Due North to Freedom

by Terence O'Grady

  Chapter Five: Mr. Smith Arrested!

  The next day, Ryan and Matthew walked swiftly past Main Street, following Joseph who broke into a trot from time to time. As they continued, they encountered fewer of the neatly gabled houses and shops that crowded the middle of Richmond and more and more large buildings—mostly old warehouses, some of them abandoned and falling apart.

  “How much longer?” yelled Matthew to Joseph, who was still twenty yards ahead of him.

  “About ten minutes, but we’ve got to hurry,” answered Joseph over his shoulder without breaking pace.

  As the boys started trotting again to keep up with Joseph, Matthew turned to Ryan. “I’ve never been this far out of the city, have you?”

  “No, I think we’re headed to Shanty Town. I guess that’s where Mr. Smith and Joseph live,” answered his brother quietly.

  “Shanty Town? Didn’t mother tell us to stay away from Shanty Town?”

  “Yes, she did. But we’re close now and I think we’ll be fine as long as we’re with Joseph. Besides, Joseph said that he has to tell us something important. I think we’d better hear him out.”

  The three boys finally arrived at a small house—barely more than a shack—on the outer edge of a block of similar buildings.

  “In here. I’m pretty sure my father is home,” said Joseph, holding open a rickety door.

  “Joseph, is that you?” came his father’s voice from inside the little house.

  Mr. Robert Smith came striding out of a back room. “I’m glad to see you, son. Oh! I see we have visitors,” he said, nodding in the direction of Ryan and Matthew as they walked slowly through the door.

  “Pa, these are my friends, Ryan and Matthew O’Toole,” said Joseph.

  “O’Toole? Yes, I believe I’ve met your father. A fine man. Well, sit down, all of you. I’ll see if I can rustle you up something to eat.”

  Ryan and Matthew gazed around them. The Smith’s home seemed solid, but very small and simple. There were just three chairs around a plain pine kitchen table and Mr. Smith gestured the brothers into two of them while he remained standing.

  “Better stick closer to home, Joseph. I’m not sure how safe it is for either of us to go wandering around Richmond these days,” Mr. Smith said, a concerned expression on his face.

  “What do you mean, sir?” asked Ryan.

  “Well, the good people of Richmond are getting a bit nervous lately,” he said, a slight smile crossing his face. “The war’s been going badly—at least for them.”

  “Do you think the Yankees are going to take Richmond, Sir? Are they going to burn it the ground and slaughter everybody?” asked Matthew, his eyes widening.

  “Don’t believe everything you hear, young man,” Mr. Smith chuckled. “I have no doubt the Yankees are going to take Richmond eventually, but they’re not quite the demons that some of the good people of Richmond make them out to be.”

  “Do you want them to take Richmond, Mr. Smith?” asked Matthew.

  “Of course I do, although I’m not looking for any more bloodshed. There’s been enough of that already.”

  “But you’re a free man, Mr. Smith, you could leave anytime you wanted to,” said Ryan.

  “I’m a free man? What you mean is, I’m not a slave. Nobody owns me the way they owned my mother and father. But am I a free man? I don’t think so.”

  “I don’t understand, Mr. Smith,” said Matthew. “Isn’t a free black man just like anyone else?”

  Joseph sneered. “You know that’s not true, Matthew. You’re my friend, Matthew, and I’m proud of that. But you just don’t understand about this.”

  “Joseph is right,” Mr. Smith said. “Being a free black and being a regular citizen isn’t the same thing. Did you know, Matthew, that a Negro can’t walk down the street with a cigar in Richmond? Slave or freeman, it doesn’t matter. I can’t walk down the street with a cigar in my mouth. I can’t be caught walking on the grounds of the capitol building. I’ve got a good job, I’m lucky to have it. But I can’t hire a carriage without permission of my “master”—never mind that I don’t have a master, so I’ve got no one to get permission from. Did you know that five black men can’t meet together outside of a church without getting arrested?”

  “But why do you put up with it?” demanded Ryan. “Why don’t you complain to the Mayor or the City Council?”

  “They’re the ones doing it! They’re the ones that passed all the laws!” groaned Mr. Smith.

  “But can’t you fight back somehow?” asked Matthew.

  “You don’t understand,” sighed Mr. Smith. “No black man can stand up to the City Council. Doesn’t matter if he’s a freeman. Listen, a few months ago a bunch of free blacks were rounded up and informed that they were going to go out and dig trenches around the city…trenches for the soldiers to fight from. These men were simply told they were going to do this. They weren’t asked—they were told. Now, you can say that it’s not slavery, because each man was promised he’d get paid just like an army private. But are any of Richmond’s white citizens being forced into service to dig ditches? Only the black man has that particular honor.”

  “Did the free black men do it?” asked Ryan. “Did they go and dig those ditches?”

  “Sure, they did it! What else are they going to do? They gave a cheer for old Robert E. Lee when he came to oversee their work. What else can they do? Is there anybody who thinks a black man who refuses to dig ditches for the Confederacy won’t end up in jail or worse?”

  “Did you have to dig ditches?” asked Matthew.

  “No, I was fortunate. Since I work at the post office, they figured they should let me be. But most black men were not so lucky.”

  “Is there anything you can do about it?” asked Ryan.

  “There’s not a lot I can do, not if we stay in Richmond. And that’s why we’re fixin’ to leave. Joseph and I are going to hightail it out of here as soon as possible.”

  “Leave Richmond?” said Matthew, his eyes widening as he looked quickly from Mr. Smith to Joseph. “Where will you go?”

  “Up north. If we can get through to the Yankee lines, we should be all right.”

  “You could go to Boston,” said Ryan encouragingly. “That’s where we were from—before we came to Richmond.”

  “I don’t know exactly where we’ll go. I just know I’ve got to find a place for Joseph and me, a place where we’ll really be free. I know life won’t be perfect in the North. The Yankees don’t always look too kindly on black men either. Still, I’ve made up my mind.”

  “But you said the Yankees are going to take Richmond,” said Matthew. “Can’t you just wait until that happens?”

  “The Yankees will take Richmond,” replied Mr. Smith. “But before they do, things could get real bad around here. There’s talk that some people want to put rifles in the hands of black men and force them to fight the Yankees. That’s not going to stop the Yankees but it sure could get a lot of black folk killed.”

  “How do you plan to do it?” asked Ryan. “How are you going to get through to the Yankee lines? There are Confederate soldiers everywhere you look in Richmond.”

  “If you mean, can we just get in a carriage and drive through the Confederate lines with them waving goodbye to us?” chuckled Mr. Smith. “No sir. I’ve heard that some black men have escaped by stowing away on some of the river traffic on the James and then up the Chesapeake Bay. Others have made it by going up the road to Port Royal on the Rappahannock and then on to the north. But it’s not safe to go by the river anymore and I think the road to Port Royal is patrolled every night now. No, it’s not going to be easy. We’re going to have to sneak through the Confederate defenses. I think I found a guide, though. He’s a smuggler—sells contraband to the Rebels and the Yankees. He says he knows just how to get through the Confederate lines. Says he’ll take us through the lines himself, for a fee of course.”

  “Pa says we got to go at night,” Joseph said excitedly. “He says we�
�re going to need some disguises—maybe cloaks. I was hoping that maybe you two could help us out there—help us find some old cloaks to wear.”

  Ryan thought for a few seconds, his eyes meeting Joseph’s. “We’ll do what we can. I think we can come up with something.”

  Matthew chimed in quickly. “Sure, we can help you out. I know we can.”

  “I’m sorry to have to ask you boys to do this,” said Mr. Smith, his face darkening. “But Joseph here says you’ve both been a good friend to him and there’s nobody else we can turn to. We really would appreciate the help. But you’ve got to remember to tell no one about this. This is a risky business. If we’re caught trying to escape, we’ll get thrown into prison, even Joseph. We may even get shot on the spot. And the army isn’t going to be happy to see a couple of white boys helping two black men to escape.”

  “We understand there’s a risk,” said Ryan firmly, “and we’re willing to help.”

  “I appreciate it young…”

  At that instant, Mr. Smith was interrupted by a loud, thumping sound.

  “We know you’re in there, Smith!” yelled an angry voice outside the front door. “You get out here right now or you’ll live to regret it!”

  “Joseph! Boys! Out the back way, quickly!” Mr. Smith leapt to his feet and gestured toward the back room urgently. “Quickly! There’s no time to lose!”

  “Father! Who is it? Who are those men pounding at the door?” gasped Joseph, rising quickly to his feet. Ryan looked over to Matthew, urging him to his feet.

  “Detectives! Or worse! We’ve been betrayed! Get out of here now—get down to the dock. I’ll meet you there as soon as I can. Now go—right now!”

  Ryan grabbed Matthew by the arm, pulling him along. “Where’s the back door, Joseph? We’ve got to leave now.”

  “Through that door—there’s a window that leads out to the alley from the bedroom. But I can’t…”

  “You’ve got to! We’ve all got to get out of here!”

  Joseph looked back yearningly at his father. “Now! Now!” shouted his father.

  The pounding started again. “Come out of there—both of you! Right now or there’ll be the devil to pay!” demanded the outraged voice. Men began throwing their shoulders against the door, trying to break it down.

  Ryan charged through the door to the back room, Joseph and his brother right behind. Ryan went quickly to the window as the noise behind him got steadily worse. He tugged at the old window. It stuck for a moment—Joseph joined him and the two of them managed to heave it open. “You first, Matthew!” Ryan barked, pushing his brother toward the open window. Matthew squeezed through quickly and Joseph went next. Ryan could hear the front door cracking in back of him and the bellowing of the angry men. “You’ll be sorry, Smith!” screamed a high-pitched voice, crazed with anger. Ryan paused for a split second to listen. “You get out of my house,” yelled a voice that Ryan knew must be Mr. Smith’s. Then Ryan slipped quickly out the window.

  Matthew and Joseph stood there, panic in their eyes.

  “OK, we’ve got to move fast!” said Ryan.

  Suddenly, the three boys heard the sharp report of a pistol. They froze. Joseph moved back toward the window.

  “No!” yelled Ryan. “He said he’d meet us by the dock! We’ve got to do what he said!” Ryan grabbed Joseph’s shoulder and pushed him down the alleyway. Suddenly, there was another voice—closer by. “The kid’s gone! He must have escaped out the back! You go round and catch him!” They heard footsteps coming toward them quickly.

  “Quick! Go the other way!” cried Ryan, gesturing toward the other way down the alley. Ryan and Matthew started running with Joseph holding back briefly. “He said to get out of here—we’ve got to clear out!” demanded Ryan, back pedaling for an instant. Joseph shook his head, tears forming in his eyes. Then he ran after Ryan and Matthew.

  The boys weaved their way quickly through dark back alleys and narrow streets. “Joseph, I’m lost! How do we get out of this maze?” Ryan yelled over his shoulder, slowing down for a couple of seconds.

  “Follow me!” bellowed Joseph. “I know the fastest way down to the docks!” Joseph veered down an alleyway to their left and the boys followed.

  “There they are! After them!” Matthew glanced back to see two older men coming after them with surprising speed.

  “We’ve got to keep to the alleys!” Joseph spoke in a quieter but still urgent tone. “If we can’t outrun them, we’re going to have to shake them.” Joseph veered again to the left, the boys following a few paces behind.

  “Circle around!” yelled one of the two men in pursuit. “I’ll go this way and flush them out!”

  Matthew, slowing down to peer over his shoulder at his pursuer, started to fall behind. Ryan looked back and yelled for him to keep up. Turning his head one last time to look, Matthew tumbled over a barrel sitting near the edge of a building, hitting the ground hard. Hearing the sound, Ryan spun around quickly. Matthew was sprawled on the ground, fighting to get his breath back. “Oh, no!” shouted Ryan. “Get up! Quick!” Ryan then turned to Joseph, now several yards ahead of the boys. “Go ahead, Joseph! Don’t wait for us!”

  “I’m not going anywhere without you!” insisted Joseph, running back to help with Matthew. Ryan and Joseph quickly got Matthew to his feet. Each boy grabbed one of Matthew’s shoulders and almost lifted him from the ground. In an instant they were flying down the alley once more.

  “Quick! Over here!” hissed Joseph, turning the boys sharply to the left into a darkened alley. The boys followed, but stopped quickly after a few steps. Straight ahead was the wall of a small, tumbledown shanty. There was no exit! “Back! Back!” screamed Joseph. But it was too late. He could hear from the excited yells of the two men pursuing them that they were only yards away in a nearby alley.

  Standing there for seconds that seemed like hours, Matthew glimpsed out of the corner of his eye the back door of one of the buildings that opened into the alley. Although it was almost completely dark now, he had a feeling that the door was not tightly closed. “In here! Quick!” he ordered. He slammed his shoulder against the door and it opened easily. In a flash, the boys were inside what turned out to be a small warehouse that was almost completely black. Ryan quickly turned to close the door behind him. But it kept sticking and refused to shut tightly. “We’ve got to hide somewhere in here!”

  “Those kids must have gone down here!” They could hear the voice of one of the men clearly. Soon the other arrived. “Down here? Are you sure?”

  “Must have. No other place they could have gone. There’ll be here all right.”

  The three boys felt their way quietly through the darkness. There were dozens of barrels everywhere. Most seemed to be empty.

  “Well, it’s a dead end,” said one of the men. “Maybe they went through that door.”

  Ryan gulped. “Inside! Get inside these barrels!” The boys quickly found three barrels that seemed empty and crawled inside, ducking down as far as they could.

  The backdoor creaked as the two men kicked it open. Afraid to raise their heads, the three boys could only listen as the two men made their way slowly into the room. Suddenly, the boys could hear the angry, low-pitched snarling of a large dog. Seeing a large black dog come at them, his teeth bared menacingly, the two men backed up to the door.

  “Where did that thing come from?”

  “I don’t know—guess it’s some sort of guard dog.”

  “Well, I don’t want any vicious dog at my throat. Let’s get out of here.”

  “How about the Smith boy and those other two kids? They told us to catch them no matter what.”

  “Those kids ain’t here. That dog would have torn them apart if they’d come in here. They must have turned down one of those other alleyways. We’ll just have to come back to his house and pick the Smith kid up later. He’ll probably be hanging around his house later tonight. What else is he going to do when he realizes his father’s gone?”

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nbsp; The two men backed out the door carefully with their eye on the snarling dog. Then they turned and trotted down the alley.

  After about ten minutes, Ryan poked his head up from inside the barrel. He could not hear the dog. Maybe it had gone back to sleep. He climbed slowly out of the barrel. Glancing around the room, he saw nothing. “I think it’s OK. You can come out,” he whispered to Matthew and Joseph.

  The two boys crawled carefully out of their barrels. Suddenly the dog emerged from the darkness. All three boys gasped and took a step backwards. But the dog just wagged its tail, turned around, and lay down on some hay piled up over in the corner.

  All three boys breathed an audible sigh of relief.

  “Let’s get out of here before they come back,” said Matthew. “And whatever you do, Joseph, don’t go back to your house.”