rtunity.
I did not then tell my mistress about it; for I knew that she would not
give me leave to go. But I felt I _must_ go. Whenever I carried the
children their lunch at school, I ran round and went to hear the teachers.

The Moravian ladies (Mrs. Richter, Mrs. Olufsen, and Mrs. Sauter) taught
me to read in the class; and I got on very fast. In this class there were
all sorts of people, old and young, grey headed folks and children; but
most of them were free people. After we had done spelling, we tried to
read in the Bible. After the reading was over, the missionary gave out a
hymn for us to sing. I dearly loved to go to the church, it was so solemn.
I never knew rightly that I had much sin till I went there. When I found
out that I was a great sinner, I was very sorely grieved, and very much
frightened. I used to pray God to pardon my sins for Christ's sake, and
forgive me for every thing I had done amiss; and when I went home to my
work, I always thought about what I had heard from the missionaries, and
wished to be good that I might go to heaven. After a while I was admitted
a candidate for the holy Communion.--I had been baptized long before this,
in August 1817, by the Rev. Mr. Curtin, of the English Church, after I had
been taught to repeat the Creed and the Lord's Prayer. I wished at that
time to attend a Sunday School taught by Mr. Curtin, but he would not
receive me without a written note from my master, granting his permission.
I did not ask my owner's permission, from the belief that it would be
refused; so that I got no farther instruction at that time from the
English Church.[12]

[Footnote 12: She possesses a copy of Mrs. Trimmer's "Charity School
Spelling Book," presented to her by the Rev. Mr. Curtin, and dated August
30, 1817. In this book her name is written "Mary, Princess of Wales"--an
appellation which, she says, was given her by her owners. It is a common
practice with the colonists to give ridiculous names of this description
to their slaves; being, in fact, one of the numberless modes of expressing
the habitual contempt with which they regard the negro race.--In printing
this narrative we have retained Mary's paternal name of Prince.--_Ed._]

Some time after I began to attend the Moravian Church, I met with Daniel
James, afterwards my dear husband. He was a carpenter and cooper to his
trade; an honest, hard-working, decent black man, and a widower. He had
purchased his freedom of his mistres