ignoring his responsibility to prevent the transmission of such letters. buck, the local postmaster should be asked whether it was -- best to deliver letters to slaves without informing their masters. he knew the answer but that did little too ease his concern. slaves who had left the south used the postal system to communicate with loved ones and friends left behind. the reverend robert ryeland, the white minister of the first african church of virginia railed be ernst receiving letters -- his congregation receiving letters from former members of his church who had escaped in which they described the best ways to reach freedom. the use of the mail rivalled slave holders who prohibited its use to disseminate abolitionist

materials. starting in 1851, mail sent between new york and california, for example was charged a flat rate of 3 cents per half ounce. this meant that anyone, and that included fugitive slaves like banks could correspond with family and friends cheaply. slaves contemplating escape sometimes made plans with friends and family already in the north and in canada before leaving. a man with the unfortunate name of john bull and joe mayor, two of the five run aways found on a steam ship in the james river in 1858 knew where they were going. bull had arranged with friends in canada to be hired as a waiter in a local hotel. mayor was off to new york city to meet his wife who had escaped

a few years earlier. samuel green had heard of canada and the underground railroad from harriet tubman. susan brooke fled norfolk in 1884 six months after her son arrived in canada. there were numerous requests from run aways in canada to william still of the philadelphia vigilance committee asking him to contact family members left behind to arrange their departure. samuel mills who took the name robert king after he escaped from somerset county maryland wrote still asking him to contact his wife living in baltimore to let her know where he was and to encourage her to leave.

our man madden, that i talked about who owned that inn in virginia, his son, who was a minister occasionally returned to the area to visit his kin and prayer meetings. he also exchanged letters and intelligence on behalf of run aways and their loved ones. in spite of warnings from still, john henry hill who wrote frequently to family and friends in petersburg, virginia arranging for their escape. hill was a 26-year-old carpenter who escaped from richmond in january 1853. he was hidden by a friend of his mother for nine months before he could safely leave richmond for norfolk where he boarded a ship for philadelphia, leaving behind a wife, who was free, and two

children. over the next few years, hill kept up a constant stream of letters to still with introductions and suggestions about how to get his family out. his wife and children would join him as would his uncle and a brother later in 1861. william still, then was the conduit the transmitter of information between hill and his family in virginia. he arranged to have a large box of goods belonging to hill's wife shipped out of petersburg to canada. it was the discovery of a letter from his son who had escaped to canada that raised suspicions among authorities of cambridge, maryland that the reverend samuel green, a free black minister was involved in the escape of slaves from the area. the authorities news because the

slaves all passed in front of green's house. somebody went green was involved. authorities in other parts of the south were similarly vigilant. louisville, for example they built several cases against local opponents of slavery on letters they received from the north and canada. when they raided the home of john c. long who helped a slave to escape they found a cigar box filled with letters from ohio from long's brother asking for a description of the slave so they could write a free pass which would allow alfred to -- the slave to travel to canada. another case louisville, and i like this case because it also involves sex. another case louisville involved rachel 20 and the only slave of a mr. weatherly who escaped to

canada in 1856. assisted by george cope, a well known white grocer. the evidence suggests took in cray shell to cope. but cray rachel frequently visited cope's shop and home and according to some witnesses spent an inordment that amount of time in cope's room. cope would later admit that she had become his wife in heaven. they planned her escape with the understanding that once the anxiety caused by her escape he would join her in canada. when a month later, weatherly went to canada to persuade rachel to return she handed him cope's letters. they would be used by weatherly

in his suit against cope for his aid in the escape of rachel. when the case came to trial the jury deadlocked because there was too much amalgamating and kidnapping difficulties. i never heard of amalgamating difficulties. months later cope was found not guilty but he had languished in the state penitentiary for two years. but if writing letters was a risky business it was a risk many were willing to take. frequent visits from former slaves who asked her to write letters to their family and friends using white people who were their friends as continue wits. -- conduits. black seamen carried letters between slaves and northern friends and family. there were extensive contacts

between slaves who fled or free blacks who had migrated to northern cities. those involved in getting word to family and friends by letter sometimes used what's still called underground railroad parables. but even this ruse proved unavailing at times. the mere suspicion that a white person in the south was partial to the cause of the slave generally resulted in rough justice. but what prompted slaves such as henry banks to begin the work of self emancipation? my interest here is in those who left the south permanently. they comprise, i know, a small, but nonetheless, i think, significant number of the many who fled. the politics of self emancipation took different forms and driven by differing

consideration some opportunistic and others calculated. run aways revealed their reasons for seeking freedom. some left because they were severely flogged. others left because their families were about to be sold. others left because they, themselves, were about to be sold. others left because contracts they had agreed to with their owners were being changed arbitrarilily their owners. others simply followed the lead of others. zachariah mead fled when 15 of his mistress's 20 lives fled to the north. slaves also fled when the masters broke the hiring

agreements. his kyah hill joined henry hill had an agreement with his owner to buy his freedom but his master reneged on the contract after hill had paid almost $2,000. hill fled petersburg for richmond in 1855, where he was hidden under the floor by a friend. he was later gotten out by boat and fled to toronto to join his brother. if henry banks' first letter is a curious mix of longing for the people and places he left behind, is it also an expression of a firm determination to be free. not only did he ask william buck to pass on greetings to a number of friends and family, he also declared in no uncertain terms and this is his quote, i never expect to return.

others put it differently. but the meaning was equally clear. they were determined to be free and were aware of the existence of territory where they could find that freedom. interviewed in 1863, william cornish recalled that he came to canada in 185 6 from the eastern shore of maryland not because he was abused. i came here just for freedom, he said. a fellow maryland slave henry williamson echoed the sentiments when he told benjamin drew he wanted to be free. this idea of a sort of free soil consciousness or free soil principle had always been part and parcel of the calculation of slaves planning their escape. i suspected lord dunmore was

aware of this offering freedom to any slave who would throw in his lot with the british. he opened up free territory to which slaves flocked in numbers that startled who were leading the flight against the british. the speed and size of the people leaving were best captured by w.e.b. dubois in the discussion of those who abandoned plantations at the beginning of the civil war. he says it was like thrusting a walking stick into an ant hill. the existence of free land and the promise of freedom prompted slaves to abandon their owners. it occurred in the colonial period to spanish territory. one texas slave holder who, like his contemporaries, had lost

hundreds of slaves to the free soil of mexico may have spoken for many slaves when he said the negro, he has got mexico in his head. the knowledge and awareness of free land dom mate the testimony and actions of former slaves. john henry hill called on those he left behind in virginia to follow his historical calling. come, poor distressed men and women come to canada where colored men are free. john clayton echoed these sentiments. a worker in a richmond tobacco factory, clayton escaped with two other slaves, hiding in a small space next to the boiler of a steamer bound for philadelphia. soon after he wrote still, you may rest assured that i feels myself a free man and do not feel as i did when i was in virginia. thanks be to god. i no master into canada but i am

my own man. 17-year-old rebecca hall left baltimore in august 1855. she told still, because she simply wanted to be free. to even the most call yule observant slave holder in the 1870s, the slave system was held in by a wall of free territory. to the north by the free states and canada. to the southeast and the south, the recently emancipated territories of the british empire. and to the southwest, mexico. efforts by the american government to win concessions from the british through treaties failed to stem the tide of escape.

wherever texas -- sorry. texas slave holders tried proved to be futile as were efforts in kansas where some indian peoples were not inclined to respond positively to the entreaties and blusterings of missouri slave holders. finally there were the islands of the british west indis. although it is next to impossible to quantify the number of slaves who decided to head south rather than north the evidence suggests that escapes along the atlantic sea board to jamaica were not infrequent. and i want to turn to just -- one incidence here to explore this sort of international dimension to it.

one incident in 1855 shows the inventiveness of the slaves and those who helped them when planning the escapes and the impact their actions could have on the relations between washington and london. relations had been strained over the refusal to return slaves and ships what had been driven by bad weather to take refuge in the bahamas and bermuda after the emancipation act. in 1831, the brick comment ran aground on the bahama islands with 106 slaves on board. three years later a brig with 45 slaves ran into similar difficulties. the following year, 78 slaves were forced into hamilton bermuda by bad weather. in all three days, american authorities called unsuccessfully for the release and return of the cargoes including the slaves. in the case of the creole it was

a revolt by slaves and not bad weather that forced into ship into nassau. although the authorities were willing to hold for trial those involved in the revolt. in none of the cases whether it was the action of slaves or the result of inclement weather that forced the ship into port were the slaves returned. in may of 1855 a crowd of 300 gathered on the wharf in jamaica when it was rumored there was a slave on board a ship in the harbor that arrived from baltimore. word spread rapidly that the captain had confined a slave on board worried that an attempt would be made to rescue him. although the gates of -- to the wharves were closed to prevent access to the ships. a crowd of men and women

launched a number of row boats from nearby beaches. within minutes the slave was taken on board one of the boats which brought him to shore where he was taken into custody. the next day the slave was set free following a brief apeernts before a local magistrate. behind a simple outline lies a complex story. prior to leaving baltimore. captain rogers hired on philip nettles or thought he hired him. paying him $23 in advance. before the ship could clear the chesapeake bayonet also could not cook. which raised suspicions about his true identity. when confronted. nettles first stuck to his story. had he not shown rogers his free papers and proved his status.

but under constant badgering, nettles admitted he was not who he claimed to be. he was john anderson, a 25-year-old baltimore slave who had been hired out by his owner for many years and so had lived relatively freely as so many others did in the port city. his friend nettles, a free black lent him his free papers, complicating the picture further is the fact that anderson had been brought on board by his landlord and a young woman. the implication is that the landlord was white. at a time when local observers worried about the existence of elements of the underground railroad in the city, it seems that anderson had the help of net lts, his landlord and an unnamed woman in planning his escape. it was the sort of alliance that haunted southerners. captain rogers faced two

problems. one, he knew under maryland law and baltimore ordinances he could be held liable for anderson's escape. secondly he was determined to recover his $23. he concluded best way to resolve both problems was to keep anderson on board rather than put him on shore in norfolk or some other port along the coast where he would be forced to answer potentially embarrassing questions. once the ship dropped anchor in jamaica, the drama took an unexpected turn, as a frequent visitor to jamaica, captain roger admitted he was like lip to lose anderson. in a similar incident two years earlier, two charleston, south carolina slaves were freed from another boat which had docked in kingston, and the refusal of the

local authorities to hand over american fugitive slaves who had escaped british territories meant that rogers knew he was unlikely to get his way. his problem was compounded by the fact that he knew he would likely face prostitution in maryland for allowing anderson to escape, keeping anderson below and out of sight seemed the best answer to an untenable situation. once it became known that anderson was being held on board the ship, a group of jamaicans went before a local magistrate and insisted he be set free, but the magistrate refused to act insists it was the sole responsibility to whom the ship was confined to take 2 fwhishive. the in an attempt to prove anderson was who he initially claimed to be provided what we'll call protection papers signed by a notary in baltimore stating that the man who came on

board the young america was in fact phillip nettles a free black. the rescue and hearing before the magistrate generated public interest and raised questions about the international reach of american laws meant to address domestic issues, even to some observers who opposed slavery. flying an american flag, which was considered american territory was as was said, a violation of international law. if that were the case, a supporter to the rescue countered and the offense was committed on american soil would anderson have to be handed over for trial in the united states? such a conclusion would be preposterous, he insisted and it would first have to ignore the fact that at the time of the rescue, the ship was anchored in british waters.

such legal niceties mattered little to the man robert monroe harrison, the u.s. counsel in kingston, the rescue and the -- and a violation of international law. he demanded the governor conduct an impartial inquiry, in the meanwhile, harrison kept his superiors in washington fully informed of developments, in his years since his appointment in 1832, the proud virginians had kept up a constraint stream of vitriolic criticism and emancipation. the spector of racial equality and the emerge negligence of black jamaicans in leadership

positions haunted and galled harrison, he viewed with dismay what he viewed as an emergence as an alliance between blacks and what he called a few jews who are such a cowardly set of wretcheds, it's a wonderful concept of adhesive -- harrison never missed an opportunity to pour scorn on the alliance, the investigation he hoped would deter not only the savage me grows from insulting our fellow citizens, but unprinciples magistra magistrates -- mob action and the war he declared were the editors of the morning journal, a woody headed san born. harrison spent a great deal of time and energy conjuring up the most lurid and insulti ining het

the times of those who condoned the actions. they were nothing, he said, half savages me grows and magistrates who has far as i can learn were for the most part people of colors and natural sons of jews, prejudiced against everything american but negros and their descendants, emancipation, harrison insisted was an experiment which america should never entertain. the rescue at savannah lamar was seen in the broader sweep of political developments in the united states. one supporter of the rescue had written that their actions re-enforced many of the activities of opponents of slavery and of the 1850 fugitive slave law.

in the united states. with an eye on the failed attempt to rescue anthony burns in boston in 1854, one of these men asked rhetorically if you sympathize and probably would have taken part with the worthy bostonians had you been amongst them in their futureless endeavor to rescue the slave from the grasp of the oppressor, how can you find a similar act in free jamaica. not only was it the right thing to do in spite of the -- sensitive yankees about violation of the american flag, the action of the rescuers were a clear reafter ffirmation of - in the past, american slave holders coming to jamaica and acting within impunity.

following the hearing at the local magistrate courts, much of it according to harrison was devoted to a discussion of whether the rebel had acted riotously. after all, anderson had been removed from the ship, why, rogers was unsure and rogers himself was badgered and pushed by loud crowds that hooted and hissed, made up mainly of women. as harrison reported. although harrison had little

chance of winning the return of anderson, he insisted the governor make his inquiry public. within days of the incident, the mayor of westmoreland county submitted a report of the incident to the governor who agreed with many of his finders, the excitement as he delicately described the events that took place on the wharf, not allowing anderson to come ashore, it was very likely rogers would have gotten redress from the attacks by men on his ship and by the women, i'm sure, had he applied to the authorities. in the end, the governor wondered what more could be done beyond calling on magistrates to be more cautious and to be less precipitous in the future. harrison vigorously opposeded the both the governor's reasoning and his conclusions, but in the end, he could do no more than -- prevented from acting as they did and that the

perpetrators of such riots would be brought to justice. harrison believed that the governor must have known that such a national insult as he called it, should almost be addressed by the respective governments and not by two or three prejudiced magistrates of color, who were themselves inch indicated in the matter and were in reality the cause of the insult to our flag. falling back on his standard explanation of what motivated the island people in their relations with the united states, harrison was not very optimistic that anything would be done to prevent similar events in the future. for, as he said, his knowledge of the character of the inhabitants of the west indian colonies and more especially those on this island who are more hostile to us than any other class of people i have met. the abductor of black and colors persons from our