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  THE

  LIFE OF JOSIAH HENSON,

  FORMERLY A SLAVE,

  NOW AN INHABITANT OF CANADA,

  AS

  NARRATED BY HIMSELF.


  BOSTON:

  ARTHUR D. PHELPS.

  1849.




  Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1849, by

  ARTHUR D. PHELPS,

  in the office of the Clerk of the District Court
  of the District of Massachusetts


  CAMBRIDGE:

  PRINTED BY BOLLES AND HOUGHTON.




ADVERTISEMENT.


The following memoir was written from the dictation of JOSIAH HENSON.
A portion of the story was told, which, when written, was read to him,
that any errors of statement might be corrected. The substance of it,
therefore, the facts, the reflections, and very often the words, are
his; and little more than the structure of the sentences belongs to
another.

The narrative, in this form, necessarily loses the attraction derived
from the earnest manner, the natural eloquence of a man who tells a
story in which he is deeply interested; but it is hoped that enough
remains to repay perusal, and that the character of the man, and the
striking nature of the events of his life will be thought to justify
the endeavor to make them more extensively known. The story has this
advantage, that it is not fiction, but fact; and it will be found
fruitful in instruction by those who attentively consider its lessons.




LIFE OF JOSIAH HENSON.


I was born, June 15, 1789, in Charles County, Maryland, on a farm
belonging to Mr. Francis N., about a mile from Port Tobacco. My mother
was the property of Dr. Jos