December 21, 1861

I was down on the wharf one day.  I again heard 
that word abolitionist.  The connections in which 
the word was used made the word interesting to me.  
I wanted to know what it meant.  It took some time 
but I finally learned what it meant.  An 
abolitionist was antislavery.  They believed that 
slavery was incompatible with the rights of man.  
These people wanted to help slaves become free.  

Maybe these two Irishmen unloading that boat were 
abolitionists.  I wasn’t asked but I began helping 
them.  When we were finished one of them came up 
to me and asked if I was a slave.  I told him I 
was.  He asked if I was a slave for life.  I 
replied I was.  The Irishmen seemed affected by my 
revelation.  He told the other one it was a shame 
that a fine fellow like me should be held a slave.  
They both urged me to run away to the North; that 
I should find some friends there.  I pretended not 
to be interested in what they were saying, acted 
like I didn’t understand what they were saying.  
White men have been known to encourage slaves to 
run away then catch them and return them to their 
masters for the reward.  I was afraid these two 
might be two of those men, yet I remembered their 
advice and vowed to run away.