the building. [if this] cannot be done i think the building of the house must go over to another year at least. i had thought of offering you, if you would build the house, the first year’s rent, which i suppose would be about ten per cent of the value. i did not offer any thing for the trouble taken in building the first house because i made an abatement from the interest stipulated in the notes. the terms on which you wish to exchange lands with me i am not sure that i perfectly understand. i have no objection to any arrangement of that kind however, on fair business principles. if you will give me for my lands near the village lands the same value in lands elsewhere within reasonable distance, i am content, and i am willing that mr. olds shall say what amount of land i shall take for what i transfer to you. the monument for our mother’s grave certainly ought to be attended to, and i take shame to myself that it has been so long neglected. i must see for what a simple monument of good marble can be had and order it to be made. i have not at hand the memorandum of the day of her death,1 though i have i believe that of her birth. will you send it to me? i had entertained some thoughts before you wrote of coming out to illinois in the last half of september. if i do, i shall bring out my wife with me, but it is very uncertain yet. i thank you however, and so does my wife for your hospitable invitation. the plum trees you sent me succeeded very well and make flourishing little trees. of the gooseberry cuttings some appeared to take root: they put forth leaves, but last winter the frost threw them nearly out of the ground, and the spring rains, while i was absent in town, washing away the earth completed the mischief. one only yet maintains a starving existence with two or three little leaves but it must inevitably die. i should like more of the gooseberry cuttings this fall. you do not say whether you have tried any [em?] or [eledie’s?] for the hurt on your shoulder. if you have not you should try [elius?]. perhaps there are some other remedies.2 we are all well my wife is at [our] place in roslyn and julia on staten island and fanny with her children at her cottage by the water where they have the benefit of a dip now and then in the salt water which keeps them strong and hearty. part of the summer has been uncommonly hot, but it is now rather cooler than usual. last week i took my wife and julia to easthampton and montauk point, the eastern extremity of long island. easthampton consists of large ancient houses and green level ground, with a ridge of sand hills on the sea shore and a belt of sandy woods on the other three sides. montauk point is a peninsula of grassy hills bare of trees, pastured by cattle, and separated from the rest of the island by an isthmus of sand. it is very cool in the summer time and the sea views are very fine. remember me kindly to your wife and boys and to all our friends in your neighborhood. yrs affectionately, w. c. bryant manuscript: mrs. mildred bryant kussmaul, brockton, massachusetts address: j. h. bryant esq. 1. sarah snell bryant had died in illinois on may 6, 1847. see letter 617. 2. as bryant wrote them, the names of these homoeopathic medicines are virtually illegible. 733. to eliza robbins [new york? c. august 1850] my dear miss robbins  my wife is perpetually asking me why i do not write to you “so here goes” as the cant phrase is. i have two things, however, on my mind which would be sufficient reason for writing if i were not the laziest man in the world. one is to ask how you find yourself how you are getting on whether you are getting well as fast as you ought, and in the meantime whether you are passing the days of your convalescence as pleasantly and happily as one could wish. we can hear little of you from any one that we see. your friends here with whom you are intimate can tell us nothing about you, and i suppose you write to nobody except by special request. we have just heard from mrs. moulton who made several attempts to see you but always called when you were out.  the next matter on which i have to speak to you is to tell you that i sent to boston to your address a copy of my letters of a traveller.1 have you got it? i find it is at some of the boston booksellers for you. that is all. news i have little to give you. and at this present writing my wife and fanny and julia and little minna are all in berkshire all well when they went of course. everybody that i know is out of town except miss sands and her mother driven forth by the hot weather, and confounded hot it has been at times i assure you sweltry exceedingly and the city almost an oven sometimes at night, and by day fuller of all things abominable to sight and smell than i ever saw it before. mr. bigelow is married married about the beginning of june and has gone off taking two whole months to his honeymoon, so much more extravagant has the world gone in these days than formerly, for who is a greater squanderer than he that spends his time? the season in the country has been rather finer than usual the herbage always fresh and the shades thicker than usual the trees were [loaded absolutely down?] with foliage till the terrible southeast wind came last [month?] with the rain on its [wings?] and [strained?] them and broke the [heavy?] and brittle branches, and [strewed the earth with their spoil?]  would it had been contented with [blowing down trees?]; it has covered our shores with wrecks. you have heard of the sad fate of margaret fuller & young son2 but perhaps …3 manuscript: nypl gr (draft) endorsed (by bryant): my letter / 1850?. 1. see 710.1. 2. sarah margaret fuller, with her husband, angelo ossoli, and infant son, drowned on july 14, 1850, when the ship on which they were returning from italy was wrecked off fire island, new york. see 583.2; goddard, roslyn harbor, pp. 62 63. 3. the rest of the manuscript is unrecovered. 734. to frances f. bryant thursday sept 12, 1850 dear f. mrs. goddard1 died on tuesday morning at mamaroneck of the typhus fever. her son has just called to give me the intelligence. she had been ill eight or ten days and seemed to be getting better until very shortly before she died. dr. wilsey and dr. curtis2 were out to see her a few days before her death and found her in so good a way that they thought it unnecessary to visit her again. the fever seemed to be entirely subdued. on monday she began to sink and rapidly grew worse. the young man said that it was supposed the debility occasioned by her previous low state of health left her no strength to bear up against the disease, and when the fever left her there did not remain suf[f]icient energy in her constitution to carry on the functions of life. i told him i should inform you immediately of the event. mrs. goddard will be buried on saturday from the lower church mr. bellows’s.3 the funeral is postponed that every chance for resuscitation may be allowed. your rage at the article in the paper4 made me laugh heartily. yrs ever w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr address: mrs. f. f. bryant/roslyn/long island endorsed: informing me of the death of elizabeth goddard. 1. elizabeth goddard (mrs. joseph goddard). see 317.6. 2. ferdinand l. wilsey, a physician, of 588 houston street, was apparently a founder of the hahnemann academy of medicine. curtis may have been either a. m. curtis, of 59 grand street, or alva curtis, 43 bowery. see rode’s new york city directory for 1850 1851, pp. 588, 125; leonard paul wershub, one hundred years of medical progress: a history of the new york medical college flower and fifth avenue hospitals (springfield, illinois: charles c. thomas [1967]), p. 16. 3. henry whitney bellows (1814 1882, harvard 1832, harvard divinity school 1837) was minister of the unitarian church of all souls, then at broadway and crosby street, from 1839 to 1882. he was the founder and president of the united states sanitary commission during the civil war, and from 1866 to 1877 edited the christian examiner. 4. unidentified. 735. to [christiana?] gibson1 new york, september 26, 1850. dear miss gibson. do not let the dull weather, if dull it should be, prevent you from going out to roslyn tomorrow. when you make a visit to the country it is better to choose the end of a storm than the end of an interval of fine weather. if you had gone to roslyn yesterday, for example, it would have been a mistake, for you would have arrived just in time to see the beginning of the rain; if you go tomorrow, provided the weather does not clear up in the mean time you will probably arrive just in time to see the end of it, and to enter upon a new lease of fine weather with the earth refreshed, the dust laid, and the roads firm. yrs truly w. c. bryant. manuscript: duu. 1. see 502.3. 736. to hiram powers1 new york october 14th. 1850. dear sir. the bearer of this, theodore sedgwick esq.2 who has a high appreciation of your genius, has desired of me an introduction to you, which i am proud to be able to give him. he goes abroad for his health, with his mother and sister, and with the intention to pass some time in the country [italy] which your residence and that of a few other great men continues to make the principal seat of the fine arts. i need say no more in favour of mr. sedgwick than that he belongs to the family of that name, distinguished for worth and talent, with the reputation of which you are well acquainted. i am sir very truly and respectfully yours william c bryant manuscript: national collection of fine arts, washington, d. c. address: to h. g. powers esq. endorsed: wm c. bryant/14 oct 1850. 1. see 542.3. 2. see 209.8; 475.1. 737. to mrs. richards1 new york, monday october 14th 1850. my dear mrs. richards, i send you in the enclosure with this a note from my wife and two letters for your daughter which reached roslyn after her departure. my wife’s note has something about your going out with me to roslyn on saturday next. i have been obliged to make arrangements for going out on friday. i hope that day will be convenient for you and mrs. verbryck. if it should not there is nothing to make your journey to roslyn on saturday inconvenient without my attendance. you stop at the branch and julian’s stage is always there to bring you to our door. yrs truly w. c. bryant. manuscript: hehl. 1. apparently the sister of mrs. cornelius ver bryck. see 729.1. 738. to parke godwin roslyn october 18, 1850. dear sir. yesterday my niece mrs. mitchell1 of cummington was to come out to this place with me. her husband was to bring her to the south ferry at a quarter past three p.m. where i was to take charge of her. i waited till half past 3 and then crossed over thinking she might be on the other side, but she was not there and i came on without her. they were staying at the american hotel, and he was to set out for boston at 5 the same afternoon. will you do me the favor to call at the hotel as early as you can spare time, and inquire the reason why mrs. mitchell did not come, and let her come out with you. yrs respectfully w c bryant manuscript: nypl gr address: parke godwin esq. 1. ellen theresa shaw mitchell (1822 1891), mrs. clark ward mitchell, was the only child of bryant’s sister sally (mrs. samuel shaw), who died in 1824. see 106.2. 739. to john howard bryant new york october 25, 1850. dear brother. i suppose you have before this given up looking for me this autumn. i thought at first of coming out with my wife, and then, as she did not much like the journey i thought of coming out alone, but i found on reflection, that there was no business to call me very imperatively to illinois, and that the money which i should spend would be very convenient to make some necessary payments with, so i concluded to stay at home. with regard to the land which you wish to exchange, i am willing that you and mr. olds should arrange the matter just as you please; only let me know what you have determined on, and what i am to do in regard to it. i should very much like if you can get the items to have that statement of what money i have had of galer and what is yet coming to me. it would satisfy what i am sure you will consider as a rational curiosity to know how the sale of the land to galer has turned out, whether i have gained or lost by the transaction. there has been a good deal of delay on galer’s part and a good deal of inconvenience occasioned by the delay, and if the wheat has not brought good prices, the bargain is nothing to brag of. we have passed rather a pleasant and quite a healthy summer. part of the time the weather was quite hot, but always showery, and the earth green, and the woods thick with foliage. we had frequent thunderstorms, and several violent gales of wind, one of which did considerable mischief to me by shaking off my apples, which are not very abundant on long island this year. we had large crops of hay good crops of wheat and corn, and excellent potatoes, but little injured by the disease, which in some parts, on the mainland has done considerable damage. the cherries this year were particularly abundant the strawberries very fine and lasted long, the raspberries almost equally good, the summer pears abundant and [watery?], the later pears good for nothing; the peaches on long island poor and ripening early; but in new jersey and elsewhere plentiful to a degree i never knew before though not of so good a flavor i think, as usual. the autumn thus far has been uncommonly fine, a warm sunshiny september, a still more sunny october, and great brilliancy of color in the woods, owing i suppose to the strong summer heats, which brought on the old age of the leaf before the frosts. we have had no severe frosts yet. in september, the latter part of the month, we made an excursion to the east end of the island visiting easthampton, a level country, of fields of heavy loam in the midst of sandy woods, inhabited by a primitive race of people much like the new englanders. from this place we went to montauk point the extreme eastern end of the island, a hilly region of hard loam, with cliffs of gravel forming its shore. there are scarce any trees on the point which is nine or ten miles long, and is almost all pasturage, with eight or ten indian houses on it, and three inhabited by white people, the keepers of the herds, besides the house of the keeper of the light house. it is a great place for fishing. we have all been quite well during the greater part of the time. my family are yet on long island and will probably remain there till december. ellen shaw or mitchell has been with us a few days. her husband brought her down to my house on long island on saturday last and she came away yesterday, thursday. she is in quite delicate health, but her lungs are apparently sound. if she should sink under ill health it will not be consumption that kills her but frequent child births. she has had [four?] children, the last died in infancy. the short visit she made us improved her looks. she told me that deacon briggs1 had been two years an inhabitant of lanesborough. remember me kindly to your wife and the boys and to all my friends in princeton. yours affectionately w. c. bryant. p. s. please give the letter which comes with this to cyrus2 w. c. b. manuscript: nypl bfp address: john h. bryant esq. published (in part): life, ii, 54. 1. probably james l. briggs, formerly of cummington. see 224.1. 2. letter unrecovered. 740. to frances f. bryant new york wednesday, october 30, 1850. dear f. dorothea lisner1 called this morning, and will go down on saturday to roslyn. miss robbins called also and will go down the same day she thinks. there was a very severe frost last night i perceived as i went to the branch. the grass was white with the hoar frost, and after i got up the hill near haviland’s i saw ice in the puddles beside the road. twenty people have called to see me this morning, and i believe i should have something more to tell you if i could remember who they were and what they said. the room has been a perfect theatre of chinese shadows.  yrs ever w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr address: mrs. f. f. bryant/roslyn/long island. 1. apparently a prospective housemaid. 741. to frances f. bryant new york, wednesday, november 13th, 1850. dear f. i hope you got the letters sent you yesterday1 informing you that i had seen mr. spring2 and that there was no special inducement for you to leave home. mr. dewey has been here for several days. he came down last week, i think on friday, on purpose to hear jenny lind,3 and staied at mr. lane’s.4 on friday evening he was at leupp’s, and as i heard in fine spirits. he was to return to berkshire yesterday morning and i suppose did so; for i have not seen him. i have a note from mrs. verbryck desiring that i will put her in the way “of procuring a good german servant.” i wish i could with all my heart. yours ever w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr. 1. unrecovered. 2. marcus spring (1810 1874). see 583.2. 3. the swedish soprano jenny lind (1820 1887) had made her spectacular american debut at castle garden, new york city, on september 11, under the management of phineas t. barnum, later the great circus impresario. odell, annals, vi, 83 85. 4. probably david lane (1801 1885), a new york merchant, and a trustee of the unitarian church of all souls. see walter donald kring, liberals among the orthodox: unitarian beginnings in new york city, 1819 1839 (boston: beacon [1974]), pp. 259 260. 742. to frances f. bryant new york november 14, 1850. [thursday.]1 dear f. i wrote the enclosed yesterday, but the newspaper was sent off before i got down stairs. mr. dewey preached here on sunday morning. on tuesday when he got to bridgeport he was called back by a telegraphic dispatch to attend the funeral of ferris pell.3 you will see by the paper that mrs. edmonds the wife of the judge4 is also dead. mr. dewey made a good many apologies to fanny for not coming out to roslyn. we had a pleasant dinner at mr. springs yesterday. the furnace and a fire in the grate the new grate of their parlour made the temperature quite comfortable. by the bye, read the extract from the horticulturist in today’s paper concerning heated rooms. mrs. kirkland was there and mr. brown;5 his wife was not well enough to come. he appeared to be wholly unconscious of the engagement made for him by mr. marquand;6 he had never heard any thing about it. great regret was expressed that you and julia were not there. it was a fine moonlight evening when we returned. we all walked to the ferry and after crossing, the ladies took the omnibus, but i walked home.7 miss cooper has sent in her bill for four weeks and in her moderation has concluded not to take the additional dollar weekly. yrs ever w. c. b. p.s. i think i shall come to roslyn tomorrow. manuscript: nypl gr address: mrs. f. f. bryant/roslyn/long island. 1. the brackets are bryant’s. 2. probably letter 741. 3. ferris pell, a new york lawyer and political writer who had been a close associate of governor de witt clinton (1769 1828). 4. john worth edmonds. see 492.4. 5. probably the sculptor henry kirke brown, a member of the sketch club and the national academy of design, whose marble bust of bryant had been shown at the academy earlier that year. nad exhibition record, i, 54. see letter 561. 6. henry gurdon marquand (1819 1902), a new york banker and art collector, who owned a number of brown’s sculptures, including four which had been exhibited at the national academy the preceding spring. nad exhibition record, i, 54. 7. marcus and rebecca spring then lived on state street in brooklyn. 743. to frances f. bryant new york, wednesday november 27, 1850. dear f. i went to the wedding party last evening at half past nine and was at home again at twenty minutes past ten. the bride behaved as composedly and seemed as much at her ease as if she had been married every day of her life. she is hardly handsome enough to “look sweetly,” as they say of all brides. poor ellery certainly looked as if he had never been married before a spot of bright red on each cheek bone close to the eyes, and the rest of the face quite pale.1 i spoke with mrs. robert sedgwick and miss [catharine] sedgwick and several of the young ladies. mrs. kirkland was there and mr. bellows, and dr. anderson and mr. beckwith and mr. mccracken and alfred pell’s oldest son, now a tall young man, and young men whom i did not know in scores. i saw mr. hackley yesterday. he is afraid he shall figure again in forrest’s affidavit, though he pretends not to care for it. he is evidently tender skinned yet.2 they are making a bishop today. seabury,3 high church, and whitehouse,4 low church, are the candidates. i saw mr. [fenimore] cooper last evening at leupp’s; he is full of the subject and wanted he said to persuade the low church party to support dr. wainwright who is somewhere, in doctrine between seabury and whitehouse.5 yrs ever w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr address: mrs. f. f. bryant/roslyn/long island. 1. the bridal couple were william ellery sedgwick (1825 1873), son of bryant’s late friend robert sedgwick, and constance irving brevoort, daughter of the late henry brevoort (1782 1848), longtime friend of washington irving. cooper, letters & journals, vi, 240; ep, november 30, 1850. 2. for henry james anderson, see 126.1; for alfred pell, 329.7. j. l. n. mccracken was an amateur playwright (cooper, letters & journals, vi, 118). hackley, apparently named in edwin forrest’s divorce, has not been further identified. n. m. beckwith (d. 1887) was a fellow member of the century club. 3. samuel seabury (1801 1872), rector of the episcopal church of the annunciation, new york, 1838 1868. 4. henry john whitehouse (1803 1874, columbia 1821) was then rector of saint thomas’ church in new york. in 1852 he became bishop of illinois. ibid., iii, 340. 5. this conclave was adjourned without agreeing on a choice, but the following year jonathan mayhew wainwright (1792 1854), rector of trinity parish, was consecrated bishop of new york. ibid., vi, 234 241, passim. 744. to frances f. bryant new york december 4th 1850.  dear f. i wrote to you yesterday1 desiring that a bottle of hock in your bedroom closet might be transferred to the cellar. lest you should not have received the note i write again. i sent a letter for julia in the paper with your note.2 do not forget the thermometer nor the lens nor the letters to be answered. if you do not come tomorrow, see that the white raspberry bushes are covered. yours ever w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr address: mrs. f. f. bryant/roslyn/long island. 1. letter unrecovered. 2. unrecovered. 745. to john ellis wool new york february 25th, 1851. my dear sir. i have your letter concerning the payment of my mortgage.1 by friday’s mail i will forward you a check for the amount of principal and interest, dated saturday, march 1st. i am sir yours faithfully w. c. bryant manuscript: nysl address: gen jn° e. wool. 1. see 563.3; letter 747. 746. to john ellis wool new york february 26, 1851. my dear sir. i did not i believe say in my note of yesterday that it was a certified check that i intended to send you on friday. this, however, is what i meant, which will make it the same thing as cash in hand the moment it is received. yours faithfully wm c. bryant manuscript: nysl address: genl jno. e. wool. 747. to john ellis wool new york february 28th 1851. my dear sir. i enclose you my check on the mechanics bank for $3093.78, which is the principal and interest on my mortgage up to march 1st, if i have computed the interest right. the check as you will see by a scrawl on the face is certified at the bank. will you do me the favour to send me the mortgage discharged by mail. i cannot allow this opportunity to pass without thanking you for the courtesy and the disposition to oblige, which you have always shown in the business relations i have had with you. i agree with you that there seems to be little chance at present for any of the “richmonds” in the field. benton you have seen positively declines becoming a candidate in any event his refusal i understand will not be reconsidered. he means to fight his own battle over in missouri.1 the remarks made by you at the troy dinner, as you give them, were quite pertinent and proper. i know very well how much the newspaper reporters, if they have a purpose to serve, are disposed to <put a false> give an unfair turn to words spoken by a public man. i am dear sir yrs truly w c bryant manuscript: nysl (final): nypl gr (draft) address: genl jn° e. wool endorsed: new york feb. 28, 1851./w. c. bryant/to/major genl. wool/enclosing his check/$3093.78. 1. thomas hart benton (1782 1858) had been united states senator from missouri from 1820 until 1850, when he was defeated for re election. in 1852 he was elected to the house of representatives. 748. to cyrus bryant new york march 26, 1851. dear brother, i have just opened again your letter of february 10th,1 the business part of which was attended to as soon as i received it, but there is a question at the end which i have not yet answered. you ask what you shall do with cullen2 keep him at school or set him to work? i would be governed very much by his turn of mind and inclination. we must have somebody in the professions and it is rather a pleasant thing to have one or two of this sort of people among one’s relatives. if he takes to learning and has a decided bent to become a scholar i would indulge him. in this respect the bryants are not apt to be deficient, and i should not wonder if he inherited a fondness for books from the everett side.3 if he does not like to work better than you and i, there is perhaps some ground for fear that he will not distinguish himself in that line. we are all well here my own health is very good, and that of my wife is better than usual this winter. i am making arrangements to go out to my place, for the summer next week. i am obliged to part with the man who has been with me for several years and i have just engaged an irishman in his place, concerning whom i am not wholly free from misgivings, for it is next to impossible to know whether an irishman is good for any thing or not until you have tried him. i am now looking for another man to work with him but i think that one irishman is enough and i am trying for a german or a scotchman. americans are out of the question. i am glad you have undertaken the chemical lectures;4 it will give your people something better to think of and talk about than village scandal, but i suppose they are concluded before this time. if you gave your auditors exhilerating gas, i think you must have drawn better houses than lovejoy.5 my wife desires to be kindly remembered to you and your wife and children, and says that as soon as she gets time she will answer your letter. my regards to all. yrs affectionately w c bryant manuscript: bchs address: cyrus bryant esq./princeton/illinois. 1. unrecovered. 2. cyrus’ third son, cullen (1839 1909, united states military academy 1864). 3. mrs. cyrus bryant had been julia everett of worthington, massachusetts. 4. cyrus, who had lectured on the sciences at george bancroft’s round hill school in northampton, massachusetts, before moving west in 1831, had recently given a course of similar lectures in princeton, illinois. the bryant record for 1895 96 97 98: being the proceedings of the bryant association, at its first four annual reunions, held at princeton, illinois (princeton, illinois, 1898), p. 75. 5. owen lovejoy (1811 1864), an illinois legislator and radical abolitionist, was later a close friend and supporter of abraham lincoln. a united states congressman from 1857 to 1864, he was a younger brother of the anti slavery editor elijah parish lovejoy, whose murder by a pro slavery mob at alton, illinois, in 1837 had prompted bryant to a vigorous defense of freedom of the press. see letter 363; ep, november 18, 1837. 749. to richard h. dana new york april 8th 1851. dear dana. i should have written to you before, but that i could not till now answer one of the material points in your letter.1 i have just installed my wife in her home for the summer at roslyn, and made inquiries about the boarding houses. there is a family near us where i supposed that comfortable lodgings might be had for a reasonable compensation, and which is situated close to the water, where charlotte2 might have taken a plunge twice a day if she pleased. but i learn that they mean not to take boarders this summer one of the daughters intending to be married in june. there is no other good place here within a convenient distance of the salt water. along the shores of the sound, at glen cove and other places are boarding houses, but their terms are five or six dollars a week, most often the latter. dr. bryant thinks highly of sea bathing, and his opinion is confirmed by the experience which your daughter had of its beneficial effect last summer. if you have any doubt of it, come down with her in june and let her try the experiment in the little cove at the foot of my dyke. a fortnight’s trial, i am sure, would determine the question, and then we might see whether there were not a comfortable and quiet place to be found somewhere in the neighbourhood. i read your son’s argument, which certainly was an able one and does him great credit.3 equally great, still greater in my opinion, is the credit due to him for the boldness with which he came forward to do his duty to the uttermost in a matter in which it seemed that there was much to lose and nothing to gain. i am not certain, however, that it will not hereafter appear that what seems only courage, would deserve to be called by those [who] could see the end along with the beginning, the highest policy. let people be convinced that what has been done was not from a love of contention or an itch for notoriety, but from a disinterested determination to decline no duty which his profession might cast upon him, and he will stand far far higher in men’s estimation for his courage. nor will they fail to be convinced of this in time. i suppose you saw the little article i made up concerning channing4 for the evening post from your letter, making use of your own expressions, for which i hope you bear me no grudge. since you wrote i have heard some of his pupils speak of what they owed to him in much the same terms as those you mentioned having heard from a clergyman. cooper is now in town in ill health, a disease of the liver. when i saw him last he was in high health apparently and in excellent spirits. he has grown thin and has an ashy instead of a florid complexion.5 the other night there was an annual supper at the academy of design just before the opening of the exhibition. they toasted [asher] durand the shyest of men, unexpectedly to him, and he answered in a brief speech entirely unpremeditated and simple in manner and phrase, but most happily turned and as they said really affecting. it was allowed to be the best made in the evening.6 remember me very kindly to your sisters and daughter. yrs sincerely wm c. bryant manuscript: nypl gr address: r. h. dana esq. endorsed: wm c. bryant, apr/8/51 answered june 26/51. published (in part): life, ii, 61. 1. unrecovered. 2. dana’s daughter, a semi invalid, was long a friend and frequent guest of the bryants. 3. on february 15 a runaway slave, shadrach, had been seized in boston under the fugitive slave law and taken before united states commissioner b. f. hallet; the same day he was rescued in court by a crowd headed by two negroes, and hastened away. one of his lawyers, a black named davies, was charged with aiding in his escape. davies was represented at his trial on february 20 24 by richard h. dana, jr., whose “argument in behalf of charles g. davies” on february 25 effected his acquittal the next day. dana’s argument was printed in several newspapers at the time, and later in richard henry dana, speeches in stirring times …, ed. richard henry dana, 3d. (boston and new york: houghton, mifflin, 1910), pp. 178 209. see also ep, february 25, 26, 1851; nevins, ordeal, i, 388. 4. edward tyrell channing (54.1), who, as editor of the north american review in 1817 1818 had published bryant’s early verses, retired in 1851 from an outstanding teaching career at harvard. bryant’s article on channing has not been found. 5. james fenimore cooper, ill since the preceding november with a liver ailment, died on september 14, 1851. cooper, letters & journals, vi, 256. 6. with characteristic reticence, bryant does not mention the final toast of the evening, offered by rufus griswold, and reported in the bulletin of the american art union (may 1851), p. 32: “dr. griswold was here called upon. he said he would not make a speech, but he would supply an omission. the greatest of all american artists was absent a man of whom fenimore cooper had said that day in his (dr. griswold’s) presence, ‘however we may be praised, he is the author of america.’” 750. to amasa walker1 new york april 20, 1851. my dear sir. i was absent in the country when your letter2 arrived or i should have written you earlier. i was about to say that i could send nothing for the bazaar, when on opening my desk for a sheet of paper my eye fell upon the lines which i subjoin. i hope this will not reach you too late. yours faithfully, w. c. bryant. from the french. sere leaf, severed from the bough! tell me, whither goest thou? ask me not, the leaf replies; lately was my parent oak smitten by the tempest’s stroke. since that hour, with every gale, soft or strong, that sweeps the skies, i am borne from grove to plain, from the mountain to the vale, wandering wide where’er they blow. yet i fear not nor complain; i but go where all things go, where the rose’s leaf, at last, and the laurel leaf are cast.3 manuscript: ycal, bequest of norman holmes pearson address: hon amasa walker endorsed: boston apl 23/50 [sic]/miss henshaw,/agreeably to your/request i wrote my friend/w. c. bryant for a few/lines for the london ba  /zaar, and have received/in reply the subjoined,/which i trust you will/transmit to our friends/in england in season/for the fair, or, what/would suit me better,/i hope you will go/& be the bearer of/it yourself /yours for human/brotherhood/amasa walker. 1. amasa walker (1799 1875) was a boston shoe merchant, as well as a state legislator and congressman. after his retirement from business he taught political economy at oberlin college, and published several books on economics. bryant had first known him while studying latin, as a boy of fourteen, with his uncle thomas snell in north brookfield, massachusetts. bryant, “autobiography,” life, i, 31. 2. unrecovered. 3. the original verses in french are unidentified. 751. to charles sumner1 new york, april 24, 1851. my dear sir. allow me to add my congratulations to those of mr. bigelow on your success. i am glad that my native state is once more worthily represented in the united states senate. yrs truly w. c. bryant. manuscript: hcl. 1. charles sumner (1811 1874, harvard 1830, harvard law school 1833) entered the united states senate as a free soiler from massachusetts in december 1851. see illustration. john bigelow had written him on april 2, “i will bear your request about mr. bryant’s autograph in mind,” and again on the 23rd, “i have not forgotten your request for the autograph.” both letters in hcl. 752. to leonice m. s. moulton new york april 30, 1851. … i looked among the bridgewater howards and found abigails in abundance it seems to have been a favorite name but none who married a moulton. it may be among the haywards, which name was formerly pronounced howard. i shall look. on sunday, little minna [godwin] was taken with the bilious colic. her nurse being obliged to come to town, i staid to look to the child till yesterday morning. the case was a bad one but i hear, this morning that she is better. i think you must have had a guilty consciousness of running away too soon from roslyn, or you would not have been put to such hard service as you say you were in your dreams, to improve the walks about my place.…1 manuscript: ridgely family collection text: hoyt, “bryant correspondence (i),” 65 address: mrs. l. m. s. moulton, 1 broadway. 1. salutation, complimentary close, and signature omitted from published text. 753. to salmon p. chase1 new york may 12th, 1851. my dear sir. i am sorry not to be able to direct you to any person who would be likely to conduct the paper you propose to establish, in such a manner as would satisfy you.2 it is the most difficult thing in the world to find a man of whom you could say beforehand that he would conduct a political paper with ability, and in conformity with a high standard of morals. sometimes the talent is wanting, sometimes the principles, and sometimes both. some faculties require to be thoroughly drilled in journalism before they have any aptness dexterity or discretion in the work. you free soil democrats in ohio are taking the right course, and will reap, i doubt not, the reward of your firmness directness of purpose and fidelity to principle. here in the state of new york, we are in some confusion. seward, by forcing upon us the question of the nine million loan for enlarging the canal, has created a new issue of a local nature, which, for the present, predominates over every other.3 it will have the effect of uniting the whigs, which was probably intended; it will in a considerable degree, bring together the democrats also. the only friends of the nine million bill among the democrats in this city, are the rankest of the proslavery faction. the free soilers of this state are strictly the economical party and nothing could be more distasteful to them, or bring them out in direct warfare with seward’s friends more effectually than such a project as this loan. here in the city, a good many of the hunker whigs are against the nine million loan, but at albany the register fillmore’s organ for the state4 is vehemently in its favor; the whig party of the city are on the same side, without an exception. we must fight this battle, but we shall not neglect higher and more permanent questions. the controversy concerning slavery will be kept open, and nothing of the zeal of an opposition to the fugitive slave law and the kindred enormities will be abated.5 the enclosure of your letter, one dollar for mr. [skiner?] was safely received and the paper sent to him. i am sir yours faithfully w c bryant manuscript: hspa address: hon s. p. chase. 1. salmon portland chase (1808 1873, dartmouth 1826), a former whig, had been elected united states senator from ohio in 1849 by democrats and free soilers. 3. william henry seward (1801 1872, union 1820), governor of new york from 1839 to 1843, entered the united states senate in 1849. on may 2, 1851, the ep published a pamphlet entitled pay as you go; or, the unconstitutionality of the nine million debt demonstrated, which included letters from prominent democrats samuel j. tilden and john a. dix, as well as an address from twelve democratic state senators who had resigned in april in protest against the senate’s plan to float a large loan to enlarge the erie canal. in editorials on may 1 and 2, under captions reading “the plan to ruin the erie canal,” and “another feature of the nine million loan fraud,” bryant charged that such an expenditure, without a public referendum, would be unconstitutional. however, in 1854 this proposal was put to the voters and carried by an overwhelming margin. nevins, ordeal, ii, 231. 4. millard fillmore (1800 1874) of buffalo, new york, a whig congressman who was elected to the vice presidency in 1848, had succeeded to the presidency in july 1850 upon the death of zachary taylor. the albany register was established in 1849, in opposition to the evening journal, long the champion of the seward thurlow weed faction of the state’s whig party. glyndon g. van deusen, william henry seward (new york: oxford university press, 1967), pp. 132 133. 5. bryant was unremitting in his opposition to the fugitive slave law of 1850. commenting in the ep (october 4, 1851) on riots in syracuse, new york, touched off by “slave catchers,” he called the law “offensive, … revolting. the people feel it to be an impeachment of their manhood” to be asked to help manacle “one who has lived among them the life of an industrious and honest citizen.… the impulse toward freedom is one which no legislature can extinguish or control.” 754. to charles sedgwick1 new york may 30 1851. my dear sir. i expect to leave this place on monday after noon with my wife and perhaps my daughter i cant tell yet and pass a day at great barrington on my way to lenox. this will bring me to your house unless female influence should disturb my arrangements on tuesday evng. in great haste yrs sincerely w c bryant manuscript: ycal address: c. sedgwick esq. 1. see vol. i, 14 15. 755. to charles sedgwick roslyn, long island, june 16, 1851 … i wish you were here just now to enjoy our season of roses and strawberries; you might have your own afterward. i would ask your advice, who are a practical landscape gardener, as to some walks which i am laying out in my woods, and you should decide for me at which point we could have the finest peeps at the water. our neighborhood is now very beautiful; the later summer heats parch and wither the verdure of [our?]1 island. but now one might almost fancy that the clouds had dropped leaves with the rains, and buried us in a flood of foliage. we have nothing here, i acknowledge, like your mountains, with their infinite variety of aspects, the lakes they embosom, and their broad woods a wood, to have its true majesty, must be seen on a mountainside nor have we your swift streams. but what we have you should be welcome to. meantime i entertain myself with comparing the images of beauty presented by the two regions. i am indebted to you and your “amiable family,” as the spanish say, for some of the finest landscapes in the picture gallery of my memory, collected during our late pleasant visit to berkshire. claude lorraine’s2 are a trifle warmer in the atmosphere, but in all other respects they leave him far behind. ruskin, you know, says that claude was a clumsy artist,3 so that this would be no compliment in his estimation to the pictures of which i speak.… manuscript: unrecovered text (partial): life, ii, 54 55. 1. the printed text has “an.” 2. claude lorrain, born claude gelée (1600 1682), french landscape painter. 3. “claude had, if it had been cultivated, a fine feeling for beauty of form, and is seldom ungraceful in his foliage; but his picture, when examined with reference to essential truth, is one mass of error from beginning to end.” john ruskin, modern painters, by a graduate of oxford (new york, 1848), i, 75. 756. to frances f. bryant new york june 26, 1851. thursday. dear f. i forgot yesterday to say that miss robbins called the night previous. some business relating to her books brought her to town, and she had completed it to her satisfaction. she complained that she was not so well for the sea air and must hasten back to newburgh. she desired her love to you and julia. last night mr. rand and his wife1 called. it is possible that he may come out on saturday. minna gets on slowly, very slowly indeed. fanny thinks the best way to get her to roslyn will be to put her into the glen cove steamer, and let our rockaway come for her. dr. warner was at the house yesterday and said that the sooner she was sent into the country the better. do not let every thing dry up trees &c. it is very hot here and must be very dry with you. yrs ever w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr address: mrs. f. f. bryant/roslyn/long island. 1. portrait painter john goffe rand and his wife, lavinia brainerd rand. see 287.1, 289.1. 757. to richard h. dana new york, july 1, 1851. dear dana. i got your letter today and this goes tomorrow.1 it is bad news both for myself and my wife that you and your daughter could not find it convenient to try the sea bath at our place on long island where it is now very pleasant that is the sea bathing. i am sorry that you give so bad an account of charlotte’s health. it is a double misfortune as great a one to you, to whom she is so necessary as to herself. before the summer is over i hope she will have found health somewhere; in the waters of some sea coast or some healing fountain, or some friendly atmosphere. it is one of the melancholy things of our existence, one of the sorrowful exceptions to what seems the natural and proper order of things when the young become infirm before or as soon as their parents. hillard2 has written a letter for the evening post which i have printed today, as well as the article from the daily advertiser which he desires should follow it; but i took occasion to reprimand him a little for helping on the attempt to persecute your son, under the semblance of arguing the question. i believe you are right when you say that these people begin to be dissatisfied with what has been done. how came you to suppose that the article concerning the “son of a merchant” was not mine[?] i sat down and threw it off immediately on receiving richard’s letter3 enclosing the article cut from the daily advertiser. on looking it over again, i see marks of haste in it, and some blunders in the composition.4 you are too despairing concerning your works. i wish they were more profitable, but that you get little from them is no proof that they are not esteemed. how much more money byron made by his works than wordsworth, and yet which of them is now most spoken of and quoted? byron is no longer read with pleasure, and the impression made by his works on the public mind is nearly worn out. wordsworth never seems to have been a successful author, so far as gain is concerned. your writings may have a slow sale, but they will last.5 i came to town today and am almost dissolved with the heat. i pine for the hour of release from this daily toil at the mill, but will my condition be any better then? i fear i should become lazy or fancy myself too old or too unwell to do any thing but scratch the ground a little in the garden. my regards to your daughter and son. i am sorry that i did not see richard when he was here on saturday. yours ever w c bryant manuscript: nypl gr endorsed: wm c. bryant/july 1/51/ans. decr 9th. 1. dana’s letter is unrecovered. 2. george stillman hillard. see 341.4. 3. unrecovered. 4. sometime early in june richard h. dana, jr., had spoken at worcester, massachusetts, in support of congressman charles allen, a free soiler who had recently charged secretary of state daniel webster with taking bribes from a syndicate of bankers. several of webster’s boston admirers, among them hillard, had attacked dana in letters to the whig boston daily advertiser, charging him with “treasonable language,” and suggesting that merchants withdraw their business from him; that he be “silenced or starved.” discussing this correspondence in the ep for june 11 under the caption “boston political morality,” and supposing hillard to have written a letter signed “a son of a merchant,” bryant commented, “perhaps there is no place in the united states where intolerance takes a more odious shape than in boston.” hillard’s letter of june 25 appeared in the ep on the 30th; in it he denied writing the “a son of a merchant” letter, while reiterating some of its charges against dana. in an editorial in the same issue bryant admonished hillard for contributing indirectly to the persecution of dana. ep, june 11, 21, 31, 1851; irving h. bartlett, daniel webster (new york: norton [1978]), p. 287. 5. dana, sr.’s poems and prose writings, first published in 1833, were brought out in a new edition in 1850 by baker & scribner of new york, and reprinted by them in 1857 and 1859. in 1857 his poems appeared, under his name, in the poetical works of edgar allan poe, published in london by george routledge. 758. to leonice m. s. moulton new york july 8th 1851. … i have just got your letter of the 7th.1 which must be yesterday, if there is any trust to vulgar arithmetic. i answer it immediately because it asks for medical advice, which, i think, the doctors say ought to be given early. nux vomica, i have found, is not likely to produce a good effect after sea sickness. of late i have been obliged to abandon its use, though at one time it was of the greatest service to me. sulphur, perhaps, might suit your case; or you might choose among bryonia,2 hepar sulphuris and mercurius according to the symptoms. the other day my wife and i effected an extraordinary cure. a young girl the sister of our cook came to see her. she had been a patient in a hospital, and had taken a great deal of medicine, and was now subject to great weakness of the stomach and frequent nausea, which in the morning was constant. one dose of hepar put the nausea in the morning to flight, and she declared that she felt stronger and better than for months before. minna, fanny’s eldest has been ill for weeks with an abdominal abcess succeeding an attack of dysentery. at one time it was feared that she would not live, and her situation now is very critical. fanny has had her in town, till within ten days, for medical advice and she has now just moved into her cottage at roslyn. roslyn meantime is as beautiful as ever. it began to fade a little with the drought but the rains of the third and fourth of july revived it. i have lengthened the walk in the woods, so that one can now pass over the greater part of them. all that now remains to do is to put up seats and open views by thinning or pruning the trees here and there. you should be there with your quick observation and accurate taste to tell where and how it should be done. i come to this dirty town, as usual every week, to be poisoned by the bad air. in a year or two, if i live i hope to be relieved from the necessity of being here in the hot weather. in your paradise at plympton, i doubt not you think with a sort of compassion on those who at this season swelter and pant in the cities. i shall write to you again, by and by, with a genealogical commission for your friend and the deacon.…3 manuscript: ridgely family collection text: hoyt, “bryant correspondence (i),” 65 67 address: mrs. l. m. s. moulton, meadow side, plympton, massachusetts. 1. unrecovered. 2. the printed text has “bryonic.” 3. salutation, complimentary close, and signature omitted from printed text. 759. to john t. s. smith1 roslyn long island july 27th, 1851. dear sir. please send me the following named medicines in two shilling vials low dilutions either tincture or powder as the case may be. the express which runs between this place and new york will call for them on wednesday and i write that you may have them ready aconite nux vomica arsenic mercurius bryonia tartar emetic chamomelle sulphur china pulsatilla.  belladonna ipecac yrs truly w c bryant manuscript: ycal. 1. the recipient of this letter was almost certainly john t. s. smith, proprietor of smith’s homoeopathic pharmacy, at 488 broadway, new york. a former patient of dr. a. gerard hull’s, smith had begun in 1843 to prepare “tinctures and titurations” for hull and his partner, dr. john franklin gray, and by 1846 had established his pharmacy. homoeopathic bibliography of the united states from the year 1825 to the year 1891 …, comp. thomas l. bradford (philadelphia, 1892), p. 550. 760. to william gilmore simms [roslyn? c. july 1851] dear simms. as soon as i can get sight of one of the gentlemen who have the active management of the testimonial to mrs. cowden clarke1 i shall acquit myself of the commission you ask me to execute. the forrest affair is really a most unhappy one. i believe it has had somewhat the effect you mention.2 i have not seen lawson for many months it is more than a year and a half since i have seen mrs. forrest. the last i saw of her was when a well meant attempt on my part to effect an arrangement between the parties was broken off.3 what the end of the litigation between them will be i can not guess or whether there will be any end. it is kept along in the courts for a long time. you speak of coming to new york in august i shall claim a visit from you at my place in the country. it is very beautiful now but the summer which is already almost a little too dry for long island will take off some of its freshness. i hope your wife and augusta will accompany you. my best regards to both of them. my wife who has read your letter joins me in the invitation and in the desire to welcome you at our place.… manuscript: nypl gr (draft). 1. the british writer mary victoria cowden clarke (1809 1898) had compiled a complete concordance to shakespeare in 1844 1845. at a shakespeare birthday dinner in new york on april 23, 1851, bryant had been appointed to a committee charged with soliciting funds from american writers to buy her a testimonial chair, which was delivered to mrs. clarke in london the following january. richard d. altick, the cowden clarkes (london and new york: oxford university press, 1948), pp. 173 175. 2. since the letter to which bryant is apparently responding is unrecovered, simms’s comment on the forrests is undetermined. 3. see 716.2. 761. to l. p. frod1 new york august 6th, 1851. sir when i wrote the little poem called “the waterfowl” i certainly intended to refer the adjective weary to the wings of the bird.2 if a different construction should seem to any one to be an improvement, i have no objection that he should make it. that there should be any question as to the meaning makes me fear that the composition of the stanza is defective. i am sir yours respectfully w. c. bryant. manuscript: hcl address: l. p. frod esq. 1. the addressee, who had apparently questioned bryant on the point discussed below, has not been identified. 2. in the fifth stanza of “to a waterfowl” (1815) bryant had written “all day thy wings have fanned, at that far height, the cold, thin atmosphere, yet stoop not, weary, to the welcome land, though the dark night is near.” see poems (1876), p. 31. 762. to frances f. bryant [new york] wednesday aug. 27, 1851. dear f. i got a note yesterday morning from mrs. kirkland asking me to her house on tuesday evening to meet “two or three conversible people” as she called them. i went and found mr. duyckinck1 and mr. whipple2 the review writer and his wife. mrs. kirkland is coming out to roslyn on saturday. i wish you would send word to saunders3 that i expect to be at roslyn on monday and hope he will be ready for me. i received the manuscript for which i wrote, at a very seasonable hour this morning and am much obliged.4 yrs ever w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr address: mrs. f. f. bryant/roslyn/long island. 1. evert augustus duyckinck. see 471.2. 2. edwin percy whipple (1819 1886) was a boston broker and a highly respected lecturer and literary critic, whose articles in the north american review and other periodicals were widely read and later collected into several volumes. a few years after this meeting he published a judicious but sympathetic notice of bryant’s poetry in graham’s magazine, 46 (january 1855), 90 94, which was reprinted in whipple’s literature and life (boston, 1871), pp. 303 321. 3. probably a roslyn carpenter. 4. the letter requesting this unidentified manuscript is unrecovered. 763. to james g. birney1 new york sept. 8th 1851. dear sir. as i am wholly unable to answer any of the questions put in your letter, my sole agency in regard to the tract on colonization2 being to receive any manuscripts sent to the office of the evening post and hand them over to the writer of the communication alluded to in your letter,3 i have sent your letter to him that he may satisfy you on those points concerning which you request information. yrs truly w. c. bryant. manuscript: william l. clements library, university of michigan address: to james g. birney esq. docketed: william c. bryant/r. sep. 17. 1. james gillespie birney (1792 1857, princeton 1810), a southerner who had freed his slaves and become an early anti slavery leader, had run unsuccessfully for the presidency in 1840 and 1844 as the candidate of the liberty party. an early advocate of colonization in africa as a means of gradual emancipation, he had soon abandoned that method as ineffectual. by 1851, however, he was again urging colonization because of what he saw as a growing discrimination in the northern states against free negroes. nevins, ordeal, i, 140 142. russell b. nye, fettered freedom: civil liberties and the slavery controversy, 1830 1860 ([east lansing?] michigan state university press [1963]), pp. 128 134; vol. ii, 5. 2. probably birney’s “address to the free colored people,” in james gillespie birney, examination of the decision of the supreme court of the united states, in the case of strader, gorman and armstrong vs. christopher graham delivered at its december term, 1850 … (cincinnati, 1852), pp. 33 46. 3. unrecovered. 764. to leonice m. s. moulton new york september 9th, 1851. … i did not answer, in my last, one of the most important parts of your letter, that, i mean, which relates to the young invalid.1 i think you may without hesitation undertake to prescribe for him, provided you do it like a sensible woman as you are, and with due caution as to the repetition of the doses and the length of time allowed to elapse between them. do not let him go on with the same medicine more than three days and let a week or more intervene between the administration of the different remedies, and i think you will do no mischief, and may possibly do good. it is very hot and close here in this noisy and dusty city, and every body is languishing for cooler weather. we are devoured too by mosquitoes which come up, they say, from the mouths of the sewers, as soon as the sun sets and make merciless war upon all human kind. you have chosen the better part, among the sandy pastures and whortleberry fields of plympton, and i only wish that i was as free a denizen of the country. since my german john2 left me i have been much at a loss for a faithful and intelligent man in his place. in july i dismissed one whom i engaged in the spring; and now i am going to dismiss another. on thursday it is now tuesday i go down with my new man who gives all manner of good accounts of himself but so did his predecesser. do you not find it more comfortable, on the whole, to let other people own the farms, and the pleasant places on the seashore and elsewhere, and go yourself occasionally to enjoy them while others have the trouble of them? let me have a frank answer to this question when you have turned it over revolved it johnson would say in your mind.3 you have no laborers to hire and pay, and discharge, and look up others in their places; you have no anxiety lest thieves should take your choice fruit; you perplex yourself with no question whether a field be ill or well ploughed, or whether the weather be too wet or too dry. but yours are the fresh air and the sunshine, and the grateful shade of trees, and the verdure of the fields, and the hues and fragrance of the flowers and the sparkle and murmur of the waters, just as much as if you had forty acres to worry you. your husband goes down on saturday to see his old place and i dare say will take more pleasure in it than when he owned it. i believe i gave you all the gossip of roslyn with which i was acquainted, in my last. the most remarkable thing, in my private opinion, which happened in the neighbourhood this season, is that i had a young plum tree in the garden, loaded with fruit, loaded to breaking, which ripened perfectly. it was of the sort called prince’s yellow gage. it seems to resist the curculio perfectly. i must have another of the sort. my bartlett pears, some on quince stocks and some on the pear stock, also begin to yield fruit. the peaches fail this year. but we will talk over the horticulture of the place, a subject in regard to which you are most kindly patient with me when you come out this autumn.…4 manuscript: ridgely family collection text: hoyt, “bryant correspondence (i),” 67 68 address: mrs. l. m. s. moulton, meadow side, plympton, massachusetts. 1. mrs. moulton’s marginal note: “charles sherman.” 2. bryant’s roslyn steward, 1844 1849. see letter 502. 3. samuel johnson; see letter 451. 4. salutation, complimentary close, and signature omitted from text. 765. to frances f. bryant new york sept. 10, 1851. wednesday  dear f. julia has just called and says she will come with me tomorrow. last night she passed at mr. morton’s1 in hoboken. fanny was well when i saw her last evening between seven and eight o’clock. a copy of verses in a female hand from roslyn [“]on following a path in the woods traced by the hand of william c. bryant,” has been sent to the office, but there is too much about me in it to admit of its publication in the e.p. yrs ever w. c. b. p.s. one o’clock. on coming down stairs to leave this letter for you i find your note to me. caroline2 has called and got her ten dollars so you may charge them to her as soon as you get this. w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr address: mrs. f. f. bryant/roslyn/long island. 1. probably george w. morton; see 505.1. 2. presumably a household servant. 766. to frances f. bryant rochester friday sept. 19 1851. dear frances i write this from dr. tobey’s.1 we got to geneva at ten o’clock on tuesday night and staid till thursday morning. mrs. lee2 says she will be very glad to see you and julia, if you come out this fall and that if we let her know when we are to arrive she will send the carriage to the village for us which is about two miles distant from her house. yesterday morning we came into rochester, and went immediately to the fair ground. the town is crammed and at the hotels people sleep four in a small bed room. i came to the doctor’s and demanded hospitality. on my way i found barnum fairchild and his wife in the train. at this house are tobey of bloomfield and his wife and mary white and john fairchild edwin’s oldest son.3 their families are all well. i shall proceed to buffalo today, and expect to be in detroit tomorrow morning, when i shall take the railway across michigan, making the best of my way to chicago. when you write to me, which i expect you will do frequently, i wish you would address your letters, postpaid of course, to the care of w. b. ogden of chicago.4 if i do not hear that you are coming to this place, i shall not return by the way of rochester, but shall take the erie railroad at dunkirk which is the most expeditious way to new york. will you say to george5 that i wish him when he and the men can spare time, to remove the earth from the peach trees in the garden and in the two yards that of the house and the titus cottage6 and supply its place with earth from the woods. i would also have manure put round the fruit trees on the hill and elsewhere. i am sorry that you are not with me you and julia to make the journey to illinois. here at rochester just now it is not very pleasant. the air is constantly full of dust and the streets full of foot passengers and waggons. i hope, however, to find you somewhere before my return. yrs ever w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr address: mrs. f. f. bryant/roslyn/long island. 1. frances bryant’s brother in law. 2. not further identified. 3. barnum fairchild was evidently frances’ nephew; john fairchild was a son of her brother edwin; dr. p. g. tobey of bloomfield was the husband of her sister mary. see 38.1. mary white is unidentified. 4. william butler ogden; see 581.2, letter 597. 5. evidently the new steward bryant had engaged a week earlier; see letter 764. 6. on april 7, 1845 bryant had bought, for $1,100, an adjoining house and lot from jacob titus, who had farmed bryant’s land during the first year of his ownership of the property acquired from joseph w. moulton in 1842. ms agreement between bryant and titus dated february 23, 1843, bryant library, roslyn; ms account with titus, april 4, 1845, in the william cullen bryant homestead collection of the trustees of reservations, cummington, massachusetts. 767. to the evening post rochester, sept. 19, 1851. the field occupied by the fair lies about a mile and a half from the town, in the possessions of mr. wadsworth2 a grassy pasture, full of hillocks, with the genesee flowing on the south side. beyond the river is the woody ridge of mount hope, and a foot bridge has been thrown across the stream that the visitors to the fair may pass over to that beautiful cemetery. the most remarkable part of the exhibition consists in the show of animals and agricultural implements. in both respects, the present fair is said to be altogether superior to any other ever held in the state. i should mention also the fruits, of which there was a very fine display. the apple which atalanta ran for, could not have been fairer than hundreds of those ranged on the tables in the building appropriated to fruits and flowers. in this region the apple is larger and more uniformly handsome in shape than in the country near the sea coast. it is scarce ever stung by insects. plums and pears also are in the greatest abundance, and of the largest size and most inviting appearance. the short horn cattle of mr. wadsworth, fed in the rich pastures of genesee, made a fine appearance, but as there was some obscurity in their pedigree, they were not entered for the prizes. mr. morris, of westchester county, has some very fine short horns at the fair, and some remarkably beautiful samples of the devonshire breed, with their long slender horns, their deer like `heads, and shapely, active limbs. from these are bred the best working oxen of the country. in one part of the field i saw three spayed heifers of this breed, as large as oxen, and said to be superior to the ox, as working animals, in activity and docility. the short horns of mr. sherwood of auburn, a very early introduction of this breed, are among the very finest samples seen at the fair. two animals of the hungary breed are also there, sent by mr. colt, of paterson; [they] are gray in color, not however equal to our own breeds. there was a considerable display of herefords, ungainly looking animals, and some fine samples of ayrshire cattle, with their clean looking sharp horns and mottled hides, sent by that judicious breeder, mr. prentiss, of albany.3 it is curious to see the evidence which the short horn breed, both the pure specimens and those of the mixed breed, give of their aptitude for fattening. in the rich pastures of this region they soon swell into prodigious obesity. the broad frame of the back is filled out so that they look almost like stuffed animals, and masses of fat are deposited wherever the skin is loose enough to allow them room, rising in lumps about the rump and other parts of the body. a good deal of attention is drawn to the reaping machines, which are drawn on the ground by teams of horses; the drills of several different constructions, the advantages of which are elaborately explained to the spectators; the winnowing machines, and so forth. of ploughs there is an assortment almost large enough to till the fields of the whole country. two book stores on the ground contain all the american publications on agriculture, gardening and husbandry, and among them are several of which i had not before heard. i look on their appearance at the fair as an indication that the habit of reading books on agriculture is becoming more general. i find that there is some complaint among the farmers of the unwieldiness of a state agricultural fair. it draws, they say, too large crowds; nobody can thoroughly examine the objects exhibited in such a press of visitors. they complain, too, that the judges who award the prizes are not always taken from the class who understand the matter in hand, but too often from men of note, whose presence and whose name, it is thought may give a sort of eclat to the occasion. i have heard some grumble, that politicians are allowed to make the fair an occasion to add to their own notoriety. i should not wonder if there were not some ground for these complaints. today the fair will close, after the prizes are awarded and the addresses are made. w. c. b. manuscript: unrecovered text: ep, september 22, 1851. 1. then a business thoroughfare in lower manhattan. 2. james samuel wadsworth (1807 1864), a lawyer and large landowner in geneseo, new york. 3. these other exhibitors have not been further identified. 768. to rufus w. griswold rochester, friday, sept. 19, 1851. my dear sir: i am sorry that the arrangements for my journey to the west are such that i cannot be present at the meeting which is about to be held to do honor to the memory of mr. cooper,1 on losing whom not only the country, but the civilized world and the age in which we live, have lost one of their most illustrious ornaments. it is melancholy to think that it is only [when]2 such men are in their graves that full justice is done to their merit. i shall be most happy to concur in any step which may be taken to express, in a public manner, our respect for the character of one to whom we were too sparing of public distinctions in his life time, and beg that i may be included in the proceedings of the occasion as if i were present.3 i am, very respectfully yours, wm. c. bryant. manuscript: unrecovered text: ep, september 25, 1851 address: dr. r. w. griswold. 1. james fenimore cooper died at cooperstown, new york, on september 14, 1851. on the 24th, at a meeting in the new york city hall, a committee which included bryant was appointed to plan a suitable tribute to the late novelist. ep, september 25, 1851. 2. the printed text has “until.” 3. on february 25, 1852, a memorial meeting was held in metropolitan hall, new york, at which bryant delivered the principal eulogy of cooper. see “james fenimore cooper, a discourse on his life, genius and writings, delivered at metropolitan hall, new york, february 25, 1852,” in orations and addresses, pp. 45 91. 769. to frances f. bryant princeton september 24th 1851. wednesday. dear frances. i wrote you from rochester just as i was about to set out for chicago. on the same day friday last i took the accommodation train for buffalo where i arrived in the evening. the cars were fairly crammed with persons returning from the fair, and many among whom was myself had to stand up for a considerable part of the distance. we arrived in the evening, and i took passage for detroit in the may flower, a large and magnificent steamer, which was also crowded. i had a rather uncomfortable night in the “gentlemen’s cabin,” as it is called, but the next day was pleasant and the temperature delightful. we reached detroit about four o’clock on saturday afternoon, and about five were on our way across the peninsula of michigan by the railway. the aspect of michigan from the railway is not very attractive a new country, not apparently the most fertile; flat, in many places marshy, in some sandy. the sun set in thick clouds, the darkness came on early, and ere long we ran into a violent rain. i slept well and the next morning showed us the earth drenched and the woods dripping. about seven o’clock we reached the end of the railway at new buffalo, and after breakfasting, at the pier took a wretched steamer the samuel ward, for chicago where we arrived between eleven and twelve o’clock. i got my dinner and then went to mr. ogden’s who was not at home, not yet having returned from the east. i did not look for any body else, but at five o’clock took passage in the mail packet boat on the canal for peru or rather la salle, about one mile north of peru. the day was fine and i continued on the deck till dark. at night the passengers were hung up, as usual, on the sides of the boat, in three tiers on a side. i was up as soon as it was daylight, and passed the rest of the day a mild cloudy day, on deck delighted with the scenery about me, till four o’clock when we arrived at the termination of the canal. a gentleman from la moille [greenfield]1 engaged to see if any person from princeton was in peru who would take me to that place. he could find nobody, but put me on the track, and i fell in with a man, who was going the next morning, and promised to take me. i passed a sleepless night with the fleas and mosquitoes at peru, and the next morning at eight o’clock started in a lumber waggon the stage coach goes only every other day for princeton, in a shower of rain. we had two big iron kettles turned upside down a barrel of molasses and two passengers besides myself in the waggon. i secured my travelling bag from the rain by pulling it under one of the kettles. we reached princeton at two o’clock in the afternoon. this was yesterday. i find every body well here. my brothers appear to be doing well, and are living more comfortably than before. i shall stop and see our friends at chicago in my return and [at]2 that place i hope to hear from you. i shall be very glad to learn that you are coming out as far as rochester but if you are not, i shall on my return make all haste to new york by way of dunkirk. they all inquire with interest, here, about you and your children, and seem disappointed that i did not bring you and julia with me. i have had on the whole a pleasant journey till yesterday, and think you would have been pleased with it. probably i shall leave this place to return on monday.  yours affectionately w c bryant manuscript: nypl gr. 1. the brackets are bryant’s. 2. word omitted. 770. to frances f. bryant new york wednesday oct. 15, 1851. dear f. i wrote to you yesterday in haste to tell you that mr. field’s1 waggon would be at the landing on staten island to meet julia when the one o’clock boat arrived from new york on thursday. she will not get to brooklyn much before eleven and probably could not be in new york in time to take the eleven o’clock boat for staten island. there is no boat at twelve. i was run down yesterday. bigelow is ill and was not at the office. i arrived at 20 minutes past eleven and had to write a leader. first judge phillips, willard phillips,2 came. then after a while came dr. simmons of st. augustine.3 then came mr. sedgwick, theodore. next came mr. [alfred] pell. finally came miss cooper. there were several other calls of less importance. i find that miss coopers furniture is mortgaged to her landlord, dr. smith, for $300. this, when she told me of it had the effect of making me the less willing to engage her rooms.4 it may be that bigelow will not be well enough on saturday to come to the office, in which case i may perhaps be unable to come out on friday but i shall try very hard to do so. what i feared is true they want me to give a eulogy on cooper5 tripler hall and a dollar a ticket. the committee waited for this they say i may be as short as i please and other persons will speak after me. a bronze monument in new york is talked of. yrs ever w. c. b. p.s. since i wrote what goes before, miss cooper has called again. dr. smith is going to sell her furniture unless she gets the $300. i could do nothing of course. w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr address: mrs. f. f. bryant/roslyn/long island. 1. alfred field; see 406.5; letter 643. 2. see vol. i, 13 14; 479.2. 3. see 460.1. 4. it seems probable that miss cooper was the bryants’ landlady in their winter lodgings at 263 greene street, into which they had moved in november 1849. see letters 709, 710, 742. 5. see 768.3. 771. [to george bancroft new york, october 22, 1851. my dear bancroft, i send you the interrogations you placed in my hands with such answers to them as i am able to give.…] questions respecting the common schools of new england1 1. have you reason to believe that the system of instruction, adopted in the common schools of new england, interferes with the special religious tenets of any particular denomination of christians? i have no reason to believe that as at present conducted the system interferes with the tenets of any religious persuasion. 2. is it within your knowledge, that, apart from the common schools, the children educated in them do practically receive instruction in the tenets of the religious denomination to which they respectively belong? i know that the different religious denominations in new england have their sabbath schools in which their peculiar doctrines are taught, and that religious instruction is also given by parents in families and by the distribution of tracts designed for young persons, and likewise in visits by clergymen to the families under their care. 3. if they do receive such instruction, what are the agencies by which it is communicated to them? this is answered in the reply to the second question. 4. in your opinion, is the system of instruction pursued in the common schools of new england indirectly favorable to the cultivation of the religious sentiments and to the promotion of morality? i think it is decidedly so. 5. generally, do you approve or do you disapprove of that system; and what are the main grounds on which your approbation or disapprobation of it is founded? i should be very sorry to see the public school system of new england where it has been so long established, and where it has worked so well, and where, as it seems to me it is more wisely administered than elsewhere, abrogated. an answer to the general question here put would lead to the consideration of points in regard to which i am still an inquirer and i must therefore decline attempting to make it. new york october 20th 1851, william c. bryant. manuscripts (letter) unrecovered; (questionnaire) chicago historical society letter text: n. k. black, montclair, new jersey, catalogue no. 126, item no. 70, march 1971. 1. the origin of this questionnaire is unknown, as is george bancroft’s connection with the matter. bryant’s replies to the questions are printed in italics. 772. to cyrus bryant new york november 6th 1851. dear brother. you have doubtless heard before this of aunt charity’s death.1 i had a telegraphic despatch acquainting me with the event it came to new york during my absence. since that time, i have seen mrs. rankin [caroline]2 and her husband. a very short time before our aunt’s death, caroline had paid her a visit. she found her somewhat relieved from the unpleasant and painful symptoms which she formerly complained of, but she was in quite delicate health. her faculti[e]s, however, seemed uncommonly bright, and she took great interest in every thing that was going on. not long before her death a very few days mrs. rankin had a letter from her. her case had been mentioned by mrs. rankin to some physician in boston who called it, i think, spasmodic neuralgia, and another said it was angina pectoris. she died in her chair, of one of those attacks which she so frequently had the year before, and which were so distressing a sort of constriction about the region of the heart, as i understood, accompanied with pain, and i think a sense of suffocation agreeing with the symptoms of what is called angina pectoris, or stricture of the chest. my former partner mr. burnham3 in the latter part of his life, had attacks of this sort, which compelled him sometimes to stop in the street and sit down. he died of what the physicians called a disease of the heart. will you be kind enough to let the other members of our family see this letter. it may give them some particulars of which they have not heard. i have been thinking of writing to miss drake4 on the subject, but i have not yet done it.  we are all very well. fanny has another child, a little girl,5 and is doing well. her eldest is recovering. the autumnal rains have filled the springs, which before were very low, and have made the earth green again. i have been planting some apple trees, making a little orchard of a dozen trees or so in which i include the northern spy. in ontario county where it originated they call it the finest apple in the country; if this be true, it is the finest in the world. will you hand the accompanying letter to john.6 remember me to your wife and children, and to all our friends in princeton. yours affectionately w c bryant. manuscript: bchs address: c. bryant esq. 1. dr. peter bryant’s unmarried sister charity (58.1) died at weybridge, vermont, on october 5, 1851, at the age of seventy four. 2. caroline a. (bryant) rankin was the daughter of peter bryant’s sister silence (b. 1774) and her cousin ichabod bryant. caroline’s brother edwin n. bryant (1805 1869) wrote one of the first popular books on the far west, what i saw in california (1847). the brackets are bryant’s. 3. michael burnham; see 146.5; 339.1. 4. bryant’s aunt charity and her devoted companion, sylvia drake (58.1), were buried under the same headstone in the weybridge hill cemetery. 5. nora godwin (1851 1914). 6. unrecovered. 773. to charles gould1 nov 12th 1851. my dear sir. i am sorry to forego the pleasure of a dinner with you and mr. leutze,2 and the agreeable people whom you know how to assemble about you, but my engagements for this week are so many and so pressing that i am obliged to decline your kind invitation. truly yours w. c. bryant p.s. i have received your note of this morning3 informing me that the dinner is postponed to friday. i am sorry to be obliged to say that even this change will not put it in my power to come. w. c. b. manuscript: hcl address: ch. gould esqre. 1. charles gould was a new york broker and art patron who owned paintings, exhibited in 1851 1853, by asher durand, regis gignoux, john kensett, and other members of the national academy. nad exhibition record, i, 139, 184, 276, and passim. gould was bryant’s occasional guest at sketch club meetings. information from james t. callow. 2. the painter emanuel leutze; see 531.1. 3. unrecovered. 774. to hamilton fish1 office of the evening post, new york, november 16, 1851. sir: yours respectfully, wm. c. bryant & co. 18 nassau st. manuscript: (printed circular): lc. 1. hamilton fish (1808 1893, columbia 1827), whig governor of new york, 1849 1851, was thereafter united states senator, 1851 1857, and secretary of state, 1869 1877. 2. bryant’s account of his newspaper’s history, since its founding in 1801 by alexander hamilton and william coleman, was printed in the ep for november 15, 1851, and simultaneously in a pamphlet, reminiscences of the evening post: extracted from the evening post of november 15, 1851. with additions and corrections by the writer (new york: wm. c. bryant & co., printers, 18 nassau street, n.y., 1851). it was reprinted in bigelow, bryant, pp. 312 342. bigelow’s account of its composition (p. 109) is illuminating in its revelation of bryant’s work habits: when the semi centennial anniversary of the “evening post” was approaching, it was proposed to him to prepare for its columns a sketch of its career. he cheerfully accepted the task, and in order that he might be free from interruption he was advised to go down to his country home at roslyn and remain there until it was finished, and have such of the files of the paper as he might have occasion to consult sent to him there. he rejected the proposal as abruptly as if he had been asked to offer sacrifices to apollo. he would allow no such work to follow him there. not even the shadow of his business must fall upon the consecrated haunts of his muse. he rarely brought or sent anything from the country for the “evening post”; but if he did, it was easy to detect in the character of the fish that they had been caught in strange waters. this separation of his professional from his poetic life must be taken into account in any effort to explain the uniform esteem in which he was always held as a poet by his country people, while occasionally one of the least popular of journalists. 3. see letter 776. 775. to edward w. leggett roslyn november 27, 1851. dear sir. if my people have at any time obstructed your passage through my land east of the house, i am sorry for it. it was contrary to my directions and i hope you will find neither vehicle nor any other implement of mine in your way hereafter.1 with regard to the wood of which you speak i have been to look at it this morning and find that it is piled close to the fence and not in the way at all. if i were in your place i should never think of making it the subject of complaint. you inquire whether it is to remain there. as you have merely the right to pass and repass, while the land is mine, i certainly expect to put the land to any use which does not interfere with your right whether it be to lay wood or any thing else upon it, leaving always ample space for your passage. at the same time, whatever be my rights it is my desire to [do]2 nothing to which a reasonable man would object. i understand that the wood was piled by the fence that it might be measured, after which it was to be removed to the wood piles at the convenience of my people. it will probably remain where it is for a few days. i am sir very respectfully yours w. c. bryant manuscript: nypl gr (two drafts) address: edward w. leggett esq. 1. leggett, whose property adjoined bryant’s, apparently enjoyed an easement through his neighbor’s land in order to reach the highway. on the previous day he had written a curt note complaining that bryant’s “people” had so littered the drive with wood and a wheelbarrow that on the evening before he was “compelled to drive over the latter,” and that he had hoped, after their earlier discussion, that “such nuisances would have been discontinued.” leggett to bryant, november 26, 1851, nypl gr. 2. word omitted. 776. to hamilton fish office of the evening post new york, december 9, 1851. dear sir, we cannot refrain from expressing the satisfaction we have experienced in reading your letter, the kind expressions in which concerning the evening post prove your superiority to party prejudice.1 nothing, we hope, will occur to lower it in your esteem, since it would be a source of real pain to us to lose the good opinion of one whom we hold in such high respect. yours respectfully wm. c. bryant & co. manuscript (in bryant’s handwriting): fish letter books, lc. although it has been my lot to differ in my views of many of the important questions which it has discussed from those which the post has advanced, i have always admired the force, the ability & the fearlessness with which it has maintained its own views. i have appreciated the honesty with which it adopted those views however differing from my own. since i became the father of a family of children i have been made conscious of the security with which the evening post may be placed in their hands its high toned morality, its general teachings (barring some “political heresies”!) its literary ability & the character of its selected matter have pointed to it as one of the papers which a parent may safely & with advantage place in the hands of his child.… i most sincerely hope that your paper may continue to prosper [lc]. on the day this tribute to his paper’s integrity was written, bryant published a prospectus of the ep for its second half century, renewing what many of fish’s whig friends would have considered a “political heresy.” “we think its past history,” he wrote, “no unimportant guarantee that the evening post will continue to battle for human rights in preference to human sovereignties; for the welfare and improvement of the multitude, rather than for exclusive privileges to classes and tribes; for freedom of industry and thought, regardless of the frowns and the blandishments of power or wealth.” ep, november 29, 1851. 777. to john w. francis1 new york dec. 11, 1851. my dear sir. i cannot find the account of the dinner given to mr. [fenimore] cooper before his departure for europe. i have written to mr. king,2 who cannot give me the date of it, but is sure that it was before 1830 and after 1827. can you give me any thing more precise if so you will oblige me by communicating it.3 yours faithfully w. c. bryant. manuscript: mhs. 1. see letter 148. 2. charles king; see 196.3. bryant’s letter to king is unrecovered. 3. this tribute to cooper was paid him by fellow members of the bread and cheese lunch club, among them bryant, at the city hotel, new york, on may 29, 1826, where charles king, then editor of the new york american, was one of those who offered toasts. cooper, letters & journals, i, 139 140. 778. to horatio greenough new york december 30, 1851. my dear sir. i like the idea of your letter very much,1 and though i have no definite idea of the method in which you propose to apply to architecture in general the principles on which the style which distinguishes our shipbuilding is founded, i shall be glad to see it done. it will give me great pleasure to hear your paper read, at almost any time you may appoint after your return to new york.2 mr. godwin is about to set out for europe so that he cannot be present. yrs faithfully w. c bryant manuscript: century association address: h greenough esq. 1. horatio greenough (195.1, letter 299, 451.1, 472.1) had returned to america in october 1851 after long residence in florence, having finally completed the heroic statuary group the rescue, commissioned in 1837 for the east front of the capitol in washington. from boston, on november 4, he wrote bryant (ycal), “i thank god from the bottom of my heart that i have once more put my foot on my own, my native soil and i hope though new arrived to the ‘mezzo del camin de nostra vita’ [“the middle of our life’s journey” dante, divine comedy, inferno, i.1] to be of some use here both in illustrative art and structure for here i mean to stay.” his mind was feverish with projects he proposed to tackle: a monument coupling the treason of benedict arnold and the executions of the spies, british john andré and american nathan hale; a memorial of james fenimore cooper; statues of washington and jackson. and on december 27 he sent bryant from washington a summary of the creed which he would soon after develop in his influential book, the travels, observations, and experience of a yankee stonecutter (new york, 1852): i have since my arrival in this city prepared a paper on structure and ornament, in which i seek to show 1st that we have many dialects in our buildings, but no language 2nd that we have developed in our ships, our carriages and engines a new style. 3d that this style, which i call the yankee doric, is strictly in harmony with the great primal laws of gods own structures, and is in these partial exhibitions of it, as near perfection, as our knowledge is to pure science 4th that it is high time to rouse the country to introduce in structures of a civil character, the sound logical doctrine embodied in the engine; and thus by demonstrating practically its beauty as well as utility, to check the influx of foreign and hostile aesthetics can you and mr godwin spare time to hear me read this paper and give me your suggestions? [nypl gr]. 2. from january through may 1852 greenough spent much of his time in new york and brooklyn, discussing his plans and theories with bryant and others; soliciting funds to support an heroic equestrian statue of george washington, which he and the sculptor henry kirke brown were to execute jointly (this was completed in 1856 by brown and john quincy adams ward); and writing letters to the ep about this project. in february he described to bryant his elaborately conceived symbolic monument to cooper which he hoped to erect in washington square, new york, and he was several times a guest at sketch club meetings. “some of the leading men of letters in new york,” he reported to his brother henry on may 20, “have whispered to me of a professorship of art in a university on a grand scale.” but before the year ended greenough had died of brain fever. greenough to bryant, february 5, 1852, nypl bg; letters of horatio greenough, american sculptor, ed. nathalia wright (madison: university of wisconsin press [1972]), pp. 389 420, passim; letters of horatio greenough to his brother, henry greenough, with biographical sketches and some contemporary correspondence, ed. frances boott greenough (boston, 1887), p. 240. 779. to abraham hart new york january 6, 1852 dear sir. i am sorry to hear of the loss which you sustained by the late fire.1 with regard to the publication of an enlarged edition of my poems i am now so much engaged in various matters that i could not possibly attend to the preparation of any additional poems for the press. at present, therefore, for aught i can see, the cheap edition must remain as it is, and the consideration of an enlarged edition be postponed till i have more leisure. i am sir yours truly w. c. bryant. manuscript: hspa. 1. on december 26, 1851, a fire in “harts’ buildings” at the corner of sixth and chestnut streets, philadelphia, caused the destruction of about twenty five stores, the loss of two lives, and a financial loss of about $300,000. ep, december 27, 1851. 780. to horatio greenough february 8th. 1852. my dear sir. i have just got your letter and answered it immediately, because there is one inquiry in it which might better be answered now than hereafter.1 the house which cooper owned in the village is to be sold. i have this in a letter from the revd mr. battin, the pastor of the church to which cooper belonged.2 the family cannot afford to keep it. they ask ten or twelve thousand dollars for it, and it is said to be a most desirable residence. do you know of any man worthy to live in cooper’s house who will buy it[?] there are five or six acres of land with it, and the dwelling is beautifully embowered with trees planted by his own hands. it would be a great comfort to the worthy mr. battin if the purchaser should be a good episcopalian. i learn from the same authority that there will be but about $20,000 to be divided among the five children. yours cordially w. c. bryant p.s. i hope to be able to command a few hours leisure at some time not far off, to talk over the subjects of your letter.3 w. c. b. manuscript: brown university library address: h. greenough esq. 1. in his letter of february 5 (nypl bg), greenough had written bryant, “i am very anxious to know how mr. cooper’s family is now situated as regards their means and whether the possession of the paternal estate is secured to them.” 2. stephen henry battin (1814? 1893, trinity 1839, general theological seminary 1842) of cooperstown, new york. see cooper, letters & journals, v, 388 390. battin’s letter to bryant is unrecovered. 3. see 778.2. 781. to henry r. schoolcraft1 new york february 14, 1852 my dear sir. i should have written to you earlier, on the subject of your letter of the 15th of december, but i mislaid it and was not sure of your address. i like the sample of mr. hetherwold’s poetry which you have sent me.2 the sentiments are generous, the imagery poetical and the versification sonorous. yet i doubt its success with the public, if it appear as mr. hetherwold’s. a poetical reputation at the present time is made very gradually and slowly; nobody jumps into it at once. i fully believe that the best verses in the world, published in a volume, by an author not yet known to fame, would be inevitably neglected. there is another obstacle to mr. hetherwold’s success. poetry you know has its fashions, which change with the time. poetry of the form you sent me was the mode some twenty or thirty years since perhaps i should put the era still further back. at present poetry bears a somewhat different shape, and the reader, or rather the mass of readers who feel the influence of the reigning mode, will be repelled by the sight of what does not conform to it. i have thus written to you frankly what i think on the subject of your letter. it is a delicate matter to advise a poet, but you are also a man who knows the world, and are more easily dealt with. my opinions in such matters are not of much value, but such as they are you have them. i am sir yours faithfully wm. c. bryant manuscript: lc? text: frank smith, “schoolcraft, bryant, and poetic fame,” american literature, 5 (may 1933), 170. 1. see 589.3. schoolcraft was then engaged in his major work, historical and statistical information respecting the history, condition and prospects of the indian tribes of the united states, 1851 1857. 2. schoolcraft had asked bryant’s opinion of some verses written by his “protégé” “william hetherwold” (apparently of schoolcraft’s own composition). the final paragraph of bryant’s letter suggests that he was aware of their true authorship. see smith, “schoolcraft, bryant, and poetic fame,” 170 72. the verses were later published in “william hetherwold,” the man of bronz; a poem on the indian character. in six books (philadelphia, 1852). 782. to cyrus bryant new york march 12, 1852. dear brother. the international magazine3 edited by dr. [rufus] griswold, is free from this objection. it has besides a greater variety of matter, particularly in relation to what authors are doing or expecting to do, and what learned and scientific societies are occupying themselves with. the editor is particularly well fitted for collecting this sort of information. i should take the international magazine, if i were to give up littell.4 stringer & townsend of this city are the publishers. remember me kindly to your wife and children. yrs affectionately w. c. bryant. manuscript: bchs. 1. possibly fred mosely, who married austin bryant’s daughter frances elizabeth (1828 1882). austin to cullen bryant, april 22, 1859, nypl gr. 2. harper’s new monthly magazine had been established by harper & brothers in june 1850. 3. the international monthly magazine of literature, art, and science, founded in july 1850. it is ironic that the following month this was merged with harper’s new monthly magazine. 4. littell’s living age; see 638.3. 783. to richard dana new york march 15th. 1852. dear dana. i perceive that i have dated this letter at new york, according to my usual habit; but in truth i write it at roslyn, where i am now with my wife for two or three days, for the first time since the middle of january. i wish you were here too. there is a glorious genial sunshine on the light green water in the little lake and on the darker water of the harbor; the frost is entirely out of the ground, and the roads are becoming settled as fast as they can. the robins are whistling1 here and there and the song sparrows are twittering everywhere. since you were here, i have added about two acres and a half to my woodland, and have made walks in that part of it which i owned before, which are to be extended still further, so that if you should ever come to roslyn you will find solitary and shady walks beginning almost at our door. i have had the trees cut away in several places, and the view opened to the water, and a bench or two put up for you, if you are inclined to sit. but i did not mean to speak of this, when i began my letter. i meant principally to set you right concerning [charles] sumner’s letter, which you suppose was hissed at the meeting when i delivered my discourse.2 i doubt whether the audience heard sumner’s name at all. dr. griswold was not very audible and they had become tired of hearing or trying to hear the letters. he mentioned half a dozen different names of the writers and all had the same reception. i do not mean that it was his manner of reading them that caused the dissatisfaction, but it was getting late, and some of the audience, disrespectfully enough it is true to the committee, took the arrangements into their own hands.3 webster spoke in a very low voice, and was heard only by a small circle immediately about him. the applause which he received was of a different kind from that given to any of the other speakers, it was more noisy and consisted more of drumming and stamping; it seemed, too, that the noise was made by a different set of people, a great number of whom could not have heard a syllable he said. my daughters sat about two thirds of the way between the platform and the door, and were quite unable to make any thing of what he said; but they observed a set of rather queer looking fellows near them who were very loud in their demonstrations of applause, and who tried to get away after he had finished his introductory speech, but were obliged to remain, being wedged in by the crowd. that speech was deplorably common place, poor in thought, and clumsy in expression. the man seemed in a sort of collapse and actually moved my compassion. the discourse which he gave before the [new york] historical society4 was not heard by half the people present, and it was very disrespectfully said by the reporters for the whig papers, whispering to each other at the commencement of his discourse, that he was drunk. i do not vouch for the truth of what they said, but the scandal had a very wide circulation. on the whole i think his visit to new york did a good deal of mischief to his reputation. the meeting called to nominate him for the presidency was thinly attended, and is much laughed at here.5 i had the good fortune to be heard by all who were present, though the hall is a large one, and i have no reason to be dissatisfied with the reception of my discourse, either when it was delivered or since it has been published.6 but enough of this matter. when brackett’s group arrives in new york i will do what i can for it. i read to mr. bigelow that part of your letter which relates to it.7 godwin has taken a trip to europe. what a funny book that is about your old friend margaret fuller.8 the authors of it seem to think very highly of her, but they say things of her which do not justify, or rather which contradict their conclusions. she seems to have been extraordinary as a scholar, and to have had the gift of talking plausibly and without being at a loss for convenient modes of expression but beyond this she does not seem to have been endowed with any uncommon talent. her conceit appears, as they describe it to have been almost maniacal, and she seems to have been without either practical good sense or good manners. do you never mean to come down to my place, and see how the spring opens in this somewhat milder latitude? you shall have the run of the new walks which my wife and i have made in our woods, and i think there is sherry enough in the cellar to give you a glass daily with your dinner. remember me kindly to your sisters and your daughter. my wife asks to be remembered to you and them. yrs sincerely w. c. bryant p.s. cooper’s house in cooperstown is to be sold. the rector of the church, of which cooper was a member mr. battin, has written to me to ask if i knew of anybody who would buy it anybody worthy to be cooper’s successor, and like him a good episcopalian. a very nice house with five or six acres of land, made a solitude in summer by the trees which cooper planted, and which shut it out from sight of the village price ten or twelve thousand dollars. do you know a purchaser? cooper left about $20,000 to his five children. w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr address: r. h. dana, esq. docketed: wm c. bryant./mar. 15/52. ans/ap. 14th. 1. bryant wrote “whislling.” 2. see 768.3. 3. at the memorial meeting for james fenimore cooper on february 25 daniel webster gave the opening address, at the end of which he turned toward bryant with a bow and said, “mr. bryant will now pronounce a discourse upon the life, character, and genius of fenimore cooper.” but, continues the ep report of the next day, rufus griswold intervened and read letters from sixteen writers and politicians, of which sumner’s letter was the fourteenth. “mr. bryant commenced his address at half past eight, and concluded about a quarter before ten. he was frequently interrupted by the most flattering applause.” webster closed the meeting “with a short address, which was delivered in a low tone of voice, so much so as to be inaudible except to those who sat very near him.” 4. on february 23 webster addressed an audience of five thousand at niblo’s garden and theatre, on the forty eighth anniversary of the new york historical society. ep, february 24, 1852. 5. during 1851 and the early months of 1852 webster made what allan nevins characterized as “pathetic efforts” to secure the whig nomination for the presidency the following june. ordeal, ii, 23. the meeting bryant refers to was held on march 5. ep, march 6, 1852. 6. bryant’s “discourse on the life and genius of cooper” was printed in the ep for february 27, and later in memorial of james fenimore cooper (new york: putnam, 1852), pp. 39 73. charles sumner thought bryant’s address a “truthful, simple & delicate composition; and much as i value sculpture and [horatio] greenough, i cannot but add that it will be a more durable monument to cooper than any other. webster’s historical article,” he added, “was crude & trite enough.” letter to john bigelow, march 2, 1852, quoted in bigelow, retrospections, i, 125 126. 7. dana’s letter is unrecovered. no comment on the sculpture of edward a. brackett (401.1) appears in the ep for the two weeks following the date of this letter. 8. memoirs of margaret fuller ossoli, 2 vols. (boston, 1852), edited by ralph waldo emerson, william h. channing, and james freeman clarke. 784. to lydia l. brown1 new york, april 2d, 1852. my dear mrs. brown: my wife handed me a letter for you this morning which i was to bring to the office and send over to you. i inadvertently left it on the mantel piece and thus you have escaped, for one day the reproaches due to your misconduct of yesterday in leaving the house without seeing her. tomorrow you shall have the letter and i write this that you may prepare yourself for the result. yours truly, w. c. bryant manuscript: unrecovered text: “henry kirke brown, the father of american sculpture,” ed. e. bush brown, typescript in yale university library, p. 620. 1. wife of the sculptor henry kirke brown. see 561.7; letter 742. 785. to george bancroft new york april 8th 1852. dear bancroft. the sketch club will meet at 53 lexington avenue on friday evening. i shall be very happy and so will the members if you will favour us with your company.1 yrs faithfully w c bryant manuscript: mhs address: mr. bancroft. 1. on april 9 bancroft was a guest at the sketch club meeting in bryant’s home, as was horatio greenough. information from james t. callow. 786. to [john?] dempster1 new york april 16, 1852 my dear sir, i left a note2 at your lodgings this morning. the bearer will bring me your answer verbal or written, as you please. yrs truly w. c. bryant p.s. you will remember that i am at 53 lexington avenue and that lexington avenue is the street lying immediately east3 of fourth avenue and parallel with it. i am just above the twenty fifth street. w. c. b. manuscript: university of california library, berkeley. 1. possibly john dempster (1794 1863), a methodist minister and a founder of wesley theological institute, later the theological school of boston university. 2. unrecovered. 3. bryant mistakenly wrote “west.” 787. to gulian c. verplanck new york may 3, 1852. my dear sir. the bearer of this note is mr. william sampson,1 who desires to obtain the post of assistant superintendent of the new york hospital which i understand is now vacant. i have no personal acquaintance with mr. sampson, but the representations of those in whom i have confidence lead me to believe that he is well qualified for the place by his probity industry, capacity and good character in every respect. he has been employed as an assistant in the house of refuge in which capacity i hear that he has given great satisfaction. i take leave to commend his application to your favorable consideration.2 i am sir very truly yours, w c bryant. manuscript: nyhs address: hon. g. c. verplanck. 1. not further identified. 2. verplanck was then a governor of the new york hospital. robert w. july, the essential new yorker: gulian crommelin verplanck (durham, north carolina: duke university press, 1951), p. 215. 788. to frances f. bryant new york wednesday may 26, 1852. dear frances. i saw mr. bancroft on monday evening; his wife was ill with a cold, and did not come down. she was trying hard, he said to get well in order to go next week to newport.1 he told me that he could not bring her out to our place, but afterwards went up to see her and returned with a different plan. they are coming out in their carriage on sunday morning, and will reach our place about eleven o’clock, or there about. the horses he insists shall be accommodated at pinckneys.2 on monday morning they will return to town. yours ever w. c. bryant manuscript: nypl gr. 1. soon after they settled in new york in 1849, the george bancrofts had bought a summer home, “roseclyffe,” at newport, rhode island. russell b. nye, george bancroft: brahmin rebel (new york: knopf, 1945), pp. 185, 282. the bryants visited them there several times. 2. probably a roslyn livery stable. 789. to frances f. bryant new york june 7th 1852 monday morning. dear frances. the colocynth performed its office perfectly, and removed the difficulty of which i complained in the morning. the hurt of my eye has somewhat affected my sight today. i went down to the paper store in pearl street but was too late; the man had already gone out with the paper by the morning train. i have a letter for you from mrs. dewey but there is nothing particular in it. yrs ever w. c. bryant manuscript: nypl gr. 790. to frances f. bryant new york july 14 1852 wednesday dear f. i have a letter from mrs. eliza leggett1 for you, which i shall bring out on saturday. i do not recollect any thing particular in it. on going out to the [hempstead] branch i saw a rainbow and the sign of rain has since been fulfilled here. it is now raining gently. yesterday morning there was a drenching shower in brooklyn and part of this city. godwin has got his ticket for the white mountains. yrs ever w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr address: mrs. f. f. bryant/roslyn/long island. 1. eliza seaman leggett (mrs. augustus w. leggett), a roslyn neighbor. goddard, roslyn harbor, p. 19. 791. to frances f. bryant new york friday july 25 1852. dear f. i got your letter this morning by mr. willis.1 i cannot very well come out today, but tomorrow you shall see me without fail. i am in no hurry to make the acquaintance you mention, and am very well here in spite of the weather. i sleep well in a cool house. i wish you had mentioned whether you got yesterdays paper or not. i wrote to you2 that fanny had gone directly to the white mountains; that mrs. kirkland and cordelia would come out to roslyn on saturday with mr. stansbury,3 and that i wished you to say to george that i could get no cabbage, and cauliflower plants in new york and that he might get them at haviland’s if he could. i heard yesterday that mrs. hoyt4 died on tuesday night, or perhaps early wednesday morning. she passed away at last without pain; they thought her asleep. bishop henshaw5 who died this week was the brother of our friend mrs. richards. yrs ever w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr. 1. richard storrs willis (1819 1900), a roslyn neighbor, was editor of the new york musical world, as well as a composer, whose most important publication was our church music (new york, 1856). he was a brother of the popular poet and essayist nathaniel parker willis; see 309.3. frances bryant’s letter is unrecovered. 2. letter unrecovered. 3. probably edward stansbury, caroline kirkland’s brother. 4. probably mrs. jesse hoyt. see 230.6; letter 341. 5. john prentiss kewley henshaw (1792 1852), episcopal bishop of rhode island since 1843. 792. to frances f. bryant new york monday august 17th 1852. dear f. will you tell george that i wish he would put the half a dozen leaders for the water in the garden under cover in the barn? i forgot to speak to him this morning. i have a letter from simms, in which he says that he has been applied to for some information about himself and his residence and has referred mr putnam to me. i did not mean to write any thing for the book, “homes of american literary men.” i shall see if i can get off with a paragraph or two.1 the monthly statement which was handed me this morning looks well. yrs ever w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr. 1. see “william gilmore simms,” homes of american authors (new york: putnam, 1853), pp. 257 262; reprinted in little journeys to the homes of american authors (new york, 1896), pp. 157 166. 793. to eliza robbins [roslyn?] august 24, 1852 dear miss robbins, my wife and i have been talking a great deal about you lately and wondering what has become of you. we had almost made up our minds to go to newburgh to see whether you were alive when, making a visit yesterday to mill hill we learned from mrs. [mackey?] that you were on a visit to boston. the other day a mrs. earle of philadelphia1 who i was glad to see, for the first time, and whose appearance and manners are very attractive called at the office to inquire concerning you. i was almost ashamed to be so little able to answer her inquiries. since you have made the journey to boston i infer that you are rather better than when i saw you though i fear that the air of boston will not agree with you quite so well as that of the interior. i hope you will answer this and tell me precisely how you are and when we may hope to see you again in these latitudes. mr. mccoun is on a visit to massachusetts the first journey for pleasure he has made since his youth if not the first in his life. he passed some days with charles sedgwick at lenox, and was expected to be absent several days yet. joseph was with him, and mary, being relieved for a while from the task of looking to him was on a visit to mill hill.2 mrs. holland had been ill and seemed still in bad health. if the boston atmosphere should agree with you my wife and i will hope to see you at roslyn before the fine weather is over. here the autumn lingers later than either at newburgh or at boston, the nights are much warmer at that season and roses bloom in the beginning of december. we have missed you very much; it has not often happened that so long a time has elapsed without our seeing you or hearing from you. our own health has been very good in general but two or three days since fanny returned from a little visit to one of her cousins at cummington and has kept her bed ever since, and today my wife is in bed also with something like a cold or a fever. both patients now seem on the mend here. julia is on a visit to her uncles family at ogdensburgh  there i have written what you will i know call an empty letter but you may say with justice shallow “his meaning is good[”].3 my wife desires her love.  w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr (draft). 1. possibly the widow of the pennsylvania journalist and reformer thomas earle (1796 1849). 2. a country estate near stony brook, long island. 3. the merry wives of windsor, i.i.263 264. bryant mistakenly attributes to shallow words spoken by the welsh parson, sir hugh evans. 794. to john howard bryant [new york? c. august, 1852] … the free soil party is now doing nothing. its representatives in congress have wasted their time till all chance of repealing or modifying the fugitive slave law is gone by, if there ever was any. they have left everything to be done by the journals. now, at the end of the session, when it is too late for serious debate, sumner gets up and wants to make a speech. they refuse to consider his resolution, as might have been expected. he might have stated the subject a score of times in the early part of the session. the whole conduct of the public men of the party has been much of a piece with this. what is the use of preserving a separate organization if such be its fruits? but, as i intimated, i see not the least chance of a repeal or change of the fugitive slave law. its fate is to fall into disuse. all political organizations to procure its repeal are attempts at an impracticability. we must make it odious, and prevent it from being enforced. that the evening post can do, in a certain measure, just as effectively by supporting pierce as hale.1 nay, it can do it far more effectually. a journal belonging to a large party has infinitely more influence than when it is the organ of a small conclave. in speaking against slavery, the evening post expresses the opinions of a large number of people; in exhorting them to vote for mr. hale it expresses the opinions of few. the free soil members of congress hale and sumner,2 and many others are not more than half right on various important questions. freedom of trade is not by any means a firmly established policy in this country. i do not know where these men are on that question. they vote away the public money into the pockets of the hunkers collins, for example.3 the only certainty we have of safety in regard to these matters is in a democratic administration. these are some of my reasons for supporting pierce. i think the slavery question an important one, but i do not see what is to be done for the cause of freedom by declining to vote for the democratic candidate.… manuscript: unrecovered text (partial): bigelow, bryant, p. 105. 1. in mid august 1852 a free soil party convention at pittsburgh nominated john parker hale (1806 1873, bowdoin 1827), united states senator from new hampshire, for the presidency, and george washington julian (1817 1899), a former indiana congressman, as his running mate. franklin pierce (1804 1869, bowdoin 1824), a lawyer and former congressman and senator from new hampshire, was already the democratic presidential candidate, and general winfield scott had been chosen by the whigs over the incumbent president millard fillmore. nevins, ordeal, ii, 20, 28 29, 33. 2. the ex whig charles sumner, who had entered the senate in 1851 as the choice of a coalition of massachusetts democrats and free soilers, refused to support pierce. ibid., p. 33. 3. edward knight collins (1802 1878), a new york shipowner who received large government subsidies to build ships which would carry transatlantic mail. see ep, march 3, 1851. 795. to frances f. bryant new york wednesday sept. 8, 1852 dear frances i am sorry to hear such ill news of your health mrs. c.1 called this morning and seemed confident that a change of air would do you good. it is a fact that air often does more good than medicine. if you would make george bring you tomorrow to the glen cove steamboat, i think the object would be attained. the weather is now comfortably cool, and i would go back with you the next day or saturday, as you pleased. the scotch girl catherine horne2 cannot come. i called yesterday at 81 west twenty sixth street and found her with a sickly looking child on her arm a little skeleton with a countenance prematurely old and an expression of anxiety on its little face. in the cradle lay another they were twins. her sister she said had not yet risen from her bed; though the children were five weeks old; and she could not tell when she would be able to come to you. she was very sorry &c. and had called once at the office of the evening post, and once at mr. godwin’s in 29th street, but finding neither of us had not the sense to leave a message for us.  if you stay tomorrow would it not be well to have the seckel pears gathered. the white plums in the garden should be watched a little. there are a great many of them coe’s golden drop on the fruit stalls here. yrs ever w. c. b. p.s. i believe i left my knife the new one which i had from mr. pell lying about somewhere. will you keep it safe for me? manuscript: nypl gr. 1. probably ann eliza cairns (1800 1866), roslyn neighbor, and wife of william cairns (1786 1860). see 565.2. 2. presumably a prospective household servant. 796. to frances f. bryant new york sept. 14th 1852 tuesday dear f. julia is here without any of her cousins or other friends, and stays in town tonight for alboni’s concert.1 i send a note from her with this. i left my carpet bag and field’s basket on the stoop at the branch, the first trick of the kind i ever played, and i am quite ashamed of it. i discovered my blunder before i proceeded far and the conductor mr. searing promised to get the things for me and bring them to brooklyn by the noon train. at the branch eastman2 told me that edward leggett wanted the rest of the purchase money on the first of may;3 and richard albertson4 came running up to tell me that he had not received the weekly evening post since he handed me a dollar for it three weeks since, and these things i suppose put my baggage out of my head. yrs ever w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr. 1. the italian contralto marietta alboni had made her american debut on june 23, 1852, at metropolitan hall, new york. odell, annals, vi, 186 187. 2. unidentified. 3. this suggests that bryant may have bought out his cantankerous neighbor at about this time. see letter 775. 4. unidentified. 797. to frances f. bryant new york, wednesday, september 15, 1852. dear f. i wish you would tell fanny that she has some fine looking peaches on two little trees back of the house, and in sight of the nursery window. it would be well to take care of them before any body else does. will you speak to julia about the white plums in the garden? this morning i got my bag and mr. field’s basket all safe  yrs ever w. c. b. p.s. it is now raining rather hard. what julia will do i cannot tell. we are about despatching a boy to tell her to take a hack. she was to be at the ferry at a quarter past three and a porter was to go for her trunk; but the porters will not go in the rain. it may be that the boy will not find her in. half past one p.m. w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr address: mrs. f. f. bryant/roslyn/long island. 798. to frances f. bryant new york, wednesday, september 22 1852. dear f. i thought of coming out tomorrow, but i have changed my mind for this reason. yesterday dr. gilman of south carolina called on me. he said his wife and daughters were in town, and his wife would be very glad to see me. i promised to come, and intended to make the call today. this morning mr. pell writes me a note reminding me that i am engaged to dine with mr. dawson, at staten island. mr. dawson is the partner of mr. wood1 pells brother in law. i must therefore put off calling on mrs. gilman till tomorrow, and if i do i cannot come that day. the promise to dine at staten island had wholly escaped my recollection. mrs. sands was pleased with the flowers you sent her and bade me thank you. i called last evening on miss robbins. she has had the complaint which you have just recovered from, and is very weak. i called also at mrs. gibson’s and saw her only. she is again nervous and cannot sleep. miss leclerc2 has had the neuralgia, which, it is thought, proceeded from an ulcerated tooth that has now been drawn, and they hope she will be better. i have not seen mr. simms.  i shall come on friday. yrs ever w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr. 1. benjamin f. dawson and william wood were bankers with offices at 58 wall street. rode’s new york city directory for 1850 1851, p. 563. 2. miss leclerc, not listed in new york city directories for this period, was apparently a teacher of french at the gibsons’ school on union square (502.3). 799. to frances f. bryant new york sept 28, 1852 tuesday.  dear f. on arriving at the office this morning i found margaret’s mother waiting with a five dollar bill which she said she had of margaret1 and which was counterfeit. i gave her another. eastman was in the stage waggon this morning. he said that one of the schoolmasters at roslyn is going away, because his wages are too small. he gets $350. yearly and wants more. if mr. brown2 wants the place he should apply now. will you communicate this to him? yrs ever w. c. b. [theodore?] sedgwick writes3 that his youngest child is at deaths door or rather has been but is now beginning to get better. manuscript: nypl gr. 1. probably a servant. 2. unidentified. 3. letter unrecovered. 800. to frances f. bryant thursday, october 14, 1852. dear f. i send out two letters for julia. arthur has written to me that he cannot come east this season. his little daughter has been extremely ill, and has not yet recovered.1 he wants a peck of appleseeds. bigelow has not been at the office this week, though he returned on saturday from the country. he is broken down with hard work, they say. however, i must try to come out tomorrow. i may invite somebody to come on saturday.  if i could have come today, i should have brought a parcel for minna with a letter, from “george bancroft.” but they will not be unseasonable, i hope, tomorrow. yrs ever w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr address: mrs. f. f. bryant/roslyn/long island. 1. arthur bryant’s younger daughter, henrietta raymond bryant, died on october 10 at the age of fourteen months. undated memorandum in his handwriting, in nypl gr. his letter is unrecovered. 801. to frances f. bryant new york oct. 27, 1852 wednesday. dear f. i went in search of your scotch girl1 yesterday, but the door was locked, though there was a twittering of birds within. i shall try again. miss sands has a seamstress and waiter on hand, an irish catholic girl. mr. leupp called today to say that the arctic, a very fine steamer, goes out on the 13th. of november, with gourlie’s2 brother on board as mate. it goes to liverpool.3 yrs ever w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr address: mrs. f. f. bryant/roslyn/long island. 1. see letter 795. 2. john hamilton gourlie; see letter 653. his brother was apparently robert gourlie, sometimes a guest at sketch club meetings. 3. bryant and charles m. leupp were then planning the trip to europe and the near east described in bryant’s letters between november 1852 and june 1853. 802. to frances f. bryant new york oct. 281 1852 thursday. dear f. i am glad you mentioned the harness in your note. i should inevitably have forgotten it. yesterday on going up i called at the carlton house. mrs. [ives?] and her daughter were at dinner, and i did not see them, nor could i wait as i had an engagement with the dentist. this morning at 9 o’clock i went again, and the man at the office told me they had “gone to jersey.” i made a second journey to twenty sixth street and found catherine in. she did not seem very desirous of a place, and said that she thought she would take a month to herself before going out to service. i wonder if she is not going to be married. the child is alive, and put with a nurse. it is true that i do not expect to come to roslyn till saturday. i shall stay till wednesday morning, for the election will take place on tuesday. i shall be glad when it is off our hands. probably it will be well for me to bring out the money for the man who won’t get up till seven. i hear nothing yet of john.2 perhaps he may not come this week. yours ever w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr address: mrs. f. f. bryant/roslyn/long island. 1. bryant mistakenly wrote “29.” 2. probably john howard bryant; see letters 803, 804. 803. to frances f. bryant new york oct 29, 1852. dear f. i neglected to tell you, in writing to you yesterday, how i found miss1 robbins on wednesday evening. a letter for her came addressed to my care and i went to 15 stuyvesant street to deliver it. they told me that she had gone to pass a little time at mrs. wrights on eighth street. there i found her, much worse than when i saw her last, very weak, breathing with labor, coughing frequently and violently, and with a hectic flush on her cheek. mrs. wright had gone in a carriage to the boarding house in stuyvesant street where there was no suitable room for her, and had brought her away, to remain until better accommodations can be provided. her voice, however, does not seem to be affected; it is still clear and sometimes even strong. i do not believe she can live long unless she goes into the interior.2 i hear nothing from john yet. yesterday i bought a single harness in the third avenue for $25 which i ordered to be sent on board the sarah elizabeth.3 will you tell george to bring it to the house as soon as the sloop arrives, and see immediately whether the collar is large enough. if not the maker will give me another. yrs ever w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr address: mrs. bryant/roslyn. 1. bryant mistakenly wrote “mrs.” 2. eliza robbins died at cambridge, massachusetts, on july 16, 1853. see 842.1. 3. a sloop carrying freight between new york city and roslyn. goddard, roslyn harbor, p. 24. 804. to frances f. bryant new york thursday november 4th 1852. dear f. i was quite well all day yesterday and almost without any symptoms of a cold, but today i cough somewhat. mr. charles butler1 has just called with an invitation for you and me to meet professor robinson2 at his house tomorrow evening. mr. ogden is in town and will be there. if you could come in, now, perhaps you will be able, and i will go back with you on saturday. warden has promised me a better harness. of john i hear nothing yet. 3 yours ever w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr address: mrs. f. f. bryant/roslyn/long island. 1. charles butler (1802 1897), a brother of benjamin franklin butler (374.1), was a new york lawyer and philanthropist. he, like william butler ogden (581.2), was active in the early development of chicago, and of midwestern railroads. he was also a founder in 1836 of union theological seminary, new york city. 2. edward robinson; see 399.2. 3. no other evidence has been found that john howard bryant visited the east that year. 805. to the editor of the new york daily times1 [new york, november 4, 1852] sir  as you have used my name in a paragraph which appears in your sheet of this morning, giving the purport of an alleged conversation between a person whom you call “mr. benson, the well known shipping merchant,” and myself, i trust you will do me the justice to publish this reply.2 i never had a moment’s conversation with mr. benson on the subject of mr. webster and the lobos islands, nor, to my knowledge, on any other subject whatever. mr. benson is personally unknown to me, and certainly, if the statement in your paper is a sample of his veracity, i desire never to know more of him than i do now. what mr. webster may have said i do not know, but if the account of it be derived from the same source with the account of the conversation between benson and myself, it is probably equally authentic. i am, sir, yours respectfully. w. c. bryant. manuscript: unrecovered text: new york daily times, november 5, 1852, p. 4. 1. the new york daily times, first published on september 18, 1851, was edited by henry jarvis raymond (1820 1869), a whig politician who was chosen that year as speaker of the new york state assembly. 2. during the last months of his life whig secretary of state daniel webster, who died on october 24, 1852, had been attacked in the democratic press for first supporting and later opposing a practice of american shipowners of taking rich cargoes of the fertilizer guano from the pacific lobos islands, claimed by peru. on september 24 the ep had charged that webster had been speculating in guano with one a. g. benson. in the times article of november 4 webster was quoted as saying, shortly before his death, that his conscience was clear before heaven, adding, “i can only hope that when mr. bryant stands on the brink of the grave, as i now do, his conscience will be as clear of having performed the duty of justice towards my name.” the times editor continued, “we understand that mr. benson, the well known shipping merchant of this city, called upon the principal editor of the post, and made such explanations of the whole affair, as silenced his arguments to prove the corruption, if it did not force from him a positive admission of the injustice done mr. webster.” for a further discussion of daniel webster and the lobos islands affair, see irving h. bartlett, daniel webster (new york: norton [1978]), p. 280; nevins, ordeal, ii, 180 182. 806. to frances f. bryant new york nov 5 1852 friday  dear f. i brought out a draft as you know, of a certain document of which i intended to make a clean copy and execute it, but i cannot find it any where. is it possible that i left it behind at roslyn? will you look a little not much for i can make another when i come out. things are going on well here. fanny has been delayed about her house cleaning, but expects somebody today to begin. we shall have a thumping dividend this half year.1 yrs ever w. c. b. p.s. susan2 says you have another hand. we must not forget the seeds for arthur.3 manuscript: nypl gr address: mrs. f. f. bryant/roslyn/long island. 1. since bookkeeper isaac henderson had replaced timothy howe as business manager of the ep in 1850, its income had risen sharply. nevins, evening post, pp. 237 238. 2. a bryant servant. 3. arthur bryant had written frances on august 1 asking for eastern apple seeds. nypl gr. 807. to john bigelow new york nov. 6 1852 dear bigelow you have seen the times i suppose. i have spoken of the story of benson as a misstatement and have promised in the evening post that it shall be exposed on monday. col. thomas was here today and was quite indignant at benson. he heard nothing said about not liking to take the back track. barney has sent word that he was present and that benson’s story is a lie.1 yours truly, w. c. b. manuscript: nypl gr docketed: nov 6 1852. 1. on november 6 the daily times carried a statement from a. g. benson which quoted his earlier charge, in a letter of september 27 to “messrs. w. c. bryant & co.,” that when he had called on the editor of the ep, in company with a colonel john addison thomas, to demand a retraction of the suggestion that he and daniel webster had speculated in guano, “you still declined, on the ground, that having made the statement you would not appear well before the public to take the back track.” on monday, the 8th, the times printed a letter from colonel thomas stating that he had been present when benson called on john bigelow (not bryant), that bigelow was wholly fair and proper, and that benson was “entirely incorrect” in his published version of their conversation. on the same day the ep printed “a card” over bigelow’s signature charging benson with gross misrepresentation, and quoting in full letters to the ep from thomas and hiram barney, a lawyer and democratic leader who happened to be in the office at the time, to support his charge. on november 9 the times disclaimed any further dealings with benson, and, by implication, offered a grudging apology to the editors of the ep. see new york daily times, november 4 6, 8 9, 1852, passim; ep, september 9 10, 24, and november 4 6, 8 9, passim. 808. to mrs. m[yron?] h[olley?] clark1 new york nov 6, 1852. dear madam, i have looked in vain for the letter of yours which relates to the jenny lind affair.2 it was laid by in a moment of haste to be looked at and thought of again, and is now not to be found. please write, if it is not too much trouble and state the substance of what you wrote at first. but do not write to me for in a week from this time i shall be on my way to europe write to the editors of the evening post. when you want the money for the letters we have published of yours please send on a statement of them &c. i hope you have got duplicates of them all as you desired. yours respectfully w c bryant manuscript: university of michigan library, ann arbor address: mrs. m. h. clark. 1. mrs. clark was apparently the wife of myron holley clark (1806 1892), governor of new york, 1854 1858. 2. the extraordinarily popular swedish soprano jenny lind (1820 1887) had been married at boston on february 5, 1852, to pianist otto goldschmidt, and after giving a farewell concert in castle garden, new york, on may 24, she returned with her husband to europe. bryant’s reference to the “jenny lind affair” is obscure. 809. [to john bigelow?] [new york? c. november 10 1852] mr. george catlin author of a book on the aborigines of this country and the collector of a very rich cabinet or gallery of indian curiosities portraits and pictures representing their customs has returned in his old age to his country bringing with him a great part if not all of his collections.1 this, or a considerable proportion of it is to be sold. mr. george harvey2 has promised to write a notice of them for the evening post. i wish that something friendly may be said about it, for i hear that mr. catlin whom i formerly knew very well is now in need of the money which he hopes from the sale.3 w. c. bryant. manuscript: wcl (draft?). 1. george catlin (1796 1872). pennsylvania born artist whose drawings and paintings of american indians, and published accounts of their lives and customs, made him pre eminent in this field in the 1830s and 1840s, had spent the years 1839 1852 in europe exhibiting his work. in 1852 he became impoverished through speculation and returned to the united states. he had been an early member of the national academy in 1826 1827, and in 1847 had exhibited at the american art union. nad exhibition record, i, 73; cowdrey, aafa & aau, ii, 61. 2. an english landscape artist who spent much of his life in the united states. see 553.2. 3. no article on catlin or his collections has been located in the ep for this period. marble bust of bryant, 1849, by henry kirke brown (see letter 713). “thanatopsis,” by asher durand, 1850 (see letter 718 and p. 118). 1. see letter 730. 2. having given up his law practice and traveled in europe for his health in 1850 1852 (see letter 736), sedgwick had so far recovered as to serve as president of the crystal palace exhibition in 1853. the nature of his more recent illness is uncertain. 1. the earlier antagonism between richard henry dana, jr., and george stillman hillard (see letter 757) had flared up again at the massachusetts constitutional convention on june 23, when dana made remarks about the conservatism of boston businessmen which led hillard to say in print, “the bread that he and i both eat comes from the business community of boston, and … we should not strike at the hand that feeds us.” in reprinting dana’s reply from the commonwealth, bryant commented, “mr. george s. hillard the same on whom mr. webster, shortly after he changed his course on the slavery question, pronounced a public eulogium made an attack upon richard h. dana, jun., the nature of which will be sufficiently understood from the reply which we publish.” ep, june 29, 1853. 1. according to the surviving sketch club minutes, gould (letter 773) did not attend this meeting at bryant’s home on march 30. information from james t. callow. 1. see letter 779. 1. word had just reached new york that the american steamship arctic, on which bryant and leupp had traveled to liverpool in november 1852, had sunk with great loss of life in the north atlantic ocean on september 27, after colliding with another ship in the fog off cape race, newfoundland. among those presumably lost, besides john gourlie’s brother, the chief officer, were the wife, son, and daughter of the ship’s owner, edward knight collins (794.3). see letter 801; ep, october 11, 14, 16, 1854. xiv • cuba, scotland, and europe under the bayonet: 1849 (letters 667 to 712) xvi • voyage to the east: 1852 1853 (letters 810 to 837) project muse promotes the creation and dissemination of essential humanities and social science resources through collaboration with libraries, publishers, and scholars worldwide. forged from a partnership between a university press and a library, project muse is a trusted part of the academic and scholarly community it serves. 2715 north charles streetbaltimore, maryland, usa 21218 +1 (410) 516 6989 muse@jh.edu ©2025 project muse. produced by johns hopkins university press in collaboration with the sheridan libraries. now and always, the trusted content your research requires now and always, the trusted content your research requires built on the johns hopkins university campus built on the johns hopkins university campus ©2025 project muse. produced by johns hopkins university press in collaboration with the sheridan libraries.

an non circulating original copy of this publication is located in the navy department library special collection. indians in the war 1945 in grateful memory of those who died in the service of their country. they stand in the unbroken line of patriots who have dared to die that freedom might live, and grow, and increase its blessings. freedom lives, and through it they live   in a way that humbles the undertakings of most men. franklin d. roosevelt the material in this pamphlet was collected for the 1945 memorial number of indians at work, before the magazine was discontinued because of the paper shortage. many devoted workers spent much time and effort to get these stories, and the photographs which accompany the lists were loaned by the families of the boys whose names will be found here. we wish to express our gratitude to all of those who made this record possible. the casualty lists and the lists of awards and decorations continue those begun in indians at work for may june 1943 and carried on in the november december 1943, may june 1944, and september october 1944 issues. they are not complete, and it is hoped that when the peace has come, the whole story of the indian contribution to the victory may be gathered up into one volume. awards of the purple heart have not been indicated here because every soldier wounded in action against the enemy is entitled to the decoration, and the award should be taken for granted. november 1945 united states department of the interior  office of indian affairs chicago 54, illinois haskell printing department 2 15 46  15,000 honor for indian heroism the war has ended in victory for the united nations, and after a troubled period of readjustment and reorganization, peace will come at last. the story of the indians' contribution to the winning of the war has been told only in part, and new material will be coming in for many months. as one of the sioux boys says, "as a rule nowadays the fellows don't go in for heroics." but already the indian record is impressive. in the spring of 1945, there were 21,767 indians in the army, 1,910 in the navy, 121 in the coast guard, and 723 in the marines. these figures do not include officers, for whom no statistics are available. several hundred indian women are in the various branches of the services. the standing rock agency, north dakota, estimates that at least fifty girls from that jurisdiction are in uniform. the office of indian affairs has recorded 71 awards of the air medal, 51 of the silver star, 47 of the bronze star medal, 34 of the distinguished flying cross, and two of the congressional medal of honor. there are undoubtedly many more which have not been reported. many of these ribbons are decorated with oak leaf clusters awarded in lieu of additional medals. it is not unusual to see an air medal with nine oak leaf clusters, or twelve, or even fourteen. the casualty lists are long. they come from theaters of war all over the world. there were many indians in the prison camps of the philippines after the fall of bataan and corregidor, and later there were many more on iwo jima and okinawa. there were indians in the 45th division in sicily and italy. they were at anzio, and they took part in the invasion on d day in normandy. a ute indian, leroy hamlin, was with a small troop which made the first contact with the russians across the elbe on april 25. another ute, harvey natchees, was the first american soldier to ride into the center of berlin. pfc. ira hayes, pima, of the marines, was one of the six men who raised the flag on the summit of mt. suribachi. once in a while, an indian diving into a foxhole when shells began to burst, would find himself face to face with another member of his race, and they would start talking about indian problems as they waited for the enemy fire to cease. when there was only one indian in an outfit, he was inevitably called chief, which amused him and perhaps pleased him a little. reflecting the heroic spirit of indians at war in every theater of action, the list of those specially selected to receive military honors grows steadily. we shall never know of all the courageous acts performed "with utter disregard for personal safety," but the proved devotion of all indian peoples on the home front and the conspicuous courage of their sons and daughters in the various services entitle them to share in common the honors bestowed upon the few here noted. 1 the blue star sprinkled ribbon of the highest award of all is given for "conspicuous gallantry at the risk of life above and beyond the call of duty." relatively few of these medals have been given, and the nation may well be proud of the fact that two indians thus far have won it. the story of lt. ernest childers, creek, was told in indians at work for may june 1944; that of lt. jack montgomery, cherokee, in the january february number, 1945. the highest aviation honor is given for heroism or extraordinary achievement while participating in aerial flight. the ribbon is blue, with a white bordered red stripe in the center and white stripes near the ends. thirty or more indians have been awarded this medal thus far, and their stories have been told in various issues of indians at work. mention has already been made of lt. william r. fredenberge, menominee, of wisconsin, who wears this ribbon and also has the air medal with seven oak leaf clusters. the citation for the dfc reads as follows: "lieutenant fredenberg demonstrated superior skill in the execution of a dive bombing attack upon a heavily defended marshalling yard wherein he personally destroyed three locomotives and thereafter in the face of heavy and accurate enemy fire remained in the target area strafing installations until his ammunition was exhausted. the outstanding flying ability and tactical proficiency which he exhibited on this occasion reflected the highest credit upon himself and his organization." sgt. shuman shaw, a full blood paiute from california, was wounded on his third mission as a tail gunner on a b 24 liberator, but he stayed with his guns and shot down two of the enemy, with three more probably destroyed. during his 22nd mission, while raiding strategic installations at budapest, he was again seriously wounded. on both occasions he was given plasma. sgt. shaw has the distinguished flying cross, the air medal with three oak leaf clusters, the presidential unit citation, and the purple heart with oak leaf cluster. harold e. rogers, seneca from miami, oklahoma, was reported missing in action on july 3, 1944, when his plane failed to return from a mission over budapest. sgt. rogers had flown 25 missions with the 8th air force in england, and then served as instructor in the united states for six months. he went back into action, this time with the 15th air forced, based in italy. he wore the air medal with nine oak leaf clusters, and the distinguished flying cross. the purple heart was awarded to him posthumously. his wife, a potawatomi from kansas, who now lives in hollywood, was a student at haskell institute with her husband and sgt. rogers was studying law at the time 2 he entered the service. he also attended sherman institute and riverside junior college. a soldier who is cited for gallantry in action, when that gallantry does not warrant the award of a medal of honor or a distinguished service cross, is given the silver star. this decoration was awarded posthumously to ben quintana, a keres, from cochiti pueblo. according to the citation, ben was "an ammunition carrier in a light machine gun squadron charged with protection of the right flank of his troop which was counterattacked by superior numbers." the gunner was killed and the assistant gunner severely wounded. "private quintana," the citation continues, "refused to retire from this hazardous position and gallantly rushed forward to the silenced gun and delivered a withering fire into the enemy, inflicting heavy casualties. while so engaged he was mortally wounded. by this extraordinary courage he repulsed the counterattack and prevented the envelopment of the right flank of his troop. private quintana's unflinching devotion to duty and heroism under fire inspired his troop to attack and seize the enemy strong point." with ben quintana's death the country has lost one of its most promising young artists. at the age of 15, he won first prize over 80 contestants, of whom 7 were indians, for a poster to be used in the coronado cuarto centennial celebration. later, he won first prize and $1,000 in an american magazine contest in which there were 52,587 entries. captain leonard lowry, a graduate of sherman institute, also wears the silver star. he was a first lieutenant at the time of the citation, which says: "he was advancing with an infantry force of 500 men when they were halted by the enemy and the leading elements were pinned down. it was imperative that this force get through. lt. lowry assumed command and directed temporary security measures. he then organized a small combat patrol and personally led it in storming the enemy elements that were delaying the unit's advance." capt. lowry has been wounded several times. the shoshones proudly claim marine pfc. leonard a. webber, of fort hall, idaho, who received his silver star "for gallantry and intrepidity while serving with the second marine division, during action against enemy japanese forces on tarawa, gilbert islands, from november 22 to november 23, 1943. during this period, when radio communication was out, he performed duties as runner between the tank battalion command post, tanks, and infantry front line positions, with utter disregard for his own personal safety in the face of heavy enemy gunfire. his skill and devotion to duty contributed greatly to the maintaining of communication of tank units. his conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity were in keeping with the highest tradition of the united states naval service." later, for action in 1944, leonard webber, now a corporal, received the bronze star. this decoration is awarded for meritorious or 3 heroic achievement or service, not involving participation in aerial flight, in connection with military operations against an enemy of the united states. the citation for the bronze star reads: "for meritorious achievement in action against the enemy on saipan and tinian, marianas islands, from 15 june to 1 august, 1944, while serving as a reconnaissance man in a marine tank battalion. with aggressive determination and fearless devotion to duty corporal webber reconnoitered routes of advance for tanks in the face of intense enemy fire. on one occasion, he led a tank platoon over exceedingly dangerous and perilous terrain, while under heavy mortar and small arms fire, to support the infantry advance and make it possible for his tank platoon to inflict severe casualties on the enemy. his cool courage and outstanding ability contributed in a large measure to the success of the tank operation. his conduct throughout was in keeping with the highest traditions of the united states naval service." the mother and father of pvt. blaine queen received the silver star posthumously awarded to their son for heroism in action in germany. pvt. queen, a cherokee from north carolina, was with a platoon engaged in sharp action with the enemy. they were under heavy fire from nearby enemy positions, and when their ammunition began to run dangerously low, pvt. queen volunteered to leave his foxhole and go for the needed supplies. as he ran he was mortally wounded, but in spite of his wound he kept on toward his destination until death overtook him. pfc. albert wahweotten, potawatomi from kansas, received the silver star from his commanding general last february in germany. according to the citation, pfc. wahweotten, armed with an m 1 rifle and a bazooka, worked his way 200 yards beyond the front lines to a house occupied by the enemy. in spite of heavy fire, he crawled to within ten yards of the house, which he set on fire with the bazooka. then he went into the burning building and captured twelve germans, eliminating the last enemy resistance in the town. an iowa choctaw, also from kansas, was another winner of the silver star for gallantry in action against the germans. when his superior officer was disabled, pfc. thurman e. nanomantube took over the duties of section leader of a heavy machine gun section, and with complete disregard for his own safety ran 4 across fifty yards of open ground, swept by heavy fire, in order to help a gunner whose gun was not working properly. when the battalion was pinned down by artillery fire, he gave first aid to two wounded men and handled another skillfully in order to keep him from becoming the victim of combat exhaustion. the citation praises pfc. nanomantube for his initiative, bravery, and gallantry. an engineers outfit, in combat for 165 continuous days on luzon, needed the bulldozer which pfc. norris l. galvez, papago of sells, arizona, was driving up the road. pfc. norris was told that the japs had two automatic weapons firing across the road ahead, but he decided that the bulldozer must go through and unhesitatingly drove the unprotected machine through the field of fire, an action which brought him a citation and the silver star. alec hodge is only six years old, but he knows what war means. he knows, too, the pride with which soldiers receive their medals, for on alec's small chest was recently pinned the bronze star posthumously awarded to his father, pfc. otto hodge, a yurok hoopa, who was killed in action in italy. the youngster stood straight, as befits the son of a warrior, and listened to the words of the citation: "for heroic achievement in action against the enemy from september 10 to september 23, 1944." then he solemnly shook the proffered hand of brigadier general oscar b. abbott, who made the award. the ceremony was held at the arcata naval auxiliary air station near eureka, california, on april 6, 1945. alec has two uncles in the service. one, fireman henry hodge, is on sea duty in the south pacific, while the other, pvt. james hodge, is serving in europe. both uncles are graduates of sherman institute and are the sons of mrs. carrie hodge of trinidad, california. the citation accompanying the bronze star medal awarded to pvt. houston stevens, kickapoo from shawnee, oklahoma, reads: "for heroic achievement near st. raphael, france, on 15 august 1944. struck by an aerial bomb as it neared shore during the invasion of southern france, lst 282 was burning fiercely and ammunition aboard was exploding continuously. unmindful of the intense heat and the exploding ammunition, pvt. stevens manned a 50 caliber machine gun located within ten yards of the explosion. though his hair and eyebrows were singed by the spreading flames, he remained at his post and continued to fire the gun at the enemy plane. by his devotion to duty, pvt. stevens prevented additional damage by the plane. his action reflects credit upon himself and the armed forces of the united states." sgt. perry skenandore, oneida from wisconsin, wears two rows of ribbons, as well as the blue bar for the presidential unit citation. he has been awarded the silver star, the bronze star with oak leaf cluster, and the soldier's medal. his european theater ribbon carries three battle stars and the bronze arrow which stands for the invasion of normandy. sgt. skenandore is a member of the 4th infantry division, the ivy leaf, a fighting outfit which is described by a stars and stripes correspondent as follows: "after 199 days, ending march 9, in continuous contact with the german army, the 4th division closed a chapter that carried it through some of the most famous battles of the present war. "starting on august 24 with the headlong rush into paris, which they liberated the next day, the 4th's men never lost sight of the grey uniformed wehrmacht until they had it on the run towards the rhine. "included in the nearly seven months of grinding up nazi hordes were the mad dash across northern france and belgium; the liberation of such towns as chauny, st. quentin, st. hubert, bastogne, and st. vith. the doughs never stopped their eastward drive until they had bowled through the siegfried line. the 4th division was the first unit to enter german soil on september 11. "history has recorded their successful but 5 bloody battle of the huertgen forest and their magnificent stand before the city of luxembourg in those dark days of december, when, according to lt. gen. george patton, jr., 'a tired division halted the left shoulder of the german thrust into the american lines and saved the city of luxembourg.' "from this action the ivy leaf division went over to the offensive, crossing the sure river and eating into the bulge the enemy had built up. switching to the st. vith sector, they fought their way through the siegfried line in exactly the same place where they had pushed through in september. this made four times they had passed through the maze of steel and concrete that was once considered almost impregnable." sgt. skenandore has a good deal to tell about his division and its accomplishments against the nazis, but little information about himself. the ribbons, however, speak for him. the bronze star medal was awarded to corporal calvin flying bye, sioux, of little eagle, south dakota, "for heroic achievement in germany on 29 and 30 november 1944. . . . during these two days, when his division attacked a fortified enemy town, communication lines between the forward observer and his battalion were severed. in spite of heavy enemy fire which was falling not more than 15 yards from him, he checked the lines and constantly maintained them without getting any sleep for 48 hours. his courage and devotion to duty reflect great credit upon himself and the military service." pfc. herbert bremner, tlingit, of yakutat, alaska, has been given the bronze star for heroic action in holland: "while the anti tank platoon which was supporting the assault battalion was moving its weapons forward to engage four enemy tanks which were holding up the progress of the battalion, two of the prime movers were damaged by intense mortar and machine gun fire, and it was necessary to repair them before they could be used to move the weapons into position. without regard for his personal safety, private bremner manned the machine gun, which was in an exposed position on top of one of the vehicles. his determined, accurate fire forced the enemy tanks to withdraws, thus permitting the battalion to advance to its objective. the high standard of courage of private bremner was a large factor in enabling the battalion to gain its objective and is a distinct credit to this soldier and the military service." marion w. mckeever, flathead, from montana, was awarded the bronze star posthumously "for meritorious achievement in connection with military operations against the enemy at bougainville, solomon islands, on march 10, 1944. during a counterattack to destroy the enemy forces, when his platoon made an advance against enemy positions, pvt. mckeever moved up aggressively to engage the enemy. moving up as far as possible he crossed a machine gun lane and the enemy opened fire, killing him instantly. because of his daring movement in spite of the heavy fire, he was one of the most forward men of the platoon. his action was cool and brave and was an inspiration to all who served with him." a posthumous award of the bronze star medal was made to cpl. jack e. mattz, yurok smith river indian from grants pass, oregon. during an assault on enemy lines in holland, cpl. mattz crept forward toward a dugout containing a large number of the enemy, killed several of them with his sub machine gun, and when his ammunition ran out, accounted for the rest by using hand grenades. a few hours later he was killed by shell fire. two indian gunners with the 15th air force, based in italy, had similar stories to tell of parachute jumps in balkan territory. s sgt. cornelius wakolee, potawatomi, from kansas, was forced to bail out over yugoslavia when his liberator bomber was hit by heavy flak. he was reported missing on october 14, and returned to duty some six weeks later, after a long walk, guided across enemy held 6 territory by yugoslav partisans. some months afterward, t sgt. ray gonyea, from the onondaga reservation, new york, made a similar jump and landed in a village held by the partisans, who helped him and his crew back to their base  after an hilarious celebration. sgt. gonyea holds the air medal with two oak leaf clusters, and the purple heart. sgt. wakolee has three clusters to the air medal. danny b. marshall, creek, from holdenville, oklahoma, has evaded death dozens of times and has been wounded eight times. five of his wounds required hospital treatment, but the other three times he had first aid and did not report at a hospital. he has been hit in the face, head, arms, leg, and back, and has the purple heart with four clusters, the bronze star, the good conduct medal, the combat infantryman's badge, and five battle stars for service in italy, including the anzio beachhead and rome, and the invasion of southern france. "the greatest thrill of all," said john redday, sioux, from south dakota, "was to pass through the golden gate and set foot again on american soil." this remark was made after 21 months' service in a submarine patrolling south pacific waters. during this time the sub sank fourteen and damaged seven enemy vessels. among them was one of japan's largest freighters, which was destroyed by gunfire alone. the thrills and dangers of submarine warfare were many, according to redday. once a sub chaser, disguised as a transport, discovered them while they were surfaced, and depth charges fell all around them before they could submerge. the charges were so terrific that the overhead motors were sheared off. another time an enemy destroyer caught their propguard with a grappling iron and pulled them forty feet toward the surface before they could get away. in escaping they dived far below normal depth and the pressure was so great that water leaked in from all sides. redday was transferred to the veterans' hospital at minneapolis a year ago because of tuberculosis, and is slowly improving in the free air of his homeland. dragging one wounded soldier, helping support another, his own back and legs torn by shrapnel, a twenty year old navajo made his way across three hundred yards of knee deep snow. safe in his own lines again, he did not bother to go to the aid station. this is only one of the stories told about sgt. clifford etsitty, a star patrol scout of the western front. another time he was within 30 yards of the enemy when a machine gun opened up on his patrol. "the chief," as he is known in the army, flattened out and with six shots finished the half dozen nazis who barred his way. etsitty received his first purple heart on attu, where he killed 40 japs in 20 days. this was night ambush detail. clad in white snow suits, the soldiers lay in wait for enemies and 7 picked them off as they approached. the cold, dangerous work ended when a bursting mortar shell smashed the navajo's jaw and sent him to the hospital for seven months. as soon as he was discharged, he was sent to the 99th division and continued his remarkable career on the german front. the bronze star has also been received by staff sgt. david e. kenote, wisconsin menominee, "for meritorious service in connection with military operations against an enemy of the united states, in france, from 1 august 1944 to 31 october 1944. sgt. kenote inaugurated a system of stock records and a procedure for requisitioning which enabled the adjutant general, third united states army, successfully to supply and distribute war department publications and blank forms to third army troops. the foresight of this non commissioned officer, and his careful planning and energetic execution achieved continuous supply during all phases of a rapidly moving operation. his plans were simple and workable, and his decisions were sound. the zealous devotion to duty of sgt. kenote reflects great credit upon himself and the military forces of the united states." 8 9 10 11 (one of the last stories written by ernie pyle before his tragic death on ie island was about the indians of the first marine division on okinawa. it is reprinted here by permission of scripps howard newspapers and united feature syndicate, inc. the ceremonial dances, according to marine combat correspondent walter wood, included the apache devil dance, the eagle dance, the hoop dance, the war dance, and the navajo mountain chant. besides the navajos, sioux, comanche, apache, pima, kiowa, pueblo, and crow indians took part in the ceremonies.) by ernie pyle okinawa  (by navy radio)  back nearly two years ago when i was with oklahoma's 45th division in sicily and later in italy, i learned that they had a number of navajo indians in communications. when secret orders had to be given over the phone these boys gave them to one another in navajo. practically nobody in the world understands navajo except another navajo. well, my regiment of first division marines has the same thing. there are about eight indians who do this special work. they are good marines and are very proud of being so. there are two brothers among them, both named joe. their last names are the ones that are different. i guess that's a navajo custom, though i never knew of it before. one brother, pfc. joe gatewood, went to the indian school in albuquerque. in fact our house is on the very same street, and joe said it sure was good to see somebody from home. joe has been out here three years. he is 34 and has five children back home whom he would like to see. he was wounded several months ago and got the purple heart. joe's brother is joe kellwood who has also been out here three years. a couple of the others are pfc. alex williams of winslow, ariz., and pvt. oscar carroll of fort defiance, ariz., which is the capital of the navajo reservation. most of the boys are from around fort defiance and used to work for the indian bureau. the indian boys knew before we got to okinawa that the invasion landing wasn't going to be very tough. they were the only ones in the convoy who did know it. for one thing they saw signs and for another they used their own influence. before the convoy left the far south tropical island where the navajos had been training since the last campaign, the boys put on a ceremonial dance. the red cross furnished some colored cloth and paint to stain their faces. they made up the rest of their indian costumes from chicken feathers, sea shells, coconuts, empty ration cans and rifle cartridges. then they did their own native ceremonial chants and dances out there under the tropical palm trees with several thousand marines as a grave audience. 12 in their chant they asked the great gods in the sky to sap the japanese of their strength for this blitz. they put the finger of weakness on the japs. and then they ended their ceremonial chant by singing the marine corps song in navajo. i asked joe gatewood if he really felt their dance had something to do with the ease of our landing and he said the boys did believe so and were very serious about it, himself included. "i knew nothing was going to happen to us," joe said, "for on the way up here there was a rainbow over the convoy and i knew then everything would be all right." 13 a choctaw leads the guerrillas in april 1945, after more than three years as a guerrilla leader in the philippines, lt. col. edward ernest mcclish came home to okmulgee, oklahoma, where his family, who had refused to believe him dead, waited for him. some of his story has been told in american guerrilla in the philippines, by ira wolfert, and other details have been added in a report given to the public relations bureau of the war department by col. mcclish. it is an extraordinary tale of accomplishment against great odds. lt. col. mcclish, a choctaw, who graduated from haskell institute in 1929 and from bacone college two years later, was called to active duty in the national guard in 1940, and early in 1941 he arrived in the philippines, where he became commander of a company of philippine scouts. in august he went to panay to mobilize units of the philippine army there, and as commander of the third battalion he moved his men to negros, where they were stationed when the war broke out. late in december they crossed by boat to mindanao, and there all the moro bolo battalions were added to mcclish's command. the japanese did not reach mindanao until april 29, 1942, shortly before the american capitulation on luzon, and col. mcclish's men fought them for nearly three weeks. when forces on the island finally surrendered, mcclish, a casualty in the hospital, some distance from headquarters, was fortunately unable to join his men. instead of capitulating he began to organize a guerrilla army. by september 1942, he had an organization of more than 300 soldiers, with four machine guns, 150 rifles, and six boxes of ammunition. some american and filipino officers had escaped capture and joined the staff. in the early stages of the organization, mcclish got word of a colonel fertig, of the army engineers, who was working along similar lines in the western part of mindanao, and he managed to reach fertig by travelling in a small sailboat along the coast. the two men decided to consolidate their commands, and colonel fertig asked mcclish to organize the fighting forces in the four eastern provinces of the island as the 110th division. organization was at first very difficult. independent guerrilla bands had sprung up all over the island, some of them composed of robbers and bandits who terrorized the villages. some were anti american, says colonel mcclish. most of them lacked military training and education. but slowly the work proceeded. the bandits were disarmed and jailed; the friendly natives were trained, and young men qualified to be officers were commissioned. by the spring of 1943 mcclish had assembled a full strength regiment in each of the three provinces, a fourth had been started, and division headquarters staff had been completed. simultaneously with the military organization, civil governments were set up in each province. wherever possible, the officials who had held jobs in pre war days were reappointed, provided that they had not collaborated with the japanese. provincial and municipal officials worked hand in hand with the military, and helped greatly to build up the army's strength. because of the shortage of food, reports colonel mcclish, a food administrator and a civil and judicial committee were appointed to begin agricultural and industrial rehabilitation. army projects for the production of food and materials of war were begun throughout the division area, and all able bodied men between the ages of 18 and 50 were required to give one day's work each week to one of these projects. they raised vegetables, pigs, poultry, sugar cane, and other foods. the manufacture of soap, alcohol, and coconut oil was started. fishing was encouraged. in some of the provinces food production was increased beyond the peacetime level. the civilians realized that they were part of the army, and that only a total effort could defeat the enemy. the public relations office published a newspaper, and headquarters kept in communication 14 with the regiments in each province by radio, by telephone (when wire was available), or by runner. the guerrillas acquired launches and barges which had been kept hidden from the japanese, and these were operated by home made alcohol and coconut oil. seven trucks provided more transport, but it was safer and easier to use the sea than the land. in order to maintain their motor equipment, they "obtained" a complete machine shop from a japanese lumbering company in their territory. from september 15, 1942, to january 1, 1945, while mcclish's work of organization and administration was continuing, his guerrilla forces were fighting the japanese, and more than 350 encounters  ambushes, raids on patrols and small garrisons, and general engagements  were listed on their records. one hundred and fifteen men were killed and sixty four wounded. enemy losses were estimated at more than 3000 killed and six hundred wounded. the guerrillas finally made contact with the american forces in the south pacific and supplied them with valuable information about the enemy which was extremely helpful when the time for the invasion of the philippines came at last. they did their part in bringing about the final victory in the pacific. "if i should be killed, i want you to bury me on one of the hills east of the place where my grandparents and brothers and sisters and other relative are buried. "if you have a memorial service, i want the soldiers to go ahead with the american flag. i want cowboys to follow, all on horseback. i want one of the cowboys to lead one of the wildest of the t over x horses with saddle and bridle on. "i will be riding that horse." such were the written instructions left by pvt. clarence spotted wolf, full blood gros ventre, with his tribesmen. he was killed december 21, 1944, in luxembourg. pvt. spotted wolf was born may 18, 1914. he entered the service in january, 1942, and a year later was transferred to a tank battalion. he went overseas in august, 1944. on january 28, in elbowoods, north dakota, the memorial service he had foreseen was held in his honor. it was an impressive ceremony. the stars and stripes presided over the winter bare hills where clarence spotted wolf's family and friends carried out his wishes. there were soldiers; there were cowboys; and his own saddle had been placed on the t over x horse, which was led in the procession. it is pleasing to fancy the spirits of brave warriors long departed watching benignly from the happy hunting grounds. as for the empty saddle  who knows? 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 reprinted by permission of the marine corps gazette through the solomons, in the marianas, at peleliu, iwo jima, and almost every island where marines have stormed ashore in this war, the japanese have heard a strange language gurgling through the earphones of their radio listening sets  a voice code which defies decoding. to the linguistically keen ear it shows a trace of asiatic origin, and a lot of what sounds like american double talk. this strange tongue, one of the most select in the world, is navajo, embellished with improvised words and phrases for military use. for three years it has served the marine corps well for transmitting secret radio and telephone messages in combat. the dark skinned, black haired navajo code talker, huddled over a portable radio or field phone in a regimental, divisional or corps command post, translating a message into navajo as he reads it to his counterpart on the receiving end miles away, has been a familiar sight in the pacific battle zone. permission to disclose the work of these american indians in marine uniform has just been granted by the marine corps. transmitting messages which the enemy cannot decode is a vital military factor in any engagement, especially where combat units are operating over a wide area in which communications must be maintained by radio. throughout the history of warfare, military leaders have sought the perfect code  a code which the enemy could not break down, no matter how able his intelligence staff. most codes are based on the codist's native language. if the language is a widely used one, it also will be familiar to the enemy and no matter how good your code may be the enemy eventually can master it. navajo, however, is one of the world's "hidden" languages; it is termed "hidden," along with other indian languages, as no alphabet or other symbols of it exist in the original form. there are only about 55,000 navajos, all concentrated in one region, living on government reservations and intensely clannish by nature, which has confined the tongue to its native area. except for the navajos themselves, only a handful of americans speak the language. at the time the marine corps adopted navajo as a voice code it was estimated that not more than 28 other persons, american scientists or missionaries who lived among the navajos and studied the language for years, could speak navajo fluently. in recent years, missionaries and the interior department's bureau of indian affairs have worked on the compilation of dictionaries and grammars of the language, based on its phonetics, to reduce it to writing. even with these available it is said that a fluency can be acquired from prepared texts only by persons who are highly educated in english and who have made a lengthy study of spoken and written navajo. one of the reasons which prompted the marine corps to adopt navajo, in preference to a variety of indian tongues as used by the aef in the last war, was a report that navajos were the only indian group in the united states not infested with german students during the 20 years prior to 1941, when the germans had been studying tribal dialects under the guise of art students, anthropologists, etc. it was learned that german and other foreign diplomats were among the chief customers of the bureau of indian affairs for the purchase of publications dealing with indian tribes, but it was decided that even if navajo books were in enemy hands it would be virtually impossible for the enemy to gain a working knowledge of the language from that meager information. in addition, even ability to speak navajo fluently would not necessarily enable the enemy to decode a military message, for the navajo dictionary does not list military terms, and words 25 used for "jeep," "emplacement," "battery," "radar," "antiaircraft," etc., have been improvised by navajos in the field. the adoption of code talkers by the marine corps stemmed from a request for navajo communicators by maj. gen. clayton b. vogel, then commanding general, amphibious corps, pacific fleet. a report submitted with his request said a navajo enlistment program would have full support of the tribal council at window rock, arizona, navajo reservation. acting on this request the marine corps' division of plans and policies in march 1942 sent col. wethered woodworth to make a further report on the subject, and a test was made at the san diego, calif., marine base to determine the practicality of navajos as code talkers. the test revealed that the navajos who volunteered for the experiment could transmit the messages given, although with some variation at the receiving end resulting from the lack of exact words to transmit specific military terms. for example, "enemy is pressing attack on left flank" would come out "the enemy is attacking on the left." proper schooling in military phraseology, it was believed, could correct this variation, and the following month the marine corps authorized an initial enlistment of 30 navajos to ascertain the value of their services. the enlistment order required that recruits meet full marine corps physical requirements and have a sufficient knowledge of english and navajo to transmit combat messages in navajo. the recruits were to receive regular marine training, attend a navajo school at the fleet marine force training center, camp elliott, calif., and then receive sufficient communications training to enable them to handle their specially qualified talent on the battlefield. all the recruits spoke the same navajo basically, but there were certain word variations. in navajo, the same word spoken with four different inflections has four different meanings. the recruits had to agree on words which had no shades of interpretation, for any variation in an important military messages might be disastrous. as might be expected in any group of youths, they were not equal in education or intelligence. some of the military terms were very complex to the unschooled; all had to be able to understand them thoroughly in order to translate them into their native language. some were not easily adaptable to communications work. it was difficult in several instances for non navajos to instruct the recruits in marine corps activities; a few marine instructors were unable to cope with the typical indian imperturbability. on the other hand, many of the recruits were well educated, intelligent and quick to learn. a number had worked for the bureau of indian affairs as clerks, and almost all the navajos had the highly developed indian sensory perceptions. there were some recruits like pfc wilsie h. bitsie, whose father is district supervisor of the mexican springs, n. mex., navajo district. bitsie became an instructor in the navajo school at camp elliott for a time, and helped work out the much needed military terms. he went on to join the marine raiders and at new georgia his navajo ability helped the raiders maintain contact with the army command at munda while the marines knocked out japanese outposts in the jungle to the north. other code talkers went with the third marine division and the raiders to bougainville. there some manned distant outposts, maintaining contact in navajo by radio. it was found best to have close friends work together in teams of two, for they could perfect their code talk by personal contact. the men in their units learned that in addition to their language ability the navajos also could be good marines. they could do their share of fighting and they made good scouts and messengers. there had been concern in some quarters that dark skinned navajos might be mistaken for japs. in the latter days of the guadalcanal action one army unit did pick up a navajo communicator on the coastal road and messaged the marine command: "we have captured a jap in marine clothing with marine identification tags." a marine officer was startled to find the prisoner was a navajo, who was 26 only bored by the proceedings. the code talkers went on into more campaigns, proving their ability, and the navajo quota in the marine corps rose from 30 to 420. at their tbxs they transmitted operational orders which helped us advance from the solomons to okinawa. it was found that the navajos are not necessary at levels lower than battalions. for messages between battalions and companies the extra security is not required and speed is the paramount issue. the iii amphibious corps reported that the use of the talkers during the guam and peleliu operations "was considered indispensable for the rapid transmission of classified dispatches. enciphering and deciphering time would have prevented vital operational information from being dispatched or delivered to staff sections with any degree of speed." at iwo jima, navajos transmitted messages from the beach to division and corps commands afloat early on d day, and after the division commands came ashore, from division ashore to corps afloat. last april authority was granted to establish a re training course for navajos at fmfpac. under this plan, five code talkers are taken from each division to attend an intensive 21 day course which gives emphasis to plane types, ship types, printing and message writing, and message transmission. these navajos then return to their divisions to instruct the remaining men. it is emphasized that code talkers work out successfully only where interest is shown by the command and where training continues between operations. as for the navajos themselves, they probably are not any more enthusiastic about the concentrated schooling than most young marines would be about schooling, for they are amused at being regarded as different from other marines. on rare occasions, though, they do lapse into some typical indian gyrations. ernie pyle, in one of his last dispatches from okinawa, described how the first division's navajos had put on a ceremonial dance before leaving for okinawa. in the ceremony, they asked the gods to sap the strength of the japanese in the assault. according to a later report, when the first division met the strong opposition in the south of okinawa, one marine turned to a navajo code talker and said, "o.k., yazzey, what about your little ceremony? what do you call this?" "this is different," answered the navajo with a smile. "we prayed only for an easy landing." 27 many indians participated in the famous action on iwo jima. the most celebrated of these if pfc. ira h. hayes, a full blood pima from bapchule, arizona, one of three survivors of the historic incident on mount suribachi, when six marines raised the flag on the summit of the volcano, under heavy enemy fire. he served on iwo jima for 36 days and came away unwounded. previously he had fought at vella la vella and bougainville. because of the nation wide attention won by rosenthal's dramatic photograph of the flag raising, symbol and expression of the invincible american spirit, hayes and his two comrades, pharmacist's mate john bradley and pfc. rene a. gagnon, were brought back to this country to travel extensively in support of the seventh war loan. in the photograph on the opposite page, hayes is pointing out his position in the flag raising patrol. on may 1st, more than 1000 indians of the pima tribe gathered at bapchule to pay honor to their fellow tribesman and to celebrate his safe return. a barbecue feast, under a canopy of brush, was followed by an impressive religious ceremony, with prayers led to protestant and catholic missionaries and songs by several church choirs. mrs. hayes, ira's mother, asked two of the girl soloists to sing the hymn, "he will deliver." the national congress of american indians gave a luncheon in honor of hayes and his comrades in chicago on may 19, at which a brief speech by hayes was broadcast. at this meeting he was made first commander of the american indian veterans' association. pharmacist's mate bradley stated in an interview that hayes was "a marked man on the island because of his cool level headedness and efficiency." he refused to be leader of a platoon, according to bradley, because as he explained, "i'd have to tell other men to go and get killed, and i'd rather do it myself," when he and the two others were ordered home to take part in the war loan campaign, hayes was reluctant to leave his fighting comrades, and, after a few weeks in the united states, requested that he be returned to overseas duty, where he felt he would be of greater value to his country. a second indian, louis c. charlo, flathead, from montana, climbed mount suribachi with a marine patrol shortly after the flag was raised on its summit. he was killed in action not long afterward, fighting to keep the stars and stripes on the mountain. louis was the grandson of chief charlo of nez perce war fame, a leader who maintained his friendship with the white people throughout those trying times. among indians listed as wounded on the island are pfc. ray flood, sioux, from pine ridge; verne ponzo, shoshone, fort hall; orville goss, sidney brown, jr. and richard j. brown,; robert spahe, jicarilla apache; thomas chapman, jr., pawnee, and william m. fletcher, cheyenne, from oklahoma; joseph r. johnson, papago, arizona; pfc. glenn wasson and pfc. clarence l. chavez, paiute, nevada; and richard burson, ute. from utah. killed were pvt. howard brandon, rosebud sioux; pfc. clement crazy thunder, pine ridge sioux, whose photograph appeared in the may june 1943 issue of indians at work; pfc. adam west driver, cherokee, from north carolina; pvt. eugene lewis, yurok, california; and paul kinlahcheeny, navajo. leland chavez, s 1 c, paiute, nevada, is reported missing in action. sgt. warren sankey, arapaho, from el reno, oklahoma, was one of the crew which first knocked out a japanese tank on iwo jima. 28 two flathead indian brothers, daniel and john moss, marines from arlee, montana, met unexpectedly on iwo jima, and both came safely through the fighting. their father, henry moss, served with the marines in the first world war. one of four survivors of his company is pvt. clifford chebahtah, comanche, of anadarko, oklahoma. pvt. chebahtah was injured on iwo jima and was granted a two weeks' furlough at home. "i was lying in a foxhole when i saw our boys raise the flag on the top of the volcanic mountain of suribachi, and cold shivers ran down my spine," he said. 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 the story of the american indian and his efforts in this second great world struggle is not limited to the exploits of soldiers. men and women too old or too young for service with the armed forces have volunteered for work in the war industries as well as in food production. this report on one of the u.s. navy's greatest land based activities illustrates the intense desire of the indian people to serve where they are directly connected with the work of the war. the naval supply depot at clearfield, utah, has as its aim and purpose general service to the fleet. it sends out a lifeline of supplies, pouring the essentials of successful warfare in an endless stream to the far points of the pacific theatre. the depot was established in the spring of 1943, to start the flow of vital materials to the navy. at this time, down in the rio grande valley of new mexico, indians were leaving home for military service. ten per cent of the pueblo indians had gone into uniform. in the neighboring cities and the local communities help was urgently needed. the older men of the pueblos, recognizing the emergency, decided to put an advertisement in the local papers offering their services for part time work in the neighboring area. soon trucks came pouring into the villages to pick up working parties, some even arriving from colorado. when word of this project reached the offices of the civil service commission in denver, they sent a representative to santo domingo pueblo to confer with john bird, an indian leader of political and social affairs. john bird was told about the new naval depot at clearfield. the civil service understood that the pueblo people wanted to help win the war; here at clearfield was a place where men were needed, a place contributing directly to our successes in the pacific. it was agreed that pueblo men, if they went to work at clearfield, would be allowed to go home during the summer months to plant and harvest their crops. at the meeting called by john bird, the pueblos agreed that this was work which they wanted to do. the farm agent was convinced that if they came back and farmed in the summer months, the move to utah for the rest of the year would be good. the task of recruiting men from all the pueblos was given to john bird, and he travelled from taos on the north to isleta on the south. santa clara, jemez, and santo domingo gave the greatest number of workers. sixty two men came from jemez alone. when they were examined and passed as physically fit by indian service doctors, they were ready to leave. about 150 men made up the first battalion that set out for clearfield. the first contingent of work hungry pueblos, travelling in coaches reserved for them, arrived at the navy depot in december 1943. work assigned to the indians has been varied. john bird, who travelled with his people to clearfield, has advanced to a supervisory position. he, like many of his men, has worked on the swing shift. some of the men have been placed in the transportation division, and others have handled and loaded supplies destined for the ships at sea. oscar carlson, labor foreman at the depot, says that the indians  shoshones, apaches, sioux, navajos, utes, as well as pueblos  are outstanding workers. they understand instructions well. they are not shirkers on the job. he says, "i have never had an indian in my office for disciplinary action." the great problem of production, absenteeism, is unknown among the indian population of the depot. indians are constantly on the job. indian participation in the war bond campaigns has been 100 per cent  another indication that the indians are whole hearted in their devotion to the cause for which their sons have fought. for two springs the pueblo people have gone back to their farms, but, the growing season over, they have returned, often bringing with 42 them new recruits to help with the big job. mr. carlson states that nearly all of the men return after a summer of farming, and that they all seem happy to come back. further testimony comes in a report from the security department. this office, which handles all the policing of the area, has no record in the files any trouble initiated by the indians. from all quarters of the depot have come similar reports. on the 10th of april, 1945, rear admiral arthur h. mayo, speaking at the ceremonies commemorating the second anniversary of the depot's commissioning, said: "it is encouraging to know that many pueblo indians . . . have travelled north to the state of utah in order to 'man the battle stations' at the navy supply depot at clearfield. i know that these fine people are doing a splendid job." high credit should go to the indian for an outstanding part in our victory. he has sacrificed more than most men who are doing this work. he has left the land he has known all his life and has had to travel to strange places where people often do not understand him and his way of living. in most cases he has left his family behind. he has had to forego attending the dances and other religious ceremonies that are so much a part of his life. he has had to work under foremen and supervisors, in a way that is new to him. it is an adjustment more difficult for him than for the white man who has known these conditions before. for all these reasons, the indian should receive the highest praise. in his quiet way he has shown that he too has a stake in this conflict, and by his personal qualities he has made himself liked by everyone. to men like john bird, should go a special tribute. he helped interpret these modern problems to his people. when his brother ted was killed in action in germany last april, he flew home to comfort his mother and father. he has three other brothers in the armed forces overseas. like all americans, these people look forward to the day when the soldiers will come home to a peaceful world. but these indians have learned new skills and have acquired a new confidence in their own competence which should be very useful in the tasks of peace. 43 the congress and the state legislatures have passed many laws providing various benefits for all veterans except those who have been dishonorably discharged from the armed services. many of you know what these benefits are; but when you come home you will find at the agency someone who can tell you just how to apply for the benefits which you want, and what you must do to qualify. there is no distinction made between indians and any other veterans. every organization serving the veteran will serve you. your selective service board, to which you report within ten days after your return home, will have a counsellor to advise you; and the state agencies, the red cross, and other groups will provide information and counsel. the indian service will make every effort to direct you to the proper authority as quickly as possible. if the first thing in your mind is employment, you probably know that you are entitled to get your old job back, or one with equal pay and standing, provided that you have completed your military service satisfactorily, that you are still able to do the job, that you apply for reinstatement within 90 days of your discharge, and that your employer will not suffer undue hardship by taking you back. once you are on the job, you may not be dismissed without cause for the period of one year. this is true for civil service employees and for those in private industry. if you didn't have a job when you went into the military service, or if you don't want to go back to the job you left, you should apply to the nearest office of the u.s. employment service, or, if you want a federal job, to the civil service commission. you are entitled to preference for jobs in the indian service, both as an indian and as a veteran, but you must of course qualify by training or by examination. if you want to continue your education, there are many opportunities. under the g.i. bill of rights (public law 346, 78th congress), you are entitled to one year of school or college, if you have served at least 90 days, not counting the time spent in army or navy special training courses. you may choose the course you prefer, at any elementary school, high school, college, or vocational training institute on the list 44 approved by the veterans' administration, but you must be accepted as qualified by the school you select. a number of indian service schools have already been added to the approved list, and a number of special courses have been planned for returning servicemen. if you are under 25, or if you can show that your education was interrupted when you went into military service, you may continue your education beyond this first year. for each month you spent in active service after september 16, 1940, and before the end of the war, you may have an additional month of schooling, but the total time cannot be more than four years. while you are studying under this program, the veterans' administration will allow you $50 a month for living expenses and will pay your tuition and other fees, including the cost of books, supplies, and equipment, up to $500 per year. if you have dependents, the subsistence allowance will be increased to $75 per month. if you receive payment for work done in connection with your study program, your allowance may be decreased, and if you take only a part time course, you will not receive the full monthly benefit. commercial courses, courses in agriculture and stockraising, sheetmetal work, plumbing, drafting, automotive mechanics, carpentry, baking, cooking, machine shop work, masonry, painting and decoration, power plant operation, printing and binding, and many others, will be offered at eight or more indian schools: albuquerque boarding school, carson, chemawa, chilocco, flandreau, wingate, haskell institute, and sherman. not all of the courses will be available at each school, and other courses will be added from time to time. these courses will be available to non indians, if there is room enough, and the indian veteran is not limited to a choice of indian schools. you may take any course for which you can qualify, at any approved school. if you have a disability resulting from your military service, the educational program offered under public law 16, 78th congress, may be more helpful to you. under this legislation, a disabled veteran may be allowed up to four years of vocational training, during which time he may receive a total pension of not less than $92 per month. if he has dependents, the allowance is larger. the g.i. bill also provides readjustment allowances for veterans who are unable to find work. any unemployed veteran who has served 90 days or more and has been released without dishonorable discharge, or has been disabled in the line of duty, may receive a weekly readjustment allowance of $20, less any part time wages he may receive in excess of $3. to be eligible for this allowance, the veteran must report regularly to a public employment 45 office; and if he fails to accept any suitable job offered to him, he is disqualified. he may also be disqualified if he does not attend a free training course available to him, or if he has left suitable work, or is discharged for misconduct. the readjustment allowance may be continued for 24 weeks, plus four weeks for each month of active service, up to a maximum of 52 weeks. if he is self employed and he can show that his net earnings have been less than $100 in the month preceding the date of his application, he is entitled to receive an amount large enough to bring his earnings up to $100 for the month. benefits under this legislation may not be claimed when five years have passed after the end of the war, and claims must be made within two years after the veteran's discharge from the military service or within two years after the end of the war, whichever date is later. veterans may have free hospital care, medical and dental services, through the veterans' administration, for any disabilities incurred in the line of duty in the service or aggravated because of such service. the servicemen's readjustment act of 1944  commonly called the g.i. bill of rights  also provides for certain benefits for veterans who want to borrow money to buy or build a home, to purchase a farm, farm equipment or livestock, or to acquire business property. the federal government will not make loans or extend any credit under this program. it says simply that if you can get a loan for these purposes from any lending agency, either public or private, such as a bank, corporation, or individual, the veterans' administration, on approving the loan, will guarantee one half of the amount, up to $2000. the administrator will also pay the first year's interest on the amount of the guarantees. this interest need not be repaid. the loan itself must be repaid according to the conditions under which it is made. the lending agency to which you apply for a loan should be one of those serving your community. this organization should understand that you may receive a loan on the same basis as other veterans, even though you may conduct your operations on trust land belonging to you or on tribal lands operated under an assignment. it should be possible for you to get a loan without any security other than a mortgage on the property you are buying with the money loaned to you; but if other security is required, the superintendent may approve a lien on trust property, other than land, as collateral. trust land may not be given as security for these loans. it should also be understood that the superintendent may authorize a creditor to enter on the reservation to repossess equipment bought with borrowed money, if the loan should be in default. if you want to qualify for a farm loan, you must show that you have had farming experience. if your loan is for the purchase of livestock, you must show that you have adequate range on which to run it. if you plan to buy farm machinery, you will have to show that you have land upon which the machinery will be used, and you must also describe your plan of operation and demonstrate that it will produce income enough to repay the loan. in general, no restrictions will be placed upon property obtained under loans guaranteed under the act, except those which the lending agency may require in order to protect the loan. you should remember, too, that you have other ways to obtain a loan, if you are not eligible under the g.i. bill. the indian service may be able to arrange a loan from revolving credit funds; or your tribe may offer to lend you what you need. there are many avenues to explore. from time to time, congress may make changes in the provisions of the g.i. bill and other servicemen's legislation. allowances for the unemployed veteran and for the veteran attending school may be increased. you are urged to take advantage of the program which you feel will be most useful to you. get all the information available, consult with everyone who can be of help to you, and make full use of the opportunities which you have earned by your service to your country. 46 47 48 indian women, anxious to help out during the war created manpower shortage, have made an astonishingly large contribution to their country's needs. thousands of them have left their homes to work in factories, on ranches and farms, and even as section hands, to replace men who were vitally needed elsewhere. they have joined the nurses' corps, the military auxiliaries, the red cross, and the american women's voluntary service. not content with this, they have given their services in many other and more unusual ways. more than 500 eskimo and indian women and girls worked day and night manufacturing skin clothing, mittens, mukluks, moccasins, snowshoes, and other articles of wearing apparel for our forces serving in cold weather or at high altitudes. an alaskan indian woman ran a trap line to make money for war bonds. cherokee girls wove and sold baskets, buying war stamps with the money. on the eastern cherokee reservation, women and girls planted and harvested the crops, and even drove tractors. forty chippewa women formed a rifle brigade for home defense. an old kiowa woman gave $1,000 to the navy relief fund as her contribution. osage women, draped in their brilliant blankets, spent long hours at sewing machines for the red cross. in the west, a pueblo woman drove a truck between albuquerque and santa fe, new mexico, delivering milk to the indian school. she not only serviced her own truck but also helped at the school garage as a mechanic. many indian women became silversmiths, and made insignia for the armed forces. at fort wingate, new mexico, the navajo women's work ranged from that of chemists to truck drivers. two indian women in california served at a lonely observation post, driving the twelve miles to their position in a rickety old automobile. the war plants had many indian women on their rolls, working as riveters, inspectors, sheet metal workers, and machinists. an indian girl was chosen at one plant to receive the army navy e for her fellow workers. in the indian forests, hitherto considered as providing work fit only for men, the indian women learned to take over many tasks. treatment for blister rust was given 80,182 acres of forest, mainly in the lake states, and indian women performed much of the labor. on the menominee reservation in wisconsin, fifty women replaced men at the mill. crews consisting of two women and one man planted young trees to replace those cut down in the red lake forest in minnesota. during the short period in the spring which is considered most advantageous for such planting, 90,700 trees were replaced on 238 acres of land. indian women have "manned" fire lookout stations on the colville and klamath reservations. an indian woman acted as guard at the dry creek station on the yakima forest, and another learned to be a radio operator at the central camp on the quinaielt reservation. 49 many indians reported as prisoners of war have now been released and have come home again. lt. frank paisano, jr., a prisoner of the germans, has returned to laguna pueblo, during his absence he was awarded the air medal, which his wife accepted in his name. omar schoenborn, chippewa, once reported dead, was one of 83 men who escaped death when the prison ship carrying them to japan was sunk off leyte. he managed to swim ashore and to hide from the japanese until the arrival of the american forces. gilmore c. daniels, osage, who joined the royal canadian air force early in the war, spent nearly four years in a german prison camp before the advancing armies released him. another osage, major edward e. tinker, a nephew of general clarence tinker, was taken prisoner when he crashed in bulgaria, and was freed by the russian advance. among the american prisoners released by the 6th ranger battalion from cabanatuan prison in the philippines on january 30, 1945, was major caryl l. picotte, sioux omaha, formerly of nebraska, but now stationed in oakland, california. 50 major picotte was called to active duty with the air corps in september, 1941, and sent to the philippines. on his arrival in manila he was assigned to duty as associate engineering officer at the philippine air depot, nichols field. after the japanese air attack on nichols field, december 8, 1941, when most of the serviceable american aircraft were destroyed, major picotte assisted in the organization of a provisional air corps regiment which fought as infantry from january 1, 1942, until the capitulation of bataan on april 9th of that year. he was in the famous death march from bataan to the first american prisoner of war camp at o'donnell, covering 80 miles in three days with one meal of rice. in june he was moved to cabanatuan, where he remained until released by the rangers two and a half years later. during the last days before the fall of bataan, he was recommended for the distinguished service cross and the silver star. major picotte comes of a distinguished indian family. his grandfather was joseph laflesche (iron eyes), the last chief of the omaha tribe. his mother, susan laflesche picotte, was the first indian woman physician and is remembered with veneration for her life of unselfish service to both indians and whites. the late francis laflesche, distinguished ethnologist, was his uncle, and suzette laflesche tibbles, (bright eyes), who lectured throughout the civilized world and was the most famous indian woman of the 1880's and 1890's, was his aunt. major picotte reported that there were more than 300 indians on bataan and corregidor. while in the prison camps he met and talked with many from all sections of the country. he added, "their battle record, individually and as a whole, left nothing to be desired." not all the news of the prisoners of war is good. some did not survive the rigors and the mistreatment in the camps, and some were lost in the torpedoing of several ships carrying prisoners of war from the philippines to japan. others perished when another ship was bombed and sunk in subic bay. it is hoped that, as time goes on, more will be found alive and that the lists of released prisoners will grow. 51 six grandsons of the reverend ben brave, retired sioux minister, have shown their patriotism by donning uniforms. four went into the army, one into the navy, and one into the coast guard. staff sgt. francis e. brave received the silver star for gallantry in action, evacuating 30 german prisoners to the rear under enemy fire on anzio beachhead. "during the two hours required for the trip," to quote the citation, "sergeant brave had to wade through waist deep water and frequently had to take cover from enemy tank and mortar shells; however, he controlled his prisoners and brought them to the proper collecting point. sergeant brave's gallant conduct made possible the early gathering of important information from the prisoners and reflects much credit on the army of the united states." staff sgt. waldron a. frazier, also a grandson of the reverend brave, served with the second troop carrier squadron for four years, during two of which he was stationed successively in china, india, and burma. as crew chief of the "thunderbird," one of the big transport planes, he had more than 125 hours of combat flying time, and he wore the air medal, the pacific theater ribbon with two battle stars, and the american defense ribbon. his group won two presidential unit citations. last december he was killed in a plane crash while being invalided home. nearly four hundred of "the chief's" friends decided to do something in his memory. accordingly, they bought for his little girl, ilona joyce, $1,025 worth of war bonds, and sent a check for the $14.45 left over from the purchases. among the donors were all ranks from majors to privates. "we hope that this little gift will help to give ilona joyce some of the things that waldron would like her to have," they wrote. the other four grandsons are doing well, and no doubt we shall hear brave stories of them. they are: cpl. alexander a. brave, sgt. judson b. brave, and ronald h. and donald h. frasier, twins, who are in the coast guard and the navy, respectively. the reverend brave's son, ben, was recently discharged from the army for overage. a son in law, lt. frank fox, is in the army, and another grandson, john w. frazier, jr., has recently donned the uniform. two grandsons in law, james wilson and russell decora, complete the family fighting group. 52 twenty one employees of the indian service gave their lives for the cause of freedom and justice, some of them in action against the enemy, some in training, some by accident, and some by illness. there will be more names to add to the list when the reckoning is completed. captain homer claymore, pilot of a b 17 bomber in the 8th air force, has been missing for many months and must be presumed lost. he was employed as a baker at pine ridge before he entered the aaf. lt. orian wynn, of the consolidated ute agency, was reported missing after a raid on enemy territory from his base in italy. the prisoners of war released by the victorious armies of the united nations include soldier sanders, baker at the sequoyah school, wallace tuner, clerk at jicarilla, and marion chadacloi, assistant at navajo. they were all prisoners of the germans. cornelius gregory, teacher at fort sill, spent eleven months interned in sweden, following a raid on germany during which his plane was damaged and had to land in neutral territory. mrs. etta s. jones, teacher, who was captured when the japanese invaded the island of attu in june 1942, was found in a camp near tokyo and brought back to the united states. her husband, who was a 53 special assistant and operated the radio station on the island, was killed at the time of the invasion. dr. sidney e. seid, formerly physician at the chilocco school, survived more than three years' imprisonment in japan. still to be heard from are louis e. williams, clerk at pine ridge, and roy j. house, clerk at jicarilla, who were made prisoners by the japanese during the first campaigns in the philippines. indian service employees have won decorations for gallantry and courage. lt. william sixkiller, jr., who died of wounds received in action on saipan, received the posthumous award of the silver star. another indian office employee, sgt. robert duffin, wears the same decoration, awarded for exploits in germany, and philip kowice, of the united pueblos agency, earned his silver star in the italian campaign. bronze star medals were awarded to lt. james m. ware, of the osage agency, who directed evacuation of the wounded in an italian engagement, although seriously wounded himself; to colonel e. morgan pryse, director of roads, for the construction of airfields in advance combat sectors; and to major delmer f. parker, physician at the pawnee agency, for his work as surgeon in the pacific theatre. capt. louis j. feves, furloughed from his position as physician at the umatilla agency, oregon, won the soldier's medal when he went to the rescue of injured crew members of a bomber which had crashed on a heavily mined reef in the gilbert islands. the list of those wounded in action includes henry mcewin (engineer, chilocco school), walter w. nations (agricultural extension agent, united pueblos), nelson thomson (assistant, navajo), walter campbell (barber, sherman institute), franklin gritts (teacher, haskell institute), michael bordeaux (clerk, rosebud), james m. ware (clerk, osage), henry garcia (orderly, navajo), and morris james (mechanic, pine ridge). 54 note: the entry for robert custer jordan on page 23 was added on 11 march 2009 at the request of a family member. [end]

my bondage and my freedom. part 1. life as a slave. part ii. life as a freeman. by frederick douglass. with an introduction. br dr. james m'cune smith. by a principle essential to christianity, a person is eternally differenced from a thing; so that the idea of a human being, necessarily excludes the idea of property. coleridge new york and auburn: miller, orton & mulligan. new york: 25 park row auburn:107 genesee st. 1855. title page. 1855 edition. yale collection of american literature. beinecke rare book and manuscript library. entered according to act of congress, in the year one thousand eight hundred and fifty five by frederick douglass, in the clerk's office of the district court of the northern district of new york auburn: miller, orton & mulligan stereotypes and printers "copyright" page, 1855 edition. yale collection of american literature. beinecke rare book and manuscript lihrary. to honorable gerrit smith, as a slight token of esteem for his character, admiration for his genius and benevolence, affection for his person, and gratitude for his friendship, and as a small but most sincere acknowledgment of his pre eminent services in behalf of the right and liberties of an afflicted, despised and deeply outraged people, by ranking slavery with piracy anbd murder, and by denying it either a legal or constitutional existence, this volume is respectfully dedicated, by his faithful and firmly attached friend frederick douglass rochester, n.y. dedication page. 1855 edition. yale collection of american literature. beinecke rare book and manuscript library. my bondage and my freedom. part 1. life as a slave. part ii life as a freeman. bv frederick douglass. with an introduction. by dr. james m'cune smith.*the son of a slave father and a self emancipated bondswoman. james mccune smith (1813 65) was born in new york city, where he attended the new york african free school. denied admission to american medical schools, smith set sail for scotland in 1832, receiving his b.a. (1835), m.a. (1836), and m.d. (1837) from the university of glasgow. upon his return to new york city, smith established a medical practice and pharmacy that catered to both blacks and whites. he also devoted himself to abolitionist concerns. smith briefly served as an associate editor of the colored american in 1839 and contributed regularly to the anglo african magazine and, under the pseudonym "communipaw," to the north star and frederick douglass' paper. a longtime opponent of black colonization and emigration, smith helped finance the revival of the weekly anglo african as an anti emigrationist organ in 1861. in 1863 smith was appointed professor of anthropology at wilberforce college, but illness kept him from his post. fdp, 18 may 1855; lib., 1 june 1838; benjamin quarles, black abolitionists (new york, 1969), 115, 134; jane h. pease and william h. pease, they who would be free: blacks' search for freedom, 1830 1861 (new york, 1974), 90 92, 103, 110; david w. blight, "in search of learning, liberty, and self definition: james mccune smith and the ordeal of the antebellum black intellectual," afro americans in new york life and history, 9: 7 25 (july 1985); rhoda golden freeman, "the free negro in new york city in the era before the civil war" (ph.d diss., columbia university, 1966), 40 42, 177, 186, 195, 200, 247, 276, 286, 325, 353, 393; dictionary of american biography, 20 vols. (new york, 1928 36), 27: 288 89. by a principle essential to christianity, a person is eternally differenced from a thing, so that the idea of a human being necessarily excludes the idea of property in that being. coleridge.*samuel taylor coleridge (1772 1834), english poet and philosopher, was a prominent poet of the romantic age. his most famous works include "the rime of the ancient mariner" and "christabel." margaret drabble, ed., the oxford companion to english literature, rev. ed. (new york, 1998), 209 10. new york and auburn: miller. orton & mulligan. new york: 25 park row. auburn: 107 genesee st. 1855. entered, according to act of congress, in the year 1845, by frederick douglass. in the clerk's office of the district court ofl\hssachusetts. auburn: miller, orton & mulligan, stereotypers and printers. to honorable gerrit smith,*gerrit smith (1797 1874) of peterboro, new york, inherited real estate and a commercial empire amassed by his father in partnership with john jacob astor. an unenthusiastic businessman, smith nevertheless invested skillfully in new york lands and became a successful financier. his fortune shrank during the panic of 1837, but, aided by a quarter million dollar loan from astor, he recouped his losses in the 1840s. between 1828 and 1835 smith gave large donations to the american colonization society, and in the late 1840s he gave away some 140,000 acres of land to approximately three thousand black settlers who agreed to cultivate the tracts in upper new york state. smith abandoned colonization in 1835 when he joined the new york anti slavery society. in december 1843 he led a group of followers out of the presbyterian fold to form the nonsectarian church of peterboro. selecting smith as their new pastor, the new congregation endorsed temperance, abolition, and political action. in 1840 smith began a thirty year career as a political abolitionist by running for governor on the liberty party ticket. he was elected to congress as an independent in 1852. smith joined the republican party during the civil war and campaigned for both lincoln and grant. gerald sorin, the new york abolitionists: a case study of political radicalism (westport, conn., 1971), 26 38; ralph volney harlow, gerrit smith, philanthropist and reformer (new york, 1939); lewis perry, radical abolitionism: anarchy and the government of god in antislavery thought (ithaca, n.y., 1973), 170 80; ralph volney harlow, "gerrit smith and the free church movement," nyh, 18: 269 87; john r. mckivigan, "the frederick douglass gerrit smith friendship: a biracial alliance for reform," in eric j. sundquist. ed., frederick douglass: new literary and historical essays (new york, 1990), 205 32; national cyclopaedia of american biography (new york, 1898), 2: 322 23; dab, 7: 384 85. as a slight token of esteem for his character, admiration for his genius and benevolence, affection for his person, and gratitude for his friendship, and as a small but most sincere acknowledgement of his pre eminent services in behalf of the rights and liberties of an afflicted, despised and deeply outraged people, by ranking slavery with piracy and murder and by denying it either a legal or constitutional existence, this volume ios respectfully dedicated, by his faithful and firmly attached friend, frederick douglass. rochester, n.y. editor's preface. if the volume now presented to the public were a mere work of art, the history of its misfortune might be written in two very simple words too late. the nature and character of slavery have been subjects of an almost endless variety of artistic representation: and after the brilliant achievements in that field, and while those achievements are yet fresh in the memory of the million, he who would add another to the legion, must possess the charm of transcendent excellence, or apologize for something worse than rashness. the reader is, therefore, assured, with all due promptitude, that his attention is not invited to a work of art, to a work of facts facts, terrible and almost incredible, it may be yet facts, nevertheless. i am authorized to say that there is not a fictitious name nor place in the whole volume: but that names and places arc literally given, and that every transaction therein described actually transpired. perhaps the best preface to this volume is furnished in the following letter of mr. douglass. written in answer to my urgent solicitation for such a work: rochester. n.y. 2, 1855. dear friend: i have long entertained, as you very well know, a somewhat positive repugnance to writing or speaking anything for the public which could, with any degree of plausibility, make me liable to the imputation of seeking personal notoriety, for its own sake. entertaining that feeling very sincerely, and permitting its control, perhaps, quite unreasonably. i have often refused to narrate my personal experience in public antislavery meetings, and in sympathizing circles, when urged to do so by friends, with whose views and wishes, ordinarily, it were a pleasure to comply. in my letters and speeches, i have generally aimed to discuss the question of slavery in the light of fundamental principles, and upon facts, notorious and open to all: making, i trust,no more of the fact of my own former enslavement, than circumstances seemed absolutely to require. i have never placed my opposition to slavery on a basis so narrow as my own enslavement, but rather upon the indestructible and unchangeable laws of human nature, every one of which is perpetually and flagrantly violated by the slave system. i have also felt that it was best for those having histories worth the writing or supposed to be so to commit such work to hands other than their own. to write of one's self, in such a manner as not to incur the imputation of weakness, vanity, and egotism, is a work within the ability of but few: and i have little reason to believe that i belong to that fortunate few. these considerations caused me to hesitate, when first you kindly urged me to prepare for publication a full account of my life as a slave, and my life as a freeman. nevertheless, i see, with you, many reasons for regarding my autobiography as exceptional in its character, and as being, in some sense, naturally beyond the reach of those reproaches which honorable and sensitive minds dislike to incur. it is not to illustrate any heroic achievements of a man, but to vindicate a just and beneficent principle, in its application to the whole human family, by letting in the light of truth upon a system, esteemed by some as a blessing, and by others as a curse and a crime. i agree with you, that this system is now at the bar of public opinion not only of this country, but of the whole civilized world for judgment. its friends have made for it the usual plea "not guilty;" the case must, therefore, proceed. any facts. either from slaves, slaveholders, or by standers, calculated to enlighten the public mind, by revealing the true nature, character, and tendency of the slave system, are in order, and can scarcely be innocently withheld. i see, too, that there are special reasons why i should write my own biography, in preference to employing another to do it. not only is slavery on trial, but unfortunately, the enslaved people are also on trial it is alleged. that they are, naturally, inferior; that they are in the scale of humanity, and so utterly stupid, that they are unconscious of their wrongs. and do not apprehend their rights. looking, then, at your request, from this standpoint, and wishing everything of which you think me capable to go to the benefit of my afflicted people, i part with my doubts and hesitation, and proceed to furnish you the desired manuscript; hoping that you may he able to make such arrangements for its publication as shall be best adapted to accomplish that good which you so enthusiastically anticipate. frederick douglass there was little necessity for doubt and hesitation on the part of mr. douglass, as to the propriety of his giving to the world a full account of himself. a man who was born and brought up in slavery, a living witness of its horrors: who often himself experienced its cruelties; and who, despite the depressing influences surrounding his birth, youth and manhood, has risen, from a dark and almost absolute obscurity, to the distinguished position which he now occupies, might very well assume the existence of a commendable curiosity, on the part of the public, to know the facts of his remarkable history. editor.*james mccune smith introduction. when a man raises himself from the lowest condition in society to the highest, mankind pay him the tribute of their admiration; when he accomplishes this elevation by native energy, guided by prudence and wisdom, their admiration is increased: but when his course, onward and upward, excellent in itself, furthermore proves a possible, what had hitherto been regarded as an impossible, reform, then he becomes a burning and a shining light, on which the aged may look with gladness, the young with hope, and the down trodden, as a representative of what they may themselves become. to such a man, dear reader, it is my privilege to introduce you. the life of frederick douglass, recorded in the pages which follow, is not merely an example of self elevation under the most adverse circumstances: it is, moreover, a noble vindication of the highest aims of the american anti slavery movement. the real object of that movement is not only to disenthrall, it is, also, to bestow upon the negro the exercise of all those rights, from the possession of which he has been so long debarred. but this full recognition of the colored man to the right, and the entire admission of the same to the full privileges, political, religious and social, of manhood, requires powerful effort on the part of the enthralled, as well as on the part of those who would disenthrall them. the people at large must feel the conviction, as well as admit the abstract logic, of human equality; the negro, for the first time in the world's history, brought in full contact with high civilization, must prove his title to all that is demanded for him; in the teeth of unequal chances, he must prove himself equal to the mass of those who oppress him therefore, absolutely superior to his apparent fate, and to their relative ability. and it is most cheering to the friends of freedom, to day, that evidence of this equality is rapidly accumulating, not from the ranks of the half freed colored people of the free states, but from the very depths of slavery itself; the indestructible equality of man to man is demonstrated by the ease with which black men, scarce one remove from barbarism if slavery can be honored with such a distinction vault into the high places of the most advanced and painfully acquired civilization. ward†the parents of samuel ringgold ward (1817 c.1866) carried him along on their escape from slavery on maryland's eastern shore in about 1820. the family settled six years later in new york city, where young ward received an elementary education. in 1833 he embraced religion and received ordination in 1839. his two new york congregations, at south butler (1841 43) and courtland (1846 51), consisted mostly of whites, but ward vigorously agitated for the rights of both slaves and free blacks. the american anti slavery society appointed ward a lecturing agent in 1839. as one of the earliest black supporters of political abolitionism, ward acted as spokesman for the liberty party after 1844. ward studied law and medicine briefly, and also tried his hand at editing during the late 1840s. his impartial citizen, published from syracuse, and another newspaper venture both failed financially. in 1851 ward's leading role in rescuing jerry mchenry from slave catchers caused him to fear arrest and to emigrate to canada. there he launched the provincial freeman in 1853 and acted as agent for the anti slavery society of canada. in the latter capacity, ward journeyed to britain in 1853 on a fundraising tour. in 1855 ward published his autobiography of a fugitive negro and accepted a british quaker's gift of fifty acres of land in jamaica. he lived his last decade on that island, farming, writing, and ministering to a small baptist congregation. on ward's death, douglass mourned the loss of a black leader who "in depth of thought, fluency of speech, readiness of wit, logical exactness, and general intelligence . . . has left no successor." douglass, life and times, 308; ns, 2 february 1849; robin w. winks, the blacks in canada: a history (new haven, 1971), 206 08, 227, 265 66, 361, 395; quarles, black abolitionists, 79, 98, 133, 138, 210. and garnett,†born a slave in kent county, maryland, henry highland garnet (1815 82) fled north with his parents in 1824. he attended the african free school in new york city; the noyes academy in canaan, new hampshire; and the oneida institute in whitesboro, new york. garnet was one of the founders of the american and foreign anti slavery society and a stump speaker for the liberty party. licensed to preach by the presbytery of troy in 1842, garnet went to jamaica in 1852 as a missionary of the united presbyterian church of scotland. an early proponent of black emigration to africa and founder of the african civilization society. garnet also sanctioned slave uprisings in an address before a national negro convention in buffalo, new york, in august 1843. after the civil war, garnet was president of avery college in pittsburgh and united states minister to liberia (1881 82). joel schor, henn highland carnet; a voice of black radicalism in the nineteenth century (westport, conn., 1977); dorothy sterling, ed., speak out in thunder tones: letters and other writings by black northerners, 1787 1865 (garden city, n .y., 1973), 376; quarles, black abolitionists, 68, 185, 216 17, 226 27. wells brown†william wells brown (c. 1816 84) was born a slave in lexington, kentucky, but spent much of his youth near st. louis, missouri. he fled slavery in 1834, taking the name wells brown from a quaker man who aided his escape. brown was employed as a lecturer for the western new york and massachusetts anti slavery societies from 1843 to 1849, and was active in universal reform movements advocating temperance, women's rights, and prison reform. brown studied medicine informally, but chose to remain active in reforms instead of committing to professional medical practice. he published a number of historical books concerning blacks and slavery, beginning in 1847 with his autobioography, narrative of william w. brown, a fugitive slave. his first history, the black man, his antecendents, his genius, and his achievements, appeared in 1863 and ran through ten editions in three years. his best known literary production was the novel clotel, written while brown was touring great britain in the early 1850s. r.j.m. blackett, beating against the barriers: the lives of six nineteenth century african americans (ithaca, n.y., 1986), 45, 48, 95 96, 101 02; pease and pease, they who would be free, 35, 42, 50 51; dab, 3: 161. and pennington,†james william charles pennington (1809 71) was born a slave on the eastern shore of maryland and trained as a blacksmith. his flight north at the age of twenty one led him to the home of a pennsylvania quaker who taught him to read and write. later pennington began teaching black children in newtown, long island, and then in new haven, connecticut, where he also studied theology. pennington's ministerial career began in 1838 in newtown, and in 1840 he entered the congregational ministry in hartford, connecticut, where he served until 1847, later serving as a pastor (1848 55) of shiloh presbyterian church in new york city. in 1843 pennington traveled to england as a delegate at large to the world's anti slavery conference in london and then lectured in london, france, and belgium. he so impressed his european audiences that the university of heidelberg awarded him an honorary doctor of divinity degree. fearing recapture after the passage of the fugitive slave law, pennington again traveled abroad, but abolitionist friends bought his freedom in 1851 for $150. he was an active member of both abolitionist and black self improvement organizations. in addition to many sermons, addresses, and regular contributions to the anglo african magazine, pennington wrote a text book of the origins and history, etc., etc., of the colored people (1841), an inquiry, based on biblical references, into the negro's ancestry and character; and an autobiography, the fugitive blacksmith (1849). carter g. woodson, ed., the mind of the negro as reflected in letters written during the crisis, 1800 1860 (washington, d.c., 1926), 642 51: martin robinson delany, the condition, elevation, emigration, and destiny of the colored people of the united states, politically considered (1852: new york, 1968), 113; william wells brown, the rising son; or, the antecedents and advancement of the colored race (boston, 1874), 461 63; freeman, "free negro in new york city," 49 51, 53, 88 89, 108 10, 418; ncab, 14: 307; dab, 14: 441 42. loguen†jermain wesley loguen (c. 1810 72), son of a slave mother and his tennessee owner, escaped to freedom in canada in 1835. after working as a farm laborer and a hotel porter, he attended the oneida institute in whitesboro, new york. loguen taught school in several new york communities and then became a minister in the african methodist episcopal zion church. after congressional enactment of a more stringent fugitive slave law in 1850. loguen moved to syracuse, where proximity to the canadian border provided him comparative safety. in 1851, when indicted for his part in the rescue of jerry mchenry from slave catchers, loguen briefly fled to canada. he later supported gerrit smith's radical abolition party and aided john brown in recruiting men for the harpers ferry raid. after the civil war loguen was elected a bishop of his denomination and championed missionary work among the freedmen. new york daily tribune, 1 october 1872; san francisco elevator, 5 october 1872; benjamin quarles, allies for freedom: blacks and john brown (new york, 1974), 39 44, 65 66, 73 75; idem, black abolitionists, 66 67, 154, 188; dab, 11: 368 69. and douglass, are banners on the outer wall, under which abolition is fighting its most successful battles, because they are living exemplars of the practicability of the most radical abolitionism; for, they were all of them born to the doom of slavery, some of them remained slaves until adult age, yet they all have not only won equality to their white fellow citizens, in civil, religious, political and social rank, but they have also illustrated and adorned our common country by their genius, learning and eloquence. the characteristics whereby mr. douglass has won first rank among these remarkable men, and is still rising toward highest rank among living americans, are abundantly laid bare in the book before us. like the autobiography of hugh miller,† hugh miller (1802 56) was a renowned geologist, stonemason, banker, newspaper editor, and author from edinburgh, scotland. miller published a memoir, an autobiography, my schools and schoolmasters; or, the story of my education, (1854), and several geology texts. in his writings he supported the notion of white racial superiority, but did not believe that the inferiority of other races was innate or predestined; instead he suggested it resulted from the effects of decadent, but freely chosen, actions by members of the subordinate race. thomas n. brown, the life and times of hugh miller (new york, 1858); c. peter ripley, ed., the black abolitionist papers, 5 vols. (chapel hill, 1985 92), 2:509n. it carries us so far back into early childhood, as to throw light upon the question, ''when positive and persistent memory begins in the human being." and, like hugh miller, he must have been a shy old fashioned child, occasionally oppressed by what he could not well account for, peering and poking about among the layers of right and wrong, of tyrant and thrall, and the wonderfulness of that hopeless tide of things which brought power to one race, and unrequited toil to another, until, finally, he stumbled upon his "first found ammonite,"†a quote from hugh miller's an autobiography: "in a nodular mass of bluish gray limestone . . . i laid open my first found ammonite." an ammonite is a fossil whorled chambered shell of prehistoric squids or octopuses, so called because they resemble the horn upon the ancient statues of jupiter ammon, the libyan god. ebenezer cobham brewer, ed., brewer's dictionary of phrase & fable, 15th ed. (new york, 1995), 30. hidden away down in the depths of his own nature, and which revealed to him the fact that liberty and right, for all men, were anterior to slavery and wrong. when his knowledge of the world was bounded by the visible horizon on col. lloyd plantation,†settled by edward lloyd i in 1658, wye house, the home plantation of the lloyds, was situated on a peninsula formed by the wye river on the north and the miles river on the south. by 1790 edward lloyd iv owned 11,884 acres in the region. the mansion house to which douglass refers was built in 1784 and overlooks lloyd's cove on the wye river. aaron anthony and his family lived in the "captain's house," a brick outbuilding near the mansion. douglass lived at anthony's home at wye house from august 1824 to march 1826. h[enry] chandlee forman, old buildings, gardens, and furniture in tidewater maryland (cambridge, md., 1967), 51 80; hulbert footner, rivers of the eastern shore: seventeen maryland rivers (new york, 1944), 269 93; dickson j. preston, young frederick douglass: the maryland years (baltimore, 1980), 37 40, 199. and while every thing around him bore a fixed, iron stamp, as if it had always been so, this was, for one so young. a notable discovery. to his uncommon memory, then, we must add a keen and accurate insight into men and things; an original breadth of common sense which enabled him to see, and weigh, and compare whatever passed before him, and which kindled a desire to search out and define their relations to other things not so patent, but which never succumbed to the marvelous nor the supernatural; a sacred thirst for liberty and for learning, first as a means of attaining liberty then as an end in itself most desirable; a will; an unfaltering energy and determination to obtain what his soul pronounced desirable; a majestic self hood; determined courage: a deep and agonizing sympathy with his embruted, crushed and bleeding fellow slaves, and an extraordinary depth of passion, together with that rare alliance between passion and intellect, which enables the former, when deeply roused, to excite, develop and sustain the latter. with these original gifts in view, let us look at his schooling; the fearful discipline through which it pleased god to prepare him for the high calling on which he has since entered the advocacy of emancipation by the people who are not slaves. and for this special mission, his plantation education was better than any he could have acquired in any lettered school. what he needed, was facts and experiences, welded to acutely wrought up sympathies, and these he could not elsewhere have obtained. in a manner so peculiarly adapted to his nature. his physical being was well trained, also, running wild until advanced into boyhood; hard work and light diet, thereafter, and a skill in handicraft in youth. for his special mission, then, this was, considered in connection with his natural gifts, a good schooling; and, for his special mission, he doubtless "left school" just at the proper moment. had he remained longer in slavery had he fretted under bonds until the ripening of manhood and its passions, until the drear agony of slave wife and slave children had been piled upon his already bitter experiences then, not only would his own history have had another termination, but the drama of american slavery would have heen essentially varied; for i cannot resist the belief, that the boy who learned to read and write as he did, who taught his fellow slaves these precious acquirements as he did, who plotted for their mutual escape as he did, would, when a man at bay, strike a blow which would make slavery reel and stagger. furthermore. blows and insults he bore, at the moment, without resentment; deep but suppressed emotion rendered him insensible to their sting; but it was afterward. when the memory of them went seething through his hrain, breeding a fiery indignation at his injured self hood, that the resolve came to resist, and the time fixed when to resist, and the plot laid, how to resist; and he always kept his self pledged word. in what he undertook, in this line, he looked fate in the face, and had a cool, keen look at the relation of means to ends. henry bibb,†henry bibbj henry bibb (1815 54), born a slave in shelby county, kentucky, escaped in 1837, only to be recaptured in his unsuccessful attempt to rescue his wife and child. by 1842 he had escaped once again and settled in detroit, michigan, his residence until 1850. immediately plunging into political and antislavery work, bibb was hired as a lecturer by the michigan anti slavery society and spoke on behalf of liberty party candidates. although bibb planned to visit england in 1848, he was advised against making such a tour because the bigamous implications of his marriage to a free woman, mary e. miles, might limit his antislavery appeal. he toured the east in 1849, at one point acting as an agent for the north star, and published his narrative of the life and adventures of henry bibb . . . (1849). after the passage of the 1850 fugitive slave law, bibb settled in windsor, canada west, where he published the voice of the fugitive (1851 53). in january 1852 the refugee home society was founded to assist american blacks to migrate to canada and chose bibb as a trustee. bibb was also active in the anti slavery society of canada, serving as one of its vice presidents in 1852. , 24 march 1848; henry bibb, "narrative of the life and adventures of henry bibb,'' in puttin' on ole massa, ed. gilbert osofsky (new york, 1969), 64, 74 82, 154 64; william h. pease and jane h. pease, black utopia: negro communal experi ments in america (madison, wisc., 1963), 109 22; floyd j. miller, the search for a black nationality: black emigration and colonization, 1787 1863 (urbana, ill., 1975), 106 07, 110 15, 149; winks, blacks in canada, 204 08, 254 55, 396 97; quarles, black abolitionists, 61 62, 185, 218 19; pease and pease, they who would be free, 65, 252 53; fred landon, "henry bibb, a colonizer," jnh, 5: 437 47 (october 1920). to avoid chastisement, strewed his master's bed with charmed leaves and . frederick douglass quietly pocketed a like , compared his muscles with those of covey†edward covey (1806? 75), who started out as a poor farm renter from talbot county, maryland, managed to accumulate $23,000 in real estate by 1850. covey's reputation as a slave breaker enabled him to rent or even to receive the free use of field hands from local slave owners anxious to have their slaves taught proper discipline. harriet lucretia anthony, the great granddaughter of aaron anthony, remembered that "mr. covey was really noted for his cruelty and meanness." inventory of the estate of edward covey, 15 may 1875, talbot county inventories, tnc#3, 578, mdtch; harriet l. anthony, annotated copy of bondage and freedom, folder 93, 203, dodge collection, mdaa; 1850 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 240 (free schedule); preston, young frederick douglass, 117 31. and . in the history of his life in bondage, we find, well developed, that inherent and continuous energy of character which will ever render him distinguished. what his hand found to do, he did with his might; even while conscious that he was wronged out of his daily earnings, he worked, and worked hard. at his daily labor he went with a will; with keen, well set eye, brawny chest, lithe figure, and fair sweep of arm, he would have been king among calkers, had that heen his mission. it must not he overlooked, in this glance at his education. that mr. douglass lacked one aid to which so many men of mark have been deeply indebted he had neither a mother's care, nor a mother's culture, save that which slavery grudgingly meted out to him. bitter nurse! may not even her features relax with human feeling, when she gazes at such offspring! how susceptible he was to the kindly influences of mother culture, may be gathered from his own words. on page 57 : "it has been a life long, standing grief to me, that i know so little of my mother, and that i was so early separated from her. the counsels of her love must have been beneficial to me. the side view of her face is imaged on my memory, and i take fe w steps in life. without feeling her presence; but the image is mute, and i have no striking words of hers treasured up."†except for a few minor errors, smith slightly misquotes a passage from bondage and freedom, 34.22 27/57.24 31 from the depths of chattel slavery in maryland, our author escaped into the caste slavery of the north, in new bedford, massachusetts.†douglass lived in new bedford, massachusetts, after his escape from slavery, staying in the city from 1838 until 1842. william s. mcfeely, frederick douglass (new york, 1991), 74 92. here he found oppression assuming another, and hardly less bitter, form; of that very handicraft which the greed of slavery had taught him, his half freedom denied him the exercise for an honest living; he found himself one of a class free colored men whose position he has described in the following words: "aliens are we in our native land. the fundamental principles of the republic, to which the humblest white man, whether born here or elsewhere, may appeal with confidence, in the hope of awakening a favorable response, are held to be inapplicable to us. the glorious doctrines of your revolutionary fathers, and the more glorious teachings of the son of god, are construed and applied against us. we arc literally scourged beyond the beneficent range of both authorities. human and divine. * * * * american humanity hates us, scorns us, disowns and denies, in a thousand ways, our very personality. the outspread wing of american christianity, apparently broad enough to give shelter to a perishing world, refuses to cover us. to us, its bones are brass, and its features iron. in running thither for shelter and succor, we have only fled from the hungry blood hound to the devouring wolf from a corrupt and selfish world, to a hollow and hypocritical church." , 1854.†smith misdates douglass' s address to the annual convention of the american and foreign anti slavery society, in new york city, on 11 may 1853, not 1854. , 27 may 1853; douglass papers, ser. 1, 2:425 26. four years or more, from 1837 to 1841, he struggled on, in new bedford, sawing wood, rolling casks, or doing what labor he might, to support himself and young family; four years he brooded over the scars which slavery and semi slavery had inflicted upon his body and soul; and then, with his wounds yet unhealed, he fell among the garrisonians†in may 1840 the american abolitionist movement divided into hostile, competing factions. boston editor william lloyd garrison led the most perfectionist inclined group, most members of which abandoned the nation's religious and political institutions as hopelessly corrupted by tolerance toward slavery. john r. mckivigan, the war against proslavery religion: abolitionism in the northern churches, 1830 1865 (ithaca, n. y., 1984), 56 92. a glorious waif to those most ardent reformers. it happened one day, at nantucket,†on 10 12 august 1841, douglass attended a special summer abolitionist convention on the island of nantucket called by the massachusetts anti slavery society. garrison also attended this gathering and strongly applauded douglass 's novice performance as an abolitionist orator. lib., 20 august 1841; mcfeely, frederick douglass, 86 90. that he, diffidently and reluctantly, was led to address an anti slavery meeting. he was about the age when the younger pitt†william pitt (1759 1806), often referred to as "the younger pitt," was the second son of the earl of chatham. he was elected to parliament in 1781 and became a noted opponent of lord north's policies in the american revolution. at the age of twenty four he became the youngest prime minister of britain, a position he held for seventeen years. pitt was a reformer who sought positive relations with the united states and ireland, a reduced national debt, parliamentary reform, and a reorganization of the british east india company. when the king refused to approve his bill emancipating catholics, he resigned in protest in 1801, but was persuaded to return in 1804 when war with france seemed imminent. john ehrman, the younger pitt: the years of acclaim, 3 vols. (new york, 1969 96); magnus magnusson, ed., cambridge biographical dictionary (cambridge, 1990), 1166 67; dnb, 15:1253 72. entered the house of commons; like pitt, too, he stood up a born orator. william lloyd garrison,†the son of impoverished nova scotian immigrants to massachusetts, william lloyd garrison (1805 79) learned the printer's trade as a youth and went on to become one of the nation's most influential reform journalists. in 1831 he brought out the first issue of the boston liberator, which endorsed immediate emancipation. later garrison became an advocate for temperance, women's rights, and many other causes. his uncompromising radical positions helped cause the schism in the abolitionist movement in 1840. thereafter he served as president of the american anti slavery society and led the "garrisonian" wing of aholitionism until the civil war. john l. thomas, the liberator: william lloyd garrison (boston, 1963); james brewer stewart, william lloyd garrison and the challenge of emancipation (arlington heights, ill., 1992); dab, 7:168 72. who was happily present. writes thus of mr. douglass' maiden effort: " i shall never forget his first speech at the convention the extraordinary emotion it excited in my own mind the powerful impression it created upon a crowded auditory, completely taken by surprise. * * * i think i never hated slavery so intensely as at that moment; certainly, my perception of the enormous outrage which is inflicted by it on the godlike nature of its victims, was rendered far more clear than ever. there stood one in physical proportions and stature commanding and exact in intellect richly endowed in natural eloquence a prodigy."†smith slightly misquotes a portion of william lloyd garrison's preface, not introduction, to douglass's first autobiography, which was actually published in 1845. douglass papers, ser, 2, 1:3. it is of interest to compare mr. douglass 's account of this meeting with mr. garrison's. of the two, i think the latter the most correct. it must have been a grand burst of eloquence! the pent up agony, indignation and pathos of an abused and harrowed boyhood and youth, bursting out in all their freshness and overwhelming earnestness! this unique introduction to its great leader, led immediately to the employment of mr. douglass as an agent by the american anti slavery society.†inspired by the success of the british emancipation movement, a group of sixty two american abolitionists, representing quakers, free blacks, new york evangelicals, and new england radicals such as william lloyd garrison, met in philadelphia in december 1833 and founded the american anti slavery society. garrison drafted most of the society's original declaration of sentiments, which endorsed a blend of immediatist principles and moral suasion tactics. by the time douglass became a lecturer for the american anti slavery society in the early 1840s, the organization had suffered a serious schism; many abolitionists had quit in protest against garrison's stands on women's rights, religious orthodoxy, and an independent antislavery political party. merton l. dillon, the abolitionists: the growth of a dissenting minority(de kalb, ill., 1974), 52 53, 113 26; james brewer stewart, holy warriors: the abolitionists and american slavery (new york, 1976), 50 51, 89 96. so far as his self relying and independent character would permit, he became, after the strictest sect, a garrisonian. it is not too much to say, that he formed a complement which they needed, and they were a complement equally necessary to his '"make up." with his deep and keen sensitiveness to wrong, and his wonderful memory, he came from the land of bondage full of its woes and its evils, and painting them in characters of living light and, on his part, he found, told out in sound saxon phrase, all those principles of justice and right and liberty, which had dimly brooded over the dreams of his youth, seeking definite forms and verbal expression. it must have heen an electric flashing of thought, and a knitting of soul, granted to but few in this life, and will be a life long memory to those who participated in it. in the society, moreover, of wendell phillips,†boston born and harvard educated wendell phillips (1811 84) ranked second only to garrison in influence in the american anti slavery society in the 1840s and 1850s. a highly gifted orator, phillips was in demand as a lecturer even in nonabolitionist circles. besides abolition, phillips championed woman suffrage, prohihition, penal reform, indian rights, and legislative protection for workers. james brewer stewart, wendell phillips: liberty's hero (baton rouge, 1986); irving h. bartlett, wendell phillips: brahmin radical (boston, 1961); dab, 14:546 47. edmund quincy,†edmund quincy (1808 77), one of the most active and articulate garrisonian reformers, was once described by douglass as not only ''one of the best in our ranks" but also "the least appreciated by the rest of [the] abolitionists." a member of one of boston's most distinguished families his father, josiah (1777 1864), was a congressman, mayor, and president of harvard quincy had seemed destined for the relatively peaceful life of a scholar and author until the mob murder of elijah p. lovejoy in 1837 shocked him into joining the massachusetts anti slavery society. he soon became one of garrison's closest associates. he helped found the non resistance society in 1839, served as a corresponding secretary of the massachusetts anti slavery society from 1844 to 1853, and was a vice president and member of the executive committee of the american anti slavery society during the 1850s. a respected novelist and biographer, quincy often edited the liberator during garrison 's absences. he also edited or frequently contributed to the national antislavery standard and the liberty bell. ns, 21 january 1848; tribute of the massachusetts historical society to the memory of edmund quincy and john lothrop motley (boston, 1877), 6; ncab, 6: 93 94; dab, 15:306 07. william lloyd garrison, and other men of earnest faith and refined culture, mr. douglass enjoyed the high advantage of their assistance and counsel in the labor of self culture, to which he now addressed himself with wonted energy. yet, these gentlemen, although proud of frederick douglass, failed to fathom, and bring out to the light of day, the highest qualities of his mind; the force of their own education stood in their own way; they did not delve into the mind of a colored man for capacities which the pride of race led them to believe to be restricted to their own saxon blood. bitter and vindictive sarcasm, irresistible mimicry, and a pathetic narrative of his own experiences of slavery, were the intellectual manifestations which they encouraged him to exhibit on the platform or in the lecture desk. a visit to england, in 1845, threw mr. douglass among men and * letter, introduction to life of frederick douglass. boston, 1841. women of earnest souls and high culture, and who, moreover, had never drank of the bitter waters of american caste. for the first time in his life, he breathed an atmosphere congenial to the longings of his spirit, and felt his manhood free and unrestricted. the cordial and manly greetings of the british and irish audiences in public, and the refinement and elegance of the social circles in which he mingled, not only as an equal, but as a recognized man of genius, were, doubtless genial and pleasant resting places in his hitherto thorny and troubled journey through life. there are joys on the earth, and, to the wayfaring fugitive from american slavery or american caste, this is one of them. but his sojourn in england was more than a joy to mr. douglass. like the platform at nantucket, it awakened him to the consciousness of new powers that lay in him. from the pupilage of garrisonism he rose to the dignity of a teacher and a thinker; his opinions on the hroader aspects of the great american question were earnestly and incessantly sought, from various points of view, and he must, perforce, bestir himself to give suitahle answer. with that prompt and truthful perception which has led their sisters in all ages of the world to gather at the feet and support the hands of reformers, the gentlewomen of england* were foremost to encourage and strengthen him to carve out for himself a path fitted to his powers and energies, in the life battle against slavery and caste to which he was pledged. and one stirring thought, inseparable from the british idea of the evangel of freedom, must have smote his ear from every side  "hereditary bondmen! know ye not who would be free, themselves must strike the blow?"†quotation from lord byron's childe harold's pilgrimage, canto ii, stanza lxxvi. george gordon lord byron, byron: childe harold's pilgrimage and other romantic poems, ed. john d. jump (totowa, n.j., 1975), 56. the result of this visit was, that on his return to the united states, he etablished a newspaper. this proceeding was sorely against the wishes and the advice of the leaders of the american anti slavery society, but our author had fully grown up to the conviction of a truth which they had once promulged, but now forgotten, to wit: that in their own elevation self elevation colored men have a blow to strike "on their own hook,'' against slavery and caste. differing from his boston friends in this matter, diffident in his own abilities, reluctant at their dissuadings, how beautiful is the loyally *one of these ladies,†julia griffiths (c.1812 95) was a british abolitionist and reformer originally from newcastle upon tyne. douglass befriended her during his initial tour of great britain in 1845 47. griffiths came to rochester in 1848 and became a strong supporter and ally of douglass in his publication of the north star and later frederick douglass' paper. she lived for a time in the douglass home and worked as business manager of the paper, taking charge of financial matters and aiding douglass in his work as editor. griffiths was a successful fundraiser who continued her antislavery activities in the united states through her affiliation with the rochester ladies' anti slavery society. following unsubstantiated rumors hinting that douglass and griffiths shared more than a business relationship, she returned to britain in 1855. from 1856 to 1859, griffiths traveled throughout britain as an abolitionist lecturer and formed fifteen women's antislavery groups. each of these groups supported douglass and was strongly at odds with the garrisonian wing of abolitionism. in 1859 griffiths married h. o. crofts, a minister from halifax. karen i. halbersleben, women's pariticipation in the british antislavery movement, 1824 1865 (lewiston, n.y., 1993), 190 95; clare midgley, women against slavery: the british campaigns, 1780 1870 (london, 1992), 140 42; nathan irvin huggins, slave and citizen: the life of frederick douglass, ed. oscar handlin (new york, 1980), 45 46; waldo e. martin. jr., the mind of frederick douglass (chapel hill, 1984), 40 41; mcfeely, frederick douglass, 163 65. impelled by the same noble spirit which carried miss nightingale to scutari,†florence nightingale (1820 1910), nurse and medical reformer, chose at seventeen to enter nursing despite her upper class rearing and classical education. responsible for significantly improving sanitation and management of a hospital in london in 1853, she used her new fame to win a commission in 1854 to supervise hospitals in the crimea, where great britain was then battling russia. she elevated the quality of care and the sanitation remarkably and by 1855 had reduced the death rate in the field hospitals from 42 to 2 percent. in 1856 she returned to england an international heroine and launched a crusade for the reform of hospitals, nursing, and public health to which she would devote most of the balance of her life. cecil woodham smith, florence nightingale, 1820 1910 (new york, 1951); jennifer s. uglow, ed., the continuum dictionary of women's biography (new york, 1989), 401 02; jessica ben diner and elmer bendiner, biographical dictionary of medicine (new york, 1990), 180 81. has devoted her time, her untiring energies, to a great extent her means, and her high literary abilities, to the advancement and support of frederick douglass' paper,†in the spring of 1851, new york's leading political abolitionist, gerrit smith, approached douglass with a proposal to merge the latter's financially struggling with the official organ of the new york state liberty party. smith promised douglass the editorship of the new journal along with a monthly subsidy for two years. douglass accepted, and the new newspaper, the frederick douglass' paper, prospered moderately thanks to smith's generosity and the energetic fundraising of julia griffiths. mckivigan, "the frederick douglass gerrit smith friendship," 214 19. the only organ of the downtrodden, edited and published by one of themselves, in the united states. with which he still clung to their principles in all things else, and even in this. now came the trial hour. without cordial support from any large body of men or party on this side the atlantic, and too far distant in space and immediate interest to expect much more, after the much already done, on the other side, he stood up, almost alone, to the arduous labor and heavy expenditure of editor and lecturer. the garrison party, to which he still adhered, did not want a newspaper there was an odor of about it; the liberty party could hardly be expected to give warm support to a man who smote their principles as with a hammer; and the wide gulf which separated the free colored people from the garrisonians, also separated them from their brother, frederick douglass. the arduous nature of his labors, from the date of the establishment of his paper, may be estimated by the fact, that anti slavery papers in the united states. even while the organs of, and when supported by, anti slavery parties. have. with a single exception, failed to pay expenses.†antislavery periodicals during the ante bellum era required massive subsidies from wealthy patrons in order to remain in existence. even william lloyd garrison's long running generated little income for the editor, whose family expenses had to be subsidized by his abolitionist associates, especially wendell phillips, francis jackson, and edmund quincy. the exception to this general pattern, to which smith might have referred, was the washington (d.c.) national era, edited by gamaliel bailey. bailey began this weekly newspaper in january 1847 with the financial help of the american and foreign anti slavery society. within a year bailey took over complete control of the national era and repaid his debt to the abolitionist society by may 1849. adopting a moderate antislavery political stance, bailey built the paper's circulation base to a peak of twenty eight thousand in 1853. bailey's relative prosperity led some abolitionists to charge him with enriching himself at the expense of the antislavery movement. stanley harrold, gamaliel baily and antislavery union (kent, ohio, 1986), 90 91, 93, 139 41; stewart, william lloyd garrison, 123, 130, 144. mr. douglass has maintained, and does maintain, his paper without the support of any party, and even in the teeth of the opposition of those from whom he had reason to expect counsel and encouragement. he has been compelled, at one and the same time, and almost constantly, during the past seven years, to contribute matter to its columns as editor, and to raise funds for its support as lecturer. it is within bounds to say, that he has expended twelve thousand dollars of his own hard earned money,†less than a year after the publication of bondage and freedom, douglass admitted that he was having serious financial problems. in may 1856 douglass claimed that frederick douglass' paper was fifteen hundred dollars in debt and feared the venture would fold. the weekly publication continued to struggle until the summer of 1860, when it ceased publication. frederick douglass to gerrit smith, may 23, 1856, gerrit smith papers, nsyu; penelope l. bullock, the afro american periodical press, 1838 1909 (baton rouge, 1981), 52. in publishing this paper, a larger sum than has been contributed by any one individual for the general advancement of the colored people. there had been many other papers published and edited by colored men,†there had been at least nine newspapers edited by blacks by the time douglass started the north star in 1847. these included six published in new york city: freedom's journal (1827 29), published by samuel cornish and john russwurm; rights of all (1829), published by samuel cornish; weekly advocate (1837) and colored american (1837 41), both published by samuel cornish, phillip bell, and charles ray; mirror of liberty (1838 40), published by david ruggles; and ram's horn, published by thomas van rensselaer. newspapers published in other cities included national reformer (1838 39), published in philadelphia by william whipper; mystery (1843 47), published in pittsburgh by martin delany; and northern star and freemen's advocate (1842), published in albany by stephen myers. frankie hutton, the early black press in america, 1827 1860 (westport, conn., 1993), 165 66. beginning as far back as 1827, when the rev. samuel e. cornish†samuel cornish (c.1795 1859), a black presbyterian minister, helped to found the first colored presbyterian church of new york in 1822. in 1827 cornish was coeditor, with john russwurm, of freedom's journal, the first black newspaper in the united states. resigning the editorship after only six months, cornish then served as an agent for the new york manumission society's african free schools. in 1829 he startcd his own abolitionist newspaper, rights of all, which failed in less than a year. from 1837 to 1839, cornish edited colored american, and later served as pastor of a black presbyterian church in newark, new jersey. walter m. merrill and louis ruchames, eds., the letters of william lloyd garrison, 6 vols. (cambridge, mass., 1971 81). 6:328n (hereafter cited as garrison letters); hutton, early black press, 6 9. and john b. russworm†john brown russwurm (1799 1851) was the coeditor of freedom's journal, the first black owned and operated newspaper in the united states. after graduating in 1826 from bowdoin college in maine, he met samuel cornish and began freedom's journal. in his native new york city, russwurm was highly regarded within his community. while working as coeditor, he also taught at a free evening school in new york city. believing that blacks should take the lead in the uplift of their own people, russwurm saw colonization to liberia as the best option for blacks to improve their status. this stand resulted in russwurm's departure from the freedom's journal and migration to the colony of liberia in 1829. john a. garraty and mark c. carnes, eds., american national biography, 24 vols. (new york, 1999), 19:117 18; hutton, early black press, 4 7, 123 24. (a graduate of bowdoin college, and afterward governor of cape palmas) published the freedom's journal,†freedom's journal was the first newspaper published and distributed by and for blacks in america. the press was based in new york city, where it operated until its demise in 1830. though aimed at the uplift of black america, the paper also covered many topics of personal interest to its community and readers. after six months' coeditorship, john b. russwurm and samuel cornish split over the issue of the colonization of free blacks. freedom's journal lingered under the leadership of russwurm until 1830, when he departed for liberia. p. j. staudenraus, the african colonization movement, 1816 1865 (new york, 1961), 167 68; bullock, afro american periodical press, 1 2; hutton, early black press, 4 7, 42 44. in new york city; probably not less than one hundred newspaper enterprises have been started in the united states, by free colored men, born free, and some of them of liberal education and fair talents for this work: but, one after another, they have fallen through, although, in several instances, anti slavery friends contributed to their support.* it had almost been given up, as an impracticable thing, to maintain a colored newspaper, when mr. douglass, with fewest early advantages of all his competitors, essayed, and has proved, the thing perfectly practicable, and, *mr. stephen myers,†stephen myers (1800 85), a black abolitionist and underground railroad activist, published a weekly newspaper in 1842, the northern star and freeman's advocate. myers's newspaper was concerned with temperance as well as abolition, and he was a popular lecturer for both causes. in the 1850s he was active in the vigilance committee in upstate new york, and it was widely believed that his house in albany was the last stop on one route of the underground railroad. i. garland penn, the afro american press and its editors (springfield, mass., 1891), 48 51; quarles, black abolitionists, 95, 149; hutton, early black press, 112 13, 121 22, 165. of albany, deserves mention as one of the most persevering among the colored editorial fraternity. moreover, of great public benefit. this paper, in addition to its power in holding up the hands of those to whom it is especially devoted, also affords irrefutable evidence of the justice. safety and practicability of immediate emancipation;†central to the platform of the abolitionist movement that arose in the united states in the early 1830s was the demand for immediate emancipation. whereas earlier opponents of slavery had favored measures such as african colonization to facilitate the gradual elimination of bondage, the evangelically inspired "immediatists" regarded slaveholding as a sinful practice that must be instantly abandoned. this immediatist ideology enabled antebellum abolitionists to prod the nation's religious and political institutions and even antislavery gradualists to adopt increasingly stronger positions against slavery. david brion davis, "the emergence of immediatism in british and american antislavery thought." mississippi valley historical review, 49:228 (september 1962); anne c. loveland, "evangelicalism and 'immediate emancipation' in american antislavery thought ," jsh, 32:177 (may 1966). it further proves the immense loss which slavery inflicts on the land while it dooms such energies as his to the hereditary degradation of slavery. it has been said in this introduction, that mr. douglass had raised himself by his own efforts to the highest position in society. as a successful editor, in our land, he occupies this position. our editors rule the land, and he is one of them. as an orator and thinker, his position is equally high, in the opinion of his countrymen. if a stranger in the united states would seek its most distinguished men the movers of public opinion he will find their names mentioned, and their movements chronicled, under the head of "by magnetic telegraph"†the first long distance telegraph in the united states began operation in 1844. the service allowed messages to be transmitted via an electrical current that passed through an electromagnet on the receiving end. this magnet then depressed a writing instrument that marked a moving strip of paper placed beneath it. requiring only one wire between stations, the system greatly facilitated communication in the united states. newspapers were among the first to use the telegraph to transmit press dispatches. this revolution in communication led to an expansion in the scope and variety of news stories, allowing news from all regions of the country to he disseminated more quickly and to a wider audience. menaham blondheim, news over the wires: the telegraph and the flow of public information in america, 1844 1897 (cambridge, mass., 1994), 34 40. in the daily papers. the keen caterers for the public attention, set down, in this column, such men only as have won high mark in the public esteem. during the past winter 1854 5 very frequent mention of frederick douglass was made under this head in the daily papers; his name glided as often this week from chicago, next week from boston over the lightning wires, as the name of any other man, of whatever note. to no man did the people more widely nor more earnestly say, "" and, somehow or other, revolution seemed to follow in his wake. his were not the mere words of eloquence which kossuth†louis kossuth (1802 94), lawyer, politician, and magyar nationalist, led the 1848 revolution for hungarian independence from hapsburg rule. a member of the hungarian diet when the revolution began, kossuth served as president of the committee of national defense before becoming governor of the short lived hungarian republic in april 1849. when austrian and russian forces broke the back of hungarian resistance in august 1849, kossuth fled to exile and subsequent confinement in turkey. the hungarian leader's plight aroused widespread sympathy in the united states, and after his release by turkish officials in 1851, kossuth boarded a u.s. warship, which took him as far as gibraltar on the first leg of a journey to america by way of england. arriving in new york on 5 december 1851, he spent the next seven months in a triumphal tour of the united states. abolitionists identified kossuth with the cause of freedom and the rights of oppressed minorities and hoped to enlist his aid in the antislavery struggle. they were disappointed and irritated, however, when kossuth chose to concentrate on the issue of hungarian independence and flatly refused to "meddle with any domestic concerns of the united states." after leaving america in july 1852, kossuth spent some eight years in england before settling in italy, where he remained until his death. john h. komlos, louis kossuth in america, 1851 1852 (buffalo, 1973), 13 52: donald s. spencer, louis kossuth and young america: a study of sectionalism and foreign policy, 1848 1852 (columbia, mo., 1977). 65 81; j. o. thorne, ed., chambers biographical dictionary, rev. ed. (edinburgh, 1969), 746. speaks of, that delight the ear and then pass away. no! they were  able,  able words, that brought forth fruits in the revolution in illinois,†the "revolution in illinois" likely refers to an 1855 law passed by the illinois legislature titled "an act to reclaim persons who have been decoyed or kidnapped and taken away beyond the boundaries of this state." this legislation repealed an 1827 law allowing the governor of lllinois to hand over fugitives from other states on demand. the 1855 law allowed the governor to restore the freedom of fugitives captured and deported from the state. john codman hurd, the law of freedom and bondage in the united states, 2 vols. (boston, 1858 62), 2:134, 136 37; paul finkelman, an imperfect union: slavery, federalism, and comity (chapel hill, 1981), 96 98, 150 55. and in the passage of the franchise resolutions by the assembly of new york.†douglass became active in the campaign for franchise revisions in the state of new york in the 1840s. at a speech given before the national convention of colored men in rochester, new york, in july 1853, douglass advocated unrestricted franchise rights for black men. despite numerous petition drives, the state of new york did not rescind the 1821 act that placed a $250 property qualification on black voters until 1860. even at that late date, the proposed amendment was defeated by referendum. franchise discrimination against blacks was finally removed with the adoption of the fifteenth amendment in 1870. phyllis f. field, the politics of race in new york: the struggle for black suffrage in the civil war era (ithaca, n.y., 1982), 33, 35 39, 93, 97, 220; charles h. wesley, "the negroes of new york in the emancipation movement." jnh, 24:92 93, 96, 100 102 (january 1939); douglass papers, ser. 1, 2:xxxiii. and the secret of his power, what is it? he is a representative american man*smith is probably making a loose comparison with ralph waldo emerson's representative men: seven lectures, which was a course of lectures delivered in 1845 and 1846. the lectures were first published in 1850. the complete works of ralph waldo emerson, 11 vols. (boston, 1876 1904), vol. 4. a type of his countrymen. naturalists tell us that a full grown man is a resultant or representative of all animated nature on this globe; beginning with the early embryo state, then representing the lowest forms of organic life,* and passing through every subordinate grade or type, until he reaches the last and highest manhood.* smith advances the now outdated biological theory that the individual development of every organism retraces the path of all of its evolutionary ancestors. richard milner, ed., the encyclopedia of evolution: humanity's search for its origins (new york, 1990), 44. in like manner, and to the fullest extent, has frederick douglass passed through every gradation of rank comprised in our national make up, and bears upon his person and upon his soul every thing that is american. and he has not only full sympathy with every thing american; his proclivity or bent, to active toil and visible progress. are in the strictly national direction, delighting to outstrip "all creation." * the german physiologists have even discovered vegetable matter starch in the human body. see med. chirurgical rev., oct., 1854. p. 339.*smith refers to a series of medical studies reviewed in a british medical journal. the citation listed here is incorrect. the journal name was changed from medico chirurgical review in 1847 and began a new run in 1848 under the name british and foreign medico chirur gical review. j. t. arlidge, "cellulose as an animal constituent," british and for eign medico chirurgical review, 14:339 46 (1854). nor have the natural gifts, already named as his, lost anything by his severe training. when unexcited, his mental processes are probably slow, but singularly clear in perception, and wide in vision, the unfailing memory bringing up all the facts in their every aspect; incongruities he lays hold of incontinently, and holds up on the edge of his keen and telling wit. but this wit never descends to frivolity; it is rigidly in the keeping of his truthful common sense, and always used in illustration or proof of some point which could not so readily be reached any other way. "beware of a yankee when he is feeding" is a shaft that strikes home in a matter never so laid bare by satire before. "the garrisonian views of disunion. if carried to a successful issue, would only place the people of the north in the same relation to american slavery which they now bear to the slavery of cuba or the brazils,"†smith paraphrases douglass's criticism of the garrisonian abolitionist position of disunionism, made in an address to the rochester ladies' anti slavery society and then published in the frederick douglass' paper. in may 1844 the american anti slavery society, under the control of followers of william lloyd garrison since 1840, adopted a resolution calling for northern secession from the union as a means of depriving the institution of slavery of outside support. garrisonians found their disunionist position an extremely effective propaganda device to castigate northerners for their complicity with slavery stemming from cooperation with the south under what they deemed the "proslavery" u.s. constitution. fdp, 23 march 1855; perry, radical abolitionism, 161 66. is a statement. in a few words, which contains the result and the evidence of an argument which might cover pages, but could not carry stronger conviction, nor be stated in less pregnable form. in proof of this, i may say, that having been submitted to the attention of the garrisonians in print, in march, it was repeated before them at their business meeting in may†douglass, joined by william goodell, james mccune smith, and other supporters of the view that the u.s. constitution was an antislavery document, attended the public business meeting of the american anti slavery society, held in new york city on 10 may 1855. these political abolitionists informally debated leading garrisonians over the latters' views on the constitution. fdp, 25 may 1855. the platform, par excellence,†from the french for preeminently; above all. on which they invite free fight, ,†french term meaning to excess; extravagance; in the extreme. to all comers. it was given out in the clear, ringing tones, wherewith the hall of shields was wont to resound of old, yet neither garrison, nor phillips, nor may,†samuel joseph may (1797 1871) mixed abolitionism with a variety of other humanitarian concerns during his long career as a unitarian clergyman. boston born and harvard educated, may studied theology at cambridge and was ordained in 1822. in the course of his forty year ministry he championed such causes as temperance, women's rights, pacifism, universal education, and abolitionism. originally a supporter of african colonization, may joined the abolitionist ranks in 1830, supported prudence crandall's efforts to establish a school for black youths in 1833, and enjoyed a long tenure as an agent of the new england anti slavery society. during the 1840s and 1850s he helped many fugitive slaves reach canada and helped rescue jerry mchenry from slave catchers in syracuse, new york, in 1851. after the civil war, he worked with black colleagues such as jermain w. loguen and frederick douglass to fight racial segregation in new york schools. donald yacovone, samuel joseph may and the dilemmas of the liberal persuasion, 1797 1871 (philadelphia, 1991); jane h. pease and william h. pease, bound with them in chains: a biographical history of the antislavery movement (westport, conn., 1972), 276 307; ncab, 2:313; dab, 12:447 48. nor remond,†noted black antislavery lecturer charles lenox remond (1810 73) was born to free parents in salem, massachusetts, where, like his father, an immigrant from curaçao, he worked as a barber. remond became active in reform movements at an early age. a member of the colored association of massachusetts when it merged with the new england anti slavery society in 1833, he became an officer in the latter organization. by 1838 remond had begun his career as a lecturer under the auspices of the american anti slavery society. a delegate to the 1840 world's anti slavery convention in london, remond traveled and lectured in the british isles for some sixteen months. upon his return, remond was employed as a lecture agent by the massachusetts anti slavery society, and he and douglass frequently traveled together on lecture tours. their close association was troubled as a rift between douglass and garrison threatened, and in 1852 remond announced his intention to cancel his subscription to frederick douglass' paper in protest against douglass's adoption of non garrisonian views of the u.s. constitution. during the civil war, remond was a recruiting officer for the black fifty fourth massachusetts infantry. illness curtailed his reform activities after the war. fdp, 20 may 1852; new york daily times, 26 december 1873; washington (d.c.) new national era, 8 january 1874; pease and pease, they who would be free, 46; les wallace, "charles lenox remond: the lost prince of abolitionism," nhb, 40:696 701 (may june 1977); ncab, 2:303; dab, 15:499 500. nor foster,†born in canterbury, new hampshire, radical abolitionist stephen symonds foster (1809 81) studied at dartmouth college. in 1837, a year before his graduation, he helped to organize the new hampshire young men's anti slavery society. foster briefly attended union theological seminary in new york, but by 1839 he had repudiated the ministry. he developed his criticisms of american churches most fully in the brotherhood of thieves: or, a true picture of the american church clergy (1843). his practice of interrupting a church service to speak out against complicity with slavery frequently provoked violent reaction. although foster and his wife, abby kelley, whom he married in 1845, were agents for the american anti slavery society for nearly twenty years, their relationship with the garrisonians was at best one of strained cooperation. although foster believed that the constitution was a proslavery document, he periodically dabbled in politics. in 1843 44 he endorsed the liberty party. in the late 1850s, having altered his view of the nature of the constitution, foster sought to establish a disunion party "whose avowed aim . . . [would] be the overthrow of the government . . . & whose will . . . [would] be expressed through the ballot box." in the mid 1850s he also argued in favor of slave rebellion in his revolution the only remedy for slavery (1855). a proponent of distributing land to the freedmen, foster was disappointed with federal reconstruction policies. he devoted the last years of his life to agitating on behalf of temperance and women's rights. parker pillsbury, acts of the anti slavery apostles (concord, n.h., 1883), 123 55; lillie b. chace wyman, "reminiscences of two abolitionists," new england magazine, n.s., 27:536 50 (january 1903); parker pillsbury, "stephen symonds foster," granite monthly, 5:369 5 (august 1882); pease and pease, bound with them in chains, 191 217; louis filler, "parker pillsbury: an anti slavery apostle," new england quarterly, 19:315 37 (september 1946); jane hanna pease, "the freshness of fanaticism: abby kelley foster: an essay in reform" (ph.d. diss., university of rochester, 1969), 65 84, 118 21, 125 26, 133 34, 143 44, 161 65, 184 87, 195 205, 217 18, 237 44; appleton's cyclopaedia of american biography, 6 vols. (new york, 1888 89), 2:514 15; ncab, 2:328 29; dab, 6:558 59. nor burleigh,†charles calistus burleigh (1810 78) was born in plainfield, connecticut, and received his early schooling at plainfield academy. he had begun to study the law when an attack he published on the connecticut "black law" attracted the attention of abolitionist samuel j. may. through may, burleigh was offered the editorship of the unionist, a new antislavery paper financed by arthur tappan. burleigh was instrumental in protecting william lloyd garrison from a mob in boston in october 1835, and shortly thereafter became a regular contributor to the liberator. in the late 1830s burleigh became one of the editors of the pennsylvania freeman, later the organ of the eastern pennsylvania anti slavery society. active in a number of reform movements, burleigh plunged into the anti sabbatarian campaign after he was arrested in west chester, pennsylvania, in 1847 for selling antislavery literature on sunday. in 1845 he published a pamphlet, thoughts on the death penalty, condemning capital punishment. he participated in the woman suffrage conventions at cleveland and new york in 1854, and the american equal rights association meeting in 1867. in the 1870s he joined his brother, william henry, in the campaign for temperance reform. c. b. galbreath, "anti slavery movement in columbiana county," ohio state archaeological and historical quarterly, 30:389 91 (october 1921): elizabeth cady stanton et al., eds., history of woman sufferage, 6 vols. (rochester, n. y., 1881 1922), 1:148 51; dab, 3:284 85; acab, 1:455. with his subtle steel of "the ice brook's temper,"†othello, act 5, sc. 2, line 253. ventured to break a lance upon it! the doctrine of the dissolution of the union, as a means for the abolition of american slavery, was silenced upon the lips that gave it birth, and in the presence of an array of defenders who compose the keenest intellects in the land. ","†douglass made this assertion in a speech on 11 august 1852 to an audience of more than two thousand antislavery activists in pittsburgh to support the convention that formed the free soil party. fdp, 20 august 1852; douglass papers, ser. 1, 2:389 93. is an aphorism struck out by mr. douglass in that great gathering of the friends of freedom, at pittsburgh. in 1852, where he towered among the highest, because, with abilities inferior to none, and moved more deeply than any, there was neither policy nor party to trammel the outpourings of his soul. thus we find, opposed to all the disadvantages which a black man in the united states labors and struggles under, is this one vantage ground when the chance comes, and the audience where he may have a say, he stands forth the freest, most deeply moved and most earnest of all men. it has been said of mr. douglass, that his descriptive and declamatory powers, admitted to be of the very highest order, take precedence of his logical force. whilst the schools might have trained him to the exhibition of the formulas of deductive logic, nature and circumstances forced him into the exercise of the higher faculties required by induction. the first ninety pages of this "life in bondage," afford specimens of observing, comparing, and careful classifying, of such superior character, that it is difficult to believe them the results of a child's thinking; he questions the earth, and the children and the slaves around him again and again, and finally looks to ""†smith slightly misquotes bondage and freedom, 52.29/89.21. for the why and the wherefore of the unnatural thing, slavery. "" is the only prayer and worship of the god forsaken dodos in the heart of africa. almost the same was his prayer. one of his earliest observations was that white children should know their ages,† smith describes an observation by douglass in bondage and freedom, 22.14/35.11. while the colored children were ignorant of theirs; and the songs of the slaves grated on his inmost soul, because a something told him that harmony in sound, and music of the spirit, could not consociate with miserable degradation.†smith paraphrases bondage and freedom, 57.22/98.4 to such a mind, the ordinary processes of logical deduction are like proving that two and two make four. mastering the intermediate steps by an intuitive glance, or recurring to them as ferguson†james ferguson (1710 76) was a british astronomer whose published works included astronomy explained on sir isaac newton 's principles (1756), the young gentleman's and lady's astronomy (1768), and perhaps accounting for smith's reference to geometry the art of drawing in perspective (1775). dnb, 6:1207 11. resorted to geometry, it goes down to the deeper relation of things, and brings out what may seem, to some, mere statements, but which are new and brilliant generalizations, each resting on a broad and stable basis. thus, chief justice marshall gave his decisions,†john marshall (1755 1835), chief justice of the united states supreme court (1801 1835), founded the tradition of judicial review. dab, 6:315 19. and then told brother story†joseph story (1779 1845) was born in marblehead, massachusetts, and was descended from elisha story, who settled in boston about 1700. a very precocious youth, story entered harvard at the age of fifteen and graduated second in his class in 1798. story then returned home to study law and was admitted to the bar in the summer of 1801. while he began a private practice, he also entered into state politics on the side of the republicans, despite his residence in arch federalist essex county. though serving in the massachusetts legislature and in congress, he was uncomfortable conforming to party discipline and left electoral politics in 1811. that year he was appointed an associate justice of the supreme court. an admirer of chief justice john marshall, story would in the coming years concur repeatedly with him in opinions that strengthened the federal government, the inviolability of contracts, the right of the supreme court to review congressional enactments, and the authority of the federal courts over that of the state courts. story remained on the court until a few months before his death. by then he had also made his mark as one of the chief architects of the harvard law school and as a commentator on various branches of the law, embodied in his famous commentaries. r. kent newmyer, supreme court justice joseph story: statesman of the old republic (chapel hill, 1985); john f. ohles, ed., biographical dictionary of american educators, 3 vols. (westport, conn., 1978), 3:1243  44; acab, 5:710 11; ncab, 2:468 69; dab, 9:102 08. to look up the authorities and they never differed from him. thus, also, in his "lecture on the anti slavery movement,"† "the anti slavery movement" was an address prepared by douglass in late 1854 specifically for use on the lecture circuit. the speech argued that william lloyd garrison had neither discovered antislavery nor framed its principles. douglass charged garrison with racism and exposed the weakness of his disunion philosophy. the speech contended that the liberty party was the only true friend of the slave. first delivered on 19 march 1855 in rochester, new york, the address provoked a bitter response from the garrisonians. douglass papers, ser. 1, 3:14. delivered before the rochester ladies' anti slavery society, mr. douglass presents a mass of thought, which, without any showy display of logic on his part, requires an exercise of the reasoning faculties of the reader to keep pace with him. and his "claims of the negro ethnologically considered,"†this speech by douglass, delivered during commencement week at western reserve college in hudson, ohio, in 1854, was subsequently published as a pamphlet: the claims of he negro ethnologically considered: an address, before the literary societies of western reserve college, at commencement, july 12, 1854 (rochester, n.y., 1854). is full of new and fresh thoughts on the dawning science of race history. if, as has been stated, his intellection is slow, when unexcited, it is most prompt and rapid when he is thoroughly aroused. memory, logic, wit, sarcasm, invective, pathos and bold imagery of rare structural beauty, well up as from a copious fountain, yet each in its proper place, and contributing to form a whole, grand in itself, yet complete in the minutest proportions. it is most difficult to hedge him in a corner, for his positions are taken so deliberately, that it is rare to find a point in them undefended aforethought. professor reason†the son of haitian émigrés, charles lewis reason (1818 93) was a teacher in or principal of various black schools in new york city and philadelphia, and briefly a professor of belles lettres, french, and mathematics at central college in mcgrawville, new york. he was the first black man to hold a professorship in an american college. after the civil war, he was one of the leaders in the successful effort to integrate the city school system. reason was no less active in the antebellum struggle to pressure the new york legislature into abolishing the property qualifications for black voters. his opposition to negro colonization began in 1838, when he joined in the call for a "'great anti colonization meeting" in new york city, and carried through into the 1850s, when he was outspoken in his criticism of the african civilization society, the black colonization organization. cleveland gazette, 5 september 1885; william j. simmons, men of mark: eminent, progressive, and rising (chicago, 1970), 1105 09; robert c. dick, black protest: lssues and tactics (westport, conn., 1974 ), 21, 50, 190: quarles, black abolitionists, 114, 145, 172; pease and pease, they who would be free, 10, 86 87, 148, 175, 258, 270 71; anthony r. mayo, "charles lewis reason." nhb, 5:212 15 (june 1942); freeman, "free negro in new york city," 41 42, 53, 136, 188, 237, 279, 345, 350, 353, 368. tells me the following: "on a recent visit of a public nature, to philadelphia, and in a meeting composed mostly of his colored brethren, mr. douglass proposed a comparison of views in the matters of the relations and duties of 'our people;' he holding that prejudice was the result of condition, and could be conquered by the efforts of the degraded themselves. a gentleman present, distinguished for logical acumen and subtlety. and who had devoted no small portion of the last twenty five years to the study and elucidation of this very question, held the opposite view, that prejudice is innate and unconquerable. he terminated a series of well dovetailed, socratic questions†devised by socrates (470? 399 b.c.), the athenian philosopher, the socratic method of teaching is composed of a series of easily answered questions leading to a logical conclusion foreseen by the questioner. to mr. douglass, with the following : 'if the legislature at harrisburgh†the pennsylvania state legislature met in harrisburg after the state capital was moved there from lancaster in october 1812. huberits cummings, "pennsylvania's state houses and capitols," in the capitols of pennsylvania (n.p., n.d.), 6 7; thomas c. cochran, pennsylva nia: a bicentennial history (new york, 1978), 92. should awaken, to morrow morning, and find each man's skin turned black and his hair woolly, what could they do to remove prejudice?' 'immediately pass laws entitling black men to all civil, political and social privileges,' was the instant reply and the questioning ceased."†charles l. reason's communication to james mccune smith has not survived. its contents apparently referred to douglass 's appearance at one of three lectures delivered in philadelphia on 29, 30, and 31 january 1855. most likely the incident recounted occurred on 29 january, when douglass spoke for two hours at the israel church on gaskill street. a number of garrisonian abolitionists later complained that douglass had used the occasion to malign their group's stance on the u.s. constitution. "r. t." to william lloyd garrison, 2 february 1855, in lib., 9 february 1855; isaiah c. weers to douglass, n.d., in fdp, 30 march 1855; fdp, 23 february, 2 march 1855. the most remarkable mental phenomenon in mr. douglass, is his style in writing and speaking. in march, 1855, he delivered an address in the assembly chamber before the members of the legislature of the state of new york.†douglass's speech, titled "the rights of man," was actually delivered in albany, new york, 16 february 1855. albany evening journal, 15, 17 february 1855. an eye witness* describes the crowded and most intelligent audience. and their rapt attention to the speaker, as the grandest scene he ever witnessed in the capitol. among those whose eyes were riveted on the speaker full two hours and a half, were thurlow weed†thurlow weed (1797 1882), the son of an improvident new york farmer., was apprenticed to a newspaper office at age fifteen. during the 1820s he worked as a printer and a journalist and served two terms in the state legislature as a representative from rochester. in 1830 he founded the albany evening journal as the official state organ for the anti masonic party and later became a leader of the coalition that emerged as the whig party. weed had frequently praised douglass's abolitionist work, but argued that the powers behind slavery could be most effectively battled under the aegis of the whig party and later the republican party. though disappointed by the failure of his longtime ally william h. seward to obtain the republican presidential nomination in 1860, he supported lincoln's wartime policies and toured great britain during the winter of 1861 62 to conciliate ill feelings aroused by the trent affair. weed retired from journalism in 1863 except for a brief period in 1867 when he edited the new york commercial advertiser. his influence in national and state politics declined after the civil war along with that of his ally seward, although in 1872 he persuaded new york republicans to choose douglass as one of their presidential electors. albany evening journal, 10 june 1845; glyndon g. van deusen, thurlow weed: wizard of the lobby (boston, 1947); quarles, frederick douglass, 267: ncab, 3:12 13; dab, 19:598 600. and lieutenant governor raymond;†henry jarvis raymond (1820 69), joumalist and politician, was born in lima, new york. after graduating from the university of vermont in 1840, he moved to new york city to work for horace greeley's new york daily tribune. in 1848, uncomfortable under the sway of the liberal reformist greeley, the more conservative raymond left his mentor's daily tribune to become the editor of the new york courier and enquirer and soon after of harper's new monthly magazine. increasingly disturbed by the political partisanship of city newspapers, raymond and another associate inaugurated the new york daily times in september 1851 with the intention of more dispassionately reporting the day's events. raymond would remain editor of the prospering paper until his death in 1869, but he was also a key figure at both the state and national level in the whig and republican parties, culminating in a seat in congress from 1865 to 1867. francis brown, raymond of the times (new york, 1951); biographical directory of the american congress, 1774 1996 (alexandria, va., 1997), 1711; ncab, 8:482 83; dab, 15:408 12. the latter, at the conclusion of the address, exclaimed to a friend, "i would give twenty thousand dollars, if i could deliver that address in that manner." mr. raymond is a first class graduate of dartmouth, a rising politician, ranking foremost in the legislature; of course, his ideal of oratory must be of the most polished and finished description. the style of mr. douglass in writing, is to me an intellectual puzzle. the strength, affluence and terseness may easily be accounted for, because the style of a man is the man; but how are we to account for that rare polish in his style of writing, which, most critically examined, seems the result of careful early culture among the best classics of our language; it equals if it do not surpass the style of hugh miller, which was the wonder of the british literary public, until he unraveled the mystery in the most interesting of autobiographies. but frederick douglass was still calking the seams of baltimore clippers,†douglass was apprenticed as a ship's caulker in william gardiner's baltimore shipyard from 1836 until his escape from slavery in september 1838. mcfeely, frederick douglass, 58 59. and had only written a "pass," at the age when miller's style was already formed. i asked william whipper,†william whipper (1804 76), a black abolitionist from pennsylvania, was a leading spokesman for the american moral reform society and editor of its journal, the national reformer, in 1838 and 1839. he was active in black rights conventions, served as a "conductor" on the underground railroad, and advocated canadian emigration. hutton, early black press, 33 34; richard p. mccormick, "william whipper: moral reformer," pennsylvania history, 43:23 25, 44 (january 1976). of pennsylvania, the gentleman alluded to above, whether he thought mr. douglass's power inherited from the negroid, or from what is called the caucasian side of his make up? after some reflection, he frankly answered. "i must admit, although sorry to do so, that the caucasian predominates." at that time, i almost agreed with him; but, facts narrated in the first part of this work, throw a different light on this interesting question. * mr. wm. h. topp.†william h. topp (c.1812 57), a successful albany merchant tailor, was a prominent figure in new york's black convention movement. in 1849 topp was among the first to support douglass's proposal to form a national league to represent the interests of black americans. an early associate of william lloyd garrison, topp later changed his views on political abolitionism and supported the liberty party. nass, 19 december 1857: delany, condition of the colored people of the united stutes, 102; quarles, black abolitionists, 2, 104, 172, 219. of albany. we are left in the dark as to who was the paternal ancestor of our author: a fact which generally holds good of the romuluses and remuses† twin sons of the god of mars and legendary founders of rome. who are to inaugurate the new birth of our republic. in the absence of testimony from the caucasian side, we must see what evidence is given on the other side of the house. ''my grandmother, though advanced in years, * * * was yet a woman of power and spirit. she was marvelously straight in figure, elastic and muscular." (p. 46.)†smith reproduces passages from bondage and freedom, 28.22, 24 25/46.15 16.18 20. after describing her skill in constructing nets, her perseverance in using them, and her wide spread fame in the agricultural way he adds. "it happened to her as it will happen to any careful and thrifty person residing in an ignorant and improvident neighborhood to enjoy the reputation of being born to good luck."†smith substitutes "neighborhood" for "community" when he quotes bondage and freedom, 22.34 36/36.8 11. and his grandmother was a black woman. "my mother was tall, and finely proportioned; of deep black, glossy complexion; had regular features; and among other slaves was remarkably sedate in her manners." "being a field hand, she was obliged to walk twelve miles and return, between nightfall and daybreak, to see her children." (p. 54.)†smith paraphrases as well as quotes short passages from bondage and freedom, 31 2/52 54. "i shall never forget the indescribable expression of her countenance when i told her that i had had no food since morning. * * * there was pity in her glance at me, and a fiery indignation at aunt katy at the same time; * * * * she read aunt katy a lecture which she never forgot." ( p. 56.)†with just one punctuation error, smith quotes from bondage and freedom, 33.31 32, 33 35, 36/56.14 16, 17 19, 21. "i learned, after my mother's death, that she could read, and that she was the only one of all the slaves and colored people in tuckahoe who enjoyed that advantage. how she acquired this knowledge, i know not, for tuckahoe is the last place in the world where she would be apt to find facilities for learning." (p. 57. )†bondage and freedom, 34.28 32/57.32 58.5. "there is, in ','*with just one punctuation error. smith quotes from bondage and freedom, 31.24 /52.21 26 the head of a figure on page 157 the features of which so resemble those of my mother, that i often recur to it with something of the feeling which i suppose others experience when looking upon the pictures of dear departed ones." (p. 52. )†. the figure to which douglass refers is a sketch of the egyptian pharaoh ramses the great, found in james cowles prichard, the natural history of man: comprising inquiries into the modifying lnfluence of physical and moral agencies on the different tribes of the human family (london, 1848), 157. the head alluded to is copied from the statue of ramses the great,†ramses ii (1304 1237 b.c.), also known as ramses the great, reigned as pharaoh of egypt for sixty seven years, a period that marked a high point in egyptian prosperity. he built many temples and monuments and is considered the builder of the columned hall at karnak, as well as the temples at abu simbel. rosalie david and antony e. david, eds., a biographical dictionary of ancient egypt (norman, okla., 1992), 118 20; peter a. clayton, chronicle of the pharaohs: the reign by reign record of the rulers and dynasties of ancient egypt (london, 1994), 146 55. an egyptian king of the nineteenth dynasty. the authors of the "types of mankind"†a reference to j. c. nott and george r. gliddon, types of mankind: or, ethnological researches, based upon the an cient monuments, paintings, sculptures, and crania of races . . . (philadelphia, 1854), 148. give a side view of the same on page 148, remarking that the profile, "like napoleon's,†napoleon bonaparte (1769 1821), emperor of france. is superbly european!" the nearness of its resemblance to mr. douglass' mother, rests upon the evidence of his memory, and judging from his almost marvelous feats of recollection of forms and outlines recorded in this book, this testimony may he admitted. these facts show that for his energy, perseverance, eloquence, invective, sagacity, and wide sympathy, he is indebted to his negro blood. the very marvel of his style would seem to be a development of that other marvel, how his mother learned to read. the versatility of talent which he wields, in common with dumas,†alexandre dumas (1802 70), a french novelist and playwright, was one of the pioneers of the romantic theater in france. his best known novels include the three musketeers (1844) and the count of monte cristo (1844 45 ). dumas's grandmother had heen a black slave on the west indies island of santo domingo. drabble, oxford companion to english literature, 294; jacques barzun, ed., european writers: the romantic century, 14 vols, (new york, 1985), 6: 723 24. ira aldridge,†frederick ira aldridge (c.1807 67), a black actor from new york city, was renowned in europe as a shakespearean actor and tragedian from the 1830s through the 1850s. aldridge developed an interest in acting as a youth, and knowing that opportunities for a black actor were limited in the united states, immigrated to england at the age of seventeen to pursue a career in the theater. although he had no formal training, aldridge began acting in minor roles soon after his arrival in 1824. in a few years he hecame a celebrated star of the european stage, traveling for twenty seven years throughout britain, france, prussia, hungary. and even russia. aldridge's talent landed him traditional black roles, such as othello, but he also performed widely in nonblack roles, such as hamlet, richard iii, and shylock. he never returned to the united states, choosing to become a citizen of great britain in 1863. herbert marshall and mildred stock, ira aldridge: the negro tragedian (1958; washington, d.c., 1993), ix xix, 292; rayford w. logan and michael r. winston, eds., dictionary of american negro biography (new york, 1982), 8 9; dab, 1:160 61. and miss greenfield,†elizabeth taylor greenfield (1817 76) was born of slave parents in natchez, louisiana, but moved at an early age with her widowed owner to philadelphia. once there, her owner joined the quakers and freed her slaves, most of them going to liberia. greenfield remained with her former mistress until the latter's death in 1845. greenfield's musical gifts became evident early, but no teacher in philadelphia would take her for fear of alienating the white students. through perseverance, her elegant voice improved, and while performing before charmed passengers on a ferry in upstate new york, she was invited to give a recital in buffalo. performing wonderfully there, she soon gained enough acclaim to tour the north from chicago to boston. proclaimed the "black swan," greenfield won a crowd of admiring patrons who raised enough money for her to go for further training and concerts in europe, where her recitals were enthusiastically received. she determined, however, against extended study in europe and in the summer of 1854 returned to a warm reception in philadelphia. little is known of the black swan after 1854, but she remained in philadelphia, where she taught, gave occasional concerts, and was a devout congregant at shiloh baptist church. asb, 6 march 1852; edward t. james et al., eds., notable american women, 1607 1950: a biographical dictionary, 3 vols. (cambridge, mass., 1971), 2:87 89; acab, 2:755. would seem to be the result of the grafting of the anglo saxon on good, original, negro stock. if the friends of "caucasus"†a region named for a mountain range that extends 750 miles between the black sea and the caspian sea through the modern nations of russia, georgia, armenia, and azerbaijan. saul b. cohen. ed., the columbia gazetteer of the world, 3 vols. (new york, 1998), 1:566. choose to claim, for that region, what remains after this analysis to wit: combination they are welcome to it. they will forgive me for reminding them that the term "caucasian" is dropped by recent writers on ethnology; for the people about mount caucasus, are, and have ever been, mongols.†a historically nomadic central asiatic people chiefly inhabiting mongolia, a large territory between china proper and siberia. the great "white race" now seek paternity. according to dr. pickering,†charles pickering (1805 78), doctor, botanist, and ethnologist, was born in pennsylvania. early interested in the natural sciences and receiving his medical degree in 1826, he was appointed the chief zoologist of a u.s. sponsored expedition in 1838 along the coasts of south america to the south pacific. responsible for gathering information on and specimens of diverse plants and animals. pickering also speculated on the origins of racial diversity among humans in races of men and their geographical distribution (1848) and the geographical distribution of animals and plants (1854 ). pickering argued very controversially in races of men that god had actually performed several distinct acts of creation, with only one that through adam and eve begetting caucasians. his later years were devoted to extensive botanical and anthropological reearches. william stanton, the leopard's spots: scientific attitudes toward race in america, 1815 59 (chicago, 1960), 92 97, 100; acab, 5:1; ncab, 13:176; dab, 14:562 in arabia "arida nutrix"†literally, a dry or parsimonious wet nurse. p. g. w. glare, ed., oxford latin dictionary (oxford, 1982), 169, 1209. of the best breed of horses &c . keep on, gentlemen; you will find yourselves in africa, by and by. the egyptians, like the americans, were a , with some negro blood circling around the throne, as well as in the mud hovels. this is the proper place to remark of our author, that the same strong self hood, which led him to measure strength with mr. covey, and to wrench himself from the embrace of the garrisonians, and which has borne him through many resistances to the personal indignities offered him as a colored man, sometimes becomes a hyper sensitiveness to such assaults as men of his mark will meet with, on paper. keen and unscrupulous opponents have sought, and not unsuccessfully, to pierce him in this direction; for well they know, that if assailed, he will smite back. it is not without a feeling of pride, dear reader, that i present you with this book. the son of a self emancipated bond woman, i feel joy in introducing to you my brother, who has rent his own bonds, and who, in his every relation as a public man, as a husband and as a father is such as does honor to the land which gave him birth. i shall place this book in the hands of the only child spared†a series of tragic deaths had recently occurred in james mccune smith's family. he and his wife, malvina barnet smith, lost their six year old daughter, amy, on christmas eve of 1849. their three remaining children, frederick douglass (b. 1854), peter williams (b. 1852), and anna gertrude (b. 1850), all died between 13 august and 19 september 1854. on 6 october 1855, james mccune smith wrote to gerrit smith: "we have a renewed blessing in our house in the shape of a little girl who with her mother is doing very well." this fifth child was probably born between march 1855 and his writing of the introduction to bondage and freedom. fdp, 6 october 1854; james mccune smith to gerrit smith, 6 october 1856, gerrit smith papers, nsyu; ripley, black abolitionist papers, 4: 276. me, bidding him to strive and emulate its noble example. you may do likewise. it is an american book, for americans, in the fullest sense of the idea. it shows that the worst of our institutions, in its worst aspect, cannot keep down energy, truthfulness, and earnest struggle for the right. it proves the justice and practicability of immediate emancipation. it shows that any man in our land, "no matter in what battle his liberty may have been cloven down, * * * * no matter what complexion an indian or an african sun may have burned upon him," not only may "stand forth redeemed and disenthralled,"†smith is quoting from a 1794 speech of john philpot curran (1750 1817), an irish patriot, lawyer, and politician, defending archibald hamilton rowan, secretary of the dublin society of united irishmen, who was on trial for encouraging irish volunteers to take up arms for their defense. douglass also quoted from this speech in his lecture "the claims of the negro ethnologically considered," delivered in hudson, ohio, on 12 july 1854. thomas davis, ed., the speeches of the right honorable john philpot curran (dublin, 1845), 182; douglass papers, ser. 1, 2:524. but may also stand up a candidate for the highest suffrage of a great people the tribute of their honest, hearty admiration. reader, , may 23. 1855. james m'cune smith. woodcut before page 33 (original text). 1855 edition.*this engraving, and the one found on page 335 in the 1855 edition, were made by nathaniel orr, a prominent new york wood engraver. originally from ireland, orr was the younger brother of john william orr (1815 87), who was reputed to be one of the best known wood engravers of his generation. the brothers worked in partnership from 1844 to 1846, then went their separate ways. nathaniel orr's engravings appear in such works as an 1849 edition of benjamin franklin's autobiography and an 1860 publication of the american tract society titled the morning glory, princeton university library, early american book illustrators and wood engravers, 1670 1870 (princeton, 1958), 91, 221 22; idem, early american book illustrators and wood engravers, 1670 1870, vol. ii supplement (princeton, 1968), 127. yale collection of american literature . beinecke rare book and manuscript library. life as a slave. chapter i. the author's childhood. place of birth character of the district tuckahoe origin of the name choptank river time of birth genealogical trees mode of counting time names of grandparents their position grandmother especially esteemed "born to good luck" sweet potatoes superstition the log cabin its charms separating children author's aunts their names first knowledge of being a slave "old master" griefs and joys of childhood comparative happiness of the slave boy and the son of a slaveholder. in talbot county, eastern shore, maryland, near easton,†talbot county, on maryland's eastern shore, had been an important tobacco rowing region since colonial times. in 1788 the state legislature designated easton, until then known as talbot town, as the administrative center for state operations for all nine of the eastern shore counties. dickson j. preston, talbot county: a history (centreville, md., 1983), 140, 191, 256; paul wilstach, tidewater maryland (indianapolis, 1931), 104 05. the county town of that county, there is a small district of country, thinly populated, and remarkable for nothing that i know of more than for the worn out, sandy, desert like appearance of its soil, the general dilapidation of its farms and fences, the indigent and spiritless character of its inhabitants, and the prevalence of ague†a fit of shaking or shivering, often accompanying a violent fever. and fever. the name of this singularly unpromising and truly famine stricken district is tuckahoe,†hillsborough (or hillsboro) is situated northeast of easton on tuckahoe creek, a tributary of the choptank river that forms part of the eastern boundary of talbot county. tuckahoe is an algonquin term meaning "root" or "mushroom." preston, talbot county, 140, 191, 256; wilstach, tidewater maryland, 104 05. emendation note: 1855 printing, 5: tuckanoe a name well known to all marylanders, black and white. it was given to this section of country probably, at the first, merely in derision; or it may possibly have been applied to it, as i have heard, because some one of its earlier inhabitants had been guilty of the petty meanness of stealing a hoe or taking a hoe that did not belong to him. eastern shore men usually pronounce the word as ; , therefore, is, in maryland parlance, tuckahoe. but, whatever may have been its origin and about this i will not be positive that name has stuck to the district in question; and it is seldom mentioned but with contempt and derision, on account of the barrenness of its soil, and the ignorance, indolence, and poverty of its people. decay and ruin are everywhere visible, and the thin population of the place would have quitted it long ago, but for the choptank river,†the choptank river is the longest and best known of all eastern shore rivers. it forms part of the eastern boundary of talbot county and stretches from the chesapeake bay to the town of denton in caroline county. footner, rivers of the eastern shore, 170 84. which runs through it, from which they take abundance of shad and herring, and plenty of ague and fever. it was in this dull, flat, and unthrifty district, or neighborhood, surrounded hy a white population of the lowest order, indolent and drunken to a proverb, and among slaves. who seemed to ask, "" every time they lifted a hoe, that i without any fault of mine was born, and spent the first years of my childhood. the reader will pardon so much about the place of my birth, on the score that it is always a fact of some importance to know where a man is born, if, indeed, it be important to know anything about him. in regard to the of my birth, i cannot be as definite as i have been respecting the .†as nearly as can be determined, douglass was born in february 1818. ledger books kept by his master, aaron anthony, contain a table, "my black people," with the notation "frederick augustus son of harriott feby 1818." further evidence for the year 1818 is presented in preston, young frederick douglass, 31 34, 218 19nn1 5; aaron anthony ledger b, 1812 26, folder 95, 165, dodge collection, mdaa. nor, indeed, can i impart much knowledge concerning my parents. genealogical trees do not flourish among slaves. a person of some consequence here in the north, sometimes designated , is literally abolished in slave law and slave practice. it is only once in a while that an exception is found to this statement. i never met with a slave who could tell me how old he was. few slave mothers know anything of the months of the year, nor of the days of the month. they keep no family records, with marriages. births. and deaths. they measure the ages of their children by spring time, winter time, harvest time, planting time, and the like; but these soon become undistinguishable and forgotten. like other slaves, i cannot tell how old i am. this destitution was among my earliest troubles. i learned when i grew up, that my master and this is the case with masters generally allowed no questions to be put to him, by which a slave might learn his age. such questions are deemed evidence of impatience, and even of impudent curiosity. from certain events, however, the dates of which i have since learned, i suppose myself to have been born about the year 1817. the first experience of life with me that i now remember and i remember it but hazily began in the family of my grandmother and grandfather, betsey†betsey bailey (1774 1849), the maternal grandmother of frederick douglass, grew up a slave on the skinner plantation in talbot county, maryland. in 1797 she became the property of aaron anthony, who aquired her and several other slaves through his marriage to ann skinner. anthony moved her to his farm on tuckahoe creek in talbot county. she married isaac bailey, a free black who earned his living as a sawyer, and lived with him in her cabin. there she bore nine daughters and three sons. she was also a midwife, a service for which anthony paid her. upon anthony's death in 1826, bailey was inherited by andrew skinner anthony, aaron's son; when andrew died in 1833, she became the slave of john planner anthony. despite this succession of masters and the death of her own husband, she remained in her cabin on the tuckahoe creek farm, living alone, nearly destitute, and going blind. in 1840 thomas auld, john anthony's uncle, learned of bailey's condition and sent for her, caring for her in his talbot county home until her death. aaron anthony slave distribution, 22 october 1827, talbot county distributions, v.jp#d, 58 59, mdtch; aaron anthony, inventory of negroes, distribution of negroes, folders 71 and 77, aaron anthony ledger a. 1700 1818, folder 94, ledger b, 1812 26, folder 77, 159, 165 68, harriet l. anthony, annotated copy of bondage and freedom, folder 93, 180, all in dodge collection, mdaa; douglass to thomas auld, 3 september 1848, 3 september 1849, ns, 8 september 1848, 7 september 1849, reprinted in lib., 22 september 1848, 14 september 1849; preston, young frederick douglass, 8, 16 20, 167. and isaac baily.†born sometime before 1775. isaac bailey was a free black man and the husband of betsey bailey, a slave owned by aaron anthony. isaac and betsey lived together on anthony's tuckahoe creek farm. a sawyer, bailey was frequently employed by both anthony and edward lloyd v to provide lumber for their plantations. occasionally he hired one of anthony's slaves to assist him in his work. he also sometimes earned wages as a plowman and harvest laborer on anthony's farms. bailey appears in the 1820 talbot county census as a free black presiding over a large household with four adult women and nine children. the 1840 census lists him as iiving with one adult woman and a young boy. bailey died during the 1840s. aaron anthony ledger b, 1812 26, folder 95, ledger c, 1809 27, folder 96, anthony family papers, both in dodge collection, mdaa; 1820 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 336; 1840 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 9; preston, young frederick douglass, 17 20. they were quite advanced in life, and had long lived on the spot where they then resided. they were considered old settlers in the neighborhood , and, from certain circumstances. i infer that my grandmother. especially, was held in high esteem. far higher than is the lot of most colored persons in the slave states. she was a good nurse, and a capital hand at making nets for catching shad and herring; and these nets were in great demand, not only in tuckahoe, but at denton†denton is the county scat of caroline county, maryland. located about twenty six miles northeast of cambridge, it has long been a crossing point on the choptank river. cohen, columbia gazetteer of the world, 1: 818; wilstach, tidewater maryland, 158. and hillsboro,†hillsboro or hillsborough is a small town in caroline county, maryland, located on tuckahoe creek about six miles west northwest of denton. it was named for lord hillsboro, a relative of lord baltimore. r. bernice leonard, tavern in the town (st. michaels, md., 1992), 7; cohen, columbia gazetteer of the world, 2: 1283. neighboring villages. she was not only good at making the nets, but was also somewhat famous for her good fortune in taking the fishes referred to. i have known her to be in the water half the day. grandmother was likewise more provident than most of her neighbors in the preservation of seedling sweet potatoes, and it happened to her as it will happen to any careful and thrifty person residing in an ignorant and improvident community to enjoy the reputation of having been born to "good luck." her "good luck" was owing to the exceeding care which she took in preventing the succulent root from getting bruised in the , and in placing it beyond the reach of frost, by actually burying it under the hearth of her cabin during the winter months. in the time of planting sweet potatoes, "grandmother betty," as she was familiarly called, was sent for in all directions, simply to place the seedling potatoes in the hills; for superstition had it, that if "grandmamma betty but touches them at planting, they will be sure to grow and flourish." this high reputation was full of advantage to her, and to the children around her. though tuckahoe had but few of the good things of life, yet of such as it did possess grandmother got a full share, in the way of presents. if good potato crops came after her planting, she was not forgotten by those for whom she planted; and as she was remembered by others, so she remembered the hungry little ones around her. the dwelling of my grandmother and grandfather had few pretensions. it was a log hut, or cabin, built of clay, wood, and straw. at a distance it resembled though it was much smaller, less commodious and less substantial the cabins erected in the western states by the first settlers. to my child's eye, however, it was a noble structure, admirably adapted to promote the comforts and conveniences of its inmates. a few rough, virginia fence rails, flung loosely over the rafters above, answered the triple purpose of floors, ceilings, and bedsteads. to be sure, this upper apartment was reached only by a ladder but what in the world for climbing could be better than a ladder? to me, this ladder was really a high invention, and possessed a sort of charm as i played with delight upon the rounds of it. in this little hut there was a large family of children; i dare not say how many. my grandmother whether because too old for field service, or because she had so faithfully discharged the duties of her station in early life, i know not  enjoyed the high privilege of living in a cabin separate from the quarter, with no other burden than her own support, and the necessary care of the little children, imposed. she evidently esteemed it a great fortune to live so. the children were not her own, but her grandchildren the children of her daughters. she took delight in having them around her, and in attending to their few wants. the practice of separating children from their mothers, and hiring the latter out at distances too great to admit of their meeting, except at long intervals, is a marked feature of the cruelty and barbarity of the slave system. but it is in harmony with the grand aim of slavery, which, always and everywhere, is to reduce man to a level with the brute. it is a successful method of obliterating from the mind and heart of the slave, all just ideas of the sacredness of , as an institution. most of the children, however, in this instance, being the children of my grandmother's daughters, the notions of family, and the reciprocal duties and benefits of the relation, had a better chance of being understood than where children are placed as they often are in the hands of strangers, who have no care for them, apart from the wishes of their masters. the daughters of my grandmother were five in number. their names were jenny,†jenny bailey (1799 ?) was the daughter of betsey bailey and was douglass's aunt. she was owned by aaron anthony and either worked on his tuckahoe farms or was hired out to other local farmers. in 1825, after having had three children, jenny ran away with her husband, noah, and was never seen again. in retaliation, anthony sold her two living children into the deep south. preston, young frederick douglass, 21, 27, 37, 64 65, 205 06. esther,†hester bailey (1810 ?) was one of twelve children horn to isaac and betsey bailey and owned by aaron anthony of talbot county. the last trace of hester and the one child she bore was recorded in 1827, when she was awarded to thomas auld after the death of aaron anthony. aaron anthony slave distribution, 22 october 1827, talbot county distrihutions, v.jp#d, 58 59, mdtch; preston, young frederick douglass, 18, 27, 206, 221n2. milly,†milly bailey (1790 ?) was the daughter of betsey bailey and the aunt of douglass. she was owned by aaron anthony and worked on his tuckahoe farms. she had seven children. preston, young frederick douglass, 17, 27, 205 06. priscilla,†priscilla bailey (1816 ?), the eleventh of twelve children born to isaac and betsey bailey, was a slave belonging to aaron anthony. when anthony died in 1826, his son richard lee anthony inherited her. aaron anthony slave distribution, 22 october 1827, talbot county distrihutions, v.jp#d, 58 59, mdtch; preston, young frederick douglass, 18, 206. and harriet.†harriet bailey (1792 1825) was the second child of isaac and betsey bailey. she was owned by her mother's master, aaron anthony. from 1808 to her death, she was hired out by anthony to local farmers as a field hand. in february 1818, while serving perry steward, a tenant farmer on anthony's holme hill farm in tuckahoe creek, she gave birth to frederick augustus bailey, her fourth of six or seven children. in late 1825 or early 1826 she died on the holme hill farm. aaron anthony ledger b, 1812 26, folder 95, 165, dodge collection, mdaa; preston, young frederick douglass, 8, 9, 17, 34 35, 62 64, 205 06, 219n9. the daughter last named was my mother, of whom the reader shall learn more by and by†textual note: and by] a trace of the hyphen occurs in the 1857 printing.. living here, with my dear old grandmother and grandfather, it was a long time before i knew myself to be . i knew many other things before i knew that. grandmother and grandfather were the greatest people in the world to me; and being with them so snugly in their own little cabin i supposed it be their own knowing no higher authority over me or the other children than the authority of grandmamma, for a time there was nothing to disturb me; but, as i grew larger and older, i learned by degrees the sad fact, that the "little hut," and the lot on which it stood, belonged not to my dear old grandparents, but to some person who lived a great distance off, and who was called, by grandmother, "old master."†aaron anthony (1767 1826), frederick douglass's first owner and possibly his father, was born at tuckahoe neck in present day caroline county, maryland. anthony's father was a poor and illiterate farmer who died when aaron was only two years old. despite his impoverished origins, anthony acquired a rudimentary education and a small amount of property. he became the captain in 1795 of the sally lloyd, the family schooner of edward lloyd iv, the wealthiest planter in talbot county. in 1797 he increased his wealth through his marriage to ann catherine skinner, the daughter of an old and prominent eastern shore family, who brought with her the slave family into which douglass was later born. soon thereafter anthony became chief overseer and general manager of the lloyd family's thirteen farms, one of the largest estates in the united states. he remained in this position for the remainder of his life, all the while accumulating land and slaves of his own. by the time of his death in 1826, anthony had become a moderately wealthy planter in his own right, accumulating three farms totaling 597 1/2 acres, thirty slaves worth $3,065, and personal property. his entire estate was valued al $8,042. anthony family bible, oxford museum, oxford, md.; harriet l. anthony, annotated copy of bondage and freedom, folder 93, 58, dodge collection, mdaa; inventory of estate of aaron anthony, 13 january 1827, talbot county inventories, box 13, 5 9, mdtch; footner, rivers of the eastern shore, 285, 299 304; charles b. clark, ed., the eastern shore of maryland and virginia, 3 vols. (new york, 1950), 1:491 92; preston, young frederick douglass, 22 30; idem, "aaron anthony" (typescript, easton, md., 1977), mdtch. i further learned the sadder fact, that not only the house and lot, but that grandmother herself, (grandfather was free) and all the little children around her, belonged to this mysterious personage, called by grandmother, with every mark of reverence, "old master." thus early did clouds and shadows begin to fall upon my path. once on the track troubles never come singly i was not long in finding out another fact, still more grievous to my childish heart. i was told that this "old master," whose name seemed ever to he mentioned with fear and shuddering, only allowed the children to live with grandmother for a limited time, and that in fact as soon as they were hig enough, they were promptly taken away, to live with the said "old master." these were distressing revelations indeed; and though i was quite too young to comprehend the full import of the intelligence, and mostly spent my childhood days in gleesome sports with the other children, a shade of disquiet rested upon me. the absolute power of this distant "old master" had touched my young spirit with but the point of its cold, cruel iron, and left me something to brood over after the play and in moments of repose. grandmammy was, indeed, at that time, all the world to me; and the thought of being separated from her, in any considerable time, was more than an unwelcome intruder. it was intolerable. children have their sorrows as well as men and women; and it would be well to remember this in our dealings with them. slave children children, and prove no exceptions to the general rule. the liability to be separated from my grandmother, seldom or never to see her again, haunted me. i dreaded the thought of going to live with that mysterious "old master," whose name i never heard mentioned with affection, but always with fear. i look back to this as among the heaviest of my childhood's sorrows. my grandmother! my grandmother! and the little hut, and the joyous circle under her care, but especially , who made us sorry when she left us but for an hour, and glad on her return, how could i leave her and the good old home? but the sorrows of childhood, like the pleasures of after life, are transient. it is not even within the power of slavery to write indelible sorrow, at a single dash, over the heart of a child. "'the tear down childhood's cheek that flows, is like the dew drop on the rose.  when next the summer breeze comes by. and waves the bush, the flower is dry."†douglass quotes canto iv, stanza xi of the poem "rokeby" by sir walter scott, the complete poetical works of scott boston, 1900), 257. there is, after all, but little difference in the measure of contentment felt by the slave child neglected and the slaveholder's child cared for and petted. the spirit of the all just mercifully holds the balance for the young. the slaveholder, having nothing to fear from impotent childhood, easily affords to refrain from cruel inflictions; and if cold and hunger do not pierce the tender frame, the first seven or eight years of the slave boy's life are about as full of sweet content as those of the most favored and petted children of the slaveholder. the slave boy escapes many troubles which befall and vex his white brother. he seldom has to listen to lectures on propriety of behavior, or on anything else. he is never chided for handling his little knife and fork improperly or awkwardly, for he uses none. he is never reprimanded for soiling the table cloth, for he takes his meals on the clay floor. he never has the misfortune, in his games or sports, of soiling or tearing his clothes, for he has almost none to soil or tear. he is never expected to act like a nice little gentleman, for he is only a rude little slave. thus, freed from all restraint, the slave boy can be, in his life and conduct, a genuine boy, doing whatever his boyish nature suggests; enacting, by turns, all the strange antics and freaks of horses, dogs, pigs, and barn yard†textual note: all examined copies have "barn door," but "barn door fowls" is nonsensical. douglass's obvious intention to modify "fowls" with "barn yard" was probably thwarted by an inattentive compositor. fowls, without in any manner compromising his dignity, or incurring reproach of any sort. he literally runs wild; has no pretty little verses to learn in the nursery; no nice little speeches to make for aunts, uncles, or cousins, to show how smart he is; and, if he can only manage to keep out of the way of the heavy feet and fists of the older slave boys, he may trot on, in his joyous and roguish tricks, as happy as any little heathen under the palm trees of africa. to be sure, he is occasionally reminded, when he stumbles in the path of his master and this he early learns to avoid that he is eating his "," and that he will be made to "" by and by. the threat is soon forgotten; the shadow soon passes, and our sable boy continues to roll in the dust, or play in the mud, as best suits him, and in the veriest freedom. if he feels uncomfortable, from mud or from dust, the coast is clear; he can plunge into the river or the pond, without the ceremony of undressing, or the fear of wetting his clothes; his little tow linen shirt†rough, unbleached cloth manufactured from tow, the shortest fibers taken from flax or hemp. for that is all he has on is easily dried; and it needed ablution as much as did his skin. his food is of the coarsest kind, consisting for the most part of corn meal mush, which often finds its way†emendation note: it way. from the wooden tray to his mouth in an oyster shell. his days, when the weather is warm, are spent in the pure, open air, and in the bright sunshine. he always sleeps in airy apartments; he seldom has to take powders, or to be paid to swallow pretty little sugar coated pills, to cleanse his blood, or to quicken his appetite. he eats no candies; gets no lumps of loaf sugar; always relishes his food; cries but little, for nobody cares for his crying; learns to esteem his bruises but slight, because others so esteem them. in a word, he is, for the most part of the first eight years of his life, a spirited, joyous, uproarious, and happy boy, upon whom troubles fall only like water on a duck's back. and such a boy, so far as i can now remember, was the boy whose life in slavery i am now narrating. chapter ii. the author removed from his first home. the name "old master" a terror  colonel lloy'd plantation wye river whence its name position of the lloyds home attraction meat offering journey from tuckahoe to wye river scene on reaching old master's departure of grandmother strange meeting of sisters and brothers refusal to be comforted sweet sleep. that mysterious individual referred to in the first chapter as an object of terror among the inhabitants of our little cabin, under the ominous title of "old master," was really a man of some consequence. he owned several farms in tuckahoe; was the chief clerk and butler on the home plantation of col. edward lloyd;†edward lloyd v (1779 1834) of wye house was the scion of talbot county's first family. one of the state's largest landowners and slave owners, he was also maryland's most successful wheat grower and cattle raiser of his era. as a charter member of the maryland agricultural society, a founder of at least two banks, and a speculator in coal lands, he became the wealthiest of a long line of lloyds that reached back to colonial maryland. in terms of slaves alone, his huge holdings increased from 420 in 1810 to 545 in 1830. an eager student of politics as an adolescent and a frequent auditor of political debate at the annapolis state house, lloyd became a republican delegate to the state legislature as soon as he reached the age of majority in 1800. the following year, he was active in securing passage of a bill removing all restrictions to white male suffrage. from 1806 to 1808 he was a u.s. congressman, voting in 1807 against a bill to end the african slave trade. for the next two years he was governor of maryland, and from 1811 to 1816 he returned to the state legislature. in 1819 he was elected to the u.s. senate, from which he resigned in 1826 to return to the maryland senate, where he was president until 1831. edward lloyd v married sally scott murray on 30 november 1797 and had six children with her. 1810 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 342; oswald tilghman, history of talbot county, maryland, 1661 1861, 2 vols. (baltimore, 1915), 1:184 210; footner, rivers of the eastern shore, 283 90; preston, young frederick douglass, 26, 30, 48 54, 57 58, 74, 82; bdac, 1403. had overseers on his own farms; and gave directions to overseers on the farms belonging to col. lloyd. this plantation is situated on wye river†maryland's wye river is an estuary on the eastern shore that extends about thirteen miles south from a point east of queenstown to eastern bay. a branch, the wye east river, about fifteen miles long, extends south and southeast from near wye mills, along the borders of talbot and queen annes counties, to the wye river near its mouth. cohen, columbia gazetteer of the world, 3: 3497; footner, rivers of the eastern shore, 294 308.  the river receiving its name, doubtless, from wales, where the lloyds originated. they (the lloyds) are an old and honored family in maryland, exceedingly wealthy. the home plantation, where they have resided, perhaps for a century or more, is one of the largest, most fertile, and best appointed, in the state. about this plantation, and about that queer old master who must be something more than a man. and something worse than an angel the reader will easily imagine that i was not only curious, but eager, to know all that could be known. unhappily for me, however, all the information i could get concerning him but increased my great dread of being carried thither of being separated from and deprived of the protection of my grandmother and grandfather. it was, evidently, a great thing to go to col. lloyd's; and i was not without a little curiosity to see the place; but no amount of coaxing could induce in me the wish to remain there. the fact is, such was my dread of leaving the little cabin, that i wished to remain little forever, for i knew the taller i grew the shorter my stay. the old cabin, with its rail floor and rail bedsteads up stairs, and its clay floor down stairs, and its dirt chimney, and windowless sides, and that most curious piece of workmanship of all the rest, the ladder stairway, and the hole curiously dug in front of the fire place, beneath which grandmammy placed the sweet potatoes to keep them from the frost, was my home the only home i ever had; and i loved it, and all connected with it. the old fences around it, and the stumps in the edge of the woods near it, and the squirrels that ran, skipped, and played upon them, were objects of interest and affection. there, too, right at the side of the hut, stood the old well, with its stately and skyward pointing beam, so aptly placed between the limbs of what had once been a tree, and so nicely balanced that i could move it up and down with only one hand, and could get a drink myself without calling for help. where else in the world could such a well be found, and where could such another home be met with? nor were these all the attractions of the place. down in a little valley, not far from grandmammy's cabin, stood mr. lee's mill,†levi lee owned a mill near holme hill farm and the tuckahoe river in 1820. in that year he headed a large household of eight family members and six slaves. 1820 u.s. census, maryland, talhot county, 48; preston, young frederick douglass, 36. where the people came often in large numbers to get their corn ground. it was a water mill; and i never shall be able to tell the many things thought and felt, while i sat on the hank and watched that mill, and the turning of that ponderous wheel. the mill pond. too, had its charms; and with my pinhook, and thread line, i could get , if i could catch no fish. but, in all my sports and plays, and in spite of them, there would, occasionally, come the painful foreboding that i was not long to remain there, and that i must soon be called away to the home of old master. i was a slave born a slave and though the fact was incomprehensible to me, it conveyed to my mind a sense of my entire dependence on the will of i had never seen; and, from some cause or other, i had been made to fear this somebody above all else on earth. born for another's benefit, as the †according to common usage the term refers to the first of its kind to be produced, the first born; or the first born of the season. as douglass was not the first born among his siblings, the reference appears to be to his position as the eldest of the children currently under his grandmother's charge. of the cabin flock, i was soon to be selected as a meat†textual note: as part of an analogy comparing his condition to that of a sacrificial lamb. douglass obviously intended to refer to himself as a "meat offering." offering†according to the old testament, a meat offering is a type of animal sacrifice intended as a gift to god, symbolic of god's meal and of god's presence among the people. the sacrifice is usually accompanied by cereal and drink offerings. exod. 29:38 42; david noel freedman, ed., the anchor bible dictionary, 6 vols. (new york, 1992), 5:877 88. to the fearful and inexorable demi god, whose huge image on so many occasions haunted my childhood's imagination. when the time of my departure was decided upon, my grandmother, knowing my fears, and in pity for them, kindly kept me ignorant of the dreaded event about to transpire. up to the morning (a beautiful summer morning) when we were to start, and, indeed, during the whole journey a journey which, child as i was, i remember as well as if it were yesterday she kept the sad fact hidden from me. this reserve was necessary; for, could i have known all, i should have given grandmother some trouble in getting me started. as it was, i was helpless, and she dear woman! led me along by the hand, resisting, with the reserve and solemnity of a priestess, all my inquiring looks to the last. the distance from tuckahoe to wye river where my old master lived was full twelve miles, and the walk was quite a severe test of the endurance of my young legs. the journey would have proved too severe for me, but that my dear old grandmother blessings on her memory! afforded occasional relief by "toting" me (as marylanders have it) on her shoulder. my grandmother, though advanced in years as was evident from more than one gray hair, which peeped from between the ample and graceful folds of her newly ironed bandana turban was yet a woman of power and spirit. she was marvelously straight in figure, elastic, and muscular. i seemed hardly to be a burden to her. she would have "toted" me farther, but that i felt myself too much of a man to allow it, and insisted on walking. releasing dear grandmamma from carrying me, did not make me altogether†textual emendation: altogther independent of her, when we happened to pass through portions of the somber woods which lay between tuckahoe and wye river. she often found me increasing the energy of my grip, and holding her clothing, lest something should come out of the woods and eat me up. several old logs and stumps imposed upon me, and got themselves taken for wild heasts. i could see their legs, eyes, and ears, or i could see something like eyes, legs, and ears, till i got close enough to them to see that the eyes were knots, washed white with rain, and the legs were broken limbs, and the ears, only ears owing to the point from which they were seen. thus early i learned that the point from which a thing is viewed is of some importance. as the day advanced the heat increased; and it was not until the afternoon that we reached the much dreaded end of the journey. i found myself in the midst of a group of children of many colors; black, brown, copper colored, and nearly white. i had not seen so many children before. great houses loomed up in different directions, and a great many men and women were at work in the fields. all this hurry, noise, and singing was very different from the stillness of tuckahoe. as a new comer, i was an object of special interest; and. after laughing and yelling around me, and playing all sorts of wild tricks, they (the children) asked me to go out and play with them. this i refused to do, preferring to stay with grandmamma. i could not help feeling that our being there boded no good to me. grandmamma looked sad. she was soon to lose another object of affection, as she had lost many before. i knew she was unhappy, and the shadow fell from her brow on me, though i knew not the cause. all suspense, however, must have an end; and the end of mine, in this instance, was at hand. affectionately patting me on the head, and exhorting me to be a good boy, grandmamma told me to go and play with the little children. "they are kin to you," said she: "go and play with them." among a number†textual emendation: num  of cousins were phil,† in an inventory of aaron anthony's estate in december 1826, phil, the son of katy emblem, was listed as born in 1815. at the distribution of anthony's estate in september 1827, phil was transferred to richard l. anthony. aaron anthony, inventory of negroes, distrihution of negroes, folders 71 and 77, aaron anthony ledger b, 1812 26, folder 95, both in dodge collection, mdaa; preston, young frederick douglass, 52. tom,†tom bailey (1814 ?) the fourth of milly bailey's seven children and douglass's cousin, was a slave belonging to aaron anthony. when anthony died in 1826, bailey became the property of thomas auld. auld granted bailey his freedom in 1845. the last record of bailey's existence is a letter to douglass from his son lewis, who visited talbot county in 1865. during his visit, lewis wrote, he met with bailey, who was still living in st. michaels. lewis douglass to douglass, 9 june 1865, fd papers dhu; aaron anthony slave distribution, 22 october 1827, talbot county distributions, v.jp#d, 58 59, mdtch; preston, young frederick douglass, 91, 174, 206, 221n29, 230n25. steve,†another slave owned by aaron anthony, steve was the son of "young" betty and was born in 1819. after aaron anthony's death, steve was inherited by andrew s. anthony. aaron anthony, inventory of negroes, distribution of negroes, folders 71 and 77, aaron anthony ledger 8, 1812 26, folder 95, both in dodge collection, mdaa. and jerry,†this slave's identity cannot be determined with complete certainty. he may have been another child of one of douglass's aunts, milly or betty bailey. more likely, he was jerry emblem (1813 ?), the son of katy emblem and owned by aaron anthony. aaron anthony, inventory of negroes, distribution of negroes, folders 71 and 77, aaron anthony ledger b, 1812 26, folder 95, 159, both in dodge collection, mdaa; preston, young frederick douglass, 52 53, 206. nance†douglass's cousin nancy bailey (1819 ?) was a child of douglass's aunt milly bailey. at the distribution of aaron anthony's estate in september 1827, nancy, her brother tom, and douglass were transferred to thomas auld. aaron anthony, inventory of negroes, distribution of negroes, folders 71 and 77, aaron anthony ledger b, 1812 26, folder 95, both in dodge collection, mdaa. and betty.†the inventory of anthony's estate in december 1826 induded two women named betty, one of whom was fifty three and the other twenty six. it is unlikely that either of these is the cousin with whom douglass played as a child. he probahly is referring to betty bailey (1811 ?), the daughter of milly bailey. she was sold south in 1825. aaron anthony, inventory of negroes, distribution of negroes, folders 71 and 77, aaron anthony ledger b, 1812 26, folders 95, 159, both in dodge collection, mdaa; preston, young frederick douglass, 206. grandmother pointed out my brother perry,†perry bailey (1813 ?), frederick douglass's brother and the oldest of seven children born to harriet bailey, was the slave of aaron anthony. when anthony died in 1826, perry was inherited by anthony's son, andrew j. anthony, andrew died in 1832, leaving perry, now married to a slave named maria, to john p. anthony, who sold maria to a slave owner in brazos county, texas. perry followed his wife to texas, where a post emancipation labor shortage allowed him to earn "fifteen dollars gold wages a month." in 1867 perry, maria, and their four children traveled to rochester to reunite with frederick. elated by this reunion.douglass built a cottage for them on his rochester estate, where the family stayed for two years. in 1869 perry and maria returned to maryland's eastern shore, where perry died sometime after 1878. perry downs to douglass, 21 february 1867, fd papers, dhu; douglass to j. j. spelman, 11 july 1867, reprinted in new york independent, 25 july 1867; douglass to theodore tilton, 2 september 1867, fd papers, nhi; anna downs to douglass, 5 october 1869, general correspondence file, reel 2, frames 497 99, fd papers, dlc; aaron anthony slave distribution, 22 october 1827, talbot county distributions, v.jp#d, 58 59, mdtch; preston, young frederick douglass, 175 77, 206. my sister sarah,†sarah bailey (1814 ?) was frederick douglass's oldest sister and the second of seven children born to harriet bailey. sarah belonged to aaron anthony, but after his death in 1826 she became the chattel of his son, andrew skinner anthony. in 1832 andrew sold bailey, her son henry, and four other slaves to perry cohee of lawrence county, mississippi. douglass and sarah remained separated until 1883, when she, then living in louisville, kentucky, and calling herself mrs. sarah pettit, wrote to douglass and reestablished their relationship. sarah o. pettit to douglass, 26 september 1883, general correspondence file, reel 3, frame 778 80, fd papers, dlc; aaron anthony slave distribution, 22 october 1827, talbot county distributions, v.jp#d, 58 59, sale of slaves, andrew s. anthony to perry cohee, 14 july 1832, talbot county records, v.50, 192 93, both in mdtch. and my sister eliza,†the third of six children born to harriet bailey, and the sister of frederick douglass, eliza bailey (1816 c.1876) was a slave owned by aaron anthony. when anthony died in 1826, eliza became the property of thomas auld, anthony's son in law. eliza married peter mitchell, a free black who worked as a field hand in talbot county, with whom she had nine children. in 1836 mitchell bought eliza and their then two children from thomas auld for one hundred dollars. after settling on an acre of land that they rented from samuel and john hambleton of talbot county, they raised their own vegetables and meat and hired themselves out as a domestic and a field hand, respectively. eliza and her brother frederick were separated after the latter's escape from slavery in 1838. on 6 june 1844, mitchell freed eliza and the other children because state laws no longer required removal from maryland upon manumission. eliza and frederick were reunited in 1865 when douglass stopped in baltimore while on a speaking tour. new york independent, 2 march 1865; lewis douglass to douglass, 9 june 1865, fd papers, dhu; aaron anthony slave distribution, 22 october 1827, talbot county distributions, v.jp#d, 58 59, sale of slaves, thomas auld to peter mitchell, 25 january 1836, talbot county records, v.52, 258, manumission of eliza mitchell, 1 july 1844, talbot county records, v.58, 234 35, all in mdtch; preston, young frederick douglass, 164 65, 184, 206 07, 229n7. who stood in the group. i had never seen my brother nor my sisters before; and, though i had sometimes heard of them, and felt a curious interest in them, i really did not understand what they were to me, or i to them. we were brothers and sisters, but what of that? why should they be attached to me, or i to them? brothers and sisters we were by blood; but slavery had made us strangers. i heard the words brother and sisters, and knew they must mean something; but slavery had robbed these terms of their true meaning. the experience through which i was passing, they had passed through before. they had already heen initiated into the mysteries of old master's domicile, and they seemed to look upon me with a certain degree of compassion; but my heart clave to my grandmother. think it not strange, dear reader, that so little sympathy of feeling existed between us. the conditions of brotherly and sisterly feeling were wanting we had never nestled and played together. my poor mother, like many other slavewomen, had , but no family! the domestic hearth, with its holy lessons and precious endearments. is abolished in the case of a slave mother and her children. "little children, love one another,"†douglass probably conflates a number of biblical texts, including 1 john 3:18, john 13:34, 1 thess. 4:9. are words seldom heard in a slave cabin. i really wanted to play with my brother and sisters, but they were strangers to me, and i was full of fear that grandmother might leave without taking me with her. entreated to do so, however, and that, too, by my dear grandmother, i went to the back part of the house, to play with them and the other children. , however, i did not, but stood with my back against the wall, witnessing the playing of the others. at last, while standing there, one of the children, who had been in the kitchen, ran up to me, in a sort of roguish glee, exclaiming, "fed, fed! grandmammy gone! grandmammy gone!" i could not believe it; yet, fearing the worst, i ran into the kitchen, to see for myself, and found it even so. grandmammy had indeed gone. and was now far away, "clean'' out of sight. i need not tell all that happened now. almost heart broken at the discovery, i fell upon the ground. and wept a boy's bitter tears, refusing to be comforted. my brother and sisters came around me, and said, "don't cry," and gave me peaches and pears, but i flung them away, and refused all their kindly advances. i had never heen deceived before; and i felt not only grieved at parting as i supposed forever with my grandmother, but indignant that a trick had been played upon me in a matter so serious. it was now late in the afternoon. the day had heen an exciting and wearisome one, and i knew not how or where, but i suppose i sobbed myself to sleep. there is a healing in the angel wing of sleep, even for the slaveboy; and its balm was never more welcome to any wounded soul than it was to mine, the first night i spent at the domicile of old master. the reader may be surprised that i narrate so minutely an incident apparently so trivial, and which must have occurred when i was not more than seven years old; but as i wish to give a faithful history of my experience in slavery, i cannot withhold a circumstance which, at the time, affected me so deeply. besides, this was, in fact, my first introduction to the realities of slavery. chapter iii the author's parentage. author's father shrouded in mystery author's mother her personal appearance interference of slavery with the natural affections of mother and children situation of author's mother her nightly visits to her boy striking incident her death her place of burial. if the reader will now be kind enough to allow me time to grow bigger, and afford me an opportunity for my experience to become greater, i will tell him something, by and by, of slave life, as i saw, felt, and heard it, on col. edward lloyd's plantation, and at the house of old master, where i had now, despite of myself, most suddenly, but not unexpectedly, been dropped. meanwhile, i will redeem my promise to say something more of my dear mother. i say nothing of , for he is shrouded in a mystery i have never been able to penetrate. slavery does away with fathers, as it does away with families. slavery has no use for either fathers or families, and its laws do not recognize their existence in the social arrangements of the plantation. when they exist, they are not the outgrowths of slavery, but are antagonistic to that system. the order of civilization is reversed here. the name of the child is not expected to be that of its father, and his condition does not necessarily affect that of the child. he may be the slave of mr. tilgman;†in 1820 several male members of the tilghman family, all of whom lived in talbot county, each owned large numbers of slaves. john owned fifty two, william h. had twenty two, robert owned forty four, william g . held sixty nine, and james had thirty five. 1820 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 7, 22, 25, 50. and his child, when born, may be the slave of mr. gross. he may be a ; and yet his child may be a . he may be white, glorying in the purity of his anglo saxon blood; and his child may be ranked with the blackest slaves. indeed, he be, and often is, master and father to the same child. he can he father without being a husband, and may sell his child without incurring reproach, if the child be by a woman in whose veins courses one thirty second part of african blood. my father was a white man, or nearly white. it was sometimes whispered that my master was my father. but to return, or rather, to begin. my knowledge of my mother is very scanty, but very distinct. her personal appearance and bearing are ineffaceahly stamped upon my memory. she was tall, and finely proportioned; of deep black, glossy complexion; had regular features, and, among the other slaves, was remarkably sedate in her manners. there is in "," the head of a figure on page 157 the features of which so resemble those of my mother, that i often recur to it with something of the feeling which i suppose others experience when looking upon the pictures of dear departed ones. yet i cannot say that i was very deeply attached to my mother; certainly not so deeply as i should have been had our relations in childhood been different. we were separated, according to the common custom, when i was but an infant, and, of course, before i knew my mother from any one else. the germs of affection with which the almighty, in his wisdom and mercy, arms the helpless infant against the ills and vicissitudes of his lot, had been directed in their growth toward that loving old grandmother, whose gentle hand and kind deportment it was the first effort of my infantile understanding to comprehend and appreciate. accordingly, the tenderest affection which a beneficent father allows, as a partial compensation to the mother for the pains and lacerations of her heart, incident to the maternal relation, was, in my case, diverted from its true and natural object, by the envious, greedy, and treacherous hand of slavery. the slave mother can be spared long enough from the field to endure all the bitterness of a mother's anguish, when it adds another name to a master's ledger, but not long enough to receive the joyous reward afforded by the intelligent smiles of her child. i never think of this terrible interference of slavery with my infantile affections, and its diverting them from their natural course, without feelings to which i can give no adequate expression. i do not remember to have seen my mother at my grandmother's at any time. i remember her only in her visits to me at col. lloyd's plantation, and in the kitchen of my old master. her visits to me there were few in number, brief in duration, and mostly made in the night. the pains she took, and the toil she endured, to see me, tells me that a true mother's heart was hers, and that slavery had difficulty in paralyzing it with unmotherly indifference. my mother was hired out to a mr. stewart,†from 1817 to 1821 perry ward steward (? 1821), a tenant farmer, rented holme hill farm from aaron anthony and hired the slave harriet bailey as a domestic servant. a perry w. stewart was listed in the 1820 census as the head of a large household of eleven. aaron anthony ledger a, 1790 1818, folder 94, 18, 19, 22, dodge collection, mdaa; 1820 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 336; preston, young frederick douglass, 35, 219n7. who lived about twelve miles from old master's, and, being a field hand. she seldom had leisure, by day, for the performance of the journey. the nights and the distance were both obstacles to her visits. she was obliged to walk, unless chance flung into her way an opportunity to ride; and the latter was sometimes her good luck. but she always had to walk one way or the other. it was a greater luxury than slavery could afford, to allow a black slave mother a horse or a mule, upon which to travel twenty four miles, when she could walk the distance. besides, it is deemed a foolish whim for a slave mother to manifest concern to see her children, and, in one point of view, the case is made out she can do nothing for them. she has no control over them; the master is even more than the mother, in all matters touching the fate of her child. why, then, should she give herself any concern? she has no responsibility. such is the reasoning, and such the practice. the iron rule of the plantation, always passionately and violently enforced in that neighborhood, makes flogging the penalty of failing to be in the field before sunrise in the morning, unless special permission be given to the absenting slave. "i went to see my child," is no excuse to the ear or heart of the overseer. one of the visits of my mother to me, while at col. lloyd's. i remember very vividly, as affording a bright gleam of a mother's love. and the earnestness of a mother's care. i had on that day offended "aunt katy,"†kate (1789 ?) was the daughter of sarah emblem, who was owned by aaron anthony. she had seven children and presided for years over anthony's kitchen. at the distribution in 1827 following anthony's death, she and her children were awarded to richard anthony. after his death a year later, she was transferred to andrew anthony. upon his death in 1833, she was assigned to white barwick, the new husband of andrew's widow, ann. aaron anthony ledger b, 1812 26, folder 95, 159, dodge collection, mdaa; preston, young frederick douglass, 27, 91, 225n8. (called "aunt" by way of respect,) the cook of old master's establishment. i do not now remember the nature of my offense in this instance, for my offenses were numerous in that quarter, greatly depending, however, upon the mood of aunt katy, as to their heinousness; but she had adopted, that day, her favorite mode of punishing me, namely, making me go without food all day that is, from after breakfast. the first hour or two after dinner, i succeeded pretty well in keeping up my spirits; but though i made an excellent stand against the foe, and fought bravely during the afternoon, i knew i must be conquered at last, unless i got the accustomed reenforcement of a slice of corn bread, at sundown. sundown came, but , and, in its stead, there†textual note: although each examined copy contains "their," it clashes with the context. the compositor may somehow have been induced to substitute "their" for "there" by the similarity in pronunciation.came the threat, with a scowl well suited to its terrible import, that she "meant to '" brandishing her knife, she chopped off the heavy slices for the other children, and put the loaf away, muttering, all the while, her savage designs upon myself. against this disappointment, for i was expecting that her heart would relent at last. i made an extra effort to maintain my dignity; but when i saw all the other children around me with merry and satisfied faces, i could stand it no longer. i went out behind the house, and cried like a fine fellow! when tired of this. i returned to the kitchen, sat by the fire, and brooded over my hard lot. i was too hungry to sleep. while i sat in the corner, i caught sight of an ear of indian corn on an upper shelf of the kitchen. i watched my chance, and got it, and, shelling off a few grains, i put it back again. the grains in my hand, i quickly put in some ashes, and covered them with embers, to roast them. all this i did at the risk of getting a brutal thumping, for aunt katy could beat, as well as starve me. my corn was not long in roasting, and, with my keen appetite. it did not matter even if the grains were not exactly done. i eagerly pulled them out, and placed them on my stool, in a clever little pile. just as i began to help myself to my very dry meal, in came my dear mother. and now. dear reader, a scene occurred which was altogether worth beholding, and to me it was instructive as well as interesting. the friendless and hungry boy, in his extremest need and when he did not dare to look for succor found himself in the strong, protecting arms of a mother; a mother who was, at the moment (being endowed with high powers of manner as well as matter) more than a match for all his enemies. i shall never forget the indescribable expression of her countenance, when i told her that i had had no food since morning; and that aunt katy said she "meant to starve the life out of me." there was pity in her glance at me, and a fiery indignation at aunt katy at the same time; and, while she took the corn from me, and gave me a large ginger cake, in its stead, she read aunt katy a lecture which she never forgot. my mother threatened her with complaining to old master in my behalf; for the latter, though harsh and cruel himself, at times, did not sanction the meanness injustice, partiality and oppressions enacted by aunt katy in the kitchen. that night i learned the fact, that i was not only a child, but child. the "sweet cake" my mother gave me was in the shape of a heart, with a rich, dark ring glazed upon the edge of it. i was victorious, and well off for the moment; prouder, on my mother's knee, than a king upon his throne. but my triumph was short. i dropped off to sleep, and waked in the morning only to find my mother gone, and myself left at the mercy of the sable virago,†a man like female, heroic warrior; a noisy domineering woman, a scold. dominant in my old master's kitchen, whose fiery wrath was my constant dread. i do not remember to have seen my mother after this occurrence. death soon ended the little communication that had existed between us; and with it, i believe, a life judging from her weary, sad, downcast countenance and mute demeanor  full of heart felt sorrow. i was not allowed to visit her during any part of her long illness; nor did i see her for a long time before she was taken ill and died. the heartless and ghastly form of rises between mother and child, even at the bed of death. the mother, at the verge of the grave, may not gather her children, to impart to them her holy admonitions, and invoke for them her dying benediction. the bond woman lives as a slave, and is left to die as a beast; often with fewer attentions than are paid to a favorite horse. scenes of sacred tenderness, around the death bed, never forgotten, and which often arrest the vicious and confirm the virtuous during life, must be looked for among the free, though they sometimes occur among the slaves. it has been a life long, standing grief to me, that i knew so little of my mother; and that i was so early separated from her. the counsels of her love must have been beneficial to me. the side view of her face is imaged on my memory, and i take few steps in life, without feeling her presence; but the image is mute, and i have no striking words of her's treasured up. i learned, after my mother's death, that she could read, and that she was the one of all the slaves and colored people in tuckahoe who enjoyed that advantage. how she acquired this knowledge, i know not, for tuckahoe is the last place in the world where she would be apt to find facilities for learning. i can, therefore, fondly and proudly ascribe to her an earnest love of knowledge. that a "field hand" should learn to read, in any slave state, is remarkable; but the achievement of my mother, considering the place, was very extraordinary; and, in view of that fact, i am quite willing, and even happy, to attribute any love of letters i possess, and for which i have got despite of prejudices only too much credit, not to my admitted anglo saxon paternity, but to the native genius of my sable, unprotected, and uncultivated  a woman, who belonged to a race whose mental endowments it is, at present, fashionable to hold in disparagement and contempt. summoned away to her account, with the impassable gulf of slavery between us during her entire illness, my mother died without leaving me a single intimation of my father was. there was a whisper, that my master was my father; yet it was only a whisper, and i cannot say that i ever gave it credence. indeed, i now have reason to think he was not; nevertheless, the fact remains, in all its glaring odiousness, that, by the laws of slavery, children, in all cases, are reduced to the condition of their mothers. this arrangement admits of the greatest license to brutal slaveholders, and their profligate sons, brothers, relations and friends, and gives to the pleasure of sin, the additional attraction of profit. a whole volume might be written on this single feature of slavery, as i have observed it. one might imagine, that the children of such connections, would fare better, in the hands of their masters, than other slaves. the rule is quite the other way; and a very little reflection will satisfy the reader that such is the case. a man who will enslave his own blood, may not be safely relied on for magnanimity. men do not love those who remind them of their sins unless they have a mind to repent and the mulatto child's face is a standing accusation against him who is master and father to the child. what is still worse, perhaps, such a child is a constant offense to the wife.†although many white women ignored evidence of illicit interracial relationships in their families, evidence indicates that there were occasions when white slaveowning women lashed out at slave women whom they viewed as rivals for their husband's affection. the presence of biracial children, probably fathered by white men on the plantation, were daily reminders of the men's infidelity. some plantation mistresses who suspected or knew that their husbands had fathered light skinned children sold the children to be shed of the constant reminder. direct retaliation against slave women was even more likely when children were not involved. deborah gray white, ar'n't i a woman? female slaves in the plantation south (new york, 1985), 39 42; catherine clinton, the plantation mistress: woman's world in the old south (new york, 1982), 211 14. she hates its very presence, and when a slaveholding woman hates, she wants not means to give that hate telling effect. women white women, i mean are idols at the south, not wives, for the slave women are preferred in many instances; and if these but nod, or lift a finger, woe to the poor victim: kicks, cuffs and stripes are sure to follow. masters are frequently compelled to sell this class of their slaves, out of deference to the feelings of their white wives; and shocking and scandalous as it may seem for a man to sell his own blood to the traffickers in human flesh, it is often an act of humanity toward the slave child to be thus removed from his merciless tormentors. it is not within the scope of the design of my simple story, to comment upon every phase of slavery not within my experience as a slave. but, i may remark, that, if the lineal descendants of ham†the reference is to genesis 9:25. douglass refers to the account in which noah curses canaan, the son of ham, for an offense that ham had committed against his father noah. through an obscure history the meaning of the curse, "a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren," had evolved in christian europe as a justification for the enslavement of africans, the "sons of ham." proslavery advocates in the american south used this argument extensively in the renewed debates of the 1840s. david brion davis, the problem of slavery in the age of revolution, 1770 1823 (ithaca, n.y., 1975), 539 41, 555 56; larry e. tise, proslavery: a history of the defense of slavery in america, 1701 1840 (athens, ga., 1987), 106, 118, 189: george m. fredrickson, the black image in the white mind: the debate on afro american character and destiny, 1817 1914 (newyork, 1971), 60 61."> are only to be enslaved, according to the scriptures, slavery in this country will soon become an unscriptural institution; for thousands are ushered into the world, annually, who like myself owe their existence to white fathers, and, most frequently, to their masters and master's sons. the slave woman is at the mercy of the fathers, sons or brothers of her master. the thoughtful know the rest. after what i have now said of the circumstances of my mother, and my relations to her, the reader will not be surprised, nor be disposed to censure me, when i tell but the simple truth, viz: that i received the tidings of her death with no strong emotions of sorrow for her, and with very little regret for myself on account of her loss. i had to learn the value of my mother long after her death, and by witnessing the devotion of other mothers to their children. there is not, beneath the sky, an enemy to filial affection so destructive as slavery. it had made my brothers and sisters strangers to me; it converted the mother that bore me, into a myth; it shrouded my father in mystery, and left me without an intelligible beginning in the world. my mother died when i could not have been more than eight or nine years old, on one of old master's farms in tuckahoe.†harriet bailey died on the holme hill farm after a long illness in late 1825 or early 1826. preston, young frederick douglass, 64. in the neighborhood of hillsborough. her grave is, as the grave of the dead at sea, unmarked. and without stone or stake. chapter iv. a general survey of the slave plantation. isolation of lloyd's plantation public opinion there no protection to the slave absolute power of the overseer natural and artificial charms of the place its business like appearance superstition about the burial ground great ideas of col. lloyd etiquette among slaves the comic slave doctor praying and flogging "old master" losing its terrors his business character of "aunt katy" suffering from hunger old master's home jargon of the plantation guinea slaves master daniel family of col. lloyd family of capt anthony his social position notions of rank and station. it is generally supposed that slavery, in the state of maryland, exists in its mildest form, and that it is totally divested of those harsh and terrible peculiarities, which mark and characterize the slave system, in the southern and south western states of the american union. the argument in favor of this opinion, is the contiguity of the free states, and the exposed condition of slavery in maryland to the moral, religious and humane sentiment of the free states. i am not about to refute this argument, so far as it relates to slavery in that state, generally; on the contrary, i am willing to admit that, to this general point, the argument is well grounded. public opinion is, indeed, an unfailing restraint upon the cruelty and barbarity of masters, overseers, and slave drivers, whenever and wherever it can reach them; but there are certain secluded and out of the way places, even in the state of maryland, seldom visited by a single ray of healthy public sentiment where slavery, wrapt in its own congenial, midnight darkness, , and , develop all its malign and shocking characteristics; where it can be indecent without shame, cruel without shuddering, and murderous without apprehension or fear of exposure. just such a secluded, dark, and out of the way place, is the "home plantation" of col. edward lloyd, on the eastern shore, maryland. it is far away from all the great thoroughfares, and is proximate to no town or village. there is neither school house,†as late as 1833 the community of st. michaels did not have a public school for the children of local planters and farmers. preston, , 110. nor town house in its neighborhood. the school house is unnecessary, for there are no children to go to school. the children and grand children of col. lloyd were taught in the house, by a private tutor a mr. page†joel page (1784 1832) was born in conway, franklin county, massachusetts. in 1805 he graduated from yale college, and sometime soon after that became the resident tutor in the household of edward lloyd v. among his tutees over the years was edward lloyd vi. page became a beloved member of the lloyd household and remained there until he died in 1832 of complications related to psychological disorder. he was interred in the lloyd burial grounds. franklin bowditch dexter, biographical sketches of the graduates of yale college, 6 vols. (new york, 1911), 5:788; tilghman, talbot county, 1:211; preston, young frederick douglass, 59, 221n24. a tall, gaunt sapling of a man, who did not speak a dozen words to a slave in a whole year. the overseers' children go off somewhere to school; and they, therefore, bring no foreign or dangerous influence from abroad, to embarrass the natural operation of the slave system of the place. not even the mechanics through whom there is an occasional out burst of honest and telling indignation, at cruelty and wrong on other plantations are white men, on this plantation. its whole public is made up of, and divided into, three classes slaveholders, slaves and overseers. its blacksmiths, wheelwrights, shoemakers, weavers, and coopers, are slaves. not even commerce, selfish and iron hearted as it†emendation note: at is, and ready, as it ever is, to side with the strong against the weak the rich against the poor is trusted or permitted within its secluded precincts. whether with a view of guarding against the escape of its secrets, i know not, but it is a fact, that every leaf and grain of the produce of this plantation, and those of the neighboring farms belonging to col. lloyd, are transported to baltimore in col. lloyd's own vessels;†the property holdings of edward lloyd v were extensive. when douglass first came to wye plantation in 1824, lloyd reportedly held about nine thousand acres comprising the plantation and a dozen outlying farms. each of the individual farms was operated by an overseer and employed the labor of 18 to 47 slaves. at that time the slave population of the estate was 181, including the 15 slaves held by aaron anthony. preston, young frederick douglass, 48. every man and boy on board of which except the captain are owned by him. in return, everything brought to the plantation, comes through the same channel. thus, even the glimmering and unsteady light of trade, which sometimes exerts a civilizing influence, is excluded from this "tabooed" spot. nearly all the plantations or farms in the vicinity of the "home plantation" of col. lloyd, belong to him; and those which do not, are owned by personal friends of his, as deeply interested in maintaining the slave system, in all its rigor, as col. lloyd himself. some of his neighbors are said to be even more stringent than he. the skinners,† the skinner family was spread throughout the eastern shore but had been in talbot county since the 1660s, when andrew skinner i purchased a large plantation on a small peninsula in the miles river neck district. this remained the principal skinner residence throughout the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. the skinners farmed tobacco there until after the revolution, when they made the conversion with many others in the region to wheat and corn cultivation. richard skinner was very active in county affairs at the time of the revolution, serving as its clerk of court (1777 85) and as a select member of the local committee of observation in 1775. prominent members of the family in the early nineteenth century included the prosperous andrew skinner, who in 1830 owned forty one slaves; elizabeth skinner, who held twenty nine in the same year, and mordechai skinner, who owned twenty seven in 1820. the history of frederick douglass and his ancestors, the baileys, is bound up with that of the skinners. in 1746 an inventory of the estate of the recently deceased richard skinner indicated his ownership of douglass's great grandmother, jenny bailey. in 1797, when ann catherine skinner married aaron anthony, she brought into his possession her slaves betsey bailey and her daughters harriet and milly. at this time anthony removed them to his tuckahoe farm. 1820 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 18; 1830 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 18, 39; tilghman, talbot county, 1: 21, 46, 65, 69; preston, young frederick douglass, 3 7, 16 17, 214n15: idem, talbot county, 115. the peakers,†peaker was a common, local corruption of the paca family name. the first paca to appear in maryland was robert, who in 1660 was brought to the western shore county of anne arundel as an indentured servant. the death of his master soon after their arrival allowed robert to marry his widow and come into her sizable land holdings. despite success as a farmer and grocer, robert's estate was encumbered with debt upon his death, and his stepson, widow, and son sought new opportunity in baltimore county after extinguishing the debt. as land was cheaper there, they began investing heavily in it, and its value soon increased and laid the foundation for the family's prosperity. the pacas became affluent planters in baltimore and harford counties and often served in official positions in the government, church, and militia. the most famous paca in the eighteenth century was william (1740 99), who by the 1760s was a very successful attorney in annapolis. william, however, became a leading opponent of british colonial policy from the stamp act in 1765 onward and became a signer of the declaration of independence. he contributed much of his own money to the patriot cause and during the revolution and afterward held numerous important governmental and judicial positions. in 1770 his wife inherited half of wye island in queen armes county, and he died there in 1799. pacas continued to live there at elegant wye hall in the nineteenth century and to socialize with the nearby lloyds and tilghmans. gregory a. stiverson and phebe r. jacobsen, william paca: a biography (baltimore, 1976); acab, 4:618: dab, 14:123 24. the tilgmans, the lockermans,†although loockermans resided in several eastern shore counties, including caroline, talbot, and queen annes, their original plantation was in dorchester county, where jacob loockerman, a naturalized dutchman from new amsterdam, settled about 1680 and soon began holding a series of prominent official positions. throughout the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, loockermans played important roles in eastern shore affairs. jacob loockerman (1759 1839) was the clerk of court in talbot county for many years and lived at oak hill, near easton, where by the late 1820s he owned twenty two slaves and 1,210 acres. his son, theodore richard loockerman (1798 1851), was a leading easton lawyer, represented talbot in the state legislature, and was president of the branch bank at easton at the time of his death. whitman h. ridgway, community leadership in maryland, 1790 1840 (chapel hill, 1979), 333, 338; tilghman, talbot county, 1: 415, 480 81, 617: 2: 21; joseph s. ames. "genealogies of four families of dorchester county: harrison, haskins, caile, loockerman," mdhm, 11:193 202 (june 1916), 11:295 300 (september 1916). and the gipsons,† jacob gibson (1759 1818), a slave owner locally feared for his volatile temper, resided at marengo, a plantation bordering the lloyd property. appointed an associate judge for talbot county in 1802, gibson won election to the legislature in 1806. residents remembered him because of his numerous vitriolic broadsides and newspaper essays as well as his physical assaults on his enemies. the 1810 u.s. census listed him as the owner of thirty four slaves, whom gibson reputedly ruled over as a stern taskmaster. gibson's plantation belonged to his son fayette at the time to which douglass refers. 1810 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 342; tilghman, talbot county, 1:231 56; preston, young frederick douglass, 60, 221n28. are in the same boat; being slaveholding neighbors, they may have strengthened each other in their iron rule. they are on intimate terms, and their interests and tastes are identical. public opinion in such a quarter, the reader will see, is not likely to be very efficient in protecting the slave from cruelty. on the contrary, it must increase and intensify his wrongs. public opinion seldom differs very widely from public practice. to be a restraint upon cruelty and vice, public opinion must emanate from a humane and virtuous community. to no such humane and virtuous community, is col. lloyd's plantation exposed. that plantation is a little nation of its own, having its own language, its own rules, regulations and customs. the laws and institutions of the state, apparently touch it nowhere. the troubles arising here, are not settled by the civil power of the state. the overseer is generally accuser, judge, jury, advocate and executioner. the criminal is always dumb. the overseer attends to all sides of a case. there are no conflicting rights of property, for all the people are owned by one man; and they can themselves own no property. religion and politics are alike excluded. one class of the population is too high to he reached by the preacher; and the other class is too low to he cared for by the preacher. the poor have the gospel preached to them, in this neighborhood, only when they are able to pay for it. the slaves, having no money, get no gospel. the politician keeps away, because the people have no votes, and the preacher keeps away, because the people have no money. the rich planter can afford to learn politics in the parlor. and to dispense with religion altogether. in its isolation, seclusion, and self reliant independence, col. lloyd's plantation resembles what the baronial domains were, during the middle ages in europe. grim, cold, and unapproachable by all genial influences from communities without, ; full three hundred years behind the age, in all that relates to humanity and morals. this, however, is not the only view that the place presents. civilization is shut out, but nature cannot be. though separated from the rest of the world; though public opinion, as i have said, seldom gets a chance to penetrate its dark domain; though the whole place is stamped with its own peculiar, iron like individuality; and though crimes, high handed and atrocious, may there be committed, with almost as much impunity as upon the deck of a pirate ship, it is, nevertheless, altogether, to outward seeming, a most strikingly interesting place, full of life, activity, and spirit; and presents a very favorable contrast to the indolent monotony and languor of tuckahoe. keen as was my regret and great as was my sorrow at leaving the latter, i was not long in adapting myself to this, my new home. a man's troubles are always half disposed of, when he finds endurance his only remedy. i found myself here; there was no getting away; and what remained for me, but to make the best of it? here were plenty of children to play with, and plenty of places of pleasant resort for boys of my age, and boys older. the little tendrils of affection, so rudely and treacherously broken from around the darling objects of my grandmother's hut, gradually began to extend, and to entwine about the new objects by which i now found myself surrounded. there was a windmill (always a commanding object to a child's eye) on long point†a tract of land between the miles and wye rivers at the southernmost end of the broad creek neck between harris creek and broad creek, in talbot county, maryland. in the nineteenth century the property was owned by the harrison family, who lived in the mansion house built by ralph elston in the late eighteenth century. swepson earle, the chesapeake bay country (baltimore, 1923), 363 64; idem, ed., maryland's colonial eastern shore (1916; bowie, md., 1996), 37 38. a tract of land dividing miles river† originally known as the st. michaels river, the twelve mile long miles river lies entirely within talbot county, flowing southwest for its first eight miles and then northwest to meet the chesapeake bay at the town of st. michaels. footner, rivers of the eastern shore, 236, 239 40, 255. from the wye a mile or more from my old master's house. there was a creek to swim in, at the bottom of an open flat space, of twenty acres or more, called "the long green"†the long green was a grassy expanse of about twenty acres in the center of wye plantation that stretched between the main house and the waterfront. structures along the green included the slave quarters and other working structures such as the overseers' houses, icehouse, storage houses, carpenter's shop, and blacksmith's shop. j. donnell tilghman, "wye house," mdhm, 48:100 (june 1953); preston, young frederick douglass, 39.  a very beautiful play ground for the children. in the river, a short distance from the shore, lying quietly at anchor, with her small boat dancing at her stern, was a large sloop the sally lloyd;† in 1819 edward lloyd v ordered the construction of a new sloop to replace the aging schooner elizabeth & ann, which carried his crops to markets in baltimore and annapolis and brought back supplies to his scattered talbot county farms. thomas auld had supervised the construction, in joseph kemp's st. michaels shipyard, of the replacement vessel, named the sally lloyd in honor of the colonel's eldest daughter, sally scott lloyd. auld remained in lloyd's employment as the master of the sally lloyd, which was manned by a slave crew. the latter gained celebrity status among the lloyd slaves because it afforded them contact with the world outside the rural plantations and the ability to purchase small items in the cities for resale to other slaves. various account books and cash books, land papers maintenance of property, land volume 39, reel 10, lloyd family papers, mdhi. called by that name in honor of a favorite daughter of the colonel. the sloop and the mill were wondrous things, full of thoughts and ideas. a child cannot well look at such objects without . then here were a great many houses; human habitations, full of the mysteries of life at every stage of it. there was the little red house, up the road, occupied by mr. sevier,†during the years 1809 12 and possibly thereafter. william sevier worked for aaron anthony, probably as an overseer on his farms. in 1820 he was between twenty six and forty years old. at that time sevier occupied a small red frame house on the east side of wye house's long green, and was edward lloyd v's overseer for the more than 150 slaves at the main plantation. aaron anthony ledger a, 1790 1818, folder 94, 19, aaron anthony ledger c, 1809 27, folder 96, 1, 3, 13, 87, 119, 124, 177, 286, 291, both in dodge collection, mdaa; 1820 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 7; preston, young frederick douglass, 70 71, 222nn5 6. the overseer. a little nearer to my old master's, stood a very long, rough, low building, literally alive with slaves, of all ages, conditions and sizes. this was called "the long quarter."† some of the slave quarters of wye plantation were located on the long green. tilghman, " wye house," 100. perched upon a hill, across the long green, was a wry tall, dilapidated, old brick building the architectural dimensions of which proclaimed its erection for a different purpose now occupied by slaves, in a similar manner to the long quarter. besides these, there were numerous other slave houses and huts, scattered around in the neighborhood, every nook and corner of which was completely occupied. old master's house, a long, brick building, plain, but substantial, stood in the center of the plantation life, and constituted one independent establishment on the premises of col. lloyd. besides these dwellings, there were barns, stables, store houses, and tobacco houses; blacksmiths' shops, wheelwrights' shops, coopers' shops all objects of interest; but, above all, there stood the grandest building my eyes had then ever he held, called, by every one on the plantation, the "great house."†wye house, the principal residence of edward lloyd v, located on the plantation of the same name, was built to replace the original house destroyed by british troops during the american revolution. still standing, wye house is a large wood frame building, constructed in the "five part" design, with a central block and corridors on each side and another wing at the end of each corridor. douglass visited there in june 1881, and several younger members of the lloyd family escorted him around the grounds. footner, rivers of the eastern shore, 271; preston, young frederick douglass, 192 96. this was occupied by col. lloyd and his family. they occupied it; i enjoyed it. the great house was surrounded by numerous and variously shaped out buildings. there were kitchens, wash houses, dairies, summer  house, green houses, hen houses, turkey houses, pigeon houses, and arbors, of many sizes and devices, all neatly painted, and altogether interspersed with grand old trees, ornamental and primitive, which afforded delightful shade in summer, and imparted to the scene a high degree of stately beauty. the great house itself was a large, white, wooden building, with wings on three sides of it. in front, a large portico, extending the entire length of the building, and supported by a long range of columns, gave to the whole establishment an air of solemn grandeur. it was a treat to my young and gradually opening mind, to behold this elaborate exhibition of wealth, power, and vanity. the carriage entrance to the house was a large gate, more than a quarter of a mile distant from it; the intermediate space was a beautiful lawn, very neatly trimmed, and watched with the greatest care. it was dotted thickly over with delightful trees, shrubbery, and flowers. the road, or lane, from the gate to the great house, was richly paved with white pebbles from the beach, and, in its course, formed a complete circle around the beautiful lawn. carriages going in and retiring from the great house, made the circuit of the lawn, and their passengers were permitted to behold a scene of almost eden like beauty. outside this select inclosure, were parks, where as about the residences of the english nobility rabbits, deer, and other wild game, might be seen, peering and playing about, with none to molest them or make them afraid. the tops of the stately poplars were often covered with the red winged black birds, making all nature vocal with the joyous life and beauty of their wild, warbling notes. these all belonged to me, as well as to col. edward lloyd, and for a time i greatly enjoyed them. a short distance from the great house, were the stately mansions of the dead, a place of somber aspect. vast tombs, embowered beneath the weeping willow and the fir tree, told of the antiquities of the lloyd family, as well as of their wealth. superstition was rife among the slaves about this family burying ground. strange sights had been seen there by some of the older slaves. shrouded ghosts, riding on great black horses, had been seen to enter; balls of fire had been seen to fly there at midnight, and horrid sounds had been repeatedly heard. slaves know enough of the rudiments of theology to believe that those go to hell who die slaveholders; and they often fancy such persons wishing themselves back again, to wield the lash. tales of sights and sounds, strange and terrible, connected with the huge black tombs, were a very great security to the grounds about them, for few of the slaves felt like approaching them even in the day time. it was a dark, gloomy and forbidding place, and it was difficult to feel that the spirits of the sleeping dust there deposited, reigned with the blest in the realms of eternal peace. the business of twenty or thirty farms was transacted at this, called, by way of eminence, "great house farm." these farms all belonged to col. lloyd, as did, also, the slaves upon them. each farm was under the management of an overseer. as i have said of the overseer of the home plantation, so i may say of the overseers on the smaller ones; they stand between the slave and all civil constitutions their word is law, and is implicitly obeyed. the colonel, at this time, was reputed to be, and he apparently was, very rich. his slaves, alone, were an immense fortune. these small and great, could not have been fewer than one thousand in number, and though scarcely a month passed without the sale of one or more lots to the georgia traders,†by georgia traders, douglass probably refers to slave traders from the deep south. it was not unusual for major slave traders to ship their "cargoes" by water to southern ports such as savannah, charleston, or mobile, although new orleans was the most frequent destination. on arrival, the slaves were sold to work in alabama and mississippi, where new land had opened to settlement after native peoples were expelled or negotiated out. austin woolfolk was the leading trader in maryland and northern virginia in the 1820s and 1830s and was known by reputation to slaves throughout the region. winfield h. collins, the domestic slave trade of the southern states (1904; port washington., n.y., 1969), 100 105: randall m. miller and john david smith, eds., dictionany of afro american slavery, rev. ed. (westport, conn., 1997), 686 88. there was no apparent diminution in the number of his human stock; the home plantation merely groaned at a removal of the young increase, or human crop, then proceeded as lively as ever. horse shoeing, cart mending, plow repairing, coopering, grinding, and weaving, for all the neighboring farms, were performed here, and slaves were employed in all these branches. "uncle tony" was the blacksmith; "uncle harry"†henry bailey (1820 ?) was the youngest of twelve children born to douglass's maternal grandparents, isaac and betsey bailey. henry was owned by aaron anthony of talbot county; when anthony died in 1826. henry became the property of richard lee anthony. when richard died in 1828. thomas auld. richard's brother in law, became henry's master. aaron anthony slave distribution, 22 october 1827, talbot county distributions, v.jp#d, 58 59. mdtch; preston, young frederick douglass, 18, 109, 206. was the cartwright; "uncle abel" was the shoemaker; and all these had hands to assist them in their several departments. these mechanics were called "uncles" by all the younger slaves, not because they really sustained that relationship to any, but according to plantation , as a mark of respect, due from the younger to the older slaves. strange, and even ridiculous as it may seem, among a people so uncultivated, and with so many stern trials to look in the face, there is not to be found, among any people, a more rigid enforcement of the law of respect to elders, than they maintain. i set this down as partly constitutional with my race, and partly conventional. there is no better material in the world for making a gentleman, than is furnished in the african. he shows to others, and exacts for himself, all the tokens of respect which he is compelled to manifest toward his master. a young slave must approach the company of the older with hat in hand, and woe betide him, if he fails to acknowledge a favor, of any sort, with the accustomed "," &c. so uniformly are good manners enforced among slaves, that i can easily detect a "bogus" fugitive by his manners. among other slave notabilities of the plantation, was one called by everybody uncle isaac copper. it is seldom that a slave gets a surname from anybody in maryland; and so completely has the south shaped the manners of the north, in this respect, that even abolitionists make very little of the surname of a negro. the only improvement on the "bills," "jacks," "jims," and "neds" of the south, observable here is, that "william." "john," "james," "edward," are substituted. it goes against the grain to treat and address a negro precisely as they would treat and address a white man. but, once in a while, in slavery as in the free states, by some extraordinary circumstance, the negro has a surname fastened to him, and holds it against all conventionalties. this was the case with uncle isaac copper. when the "uncle" was dropped, he generally had the prefix "doctor," in its stead. he was our doctor of medicine, and doctor of divinity as well. where he took his degree i am unable to say, for he was not very communicative to inferiors, and i was emphatically such, being but a boy seven or eight years old. he was too well established in his profession to permit questions as to his native skill, or his attainments . one qualification he undoubtedly had he was a confirmed ; and he could neither work, nor would he bring anything if offered for sale in the market. the old man, though lame, was no sluggard. he was a man that made his crutches do him good service. he was always on the alert, looking up the sick, and all such as were supposed to need his counsel. his remedial prescriptions embraced four articles. for diseases of the body, and for those of the soul, and i was not long at col. lloyd's before i was placed under the care of doctor isaac copper. i was sent to him with twenty or thirty other children, to learn the "lord's prayer." i found the old gentleman seated on a huge three legged oaken stool, armed with several large hickory switches; and, from his position, he could reach lame as he was any boy in the room. after standing awhile to learn what was expected of us, the old gentleman, in any other than a devotional tone, commanded us to kneel down. this done, he commenced telling us to say everything he said. "our father"  this we repeated after him with promptness and uniformity: "who art in heaven" was less promptly and uniformly repeated; and the old gentleman paused in the prayer, to give us a short lecture upon the consequences of inattention, both immediate and future, and especially those more immediate. about these he was absolutely certain, for he held in his right hand the means of bringing all his predictions and warnings to pass. on he proceeded with the prayer; and we with our thick tongues and unskilled ears, followed him to the best of our ability. this, however, was not sufficient to please the old gentleman. everybody, in the south, wants the privilege of whipping somebody else. uncle isaac shared the common passion of his country, and , therefore, seldom found any means of keeping his disciples in order short of flogging. "say everything i say;" and bang would come the switch on some poor boy's undevotional head. "" "" and down again would come the lash. the whip is all in all. it is supposed to secure obedience to the slaveholder, and is held as a sovereign remedy among the slaves themselves, for every form of disobedience, temporal or spiritual. slaves, as well as slaveholders. use it with an unsparing hand. our devotions at uncle isaac 's combined too much of the tragic and comic, to make them very salutary in a spiritual point of view; and it is due to truth to say, i was often a truant when the time for attending the praying and flogging of doctor isaac copper came on. the windmill under the care of mr. kinney,†richard kinney or kenny was born in england, and 1830 census records indicate that he was between thirty and forty years old. he was married and had eight people in his family. he also owned two male slaves, 1830 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 16. a kind hearted old englishman, was to me a source of infinite interest and pleasure. the old man always seemed pleased when he saw a troop of darkey little urchins, with their tow linen shirts fluttering in the hreeze, approaching to view and admire the whirling wings of his wondrous machine. from the mill we could see other objects of deep interest. these were, the vessels from st. michael's,†the town of st. michaels, talbot county, maryland, was incorporated in 1805 by the maryland general assembly. it is believed to have been established early in the seventeenth century, although the exact date has been debated, one account placing the building of a reformed church on that site in 1672. located along the miles river, the town became the local place of embarkation for vessels bound for baltimore, tilghman, talbot county, 2:375 77, 381 85. on their way to baltimore. it was a source of much amusement to view the flowing sails and complicated rigging, as the little crafts dashed by, and to speculate upon baltimore, as to the kind and quality of the place. with so many sources of interest around me, the reader may be prepared to learn that i began to think very highly of col. l. 's plantation. it was just a place to my boyish taste. there were fish to be caught in the creek if one only had a hook and line; and crabs, clams and oysters were to be caught by wading, digging and raking for them. here was a field for industry and enterprise, strongly inviting; and the reader may he assured that i entered upon it with spirit. even the much dreaded old master. whose merciless fiat had brought me from tuckahoe, gradually, to my mind, parted with his terrors. strange enough, his reverence seemed to take no particular notice of me, nor of my coming. instead of leaping out and devouring me, he scarcely seemed conscious of my presence. the fact is, he was occupied with matters more weighty and important than either looking after or vexing me. he probably thought as little of my advent, as he would have thought of the addition of a single pig to his stock! as the chief butler on col. lloyd's plantation, his duties were numerous and perplexing. in almost all important matters he answered in col. lloyd's stead. the overseers of all the farms were in some sort under him, and received the law from his mouth. the colonel himself seldom addressed an overseer, or allowed an overseer to address him. old master carried the keys of all the store houses; measured out the allowance for each slave at the end of every month; superintended the storing of all goods brought to the plantation; dealt out the raw material to all the handicraftsmen; shipped the grain, tobacco, and all saleable produce of the plantation to market, and had the general oversight of the coopers' shop, wheelwrights' shop, blacksmiths' shop, and shoemakers' shop. besides the care of these, he often had business for the plantation which required him to be absent two and three days. thus largely employed, he had little†emendation note: litttle time, and perhaps as little disposition, to interfere with the children individually. what he was to col. lloyd, he made aunt katy to him. when he had anything to say or do about us, it was said or done in a wholesale manner, disposing of us in classes or sizes, leaving all minor details to aunt katy, a person of whom the reader has already received no very favorable impression. aunt katy was a woman who never allowed herself to act greatly within the margin of power granted to her, no matter how broad that authority might be. ambitious, ill tempered and cruel, she found in her present position an ample field for the exercise of her ill omened qualities. she had a strong hold on old master she was considered a first rate cook, and she really was very industrious. she was, therefore, greatly favored by old master, and as one mark of his favor, she was the only mother who was permitted to retain her children around her. even to these children she was often fiendish in her brutality. she pursued her son phil, one day, in my presence, with a huge butcher knife, and dealt a blow with its edge which left a shocking gash on his arm, near the wrist. for this, old master did sharply rebuke her, and threatened that if she ever should do the like again, he would take the skin off her back. cruel, however, as aunt katy was to her own children, at times she was not destitute of maternal feeling, as i often had occasion to know, in the bitter pinches of hunger i had to endure. differing from the practice of col. lloyd, old master, instead of allowing so much for each slave, committed the allowance for all to the care of aunt katy, to be divided after cooking it, amongst us. the allowance, consisting of coarse cornmeal, was not very abundant indeed, it was very slender; and in passing through aunt katy's hands, it was made more slender still, for some of us. william, phil and jerry†aunt katy's sons appear among the slaves listed in the estate inventory of aaron anthony in december 1826: william (born 1822), phil (born 1815), and jerry (born 1813). at the division of anthony's estate in september 1827, william was transferred with douglass to thomas auld. phil to richard l. anthony, and jerry to andrew s. anthony, aaron anthony, inventory of negroes, distribution of negroes, folders 71 and 77, aaron anthony ledger b, 1812 26, folder 95, 159, both in dodge collection, mdaa. were her children, and it is not to accuse her too severely, to allege that she was often guilty of starving myself and the other children, while she was literally cramming her own. want of food was my chief trouble the first summer at my old master's. oysters and clams would do very well with an occasional supply of bread, but they soon failed in the absence of bread. i speak but the simple truth, when i say, i have often been so pinched with hunger, that i have fought with the dog "old nep" for the smallest crumbs that fell from the kitchen table, and have been glad when i won a single crumb in the combat. many times have i followed, with eager step, the waiting girl when she went out to shake the table cloth, to get the crumbs and small bones flung out for the cats. the water, in which meat had been boiled, was as eagerly sought for by me. it was a great thing to get the privilege of dipping a piece of bread in such water; and the skin taken from rusty bacon, was a positive luxury. nevertheless, i sometimes got full meals and kind words from sympathizing old slaves, who knew my sufferings, and received the comforting assurance that i should be a man some day. "never mind, honey better day comin" was even then a solace, a cheering consolation to me in my troubles. nor were all the kind words i received from slaves. i had a friend in the parlor, as well, and one to whom i shall be glad to do justice, before i have finished this part of my story. i was not long at old master's, before i learned that his surname was anthony, and that he was generally called "captain anthony" a title which he probably acquired by sailing a craft in the chesapeake bay. col. lloyd's slaves never called capt. anthony "old master," but always capt. anthony; and me they called "captain anthony fed." there is not, probably, in the whole south, a plantation where the english language is more imperfectly spoken than on col. lloyd's. it is a mixture of guinea†a unique dialect that combined elements of african language with english to form a distinct patois, spoken by enslaved workers on southern plantations in antebellum america. though most common while the slave trade was active, in many areas the speech patterns persisted well into the nineteenth century. john w. blassingame, the slave community: plantation life in the antebellum south, rev. ed. (new york, 1979), 26 27. and everything else you please. at the time of which i am now writing, there were slaves there who had been brought from the coast of africa. they never used the "" in indication of the possessive case. "cap'n ant'ney tom," "lloyd hill," "aunt rose harry," means "captain anthony's tom,"' "lloyd's hill,"' &c. "" means, "whom do you belong to?" "" means, "have you got any peaches?" i could scarcely understand them when i first went among them, so broken was their speech; and i am persuaded that i could not have been dropped anywhere on the globe, where i could reap less, in the way of knowledge. from my immediate associates, than on this plantation. even "mas' daniel" by his association with his father's slaves, had measurably adopted their dialect and their ideas, so far as they had ideas to be adopted. the equality of nature is strongly asserted in childhood, and childhood requires children for associates. makes no difference with a child. are you a child with wants, tastes and pursuits common to children, not put on, but natural? then, were you black as ebony you would be welcome to the child of alabaster whiteness. the law of compensation holds here, as well as elsewhere. mas' daniel could not associate with ignorance without sharing its shade; and he could not give his black playmates his company, without giving them his intelligence, as well. without knowing this, or caring about it, at the time, i for some cause or other, spent much of my time with mas' daniel, in preference to spending it with most of the other boys. mas' daniel was the youngest son of col. lloyd; his older brothers were edward†born in the annapolis home of his maternal grandparents, edward lloyd vi (1798 1861) was the oldest child and principal heir of his father's great wealth. educated at the wye house plantation by tutors, the younger lloyd received charge of a nearby plantation where his father built him the beautiful wye heights mansion upon his marriage in 1824 to alicia mcblair, daughter of a baltimore merchant. she died prematurely in 1838 after bearing five children. after inheriting the bulk of his father's land holdings, lloyd successfully shifted from tobacco to grain farming and weathered the agricultural depression that struck most of the eastern shore in the 1840s and 1850s. lloyd also purchased cotton growing land in mississippi in 1837 and later added more in arkansas and louisiana. he transferred some of his swelling slave population to those new plantations. though reputedly a stern disciplinarian, he did try to avoid separating families during these relocations and when sales occurred. a lifelong democrat, lloyd served as a delegate to the maryland constitutional convention of 1850 and as a state senator (1851 52). 1850 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 6 10 (slave schedule); tilghman, , 1:210 21; preston, , 42 43, 44 45, 70, 192; tilghman, "wye house," 89 108. and murray†james murray lloyd (1803 47) was the middle don of edward lloud v and sally murray scott. when he married, his father built a mansion for him called presqu'ile, which quich quickly became a talbot county showplace. in 1840 he was one of the region's richest farmers, owning 113 slaves. 1840 u.s. censis, maryland, talbot county, 60; stella pickett hardy, (new york, 1911), 387; tilghman, , 1:207, 222; preston, , 47, 49 50, 69, 70. both grown up, and fine looking men. edward was especially esteemed by the children, and by me among the rest; not that he ever said anything to us or for us, which could he called especially kind: it was enough for us, that he never looked nor acted scornfully toward us. there were also three sisters. all married; one to edward winder;† edward stoughton winder, son of levin winder, the sixteenth governor of maryland, and mary sloss, married elizaheth tayloe lloyd, the eldest daughter of edward lloyd v, in 1820. their son, charles sidney winder, became a confederate brigadier general. edward probably died before 1850, as that year's census lists elizabeth, rather than him, as the family head. 1850 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 52 (free schedule); tilghman, 1: 207; preston, , 221 22; hardy, , 387; , 5:514. a second to edward nicholson;†joseph nicholson was the son of rebecca lloyd, edward v's sister, and her husband, joseph hopper nicholson (1770 1817), a democratic republican congressman from baltimore from 1799 through 1806 and thereafter a prominent maryland jurist. the younger nicholson was the nephew of edward lloyd v, not the son in law, as douglass identifies him. preston, , 70, 222n4; hardy, , 500 511; , 13:505 06; , 1588. a third to mr. lownes.†born in kent county, maryland, charles lowndes (1798 1885) entered the navy as a midshipman in 1815. he married sally scott lloyd in the mid 1820s and by 1840 was a prosperous talbot county farmer with thirty five slaves. by the start of the civil war, he had risen to the rank of captain in the u.s. navy. suspected of confederate sympathies, he was placed on the retired list in 1862 and later promoted to commodore and placed on a war prize commission. 1840 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 70; preston, , 47, 222; rossiter johnson, ed., , 10 vols. (boston, 1904), 7:s.v.; christopher johnston, "lowndes family,", 2:279 (september 1907); , 4:44. the family of old master consisted of two sons, andrew† andrew skinner anthony (1797 1833) was the eldest son of aaron and ann catherine skinner anthony and the nephew of edward lloyd v. his father apprenticed him as a young man to james neall, a cabinet maker, in easton, maryland. after completing his apprenticeship, anthony migrated to indiana, where he married ann wingate of martin county in 1823. he and his bride returned to talbot county shortly thereafter. in 1826 andrew's father died, and he inherited a third of his estate, including eight slaves. although he increased his estate and owned twenty slaves, in his final years andrew suffered from alcoholism and operated a whiskey shop. john manross to douglass, 14 january 1856, general correspondence file, reel 1, frames 654 56, fd papers, dlc; harriet l. anthony, annotated copy of , folder 93, 176, dodge collection, mdaa; 1830 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 51; preston, , 26, 29, 218n17, 224n10. and richard;†richard lee anthony (1800 28), the second of three children born to aaron and ann catherine skinner anthony, was trained as a blacksmith for five years before inheriting land, money, and slaves after his father's death in november 1826. douglass incorrectly asserts that richard died before his father. harriet l. anthony, annotated copy of bondage and freedom, folder 93, 173 74, dodge collection, mdaa; aaron anthony slave distribution, 22 october 1827, talbot county distributions, v.jp#d, 58 59, mdtch; preston, young frederick douglass, 27 29, 52, 91, 218n17. his daughter, lucretia, †lucretia planner anthony auld (1804 27) was the third child and only daughter of aaron and ann catherine skinner anthony. in 1823 she married thomas auld, a boarder in her father's household and an employee of edward lloyd. lucretia subsequently moved to hillsborough, maryland, where she and her husband opened a store and served as town postmaster. following the deaths of her father and brother richard lee, lucretia and her older brother andrew inherited their father's estate. her portion included the young slave frederick douglass. she died in 1827 and was survived by one child, arianna amanda auld. auld family bible (courtesy of carl g. auld); mcfeely, frederick douglass, 27, preston, young frederick douglass, 28, 30, 62, 87 88, 223n6; idem, talbot county, 191; emerson b. roberts, "a visitation of western talbot," mdhm, 41:244 45 (september 1946).and her newly married husband. capt. auld. this was the house family. the kitchen family consisted of aunt katy, aunt esther,†hester bailey. and ten or a dozen children, most of them older than myself. capt. anthony was not considered a rich slaveholder, but was pretty well off in the world. he owned about thirty "" of slaves, and three farms in tuckahoe. the most valuable part of his property was his slaves, of whom he could afford to sell one every year. this crop, therefore, brought him seven or eight hundred dollars a year, besides his yearly salary, and other revenue from his farms. the idea of rank and station was rigidly maintained on col. lloyd's plantation. our family never visited the great house, and the lloyds never came to our home. equal non intercourse was observed between capt. anthony's family and that of mr. sevier, the overseer. such, kind reader, was the community, and such the place, in which my earliest and most lasting impressions of slavery, and of slave life. were received; of which impressions you will learn more in the coming chapters of this book. chapter v gradual initiation into the mysteries of slavery growing acquaintance with old master strained passion his character evils of unrestrained passion apparent tenderness old master a man of trouble custom of muttering to himself necessity of being aware of his words the supposed obtuseness of slave children brutal outrage drunken overseer slaveholders' impatience wisdom of appealing to superiors the slaveholder's wrath bad as that of the overseer a base and selfish attempt to break up a courtship a harrowing scene. although my old master capt. anthony gave me at first, (as the reader will have already seen) very little attention, and although that little was of a remarkably mild and gentle description, a few months only were sufficient to convince me that mildness and gentleness were not the prevailing or governing traits of his character. these excellent qualities were displayed only occasionally. he could, when it suited him, appear to be literally insensible to the claims of humanity, when appealed to by the helpless against an aggressor, and he could himself commit outrages, deep, dark and nameless. yet he was not by nature worse than other men. had he been brought up in a free state, surrounded by the just restraints of free society restraints which are necessary to the freedom of all its members, alike and equally capt. anthony might have been as humane a man, and every way as respectable as many who now oppose the slave system; certainly as humane and respectable as are members of society generally. the slaveholder, as well as the slave, is the victim of the slave system. a man's character greatly takes its hue and shape from the form and color of things about him. under the whole heavens there is no relation more unfavorable to the development of honorable character, than that sustained by the slaveholder to the slave. reason is imprisoned here, and passions run wild. like the fires of the prairie, once lighted, they are at the mercy of every wind, and must burn, till they have consumed all that is combustible within their remorseless grasp. capt. anthony could be kind, and, at times, he even showed an affectionate disposition. could the reader have seen him gently leading me by the hand as he sometimes did patting me on the head, speaking to me in soft, caressing tones and calling me his "little indian boy," he would have deemed him a kind old man, and, really, almost fatherly. but the pleasant moods of a slaveholder are remarkably brittle; they are easily snapped; they neither come often, nor remain long. his temper is subjected to perpetual trials; but, since these trials are never borne patiently, they add nothing to his natural stock of patience. old master very early impressed me with the idea that he was an unhappy man. even to my child's eye, he wore a troubled, and at times, a haggard aspect. his strange movements excited my curiosity, and awakened my compassion. he seldom walked alone without muttering to himself; and he occasionally stormed about, as if defying an army of invisible foes. "he would do this, that, and the other; he'd be d   d if he did not," was the usual form of his threats. most of his leisure was spent in walking, cursing and gesticulating, like one possessed by a demon. most evidently, he was a wretched man, at war with his own soul, and with all the world around him. to be overheard by the children, disturbed him very little. he made no more of presence, than of that of the ducks and geese which he met on the green. he little thought that the little black urchins around him, could see, through those vocal crevices, the very secrets of his heart. slaveholders ever underrate the intelligence with which they have to grapple. i really understood the old man's mutterings, attitudes and gestures, ahout as well as he did himself. but slaveholders never encourage that kind of communication, with the slaves, by which they might learn to measure the depths of his knowledge. ignorance is a high virtue in a human chattel; and as the master studies to keep the slave ignorant, the slave is cunning enough to make the master think he succeeds. the slave fully appreciates the saying, "where ignorance is bliss, 'tis folly to be wise."†thomas gray, "ode on a distant prospect of eton college," lines 99 100, francis t. palgrave, ed., the golden treasury (london, 1906), 187. when old master's gestures were violent, ending with a threatening shake of the head, and a sharp snap of his middle finger and thumb, i deemed it wise to keep at a respectable distance from him; for, at such times, trifling faults stood, in his eyes, as momentous offenses; and, having both the power and the disposition, the victim had only to be near him to catch the punishment, deserved or undeserved. one of the first circumstances that opened my eyes to the cruelty and wickedness of slavery, and the heartlessness of my old master, was the refusal of the latter to interpose his authority, to protect and shield a young woman, who had been most cruelly abused and beaten by his overrseer in tuckahoe. this overseer a mr. plummer†this individual is probably either james plummer or philemon plummer. both men were longtime residents of talbot county and, at various times during douglass's youth, worked for aaron anthony as overseers on his tuckahoe farms. philemon plummer is listed in anthony's accounting records for 1819. aaron anthony day books, folder 97, 30, dodge collection, mdaa; preston, young frederick douglass, 71, 222n7. was a man like most of his class, little better than a human brute; and, in addition to his general profligacy and repulsive coarseness, the creature was a miserable drunkard. he was, probably, employed by my old master, less on account of the excellence of his services, than for the cheap rate at which they could he obtained. he was not fit to have the management of a drove of mules. in a fit of drunken madness, he committed the outrage which brought the young woman in question down to my old master's for protection. this young woman was the daughter of milly,†henny bailey (1816 ?), a cousin of frederick douglass, was one of seven children born to milly bailey, a slave on one of aaron anthony's farms. henny was apparently ill fitted for work: anthony estimated her value at fifty dollars in 1826, less than half the value he placed on her younger cousin frederick. when anthony died in 1826, his son in law thomas auld inherited bailey and four other slaves. sometime before 1840, auld granted bailey her freedom. the last record of henny 's existence is an entry in the 1840 u.s. census, which identifies her as a free black living in st. michaels district. aaron anthony, inventory of negroes, folder 71, aaron anthony ledger b, 1812 1826, folder 96, 159, both in dodge collection, mdaa; aaron anthony slave distribution, 22 october 1827, talbot county distributions, v.jp#d, 58 59, mdtch; preston, young frederick douglass, 91, 174, 225n14. an own aunt of mine. the poor girl, on arriving at our house, presented a pitiable appearance. she had left in haste. and without preparation; and, probably, without the knowledge of mr. plummer. she had traveled twelve miles, bare footed, bare necked and bare headed. her neck and shoulders were covered with scars, newly made; and, not content with marring her neck and shoulders, with the cowhide, the cowardly brute had dealt her a blow on the head with a hickory club, which cut a horrible gash, and left her face literally covered with blood. in this condition, the poor young woman came down, to implore protection at the hands of my old master. i expected to see him boil over with rage at the revolting deed, and to hear him fill the air with curses upon the brutal plummer; but i was disappointed. he sternly told her, in an angry tone, he "believed she deserved every bit of it," and, if she did not go home instantly, he would himself take the remaining skin from her neck and back. thus was the poor girl compelled to return, without redress, and perhaps to receive an additional flogging for daring to appeal to old master against the overseer. old master seemed furious at the thought of being troubled by such complaints. i did not, at that time, understand the philosophy of his treatment of my cousin. it was stern, unnatural, violent. had the man no bowels of compassion? was he dead to all sense of humanity? no, i think i now understand it. this treatment is a part of the system, rather than a part of the man. were slaveholders to listen to complaints of this sort against the overseers, the luxury of owning large numbers of slaves, would be impossible. it would do away with the office of overseer, entirely; or, in other words, it would convert the master himself into an overseer. it would occasion great loss of time and labor, leaving the overseer in fetters, and without the necessary power to secure obedience to his orders. a privilege so dangerous as that of appeal, is, therefore, strictly prohibited; and anyone exercising it, runs a fearful hazard. nevertheless, when a slave has nerve enough to exercise it, and boldly approaches his master, with a well founded complaint against an overseer, though he may he repulsed, and may even have that of which he complains repeated at the time, and, though he may be beaten by his master, as well as by the overseer, for his temerity, in the end the policy of complaining is, generally, indicated by the relaxed rigor of the overseer's treatment. the latter becomes more careful, and less disposed to use the lash upon such slaves thereafter. it is with this final result in view, rather than with any expectation of immediate good, that the outraged slave is induced to meet his master with a complaint. the overseer very naturally dislikes to have the ear of the master disturbed by complaints; and, either upon this consideration, or upon advice and warning privately given him by his employer, he generally modifies the rigor of his rule, after an outbreak of the kind to which i have heen referring. howsoever the slaveholder may allow himself to act toward his slave, and, whatever cruelty he may deem it wise, for example's sake, or for the gratification of his humor, to inflict, he cannot, in the absence of all provocation, look with pleasure upon the bleeding wounds of a defenseless slavewoman. when he drives her from his presence without redress, or the hope of redress, he acts, generally, from motives of policy, rather than from a hardened nature, or from innate brutality. yet, let but his own temper be stirred, his own passions get loose, and the slave owner will go far beyond the overseer in cruelty. he will convince the slave that his wrath is far more terrible and boundless, and vastly more to be dreaded. than that of the underling overseer. what may have been mechanically and heartlessly done by the overseer, is now done with a will. the man who now wields the lash is irresponsible. he may, if he pleases, cripple or kill, without fear of consequences; except in so far as it may concern profit or loss. to a man of violent temper as my old master was this was but a very slender and inefficient restraint. i have seen him in a tempest of passion, such as i have just described a passion into which entered all the bitter ingredients of pride, hatred, envy, jealousy, and the thirst for revenge. the circumstances which i am about to narrate. and which gave rise to this fearful tempest of passion, are not singular nor isolated in slave life, but are common in every slaveholding community in which i have lived. they are incidental to the relation of master and slave, and exist in all sections of slaveholding countries. the reader will have noticed that, in enumerating the names of the slaves who lived with my old master, †douglass is referring to his aunt hester bailey, whom he describes in his narrative as being whipped by aaron anthony until she was "covered with blood." douglass papers, ser. 2, 1:15, 119; mcfeely, frederick douglass, 17. is mentioned. this was a young woman who possessed that which is ever a curse to the slave girl; namely personal beauty. she was tall, well formed, and made a fine appearance. the daughters of col. lloyd could scarcely surpass her in personal charms. esther was courted by ned roberts,†ned roberts (1810 ?) was a slave owned by edward lloyd v. it was 1825 when aaron anthony discovered that his slave hester bailey was continuing to see ned roberts. return book, 1 january 1824, land papers maintenance of property, land volume 39, reel 10, lloyd family papers, mdhi. and he was as fine looking a young man, as she was a woman. he was the son of a favorite slave of col. lloyd. some slaveholders would have been glad to promote the marriage of two such persons; but, for some reason or other, my old master took it upon him to break up the growing intimacy between esther and edward. he strictly ordered her to quit the company of said roberts. telling her that he would punish her severely if he ever found her again in edward's company. this unnatural and heartless order was, of course, broken. a woman's love is not to be annihilated by the peremptory command of any one, whose breath is in his nostrils. it was impossible to keep edward and esther apart. meet they would, and meet they did. had old master been a man of honor and purity, his motives, in this matter, might have been viewed more favorably. as it was, his motives were as abhorrent, as his methods were foolish and contemptible. it was too evident that he was not concerned for the girl"s welfare. it is one of the damning characteristics of the slave system, that it robs its victims of every earthly incentive to a holy life. the fear of god, and the hope of heaven, are found sufficient to sustain many slave women, amidst the snares and dangers of their strange lot; but, this side of god and heaven, a slave woman is at the mercy of the power, caprice and passion of her owner. slavery provides no means for the honorable continuance of the race. marriage as imposing obligations on the parties to it has no existence here, except in such hearts as are purer and higher than the standard morality around them. it is one of the consolations of my life, that i know of many honorable instances of persons who maintained their honor, where all around was corrupt. esther was evidently much attached to edward, and abhorred as she had reason to do the tyrannical and base behavior of old master. edward was young, and fine looking, and he loved and courted her. he might have been her husband, in the high sense just alluded to; but who and was this old master? his attentions were plainly brutal and selfish, and it was as natural that esther should loathe him, as that she should love edward. abhorred and circumvented as he was, old master, having the power, very easily took revenge. i happened to see this exhibition of his rage and cruelty toward esther. the time selected was singular. it was early in the morning, when all besides was still, and before any of the family, in the house or kitchen, had left their beds. i saw but few of the shocking preliminaries, for the cruel work had begun before i awoke. i was probably awakened by the shrieks and piteous cries of poor esther. my sleeping place was on the floor of a little, rough closet, which opened into the kitchen; and through the cracks of its unplaned hoards, i could distinctly†emendation note: distinctly] dictinctly see and hear what was going on, without being seen by old master. esther's wrists were firmly tied, and the twisted rope was fastened to a strong staple in a heavy wooden joist above, near the fire place. herc she stood, on a bench, her arms tightly drawn over her breast. her back and shoulders were bare to the waist. behind her stood old master, with cowskin in hand, preparing his barbarous work with all manner of harsh, coarse, and tantalizing epithets. the screams of his victim were most piercing. he was cruelly deliberate, and protracted the torture, as one who was delighted with the scene. again and again he drew the hateful whip through his hand, adjusting it with a view of dealing the most pain giving hlow. poor esther had never yet been severely whipped, and her shoulders were plump and tender. each blow, vigorously laid on, brought screams as well as blood. "" she cried; "" but her piercing cries seemed only to increase his fury. his answers to them are too coarse and blasphemous to be produced here. the whole scene, with all its attendants, was revolting and shocking, to the last degree; and when the motives of this brutal castigation are considered, language has no power to convey a just sense of its awful criminality. after laying on some thirty or forty stripes, old master untied his suffering victim, and let her get down. she could scarcely stand, when untied. from my heart i pitied her, and child though i was the outrage kindled in me a feeling far from peaceful; but i was hushed, terrified. stunned, and could do nothing, and the fate of esther might be mine next. the scene here described was often repeated in the case of poor esther. and her life, as i knew it, was one of wretchedness. chapter vi. treatment of slaves on lloyd's plantation: the author's early reflections on slavery presentiment of one day being a freeman combat between an overseer and a slave woman the advantages of resistance allowance day on the home the singing of slaves an explanation the slaves' food and clothing naked children life in the quarter deprivation of sleep nursing children carried in the field  description of the cowskin the ash cake manner of making it the dinner hour the contrast. the heart rending incidents, related in the foregoing chapter, led me, thus early, to inquire into the nature and history of slavery. how did the relation commence? these were the perplexing questions which began now to claim my thoughts, and to exercise the weak powers of my mind, for i was still but a child, and knew less than children of the same age in the free states. as my questions concerning these things were only put to children a little older, and little better informed than myself, i was not rapid in reaching a solid footing. by some means i learned from these inquiries, that "'" made everybody; and that he made people to be masters and mistresses, and people to be slaves. this did not satisfy me, nor lessen my interest in the subject. i was told, too, that god was good, and that he knew what was best for me, and best for everybody. this was less satisfactory than the first statement; because it came, point blank, against all my notions of goodness. it was not good to let old master cut the flesh off esther, and make her cry so. besides, how did people know that god made black people to be slaves? did they go up in the sky and learn it? or, did he come down and tell them so? all was dark here. it was some relief to my hard notions of the goodness of god, that, although he made white men to be slaveholders, he did not make them to be slaveholders, and that, in due time, he would punish the bad slaveholders; that he would, when they died, send them to the bad place, where they would be " burnt up." nevertheless, i could not reconcile the relation of slavery with my crude notions of goodness. then, too, i found that there were puzzling exceptions to this theory of slavery on both sides, and in the middle. i knew of blacks who were not slaves; i knew of whites who were not slaveholders; and i knew of persons who were white, who were slaves. , therefore, was a very unsatisfactory basis for slavery. once, however, engaged in the inquiry, i was not very long in finding out the true solution of the matter. it was not , but , not , but , that afforded the true explanation of the existence of slavery; nor was i long in finding out another important truth, viz: what man can make, man can unmake. the appalling darkness faded away, and i was master of the subject. there were slaves here, direct from guinea;†there were slaves here, direct from guinea] guinea is an archaic term for the coastal region of west africa. in its widest sense the term has been applied to the entire region from angola to senegal. cohen, columbia gazetteer of the world, 1:1197. and there were many who could say that their fathers and mothers were stolen from africa forced from their homes, and compelled to serve as slaves. this, to me, was knowledge, but it was a kind of knowlcdge which filled me with a burning hatred of slavery, increased my suffering, and left me without the means of breaking away from my bondage. yet it was knowledge quite worth possessing. i could not have been more than seven or eight years old, when i began to make this subject my study. it was with me in the woods and fields; along the shore of the river, and wherever my boyish wanderings led me; and though i was, at that time, quite ignorant of the existence of the free states, i distinctly remember being, , most strongly impressed with the idea of being a freeman some day. this cheering assurance was an inborn dream of my human nature a constant menace to slavery and one which all the powers of slavery were unable to silence or extinguish. up to the time of the brutal flogging of my aunt esther for she was my own aunt and the horrid plight in which i had seen my cousin from tuckahoe, who had been so badly beaten by the cruel mr. plummer, my attention had not been called, especially, to the gross features of slavery. i had, of course, heard of whippings, and of savage †meetings, encounters. between overseers and slaves, but i had always been out of the way at the times and places of their occurrence. my plays and sports, most of the time, took me from the corn and tobacco fields, where the great body of the hands were at work, and where scenes of cruelty were enacted and witnessed. but, after the whipping of aunt esther, i saw many cases of the same shocking nature, not only in my master's house, but on col. lloyd's plantation. one of the first which i saw, and which greatly agitated me, was the whipping of a woman belonging to col. lloyd, named nelly.†nelly kellem was the wife of harry, a favored deck hand aboard colonel lloyd's sloop, the sally lloyd. in 1824 she was reported to be thirty seven years old. preston, young frederick douglass, 70, 222n6. the offense alleged against nelly, was one of the commonest and most indefinite in the whole catalogue of offenses usually laid to the charge of slaves, viz: "impudence." this may mean almost anything, or nothing at all, just according to the caprice of the master overseer, at the moment. but, whatever it is, or is not, if it gets the name of "impudence," the party charged with it is sure of a flogging. this offense may be committed in various ways; in the tone of an answer; in answering at all; in not answering; in the expression of countenance; in the motion of the head; in the gait, manner and hearing of the slave. in the case under consideration, i can easily believe that, according to all slaveholding standards, here was a genuine instance of impudence. in nelly there were all the necessary conditions for committing the offense. she was a bright mulatto, the recognized wife of a favorite "hand" on board col. lloyd's sloop, and the mother of five sprightly children.†nelly's husband, harry kellem, was a deck hand on colonel lloyd's sloop, the saliy lloyd. they had three known children: henry, three years old in 1824; wesley, age ten; and charles, age sixteen. preston, young frederick douglass, 222n6. she was a vigorous and spirited woman, and one of the most likely, on the plantation, to be guilty of impudence. my attention was called to the scene, by the noise, curses and screams that proceeded from it; and, on going a little in that direction, i came upon the parties engaged in the skirmish. mr. sevier, the overseer, had hold of nelly, when i caught sight of them; he was endeavoring to drag her toward a tree, which endeavor nelly was sternly resisting; but to no purpose, except to retard the progress of the overseer's plans. nelly as i have said was the mother of five children; three of them were present, and though quite small (from seven to ten years old, i should think,) they gallantly came to their mother's defense, and gave the overseer an excellent pelting with stones. one of the little fellows ran up, seized the overseer by the leg and bit him; but the monster was too busily engaged with nelly, to pay any attention to the assaults of the children. there were numerous bloody marks on mr. sevier's face, when i first saw him, and they increased as the struggle went on. the imprints of nelly's fingers were visible, and i was glad to see them. amidst the wild screams of the children "" "" there escaped, from between the teeth of the bullet headed overseer, a few bitter curses, mingled with threats, that "he would teach the d   d b   h how to give a white man impudence." there is no doubt that nelly felt herself superior, in some respects, to the slaves around her. she was a wife and a mother; her husband was a valued and favorite slave. besides, he was one of the first hands on hoard of the sloop, and the sloop hands since they had to represent the plantation abroad were generally treated tenderly. the overseer never was allowed to whip harry;†harry kellem. why then should he be allowed to whip harry's wife? thoughts of this kind, no doubt, influenced her; but, for whatever reason, she nobly resisted, and, unlike most of the slaves, seemed determined to make her whipping cost mr. sevier as much as possible. the blood on his (and her) face, attested her skill, as well as her courage and dexterity in using her nails. maddened by her resistance, i expected to see mr. sevier level her to the ground by a stunning blow; but no; like a savage bull dog which he resembled both in temper and appearance he maintained his grip, and steadily dragged his victim toward the tree, disregarding alike her blows, and the cries of the children for their mother 's release. he would, doubtless, have knocked her down with his hickory stick, but that such act might have cost him his place. it is often deemed advisable to knock a slave down, in order to tie him, but it is considered cowardly and inexcusable, in an overseer, thus to deal with a . he is expected to tie her up, and to give her, what is called, in southern parlance, a "genteel flogging," without any very great outlay of strength or skill. i watched, with palpitating interest, the course of the preliminary struggle, and was saddened by every new advantage gained over her by the ruffian. there were times when she seemed likely to get the better of the brute, but he finally overpowered her, and succeeded in getting his rope around her arms, and in firmly tying her to the tree, at which he had heen aiming. this done, and nelly was at the mercy of his merciless lash; and now, what followed, i have no heart to describe. the cowardly creature made good his every threat; and wielded the lash with all the hot zest of furious revenge. the cries of the woman. while undergoing the terrible infliction, were mingled with those of the children, sounds which i hope the reader may never be called upon to hear. when nelly was untied, her back was covered with blood. the red stripes were all over her shoulders. she was whipped severely whipped; hut she was not subdued, for she continued to denounce the overseer, and to call him every vile name. he had bruised her flesh, but had left her invincible spirit undaunted. such floggings are seldom repeated hy the same overseer. they prefer to whip those who are most easily whipped. the old doctrine that submission is the best cure for outrage and wrong, does not hold good on the slave plantation. he is whipped oftenest, who is whipped easiest; and that slave who has the courage to stand up for himself against the overseer, although he may have many hard stripes at the first, becomes, in the end, a freeman, even though he sustain the formal relation of a slave. "you can shoot me but you can't whip me," said a slave to rigby hopkins;†rigby hopkins was a methodist minister who had long lived and farmed in talbot county. in 1830 he was between fifty and sixty years old and had in his household two white males, six white females, and one black female. whereas in 1820 he owned seventeen slaves, in 1830 he had none, possibly preferring to rent black labor by then. 1820 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 19; 1830 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 31; preston, young frederick douglass, 130. and the result was that he was neither whipped nor†textual note: douglass clearly intended a "neither ... nor" construction, but the compositor's oversight turned "nor" into "not," a mistake that remained uncorrected in all printings and impressions. emendation note: nor] not shot. if the latter had been his fate, it would have been less deplorable than the living and lingering death to which cowardly and slavish souls are subjected. i do not know that mr. sevier ever undertook to whip nelly again. he probably never did, for it was not long after his attempt to subdue her, that he was taken sick. and died. the wretched man died as he had lived, unrepentant; and it was said with how much truth i know not that in the very last hours of his life, his ruling passion showed itself, and that when wrestling with death, he was uttering horrid oaths, and flourishing the cowskin, as though he was tearing the flesh off some helpless slave. one thing is certain, that when he was in health, it was enough to chill the blood, and to stiffen the hair of an ordinary man, to hear mr. sevier talk. nature, or his cruel habits, had given to his face an expression of unusual savageness, even for a slave driver. tobacco and rage had worn his teeth short, and nearly every sentence that escaped their compressed grating, was commenced or concluded with some outburst of profanity. his presence made the field alike the field of blood, and of blasphemy. hated for his cruelty, despised for his cowardice, his death was deplored by no one outside his own house if indeed it was deplored there; it was regarded by the slaves as a merciful interposition of providence. never went there a man to the grave loaded with heavier curses. mr. sevier's place was promptly taken by a mr. hopkins, and the change was quite a relief, he being a very different man. he was, in all respects, a better man than his predecessor; as good as any man can be, and yet be an overseer. his course was characterized by no extraordinary cruelty; and when he whipped a slave, as he sometimes did, he seemed to take no especial pleasure in it, but, on the contrary, acted as though he felt it to he a mean business. mr. hopkins stayed but a short time; his place much to the regret of the slaves generally was taken hy a mr. gore,†austin gore (1794 1871), also referred to as orson gore in the lloyd family account and cash books, was the overseer of edward lloyd v's davis's farm plantation, where in 1823 a young slave named bill demby died. a friend of gore's later challenged douglass 's assertion that gore coolly murdered demby, insisting that he was "a respectable citizen living near st. michaels, and . . . a worthy member of the methodist episcopal church . . . all who know him, think him anything but a murderer." lloyd apparently tolerated gore's brutal actions; he later promoted him to be overseer of the much larger wye house plantation. the 1830 u.s. census listed gore as the head of a household that contained three boys and two girls under ten, his wife, and an elderly woman. a. c. c. thompson. "to the public falsehood refuted," reprinted in nass, 25 november 1845, and in lib., 12 december 1845; various account books and cash books. land papers maintenance of property, land volume 39, reel 10, lloyd family papers, mdhi; 1830 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 14. of whom more will be said hereafter. it is enough, for the present, to say, that he was no improvement on mr. sevier, except that he was less noisy and less profane. i have already referred to the business like aspect of col. lloyd's plantation. this business like appearance was much increased on the two days at the end of each month, when the slaves from the different farms came to get their monthly allowance of meal and meat. these were gala days for the slaves, and there was much rivalry among them as should he elected to go up to the great house farm for the allowance, and, indeed, to attend to any business at this, (for them,) the capital. the beauty and grandeur of the place, its numerous slave population, and the fact that harry, peter and jake† of the slave crew of the sally lloyd, harry was harry kellem, husband of nancy. the business records of edward lloyd v give the birth year for a slave peter as 1799. land papers maintenance of property, land volume 39, reel 10, lloyd family papers, mdhi. the sailors of the sloop almost always kept, privately, little trinkets which they bought at baltimore, to sell, made it a privilege to come to the great house farm. being selected, too, for this office, was deemed a high honor. it was taken as a proof of confidence and favor; but, probably, the chief motive of the competitors for the place, was, a desire to break the dull monotony of the field, and to get beyond the overseer's eye and lash. once on the road with an ox team. and seated on the tongue of his cart, with no overseer to look after him, the slave was comparatively free; and, if thoughtful, he had time to think. slaves are generally expected to sing as well as to work. a silent slave is not liked by masters or overseers. "," "make a noise," and "," are the words usually addressed to the slaves when there is silence amongst them. this may account for the almost constant singing heard in the southern states. there was, generally, more or less singing among the teamsters, as it was one means of letting the overseer know where they were, and that they were moving on with the work. but, on allowance day, those who visitcd the great house farm were peculiarly excited and noisy. while on their way, they would make the dense old woods, for miles around, reverberate with their wild notes. these were not always merry because they were wild. on the contrary, they were mostly of a plaintive cast, and told a tale of grief and sorrow. in the most boisterous outbursts of rapturous sentiment, there was ever a tinge of deep melancholy. i have never heard any songs like those anywhere since i left slavery, except when in ireland. there i heard the same , and was much affected by them. it was during the famine of 1845 6.†in the 1840s over 75 percent of the irish population was dependent upon agriculture, most cultivating potatoes on small plots. a partial potato crop failure occurred in the fall of 1845. the potato blight spread in 1846, resulting in a complete crop failure and a famine throughout the country. in 1847 the blight was less severe, but living conditions, especially among the poor, were still terrible. famine and starvation left people susceptible to disease, fever, dysentery, scurvy, cholera, influenza, and typhus. during the famine and afterward, england continued to export grain and animal products from ireland. government relief efforts were, on the whole, too little and too late. they consisted of the importation of indian corn from the united states as a basic food source, employment of the poor through public works, the building of workhouses, and the establishment of soup kitchens and fever hospitals. some private charity was helpful at a local level, with the quakers as leading contributors. the most noticeable effect of the famine was the loss of population. from 1841 to 1851 ireland lost two million people, many of them through massive emigration. from 1846 to 1851, 20,000 died from starvation and 339,000 from disease. from 31 august 1845 to 6 january 1846, frederick douglass visited dublin, cork, limerick, and belfast while on an abolitionist speaking tour of ireland. edward norman, a history of modern ireland (london, 1971), 108 17; noel kissane, the irish famine: a documentary history (dublin, 1995), 27, 46 48, 75, 107 08, 123; douglass papers, ser. 1, 1:xcvi xcvii. in all the songs of the slaves, there was ever some expression in praise of the great house far; something which would flatter the pride of the owner, and, possibly. draw a favorable glance from him. "i am going away to the great house farm. o yea!o yea! o yea! my old master is a good old master. oh yea! 0 yea! 0 yea!"†douglass also recalled this song in his first autobiography. douglass papers, ser. 2, 1:20. this they would sing, with other words of their own improvising jargon to others, hut full of meaning to themselves. i have sometimes thought, that the mere hearing of those songs would do more to impress truly spiritual ninded men and women with the soul crushing and death dealing character of slavery, than the reading of whole volumes of its mere physical cruelties. they speak to the heart and to the soul of the thoughtful. i cannot better express my sense of them now, than ten years ago, when, in sketching my life, i thus spoke of this feature of my plantation experience: "i did not, when a slave, understand the deep meanings of those rude, and apparently incoherent songs. i was myself within the circle, so that i neither saw nor heard as those without might see and hear. they told a tale which was then altogether beyond my feeble comprehension; they were tones, loud, long and deep, breathing the prayer and complaint of souls boiling over with the bitterest anguish. every tone was a testimony against slavery, and a prayer to god for deliverance from chains. the hearing of those wild notes always depressed my spirits, and filled my heart with ineffable sadness. the mere recurrence, even now, afflicts my spirit, and while i am writing these lines, my tears are falling. to those songs i trace my first glimmering conceptions of the dehumanizing character of slavery. i can never get rid of that conception. those songs still follow me, to deepen my hatred of slavery, and quicken my sympathies for my brethren in bonds. if any one wishes to be impressed with a sense of the soul killing power of slavery, let him go to col. lloyd's plantation, and, on allowance day, place himself in the deep, pine woods, and there let him, in silence, thoughtfully analyze the sounds that shall pass through the chambers of his soul, and if he is not thus impressed, it will only be because 'there is no flesh in his obdurate heart.'"†this passage, concluding with a quotation from line 8 of william cowper's "the time piece," appeared in douglass's narrative. william cowper, the poems of william cowper, ed. j. c. bailey (london, 1905), 267; douglass papers, ser. 2, 1:20 21. the remark is not unfrequently made, that slaws are the most contented and happy laborers in the world. they dance and sing, and make all manner of joyful noises so they do; but it is a great mistake to suppose them happy because they sing. the songs of the slave represent the sorrows, rather than the joys, of his heart; and he is relieved by them, only as an aching heart is relieved by its tears. such is the constitution of the human mind, that, when pressed to extremes, it often avails itself of the most opposite methods. extremes meet in mind as in matter. when the slaves on board of the "pearl"†in mid april 1848 seventy seven slaves from the district of columbia tried unsuccessfully to reach freedom on board the schooner pearl, a small coasting vessel manned by captain edward sayres and chester english, a sailor and cook. directing the attempted escape was supercargo daniel drayton of philadelphia, himself a seasoned captain in the coasting trade who had collaborated in previous slave rescues. arriving in washington on 13 april, the pearl surreptitiously took the black fugitives on board two nights later and started down the potomac, only to be halted hy high winds at the entrance to chesapeake bay. alarmed slaveholders, aided by a negro informant, gave pursuit and captured the anchored vessel in the predawn hours of 17 april. the following morning the bound and shackled prisoners were returned to washington. an angry mob gathered at the district of columbia jail threatening to lynch drayton and sayres, while a second mob attacked the office of the national era, gamaliel bailey's antislavery newspaper. the pearl incident generated considerable sympathy and indignation in abolitionist circles, yet public outcries failed to save either the slaves or their white rescuers from a harsh fate. most of the pearl fugitives were sold south. chester english received immunity from prosecution in exchange for his testimony. after lengthy court battles in which each was convicted on numerous counts of assisting in the escape of slaves, drayton and sayres were sentenced to heavy fines and imprisonment in the washington jail before receiving a presidential pardon from millard fillmore in 1852. lib., 21, 28 april, 5 may 1848; ns, 28 april, 5 may, 23 june 1848: fdp, 10 september 1852; daniel drayton, personal memoir of daniel drayton, for four years and four months a prisoner (for charity's sake) in washington jail: including a narrative of the voyage and capture of the schooner pearl (boston, 1855), 20 122; stanley harrold, the abolitionists and the soulth, 1831 1861 (lexington, ky., 1995), 70, 154 55; john h. painter, "the fugitives of the pearl," jnh, 1:243 64 (june 1916). were overtaken, arrested. and carried to prison their hopes for freedom blasted as they marched in chains they sang, and found (as emily edmunson†emily edmondson was born a slave in the washington, d.c., area sometime in the early nineteenth century and was usually hired out to local households. in 1848 she and most of the rest of her large family numbered among the seventy seven washington area slaves who unsuccessfully attempted to escape slavery on the pearl, a ship commanded by the antislavery captain daniel drayton. most of the slaves were sold as punishment into the deep south, and the edmondsons were moved to new orleans for sale there. the fortuitous discover of her recently freed brother, hamilton, in new orleans, however, led to the return of most of the emondsons to baltimore, where they hoped money could he raised to purchase their freedom. their father in new york, who had bought his freedom at forty two, labored relentlessly to raise the money and finally won the support of the famed minister henry ward beecher, whose wealthy congregation combined to raise the $2,250 needed to purchase emily and her sister mary. eventually most of the other edmondsons were also acquired. the two sisters became popular singers at abolitionist rallies. harriet beecher stowe also underwrote a further year of study for emily at oberlin college. in 1853 emily moved to washington d.c., married, and began assisting myrtilla miner, a white teacher, at her controversial normal school for colored girls. catherine m. hanchett, " 'what sort of people and families . . . ': the edmondson sisters," afro americans in new york life and history, 6:21 37 (july 1982); paynter, "fugitives of the pearl." tells us) a melancholy relief in singing. the singing of a man cast away on a desolate island, might be as appropriately considered an evidence of his contentment and happiness, as the singing of a slave. sorrow and desolation have their songs, as well as joy and peace. slaves sing more to make themselves happy, than to express their happiness. it is the boast of slaveholders, that their slaves enjoy more of the physical comforts of life than the peasantry of any country in the world. my experience contradicts this. the men and the women slaves on col. lloyd's farm, received, as their monthly allowance of food, eight pounds of pickled pork, or their equivalent in fish. the pork was often tainted, and the fish was of the poorest quality herrings, which would bring very little if offered for sale in any northern market. with their pork or fish, they had one bushel of indian meal unbolted†bolting was the art of sifting the ground cornmeal, passing it through a sieve or bolting cloth. unbolted meal was therefore unsifted. of which quite fifteen per cent†emendation note: per cent ] was fit only to feed pigs. with this, one pint of salt was given; and this was the entire monthly allowance of a full grown slave, working constantly in the open field, from morning until night, every day in the month except sunday, and living on a fraction more than a quarter of a pound of meat per day, and less than a peck of corn meal per week. there is no kind of work that a man can do which requires a better supply of food to prevent physical exhaustion, than the field work of a slave. so much for the slave's allowance of food; now for his raiment. the yearly allowance of clothing for the slaves on this plantation, consisted of two tow linen shirts such linen as the coarsest crash†a coarse kind of linen; also the name of a tint in textile fabrics, the color of unbleached cotton. towels are made of; one pair of trowsers of the same material, for summer, and a pair of trowsers and a jacket of woolen, most slazily put together, for winter; one pair of yarn stockings, and one pair of shoes of the coarsest description. the slave's entire apparel could not have cost more than eight dollars per year. the allowance of food and clothing for the little children, was committed to their mothers, or to the older slavewomen having the care of them. children who were unable to work in the field, had neither shoes, stockings, jackets nor trowsers given them. their clothing consisted of two coarse tow linen shirts already described per year; and when these failed them. as they often did, they went naked until the next allowance day. flocks of little children from five to ten years old, might he seen on col. lloyd's plantation, as destitute of clothing as any little heathen on the west coast of africa; and this, not merely during the summer months, but during the frosty weather of march. the little girls were no better off than the boys; all were nearly in a state of nudity. as to beds to sleep on, they were known to none of the field hands; nothing but a coarse blanket not so good as those used in the north to cover horses was given them, and this only to the men and women. the children stuck themselves in holes and corners, about the quarters; often in the corner of the huge chimneys; with their feet in the ashes to keep them warm. the want of beds, however. was not considered a very great privation. time to sleep was of far greater importance, for, when the day's work is done, most of the slaves have their washing, mending and cooking to do; and, having few or none of the ordinary facilities for doing such things, very many of their sleeping hours are consumed in necessary preparations for the duties of the coming day. the sleeping apartments if they may be called such have little regard to comfort or decency. old and young, male and female, married and single, drop down upon the common clay floor, each covering up with his or her blanket, the only protection they have from cold or exposure. the night, however, is shortened at both ends. the slaves work often as long as they can see, and are late in cooking and mending for the coming day; and, at the first gray streak of morning, they are summoned to the field by the driver's horn. more slaves are whipped for oversleeping than for any other fault. neither age nor sex finds any favor. the overseer stands at the quarter door, armed with stick and cowskin, ready to whip any who may be a few minutes behind time. when the horn is blown, there is a rush for the door, and the hndermost one is sure to get a blow from the overseer. young mothers who worked in the field, were allowed an hour, about ten o'clock in the morning , to go home to nurse their children. sometimes they were compelled to take their children with them, and to leave them in the corner of the fences, to prevent loss of time in nursing them. the overseer generally rides about the field on horseback. a cowskin and a hickory stick are his constant companions. the cowskin is a kind of whip seldom seen in the northern states. it is made entirely of untanned, but dried, ox hide, and is about as hard as a piece of well seasoned live oak. it is made of various sizes, but the usual length is about three feet. the part held in the hand is nearly an inch in thickness; and, from the extreme end of the butt or handle, the cowskin tapers its whole length to a point. this makes it quite elastic and springy. a blow with it, on the hardest back, will gash the flesh, and make the blood start. cowskins are painted red, blue and green, and are the favorite slave whip. i think this whip worse than the "cat o' nine tails." it condenses the whole strength of the arm to a single point, and comes with a spring that makes the air whistle. it is a terrible instrument, and is so handy, that the overseer can always have it on his person, and ready for use. the temptation to use it is ever strong; and an overseer can, if disposed, always have cause for using it. with him, it is literally a word and a blow, and, in most cases, the blow comes first. as a general rule, slaves do not come to the quarters for either breakfast or dinner, but take their "ash cake"†a cake baked under the ashes of a fire. with them, and eat it in the field. this was so on the home plantation; probably, because the distance from the quarter to the field, was sometimes two, and even three miles. the dinner of the slaves consisted of a huge piece of ash cake, and a small piece of pork, or two salt herrings. not having ovens, nor any suitable cooking utensils, the slaves mixed their meal with a little water, to such thickness that a spoon would stand erect in it; and, after the wood had burned away to coals and ashes, they would place the dough between oak leaves and lay it carefully in the ashes, completely covering it; hence, the bread is called ash cake. the surface of this peculiar bread is covered with ashes, to the depth of a sixteenth part of an inch, and the ashes, certainly, do not make it very grateful to the teeth, nor render it very palatable. the bran, or coarse part of the meal, is baked with the fine, and bright scales run through the brcad. this bread, with its ashes and bran, would disgust and choke a northern man, but it is quite liked by the slaves. they eat it with avidity, and are more concerned ahout the quantity than about the quality. they arc far too scantily provided for, and are worked too steadily, to be much concerned for the quality of their food. the few minutes allowed them at dinner time, after partaking of their coarse repast, are variously spent. some lie down on the "turning row,"†the unplanted end of a cultivated furrow where horse or mule and plow make their turn to go hack up a new row. and go to sleep; others draw together, and talk; and others are at work with needle and thread, mending their tattered garments. sometimes you may hear a wild, hoarse laugh arise from a circle, and often a song. soon, however, the overseer comes dashing through the field. ", and to ," is the cry; and, now, from twelve o'clock (mid day) till dark, the human cattle are in motion, wielding their clumsy hoes;†textual note: in this context, the intended word is undoubtedly "hoes." the stem of the "h" is missing in all examined texts. emendation note: hoes] noes. hurried on by no hope of reward, no sense of gratitude, no love of children, no prospect of bettering their condition; nothing, save the dread and terror of the slave driver's lash. so goes one day, and so comes and goes another. but, let us now leave the rough usage of the field, where vulgar coarseness and brutal cruelty spread themselves and flourish, rank as weeds in the tropics; where a vile wretch, in the shape of a man, rides, walks, or struts about, dealing blows, and leaving gashes on broken  spirited men and helpless women, for thirty dollars per month a business so horrible, hardening, and disgraceful, that, rather than engage in it, a decent man would blow his own brains out and let the reader view with me the equally wicked, but less repulsive aspects of slave life; where pride and pomp roll luxuriously at case; where the toil of a thousand men supports a single family in easy idleness and sin. this is the great house; it is the home of the lloyds! some idea of its splendor has already been given and, it is here that we shall find that height of luxury which is the opposite of that depth of poverty and physical wretchedness that we have just now been contemplating. but, there is this difference in the two extremes; viz: that in the case of the slave, the miseries and hardships of his lot are imposed by others, and, in the master's case, they are imposed by himself. the slave is a subject, subjected by others; the slaveholder is a subject, but he is the author of his own subjection. there is more truth in the saying, that slavery is a greater evil to the master than to the slave, than many, who utter it, suppose. the self executing laws of eternal justice follow close on the heels of the evil doer here, as well as elsewhere; making escape from all its penalties impossible. but, let others philosophize; it is my province here to relate and describe; only allowing myself a word or two, occasionally, to assist the reader in the proper understanding of the facts narrated. chapter vii. life in the great house. comforts and luxuries elaborate expenditure house servants men servants and maid servants appearances slave aristocracy stable and carriage house boundless hospitality fragrance of rich dishes the deceptive character of slavery slaves seem happy slaves and slaveholders alike wretched fretful discontent of slaveholders fault finding old barney his profession whipping humiliating spectacle case exceptional william wilks supposed son of col. lloyd curious incident slaves prefer rich masters to poor ones. the close fisted stinginess that fed the poor slave on coarse corn meal and tainted meat; that clothed him in crashy tow linen, and hurried him on to toil through the field, in all weather, with wind and rain beating through his tattered garments; that scarcely gave even the young slave mother time to nurse her hungry infant in the fence corner; wholly vanishes on approaching the sacred precincts of the great house, the home of the lloyds. there the scriptural phrase finds an exact illustration; the highly favored inmates of this mansion are literally arrayed "in purple and fine linen,"†luke 16:19. and fare sumptuously every day! the table groans under the heavy and blood bought luxuries gathered with pains taking care, at home and abroad. fields, forests, rivers and seas, are made tributary here. immense wealth, and its lavish expenditure, fill the great house with all that can please the eye, or tempt the taste. here, appetite, not food, is the great .†something for which a desire or longing is felt: something wanting and required or desired. fish, flesh and fowl, are here in profusion. chickens, of all breeds; ducks, of all kinds, wild and tame, the common, and the huge muscovite;†a greenish black goose like duck having heavy red wattles. guinea fowls,†any of several common african birds of the family numididea. several types of guinea fowl have been domesticated and raised for flesh and eggs. the most common variety has a bony casque on its head, and dark gray plumage spotted with white. turkeys, geese, and pea fowls,†a peacock or peahen. are in their several pens, fat and fatting for the destined vortex. the graceful swan, the mongrels, the blacknecked wild goose; partridges, quails, pheasants and pigeons; choice water fowl, with all their strange varieties, are caught in this huge family net. beef, veal, mutton and venison, of the most select kinds and quality, roll bounteously to this grand consumer. the teeming riches of the chesapeake bay, its rock,†a fish that is a variety of the true cod. perch, drums,†a name of various american sciaenoird fishes that have the power of making a drumming noise. crocus,†a freshwater drum fish. trout, oysters, crabs, and terrapin,†any of the various edible north american turtles living in fresh or brackish water. are drawn hither to adorn the glittering table of the great house. the dairy, too, probably the finest on the eastern shore of maryland supplied by cattle of the best english stock, imported for the purpose, pours its rich donations of fragrant cheese, golden butter, and delicious cream, to heighten the attraction of the gorgeous, unending round of feasting. nor are the fruits of the earth forgotten or neglected. the fertile garden, many acres in size, constituting a separate cstahlishment, distinct from the common farm  with its scientific gardener, imported from scotland, (a mr. mcdermott,)†in 1824 aaron anthony hired william mcderrnott to work for edward lloyd v. mcdermott lived and ate at anthony's house at least through the spring of 1825. aaron anthony ledger a, 1790 1818, folder 94, 42 43, dodge collection, mdaa. with four men under his direction, was not behind, either in the abundance or in the delicacy of its contributions to the same full board. the tender asparagus, the succulent celery, and the delicate cauliflower; egg plants, beets, lettuce, parsnips. peas, and french beans,†a bean of which the whole young pod is eaten. early and late; radishes, cantelopes, melons of all kinds; the fruits and flowers of all climes and of all descriptions. from the hardy apple of the north, to the lemon and orange of the south, culminated at this point. baltimore gathered figs, raisins, almonds and juicy grapes from spain. wines and brandies from france; teas of various flavor, from china; and rich, aromatic coffee from java, all conspired to swell the tide of high life, where pride and indolence rolled and lounged in magnificence and satiety. behind the tall backed and elaborately wrought chairs, stand the servants, men and maidens fifteen in number discriminately selected, not only with a view to their industry and faithfulness, but with special regard to their personal appearance, their graceful agility and captivating address. some of these are armed with fans, and are fanning reviving breezes toward the over heated brows of the alabaster ladies; others watch with eager eye, and with fawn like step anticipate and supply, wants before they are sufficiently formed to be announced by word or sign. these servants constituted a sort of black aristocracy on col. lloyd's plantation. they resembled the field hands in nothing, except in color, and in this they held the advantage of a velvet like glossiness, rich and beautiful the hair, too, showed the same advantage. the delicate colored maid rustled in the scarcely worn silk of her young mistress, while the servant men were equally well attired from the overflowing wardrobe of their young masters; so that, in dress, as well as in form and feature, in manner and speech, in tastes and habits, the distance between these favored few, and the sorrow and hunger smitten multitudes of the quarter and the field, was immense; and this is seldom passed over. let us now glance at the stables and the carriage house, and we shall find the same evidences of pride and luxurious extravagance. here are three splendid coaches, soft within and lustrous without. here, too, are gigs, phaetons, barouches, sulkeys†a gig is a light two wheeled one horse carriage. a phaeton is a species of four wheeled open carriage, of light construction , usually with two seats facing forward. a barouche is a four wheeled carriage with a half head behind that can be raised or let down at pleasure, having a seat in the front for the driver, and seats inside facing each other. a sulky is a light two wheeled carriage or chaise, seated for one person. and sleighs. here are saddles and harnesses beautifully wrought and silver mounted kept with every care. in the stable you will find, kept only for pleasure, full thirty five horses, of the most approved blood for speed and beauty. there are two men here constantly employed in taking care of these horses. one of these men must be always in the stable, to answer every call from the great house. over the way from the stable, is a house built expressly for the hounds a pack of twenty five or thirty whose fare would have made glad the heart of a dozen slaves. horses and hounds are not the only consumers of the slave's toil. there was practiced, at the lloyd's, a hospitality which would have astonished and charmed any health seeking northern divine or merchant, who might have chanced to share it. viewed from his own table, and not from the field, the colonel was a model of generous hospitality. his house was, literally, a hotel, for weeks during the summer months. at these times, especially, the air was freighted with the rich fumes of baking, boiling, roasting and broiling. the odors i shared with the winds, but the meats were under a more stringent monopoly except that, occasionally, i got a cake from mas ' daniel. in mas ' daniel i had a friend at court, from whom i learned many things which my eager curiosity was excited to know. i always knew when company was expected, and who they were, although i was an outsider, being the property, not of col. lloyd, but of a servant of the wealthy colonel. on these occasions, all that pride. taste and money could do, to dazzle and charm, was done. who could say that the servants of col. lloyd were not well clad and cared for, after witnessing one of his magnificent entertainments? who could say that they did not seem to glory in being the slaves of such a master? who, but a fanatic, could get up any sympathy for persons whose every movement was agile, easy and graceful, and who evinced a consciousness of high superiority? and who would ever venture to suspect that col. lloyd was subject to the troubles of ordinary mortals? master and slave seem alike in their glory here? can it all be seeming'? alas! it may only be a sham at last! this immense wealth; this gilded splendor; this profusion of luxury; this exemption from toil; this life of ease; this sea of plenty; aye, what of it all? are the pearly gates of happiness and sweet content flung open to such suitors? the poor slave, on his hard, pine plank, but scantily covered with his thin blanket, sleeps more soundly than the feverish voluptuary who reclines upon his feather bed and downy pillow. food, to the indolent lounger, is poison, not sustenance. lurking beneath all their dishes, are invisible spirits of evil, ready to feed the self deluded gormandizers with aches, pains, fierce temper, uncontrolled passions, dyspepsia,†a generic term in the nineteenth century for disorders of the digestive organs, especially the stomach, usually involving weakness, loss of appetite, and depression of spirits. rheumatism, lumbago†a rheumatic affection in the lumbar region. and gout;†a usually hereditary disease, occurring mainly in male subjects; characterized by painful inflammation of the smaller joints that often spreads to the larger joints and the internal organs. and of these the lloyds got their full share. to the pampered love of ease, there is no resting place. what is pleasant to day, is repulsive to morrow; what is soft now, is hard at another time; what is sweet in the morning, is bitter in the evening. neither to the wicked, nor to the idler, is there any solid peace: "."† this phrase and the preceding prose are perhaps inspired by isaiah 57, verses 20 21 in particular. i had excellent opportunities of witnessing the restless discontent and the capricious irritation of the lloyds. my fondness for horses not peculiar to me more than to other boys attracted me, much of the time, to the stables. this establishment was especially under the care of "old" and "young" barney†old barney was barnett sampson (c. 1768 ?). he was owned by edward lloyd v and was the father of young barney, barnett bentley (c. 1810 ?). he was listed as fifty five years old in january 1824. return book, 1 january 1824, land papers maintenance of property, land volume 39, reel 10, lloyd family papers, mdhi. father and son. old barney was a fine looking old man, of a brownish complexion, who was quite portly, and wore a dignified aspect for a slave. he was, evidently, much devoted to his profession, and held his office an honorable one. he was a farrier†one who both shoes horses and treats their ailments. as well as an ostler;†variant of hostler, one who attends horses at an inn; a stableman, a groom. he could bleed, remove lampers†lamers, or lampas, is an equine disease that manifests as a congestion of the mucous membrane in the hard palate of the mouth. from the mouths of the horses, and was well instructed in horse medicines. no one on the farm knew, so well as old barney, what to do with a sick horse. but his gifts and acquirements were of little advantage to him. his office was by no means an enviable one. he often got presents, but he got stripes as well; for in nothing was col. lloyd more unreasonable and exacting, than in respect to the management of his pleasure horses. any supposed inattention to these animals was sure to be visited with degrading punishment. his horses and dogs fared better than his men. their beds must he softer and cleaner than those of his human cattle. no excuse could shield old barney, if the colonel only suspected something wrong ahout his horses; and, consequently, he was often punished when faultless. it was absolutely painful to listen to the many unreasonable and fretful scoldings, poured out at the stable, by col. lloyd, his sons and sons in law. of the latter, he had three messrs. nicholson, winder and lownes.†joseph nicholson. edward s. winder, and charles lowndes. these all livcd at the great house a portion of the year, and enjoyed the luxury of whipping the servants when they pleased, which was by no means unfrequently. a horse was seldom brought out of the stable to which no objection could be raised. "there was dust in his hai;:" "there was a twist in his reins;" "his mane did not lie straight;" "he had not been properly grained;" " his head did not look well;" "his fore top was not combed out;" "his fetlocks had not been properly trimmed;" something was always wrong. listening to complaints, however groundless, barney must stand, hat in hand, lips sealed, never answering a word. he must make no reply, no explanation; the judgment of the master must be deemed infallible, for his power is absolute and irresponsible. in a free state, a master, thus complaining without cause, of his ostler. might be told "sir, i am sorry i cannot please you, but, since i have done the best i can, your remedy is to dismiss me." here, however, the ostler must stand, listen and tremble. one of the most heart saddening and humiliating scenes i ever witnessed, was the whipping of old barney, by col. lloyd himself. here were two men, both advanced in years; there were the silvery locks of col. l., and there was the bald and toil worn brow of old barney; master and slave; superior and inferior here, but equals at the bar of god; and, in the common course of events, they must both soon meet in another world, in a world where all distinction, except those based on obedience and disobedience, are blotted out forever. "uncover your head!" said the imperious master; he was obeyed. "take off your jacket, you old rascal," and off came barney's jacket. "down on your knees!" down knelt the old man, his shoulders bare, his bald head glistening in the sun, and his aged knees on the cold, damp ground. in this humble and debasing attitude, the master that master to whom he had given the best years and the best strength of his life came forward, and laid on thirty lashes, with his horse whip. the old man bore it patiently, to the last, answering each blow with a slight shrug of the shoulders, and a groan. i cannot think that col. lloyd succeeded in marring the flesh of old barney very seriously, for the whip was a light, riding whip: but the spectacle of an aged man a husband and a father humbly kneeling before a worm of the dust, surprised and shocked me at the time; and since i have grown old enough to think on the wickedness of slavery, few facts have been of more value to me than this, to which i was a witness. it reveals slavery in its true color, and in its maturity of repulsive hatefulness. i owe it to truth, however, to say, that this was the first and the last time i ever saw old barney, or any other slave, compelled to kneel to receive a whipping. i saw, at the stable, another incident, which i will relate, as it is illustrative of a phase of slavery to which i have already referred in another connection. besides two other coachmen, col. lloyd owned one named william, who, strangely enough, was often called by his surname, wilks,†william wilks (c. 1791 ?) was a slave of edward lloyd v. sometime in the first half of the 1830s he purchased his freedom and moved to baltimore, where he worked as a general laborer and resided on lexington street, east of park street. return book, 1 january 1824, land papers maintenance of property, land volume 39, reel 10, lloyd family papers, mdhi; matchett's balti more director[y] . . . 1835 6 (baltimore, 1835), 275; matchett's baltimore direc ror[y] . . . 1837 8 (baltimore, 1837), 472. by white and colored people on the home plantation. wilks was a very fine looking man. he was about as white as anybody on the plantation; and in manliness of form, and comeliness of features, he bore a very striking resemblance to mr. murray lloyd. it was whispered, and pretty generally admitted as a fact, that william wilks was a son of col. lloyd, by a highly favored slave woman, who was still on the plantation. there were many reasons for believing this whisper, not only in william's appearance, but in the undeniable freedom which he enjoyed over all others, and his apparent consciousness of being something more than a slave to his master. it was notorious, too, that william had a deadly enemy in murray lloyd, whom he so much resembled, and that the latter greatly worried his father with importunities to sell william. indeed. he gave his father no rest until he did sell him, to austin woldfolk,†austin woolfolk of augusta, georgia, became a slave trader serving the southwest, which rapidly expanded following the battle of new orleans in 1815. he settled in baltimore in 1819 to avail himself of both the large surplus slave population in the state and the excellent shipping facilities that the port afforded. during the 1820s he lived on pratt street to the west of the city's commercial center. woolfolk's business prospered as he sent agents throughout maryland ready to pay high prices in cash for young black males. he annually transported from 230 and 460 slaves to markets in new orleans, many of them having been purchased from planters on the eastern shore. in the 1830s, however, woolfolk's business declined as a result of increased competition from larger firms, a decrease in the number of slaves for sale owing to manumissions and owner emigrations, and the heightened opposition of marylanders to the interstate slave trade. preston, young frederick douglass, 50, 58, 76 80, 96, 102; william calderhead, "the role of the professional slave trader in a slave economy: austin woolfolk , a case study," civil war history, 23:195 211 (september 1977). the great slave trader at that time. before selling him, however, mr. l. tried what giving william a whipping would do, toward making things smooth; but this was a failure. it was a compromise, and defeated itself; for, immediately after the infliction, the heart sickened colonel atoned to william for the abuse, by giving him a gold watch and chain. another fact, somewhat curious, is, that though sold to the remorseless , taken in irons to baltimore and cast into prison, with a view to being driven to the south, william, by means always a mystery to me outbid all his purchasers, paid for himself, , a freeman. ls there not room to suspect, that, as the gold watch was presented to atone for the whipping, a purse of gold was given him by the same hand, with which to effect his purchase, as an atonement for the indignity involved in selling his own flesh and blood. all the circumstances of william, on the great house farm, show him to have occupied a different position from the other slaves and, certainly, there is nothing in the supposed hostility of slaveholders to amalgamation, to forbid the supposition that william wilks was the son of edward lloyd. amalgamation is common in every neighborhood where i have been in slavery. col. lloyd was not in the way of knowing much of the real opinions and feelings of his slaves respecting him. the distance between him and them was far too great to admit of such knowledge. his slaves were so numerous, that he did not know them when he saw them. nor, indeed, did all his slaves know him. in this respect, he was inconveniently rich. it is reported of him, that, while riding along the road one day, he met a colored man, and addressed†emendation note: addressed] addresssed. him in the usual way of speaking to colored people on the public highways of the south: "well, boy, who do you belong to?" 'to col. lloyd," replied the slave. "well, does the colonel treat you well?" "no, sir," was the ready reply. "what! does he work you too hard?" "yes, sir." "well, don't he give enough to eat?" "yes, sir, he gives me enough, such as it is." the colonel, after ascertaining where the slave belonged, rode on; the slave also went on about his business, not dreaming that he had been conversing with his master. he thought, said and heard nothing more of the matter, until two or three weeks afterwards. the poor man was then informed by his overseer. that, for having found fault with his master, he was now to be sold to a georgia trader. he was immediately chained and handcuffed; and thus, without a moment's warning he was snatched away, and forever sundered from his family and friends, by a hand more unrelenting than that of death. is the penalty of telling the simple truth, in answer to a series of plain questions. it is partly in consequence of such facts, that slaves, when inquired of as to their condition and the character of their masters, almost invariably say they are contented, and that their masters are kind. slaveholders have been known to send spies among their slaves, to ascertain, if possible, their views and feelings in regard to their condition. the frequency of this has had the effect to establish among the slaves the maxim, that a still tongue makes a wise head. they suppress the truth rather than take the consequence of telling it, and, in so doing, they prove themselves a part of the human family. if they have anything to say of their master, it is, generally, something in his favor, especially when speaking to strangers. i was frequently asked, while a slave, if i had a kind master, and i do not remember ever to have given a negative reply. nor did i, when pursuing this course, consider myself as uttering what was utterly false; for i always measured the kindness of my master by the standard of kindness set up by slaveholders around us. however, slaves are like other people, and imbibe similar prejudices. they are apt to think better than that of others. many, under the influence of this prejudice, think their own masters are better than the masters of other slaves; and this, too, in some cases, when the very reverse is true. indeed, it is not uncommon for slaves even to fall out and quarrel among themselves about the relative kindness of their masters, each contending for the superior goodness of his own over that of others. at the very same time, they mutually execrate their masters. when viewed separately. it was so on our plantation. when col. lloyd's slaves met those of jacob jepson,†jacob gibson. they seldom parted without a quarrel about their masters; col. lloyd's slaves contending that he was the richest, and mr. jepson's slaves that he was the smartest, man of the two. col. lloyd's slaves would boast his ability to buy and sell jacob jepson; mr. jepson's slaves would boast his ability to whip col. lloyd. these quarrels would almost always end in a fight between the parties; those that beat were supposed to have gained the point at issue. they seemed to think that the greatness of their masters was transferable to themselves. to be a slave, was thought to be bad enough; but to be a s slave, was deemed a disgrace, indeed. chapter viii. a chapter of horrors. austin gore a sketch of his character overseers as a class their peculiar characteristics the marked individuality of austin gore his sense of duty how he whipped murder of poor denby how it occurred sensation how gore made peace with col. lloyd the murder unpunished  nother dreadful murder narrated no laws for the protection of slaves can be enforced in the southern states. as i have already intimated elsewhere, the slaves on col. lloyd's plantation, whose hard lot, under mr. sevier, the reader has already noticed and deplored, were not permitted to enjoy the comparatively moderate rule of mr. hopkins. the latter was succeeded by a very different man. the name of the new overseer was austin gore. upon this individual, i would fix particular attention; for under his rule there was more suffering from violence and bloodshed than had according to the older slaves ever been experienced before this plantation. i confess. i hardly know how to bring this man fitly before the reader. he was, it is true, an overseer, and possessed, to a large extent, the peculiar characteristics of his class; yet, to call him merely an overseer, would not give the reader a fair notion of the man. i speak of overseers as a class. they are such. they are as distinct from the slaveholding gentry of the south, as are the fish women of paris, and the coal heavers of london, distinct from other members of society. they constitute a separate fraternity at the south, not less marked than is the fraternity of park lane bullies in new york.†douglass could be referring to park street, named for columbus park, which is bounded by baxter, bayard, mulberry, and park streets. this area of the bowery was a nineteenth century tenement neighborhood. gangs in the area, such as the bowery boys, the atlantic guards, and the true blue americans, were organized by neighborhood youth and would fiercely defend their "territory." certain gangs were attached to fire companies, and others were active in city politics. gang membership offered a sense of identity, a promise of physical protection, fellowship, and a measure of self worth in working class society, where industrialization was undermining traditional artisanal measures of status. henry moscow, the street book: an encyclopedia of manhattan's street names and their origins (new york, 1978), 82; edwin g. burrows and mike wallace, gotham: a history of new york city to 1898 (new york, 1999), 633 35. they have been arranged and classified by that great law of attraction, which determines the spheres and affinities of men; which ordains, that men, whose malign and brutal propensities predominate over their moral and intellectual endowments, shall, naturally, fall into those employments which promise the largest gratification to those predominating instincts or propensities. the office of overseer takes this raw material of vulgarity and brutality, and stamps it as a distinct class of southern society. but, in this class, as in all other classes, there are characters of marked individuality, even while they bear a general resemblance to the mass. mr. gore was one of those, to whom a general characterization would do no manner of justice. he was an overseer; but he was something more. with the malign and tyrannical qualities of an overseer, he combined something of the lawful master. he had the artfulness and the mean ambition of his class; but he was wholly free from the disgusting swagger and noisy bravado of his fraternity. there was an easy air of independence about him; a calm self possession, and a sternness of glance, which might well daunt hearts less timid than those of poor slaves, accustomed from childhood and through life to cower before a driver's lash. the home plantation of col. lloyd afforded an ample field for the exercise of the qualifications for overseership, which he possessed in such an eminent degree. mr. gore was one of those overseers, who could torture the slightest word or look into impudence; he had the nerve, not only to resent, but to punish, promptly and severely. he never allowed himself to be answered back, by a slave. in this, he was as lordly and as imperious as col. edward lloyd, himself; acting always up to the maxim, practically maintained by slaveholders, that it is better that a dozen slaves suffer under the lash, without fault, than that the master or the overseer should seem to have been wrong in the presence of the slave. . guilty or not guilty, it is enough to be accused, to be sure of a flogging. the very presence of this man gore was painful, and i shunned him as i would have shunned a rattlesnake. his piercing, black eyes, and sharp, shrill voice, ever awakened sensations of terror among the slaves. for so young a man, (i describe him as he was twenty five or thirty years ago) mr. gore was singularly reserved and grave in the presence of slaves. he indulged in no jokes, said no funny things, and kept his own counsels. other overseers, how brutal soever they might be, were, at times, inclined to gain favor with the slaves, by indulging a little pleasantry; but gore was never known to be guilty of any such weakness. he was always the cold, distant, unapproachable of col. edward lloyd's plantation, and needed no higher pleasure than was involved in a faithful discharge of the duties of his office. when he whipped, he seemed to do so from a sense of duty, and feared no consequences. what hopkins did reluctantly, gore did with alacrity. there was a stern will, an iron like reality, about this gore. which would have easily made him the chief of a band of pirates, had his environments been favorable to such a course of life. all the coolness, savage barbarity and freedom from moral restraint, which are necessary in the character of a pirate chief, centered, i think, in this man gore. among many other deeds of shocking cruelty which he perpetrated, while i was at mr. lloyd's, was the murder of a young colored man, named denby. he was sometimes called bill denby, or demby;†bill demby (c. 1802 22) lived with twenty two other slaves, including his family, on davis's farm, one of several talbot county plantations owned by edward lloyd v. plantation records indicate that demby, a prime field hand, died sometime during the year 1822. return book, 1 january 1822, 1 january 1823, land papers maintenance of property, land volume 39, reel 10, lloyd family papers, mdhi; preston, young frederick douglass, 72 73, 213n10. ( i write from sound, and the sounds on lloyd's plantation are not very certain.) i knew him well. he was a powerful young man, full of animal spirits, and, so far as i know, he was among the most valuable of col. lloyd's slaves. in something i know not what he offended this mr. austin gore, and, in accordance with the custom of the latter, he undertook to flog him. he gave denby but few stripes; the latter broke away from him and plunged into the creek, and, standing there to the depth of his neck in water, he refused to come out at the order of the overseer; whereupon, for this refusal, it is said that gore gave denby three calls, telling him that if he did not obey the last call, he would shoot him. when the third call was given. denby stood his ground firmly; and this raised the question, in the minds of the by standing slaves "will he dare to shoot?'" mr. gore, without further parley, and without making any further effort to induce denby to come out of the water, raised his gun deliherately to his face, took deadly aim at his standing victim, and, in an instant, poor denby was numbered with the dead. his mangled body sank out of sight, and only his warm, red blood marked the place where he had stood. this devilish outrage, this fiendish murder, produced, as it was well calculated to do, a tremendous sensation. a thrill of horror flashed through every soul on the plantation, if i may except the guilty wretch who had committed the hell black deed. while the slaves generally were panic struck. and howling with alarm, the murderer himself was calm and collected, and appeared as though nothing unusual had happened. the atrocity roused my old master, and he spoke out, in reprobation of it; but the whole thing proved to be less than a nine days' wonder.†n event that attracts much attention for a few days and then is forgotten. brewer, brewer's dictionary of phrase & fable, 779. both col. lloyd and my old master arraigned gore for his cruelty in the matter, but this amounted to nothing. his reply, or explanation as i remember to have heard it at the time was, that the extraordinary expedient was demanded by necessity; that denby had become unmanageable; that he had set a dangerous example to the other slaves; and that. without some such prompt measure as that to which he had resorted, were adopted, there would be an end to all rule and order on the plantation. that very convenient covert for all manner of cruelty and outrage that cowardly alarm cry, that the slaves would "," was pleaded, in extenuation of this revolting crime, just as it had been cited in defense of a thousand similar ones. he argued, that if one slave refused to be corrected, and was allowed to escape with his life, when he had been told that he should lose it if he persisted in his course, the other slaves would soon copy his example; the result of which would be, the freedom of the slaves, and the enslavement of the whites. i have every reason to believe that mr. gore's defense, or explanation, was deemed satisfactory at least to col. lloyd. he was continued in his office on the plantation. his fame as an overseer went abroad, and his horrid crime was not even submitted to judicial investigation. the murder was committed in the presence of slaves, and they, of course, could neither institute a suit, nor testify against the murderer. his bare word would go further in a court of law, than the united testimony of ten thousand black witnesses. all that mr. gore had to do, was to make his peace with col. lloyd. this done, and the guilty perpetrator of one of the most foul murders goes unwhipped of justice, and uncensured by the community in which he lives. mr. gore lived in st. michael's, talbot county, when i left maryland; if he is still alive he probably yet resides there; and i have no reason to doubt that he is now as highly esteemed, and as greatly respected, as though his guilty soul had never been stained with innocent blood. i am well aware that what i have now written will by some be branded as false and malicious. it will be denied, not only that such a thing ever did transpire, as i have now narrated, but that such a thing could happen in maryland i can only say believe it or not that i have said nothing but the literal truth, gainsay it who may. i speak advisedly when i say this, that killing a slave, or any colored person, in talbot county, maryland, is not treated as a crime, either by the courts or the community. mr thomas lanman,†thomas h. w. lambdin (c. 1807 ?) had labored at a number of trades by 1850, including ship's carpenter, schoolteacher, town bailiff for st. michaels (1848) and miller (1850). in 1850 he was married, had five young children, and owned real estate valued at one thousand dollars. in a rebuttal to douglass's negative characterization, a maryland friend described lambdin as "too good natured and harmless to injure any person but himself." a. c. c. thompson, "to the public falsehood refuted," reprinted in nass, 25 november 1845, and in lib., 12 december 1845; tilghman, talbot county, 2:395. ship carpenter, of st. michael's, killed two slaves, one of whom he butchered with a hatchet, by knocking his brains out. he used to boast of the commission of the awful and bloody deed. i have heard him do so, laughingly, saying, among other things, that he was the only benefactor of his country in the company, and that when "others would do as much as he had done, we should be relieved of the d   d niggers." as an evidence of the reckless disregard of human life where the life is that of a slave i may state the notorious fact, that the wife of mr. giles hicks,†a giles hicks resided in caroline county, maryland, in 1820. 1820 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 92. who lived but a short distance from col. lloyd's, with her own hands murdered my wife's cousin, a young girl between fifteen and sixteen years of age mutilating her person in a most shocking manner. the atrocious woman, in the paroxysm of her wrath, not content with murdering her victim, literally mangled her face, and broke her breast bone.†textual note: hyphenating this instance of "breast bone" is consistent with douglass's usual treatment of two word nouns and with the treatment of the term below. emendation note: breast bone]. wild, however, and infuriated as she was, she took the precaution to cause the slavegirl to be buried; but the facts of the case coming abroad, very speedily led to the disinterment of the remains of the murdered slave girl. a coroner's jury was assembled, who decided that the girl had come to her death by severe beating. it was ascertained that the offense for which this girl was thus hurried out of the world, was this; she had been set that night, and several preceding nights, to mind mrs. hicks's baby, and having fallen into a sound sleep, the baby cried, waking mrs. hicks, but not the slave girl. mrs. hicks, becomiing infuriated at the girl's tardiness, after calling her several times, jumped from her bed and seized a piece of fire wood from the fire place; and then, as she lay fast asleep, she deliberately pounded in her skull and hreast bone, and thus ended her life. i will not say that this most horrid murder produced no sensation in the community. it produce a sensation; but, incredible to tell, the moral sense of the community was blunted too entirely by the ordinary nature of slavery horrors, to bring the murderess to punishment. a warrant was issued for her arrest, but, for some reason or other, that warrant was never served. thus did mrs. hicks not only escape condign punishment, but even the pain and mortification of being arraigned before a court of justice. whilst i am detailing the bloody deeds that took place during my stay on col. lloyd's plantation, i will briefly narrate another dark transaction. which occurred ahout the same time as the murder of denby by mr. gore. on the side of the river wye. opposite from col. lloyd's, there lived a mr. beal bondley,†john beale bordley (1800 82) was the son of matthias bordley (1757 1828) and the grandson of john beale bordley (1727 1804), a noted agriculturalist and revolutionary patriot from maryland. often called simply beale bordley. john beale bordley was born on his father's wye lsland estate, across the river from the lloyd plantation, and remained there until his mid twenties, when he moved to philadelphia to study law with pennsylvania chief justice john bannister gibson. quickly tiring of the law, bordley developed a very successful career as a portrait painter of prominent figures in baltimore, philadelphia, and elsewhere. a number of his paintings are held by the maryland historical society. baltimore american and commercial advertiser, 14 march 1882; francis sims mcgrath, pillars of maryland (richmond, 1950), 393: idem, "a letter to eileen," mdhm, 24:306 (december 1929); eugenia calvert holland and louisa macgill gary, comps., "miniatures in the collection of the maryland historical society," mdhm, 51: 342, 346, 353 (december 1956); anna wells rutledge, "portraits painted before 1900 in the collection of the maryland historical society," mdhm, 41:35 36, 43 (march 1946). a wealthy slaveholder. in the direction of his land, and near the shore, there was an excellent oyster fishing ground, and to this, some of the slaves of col.†emendation note: col.] lloyd occasionally resorted in their little canoes, at night, with a view to make up the deficiency of their scanty allowance of food, by the oysters that they could easily get there. this, mr. bondley took it into his head to regard as a trespass, and while an old man belonging to col. lloyd was engaged in catching a few of the many millions of oysters that lined the bottom of that creek, to satisfy his hunger, the villainous mr. bondley, lying in ambush, without the slightest ceremony. discharged the contents of his musket into the back and shoulders of the poor old man. as good fortune would have it, the shot did not prove mortal, and mr. bondley came over, the next day, to see col. lloyd whether to pay him for his property, or to justify himself for what he had done, i know not but this i say, the cruel and dastardly transaction was speedily hushed up; there was very little said about it at all, and nothing was publicly done which looked like the application of the principle of justice to the man whom chance, only, saved from being an actual murderer. one of the commonest sayings to which my ears early became accustomed, on col. lloyd's plantation and elsewhere in maryland, was, that it was "" and the facts of my experience go far to justify the practical truth of this strange proverb. laws for the protection of the lives of the slaves,†maryland passed several laws designed to regulate the treatment of slaves. a 1715 law empowered courts to give freedom to a slave whose master repeatedly denied adequate food, shelter, and rest or who physically punished a slave by dismemberment or cauterization. a 1751 law guaranteed, at least for a few years, slaves accused of crimes a trial by jury. another law, passed in 1752, allowed the manumission of only those slaves who were in good health and under fifty years of age. as douglass suggests, however, the actual enforcement of laws against physical abuse was rare. because slaves could not testify against whites in a court of law, a case of abuse could be proved only if a white person was willing to stand up for them in court. hurd, law of freedom and bondage, 1:251 54; miller and smith, dictionary of afro american slavery, 446. are, as they must needs be, utterly incapable of being enforced, where the very parties who are nominally protected, are not permitted to give evidence, in courts of law, against the only class of persons from whom abuse, outrage and murder might be reasonably apprehended. while i heard of numerous murders committed by slaveholders on the eastern shore of maryland, i never knew a solitary instance in which a slaveholder was either hung or imprisoned for having murdered a slave. the usual pretext for killing a slave is, that the slave has offered resistance. should a slave, when assaulted, but raise his hand in self defense, the white assaulting party is fully justified by southern, or maryland, public opinion, in shooting the slave down. sometimes this is done, simply because it is alleged that the slave has been saucy. but here i leave this phase of the society of my early childhood, and will rclieve the kind reader of these heart sickening details. chapter ix. personal treatment of the author. miss lucretia her kindness how it was manifested "ike" a battle with him the consequences thereof miss lucretia's balsam bread how i obtained it beams of sunlight amidst the general darkness suffering from cold how we took our meals orders to prepare for baltimore overjoyed at the thought of quitting the plantation extraordinary cleansing cousin tom's version of baltimore arrival there kind reception given me by mrs. sophia auld little tommy my new position my new duties a turning point in my history i have nothing cruel or shocking to relate of my own personal experience, while i remained on col. lloyd's plantation, at the home of my old master. an occasional cuff from aunt katy, and a regular whipping from old master, such as any heedless and mischievous boy might get from his father, is all that i can mention of this sort. i was not old enough to work in the field, and, there being little else than field work to perform, i had much leisure. the most i had to do, was, to drive up the cows in the evening, to keep the front yard clean, and to perform small errands for my young mistress, lucretia auld.†lucretia planner anthony auld. i have reasons for thinking this lady was very kindly disposed toward me, and, although i was not often the object of her attention, i constantly regarded her as my friend, and was always glad when it was my privilege to do her a service. in a family where there was so much that was harsh, cold and indifferent, the slightest word or look of kindness passed, with me, for its full value. miss lucretia as we all continued to call her long after her marriage had bestowed upon me such words and looks as taught me that she pitied me, if she did not love me. in addition to words and looks, she sometimes gave me a piece of bread and butter; a thing not set down in the bill of fare, and which must have been an extra ration, planned aside from either aunt katy or old master, solely out of the tender regard and friendship she had for me. then, too, i one day got into the wars with uncle abel's son, "ike," and had got sadly worsted; in fact, the little rascal had struck me directly in the forehead with a sharp piece of cinder, fused with iron, from the old blacksmith's forge, which made a cross in my forehead very plainly to be seen now. the gash bled very freely, and i roared very loudly and betook myself home. the cold hearted aunt katy paid no attention either to my wound or my roaring, except to tell me it served me right; i had no business with ike; it was good for me; i would now keep away "." miss lucretia, in this state of the case, came forward; and, in quite a different spirit from that manifested by aunt katy, she called me into the parlor, (an extra privilege of itself,) and, without using toward me any of the hard hearted and reproachful epithets of my kitchen tormentor, she quietly acted the good samaritan. with her own soft hand she washed the blood from my head and face, fetched her own balsam†an aromatic oily or resinous medicinal application, usually for external use, for healing wounds or soothing pain. bottle, and with the balsam wetted a nice piece of white linen, and bound up my head. the balsam was not more healing to the wound in my head, than her kindness was healing to the wounds in my spirit, made by the unfeeling words of aunt katy. after this, miss lucretia was my friend. i felt her to be such, and i have no doubt that the simple act of binding up my head, did much to awaken in her mind an interest in my welfare. it is quite true, that this interest was never very marked, and it seldom showed itself in anything more than in giving me a piece of bread when i was very hungry; but this was a great favor on a slave plantation, and i was the only one of the children to whom such attention was paid. when very hungry, i would go into the back yard and play under miss lucretia's window. when pretty severely pinched by hunger, i had a habit of singing, which the good lady very soon came to understand as a petition for a piece of bread. when i sung under miss lucretia's window, i was very apt to get well paid for my music. the reader will see that i now had two friends, both at important points mas' daniel at the great house, and miss lucretia at home. from mas' daniel i got protection from the bigger boys; and from miss lucretia i got bread, by singing when i was hungry, and sympathy when i was abused by that termagant,†an overbearing or nagging woman. who had the reins of government in the kitchen. for such friendship i felt deeply grateful, and bitter as are my recollections of slavery, i love to recall any instances of kindness, any sunbeams of humane treatment, which found way to my soul through the iron grating of my house of bondage. such beams seem all the brighter from the general darkness into which they penetrate, and the impression they make is vividly distinct and beautiful. as i have before intimated, i was seldom whipped and never severely by my old master. i suffered little from the treatment i received, except from hunger and cold. these were my two great physical troubles. i could neither get a sufficiency of food nor of clothing; but i suffered less from hunger than from cold. in hottest summer and coldest winter, i was kept almost in a state of nudity; no shoes, no stockings, no jacket, no trowsers; nothing but coarse sack cloth or tow linen, made into a sort of shirt, reaching down to my knees. this i wore night and day, changing it once a week. in the day time i could protect myself pretty well, by keeping on the sunny side of the house and in bad weather, in the corner of the kitchen chimney. the great difficulty was, to keep warm during the night. i had no bed. the pigs in the pen had leaves, and the horses in the stable had straw, but the children had no beds. they lodged anywhere in the ample kitchen. i slept, generally, in a little closet, without even a blanket to cover me. in very cold weather, i sometimes got down the bag in which corn meal was usually carried to the mill, and crawled into that. sleeping there, with my head in and feet out, i was partly protected, though not comfortable. my feet have been so cracked with the frost, that the pen with which i am writing might be laid in the gashes. the manner of taking our meals at old master's, indicated but little refinement. our corn meal mush, when sufficiently cooled, was placed in a large wooden tray, or trough, like those used in making maple sugar here in the north. this tray was set down, either on the floor of the kitchen, or out of doors on the ground; and the children were called, like so many pigs; and like so many pigs they would come, and literally devour the mush some with oyster shells, some with pieces of shingles, and none with spoons. he that eat fastest got most, and he that was strongest got the best place; and few left the trough really satisfied. i was the most unlucky of any, for aunt katy had no good feeling for me; and if i pushed any of the other children, or if they told her anything unfavorable of me, she always believed the worst, and was sure to whip me. as i grew older and more thoughtful, i was more and more filled with a sense of my wretchedness. the cruelty of aunt katy, the hunger and cold i suffered, and the terrible reports of wrong and outrage which came to my ear, together with what i almost daily witnessed, led me, when yet but eight or nine years old, to wish i had never been born. i used to contrast my condition with the black birds, in whose wild and sweet songs i fancied them so happy! their apparent joy only deepened the shades of my sorrow. there arc thoughtful days in the lives of children at least there were in mine when they grapple with all the great, primary subjects of knowledge, and reach, in a moment, conclusions which no subsequent experience can shake. i was just as well aware of the unjust, unnatural and murderous character of slavery, when nine years old, as i am now. without any appeal to books, to laws, or to authorities of any kind, it was enough to accept god as a father, to regard slavery as a crime. i was not ten years old when i left col. lloyd's plantation for baltimore.†douglass would have been approximately eight years old when he departed st. michaels for baltimore on a saturday in march 1826, probably the 18th. preston, young frederick douglass, 82. i left that plantation with inexpressible joy. i never shall forget the ecstacy with which i received the intelligence from my friend, miss lucretia, that my old master had determined to let me go to baltimore to live with mr. hugh auld,†born in talbot county, maryland, hugh auld (1799 1861) moved as a young man to baltimore. there he worked as a ship's carpenter, master shipbuilder, shipyard foreman, and occasionally served as a magistrate. before moving to baltimore, hugh married sophia keithley. from 1826 to 1833 and again from 1836 to 1838, the young frederick douglass lived and worked in their household, lent to them by his owner, hugh's brother thomas. in 1845 hugh, incensed by douglass's depiction of his family in the narrative, bought douglass, then on a lecture tour of britain, from his brother thomas. according to the pennsylvania freeman, auld was determined to reenslave douglass and "place him in the cotton fields of the south" if the fugitive ever returned to the united states. in 1846 two british abolitionists, anna and ellen richardson, offered to buy douglass from auld; in exchange for $711.66 (£150 sterling) raised among british reformers, auld signed the manumission papers that made douglass a free man. paf, 26 february 1846; lib., 6 march 1846; walter lourie to ellis gray loring, 15 december 1846, reel 1, frame 644; benjamin f. auld to douglass, 11, 27 september 1891, reel 6, frames 240 41, 257 58; douglass to benjamin f. auld, 16 september 1891, reel 6, frames 246 47; j. c. schaffer to helen pitts douglass, 21 october 1896, reel 8, frames 92 93, all in general correspondence file, fd papers, dlc; talbot county records, v.60, 15 36, mdtch (a copy is found on reel 1, frames 637 39, fd papers, dlc ); hugh auld family genealogical chart, prepared by carl g. auld, ellicott city, md., 5 june 1976; preston, young frederick douglass, 81, 84 85, 92, 143, 173 75. a brother to mr. thomas auld,†born in st. michaels, maryland, thomas auld (1795 1880) was the eldest son of hugh and zipporah auld. trained as a shipbuilder, auld supervised the construction of the lloyd sloop, the sally lloyd, and subsequently became its captain. in 1823, he met and married lucretia anthony while a boarder in the anthony home. shortly thereafter, auld became a storekeeper in hillsborough, maryland, and inherited douglass along with ten other slaves from the estate of aaron anthony. he later kept store in st. michaels, where he also served as postmaster, before retiring to a nearby farm. the 1850 census listed him as a “farmer” with $8,500 worth of real estate. references to thomas auld in douglass’s narrative and public speeches are generally uncomplimentary, although douglass disclaimed any personal hostility toward his former owner. a reconciliation occurred in the post reconstruction period when douglass visited the dying auld in st. michaels. , 25 november 1845; , 8 september 1848, 7 september 1849; baltimore , 19 june 1877; aaron anthony slave distribution, 22 october 1827, talbot county distributions, v.jp#d, 58 59, mdtch; 1850 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 1169 (free schedule); quarles, , 342 43; tilghman, , 1:395; roberts, "visitation of western talbot," 235 45. my old master's son in law. i received this information about three days before my departure. they were three of the happiest days of my childhood. i spent the largest part of these three days in the creek, washing off the plantation scurf, and preparing for my new home. mrs. lucretia took a lively interest in getting me ready. she told me i must get all the dead skin off my feet and knees, before i could go to baltimore, for the people there were very cleanly, and would laugh at me if i looked dirty; and, besides, she was intending to give me a pair of trowsers, which i should not put on unless i got all the dirt off. this was a warning to which i was bound to take heed; for the thought of owning a pair of trowsers, was great, indeed. it was almost a sufficient motive, not only to induce me to scrub off the , (as pig drovers would call it,) but the skin as well. so i went at it in good earnest, working for the first time in the hope of reward. i was greatly excited, and could hardly consent to sleep, lest i should be left. the ties that, ordinarily, bind children to their homes, were all severed, or they never had any existence in my case, at least so far as the home plantation of col. l. was concerned. i therefore found no severe trial at the moment of my departure, such as i had experienced when separated from my home in tuckahoe. my home at my old master's was charmless to me; it was not home, but a prison to me; on parting from it, i could not feel that i was leaving anything which i could have enjoyed by staying. my mother was now long dead; my grandmother was far away, so that i seldom saw her; aunt katy was my unrelenting tormentor; and my two sisters and brothers, owing to our early separation in life, and the family destroying power of slavery, were, comparatively, strangers to me. the fact of our relationship was almost blotted out. i looked for elsewhere, and was confident of finding none which i should relish less than the one i was leaving. if, however, i found in my new home to which i was going with such blissful anticipations hardship, whipping and nakedness, i had the questionable consolation that i should not have escaped any one of these evils by remaining under the management of aunt katy. then, too, i thought, since i had endured much in this line on lloyd's plantation, i could endure as much elsewhere, and especially at baltimore; for i had something of the feeling about that city which is expressed in the saying, that being "hanged in england, is better than dying a natural death in lreland." i had the strongest desire to see baltimore. my cousin tom†tom bailey. a boy two or three years older than i had been there, and though not fluent (he stuttered immoderately,) in speech, he had inspired me with that desire, by his eloquent description of the place. tom was, sometimes, capt. auid's cabin boy; and when he came from baltimore, he was always a sort of hero amongst us, at least till his baltimore trip was forgotten. i could never tell him of anything, or point out anything that struck me as beautiful or powerful, but that he had seen something in baltimore far surpassing it. even the great house itself, with all its pictures within, and pillars without, he had the hardihood to say "was nothing to baltimore." he bought a trumpet, (worth six pence,) and brought it home; told what he had seen in the windows of stores; that he had heard shooting crackers,†probably firecrackers. and seen soldiers; that he had seen a steamhoat; that there were ships in baltimore that could carry four such sloops as the "sally lloyd." he said a great deal about the market house; he spoke of the bells ringing; and of many other things which roused my curiosity very much; and, indeed, which heightened my hopes of happiness in my new home. we sailed out of miles river for baltimore early on a saturday morning. i remember only the day of the week; for, at that time, i had no knowledge of the days of the month, nor, indeed, of the months of the year. on setting sail, i walked aft, and gave to col. lloyd's plantation what i hoped would be the last look i should ever give to it, or to any place like it. my strong aversion to the great house farm, was not owing to my own personal suffering, but the daily suffering of others, and to the certainty, that i must, sooner or later, be placed under the barbarous rule of an overseer, such as the accomplished gore, or the brutal and drunken plummer. after taking this last view, i quitted the quarter deck, made my way to the bow of the sloop, and spent the remainder of the day in looking ahead; interesting myself in what was in the distance, rather than what was near by or behind. the vessels, sweeping along the bay, were very interesting objects. the broad bay opened like a shoreless ocean on my boyish vision, filling me with wonder and admiration. late in the afternoon, we reached annapolis, the capital of the state, stopping there not long enough to admit of my going ashore. it was the first large town i had ever seen; and though it was inferior to many a factory village in new england, my feelings, on seeing it, were excited to a pitch very little below that reached by travelers at the first view of rome. the dome of the state house† the statehouse at annapolis, maryland, completed in 1799, is a brick building topped by a tall white octagonal wooden dome. maryland: a guide to the old line state (new york, 1940), 181 82. was especially imposing, and surpassed in grandeur the appearance of the great house. the great world was opening upon me very rapidly, and i was eagerly acquainting myself with its multifarious lessons. we arrived in baltimore on sunday morning, and landed at smith's wharf, not far from bowly's wharf.†smith's wharf and bowley's wharf were two sturdily built wharves below pratt street in baltimore's inner harbor, the basin, west of fells point. the city directory at times spelled the latter as "bowly's wharf." matchett's baltimore directory for 1827 (baltimore, 1827), 18 19 (street register); sherry h. olson, baltimore: the building of an american city (baltimore, 1980), 60. we had on board the sloop a large flock of sheep, for the baltimore market; and, after assisting in driving them to the slaughter house of mr. curtis, on loudon slater's hill,†although no curtis is listed as a victualer or butcher, common designations for those operating a slaughterhouse, baltimore city directories from 1824 through 1829 list variously a james curtain, thomas curtain, and a w. curtain as victualers. they may well have been located on the western corner of what was called loudenslager, not louden slater's, hill in the northeastern portion of the city. this area did in fact have a number of abattoirs in it. matchett's baltimore directory for 1824 (baltimore, 1824), 74; matchett's baltimore directory for 1827, 70; matchett's baltimore di rector[y] . . . for 1829 (baltimore, 1829), 78. i was speedily conducted by rich†rich (1817 ?) was one of the slaves who served as the crew of the sally lloyd, appearing in the business records of edward lloyd v. various account books and cash books, land papers maintenance of property, land volume 39, reel 10, lloyd family papers, mdhi. one of the hands belonging to the sloop to my new home in alliciana street,†neither the 1824 nor the 1827 baltimore directory, the only extant directories in this period, lists hugh auld's residence. the baltimore city commission on historical and architectural presenation established that hugh auld's house was on the southeast corner of aliceanna and durham (formerly happy alley) streets in fells point. contemporary sources spelled the street "alisanna" (1824) or "alice anna" (1827). matchett's baltimore directory for 1824, 343; matchett's baltimore directory for 1827, 1 (street register); fielding lucas, jr., plan of the city of baltimore (baltimore, 1836); preston, young frederick douglass, 223n1. near gardiner's ship yard,†william gardner, a ship's carpenter or shipbuilder, resided on fleet street, fells point, between 1827 and 1836. the shipyard of george and william gardner was at the "lower end of fountain street," on the eastern edge of the fells point wharf area. matchett's baltimore director[y] . . .1831 (baltimore, 1831), 141, 5 (street register). on fell's point.†fells point, first settled by william fell in 1726, was a separate enclave east of baltimore center not annexed to baltimore until 1773. this hooked piece of land jutting into the outer harbor had been a shipbuilding site since the mid eighteenth century. after the war of 1812 it was the construction site for the famous baltimore clipper ships. by the time of douglass's arrival, fells point was a heavily populated neighborhood whose residents worked in shipbuilding and other maritime pursuits. shipyards and wharves for unloading cargo lined its waterfront. j. thomas scharf, histony of baltimore city and county from the earliest period to the present day (philadelphia, 1881), 54, 59 60, 292 94; olson, baltimore, 52 53, 85. mr. and mrs. hugh auld, my new mistress and master, were both at home, and met me at the door with their rosy cheeked little son, thomas,†thomas auld (1824 48), the son of hugh and sophia auld and the nephew of thomas auld, aaron anthony's son in law, was the charge of the young slave douglass. he died in an unsuccessful attempt by the brig tweed to rescue a sinking british vessel. benjamin f. auld to douglass, 11 september 1891. general correspondence file, reel 6, frame 240, fd papers, dlc; preston, young frederick douglass, 148, 228n10. to take care of whom was to constitute my future occupation. in fact, it was to "little tommy," rather than to his parents, that old master made a present of me; and though there was no form or arrangement entered into, i have no douht that mr. and mrs. auld felt that, in due time, i should be the legal property of their bright eyed and beloved boy, tommy. i was struck with the appearance, especially, of my new mistress. her face was lighted with the kindliest emotions; and the reflex influence of her countenance, as well as the tenderness with which she seemed to regard me, while asking me sundry little questions, greatly delighted me, and lit up, to my fancy, the pathway of my future. miss lucretia was kind; but my new mistress. "miss sophy,"†sophia keithley auld (1797 1880) was born in talbot county, maryland, to richard and hester keithley. her parents were poor, devout methodists who held to the antislavery teachings of their church. before marrying hugh auld, she worked as a weaver. soon after their marriage the couple moved to baltimore, where hugh worked as a ship's carpenter, master shipbuilder, and shipyard fireman. from 1826 to 1833, and again from 1836 to 1838, the young slave frederick douglass lived and worked in their household. both douglass and sophia auld retained enormous affection for each other long after douglass had established himself in the north. douglass tried to visit auld in baltimore during the civil war. years after her death, auld's son benjamin told douglass that "mother would always speak in the kindest terms of you, whenever your name was mentioned." baltimore sun, 5 july 1880; benjamin f. auld to douglass, 11 september 1891, general correspondence file, reel 6, frame 240, fd papers, dlc; preston, young frederick douglass, 87, 165 66, 168. surpassed her in kindness of manner. little thomas was affectionately told by his mother, that "" and that "freddy would take care of him;" and i was told to "be kind to little tommy" an injunction i scarcely needed, for i had already fallen in love with the dear boy; and with these little ceremonies i was initiated into my new home, and entered upon my peculiar duties, with not a cloud above the horizon. i may say here, that i regard my removal from col. lloyd's plantation as one of the most interesting and fortunate events of my life. viewing it in the light of human likelihoods, it is quite probable that, but for the mere circumstance of being thus removed before the rigors of slavery had fastened upon me; before my young spirit had been crushed under the iron control of the slave driver, instead of being, to day, a freeman, i might have been wearing the galling chains of slavery. i have sometimes felt, however, that there was something more intelligent than and something more certain than , to be seen in the circumstance. if i have made any progress in knowledge; if i have cherished any honorable aspirations, or have, in any manner, worthily discharged the duties of a member of an oppressed people; this little circumstance must be allowed its due weight in giving my life that direction. i have ever regarded it as the first plain manifestation of that "divinity that shapes our ends. rough hew them as we will."†douglass adapts hamlet, act 5, sc. 2, lines 10 11: "there's a divinity that shapes our ends, / rough hew them how we will." i was not the only boy on the plantation that might have been sent to live in baltimore. there was a wide margin from which to select. there were boys younger, boys older, and boys of the same age, belonging to my old master some at his own house, and some at his farm but the high privilege fell to my lot. i may be deemed superstitious and egotistical, in regarding this event as a special interposition of divine providence in my favor; but the thought is a part of my history, and i should be false to the earliest and most cherished sentiments of my soul, if i suppressed, or hesitated to avow that opinion, although it may be characterized as irrational by the wise, and ridiculous by the scoffer. from my earliest recollections of serious matters, i date the entertainment of something like an ineffaceable conviction, that slavery would not always be able to hold me within its foul embrace, and this conviction, like a word of living faith, strengthened me through the darkest trials of my lot. this good spirit was from god; and to him i offer thanksgiving and praise. chapter x . life in baltimore. city annoyances plantation regrets my mistress, miss sophia her history her kindness to me my master , hugh auld his sourness my increased sensitiveness my comforts my occupation the baneful effects of slaveholding on my dear and good mistress how she commenced teaching me to read why she ceased teaching me clouds gathering over my bright prospects master auld's exposition of the true philosophy of slavery city slaves plantation slaves the contrast exceptions mr. hamilton's two slaves, henrietta and mary mrs. hamilton's cruel treatment of them the piteous aspect they presented no power must come between the slave and the slaveholder. once in baltimore, with hard brick pavements under my feet, which almost raised blisters, by their very heat, for it was in the height of summer; walled in on all sides by towering brick buildings; with troops of hostile boys ready to pounce upon me at every street corner; with new and strange objects glaring upon me at every step, and with startling sounds reaching my ears from all directions. i for a time thought that, after all, the home plantation was a more desirable place of residence than my home on alliciana street, in baltimore. my country eyes and ears were confused and bewildered here; but the boys were my chief trouble. they chased me, and called me "" till really i almost wished myself back on the eastern shore. i had to undergo a sort of moral acclimation, and when that was over, i did much better. my new mistress happily proved to be all she to be, when, with her husband, she met me at the door, with a most beaming, benignant countenance. she was, naturally, of an excellent disposition, kind, gentle and cheerful. the supercilious contempt for the rights and feelings of the slave, and the petulance and bad humor which generally characterize slaveholding ladies, were all quite absent from kind "miss" sophia's manner and hearing toward me. she had, in truth, never been a slaveholder, but had  a thing quite unusual in the south depended almost entirely upon her own industry for a living. to this fact the dear lady, no doubt, owed the excellent preservation of her natural goodness of heart, for slavery can change a saint into a sinner, and an angel into a demon. i hardly knew how to behave toward "miss sopha," as i used to call mrs. hugh auld. i had been treated as a on the plantation;i was treated as a now. i could not even approach her as i had formerly approached mrs. thomas auld. how could i hang down my head, and speak with bated breath, when there was no pride to scorn me, no coldness to repel me, and no hatred to inspire me with fear? i therefore soon learned to regard her as something more akin to a mother, than a slaveholding mistress. the crouching servility of a slave, usually so acceptable a quality to the haughty slaveholder, was not understood nor desired by this gentle woman. so far from deeming it impudent in a slave to look her straight in the face, as some slaveholding ladies do, she seemed ever to say. "look up, child; don't be afraid; see, i am full of kindness and good will toward you." the hands belonging to col. lloyd's sloop, esteemed it a great privilege to be the bearers of parcels or messages to my new mistress; for whenever they came, they were sure of a most kind and pleasant reception. if little thomas was her son, and her most dearly beloved child, she, for a time, at least, made me something like his half brother in her affections. if dear tommy was exalted to a place on his mother's knee, "feddy'' was honored by a place at his mother's side. nor did he lack the caressing strokes of her gentle hand, to convince him that, though he was not . mrs. auld was not only a kind hearted woman, but she was remarkably pious; frequent in her attendance of public worship, much given to reading the bible, and to chanting hymns of praise, when alone. mr. hugh auld was altogether a different character. he cared very little about religion, knew more of the world, and was more of the world, than his wife. he set out, doubtless, to be as the world goes a respectable man, and to get on by becoming a successful ship builder, in that city of ship building. this was his ambition, and it fully occupied him. i was, of course, of very little consequence to him, compared with what i was to good mrs. auld; and, when he smiled upon me, as he sometimes did, the smile was borrowed from his lovely wife, and, like all borrowed light, was transient, and vanished with the source whence it was derived. while i must characterize master hugh as being a very sour man, and of forbidding appearance, it is due to him to acknowledge, that he was never very cruel to me, according to the notion of cruelty in maryland. the first year or two which i spent in his house, he left me almost exclusively to the management of his wife. she was my lawgiver, in hands so tender as hers, and in the absence of the cruelties of the plantation, i became, both physically and mentally, much more sensitive to good and ill treatment; and, perhaps, suffered more from a frown from my mistress, than i formerly did from a cuff at the hands of aunt katy. instead of the cold, damp floor of my old master's kitchen, i found myself on carpets; for the corn bag in winter, i now had a good straw bed, well furnished with covers, for the coarse corn meal in the morning, i now had good bread, and mush occasionally; for my poor tow linen shirt, reaching to my knees, i had good, clean clothes. i was really well off. my employment was to run of errands, and to take care of tommy; to prevent his getting in the way of carriages, and to keep him out of harm's way generally. tommy, and i, and his mother, got on swimmingly together, for a time. i say , because the fatal poison of irresponsible power, and the natural influence of slavery customs. were not long in making a suitable impression on the gentle and loving disposition of my excellent mistress. at first, mrs. auld evidently regarded me simply as a child, like any other child; she had not come to regard me as . this latter thought was a thing of conventional growth. the first was natural and spontaneous. a noble nature, like hers, could not, instantly, he wholly perverted; and it took several years to change the natural sweetness of her temper into fretful bitterness. in her worst estate, however, there were, during the first seven years i lived with her, occasional returns of her former kindly disposition. the frequent hearing of my mistress reading the bible for she often read aloud when her husband was absent soon awakened my curiosity in respect to this of reading, and roused in me the desire to learn. having no fear of my kind mistress before my eyes, (she had then given me no reason to fear,) i frankly asked her to teach me to read; and, without hesitation, the dear woman began the task, and very soon, by her assistance, i was master of the alphabet, and could spell words of three or four letters. my mistress seemed almost as proud of my progress, as if i had been her own child; and, supposing that her husband would be as well pleased, she made no secret of what she was doing for me. indeed, she exultingly told him of the aptness of her pupil, of her intention to persevere in teaching me, and of the duty which she felt it to teach me, at least to read the . here arose the first cloud over my baltimore prospects, the precursor of drenching rains and chilling blasts. master hugh was amazed at the simplicity of his spouse, and, probably for the first time, he unfolded to her the true philosophy of slavery, and the peculiar rules necessary to he observed by masters and mistresses, in the management of their human chattels. mr. auld promptly forbade the continuance of her instruction; telling her, in the first place, that the thing itself was unlawful;†in fact, unlike in many other slave states, there was no legal proscription against slave literacy in maryland. in baltimore small black operated schools accepted slaves as well as free blacks. there is even evidence that slaves taught in some of these schools. the city offered other opportunities for slaves to learn to read through the wide availability of reading materials and contact with sympathetic free blacks and whites willing to help them learn. christopher phillips, freedom's port: the african american community of baltimore, 1790 1860 (urbana, ill., 1997), 163 67; miller and smith, dictionary of afro american slavery, 446. that it was also unsafe, and could only lead to mischief. to use his own words, further, he said. "if you give a nigger an inch, he will take an ell;"†a paraphrase of the old english proverb "for whan i gaue you an ynche, ye tooke an ell." an ell is an antiquated english unit of length equal to forty five inches. john heywood, proverbs and epigrams of john heywood (1562; new york, 1967), 78. "he should know nothing but the will of his master, and learn to obey it." "learning would spoil the best nigger in the world;" "if you teach that nigger speaking of myself how to read the bible, there will be no keeping him;" "it would forever unfit him for the duties of a slave;" and "as to himself, learning would do him no good, but probably, a great deal of harm making him disconsolate and unhappy." "if you learn him now to read, he'll want to know how to write; and, this accomplished, he'll be running away with himself." such was the tenor of master hugh's oracular exposition of the true philosophy of training a human chattel; and it must be confessed that he very clearly comprehended the nature and the requirements of the relation of master and slave. his discourse was the first decidedly anti slavery lecture to which it had been my lot to listen. mrs. auld evidently felt the force of his remarks; and, like an obedient wife, began to shape her course in the direction indicated by her husband. the effect of his words, , was neither slight nor transitory. his iron sentences cold and harsh sunk deep into my heart, and stirred up not only my feelings into a sort of rebellion, but awakened within me a slumbering train of vital thought. it was a new and special revelation, dispelling a painful mystery, against which my youthful understanding had struggled, and struggled in vain, to wit: the man's power to perpetuate the enslavement of the man. "very well," thought i; "knowledge unfits a child to be a slave." i instinctively assented to the proposition; and from that moment i understood the direct pathway from slavery to freedom. this was just what i needed; and i got it at a time, and from a source, whence i least expected it. i was saddened at the thought of losing the assistance of my kind mistress; but the information, so instantly derived, to some extent compensated me for the loss i had sustained in this direction. wise as mr. auld was, he evidently underrated my comprehension, and had little idea of the use to which i was capable of putting the impressive lesson he was giving to his wife. wanted me to be ; i had already voted against that on the home plantation of col. lloyd. that which he most loved i most hated; and the very determination which he expressed to keep me in ignorance, only rendered me the more resolute in seeking intelligence. in learning to read, therefore, i am not sure that i do not owe quite as much to the opposition of my master, as to the kindly assistance of my amiable mistress. i acknowledge the benefit rendered me by the one, and by the other; believing, that but for my mistress, i might have grown up in ignorance. i had resided but a short time in baltimore, before i observed a marked difference in the manner of treating slaves, generally, from that which i had witnessed in that isolated and out of the way part of the country where i began life. a city slave is almost a free citizen, in baltimore, compared with a slave on col. lloyd's plantation. he is much better fed and clothed, is less dejected in his appearance, and enjoys privileges altogether unknown to the whip driven slave on the plantation. slavery dislikes a dense population, in which there is a majority of non slave holders. the general sense of decency that must pervade such a population, does much to check and prevent those outbreaks of atrocious cruelty, and those dark crimes without a name, almost openly perpetrated on the plantation. he is a desperate slaveholder who will shock the humanity of his non slaveholding neighbors, by the cries of the lacerated slaves; and very few in the city are willing to incur the odium of being cruel masters. i found, in baltimore, that no man was more odious to the white, as well as to the colored people, than he, who had the reputation of starving his slaves. work them, flog them, if need be, but don't starve them. there are, however. some painful exceptions to this rule. while it is quite true that most of the slaveholders in baltimore feed and clothe their slaves well, there are others who keep up their country cruelties in the city. an instance of this sort is furnished in the case of a family who lived directly opposite to our house, and were named hamilton.†thomas hamilton, a ship's carpenter, lived at 22 philpot street in baltimore from at least 1831 through 1838. in 1833 his address was probably incorrectly listed as 18 philpot street. matchett's baltimore director[y] . . . 1831, 163; matchett's baltimore director[y] . . . 1833 (baltimore, 1833), 83; matchett's baltimore director[y] . . . 1835 6, 110; matchett's balti more director[y] . . . 1837 8, 154. mrs. hamilton owned two slaves. their names were henrietta and mary. they had always been house slaves. one was aged about twenty two, and the other about fourteen. they were a fragile couple by nature, and the treatment they received was enough to break down the constitution of a horse. of all the dejected, emaciated, mangled and excoriated creatures i ever saw, those two girls  in the refined, church going and christian city of baltimore were the most deplorable. of stone must that heart be made, that could look upon henrietta and mary, without being sickened to the core with sadness. especially was mary a heart sickening object. her head, neck and shoulders, were literally cut to pieces. i have frequently felt her head, and found it nearly covered over with festering sores, caused by the lash of her cruel mistress. i do not know that her master ever whipped her, but i have often been an eye witness of the revolting and brutal inflictions by mrs. hamilton; and what lends a deeper shade to this woman's conduct, is the fact, that, almost in the very moments of her shocking outrages of humanity and decency, she would charm you by the sweetness of her voice and her seeming piety. she used to sit in a large rocking chair, near the middle of the room, with a heavy cowskin, such as i have elsewhere described; and i speak within the truth when i say, that those girls seldom passed that chair, during the day, without a blow from that cowskin, either upon their bare arms, or upon their shoulders. as they passed her, she would draw her cowskin and give them a blow, saying, "" and, again, "" continuing, "." then the lady would go on, singing her sweet hymns, as though her righteous soul were sighing for the holy realms of paradise. added to the cruel lashings to which these poor slave girls were subjected enough in themselves to crush the spirit of men they were, really, kept nearly half starved; they seldom knew what it was to eat a full meal, except when they got it in the kitchens of neighbors, less mean and stingy than the psalm singing mrs. hamilton. i have seen poor mary contending for the offal, with the pigs in the street. so much was the poor girl pinched, kicked, cut and pecked to pieces, that the boys in the street knew her only by the name of "," a name derived from the scars and blotches on her neck, head and shoulders. it is some relief to this picture of slavery in baltimore, to say what is but the simple truth that mrs. hamilton's treatment of her slaves was generally condemned, as disgraceful and shocking; but while i say this, it must also be remembered, that the very parties who censured the cruelty of mrs. hamilton, would have condemned and promptly punished any attempt to interfere with mrs. hamilton's right to cut and slash her slaves to pieces. there must be no force between the slave and the slaveholder, to restrain the power of the one, and protect the weakness of the other; and the cruelty of mrs. hamilton is as justly chargeable to the upholders of the slave system, as drunkenness is chargeable on those who, by precept and example, or by indifference, uphold the drinking system. chapter xi. "a change came o'er the spirit of my dream."†douglass quotes byron's "the dream," stanza 3, line 75. the works of lord byron (roslyn, n.y., 1951), 328.* how the author learned to read my mistress her slaveholding duties their deplorable effects upon her originally noble nature the conflict in her mind her final opposition to my learning to read too late she had given me the "inch," i was resolved to take the "ell" how i pursued my education my tutors how i compensated them what progress i made slavery what i heard said about it thirteen years old the "columbian orator" a rich scene  a dialogue  speeches of chatham, sheridan, pitt and fox knowledge ever increasing my eyes opened liberty how i pined for it my sadness the dissatisfaction of my poor mistress my hatred of slavery one upas tree overshadowed us both. i lived in the family of master hugh, at baltimore, seven years,†from 1826 to 1833 and again from 1836 to 1838, the young frederick douglass lived and worked in the auld household, lent to them by his owner, hugh's brother thomas. preston, young frederick douglass, 199 200. during which time as the almanac makers say of the weather my condition was variable. the most interesting feature of my history here, was my learning to read and write, under somewhat marked disadvantages. in attaining this knowledge, i was compelled to resort to indirections by no means congenial to my nature, and which were really humiliating to me. my mistress who, as the reader has already seen, had begun to teach me was suddenly checked in her benevolent design, by the strong advice of her husband. in faithful compliance with this advice, the good lady had not only ceased to instruct me, herself, but had set her face as a flint against my learning to read by any means. it is due, however, to my mistress to say, that she did not adopt this course in all its stringency at the first. she either thought it unnecessary, or she lacked the depravity indispensable to shutting me up in mental darkness. it was, at least, necessary for her to have some training, and some hardening, in the exercise of the slaveholder's prerogative, to make her equal to forgetting my human nature and character, and to treating me as a thing destitute of a moral or an intellectual nature. mrs. auld my mistress was, as i have said, a most kind and tender hearted woman; and, in the humanity of her heart, and the simplicity of her mind, she set out, when i first went to live with her, to treat me as she supposed one human being ought to treat another. it is easy to see, that, in entering upon the duties of a slaveholder, some little experience is needed. nature has done almost nothing to prepare men and women to be either slaves or slaveholders. nothing but rigid training, long persisted in, can perfect the character of the one or the other. one cannot easily forget to love freedom; and it is as hard to cease to respect that natural love in our fellow creatures. on entering upon the career of a slaveholding mistress, mrs. auld was singularly deficient; nature, which fits nohody for such an office, had done less for her than any lady i had known. it was no easy matter to induce her to think and to feel that the curly headed boy, who stood by her side, and even leaned on her lap; who was loved by little tommy, and who loved little tommy in turn; sustained to her only the relation of a chattel. i was than that, and she felt me to be more than that. i could talk and sing; i could laugh and weep; i could reason and remember; i could love and hate. i was human, and she, dear lady, knew and felt me to be so. how could she, then, treat me as a brute, without a mighty struggle with all the noble powers of her own soul. that struggle came, and the will and power of the husband was victorious. her noble soul was overthrown: but, he that overthrew it did not, himself, escape the consequences. he, not less than the other parties, was injured in his domestic peace by the fall. when i went into their family, it was the abode of happiness and contentment. the mistress of the house was a model of affection and tenderness. her fervent piety and watchful uprightness made it impossible to see her without thinking and feeling "." there was no sorrow nor suffering for which she had not a tear, and there was no innocent joy for which she had not a smile. she had bread for the hungry, clothes for the naked, and comfort for every mourner that came within her reach. slavery soon proved its ability to divest her of these excellent qualities, and her home of its early happiness. conscience cannot stand much violence. once thoroughly broken down, is he that can repair the damage? it may be broken toward the slave, on sunday, and toward the master on monday. it cannot endure such shocks. it must stand entire, or it does not stand at all. if my condition waxed bad, that of the family waxed not better. the first step, in the wrong direction, was the violence done to nature and to conscience, in arresting the benevolence that would have enlightened my young mind. in ceasing to instruct me, she must begin to justify herself herself; and, once consenting to take sides in such a debate, she was riveted to her position. one needs very little knowledge of moral philosophy, to see where my mistress now landed. she finally became even more violent in her opposition to my learning to read, than was her husband himself. she was not satisfied with simply doing as as her husband had commanded her, but seemed resolved to better his instruction. nothing appeared to make my poor mistress after her turning toward the downward path more angry, than seeing me, seated in some nook or corner, quietly reading a book or a newspaper. i have had her rush at me, with the utmost fury, and snatch from my hand such newspaper or book, with something of the wrath and consternation which a traitor might he supposed to feel on being discovered in a plot by some dangerous spy. mrs. auld was an apt woman, and the advice of her hushand, and her own experience, soon demonstrated, to her entire satisfaction, that education and slavery are incompatible with each other. when this conviction was thoroughly established, i was most narrowly watched in all my movements. if i remained in a separate room from the family for any considerable length of time, i was sure to be suspected of having a book, and was at once called upon to give an account of myself. all this, however, was entirely . the first, and never to be retraced, step had been taken. in teaching me the alphabet, in the days of her simplicity and kindness, my mistress had given me the "," and now, no ordinary precaution could prevent me from taking the "." seized with a determination to learn to read, at any cost, i hit upon many expedients to accomplish the desired end. the plea which i mainly adopted, and the one by which i was most successful, was that of using my young white playmates, with whom i met in the streets, as teachers. i used to carry, almost constantly, a copy of webster's spelling book†the first version of the spelling booka grammatical institute of the english language (1783), by noah webster (1758 1843), a connecticut teacher, editor, and federalist politician, rapidly became the standard spelling and pronunciation guide in the new nation. in 1788 the title became the american spelling book and in 1829 the elementary spelling book. harry r. warfel, noah webster: schoolmaster to america (new york, 1936); richard j. moss, noah webster (boston, 1984); dab, 19:594 97. in my pocket; and, when sent of errands, or when play time was allowed me, i would step, with my young friends, aside, and take a lesson in spelling. i generally paid my to the boys, with bread, which i also carried in my pocket. for a single biscuit, any of my hungry little comrades would give me a lesson more valuable to me than bread. not every one, however, demanded this consideration, for there were those who took pleasure in teaching me, whenever i had a chance to be taught by them. i am strongly tempted to give the names of two or three of those little boys, as a slight testimonial of the gratitude and affection i bear them, but prudence forbids; not that it would injure me, but it might, possibly, embarrass them; for it is almost an unpardonable offense to do any thing, directly or indirectly, to promote a slave's freedom, in a slave state. it is enough to say, of my warm hearted little play fellows, that they lived on philpot street,†philpot street ran east to west, parallel to the waterfront on fells point. the aulds moved to philpot street in 1827 or 1828 soon after hugh auld began working at durgin and bailey's shipyard. benjamin f. auld to douglass, 27 september 1891, general correspondence file, reel 6, frames 257 58, fd papers, dlc; lucas, plan of the city of baltimore. very near durgin & bailey's shipyard.†john durgin and thomas bailey operated a shipwright business on philpot street in fells point in the late 1820s and the 1830s. douglass later recalled that as a boy he carried auld's dinner to him while auld was employed as a carpenter at this shipyard near the auld home. bailey continued as a ship's carpenter in the same area into the 1830s. douglass to benjamin f. auld, 24 march 1894, sc 163, mrs. howard v. hall collection of auld family papers, mdaa; matchett's baltimore director[y] . . . 1829, 94; matchett's baltimore director[y] . . . 1831, 21; matchett's baltimore director[y] . . . 1835 6, 12. textual note: although this term is hyphenated in only six instances of its approximately twenty four occurrences in bondage and freedom, hyphenation is consistent both with douglass's usual treatment of two word nouns and with his usual treatment of "ship yard" in his first autobiography, narrative. douglass papers, ser. 2, 1. emendation note: ship yard] shipyard although slavery was a delicate subject, and very cautiously talked about among grown up people in maryland, i frequently talked about it and that very freely with the white boys. i would, sometimes, say to them, while scaled on a curb stone or a cellar door. "i wish i could be free, as you will be when you get to be men." "you will be free, you know, as soon as you arc twenty one, and can go where you like, but i am a slave for life. have i not as good a right to be free as you have?" words like these, i observed, always troubled them; and i had no small satisfaction in wringing from the boys, occasionally, that fresh and bitter condemnation of slavery, that springs from nature, unseared and unperverted. of all consciences, let me have those to deal with which have not been bewildered by the cares of life. i do not remember ever to have met with a , while i was in slavery, who defended the slave system; but i have often had boys to console me, with the hope that something would yet occur, by which i might be made free. over and over again, they have told me, that "they believed i had as good a right to he free as had;" and that "they did not believe god ever made any one to he a slave." the reader will easily see, that such little conversations with my play fellows, had no tendency to weaken my love of liberty,nor to render me contented with my condition as a slave. when i was about thirteen years old. and had succeeded in learning to read, every increase of knowledge. especially respecting the free states, added something to the almost intolerable burden of the thought "i am a slave for life." to my bondage i saw no end. it was a terrible reality, and i shall never be able to tell how sadly that thought chafed my young spirit. fortunately, or unfortunately, about this time in my life, i had made enough money to buy what was then a very popular school book, viz: the "columbian orator."†boston schoolteacher and bookseller caleb bingham (1757 1817) authored the the columbian orator (1797 ), one of the first textbooks on english grammar and rhetoric published in the united states. it contained short extracts from speeches by such famous orators as william pitt, george washington, charles james fox, and cicero, as well as plays and poems on the themes of patriotism, education, and freedom. the columbian orator remained one of the most popular textbooks of its kind in america through the 1820s. bingham himself contributed an essay on oratorical skills, "general directions for speaking," whose rules douglass followed in his early years as a public speaker. ncab, 8:19; dab, 2:273 74. i bought this addition to my library, of mr. knight,†nathaniel knight (1778 1854) trained as a printer in salem, massachusetts, and in 1800 moved to baltimore, where he opened a bookstore on market street. knight was a prominent member of the community, serving as a justice of the peace, a member of washington lodge no. 3 of the freemasons, an officer with the charitable marine society of baltimore, and a warden in mount calvary episcopal church. knight lived at fells point at 23 thames street in 1827. matchett's baltimore directory for 1827, 155; john l. sanford, studies in freemasonry (baltimore, 1924), 49 53. on thames street,†in about 1834 the aulds moved to a row house on fell street, which is now a continuation of thames street in the fells point area of baltimore. preston, young frederick douglass, 143, 228n. fell's point. baltimore, and paid him fifty cents for it. i was first led to buy this book, by hearing some little boys say that they were going to learn some little pieces out of it for the exhibition.†the baltimore black community made education and intellectual and cultural growth priorities through the formation of literary and debating societies. the "exhibition" may have been an annual event sponsored by one or a group of these local organizations. these societies promoted literacy among black residents by engaging in recitals of famous works of literature, prose, and oration. on occasion white speakers were invited, but more often the speakers and performers were members of the society. phillips, freedom's port, 172 73. this volume was, indeed, a rich treasure, and every opportunity afforded me, for a time, was spent in diligently perusing it. among much other interesting matter, that which i had perused and reperused with unflagging satisfaction, was a short dialogue between a master and his slave.†the anonymous "dialogue between a master and slave" is a conversation between a master and slave in which the slave is caught trying to run away for the second time. caleb bingham, the columbian orator (1797; boston, 1827), 240 42. the slave is represented as having been recaptured, in a second attempt to run away; and the master opens the dialogue with an upbraiding speech, charging the slave with ingratitude, and demanding to know what he has to say in his own defense. thus upbraided, and thus called upon to reply, the slave rejoins, that he knows how little anything that he can say will avail, seeing that he is completely in the hands of his owner; and with noble resolution, calmly says. "i suhmit to my fate." touched by the slave's answer, the master insists upon his further speaking, and recapitulates the many acts of kindness which he has performed toward the slave, and tells him he is permitted to speak for himself. thus invited to the debate, the quondam slave made a spirited defense of himself, and thereafter the whole argument, for and against slavery, was brought out. the master was vanquished at every turn in the argument; and seeing himself to be thus vanquished, he generously and meekly emancipates the slave, with his best wishes for his prosperity. it is scarcely necccssary to say, that a dialogue, with such an origin, and such an ending read when the fact of my being a slave was a constant burden of grief powerfully affected me; and i could not help feeling that the day might come, when the well directed answers made by the slave to the master, in this instance, would find their counterpart in myself. this, however, was not all the fanaticism which i found in this columbian orator. i met there one of sheridan's mighty speeches, on the subject of catholic emancipation,†although richard sheridan (1751 1816), the irish orator, playwright, and politician who entered parliament in 1780, championed irish and other reform causes, the only speech extracted in the columbian orator is "mr. sheridan's speech against mr. taylor," which is not on catholic "emancipation." douglass is probably referring to another selection in the anthology, titled "part of mr. o'connor's speech in the irish house of common, in favor of the bill for emancipating the roman catholics, 1795." arthur o'connor (1763 1852), a liberal protestant member of the irish parliament, was a strong supporter of catholic rights, including "catholic emancipation," or the right of catholics to hold office and sit in parliament. o'connor resigned his seat after delivering this speech. bingham, the columbian orator, 1827 ed., 130 31, 243 48: dnb, 18:78 85, 41:394 95. lord chatham 's speech on the american war,†the columbian orator contained several speeches given by william pitt (1708 78), first earl of chatham, also known as "the elder pitt." a prominent british statesman, chatham first entered parliament in 1735, and became secretary of state from 1756 to 1757. though in ill health by the time of the american revolution, chatham spoke out against britain's harsh policies toward the american colonies and urged an amicable settlement. the columbian orator printed parts of four such speeches chatham made before parliament in january 1775, may 1877, and two in november 1777. the most strongly worded of the speeches warned against the dangers of the british army engaging the services of north american indians against the colonists. pitt changed his mind regarding the war, however, when it was proposed to make peace on any terms, and on 2 april 1778 he addressed the house of lords and secured a majority against the resolution. while answering questions concerning his position, chatham collapsed and died in the house chamber. jeremy black, pitt the elder (cambridge, 1992), 288 99; magnusson, cambridge biographical dictionary, 297; dnb, 15:1240 53. and speeches by the great william pitt and by fox.†douglass refers to a speech concerning american affairs delivered to the british parliament in 1778. charles james fox (1749 1806) was an english whig statesman who became a member of parliament at the age of nineteen, and during his career held the offices of lord of the admiralty and commissioner of the treasury. he initially supported lord north. but during the american revolution, fox became an outspoken opponent of the coercive measures of government north advocated. for his opposition to north's administration, king george iii removed fox from his position in the admiralty in 1774. in the speech to which douglass refers, fox warned the parliament that britain could not sustain a war with both the american colonies and france. he urged britain to withdraw from the conflict with america and to concentrate on france. later fox was a strong opponent of william pitt (the younger), arguing vigorously against a renewed war with france. after pitt's death in january 1806, fox set out to negotiate a peace with france, but died before his bill to abolish the slave trade came up for approval. bingham, the columbian orator, 1827 ed., 172 75; magnusson, cambridge biographical dictionary, 535 36; dnb, 7:535 52. these were all choice documents to me, and i read them, over and over again, with an interest that was ever increasing, because it was ever gaining in intelligence; for the more i read them, the better i understood them. the reading of these speeches added much to my limited stock of language, and enabled me to give tongue to many interesting thoughts, which had frequently flashed through my soul, and died away for want of utterance. the mighty power and heart searching directness of truth, penetrating even the heart of a slaveholder, compelling him to yield up his earthly interests to the claims of eternal justice, were finely illustrated in the dialogue, just referred to; and from the speeches of sheridan, i got a bold and powerful denunciation of oppression, and a most brilliant vindication of the rights of man. here was, indeed, a noble acquisition. if i ever wavered under the consideration, that the almighty, in some way, ordained slavery, and willed my enslavement for his own glory, i wavered no longer. i had now penetrated the secret of all slavery and oppression, and had ascertained their true foundation to be in the pride, the power and the avarice of man. the dialogue and the speeches were all redolent of the principles of liberty, and poured floods of light on the nature and character of slavery. with a book of this kind in my hand, my own human nature, and the facts of my experience, to help me, i was equal to a contest with the religious advocates of slavery, whether among the whites or among the colored people, for blindness, in this matter, is not confined to the former. i have met many religious colored people, at the south, who are under the delusion that god requires them to submit to slavery, and to wear their chains with meekness and humility. i could entertain no such nonsense as this; and i almost lost my patience when i found any colored man weak enough to believe such stuff. nevertheless, the increase of knowledge was attended with bitter, as well as sweet results. the more i read, the more i was led to abhor and detest slavery, and my enslavers. "slaveholders," thought i, "are only a hand of successful robbers. who left their homes and went into africa for the purpose of stealing and reducing my people to slavery." i loathed them as the meanest and the most wicked of men. as i read, behold! the very discontent so graphically predicted by master hugh, had already come upon me. i was no longer the light hearted, gleesome boy, full of mirth and play, as when i landed first at baltimore. knowledge had come; light had penetrated the moral dungeon where i dwelt; and, behold! there lay the bloody whip, for my back, and here was the iron chain; and my good, , he was the author of my situation. the revelation haunted me, stung me, and made me gloomy and miserable. as i writhed under the sting and torment of this knowledge, i almost envied my fellow slaves their stupid contentment. this knowledge opened my eyes to the horrible pit, and revealed the teeth of the frightful dragon that was ready to pounce upon me, but it opened no way for my escape. i have often wished myself a beast, or a bird anything, rather than a slave. i was wretched and gloomy, beyond my ability to describe. i was too thoughtful to be happy. it was this everlasting thinking which distressed and tormented me; and yet there was no getting rid of the subject of my thoughts. all nature was redolent of it. once awakened by the silver trump of knowledge, my spirit was roused to eternal wakefulness. liberty! the inestimable birthright of every man, had, for me, converted every object into an asserter of this great right. it was heard in every sound, and beheld in every object. it was ever present, to torment me with a sense of my wretched condition. the more beautiful and charming were the smiles of nature, the more horrible and desolate was my condition. i saw nothing without seeing it, and i heard nothing without hearing it. i do not exaggerate, when i say, that it looked from every star, smiled in every calm, breathed in every wind. and moved in every storm. i have no doubt that my state of mind had something to do with the change in the treatment adopted, by my once kind mistress toward me. i can easily believe, that my leaden, downcast, and discontented look, was very offensive to her. poor lady! she did not know my trouble, and i dared not tell her. could i have freely made her acquainted with the real state of my mind, and given her the reasons therefor, it might have been well for both of us. her abuse of me fell upon me like the blows of the false prophet upon his ass; she did not know that an stood in the way;†douglass alludes to the biblical story of balaam's ass. num. 22:21 30. and such is the relation of master and slave i could not tell her. nature had made us ; slavery made us . my interests were in a direction opposite to hers, and we both had our private thoughts and plans. she aimed to keep me ignorant; and i resolved to know, although knowledge only increased my discontent. my feelings were not the result of any marked cruelty in the treatment i received; they sprung from the consideration of my being a slave at all. it was  not its mere  that i hated. i had been cheated. i saw through the attempt to keep me in ignorance; i saw that slaveholders would have gladly made me believe that they were merely acting under the authority of god, in making a slave of me, and in making slaves of others; and i treated them as robbers and deceivers. the feeding and clothing me well, could not atone for taking my liberty from me. the smiles of my mistress could not remove the deep sorrow that dwelt in my young bosom. indeed, these, in time, came only to deepen my sorrow. she had changed; and the reader will see that i had changed. too . we were both victims to the same overshadowing evil , as mistress, as slave. i will not censure her harshly; she cannot censure me, for she knows i speak but the truth, and have acted in my opposition to slavery, just as she herself would have acted, in a reverse of circumstances. chapter xii. religious nature awakened. abolitionists spoken of my eagerness to know what this word meant my consultation of the dictionary incendiary information how and where derived the enigma solved nathaniel turner's insurrection the cholera religion first awakened by a methodist minister, named hanson my dear and good old colored friend, lawson his character and occupation his influence over me our mutual attachment the comfort i derived from his teaching new hopes and aspirations heavenly light amidst earthly darkness the two irishmen on the wharf their conversation how i learned to write what were my aims. whilst in the painful state of mind described in the foregoing chapter, almost regretting my very existence, because doomed to a life of bondage, so goaded and so wretched, at times, that i was even tempted lo destroy my own life. i was yet keenly sensitive and eager to know any, and every thing that transpired, having any relation to the subject of slavery. i was all ears, all eyes, whenever the words , , dropped from the lips of any white person, and the occasions were not unfrequent when these words became leading ones, in high, social debate, at our house. every little while, i could overhear master hugh, or some of his company, speaking with much warmth and excitement about "." of or these were, i was totally ignorant. i found, however, that whatever they might be, they were most cordially hated and soundly abused by slaveholders, of every grade. i very soon discovered, too, that slavery was, in some sort, under consideration, whenever the abolitionists were alluded to. this made the term a very interesting one to me. if a slave, for instance, had made good his escape from slavery, it was generally alleged, that he had been persuaded and assisted by the abolitionists. if also, a slave killed his master as was sometimes the case or struck down his overseer, or set fire to his master's dwelling, or committed any violence or crime, out of the common way, it was certain to be said, that such a crime was the legitimate fruits of the abolition movement. hearing such charges often repeated, i, naturally enough, received the impression that abolition whatever else it might be could not be unfriendly to the slave, nor very friendly to the slaveholder. i therefore set about finding out, if possible, who and what the abolitionists were, and why they were so obnoxious to the slaveholders. the dictionary afforded me very little help. it taught me that abolition was the "act of abolishing;" but it left me in ignorance at the very point where i most wanted information and that was, as to the to be abolished. a city newspaper, the "baltimore american,"†the baltimore american and commercial advertiser was the oldest newspaper in maryland. it was first published by alexander martin, a native of boston, on 14 may 1799. the american was a firm ally of the whig party and became prominently identified with the union cause and the republican party. scharf, history of baltimore, 609. gave me the incendiary information denied me by the dictionary. in its columns i found, that, on a certain day, a vast number of petitions†the sending of petitions to congress, calling for an end to the slave trade and to slavery in the district of columbia, dated back to the early years of the federal government. in 1828 a national petition drive had helped force the house of representatives to vote on abolishing slavery in the district of columbia. the newly organized movement for immediate emancipation adopted the petition strategy in the 1830s and deluged congress with antislavery memorials bearing thousands of signatures. louis filler, the crusade against slavery,1830 1860 (new york, 1960), 3, 99; russell b. nye, fettered freedom: civil liberties and the slavery controversy, 1830 1860 (ann arbor, mich., 1963), 41 51. and memorials had been presented to congress, praying for the abolition of slavery in the district of columbia, and for the abolition of the slave trade between the states of the union. this was enough. the vindictive bitterness, the marked caution, the studied reserve, and the cumbrous ambiguity, practiced by our white folks, when alluding†emendation note: alluding] allluding to this subject, was now fully explained. ever, after that, when i heard the words "abolition," or "abolition movement," mentioned, i felt the matter one of a personal concern; and i drew near to listen, when i could do so, without seeming too solicitous and prying. there was hope in those words, ever and anon, too, i could see some terrible denunciation of slavery, in our papers copied from abolition papers at the north and the injustice of such denunciation commented on. these i read with avidity. i had a deep satisfaction in the thought, that the rascality of slaveholders was not concealed from the eyes of the world, and that i was not alone in abhorring the cruelty and brutality of slavery. a still deeper train of thought was stirred. i saw that there was , as well as, in the manner of speaking of the abolitionists. the latter, therefore, i was compelled to regard as having some power in the country; and i felt that they might, possibly, succeed in their designs. when i met with a slave to whom i deemed it safe to talk on the subject, i would impart to him so much of the mystery as i had been able to penetrate. thus, the light of this grand movement broke in upon my mind, by degrees; and i must say, that, ignorant as i then was of the philosophy of that movement, i believed in it from the first and i believed in it, partly, because i saw that it alarmed the consciences of slaveholders. the insurrection of nathaniel turner†nat turner (1800 31) led the famous slave revolt that occurred in southampton county, virginia, from 21 to 23 august 1831. turner's band, which consisted of no more than seventy followers, mostly slaves, killed at least fifty seven whites before being dispersed and captured by the local militia. approximately seventeen of turner's followers were executed; most of the remainder were transported. turner himself remained at large for over two months, and after his capture supposedly dictated his "confessions" to a local lawyer. tried and sentenced to death on 5 november 1831, turner was executed by hanging on 11 november 1831. the revolt triggered retaliatory murders of innocent blacks in the general area, undercut what sentiment there was in the slave states for emancipation, and heightened the southern dread of servile insurrections. herbert aptheker, nat turner's slave rebellion (new york, 1966); stephen b. oates, the fires of jubilee: nat turner's fierce rebellion (new york, 1975); henry irving tragle, comp., the southhampton slave revolt of 1831: a compilation of source material (amherst, mass., 1971); acab, 6: 187; dab, 19: 69 70. had been quelled, but the alarm and terror had not subsided. the cholera was on its way, and the thought was present, that god was angry with the white people because of their slaveholding wickedness, and, therefore, his judgments were abroad in the land. it was impossible for me not to hope much from the abolition movement, when i saw it supported by the almighty, and armed with death! previous to my contemplation of the anti slavery movement, and its probable results, my mind had been seriously awakened to the subject of religion. i was not more than thirteen years old, when i felt the need of god, as a father and protector. my religious nature was awakened by the preaching of a white methodist minister, named hanson.†the reverend james m. hanson (1782 1860) was a popular local methodist episcopal church minister throughout the early decades of the nineteenth century, who was highly regarded for his commitmcnt to strengthening the organization of the baltimore annual conference. hanson was repeatedly elected to represent baltimore in the church's quadrennial conferences. james edward armstrong, history of the old baltimore conference from the planting of methodism in 1773 to the division of the conference in 1857 (baltimore, 1907), 154, 158, 216, 223, 228, 242, 391. he thought that all men, great and small, bond and free, were sinners in the sight of god; that they were, by nature, rebels against his government; and that they must repent of their sins. and be reconciled to god, through christ. i cannot say that i had a very distinct notion of what was required of me; but one thing i knew very well i was wretched. and had no means of making myself otherwise. moreover. i knew that i could pray for light. i consulted a good colored man, named charles johnson;†several free black charles johnsons lived in the fells point region of baltimore in the 1820s and 1830s. several were employed as laborers and one each as a dray man (hauler), a caulker, and a sawyer. matchett's baltimore directory for 1827, 13; matchett's baltimore director[y] . . . 1829, 173 74; matchett's baltimore director[y] . . . 1835 6, 138. and, in tones of holy affection, he told me to pray, and what to pray for. i was, for weeks, a poor, broken hearted mourner, traveling through the darkness and misery of doubts and fears. i finally found that change of heart which comes by "casting all one's care" upon god, and by having faith in jesus christ, as the redeemer, friend, and savior of those who diligently seek him. after this. i saw the world in a new light. i seemed to live in a new world, surrounded by new objects, and to be animated by new hopes and desires. i loved all mankind slaveholders not excepted; though i abhorred slavery more than ever. my great concern was, now, to have the world converted. the desire for knowledge increased, and especially did i want a thorough acquaintance with the contents of the bible. i have gathered scattered pages from this holy book, from the filthy street gutters of baltimore, and washed and dried them, that in the moments of my leisure, i might get a word or two of wisdom from them. while thus religiously seeking knowledge, i hecame acquainted with a good old colored man, named lawson.†in 1830 charles lawson, a free black, lived in fells point and was over fifty five years old. he had five people in his household. lawson was a drayman for ropemaker james ramsey. he was a member of baltimore's bethel african methodist church, and although he was much older, became close friends with douglass. carter g. woodson, free negro heads of families in the united states in 1830 (washington, d.c., 1925), 43; preston, young frederick douglass, 97 98. a more devout man than he, i never saw. he drove a dray*a low two wheeled cart with sides, used for carrying heavy loads. for mr. james ramsey,†james ramsey was a rope manufacturer in fells point. his long, low, and narrow shop was located at the intersection of thames and bond streets. matchett's baltimore directory for 1827, 214; matchett's baltimore director[y] . . . 1835 6, 211. the owner of a rope walk on fell's point, baltimore. this man not only prayed three times a day, but he prayed as he walked through the streets, at his work on his dray everywhere. his life was a life of prayer, and his words, (when he spoke to his friends,) were about a better world. uncle lawson lived near master hugh's house; and, becoming deeply attached to the old man, i went often with him to prayer meeting, and spent much of my leisure time with him on sunday. the old man could read a little, and i was a great help to him, in making out the hard words, for i was a better reader than he. i could teach him "," but he could teach me ";" and high, refreshing times we had together, in singing, praying and glorifying god. these meetings with uncle lawson went on for a long time, without the knowledge of master hugh or my mistress. both knew, however, that i had become religious, and they seemed to respect my conscientious piety. my mistress was still a professor of religion, and belonged to class. her leader was no less a person than the rev. beverly waugh,†beverly waugh (1789 1858) was the son of a substantial farmer from fairfax county, virginia. he became a traveling preacher for the baltimore conference of the methodist episcopal church in 1809, a deacon in 1811, and an elder in 1813. douglass probably first met waugh in 1827, when the minister was the presiding elder of the east baltimore station, which included the wilks street church attended by the hugh auld family. in 1836 waugh was elected a bishop by the general conference, and in 1852 he became senior bishop of the church. h. b. ridgaway, "beverly waugh," in lives of methodist bishops, ed. theodore l. flood and john w. hamilton (new york, 1882), 225 62: dab, 19:558. the presiding elder, and now one of the bishops of the methodist episcopal church. mr. waugh was then stationed over wilk street church. i am careful to state these facts, that the reader may be able to form an idea of the precise influences which had to do with shaping and directing my mind. in view of the cares and anxieties incident to the life she was then leading, and, especially, in view of the separation from religious associations to which she was subjected, my mistress had, as i have before stated, become lukewarm, and needed to be looked up by her leader. this brought mr. waugh to our house, and gave me an opportunity to hear him exhort and pray. but my chief instructor, in matters of religion, was uncle lawson. he was my spiritual father; and i loved him intensely, and was at his house every chance i got. this pleasure was not long allowed me. master hugh became averse to my going to father lawson's, and threatened to whip me if i ever went there again. i now felt myself persecuted by a wicked man; and i go to father lawson's, notwithstanding the threat. the good old man had told me, that the "lord had a great work for me to do," and i must prepare to do it; and that he had been shown that i must preach the gospel. his words made a deep impression on my mind, and i verily felt that some such work was before me, though i could not see i should ever engage in its performance. 'the good lord," he said, "would bring it to pass in his own good time," and that i must go on reading and studying the scriptures. the advice and the suggestions of uncle lawson, were not without their influence upon my character and destiny. he threw my thoughts into a channel from which they have never entirely diverged. he fanned my already intense love of knowledge into a flame, by assuring me that i was to he a useful man in the world. when i would say to him. "how can these things he and what can do?" his simple reply was. "." when i told him that " i was a slave, and a slave for life." he said. "the lord can make you free, my dear. all things are possible with him, only ." "ask, and it shall be given." " if you want liberty," said the good old man, "ask the lord for it, , and he will give it to you." thus assured, and cheered on, under the inspiration of hope, i worked and prayed with a light heart, believing that my life was under the guidance of a wisdom higher than my own. with all other blessings sought at the mercy seat, i always prayed that god would, of his great mercy, and in his own good time, deliver me from my bondage. i went, one day, on the wharf of mr. waters;†george p. waters was a ship chandler and grocer who operated both of his businesses near the wharf he owned at the south end of fell street in fells point. matchett's baltimore director[y] . . . 1833, 189, 15 (street register); matchett's baltimore director[y] . . . 1835 6, 267; lucas, plan of the city of baltimore. and seeing two irishmen unloading a large scow of stone,†a large flat bottomed boat propelled by a pole. or ballast, i went on board, unasked, and helped them. when we had finished the work, one of the men came to me, aside, and asked me a number of questions, and among them, if i were a slave. i told him "i was a slave, and a slave for life." the good irishman gave his shoulders a shrug, and seemed deeply affected by the statement. he said, "it was a pity so fine a little fellow as myself should be a slave for life." they both had much to say about the matter, and expressed the deepest sympathy with me, and the most decided hatred of slavery. they went so far as to tell me that i ought to run away, and go to the north; that i should find friends there, and that i would be as free as anybody. i, however, pretended not to be interested in what they said, for i feared they might be treacherous. white men have been known to encourage slaves to escape, and then to get the reward they have kidnapped them, and returned them to their masters. and while i mainly inclined to the notion that these men were honest and meant me no ill, i feared it might be otherwise. i nevertheless remembered their words and their advice, and looked forward to an escape to the north, as a possible means of gaining the liberty for which my heart panted. it was not my enslavement, at the then present time, that most affected me; the being a slave, was the saddest thought. i was too young to think of running away immediately; besides. i wished to learn how to write, before going, as i might have occasion to write my own pass. i now not only had the hope of freedom, but a foreshadowing of the means by which i might, some day, gain that inestimable boon. meanwhile. i resolved to add to my educational attainments the art of writing. after this manner i began to learn to write; i was much in the shipyard†textual note: although this term is hyphenated in only six instances of its approximately twenty four occurrences in bondage and freedom, hyphenation is consistent both with douglass's usual treatment of two word nouns and with his usual treatment of "ship yard" in his first autobiography, narrative. douglass papers, ser. 2, 1. emendation note: ship yard] master hugh's, and that of durgan & bailey and i observed that the carpenters, after hewing and getting a piece of timber ready for use, wrote on it the initials of the name of that part of the ship for which it was intended. when, for instance. a piece of timber was ready for the starboard side, it was marked with a capital "s." a piece for the larboard side was marked "l," larboard forward, "l. f.," larboard aft, was marked "l.a.;" starboard aft, "s. a.;" and starboard forward "s . f." i soon learned these letters, and for what they were placed on the timbers. my work was now, to keep fire under the steam box, and to watch the ship yard†textual note: although this term is hyphenated in only six instances of its approximately twenty four occurrences in bondage and freedom, hyphenation is consistent both with douglass's usual treatment of two word nouns and with his usual treatment of "ship yard" in his first autobiography, narrative. douglass papers, ser. 2, 1. emendation note: ship yard] while the carpenters had gone to dinner. this interval gave me a fine opportunity for copying the letters named. i soon astonished myself with the ease with which i made the letters; and the thought was soon present, "if i can make four, i can make more." but having made these easily, when i met boys about bethel church, or any of our play grounds, i entered the lists with them in the art of writing, and would make the letters which i had been so fortunate as to learn, and ask them to "beat that if they could." with playmates for my teachers, fences and pavements for my copy books, and chalk for my pen and ink, i learned the art of writing. i, however, afterward adopted various methods of improving my hand. the most successful, was copying the in webster's spelling book, until i could make them all without looking on the book. by this time. my little "master tommy" had grown to be a big boy, and had written over a number of copy books, and brought them home. they had been shown to the neighbors, had elicited due praise, and were now laid carefully away. spending my time between the ship yard†textual note: although this term is hyphenated in only six instances of its approximately twenty four occurrences in bondage and freedom, hyphenation is consistent both with douglass's usual treatment of two word nouns and with his usual treatment of "ship yard" in his first autobiography, narrative. douglass papers, ser. 2, 1. emendation note: ship yard] and house, i was as often the lone keeper of the latter as of the former. when my mistress left me in charge of the house, i had a grand time; i got master tommy's copy books and a pen and ink, and, in the ample spaces between the lines. i wrote other lines, as nearly like his as possible. the process was a tedious one, and i ran the risk of getting a flogging for marring the highly prized copy books of the oldest son. in addition to those opportunities, sleeping, as i did, in the kitchen loft a room seldom visited by any of the family i got a flour barrel up there, and a chair; and upon the head of that barrel i have written, (or endeavored to write,) copying from the bible and the methodist hymn book,†douglass probably had a copy of the standard hymnal of the methodist episcopal church, which was published in various locations in the 1800s. methodist episcopal church, a collection of hynms for the use of the methodist episcopal church, principally from the collection of the rev. john wesley (new york, 1844). and other books which had accumulated on my hands, till late at night, and when all the family were in bed and asleep. i was supported in my endeavors by renewed advice, and by holy promises from the good father lawson, with whom i continued to meet, and pray, and read the scriptures. although master hugh was aware of my going there, i must say, for his credit, that he never executed his threat to whip me, for having thus, innocently, employed my leisure time. chapter xiii. the vicissitudes of slave life. death of old master's son richard, speedily foli.owed by that of old master valuation and division of all the property, including the slaves my presence required at hillsborough to be appraised and allotted to a new owner my sad prospects and grief parting utter powerlessness of the slaves to decide their own destiny  a general dread of master andrew his wickedness and cruelty miss lucretia my new owner my return to baltimore joy under the roof of master hugh death of mrs. lucretia my poor old grandmother her sad fate the lone cot in the woods master thomas auld's second marriage again removed from master hugh's reasons for regretting the chance a plan for escape entertained. i must now ask the reader to go with me a little back in point of time, in my humble story, and to notice another circumstance that entered into my slavery experience, and which, doubtless, has had a share in deepening my horror of slavery, and increasing my hostility toward those men and measures that practically uphold the slave system. it has already been observed, that though i was, after my removal from col. lloyd 's plantation, in the slave of master hugh, i was, in , and in , the slave of my old master, capt. anthony. very well. in a very short time after i went to baltimore, my old master's youngest son, richard, died; and, in three years and six months after his death, my old master himself died,†aaron anthony died on 14 november 1826. preston, young frederick douglass, 30. leaving only his son, andrew, and his daughter, lucretia, to share his estate. the old man died while on a visit to his daughter, in hillsborough, where capt. auld and mrs. lucretia now lived. the former, having given up the command of col. lloyd's sloop, was now keeping a store in that town. cut off, thus unexpectedly, capt. anthony died intestate; and his property must now he equally*emendation note: equally] equaily divided between his two children, andrew and lucretia. the valuation and the division of slaves,†aaron anthony's heirs, richard anthony, andrew anthony, and thomas auld, agreed to the division of his slaves on 27 september 1827. twenty eight slaves, including frederick douglass, constituted the division and were valued at $2,805. frederick was among the slaves awarded to thomas auld, widower of lucretia anthony auld. aaron anthony, distribution of negroes, folder 77, dodge collection, mdaa; aaron anthony slave distribution, 22 october 1827, talbot county distributions, v.jp#d, 58 59, mdtch. among contending heirs, is an important incident in slave life. the character and tendencies of the heirs, are generally well understood among the slaves who are to be divided, and all have their aversions and preferences. but, neither their aversions nor their preferences avail them anything. on the death of old master, i was immediately sent for, to be valued and divided with the other property. personally, my concern was, mainly, about my possible removal from the home of master hugh, which, after that of my grandmother, was the most endeared to me. but, the whole thing, as a feature of slavery, shocked me. it furnished me a new insight into the unnatural power to which i was subjected. my detestation of slavery, already great, rose with this new conception of its enormity. that was a sad day for me, a sad day for little tommy, and a sad day for my dear baltimore mistress and teacher, when i left for the eastern shore, to be valued and divided. we, all three, wept bitterly that day; for we might be parting, and we feared we were parting, forever. no one could tell among which pile of chattels i should be flung. thus early, i got a foretaste of that painful uncertainty which slavery brings to the ordinary lot of mortals. sickness, adversity and death may interfere with the plans and purposes of all; but the slave has the added danger of changing homes, changing hands, and of having separations unknown to other men. then, too, there was the intensified degradation of the spectacle. what an assemblage! men and women, young and old, married and single; moral and intellectual beings, in open contempt of their humanity, leveled at a blow with horses, sheep, horned cattle and swine! horses and men cattle and women pigs and children all holding the same rank in the scale of social existence; and all subjected to the same narrow inspection, to ascertain their value in gold and silver the only standard of worth applied by slaveholders to slaves! how vividly, at that moment, did the brutalizing power of slavery flash before me! personality swallowed up in the sordid idea of property! manhood lost in chattelhood! after the valuation, then came the division. this was an hour of high excitement and distressing anxiety. our destiny was now to be , and we had no more voice in the decision of the question, than the oxen and cows that stood chewing at the hay mow.†a stack of hay, or a hay shed or barn, or the compartment of a barn in which hay is stored. one word from the appraisers, against all preferences or prayers, was enough to sunder all the ties of friendship and affection, and even to separate husbands and wives, parents and children. we were all appalled before that power, which, to human seeming, could bless or blast us in a moment. added to the dread of separation, most painful to the majority of the slaves, we all had a decided horror of the thought of falling into the hands of master andrew. he was distinguished for cruelty and intemperance. slaves generally dread to fall into the hands of drunken owners. master andrew was almost a confirmed sot, and had already, by his reckless mismanagement and profligate dissipation, wasted a large portion of old master's property. to fall into his hands, was, therefore, considered merely as the first step toward being sold away to the far south. he could spend his fortune in a few years, and his farms and slaves would be sold, we thought, at public outcry; and we should be hurried away to the cotton fields, and rice swamps, of the sunny south. this was the cause of deep consternation. the people of the north, and free people generally, i think, have less attachment to the places where they are born and brought up, than have the slaves. their freedom to go and come, to be here and there, as they list, prevents any extravagant attachment to any one particular place, in their case. on the other hand, the slave is a fixture; he has no choice, no goal, no destination; but is pegged down to a single spot, and must take root here, or nowhere. the idea of removal elsewhere, comes, generally, in the shape of a threat, and in punishment of crime. it is, therefore, attended with fear and dread. a slave seldom thinks of bettering his condition by being sold, and hence he looks upon separation from his native place, with none of the enthusiasm which animates the bosoms of young freemen, when they contemplate a life in the far west, or in some distant country where they intend to rise to wealth and distinction. nor can those from whom they separate, give them up with that cheerfulness with which friends and relations yield each other up, when they feel that it is for the good of the departing one that he is removed from his native place. then, too, there is correspondence, and there is, at least, the hope of reunion, because reunion is . but, with the slave, all these mitigating circumstances are wanting. there is no improvement in his condition  no correspondence  no reunion attainable. his going out into the world, is like a living man going into the tomb, who, with open eyes, sees himself buried out of sight and hearing of wife, children and friends of kindred tie. in contemplating the likelihoods and possibilities of our circumstances, i probably suffered more than most of my fellow servants. i had known what it was to experience kind, and even tender treatment; they had known nothing of the sort. life, to them, had heen rough and thorny, as well as dark. they had most of them lived on my old master's farm in tuckahoe, and had felt the reign of mr. plummer's rule. the overseer had written his character on the living parchment of most of their backs, and left them callous; my back (thanks to my early removal from the plantation to baltimore,) was yet tender. i had left a kind mistress at baltimore, who was almost a mother to me. she was in tears when we parted, and the probabilities of ever seeing her again, trembling in the balance as they did, could not be viewed without alarm and agony. the thought of leaving that kind mistress forever, and, worse still, of being the slave of andrew anthony a man who, but a few days before the division of the property, had, in my presence, seized my brother perry by the throat, dashed him on the ground, and with the heel of his boot stamped him on the head, until the blood gushed from his nose and ears was terrible! this fiendish proceeding had no better apology than the fact, that perry had gone to play, when master andrew wanted him for some trifling service. this cruelty, too, was of a piece with his general character. after inflicting his heavy blows on my brother, on observing me looking at him with intense astonishment, he said, " is the way i will serve you, one of these days;" meaning, no doubt, when i should come into his possession. this threat, the reader may well suppose, was not very tranquilizing to my feelings. i could see that he really thirsted to get hold of me. but i was there only for a few days. i had not received any orders, and had violated none, and there was, therefore, no excuse for flogging me. at last, the anxiety and suspense were ended; and they ended, thanks to a kind providence, in accordance with my wishes. i fell to the portion of mrs. lucretia the dear lady who bound up my head, when the savage aunt katy was adding to my sufferings her bitterest maledictions. capt. thomas auld and mrs. lucretia at once decided on my return to baltimore. they knew how sincerely and warmly mrs. hugh auld was attached to me, and how delighted mr. hugh's son would be to have me back; and, withal, having no immediate use for one so young, they willingly let me off to baltimore. i need not stop here to narrate my joy on returning to baltimore, nor that of little tommy; nor the tearful joy of his mother; nor the evident satisfaction of master hugh. i was just one month absent from baltimore, before the matter was decided; and the time really seemed full six months. one trouble over, and on comes another. the slave's life is full of uncertainty. i had returned to baltimore but a short time, when the tidings reached me, that my kind friend, mrs. lucretia. who was only second in my regard to mrs. hugh auld, was dead, leaving her husband and only one child a daughter. named amanda.†born in hillsborough, maryland, arianna amanda auld sears (1826 78) was the only child of thomas and lucretia anthony auld. with her mother's death in 1826 and her father's subsequent remarriage, she fell under the charge of her stepmother, rowena hambleton auld. in 1843 she married john l. sears, a philadelphia coal merchant, with whom she bore four children. the searses moved to philadelphia but returned to maryland in the early 1860s, settling in baltimore. auld's childhood acquaintance with frederick douglass was reestablished in 1859 when he called upon her while on a speaking engagement in philadelphia. douglass and auld maintained a warm friendship over the years that followed; after her death in 1878, auld's husband john wrote to douglass, "god bless, you for your kindness to her." auld family bible (courtesy of carl g. auld); new york herald, 6 september 1866; philadelphia evening bulletin, 6 september 1866; john l. sears to douglass, 10 january 1878, thomas e. sears to douglass, 1 februrary 1878, general correspondence file, reel 3, frames 215 16, 225, fd paper, dlc; preston, young frederick douglass, 30, 106 07, 168 70; mcfeely, frederick douglass, 297, 306; roberts, "visitation of western talbot," 245. shortly after the death of mrs. lucretia, strange to say, master andrew died, leaving his wife and one child. thus, the whole family of anthonys was swept away; only two children remained. all this happened within five years of my leaving col. lloyd's. no alteration took place in the condition of the slaves, in consequence of these deaths, yet i could not help feeling less secure. after the death of my friend, mrs. lucretia, than i had done during her life. while she lived, i felt that i had a strong friend to plead for me in any emergency. ten years ago, while speaking of the state of things in our family, after the events just named, i used this language: "now all the property of my old master, slaves included, was in the hands of strangers strangers who had nothing to do in accumulating it. not a slave was left free. all remained slaves, from the youngest to the oldest. if any one thing in my experience, more than another, served to deepen my conviction of the infernal character of slavery, and to fill me with unutterable loathing of slaveholders, it was their base ingratitude to my poor old grandmother. she had served my old master faithfully from youth to old age. she had been the source of all his wealth; she had peopled his plantation with slaves; she had become a greatgrandmother in his service. she had rocked him in infancy, attended him in childhood. served him through life. and at his death wiped from his icy brow the cold death sweat. and closed his eyes forever. she was nevertheless left a slave a slave for life a slave in the hands of strangers; and in their hands she saw her children, her grandchildren, and her great grandchildren, divided, like so many sheep, without being gratified with the small privilege of a single word, as to their or her own destiny. and, to cap the climax of their base ingratitude and fiendish barbarity, my grandmother, who was now very old, having outlived my old master and all his children, having seen the beginning and end of all of them, and her present owners finding she was of but little value, her frame already racked with the pains of old age, and complete helplessness fast stealing ovr her once active limbs, they took her to the woods, built her a little hut, put up a little mud chimney, and then made her welcome to the privilege of supporting herself there in perfect loneliness; thus virtually turning her out to die! if my poor old grandmother now lives, she lives to suffer in utter loneliness; she lives to remember and mourn over the loss of children, the loss of grandchildren, and the loss of great grandchildren. they are, in the language of the slave's poet, whittier  gone, gone, sold and gone, to the rice swamp dank and lone, where the slave whip ceaseless swings, where the noisome insect stings, where the fever demon strews poison with the falling dews, where the sickly sunbeams glare through the hot and misty air:  gone, gone, sold and gone to the rice swamp dank and lone, from virginia hills and waters  woe is me, my stolen daughters!'†first stanza of the 1838 poem "the farewell of a virginia slave mother to her daughter sold into southern bondage," by john greenleaf whittier, is part of his collection of anti slavery poetry. john g. whittier, the poetical works of john greenleaf whittier, 4 vols, (boston, 1892), 3:56. "the hearth is desolate. the children, the unconscious children, who once sang and danced in her presence, are gone. she gropes her way, in the darkness of age, for a drink of water. instead of the voices of her children, she hears by day the moans of the dove, and by night the screams of the hideous owl. all is gloom. the grave is at the door. and now, when weighed down by the pains and aches of old age, when the head inclines to the feet, when the beginning and ending of human existence meet, and helpless infancy and painful old age combine together at this time, this most needful time, the time for the exercise of that tenderness and affection which children only can exercise toward a declining parent my poor old grandmother, the devoted mother of twelve children, is left all alone, in yonder little hut, before a few dim embers."†douglass papers, ser. 2, 1:39 41. two years after the death of mrs. lucretia, master thomas married his second wife. her name was rowena hamilton.†rowena hambleton auld (1812 42) was the eldest daughter of william hambleton, a wealthy slave owner in martingham, maryland. she became the second wife of thomas auld on 21 may 1829. auld family bible (courtesy of carl g. auld); preston, young frederick douglass, 106 07; roberts, "visitation of western talbot," 245. the eldest daughter of mr. william hamilton,†william hambleton (c.1783 1855), not hamilton, was descended from an old eastern shore family and lived at martingham, a talbot county plantation. he was the father of rowena hambleton auld and the brother of "purser" samuel hambleton, who had won national fame as a hero at the battle of lake erie. in 1850 hambleton possessed real estate valued at ten thousand dollars and owned ten slaves. 1850 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 1016 (free schedule), 32 (slave schedule); preston, young frederick douglass, 108 09, 130. a rich slaveholder on the eastern shore of maryland, who lived about five miles from st. michael's. the then place of my master' s residence. not long after his marriage, master thomas had a misunderstanding with master hugh, and, as a means of punishing his brother, he ordered him to send me home. as the ground of misunderstanding will serve to illustrate the character of southern chivalry, and humanity, i will relate it. among the children of my aunt milly, was a daughter, named henny. when quite a child, henny had fallen into the fire, and had burnt her hands so bad that they were of very little use to her. her fingers were drawn almost into the palms of her hands. she could make out to do something, but she was considered hardly worth the having of little more value than a horse with a broken leg. this unprofitable piece of human property, ill shapen, and disfigured, capt. auld sent off to baltimore, making his brother hugh welcome to her services. after giving poor henny a fair trial, master hugh and his wife came to the conclusion, that they had no use for the crippled servant, and they sent her back to master thomas. this, the latter took as an act of ingratitude, on the part of his brother; and, as a mark of his displeasure, he required him to send me immediately to st. michael's, saying, if he cannot keep "," he shall not have "." here was another shock to my nerves, another breaking up of my plans, and another severance of my religious and social alliances. i was now a big boy. i had become quite useful to several young colored men, who had made me their teacher. i had taught some of them to read, and was accustomed to spend many of my leisure hours with them. our attachment was strong, and i greatly dreaded the separation. but regrets, especially in a slave, are unavailing. i was only a slave; my wishes were nothing, and my happiness was the sport of my masters. my regrets at now leaving baltimore, were not for the same reasons as when i before left that city, to be valued and handed over to my proper owner. my home was not now the pleasant place it had formerly been. a change had taken place, both in master hugh, and in his once pious and affectionate wife. the influence of brandy and bad company on him, and the influence of slavery and social isolation upon her, had wrought disastrously upon the characters of both. thomas was no longer "little tommy," but was a big boy, and had learned to assume the airs of his class toward me. my condition, therefore, in the house of master hugh, was not, by any means, so comfortahle as in former years. my attachments were now outside of our family. they were felt to those to whom i instruction, and to those little white hoys from whom i instruction. there, too. was my dear old father, the pious lawson, who was, in christian graces, the very counterpart of "uncle" tom.†an allusion to the humble, pious, long suffering title character of harriet beecher stowe's antislavery novel, uncle tom's cabin (1852), mitford m. mathews, ed., a dictionary of americanisms on historical principles, 2 vols. (chicago, 1951), 2:1794. the resemblance is so perfect, that he might have been the original of mrs. stowe's christian hero. the thought of leaving these dear friends, greatly troubled me, for i was going without the hope of ever returning to baltimore again; the feud between master hugh and his hrother being bitter and irreconcilable, or, at least, supposed to be so. in addition to thoughts of friends from whom i was parting, as i supposed, , i had the grief of neglected chances of escape to brood over. i had put off running away, until now i was to be placed where the opportunities for escaping were much fewer than in a large city like baltimore. on my way from baltimore to st. michael's, down the chesapeake bay, our sloop  the amanda†this sloop was owned by the auld family and used to carry goods between st. michaels and baltimore. named for thomas auld's daughter amanda auld sears, the sloop was piloted by captain ed dodson. preston, young frederick douglass, 105.  was passed by the steamers plying between that city and philadelphia, and i watched the course of those steamers, and, while going to st. michael's, i formed a plan to escape from slavery; of which plan, and matters connected therewith the kind reader shall learn more hereafter. chapter xiv. experience in st. michael's. the village its inhabitants their occupation and low propensities captain thomas auld his character his second wife, rowena well matched sufferings from hunger obliged to take food mode of argument in vindication thereof no moral code of free society can apply to slave society southern camp meeting what master thomas did there hopes suspicions about his conversation the result faith and works entirely at variance his rise and progress in the church poor cousin "henny" his treatment of her the methodist preacher their utter disregard of us one excellent exception rev. george cookman sabbath school how broken up and by whom a funeral pall cast over all my prospects covey the negro breaker. st. michael's, the village in which was now my new home, compared favorably with villages in slave states, generally. there were a few comfortable dwellings in it, but the place, as a whole, wore a dull, slovenly, enterprise forsaken aspect. the mass of the buildings were of wood; they had never enjoyed the artificial adornment of paint, and time and storms had worn off the bright color of the wood, leaving them almost as black as buildings charred by a conflagration. st. michael's had, in former years, (previous to 1833, for that was the year i went to reside there,) enjoyed some reputation as a ship building community, but that business had almost entirely given place to oyster fishing, for the baltimore and philadelphia markets a course of life highly unfavorable to morals, industry, and manners. miles river was broad, and its oyster fishing grounds were extensive; and the fishermen were out, often, all day, and a part of the night, during autumn, winter and spring. this exposure was an excuse for carrying with them, in considerable quantities, spirituous liquors, the then supposed best antidote for cold. each canoe was supplied with its jug of rum; and tippling, among this class of the citizens of st. michael's, became general. this drinking habit, in an ignorant population, fostered coarseness, vulgarity and an indolent disregard for the social improvement of the place, so that it was admitted, by the few sober, thinking people who remained there, that st. michael's had become a very , as well as an unsightly place, before i went there to reside. i left baltimore, for st. michael's in the month of march,1833. i know the year, because it was the one succeeding the first cholera in baltimore.†the first known widespread incidence of cholera in baltimore occurred in the summer of 1832. j. thomas scharf, the chronicles of baltimore: being a complete history of "baltimore town" and baltimore city from the earliest period to the present time (baltimore, 1874), 460; olson, baltimore, 92. and was the year, also, of that strange phenomenon, when the heavens seemed about to part with its starry train.† the "year the stars fell'' was an encounter with the leonid asteroid belt that happens every year, periodically in spectacular fashion. in 1833 the sky over the deep south states was the site of the greatest activity. in an era without artificial light, the phenomenon woke people up at night, so frequent were the showers of falling stars. many people thought it was the last judgment and reportedly walked into rivers to be taken across. joe rao, "the return of the leonid meteors," sky & telescope, 96: 4 5 (november 1998); nicholas hamner cobbs, "the night the stars fell on alabama," alabama review, 22:147 57 (april 1969); mary l. kwas, "the spectacular 1833 leonid meteor storm: the view from arkansas," arkansas historical quarterly, 58:314 24 (autumn 1999). i witnessed this gorgeous spectacle, and was awe struck. the air seemed filled with bright, descending messengers from the sky. it was about daybreak when i saw this sublime scene. i was not without the suggestion, at the moment, that it might be the harbinger of the coming of the son of man; and, in my then state of mind, i was prepared to hail him as my friend and deliverer. i had read, that the "stars shall fall from heaven;"†from matt. 24:29: "immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken." and they were now falling. i was suffering much in my mind. it did seem that every time the young tendrils of my affection became attached, they were rudely broken by some unnatural outside power; and i was beginning to look away to heaven for the rest denied me on earth. but, to my story. it was now more than seven years since i had lived with master thomas auld, in the family of my old master, on col. lloyd's plantation. we were almost entire strangers to each other; for, when i knew him at the house of my old master, it was not as a , but simply as "captain auld," who had married old master's daughter. all my lessons concerning his temper and disposition, and the best methods of pleasing him, were yet to be learnt. slaveholders, however, are not very ceremonious in approaching a slave; and my ignorance of the new material in the shape of a master was but transient. nor was my new mistress long in making known her animus. she was not a "miss lucretia," traces of whom i yet remembered, and the more especially, as i saw them shining in the face of little amanda, her daughter, now living under a step mother's government. i had not forgollen the soft hand, guided hy a tender heart, that bound up with healing balsam the gash made in my head by ike, the son of abel. thomas and rowena, i found to he a well matched pair. was stingy, and was cruel; and what was quite natural in such cases she possessed the ability to make him as cruel as herself, while she could easily descend to the level of his meanness. in the house of master thomas, i was made for the first time in seven years to feel the pinchings of hunger, and this was not very easy to bear. for, in all the changes of master hugh's family. there was no change in the bountifulness with which they supplied me with food. not to give a slave enough to eat, is meanness intensified, and it is so recognized among slaveholders generally, in maryland. the rule is, no matter how coarse the food, only let there he enough of it. this is the theory, and in the part of maryland i came from the general practice accords with this theory. lloyd's plantation was an exception, as was, also, the house of master thomas auld. all know the lightness of indian corn meal, as an article of food, and can easily judge from the following facts whether the statements i have made of the stinginess of master thomas, are borne out. there were four slaves of us in the kitchen, and four whites in the great house thomas auld, mrs. auld, hadaway auld,†haddaway auld (1813  ?) was the eighth son of hugh and zipporah auld and the brother of thomas. auld family bible (courtesy of dickson j. preston). (brother of thomas auld,) and little amanda. the names of the slaves in the kitchen, were eliza, my sister; priscilla, my aunt; henny, my cousin; and myself. there were eight persons in the family. there was, each week, one half bushel of corn meal brought from the mill; and in the kitchen, corn meal was almost our exclusive food. for very little else was allowed us. out of this half bushel of corn meal, the family in the great house had a small loaf every morning; thus leaving us, in the kitchen, with not quite a half a peck of meal per week, apiece.†a peck is equal to one fourth of a bushel, or two gallons. the ration allowed douglass and the others enslaved by the auld family was only one gallon, or one eighth bushel, of cornmeal per week. this allowance was less than half the allowance of food on lloyd's plantation. it was not enough to subsist upon; and we were, therefore, reduced to the wretched necessity of living at the expense of our neighbors. we were compelled either to beg, or to steal, and we did both. i frankly confess, that while i hated everything like stealing, , i nevertheless did not hesitate to take food, when i was hungry, wherever i could find it. nor was this practice the mere result of an unreasoning instinct; it was, in my case, the result of a clear apprehension of the claims of morality. i weighed and considered the matter closely, before i ventured to satisfy my hunger by such means. considering that my labor and person were the property of master thomas, and that i was by him deprived of the necessaries of life necessaries obtained by my own labor it was easy to deduce the right to supply myself with what was my own. it was simply appropriating what was my own to the use of my master, since the health and strength derived from such food were exerted in service. to be sure, this was stealing, according to the law and gospel i heard from st. michael's pulpit; but i had already begun to attach less importance to what dropped from that quarter, on that point, while, as yet. i retained my reverence for religion. it was not always convenient to steal from master, and the same reason why i might, innocently, steal from him, did not seem to justify me in stealing from others. in the case of my master, it was only a question of  the taking his meat out of one tub, and putting it into another; the ownership of the meat was not affected by the transaction. at first, he owned it in the , and last, he owned it in me. his meat house was not always open. there was a strict watch kept on that point, and the key was on a large bunch in rowena's pocket. a great many times have we, poor creatures, been severely pinched with hunger, when meat and bread have been moulding under the lock. while the key was in the pocket of our mistress. this had been so when she we were nearly half starved; and yet, that mistress, with saintly air, would kneel with her husband, and pray each morning that a merciful god would bless them in basket and in store, and save them, at last, in his kingdom. but i proceed with the argument. it was necessary that the right to steal from should be established; and this could only rest upon a wider range of generalization than that which supposed the right to steal from my master. it was sometime before i arrived at this clear right. the reader will get some idea of my train of reasoning, by a brief statement of the case. "i am," thought i, "not only the slave of master thomas, but i am the slave of society at large. society at large has bound itself, in form and in fact, to assist master thomas in robbing me of my rightful liberty, and of the just reward of my labor; therefore, whatever rights i have against master thomas, i have, equally, against those confederated with him in robbing me of liberty. as society has marked me out as privileged plunder, on the principle of self preservation i am justified in plundering in turn. since each slave belongs to all; all must, therefore, belong to each." i shall here make a profession of faith which may shock some, offend others, and be dissented from by all. it is this: within the bounds of his just earning, i hold that the slave is fully justified in helping himself to the. the morality of society can have no application to society. slaveholders have made it almost impossible for the slave to commit any crime, known either to the laws of god or to the law's of man. if he steals, he takes his own; if he kills his master, he imitates only the heroes of the revolution. slaveholders i hold to be individually and collectively responsible for all the evils which grow out of the horrid relation, and i believe they will be so held at the judgment, in the sight of a just god. make a man a slave, and you rob him of moral responsibility. freedom of choice is the essence of all accountability. but my kind readers are, probably, less concerned about my opinions. than about that which more nearly touches my personal experience; albeit, my opinions have in some sort, been formed by that experience. bad as slaveholders are, i have seldom met with one so entirely destitute of every clement of character capable of inspiring respect, as was my present master, capt. thomas auld. when i lived with him. i thought him incapable†emendation note: incapable] incapahle of a noble action. the leading trait in his character was intense selfishness. i think he was fully aware of this fact himself, and often tried to conceal it. capt. auld was not a slaveholder not a birthright member of the slaveholding oligarchy. he was only a slaveholder by ;†the division of aaron anthony's estate in september 1827 transferred ten slaves, including an infant valued at $935, directly to thomas auld. there is no indication that these were held in trust for lucretia anthony auld, but under nineteenth century law a wife's property legally belonged to her husband. aaron anthony, distribution of negroes, folder 77, dodge collection, mdaa; auguste carlier, marriage in the united states (1867; new york, 1972), 191; nancy woloch, women and the american experience (new york, 1984), 56 58; elizabeth frost knappman, the abc clio companion to women's progress in america (santa barbara, calif., 1994), 189 91. and, of all slaveholders, these latter are, by far, the most exacting. there was in him all the love of domination, the pride of mastery, and the swagger of authority, but his rule lacked the vital element of consistency. he could be cruel; but his methods of showing it were cowardly, and evinced his meanness rather than his spirit. his commands were strong, his enforcement weak. slaves are not insensible to the whole souled characteristics of a generous, dashing slaveholder, who is fearless of consequences; and they prefer a master of this bold and daring kind even with the risk of being shot down for impudence to the fretful, little soul, who never uses the lash but at the suggestion of a love of gain. slaves, too, readily distinguish between the birthright hearing of the original slaveholder and the assumed attitudes of the accidental slaveholder; and while they cannot respect either, they certainly despise the latter more than the former. the luxury of having slaves wait upon him was something new to master thomas; and for it he was wholly unprepared. he was a slaveholdcr, without the ability to hold or manage his slaves. we seldom called him "master," but generally addressed him by his '"bay craft" title "." it is easy to see that such conduct might do much to make him appear awkward, and, consequently, fretful. his wife was especially solicitous to have us call her husband "master." is your r at the store?" "where is your " ''go and tell your " "i will make your acquainted with your conduct" she would say; but we were inapt scholars. especially were i and my sister eliza inapt in this particular. aunt priscilla was less stubborn and defiant in her spirit than eliza and myself; and, i think, her road was less rough than ours. in the month of august, 1833, when i had almost become desperate under the treatment of master thomas, and when i entertained more strongly than ever the oft repeated determination to run away, a circumstance occurred which seemed to promise brighter and better days for us all. at a methodist camp meeting, held in the bay side,†the bay side in talbot county, maryland, is believed to have been a center of methodism for the area, beginning about 1777. in that year, itinerant minister joseph cromwell preached at wye, st. michaels, and bayside. the methodist circuit riders were not permitted to use the worship facilities of existing denominations and often held "camp meetings" out of doors. in talbot county these meetings were first held in bayside on a farm near st. michaels. the bayside meeting attended by thomas auld occurred on 16 august 1833. following that date, auld's name appears somewhat regularly as a member of various committees in the minutes of the quarterly meetings held for st. michaels methodist circuit. thomas h. sewell, "st. michaels methodism" (manuscript, annapolis, 1894), 551, 561, 562, mdaa; tilghman, talbot county, 2:302 05, 307. (a famous place for camp meetings,) about eight miles from st. michael's, master thomas came out with a profession of religion. he had long been an object of interest to the church, and to the ministers, as i had seen by the repeated visits and lengthy exhortations of the latter. he was a fish quite worth catching, for he had money and standing. in the community of st. michael's he was equal to the best citizen. he was strictly temperate; perhaps, from principle, but most likely, from interest. there was very little to do for him, to give him the appearance of piety, and to make him a pillar in the church. well, the campmeeting continued a week; people gathered from all parts of the county, and two steamboat loads came from baltimore. the ground was happily chosen; seats were arranged; a stand erected; a rude altar fenced in, fronting the preachers' stand, with straw in it for the accommodation of mourners. this latter would hold at least one hundred persons. in front, and on the sides of the preachers' stand, and outside the long rows of seats, rose the first class of stately tents, each vieing with the other in strength, neatness, and capacity for accommodating its inmates. behind this first circle of tents was another, less imposing, which reached round the camp ground to the speakers' stand. outside this second class of tents were covered wagons, ox carts, and vehicles of every shape and size. these served as tents to their owners. outside of these, huge fires were burning, in all directions, where roasting, boiling, and frying, were going on, for the benefit of those who were attending to their own spiritual welfare within the circle. the preachers' stand, a narrow space was marked out for the use of the colored people. there were no seats provided for this class of persons; the preachers addressed them, "," if they addressed them at all. after the preaching was over, at every service, an invitation was given to mourners to come into the pen; and, in some cases, ministers went out to persuade men and women to come in. by one of these ministers, master thomas auld was persuaded to go inside the pen. i was deeply interested in that matter, and followed; and, though colored people were not allowed either in the pen or in front of the preachers' stand, i ventured to take my stand at a sort of halfway place hetween the blacks and whites, where i could distinctly see the movements of mourners, and especially the progress of master thomas. "lf he has got religion," thought i, "he will emancipate his slaves; and if he should not do so much as this, he will, at any rate, behave toward us more kindly, and feed us more generously than he has heretofore done." appealing to my own religious experience, and judging my master by what was true in my own case, i could not regard him as soundly converted, unless some such good results followed his profession of religion. but in my expectations i was doubly disappointed; master thomas was still. the fruits of his righteousness were to show themselves in no such way as i had anticipated. his conversion was not to change his relation toward men at any rate not toward black men  but toward god. my faith, i confess, was not great. there was something in his appearance that, in my mind, cast a doubt over his conversion.†emendation note: coversion standing where i did, i could see his every movement. i watched very narrowly while he remained in the little pen; and although i saw that his face was extremely red, and his hair disheveled, and though i heard him groan, and saw a stray tear halting on his cheek, as if inquiring "which way shall i go?" i could not wholly confide in the genuineness of his conversion. the hesitating behavior of that tear drop and its loneliness, distressed me, and cast a doubt upon the whole transaction, of which it was a part. but people said. "," and it was for me to hope for the best. i was bound to do this, in charity, for i, too, was religious, and had been in the church full three years, although now i was not more than sixteen years old. slaveholders may, sometimes, have confidence in the piety of some of their slaves; but the slaves seldom have confidence in the piety of their masters. "."†douglass adapts jer. 2:34: "also in thy skirts is found the souls of the poor innocents." is a settled point in the creed of every slave; rising superior to all teaching to the contrary, and standing forever as a fixed fact. the highest evidence the slaveholder can give the slave of his acceptance with god, is the emancipation of his slaves. this is proof that he is willing to give up all to god, and for the sake of god. not to do this, was, in my estimation, and in the opinion of all the slaves, an evidence of half heartedness, and wholly inconsistent with the idea of genuine conversion. i had read, also, somewhere in the methodist discipline, the following question and answer: ". what shall he done for the extirpation of slavery? ": we declare that we are as much as ever convinced of the great evil of slavery; therefore, no slaveholder shall be eligible to any official station in our church."†douglass quotes the written statement on the ineligibility of slaveholders for church membership guiding the clergy of the methodist episcopal church. the document, often referred to as the "methodist discipline," was titled the doctrines and discipline of the methodist episcopal church (new york, 1832), 191 92. these words sounded in my ears for a long time, and encouraged me to hope. but, as i have before said, i was doomed to disappointment. master thomas seemed to be aware of my hopes and expectations concerning him. i have thought, before now, that he looked at me in answer to my glances, as much as to say, "i will teach you, young man, that. though 1 have parted with my sins, i have not parted with my sense. i shall hold my slaves, and go to heaven too." possibly, to convince us that we must not presume upon his recent conversion, he became rather more rigid and stringent in his exactions. there always was a scarcity of good nature about the man; but now his whole countenance was s over with the seemings of piety. his religion, therefore, neither made him emancipate his slaves, nor caused him to treat them with greater humanity. if religion had any effect on his character at all, it made him more cruel and hateful in all his ways. the natural wickedness of his heart had not been removed, but only reenforced, by the profession of religion. do i judge him harshly? god forbid. facts are facts. capt. auld made the greatest profession of piety. his house was, literally, a house of prayer. in the morning, and in the evening, loud prayers and hymns were heard there, in which both himself and his wife joined; yet, no more meal was brought from the mill, was paid to the moral welfare of the kitchen; and nothing was done to make us feel that the heart of master thomas was one whit better than it was before he went into the little pen, opposite to the preachers' stand, on the camp ground. our hopes (founded on the discipline) soon vanished; for the authorities let him into the church , and before he was out of his term of , l heard of his leading class! he distinguished himself greatly among the brethren, and was soon an exhorter.† thomas auld first appears in the records of the st. michaels methodist circuit following the august 1833 camp meeting held at bayside. auld served on several committees for the circuit, including a planning committee for an 1836 camp meeting, but the circuit records do not show him as an exhorter or class leader. he may have served in those capacities, however, because in august 1836 he was listed as a steward, which was above both class leader and exhorter in the circuit hierarchy. sewell, "st. michaels methodism," 564. his progress was almost as rapid as the growth of the fabled vine of jack's bean.†an allusion to the nursery tale featuring jack and the beanstalk, popular among many peoples in varying forms. in the english version, jack exchanges his poor mother's cow for a handful of beans that miraculously produce stalks reaching the sky. jack climbs up them and steals treasures from the ogre's castle a bag of gold, a wonderful lamp, and a hen that lays golden eggs, thus redeeming his family from poverty. brewer, brewer's dictionary of phrase & fable, 566. no man was more active than he, in revivals. he would go many miles to assist in carrying them on, and in getting outsiders interested in religion. his house being one of the holiest, if not the happiest in st. michael 's, became the '"preachers' home." these preachers evidcntly liked to share master thomas's hospitality; for while he us, he them. three or four of these ambassadors of the gospel  according to slavery  have been there at a time; all living on the fat of the land; while we, in the kitchen, were nearly starving. not often did we get a smile of recognition from these holy men. they seemed almost as unconcerned about our getting to heaven, as they were about our getting out of slavery. to this general charge there was one exception the rev. george cookman.†born into a wealthy family in hull, england. george cookman (1800 41) received a careful education and began working in his father's merchant firm by the age of twenty. from 1821 to 1823 he visited the united states on business and during this sojourn became convinced of his duty to preach the gospel. despite his father's protestations, he resolved to settle permanently in america and become a methodist minister. soon after migrating in 1825, cookman became a popular figure in the methodists' philadelphia conference, preaching throughout parts of pennsylvania, new jersey, maryland, and the district of columhia. his powerful sermons won him the position of chaplain to the u.s. congress. as revivals were sweeping the eastern shore, cookman became the minister of the st. michaels methodist episcopal church in the summer of 1829 and labored to hold it in the denomination. he remained in that position at least through the early 1830s. by 1830 cookman was married and had two young sons. he had some antislavery leanings and apparently persuaded samuel harrison, one of talbot county's largest slaveholders, to emancipate all his adult male slaves after his death. in march 1841 president william henry harrison entrusted cookman with special dispatches to be delivered to england. unfortunately, the president was lost at sea and cookman was among the one hundred passengers who perished. 1830 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 6: matthew simpson, ed., cyclopaedia of methodism, 5th rev. ed. (philadelphia, 1882), 255 56; preston, young frederick douglass, 114 15, 226n17; sewell, "st. michaels methodism,'' 665 67, 675 78, 680, 707; acab, 1:722. unlike rev. messrs. storks,†the reverend levi storks was the circuit preacher of the talbot circuit of the methodist episcopal church in 1832 and 1833. when the british invaded the eastern shore in 1814, storks served as a private in a local regiment. in 1820 he was probably an overseer in talbot county, and in 1834 he married anne g. nicholson. 1820 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 6; william m. marine, the british invasion of maryland, 1812 1815, ed. louis henry dielamn (baltimore, 1913), 451; edith g. bevan, "maryland bookplates," mdhm, 39: 93 94 (march 1944); sewell, "st. michaels methodism," 717, 723. ewry,*in 1832 william uriey (c. 1810 80) was a circuit preacher for the methodist episcopal church's talbot circuit, which includcd st. michaels parish. sewell, "st. michaels methodism," 717. hickey,*william or possibly thomas hickey was a methodist preacher who in the 1830s rode a circuit that included st. michaels parish. sewell, "st. michaels methodism," 723; preston, young frederick douglass, 114, 226n16. humphrey†joshua humphries (c. 1801 79) entered the methodist episcopal ministry in 1829 and soon became a prominent member of that faith in talbot county. in 1834 he was the presiding elder and circuit preacher for the talbot circuit. humphries continued in charge in the talbot circuit in 1835, when he issued an important report on the state of sunday schools. james m. mccarter and benjamin f. jackson, eds., historical and biographical encyclopedia of delaware (wilmington, del., 1882), 410; sewell, "st. michaels methodism," 675, 730. and cooper,†ignatius taylor cooper (1806 ?) was born in dover, delaware, and attended school there and later washington college in chestertown, maryland. admitted to the bar in 1828, he began a promising career in dover in law and politics. but cooper converted to methodism during revivals sweeping the area in 1831 and by 1834 abandoned his profession in order to devote himself fully to preaching the gospel. his first circuit appointment was in talbot county, and his colleague was the rev. joshua humphries. in 1837 he was assigned to philadelphia, where he ministered to a number of churches until his retirement in 1860, when he removed to camden, delaware. mccarter and jackson, historical and biographical encyclopaedia of deleware, 249 51. (all whom were on the st. michael's circuit,)†the talbot county methodist circuit took in the whole county, including the town of st. michaels. the circuit was founded in 1781. because there was not a methodist church in the vicinity, members met at various private residences and at outdoor camp meetings. a circuit designated at the county level was small, but the talbot county conference reported 660 members when founded. sewell, "st. michaels methodism," 241 43. he kindly, took an interest in our temporal and spiritual welfare. our souls and our bodies were all alike sacred in his sight; and he really had a good deal of genuine anti slavery feeling mingled with his colonization ideas. there was not a slave in our neighborhood that did not love, and almost venerate, mr. cookman. it was pretty generally believed that he had been chiefly instrumental in bringing one of the largest slaveholders mr. samuel harrison†samuel harrison (? 1837) was one of the wealthiest slaveholders in talbot county. in 1802 he inherited a lucrative import and export business from his father, thomas harrison. he increased his fortune in the 1810s by lending money and supplies to those engaged in the then booming shipbuilding industry of talbot county, and by 1830 he owned eighty four slaves. at the request of his friend and confidant, the reverend george cookman, harrison stipulated in his will that all adult male slaves be manumitted upon his death.1830 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 42; tilghman, talbot county, 2: 379, 383, 389 90, 397; preston, young frederick douglass, 115, 226n17. in that neighborhood, to emancipate all his slaves, and, indeed, the general impression was, that mr. cookman had labored faithfully with slaveholders, whenever he met them, to induce them to emancipate their bondmen, and that he did this as a religious duty. when this good man was at our house, we were all sure to be called in to prayers in the morning: and he was not slow in making inquiries as to the state of our minds, nor in giving us a word of exhortation and of encouragement. great was the sorrow of all the slaves, when this faithful preacher of the gospel was removed from the talbot county circuit. he was an eloquent preacher, and possessed what few ministers, south of mason dixon's line,†disputes between pennsylvania and maryland and virginia were resolved when english surveyors charles mason and jeremiah dixon determined and marked the precise borders between these colonies in 1763 67. hubertis m. cummings, the mason and dixon line: story for a bicentenary, 1763 1963 (n.p., 1962). possess, or to show, viz: a warm and philanthropic heart. the mr. cookman, of whom i speak. was an englishman by birth, and perished while on his way to england, on board the ill fated president.†the british steamship president departed new york on 10 march 1841 bound for liverpool but never arrived. london times, 26 march, 3, 5, 12 april 1841; ncab, 13:167. could the thousands of slaves in maryland, know the fate of the good man, to whose words of comfort they were so largely indebted, they would thank me for dropping a tear on this page, in memory of their favorite preacher, friend and benefactor. but, let me return to master thomas, and to my experience, after his conversion. in baltimore, i could, occasionally, get into a sabbath school, among the free children, and receive lessons, with the rest; but, having already learned both to read and to write, i was more of a teacher than a pupil, even there. when, however. i went back to the eastern shore, and was at the house of master thomas, i was neither allowed to teach, nor to be taught. the whole community with but a single exception, among the whites frowned upon everything like imparting instruction either to slaves or to free colored persons. that single exception, a pious young man, named wilson,† nathan wilson (c. 1797 c. 1861), an unmarried quaker about fifty years old, taught at a local school for whites in the early 1840s near denton in caroline county, only a few miles from talbot county. although quakerism was no longer the influential religious force on the eastern shore that it had been in the eighteenth century, numerous quakers remained in the region, and some continued to argue against slavery and for teaching the slaves to read the scriptures. this particular teacher could plausibly have been interested in opening a sabbath school for blacks, as could have any of the other various quaker wilsons who populated talbot and other eastern shore counties. among other local whites interested in black education was louisa hambleton from the eastern shore's famousfirst family, who unsuccessfully attempted to open a sabbath school for st. michaels' slaves in 1843. robert w. todd, methodism of the peninsula (philadelphia, 1886), 249 53; kenneth carroll, quakerism on the eastern shore (baltimore, 1970), 219, 245; sewell, "st. michaels methodism," 687. asked me, one day, if i would like to assist him in teaching a little sabbath school, at the house of a free colored man in st. michael's. named james mitchell.†james mitchell (1809/10 ?) was a free black sawyer born in maryland who in 1850 lived in the st. michaels district of talbot county with his wife and four children. he was the brother of peter mitchell, who married eliza bailey, douglass's sister. james and his brothers rented land from samuel and john hambleton. 1850 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 100; preston, young frederick douglass, 115, 164 65. the idea was to me a delightful one, and i told him i would gladly devote as much of my sabbaths as i could command, to that most laudable work. mr. wilson soon mustered up a dozen old spelling hooks, and a few testaments; and we commenced operations, with some twenty scholars, in our sunday school. here, thought i, is something worth living for; here is an excellent chance for usefulness; and i shall soon have a company of young friends, lovers of knowledge, like some of my baltimore friends, from whom i now felt parted forever. our first sabbath passed delightfully, and i spent the week after very joyously. i could not go to baltimore, but i could make a little baltimore here. at our second meeting, i learned that there was some objection to the existence of the sabbath school; and, sure enough, we had scarcely got at work , simply teaching a few colored children how to read the gospel of the son of god when in rushed a mob, headed by mr. wright fairbanks† wrightson fairbank or fairbanks (c.1806 ?) was a resident of talbot county who in 1850 worked as a merchant and headed a household that included his wife, four children, and two female relatives. he owned neither land nor slaves. fairbanks was an active member of the methodist episcopal church in st. michaels and ran unsuccessfully for the hoard of trustees of the parish in september 1835. 1850 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 80; sewell, "st. michaels methodism," 725. and mr. garrison west† garretson west (1800 53) was famous among methodists in st. michaels, maryland, for his religious enthusiasm and moral zeal. although he worked first as an oysterman and later as a teamster, west primarily devoted himself to spurring public prayer, exhorting the faithful at the methodist classes he led, and despite his illiteracy conversing at length with others over the meaning of various biblical passages. in 1829 west was elected to the board of trustees of the methodist church in st. michaels and held that position until 1836. he also was appointed that church's sexton in 1830 and again in 1836. at the time of his death, west was married, had at least one child, and had accumulated little wealth. 1850 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 80; tilghman, talbot county, 2: 400 401; todd, methodism of the peninsula, 113 23; preston, young frederick douglass, 116; sewell, "st. michaels methodism," 672 74, 680 81, 701, 707, 727. two class leaders and master thomas: who, armed with sticks and other missiles, drove us off, and commanded us never to meet for such a purpose again. one of this pious crew told me, that as for my part, i wanted to be another nat turner; and if i did not look out, i should get as many balls into me, as nat did into him. thus ended the infant sabbath school, in the town of st. michael's. the reader will not be surprised when i say, that the breaking up of my sabbath school, by these class leaders, and professedly holy men, did not serve to strengthen my religious convictions. the cloud over my st. michael's home grew heavier and blacker than ever. it was not merely the agency of master thomas, in breaking up and destroying my sabbath school, that shook my confidence in the power of southern religion to make men wiser or better; but i saw in him all the cruelty and meanness, his conversion, which he had exhibited before he made a profession of religion. his cruelty and meanness were especially displayed in his treatment of my unfortunate cousin, henny, whose lameness made her a burden to him. i have no extraordinary personal hard usage toward myself to complain of. against him, but i have seen him tie up the lame and maimed woman, and whip her in a manner most brutal, and shocking; and then, with blood chilling blasphemy, he would quote the passage of scripture. "that servant which knew his lord's will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes."†luke 12:47. master would keep this lacerated woman tied up by her wrists, to a bolt in the joist, three, four and five hours at a time. he would tie her up early in the morning, whip her with a cowskin before breakfast; leave her tied up; go to his store, and, returning to his dinner, repeat the castigation: laying on the rugged lash, on flesh already made raw by repeated blows. he seemed desirous to get the poor girl out of existence, or, at any rate, off his hands. in proof of this, he afterwards gave her away to his sister sarah, (mrs.cline;)†sarah auld cline (1811 ?) was the fifth daughter of hugh and zipporah auld and was the sister of thomas. auld family bible (courtesy of dickson preston). but; as in the case of master hugh, henny was soon returned on his hands. finally, upon a pretense that he could do nothing with her, (i use his own words,) he "set her adrift, to take care of herself." here was a recently converted man, holding, with tight grasp, the well framed, and able bodied slaves left him by old master the persons, who, in freedom, could have taken care of themselves; yet, turning loose the only cripple among them, virtually to starve and die. no doubt, had master thomas been asked, by some pious northern brother, he continued to sustain the relation of a slaveholder, to those whom he retained, his answer would have been precisely the same as many other religious slaveholders have returned to that inquiry. viz: "i hold my slaves for their own good." bad as my condition was when i lived with master thomas, i was soon to experience a life far more goading and bitter. the many differences springing up between myself and master thomas, owing to the clear perception i had of his character, and the boldness with which i defended myself against his capricious complaints, led him to declare that i was unsuited to his wants; that my city life had affected me perniciously; that, in fact, it had almost ruined me for every good purpose, and had fitted me for everything that was bad. one of my greatest faults, or offenses, was that of letting his horse get away, and go down to the farm belonging to his father in law. the animal had a liking for that farm, with which i fully sympathized. whenever i let it out, it would go dashing down the road to mr. hamilton's,†probably william hambleton. as if going on a grand frolic. my horse gone, of course i must go after it. the explanation of our mutual attachment to the place is the same; the horse found there good pasturage, and i found there plenty of bread. mr. hamilton had his faults, but starving his slaves was not among them. he gave food, in abundance, and that, too, of an excellent quality. in mr. hamilton's cook aunt mary i found a most generous and considerate friend. she never allowed me to go there without giving me bread enough to make good the deficiencies of a day or two. master thomas at last resoved to endure my behavior no longer; he could neither keep me, nor his horse, we liked so well to be at his father in law's farm. i had now lived with him nearly nine months, and he had given me a numher of severe whippings, without any visible improvement in my character, or my conduct; and now he was resolved to put me out  as he said "." there was, in the bay side, very near the camp ground, where my master got his religious impressions, a man named edward covey, who enjoyed the execrated reputation, of being a first rate hand at breaking young negroes. this covey was a poor man, a farm renter; and this reputation, (hateful as it was to the slaves and to all good men,) was, at the same time, of immense advantage to him. it enabled him to get his farm tilled with very little expense, compared with what it would have cost him without this most extraordinary reputation. some slaveholders thought it an advantage to let mr. covey have the government of their slaves a year or two, almost free of charge, for the sake of the excellent training such slaves got under his happy management! like some horse breakers, noted for their skill, who ride the best horses in the country without expense, mr. covey could have under him, the most fiery bloods of the neighborhood, for the simple reward of returning them to their owners, . added to the natural fitness of mr. covey for the duties of his profession, he was said to "enjoy religion," and was as strict in the cultivation of piety, as he was in the cultivation of his farm. i was made aware of his character by some who had been under his hand; and while i could not look forward to going to him with any pleasure, i was glad to get away from st. michael's. i was sure of getting enough to eat at covey's, even if i suffered in other respects. , to a hungry man, is not a prospect to be regarded with indifference. chapter xv covey, the negro breaker. journey to my new master's meditations by the way view of covey's residence the family the author's awkwardness as a field hand a cruel beating why it was given description of covey first adventure at ox driving hair breadth escapes ox and man alike properly covey's manner of proceeding to whip hard labor better than the whip for breaking down the spirit cunning and trickery of covey family worship shocking contempt for chastity the author broken down great mental agitation in contrasting the freeedom of the ships with his own slavery anguish beyond description. the morning of the first of january, 1834, with its chilling wind and pinching frost, quite in harmony with the winter in my own mind, found me, with my little bundle of clothing on the end of a stick, swung across my shoulder, on the main road, bending my way toward covey's, whither i had been imperiously ordered hy master thomas. the latter had been as good as his word, and had committed me, without reservre to the mastery of mr. edward covey. eight or ten years had now passed since i had been taken from my grandmother's cabin, in tuckahoe; and these years, for the most part, i had spent in baltimore, where as the reader has already seen i was treated with comparative tenderness. i was now about to sound profounder depths in slave life. the rigors of a field, less tolerable than the field of battle, awaited me. my new master was notorious for his fierce and savage disposition, and my only consolation in going to live with him was, the certainty of finding him precisely as represented by common fame. there was neither joy in my heart, nor elasticity in my step, as i started in search of the tyrant's home. starvation made me glad to leave thomas auld's, and the cruel lash made me dread to go to covey's. escape was impossible; so, heavy and sad, i paced the seven miles, which separated covey's house from st. michael's thinking much by the solitary way averse to my condition; but was all i could do. like a fish in a net, allowed to play for a time, i was now drawn rapidly to the shore, secured at all points. "i am," thought i, "but the sport of a power which makes no account, either of my welfare or of my happiness. by a law which i can clearly comprehend, but cannot evade nor resist, i am ruthlessly snatched from the hearth of a fond grandmother, and hurried away to the home of a mysterious 'old master;' again i am removed from there, to a master in baltimore; thence am i snatched away to the eastern shore, to be valued with the beasts of the field, and, with them, divided and set apart for a possessor; then i am sent back to baltimore; and by the time i have formed new attachments, and have begun to hope that no more rude shocks shall touch me, a difference arises between brothers, and i am again broken up, and sent to st. michael's; and now, from the latter place, i am footing my way to the home of a new master, where, i am given to understand, that, like a wild young working animal, i am to be broken to the yoke of a bitter and life long bondage." with thoughts and reflections like these, i came in sight of a small wood colored building, about a mile from the main road, which, from the description i had received, at starting, i easily recognized as my new home. the chesapeake bay upon the jutting banks of which the little wood colored house was standing white with foam, raised by the heavy north west wind; poplar island,†a low, wooded island, about two miles long and one half mile wide, located in the chesapeake bay, off the coast of talbot county, maryland. poplar island is at the south entrance to the eastern bay, seventeen miles west of easton. leon e. seltzer, ed., columbia lippincott gazetteer of the world, rev. ed. (new york, 1962), 1499; cohen, columbia gazetteer of the world, 3: 2481. covered with a thick, black pine forest, standing out amid this half ocean; and kent point,†actually kent island, the largest and most historic of chesapeake bay islands. today the island is the eastern anchor of the chesapeake bay bridge. seltzer, columbia lippincott gazetteer, 929; cohen, columbia gazetteer of the world, 2:1534. stretching its sandy, desert like shores out into the foam crested bay were all in sight, and deepened the wild and desolate aspect of my new home. the good clothes i had brought with me from baltimore were now worn thin, and had not been replaced; for master thomas was as little careful to provide us against cold, as against hunger. met here by a north wind, sweeping through an open space of forty miles, i was glad to make any port; and, therefore, i speedily pressed on to the little wood colored house. the family consisted of mr. and mrs. covey;† she is identified later in the text as susan covey, but no additional biographical information is available. bondage and freedom, 124/218. miss kemp,†elizabeth doyle kemp (c.1787 ?) probably owned a farm adjacent to the farm that edward covey rented from her son, john. married to the shipbuilder thomas kemp in baltimore in november 1809, elizabeth moved with him in 1816 to a 236 acre farm, wades point, west of the town of st. michaels in talbot county. after his death in march 1824, most of his property was divided between his two eldest sons, thomas and john, but provisions were also made for elizabeth. in 1830 she was the head of a household that comprised five white males, two white females, six male slaves, and three female slaves. 1830 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 38; m. florence bourne, "thomas kemp, shipbuilder, and his home, wades point," mdhm, 49:271 89 (december 1954); preston, young frederick douglass, 118. (a broken backed woman,) a sister of mrs. covey; william hughes, cousin to edward covey: caroline, the cook; bill smith,†bill smith (1804 ?) was a slave owned by samuel harrison of rich neck manor and hired out as a servant to edward covey in 1834. smith probably received his freedom in 1837, as samuel harrison's will stipulated that all adult male slaves should he freed upon his death. simpson, cyclopaedia of methodism, 225; preston, young frederick douglass, 119, 122 23, 128, 226n17. a hired man; and myself, bill smith, bill hughes, and myself, were the working force of the farm, which consisted of three or four hundred acres. i was now, for the first time in my life, to be a field hand; and in my new employment i found myself even more awkward than a green country boy may be supposed to be, upon his first entrance into the bewildering scenes of city life; and my awkwardness gave me much trouble. strange and unnatural as it may seem, i had been at my new home but three days, before mr. covey, (my brother in the methodist church,) gave me a bitter foretaste of what was in reserve for me. i presume he thought, that since he had but a single year in which to complete his work, the sooner he began, the better. perhaps he thought that, by coming to blows at once, we should mutually better understand our relations. but to whatever motive, direct or indirect, the cause may be referred, i had not been in his possession three whole days, before he subjected me to a most brutal chastisement. under his heavy blows, blood flowed freely, and wales†a streak or ridge raised on the skin by the stroke of a whip. were left on my back as large as my little finger. the sores on my back, from this flogging, continued for weeks, for they were kept open by the rough and coarse cloth which i wore for shirting. the occasion and details of this first chapter of my experience as a field hand, must be told, that the reader may see how unreasonable, as well as how cruel, my new master, covey, was. the whole thing i found to be characteristic of the man; and i was probably treated no worse by him than scores of lads who had previously been committed to him, for reasons similar to those which induced my master to place me with him. but, here are the facts connected with the affair, precisely as they occurred. on one of the coldest days of the whole month of january, 1834, i was ordered, at day break, to get a load of wood, from a forest about two miles from the house. in order to perform this work, mr. covey gave me a pair of unbroken oxen, for, it seems, his breaking abilities had not been turned in this direction; and i may remark, in passing, that working animals in the south, are seldom so well trained as in the north. in due form, and with all proper ceremony, i was introduced to this huge yoke of unbroken oxen, and was carefully told which was "buck," and which was "darby" which was the "in hand," and which was the "off hand" ox.† in a team of harnessed animals, the in hand one is directly under control of the driver. the master of this important ceremony was no less a person than mr. covey, himself; and the introduction, was the first of the kind i had ever had. my life, hitherto, had led me away from horned cattle,†oxen or work cattle. and i had no knowledge of the art of managing them. what was meant by the "in ox," as against the "off ox," when both were equally fastened to one cart, and under one yoke, i could not very easily divine; and the difference, implied by the names, and the peculiar duties of each, were alike to me.†a colloquial expression referring to something unintelligible, popularized by shakespeare's julius caesar, act 1, sc. 2, line 287; gregory titelman, random house dictionary of popular proverbs and sayings (new york, 1996), 184. why was not the "off ox'' called the "in ox?" where and what is the reason for this distinction in names, when there is none in the things themselves? after initiating me into the †hither" means to call to or toward a place; "woa" to stop. to coax a team of oxen to back up, the command "back" is used; "back" and "gee" used together indicate that the team should turn right and reverse. harold merton chesley, do it with oxen (dora, mo., 1975), 22 23." the entire spoken language between oxen and driver mr. covey took a rope, about ten feet long and one inch thick, and placed one end of it around the horns of the "in hand ox," and gave the other end to me, telling me that if the oxen started to run away, as the scamp knew they would, i must hold on to the rope and stop them. i need not tell any one who is acquainted with either the strength of the disposition of an untamed ox, that this order was about as unreasonable, as a command to shoulder a mad bull! i had never driven oxen before, and i was as awkward, as a driver, as it is possible to conceive. it did not answer for me to plead ignorance, to mr. covey; there was something in his manner that quite forbade that. he was a man to whom a slave seldom felt any disposition to speak. cold, distant, morose, with a face wearing all the marks of captious pride and malicious sternness, he repelled all advances. covey was not a large man; he was only about five feet ten inches in height, i should think; short necked, round shoulders; of quick and wiry motion, of thin and wolfish visage; with a pair of small, greenish gray eyes, set well back under a forehead without dignity, and constantly in motion. and floating his passions. rather than his thoughts, in sight, but denying them utterance in words. the creature presented an appearance altogether ferocious and sinister, disagreeable and forbidding, in the extreme. when he spoke, it was from the corner of his mouth, and in a sort of light growl, like a dog, when an attempt is made to take a bone from him. the fellow had already made me believe him even worse than he had been represented. with his directions, and without stopping to question, i started for the woods, quite anxious to perform my first exploit in driving, in a creditable manner. the distance from the house to the woods gate a full mile, i should think was passed over with very little difficulty; for although the animals ran, i was fleet enough, in the open field, to keep pace with them, especially as they pulled me along at the end of the rope; but, on reaching the woods, i was speedily thrown into a distressing plight. the animals took fright, and started off ferociously into the woods, carrying the cart, full tilt, against trees, over stumps, and dashing from side to side, in a manner altogether frightful. as i held the rope, i expected every moment to be crushed between the cart and the huge trees, among which they were so furiously dashing. after running thus for several minutes, my oxen were, finally, brought to a stand, by a tree, against which they dashed themselves with great violence, upsetting the cart, and entangling themselves among sundry young saplings. by the shock, the body of the cart was flung in one direction, and the wheels and tongue in another. and all in the greatest confusion. there i was, all alone, in a thick wood, to which i was a stranger; my cart upset and shattered; my oxen entangled, wild, and enraged; and i, poor soul! but a green hand, to set all this disorder right. i knew no more of oxen, than the ox driver is supposed to know of wisdom. after standing a few moments surveying the damage and disorder, and not without a presentiment that this trouble would draw after it others, even more distressing, i took one end of the cart body, and, by an extra outlay of strength, i lifted it toward the axle tree, from which it had been violently flung: and after much pulling and straining, i succeeded in getting the body of the cart in its place. this was an important step out of the difficulty, and its performance increased my courage for the work which remained to be done. the cart was provided with an ax, a tool with which i had become pretty well acquainted in the ship yard†emendation note: ship yard] at baltimore. with this, i cut down the saplings by which my oxen were entangled, and again pursued my journey, with my heart in my mouth, lest the oxen should again take it into their senseless heads to cut up a caper. my fears were groundless. their spree was over for the present, and the rascals now moved off as soberly as though their behavior had heen natural and exemplary. on reaching the part of the forest where i had been, the day before chopping wood, i filled the cart with a heavy load, as a security against another running away. but, the neck of an ox is equal in strength to iron. it defies all ordinary burdens, when excited. tame and docile to a proverb, when trained, the ox is the most sullen and†emendation note: and] and and intractable of animals when but half broken to the yoke. i now saw, in my situation, several points of similarity with that of the oxen. they were property, so was i; they were to be broken, so was i. covey was to break me, i was to break them; break and be broken such is life. half the day already gone, and my face not yet homeward! it required only two day's experience and observation to teach me, that such apparent waste of time would not be lightly owrlooked by covey. i therefore hurried toward home; but, on reaching the lane gate, i met with the crowning disaster for the day. this gate was a fair specimen of southern handicraft. there were two huge posts, eighteen inches in diameter, rough hewed and square. and the heavy gate was so hung on one of these, that it opened only about half the proper distance. on arriving here, it was necessary for me to let go the end of the rope on the horns of the "in hand ox;" and now as soon as the gate was open, and i let go of it to get the rope, again, off went my oxen  making nothing of their load full tilt; and in doing so they caught the huge gate between the wheel and the cart body, literally crushing it to splinters. and coming only within a few inches of subjecting me to a similar crushing, for i was just in advance of the wheel when it struck the left gate post. with these two hair breadth escapes, i thought i could successfully explain to mr. covey the delay, and avert apprehended punishment. i was not without a faint hope of being commended for the stern resolution which i had displayed in accomplishing the difficult task a task which, i afterwards learned, even covey himself would not have undertaken, without first driving the oxen for some time in the open field, preparatory to their going into the woods. but, in this i was disappointed. on coming to him, his countenance assumed an aspect of rigid displeasure, and, as i gave him a history of the casualties of my trip, his wolfish face, with his greenish eyes. became intensely ferocious. "go back to the woods again," he said, muttering something else about wasting time. i hastily obeyed; but i had not gone far on my way, when i saw him coming after me. my oxen now behaved themselves with singular propriety, opposing their present conduct to my representation of their former antics. i almost wished, now that covey was coming, they would do something in keeping with the character i had given them; but no, they had already had their spree, and they could afford now to be extra good, readily obeying my orders, and seeming to understand them quite as well as i did myself. on reaching the woods, my tormentor who seemed all the way to be remarking upon the good behavior of his oxen came up to me, and ordered me to stop the cart, accompanying the same with the threat that he would now teach me how to break gates, and idle away my time, when he sent me to the woods. suiting the action to the word, covey paced off, in his own wiry fashion, to a large, black gum tree,†a tree of the eastern, central, and southern united states having close grained wood, egg shaped leaves, and small blue black fruits with nearly ribless stones. the young shoots of which are generally used for , they being exceedingly tough. three of these , from four to six feet long, he cut off, and trimmed up, with his large jack knife. this done, he ordered me to take off my clothes. to this unreasonable order i made no reply, but sternly refused to take off my clothing. "if you will beat me," thought i, "you shall do so over my clothes." after many threats, which made no impression on me, he rushed at me with something of the savage fierceness of a wolf, tore off the few and thinly worn clothes i had on, and proceeded to wear out, on my back, the heavy goads which he had cut from the gum tree. this flogging was the first of a series of floggings; and though very severe, it was less so than many which came after it, and these, for offenses far lighter than the gate breaking. i remained with mr. covey one year, (i cannot say i with him,) and during the first six months that i was there, i was whipped, either with sticks or cowskins, every week. aching bones and a sore back were my constant companions. frequent as the lash was used, mr. covey thought less of it, as a means of breaking down my spirit, than that of hard and jong continued labor. he worked me steadily, up to the point of my powers of endurance. from the dawn of day in the morning, till the darkness was complete in the evening, i was kept at hard work, in the field or the woods. at certain seasons of the year, we were all kept in the field till eleven and twelve o'clock at night. at these times, covey would attend us in the field, and urge us on with words or blows, as it seemed best to him. he had, in his life, been an overseer, and he well understood the business of slave driving. there was no deceiving him. he knew just what a man or boy could do, and he held both to strict account. when he pleased, he would work himself, like a very turk,†one who is cruel, hardhearted, or tyrannical. making everything fly before him. it was, however, scarcely necessary for mr. covey to be really present in the field, to have his work go on industriously. he had the faculty of making us feel that he was always present. by a series of adroitly managed surprises, which he practiced, i was prepared to expect him at any moment. his plan was, never to approach the spot where his hands were at work, in an open, manly and direct manner. no thief was ever more artful in his devices than this man covey. he would creep and crawl, in ditches and gullies; hide behind stumps and bushes, and practice so much of the cunning of the serpent, that bill smith and i between ourselves never called him by any other name than "." we fancied that in his eyes and his gait we could see a snakish resemhlance. one half of his proficiency in the art of negro breaking, consisted, i should think, in this species of cunning. we were never secure. he could see or hear us nearly all the time. he was, to us, behind every stump, tree, bush and fence on the plantation. he carried this kind of trickery so far, that he would sometimes mount his horse, and make believe he was going to st. michael's; and, in thirty minutes afterward, you might find his horse tied in the woods, and the snake like covey lying flat in the ditch, with his head lifted above its edge, or in a fence corner, watching every movement of the slaves! i have known him to walk up to us and give us special orders, as to our work, in advance, as if he were leaving home with a view to heing absent several days; and bere he got half way to the house, he would avail himself of our inattention to his movements, to turn short on his heels, conceal himself behind a fence corner or a tree, and watch us until the going down of the sun. mean and contemptihle as is all this, it is in keeping with the character which the life of a slaveholder is calculated to produce. there is no earthly inducement, in the slave's condition, to incite him to labor faithfully. the fear of punishment is the sole motive for any sort of industry, with him. knowing this fact, as the slaveholder does, and judging the slave hy himself, he naturally concludes the slave will be idle whenever the cause for this fear is absent. hence, all sorts of petty deceptions are practiced, to inspire this fear. but, with mr. covey, trickery was natural. everything in the shape of learning or religion, which he possessed, was made to conform to this semi lying propensity. he did not seem conscious that the practice had anything unmanly, base or contemptible about it. it was a part of an important system, with him, essential to the relation of master and slave. i thought i saw, in his very religious devotions, this controlling element of his character. a long prayer at night made up for the short prayer in the morning; and few men could seem more devotional than he, when he had nothing else to do. mr. covey was not content with the cold style of family worship, adopted in these cold latitudes, which begin and end with a simple prayer. no! the voice of praise, as well as of prayer, must be heard in his house, night and morning. at first, i was called upon to bear some part in these exercises; but the repeated flogging given me by covey, turned the whole thing into mockery. he was a poor singer, and mainly relied on me for raising the hymn for the family, and when i failed to do so, he was thrown into much confusion. i do not think that he ever abused me on account of these vexations. his religion was a thing altogether apart from his worldly concerns. he knew nothing of it as a holy principle, directing and controlling his daily life, making the latter conform to the requirements of the gospel. one or two facts will illustrate his character better than a volume of generalities. i have already said, or implied, that mr. edward covey was a poor man. he was, in fact, just commencing to lay the foundation of his fortune, as fortune is regarded in a slave state. the first condition of wealth and respectability there, being the ownership of human property. every nerve is strained, by the poor man, to obtain it, and very little regard is had to the manner of obtaining it. in pursuit of this object, pious as mr. covey was, he proved himself to be as unscrupulous and base as the worst of his neighbors. in the beginning, he was only able as he said  "to buy one slave;" and, scandalous and shocking as is the fact, he boasted that he bought her simply "." but the worst is not told in this naked statement. this young woman (caroline was her name) was virtually compelled by mr. covey to abandon herself to the object for which he had purchased her; and the result was, the birth of twins at the end of the year. at this addition to his human stock, both edward covey and his wife, susan, were extatic with joy. no one dreamed of reproaching the woman, or of finding fault with the hired man bill smith the father of the children, for mr. covey himself had locked the two up together every night, thus inviting the result. but i will pursue this revolting subject no further. no better illustration of the unchaste and demoralizing character of slavery can be found, than is furnished in the fact that this professedly christian slaveholder, amidst all his prayers and hymns, was shamelessly and boastfully encouraging, and actually compelling, in his own house, undisguised and unmitigated fornication, as a means of increasing his human stock. i may remark here, that, while this fact will be read with disgust and shame at the north, it will be t, as smart and praiseworthy in mr. covey, at the south; for a man is no more condemned there for buying a woman and devoting her to this life of dishonor, than for buying a cow, and raising stock from her. the same rules are observed, with a view to increasing the number and quality of the former, as of the latter. i will here reproduce what i said of my own experience in this wretched place, more than ten years ago: "if at any one time of my life, more than another, i was made to drink the bitterest dregs of slavery, that time, was during the first six months of my stay with mr. covey. we were worked all weathers. it was never too hot or too cold; it could never rain, blow, snow, or hail too hard for us to work in the field. work, work, work, was scarcely more the order of the day than of the night. the longest days, were too short for him, and the shortest nights were too long for him. i was somewhat unmanageable when i first went there; but a few months of this discipline tamed me, mr. covey succeeded in breaking me. i was broken in body, soul and spirit. my natural elasticity was crushed; my intellect languished; the disposition to read departed; the cheerful spark that lingered about my eye died; the dark night of slavery closed in upon me; and behold a man transformed into a brute! "sunday was my only leisure time. i spent this in a sort of beast like stupor, between sleep and wake, under some large tree. at times. i would rise up, a flash of energetic freedom would dart through my soul, accompanied with a faint beam of hope, that flickered for a moment, and then vanished. i sank down again, mourning over my wretched condition. i was sometimes prompted to take my life, and that of covey, but was prevented by a combination of hope and fear. my sufferings on this plantation seem now like a dream rather than a stern reality. "our house stood within a few rods of the chesapeake bay, whose broad bosom was ever white with sails from every quarter of the habitable globe. those beautiful vessels, robed in purest white, so delightful to the eye of freemen, were to me so many shrouded ghosts, to terrify and torment me with thoughts of my wretched condition. i have often, in the deep stillness of a summer's sabbath, stood all alone upon the banks of that noble bay, and traced, with saddened heart and tearful eye, the countless number of sails moving off to the mighty ocean. the sight of these always affected me powerfully. my thoughts would compel utterance; and there, with no audience but the almighty. i would pour out my soul's complaint in my rude way, with an apostrophe to the moving multitude of ships: "'you are loosed from your moorings, and free; i am fast in my chains, and am a slave! you move merrily before the gentle gale, and i sadly before the bloody whip! you are freedom's swift winged angels, that fly around the world; i am confined in bands of iron! o, that i were free! o, that i were on one of your gallant decks, and under your protecting wing! alas! betwixt me and you the turbid waters roll. go on, go on. o, that i could also go! could i but swim! if i could fly! o, why was i born a man, of whom to make a brute! the glad ship is gone; she hides in the dim distance. i am left in the hottest hell of unending slavery. o god, save me! god, deliver me! let me be free! is there any god? why am i a slave? i will run away. i will not stand it. get caught, or get clear, i'll try it. i had as well die with ague as with fever. 1 have only one life to lose. i had as well be killed running as die standing. only think on it; one hundred miles straight north, and i am free! try it? yes! god helping me, i will. it cannot be that i shall live and die a slave. i will take to the water. this very bay shall yet bear me into freedom the steamboats steered in a north cast course†textual note: the compositor's inadvertent substitution of "coast" for "course," the term douglass used in the passage from the narrative (douglass papers, ser. 2,1:50.10) that he is here reproducing, is found in all examined texts. emendation note: course] coast from north point. i will do the same; and when i get to the head of the bay. i will turn my canoe adrift, and walk straight through delaware into pennsylvania. when i get there, i shall not be required to have a pass; i will travel without being disturbed. let but the first opportunity offer, and, come what will, i am off. meanwhile, i will try to bear up under the yoke. i am not the only slave in the world. why should i fret? i can bear as much as any of them. besides, i am but a boy, and all boys arc bound to some one. it may be that my misery in slavery will only increase my happiness when i get free. there is a better day coming.'"†douglass papers, ser. 2, 1:49 50. i shall never be able to narrate the mental experience through which it was my lot to pass during my stay at covey's. i was completely wrecked, changed and bewildered; goaded almost to madness at one time, and at another reconciling myself to my wretched condition. everything in the way of kindness, which i had experienced at baltimore; all my former hopes and aspirations for usefulness in the world, and the happy moments spent in the exercises of religion, contrasted with my then present lot, but increased my anguish. i suffered bodily as well as mentally. i had neither sufficient time in which to eat or to sleep, except on sundays. the over work, and the brutal chastisements of which i was the victim, combined with that ever gnawing and soul devouring thought  "" rendered me a living embodiment of mental and physical wretchedness. chapter xvi. another pressure of the tyrant's vice. experience at covey's summed up first six months severer than the second preliminaries to the change reasons for narrating the circumstances scene in the trading yard author taken ill unusual brutality of covey author escapes to st. michael's the pursuit suffering in the woods driven back again to covey's bearing of "master thomas" the slave is never sick natural to expect slaves to feign sickness laziness of slaveholders the foregoing chapter, with all its horrid incidents and shocking features. may he taken as a fair representation of the first six months of my life at covey's. the reader has but to repeat, in his own mind, once a week, the scene in the woods, where covey subjected me to his merciless lash, to have a true idea of my bitter experience there, during the first period of the breaking process through which mr. covey carried me. i have no heart to repeat each separate transaction, in which i was a victim of his violence and brutality. such a narration would fill a volume much larger than the present one. i aim only to give the reader a truthful impression of my slave life. without unnecessarily affecting him with harrowing details. as i have elsewhere intimated that my hardships were much greater during the first six months of my stay at covey's, than during the remainder of the year, and as the change in my condition was owing to causes which may help the reader to a better understanding of human nature, when subjected to the terrible extremities of slavery, i will narrate the circumstances of this change, although i may seem thereby to applaud my own courage. you have, dear reader, seen me humbled, degraded, broken down, enslaved, and brutalized, and you understand how it was done; now let us see the converse of all this, and how it was brought about; and this will take us through the year 1834. on one of the hottest days of the month of august, of the year just mentioned, had the reader been passing through covey's farm, he might have seen me at work, in what is there called the "treading yard" a yard upon which wheat is trodden out from the straw, by the horses' feet. i was there, at work, feeding the "fan,"†to supply any of various devices used in the winnowing process to separate the wheat from the chaff. or rather bringing wheat to the fan, while bill smith was feeding. our force consisted of bill hughes, bill smith, and a slave by the name of eli; the latter having been hired for this occasion. the work was simple, and required strength and activity, rather than any skill or intelligence, and yet, to one entirely unused to such work, it came very hard. the heat was intense and overpowering, and there was much hurry to get the wheat, trodden out that day, through the fan; since, if that work was done an hour before sundown, the hands would have, according to a promise of covey, that hour added to their night"s rest. i was not behind any of them in the wish to complete the day's work before sundown, and, hence, i struggled with all my might to get the work forward. the promise of one hour's repose on a week day, was sufficient to quicken my pace, and to spur me on to extra endeavor. besides, we had all planned to go fishing, and i certainly wished to have a hand in that. but i was disappointed, and the day turned out to be one of the bitterest i ever experienced. about three o'clock, while the sun was pouring down his burning rays, and not a breeze was stirring, i broke down; my strength failed me; i was seized with a violent aching of the head, attended with extreme dizziness, and trembling in every limb. finding what was coming, and feeling it would never do to stop work, i nerved myself up, and staggered on until i fell by the side of the wheat fan, feeling that the earth had fallen upon me. this brought the entire work to a dead stand. there was work for four; each one had his part to perform, and each part depended on the other, so that when one stopped, all were compelled to stop. covey, who had now become my dread, as well as my tormentor, was at the house, about a hundred yards from where i was fanning, and instantly, upon hearing the fan stop, he came down to the treading yard, to inquire into the cause of our stopping. bill smith told him i was sick, and that i was unable longer to bring wheat to the fan. i had, by this time, crawled away, under the side of a post and rail fence, in the shade, and was exceedingly ill. the intense heat of the sun, the heavy dust rising from the fan, the stooping, to take up the wheat from the yard, together with the hurrying, to get through, had caused a rush of blood to my head. in this condition, covey finding out where i was, came to me; and, after standing over me a while, he asked me what the matter was. i told him as well as i could, for it was with difficulty that i could speak. he then gave me a savage kick in the side, which jarred my whole frame, and commanded me to get up. the man had obtained complete control over me; and if he had commanded me to do any possible thing, i should, in my then state of mind, have endeavored to comply. i made an effort to rise, but fell back in the attempt, before gaining my feet. the brute now gave me another heavy kick, and again told me to rise. i again tried to rise, and succeeded in gaining my feet; but, upon stooping to get the tub with which i was feeding the fan, i again staggered and fell to the ground; and i must have so fallen, had i been sure that a hundred bullets would have pierced me, as the consequence. while down, in this sad condition, and perfectly helpless, the merciless negro breaker took up the hickory slab, with which hughes had been striking off the wheat to a level with the sides of the half bushel measure, (a very hard weapon,) and with the sharp edge of it. he dealt me a heavy blow on my head which made a large gash, and caused the blood to run freely, saying, at the same time, "." this done, he ordered me again to rise, but i made no effort to do so; for i had made up my mind that it was useless, and that the heartless monster might now do his worst; he could but kill me, and that might put me out of my misery. finding me unable to rise, or rather despairing of my doing so, covey left me, with a view to getting on with the work without me. i was bleeding very freely, and my face was soon covered with my warm blood. cruel and merciless as was the motive that dealt that blow, dear reader, the wound was fortunate for me. bleeding was never more efficacious. the pain in my head speedily abated, and i was soon able to rise. covey had, as i have said, now left me to my fate; and the question was, shall i return to my work, or shall i find my way to st. michael's, and make capt. auld acquainted with the atrocious cruelty of his brother covey, and beseech him to get me another master? remembering the object he had in view, in placing me under the management of covey, and further, his cruel treatment of my poor crippled cousin, henny, and his meanness in the matter of feeding and clothing his slaves, there was little ground to hope for a favorable reception at the hands of capt. thomas auld. nevertheless, i resolved to go straight to capt. auld, thinking that, if not animated by motives of humanity, he might be induced to interfere on my behalf from selfish considerations. "he cannot." thought i, "allow his property to be thus bruised and battered, marred and defaced; and i will go to him. and tell him the simple truth about the matter." in order to get to st. michael's, by the most favorable and direct road, i must walk seven miles; and this, in my sad condition, was no easy performance. i had already lost much blood; i was exhausted by over exertion; my sides were sore from the heavy blows planted there by the stout boots of mr. covey; and i was, in every way, in an unfavorable plight for the journey. i however watched my chance, while the cruel and cunning covey was looking in an opposite direction, and started off, across the field, for st. michael's. this was a daring step; if it failed, it would only exasperate covey, and increase the rigors of my bondage, during the remainder of my term of service under him; but the step was taken, and i must go forward. i succeeded in getting nearly half way across the broad field, toward the woods, before mr. covey observed me. i was still bleeding, and the exertion of running had started the blood afresh. "" vociferated covey, with threats of what he would do if i did not return instantly. but, disregarding his calls and his threats, i pressed on toward the woods as fast as my feeble state would allow. seeing no signs of my stopping, covey caused his horse to be brought out and saddled, as if he intended to pursue me. the race was now to be an unequal one; and, thinking i might be overhauled by him, if i kept the main road, i walked nearly the whole distance in the woods, keeping far enough from the road to avoid detection and pursuit. but, i had not gone far, before my little strength again failed me, and i laid down. the blood was still oozing from the wound in my head; and, for a time, i suffered more than i can describe. there i was, in the deep woods, sick and emaciated, pursued by a wretch whose character for revolting cruelty beggars all opprobrious speech bleeding, and almost bloodless, i was not without the fear of bleeding to death. the thought of dying in the woods, all alone, and of being torn to pieces by the buzzards, had not yet been rendered tolerable by my many troubles and hardships, and i was glad when the shade of the trees, and the cool evening breeze, combined with my matted hair to stop the flow of blood. after lying there about three quarters of an hour, brooding over the singular and mournful lot to which i was doomed, my mind passing over the whole scale or circle of belief and unbelief, from faith in the overruling providence of god, to the blackest atheism, i again took up my journey toward st. michael's, more weary and sad than in the morning when i left thomas auld 's for the home of mr. covey. i was bare footed and bare headed, and in my shirt sleeves. the way was through bogs and briers, and i tore my feet often during the journey. i was full five hours in going the seven or eight miles; partly, hecause of the difficulties of the way, and partly, because of the feebleness induced by my illness, bruises and loss of blood. on gaining my master's store, i presented an appearance of wretchedness and woe, fitted to move any but a heart of stone. from the crown of my head to the sole of my feet, there were marks of blood. my hair was all clotted with dust and blood, and the back of my shirt was literally stiff with the same. briers and thorns had scarred and torn my feet and legs, leaving blood marks there. had i escaped from a den of tigers, i could not have looked worse than i did on reaching st. michael's. in this unhappy plight, i appeared before my professedly master, humbly to invoke the interposition of his power and authority, to protect me from further abuse and violence. i had begun to hope, during the latter part of my tedious journey toward st. michael's, that capt. auld would now show himself in a nobler light than i had ever before seen him. i was disappointed. i had jumped from a sinking ship into the sea; i had fled from the tiger to something worse. i told him all the circumstances, as well as i could: how i was endeavoring to please covey; how hard i was at work in the present instance; how unwillingly i sunk down under the heat, toil and pain; the brutal manner in which covey had kicked me in the side; the gash cut in my head; my hesitation about troubling him (capt. auld) with complaints, but, that now i felt it would not be best longer to conceal from him the outrages committed on me from time to time by covey. at first, master†textual note: douglass consistently capitalized "master" when coupling it with the name of his owner. emendation note: master] master thomas seemed somewhat affected hy the story of my wrongs. but he soon repressed his feelings and became cold as iron. it was impossible as i stood before him at the first for him to seem indifferent. i distinctly saw his human nature asserting its convction against the slave system, which made cases like mine ; but, as i have said, humanity fell before the systematic tyranny of slavery. he first walked the floor, apparently much agitated by my story, and the sad spectacle i presented; but, presently, it was turn to talk. he hegan moderately, by finding excuses for covey, and ending with a full justification of him, and a passionate condemnation of me. "he had no douht i deserved the flogging. he did not believe i was sick; i was only endeavoring to get rid of work. my dizziness was laziness, and covey did right to flog me, as he had done." after thus fairly annihilating me, and rousing himself by his own eloquence, he fiercely demanded what i wished to do in the case! with such a complete knock down to all my hopes, as he had given me, and feeling, as i did, my entire subjection to his power, i had very little heart to reply. i must not affirm my innocence of the allegations which he had piled up against me; for that would he impudence, and would probably call down fresh violence as well as wrath upon me. the guilt of a slave is always, and everywhere, presumed; and the innocence of the slaveholder or the slave employer, is always asserted. the word of the slave, against this presumption, is generally treated as impudence, worthy of punishment. "do you contradict me, you rascal?" is a final silencer of counter statements from the lips of a slave. calming down a little in view of my silence and hesitation, and, perhaps, from a rapid glance at the picture of misery i presented, he inquired again, "what i would have him do?" thus invited a second time, i told master†textual note: douglass consistently capitalized "master" when coupling it with the name of his owner. thomas i wished him to allow me to get a new home and to find a new master; that, as sure as i went back to live with mr. covey again. i should be killed by him; that he would never forgive my coming to him (capt.†emendation note: capt.] auld) with a complaint against him (covey;) that, since i had lived with him, he had almost crushed my spirit, and i believed that he would ruin me for future service; that my life was not safe in his hands. this, master†textual note: douglass consistently capitalized "master" when coupling it with the name of his owner. thomas () regarded as "nonsense." there was no danger of mr. covey's killing me:"†emendation note: me:"] he was a good man, industrious and religious, and he would not think of removing me from that home; "besides," said he, and this i found was the most distressing thought of all to him "if you should leave covey now, that your year has but half expired, i should lose your wages for the entire year. you belong to mr. covey for one year, and you to him, come what will. you must not trouble me with any more stories about mr. covey; and if you do not go immediately home, i will get hold of you myself." this was just what i expected, when i found he had the case against me. "but, sir," i said, "i am sick and tired, and i cannot get home to night." at this, he again relented, and finally he allowed me to remain all night at st. michael's; but said i must be off early in the morning, and concluded his directions by making me swallow a huge dose of †thomas auld's administration of epsom salts, the popular name for magnesium sulphate, was not unusual. it was common for slaveholders to treat the ailments of slaves with home remedies, contacting a physician only if the patient failed to respond to that treatment. in addition to epsom salts, items common to the medicine chests of planters included castor oil, laudanum, paregoric, sugar of lead, and mercurial ointment. miller and smith, dictionary of afro american slavery, 313; elizabeth barnaby keeney, "unless powerful sick: domestic medicine in the old south," in science and medicine in the old south, ed. ronald l. numbers and todd l. savitt (baton rouge, 1989), 286 88. about the only medicine ever administered to slaves. it was quite natural for master thomas to presume i was feigning sickness to escape work, for he probably thought that were in the place of a slave with no wages for his work, no praise for well doing, no motive for toil but the lash he would try every possible scheme by which to escape labor. i say i have no doubt of this; the reason is, that there are not, under the whole heavens, a set of men who cultivate such an intense dread of labor as do the slaveholders. the charge of laziness against the slaves is ever on their lips, and is the standing apology for every species of cruelty and brutality. these men literally "bind heavy burdens, grievous to be borne. and lay them on men's shoulders; but they, themselves, will not move them with one of their fingers."†douglass slightly misquotes matt. 23:4. my kind readers shall have, in the next chapter what they were led, perhaps, to expect to find in this namely, an account of my partial disenthrallment from the tyranny of covey, and the marked change which it brought about. chapter xvii. the last flogging. a sleepless night return to covey's pursued by covey the chase defeated vengeance postponed musings in the woods the alternative deplorable spectacle night in the woods expected attack accosted by sandy, a friend, not a hunter sandy's hospitality the "ashcake supper the interview with sandy his advice sandy a conjurer as well as a christian the magic root  strange meeting with covey his manner covey's sunday face author's defensive resolve the fight the victory, and its results. sleep itself does not always come to the relief of the weary in body, and the broken in spirit; especially when past troubles only foreshadow coming disasters. the last hope had been extinguished. my master, who i did not venture to hope would protect me as , had even now refused to protect me as ; and had cast me back, covered with reproaches and bruises, into the hands of a stranger to that mercy which was the soul of the religion he professed. may the reader never spend such a night as that allotted to me, previous to the morning which was to herald my return to the den of horrors from which i had made a temporary escape. i remained all night sleep i did not at st. michael's; and in the morning (saturday) i started off, according to the order of master thomas, feeling that i had no friend on earth, and doubting if i had one in heaven. i reached covey's about nine o'clock; and just as i stepped into the field, before i had reached the house, covey, true to his snakish habits, darted out at me from a fence corner, in which he had secreted himself, for the purpose of securing me. he was amply provided with a cowskin and a rope; and he evidently intended to , and to wreak his vengeance on me to the fullest extent. i should have been an easy prey, had he succeeded in getting his hands upon me, for i had taken no refreshment since noon on friday; and this, together with the pelting, excitement, and the loss of blood, had reduced my strength. i, however, darted back into the woods, before the ferocious hound could get hold of me, and buried myself in a thicket, where he lost sight of me. the cornfield afforded me cover, in getting to the woods. but for the tall corn, covey would have overtaken me, and made me his captive. he seemed very much chagrined that he did not catch me, and gave up the chase, very reluctantly; for i could see his angry movements, toward the house from which he had sallied, on his foray. well, now i am clear of covey, and of his wrathful lash, for the present. i am in the wood, buried in its somber gloom, and hushed in its solemn silence; hid from all human eyes; shut in with nature and nature's god, and absent from all human contrivances. here was a good place to pray; to pray for help for deliverance a prayer i had often made before. but how could i pray? covey could pray capt. auld could pray i would fain pray; but doubts (arising partly from my own neglect of the means of grace, and partly from the sham religion which everywhere prevailed, cast in my mind a doubt upon all religion, and led me to the conviction that prayers were unavailing and delusive) prevented my embracing the opportunity, as a religious one. life, in itself, had almost become burdensome to me. all my outward relations were against me; i must stay here and starve, ( i was already hungry,) or go home to covey's, and have my flesh torn to pieces, and my spirit humbled under the cruel lash of covey. this was the painful alternative presented to me. the day was long and irksome. my physical condition was deplorable. i was weak, from the toils of the previous day, and from the want of food and rest; and had been so little concerned about my appearance, that i had not yet washed the blood from my garments. i was an object of horror, even to myself. life, in baltimore, when most oppressive, was a paradise to this. what had i done, what had my parents done, that such a life as this should be mine? that day, in the woods, i would have exchanged my manhood for the brute hood of an ox. night came. i was still in the woods, unresolved what to do. hunger had not yet pinched me to the point of going home, and i laid myself down in the leaves to rest; for i had been watching for hunters all day, but not being molested during the day, i expected no disturbance during the night. i had come to the conclusion that covey relied upon hunger to drive me home; and in this i was quite correct the facts showed that he had made no effort to catch me, since morning. during the night, i heard the step of a man in the woods. he was coming toward the place where i lay. a person lying still has the advantage over one walking in the woods, in the day time, and this advantage is much greater at night. i was not able to engage in a physical struggle, and i had recourse to the common resort of the weak. i hid myself in the leaves to prevent discovery. but, as the night rambler in the woods drew nearer, i found him to be a , not an enemy; it was a slave of mr. william groomes,†william h. groomes (1787/88 ?) was a longtime resident of talbot county who had fought with the local militia during the war of 1812 and afterward became a prominent merchant in easton. by 1850 groomes was married with three children, owned seven slaves, and held real estate valued at twenty seven thousand dollars. during the civil war his wealth and that of many others increased as a result of the economic boom on the eastern shore from supplying the federal army. 1850 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 67 (free schedule), 25 (slave schedule); preston, talbot county, 225; tilghman, talbot county, 2: 189. of easton, a kind hearted fellow, named "sandy."*sandy jenkins was a slave owned by william groomes of easton, maryland, who often hired him out to farmers in talbot county. preston, young frederick douglass, 125 26, 131, 134 36, 138 39, 227n3. sandy lived with mr. kemp†john kemp, the son of the shipbuilder thomas kemp, who inherited thomas's 236 acre homestead upon his death in 1824. according to the federal census, in 1830 kemp had three free blacks living in his household who probably were hired hands. it would thus be no surprise if he hired slaves annually, as well, such as sandy. by 1841 kemp was a prosperous eastern shore farmer with a large variety of domestic animals, several outbuildings, an orchard of 250 trees, "and eight head of blacks." 1830 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 31; bourne, "thomas kemp," 287 88. that year, about four miles from st. michael's. he, like myself, had been hired out by the year; but, unlike myself, had not been hired out to be broken. sandy was the husband of a free woman, who lived in the lower part of ","†a local name for a section of the tilghman peninsula west of harris creek in talbot county, maryland. preston, young frederick douglass, 227n3. and he was now on his way through the woods, to see her, and to spend the sabbath with her. as soon as i had ascertained that the disturber of my solitude was not an enemy, but the good hearted sandy a man as famous among the slaves of the neighborhood for his good nature, as for his good sense i came out from my hiding place, and made myself known to him. i explained the circumstances of the past two days, which had driven me to the woods, and he deeply compassionated my distress. it was a bold thing for him to shelter me, and i could not ask him to do so; for, had i been found in his hut, he would have suffered the penalty of thirty nine lashes on his bare back, if not something worse. but, sandy was too generous to permit the fear of punishment to prevent his relieving a brother bondman from hunger and exposure; and, therefore, on his own motion, i accompanied him to his home, or rather to the home of his wife for the house and lot were hers. his wife was called up for it was now about midnight a fire was made, some indian meal was soon mixed with salt and water, and an ash cake was baked in a hurry to relieve my hunger. sandy's wife was not behind him in kindness both seemed to esteem it a privilege to succor me; for, although i was hated by covey and by my master, i was loved by the colored people, because thought i was hated for my knowledge, and persecuted because i was feared. i was the slave in that region who could read and write. there had been one other man, belonging to mr. hugh hamilton,†hugh hambleton of st. michaels was a member of an old eastern shore family whose local roots reached back to the mid seventeenth century. in 1840 he was married and had at least four children and eight slaves. 1840 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 40. who could read, (his name was "jim,") but he, poor fellow, had, shortly after my coming into the neighborhood, been sold off to the far south. i saw jim ironed, in the cart, to he carried to easton for sale pinioned like a yearling for the slaughter. my knowledge was now the pride of my brother slaves; and, no doubt, sandy felt something of the general interest in me on that account. the supper was soon ready, and though i have feasted since, with honorables, lord mayors and aldermen, over the sea, my supper on ash cake and cold water, with sandy, was the meal, of all my life, most sweet to my taste, and now most vivid in my memory. supper over, sandy and i went into a discussion of what was possible for me, under the perils and hardships which now overshadowed my path. the question was, must i go back to covey, or must i now attempt to run away? upon a careful survey, the latter was found to be impossible; for i was on a narrow neck of land, every avenue from which would bring me in sight of pursuers. there was the chesapeake bay to the right, and "pot pie" river†a local nickname for cummings creek. the headwaters of cummings creek begin at the town of wittman, which was called pot pie by locals. preston, young frederick douglass, 126. to the left, and st. michael's and its neighborhood occupying the only space through which there was any retreat. i found sandy an old adviser. he was not only a religious man, but he professed to believe in a system for which i have no name. he was a genuine african, and had inherited some of the so called magical powers,†rooted in african religious and folk medicine practices, conjuring, voodoo, and witchcraft persisted in the south long after emancipation. often identified as african born, conjurers were believed to possess special knowledge of magic and herbal medicine. conjurers might provide a talisman or remedy for an ailment, or protection from an enemy. it was not unusual for black conjurers to have whites as well as blacks among their clientele. the conjurers might find their aid solicited in finding "true love," ensuring success in business, or causing harm to another. slave conjurers were regarded as powerful and often dangerous members of the slave community. although the negative applications of their "charms" were the most dramatic practices, conjurers possessed a knowledge of folk medicine that allowed them to perform a vital role as medical practitioners in the slave community. eugene d. genovese, roll, jordan, roll: the world the slaves made (1972; new york, 1976), 217 18, 223 24, 227; albert j. raboteau, slave religion: the "invisible institution" in the antebellum south (new york, 1978), 80 86, 275 88. said to be possessed by african and eastern nations. he told me that he could help me; that, in those very woods, there was an herb. which in the morning might be found, possessing all the powers required for my protection, (i put his thoughts in my own language;) and that, if i would take his advice, he would procure me the root of the herb of which he spoke. he told me further, that if i would take that root and wear it on my right side, it would be impossible for covey to strike me a blow; that with this root ahout my person, no white man could whip me. he said he had carried it for years. and that he had fully tested its virtues. he had never received a blow from a slaveholder since he carried it; and he never expected to receive one, for he always meant to carry that root as a protection. he knew covey well, for mrs. covey was the daughter of mr. kemp; and he (sandy) had heard of the barbarous treatment to which i was suhjected, and he wanted to do something for me. now all this talk about the root, was, to me, very ahsurd and ridiculous, if not positively sinful. i at first rejected the idea that the simple carrying a root on my right side, (a root, by the way, over which i walked every time i went into the woods,) could possess any such magic power as he ascribed to it, and i was, therefore, not disposed to cumber my pocket with it. i had a positive aversion to all pretenders to "." it was beneath one of my intelligence to countenance such dealings with the devil, as this power implied. but, with all my learning it was really precious little sandy was more than a match for me. "my book learning," he said, "had not kept covey off me," (a powerful argument just then,) and he entreated me, with flashing eyes, to try this. if it did me no good, it could do me no harm, and it would cost me nothing, any way. sandy was so earnest, and so confident of the good qualities of this weed, that, to please him, rather than from any conviction of its excellence, i was induced to take it. he had been to me the good samaritan,†a reference to the good samaritan in the biblical parable, beginning at luke 10:33, generally refers to a kind and helpful person. and had, almost providentially, found me, and helped me when i could not help myself; how did i know but that the hand of the lord was in it? with thoughts of this sort, i took the roots from sandy, and put them in my right hand pocket. this was, of course, sunday morning, sandy now urged me to go home, with all speed, and to walk up bravely to the house, as though nothing had happened. i saw in sandy too deep an insight into human nature, with all his superstition, not to have some respect for his advice; and perhaps, too, a slight gleam or shadow of his superstition had fallen upon me. at any rate, i started off toward covey's, as directed by sandy. having, the previous night, poured my griefs into sandy's ears, and got him enlisted in my behalf, having made his wife a sharer in my sorrows, and having, also, become well refreshed by sleep and food, i moved off, quite courageously, toward the much dreaded covey's. singularly enough, just as i entered his yard gate, i met him and his wife, dressed in their sunday best looking as smiling as angels on their way to church. the manner of covey astonished me. there was something really benignant in his countenance. he spoke to me as never before; told me that the pigs had got into the lot, and he wished me to drive them out; inquired how i was, and seemed an altered man. this extraordinary conduct of covey, really made me begin to think that sandy's herb had more virtue in it than i, in my pride, had been willing to allow; and, had the day been other than sunday, i should have attributed covey's altered manner solely to the magic power of the root. i suspected, however, that the , and not the , was the real explanation of covey's manner. his religion hindered him from breaking the sabbath, but not from breaking my skin. he had more respect for the than for the †douglass paraphrases mark 2:27: "the sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath.", for whom the day was mercifully given; for while he would cut and slash my body during the week, he would not hesitate, on sunday, to teach me the value of my soul, or the way of life and salvation by jesus christ. all went well with me till monday morning; and then, whether the root had lost its virtue, or whether my tormentor had gone deeper into the black art than myself, (as was sometimes said of him,) or whether he had obtained a special indulgence, for his faithful sabbath day's worship, it is not necessary for me to know, or to inform the reader; but, this much i say the pious and benignant smile which graced covey's face on , wholly disappeared on . long before daylight, i was called up to go and feed, rub, and curry the horses. i obeyed the call, and i would have so obeyed it, had it been made at an earlier hour, for i had brought my mind to a firm resolve, during that sunday's reflection, viz: to obey every order, however unreasonable, if it were possible, and, if mr. covey should then undertake to beat me, to defend and protect myself to the best of my ability. my religious views on the subject of resisting my master, had suffered a serious shock, by the savage persecution to which i had been subjected, and my hands were no longer tied by my religion. master thomas's indifference had severed the last link. i had now to this extent "backslidden" from this point in the slave's religious creed; and i soon had occasion to make my fallen state known to my sunday pious brother, covey. whilst i was obeying his order to feed and get the horses ready for the field, and when in the act of going up the stable loft for the purpose of throwing down some blades,†douglass was probably feeding the horses corn or hay. the term blades can refer to the leaves of a cereal grass or corn. covey sneaked into the stable, in his peculiar snake like way, and seizing me suddenly by the leg, he brought me to the stable floor, giving my newly mended body a fearful jar. i now forgot my , and remembered my pledge to . the brute was endeavoring skillfully to get a slip knot on my legs, before i could draw up my feet. as soon as i found what he was up to, i gave a sudden spring, (my two day's rest had been of much service to me,) and by that means, no doubt, he was able to bring me to the floor so heavily. he was defeated in his plan of tying me. while down, he seemed to think he had me very securely in his power. he little thought he was as the rowdies say "in" for a " rough and tumble" fight; but such was the fact. whence came the daring spirit necessary to grapple with a man who, eight and forty hours before, could, with his slightest word have made me tremble like a leaf in a storm, i do not know; at any rate, , and, what was better still, i was actually hard at it. the fighting madness had come upon me, and i found my strong fingers firmly attached to the throat of my cowardly tormentor; as heedless of consequences, at the moment, as though we stood as equals before the law. the very color of the man was forgotten. i felt as supple as a cat, and was ready for the snakish creature at every turn. every blow of his was parried, though i dealt no blows in turn. i was strictly on the , preventing him from injuring me, rather than trying to injure him. i flung him on the ground several times, when he meant to have hurled me there. i held him so firmly by the throat, that his blood followed my nails. he held me, and i held him. all was fair, thus far, and the contest was about equal. my resistance was entirely unexpected, and covey was taken all aback by it, for he trembled in every limb. ", you scoundrel?" said he. to which, i returned a polite ";"†emendation note: " steadily gazing my interrogator in the eye, to meet the first approach or dawning of the blow, which i expected my answer would call forth. but, the conflict did not long remain thus equal. covey soon cried out lustily for help; not that i was obtaining any marked advantage over him, or was injuring him, but because he was gaining none over me, and was not able, single handed, to conquer me. he called for his cousin hughes, to come to his assistance, and now the scene was changed. i was compelled to give blows, as well as to parry them; and, since i was, in any case, to suffer for resistance, i felt (as the musty proverb goes) that "i might as well be hanged for an old sheep as a lamb."†english proverb dating to the seventeenth century. g. l. apperson, english proverbs and proverbial phrases: a historical dictionary (london, 1929), 562. i was still toward covey, but toward hughes; and, at the first approach of the latter, i dealt a blow, in my desperation, which fairly sickened my youthful assailant. he went off, bending over with pain, and manifesting no disposition to come within my reach again. the poor fellow was in the act of trying to catch and tie my right hand, and while flattering himself with success, i gave him the kick which sent him staggering away in pain, at the same time that i held covey with a firm hand. taken completely by surprise, covey seemed to have lost his usual strength and coolness. he was frightened, and stood puffing and blowing, seemingly unable to command words or blows. when he saw that poor hughes was standing half bent with pain his courage quite gone the cowardly tyrant asked if i "meant to persist in my resistance." i told him "i ;" that i had been by him treated like a brute during the last six months; and that i should stand it no longer. with that, he gave me a shake, and attempted to drag me toward a stick of wood, that was lying just outside the stable door. he meant to knock me down with it; but, just as he leaned over to get the stick, i seized him with both hands by the collar, and, with a vigorous and sudden snatch, i brought my assailant harmlessly, his full length, on the clean ground for we were now in the cowyard. he had selected the place for the fight, and it was but right that he should have all the advantages of his own selection. by this time, bill, the hired man, came home. he had been to mr. hemsley's to spend the sunday with his nominal wife,†philemon hemsley (? c. 1822) was a member of an old eastern shore family and the son of william hemsley (1736/37 1812), a prominent maryland legislator and prosperous queen annes county planter. in 1813, philemon married the former ann fiddeman and by 1820 had become a wealthy planter in his own right in talbot county, owning thirty three slaves. after his death the size of his estate diminished; by 1830 ann was left with only three female slaves. 1820 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 46; 1830 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 3; edward c. papenfuse et al., eds., a biographical dictionary of the maryland legislature, 1635 1789, 2 vols. (baltimore, 1979), 1 432 33. and was coming home on monday morning, to go to work. covey and i had been skirmishing from before daybreak, till now, that the sun was almost shooting his beams over the eastern woods, and we were still at it. i could not see where the master was to terminate. he evidently was afraid to let me go, lest i should again make off to the woods; otherwise, he would probably have obtained arms from the house, to frighten me. holding me, covey called upon bill for assistance. the scene here, had something comic about it. "bill," who knew what covey wished him to do, affected ignorance, and pretended he did not know what to do. "what shall i do, mr. covey," said bill. "take hold of him take hold of him!" said covey. with a toss of his head, peculiar to bill, he said, "indeed, mr. covey, 1 want to go to work ." " is your work," said covey; "take hold of him." bill replied, with spirit, "my master hired me here, to work, and to help you whip frederick." it was now my turm to speak. "bill," said i, "don't put your hands on me." to which he replied, "my god! frederick, i aint goin' to tech ," and bill walked off, leaving covey and myself to settle our matters as best we might. but, my present advantage was threatened when i saw caroline (the slave woman of covey) coming to the cow yard to milk, for she was a powerful woman, and could have mastered me very easily, exhausted as i now was. as soon as she came into the yard, covey attempted to rally her to his aid. strangely and, i may add, fortunately caroline was in no humor to take a hand in any such sport. we were all in open rebellion, that morning. caroline answered the command of her master to "," precisely as bill had answered, but in , it was at greater peril so to answer; she was the slave of covey, and he could do what he pleased with her. it was so with bill, and bill knew it. samuel harris,*actually samuel harrison. to whom bill belonged, did not allow his slaves to be beaten, unless they were guilty of some crime which the law would punish. but, poor caroline, like myself, was at the mercy of the merciless covey; nor did she escape the dire effects of her refusal. he gave her several sharp blows. covey at length (two hours had elapsed) gave up the contest. letting me go, he said, puffing and blowing at a great rate "now, you scoundrel, go to your work; i would not have whipped you half so much as i have had you not resisted." the fact was, . he had not, in all the scuffle, drawn a single drop of blood from me. i had drawn blood from him; and, even without this satisfaction, i should have been victorious, because my aim had not been to injure him, but to prevent his injuring me. during the whole six months that i lived with covey, after this transaction, he never laid on me the weight of his finger in anger. he would, occasionally, say he did not want to have to get hold of me again a declaration which i had no difficulty in believing; and i had a secret feeling, which answered, "you need not wish to get hold of me again, for you will be likely to come off worse in a second fight than you did in the first." well, my dear reader, this battle with mr. covey, undignified as it was, and as i fear my narration of it is was the turning point in my "." it rekindled in my breast the smouldering embers of liberty; it brought up my baltimore dreams, and revived a sense of my own manhood. i was a changed being after that fight. i was before; i was a man now. it recalled to life my crushed self respect and my self confidence, and inspired me with a renewed determination to be a freeman. a man without force, is without the essential dignity of humanity. human nature is so constituted, that it cannot a helpless man, although it can him; and even this it cannot do long, if the signs of power do not arise. he only can understand the effect of this combat on my spirit, who has himself incurred something, hazarded something, in repelling the unjust and cruel aggressions of a tyrant. covey was a tyrant, and a cowardly one, withal. after resisting him, i felt as i had never felt before. it was a resurrection from the dark and pestiferous tomb of slavery, to the heaven of comparative freedom. i was no longer a servile coward, trembling under the frown of a brother worm of the dust, but, my long cowed spirit was roused to an attitude of manly independence. i had reached the point, at which i was . this spirit made me a freeman in , while i remained a slave in . when a slave cannot be flogged he is more than half free. he has a domain as broad as his own manly heart to defend, and he is really "." while slaves prefer their lives, with flogging, to instant death, they will always find christians enough, like unto covey, to accommodate that preference. from this time, until that of my escape from slavery. i was never fairly whipped. several attempts were made to whip me, but they were always unsuccessful. bruises i did get, as i shall hereafter inform the reader; but the case i have been describing, was the end of the brutification to which slavery had subjected me. the reader will be glad to know why, after i had so grievously offended mr. covey, he did not have me taken in hand by the authorities; indeed, why the law of maryland, which assigns hanging to the slave who resists his master,†according to maryland law, death was the punishment for any slave who refused to surrender him  or herself or resisted apprehension. the code permitted the pursuer of a resisting slave to "shoot, kill, and destroy such negro or negroes." the general public statutory law and public local law of the state of maryland, from the year 1692 to 1839 inclusive, 3 vols. (baltimore, 1840), 1:65. was not put in force against me; at any rate, why i was not taken up, as is usual in such cases, and publicly whipped, for an example to other slaves, and as a means of deterring me from committing the same offense again. i confess, that the easy manner in which i got off, was, for a long time, a surprise to me, and i cannot, even now, fully explain the cause. the only explanation i can venture to suggest, is the fact, that covey was, probably. ashamed to have it known and confessed that he had been mastered by a boy of sixteen. mr. covey enjoyed the unbounded and very valuable reputation, of being a first rate overseer and . by means of this reputation, he was able to procure his hands for compensation, and with very great ease. his interest and his pride mutually suggested the wisdom of passing the matter by, in silence. the story that he had undertaken to whip a lad, and had been resisted, was, of itself, sufficient to damage him; for his bearing should, in the estimation of slaveholders, be of that imperial order that should make such an occurrence . i judge from these circumstances, that covey deemed it best to give me the go by. it is, perhaps, not altogether creditable to my natural temper, that, after this conflict with mr. covey, i did, at times, purposely aim to provoke him to an attack, by refusing to keep with the other hands in the field, but i could never bully him to another battle. i had made up my mind to do him serious damage, if he ever again attempted to lay violent hands on me. "hereditary bondmen, know ye not who would be free, themselves must strike the blow?"†byron, childe harold's pilgrimage, canto ii, stanza lxxvi. chapter xviii. new relations and duties. change of masters benefits derived by the change fame of the fight with covey reckless unconcern author's abhorrence of slavery ability to read a cause of prejudice the holidays  how spent sharp hit at slavery effects of holidays a device of slavery difference between covey and freeland an irreligious master preferred to a religious one catalogue of floggable offenses hard life at covey's useful to the author improved condition not followed by contentment congenial society at freeland's author's sabbath school instituted secrecy necessary affectionate relations of tutor and pupils confidence and friendship among slaves the author declines publishing particulars of conversations with his friends slavery the inviter of vengeance. my term of actual service to mr. edward covey ended on christmas day. 1834. i gladly left the snakish covey, although he was now as gentle as a lamb. my home for the year 1835 was already secured  my next master was already selected. there is always more or less excitement about the matter of changing hands, but i had become somewhat reckless. i cared very little into whose hands i fell i meant to fight my way. despite of covey, too, the report got abroad, that i was hard to whip; that i was guilty of kicking back; that though generally a good tempered negro, i sometimes "got the devil in me." these sayings were rife in talbot county, and they distinguished me among my servile brethren. slaves, generally. will fight each other, and die at each other's hands; but there are few who are not held in awe by a white man. trained from the cradle up, to think and feel that their masters are superior, and invested with a sort of sacredness, there are few who can outgrow or rise above the control which that sentiment exercises. i had now got free from it, and the thing was known. one bad sheep will spoil a whole flock. among the slaves, i was a bad sheep. i hated slavery, slaveholders. and all pertaining to them; and i did not fail to inspire others with the same feeling, wherever and whenever opportunity was presented. this made me a marked lad among the slaves, and a suspected one among the slaveholdcrs. a knowledge of my ability to read and write, got pretty widely spread, which was very much against me. the days between christmas day and new year's, are allowed the slaves as holidays. during these days, all regular work was suspended, and there was nothing to do but to keep fires, and look after the stock. this time we regarded as our own, by the grace of our masters, and we, therefore used it, or abused it, as we pleased. those who had families at a distance, were expected to visit them, and to spend with them the entire week. the younger slaves, or the unmarried ones, were expected to see to the cattle, and attend to incidental duties at home. the holidays were variously spent. the sober, thinking and industrious ones of our number, would employ themselves in manufacturing corn brooms, mats, horse collars and baskets, and some of these were very well made. another class spent their time in hunting opossums, coons, rabbits, and other game. but the majority spent the holidays in sports, ball playing, wrestling, boxing, running foot races, dancing, and drinking whisky; and this latter mode of spending the time was generally most agreeable to their masters. a slave who would work during the holidays, was thought, by his master, undeserving of holidays. such an one had rejected the favor of his master. there was, in this simple act of continued work, an accusation against slaves; and a slave could not help thinking, that if he made three dollars during the holidays, he might make three hundred during the year. not to be drunk during the holidays, was disgraceful; and he was esteemed a lazy and improvident man, who could not afford to drink whisky during christmas. the fiddling, dancing and ""†because slaves seldom had the means to obtain musical instruments, they often improvised and used their feet to tap out a tune in coordination. "patting juba," or jubilee beating, as douglass called it, took the form of a variety of dances that were usually accompanied by song. during holidays, and especially christmas, dances and parties were common on southern plantations. some favorite "patting juba" dances included "cuttin' the pigeon wings," which found the dancers flapping their arms as well as "patting" with their feet; and "set de flo," which involved couples facing each other in turn while "patting" the floor. genovese, roll, jordan, roll, 572 73; blassingame, slave community, 125; oates, fires of jubilee, 23 24. was going on in all directions. this latter performance is strictly southern. it supplies the place of a violin, or of other musical instruments, and is played so easily, that almost every farm has its "juba" beater. the performer improvises as he beats, and sings his merry songs, so ordering the words as to have them fall pat with the movement of his hands. among a mass of nonsense and wild frolic, once in a while a sharp hit is given to the meanness of slaveholders. take the following, for an example: "we raise de wheat, dey gib us de corn; we bake de bread, dey gib us de cruss; we sif de meal, dey gib us de huss; we peal de meat, dey gib us de skin, and dat's de way dey takes us in. we skim de pot, dey gib us the liquor. and say dat's good enough for nigger. walk over! walk over! tom butter and de fat: poor nigger you can't get over dat: walk over!" this is not a bad summary of the palpable injustice and fraud of slavery giving as it does to the lazy and idle, the comforts which god designed should be given solely to the honest laborer. but to the holiday's. judging from my own observation and experience, i believe these holidays to be among the most effective means, in the hands of slaveholdcrs, of keeping down the spirit of insurrection among the slaves. to enslave men, successfully and safely, it is necessary to have their minds occupied with thoughts and aspirations short of the liberty of which they are deprived. a certain degree of attainable good must be kept before them. these holidays serve the purpose of keeping the minds of the slaves occupied with prospective pleasure, within the limits of slavery. the young man can go wooing; the married man can visit his wife; the father and mother can see their children; the industrious and money loving can make a few dollars; the great wrestler can win laurels; the young people can meet, and enjoy each other's society; the drunken man can get plenty of whisky; and the religious man can hold prayer meetings, preach, pray and exhort during the holidays. before the holidays, these are pleasures in prospect; after the holidays, they become pleasures of memory, and they serve to keep out thoughts and wishes of a more dangerous character. were slaveholders at once to abandon the practice of allowing their slaves these liberties, periodically, and to keep them, the year round, closely confined to the narrow circle of their homes, i doubt not that the south would blaze with insurrections. these holidays are conductors or safety valves to carry off the explosive elements inseparable from the human mind, when reduced to the condition of slavery. but for these, the rigors of bondage would become too severe for endurance, and the slave would be forced up to dangerous desperation. woe to the slaveholder when he undertakes to hinder or to prevent the operation of these electric conductors. a succession of earthquakes would be less destructive, than the insurrectionary fires which would be sure to burst forth in different parts of the south, from such interference. thus, the holidays, become part and parcel of the gross fraud, wrongs and inhumanity of slavery. ostensibly, they are institutions of benevolence, designed to mitigate the rigors of slave life, but, practically, they are a fraud, instituted by human selfishness, the better to secure the ends of injustice and oppression. the slave's happiness is not the end sought, but, rather, the master's safety. it is not from a generous unconcern for the slave's lahor that this cessation from labor is allowed, but from a prudent regard to the safety of the slave system. i am strengthened in this opinion, by the fact, that most slaveholders like to have their slaves spend the holidays in such a manner as to be of no real benefit to the slaves. it is plain, that everything like rational enjoyment among the slaves, is frowned upon; and only those wild and low sports, peculiar to semi civilized people, are encouraged. all the license allowed, appears to have no other object than to disgust the slaves with their temporary freedom, and to make them as glad to return to their work, as they were to leave it. by plunging them into exhausting depths of drunkenness and dissipation, this effect is almost certain to follow. i have known slaveholders resort to cunning tricks, with a view of getting their slaves deplorably drunk. a usual plan is, to make bets on a slave, that he can drink more whisky than any other; and so to induce a rivalry among them, for the mastery in this degradation. the scenes, brought ahout in this way, were often scandalous and loathsome in the extreme. whole multitudes might be found stretched out in brutal drunkenness, at once helpless and disgusting. thus, when the slave asks for a few hours of virtuous freedom, his cunning master takes advantage of his ignorance, and cheers him with a dose of vicious and revolting dissipation, artfully labeled with the name of liberty. we were induced to drink. i among the rest, and when the holidays were over, we all staggered up from our filth and wallowing, took a long breath, and went away to our various fields of work; feeling, upon the whole, rather glad to go from that which our masters artfully deceived us into the belief was freedom, back again to the arms of slavery. it was not what we had taken it to be, nor what it might have been, had it not been abused by us. it was about as well to be a slave to master, as to be a slave to and . i am the more induced to take this view of the holiday system, adopted by slaveholders, from what i know of their treatment of slaves, in regard to other things. it is the commonest thing for them to try to disgust their slaves with what they do not want them to have, or to enjoy. a slave, for instance, likes molasses; he steals some; to cure him of the taste for it, his master, in many cases, will go away to town, and buy a large quantity of the poorest quality, and set it before his slave, and, with whip in hand, compel him to eat it, until the poor fellow is made to sicken at the very thought of molasses. the same course is often adopted to cure slaves of the disagreeable and inconvenient practice of asking for more food, when their allowance has failed them. the same disgusting process works well, too, in other things, but i need not cite them. when a slave is drunk, the slaveholder has no fear that he will plan an insurrection; no fear that he will escape to the north. it is the sober, thinking slave who is dangerous, and needs the vigilance of his master, to keep him a slave. but, to proceed with my narrative. on the first of january, 1835. i proceeded from st. michael's to mr. william freeland's,†william freeland, the son of william and elizabeth freeland of talbot county, maryland, was a farmer and slave owner near st. michaels. the 1820 u.s. census lists william as a young adult between sixteen and twenty five years of age. between 1820 and 1830, and perhaps later, he lived in a household headed by his mother. they shared their home with two white boys and six slaves. by 1830 the freeland's household had diminished: elizabeth and william now lived with only one young white man and four slaves. 1820 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 10; 1830 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 35. my new home. mr. freeland livcd only three miles from st. michael's, on an old worn out farm, which required much labor to restore it to anything like a self supporting establishment. i was not long in finding mr.†emendation note: mr.] freeland to he a very different man from mr. covey. though not rich, mr. freeland was what may he called a well bred southern gentleman, as different from covey, as a well trained and hardened negro breaker is from the best specimen of the first families of the south. though freeland was a slaveholder, and shared many of the vices of his class, he seemed alive to the sentiment of honor. he had some sense of justice, and some feelings of humanity. he was fretful, impulsive and passionate, but i must do him the justice to say, he was free from the mean and selfish characteristics which distinguished the creature from which i had now, happily, escaped. he was open, frank, imperative, and practiced no concealments, disdaining to play the spy. in all this, he was the opposite of the crafty covey. among the many advantages gained in my change from covey's to freeland's startling as the statement may be was the fact that the latter gentleman made no profession of religion. i assert most unhesitatingly that the religion of the south as i have observed it and proved it is a mere covering for the most horrid crimes; the justifier of the most appalling barbarity; a sanctifier of the most hateful frauds; and a secure shelter, under which the darkest, foulest, grossest, and most infernal abominations fester and flourish. were i again to be reduced to the condition of a slave, to that calamity, i should regard the fact of being the slave of a religious slaveholder, the greatest that could befall me. for of all slaveholders with whom i have ever met, religious slaveholders are the worst. i have found them, almost invariably, the vilest, meanest and basest of their class. exceptions there may be, but this is true of religious slaveholders, . it is not for me to explain the fact. others may do that; i simply state it as a fact, and leave the theological, and psychological inquiry, which it raises, to be decided by others more competent than myself. religious slaveholders, like religious persecutors, are ever extreme in their malice and violence. very near my new home, on an adjoining farm, there lived the rev. daniel weeden,†daniel weeden (c. 1794 ?) was a farmer and methodist minister in talbot county. though an overseer without any of his own slaves in 1820, weeden appears by 1830 to have become an independent farmer with two slaves and a growing family. by 1850 he owned six slaves. in 1839 weeden forced a free black man back into slavery by revealing that he had served time in a maryland jail. he then purchased the man at a greatly reduced price. by the early 1840s weeden was well established as a local minister, having presided over a number of talbot county weddings in 1843 and 1844. 1820 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 7; 1830 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 32; 1840 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 36a; 1850 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 37 (slave schedule); preston, young frederick douglass, 130, 227n8; charles montgomery haddaway iii, "marriages recorded in talbot county newspapers, 1819 1823, 1841 1843, and 1870,'' mdhm, 81:254, 260, 262, 267 68, 270 (fall 1986). who was both pious and cruel after the real covey pattern. mr. weeden was a local preacher of the protestant methodist persuasion, and a most zealous supporter of the ordinances of religion, generally. this weeden owned a woman called "ceal," who was a standing proof of his mercilessness. poor ceal's back, always scantily clothed, was kept literally raw, by the lash of this religious man and gospel minister. the most notoriously wickcd man so called in distinction from church members could hire hands more easily than this brute. when sent out to find a home, a slave would never enter the gates of the preacher weeden, while a sinful sinner needed a hand. behave ill, or behave well, it was the known maxim of weeden, that it is the duty of a master to use the lash. if, for no other reason, he contended that this was essential to remind a slave of his condition, and of his master's authority. the good slave must he whipped, to be good, and the bad slave must he whipped, to be good. such was weeden's theory, and such was his practice. the back of his slave woman will, in the judgment, be the swiftest witness against him. while i am stating particular cases, i might as well immortalize another of my neighbors, by calling him by name, and putting him in print. he did not think that a "chiel"†a familiar term for a young man; lad, fellow, chap. was near, "taking notes," and will, doubtless, feel quite angry at having his character touched off in the ragged style of a slave's pen. i beg to introduce the reader to rev. rigby hopkins.†rigby hopkins was a methodist minister who had long lived and farmed in talbot county. in 1830 he was between fifty and sixty years old and had in his household two white males, six white females, and one black female. whereas in 1820 he owned seventeen slaves, in 1830 he had none, possibly as a result of a preference for renting black labor. 1820 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 19; 1830 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 31; preston, young frederick douglass, 130. mr. hopkins resides between easton and st. michael's, in talbot county, maryland. the severity of this man made him a perfect terror to the slaves of his neighborhood. the peculiar feature of his government, was, his system of whipping slaves, as he said, of deserving it. he always managed to have one or two slaves to whip on monday morning, so as to start his hands to their work, under the inspiration of a new assurance on monday, that his preaching about kindness, mercy, brotherly love, and the like, on sunday, did not interfere with, or prevent him from establishing his authority, by the cowskin. he seemed to wish to assure them, that his tears over poor, lost and ruined sinners, and his pity for them, did not reach to the blacks who tilled his fields. this saintly hopkins used to boast, that he was the best hand to manage a negro in the county. he whipped for the smallest offenses, by way of preventing the commission of large ones. the reader might imagine a difficulty in finding faults enough for such frequent whipping. but, this is because you have no idea how easy a matter it is to offend a man who is on the look out for offenses. the man, unaccustomed to slaveholding, would be astonished to observe how many floggable offenses there are in the slaveholder's catalogue of crimes; and how easy it is to commit any one of them, even when the slave least intends it. a slaveholder, bent on finding fault, will hatch up a dozen a day, if he chooses to do so, and each one of these shall be of a punishable description. a mere look, word, or motion, a mistake, accident, or want of power, are all matters for which a slave may be whipped at any time. does a slave look dissatisfied with his condition? it is said, that he has the devil in him, and it must he whipped out. does he answer , when spoken to by his master, with an air of sclfconsciousness? then, must he be taken down a button hole lower, by the lash, well laid on. does he forget, and omit to pull off his hat, when approaching a white person? then, he must, or may be, whipped for his bad manners. does he ever venture to vindicate his conduct, when harshly and unjustly accused? then, he is guilty of impudence, one of the greatest crimes in the social catalogue of southern society. to allow a slave to escape punishment, who has impudently attempted to exculpate himself from unjust charges, preferred against him by some white person, is to be guilty of great dereliction of duty. does a slave ever venture to suggest a better way of doing a thing, no matter what? he is, altogether, too officious wise ahovc what is written and he deserves, even if he does not get, a flogging for his presumption. does he, while plowing, break a plow, or while hoeing, brcak a hoe, or while chopping, break an ax? no matter what were the imperfections of the implement broken, or the natural liabilities for breaking, the slave can be whipped for carelessness. the slaveholder could always find something of this sort, to justify him in using the lash several times during the week. hopkins like covey and weeden were shunned by slaves who had the privilege (as many had) of finding their own masters at the end of each year; and yet, there was not a man in all that section of country, who made a louder profession of religion, than did mr. rigby hopkins. but, to continue the thread of my story, through my experience when at mr. william freeland's. my poor, weather beaten bark now reached smoother water, and gentler breezes. my stormy life at covey's had been of service to me. the things that would have seemed very hard, had i gone direct to mr. freeland's, from the home of master thomas, were now (after the hardships at covey's) "trifles light as air."†othello, act 3, sc. 3, line 322. i was still a field hand, and had come to prefer the severe labor of the field, to the enervating duties of a house servant. i had become large and strong; and had begun to take pride in the fact, that i could do as much hard work as some of the older men. there is much rivalry among slaves, at times, as to which can do the most work, and masters generally seek to promote such rivalry. but some of us were too wise to race with each other very long. such racing, we had the sagacity to see, was not likely to pay. we had our times for measuring each other's strength, but we knew too much to keep up the competition so long as to produce an extraordinary day's work. we knew that if, by extraordinary exertion, a large quantity of work was done in one day, the fact, becoming known to the master, might lead him to require the same amount every day. this thought was enough to bring us to a dead halt when ever so much excited for the race. at mr. freeland's, my condition was every way improved. i was no longer the poor scape goat that i was when at covey's, where every wrong thing done was saddled upon me, and where other slaves were whipped over my shoulders. mr. freeland was too just a man thus to impose upon me, or upon any one else. it is quite usual to make one slave the object of especial abuse, and to beat him often, with a view to its effect upon others, rather than with any expectation that the slave whipped will be improved by it, but the man with whom i now was, could descend to no such meanness and wickedness. every man here was held individually responsible for his own conduct. this was a vast improvement on the rule at covey's. there, i was the general pack horse. bill smith was protected, by a positive prohibition†emendation note: prohibition] probibition made by his rich master, and the command of the rich slaveholder is law to the poor one; hughes was favored, because of his relationship to covey; and the hands hired temporarily, escaped flogging, except as they got it over my poor shoulders. of course, this comparison refers to the time when covey whip me. mr. freeland, like mr. covey, gave his hands enough to eat, but, unlike mr. covey, he gave them time to take their meals; he worked us hard during the day, but gave us the night for rest another advantage to be set to the credit of the sinner, as against that of the saint. we were seldom in the field after dark in the evening, or before sunrise in the morning. our implements of husbandry were of the most improved pattern, and much superior to those used at covey's. notwithstanding the improved condition which was now mine, and the many advantages i had gained by my new home, and my new master, i was still restless and discontented. i was about as hard to please by a master, as a master is by a slave. the freedom from bodily torture and unceasing labor, had given my mind an increased sensibility, and imparted to it greater activity. i was not yet exactly in right relations. "how be it, that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural, and afterward that which is spiritual."†1 cor. 15:46. when entombed at covey's, shrouded in darkness and physical wretchedness, temporal well being was the grand ; but, temporal wants supplied, the spirit puts in its claims. beat and cuff your slave, keep him hungry and spiritless, and he will follow the chain of his master like a dog; but, feed and clothe him well work him moderately surround him with physical comfort, and dreams of freedom intrude. give him a master, and he aspires to a master; give him a good master, and he wishes to become his master. such is human nature. you may hurl a man so low, beneath the level of his kind, that he loses all just ideas of his natural position; but elevate him a little, and the clear conception of rights rises to life and power, and leads him onward. thus elevated, a little, at freeland's, the dreams called into being by that good man. father lawson, when in baltimore, began to visit me; and shoots from the tree of liberty began to put forth tender buds, and dim hopes of the future began to dawn. i found myself in congenial society, at mr. freeland's. there were henry harris, john harris, handy caldwell, and sandy jenkins.* henry and john were brothers, and belonged to mr. freeland. they were both remarkably bright and intelligent, though neither of them could read. now for mischief! i had not been long at freeland's before i was up to my old tricks. i early began to address my companions on the subject of *this is the same man who gave me the roots to prevent my heing whipped by mr. covey. he was "a clever soul." we used frequently to talk about the fight with covey, and as often as we did so, he would claim my success as the result of the roots which he gave me. this superstition is very common among the more ignorant slaves. a slave seldom dies, but that his death is attributed to trickery. education, and the advantages of intelligence over ignorance, and, as far as i dared, i tried to show the agency of ignorance in keeping men in slavery. webster's spelling book and the columbian orator were looked into again. as summer came on, and the long sabbath days stretched themselves over our idleness, i became uneasy, and wanted a sabbath school, in which to exercise my gifts, and to impart the little knowledge of letters which i possessed, to my brother slaves. a house was hardly necessary in the summer time; i could hold my school under the shade of an old oak tree, as well as any where else. the thing was, to get the scholars, and to have them thoroughly imbued with the desire to learn. two such boys were quickly secured, in henry and john, and from them the contagion spread. i was not long in bringing around me twenty or thirty young men, who enrolled themselves, gladly, in my sabbath school, and were willing to meet me regularly, under the trees or elsewhere, for the purpose of learning to read. it was surprising with what ease they provided themselves with spelling books. these were mostly the cast off books of their young masters or mistresses. i taught, at first, on our own farm. all were impressed with the necessity of keeping the matter as private as possible, for the fate of the st. michael's attempt was notorious, and fresh in the minds of all. our pious masters, at st. michael's, must not know that a few of their dusky brothers were learning to read the word of god, lest they should come down upon us with the lash and chain. we might have met to drink whisky, to wrestle, fight and to do other unseemly things, with no fear of interrnption from the saints or sinners of st. michael's. but, to meet for the purpose of improving the mind and heart, by learning to read the sacred scriptures, was esteemed a most dangerous nuisance, to be instantly stopped. the slaveholders of st. michael's, like slaveholders elsewhere, would always prefer to see the slaves engaged in degrading sports, rather than to see them acting like moral and accountable beings. had any one asked a religious white man, in st. michael's, twenty years ago, the names of three men in that town, whose lives were most after the pattern of our lord and master, jesus christ, the first three would have been as follows: garrison west, .†emendation note: ] wright fairbanks, . thomas auld, . and yet, these were men who ferociously rushed in upon my sabbath school, at st. michael's, armed with mob like missiles, and forbade our meeting again, on pain of having our backs made bloody by the lash. this same garrison west was my class leader, and i must say. i thought him a christian, until he took part in breaking up my school. he led me no more after that. the plea for this outrage was then, as it is now and at all times, the danger to good order. if the slaves learnt to read. they would learn something else, and something worse. the peace of slavery would be disturbed; slave rule would be endangered. i leave the reader to characterize a system which is endangered by such causes. i do not dispute the soundness of the reasoning. it is perfectly sound; and, if slavery be. sabbath schools for teaching slaves to read the bible are , and ought to be put down. these christian class leaders were, to this extent, consistent. they had settled the question, that slavery is , and, by that standard, they determined that sabbath schools are wrong. to be sure, they were protestant, and held to the great protestant right of every man to ","†john 5:39. for himself: but, then, to all general rules, there are . how convenient! what crimes, may not be committed under the doctrine of the last remark. but, my dear, class leading methodist brethren, did not condescend to give†emendation note: give] give give me a reason for breaking up the sabbath school at st. michael's; it was enough that they had determined upon its destruction. i am, however, digressing. after getting the school cleverly into operation, the second time holding it in the woods, behind the barn, and in the shade of trees i succeeded in inducing a free colored man, who lived several miles from our house, to permit me to hold my school in a room at his house. he, very kindly, gave me this liberty; but he incurred much peril in doing so, for the assemblage was an unlawful one. i shall not mention, here, the name of this man; for it might, even now, subject him to persecution, although the offenses were committed more than twenty years ago. i had, at one time, more than forty scholars, all of the right sort; and many of them succeeded in learning to read. i have met several slaves from maryland, who were once my scholars; and who obtained their freedom, i doubt not, partly in consequence of the ideas imparted to them in that school. i have had various employments during my short life; but i look back to with more satisfaction, than to that afforded by my sunday school. an attachment, deep and lasting, sprung up between me and my persecuted pupils, which made my parting from them intensely grievous; and, when i think that most of these dear souls are yet shut up in this abject thralldom, i am overwhelmed with grief. besides my sunday school, i devoted three evenings a week to my fellow slaves, during the winter. let the reader reflect upon the fact, that, in this christian country, men and women are hiding from professors of religion, in barns, in the woods and fields, in order to learn to read the . those dear souls, who came to my sabbath school, came because it was popular or reputable to attend such a place, for they came under the liability of having forty stripes laid on their naked backs. every moment they spent in my school, they were under this terrible liability; and, in this respect, i was a sharer with them. their minds had been cramped and starved by their cruel masters; the light of education had been completely excluded; and their hard earnings had been taken to educate their master's children. i felt a delight in circumventing the tyrants, and in blessing the victims of their curses. the year at mr. freeland's passed off very smoothly, to outward seeming. not a blow was given me during the whole year. to the credit of mr. freeland, irreligious though he was it must be stated, that he was the best master i ever had, until i became my own master, and assumed for myself, as i had a right to do, the responsibility of my own existence and the exercise of my own powers. for much of the happiness or absence of misery with which i passed this year with mr. freeland, i am indebted to the genial temper and ardent friendship of my brother slaves. they were, every one of them, manly, generous and brave, yes; i say they were brave, and i will add, fine looking. it is seldom the lot of mortals to have truer and better friends than were the slaves on this farm. it is not uncommon to charge slaves with great treachery toward each other, and to believe them incapable of confiding in each other; but i must say, that i never loved, esteemed, or confided in men, more than i did in these. they were as true as steel, and no hand of brothers could have been more loving. there were no mean advantages taken of each other, as is sometimes the case where†textual note: copy text's omission of the "h" in "where" is corrected in a2 5 (the 1855 printing that were members of one or more later impressions). emendation note: where] a2 f: were slaves are situated as we were; no tattling; no giving each other bad names to mr. freeland; and no elevating one at the expense of the other. we never undertook to do any thing, of any importance, which was likely to affect each other, without mutual consultation. we were generally a unit, and moved together. thoughts and sentiments were exchanged between us, which might well he called very incendiary, by oppressors and tyrants; and perhaps the time has not even now come, when it is safe to unfold all the flying suggestions which arise in the minds of intelligent slaves. several of my friends and brothers, if yet alive, are still in some part of the house of bondage; and though twenty years have passed away, the suspicious malice of slavery might punish them for even listening to my thoughts. the slaveholder, kind or cruel, is a slaveholder still the every hour violator of the just and inalienable rights of man; and he is, therefore, every hour silently whetting the knife of vengeance for his own throat. he never lisps a syllable in commendation of the fathers of this republic, nor denounces any attempted oppression of himself, without inviting the knife to his own throat, and asserting the rights of rebellion for his own slaves. the year is ended, and we are now in the midst of the christmas holidays, which are kept this year as last, according to the general description previously given. chapter xix. the run away plot. new year's thoughts and meditations again bought by freeland no ambition to be a slave kindness no compensation for slavery incipient steps toward escape considerations leading thereto irreconcilable hostility to slavery solemn vow taken plan divulged to the slaves columbian orator scheme gains favor, despite pro slavery preaching danger of discovery skills of slaveholders in reading the minds of their slaves suspicion and coercion hymns with double meaning value, in dollars, of our company preliminary consultation pass word conflicts of hope and fear difficulties to be overcome ignorance of geography survey of imaginary difficulties effect on our minds patrick henry sandy becomes a dreamer route to the north laid out objections considered frauds practiced on freemen passes written anxieties as the time drew near dread of failure appeals to comrades strange presentiment coincidence the betrayal discovered the manner of arresting us resistance made by henry harris its effect the unique speech of mrs. freeland our sad procession to prison brutal jeers by the multitude along the road passes eaten the denial sandy too well loved to be suspected dragged behind horse the jail a relief a new set of tormentors slave traders john, charles and henry released the author left alone in prison he is taken out, and sent to baltimore. i am now at the beginning of the year 1836, a time favorable for serious thoughts. the mind naturally occupies itself with the mysteries of life in all its phases the ideal, the real and the actual. sober people look hoth ways at the beginning of the year, surveying the errors of the past, and providing against possible errors of the future. i, too, was thus exercised. i had little pleasure in retrospect, and the prospect was not very brilliant. "notwithstanding," thought i, "the many resolutions and prayers i have made, in behalf of freedom, i am, this first day of the year 1836, still a slave, still wandering in the depths of spirit devouring thralldom. my faculties and powers of body and soul are not my own, but are the property of a fellow mortal, in no sense superior to me, except that he has the physical power to compel me to be owned and controlled by him. by the combined physical force of the community, i am his slave, a slave for life." with thoughts like these, i was perplexed and chafed; they rendered me gloomy and disconsolate. the anguish of my mind may not be written. at the close of the year 1835, mr. freeland,†william freeland. my temporary master, had bought me of capt. thomas auld, for the year 1836. his promptness in securing my services, would have been flattering to my vanity, had i been ambitious to win the reputation of heing a valuable slave. even as it was, i felt a slight degree of complacency at the circumstance. it showed he was as well pleased with me as a slave, as i was with him as a master. i have already intimated my regard for mr. freeland, and i may say here, in addressing northern readers where there is no selfish motive for speaking in praise of a slaveholder that mr. freeland was a man of many excellent qualities, and to me quite preferable to any master i ever had. but the kindness of the slavemaster only gilds the chain of slavery, and detracts nothing from its weight or power. the thought that men are made for other and better uses than slavery, thrives best under the gentle treatment of a kind master. but the grim visage of slavery can assume no smiles which can fascinate the partially enlightened slave, into a forgetfulness of his bondage, nor of the desirableness of liberty. l was not through the first month of this, my second year with the kind and gentlemanly mr. freeland, before i was earnestly considering and devising plans for gaining that freedom, which, when i was but a mere child, i had ascertained to be the natural and inborn right of every member of the human family. the desire for this freedom had been benumbed, while i was under the brutalizing dominion of covey; and it had been postponed, and rendered inoperative, by my truly pleasant sunday school engagements with my friends, during the year 1835, at mr. freeland's. it had, however, never entirely subsided. i hated slavery, always, and the desire for freedom only needed a favorable breeze, to fan it into a blaze, at any moment. the thought of only being a creature of the and the , troubled me, and i longed to have a  a future with hope in it. to be shut up entirely to the past and present, is abhorrent to the human mind; it is to the soul whose life and happiness is unceasing progress what the prison is to the body; a blight and mildew, a hell of horrors. the dawning of this, another year, awakened me from my temporary slumber, and roused into life my latent, but long cherished†emendation note: long cherished] aspirations for freedom. i was now not only ashamed to be contented in slavery, but ashamed to to be contented, and in my present favorable condition, under the mild rule of mr. f., i am not sure that some kind reader will not condemn me for being over ambitious, and greatly wanting in proper humility, when i say the truth, that i now drove from me all thoughts of making the best of my lot, and welcomed only such thoughts as led me away from the house of bondage. the intense desire, now felt, , quickened by my present favorable circumstances, brought me to the determination to act, as well as to think and speak. accordingly, at the beginning of this year 1836, i took upon me a solemn vow, that the year which had now dawned upon me should not close, without witnessing an earnest attempt, on my part, to gain my liberty. this vow only bound me to make my escape individually; but the year spent with mr. freeland had attached me, as with "hooks of steel,"†douglass substitutes "hooks" for "hoops" when quoting hamlet, act 1, sc. 3, line 63. to my brother slaves. the most affectionate and confiding friendship existed between us; and i felt it my duty to give them an opportunity to share in my virtuous determination, by frankly disclosing to them my plans and purposes. toward henry and john harris, i felt a friendship as strong as one man can feel for another; for i could have died with and for them. to them, therefore, with a suitable degree of caution, i began to disclose my sentiments and plans; sounding them, the while, on the subject of running away, provided a good chance should offer. i scarcely need tell the reader, that i did my very best to imbue the minds of my dear friends with my own views and feelings. thoroughly awakened, now, and with a definite vow upon me, all my little reading, which had any bearing on the subject of human rights, was rendered available in my communications with my friends. that (to me) gem of a book, the columbian orator, with its eloquent orations and spicy dialogues, denouncing oppression and slavery telling of what had been dared, done and suffered by men, to obtain the inestimable boon of liberty was still fresh in my memory, and whirled into the ranks of my speech with the aptitude of well trained soldiers, going through the drill. the fact is, i here began my public speaking. i canvassed, with henry and john, the subject of slavery, and dashed against it the condemning brand of god's eternal justice, which it every hour violates. my fellow servants were neither indifferent, dull, nor inapt. our feelings were more alike than our opinions. all, however, were ready to act, when a feasible plan should be proposed. "show us how the thing is to be done," said they, "and all else is clear." we were all, except sandy, quite free from slaveholding priestcraft. it was in vain that we had been taught from the pulpit at st. michael's, the duty of obedience to our masters; to recognize god as the author of our enslavement; to regard running away an offense, alike against god and man; to deem our enslavement a merciful and beneficial arrangement; to esteem our condition, in this country, a paradise to that from which we had been snatched in africa; to consider our hard hands and dark color as god's mark of displeasure, and as pointing us out as the proper subjects of slavery; that the relation of master and slave was one of reciprocal benefits; that our work was not more serviceable to our masters, than our master's thinking was serviceable to us.†in response to the rise of immediate abolitionism in the 1830s, southern christians developed an elaborate scriptural defense of slavery. from the old testamentthey cited the curse placed on noah's son ham to claim that god had inaugurated slavery. they also argued that mosaic law permitted slavery and that many old testament prophets had been slave owners. southerners also insisted that neither christ nor his apostles had condemned slavery in the new testament. in addition, southern clergy defended slavery by insisting that the institution elevated the moral character and physical well being of the bondsmen and bondswomen. mitchell snay, gospel of disunion: religion and separatism in the antebellum south (new york, 1993), 78 99; tise, proslavery, 122 23, 328 30. i say, it was in vain that the pulpit of st. michael's had constantly inculcated these plausible doctrines. nature laughed them to scorn. for my own part, i had now become altogether too big for my chains. father lawson's†charles lawson. solemn words, of what i ought to be, and might be, in the providence of god, had not fallen dead on my soul. i was fast verging toward manhood, and the prophecies of my childhood were still unfulfilled. the thought, that year after year had passed away, and my best resolutions to run away had failed and faded that i was , and a slave, too, with chances for gaining my freedom diminished and still diminishing as not a matter to he slept over easily; nor did i easily sleep over it. but here came a new trouble. thoughts and purposes so incendiary as those i now cherished, could not agitate the mind long, without danger of making themselves manifest to scrutinizing and unfriendly beholders. i had reason to fear that my sable face might prove altogether too transparent for the safe concealment of my hazardous enterprise. plans of greater moment have leaked through stone walls. and revealed their projectors. but, here was no stone wall to hide my purpose. i would have given my poor, tell tale†emendation note: tell tale] face for the immovable countenance of an indian, for it was far from being proof against the daily, searching glances of those with whom i met. it is the interest and business of slaveholders to study human nature, with a view to practical results, and many of them attain astonishing proficiency in discerning the thoughts and emotions of slaves. they have to deal not with earth, wood, or stone, but with ; and, by every regard they have for their safety and prosperity, they must study to know the material on which they are at work. so much intellect as the slaveholder has around him, requires watching. their safety depends upon their vigilance. conscious of the injustice and wrong they are every hour perpetrating, and knowing what they themselves would do if made the victims of such wrongs, they are looking out for the first signs of the dread retribution of justice. they watch, therefore, with skilled and practiced eyes, and have learned to read, with great accuracy, the state of mind and heart of the slave, through his sable face. these uneasy sinners are quick to inquire into the matter, where the slave is concerned. unusual sobriety, apparent abstraction, sullenness and indifference indeed, any mood out of the common way afford ground for suspicion and inquiry. often relying on their superior position and wisdom, they hector and torture the slave into a confession, by affecting to know the truth of their accusations. "you have got the devil in you," say they. "and we will whip him out of you." i have often been put thus to the torture, on bare suspicion. this system has its disadvantages as well as their opposite. the slave is sometimes whipped into the confession of offenses which he never committed. the reader will see that the good old rule "a man is to be held innocent until proved to be guilty"†the most concise statement of this fundamental legal principle is in the anonymously authored public letters from "junius" to leading eighteenth century english government officials. in his letter to lord chief justice mansfield of 21 january 1772. "junius" declared that "favorable circumstances, alleged before the judge, may justify a doubt whether the prisoner be guilty or not; and where the guilt is doubtful, a presumption of innocence should in general, be admitted." junius: stat nominus umbra, 2 vols. (1793; london, 1801), 2:242. does not hold good on the slave plantation. suspicion and torture are the approved methods of getting at the truth, here. it was necessary for me, therefore, to keep a watch over my deportment, lest the enemy should get the better of me. but with all our caution and studied reserve, i am not sure that mr. freeland did not suspect that all was not right with us. it seem that he watched us more narrowly, after the plan of escape had hccn conceivcd and discussed amongst us. men seldom see themselves as others see them; and while, to ourselves, everything connected with our contemplated escape appeared concealed, mr. freeland may have, with the peculiar prescience of a slaveholder, mastered the huge thought which was disturbing our peace in slavery. i am the more inclined to think that he suspected us, because, prudent as we were, as i now look back, i can see that we did many silly things, very well calculated to awaken suspicion. we were, at times, remarkably buoyant, singing hymns and making joyous exclamations, almost as triumphant in their tone as if we had reached a land of freedom and safety. a keen ohserver might have detected in our repeated singing of "o canaan, sweet canaan, i am bound for the land of canaan."†douglass quotes a variation of the spiritual "sweet canaan." a published version includes the lyrics "oh, de land i am bound for, sweet canaan's happy land i am bound for." thomas p. fenner, ed., religious folk songs of the negro as sung on the plantations, rev. ed. (hampton, va., 1909), 62. something more than a hope of reaching heaven. we meant to reach the  and the north was our canaan.†emendation note: canaan.] "i thought i heard them say, there were lions in the way, i don't expect to stay much longer here . run to jesus shun the danger  i don't expect to stay much longer here,"†from "run to jesus,'' a song douglass gave to the fisk university "jubilee singers." the group's biographer notes that douglass presented them with the song in washington. d.c., with the statement that it "first suggested to him the thought of escaping from slavery." j. b. t. marsh, the story of the jubilee singers; with their songs, rev. ed. (boston, 1880), 188. was a favorite air, and had a double meaning. in the lips of some, it meant the expectation of a speedy summons to a world of spirits; but, in the lips of our company, it simply meant, a speedy pilgrimage toward a free state, and deliverance from all the evils and dangers of slavery. i had succeeded in winning to my (what slaveholders would call wicked) scheme, a company of five young men, the very flower of the neighhorhood, each one of whom would have commanded one thousand dollars in the home market. at new orleans, they would have brought fifteen hundred dollars a piece, and, perhaps, more. the names of our party were as follows: henry harris; john harris, brother to henry; sandy jenkins, of root memory; charles roberts, and henry bailey. i was the youngest, but one, of the party. i had, however, the advantage of them all, in experience, and in a knowledge of letters. this gave me great influence over them. perhaps not one of them, left to himself, would have dreamed of escape as a possible thing. not one of them was self moved in the matter. they all wanted to he free, but the serious thought of running away, had not entered into their minds, until i won them to the undertaking. they all were tolerably well off for slaves and had dim hopes of being set free, some day, by their masters. if any one is to blame for disturbing the quiet of the slaves and slave masters of the neighborhood of st. michael 's, . i claim to be the instigator of the high crime, (as the slaveholders regard it,) and i kept life in it, until life could be kept in it no longer. pending the time of our contemplated departure out of our egypt,†a reference to the departure of the israelites from slavery in egypt, as told in the biblical book of exodus. we met often by night, and on every sunday. at these meetings we talked the matter over; told our hopes and fears, and the difficulties discovered or imagined; and, like men of sense, we counted the cost of the enterprise to which we were committing ourselves. these meetings must have resembled, on a small scale, the meetings of revolutionary conspirators, in their primary condition. we were plotting against our (so called) lawful rulers; with this difference that we sought our own good, and not the harm of our enemies. we did not seek to overthrow them, but to escape from them. as for mr. freeland, we all liked him, and would have gladly remained with him, , liberty was our aim; and we had now come to think that we had a right to liberty, against every obstacle even against the lives of our enslavers. we had several words, expressive of things, important to us, which we understood, but which, even if distinctly heard by an outsider, would convey no certain meaning. i have reasons for suppressing these . which the reader will easily divine. i hated the secrecy; but where slavery is powerful, and liberty is weak, the latter is driven to concealment or to destruction. the prospect was not always a bright one. at times, we were almost tempted to abandon the enterprise, and to get back to that comparative peace of mind, which even a man under the gallows might feel, when all hope of escape had vanished. quiet bondage was felt to be better than the doubts, fears and uncertainties, which now so sadly perplexed and disturbed us. the infirmities of humanity, generally, were represented in our little band. we were confident, bold and determined, at times; and, again, doubting, timid and wavering; whistling, like the boy in the grave yard, to keep away the spirits. to look at the map, and observe the proximity of eastern shore, maryland, to delaware and pennsylvania, it may seem to the reader quite absurd, to regard the proposed escape as a formidable undertaking. but to , some one has said a man must . the real distance was great enough, but the imagined distance was, to our ignorance, even greater. every slaveholder seeks to impress his slave with a belief in the boundlessness of slave territory, and of his own almost illimitable power. we all had vague and indistinct notions of the geography of the country. the distance, however, is not the chief trouble. the nearer arc the lines of a slave state and the borders of a free one, the greater the peril. hired kidnappers infest these borders. then, too, we knew that merely reaching a free state did not free us; that, wherever caught. we could be returned to slavery. we could see no spot on this side the ocean, where we could be free. we had heard of canada, the real canaan of the american bondmen, simply as a country to which the wild goose and the swan repaired at the end of winter, to escape the heat of summer, but not as the home of man. 1 knew something of theology, but nothing of geography. i really did not, at that time, know that there was a state of new york, or a state of massachusetts. i had heard of pennsylvania, delaware and new jersey, and all the southern states, but was ignorant of the free states, generally. new york city was our northern limit, and to go there, and to be forever harassed with the liability of being hunted down and returned to slavery with the certainty of being treated ten times worse than we had ever been treated before was a prospect far from delightful, and it might well cause some hesitation about engaging in the enterprise. the case, sometimes, to our excited visions, stood thus: at every gate through which we had to pass, we saw a watchman; at every ferry, a guard; on every bridge, a sentinel; and in every wood, a patrol or slave hunter. we were hemmed in on every side. the good to he sought, and the evil to be shunned, were flung in the balance, and weighed against each other. on the one hand, there stood slavery; a stern reality. glaring frightfully upon us, with the blood of millions in his polluted skirts terrible to behold greedily devouring our hard earnings and feeding himself upon our flesh. here was the evil from which to escape. on the other hand, far away, back in the hazy distance, where all forms seemed but shadows, under the flickering light of the north star behind some craggy hill or snow covered mountain stood a doubtful freedom, half frozen, beckoning us to her icy domain. this was, the good to be sought. the inequality was as great as that between certainty and uncertainty. this, in itself, was enough to stagger us; but when we came to survey the untrodden road, and conjecture the many possible difficulties, we were appalled, and at times, as i have said, were upon the point of giving over the struggle altogether. the reader can have little idea of the phantoms of trouble which flit, in such circumstances, before the uneducated mind of the slave. upon either side, we saw grim death assuming a variety of horrid shapes. now, it was starvation, causing us, in a strange and friendless land, to eat our own flesh. now, we were contending with the waves, (for our journey was in part by water,) and were drowned. now, we were hunted by dogs, and overtaken and torn to pieces hy their merciless fangs. we were stung by scorpions chased hy wild beasts bitten by snakes; and, worst of all, after having succeeded in swimming rivers encountering wild beasts sleeping in the woods suffering hunger, cold, heat and nakedness we supposed ourselves to he overtaken by hired kidnappers, who, in the name of the law, and for their thrice accursed reward, would, perchance, fire upon us kill some, wound others, and capture all. this dark picture, drawn by ignorance and fear, at times greatly shook our determination, and not unfrequently caused us to "rather bear those ills we had than fly to others which we knew not of."†douglass slightly misquotes hamlet, act 3, sc. 1, lines 81 82. i am not disposed to magnify this circumstance in my experience. and yet i think i shall seem to be so disposed, to the reader. no man can tell the intense agony which is felt by the slave, when wavering on the point of making his escape. all that he has is at stake; and even that which he has not, is at stake, also. the life which he has, may be lost, and the liberty which he seeks, may not be gained. patrick henry, to a listening senate, thrilled by his magic eloquence, and ready to stand by him in his boldest flights, could say, "give me liberty or give me death,"†patrick henry (1736 99), a virginia patriot, lawyer, and revolutionary statesman, attended the first continental congress at philadelphia and was governor of virginia from 1776 to 1779. douglass paraphrases patrick henry's speech in a virginia revolutionary convention on 23 march 1775. william wirt, the life and character of patrick henry, rev. ed. (new york, 1832), 141; dab, 7:554 59. and this saying was a sublime one, even for a freeman; but, incomparably more sublime, is the same sentiment, when asserted by men accustomed to the lash and chain men whose sensibilities must have become more or less deadened by their bondage. with us it was a liberty, at best, that we sought; and a certain, lingering death in the rice swamps and sugar fields, if we failed. life is not lightly regarded by men of sane minds. it is precious, alike to the pauper and to the prince to the slave, and to his master; and yet, 1 believe there was not one among us, who would not rather have been shot down, than pass away life in hopeless bondage. in the progress of our preparations, sandy, the root man, became troubled. he began to have dreams, and some of them were very distressing. one of these, which happened on a friday night, was, to him, of great significance; and i am quite ready to confess, that i felt somewhat damped by it myself. he said. "i dreamed, last night, that i was roused from sleep, by strange noises, like the voices of a swarm of angry birds, that caused a roar as they passed, which fell upon my ear like a coming gale over the tops of the trees. looking up to see what it could mean," said sandy, "l saw you, frederick, in the claws of a huge bird, surrounded by a large number of birds, of all colors and sizes. these were all picking at you, while you, with your arms, seemed to be trying to protect your eyes. passing over me, the birds flew in a south westerly direction, and i watched them until they were clean out of sight. now, i saw this as plainly as i now see you; and furder, honey, watch de friday night dream; dare is sumpon in it, shose you born; dare is, indeed, honey." i confess i did not like this dream; but i threw off concern ahout it, by attributing it to the general excitement and perturbation consequent upon our contemplated plan of escape. i could not, however, shake off its effect at once. i felt that it boded me no good. sandy was unusually emphatic and oracular, and his manner had much to do with the impression made upon me. the plan of escape which i recommended, and to which my comrades assented, was to take a large canoe, owned by mr. hamilton, and, on the saturday night previous to the easter holidays, launch out into the chesapeake bay, and paddle for its head, a distance of seventy miles with all our might. our course, on reaching this point, was, to turn the canoe adrift, and bend our steps toward the north star, till we reached a free state. there were several objections to this plan. one was, the danger from gales on the bay. in rough weather, the waters of the chesapeake are much agitated, and there is danger, in a canoe, of being swamped by the waves. another objection was, that the canoe would soon be missed; the absent persons would, at once, be suspected of having taken it; and we should be pursued by some of the fast sailing bay craft out of st. michael's. then, again, if we reached the head of the bay, and turned the canoe adrift, she might prove a guide to our track, and bring the land hunters after us. these and other objections were set aside, by the stronger ones which could he urged against every other plan that could then be suggested. on the water, we had a chance of being regarded as fishermen, in the service of a master. on the other hand, by taking the land route, through the counties adjoining delaware, we should he subjected to all manner of interruptions, and many very disagreeable questions, which might give us serious trouble. any white man is authorized to stop a man of color, on any road, and examine him, and arrest him, if he so desires.†the laws and social customs of the south gave whites the authority to stop any african american deemed suspicious. in the early nineteenth century most southern states enacted pass laws that required blacks to carry proof of their free status. failure to produce this evidence would result in arrest. any white person could arrest a suspected fugitive or discipline any slave. in many states, blacks who lost their free papers would be treated as a slave until their free status was proven. although any white could make an arrest, formal power usually rested with locally organized patrols of men who rode through a district, arrested runaways, stopped any slaves away from their home plantation to examine their passes, and generally instilled fear in the black population. ira berlin, slaves without masters: the free negro in the ante bellum south (new york, 1974), 94 95; richard c. wade, slavery in the cities: the south 1820 1860 (new york, 1964), 80 81. by this arrangement, many abuses (considered such even by slaveholders) occur. cases have heen known, where freemen have been called upon to show their free papers, by a pack of ruffians and, on the presentation of the papers, the ruffians have torn them up, and seized their victim, and sold him to a life of endless bondage. the week before our intended start, i wrote a pass for each of our party, giving them permission to visit baltimore, during the easter holidays. the pass ran after this manner: "this is to certify, that i, the undersigned, have given the bearer, my servant, john, full liberty to go to baltimore, to spend the easter holidays. "w. h. "near st. michael's, talbot county, maryland.'' although we were not going to baltimore, and were intending to land east of north point, in the direction where i had seen the philadelphia steamers go, these passes might be made useful to us in the lower part of the bay, while steering toward baltimore. these were not, however, to be shown by us, until all other answers failed to satisfy the inquirer. we were all fully alive to the importance of being calm and self possessed, when accosted, if accosted we should be; and we more times than one rehearsed to each other how we should behave in the hour of trial. those were long, tedious days and nights. the suspense was painful, in the extreme. to balance probabilities, where life and liberty hang on the result, requires steady nerves. i panted for action, and was glad when the day, at the close of which we were to start, dawned upon us. sleeping, the night before, was out of the question. i probably felt more deeply than any of my companions, because i was the instigator of the movement. the responsibility of the whole enterprise rested on my shoulders. the glory of success, and the shame and confusion of failure, could not be matters of indifference to me. our food was prepared; our clothes were packed up; we were all ready to go, and impatient for saturday morning considering that the last morning of our bondage. i cannot describe the tempest and tumult of my brain, that morning. the reader will please to bear in mind, that, in a slave state, an unsuccessful runaway is not only subjected to cruel torture, and sold away to the far south, but he is frequently execrated by the other slaves. he is charged with making the condition of the other slaves intolerable, by laying them all under the suspicion of their masters subjecting them to greater vigilance, and imposing greater limitations on their privileges. i dreaded murmurs from this quarter. it is difficult, too. for a slave master to believe that slaves escaping have not been aided in their flight by some one of their fellow slaves. when, therefore, a slave is missing, every slave on the place is closely examined as to his knowledge of the undertaking; and they are sometimes even tortured, to make them disclose what they are suspected of knowing of such escape. our anxiety grew more and more intense. as the time of our intended departure for the north drew nigh. it was truly felt to be a matter of life and death with us; and we fully intended to as well as , if necessity should occur for that extremity. but the trial hour was not yet come. it was easy to resolve, but not so easy to act. i expected there might be some drawing back, at the last. it was natural that there should be; therefore. during the intervening time, i lost no opportunity to explain away difficulties, to remove doubts, to dispel fears, and to inspire all with firmness. it was too late to look back; and was the time to go forward. like most other men, we had done the talking part of our work, long and well; and the time had come to as if we were in earnest, and meant to be as true in action as in words. i did not forget to appeal to the pride of my comrades, by telling them that, if after having solemnly promised to go, as they had done, they now failed to make the attempt, they would, in effect, brand themselves with cowardice, and might as well sit down, fold their arms, and acknowledge themselves as fit only to be . this detestable character, all were unwilling to assume. every man except sandy (he, much to our regret, withdrew) stood firm; and at our last meeting we pledged ourselves afresh, and in the most solemn manner, that, at the time appointed, we certainly start on our long journey for a free country. this meeting was in the middle of the week, at the end of which we were to start. early that morning we went, as usual, to the field, but with hearts that heat quickly and anxiously. any one intimately acquainted with us, might have seen that all was not well with us, and that some monster lingered in our thoughts. our work that morning was the same as it had been for several days past drawing out and spreading manure. while thus engaged, i had a sudden presentiment, which flashed upon me like lightning in a dark night, revealing to the lonely traveler the gulf before, and the enemy behind. i instantly turned to sandy jenkins, who was near me, and said to him. "; something has just told me so." i felt as sure of it, as if the officers were there in sight. sandy said, "man, dat is strange; but i feel just as you do." if my mother then long in her grave had appeared before me, and told me that we were betrayed, i could not, at that moment, have felt more certain of the fact. in a few minutes after this, the long, low and distant notes of the horn summoned us from the field to breakfast. i felt as one may be supposed to feel before being led forth to be executed for some great offense. i wanted no breakfast; but i went with the other slaves toward the house, for form's sake. my feelings were not disturbed as to the right of running away; on that point i had no trouble, whatever. my anxiety arose from a sense of the consequences of failure. in thirty minutes after that vivid presentiment, came the apprehended crash. on reaching the house, for breakfast, and glancing my eye toward the lane gate, the worst was at once made known. the lane gate of mr. freeland's house, is nearly a half a mile from the door, and much shaded by the heavy wood which bordered the main road. i was, however, able to descry four white men, and two colored men, approaching. the white men were on horseback, and the colored men were walking behind, and seemed to be tied. "," thought i, "." i now became composed, or at least comparatively so, and calmly awaited the result. i watched the ill omened company, till i saw them enter the gate. successful flight was impossible, and i made up my mind to stand, and meet the evil, whatever it might be; for i was now not without a slight hope that things might tum differently from what i at first expected. in a few moments, in came mr. william hamilton, riding very rapidly, and evidently much excited. he was in the habit of riding very slowly, and was seldom known to gallop his horse. this time, his horse was nearly at full speed, causing the dust to roll thick behind him. mr. hamilton, though one of the most resolute men in the whole neighborhood, was, nevertheless, a remarkably mild spoken man; and, even when greatly excited, his language was cool and circumspect. he came to the door, and inquired if mr. freeland was in. i told him that mr. freeland was at the barn. off the old gentleman rode, toward the barn, with unwonted speed. mary, the cook, was at a loss to know what was the matter, and i did not profess any skill in making her understand. i knew she would have united, as readily as any one, in cursing me for bringing trouble into the family; so i held my peace, leaving matters to develop themselves, without my assistance. in a few moments, mr. hamilton and mr. freeland came down from the barn to the house; and, just as they made their appearance in the front yard, three men (who proved to be constables) came dashing into the lane, on horseback, as if summoned by a sign requiring quick work. a few seconds brought them into the front yard, where they hastily dismounted, and tied their horses. this done, they joined mr. freeland and mr. hamilton, who were standing a short distance from the kitchen. a few moments were spent, as if in consulting how to proceed, and then the whole party walked up to the kitchen door. there was now no one in the kitchen but myself and john harris, henry and sandy were yet at the barn. mr. freeland came inside the kitchen door, and with an agitated voice, called me by name, and told me to come forward; that there were some gentlemen who wished to see me. i stepped toward them, at the door, and asked what they wanted, when the constables grabbed me, and told me that i had better not resist; that i had been in a scrape, or was said to have been in one; that they were merely going to take me where i could he examined; that they were going to carry me to st. michael's, to have me brought before my master. they further said, that, in case the evidence against me was not true, i should be acquitted. i was now firmly tied, and completely at the mercy of my captors. resistance was idle. they were five in number, armed to the very teeth. when they had secured me, they next turned to john harris, and, in a few moments, succeeded in tying him as firmly as they had already tied me. they next turned toward henry harris, who had now returned from the barn. "cross your hands," said the constables, to henry. "i won't" said henry, in a voice so firm and clear, and in a manner so determined, as for a moment to arrest all proceedings. "won't you cross your hands?" said tom graham,†thomas graham was the constable for st. michaels parish in 1833 and the next door neighhor of thomas auld. in 1830 he was between the ages of forty and fifty, married, the father of one son, and the owner of one female slave. he appears to have died hetween 1840 and 1850, as he was not listed in the census for the latter year. after the publication of the narrative, graham publicly disputed douglass's characterization of his treatment by auld. lib., 20 february 1846; 1830 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 39; 1840 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 48a; preston, young frederick douglass, 116, 136 37. the constable. "," said henry, with increasing emphasis. mr. hamilton, mr. freeland, and the officers, now came near to henry. two of the constables drew out their shining pistols, and swore by the name of god, that he should cross his hands, or they would shoot him down. each of these hired ruffians now cocked their pistols, and, with fingers apparently on the triggers, presented their deadly weapons to the breast of the unarmed slave, saying, at the same time, if he did not cross his hands, they would "blow his d   d heart out of him." "" said henry. shoot! shoot! and be d   d. i won't be tied." this, the brave fellow said in a voice as defiant and heroic in its tone, as was the language itself; and, at the moment of saying this, with the pistols at his very breast, he quickly raised his arms, and dashed them from the puny hands of his assassins, the weapons flying in opposite directions. now came the struggle. all hands now rushed upon the brave fellow, and, after beating him for some time, they succeeded in overpowering and tying him. henry put me to shame; he fought, and fought bravely. john and i had made no resistance. the fact is, i never see much use in fighting, unless there is a reasonable probability of whipping somebody. yet there was something almost providential in the resistance made by the gallant henry. but for that resistance, every soul of us would have been hurried off to the far south. just a moment previous to the trouble with henry, mr. hamilton said and this gave me the unmistakable clue to the cause of our arrest "perhaps we had now better make a search for those protections, which we understand frederick has written for himself and the rest." had these passes been found, they would have been point blank proof against us, and would have confirmed all the statements of our betrayer. thanks to the resistance of henry, the excitement produced by the scuffle drew all attention in that direction, and i succeeded in flinging my pass, unobserved, into the fire. the confusion attendant upon the scuffle, and the apprehension of further trouble, perhaps, led our captors to forego, for the present, any search for ""; so we were not yet convicted of the purpose to run away; and it was evident that there was some doubt, on the part of all, whether we had been guilty of such a purpose. just as we were all completely tied, and about ready to start toward st. michael's, and thence to jail, mrs. betsey freeland†elizabeth freeland was one of eleven children born to william and nancy needle hambleton of old martingham, talbot county, maryland. as a hambleton, she joined a clan of prominent landowners, merchants, and professionals. she married william freeland of talbot county, who died between 1810 and 1820. she is listed in the 1820 u.s. census as the head of a household that included three white boys, a young white adult male, and six slaves. she appears again in 1830, presiding over a home that included two white men and four slaves. one of those white men was her son, william. 1810 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 338; 1820 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 10; 1830 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 35; tilghman, talbot county, 1:455 58. (mother to william, who was very much attached after the southern fashion to henry and john, they having been reared from childhood in her house) came to the kitchen door, with her hands full of biscuits, for we had not had time to take our breakfast that morning and divided them between henry and john. this done, the lady made the following parting address to me, looking and pointing her bony finger at me. "you devil! you yellow devil it was you that put it into the heads of henry and john to run away. but for you, you , henry and john would never have thought of running away." i gave the lady a look, which called forth a scream of mingled wrath and terror, as she slammed the kitchen door, and went in, leaving me, with the rest, in hands as harsh as her own broken voice. could the kind reader have been quietly riding along the main road to or from easton, that morning, his eye would have met a painful sight. he would have seen five young men, guilty of no crime, save that of preferring to a life of , drawn along the public highway firmly bound together tramping through dust and heat, bare footed and bareheaded fastened to three strong horses, whose riders were armed to the teeth, with pistols and daggers on their way to prison, like felons, and suffering every possible insult from the crowds of idle, vulgar people, who clustered around, and heartlessly made their failure the occasion for all manner of ribaldry and sport. as i looked upon this crowd of vile persons, and saw myself and friends thus assailed and persecuted, i could not help seeing the fulfillment of sandy's dream. i was in the hands of moral vultures, and firmly held in their sharp talons, and was being hurried away toward easton, in a south easterly direction, amid the jeers of new birds of the same feather, through every neighborhood we passed. it seemed to me, (and this shows the good understanding between the slaveholders and their allies,) that every body we met knew the cause of our arrest, and were out, awaiting our passing by, to feast their vindictive eyes on our misery and to gloat over our ruin. some said, , and others, ; others, i ought to have the "" taken from my back; while no one gave us a kind word or sympathizing look, except the poor slaves, who were lifting their heavy hoes, and who cautiously glanced at us through the post and rail fences, behind which they were at work. our sufferings, that morning, can be more easily imagined than described. our hopes were all blasted, at a blow. the cruel injustice, the victorious crime, and the helplessness of innocence, led me to ask, in my ignorance and weakness "where now is the god of justice and mercy? and why have these wicked men the power thus to trample upon our rights, and to insult our feelings?" and yet, in the next moment, came the consoling thought, "."†a loose paraphrase of prov. 28: 16 18. of one thing i could be glad not one of my dear friends, upon whom i had brought this great calamity, either by word or look, reproached me for having led them into it. we were a band of brothers, and never dearer to each other than now. the thought which gave us the most pain, was the probable separation which would now take place, in case we were sold off to the far south, as we were likely to be. while the constables were looking forward, henry and i being fastened together, could occasionally exchange a word, without being observed by the kidnappers who had us in charge. "what shall i do with my pass?" said henry. "eat it with your biscuit." said i; "'it won't do to tear it up." we were now near st. michael's. the direction concerning the passes was passed around, and executed. "," said i. "," was passed around and enjoined, and assented to. our confidence in each other was unshaken; and we were quite resolved to succeed or fail together as much after the calamity which had befallen us, as before. on reaching st. michael's. we underwent a sort of examination at my master's store, and it was evident to my mind, that master thomas suspected the truthfulness of the evidence upon which they had acted in arresting us; and that he only affected, to some extent, the positiveness with which he asserted our guilt. there was nothing said by any of our company, which could, in any manner, prejudice our cause; and there was hope, yet, that we should be able to return to our homes if for nothing else, at least to find out the guilty man or woman who had betrayed us. to this end. we all denied that we had been guilty of intended flight. master thomas said that the evidence he had of our intention to run away, was strong enough to hang us, in a case of murder. "but," said i "the cases are not equal. if murder were committed, some one must have committed it the thing is done! in our case, nothing has been done! we have not run away. where is the evidence against us? we were quietly at our work." i talked thus, with unusual freedom, to bring out the evidence against us, for we all wanted, above all things, to know the guilty wretch who had betrayed us, that we might have something tangible upon which to pour our execrations. from something which dropped, in the course of the talk, it appeared that there was but one witness against us and that that witness could not be produced. master thomas would not tell us who his informant was; but we suspected, and suspected person . several circumstances seemed to point sandy out, as our betrayer. his entire knowledge of our plans his participation in them his withdrawal from us his dream, and his simultaneous presentiment that we were betrayed the taking us, and the leaving him were calculated to turn suspicion toward him; and yet, we could not suspect him. we all loved him too well to think it that he could have betrayed us. so we rolled the guilt on other shoulders. we were literally dragged, that morning, behind horses, a distance of fifteen miles, and placed in the easton jail. we were glad to reach the end of our journey, for our pathway had been the scene of insult and mortification. such is the power of public opinion, that it is hard, even for the innocent, to feel the happy consolations of innocence, when they fall under the maledictions of this power. how could we regard ourselves as in the right, when all about us denounced us as criminals, and had the power and the disposition to treat us as such. in jail, we were placed under the care of mr. joseph graham,†joseph graham (c. 1797  ?) was the sheriff of talbot county in 1836. by 1830 he was married and the father of two young daughters. graham was still alive in 1878 when douglass returned to visit talbot county. 1830 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 36; preston, young frederick douglass, 139, 190. the sheriff of the county. henry, and john, and myself, were placed in one room. and henry baily and charles roberts, in another, by themselves. this separation was intended to deprive us of the advantage of concert, and to prevent trouble in jail. once shut up, a new set of tormentors came upon us. a swarm of imps, in human shape the slave traders, deputy slave traders, and agents of slave traders that gather in every country town of the state, watching for chances to buy human flesh, (as buzzards to eat carrion,) flocked in upon us, to ascertain if our masters had placed us in jail to be sold. such a set of debased and villainous creatures, i never saw before, and hope never to see again. i felt myself surrounded as by a pack of , fresh from . they laughed, leered, and grinned at us; saying, "ah! boys, we've got you, haven't†emendation note: haven't] havn 't we? so you were about to make your escape? where were you going to?" after taunting us, and jeering at us, as long as they liked, they one by one subjected us to an examination, with a view to ascertain our value; feeling our arms and legs, and shaking us by the shoulders to see if we were sound and healthy; impudently asking us, "how we would like to have them for masters?" to such questions, we were, very much to their annoyance. quite dumb, disdaining to answer them. for one, i detested the whisky bloated gamblers in human flesh; and i believe i was as much detested by them in turn. one fellow told me, "if he had me, he would cut the devil out of me pretty quick." these negro buyers are very offensive to the genteel southron†a substitute for southern or southerner, traceable to the 1820s, that first was popular among early southern sectionalists but later was also used by abolitionists to deride that group. mathews, dictionary of americanisms, 2: 1602. christian public. they are looked upon, in respectable maryland society, as necessary, but detestable characters. as a class, they are hardened ruffians, made such by nature and by occupation. their ears are made quite familiar with the agonizing cry of outraged and woe smitten humanity. their eyes are forever open to human misery. they walk amid desecrated affections, insulted virtue, and blasted hopes. they have grown intimate with vice and blood; they gloat over the wildest illustrations of their soul damning and earth polluting business, and are moral pests. yes; they are a legitimate fruit of slavery; and it is a puzzle to make out a case of greater villainy for them, than for the slaveholders, who make such a class . they are mere hucksters of the surplus slave produce of maryland and virginia coarse, cruel, and swaggering bullies, whose very breathing is of blasphemy and blood. aside from these slave buyers, who infested the prison, from time to time, our quarters were much more comfortable than we had any right to expect they would be. our allowance of food was small and coarse, but our room was the best in the jail neat and spacious, and with nothing about it necessarily reminding us of being in prison, but its heavy locks and bolts and the black, iron lattice work at the windows. we were prisoners of state, compared with most slaves who are put into that easton jail. but the place was not one of contentment. bolts, bars and grated windows are not acceptable to freedom loving people of any color. the suspense, too, was painful. every step on the stairway was listened to, in the hope that the comer would cast a ray of light on our fate. we would have given the hair off our heads for half a dozen words with one of the waiters in sol. lowe's hotel.†solomon lowe was a prominent tavern keeper in easton, maryland, for more than thirty years. the first of several taverns he operated was across from the easton courthouse and began business as early as 1802. in 1814 he opened a larger tavern and hostelry, called the union tavern, on the northeast corner of washington and goldsborough streets, but sometimes moved his operations to a larger brick hotel at the corner of washington and fednal streets that boasted twenty two rooms. wherever its location, lowe's tavern was a popular hall for balls, banquets, and foxhunts. it was also known to be headquarters for out of town slave traders and traveling salesmen. the establishment served as the offices for the local newspaper and the site of the annual slave auction, which was first held at the tavern in 1818. leonard, tavern in the town, 153 54; preston, young frederick douglass, 78. such waiters were in the way of hearing, at the table, the probable course of things. we could see them flitting about in their white jackets, in front of this hotel, but could speak to none of them. soon after the holidays were over, contrary to all our expectations, messrs. hamilton and freeland came up to easton; not to make a bargain with the "georgia traders," nor to send us up to austin woldfolk,† austin woolfolk. as is usual in the case of run away slaves, but to release charles, henry harris, henry baily and john harris, from prison, and this, too, without the infliction of a single blow. i was now left entirely alone in prison. the innocent had been taken, and the guilty left. my friends were separated from me, and apparently forever. this circumstance caused me more pain than any other incident connected with our capture and imprisonment. thirty nine lashes on my naked and bleeding back, would have been joyfully borne, in preference to this separation from these, the friends of my youth. and yet, i could not but feel that i was the victim of something like justice. why should these young men, who were led into this scheme by me, suffer as much as the instigator? i felt glad that they were released from prison, and from the dread prospect of a life (or death i should rather say) in the rice swamps. it is due to the noble henry, to say, that he seemed almost as reluctant to leave the prison with me in it, as he was to be tied and dragged to prison. but he and the rest knew that we should, in all the likelihoods of the case, be separated, in the event of being sold; and since we were now completely in the hands of our owners. we all concluded it would be best to go peaceably home. not until this last separation, dear reader, had i touched those profounder depths of desolation, which it is the lot of slaves often to reach. i was solitary in the world, and alone within the walls of a stone prison, left to a fate of life long misery. i had hoped and expected much, for months before, but my hopes and expectations were now withered and blasted. the ever dreaded slave life in georgia, louisiana and alabama from which escape is next to impossible now, in my loneliness, stared me in the face. the possibility of ever becoming anything but an abject slave, a mere machine in the hands of an owner, had now fled, and it seemed to me it had fled forever. a life of living death, beset with the innumerable horrors of the cotton field, and the sugar plantation, seemed to be my doom. the fiends, who rushed into the prison when we were first put there, continued to visit me, and to ply me with questions and with their tantalizing remarks. i was insulted, but helpless; keenly alive to the demands of justice and liberty, but with no means of asserting them. to talk to those imps about justice and mercy, would have been as absurd as to reason with bears and tigers. lead and steel are the only arguments that they understand. after remaining in this life of misery and despair about a week, which, by the way, seemed a month, master thomas, very much to my surprise, and greatly to my relief, came to the prison, and took me out, for the purpose, as he said, of sending me to alabama, with a friend of his, who would emancipate me at the end of eight years. i was glad enough to get out of prison; but i had no faith in the story that this friend of capt. auld would emancipate me, at the end of the time indicated. besides, i never had heard of his having a friend in alabama, and i took the announcement, simply as an easy and comfortable method of shipping me off to the far south. there was a little scandal, too, connected with the idea of one christian selling another to the georgia traders, while it was deemed every way proper for them to sell to others. i thought this friend in alabama was an invention, to meet this difficulty, for master thomas was quite jealous of his christian reputation, however unconcerned he might be about his real christian character. in these remarks, however, it is possible that i do master thomas auld injustice. he certainly did not exhaust his power upon me, in the case, but acted, upon the whole, very generously, considering the nature of my offense. he had the power and the provocation to send me, without reserve, into the very everglades of florida, beyond the remotest hope of emancipation; and his refusal to exercise that power, must be set down to his credit. after lingering about st. michael's a few days, and no friend from alabama making his appearance, to take me there, master thomas decided to send me hack again to baltimore, to live with his brother hugh, with whom he was now at peace; possibly he became so by his profession of religion, at the camp meeting in the bay side. master thomas told me that he wished me to go to baltimore, and learn a trade; and that. if i behaved myself properly, he would thanks for this one beam of hope in the future. the promise had but one fault: it seemed too good to be true. chapter xx. apprenticeship life. nothing lost by the attempt to run away comrades in their old homes reasons for sending author away return to baltimore contrast between "tommy" and that of his colored companion trials in gardiner's ship yard desperate fight its causes conflict between white and black labor description of the outrage colored testimony nothing conduct of master hugh spirit of slavery in baltimore author's condition improves new associations slaveholders' right to take his wages how to make a contented slave. well! dear reader, i am not, as you may have already inferred, a loser by the general upstir, described in the foregoing chapter. the little domestic revolution, notwithstanding the sudden snub it got by the treachery of somebody  i dare not say or think  did not, after all, end so disastrously, as, when in the iron cage at easton, i conceived it would. the prospect, from that point, did look about as dark as any that ever cast its gloom over the vision of the anxious, out looking, human spirit. "all is well that ends well."†the title of shakespeare's 1602 play is actually derived from the line "all ends well,'' in orestes, a play by the greek author euripides, believed written in 410 b.c. burton stevenson, ed., the home book of proverbs, maxims and familiar phrases (new york, 1948), 678 79. my affectionate comrades, henry and john harris, are still with mr. william freeland. charles roberts and henry baily are safe at their homes. i have not, therefore, any thing to regret on their account. their masters have mercifully forgiven them, probably on the ground suggested in the spirited little speech of mrs. freeland, made to me just before leaving for the jail namely: that they had been allured into the wicked scheme of making their escape, by me; and that, but for me, they would never have dreamed of a thing so shocking! my friends had nothing to regret, either; for while they were watched more closely on account of what had happened, they were, doubtless, treated more kindly than before, and got new assurances that they would be legally emancipated, some day, provided their behavior should make them deserving, from that time forward. not a blow, as i learned, was struck any one of them. as for master william freeland, good, unsuspecting soul, he did not believe that we were intending to run away at all. having given as he thought no occasion to his boys to leave him, he could not think it probable that they had entertained a design so grievous. this, however, was not the view taken of the matter hy "mas' billy," as we used to call the soft spoken, but crafty and resolute mr. william hamilton. he had no doubt that the crime had been meditated; and regarding me as the instigator of it, he frankly told master thomas, that he must remove me from that neighborhood, or he would shoot me down. he would not have one so dangerous as "frederick" tampering with his slaves. william hamilton was not a man whose threat might be safely disregarded. i have no doubt that he would have proved as good as his word, had the warning given not been promptly taken. he was furious at the thought of such a piece of high handed , as we were about to perpetrate the stealing of our own bodies and souls! the feasibility of the plan, too could the first steps have been taken, was marvelously plain. besides, this was a new idea, this use of the bay. slaves escaping, until now, had taken to the woods; they had never dreamed of profaning and abusing the waters of the noble chesapeake, by making them the highway from slavery to freedom. here was a broad road of destruction to slavery, which, before, had been looked upon as a wall of security by slaveholders. but master billy could not get mr. freeland to see matters precisely as he did; nor could he get master thomas so excited as he was himself. the latter i must say it to his credit showed much humane feeling in his part of the transaction, and atoned for much that had been harsh, cruel and unreasonable in his former treatment of me and others. his clemency was quite unusual and unlooked for. "cousin tom"†tom bailey. told me that while i was in jail, master thomas was very unhappy; and that the night before his going up to release me, he had walked the floor nearly all night, evincing great distress; that very tempting offers had been made to him, by the negro traders, but he had rejected them all, saying that . all this i can easily believe, for he seemed quite reluctant to send me away, at all. he told me that he only consented to do so, because of the very strong prejudiice against me in the neighborhood, and that he feared for my safety if i remained there. thus. after three years spent in the country, roughing it in the field, and experiencing all sorts of hardships, i was again permitted to return to baltimore, the very place, of all others, short of a free state, where i most desired to live. the three years spent in the country, had made some difference in me, and in the household of master hugh. "little tommy" was no longer tommy; and i was not the slender lad who had left for the eastern shore just three years before. the loving relations between me and mas' tommy were broken up. he was no longer dependent on me for protection, but felt himself a , with other and more suitable associates. in childhood, he scarcely considered me inferior to himself certainly, as good as any other boy with whom he played; but the time had come when his must become his. so we were cold, and we parted. it was a sad thing to me, that, loving each other as we had done, we must now take different roads. to him, a thousand avenues were open. education had made him acquainted with all the treasures of the world, and liberty had flung open the gates thereunto; but i, who had attended him seven years, and had watched over him with the care of a hig brother, fighting his battles in the street, and shielding him from harm, to an extent which had induced his mother to say, "oh! tommy is always safe, when he is with freddy," must be confined to a single condition. he could grow, and become a man; i could grow, though i could become a man, but must remain, all my life, a minor a mere boy. thomas auld, junior, obtained a situation on board the brig tweed, and went to sea. i know not what has become of him;†douglass appears unaware that the younger thomas auld had died in 1848 in a maritime accident. benjamin f. auld to douglass, 11 september 1891. general correspondence file, reel 6, frame 240, fd papers, dlc; preston, young frederick douglass, 148, 228nl0. he certainly has my good wishes for his welfare and prosperity. there were few persons to whom i was more sincerely attached than to him, and there are few in the world i would he more pleased to meet. very soon after i went to baltimore to live, master hugh succeeded in getting me hired to mr. william gardiner, an extensive ship builder on fell's point. i was placed here to learn to calk, a trade of which i already had some knowledge, gained while in mr. hugh auld's ship yard, when he was a master builder. gardiner's, however. proved a very unfavorable place for the accomplishment of that object. mr. gardiner was, that season, engaged in building two large man of war vessels, professedly for the mexican government. †baltimore was a substantial shipbuilding center, and it is likely that gardiner's shipyard completed commissions for foreign governments as douglass suggests. in the late 1820s and 1830s baltimore shipbuilders launched steamboats for domestic transport, merchant ships for u.s. and british firms, and even a gunship for the brazilian government. scharf, history of baltimore, 1:293.these vessels were to be launched in the month of july, of that year, and, in failure thereof, mr. g. would forfeit a very considerable sum of money. so, when i entered the ship yard, all was hurry and driving. there were in the yard about one hundred men; of these about seventy or eighty were regular carpenters privileged men. speaking of my condition here i wrote, years ago and i have now no reason to vary the picture as follows: "there was no time to learn any thing. every man had to do that which he knew how to do. in entering the ship yard, my orders from mr. gardiner were, to do whatever the carpenters commanded me to do. this was placing me at the beck and call of about seventy five men. i was to regard all these as masters. their word was to be my law. my situation was a most trying one. at times i needed a dozen pair of hands. i was called a dozen ways in the space of a single minute. three or four voices would strike my ear at the same moment. it was 'fred., come help me to cant this timber here.'   'fred., come carry this timber yonder.'   'fred., bring that roller here.'   'fred., go get a fresh can of water.'    'fred., come help saw off the end of this timber.'  'fred., go quick and get the crowbar.'   'fred., hold on the end of this fall.   'fred., go to†textual note: in addition to being demanded by the context, "to" is contained in the passage from the narrative that douglass here quotes directly (douglass papers, ser 2, 1:67.18). the compositor's omission in the copy text remained uncorrected in all other impressions and printings. emendation note: got to] go the blacksmith's shop, and get a new punch.'   'hurra, fred.! run and bring me a cold chisel.'   'i say, fred, bear a hand, and get up a fire as quick as lightning under that steam box.'   'halloo, nigger! come, turn this grindstone. 'come, come! move, move! and this timber forward.'   'i say, darkey, blast your eyes, why don't you heat up some pitch?'   'halloo! halloo! halloo!' (three voices at the same time.) 'come here! go there! hold on where you are! d   n you, if you move, i'll knock your brains out!'"†douglass quotes from his . douglass papers, ser. 2, 1:67. such, dear reader, is a glance at the school which was mine, during the first eight months of my stay at baltimore. at the end of eight months, master hugh refused longer to allow me to remain with mr. gardiner. the circumstance which led to his taking me away, was a brutal outrage, committed upon me by the white apprentices of the ship yard. the fight was a desperate one, and i came out of it most shockingly mangled. i was cut and bruised in sundry places, and my left eye was nearly knocked out of its socket. the facts, leading to this barbarous outrage upon me, illustrate a phase of slavery destined to become an important element in the overthrow of the slave system, and i may, therefore state them with some minuteness. that phase is this: .†early in the nineteenth century, slave labor was not considered a serious competitive threat by most skilled white workers in the south, but as the pressures of expanded commerce and industry reached the south, white labor began to complain of competition from inexpensive slave labor. in some areas, slaveholders pitted skilled slaves directly against white artisan workers, a move that added to the growing feelings of hostility. white workers responded to the threat of competition from slave labor in several ways. in cities, where competition was especially intense, white workers sometimes vandalized or destroyed buildings erected by black carpenters, or otherwise damaged work completed by slave labor. hostility was sometimes expressed in direct physical confrontation with slave workers, and many white workers simply refused to work in a racially mixed setting. white labor also mobilized politically against the threat posed by slave labor and that of free black workers. artisan workers frequently petitioned southern state legislatures and lobbied for laws restricting the use of slaves in certain occupations. as douglass suggests, it was common for white wage laborers to adopt the concept of "white slavery" to describe their subordinate position in industrializing america. the use of the term and the implied comparison between wage labor and black slavery was popularized during the 1830s campaign for the ten hour day. by the middle of the nineteenth century reformers, labor leaders, and other activists expanded the concept of white slavery to include the plight of debtors, small employers, and even slaveholders, as well as wage laborers. the term was applied to any white men or women who faced political, economic, or social constraints from the wealthy and privileged in american society. ronald takaki, iron cages: race and culture in 19th century america (new york, 1990), 122 23; david r. roediger, the wages of whiteness: race and the making of the american working class (london, 1991), 66 67, 71 73; berlin, slaves without masters, 96 97; james sidbury, "slave artisans in richmond, virginia, 1780 1810," in american artisans: crafting social ldentity, 1750 1850, ed. howard b. rock, paul a. gilje, and robert asher (baltimore, 1995), 53 54. in the country, this conflict is not so apparent; but, in cities, such as baltimore, richmond, new orleans, mobile, &c., it is seen pretty clearly. the slaveholders, with a craftiness peculiar to themselves, by encouraging the enmity of the poor, laboring white man against the blacks, succeeds in making the said white man almost as much a slave as the black slave himself. the difference between the white slave, and the black slave, is this: the latter belongs to slaveholder, and the former belongs to the slaveholders, collectively. the white slave has taken from him, by indirection, what the black slave has taken from him, directly. and without ceremony. both are plundered, and by the same plunderers. the slave is robbed, by his master, of all his earnings, above what is required for his bare physical necessitiesl and the white man is robbed by the slave system, of the just results of his labor, because he is flung into competition with a class of laborers who work without wages. the competition, and its injurious consequences, will, one day, array the non slaveholding white people of the slave states, against the slave system, and make them the most effective workers against the great evil. at present, the slaveholders blind them to this competition, by keeping alive their prejudice against the slaves,  not against them . they appeal to their pride, often denouncing emancipation, as tending to place the white working man, on an equality with negroes, and, by this means, they succeed in drawing off the minds of the poor whites from the real fact, that, by the rich slave master, they are already regarded as but a single remove from equality with the slave. the impression is cunningly made, that slavery is the only power that can prevent the laboring white man from falling to the level of the slave's poverty and degradation. to make this enmity deep and broad, between the slave and the poor white man, the latter is allowed to abuse and whip the former, without hindrance.†emendation note: hindrance] hinderance but as i have suggested this state of facts prevails in the country. in the city of baltimore, there are not unfrequent murmurs, that educating the slaves to be mechanics may, in the end, give slave masters power to dispense with the services of the poor white man altogether. but, with characteristic dread of offending the slaveholders, these poor, white mechanics in mr. gardiner' s shipyard instead of applying the natural, honest remedy for the apprehended evil, and objecting at once to work there by the side of slaves made a cowardly attack upon the free colored mechanics, saying were eating the bread which should he eaten by american freemen, and swearing that they would not work with them. the feeling was, , against having their labor brought into competition with that of the colored people at all; but it was too much to strike directly at the interest of the slaveholders; and, therefore proving their servility and cowardice they dealt their blows on the poor, colored freeman, and aimed to prevent from serving himself, in the evening of life, with the trade with which he had served his master, during the more vigorous portion of his days. had they succeeded in driving the black freemen out of the ship yard,†textual note: this term is hyphenated in only six instances of its approximately twenty four occurrences in bondage and freedom, hyphenation is consistent both with douglass's usual treatment of two word nouns and with his usual treatment of "ship yard" in his first autobiography, narrative. douglass papers, ser. 2, 1. emendation note: ship yard] they would have determined also upon the removal of the black slaves. the feeling was very bitter toward all colored people in baltimore, about this time, (1836,) and they free and slave suffered all manner of insult and wrong. until a very little while before i went there, white and black ship carpenters worked side by side, in the ship yards†emendation note: ship yards] of mr. gardiner, mr. duncan,†levin h. dunkin was a successful fells point shipbuilder who specialized in constructing the swift baltimore clippers. between 1835 and 1848 his yard was at the southeast corner of thames and wolf streets. in 1836 he finished the emanuel, which was used in the illegal atlantic slave trade. he also built at least three schooners for texas in 1839 after that territory achieved independence from mexico. in 1848 dunkin built the isabel, the first ocean steamboat constructed in baltimore. matchett's baltimore director[y] . . . 1835 6, 75; howard i. chapelle, the search for speed under sail: 1700 1855 (new york, 1967), 302; norman g. rukert, the fells point story (baltimore, 1976), 47, 113; john w. mcgrain, "english consul and the labyrinth of local records." mdhm, 84:62 63, 65 (spring 1989). mr. walter price,*walter price, whose family had long been engaged in shipbuilding, operated a yard on fell street south of thames street along the waterfront in the 1830s. by the latter part of the decade, a number of baltimore shipbuilders had begun construction of clippers that found their way into the international slave trade. brazilian and cuban slave traders prized these ships for their ability to evade the british blockade of africa's slave coast. benjamin auld thought that hugh auld began working for walter price about 1834, after serving a short period as a master builder in partnership with edward harrison. both auld and douglass worked for price during the construction of at least three ships, which he covertly sold in cuba or brazil. matchett's baltimore director[y] . . . 1837 8, 258; benjamin f. auld to douglass, 27 september 1891, general correspondence file, reel 6, frames 257 58, fd papers, dlc; chapelle, speed under sail, 297 312; preston, young frederick douglass, 145 47, 228n8. and mr. robb.† john a. robb was a very successful fells point shipbuilder who specialized in constructing the baltimore clippers. in 1836 and 1838 he built the viper and the clara, which were used in the illegal atlantic slave trade. in 1839 he finished at least two schooners for the navy of the new texas republic. matchett's baltimore director[y] . . . 1831, 314; chapelle, speed under sail, 302; mcgrain, "english consul," 62 63, 65. nobody seemed to see any impropriety in it. to outward seeming, all hands were well satisfied. some of the blacks were first rate†emendation note: first rate] workmen, and were given jobs requiring the highest skill. all at once, however, the white carpenters knocked off, and swore that they would no longer work on the same stage with free negroes. taking advantage of the heavy contract resting upon mr. gardiner, to have the war vessels for mexico ready to launch in july, and of the difficulty of getting other hands at that season of the year, they swore they would not strike another blow for him, unless he would discharge his free colored workmen. now, although this movement did not extend to me, , it did reach me, . the spirit which it awakened was one of malice and bitterness, toward colored people , and i suffered with the rest, and suffered severely. my fellow apprentices very soon began to feel it to be degrading to work with me. they began to put on high looks, and to talk contemptuously and maliciously of ";" saying that "they would take the country," that "they ought to he killed." encouraged hy the cowardly workmen, who, knowing me to he a slave, made no issue with mr. gardiner about my being there, these young men did their utmost to make it impossible for me to stay. they seldom called me to do any thing, without coupling the call with a curse, and, edward north.†edward north, jr., was a carpenter who in 1845 lived in fells point at 227 alice anna street. he probably is the same "ned north" who brutally attacked douglass at gardiner's shipyard. matchett's baltimore director[y] . . . 1845 (baltimore, 1845), 87; mcfeely, frederick douglass, 61. the biggest in every thing, rascality included, ventured to strike me, whereupon i picked him up. and threw him into the dock. whenever any of them struck me, i struck back again, regardless of consequences. i could manage any of them ; and, while i could keep them from combining, i succeeded very well. in the conflict which ended my stay at mr. gardiner's, i was beset by four of them at once ned north, ned hays, bill stewart,†william stewart was an apprentice carpenter in 1833 and lived near the corner of paca and pratt streets. matchett's baltimore director[y]. . . 1833, 174. and tom humphreys. two of them were as large as myself, and they came near killing me, in broad daylight.†emendation note: day light] _ . _ the attack was made suddenly, and simultaneously. one came in front, armed with a brick; there was one at each side, and one behind, and they closed up around me. i was struck on all sides; and, while i was attending to those in front, i received a blow on my head, from behind, dealt with a heavy hand spike.†a wooden bar or pale used as a lever or as a support. i was completely stunned by the blow, and fell, heavily, on the ground, among the timbers. taking advantage of my fall, they rushed upon me, and began to pound me with their fists. i let them lay on, for a while, after i came to myself, with a view of gaining strength. they did me little damage, so far; but, finally, getting tired of that sport, i gave a sudden surge, and, despite their weight, i rose to my hands and knees. just as i did this, one of their number (i know not which) planted a blow with his boot in my left eye, which, for a time, seemed to have burst my eyeball. when they saw my eye completely closed, my face covered with blood, and i staggering under the stunning blows they had given me, they left me. as soon as i gathered sufficient strength, i picked up the hand spike, and, madly enough, attempted to pursue them; but here the carpenters interfered, and compelled me to give up my frenzied pursuit. it was impossible to stand against so many. dear reader, you can hardly believe the statement, but it is true, and, therefore, i write it down; not fewer than fifty white men stood by, and saw this brutal and shameless outrage committed, and not a man of them all interposed a single word of mercy. there were four against one, and that one's face was beaten and haltered most horribly, and no one said. "that is enough;" but some cried out, "kill him kill him kill the d   d nigger! knock his brains out he struck a white person." i mention this inhuman outcry, to show the character of the men, and the spirit of the times, at gardiner's ship yard,†emendation note: ship yard] _ . _ and, indeed, in baltimore generally, in 1836. as i look back to this period, i am almost amazed that i was not murdered outright, in that ship yard,†emendation note: ship yard] _ . _ so murderous was the spirit which prevailed there. on two occasions, while there, i came near losing my life. i was driving bolts in the hold, through the keelson,†a longitudinal structure in the framing of a wooden ship, fastened to the keel by long bolts passing through the floor timbers. the keelson helps to prevent deformations in the hold's frame by distributing the effect of concentrated loads over considerahle length. with hays. in its course, the bolt bent. hays cursed me, and said that it was my blow which bent the bolt. i denied this, and charged it upon him. in a fit of rage he seized an adze,†a cutting tool that has a thin arched blade sharpened on the concave side and set at right angles to the handle and is used for rough shaping wood. and darted toward me. i met him with a maul.†a massive, heavy hammer commonly made of wood and used in driving piles in shipbuilding and various operations aboard ship. and parried his blow, or i should have then lost my life. a son of old tom lanman, (the latter 's double murder i have elsewhere charged upon him,) in the spirit of his miserable father, made an assault upon me, but the blow with his maul missed me. after the united assault of north, stewart, hays and humphreys, finding that the carpenters were as bitter toward me as the apprentices, and that the latter were probably set on by the former, i found my only chance for life was in flight. i succeeded in getting away, without an additional blow. to strike a white man, was death, by lynch law,†the actual individual from whom the term lynch law derived its name has been disputed, but the expression was in common use by the early nineteenth century as a description for the punishment of individuals without due process of law. david c. roller and rohert w. twyman, eds., the encyclopedia of southern history (baton rogue, 1979), 762 64. in gardiner's ship yard;†emendation note: ship yard] _ . _ nor was there much of any other law toward colored people, at that time, in any other part of maryland. the whole sentiment of baltimore was murderous. after making my escape from the ship yard,†emendation note: ship yard] _ . i went straight home, and related the story of the outrage to master hugh auld; and it is due to him to say, that his conduct though he was not a religious man was every way more humane than that of his brother, thomas, when i went to the latter in a somewhat similar plight, from the hands of "." he listened attentively to my narration of the circumstances leading to the ruffianly outrage, and gave many proofs of his strong indignation at what was done. hugh was a rough, but manly hearted fellow, and, at this time, his best nature showed itself. the heart of my once almost over kind mistress, sophia, was again melted in pity toward me. my puffed out eye, and my scarred and hlood covered face, moved the dear lady to tears. she kindly drew a chair by me, and with friendly, consoling words, she took water, and washed the blood from my face. no mother's hand could have heen more tender than hers. she bound up my head, and covered my wounded eye with a lean piece of fresh beef. it was almost compensation for the murderous assault, and my suffering, that it furnished an occasion for the manifestation, once more, of the originally characteristic kindness of my mistress. her affectionate heart was not yet dead, though much hardened by time and by circumstances. as for master hugh's part, as i have said, he was furious about it; and he gave expression to his fury in the usual forms of speech in that locality. he poured curses on the heads of the whole ship yard†emendation note: ship yard] _ . company, and swore that he would have satisfaction for the outrage. his indignation was really strong and healthy; but, unfortunately. it resulted from the thought that his rights of property, in my person, had not been respected, more than from any sense of the outrage committed on me . i inferred as much as this, from the fact that he could, himself, beat and mangle when it suited him to do so. bent on having satisfaction, as he said, just as soon as i got a little the better of my bruises, master hugh took me to esquire watson's†william h. watson (? 1846) was a justice of the peace and prominent attorney who lived at 76 bond street in baltimore's fells point district in the late 1830s. he joined a baltimore volunteer battalion as a captain during the war with mexico. watson quickly rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel but died in the battle of monterey in october 1846. matchett's baltimore director[y] . . . 1837 8, 321; scharf, chronicles of baltimore, 516 17; morris l. radoff, ed., the old line state: a history of maryland (baltimore, 1971), 258. office, on bond street, fell's point, with a view to procuring the arrest of those who had assaulted me. he related the outrage to the magistrate, as i had related it to him, and seemed to expect that a warrant would, at once, he issued for the arrest of the lawless ruffians. mr. watson heard it all, and instead of drawing up his warrant, he inquired   "mr. auld, who saw this assault of which you speak?" "it was done, sir, in the presence of a ship yard†emendation note: ship yard] _ full of hands." "sir," said watson, "i am sorry, but i cannot move in this matter except upon the oath of white witnesses." "but here's the boy; look at his head and face," said the excited master hugh; " show has been done." but watson insisted that he was not authorized to do anything, unless witnesses of the transaction would come forward, and testify to what had taken place. he could issue no warrant on my word, against white persons; and, if i had been killed in the presence of a ,†in maryland slaves were forbidden to testify in any legal cases involving whites, although they were permitted to testify in cases involving free blacks. hurd, law of freedom and bondage, 2:20; miller and smith, dictionary of afro american slavery, 446. their testimony, combined, would have been insufficient to arrest a single murderer. master hugh, for once, was compelled to say, that this state of things was ; and he left the office of the magistrate, disgusted. of course, it was impossible to get any white man to testify against my assailants. the carpenters saw what was done; but the actors were but the agents of their malice, and only what the carpenters sanctioned. they had cried, with one accord, "" even those who may have pitied me, if any such were among them, lacked the moral courage to come and volunteer their evidence. the slightest manifestation of sympathy or justice toward a person of color, was denounced as abolitionism: and the name of abolitionist, subjected its bearer to frightful liabilities. "d   n ." were the watch words of the foul mouthed ruffians of those days. nothing was done, and probably there would not have been any thing done, had i been killed in the affray. the laws and the morals of the christian city of baltimore, afforded no protection to the sable denizens of that city. master hugh, on finding he could get no redress for the cruel wrong, withdrew me from the employment of mr. gardiner, and took me into his own family. mrs. auld kindly taking care of me, and dressing my wounds, until they were healed, and i was ready to go again to work. while i was on the eastern shore, master hugh had met with reverses, which overthrew his business; and he had given up ship building in his own yard, on the city block,†to reduce the frequency of yellow fever epidemics, a marshy area between fells point and baltimore's central city was dredged in the 1820s to form the city dock, also called the "city block," which added to the fells point wharf area. a drawbridge at the entrance to the city dock connected block street in fells point to the basin area wharves. scharf, history of baltimore, 54, 59 60, 292 94; olson, baltimore, 52 53, 85. and was now acting as foreman of mr. walter price. the best he could now do for me, was to take me into mr. price's yard, and afford me the facilities there, for completing the trade which i had began to learn at gardiner's. here i rapidly became expert in the use of my calking tools; and, in the course of a single year, i was able to command the highest wages paid to journeymen calkers in baltimore. the reader will observe that i was now of some pecuniary value to my master. during the busy season, i was bringing six and seven dollars per week. i have, sometimes, brought him as much as nine dollars a week, for the wages were a dollar and a half per day. after learning to calk, i sought my own employment, made my own contracts, and collected my own earnings; giving master hugh no trouble in any part of the transactions to which i was a party.†in the urban south masters commonly hired their slaves out to other employers for specified periods. the less common practice of allowing their slaves to seek their own employment and pay their masters a specified sum grew over time. causing public fears that it would undermine the slave system itself. the maryland legislature periodically passed legislation to control or abolish this practice, with little result. robert s. starobin, industrial slavery in the old south (new york, 1970), 128 37 ; wade, slavery in the cities, 38 54; jeffrey r. brackett, the negro in maryland: a study of the institution of slavery (baltimore, 1889), 104 08, 174. here, then, were better days for the eastern shore . i was now free from the vexatious assaults of the apprentices at mr. gardiner's; and free from the perils of plantation life, and once more in a favorahle condition to increase my little stock of education, which had heen at a dead stand since my removal from baltimore. i had, on the eastern shore, been only a teacher, when in company with other slaves, but now there were colored persons who could instruct me. many of the young calkers could read, write and cipher. some of them had high notions about mental improvement; and the free ones, on fell's point, organized what they called the ""†the east baltimore mental improvement society was a debating club that douglass joined in the 1830s. this group was one of several literary, or debating, societies formed by free blacks in antebellum baltimore with the aim of educating and providing a source of moral and mental uplift for members. group activities included reading and critiquing famous works of fiction and poetry, debating current events, and sponsoring lectures on topics of interest to members. douglass was the only enslaved member of the east baltimore mental lmprovement society, which met in various homes and buildings. the group debated topics ranging from the principles of theology to the legal status of blacks in maryland. it was at one of the society's social gatherings that douglass met his first wife, anna murray. other members of the society included james mingo, william e. lloyd, william chester, joseph lewis, and henry rolles. phillips, freedom's port, 72 73; preston, young frederick douglass, 148 49. to this society, notwithstanding it was intended that only free persons should attach themsehes, i was admitted, and was, several times, assigned a prominent part in its debates. i owe much to the society of these young men. the reader already knows enough of the effects of good treatment on a slave, to anticipate what was now the case in my improved condition. it was not long before i began to show signs of disquiet with slavery, and to look around for means to get out of that condition by the shortest route. i was living among ; and was, in all respects, equal to them by nature and by attainments. why should ? there was reason why i should be the thrall of any man. besides, i was now getting as i have said a dollar and fifty cents per day. i contracted for it, worked for it, earned it, collected it; it was paid to me, and it was my own; and yet, upon every returning saturday night, this money my own hard earnings, every cent of it was demanded of me, and taken from me by master hugh. he did not earn it; he had no hand in earning it; why, then, should he have it? i owed him nothing. he had given me no schooling, and i had received from him only my food and raiment; and for these, my services were supposed to pay, from the first. the right to take my earnings, was the right of the robber. he had the power to compel me to give him the fruits of my labor, and this power was his only right in the case. i became more and more dissatisfied with this state of things; and, in so becoming, i only gave proof of the same human nature which every reader of this chapter in my life slaveholder, or nonslaveholder is conscious of possessing. to make a contented slave. you must make a thoughtless one. it is necessary to darken his moral and mental vision, and, as far as possible, to annihilate his power of reason. he must be able to detect no inconsistencies in slavery. the man that takes his earnings, must be able to convince him that he has a perfect right to do so. it must not depend upon mere force; the slave must know no higher law than his master's will. the whole relationship must not only demonstrate, to his mind, its necessity, but its absolute rightfulness. if there be one crevice through which a single drop can fall, it will certainly rust off the slave's chain. chapter xxi. my escape from slavery closing incidents of "my life as a slave" reasons why full particulars of the manner of my escape will not be given craftiness and malice of slaveholders suspicion of aiding a slave's escape about as dangerous as positive evidence want of wisdom shown in publishing details of the escape of fugitives published accounts reach the masters, not the slaves slaveholders stimulated to greater watchfulness author's condition discontent suspicions implied by master hugh's manner, when receiving my wages his occasional generosity! difficulties in the way of escape every avenue guarded plan to obtain money author allowed to hire his time a gleam of hope attends camp meeting, without permission anger of master hugh thereat the result my plans of escape accelerated thereby the day for my departure fixed harassed by doubts and fears painful thoughts of separation from friends the attempt made its success. i will now make the kind reader acquainted with the closing incidents of my "life as a slave," having already trenched upon the limit allotted to my "life as a freeman." before, however, proceeding with this narration, it is, perhaps, proper that i should frankly state, in advance, my intention to withhold a part of the facts connected with my escape from slavery. there are reasons for this suppression, which i trust the reader will deem altogether valid. it may he easily conceived, that a full and complete statement of all the facts pertaining to the flight of a bondman, might implicate and embarrass some who may have, wittingly or unwittingly, assisted him; and no one can wish me to involve any man or woman who has befriended me, even in the liability of embarrassment or trouble. keen is the scent of the slaveholder; like the fangs of the rattlesnake, his malice retains its poison long; and, although it is now nearly seventeen years since i made my escape, it is well to be careful, in dealing with the circumstances relating to it. were i to give but a shadowy outline of the process adopted, with characteristic aptitude, the crafty and malicious among the slaveholders might, possibly, hit upon the track i pursued, and involve some one in suspicion, which, in a slave state, is about as bad as positive evidence. the colored man, there, must not only shun evil, but shun the very of evil, or be condemned as a criminal. a slaveholding community has a peculiar taste for ferreting out offenses against the slave system, justice there heing more sensitive in its regard for the peculiar rights of this system, than for any other interest or institution. by stringing together a train of events and circumstances, even if i were not very explicit, the means of escape might be ascertained, and, possibly, those means be rendered, thereafter, no longer available to the liberty seeking children of bondage i have left behind me. no anti slavery man can wish me to do anything favoring such results,and no slaveholding reader has any right to expect the impartment of such information. while, therefore, it would afford me pleasure, and perhaps would materially add to the interest of my story, were i at liberty to gratify a curiosity which i know to exist in the minds of many, as to the manner of my escape, i must deprive myself of this pleasure, and the curious of the gratification, which such a statement of facts would afford. i would allow myself to suffer under the greatest imputations that evil minded men might suggest. rather than exculpate myself by an explanation, and thereby run the hazard of closing the slightest avenue by which a brother in suffering might clear himself of the chains and fetters of slavery. the practice of publishing every new invention by which a slave is known to have escaped from slavery, has neither wisdom nor necessity to sustain it. had not henry box brown†henry "box" brown (1815  ?), a celebrated fugitive, was born into slavery in louisa county, virginia. brown became a skilled tobacco worker in richmond and apparently received wages, with which he intended to buy his wife and children out of bondage. brown's owner, however, cheated him of the purchase money and then sold his wife and children to north carolina in 1848. enraged, brown began to plan for flight. working with two richmond shopkeepers in 1849, he had himself sealed inside a packing crate that was three feet long and two feet six inches wide. he then arranged for the box to be shipped to an antislavery office in philadelphia. he soon became a major attraction at antislavery meetings, speaking and singing in seven states. during 1850 he joined benjamin roberts, a black bostonian, on a new england tour displaying a diorama depicting brown's experiences. after an attempt to capture him in august 1850, he sailed to england, where he again displayed his diorama and enjoyed further popularity on the antislavery lecture circuit. brown may have settled in england. ns, 15 june 1849; lib., 31 may 185; henry box brown, narrative of henry box brown, who escaped slavery enclosed in a box 3 feet long and 2 wide, ed. charles stearns (boston, 1849); william still, the underground railroad (philadelphia, 1872), 81 86; pease and pease, they who would be free, 36 38, 66. and his friends attracted slave holding attention to the manner of his escape, we might have had a thousand per annum. the singularly original plan adopted by william and ellen crafts,†douglass alludes to the case of william and ellen craft, two fugitive slaves who had sought refuge in boston after escaping their master, robert collins of macon, georgia, in december 1848. two agents for collins, willis h. hughes (? 1851) and john knight, arrived in boston in october 1850 to attempt to recapture the crafts under the new fugitive slave law. the boston vigilance committee and the local black community took immediate action to defend the fugitives. each time hughes and knight attempted to approach the crafts, the southerners were arrested, once for slander and once for kidnapping. large crowds of blacks besieged the agents' hotel and shadowed their movements. this harassment, coupled with thinly veiled threats against their lives delivered by the reverend theodore parker, eventually unnerved hughes and knight and persuaded them to return to georgia empty handed. the crafts soon after fled to england. lib., 6 december 1850, 24 january 1851; r. j. m. blackett, "fugitive slaves in britian: the odyssey of william and ellen craft," journal of american studies, 12:41 44 (april 1978); donald martin jacobs, "a history of the boston negro from the revolution to the civil war" (ph.d. diss., boston university, 1968), 273 74. perished with the first using, because every slaveholder in the land was apprised of it. the who hung in the guards of a steamer, being washed three days and three nights like another jonah†in the bible book named for him, jonah is called by god to prophesy against ninevah, but he tries to flee on board a ship. god brings the wrath of nature to force him back, and out of fear the pagan sailors on the ship throw jonah overboard. he is then swallowed by a "great fish. " after praying to god from inside the fish's belly, jonah is expelled by the fish and his life saved. when jonah receives a second call from god, he obeys and goes to ninevah to prophesy. freedman, anchor bible dictionary, 3: 936 37.  by the waves of the sea, has, by the publicity given to the circumstance, set a spy on the guards of every steamer departing from southern ports. i have never approved of the very public manner, in which some of our western friends have conducted what they call the "," but which, i think, by their open declarations, has been made, most emphatically, the " ground railroad." its stations are far better known to the slaveholders than to the slaves. i honor those good men and women for their noble daring, in willingly subjecting themselves to persecution, by openly avowing their participation in the escape of slaves; nevertheless, the good resulting from such avowals, is of a very questionable character. it may kindle an enthusiasm, very pleasant to inhale; but that is of no practical benefit to themselves, nor to the slaves escaping. nothing is more evident, than that such disclosures are a positive evil to the slaves remaining, and seeking to escape. in publishing such accounts, the anti slavery man addresses the slaveholder, : he stimulates the former to greater watchfulness. and adds to his facilities for capturing his slave. we owe something to the slaves, south of mason and dixon's line, as well as to those north of it; and, in discharging the duty of aiding the latter, on their way to freedom, we should be careful to do nothing which would be likely to hinder the former, in making their escape from slavery. such is my detestation of slavery, that i would keep the merciless slaveholder profoundly ignorant of the means of flight adopted by the slave. he should be left to imagine himself surrounded by myriads of invisible tormentors, ever ready to snatch, from his infernal grasp, his trembling prey. in pursuing his victim, let him be left to feel his way in the dark; let shades of darkness, commensurate with his crime, shut every ray of light from his pathway; and let him he made to feel, thata, at every step he takes, with the hellish purpose of reducing a brother man to slavery, he is running the frightful risk of having his hot brains dashed out by an invisible hand. but, enough of this. i will now proceed to the statement of those facts, connected with my escape, for which i am alone responsible, and for which no one can he made to suffer but myself. my condition in the year (1838) of my escape, was, comparatively, a free and easy one, so far, at least, as the wants of the physical man were concerned; but the reader will hear in mind, that my troubles from the beginning, have been less physical than mental, and he will thus he prepared to find, after what is narrated in the previous chapters, that slave life was adding nothing to its charms for me, as i grew older, and became better acquainted with it. the practice, from week to week, of openly robbing me of all my earnings, kept the nature and character of slavery constantly before me. i could be robbed by , but this was open and barefaced to be endured. i could see no reason why i should, at the end of each week, pour the reward of my honest toil into the purse of any man. the thought itself vexed me, and the manner in which master hugh received my wages, vexed me more than the original wrong. carefully counting the money and rolling it out, dollar by dollar, he would look me in the face, as if he would search my heart as well as my pocket, and reproachfully ask me. "is that all?" implying that i had, perhaps, kept back part of my wages; or, if not so, the demand was made, possibly, to make me feel, that, after all, i was an "unprofitable servant." draining me of the last cent of my hard earnings, he would, however, occasionally  when i brought home an extra large sum dole out to me a sixpence or a shilling,† in britain sixpence was a sum of money equivalent to six pennies. the shilling, which went out of use in the united kingdom in 1971, was equal to twelve pence or pennies. with a view, perhaps, of kindling up my gratitude; but this practice had the opposite effect  it was an admission of my right . the fact, that he gave me any part of my wages, was proof that he suspected that i had a right . i always felt uncomfortable, after having received anything in this way, for i feared that the giving me a few cents, might, possibly, ease his conscience, and make him feel himself a pretty honorable robber, after all! held to a strict account, and kept under a close watch the old suspicion of my running away not having heen entirely removed escape from slavery, even in baltimore, was very difficult. the railroad from baltimore to philadelphia was under regulations so stringent, that even colored travelers were almost excluded. they must have papers; they must he measured and carefully examined, before they were allowed to enter the cars; they only went in the day time, even when so examined. the steamboats were under regulations equally stringent. all the great turnpikes, leading northward, were beset with kidnappers, a class of men who watched the newspapers for advertisements for runaway slaves, making their living by the accursed reward of slave hunting. my discontent grew upon me, and i was on the look out for means of escape. with money, i could easily have managed the matter, and, therefore, i hit upon the plan of soliciting the privilege of hiring my time. it is quite common, in baltimore, to allow slaves this privilege, and it is the practice, also, in new orleans. a slave who is considered trust worthy, can, by paying his master a definite sum regularly, at the end of each week, dispose of his time as he likes. it so happened that i was not in very good odor, and i was far from being a trust worthy slave. nevertheless, i watched my opportunity when master thomas came to baltimore, (for i was still his property, hugh only acted as his agent,) in the spring of 1838, to purchase his spring supply of goods, and applied to him, directly, for the much coveted privilege of hiring my time. this request master thomas unhesitatingly refused to grant; and he charged me, with some sternness, with inventing this stratagem to make my escape. he told me, "i could go but he could catch me";†emendation note: me"] and, in the event of my running away, i might be assured he should spare no pains in his efforts to recapture me. he recounted, with a good deal of eloquence, the many kind offices he had done me, and exhorted me to be contented and obedient. "lay out no plans for the future," said he. "if you behave yourself properly, i will take care of you." now, kind and considerate as this offer was, it failed to soothe me into repose. in spite of master thomas, and, i may say, in spite of myself, also, i continued to think, and worse still, to think almost exclusively about the injustice and wickedness of slavery. no effort of mine or of his could silence this trouble giving thought, or change my purpose to run away. ahout two months after applying to master thomas for the privilege of hiring my time, i applied to master hugh for the same liberty, supposing him to be unacquainted with the fact that i had made a similar application to master thomas, and had been refused. my boldness in making this request, fairly astounded him at the first. he gazed at me in amazement. but i had many good reasons for pressing the matter; and, after listening to them awhile, he did not absolutely refuse, but told me he would think of it. here, then, was a gleam of hope. once master of my own time, i felt sure that i could make, over and above my obligation to him, a dollar or two every week. some slaves have made enough, in this way, to purchase their freedom. it is a sharp spur to industry; and some of the most enterprising colored men in baltimore hire themselves in this way. after mature reflection as i must suppose it was master hugh granted me the privilege in question, on the following terms: i was to be allowed all my time; to make all bargains for work; to find my own employment, and to collect my own wages; and, in return for this liberty, i was required, or obliged, to pay him three dollars at the end of each week, and to board and clothe myself, and buy my own calking tools. a failure in any of these particulars would put an end to my privilege. this was a hard bargain. the wear and tear of clothing, the losing and breaking of tools, and the expense of board, made it necessary for me to earn at least six dollars per week, to keep even with the world. all who are acquainted with calking, know how uncertain and irregular that employment is. it can be done to advantage only in dry weather, for it is useless to put wet oakum into a seam. rain or shine, however, work or no work, at the end of each week the money must be forthcoming. master hugh seemed to be very much pleased, for a time, with this arrangement; and well he might be, for it was decidedly in his favor. it relieved him of all anxiety concerning me. his money was sure. he had armed my love of liberty with a lash and a driver, far more efficient than any i had before known; and, while he derived all the benefits of slaveholding by the arrangement, without its evils, i endured all the evils of being a slave, and yet suffered all the care and anxiety of a responsible freeman. "nevertheless," thought i, "it is a valuable privilege another step in my career toward freedom." it was something even to be permitted to stagger under the disadvantages of liberty, and i was determined to hold on to the newly gained†emendation note: newly gained] footing, by all proper industry. i was ready to work by night as well as by day; and being in the enjoyment of excellent health, i was able not only to meet my current expenses, but also to lay by a small sum at the end of each week. all went on thus, from the month of may till august; then for reasons which will become apparent as i proceed my much valued†much valued] liberty was wrested from me. during the week previous to this (to me) calamitous event. i had made arrangements with a few young friends, to accompany them, on saturday night, to a camp meeting, held about twelve miles from baltimore. on the evening of our intended start for the camp ground, something occurred in the ship yard†emendation note: ship yard] where i was at work, which detained me unusually late, and compelled me either to disappoint my young friends, or to neglect carrying my weekly dues to master hugh. knowing that i had the money, and could hand it to him on another day, i decided to go to camp meeting, and to pay him the three dollars, for the past week, on my return. once on the campground, i was induced to remain one day longer than i had intended, when i left home. but, as soon as i returned, i went straight to his house on fell street, to hand him his (my) money. unhappily, the fatal mistake had heen committed. i found him exceedingly angry. he exhibited all the signs of apprehension and wrath, which a slaveholder may he surmised to exhibit on the supposed escape of a favorite slave. "you rascal! i have a great mind to give you a severe whipping. how dare you go out of the city without first asking and obtaining my permission?" "sir," said i, "i hired my time and paid you the price you asked for it. i did not know that it was any part of the bargain that i should ask you when or where i should go. "you did not know, you rascal! you are bound to show yourself here every saturday night." after reflecting, a few moments, he became somewhat cooled down; but, evidently greatly troubled, he said, "now, you scoundrel! you have done for yourself; you shall hire your time no longer. the next thing i shall hear of, will be your running away. bring home your tools and your clothes, at once. i'll teach you how to go off in this way." thus ended my partial freedom. i could hire my time no longer; and i obeyed my master's orders at once. the little taste of liberty which i had had although as the reader will have seen, it was far from being unalloyed by no means enhanced my contentment with slavery. punished thus by master hugh, it was now my turn to punish him. "since," thought i, "you make a slave of me, i will await your orders in all things;" and, instead of going to look for work on monday morning, as i had formerly done, i remained at home during the entire week, without the performance of a single stroke of work. saturday night came, and he called upon me, as usual, for my wages. i, of course, told him i had done no work, and had no wages. here we were at the point of coming to blows. his wrath had been accumulating during the whole week; for he evidently saw that i was making no effort to get work, but was most aggravatingly awaiting his orders, in all things. as i look back to this behavior of mine, i scarcely know what possessed me, thus to trifle with those who had such unlimited power to bless or to blast me. master hugh raved and swore his determination to "" but, wisely for , and happily for , his wrath only employed those very harmless, impalpable missiles, which roll from a limber tongue. in my desperation, i had fully made up my mind to measure strength with master hugh, in case he should undertake to execute his threats. i am glad there was no necessity for this; for resistance to him could not have ended so happily for me, as it did in the case of covey. he was not a man to be safely resisted by a slave; and i freely own, that in my conduct toward him, in this instance, there was more folly than wisdom. master hugh closed his reproofs, by telling me that, hereafter, i need give myself no uneasiness about getting work; that he "would, himself, see to getting work for me, and enough of it, at that." this threat i confess had some terror in it; and, on thinking the matter over, during the sunday, i resolved, not only to save him the trouble of getting me work, but that, upon the third day of september, i would attempt to make my escape from slavery. the refusal to allow me to hire my time, therefore, hastened the period of my flight. i had three weeks, now, in which to prepare for my journey. once resolved. i felt a certain degree of repose, and on monday, instead of waiting for master hugh to seek employment for me, i was up by break of day, and off to the ship yard†emendation note: ship yard] of mr. butler,†samuel butler, a baltimore ship's carpenter, established a shipyard in 1819 in partnership with robert lambdin. apparently lambdin moved to st. michaels, talhot county, in 1830 while maintaining his financial interest in the yard. butler remained to manage the operation throughout the 1830s during which time it launched the noted ship catherine. entries for samuel butler, a ship's carpenter on exeter street, and robert lamden, a ship's carpenter on city block, appear in the 1840 city directory. matchett's baltimore director[y], for 1840 1 (baltimore, n.d), 86, 221; chapelle, speed under sail, 302; john philips cranwell, ed., "ship building on the chesapeake: recollections of robert dawson lambdin," mdhm, 36:172 (june 1941); lewis addison beck, jr., "seaman and the seaman's bride, baltimore clipper ships," mdhm, 51:305 (december 1956). on the city block, near the draw bridge.†according to contemporary maps, there was an unnamed drawbridge from falls avenue to block street on the city dock. lucas, plan of the city of baltimore. i was a favorite with mr. b., and, young as i was, i had served as his foreman on the float stage,†textual note: as indicated in the note above, douglass's usual practice was to pull together two word nouns with a hyphen, as in "draw bridge" in the immediate context and in a second occurrence of "float stage" following this instance. emendation note: float stage] at calking. of course, i easily obtained work, and, at the end of the week which by the way was exceedingly fine i brought master hugh nearly nine dollars. the effect of this mark of returning good sense, on my part, was excellent. he was very much pleased; he took the money, commended me, and told me i might have done the same thing the week before. it is a blessed thing that the tyrant may not always know the thoughts and purposes of his victim. master hugh little knew what my plans were. the going to camp meeting without asking his permission the insolent answers made to his reproaches the sulky deportment the week after being deprived of the privilege of hiring my time had awakened in him the suspicion that i might be cherishing disloyal purposes. my object, therefore, in working steadily, was to remove suspicion, and in this i succeeded admirably. he probably thought i was never better satisfied with my condition, than at the very time i was planning my escape. the second week passed, and again i carried him my full week's wages ; and so well pleased was he, that he gave me twenty five cents! and "bade me make good use of it!" i told him i would, for one of the uses to which i meant to put it, was to pay my fare on the underground railroad. things without went on as usual; but i was passing through the same internal excitement and anxiety which i had experienced two years and a half before. the failure, in that instance, was not calculated to increase my confidence in the success of this, my second attempt; and i knew that a second failure could not leave me where my first did i must either get to the , or be sent to the . besides the exercise of mind from this state of facts, i had the painful sensation of being about to separate from a circle of honest and warm hearted†emendation note: warm hearted] friends, in baltimore. the thought of such a separation, where the hope of ever meeting again is excluded, and where there can be no correspondence, is very painful. it is my opinion, that thousands would escape from slavery who now remain there, but for the strong cords of affection that bind them to their families, relatives and friends. the daughter is hindered from escaping, by the love she bears her mother, and the father, by the love he bears his children; and so, to the end of the chapter. i had no relations in baltimore, and i saw no probability of ever living in the neighborhood of sisters and brothers; but the thought of leaving my friends, was among the strongest obstacles to my running away. the last two days of the week friday and saturday were spent mostly in collecting my things together, for my journey. having worked four days that week, for my master, i handed him six dollars, on saturday night. i seldom spent my sundays at home; and, for fear that something might be discovered in my conduct, i kept up my custom, and absented myself all day. on monday, the third day of september, 1838, in accordance with my resolution, i bade farewell to the city of baltimore, and to that slavery which had been my abhorrence from childhood. how i got away in what direction i traveled whether by land or by water; whether with or without assistance must, for reasons already mentioned, remain unexplained. woodcut between pages 334   335 (original text), 1855 edition. yale collection of american literature. beinecke rare book and manuscript library. life as a freeman. _________________ chapter xxii. liberty attained. transition from slavery to a wanderer in new york feelings on reaching that city an old acquantance met unfavorable impressions loneliness and insecurity apology for slaves who return to their masters compelled to tell my condition succored by a sailor david ruggles the under ground railroad marriage baggage taken from me kindness of nathan johnson the author's change of name dark notions of northern civilization the contrast colored people in new bedford an incident illustrating their spirit the author as a common laborer denied work at his trade the first winter in the north repulse at the doors of the church sanctified hate the liberator and its editor. there is no necessity for any extended notice of the incidents of this part of my life. there is nothing very striking or peculiar about my career as a freeman, when viewed apart from my life as a slave. the relation subsisting between my early experience and that which i am now about to narrate, is, perhaps, my best apology for adding another chapter to this book. disappearing from the kind reader, in a flying cloud or balloon, (pardon the figure,) driven by the wind, and knowing not where i should land whether in slavery or in freedom it is proper that i should remove, at once, all anxiety, by frankly making known where i alighted. the flight was a bold and perilous one; but here i am, in the great city of new york, safe and sound, without loss of blood or bone. in less than a week after leaving baltimore, i was walking amid the hurrying throng, and gazing upon the dazzling wonders of broadway.†central to the culture and business of nineteenth century new york city, broadway bustled with activity. the avenue was marked with stores, fancy hotels, and theaters that afforded inexpensive entertainment to new yorkers of all social classes. in 1836 john jacob astor opened a six story, three hundred room hotel on broadway, just west of city hall park. called first the park hotel, and later renamed the astor house, it would be the most prestigious hotel in the nation for many decades. broadway was a constant center of activity, and trying to cross the street was considered risky because it was crowded with carriages and omnibuses on their way to some important activity. the street was home to america's first department stores and by midcentury had gained a reputation as a fashionable shopping district. the five block strip intersected by canal, grand, broome, spring, prince, and houston streets was an especially popular area for window shoppers, who found broadway to be the perfect promenade. broadway became a more serious business district as it reached beyond the city hall park area, where publishers, law firms, and newspapers found a fashionable address for their business. burrows and wallace, gotham, 404, 436, 600, 668, 692. the dreams of my childhood and the purposes of my manhood were now fulfilled. a free state around me, and a free earth under my feet! what a moment was this to me! a whole year was pressed into a single day. a new world burst upon my agitated vision. i have often been asked, by kind friends to whom i have told my story, how i felt when first i found myself beyond the limits of slavery; and i must say here, as i have often said to them, there is scarcely anything about which i could not give a more satisfactory answer. it was a moment of joyous excitement, which no words can describe. in a letter to a friend, written soon after reaching new york, i said i felt as one might be supposed to feel, on escaping from a den of hungry lions. but, in a moment like that, sensations are too intense and too rapid for words. anguish and grief, like darkness and rain, may be described, but joy and gladness, like the rainbow of promise, defy alike the pen and pencil. for ten or fifteen years i had been dragging a heavy chain, with a huge block attached to it, cumbering my every motion. i had felt myself doomed to drag this chain and this block through life. all efforts, before, to separate myself from the hateful encumbrance, had only seemed to rivet me the more firmly to it. baffled and discouraged at times, i had asked myself the question, may not this. after all, be god's work? may he not, for wise ends, have doomed me to this lot? a contest had been going on in my mind for years, between the clear consciousness of right and the plausible errors of superstition; between the wisdom of manly courage, and the foolish weakness of timidity. the contest was now ended; the chain was severed; god and right stood vindicated. i was a freeman. and the voice of peace and joy thrilled my heart. free and joyous, however, as i was, joy was not the only sensation i experienced. it was like the quick blaze, beautiful at the first, but which subsiding, leaves the building charred and desolate. i was soon taught that i was still in an enemy's land. a sense of loneliness and insecurity oppressed me sadly. i had been but a few hours in new york, before i was met in the streets by a fugitive slave, well known to me, and the information i got from him respecting new york, did nothing to lessen my apprehension of danger. the fugitive in question was "allender's jake,"† a dr. joseph allender lived in fells point at thames and market streets at least through the early 1830s. douglass lived in a house owned by dr. allender on philpot street when the aulds moved to it in the late 1820s. douglass to capt. benjamin f. auld, 24 march 1894, hall collection, mdaa; matchett's baltimore directory for 1827, 14. in baltimore; but, said he, i am "william dixon," in new york! i knew jake well, and knew when tolly allender and mr. price (for the latter employed master hugh as his foreman, in his ship yard†emendation note: ship yard] shipyard on fell's point) made an attempt to recapture jake, and failed. jake told me all about his circumstances, and how narrowly he escaped being taken back to slavery; that the city was now full of southerners, returning from the springs;†wealthy southerners frequently traveled to fashionable northern watering places, including saratoga springs, balston, newport, and cape may. known for the medicinal qualities of their mineral water, these resort communities promised visitors relief from such ailments and diseases as dyspepsia, constipation, rheumatism, joint ailments, diabetes, and vertigo. but many southern visitors to resorts such as saratoga springs did not use the waters as an excuse for vacationing there. the ability to mix with others of high social standing and to attend balls and nightly social activities held in the elegant hotels was as much an attraction as the area water cures. john hope franklin, a southern odyssey: travelers in the antebellum north (baton rouge, 1976), 26 29; m. l. north, analysis of saratoga waters: also of sharon, avon, virginia and other mineral waters of the united states (new york, 1846). that the black people in new york were not to be trusted; that there were hired men on the lookout for fugitives from slavery, and who, for a few dollars, would betray me into the hands of the slave catchers; that i must trust no man with my secret; that i must not think of going either on the wharves to work, or to a hoarding house to board; and, worse still, this same jake told me it was not in his power to help me. he seemed, even while cautioning me, to be fearing lest, after all, i might be a party to a second attempt to recapture him. under the inspiration of this thought, i must suppose it was, he gave signs of a wish to get rid of me, and soon left me his whitewash brush in hand as he said, for his work. he was soon lost to sight among the throng, and i was alone again, an easy prey to the kidnappers, if any should happen to be on my track. new york. seventeen years ago, was less a place of safety for a runaway slave than now, and all know how unsafe it now is, under the new fugitive slave bill.†as a part of the compromise of 1850, this act was a measure designed to increase the ease of recapturing slaves who had fled to the north. replacing the fugitive slave act of 1793, the new law created a federal position of "commissioner" authorized to issue warrants for arrest of fugitives and to certify removal of captives to the south. the law went a long way toward increasing abolitionist sentiment in the north, where opposition centened on the inherent bias of the commissioners, who were paid a fee of ten dollars each time they ordered the removal of a fugitive, but only five dollars if they judged that the captive was not a fugitive slave. many also objected to the creation of a bureau of federal officials to enforce the property rights of slave owners in the south. stanley w. campbell, the slave catchers: enforcement of the fugitive slave law, 1850 1860 (1968; new york, 1972), 23 25; miller and smith, dictionary of afro american slavery, 276. i was much troubled. i had very little money enough to buy me a few loaves of bread, but not enough to pay board, outside a lumber yard. i saw the wisdom of keeping away from the ship yards,†emendation note: ship yards] for if master hugh pursued me, he would naturally expect to find me looking for work among the calkers. for a time, every door seemed closed against me. a sense of my loneliness and helplessness crept over me, and covered me with something bordering on despair. in the midst of thousands of my fellow men, and yet a perfect stranger! in the midst of human brothers, and yet more fearful of them than of hungry wolves! i was without home, without friends, without work, without money, and without any definite knowledge of which way to go, or where to look for succor. some apology can easily he made for the few slaves who have, after making good their escape, turned hack to slavery, preferring the actual rule of their masters, to the life of loneliness, apprehension, hunger, and anxiety, which meets them on their first arrival in a free state. it is difficult for a freeman to enter into the feelings of such fugitives. he cannot see things in the same light with the slave, because he does not, and cannot, look from the same point from which the slave does. "why do you tremble," he says to the slave "you are in a free state;" but the difficulty is, in realizing that he is in a free state, the slave might reply. a freeman cannot understand why the slave master's shadow is bigger, to the slave, than the might and majesty of a free state; but when he reflects that the slave knows more about the slavery of his master than he does of the might and majesty of the free state, he has the explanation. the slave has heen all his life learning the power of his master being trained to dread his approach and only a few hours learning the power of the state. the master is to him a stern and flinty reality, but the state is little more than a dream. he has heen accustomed to regard every white man as the friend of his master, and every colored man as more or less under the control of his master's friends the white people. it takes stout nerves to stand up, in such circumstances. a man, homeless, shelterless, breadless, friendless, and moneyless, is not in a condition to assume a very proud or joyous tone; and in just this condition was i, while wandering about the streets of new york city, and lodging, at least one night, among the barrels on one of its wharves. i was not only free from slavery, but i was free from home, as well. the reader will easily see that i had something more than the simple fact of being free to think of, in this extremity. i kept my secret as long as i could, and at last was forced to go in search of an honest man a man sufficiently not to betray me into the hands of slave catchers. i was not a bad reader of the human face, nor long in selecting the right man, when once compelled to disclose the facts of my condition to some one. i found my man in the person of one who said his name was stewart. he was a sailor, warm hearted and generous, and he listened to my story with a brother's interest. i told him i was running for my freedom knew not where to go money almost gone was hungry thought it unsafe to go the ship yards†emendation note: ship yards] shipyards for work, and needed a friend. stewart promptly put me in the way of getting out of my trouble. he took me to his house, and went in search of the late david ruggles.†david ruggles (1810 49), a free black man, was born and educated in norwich, connecticut. in 1827 he moved to new york, where he worked as a grocer. in 1834 he opened a printing and book shop that specialized in abolitionist literature. ruggles became active in the new york antislavery movement, serving as a writer, lecturer, and traveling agent for the reform publication emancipator and journal of public morals. he also was a conductor on the underground railroad, editor of the genius of freedom and the mirror of liberty, and secretary of the new york vigilance committee. his career in the antislavery movement ended abruptly in 1842 when temporary blindness, an affliction that would recur for the rest of his life, forced him to curtail his activities and seek medical attention. at the northampton association of education and industry in florence, massachusetts, he underwent hydrotherapy, which temporarily relieved his blindness. soon thereafter he began a career as a hydrotherapist in northampton, massachusetts, treating such celebrated individuals as sojourner truth and william lloyd garrison. his reputation as a hydrotherapist rivaled his stature as an abolitionist. nass, 20 december 1849; lib., 21 december 1849; new york evangelist, 27 december 1849; asb, 29 december 1849; ns, 1 february 1850; penn, afro american press, 118; danb, 536 38. who was then the secretary of the new york vigilance committee,†northern blacks along with some sympathetic white supporters maintained a loose, clandestine system to clothe, feed, and shelter fugitive slaves from the south. these vigilance committees also operated to expose the presence of slave hunters and, on occasion, to rescue fugitives in the process of rendition to their masters. the new york city vigilance committee was founded in november 1835 with david ruggles serving as its secretary. ruggles's penchant for aggressive and even extralegal activities to protect fugitives led other members of the committee to force his resignation in 1839. without ruggles's leadership, the organization languished for a decade until it became the nucleus for statewide vigilance society in 1848. larry gara, the liberty line: the legend of the underground railroad (lexington, ky., 1961), 101, 104 09; pease and pease, they who would be free, 207 12; freeman, "free negro in new york city," 68 72, 203 04. and a very active man in all anti slavery works. once in the hands of mr. ruggles, i was comparatively safe. i was hidden with mr. ruggles several days. in the mean time, my intended wife, anna,†anna murray douglass (c. 1813 82), frederick douglass's first wife, was born free in denton, caroline county, maryland. she was the eighth child of bambarra murray and his wife mary, who had been manumitted shortly before anna's birth. at seventeen she moved to baltimore, where she worked as a domestic. she met douglass at meetings of the east baltimore mental improvement society, helped finance his escape, and, accoring to plan, joined him in new york city, where they were married on 15 september 1838. during douglass's tour of the british isles in 1845 47, she remained in lynn, massachusetts, where she supported herself by binding shoes. there she gained a reputation for frugality and skillful household management qualities that would contribute greatly to her family's financial prosperity over the years. a member of the lynn's ladies anti slavery society and a regular participant in the annual antislavery bazaars in boston, she continued her antislavery activities after moving to rochester in 1847. unlettered, reserved, and, according to her husband, never completely at ease in white company, she seldom appeared at public functions with douglass. she was nevertheless affectionately remembered by her husband's associates as a " warm" and "hospitable" hostess at their home. on 9 july 1882, anna douglass suffered an attack of paralysis in washington, d.c. she died there on 4 august. in january 1884 douglass married helen pitts, a white woman. lib., 18 november, 2 december 1853; philadelphia christian recorder, 20 july 1882; washington post, 5 august 1882; rosetta douglass sprague, my mother as i recall her: a paper read before the anna murray douglass union, w.c.t.u., may 10, 1900 (1900; washington, d.c., 1923); jane marsh parker, " reminiscences of frederick douglass," outlook 51:552 53 (6 april 1895); preston, young frederick douglass, 149, 151, 154, 159; quarles, frederick douglass, 9 10, 100 101, 106, 109 10, 297 98. came on from baltimore to whom i had written, informing her of my safe arrival at new york and, in the presence of mrs. mitchell†in the late 1830s mrs. d. michaels owned and operated a boardinghouse in new york city at 33 36 lespanard street. she was married to joseph michaels, who made floor mats and dealt in scrap metal, glass, and rags. new york weekly advocate, 14 january 1837; new york colored american, 20 october 1838. and mr. ruggles, we were married, by rev. james w. c. pennington. mr. ruggles* was the first officer on the under ground railroad with whom i met after reaching the north, and, indeed, the first of whom i evcr heard anything. learning that i was a calker by trade, he promptly decided that new bedford was the proper place to send me. "many ships." said he, "are there fitted out for the whaling business, and you may there find work at your trade, and make a good living." thus, in one fortnight after my flight from maryland, i was safe in new bedford, regularly entered upon the exercise of the rights, responsibilities, and duties of a freeman. i may mention a little circumstance which annoyed me on reaching new bedford. i had not a cent of money, and lacked two dollars toward paying our fare from newport, and our baggage not very costly was *he was a whole souled man. fully imbued with a love of his afflicged and hunted people, and took pleaseure in being to me, as was his wont, "eyes to the blind, and legs to the lame"†a slight misquotation of job 29:15: " i was eyes to the blind, and feet was i to the lame." this brave and devoted man suffered much from the persecutions common to all who have been prominent benefactors. he at last became blind, and needed a friend to guide him, even as he had been a guide to others. even in his blindness, he exhibited his manly character. in search of health, he became a physician. when hope of gaining his own was gone, he had hope for others. believing in hydrotherapy,†hydropathy, or "water cure," was introduced into the united states from europe in the 1840s and became a widely used form of alternative medicine. proponents of hydropathy believed that ingesting, applying, or bathing in water could cure almost any disease known to man. the northampton water cure established in northampton, massachusetts, by david ruggles was one of three establishments in that town. during the heyday of hydropathic medicine, roughly 1840 to 1860, hundreds of patients received treatment. the water cures were especially fashionable with those wealthy enough to pay weekly rates of five to ten dollars. popular among women reformers, the cures were frequented by such well known women as harriet beecher stowe, catharine beecher, and susan b. anthony. in 1847 ruggles advertised the cost of his establishment to be $5.50 per week. jane b. donegan, "hydropathic highway to health": women and water cure in antebellum america (westport, conn., 1986); 3 4, 185, 195; susan e. caleff, wash and be healed: the water cure movement and women's health (philadelphia, 1987), 80, 86, 102, 143, 148, 152. he established, at northampton, massachusetts, a large "water cure," and became one of the most successful of all engaged in that mode of treatment. taken by the stage driver, and held until i could raise the money to redeem it. this difficulty was soon surmounted. mr. nathan johnson,†owners of a confectionery shop and a thriving catering business. nathan johnson (? 1880) and mary page johnson (? c. 1870) were two of the most prominent blacks in new bedford, massachusetts. they had helped and housed black fugitives on many occasions, and nathan had long been an active abolitionist, serving at one point as a manager of the american anti slavery society. in 1832 johnson represented new bedford at the national negro convention in philadelphia, and in 1837 he was one of three local african americans chosen to question all county political candidates about their views on slavery and the slave trade. johnson left new bedford for california in 1849 and did not return until 1871 after his wife, who had remained behind, died. new york colored american, 18 november 1837; henry h. crapo, ed., the new bedford directory [for 1838] (new bedford, mass., 1838), 77; vital records of new bedford, massachusetts, to the year 1850, 3 vols. (boston, 1932), 2: 309, 396; barbara clayton and kathleen whitley, guide to new bedford (chester, conn., 1979), 134 35; merrill and ruchames, garrison letters, 2: 712; mcfeely, frederick douglass, 76 78, 84. to whom we had a line from mr. ruggles, not only received us kindly and hospitably, but, on being informed about our baggage, promptly loaned me two dollars with which to redeem my little property. i shall ever be deeply grateful, both to mr. and mrs. nathan johnson, for the lively interest they were pleased to take in me, in this the hour of my extremest need. they not only gave myself and wife bread and shelter, but taught us how to begin to secure those benefits for ourselves. long may they live, and may blessings attend them in this life and in that which is to come! once initiated into the new life of freedom, and assured by mr. johnson that new bedford was a safe place, the comparatively unimportant matter, as to what should be my name, came up for consideration. it was necessary to have a name in my new relations. the name given me by my beloved mother was no less pretentious than "frederick augustus washington bailey." i had, however, before leaving maryland, dispensed with the , and retained the name . between baltimore and new bedford, i had several different names, the better to avoid being overhauled by the hunters, which i had good reason to believe would be put on my track. among honest men an honest man may well be content with one name, and to acknowledge it at all times and in all places; but toward fugitives, americans are not honest. when i arrived in new bedford, my name was johnson; and finding that the johnson family in new bedford†according to the 1840 population census, there were eleven black families in new bedford with the sur name johnson. the members of those households totaled forty one. 1840 u.s. census, massachusetts, bristol county, 357 465. were already quite numerous sufficiently so to produce some confusion in attempts to distinguish one from another there was the more reason for making another change in my name. in fact, "johnson" had been assumed by nearly every slave who had arrived in new bedford from maryland, and this, much to the annoyance of the original "johnsons" (of whom there were many) in that place. mine host, unwilling to have another of his own name added to the community in this unauthorized way, after i spent a night and a day at his house, gave me my present name. he had been reading the "lady of the lake,"†sir walter scott (1771 1832) published the lady of the lake in edinburgh in 1810. ellen douglas and her father, lord james of douglas, a medieval scotish chieftain, are the principal characters. complete poetical works of scott, 152 208; drabble, oxford companion to english literature, 542, 875 76. and was pleased to regard me as a suitable person to wear this, one of scotland's many famous names. considering the noble hospitality and manly character of nathan johnson, i have felt that he, better than i, illustrated the virtues of the great scottish chief. sure i am, that had any slave catcher entered his domicile, with a view to molest any one of his household, he would have shown himself like him of the "stalwart hand."†probably a reference to canto 1, stanza xxviii lines 565 67 of sir walter scott's the lady of the lake: " 'i never knew but one,' he said. / 'whose stalwart arm might brook to wield / a blade like this in battle field.' " complete poetical works of scott, 162. the reader will he amused at my ignorance, when i tell the notions i had of the state of northern wealth, enterprise, and civilization. of wealth and refinement, i supposed the north had none. my columbian orator, which was almost my only book, had not done much to enlighten me concerning northern society. the impressions i had received were all wide of the truth. new bedford, especially, took me by surprise, in the solid wealth and grandeur there exhibited. i had formed my notions respecting the social condition of the free states, by what i had seen and known of free, white, non slaveholding people in the slave states. regarding slavery as the basis of wealth, i fancied that no people could become very wealthy without slavery. a free white man, holding no slaves, in the country, i had known to be the most ignorant and poverty stricken of men, and the laughing stock even of slaves themselves called generally by them, in derision, "."†derogatory term pertaining to the poor white population of the south. mathews, dictionary of americanisms, 2: 1283. like the non slaveholders at the south, in holding no slaves, i supposed the northern people like them, also, in poverty and degradation. judge, then, of my amazement and joy, when i found as i did find the very laboring population of new bedford living in better houses, more elegantly furnished surrounded by more comfort and refinement than a majority of the slaveholders on the eastern shore of maryland.†the living conditions of laborers, and especially of free blacks, was only marginally better in northern states than in the south. blacks living in northern cities were just a bit more likely to own property than their southern counterparts, but were more likely to have difficulty finding a job that suited their occupation, if skilled. in some southern cities, free blacks lived in deplorable conditions, but others lived quite well. what douglass must have noticed was the marked difference that freedom of self expression brought to individuals. the churches, educational opportunities, newspapers, and abolitionist societies in the north helped to widen the contrast between the two regions. leonard p. curry, the free black in urban america, 1800 1850: the shadow of a dream (chicago, 1981), 16 18, 267 69; luther porter jackson, free negro labor and property holding in virginia, 1830 1860 (new york, 1942), 168 70; berlin, slaves without masters, 168. there was my friend, mr. johnson, himself a colored man, (who at the south would have been regarded as a proper marketable commodity,) who lived in a better house dined at a richer board was the owner of more books the reader of more newspapers was more conversant with the political and social condition of this nation and the world than nine tenths of all the slaveholders of talbot county, maryland. yet mr. johnson was a working man, and his hands were hardened by honest toil. here, then, was something for observation and study. whence the difference? the explanation was soon furnished, in the superiority of mind over simple brute force. many pages might be given to the contrast, and in explanation of its causes. but an incident or two will suffice to show the reader as to how the mystery gradually vanished before me. my first afternoon, on reaching new bedford, was spent in visiting the wharves and viewing the shipping.†new bedford, in bristol county, massachusetts, was one of the world's leading whaling ports in the nineteenth century. the whaling industry and related shipping operations boomed after the american revolution and reached their peak in the 1850s. whale oil for lighting was the largest export, and in 1856, when a new city hall was erected, the motto "lucem diffundo" (we light the world) was placed on its seal. cohen, columbia gazetteer of the world, 2:2153 54; james m. lindgren, " 'let us idealize old types of manhood': the new bedford whaling museum, 1903 1941," new england quarterly, 72:163 206 (june 1999). the sight of the broad brim and the plain, quaker dress, which met me at every turn, greatly increased my sense of freedom and security. "i am among the quakers," thought i, "and am safe."†the religious society of friends was founded by george fox in great britain during the mid seventeenth century. fox emphasized the immediacy of christ's teachings and therefore found ordained ministers, a set liturgy, or consecrated buildings to be irrelevant. central to the sect's teachings is the "inner light," an innate sense of the divine and direct working of christ in the human soul that results in the moral attributes of simplicity, purity, and truthfulness. early in their history, quakers faced persecution, mostly because of their refusal to take oaths, pay tithes, or enlist in military service. as a result, the colony of pennsylvania was founded in 1682 as a refuge for quakers. in 1743 the society of friends became the first religious denomination to condemn slavery as morally evil and to require its members to free their slaves. the quakers were strong adherents of gradual emancipation, and they dominated the ranks of revolutionary era abolition societies that persuaded the northern states to end slavery. three basic quaker tenets led to support for abolition. first, the belief that all people are equal in the sight of god led to concern s that through forced slavery, masters were denying their slaves the chance to reach god. second, a tradition of nonviolence and pacifism was at odds with the constant threat of violence and force that kept people in bondage. finally, the abhorrence of ostentation or sloth in daily life led to dismissal of slavery on grounds that slaves were used as symbols of conspicuous consumption. although the public controversy stirred up by abolitionism caused many quakers to turn away from participation in the post 1831 antislavery movement, such prominent abolitionists as benjamin lundy and angelina and sarah grimke were members of the quaker sect. jean r. soderlund, quakers and slavery: a divided spirit (princeton, 1985), 17 18; f. l. cross, ed., the oxford dictionary of the christian church (london, 1974), 538 39; mckivigan, war against proslavery religion, 22, 28, 37; miller and smith, dictionary of afro american slavery, 303, 607 09. lying at the wharves and riding in the stream, were full rigged ships of finest model, ready to start on whaling voyages. upon the right and the left, i was walled in by large granite fronted warehouses, crowded with the good things of this world. on the wharves, i saw industry without hustle, labor without noise, and heavy toil without the whip. there was no loud singing, as in southern ports, where ships are loading or unloading no loud cursing or swearing but everything went on as smoothly as the works of a well adjusted machine. how different was all this from the noisily fierce and clumsily absurd manner of labor life in baltimore and st. michael's! one of the first incidents which illustrated the superior mental character of northern labor over that of the south, was the manner of unloading a ship's cargo of oil. in a southern port, twenty or thirty hands would have been employed to do what five or six did here, with the aid of a single ox attached to the end of a fall.†a fall is an apparatus used for hoisting and lowering goods, and in this instance was powered by oxen to load and unload ships' cargoes. main strength, unassisted by skill, is slavery's method of labor. an old ox, worth eighty dollars, was doing, in new redford, what would have required fifteen thousand dollars worth of human bones and muscles to have performed in a southern port. i found that everything was done here with a scrupulous regard to economy, both in regard to men and things, time and strength. the maid servant, instead of spending at least a tenth part of her time in bringing and carrying water, as in baltimore, had the pump at her elbow. the wood was dry, and snugly piled away for winter. wood houses, in door pumps, sink, drains, self shutting gates, washing machines, pounding barrels,†a barrel in which clothes are pounded in water to cleanse them. were all new things, and told me that i was among a thoughtful and sensible people. to the ship repairing dock i went, and saw the same wise prudence. the carpenters struck where they aimed, and the calkers wasted no blows in idle tlourishes of the mallet. i learned that men went from new bedford to baltimore, and bought old ships, and brought them here to repair, and made them better and more valuable than they ever were before. men talked here of going whaling on a four ' voyage with more coolness than sailors where i came from talked of going a four ' voyage. i now find that i could have landed in no part of the united states, where i should have found a more striking and gratifying contrast to the condition of the free people of color in baltimore, than i found here in new bedford. no colored man is really free in a slaveholding state. he wears the badge of bondage while nominally free, and is often subjected to hardships to which the slave is a stranger; but here in new bedford, it was my good fortune to see a pretty near approach to freedom on the part of the colored people. i was taken all aback when mr. johnson who lost no time in making me acquainted with the fact told me that there was nothing in the constitution of massachusetts to prevent a colored man from holding any office in the state.†adopted in 1780, the massachusetts constitution makes no reference to a color bar for elected officials. when maine was separated from massachuselts in 1820, reformers held a constitutional convention, approving nine amendments, but none of those limited black participation in government. a second convention in 1853 attempted a complete revision of the constitution, but failed. robert j. taylor, ed., massachusetts, colony to commonwealth: documents on the formation of its constitution, 1775 1780 (chapel hill, 1961), 127 46; league of women voters of massachusetts, massachusetts state government (cambridge, mass., 1970), 51 52. there, in new bedford, the black man's children although anti slavery was then far from popular went to school side by side with the white children,†although douglass occasionally encountered racial discrimination in new bedford, a stable and moderately prosperous black community had long existed in the massachusetts seaport. among principal cities in massachusetts, only boston operated a segregated public school system after the mid 1840s. leon f. litwack, north of slavery: the negro in the free states, 1790 1860 (chicago, 1961), 153. and apparently without objection from any quarter. to make me at home, mr. johnson assured me that no slaveholder could take a slave from new bedford; that there were men there who would lay down their lives, before such an outrage could be perpetrated. the colored people themselves were of the best metal, and would fight for liberty to the death. soon after my arrival in new bedford, i was told the following story, which was said to illustrate the spirit of the colored people in that goodly town: a colored man and a fugitive slave happened to have a little quarrel, and the former was heard to threaten the latter with informing his master of his whereabouts. as soon as this threat became known, a notice was read from the desk of what was then the only colored church in the place,†douglass refers to the african (third) christian church in new bedford, which also served as a meeting place for local abolitionist activities. located on the west side of new bedford, the church was founded in 1830. lib., 11 june 1841; charles cook, a brief account of the african christian church, in new bedford (new bedford, mass., 1834), 3 12; frederick douglass, life and times of frederick douglass written by himself, rev. ed. (boston, 1892), 258 59; kathryn grover, the fugitive's gibraltar: escaping slaves and abolitionism in new bedford, massachusetts (amherst, mass., 2001), 233, 274. stating that business of importance was to be then and there transacted. special measures had been taken to secure the attendance of the would be judas,†that is, comparing the man with judas iscaiot, disciple and later betrayer of jesus christ. j. d. douglas, ed., the illustrated bible dictionary, 3 vols. (wheaton, ill., 1980), 2:830 31. and had proved successful. accordingly, at the hour appointed, the people came, and the betrayer also. all the usual formalities of public meetings were scrupulously gone through, even to the offering prayer for divine direction in the duties of the occasion. the president himself performed this part of the ceremony, and i was told that he was unusually fervent. yet, at the close of his prayer, the old man (one of the numerous family of johnsons) rose from his knees, deliberately surveyed his audience, and then said, in a tone of solemn resolution, "" with this, a large body of the congregation, who well understood the business they had come there to transact, made a rush at the villain, and doubtless would have killed him, had he not availed himself of an open sash, and made good his escape. he has never shown his head in new bedford since that time. this little incident is perfectly characteristic of the spirit of the colored people in new bedford. a slave could not be taken from that town seventeen years ago, any more than he could he so taken away now. the reason is, that the colored people in that city are educated up to the point of fighting for their freedom, as well as speaking for it. once assured of my safety in new bedford, i put on the habiliments of a common laborer, and went on the wharf in search of work. i had no notion of living on the honest and generous sympathy of my colored brother, johnson, or that of the abolitionists. my cry was like that of hood's laborer. "oh! only give me work."†douglass quotes from the sixth stanza of 'the lay of the labourer," by the english poet thomas hood (1799 1845). thomas hood, the works of thomas hood, 9 vols. (london, 1872), 9:233. happily for me, i was not long in searching. i found employment, the third day after my arrival in new bedford, in stowing a sloop with a load of oil for the new york market. it was new, hard, and dirty work, even for a calker, but i went at it with a glad heart and a willing hand. i was now my own master a tremendous fact and the rapturous excitement with which i seized the job, may not easily be understood, except by some one with an experience something like mine. the thoughts "i can work! i can work for a iiving; i am not afraid of work; i have no master hugh to rob me of my earnings" placed me in a state of independence, beyond seeking friendship or support of any man. that day's work i considered the real starting point of something like a new existence. having finished this job and got my pay for the same, i went next in pursuit of a job at calking. it so happened that mr. rodney french,†rodney french (c. 1802 82) was a successful boat builder and prominent public official in new bedford. in 1841 he was the chairman of the board of selectmen and later served as mayor. french reputedly once constructed ships for the slave trade but gradually developed antislavery sentiments. he vehemently opposed the fugitive slave act of 1850 and appeared publicly with douglass in 1853. early in the civil war, douglass reported that "our old friend" french commanded a union navy squadron blockading southern ports. fdp, 12 august 1853; dm, 4:561 (december 1861); new york daily times, 1 may 1882; henry h. crapo, ed., the new bedford directory [for 1841] (new bedford, 1841), 70; leonard bolles ellis, history of new bedford and its vicinity, 1602 1892 (syracuse, 1892), 306; mcfeely, frederick douglass, 79. late mayor of the city of new bedford, had a ship fitting out for sea, and to which there was a large job of calking and coppering to be done. i applied to that noble hearted man for employment, and he promptly told me to go to work; but going on the float stage for the purpose, i was informed that every white man would leave the ship if i struck a blow upon her. "well, well," thought i, "this is a hardship, but yet not a very serious one for me." the difference between the wages of a calker and that of a common day laborer, was an hundred per cent, in favor of the former; but then i was free, and free to work, though not at my trade. i now prepared myself to do anything which came to hand in the way of turning an honest penny; sawed wood dug cellars shoveled coal swept chimneys with uncle lucas debuty† in the late 1830s lucas debuty [debety] lived in new bedford on middle street. he worked as a chimney sweep and general laborer. in 1840 he was still living in the town, but the census enumerators classified his occupation as "navigation of the ocean." henry h. crapo, ed., the new bedford directory [for 1836] (new bedford, 1836), 50; idem, the new bedford directory [for 1839] (new bedford, 1839), 67; idem, new bedford directory [for 1841], 64; 1840 u.s. census, massachusetts, bristol county, 402. rolled oil casks on the wharves helped to load and unload vessels worked in ricketson's candle works†joseph ricketson (1771 1841) was the owner of a candle factory and oil refinery in new bedford, massachusetts. he also helped form the bedford fire society in 1807, served as a cashier and a director of the new bedford commercial bank, and was a trustee of the new bedford lyceum and atheneum. ricketson was a quaker and committed to various reform and antislavery endeavors. although a scrupulously honest and hard working businessman, ricketson spent his last years close to poverty because of several serious business reversals. alanson borden, ed., our county and and its people: descriptive and biographical record of bristol county, massachusetts (boston, 1899), 351n1, 353, 406; crapo, new bedford directory [for 1836], 18; idem, new bedford directory [for 1841], 30; vital records of new bedford, 1:386, 3: 138; ellis, new bedford, 252, 509, 516 17, 629; daniel ricketson, the history of new bedford, bristol county, massachusetts (new bedford, 1858), 232 34; d. hamilton hurd, comp., history of bristol county, massachusetts, with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men (philadelphia, 1883), 92, 105, 111. in richmond's brass foundery,†the shop of a. d. richmond and company, brass founders and coppersmiths, was located at 103 north water street in new bedford. the proprietors were anthony d. richmond and andrew cragie, both of new bedford. according to an 1865 advertisement, the shop produced a variety of bolts, spikes, nails, and eyebolts, as well as such plumbing supplies as water closets, shower baths, and bathtubs. the richmond establishment also specialized in the custom production of patent composition lead  and brass tipped candle molds. the new bedford directory, no. 10 (new bedford, 1865), cover, 118. and elsewhere; and thus supported myself and family for three years. the first winter was unusually severe, in consequence of the high prices of food; but even during that winter we probably suffered less than many who had been free all their lives. during the hardest of the winter, i hired out for nine dollars a month; and out of this rented two rooms†douglass's family had relocated from a small house in the rear of 157 elm street to a larger residence at 111 ray street in new bedford by 1842. mcfeely, frederick douglass, 82. for nine dollars per quarter, and supplied my wife who was unable to work†anna murray douglass was probably pregnant and therefore unable to work. the couple's first child, rosetta, is believed to have been born 24 june 1839, just nine months after their marriage. mcfeely, frederick douglass, 70, 81. with food and some necessary articles of furniture. we were closely pinched to bring our wants within our means; but the jail stood over the way, and i had a wholesome dread of the consequences of running in debt. this winter past, and i was up with the times got plenty of work got well paid for it and felt that i had not done a foolish thing to leave master hugh and master thomas. i was now living in a new world, and was wide awake to its advantages. i early began to attend the meetings of the colored people of new bedford,†douglass became active in these meetings of new bedford's black citizens as early as march 1839. meeting at the african american third christian church, the assemblies denounced colonization and endorsed the brand of immediate abolition and non resistance advocated by william lloyd garrison. by 1841 douglass had moved into a leadership role and was chairing the meetings. lib., 29 march 1839, 9 july 1841. and to take part in them. i was somewhat amazed to see colored men drawing up resolutions and offering them for consideration. several colored young men of new bedford, at that period, gave promise of great usefulness. they were educated, and possessed what seemed to me, at that time, very superior talents. some of them have been cut down by death, and others have removed to different parts of the world, and some remain there now, and justify, in their present activities, my early impressions of them. among my first concerns on reaching new bedford, was to become united with the church, for i had never given up, in reality, my religious faith. i had become lukewarm and in a backslidden state, but i was still convinced that it was my duty to join the methodist church. i was not then aware of the powerful influence of that religious body in favor of the enslavement of my race, nor did i see how the northern churches could be responsible for the conduct of southern churches;†a central tenet of the ideology of most american abolitionists, not just followers of william lloyd giarrison, was that slaveholding was inherently sinful. unlike many moderate opponents of slavery, abolitionists refused to consider pleas of mitigating circumstances in the case of individual slave owners; they denied there could be any acceptable excuse for continuing to sin. abolitionists therefore charged that religious institutions lent moral sanction to slaveholding by extending membership to owners of slaves. northern congregations were regarded as culpable in the sin of slaveholding just by admitting a visiting slave owner to their communion. with only rare succcss before the civil war, abolitionists lobbied denominations and other religious, organizations to expel all slaveholding members. mckivigan, war against proslavery religion, 20 23. neither did i fully understand how it could be my duty to remain separate from the church,†douglass alludes to the abolitionist practice of religious "comeouterism." by the early 1840s, many garrisonian abolitionists repudiated all ties with organized christian bodies on account of their perceived complicity with slavery. many non garrisonian abolitionists also seceded from national denominations and formed small independent "comeouter" sects, such as the wesleyan methodist connection and the free presbyterian church, in the mid 1840s. by their departure from the established religious institutions, abolitionists hoped to force fellow northern church members to reform their denomination's policies toward slavery. mckivigan, war against proslavery religion, 93 110. because bad men were connected with it. the slaveholding church, with its coveys, weedens, aulds, and hopkins, i could see through at once, but i could not see how elm street church,†the elm street methodist episcopal church in new bedford was pastored by isaac bonney. the church was attended by many prominent city residents including merchants, artisans, and industrialists. daniel ricketson, new bedford of the past (boston, 1903), 56 58. in new bedford, could be regarded as sanctioning the christianity of these characters in the church at st. michael's. i therefore resolved to join the methodist church in new bedford, and to enjoy the spiritual advantage of public worship. the minister of the elm street methodist church, was the rev. mr. bonney;†isaac bonney (1782 1855) was born in hardwick, massachusetts, and raised to be a farmer. his conversion at a prayer meeting in 1800 led him to become a methodist and soon discover a deep prompting to preach. over the next several years, bonney became a class leader and preached in surrounding towns. by 1808, bishop francis asbury admitted him to the new england conference and assigned him to a circuit in connecticut. for the following forty years, he rode circuits in massachusetts, rhode island, and connecticut and became one of the region's most popular preachers. in 1838 and 1839, he was stationed in new bedford at the elm street methodist episcopal church and lived at 35 middle street. bonney was married twice, his first wife dying in 1828, and had several children. crapo, new bedford directory [for 1839], 50; william b. sprague, ed., annals of the american pulpit: or commemorative notices of distinguished american clergymen of various denominations, 9 vols. (new york, 1873), 7:452 54. and although i was not allowed a seat in the body of the house, and was proscribed on account of my color,†douglass frequently recounted this incident in discussion of his experiences with "jim crow," or racial segregation, and included the account in a speech titled "the church ls the bulwark of slavery," delivered in boston in 1842. mcfeely, frederick douglass, 93; douglass papers, ser. 1, 1:17 20. regarding this proscription simply as an accommodation of the unconverted congregation who had not yet been won to christ and his brotherhood, i was willing thus to be proscribed, lest sinners should he driven away from the saving power of the gospel. once converted, i thought they would be sure to treat me as a man and a brother. "surely," thought i, "these christian people have none of this feeling against color. they, at least, have renounced this unholy feeling." judge, then, dear reader, of my astonishment and mortification, when i found, as soon i did find, all my charitable assumptions at fault. an opportunity was soon afforded me for ascertaining the exact position of elm street church on that subject. i had a chance of seeing the religious part of the congregation by themselves; and although they disowned, in effect, their black brothers and sisters, before the world, i did think that where none but the saints were assembled, and no offense could be given to the wicked, and the gospel could not be "blamed," they would certainly recognize us as children of the same father, and heirs of the same salvation, on equal terms with themselves. the occasion to which i refer, was the sacrament of the lord's supper,†the lord's supper is a ritual meal celebrated since the first easter in many christian churches. the sacrament involves the rite of partaking of bread and wine, which symbolize the body and blood of christ, respectively. freedman, anchor bible dictionary, 4:362 63. that most sacred and most solemn of all the ordinances of the christian church. mr. bonney had preached a very solemn and searching discourse, which really proved him to be acquainted with the inmost secrets of the human heart. at the close of his discourse, the congregation was dismissed, and the church remained to partake of the sacrament. i remained to see, as i thought, this holy sacrament celebrated in the spirit of its great founder. there were only about a half dozen colored members†mem ] attached to the elm street church, at this time. after the congregation was dismissed, these descended from the gallery, and took a seat against the wall most distant from the altar. brother bonney was very animated, and sung very sweetly, "salvation 'tis a joyful sound,"†douglass alludes to a hymn from the standard collection of methodist spirituals, although the actual title is "salvation! o the joyful sound!" david creamer, methodist hymnology: comprehending notices of the poetical works of john and charles wesley (new york, 1948), 320. and soon began to administer the sacrament. i was anxious to observe the bearing of the colored members, and the result was most humiliating. during the whole ceremony, they looked like sheep without a shepherd. the white members went forward to the altar by the bench full; and when it was evident that all the whites had been served with the bread and wine, brother bonney pious brother bonney after a long pause, as if inquiring whether all the white members had been served, and fully assuring himself on that important point, then raised his voice to an unnatural pitch, and looking to the corner where his black sheep seemed penned, beckoned with his hand, exclaiming. "come forward, colored friends! come forward! you, too, have an interest in the blood of christ. god is no respecter of persons. come forward, and take this holy sacrament to your comfort." the colored members poor, slavish souls went forward, as invited. i went , and have never been in that church since, although i honestly went there with a view to joining that body. i found it impossible to respect the religious profession of any who were under the dominion of this wicked prejudice, and i could not, therefore, feel that in joining them, i was joining a christian church, at all. i tried other churches in new bedford, with the same result, and, finally, i attached myself to a small body of colored methodists, known as the zion methodists.†the founders of the african methodist episcopal zion church began to meet in 1795. dissatisfaction by black memhers of the john street methodist episcopal church resulted in black members meeting to worship amongst themselves in 1795. the group officially requested to meet as a separate group in august of 1796 with permission being granted that year. the a. m. e. zion church opposed racism but did not openly attack the proslavery attitudes of white methodists. the church also held back from abolitionist religious principles, which is exemplified by the rejection of legislation aimed at barring slave holding members. david w. blight, frederick douglass' civil war: keeping faith in jubilee (baton rouge, 1989), 6 8; pease and pease, they who would be free, 20; preston, young frederick douglass, 92 104; mckivigan, war against proslavery religion, 93, 107 09. favored with the affection and confidence of the members of this humble communion, i was soon made a class leader and a local preacher among them. many seasons of peace and joy i experienced among them, the remembrance of which is still precious, although i could not see it to be my duty to remain with that body, when i found that it consented to the same spirit which held my brethren in chains. in four or five months after reaching new bedford. there came a young man to me, with a copy of the "liberator,"†pioneer abolitionist william lloyd garrison published the weekly boston newspaper, the liberator, from 1831 to 1865. the paper advocated women's rights, temperance, pacifism, and a variety of other reforms in addition to immediate emancipation. thomas, the liberator, 127 28, 436; dab, 7:168 72. the paper edited by william lloyd garrison, and published by isaac knapp,† isaac knapp (1804 43), a longtime friend of william lloyd garrison, copublished the liberator with him from its inception 1831 until 1835. after 1835, knapp handled the publishing and financial end of the paper. with his health and his own finances failing, he gave up control of the business management of the liberator in 1838. knapp and garrison parted ways in 1841, with knapp trying to start his own newspaper, knapp's liberator, but this attempt failed after only one issue. like garrison, knapp was an avid abolitionist one of his most significant accomplishments was his role in helping to found new england anti slavery society in 1832. ripley, black abolitionist papers, 3:309; merrill and ruchames, garrison letters, 1:81, 2: xxvi. and asked me to subscrihe for it. i told him i had but just escaped from slavery, and was of the liberator was a paper after my own heart. it detested slavery exposed hypocrisy and wickedness in high places made no truce with the traffickers in the bodies and souls of men; it preached human brotherhood, denounced oppression, and, with all the solemnity of god's word, demanded the complete emancipation of my race. i not only liked i this paper, and its editor. he seemed a match for all the opponents of emancipation. whether they spoke in the name of the law, or the gospel. his words were few, full of holy fire, and straight to the point. learning to love him, through his paper, i was prepared to be pleased with his presence. something of a hero worshiper, by nature, here was one, on first sight, to excite my love and reverence. seventeen years ago, few men possessed a more heavenly countenance than william lloyd garrison, and few men evinced a more genuine or a more exalted piety. the bible was his text book held sacred, as the word of the eternal father sinless perfection complete submission to insults and injuries literal obedience to the injunction, if smitten on one side to tum the other also.†douglass adapts luke 6:29: "and unto him that smiteth thee on the one cheek offer also the other; and him that taketh away thy cloak forbid not coat also." not only was sunday a sabbath, but all days were sabbaths, and to be kept holy. all sectarism false and mischievous the regenerated, throughout the world, members of one body, and the head christ jesus. prejudice against color was rebellion against god. of all men beneath the sky, the slaves, because most neglected and despised, were nearest and dearest to his great heart. those ministers who defended slavery from the bible, were of their "father the devil;"†john 8:44. and those churches which fellowshiped slaveholders as christians, were synagogues of satan, and our nation was a nation of liars. never loud or noisy calm and serene as a summer sky, and as pure. "you are the man, the moses, raised up by god, to deliver his modern israel from bondage,"†douglass's analogy suggests that garrison, as the most prominent leader of the abolition movement, may be the chosen one to lead the slaves out of bondage. he draws a parallel with moses of the bible, who was chosen by god to lead the israelites out of bondage in egypt and into the promised land. freedman, anchor bible dictionary, 4:909. was the spontaneous feeling of my heart, as i sat away back in the hall and listened to his mighty words; mighty in truth mighty in their simple earnestness. i had not long been a reader of the liberator, and listener to its editor, before i got a clear apprehension of the principles of the anti slavery movement. i had already the spirit of the movement, and only needed to understand its principles and measures. these i got from the liberator, and from those who believed in that paper. my acquaintance with the movement increased my hope for the ultimate freedom of my race, and i united with it from a sense of delight, as well as duty. every week the liberator came, and every week i made myself master of its contents. all the anti slavery meetings held in new bedford i promptly attended, my heart burning at every true utterance against the slave system, and every rebuke of its friends and supporters. thus passed the first three years of my residence in new bedford. i had not then dreamed of the possibility of my becoming a public advocate of the cause so deeply imbeddcd in my heart. it was enough for me to listen to receive and applaud the great words of others, and only whisper in private, among the white laborers on the wharves, and elsewhere, the truths which burned in my breast. chapter xxiii. introduced to the abolitionists. first speech at nantucket much sensation extraordinary speech of mr. garrison author becomes a public lecturer fourteen years' experience youthful enthusiasm a brand new fact matter of the author's speech he could not follow the programme his fugitive slaveship doubted to settle all doubts he writes his experience of slavery danger of recapture increased. in the summer of 1841, a grand anti slavery convention was held in nantucket, under the auspices of mr. garrison and his friends. until now, i had taken no holiday since my escape from slavery. having worked very hard that spring and summer, in richmond 's brass foundery sometimes working all night as well as all day and needing a day or two of rest, i attended this convention, never supposing that i should take part in the proceedings. indeed, i was not aware that any one connected with the convention even so much as knew my name. i was, however, quite mistaken. mr. william c. coffin,†william c. coffin (1816 ?) was a resident of new bedford who in 1845 was an accountant for the local mechanics bank. an ardent abolitionist, coffin was a good friend of william lloyd garrison and served as recording secretary of the bristol county anti slavery society from the 1830s. coffin, a quaker, also advocated the doctrine of nonresistance and was jailed briefly in 1845 in new bedford for refusing to swear an oath to the authority of a local judge. lib., 3 september 1841, 18 april, 23 may 1845; henry h. crapo, ed., the new bedford directory [for 1845] (new bedford, 1845), 794; hurd, bristol county, 105; merrill and ruchames, garrison letters, 2: 712. a prominent abolitionist in those days of trial, had heard me speaking to my colored friends, in the little school house on second street,*douglass refers to the meeting house of the african american zion methodist church on elm street in new bedford. elm street intersects with second street, so it is probable that the building was located near that intersection. crapo, new bedford directory [for 1841], 17, 24; ellis, history of new bedford, 1; mcfeely, frederick douglass, 82. new bedford, where we worshiped. he sought me out in the crowd, and invited me to say a few words to the convention. thus sought out, and thus invited, i was induced to speak out the feelings inspired by the occasion, and the fresh recollection of the scenes through which i had passed as a slave. my speech on this occasion†douglass spoke at a special meeting of the massachusetts anti slavery society held in nantucket, massachusetts, on 10 12 august 1841. he began his speech just before the evening adjournment on 11 august and resumed at 9:30 the next morning. douglass was followed by william lloyd garrison. at the conclusion of the convention, john a. collins, the massachusetts anti slavery society's general agent, invited douglass to go on the lecture circuit to tell of his life as a slave. lib., 20 august 1841; mcfeely, frederick douglass, 87 89. is about the only one i ever made, of which i do not remember a single connected sentence. it was with the utmost difficulty that i could stand erect, or that i could command and articulate two words without hesitation and stammering. i trembled in every limb. i am not sure that my embarrassment was not the most effective part of my speech, if speech it could be called. at any rate, this is about the only part of my performance that i now distinctly remember. but excited and convulsed as i was, the audience, though remarkably quiet before, became as much excited as myself. mr. garrison followed me, taking me as his text; and now, whether i had made an eloquent speech in behalf of freedom or not, his was one never to be forgotten by those who heard it. those who had heard mr. garrison oftenest, and had known him longest, were astonished. it was an effort of unequaled power, sweeping down, like a very tornado, every opposing barrier, whether of sentiment or opinion. for a moment, he possessed that almost fabulous inspiration, often referred to but seldom attained, in which a public meeting is transformed, as it were, into a single individuality the orator wielding a thousand heads and hearts at once, and by the simple majesty of his all controlling thought, converting his hearers into the express image of his own soul. that night there were at least one thousand garrisonians in nantucket! at the close of this great meeting, i was duly waited on by mr. john a. collins†vermont native john anderson collins (1810 c. 1879) attended middlebury college and andover theological seminary before becoming a lecturer for the massachusetts anti slavery society in the late 1830s. he broke his ties with the garrisonian wing of the abolitionist movement in 1843 in order to devote himself to advancing the utopian philosophy of robert owen. collins resided briefly on a communal farm near skaneateles, new york, and ultimately settled in california. carleton mabee, black freedom: the nonviolent abolitionists from 1830 through the civil war (london, 1970), 76, 80 82, 88, 112 25, 212, 264, 394n; dab, 4:307 08. then the general agent of the massachusetts anti slavery society and urgently solicited by him to hecome an agent of that society, and to punlicly advocate its anti slavery principles. i was reluctant to take the proffered position. i had not heen quite three years from slavery was honestly distrustful of my ability wished to be excused; publicity exposed me to discovery and arrest by my master; and other objections came up, but mr. collins was not to be put off, and i finally consented to go out for three months, for i supposed that i should have got to the end of my story and my usefulness, in that length of time. here opened upon me a new life a life for which i had had no preparation. i was a "graduate from the peculiar institution," mr. collins used to say, when introducing me, ".'" the three years of my freedom had been spent in the hard school of adversity. my hands had been furnished by nature with something like a solid leather coating, and i had bravely marked out for myself a life of rough labor, suited to the hardness of my hands, as a means of supporting myself and rearing my children. now what shall i say of this fourteen years' experience as a public advocate of the cause of my enslaved brothers and sisters? the time is but as a speck, yet large enough to justify a pause for retrospection and a pause it must only be. young, ardent, and hopeful, i entered upon this new life in the full gush of unsuspecting enthusiasm. the cause was good; the men engaged in it were good; the means to attain its triumph, good; heaven's blessing must attend all, and freedom must soon be given to the pining millions under a ruthless bondage. my whole heart went with the holy cause, and my most fervent prayer to the almighty disposer of the hearts of men, were continually offered for its early triumph. "who or what." thought i, "can withstand a cause so good, so holy, so indescribably glorious. the god of israel is with us. the might of the eternal is on our side. now let but the truth be spoken, and a nation will start forth at the sound!" in this enthusiastic spirit, i dropped into the ranks of freedom's friends, and went forth to the battle. for a time i was made to forget that my skin was dark and my hair crisped. for a time i regretted that i could not have shared the hardships and dangers endured by the earlier workers for the slave's release. i soon, however, found that my enthusiasm had been extravagant; that hardships and dangers were not yet passed; and that the life now before me, had shadows as well as sunbeams. impossible for me to repeat the same old story month after month, and to keep up my interest in it. it was new to the people, it is true, but it was an old story to me; and to go through with it night after night, was a task altogether too mechanical for my nature. "tell your story, frederick," would whisper my then revered friend, william lloyd garrison, as i stepped upon the platform. i could not always obey, for i was now reading and thinking. new views of the subject were presented to my mind. it did not entirely satisfy me to wrongs; i felt like them. i could not always curb my moral indignation for the perpetrators of slaveholding villainy, long enough for a circumstantial statement of the facts which i felt almost everybody must know. besides, i was growing, and needed room. "people won't believe you ever was a slave, frederick, if you keep on this way," said friend foster. "be yourself," said collins, "and tell your story." it was said to me, "better have a of the plantation manner of speech than not; 'tis not best that you seem too learned." these excellent friends were actuated by the best of motives, and were not altogether wrong in their advice; and still i must speak just the word that seemed to me the word to he spoken by me. at last the apprehended trouble came. people doubted if i had ever heen a slave. they said i did not talk like a slave, look like a slave, nor act like a slave, and that they believed i had never been south of mason and dixon's line. "he don't tell us where he came from what his master's name was how he got away nor the story of his experience. besides, he is educated, and is, in this, a contradiction of all the facts we have concerning the ignorance of the slaves." thus, i was in a pretty fair way to he denounced as an impostor. the committee of the massachusetts anti slavery society†in the late fall of 1831. william lloyd garrison convened a series of meetings to advance support in the boston area for the principles of immediate emancipation. out of these meetings emerged the new england anti slavery society in early 1832. as abolitionist strength grew in the region, state level societies were formed, and the group renamed itself the massachusetts anti slavery society in 1835. dwight lowell dumond, antislavery: the crusade for freedom in america (new york, 1961), 172 73. knew all the facts in my case, and agreed with me in the prudence of keeping them private. they, therefore, never doubted my being a genuine fugitive; but going down the aisles of the churches in which i spoke, and hearing the free spoken yankees saying, repeatedly, "," i resolved to dispel all doubt, at no distant day, by such a revelation of facts as could not be made by any other than a genuine fugitive. in a little less than four years, therefore, after becoming a public lecturer, i was induced to write out the leading facts connected with my experience in slavery, giving names of persons, places, and dates†douglass alludes to his first autobiography, narrative of the life of frederick douglass, an american slave (1845).  thus putting it in the power of any who doubted, to ascertain the truth or falsehood of my story of being a fugitive slave. this statement soon became known in maryland, and i had reason to believe that an effort would he made to recapture me. it is not probable that any open attempt to secure me as a slave could have succeeded, further than the obtainment, by my master, of the money value of my bones and sinews. fortunately for me, in the four years of my labors in the abolition cause, i had gained many friends, who would have suffered themselves to be taxed to almost any extent to save me from slavery. it was felt that i had committed the double offense of running away, and exposing the secrets and crimes of slavery and slaveholders. there was a double motive for seeking my reenslavement avarice and vengeance; and while, as i have said, there was little probability of successful recapture, if attempted openly, i was constantly in danger of being spirited away, at a moment when my friends could render me no assistance. in traveling about from place to place often alone i was much exposed to this sort of attack. any one cherishing the design to betray me, could easily do so, by simply tracing my whereabouts through the anti slavery journals, for my meetings and movements were promptly made known in advance. my true friends, mr. garrison and mr. phillips, had no faith in the power of massachusetts to protect me in my right to liberty. public sentiment and the law, in their opinion, would hand me over to the tormentors. mr. phillips, especially, considered me in danger, and said, when i showed him the manuscript of my story, if in my place, he would throw it into the fire. thus, the reader will ohserve, the settling of one difficulty only opened the way for another; and that though i had reached a free state, and had attained a position for public usefulness, i was still tormented with the liability of my liberty. how this liability was dispelled, will be related, with other incidents. in the next chapter. chapter xxiv. twenty one months in great britain. good arising out of unpropitious events denied cabin passage proscription turned to good account the hutchinson family the mob on board the cambria happy introduction to the british public letter addressed to william lloyd garrison time and labors while abroad freedom purchased mrs. henry richardson free papers abolitionists displeased with the ransom how the author's energies were directed reception speech in london character of the speech defended circumstances explained causes contributing to the success of his mission free church of scotland testimonial. the allotments of providence, when coupled with trouble and anxiety, often conceal from finite vision the wisdom and goodness in which they are sent; and, frequently, what seemed a harsh and invidious dispensation, is converted by after experience into a happy and beneficial arrangement. thus, the painful liability to be returned again to slavery, which haunted me by day, and troubled my dreams by night, proved to be a necessary step in the path of knowledge and usefulness. the writing of my pamphlet, in the spring of 1845, endangered my liberty, and led me to seek a refuge from republican slavery in monarchical england. a rude, uncultivated fugitive slave was driven, by stern necessity, to that country to which young american gentlemen go to increase their stock of knowledge, to seek pleasure, to have their rough, democratic manners softened by contact with english aristocratic refinement. on applying for a passage to england, on board the cambria,†this eighteen hundred ton steamer of the cunard line made her maiden voyage from liverpool to halifax on 4 january 1845 and was the first ship to make this journey in less than ten days. the cambria ran the transatlantic route for the cunard line until the british admiralty converted her to a troopship in 1854. j. c. arnell, steam and the north atlantic mails: the impact of the cunard line and subsequent steamship companies on the carriage of transatlantic mails (toronto, 1986), 114, 182, 199. of the cunard line, my friend, james n. buffum,†james needham buffum (1807 87), born of quaker parents in north berwick, maine, spent most of his life in lynn, massachusetts, where he amassed considerable wealth as a carpenter, house contractor, real estate speculator, and financier. dissatisfied with quaker passivity on reform issues, buffum was an early convert to garrisonianism and participated in the campaign to desegregate new england's public transportation during the early 1840s. from 1845 through 1847 buffum accompanied douglass on a lecture tour of great britain. he served as treasurer of the essex county anti slavery society and as vice president of a fourierist organization called friends of social reform. during reconstruction he was director of charles stearns's laborers' homestead and southern emigration society, which bought land in virginia for resale to freedmen. chosen a presidential elector in 1868, buffum served as mayor of lynn from 1869 to 1875 and was elected to the massachusetts legislature in 1873. garrison and garrison, garrison life, 3:324 25, 4:358; mabee, black freedom, 114, 119 21, 125, 210 11, 221, 225, 250, 342; merrill and ruchames, garrison letters, 3:138n; douglass, life and times, 251, 259; clarence w. hobbs, lynn and surroundings (lynn, 1886), 141 42. of lynn,†incorporated as a town in 1631, lynn, in essex county, massachusetts, is located seven miles northeast of boston and was known as an important center for the manufacture of shoes. cohen, columbia gazetteer of the world, 2:1814. massachusetts, was informed that i could not be received on board as a cabin passenger. american prejudice against color triumphed over british liberality and civilization, and erected a color test and condition for crossing the sea in the cabin of a british vessel. the insult was keenly felt by my white friends, but to me, it was common, expected, and therefore, a thing of no great consequence, whether i went in the cabin or in the steerage. moreover, i felt that if i could not go into the first cabin, first cabin passengers could come into the second cabin, and the result justified my anticipations to the fullest extent. indeed, i soon found myself an object of more general interest than i wished to be; and so far from being degraded by being placed in the second cabin, that part of the ship became the scene of as much pleasure and refinement, during the voyage, as the cabin itself. the hutchinson family,†although jesse and polly hutchinson had no fewer than thirteen children, the family name was principally identified with the musical quartet composed of judson (adoniram judson joseph, 1817 59), john (john wallace, 1821 1908), asa (1823 84), and abby (abigail jemina, 1829 92). this group traveled with douglass to england aboard the cambria in 1845 and occasionally performed at meetings where douglass spoke. although one of the hutchinson brothers, jesse, was "identified with the very beginnings of the antislavery agitation." judson, john, and asa hutchinson joined the abolitionists only after meeting frederick douglass, who lived near their store in lynn, massachusetts. it was probably late in 1842 or in 1843 that the brothers first heard douglass's story and acquired an "earnest desire to aid him in his work." "tidings from the hutchinsons!" concord (n.h.) herald of freedom, 29 august 1845; jesse hutchinson, jr., to nathaniel p. rogers, 23 august 1845, ibid., 26 september 1845; jesse hutchinson, jr., to horace greeley, 24 october 1845; ibid., 26 december 1845; jesse hutchinson, jr., to nathaniel p. rogers, 18 november 1845, ibid., 12 december 1845; "come outers of lynn no. 4," ibid., 6 march 1846; jesse hutchinson, jr., to [henry] clapp, 30 january 1846, ibid., 6 march 1846; william howitt, "memoir of the hutchinson family," ibid., 24 july 1846; hutchinson, story of the hutchinsons, 1: 6, 40, 70 71, 146, 187 89; merrill and ruchames, garrison letters, 3: 158; carol brink, harps in the wind: the story of the singing hutchinsons (new york, 1947). celebrated vocalists fellow passengers often came to my rude forecastle deck, and sung their sweetest songs, enlivening the place with eloquent music, as well as spirited conversation, during the voyage. in two days after leaving boston, one part of the ship was about as free to me as another. my fellow passengers not only visited me, but invited me to visit them, on the saloon deck. my visits there, however, were but seldom. i preferred to live within my privileges, and keep upon my own premises. i found this quite as much in accordance with good policy, as with my own feelings. the effect was, that with the majority of the passengers, all color distinctions were flung to the winds, and i found myself treated with every mark of respect, from the beginning to the end of the voyage, except in a single instance; and in that, i came near being mobbed, for complying with an invitation given me by the passengers, and the captain of the "cambria," to deliver a lecture on slavery. our new orleans and georgia passengers were pleased to regard my lecture as an insult offered to them, and swore i should not speak. they went so far as to threaten to throw me overboard, and but for the firmness of captain judkins,†charles h. e . judkins (1811 76), the captain of the cambria, was the first commodore of the cunard line and among the first civilian pilots to be awarded a commission in the royal navy reserve. by the time he retired in 1871 he had commanded many of the cunard line's record breaking steamers and had made more than five hundred transatlantic voyages without serious mishap. james croil, steam navigation and its relation to the commerce of canada and the united states (toronto, 1898), 86 87; henry fry, the history of north american steam navigation with some account of early ships and shipowners (london, 1896), 105, 126; frank c. bowen, a century of atlantic travel, 1830 1930 (london, [1930]), 60, 85 86, 103 06; f. lawrence babcock, spanning the atlantic (new york, 1931), 84 85, 103, 121. probably would have (under the inspiration of and ) attempted to put their threats into execution. i have no space to describe this scene, although its tragic and comic peculiarities are well worth describing. an end was put to the melee, by the captain's calling the ship's company to put the salt water mobocrats in irons. at this determined order, the gentlemen of the lash scampered, and for the rest of the voyage conducted themselves very decorously. this incident†this incident occurred on 27 august 1845, following a champagne dinner on board the cambria traditionally held at the conclusion of a transatlantic voyage. douglass spoke at the invitation of judkins, who had earlier been approached by buffum, the hutchinsons, and some english passengers recently made familiar with douglass's narrative. captain judkins had the steward ring the bell on the promenade deck, told the passengers that douglass was going to make a few remarks on american slavery, and advised those who did not wish to hear him to go below. a few of the american passengers retired to the saloon in order "to take into consideration the propriety of expressing our feelings in some proper way, that the public might know the respect, or want of respect, paid to americans on board this steamer." apparently a number of american passengers remained on deck and threatened to break up the meeting, so that, according to one observer, "it was fully expected we should have had a general and bloody row." judkins threatened to use irons to halt the attackers and suggested that douglass leave the deck. thus a riot was avoided. the incident, however, became infamous in the abolitionist press and in douglass's later speeches. paf, 25 september 1845; new york daily tribune, 26 september 1845; new york herald, 1 december 1845; nass, 18 december 1845; douglass to garrison, 1 september 1845, in lib., 26 september 1845; hutchinson, story of the hutchinsons, 1: 145. of the voyage, in two days after landing at liverpool, brought me at once before the british public, and that by no act of my own. the gentlemen so promptly snubbed in their meditated violence, flew to the press†the incident aboard the cambria was reported in the irish press almost immediately after douglass's arrival. dublin's freeman's journal and weekly commercial advertiser and evening freeman published accounts sympathetic to douglass. whereas the overseas press reprinted douglass's side of the story, an editorial in the new york herald on 27 september 1845 observed that when "a negro named douglass" spoke of america in abusive tones, "there arose a general uproar." another hostile observer wrote to the editor of the boston times that douglass "was very annoying to most of the passengers during the whole voyage, and if there had been a southerner on board his carcass would no doubt have been food for sharks." dublin freeman's journal and weekly commercial advertiser, 13 september 1845; dublin evening freeman, 13 september 1845; new york herald, 27 september 1845; lib., 3 october 1845. to justify their conduct, and to denounce me as a worthless and insolent negro. this course was even less wise than the conduct it was intended to sustain; for, besides awakening something like a national interest in me, and securing me an audience, it brought out counter statements, and threw the blame upon themselves, which they had sought to fasten upon me and the gallant captain of the ship. some notion may be formed of the difference in my feelings and circumstances, while abroad, from the following extract from one of a series of letters addressed by me to mr. garrison, and published in the liberator.†while touring great britain. douglass wrote numerous letters to garrison in the latter's capacity as editor of the boston liberator. these letters were dated 1, 16, 29 september, 28 october 1845, 27 january, 26 february, 16 april, 23 may 1846, lib., 26 september, 10, 24 october, 28 november 1845, 27 february, 27 march, 15 may, 26 june 1846. it was written on the first day of january, 1846: "my dear friend garrison: up to this time. i have given no direct expression of the views, feelings, and opinions which i have formed, respecting the character and condition of the people of this land. i have refrained thus, purposely. i wish to speak advisedly, and in order to do this, i have waited till, i trust, experience has brought my opinions to an intelligent maturity. i have been thus careful, not because i think what i say will have much effect in shaping the opinions of the world, but because whatever of influence i may possess, whether little or much, i wish it to go in the right direction, and according to truth. i hardly need say that, in speaking of ireland, i shall be influenced by no prejudices in favor of america. i think my circumstances all forbid that. i have no end to serve, no creed to uphold, no government to defend; and as to nation, i belong to none. i have no protection at home, or resting place abroad. the land of my birth welcomes me to her shores only as a slave, and spurns with contempt the idea of treating me differently; so that i am an outcast from the society of my childhood, and an outlaw in the land of my birth. 'i am a stranger with thee, and a sojourner, as all my fathers were.'†ps. 39:12. that men should be patriotic, is to me perfectly natural; and as a philosophical fact, i am able to give it an recognition. but no further can i go. if ever i had any patriotism, or any capacity for the feeling, it was whipped out of me long since, by the lash of the american soul drivers. "in thinking of america. i sometimes find myself admiring her bright blue sky, her grand old woods, her fertile fields, her beautiful rivers, her mighty lakes, and star crowned mountains. but my rapture is soon checked, my joy is soon turned to mourning. when i remember that all is cursed with the infernal spirit of slaveholding, robbery, and wrong; when i remember that with the waters of her noblest rivers, the tears of my brethren are borne to the ocean, disregarded and forgotten, and that her most fertile fields drink daily of the warm blood of my outraged sisters; i am filled with unutterable loathing, and led to reproach myself that anything could fall from my lips in praise of such a land. america will not allow her children to love her. she seems bent on compelling those who would be her warmest friends, to be her worst enemies. may god give her repentance, before it is too late, is the ardent prayer of my heart. i will continue to pray, labor, and wait, believing that she cannot always be insensible to the dictates of justice, or deaf to the voice of humanity. with which members and ministers of various religious bodies, and of various shades of religious opinion, have embraced me,†douglass received a warm welcome from britain's religious reformers, especially the unitarian community. his speeches were reprinted and commented upon favorably by journals with a religious affiliation such as the london inquirer and the monthly magazine christian reformer. however, at the time that douglass wrote this letter to garrison, he began to receive criticism for taking an uncompromising stand on some of the british clergy's unwillingness to condemn strongly american slavery. belfast banner of ulster, 19 december 1845; david turley, "british unitarian abolitionists, frederick douglass and racial equality," in liberating sojourn: frederick douglass and transatlantic reform, ed. alan j. rice and martin crawford (athens, ga., 1999), 59 70; mcfeely, frederick douglass, 127 30. and lent me their aid; the kind hospitality constantly proffered to me by persons of the highest rank in society; the spirit of freedom that seems to animate all with whom i come in contact, and the entire absence of everything that looked like prejudice against me, on account of the color of my skin contrasted so strongly with my long and bitter experience in the united states, that i look with wonder and amazement on the transition. in the southern part of the united states, i was a slave, thought of and spoken of as property; in the language of the law, (brev. digest. 224.)†douglass refers to the digest of judicial decisions from south carolina, which was often called "brevard's digest," after the author, joseph brevard, a state associate judge. this three volume compilation of decisions was frequently cited by contemporary authors of abolitionist tracts. the passage quoted by douglass, however, does not appear on page 224 of any of those volumes. joseph brevard, reports of judicial decisions in the state of south carolina, 3 vols. (charleston, s.c., 1839 40). in the northern states, a fugitive slave, liable to be hunted at any moment, like a felon, and to be hurled into the terrible jaws of slavery doomed by an inveterate prejudice against color to insult and outrage on every hand, (massachusetts out of the question )†douglass probably refers to the personal liberty law of massachusetts, passed in 1788, which prohibits "peaceable inhabitants of this commonwealth" from being "privately carried off by force, or decoyed away under various pretences, by evil minded persons," with the probable intention of being sold into slavery. this de jure prohibition upon kidnapping fugitive slaves combined with a de facto refusal of massachusetts's african american community to allow the recapture of former slaves. hurd, law of freedom and bondage, 2:29 31. denied the privileges and courtesies common to others in the use of the most humble means of conveyance shut out from the cabins on steamboats refused admission to respectable hotels caricatured, scorned, scoffed, mocked, and maltreated with impunity by any one, (no matter how black his heart,) so he has a white skin. but now behold the change! eleven days and a half gone, and i have crossed three thousand miles of the perilous deep. instead of a democratic government, i am under a monarchical government. instead of the bright, blue sky of america, i am covered with the soft, grey fog of the emerald isle.†a nickname given to ireland around 1795 by dr. william drennen, on account of its prevailing lush green fields. william morris and mary morris, eds., morris dictionary of word and phrase origins (new york, 1977), 201. i breathe, and lo! the chattel becomes a man. i gaze around in vain for one who will question my equal humanity, claim me as his slave, or offer me an insult. i employ a cab i am seated beside white people i reach the hotel i enter the same door i am shown into the same parlor i dine at the same table and no one is offended. no delicate nose grows deformed in my presence. i find no difficulty here in obtaining admission into any place of worship, instruction, or amusement, on equal terms with people as white as any i ever saw in the united states. i meet nothing to remind me of my complexion. i find myself regarded and treated at every turn with the kindness and deference paid to white people. when i go to church, i am met by no upturned nose and scornful lip to tell me, '' "i remember, about two years ago, there was in boston, near the south west corner of boston common, a menagerie. i had long desired to see such a collection as i understood was being exhibited there. never having had an opportunity while a slave, i resolved to seize this, my first, since my escape. i went, and as i approached the entrance to gain admission, i was met and told by the door keeper, in a harsh and contemptuous tone, '' i also remember attending a revival meeting in the rev. henry jackson's†henry jackson (1798 1863) was born in providence, rhode island. he graduated from brown university in 1817, studied for one term at andover theological seminary, and in 1822 was ordained the minister of the first baptist church in charlestown, massachusetts, where he remained for the next fourteen years. between 1837 and 1845 he served as pastor at churches in hartford and new bedford. his last ministry was in newport, rhode island, where he remained until his death. crapo, new bedford directory [for 1845], 10; acab, 3:387. meetinghouse, at new bedford, and going up the broad aisle to find a seat, i was met by a good deacon, who told me, in a pious tone, '.' soon after my arrival in new bedford, from the south, i had a strong desire to attend the lyceum,†the new bedford lyceum, founded in 1828, functioned as a source of public education by providing lectures on literary, philosophical, and scientific topics. ricketson, history of new bedford, 324 25. but was told, "" while passing from new york to boston, on the steamer massachusetts,†the 353 ton massachusetts, built in 1841, was owned by nathaniel rand and george c. gardner of nantucket, massachusetts. it sank in august 1853 off sable island, just southeast of halifax, nova scotia. the island was considered a major hazard to navigation and was the site of numerous shipwrecks. john robinson and george francis dow, the sailing ships of new england, 1607 1907 (salem, mass., 1922), 30: cohen, columbia gazetteer of the world, 3:2678. on the night of the 9th of december, 1843, when chilled almost through with the cold, i went into the cabin to get a little warm. i was soon touched upon the shoulder. and told, ''" on arriving in boston, from an anti slavery tour, hungry and tired, i went into an eating house, near my friend. mr. campbell's,†two individuals in boston might be the person to whom douglass referred here. an a. r. campbell operated a temperance eating house in the mid 1840s that was located at 5 wilson lane. john reid campbell was a longtime friend and ally of william lloyd garrison's in boston. although city directories for 1845 and 1846 list numerous john campbells, they show no john r. campbell. new york colored american, 15 aug 1840; stimpson's boston directory, 1845 (boston, 1845), 119; stimpson's boston directory, 1846 (boston, 1846), 125. to get some refreshments. i was met by a lad in a white apron, "." a week or two before leaving the united states, i had a meeting appointed at weymouth,†douglass made a final speaking tour of new york and massachusetts before departing for great britain on 16 august 1845. douglass spoke at a meeting in weymouth, massachusetts, on 7 august. paf, 31 july 1845; lib., 1, 22 august, 5 september 1845; nass, 14, 21 august 1845. the home of that glorious band of true abolitionists, the weston family,†six daughters of warren weston and his first wife, ann[e] bates weston, of weymouth, massachusetts, were active in abolitionist circles and associates of william lloyd garrison. the most prominent, maria weston chapman (1806 85), was the wife of boston merchant henry grafton chapman and, with two of her sisters, was a guiding force in the boston female anti slavery society. the others , who all remained unmarried, were caroline (1808 82), anne warren (1812 c. 1890), deborah (1814 c. 1886), lucia (1822 c. 1864), and emma (1825 c. 1890). shy about public speaking, the westons expressed their antislavery sentiments through poems and articles published in abolitionist newspapers and operated a school on boyd street in boston. merrill and ruchames, garrison letters, 1:550: 2:xxiv xxv, 57; clare taylor, women of the anti slavery movement: the weston sisters (new york, 1995), xii xvi, 11 12, 115; deborah gold hansen, "the boston female anti slavery society and the limits of gender politics," in the abolitionist sisterhood: women's political culture in antebellum america, ed. jean fagan yellin and john c. yan horne (ithaca, n.y., 1994), 45 46, 56, 61 62; carolyn williams, 'the female antislavery movement: fighting against racial prejudice and promoting women's rights in antebellum america," ibid., 171 73. and others. on attempting to take a seat in the omnibus to that place, i was told by the driver, (and i never shall forget his fiendish hate,) '.' thank heaven for the respite i now enjoy! i had heen in dublin but a few days, when a gentleman of great respectability kindly offered to conduct me through all the public buildings of that beautiful city; and a little afterward, i found myself dining with the lord mayor of dublin. what a pity there was not some american democratic christian at the door of his splendid mansion, to bark out at my approach,'.' the truth is, the people here know nothing of the republican negro hate prevalent in our glorious land. they measure and esteem men according to their moral and intellectual worth, and not according to the color of their skin. whatever may be said of the aristocracies here, there is none based on the color of a man's skin. this species of aristocracy belongs preeminently to 'the land of the free, and the home of the brave.' i have never found it abroad, in any but americans. it sticks to them wherever they go. they find it almost as hard to get rid of, as to get rid of their skins. "the second day after my arrival at liverpool, in company with my friend, buffum, and several other friends, i went to eaton hall, the residence of the marquis of westminster,†eaton hall, located in chester county in western england, is the estate of the marquess of westminster. at the time of douglass's visit the estate was occupied by richard grosvenor (1795 1869), the second marquess of westminster. burke's genealogical and heraldic history of the peerage, 105th ed. (london, 1970), 2797. one of the most splendid buildings in england. on approaching the door, i found several of our american passengers, who came out with us in the cambria, waiting for admission, as but one party was allowed in the house at a time. we all had to wait till the company within came out. and of all the faces, expressive of chagrin, those of the americans were preeminent. they looked as sour as vinegar, and as bitter as gall, when they found i was to be admitted on equal terms with themselves. when the door was opened, i walked in, on an equal footing with my white fellow citizens, and from all i could see, i had as much attention paid me by the servants that showed us through the house, as any with a paler skin. as i walked through the building, the statuary did not fall down, the pictures did not leap from their places, the doors did not refuse to open. and the servants did not say, '" "a happy new year to you. and all the friends of freedom."†this letter first appeared in the liberator on 30 january 1846 and was widely reprinted. the original manuscript letter can be found in the william lloyd garrison papers at the boston public library. new york daily tribune, 2 february 1846; buffalo morning express, 5 february 1846; nass, 12 february 1846; london inquirer, 11 april 1846; glasgow saturday post, 25 april 1846; the american anti slavery almanac for 1847 (new york, 1846), 19 22. my time and labors, while abroad, were divided between england, ireland, scotland, and wales. upon this experience alone, i might write a book twice the size of this, "." i visited and lectured in nearly all the large towns and cities in the united kingdom, and enjoyed many favorable opportunities for observation and information. but books on england are abundant, and the public may, therefore, dismiss any fear that i am meditating another infliction in that line; though, in truth, i should like much to write a book on those countries, if for nothing else, to make grateful mention of the many dear friends, whose benevolent actions toward me are ineffaceably stamped upon my memory, and warmly treasured in my heart. to these friends i owe my freedom in the united states. on their own motion, without any solicitation from me, (mrs. henry richardson,†anna richardson, a quaker and the wife of henry richardson of newcastle upon tyne. in august 1846 she wrote hugh auld asking him whether douglass's freedom had a price. auld replied in october that he would manumit douglass for £150 sterling. at that time, if not before, anna richardson and her sister in law, ellen richardson, took steps to raise the purchase money and made arrangements with american abolitionists, ellis gray loring of boston in particular, to handle the details of the negotiation. on 24 november 1846, walter lowrie of new york city, whom loring had apparently deputed to carry on the negotiations, notified hugh auld that the £150 had arrived in new york and directed him to produce proof of legal ownership of douglass. at about this time, lowrie also engaged the services of j. meredith, a prominent baltimore attorney, to act as go between and to take care that the papers were in order. less than a week later thomas auld filed a bill of sale in talbot county signifying the transfer of douglass to hugh auld, and on 5 decemher 1846, hugh auld filed douglass's manumission papers in baltimore county. exactly one week afterward the transaction was consummated. hugh auld handing over to lowrie via meredith a copy of the bill of sale from thomas auld, a deed of manumission for douglass, and a receipt showing he had received $711.66 for douglass's freedom. all of these papers were placed in douglass's hands shortly thereafter. talbot county records, v.60, 35 36, 30 november 1846, mdtch; deed of manumission for "frederick bailey, otherwise called frederick douglass," 12 december 1846, hugh auld's receipt of payment, 12 december 1846, walter lowrie to ellis gray loring, 15 december 1846, all on reel 1, frames 637 43, fd papers, dlc; douglass to editor, belfast protestant journal, in lib., 28 august 1846; nass, 11 november 1847; ns, 3 december 1847; glasgow christian news, 23 december 1847. a clever lady, remarkable for her devotion to every good work, taking the lead,) they raised a fund sufficient to purchase my freedom, and actually paid it over, and placed the papers* of my manumission in my *the follow1ng is a copy of these curious papers, both of my transfer from thomas to hugh auld, and from hugh to myself: "know all men by these presents, that i, thomas auld, of talbot county, and state of maryland, for an in consideration of the sum of one hundred dollars, current money, to me paid by hugh auld, of the city of baltimore in the said state, at and before the sealing and delivery of these presents, the receipt whereof, i, the said thomas auld, do hereby acknowledge, have granted, bargained, and sold, and by these presents do grant, bargain, and sell unto the said hugh auld, his executors, administrators, and assigns, one negro man, by the name of frederick baily, or douglass, as he calls himself he is hands, before they would tolerate the idea of my returning to this, my native country. to this commercial transaction i owe my exemption from the democratic operation of the fugitive slave bill of 1850. but for this, i might at any time become a victim of this most cruel and scandalous enactment, and be doomed to end my life, as i began it, a slave. the sum paid for my freedom was one hundred and fifty pounds sterling. some of my uncompromising anti slavery friends in this country failed to see the wisdom of this arrangement, and were not pleased that i consented to it, even by my silence. they thought it a violation of anti slavery principles conceding a right of property in man and a wasteful expenditure of money. on the other hand, viewing it simply in the light of a ransom, or as money extorted by a robber, and my liberty of more value than one hundred and fifty pounds sterling, i could not see either a violation of the laws of morality, or those of economy, in the transaction. it is true, i was not in the possession of my claimants. and could have easily remained in england, for the same friends who had so generously purchased my freedom, would have assisted me in establishing myself in that country. to this, however, i could not consent. i felt that i had a duty to _____________ now about twenty eight years of age to have and to hold the said negro man for life. and i, the said thomas auld, for myself, my heirs, executors, and administrators, all and singular, the said frederick baily, douglass, unto the said hugh auld, his executors, administrators, and assigns, against me, the said thomas auld, my executors, and administrators, and against all and every other person or persons whatsoever, shall and will warrant and forever defend by these presents. in witness whereof, i set my hand and seal, this thirteenth day of november, eighteen hundred and forty six. thomas auld "signed, sealed, and delivered in presence of wrightson jones.†wrightson jones (1828/29 ?) was a merchant in the town of st. michaels in talbot county, where he was born and raised. his father was an important artillerist in the battle against the british at st. michaels in august 1813. in 1850 jones was married, had two children, owned two slaves, and had real estate valued at one thousand dollars. tilghman, talbot county, 2: 157, 164; 1850 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 79 (free schedule), 39 (slave schedule). "john c. leas" the authenticity of this bill of sale is attested to by n. harrington,†nathan harrington (1808/09 ?) was a prominent merchant in the town of st. michaels in talbot county and also served as the local justice of the peace. his father also resided in st. michaels and had been a vocal proponent of war against britain in 1812. in 1850 harrington was married, had four children, owned three slaves, and held real estate valued at $1,500. tilghman, talbot county, 2:406; 1850 u.s. census, maryland, talbot county, 79 (free schedule), 39 (slave schedule). a justice of the peace of the state of maryland, and for the county of talbot, dated same day as above. _________________________________ "to all whom it may concern: be it known that i, hugh auld, of the city of baltimore, in baltimore county, in the state of maryland, for divers good causes and considerations, me thereunto moving, have released from slavery, liberate, manumit, and set free, my negro man, named frederick baily, otherwise called douglass, being of the age of twenty eight years, or thereabouts, and able to work and gain a sufficient livelihood and maintenance; and him the said negro man, named frederick baily, otherwise called frederick douglass, i do declare to be henceforth free, manumitted, and discharged from all manner of servitude to me, my executors, and administrators forever. "in witness whereof, i, the said hugh auld, have thereunto set my hand and seal, the fifth of december, in the year one thousand eight hundred and forty six. hugh auld. "sealed and delivered in present of t. hanson belt.†thomas hanson belt was a judge in baltimore in 1845 and lived at 121 n. charles street. matchett's baltimore director[y] . . .1845, 16. "james n. s. t. wright.†james n. s. t. wright was a member of an old eastern shore family whose roots in queen annes county stretch back at least to the latter half of the seventeenth century. the wrights intermarried with the tilghmans, lloyds, de courseys, and other prominent local families. many of them served in both the colonial and state legislatures. frederic emory, queen anne's county, maryland: its early history and development (baltimore, 1950), 120, 129, 219; papenfuse, a biographical dictionary, 2:918 27; j. hall pleasants, ed., "letters of molly and hetty tilghman: eighteenth century gossip of two maryland girls," mdhm, 21:33 34 (march 1926). perform and that was, to labor and suffer with the oppressed in my native land. considering, therefore, all the circumstances the fugitive slave bill included i think the very best thing was done in letting master hugh have the hundred and fifty pounds sterling, and leaving me free to return to my appropriate field of labor. had i been a private person, having no other relations or duties than those of a personal and family nature, i should never have consented to the payment of so large a sum for the privilege of living securely under our glorious republican form of government. i could have remained in england, or have gone to some other country; and perhaps i could even have lived unobserved in this. but to this i could not consent. i had already become somewhat notorious, and withal quite as unpopular as notorious; and i was, therefore, much exposed to arrest and recapture. the main object to which my labors in great britain were directed, was the concentration of the moral and religious sentiment of its people against american slavery. england is often charged with having established slavery in the united states, and if there were no other justification than this, for appealing to her people to lend their moral aid for the abolition of slavery, i should be justified. my speeches in great britain were wholly extemporaneous, and i may not always have been so guarded in my expressions, as i otherwise should have been. i was ten years younger then than now, and only seven years from slavery. i cannot give the reader a better idea of the nature of my discourses, than by republishing one of them, delivered in finsbury chapel,†on 22 may 1846, between 2,500 and 3,000 spectators crammed finsbury chapel, moorfields, almost "to suffocation" to witness the "eloquent slave" frederick douglass. joseph sturge, a quaker abolitionist, organized and chaired the meeting, which also included speeches by george william alexander, joseph t. price, george thompson, stafford allen, and the reverends john campbell, james carlile, and john howard hinton. douglass 's three hour speech, so john campbell advised the audience, was the sort of address for which british abolitionists "would have taken a voyage round the globe some 40 years back . . . to have heard . . . from the lips of a slave." never before, campbell continued, had the audience heard a bondsman with "so much logic so much wit so much fancy so much eloquence." the meeting passed resolutions pledging cooperation with americans of every creed and imploring the free church to "send back the money." douglass reflected in a letter to william lloyd garrison that "it was one of the most effective and satisfactory meetings which i have attended since landing on these shores." douglass papers, ser. 1. 1: 269 70; douglass to garrison, 23 may 1846, in lib., 26 june 1846; london watchman, 20 may 1846; london daily news, 25 may 1846; quarles, frederick douglass, 44 45. london, to an audience of about two thousand persons, and which was published in the "london universe,"†the london universe was published from january 1846 until august 1848. michael wolff et al., eds., the waterloo directory of victorian periodicals, 1824 1900 (waterloo, ont., 1976), 1093. at the time.* those in the united states who may regard this speech as being harsh in its spirit and unjust in its statements, because delivered before an audience supposed to be anti republican in their principles and feelings, may view the matter differently, when they learn that the case supposed did not exist. it so happened that the great mass of the people in england who attended and patronized my anti slavery meetings, were, in truth, about as good republicans as the mass of americans, and with this decided advantage over the latter they are lovers of republicanism for all men, for black men as well as for white men. they are the people who sympathize with louis kossuth and mazzini,†giuseppe mazzini (1805 72) was born in genoa, italy, and led the movement for italian independence and national unification. a student, liberal activist, and newspaper editor during the 1820s. mazzini was forced into exile in 1830 because of his connection with a conspiracy orchestrated by the nationalistic carboneria. settling in marseilles, he began organizing a new democratic national movemcnt, giovine italia, which hoped to appeal to all social classes. a failed insurrection attempt in savoy in 1833 in which he was implicated disrupted the movement, but mazzini soon rebounded to inaugurate young europe, an international organization intended to unite all european movements for national independence. now hunted constantly by the police, mazzini had to move often. in 1837 he settled in london, where he continued to promote the italian cause. the revolution in italy in 1848 afforded him the opportunity to return to his native land. but the roman republic proved short lived; and the french military restored a conservative government by the summer of 1849. mazzini once again fled, only to return in 1861 when the kingdom of italy was declared. still unpardoned for his involvement in the 1833 insurrection, mazzini was confined to pisa, where he lived until his death. frank j. coppa, ed., dictionary of modern italian history (westport, conn., 1985), 263 65; thorne, chambers biographical dictionary, 871. and with the oppressed and enslaved, of every color and nation, the world over. they constitute the democratic element in british politics, and are as much opposed to the union of church and state as we, in america, are to such an union. at the meeting where this speech was delivered, *see appendix to this volume, page 411.†actually published on pages 407 to 420 of the 1855 edition of bondage and freedom, this speech was delivered at the finsbury chapel in london on 22 may 1846. the text that douglass's autobiography reproduces is from the london universe of 26 may and 2 june 1846. for an annotated version of this speech taken from another contemporary report, see douglass papers, ser. 1, 1:269 99. joseph sturge*joseph sturge (1793 1859), the son of a prosperous english quaker farmer, achieved quick financial success as a corn merchant. he abandoned commercial life before age forty to devote himself fulltime to various benevolent causes. he was an original memher of the anti corn law league, and in 1831 he joined thomas attwood's birmingham political union, where he advocated tax reform, free trade, disestablishment of the anglican church, ballot voting, and the abolition of capital punishment. during the 1840s he campaigned for an extended franchise, first as a chartist and later through the newly constituted complete suffrage movement, which he helped launch. sturge's antislavery career began in the 1820s when, as a protege of abolitionist james cropper, he supported the society for the mitigation and gradual abolition of slavery. as secretary of the birmingham anti slavery society, he organized public demonstrations against the west indian apprenticeship system in the fall of 1835. two years later, after a journey to the british west indies, sturge testified against the apprenticeship system before parliamentary committees and coauthored the west indies in 1837. when frederick douglass visited birmingham in december 1845 to address a local temperance society, he was a dinner guest at sturge's home. the two men met again some five months later in london at a meeting of the british and foreign anti slavery society. douglass to garrison, 23 may 1846, in lib., 26 june 1846; howard temperley, british anti slavery, 1833 1870 (columbia, s.c., 1972), 12 13, 24 25, 36, 69, 72, 123, 140; brian harrison, drink and the victorians: the temperance question in england, 1815 1872 (pittsburgh, 1971), 133; quarles, frederick douglass, 42; dnb, 19: 130 31. a world wide philanthropist, and a member of the society of friends presided, and addressed the meeting. george william alexander,*george william alexander (1802 90) was a wealthy london banker and quaker who became active in social reform. alexander was the treasurer of the british and foreign anti slavery society and backed the organization financially from 1839 to 1847. alexander wrote a few abolitionists tracts, one of which was letters on the slave trade (1842), and traveled in europe and the united states to promote the cause of antislavery. during the 1860s alexander also helped lead freedmen's aid efforts in the american south. frederic boase, ed., modern english biography, 6 vols. (london, 1965), 4:74; temperley, british antislavery, 69 70, 72 73, 82. another friend, who has spent more than an american fortune in promoting the anti slavery cause in different sections of the world, was on the platform; and also dr. campbell, )*john campbell (1795 1867), a congregational minister, was born in scotland and attended the university of st. andrews and the university of glasgow. he was pastor of a church in kilmarnock, scotland, for twelve years, then moved to london in 1829 as copastor of the tabernacle and tottenham court road chapels. he became editor of the congregational union's christian witness in 1844 and later edited the christian's penny magazine. in 1848 campbell abandoned the pulpit to devote all his time to editorial work, founding the british banner, the british standard, and the british ensign between 1849 and 1860. the congregational year book for 1868 (london, 1868), 259 61; george smith, "the late rev. john campbell, d.d.," christian witness, n.s., 3: 232 34 (may 1867); john waddington, congregational history, 1850 1880 (london, 1880), 8 16; dnb, 3: 839. (now of the "british banner,")*founded by congregationalist minister john campbell, this reform newspaper was published in london from january 1848 until it was absorbed by the london patriot in december 1858. the banner's liberal and antiepiscopal editorial line appealed to moderate seceders from the church of england. wolff, waterloo directory, 142; dnb, 8: 389. who combines all the humane tenderness of melancthon.*philip melanchthon (1497 1560) was a close friend of martin luther and an important intellectual leader of the protestant reformation. as a teacher of greek and hebrew at the university of wittenberg, melanchthon participated in the formal colloquies and debates and the interchurch and political negotiations that shaped early protestantism, but always attempted to reconcile conflicting theoretical positions. clyde leonard manschreck, melanchthon: the quiet reformer (new york, 1958); james william richard, philip melanchthon: the protestant preceptor of germany, 1497 1560 (new york, 1898). with the directness and boldness of luther.*martin luther (1484 1546) was an augustinian monk who lectured in theology al the university of wittenberg. his famous ninety five theses, which he posted on the door of the castle church at wittenberg on the eve of all saints' day in 1517, focused on abuses in the sale of indulgences by the roman catholic church. in 1520 pope leo x excommunicated luther for his rejection of the sacramental apparatus and power of the church and his call for radical religious reform. in the last two decades of his life, luther labored prodigiously at the creation of new forms of church worship, the explication of scripture, and the education of a new ministry. roland h. bainton, here i stand: a life of martin luther (new york, 1950), h[arry] g[erald] haile, luther: an experiment in biography (garden city, n.y., 1980). he is in the very front ranks of non conformists, and looks with no unfriendly eye upon america. george thompson,*george thompson (1804 78), originally from liverpool, was an early advocate of slave emancipation in the british colonies and an influential british ally of william lloyd garrison. thompson lectured tor the agency committee, a group that helped force passage of the west indian emancipation act of 1833. that same year, he was among the founders of the edinburgh society for the abolition of slavery throughout the world. as a member of parliament from 1847 to 1852, thompson was a member of the parliamentary reform association and the anti corn law league, and promoted the production of east indian cotton in order to undermine american slavery. thompson also promoted the antislavery cause during trips to the united states during the 1830s, 1850s, and 1860s. c. duncan rice, "the anti slavery mission of george thompson to the united states, 1834 1835." journal of american studies, 2: 13 41 (april 1968); temperley, british anti slavery, 23 29; garrison and garrison, garrison life, 1: 434 522, 2: 1 72; dnb, 19: 691. too, was there; and america will yet own that he did a true man's work in relighting the rapidly dying out fire of true republicanism in the american heart, and be ashamed of the treatment he met at her hands. coming generations in this country will applaud the spirit of this much abused republican friend of freedom. there were others of note seated on the platform, who would gladly ingraft upon english institutions all that is purely republican in the institutions of america. nothing, therefore, must be set down against this speech on the score that it was delivered in the presence of those who cannot appreciate the many excellent things belonging to our system of government, and with a view to stir up prejudice against republican institutions. again, let it also be remembered for it is the simple truth that neither in this speech, nor in any other which i delivered in england, did i ever allow myself to address englishmen as against americans. i took my stand on the high ground of human brotherhood, and spoke to englishmen as men, in behalf of men. slavery is a crime, not against englishmen, but against god, and all the members of the human family; and it belongs to the whole human family to seek its suppression. in a letter to mr. greeley,*horace greeley (1811 72), journalist, reformer, and republican politician, was the founder and lifelong editor of the new york tribune. after working for several years in political journalism as an editor for various whig campaign weeklies, greeley launched the tribune in 1841 and quickly outstripped local competitors, gaining a large circulation throughout the north. in addition to promoting a panoply of social causes ranging from fourierism to the abolition of capital punishment, the tribune under greeley became the leading editorial voice of the republican party during the 1850s. at first openly hostile to abolitionism, greeley grew steadily more radical on the slavery issue, but his racial attitudes mirrored the ambivalence of many northern free labor spokesmen. although he later campaigned to extend equal suffrage to new york blacks, greeley's periodic support for colonization and other emigrationist schemes brought him into conflict with douglass and other black leaders. horace greeley, recollections of a busy life: including reminiscences of american politics and politicians (new york, 1868), 284 86; glyndon g. van deusen, horace greeley: nineteenth century crusader (philadelphia, 1953), 102 03, 381; eric foner, free soil, free labor, free men: the ideology of the republican party before the civil war (new york, 1970), 262 63, 297 300; dab, 7:528 34. of the new york tribune, written while abroad, i said: "i am, nevertheless, aware that the wisdom of exposing the sins of one nation in the ear of another, has been seriously questioned by good and clear sighted people, both on this and on your side of the atlantic. and the thought is not without weight on my own mind. i am satisfied that there are many evils which can be best removed by confining our efforts to the immediate locality where such evils exist. this, however, is by no means the case with the system of slavery. it is such a giant sin such a monstrous aggregation of iniquity so hardening to the human heart so destructive to the moral sense, and so well calculated to beget a character, in every one around it, favorable to its own continuance, that i feel not only at liberty, but abundantly justified, in appealing to the whole world to aid in its removal." but, even if i had as has been often charged labored to bring american institutions generally into disrepute, and had not confined my labors strictly within the limits of humanity and morality, i should not have been without illustrious examples to support me. driven into semi exile by civil and barbarous laws, and by a system which cannot be thought of without a shudder, i was fully justified in turning, if possible, the tide of the moral universe against the heaven daring outrage. four circumstances greatly assisted me in getting the question of american slavery before the british public. first, the mob on board the cambria, already referred to, which was a sort of national announcement of my arrival in england. secondly, the highly reprehensible course pursued by the free church of scotland,†on 18 may 1843, 474 of the 1,203 ministers of the established church of scotland seceded to form the "free protesting church of scotland," which later became simply 'the free church of scotland." this partition, known as the "the disruption," resulted from conflicts about civil authority over church matters and was led by thomas chalmers. the schism persisted until 1929, when a majority returned to the church of scotland. the remainder today constitute the united free church of scotland. cross, oxford dictionary of the christian church, 410 11. in soliciting, receiving, and retaining money in its sustentation fund for supporting the gospel in scotland, which was evidently the ill gotten gain of slaveholders and slave traders. third, the great evangelical alliance†in august 1846, 922 delegates from great britain, europe, and the united states met in london in the hope of forming an organization uniting evangelical protestants of the western hemisphere. the evangelical alliance, as this organization was called, was extremely short lived. on the ninth day of the conference the reverend j. howard hinton, a london baptist, moved that the organization exclude all slaveholders. almost immediately, members of the american delegation, led by conservative presbyterians, protested that they could not exclude such a large number of american evangelicals. no compromise could be reached before the conference adjourned and the delegates left london resolving to form separate national alliances. ernest r. sandeenk "the distinctiveness of american denominationalism: a case study of the 1846 evangelical alliance," church history, 45:222 34 (june 1976). or rather the attempt to form such an alliance, which should include slaveholders of a certain description added immensely to the interest felt in the slavery question. about the same time, there was the world's temperance convention,†douglass attended the world 's temperance convention, which met in london from 4 to 8 august 1846 at covent garden theatre, but not as an official delegate. on 7 august he nonetheless addressed the convention after "loud and repeated calls from the audience, and a very pressing invitation from the chairman." most of the english, scottish, irish, and american delegates in attendance restricted their remarks to the progress of the temperance movement, but douglass introduced the question of the american temperance movement's relationship to slavery and free blacks. many of the delegates were not pleased with the speech. the reverend edward norris kirk of boston, who followed douglass on the podium, suggested that douglass had "left an impression on the minds of those present that the temperance advocates in american had sanctioned or supported slavery." after the convention a few american temperance reformers rushed to the defense of their movement. samuel l. cox reported to the new york evangelist: "the moral scene was superb and glorious when frederick douglass the coloured abolition agitator and ultraist, came to the platform, and so spake a la mode, as to ruin the influence, almost, of all that preceded! he lugged in anti slavery . . . no doubt prompted to it by some of the politic ones, who can use him to do what they would not themselves adventure to do in person." douglass eventually responded to cox's allegations in a letter that included the full text of his covent garden speech. lib., 27 november 1846; london morning chronicle, 10 august 1846; correspondence between the rev. samuel h. cox, d.d. . . . and frederick douglass . . . (new york, 1846), 13 14; douglass, life and times, 277 79; daniel dorchester, the liquor problem in all ages (new york, 1884), 280, 330. where i had the misfortune to come in collision with sundry american doctors of divinity dr. cox†the reverend dr. samuel hanson cox (1793 1880) was born into a new jersey quaker family that traced its lineage to talbot county, maryland. cox left the society of friends in 1813 and was licensed to preach by the presbytery of new york three years later. cox joined his brother abraham l. cox on the executive committee of the american anti slavery society in 1834. he actively denounced jim crow pews and called for racial integration in the church. his tactics left him open to attack during the new york antiabolitionist riots of july 1834. he later moderated his views, and at the world's temperance convention, held in london in august 1846, cox defended the american temperance movement against charges of racial prejudice leveled by douglass. cox was accused of compromising his abolitionist principles to gain church offices after he helped block attempts to exclude slaveholders from the evangelical alliance. london morning chronicle, 10 august 1846; london national temperance chronicle and recorder, september 1846; london patriot, 17 september 1846; correspondence between the rev. samuel h. cox, d.d. . . . and frederick douglass, 5, 10; american anti slavery society, first annual report (new york, 1834), 15 16, 28 31, 61; george lewis prentiss, the union theological seminary in the city of new york (ashury park, n.j., 1899), 156 63; bertram wyatt brown, lewis tappen and the evangelical war against slavery (cleveland, 1969), 114 18; linda k. kerber, "abolitionists and amalgamators: the new york city race riots of 1834," nyh, 48:28 39 (january 1967); ncab, 7:557; dab, 4:481 82. among the number with whom i had a small controversy. it has happened to me as it has happened to most other men engaged in a good cause often to be more indebted to my enemies than to my own skill or to the assistancc of my friends, for whatever success has attended my labors. great surprise was expressed by american newspapers, north and south, during my stay in great britain, that a person so illiterate and insignificant as myself could awaken an interest so marked in england. these papers were not the only parties surprised. i was myself not far behind them in surprise. but the very contempt and scorn, the systematic and extravagant disparagement of which i was the object, served, perhaps, to magnify my few merits, and to render me of some account, whether deserving or not. a man is sometimes made great, by the greatness of the abuse a portion of mankind may think proper to heap upon him. whether i was of as much consequence as the english papers made me out to be, or not, it was easily seen, in england, that i could not he the ignorant and worthless creature, some of the american papers would have them believe i was. men, in their senses, do not take bowie knives†a long hunting knife with a double edged point and a straight blade that is single edged at the hilt, invented by colonel james bowie. to kill mosquitoes, nor pistols to shoot flies; and the american passengers who thought proper to get up a mob to silence me, on board the cambria, took the most effective method of telling the british public that i had something to say. but to the second circumstance, namely, the position of the free church of scotland, with the great doctors chalmers,†thomas chalmers (1780 1847), son of a scots merchant, was an evangelical minister and university professor who tried to combat poverty among residents of his glasgow parish a problem he described as "home heathenism" by using parish lay agents to administer poor relief. a prolific writer with a long standing interest in social economy, natural science, and moral philosophy, chalmers is best remembered for his role in the controversy over church self government and lay patronage that split the established church of scotland in the 1840s. protesting civil interference in church affairs, chalmers led the secession in 1843 of the 474 ministers who founded the free church of scotland and elected chalmers its first moderator. to provide salaries for free church clergymen, chalmers proposed to collect a penny a week from each church member. a deputation from the free church visited the united states in 1844 and returned home with approximately £3,000 contributed by american slaveholders. when abolitionists urged chalmers to return this money, chalmers defended his refusal to excommunicate slaveholders. john smith, our scottish clergy: fifty two sketches, biographical, theological, and critical, including clergymen of all denominations, 3 vols. (edinburgh, 1848), 1:149 60; william hanna, ed., memoirs of the life and writings of thomas chalmers, d.d., l.l.d., 4 vols. (edinburgh, 1852), 4:581 91; george shepperson, "the free church and american slavery," scottish historical review, 30:126 42 (october 1951); idem. ed., "notes and documents: thomas chalmers, the free church of scotland, and the south," jsh, 17:517 37 (november 1951); dnb, 3:1358 63. cunningham,†dr. william cunningham (1805 61), a graduate of the university of edinburgh and a minister of the trinity college church of the same city, early distinguished himself as one of the ablest advocates of the "nonintrusionist" point of view. in 1843 the free church sent him to the united states to explain its position to american presbyterians. in 1844, while still in the united states, he joined the free church deputation, which raised the controversial donations from american slaveholders. as late as 1847 he felt that the "send back the money'' campaign had been "an ingenious device of satan to injure the church." in 1847 he became principal of new college, where he had held a chair of theology since 1843, and in 1859 he was appointed moderator of the church's general assembly. robert rainy and james mackenzie, life of william cunningham, d.d. (london, 1871), 213 21; shepperson, "thomas chalmers, the free church, and the south," 518, 526; c. duncan rice, "scottish factor in the fight against american slavery" (ph.d. diss., university of edinburgh, 1969), 316, 393; dnb, 5:321 23. and candlish†the son of a medical teacher and a graduate of the university of glasgow, the reverend robert smith candlish (1806 73) was one of the free church's most effective publicists and administrators. candlish played a leading role in the "nonintrusion" controversy, strongly denying the right of civil courts to intervene in matters of church governance. he chaired the free church's committee on slavery, helped organize the evangelical alliance, and served as moderator of the church's general assembly in 1861. in late may 1846 at the general assembly of the free church in edinburgh, candlish defended the free church's decision to admit slaveholders to fellowship. after the "send back the money" campaign died down, candlish sharpened his criticism of american slaveholders. he was an outspoken critic of the kansas nebraska bill and defended the aims of john brown's raid. william wilson, memorial of robert smith candlish, d.d. (edinburgh, 1880), 381; shepperson, "thomas chalmers, the free church, and the south," 523 24; rice, "scottish factor," 191: dnb, 5:321 23. at its head. that church, with its leaders, put it out of the power of the scotch people to ask the old question, which we in the north have often most wickedly asked "" that church had taken the price of blood into its treasury, with which to build churches, and to pay church ministers for preaching the gospel; and, worse still, when honest john murray, of bowlien bay†scottish abolitionist john murray (? 1849) of bowling bay, near glasgow, was among the founders of the glasgow emancipation society in 1833. while working as a carpenter and builder of houses in st. kitts, where he had taken up residence to recover from a pulmonary infection, murray became an outspoken critic of slavery. upon returning to glasgow in the mid 1820s, he opened a spirit shop but abandoned the business when he became a temperance advocate. as cosecretary (1833 49) of the glasgow emancipation society, murray organized antislavery lecture series in scotland, attacked proslavery advocates in the articles that he regularly contributed to several glasgow papers, and played a major role in maintaining the glasgow emancipation society's ties with garrisonian abolitionists in the united states. a garbled text of garrison's eulogy of murray, in which garrison is mistakenly reported as having informed the meeting of "the death of a colored friend and coadjutor on the other side of the atlantic," appears in ns, 15 june 1849. james mccune smith, "john murray (of glasgow)," in autographs for freedom, ed. julia griffiths, 2 vols. (1853 54; miami, 1969), 1:62 67; lib., 1 june 1849; henry c. wright to garrison, 7 june 1849, in lib., 29 june 1849; r[ichard] d. webb to [sidney howard] gay, 8 april 1849, in nass, 24 may 1849. now gone to his reward in heaven with william smeal,†william smeal (1793 1877) was a glasgow quaker and a successful tea merchant. he was a leading member of the glasgow emancipation society and often served in its powerful position of secretary. a friend and devoted supporter of william lloyd garrison, smeal believed with garrison that abolitionism could be achieved only under a program that pursued such related reforms as peace, temperance, and women's rights with equal fervor. a strong union supporter during the civil war, smeal and andrew paton prevented some clippers bound for the confederacy from leaving glasgow. c. duncan rice, the scots abolitionists, 1833 1861 (baton rouge, 1981), 37, 41 44; temperley, british antislavery, 210 13; garrison and garrison, william lloyd garrison, 2:398, 402; 4: 67, 222 23, 283. andrew paton,†andrew paton (1805 84) was a leading member of the glasgow emancipation society in the 1840s and 1850s. a loyal friend and supporter of william lloyd garrison and his doctrine of nonresistance, paton aided numerous american abolitionists who visited scotland, including douglass, garrison, wendell phillips, and henry clarke wright. paton ardently endorsed the north during the civil war and on at least one occasion prevented a clipper built for the confederacy from leaving the glasgow docks. paton was a successful local businessman involved in the processing of malt. rice, scots abolitionists, 53, 88, 130, 135, 158, 162, 199, 213; garrison and garrison, william lloyd garrison, 3:175; 4: 67, 223, 283, 402. frederick card, and other sterling anti slavery men in glasgow, denounced the transaction as disgraceful and shocking to the religious sentiment of scotland, this church, through its leading divines, instead of repenting and seeking to mend the mistake into which it had fallen, made it a flagrant sin, by undertaking to defend, in the name of god and the bible, the principle not only of taking the money of slave dealers to build churches, but of holding fellowship with the holders and traffickers in human flesh. this, the reader will see, brought up the whole question of slavery, and opened the way to its full discussion, without any agency of mine. i have never seen a people more deeply moved than were the people of scotland, on this very question. puhlic meeting succeeded public meeting. speech after speech, pamphlet after pamphlet, editorial after editorial, sermon after sermon, soon lashed the conscientious scotch people into a perfect . "send back the money!" was indignantly cried out, from greenock†a major scottish port in the burgh of renfew, on the clyde estuary at the head of firth of clyde. seltzer, columbia lippincott gazetteer, 718. to edinburgh, and from edinburgh to aberdeen.†a small city and district making up the chief port and commercial center in northeastern scotland, aberdeen is located on the north sea, ninety five miles northeast of edinburgh. cohen, columbia gazetteer of the world, 1:4 5. george thompson, of london, henry c. wright,†abolitionist and pacifist henry clarke wright (1797 1870) was one of garrison's close associates. reared in central new york, wright served an apprenticeship as a hatmaker before studying at andover theological seminary. in 1835 he joined the american anti slavery society and served as one of theodore dwight weld's "seventy agents" until the executive board of the american anti slavery society removed him in 1837 because of his extreme opinions. at about the same time he gave up his lecturing agency in the american peace society, which was also discomfited by his radicalism, and in 1838 helped found the new england non resistance society. nonresistance, the foundation of wright's reform philosophy, proclaimed the sovereignty of individual conscience and opposed all forms of coercion, violence, and the dominion of man over man. in practice wright condoned violent resistance to slavery, though he personally eschewed violence. from 1842 to 1847 he traveled in europe, lecturing on nonresistance and abolitionism. his avowal of antisabbatarian views in scotland and his accusations (later retracted) that free churchmen were "drunkards" made douglass chary of him. "friend wright has created against himself prejudices which i as an abolitionist do not feel myself called upon to withstand,'' douglass wrote. wright later turned to spiritualism and helped organize the universal peace union in 1867. he died in pawtucket, rhode island. douglass to richard d. webb, 10 november 1845, anti slavery collection, mb; henry c. wright to douglass, 12 december 1846, in lib., 29 january 1847; henry clarke wright, human life: illustrated in my individual experience as a child, a youth, and a man (boston, 1849); idem, "my first acquaintance with garrison and anti slavery," liberty bell (boston, 1846), 148 58; peter brock, pacifism in the united states from the colonial era to the first world war (princeton, 1968), 516 18, 532 600, 926 27; perry, radical abolitionism, 18 22, 60 61, 89 90, 159, 222 29, 234 38, 262, 278 82; acab, 6:623; ncab, 2 232. of the united states, james n. buffum, of lynn, massachusetts, and myself were on the anti slavery side; and doctors chalmers, cunningham, and candlish on the other. in a conflict where the latter could have had even the show of right, the truth, in our hands as against them, must have been driven to the wall; and while i believe we were able to carry the conscience of the country against the action of the free church, the battle, it must be confessed, was a hard fought one. abler defenders of the doctrine of fellowshiping slaveholders as christians, have not been met with. in defending this doctrine, it was necessary to deny that slavery is a sin. if driven from this position, they were compelled to deny that slaveholders were responsihle for the sin; and if driven from both these positions, they must deny that it is a sin in such a sense, and that slaveholders are sinners in such a sense, as to make it wrong, in the circumstances in which they were placed, to recognize them as christians. dr. cunningham was the most powerful debater on the slavery side of the question; mr. thompson was the ablest on the anti slavery side. a scene occurred between these two men, a parallel to which i think i never witnessed before, and i know i never have since. the scene was caused by a single exclamation on the part of mr. thompson. the general assembly of the free church was in progress at cannon mills, edinburgh. the building would hold about twenty five hundred persons; and on this occasion it was densely packed, notice having been given that doctors cunningham and candlish would speak, that day, in defense of the relations of the free church of scotland to slavery in america. messrs. thompson, buffum, myself, and a few anti slavery friends, attended, but sat at such a distance, and in such a position, that, perhaps, we were not observed from the platform. the excitement was intense, having been greatly increased by a series of meetings held by messrs. thompson, wright, buffum, and myself, in the most splendid hall in that most beautiful city, just previous to the meetings of the general assembly. "send back the money," stared at us from every street corner; "send back the money," in large capitals, adorned the broad flags of the pavement; "send back the money," was the chorus of the popular street songs; "send back the money," was the heading of leading editorials in the daily newspapers. this day, at cannon mills,†douglass is referring to tanfield hall, the assembly hall of the free church of scotland, which was in a section of edinburgh known as "canonmills." theo lang, ed., edinburgh and the lothians (london, 1952), 59; stewart j. brown, thomas chalmers and the godly commonwealth in scotland (london, 1982), 334. the great doctors of the church were to give an answer to this loud and stern demand. men of all parties and all sects were most eager to hear. something great was expected. the occasion was great, the men great, and great speeches were expected from them. in addition to the outside pressure upon doctors cunningham and candlish, there was wavering in their own ranks. the conscience of the church itself was not at ease.†textual note: the copy text's omission of "at" was corrected in the 1855 printing. emendation note: at ease] a2 5: ease a dissatisfaction with the position of the church touching slavery, was sensibly manifest among the members, and something must he done to counteract this untoward influence. the great dr. chalmers was in feeble health, at the time. his most potent eloquence could not now be summoned to cannon mills, as formerly. he whose voice was able to rend asunder and dash down the granite walls of the established church of scotland, and to lead a host in solemn procession from it, as from a doomed city, was now old and enfeebled. besides, he had said his word on this very question; and his word had not silenced the clamor without, nor stilled the anxious heavings within. the occasion was momentous, and felt to be so. the church was in a perilous condition. a change of some sort must take place in her condition, or she must go to pieces. to stand where she did, was impossible. the whole weight of the matter fell on cunningham and candlish. no shoulders in the church were broader than theirs; and i must say, badly as i detest the principles laid down and defended by them, i was compelled to acknowledge the vast mental endowments of the men. cunningham rose; and his rising was the signal for almost tumultuous†emendation note: tumultuous] tumultous applause. you will say this was scarcely in keeping with the solemnity of the occasion, but to me it served to increase its grandeur and gravity. the applause, though tumultuous, was not joyous. it seemed to me, as it thundered up from the vast audience, like the fall of an immense shaft, flung from shoulders already galled by its crushing weight. it was like saying, "doctor, we have borne this burden long enough, and willingly fling it upon you. since it was you who brought it upon us, take it now, and do what you will with it, for we are too weary to bear it."†emendation note: it."] doctor cunningham proceeded with his speech, abounding in logic, learning, and eloquence, and apparently bearing down all opposition; but at the moment the fatal moment when he was just bringing all his arguments to a point, and that point being, that neither jesus christ nor his holy apostles regarded slaveholding as a sin, george thompson, in a clear, sonorous, but rebuking voice, broke the deep stillness of the audience, exclaiming, "hear! hear! hear!" the effect of this simple and common exclamation is almost incredible. it was as if a granite wall had been suddenly flung up against the advancing current of a mighty river. for a moment, speaker and audience were brought to a dead silence. both the doctor and his hearers seemed appalled by the audacity, as well as the fitness of the rebuke. at length a shout went up to the cry of "" happily, no one attempted to execute this cowardly order, and the doctor proceeded with his discourse. not, however, as before, did the learned doctor proceed. the exclamation of thompson must have reechoed itself a thousand times in his memory, during the remainder of his speech, for the doctor never recovered from the blow. the deed was done, however; the pillars of the church   were committed, and the humility of repentance was absent. the free church held on to the blood stained money, and continued to justify itself in its position and of course to apologize for slavery and does so till this day. she lost a glorious opportunity for giving her voice, her vote, and her example to the cause of humanity; and to day she is staggering under the curse of the enslaved, whose blood is in her skirts. the people of scotland are, to this day, deeply grieved at the course pursued by the free church, and would hail, as a relief from a deep and blighting shame, the "sending back the money" to the slaveholders from whom it was gathered. one good result followed the conduct of the free church; it furnished an occasion for making the people of scotland thoroughly acquainted with the character of slavery, and for arraying against the system the moral and religious sentiment of that country. therefore, while we did not succeed in accomplishing the specific object of our mission, namely procure the sending back of the money we were amply justified by the good which really did result from our labors. next comes the evangelical alliance. this was an attempt to form a union of all evangelical christians throughout the world. sixty or seventy american divines attended, and some of them went there merely to weave a world wide garment with which to clothe evangelical slaveholders. foremost among these divines, was the rev. samuel hanson cox, moderator of the new school presbyterian general assembly.†the predominantly scotch irish presbyterians in the united states created a national religious organization soon after the revolution. although many staunchly calvinistic presbyterians were cool toward the more enthusiastic forms of revivalism, a "new school" embraced them and closely cooperated with the interdenominational evangelical benevolent movement of the early nineteenth century. many new schoolers also proved sympathetic to the era's moralistically defined abolitionist arguments. the combined quarrels among presbyterians over theological and antislavery issues led to the expulsion of the new school minority from the denomination in 1837. the new school presbyterians organized their own triennial general assembly and functioned as a separate denomination until 1869. thanks to the resistance of conservative leaders such as the reverend samuel h. cox, the new school presbyterians did not adopt a strict antislavery discipline until after the secession of the denomination's southern members in 1857. sydney e. ahlstrom, a religious history of the american people, 2 vols, (new haven, 1975), 2:105 06; kenneth scott latourette, a history of christianity (new york, 1953), 1230 33; mckivigan, war against proslavery religion, 45, 82 83, 125, 167 70, 178 80. he and his friends spared no pains to secure a platform broad enough to hold american slaveholders, and in this they partly succeeded. but the question of slavery is too large a question to be finally disposed of, even by the evangelical alliance. we appealed from the judgment of the alliance, to the judgment of the people of great britain, and with the happiest effect. this controversy with the alliance might be made the subject of extended remark, but i must forbear, except to say, that this effort to shield the christian character of slaveholders greatly served to open a way to the british ear for anti slavery discussion, and that it was well improved. the fourth and last circumstance that assisted me in getting before the british public, was an attempt on the part of certain doctors of divinity to silence me on the platform of the world's temperance convention. here i was brought into point blank collision with rev. dr. cox, who made me the subject not only of bitter remark in the convention, but also of a long denunciatory letter published in the new york evangelist†the new york evangelist was a presbyterian weekly devoted to missionary work, revivalism, and social reforms such as temperance and antislavery. it was published in new york city from 1830 to 1902. in the mid 1840s it was edited by two presbyterian ministers, george b. cheever and w. h. bidwell. in a letter dated 6 august 1846, samuel h. cox called douglass an "abolition agitator and ultraist" and claimed the speech that douglass gave before the world temperance convention had been offensive to the american delegation to that gathering. according to cox, douglass "allowed himself to denounce america and all of its temperance societies together, as a grinding community of enemies of his people" because they did not necessarily endorse radical abolitionism. "letter from dr. cox," new york evangelist, 10 september 1846. and other american papers. i replied to the doctor as well as i could, and was successful in getting a respectful hearing before the british public, who are by nature and practice ardent lovers of fair†textual note: the compositorial omission that turned douglass's "fair play" into the contextually nonsensical "air play" was corrected in the 1855 printing. emendation note: fair] a2 5; air play, especially in a conflict between the weak and the strong. thus did circumstances favor me, and favor the cause of which i strove to be the advocate. after such distinguished notice, the public in both countries was compelled to attach some importance to my labors. by the very ill usage i received at the hands of dr. cox and his party, by the mob on board the cambria, by the attacks made upon me in the american newspapers, and by the aspersions cast upon me through the organs of the free church of scotland, i became one of that class of men, who, for the moment, at least, "have greatness forced upon them."†twelfth night, act 2, sc. 5, line 158. people became the more anxious to hear for themselves, and to judge for themselves, of the truth which i had to unfold. while, therefore, it is by no means easy for a stranger to get fairly before the british public, it was my lot to accomplish it in the easiest manner possible. having continued in great britain and ireland nearly two years, and being about to return to america not as i left it, a slave, but a freeman leading friends of the cause of emancipation in that country intimated their intention to make me a testimonial, not only on grounds of personal regard to myself, but also to the cause to which they were so ardently devoted. how far any such thing could have succeeded, i do not know; but many reasons led me to prefer that my friends should simply give me the means of obtaining a printing press and printing materials, to enable me to start a paper, devoted to the interests of my enslaved and oppressed people. i told them that perhaps the greatest hindrance†hindrance] hinderance to the adoption of abolition principles by the people of the united states, was the low estimate, everywhere in that country, placed upon the negro, as a man; that because of his assumed natural inferiority, people reconciled themselves to his enslavement and oppression, as things inevitable, if not desirable. the grand thing to be done, therefore, was to change the estimation in which the colored people of the united states were held; to remove the prejudice which depreciated and depressed them; to prove them worthy of a higher consideration; to disprove their alleged inferiority, and demonstrate their capacity for a more exalted civilization than slavery and prejudice had assigned to them. i further stated, that, in my judgment, a tolerably, well conducted press, in the hands of persons of the despised race, by calling out the mental energies of the race itself; by making them acquainted with their own latent powers; by enkindling among them the hope that for them there is a future; by deve1oping their moral power; by combining and retlecting their talents would prove a most powerful means of removing prejudice, and of awakening an interest in them. i further informed them and at that time the statement was true that there was not, in the united states, a single newspaper regularly published by the colored people;†douglass was mistaken. in 1847 martin delany's weekly newspaper, the mystery, was still being published in pittsburgh. the mystery first appeared in 1843 and was the first black newspaper to appear west of the alleghenies. in january 1848 the african methodist episcopal church bought the paper out, renamed it the christian recorder, and moved it to philadelphia, where it operated as the official organ of the a.m.e. church until 1860. the ram's horn, published in new york city by thomas van renssenlear, also was still in publication when douglass began the north star. it failed in july 1848. hutton, early black press, 16 17, 165 66; ripley, black abolitionist papers, 3:483, 4:128. that many attempts had been made to establish such papers; but that, up to that time, they had all failed. these views i laid before my friends. the result was, nearly two thousand five hundred dollars were speedily raised†biographer william mcfeely estimates that douglass returned from great britain with more than four thousand dollars to begin the north star. douglass had gathered promises from friends overseas, including isabel jennings of cork, maria webb of dublin, the richardson family in newcastle upon tyne, and the reverend r. l. carpenter of halifax, that they would solicit subscriptions to the new paper from those who had heard douglass speak. mcfeely, frederick douglass, 150. toward starting my paper. for this prompt and generous assistance, rendered upon my bare suggestion, without any personal efforts on my part, i shall never cease to feel deeply grateful; and the thought of fulfilling the noble expectations of the dear friends who gave me this evidence of their confidence, will never cease to be a motive for persevering exertion. proposing to leave england, and turning my face toward america, in the spring of 1847,†douglass left liverpool aboard the cambria on 4 april 1847 and landed in boston on 20 april 1847. liverpool mercury, 6 april 1847; manchester guardian, 7 april 1847; lib., 23 april 1847. i was met, on the threshold, with something which painfully reminded me of the kind of life which awaited me in my native land. for the first time in the many months spent abroad, i was met with proscription on account of my color. a few weeks before departing from england, while in london, i was careful to purchase a ticket, and secure a berth for returning home, in the cambria the steamer in which i left the united states paying therefor the round sum of forty pounds and nineteen shillings sterling. this was first cabin fare. but on going aboard the cambria, i found that the liverpool agent had ordered my berth to be given to another, and had forbidden my entering the saloon! this contemptible conduct met with stern rebuke from the british press.†douglass had been denied first class passage aboard the cambria during his initial voyage in 1845, and when he booked passage for his return in the spring of 1847, he voluntarily sought second class accommodations as an economy measure. however, an agent of the cunard line informed him that second class passage was no longer offered, so douglass paid the flat rate of £40 19s. required of all passengers and received a ticket for a berth 72 aboard the cambria. douglass claimed that, when paying the fare, he specifically asked whether "my color would prove any barrier to my enjoying all the rights and privilege enjoyed by other passengers" and that the ticket agent responded, "no." when he boarded the ship on the morning of 3 april, douglass learned that his berth had been assigned to another passenger. captain charles h. e. judkins, who had befriended douglass on the 1845 voyage, accompanied douglass to the cunard line's liverpool office, where officials informed him that the london agent had acted without authority in selling douglass the original ticket. douglass reluctantly made a bargain, agreeing to give up his berth, to dine alone, and to make no attempt to mix with the "saloon company." in return he was assigned the choice quarters recently occupied by the governor general of canada. douglass charged that charles mciver, the company's liverpool agent, and samuel cunard in particular, proposed this arrangement, but mciver claimed that douglass had agreed to the plan before coming to talk with him. mciver nevertheless noted that the cunard line was "not a reformatory society," and argued that douglass's forced isolation was necessary in order to prevent a recurrence of the "serious disturbances" ignited by douglass's speech on the cambria in 1845. the voyage to boston passed uneventfully. douglass remained in the designated portion of the ship, contenting himself with visits from sympathetic passengers and willingly shunning "a band of wild, uproarious, gambling tipplers" who frequently gave vent to "foul mouthed utterances" on the upper decks. douglass's acquiescence to segregation in 1847 provoked more public discussion than had his stormy confrontations with proslavery cambria passengers twenty months earlier. garrison gave over eleven columns of the liberator of 14 may 1847 to extracts from the british press condemning douglass's treatment. douglass to the editor, 3 april 1847, london times, 6 april 1847; charles mciver to the editor, 12 april 1847, london times, 13 april 1847; william bevan to the editor of the liverpool mercury, n.d., lib., 14 may 1847; douglass to garrison, 21 april 1847; douglass to [anna] richardson, 29 april 1847, both in newcastle upon tyne christian, 3 518 22 (1 june 1847); douglass to "my dear friend," 29 april 1847, british friend, 5 116 17 (may 1847); london times, 8 april 1847; henry fry, north american steam navigation, 56 57. for, upon the point of leaving england, i took occasion to expose the disgusting tyranny, in the columns of the london times.†douglass's letter to the editor of the london times describing his problems securing a berth aboard the cambria was intended to "lay these facts before" the british public so that it might "pronounce a just verdict on such proceedings." the letter first appeared in the london times on 6 april 1847 and was widely reprinted in both great britain and the united states. "i have traveled in this country nineteen months, and have always enjoyed equal rights and privilege with other passengers," douglass wrote, "and it was not until i turned my face towards america, that i met with anything like proscription on account of my colour." the times responded favorably to douglass's plea for justice. in additionto labeling the cunard line's actions "ignorant and contemptible," the editors agued, "common decency should have taught the agents of the cambria not to offend our notions of justice and common sense for the sake of truckling to an unworthy prejudice of our transatlantic neighbors." london times, 6 april 1847; bristol mercury and western counties advertiser, 10 april 1847; bristol gazette, 8 april 1847; london patent, 8 april 1847; nass, 13 may 1847. that journal, and other leading journals throughout the united kingdom, held up the outrage to unmitigated condemnation. so good an opportunity for calling out a full expression of british sentiment on the subject, had not before occurred, and it was most fully embraced. the result was, that mr. cunard came out in a letter to the public journals,†samuel cunard (1787 1865) was born in halifax, nova scotia, and began his career as a merchant involved in the whaling trade. in the early 1830s, spurred by the british government's call for an advance in shipping to expedite the movement of mail in the north atlantic between england, canada, and the united states, cunard envisioned a line of the recently developed steam driven ships to move between these points. securing additional capital from two scottish investors, cunard established the british and north american royal mail steam packet company and initiated the building of some of the world's largest steam driven ships. the first voyage was successfully completed in june 1840. over the ensuing years, cunard had more than ten more ships built. in the 1840s the cunard ships were an important means of transporting immigrants to north america and carrying american visitors to europe. hilda kay grant, samuel cunard, pioneer of the atlantic steamship (london, 1967); t[homas] w[illiam] e[dgar] roche, samuel cunard and the north atlantic (london, 1971); babcock, spanning the atlantic, 1 135; dnb, 5 300. assuring them of his regret at the outrage, and promising that the like should never occur again on board his steamers; and the like, we believe, have never since occurred on board the steam ships of the cunard line. it is not very pleasant to be made the subject of such insults; but if all such necessarily resulted as this one did, i should be very happy to bear, patiently, many more than i have borne, of the same sort. albeit, the lash of proscription, to a man accustomed to equal social position, even for a time, as i was, has a sting for the soul hardly less severe than that which bites the flesh and draws the blood from the back of the plantation slave. it was rather hard, after having enjoyed nearly two years of equal social privileges in england, often dining with gentlemen of great literary, social, political, and religious eminence never, during the whole time, having met with a single word, look, or gesture, which gave me the slightest reason to think my color was an offense to anybody now to be cooped up in the stern of the cambria, and denied the right to enter the saloon, lest my dark presence should be deemed an offense to some of my democratic fellow passengers. the reader will easily imagine what must have been my feelings. chapter xxv. various incidents. newspaper enterprise unexpected opposition the objections to it their plausibility admitted motives for coming to rochester disciple of mr. garrison change of opinion causes leading to it the consequences of the change prejudice against color amusing condescension "jim crow cars" collisions with conductors and brakemen trains ordered not to stop at lynn amusing domestic scene separate tables for master and man prejudice unnatural illustrations the author in high company elevation of the free people of color pledge for the future i have now given the reader an imperfect sketch of nine years' experience in freedom three years as a common laborer on the wharves of new bedford, four years as a lecturer in new england, and two years of semi exile in great britain and ireland. a single ray of light remains to be flung upon my life during the last eight years, and my story will be done. a trial awaited me on my return from england to the united states, for which i was but very imperfectly prepared. my plans for my then future usefulness as an anti slavery advocate were all settled. my friends in england had resolved to raise a given sum to purchase for me a press and printing materials; and i already saw myself wielding my pen, as well as my voice, in the great work of renovating the public mind, and building up a public sentiment which should, at least, send slavery and oppression to the grave, and restore to "liberty and the pursuit of happiness"†a paraphrase of the declaration of independence: "certain inalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." the people with whom i had suffered, both as a slave and as a freeman. intimation had reached my friends in boston of what i intended to do, before my arrival, and i was prepared to find them favorably disposed toward my much cherished enterprise. in this i was mistaken. i found them very earnestly opposed to the idea of my starting a paper, and for several reasons. first, the paper was not needed; secondly, it would interfere with my usefulness as a lecturer; thirdly, i was better fitted to speak than to write; fourthly, the paper could not succeed. this opposition, from a quarter so highly esteemed, and to which i had been accustomed to look for advice and direction, caused me not only to hesitate, but inclined me to abandon the enterprise. all previous attempts to establish such a journal having failed, i felt that probably i should but add another to the list of failures, and thus contribute another proof of the mental and moral deficiencies of my race. very much that was said to me in respect to my imperfect literary acquirements. i felt to be most painfully true. the unsuccessful projectors of all the previous colored newspapers were my superiors in point of education, and if they failed, how could i hope for success? yet i did hope for success, and persisted in the undertaking. some of my english friends greatly encouraged me to go forward,†douglass's british colleagues were enthusiastic supporters of his plans to publish an antislavery newspaper. fundraising campaigns in england collected $2,175, and solicitations from other areas of britain brought the total contribution of his overseas friends to more than $4,000. one fundraising campaign specifically aimed to purchase a steam powered printing press for the venture. another hoped that their efforts would allow douglass to "return home with a sum in his pocket which will secure to him and his family a comfortable and handsome support for the future." quarles, frederick douglass, 80; mcfeely, frederick douglass, 150; nass, 1 april, 10 june 1847. and i shall never cease to be grateful for their words of cheer and generous deeds. it is not to he concealed, however, that the maintenance of such a journal, under the circumstances, has been a work of much difficulty; and could all the perplexity, anxiety, and trouble attending it, have been clearly foreseen, i might have shrunk from the undertaking. as it is, i rejoice in having engaged in the enterprise, and count it joy to have been able to suffer, in many ways, for its success, and for the success of the cause to which it has heen faithfully devoted. i look upon the time, money, and labor bestowed upon it, as being amply rewarded, in the development of my own mental and moral energies, and in the corresponding development of my deeply injured and oppressed people. from motives of peace, instead of issuing my paper in boston, among my new england friends, i came to rochester, western new york,†douglass and his family moved from lynn, massachusetts, to rochester, new york, on 1 november 1847. quarles, frederick douglass, 70. among strangers, where the circulation of my paper could not interfere with the local circulation of the liberator and the standard; for at that time i was, on the anti slavery question, a faithful disciple of william lloyd garrison, and fully committed to his doctrine touching the pro slavery character of the constitution of the united states, and the , of which he is the known and distinguished advocate. with mr. garrison. i held it to be the first duty of the non slaveholding states to dissolve the union with the slaveholding states; and hence my cry, like his, was, "no union with slaveholders." with these views, i came into western new york; and during the first four years of my labor here, i advocated them with pen and tongue, according to the best of my ability. about four years ago, upon a reconsideration of the whole subject, i became convinced that there was no necessity for dissolving the "union between the northern and southern states;"†through the late 1840s, douglass's views on the constitution coincided with the garrisonian belief that the u.s. constitution supported proslavery interests. in a march 1849 editorial in the north star, douglass outlined his position and concluded that the constitution was "radically and essentially pro slavery." following his move to rochester and close association with political abolitionists such as gerrit smith, douglass reevaluated his position on the constitution. douglass came to believe that those sections that excluded the sanction of "property in man" offered evidence that the founding fathers had in fact viewed slavery as evil and even planned for its eventual abolition. he also observed that those clauses that the garrisonians and slaveholders used to justify the proslavery nature of the document did not explicitly mention slavery. coming to a more literal interpretation as held by political abolitionists, by 1851 douglass began to interpret those clauses dealing with the basic freedoms as expressly antislavery statements. his political abolitionist colleagues praised the change and congratulated him "upon the change of sentiment" he now expressed. gerrit smith even remarked that "i have observed for years, that you were coming to this conclusion." gerrit smith to douglass, asb, 2 august 1851; bob markle to douglass, ns, 28 august 1851; ns, 16 march 1849; fdp, 24 july 1851; martin, mind of frederick douglass, 31, 37 38. that to seek this dissolution was no part of my duty as an abolitionist; that to abstain from voting, was to refuse to exercise a legitimate and powerful means for abolishing slavery; and that the constitution of the united states not only contained no guarantees in favor of slavery, but, on the contrary, it is, in its letter and spirit, an anti slavery instrument, demanding the abolition of slavery as a condition of its own existence, as the supreme law of the land. here was a radical change in my opinions, and in the action logically resulting from that change. to those with whom i had been in agreement and in sympathy, i was now in opposition. what they held to he a great and important truth, i now looked upon as a dangerous error. a very painful, and yet a very natural, thing now happened. those who could not see any honest reasons for changing their views, as i had done, could not easily see any such reasons for my change, and the common punishment of apostates was mine. the opinions first entertained were naturally derived and honestly entertained, and i trust that my present opinions have the same claims to respect. brought directly, when i escaped from slavery, into contact with a class of abolitionists regarding the constitution as a slaveholding instrument, and finding their views supported by the united and entire history of every department of the government, it is not strange that i assumed the constitution to be just what their interpretation made it. i was bound, not only by their superior knowledge, to take their opinions as the true ones, in respect to the subject, but also because i had no means of showing their unsoundness. but for the responsibility of conducting a public journal, and the necessity imposed upon me of meeting opposite views from abolitionists in this state, i should in all probability have remained as firm in my disunion views as any other disciple of william lloyd garrison. my new circumstances compelled me to re think the whole subject, and to study, with some care, not only the just and proper rules of legal interpretation, but the origin, design, nature, rights, powers, and duties of civil government, and also the relations which human beings sustain to it. by such a course of thought and reading, i was conducted to the conclusion that the constitution of the united states inaugurated "to form a more perfect union, establish justice, insure domestic tranquillity, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liherty" could not well have been designed at the same time to maintain and perpetuate a system of rapine and murder like slavery; especially, as not one word can be found in the constitution to authorize such a belief. then, again, if the declared purposes of an instrument are to govern the meaning of all its parts and details, as they clearly should, the constitution of our country is our warrant for the abolition of slavery in every state in the american union. i mean, however, not to argue, but simply to state my views. it would require very many pages of a volume like this, to set forth the arguments demonstrating the unconstitutionality and the complete illegality of slavery in our land; and as my experience, and not my arguments, is within the scope and contemplation of this volume, i omit the latter and proceed with the former. i will now ask the kind reader to go back a little in my story, while i bring up a thread left behind for convenience sake, but which, small as it is, cannot be properly omitted altogether; and that thread is american prejudice against color, and its varied illustrations in my own experience. when i first went among the abolitionists of new england. and began to travel, i found this prejudice very strong and very annoying. the abolitionists themselves were not entirely free from it, and i could see that they were nobly struggling against it. in their eagerness, sometimes, to show their contempt for the feeling, they proved that they had not entirely recovered from it; often illustrating the saying, in their conduct, that a man may "stand up so straight as to lean backward." when it was said to me. "mr. douglass, i will walk to meeting with you; i am not afraid of a black man." i could not help thinking seeing nothing very frightful in my appearance "and why should you be?" the children at the north had all been educated to believe that if they were bad, the old black man not the old  would get them; and it was evidence of some courage, for any so educated to get the better of their fears. the custom of providing separate cars for the accommodation of colored travelers, was established on nearly all the railroads of new england, a dozen years ago. regarding this custom as fostering the spirit of caste, i made it a rule to seat myself in the cars for the accommodation of passengers generally. thus seated, i was sure to be called upon to betake myself to the "."†the term jim crow derives from the refrain of a popular nineteenth century plantation song, "wheel about and turn about and jump jim crow." the term refers to a stage presentation of a song and dance first performed by thomas d. rice and later used in minstrel shows. a "jim crow car" was a railroad car for the exclusive use of african americans, and seems to have first been used in massachusetts in 1841. mathews, dictionary of americanisms, 1: 907. refusing to obey, i was often dragged out of my seat, beaten, and severely bruised, by conductors and brakemen. attempting to start from lynn, one day, for newburyport,† the city of newburyport is located on the merrimack river in essex county in northeastern massachusetts. in the nineteenth century it was a shipping, whaling, and shipbuilding center. seltzer, columbia lippincott gazetteer, 1307. on the eastern railroad,†the eastern railroad extended from east boston through the massachusetts towns of lynn, salem, and newburyport, connecting with the portland, saco, and portsmouth railroad at portsmouth, new hampshire. in 1842 the line merged with the larger boston and maine railroad. george pierce baker, the formation of the new england railroad systems: a study of railroad combination in the nineteenth century (cambridge, mass., 1937), 147 49. i went, as my custom was, into one of the best railroad carriages on the road. the seats were very luxuriant and beautiful. i was soon waited upon by the conductor, and ordered out; whereupon i demanded the reason for my invidious removal. after a good deal of parleying, i was told that it was because i was black. this i denied, and appealed to the company to sustain my denial; but they were evidently unwilling to commit themselves, on a point so delicate, and requiring such nice powers of discrimination, for they remained as dumb as death. i was soon waited on by half a dozen fellows of the baser sort, (just such as would volunteer to take a hull dog out of a meetinghouse in time of public worship,) and told that i must move out of that seat, and if i did not, they would drag me out. i refused to move, and they clutched me, head, neck, and shoulders. but, in anticipation of the stretching to which i was about to be subjected, i had interwoven myself among the seats. in dragging me out, on this occasion, it must have cost the company twenty five or thirty dollars, for i tore up seats and all.†the incident douglass describes was a combination of two events. the first took place on 8 september 1841 as he traveled to an antislavery meeting in dover, new hampshire, with john a. collins, the general agent of the massachusetts anti slavery society. according to one report, douglass was forcibly moved to the segregated "jim crow" car, designated for african american passengers. later the same month douglass challenged the segregated policy of the eastern railroad at lynn, massachusetts, and, when asked to move to the segregated car, he refused, holding tightly to the bench seat. the incident led to outrage among the citizens of lynn and a call to boycott the eastern railroad. dover (n.h.) morning star, 15 september 1841; lynn record, 29 september, 6, 27 october 1841; mcfeely, frederick douglass, 92 93. so great was the excitement in lynn, on the subject, that the superintendent, mr. stephen a. chase,† stephen a. chase was superintendent of the eastern railroad. though a quaker, he had a reputation for enforcing segregation policies on the railroad. mabee, black freedom, 120. ordered the trains to run through lynn without stopping, while i remained in that town; and this ridiculous farce was enacted. for several days the trains went dashing through lynn without stopping. at the same time that they excluded a free colored man from their cars, this same company allowed slaves, in company with their masters and mistresses, to ride unmolested. after many battles with the railroad conductors, and being roughly handled in not a few instances, proscription was at last abandoned; and the "jim crow car" set up for the degradation of colored people is nowhere found in new england.†massachusetts became notorious for the segregation policies of its railroad lines, steamboats, and stagecoaches in the early nineteenth century. in the late 1830s and early 1840s black passengers staged numerous protests against separate accommodations, particularly on massachusetts railroads. the protest douglass waged in refusing to move to the segregated car was a common tactic used by blacks and their supporters. another movement to end discrimination led blacks to attempt to secure court injunctions against individual companies that enforced segregation policies. when those efforts largely failed, abolitionists urged a boycott of segregated lines and instituted a flood of petitions to the state legislature. in 1842 this pressure paid off, and a joint committee of the massachusetts legislature was appointed to look into the problem. hearings determined that the policies of the railroads violated black rights and conflicted with the state constitution. the committee proposed a bill prohibiting discrimination in accommodation on public conveyances, and although it failed to become law, continued pressure from abolitionists and changing public opinion forced most companies to abandon segregation in the early 1840s. james oliver horton and lois e. horton, black bostonians: family life and community struggle in the antebellum north (new york, 1979), 67 70; litwack, north of slavery, 106 08. this result was not brought about without the intervention of the people, and the threatened enactment of a law compelling railroad companies to respect the rights of travelers. hon. charles francis adams†hon. charles francis adams] the third son of john quincy and louisa catherine adams. charles francis adams (1807 86) was born in boston but spent much of his childhood in st. petersburg, russia, where his father was the u.s. ambassador. adams graduated from harvard college in 1825 and studied law in the office of daniel webster. entering state politics, he served in the massachusetts house (1841 43) and senate (1844 45). in 1845 adams assumed the editorship of the boston whig, and three years later, as a result of his role in launching the free soil party, received its nomination as martin van buren's vice presidential running mate. adams served a term in congress (1859 61) as a republican before accepting an appointment from president abraham lincoln as u.s. ambassador to the court of st. james. returning from his diplomatic post in may 1868. adams retired from public life to edit the papers of his father and grandfather. martin duberman, charles francis adams, 1807 1886 (stanford, calif., 1968); ncab, 8:351 53; dab, 1:48 52. performed signal service in the massachusetts legislature, in bringing about this reformation; and to him the colored citizens of that state are deeply indebted. although often annoyed, and sometimes outraged, by this prejudice against color, i am indebted to it for many passages of quiet amusement. a half cured subject of it is sometimes driven into awkward straits, if he happens to get a genuine specimen of the race into his house. in the summer of 1843, i was traveling and lecturing, in company with william a. white, esq., through the state of indiana. anti slavery friends were not very abundant in indiana,†the antislavery movement developed slowly in indiana. in 1838 a state antislavery society was organized in wayne county, and several local societies formed as well. indiana antislavery societies were linked with various church denominations, especially the quakers. support for the abolition movement led to divisions within many indiana churches, including the quakers, who split over the issue of memher involvement in antislavery societies that operated outside that religious group. political abolitionism and support for the antiextension movement also evolved slowly in indiana. in the state election of 1842 the liberty party gained only nine hundred votes, but that figure rose steadily throughout the decade. the indiana freeman, an antislavery newspaper supporting the liberty party, was published in indianapolis in the 1840s, and the cause of antiextension gained broad support once the free soil party was formed. in the 1848 presidential election, the antiextension free soil party claimed eight thousand votes in the state. emma lou thornbrough, indiana in the civil war era, 1850 1880 (indianapolis, 1965), 19 23; etta reeves french, "stephen s. harding: a hoosier abolitionist," indiana magazine of history, 27:220 22 (march 1931). at that time, and beds were not more plentiful than friends. we often slept out, in preference to sleeping in the houses, at some points. at the close of one of our meetings, we were invited home with a kindly disposed old farmer, who, in the generous enthusiasm of the moment, seemed to have forgotten that he had but one spare bed, and that his guests were an ill matched pair. all went on pretty well, till near bed time, when signs of uneasiness began to show themselves. among the unsophisticated sons and daughters. white is remarkably fine looking, and very evidently a born gentleman; the idea of putting us in the same bed was hardly to be tolerated; and yet, there we were, and but the one bed for us, and that, by the way, was in the same room occupied by the other members of the family. white, as well as i, perceived the difficulty, for yonder slept the old folks, there the sons, and a little farther along slept the daughters; and but one other bed remained. who should have this bed, was the puzzling question. there was some whispering between the old folks, some confused looks among the young, as the time for going to bed approached. after witnessing the confusion as long as i liked, i relieved the kindly disposed family by playfully saying, "friend white, having got entirely rid of my prejudice against color, i think, as a proof of it, i must allow you to sleep with me to night." white kept up the joke, by seeming to esteem himself the favored party, and thus the difficulty was removed. if we went to a hotel, and called for dinner, the landlord was sure to set one table for white and another for me, always taking him to be master, and me the servant. large eyes were generally made when the order was given to remove the dishes from my table to that of white's. in those days, it was thought strange that a white man and a colored man could dine peaceably at the same table, and in some parts the strangeness of such a sight has not entirely subsided. some people will have it that there is a natural, an inherent, and an invincible repugnance in the breast of the white race toward dark colored people; and some very intelligent colored men think that their proscription is owing solely to the color which nature has given them. they hold that they are rated according to their color, and that it is impossible for white people ever to look upon dark races of men, or men belonging to the african race, with other than feelings of aversion. my experience, both serious and mirthful, combats this conclusion. leaving out of sight, for a moment, grave facts, to this point, i will state one or two, which illustrate a very interesting feature of american character as well as american prejudice. riding from boston to albany, a few years ago, i found myself in a large car, well filled with passengers. the seat next to me was about the only vacant one. at every stopping place we took in new passengers, all of whom, on reaching the seat next to me, cast a disdainful glance upon it, and passed to another car, leaving me in the full enjoyment of a whole form. for a time, i did not know but that my riding there was prejudicial to the interest of the railroad company. a circumstance occurred, however, which gave me an elevated position at once. among the passengers on this train was gov. george n. briggs.†george nixon briggs (1796 1861), attorney and politician, was massachusetts governor from 1851 to 1855. a prominent whig, briggs was known to be conservative on the slavery issue. he opposed the mexican war as an attempt to extend slavery, but complied with the federal government's request to supply troops from massachusetts. this action led some abolitionists, including wendell phillips, to condemn briggs as a traitor to antislavery principles. briggs was active in a number of reform minded organizations, and at various times after 1846 he served as president of the american baptist missionary union, the american tract society, and the american temperance union. after his retirement as governor in 1851, briggs practiced law with his son, was a delegate to the 1853 massachusetts constitutional convention, and was appointed a judge of the court of common pleas. anb, 3:539 41. i was not acquainted with him, and had no idea that i was known to him. known to him, however, i was, for upon observing me, the governor left his place, and making his way toward me, respectfully asked the privilege of a seat by my side; and upon introducing himself, we entered into a conversation very pleasant and instructive to me. the despised seat now became honored. his excellency had removed all the prejudice against sitting by the side of a negro; and upon his leaving it, as he did, on reaching pittsfield,†pittsfield is a small town in merrimack county, new hampshire, located approximately twelve miles cast northeast of concord, cohen, columbia gazetteer of the world, 3:2450. there were at least one dozen applicants for the place. the governor had, without changing my skin a single shade, made the place respectable which before was despicable. a similar incident happened to me once on the boston and new bedford railroad,†this is probably the new bedford railroad. the first branch of this line opened in july 1840 and extended from new bedford to taunton, where it connected with another short branch between taunton and mansfield that was in operation as early as 1836. the taunton branch railroad originally formed an independent branch of the boston and providence railroad, giving it a connection to boston. baker, formation of the new england railroad systems, 36 37. and the leading party to it has since been governor of the state of massachusetts. i allude to col. john henry clifford.†john henry clifford (1809 76) was born in providence, rhode island, and graduated from brown university in 1827. after reading law in the new bedford, massachusetts, office of timothy coffin, clifford was admitted to the bar in 1830 and began practicing there. he soon established an extensive business. in 1835 he was elected to the state legislature and became closely associated with governor edward everett. in 1839 the governor appointed him district attorney for southern massachusetts, where he remained until elevated to attorney general in 1849. in 1853 and 1854 he served as governor from the whig ticket, after which he returned to the post of attorney general. clifford became a devoted republican. he vigorously supported abraham lincoln during the civil war and was regularly consulted by president ulysses s. grant. from 1867 until his death he served as president of the boston and providence railroad. acab, 1:657; ncab, 1:116; dab, 4:215 16. lest the reader may fancy i am aiming to elevate myself, by claiming too much intimacy with great men, i must state that my only acquaintance with col. clifford was formed while i was his during the first winter of my escape from slavery. i owe it him to say, that in that relation i found him always kind and gentlemanly. but to the incident. i entered a car at boston, for new bedford, which, with the exception of a single seat, was full, and found i must occupy this, or stand up, during the journey. having no mind to do this, i stepped up to the man having the next seat, and who had a few parcels on the seat, and gently asked leave to take a seat by his side. my fellow  passenger gave me a look made up of reproach and indignation, and asked me why i should come to that particular seat. i assured him, in the gentlest manner, that of all others this was the seat for me. finding that i was actually ahout to sit down, he sang out. "o! stop, stop! and let me get out!" suiting the action to the word, up the agitated man got, and sauntered to the other end of the car, and was compelled to stand for most of the way thereafter. half way to new bedford, or more, col. clifford, recognizing me, left his seat, and not having seen me before since i had ceased to wait on him, (in everything except hard arguments against his pro slavery position,) apparently forgetful of his rank, manifested, in greeting me, something of the feeling of an old friend. this demonstration was not lost on the gentleman whose dignity i had, an hour before, most seriously offended. col. clifford was known to be ahout the most aristocratic gentleman in bristol county;†bristol county, located in southeast massachusetts, was formed in 1685 and was known for whaling and shipping activities centered in the towns of fall river, new bedford, and taunton. cohen, columbia gazetteer of the world, 1:436. and it was evidently thought that i must be somebody, else i should not have been thus noticed, by a person so distinguished. sure enough, after col. clifford left me, i found myself surrounded with friends; and among the number, my offended friend stood nearest, and with an apology for his rudeness, which i could not resist, although it was one of the lamest ever offered. with such facts as these before me and i have many of them  i am inclined to think that pride and fashion have much to do with the treatment commonly extended to colored people in the united states. i once heard a very plain man say, (and he was cross eyed, and awkwardly flung together in other respects,) that he should be a handsome man when public opinion shall be changed. since i have been editing and publishing a journal devoted to the cause of liberty and progress, i have had my mind more directed to the condition and circumstanccs of the free colored people than when i was the agent of an abolition society. the result has been a corresponding change in the disposition of my time and lahors. i have felt it to he a part of my mission under a gracious providence to impress my sable brothers in this country with the conviction that, notwithstanding the ten thousand discouragements and the powerful hindrances,†hindrances] hinderances which beset their existence in this country notwithstanding the blood written history of africa, and her children, from whom we have descended, or the clouds and darkness, (whose stillness and gloom are made only more awful by wrathful thunder and lightning,) now overshadowing them progress is yet possible, and bright skies shall yet shine upon their pathway; and that "ethiopia shall yet reach forth her hand unto god."†a slight misquotation of ps. 68:31: "princes shall come out of egypt; ethiopia shall soon stretch out her hands unto god." believing that one of the best means of emancipating the slaves of the south is to improve and elevate the character of the free colored people of the north, i shall labor in the future, as i have labored in the past, to promote the moral, social, religious, and intellectual elevation of the free colored people; never forgetting my own humble origin, nor refusing, while heaven lends me ability, to use my voice, my pen, or my vote, to advocate the great and primary work of the universal and unconditional emancipation of my entire race. appendix, containing extracts from speeches, etc.* reception speech at finsbury chapel, moorfields, england, may 12, 1846. mr. douglass rose amid loud cheers, and said: i feel exceedingly glad of the opportunity now afforded me of presenting the claims of my brethren in bonds in the united states, to so many in london and from various parts of britain, who have assemhled here on the present occasion. i have nothing to commend me to your consideration in the way of learning, nothing in the way of education, to entitle me to your attention; and you are aware that slavery is a very bad school for rearing teachers of morality and religion. twenty one years of my life have been spent in slavery personal slavery surrounded by degrading influences, such as can exist nowhere beyond the pale of slavery; and it will not be strange, if under such circumstances, i should betray, in what i have to say to you, a deficiency of that refinement which is seldom or ever found, except among persons that have experienced superior advantages to those which i have enjoyed. but i will take it for granted that you know something about the degrading influences of slavery, and that you will not expect great things from me this evening, but simply such facts as i may be able to advance immediately in connection with my own experience of slavery. now, what is this system of slavery? this is the subject of my lecture this evening what is the character of this institution? i am about to answer the inquiry, what is american slavery? i do this the more readily, since i have found persons in this country who have identified the term slavery with that which i think it is not, and in some instances, i have feared, in so doing, have rather (unwittingly, i know,) detracted much from the horror with which the term slavery is contemplated. it is common in this country to distinguish every bad thing by the name of slavery. intemperance is slavery; to be deprived of the right to vote is slavery, says one; to have to work hard is slavery, says another; and i do not know but that if we should let them go on, they would say that to eat when we are hungry, to walk when we desire to have exercise, or to minister to our necessities, or have *mr. douglass' published speeches alone, would fill two volumes of the size of this. our space will only permit the insertion of the extracts which follow; and which, for originality of thought, beauty and force of expression, and for impassioned, indignatory eloquence, have seldom been equaled. necessities at all, is slavery. i do not wish for a moment to detract from the horror with which the evil of intemperance is contemplated not at all; nor do i wish to throw the slightest obstruction in the way of any political freedom that any class of persons in this country may desire to obtain. but i am here to say that i think the term slavery is sometimes abused by identifying it with that which it is not. slavery in the united states is the granting of that power by which one man exercises and enforces a right of property in the body and soul of another. the condition of a slave is simply that of the brute beast. he is a piece of property a marketable commodity, in the language of the law, to be bought or sold at the will and caprice of the master who claims him to be his property; he is spoken of, thought of, and treated as property. his own good, his conscience, his intellect, his affections, are all set aside by the master. the will and the wishes of the master are the law of the slave. he is as much a piece of property as a horse. if he is fed, he is fed because he is property. if he is clothed, it is with a view to the increase of his value as property. whatever of comfort is necessary to him for his body or soul that is inconsistent with his being property, is carefully wrested from him, not only by public opinion, but by the law of the country. he is carefully deprived of everything that tends in the slightest degree to detract from his value as property. he is deprived of education. god has given him an intellect; the slaveholder declares it shall not he cultivated. if his moral perception leads him in a course contrary to his value as property, the slaveholder declares he shall not exercise it. the marriage institution cannot exist among slaves, and one sixth of the population of democratic america is denied its privileges by the law of the land. what is to he thought of a nation boasting of its liberty, boasting of its humanity, boasting of its christianity, boasting of its love of justice and purity, and yet having within its own borders three millions of persons denied by law the right of marriage? what must be the condition of that people? i need not lift up the veil by giving you any experience of my own. every one that can put two ideas together, must see the most fearful results from such a state of things as i have just mentioned. if any of these three millions find for themselves companions, and prove themselves honest, upright, virtuous persons to each other, yet in these cases few as i am bound to confess they are the virtuous live in constant apprehension of being torn asunder by the merciless men stealers that claim them as their property. this is american slavery: no marriage no education the light of the gospel shut out from the dark mind of the bondman and be forbidden by law to learn to read. if a mother shall teach her children to read, the law in louisiana proclaims that she may be hanged by the neck. if the father attempt to give his son a knowledge of letters, he may be punished by the whip in one instance, and in another be killed, at the discretion of the court. three millions of people shut out from the light of knowledge! it is easy for you to conceive the evil that must result from such a state of things. i now come to the physical evils of slavery. i do not wish to dwell at length upon these, but it seems right to speak of them, not so much to influence your minds on this question, as to let the slaveholders of america know that the curtain which conceals their crimes is being lifted abroad; that we are opening the dark cell, and leading the people into the horrible recesses of what they are pleased to call their domestic institution. we want them to know that a knowledge of their whippings, their scourgings, their brandings, their chainings, is not confined to their plantations, but that some negro of theirs has broken loose from his chains has burst through the dark incrustation of slavery, and is now exposing their deeds of deep damnation to the gaze of the christian people of england. themselves. why, i believe if a man should brand his horse in this country burn the initials of his name into any of his cattle, and publish the ferocious deed here that the united execrations of christians in britain would descend upon him. yet, in the united states, human beings are thus branded. as whittier says  " ... our countrymen in chains, the whip on woman's shrinking flesh, our soil yet reddening with the stains caught from her scourgings warm and fresh." the slave dealer boldly publishes his infamous acts to the world. of all things that have been said of slavery to which exception has been taken by slaveholders, this, the charge of cruelty, stands foremost, and yet there is no charge capable of clearer demonstration, than that of the most barbarous inhumanity on the part of the slaveholders toward their slaves. and all this is necessary; it is necessary to resort to these cruelties, in order to , and to . why, my experience all goes to prove the truth of what you will call a marvelous proposition, that the better you treat a slave, the more you destroy his value , and enhance the probability of his eluding the grasp of the slaveholder; the more kindly you treat him, the more wretched you make him, while you keep him in the condition of a slave. my experience, i say, confirms the truth of this proposition. when i was treated exceedingly ill; when my back was being scourged daily; when i was whipped within an inch of my life  was all i cared for. "spare my life," was my continual prayer. when i was looking for the blow about to be inflicted upon my head, i was not thinking of my liberty: it was my life. but, as soon as the blow was not to be feared, then came the longing for liberty. if a slave has a bad master, his ambition is to get a better; when he gets a better, he aspires to have the best: and when he gets the best, he aspires to be his own master. but the slave must be brutalized to keep him as a slave. the slaveholder feels this necessity. i admit this necessity. if it be right to hold slaves at all, it is right to hold them in the only way in which they can be held; and this can be done only by shutting out the light of education from their minds, and brutalizing their persons. the whip, the chain, the gag, the thumb screw, the blood hound, the stocks, and all the other bloody paraphernalia of the slave system, are indispensably necessary to the relation of master and slave. the slave must be subjected to these, or he ceases to be a slave. let him know that the whip is burned; that the fetters have been turned to some useful and profitable employment; that the chain is no longer for his limbs; that the blood hound is no longer to be put upon his track; that his master's authority over him is no longer to be enforced by taking his life and immediately he walks out from the house of bondage and asserts his freedom as a man. the slaveholder finds it necessary to have these implements to keep the slave in bondage; finds it necessary to be able to say, "unless you do so and so; unless you do as i bid you will take away your life!" some of the most awful scenes of cruelty are constantly taking place in the middle states of the union. we have in those states what are called the slave breeding states. allow me to speak plainly. although it is harrowing to your feelings, it is necessary that the facts of the case should be stated. we have in the united states slave breeding states. the very state from which the minister from our court to yours comes, is one of these states maryland, where men, women, and children are reared for the market, just as horses, sheep, and swine are raised for the market. slave rearing is there looked upon as a legitimate trade; the law sanctions it, public opinion upholds it, the church does not condemn it. it goes on in all its bloody horrors, sustained by the auctioneer's block. if you would see the cruelties of this system, hear the following narrative. not long since the following scene occurred. a slave woman and a slave man had united themselves as man and wife in the absence of any law to protect them as man and wife. they had lived together by the permission, not by right, of their master, and they had reared a family. the master found it expedient, and for his interest, to sell them. he did not ask them their wishes in regard to the matter at all; they were not consulted. the man and woman were brought to the auctioneer's block, under the sound of the hammer. the cry was raised. "here goes; who bids cash?" think of it a man and wife to be sold! the woman was placed on the auctioneer's block; her limbs, as is customary, were brutally exposed to the purchasers, who examined her with all the freedom with which they would examine a horse. there stood the husband, powerless; no right to his wife; the master's right preeminent. she was sold. he was next brought to the auctioneer's block. his eyes followed his wife in the distance; and he looked beseechingly, imploringly, to the man that had bought his wife, to buy him also. but he was at length bid off to another person. he was about to be separated forever from her he loved. no word of his, no work of his, could save him from this separation. he asked permission of his new master to go and take the hand of his wife at parting. it was denied him. in the agony of his soul he rushed from the man who had just bought him, that he might take a farewell of his wife; but his way was obstructed, he was struck over the head with a loaded whip, and was held for a moment; but his agony was too great. when he was let go, he fell a corpse at the feet of his master. his heart was broken. such scenes are the every day fruits of american slavery. some two years since, the hon. seth m. gates, an anti slavery gentleman of the state of new york, a representative in the congress of the united states, told me he saw with his own eyes the following circumstance. in the national district of columbia, over which the star spangled emblem is constantly waving, where orators are ever holding forth on the subject of american liberty, american democracy, american republicanism, there are two slave prisons. when going across a bridge, leading to one of these prisons, he saw a young woman run out, bare footed and bareheaded, and with very little clothing on. she was running with all speed to the bridge he was approaching. his eye was fixed upon her, and he stopped to see what was the matter. he had not paused long before he saw three men run out after her. he now knew what the nature of the case was: a slave escaping from her chains a young woman, a sister escaping from the bondage in which she had been held. she made her way to the bridge, but had not reached it, ere from the virginia side there came two slaveholders. as soon as they saw them, her pursuers called out, "stop her!" true to their virginian instincts, they came to the rescue of their brother kidnappers, across the bridge. the poor girl now saw that there was no chance for her. it was a trying time. she knew if she went back, she must he a slave forever she must be dragged down to the scenes of pollution which the slaveholders continually provide for most of the poor, sinking, wretched young women, whom they call their property. she formed her resolution; and just as those who were about to take her, were going to put hands upon her, to drag her back, she leaped over the balustrades of the bridge, and down she went to rise no more. she chose death, rather than to go back into the hands of those christian slaveholders from whom she had escaped. can it be possible that such things as these exist in the united states? are not these the exceptions? are any such scenes as this genera1? are not such deeds condemned by the law and denounced hy public opinion? let me read to you a few of the laws of the slaveholding states of america. i think no better exposure of slavery can be made than is made hy the laws of the states in which slavery exists. i prefer reading the laws to making any statement in confirmation of what i have said myself; for the slaveholders cannot object to this testimony, since it is the calm, the cool, the deliberate enactment of their wisest heads, of their most clear sighted, their own constituted representatives. "if more than seven slaves together are found in any road without a white person, twenty lashes a piece; for visiting a plantation without a written pass, ten lashes; for letting loose a boat from where it is made fast, thirty nine lashes for the first offense; and for the second, shall have cut off from his head one ear; for keeping or carrying a club, thirty nine lashes; for having any article for sale, without a ticket from his master, ten lashes; for traveling in any other than the most usual and accustomed road, when going alone to any place, forty lashes; for traveling in the night without a pass, forty lashes." i am afraid you do not understand the awful character of these lashes. you must bring it before your mind. a human being in a perfect state of nudity, tied hand and foot to a stake, and a strong man standing behind with a heavy whip, knotted at the end, each blow cutting into the flesh, and leaving the warm blood dripping to the feet; and for these trifles. "for being found in another person's negro quarters, forty lashes; for hunting with dogs in the woods, thirty lashes; for heing on horseback without the written permission of his master, twenty five lashes; for riding or going abroad in the night, or riding horses in the day time, without leave, a slave may he whipped, cropped, or branded in the check with the letter r, or otherwise punished, such punishment not extending to life, or so as to render him unfit for labor." the laws referred to, may he found by consulting brevard's digest; haywood's manual; virginia revised code; prince's digest; missouri laws; mississippi revised code. a man, for going to visit his brethren, without the permission of his master and in many instances he may not have that permission; his master, from caprice or other reasons, may not be willing to allow it may he caught on his way, dragged to a post, the branding iron heated, and the name of his master or the letter r branded into his cheek or on his forehead. they treat slaves thus, on the principle that they must punish for light offenses, in order to prevent the commission of larger ones. i wish you to mark that in the single state of virginia there are seventy one crimes for which a colored man may be executed; while there are only three of these crimes, which, when committed by a white man, will subject him to that punishment. there are many of these crimes which if the white man did not commit, he would be regarded as a scoundrel and a coward. in the state of maryland, there is a law to this effect: that if a slave shall strike his master, he may he hanged, his head severed from his body, his body quartered, and his head and quarters set up in the most prominent places in the neighborhood. if a colored woman, in the defense of her own virtue, in defense of her own person, should shield herself from the brutal attacks of her tyrannical master, or make the slightest resistance, she may be killed on the spot. no law whatever will bring the guilty man to justice for the crime. but you will ask me, can these things be possible in a land professing christianity? yes, they are so; and this is not the worst. no; a darker feature is yet to be presented than the mere existence of these facts. i have to inform you that the religion of the southern states, at this time, is the great supporter, the great sanctioner of the bloody atrocities to which i have referred. while america is printing tracts and bibles; sending missionaries abroad to convert the heathen; expending her money in various ways for the promotion of the gospel in foreign lands the slave not only lies forgotten, uncared for, but is trampled under foot by the very churches of the land. what have we in america? why, we have slavery made part of the religion of the land. yes, the pulpit there stands up as the great defender of this cursed , as it is called. ministers of religion come forward and torture the hallowed pages of inspired wisdom to sanction the bloody deed. they stand forth as the foremost, the strongest defenders of this "institution." as a proof of this, i need not do more than state the general fact, that slavery has existed under the droppings of the sanctuary of the south for the last two hundred years, and there has not been any war between the and the of the south. whips, chains, gags, and thumb screws have all lain under the droppings of the sanctuary, and instead of rusting from off the limbs of the bondman, those droppings have served to preserve them in all their strength. instead of preaching the gospel against this tyranny, rebuke, and wrong, ministers of religion have sought, by all and every means, to throw in the back ground whatever in the bible could he construed into opposition to slavery, and to bring forward that which they could torture into its support. this i conceive to be the darkest feature of slavery, and the most difficult to attack, because it is identified with religion, and exposes those who denounce it to the charge of infidelity. yes, those with whom i have been laboring, namely, the old organization anti slavery society of america, have been again and again stigmatized as infidels, and for what reason? why, solely in consequence of the faithfulness of their attacks upon the slaveholding religion of the southern states, and the northern religion that sympathizes with it. i have found it difficult to speak on this matter without persons coming forward and saying, "douglass. are you not afraid of injuring the cause of christ? you do not desire to do so, we know; but are you not undermining religion?" this has been said to me again and again, even since i came to this country, but i cannot be induced to leave off these exposures. i love the religion of our blessed savior. i love that religion that comes from above, in the "wisdom of god, which is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be entreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy." i love that religion that sends its votaries to bind up the wounds of him that has fallen among thieves. i love that religion that makes it the duty of its disciples to visit the fatherless and the widow in their affliction. i love that religion that is based upon the glorious principle, of love to god and love to man; which makes its followers do unto others as they themselves would be done by. if you demand liberty to yourself, it says, grant it to your neighbors. if you claim a right to think for yourself, it says, allow your neighbors the same right. if you claim to act for yourself, it says, allow your neighbors the same right. it is because i love this religion that i hate the slaveholding, the woman whipping, the mind darkening, the soul destroying religion that exists in the southern states of america. it is because i regard the one as good, and pure, and holy, that i cannot but regard the other as bad, corrupt, and wicked. loving the one i must hate the other; holding to the one i must reject the other. i may be asked, why i am so anxious to bring this subject before the british public why i do not confine my efforts to the united states? my answer is, first, that slavery is the common enemy of mankind, and all mankind should be made acquainted with its abominable character. my next answer is, that the slave is a man, and, as such, is entitled to your sympathy as a brother. all the feelings, all the susceptibilities, all the capacities, which you have, he has. he is a part of the human family. he has been the prey the common prey of christendom for the last three hundred years, and it is but right, it is but just, it is but proper, that his wrongs should be known throughout the world. i have another reason for bringing this matter before the british public, and it is this; slavery is a system of wrong, so blinding to all around, so hardening to the heart, so corrupting to the morals, so deleterious to religion, so sapping to all the principles of justice in its immediate vicinity, that the community surrounding it lack the moral stamina necessary to its removal. it is a system of such gigantic evil, so strong, so overwhelming in its power, that no one nation is equal to its removal. it requires the humanity of christianity, the morality of the world to remove it. hence, i call upon the people of britain to look at this matter, and to exert the influence i am about to show they possess, for the removal of slavery from america. i can appeal to them, as strongly by their regard for the slaveholder as for the slave, to labor in this cause. i am here, because you have an influence on america that no other nation can have. you have heen drawn together by the power of steam to a marvelous extent; the distance between london and boston is now reduced to some twelve or fourteen days, so that the denunciations against slavery, uttered in london this week, may be heard in a fortnight in the streets of boston, and reverberating amidst the hills of massachusetts. there is nothing said here against slavery that will not be recorded in the united states. i am here, also, because the slaveholders do not want me to be here; they would rather that i were not here. i have adopted a maxim laid down by napoleon, never to occupy ground which the enemy would like me to occupy. the slaveholders would much rather have me, if i will denounce slavery, denounce it in the northern states, where their friends and supporters are, who will stand by and mob me for denouncing it. they feel something as the man felt, when he uttered his prayer, in which he made out a most horrible case for himself, and one of his neighbors touched him and said, "my friend, i always had the opinion of you that you have now expressed for yourself that you are a very great sinner." coming from himself, it was all very well, but coming from a stranger it was rather cutting. the slaveholders felt that when slavery was denounced among themselves, it was not so bad; but let one of the slaves get loose, let him summon the people of britain, and make known to them the conduct of the slaveholders toward their slaves, and it cuts them to the quick, and produces a sensation such as would be produced by nothing else. the power i exert now is something like the power that is exerted by the man at the end of the lever; my influence now is just in proportion to the distance that i am from the united states. my exposure of slavery abroad will tell more upon the hearts and consciences of slaveholders, than if i was attacking them in america: for almost every paper that i now receive from the united states, comes teeming with statements about this fugitive negro, calling him a "glib tongued scoundrel," and saying that he is running out against the institutions and people of america. i deny the charge that i am saying a word against the institutions of america, or the people, as such. what i have to say is against slavery and slaveholders. i feel at liberty to speak on this subject. i have on my back the marks of the lash; i have four sisters and one brother now under the galling chain. i feel it my duty to cry aloud and spare not. i am not averse to having the good opinion of my fellow creatures. i am not averse to being kindly regarded by all men; but i am bound, even at the hazard of making a large class of religionists in this country hate me, oppose me, and malign me as they have done i am bound by the prayers, and tears, and entreaties of three millions of kneeling bondsmen, to have no compromise with men who are in any shape or form connected with the slaveholders of america. i expose slavery in this country, because to expose it is to kill it. slavery is one of those monsters of darkness to whom the light of truth is death. expose slavery, and it dies. light is to slavery what the heat of the sun is to the root of a tree; it must die under it. all the slaveholder asks of me is silence. he does not ask me to go abroad and preach of slavery; he does not ask any one to do that. he would not say that slavery is a good thing, but the best under the circumstances. the slaveholders want total darkness on the subject. they want the hatchway shut down, that the monster may crawl in his den of darkness, crushing human hopes and happiness, destroying the bondman at will, and having no one to reprove or rebuke him. slavery shrinks from the light; it hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest its deeds should be reproved. to tear off the mask from this abominable system, to expose it to the light of heaven, aye, to the heat of the sun, that it may burn and wither it out of existence, is my object in coming to this country. i want the slaveholder surrounded, as by a wall of anti slavery fire, so that he may see the condemnation of himself and his system glaring down in letters of light. i want him to feel thal he has no sympathy in england, scotland, or ireland; that he has none in canada, none in mexico, none among the poor wild indians; that the voice of the civilized, aye, and savage world is against him. i would have condemnation blaze down upon him in every direction, till, stunned and overwhelmed with shame and confusion, he is compelled to let go the grasp he holds upon the persons of his victims, and restore them to their long lost rights. dr. campbell's reply. from rev. dr. campbell's brilliant reply we extract the following: frederick douglass, the "beast of burden," the portion of "goods and chattels," the representative of three millions of men has been raised up! shall i say the ? if there is a man on earth, he is a man. my blood boiled within me when i heard his address tonight, and thought that he had left behind him three millions of such men. we must see more of this man; we must have more of this man. one would have taken a voyage round the globe some forty years back especially since the introduction of steam to have heard such an exposure of slavery from the lips of a slave. it will be an era in the individual history of the present assembly. our children our boys and girls i have to night seen the delightful sympa1hy of their hearts evinced by their heaving breasts, while their eyes sparkled wi1h wonder and admiration, that this black man this slave had so much logic, so much wit, so much fancy, so much eloquence. he was something more than a man, according to their little notions. then, i say, we must hear him again. we have got a purpose to accomplish. he has appealed to the pulpit of england. the english pulpit is with him. he has appealed to the press of england; the press of england is conducted by english hearts, and that press will do him justice. about ten days hence, and his second master, who may well prize "such a piece of goods," will have the pleasure of reading his burning words. and his first master will bless himself that he has got quit of him. we have to create public opinion, or rather, not to create it, for it is created already: but we have to foster it; and when to night i heard those magnificent words the words of curran, by which my heart, from boyhood, has ofttimes been deeply moved i rejoice to think that they embody an instinct of an englishman's nature. i heard, with inexpressible delight, how they told on this mighty mass of the citizens of the metropolis. britain has now no slaves; we can therefore talk to the other nations now, as we could not have talked a dozen years ago. i want the whole of the london ministry to meet douglass. for as his appeal is to england, and throughout england, i should rejoice in the idea of churchmen and dissenters merging all sectional distinctions in this cause. let us have a public breakfast. let the ministers meet him; let them hear him; let them grasp his hand; and let him enlist their sympathies on behalf of the slave. let him inspire them with abhorrence of the man stealer the slaveholder. no slaveholding american shall ever cross my door. no slaveholding or slavery supporting minister shall ever pollute my pulpit. while i have a tongue to speak, or a hand to write, i will, to the utmost of my power, oppose these slaveholding men. we must have douglass amongst us to aid in fostering public opinion. the great conflict with slavery must now take place in america; and while they are adding other slave states to the union, our business is to step forward and help the abolitionists there. it is a pleasing circumstance that such a body of men has risen in america, and whilst we hurl our thunders against her slavers, let us make a distinction between those who advocate slavery and those who oppose it. george thompson has been there. this man, frederick douglass, has been there, and has been compelled to flee. i wish, when he first set foot on our shores, he had made a solemn vow, and said, "now that i am free, and in the sanctuary of freedom. i will never return till i have seen the emancipation of my country completed." he wants to surround these men, the slaveholders, as by a wall of fire; and he himself may do much toward kindling it. let him travel over the island east, west, north, and south everywhere diffusing knowledge and awakening principle, till the whole nation become a body of petitioners to america. he will, he must, do it. he must for a season make england his home. he must send for his wife. he must send for his children. i want to see the sons and daughters of such a sire. we, too, must do something for him and them worthy of the english name. i do not like the idea of a man of such mental dimensions, such moral courage, and all but incomparable talent, having his own small wants, and the wants of a distant wife and children, supplied by the poor profits of his publication, the sketch of his life. let the pamphlet be bought by tens of thousands. but we will do something more for him, shall we not? it only remains that we pass a resolution of thanks to frederick douglass, the slave that was, the man that is! he that was covered with chains, and that is now being covered with glory, and whom we will send back a gentleman. leiter to his old master.* . sir the long and intimate, though by no means friendly, relation which unhappily subsisted between you and myself, leads me to hope that you will easily account for the great liberty which i now take in addressing you in this open and public manner. the same fact may possibly remove any disagreeable surprise which you may experience on again finding your name coupled with mine, in any other way than in an advertisement, accurately describing my person, and offering a large sum for my arrest. in thus dragging you again before the public, i am aware that i shall subject myself to no inconsiderable amount of censure. i shall probably be charged with an unwarrantable, if not a wanton and reckless disregard of the rights and proprieties of private life. there are those north as well as south who entertain a much higher respect for rights which are merely conventional, than they do for rights which are personal and essential. not a few there are in our country, who, while they have no scruples against robbing the laborer of the hard earned results of his patient industry, will be shocked by the extremely indelicate manner of bringing your name before the public. believing this *it is not often that chattels address their owners. the following letter is unique; and probably the only specimen of the kind extant. it was written while in england. to be the case, and wishing to meet every reasonable or plausible objection to my conduct, i will frankly state the ground upon which i justify myself in this instance, as well as on former occasions when i have thought proper to mention your name in public. all will agree that a man guilty of theft, robbery, or murder, has forfeited the right to concealment and private life; that the community have a right to subject such persons to the most complete exposure. however much they may desire retirement, and aim to conceal themselves and their movements from the popular gaze, the public have a right to ferret them out, and bring their conduct before the proper tribunals of the country for investigation. sir, you will undoubtedly make the proper application of these generally admitted principles, and will easily see the light in which you are regarded by me; i will not therefore manifest ill temper, by calling you hard names. i know you to be a man of some intelligence, and can readily determine the precise estimate which i entertain of your character. i may therefore indulge in language which may seem to others indirect and ambiguous, and yet be quite well understood by yourself. i have selected this day on which to address you, because it is the anniversary of my emancipation; and knowing no better way, i am led to this as the best mode of celebrating that truly important event. just ten years ago this beautiful september morning, yon bright sun beheld me a slave a poor degraded chattel trembling at the sound of your voice, lamenting that i was a man, and wishing myself a brute. the hopes which i had treasured up for weeks of a safe and successful escape from your grasp, were powerfully confronted at this last hour by dark clouds of doubt and fear, making my person shake and my bosom to heave with the heavy contest between hope and fear. i have no words to describe to you the deep agony of soul which i experienced on that never to be forgotten morning for i left by daylight, i was making a leap in the dark. the probabilities, so far as i could by reason determine them, were stoutly against the undertaking. the preliminaries and precautions i had adopted previously, all worked badly. i was like one going to war without weapons ten chances of defeat to one of victory. one in whom i had confided, and one who had promised me assistance, appalled by fear at the trial hour, deserted me, thus leaving the responsibility of success or failure solely with myself. you, sir, can never know my feelings. as i look back to them, i can scarcely realize that i have passed through a scene so trying. trying, however, as they were, and gloomy as was the prospect, thanks be to the most high, who is ever the god of the oppressed, at the moment which was to determine my whole earthly career, his grace was sufficient; my mind was made up. i embraced the golden opportunity, took the morning tide at the flood, and a free man, young, active, and strong, is the result. i have often thought i should like to explain to you the grounds upon which i have justified myself in running away from you. i am almost ashamed to do so now, for by this time you may have discovered them yourself. i will, however, glance at them. when yet but a child about six years old, i imbibed the determination to run away. the very first mental effort that i now remember on my part, was an attempt to solve the mystery why am i a slave? and with this question my youthful mind was troubled for many days, pressing upon me more heavily at times than others. when i saw the slave driver whip a slave woman, cut the blood out of her neck, and heard her piteous cries, i went away into the corner of the fence, wept and pondered over the mystery. i had, through some medium, i know not what, got some idea of god, the creator of all mankind, the black and the white, and that he had made the blacks to serve the whites as slaves. how he could do this and be , i could not tell. i was not satisfied with this theory, which made god responsible for slavery, for it pained me greatly, and i have wept over it long and often. at one time, your first wife, mrs. lucretia, heard me sighing and saw me shedding tears, and asked of me the matter, but i was afraid to tell her. i was puzzled with this question, till one night while sitting in the kitchen, i heard some of the old slaves talking of their parents having been stolen from africa by white men, and were sold here as slaves. the whole mystery was solved at once. very soon after this, my aunt jinny and uncle noah ran away, and the great noise made about it by your father in law, made me for the first time acquainted with the fact, that there were free states as well as slave states. from that time, i resolved that i would some day run away. the morality of the act i dispose of as follows: i am myself; you are yourself; we are two distinct persons, equal persons. what you are, i am. you are a man, and so am i. god created both, and made us separate beings. i am not by nature bond to you, or you to me. nature does not make your existence depend upon me, or mine to depend upon yours. i cannot walk upon your legs, or you upon mine. i cannot breathe for you, or you for me; i must breathe for myself, and you for yourself. we are distinct persons, and are each equally provided with faculties necessary to our individual existence. in leaving you, i took nothing but what belonged to me, and in no way lessened your means for obtaining an living. your faculties remained yours, and mine became useful to their rightful owner. i therefore see no wrong in any part of the transaction. it is true, i went off secretly; but that was more your fault than mine. had i let you into the secret, you would have defeated the enterprise entirely; but for this, i should have been really glad to have made you acquainted with my intentions to leave. you may perhaps want to know how i like my present condition. i am free to say, i greatly prefer it to that which i occupied in maryland. i am, however, by no means prejudiced against the state as such. its geography, climate, fertility, and products, are such as to make it a very desirable abode for any man; and but for the existence of slavery there, it is not impossible that i might again take up my abode in that state. it is not that i love maryland less, but freedom more. you will be surprised to learn that people at the north labor under the strange delusion that if the slaves were emancipated at the south, they would flock to the north. so far from this being the case, in that event, you would see many old and familiar faces back again to the south. the fact is, there are few here who would not return to the south in the event of emancipation. we want to live in the land of our birth, and to lay our bones by the side of our fathers; and nothing short of an intense love of personal freedom keeps us from the south. for the sake of this, most of us would live on a crust of bread and a cup of cold water. since i left you, i have had a rich experience. i have occupied stations which i never dreamed of when a slave. three out of the ten years since i left you, i spent as a common laborer on the wharves of new bedford, massachusetts. it was there i earned my first free dollar. it was mine. i could spend it as i pleased. i could buy hams or herring with it, without asking any odds of anybody. that was a precious dollar to me. you remember when i used to make seven, or eight, or even nine dollars a week in baltimore, you would take every cent of it from me every saturday night, saying that i belonged to you, and my earnings also. i never liked this conduct on your part to say the best. i thought it a little mean. i would not have served you so. but let that pass. i was a little awkward about counting money in new england fashion when i first landed in new bedford. i came near betraying myself several times. i caught myself saying phip, for fourpence; and at one time a man actually charged me with being a runaway, whereupon i was silly enough to become one by running away from him, for i was greatly afraid he might adopt measures to get me again into slavery, a condition i then dreaded more than death. i soon learned, however, to count money, as well as to make it, and got on swimmingly, i married soon after leaving you; in fact, i was engaged to be married before i left you; and instead of finding my companion a burden, she was truly a helpmate. she went to live at service, and i to work on the wharf, and though we toiled hard the first winter, we never lived more happily. after remaining in new bedford for three years, i met with william lloyd garrison, a person of whom you have possibly heard, as he is pretty generally known among slaveholders. he put it into my head that i might make myself serviceable to the cause of the slave, by devoting a portion of my time to telling my own sorrows, and those of other slaves, which had come under my observation. this was the commencement of a higher state of existence than any to which i had ever aspired. i was thrown into society the most pure, enlightened, and benevolent, that the country affords. among these i have never forgotten you, but have invariably made you the topic of conversation thus giving you all the notoriety i could do. i need not tell you that the opinion formed of you in these circles is far from being favorable. they have little respect for your honesty, and less for your religion. but i was going on to relate to you something of my interesting experience. i had not long enjoyed the excellent society to which i have referred, before the light of its excellence exerted a beneficial influence on my mind and heart. much of my early dislike of white persons was removed, and their manners, habits, and customs, so entirely unlike what i had been used to in the kitchen quarters on the plantations of the south, fairly charmed me, and gave me a strong disrelish for the coarse and degrading customs of my former condition. i therefore made an effort so to improve my mind and deportment, as to be somewhat fitted to the station to which i seemed almost providentially called. the transition from degradation to respectability was indeed great, and to get from one to the other without carrying some marks of one's former condition, is truly a difficult matter. i would not have you think that i am now entirely clear of all plantation peculiarities, but my friends here, while they entertain the strongest dislike to them, regard me with that charity to which my past life somewhat entitles me, so that my condition in this respect is exceedingly pleasant. so far as my domestic affairs are concerned, i can boast of as comfortable a dwelling as your own. i have an industrious and neat companion, and four dear children the oldest a girl of nine years, and three fine boys, the oldest eight, the next six, and the youngest four years old. the three oldest are now going regularly to school two can read and write, and the other can spell, with tolerable correctness, words of two syllables. dear fellows! they are all in comfortable beds, and are sound asleep, perfectly secure under my own roof. there are no slaveholders here to rend my heart by snatching them from my arms, or blast a mother's dearest hopes by tearing them from her bosom. these dear children are ours not to work up into rice, sugar, and tobacco, but to watch over, regard, and protect, and to rear them up in the nurture and admonition of the gospel to train them up in the paths of wisdom and virtue, and, as far as we can, to make them useful to the world and to themselves. oh! sir, a slaveholder never appears to me so completely an agent of hell, as when i think of and look upon my dear children. it is then that my feelings rise above my control. i meant to have said more with respect to my own prosperity and happiness, but thoughts and feelings which this recital has quickened, unfits me to proceed further in that direction. the grim horrors of slavery rise in all their ghastly terror before me; the wails of millions pierce my heart and chill my blood. i remember the chain, the gag, the bloody whip; the death like gloom overshadowing the broken spirit of the fettered bondman; the appalling liability of his being torn away from wife and children, and sold like a beast in the market. say not that this is a picture of fancy. you well know that i wear stripes on my back, inflicted by your direction; and that you, while we were brothers in the same church, caused this right hand, with which i am now penning this letter, to be closely tied to my left, and my person dragged, at the pistol's mouth, fifteen miles, from the bay side to easton, to be sold like a beast in the market, for the alleged crime of intending to escape from your possession. all this, and more, you remember, and know to be perfectly true, not only of yourself, but of nearly all of the slaveholders around you. at this moment, you are probably the guilty holder of at least three of my own dear sisters, and my only brother, in bondage. these you regard as your property. they are recorded on your ledger, or perhaps have heen sold to human flesh mongers, with a view to filling your own ever hungry purse. sir, i desire to know how and where these dear sisters are. have you sold them? or are they still in your possession? what has become of them? are they living or dead? and my dear old grandmother, whom you turned out like an old horse to die in the woods is she still alive? write and let me know all about them. if my grandmother be still alive, she is of no service to you, for by this time she must be nearly eighty years old too old to he cared for by one to whom she has ceased to be of service; send her to me at rochester, or bring her to philadelphia, and it shall be the crowning happiness of my life to take care of her in her old age. oh! she was to me a mother and a father, so far as hard toil for my comfort could make her such. send me my grandmother! that i may watch over and take care of her in her old age. and my sisters let me know all about them. i would write to them, and learn all i want to know of them, without disturbing you in any way, but that, through your unrighteous conduct, they have been entirely deprived of the power to read and write. you have kept them in utter ignorance, and have therefore robbed them of the sweet enjoyments of writing or receiving letters from absent friends and relatives. your wickedness and cruelty, committed in this respect on your fellow creatures, are greater than all the stripes you have laid upon my back or theirs. it is an outrage upon the soul, a war upon the immortal spirit, and one for which you must give account at the bar of our common father and creator. the responsibility which you have assumed in this regard is truly awful, and how you could stagger under it these many years is marvelous. your mind must have become darkened, your heart hardened, your conscience scared and petrified, or you would have long since thrown off the accursed load, and sought relief at the hands of a sin forgiving god. how, let me ask, would you look upon me, were i, some dark night, in company with a band of hardened villains, to enter the precincts of your elegant dwelling, and seize the person of your own lovely daughter, amanda. and carry her off from your family, friends, and all the loved ones of her youth make her my slave compel her to work, and i take her wages place her name on my ledger as property disregard her personal rights fetter the powers of her immortal soul by denying her the right and privilege of learning to read and write feed her coarsely clothe her scantily, and whip her on the naked back occasionally; more, and still more horrible, leave her unprotected a degraded victim to the brutal lust of fiendish overseers, who would pollute, blight, and blast her fair soul rob her of all dignity destroy her virtue, and annihilate in her person all the graces that adorn the character of virtuous womanhood? i ask, how would you regard me, if such were my conduct? oh! the vocabulary of the damned would not afford a word sufficiently infernal to express your idea of my god provoking wickedness. yet, sir, your treatment of my beloved sisters is in all essential points precisely like the case i have now supposed. damning as would be such a deed on my part, it would be no more so than that which you have committed against me and my sisters. i will now bring this letter to a close; you shall hear from me again unless you let me hear from you. i intend to make use of you as a weapon with which to assail the system of slavery as a means of concentrating public attention on the system, and deepening the horror of trafficking in the souls and bodies of men. i shall make use of you as a means of exposing the character of the american church and clergy and as a means of bringing this guilty nation, with yourself, to repentance. in doing this, i entertain no malice toward you personally. there is no roof under which you would be more safe than mine, and there is nothing in my house which you might need for your comfort, which i would not readily grant. indeed. i should esteem it a privilege to set you an example as to how mankind ought to treat each other. i am your fellow man, but not your slave. the nature of slavery. more than twenty years of my life were consumed in a state of slavery. my childhood was environed by the baneful peculiarities of the slave system. i grew up to manhood in the presence of this hydra headed monster not as a master not as an idle spectator not as the guest of the slaveholderbut as a slave, eating the bread and drinking the cup of slavery with the most degraded of my brother bondmen, and sharing with them all the painful conditions of their wretched lot. in consideration of these facts, i feel that i have a right to speak, and to speak . yet, my friends. i feel bound to speak truly. goading as have been the cruelties to which i have been subjected bitter as have been the trials through which i have passed exasperating as have been, and still are, the indignities offered to my manhood i find in them no excuse for the slightest departure from truth in dealing with any branch of this subject. first of all, i will state, as well as i can, the legal and social relation of master and slave. a master is one to speak in the vocabulary of the southern states who claims and exercises a right of property in the person of a fellow man. this he does with the force of the law and the sanction of southern religion. the law gives the master absolute power over the slave. he may work him, flog him, hire him out, sell him, and, in certain contingencies, him, with perfect impunity. the slave is a human being, divested of all rights reduced to the level of a brute a mere "chattel" in the eye of the law placed beyond the circle of human brotherhood cut off from his kind his name, which the "recording angel" may have enrolled in heaven, among the blest, is impiously inserted in a , with horses, sheep, and swine. in law, the slave has no wife, no children, no country, and no home. he can own nothing, possess nothing, acquire nothing, but what must belong to another. to eat the fruit of his own toil, to clothe his person with the work of his own hands, is considered stealing. he toils that another may reap the fruit; he is industrious that another may live in idleness; he eats unbolted meal that another may eat the bread of fine flour; he labors in chains at home, under a burning sun and biting lash, that another may ride in ease and splendor abroad; he lives in ignorance that another may be educated; he is abused that another may be exalted; he rests his toil worn limbs on the cold, damp ground that another may repose on the softest pillow; he is clad in coarse and tattered raiment that another may he arrayed in purple and fine linen; he is sheltered only by the wretched hovel that a master may dwell in a magnificent mansion; and to this condition he is bound down as by an arm of iron. from this monstrous relation there springs an unceasing stream of most revolting cruelties. the very accompaniments of the slave system stamp it as the offspring of hell itself. to ensure good behavior, the slaveholder relies on the whip; to induce proper humility, he relies on the whip; to rebuke what he is pleased to term insolence, he relies on the whip; to supply the place of wages as an incentive to toil, he relies on the whip; to bind down the spirit of the slave, to imbrute and destroy his manhood, he relies on the whip, the chain, the gag, the thumb screw, the pillory, the bowie knife, the pistol, and the blood hound. these are the necessary and unvarying accompaniments of the system. wherever slavery is found, these horrid instruments are also found. whether on the coast of africa, among the savage tribes, or in south carolina, among the refined and civilized, slavery is the same, and its accompaniments one and the same. it makes no difference whether the slaveholder worships the god of the christians, or is a follower of mahomet, he is the minister of the same cruelty, and the author of the same misery. is always ; always the same foul, haggard, and damning scourge, whether found in the eastern or in the western hemisphere. there is a still deeper shade to be given to this picture. the physical cruelties are indeed sufficiently harassing and revolting; but they are as a few grains of sand on the sea shore, or a few drops of water in the great ocean, compared with the stupendous wrongs which it inflicts upon the mental, moral, and religious nature of its hapless victims. it is only when we contemplate the slave as a moral and intellectual being, that we can adequately comprehend the unparalleled enormity of slavery, and the intense criminality of the slaveholder. i have said that the slave was a man. "'what a piece of work is man! how noble in reason! how infinite in faculties! in form and moving how express and admirable! in action how like an angel! in apprehension how like a god! the beauty of the world! the paragon of animals!" the slave is a man, "the image of god," but "a little lower than the angels;" possessing a soul, eternal and indestructible; capable of endless happiness, or immeasurable woe; a creature of hopes and fears, of affections and passions, of joys and sorrows, and he is endowed with those mysterious powers by which man soars above the things of time and sense, and grasps, with undying tenacity, the elevating and sublimely glorious idea of a god. it is a being that is smitten and blasted. the first work of slavery is to mar and deface those characteristics of its victims which distinguish from , and from . its first aim is to destroy all sense of high moral and religious responsibility. it reduces man to a mere machine. it cuts him off from his maker, it hides from him the laws of god, and leaves him to grope his way from time to eternity in the dark, under the arbitrary and despotic control of a frail, depraved, and sinful fellow man. as the serpent charmer of india is compelled to extract the deadly teeth of his venomous prey before he is able to handle him with impunity, so the slaveholder must strike down the conscience of the slave before he can obtain the entire mastery over his victim. it is, then, the first business of the enslaver of men to blunt, deaden, and destroy the central principle of human responsibility. conscience is, to the individual soul, and to society, what the law of gravitation is to the universe. it holds society together; it is the basis of all trust and confidence; it is the pillar of all moral rectitude. without it, suspicion would take the place of trust; vice would be more than a match for virtue; men would prey upon each other, like the wild beasts of the desert; and earth would become a . nor is slavery more adverse to the conscience than it is to the mind. this is shown by the fact, that in every state of the american union where slavery exists, except the state of kentucky, there are laws absolutely prohibitory of education among the slaves. the crime of teaching a slave to read is punishable with severe fines and imprisonment, and, in some instances, with . nor are the laws respecting this matter a dead letter. cases may occur in which they are disregarded, and a few instances may be found where slaves may have learned to read; but such are isolated cases, and only prove the rule. the great mass of slaveholders look upon education among the slaves as utterly subversive of the slave system. i well remember when my mistress first announced to my master that she had discovered that i could read. his face colored at once with surprise and chagrin. he said that "i was ruined, and my value as a slave destroyed; that a slave should know nothing but to obey his master; that to give a negro an inch would lead him to take an ell; that having learned how to read, i would soon want to know how to write; and that by and by i would be running away." i think my audience will bear witness to the correctness of this philosophy, and to the literal fulfillment of this prophecy. it is perfectly well understood at the south, that to educate a slave is to make him discontented with slavery, and to invest him with a power which shall open to him the treasures of freedom; and since the object of the slaveholder is to maintain complete authority over his slave, his constant vigilance is exercised to prevent everything which militates against, or endangers, the stability of his authority. education being among the menacing influences, and, perhaps, the most dangerous, is, therefore, the most cautiously guarded against. it is true that we do not often hear of the enforcement of the law, punishing as a crime the teaching of slaves to read, but this is not because of a want of disposition to enforce it. the true reason or explanation of the matter is this: there is the greatest unanimity of opinion among the white population in the south in favor of the policy of keeping the slave in ignorance. there is, perhaps, another reason why the law against education is so seldom violated. the slave is too poor to be able to offer a temptation sufficiently strong to induce a white man to violate it; and it is not to be supposed that in a community where the moral and religious sentiment is in favor of slavery, many martyrs will he found sacrificing their liberty and lives by violating those prohibitory enactments. as a general rule. then. darkness reigns overthe abodes of the enslaved, and "how great is that darkness!" we are sometimes told of the contentment of the slaves, and are entertained with vivid pictures of their happiness. we are told that they often dance and sing; that their masters frequently give them wherewith to make merry; in fine, that they have little of which to complain. i admit that the slave does sometimes sing, dance, and appear to be merry. but what does this prove? it only proves to my mind, that though slavery is armed with a thousand stings, it is not able entirely to kill the elastic spirit of the bondman. that spirit will rise and walk abroad, despite of whips and chains, and extract from the cup of nature occasional drops of joy and gladness. no thanks to the slaveholder, nor to slavery, that the vivacious captive may sometimes dance in his chains; his very mirth in such circumstances stands before god as an accusing angel against his enslaver. it is often said, by the opponents of the anti slavery cause, that the condition of the people of ireland is more deplorable than that of the american slaves. far be it from me to underrate the sufferings of the irish people. they have been long oppressed; and the same heart that prompts me to plead the cause of the american bondman, makes it impossible for me not to sympathize with the oppressed of all lands. yet i must say that there is no analogy between the two cases. the irishman is poor, but he is not a slave. he may be in rags, but he is not a slave. he is still the master of his own body, and can say with the poet. "the hand of douglass is his own." "the world is all before him, where to choose;" and poor as may be my opinion of the british parliament, i cannot believe that it will ever sink to such a depth of infamy as to pass a law for the recapture of fugitive irishmen! the shame and scandal of kidnapping will long remain wholly monopolized hy the american congress. the irishman has not only the liberty to emigrate from his country, but he has liberty at home. he can write, and speak, and cooperate for the attainment of his rights and the redress of his wrongs. the multitude can assemble upon all the green hills and fertile plains of the emerald isle; they can pour out their grievances, and proclaim their wants without molestation; and the press, that "swift winged messenger," can bear the tidings of their doings to the extreme hounds of the civilized world. they have their "conciliation hall," on the banks of the liffey, their reform clubs, and their newspapers; they pass resolutions, send forth addresses, and enjoy the right of petition. but how is it with the american slave? where may he assemble? where is his conciliation hall? where are his newspapers? where is his right of petition? where is his freedom of speech? his liberty of the press? and his right of locomotion? he is said to be happy; happy men can speak. but ask the slave what is his condition what his state of mind what he thinks of enslavementt; and you had as well address your inquiries to the . there comes no voice from the enslaved. we are left to gather his feelings by imagining what ours would be, were our souls in his soul's stead. if there were no other fact descriptive of slavery, than that the slave is dumb, this alone would be sufficient to mark the slave system as a grand aggregation of human horrors. most who are present, will have observed that leading men in this country have been putting forth their skill to secure quiet to the nation. a system of measures to promote this object was adopted a few months ago in congress. the result of those measures is known. instead of quiet, they have produced alarm; instead of peace, they have brought us war; and so it must ever be. while this nation is guilty of the enslavement of three millions of innocent men and women, it is as idle to think of having a sound and lasting peace, as it is to think there is no god to take cognizance of the affairs of men. there can be no peace to the wicked while slavery continues in the land. it will he condemned; and while it is condemned there will be agitation. nature must cease to be nature; men must become monsters; humanity must be transformed; christianity must be exterminated; all ideas of justice and the laws of eternal goodness must be utterly blotted out from the human soul, ere a system so foul and infernal can escape condemnation, or this guilty republic can have a sound, enduring peace. inhumanity of slavery. the relation of master and slave has been called patriarchal, and only second in benignity and tenderness to that of the parent and child. this representation is doubtless believed by many northern people; and this may account, in part, for the lack of interest which we find among persons whom we are bound to believe to he honest and humane. what, then, are the facts? here i will not quote my own experience in slavery; for this you might call one sided testimony. i will not cite the declarations of abolitionists; for these you might pronounce exaggerations. i will not rely upon advertisements cut from newspapers; for these you might call isolated cases but i will refer you to the laws adopted by the legislatures of the slave states. i give you such evidence, because it cannot be invalidated nor denied. i hold in my hand sundry extracts from the slave codes of our country, from which 1 will quote.* * * now, if the foregoing be an indication of kindness, what is if this be parental affection, a more atrocious and blood thirsty string of laws could not well be conceived of. and yet i am bound to say that they fall short of indicating the horrible cruelties constantly practiced in the slave states. i admit that there are individual slaveholders less cruel and barbarous than is allowed by law; but these form the exception. the majority of slaveholders find it necessary, to insure obedience, at times, to avail themselves of the utmost extent of the law, and many go beyond it. if kindness were the rule, we should not see advertisements filling the columns of almost every southern newspaper, offering large rewards for fugitive slaves, and describing them as being branded with irons, loaded with chains, and scarred by the whip. one of the most telling testimonies against the pretended kindness of slaveholders, is the fact that uncounted numbers of fugitives are now inhabiting the dismal swamp, preferring the untamed wilderness to their cultivated homes choosing rather to encounter hunger and thirst, and to roam with the wild beasts of the forest, running the hazard of being hunted and shot down, than to submit to the authority of masters. i tell you, my friends, humanity is never driven to such an unnatural course of life, without great wrong. the slave finds more of the milk of human kindness in the bosom of the savage indian, than in the heart of his master. he leaves the man of the bible, and takes refuge with the man of the . he rushes from the praying slaveholder into the paws of the bear. he quits the homes of men for the haunts of wolves. he prefers to encounter a life of trial, however bitter, or death, however terrible, to dragging out his existence under the dominion of these masters. the apologists for slavery often speak of the abuses of slavery; and they tell us that they are as much opposed to those abuses as we are; and that they would go as far to correct those abuses and to ameliorate the condition of the slave as anybody. the answer to that view is, that slavery is itself an abuse; that it lives by abuse; and dies by the absence of abuse. grant that slavery is right; grant that the relation of master and slave may innocently exist; and there is not a single outrage which was ever committed against the slave but what finds an apology in the very necessity of the case. as was said by a slaveholder, (the rev. a . g. few,) to the methodist conference, "if the relation be right, the means to maintain it are also right:" for without those means slavery could not exist. remove the dreadful scourge the plaited thong the galling fetter the accursed chain and let the slaveholder rely solely upon moral and religious power, by which to secure obedience to his orders, and how long do you suppose a slave would remain on his plantation? the case only needs to be stated; it carries its own refutation with it. absolute and arbitrary power can never be maintained by one man over the body and soul of another man, without brutal chastisement and enormous cruelty. to talk of s entering into a relation in which one party is robbed of wife, of children, of his hard earnings, of home, of friends, of society, of knowledge, and of all that makes this life desirable, is most absurd, wicked, and preposterous. i have shown that slavery is wicked wicked, in that it violates the great law of liberty, written on every human heart wicked, in that it violates the first command of the decalogue wicked, in that it fosters the most disgusting licentiousness wicked, in that it mars and defaces the image of god by cruel and barbarous inflictions wicked, in that it contravenes the laws of eternal justice, and tramples in the dust all the humane and heavenly precepts of the new testament. the evils resulting from this huge system of iniquity are not confined to the states south of mason and dixon's line. its noxious influence can easily be traced throughout our northern borders. it comes even as far north as the state of new york. traces of it may be seen even in rochester; and travelers have told me it casts its gloomy shadows across the lake, approaching the very shores of queen victoria's dominions. the presence of slavery may be explained by as it is the explanation of the mobocratic violence which lately disgraced new york, and which still more recently disgraced the city of boston. these violent demonstrations, these outrageous invasions of human rights, faintly indicate the presence and power of slavery here. it is a significant fact, that while meetings for almost any purpose under heaven may be held unmolested in the city of boston, that in the same city, a meeting cannot be peaceably held for the purpose of preaching the doctrine of the american declaration of independence, "that all men are created equal." the pestiferous breath of slavery taints the whole moral atmosphere of the north, and enervates the moral energies of the whole people. the moment a foreigner ventures upon our soil, and utters a natural repugnance to oppression, that moment he is made to feel that there is little sympathy in this land for him. if he were greeted with smiles before, he meets with frowns now; and it shall go well with him if he be not subjected to that peculiarly fitting method of showing fealty to slavery, the assaults of a mob. now, will any man tell me that such a state of things is natural, and that such conduct on the part of the people of the north, springs from a consciousness of rectitude? no! every fibre of the human heart unites in detestation of tyranny, and it is only when the human mind has become familiarized with slavery, is accustomed to its injustice, and corrupted by its selfishness, that it fails to record its abhorrence of slavery, and does not exult in the triumphs of liberty. the northern people have been long connected with slavery; they have been linked to a decaying corpse, which has destroyed the moral health. the union of the government; the union of the north and south, in the political parties; the union in the religious organizations of the land, have all served to deaden the moral sense of the northern people, and to impregnate them with sentiments and ideas forever in conflict with what as a nation we call . rightly viewed, this is an alarming fact, and ought to rally all that is pure, just, and holy in one determined effort to crush the monster of corruption, and to scatter "its guilty profits" to the winds. in a high moral sense, as well as in a national sense, the whole american people are responsible for slavery, and must share, in its guilt and shame, with the most obdurate men stealers of the south. while slavery exists, and the union of these states endures, every american citizen must bear the chagrin of hearing his country branded before the world as a nation of liars and hypocrites; and behold his cherished national flag pointed at with the utmost scorn and derision. even now an american is pointed out in the crowd, as coming from a land where men gain their fortunes by "the blood of souls," from a land of slave markets, of blood hounds, and slave hunters; and, in some circles, such a man is shunned altogether, as a moral pest. is it not time, then, for every american to awake, and inquire into his duty with respect to this subject'? wendell phillips the eloquent new england orator on his return from europe, in 1842. said, "as i stood upon the shores of genoa, and saw floating on the placid waters of the mediterranean, the beautiful american war ship ohio, with her masts tapering proportionately aloft, and an eastern sun reflecting her noble form upon the sparkling waters, attracting the gaze of the multitude, my first impulse was of pride, to think myself an american; but when i thought that the first time that gallant ship would gird on her gorgeous apparel, and wake from beneath her sides her dormant thunders. it would be in defense of the african slave trade, i blushed in utter for my country." let me say again, it is a blot upon the american name, and the only national reproach which need make an american hang his head in shame, in the presence of monarchical governments. with this gigantic evil in the land, we are constantly told to look if we say ought against crowned heads, we are pointed to our enslaved millions; if we talk of sending missionaries and bibles abroad, we are pointed to three millions now lying in worse than heathen darkness; if we express a word of sympathy for kossuth and his hungarian fugitive brethren, we are pointed to that horrible and hell black enactment. "the fugitive slave bill." slavery blunts the edge of all our rebukes of tyranny abroad the criticisms that we make upon other nations, only call forth ridicule, contempt, and scorn. in a word, we are made a reproach and a by word to a mocking earth, and we must continue to be so made, so long as slavery continues to pollute our soil. we have heard much of late of the virtue of patriotism, the love of country, &c., and this sentiment, so natural and so strong, has been impiously appealed to, by all the powers of human selfishness, to cherish the viper which is stinging our national life away. in its name, we have been called upon to deepen our infamy before the world, to rivet the fetter more firmly on the limbs of the enslaved, and to become utterly insensible to the voice of human woe that is wafted to us on every southern gale. we have been called upon, in its name, to desecrate our whole land by the footprints of slave hunters, and even to engage ourselves in the horrible business of kidnapping. i, too, would invoke the spirit of patriotism; not in a narrow and restricted sense, but, i trust, with a broad and manly signification; not to cover up our national sins, but to inspire us with sincere repentance; not to hide our shame from the world's gaze, but utterly to abolish the cause of that shame; not to explain away our gross inconsistencies as a nation, but to remove the hateful, jarring, and incongruous elements from the land; not to sustain an egregious wrong, but to unite all our energies in the grand effort to remedy that wrong. i would invoke the spirit of patriotism, in the name of the law of the living god, natural and revealed, and in the full belief that "righteousness exalteth a nation, while sin is a reproach to any people." "he that walketh righteously, and speaketh uprightly; he that despiseth the gain of oppressions, that shaketh his hands from the holding of bribes, he shall dwell on high, his place of defense shall be the munitions of rocks, bread shall be given him, his water shall he sure." we have not only heard much lately of patriotism, and of its aid being invoked on the side of slavery and injustice, but the very prosperity of this people has been called in to deafen them to the voice of duty, and to lead them onward in the pathway of sin. thus has the blessing of god been converted into a curse. in the spirit of genuine patriotism, i warn the american people, by all that is just and honorable, to beware! i warn them that, strong, proud, and prosperous though we be, there is a power ahove us that can "bring down high looks; at the breath of whose mouth our wealth may take wings; and before whom every knee shall bow;" and who can tell how soon the avenging angel may pass over our land, and the sable bondmen now in chains, may become the instruments of our nation's chastisement! without appealing to any higher feeling, i would warn the american people, and the american government, to be wise in their day and generation. i exhort them to remember the history of other nations; and i remind them that america cannot always sit "as a queen," in peace and repose; that prouder and stronger governments than this have been shattered by the bolts of a just god; that the time may come when those they now despise and hate, may be needed; when those whom they now compel by oppression to be enemies, may be wanted as friends. what has been, may be again. there is a point beyond which human endurance cannot go. the crushed worm may yet turn under the heel of the oppressor. i warn them, then, with all solemnity, and in the name of retributive justice, for in an evil hour, those sable arms that have, for the last two centuries, been engaged in cultivating and adorning the fair fields of our country, may yet become the instruments of terror, desolation, and death, throughout our borders. it was the sage of the old dominion that said while speaking of the possibility of a conflict between the slaves and the slaveholders  "god has no attribute that could take sides with the oppressor in such a contest. i tremble for my country when i reflect that god is just, and that his justice cannot sleep forever." such is the warning voice of thomas jefferson; and every day's experience since its utterance until now, confirms its wisdom, and commends its truth. what to the slave is the fourth of july? fellow citizens pardon me, and allow me to ask, why am i called upon to speak here to day? what have i, or those i represent, to do with your national independence? are the great principles of political freedom and of natural justice, embodied in that declaration of independence, extended to us? and am i, therefore, called upon to bring our humble offering to the national altar, and to confess the benefits, and express devout gratitude for the blessings, resulting from your independence to us? would to god, both for your sakes and ours, that an affirmative answer could be truthfully returned to these questions! then would my task be light, and my burden easy and delightful. for who is there so cold that a nation's sympathy could not warm him? who so obdurate and dead to the claims of gratitude, that would not thankfully acknowledge such priceless benefits? who so stolid and selfish, that would not give his voice to swell the hallelujahs of a nation's jubilee, when the chains of servitude had been torn from his limbs? i am not that man. in a case like that, the dumb might eloquently speak, and the "lame man leap as an hart." but, such is not the state of the case. i say it with a sad sense of the disparity between us. i am not included within the pale of this glorious anniversary! your high independence only reveals the immeasurable distance between us. the blessings in which you this day rejoice, are not enjoyed in common. the rich inheritance of justice, liberty, prosperity, and independence, bequeathed by your fathers, is shared by you, not by me. the sunlight that brought life and healing to you, has brought stripes and death to me. this fourth of july is , not . you may rejoice. must mourn. to drag a man in fetters into the grand illuminated temple of liberty, and call upon him to join you in joyous anthems, were inhuman mockery and sacrilegious irony. do you mean, citizens, to mock me, by asking me to speak today? if so, there is a parallel to your conduct. and let me warn you that it is dangerous to copy the example of a nation whose crimes, towering up to heaven, were thrown down by the breath of the almighty, burying that nation in irrecoverable ruin! i can to day take up the plaintive lament of a peeled and woe smitten people. "by the rivers of babylon. there we sat down. yea! we wept when we remembered zion. we hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof. for there, they that carried us away captive, required of us a song; and they who wasted us required of us mirth, saying, sing us one of the songs of zion. how can we sing the lord's song in a strange land? if i forget thee, o jerusalem, let my right hand forget her cunning. if i do not remember thee, let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth." fellow citizens, above your national, tumultuous joy, i hear the mournful wail of millions, whose chains, heavy and grievous yesterday, are today rendered more intolerable by the jubilant shouts that reach them. if i do forget, if i do not faithfully remember those bleeding children of sorrow this day, "may my right hand forget her cunning, and may my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth!" to forget them, to pass lightly over their wrongs, and to chime in with the popular theme, would be treason most scandalous and shocking, and would make me a reproach before god and the world. my subject, then, fellow citizens, is american slavery. i shall see this day and its popular characteristics from the slave's point of view. standing there, identified with the american bondman, making his wrongs mine, i do not hesitate to declare, with all my soul, that the character and conduct of this nation never looked blacker to me than on this fourth of july. whether we tum to the declarations of the past, or to the professions of the present, the conduct of the nation seems equally hideous and revolting. america is false to the past, false to the present, and solemnly binds herself to be false to the future. standing with god and the crushed and bleeding slave on this occasion, i will, in the name of humanity which is outraged, in the name of liberty which is fettered, in the name of the constitution and the bible, which are disregarded and trampled upon, dare to call in question and to denounce, with all the emphasis i can command. everything that serves to perpetuate slavery  the great sin and shame of america'! i will not equivocate; i will not excuse;" i will use the severest language i can command; and yet not one word shall escape me that any man, whose judgment is not blinded by prejudice, or who is not at heart a slaveholder, shall not confess to be right and just. but i fancy i hear some one of my audience say, it is just in this circumstance that you and your brother abolitionists fail to make a favorable impression on the public mind. would you argue more, and denounce less, would you persuade more and rebuke less, your cause would be much more likely to succeed. but, i submit, where all is plain there is nothing to be argued. what point in the anti slavery creed would you have me argue? on what branch of the subject do the people of this country need light? must i undertake to prove that the slave is a man? that point is conceded already. nobody doubts it. the slaveholders themselves acknowledge it in the enactment of laws for their government. they acknowledge it when they punish disobedience on the part of the slave. there arc seventy two crimes in the state of virginia, which, if committed by a black man, (no matter how ignorant he be,) subject him to the punishment of death; while only two of these same crimes will subject a white man to the like punishment. what is this but the acknowledgment that the slave is a moral, intellectual, and responsible being. the manhood of the slave is conceded. it is admitted in the fact that southern statute books are covered with enactments forbidding, under severe fines and penalties, the teaching of the slave to read or write. when you can point to any such laws, in reference to the beasts of the field, then i may consent to argue the manhood of the slave. when the dogs in your streets, when the fowls of the air, when the cattle on your hills, when the fish of the sea, and the reptiles that crawl, shall be unable to distinguish the slave from a brute, then will i argue with you that the slave is a man! for the present, it is enough to affirm the equal manhood of the negro race. is it not astonishing that, while we are plowing, planting, and reaping, using all kinds of mechanical tools, erecting houses, constructing bridges, building ships, working in metals of brass, iron, copper, silver, and gold; that, while we arc reading, writing, and cyphering, acting as clerks, merchants. and secretaries, having among us lawyers, doctors, ministers, poets, authors, editors, orators. and teachers; that, while we are engaged in all manner of enterprises common to other men digging gold in california, capturing the whale in the pacific, feeding sheep and cattle on the hill side, living, moving, acting, thinking, planning, living in families as husbands, wives, and children, and, above all, confessing and worshiping the christian 's god, and looking hopefully for life and immortality beyond the grave we are called upon to prove that we are men! would you have me argue that man is entitled to liberty? that he is the rightful owner of his own body? you have already declared it. must i argue the wrongfulness of slavery? is that a question for republicans? is it to be settled by the rules of logic and argumentation, as a matter beset with great difficulty, involving a doubtful application of the principle of justice, hard to be understood? how should i look to day in the presence of americans, dividing and subdividing a discourse, to show that men have a natural right to freedom, speaking of it relatively and positively, negatively and affirmatively?to do so, would be to make myself ridiculous. and to offer an insult to your understanding. there is not a man beneath the canopy of heaven that does not know that slavery is wrong . what! am i to argue that it is wrong to make men brutes, to rob them of their liberty, to work them without wages, to keep them ignorant of their relations to their fellow men, to beat them with sticks, to flay their flesh with the lash, to load their limbs with irons, to hunt them with dogs, to sell them at auction, to sunder their families, to knock out their teeth, to burn their flesh, to starve them into obedience and submission to their masters? must i argue that a system, thus marked with blood and stained with pollution, is wrong! no; i will not. i have better employment for my time and strength than such arguments would imply. what, then, remains to he argued? is it that slavery is not divine; that god did not establish it; that our doctors of divinity are mistaken? there is blasphemy in the thought. that which is inhuman cannot be divine. who can reason on such a proposition! they that can, may; i cannot. the time for such argument is past. at a time like this, scorching irony, not convincing argument, is needed. oh! had i the ability, and could i reach the nation's ear, i would to day pour out a fiery stream of biting ridicule, blasting reproach, withering sarcasm, and stem rebuke. for it is not light that is needed, but fire; it is not the gentle shower, but thunder. we need the storm, the whirlwind, and the earthquake. the feeling of the nation must be quickened; the conscience of the nation must be roused; the propriety of the nation must be startled; the hypocrisy of the nation must be exposed; and its crimes against god and man must be proclaimed and denounced. what to the american slave is your fourth of july? i answer, a day that reveals to him, more than all other days in the year, the gross injustice and cruelty to which he is the constant victim. to him, your celebration is a sham; your boasted liberty, an unholy license; your national greatness, swelling vanity; your sounds of rejoicing are empty and heartless; your denunciations of tyrants, brass fronted impudence; your shouts of liberty and equality, hollow mockery; your prayers and hymns, your sermons and thanksgivings, with all your religious parade and solemnity, are to him mere bombast, fraud, deception, impiety, and hypocrisy a thin veil to cover up crimes which would disgrace a nation of savages. there is not a nation on the earth guilty of practices more shocking and bloody, than are the people of these united states, at this very hour. go where you may, search where you will, roam through all the monarchies and despotisms of the old world, travel through south america, search out every abuse, and when you have found the last, lay your facts by the side of the every day practices of this nation, and you will say with me. that, for revolting barbarity and shameless hypocrisy, america reigns without a rival. the internal slave trade. take the american slave trade, which, we are told by the papers, is especially prosperous just now. ex senator benton tells us that the price of men was never higher than now. he mentions the fact to show that slavery is in no danger. this trade is one of the peculiarities of american institutions. it is carried on in all the large towns and cities in one half of this confederacy: and millions are pocketed every year by dealers in this horrid traffic. in several states this trade is a chief source of wealth . it is called (in contradistinction to the foreign slave trade) "." it is, probably, called so, too, in order to divert from it the horror with which the foreign slave trade is contemplated. that trade has long since been denounced by this government as piracy. it has been denounced with burning words, from the high places of the nation, as an execrable traffic. to arrest it, to put an end to it, this nation keeps a squadron, at immense cost, on the coast of africa. everywhere in this country, it is safe to speak of this foreign slave trade as a most inhuman traffic, opposed alike to the laws of god and of man. the duty to extirpate and destroy it is admitted even by our . in order to put an end to it, some of these last have consented that their colored brethren (nominally free) should leave this country, and estahlish themselves on the western coast of africa. it is, however, a notable fact, that, while so much execration is poured out by americans, upon those engaged in the foreign slave trade, the men engaged in the slave trade between the states pass without condemnation, and their business is deemed honorable. behold the practical operation of this internal slave trade the american slave trade sustained hy american politics and american religion! here you will see men and women reared like swine for the market. you know what is a swine drover? i will show you a man drover. they inhabit all our southern states. they perambulate the country, and crowd the highways of the nation with droves of human stock. you will see one of these human flesh jobbers, armed with pistol, whip, and bowie knife, driving a company of a hundred men, women, and children, from the potomac to the slave market at new orleans. these wretched people are to be sold singly, or in lots, to suit purchasers. they are food for the cotton field and the deadly sugar mill. mark the sad procession as it moves wearily along, and the inhuman wretch who drives them. hear his savage yells and his bloodchilling oaths, as he hurries on his affrighted captives. there, see the old man, with locks thinned and gray. cast one glance, if you please, upon that young mother, whose shoulders are bare to the scorching sun, her briny tears falling on the brow of the habe in her arms. see, too, that girl of thirteen, weeping, yes, weeping, as she thinks of the mother from whom she has been torn. the drove moves tardily. heat and sorrow have nearly consumed their strength. suddenly you hear a quick snap, like the discharge of a rifle; the fetters clank, and the chain rattles simultaneously; your ears are saluted with a scream that seems to have torn its way to the center of your soul. the crack you heard was the sound of the slave whip; the scream you heard was from the woman you saw with the babe. her speed had faltered under the weight of her child and her chains; that gash on her shoulder tells her to move on. follow this drove to new orleans. attend the auction; see men examined like horses; see the forms of women rudely and brutally exposed to the shocking gaze of american slave buyers. see this drove sold and separated forever; and never forget the deep, sad sobs that arose from that scattered multitude. tell me, citizens, where, under the sun, can you witness a spectacle more fiendish and shocking. yet this is but a glance at the american slave trade, as it exists at this moment, in the ruling part of the united states. i was born amid such sights and scenes. to me the american slave trade is a terrible reality. when a child, my soul was often pierced with a sense of its horrors. i lived on philpot street, fell's point, baltimore, and have watched from the wharves the slave ships in the basin, anchored from the shore, with their cargoes of human flesh, waiting for favorablc winds to waft them down the chesapeake. there was, at that time, a grand slave man kept at the head of pratt street, by austin woldfolk. his agents were sent into every town and county in maryland, announcing their arrival through the papers, and on flaming hand bills, headed, "cash for negroes." these men were generally well dressed, and very captivating in their manners; ever ready to drink, to treat, and to gamble. the fate of many a slave has depended upon the turn of a single card; and many a child has been snatched from the arms of its mother by bargains arranged in a state of brutal drunkenness. the flesh mongers gather up their victims by dozens, and drive them, chained, to the general depot at baltimore. when a sufficient number have been collected here, a ship is chartered, for the purpose of conveying the forlorn crew to mobile or to new orleans. from the slave prison to the ship, they are usually driven in the darkness of night; for since the antislavery agitation a cenain caution is observed. in the deep, still darkness of midnight, i have been often aroused by the dead, heavy footsteps and the piteous cries of the chained gangs that passed our door. the anguish of my boyish heart was intense; and i was often consoled, when speaking to my mistress in the morning, to hear her say that the custom was very wicked; that she hated to hear the rattle of the chains, and the heart rending cries. i was glad to find one who sympathized with me in my horror. fellow citizens, this murderous traffic is to day in active operation in this boasted republic. in the solitude of my spirit, i see clouds of dust raised on the highways of the south; i see the bleeding footsteps; i hear the doleful wail of fettered humanity, on the way to the slave markets. where the victims are to be sold like horses, sheep, and swine, knocked off to the highest bidder. there i see the tenderest ties ruthlessly broken, to gratify the just, caprice, and rapacity of the buyers and sellers of men. my soul sickens at the sight. "is this the land your fathers loved? the freedom which they toiled to win? is this the earth whereon they moved? are these the graves they slumber in?" but a still more inhuman, disgraceful, and scandalous state of things remains to be presented. by an act of the american congress, not yet two years old, slavery has been nationalized in its most horrible and revolting form. by that act, mason and dixon's line has been obliterated; new york has become as virginia; and the power to hold, hunt, and sell men, women, and children as slaves, remains no longer a mere state institution, but is now an institution of the whole united states. the power is co extensive with the star spangled banner and american christianity. where these go, may also go the merciless slave hunter. where these are, man is not sacred. he is a bird for the sportsman's gun. by that most foul and fiendish of all human decrees, the liberty and person of every man are put in peril. your broad republican domain is a hunting ground for . not for thieves and robbers, enemies of society, merely, but for men guilty of no crime. your law makers have commanded all good citizens to engage in this hellish sport. your president, your secretary of state, your lords, nobles. and ecclesiastics, enforce as a duty you owe to your free and glorious country and to your god, that you do this accursed thing. not fewer than forty americans have within the past two years been hunted down, and without a moment's warning, hurried away in chains, and consigned to slavery and excruciating torture. some of these have had wives and children dependent on them for bread; but of this no account was made. the right of the hunter to his prey, stands superior to the right of marriage, and to all rights in this republic, the rights of god included! for black men there are neither law, justice, humanity, nor religion. the fugitive slave law makes mercy to them a crime; and bribes the judge who tries them. an american judge gets ten dollars for every victim he consigns to slavery, and five, when he fails to do so. the oath of any two villains is sufficient, under this hell black enactment, to send the most pious and exemplary black man into the remorseless jaws of slavery! his own testimony is nothing. he can bring no witnesses for himself. the minister of american justice is bound by the law to hear but one side; and that side is the side of the oppressor. let this damning fact be perpetually told. let it be thundered around the world, that, in tyrant killing, king hating, people loving, democratic, christian america, the seats of justice are filled with judges, who hold their office under an open and palpable , and are bound, in deciding in the case of a man's liberty, in glaring violation of justice, in shameless disregard of the forms of administering law, in cunning arrangement to entrap the defenseless, and in diabolical intent, this fugitive slave law stands alone in the annals of tyrannical legislation. i doubt if there be another nation on the globe having the brass and the baseness to put such a law on the statute hook. if any man in this assembly thinks differently from me in this matter, and feels able to disprove my statements, i will gladly confront him at any suitable time and place he may select. the slavery party sir, it is evident that there is in this country a purely slavery party a party which exists for no other earthly purpose but to promote the interests of slavery. the presence of this party is felt everywhere in the republic. it is known by no particular name, and has assumed no definite shape; but its branches reach far and wide in the church and in the state. this shapeless and nameless party is not intangible in other and more important respects. that party, sir, has determined upon a fixed, definite, and comprehensive policy toward the whole colored population of the united states. what that policy is, it becomes us as abolitionists, and especially does it become the colored people themselves, to consider and to understand fully. we ought to know who our enemies are, where they are, and what are their objects and measures. well, sir, here is my version of it not original with me but mine because i hold it to be true. i understand this policy to comprehend five cardinal objects. they are these: 1st. the complete suppression of all anti slavery discussion. 2d. the expatriation of the entire free people of color from the united states. 3d. the unending perpetuation of slavery in this republic. 4th. the nationalization of slavery to the extent of making slavery respected in every state of the union. 5th. the extension of slavery over mexico and the entire south american states. sir, these objects are forcibly presented to us in the stern logic of passing events; in the facts which are and have been passing around us during the last three years. the country has been and is now dividing on these grand issues. in their magnitude, these issues cast all others into the shade, depriving them of all life and vitality. old party ties are broken. like is finding its like on either side of these great issues, and the great battle is at hand. for the present, the best representative of the slavery party in politics is the democratic party. its great head for the present is president pierce, whose boast it was, before his election, that his whole life had been consistent with the interests of slavery, that he is above reproach on that score. in his inaugural address, he reassures the south on this point. well, the head of the slave power being in power, it is natural that the pro slavery elements should cluster around the administration, and this is rapidly being done. a fraternization is going on. the stringent protectionists and the free traders strike hands. the supporters of fillmore are becoming the supporters of pierce. the silver gray whig shakes hands with the hunker democrat; the former only differing from the latter in name. they are of one heart, one mind, and the union is natural and perhaps inevitable. both hate negroes; both hate progress; both hate the "higher law;" both hate william h. seward; both hate the free democratic party; and upon this hateful basis they are forming a union of hatred. "pilate and herod are thus made friends." even the central organ of the whig party is extending its beggar hand for a morsel from the table of slavery democracy, and when spurned from the feast by the more deserving, it pockets the insult; when kicked on one side it turns the other, and perseveres in its importunities. the fact is, that paper comprehends the demands of the times; it understands the age and its issues; it wisely sees that slavery and freedom are the great antagonistic forces in the country, and it goes to its own side. silver grays and hunkers all understand this. they are, therefore, rapidly sinking all other questions to nothing, compared with the increasing demands of slavery. they are collecting, arranging, and consolidating their forces for the accomplishment of their appointed work. the keystone to the arch of this grand union of the slavery party of the united states, is the compromise of 1850. in that compromise we have all the objects of our slaveholding policy specified. it is, sir, favorable to this view of the designs of the slave power, that both the whig and the democratic party bent lower, sunk deeper, and strained harder, in their conventions, preparatory to the late presidential election, to meet the demands of the slavery party than at any previous time in their history. never did parties come before the northern people with propositions of such undisguised contempt for the moral sentiment and the religious ideas of that people. they virtually asked them to unite in a war upon free speech, and upon conscience, and to drive the almighty presence from the councils of the nation. resting their platforms upon the fugitive slave bill, they boldly asked the people for political power to execute the horrible and hell black provisions of that bill. the history of that election reveals, with great clearness, the extent to which slavery has shot its leprous distillment through the life blood of the nation. the party most thoroughly opposed to the cause of justice and humanity, triumphed; while the party suspected of a leaning toward liberty, was overwhelmingly defeated, some say annihilated. but here is a still more important fact, illustrating the designs of the slave power. it is a fact full of meaning, that no sooner did the democratic slavery party come into power, than a system of legislation was presented to the legislatures of the northern states, designed to put the states in harmony with the fugitive slave law, and the malignant bearing of the national government toward the colored inhabitants of the country. this whole movement on the part of the states, bears the evidence of having one origin, emanating from one head, and urged forward by one power. it was simultaneous, uniform, and general, and looked to one end. it was intended to put thorns under feet already bleeding; to crush a people already bowed down; to enslave a people already but half free; in a word, it was intended to discourage, dishearten, and drive the free colored people out of the country. in looking at the recent black law of illinois, one is struck dumb with its enormity. it would seem that the men who enacted that law, had not only banished from their minds all sense of justice, but all sense of shame. it coolly proposes to sell the bodies and souls of the black to increase the intelligence and refinement of the whites; to rob every black stranger who ventures among them, to increase their literary fund. while this is going on in the states, a pro slavery, political board of health is established at washington. senators hale, chase, and sumner are robbed of a part of their senatorial dignity and consequence as representing sovereign states, because they have refused to be inoculated with the slavery virus. among the services which a senator is expected by his state to perform, are many that can only be done efficiently on committees; and. in saying to these honorable senators, you shall not serve on the committees of this body, the slavery party took the responsibility of robbing and insulting the states that sent them. it is an attempt at washington to decide for the states who shall be sent to the senate. sir, it strikes me that this aggression on the part of the slave power did not meet at the hands of the proscribed senators the rebuke which we had a right to expect would be administered. it seems to me that an opportunity was lost, that the great principle of senatorial equality was left undefended, at a time when its vindication was sternly demanded. but it is not to the purpose of my present statement to criticise the conduct of our friends. i am persuaded that much ought to be left to the discretion of anti slavery men in congress, and charges of recreancy should never be made but on the most sufficient grounds. for, of all the places in the world where an anti slavery man needs the confidence and encouragement of friends, i take washington to be that place. let me now call attention to the social influences which are operating and cooperating with the slavery party of the country, designed to contribute to one or all of the grand objects aimed at by that party. we see here the black man attacked in his vital interests; prejudice and hate are excited against him; enmity is stirred up between him and other laborers. the irish people, warm hearted, generous, and sympathizing with the oppressed everywhere, when they stand upon their own green island, are instantly taught, on arriving in this christian country, to hate and despise the colored people. they are taught to believe that we eat the bread which of right belongs to them. the cruel lie is told the irish, that our adversity is essential to their prosperity. sir, the irish american will find out his mistake one day. he will find that in assuming our avocation he also has assumed our degradation. but for the present we are sufferers. the old employments by which we have heretofore gained our livelihood, are gradually, and it may be inevitably, passing into other hands. every hour sees us elbowed out of some employment to make room perhaps for some newly arrived emigrants, whose hunger and color are thought to give them a title to especial favor. white men are becoming house servants, cooks, and stewards, common laborers, and flunkeys to our gentry, and, for aught i see, they adjust themselves to their stations with all becoming obsequiousness. this fact proves that if we cannot rise to the whites, the whites can fall to us. now, sir, look once more. while the colored people are thus elbowed out of employment; while the enmity of emigrants is being excited against us; while state after state enacts laws against us; while we are hunted down, like wild game, and oppressed with a general feeling of insecurity the american colonization society that old offender against the best interests and slanderer of the colored people awakens to new life, and vigorously presses its scheme upon the consideration of the people and the government. new papers are started some for the north and some for the south and each in its tone adapting itself to its latitude. government, state and national, is called upon for appropriations to enable the society to send us out of the country by steam! they want steamers to carry letters and negroes to africa. evidently, this society looks upon our "extremity as its opportunity," and we may expect that it will use the occasion well. they do not deplore, but glory, in our misfortunes. but, sir, i must hasten. i have thus briefly given my view of one aspect of the present condition and future prospects of the colored people of the united states. and what i have said is far from encouraging to my afflicted people. i have seen the cloud gather upon the sable brows of some who hear me. i confess the case looks black enough. sir, i am not a hopeful man. i think i am apt even to undercalculate the benefits of the future. yet, sir, in this seemingly desperate case, i do not despair for my people. there is a bright side to almost every picture of this kind; and ours is no exception to the general rule. if the influences against us are strong, those for us are also strong. to the inquiry, will our enemies prevail in the execution of their designs. in my god and in my soul, i believe they . let us look at the first object sought for by the slavery party of the country, viz: the suppression of anti slavery discussion. they desire to suppress discussion on this subject, with a view to the peace of the slaveholder and the security of slavery. now, sir, neither the principle nor the subordinate objects here declared, can be at all gained by the slave power, and for this reason: it involves the proposition to padlock the lips of the whites, in order to secure the fetters on the limbs of the blacks. the right of speech, precious and priceless, , be surrendered to slavery. its suppression is asked for, as i have said, to give peace and security to slaveholders. sir, that thing cannot be done. god has interposed an insuperable obstacle to any such result. "there can be , saith my god, to the wicked." suppose it were possible to put down this discussion, what would it avail the guilty slaveholder, pillowed as he is upon the heaving bosoms of ruined souls? he could not have a peaceful spirit. if every anti slavery tongue in the nation were silent every anti slavery organization dissolved every anti slavery press demolished every anti slavery periodical, paper, book, pamphlet, or what not, were searched out, gathered together, deliberately burned to ashes, and their ashes given to the four winds of heaven, still, still the slaveholder could have "" in every pulsation of his heart, in every throb of his life, in every glance of his eye, in the breeze that soothes, and in the thunder that startles, would be waked up an accuser, whose cause is, "thou art, verily, guilty concerning thy brother." the anti slavery movement. a grand movement on the part of mankind, in any direction, or for any purpose, moral or political, is an interesting fact, fit and proper to be studied. it is such, not only for those who eagerly participate in it, but also for those who stand aloof from it even for those by whom it is opposed. i take the anti slavery movement to be such an one, and a movement as sublime and glorious in its character, as it is holy and beneficent in the ends it aims to accomplish. at this moment, i deem it safe to say, it is properly engrossing more minds in this country than any other subject now before the american people. the late john c. calhoun one of the mightiest men that ever stood up in the american senate did not deem it beneath him; and he probably studied it as deeply, though not as honestly, as gerrit smith, or william lloyd garrison. he evinced the greatest familiarity with the subject; and the greatest efforts of his last years in the senate had direct reference to this movement. his eagle eye watched every new development connected with it: and he was ever prompt to inform the south of every important step in its progress. he never allowed himself to make light of it; but always spoke of it and treated it as a matter of grave import; and in this he showed himself a master of the mental, moral, and religious constitution of human society. daniel webster, too, in the better days of his life, before he gave his assent to the fugitive slave bill, and trampled upon all his earlier and better convictions when his eye was yet single he clearly comprehended the nature of the elements involved in this movement; and in his own majestic eloquence, warned the south, and the country, to have a care how they attempted to put it down. he is an illustration that it is easier to give, than to take, good advice. to these two men the greatest men to whom the nation has yet given birth may be traced the two great facts of the present  the south triumphant, and the north humbled. their names may stand thus, calhoun and domination webster and degradation. yet again. if to the enemies of liberty this subject is one of engrossing interest, vastly more so should it be such to freedom's friends. the latter, it leads to the gates of all valuable knowledge philanthropic, ethical, and religious; for it brings them to the study of man, wonderfully and fearfully made the proper study of man through all time  the open book, in which are the records of time and eternity. of the existence and power of the anti slavery movement, as a fact, you need no evidence. the nation has seen its face, and felt the controlling pressure of its hand. you have seen it moving in all directions, and in all weathers, and in all places, appearing most where desired least, and pressing hardest where most resisted. no place is exempt. the quiet prayer meeting, and the stormy halls of national debate, share its presence alike. it is a common intruder, and of course has the name of being ungentlemanly. brethren who had long sung, in the most affectionate fervor, and with the greatest sense of security, 'together let us sweetly live together let us die." have been suddenly and violently separated by it, and ranged in hostile attitude toward each other. the methodist, one of the most powerful religious organizations of this country, has been rent asunder, and its strongest bolts of denominational brotherhood started at a single surge. it has changed the tone of the northern pulpit, and modified that of the press. a celebrated divine, who, four years ago. was for flinging his own mother, or brother, into the remorseless jaws of the monster slavery, lest he should swallow up the union, now recognizes anti slavery as a characteristic of future civilization. signs and wonders follow this movement; and the fact just stated is one of them. party ties are loosened by it; and men are compelled to take sides for or against it, whether they will or not. come from where he may, or come for what he may, he is compelled to show his hand. what is this mighty force? what is its history? and what is its destiny? is it ancient or modern, transient or permanent? has it turned aside, like a stranger and a sojourner, to tarry for a night? or has it come to rest with us forever? excellent chances are here for speculation; and some of them are quite profound. we might, for instance, proceed to inquire not only into the philosophy of the anti slavery movement, but into the philosophy of the law, in obedience to which that movement started into existence. we might demand to know what is that law or power which, at different times. disposes the minds of men to this or that particular object now for peace, and now for war now for freedom, and now for slavery; but this profound question i leave to the abolitionists of the superior class to answer. the speculations which must precede such answer, would afford, perhaps, about the same satisfaction as the learned theories which have rained down upon the world, from time to time, as to the origin of evil. i shall, therefore, avoid water in which i cannot swim, and deal with anti slavery as a fact, like any other fact in the history of mankind, capable of being described and understood, both as to its internal forces, and its external phases and relations. [after an eloquent, a full, and highly interesting exposition of the nature, character, and history of the anti slavery movement, from the insertion of which want of space precludes us, he concluded in the following happy manner.] present organizations may perish, but the cause will go on. that cause has a life, distinct and independent of the organizations patched up from time to time to carry it forward. looked at, apart from the bones and sinews and body, it is a thing immortal. it is the very essence of justice, liberty, and love. the moral life of human society, it cannot die while conscience, honor, and humanity remain. if but one be filled with it, the cause lives. its incarnation in any one individual man, leaves the whole world a priesthood, occupying the highest moral eminence even that of disinterested benevolence. whoso has ascended this height, and has the grace to stand there, has the world at his feet, and is the world's teacher, as of divine right. he may set in judgment on the age, upon the civilization of the age, and upon the religion of the age; for he has a test, a sure and certain test, by which to try all institutions, and to measure all men. i say, he may do this, but this is not the chief business for which he is qualified. the great work to which he is called is not that of judgment. like the prince of peace, he may say, if i judge, i judge righteous judgment; still mainly, like him, he may say, this is not his work. the man who has thoroughly embraced the principles of justice, love, and liberty, like the true preacher of christianity, is less anxious to reproach the world of its sins, than to win it to repentance. his great work on earth is to exemplify, and to illustrate, and to ingraft those principles upon the living and practical understandings of all men within the reach of his influence. this is his work; long or short his years, many or few his adherents, powerful or weak his instrumentalities, through good report, or through bad report, this is his work. it is to snatch from the bosom of nature the latent facts of each individual man 's experience, and with steady hand to hold them up fresh and glowing, enforcing, with all his power, their acknowledgment and practical adoption. if there be but one such man in the land, no matter what becomes of abolition societies and parties, there will be an anti slavery cause, and an anti slavery movement. fortunately for that cause, and fortunately for him by whom it is espoused, it requires no extraordinary amount of talent to preach it or to receive it when preached. the grand secret of its power is, that each of its principles is easily rendered appreciable to the faculty of reason in man, and that the most unenlightened conscience has no difficulty in deciding on which side to register its testimony. it can call its preachers from among the fishermen, and raise them to power. in every human breast, it has an advocate which can be silent only when the heart is dead. it comes home to every man's understanding, and appeals directly to every man's conscience. a man that does not recognize and approve for himself the rights and privileges contended for, in behalf of the american slave, has not yet been found. in whatever else men may differ, they are alike in the apprehension of their natural and personal rights. the difference between abolitionists and those by whom they are opposed, is not as to principles. all are agreed in respect to these. the manner of applying them is the point of difference. the slaveholder himself, the daily robber of his equal brother, discourses eloquently as to the excellency of justice, and the man who employs a brutal driver to flay the flesh of his negroes, is not offended when kindness and humanity are commended. every time the abolitionist speaks of justice, the anti abolitionist assents says, yes, i wish the world were filled with a disposition to render to every man what is rightfully due him; i should then get what is due me. that's right; let us have justice. by all means, let us have justice. every time the abolitionist speaks in honor of human liberty, he touches a chord in the heart of the anti abolitionist, which responds in harmonious vibrations. liberty yes, that is very evidently my right, and let him beware who attempts to invade or abridge that right. every time he speaks of love, of human brotherhood, and the reciprocal duties of man and man, the anti abolitionist assents says, yes, all right all true we cannot have such ideas too often, or too fully expressed. so he says, and so he feels, and only shows thereby that he is a man as well as an anti abolitionist. you have only to keep out of sight the manner of applying your principles, to get them endorsed every time. contemplating himself, he sees truth with absolute clearness and distinctness. he only blunders when asked to lose sight of himself. in his own cause he can beat a boston lawyer, but he is dumb when asked to plead the cause of others. he knows very well whatsoever he would have done unto himself, but is quite in doubt as to having the same thing done unto others. it is just here, that lions spring up in the path of duty, and the battle once fought in heaven is refought on the earth. so it is, so hath it ever been, and so must it ever be, when the claims of justice and mercy make their demand at the door of human selfishness. nevertheless, there is that within which ever pleads for the right and the just. in conclusion, i have taken a sober view of the present anti slavery movement. i am sober, but not hopeless. there is no denying, for it is everywhere admitted, that the anti slavery question is the great moral and social question now before the american people. a state of things has gradually been developed, by which that question has become the first thing in order. it must be met. herein is my hope. the great idea of impartial liberty is now fairly before the american people. anti slavery is no longer a thing to be prevented. the time for prevention is past. this is great gain. when the movement was younger and weaker when it wrought in a boston garret to human apprehension, it might have been silently put out of the way. things are different now. it has grown too large its friends are too numerous its facilities too abundant its ramifications too extended its power too omnipotent, to be snuffed out by the contingencies of infancy. a thousand strong men might be struck down, and its ranks still be invincible. one flash from the heart supplied intellect of harriet beecher stowe could light a million camp fires in front of the embattled host of slavery, which not all the waters of the mississippi, mingled as they are with blood, could extinguish. the present will he looked to by after coming generations, as the age of anti slavery literature when supply on the gallop could not keep pace with the ever growing demand  when a picture of a negro on the cover was a help to the sale of a book when conservative lyceums and other american literary associations began first to select their orators for distinguished occasions from the ranks of the previously despised abolitionists. if the anti slavey movement shall fail now, it will not be from outward opposition, but from inward decay. its auxiliaries are everywhere. scholars, authors, orators, poets, and statesmen give it their aid. the most brilliant of american poets volunteer in its service. whittier speaks in burning verse to more than thirty thousand, in the national era. your own longfellow whispers, in every hour of trial and disappointment, "labor and wait." james russell lowell is reminding us that "men are more than institutions." pierpont cheers the heart of the pilgrim in search of liberty, by singing the praises of "the north star." bryant, too, is with us; and though chained to the car of party, and dragged on amidst a whirl of political excitement, he snatches a moment for letting drop a smiling verse of sympathy for the man in chains. the poets are with us. it would seem almost absurd to say it, considering the use that has been made of them, that we have allies in the ethiopian songs; those songs that constitute our national music, and without which we have no national music. they are heart songs, and the finest feelings of human nature are expressed in them. "lucy neal." "old kentucky home," and "'uncle ned," can make the heart sad as well as merry, and can call forth a tear as well as a smile. they awaken the sympathies for the slave, in which anti slavery principles take root, grow, and flourish. in addition to authors, poets, and scholars at home, the moral sense of the civilized world is with us. england. france, and germany, the three great lights of modem civilization, are with us, and every american traveler learns to regret the existence of slavery in his country. the growth of intelligence, the influence of commerce, steam, wind, and lightning are our allies. it would be easy to amplify this summary, and to swell the vast conglomeration of our material forces; but there is a deeper and truer method of measuring the power of our cause, and of comprehending its vitality. this is to be found in its accordance with the best elements of human nature. it is beyond the power of slavery to annihilate affinities recognized and established by the almighty. the slave is bound to mankind by the powerful and inextricable net work of human brotherhood. his voice is the voice of a man, and his cry is the cry of a man in distress, and man must cease to be man before he can become insensible to that cry. it is the righteousness of the cause the humanity of the cause which constitutes its potency. as one genuine bank bill is worth more than a thousand counterfeits, so is one man, with right on his side, worth more than a thousand in the wrong. '"one may chase a thousand, and put ten thousand to flight." it is, therefore, upon the goodness of our cause, more than upon all other auxiiiaries, that we depend for its final triumph. another source of congratulation is the fact that, amid all the efforts made by the church, the government, and the people at large, to stay the onward progress of this movement, its course has been onward, steady, straight, unshaken, and unchecked from the beginning. slavery has gained victories large and numerous; but never as against this movement against a temporizing policy, and against northern timidity, the slave power has been victorious; but against the spread and prevalence in the country, of a spirit of resistance to its aggression, and of sentiments favorahle to its entire overthrow, it has yet accomplished nothing. every measure, yet devised and executed, having for its object the suppression of anti slavery, has been as idle and fruitless as pouring oil to extinguish fire. a general rejoicing took place on the passage of "the compromise measures" of 1850. those measures were called peace measures, and were afterward termed by both the great parties of the country, as well as by leading statesmen, a final settlement of the whole question of slavery; but experience has laughed to scorn the wisdom of pro slavery statesmen; and their final settlement of agitation seems to be the final revival, on a broader and grander scale than ever before, of the question which they vainly attempted to suppress forever. the fugitive slave bill has especially been of positive service to the anti slavery movement. it has illustrated before all the people the horrible character of slavery toward the slave, in hunting him down in a free state, and tearing him away from wife and children, thus setting its claims higher than marriage or parental claims. it has revealed the arrogant and overbearing spirit of the slave states toward the free states; despising their principles shocking their feelings of humanity, not only by bringing before them the abominations of slavery, but by attempting to make them parties to the crime. it has called into exercise among the colored people, the hunted ones, a spirit of manly resistance well calculated to surround them with a bulwark of sympathy and respect hitherto unknown. for men are always disposed to respect and defend rights, when the victims of oppression stand up manfully for themselves. there is another element of power added to the anti slavery movement, of great importance; it is the conviction, becoming every day more general and universal, that slavery must he abolished at the south, or it will demoralize and destroy liberty at the north. it is the nature of slavery to beget a state of things all around it favorable to its own continuance. this fact, connected with the system of bondage, is heginning to he more fully realized. the slave holder is not satisfied to associate with men in the church or in the state, unless he can thereby stain them with the blood of his slaves. to be a slave holder is to be a propagandist from necessity; for slavery can only live by keeping down the under growth morality which nature supplies. every new born white babe comes armed from the eternal presence, to make war on slavery. the heart of pity, which would melt in due time over the brutal chastisements it sees inflicted on the helpless, must be hardened. and this work goes on every day in the year, and every hour in the day. what is done at home is being done also abroad here in the north. and even now the question may be asked, have we at this moment a single free state in the union? the alarm at this point will become more general. the slave power must go on in its career of exactions. give, give, will be its cry, till the timidity which concedes shall give place to courage, which shall resist. such is the voice of experience, such has been the past, such is the present, and such will he that future, which, so sure as man is man, will come. herc i leave the subject; and i leave off where i began, consoling myself and congratulating the friends of freedom upon the fact that the anti slavery cause is not a new thing under the sun; not some moral delusion which a few years' experience may dispel. it has appeared among men in all ages, and summoned its advocates from all ranks. its foundations arc laid in the deepest and holiest convictions, and from whatever soul the demon, selfishness, is expelled, there will this cause take up its abode. old as the everlasting hills; immovable as the throne of god; and certain as the purposes of eternal power, against all hindrances. and against all delays, and despite all the mutations of human instrumentalities, it is the faith of my soul, that this anti slavery cause will triumph.

official websites use .mil secure .mil websites use https january 1 1808 the law passed by congress in 1807 prohibiting the importation of slaves into the u.s. went into effect. the revenue cutter service enforced the law on the high seas. 1850 the light in the minot's ledge lighthouse was first shown. this lighthouse was the first one built in the u.s. in a position directly exposed to the sweep of the open sea. it was destroyed and two keepers were killed in a great gale in april 1851. 1933 carl c. von paulsen, a pioneering coast guard aviator, and his crew of four rescued a man during a gale off the coast of florida while flying in the coast guard seaplane arcturus from air station miami. he and his crew were awarded a gold lifesaving medal, the first coast guard aviators to earn the prestigious award. 1937 effective this date, the dividing point between the 6th and 7th lighthouse districts on the east coast of florida was moved northward from hillsboro inlet to st. lucie inlet to place the new trans florida waterway (through lake okeechobee) under one jurisdiction. 1946 the coast guard, which had operated as a service under the navy since november 1, 1941, was returned to the treasury department, pursuant to executive order 9666, dated december 28, 1945. 1946 the international load lines convention, which had been suspended since august 9, 1941, was restored to full effectiveness by a presidential proclamation dated december 21, 1945. the coast guard assumed the enforcement of the convention's requirements in the interest of safe loading. 1954 the "regulations for preventing collisions at sea, 1948", commonly known as the "revised international rules of the road", became law. these were a result of the international conference on the safety of life at sea, 1948. 1958 the coast guard ceased listening continuously for distress calls on 2670 kilocycles. although the countries of the world had agreed at the atlantic city convention of the international telecommunication union in 1947 to use 2182 kilocycles for international maritime mobile radiotelephone calling and distress, the coast guard had continued listening on the old frequency until the public had had sufficient time to change to the new one. 1967 cgc point gammon destroyed an enemy trawler in vietnam. 1984 cgc westwind was heavily damaged by ice in antarctic's weddell sea. about 120 feet of the port side hull was gashed when brash ice forced the ship against a 100 foot sheer ice shelf. the gash was two to three feet wide and was six feet above the water line. the crew made temporary repairs. there were no injuries. 1985 cgc citrus was rammed by the m/v pacific star during a boarding incident. the pacific star then sank after being scuttled by her crew. there were no casualties. the seven crewmen were arrested on drug charges. 1999 the aviation machinist ratings merged with the aviation structural mechanic ratings to form the aviation maintenance technician rating with the designator amt. the aviation electronics technician rating became the avionics technician rating with the designator avt. the aviation survivalman rating was renamed aviation survival technician. january 2 1892 the british schooner h. p. kirkham wrecked on rose and crown shoal. the crew of seven was rescued after 15 hours of exposure. the lifesaving crew that rescued them was at sea in an open boat without food for 23 hours. 1986 andy lee howay was born in flight at 12,000 feet over gaylord, michigan aboard coast guard hu 25 cgnr 2110 out of air station traverse city. he was born two months premature and weighed 3.5 pounds upon birth. aboard the aircraft were capt martin niemeroff, usphs and an obstetrics nurse from munson medical center. andy attended the retirement ceremony for cgnr 2110 in 2013. january 3 1882 the watch at station no. 13, second district, massachusetts, reported at about 4 p.m., the collision of two schooners, two and a half miles east southeast of the station. launching the surfboat, the crew proceeded to the vessels. the smaller vessel, the british schooner dart, was boarded first. she was out from saint john, nb and bound for new york with a cargo of lumber and a crew of four persons. the vessel was badly damaged, having her bowsprit, jib boom, and headgear carried away. the life saving crew at once set to work. they cleared away the wreck and weighed her anchor, which had been let go in the collision. by this time, the steamer hercules, of philadelphia had come alongside and dart’s master arranged for a tow to vineyard haven. the life saving crew ran the hawser from the schooner to the steamer and sent them on their way. the other schooner, in the meantime, had sailed away. 1944 cdr frank erickson received an official commendation after he piloted a sikorsky hns 1 helicopter that carried two cases of blood plasma lashed to the helicopter's floats from new york city to sandy hook, new jersey, for the treatment of navy crewmen of the navy destroyer uss turner, which had exploded and burned off new york harbor. having performed that heroic deed in violent winds and snow that grounded all other aircraft erickson became the first pilot in the world to fly a helicopter under such conditions. it was also the first "lifesaving flight" ever performed by a helicopter. 2003 cgc boutwell departed alameda in preparation for supporting operation iraqi freedom. the cutter began operations in the arabian gulf on february 14, 2003. prior to the start of operation iraqi freedom, her crew conducted maritime interception boardings to enforce u.n. sanctions against iraq. at the outbreak of hostilities and throughout the conflict, she operated in the strategically critical and politically sensitive khawr abd allah and shaat al arab waterways, providing force protection to the massive coalition fleet, securing iraqi oil terminals, and preventing the movement of weapons, personnel, or equipment by saddam hussein's regime or other guerilla or terrorist forces. 2014 cgc polar star received a request from the australian maritime safety authority on january 3, 2014 to assist the russian flagged akademik shokalskiy and chinese flagged xue long, reportedly ice bound in the antarctic. the russian and chinese governments also requested assistance from the united states. after resupplying in sydney, polar star was en route to the stranded vessels on january 4th, enduring 50 knot winds, 20 foot seas and 40 degree rolls. the coast guard icebreaker left its homeport of seattle in december 2013 to support operation deep freeze. the ship’s mission was to break a channel through the sea ice of mcmurdo sound to allow the resupply and refueling of the u.s. antarctic program’s mcmurdo and amundsen scott south pole stations. polar star was released by the australian maritime safety authority from sar duties on january 7, 2014, following confirmation that both stricken vessels were free from the antarctic ice due to a favorable change in wind conditions. the coast guard pacific area command center received confirmation from the australian maritime safety authority that both ships broke through the heavy ice, rendering assistance from the polar star no longer necessary. january 4 1980 coast guard forces narrowly averted an environmental disaster when the 300 foot barge michelle f, with more than 2.8 million gallons of no. six industrial fuel aboard grounded one half mile offshore from the brigantine wildlife refuge. much of her cargo was offloaded before she was successfully refloated. 2012 cgc healy, under the command of capt beverly havlik, embarked on an arctic domestic icebreaking mission to escort the russian tanker vessel renda through 800 miles of bering sea pack ice to deliver 1.3 million gallons of fuel to ice bound nome, alaska. after 10 days of intense, close aboard ice escorting, the two vessels safely arrived on 14 january 2012 and began a successful 60 hour, over the ice fuel transfer while hove to in the ice 468 yards offshore of nome. january 5 1883 at 1 o’clock in the afternoon the crew of the quoddy head station discovered a schooner at anchor. the weather was bitter cold, with a gale from the northwest. the men got the station's boat out and pulled to the vessel. she proved to be clara dinsmore from boston. there were four men on board, one of them a passenger. with her sails iced up and splitting, she was in need of assistance. the keeper took charge and got the vessel under way with the sails she had left and beat her up the bay to her destination at 6 o’clock in the evening. 1975 the "very large crude carrier (vlcc)" showa maru ran aground in the straits of malacca, eight miles from singapore harbor, resulting in a major oil spill. at the request of the japanese government, 10 coast guardsmen from the national strike force were sent to singapore aboard a military airlift command aircraft. in addition to the team, four pumping subsystems of the coast guard's air deliverable anti pollution transfer system (adapts) were also airlifted to the scene. the governments of singapore, indonesia and malaysia concurred in the request for assistance. this incident marked the second time in a year that the strike force responded to the request of a foreign government for assistance, the first being a request by the chilean government to assist after the grounding of vlcc metula in the strait of magellan in august 1974. january 6 1934 the united states line ss washington came within inches of ramming the new light vessel no. 117 on the nantucket station. the liner scraped the lightship’s side, shearing off davits, a lifeboat, antennas, etc. five months later the lightship was sunk by the white star line rms olympic when it rammed the lightship, killing seven of the lightship's crew. 1973 the coast guard academy at new london, connecticut, announced that its cadets were served "meals for the first time by female civilian employees." the academy had "recently become the first of the nation’s service schools to contract their food services to a civilian company." previously, coast guard personnel had done the serving. january 7 1877 the french steamer amerique grounded off sea bright, new jersey. saved were 189 persons, rescued by the life saving service crew. despite their efforts, three died. 1947 during operation highjump, coast guard icebreaker cgc northwind successfully completed the first major rescue mission involving a submarine. uss sennet (ss 408) and supply ships yance and merrick were stuck in ice flow at the antarctic circle. 1982 lt colleen a. cain, the coast guard's first female hh 52 helicopter pilot, died in the line of duty when hh 52 cg 1420, on which she was co pilot, crashed into a mountainside 50 miles east of honolulu. the pilot, lcdr h. w. johnson, and aircrewman ad2 d. l. thompson, were also killed. 1994 the barge morris j. berman, carrying a cargo of 750,000 gallons of oil, struck a reef off puerto rico. coast guard units, including the national strike force, responded. january 8 1958 the coast guard loran station at johnston island began transmitting on a 24 hour basis, thus establishing a new loran rate in the central pacific. the new rate between johnston island and french frigate shoal gave a higher order of accuracy for fixing positions in the steamship lanes from oahu, hawaii, to midway island. in the past, this was impossible in some areas along this important shipping route. 2015 the u.s. and canadian coast guards commenced operation coal shovel seasonal domestic ice breaking operations in the southern part of lake huron, lake st. clair, the st. clair and detroit river systems, lake erie, and lake ontario. the mission of operation coal shovel was to quickly reopen the great lakes maritime transportation system for the movement of commercial vessels that may become beset in the ice. the previous winter of 2013 2014 presented some of the harshest ice conditions ever recorded in the great lakes. at one point during march 2014, 92.5 percent of the great lakes were covered by ice; this was the highest percentage of ice coverage seen since 1979. operation coal shovel 2013 2014 started in december 2013 and lasted for a total of 128 days. january 9 1844 the first published and systematic annual report of the revenue marine bureau was transmitted to congress on january 9, 1844 by the head of the bureau, revenue captain alexander fraser, the service's first "commandant." the report noted that the revenue marine consisted of 15 revenue schooners varying in size from 60 to 170 tons. the cutters were stationed at eastport, portland, boston, newport, new york, delaware bay, baltimore, norfolk, charleston, savannah, key west, mobile, new orleans, and lake erie. the report also noted that the number of personnel of the revenue marine consisted of 20 captains, 20 first lieutenants, 20 second lieutenants, 20 third lieutenants, 45 petty officers, 7 pilots, 30 stewards, 15 cooks, and 323 seamen. 1945 coast guardsmen participated in the liberation of luzon in the philippines. sixteen coast guard manned vessels and seven other navy vessels with partial coast guard crews took part in the offensive. 1952 ss pennsylvania broadcasted that she had sustained a 14 foot crack in her port side. a tremendous sea was running, and the wind exceeded 55 miles per hour. the master advised that the vessel was foundering and that 45 men were abandoning ship in four lifeboats 665 miles west of cape flattery, wa. the coast guard used all the facilities at its command in the area, as well as coordinating the use of u.s. navy, air force, and royal canadian air force facilities in an attempt to locate and rescue the survivors of the vessel. fifty one aircraft from all services and 18 surface vessels participated in the search. some of the debris was located, including one over turned lifeboat, but no survivors were found. january 10 1889 rc wolcott made the first ever at sea seizure of both a smuggling vessel and drugs, and the arrest of its crew, after stopping the british sloop emerald with 400 lbs of opium and 12 undocumented chinese aliens at the entrance to port discovery bay, wt. 1977 cgc cape george received a mayday broadcast from the motor tankship chester a. poling. the 281 foot tankship was breaking in half in high seas and sinking approximately eight miles ese of gloucester harbor, massachusetts, with seven pob. cgcs cape george, cape cross, firebush, decisive, and boats from cg station gloucester, point allerton, and merrimack river, and aircraft from air station cape cod all responded. cape george arrived on scene and rescued two persons stranded on the bow section. a cg hh 3f rescued the first person from the stern of the tankship and a second crewman fell off the stern while attempting to jump into the rescue basket. at this time the stern section rolled over, throwing the remaining three survivors into the frigid seas. cgc cape cross moved in and rescued two of the crewmen while the hh 3f rescued a third. the six survivors were taken to gloucester station and transferred to a local hospital. january 11 1755/57 alexander hamilton, the first secretary of the u.s. treasury and the "father" of the u.s. coast guard, was born on this day in either 1755 or 1757 in the town of nevis, british west indies. 1882 at 0900 during a thick snowstorm, the schooner a .f. ames of rockland, maine, was bound from perth amboy to boston with a crew of seven persons. she stranded during a thick snowstorm five hundred yards east of race point and one mile and three quarters west of station no. 6, second district. the vessel was discovered by the patrol and the life saving crew boarded her at 0915. she was leaking and pounding heavily. the pumps were manned to keep the water down. the vessel was floated on the rising tide and made sail. she was piloted into deep water. the leak, however, was gaining rapidly. after consulting with the captain, the vessel was put on the beach. the crew was sheltered at the station until the 13th when the keeper sent them to boston. 1991 coast guard units responded after receiving a distress call from f/v sea king, a 75 foot stern trawler with four persons on board that was taking on water and in danger of sinking off peacock spit near the mouth of the columbia river. the coast guard units that responded included a prototype 47 foot mlb, two 44 foot mlbs, the 52 foot mlb cg 52314 triumph ii, and a coast guard helicopter. despite valiant efforts to save the vessel, it capsized and sank. three coast guardsmen who went aboard the vessel to assist were safely rescued from the water. another, mk1 charles sexton, an emergency medical technician who went aboard the sea king to assist an injured crewman, was pulled from the water but died 50 minutes after his arrival at a local hospital. mk1 sexton was posthumously awarded the coast guard medal. january 12 1850 the wreck of ayrshire on occurred on squan beach, new jersey on this date in 1850. all but one of the 202 persons on board were saved by a life car. this was the first recorded use of a life car in the u.s. 1943 coast guardsmen participated in the landings at amchitka, alaska. 1961 two coast guard craft from the cape disappointment lifeboat station (lbs), cg 40564 and cg 36454, answered a call for assistance from the 38 foot crab boat mermaid, with two crew on board, which had lost its rudder near the breakers off peacock spit. cg 40564 located the mermaid and took her in tow. due to adverse sea conditions the crew of cg 40564 requested the assistance of cg 52301 "triumph," stationed at point adams lbs, which took up the tow upon her arrival on scene. heavy breakers capsized cg 40564 and battered the cg 36454, but the 36 foot motor lifeboat (mlb) stayed afloat. the crew of cg 36454 then located and rescued the crew of the cg 40564 and made for the columbia river lightship. the crew of the cg 36454 managed to deposit safely all on board the lightship before it too foundered. soon thereafter, a heavy breaker hit triumph which parted the tow line, set the mermaid adrift, and capsized the triumph. the crew of the mermaid then rescued one of the six crewman on board triumph. cg 36554 and cg 36535, also from the point adams lbs, then arrived on scene and cg 36535 took the mermaid in tow. another large breaker hit, snapping the cg 36535's tow line and sinking the mermaid. cgc yocona arrived on scene soon after coast guard aircraft uf 2g no. 1273 from air station port angeles and began searching for survivors. other cg aircraft, including uf 2g 2131, uf 2g 1240, and ho 4s 1330, arrived and began dropping flares. foot patrols from the life boat stations searched the beaches as well and recovered one coast guard survivor. ultimately five coast guard crewman, all from mlb cg 52301 triumph, drowned, as did both of the mermaid's crew. 1963 cgc tupelo, four navy and one ohio state highway patrol helicopters, cg 44002d, three ice skiffs and crews from marblehead lifeboat station, sandusky light station, lorain lifeboat station, and a panel truck from toledo cg moorings were dispatched to rescue 150 persons reported adrift on an ice floe off reno beach, lake erie, 10 miles east of toledo, ohio during a severe storm that had winds gusting to 40 knots. four persons, also adrift, reached a breakwater off shore. tupelo, using ship's boats, removed four persons from the breakwater and the panel truck crew passed a line to the ice floe and anchored it to the shore. all 150 persons were brought safely ashore without incident. the helicopters searched the surrounding area to ensure that no others were adrift. commander ninth coast guard district stated that the prompt action of all the commands and agencies involved averted a "serious catastrophe and sent a 'well done' message to all participants." 2009 cgc boutwell departed alameda, california, on an around the world cruise as part of the uss boxer expeditionary strike group. 2010 a severe earthquake struck haiti. cgcs forward, mohawk, and tahoma were the first u.s. assets to arrive on scene at port au prince, with forward arriving the morning of january 13, 2010 and mohawk arriving in the afternoon. these units provided air traffic control for military aircraft, conducted damage assessments of the port, and ferried supplies and injured people with embarked boats and helicopters. other coast guard assets began arriving soon thereafter to assist in the recovery efforts, including the cgc oak and aircraft from airsta clearwater. january 13 1853 the ship cornelius grinnell grounded in a heavy surf off squan beach, new jersey. a surf car was used to rescue safely all 234 persons on board. 1925 congress authorized the coast guard to assist in the enforcement of the alaskan game law. 1918 surfmen from the humboldt bay lifesaving station rescued the 430 man crew of the navy cruiser uss milwaukee safely after the cruiser ran aground. milwaukee had been attempting to pull a grounded submarine off of samoa beach, near eureka, california, when she too ran aground and was a total loss. 1982 air florida flight 90 crashed onto the 14th street bridge and then into the potomac river in washington, d.c., during a heavy snow storm. coast guard units, including cutters capstan and madrona, divers from the atlantic strike team, a helicopter from airsta elizabeth city, personnel from curtis bay, and reservists from station washington assisted in the rescue of the five surviving passengers and the recovery of the aircraft's wreckage. the plane crushed several cars on the bridge. all told seventy four persons lost their lives. january 14 1886 rc wolcott made the revenue marine's first drug seizure when a landing party seized 3,011 1/2 pounds of opium hidden at the kaasan bay salmon fishery, in alaska. a detail of officers and crew from the cutter had previously assisted customs inspectors with the seizure of 695 pounds of opium from vessel idaho in port townsend. when a disgruntled crewman later provided intelligence about the additional opium stored at kaasan bay, rc wolcott's crew ensued on a 695 mile race to beat idaho to the concealed drugs, resulting in the rms's first and largest ever opium seizure. hot on the opium smugglers' trail | naval history magazine   october 2016 volume 30, number 5 (usni.org) 1942 a coast guard aircraft, hall ph 3 no. v 177, dropped food to a raft with six survivors of a torpedoed tanker in one of hundreds of such incidents carried out by coast guard aircraft during the war. this tanker had been the victim of a german u boat attack off the coast of the united states. 1985 vice president george bush made an official visit to base miami beach to extend the thanks of the nation to those involved in operation hat trick, an "all out" effort to stop smugglers soon after they had left ports in central and south america. the vice president decorated 15 coast guardsmen. 2004 cgc thetis rescued three shrimp fishermen from the fishing vessel dona nelly after they were in the water for 45 minutes after their vessel sank 15 miles off the coast of brownsville, texas. january 15 1836 a general order from the secretary of the treasury prescribed that "blue cloth be substituted for the uniform dress of the officers of the revenue cutter service, instead of grey…" thereby ending a controversy that had brewed for years regarding the uniforms of the service. 1947 the first helicopter flight to the base "little america" in antarctica took place. the pilot was lt james a. cornish, uscg and he carried chief photographer's mate everett mashburn as his observer. they flew from cgc northwind. 1966 when winds of 30 to 50 knots hit the southern california coast, surface craft off the 11th coast guard district rendered assistance to six grounded vessels, three disabled sailboats, and three capsized vessels. they also responded to seven other distress cases. a coast guard helicopter played a prominent role in one of the cases by evacuating the five man crew of the vessel trilogy that had gone aground and broken up on santa cruz island. 1974 the first group of women ever enlisted as regulars in the coast guard began their 10 week basic training at the coast guard training center in cape may. thirty two women were in the initial group and formed recruit company sierra 89. 1993 in response to a massive increase in the number of haitians fleeing their country by sea that began in october 1991, president elect william clinton ordered the commencement of operation able manner on this date in 1993. it was the largest sar operation ever undertaken by the coast guard to that time. twenty nine cutters were initially involved, as were aircraft from 10 air stations and five us navy vessels. january 16 1920 prohibition, later called the "noble experiment" by president herbert hoover, became the law of the land on january 16, 1920, one year after the 36th state ratified the 18th amendment to the constitution. enforcement of the law fell to the department of the treasury and the coast guard was charged with interdicting the flow of "demon rum" at sea before it reached american shores. 1944 lt stewart r. graham became the first person to make a helicopter take off and landing aboard a ship underway at sea when he piloted a sikorsky hns 1 off of and back on the ss daghestan in the north atlantic. 1948 the list of nominations for appointments and promotions of coast guard officers transmitted to congress by the president on this date represented the first permanent advancements of coast guard regular officers since the summer of 1942. 1988 coast guard units responded to a report of a murder on board the container vessel boxer captain cook. the ship's first officer reportedly murdered the captain and threw his body overboard. a boarding party from cgc northland, offloaded onto cgc cape york, boarded the vessel while it was underway on the high seas and captured the suspected murderer and collected evidence of the crime. 1990 cgc mellon fired a harpoon anti ship missile in a live fire test, becoming the first cutter to fire the missile. january 17 1832 treasury secretary louis mclane discontinued the practice of hiring unemployed navy officers as senior revenue cutter service officers. all vacancies from that point forward were to be filled by promotions from within the service. secretary mclane's actions brought a tremendous boost to morale among revenue cuttermen as they had long complained about the slow line of promotion caused by unemployed navy officers "grabbing up" senior positions. 1972 cgc storis seized two soviet fishing vessels, the 362 foot factory vessel lamut and the 278 foot stern trawler kolyvan, for fishing inside the 12 mile u.s. contiguous zone. 1977 dot secretary william t. coleman, jr., issued licenses to loop, inc., and seadock, inc., to own, construct, and operate deepwater ports in the gulf of mexico. both ports were designed to "handle" supertankers. 1994 coast guard units and family members assisted those in need after an earthquake hit los angeles, california. january 18 1884 usrc dexter, under the command of capt eric gabrielson, came to the aid of the stricken steamer city of columbus after it had grounded on the devil's bridge rock outcropping off martha's vineyard. the cutter maneuvered around the wreckage and launched its small boats to effect rescues. second lt john u. rhodes, first lt warrington d. roath, third lt charles d. kennedy, and volunteers from the cutter's crew distinguished themselves in their rescue efforts. they worked in concert with lifeboats from the massachusetts humane society's gay head station. all told 29 passengers and crew were saved out of 132 aboard city of columbus. a local newspaper reported that the dexter's "…officers and crew, from the captain to the cabin boy, acted the part of heroes, both at the scene of the wreck and afterwards in caring for the survivors." 1938 cgc bibb returned to norfolk after a 10 day post trial run from norfolk to the virgin islands and back again with the commandant, radm russell r. waesche, aboard. during the run bibb went to the aid of the four masted schooner albert f. paul, which had lost its topsails and was leaking badly. the paul was taken in tow and bibb proceeded under reduced speed. cgc sebago was contacted by radio and relieved bibb of the tow. during the cruise, "constant communication was maintained between bibb and radio station fort hunt, virginia (nmh)." 1953 a coast guard pbm seaplane crashed off the chinese coast near swatow, china during takeoff after having rescued 11 survivors from a ditched u .s. navy aircraft that had been shot down by chinese anti aircraft fire. a total of nine servicemen lost their lives in this second crash, including five of the coast guard aircrew. the survivors were later rescued by the uss halsey powell (dd 686). the entire coast guard pbm aircrew were awarded the gold lifesaving medal for their actions. 1974 coast guard units rescued 61 crewmembers from the 551 foot tanker keytrader and the 657 foot norwegian freighter baune after the two vessels collided on the night of january 18, 1974 in dense fog. sixteen other crewmembers did not survive. keytrader was carrying 18,000 tons of fuel oil. a 53 foot coast guard vessel assisted in fighting the ensuing fire. 2003 on january 18th, cgc walnut departed from her homeport in honolulu, hawaii and began her 10,000 mile transit to the persian gulf in support of operation iraqi freedom. this 45 day transit was completed as quickly as possible with brief stops for fuel and food along the way in guam, singapore, and kuwait. the cutter deployed with an oil spill recovery system in the event the regime of saddam hussein committed any acts of environmental terrorism. when those threats did not materialize, the cutter then conducted maritime interception operations enforcing u.n. security council resolutions, participated in the search for two downed united kingdom helicopters, and patrolled and provided assistance to captured iraqi offshore oil terminals being secured by coast guard port security personnel. the cutter’s crew completely replaced 30 buoys and repaired an additional five along the 41 mile khawr abd allah waterway. this aton mission vastly improved the navigational safety of the waterway for humanitarian aid, commercial, and military vessels sailing to the port and was a critical step to economic recovery for the people of iraq. january 19 1935 chief warrant gunner and naval aviation pilot (cwo gun; nap) charles t. thrun, uscg, coast guard aviator number 3, was killed when his grumman jf 2 duck crashed at cape may. cwo thrun was the first coast guard aviator to die in the line of duty. 1937 coast guard units began flood relief operations in the mississippi and ohio river valleys. these operations lasted until march 11th and resulted in the rescue of hundreds of victims and thousands of farm animals. 1946 staged jointly by the coast guard and the navy, the first public demonstration of loran was held at floyd bennett field in new york. 1949 the tanker gulfstream collided with icebreaker cgc eastwind. the collision and resulting fire killed 13 of eastwind's crew, nine of whom were chief petty officers. 1969 cgc absecon, while on ocean station duty, was directed to assist the sinking m/v ocean sprinter. absecon launched a small boat and rescued all of the merchant vessel's crew. the five coast guardsmen manning the small boat received the coast guard medal for their actions. 1977 the coast guard accepted delivery of cgc polar sea from lockheed shipbuilding and construction company, seattle, washington. polar sea was placed "in commission, special" on january 31, 1977 under the command of capt richard cueroni. 1996 the tug scandia and its barge, the north cape, ran aground on the shore of rhode island, spilling 828,000 gallons of oil. this was the worst spill in that state's history. the coast guard rescued the entire crew, pumped off 1.5 million gallons of oil and conducted skimming operations. january 20 1914 the international ice patrol convention was signed. 1915 congress passed the "act to create the coast guard" on this date in 1915 (38 stat. l., 800). the act combined the life saving service and revenue cutter service to form the coast guard. president woodrow wilson signed the act on january 28, 1915. 1961 during his inaugural parade, president john f. kennedy noticed that there were no african americans in the coast guard academy cadet unit marching in the parade. he told his speechwriter, richard goodwin, "that's not acceptable. something ought to be done about it. goodwin called secretary of the treasury c. douglas dillon the next day and dillon ordered the academy "to scrutinize the academy's recruitment policy to make sure it did not discriminate against blacks." 1984 coast guard units responded to a six alarm fire along boston's waterfront. the fire began early on the morning of january 20th on the boston and maine railroad bridge directly behind boston garden and north station. the boston fire department requested coast guard assistance and mso boston coordinated the response. small boats from station boston responded while personnel from aton team boston, support center boston, point allerton station, and cgcs pendant, chase, white heath, nantucket i, and nantucket ii also assisted. january 21 1863 appended to circular to collectors, january 21, 1863: "sir: the question submitted by you [j. lawrence boggs, collector at perth amboy, n.j.], whether free colored men are citizens of the united states, and competent therefore to command vessels engaged in our coasting trade, has been submitted to the attorney general for his opinion, of which the concluding sentence is as follows: 'and now, upon the whole matter, i give it as my opinion, that the free man of color mentioned in your letter, if born in the united states, is a citizen of the united states, and, if otherwise qualified, is competent, according to acts of congress, to be a master of a vessel engaged in the coasting trade.' you will advise the commander of the revenue cutter 'tiger' of this decision of the attorney general, and direct him to conform to it in all future examinations of vessels engaged in the coasting trade. with great respect, salmon p. chase, secretary." 1881 the light was first shown at tillamook lighthouse, located 19 miles south of the columbia river entrance. 1969 cgc point banks, while on patrol south of cam rahn bay, received a call for assistance from a nine man south vietnamese (arvn) detachment trapped by two vietcong platoons. petty officers willis goff and larry villareal took a 14 foot boston whaler ashore to rescue the arvn troops. in the face of heavy automatic weapons fire all nine men were evacuated in two trips. for their actions goff and villareal were each awarded the silver star. the citation stated, "the nine men would have met almost certain death or capture without the assistance of the two coast guardsmen." 1982 "streamlining" plans were put into place when the commandant, adm john b. hayes, announced in alcoast 002/82 his plans to consolidate some operations and streamline others to comply with president ronald reagan's goals of "greater efficiency in federal spending" and in accordance with congressional appropriation levels. the service eliminated 35 units, including the west coast training center at alameda, and consolidated all recruit training to tracen cape may. 1984 the tanker cepheus ran aground near anchorage, alaska, on the morning of january 21, 1984, spilling 180,000 gallons of jet fuel into cook inlet. mso anchorage and the pacific strike team responded to the incident and monitored the offloading of the damaged tanker and cleared its passage out of alaska. the light jet fuel evaporated with little environmental impact. january 22 1944 coast guardsmen participated in operation shingle   the landings at anzio nettuno, italy. coast guard units involved were uss pc 545 and lsts 16, 326, 327, and 381. 1987 the coast guard established the air interdiction facility at norfolk naval air station. the aircrews flew two loaned navy e 2c hawkeye aircraft on narcotics interdiction patrols. january 23 1909 the schooner roderick dhu was discovered in distress on the bar by a life saving service patrol from the point bonita, california station. the schooner had been in tow by a tug, but parted hawsers when 5 1/2 miles sw of a lss station. she hoisted a signal, and the keeper reported her condition to the merchant's exchange. a tug was sent out and the schooner was towed to sea. the next day she was towed into port, leaking badly, and convoyed by the usrc mcculloch. january 24 1968 seifu maru, a japanese refrigerator vessel, reported a fire and requested clearance to enter dutch harbor, alaska to combat it. they also reported that two crewmembers had been overcome by smoke and requested their evacuation for hospital treatment. clearance was granted and cgc citrus was ordered to proceed and assist in fighting the fire. the burning ship arrived in dutch harbor and advised that the fire was raging between the decks. fire fighting parties from citrus began assisting the crew of the japanese vessel. coast guard aircraft evacuated three patients from seifu maru to kodiak for hospitalization. the fire assistance rendered by citrus in a four day operation saved the japanese vessel. 1984 mso memphis responded to what appeared to be a routine grounding when three barges being towed down river by the m/v karman p. broke away 40 miles south of memphis. initial reports passed to mso memphis by way of group lower mississippi river said the tank barge apex 3506, with one million gallons of slurry grade number six oil had grounded with "no damage and no pollution." after a boarding team arrived and found the barge sinking and having no means to lighter the cargo, they called in the gulf strike team. eventually, through the efforts of mso memphis, gulf strike team, atlantic strike team, national strike force dive team, and the navy superintendent of salvage, as well as a private salvage firm, the barge's cargo was lightered and the barge itself saved. january 25 1799 having existed essentially nameless for 8 1/2 years, alexander hamilton's "system of cutters" was referred to in legislation as "revenue cutters." some decades later, the name evolved to revenue cutter service and revenue marine. 1940 the ocean station program was formally established on this date under orders from president franklin roosevelt. the coast guard, in cooperation with the u. s. weather service, was given responsibility for its establishment and operation. the program was first known as the atlantic weather observation service and later by thousands of coast guardsmen who served after world war ii as the "ocean station" (os) program. cutters were dispatched for 30 day patrols to transmit weather observations and serve as a sar standby for transoceanic aircraft. the program ended in the 1970s. 2004 a helicopter crew from airsta detroit helped rescue 14 people stranded on an ice floe about one mile west of catawba island, ohio. january 26 1939 ground was broken for the construction of an air station at elizabeth city, north carolina. with the support of congressman lindsay warren and a favorable vote by local county and city officials regarding a bond issue, the land was secured for the new facility which was constructed by the wpa. 1953 coast guard forces assisted civilian authorities in evacuating 191 persons from the coxuille valley flood area. 1963 the modern canadian coast guard was founded on this date. their official motto is saluti primum, auxilio semper (safety first, service always). 1991 upon receiving a request from the saudi government, the bush administration determined that the coast guard would head an interagency team to assist the saudi government in an oil spill assessment and plan for a clean up operation after an intentional iraqi oil spill. 1990 coast guard air station st. augustine, home of cgaw 1, was formally commissioned. the navy loaned e2cs to the coast guard for use in the efforts by cgaw 1 to track drug shipments by radar. one e2c, #3501, crashed during a landing at roosevelt roads, puerto rico, on august 24, 1990 and all four crewmen on board were killed. cgaw 1 was disbanded soon thereafter and the remaining e2cs were returned to the navy. january 27 1909 the schooner nelson y. mcfarland issued a distress call after dropping anchor near the white head, maine, life saving service station. although anchored against the tide, she was becalmed, yet her stern swung so close to the ledge that "a change of wind or tide would have thrown the vessel upon the rocks. a pulling boat and crew from the station responded to the call and the men rowed to the ship's aid. after a 3 hour, pull the surfmen succeeded in towing the schooner to a safe anchorage in seal harbor." 1993 communications station guam received a mayday broadcast from the m/v east wood. the ship's radio operator claimed that the vessel had been taken over by hijackers and that there were 400 people in the vessel's two main cargo holds. another transmission claimed that 10 persons were going to be thrown overboard. the coast guard dispatched an hc 130 from airsta barbers point and ordered cgc rush to intercept. a boarding team from the rush seized the vessel and escorted it to an army installation on the marshall islands. there were 527 chinese nationals and 10 crewmembers aboard. the chinese nationals were repatriated to china and nine of the crewmen were sent to indonesia. the 10th crewman was taken to honolulu to investigate whether prosecution was possible under u.s. law. january 28 1885 keeper marcus hanna of the cape elizabeth light station saved two men from the wrecked schooner australia. for this rescue hanna was awarded the gold lifesaving medal. he was also awarded the medal of honor for his actions at port hudson in 1863. he is the only person to have ever received both awards. 1915 president woodrow wilson signed into law the "act to create the coast guard," an act passed by congress on january 20, 1915 that combined the life saving service and revenue cutter service to form the coast guard (38 stat. l., 800). the coast guard, however, still considers the date of the founding of the revenue cutter service, august 4, 1790, as its official birthday, even though the lighthouse service, absorbed in 1939, is even older than that, dating to august 7, 1789. under the new law the coast guard officially became "part of the regular military establishment of the united states." 1980 cgc blackthorn sank in tampa bay after colliding with the tanker capricorn. twenty three coast guard personnel were killed in the tragedy. 1986 nasa's space shuttle challenger exploded after lift off, killing the entire crew. coast guard units, including the cutters dallas, dauntless, harriet lane, bear, tampa, cherokee, sweetgum, and point roberts conducted the initial search and rescue operations and later assisted in the recovery of much of the shuttle's wreckage. other units included personnel from station port canaveral, air stations miami, clearwater, and savannah, as well as coast guard reservists and auxiliarists. dallas served as the on scene commander for what was a joint coast guard, nasa, navy, and air force search and recovery operation. 2003 dod submitted a request for coast guard forces in support of operation enduring freedom. the commandant, adm thomas collins, approved that request and ordered the deployment of eight 110 foot patrol boats, crews, and support units. the cutters were cgcs: wrangell, adak, aquidneck, baranof, grand isle, bainbridge island, pea island, and knight island. january 29 1919 ratification of the 18th amendment to the u.s. constitution occurred on this date. the amendment prohibited the manufacture, sale, and transportation of alcoholic beverages. its enforcement was authorized by the national prohibition enforcement act, otherwise known as the volstead act that was passed on october 28, 1919. the coast guard was tasked with the prevention of the maritime importation of illegal alcohol. this led to the largest increase in the size and responsibilities of the service to date. 1938 cgc bibb reported for duty in connection with the u.s. navy exercises held off culebra, puerto rico. 1945 the coast guard manned attack cargo vessel uss serpens exploded off guadalcanal due to unknown causes. only two men aboard survived. this was the single greatest coast guard loss of life in history. 1963 cgc casco inaugurated the expanded ocean station vessel oceanographic program when it departed for ocean station echo on this date. casco was outfitted for oceanographic research by the addition of a laboratory space, hydrographic winch, and other instruments. as the first coast guard ocean station vessel to be so outfitted, casco's mission represented "a significant step on the coast guard's participation in the national oceanographic effort." 1980 local authorities in the tijuana, mexico area requested coast guard assistance in evacuating flood victims stranded by the rising waters of the san miguel river. two hh 3f helicopters from air station san diego transported 180 persons to safety during the two day operation. january 30 1861 treasury secretary john a. dix ordered lt s. b. caldwell, the second in command of the cutter mcclelland, "to arrest capt. breshwood [the cutter's commanding officer and a confederate sympathizer] assume command of cutter and if anyone attempts to haul down the flag, shoot him on the spot." the message was not delivered by the telegraph office. breshwood turned mcclelland over to the state of louisiana, where the cutter ended up in confederate service. the northern papers reported the story though and the secretary's order became a rallying cry in support of the union's war effort. 1942 the capsized wreck of cgc alexander hamilton was sunk by the navy after u 132 torpedoed the cutter off the coast of iceland the previous day. she was the first cutter sunk by enemy action during world war ii. twenty six of her crew perished in the attack. 1942 uss wakefield, the former passenger liner ss manhattan converted to a troop transport and manned by a coast guard crew, transported british troops to singapore. having disembarked the troops, she was bombed by japanese aircraft while still tied up. five of her coast guard crew were killed and nine were wounded. after temporary repairs, wakefield evacuated 500 women and children to bombay before the port fell to the japanese 1979 there was an explosion at the coast guard marine safety detachment office at ponce playa, port ponce, puerto rico. the ovpr (organizacion de voluntarios por la revelucion puerto riquena) claimed responsibility. the terrorist attack caused no casualties and little damage to the facility. 1982 coast guard 8th district units responded to the flooding of the calcasieu river near lake charles, louisiana. up river coast guard boats searched daily for stranded people and domestic animals. downriver cotp port arthur and marine safety detachment lake charles wrestled with the problem of strong currents and four run away barges that destroyed one bridge and threatened two others. january 31 1942 hms culver (ex cgc mendota   one of the "lake" class cutters transferred to the royal navy in 1941 under the lend lease program) was torpedoed and sunk with only 13 survivors. 1948 mrs. fannie m. salter, keeper of the turkey point lighthouse in upper chesapeake bay since 1925 and the last woman keeper of a lighthouse in the united states, retired from active service. the first woman had been hired as a lighthouse keeper 150 years before. salter's retirement temporarily closed the tradition of women serving as keepers at lighthouses. 1968 coast guard spar chief storekeeper mary ashley rose retired "after a career of more than 20 years of service in the coast guard. chief rose is the first enlisted woman to retire from active duty in the coast guard." 1975 cgc vigorous (wmec 627) became the first cutter to make a seizure of a foreign flag fishing vessel in the high seas when she seized the italian fishing vessel tontini pesca cuarto for illegally taking lobster. all of the other fishery seizures prior to this were of vessels that had violated territorial seas (ts) or contiguous fishing zone (cfz). at the time, vigorous was under the command of cdr paul welling, uscg. the arresting officer was ens s.t. fuger, jr., uscg. 2000 alaska airlines flight 261 crashed off the coast of california near the channel islands, killing all 88 on board. coast guard channel island station crewmen responded to the tragedy. 2004 the crews of a 47 foot mlb from station chincoteague and a rescue helicopter from air station elizabeth city combined to rescue five men after their vessel began taking on water 25 miles east of chincoteague. february 1 1871 using his administrative authority, secretary of the treasury george s. boutwell re established a revenue marine bureau within the department and assigned sumner i. kimball as the civilian chief. kimball's duties included administering both the revenue cutters, which were then under the control of the local collectors, and the life saving stations. 1938 the lighthouse service radio laboratory was moved from the shops of the lighthouse depot in detroit, michigan, "to the lazaretto lighthouse depot in baltimore, md., where a building had been constructed providing more adequately for this important branch of the work of the service." 1942 enlistees after this date were restricted to enlistment in the coast guard reserve. this was done to prevent having too many regulars in the service at the end of world war ii. 1944 coast guardsmen participated in the invasion of namur island, kwajalein atoll. 1963 the coast guard's "newest" helicopter, the sikorsky hh 52, performed its first rescue. on february1, 1963, the f/v enterprize sank after colliding with ice off hyannis, massachusetts. the two crewman of the vessel abandoned and sought safety on the ice. after a 63 mile flight, 56 of which were over water at night, the aircraft commander, lt r. a. johannsen, landed the hh 52a (cg 1352) on the ice and made the rescue. february 2 1944 coast guardsmen participated in the landings at saidor, new guinea. 2014 the coast guard and navy completed a joint mission in the central and south pacific under an agreement between the services to enforce fisheries laws and enhance regional security january 7 to february 2, 2014. the partnership supported the oceania maritime security initiative, a secretary of defense program, which leverages department of defense assets transiting the region to increase the coast guard's maritime domain awareness, ultimately supporting its maritime law enforcement operations in oceania. as part of operation persistent presence and in conjunction with noaa, a coast guard law enforcement team embarked the arleigh burke class guided missile destroyer uss kidd in san diego to conduct law enforcement boardings while the vessel was in transit. the coast guard navy team, including the two embarked mh 60r helicopters from helicopter maritime strike squadron 78, conducted 46 external visual inspections, and 13 boardings with internal inspections of fishing vessels across two separate jurisdictional areas in the marshall islands and nauru exclusive economic zones. february 3 1801 treaty of peace with france was ratified on this date, thereby ending the "quasi war," in which cutters of the revenue marine had rendered valiant service. 1880 date of a terrific gale on the new jersey coast. six vessels came ashore with 47 persons on board; all but two survived. nineteen life saving service crewmen were awarded gold life saving medals during the rescue of the persons aboard the wrecked george taulane. 1943 a u boat torpedoed the transport uss dorchester off the coast of greenland. two of her escorts, cgcs comanche and escanaba, responded. the crew of escanaba used a new rescue technique when pulling survivors from the water. this "retriever" technique used swimmers clad in wet suits to swim to victims in the water and secure a line to them so they could then be hauled onto the ship. although escanaba saved 133 men (one later died) and comanche saved 97, over 600 men were lost, including the famous "four chaplains" who gave up their lifejackets to those that did not have one and all four went down with the ship. 1976 the coast guard academy first announced the appointments of 50 cadets to enter with the class of 1980, including three women: cathryn lis of bristol, connecticut; susan kollmeyer of groton, connecticut; & cynthia snead of melbourne, florida. the coast guard news release published on february 4, 1976 regarding their announcement noted that: “of the four largest federal service academies (army, navy, air force, coast guard) the coast guard academy is the first to offer an appointment to a woman.” (uscg news release no. 7 76; 4 february 1976). 1997 the 660 foot freighter contship houston ran aground on a coral reef 12 miles southeast of key west in the florida keys national marine sanctuary. the vessel, under coast guard supervision, was safely floated off the reef some 144 hours later. february 4 1859 the united states signed the "treaty of friendship, commerce and navigation" with paraguay at asuncion after the revenue cutter harriet lane, as part of a u.s. navy expedition, forced the opening of the paraguay and parana rivers. 1863 commissioned officers of the revenue cutter service were to be appointed by the president by and with advice and consent of the senate. this act contained the first statutory use of term "revenue cutter service." previous laws referred only to "revenue cutters". 1881 keeper ida lewis, the head keeper of the lime rock lighthouse, rescued two soldiers from fort adams who had fallen through the ice "at the imminent risk of mrs. lewis wilson's life." for her heroic actions she was awarded a gold lifesaving medal. she was officially credited with saving 13 persons during her distinguished career with the u.s. lighthouse service "and it is understood that the number was probably much greater." 1982 attorney general william smith declared at a press conference that operation tiburon was "the most successful international marijuana interdiction effort to date." the operation began in november 1980, and accounted for the seizure of 95 vessels. it was a combined operation that included elements of the coast guard, the drug enforcement administration, the customs service, and various state and local law enforcement agencies. 1999 the 639 foot freighter new carissa ran aground north of coos bay, oregon. coast guard helicopter crews rescued 23 crewmembers, but the vessel remained firmly aground and attempts to refloat her failed. a unified command made up of coast guard and navy personnel, as well as marine salvors, attempted to prevent a catastrophic oil spill as the ship began breaking apart. the team decided to set the oil on board the new carissa on fire so it would burn away before being spilled and fouling the shore. it was the largest "in situ" burn ever tried in u.s. waters and it consumed a significant amount of the oil aboard the new carissa. the coast guard's annual report for that year noted: "while some oil did spill out of the vessel, the unified command's efforts greatly reduced the potential environmental damage to the oregon coast." the ship eventually broke in two and her bow section was towed to sea and sunk by the navy. 2014 cgc diligence returned to its homeport of wilmington, north carolina, after completing a 49 day patrol in the north atlantic ocean in support of operation atlantic venture. the combined efforts of diligence and the other coast guard assets involved in the operation resulted in nearly 75 vessel inspections that identified numerous violations of federal safety and fisheries regulations. february 5 1882 the schooner mary l. vankirk, bound for philadelphian from south creek, pamlico sound, north carolina, carrying a crew of five men, encountered heavy weather. she lost sails and sprung a leak and before long she became water logged and almost unmanageable. in this condition, it was determined to run to leeward and seek refuge in hatteras inlet. matters, however, became worse and it was decided to beach the vessel. she was discovered heading for the land by the crew of station no. 18, sixth district (chicamicomico, north carolina). the surfboat was run out, but the life saving crew returned to the station for the breeches buoy apparatus. the latter arrived abreast of the schooner at 8:15, fifteen minutes after she struck the bar about half a mile north of the station. the schooner was so close that the keeper was able to wade out into the water and cast a heaving line to those huddled in the rigging. as quickly as possible, the men in the rigging hauled off the whip line. the breeches buoy was soon rigged and went spinning out to the vessel. all five men were safely landed. 1946 four coast guardsmen from willapa harbor lifeboat station perished in the line of duty while searching for two crab fishermen feared lost in williapa bay. the men were: bmc joseph w. miller, uscg; mm 1/c geloyd j. simmons, uscg; coxswain james r. graves, uscg; s 1/c howard w. hampton, uscg. 1973 the position of senior coast guard officer vietnam (scgov) was disestablished. 1975 the coast guard commissioned the houston galveston vessel traffic system, the third vts to be "implemented by the coast guard on a major waterway of the u.s." february 6 1893 secretary of treasury was authorized to define and establish anchorage grounds for vessels in harbor of chicago and adjacent waters of lake michigan. 1942 cgc nike rescued 38 persons from ss china arrow which had been torpedoed off ocean city, maryland. 1978 coast guard units from the first and third districts responded to a severe winter storm in new england, including stations providing shelter to displaced families and coast guard four wheel drive vehicles serving as ambulances while an amphibious vehicle was the only means of transportation from the mainland from sandy hook, new jersey, transporting nine people to safety from flooded areas. a 682 foot tanker global hope went aground in salem sound, massachusetts, and an hh 3f from air station cape cod arrived on scene followed by cgc decisive which removed 28 of the 32 persons on board, with four left aboard to assist in salvage and pollution control. 1990 two coast guard air station houston crews were the first to receive the igor i. sikorsky award for humanitarian service. the award was presented by the helicopter association international at their dallas convention. the crews were honored for their rescue of seven fishermen during hurricane chantal last year. they flew through driving rain, winds in excess of 65 miles per hour, thunderstorms, and squalls to rescue the men from their capsized boat. 1996 alas nacionales airlines flight 301 crashed off the dominican republic and coast guard units conducted search and rescue operations. 1996 coast guard units responded to calls of assistance due to severe flooding throughout the pacific northwest. february 7 1914 pursuant to the convention for safety at sea in london, president woodrow wilson directed that the revenue cutter service undertake the task of manning the international ice patrol. henceforth, the revenue cutter service and then the coast guard, with brief respites during both world wars, served in this capacity, a traditional mission still undertaken to this day. 1942 presidential order created the war shipping administration (wsa). the wsa assumed control over all phases of merchant marine activities, including training, which the coast guard had been conducting since 1938. 1943 during a fierce convoy battle near greenland, cgc ingham rescued 33 survivors from the torpedoed troopship ss henry mallory, while cgc bibb rescued 202. bibb then rescued 33 from the torpedoed ss kalliopi. 1969 cgc tern, commissioned on this date and stationed in new york, embodied an advanced concept in servicing aids to navigation. her over the stern gantry system of handling buoys was unique. the automation and modernization of over age, isolated lighthouses and light stations showed significant progress this year. a new, more effective version of the lamp (lighthouse automation and modernization project) plan was promulgated in this year as well. 1980 cgc cape horn saved all six crewmen of the f/v hattie rose in a dramatic night time rescue. the hattie rose, a gloucester based 75 foot stern trawler, began taking on water in 25 foot seas and 45 knot winds, 15 miles east of provincetown. sea and wind conditions prevented a rescue by air and so the cape horn, under the command of ltjg william l. ross, and 11 crewmen, diverted from one sar case to go to the hattie rose's assistance. the f/v paul and dominic, standing nearby the stricken vessel, helped direct the cutter to the area. the cape horn's crew got a line to the men, now standing on the bow which was still afloat, and pulled four of the crew to safety aboard the cutter. the line parted, however, and the two remaining fishermen began drifting away, but two of the cape horn's crew, duncan grant and thomas jennings, leaped into the 35 degree water and secured a line around the two. they were all then hauled safely aboard. february 8 1958 a u.s. navy p5m aircraft enroute from san juan to norfolk lost one engine and changed course to the island of san salvador, british west indies, to attempt a night ditching. airsta miami sent up a coast guard uf amphibian plane, later reinforced by a second amphibian. after contacting the disabled navy plane, the pilot of the first amphibian talked the navy pilot out of attempting to ditch without benefit of illumination and alerted the commanding officer of the coast guard loran station on san salvador for assistance after ditching. in true coast guard tradition, the loran station's co borrowed a truck and an 18 foot boat to assist. the commanding officer managed to be on the scene 1 1/2 miles offshore, when the navy p5m landed with two minutes of fuel remaining. while one of the amphibians provided additional illumination, the navy plane was guided through a dangerous reef to a mooring, using her operative port engine. there were no casualties. 2007 cgc storis was decommissioned after 64 years of service. 2015 cgc alex haley returned to kodiak, alaska, following a successful 70 day deployment patrolling more than 10,800 miles throughout the bering sea and aleutian islands. alex haley, known as the “bulldog of the bering,” departed kodiak on december 1, 2014 and spent 70 days conducting law enforcement and community outreach operations in the bering sea and aleutian islands. during the deployment, alex haley’s crew performed 41 at sea domestic fisheries enforcement boardings and covered more than 5,000 square miles in search efforts for the sunken korean fishing vessel 501 oryong. february 9 1938 chief boatswain (l) john allen midgett, commanding officer of station chicamacomico, died in the u.s. marine hospital in norfolk, va, from injuries he sustained in an automobile accident on january 23, 1938. chief midgett was the hero of the 1918 mirlo rescue for which he was awarded a gold lifesaving medal. 1965 a commercial dc 7 with 84 persons on board exploded in midair off jones beach, long island. despite an extensive search by seven coast guard cutters, six coast guard aircraft, and a u.s. navy tug, no survivors were located. only nine bodies and various pieces of debris were located and recovered. 1968 coast guard cutters androscoggin, minnetonka, and winona, along with 82 footers and navy assets, on patrol in vietnamese waters, thwarted a communist attempt to run four trawlers through the market time blockade off the coast of south vietnam. the cutters sank three of the trawlers and forced the fourth to return to hainan island without landing her cargo. the defeat of this attempted re supply was hailed as "the most significant naval victory of the vietnam campaign." 2010 cgc alex haley rescued a 28 member crew from the disabled fishing vessel hou chun 11 900 miles southwest of honolulu. corpsmen aboard the cutter treated two of the crewmembers who suffered severe burns. the crew of the cutter alex haley sailed to christmas island, kiribati, where the two burn victims were medevaced by a coast guard hc 130 hercules based out of airsta barbers point. the remaining 26 were transported ashore for transport to a vessel that returned them to taiwan. february 10 1840 a house resolution was introduced to inquire into transferring the revenue marine to the navy. 1938 cgc tahoe departed new bedford, massachusetts, to inaugurate the 1938 "international ice observation service" (now referred to as the international ice patrol). 1940 cgcs bibb and duane inaugurated the coast guard's participation in the nation's manned ocean station program when they took their positions on ocean stations no. 1 and 2 in the north atlantic on this date. they also became the first vessels to make radio transmissions as "weather stations." 1992 retired coast guard chief journalist alex haley, internationally noted author, crossed the bar. 1995 the 689 foot tank ship mormac star, carrying more than 4.7 million gallons of jet a fuel and nearly 5.7 million gallons of number 2 diesel fuel, ran aground in sandy hook channel, two miles off the beaches of sandy hook, new jersey, spilling 33,600 gallons. cotp new york responded. other responding units included stations new york and sandy hook, vts new york, and the atlantic area strike team. the spill was successfully contained and the vessel salvaged. february 11 1973 due to the draw down of u.s. forces in south vietnam the post of senior coast guard officer, vietnam, was discontinued. 2009 miami based ledet 405, operating as part of combined task force (ctf) 151 and conducting counter piracy operations aboard uss vella gulf (cg 72) and uss mahan (ddg 72) in the gulf of aden, assisted in the apprehension of 16 suspected pirates in a 24 hour period. 2014 the coast guard awarded three firm fixed price contracts for preliminary and contract design for the offshore patrol cutter (opc) acquisition project. the contracts were awarded to bollinger shipyards lockport llc (lockport, louisiana), eastern shipbuilding group inc. (panama city, florida), and general dynamics, bath iron works (bath, maine). the opc would fill coast guard and dhs offshore mission requirements and provide capabilities between the coast guard’s fast response cutter and national security cutter, while replacing the aging 210 foot and 270 foot medium endurance cutters. 2015 cgc valiant returned home to naval station mayport wednesday, after completing a six week deployment in the florida straits and eastern caribbean sea in support of operations southeast watch and unified resolve. valiant responded to a surge of illegal migration attempts in the florida straits following the u.s. government announcement to normalize relations with cuba. the cutter humanely processed and cared for 160 cuban migrants in a one week period. valiant also boarded and towed a coastal freighter following its failed attempt to deliver more than 1,000 kilograms of cocaine into puerto rico. valiant’s crewmembers conducted a search of the vessel, took custody of its crew, and towed the freighter over 120 miles to ponce, puerto rico, where it was transferred to homeland security investigations and border patrol authorities. the freighter’s crew was turned over for prosecution in federal court. during the cutter’s logistics stop in san juan, puerto rico, the crew took time to visit two orphanages that care for infants and primary school children. the crew distributed more than 200 new toys they brought with them from mayport and spent two afternoons playing with the children. february 12 1802 revenue marine had a total of 38 commissioned officers in service: 9 captains, 10 first mates, 9 second mates and 10 third mates. 1983 the 605 foot collier marine electric capsized and sank off virginia during a gale. three of the 34 crewmen on board were rescued by coast guard and navy assets. this sinking and consequent loss of life contributed to the establishment of a permanent rescue swimmer program for the coast guard. 1986 rains began in northern california that lasted for a week, causing severe flooding. coast guard units participated in rescue and relief operations. 1997 three of the four crewmembers of mlb 44363 out of the quillayute river motor lifeboat station were lost in the line of duty when they responded to a distress call from the sailing vessel gale runner. they were bm2 david a. bosley, mk3 matthew e. schlimme, and sn clinton p. miniken. february 13 1960 a coast guard r5d aircraft from honolulu dropped a pump to the japanese training vessel toyama maru, which had radioed that it was taking on water and was in danger of sinking off palmyra island. the pump controlled flooding until the arrival of cgc bering strait, whose crew made repairs to the japanese vessel, using 2,500 pounds of sand and cement parachuted by a honolulu based sc 130b plane. 1963 the bureau of customs requested coast guard assistance to search the m/v holland diepe in tacoma, washington, for narcotics. narcotics agents had previously apprehended three chinese crew members of the vessel in a seattle hotel. cotp seattle provided a search party of two officers and eight enlisted men, who were joined by 10 customs agents. two man teams searched assigned areas of the vessel. a first search of seven hours uncovered a considerable quantity of raw opium. the search party then departed, as if the search were ended, but 45 minutes later they boarded the vessel once more, lined up the crew in the mess hall, and searched them and the ship again. this search, lasting three hours, uncovered more opium, both raw and prepared for smoking, a small quantity of heroin, and several opium pipes. a total of six pounds of opium was seized. wpb 82336 conducted waterside surveillance during the search. 1969 the national transportation safety board issued its "study of recreational boat accidents, boating safety programs, and preventive recommendations". 1991 during operation desert storm, two hu 25a falcon jets from air station cape cod, equipped with aireye technology, departed for saudi arabia for service with the inter agency oil spill assessment team. they were accompanied in flight by two c 130 aircraft from air station clearwater carrying spare parts and deployment packages. february 14 1903 an act of congress (31 stat. l., 825, 826, 827) that created the department of commerce and labor provided for the transfer of the lighthouse service and the steamboat inspection service from the treasury department. this allowed the secretary of commerce and labor to succeed to the authority vested in the secretary of the treasury under the existing legislation. 2016 cgc campbell returned to its homeport at portsmouth naval shipyard in kittery, maine, following a 61 day counter narcotics patrol of the caribbean sea and eastern pacific ocean. in the span of one month campbell seized or disrupted a total of seven smuggling vessels carrying cocaine from south america bound for the united states. the amount of cocaine seized was estimated to be 4,800 pounds and worth more than $80 million dollars. in addition, campbell's crew rescued eight cuban migrants attempting to sail from cuba to the united states in an unseaworthy vessel. campbell deployed in support of the joint interagency task force south, which is in an international operation to disrupt the transportation of narcotics. in doing so, campbell worked with air, land, and naval assets from the u.s. department of defense and the department of homeland security, as well as western hemisphere partner agencies, to counter drug trafficking. february 15 1911 congress transferred fort trumbull, new london, connecticut from the war department to the treasury department for the use of the revenue cutter service as its cadet training school. 1943 cgc calypso removed 42 persons from a lifeboat from the torpedoed vessel ss buarque (brazil) east of cape henry. 1980 the 70 foot fishing vessel donna catalina sank 40 miles south of nantucket island. after pumps lowered to the four man crew failed to keep up with the flooding, a coast guard helicopter lifted the fishing vessel's crew to safety. 2015 cgc polar star successfully rescued the australian flagged f/v antarctic chieftain which had been trapped in antarctic ice 900 miles northeast of mcmurdo sound, antarctica, for nearly two weeks. the rescue operation spanned more than 860 miles and required polar star to break through 150 miles of thick antarctic ice and navigate around icebergs that were miles wide. antarctic chieftain damaged three of its four propeller blades in the ice, which required polar star to tow the vessel through about 60 miles of ice into open water. towing the 207 foot fishing vessel through heavy ice placed varying strain on the tow line, which broke three times during the rescue mission. once in open water, antarctic chieftain was able to maneuver under its own power. the crew of f/v janas escorted antarctic chieftain to nelson, new zealand. polar star reached the crew of the fishing vessel february 13 after traveling across more than 150 miles of ice. the fishermen requested assistance from rescue coordination centre new zealand tuesday evening after becoming trapped in the ice. rcc new zealand requested cgc polar star, homeported in seattle, to respond to antarctic chieftain’s request for assistance. polar star was deployed to mcmurdo station, antarctica, as part of operation deep freeze. after the successful rescue, polar star then continued its journey home to seattle. february 16 1926 congress authorized the secretary of the treasury to "acquire a site at new london, connecticut, without cost to united states, and construct thereon buildings for the united states coast guard academy at a total cost not to exceed $1,750,000." february 17 1934 cgcs daphne, hermes, perseus, aurora, and calypso stood out from new york harbor, bound for their new duty station on the west coast. they arrived safely in san diego, california on march 21, 1934 after passing through the panama canal. the cutters formed and were referred to as the "west coast squadron" of the coast guard. 1944 coast guardsmen participated in the invasions of eniwetok and engebi, marshall island. 1956 cgc casco saved 21 persons from a u.s. navy seaplane that was forced to ditch 100 miles south of bermuda. the cutter then took the disabled seaplane under tow and delivered both the survivors and the seaplane to the naval air station at st. georgia harbor, bermuda. february 18 1842 the house of representatives passed a resolution requesting the committee on commerce make an inquiry into the expenditures of the lighthouse establishment since 1816. this was to explore the possibility of cutting down on expenses, to examine the question of reorganizing the establishment and administration, and also to ascertain whether the establishment should be placed under the topographical bureau of the war department. 1935 three newly acquired douglas rd dolphin amphibious aircraft, cg 131, cg 132, and cg 133, took off from clover field, santa monica, california on "the first every trans continental flight ever undertaken by a unit of coast guard men and planes." cg 131 flew to air station cape may, cg 132 flew to air station biloxi, while cg 133 flew to its assigned duty station at air station miami. all aircraft arrived safely. total flight time for cg 133 totaled 25 hours and 50 minutes. 1952 during a severe "nor’easter" off the new england coast, the t 2 tankers ss fort mercer and ss pendleton each broke in half. coast guard vessels, aircraft, and lifeboat stations, working under severe winter conditions, rescued 70 persons from the foundering ships. five coast guardsmen earned the gold lifesaving medal, four earned the silver lifesaving medal, and 15 earned the coast guard commendation medal. 1966 division 13 of coast guard squadron one (ronone) departed for cat lo. 1968 engineman first class robert j. yered was awarded the silver star for action on february 18, 1968 while attached to explosive loading detachment #1, cat lai, republic of vietnam. en1 yered was supervising the loading of explosives on board an ammunition ship when an enemy rocket struck a barge loaded with several tons of mortar ammunition moored alongside. his citation noted that "without regard for his personal safety, [he] exposed himself to the enemy fusillade as he helped extinguish the fire on the burning barge…his courageous act averted destruction of the ammunition ship, and the army terminal." en1 yered also received the purple heart for injuries suffered during the incident. 1979 coast guard hh 3f helicopter cg 1432 crashed 180 miles southeast of cape cod, killing four of its five occupants. the helicopter was preparing to airlift a 47 year old crewman from the japanese fishing vessel kaisei maru #18. february 19 1845 administrative control of the lighthouse establishment was transferred to revenue marine bureau. 1845 metal buoys were first put into service. they were riveted iron barrels that replaced the older wooden stave construction. 1862 congress authorized revenue cutters to enforce the law outlawing the importation of chinese "coolie" labor. 1941 the coast guard reserve was established after congress passed the auxiliary & reserve act. the auxiliary was created from former reserve. the legislation was introduced by representative gordon canfield of new jersey. 1945 the invasion of iwo jima commenced. coast guard units that participated in this campaign included the coast guard manned uss bayfield, callaway, 14 lsts, and the pc 469. three of the lsts were struck by enemy shore fire: lst 792, lst 758, and lst 760. 1988 the largest drug bust in hawaiian waters to date took place with seizure of the panamanian flagged freighter christina m 800 miles southeast of hawaii. the units involved were the navy fast frigate uss ouellet with a coast guard law enforcement detachment from the cgc jarvis embarked, the cgc mallow, and an airsta barbers point hc 130. february 20 1845 president john tyler vetoed a bill providing that no cutter be built nor purchased unless an appropriation was first made by law, on grounds that sanctity of contract of those already contracted for should not be overridden by congress. congress overrode his veto on march 3, 1845. 1964 cgc coos bay rescued 11 of the crew of the foundering british freighter ambassador in heavy seas, 1,000 miles east of boston. coast guard aircraft from air station argentia, newfoundland, were first on the scene after the freighter issued an sos on february 18th. the coos bay, on ocean station patrol 350 miles distant, steamed to the area and arrived there 24 hours later. in concert with the norwegian freighter fruen, they managed to get lines aboard the wallowing ambassador in what was called one of the most dramatic rescues of the year. demonstrating outstanding seamanship during the rescue, the cutter's commanding officer, commander claude w. bailey, was awarded the legion of merit. many of his crew had volunteered to enter the frigid water to assist in the rescue as well. two were awarded the coast guard medal while seven others received the coast guard commendation medal. 2013 the first lri ii was delivered by metalcraft marine u.s. to the coast guard on this date and commenced testing activities soon after. the lri ii, which were built to be deployed on the national security cutter fleet, was 35 feet long with a range of over 220 nautical miles and was capable of achieving speeds in excess of 38 knots. "the stern launched lri ii’s high speed and extended range significantly enhanced its host cutter’s ability to execute missions while underway, particularly in migrant interdiction and law enforcement operations where teams need to be put on scene quickly. its ability to extend the reach of its host cutter is also critical to search and rescue operations, enabling nsc cutter crews to patrol larger search areas. the lri ii can carry up to 15 passengers, including crew, and safely operate in seas up to 13 feet." february 21 1943 cgc spencer received credit from the u.s. navy for attacking and sinking the u 225 in the north atlantic. the british ministry of defence has since recorded that the u 225 was actually destroyed by b 24 liberator "s" of raf no. 120 squadron on february 15, 1943 and they have revised the official british records to reflect this change. however, the renowned german naval historian, professor dr. jurgen rohwer, stated that spencer "probably" attacked and sank the u 529 instead, although the spencer has not received official credit for that sinking. 2008 on february 20, 2008, two u.s. air force f 15c fighter jets from eglin air force base, florida, collided over the gulf of mexico off panama city. coast guard hc 144a, no. 2303, and its crew, which were diverted to the scene from a routine training flight. they located the first pilot and directed his recovery. both f 15c pilots were eventually recovered; regrettably only one was recovered alive. this search & rescue (sar) mission included two important “firsts” for the u.s. coast guard’s new hc 144a ocean sentry maritime patrol aircraft. for the hc 144a, the incident marked its first sar mission, and its first use as an on scene coordinator (osc) platform. february 22 1943 cgc campbell under the command of cdr james a. hirshfield and assigned to the international escort group a 3 that was escorting convoy on 166 through the north atlantic, engaged numerous submarine contacts during a running battle across the sea. campbell's attacks damaged at least two u boats. the cutter also rescued 50 survivors from a torpedoed norwegian freighter. then, on february 22, 1943, as campbell returned to the convoy after rescuing the norwegians, it detected a radar contact closing the convoy. campbell raced toward the target and soon made visual contact. it was the surfaced u 606, earlier disabled by a depth charge attack delivered by the free polish destroyer burza. campbell closed to ram while its gunners opened fire. the big cutter struck the u boat with a glancing blow and one of the submarine's hydroplanes sliced open campbell's hull, flooding the engine room. the crew dropped two depth charges as the submarine slid past, and the explosions lifted the u boat nearly five feet. hirshfield later noted, "i felt sure he was ours." campbell illuminated the u boat with a spotlight and the gunners continued to fire into the submarine's conning tower and hull. hirshfield was hit by shell fragments but remained at his station. when he realized the germans had given up, he ordered his men to cease firing. campbell then rescued five of the u 606's crew. due to the collision, campbell was towed to safety, repaired, and returned to service. cdr hirshfield was awarded the navy cross for this action. 1944 coast guardsmen participate in the invasion of parry island in the marshall islands. 1966 division 13 of coast guard squadron one (ronone) arrived at cat lo for service with operation market time in vietnam. 2015 cgc maui returned to her homeport in bahrain after a prolonged period supporting the combined maritime forces (cmf) counter terrorism and maritime security task force, combined task force 150 (ctf 150), patrolling the gulf of oman and the north arabian sea from december 2014 to february 2015. maui was the first us coast guard cutter to provide direct support of ctf 150 since 2011 and the first such ship to operate outside the straits of hormuz in nearly two years. despite the challenges of the small cutter’s company, with only 21 sailors onboard, maui was called upon to do more than what is normally expected from a ship of her size, filling a major role in the mission. the boarding team executed several boarding and approach and visit operations, and the ship’s executive team provided valuable data about the maritime traffic in and around the gulf of oman and north arabian sea, strengthening ctf 150’s understanding of the maritime picture in the area. throughout the patrol, maui was able to coordinate with the patrol craft, destroyers, aircraft and oilers supporting ctf 150’s mission, ensuring maximum radar coverage, vectoring ships to boarding opportunities, and coordinating logistics. at one point, maui extended the normal endurance of a coast guard cutter, spending a total 13 days at sea. february 23 1822 congress authorized the revenue cutter service to protect the natural environment by preventing "scoundrels" from cutting down live oak on florida public lands. the oak was used for naval construction. 1837 congress called for an inspection of the coast from chesapeake bay to the sabine river "with regard to the location of additional light houses, beacons, and buoys." captain napoleon l. coste, commanding the revenue cutter campbell, was dispatched. he reported that the first addition to aids to navigation on this entire coast should be at egmont key, tampa bay. a lighthouse was authorized immediately and built the next year. 1877 first lieutenant dorr f. tozier, usrcs assisted in saving the french bark peabody, which had gone aground on february 23, 1877 off horn island in the mississippi sound. tozier was awarded a gold medal by the president of the french republic "for gallant, courageous, and efficient services" in saving the french vessel. 2010 cgc alex haley returned to their homeport of kodiak after an 80 day deployment to the south pacific. while on patrol in the south pacific the crew of the cutter was involved in the rescue of 28 survivors of a shipboard fire and the subsequent sinking of the taiwanese fishing vessel hou chun 11 900 miles southwest of honolulu february 9th. all 28 crew were rescued and delivered safely to christmas island, kiribati. the cutter's expert medical team assisted two badly burned crewmen who were further medevaced by coast guard c 130 from kiribati to honolulu. february 24 1964 a u.s. coast guard ice skiff rescued 25 persons from an ice flow that had broken loose from the shore near camp perry, ohio. a similar rescue took place almost simultaneously at st. clair shores, michigan when another coast guard ice skiff and a police helicopter removed five more from an ice flow. 1987 coast guard attorney lcdr robert w. bruce, jr. became the first member of the armed forces to argue a case before the supreme court in uniform. he represented the coast guard in solorio vs. united states. 1989 coast guard units searched for survivors of united airlines flight 811 after it crashed off the coast of hawaii. the units included a hc 130, two helicopters, and cgcs cape corwin, mallow and sassafras. no survivors were found and the units then assisted in the retrieval of debris. february 25 1799 congress passed "an act respecting quarantines and health laws", superseding the act passed on may 27, 1796 (1 stat. l., 619).. the revenue cutters were again authorized to enforce quarantine laws. 1799 congress passed "an act for the augmentation of the navy" that authorized president john adams to place the revenue cutters in the naval establishment. this was done in response to the quasi war with france and it had the effect of "redefining the maritime character of the revenue cutter service and making it a service with the dual character of a military establishment and of a maritime service" (irving king, george washington's coast guard, p. 152). 1825 congress empowered the revenue marine to enforce state quarantine laws. 1942 wartime port security was delegated to the coast guard by executive order 9074. 2001 the tugboat swift sank after colliding with the freighter a.v. kastner on the elk river in the upper chesapeake bay. coast guard units from new jersey and philadelphia worked with state police and local rescue agencies to rescue three survivors. two crewmen perished. the coast guard also conducted the marine casualty investigation. february 26 1793 alexander hamilton, first secretary of the treasury, submitted to the senate the first official list of cutters with stations, officers' names, rank, and dates of commission. 1984 five people died, three were injured, and 22 rescued when the tanker american eagle exploded 180 miles southeast of new orleans. an airsta new orleans hh 3 took the three injured crewmen ashore while a british tanker watched over the crippled ship until a commercial tug could arrive. the next day the american eagle started to break up and sink. the 24 remaining crewmen abandoned ship. oil rig supply boats and a coast guard helicopter recovered 22. the other two became the subject of an hu 25 search, but the sar case was suspended after three days. february 27 1925 an act of congress repealed the law providing a ration allowance for keepers of lighthouses and increased their salaries correspondingly. this change was not only advantageous to the light keepers, but also simplified office work. 1949 aerial ice observation flights by long range aircraft operated from argentia, newfoundland. an international ice patrol by vessels was neither required nor established during the 1949 season and it was the first time that aircraft alone conducted the ice observation service. 1953 cgc coos bay, on ocean station echo, about half way between bermuda and the azores, rescued the crew of 10 from the u.s. navy patrol plane that was forced to ditch in the atlantic ocean. 2003 cgc dallas was ordered to deploy overseas to support operation enduring freedom and to prepare for future contingencies. she was underway on patrol when she received the order from the atlantic area commander to sail overseas to the mediterranean. dallas deployed with an hh 65b dolphin helicopter and 7 member aircrew from coast guard air station atlantic city, new jersey. 2004 the coast guard repatriated 531 haitian migrants to port au prince, haiti, after they were rescued in the windward pass. the migrants were from 13 boats stopped since february 21, 2004. the repatriations were completed by three cutters: cgc valiant transported 290 migrants, cgc vigilant delivered another 241, and cgc nantucket escorted the cutters for safety and security. the migrants were turned over to the haitian coast guard. february 28 1867 as ordered by the treasury department, each officer of revenue cutter service, while on duty, was entitled to one navy ration per day. 1871 congress passed 16 stat. 458 which addressed shortcomings in previous legislation regarding the inspection and certification of steamboats and their crews. this act established the steamboat inspection service (sis) within the department of treasury headed by a supervisory inspector general answerable to the treasury secretary. the act also provided sis inspectors with greater authority over more aspects of the maritime field. 1942 certain duties of the former bureau of marine inspection and navigation were transferred to the coast guard temporarily by executive order 9083. the transfer was made permanent on july 16, 1946. also, the u.s. maritime service was transferred to the coast guard from the war shipping administration on this date. 1963 with the arrival of the ferry crew on this date to accept delivery of the hc 130b cgnr 1351 at marietta, georgia, the coast guard completed its program for the procurement of 12 long range, long endurance, four engine landplanes. the aircraft were assigned to air station elizabeth city and air detachments argentia, san francisco, and barbers point. 2004 coast guard units responded to an explosion aboard the 570 foot singapore flagged tanker bow mariner off the coast of chincoteague, virginia. the bow mariner was carrying 6.5 million gallons of industrial ethanol when it exploded and sank. the coast guard rescued six survivors. 2015 cgc steadfast returned to its homeport of astoria after a two month joint interagency task force (jiatf) deployment. steadfast partook in multiple coast guard missions ranging from search and rescue, to counter narcotics, to securing u.s. borders through enhancement of international relations, and coordination with other cutters and aircraft allowing the u.s. to stop drug trafficking before it reaches u.s. borders. while returning from patrol off the coast of central america, steadfast offloaded approximately 725 kilograms of cocaine in san diego. the seized cocaine is worth an estimated wholesale value of more than $23 million. the offload is a result of a successful drug interdiction in the eastern pacific ocean on january 23, 2015. while on a routine patrol, a maritime patrol aircraft working in conjunction with jiatf assets detected a suspicious go fast vessel south of el salvador. using information provided by the aircrew, steadfast was able to vector the cutter’s over the horizon boat to intercept and conduct a law enforcement boarding of the suspect vessel. once aboard the go fast vessel, the coast guard boarding team found 16 bales of contraband hidden throughout the 35 foot vessel that tested positive for cocaine. the coast guard took three suspected smugglers into custody. this seizure is one of many interdictions in the eastern pacific in recent months due to an increased presence of coast guard cutters in support of the western hemisphere strategy. the western hemisphere strategy has been implemented by the coast guard and various other government agencies to protect u.s. borders by stopping illicit trafficking at the source. steadfast’s interdiction was part of operation martillo, which is one component in the united states government's whole of government approach to countering the use of the central american littorals as transshipment routes for illicit drugs, weapons, and cash. prior to the visit to san diego, steadfast participated in a north american maritime security initiative (namsi) exercise off the coast of ensenada, mexico, february 21 22, 2015. february 29 1944 coast guardsmen participated in the invasion of los negros, admiralty islands. 1968 in the largest naval engagement of the vietnam war cgc androscoggin, point welcome, and point grey combined to destroy and enemy trawler. cgc winona, point grace, point marone, and point hudson combined to destroy another enemy trawler and cgc minnetonka forced another trawler to turn back. a fourth enemy trawler was also sunk, but coast guard units were not involved. march 1 1876 nuova ottavia, an italian vessel, grounded near the jones hill north carolina life saving station. the rescue attempt by the crew of that station resulted in the loss of seven surfmen, the first deaths in the line of duty since the service began using paid crews in 1870. among the dead was african american surfman jeremiah munden, the first african american surfman to die in the line of duty. 1902 the first regular light stations in alaska were established at southeast five finger island and at sentinel island. both were on the main inside passage between wrangell strait and skagway. 1927 the u.s. lighthouse service put into effect a system of broadcasting radio weather reports by four lightships stationed along the pacific coast. 1933 in the interest of administrative economy and efficiency, the 13th and 14th lighthouse districts were consolidated with the 15th lighthouse district. also, the aids to navigation on the entire mississippi river system were placed in charge of a civilian lighthouse engineer as superintendent. this relieved the army engineers detailed for that duty. the offices at rock island, illinois and cincinnati, ohio were discontinued, and all the river work was placed under a single office at st. louis, missouri. 1975 the coast guard issued regulations that became effective on march 1, 1975 that required an emergency position indicating radio beacon (epirb) on small passenger vessels engaged in ocean and coastwise service. 1977 the coast guard began enforcement of the fishery conservation and management act with 19 cutters and 17 aircraft patrolling within the 200 mile fishery conservation zone. 2003 administrative control of the coast guard transferred to the newly created department of homeland security from the department of transportation, where it had served since april 1, 1967. 2015 her majesty’s canadian ships goose bay and shawinigan, in collaboration with the u.s. navy and in support of the u.s. coast guard, assisted in seizing more than 1000 kg of cocaine while patrolling in the caribbean sea, as part of operation caribbe. following the initial search of a suspect vessel by a boarding team from uss kauffman, hmcs goose bay was tasked to conduct an additional inspection. a subsequent boarding and search of the suspect vessel by the uscg ledet embarked with hmcs goose bay, supported by hmcs shawinigan, resulted in the seizure of 1017 kg of cocaine. 2015 cgc alex haley returned to kodiak, alaska, following a successful 70 day deployment patrolling more than 10,800 miles throughout the bering sea and aleutian islands. alex haley, the “bulldog of the bering,” departed kodiak on december 1, 2014 and spent 70 days conducting law enforcement and community outreach operations in the bering sea and aleutian islands. during the deployment, alex haley’s crew performed 41 at sea domestic fisheries enforcement boardings and covered more than 5,000 square miles in search efforts for the sunken korean fishing vessel 501 oryong. 2015 cgc waesche returned to homeport at coast guard island in alameda following a 79 day, 13,000 nautical mile patrol in the eastern pacific ocean. since its departure on december 12, 2014, waesche patrolled international waters off the coast of central america, disrupting transnational organized crime networks through joint inter agency counter drug operations, seizing nearly 1,400 lbs of cocaine with an estimated value of more than $22 million. during the last four weeks of its deployment, crewmembers aboard waesche spent time off the coast of san diego completing rigorous proficiency exercises geared toward sharpening the unit's readiness to conduct the many operations that are vital to the coast guard's military, homeland defense, and law enforcement missions. many of these exercises included helicopter operations, gunnery, shipboard firefighting and damage control, and medical training. additionally, they practiced national defense scenarios to ensure seamless integration with partners from the department of defense. march 2 1792 congress authorized the revenue cutters to fire on merchant ships that refused to "bring to." 1799 congress authorized revenue cutter officers to board all ships of the united states within four leagues of the u.s., if bound for the u.s., and then search and examine them, certifying manifest, sealing hatches, and remaining on board until they arrived in port. they were also authorized to search ships of other nations in united states' waters and "perform such other duties for the collection and security of the revenue" as directed by the secretary of the treasury. 1799 congress authorized cutters and boats to be "distinguished from other vessels by an ensign and pendant" with the marks thereon prescribed by the president of the united states, to fire on vessels who refused to bring to after the pendant and ensign had been hoisted and a gun fired as a signal, masters to be indemnified from any penalties or actions for damages for so doing, and be admitted to bail if anyone is killed or wounded by such firing. on august 1, 1799, secretary oliver wolcott, jr., prescribed that the " ensign and pennant’’ should consist of "sixteen perpendicular stripes, alternate red and white, the union of the ensign to be the arms of the united states in dark blue on a white field." there were sixteen states in the union at that time. 1799 congress authorized the president to sell cutters unfit for service and the secretary of treasury to apply an unexpended balance of proceeds in the purchase and construction of revenue cutters. (this authority was revoked march 3, 1845). 1807 congress passed the "act prohibiting the importation of slaves" (2 stat. 426). the act outlawed the importation of slaves into the united states. it went into effect on january 1, 1808. the revenue marine enforced the law on the high seas. 1845 congress reined in president john tyler’s zealous use of the presidential veto, overriding it with the necessary two thirds vote. this marked congress’ first use of the constitutional provision allowing congressional veto overrides and represented congress’ parting gift to tyler as he left office. about two weeks earlier, tyler had vetoed a congressional bill that would have denied him the power to appropriate federal funds to build revenue cutter ships without congressional approval. with the override, congress insisted that the executive branch get the legislature’s approval before commissioning any new military craft. 1868 by act of congress (15 stat. l., 249), the lighthouse board was "authorized, when in their judgment, it is deemed necessary, to place a light vessel, or other suitable warning of danger, on or over any wreck or temporary obstruction to the entrance of any harbor, or in the channel or fairway of any bay or sound." 1889 congress authorized the secretary of treasury to keep rivers clear to afford marine species access to their spawning grounds. 1912 the revenue cutter hartley seized the vessel morning star in oakland creek and arrested her crew for carrying 21 "contraband" chinese migrants. 1978 mexican authorities requested coast guard assistance after severe rainstorms caused significant flooding in baja. two hh 3fs from airsta san diego began evacuating people for ensenada. an hc 130 from airsta san francisco and a third hh 3f from san diego joined the flood relief operations. as of march 8th, coast guard aviation units had flown 59 sorties and 77 flight hours, transported 349 persons to safety, and delivered 74,600 lbs. of relief supplies in operations covering ensenada, tijuana, santa ynes, san quintin, punta colnett, camalu, guadlupe, el rosario, and la mission. through the mexican secretary of defense and the governor of baja california, the president of mexico relayed his personal appreciation and that of the mexican people to all coast guard personnel involved. 2015 cgc diligence returned to its homeport of wilmington, north carolina, following a 46 day patrol in the caribbean sea and atlantic ocean. during the patrol, diligence was diverted to conduct a search and rescue mission of four italian sailors aboard the 30 foot sailing vessel algeria, which became disabled off the coast of panama. the four sailors had been underway on the algeria for more than a month navigating from italy to costa rica when the vessel became disabled. diligence traveled more than 175 miles to algeria’s location and then towed the sailing vessel to safety in chiriqui grande, panama. during the patrol, the crew aboard diligence conducted search and rescue operations off the coast of panama, drug interdiction operations in the vicinity of honduras, nicaragua, costa rica, and panama, and alien migrant interdiction operations in the straits of florida. diligence patrolled in support of the joint interagency task force south’s operation martillo in the western caribbean sea from honduras to columbia. 2023 cgc polar star (wagb 10) and crew departed the antarctic region march 2, after 67 days below the antarctic circle in support of operation deep freeze 2023. polar star and crew broke a 17 mile channel through fast ice and conducted over 1,600 hours of ice breaking operations to create a navigable route for cargo vessels to reach mcmurdo station. polar star and crew executed more than 60 hours of ice escorts for cargo vessels through difficult pack ice conditions. “though sea ice around the antarctic continent overall has been determined to be at one of the lowest in recent history, the sea ice in mcmurdo sound was observed to be at the highest concentration on record dating back to at least 2012,” said lcdr don rudnickas, the onboard ice analyst. “the pack ice conditions this year were difficult and made icebreaker support critical not only for establishing the fast ice channel, but for the close escort through pack ice of three of the four cargo vessels resupplying mcmurdo station.” while operating in antarctica, polar star and crew made two logistical stops at mcmurdo station. after the first stop in mcmurdo, the cutter and crew assisted in moving a 30,000 ton aging and degraded ice pier from winter quarters bay to make way for a modular causeway system that was installed for the season. the cutter also provided an ice escort to motor vessel ocean giant and crew, who delivered the 65 ton mcs that was offloaded, assembled, and used as a pier to replace the traditional ice pier used for cargo operations. “the antarctic region is a harsh and challenging environment to operate in,” said lcdr benjamin litts, operations officer. “despite the inhospitable conditions, our crew adapted and tirelessly performed at the highest level to ensure mission success.” before departing the antarctic region, the cutter also visited palmer station, the united states’ research facility located on the antarctic peninsula. polar star personnel went ashore to meet with the station manager and staff, tour the facility, and shared camaraderie in one of the most remote regions on the planet. this was the first visit from a u.s. coast guard icebreaker to palmer station since 1987. march 3 1819 congress authorized the revenue cutters to protect merchant vessels of united states against piracy and to seize vessels engaged in slave trade. the cutters louisiana and alabama were built shortly thereafter to assist in the government's efforts against piracy. 1837 an act of congress (5 stat. l., 181, 185) laid down certain restrictions, by providing that the construction of the large number of new lighthouses, lightships, etc., for which this law was appropriating the necessary funds, would not be begun until examined by board of navy commissioners. they reported to congress those cases where the "navigation is so inconsiderable as not to justify the proposed works." the navy detailed 22 officers to this duty and, before the end of the year, their recommendations resulted in the deferment of the construction of 31 lighthouses already appropriated for. 1839 congress directed that revenue captain ezekial jones, commanding the revenue cutter washington in the seminole war, be allowed the same pay as a lieutenant in the navy would receive for like services. 1845 congress authorized the president to appoint six engineers (later amplified by act of february 4, 1863) and six assistant engineers, one of each to be assigned to each revenue steamer then in the service. engineers were to receive the same pay as first lieutenants and assistant engineers the same pay as third lieutenants. 1845 congress directed no person be appointed as a revenue cutter officer "who does not adduce competent proof of proficiency and skill in navigation and seamanship." this was the first official underway qualifications established for the service. 1845 the duties of the fifth auditor of the treasury as superintendent of lights was first put on a statutory basis by an act of congress (5 stat. l., 752. 762), which prescribed that "the fifth auditor of the treasury, shall continue to superintend the several matters and things connected with the lighthouses, beacons, buoys, and public piers, as heretofore, of the united states, and to perform all the duties connected therewith, under the direction of the secretary of the treasury, until otherwise ordered by law." 1847 congress appropriated $5000 "for furnishing lighthouses on the atlantic coast with means of rendering assistance to shipwrecked mariners." this was the first federal appropriation for rendering assistance to the shipwrecked from shore. 1849 the office of commissioner of customs was created. the local collectors took over control of the revenue cutters within their jurisdictions. 1859 an act of congress (11 stat. l., 423, 424) authorized the lighthouse board to use its own discretion in the discontinuance as necessary of such lighthouses as might become useless by reason of changes in commerce, alteration in channels, or other causes. 1873 signal corps of army established a storm signal service for benefit of seafaring men at several life saving stations and constructed telegraph lines as a means of communication between the stations. 1875 secretary of the treasury was authorized by congress to acquire by donation or purchase the right to use and acquire sites for life saving and lifeboat stations. 1885 congress authorized secretary of the treasury to detail officers and men of revenue marine service to duty under the commissioner of fish and fisheries division of the bureau of fisheries when they could be spared for such duty. 1899 an act of congress (30 stat. l., 1121, 1152) required that, whenever a vessel, raft, or other craft was wrecked and sunk in a navigable channel, it became the duty of the owner to immediately mark the sunken craft with a suitable buoy or beacon during the day and a lighted lantern at night. previously, the lighthouse establishment had been authorized by congress to place, when considered necessary, a lightship or other suitable warning of danger on any wreck or temporary obstruction to the entrance of any harbor or in the channel of any bay or sound. 1905 congress authorized the secretary of the treasury to acquire a suitable site in the state of maryland upon which to establish a depot for the revenue cutter service; this station became the coast guard yard. 1915 an act of congress (38 stat. l., 926, 928) provided for cooperation between the lighthouse service and the forest service in the management of the forest land on lighthouse reservations. 1918 by act of congress (38 stat. l., 928), the protection afforded the aids to navigation maintained by the united states government was extended to those established and operated by private individuals. 1947 the ss oakey s. alexander reported being in distress 22 miles east of portland, maine, with a hatch stove in and shipping water. cgc cowslip immediately proceeded on orders from portland to assist. when she began breaking up, the ship's commanding officer decided to beach at cape elizabeth. cowslip arrived on the scene but was unable to approach the beached vessel because of heavy seas. all 32 crewmembers, however, were removed safely from the ship by coast guardsmen from the cape elizabeth light and lifeboat station using a breeches buoy. march 4 1907 congress appropriated $30,000 for installing wireless telegraphs on not more than 12 revenue cutters. usrc algonquin as the first cutter fitted with the new technology with money appropriated from this act. 1915 secretary of the treasury was authorized by congress to detail cutters to enforce anchorage regulations in all harbors, rivers, bays, and other navigable waters of united states. 1917 ten crewmen of cgc yamacraw perished in the line of duty while trying to rescue the crew of the grounded steamer louisiana near ocean city, maryland. the treasury department labeled their loss "the most disastrous incident of this kind ever recorded in the annals of the coast guard, or of either of its forbears, the revenue cutter service and life saving service." the coast guardsmen who gave up their lives were: gunner ross harris, master at arms r. j. grady, quartermaster m. l. kambarn, seaman g. v. jarvis, ordinary seaman m. l. austin, ordinary seaman d. fulcher, ordinary seaman r. l. garrish, ordinary seaman r. e. simmons, ordinary seaman t. l. midgett, and boy first class j. a. dugger. 1925 an act of congress (43 stat. l., 1261), for the first time, provided for disability retirement within the lighthouse service. 1929 congress appropriated $144,000 for seaplanes and equipment for coast guard. 1952 an air detachment consisting of three helicopters and necessary personnel established as the first unit of its type on a test basis (at airsta brooklyn) began operating in support of port security operations. 1977 ens janna lambine, uscg, graduated from naval aviation training at nas whiting field, milton, florida, becoming the first female pilot in the coast guard. march 5 1881 the crew of life saving station no. 10, ninth district (louisville), won acclaim with a dangerous rescue at the wreck of james d. parker, a well known river boat lost in the indiana chute of the ohio falls. she was a stern wheel steamer of over 500 tons owned by the cincinnati and memphis packet company and bound from cincinnati to memphis. her crew numbered 50, including the captain, and she had 55 passengers on board, a number of whom were women and children. march 6 1896 secretary of the treasury was authorized to detail cutters to enforce anchorage regulations on the st. mary’s river. 1932 five members of station atlantic city were lost in the line of duty when station personnel responded to the gas screw vessel anna and a motor boat in distress off atlantic city. two of the station's boats were lost in the heavy seas: picket boat no. 2301 capsized outside the bar while responding to the original distress situation and then surfboat no. 2301 disappeared while proceeding to the assistance of the picket boat crew. lost were: surfman david a. barnett, surfman william r. garton, momm2c (l) william graham, surfman harold livingston, and bm2c (l) marvin e. rhoades. 1998 the coast guard commissioned cgc barracuda (wpb 87301) on this date. the new patrol boat was assigned to eureka, california. barracuda was the first vessel of the new 87 foot marine predator class patrol boats built by bollinger shipyards for the coast guard to replace the venerable 82 foot point class patrol boats. march 7 1883 a dramatic rescue was performed by the crew of assateague life saving station in virginia using a surfboat through a howling storm to save the ten persons stranded on the sinking barkentine wolverine. march 8 1942 a coast guard aircraft located the lifeboats of ss arubutan, which had been sunk by a german u boat off the north carolina coast, and directed cgc calypso to them. 1963 cgc eastwind crossed sixty degrees south latitude north bound after 126 days in the antarctic region as a part of operation deepfreeze 63, setting a new record for a single cruise in that area. 1973 the first "coast guard controlled drug seizure" took place when the cutter dauntless seized the sport fishing vessel big l which was smuggling an "illicit cargo" of one ton of marijuana. 2015 cgc alert returned to its homeport of astoria, oregon, following a 61 day counter narcotics patrol off the coast of central and south america. the crew of the 46 year old ship interdicted two suspected smuggling vessels stopping an estimated 2,300 pounds of cocaine worth approximately $28 million. on two separate occasions, the crew found sea turtles entangled in abandoned fishing gear. the crew’s efforts saved three turtles, allowing them to swim away unharmed. coast guardsmen aboard also improved their proficiency by conducting 94 safety and mission specific drills. these exercises included shipboard emergency response, navigation proficiency, and live fire gunnery exercises. march 9 1928 a pulling surfboat with nine men aboard, under the command of boatswain's mate first class william cashman, got underway from the manomet life saving to go to the rescue of the steamer robert e. lee. the lee had grounded on mary ann rocks in a heavy gale. while returning to the station the surfboat capsized due to extremely heavy seas, spilling all nine men into the water. six were rescued but "captain" cashman, surfman frank w. griswold, and surfman edward r. stark perished in the line of duty in the freezing water. during the on going search and rescue operations all 236 passengers and crew from the robert e. lee were saved. 1944 the u 225 torpedoed and sank the coast guard manned destroyer escort uss leopold (de 319) off iceland. the attack marked the introduction of a newly developed acoustic torpedo. all 13 officers and 148 (out of 186) enlisted men on board were killed. the 28 survivors were rescued by uss joyce (de 317), another coast guard manned destroyer escort. 1946 the coast guard manned lst 767 was damaged in a hurricane near okinawa. she was later declared a total loss and was decommissioned. 1966 cgc point white, on duty with coast guard squadron one, division 13, in vietnam, captured a vietcong junk after a running firefight. point white was in vietnam only a month when she started conducting patrols on a viet cong controlled area of the soi rap river. point white used a plan of steaming out of the patrol area and covertly returning. on march 9th, she spotted a junk crossing the river and attempted to stop it. the junk opened fire with small arms, including automatic weapons. point white returned the fire and rammed the junk, throwing the occupants into the water. the cutter’s commanding officer, ltjg eugene j. hickey, rescued a survivor who turned out to be a key vc leader of the rung sat secret zone. during march, three wpbs of division 13 killed twenty seven vc in action, captured seven more, and confiscated considerable contraband. 1996 the first "all coast guard" ceremonial honor guard carried out a wreath laying at the tomb of the unknown soldier in arlington national cemetery. march 10 1909 the british barkentine ladysmith, during a thick fog, stranded three miles wsw of the fisher's island life saving station. the keeper was notified by telephone and the life savers, in surfboat, proceeded to the scene. they safely rescued the ladysmith's master, his wife, and 9 seamen. 1983 the coast guard retired the last operational hu 16e albatross, ending the "era of seaplanes" for the service. 2015 cgc polar star returned to seattle after a 101 day antarctic deployment. polar star departed seattle for operation deep freeze 2015, the military resupply and logistical support mission for the u.s. antarctic program’s mcmurdo station. polar star escorted the cargo vessel ocean giant and fuel tanker maersk peary to mcmurdo station through ice ranging in thickness from 5 to 10 feet. upon completion of deep freeze, polar star’s crew rescued 26 fishermen aboard the 207 foot f/v antarctic chieftain. the mariners were trapped in a heavy pack ice near cape burks, antarctica, for almost two weeks. the crew diverted to provide assistance to the fishermen. after navigating across 753 miles with 89 miles of treacherous ice conditions, polar star’s crew located the antarctic chieftain and towed the fishing vessel through 49 miles of pack ice before transferring the antarctic chieftain to the new zealand fishing vessel janas. 2015 cgc spencer returned to their home port in portsmouth on 10 march 2023 following an 88 day deployment to africa. during the patrol, spencer’s crew worked to combat illicit transnational activities, including illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing, by conducting multinational law enforcement operations in the atlantic ocean, the us coast guard (uscg) said. spencer’s crew also participated in the obangame express 2023 maritime exercise with participants from the us navy, us coast guard and 17 west african partners. conducted by us naval forces africa, obangame express focusses on countering illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing and other sea based illicit activity. spencer’s crew hosted multiple african country representatives, held diplomatic engagements and participated in community relations events during port visits in cabo verde, the gambia, senegal, sierra leone, togo, nigeria and côte d’ivoire. spencer’s port visit to lomé, togo marked the first us ship visit to togo since 2012. while at sea, spencer also interdicted a brazilian sailing vessel carrying 3,040 kilograms of suspected cocaine worth over $109 million. spencer’s crew was augmented with several temporarily assigned members, including tactical law enforcement and maritime safety and security team personnel, medical officers from the us public health service and coast guard, us coast guard auxiliary chinese language translators, electronics technicians and a yeoman. 2023 cgc kimball (wmsl 756) and crew returned to their honolulu homeport, friday, following a 42 day, 10,000 nautical mile western pacific patrol. kimball was the first u.s. military ship in recent history to visit the port city of kagoshima, japan, where the crew partnered with servicemembers from japan coast guard’s 10th district to plan and conduct combined operations and search and rescue exercises. kimball’s crew met with japan coast guard senior leadership and hosted japan coast guard servicemembers, u.s. consulate fukuoka staff, community leaders and local media aboard the cutter during the port visit in support of operation sapphire. operation sapphire is a joint agreement between the u.s. and japan coast guards signed in 2022 for enhancing cooperation between the two sea services. sapphire is an acronym for the ‘solid alliance for peace and prosperity with humanity and integrity on the rule of law based engagement.’ “by collaborating with japan coast guard members and conducting evolutions that enhanced communication and inter operability during the patrol, the crew continued to strengthen a solid foundation for the positive and productive relationship with the maritime service of a like minded nation,” said capt tom d’arcy, kimball’s commanding officer. kimball’s crew demonstrated proficiency in the ship’s aviation program by working with an air operations inspection team to conduct a biennial shipboard aviation standardization inspection (avstan). by achieving their avstan certification, kimball can continue deploying with aviation detachments during future patrols. kimball also supported u.s. coast guard efforts to increase its presence in the indo pacific. kimball’s crew delivered a mh 65 dolphin helicopter from air station barber’s point to santa rita, guam, to enable forward operations that extend the service’s air coverage in the region. during the patrol, the cutter’s engineering department was presented with the radm r. s. lucas plaque award for their outstanding contributions to the coast guard’s naval engineering program. members from kimball’s engineering department were cited for excellence and ingenuity during recent patrols and for completing three extensive industrial periods encompassing significant maintenance, contractual repair projects, and casualty repairs valued at over $4.4 million. “i am extremely proud of our crew’s accomplishments,” said d’arcy. “kimball continues to remain on the front lines of the coast guard’s strategic plan. our engagements in japan strengthened our existing relationships with international partners who uphold good maritime governance. kimball’s patrol re affirmed the u.s. coast guard’s commitment to facilitating a free and open indo pacific.” march 11 1934 cgc gresham's small boat crew defeated a team from the royal navy cruiser hms danae in a surfboat race over a two mile course laid out in mobile bay. gresham and the city of mobile had been hosting the british warship since march 8, 1934. 1941 congress passed the lend lease act. under the auspices of lend lease all 10 of the coast guard's famous lake class cutters were transferred to the royal navy. three were lost in action against axis forces. these 250 foot cutters had been designed by the coast guard constructor radm frederick a. hunnewell and featured a slightly raked stem and a cruiser stern. their innovative turbine electric drive power plant was developed by coast guard capt quincy b. newman. these were the first ships to have alternating current, synchronous motor for propulsion   the whole ship ran off the main turbine. the auxiliary generators were tied into the main generator electrically, after sufficient speed was attained. at that point, no steam was required to drive the turbines on the auxiliary generators. the propulsion plant achieved remarkable efficiency. 2010 cgc long island returned to its homeport of valdez, alaska, after providing patrol support to the 2010 winter olympics in vancouver. long island conducted patrols, boardings, and professional exchanges with navy cruisers, destroyers, multi agency aircraft and other coast guard units such as high endurance cutters, patrol boats, maritime safety and security teams, and the maritime security response team. the crew transited more than 2,500 miles roundtrip for the mission including underway maintenance and port calls to washington state, canada and southeast alaska. they conducted periodic law enforcement boardings to ensure vessels were in compliance of all u.s. laws and regulations to assist their canadian counterparts. the coast guard was the lead for all u.s. maritime military naval forces supporting the 2010 winter olympics and had the dual responsibility of supporting canadian maritime operations while contributing to the larger canadian government communications effort in promoting public confidence and security. vancouver, british columbia, hosted the 2010 olympics from february 12 28, 2010. march 12 1955 effective this date, all foreign and domestic ships were required to give 24 hour advance notice to the local u.s. coast guard captain of the port before entering u.s. ports. this order was designed to improve the u.s. coast guard's port security program without "material inconvenience" to shipping. 1965 this date marked the beginning of the u.s. navy’s operation market time. the operation was designed to interdict the river and coastal water supply lines of communist forces in south vietnam. the initiation of this campaign led to the navy’s request for coast guard vessels and crews to participate in river and coastal patrols during the vietnam war. 2012 coast guard commandant admiral robert papp participated in a ceremony at bollinger shipyards in lockport, louisiana, to dedicate the new fast response cutter fleet. march 13 1882 at 7 p.m., the schooner annie l. palmer bound for new york from baracoa, cuba, with a cargo of fruit, and a crew of six persons, stranded about two hundred yards off shore, one mile north of station no. 16, fourth district, new jersey. the patrolman reported it to the keeper. the life saving crew boarded the vessel by 8 o’clock and found that she had grounded at low water and could not be moved until the tide rose. they ran an anchor to keep the vessel from working farther on, and waited for the flood tide. at half past 2 the next morning, the tide rose and they succeeded in heaving the vessel off. they then took her to a safe anchorage. 1974 a 200 foot fishing vessel requested evacuation of a crewman, who had severe headaches from a head injury. the vessel was directed to proceed to the vicinity of boston light vessel where upon arrival a motor lifeboat from coast guard station point allerton evacuated the patient to coast guard base boston. a waiting ambulance transported the patient to brighton hospital. 2000 the coast guard announced the successful completion of operation new frontier. new frontier was an evaluation of the use of armed helicopters and high speed small boats to stop small, high speed smuggling vessels, referred to as "go fasts," that smuggled narcotics to the u.s. of the six go fasts detected, all six were captured. cgcs gallatin and seneca took part in the evaluations. march 14 1819 the march 23, 1819 edition of the new york evening post reported: "the artegan privateer general artigas was yesterday brought into this port. the artigas sailed from baltimore about 5 months ago, commanded by captain ford, with a complement of 60 men and 10 guns. they took no prizes, though they boarded a number of portuguese vessels but permitted them to proceed unmolested. she touched at st. domingo, there parted her cable in a gale, then proceeded on her cruise. she sprung a leak and then put into the chesapeake, the crew then mutinied and nearly the whole of them left the vessel and went on shore. she was taken possession of by the cutter monroe, march 14, 1819." 1909 at gloucester, massachusetts, a launch became disabled 3/4 mile southeast of the life saving station. surfmen manned the power lifeboat and started to assist. on the trip out a schooner was discovered anchored in a dangerous berth 1 3/4 miles southeast of the station. surfmen put a towline on the schooner, and, with her sails drawing, she was towed into a safe anchorage. 1967 cgc point ellis destroyed an enemy trawler in vietnam. 1987 coast guard helicopters rescued the crew of the sinking soviet freighter komsomolets kirgizii 220 miles off the coast of new jersey during a gale. a hc 130 was first on the scene and stood by the listing freighter until hh 3s from air station cape cod arrived and saved the freighter's entire 37 person crew. as a result of their efforts, president ronald reagan presented the coast guardsmen with awards at a ceremony at the white house. march 15 1942 the 172 foot tender cgc acacia was en route from curacao, netherlands west indies to antigua, british west indies, when she was sunk by shellfire from the german submarine u 161. the entire crew of acacia was rescued. she was the only coast guard buoy tender sunk by enemy action during the war. 1944 coast guardsmen participated in the invasions of manus in the admiralties and emirau (st. mathias islands). 1946 for the first time, coast guard aircraft supplemented the work of the coast guard patrol vessels of the international ice patrol, scouting for ice and determining the limits of the ice fields from the air. 1983 the coast guard retired its last hc 131a samaritan. 1991 f/v alaskan monarch became trapped in the ice encrusted bering sea near st. paul, alaska and was in danger of being swept onto the breakwater rocks outside st. paul harbor. cgc storis and an hh 3 from airsta kodiak, under the command of lt laura h. guth, responded. after a flight of 600 miles, including a winter crossing of the alaska peninsula and 400 miles of open water, guth and her crew rescued four of the six man crew before waves crashed over the vessel and swept the two remaining crewmen into the frigid water. they both were quickly pulled from the water safely. 1997 operation gulf shield began. this operation was a counterpart to the counter narcotics operation frontier shield. march 16 1909 at assateague beach, virginia, the schooner charley c. weaver began taking on water. one of the crew notified the keeper that the schooner was leaking. the life saving station's surfboat proceeded to the scene, 1 5/8 miles south of the station. the schooner’s crew was nearly exhausted from a long spell at the pump. surfmen shifted her cargo of oysters. they also tried to locate the leak, but were unsuccessful. they then went ashore and returned with the power lifeboat which towed the schooner safely over the bar. march 17 1863 revenue cutter agassiz helped defend the union held fort anderson at new bern, north carolina, from a confederate attack. 1902 all but one of the members of the crew of the monomoy life saving station perished during the attempted rescue of the crew of the wrecked coal barge wadena during a terrible winter gale. the dead included the keeper of the station, marshall n. eldridge, and six of his surfmen. eldridge told his crew before they departed on the rescue that: "we must go, there is a distress flag in the rigging." the crew of five from the barge also perished. the sole survivor, seth l. ellis, was the number one surfman of the monomoy station. he was awarded the gold lifesaving medal as was the man who rescued him, captain elmer mayo of the barge fitzpatrick. 1941 cgc cayuga left boston with the south greenland survey expedition on board to locate airfields, seaplane bases, radio and meteorological stations, and aids to navigation in greenland. this was the beginning of the coast guard's preeminent role in greenland during world war ii. 1962 after requesting the evacuation of a seriously injured crewman, the russian merchant vessel dbitelny transferred the patient to the coast guard loran station on st. paul island in the bering sea. meanwhile, a coast guard aircraft flew a u.s. navy doctor and a hospital corpsman there to perform an emergency operation. afterwards, the injured man was flown to elmendorf air force base, where he was admitted to the u.s. air force hospital. 1982 navy secretary john lehman testified before congress on behalf of the coast guard. he characterized the relationship between the navy and the coast guard as being "close and warm." he also praised the new navgard board, created in november 1980, to formalize the relationship between the two services. 2015 following a 61 day deployment on the hudson river, cgc thunder bay returned to its homeport of rockland, maine after conducting icebreaking operations in support of operation reliable energy for northeast winters. thunder bay deployed mid january 2015 to coordinate daily ice breaking operations with cgcs sturgeon bay, willow, elm, and wire on the hudson river. in order to keep the channel open to commercial shipping traffic, thunder bay conducted operations seven days a week, with only occasional days off. the cutter navigated more than 100 river miles daily and by the end of the season thunder bay had sailed nearly 3000 nautical miles, conducted 554 hours of icebreaking, and made 70 vessel and facility break outs, requiring them to operate an additional 13 days beyond their original assignment. march 18 1909 stations holly beach and hereford inlet, new jersey: the schooner c.b. parted its chain while weighing anchor. she set a distress signal which was discovered by the lookouts at both stations. the surfboats proceeded to the scene and surfmen swept for the chain and assisted in securing it on board. 1943 cgc ingham rescued all hands from the torpedoed ss matthew luckenbach. 1967 the 378 foot high endurance cutter hamilton, first in her class, was commissioned. this was the first class of major vessels in the u.s. government's inventory that were powered by jet turbines. 1991 cgc cape hatteras (wpb 95305) was decommissione. she was the last 95 foot patrol boat in the coast guard. she was then transferred to mexico. 1996 the single hulled barge san gabriel buckled and split open in rough seas, rupturing two tanks and spilling 210,000 gallons of oil in the houston ship channel near galveston, texas. coast guard marine safety unit (msu) galveston established a joint command structure with local agencies and private contractors to isolate and then clean up the spill. personnel from the gulf strike team, mso houston, mso new orleans, aviation training center mobile, and the 8th district supplemented msu galveston. the majority of the spill was cleaned up in three days. 2000 cgc thetis seized f/v viviana ii which was grossly overloaded with 234 ecuadorean migrants. the vessel and the migrants were turned over to the ecuadorean navy. 2007 the coast guard made the largest cocaine seizure in its history to date when cgcs hamilton and sherman seized 42,845 pound of cocaine aboard the panamanian flagged m/v gatun off the coast of panama. gatun was first located by a hc 130 on march 17. march 19 1943 british steamer svend foyne was a victim of an iceberg collision off the southern tip of greenland. one hundred forty five persons were rescued by the coast guard and others. the international ice patrol was suspended during this period (1942 1945) of world war ii. 1945 the first all coast guard hunter killer group ever established during the war searched for a reported german u boat near sable island. the group was made up of the coast guard manned destroyer escorts uss lowe, menges, mosley, and pride, and was under the overall command of cdr r. h. french, uscg. he flew his pennant from pride. off sable island the warships located, attacked, and sank the u 866 with the loss of all hands. interestingly, the menges had been a victim of a german acoustic torpedo during escort of convoy operations in the mediterranean in 1944. the torpedo had detonated directly under her stern, causing major damage and casualties, but she remained afloat. she was later towed to port and the stern of another destroyer escort, one that had been damaged well forward, was welded onto the menges. she then returned to action. 1963 the famous cutter bear sank off the coast of nova scotia on this date while under tow from halifax to philadelphia were she as slated to be "put out to pasture" as a floating museum restaurant. the two men who were aboard the old cutter were rescued after a coast guard aircraft dropped a raft to the accompanying tug. 1989 m/v aoyagi maru ran aground on a reef in lost harbor, alaska. she was declared a total loss after being gutted by fire when 1,200 pounds of explosives were ignited to burn off the 100,000 gallons of fuel left aboard and her cargo of 74,000 pounds of rotting cod. march 20 1929 the most notable incident from which international complications resulted during the prohibition era was that of the schooner i’m alone of nova scotia, a vessel built for the rum trade. she had successfully plied this trade for over four years when she appeared off the texas coast and was picketed by the cutter wolcott in the spring of 1929. boatswain frank paul marked her at 10.8 miles from shore and signaled her to heave to. several blanks were fired and this brought the vessel to a stop. captain randall of the schooner allowed the boatswain on board, there was a discussion, but when he returned, i’m alone continued on her way. the chase resumed and shots were fired into her rigging. on the second morning, some two hundred miles south of the u.s., the cutter dexter came up to assist and proceeded to fire into the runner, sinking the vessel. one of her crew was drowned. repercussions were heard immediately from canada, britain, and france, as the drowned seaman was french. the initial complaint was that of the position of the schooner at the point of contact. her captain maintained she was only a 7 knot vessel and she was anchored about 15 miles out in safe waters. the second infraction was that the pursuit was not a continuous one; the intervention of dexter muddied this question. since the speed of the suspect vessel is a consideration in determining how far out it might be seized, it should be noted that i’m alone managed to stay ahead of wolcott, a nearly new cutter capable of at least 11 knots, for over 24 hours. as i’m alone was sunk, the captain’s statement that her engines were in need of repair also could not be proven. in any case, the international round of diplomatic niceties did not cease until 1935 when the united states backed off and compensation was paid to the crew of the schooner. 1941 sabotage was discovered on an italian vessel at wilmington, north carolina. the coast guard investigated all italian and german vessels in american ports and took into "protective custody" 28 italian vessels, two german and 35 danish vessels. coast guard boarding teams discovered that their crews had damaged 27 of the italian ships and one of the german ships. the coast guard also took into custody a total of 850 italian and 63 german officers and crew. two months later these vessels were requisitioned for service with the united states by order of congress for the latin american trade. march 21 1791 hopley yeaton of new hampshire was commissioned as "master of a cutter in the service of the united states for the protection of the revenue." he is often listed as the first commissioned seagoing officer of the united states. his commission was signed by george washington and attested to by thomas jefferson. however, seven other commissions for officers of the revenue cutter service were signed on the same date. yeaton’s claim to being first is tied to the fact that he is at the top of the list of officers. he commanded the revenue cutter scammel, stationed in portsmouth, new hampshire and the list is based on the cutters’ homeports from north to south. thus, yeaton was first on the list, having command of the cutter in the northernmost port. 1916 on this date third lieutenant elmer stone, uscg became the first coast guard officer ordered to flight training. he reported on april 1, 1916 to pensacola naval aviation training school. 2013 cgc midgett, returned to its homeport of seattle, washington, after its 75 day counter narcotics patrol in the eastern pacific ocean. while on patrol in the eastern pacific in late february, the crew successfully interdicted a 30 foot fishing vessel that was carrying 1,100 pounds of cocaine hidden inside the vessel. midgett’s boarding team confiscated the drugs and detained the suspected smugglers. midgett’s crew also visited bahia malaga, colombia, for a partnership exercise with the colombian navy. the ship hosted the colombian navy's chief of staff, pacific operations commander, and several other senior personnel for a tour of the ship. after departing seattle in early january 2013, midgett and its 170 member crew first underwent a three week drill in san diego that included more than 300 training exercises in navigation, medical response, damage control, engineering, combat systems, seamanship, and anti terrorism force protection. the crew's successful performance earned them several battle readiness awards as well as certification by shipboard training teams. 2014 cgc polar star returned to its homeport of seattle, washington, following a 108 day deployment in support of operation deep freeze 2014. polar star originally departed seattle on december 3, 2013 and made port calls in honolulu, sydney, australia, mcmurdo station, antarctica, and tahiti, french polynesia. having completed a reactivation that began four years ago, this deployment marked the first time in six years that a u.s. icebreaker provided support to operation deep freeze. in january 2014, polar star departed sydney to assist in the rescue effort of two ships, the russian vessel akademik shokalsiky and the chinese vessel xue lon. both of these vessels were beset in 15 feet of sea ice near commonwealth bay, antarctica. while polar star was en route to assist, the shifting ice conditions allowed the two ships to break free from the ice prior to the coast guard icebreaker's arrival. in antarctica, polar star broke a navigable shipping lane through 12 miles of ice in mcmurdo sound, encountering ice up to 10 feet in thickness. the shipping channel was used by the tanker ship maersk peary to deliver approximately three and a half million gallons of fuel to mcmurdo. the channel was also used by the cargo ship maersk illinois to deliver more than 500 containers of supplies to operate mcmurdo and south pole stations for the next 12 months. the crew of the polar star also delivered and deployed nearly one mile of fuel hose to marble point, an air station 20 miles west of mcmurdo. in february 2014, prior to departing antarctica, polar star hosted coast guard vadm peter neffenger, then deputy commandant for operations, who visited antarctica to observe the operations of the u.s. antarctic program. march 22 1794 congress declared that no american citizen may carry slaves from the united states to another nation or between foreign nations. 1917 third lieutenant elmer stone, uscg, graduated from pensacola naval aviation training school, thereby becoming the service's first aviator. third lieutenant stone was designated as naval aviator #38 and later coast guard aviator #1. 1919 the acting secretary of the treasury advised that light keepers and the officers and crews of vessels were not entitled to the benefits of the public health service free of charge after retirement. 1969 enc morris s. beeson, on cgc point orient, was killed in action during a boarding in vietnam. 2003 three iraqi sailors were captured in the northern persian gulf, the first enemy prisoners of war (epows) taken by coast guard forces deployed in support of operation iraqi freedom. the 24 member crew of cgc adak plucked the iraqi sailors from the sea after they had jumped overboard when their patrol boat was destroyed by coalition forces. the epows were taken aboard adak and later transferred to an undisclosed location. march 23 1974 the 40 foot sailing vessel lorisel ii reported she was aground one mile southeast of north rock, bahamas, off the eastern shore of bimini. an hu 16 aircraft and cgc cape shoalwater were dispatched to assist. the aircraft located the vessel and a local island boat was diverted to remove two women and a child from lorisel ii. cape shoalwater re floated the vessel, returned the passengers, and the lorisel ii got underway with no apparent damage. 2001 two coast guardsmen, bm2 scott chism and sn christopher ferreby, gave their lives in the line of duty when their small boat cg 214341 capsized on lake ontario. their loss led to important changes in the small boat community's training, equipment, and operations. 2008 two coast guard helicopters worked with the f/v alaska warrior to save 42 of 47 crewmen from the sinking f/v alaska ranger in an easter sunday blizzard amidst 20 foot waves. there was flooding in aft steerage of ranger and the doors would not close. the ship’s shell was rusty and flat bottomed, built for gulf of mexico. it was located 120 miles west of dutch harbor in the bering sea. cgc munro's hh 65 dolphin pulled five fishermen from the water, three of whom had to be cut free from the netting and ropes. the hh 60 jayhawk from st. paul station in the pribiloff islands lifted 15 sailors out of the sea and onto the sister ship, f/v alaska warrior. warrior also saved 22 lives on its own. the crew of munro received the coast guard unit commendation and aviators lt brian j. mclaughlin, lt timothy l. schmitz, lt steven m. bonn, lt greg s. gedemer, petty officer 2nd class o'brien hollow, petty officer 2nd class robert r. debolt, and petty officer 2nd class alfred v. musgrave received air medals. 2012 the 9th coast guard district concluded operation taconite, its annual ice breaking operation in the western great lakes, thereby officially bringing the 2011 2012 icebreaking season to a close. under control of coast guard sector sault ste. marie, michigan, operation taconite was carried out in lake superior, the st. mary’s river, the straits of mackinac, and northern lake huron. operation taconite began december 21, 2011. working together during this year's ice breaking season were crews aboard u.s. coast guard cutters mackinaw, alder, hollyhock, mobile bay, neah bay, katmai bay, biscayne bay, and thunder bay, the latter being temporarily assigned to the great lakes from its homeport of rockland, maine. together these eight cutters spent 1,668 hours breaking ice and assisted more than 60 vessels. march 24 1909 muskeget, massachusetts: the schooner vigilant parted moorings and stranded one mile south of the station. the owner applied to the keeper at 10:30 p.m. for assistance. surfmen proceeded to the scene, carried out an anchor and line, and hove the schooner into deep water. during the storm the owner was sheltered and supplied with meals at the station for two days. but for the security afforded by an additional anchor and cable loaned by the crew, vigilant would have stranded a second time. 1920 the coast guard established its first air station on this date at morehead city, north carolina. the station was closed on july 1, 1921 due to a lack of funding. 1989 the tanker exxon valdez grounded on a reef in prince william sound, alaska, spilling 10.1 million gallons of crude oil. this was the worst oil spill in u.s. history to date. coast guard units responded and prevented the entire cargo from spilling, cleaned up the oil which did spill, and conducted an investigation into the causes of the accident. the spill provided the impetus for the passage of the oil pollution act of 1990, which greatly increased the coast guard's role in protecting the nation against spills. march 25 1911 the treasury department directed the keepers of life saving stations to keep a lookout through the beach patrol for stray buoys washed ashore, to secure such buoys when it could be done, and to report their discovery or action to the nearest representative of the lighthouse service. march 26 1938 the us coast guard motor lifeboat triumph departed from the point adams station, located near hammond, oregon at the mouth of the columbia river. it proceeded out to the bar and stood by while several crab boats crossed in. the tug tyee with a barge load of logs in tow was attempting to cross out. tyee passed too close to the life buoy and the barge drifted into the outer break on clatsop spit. triumph, while attempting to assist tyee, lost surfman richard o. bracken overboard in the breakers of clatsop spit. bracken would have been drowned had it not been for the skill of bn (l) john f. mccormick, officer in charge of triumph, and the cooperation of the crew, namely cmomm (l) albert l. olsen and surfman harold w. lawrence. in making the rescue, triumph was carried broadside on the face of a wave a distance of approximately 50 yards. the masts had been completely submerged, then the boat righted itself. bracken had been washed overboard by the force of the sea. mccormick, acting with exceptional skill, maneuvered triumph against the strong current, into the breakers and picked up the drowning man. olsen remained in the engine room during all these maneuvers, stayed at the controls under perilous conditions, and rendered commendable service. mccormick was awarded a gold life saving medal for this rescue while olsen and lawrence were awarded silver lifesaving medals. 1945 coast guardsmen participated in the landings at geruma shima, hokaji shima, and takashiki in the ryukyu islands. 1946 the international ice patrol resumed after being suspended during world war ii. 1963 a coast guard hh 52 based from air station salem, massachusetts, landed in the water off fort weatherall, newport, rhode island to rescue a man overboard from the radar picket ship uss protector. "using the new platform, the crew of the hh 52a retrieved the man, helpless and incoherent, from 39 [degree] f waters. he was flown to the naval hospital, quonset point without incident. this is the first rescue fully exploiting the unique capabilities of the new hh 52a helicopter." march 27 1943 cg 85006 (ex catamount) exploded off ambrose light while on coastal picket patrol duty. of a total of ten crew members on board, four drowned while five were reported missing. only the commanding officer, cbm garfield l. beal, uscg, escaped. he was picked up six hours later by a passing merchant ship. the cause of the explosion was never ascertained. 1964 an earthquake which hit 9.2 on the richter scale and an ensuing tsunami struck alaska, killing 125 people and causing $311 million in property damage. coast guard units responded in what was called "operation helping hand." within two hours of the earthquake, which began at 1732 local time, cgcs storis, minnetonka, and sorrel were ordered to prince william sound; bittersweet to seward; and sedge to valdez. "the following morning, three fixed wing aircraft from air detachment kodiak surveyed the damage while helicopters evacuated those in need. by march 31, most of the direct assistance had been rendered and the task of repair and clean up began. approximately 360 civilians were evacuated from villages and isolated areas in kodiak island and prince william sound. storis was diverted to cook inlet for icebreaking duties in the port of anchorage until 18 april." [kenneth arbogast, et al, the u.s. coast guard in kodiak, alaska, p. 15.] a number of the coast guard stations in the area sustained damage, some of it severe. the only coast guard fatality occurred when the tsunami struck the light station at cape st. elias and one crewman, en3 frank o. reed, was swept out to sea and perished. 2003 during operation iraqi freedom cgc wrangell, homeported in portland, maine, along with a coast guard hh 65 dolphin helicopter from air station honolulu, escorted the first waterborne humanitarian aid shipment into the port of umm qasr without incident, while members of coast guard port security unit 311, from san pedro, california, assisted other coalition forces protecting the harbor. the shipment, consisting of vital aid donated by numerous countries, was carried aboard the british ship rfa sir galahad. march 28 1963 three new 44 foot motor lifeboats departed the coast guard yard for their designated stations. two were assigned to stations in the third coast guard district, sandy hook lifeboat station and eatons neck lifeboat station, while the third was assigned to chatham lifeboat station in the first coast guard district. 1968 the secretary of transportation released his report on recreational boat safety. the report contained a detailed explanation of the proposed legislation and the programs the department intended to undertake. 1993 a colonial pipeline company pipe ruptured, spilling 400,000 gallons of diesel fuel into the sugarland run creek in herndon, virginia. the epa requested the assistance from the national strike force. other units mobilized for the clean up operation included a helicopter from airsta cape may, an air eye hu 25 from airsta cape cod, personnel from mso baltimore, cgc capstan, and reservists from the region. the strike team used the new desmi 250 skimmer and pump to control the spill. coast guardsmen assisted with the cleanup and safety operations as well as provided technical assistance. by april 2, colonial pipeline, who claimed responsibility for the spill, had more than 250 contract personnel handling cleanup operations. the strike teams stayed on site to monitor the cleanup. the last strike team member left the spill site on april 10. march 29 1867 the lighthouse at timbalier bay was destroyed in a hurricane. the brick tower "was leveled to the ground and covered with from three to six feet of water." the lighthouse board commended the keepers, "who faithfully performed their duty, barely escaping with their lives, and living for some days in an iron can buoy . . ." 1898 lieutenants david jarvis and ellsworth p. bertholf and surgeon dr. samuel j. call of the revenue cutter bear reached point barrow, alaska, after a 2,000 mile "mush" from nunivak island that first started on december 17, 1897, driving reindeer as food for 97 starving whalers caught in the arctic ice. this overland rescue was heralded by the press and at the request of president william mckinley, congress issued special gold medals in their honor. 1938 by an executive order of this date, president franklin roosevelt enlarged substantially the number of "personnel in the lighthouse service who are subject to the principle of the civil service," which allowed advancement in the service based solely on individual merit. 1984 coast guard airsta cape may and group cape may responded to severe flooding in southern new jersey and delaware after a late winter storm struck the area on march 29, 1984. coast guardsmen evacuated 149 civilians from cape may and atlantic city. 1985 the last lightship in service with the coast guard, cgc nantucket i, was decommissioned, thus ending 164 years of continuous lightship service by the u.s. government. nantucket i was the last of the u.s. lightships and the last of the nantucket shoals lightships that watched over that specific area since june of 1854. launched as wlv 612 in 1950 at baltimore, the ship also stood watch as the light vessel for san francisco and blunts reef in california, at portland, oregon, and finally at nantucket shoals. nantucket i also spent time in service as a "less than speedy" law enforcement vessel off florida. 2005 the keel was laid for the first of the new 418 foot national security cutters, cgc bertholf (wmsl 750), named for commodore ellsworth bertholf, former commandant of the u.s. coast guard. bertholf was constructed at northrop grumman ship systems in pascagoula, mississippi. the cutter was christened on november 11, 2006 after being launched on september 29, 2006. the coast guard commissioned bertholf on august 4, 2008. march 30 1867 the united states signed the alaska purchase treaty with russia. 1942 by presidential proclamation, the coast guard was designated as a service of the navy to be administered by the commandant of coast guard under the direction of the secretary of the navy, similar to the administration of the marine corps. march 31 1932 the united states signed a whaling convention at geneva with 21 other countries. 1934 at high noon on march 15, 1934, cgc tuscarora fired a shot from one of its batteries, a shot that started the fifth international st. petersburg to havana racing classic. tuscarora served as the official coast guard escort for the race. 1948 the tenth district, with headquarters at san juan, puerto rico and comprising of the panama canal zone, all of the island possessions of the united states pertaining to puerto rico and the virgin islands, and all united states reservations in the islands of the west indies and on the north coast of south america, was abolished, and its functions, responsibilities, and facilities were transferred to and combined with the seventh district, with headquarters at miami, florida. 1995 coast guard communication area master station atlantic sent a final message by morse code and then signed off, officially ending more than 100 years of telegraph communication. 2008 the u.s. coast guard took delivery of its first response boat medium (rb m) from marinette marine corporation. following completion of underway trials on march 17, 2008 near tacoma, washington, rb m 45601 was trailered cross country for delivery in portsmouth, virginia. after one week of familiarization for the coast guard transition team (responsible for facilitating the introduction of the planned 180 boats to the fleet) station little creek, virginia took delivery of rb m 45601 on april 7, 2008. the rb m acquisition was initiated to replace the aging 41’ utility boats and other non standard boats. the rb m is a self righting, 45 foot all aluminum boat with twin diesel engines and water jet propulsion. april 1 1813 at 1100 in the morning, while at anchor in charleston harbor, the powder room of the cutter gallatin exploded, blowing off the cutter’s stern and quarterdeck. the explosion and subsequent fire killed three crewmembers instantly and seriously wounded five more. the cutter sank at its anchorage. a charleston newspaper reported, "between the hours of ten and eleven yesterday forenoon, a most awful explosion took place in this harbor, on board the revenue schooner gallatin, commanded by capt. john. h. silliman. . .there were about 35 persons in all on board; of this number about 10 were on the quarter deck and in the cabin; part of them employed in cleaning the arms. thus situated, the dreadful explosion took place, and in one instant the whole quarter deck with all of those upon it, were hurled into the air. some of the bodies were thrown nearly as high as the mast head of the vessel; others were driven through the cabin and lodged upon the main deck. the whole stern of the vessel was torn down to a level with the water." those who were killed were gunner's mate thomas feld, george segur, and one unidentified seaman. the reported wounded were william pritchard (gunner), john mccoan, benjamin chart, george craft, and william hunter (boy). 1897 under an executive order dated may 6, 1896, federal civil service rules were applied to the life saving service. 1916 the official birthday of coast guard aviation. on this date, third lieutenant elmer f. stone reported to pensacola naval air station for flight training. he was the coast guard's first aviator. 1945 the invasion of okinawa in the ryukyu islands commenced. in all, seven coast guard manned transports, 29 lsts, the cutters bibb and woodbine, and 12 coast guard manned lci(l)s participated in the bloodiest invasion ever undertaken by the united states. over 13,000 americans were killed and another 36,000 were wounded during the conquest of this japanese possession. 1946 a tsunami swept away the light station at scotch cap, alaska, killing the station's entire five man crew. they were: bmc anthony l. petit, momm 2/c leonard pickering, f 1/c jack colvin, sn 1/c dewey dykstra, and sn 1/c paul james ness. 1967 the coast guard ended its 177 year association with the treasury department when it transferred to the newly created department of transportation (dot). dot was created when president lyndon johnson signed executive order 167 81. the coast guard was the largest agency in the new department. 1969 the coast guard established an ocean engineering division within the office of engineering. the new division was formed to improve engineering support for the marine sciences and short range aids to navigation missions. 1977 cgc dauntless operating along with cgc cape fox in the area of cay lobos bahamas boarded f/v big champ. the boarding party discovered 5,000 lbs. of marijuana. the vessel and marijuana were seized and the four pob were arrested. 1978 cgc acushnet changed designation from wago to wmec "to allow for the increased multi mission utilization of the vessel." acushnet's primary mission continued to be marine science activities (msa) "due to its special capabilities for environmental buoy deployment." 1984 cgc gallatin made the largest maritime cocaine seizure to date when it boarded and seized the 33 foot sailboat chinook and her crew of two. a boarding team discovered 1,800 pounds of cocaine stashed aboard the sailboat. april 2 1924 congress appropriated $13,000,000 for ten air stations and equipment. congress first authorized the stations on august 29, 1916, but did not provide for sufficient funding until this date. 1982 the first aircraft of the newest addition to the coast guard's air fleet, the hu 25a guardian, was dedicated and christened at aviation training center mobile. 1983 the state department forwarded a request for assistance from the united arab emirates to help prepare for an oil spill cleanup in the persian gulf. the spill occurred after combat operations during the iran iraq war had left many oil wells burning and leaking oil. four coast guard pollution experts responded to the request. april 3 1882 the schooner morris was unable to enter muskegon, michigan, between the piers and was aided by the lookout of station no. 8, eleventh district. he used a heaving stick and throwing a line to get a hawser to the vessel. the same service was rendered later in the day by two of the station men to the schooner willis smith of south haven. 1968 coast guard exchange pilots arrive in south vietnam to fly combat sar missions with the air force. 2014 cgc mackinaw, home ported in cheboygan, michigan, conducted an escort on lake superior near whitefish point. mackinaw's crew worked together with the crew of canadian coast guard ship pierre radisson, home ported in quebec city, as part of an ongoing bi national agreement between the u.s. and canada, to break sheet ice that was nearly 40 inches thick. april 4 1912 president william howard taft recommended abolishing the revenue cutter service. instead of elimination though, his actions led to the creation of the coast guard by consolidating the revenue cutter service and the life saving service on january 28, 1915. 1933 the navy airship uss akron crashed near the barnegat lightship. the ensuing search and rescue efforts employed over 20 coast guard vessels and aircraft. 1972 bmc (later bmcm) thomas d. mcadams became the first coast guardsmen to receive the new coxswain insignia. then commandant adm chester bender presented the insignia to chief mcadams at a ceremony at the coast guard's small boat school in ilwaco, washington, where mcadams was the oic. 1975 four coast guard helicopters saved 36 crewmen from the 557 foot tanker spartan lady after the oil laden vessel broke up in heavy seas 165 miles south east of new york. two of the helicopters were from airsta brooklyn and two were from airsta cape cod. 1977 the coast guard designated its first female coast guard aviator, janna lambine. she was coast guard aviator #1812. april 5 1941 president franklin roosevelt signed the official order to transfer all 10 coast guard lake class cutters of the coast guard to the royal navy under lend lease. 1950 the coast guard announced that former enlisted women of the coast guard reserve could apply for enlistment in the "women’s volunteer reserve." enlistments were to be for a three year period with written agreement to serve on active duty in time of war or national emergency. 1967 the commander of all soviet fishing vessels in the far east, evgeniy gromov, invited representatives from the coast guard and the bureau of commercial fisheries to meet aboard the soviet vessel olivtorka off kodiak, alaska. the purpose of the meeting was to improve understanding in the implementation of the recent u.s. soviet 12 mile fisheries agreement that went into effect on march 15, 1967. april 6 1894 the president authorized the revenue cutter service to enforce the paris award, which was concerned with the preservation of fur seals in alaska. 1917 the united states declared war on germany and joined the allied powers in world war i. the coast guard, which at that time consisted of 15 cruising cutters, 200 commissioned officers, and 5,000 warrant officers and enlisted men, became part of the u. s. navy by executive order. the cutters immediately reported to their assigned naval districts for duty. cutters provided armed parties to seize german ships that had been interned in u.s. ports. coast guard aviators were assigned to naval air stations in this country and abroad. one coast guardsman, first lieutenant (eng.) charles e. sugden, uscg, commanded the naval air station at ile tudy, france, and was later awarded the french chevalier of the legion of honor. another officer, second lieutenant (eng.) philip b. eaton, uscg, commanded chatham naval air station and he piloted one of two hs 1 seaplanes that attempted to bomb and machine gun a surfaced u boat off the coast of new england after the u boat had shelled a tug and barges four miles off cape cod. eaton's bombs failed to explode, however, and the u boat escaped. one cutter, cgc tampa, was lost in action with all hands while on convoy duty in british waters. 1949 a u.s. coast guard h03s 1 helicopter completed the longest unescorted helicopter ferry flight on record. the trip from elizabeth city, north carolina to port angeles, washington via san diego, a distance of 3,750 miles, took 10 1/2 days to complete and involved a total flight time of 57.6 hours. april 7 1866 the first commandant of the u.s. coast guard, ellsworth p. bertholf, was born in new york city. he entered the revenue cutter service as a cadet on september 14, 1885 and graduated from the revenue cutter school of instruction with the class of 1887. 1938 congress passed hr 8982, an amendment to the alien fishing act (50 stat. 639). the amendment clarified the earlier laws on salmon fishing in alaskan waters by limiting commercial salmon fishing in the vicinity of bristol bay, alaska, to u.s. citizens only. the act was enforced by the coast guard. 1942 a coast guard aircraft directed a royal navy trawler to a life boat with 24 survivors off the coast of north carolina. 1952 the breakup of ice in the missouri river and its tributaries at bismarck, north dakota, and above, and on the big sioux, created the worst flooding conditions in that area in thirty years. u.s. coast guard personnel rendered assistance, utilizing small boats, mobile radio stations, automotive equipment, helicopters, and fixed wing aircraft. the coast guard evacuated stranded persons, transported critical relief supplies, evacuated livestock from low ground, transported personnel engaged in levee construction, and generally assisted the red cross, local, state, civil, and military authorities. april 8 1902 president theodore roosevelt, jr., and his party of 40 guests boarded usrc onondaga in charleston harbor. the cutter, which had been dressed in "rainbow fashion," extended to the president "all honors as prescribed by the regulations, revenue cutter service." the cutter and its crew of transported them to fort sumter and back. the cutter expended "42 6 pdr saluting charges" by firing two separate 21 gun salutes. 1909 race point, massachusetts: the sloop keewaydin iv’s mast was carried away and the sloop anchored 2 miles sw of station, but dragged ashore. station crew was on the beach when she struck and the keeper rowed out surf and threw a heaving line on board. one of the two men was rescued by this means. the other jumped overboard and was pulled ashore by the keeper. the sloop drifted up on the beach and became a total wreck. 1913 usrc seneca, designed from the keel up as the nation's first "derelict destroyer," inaugurated the service’s participation in the international ice patrol. 1978 cgc katmai bay was launched at tacoma boatbuilding company, inc., in tacoma, washington. katmai bay was the first cutter in the coast guard's new class of icebreaking harbor tugs. the cutter was sponsored by ms. jeanmarie griffin. 2023cgc polar star returned to seattle 8 april 2023 following a 144 day deployment to antarctica. the deployment marks the ship's 26th journey to antarctica as part of operation deep freeze, an annual joint military service mission to resupply the united states antarctic stations. polar star departed seattle on 14 november 2022, traveling more than 25,000 miles through the north pacific, south pacific, indian, southern, and south atlantic oceans. while en route, the crew made two stops in australia. after arriving in antarctica, the cutter broke a 15.3 mile channel through fast ice to create a route for cargo vessels to reach mcmurdo station. the cutter then departed the antarctic region on march 2. on the return journey, the ship crossed the drake passage, rounded cape horn, and stopped in chile. at the stop in valparaiso, chile the polar star's crew conducted exchanges with the chilean navy and first naval zone members. “the completion of this mission is a testament to our crew’s hard work, sacrifice, and dedication,” said capt keith ropella, polar star’s commanding officer. april 9 1859 samuel clemens, who later gained fame as a writer under the pseudonym mark twain, was issued a steamboat pilot's certificate. 1867 the senate ratified a treaty to purchase alaska from russia. the cutter lincoln was dispatched with lt george w. moore, usrm, as the first u.s. agent in the territory. 1941 the united states and denmark signed an "agreement relating to the defense of greenland." the coast guard, in part because of its experience in the arctic environment, was the principal service used to carry out the agreement. the first action seen by u.s. forces in world war ii was the seizure of a weather station and a pro german vessel in greenland waters by cgc northland just before the u.s. officially entered the war. 1974 the oil tanker elias docked at the atlantic richfield terminal in fort mifflin, pennsylvania, caught fire. cg 40412 responded and was first on scene and began sar for any crew who jumped overboard. cg 40412 crewman kim lee remembered: "the response for our crew on 40412 was looking for personnel off the ship elias that might be in the water. we were first on scene and i called back to base giving the update. the request by us was to shut the delaware river down to all traffic due to crude oil on fire extending completely across the delaware river. captain of the port (capt. goodwin) shut the river down which stopped all vessels traffic in the area. a while had passed and we then received a distress call from the coast guard cutter cleat and we quickly responded toward the cleat. the crewmen from the cleat were in the water and the cleat was on fire and drifting into the elias which was totally involved in fire. my crew (petty officer joe friel and allen mowbray) began pulling the crew out of the river. we then attached a tow line on the burning cleat and began towing it toward the middle of the channel. at one point while towing the cleat our engines on the 40412 stopped because of the ships (elias) mooring lines in our props. my crew quickly pulled up the mooring lines and cut them apart with a hand ax. freeing one engine we were able to pull the cleat to safety and put out the fires on the cleat. all members of the cleat crew were accounted for but one engine men who we found still down in the engine room trying to start the cleat's main.” april 10 1938 the coast guard established a "flood relief force" to assist the red cross and the victims of flooding of the alabama and tombigbee rivers. the "force" consisted of 26 motorboats, one communication truck, two portable radio sets, one grumman jf 2 amphibian aircraft, and 60 enlisted men, all under the command of lcdr roy raney and based at selma, alabama. on april 10 and 11, the floor relief force was "engaged in removing persons from dangerous positions and in transporting government and red cross officials throughout the flood area." 2014 cgc seneca returned to its homeport in boston after completing a 53 day deployment which included two weeks of training at joint expeditionary base little creek, virginia, and five weeks of fisheries patrols off the coasts of new jersey, virginia, and north carolina. seneca patrolled the mid atlantic ocean in support of the coast guard fifth district's operation ocean hunter. they boarded 26 fishing vessels from march 2 until april 5. during the patrol, seneca ensured the commercial fishing fleet was in compliance with all federal fisheries regulations and issued two fisheries violations. in addition to law enforcement, seneca conducted a workup with the coast guard maritime security response team and other deployable specialized forces units. using seneca's flight deck, msrt members completed 76 vertical insertions and 44 hoists. they also completed 210 climbs where they boarded the cutter from a tactical boat via a caving ladder. seneca also completed several helicopter in flight refuels and vertical replenishments with coast guard air station elizabeth city, north carolina. 2015 cgc seneca returned to its homeport in boston after a 64 day deployment. the crew of seneca completed tailored ships training availability (tsta), served as a primary search and rescue response asset along the eastern seaboard, and conducted fisheries enforcement boardings from south carolina to maine. during the patrol, the crew responded to the motor vessel grey shark, approximately 175 nautical miles off the coast of cape may, new jersey which was reported adrift and on fire. seneca arrived on scene and escorted the vessel until the eileen mcallister took the vessel in tow to new york. the cutter’s crew also participated in an international, multi agency search and rescue exercise in rhode island sound, conducting more than 45 small boat and helicopter hoist evolutions with partners from five coast guard units, the new york air national guard, and canadian forces. for the final mission of the patrol, seneca hosted maine marine patrol officers for a 24 hour fisheries enforcement operation, targeting lobster fishing boats off the coast of rockland, maine. april 11 1917 with the outbreak of world war i president woodrow wilson issued an executive order transferring 30 lighthouse tenders to the war department. all were subsequently assigned to the navy department and 15 lighthouse tenders, four lightships, and 21 light stations also were transferred to the navy department. one more tender was transferred on january 31, 1918 making a total of 50 vessels and 1,132 persons. the war department used those assigned in laying submarine defense nets during the war and in removing these defenses after the war. other duties performed by these vessels were placing practice targets, buoys to mark wrecks of torpedoed vessels, and other marks for military purposes, as well as being employed on patrols and special duty assignments. 1938 coast guard patrol boat cg 240, part of the coast guard's flood relief force established to assist flood victims in alabama, evacuated 102 persons from the vicinity of hohn miller's plantation, below camden, alabama. 1952 immediately following the crash of a commercial overseas transport aircraft off the san juan harbor, coast guard forces coordinated with those of the u.s. air force and u.s. navy to rescue 17 of the 69 persons on board. 1971 coast guard cutters rush and morgenthau, assigned to coast guard squadron three in vietnam, destroy an enemy trawler. 2003 cgc wrangell and the uss firebolt, with embarked coast guard law enforcement detachment 406, escorted the first commercially transported humanitarian aid shipment into the iraqi port of umm qasr. the motor vessel manar, owned by manar marine services of the united arab emirates, delivered almost 700 tons of humanitarian aid including food, water, first aid, and transport vehicles. this aid shipment was supplied and coordinated by the uae red crescent society. this was the fourth aid shipment to arrive in umm qasr after the launch of operation iraqi freedom. april 12 1808 subsistence for army officers was fixed at 20 cents per ration and later that year it was applied to all officers of the revenue cutters. 1843 captain alexander v. fraser, revenue cutter service, was appointed chief of the newly created revenue marine bureau of treasury. he therefore became, in effect, the service's first "commandant". 1861 the cutter harriet lane fired the first shot from a naval vessel in the civil war. the cutter fired across the bow of the merchant vessel nashville when the latter attempted to enter charleston harbor without displaying the national flag. 1900 an act of congress (31 stat. l., 77, 80) extended the jurisdiction of the lighthouse service to the noncontiguous territory of puerto rico and adjacent american waters. 1902 congress authorized the retirement of officers at 3/4 pay for incapacity. congress also made all promotions subject to examinations (mental and physical). additionally, commissioned officers of the revenue cutter service were granted the same pay and allowances "except forage" as officers of corresponding rank in the army, including longevity pay. 1979 ltjg beverly kelley assumed command of cgc cape newagen, thereby becoming the first woman to command a u.s. warship. 1997 the coast guard commissioned cgc ida lewis (wlm 551) on this date. the tender was assigned to newport, rhode island. ida lewis was the lead ship of 14 new 175 foot keeper class coastal buoy tenders built by marinette marine of marinette, wisconsin for the service. they were the first coast guard cutters equipped with z drive propulsion units and were named after famous lighthouse keepers. 2013 the u.s. coast guard and makah tribal council signed a memorandum of agreement to reaffirm their integral partnership, cooperation, and coordination in pollution prevention and response. the focus of the moa was to enhance consultation, improve the leveraging of resources within respective authorities as applicable, and to improve collective all hazards prevention and response posture within the maritime environment that comprises the makah treaty area. 2015 cgc active returned to its home port of port angeles after seizing more than $17 million worth of illegal narcotics during an 88 day deployment. active was deployed to the eastern pacific ocean off the coast of central america in support of joint interagency task force south. during the deployment, active’s crew responded to search and rescue calls, detained a number of suspicious vessels and suspects, and seized over 1,177 pounds of cocaine from suspected smugglers. april 13 1909 cleveland, ohio, lake erie: two boys were unable to pull against the wind, were in danger of drifting on the breakwater. life saving crew at cleveland went out, took the two boys in their power lifeboat, and towed their boat to east ninth street pier. 2014 cgc stratton returned to its homeport at coast guard island in alameda, california, after a 97 day deployment to the eastern pacific ocean. since departing january 6, 2014, stratton completed a 22,000 mile patrol in support of joint counter drug operations off the coast of california and in the eastern pacific ocean. during this operational patrol, stratton's law enforcement crews seized 500 kilograms and disrupted 1,650 kilograms of cocaine valued in excess of $70 million. additionally, stratton's crew demonstrated their dedication to marine life when a crew aboard their small boat noticed a sea turtle entangled in fishing line about 500 miles off the coast of panama march 19, 2014. after bringing the turtle aboard the small boat, the crewmembers freed it from the line and sent it back to sea. during a port call in panama city, panama, stratton's crew participated in a community relations project by painting and restoring a local orphanage. 2015 cgc escanaba returned to its homeport in boston after a 54 day deployment in the caribbean. during the patrol, escanaba’s mission was to detect and interdict vessels suspected of narcotics trafficking in the waters south of puerto rico and the dominican republic in support of operation unified resolve. escanaba, in conjunction with coast guard cutter tahoma, a 270 foot cutter home ported in kittery, maine, pursued two go fast vessels and assisted in two multi agency interdictions resulting in the detention of eight suspected drug smugglers and 1,300 pounds of cocaine, valued at $16 million. prior to the patrol, escanaba's crew completed tailored ship’s training availability at naval station mayport, florida, which included 134 drills and exercises spanning five warfare areas: command and control, engineering, damage control, seamanship, and weapons. april 14 1876 an act of congress (19 stat. l., 132, 139) provided that any person "who shall willfully and unlawfully injure any pier, break water, or other work of the united states for the improvement of rivers or harbors, on navigation in the united states, shall, on conviction thereof, be punished by a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars." 1912 at around 11:40 p.m., rms titanic collided with an iceberg off newfoundland while sailing on her maiden voyage from southampton to new york. she sank a little over two hours later. there were 1,517 lost including 103 women and 53 children out of total passenger and crew of 2,207. subsequently, certification and life saving devices were improved and an international ice patrol was created to patrol the sea lanes off newfoundland and greenland during the winter months. the revenue cutter service took over the operation of the patrol the following year. 1943 joseph c. jenkins graduated as ensign in the coast guard reserve, becoming the first officially recognized commissioned african american officer in the coast guard. 2012 the coast guard commissioned cgc bernard c. webber, the first of the new 154 foot sentinel class cutters. these cutters were built to replace the 110 foot island class wpbs. bernard c. webber was built by bollinger shipyards in lockport, louisiana and was assigned the homeport of miami, florida. april 15 1909 the schooner g.a. hayden grounded northeast of station point judith. the sea being too rough for surfboat, the life saving crew took the beach apparatus to the wreck and succeeded in reaching her with the second shot. the first of her crew was landed in the breeches buoy at 12:10 am. after 4 trips the last one came ashore at 12:45. the vessel was a total loss. 1986 the libyan military, on orders from dictator moammar gadhafi, fired a missile at coast guard loran station lampedusa off the coast of italy. the missile fell harmlessly in the mediterranean and there were no casualties. april 16 1820 landing parties from the cutters louisiana and alabama destroyed a pirate base on breton island. 1908 congress authorized the creation of the office of captain commandant and engineer in chief. additionally, commanding officers of vessels were authorized to administer oaths of allegiance and other oaths for service requirements in alaska. 1944 the coast guard manned destroyer escort uss joyce, along with her sister warship uss peterson and a navy de sank the german submarine u 550 off new york. the u boat first torpedoed what was at the time the largest tanker in the world as the convoy it was joining was forming up outside of new york harbor. the destroyer escorts then attacked the u boat, forcing it to the surface, and then sank it in a surface gun battle. joyce rescued the surviving u boatmen as well as those off the stricken tanker. 1947 the french owned liberty ship grandcamp exploded while loading ammonium nitrate at texas city, texas in one of the worst peace time accidents ever to occur in a u.s. port. over 500 died and thousands were injured. 1965 secretary of the navy paul nitze asked secretary of the treasury henry fowler for coast guard assistance to combat seaborne infiltration from north vietnam. this naval operation in vietnam was named operation market time. april 17 1805 the cutter louisiana engaged two pirate vessels that had been fitted out at new orleans. twenty shots were exchanged but the pirate vessels escaped. 1851 the minot's ledge lighthouse, the first one built in the united states that was exposed to the full force of the ocean, was swept away by a storm with the loss of the two men manning it. they were assistant keepers joseph wilson and joseph antoine who maintained their station, ringing the lighthouse's bell, until waves swept the tower away. 1943 lieutenant ross p. bullard and boatswain's mate first class c. s. "mike" hall boarded the u 175 at sea after their cutter, cgc spencer, blasted the u boat to the surface with depth charges when it attempted to attack the convoy spencer was escorting. these coast guardsmen were part of a specially trained boarding party sent to board the submarine to seize any code and cipher related documents and equipment they could find. the damage to the u boat was severe, however, and it sank after they had boarded it and climbed up the conning tower. both men ended up in the sea as the u boat slipped beneath the waves but were pulled from the water unharmed. they carry the distinction of being the first american servicemen to board an enemy warship underway at sea since the war of 1812. the navy credited spencer with the u boat kill. the cutter rescued 19 of the u boat's crew and a sister cutter, cgc duane, rescued 22. one spencer crewman, rm 3/c julius petrella, was killed by friendly fire during the battle. 1987 lt tom mcclay received a direct commission as a flight officer for duty with the coast guard's e2c hawkeyes. lt mcclay was the first coast guard flight officer. 2020 the crew of the coast guard cutter steadfast (wmec 623) returned home 17 april 2020 to astoria following a 65 day counternarcotic patrol to the eastern pacific ocean. the cutter intercepted and boarded five suspected smuggling vessels, including one go fast style panga, while patrolling international waters off the coasts of mexico and central america. steadfast’s crew apprehended three suspected smugglers and seized 1,252 pounds of pure cocaine worth an estimated $21.5 million. “i am inspired daily by the tenacity and professionalism of this crew,” said cmdr. dan ursino, commanding officer of the steadfast. "their resilience to remain focused, in light of the global health crisis and uncertainty back home, has been nothing short of remarkable. knowing the importance and impact of keeping these harmful substances from reaching our streets help to keep us going.” steadfast also continued to participate in the columbia river maritime museum’s mini boat project, which connected students from local oregon elementary schools with their peers in japan. students learned about the significance of ocean currents and weather, while building miniature boats to send across the ocean to one another. during this patrol, steadfast launched two boats, boat a lohti and philbert, approximately 200 miles off the southern tip of baja, mexico. commissioned in 1968, steadfast is one of two reliance class cutters homeported in astoria. reliance class cutters are 210 feet long, 34 feet wide and have a 1,100 long ton displacement. the ships hold a crew of 76 and have served the nation for more than 50 years. april 18 1805 the cutter louisiana recaptured the merchant brig felicity from privateers off the mouth of the mississippi river. 1945 airship training for u.s. coast guard personnel (nine officers & 30 enlisted men) began at naval air station lakehurst, new jersey. 1993 coast guardsman gary a. openshaw rescued five persons in danger of drowning near san francisco off baker beach. for heroically risking his life and saving those five people, the coast guard awarded petty officer openshaw the gold life saving medal. april 19 1995 a rental truck filled with explosives blew up half of the murrah federal building in oklahoma city, oklahoma. coast guardsmen from the coast guard institute and a coast guard reservist responded soon after the explosion and helped set up security zones, directed traffic, searched for survivors, and whatever else was needed. they also took over a church kitchen and opened what later became nicknamed "cafe coast guard." a rotating nine person team worked around the clock to provide meals for the volunteer workers. 2014 coast guard marine inspectors conducted safety and security examinations on the first ever container ship to arrive in cleveland. the fortunagracht, a 450 foot dutch flagged container ship, delivered the first ever load of containerized cargo to the great lakes. before the establishment of the cleveland europe express, shippers relied heavily on rail service to transport goods from the larger east coast container ports, such as new york and baltimore, to the great lakes region. talks to bring cee to cleveland began in the fall of 2013 with cooperation between the coast guard, customs and border protection, the fbi, and other government agencies. 20 april 1871 the secretary of the treasury was authorized by congress to employ crews of experienced surfmen at lifeboat stations at maximum rate of $40 per month, marking the end of the volunteer system. this was the beginning of direct federal control over life saving activities. 1997 dikes along the red river in north dakota gave way causing dangerous floods. the coast guard responded to calls for assistance and rescued more than 200 people from danger. 2010 the deepwater horizon oil rig located more than 50 miles southeast of venice, louisiana, suffered massive explosions killing 11 and injuring 16 of its 126 person crew. the oil platform, which burned for more than a day, sank into the gulf of mexico on april 22, 2010. an estimated 60,000 barrels of oil gushed each day for 87 days, making the deepwater horizon spill and its response unprecedented. the coast guard mobilized 14% of its total workforce, active duty and reserve, and its role expanded under the national contingency plan which called for the service to direct all response efforts to contain and clean up the oil spill. on april 30th, 2010 admiral thad allen, the coast guard commandant, was appointed as the national incident commander (nic) to oversee the federal response. he retired as commandant on may 25, 2010, but continued on as nic in uniform until he formally retired from the coast guard on june 30, 2010. he then continued to serve as nic (as an ses civilian) until october 1, 2010. april 21 1838 the passenger steamboat oronoko suffered a catastrophic boiler explosion while tied up at princeton, mississippi that killed over 100 passengers. this was one of three fatal steamboat boiler explosions within as many months that forced the federal government to begin regulating merchant steam vessels. 1910 the u.s. government took over the sealing operation of pribiloff islands from private lessees. 1924 in an effort to increase the number of cutters available for prohibition enforcement, navy destroyers were transferred to the coast guard for law enforcement purposes. the coast guard was also authorized to commission temporary officers. 1963 while returning home from duty on ocean station charlie, cgc campbell diverted to assist the sinking m/v helga smith 50 miles southeast of cape race, newfoundland. upon arrival, campbell prepared to put a repair party aboard the merchantman but the master of helga smith ordered his crew to abandon ship due to the seriousness of the flooding. with campbell's searchlights illuminating the scene, the crew abandoned ship in a motor lifeboat. the boat's motor would not start so the crew pulled away from the ship with oars. a lifeboat from campbell then towed them alongside the cutter where the survivors were assisted aboard by a rescue party in a rubber lifeboat. two commercial tugs arrived on the scene and commenced towing helga smith to st. john's, newfoundland, with campbell escorting. while enroute though helga smith settled by the bow and sank. campbell then proceeded to argentia, newfoundland with the survivors. 1980 boats with cuban migrants on board began departing mariel, cuba. the first two boats arrived in miami the same day, marking the beginning of the largest cuban migration to the u.s. to date. cuban leader fidel castro declared the port of mariel "open", increasing the number of boats involved in the exodus and giving the exodus its name. this became the largest coast guard operation ever undertaken to date since world war ii. the coast guard coordinated a three wave operation. coast guard high endurance cutters operated closest to cuba. u.s. navy ships operated in the inner wave and coast guard small cutters, 95 and 82 footers, served the waters closest to florida. over 660 coast guard reservists were called to replace boat crews and maintenance and repair teams. the coast guard auxiliary lent support in many areas, including radio communications. over 117,000 people in more than 5,000 boats were assisted by the coast guard and navy forces during the mariel boatlift. 2011 the coast guard's first 154 foot fast response cutter, cgc bernard c. webber, "entered the water" at bollinger shipyards in lockport, louisiana. during a three day evolution, the cutter was towed from the fabrication facility, lifted on a crane and then successfully placed in the water. 2013 cgc waesche returned to its homeport at coast guard island in alameda, california after a 91 day deployment to the eastern pacific ocean. departing on january 20, 2013, waesche completed an 18,000 mile patrol in support of joint counter drug operations off the coast of california and in the eastern pacific ocean. during that time the cutter and crew demonstrated their capability as a multi mission unit. during their patrol, waesche's crew assisted two boaters in distress when their 12 foot sailboat began taking on water approximately three miles west of san diego. earlier in their patrol, waesche participated in a search and rescue mission assisting two mariners 90 miles west of san diego when their sailboat began taking on water. also in january, law enforcement crews aboard the cutter seized more than 2,400 pounds of marijuana from a boat approximately 300 miles west of san diego, apprehended three suspects, and recovered 70 bales which tested positive for marijuana. additionally, during the mid patrol break in panama city, panama, waesche crewmembers participated in a community relations project by painting and restoring a local school. 2014 the coast guard concluded icebreaking operations on the lower great lakes, more than four months after it started on december 15, 2013. operation coal shovel is a bi national domestic icebreaking effort covering the st. lawrence seaway, lake ontario, lake erie, the detroit/st. clair river system, and southern lake huron. crews aboard cgcs mackinaw, hollyhock, bristol bay, neah bay, and morro bay were joined by crews from canadian coast guard ships samuel risley, griffon, and des groseilliers. in total, the coast guard crews conducted more than 2,100 icebreaking hours during the 128 days of operation coal shovel. also assisting the ships with ice reconnaissance were aircrews from airsta traverse city and airsta detroit. during operation coal shovel, u.s. and canadian coast guard crews assisted 184 vessels and provided harbor breakouts to relieve or prevent flooding in four u.s. and one canadian community. april 22 1944 coast guardsmen participated in the invasions of aitape and hollandia in dutch new guinea. 1965 the coast guard and the navy agreed on the deployment of 82 foot patrol and 40 foot utility boats to support operation market time in vietnam. april 23 1790 the secretary of the treasury alexander hamilton submitted a report to congress suggesting the utility of building "ten boats for securing the collection of the revenue." hamilton's suggestion was accepted and passed into law on 4 august 1790 after the bill was signed by president george washington. 1880 captain jerome g. kiah and his crew of six surfmen from the point aux barques life saving station responded to a distress signal from a stranded scow in lake huron. they departed their station in their pulling surfboat but the boat capsized a number of times in the icy water, eventually causing the six surfmen to perish from hypothermia. only captain kiah survived the ordeal, but was severely injured from the cold water and forced to resign from the service. he carried the psychological scars of the disaster for the rest of his life, but rejoined the life saving service later that year as district superintendent. 1919 uss marietta, under the command of future commandant harry hamlet, rescued 47 men from the uss james which was sinking in a gale off the coast of france. 1924 a tube transmitter for radio fog signal stations, developed to take the place of the spark transmitters then in use, was placed in service on the ambrose channel lightship and proved successful. 2007 the intelligence specialist (is) rating was launched with a special ceremony at coast guard headquarters. april 24 1943 while loading a cargo of ammunition at a bayonne, new jersey pier, the freighter el estero caught fire, threatening downtown manhattan with devastation should the ship's cargo explode. coast guardsmen under the command of lcdr john t. stanley responded immediately and were soon reinforced by local firefighters. two coast guard fireboats along with commercial and new york city firefighting tugs headed to the area. lcdr stanley boarded the freighter which was now burning out of control and he was joined by lcdr arthur f. pfister who was in charge of the coast guard vessels. upon consultation with the captain of the port of new york, third district commander radm stanley v. parker, they decided to scuttle the ship. however, the sea cocks were not accessible and so they decided to fill the vessel with water. while firefighting teams fought the blaze aboard the el estero, the tugs arrived and took the freighter under tow, heading to deeper water away from new york city. the tugs and firefighting vessels began spraying their water cannons on the freighter, filling her holds with water. the residents of the city were warned to expect an imminent explosion. fortunately, the vessel began listing to starboard and soon thereafter sank northwest of the robbins reef light, extinguishing the fires. all of the men aboard the vessel escaped harm. the fire was later ruled as accidental. 1967 at the request of the u.s. navy, five coast guard high endurance cutters (whecs) were commissioned as coast guard three (ronthree) at pearl harbor for service in vietnam. 2004 damage controlman third class nathan bruckenthal, uscg, from smithtown, new york, and two u. s. navy sailors were killed in the line of duty while conducting maritime intercept operations in the north arabian gulf. he and six other coalition sailors attempted to board a small boat near the iraqi khawr al amaya oil terminal. as they boarded the boat, it exploded. petty officer bruckenthal died later from injuries sustained in the explosion. petty officer bruckenthal was the first coast guardsman killed in action since the vietnam war. he was assigned to tactical law enforcement south in miami, florida and deployed with coast guard patrol forces southwest asia aboard the uss firebolt. this was his second deployment to the arabian gulf for operation iraqi freedom. april 25 1819 usrc active captured the pirate vessel irresistible in the chesapeake bay. 1838 the steamboat moselle, with more than 265 passengers and crew aboard, departed from a landing near cincinnati, ohio for st. louis. her boilers exploded soon after casting off, killing 136. this was one of three catastrophic steamboat boiler explosions within as many months that forced the federal government to begin regulating merchant steam vessels. 1956 the u.s. coast guard issued new regulations for security screening of merchant seamen. changes in the screening program were made for the purpose of conforming with a recent u .s. court of appeals ruling (parker v. lester) which held that procedures used by the coast guard did not meet the minimum requirements of due process of law. the legal background for the coast guard security program stems from the magnuson act, which authorized the president to issue rules safeguarding vessels and waterfront facilities when he found security endangered by a subversive activity. the president made such a finding in 1950 by executive order no. 10173 and directed the coast guard to set up and conduct the program. april 26 1898 during the spanish american war, cutters morrill, hudson, and hamilton, formerly revenue cutters and recently armed for service in the so called "mosquito fleet," passed through hampton roads and after asking formal permission of the commodore, proceeded to key west. from that point, they joined the navy ships of the cuban blockading fleet. 1899 the revenue cutter service signed a lease with two prominent baltimore landowners for 36 acres of farmland surrounding arundel cove, maryland. two months later, lt john moore, usrcs, arrived aboard the side wheeler colfax to establish the "revenue cutter station at curtis bay," today's united states coast guard yard. 1912 president william howard taft boarded the usrc mohawk on this date in 1912. the cutter took the president from new york city's recreation pier on "west 50th street" to governors island and back for the funeral of majgen frederick dent grant, son of former president ulysses s. grant. april 27 1865 the boilers on the 260 foot wooden hulled steamboat sultana exploded while the vessel was traveling on the mississippi river near memphis. sultana, although designed to carry a maximum of 376 passengers, actually embarked over 2,400, most of whom were union prisoners of war recently released from captivity. the explosion and consequent fire killed over 1,800 and ranks as the worst commercial maritime disaster in u.s. history. 1914 usrc miami, under the command of captain j. h. quinan, while on the international ice patrol, carried out the first trials of the new fathometer built by submarine signal company in boston. 1949 when a c 47 of the military air transport service developed engine trouble and ditched near cgc sebago on weather station "dog" some 380 miles from newfoundland, a motor self bailing boat from the cutter immediately picked up the plane's crew of four. although the c 47 sank within 12 minutes, there were no injuries or casualties. 1966 after a u.s. air force b 57 was reported overdue the u.s. coast guard eastern area commander commenced an intensive air search. the two day, large scale, over water search for the missing aircraft, all of which was coordinated by the coast guard, unfortunately yielded negative results. 1980 a coast guard hh 3f from airsta sitka safely rescued all 14 crewman from the f/v cathy r after it capsized and sank west of cape ommaney. 1989 president george h. w. bush dedicated the command, control, communications and intelligence center east, otherwise known as c3i, in south florida. the facility, manned by coast guard and customs personnel, was designed to give law enforcement agencies instant access to air and marine smuggling information. 2021 cgc hamilton transited into the black sea in support of nato allies and partners. hamilton was the first coast guard cutter to enter the black sea since cgc dallas (whec 716) did so in 2008. hamilton’s patrol came after first escorting two fast response cutters from puerto rico across the atlantic on their way to service with u.s. patrol forces southwest asia. hamilton then made two logistics visits to rota, spain and naples, italy before proceeding to the black sea. hamilton was conducting a routine deployment in the u.s. sixth fleet, working alongside allies, building maritime domain awareness, and sharing best practices with partner nation navies and coast guards,” according to the navy. april 28 1908 the revenue cutter service became the primary federal agency in charge of patrolling regattas. 1918 cgc seneca saved 81 survivors from the torpedoed british naval sloop cowslip while on convoy route to gibraltar. cowslip had been attacked by three german u boats. 1919 while in command of uss marietta in the bay of biscay, captain harry g. hamlet rescued a crew of 47 persons from uss james which was sinking at sea. for his actions that day he was awarded a gold lifesaving medal. his award citation noted: "this rescue was made extremely difficult and hazardous owing to high seas, which threatened to send the two vessels crashing together. in effecting the rescue, captain hamlet displayed admirable seamanship." captain hamlet would later serve as commandant of the coast guard from 1932 1936. 1993 coast guard pacarea ledets, operating from the uss valley forge and uss cleveland, boarded the st. vincent flagged 225 foot freighter sea chariot about 300 miles southwest of panama. the boarding team discovered bales of cocaine in some of the containers on board and then seized the vessel. the vessel was escorted through the panama canal to station miami beach where a search of the vessel's containers turned up 11,233 pounds of cocaine. 2001 a ledet assigned to uss rodney m. davis, with later assistance from cgc active made the largest cocaine seizure in maritime history to date when they boarded and seized the belizean f/v svesda maru 1,500 miles south of san diego. the fishing vessel was carrying 26,931 pounds of cocaine. april 29 1965 president lyndon johnson approved the commitment of coast guard forces to service in vietnam under the navy department's operational control. the formation for service in vietnam of coast guard squadron one (ronone) was announced. 1975 coast guard discontinued operations at con son island loran station. 1992 cgc storis' 3 inch/.50 caliber main battery was removed from the cutter. it was the last 3 inch/.50 caliber gun in service aboard any u.s. warship. the 3 inch/.50 was a dual purpose weapon (surface and anti aircraft) that had been in u.s. service since the 1930s. it was shipped to curtis bay where is was made inoperable and then loaned to a vfw club. 2014 the boston based cgc escanaba returned to its homeport after a 36 day patrol in the north atlantic. while out on patrol, the medium endurance cutter focused on fisheries missions in support of operation atlantic venture. escanaba's crew conducted 26 law enforcement boardings during the patrol. crew members measured fishing gear, inspected daily catch limits and ensured that vessels' safety gear was in good, working order. the cutter crew also conducted 46 training evolutions with the crew of an mh 60 jayhawk helicopter crew from coast guard air station cape cod. april 30 1789 president george washington was inaugurated in new york city as the nation's first president. his inauguration marked the beginning of u.s. constitutional government. 1798 congress established the department of the navy on this date. nevertheless, the united states navy traces its origins to the continental navy, which the continental congress established on october 13, 1775 by authorizing the procurement, fitting out, manning, and dispatch of two armed vessels to cruise in search of munitions ships supplying the british army in america. in 1972, chief of naval operations admiral elmo r. zumwalt authorized the recognition of 13 october 13, 1775 as the navy’s official birthday. 1818 congress authorized use of "land and naval forces of the united states to compel any foreign ship to depart united states in all cases in which, by the laws of nations or the treaties of the united states, they ought not to remain within the united states." this was the basis of neutrality enforcement. 1832 all commissions of naval officers serving in the revenue cutter service were revoked. all vacancies were then filled by promotion from within the service for the first time. 1967 bm1 edgar a. culbertson gave his life attempting to rescue three boys in duluth, minnesota. bm1 culbertson, along with two other members of station duluth, volunteered to venture out on the north pier at duluth to rescue three boys who had been reported to be out on the pier during a severe storm. witnesses had seen a wave wash one of the boys away but two were apparently trapped near the lighthouse at the end of the pier. culbertson's coast guard medal citation noted: "lashing themselves together, the three men proceeded, with hand lanterns as the only illumination, to the end of the breakwater. despite the high waves, winds gusting to 40 knots, driving rain and 36 degree water, the rescue party diligently searched the breakwater and light but found no trace of the boys. while returning to the beach a 20 foot wave swept petty officer culbertson off his feet and hurled him up to and over the breakwater parapet into the sea. despite the strenuous efforts of his teammates, petty officer culbertson perished in this gallant rescue attempt." he was posthumously awarded the coast guard medal. the other two coast guardsmen, bm2 richard r. callahan and fn ronald c. prei, were also awarded the coast guard medal for their heroism. 2020 the crew of the coast guard cutter midgett concluded a successful 37 day patrol in support of counter illegal, unregulated and unreported (iuu) fishing and regional security operations in oceania, april 30, 2020. patrolling over 7,118 square nautical miles (8,191 statute miles), midgett's law enforcement team boarded seven commercial foreign flagged fishing vessels. the boardings verified compliance with wcpfc conservation management measures and specifications for the marking and identification of fishing vessels. they conducted 15 additional sightings and vessel queries. those reports were provided to the ffa regional fisheries surveillance center in honiara, solomon islands, demonstrating the coast guard's interoperability with its key regional partners. the crew conducted joint operations with crews aboard an hc 130 hercules long range surveillance aircraft from u.s. coast guard air station barbers point, who flew several reconnaissance flights to improve maritime domain awareness. midgett's crew of 120 departed their homeport of honolulu in late march, 2020, but returned shortly after to address concerns over possible covid 19 exposure among the crew. one crew member who did not sail with the cutter for other reasons tested positive for the virus on april 1. although no one else showed covid 19 symptoms, the command, in concert with military and state health officials, took immediate and decisive action to quarantine and test those at risk of exposure. no one aboard tested positive, and the ill member ashore made a full recovery. midgett resumed the patrol on april, 8, 2020. may 1 1875 captain lucien m. clemens and his brothers al and hubbard "displayed the most signal gallantry in saving two men from the wreck of the schooner consuelo" in an open rowboat. five others on board the schooner perished when the schooner capsized in the heavy seas "with the wind blowing a gale from the northeast" before the brothers arrived on scene. their daring rescue resulted in the award of the gold life saving medals to each, the first time the medals were ever awarded. 1898 usrc mcculloch fought as part of the fleet under the overall command of commodore george dewey, usn, at the battle of manila bay during the spanish american war. president john mckinley later recommended that her commanding officer, revenue captain daniel b. hodgson, be retired at full pay as reward of merit for "efficient and meritorious services." a joint resolution of congress was so approved on may 3, 1900. 1900 the lighthouse board took charge of all lighthouses in puerto rico. 1921 the first radio fog signals in the united states were placed in commission on ambrose lightship, fire island lightship, and sea girt light station, new jersey. 1935 by department of commerce authority, a readjustment of the boundary between the 3rd and 4th lighthouse districts was made, by which certain aids to navigation in the approaches to delaware bay, including overfalls lightship, were placed under the jurisdiction of the 4th lighthouse district. 1936 congress passed the whaling treaty act, which made it unlawful to take right whales or calves of any whale. the act was enforced by the coast guard. 1942 two coast guard planes located a lifeboat with 13 survivors and landed in open seas and took injured men ashore as others were rescued by lifeboat. 1973 the coast guard's merchant marine detachment saigon, republic of vietnam, was disestablished. 1992 cgc venturous served as the patrol commander's on scene command platform for most of the international america's cup class world championship sailing races that took place off san diego from may 1 11, 1992. the cgc sherman took over that duty for may 10 11. coast guard active duty, reserve, and auxiliary personnel also assisted in perimeter patrols along the race course. 1999 a amphibious tourist boat (dukw) sank in lake hamilton, near hot springs, arkansas, killing 13 persons. the coast guard investigated the accident. 2013 cgas kodiak deployed a mh 60 jayhawk helicopter crew and support personnel to a forward operating location in cordova, to safeguard mariners in prince william sound and south central alaska. the fol in cordova was one of four seasonal coast guard fols in alaska and was scheduled to remain in operation until september 30, 2013. the forward deployed crews received logistical support from air station kodiak based hc 130 hercules airplane crews throughout their deployment. the previous year, fol cordova aircrews saved nine lives and assisted 12 others during the 2012 summer season. 2020 on 1 may 2020 the u.s. coast guard announced that radm melissa bert had been vested as the judge advocate general & chief counsel of the coast guard. radm bert is the first woman to hold that office. may 2 1882 an act of congress (22 stat. l., 55, 58), in an attempt to protect the lifesaving service from the evils of the "spoils system," declared that "the appointments of district superintendents, inspectors, and keepers and crews of life saving stations shall be made solely with reference to their fitness and without reference to their political or party affiliations." 1932 northern pacific halibut act re enacted act of june 7, 1924, after convention with canada and made it unlawful to catch halibut between november 1st and february 15th each year in territorial waters of united states and canada and on high seas, extending westerly from them, including the bering sea. coast guard enforced this act. 1942 coast guard plane v 167 rescued two from a torpedoed freighter. 1942 coast guard prewar search and rescue procedure discontinued for security reasons. 1943 cg 58012 exploded and sank off manomet point, massachusetts. no lives lost. 1995 part of the upper mississippi and missouri rivers rose above the flood stage, flooding areas in nebraska, iowa, missouri, illinois, and kentucky. coast guard disaster response units conducted sar duties and assisted local authorities. on may 16, mso st. louis closed all 366 miles of the missouri river to all traffic. the secretary of transportation authorized the involuntary recall of 300 reservists. however, only 143 were called to duty. coast guard forces paducah was at the epicenter of flood relief operations with five drus working in cape girardeau, missouri, and the olive branch, illinois, area. coast guard aircraft, including an hh 60 jayhawk from airsta clearwater (the 2nd district had no air station) provided daily over flight and sar missions. cgc sangamon was used as a staging platform for those working near meridosa, illinois. two dru teams aided meridosa and surrounding communities with emergency evacuations, ferrying emergency supplies, and reinforcing threatened levees. coast guardsmen were also called in to slidell, louisiana, where the evacuated 285 flood victims to safety. may 3 1882 the treasury department reported that the crew of the cutter oliver wolcott deserted their ship. no reason was given for this mass desertion. 1885 the navy transferred the uss bear to the revenue cutter service. the bear became one of the most famous cutters to sail under the revenue cutter & coast guard ensigns. 1944 an acoustic torpedo fired by the u 371 hit and destroyed the stern of the coast guard manned destroyer escort uss menges while she was escorting a convoy in the mediterranean, killing thirty one of her crew. [see may 4, 1944 entry] the menges was later repaired and returned to service. she assisted in the sinking of the u 866 on march 19,1945. may 4 1882 the secretary of the treasury was authorized to discontinue any lifesaving station, transfer apparatus, appoint keepers, etc. 1910 congress required every passenger ship or other ship carrying 50 persons or more, leaving any port of united states, to be equipped with a radio (powerful enough to transmit to a 100 mile radius) and a qualified operator. 1942 adm ernest j. king, chief of naval operations and commander in chief, u.s. fleet, requested the coast guard organize a coastal picket force utilizing suitable civilian craft. the coast guard auxiliary led the initial efforts with responsibility eventually falling to the coast guard officer in each naval district. many auxiliarists volunteered both their vessels and crew for service in the coast guard temporary reserve. the signature vessels were the large, rugged sailing yachts assigned to offshore patrols, later nicknamed "the corsair fleet." 1944 the coast guard manned destroyer escort uss pride (de 323), with three other allied escort vessels, sank u 371 in the mediterranean. the u 371 had torpedoed the coast guard manned uss menges the previous day. 1963 cgc morris and cg 95318 escorted the annual newport harbor, california to ensenada, mexico yacht race which commenced may 4, 1963 and upon conclusion of the race made an informal visit to ensenada. may 5 1947 the first meeting of the permanent international civil aviation organization was held in montreal, canada with the coast guard being represented by lt john m. waters, uscg. 1950 congress approved the uniform code of military justice for the "government of the armed forces of the united states." 1973 the last coast guard personnel assigned to vietnam departed for the united states. 2004 the coast guard presented the purple heart to bm3 joseph ruggiero in miami for injuries sustained in action against the enemy while defending the khawr al amaya oil terminal in iraq on april 24, 2004. ruggiero's shipmate, dc3 nathan bruckenthal, was killed in this same bombing and was posthumously awarded the purple heart. they were the first coast guard recipients of the purple heart since the vietnam war. may 6 1796 congress increased the monthly compensation of revenue marine officers to masters $50; first mates $35; second mates $30; third mates $25 and mariners $20. 1896 president grover cleveland placed the lighthouse service within the classified federal civil service. 1898 the cutter morrill participated in an engagement at havana, cuba on may 6 7, 1898 during the spanish american war. her officers were awarded bronze medals by the authority of a joint resolution of congress that was approved on march 3, 1901. 1945 the coast guard manned frigate uss moberly (pf 63), in concert with uss atherton, sank the u 853 in the atlantic off block island. there were no survivors. 1958 during her 50 plus year career, the huron lightship wal 526 at port huron, michigan, survived many a great lakes storm without the loss of a single crewmember until on this date when seaman (boatswain mate striker) robert g. gullickson lost his life while attempting to swim for assistance to save another shipmate, cs1 vincent disch, after their small boat was swamped by a freighter's wake and sank. disch was rescued, but gullickson was lost at sea and his remains were never recovered. gullickson was posthumously promoted to bm3 for his rescue attempt and for sacrificing his life for his shipmate. 1994 the last hh 3f pelican helicopter in coast guard service was retired. this ended the coast guard's "amphibious era," as no aviation asset left in service was capable of making water landings. 2003 cgc walnut completed its 20 day humanitarian mission in support of operation iraqi freedom. walnut marked the navigational channel of the khawr abd allah waterway leading from the north arabian gulf to iraq’s critical port of umm qasr. the cutter completely replaced 30 buoys and repaired an additional five along the 41 mile waterway, vastly improving the navigational safety of the waterway for humanitarian aid sailing to the port and providing a critical step towards the economic recovery of the people of iraq. the majority of the equipment used in the navigational improvements was located in a warehouse in umm qasr and was inspected and upgraded to ensure that the buoys matched as closely as possible to the charted channel. walnut was originally deployed to the north arabian gulf with an oil spill recovery system in the event the regime of saddam hussein committed any acts of environmental terrorism. when those threats did not materialize, the cutter conducted maritime interdiction operations enforcing u.n. security council resolutions, participated in the search for two downed united kingdom helicopters, and patrolled and provided assistance to captured iraqi offshore oil terminals. 2014 cgc active returned to its homeport of port angeles, washington, following a 70 day deployment. during their deployment, the cutter and crew covered more than 11,500 miles on a counter drug enforcement patrol in the eastern pacific, including patrolling waters off the coast of central america. the crew conducted multiple at sea boardings, seizing more than 2,300 pounds of cocaine worth an estimated $37 million. while on a port call in puerto vallarta, mexico to resupply the cutter, active's crew participated in a community relations event where they painted and helped set up a playground at the local children’s cancer center. may 7 1969 hc 130h cgnr 1453, stationed at air station kodiak, flew over the geographic north pole, becoming the first coast guard aircraft to do so. the aircraft commander was lcdr melvin j. hartman and the copilot was lt larry minor. the purpose of the flight was ice reconnaissance of a potential route for super tankers from the north slope of alaska to the east coast of the u.s. according to a summary of the flight published in the commandant's bulletin: "coast guard aircraft flies around the world nonstop…during the course of this flight, the aircraft circled the north pole, crossing all meridians in eighty seconds." 1969 cgc southwind returned to baltimore, maryland after circumnavigating the globe, becoming only the second cutter to do so. 1979 during a city wide strike by tugboat operators and longshoremen in new york city that began on april 1, 1979, mayor ed koch of new york asked for federal assistance. the secretary of transportation, brock adams, at the behest of president jimmy carter, ordered the commandant, adm john b. hayes, to direct the commanding officer of the third coast guard district, vadm robert i. price, "to cooperate with mayor koch in the movement of sanitation barges within the harbor." beginning on may 7, 1979, the cutters sauk, manitou, and red beech began moving 16 garbage scows from a staten island landfill site to refuse pick up points in manhattan, brooklyn, queens, and the bronx. although the group received an anonymous bomb threat that proved to be a hoax, the towing effort was carried out without incident. these three cutters were relieved of "garbage duty" in june by the cutters snohomish and chinook. 1992 astronaut and coast guard cdr bruce melnick made his second space flight when he served as a mission specialist aboard the space shuttle endeavour on her maiden flight, space shuttle mission sts 49, which flew from may 7 16, 1992. during this mission, astronauts rescued and repaired the intelsat vi satellite. melnick, by this point, had logged more than 300 hours in space. 2004 cgc james rankin set the historic "francis scott key" buoy off of fort mchenry, maryland, near the key bridge in baltimore, maryland. the buoy marks the spot where the british warship on which francis scott key, the author of the star spangled banner, was held aboard during the bombardment of fort mchenry by the royal navy during the war of 1812. each year the buoy is set in the spring, marking the historic location of the event, and is then removed in the fall. may 8 1919 first lieutenant elmer f. stone, uscg, piloting the navy's flying boat nc 4 in the first successful trans atlantic flight, took off from the naval air station at rockaway, new york, at 1000 hours on may 8, 1919, together with the nc 1 and nc 3. although the nc 1 and nc 3 did not complete the journey, the nc 4 successfully crossed the atlantic and landed in lisbon, portugal on may 27, 1919. stone was decorated that same day by the portuguese government with the order of the tower and sword. 1926 congress standardized the retired pay of coast guard officers with that of all the other armed services. 1985 cgc chase was crippled by an engine room fire that put the cutter out of service for almost six months. one crewman, mk3 nicholas v. barei iii, was killed during the incident. 1985 the largest cocaine seizure by the coast guard (to date) was made when coast guard units seized the goza now with 1,909 pounds of cocaine. the unlit speedboat, or "go fast," was first located by the cgc cape shoalwater as it raced towards miami. an airsta miami helicopter was dispatched to investigate and then began chasing it as it neared miami beach. as they approached the shoreline, the three man crew of the go fast jumped overboard and escaped but a taclet seized the abandoned goza now and her illicit cargo. district 7 got a "bravo zulu" from attorney general edwin meese. 1987 coast guard units, including cgc ocracoke, made the largest seizure of cocaine by the coast guard (to date). they discovered 3,771 pounds (1.9 tons) aboard the la toto off the northwest coast of st. croix. may 9 1862 usrc miami landed president abraham lincoln on confederate held soil the day before the fall of norfolk. the president had decided "to ascertain by personal observation whether some further vigilance and vigor might not be infused into the operations of the army and navy" during general george mcclellan's peninsula campaign. the president, secretary of state salmon p. chase, secretary of war edwin m. stanton, and brigadier general egbert ludovickus viele departed washington, d.c., on board the cutter on may 5. 1939 president franklin d. roosevelt announced reorganization plan ii that transferred the bureau of lighthouses to the treasury department for consolidation with the coast guard. the plan took effect on july 1, 1939. 1942 cgc icarus attacked and sank the german submarine u 352 off moorehead city, north carolina, and then rescued and took 33 prisoners of war, the first german prisoners taken in combat by any u.s. force in world war ii. may 10 1800 congress forbade citizens to own an interest in vessels engaged in the slave trade or to serve on such vessels. 1956 president dwight d. eisenhower signed public law 519, which brought all previously uninspected vessels on navigable waters carrying more than six passengers for hire under inspection laws. these were chiefly party fishing motorboats, excursion sailboats, and ferry barges. public attention had been focused on the inadequacy of existing inspection laws by the hundreds of lives lost on uninspected vessels. 1966 cgc point grey was on patrol near south vietnam's ca mau peninsula when her crew sighted a 110 foot trawler heading on various courses and speeds. suspicions aroused, point grey commenced shadowing the trawler. after observing what appeared to be signal fires on the beach, the cutter hailed the vessel, but received no response. the trawler ran aground and point grey personnel attempted to board it. heavy automatic weapons fire from the beach prevented the boarding and two crew and one army passenger were wounded aboard point grey. cgc point cypress and u.s. navy units came to assist. during the encounter the trawler exploded. u.s. navy salvage teams recovered a substantial amount of war material from the sunken vessel. this incident was the largest, single known infiltration attempt since the vung ro bay incident of february 1965 and was the first "suspicious trawler interdicted by a market time unit." may 11 1898 usrc hudson towed the crippled uss winslow from certain destruction under the spanish forts at cardenas, cuba during the spanish american war. congress later conferred a gold medal of honor on her commanding officer, revenue first lieutenant f. h. newcomb. his officers and crew were awarded silver and bronze medals. 1908 the revenue cutter service was authorized to enforce alaska game laws. 1945 in the morning, four days after nazi germany surrendered unconditionally to the allies, the coast guard manned destroyer escorts uss vance and uss durant, underway off the azores escorting their last convoy to the mediterranean, sighted a light ahead of the convoy. they closed to investigate. durant illuminated the target, which was the surfaced german submarine u 873, which had been at sea for 50 days. vance, while screened by durant, hailed the "erstwhile enemy" over her public address system, established her identity, and then ordered her to heave to. on board were seven officers and 52 enlisted men. vance placed a 21 man prize crew on board the captured u boat and delivered the prize at portsmouth, new hampshire, on may 16, 1945. 1963 air station san francisco intercepted a teletype message from fort point lifeboat station to cg radio station san francisco stating that the 36 foot f/v pirate ii had lost its engine and would be blown onto seal rocks within twenty minutes. coast guard hh 19g helicopter cgnr 1309 was dispatched to assist. the helicopter, commanded by lcdr warren s. petterson, located the fishing vessel in heavy surf and commenced "operation tugbird" by lowering a tow cable to pirate ii. the helicopter then towed the vessel out of the surf and to a distance of one half mile off shore where cg 82328 successfully took over. may 12 1906 in part due to the lobbying efforts of the maritime association of the port of new york, congress authorized the construction of a cutter "equipped to cruise for and destroy derelicts and obstructions to navigation" for the revenue cutter service. the service contracted with the newport news shipbuilding and drydock company to build this "derelict destroyer," which was christened usrc seneca. she was commissioned in 1908. 1938 lieutenant c. b. olsen became the first coast guardsman to be awarded the distinguished flying cross. he earned the award for "heroism in removing lieutenant colonel gullion, u.s. army, who was stricken with acute appendicitis, from the army transport 'republic'" after making an open water landing near the freighter. 1939 boatswain's mate first class clarence samuels was appointed as a chief photographer's mate (acting), becoming the first african american photographer in the coast guard and only the second coast guard photographer in the entire history of the service. 1957 cgc wachusett, on ocean station november, halfway between honolulu and san francisco, rescued the two man crew who had bailed out of a u.s. air force b 57 because of a fuel shortage. 1984 the coast guard was a primary participant in the 1984 louisiana world exposition in new orleans. the coast guard barque eagle was opened to the public and the fair's organizers also chose the coast guard as the official honor guard for the exposition. the service was also responsible for the exposition's waterfront security. 1998 adm robert kramek, commandant of the coast guard, commissioned the coast guard's leadership development center (ldc) in new london. the ldc consolidated the leadership training courses of the service, including officer candidate school, chief warrant officer indoctriniation school, the chief petty officer academy, command and operations school, officer in charge/executive petty officer course, and the leadership and quality institue in one central location at the coast guard academy. may 13 1905 an executive order extended the jurisdiction of the lighthouse service to the noncontiguous territory of guam island. 1952 the coast guard announced the establishment of an organized reserve training program, the first in u.s. coast guard history. morton g. lessans was sworn in as the first member of the organized air reserve on december 12, 1951. 1986 cgc manitou stopped the 125 foot sun bird in 7th district waters and her boarding team discovered 40,000 pounds of marijuana hidden aboard. the boarding team then located the vessel's builder's plate and learned that the sun bird was the decommissioned "buck and a quarter" cutter crawford. the former cutter and her 14 man crew were taken into custody. a newspaper article describing the incident noted: "if crawford was a person, miami would have probably seen it blush…the ex coast guard cutter received more publicity for smuggling the drugs than for its 20 year coast guard career." may 14 1908 an act of congress (35 stat. l., 160, 162) delegated to the lighthouse board the duty of caring for and maintaining the anchorage buoys previously placed by the united states in the harbors of new york and philadelphia. 1951 uss valcour was rammed by the collier thomas tracy. cgc cherokee responded and assisted in extinguishing the resulting fires and towed the valcour to norfolk. thirty seven navy sailors perished. 1997 the 757 foot containership ever grade collided with cgc cowslip 10 miles upriver from the mouth of the columbia river near astoria, oregon. the buoy tender suffered significant damage from a glancing blow along her port side. visibility at the time was less than 20 yards due to thick fog in the area. the cowslip was repaired and returned to service. 2020 the coast guard cutter thetis (wmec 910) and crew returned to key west on may 14, 2020, after a 65 day caribbean sea patrol in support of coast guard 7th district. thetis worked with coast guard cutters spencer (wmec 905), resolute (wmec 620), raymond evans (wpc 1110), kathleen moore (wpc 110), richard etheridge (wpc 1102), and coast guard air station miami. the cutter thetis’s crew was part of an increased coast guard presence along the north coast of haiti, cuba, and dominican republic to prevent a surge of illegal immigration and human smuggling that could be fueled by covid 19. employing an air station miami mh 65 dolphin helicopter crew, the thetis crew deterred vessels from attempting an illegal exodus. the cutter thetis crew responded to two search and rescue cases and acted as on scene commander in the search for a man reported missing off the motor tanker jialong spirit over 200 miles north of dominican republic. the cutter thetis crew also assisted in the successful evacuation of a crew member with a medical emergency off the motor tanker maersk batam over 100 miles southwest of puerto rico. the cutter thetis crew also conducted training with coast guard air station clearwater mh 60 jayhawk helicopter aircrews to qualify pilots for shipboard operations in preparation for the upcoming hurricane season and with u.s. army mh 6 little bird helicopter aircrews from the special operations aviation training battalion in jacksonville, fl. may 15 1820 congress declared the foreign slave trade to be piracy and instituted the death penalty for any u.s. citizen engaged in the slave trade. 1862 usrc naugatuck participated in bombardment of drewry's bluff (james river) after accompanying uss monitor in its engagement with css virginia and engaging in an attack on sewell’s point. 1931 treasury secretary andrew w. mellon laid the cornerstone of hamilton hall, the first building under construction at the "new" coast guard academy in new london, connecticut. 1934 the white star line passenger vessel rms olympic, in a dense fog, rammed and sank the lightship lv 117 on the nantucket shoals station. olympic, which had been homing in on the lightship's radio beacon very accurately, failed to steer clear in time. seven of the lightship's 11 crewmen were killed. the white star line agreed to fund a new lightship. 1945 on 12 may, the coast guard manned frigate uss forsyth (pf 102) was called off her weather station to search through haze and fog for a german submarine that was attempting to surrender. three days later forsyth joined sutton (de 771) in accepting the surrender of u 234 at 46º 39' n. x 45º 39' w. this submarine was carrying a german technical mission and supplies, including a cargo of uranium, to tokyo. earlier, two japanese passengers on board committed suicide rather than surrender. 1975 cgc modoc seized the polish fishing vessel kalmar 10 miles off monterey, california, for fishing inside the 12 mile limit and escorted her to san francisco. 1996 the coast guard formally closed governors island. the army left the base in the early 1960s and the coast guard took it over on june 3, 1966 as a way to consolidate its operations in the new york area. at the height of coast guard involvement on the island over 4,600 people lived and worked there. 1997 coast guard auxiliarist frank mauro, while assigned to coast guard utb 41351, rescued nine victims who had been forced into the water after the strong current crushed their boat. he was awarded the gold lifesaving medal for his heroic actions. may 16 1846 eleven cutters were assigned to cooperate with army and navy in the mexican war. cutters mclane, legare, woodbury, ewing, forward, and van buren were assigned to the army. cutters wolcott, bibb, morris, and polk were assigned to the navy. 1888 secretary of treasury was authorized to establish anchorage grounds new york harbor, adopt suitable rules, and "take all necessary measures" for their enforcement. 1963 the honorable douglas dillon, secretary of the treasury, at a ceremony at cape may receiving center, awarded life saving medals to three enlisted men of the coast guard in recognition of their heroic action and performance of duty at the risk of their own lives. boatswain's mate first class john c. webb, coxswain of cg 36455 was awarded the gold life saving medal and his crewmen, engineman third class anthony d. lloyd and seaman ray dwayne duerre were each awarded a silver life saving medal. the awards were based on their rescue of three persons from a stranded pleasure craft disabled approximately two miles northwest of cape alava, washington, on june 1, 1962. may 17 1999 the coast guard "kept the peace" when the makah indian tribe hunted and killed a gray whale in neah bay, washington. the makah were guaranteed the right to hunt whales in their 1855 treaty with the u.s. may 18 1920 coast guard officers and enlisted personnel were granted the same pay, allowances and increases as the navy. may 19 1846 secretary of treasury walker assigned revenue captain john a. webster to control movements of vessels assigned to army and to cooperate with the navy in the war with mexico. 1896 congress authorized the secretary of treasury to patrol regattas. 1921 congress passed the "emergency immigration act of 1921" (ch. 8, 42 stat. 5), a quota law that limited the number of migrants in any year to three percent of the number of residents from that country already residing in the u.s. as of 1910. may 20 1882 the lookout of station no. 10 (louisville, kentucky), 9th district, spotted two men and a skiff being swept toward the dam and falls of the ohio river. he sounded the alarm and "a boat at once shot out from the station, and reached the men in time to save them. they were quite ignorant of rowing…and were at the mercy of the flood sweeping towards the dam. they were terribly frightened and profuse in their thanks to their rescuers." 1999 cgc bear arrived in rota, spain. she was deployed to the adriatic sea in support of operation allied force and operation noble anvil, nato's military campaign against the forces of the former republic of yugoslavia. bear served in the uss theodore roosevelt battle group providing surface surveillance and sar response for the sea combat commander, and force protection for the amphibious ready group operating near albania. bear provided combat escort for u.s. army vessel's transporting military cargo between italy and albania. this escort operation took bear up to the albanian coastline, well within enemy surface to surface missile range. may 21 1849 revenue captain douglas ottinger reported completing the construction and furnishing of eight life saving stations on the new jersey coast between sandy hook and little egg inlet, marking the beginning of federal life saving efforts. 1944 the coast guard manned uss lst 69 exploded at pearl harbor. none of her crew were killed, but 13 were seriously injured. 1951 the coast guard announced the formation, within the washington, dc area, of a new organized reserve training unit (vessel augmentation). the mission of this new unit was to develop a force of experienced personnel, well trained in all shipboard billets, with particular emphasis on anti submarine warfare, and the use of radar, radio, and other branches of electronics. training was to be directed towards readying personnel of the unit for immediate assignment to ships of the coast guard and navy in the event of mobilization. 1986 japan's maritime safety agency (msa) vessel settsu arrived in juneau for three days of meetings with 17th district staff members, sar talks, softball games (against the crew of cgc morgenthau   the msa crew won one game out of three), and comparing operational notes. the 348 foot japanese vessel was homeported in kobi, japan. 2013 the commandant, adm robert papp, released the coast guard's arctic strategy report. he noted that this strategy would “guide our efforts in the region over the next 10 years. this strategy is based on nearly 150 years of coast guard experience in maritime operations in the arctic region, since the u.s. revenue cutter lincoln first arrived in the new u.s. territory of alaska in 1867. the u.s. coast guard arctic strategy documents our intent to pursue three key objectives: improving awareness, modernizing governance and broadening partnerships. beyond these objectives, we will continue to build upon our service’s long heritage of leadership in the arctic, working with federal, state, local and territorial partners to ensure maritime governance in the region.” may 22 1920 an act of congress, which provided a system of general retirement for the civil employees of the us government effective august 21, 1920, benefited those employees of the lighthouse service who were not covered by the retirement law of june 20, 1918, which provided retirement for certain classes of employees in the lighthouse service. 1926 an act of congress extended the benefits of the public health service to apply to light keepers located at isolated points, who previously had been unable to avail themselves of such benefits, and made provisions for medical supplies and hospital services for the crews of the vessels of the lighthouse service, including the detail of medical officers. 1959 two us air force jets collided near ocean station echo, patrolled at that time by the cgc mendota. a u.s. air force weather plane spotted both pilots in the water and, within two hours of collision, the mendota rescued them. 1967 cgc barataria conducted the first fire support mission for the newly created coast guard squadron three in vietnam. this force initially consisted of five coast guard 311 footers used to support market time operations. may 23 1928 cgc haida and the uslht cedar rescued 312 passengers and crew from the sailing vessel star of falkland near unimak pass, alaska after star of falkland had run aground in the fog the previous evening. both the cutter and the tender managed to save all but eight from the sailing vessel. this rescue was one of the most successful in coast guard history and was also one of the few instances where the coast guard and one of its future integrated agencies worked together to perform a major rescue. 1930 lieutenant commander elmer f. stone received a medal from congress for extraordinary achievement in making the first successful trans atlantic flight in 1919. stone was the pilot of the navy's nc 4. 1946 commodore edward m. webster, uscg, headed the us delegation to the international meeting on radio aids to marine navigation, which was held in london, england. as a result of this meeting, the principal maritime nations of the world agreed to make an intensive study of the world war ii developed devices of radar, loran, radar beacons, and other navigational aids with a view to adapt them to peacetime use. this was the first time that the wartime technical secrets of radar and loran were generally disclosed to the public. [uscg public information division news release, 7 june 1946.] 1972 president richard nixon and the chairman of the presidium of the supreme soviet of the ussr, n. v. podgorny, signed the "agreement on cooperation in the field of environmental protection between the united states of america and the union of soviet socialist republics." under the agreement, the u.s. coast guard was the lead u.s. agency, in association with the epa and marad, for the task group on prevention and cleanup of pollution of the marine environment from shipping. may 24 1830 navy officers, under furlough from the navy until april 1832, were given commissions in the revenue service. 1941 cgc modoc sighted the german battleship bismarck while the cutter searched for survivors of a convoy southeast of cape farewell, greenland. british swordfish torpedo planes from the royal navy aircraft carrier hms victorious circled modoc as they flew towards the german battleship. modoc's crew then spotted flashes caused by anti aircraft fire from the bismarck and then sighted british warships on the opposite horizon. the cutter then maneuvered to avoid contact with any of the warships and managed to steam out of the area unscathed. 1977 the coast guard issued a request for female volunteers to serve afloat on board cutters as members of the cutters' permanent crew. beginning in late september of that year the first of 24 women chosen for afloat assignments began reporting on board the cgcs gallatin and morgenthau as members of their permanent crew. twelve women   two officers and 10 enlisted   served on board each cutter. may 25 1877 the training of first class of revenue cutter cadets began on the school ship dobbin at curtis bay, maryland, with nine cadets, three officers, one surgeon, six warrant officers, and 17 crew members on board. 1963 the first of the new class of 210 foot cutters, cgc reliance (wpc 615, later wmec 615), was christened at todd shipyard, houston, texas. the wife of the commandant at the time, mrs. edwin j. roland, was the sponsor for the cutter. a news report published at the time noted: "the cgc reliance, to be stationed at corpus christi, texas, marks a significant milestone in the building program of the coast guard as it is the first cruising cutter of any size built for coast guard service in almost twenty years." 2020 cgc diligence departed wilmington, north carolina for the last time. the cutter spent the previous 28 years homeported on wilmington’s historic downtown riverwalk, along the bank of the cape fear river. may 26 1906 congress passed an act to regulate enlistments and punishments in revenue cutter service was passed. 1924 congress passed the "immigration act of 1924," (pub. l. 68 139; 43 stat. 153) that limited the number of immigrants annually who could be admitted to the u.s. to two percent of the number of people from that country who were already living in the u.s. in 1890. this was a one percent reduction from the three percent limit established by congress in 1921. 1988 admiral paul yost, commandant, explained the new "zero tolerance" initiative to congress's subcommittee on the coast guard and navigation. yost noted: "the coast guard zero tolerance policy is that, subject to statutory and jurisdictional limitations, individuals possessing measurable quantities of controlled substances aboard vessels will be subject to the full extent of available criminal and civil sanctions…zero tolerance means that the coast guard, in the course of its regular patrols, boardings and inspections, will now, within the limits of the law, seize vessels and arrest individuals when 'personal use' quantities of illegal drugs are discovered." 1995 the secretary of transportation authorized the involuntary recall of 300 reservists to assist in the relief efforts in the midwest after the missouri and mississippi rivers flooded. however, only 143 were called to duty. (see the may 2, 1995 entry.) may 27 1796 congress passed "an act relative to quarantine" and assigned "officers. . .[of the] revenue cutters, to aid in the execution of quarantine, and also in the execution of the health laws of the states." this act was repealed with the 1799 act (1 stat. l., 619). 1919 the u.s. navy's flying boat nc 4, piloted by first lieutenant elmer f. stone, uscg, landed in the tagus river estuary near lisbon, portugal on may 27, 1919, thereby completing the first successful trans atlantic flight. stone was decorated that same day by the portuguese government with the order of the tower and sword. 1936 public law 622 reorganized and changed the name of the bureau of navigation and steamboat inspection service to bureau of marine inspection and navigation (49 stat. l., 1380). the bureau remained under commerce department control. 1943 douglas munro's posthumous medal of honor was given to douglas munro's parents, mr. and mrs. james munro of south cle elum, washington, by president franklin d. roosevelt in a ceremony at the white house on thursday, may 27, 1943. the citation read: "awarded posthumously to douglas albert munro, signalman first class, u.s. coast guard 'for extraordinary heroism and conspicuous gallantry in action above and beyond the call of duty as office in charge of a group of higgins boats, engaged in the evacuation of a battalion of marines trapped by enemy japanese forces at point cruz, guadalcanal, on september 27, 1942. after making preliminary plans for the evacuation of nearly 500 beleaguered marines, munro, under constant risk of his life, daringly led five of his small craft toward the shore. as he closed the beach, he [signaled] the others to land, and then in order to draw the enemy's fire and protect the heavily loaded boats, he valiantly placed his craft with its two small guns as a shield between the beachhead and the japanese. when the perilous task of evacuation was nearly completed, munro was killed by enemy fire, but his crew, two of whom were wounded, carried on until the last boat had loaded and cleared the beach. by his outstanding leadership, expert planning, and dauntless devotion to duty, he and his courageous comrades undoubtedly saved the lives of many who otherwise would have perished. he gallantly gave up his life in defense of his country.'" 1954 the aircraft carrier uss bennington (cv 20), with about 2,000 persons aboard, suffered an explosion and fire 35 miles south of brenton reef lightship, injuring some 100 persons. u.s. coast guard aircraft from salem air station and quonset point proceeded to the scene, assisted in transporting medical personnel to bennington and provided air cover for all helicopter operations. one of the coast guard’s helicopters made seven landings aboard the aircraft carrier and transported 18 injured to the hospital; another transported 14 injured. 1965 coast guard squadron one was commissioned for service with operation market time in vietnam. 1996 while on leave, coast guardsman kevin s. degroot rescued 12 people who had been thrown into the water when their boat capsized. for his "extreme and heroic daring" that day, he was awarded the gold life saving medal. 2008 cgc dallas departed charleston, south carolina for a planned 4 1/2 month deployment to conduct maritime safety and security exchanges with countries along the central and west coasts of africa, the mediterranean, and the black sea. it was an historic voyage that included delivering relief supplies to georgia after that country was attacked by russia in "operation assured delivery (she was the second u.s. military ship to deliver relief supplies to georgia) and a port visit to sevastopol, ukraine. may 28 1813 revenue cutterman john bearbere died of pneumonia while being held as a prisoner of war by the british after his cutter, james madison, was captured by the royal navy frigate hms barbadoes near savannah, georgia on november 24, 1812 during the war of 1812. he was one of five crewmen captured aboard the cutter who died in captivity. james madison had only recently captured and seized the 300 ton, six gun british brig shamrock in july 1812. 1938 cgc icarus, patrol boats cg 176 and cg 135 as well as motor lifeboats from stations rockaway point and sandy hook responded to a distress call after the collision of two vessels, the ss acadia and ss mandalay, in new york harbor. the coast guard vessels safely transported to new york city all 325 passengers and crew from the mandalay which sank soon after the collision. 1947 the coast guard announced the disestablishment of all u.s. coast guard merchant marine details in foreign ports. during world war ii, a total of 36 foreign merchant marine details had been activated for the purpose of performing "on the spot" services in connection with the preventive aspects of safety of life and property of the us merchant marine. these functions reverted to the continental u.s. ports in which there were located u.s. marine inspection offices. the merchant marine details disestablished were located in the following ports: antwerp, belgium; bremerhaven, germany; london, england; cardiff, wales; le havre, france; marseille, france; naples, italy; piraeus, greece; shanghai, china; manila, philippine islands; and trieste, venezia giulia. 1984 the first marine safety information system (msis) module was deployed coast guard wide. the port safety module replaced the interim msis system, first established when the port and tanker safety act of 1978 was passed, to provide field units with vessel histories. the replacement module was vital in the day to day execution of port safety and marine violation functions. may 29 1995 a request from the commander in chief of naval forces europe led to the deployment of cgc dallas, under the command of captain joseph jones, uscg, to the mediterranean. dallas departed governors island on may 29, 1995 and visited ports throughout the mediterranean and black sea, including istanbul and samsun in turkey; durres, albania; varna, bulgaria; constanta, romania; koper, slovenia; taranto, italy; and bizerte, tunisia. the crew trained with naval and coast guard forces in each country. she deployed for a few days with the sixth fleet and served as a plane guard for the uss theodore roosevelt. the crew was also able to coordinate schedules with six nato and non nato nations to conduct boardings. she returned to the u.s. in august and arrived at governors island on august 28, 1995. may 30 1767 the charleston lighthouse was built on morris island, south carolina. the first stone of the tower was laid on this date. 1996 the 8th and 2nd coast guard districts were combined to form the new 8th coast guard district. 1996 cgc yocona was decommissioned in kodiak, alaska. yocona had been in coast guard service since 1946. may 31 1947 authority of the u.s. coast guard for the establishment and disestablishment of prohibited, restricted, and anchorage areas, conferred by the espionage act (50 u.s.c. 191) and proclamation no. 2412 of june 27, 1940 was terminated by proclamation no. 2732, signed by the president on this date. 1948 the coast guard assumed command of the former navy base at cape may, new jersey, and formally established its east coast recruit training center there the next day. 1963 the commandant authorized the disestablishment of light station alcatraz, california. 1983 former world heavyweight boxing champion jack dempsey passed away at the age of 87. he served in the coast guard during world war ii and achieved the rank of commander. 1988 the first search and rescue agreement with the soviet union was signed at a summit in moscow. the agreement set a general line, or boundary, separating sar regions and provided for exchange visits to sar coordination centers in both countries, joint sar exercises, and regular communication checks. 1988 cgc fir became the oldest cutter in commission after cgc ingham was decommissioned this day in 1988. 2009 cgc boutwell arrived in the port of tubruq, libya, during its around the world cruise, becoming the first u.s. military ship to visit libya in more than 40 years. 2013 coast guard group humboldt bay, the coast guard command responsible for operations from the california oregon border south to the mendocino sonoma county line, was renamed coast guard sector humboldt bay during a formal ceremony. june 1 1874 the light was first lit at spectacle reef lighthouse, located on a limestone reef at the northern end of lake huron, near the straits of mackinac, ten miles from land. the structure of this lighthouse was similar to that of minots ledge, and its construction was "a notable engineering work." 1941 the navy organized the south greenland patrol. it consisted of three cutters and a navy vessel. 1946 the coast guard returned to operation under the treasury department after the end of world war ii. 1948 the coast guard training center at cape may, new jersey, was established as a receiving center for the initial classification, outfitting, and indoctrination of recruits. the primary reason for this move from the training station at mayport, florida, which was then be decommissioned, was to locate more centrally the service's facilities for handling recruits. 2022 adm linda l. fagan is sworn in by potus, as the 27th commandant of the united states, first woman leader of the coast guard, and first female uniformed lead of a us military service. june 2 1882 at 1600 in the afternoon of 2 june 1882 a young man named john kramer, twenty two years of age, fell off the harbor pier at kenosha, wisconsin, while fishing. his cries for help were heard by surfman mahoney of station 13, eleventh district, who ran to his aid and found him clinging to the pier, but just on the point of letting go, being unable to maintain his hold longer. the stout surfman had a hard time to get him up on the pier, which was six feet high from the water, but stuck to the work and succeeded, saving the young man's life. june 3 1882 at 8 in the morning, the three masted schooner j.p. decamdres, bound for milwaukee with a cargo of cord wood and railroad ties, stranded about one mile north of the life saving station at the entrance to milwaukee harbor (no. 15, eleventh district) and became a total wreck. her crew of six men and a passenger were rescued by the lifesaving crew. 1941 president franklin d. roosevelt signed an executive order making 2,100 us coast guard officers and men available to man four transports, uss leonard wood, hunter liggett, joseph t. dickman, and wakefield, along with 22 other ships manned by us navy personnel. 1982 uss farragut towed two vessels seized by the coast guard to san juan, puerto rico, marking the first time that a navy ship took an active role in law enforcement and the interdiction of drug smuggling in the caribbean. june 4 1963 uss asterion and ss kokoku maru collided in a heavy fog 40 miles west of san francisco, killing one crewman of the latter ship and injuring three others. the coast guard cutters magnolia, comanche, avoyel, and patrol boat cg 95311, as well as two commercial tugs, converged on the scene. comanche and magnolia successfully removed all 43 survivors from the disabled kokoku maru, all of whom were subsequently delivered safely ashore. although asterion was able to proceed under its own power, the japanese ship had to be towed by the commercial tugs to san francisco. when the bilge pumps on one of the tugs failed, coast guard aircraft dropped emergency pumping equipment to control the flooding. the two tugs then successfully towed the kokoku maru into san francisco harbor. 1966 coast guard explosive loading detachments (elds) 1 & 2 arrived in south vietnam and were assigned to u.s. army logistics commands. 2023 cgc dependable (wmec 626) returned to its home port in virginia beach on sunday, 4 june 2023, following a 42 day patrol in the florida straits and windward passage. dependable’s crew contributed to the interdiction, care and repatriation of over 300 migrants while patrolling the seventh coast guard district’s area of responsibility in support of operation vigilant sentry and homeland security taskforce   southeast. while operating in the florida straits, dependable was supported by multiple coast guard air assets to interdict two known drug smugglers in the vicinity of the old bahama channel. dependable’s small boat crew stopped the vessel and embarked the smugglers. over 1,100 pounds of contraband was recovered, making this the first drug bust for the cutter in more than three years. throughout the patrol, dependable also collaborated with numerous other coast guard and partner assets, including a coast guard law enforcement detachment embarked on the navy ship uss little rock. “the crew has been training to conduct migrant interdiction operations since july 2022,” said lcdr dana prefer, dependable’s executive officer. “in preparation for the recent uptick in maritime migration ventures, we worked hard to qualify over 50 crew members to provide security and care for the migrants embarked aboard the cutter. all the training and preparation paid off as it was truly a team effort to interdict, process, and care for the well being of migrants throughout our patrol.” june 5 1794 the third congress authorized an additional 10 revenue cutters and gave the treasury department the responsibility for lighthouses, beacons, buoys, and piers. 1912 senator charles e. townsend of michigan introduced a bill to consolidate life saving service and revenue cutter service to form the coast guard. the bill became law on january 28, 1915. 1975 ens thomasania montgomery and ens linda rodriguez graduated from coast guard officer candidate school, yorktown, va, thereby becoming the first african american female commissioned officers in the coast guard. june 6 1900 secretary of the treasury was authorized to establish anchorage grounds at kennebec river, maine. 1912 the novarupta katmai volcano erupted near kodiak, alaska, from june 6 9, 1912. revenue cutter manning and other cutters as well as personnel assisted in relief efforts, including providing fresh water to the inhabitants of kodiak, distributing relief supplies, and building a new village for the displaced inhabitants. the new village was named perry after the commanding officer of manning, revenue captain k. w. perry, usrcs. captain perry also established a refugee camp for persons displaced by the falling ash. 1944 nearly 100 coast guard cutters, coast guard manned warships and landing craft participated in the invasion of nazi occupied europe at normandy, france. the coast guard manned landing craft lci(l)s 85, 91, 92, and 93 were lost at the omaha beachhead that day. sixty cutters sailed in support of the invasion forces as well, acting as search and rescue craft for each of the five landing beaches. a coast guard manned assault transport, the uss bayfield, served as the command and control vessel for the landings at utah beach. coast guard officers commanded one of the assault groups that landed troops on omaha beach that morning. 1945 coast guard manned uss sheepscot (aog 24) went aground and was lost off iwo jima. no lives were lost. 1977 coast guard recruiting officers were directed to advise all women applicants that women were "now subject to possible assignments to sea and isolated duty. in line with this change in policy, all women enlisted personnel who are approaching reenlistment, and all women officers reaching three years of service before an extension/integration board, should be aware that they too will be subject to unrestricted assignments to sea and isolated duty as the needs of the coast guard require," according to a coast guard official announcement. 1985 cgc polar sea departed seattle for a voyage through the northwest passage by way of the panama canal, the east coast, and then greenland, sparking an international incident with canada. she completed the first solo circumnavigation of the north american continent by a u.s. vessel and the first trip by a polar class icebreaker. she also captured the record for the fastest transit of the historic northern route. she arrived back in seattle on october 27, 1985. 1993 the 150 foot tramp steamer golden venture ran aground on rockaway beach in new york with some 300 illegal chinese migrants on board. ten drowned or died of hypothermia, six vanished, and the rest were rescued by the coast guard and local agencies. 2013 the coast guard today placed an order for sixteen cutter boat over the horizon ivs (cb oth iv) and associated parts and logistics information from safe boats international llc of bremerton, washington. 2023 a coast guard team from airsta barbers point returned from a mission supporting storm relief efforts on guam following typhoon mawar. cg district 14 reported 31 coast guard personnel out of airsta barbers point, supported by three aircraft, clocked 97.3 hours of flight time, transported 396,231 pounds of cargo and 169 passengers. during their relief efforts the team completed 19 “vital missions” across 33 sorties. a major task for the barbers point team was delivering supplies to rota, an island of about 1,890 people in the commonwealth of the northern mariana islands   a u.s. territory neighboring guam that was also hit by the typhoon. june 7 1902 the alaskan game law was passed and it was to be enforced by the revenue cutter service "on request" of the secretary of agriculture. it was not effectively enforced by coast guard until 1925, however. 1924 congress passed the oil pollution act and the enforcement responsibility was assigned to the coast guard. 2011 the coast guard awarded four firm fixed price production contracts to deliver the first test boats for the seven meter cutter boat over the horizon iv (cb oth iv) project. the contracts were awarded to metalcraft marine u.s. (clayton, new york), safe boats international (port orchard, washington), silver ships, inc. (theodore, alabama), and william e. munson company (burlington, washington). the coast guard planned to acquire up to 71 seven meter cb oth ivs. the acquisition also included up to 20 boats for customs and border protection and 10 boats for the u.s. navy, for a total of up to 101 boats. safe boats won the competition. june 8 1882 the sloop rigged yacht circe, of cleveland, was dismasted at 1 o’clock in the afternoon about a mile outside of cleveland harbor. the crew of station no. 8, ninth district (cleveland), discovered the accident and towed her safely into the harbor. 1973 the first women since world war ii graduated from the reserve officer candidate program (ocs) and were commissioned ensigns. they trained aboard cgc unimak for a two week cruise, thereby becoming the first women to see service afloat. june 9 1910 congress passed the motor boat act (public law 61 201, 36 stat. 462). the federal authority to regulate uninspected vessels originated with the passage of this act, which established standards with respect to navigation lights, machinery requirements, life preservers, and for the licensing of operators on small vessels (under 65 feet in length) carrying passengers. it applied only to vessels "that are propelled by machinery other than steam." 1968 lt jack c. rittichier was shot down and killed in action along with his air force crew while flying a combat sar mission as an exchange pilot with the air force's 37th aerospace rescue and recovery squadron (arrs) in vietnam. 1990 the 853 foot norwegian tanker mega borg exploded near galveston, texas, killing two of her crew. coast guard units consisting of 500 coast guardsmen fought the fires and cleaned up the resulting oil spill. the units included cgcs buttonwood, point spencer, steadfast, valiant, and cushing. steadfast became the on scene commander and maintained communications between the operations center at mso galveston and personnel fighting the fire. salvia worked with navy skimmers seven miles from shore in the sabine pass area. the atlantic and pacific strike teams brought people and equipment from across the country and msos in houston, mobile, morgan city, new orleans, and port arthur sent personnel to assist mso galveston. 2001 coast guard group operations center in galveston, texas, was inundated with calls for assistance after tropical storm allison dumped over 36 inches of rain in a three day period, causing massive flooding in and around houston. coast guard flood punts and helicopters rescued over 220 persons. 2009 the u.s. coast guard’s first national security cutter, bertholf (wmsl 750), conducted a structural test fire of its missile decoy launching system in the southern california operations area of the pacific missile range facilit. the crew of cgc bertholf, the naval surface warfare center dahlgren division, and the navy research lab successfully launched two rounds from the nulka anti ship missile defense system. these mk 234 nulka rounds hover in the air while attracting incoming anti ship missiles. this is the first time that a nulka round has been launched from a coast guard cutter. the successful completion of the test fire was the first phase of the crew’s two month multi mission patrol which includes a counter drug patrol in the eastern pacific under the tactical control of commander, joint interagency task force south for detection and monitoring, and under the tactical control of commander, coast guard district eleven for interdiction and apprehension. 2013 cgc gallatin returned to homeport of charleston, south carolina following a successful three and a half month patrol in counter drug missions, search and rescue, maritime exercises, and community outreach. gallatin’s counterdrug operations for this patrol resulted in the collective seizure of more than 2,200 pounds of cocaine and 3,500 lbs. of marijuana. gallatin's patrol highlights include: three cocaine seizures and four go fast vessel disruptions; transfer of marijuana seized may 10 by a coast guard law enforcement detachment aboard the royal netherlands navy vessel hnmls friesland; search and rescue mission of passengers aboard a sinking panga march 15; maritime exercises and professional exchange missions with dutch naval vessel hnmls friesland and u.s. navy’s mayport, florida based hsv swift; and port calls in guantanamo bay, cuba; bocas del toro, panama; and roatan, honduras. during the port calls, gallatin’s crew enthusiastically worked several community outreach projects which included ship tours for more than 400 school children and their teachers in guantanamo bay and roatan. the crew also painted, plumbed, and did electrical work in local hospitals and churches. june 10 1872 congress ordered that life saving stations were to be erected "under supervision of two captains of the revenue service." an act of congress authorized government life saving stations on cape cod and block island. 1922 congress readjusted pay and allowances of coast guard commissioned and enlisted personnel on basis of equality with other services. until this time a coast guard captain was equivalent to a navy lieutenant commander. 2020 the command, control, communications, computers, and information technology service center (c4itsc) was disestablished and the command, control, communications, computers, cyber, and intelligence service center (c5isc) was established at a commissioning ceremony held on 10 june 2020 on grounds of the coast guard property in alexandria, va, formerly known as uscg washington radio station (nmh) and later tiscom. the facility was formerly renamed cogard c5isc alexandria va. june 11 1764 sandy hook lighthouse, at the south point of the entrance to new york harbor, was first lighted. today, its octagonal tower, built by mr. isaac conro of new york city with money collected by a group of new york merchants, is the oldest original light tower still standing and in use in the united states. 1942 after the battle of midway, cgc taney anchored at midway island after escorting uss regulus (ak 14) there. for the next four days taney conducted sar operations in the waters around midway, the island itself, and then "went out into the pacific ocean to look for survivors reported by plane." taney departed midway island on june 16 and escorted regulus back to honolulu. 1966 finding itself disabled and adrift two miles from cape kubugakli, alaska, the fishing vessel katy c radioed for assistance. a coast guard helicopter, after ascertaining that the ship was unable to anchor by herself, took her in tow until she was out of danger. june 12 1813 revenue cutter surveyor, at anchor in the york river, virginia, was surprised by a three barge attack force launched from the royal navy frigate hms narcissus. outnumbered 50 to 15, the cuttermen wounded seven and killed three of the enemy before the cutter was captured. the british commanding officer of narcissus was so impressed by "the determined way in which her deck was disputed, inch by inch," in hand to hand combat, he returned to revenue captain william travis, the commanding officer of surveyor, "the sword you had so nobly used." 1917 an act of congress appropriated $300,000 to enable the u .s. coast guard to extend its telephone system to include all coast guard stations not then connected as well as the most important light stations with no means of rapid communication. the life saving service had pioneered the use of the telephone beginning in the 1880s, linking the various stations along the nation's coast with the new communication device. 1925 lake huron lightship radio fog signal was placed in commission, being the first signal of this kind on the great lakes. 1942 the u.s. navy makes its first operational test with loran equipment with a loran receiver mounted in a k 2 airship on a flight from lakehurst naval air station. 1975 cgc vigorous seized the bulgarian f/v argonaut off the coast of new england. more than 500 pounds of lobster were reported found aboard the fishing vessel by the coast guard boarding party. lobster was protected from foreign fishing by the continental shelf fishery resource law. 1999 the small cruise vessel wilderness adventurer ran aground in glacier bay national park in alaska. all passengers and crew were safely evacuated from the stranded vessel. the responders from the alaska department of environmental conservation, coast guard, and glacier bay tours and cruises (which operated the vessel) then successfully refloated her and towed her to drydock. oil containment booms contained the 300 gallons of fuel that leaked from the vessel. a coast guard spokesman later stated "this is the best run multi agency operation i've seen in my career. it went well. we still have a damaged vessel to take care of, but at least it's not at the bottom of the ocean in a national park." the coast guard also investigated the accident. june 13 1903 a gold lifesaving medal was awarded to captain robert f. longstreet "for heroic conduct at squan beach, new jersey," for his efforts to rescue five fishermen from their capsized vessel on june 13, 1903. the heavily   laden vessel was observed to capsize in "heavy breaking surf caused the heavy ground swell and strong southerly wind, following a storm which had just passed along the coast." observers went to the squan beach life   saving station for help, but because it was the inactive season, only captain longstreet was present. nevertheless, he launched a small skiff with the help of a fisherman and rowed out the fishing vessel. 1929 coast guard radio technician a. g. descoteaux became the first person to broadcast from an aircraft. in a loening amphibian, he reported the takeoff of a french aircraft on a trans atlantic flight at old orchard beach, maine. the account was relayed by ground equipment to an extensive national hookup and was received by u.s. and foreign listeners. 1933 lt richard l. burke piloted a seaplane from airsta cape may to rescue an ill seaman from the fishing trawler shawmut 130 miles offshore. he was awarded the distinguished flying cross for this rescue. 1942 coast guardsman john c. cullen (seaman 2/c) discovered nazi saboteurs landing on beach at amagansett, long island. he reported this to his superiors. the fbi later captured the nazis and cullen was awarded the legion of merit. 1942 cgc thetis sank the german u boat u 157 off the florida keys. there were no survivors. 1943 cgc escanaba exploded and sank off ivigtut, greenland, with only two survivors. the cause for the loss has never been confirmed. 2023 the navy organized coast guard port security unit (psu) 305 members conducted a casing of the colors ceremony at naval base guantanamo bay tuesday, marking the end of the coast guard’s 21 year mission supporting joint task force guantanamo (jtf gtmo). coast guard commandant admiral linda fagan presided over the historical ceremony and presented a coast guard unit commendation award to the men and women of psu 305. port security units are part of the coast guard’s deployable specialized forces and have served jtf gtmo as the maritime security detachment (marsecdet) for over 21 years. the virginia based psu 305 was the first psu deployed to guantanamo bay in 2002 in support of operation enduring freedom, and this tour completes their fifth unit eployment. “thanks to the quiet resolve and careful watch of our port security units for the past 21 years, the work our nation has conducted here has been done safely and securely,” said fagan during the ceremony. coast guard psus and maritime safety and security teams have provided maritime anti terrorism force protection for jtf gtmo since 2002. there have been 39 unit rotations to guantanamo bay since the coast guard began supporting the mission. the men and women assigned to the marsecdet collectively provided over 200,000 underway hours conducting around the clock waterside patrols and over 50,000 hours of shoreside anti terrorism and force protection defense security to department of defense assets and personnel at naval station guantanamo bay. upon the conclusion of the jtf gtmo mission, psus will continue to remain an agile expeditionary force provider, playing a critical role in protecting strategic maritime operations in an environment of increasing global competition. in addition, psus will participate in national level joint and combined exercises to enhance readiness and proficiency for the full spectrum of psu capabilities. “this is an exciting time for the psu community” said capt. matthew michaelis, pacific area deputy chief of operations. “as the focus shifts from a long standing enduring mission, we look forward to supporting future missions that align with their diverse set of capabilities. our psus recently completed three joint dod exercises and are preparing for additional exercises overseas with dod and some of our trusted partners. the increased focus on interoperability will better prepare our psus to deploy in a joint or multi lateral environment as they were designed, while also creating opportunities to evolve and uncover new and novel ways for their employment.”. june 14 1775 the official birthday of the u.s. army: it was on this date in 1775 that the continental congress adopted "the american continental army." the army's motto is: "this we’ll defend." 1906 congress passed the first regulatory fishing law for alaska. the new law was enforced by the revenue cutter service. 1941 cgc duane rescued 46 survivors from the torpedoed ss tresillian. 1979 the coast guard announced the award of a $215 million contract for 90 short range recovery (srr) helicopters to aerospatiale helicopter corporation of grand prairie, texas. 1996 cgc mellon seized the polish fishing vessel admiral arciszewski after it was found to be illegally fishing in u.s. waters 385 miles northwest of dutch harbor. cgc steadfast escorted the fishing vessel into kodiak. june 15 1904 nearly 1,000 lives were lost when the steamboat general slocum caught fire in the east river in new york. the disaster led to improved safety regulations and life saving equipment. 1917 congress passed and president woodrow wilson signed into law the espionage act, authorizing the treasury secretary to assume control of u.s. ports, control ship movements, establish anchorages, and supervise the loading and storage of explosive cargoes. the authority was immediately delegated to the coast guard and formed the basis for the formation of the coast guard's captain of the ports and the port security program. 1944 coast guardsmen participated in the invasion of saipan, marianas. the coast guard manned transports that took part in the invasion included the uss cambria, arthur middleton, callaway, leonard wood, lst 19, lst 23, lst 166, and lst 169. 1949 two hundred and forty eight unidentified victims of the 1945 explosion of the u.s. coast guard manned serpens at guadalcanal were buried in arlington national cemetery in what was described as the largest recommittal on record. 1986 upon assuming the office of commandant on may 30, 1986, adm paul yost banned the wearing of beards by coast guard personnel, to be effective on june 15, 1986. 2009 law enforcement officers from the 14th coast guard district reported aboard the uss crommelin (ffg 37) to support u.s. coast guard fisheries enforcement in oceania in an operation called the "fight for fish" mission. it marked the first time a navy warship was utilized "to transit the western pacific enforcing fishing regulations in a joint effort with the coast guard to stop illegal fishing in this region." june 16 1880 an act of congress (21 stat. l., 259, 263) provided that "masters of light house tenders shall have police powers in matters pertaining to government property and smuggling." 1966 the freighter alva cape and tanker texaco massachusetts collided in new york harbor near third coast guard district headquarters on governor's island. thirty three crewmen perished in the ensuing explosion. coast guard units responded and the rescue effort garnered significant national media attention. 1974 romana borrego (dubinka) became the first known hispanic american woman to enlist in the active duty coast guard. on 1 aug 1988 borrego earned promotion to ync, becoming first hispanic american woman service member to advance to e 7. and on 1 oct 1998, borrego earned promotion to yncs and was the first hispanic american woman to reach e8. 2015 cgc spencer returned to boston after a 55 day patrol in the north atlantic. while conducting a law enforcement inspection aboard the commercial f/v heritage, on june 6, spencer’s rescue and assistance team fought and helped extinguish a fire ablaze in their galley. also during the patrol, spencer responded to a distress call from the s/v alien i, 300 nautical miles offshore. after steaming through the night, spencer arrived on scene, rescued the couple onboard, and placed the vessel in tow. spencer towed the vessel for 300 miles and delivered alien i and her passengers safely to coast guard station woods hole three days later. after breaking the tow, spencer resumed normal operations in the north atlantic which is primarily living marine resource protection. during its patrol, the cutter’s crew conducted law enforcement operations including 51 commercial fishing vessel inspections, day and night time helicopter operations, and live gunnery fire. the crew conducted hours of training in damage control, weapons handling, navigation and seamanship, medical casualty, and engineering casualty response. additionally, spencer was the coast guard's flag ship and largest cutter participant in new york fleet week 2015, giving tours to more than 4,800 people and supporting 13 fleet week community events. this patrol directly followed an 89 day dry dock at the coast guard yard in baltimore, maryland. june 17 1832 the practice of utilizing "surplus" naval officers as officers of the revenue marine was discontinued. revenue officer vacancies were henceforth filled by promotion from within the service. 1910 an act of congress (36 stat. l., 534) abolished the lighthouse board and created the bureau of lighthouses to have complete charge of the lighthouse service. this law constituted the organic act under which the lighthouse service operated thereafter. 1942 the commander in chief, u.s. fleet ordered the organization of coastal pickets to combat the "submarine menace" off the atlantic coast. the hodge podge fleet of primarily small private recreational craft taken into government service under coast guard direction became known as the "corsair fleet." 1983 national narcotics border interdiction system (nnbis) began operations under the direction of vice president george bush and the executive board consisting of secretaries of state, transportation and defense, the attorney general, the counselor to the president, the director of central intelligence, and the director of the white house drug abuse policy office. "u.s. army, air force, navy, and marine corps airborne and seaborne craft, intelligence, technology, surveillance, and manpower now are used to augment operations by the u.s. coast guard, customs service, the drug enforcement agency, federal bureau of investigation, immigration and naturalization service, border patrol, and the u.s. attorney's office. the system provides a coordinated national and international interagency network for prioritizing interdiction targets, identifying resources, recommending the most effective action, and coordinating joint special actions." 2013 the coast guard 13th district and the royal canadian mounted police "e" division signed a finalized agreement for the pacific region integrated cross border maritime law enforcement program, known as "shiprider," during a ceremony at the peace arch provincial park in british columbia, canada. shiprider was a program that enabled specially trained officials from both nations to pursue or interdict suspected criminals transiting across the shared maritime border. the concept of shiprider was first introduced in 2005. a version of the agreement proved successful during the winter olympic games in vancouver, british columbia, in 2010. june 18 1812 the united states declared war against great britain. 1838 the steamboat pulaski, a passenger vessel traveling between baltimore and charleston, suffered a boiler explosion while at sea, killing over 100 passengers and crew. this was one of three fatal steamboat boiler explosions within as many months that forced the federal government to begin regulating merchant steam vessels. 1878 congress established the u.s. life saving service as a separate agency under the control of the treasury department (20 stat. l., 163). 1878 the 45th congress enacted a rider on an army appropriations bill that became known as the posse comitatus act [chapter 263, section 15, u.s. statutes, vol. 20.] this act limited military involvement in civil law enforcement leaving the revenue cutter service as the only military force consistently charged with federal law enforcement on the high seas and in u.s. waters. the rider prohibited the use of the army in domestic civilian law enforcement without constitutional or congressional authority. the use of the navy was prohibited by regulation and the rider was amended in 1976 outlawing the use of the air force. in 1981, however, new legislation allowed the secretary of defense to bring army, navy, air force, and marine corps support to civilian authorities in intelligence, equipment, base and research facilities, and related training. 1903 alaska’s first coastal lighthouse, scotch cap lighthouse, was first lit. it was located near the west end of unimak island on the pacific side of unimak pass, the main passage through the aleutian islands into the bering sea. 1930 an act of congress provided "for the transfer of the old lighthouse at cape henry, virginia, to the association for the preservation of virginia antiquities." 1938 the first low power, unattended "secondary" radio aid to navigation was established at st. ignace, michigan. 1961 an explosion in the power room of the stannard rock lighthouse killed po1c william maxwell, one of the four coast guardsmen at the station at that time. 1995 the 736 foot cruise ship celebration suffered an engine room fire and lost power while off the coast of san salvador, bahamas. cgc forward responded and was designated as the on scene commander. cgc vigorous was also diverted to lend assistance. the cruise ship's halon system put out the fire but she was drifting dangerously close to shore. the forward then towed her throughout the night away from shore until the arrival of commercial tugs the next day. a coast guard helicopter medevaced one passenger. on june 20 the crew of the forward and mso miami team members stood by while the 1,735 passengers still aboard were transferred from the celebration to the cruise ship ecstasy, which had arrived in the area. the ecstasy then sailed for miami and the celebration, with one engine then on line, sailed to freeport for repairs. 1999 cgc midgett departed its homeport of seattle for a six month deployment to the persian gulf. midgett was attached to a navy carrier battle group and its crew brought the coast guard's expertise in boarding ships to the group. once in the gulf, the cutter's primary mission was to enforce united nations' sanctions against illegal iraq petroleum shipments and conduct sar operations. june 19 1845 the secretary of the treasury had lieutenants thornton a. jenkins and richard bache detailed from the navy and sent abroad to procure information that might tend to the improvement of the lighthouse system of the united states. subsequently, when the secretary submitted the report of these two naval officers and asked that a board be appointed to consider thoroughly the matter of lighthouse improvements. no legislative action resulted. 1876 the first gold life saving medals ever awarded were presented to private citizens lucien m. clemens and his brothers hubbard m. clemons and al j. clemons. on may 1, 1875 the clemens' brothers "displayed the most signal gallantry in saving two men from the wreck of the schooner consuelo" in an open rowboat. five others on board the schooner perished when the schooner capsized in the heavy seas "with the wind blowing a gale from the northeast" before the brothers arrived on scene. the medals were awarded by the treasury department. 1992 in a joint operation with ins, the coast guard assisted in the seizure of the 167 foot belize registered freighter lucky no. 1, her 15 man crew, and 117 illegal chinese migrants that were aboard. the seizure took place off oahu. 2008 the u.s. coast guard announced the launch of an orbcomm concept demonstration satellite, equipped with automatic identification system (ais) capability, from kapustin yar, russia. the satellite attained a proper orbit was expected to start transmitting operational data within the next three months. the u.s. coast guard nationwide automatic identification system (nais) project sponsored equipment on the satellite to test the feasibility and effectiveness of ais message reception and reporting from space for ship tracking and other navigational activities. the nais project improved maritime domain awareness for the u.s. coast guard and department of homeland security by using the integrated network of ais equipment and user interface services that display and exchange ais equipped vessel information for maritime safety and security. data collected by the nais supports the nation’s maritime interests by promoting vessel and port safety through collision avoidance, and through detection, traffic identification, and classification of vessels out to 2,000 nautical miles from shore. 2014 cgc tahoma returned to its homeport in portsmouth, new hampshire after a 64 day deployment in the caribbean sea. during the deployment, the 100 member crew of tahoma worked under tactical control of coast guard sector san juan, puerto rico, conducted flight operations, patrolled drug and migration, conducted sea boarding, and assisted in the transfer or repatriation of 26 haitian migrants. the crew also participated in training and law enforcement operations, migrant interdiction and counterdrug operations in support of operation unified resolve, and conducted tailored ship’s training availability (tsta). the crewmembers completed a total of 148 drills and exercises, earning the prestigious battle “e” for excellence in five areas of professional expertise. june 20 1874 an act of congress provided for lifesaving stations on the coasts of delaware, maryland, virginia, and florida, as well as on the great lakes and the pacific coast. 1874 the first life saving medal enactment was passed, which was updated in 1878 and 1882. ship masters were also required to report accidents and death in order to gather data to aid in evaluating sites for search and rescue stations. 1906 congress passed the sponge fishing act and directed that the revenue cutter service enforce it. 1918 an act of congress (40 stat. l., 607, 608) changed the designation of lighthouse inspectors, who were in charge of the 19 lighthouse districts, to that of superintendents of lighthouses. 1964 cgc reliance, the first of the coast guard's new 210 foot medium endurance cutter class, was commissioned. 1966 cgc point league attacked and crippled a north vietnamese junk attempting to run the navy’s market time blockade. the action continued into the next day as the junk stranded itself on the shore and its crew fired a demolition charge, destroying their ship. june 21 1944 cutters 83415 and 83477 assigned to rescue flotilla one wrecked off coast of normandy, france during a storm   no lives were lost. this is the storm that wrecked the artificial harbor constructed by the allies off the coast of normandy. 1979 sn ina j. toavs was awarded the coast guard medal, the first woman to receive the award. 2013 coast guard group/air station north bend, located out of north bend, oregon, was officially renamed sector north bend, "to match the coast guard standards of mission support and execution." group/air station north bend was the final "legacy group in the coast guard to be transitioned under the multi year sector modernization effort." june 22 1818 boarding parties from the revenue cutter dallas seized the privateer young spartan, her crew, and the privateer's prize, the pastora, off savannah, georgia. the crew of the pastora had been set adrift and their fate remained unknown. the new york evening post noted that the crew of the privateer had committed offenses "that can only be expiated by making their exits on the gallows." (july 3, 1818 issue). 1936 congress passed an act to define jurisdiction of coast guard. in one of the most sweeping grants of police authority ever written into u.s. law, congress designated the coast guard as the federal agency for "enforcement of laws generally on the high seas and navigable waters of the united states." 1940 port security responsibilities were undertaken again for the first time since world war i when president franklin roosevelt invoked the espionage act of 1917. the coast guard was to govern anchorage and movement of all vessels in u.s. waters and to protect vessels, harbors, and inland or coastal waterways of the u.s. the dangerous cargo act gave the coast guard jurisdiction over ships with high explosives and dangerous cargoes. 1948 congress enacted public law 738, which authorized the operation of floating ocean stations for the purpose of providing search and rescue communication and air navigation facilities, and meteorological services in such ocean areas as are regularly traversed by aircraft of the united states. 1965 coast guard forces in vietnam fired their first shot of the war when lt john m. cece, commanding cgc point orient, gave the order to "commence fire" while patrolling the 17th parallel. the cutter was assigned to coast guard squadron one. 1977 secretary of transportation brock adams introduced ensign beverly g. kelley and boatswain's mate 3/c debra lee wilson during a press conference as two of 12 women who had been assigned to sea duty. "this is the first time in coast guard history that women have been sent to sea." both women had orders to report to the morgenthau later that year. 1982 the first successful hostage rescue at sea occurred when a combined coast guard/fbi boarding party deployed from cgc alert took control of the 890 foot liberian flagged motor tanker ypapanti. the incident began on may 16, 1982 when the ypapanti anchored off the entrance to delaware bay after it was denied entrance to u.s. waters by cotp philadelphia, due to the lack of required safety equipment aboard. initially the cgcs hornbeam, active, and point franklin responded. after the situation stabilized, active and point franklin departed while hornbeam stood by the tanker to monitor the situation and to act as on scene commander; she was relieved on may 29 by alert. during the next few days the tanker's crew mutinied and seized control of the tanker from the master in a wage dispute. after a prolonged period of unsuccessful negotiations and threats by the crew to kill various officers and to set fire to the vessel, the alert went alongside the tanker on june 22, 1982. a senior coast guard negotiating team went aboard to present one last wage/repatriation offer to the crew. when this offer was rejected a combined coast guard/fbi boarding team went aboard from the alert and took control of the ypapanti without injury. the vessel was then returned to the control of the master and 12 loyal crewmen. twenty four mutineers were detained on board the alert and were transferred to the custody of the ins in cape may. 2020 the crew of coast guard cutter valiant (wmec 621) returned home to naval station mayport, florida, monday after completing a 9 week patrol conducting operations in the windward passage between haiti and cuba in support of coast guard 7th district and operation southeast watch. valiant patrolled over 11,000 nautical miles in the caribbean, working closely with the navy and coast guard cutters diligence (wmec 616), resolute (wmec 620), kathleen moore (wpc 1109), william trump (wpc 1111), and raymond evans (wpc 1110). valiant increased coast guard presence along the northern coasts of haiti, dominican republic, cuba, and the windward passage, working to prevent an anticipated surge of illegal immigration and human smuggling amidst the covid 19 global pandemic. throughout this patrol, valiant served as the cutter tasking unit, directing all coast guard assets supporting operation southeast watch in the windward passage. in order to deter an illegal exodus from haiti, valiant maintained an overt presence by frequently transiting the canal de la tortue, a heavily trafficked, deep water passage between the tortuga island and the northern haitian coastline. 2023 cgc bear (wmec 910) returned home to coast guard base portsmouth, va, on 22 june 2023, following a 65 day caribbean sea patrol. while underway in the seventh coast guard district’s area of responsibility and in support of joint interagency task force south, bear conducted six counterdrug interdictions and seized a total of 8,558 pounds of cocaine worth an estimated $97 million. bear conducted counterdrug operations as part of a multi faceted approach to combatting illicit narcotics trafficking across maritime borders. part of this effort included other coast guard assets, a helicopter interdiction tactical squadron aircrew from jacksonville, florida, and a deployable specialized forces unit from the pacific tactical law enforcement team. bear also conducted vertical replenishment with the u.s. navy vessel little rock (lcs 9). little rock deployed its sh 60 seahawk helicopter and crew to successfully deliver 5,566 pounds of seized cocaine to bear’s flight deck. bear moored in miami, last friday, 16 june 2023, and offloaded the combined 14,153 pounds of cocaine worth an estimated $186 million. june 23 1716 the province of massachusetts authorized the erection of the first lighthouse in america. it was built on great brewster island in boston harbor. 1817 the cutter active forced a south american privateer posing as an armed merchantman to leave the chesapeake bay and american waters. 1895 usrc windom was launched. she was the service's first attempt at "modern" ship construction and was designed by the coast guard's engineering division, complete with in house staff naval architects and engineers. windom was the first cutter to have a modern powerplant, in this case a triple expansion steam engine, and a fully watertight hull with transverse and longitudinal bulkheads. she was capable of making a top speed of 15 knots. 1934 cgc nike departed on a thousand mile trip to the sea after it became the coast guard's first patrol boat built on an inland waterway. it was built at point pleasant, west virginia and was launched into the ohio river after being christened by mrs. charles o. weisenberger, wife of the president of the marietta manufacturing company which built nike. the cutter was bound for pascagoula, mississippi to replace the recently decommissioned cutter tuscarora, which itself had been in service for over 35 years. 1939 congress created the coast guard reserve which later became what is today the coast guard auxiliary. june 24 1914 congress authorized the secretary of treasury to "detail for duty on revenue cutters such surgeons and other persons of the public health service as…necessary" and for cutters with such medical personnel aboard to extend medical and surgical aid to crews of american vessels engaged in deep sea fisheries. this act of congress (38 stat. l., 387) regularized procurement and assignment procedures of public health service personnel to revenue cutters, launching a partnership between the two services that continues to this day. 1930 an act of congress provided "that light keepers and vessel officers and crews, who during their active service were entitled to medical relief at hospitals and other stations of the public health service, may be given such relief after retirement as is now applicable to retired officers and men in other branches of the government service, under joint regulations to be prescribed by the secretary of the treasury and the secretary of commerce." 1938 under an executive order of this date, "about 35 positions of steward on lighthouse tenders were brought under the classified civil service." 1995 cgc juniper was launched, the first of the new 225 foot juniper class buoy tenders. june 25 1935 coast guard aviator lt richard l. burke set a world record when he flew the coast guard grumman jf 2 (v 167) at 173.945 miles per hour over a 100 kilometer course with a 500 kilogram load in 21 minutes and 20 seconds, besting the previous record by roughly 14 miles per hour. 1936 "the act of june 25, 1936 was in reality an amendment to the seamen’s act of 1915, and had been called the merchant marine act of 1936. this law provided for (1) "qualifications, examinations, and issuance of certificates of service or efficiency to unlicensed personnel; (2) the issuance of continuous discharge books to all seagoing personnel," a three watch eight hour day, and certain citizenship requirements. the act greatly increased the workload of the shipping commissioners, particularly in providing for the issuance of discharge books and various certificates. this had the effect of both increasing the efficiency of unlicensed personnel and raising the dignity of the profession." 2002 u.s. deputy secretary of transportation michael jackson, joined by u.s. coast guard commandant thomas h. collins, announced the award of the integrated deepwater system (ids) contract. it was the largest acquisition project in the history of the coast guard. 2014 "the coast guard took a step toward introducing the c 27j into its medium range surveillance fleet with the commissioning of the c 27j asset project office (apo) at elizabeth city, n.c., june 25, 2014. the c 27j apo’s primary mission is to provide a purposeful, sequential plan to incorporate 14 c 27js into coast guard operations. the aircraft are being transferred from the u.s. air force as required by the national defense authorization act for fiscal year 2014. among the c 27j apo’s responsibilities will be development of coast guard specific operational and maintenance procedures, training plans, technical manuals and crew duties." june 26 1944 lcdr quentin r. walsh and his commando unit forced the surrender of fort du homet, a nazi stronghold at cherbourg, france, captured 300 german soldiers and liberated 50 u.s. paratroopers who had been captured on d day. for his heroic actions, walsh was awarded the navy cross. 1948 in order to implement the expanded postwar activities of the coast guard in the field of aids to navigation, congress approved public law 786, which provided legislative authority for the coast guard to establish and operate maritime aids for the armed forces and loran stations essential for the armed forces and maritime and air commerce of the united states. 1978 the first u.s. ocean monitoring satellite, seasat a, was launched into earth orbit from vandenberg afb. june 27 1851 the british bark henry stranded off bridgehampton beach, long island with 204 persons on board. all were safely landed with government surf boat. 1935 coast guard aviator lt richard l. burke set a world record for altitude in an amphibious aircraft when he reached 17,877.243 feet with a 500 kilogram load on this date in 1935. he piloted coast guard grumman jf 2 (v 167). 2003 cgc walnut, homeported in honolulu, returned home after being deployed in support of operation iraqi freedom. she deployed to the north arabian gulf in january with an oil spill recovery system in the event the regime of saddam hussein committed any acts of environmental terrorism. when those threats did not materialize, the cutter conducted maritime interception operations enforcing u.n. security council resolutions, participated in the search for two downed united kingdom helicopters, and patrolled and provided assistance to captured iraqi offshore oil terminals being secured by coast guard port security personnel. the cutter’s crew completely replaced 30 buoys and repaired an additional five along the 41 mile khawr abd allah waterway. this aton mission vastly improved the navigational safety of the waterway for humanitarian aid, commercial, and military vessels sailing to the port and was a critical step to economic recovery for the people of iraq. 2014 cgc assateague returned to home port in apra harbor, guam following a six day exclusive economic zone enforcement patrol. while underway the cutter patrolled the western most area of the exclusive economic zone extending 200 nautical miles west of commonwealth of the northern mariana's island chain, ensuring no foreign fishing vessels were fishing within waters of the united states and that all u.s. fishing vessels were doing so in accordance with the united states' applicable maritime laws. additionally, during its transit north, the cutter transported supplies to the pagan installation project, which consists of a joint partnership with the army corps of engineers, u.s. geological survey, noaa, and the commonwealth of the northern mariana islands government. the project, which is being done on the remote island of pagan in the northern part of the cnmi chain, is being done to install seismic sensors, monitoring stations, and seismic cables in an effort to monitor volcanic activity. to facilitate their efforts, assateague crewmembers met with project managers in saipan to pick up 700 pounds of five gallon water jugs, 1,200 pounds of cement bags, tents and camping supplies, and various sized batteries, which were all then transported to pagan. these items were greatly needed due to the sheer isolation and remoteness of pagan, which houses only seven permanent residents and is 170 miles north of saipan, the closest inhabited island with modern amenities. june 28 1946 peacetime cruises for the cadets of the u.s. coast guard academy at new london connecticut, were revived. june 29 1820 the revenue cutter dallas captured the 12 gun brig of war general ramirez, which was loaded with 280 slaves, off st. augustine. the july 8, 1820 issue of the savannah republican noted: "on the 28th ultimo, while the cutter dallas was lying in the st. mary's river, captain jackson received information that the brig of war general ramirez, supposed to be a piratical vessel was hovering off st. augustine. the cutter forthwith got under way in pursuit of the brig having first obtained 12 united states soldiers from fernandina to strengthen the cutter's force. at half past three the next day, she hailed the brig and received for answer, "this is the patriot brig general ramirez    ." captain jackson finding a number of blacks on board took possession of the vessel and brought her into st. mary's, arriving on the 1st instant. captain jackson found on the brig about 280 african slaves. the captain and crew, 28 in number, acknowledged themselves americans." 1944 cdr frank a. erickson landed a helicopter on the flight deck of cgc cobb. this was the first rotary wing aircraft shipboard landing by coast guard personnel. 1950 the coast guard adopted a navy directive relative to security measures, including precautions against possible sabotage at installations and aboard ships. 1982 the soviet union launched cospas i, the first search and rescue satellite ever launched. in combination with later sarsat satellites, a new multi agency, international, search and rescue service was made operational. 2013 a coast guard advanced interdiction team (ait) returned home from a four month counter piracy deployment to the middle east. the team was comprised of three units: maritime safety and security team (msst) los angeles long beach, msst san diego, and the pacific tactical law enforcement team (pactaclet) out of san diego. under the direction of the u. s. navy’s 5th fleet, the team served aboard the u.s. naval guided missile destroyer uss stockdale, working side by side with the ship’s visit, board, search and seizure (vbss) team assigned to combined task force 151. while on board the stockdale, the team’s primary mission was to fight maritime terrorism and counter piracy. the ait and vbss conducted joint training for counter piracy, illegal activity interdictions, and boardings. the training also included space accountability for hidden compartments, mock medical emergencies, and planning and executing mission contingencies. ctf 151 was a multi national task force working under combined maritime forces to conduct counter piracy operations in the southern red sea, gulf of aden, somali basin, arabian sea and indian ocean. augmented by members from the coast guard, the joint unit team was engaged in stemming illegal piracy and armed robbery at sea. june 30 1932 the steamboat inspection service and bureau of navigation were combined to form the bureau of navigation and steamboat inspection (47 stat. l., 415). the new agency remained under the control of the commerce department. 1933 the airways division, which had been conducted as a division of the lighthouse service, but under the administrative supervision of the assistant secretary for aeronautics, department of commerce, was separated from the lighthouse service. (uslhs ar 1933, p. 97). 1933 the coast guard reported that during its existence, from january 28, 1915 through the end of the fiscal year (june 30) of 1933 the service had either "rescued from peril" or "saved" the lives of 60,982 persons and the value of vessels and cargoes the coast guard saved or assisted was $659,632,287 (cgm, april, 1934, p. 28). 1939 "the total personnel of the service as of june 30, 1939, was 5,355, consisting of 4,119 full time and 1,156 part time employees, the former including 1, 170 light keepers and assistants; 56 light attendants; 1,995 officers and crews of lightships and tenders; 113 bureau officers, engineers and draftsmen, and district superintendents and technical assistants; 226 clerks, messengers, janitors, and office laborers; 157 depot keepers and assistants, including watchmen and laborers; and 482 field force employees engaged in construction and repair work." 1939 "at the end of the year, the total number of lighthouse tenders was 65, of which 64 were in commission and 1 was out of commission and advertised for sale. of the vessels in commission, 42 were steam propelled, 18 had diesel engines, and 4 had diesel electric drive. the average age of the fleet of tenders is 19.52 years. there are 10 tenders, aggregating 8,535 tons, 35 years of age and over. thirty lighthouse tenders are equipped with radiotelegraph; 38 with radio direction finders; and 55 with radiotelephones." 1939 "lightships were maintained on 30 stations during the year. at the close of the year, the total number of lightships was 43, which included 9 relief ships and 4 ships out of commission." 1939 "the total number of aids to navigation maintained by the lighthouse service at the close of the fiscal year was 29,606, a net increase of 849 over the previous year." 1942 the coast guard's beach patrol division was established at coast guard headquarters under the command of captain raymond j. mauerman, uscg. 1946 the general world war ii demobilization task was completed with all separation centers decommissioned, resulting in a reduced number of coast guard personnel to 23,000 officers and enlisted personnel from a wartime peak of about 171,000 on june 30, 1945. 1946 by this date, all lightships removed from their stations as a war measure had been restored, except fire island lightship which had been replaced by a large type whistle buoy offshore and a radio beacon on shore at fire island light station, new york. 1946 the u .s. navy returned the coast guard’s eleven air stations to the operational control of the coast guard. 1947 the fourth coast guard district, which comprised parts of new jersey, pennsylvania, and delaware and was based out of philadelphia, was abolished and the functions, responsibilities, and facilities in this area were transferred to the third coast guard district, based at new york, new york. additionally the seventeenth coast guard district was abolished, and the territory of alaska, which it comprised, was added to the thirteenth coast guard district, which included washington, oregon, idaho, montana, and wyoming. 1987 as part of a major reorganization and consolidation effort the coast guard disestablished the third and twelfth coast guard districts. july 1 1797 congress passed "an act providing a naval armament," empowering the president to "cause the said revenue cutters to be employed to defend the seacoast and to repel any hostility to their vessels and commerce, within their jurisdiction, having due regard to the duty of said cutters in the protection of the revenue." the act also increased the complements of the cutters from ten men to a number "not exceeding 30 marines and seamen." 1885 the bureau of navigation was permanently organized in accordance with the provisions of the act of congress of 3 march 1885. 1903 the lighthouse service, along with other activities having to do with navigation, was transferred from the treasury department to the newly created department of commerce and labor. 1910 under the organic act of 1910, mr. george r. putnam and mr. john s. conway took office as the first commissioner of lighthouses and first deputy commissioner of lighthouses, respectively. 1910 the lighthouse board was terminated; its place being taken by the newly organized bureau of lighthouses. 1918 congress directed that retired officer personnel may be recalled to active duty during war or national emergency. 1921 a system of longevity increase of pay, after six months service for the un appointed members of the crews of light house service vessels, was introduced for the first time as a means of maintaining "a more efficient personnel on these vessels." 1921 the coast guard's first air station, located at morehead city, north carolina, was closed due to a lack of funding. 1924 an adjustment of the compensation of vessel officers in the lighthouse service was made effective in order to bring the pay of these positions more nearly on a level with that of similar positions in the u .s. shipping board, the lake carriers association, and other shipping interests. 1939 lighthouse service of department of commerce transferred to coast guard under president franklin roosevelt’s reorganization plan no. 11. under the president’s reorganization plan no. 11, made effective this date by public resolution no. 20, approved june 7, 1939, it was provided "that the bureau of lighthouses in the department of commerce and its functions be transferred to and consolidated with and administered as a part of the coast guard. this consolidation made in the interest of efficiency and economy, will result in the transfer to and consolidation with the coast guard of the system of approximately 30,000 aids to navigation (including light vessels and lighthouses) maintained by the lighthouse service on the sea and lake coasts of the united states, on the rivers of the united states, and on the coasts of all other territory under the jurisdiction of the united states with the exception of the philippine island and panama canal proper." plans were put into effect, "providing for a complete integration with the coast guard of the personnel of the lighthouse service numbering about 5,200, together with the auxiliary organization of 64 buoy tenders, 30 depots, and 17 district offices." 1941 the "northeast greenland patrol" was organized in boston. 1946 as a final step in the return of the coast guard to the treasury department from wartime operation under the navy department, the navy's direct control of the following coast guard functions was terminated: search and rescue, maintenance and operation of ocean weather stations, and air sea navigational aids in the atlantic, continental united states, alaska, and pacific east of pearl harbor. 1949 the seventeenth coast guard district, eliminated in 1947, was reestablished with its headquarters in juneau, alaska. 1957 cgc storis, bramble, and spar departed seattle for their traversal of the northwest passage. the three arrived in boston after the successful completion of the mission on september 19, 1957. 1958 the new atlantic merchant vessel position reporting program (known by the acronym amver) was established. it was aimed at encouraging domestic and foreign merchant vessels to send voluntary position reports and navigational data to u.s. coast guard shore based radio stations and ocean station vessels. relayed to a ships' plot center in new york and processed by machine, these data provided updated position information for u.s. coast guard rescue coordination centers. the centers could then direct only those vessels which would be of effective aid to craft or persons in distress. this diversion of all merchant ships in a large area became unnecessary. 1968 the coast guard's merchant marine detachment saigon was formally established at the u.s. embassy in saigon, republic of vietnam. 1991 a 14th coast guard district ledet, all crewmen from cgc rush, deployed on board the u.s. navy's uss ingersoll, made history when they seized the st. vincent registered m/v lucky star for carrying 70 tons of hashish, the largest hashish bust in coast guard history to date. the team, led by ltjg mark eyler, made the bust 600 miles west of midway island. 1991 a high personnel retention level led the commandant, adm j. william kime, to begin implementing a high year tenure program, otherwise known as an "up or out" policy to "improve personnel flow and opportunities for advancement." two significant points of the program were that they limited enlisted careers to 30 years of active service and established "professional growth points" for paygrades e 4 through e 9, which had to be attained in order to remain on active duty. up until this time, enlisted members could remain on active duty until age 62   the only u.s. military work force with that option. 1995 the 750 foot greek flagged freighter alexia collided with the 514 foot singapore flagged enif near the mouth of the mississippi river, 70 miles south of new orleans. the two ships were joined at the point of collision and drifted through the maze of oil and gas platforms scattered across the area, narrowly missing one by a mere 25 yards. cgc courageous served as the on scene commander to coordinate the response. airsta new orleans launched three helicopters to provide sar coverage and to evaluate the damage suffered by the foundering vessels. personnel from mso new orleans and the gulf strike team were sent on scene to deal with the 80,000 gallon fuel oil spill. cgc white holly and m/v secore osprey provided skimming resources. the freighters were separated successfully, their remaining fuel was lightered off and they made it to mobile escorted by cgc point lobos. july 2 1836 congress authorized pay increases for the officers in the revenue cutter service. captain's pay increased to $1200 per annum, first lieutenant's to $960, second lieutenant's to $860, and third lieutenant's to $790. 1937 cgc itasca, while conducting re supply operations in the central pacific, made the last known radio contact with the famed aviatrix amelia earhart and her co pilot fred noonan. itasca later joined the navy directed search for the aircraft. the search was finally called off on july 17 with no trace of the aircraft or its occupants having been found. 2005 the cgc jarvis and the russian northeast border directorate vessel vorovsky rendezvoused about 450 miles southwest of alaska's aleutian island chain and 250 miles east of russia's kamchatka peninsula to perform the first joint security exercise of the "north pacific heads of coast guard agencies." july 3 1905 an executive order extended the jurisdiction of the lighthouse service to the noncontiguous territory of the american samoan island. 1918 congress passed the migratory bird act and the coast guard became responsible for the act's enforcement after the 1936 passage of the "act to define jurisdiction of coast guard." 1927 ensign charles l. duke, in command of cg 2327, boarded the rumrunner greypoint in new york harbor and single handedly captured the vessel, its 22 man crew, and its cargo of illegal liquor. 1986 the statue of liberty centennial celebration took place in new york harbor. the coast guard was in the "forefront" of the celebration due in part to the coast guard's base on governor's island. 2002 the first of the coast guard's maritime safety and security teams (mssts), msst 91101, was commissioned in seattle, washington. mssts were created in response to the terrorist attacks on the u.s. on september 11, 2001. a total of 12 msst units were planned for deployment around the nation. july 4 1979 while on a 10 week cadet cruise cgc ingham located the 75 foot honduran fishing trawler mary ann about 500 miles southwest of san juan, puerto rico. a boarding team seized the trawler after they discovered 15 tons of marijuana aboard. the mary ann first attempted to evade the boarding and actually rammed ingham, causing some damage to the cutter. the trawler finally hove to after ingham fired a number of warning shots. 1994 cutters assigned to operation able manner, which commenced under presidential order on january 15, 1994, rescued 3,247 haitian migrants from 70 grossly overloaded sailboats in the windward passage. they rescued a total of 15,955 during the month of july 1994. july 5 1884 an act of congress (23 stat. l., 118) created a special service known as the bureau of navigation, under the treasury department, with the duty of supervising the work having to do with the administration of american navigation laws. "the act specifically allotted to the bureau the numbering of vessels and the preparation of the annual list of merchant vessels of the united states." 1996 the coast guard commissioned cgc juniper (wlb 201) on this date in 1996. the new 225 foot wlb was the lead ship in the coast guard's buoy tender replacement project, a major acquisition to replace the service's twenty six 180 foot buoy tenders constructed during world war ii. a total of sixteen 225 foot wlbs were built by marinette marine corporation for the coast guard. juniper was assigned to its homeport of newport, rhode island. 2000 hh 65a cgnr 6539 rescued 51 persons from a burning oil rig in the gulf of mexico. the aircrew responded to the fire and safely airlifted 15 people to a nearby platform nine miles from the fire. they then evacuated another 36 people to awaiting boats. one of the 6539's crew had landed on the platform to coordinate the rescue. as the helicopter returned to retrieve him, the rig exploded and sent a fireball 100 feet into the air. unsure whether he survived, the 6539 flew into the thick, black column of smoke and safely rescued him. all four aircrew were awarded the distinguished flying cross. july 6 1809 congress authorized the construction of twelve new cutters to enforce president thomas jefferson’s embargo. 1942 coast guard amphibious aircraft v 166 landed in the open ocean and took aboard 21 survivors of a torpedoed tanker in gulf of mexico. july 7 1798 hostilities began in the quasi war with france. the revenue cutters pickering, virginia, scammel, south carolina, governor, jay, eagle, general greene, and diligence were the first to be placed under naval orders, comprising about one third of the u .s. fleet. 1801 in a cost saving measure, the treasury department sent circulars to the various collectors looking toward reducing the size of the cutters and their crews. 1838 under the authority of an act of congress passed this date, the president divided the atlantic coast into six, and the great lakes coast into two, lighthouse districts. a naval officer was detailed to each lighthouse district, a revenue cutter or a hired vessel was placed at his disposal, and he was instructed to inspect all aids to navigation, report on their conditions, and recommend future courses of action. 1838 congress passed the first legislation "to provide better security of the lives of passengers on board of vessels propelled in whole or in part by steam." (5 stat.l., 304) the act specified that the program would be administered by the justice department whereby u.s. district court judges were to appoint engineers to inspect merchant steamboats. this act laid the groundwork for what later became the steamboat inspection service. 1884 congress directed that cutters be used exclusively for public service and "in no way for private purposes." 1911 convention signed between united states, great britain, japan, and russia prohibiting taking of fur seals and sea otters in north pacific ocean and bering sea north of 300 latitude, except for food and clothing. 1938 the coast guard began an operation to transport and guard each shipment of 77,000,000 pounds of silver bars from new york city to the silver depository at west point, new york for the bureau of the mint. the 1,101,320 bars of silver were moved by truck and the coast guard contingent responsible for its safe delivery were under the command of cdr stephen s. yeandle, who at the time served as the intelligence officer for the coast guard's new york division. 1939 on this date, "the lighthouse bureau went out of existence and its personnel moved themselves and their equipment to coast guard headquarters from the commerce department building. thus, lighthouses returned to the treasury department from the department of commerce. 2020 the crew of coast guard cutter mellon (whec 717) returned to their homeport of seattle on july 7, 2020, after completing the final patrol for the 52 year old ship. the 150 person crew left seattle april 17 to conduct missions throughout the aleutian islands and bering sea. during the patrol the crew conducted 38 law enforcement boardings, four search and rescue cases and enforced federal regulations governing alaska’s $13.9 billion commercial fishing industry. in the midst of the covid 19 pandemic, the mellon crew instituted protective measures to ensure crew safety and the safety of the commercial fishing fleet and alaskan public. mellon was one the last remaining 378 foot high endurance cutters built for extended offshore patrols. its capabilities spanned from helicopter operations to pursuit boat operations and served as a key asset for the department of homeland security and humanitarian missions at sea. july 8 1791 secretary of the treasury authorized collectors of customs to disburse for cutters and to pay officers as agents of the secretary. 1977 a coast guard hh 3f from airsta cape cod flew 260 miles offshore to hoist an ill crewman from the 500 foot soviet refrigerator ship skaltste bereg. july 9 1942 cgc mclane and the coast guard manned patrol craft uss yp 251 reportedly sank the japanese submarine ro 32 off sitka, alaska. however, the navy department did not officially credit either vessel with the sinking. the ro 32 was stricken from the japanese navy rolls in april, 1942 as obsolete and japanese records indicated that no japanese submarine was lost or damaged in alaskan waters on that date. 1943 operation husky, the invasion of sicily, commenced on this date. coast guard manned ships landed the first allied troops in the assault, including 24 lci(l)s of flotilla 4 under the command of capt miles imlay and lsts 326 and 381. coast guard manned attack transports uss joseph t. dickman, leonard wood, and samuel chase also participated. 1946 sixteen coast guardsmen were killed when the b 17 aircraft they were flying as passengers in crashed into mount tom, massachusetts. these coast guardsmen were all returning from duty in greenland. 1986 a fire broke out at the bayonne, new jersey transfer facility. coast guard units responded to fight the fire. july 10 1820 the revenue cutter gallatin captured 19 men illegally recruited for the columbian privateer wilson and chased that vessel and her spanish prize, santiago, to sea from the harbor at charleston, south carolina. 1882 at 5 o’clock in the afternoon, during a violent storm of wind and rain, the steam yacht john bueg, of rochester, new york, having on board a party of twelve excursionists, consisting of two men, two women, and eight children, was driven ashore one mile and a half east of the harbor piers at charlotte, lake ontario, new york. she was discovered by a surfman of station no. 4, ninth district, who waded out to her in the surf, carried the children in his arms, and then assisted the women to shore. the yacht was towed off by a steamer, having sustained slight damage. 2021 cgc healy (wagb 20) departed seattle on 10 july 2021, for a months long arctic deployment and circumnavigation of north america. arctic domain. july 11 1804 vice president aaron burr mortally wounded alexander hamilton in a duel in weehawken, new jersey. hamilton died the following day. hamilton had been the first secretary of the treasury and had founded the revenue marine. 1818 the revenue cutter dallas seized and libeled the venezuelan privateer cerony off savannah for having violated the nation's neutrality laws. 1941 congress reconfirmed the military "status" of the coast guard, stating: "the coast guard shall be a military service and constitute a branch of the land and naval forces of the united states at all times and shall operate under the treasury department in time of peace and operate as part of the navy, subject to the orders of the secretary of the navy, in time of war or when the president shall so direct." (14 u.s.c. 1) 1942 the u.s. maritime service was transferred back to the war shipping administration after being under coast guard administration since february 28, 1942. july 12 1953 coast guard aircraft and surface craft of the search and rescue group at wake island joined with a large naval task unit in conducting an intensive search for a transocean air lines dc 6 aircraft last reported about 300 miles east of wake island. the scene of the crash was located although there were no survivors. 1994 coast guard hh 65 cg 6541 crashed in the early hours of july 12, 1994 near shelter cove, california, while responding to a sailing vessel in distress. when heavy pre dawn fog made a visual approach impossible, the air crew performed several unsuccessful approaches to the sailing vessel, striking a shoreline cliff on the third attempt and taking the lives of all four crew members: lt laurence williams, lt mark koteek, asmcs peter leeman, and am1 michael gill. 2013 the coast guard opened its seasonal forward operating location (fol) in kotzebue on october 12, 2013 in preparation for the anticipated increase of maritime activities in western alaska and the bering strait. fol kotzebue, part of coast guard arctic shield 2013, consisted of one kodiak based mh 60 jayhawk helicopter with supporting air and ground crews, and was based out of the alaska army national guard hangar in kotzebue. july 13 2001 cgc sherman became the third cutter to circumnavigate the globe when she returned to the united states from a six month deployment to the arabian gulf in support of u.n. operations. during this cruise she conducted 219 queries, 115 boardings, and five diverts. her crew saved 38 lives, including 11 iraqi smugglers when their vessel sank in a storm off uae. she towed a 33,000 ton carrier foundering in 50 foot seas off the cape of good hope, saving 22 lives and keeping the ship from running aground at the entrance to port elizabeth, south africa. her crew also saved 5 costa rican fishermen found after they were adrift for 21 days. (cgc eastwind was the first cutter to circumnavigate the globe on a cruise in 1960 1961 and southwind followed in 1968 1969.) july 14 1926 the first radio beacon established in alaska was placed in commission at cape spencer. 1949 u.s. coast guardsmen from point allerton and boston lifeboat stations figured prominently in one of the largest rescue operations in the history of boston harbor, massachusetts when they helped in removing 690 persons from the excursion steamer nantasket, which had gone aground in a thick fog off peddock’s island. 1960 following the loss of a propeller, which resulted in fuselage damage and an engine fire, a northwest airlines dc 7c airliner carrying 58 persons ditched in philippine waters. during the coast guard coordinated air search in the vicinity of the polillo islands, a coast guard uf amphibian aircraft sighted four life rafts, landed, and rescued 23 survivors. a u.s. navy p5m seaplane, meanwhile, rescued 34 others and also recovered from the water the body of the only fatality. 1963 pier 7 at tacoma, washington was engulfed in flames. cg 82336, based at tacoma, proceeded immediately to the scene to assist the first department in fighting the blaze. the cutter towed the m/v sanyo maru away from the pier and was relieved of the tow by a tug. cg 82336 returned to the pier and towed the m/v kikulo maru to safe anchorage. the tacoma fire department then requested cg 82336 to coordinate firefighting efforts on the bay side of the pier, as the fire department was unable to cover the entire area because of the intensity of the fire. unable to fight the fire under the pier, cg 82336 proceeded to a local boat mooring and acquired seven rental boats to assist. these boats, manned by local firemen and coast guard personnel, fought the fire under the pier. the fire was brought under control the next morning and coast guard units were secured. a fire battalion chief died and seven firemen were injured, but there were no coast guard casualties. 1977 ten coast guard women were selected and ordered to cgc gallatin to report aboard on october 26, 1977. "this action was in keeping with the commandant's most recent program of placing women in afloat assignments" on cgcs morgenthau and gallatin. each of the women chosen were volunteers. they were: et2 l. d. canatore; rm2 j.k. shawdah; sk2 r.g. burright; bm3 d.k. skinner; hm3 d.k. cummings; rm3 v.l. robillard; yn3 m.f. kelly; sa a. clark; sa d.a. collins, and sa d.a. hughes. july 15 1870 congress directed that the revenue cutters on the northern and northwestern lakes, when commissioned, shall be specially charged with aiding vessels in distress on the lakes. 1870 an act of congress (l6 stat. l., 291, 309) directed the lighthouse board to mark all pierheads belonging to the united states situated on the northern and northwestern lakes, as soon as it was notified that the construction or repair of pierheads had been completed. 1967 cgc point orient (wpb 82319) of coast guard squadron one captured a communist trawler in vietnam. 1972 cgc absecon was decommissioned and transferred to the south vietnamese navy. this was the last of the seven 311 foot casco class cutters to be transferred to the south vietnamese. she was commissioned as the tham ngu lao (hq 15) on july 15, 1972. she was seized by the north vietnamese when the south fell in 1975. the north vietnamese gave her the hull number hq 1, but did not apparently name her. she was refitted with two or possibly four ss n 2 launchers. her current status remains unknown. 1983 for the first time in history a u.s. navy warship with a coast guard ledet on board fired on a suspected drug smuggling vessel to force it to heave to. on 15 july 1983, u.s. navy destroyer uss kidd fired on the "stateless" vessel ranger with warning shots at first and when the vessel refused compliance the destroyer fired disabling shots, stopping ranger without causing casualties. about 35 tons of marijuana were discovered on board and ranger's nine crew were arrested and the vessel seized. july 16 1946 pursuant to executive order 9083 and reorganization plan no. 3 the bureau of marine inspection was abolished and became a permanent part of the coast guard. 1965 coast guard 82 foot patrol boats assigned to division 12 of coast guard squadron one (ronone) departed manila bay on their own, bound for vietnam and service with the navy in operation market time. the cutters had been brought to the philippines "piggy backed" on board freighters. july 17 1893 life saving station keeper h .e. wilcox of cape arago life saving station rescued 55 of 56 passengers of ss emily that was capsizing in a raging sea. persons were transported from the doomed vessel to the lifeboat via a life raft. 1994 cgc polar sea departed from victoria, british columbia on operation arctic ocean section 1994 and became the first u.s. surface vessel to reach the north pole. she then transited the arctic ocean back to her homeport in seattle, washington. 1996 twa flight 800 crashed off new york with no survivors. numerous coast guard units conducted search and rescue operations and then aided in recovery operations. july 18 1818 the revenue cutter active captured the pirate vessel india libre in the chesapeake bay. 1866 congress authorized officers to search vessels and persons suspected of concealing contraband. 1928 clarence samuels assumed command of coast guard patrol boat ab 15, thereby becoming the second african american to command a coast guard vessel, the first being revenue captain michael healy. 2015 cgc stratton seized a self propelled semi submersible vessel carrying more than 16,000 pounds of cocaine in the eastern pacific ocean. stratton's crew apprehended four suspected smugglers and seized 275 bales of cocaine worth more than $181 million wholesale from the self propelled semi submersible. a u.s. navy maritime patrol aircraft detected the 40 foot semi submersible vessel more than 200 miles south of mexico. after removing 12,000 pounds of the narcotics aboard, stratton attempted to tow the vessel to shore as evidence; however, the semi submersible began taking on water and sank. approximately 4,000 pounds of cocaine left in the spss vessel to stabilize it during the towing evolution sank in over 13,000 feet of water and is unrecoverable. stratton interdicted or disrupted 15 different drug smuggling attempts since april 2015 including another self propelled semi submersible vessel carrying 5,460 pounds of cocaine june 16. stratton has seized more than 33,000 pounds of cocaine since may 2015. the july 18 semi submersible seizure is the largest recorded semi submersible interdiction in coast guard history. stratton’s semi submersible busts are also the first and second by a legend class cutter. this is the first interdiction of two semi submersibles in a single patrol at sea where coast guardsmen recovered both the narcotics and the vessels. cgc mohawk from key west, florida, interdicted two semisubmersibles in the caribbean in 2011; however, both vessels sank during the course of the interdiction. there have been 25 known semi submersible interdictions in the eastern pacific ocean since november 2006 when the first documented interdiction occurred. a semi submersible is a vessel constructed for illicit trafficking that is mostly submerged with just a cockpit and exhaust pipe visible above water. these vessels are extremely difficult to detect and interdict because of their low profile and ability to scuttle. u.s. customs and border protection office of air and marine also assisted by monitoring the semi submersible using a maritime patrol aircraft during the course of the interdiction july 18. july 19 2001 the first set of the newly authorized helicopter rescue swimmer insignia, or "wings", were presented to the senior rescue swimmer in the coast guard, master chief aviation survival technician (ast) keith jensen, at coast guard headquarters in washington, d.c. july 20 1917 an executive order extended the jurisdiction of the lighthouse service to the non contiguous territory of the american virgin islands. 1942 the herald tribune of july 20, 1942, carried the following story: "a new coast guard regiment, made up of tough, hand picked men, all heavily armed and with the headquarters company mounting machine guns in speedy jeep cars, has been organized for extra protection of the port of new york, it was announced yesterday. regimental offices of the commando like outfit, led by captain francis v. lowden, will be in the barge office at the battery. there will be five battalion headquarters   one each in manhattan, brooklyn, staten island and new jersey, and a floating one set up a harbor patrol craft. the new contingent for sabotage precaution will be known as the port security regiment…the selected men recruited for the port security regiment are being trained in a variety of rough and rigorous combat tactics to fit them for meeting surprise actions. captain lowden, on leave from his post as mayor of roselle, n.j., has had twenty years of experience in organizing protective services for the port properties of standard oil of new jersey." 1965 division 12 of coast guard squadron one (ronone) arrived at da nang and coast guard operation market time patrolling began. 1979 president jimmy carter signed executive order 12148 that completed the establishment of the federal emergency management agency (fema). 2007 the coast guard commissioned the newly organized deployable operations group (dog) at fort mcnair, washington, d.c. the dog provided properly equipped, trained and organized deployable specialized forces (dsf) to coast guard, dhs, dod, and inter agency operational and tactical commanders. formerly headquartered in arlington, virginia, it was decommissioned on october 1, 2013. upon decommissioning, the units previously assigned to the dog were split between coast guard pacific and atlantic area commands. 2015 cgc mellon returned to its homeport of seattle, washington, following a 14 week patrol that covered nearly 20,000 miles of the north pacific ocean. after leaving seattle april 13, 2015, mellon joined operation north pacific guard and patrolled the high seas for illegal, unreported, and unregulated (iuu) fishing activity, including high seas pelagic driftnet fishing. mellon’s crew coordinated with the western and central pacific fisheries commission (wcpfc) and inspected five chinese taipei vessels. during the boardings, mellon law enforcement team members educated fishermen about the importance of long term fish stock conservation. the crew also participated in an intercultural community relations event in yokosuka, japan with the uso. mellon volunteers tutored more than 120 toyo himeji high school students to help teach them english. july 21 1944 the attack and liberation of japanese occupied guam commenced during world war ii. participating vessels included the coast guard tender cgc tupelo and the coast guard manned navy attack transports and cargo vessels included cor caroli, aquarius, centaurus, sterope, arthur middleton, lst 24, lst 70, lst 71, and lst 207. 1947 president truman signed h.r. 3539, which became public law no. 209, authorizing the coast guard to construct a suitable chapel for religious worship by any denomination, sect or religion at the u.s. coast guard academy in new london. 1952 cgc mackinac, enroute from new york to ocean station echo, and the ss gripsholm, removed 45 of the 49 persons on board the ss black gull, which had caught fire in a position south of block island, long island, new york. 1965 crewmen began painting the white hulls of the 82 foot patrol boats assigned to coast guard squadron one in vietnam navy gray. 1997 uss constitution, "old ironsides," set sail in boston harbor for the first time in more than a century. prior to this her navy crew received training in sailing a square rigger aboard eagle. the coast guard then enforced security and safety zones around the navy frigate during her brief voyage around the harbor. more than 800 coast guard personnel, 10 cutters, three helicopters, and 81 small boats were involved in the operation. 1999 royal caribbean cruises, ltd., agreed to pay a record $18 million criminal fine and pled guilty to 21 felony counts for dumping oil and hazardous chemicals in u.s. waters and then lying about it to the coast guard. the investigation began in october of 1994 when coast guard officials noticed an oil slick behind the ship sovereign of the seas as it approached san juan, puerto rico. between the day coast guard officials first boarded the ship and when they again boarded it four days later, crewmen had removed a bypass pipe which they had been using to dump hazardous material from the ship. 2015 a coast guard rescue swimmer gained international acclaim when he swam 1,750 yards in 5 foot seas and 30 mph winds to rescue four people after their fishing vessel grounded near cape blanco. as2 darren harrity individually pulled each fisherman more than 250 yards in 57 degree water from their life raft to shore, where they were met by ems. watchstanders at coast guard sector north bend received a report from the crew of jamie k, a 52 foot commercial fishing vessel, via vhf fm marine radio channel 16 at 0140 hours stating that they were taking on water and had lost power. the vessel subsequently ran aground, at which time the crew donned survival suits and abandoned ship into their life raft. an mh 65 dolphin helicopter crew from air station north bend and two 47 foot motor life boat crews from coast guard search and rescue detachments rogue river and coquille river launched to assist. the aircrew arrived on scene at 0249 hours and lowered harrity into the water next to the life raft. shortly after, the aircrew reported experiencing mechanical issues with the helicopter and was unable to safely complete additional hoists. the aircrew remained on scene until all of the fishermen and rescue swimmer had safely made it to shore and then landed on the nearby beach. july 22 1881 a young man named joseph ryan, of buffalo, new york, while bathing off the lighthouse pier at that place, was seized with cramps and sunk. one of the surfmen belonging to station no. 5, ninth district, about a quarter of a mile distant, was on duty at the pier and saw him disappear. without a moment’s hesitation, he plunged into the water and succeeded in grasping ryan by the hair and brought him safely to the shore. july 23 1836 seminole indians attacked and burned the cape florida lighthouse during the second seminole war. 1947 congress approved public law 219 which provided for the integration of the personnel of the former bureau of marine inspection and navigation into the regular military organization of the coast guard. this was effected during fiscal year 1948, "and the service thus had a single unified organization to carry forward the correlated duty which prior to 1939 were divided among three different federal agencies the coast guard, lighthouse service, and bureau of marine inspection and navigation." 1967 cgc northwind diverted from her bering sea patrol to assist the canadian survey ship richardson which was beset in the ice off point barrow, alaska. northwind freed the stricken vessel which was then taken in tow by the canadian icebreaker ccgs camsell. july 24 1915 ss eastland was a chicago based passenger ship used for vacation and sightseeing tours. on this date, the ship rolled over at her dock while preparing to depart on a cruise. a total of 844 passengers and crew were killed in what became the largest loss of life from a maritime disaster on the great lakes. surfmen from station old chicago participated in the emergency response effort, making it the "modern" coast guard's first major rescue operation. 1936 while on a cadet cruise through european waters, cgc cayuga was ordered to san sebastian, spain after the outbreak of the spanish civil war necessitated the evacuation of u.s. citizens. while on this deployment the u.s. ambassador to spain and his staff came on board cayuga and the cutter then served as the official u.s. embassy in spain. 1944 the assault on tinian island, one of the marshall islands, commenced. coast guard manned attack transports that participated included uss cambria and cavalier. 1965 division 11, coast guard squadron one (ronone) departed for an thoi. 1981 station brant point received a call from the nantucket hospital requesting coast guard assistance in transporting a patient suffering from a brain tumor. a coast guard hu 16 was dispatched to medevac the patient, mildred "madaket millie" jewett, a long time friend of the coast guard and an honorary cwo4. july 25 1947 the women’s reserve of the coast guard reserve (spars) was formally disestablished. 1956 the swedish liner stockholm collided with the italian liner andrea doria off nantucket. coast guard cutters and aircraft as well as other vessels responded. andrea doria sank 10 hours after the collision, resulting in 52 deaths. 1995 a ledet under the command of ltjg robert landolfi out of mobile first boarded the panamanian registered fishing vessel nataly i. the ledet seized the nataly i when the team discovered 24,325 pounds of cocaine hidden on board, making this the largest u.s. maritime seizure of cocaine to date. july 26 1886 an act of congress (24 stat. l., 148) authorized an increase in the number of lighthouse districts to 16 within the lighthouse establishment. 1846 revenue cutter woodbury put down a mutiny on board the troop ship middlesex during the mexican war. 1948 president harry truman ordered the integration of the armed forces of the united states with executive order 9981, 26 july 26, 1948. by this time the coast guard had already opened up all of its rates to all qualified persons regardless of race. the coast guard noted "the importance of selecting men for what they are, for what they are capable of doing, and insisting on good conduct, good behavior, and good qualities of leadership for all hands…as a matter of policy negro recruits receive the same consideration as all others." july 27 1793 president ordered full complements for cutters and increased monthly pay to $40 for captains, $26 for 1st mates, $20 for 2nd mates, and $18 for 3rd mates. captains to have subsistence of captain in army, three mates subsistence of army lieutenants and mariner’s subsistence not to exceed $10 per month. 1868 congress directed the secretary of the treasury to enforce the law prohibiting the unauthorized killing of fur seals in alaska. also the president was authorized to regulate traffic in firearms, ammunition and spirituous liquors in alaska. the president assigned the enforcement of those laws to the revenue marine, thereby establishing the service's close connection with alaska. 1957 a captain of the port patrol vessel discovered a fire of unknown origin at the mystic coal yard in boston, massachusetts. the coast guard base, boston, immediately rushed the cgc cactus, 150 coast guardsmen, and portable fire fighting equipment to the scene. while the cutter moved a 450 foot norwegian freighter away from the flaming dock, the shore party with the assistance of local agencies brought the fire under control. eight coast guardsmen were hospitalized because of the injuries they received while fighting the fire. 2015 cgc aspen and a team from the national oceanic and atmospheric administration (noaa) established a new noaa environmental buoy and serviced three existing buoys approximately 30 nautical miles west of monterey bay from july 27 30, 2015. the newly established buoy named 46flo, referred to as “flossie,” is a six meter boat shaped navy oceanographic meteorological automatic device buoy. funded by the army corps of engineers and the coastal hydrology lab, flossie, contains three separate wave systems that will collect data and aid the army corps of engineers in using 20 years of historical data from noaa data buoy center buoys. 46flo was named flossie in honor of navy cdr florence “flossie” van straten, a pioneer in naval meteorology and oceanography and a key player in the development of the automated buoy systems the national data buoy center currently uses. aspen and the noaa team also performed scheduled maintenance and hull reliefs on buoys 46042, 46013, and 46026 ensuring the continued transmission of critical weather data and surf forecasts, as well as providing tsunami alerts to the san francisco and monterey bay areas. the coast guard and noaa partnership originated in the late 1960s when buoy development and operations were conducted solely by the coast guard. the program was transferred to noaa in 1970, but the coast guard continues to support buoy deployments, retrievals, and other maintenance. 2020 the crew of cgc diligence arrived at the cutter’s new homeport in pensacola, florida at the end of a 64 day patrol in the caribbean on july 27, 2020. diligence's crew performed counter drug, search and rescue, and migrant interdiction operations in support of coast guard district seven. this patrol began may 25, 2020, when the cutter departed wilmington, north carolina for the last time. diligence spent the previous 28 years homeported on wilmington’s historic downtown riverwalk, along the bank of the cape fear river. the cutter marked the completion of its third homeport shift throughout its service history after mooring at naval air station pensacola. diligence's crew patrolled the windward pass between cuba, the bahamas, and haiti alongside interagency and international partners to prevent and respond to dangerous illegal maritime migration and narcotics smuggling from central and south america. the crew also completed necessary shipboard training to maintain qualifications and operational readiness during a summer period that featured an approximate one third turnover of the ship’s crew. “diligence’s departure from wilmington, north carolina, was bittersweet, and we look forward to starting the next chapter of diligence’s long and storied history in pensacola,” said cdr luke slivinski, diligence’s commanding officer. “the crew’s commendable professionalism and proficiency enabled diligence’s successful patrol execution amidst the challenges posed by the global covid 19 pandemic.” july 28 1884 the senate approved the appointment of captain jarvis patten as commissioner of navigation to direct the work of the organization of the bureau of navigation, under the supervision of the secretary of the treasury. 1942 coast guard j4f widgeon v 214, piloted by chief aviation pilot henry white and carrying crewman rm1c henderson boggs, attacked a surfaced german submarine off the coast of louisiana with a single depth charge. after the war, the u.s. navy credited v 214 with sinking the nazi sub u 166. white was awarded the distinguished flying cross and boggs was awarded the air medal. nevertheless the u 166 was later learned to have been sunk a few days earlier by a navy patrol vessel, uss pc 566. white and boggs had actually attacked the u 171, which reported in her war diary as having been attacked by an unidentified aircraft in the very location that white reported attacking a u boat. the u 171 escaped with no damage. 2014 cgc mellon returned to its homeport of seattle, washington, after an 86 day patrol of the bering sea that covered nearly 15,000 miles. mellon departed seattle may 10, 2014 to conduct sar and fisheries missions throughout the gulf of alaska and the bering sea. those efforts included 41 law enforcement boardings and more than 100 hours aboard commercial fishing vessels. while patrolling the aleutian islands, the crew came to the aid of a fishing vessel crew following an engine room fire. the cutter’s damage control team performed a thorough post fire analysis and eliminated or isolated damaged engine room wiring to mitigate the risk of the fire re igniting. in an evolution that took more than 15 hours, the coast guardsmen escorted the fishing vessel safely to dutch harbor, alaska. the crew also participated in community relations events while taking time in port to resupply the cutter. during a port call to unalaska island, alaska, the crew helped with landscaping and painting at the holy ascension russian orthodox church, a national historic site. july 29 1898 the revenue cutter bear took aboard 97 survivors of whaling vessels, who had been caught in arctic ice and rescued by the overland expedition, and transported them to san francisco. 1948 congress approved public law 810 allowing retirement pay at age 60 for reservists with 20 years of service. some consider this to be the "birth" of the modern coast guard reserve. 1970 cgc vigorous became the first 210 foot cutter to cross the arctic circle. this took place while she was part of the 1970 cadet cruise squadron. cdr george wagner was the commanding officer. 1997 mlb 44300, the first 44 foot mlb to enter service, suffered an engine casualty in response to a sar mission conducted for station cape disappointment. she was retired from duty shortly thereafter. july 30 1965 commander, task force 115 (operation market time) was established for service in vietnam. also on this date, division 11 of coast guard squadron one (ronone) arrived at an thoi. 1966 when the coast guard station at belle isle, michigan, received a report of a cabin cruiser afire at a boat dock, patrol boats were dispatched to the scene by radio. within minutes, they were alongside the burning vessel, spraying water on the fire. the entire cabin cruiser was in flames, since its gas tanks had already blown up. the patrol boats, to minimize the damage to nearby facilities, towed the burning craft out of the marina. when notified that a woman was still on board, two coast guardsmen boarded the flaming cruiser and checked the cabin, only to find no one. as it turned out, the woman had already jumped overboard and made her way to shore safely. the fire was eventually brought under control, but not before the expenditure of many gallons of foam. 2014 cgc waesche returned to port at coast guard base honolulu after spending three weeks at sea participating in rim of the pacific (rimpac) 2014 exercises. during the exercises waesche demonstrated the coast guard's unique capabilities and partnership with department of defense entities and international partners along the pacific rim by serving as the combined task force 175 commander. while in this role, waesche led vessels from china, brunei, mexico, france, brunei, and the u.s., through numerous multinational exercises including ship handling, boarding exercises, replenishment at sea, and a live fire gunnery exercise. july 31 1789 the fifth act of the first congress of the u.s. established 59 customs collections districts in the 11 states that had ratified the new constitution. port of entry, under the jurisdiction of a collector of customs, were designated by the act, and the organization would come to be known as the u.s. customs service. 1876 congress re established revenue cutter cadet training after three years suspension and instituted promotion by examination. 1894 the treasury department created the division of revenue cutter service with captain of the revenue cutter service as its chief. 1985 the coast guard conducted a fleet dedication ceremony in lockport, louisiana for the new 110 foot "island class" patrol boats. august 1 1799 secretary of treasury described the ensign and pennant authorized to be flown by revenue cutters as "consisting of 16 perpendicular stripes [one for each state in the union at that time] alternate red and the union of the ensign to be the arms of the united states in dark blue on a white field." 1910 alaska was designated as a separate lighthouse district, with a district office and depot established at ketchikan for directing operations. 1952 the coast guard released a photograph of unidentified flying object (ufo), taken by a coast guard photographer on july 16 at the salem coast guard air station. 1976 the communication functions of cg radio station washington were transferred to cg communication station portsmouth, virginia. as a result, cg radio station washington was renamed cg station alexandria on august 30, 1976. 1979 the marine safety detachment in manila closed, marking the end of active coast guard presence in the philippines. 1985 the 49 year old cutter ingham gained the distinction of being the oldest commissioned cutter in service when her sister, duane, was decommissioned. 1999 cgc hamilton attempted to seize the russian fishing trawler gissar in the bering sea for fishing in u.s. waters. the gissar then attempted to return to russian waters, whereupon a boarding team from the hamilton boarded the trawler. soon thereafter, up to 19 other russian trawlers surrounded the two vessels, thereby prohibiting the hamilton from taking the gissar to a u.s. port. the hamilton's boarding crew was removed from the gissar and the gissar was turned over to the russian border guard vessel antius. 2005 cgc jarvis returned home after a three month patrol that opened cooperative international efforts between the u.s. and other nations of the north pacific heads of coast guard agencies. jarvis engaged in officer exchanges and joint operations with korean, japanese and canadian coast guards, the russian northern border guard and the chinese fisheries enforcement vessel zhong guo yu zhen. 2007 msd st. paul responded when the i 35w bridge collapsed in the twin cities. the coast guard established a security zone around the collapsed bridge and maintained a presence for 20 days. boat crews from st. louis, milwaukee, two rivers, wis., duluth, minn., sault ste. marie, mich., msst 91106 (new york), sector lower mississippi river, sector new orleans, station gulfport, and station aransas assisted during the three weeks following the bridges collapse. august 2 1995 the 234 foot gambling ship club royale sank 90 miles east of cape canaveral, florida, during hurricane erin. an hu 25 falcon from airsta miami responded to the distress signal sent out by the vessel's epirb, although the usual registration information did not come over the wire as a registered epirb. the hu 25 located numerous life rafts and survivors in the area and a hc 130 and two hh 60 jayhawks from airsta clearwater were dispatched. the helicopters had been weathering out erin at fort myers beach. the cgcs confidence, baranof, and point countess also responded. the helicopters rescued eight of the 11 crewmen. one body was later recovered and the remaining two crewmen were never found. august 3 1812 the revenue cutter commodore barry, a 98 ton schooner pierced for six guns under the command of captain daniel elliott, along with the u.s. privateer madison, were captured by boarding parties from the british vessels hms maidstone, spartan, and plumper "while lying in little river," maine after what the new york evening post noted was a "severe contest, in which a number of the english were said to be killed." all but three of the crews of both escaped into the nearby woods. the three cuttermen who were captured, though, became the first prisoners of war in coast guard history. they were: daniel marshall, charles woodward, and william babson of the commodore barry. the british destroyed the madison but apparently utilized commodore barry as a tender. 2013 the coast guard transferred ownership of the cape arago lighthouse and grounds to the confederated tribes of coos, lower umpqua, and siuslaw indians at a ceremony held on the lighthouse grounds southwest of coos bay. august 4 1790 president george washington signed the "tariff act," a bill congress passed that had been written and submitted by secretary of the treasury alexander hamilton. the bill authorized hamilton's to build ten cutters to protect the new nation's revenue (stat. l. 145, 175). alternately known as the system of cutters, revenue service, and revenue marine this service would officially be named the revenue cutter service (12 stat. l., 639) in 1863. the cutters were placed under the control of the treasury department. this date marks the officially recognized birthday of the coast guard. 1854 congress appropriated $12,500 for purchase of boats for life saving purposes at a number of designated ports on the great lakes. 1894 facilities of marine hospitals were extended to keepers and crews of the life saving service. 1949 congress approved public law 207, which revised, codified, and enacted into law title 14 of the united stated code. this set forth for the first time a clear, concise statutory statement of the duties and functions of the u.s. coast guard. the act confirmed that the coast guard was a branch of the armed forces of the united states, confirmed it in its general functions of marine safety, maritime law enforcement, and military readiness to operate as a service in the navy upon declaration of war or when the president directs. 2008 the coast guard commissioned the new 418 foot legend class cutter cgc bertholf (wmsl 750) on this date. the cutter was named for commodore ellsworth bertholf, former commandant of the u.s. coast guard. bertholf was constructed at northrop grumman ship systems in pascagoula, mississippi. it was the first of the new national security cutters built to replace the aging 378 foot hamilton class high endurance cutters (whecs). bertholf was assigned to its homeport of alameda, california. 2014 the coast guard and numerous county and local response agencies assisted in removing 296 people aboard a passenger vessel that ran aground in the vicinity of tahoe keys, california. at approximately 1537 local time, coast guard sector san francisco watch standers received a notification from coast guard station lake tahoe that a passenger vessel, tahoe queen, with approximately 296 passengers aboard, had run aground. rescue boat crews from coast guard station lake tahoe, south lake tahoe, douglas county, el dorado county, and vessel assist transferred all passengers and non essential crew from tahoe queen to shore at ski run marina in south lake tahoe. no injuries were reported. august 5 1889 the u.s. life saving service issued a circular prescribing an appropriate outfit for the keepers and surfmen. this was the first time that uniforms were required for the service. 1935 congress passed the anti smuggling act, which broadened the jurisdiction of coast guard. august 6 1878 the last true sailing cutter built for the revenue service, chase (salmon p. chase) was completed at the shipyard of thomas brown of philadelphia. barque rigged, chase displaced 142 tons and served as a cadet practice vessel for nearly 30 years before being decommissioned and transferred to the u.s. public health service. 1918 the first american lightship to be sunk by enemy action, lightship no. 71, was lost on the diamond shoals station. ls 71 had reported by radio the presence of a german submarine that had sunk a passing freighter and that message was intercepted by the u 104, which then located the lightship and, after giving the crew opportunity to abandon ship in life boats, sank it by surface gunfire. the lightship's crew reached shore without injury. 1984 cgc point divide seized the hmav bounty, a replica of the hms bounty that was used in the 1984 motion picture "the bounty," for customs violations. 1997 cgcs basswood and galveston assisted in the rescue of the survivors of the crash of a korean airliner, flight 801, in guam. august 7 1789 an act of congress (1 stat. l., 53), only the ninth law passed by the newly created congress of the united states, was the first act to make any provisions for public works. it created the lighthouse establishment as an administrative unit of the federal government when it accepted title to, and joined jurisdiction over, the 12 lighthouses then in existence, and provided that "the necessary support, maintenance and repairs of all lighthouses, beacons, buoys and public piers erected, placed, or sunk before the passing of this act, at the entrance of, or within any bay, inlet, harbor, or port of the united states, for rendering the navigation thereof easy and safe, shall be defrayed out of the treasury of the united states." prior to this time the lighthouses had been paid for, built and administered first by the colonies and then the states. 1882 an act of congress (22 stat. l., 301, 309) required all parties owning, occupying, or operating bridges over any navigable river to maintain at their own expense, from sunset to sunrise, throughout the year, such lights as may be required by the lighthouse service. 1927 horace alderman, a rumrunner, murdered two coast guardsmen, warrant officer (boatswain) sidney sanderlin and momm1/c victor a. lamby, and secret service agent robert k. webster after alderman's vessel was stopped by patrol boat cg 249 off the coast of florida. alderman was eventually subdued by the remaining crew of cg 249 and arrested. he was later tried, convicted, and hung at coast guard base 10 in fort lauderdale, florida. 1939 "suitable observance of the one hundred and fiftieth anniversary of the lighthouse service was called for by a joint resolution of congress, signed by the president on may 15, which was known as public resolution no. 16. by this resolution the week of august 7, 1939, was designated lighthouse week." 1942 the landings at tulagi and guadalcanal in the solomon islands commenced. this first allied invasion in the pacific proved to be a critical battle. coast guard manned transports, including the uss hunter liggett, participated in the invasion. many of the landing craft were crewed by coast guardsmen. a coast guard officer, lcdr dwight h. dexter, and 25 coast guardsmen went ashore from the liggett with their landing craft to set up a naval operating base on lunga point. signalman 1/c douglas munro, later killed at guadalcanal, was a member of dexter's command. 1958 a collision of the merchant tankers golfoil and graham in heavy fog in the entrance to narragansett bay, rhode island set fire to both vessels. u.s. coast guard, navy, and commercial units fought the fires for three days, searched for missing crewmen, and assisted in directing traffic through the area. the cgc laurel directed the on scene operations. august 8 1950 the coast guard commenced a controversial program to screen merchant seaman signing on american vessels on the east and gulf coasts where the vessels were foreign bound. those seamen designated as "poor security risks" were not permitted to sign on. 1985 the coast guard awarded a contract to build the 110 foot "island class" patrol boats to bollinger machine shop and shipyard in lockport, louisiana after a drawn out legal battle. 2009 the coast guard’s first production mh 60t “jayhawk” helicopter (tail number cg 6028) completed its first search and rescue operation off the north carolina coast. 2013 cgc polar star returned to its homeport of seattle, washington, following a two month deployment where it conducted arctic trials in advance of its upcoming operation deep freeze assignment. august 9 1942 the coast guard manned attack transport uss hunter liggett rescued the survivors of the heavy cruisers uss vincennes, astoria, and quincy and the australian cruiser hmas canberra that had been sunk the preceding night by imperial japanese navy warships during the battle of savo island. the night battle, also known as the first naval battle of guadalcanal, was one of the worst defeats ever suffered by the u.s. navy. 1950 congress enacted public law 679, which charged the coast guard with the function of port security. 1969 ltjg michael w. kirkpatrick, executive officer of cgc point arden, and en1 michael h. painter were killed in action in vietnam. 1982 secretary of defense caspar w. weinberger approved the use of coast guard law enforcement detachments on board navy vessels during peace time. the teams conducted law enforcement boardings from navy vessels for the first time in history. the first cg taclet was assigned to the uss sampson on august 11, 1982. august 10 1971 president richard nixon signed federal boat safety act of 1971, considered to be the most significant legislation in the long history of federal action in this field. the new act repealed most of the federal boating act of 1958 and amended the motorboat act of 1940. 1990 the military sealift command began loading equipment and supplies from the garden city port in savannah, georgia, to support allied operations during operation desert shield. coast guard units, including reservists called up specifically for this operation, maintained security zones and ensured the safe loading of the vessels. 1993 three vessels collided at the entrance to tampa bay, florida. the collision, with an explosion that shook tampa bay and shot a fireball hundreds of feet into the air, involved the tug seafarer, pushing its 546 foot barge ocean 255, which was laden with 235,000 barrels of petroleum products; the tug fred bouchard and its barge, b 155, which carried 122,000 barrels of oil; and the 357 foot philippine registered freighter balsa 37, which was carrying 6,000 metric tons of phosphate material. small boats from aton team st. petersburg and stations cortez, sand key and st. petersburg, cgcs decisive, point steele, sitkinak, and vise, aircraft from airsta clearwater, and a crew from mso tampa responded. more than 300 coast guardsmen in total responded to battle the fire, oversee the cleanup, salvage and lightering operations. a marine board of investigation convened to investigate the accident. there were no deaths or major injuries. august 11 1812 the revenue cutter louisiana capsized and sank at her home port of new orleans during a hurricane. all hands were lost except for her master. 1817 "the ship margaret, which sailed on sunday, august 10, 1817, for amelia island with a number of persons on board, supposed to be going out for the purpose of joining the pirates, was brought back by the rc active, under the command of revenue captain john cahoone, and anchored yesterday morning [11 august 1817] in the bay. the cutter fired several shots at the margaret before she hove to. it is said that she has also munitions of war on board." [taken from the new york gazette new york post, dated august 12, 1817.] 1966 cgc point welcome was attacked in the pre dawn hours by u.s. air force aircraft while on patrol in the waters near the mouth of the cua viet river, about three quarters of a mile south of the demilitarized zone (the 17th parallel) in south vietnam. her commanding officer, ltjg david brostrom, along with one crewman, en2 jerry phillips, were killed in this "friendly fire" incident. point welcome's executive officer, ltjg ross bell, two other crewmen, gm2 mark d. mckenney, and fa houston j. davidson, a vietnamese liaison officer, ltjg do viet vien, and a freelance journalist, mr. timothy j. page, were wounded. crewman bmc richard patterson saved his cutter and the surviving crew at great risk to himself. he was awarded a bronze star with the combat "v" device for his actions. 1974 president gerald ford signed into law the first bill of his new administration, a measure authorizing the coast guard to adopt modernized boiler and pressure safety standards on board merchant ships. 1982 members of a 7th district taclet stood bridge watch aboard the uss sampson, the first time a coast guard taclet had served aboard a navy vessel. the secdef approved the use of coast guard taclets aboard navy warships only two days earlier. 2014 cgc bertholf returned to its homeport in alameda, california, after a 140 day patrol. bertholf deployed to the eastern pacific ocean off the coast of central and south america in support of joint interagency task force south counter drug operations. during the deployment, bertholf’s crew detained a number of suspicious vessels and suspects and seized more than 12,000 pounds of illegal narcotics. "because our missions were a success, it made coming home even better," said capt mark frankford, commanding officer of the bertholf. crewmembers took time from the busy patrol to volunteer at an assisted living facility in puerto vallarta, mexico, where they performed maintenance, upkeep and visited with the residents, many of who were elderly. august 12 1982 coast guard vessels escorted the nation's first trident submarine, uss ohio, into its home port at naval submarine base bangor, providing security for the sub's transit. coast guard units guided the sub past a soviet spy ship and 400 anti nuclear protesters. 1984 cgc munro departed honolulu for tokyo, japan to take part in a bilateral meeting between the coast guard and the japanese maritime safety agency. while en route, the cutter conducted a hawaiian island and western pacific fisheries enforcement patrol   the first of its type ever conducted in the western pacific by a 378 foot cutter. 1994 "team coast guard" was created when the commandant, adm robert kramek, approved recommendations that integrated the reserves into the operational missions and administrative processes of the regular coast guard, "effectively eliminating the differences between the two service components." 2015 cgc stratton returned to its homeport of coast guard island in alameda, california, after a 114 day joint interagency task force south counter drug patrol. while underway, on june 16 and july 18, 2015, stratton seized two separate self propelled semi submersible (spss) vessels carrying a total of 22,345 pounds of cocaine in the eastern pacific ocean. in addition to the spss cases, stratton interdicted six go fast vessels smuggling more than 6,248 pounds of contraband. the coast guard and partner agencies operating in the eastern pacific ocean near central and south america have seized more cocaine in the last 10 months than in fiscal years 2012 through 2014 combined. in addition to the counter narcotics mission, stratton’s crew conducted a broad range of operations including search and rescue, maritime surveillance, international partner building, and community outreach. while on patrol, the cutter’s multi mission capabilities provide greater stability throughout the western hemisphere and protect our nation’s borders. while in san diego, stratton conducted one of the largest known cocaine offloads in coast guard history, with an estimated worth of more than $1.01 billion. the drugs were seized in 23 separate interdictions by u.s. coast guard cutters and u.s. navy vessels with embarked coast guard law enforcement teams in known drug smuggling transit zones. the commandant of the coast guard, admiral paul zukunft, attended to commemorate the historic event. august 13 1954 congress passed public law 584, resulting in the coast guard relinquishing to the federal communications commission the responsibility for issuing safety radiotelegraphy and safety radiotelephony certificates and exemption certificates under the international convention for safety of life at sea. 1967 cgcs sweetbriar and cape coral came to the rescue of alaska governor walter j. hickel and his fishing party after they began trapped in a cove by a heavy storm. the cutters escorted the fishing party safely back to juneau. august 14 1848 congress appropriated $10,000 for life saving stations and apparatus between sandy hook and egg harbor; the first funds to be expended under supervision of revenue cutter service. $5000 appropriated in 1847 for saving life from shore was turned over to collector of customs at boston to acquire boathouses and equipment on cape cod for massachusetts human society. (see march 3, 1847) august 15 1914 at the request of the secretary of the department of commerce, congress extended the sponge fishing act and directed its enforcement to the revenue cutter service on the request of the secretary of commerce. 1943 coast guardsmen participated in the invasion of vella la vella, solomon islands. 1944 coast guardsmen participated in the invasion of southern france. 1969 the coast guard loran station at tan my became fully operational as part of operation tight reign in vietnam. also on this date in 1969, the last two cutters of coast guard squadron one (ronone) in service in vietnam, cgc point marone and point cypress, were transferred to the navy of the republic of vietnam. division 13 and coast guard ronone were disestablished. august 16 1918 keeper john allen midgett and his crew of five from station no. 179 at chicamacomico, north carolina rescued the crew of the mined british tanker ss mirlo. all but one of the lifesavers were named midgett and each received the gold lifesaving medal for their actions. 1941 the honolulu coast guard district was transferred to the navy. 1999 for the first time weapons were fired from a coast guard hitron helicopter "to execute the interdiction of a maritime drug smuggler." august 17 1929 horace alderman, convicted of murdering two coast guardsmen and a secret service agent in 1927, was hanged at coast guard base 10 in fort lauderdale, florida. he was the only person ever executed on a coast guard shore station. 1990 at the request of the joint chiefs of staff, the secretary of transportation and the commandant of the coast guard committed coast guard boarding teams to operation desert shield. other coast guardsmen, however, were already serving in the gulf. august 18 1899 surfman rasmus s. midgett of the gull shoal life saving station in north carolina single handedly rescued 10 people from the grounded barkentine priscilla. midgett was awarded the gold life saving medal for his heroic actions. 1941 the coast guard was charged by congress with enforcing a law to protect war lanes in alaskan waters. 1983 hurricane alicia came ashore at houston, texas. coast guard units responded to calls for assistance. 2006 cgc eagle helped to rescue nearly 100 west african migrants who were found drifting in a disabled vessel 35 miles off the south coast of tenerife, canary island. august 19 1898 about 8 p.m., the keeper of the galveston life saving station, edward haines, was notified by one of the crew of a quarantine boat that cries for help were heard coming from the channel opposite the station. the crew immediately launched the surfboat and pulled into the darkness. as they proceeded, they heard the cries for help and pulled in their direction until they found a boat capsized and one man clinging to her bottom. they hauled him in and he informed them that he and three others were returning from a hunting trip in the sloop, jennie, when she capsized in a sudden squall. the other men were rescued by the yawl from the quarantine station. when she capsized the anchor went overboard, securely anchoring her; consequently, the keeper decided not to attempt to right her until morning. at daylight the surfmen returned to her, righted, and bailed her out. 1994 operation able vigil commenced during a massive influx of cuban migrants fleeing cuba. it was the "largest joint peace time operation" in coast guard history, according to the commandant, adm robert kramek. august 20 1984 a fire broke out in a stateroom aboard the 506 foot cruise ship scandanavian sea while the vessel was five miles off the florida coast. the 744 passengers were mustered on the weather decks while the cruise ship's captain headed his vessel towards port canaveral. coast guardsmen from cgcs diligence, reliance, and steadfast; stations port canaveral and ponce de leon inlet; mso jacksonville; group mayport; the gulf and atlantic strike teams were ordered to port canaveral to help extinguish the blaze while a small boat from station port canaveral got underway to escort the cruise ship to port. local fire fighters also took part and ultimately over 150 coast guardsmen participated. it still took two days to extinguish the fire. one crewman and one passenger were killed and the vessel suffered extensive fire damage. august 21 1968 cgc point verde reported that she had received a call from the chevron oil company in venice, louisiana, reporting that an oil rig, approximately 25 miles east of grant isle, louisiana, had a blowout and was on fire. the exact number of persons on board the rig at that time was unknown. two coast guard helicopters and cgc point sal were dispatched. several private vessels and oil company helicopters were already on the scene. a coast guard helicopter transported three injured persons to the u.s. public health service hospital in new orleans and several oil company helicopters transported persons to other hospitals. the coast guard helicopter returned to the scene and along with point sal, a 53 footer, and another coast guard helicopter conducted a search for persons in the water. the number of persons on board was determined to be 33 with 23 definitely accounted for, five confirmed missing, and five reported accounted for, but not confirmed. two people were known dead with 12 having been hospitalized. 1972 vts san francisco went on line as the nation's first vessel traffic service. originally called a vessel traffic system, the vts evolved from the experimental san francisco harbor advisory radar project and became an official coast guard function when the ports and waterways safety act became law in 1972. august 22 1816 rc active, under the command of revenue captain steven white and acting under orders of the collector at baltimore, took possession of the spanish brig servia, recently departed from baltimore, which was anchored in the patuxent river. the servia had been captured by an american privateer and active was ordered to arrest the servia and return it to baltimore for examination. 1944 the liberty ship ss alexander v. frazer, named for the first commandant of the revenue cutter service, was launched. 1994 the coast guard icebreaker cgc polar sea and the ccgs louis s. ste laurent became the first "north american surface ships" to reach the north pole. an hh 65a from aviation training center mobile, detached to the polar sea, became the first u.s. (and also coast guard) helicopter to reach the pole as well. august 23 1820 u.s. newspapers began reporting that the revenue cutter louisiana captured four pirate vessels during a cruise the previous month. revenue cutter captain loomis was quoted as writing: "i arrived here [belize] after a short cruise of 20 days on the 17th [of july, 1820]. i have succeeded in taking four more pirates, which i have now in confinement…i have about $4,000 worth of dry goods which they have robbed and were endeavoring to smuggle into the united states. they have some negroes which had landed but have been followed and taken. i took these fellows 250 miles to the westward of this river." 1893 "this was the first instance in the history of the united states light house establishment in which a light ship has foundered at her moorings," reported the lighthouse board, when lightship no. 37 was lost in rough seas at her station at five fathom bank off the entrance to delaware bay. four of her six crew were lost in the tragedy. 1979 the keel of the first of the new 270 foot class medium endurance cutters, cgc bear, was laid at the tacoma boatbuilding company in tacoma, washington. 1993 cgc yocona hosted the russian icebreaker aisberg for the first ever joint russian u.s. search and rescue exercise. the exercise was based out of kodiak and involved three aircraft from air station kodiak, two russian aircraft, the aisberg, and the cutters chase and ironwood. 1994 a new record for people rescued at sea was set when 3,253 cubans were saved from dangerously overloaded craft by the coast guard during operation able vigil. 2005 tropical depression 12 was first identified by the national hurricane center forming 175 miles southeast of nassau. the storm would become hurricane katrina. august 24 1912 congress gave effect to the convention between united states, great britain, japan, and russia prohibiting taking of fur seals and sea otters in the north pacific ocean and bering sea by authorizing the president "to cause a guard or patrol to be maintained in the waters frequented by the seal herd or herds of seal otter. " the president tasked the revenue cutter service with carrying out this patrol. 1990 coast guard grumman e2c, #3501, assigned to cgas st. augustine, crashed during a landing at roosevelt roads, puerto rico, killing all four crewmen on board. they were: lt duane e. stenbak, ltjg paul e. perlt, lt craig e. lerner, and at1 matthew h. baker. cgas st. augustine was disbanded soon thereafter and the remaining e2cs were returned to the navy. 1996 cgc hamilton safely rescued the seven crewmen from fishing vessel moriah after it sank 200 miles west of adak. august 25 1945 cgc magnolia was rammed amidships by the cargo ship ss marguerite lehand off mobile bay. she sank in two minutes and one of her crew was killed. the other 49 were rescued. those survivors cross decked to the new tender cgc salvia (wagl 400) which then took magnolia's place. 1950 ss benevolence collided with ss mary luckenbach. cgc gresham and other vessels responded and rescued 407 persons. 1971 the secretary of transportation announced the awarding of a contract to the lockheed shipbuilding and construction company of seattle, washington, "to build the world’s most powerful icebreaker for the us coast guard," polar star, the first of two "polar class" icebreakers. 2005 hurricane katrina made landfall between hallandale beach and aventura, florida, as a category 1 hurricane. four days later it came ashore again near empire, buras and boothville, louisiana. the rescue and response effort was one of the largest in coast guard history. august 26 1992 hurricane andrew struck florida and the gulf coast states causing extensive damage. coast guard units conducted search and rescue, relief, and transport operations. august 27 1942 cgc mojave rescued 293 men from the torpedoed transport ss chatham in the strait of belle isle. 1999 a boarding team from cgc munro discovered 172 illegal chinese migrants aboard the fishing vessel chih yung off the coast of mexico. 2008 cgc dallas, while deployed as part of the u.s. navy's 6th fleet, delivered 76,000 pounds of humanitarian relief supplies as part of "operation assured delivery" to the port of bat'umi, georgia after that country was attacked by russia. august 28 1916 an act of congress (39 stat. l., 536, 538) provided that "light keepers and assistant light keepers of the lighthouse service shall be entitled to medical relief without charge at hospitals and other stations of the public health service under the rules and regulations governing the seamen of the merchant marine." 1919 president woodrow wilson signed executive order 3160 which returned the coast guard to the administrative control of the treasury department from the navy after world war i. 1963 as soon as two u.s. air force kc 135 tanker aircraft became reported as overdue at their destination, homestead air force base, florida, the u.s. coast guard eastern area commander initiated an intensive air search. it lasted through september 2nd with as many as 25 u.s. coast guard, air force, and navy planes participating. none of the 11 occupants of the two kc 135's were ever found, only wreckage, indicating that there had been a midair collision. 1995 a request from the commander in chief of naval forces europe led to the deployment of cgc dallas to the mediterranean. she departed governors island on may 29, 1995 and visited ports throughout the mediterranean and black sea, including istanbul and samsun in turkey; durres, albania; varna, bulgaria; constanta, romania; koper, slovenia; taranto, italy; and bizerte, tunisia. the crew trained with naval and coast guard forces in each country. she deployed for a few days with the sixth fleet and served as a plane guard for uss theodore roosevelt. the crew was also able to coordinate schedules with six nato and non nato nations to conduct boardings. she returned to the u.s. in august and arrived at governors island on august 28. 2015 cgc sequoia returned to guam following a 25 day deployment in the western pacific ocean in support of fisheries enforcement and humanitarian efforts. when first departing guam on august 3rd, the crew was diverted to tanapag harbor, saipan, to deliver critical relief aid and support personnel to assist in the aftermath of typhoon soudelor. the crew weathered 10 foot seas and 30 mph winds to transport members from the army national guard, mobil oil's disaster and spill response team, the u.s. marshal service, and the commonwealth utility corporation. due to storm damage to saipan’s airport, military sealift and airlift were the only means of getting needed personnel and resources onto the island in the initial days of the response. once on scene, sequoia crewmembers went to work surveying the harbor channel and fixing vital aids to navigation used by professional mariners to transit into and out of tanapag harbor, saipan’s only deepwater port. within just two days, sequoia’s crew restored and verified all 14 aids were on station and functioning properly, allowing for the reopening of the port and the delivery of vital relief aid by military and merchant ships. transitioning to its original mission of this patrol, the crew and their two embarked federated states of micronesia shipriders conducted boardings of fishing vessels under the fsm u.s. bilateral fisheries enforcement agreement. patrolling the federated states of micronesia exclusive economic zone, sequoia traveled over 4,068 miles and conducted 10 law enforcement boardings, as well as providing deterrence for illegal fishing activity and strengthening international partnerships. on their voyage back to guam, sequoia’s crew took the opportunity to deliver humanitarian aid to onoun island, namonuito atoll, federated states of micronesia. using their two small boats, the crew delivered nearly 10,000 pounds of aid donated by the ayuda foundation, including powdered milk, books and educational material, fishing equipment, and medical supplies. in addition, due to a rainwater shortage on the island, the crew also used the cutter’s potable water reserves to fill nearly 100 containers with fresh drinking water. while ashore, sequoia’s medical personnel attended to several injuries and medical ailments amongst the island’s 500 residents, including cleaning wounds and delivering much needed medical supplies to the island's in resident medical assistant. august 29 1916 the secretary of the treasury was authorized to procure three light craft river steamboats, including lifeboats and other necessary lifesaving appliances and equipment for rescuing lives and property and distributing food and clothing to marooned people during mississippi and ohio river floods. the vessels acquired were the 182 foot stern wheel propelled river steamers cgc kankakee and yocona. 1916 congress authorized the treasury department to establish ten coast guard air stations, but appropriated only $7,000 for an instructor and assistant. appropriation for their construction and for aircraft was not made until 1924. 1916 a naval appropriations act (39 stat. l., 556, 602) provided for the first time the mobilization of the lighthouse service in time of war by authorizing the president, "…whenever in his judgment a sufficient national emergency exists, to transfer to the service and jurisdiction of the navy department, or of the war department, such vessels, equipment, stations and personnel of the lighthouse service as he may deem to the best interest of the country." 1980 the coast guard and the royal navy signed a personnel exchange agreement. the first exchange between the two services were helicopter pilots. the pilots were assigned to rnas culdrose and cgairsta miami. 2005 hurricane katrina made a second landfall in the u.s., this time near empire, buras and boothville, louisiana after first previously coming ashore along the coast at southeast florida on august 25th. the rescue and response effort was one of the largest in coast guard history, involving units from every district, saving 24,135 lives and conducting 9,409 evacuations. august 30 1852 congress passed the steamboat act which established the steamboat inspection service under the control of the treasury department (10 stat. l., 1852). the act provided for the appointment, by the president, with the advice and consent of the senate, of nine supervising inspectors. these men, experts in the construction and operation of commercial craft, were paid by the government. they were to meet once a year for the purpose of consultation and the promulgation of regulations governing the administration of the applicable laws, assigned territory being covered by each of them. local inspectors, acting under the supervising inspectors, were authorized to issue licenses to engineers and pilots of passenger vessels. inspectors were now on salary, the amount depending on the number of vessels inspected in each district, the source of which was receipts from fees for inspections and licenses. 1872 the neptune line steamer metis sank in 30 minutes off watch hill, rhode island. of 104 passengers and 45 crew, only 33 survived. a coasting schooner struck the metis, which had a full passenger list and cotton cargo bound for new england textile mills. captain daniel larkin (retired light keeper and one of the first life saving station captains), captain jared crandall (light keeper), and lifeboat crewmen albert crandall, frank larkin, and byron green launched from the life saving station. boat captain john harvey and crewmen courtland gavitt, edward nash, eugene nash, and william nash saw the collision and launched a fishing seine from the beach. the lifeboat and seine rescued 32. revenue cutter moccasin from stonington, connecticut, met the boats, took their passengers, and located a survivor. the moccasin and seine continued to search until dark. participants were awarded certificates of heroism from the massachusetts humane society and gold medals, minted to commemorate the rescue, by congressional resolution, february 24, 1873. the event signified the growing interaction among the members of the life saving service, the lighthouse service, and the revenue cutter service, a factor that led to the later merger of the three services. 1941 coast guard jrf 1 grumman "goose" v 184 was sent to midland, texas, for a photographic flight in cooperation with the agricultural adjustment administration. august 31 1819 the revenue cutters alabama and louisiana captured the privateer bravo in the gulf of mexico. bravo's master, jean le farges   a lieutenant of jean lafitte   was later reportedly hanged from louisiana's yardarm. the cutters then sailed for patterson's town on breton island to destroy the notorious pirates' den there. 1852 congress created the lighthouse board and charged it with administering the lighthouse service, as the revenue cutter service was again decentralized. the board was comprised of army and navy officers and civilian scientists. the board's creation led to a number of important changes in the way ocean and coastal navigation was administered. 2015 the u.s. coast guard and u.s. customs and border protection interdicted approximately 15,000 pounds of cocaine and detained four suspects from a self propelled semi submersible vessel in international waters of the eastern pacific ocean off the coast of mexico. a cbp office of air and marine p 3 maritime patrol aircraft tracked the 50 foot vessel while on routine patrol in the region. cgc bertholf, also on patrol in the area, was alerted to the suspicious vessel. the cutter launched two over the horizon long range interceptor boat crews to intercept and boarded the vessel. upon approach of the boarding teams, four suspected smugglers exited the hull. boarding team members retrieved bales and loose bricks of contraband from the semi submersible that tested positive for cocaine. the seized contraband was worth an estimated $227 million. after the suspected smugglers and contraband were removed from the semi submersible the craft was sunk as a hazard to navigation. september 1 1789 an act of congress provided for the registering and clearing of vessels and the regulation of the coastwise trade, thus laying the foundation of american navigation laws which, until 1912, embodied the marine policy of the united states. 1894 an armed guard of revenue cutter service personnel were placed on the pribiloff islands to protect seals. 1938 the coast guard assumed responsibility for the maritime service. 1939 the armed forces of nazi germany invaded poland, beginning world war ii. 1942 joseph c. jenkins was given a temporary promotion to warrant officer (boatswain); becoming the first african american warrant officer in the coast guard. 1942 the coast guard transferred responsibility for running the merchant marine training programs to the war shipping administration. 1944 cgc northland captured the crew of a scuttled nazi supply trawler off greenland. they had been attempting to establish a weather station on the coast of greenland. 1977 bobby c. wilks became the first african american in the coast guard to reach the rank of captain. he was also the first african american coast guard aviator (coast guard aviator no. 735). he later became the first african american to command a coast guard air station. 1983 korean airlines flight 007 (kal 007) strayed off course into soviet airspace and was shot down by a soviet fighter aircraft just west of sakhalin island. all 269 persons on board were killed, including congressman larry p. mcdonald from georgia. cgc munro, on a diplomatic mission to tokyo, joined in the international sar effort but no survivors were found. munro then assisted in the search for the airliner's black box and recovered debris. the cutter also safely rescued from the sea all four crewmen of a downed lamps helicopter from the uss badger. the munro received the navy meritorious unit commendation for her part in the sar and recovery efforts. 2008 cgc dallas visited the port of sevastopol, ukraine during a historic voyage through the black sea that included delivering relief supplies to georgia. 2014 cgc terrapin returned to its homeport of bellingham, washington, after a pacific patrol to support counter drug operations off southern california. terrapin conducted a 42 day patrol totaling nearly 600 operational hours, completing 20 recreational safety boardings and interrupting the illegal flow of narcotics into the u.s. while working jointly with customs and border protection and the mexican navy to stem the flow of illegal drugs entering the u.s., a customs and border protection office of air and marine multi role enforcement aircraft crew detected a suspicious boat august 21 and terrapin was diverted to intercept. terrapin’s crew stopped the panga and detained the suspected smugglers who claimed mexican nationality and discovered an estimated 90 bales of marijuana weighing nearly 2,000 pounds. the suspects, vessel and marijuana were turned over to the mexican navy. september 2 1945 japanese officials signed the articles of surrender aboard uss missouri, officially ending world war ii. 1966 the coast guard commissioned loran station con son in vietnam as a critical part of operation tight reign. 2019 coast guard air station clearwater mh 60 jayhawk helicopter crews, forward deployed to andros island, conducted medical evacuations in support of search and rescue and humanitarian aid in the bahamas. as hurricane dorian made its way across the bahamas, the coast guard supported the bahamian national emergency management agency and the royal bahamian defense force, who led search and rescue efforts in the bahamas as a result of the hurricane. at the conclusion of the response effort, coast guard crews rescued more than 400 people, received nearly 1,400 sar requests, and conducted over 130 flights and more than 60 surface sorties. september 4 1945 the coast guard cutter cg 83525 became the first and only cutter to host an official surrender ceremony when imperial japanese army second lieutenant kinichi yamada surrendered the garrison of aguijan island on board this coast guard 83 footer. rear admiral marshall r. greer, usn, accepted their surrender for the united states. september 5 1939 president franklin d. roosevelt proclaimed u.s. neutrality in world war ii and ordered the navy, augmented by the coast guard, to establish neutrality patrols. 1946 the u.s. air rescue agency, an inter departmental group headed by the commandant of the coast guard and engaged in the study of improved and standardized rescue and search methods, was renamed the search and rescue agency. "search and rescue units of the coast guard were at the same time integrated into the peace time organization and the whole developed into a system of constantly alerted communications, coastal lookout, and patrols of institute instant and systematic search and rescue procedure in case of disasters." 2013 cgc bertholf returned to its homeport of alameda, california, after a five month counter drug deployment to the eastern pacific in support of joint inter agency task force south (jiatfs). 2015 cgc healy reached the north pole on this date, becoming the first u.s. surface vessel to do so unaccompanied. healy was underway in support of geotraces, an international scientific endeavor to study the geochemistry of the world’s oceans. september 6 1966 gm1 lester k. gates was awarded the bronze star medal with a combat "v" device for "meritorious service and action against the enemy" while serving on board cgc point white (wpb 82308) in vietnam. the point white attacked and captured a viet cong junk while patrolling the soi rap river. gm1 gates was the first enlisted coast guardsman to be awarded the bronze star since world war ii. 1995 hurricane luis pounded the leeward islands. gantsec units responded with relief supplies, sar, and evacuations. coast guard c 130s delivered 125,000 pound of relief supplies to st. martin. cgc attu delivered relief supplies to antigua and barbuda. 2014 cgc waesche returned to its homeport of alameda, completing a 14 week deployment that included counter smuggling patrols, participation in the largest multi national maritime exercise in the world, and fisheries enforcement operations. waesche spent the first month of its deployment off the coast of southern california and mexico in support of joint inter agency, counter drug operations. working with other coast guard assets, customs and border patrol (cbp), immigration and customs enforcement, and the mexican navy, the cutter’s crew interdicted more than 10,000 pounds of illegal narcotics and six suspected narco traffickers. waesche then shifted their focus to the central pacific, where they participated in the multi national rim of the pacific exercises 2014 (rimpac) off the coast of hawaii. after rimpac, the cutter headed to the south pacific ocean to conduct fisheries enforcement in support of the 14th coast guard district, which spans from hawaii to american samoa, guam, and other u.s. possessions in the pacific. during the patrol, waesche embarked three fisheries enforcement specialists from partner nations in the pacific, including kiribati and the cook islands. in addition to fisheries enforcement, the crew of waesche conducted flight operations with the french navy off the coast of tahiti, completing a series of hoists and simulated supply drops with a french as365 helicopter. september 7 1934 surfboats and lifeboats from coast guard stations shark river, squan beach, sandy hook, and others responded to a deadly fire aboard the liner morro castle, rescuing 129 survivors. cutters tampa and cahoone also responded. after failing to get the morro castle under tow due to the worsening weather, they recovered as many victims from the water as they could. all told over 250 coast guardsmen participated in the rescue and recovery effort. eventually this maritime disaster led to a senate investigation and subsequent changes in maritime safety regulations. 1953 when the panamanian ss eugenia grounded as a result of the heavy weather generated off cape cod by hurricane carol, the cape cod lifeboat station removed 13 survivors by breeches buoy and 4 by the station's dukw, an amphibious surface craft. 2021 the crew of uscgc escanaba (wmec 907) returned home to portsmouth, va, on tuesday [september 7, 2021] following a historic 50 day patrol in support of operation nanook in the arctic region and the labrador sea. operation nanook supports the coast guard arctic strategy to develop international relations with like minded arctic states, enhance maritime domain awareness, and expand service capabilities within the region. escanaba deployed with the 154 foot sentinel class fast response cutter richard snyder and embarked members of the msst east. the operation expanded the logistical boundaries of the frc fleet and further refined the modular capabilities of deployable special forces to enhance a cutter's organic law enforcement capabilities. operation nanook was made up of two phases, tuugaalik and tatigiit. the tuugaalik phase brought the crews of escanaba, richard snyder, and the royal canadian navy together to exercise best practices and demonstrate responsive capabilities to potential terrorist of adversarial threats. in addition to conducting law enforcement operations, escanaba's crew participated in frontier sentinel, a training event with the u.s. and royal canadian navies. the exercise simulated a multi national response to a maritime threat and strengthened interoperability between all three services. september 8 1900 second assistant engineer charles s. root and seaman james bierman of the u.s. revenue cutter service, assigned to usrc galveston, were awarded gold lifesaving medals for their actions after the 1900 hurricane that destroyed galveston, texas. root voluntarily commanded a boat that went to the assistance of survivors within the city itself, a boat manned by eight other volunteer members of galveston's crew, including seaman bierman. the other members of root's boat crew were gunner george jeffas, carpenter jacob pedersen, master at arms w. cormack, coxswain f. olsen, third class oiler w. gardiner, oiler w. idstrom, and fireman b. rafailovich. in all they were credited with saving 34 persons "from drowning." they were the first members of the revenue cutter service to receive the prestigious award. 1952 when ss foundation star sent a distress signal that she was in rough seas and in danger of breaking in half, four coast guard vessels and three commercial vessels proceed to her assistance and rescued the crew before the ship broke apart and sank. 2000 lcdr daniel c. burbank became the second coast guard astronaut to fly on a shuttle mission (he had been selected by nasa for astronaut training in 1996). he flew as a mission specialist on nasa flight sts 106 aboard the space shuttle atlantis (september 8 20, 2000). 2019 the cargo vessel golden ray capsized and caught fire off the georgia coast soon after departing the port of brunswick, about 70 miles south of savannah. the coast guard rescued the vessel's pilot and 23 crewmembers, including four men who had been trapped in the hull for 36 hours. they were safely extracted by the coast guard through a hole drilled into the overturned hull. september 9 1942 the coast guard manned weather ship uss muskeget disappeared without a trace while on weather patrol in the north atlantic during world war ii. her entire crew of nine officers and 111 enlisted men were lost. after the war, the u.s. navy determined that she had been torpedoed and sunk with all hands by the german submarine u 755. 1943 the invasion of salerno, italy began on this date. coast guard units, including lci(l) flotilla 4, participated. lci(l) flotilla 4 was a fleet of ocean going landing vessels manned entirely by coast guardsmen and commanded by captain miles imlay, uscg. they went on to participate on the landings at normandy, france the following year. 2005 vadm thad allen, the coast guard chief of staff, was tapped to lead the hurricane katrina federal response and recovery efforts in louisiana, mississippi, and alabama as the principal federal official or pfo. september 10 1889 from september 10 12, 1889, the lifesaving crews at lewes, henlopen, and rehoboth beach stations assisted 22 vessels and saved 39 persons by surfboat and 155 by breeches buoy without the loss of a single life. 1981 cgc morgenthau, in "charlie" status in san francisco while preparing for a yard period, responded to a distress call from the 610 foot m/v blue hawk, a cargo vessel carrying about 5,000 automobiles, after she reported a fire aboard while she was over 700 miles southwest of san diego. morgenthau was underway within three hours. in the interim, hc 130 cg 1454 was dispatched by airsta sacramento while commsta point reyes directed other merchant ships close to the blue hawk to assist. the fire still raged when morgenthau arrived on scene two days later. the cutter's fire fighting teams put the fire out and morgenthau escorted the damaged freighter to san francisco. 1994 coast guardsman george b. evans, while on liberty with his children, earned a gold life saving medal for the following action as listed in his award citation: "while relaxing with his children at the park, chief petty officer evans heard cries for help. he first saw two boys, who had been playing on a sandbar, in the water and then a man swimming toward one of the boys. without regard for his own personal safety, chief petty officer evans jumped into the river and swam after the other child. upon reaching the victim, chief petty officer evans held the frightened child above water. the victim, in his panic, attempted to climb on top of chief petty officer evan, pushing him under the water. this, combined with the strong current and considerable undertow, exhausted chief petty officer evans. another man arrived and took over the rescue. after the victim was taken from him, chief petty officer evans swam back toward the sandbar. too weak to make it safely back to the sandbar, he was pulled to safety by another man on the beach. chief petty officer evans determined efforts, outstanding initiative, and fortitude during this rescue resulted in the saving of one life. his unselfish actions and valiant service reflect the highest credit upon himself and are in keeping with the highest traditions of humanitarian service. september 11 1878 life saving service keeper captain j. o. doyle, in charge of life saving station charlotte, new york, earned a gold lifesaving medal for a rescue he conducted of the crew of the wrecked schooner b. p. dorr, out of chicago, illinois. 2001 al qaeda terrorists hijacked four commercial u.s. aircraft, crashing two into the world trade center in new york and one into the pentagon in washington, d.c. the fourth aircraft crashed around shanksville, pennsylvania, when passengers on board tried to regain control of the aircraft from the terrorists. the attacks killed over 3,000 innocent civilians. coast guard units, including reservists and auxiliarists, were among the first military units to respond in order to provide communications, security, evacuation by water, and render assistance to those in need. coast guardsmen assisted in the search and rescue efforts as well as the cleanup operations after the attacks. 2014 cgc healy returned to its homeport of seattle, washington, after spending 130 days on a science deployment in the bearing sea, chukchi sea, and arctic ocean. during the four month patrol, the crew aboard healy conducted three missions to further scientific knowledge and understanding of the arctic. the first mission, the study of under ice blooms in the chukchi ecosystem, was led by stanford university personnel with funding from the national science foundation. throughout this phase healy's crew completed 230 science station evolutions in which the ship stopped to conduct operations, including 14 on ice deployments. the second scientific mission of the summer was completed by woods hole oceanographic institution scientists who were studying the pacific boundary current and other oceanographic trends in the arctic. the third and final science pursuit of the summer was accomplished with a team from the coast guard's research and development center. members from the center brought technologies and equipment to be utilized for oil spill monitoring in the harsh arctic environment. tools used to complete mission objectives and testing evaluation consisted of several remotely operated vehicles, a few small unmanned aerial systems, an autonomous underwater vehicle, an unmanned surface vehicle, surface wave instrument float with tracking buoys, oil spill tracking buoys, and an aerostat balloon. other smaller materials and projects were evaluated for use by the coast guard in the arctic, and all of these tests together yielded a greater understanding of tools to available to respond to an oil spill should an accident occur in the ice at extreme northern latitudes. 2014 coast guard units responded to a flood near southaven, in northern mississippi. desoto county emergency management agency requested coast guard assistance and coast guard sector lower mississippi river deployed flood response teams to the area. working alongside desoto county search and rescue and southaven fire department teams, they rescued 30 people and 10 pets. september 12 1941 after the danish government in exile asked the u.s. to protect greenland, cgc northland seized the norwegian sealer buskoe, with nazi agents on board, trying to establish radio and weather stations in mackenzie bay, greenland. the capture of the buskoe was the first u.s. naval capture of world war ii. 1953 when the 6,000 ton ore carrier ss maryland grounded off marquette, michigan, a coast guard helicopter, in the face of driving wind and rain that required the combined efforts of both pilots to hold the controls and stabilize the aircraft, removed 12 crew members to safety. 2020 cgc campbell was awarded the arctic service medal in honor of their service period of 21 days north of the arctic circle, 66°33'n, from 16 august 2020 to 12 september 2020. campbell was the first wmec 210'/270' class vessel to be awarded the arctic service medal. campbell patrolled over 10,000 nautical miles, steaming up to the 72° n latitude. this achievement marked the campbell's arctic deployment for the history books as the crew also navigated through waters unknown to the modern day coast guard. campbell assisted in crucial scientific research efforts through its arctic deployment, deploying numerous international ice patrol and national oceanic atmospheric administration buoys into regions that have never been sampled before. the crew assisted in critical ice state and sea state research throughout their deployment. campbell and her crew celebrated their significant accomplishment with the arctic service medal as a job well done. campbell helped further the coast guard's mission of strengthening partnerships and interoperability with their arctic partners. september 13 1897 the american steamer business point mistook a buoy and stranded on mouse island reef, nine miles northwest of point marblehead life saving station in western lake erie. the life saving service crew and two tugs attempted to release her, but without success. the master chartered a tug to go to sandusky, ohio, for a lighter which arrived about 6 p.m. the crew then assisted all night at transferring cargo and at 9 a.m. next day, the steamer backed off. 2021 cgc northland (wmec 904) returned to its homeport of portsmouth, va, on 13 september 2021, following an 80 day patrol in the eastern pacific ocean in support of the coast guard eleventh district and joint interagency task force south. northland's crew patrolled the eastern pacific performing counter drug operations with the support of an aviation detachment from the u.s. coast guard helicopter interdiction tactical squadron flying an mh 65 dolphin helicopter. in addition to northland's hitron detachment, aircraft crews from the u.s. navy and customs and border protection provided critical aerial surveillance and reconnaissance for the cutter throughout the patrol. during the patrol, northland successfully interdicted several suspected drug smuggling vessels. on 8 september, the cutter pulled into u.s. coast guard base miami beach and offloaded 7,833 pounds of cocaine with an estimated street value of $148 million. the cutter crew also transferred three suspected narcotics smugglers to coast guard seventh district and u.s. drug enforcement administration personnel, signaling the culmination of a successful joint interagency effort in the eastern pacific. aside from successfully interdicting suspected drug smuggling vessels, northland maintained a maritime assistance presence in the region throughout the patrol. on 11 august, the coast guard eleventh district relayed an alert from the maritime rescue coordination center costa rica reporting the fishing vessel baula x on fire with three mariners trapped aboard. on 18 august, northland launched the dolphin crew in search of the boat. upon successfully locating the burning fishing vessel, the helicopter crew guided northland's small boat team to the location. they safely rescued the three fishers and delivered them to the nearby cargo vessel avra gr, participating in the automated mutual assistance vessel rescue program. when not actively chasing drug runners or rescuing fishers, northland maintained a steady training regimen for new and veteran crewmembers on navigation, engineering, and nautical activities. training for emergencies and routine operations is critical to sustaining northland's peak mission effectiveness and is in keeping with the coast guard's motto, semper paratus   "always ready." september 14 1716 the boston lighthouse on little brewster island in boston harbor, the first lighthouse established in america, was first lit. 1944 the great atlantic hurricane, a category 3 hurricane, made landfall at cape hatteras, north carolina; long island, new york; and point judith, rhode island. cape henry, virginia, reported sustained winds at 134 mph with gusts to 150 mph. there were 46 civilian deaths and $100 million in damage from cape hatteras northward through the maine coast. cutters jackson and bedloe, and lightship no. 73 on vineyard sound station, foundered. all 12 of the lightship's crew perished. only 30 of the 78 crewmen on board the two cutters were saved. two navy vessels also foundered. a total of 344 perished at sea. 1989 sikorsky aircraft unveiled the replacement for the sikorsky hh 3f pelican helicopter: the hh 60j. the coast guard planned to purchase 33 of the new aircraft and decided to call their version of the versatile helicopter the "jayhawk." 1990 the secretary of transportation and the commandant of the coast guard authorized the first ever deployment of a reserve port security unit overseas. psu 303, staffed by reservists from milwaukee, wisconsin, was the first of three psus deployed. psu 303 was stationed in al dammam, saudi arabia. september 15 1944 coast guardsmen participated in the invasion and liberation of morotai island. 1948 after making a night long high speed run to reach the hurricane ridden portuguese schooner gasper some 300 miles off the southern tip of newfoundland, cgc bibb launched two 20 man rubber lifeboats in heavy rain and seas to rescue 40 survivors and 1 dog from the doomed ship. 1958 a new jersey central passenger train plunged into newark bay through an open drawbridge, submerging two engines and two coaches. coast guard small craft and helicopters assisted in rescuing 43 survivors and recovering 29 bodies. 1982 for the first time since its introduction to the coast guard's aviation fleet, a "new" hu 25a guardian was used in a search and rescue incident for the coast guard. on 15 september 1982 an hu 25a assigned to coast guard aviation training center in mobile located a missing crewman from the pipeline barge cherokee who had been reported missing late the previous evening. the hu 25a located the missing crewman in the water and directed a nearby vessel, m/v elsie d, to his location and their crew rescued the missing man who was then returned to his vessel and he was thereafter taken by helicopter to a new orleans hospital and he was soon released in good condition. a press release noted: "the coast guard is buying a fleet of 41 of the hu 25 jets to replace the vintage [grumman] hu 16 albatross and the convair hc 131a samaritan aircraft. the new planes will be used for search and rescue and for surveillance patrols. the hu 25as mark the entry of the coast guard into the jet age, and their use will offer the service a mission capability that was not possible with earlier aircraft." 1995 hurricane marilyn made landfall, cutting a path of destruction across the u.s. virgin islands. gantsec command center coordinated the sar efforts. hh 65as from airsta borinquen rescued survivors from two vessels that sank during the storm. cgc escanaba also participated in the sar operation and then supported the relief efforts in st. thomas. cgc vigorous relieved escanaba on september 18th. the cgc point ledge, homeported in st. thomas, had been washed up on the city's seawall by the heavy storm surge, causing considerable damage. none of her crew were injured, however. members of ledet miami and taclet members from miami and san juan were flown to st. thomas to help enforce a curfew, provide airport security, and help stand watch on the grounded point ledge. coast guard aircraft also flew overflights to survey the damage and delivered relief supplies. in 10 days, the aircraft delivered more than 410,000 pounds of relief supplies and transported 260 federal recovery workers to st. thomas. msd st. thomas supervised all maritime recovery operations, facilitated maritime traffic for a community dependant on maritime commerce, responded to the massive environmental impacts, and were the dot's representative for the initial standup of the eoc. ant san juan and the cgc laurel were also sent to assist in the cleanup. 2001 coast guard units and local agencies responded to a bridge collision on the intracoastal waterway after the tug brown water v and its four barges struck the queen isabella causeway, the longest bridge in texas. the collision caused a 240 foot section of the causeway to collapse, spilling 10 cars into the water and killing five persons. station south padre island deployed two 27  foot boats, a 41 foot boat, and a 21 footer. other vessels pulled 13 survivors from the water and transferred them to the coast guard craft. the cgc mallett was later used as a rescue platform to retrieve the submerged vehicles and victims. 2012 cgc jarvis returned to her homeport of honolulu, hawaii after completing its final patrol before being decommissioned after forty years of service in the coast guard. jarvis was the first cutter commissioned in hawaii and it served out of honolulu for its entire coast guard career. since re commissioning in december of 1992 following a fleet renovation and modernization initiative, jarvis participated in alaskan fisheries patrols, counter narcotics patrols in the eastern pacific, western pacific capacity building, and exercises with u.s. and foreign navies. in 2009, jarvis successfully seized a self propelled semi submersible vessel in the eastern pacific laden with more than five tons of illegal narcotics. during the cutter’s spring 2012 patrol, jarvis served as the on scene commander for an aircraft that crashed off the coast of palau and coordinated the search and rescue efforts to save two lives. for its final patrol jarvis departed honolulu on august 17, 2012, with an embarked noaa ship rider and enforced the us eez and through a coordinated effort with district 14 and air station barber’s point, jarvis was able to provide law enforcement presence throughout the hawaiian island chain and most notably the papahanaumokuakea marine national monument extending out to midway island. 2013 cgc munro returned to its homeport in kodiak after completing a lengthy north pacific ocean, a patrol to interdict fishing vessels "engaged in illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing." munro crewmembers conducted the more than 80 day patrol with partners from the chinese fisheries law enforcement command, the japanese coast guard, and the russian federal security service. while underway, the crew gathered information on more than 600 sighted vessels and conducting fisheries enforcement boardings to ensure the vessels and crews were in compliance with international regulations. they also conducted cultural exchanges with the three partner nation’s representatives to share best practices and to streamline communications processes for conducting this type of law enforcement activity. as a result of these annual joint patrols, several vessels were interdicted and turned over to fisheries agencies in china and the u.s. for prosecution. these vessels include the 140 foot bangun perkasa operating off the coast of japan in 2011 and the 177 foot fishing vessel da cheng 850 miles east of tokyo in 2012. 2016 the coast guard selected eastern shipbuilding group inc. of panama city, florida, to continue to the detail design and construction phase (phase ii) of the offshore patrol cutter acquisition program. september 16 1918 while on escort of convoy duty during world war i, cgc seneca’s crew attempted to bring the torpedoed british collier wellington into brest, france. eleven of seneca‘s crew, sent as a boarding party aboard the collier, were lost when wellington foundered. coast guard coxswain james osborne was awarded a gold lifesaving medal for his efforts that day. 1939 the longest continually operating coast guard auxiliary unit, flotilla 63, was first chartered in onset, massachusetts. 1988 hurricane gilbert made landfall in mexico on this date. coast guard units assisted in rescue and evacuation operations from september 18 20. during those sar operations, coast guard aircrews lifted 109 victims from flood waters to safety. 1996 avondale industries laid the keel for cgc healy at new orleans, louisiana. avondale launched the ice breaking cutter on november 15, 1997 and delivered it to the coast guard on november 10, 1999. healy arrived at its homeport of seattle, washington and was placed "in commission, active" on august 21, 2000. september 17 1932 cgc escanaba was launched at the dafoe boat and motor works in bay city, michigan. escanaba saw extensive service on the great lakes prior to world war ii and was home ported in grand haven, michigan. during world war ii the cutter was lost in action off greenland with only two survivors. the cause of the loss has never been determined with certainty. 1999 cgc dallas returned to charleston after an 84 day deployment to the mediterranean and black seas. originally scheduled to go to the adriatic and ionian seas in support of nato forces engaged in kosovo, dallas turned to support the u.s. 6th fleet after tensions in kosovo eased. dallas also visited several ports not normally seen by coast guard crews, including rota, spain; souda bay, crete; haifa, israel; and antayla, turkey. 2004 the coast guard made the largest cocaine seizure in its history (to date) when coast guard and navy forces located and seized 30,000 pounds of cocaine aboard the fishing vessel lina maria approximately 300 miles southwest of the galapagos islands. ledet 108, embarked aboard the uss curts, made the seizure. a second coast guard and navy team intercepted the lina maria's sister ship, the fishing vessel san jose, 500 miles west of the galapagos, and discovered and seized 26,250 pounds of cocaine. september 18 1939 president franklin d. roosevelt directed the enlistment of 2,000 new coast guardsmen and opened two new training stations. 1947 the u.s. air force's official birthday: the air force was created as a separate military service on this date. the air force's motto is: "uno ab alto" (one over all). 1989 hurricane hugo hit puerto rico and eventually made landfall at charleston, south carolina, on the 21st. coast guard units conducted search and rescue as well as relief operations. september 19 1930 for the first time in its history the coast guard located a clandestine "rummy" radio station by means radio direction finding equipment it developed for its prohibition enforcement efforts. 1965 cgc point glover (wpb 82307) of coast guard squadron one (ronone) made the first capture of an enemy junk in vietnam. 1968 m/v johannes frans, a 634 foot dutch tanker with a cargo of oil, reported that it was disabled in 10 to 15 foot seas and was taking on water 250 miles northeast of bermuda. cgc dallas, which was in the immediate area, received the same report from the subject via flashing light and immediately went to her assistance. the pump provided by dallas, however, failed to work properly. a coast guard aircraft provided four additional pumps by the evening of sept 19; dallas reported that the flooding had been stabilized. three civilian tugs were enroute, with the first due on the 21st. weather conditions improved enough on the 21st for the master and crew to remain aboard and continue pumping. the tug foundation vigilant arrived on scene on the morning of the 21st and took the vessel in tow. the tug tasman zee arrived shortly thereafter and provided three pumps. the three ships proceeded to bermuda. dallas then proceeded to ocean station echo. 2022 cgc midgett (wmsl 757) departed chennai, india, following the cutter's third international port call during the months long wester pacific deployment to the region. midgett's crew conducted bilateral in port exchanges sharing expertise and best practices in coast guard missions with the indian coast guard while in chennai, building upon the strong partnership between the two nations. september 20 1932 cadets first moved into the newly constructed coast guard academy at new london, connecticut. 1944 coast guardsmen participated in the invasions of peleliu and angaur. september 21 1791 secretary of the treasury alexander hamilton authorized an allowance of nine cents for every ration that revenue officers did not draw. 1922 congress authorized officers of the customs and of the coast guard to board and examine vessels, reaffirming their authority to seize and secure vessels for security of the revenue under the act of march 2, 1799. 1938 a hurricane hit the northeast coast, wreaking havoc among the lighthouses and the light keepers there. first assistant keeper walter b. eberle of the whale rock light was killed when his lighthouse was swept into the sea. the wife of head keeper arthur a. small was killed when she was swept away from the palmer island light station. the keeper of the prudence island light station's wife and son were drowned when that light station was swept into the sea. many more stations and depots were severely damaged as well. 1957 the german training barque pamir with 90 persons on board, including 54 german naval cadets, foundered and sank in extremely rough seas 500 miles west of the azores. the cgc absecon, manning ocean station delta, intercepted the sos message and immediately proceeded to the scene. three days later, the cutter and assisting vessels rescued six survivors, but the remaining 84 remained missing. the search continued for seven days, with absecon directing on scene operations of 60 merchant vessels from 13 nations, as well as american and portuguese aircraft. 1977 cgc acushnet (wago 167) deployed environmental buoy eb 07 at 39n 70w to assume part of the meteorological data collection duties of ocean station hotel, which was decommissioned on september 30, 1977 when cgc taney departed the ocean station for the final time. eb 07 was one of 10 environmental buoys in the atlantic, six of which were north of cape hatteras. coast guard cutters provided continuing support of these buoys in accordance with an interagency agreement with noaa. 1987 coast guard units responded when two freighters, pacbaroness and atlantic wing, collided in a dense fog off the coast of santa barbara. the pacbaroness sank, causing a large oil spill. coast guard units that responded included: cgcs conifer & point judith; airstas los angeles, sacramento, & san francisco; mso los angeles/long beach; pacific strike team; msd santa barbara; 11th district (m) and (dpa); public affairs liaison office; and the public information assist team from headquarters. 1989 coast guard units from new york rescued 61 survivors of u.s. air flight 5050 after it skidded off a runway of laguardia airport and into the rikers island channel. two persons were killed. 1989 hurricane hugo made landfall on the continental united states at charleston, south carolina. the coast guard's emergency command post had to be abandoned when the roof almost blew off. base charleston suffered severe damage, as well. coast guard units immediately began relief operations. aircraft were airborne at first light that morning. they conducted sar, performed medical evacuations, provided emergency communications with stricken areas, and transported relief personnel and equipment. more aircraft were flown in from airstas traverse city and mobile. from their staging area at airsta savannah, they delivered food and water to hard hit areas such as mcclellanville, south carolina, where 200 people were isolated and the entire town destroyed. 2015 cgc tahoma returned to homeport at portsmouth naval shipyard in kittery, maine, after a 66 day patrol in the eastern pacific ocean and caribbean sea. during the patrol, on september 9, 2015, the tahoma's crew pursued a “go fast vessel” to verify the vessel’s nationality. with the assistance of a maritime patrol aircraft, the tahoma's pursuit team closed in on the go fast and attempted to initiate radio contact. the vessel jettisoned bales of contraband into the ocean and refused to comply with instructions. warning shots were used to signal the vessel to prepare for a boarding. the noncompliant go fast then came to an abrupt halt and was boarded. boarding team members recovered 27 bales of cocaine from the water, totaling 540 kilograms (worth an estimated $10.8 million) and detained the three suspected drug smugglers. the tahoma's crew participated in the transfer and custody of 50 detainees and 1,893 kilograms of contraband with several other coast guard cutters in both the eastern pacific and the caribbean sea. this patrol was particularly unique as it deployed the 270 foot medium endurance cutter from its homeport in kittery, maine down to the waters of central america, requiring the cutter to make transit both ways through the panama canal. not only did the tahoma's crew return home as order of the ditch recipients, but they also were afforded the opportunity to cross the equator while in the eastern pacific ocean. september 22 1943 coast guardsmen participated in the invasion and liberation of finschafen, new guinea. an allied invasion fleet, including coast guard manned landing ships, landed australian troops. coast guard manned ships in the invasion fleet included uss lst 18, lst 67, lst 168, and lst 204. there were no casualties among the coast guard vessels. 1990 psu 301 became the second reserve coast guard port security unit deployed in support of operation desert shield. psu 301 was staffed by reservists from buffalo, new york. they were stationed in al jubayl, saudi arabia. 2022 on september 26th, 2022, cgc stratton (wmsl 752) and cgc kimball (wmsl 756) jointly patrolled the us russian maritime boundary line in the arctic circle. stratton and kimball performed a series of tactical maneuvers following standard nato phraseology. the operation furthered us national security strategy and projected us sovereignty in the arctic circle. following the evolution, kimball turned south to transit the bering strait and stratton turned north towards the chukchi sea to continue on its patrol throughout the arctic ocean. september 23 1967 coho salmon fishing disaster: on this date a severe squall carried through the frankfort river platte area of northern lake michigan. twenty five foot waves generated by the squall caught off guard an estimated 1,000 small boats fishing for coho salmon. between 150 and 200 boats were beached and many more were either capsized or otherwise in distress. during the next four days coast guard aircraft flew 33 sorties for a total of 55 hours. state and local police provided beach patrols and private individuals also aided in the operation. one of the greatest problems faced by the coast guard was the confusion created by the hundreds of people unaccounted for after the storm, most of whom were not in trouble but had just not contacted their friends or family. each report of a missing person was carefully followed through so that within four days it was determined that seven had been recovered and only one person remained unaccounted for. the coho salmon which attracted the large number of boats to the area remained in season for another three weeks and during this time the coast guard maintained daily aircraft and small boat patrols of the area. 2014 cgc key largo collided with the 42 foot commercial fishing vessel sea shepherd, sinking the fishing vessel approximately nine nautical miles east northeast of vieques, puerto rico. key largo was on a routine patrol when the collision happened. sea shepherd's two crewmembers were safely recovered by the crew of key largo. september 24 1943 the coast guard manned uss lst 167 and the uss lst 334, with a partial coast guard crew, landed troops during the invasion and liberation of vella lavella in the central solomons despite fierce resistance from the japanese defenders. japanese aircraft attacked the invasion fleet, hitting lst 167 with two bombs that killed 10 of her crew and wounded 10 more. five crewmen were reported as missing in action. the lst was later salvaged. 1947 the coast guard announced that it had virtually completed the return of united states buoys, lights, and other aids to navigation to a peacetime basis. 2002 the coast guard announced the award of a $611 million contract for the production, deployment and support of “rescue 21,” a modernization of the national distress and response system. "rescue 21" was planned to be the nation's primary maritime "911" system for coastal waters of the continental united states, alaska, hawaii, guam, puerto rico, and navigable rivers and lakes within the united states. 2005 hurricane rita made landfall just east of sabine pass, on the texas louisiana line, as a category 3 hurricane with top sustained winds of 120 mph. coast guard units, some still in the area from hurricane katrina rescue and relief efforts, responded. they saved 138 lives and evacuated 53 people. 2014 cgc alex haley returned to kodiak following a successful 68 day deployment patrolling more than 12,000 miles throughout the bering sea and aleutian islands. alex haley, known as the “bulldog of the bering,” departed kodiak in july 2014 and spent two months conducting operations in the bering sea and the aleutian islands. during the deployment, alex haley’s crew performed more than 40 at sea domestic fisheries enforcement boardings, four search and rescue cases, and one rescue and assistance operation. september 25 1916 the beginning of lighthouse work in the united states was commemorated, when a bronze tablet was unveiled at the boston light station on the 200th anniversary of its establishment. 1959 a u.s. navy p5m seaplane that had ditched off the oregon coast was located through radio contact by a coast guard uf 1g albatross aircraft. after sighting 10 survivors in two rafts 110 miles offshore, the albatross crew directed cgc yocona to the scene, where a successful night rescue was effected. 1980 cgc bear was launched at tacoma boatbuilding company, inc., in tacoma, washington. bear was the first in its class of new 270 foot medium endurance cutters. it was sponsored by mrs. john b. hayes, the wife of the commandant. 2014 the commandant, adm paul zukunft, signed the u.s. coast guard western hemisphere strategy. the strategy emphasized that although the coast guard performs "diverse maritime missions over vast geographic areas" the coast guard's primary operating area "will remain in the western hemisphere." 2016 the u.s. coast guard found an overturned boat following a boating incident on government cut that left three deceased, including miami marlins' baseball pitcher josé fernández. a boat crew from coast guard station miami was heading out on a law enforcement patrol at approximately 0330 when they passed a jetty along government cut and discovered an overturned 33 foot center console boat on the jetty with three deceased aboard. september 26 1918 the imperial german navy submarine ub 91 torpedoed and sank cgc tampa with a loss of all hands. tampa was steaming alone to milford haven, wales, after being detached from ocean escort duty when attacked. on board were 111 coast guardsmen, four u.s. navy personnel, and 15 british passengers, bringing the total of men lost that night to 130. one body was recovered and buried at sea while the bodies of two of the coast guard crew washed ashore in wales and were buried in a small church yard in lamphey, pembrokeshire, wales. one body was returned to the family in the u.s. after the war while one, who was never identified, is still interred in lamphey to this day. local residents care for the grave. 1942 cgc ingham rescued eight survivors from the torpedoed ss tennessee. 1994 coast guard forces departed for haiti in support of operation restore democracy. 2011 the u.s. coast guard awarded a delivery order on this date to metal shark aluminum boats for the production of 38 response boats small (rb s). "the rb s will have an approximate length of 28 feet, be capable of at least 40 knots, a minimum range of 150 nautical miles and accommodate a crew of four. the rb s will also have a standardized communications and navigation suite as well as an increased emphasis on ergonomics and crew comfort. the current rb s fleet was originally procured in 2002, following the attacks of september 11, 2001. in addition to bringing a higher level of standardization to the coast guard’s small boat fleet, the rb s has proven to be a tremendous asset in a wide variety of coast guard missions, especially ports, waterways and coastal security." 2014 cgb eagle began the first phase of a four year project to extend the cutter’s service life and recapitalize major ship systems at the coast guard yard in curtis bay, maryland. the scheduled work included lead ballast replacement, berthing area renovations, and inspection and maintenance of the rudder, hull and rigging. on this same day the yard also marked the completion of the mission effectiveness project (mep) to modernize the coast guard's medium endurance cutter fleet. 2014 cgc bear returned to its homeport in portsmouth, virginia following a two month long patrol in the western caribbean sea. during the patrol, bear’s crew coordinated with multiple countries in central and south america, along with partner agencies to stem the flow of illegal drugs into the united states. the unified effort resulted in the interdiction of multiple suspected drug smugglers and vessels transporting approximately 3,519 kilograms of cocaine. in addition to its seizures, the crew of bear saved two nicaraguan fishermen that were stranded at sea for over two weeks. bear’s interdictions were a part of operation martillo, which is an international effort to counter illicit trafficking in the caribbean sea. september 27 1942 douglas a. munro, signalman 1/c, uscg, gave his life evacuating marines of the 1st battalion, 7th marines, at matanikau point, guadalcanal. president roosevelt posthumously awarded munro the medal of honor, the only coast guardsmen to be awarded this decoration. the medal was given to douglas munro's parents, mr. and mrs. james munro of south cle elum, washington, by president franklin d. roosevelt in a ceremony at the white house on thursday, may 27, 1943. the citation read: "awarded posthumously to douglas albert munro, signalman first class, u.s. coast guard 'for extraordinary heroism and conspicuous gallantry in action above and beyond the call of duty as office in charge of a group of higgins boats, engaged in the evacuation of a battalion of marines trapped by enemy japanese forces at point cruz, guadalcanal, on september 27, 1942. after making preliminary plans for the evacuation of nearly 500 beleaguered marines, munro, under constant risk of his life, daringly led five of his small craft toward the shore. as he closed the beach, he [signaled]the others to land, and then in order to draw the enemy's fire and protect the heavily loaded boats, he valiantly placed his craft with its two small guns as a shield between the beachhead and the japanese. when the perilous task of evacuation was nearly completed, munro was killed by enemy fire, but his crew, two of whom were wounded, carried on until the last boat had loaded and cleared the beach. by his outstanding leadership, expert planning, and dauntless devotion to duty, he and his courageous comrades undoubtedly saved the lives of many who otherwise would have perished. he gallantly gave up his life in defense of his country.'" 1950 for the purpose of alleviating attrition during the korean war, executive order 10164 authorized the coast guard, in cases where enlisted personnel did not immediately reenlist in the coast guard, to extend enlistments for one year, if the date of expiration of enlistment occurred prior to july 9, 1951. the coast guard, however, adopted a policy of permitting the discharge of men upon expiration of enlistment, provided they immediately enlisted in the coast guard reserve. 2013 coast guard station quillayute river, washington, crews rescued three fishermen from their sinking vessel two miles west of james island. the three fishermen were safely transported to station quillayute river by one of two 47 foot mlbs that responded to the sinking 50 foot fishing vessel; the second vessel remained on scene until the fishing vessel sank at 11:23 a.m. in 103 feet of water. the coast guard received a call for help from the crew of the fishing vessel fjord mist at 08:33 a.m., stating that the vessel was taking on water and sinking. the two boat crews from station quillayute river and an mh 65 dolphin helicopter crew from air station port angeles were directed to respond to the sinking vessel. a dewatering pump was provided to the fishing vessel crew; however, the pump was unable to keep up with the flooding and for the crew's safety they were removed from the sinking vessel. the fishermen suffered no reported injuries. 2016 cgc dependable returned to its homeport following a successful 53 day patrol, which focused on training, counter drug, and migrant missions. the cutter patrolled from the florida straits and throughout the caribbean sea performing homeland security missions, which included stopping the flow of illegal migrants and illicit drugs into the united states. during the patrol, dependable worked closely with the royal bahamian defense force, the navy of the dominican republic, and dutch caribbean coast guard air and surface assets to counter illegal drug smuggling and human smuggling. on september 22, 2016, dependable assisted the royal bahamian defense force in the rescue of nine survivors from a sailing vessel in distress. over the course of six hours, dependable and the royal bahamian defense force searched for and located the sailing vessel change of life aground on a reef south of great inagua, bahamas. less than 24 hours later, dependable, along with her majesty’s bahamian ship leon livingston smith rescued 10 cuban migrants who had been stranded for 10 days on anguilla cay near caysal bank in the florida straits. september 28 1850 an act of congress (9 stat. l., 500, 504) provided for a systematic coloring and numbering of all buoys for, prior to this time, they had been painted red, white, or black, without any special system. the act "prescribed that buoys should be colored and numbered so that in entering from seaward red buoys with even numbers should be on the starboard or right hand; black buoys with odd numbers on the port or left hand; buoy with red and black horizontal stripes should indicate shoals with channel on either side; and buoys in channel ways should be colored with black and white perpendicular stripes.” 1850 an act of congress (9 stat. l., 500, 504) gave legal authority for the first time for the assigning of collectors of customs to lighthouse duty. section 9 of this act authorized the secretary of the treasury to assign to any of the collectors of customs, the superintendence of such lighthouses, beacons, lightships, and buoys as he might deem best. the act also stipulated that no collector of customs whose annual salary exceeded $3,000 a year should receive any compensation as disbursing officer in the lighthouse establishment and, in no case, was the compensation of the collectors of customs for disbursements in the lighthouse service to exceed $400.00 in any fiscal year. 1998 an oil spill along the coast of california off san francisco was traced to the 717 foot liberian flagged tanker command. a coast guard boarding team took samples of her cargo and matched it to that found along the coast. a coast guard spokesman noted: "this is the first time the coast guard has pursued an oil spill investigation into the international arena to the extent of stopping and boarding a vessel on the high seas, with permission of the vessel's flag state." september 29 1898 the american steamer, toledo with the barge shawnee in tow, became water logged 25 miles southwest of the station at ship canal, michigan. her crew boarded shawnee and sailed to the canal. there they engaged the steamer d. f. rose to tow toledo in and the surfmen assisted to lay her on the beach near the piers. the keeper then telephoned for a tug and lighter, and upon their arrival all hands set to work until 11 p.m. saving about 1,000 feet of lumber. at this hour the wind came out west and the work had to be abandoned. toledo broke up and became a total wreck on the 30th. 1976 the coast guard accepted the hydrofoil uss flagstaff from the u.s. navy on this date in 1976 for operational testing. the hydrofoil was based out of station woods hole during the testing. it was capable of speeds in excess of 45 knots and carried a crew of 13. 1986 coast guard officials signed the contract papers to acquire the sikorsky h 60 series helicopter to replace the venerable hh 3f pelicans. 1994 the crew of coast guard loran station iwo jima decommissioned their station and turned it over to a crew from the japanese maritime safety agency. the turnover of all of the northwest pacific loran chain stations was arranged under a 1992 agreement between the u.s. and japan. 2014 cgc rush returned to its homeport of honolulu, hawaii, following a successful 72 day deployment in the central and western pacific. rush departed in july 2014 and spent two months conducting operations in the central and western pacific. during the deployment, rush's crew coordinated with multiple countries and partner agencies to conduct fisheries boardings in support of the coast guard's living marine resources mission. rush also participated in international engagement activities in american samoa, the republic of the marshall islands, palau, and the federated states of micronesia. to enhance detection of fishing vessels, rush embarked a helicopter and aviation detachment from coast guard air station barbers point. rush's crew participated in several community outreach and volunteer events during their patrol that included delivering hygiene and first aid supplies, in support of the u.s. navy's project handclasp, to several pacific island nations. rush's crew also built a garden to support an abused children's shelter in samoa and played sports and games with disabled children in majuro, republic of the marshall islands. 2016 cgc stratton returned to its homeport of alameda after a 114 day deployment spanning the pacific ocean from hawaii to the arctic. "our crew logged more than 19,500 miles during this deployment,” said u.s. coast guard captain nate moore, the commanding officer of stratton. “their participation in a major international military exercise, support of the coast guard’s expanding role in the arctic domain, and commitment to pursue excellence in mission execution has made this an extremely successful deployment.” the crew of stratton participated in two high profile exercises during this deployment: the rim of the pacific 2016 (rimpac) military exercises and operation arctic shield 2016. stratton was the third consecutive national security cutter to serve as commander of the combined task force 175, a multinational task force comprised of nine ships and 13 aircraft from the united states, china, france, and indonesia. participation in rimpac 2016 highlighted the coast guard’s unique capabilities and partnerships with department of defense entities and international partners along the pacific rim. stratton participated in training evolutions that included complex ship formations, joint flight operations with the u.s. navy mh 60s helicopter sea combat squadron (hsc 21), an aviation detachment from san diego; live fire exercises; personnel and logistics transfers, and maritime interdiction operations. successfully completing this integrated training with hsc 21 and deploying together for rimpac 2016 represent the first extended navy aviation deployment aboard a coast guard cutter. as part of arctic shield 2016, the coast guard deployed cutters, aircraft, and personnel to northern alaska to engage in operations encompassing a variety of coast guard missions across the north slope. 2021 the crew of cgc reliance (wmec 615) returned to homeport in pensacola 29 september, after a 63 day caribbean sea patrol. reliance crew supported the u.s. coast guard 7th district throughout their patrol, aiding in missions to interdict and disrupt the flow of illegal drugs and migrant trafficking while supporting national security and strengthening relationships with regional partners throughout the caribbean. "i am extremely proud of our crew for their adaptability and professionalism throughout the patrol. regardless of the mission set, whether that was responding immediately to the aftermath of the devastating earthquake in haiti by conducting critical port assessments or stopping the flow of illegal narcotics, reliance was always ready to respond to the needs of our service and our nation,” said cdr robert hill, commanding officer. significantly, the crew supported the relief efforts in response to the earthquake in haiti in august, conducting two separate port assessments on haitian ports to ensure the harbors were safe for vessels to deliver vital aid and assistance to the region following the disaster. during the patrol, reliance’s crew intercepted one vessel attempting to smuggle approximately 1,132 lbs. of cocaine and detained a total of four suspected smugglers. additionally, reliance received more than 4,291 lbs. of cocaine, ten suspected smugglers, and 96 migrants from other u.s. coast guard cutters operating in the region. the crew also rescued 50 dominican nationals from an unseaworthy vessel off the coast of puerto rico and repatriated 158 migrants to the dominican republic’s navy. the 63 day patrol was critical in allowing the cutter crew to work on shipboard training, qualifications, and proficiency to maintain operational readiness. this training enabled reliance’s team to complete a five day major shipboard training exercise in mayport, which tested their readiness in all aspects of damage control, seamanship, and navigational procedure. september 30 1899 first navy wireless message was sent via the lighthouse service station at highlands of navesink, new jersey. 1943 cgc e.m. wilcox foundered off nags head, north carolina. one crewman was lost. 1949 the rank of commodore, established in 1943 as a wartime measure, was terminated by the president under the provisions of an act of congress approved july 24, 1941. 1977 cgc taney departed ocean station (ows) hotel on september 30, 1977 when the station was closed and replaced by a buoy. this was the final ocean station patrolled by a coast guard cutter. ows hotel, located 200 miles east of the maryland/virginia coast was first established in 1970 as part of a supplemental weather warning program for the tracking and improved forecasting of east coast storms and hurricanes. ows hotel was manned by the coast guard from august 1st through april 15th each year. the termination of ows hotel marked the end of the coast guard's participation in the manned ocean station program which began on february 10, 1940 when cgcs bibb and duane occupied stations number 1 and 2 in the north atlantic and continued through the end of the u.s. participation in the north atlantic ocean station program of the world meteorological organization and the international civil aviation organization in 1974. 1994 the crew of coast guard loran station marcus island decommissioned their station and turned it over to the japanese maritime safety agency. this was the last station in the northwest pacific loran chain to be decommissioned and turned over to the japanese under a 1992 agreement between the two countries. 1997 omega navigation station hawaii ceased operation, coinciding with the end of worldwide omega transmissions. 2015 coast guard port security unit 308, based in kiln, mississipi, returned home from a nine month deployment to guantanamo bay, cuba in support of operation enduring freedom and the global war on terrorism. during the deployment, psu 308 members maintained a continuous maritime anti terrorism/force protection presence in the naval defensive sea area of guantanamo bay, cuba, directly supporting the commander of joint task force guantanamo bay naval reservation and adjoining waters. psu 308 was commissioned september 16, 1998. it has been mobilized five times to this point since its inception, twice to kuwait in 2003 and 2010, once to bahrain in 2002, and once previously to guantanamo in 2007. it was compromised of 142 selected reservists and six active duty personnel. psu 308 was an expeditionary warfare unit specializing in maritime anti terrorism/force protection and port security in support of military or humanitarian operations worldwide. psu 308 maintained garrison facilities as a tenant command of coast guard pacific area command in kiln. october 1 1926 an airways division, headed by a chief engineer, was set up as a part of the lighthouse service, its work covering the examination of airways and emergency landing fields and the erection and maintenance of aids to air navigation. 1943 coast guard manned uss lst 203 was stranded in southwest pacific but there were no casualties. 1976 coast guard personnel were required to change to the new "bender blues" uniforms by this date. 1991 cgc storis became the oldest commissioned cutter in the coast guard when the cgc fir was decommissioned. storis's crew painted her hull number "38" in gold in recognition of her status. 1996 operation frontier shield commenced. it was the largest counter narcotics operation in coast guard history to date. 2009 the u.s. coast guard acquisition directorate’s hh 60 conversion project held a ribbon cutting ceremony at coast guard air station elizabeth city, north carolina, in honor of the medium range recovery helicopter achieving initial operational capability (ioc). 2015 el faro, a 735 foot ro ro cargo ship, was en route to san juan, puerto rico, from jacksonville, florida with a crew of 33 on board. at approximately 0730, watchstanders at the coast guard atlantic area command center in portsmouth, virginia, received an inmarsat satellite notification stating el faro was beset by hurricane joaquin, had lost propulsion and had a 15 degree list. the crew reported the ship had previously taken on water, but that all flooding had been contained. watchstanders at cg 7th district command center in miami immediately launched an hc 130 out of air station clearwater to search for el faro while two hurricane hunter aircrews attempted to locate and establish communications with the merchant vessel on october 2. ultimately, coast guard assets used in the search included aviation assets from air stations clearwater and elizabeth city, cgc northland, resolute, and charles sexton, along with navy and air force assets and three commercial tugboats. the search was called off on october 7 after search crews located a deceased person in a survival suit in the water and a heavily damaged lifeboat with markings consistent with those on board el faro. additional items located by search crews included a partially submerged life raft, a survival suit, life jackets, life rings, cargo containers, styrofoam, packaged food, and an oil sheen. october 2 1789 secretary of the treasury alexander hamilton asked collectors of customs to report on expediency of employing boats for the "security of the revenue against contraband." hamilton's interest in such vessels led to his request to congress to fund the construction of 10 such revenue "boats" the following year, leading to the creation of what is now the u.s. coast guard. 2014 the coast guard launched several assets in response to a report of a fire on board a natural gas drill platform in cook inlet, alaska. the coast guard diverted a coast guard hercules hc 130 crew and an mh 60 jayhawk helicopter crew to conduct an overflight of the baker platform in cook inlet, near nikiski. the coast guard also launched the cgc mustang and the diverted cgc spar to the location. a five mile, no fly safety zone at 5,000 feet and a two mile safety zone were established around the platform. all four people aboard the platform were safety evacuated. october 3 1898 the american barkentine, wanderinq jew lost her sails and sprung a leak during the severe hurricane of october 2, approximately 11 miles east by south from the station at sullivans island, south carolina. on account of distance and frequent heavy rain squalls, she was not sighted by station lookout until 3:30 pm on the following day. a surfboat was launched and the ship was found abandoned by her crew. 2014 cgc valiant returned to their homeport friday at naval station mayport, in jacksonville, florida. during the 52 day deployment, valiant sailed throughout the windward passage and the north caribbean sea in support of operation southeast watch. one port call was made at port au prince, haiti. while anchored, valiant crew hosted the u.s. ambassador to haiti, the honorable pamela white; the deputy chief of mission to the u.s. embassy in haiti, the honorable brian shukan; the chief of the haitian coast guard, commissaire joseph jean marie wagnac; and other government representatives. valiant also responded to a search and rescue case involving a 55 foot fishing vessel, which was adrift and taking on water in the old bahama channel. valiant escorted the vessel over 100 nautical miles to ragged island, bahamas where it transferred the vessel to a royal bahamian defense force patrol vessel. valiant repatriated 24 haitian migrants to cap haitien, haiti, and embarked 11 cuban migrants that had been rescued by the crew of the cruise ship carnival liberty. the cutter also patrolled the windward passage to prevent overloaded haitian migrant vessels from taking to sea. october 4 1918 there was an explosion at the t.a. gillespie company munitions yard in morgan, new jersey. coast guardsmen from perth amboy responded. when fire threatened a trainload of tnt, these men repaired the track and moved the train to safety, thus preventing further disaster. two coast guardsmen were killed in this effort. 1980 a fire broke out on the dutch cruise vessel prinsendam off ketchikan, alaska. coast guard helicopters and the cutters boutwell, mellon, and woodrush responded in concert with other vessels in the area and rescued all of the passengers and crew without loss of life. 1995 hurricane opal swept through the gulf of mexico and made landfall in destin, florida. coast guard units provided relief efforts, surveyed damage, and restored aids to navigation. the cgc kodiak island contacted the cgc courgeous and requested assistance. the kodiak island was battling 10 to 12 foot waves 100 miles west of gasparilla, florida, and experiencing flooding and a loss of steering control due to a hydraulic fluid leak. a hc 130 from airsta clearwater flew to the scene to provide assistance and the courageous went to escort the kodiak island to group st. petersburg. 2014 cg district seven reported an individual in a self propelled homemade hydro pod bubble craft activated his emergency position indicating radio beacon and spot device. an air station clearwater hc 130 aircraft vectored in an mh 60 helicopter that hoisted the individual, and an automated mutual assistance vessel rescue system vessel recovered his craft. the individual was treated at air station clearwater by emergency medical services for extreme fatigue and released. october 5 1938 the newly established "coast guard reserve" (what would become the coast guard auxiliary) enrolled its first members. 1943 patrol squadron 6 (vp 6 cg) was officially established. this was an all coast guard unit. its home base was at narsarssuak, greenland, code name bluie west one. it had nine pby 5as assigned. cdr donald b. macdiarmid, uscg, was the first commanding officer. as additional pbys became available, the unit's area of operation expanded and detachments were established in argentia, newfoundland and reykjavik, iceland, furnishing air cover for navy and coast guard vessels. hundreds of rescue operations and aerial combat patrols were carried out during the 27 months the squadron was in operation. 1969 for extreme and heroic daring on the morning of october 5, 1969, while on authorized leave, coast guardsman james p. grier rescued two persons and attempted to rescue a third from drowning in the waters of the atlantic ocean at rockport harbor, ma. for his actions the coast guard awarded petty officer grier a gold life saving medal. october 6 1881 at daylight the crew of station no. 1, first district (carrying point cove, west quoddy head, maine), sighted a schooner at anchor some four miles east southeast of the station. she did not appear to be in distress, and as no signal was made it was supposed she had simply anchored to await the abatement of the winds, which at the time was blowing strong from the northwest. the keeper ordered a close watch on the schooner, in case she should signal for assistance. at 11 a .m. the lookout observed a boat leave her side and attempt to reach land, but the gale was too much for it and the effort had to be abandoned. the boat returned to the schooner. upon arriving alongside, the keeper found the schooner to be eclipse, of eastport, maine and that she had encountered a heavy squall the afternoon previous. it had split her sails and started her leaking badly. in this condition they had anchored her during the night, about two miles from the land, her crew, three in number, being almost exhausted by their efforts to keep her free. the life saving crew at once turned to and pumped her out and made temporary repairs on the sails, and then worked her up into a safe harbor. 1990 nasa astronaut and coast guard cdr bruce melnick made his first space flight when he served as a mission specialist aboard the space shuttle discovery on space shuttle mission sts 41, which flew from october 6 10, 1990. discovery deployed the ulysses spacecraft for its five year mission to explore the polar regions of the sun. cdr melnick was the first coast guardsman selected by nasa for astronaut training. october 7 1986 an hc 130 from air station elizabeth city located the disabled 44 foot polish sailing vessel gaudeamus with six polish citizens aboard about 400 miles east of new york. a motor vessel was on scene with gaudeamus when it was found by the hc 130 and remained there until cgc taney arrived the next day and took the boat in tow. cgc cape henlopen rendezvoused with taney and took over the tow to newport, rhode island. the polish embassy sent the coast guard a diplomatic note extending the thanks of the polish government for the coast guard's assistance in this case. october 8 1847 to reduce the expenditures of the treasury department, secretary of the treasury robert j. walker ordered a reduction of the complements on revenue cutters. 1986 coast guard units evacuated flood victims from the st. louis area using punts, helicopters and trucks after the mississippi and missouri rivers flooded. in all, 150 coast guardsmen participated in the emergency flood relief efforts. coast guard units that sent relief teams were: mso st. louis; base st. louis; cgcs sumac, cheyenne, and cimarron; aton facility leavenworth, kansas; 2nd district office; and air stations new orleans and traverse city. october 9 1852 the lighthouse board, which administered the lighthouse system until july 1, 1910, was organized. "this board was composed of two officers of the navy, two officers of the engineer corps, and two civilians of high scientific attainments whose services were at the disposal of the president, and an officer of the navy and of the, engineers as secretaries. it was empowered under the secretary of the treasury to "discharge all the administrative duties" relative to lighthouses and other aids to navigation. the secretary of the treasury was president of the board, and it was authorized to elect a chairman and to divide the coast of the united states into twelve lighthouse districts, to each of which the president was to assign an army or navy officer as lighthouse inspector." 1858 the secretary of the treasury appointed a three man board of u.s. revenue marine officers to consider a lifeboat design best adapted for life saving work. 1945 coast guard manned patrol vessel uss pc 590 grounded and sank in typhoon off okinawa. all hands were rescued. 1982 the first rescue using cospas/sarsat occurred on this date when the trimaran gonzo capsized 300 miles east of cape cod. gonzo's elt distress transmission was picked up by the soviet cospas satellite and the sailing ship's coordinates were transmitted to the u.s. a coast guard hc 130 and a canadian air force aircraft were directed to the scene and uscgc vigorous safely rescued the three crewmen. the new "space age" satellite search and rescue system was a joint u.s., canadian, french and soviet project that at this time utilized a single soviet satellite. 1993 crews from seven 8th district units and several civilian vessels joined forces in response to an explosion and fire aboard the 660 foot bulk liquid carrier omi charger near the houston ship channel. she had no fuel aboard when the explosion occurred the night of october 9. cgc point spencer served as the command platform and personnel and boats from aton team galveston joined the response effort, which included fire fighting, sar, and pollution response assistance. the fire was extinguished five hours after the initial explosion. two of the tanker's crewmen were killed in the blast. personnel from the gulf strike team arrive on scene on october 10 and determined that the vessel's fuel was still all aboard. it was removed prior to the vessel being towed to port where it was declared a total loss. a joint coast guard and national transportation safety board met to investigate the explosion. october 10 1798 secretary benjamin stoddert, first secretary of the navy, sent the first instructions to cutters acting in cooperation with the navy in support of the quasi war with france, via the various collectors of customs. 1877 captain joseph napier, keeper of life boat station no. 6 (st. joseph, michigan), commanded a rescue mission for which he was awarded a gold lifesaving medal. his citation reads: "for for the daring gallantry he displayed in rescuing the crew of the schooner d. g. williams, near the harbor of saint joseph, michigan on the october 10, 1877. the schooner lay stranded during a heavy gale on the outer bar, with the sea breaking over her, and her unfortunate crew of six men up in the rigging for safety. captain napier got together three volunteers, commandeered a boat, and pushed out for the wreck. at the first attempt the boat was capsized in the breakers. on the second try he reached the wreck and returned with two of the sailors. the third trip the boat was completely filled with water, but was bailed and again reached the vessel, bearing off two men. at the fourth attempt captain napier and his three assistants were thrown out of the boat by a furious surge and one of his legs was badly hurt. one of the men swam ashore. another got a line flung to him from the wreck and was taken aboard. captain napier and the other man, clinging to the boat, succeeded in righting and bringing it alongside the schooner. they then took off the two remaining men of her crew, together with the man taken on board, and regained the shore in safety. on other occasions captain napier was known to have shown equal heroism on desperate seas. most notable instance was his rescue of the crew of the schooner merchant during a tempest in 1854. for this feat he was presented with a gold watch suitably inscribed by citizens of chicago." he was the first recorded life saving serviceman to be awarded the gold lifesaving medal. 1929 clarence samuels, commanding cg patrol boat ab 15, was promoted to chief quartermaster, thereby becoming the coast guard's first african american chief petty officer. october 11 1896 the crew of the pea island (north carolina) life saving station, under the command of keeper richard etheridge, performed one of their finest rescues when they saved the passengers and crew of the schooner e.s. newman, after that ship ran aground during a hurricane. pushed before the storm, the ship lost all sails and drifted almost 100 miles before it ran aground about two miles south of the pea island lifesaving station. etheridge, a veteran of nearly twenty years, readied his crew. they hitched mules to the beach cart and hurried toward the vessel. arriving on the scene, they found captain s. a. gardiner and eight others clinging to the wreckage. unable to fire a line because the high water prevented the lyle gun’s deployment, etheridge directed two surfmen to bind themselves together with a line. grasping another line, the pair moved into the breakers while the remaining surfmen secured the shore end. the two surfmen reached the wreck and tied a line around one of the crewmen. all three were then pulled back through the surf by the crew on the beach. the remaining eight persons were carried to shore in this fashion. after each trip two different surfmen replaced those who had just returned. for their efforts the crew of the pea island life saving station were awarded the gold lifesaving medal in 1996. 1897 property saved at cape hatteras, north carolina. during a severe storm the surf threatened to wash away a fish house, with valuable nets and other gear. surfmen saved the property and took it to a place of safety. they also assisted the cape hatteras lighthouse keeper to remove the lighthouse's fresnel lens to a secure place as the lighthouse was in danger of being knocked down by the sea. 2013 cgc maui, operating in the persian gulf as part of patrol forces southwest asia and assigned to combined task force 152, rescued five iranian mariners after they were fount adrift in a life raft in the northern waters of the persian gulf. maui's crew later transferred the survivors to an iranian coast guard vesssel. october 12 1897 near corson inlet, new jersey, a man and two women were endangered by the sea sweeping around a their house 1/2 mile from the station. life savers answered their signal of distress and rescued them in the surfboat. october 13 1775 this is the date that the navy recognizes as it's official birthday. the united states navy traces its origins to the continental navy, which the continental congress established on october 13, 1775 by authorizing the procurement, fitting out, manning, and dispatch of two armed vessels to cruise in search of munitions ships supplying the british army in north america. the legislation also established a naval committee to supervise the work. all together, the continental navy numbered some fifty ships over the course of the war, with approximately twenty warships active at its maximum strength. after the american war for independence, congress sold the surviving ships of the continental navy and released the seamen and officers. the constitution of the united states, ratified in 1789, empowered congress "to provide and maintain a navy." acting on this authority, congress ordered the construction and manning of six frigates in 1794, and the war department administered naval affairs from that year until congress established the department of the navy on april 30, 1798. in 1972, however, chief of naval operations (cno) admiral elmo r. zumwalt authorized recognition of october 13, 1775 as the navy’s official birthday. there is no official motto for the u.s. navy. however "non sibi sed patriae" (not self but country) is often cited as the navy's unofficial motto. 1968 cgc southwind departed baltimore, maryland for a seven month deployment to antarctica and other world wide destinations. by the time she returned to baltimore on may 7, 1969 she had become only the second cutter in coast guard history to circumnavigate the globe. 1988 the first u.s. merchant marine world war ii veterans received their coast guard issued discharge certificates. congress gave the merchant mariners veterans' status and tasked the coast guard with administering the discharges. 1995 cgc ida lewis was launched, the first of the new 175 foot keeper class buoy tenders. october 14 1801 secretary of the treasury albert gallatin announced his decision to reduce the "revenue cutter establishment…as near as circumstances will permit within its original limits" after the quasi war with france. during that conflict the service had acquired larger cutters with more numerous crews. 1943 cgc e.m. dow grounded and was abandoned near mayaguez, puerto rico. all hands were saved. 1944 cgcs eastwind and southwind captured the nazi weather and supply vessel externsteine off the coast of greenland after a brief fire fight. there were no casualties. the coast guardsmen christened their prize of war uss eastbreeze and placed a prize crew on board. the prize crew was commanded by lt curtiss howard and consisted of 36 men, including some from southwind. after sailing with the greenland patrol for three weeks, eastbreeze sailed on to boston where the navy renamed it as uss callao. the externsteine/eastbreeze/callao was the only enemy surface vessel captured at sea by u.s. naval forces during the war. eastwind and southwind had gone farther north and returned under their own power than any vessel ever before. 1947 cgc bibb rescued all 62 passengers and seven crew members of the transatlantic flying boat bermuda sky queen in the mid atlantic after the flying boat made an emergency landing near the cutter. the rescue was of the most dramatic rescues ever undertaken by the coast guard on the open ocean. 1961 after an air force b 52g [serial number 58 196??] with eight persons on board was reported overdue and possibly down in the atlantic ocean somewhere off newfoundland, the coast guard commander, eastern area, coordinated the extensive search that resulted. participating in it were 79 u.s. coast guard, navy, air force, and canadian aircraft, five u.s. coast guard cutters, and two merchant ships. despite this search that lasted through october 18 and covered 286,225 square miles, no trace of the missing b 52 or its crew was found. october 15 1846 usrc mclane ran aground while attempting to cross the bar of the river alvarado during the mexican war in support of u.s. operations there. 1966 coast guard port security & waterways detail arrived for service in vietnam. 2001 president george w. bush announced that a letter sent to senate majority leader tom daschle was laced with anthrax. this followed a number of other anthrax attacks in florida and new york. the epa requested coast guard assistance. members of the atlantic strike team (ast) deployed to washington, d.c., while gulf strike team (gst) members were deployed to florida. strike team members conducted entries into the affected areas, collected samples, and assisted in the cleanup of those areas. the ast members in washington coordinated entries into the u.s. capitol, hart senate building, the u.s. supreme court, and the government printing office, among others. the gst members took samples and provided decontamination stations at the american media inc. headquarters building and post offices in boca raton, florida, the site of the first reported anthrax attack. october 16 1790 a contract was signed for the construction of the "first" of the 10 revenue cutters, massachusetts, at newburyport, massachusetts. 1952 a merchant marine detail was established at yokohama, japan to handle increased merchant marine problems occurring there as a result of the korean conflict. 1956 cgc pontchartrain, on ocean station november, rescued the passengers and crew of pan american clipper flight 943 after the clipper ditched between honolulu and san francisco. 1992 cgc storis became the first foreign military ship to visit the russian port of petropavlosk since the crimean war. during the goodwill visit, storis conducted joint operations with the russian icebreaker volga. october 17 1814 the crew of usrc eagle, which had been driven ashore near negros head, new york in an encounter with the british brig hms dispatch, dragged the cutter's guns up a bluff in an effort to continue the battle. the new york evening post gave an account of what happened next to the out gunned cutter and its crew: "during the engagement between the cutter eagle and the enemy, the following took place which is worthy of notice. having expended all the wadding of the four pounders on the hill, during the warmest of the firing, several of the crew volunteered and went on board the cutter to obtain more. at this moment the masts were shot away, when the brave volunteers erected a flag upon her stern; this was soon shot away, but was immediately replaced by a heroic tar, amidst the cheers of his undaunted comrades, which was returned by a whole broadside from the enemy. when the crew of the cutter had expended all their large shot and fixed ammunition, they tore up the log book to make cartridges and returned the enemy's small shot which lodged in the hull. the cutter was armed with only 6 guns, 4 four pounders and 2 twos with plenty of muskets and about 50 men. the enemy being gone and provisions scarce the volunteers from this city left captain lee and his crew and arrived here on thursday evening the 13th instant, in a sloop from long island. . .we have since learned that captain lee succeeded in getting off the cutter and was about to remove her to a place of safety when the enemy returned and took possession of her. she was greatly injured, but it is expected that the enemy will be able to refit her to annoy us in the sound." 1977 the coast guard commissioned airsta sitka. 1989 an earthquake registering 7.1 on the richter scale hit northern california, killing 67 people. coast guard units assisted state and local agencies in rescue and relief operations. 2014 u.s. and canadian military personnel and government civilian agencies participated in exercise frontier sentinel 14 (fs 14) from october 17 24, 2014. this full scale exercise is the final phase of a three part scenario that focuses on maritime homeland security. fs 14 was a combined u.s. coast guard atlantic area, canadian joint task force atlantic, and u.s. navy fleet forces command exercise designed to test the coordinated response against a maritime threat to north american ports. “this exercise tests the ability of u.s. coast guard, navy, canadian forces, and civilian agencies to successfully respond to a complex maritime threat to the homeland," said vadm william lee, coast guard atlantic area commander. "exercises such as frontier sentinel allow us to strengthen partnerships with our canadian and navy counterparts in a realistic setting, which will enable us to improve our interoperability, so we are prepared to respond to any and all maritime threats to the homeland.” phases one and two of fs 14 occurred in august and september and focused on maritime threats in the waters of the atlantic ocean, including halifax, nova scotia. phase three of the exercise will focus on the coordinated detection, assessment and response to a mine threat in the delaware bay. the exercise is limited to specific areas in delaware bay and should not significantly impact vessel traffic or bay operations. frontier sentinel is an annual exercise series, initiated in 2006, established to improve the collaborative information exchange, planning and coordinated response between operational level commands of the tri party, which consists of u.s. coast guard, u. s. fleet forces command, and canadian joint task force atlantic, in response to security and defense threats in the maritime domain. 2015 the coast guard issued a certificate of inspection to the lng powered m/v isla bella. the 736 foot, 3,100 teu, u.s. flagged vessel is the first container ship in the world capable of operating on liquefied natural gas. isla bella was the first of two marlin class containerships built by nassco in san diego for operation by tote services in the jones act trade between jacksonville, florida and puerto rico. october 18 1799 usrc pickering (70 men) captured the french privateer l’egypte conquiste (250 men) on this date during the quasi war with france. 1848 captain douglas ottinger, usrm, was designated by the secretary of the treasury to supervise the construction of the first life saving stations and the equipment and boats to be placed at them. october 19 1881 the sloop zulu chief with four passengers and a crew of two men struck the bar off hog island inlet, virginia at a point about half a mile from the beach. the accident occurred at 11 o’clock am in plain view of the crew of station no. 9, fifth district, on hog island. they launched the surfboat and went to the sloop’s assistance. she was pounding heavily and lay in a very dangerous position. the life saving crew went to work without delay and carried out her anchors and succeeded in saving the vessel. october 20 1892 after ten years of difficult and costly construction, the st. george reef lighthouse, built on a rock lying six miles off the northern coast of california, midway between capes mendocino and bianco, was first lit. 1920 the superintendent of the 5th lighthouse district inspected the aids to navigation "in new river inlet and bogue sound, north carolina by hydroplane in two hours, which would have required at least four days by other means of travel, owning to the inaccessibility of the aids inspected." 1944 allied landings on leyte, philippine islands commenced. many coast guard units participated in the landings, which marked the fulfillment of general douglas macarthur's promise to the filipino people that he would return to liberate them from the japanese. 1950 president harry s. truman issued an executive order "activating" the magnuson act, which had been passed by congress earlier that month. this act, authorizing the president to invoke the espionage act of 1917, tasked the coast guard once again with the port security mission. 1976 the 120 foot ferry vessel george prince, carrying 96 passengers and crew along with approximately 30 vehicles, collided with the norwegian tank vessel frosta in the mississippi river about 20 miles above new orleans. george prince was underway from destrehan to luling, louisiana and was loaded to capacity. frosta struck george prince on the port side aft and the ferry quickly capsized and drifted upside down until it grounded on the right descending bank approximately one mile downstream from the point of collision. there were 18 survivors but the other 78 passengers and crew on the ferry were killed. 1978 cgc cuyahoga sank after colliding with m/v santa cruz ii near the mouth of the potomac river. eleven coast guard crewmen were killed. 2021 cgc munro (wmsl 755) and crew returned to their alameda, california homeport after a 102 day, 22,000 nautical mile deployment to the western pacific. munro departed alameda in july and operated under the tactical control of the u.s. navy's 7th fleet to promote a "free and open indo pacific." munro's crew executed numerous cooperative engagements, professional exchanges and capacity building efforts with naval allies and partners, including the japan coast guard, japan maritime self defense force, philippine coast guard and bureau of fisheries and aquatic resources, royal australian navy, and indonesia maritime security agency. october 21 1971 alaska senator mike gravel criticized the punishment of 18 crewmen of cgc confidence for showing support for greenpeace and asked the commandant, admiral chester bender, to investigate. 2009 while on a law enforcement patrol in the eastern pacific off the coast of central america, cgc jarvis intercepted and captured a self propelled semi submersible (spss) first located by a u.s. customs and border protection patrol aircraft. jarvis's boarding team discovered 4,500 kilos of narcotics aboard the craft and arrested the spss's four crewman. october 22 1853 the english ship western world grounded off spring lake, new jersey, during a gale with about 600 persons on board. everyone was rescued using equipment at the nearby station. 1960 early in the morning on october 22, 1960, ss alcoa corsair and ss lorenzo marcello collided near the mouth of the mississippi river. although the lorenzo marcello suffered no casualties and proceeded to new orleans, alcoa corsair had eight fatalities, nine injured, and one missing, besides being forced to beach because of severe damages. a coast guard helicopter removed four of the critically injured crewmen while coast guard boats and other craft ferried the remaining ones ashore to waiting ambulances. 1962 shortly after a northwest airlines dc 7 with 102 occupants ditched in the waters of sitka sound, alaska, a coast guard amphibian sighted five life rafts. all on board survived, although three suffered minor injuries. a federal aviation administration supply boat picked up the survivors, later transferring them to cgc sorrel, which took them to sitka, alaska. 2014 the crew of cgc charles david jr. repatriated 43 cuban migrants to bahia de cabañas, cuba. these repatriations were a result of three separate interdictions of people attempting to illegally migrate to the united states. on october 18, 2014, the crew of cgc charles sexton interdicted 22 cuban migrants from two separate interdictions in the florida straits. the next day, october 19, sexton interdicted another 21 cuban migrants. all of the migrants were safely removed from their makeshift vessels and were transferred to the charles david jr. for repatriation. october 23 1818 usrc monroe captured the armed brig columbia inside the virginia capes. columbia had been "cut out" of a venezuelan fleet by pirates. 1907 the first wireless operator joined the revenue cutter service, h. i. logan, enlisted on the usrc manhattan, a harbor tug based in new york city, as an "electrician (acting)." he was assigned to the cruising cutter usrc algonquin where he reported on board on october 30, 1907. logan remained in the service until 22 december 1923 when he retired after serving on board the uscgc bear. he crossed the bar in 1936. october 24 2014 cgc sherman returned to its homeport of san diego after completing a 52 day deployment to the eastern pacific ocean participating in unitas 2014 and conducting counter maritime drug interdiction operations. at the beginning of their deployment, sherman represented the united states, one of 14 partner nations that participated in unitas 2014 from september 12 26. toward the conclusion of its deployment, sherman interdicted two suspected smuggling boats that resulted in the seizure of approximately 120 pounds of cocaine with a wholesale value of nearly $2 million. october 25 1941 the navy formally established the greenland patrol by combining the south greenland patrol with the three cutters of the northeast greenland patrol. 1985 cgc polar sea arrived home to seattle after a voyage through the northwest passage by way of the panama canal, the east coast, and then greenland, sparking an international incident with canada. she completed the first solo circumnavigation of the north american continent by a u.s. vessel and the first trip by a polar class icebreaker. she also captured the record for the fastest transit of the historic northern route. she had departed seattle to begin the voyage on june 6, 1985. october 26 2013 bns somudra joy, formerly the coast guard cutter jarvis, departed saturday from alameda, marking a major milestone in international cooperation between the united states and bangladesh. joined by a small coast guard team of advisors, lead by cdr wendy tomko, the bangladeshi crew planned to make port calls at san diego, honolulu, guam and malaysia on their way to bangladesh. 2022 uscgc reliance (wmec 615) returned to homeport in pensacola on 26 october 2022 after a 63 day caribbean sea patrol. reliance supported the u.s. coast guard 7th district throughout their patrol, aiding in missions to interdict and disrupt the flow of illegal drugs and migrant trafficking while supporting national security and strengthening relationships with regional partners throughout the caribbean. “i am extremely proud of our crew for their adaptability and professionalism throughout the patrol. regardless of the mission set, whether that was responding immediately to the aftermath of the devastating earthquake in haiti by conducting critical port assessments or stopping the flow of illegal narcotics, reliance was always ready to respond to the needs of our service and our nation,” said cdr robert hill, commanding officer. significantly, the crew supported the relief efforts in response to the earthquake in haiti in august, conducting two separate port assessments on haitian ports to ensure the harbors were safe for vessels to deliver vital aid and assistance to the region following the disaster. during the patrol, reliance’s crew intercepted one vessel attempting to smuggle approximately 1,132 lbs. of cocaine and detained a total of four suspected smugglers. additionally, reliance received more than 4,291 lbs. of cocaine, ten suspected smugglers, and 96 migrants from other u.s. coast guard cutters operating in the region. the crew also rescued 50 dominican nationals from an unseaworthy vessel off the coast of puerto rico and repatriated 158 migrants to the dominican republic’s navy. the 63 day patrol was critical in allowing the cutter crew to work on shipboard training, qualifications, and proficiency to maintain operational readiness. this training enabled reliance’s team to complete a five day major shipboard training exercise in mayport, which tested their readiness in all aspects of damage control, seamanship, and navigational procedures. reliance, a 210 foot medium endurance cutter, is homeported in pensacola with a crew of 71. october 27 1997 the crew of cgc baranof confiscated two .50 caliber sniper rifles, ammunition and other military supplies that were allegedly to be used in an assassination attempt against cuban president fidel castro. four cuban exiles were arrested for illegal possession of firearms after the 46 foot la esperanza was ordered into aguadilla, puerto rico, by the baranof. there a search of the vessel turned up the weapons. one suspect confessed that the sniper rifles were to be used to assassinate castro on his arrival on venezuela's margarita island for the ibero american summit conference. a magistrate in the u.s. district court in san juan later dismissed the charge of conspiracy to assassinate castro but let the charges of illegal importation of firearms and making false statements stand. 2014 a humpback whale was reported entangled with a weather buoy approximately 25 nautical miles off moss landing, california. the national oceanic and atmospheric administration (noaa) requested uscg assistance. on october 29, an air station san francisco mh 65 helicopter located the entangled whale and vectored a noaa vessel to the location. noaa officials were able to successfully free the whale and preserve the buoy mooring. the whale was observed swimming away after it was freed. noaa officials believe the whale will survive. october 28 1919 congress passed the national prohibition enforcement act, otherwise known as the volstead act, on this date. the volstead act authorized the enforcement of the 18th amendment, ratified on january 29, 1919. the act authorized the coast guard to prevent the maritime importation of illegal alcohol. this led to the largest increase in the size and responsibilities of the service to date. 1943 choiseul, treasury islands landing commenced (coast guard manned lst 71 was in second echelon november 1, 1943). 1966 coast guard loran station con son in vietnam became fully operational. 1991 thousands of haitian migrants began fleeing their homeland after the overthrow of haitian president jean bertrand aristide, prompting one of the largest sar operations in coast guard history. cutters and aircraft from as far north as new england converged on the windward passage. in the first 30 days of the operation, coast guard forces rescued more than 6,300 men, women, and children who left haiti in grossly overloaded and unseaworthy vessels. seventy five coast guard units ultimately took part in the massive sar operation and by the end of the year over 40,000 haitian migrants were rescued. 2012 the coast guard captain of the port of honolulu ordered the evacuation of honolulu harbor after a tsunami warning was issued after an earthquake struck the haida gwaii archipelago in western canada. october 29 1883 at a quarter before 4 o’clock in the morning the two surfmen on patrol from the plum island station (second district), below newburyport, massachusetts, discovered a vessel ashore on the south breaker at the entrance of newburyport harbor, about half a mile northeast of the station. a signal was made to her that she was seen and the men hurried to the station and gave the alarm. the boat reached her shortly after 4 o’clock. she was the schooner forest maid with a crew of seven men bound on a fishing cruise. while going out over the bar, the wind being light, she had been carried by the strong ebb tide on to the shoal. the first thing done by her crew was to let go an anchor to hold her, but finding she continued to drive farther on they veered away. they were disappointed, for she soon fetched up hard and fast with ninety fathoms of cable out. as the water was still falling nothing could be done until the flood tide. the life saving crew remained on board and when the tide began to rise at 8 o’clock, commenced operations by heaving in on the cable. the wind freshened considerably while they were at work, raising quite a swell, which caused the schooner to pound heavily. they persevered, however, gaining a little every time she lifted on the seas, so that by 9 o’clock the schooner was safely afloat and on her way back into the harbor, apparently none the worse for the accident. 1965 secretary of the navy paul nitze requested additional coast guard patrol boats for patrol duties in vietnam. 2009 at 19:10 local time on 29 october 2009, coast guard air station sacramento lockheed hc 130h hercules cg 1705 collided in mid air with a u.s. marine corps bell ah 1w super cobra helicopter. the location of the accident was 15 mi east off san clemente island, california. the hercules was carrying a crew of seven and the cobra a crew of two people; there were no survivors. eyewitnesses reported seeing a fireball in the sky. debris from the collision was reported at the scene. the hercules was on a search and rescue mission to search for a sailboat in distress while the super cobra was on a training flight. two sikorsky ch 53e helicopters along with uscgc edisto, uscgc petrel and uscgc blackfin were sent to search the area. uscgc blacktip, uscgc george cobb and uscgc jarvis later joined the search. the search for survivors was cancelled on 1 november 2009 after searching 644 square miles of ocean, including approximately 50 miles of floating debris. the effort was converted to a recovery operation. all nine individuals in the crash, including seven aboard the coast guard plane and two aboard the marine helicopter were presumed dead (submitted by lorne thomas; 12 27 2023). 2012 in the early morning hours while caught in the impact zone of hurricane sandy more than 90 miles off the coast of hatteras, nc, hms bounty lost power and eventually capsized spilling her 16 crew members in to the sea. c 130 and mh 60 aircraft were launched from air station elizabeth city, nc and braved the hurricane conditions to rescue 14 crew members who had made it into life rafts. another crew member was later recovered unresponsive and the captain was never found. 2014 an air station clearwater hc 130 aircraft discovered a vessel with 33 persons aboard seven nautical miles east of boca raton inlet, florida. coast guard sector miami diverted cgcs shrike and robert yered and notified local government agencies. as assets arrived on scene, the persons aboard the vessel began jumping into the water. robert yered assumed on scene commander for all responding units and began recovering the persons in the water. thirty three cuban migrants were safely recovered and were embarked by robert yered. 2015 cgc healy returned to its homeport of seattle after completing four months of arctic operations. the crew's return marks the completion of an arctic expedition which culminated in the crews’ historic arrival at the north pole and was the first time a u.s. surface vessel has reached 90°n unaccompanied. the crew conducted two separate missions that included operations in the bering sea, chukchi sea, and arctic ocean. coast guard research and development center members joined the crew of healy for the third consecutive year to continue their research of arctic technologies including: remotely operated vehicles, small unmanned aerial systems, an autonomous underwater vehicle and an unmanned surface vehicle. the crew departed dutch harbor, alaska on august 9 for geotraces, an international effort to study the distribution of trace elements in the world’s oceans to establish the effects of these elements on global climate change. 2015 cgc campbell returned to its homeport of kittery, maine on thursday at 2 p.m. after a 50 day patrol of the north atlantic. during the patrol, which spanned an off shore area from maine to new york, campbell was involved in multiple rescues, including towing two disabled fishing vessels over 150 nautical miles offshore. on september 21, 2015, campbell responded to a report of a sea turtle entangled in fishing gear. campbell launched their small boat and the rescue team was able to free the 6 foot long leatherback sea turtle from the fishing line. during the patrol, campbell traveled to canadian waters to participate in a joint training exercise with the canadian armed forces and royal canadian mounted police. on october 26, 2015, campbell honored a former shipmate by conducting a burial at sea ceremony for a retired coast guard chief quartermaster. additionally, as part of campbell's primary mission they conducted 52 living marine resource boardings resulting in the issuing of 17 violations. october 30 1956 cgc chincoteague, manning ocean station delta in the north atlantic, received a distress message that the german freighter helgs bolten was taking on water and wished to abandon ship as soon as possible. after reaching the scene some hours later, the cutter found that the high winds and 25 foot seas made it impossible to launch lifeboats. two inflatable lifeboats, therefore, were passed by shot line to the freighter, and the 33 crewmen aboard were removed to the cutter unharmed. chincoteague then stood by the drifting vessel for seven days, while commercial tugs made salvage attempts. all of the survivors returned on board the cutter to norfolk, virginia, while a tug towed helg bolten to the azores. 1991 cgc tamaroa attempted to rescue the three persons on board the disabled sailing vessel satori 75 miles south of martha's vineyard during a severe winter storm. tamaroa launched an rhi which was damaged by the tossing satori as it drew near the sailing vessel but a coast guard hh 3f, cg 1493, also participating in the rescue, hoisted the three on board satori and the rhi's crew to safety. tamaroa was then diverted to rescue the crew of a downed air national guard h 60. (see october 31 entry below). 2014 cgc diligence returned to her homeport of wilmington, north carolina following a 45 day patrol in the caribbean sea. while on patrol, diligence served as the operational commander for all coast guard assets supporting operation southeast watch in the windward pass between cuba and haiti. as the operational commander, diligence maintained an overt presence in the windward pass to prevent and respond to any overloaded or unseaworthy vessels with persons attempting to reach the united states shoreline. the crew aboard diligence also conducted counter narcotics operations in support of operation unified resolve in san juan, puerto rico. crew members conducted two inspections of vessels suspected of smuggling narcotics and patrolled the region to counter the flow of illicit traffic. under operation southeast watch, the coast guard worked alongside interagency and international partners to prevent and respond to illegal maritime migration in the caribbean sea and florida straits. under operation unified resolve, the service placed special emphasis on targeting the primary and secondary flow of illicit drugs from south america to puerto rico and the u.s. virgin islands. operation unified resolve initially began as a surge operation, but in october 2013, the coast guard made it a standing operation and established a new baseline for drug interdiction operations in support of puerto rico and the u.s. virgin islands. 2015 cgc spencer returned to its homeport of boston after a 65 day patrol of the caribbean sea. spencer conducted several search and rescue cases as well as counter narcotics and migrant interdiction operations. as part of operation martillo, spencer intercepted four go fast vessels suspected of trafficking drugs, and directly contributed to the seizure of 1,000 kilograms (2,204 pounds) of marijuana and 1,677 kilograms (3,697 pounds) of cocaine worth approximately $50 million. in addition, 11 suspected narcotic smugglers were taken into custody and were transferred to the offices of the united states attorneys for prosecution. in colón, panama, spencer’s boarding teams partnered with the national aero naval military service of panama to conduct a three day joint boarding of a freighter suspected of smuggling narcotics. in mid october while sailing the passage between cuba and mexico, spencer’s crew rescued 24 passengers from a disabled vessel that was caught in 12 15 foot seas. spencer’s crew was able to safely disembark the cuban migrants as their vessel ran out of fuel and the sea state worsened. martillo, which is spanish for hammer, was a u.s., european, and western hemisphere effort to target illicit trafficking. october 31 1984 the tanker puerto rican exploded outside of san francisco bay. coast guard units responded. 1991 during an extremely severe winter storm cgc tamaroa rescued four of five air national guard crewmen from an ang h 60 that had ditched south of long island due to fuel exhaustion (the fifth crewman, a pararescue jumper, was never found). tamaroa had been attempting to rescue the crew of the sailing vessel satori the previous day (the three on board satori were rescued safely by hh 3f cg 1493  see october 30 entry above) when the cutter was diverted to assist the air national guard air crew. tamaroa was awarded the coast guard unit commendation and the events were chronicled in the best selling book and movie "the perfect storm." 1999 egypt air flight 990 crashed about 60 miles southeast of nantucket. coast guard units, including cgcs monomoy, spencer, reliance, bainbridge island, juniper, point highland, hammerhead, a hc 130 from air station elizabeth city, and an hh 60 from air station cape cod searched unsuccessfully for any survivors. all 217 persons on board were killed in the crash. coast guard units then assisted in the recovery effort. 2012 the coast guard completed arctic shield 2012 after a summer season of sustained operations and outreach efforts in the arctic. arctic shield 2012 focused on operations, outreach and an assessment of the coast guard's capabilities above the arctic circle. the forward operating location in barrow consisted of two kodiak based mh 60 jayhawk helicopters with supporting air, ground and communications crews. the coast guard deployed several surface assets to the arctic including the cgc bertholf, that provided a persistent operational presence and command and control capability in an area where the coast guard lacked the permanent infrastructure of a coastal sector. also deployed were two light ice capable 225 foot sea going buoy tenders, a 282 foot medium endurance cutter, and a 378 foot high endurance cutter were also deployed to the region to increase offshore operational capability, ensure the safety of mariners, patrol international borders and provide additional search and rescue capabilities. 2014 the coast guard concluded arctic shield 2014 after a successful season that included deployments of personnel and assets to the seward peninsula, bering strait, and the northern alaska continental shelf to conduct a broad range of coast guard statutory missions. arctic shield 2014 included deployments by cgcs stratton, healy, spar, alex haley, and mh 60 jayhawk helicopters deployed to a forward operating location in barrow, tribal engagements and assistance, and a range of marine safety activities in many arctic communities. arctic shield efforts included a first ever mh 60t jayhawk helicopter deployment to stratton in the arctic ocean. the arctic shield team executed several challenging and high visibility search and rescue cases, such as the dynamic rescue of the sailing vessel master aboard the altan girl beset in ice northeast of barrow, and the medevac of a crewmember from the korean polar research vessel araon. operation gold nugget prevention and enforcement activities included 54 at sea boardings and 36 safety inspections. the coast guard research and development center tested pollution response capabilities and successfully celebrated the first landing of a uav on a coast guard ice breaker. the coast guard national ice rescue school provided critical ice rescue training to the three largest arctic communities. prevention activities and outreach spanned 29 villages, training over 2800 children in kids don't float programs and three mass rescue exercises. november 1 1843 secretary of treasury spencer issued new "rules and regulations for the governing of the revenue cutter service" that centralized control of personnel, promotion and discipline issues under the revenue marine bureau, but left direct superintendence and direction of the individual cutters with the local collectors of customs. 1848 the revenue cutter c. w. lawrence weighed anchor off washington, d.c. and set sail down the potomac river. the cutter was commanded by captain alexander v. fraser, the first chief of revenue marine bureau, who left that position to take command of the new brig rigged cutter. he was ordered to proceed on an epic voyage around cape horn via the hawaiian islands to san francisco where the cutter arrived safely on october 31 the following year. 1903 the first wireless message was received on board a revenue cutter. on this date in 1903 usrc grant received a message transmitted by a shore station installed in the u.s. customs building at port townsend, wa. the experimental use of a wireless set to coordinate the movements of a cutter at sea with shore based stations proved to be a success and led to the wide spread use of radio by all cutters. the equipment used ashore and on board grant was installed by the pacific wireless telegraph company. 1941 president franklin d. roosevelt's executive order 8929 transferred the coast guard to the navy department. 1943 the invasion of bougainville, solomon islands, commenced. coast guard units participated in the landings. 1949 the authority to reestablish the women’s reserve of the coast guard reserve (spars), approved by the president on august 4, 1949, became effective. 1976 a multi agency task force investigation led by the san luis obispo sheriff's department, and including the los angeles police department, dea, customs and the coast guard resulted in the seizure of the dong phat on this date in 1976. cgc cape hedge seized the vessel and arrested the four persons on board after the vessel delivered contraband to a shore side connection. on the beach other members of the task force arrested 10 men and seized 200 boxes of thai sticks with a street value estimated in excess of $30 million. 1984 the largest marijuana bust to date in west coast history took place when cgc clover seized the 63 foot yacht arrikis 150 miles southwest of san diego. the yacht was loaded with 13 tons of marijuana. 2013 the coast guard completed arctic shield 2013. arctic shield focused on western alaska and the bering strait and consisted of a three pronged approach of operations, outreach and an assessment of the coast guard's capabilities in the arctic. several cutters were deployed in support of the operation, including cgcs polar star, healy, waeshe, naushon, and spar. the crews aboard the various vessels conducted the coast guard’s statutory missions while providing an operational presence and command and control capability in an area where the coast guard lacked the permanent infrastructure of a coastal sector. coast guard c 130 hercules airplane crews were strategically positioned at eielson afb in fairbanks and a forward operating location with mh 60 jayhawk helicopter crews was established at the alaska national guard hangar in kotzebue to conduct search and rescue, law enforcement, and maritime domain awareness flights. arctic shield capability assessments included the deployment of a vessel of opportunity skimming system aboard the cutter spar and a canadian coast guard vessel. healy conducted their science missions and partnered with the coast guard research and development center to evaluate equipment. personnel tested two small unmanned aircraft systems, an unmanned underwater vehicle, a remotely operated vehicle and a helix skimmer equipped for oil recovery on ice. polar star tested the overall readiness of the icebreaker. naushon completed a historic patrol to the region and proved that a coast guard patrol boat could operate in the area "in the right season and with proper support," according to radm thomas ostebo, 17th district commander. november 2 1820 the revenue cutter louisiana captured five pirate vessels during a cruise from florida to cuba. 1881 a rowboat with two men and a young girl was going down the manistee river towards the harbor. it capsized about a hundred feet abreast of station no. 5, eleventh district, lake michigan. one of the men swam to the dock and was helped out by the life saving crew. the remaining man tried to swim with his daughter on his back. she began to struggle violently and dragged him under. the keeper pulled off his outer clothing, swam out, caught the father and daughter as they were sinking for the third time, and succeeded in bringing them to the dock where they were helped up by the rest of the crew. 1929 the u.s. marine corps service football team, the "bulldogs," defeated the coast guard team, the "bears," in the annual presidents cup 19 0. the game was played at clark griffith stadium in washington, d.c. the coast guard team was in fact the destroyer force football team of new london, connecticut which had been "nationalized" to represent the entire service. 2014 cgc alert returned to astoria, oregon, following a counter drug patrol in the eastern pacific ocean off the coast of south and central america. alert's crew members successfully conducted a 70 day patrol traveling more than 12,600 miles scouring the eastern pacific ocean for illicit traffickers using their two small boats and armed helicopter from coast guard helicopter interdiction tactical squadron from jacksonville, florida. alert's crew interdicted three suspected vessels, detained 15 suspected smugglers, and seized over 3,180 pounds of cocaine. november 3 1883 the keeper and crew of the smith’s island station, virginia (fifth district), saw a small schooner flying a signal near isaac shoal, five miles away from the station. they went out to her and found on board the captain of a sloop that wrecked the night before several miles from land. he had succeeded in swimming to a bar near the beach, where he was picked up by the crew of the schooner. finding him suffering from exposure they signaled for assistance. the lifesaving crew applied bottles of hot water and resuscitated him. they then landed him in the surfboat and cared for him for six days until he was sent to his home. november 4 1984 cgc northwind seized the p/c alexi i off jamaica for carrying 20 tons of marijuana, becoming the first icebreaker to make a narcotics seizure. november 5 1897 rescue from drowning chicago, illinois, lake michigan: at 9: 30 p.m., the north patrol saw a man run across the driveway and jump into the lake with suicidal intent. the surf knocked him down and was tossing him about when surfmen rushed in and hauled him out. 1976 the coast guard awarded a contract to tacoma shipbuilding company, inc., of tacoma, washington, for the construction of four 140 foot wytm icebreaking tugs. 2001 six u.s. navy cyclone class patrol coastal warships were assigned to operation noble eagle on november 5, 2001. this was the first time since world war ii that u.s. navy ships were employed jointly with the u.s. coast guard to help protect our nation's coastline, ports, and waterways. 2013 cgc healy moored in seattle, washington, after completing a 117 day deployment in the bering sea, chukchi sea, beaufort sea, and arctic ocean. during that time, healy's crew of 88 successfully conducted three science missions and one coast guard mission to further the nation’s scientific knowledge of the arctic. the first science mission was a multidisciplinary study sponsored by the bureau of ocean energy management 90 miles west of barrow, alaska, near hanna shoal. science members collected pelagic and benthic chemical and biological samples, observed physical oceanographic properties, and analyzed the data to establish an ecological baseline for the highly productive and biodiverse area. the second science mission was a study sponsored by the national science foundation (nsf) along the north slope in the beaufort sea and in canada’s amundsen gulf. the science party focused on identifying geological evidence of a massive flood near the mackenzie river that occurred about 13,000 years ago and had profound effects on global climate. the third mission was sponsored by the coast guard research and development center and took place near and in the ice pack. this mission’s focus was to assess the ability of current technologies to respond to oil spills in the arctic. the technologies included an unmanned aerial system, an unmanned underwater vehicle, an oil recovery skimmer, and a remotely operated vehicle. the fourth science mission of the deployment was sponsored by nsf and took healy north of barrow on the north slope and as far east as amundsen gulf. the primary mission objectives were to recover, service, and redeploy a series of scientific moorings anchored to the seafloor. november 6 1882 at half past 4 in the afternoon the lookout at station no. 8, tenth district (forty mile point, hammond’s bay lake huron) discovered a small boat north of the station about six miles distant, drifting out into the lake apparently unmanageable. two of the life saving crew put off in a sailboat. the boat was reached at about dusk, some miles out from the land, with a man and a boy in it. both were wet and nearly perished with the cold. their boat was half full of water. they were at once transferred to the rescuing boat and their frail craft was taken in tow to the station. 1984 the coast guard accepted operational control from the navy of the ses 200, a surface effect ship, for five months of operational evaluations. 2008 portsmouth based cgc harriet lane returned to homeport following a 37 day living marine resources patrol in support of operation atlantic venture in the north atlantic ocean. harriet lane’s patrol highlights included 17 fisheries enforcement boardings on commercial fishing vessels, the issuance of one living marine resources violation, one narcotics seizure, 25 hours of small boat training as well as assisting the disabled 25 foot p/c playin’ hooky, which was disabled 50 nautical miles off the coast of virginia. the cutter also assisted the f/vs chief and clyde ii which were disabled east of cape cod, massachusetts. harriet lane towed both vessels nearly 250 nautical miles to new bedford, massachusetts. november 7 1950 the coast guard announced that it would open a limited number of organized reserve enlistments to male veterans of other services and to males without previous military service in an effort to bring coast guard port security training units up to authorized strength without delay. heretofore, such enlistments had been offered only to former coast guardsmen. 1984 the tank ship mara hope suffered a fire in her engine room that quickly got out of control. she had lain idle at the coastal marine shipyard on the neches river for more than a year but the owners of the liberian tank ship had crewed the vessel and were working to reactivate the ship when the fire broke out. coast guard personnel and a 32 footer from mso port arthur soon arrived on scene as did a 41 footer from station sabine. local firefighters also assisted. it took almost three days to get the blaze under control. the ship was declared a total loss. there were no serious casualties. november 8 1942 operation torch, the allied landings in vichy french held north africa, commenced. coast guard manned navy vessels participated in the assault, including the attack transports uss leonard wood, joseph t. dickman, and samuel chase. coast guardsmen also manned the landing craft on the navy's uss arcturus, charles carroll, joseph hewes, william p. biddle, and exceller. 1957 after making contact with cgc minnetonka on ocean station november pan am flight 90944 romance of the skies was not heard of again. wreckage of the aircraft was later found approx 90 miles of the ocean station. no survivors were found. 1959 the tanker amoco virginia, with a cargo of aviation gasoline, exploded and caught fire at houston, texas. u.s. coast guard units in the galveston houston area assisted local and federal agencies in extinguishing the blaze. for 10 more days, coast guard air and surface units controlled a dangerous situation by spreading foam to reduce the fire hazard of leaking aviation gas, directing harbor traffic, pumping out the damaged vessel, and moving her to a safe dock. 1979 the crew of coast guard loran station st. paul island, alaska, rescued the crew of the japanese factory fishing vessel ryuyo maru nr two which had run aground near tolstoi point on st. paul island during a storm. the coast guardsmen used a makeshift breeches buoy to effect the rescue of all of the 81 crewmen aboard the fishing vessel. november 9 1970 the installation of the coast guard’s control data corporation 3300 computer system at headquarters was completed. a period of system acceptance testing was satisfactorily completed and the computer system was then accepted for use by the coast guard. november 10 1775 the official birthday of the u.s. marine corps: on this date in 1775 the second continental congress passed a resolution to create a "corps of marines." although they were disbanded in 1783 and were not re established permanently until july 11, 1798, the marine corps recognizes november 10, 1775, as its official birthday. the marine corps' motto is semper fidelis (always faithful). on october 21, 1921, major edwin mcclellan, officer in charge, historical section, headquarters marine corps, sent a memorandum to major general commandant john a. lejeune, suggesting that the original birthday on november 10, 1775, be declared a marine corps holiday to be celebrated throughout the corps. 1913 lightship no. 82 was lost with all hands during a gale while on station near buffalo, new york. six crewmen were aboard when the lightship went down. lv 82 was commanded by hugh m. williams, master. 1975 the great lakes ore carrier edmund fitzgerald, caught in an unexpected storm on lake superior, sank with a loss of all 29 hands. coast guard units helped conduct a search for the ship and survivors although all efforts proved to be futile. 2014 cgc reliance returned to its homeport at portsmouth naval shipyard, kittery, maine, following a nine week patrol in the caribbean sea supporting the joint interagency task force south. during the deployment, the 75 member crew of reliance was responsible for conducting counter drug operations in support of u.s. and international law. reliance sailed with an aviation detachment from the coast guard's helicopter interdiction tactical squadron based in jacksonville, florida. the cutter worked directly with federal and international partners at jiatf s and the coast guard seventh district to combat transnational organized crime networks operating in the caribbean basin. reliance's efforts directly contributed to the prevention of 14 metric tons of contraband from reaching american shores. during the reliance's 63 day deployment, the cutter traveled over 6,000 miles, conducted three law enforcement boardings and conducted more than 100 helicopter launch and recovery evolutions while operating throughout the western caribbean. november 11 1881 the crew of life boat station no. 14, eleventh district (racine, wi) rendered service during the severest storm of the season. the life saving crew noticed several vessels running north for safety under bare poles and two of them made safely into the harbor. observing this, the master of the schooner lavinda tried to make the same haven, but the vessel became unmanageable, struck the south pier, immediately became waterlogged, and in five minutes was a wreck. the life saving crew sprang for the lifeboat and put out to her assistance. they got alongside and managed to run a line from the wrecked vessel to the station tug h. wetzel, which had steamed out to her relief. the tug soon towed her into the harbor. 1918 the allied powers signed a cease fire agreement with germany at rethondes, france on november 11, 1918, bringing world war i to a close. between the wars november 11 was commemorated as armistice day in the united states, great britain, and france. after world war ii, the holiday was recognized as a day of tribute to veterans of both world wars. beginning in 1954, the united states designated november 11 as veterans day to honor veterans of all u.s. wars. over 8,000 coast guardsmen served during the world war i and 111 were killed in action with the enemy. 1955 cgc yocona rescued the crew of the sinking fishing vessel ocean pride some 50 miles off cape lookout, oregon. when 60 to 70 mph winds and heavy seas with 30 feet swells made it impossible to launch lifeboats, yocona came close aboard the sinking fishing vessel to allow all of its crew members to jump on board the cutter to safety. 2022 cgc healy returned to its homeport of seattle following its historic 17,000 mile, 124 day deployment in the high arctic latitudes that included a transit to the north pole. healy and its crew traversed the ice packed arctic ocean to the top of the world, reaching the geographic north pole on 30 september 2022. this was only the second time a u.s. surface vessel had reached 90 degrees north unaccompanied. in july and august 2022, after a port call in seward, alaska, healy traveled into the beaufort and chukchi seas, going as far north as 78 degrees, while supporting an office of naval research sponsored team from the university of washington applied physics department and woods hole oceanographic institution. the embarked team worked with healy crew to conduct various evolutions, including deploying and recovering sea gliders, underwater sensors and acoustic buoys, throughout the marginal and pack ice zones as part of the arctic mobile observing system. during transits to and from the arctic, healy participated in flight operations in kotzebue sound and off the coast of kodiak island, alaska, with air station kodiak mh 60 helicopter aircrews, conducted passing exercises with the cgc kimball (wmsl 756), and completed patrols of the international maritime boundary line between the u.s. and russia. in september and october, after a port visit to dutch harbor, alaska, healy transited north again to conduct multidisciplinary, internationally collaborative research as part of the synoptic arctic survey. the embarked national science foundation funded team collected samples and data to study environmental changes across the arctic ocean. upon reaching the north pole, healy conducted two days of science operations and the crew enjoyed several hours of ice liberty. after disembarking all science personnel during a second logistics stop in dutch harbor at the end of october, healy made a final port call in juneau, alaska, where friends and family of crewmembers were given the opportunity to sail on the cutter during its final underway leg through the inside passage to seattle november 12 1882 on november 11, the steam barge h.c. schnoor struck on the bar off alcona at 11 o’clock at night about three hundred yards from the shore. a strong southeast gale prevailed at the time, and there was a heavy sea. at 8 o’clock in the morning of the next day (november 12) a team came with the news from alcona to station no. 5, tenth district, (sturgeon point), about four miles and a half from the scene of the disaster. after a half hour for preparation, the keeper was on the road with two teams, one bearing the wreck ordnance and the other the surfboat. an hour later they arrived and launched the surfboat. the surf, however, was so heavy that they failed to get alongside the barge and they were obliged to return. the wreck gun was then used. the gear, having been set up, the mate was brought ashore by the breeches buoy. as the crew was obliged to work from a point of land so narrow that they could not spread sufficiently to keep the lines apart, they twisted. the heavy current caused the lee part of the whip line to foul with the hawser. before the lines could be cleared, however, the wind changed and beat down the sea. the surfboat was launched and took the captain (who had been on shore at alcona) and the mate back to the barge. the immediate danger ended with the subsidence of the sea. the life saving crew returned to the station. november 13 1883 the sloop madge schults capsized as she was passing in through rockaway inlet, about half a mile distant from the rockaway point station (third district). the only crewman of the sloop clung to the bottom of his craft and made signals for help. they were seen by the lookout at the station and the life saving crew went off in their boat. he was taken from the water and landed on barren island. 1944 the coast guard manned frigate uss rockford and the navy minesweeper uss ardent attacked and sank the japanese navy submarine i 12 mid way between hawaii and california. there were no survivors. in sinking i 12, ardent and rockford unwittingly avenged the atrocity i 12 had perpetrated on october 30, 1944 when, after sinking the liberty ship john a. johnson, the submarine rammed and sank the lifeboats and rafts and then machine gunned the 70 survivors. 2005 the first rescue using the new rescue 21 command, control and communications system took place off ocean city, maryland. all three persons on board a swamped 20 foot fishing boat were safely rescued. 2014 the first alenia c 27j to complete the coast guard’s regeneration process arrived at the c 27j asset project office in elizabeth city, north carolina, where it was to be used to train and qualify coast guard aircrew and maintenance personnel, as well as develop flight and maintenance procedures for coast guard specific mission profiles. ultimately the aircraft would receive the equipment and systems needed to perform the full spectrum of coast guard missions. november 14 1963 coast guard air and surface rescue craft responded immediately when the freighter fernview and the tanker dynafuel collided in buzzards bay. while helicopters removed the injured aboard the stricken ships, surface craft extinguished the fires. these coast guard units had completed the evacuation of all aboard the disabled vessels before the dynafuel capsized and sank. 1990 psu 302, staffed by reservists from cleveland, ohio, arrived in the persian gulf in support of operation desert shield. they were stationed in bahrain. 1991 an hh 60j jayhawk from aviation training center mobile participated in a search and rescue operation off the coast of alabama, the first such case conducted by an hh 60j, which was just beginning to enter coast guard service. 2008 the coast guard received a report of a homemade migrant vessel heading north towards the marquesas keys 30 miles west of key west, florida. an rb m was dispatched from sector key west to intercept the vessel, with a smaller special purpose boat capable of making shallow water pick ups following the rb m to the scene. a special purpose craft   law enforcement (spc le) was also dispatched to assist. the rb m arrived first on scene to find the small, outboard driven vessel about two miles southwest of the marquesas keys making an attempt to go ashore. though the vessel proved to be fairly agile and was quickly closing the distance to shore, the rb m used its speed and maneuverability to “shoulder” the vessel, keeping it in deeper water until it could be disabled. using a boat hook, the rb m crew disconnected the fuel line to the outboard engine, rendering it inoperable. the fourteen migrants aboard were then safely removed from the vessel. november 15 1860 the light in the massive stone minot's ledge lighthouse, which was built on the original site of the one lost in 1851, was exhibited. work on the new lighthouse commenced in 1855 and finished in 1860. "it ranks, by the engineering difficulties surrounding its erection and by the skill and science shown in the details of its construction, among the chief of the great sea rock lighthouses of the world." 1929 the ss briton came ashore at point abino, lake erie, and was in danger of breaking up. coast guard patrol boat cg 164, under the command of bmc clarence c. kimball, safely rescued all 27 persons on board the stricken vessel. 1977 coast guard utb 41332 from station cape disappointment capsized in the columbia river during a night training exercise. the utb sank after the current swept it past the columbia river lightship. three coast guardsmen were killed in the accident: bm3 greg morris, bm3 ray erb, and sn albin erickson. 1977 cgc polar star departed seattle en route antarctica for ice tests and operational tasking in connection with operation deep freeze. polar star recently completed installation of modified propellers and open water engineering trails in the seattle area. november 16 1929 cgc itasca slid down the ways of the general engineering and drydock company in oakland, california. ms. jean lyans christened the new 250 lake class cutter. ms. lyans was nominated for the task by representative homer hoch, of kansas, a "great friend of the coast guard." the lake class cutters, ten in all, were designed in house by the coast guard and were propelled by a turbine driven electric motor. all ten were transferred to the royal navy under lend lease in the spring of 1941. 1950 the serpen's monument in arlington national cemetery was dedicated on november 16, 1950. the monument was placed on the gravesite of those who lost their lives on the night of january 29, 1945 when uss serpens was destroyed off lunga beach, guadalcanal. this was the largest single disaster suffered by the coast guard in world war ii. 1992 cgc storis became the cutter with the longest service in the bering sea, eclipsing the u.s. revenue cutter bear which had held that distinction since 1929. bear was decommissioned in 1929 after serving in the bering sea for 44 years and two months. november 17 1791 secretary of treasury hamilton fixed the value of rations at a "generous" 12 cents per day for each man in revenue marine. 1973 the "largest icebreaker in the western world," cgc polar star, was launched. 1982 president ronald reagan visited the cgc dauntless and awarded the cutter and crew the coast guard unit commendation for their work during the period of july 1980 to july 1982. president reagan wrote in the record of inspections: "aboard 'dauntless'   a proud ship with an impressive crew." this was the first visit by a u.s. president aboard a cutter in 19 years. 1983 lt edith munro, uscgr, a world war ii spar veteran and the mother of coast guard hero douglas munro, passed away at the age of 88. november 18 1953 heavy rains in the coquille, coos, and willamette river valleys of western oregon caused flooding of the lowland areas and isolation of some towns through the blocking of highways by slides and high water, necessitating the evacuation of families and livestock. a coast guard relief detail of boats, men, and aircraft participated in relief assistance measures, cooperating with the red cross and civil authorities. 1999 the 605 foot russian freighter sergo zakariadze, loaded with a cargo of cement dust, ran aground at the entrance to san juan harbor, puerto rico. coast guard strike team, mso san juan, greater antilles section, among others, responded to the accident. november 19 1943 cg air station at floyd bennett field, brooklyn, new york, was designated as a helicopter training base. the coast guard ran the training program during the war. 1984 the coast guard accepted the new hh 65a dolphin helicopter for service. 2008 cgc vigorous returned to its homeport of cape may, new jersey, after "a productive 56 day deployment in the caribbean sea. . .patrol highlights include law enforcement boardings, search and rescue operations as well as successfully completing tailored ship’s training availability." november 20 1943 landings commenced at makin and tarawa in the gilbert islands. the coast guard manned assault transport uss leonard wood, veteran of the landings made in the mediterranean, participated. she landed 1,788 officers and men of the 165th combat team of the u.s. army's 27th division, on makin island. coast guard manned lst 20, lst 23, lst 69, lst 169, lst 205, and the uss arthur middleton, and the following navy ships with partial coast guard crews: usss heywood, bellatrix, and william p. biddle, participated in the bloody assault of tarawa. november 21 1970 two 378 foot cutters, cgc sherman and rush, combined with uss endurance to attack and sink a north vietnamese trawler attempting to smuggle arms into south vietnam. 1995 cgc decisive located and began tracking a 75 foot freighter packed with haitian migrants 30 miles off the northwest coast of haiti on november 19. the cutter followed the freighter for two days as it maneuvered in and out of cuban territorial seas, refusing to allow a boarding party aboard. finally, at noon, november 21, with cgc northland having joined the chase, the captain of the freighter allowed a boarding team to come aboard where they discovered 516 migrants. using small boats from both cutters, the migrants were brought aboard northland and were repatriated. 2014 watchstanders at the coast guard 7th district command center received a report from a tug stating they heard a distress call from a vessel claiming to be taking on water off the coast of great inagua, bahamas. a coast guard mh 60 crew deployed in support of operations bahamas, turks and caicos (opbat) launched and located the coastal freighter calypso approximately 50 miles off the coast of great inagua. the helicopter crew lowered a rescue swimmer down with a dewatering pump. calypso began to slowly transit to the coast of haiti to investigate the source of the flooding. at approximately 12:30 p.m., cgc charles sexton arrived on scene and coast guard crewmembers were transferred to the freighter and assisted with the dewatering of the vessel. the freighter began to list on the right side due to the amount of water in the lower compartments. to ensure the safety of everyone aboard, all seven crewmembers were removed and transferred to the cutter sexton with no medical concerns. cgc thetis arrived on scene at approximately 7 p.m. and safely transferred the seven crewmembers from sexton to thetis. at approximately 7:30 p.m., crewmembers from the cutter thetis reported seeing the freighter calypso continue to list on the right side before sinking approximately 45 miles north of cap haitien, haiti. november 22 1906 at the second international radio telegraphic convention, which was held in berlin, the attendees agreed to adopt the wireless signal "sos" as the internationally recognized signal for distress at sea. their thinking was that three dots, three dashes and three dots could not be misinterpreted. 1953 a great boon to ocean navigation for aircraft surface vessels was the completion of four new loran stations in the far east. the stations were built at mikayo jima, ryuku islands; bataan and cantanduanes islands, philippines; and anguar, palau island in the carolinas chain. 1968 a dc 8 with 107 persons on board disappeared from the radar during final approach to san francisco international airport. visibility was 3/4 mile in fog and the ceiling was 300 feet. a coast guard helicopter located the aircraft in the water 6,100 yards from the runway with people on the wings boarding life rafts. within seven minutes, two additional helicopters and a coast guard boat were on the scene. all 107 persons were saved. 1993 nato began enforcing united nations' resolutions 713 and 757 that set in place an embargo against the former federal republic of yugoslavia (serbia and montenegro). four coast guard ledets were deployed to southern europe to support the operation and were placed aboard nato warships. 2015 cgc waesche returned to its homeport at coast guard island in alameda after a 106 day deployment. waesche departed alameda in august on its 18,000 mile deployment ranging from the coast of southern california to the arctic ocean, and the bering sea. during this deployment, waesche’s crew completed two weeks of weapons system testing and certification, patrolled the arctic in support of operation arctic shield, and enforced federal fisheries laws and safety regulations in the gulf of alaska and bering sea. law enforcement personnel aboard the cutter conducted numerous at sea boardings of fishing vessels to ensure compliance with federal fisheries regulations and conduct spot checks of required safety equipment. the cutter patrolled in the arctic, furthering national strategic goals by enhancing maritime domain awareness and improving preparedness, prevention, and response capabilities in the region. while in the bering sea, waesche assisted in a search and rescue case that resulted in the successful medical evacuation of an ailing fisherman. waesche crewmembers worked closely with the communities of dutch harbor and barrow, alaska while in the area. the crew hosted community leaders from barrow aboard the cutter to discuss the rapidly evolving economic landscape in the arctic and volunteered during their time ashore to complete several community service projects in the community of dutch harbor. november 23 1942 the coast guard women's reserve, known as spars, was organized. 1970 simas i. kudirka, a lithuanian seaman, attempted to defect from his soviet fishing vessel to cgc vigilant. the incident occurred during a meeting near martha's vineyard between the soviets and the u.s. on fishing rights. after consulting with the first district command, the cutter's commanding officer allowed soviet crewmen to board the cutter and forcibly remove kudirka. 2014 while on a routine patrol, a joint interagency taskforce south maritime patrol aircraft crew detected a go fast vessel south of haiti heading north at 15 knots with fuel barrels and possible contraband on board. watchstanders from the coast guard 7th district command center directed hms argyll to intercept and conduct a boarding of the vessel. the go fast began to jettison objects and argyll launched both of its smallboats. shortly after, the go fast vessel with four suspected smugglers aboard became compliant and was boarded by a u.s. coast guard law enforcement team assigned to argyll. the royal navy warship's crew recovered 29 bales of contraband the suspects jettisoned into the water. all bales later tested positive for cocaine. the smuggling vessel was destroyed as a hazard to navigation. in a separate case, the coast guard ledet and crew of argyll teamed to seize 216 kilograms of cocaine after a dutch maritime patrol aircraft detected a suspect go fast and vectored argyll to the vessel's location on november 23, 2014. the go fast vessel was stopped and two suspects were taken into custody. the contraband was offloaded in mayaguez, puerto rico. 2024 the coast guard cutter stratton (wmsl 752) and crew returned to alameda, wednesday, november 23, 2022 following a 97 day, multi mission deployment to the arctic ocean and bering sea. in august, the cutter and crew departed alameda to project u.s. sovereignty throughout u.s. arctic waters, provide search and rescue capabilities in the region, and meet with alaskan communities. stratton repeatedly operated along the length of the u.s. russian maritime boundary line (mbl) from the diomede islands to well above the arctic circle, while they patrolled within the u.s. arctic zone. stratton also patrolled the u.s. canadian mbl in the beaufort sea, demonstrating a presence in the distant regions of the arctic. on september 26, 2024, stratton and the coast guard cutter kimball (wmsl 756) became the first national security cutters to jointly patrol the u.s. russian mbl above the arctic circle. the operational intent was the protection of the sovereign rights of the u.s. and the promotion of international maritime norms through coast guard presence and influence in this increasingly strategic and competitive region. stratton's crew supported multiple search and rescue cases during their patrol, including rescuing two fishermen from a disabled vessel 180 miles off the oregon coast while stratton was transiting to the arctic. the crew towed a 66 foot disabled fishing vessel toward shore and then transferred the vessel and survivors to a coast guard station coos bay 47 foot motor lifeboat crew, approximately 45 miles offshore coos bay, oregon. stratton's crew also coordinated with air station kodiak aircrews and the alaska state troopers to help locate a family stranded on the remote shores of kotzebue bay, alaska, after their boat capsized. stratton and the canadian coast guard ship sir wilfrid laurier crews conducted an arctic search and rescue exercise near point hope, alaska. the crews exercised bilateral coordination to locate a simulated vessel in distress using stratton's scan eagle unmanned aerial system and operations specialists aboard stratton, who directed the canadian small boat crew toward the distressed vessel while watching a live feed from the overhead drone. the canadian small boat located, recovered, and returned the distressed vessel to stratton. while operating near and above the arctic circle, stratton's crew conducted multiple outreach events with community members and key leaders in kaktovik and utqiagvik on alaska's north slope. the crew also visited the village of savoonga on saint lawrence island, alaska. november 24 2015 cgc bertholf returned to its homeport of alameda after completing a 104 day multi mission deployment in which the cutter seized over $455 million worth of illegal narcotics. bertholf was deployed to the eastern pacific ocean in support of joint interagency task force south (jiatf s) operation martillo. during this phase the cutter’s crew boarded and seized 11 smuggling vessels, detained 32 suspected narco traffickers, and prevented more than 30,000 pounds of illegal narcotics from reaching u.s. shores. the cutter’s success on the recent deployment showcases the stamina and flexibility of bertholf’s hard working crew, highlighted by the cutter’s interdiction of a self propelled semi submersible (spss). bertholf’s boarding teams achieved complete surprise in taking control of the stealthy vessel, and spent over two full days onboard the spss ultimately recovering over 15,000 pounds of narcotics. at another point during the deployment, the cutter’s crew pursued nine different go fast vessels on the high seas in less than seven days. the successful interdictions were enabled by the cutter’s interoperability with other coast guard units, as well as assets from the department of defense and other agencies supporting the jiatf s mission. for a portion of the deployment, the cutter traveled to valparaiso, chile in support of unitas 2015, a multinational naval exercise, partnering with naval forces from 11 countries, including the u.s. navy. bertholf ‘s boarding teams conducted joint interdiction operations with chilean and mexican forces, boarding simulated rogue merchant vessels to seize smuggled weapons of mass destruction components as part of an international task force. november 25 1968 m/v triple crown foundered off the coast of southern california with a loss of nine lives while retrieving the anchor and chain of a large offshore drilling rig. the coast guard investigated. 1999 elian gonzalez, a five year old cuban boy, was found on thanksgiving morning clinging to an inner tube three miles off the coast of fort lauderdale, florida. he was among three survivors of a boating accident which killed 11 migrants fleeing cuba. the coast guard searched from islamorada to boca raton, using a hu 25 and a hh 65 from air station miami, a hc 130 from air station clearwater, cgc maui, and a 41 foot utb from station fort lauderdale. the child later gained international notoriety when his father, a cuban citizen, attempted to have him returned to cuba, a desire that elian's relatives in the u.s. fought through the u.s. court system all the way to the supreme court. the court ruled in his father's favor and the child was returned to cuba. november 26 1964 the israeli passenger liner shalom and the norwegian tanker stolt dagali collided off point pleasant, new jersey in a dense fog. nineteen tanker crewmen were killed in the collision which sliced the tanker into two pieces. cgc point arden was the first on scene. five other cutters and "a fleet" of coast guard and navy helicopters soon joined in the rescue and salvage operations, resulting in the rescue of 24 of the tanker's crew. one injured shalom crewman was airlifted by a coast guard helicopter for medical treatment and survived. no one else from the liner was injured. 1968 while en route from apia, western samoa to pago pago, polynesian airlines flight 5wfaa sighted the wreckage of an overturned vessel and reported it to the federal aviation agency flight service at tafuna, american samoa. cgc cape providence, moored at pago pago on search and rescue standby, was notified of the sighting. with an assist from the polynesian airliner, the cutter located the disabled fishing vessel named main sun no.2 and found 17 survivors clinging to the overturned hull. despite the rough seas breaking over the hull, the cape providence rescued 13 of the survivors, while 4 more were retrieved from the water by the fishing vessel chie hong no.20, which had arrived on scene to assist. two members of the 19 man crew, however, had been trapped in the engine room on the capsized vessel and had perished. 1995 coast guardsman michael e. earley rescued a 12 year old boy who had fallen from the astoria megler bridge into the frigid, swiftly flowing waters of the columbia river. petty officer earley was on liberty and driving along the highway towards the bridge when he noticed several people on the bridge waving their arms. when he stopped to offer assistance, he saw a young boy struggling to stay afloat in the strong flooding tide of the river. without hesitation, petty officer earley hurried to the shoreline, tied a rope to his belt, and disregarding his own safety, plunged into the churning 52 degree water and rescued the young boy. he was awarded a gold life saving medal for his heroic action. 1996 a coast guard hc 130 located a grossly overloaded haitian freighter off the coast of haiti. crewmen from the cutters dauntless, chandelier, monhegan, and nantucket helped to transfer the largest group of haitians ever found on a vessel to cgc northland. one haitian died of severe dehydration, the other 581 were repatriated. 1997 two crewmen died when the japanese freighter kuroshima ran aground in a storm near dutch harbor. eighteen other crewmen were rescued by coast guardsmen who used a tow rope to haul a life raft to safety. the coast guardsmen were from cgc midgett that was fortuitously in dutch harbor for a mid patrol break. the freighter was later refloated. 2002 president george w. bush signed into law a bill that created the department of homeland security, the largest reorganization of the federal government in fifty years. the coast guard was one of a number of agencies that transferred to the new department; the transfer was scheduled to go into effect on march 1, 2003. november 27 1883 the schooner maggie w. willard with a crew of five men struck on sea horse rock about two miles west of the crumple island station (first district) on the coast of maine at 1 o’clock in the afternoon. she was discovered by the station crew, who offered assistance. finding the vessel in a very dangerous position and leaking the crew’s effects were saved and they were taken to the station. all efforts to get the vessel off failed. that night the schooner drove over the reef and sunk in deep water, becoming a total loss. november 28 1889 the crew of the evanston, il, life saving station earned the gold lifesaving medal for the rescue of the crew of the steamer calumet. most of the crew consisted of students from northwestern university. 1942 petty officer clifford johnson was on liberty at the coconut grove lounge in boston on the night of november 28, 1942 when the lounge caught fire. over 490 persons perished in what was one of the worst fires in the nation's history. petty officer johnson repeatedly risked his life by entering the fire on four occasions to pull victims from the flames, receiving severe burns over his body. he spent over two years in the hospital recovering from his injuries. 2014 cgc stratton returned to its homeport at coast guard island in alameda, california, after a 140 day deployment to the arctic and central america. since departing in july 2014, stratton’s crew completed a 24,000 mile deployment in support of the nation’s interests in the arctic and joint counter drug operations off the coast of california and central america. during this operational patrol, stratton’s law enforcement crews seized and disrupted 6.6 tons of illegal narcotics valued in excess of $27.5 million. stratton coast guardsmen assisted mariners in four separate search and rescue cases. furthering national strategic goals, the cutter’s crew patrolled the arctic and conducted interoperability tests with new equipment. stratton coast guardsmen worked closely with the communities in isolated locations of point lay, gamble and barrow, alaska. the crew went ashore to schools and civic centers to teach water safety and provide life jackets to community members. november 29 1808 secretary of the treasury albert gallatin requested 12 new cutters at a cost of $120,000 to enforce "laws which prohibit exportation and restrain importations" to support the embargo ordered by president thomas jefferson. president jefferson had ordered an embargo against most european imports and exports to protest the harassment of u.s. sailors by warring european powers. the embargo did not work. the united states went to war with england in 1812 but the revenue marine got the new cutters. 1877 the first annual report of the u.s. lifesaving service was submitted in published form to the secretary of the treasury. 1969 the german freighter nordmeer ran aground on the thunder bay shoal in lake huron. most of her crew safely evacuated to a nearby ship but eight crewmen remained on board to attempt to save their vessel. the weather quickly deteriorated, however, and they radioed for assistance. a coast guard helicopter and the icebreaker mackinaw responded and safely evacuated the eight men while the freighter broke up. 2013 cgc waesche returned from a 109 day deployment in the gulf of alaska, bering sea and arctic ocean to its homeport at coast guard island in alameda, california on november 29, 2013. while on patrol waesche’s crew conducted a broad range of operations including maritime law enforcement, search and rescue, maritime surveillance and community outreach. while underway, the crew was on scene for the opening of the red king crab fishing season to help ensure the safety and security of fishermen conducting operations in the bering sea. the crew also enforced fisheries laws and regulations to ensure sustainable fishing is practiced in the gulf of alaska and bering sea. the crew responded to five search and rescue cases including a removal of 14 mariners from a disabled fishing vessel, alaska mist, some 160 nautical miles northeast of dutch harbor in mid november. in unalaska, alaska, the crew participated in helping with maintenance and upkeep at a high school and several other community relation projects. november 30 1837 two early complainants on the efficiency of the american lighthouses, e. and g.w. blunt, publishers of the famous blunt’s "coast pilot," submitted a statement to the secretary of the treasury. they argued that the whole lighthouse system "needs revision, a strict superintendence and an entirely different plan of operation." 1886 rc rush made the service's first drug seizure at sea, confiscating 350 lbs of opium from ss city of rio de janeiro near the entrance to san francisco bay. only the opium was seized, as no connections to the ship's owners, captain, or officers could be established. [the nautical beginnings of america’s war on drugs, american history, november 17, 2019. https://www.historynet.com/online exclusive the nautical beginnings of americas war on drugs/] 1920 the navy minesweeper uss swan ran aground on duxbury beach, massachusetts. coast guardsmen from three nearby stations rescued the minesweeper's crew with a breeches buoy. cgc androscoggin assisted in the rescue. december 1 1844 captain alexander fraser, head of the revenue marine bureau, reported to congress on the failure of the service's first steam cutters spencer and legare. 1916 second lieutenant russell r. waesche was designated as the first communications officer for the coast guard, an office established at coast guard headquarters. the office was renamed chief, communications division, soon thereafter. 1944 the office of air sea rescue was set up in the coast guard. the secretary of the navy, at the request of the joint chiefs of staff early in 1944, established the air sea rescue agency, an inter department and inter agency body, for study and improvement of rescue work with the commandant of coast guard as its head. december 2 1883 the schooner champion with a crew of two men stranded on dick’s flat, plymouth harbor, near duxbury pier lighthouse, at about 6 am. the shoal where she struck was about three miles west southwest of the gurnet point station (second district), and the crew of the station were not sure she was aground until about 10 o’clock. the life saving crew therefore arrived on board a little before 2 o’clock in the afternoon. they found one of the men, the captain, at the pumps and the other bailing from the hatch. the vessel was leaking badly. the two men on board were wet, cold, and very glad of the assistance of the life saving crew. the keeper, at the captain’s request, took charge. the pumps were manned while another gang went to work bailing. when she began to right with the incoming tide, they shifted the booms over and canted her the other way, so as to bring the leaky seams out of the water to chinse them with oakum and nail canvas over all to stop the leaks. after doing this and getting most of the water out, they carried out an anchor into the channel, set all sail and by heaving hard on the hawser, they brought her on an even keel. she was hauled off the shoal at about 4 o’clock and got safely under way. as the weather looked bad, the captain concluded to remain in port for the night and accordingly anchored. 2012 bmcs terrell horne, iii, cgc halibut's executive petty officer and boarding officer, was killed in action while carrying out law enforcement operations near santa cruz, california. the coast guard posthumously awarded bmcs horne the coast guard medal for his heroism that night. his citation read, in part: "…shortly after midnight, senior chief petty officer horne deployed in halibut's cutter boat with three other crew members to investigate a vessel loitering in the area without navigation lights. upon approaching the unlit vessel and identifying themselves as law enforcement officers, the vessel ignored commands to stop and instead rapidly accelerated directly toward them. the boarding team immediately maneuvered to avoid the oncoming vessel and fired side arms in self defense. when impact with the oncoming vessel became unavoidable, senior chief petty officer horne, disregarding his own safety in order to protect a fellow crewmember, forcibly pushed the coxswain from the helm, directly exposing himself to the oncoming vessel. the violence of the subsequent collision forcibly ejected him from the boat, and despite immediate recovery from the water and application of first aid by his shipmates, he succumbed to the severe injuries received during the incident. senior chief petty officer horne demonstrated remarkable initiative, exceptional fortitude and daring in spite of imminent personal danger. his courage and devotion to duty are in keeping with the highest traditions of the united states coast guard." december 3 1852 the merchant ship georgia grounded in a gale off bonds, new jersey with 290 persons on board. the life car was used to affect their rescue and all survived. 1883 the schooner pallas with a crew of three men encountered strong head winds and heavy seas off cape cod, massachusetts. about half past 5 in the morning, abreast of nausett lights, she sprung a leak and became unmanageable. being close to the breakers, the crew was fearful they would be washed overboard as soon as she struck and took to their boat. fortunately, they were discovered by the nausett station keeper, pulling vigorously to keep away from the surf. the surfboat was launched and the three men rescued. they were brought ashore by the life saving crew, though not without a thorough drenching because the station boat was nearly swamped on the bar. the schooner meanwhile drifted into the surf, three quarters of a mile north of the station and soon broke up. 1982 mso st. louis took charge of the response when the mississippi, missouri, and illinois rivers flooded their banks. in all over 100 coast guardsmen took part in the relief efforts that covered an eight state area. 2001 coast guard forces, including the cutters chandeleur and farallon, as well as aircraft from air station miami and boat crews from station miami beach rescued 185 haitian migrants from the grossly overloaded 31 foot sailboat simapvivsetz off old rhodes key, florida. 2013 cgc polar star departed coast guard base seattle for antarctica in support of operation deep freeze for the first time since 2006 with the task of resupplying the national science foundation scientific research station in mcmurdo, antarctica. during the summer of 2013, polar star conducted sea trials in the arctic to test all of the ship's equipment and train the crew prior to embarking to antarctica. during the summer trip, polar star spent weeks in the beaufort sea north of barrow, alaska, testing propulsion machinery, conducting emergency drills, and qualifying crewmembers in individual watch stations. the cutter was recently out of a three year, $90 million overhaul, part of the coast guard's plan to reactivate the heavy icebreaker. december 4 1989 cgc mesquite ran aground near keweenaw point in lake superior. she was deemed damaged beyond repair and was sunk as an artificial reef. there was no loss of life. december 5 1933 prohibition came to an end on this date when the 21st amendment to the u.s. constitution was ratified. 1963 cg 40597 completed a record run of 450 miles from baltimore, maryland to boston, massachusetts in a running time of 20 hours. the first of two prototype twin screw 40 foot plastic utility boats, cg 40597, was powered by 350 hp cummins vt 6 diesel engines and had a trial speed of 29 knots. endurance at 25 knots was 200 miles. 1968 fn heriberto s. hernandez, a cgc point cypress (wpb 82326) crewman, was killed in action in vietnam. december 6 1917 the french freighter mont blanc, loaded with 5,000 tons of high explosives, collided with the norwegian steamer imo in the harbor of halifax, nova scotia. the resulting fire detonated the munitions, killing 1,635 people and leveling much of halifax and its environs. coast guardsmen from cgc morrill landed to provide assistance. this disaster led to the creation of captains of the ports for the major u.s. ports. the coast guard was tasked with the new duty. 1918 surfman l. e. ashton of station no. 305 in nome, alaska, departed his station with a dog sled and team loaded with medical supplies along with one other surfman on an expedition to assist natives who were suffering from influenza at cape prince of wales, 160 miles from nome and at villages between the two settlements. he arrived at cape prince of wales on 13 december, where he found 122 natives sick and 157 dead of the illness. he converted the schoolhouse into a hospital and the post office into a dispensary and "otherwise perfected an organization by means of which he was able to care for all the sick." he began burying the dead on january 11 and by february 20 when "the epidemic had spent its force" he returned to his station in nome, arriving there on march 1, 1919. 1944 coast guardsmen participated in the landings at ormoc, philippine islands. 1946 the number of coast guardsmen on active duty had been dropped to 22,156 in order to meet budgetary requirements. many lifeboat stations had to be placed in a limited caretaker or inactive status and some vessels tied up because they lacked complements . 1953 coast guard search and rescue facilities at the naval base in bermuda were instrumental in rescuing four survivors and recovering 17 bodies from the cuban aircraft cubana 471, which crashed on take off from the airport at kindley field, bermuda. 1999 cgc munro intercepted the vessel wing fung lung loaded with more than 250 chinese migrants headed for the guatemala/el salvador border. after refusing permission to board, munro tracked the vessel for three days when lookouts spotted flares over the ship. when the munro's small boat approached, panicked migrants began jumping into the water. they were pulled to safety and returned to the wing fun lung while boarding parties finally went aboard the crowded vessel. someone apparently tried to scuttle the vessel and the boarding teams were able to stop the flooding and dewater the engine room. the threat to the munro crewmen on the vessel was made worse because the migrants had not been fed or had water for more than a day. they were at the point of total rebellion, according to the munro's boarding team members. other boarding teams from cgc hamilton then arrived and helped to control the situation. the vessel was finally taken into puerto quetzal, guatemala, where the migrants were taken into custody by ins agents. the master of the vessel was arrested. 2013 cgc mackinaw, loaded with more than 1,200 christmas trees as 2013's “christmas ship,” arrived at navy pier for a two day event re enacting an annual chicago tradition dating from the late 1800s and early 1900s. 2013 coast guard sector sault ste. marie, michigan, commenced operation taconite for the winter season. the annual operation was designed to prevent developing ice from hindering commercial navigation in the ports of duluth, minnesota; superior, wisconsin; and thunder bay, ontario. operation fall retrieve, the annual operation to remove aids to navigation on the great lakes in preparation for the winter icing of the lakes, concluded soon after the start of 2013's operation taconite. coast guard sector detroit prepared to launch operation coal shovel, the annual ice breaking operation in the eastern great lakes region. december 7 1793 the first revenue cutter service court martial occurred on this date aboard the cutter massachusetts. the offender, third mate sylvanus coleman of nantucket, was summarily dismissed from the service for "speaking disrespectfully of his superior officers in public company…insulting captain john foster williams [the commanding officer] on board, and before company…for keeping bad women on board the cutter in boston and setting a bad example to the men by ordering them to bring the women on board at night and carrying them ashore in the morning…" and for writing an order in the name of the commanding officer. 1830 president andrew jackson announced an ambitious plan to add a large number of lighthouses to the federal system, with a total of 51 more lighthouse keepers. in explanation, he supported the practice of offsetting the costs of keeping aids to navigation on the coasts, lakes and harbors "to render the navigation thereof safe and easy" since "whatever gives facility and security to navigation cheapens imports; and all who consume them are alike interested in whatever produces this effect. the consumer in the most inland state derives the same advantage…that he does who lives in a maritime state." 1941 the imperial japanese navy launched a surprise attack on pearl harbor and surrounding army air force airfields in hawaii. stationed in honolulu were the coast guard's 327 foot cutter taney, the 190 foot buoy tender kukui, two 125 foot patrol craft, reliance and tiger, two 78 foot patrol boats, and several smaller craft. at the time of the attack, taney lay at pier six in honolulu harbor, reliance and the unarmed kukui both lay at pier four and tiger was on patrol along the western shore of oahu. all were performing normal duties for a peacetime sunday. after the attack commenced tiger conducted anti submarine sweeps outside of pearl harbor and taney opened fire on japanese aircraft that appeared over honolulu harbor. 1968 cgc white alder sank after colliding with m/v helena near white castle, louisiana. seventeen coast guard personnel were killed. 1973 the first female enlistees were sworn into the regular u.s. coast guard, y1/c wanda may parr and y2c margaret a. blackman, at a ceremony held in yorktown, va. on that date as well cwo alice t. jefferson became the first woman commissioned officer to be sworn into the regular u.s. coast guard. jefferson was sworn in by admiral chester bender, commandant, at a ceremony held at coast guard headquarters. 1988 the coast guard hosted an international summit between soviet president mikhail gorbachev, president ronald reagan, and president elect and then vice president george h. w. bush on governors island. the summit occurred after gorbachev had addressed the united nations. in planning his trip to the un, gorbachev requested a meeting with reagan and the white house selected the coast guard base at governors island as a meeting site since it was a secure military installation in the middle of new york harbor and just minutes away from the united nations. the leaders met for lunch at the lantarea commander's [vadm james irwin] home. the summit was characterized as "just a luncheon" and the meeting was the last time president reagan and gorbachev would meet during reagan's remaining term. 2014 cgc kukui returned from a 46 day law enforcement patrol where they exercised bilateral agreements and enforced fisheries regulations across the pacific. the 50 person crew participated in several significant regional operations to further enhance u.s. and international efforts in the protection of the ecologically and economically valuable fish stocks of the pacific ocean and participated in a number of multi national operations, including operation kuru kuru, which was a multinational operation orchestrated by the pacific islands forum fisheries agency. kukui exercised the tongan bilateral agreement by embarking a tongan ship rider to patrol that nation's eez. kukui crewmembers spent patrol time searching for potential eez incursions by vessels not transmitting their location or status in accordance with applicable fisheries regulations. another leg of their patrol included domestic fisheries boardings in the american samoa eez and high seas boardings under the authorities established by the western central pacific fisheries commission. 2022 cgc oliver henry (wpc 1140) completed a local patrol off guam and the commonwealth of the northern mariana islands from 28 november to 7 december 2022, including the first ever 154 foot fast response cutter port visit to tinian. the objectives of the patrol included: supporting msst honolulu, validating tinian as a port of free call for future uscg ship visits, and conducting community engagements in cnmi. during the patrol, oliver henry's crew assisted msst honolulu's boarding team in conducting law enforcement operations resulting in seven recreational safety boardings, four uninspected passenger vessel boardings, and two commercial passenger vessel boardings. the purpose of these boardings was to ensure the material condition of the vessels, the suitability and compliance of required equipment, and any required credentials. the team issued four warnings for safety infractions. the team went on to conduct interagency law enforcement operations with tinian's department of public safety   boating safety division for two additional recreational safety boardings. the cutter's crew also teamed up with cnmi customs & biosecurity officers and tinian dps   bsd officers for two subject matter expert exchanges to share best practices and learn from each other. while in saipan and tinian, the crew held three community events, including hosting 68 students from the tasi to table non profit organization dedicated to engaging youth on fishing methodologies, boating safety, environmental stewardship, and supporting mental health and the tinian typhoon sports association. december 8 1904 an executive order extended the jurisdiction of the lighthouse service to the noncontiguous territory of the midway islands. 1941 coast guardsmen seized all nine finnish vessels that were in u.s. ports and placed them in "protective custody" to "prevent the commission of any acts of sabotage" on orders from the navy department. twenty four hours later the coast guard removed the crews from each of the vessels. this action was ordered soon after the break in diplomatic relations between great britain and finland. the following finish vessels were seized: ss olivia, at boston, massachusetts; ss kurikka, ss jourtanes, and ss saimaa at new york, new york; ss advance, at philadelphia, pennsylvania; ss aagot and ss marisa thorden at baltimore; ss aurora, at newport news, virginia; and ss delaware, at galveston, texas. 1983 four cutters arrived off of the island of grenada to replace u.s. navy surface forces conducting surveillance operations after the u.s. invaded the island earlier that year. the cutters involved were cape gull, cape fox, cape shoalwater, and the sagebrush. 2004 the 738 foot freighter selendang ayu grounded and broke in two december 8, 2004, offshore of spray cape, unalaska. fighting extremely adverse conditions, helicopter crews from kodiak and the cgc alex haley, working with the crew of haley, rescued all but six of the sailors. ast3 aaron bean earned the meritorious service medal and amt3 gregory gibbons the distinguished flying cross. during the rescue high waves caused the crash of a coast guard hh 60j. december 9 1899 a treasury order entrusted the bureau of navigation "with the duty of examining and disposing of petitions for the remission of fines, penalties, and forfeitures under the laws relating to navigation, vessels, steamboat inspection, and passengers." 1959 at the request of the russian embassy, the crew of a us coast guard uf 1 amphibious aircraft removed an ill russian seaman from the merchant ship jana in the bering sea. the plane, with an interpreter and a doctor aboard, landed in a blinding snow storm at dutch harbor, where the patient was transferred to a hospital. 1981 the icebreaker cgc westwind departed her homeport of milwaukee for the caribbean. she was assigned to relieve a high endurance cutter on a counter drug patrol. 1996 two coast guard hh 60 helicopters with support from an hc 130, all from airsta elizabeth city, rescued the seven crewmembers of the 67 year old schooner alexandria when she went down in a fierce storm 50 miles southwest of cape hatteras. december 10 1905 "to evaluate its use in lighthouse work, radio equipment was installed experimentally on nantucket lightship in august of 1901. on december 10, 1905, while riding out a severe gale, lightship no. 58 on the nantucket shoals station sprang a serious leak. there being no recognized radio distress signal at that time, the operator could only repeatedly spell out the word "help". although no reply was received newport navy station (radio) intercepted the call and passed it on to the proper authorities. the lightship tender azalea was dispatched to the assistance of lightship no. 58, and upon arrival at the scene passed a towline. the long tow to a safe harbor began, but after a few hours it was quite evident that lightship no. 58 was sinking. azalea took off her crew of thirteen men only minutes before she sank. this pioneer use of radio had indeed proved its worth in rescue operations." 1941 germany and italy declared war on the united states. 1981 a coast guard hh 52a landed on cgc dependable's flight deck, marking the 5,000th helicopter landing on board the cutter. according to coast guard aviation records, this was the most helicopter landings ever recorded on board a cutter. the landing occurred off dauphin island in the gulf of mexico. 1993 secretary of transportation andrew h. card, jr., awarded the military members of the coast guard the humanitarian service medal and the civilian employees the coast guard public service commendation for their services during the haitian migrant crisis from october 1991 through november 1992. during that period, a flotilla of over 27 coast guard cutters rescued 35,000 haitian migrants from hundreds of overcrowded and unseaworthy vessels. december 11 1881 six men landed from a boat on race point, cape cod, and were soon after found, wet, chilled, and much exhausted, by the patrolman from station no. 6, second district. he learned that they were the captain and crew of the canadian schooner j .a. hatfield that had been sunk in a collision with an unknown bark the previous night. the patrolman conducted them to the light keeper's dwelling nearby. 2014 cgc mellon returned to seattle following a seven week deployment in the eastern pacific ocean after interdicting nearly 700 pounds of cocaine seized from seagoing drug smugglers. the drugs, recovered during a single bust off the coast of central america, were worth an estimated street value of $18.6 million. three suspects were detained during the operation. the more than 150 person crew of mellon left seattle on october 25 to conduct anti narcotics and search and rescue missions along the coast of mexico and central america. their efforts resulted in six law enforcement boardings and the disruption of an additional 1,900 pounds of cocaine shipments headed for the u.s. just as mellon began its journey homeward on november 24, 2014, the cutter was diverted to lead search and rescue operations in the case of a missing u.s. sailor. the sailing vessel seven sisters was found capsized off the coast of mexico with no crew present after the vessel was reported as overdue to the port of acapulco. over the course of nearly a week, mellon launched its attached mh 65 dolphin helicopter and crew up to four times a day and covered more than 26,000 square miles of ocean while searching for the lost sailor. extra lookout watches were set aboard the cutter in hopes of finding him, but the case was suspended after the search efforts proved unsuccessful. another search and rescue operation involved a few unlikely survivors. about 300 miles off the coast of guatemala, mellon’s crew spotted four sea turtles and a dolphin entangled in more than 100 feet of abandoned fishing line. a small crew launched one of the small boats to rescue the animals and remove the debris from the water. after nearly an hour of cutting the animals free, they were released and appeared to be uninjured. december 12 1876 the first ever examination for revenue cutter cadets was held in washington, d.c. 1965 division 13, coast guard squadron one (ronone) was established for service in vietnam. 1994 cgc munro responded to a mayday from the greek registered 798 foot container ship hyundai seattle approximately 550 nautical miles south of adak, alaska. the freighter reported an engine room fire that left the ship dead in the water. an hh 65 attached to the cutter hoisted 27 crewmen to safety. the freighter was later towed safely into seattle. december 13 1965 the treasury department received "official word" to commence a project to build a number of loran stations throughout southeast asia in support of the escalating u.s. efforts in the vietnam war. the loran project was code named "tight reign." 2014 coast guard search and rescue crews were relieved by republic of korea assets in their search for 26 crewmembers from the fishing vessel 501 oryong that capsized november 30, 2014, near chukotka, russia, in the bering sea. the coast guard completed more than 24 searches covering more than 4,576 square miles utilizing two cutters, two helicopters, and multiple airplanes. coast guard crews will continue to partner with the republic of korea to provide search and rescue planning support. two republic of korea navy p 3 orion aircraft joined the search for survivors on december 6, 2014. the republic of korea vessel sam bong arrived at the 501 oryong's last known position and began their investigation. the coast guard offered to assist the kamchatka border guard directorate and the republic of korea with their search for survivors and deployed the following assets: cgcs munro, alex haley, hc 130s from air station kodiak, and two sar planners from juneau deployed to anchorage to work with south korean navy p 3 aircrews. the republic of korea reported the 501 oryong, with 60 crewmembers, was hauling in its catch when a wave hit and flooded the vessel's storage chambers with seawater. good samaritans rescued eight crewmembers, but one died of complications, 26 bodies were recovered, and 26 crewmembers were reported missing. december 14 1846 revenue captain alexander fraser protested in a report to congress against "unjust imputations" made against the service for its involvement in the failure of the first steam cutters. he also requested the authority to employ medical aid on cutters and to provide pensions for personnel disabled in service. 1854 congress authorized the appointment of the first lifeboat station keepers at $200 per year each and superintendents for long island and new jersey serving under secretary of treasury who "may also establish such stations at such lighthouses, as, in his judgment, he shall deem best." 1911 president william howard taft proclaimed the convention entered into between the united states, great britain, japan, and russia for the preservation of the fur seal and the sea otter. as this treaty prohibited entirely the killing of seals, and sea otters, on the part of the four nations concerned, in the north pacific ocean and bering sea, it was necessary that the movements of the revenue cutter fleet that enforced the agreement "correspond generally" to the progress of the seal herd in its annual northern migration. during the 1912 season the following cutters were assigned: rush, manning, mcculloch and tahoma. this was the first regular patrol in enforcement of the regulations issued pursuant to the international convention proclaimed on december 14, 1911. prior to that date revenue cutter vessels enforced the regulations of the paris tribunal of arbitration decreed august 15, 1893 for the preservation of the fur seal. the patrol of the north pacific ocean and bering sea was first inaugurated in 1895 for the enforcement of the provisions of the act of congress approved april 6, 1894. the cutters rush, bear, corwin, grant, and perry were the first cutters assigned to carry out this patrol which commenced in 1895. 1996 the 735 foot m/v bright field collided with the new orleans riverwalk, causing substantial damage and injuring over 100 people. coast guard forces responded. december 15 1835 the superintendent of the lighthouse system wrote to winslow lewis, "i perceive by a mobile paper which i received this morning that the mobile point light has been fitted by you as a revolving light" similar to the nearby pensacola lighthouse. "i am very sorry that you have done so." lewis was a contractor who   almost by himself a virtually controlled the administration of the lighthouse system. the incident helped cause a congressional investigation that ultimately created a modern lighthouse system in this country. 1839 near gloucester, massachusetts, a storm from the southeast caught and dragged ashore or drove to sea over fifty vessels. an eyewitness wrote: "from one of the beach to the other, nothing could be seen but pieces of broken wrecks; planks and spars...ropes and sails...flour, fish, lumber...soaked and broken..." the local fishermen manned two boats, the custom house boat and the newly launched revenue cutter van buren and "fearlessly risked their lives for the safety of their fellow creatures" and brought many safely to shore. 1943 coast guardsmen participated in the landings made on arawe peninsula, new britain. 1944 coast guardsmen participated in the landings made on mindoro, philippine islands. 1976 the liberian flagged 644 foot tanker argo merchant, with 7.5 million gallons of oil on board, grounded on a shoal 28 miles southeast of nantucket. coast guard helicopters from airsta cape cod rescued her 38 man crew. cgcs sherman and vigilant responded, along with other vessels, but heavy weather prevented the containment of the spill. the tanker broke in two on december 21. december 16 1831 secretary of the treasury john mclane ordered revenue cutters to conduct "winter cruises." the usrc gallatin became the first cutter "directly authorized by the government to assist mariners in distress." 1960 a united airlines dc 8 with 83 passengers on board collided with a twa super constellation carrying 42 in the new york city area. coast guard helicopters, working with the aircraft of the army, navy and new york police department, transported the injured passengers from the constellation's wreck on staten island to a nearby hospital. coast guard vessels also searched the new york harbor area. the debris they picked up was used by the civil aeronautics board in its determination of the cause of the mishap. december 17 1897 the overland expedition, consisting of three officers from the revenue cutter service, departed from the cutter bear off nunivak island to rescue 300 whalers trapped in the ice at point barrow, alaska. the rescuers were first lieutenant d. h. jarvis, second lieutenant e. p. bertholf (later commandant), and surgeon s. j. call. the rescuers had to travel over 1,000 miles overland to reach the whalers. 1903 life saving service personnel from kill devil hills life saving station helped carry materials to the launch site for the first successful heavier than air aircraft flight by the wright brothers at kitty hawk, north carolina and then assisted the brothers in their flights that day. the life savers were john t. daniels, w.s. dough, and a.d. etheridge. 1942 cgc natsek, part of the greenland patrol, disappeared in belle isle strait while on patrol. there were no survivors among her 24 man crew. it was thought that she capsized due to severe icing. 1942 the navy credited cgc ingham with attacking and sinking the submerged u 626 south of greenland. 1951 president harry truman presented the collier trophy to the coast guard, the department of defense and the "helicopter industry" in a joint award, citing "outstanding development and use of rotary winged aircraft for air rescue operations." coast guard commandant vadm merlin o'neill accepted the trophy for the coast guard. 2000 an hh 60 from airsta elizabeth city hoisted 26 survivors from the sinking cruise ship sea breeze i and flew them to safety, a record for a single helicopter rescue. another hh 60 rescued the remaining eight survivors from the cruise ship while an hc 130 also participated in this historic rescue. 2014 president barack obama and cuban president raúl castro announced the beginning of a process of normalizing relations between the two countries. the coast guard announced its statement regarding the cuba policy changes due to this change the following day, december 18, 2014. december 18 1912 the lighthouse service suffered its first gas powered buoy accident when one exploded during maintenance. the explosion killed a machinist, john a. dunbar, who was a member of the crew of the lighthouse tender amaranth. 2014 the coast guard issued the following statement regarding "the coast guard on cuba policy changes" announced by president barack obama on december 17, 2014: "coast guard missions and operations in the southeast remain unchanged. the coast guard strongly discourages attempts to illegally enter the country by taking to the sea. these trips are extremely dangerous. individuals located at sea may be returned to cuba." december 19 1881 while the head keeper and six men of his crew were conducting drills away from their gurnet point, massachusetts, life saving station, the surfman who remained in charge at the station saw a schooner standing inside of brown’s island shoals. he realized that unless the vessel was warned she would go aground. so he rowed out to the schooner in a small boat and piloted her clear. she proved to be the schooner milton and had mistaken the channel entrance to plymouth harbor. 2014 cgc decisive returned to its homeport in pascagoula, mississippi, following a six week patrol in the caribbean sea supporting the joint interagency task force south. during the deployment, the 70 member crew of decisive was primarily responsible for conducting counter drug operations in support of u.s. and international laws. decisive worked directly with federal and international partners at jiatf s and the 7th coast guard district to combat transnational organized crime networks operating in the caribbean basin. decisive's efforts directly contributed to the prevention of more than 4,100 pounds of contraband from reaching american shores. during decisive's 39 day deployment, the cutter's crew also conducted a professional exchange with members of the honduran navy. these interdictions were part of operation martillo, an international operation focused on sharing information and bringing together air, land, and maritime assets from the u.s. department of defense and the department of homeland security, as well as western hemisphere and european partner nation agencies, to counter illicit trafficking. 2015 cgc escanaba returned to its homeport in boston following a successful 52 day deployment in the eastern pacific ocean. during the patrol, escanaba steamed more than 11,200 miles, successfully transited the panama canal for the first time in more than 10 years, and interdicted 1,009 kilograms of cocaine, two vessels, and five narcotic smuggling suspects. escanaba's crew worked in partnership with an mh 65 dolphin helicopter crew from the coast guard's helicopter interdiction tactical squadron, based out of jacksonville, florida, to pursue and conduct boardings of eight vessels in five cases. december 20 1934 coast guard pilot cdr elmer f. stone set the world record for amphibian airplane speed. over a measured three kilometer course at langley field cdr stone attained a maximum speed of 196.89 miles an hour and an average speed of 191.17 while flying a grumman jf 2 "duck" amphibian, besting the previous record set by alexander p. de severesky the previous year. 1943 cgc bodega grounded off the canal zone. no lives were lost. 1991 the united nations adopted general assembly resolutions (ungas) 44 225, 45 197, and 46 215, thereby establishing a worldwide moratorium on all high seas drift net fishing that was to be in effect by december 31, 1992. 2013 cgc alert returned to its homeport of astoria, oregon, following an 81 day deployment. while away alert covered more than 12,000 miles, conducting a counter drug enforcement patrol in the eastern pacific and a rigorous training assessment by the afloat training group in everett, washington. alert's crew conducted law enforcement operations off the coast of central america in early october 2013. an mh 65 dolphin helicopter crew and a fast response boat crew conducted multiple at sea boardings from alert, disrupting more than 4,000 pounds of illegal drug shipments. additionally, alert's crew rescued six ecuadorian fishermen who had spent a week stranded adrift on the open ocean. the crew participated in several community relations events, while taking time to resupply the cutter and provide crew rest. while on a port call in golfito, costa rica, alert's crew competed against costa rican coast guard crewmembers in a soccer tournament. in puerto vallarta, mexico, alert's crew helped complete a restoration and painting project for a local park. after two months of conducting maritime law enforcement and search and rescue operations, alert traveled to everett to complete three weeks of required training. every 18 months, coast guard cutters undergo tailored ships training availability to ensure crew proficiency and readiness. experienced coast guard and navy inspectors evaluated alert's ability to respond to situations involving weapons proficiency, seamanship, navigation, damage control, emergency medical treatment, and engineering casualty response. alert successfully completed 118 drills and exercises with an impressive overall score of 96 percent, earning the coveted "battle e" award for operational excellence in all mission areas. as per tradition, alert flew a broom from its port yardarm, signifying a "clean sweep" of certification in all mission areas. december 21 1907 the commandant, captain worth g. ross, usrcs, by letter, advised the chamber of commerce of baltimore, boston and philadelphia, the new york maritime exchange and the navy's chief bureau of equipment that wireless telegraph sets had been installed on the following revenue cutters operating on the atlantic coast and would use the following call letters: usrc algonquin: rca; usrc gresham: rcg; usrc mohawk: rcm; usrc onondaga: rco; & usrc seminole: rcs. 1936 executive order no. 7521 authorized ice breaking operations by the coast guard. 1960 the tanker pine ridge, with 37 crewmen on board, reported it was breaking in two about 120 miles off cape hatteras, north carolina. immediately, the coast guard dispatched aircraft and vessels to the scene and alerted nearby us navy and merchant vessels. after the arrival of a coast guard uf 2g amphibian aircraft, the bow section of the pine ridge capsized, throwing some members of the crew overboard; the stern section, however, remained afloat and upright. mountainous seas rebuffed every attempt of the tanker artemis to rescue the seamen in the water. life rafts and emergency equipment, meanwhile, were airdropped, and the helicopters from the aircraft carrier valley forge successfully removed the 28 survivors from the still floating stern section. of the bow section and the 9 missing crewmen, only debris and lifejackets were found, despite a widespread air and surface search. 1971 the last two cutters of coast guard squadron three (ronthree) in service in vietnamese waters during the war, cgc cook inlet (whec 384) and cgc castle rock (whec 383) were decommissioned and transferred to the south vietnamese navy. december 22 1819 the revenue cutter dallas seized a vessel laden with lumber that had been unlawfully cut from public land in what was one of the first, if not the very first, recorded instances of a revenue cutter enforcing an environmental law. 1837 congress authorized president "to cause any suitable number of public vessels, adapted to the purpose, to cruise upon the coast, in the severe portion of the season, and to afford aid to distressed navigators." this was the first statute authorizing activities in the field of maritime safety, thus interjecting the national government into the field of lifesaving for the first time. although revenue cutters were specifically mentioned, the performance of this duty was imposed primarily upon the revenue marine service and quickly became one of its major activities. december 23 1904 near oak island and fire island, new york the american schooner frank w. mccullough ran aground on fire island bar, 2 miles from the former station and 4 from the latter, at about 9 am. the oak island crew reached the vessel at 10:30 am and the fire island crew a half hour later. they found her pounding heavily and leaking badly. they manned the pumps and assisted the crew in throwing overboard the cargo of lumber; but on the flood tide the sea began to break over the wreck and they were obliged to give up for fear of being washed overboard. the fire island surfboat filled in the seaway and foundered. at midnight the sea moderated and all hands, 14 surfmen and 5 of schooner crew, abandoned the wreck in the oak island surfboat and at 2 a.m. reached the shore. the vessel was lost. 2014 cgc legare returned to its homeport of portsmouth, virginia following a 52 day patrol through the caribbean and into the eastern pacific ocean. during their patrol, legare's crew transited through the panama canal and coordinated with multiple countries in central and south america, along with partner agencies to stem the flow of illegal drugs into the united states. the unified effort resulted in the interdiction of multiple suspected drug smugglers and vessels transporting approximately 1200 kilograms, or approximately 2,645 pounds of cocaine, worth an estimated estimated street value of $40 million. december 24 1955 a coast guard helicopter was the first rescue unit to reach a flood disaster scene in yuba, california. its crew hoisted 138 persons to safety within 12 hours. the first 58 were made possible because of the light from a small handheld searchlight from positions of peril among chimneys, television antennas, and trees. in all, the coast guard assisted federal, state, and local agencies in saving over 500 persons by helicopters and boats. december 25 1944 allied forces liberated and occupied palompon and leyte in the philippines. 1998 coast guard helicopters from air station barbers point rescued balloonists richard branson, a british billionaire, american millionaire steve fossett, and per lindstrand when bad weather forced them to ditch their balloon off hawaii during their attempt to be the first balloonists to circle the globe. december 26 1943 landings at cape gloucester were conducted by coast guard manned lsts 18, 22, 66, 67, 68, 168, 202, 204, and 206. the lst 22 shot down a japanese "val" dive bomber while lst 66 was officially credited with downing three enemy aircraft. two of her crew were killed by near misses. lst 67 brought down one japanese dive bomber while lst 204 shot down two and the gunners aboard lst 68 claimed another. the lst 202 claimed three enemy planes shot down. 2004 following a 9.0 magnitude earthquake off the coast of sumatra, a massive tsunami and tremors struck indonesia and southern thailand, killing over 104,000 people in indonesia and over 5,000 in thailand. cgc munro, deployed as part of expeditionary strike group 5 (esg 5), along with the other units in the group, responded. the cutter shuttled more than 80 tons of humanitarian relief supplies from singapore to uss bonhomme richard (lhd 6), also part of esg 5, for distribution to the victims of the tsunami. december 27 1968 the united states air force requested additional loran c coverage in southeast asia and by december 27, 1968 the coast guard had received authorization to proceed with the project. this led to the construction a loran station at tan my, south vietnam, that supplemented the other loran stations in southeast asia first established in 1966 under an operation code named tight reign. 1977 the coast guard awarded tacoma boat building company, inc., of tacoma, washington, a $110,207,245 contract for the detail design and construction of four 270 foot medium endurance cutters. 2012 watchstanders at coast guard sector anchorage first received contact from the crew of the tug aiviq, which was towing modu kulluk, a royal dutch shell company ice strengthened oil drilling barge, back to its winter port of seattle. in extremely heavy seas, the tow line parted and aiviq requested coast guard assistance. cgc alex haley was diverted from its patrol and, after aiviq experienced total engine failure, attempted to take both the rig and aiviq under tow. the line parted and fouled haley’s port propeller, forcing the cutter to return to kodiak for repairs. cgcs hickory and spar were dispatched to provide further assistance while royal dutch shell sent three additional tugs to the scene. coast guard aircraft rescued the rig’s 18 man crew safely on december 29 and delivered spare engine parts to aiviq. despite these efforts kulluk went aground at oceans bay, alaska, on december 31, 2012. the rig was later refloated and towed to unalaska. no injuries or pollution incidents were reported and ultimately kulluk was scrapped. december 28 1835 the "dade battle" occurred when seminole indians ambushed and killed major francis langhorne dade and his army command while they were on the march on fort king road from fort brooke to reinforce the troops at fort king (ocala). this battle was the immediate cause of the second seminole war, a war in which the revenue cutter service played an important role. 1857 the light was first illuminated in the cape flattery lighthouse, located on tatoosh island at the entrance to the straits of juan de fuca, washington. "because of indian trouble it was necessary to build a blockhouse on tatoosh island before even commencing the construction of the lighthouse. twenty muskets were stored in the blockhouse, and then the lighthouse work began." 1903 an executive order extended the jurisdiction of the lighthouse service to the non contiguous territory of the hawaiian islands. 2014 cgc tahoma returned safely to its homeport of kittery, maine after a 55 day patrol conducting operations and training in the gulf of maine and georges bank. tahoma's law enforcement teams conducted boardings of commercial fishing vessels to inspect safety gear and enforce marine resource management to ensure sustainable fisheries in the north atlantic. on december 1, 2014 tahoma's crew assisted the disabled f/v madison kate following an engine casualty. tahoma's crew put the vessel in tow and safety and transferred it to a coast guard station brant point motor life boat. december 29 1897 congress prohibited the killing of fur seals in the waters of the north pacific ocean. the revenue cutter service was tasked with enforcing the law. 1903 an executive order extended the jurisdiction of the lighthouse service to guantanamo, cuba. 1998 the 578 foot cargo vessel violetta caught fire in the houston ship channel. twenty three of her crew were rescued. cgc point spencer spent several days fighting the fire on board the vessel. december 30 1876 the british ship circassian was destroyed off bridgehampton, long island, following a successful rescue of 49 persons on december 11 by the life saving service. during later salvage operations in a storm the ship drifted out of the sand, resulting in the loss of 28 of its salvage crew including 12 shinnecock indians. 1944 coast guard manned uss fs 367 rescued survivors from uss maripopsa at san jose, mindoro, philippine islands. 1958 the 590 foot tanker african queen ran aground and split in two 10 miles off ocean city, maryland. within two hours 15 helicopters from the nearby coast guard, navy and marine corps bases evacuated all 47 crewmen successfully. the coast guard rescue coordination center at new york coordinated the operations. 1997 the 493 foot freighter merchant patriot began taking on water in stormy seas. coast guard air assets from airsta clearwater arrived on scene and, along with air force units, rescued the ship's captain and her 27 crewmen. the vessel, however, remained afloat and was later towed to freeport, bahamas. december 31 1881 at 4 a.m. the patrolman from station no. 34, fourth district, new jersey, discovered a vessel ashore on the south bar at townsend’s inlet, nj about three miles south of the station and a mile offshore. he reported at the station at once and the vessel was boarded by the life saving crew within an hour and a half. she proved to be the schooner joseph f. baker with a crew of eight persons. after endeavoring to work the vessel off with her sails, the keeper made preparations to run an anchor and heave her off. by this time a wrecking vessel came alongside, and her captain arranged with the master of baker to take his vessel off. the life saving crew, which had meantime been joined by the keepers of station 33 and 35, finding they could be of no further service, left the vessel, taking ashore dispatches for the captain. a steamer towed the vessel off the bar 1952 sinbad, the canine mascot of the cutter campbell during world war ii, passed away at his last duty station, the barnegat lifeboat station, at the ripe old age of 15. he served on board the cutter throughout world war ii and earned his way into coast guard legend with his shipboard and liberty antics. to date, he is the most decorated mascot to have ever served in the coast guard. 1980 the 14 remaining loran a stations closed down at midnight, ending loran a coverage, which began during world war ii. 1985 vice president george bush paid an official visit to the officers and crew of cgc steadfast while the cutter was in nassau, bahamas. accompanied by radm richard p. cueroni, commander, 7th district and various other u.s. and bahamian officials, the vice president officiated at an awards and wreath laying ceremony in honor of the national narcotics border interdiction system and the joint u.s. bahamian operations. 2014 watchstanders at the coast guard sector honolulu command center received notification the morning of december 31, 2014 that the tour boat, mahana nai’a with 55 people on board was taking on water in the engine room near kihei. a response boat medium crew from coast guard station maui was diverted to the scene where once on scene, two crewmembers from the rbm went aboard the mahana nai'a with a p6 pump and a damage control kit and successfully dewatered the port engine room. the rbm then safely towed the mahana nai'a to pier 47 at maalaea bay.
supported by in times past the pine and oak desk of henry jarvis raymond, who founded the times in 1851, has enjoyed pride of place in the newspaper’s headquarters for at least a century. by david w. dunlap in the in times past column, david w. dunlap explores new york times history through artifacts housed in the museum of the times, for which he is curator. introducing the first new york daily times on sept. 18, 1851, henry jarvis raymond (1820 1869) promised readers that his newspaper would be issued every morning “for an indefinite number of years to come.” it’s been 172, so far. (the “daily” was dropped in 1857 and the hyphen in 1896.) raymond may well have written those words on a colonial revival style desk of stained oak and pine that has enjoyed pride of place in the times’s headquarters for at least a century. the “raymond desk” is housed in the museum at the times. until last week, however, i knew little about the piece other than its connection to raymond, who was the founding editor of the times and a founder of the republican party. as the newspaper’s birthday neared, i invited catherine futter, the director of curatorial affairs and senior curator of decorative arts at the brooklyn museum, to pay a house call and fill me in about the desk. “antiques roadshow,” it was not. “it’s a simple, functional object with great stability,” dr. futter said. “it’s an early file cabinet.” she noted that the desk was highly compartmented, with seven drawers and two cupboards   perfect for separating times business from republican party business. “being that the desk has no great stylistic qualities, i would think that this was raymond’s office desk,” dr. futter wrote in a follow up email. “the wear and tear leads me to believe that he and others treated it like office furniture   not a precious object. i think he might have had a fancier desk at home   maybe more stylistic flourishes and finer, more expensive woods.” what most delighted dr. futter was the discovery, under the hinged cornice spanning the cupboards, of six secret pigeonholes. closer inspection revealed that they were once divided into 12 pigeonholes by partitions that must have been removed long ago. she also liked the smell of the desk, the result of oxidation in the pine planks behind the fancier oak facade. what frustrated dr. futter was the absence of any label indicating provenance.