. There is an octavo volume,
published in the United States, giving a whole statement of the affair;
it was not until the year 1833 that it was exposed, and Murel sent to
the Penitentiary. Murel was at the head of a large band, who had joined
under his directions, for the purposes of stealing horses and negroes in
the southern States, and of passing counterfeit money. He appears to
have been a most dexterous as well as consummate villain. When he
travelled, his usual disguise was that of an itinerant preacher; and it
is said that his discourses were very "soul moving"--interesting the
hearers so much that they forgot to look after their horses, which were
carried away by his confederates while he was preaching. But the
stealing of horses in one State, and selling them in another, was but a
small portion of their business; the most lucrative was the enticing
slaves to run away from their masters, that they might sell them in some
other quarter. This was arranged as follows; they would tell a negro
that if he would run away from his master, and allow them to sell him,
he should receive a portion of the money paid for him, and that upon his
return to them a second time they would send him to a free State, where
he would be safe. The poor wretches complied with this request, hoping
to obtain money and freedom; they would be sold to another master, and
run away again to their employers; sometimes they would be sold in this
manner three or four times until they had realised three or four
thousand dollars by them; but as, after this, there was fear of
detection, the usual custom was to get rid of the only witness that
could be produced against them, which was the negro himself, by
murdering him, and throwing his body into the Mississippi. Even if it
was established that they had stolen a negro before he was murdered,
they were always prepared to evade punishment, for they concealed the
negro who had run away until he was advertised, and a reward offered to
any man who would catch him. An advertisement of this kind warrants the
person to take the property, if found, and then the negro becomes a
property in trust. When, therefore, they sold the negro, it only became
a breach of trust, not stealing; and for a breach of trust, the owner of
the property can only have redress by a civil action, which was useless,
as the damages were never paid. It may be inquired, how it was that
Murel escaped Lynch law under such circumsta