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Show , 160 Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl. XIX. TIIE CIIJLDREN SOLD. TnE doctor carne back fro1n N c'v York, of course without accomplishing hi purpo c. lie had expended considcralJlc n1oncy, and \Vas rather <li shcartcncd. ~fy brother and the children bad no\v been in jail two 1nonth ,, and that al ·o \ras so1nc expense. ~Iy friends thought it \V~t.' a faYoraLlc tin1c to \\rork on his discouraged fcclin<r.. ~Ir. ~ands sent a speculator to offer hin1 nine hundred dollars for n1y brother \Villianl and eio·ht hundred for the Lwo chihlren. These ' b \vcre high prices, as .:laYes were then selling; hut tho offer \vas rejected. If it had been n1orely a que tion of n1oncy, the doctor ·would haYe ·old any boy of Benny' ao·e for two hundred clollan;; 1Jut he could not bear to g ive up tho power of rcveno·o. But he was hard pre~sed for 1noney, and he r cYolved Lhc 1ua.Ucr in hi · 1nind. lie knew that if he could keep Ellen till she was fifteen, he could sell her for a high price; but I pre un10 he reflected that she 1night die, or 1night Le stolen a\vay. .At all events, he can1e to the conclusion that he had better accept the -laYe-trauer's offer. n(ceting hilU in the street, be i11qnired wh ll be ·would. leave town. " rro-day' at ten o'clock," he replied. "Ah, do you go so ·oon ? " said tho doctor; " l haYc been reflecti no· upon your propo~iLion, and I have coneluded to let yon hase the three n rgro · if you wi 11 Eay nineteen hundred dollars." After sorne parley, The Children Sold. the trader agreed to hi. terrns. lie wan ted the bill of sale dra\vn up and signed i1nn1ediaicly, a: he had a great deal to attend to during the short tin1e he remained in town. The doctor ·went to Llw jail and told Williatn be would take hirn back into hi: service if he would protnise to behave hin1 elf; but he replied that he would rather be sold. "And you sludL he :old, yon ungrateful ra cal ! " e:xclairned. tho doctor. In lc:s than an honr the 1noney was paid, the papers were igned, scaled, and delivered, and. n1y brother and children were in the hand · of the trader. It wa a hurried. tran ·action ; and after it \vas oYer, the doctor's characteri tic cauLion r eturned. lie \Vent back to tho speculator, and saiu, " Sir, I hnsc corne to lay you under obligations of a thousand dollar.· not to sell any of those negroes in this state." "Yon corne too late," replied tho trader; "our hargain i: cl o. eel." He had, in fact, already sold thcn1 to ~Ir. Sand,.. , but he did not 1ncntion it. 'rhe doctor required hin1 to put irons on " that ra cal, Bill,'' and to pass through the back streets \vhen he took hi · gang out of town. The trader \Vas privately in ·trnctcd to concede to his wi he ~ . ~fy good old aunt \renL to the jail to bid the children good by, sn ppof;ing then1 to be the speculator's property, and that ·he ·hou1d never sec them again. A._s she helu Benny in her lap, he said, " Aunt Nancy, I want to sho·w yon so1nethiug ." lie leu her to tho door and showed h er a long row of 1narks, ·aying, "Uncle \Vill tauo·ht n1e to connt . I hase nwdc a mark for eYery clay l haYe been h ere, antl iL j: ~ixty days. It is a long tin1c; aud the ~peCltlator i: goi11g to tu.ke n1c and Ell n aw·ay. Jl ,' · a }J<.ld 1Ua11. It's 1-± .~ |