me all about it. She had stopped a year at
Philadelphy. Den she heard ob de underground railway, and was tole dat
a clergyman, who war just going down south to work a station, wanted
a black nurse for his children, who would help in de work. Sally she
volunteer, and dar she had been libing eber since, hoping all de
time eider dat I should pass through dere or dat she should hear from
Philadelphy dat I had got dere. She used to act as de guide ob de
runaways to de next station, and ebery man who came along she asked
if they knew me; but, law bless you, sar, de poor woman knew nufing ob
places, or she would hab known dat she war hundreds ob miles south of
Virginia, and though she allowed she had heard I had gone to Missouri,
she s'posed dat de way from der might be by de sea coast. I hab
observed, sar, dat de gography ob women am bery defective.

"I stopped thar till I was cured. The clergyman knew someting of
surgery, and he managed to substract the ball from my hip. When I war
quite well Sally and me started for the norf, whar we had helped so many
oders to go, and, bress de Lord, we arribed dere safe. Den I told Sally
dat I should like to libe under de British flag, so we went up to Canada
and dere we libed bery comfortable for ten years together. Sally washed
and I kep' a barber's shop, and we made plenty ob money. Den she die,
sar, de tought come into my mind dat I would come back to Africa and
teach dose poor niggers here de ways ob de white men, and sar," and he
pointed to a Bible standing on the chest, "de ways ob de Lord. So I came
across the Atlantic, and stopped a little while on de coast, for I had
pretty nigh forgotten de language ob de country. When I got it back
again I started up for dis place, wid plenty ob goods and presents.

"I had hard work at fust to get de people to know me. It war nigh forty
year since I had gone away, but at last some ob de ole people remember
me, dat I was de son ob de chief. As I had plenty goods, and dey did not
like de man dat was here, dey made me chief in my fader's place. I told
dem dat I no accept de place unless dey promise to behave bery well, to
mind what I said to dem, and to listen to my words; but dat if they do
dat I gibe dem plenty goods, I make dem comfortable and happy, and I
teach dem de way ob de Lord. Dey agree to all dis.

"I find de slave trade now all at an end, and dat de people not fight
often now. Still, de twenty muskets dat I bring make de people of o