We got stowaways!

Just then there were three sharp knocks on the wood plank at the front of the wagon.

“Oh! That’s the signal, children,” said Harriet. She sprang up and gave three knocks back on the plank.

“What signal?” asked Kyla.

“Someone’s comin’,” said Harriet. “We need to hide ourselves in case it’s a slave-catcher.”

Harriet pulled at one of the planks that made up the floor of the wagon bed and it lifted up. She slid the false floor plank to the side revealing a small compartment below.

“Quick, hide in here! Lay down flat!”

The two cousins dropped down into the tight compartment and Harriet laid down beside them before pulling the plank back over for cover. Zammie couldn’t see anything in the darkness, but he could hear more horses galloping towards them. Daniel slowed the wagon down. The sounds of additional horses could be heard stomping and snorting around the wagon. The light of lanterns filtered through the cracks in the wood.

“Awful late to be travelling alone, ain’t it?” said one of the horsemen.

“Agreed,” said Daniel. “Tryin’ to get home before the missus gets angry.”

Kyla felt like she was in a coffin. She was crammed tightly between Harriet and Zammie and the thin dust from the wood of the wagon was tickling her nose.

“You haven’t seen any runaways on your journey, have ya?” asked one of the horsemen.

“Not tonight,” answered Daniel. “You missin’ slaves?”

“Not us, but a couple of the local farmers are.”

“Ah, bounty hunters,” said Daniel.

Zammie could hear one of the horses trotting around the wagon to the rear.

“Mind if we check the contents of your wagon, sir?” asked the rider of the horse.

“You won’t find a thing back there,” said Daniel.

“We’ll check anyway if ya don’t mind,” said the first rider.

Zammie heard the wagon gate open. Then he heard boot steps clunking on the plank just inches above his head.

“Anything?” asked the first rider from the road.

Zammie held his breath to keep from making any noise at all.

Then it happened…

“Ha-choo!”

Zammie’s eyes went big. Kyla had sneezed.

“What was that?” asked the first rider.

“What have we here?” said the rider in the wagon.

Kyla felt the blood drain out of her face when she heard the man grasping for the niche in the false floor plank above them. A second later the plank was lifted and tossed away. The light of the lantern filled the thin compartment in which the three of them were hiding.

“We got stowaways!” said the man.

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 2

A RIDE ON THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

Available at Amazon.com!

An Herbal Remedy

Harriet looked out the window and watched the ongoing ruckus at the courthouse until they rounded a corner preventing her from seeing the building anymore. She turned back to Claudia who was sitting across from her. “Where are you taking us?” she asked.

          “The rail station, Miss Harriet.”

  “Rail station? Where we gonna go?”

          “Further north,” said Claudia. “It ain’t safe for you here no more.”

          “You need to wrap that arm, Robert,” said Jane. She had noticed that the blood was trickling all the way down his arm and onto the leather seat of the carriage.

          “It ain’t that bad,” said Robert.

          “No, she’s right,” said Harriet.

  “Here,” said Claudia. She handed Robert the small blue linen sheet that she had been using as a scarf.

  “No, Claudia, I can’t take your scarf,” said Robert.

Claudia handed the scarf to Harriet. “Will you make him use this, Miss Harriet?”

  “You’re an angel, Claudia,” said Harriet. She took the scarf and began digging in her coat pockets where she kept her small vials of paregoric and other herbal remedies. Kyla and Zammie watched in rapt amazement as she pulled out a small green vial and dabbed some of the jelly-like substance inside on the scarf. Then she had Robert straighten out his arm as best he could and tied the scarf around the wound tightly with the jelly portion pressed against the wound. The cut was across his lower shoulder so Harriet tied the scarf around his bicep.

  “What is that stuff, Harriet?” asked Robert. “Smells like bad cabbage.”

  “Wormwood, Beth Root, an’ some other things,” said Harriet. “It’ll help ya heal so never you mind the smell.”

--An Herbal Remedy

from Time Trip #2: A Ride on the Underground Railroad

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 4

KILLING FOR COUNTRY  

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 1

THE JOURNEY TO ANCIENT GREECE 

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 2

A RIDE ON THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 3

WITNESS TO THE FIRST THANKSGIVING 

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That Animal Will Kill You

Harriet looked around for a place to hide, but what good would that do? She could hear the panting of the dog now and the pounding of its paws on the grassy path behind them.

It was within a hundred yards and closing fast.

“You all run,” said Robert. “I’ll stay and fight it off.”

“You crazy!” said Henry. “That animal will kill you!”

“Get outta here!” Robert yelled.

Harriet began pushing everyone else to run. “Let’s go!” she said. Her voice held with conviction, but her heart was aching at the thought of Robert’s sacrifice.

          Zammie took two steps when something caught his eye in the moonlight.

          “Where you going, Zammie?” asked Kyla.

          Zammie picked up a large branch that had fallen from a tree. He ran it back to Robert and held it up to him.

          “My uncle used a broom handle to beat down a Doberman once when it was attacking my cousin,” said Zammie. “Maybe you can use this on this dog.”

          Robert took the tree branch and held it like an axe. It was a little shorter than a broom handle but it was thick like the fat end of a baseball bat and just as firm.

          “You get goin’, boy,” said Robert. “I don’ want you ‘round if I miss.”

          “Then don’t miss,” said Zammie.

          “Come on, Zammie!” said Kyla.

          Zammie began running with Kyla back up the trail towards Harriet, but his curiosity got the better of him. He stopped and turned back to see the black and brown Bloodhound charging down on Robert.

          “Come on, Zam . . .mie . . .” Kyla’s voice trailed off when she saw the snarling animal jump towards Robert.

          In the limited moonlight being filtered in through the leafless branches it was difficult for the children to make out exactly what happened next.

          But the noise that was heard left little to the imagination.

          Robert stood his ground as the hound bore down on him. He imagined he had a brand new rail-splitting mallet in his hands, and all he was going to do was crack a perfect line straight down this monstrous stump.

          He showed no fear to the animal as he wound back his arms, but the awful, guttural barking of the dog was making his heart pound with adrenaline.

          Once it was within six feet the ninety-pound Bloodhound leapt from the ground and headed straight for Robert’s exposed neck.

          For a split-second Robert lost sight of the dog as it flew through a shadow, but then he could see it clearly again as a pastel moonbeam reflected off its eyes.

          Robert swung the branch with purpose and meaning. He had so much angst built up that he began humming a high tone involuntarily for a second as he swung the piece of lumber. He unleashed a lifetime’s worth of stored up pain, misery, and humiliation; over thirty years of being locked down by his master while believing he was capable of something more in this life. 

-- "That Animal Will Kill You"

from Time Trip #2:
A Ride on the Underground Railroad

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 4

KILLING FOR COUNTRY  

Available at Amazon.com!

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 1

THE JOURNEY TO ANCIENT GREECE 

Available at Amazon.com!

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 2

A RIDE ON THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 3

WITNESS TO THE FIRST THANKSGIVING 

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Food from Time Trip #2: Potlikker

"Harriet, Kyla, Zammie, and Joseph all sat at a small wooden table eating plates of a dish Millie called “pot likker”. She had boiled some greens and onions in water with some salted ham and had used the liquid as a stock to pour over ashcakes and dumplings she had made from cornmeal.

The cabin was basically just one room with a small kitchen area although Millie did most of the cooking outside on a wood stove. The food was good and filling. Harriet knew it was probably more than Millie could afford to be giving out under normal circumstances. Harriet had a dollar that she tried to give to Millie for payment, but Millie refused it. Harriet later gave the money to little Joseph and told him to give it to his mother after they left."

-- from Time Trip #2: 

A Ride On the Underground Railroad

Greens in potlikker with dumplings.

Read more about Potlikker in this article from The Atlantic.

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 4

KILLING FOR COUNTRY  

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 1

THE JOURNEY TO ANCIENT GREECE 

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 2

A RIDE ON THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 3

WITNESS TO THE FIRST THANKSGIVING 

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We Got Stowaways!

There were three sharp knocks on the wood plank at the front of the wagon.

          “Oh! That’s the signal, children,” said Harriet. She sprang up and gave three knocks back on the plank.

          “What signal?” asked Kyla.

          “Someone’s comin’,” said Harriet. “We need to hide ourselves in case it’s a slave-catcher.”

          Harriet pulled at one of the planks that made up the floor of the wagon bed and it lifted up. She slid the false floor plank to the side revealing a small compartment below.

          “Quick, hide in here! Lay down flat!”

          The two cousins dropped down into the tight compartment and Harriet laid down beside them before pulling the plank back over for cover. Zammie couldn’t see anything in the darkness, but he could hear more horses galloping towards them. Daniel slowed the wagon down. The sounds of additional horses could be heard stepping and neighing around the wagon. The light of lanterns filtered through the cracks in the wood.

          “Awful late to be travelling alone, ain’t it?” said one of the horsemen.

          “Agreed,” said Daniel. “Tryin’ to get home before the missus gets angry.”

          Kyla felt like she was in a coffin. She was crammed tightly between Harriet and Zammie and the thin dust from the wood of the wagon was tickling her nose.

          “You haven’t seen any runaways on your journey, have ya?” asked one of the horsemen.

          “Not tonight,” answered Daniel. “You missin’ slaves?”

          “Not us, but a couple of the local farmers are.”

          “Ah, bounty hunters,” said Daniel.

          Zammie could hear one of the horses trotting around the wagon to the rear.

          “Mind if we check the contents of your wagon, sir?” asked the rider of the horse.

          “You won’t find a thing back there,” said Daniel.

          “We’ll check anyway if ya don’t mind,” said the first rider.

          Zammie heard the wagon gate open. Then he heard boot steps clunking on the plank just inches above his head.

          “Anything?” asked the first rider from the road.

          Zammie held his breath to keep from making any noise at all.

Then it happened…

          “Ha-choo!”

          Zammie’s eyes went big. Kyla had sneezed.

          “What was that?” asked the first rider.

          “What have we here?” said the rider in the wagon.

          Kyla felt the blood drain out of her face when she heard the man grasping for the niche in the false floor plank above them. A second later the plank was lifted and tossed away. The light of the lantern filled the thin compartment in which the three of them were hiding.

          “We got stowaways!” said the man.

          In that instant Harriet sent a kick with all of her might straight into the midsection of the slave-catcher leaning over them. The power of the kick sent the man sprawling backwards where he fell off the edge of the wagon landing flat on his back on the hard, cold road.

          “Come on, children!” said Harriet. “Let’s move!”

          Harriet grabbed Kyla by the wrist and Kyla grabbed Zammie by the wrist and the three of them bolted out of the wagon onto the road and disappeared into the dark woods.

-- "We Got Stowaways!" 

from Time Trip #2: A Ride On the Underground Railroad

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 4

KILLING FOR COUNTRY  

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 1

THE JOURNEY TO ANCIENT GREECE 

Available at Amazon.com!

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 2

A RIDE ON THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 3

WITNESS TO THE FIRST THANKSGIVING 

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Captured in Philadelphia

Ben nodded and was about to agree to sing again, but before he could say another word he was interrupted by a loud thumping knock coming from the front of the townhouse. Everyone froze and looked towards the tiny front door. Claudia walked over and asked, “Who is it?”

“U.S. Marshals, ma’am. Open up,” said the man’s voice from the outside.

“Marshals?” said Henry. That familiar feeling of terror quickly returned. “But this is a free state!”

“May I ask who you lookin’ for, sir?” asked Claudia.

Instead of answering, there was a strong kick at the door causing the hinges to buckle. The door flew open and several men in navy uniforms poured into the small townhouse. The crash of the wooden door startled Baby Claire and she began crying. Some of the officers carried black wooden clubs and some carried pistols.

“What are you doing?” asked Claudia. She was frantic.  

One of the last men to enter the home was Theophilis Knight.

“There she is,” said Theophilis. He was pointing at Harriet. “An’ it looks like the whole gang’s all here.”

Robert stood up and spoke to the first officer. “Excuse me, constable, but what’s this all about?”

The first officer held up a piece of paper. “We have a warrant here and the legal authority to take into custody one Harriet Tubman and anyone in her company that she has abducted from the state of Maryland.”

“Abducted?” asked Ben.

“Harriet didn’t abduct no one!” said Robert. “We left of our own free will.”

“Sounds like a confession, constable,” said Theophilis.

“How did you find us here?” asked Harriet.

“Money is a powerful thing,” said Theophilis. “I offered a few shiny coins to that little colored boy named Leonard and he gave y’all up like it was his sworn duty.”

“Leonard!” said Claudia.

Betrayal of fugitives by fellow blacks wasn’t common, but it did happen from time to time especially if the freeman was in dire straits financially. Young Leonard had a wife and three children at home that he had trouble feeding. His youngest daughter was also struggling with a bout of scarlet fever which at that time often led to an early grave. Since the passing of the Fugitive Slave Act, more and more slave-catchers had been roaming into Pennsylvania looking for runaways and offering money for any information that could lead to a capture. When Leonard heard that Theophilis was offering twenty dollars to anyone who could provide the location of Harriet Tubman and the rest of her group he decided to bite. It wasn’t an easy choice to make, but the daily struggle to make ends meet and to provide for his children had been wearing him down.

          When one of the officers approached Robert with shackles he instinctively swatted away the officer’s arms. Another marshal knocked Robert across the back of his legs with a club, and Robert fell to his knees, groaning in pain.

          “Leave him alone!” yelled Henry.

The marshals surrounded the rest of the group and began slapping shackles on everyone’s wrists.

          “You alright, Robert?” asked Henry.

          “I don’t understand,” said Ben. “This is a free state.”

          “It may be a free state, but you ain’t a free man,” said Theophilis. 

-- Captured in Philadelphia 

from Time Trip #2: A Ride On the Underground Railroad (Chapter 26)

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 4

KILLING FOR COUNTRY  

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 1

THE JOURNEY TO ANCIENT GREECE 

Available at Amazon.com!

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 2

A RIDE ON THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 3

WITNESS TO THE FIRST THANKSGIVING 

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Escape to Pennsylvania

“Godspeed to thee, ladies and gentlemen,” said Thomas Garrett. “Write me when you arrive in Philadelphia.”

Alexander cracked the reins and the horses took off. He kept them running at full speed until they were a few miles outside of Wilmington. Everyone in the carriage bounced and jostled with each bump in the road. Zammie sat next to a window and he could stick his head out a little and see the quarter moon and the stars shining brightly above them. He could also see the horizon point where the sky met the northern edge of the Allegheny Mountain Range way off to the west.  The air rushing past him was very cold forcing him to bring his head back inside. As he did something moving on the road behind them caught his attention. He stuck his head back out again and saw another buggy following them at full gallop.

“There’s someone following us!” Zammie said.

Robert and Ben both looked out the windows on the other side of the carriage. They could see the buggy with two passengers being pulled by two horses.

Alexander had also heard the carriage. When they arrived at the top of a small hill he stood up and looked back. The smaller, lighter buggy was quickly gaining on them.

“Hold on inside,” he yelled. He cracked the reins again and pushed his two horses to run as fast as they could. They were just a few miles south of Pennsylvania and he was hoping to cross the state line before the pursuers overtook them. Alexander pulled a Colt Navy revolver out of his coat preparing for a possible confrontation.

The buggy was less than two hundred yards away when Harriet could hear the chasing men yelling for Alexander to stop.

“Oh, Lord, please don’t let ‘em catch us!” said Henry. His hands were folded in front of his face in prayer.

Alexander pushed his horses to run faster.  Then the firing of a gun was heard coming from the chasing carriage.

“Get down everyone!” said Harriet. Everyone in the carriage tried to crumple down as low as they could, but it was difficult with so many people crammed into such a small space.

Bullets began zipping past Alexander. One bullet went through the back of the wagon, through the cabin, and continued out the front of the wagon. Zammie saw the splintered bullet hole in the wood panel right above Kyla’s head.

Alexander took another look back and saw that the pursuers were now within one hundred yards. He fired one round off from his gun but a bump in the road threw off his aim and the bullet was sent off harmlessly into the night sky. A second later he heard another round from the pursuers zip past his ear. It sounded like the buzz of a bee flying by. They were getting too close, and the state line was still a good distance away. 

Alexander took a deep breath. He turned around, and fired four shots in quick succession towards one of the pursuer’s horses. A moment later he saw the horse stagger and fall in the middle of the road pulling the second horse down as well and bringing the buggy to a stop. One of the men in the buggy jumped out onto the road and fired a couple more shots towards Alexander, but neither shot made its mark. Alexander continued pushing his horses for another mile and a half when he saw a sign post that raised his spirits. 

-- "Escape to Pennsylvania" 

from Time Trip #2: A Ride On the Underground Railroad

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 4

KILLING FOR COUNTRY  

Available at Amazon.com!

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 1

THE JOURNEY TO ANCIENT GREECE 

Available at Amazon.com!

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 2

A RIDE ON THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

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TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 3

WITNESS TO THE FIRST THANKSGIVING 

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Boyd's Swamp Colony

The stranger’s name was Boyd. He was fifty years old with a wiry physique and a personality that overflowed with charisma. He led his new group of prisoners deeper into the woods for quite a distance to a small area where the trees had been chopped down and three small cabins had been built. There were torches burning around the site, and an assortment of men, women, and children were walking out from the cabins towards the visitors as they approached. The men wore layers of old tattered clothing and makeshift shirts made from bandannas and unbleached brown linen. Most of the women they saw wore dresses made out of a rough material that reminded Kyla of potato sacks. A couple of the women had blue and white dresses made from better linen, but even that material looked old and worn out.

Kyla noticed a tilled garden area on the other side of the cabins. All of the vegetables had been harvested for the winter, but several rows of cut corn stalks and drooping tomato vines could still be seen lying dormant for the winter.

A few chickens and some mangy dogs were roaming around the campsite. Zammie could count the ribs on one of the dogs that walked up to him. He felt bad for it. It must have been hungry. The dog sniffed Zammie’s feet, looked up at him with shiny black eyes then walked away.

          Boyd led them to a fallen tree that was behind the cabins and had them sit down on the trunk. There was a small bonfire burning in front of the tree bench, and everyone in Harriet’s group appreciated the warmth.

Two wooden poles had been stuck in the ground about six feet apart from each other. A leather strap connected the two poles and hung tight in the air, and a series of fresh animal skins had been hung over the strap to dry out near the fire.

          “Fresh meat,” Henry said to himself when he saw the skins. “Bad luck.”

          “Ellen,” said Boyd.

“What?” An older woman looked up from a wash basin where she was scrubbing a young boy with lye and water. She was probably also in her fifties.

“Bring our guests some of that meat we had earlier.”

“Lucy!” Ellen yelled.

A younger woman who was trying to get a good look at the strangers from a nearby cabin said, “Yes, mama.”

“Go do what yur father ask,” said Ellen.

“Yes, mama,” said Lucy, and she disappeared inside one of the cabins.

          “You’re going to feed us?” asked Robert.

          “Our door is always open to runaways,” said Boyd. He touched his swollen lip and smiled. “Specially those that can fight.”

          “Who said we was runaways?” asked Harriet.

          “I know my own kind,” said Boyd. “I can spot a runaway negro from a hunnerd paces. And you’s all is runaways. You wanna deny it?”

          Harriet didn’t say anything.

          Boyd noticed Kyla and Zammie. “But these two are different. You two ain’t colored children, are ya? You injun?”

          “They’re Californians,” said Harriet.

          “Californians?” said Boyd. “I ain’t never seen no Californians.”

          Kyla and Zammie looked at Boyd. Kyla gave a weak smile, but Zammie’s expressionless face didn’t change.

          “I hear they got gold out in California,” said Boyd. “You see any a’that gold out there?”

          “No, sir,” said the cousins.

          “Ah. That’s too bad.”

-- Boyd's Swamp Colony

from Time Trip #2 (Chapter 17)

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 4

KILLING FOR COUNTRY  

Available at Amazon.com!

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 1

THE JOURNEY TO ANCIENT GREECE 

Available at Amazon.com!

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 2

A RIDE ON THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD

Available at Amazon.com!

TIME TRIP ADVENTURE 3

WITNESS TO THE FIRST THANKSGIVING 

Available at Amazon.com!