Chapter XXXVI: Part 36

I hope and trust, that neither thyself nor the other men will
have much if any of the expense to bear; your lawyers will not
charge anything I suppose, and the good citizens will pay all
else. It seems there are hopes entertained that Passmore
Williamson will soon be set at liberty. It must be a great
comfort to him and wife, in their trials, that it will conduce
to the furtherance of the good cause.

If Philadelphians are not aroused now after this great stretch
of power, to consider their safety, they must be a stupid set of
people, but it must certainly do good. * * * You will take
good care of Jane Johnson, I hope, and not let her get kidnapped
back to Slavery. Is it safe for her to remain in your city or
anywhere else in our "free land?" I have some doubts and fears
for her; do try to impress her with the necessity of being very
cautious and careful against deceivers, pretended friends. She
had better be off to Canada pretty soon.

Thy wife must not sit up washing and ironing all night again.
She ought to have help in her sympathy and labors for the poor
fugitives, and, I should think there are many there who would
willingly assist her.

I intended to be careful of trespassing upon thy time, as thee
must have enough to do; the fugitives are still coming I expect.
With kind regards, also to thy wife, your friend,

A. GOODWIN.

In another letter, she suggests the idea of getting up a committee of women to provide clothing for fugitive females; on this point she wrote thus:

"SALEM, 8th mo., 1st.

"Would it not be well to get up a committee of women, to provide
clothes for fugitive females--a dozen women sewing a day, or
even half a day of each week, might keep a supply always ready,
they might, I should think, get the merchants or some of them,
to give cheap materials--mention it to thy wife, and see if she
cannot get up a society. I will do what I can here for it. I
enclose five dollars for the use of fugitives. It was a good
while that I heard nothing of your rail road concerns; I
expected thee had gone to Canada, or has the journey not been
made, or is it yet to be accomplished, or given up? I was in
hopes thee would go and see with thy own eyes, how things go on
in that region of fugitives, and if it's a goodly land to live
in.

"This is the first of August, and I suppose you are celebrating
it in Philadelphia, or some of you are, though I believe you are
not quite as zealous as the Bostonians are in doing it. When
will our first of August come? oh, that it might be soon, very
soon! ... It's high time the 'reign of oppression was over.'"

Ever alive to the work, she would appeal to such as were able among her friends, to take stock in the Underground Rail Road, and would sometimes succeed. In a letter dated July 30, 1856, she thus alludes to her efforts:

"I have tried to beg something for them, but have not got much;
one of our neighbors, S.W. Acton, gave me three dollars for
them; I added enough to make ten, which thee will find inside. I
shall owe three more, to make my ten. I presume they are still
coming every day almost, and I fear it comes rather hard on thee
and wife to do for so many; but you no doubt feel it a
satisfaction to do all you can for the poor sufferers."

February 10, 1858, she forwarded her willing contribution, with the following interesting remarks:

SALEM, February 10, 1858.

DEAR FRIEND:--Thee will find enclosed, five dollars for the
fugitives, a little for so many to share it, but better than
nothing; oh, that people, rich people, would remember them
instead of spending so much on themselves; and those too, who
are not called rich, might, if there was only a willing mind,
give too of their abundance; how can they forbear to sympathize
with those poor destitute ones--but so it is--there is not half
the feeling for them there ought to be, indeed scarcely anybody
seems to think about them. "Inasmuch as ye have _not_ done it
unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have not done it
unto me."

Thy friend,

A. GOODWIN.

When the long looked-for day of emancipation arrived, which she had never expected to witness, the unbounded thankfulness of her heart found expression in the appended letter:

SALEM, September 23, 1862.

DEAR FRIEND:--Thy letter dated 17th, was not received till last
night. I cannot tell where it has been detained so long. On the
22d, yesterday, Amy Reckless came here, after I began writing,
and wished me to defer sending for a day or two, thinking she
could get a few more dollars, and she has just brought some, and
will try for more, and clothing. A thousand thanks to President
Hamlin for his kindness to the contrabands; poor people! how
deplorable their situation; where will they go to, when cold
weather comes? so many of them to find homes for, but they must
and will, I trust be taken care of, not by their former
care-takers though.

I have read the President's proclamation of emancipation, with
thankfulness and rejoicing; but upon a little reflection, I did
not feel quite satisfied with it; three months seems a long time
to be in the power of their angry and cruel masters, who, no
doubt, will wreak all their fury and vengeance upon them,
killing and abusing them in every way they can--and sell them to
Cuba if they can. It makes me sad to think of it. Slavery, I
fear, will be a long time in dying, after receiving the fatal
stroke. What do abolitionists think of it? and what is thy
opinion? I feel quite anxious to know something more about it.
The "Daily Press" says, it will end the war and its cause. How
can we be thankful enough if it should, and soon too. "Oh,
praise and tanks," what a blessing for our country. I never
expected to see the happy day. If thee answers this, thee will
please tell me all about it, and what is thought of it by the
wise ones; but I ought not to intrude on thy time, thee has so
much on thy hands, nor ask thee to write. I shall know in time,
if I can be patient to wait.

Enclosed are seventeen dollars; from Amy Reckless, $1,50; J.
Bassett, $1; Jesse Bond, $1; Martha Reeve, $1; S. Woodnutt, $1;
Hannah Wheeler, $1; a colored man, 25 cents; 25 cents thrown in,
to make even; A.G., $10. Amy is very good in helping, and is
collecting clothing, which she thinks, cannot be sent till next
week. I will attend to sending it, as soon as can be, by stage
driver. May every success attend thy labors for the poor
sufferers. * * *

With kind regards, thy friend,

A. GOODWIN.

Thus, until the last fetter was broken, with singular persistency, zeal, faith and labor, she did what she could to aid the slave, without hope of reward in this world. Not only did she contribute to aid the fugitives, but was, for years, a regular and liberal contributor to the Pennsylvania Anti-slavery Society, as well as a subscriber to the Anti-slavery papers, The "Liberator," "National Anti-Slavery Standard," "Pennsylvania Freeman," etc.

Having seen with joy, the desire of her heart, in the final emancipation of every bondman in the United States, she departed in peace, November 2, 1867, in the 74th year of her age.

FAITHFUL WORKERS IN THE CAUSE.

THOMAS GARRETT.

The recent death of Thomas Garrett, called forth from the press, as well as from abolitionists and personal friends, such universal expressions of respect for his labors as a philanthropist, and especially as an unswerving friend of the Underground Rail Road, that we need only reproduce selections therefrom, in order to commemorate his noble deeds in these pages.

From the "Wilmington Daily Commercial," published by Jenkins and Atkinson (men fully inspired with the spirit of impartial freedom), we copy the following notice, which is regarded by his relatives and intimate anti-slavery friends as a faithful portraiture of his character and labors:

Thomas Garrett, who died full of years and honor, this morning,
at the ripe age of eighty-one, was a man of no common character.
He was an abolitionist from his youth up, and though the grand
old cause numbered amongst its supporters, poets, sages, and
statesmen, it had no more faithful worker in its ranks than
Thomas Garrett.

He has been suffering for several years, from a disease of the
bladder, which frequently caused him most acute anguish, and
several times threatened his life. The severe pain attending the
disease, and the frequent surgical operations it rendered
necessary, undermined his naturally strong constitution, so that
when he was prostrated by his last illness, grave fears were
entertained of a fatal result. He continued in the possession of
his faculties to the last, and frequently expressed his entire
willingness to die.

Yesterday he was found to be sinking very rapidly. Just before
midnight, last night, he commenced to speak, and some of those
in attendance, went close to his bed-side. He was evidently in
some pain, and said: "It is all peace, peace, peace, but no rest
this side of the river." He then breathed calmly on for some
time. About half an hour later, one of those in attendance
ceased to hear his breathing, and bending over him, found that
his soul had fled.

He retained a good deal of his strength through his illness, and
was able to get up from his bed, every day, with the assistance
of one person.

He will be buried in the Friends' grave-yard, corner of Fourth
and West Streets, on Saturday next, at three o'clock, P.M., and
in accordance with a written memorandum of an agreement made by
him a year ago with them, the colored people will bear him to
his grave, they having solicited of him that honor.

He was born of Quaker parents, in Upper Darby, Delaware county,
Pa., on the 21st of August, 1789, on a farm still in the
possession of the family. His father, though a farmer, had been
a scythe and edge-tool maker, and Thomas learned of him the
trade, and his knowledge of it afterwards proved of the utmost
advantage to him.

He grew up and married at Darby, his wife being Sarah Sharpless,
and in 1820 they came to Wilmington to live, bringing with them
several children, most of whom still live here.

Some years after his arrival here, his wife died, and in course
of time, he again married, his second wife being Rachel
Mendenhall, who died in April, 1868, beloved and regretted by
all who knew her.

His business career was one of vicissitude, but generally and
ultimately successful, for he made the whole of the comfortable
competence of which he died possessed, after he was sixty years
of age. While in the beginning of his business career, as an
iron merchant in this city, a wealthy rival house attempted to
crush him, by reducing prices of iron to cost, but Mr. Garrett,
nothing dismayed, employed another person to attend his store,
put on his leather apron, took to his anvil, and in the
prosecution of his trade, as an edge-tool maker, prepared to
support himself as long as this ruinous rivalry was kept up.
Thus in the sweat of the brow of one of the heroes and
philanthropists of this age, was laid the foundation of one of
the most extensive business houses that our city now boasts. His
competitor saw that no amount of rivalry could crush a man thus
self-supporting and gave up the effort.

Of course, Thomas Garrett is best known for his labors in behalf
of the abolition of Slavery, and as a practical and effective
worker for emancipation long before the nation commenced the
work of liberation and justice.

Born a Quaker, he held with simple trust, the faith of the
society that God moves and inspires men to do the work he
requires of their hands, and throughout his life he never
wavered in his conviction, that his Father had called him to
work in the cause to which he devoted himself.

His attention was first directed to the iniquity of Slavery,
while he was a young man of twenty-four or twenty five. He
returned one day to his father's house, after a brief absence,
and found the family dismayed and indignant at the kidnapping of
a colored woman in their employ.

Thomas immediately resolved to follow the kidnappers, and so
started in pursuit. Some peculiarity about the track made by
their wagon, enabled him to trace them with ease, and he
followed them by a devious course, from Darby, to a place near
the Navy Yard, in Philadelphia, and then by inquiries, etc.,
tracked them to Kensington, where he found them, and, we
believe, secured the woman's release.

During this ride, he afterwards assured his friends, he felt the
iniquity and abomination of the whole system of Slavery borne in
upon his mind so strongly, as to fairly appal him, and he seemed
to hear a voice within him, assuring him that his work in life
must be to help and defend this persecuted race.

From this time forward, he never failed to assist any fugitive
from Slavery on the way to freedom, and, of course, after his
removal to this city, his opportunities for this were greatly
increased, and in course of time, his house became known as one
of the refuges for fugitives. The sentiment of this community
was, at that time, bitterly averse to any word or effort against
Slavery, and Mr. Garrett had but half a dozen friends who stood
by him. Nearly all others looked at him with suspicion, or
positive aversion, and his house was constantly under the
surveillance of the police, who then, sad to say, were always on
the watch for any fugitives from bondage. Thomas was not
disheartened or dismayed by the lack of popular sympathy or
approval. He believed the Lord was on his side, and cared
nothing for the adverse opinion of men.

Many and interesting stories are told of the men and women he
helped away, some of them full of pathos, and some decidedly
amusing. He told the latter which related to his ingenious
contrivances for assisting fugitives to escape the police with
much pleasure, in his later years. We would repeat many of them,
but this is not the time or place. The necessity of avoiding the
police was the only thing, however, which ever forced him into
any secrecy in his operations, and in all other respects he was
"without concealment and without compromise" in his opposition
to Slavery. He was a man of unusual personal bravery, and of
powerful physique, and did not present an encouraging object for
the bullying intimidation by which the pro-slavery men of that
day generally overawed their opponents. He seems to have
scarcely known what fear was, and though irate slave-holders
often called on him to learn the whereabouts of their slaves, he
met them placidly, never denied having helped the fugitives on
their way, positively refused to give them any information, and
when they flourished pistols, or bowie-knives to enforce their
demands, he calmly pushed the weapons aside, and told them that
none but cowards resorted to such means to carry their ends.

He continued his labors, thus, for years, helping all who came
to him, and making no concealment of his readiness to do so. His
firmness and courage slowly won others, first to admire, and
then to assist him, and the little band of faithful workers, of
which he was chief, gradually enlarged and included in its
number, men of all ranks, and differing creeds, and, singular as
it may seem, even numbering some ardent Democrats in its ranks.
He has, in conversation with the present writer and others,
frequently acknowledged the valuable services of two Roman
Catholics, of Irish birth, still living in this city, who were
ever faithful to him, and will now be amongst those who most
earnestly mourn his decease.

His efforts, of course, brought him much persecution and
annoyance, but never culminated in anything really serious,
until about the year 1846 or '47.

He then met, at New Castle, a man, woman, and six children, from
down on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. The man was free, the
woman had, been a slave, and while in Slavery had had by her
husband, two children. She was then set free, and afterwards had
four children. The whole party ran away. They traveled several
days, and finally reached Middletown, late at night, where they
were taken in, fed and cared for, by John Hunn, a wealthy
Quaker, there. They were watched, however, by some persons in
that section, who followed them, arrested them, and sent them to
New Castle to jail. The sheriff and his daughter were
Anti-slavery people, and wrote to Mr. Garrett to come over. He
went over, had an interview, found from their statement, that
four of the party were undoubtedly free, and returned to this
city. On the following day, he and U.S. Senator Wales, went over
and had the party taken before Judge Booth, on a writ of _habeas
corpus_. Judge Booth decided that there was no evidence on which
to hold them, that in the absence of evidence the _presumption
was always in favor of freedom_ and discharged them.

Mr. Garrett then said, here is this woman with a babe at her
breast, the child suffering from a white swelling on its leg, is
there any impropriety in my getting a carriage and helping them
over to Wilmington? Judge Booth responded certainly not.

Mr. Garrett then hired the carriage, but gave the driver
distinctly to understand that he only paid for the woman and the
young children; the rest might walk. They all got in, however,
and finally escaped, of course the two children born in slavery
amongst the rest.

Six weeks afterwards the slave-holders followed them, and
incited, it is said, by the Cochrans and James A. Bayard,
commenced a suit against Mr. Garrett, claiming all the fugitives
as slaves. Mr. Garrett's friends claim that the jury was packed
to secure an adverse verdict. The trial came on before Chief
Justice Taney and Judge Hall, in the May term (1848) of the U.S.
Court, sitting at New Castle, Bayard representing the
prosecutors, and Wales the defendant. There were four trials in
all, lasting three days. We have not room here for the details
of the trial, but the juries awarded even heavier damages than
the plaintiffs claimed, and the judgments swept away every
dollar of his property.

When the trials were concluded, Mr. Garrett arose, the court
being adjourned, made a speech of an hour to the large crowd in
the court-room, in the course of which he declared his intention
to redouble his exertions, so help him God. His bold assertion
was greeted with mingled cheers and hisses, and at the
conclusion of his speech one of the jurors who had convicted him
strode across the benches, grasped his hand, and begged his
forgivenness.

Mr. Garrett kept his pledge and redoubled his exertions. The
trial advertised him, and such was the demand on him for
shelter, that he was compelled to put another story on his back
buildings. His friends helped him to start again in business,
and commencing anew in his sixtieth year with nothing, he again
amassed a handsome competence, generously contributing all the
while to every work in behalf of the down-trodden blacks or his
suffering fellow-men of any color.

In time the war came, and as he remarked, the nation went into
the business by the wholesale, so he quit his retail operations,
having, after he commenced to keep a record, helped off over
twenty-one hundred slaves, and no inconsiderable number before
that time.

In time, too, he came to be honored instead of execrated for his
noble efforts. Wilmington became an abolition city, and for
once, at least, a prophet was not without honor in his own city.
Mr. Garrett continued his interest in every reform up to his
last illness, and probably his last appearance in any public
capacity, was as president of a Woman Suffrage meeting, in the
City Hall, a few months ago, which was addressed by Julia Ward
Howe, Lucy Stone, and Henry B. Blackwell.

He lived to see the realization of his hopes for Universal
Freedom, and in April last on the occasion of the great parade
of the colored people in this city, he was carried through our
streets in an open barouche, surrounded by the men in whose
behalf he had labored so faithfully, and the guards around his
carriage carrying banners, with the inscription, "Our Moses."

A Moses he was to their race; but unto him it was given to enter
into the promised land toward which he had set his face
persistently and almost alone for more than half a century.

He was beloved almost to adoration by his dusky-hued friends,
and in the dark days of the beginning of the war, which every
Wilmingtonian will remember with a shudder, in those days of
doubt, confusion, and suspicion, without his knowledge or
consent, Thomas Garrett's house was constantly surrounded and
watched by faithful black men, resolved that, come weal come woe
to them, no harm should come to the benefactor of their race.

He was a hero in a life-time fight, an upright, honest man in
his dealings with men, a tender husband, a loving father, and
above all, a man who loved his neighbor as himself, and
righteousness and truth better than ease, safety, or worldly
goods, and who never let any fear of harm to person or property
sway him from doing his whole duty to the uttermost.

He was faithful among the faithless, upright and just in the
midst of a wicked and perverse generation, and lived to see his
labors rewarded and approved in his own life-time, and then with
joy that the Right had triumphed by mightier means than his own;
with thankfulness for the past, and with calm trust for the
future, he passed to the reward of the just. He has fought a
good fight, he has finished his course, he has kept the faith.

From the same paper, of January 30th, 1871, we extract an account of the funeral obsequies which took place on Saturday, January 28th.

FUNERAL SERVICE ON SATURDAY.

The funeral of Thomas Garrett, which took place on Saturday,
partook almost of the character of a popular ovation to the
memory of the deceased, though it was conducted with the
plainness of form which characterizes the society of which he
was a member.

There was no display, no organization, nothing whatever to
distinguish this from ordinary funerals, except the outpouring
of people of every creed, condition, and color, to follow the
remains to their last resting-place.

There was for an hour or two before the procession started, a
constant living stream of humanity passing into the house,
around the coffin, and out at another door, to take a last look
at the face of the deceased, the features of which displayed a
sweetness and serenity which occasioned general remark. A smile
seemed to play upon the dead lips.

Shortly after three o'clock the funeral procession started, the
plain coffin, containing the remains, being carried by the
stalwart arms of a delegation of colored men, and the family and
friends of the deceased following in carriages with a large
procession on foot, while the sidewalks along the line, from the
house to the meeting-house, more than six squares, were densely
crowded with spectators.

The Friends' Meeting House was already crowded, except the place
reserved for the relatives of the deceased, and, though probably
fifteen hundred people crowded into the capacious building, a
greater number still were unable to gain admission.

The crowd inside was composed of all kinds and conditions of
men, white and black, all uniting to do honor to the character
and works of the deceased.

The coffin was laid in the open space in front of the gallery of
ministers and elders, and the lid removed from it, after which
there was a period of silence.

Presently the venerable Lucretia Mott arose and said that,
seeing the gathering of the multitude there and thronging along
the streets, as she had passed on her way to the meeting-house,
she had thought of the multitude which gathered after the death
of Jesus, and of the remark of the Centurion, who, seeing the
people, said: "Certainly this was a righteous man." Looking at
this multitude she would say surely this also was a righteous
man. She was not one of those who thought it best always on
occasions like this, to speak in eulogy of the dead, but this
was not an ordinary case, and seeing the crowd that had
gathered, and amongst it the large numbers of a once despised
and persecuted race, for which the deceased had done so much,
she felt that it was fit and proper that the good deeds of this
man's life should be remembered, for the encouragement of
others. She spoke of her long acquaintance with him, of his
cheerful and sunny disposition, and his firm devotion to the
truth as he saw it.

Aaron M. Powell, of New York, was the next speaker, and he spoke
at length with great earnestness of the life-long labor of his
departed friend in the abolition cause, of his cheerfulness, his
courage, and his perfect consecration to his work.

He alluded to the fact, that deceased was a member of the
Society of Friends, and held firmly to its faith that God leads
and inspires men to do the work He requires of them, that He
speaks within the soul of every man, and that all men are
equally His children, subject to His guidance, and that all
should be free to follow wherever the Spirit might lead. It was
Thomas Garrett's recognition of this sentiment that made him an
abolitionist, and inspired him with the courage to pursue his
great work. He cared little for the minor details of Quakerism,
but he was a true Quaker in his devotion to this great central
idea which is the basis on which it rests. He urged the Society
to take a lesson from the deceased, and recognizing the
responsibility of their position, to labor with earnestness, and
to consecrate their whole beings to the cause of right and
reform. It is impossible for us to give any fair abstract of Mr.
Powell's earnest and eloquent tribute to his friend, on whom he
had looked, he said, as "a Father in Israel" from his boyhood.

William Howard Day, then came forward, saying, he understood
that it would not be considered inappropriate for one of his
race to say a few words on this occasion, and make some attempt
to pay a fitting tribute to one to whom they owed so much. He
did not feel to-day like paying such a tribute, his grief was
too fresh upon him, his heart too bowed down, and he could do no
more, than in behalf of his race, not only those here, but the
host the deceased has befriended, and of the whole four millions
to whom he had been so true a friend, cast a tribute of praise
and thanks upon his grave.

Rev. Alfred Cookman, of Grace M.E. Church, next arose, and said
that he came there intending to say nothing, but the scene moved
him to a few words. He remembered once standing in front of St.
Paul's Cathedral, in London, and seeing therein the name of the
architect, Sir Christopher Wren, inscribed, and under it this
inscription: "Stranger, if you would see his monument look about
you." And the thought came to him that if you would see the
monument of him who lies there, look about you and see it built
in stones of living hearts. He thanked God for the works of this
man; he thanked Him especially for his noble character. He said
that he felt that that body had been the temple of a noble
spirit, aye the temple of God himself, and some day they would
meet the spirit in the heavenly land beyond the grave.

Lucretia Mott arose, and said she feared the claim might appear
to be made that Quakerism alone held the great central principle
which dominated this man's life; but she wished it understood
that they recognized this "voice within" as leading and guiding
all men, and they probably meant by it much the same as those
differing from them meant by the Third person in their Trinity.
She did not wish, even in appearance, to claim a belief in this
voice for her own sect alone.

T. Clarkson Taylor then said, that the time for closing the
services had arrived, and in a very few words commended the
lesson of his life to those present, after which the meeting
dissolved, and the body was carried to the grave-yard in the
rear of the meeting-house, and deposited in its last
resting-place.

THE TRIAL OF THE CASES, 1848.

To the Editor of the Commercial:

Your admirable and interesting sketch of the career of the late
Thomas Garrett contains one or two statements, which, according
to my recollection of the facts, are not entirely accurate, and
are perhaps of sufficient importance to be corrected.

The proceedings in the U.S. Circuit Court were not public
prosecutions or indictments, but civil suits instituted by the
owners of the runaway slaves, who employed and paid counsel to
conduct them. An act of Congress, then in force, imposed a
penalty of five hundred dollars on any person who should
knowingly harbor or conceal a fugitive from labor, to be
recovered by and for the benefit of the claimant of such
fugitive, in any Court proper to try the same; saving, moreover,
to the claimant his right of action for or on account of loss,
etc.; thus giving to the slave-owner two cases for action for
each fugitive, one of debt for the penalty, and one of trespass
for damages.

There were in all seven slaves, only the husband and father of
the family being free, who escaped under the friendly help and
guidance of Mr. Garrett, five of whom were claimed by E.N.
Turner, and the remaining two by C.T. Glanding, both claimants
being residents of Maryland.

In the suits for the penalties, Turner obtained judgment for
twenty-five hundred dollars, and Glanding, one for one thousand
dollars. In these cases the jury could give neither less nor
more than the amount of the penalties, on the proper proof being
made. Nor in the trespass case did the jury give "larger damages
than were claimed." A jury sometimes does queer things, but it
cannot make a verdict for a greater sum than the plaintiff
demands; in the trespass cases, Glanding had a verdict for one
thousand dollars damages, but in Turner's case only nine hundred
dollars were allowed, though the plaintiff sued for twenty-five
hundred.

It is hardly true to say that any one of the juries was
_packed_, indeed, it would have been a difficult matter in that
day for the Marshal to summon thirty sober, honest, and
judicious men, fairly and impartially chosen from the three
counties of Delaware, who would have found verdicts different
from those which were rendered. The jury must have been fixed
for the defendant to have secured any other result, on the
supposition that the testimony admitted of any doubt or
question, the anti-slavery men in the state being like Virgil's
ship-wrecked mariners, very few in number and scattered over a
vast space.

What most redounds to the honor and praise of Mr. Garrett, in
this transaction, as a noble and disinterested philanthropist
is, that after the fugitives had been discharged from custody
under the writ of _habeas corpus_, and when he had been advised
by his lawyer, who was also his personal friend, to keep his
hands off and let the party work their own passage to a haven of
freedom, not then far distant, or he might be involved in
serious trouble, he deliberately refused to abandon them to the
danger of pursuit and capture. The welfare and happiness of too
many human beings were at stake to permit him to think of
personal consequences, and he was ready and dared to encounter
any risk for himself, so that he could insure the safety of
those fleeing from bondage. It was this heroic purpose to
protect the weak and helpless at any cost, this fearless
unselfish action, not stopping to weigh the contingencies of
individual gain or loss, that constitutes his best title to the
gratitude of those he served, and to the admiration and respect
of all who can appreciate independent conduct springing from
pure and lofty motives. He did what he thought and believed to
be right, and let the consequences take care of themselves. He
never would directly or otherwise, entice a slave to leave his
master; but he never would refuse his aid to the hunted, panting
wretch that in the pursuit of happiness was seeking after
liberty. And who among us is now bold enough to say, that in all
this he did not see clearly, act bravely, do justly, and live up
to the spirit of the sacred text:--"Whatsoever ye would that men
should do to you, do ye even so to them?"

W.

In a letter addressed to one of the sons, William Lloyd Garrison pays the following beautiful and just tribute to his faithfulness in the cause of freedom.

BOSTON, January 25th, 1871.

MY DEAR FRIEND:--I have received the intelligence of the death
of your honored and revered father, with profound emotions. If
it were not for the inclemency of the weather, and the delicate
state of my health, I would hasten to be at the funeral, long as
the distance is; not indeed as a mourner, for, in view of his
ripe old age, and singularly beneficent life, there is no cause
for sorrow, but to express the estimation in which I held him,
as one of the best men who ever walked the earth, and one of the
most beloved among my numerous friends and co-workers in the
cause of an oppressed and down-trodden race, now happily
rejoicing in their heavenly-wrought deliverance. For to no one
was the language of Job more strictly applicable than to
himself:--"When the ear heard me, then it blessed me, and when
the eye saw me, it gave witness to me; because I delivered the
poor that cried, and the fatherless, and him that had none to
help him. The blessing of him that was ready to perish came upon
me; and I caused the widow's heart to sing for joy. I put on
righteousness, and it clothed me; my judgment was as a robe and
a diadem. I was eyes to the blind, and feet was I to the lame. I
was a father to the poor; and the cause which I knew not I
searched out. And I brake the jaws of the wicked, and plucked
the spoil out of his teeth." This is an exact portraiture of
your father, a most comprehensive delineation of his character
as a philanthropist and reformer. It was his meat and drink.

"The poor to feed, the lost to seek,
To proffer life to death,
Hope to the erring, to the weak
The strength of his own faith.

"To plead the captive's right; remove
The sting of hate from law;
And soften in the fire of love
The hardened steel of war.

"He walked the dark world in the mild,
Still guidance of the light;
In tearful tenderness a child,
A strong man in the right."

Did there ever live one who had less of that "fear of man which
bringeth a snare," than himself? Or who combined more moral
courage with exceeding tenderness of spirit? Or who adhered more
heroically to his convictions of duty in the face of deadly
peril and certain suffering? Or who gave himself more
unreservedly, or with greater disinterestedness, to the service
of bleeding humanity? Or who took more joyfully the spoiling of
his goods as the penalty of his sympathy for the hunted
fugitive? Or who more untiringly kept pace with all the
progressive movements of the age, as though in the very
freshness of adult life, while venerable with years? Or who, as
a husband, father, friend, citizen, or neighbor, more nobly
performed all the duties, or more generally distributed all the
charities of life? He will leave a great void in the community.
Such a stalwart soul appears only at rare intervals. Delaware,
enslaved, treated him like a felon; Delaware, redeemed, will be
proud of his memory.

"Only the actions of the just
Smell sweet and blossom in the dust."

His rightful place is conspicuously among the benefactors,
saviours, martyrs of the human race.

His career was full of dramatic interest from beginning to end,
and crowded with the experiences and vicissitudes of a most
eventful nature. What he promised he fulfilled; what he
attempted, he seldom, or never failed to accomplish; what he
believed, he dared to proclaim upon the housetop; what he
ardently desired, and incessantly labored for, was the reign of
universal freedom, peace, and righteousness. He was among the
manliest of men, and the gentlest of spirits. There was no form
of human suffering that did not touch his heart; but his
abounding sympathy was especially drawn out towards the poor,
imbruted slaves of the plantation, and such of their number as
sought their freedom by flight. The thousands that passed safely
through his hands, on their way to Canada and the North, will
never forget his fatherly solicitude for their welfare, or the
dangers he unflinchingly encountered in their behalf. Stripped
of all his property under the Fugitive Slave law, for giving
them food, shelter, and assistance to continue their flight, he
knew not what it was to be intimidated or disheartened, but gave
himself to the same blessed work as though conscious of no loss.
Great-hearted philanthropist, what heroism could exceed thy own?

"For, while the jurist sitting with the slave-whip o'er him swung,
From the tortured truths of freedom the lie of slavery wrung,
And the solemn priest to Moloch, on each God-deserted shrine,
Broke the bondman's heart for bread, poured the bondman's blood
for wine--
While the multitude in blindness to a far-off Saviour knelt,
And spurned, the while, the temple where a present Saviour dwelt;
Thou beheld'st Him in the task-field, in the prison shadow dim,
And thy mercy to the bondman, it was mercy unto Him!"

I trust some one, well qualified to execute the pleasing task,
will write his biography for the grand lessons his life
inculcated. Yours, in full sympathy and trust,

WM. LLOYD GARRISON.

A contemporary who had known him long and intimately--who had appreciated his devotion to freedom, who had shared with him some of the perils consequent upon aiding the fleeing fugitives, and who belonged to the race with whom Garrett sympathized, and for whose elevation and freedom he labored so assiduously with an overflowing heart of tender regard and sympathy--penned the following words, touching the sad event:

CHATHAM, C.W., January 30, 1871.

To MR. HENRY GARRETT:--Dear Sir:--I have just heard, through the
kindness of my friend, Mrs. Graves, of the death of your dear
father; the intelligence makes me feel sad and sorrowful; I
sincerely sympathize with you and all your brothers and sisters,
in your mournful bereavement; but you do not mourn without hope,
for you have an assurance in his death that your loss is his
infinite gain. For he was a good Christian, a good husband, a
good father, a good citizen, and a truly good Samaritan, for his
heart, his hand and his purse, were ever open to the wants of
suffering humanity, wherever he found it; irrespective of the
country, religion, or complexion of the sufferer. Hence there
are many more who mourn his loss, as well as yourselves; and I
know, verily, that many a silent tear was shed by his
fellow-citizens, both white and colored, when he took his
departure; especially the colored ones; for he loved them with a
brother's love, not because they were colored, but because they
were oppressed, and, like John Brown, he loved them to the last;
that was manifest by his request that they should be his
bearers. I can better feel than I have language to express the
mournful and sorrowing pride that must have stirred the inmost
souls of those men of color, who had the honor conferred on them
of bearing his mortal remains to their last resting-place, when
they thought of what a sacred trust was committed to their
hands. We are told to mark the perfect man, and behold the
upright, for the end of that man is peace; and such was the end
of your dear father, and he has gone to join the innumerable
company of the spirits of the just, made perfect on the other
side of the river, where there is a rest remaining for all the
children of God. My brother, Abraham D. Shadd, and my sister
Amelia, join their love and condolence with mine to you all,
hoping that the virtues of your father may be a guiding star to
you all, until you meet him again in that happy place, where
parting will be no more, forever.

Your humble friend, ELIZABETH J. WILLIAMS.

From the learned and the unlearned, from those in high places and from those in humble stations, many testimonials reached the family, respecting this great friend of the slave, but it is doubtful, whether a single epistle from any one, was more affectingly appreciated by the bereaved family, than the epistle just quoted from Elizabeth J. Williams.

The Slave's most eloquent advocate, Wendell Phillips, in the "National Standard," of February 4, 1871, in honor of the departed, bore the following pertinent testimony to his great worth in the cause of Liberty.

"I should not dare to trust my memory for the number of fugitive
slaves this brave old friend has helped to safety and
freedom--nearly three thousand, I believe. What a rich life to
look back on! How skilful and adroit he was, in eluding the
hunters! How patient in waiting days and weeks, keeping the poor
fugitives hidden meanwhile, till it was safe to venture on the
highway! What whole-hearted devotion, what unselfish giving of
time, means, and everything else to this work of brotherly love!
What house in Delaware, so honorable in history, as that where
hunted men fled, and were sure to find refuge. It was the North
Star to many a fainting heart. This century has grand scenes to
show and boast of among its fellows. But few transcend that
auction-block where the sheriff was selling all Garrett's goods
for the crime (!) of giving a breakfast to a family of fugitive
slaves. As the sale closed, the officer turns to Garrett,
saying: 'Thomas, I hope you'll never be caught at this again.'

"'Friend,' was the reply, 'I haven't a dollar in the world, but
if thee knows a fugitive who needs a breakfast, send him to me.'

"Over such a scene, Luther and Howard and Clarkson clapped their
hands.

"Such a speech redeems the long infamy of the State. It is
endurable, the having of such a blot as Delaware in our history,
when it has once been the home of such a man. I remember well
the just pride with which he told me, that after that sale,
pro-slavery as Wilmington was, he could have a discount at the
bank as readily as any man in the city. Though the laws robbed
him, his fellow-citizens could not but respect and trust him,
love and honor him.

"The city has never had, we believe, a man die in it worthy of a
statue. We advise it to seize this opportunity to honor itself
and perpetuate the good name of its worthiest citizen, by
immortalizing some street, spot, shaft or building with his
name.

"Brave, generous, high-souled, sturdy, outspoken friend of all
that needed aid or sympathy, farewell for these scenes! In times
to come, when friendless men and hated ideas need champions, God
grant them as gallant and successful ones as you have been, and
may the State you honored grow worthy of you. WENDELL PHILLIPS."

Likewise in the "National Standard," the editor, Aaron M. Powell, who attended the funeral, paid the following glowing tribute to the moral, religious, and anti-slavery character of the slave's friend:

On the 24th inst., Thomas Garrett, in his eighty-second year,
passed on to the higher life. A week previous we had visited him
in his sick chamber, and, on leaving him felt that he must go
hence ere long. He was the same strong, resolute man in spirit
to the last. He looked forward to the welcome change with
perfect serenity and peace of mind. And well he might, for he
had indeed fought the good fight and been faithful unto the end.

He was most widely known for his services to fugitive slaves.
Twenty-five hundred and forty-five he had preserved a record of;
and he had assisted somewhat more than two hundred prior to the
commencement of the record. Picture to the mind's eye this
remarkable procession of nearly three thousand men, women and
children fleeing from Slavery, and finding in this brave,
large-hearted man, a friend equal to their needs in so critical
an emergency! No wonder he was feared by the slave-holders, not
alone of his own State, but of the whole South. If their human
chattels once reached his outpost, there was indeed little hope
of their reclamation. The friend and helper of fugitives from
Slavery, truly their Moses, he was more than this, he was the
discriminating, outspoken, uncompromising opponent of Slavery
itself. He was one of the strongest pillars and one of the most
efficient working-members of the American Anti-slavery Society.
He was an abolitionist of the most radical and pronounced
character, though a resident of a slave State, and through all
the period wherein to be an abolitionist was to put in jeopardy,
not only reputation and property, but life itself. Though he
rarely addressed public meetings, his presence imparted much
strength to others, was "weighty" in the best Quaker sense. He
was of the rare type of character, represented by Francis
Jackson and James Mott.

Thomas Garrett was a member of the Society of Friends, and as
such, served by the striking contrast of his own life and
character, with the average of the Society, to exemplify to the
world the real, genuine Quakerism. It is not at all to the
credit of his fellow-members, that it must be said of them, that
when he was bearing the cross and doing the work for which he is
now so universally honored, they, many of them, were not only
not in sympathy with him, but would undoubtedly, if they had had
the requisite vitality and courage, have cut him off from their
denominational fellowship. He was a sincere, earnest believer in
the cardinal point of Quakerism, the Divine presence in the
human soul--this furnishes the key to his action through life.
This divine attribute he regarded not as the birth-right of
Friends alone, not of one race, sex or class, but of all
mankind. Therefore was he an abolitionist; therefore was he
interested in the cause of the Indians; therefore was he
enlisted in the cause of equal rights for women; therefore was
he a friend of temperance, of oppressed and needy working-men
and women, world-wide in the scope of his philanthropic
sympathy, and broadly catholic, and comprehensive in his views
of religious life and duty. He was the soul of honor in
business. His experience, when deprived at sixty, of every
dollar of his property for having obeyed God rather than man, in
assisting fugitives from Slavery, and the promptness with which
his friends came forward with proffered co-operation, furnishes
a lesson which all should ponder well. He had little respect
for, or patience with shams of any kind, in religious, political
or social life.

As we looked upon Thomas Garrett's calm, serene face, mature in
a ripe old age, still shadowing forth kindliness of heart,
firmness of purpose, discriminating intelligence, conscientious,
manly uprightness, death never seemed more beautiful:

"Why, what is Death but Life
In other forms of being? Life without
The coarser attributes of men, the dull
And momently decaying frame which holds
The ethereal spirit in, and binds it down
To brotherhood with brutes! There's no
Such thing as Death; what's so-called is but
The beginning of a new existence, a fresh
Segment of the eternal round of change."

A.M.P.

Another warm admirer of this Great Lover of humanity, in a letter to George W. Stone thus alludes to his life and death:

TAUNTON, MASS., June 25th, 1871.

DEAR STONE:--Your telegram announcing the death of that old
soldier and saint, and my good friend, Thos. Garrett, reached me
last evening at ten o'clock.

My first impulse was to start for Wilmington, and be present at
his funeral; but when I considered my work here, and my
engagements for the next four days, I found it impossible to go.

I will be there in spirit, and bow my inmost soul before the All
Loving One, his Father and ours, in humble thankfulness, that I
ever knew him, and had the privilege of enjoying his friendship
and witnessing his devotion, to the interest of every good cause
of benevolence and Reform.

I could write you many things of interest which I heard from
him, and which I have noted on my memory and heart; but I cannot
now. I think he was one of the remarkable men of the times, in
faith, in holy boldness, in fearless devotion to the right, in
uncompromising integrity, in unselfish benevolence, in love to
God and man, and in unceasing, life-long efforts to do justly,
to love mercy, and to walk humbly with God. We shall not soon
look upon his like again.

If I was present at his funeral, I should take it as a privilege
to pronounce his name, and say, as I never said before, "Blessed
are the dead that die in the Lord; even so saith the Spirit; for
they rest from their labors, and their works do follow them."

Do, at once, see his children and Clarkson Taylor, and give them
my condolence, no, my _congratulation_, and assure them that
they have a rich legacy in his noble life, and he has a glorious
reward in the bosom of God.

Peace to his memory! Noble old man, so pure and peaceful, and
yet so strong, firm, and fearless, so gentle, tender, and
truthful, afraid and ashamed of nothing but sin, and in love and
labor with every good work.

I could write on and fill many pages. But he desired no eulogy,
and needs none. He lives, and will live for ever in many hearts
and in the heaven of heavens above.

T. ISRAEL.

If it were necessary we might continue to introduce scores of editorials, communications, epistles, etc., all breathing a similar spirit of respect for the rare worth of this wonderful man, but space forbids. In conclusion, therefore, with a view of presenting him in the light of his own interesting letters, written when absorbed in his peculiar work, from a large number on file the following are submitted:

WILMINGTON, 11th mo. 21st, 1855.

ESTEEMED FRIEND, WM. STILL:--Thine of this date, inquiring for
the twenty-one, and how they have been disposed of, has just
been received. I can only answer by saying, when I parted with
them yesterday forenoon, I gave the wife of the person, in whose
house they were, money to pay her expenses to Philadelphia and
back in the cars to pilot the four women to thy place. I gave
her husband money to pay a pilot to start yesterday with the ten
men, divided in two gangs; also a letter for thee. I hope they
have arrived safe ere this. I had to leave town soon after noon
yesterday to attend a brother ill with an attack of apoplexy,
and to-day I have been very much engaged. The place they stayed
here is a considerable distance off. I will make inquiry
to-morrow morning, and in case any other disposition has been
made of them than the above I will write thee. I should think
they have stopped to-day, in consequence of the rain, and most
likely will arrive safe to-morrow. In haste, thy friend,

THOS. GARRETT.

Although having "to attend a brother, ill with an attack of apoplexy," Garrett took time to attend to the interest of the "twenty-one," as the above letter indicates. How many other men in the United States, under similar circumstances, would have been thus faithful?

On another occasion deeply concerned for A FORWARDER OF SLAVES, he wrote thus:

WILMINGTON, 12th mo. 26th, 1855.