We had now reached the wild lands of Mr. Eldret， where he contemplated clearing up an extensive plantation. Wewent to work next morning with our cane-knives， andcleared a sufficient space to allow the erection of twocabins—one for Myers and Eldret， the other for Sam，myself， and the slaves that were to join us. We were nowin the midst of trees of enormous growth， whose widespreadingbranches almost shut out the light of the sun，while the space between the trunks was an imperviousmass of cane， with here and there an occasional palmetto.
The bay and the sycamore， the oak and the cypress，reach a growth unparalleled， in those fertile lowlandsbordering the Red River. From every tree， moreover，hang long， large masses of moss， presenting to theeye unaccustomed to them， a striking and singularappearance. This moss， in large quantities， is sent north，and there used for manufacturing purposes.
We cut down oaks， split them into rails， and with theseerected temporary cabins. We covered the roofs with thebroad palmetto leaf， an excellent substitute for shingles，as long as they last.
The greatest annoyance I met with here were smallflies， gnats and mosquitoes. They swarmed the air. Theypenetrated the porches of the ear， the nose， the eyes， themouth. They sucked themselves beneath the skin. It wasimpossible to brush or beat them off. It seemed， indeed，as if they would devour us—carry us away piecemeal， intheir small tormenting mouths.
A lonelier spot， or one more disagreeable， than the centre of the “Big Cane Brake，” it would be difficult toconceive； yet to me it was a paradise， in comparisonwith any other place in the company of Master Tibeats. Ilabored hard， and oft-times was weary and fatigued， yet Icould lie down at night in peace， and arise in the morningwithout fear.
In the course of a fortnight， four black girls came downfrom Eldret’s plantation—Charlotte， Fanny， Cresia andNelly. They were all large and stout. Axes were put intotheir hands， and they were sent out with Sam and myselfto cut trees. They were excellent choppers， the largestoak or sycamore standing but a brief season before theirheavy and well-directed blows. At piling logs， they wereequal to any man. There are lumberwomen as well aslumbermen in the forests of the South. In fact， in theregion of the Bayou Boeuf they perform their share ofall the labor required on the plantation. They plough，drag， drive team， clear wild lands， work on the highway，and so forth. Some planters， owning large cotton andsugar plantations， have none other than the labor ofslave women. Such an one is Jim Burns， who lives on thenorth shore of the bayou， opposite the plantation of JohnFogaman.
On our arrival in the brake， Eldret promised me， if Iworked well， I might go up to visit my friends at Ford’sin four weeks. On Saturday night of the fifth week， Ireminded him of his promise， when he told me I haddone so well， that I might go. I had set my heart upon it， and Eldret’s announcement thrilled me with pleasure. Iwas to return in time to commence the labors of the dayon Tuesday morning.
While indulging the pleasant anticipation of so soonmeeting my old friends again， suddenly the hateful formof Tibeats appeared among us. He inquired how Myersand Platt got along together， and was told， very well，and that Platt was going up to Ford’s plantation in themorning on a visit.
“Poh， poh！” sneered Tibeats； “it isn’t worth while —thenigger will get unsteady. He can’t go.”
But Eldret insisted I had worked faithfully—that he hadgiven me his promise， and that， under the circumstances，I ought not to be disappointed. They then， it being aboutdark， entered one cabin and I the other. I could notgive up the idea of going； it was a sore disappointment.
Before morning I resolved， if Eldret made no objection，to leave at all hazards. At daylight I was at his door， withmy blanket rolled up into a bundle， and hanging on astick over my shoulder， waiting for a pass. Tibeats cameout presently in one of his disagreeable moods， washedhis face， and going to a stump near by， sat down upon it，apparently busily thinking with himself After standingthere a long time， impelled by a sudden impulse ofimpatience， I started off.
“Are you going without a pass？” he cried out to me.
“Yes， master， I thought I would，” I answered.
“How do you think you’ll get there？” demanded he.
“Don’t know，” was all the reply I made him.
“You’d be taken and sent to jail， where you ought tobe， before you got half-way there，” he added， passing intothe cabin as he said it. He came out soon with the passin his hand， and calling me a “d—d nigger that deserveda hundred lashes，” threw it on the ground. I picked it up，and hurried away right speedily.
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