ed before my professedly
_Christian_ master, humbly to invoke the interposition of his power and
authority, to protect me from further abuse and violence. I had begun to
hope, during the latter part of my tedious journey toward St. Michael's,
that Capt. Auld would now show himself in a nobler light than I had ever
before seen him. I was disappointed. I had jumped from a sinking ship
into the sea; I had fled from the tiger to something worse. I told him
all the circumstances, as well as I could; how I was endeavoring to
please Covey; how hard I was at work in the present instance; how
unwilling I sunk down under the heat, toil and pain; the brutal manner
in which Covey had kicked me in the side; the gash cut in my head; my
hesitation about troubling him (Capt. Auld) with complaints; but, that
now I felt it would not be best longer to conceal from him the outrages
committed on me from time to time by Covey. At first, master Thomas
seemed somewhat affected by the story of my wrongs, but he soon
repressed his feelings and became cold as iron. It was impossible--as I
stood before him at the first--for him to seem indifferent. I distinctly
saw his human nature asserting its conviction against the slave system,
which made cases like mine _possible;_ but, as I have said, humanity
fell before the systematic tyranny of slavery. He first walked{178} the
floor, apparently much agitated by my story, and the sad spectacle
I presented; but, presently, it was _his_ turn to talk. He began
moderately, by finding excuses for Covey, and ending with a full
justification of him, and a passionate condemnation of me. "He had no
doubt I deserved the flogging. He did not believe I was sick; I was only
endeavoring to get rid of work. My dizziness was laziness, and Covey did
right to flog me, as he had done." After thus fairly annihilating me,
and rousing himself by his own eloquence, he fiercely demanded what I
wished _him_ to do in the case!

With such a complete knock-down to all my hopes, as he had given me, and
feeling, as I did, my entire subjection to his power, I had very little
heart to reply. I must not affirm my innocence of the allegations which
he had piled up against me; for that would be impudence, and would
probably call down fresh violence as well as wrath upon me. The guilt
of a slave is always, and everywhere, presumed; and the innocence of the
slaveholder or the slave employer, is always asserted. The word of the
slave, against