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Show 182 ROE DUCK. lowb~nk. De ole \VOnlan d~r h:1.s got piles of 1noney nn<.l Rilvcr things. Yon know dat, Ilanuibal.'' ' Y cs; bnt ,'he keeps 'en1 locked up in a chis in her own roon1, and she sleeps up , tairs \Vi<l 'eu1 since de "\V:lr." " \V ell," snicl l\Iikc, "\Vc'll git ' into her room anc1 break open the chis." " But you Inn tn't hurt missus," cried Ilannibal. "No ; _she shan't be hurt." "\V e'llrob de chi8, but yon mustn't hurt n1issus." "N o'v 1nind Ine, J akc, you bring Cato and meet me nt de Poplar Spring to-nlOlTO"\V, jis 'vhen it gits clark. Ilannibal, you go to \Villowbank, and git insi<.le to open de door. \Ve'll be dar at 'lcven o'clock. No,v, n1ind Inc, l'n1 ]Hoses." "A gho~e-a ghose"-shoutcd Cato, nnd took to ~J~~~~~~...,) his heels. Jake and IIa.nnibal ran out of the barn, and being al o frightened at a ghost or a 1nan, followed the sentinel. J\Iike, "Tho had given then1 their order,"', and thus accotnplished all that he designed, did not attmnpt to dct~in thetn, though he stood his ground. Presently blind Pete advanced fro1n the ·wood, and a Jong con. nltation took place between him and 1\fike, of \vbich it is nccc sary to record only that Pete agreed to be at a certain grove ncar the nutnsion of \Villowbank, with his cart, on the next evening, in con idcration that he should receive a certain share of the spoils ; that he \V~s to take 'vith hi1n three 1)istols and son1c saJdle \Vhich the neo-rocs ' b 'vcre to usc in tuonnting thcn1. elves on stolen horses; that he \vn.· to be accotnpanied by two 1ncn, \vho had agreed \Yith 1\ltkc to run a\vay, and that the spoil 'vas to be carried to a convenient Rpot for division, and the plato reduced to a suitable form for transportation by the fugitives. ROEBUCK . 183 CIIAPTER XVII. INSURRECTION. TnE next morning-it \Vas Sunday-when Colonel Fairfax ·walked out upon the lawn in fi·ont of his } 1ousc, he sa'v a large nnn1bcr of his slaves collected in clusters about the ground::;, and discovered at once that there 'vas agitation among them. Presently Joe ad vanccd as their spokcs1nan, and infonned his rna. tor that the servants 'vcrc in great alann on account of ru1uors which they under tood 'verc afloat. The rnrnors \vere that the negroes \Yerc plotting in urrcction, and that sotne of the "\vhiLe 1nen had organized then'l elves as a conunitLcc of vigilance, to snppre. s the conspiracy. '!"'hey feared the violence of these men, acting, as they believccl, under a gr~undle s l)nnic. The Colonel " ' US aware that such pan1cs were usually attended ,vith danger ~o the ncgroe~. Th; greatest excitmnent was apt to 1nflame the nu~ds o those \vho o\vne<l icw or no slaves. Owners of many slave" livincr an1ong th01n, couhl easily bring all rn- Inors o' f serv'=i' le conunoi1• on to t 1t e tc t o f act ual ob er-vation and besides, they felt bound by intcrc ·t anl~ duty t'o pro' tect thou· · servant "::':; agm· ns t tl1e effects of m. caut1. ons su .,pt.c 1. on. OLl 101· s ,., ., , ]10 }1un d not the s:un. e opportuuity of knowleclgc, nor the san1c respo~ .· t- Lility allo\vccl thm. r 1- 1nag·w at w' ns t o be stnifutl w. 1,L h uns.lf. t' c<lreports and horn·e l a 1a u. ns. Colonel Ft:uriax had already hcar<l some of the rutnors w hie~ "\vcrc lU circulation and after listening to Joe, he S~1ld- ' |