Page:The White Slave, or Memoirs of a Fugitive.djvu/93

 to myself, which will serve, at once, as a curious illustration of Virginian manners, and a proof of what I believe, will be found to be true all the world over, — that where the law: aim at the oppression of one half the people of a country, they are seldom treated with much respect by the other half

Captain Robinson was one of major Thornton's nearest neighbors, and a person with whom he had frequent alter-

cations. I was passing along on the public road one Sunday, at a little distance from Oakland, when I met captain Robinson on horseback, followed by a servant. He bade me stop, and inquired if I was the fellow whom that "damned scoundrel Thornton" sent to his house yesterday with an insolent message about his lower-field fences. I answered, that I had been sent yesterday with a message about the fence, which I had delivered to his overseer.

"A mighty pretty message it was, mighty! I'll tell you what, boy, if my overseer had known his business, he would have tucked you up on the spot and given you forty lashes."

I told him that I had only delivered the message which my master had sent me with, and it seemed hard to blame me for that.

"Don't talk to me, don't talk to me, you infernal scoundrel — I'll teach both you and your master what it is to insult a gentleman. Lay hold of him Tom, while I dust that new jacket of his a little."

Having received these orders from his master, captain Robinson's man Tom, jumped off his horse and laid hold of me; but as I struggled hard and was the stronger of the two, I should soon have got away, if the master had not dismounted and come to the aid of his servant. Both together, they were too strong for me; and having succeeded in getting me down, they stripped off my coat, and bound my hands. Captain Robinson then mounted his horse, and beat me with his whip, till it was quite worn out. Having thus satisfied his rage, he rode off followed by Tom, without taking the trouble to loose my hands. They had no sooner left me, than I began to look about for my hat and coat. Both were missing; — and whether it was the captain or his servant that carried them off, I never could