ern religion to make men wiser or better; but I saw in him all the
cruelty and meanness, _after_ 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." 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) but, as in the case of Master{157} 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,
_why_ 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