failed to get the poor hunted man, though. Ben was a religious,
God-fearing man, and placed firm reliance on the help of the Almighty,
in his serious trials, and never failed to find help when most needed.
He stayed under cover in the woods, in such lurking places as the nature
of the country provided, in the day time, and at night would cautiously
approach his wife's cabin, when, at an appointed signal, she would let
him in and give him such food and care as his condition required. The
slaves of the South were united in the one particular of helping each
other in such cases as this, and would adopt ingenious telegrams and
signals to communicate with each other; and it may well be believed that
the inventive genius of the blacks was, as a general thing, equal to all
emergencies, and when driven to extremities they were brave to a fault.
Ben's wife, in this instance, used the simple device of hanging a
certain garment in a particular spot, easily to be seen from Ben's
covert, and which denoted that the coast was clear and no danger need be
apprehended. The garment and the place of hanging it had to be changed
every day, yet the signals thus made were true to the purpose, and saved
uncle Ben from capture. Uncle Ben was closely chased by the hounds and
inhuman men-hunters; on one occasion so closely that he plunged into a
stream and followed the current for more than a mile. Taking to the
water threw the hounds off the scent of the track. Before reaching the
stream, uncle Ben was so closely pursued that one of the men in the gang
shot at him, the bullet passing unpleasantly close to him. His wife
heard the hounds and the gun-shot. This race for life and liberty was
only one of a continued series, and was repeated as often as
blood-hounds could find a track to follow. At night Ben was very much
fatigued and hungry, and his only hope of getting anything to eat was to
reach his wife's cabin. How to do this without being observed, was the
question. As well as he was able, about midnight he left his retreat and
approached the cabin. It was too dark to see a signal if one had been