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READER RESPONSES, 1881–93 1047

why any more a man? But slavery days are over, and these stories are now things of
history. Let us hope that history will not repeat itself in this instance. There is no
doubt but that Douglass was an "ugly customer." He was ever really with a knock-
down blow or a bitter word. It is hardly surprising that he did not feel very amiably
towards the people who kept his race in bondage, maltreating innocent children and
degrading defenseless women . Perhaps if he had been less of a fighter he would not
have accomplished the great object of his life. The story of Douglass' escape from
slavery has already been told in THE PRESS. After establishing himself at New
Bedford, he was drawn into the current of anti-slavery demonstration then flowing
from Massachusetts all over the country. As a runaway slave, his words carried great
weight. He visited England more than once in the interest of the cause, and was
warmly received by some of the best people in the country. He was very intimate
with the Howitt's, and visited their house for some time. Here he met Hans Christian
Anderson, but as he spoke no Swedish and the poet spoke no English, their acquain-
tance did not become very intimate.

There is no more interesting part of Douglass's book than that which describes
his connection with John Brown. When they first met in Rochester Brown was a
respectahle and prosperous merchan, who owned a large brick store on one of the
principal streets. After seeing the store Douglass expected that the house would be
proportionately fine. On the contrary, it was a small wooden building on a back
street, and the inside was plainer than the exterior. Its furniture "would have satisfied
a Spartan," and there was an "air of plainness about it that almost suggested destitu-
tion." The first meal Douglass ate there was called "tea," but it consisted of "beef
soup, cabbage and potatoes." The table was "innocent of paint, veneering, varnish
or table-cloth.'' and the mother and daughters cooked the meals and did the waiting.
The master of this household "fulfilled St. Paul's idea of the head of the family. His
wife believed in him, and his children observed him with reverence." Douglas
describes Brown as his face is known to us through the illustrated papers of those
stormy days: "In person he was lean [213.6-18] neither seeking nor shunning
observation."

After tea Brown cautiously approached the subject that was nearest his heart—
the freeing of the slavcs— and he laid his plan before Douglass. It was a bold one,
and one that would send him down the pages of history either as a murderer or a
martyr. He was ready to take his life in his hand, and all the money he had saved by
living in the most economical manner was to be devoted to the cause. "I can but be
killed," he said. There is nothing in our history hetter known than the John Brown
raid, and there arc few ofus who do not respect the misguided man whose body "lies
a-mouldering in the grave" while " his soul goes marching on."

Of course Douglass met Mrs. H.B. Stowe whose "Uncle Tom's Cabin'' was one
of the strongest weapons with which the anti-slavery tight was fought . Mrs. Stowe
invited him to her house to talk over a plan for the bettering the condition of the
colored people. She wanted a college at first but Douglass convinced her that shops