Petersburg

Several slave pens and prisons were constantly kept up to accommodate the trade, and slave auctions were as common in Richmond as dress goods auctions in Philadelphia.

Notwithstanding this fact, strange as it may seem, the Underground Railroad brought away large numbers of passengers from Richmond, Petersburg, and Norfolk, and not a few of them lived comparatively within a hair's breadth of the auction block.

Many of those from these localities were amongst the most intelligent and respectable slaves in the South, and except at times when disheartened by some grave disaster which had befallen the road, as for instance when some friendly captain or conductor was discovered in aiding fugitives, many of the thinking bondmen were daily maneuvering and watching for opportunities to escape or aid their friends so to do.

This state of things, of course, made the naturally hot blood of Virginians fairly boil.

John is a likely young man, quite bright in color and intellect also.

He was the son of Peter Cards, a dentist by profession, and a white man by complexion.

As a general thing, he had been used very well, had no fault to find except this year being hired to McHenry and McCullough, tobacconists of Petersburg, Virginia, whom he found rather more oppressive than he agreed for, and supposing that he had no right to work for anybody for nothing, he picked up his bed and walked.

His mistress had told him that he was willed free at her death, but John was not willing to wait her motions to die.

His mother was kept in ignorance of the transaction, but her suspicions were aroused.

When her son started for Petersburg in the wagon, the truth began to dawn upon her mind, and she pleaded piteously that her boy should not be taken from her.

But Master quieted her by telling her that he was simply going to town with the wagon and would be back in the morning.

Morning came, but Little Joe did not return to his mother.

If not, I certainly should have heard from some of you since you left Boynton, if it was only a line.

Nevertheless, I love you all very dearly, and shall, although I may never see you again, nor do I ever expect to.

Miss Anna is going to Petersburg next winter, but she says that she does not intend to take me.

What reason she has for leaving me, I cannot tell.

The original draft of the Proclamation of Emancipation was purchased by Thomas B. Bryan of Chicago for the Sanitary Commission for the Army, held at Chicago in the autumn of 1863.

As it occurred to the writer that official duplicates of such an important document should exist, he suggested the idea to Mr. George H. Boker, subsequently United States Minister to Constantinople and to St. Petersburg.

at whose request the President signed a number of copies, some of which were sold for the benefit of the sanitary fairs held in Philadelphia and Boston in 1864, while others were presented to public institutions.

One of these, bearing the signatures of President Lincoln and Mr. Seward, with the attesting signature of John Nicolay, private secretary to the President, may be seen hanging in the George III Library in the British Museum.

End of chapter 10 Chapter 11 of Abraham Lincoln and the Abolition of Slavery in the United States This is a LibriVox recording.

All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain.

For more information, or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox.org Recording by Dion Gines, Salt Lake City, Utah Abraham Lincoln and the Abolition of Slavery in the United States By Charles Godfrey Leland Chapter 11 Proclamation of Amnesty Lincoln's Benevolence His Self-Reliance Progress of the Campaign The Summer of 1864 Lincoln's Speech at Philadelphia Suffering in the South Raids Sherman's March Grant's Position Battle of the Wilderness Siege of Petersburg Chambersburg Naval Victories Confederate Intrigues Presidential Election Lincoln Re-elected Atrocious Attempts of the Confederates The American political year begins with the meeting of Congress, which in 1863 assembled on Monday, December 7th.

On the 9th, President Lincoln sent to both houses a message in which he set forth the principal events of the year as regarded the interests of the American people.