night. So I made up my mind to try and run away to a free country. I
used to hear Boss read sometimes, in the papers, about runaway slaves
who had gone to Canada, and it always made me long to go; yet I never
appeared as if I paid the slightest attention to what the family read or
said on such matters; but I felt that I could be like others, and try at
least to get away. One morning, when Boss had gone to town, Madam had
threatened to whip me, and told me to come to the house. When she called
me I did not go, but went off down through the garden and through the
woods, and made my way for the city. When I got into Memphis, I found at
the landing a boat called the Statesman, and I sneaked aboard. It was
not expected that the boat would stay more than a few hours, but, for
some reason, it stayed all night. The boat was loaded with sugar, and I
hid myself behind four hogsheads. I could see both engineers, one each
side of me. When night came on, I crept out from my hiding place, and
went forward to search for food and water, for I was thirsty and very
hungry. I found the table where the deck hands had been eating, and
managed to get a little food, left from their meal, and some water. This
was by no means enough, but I had to be content, and went back to my
place of concealment. I had been on board the boat three days; and, on
the third night, when I came out to hunt food, the second mate saw me.
In a minute he eyed me over and said: "Why, I have a reward for you." In
a second he had me go up stairs to the captain. This raised a great
excitement among the passengers; and, in a minute, I was besieged with
numerous questions. Some spoke as if they were sorry for me, and said if
they had known I was a poor runaway slave they would have slipped me
ashore. The whole boat was in alarm. It seemed to me they were
consulting slips of paper. One said: "Yes, he is the same. Listen how
this reads:"

"Ran away from Edmund McGee, my mulatto boy Louis, 5 feet 6 inches in