Escape Plan and Capture
The organizers intended for the ship to sail 100 miles down the Potomac River, then 125 miles north up the Chesapeake Bay to freedom in New Jersey, a free state. But, the wind was against the schooner, so the ship had to anchor for the night. The next morning, numerous slaveholders realized their slaves were missing and sent out an armed posse of 35 men by one slaveholder's steamboat.
Drayton described the capture in his later memoir:
"A Mr. Dodge, of Georgetown, a wealthy old gentleman, originally from New England, missed three or four slaves from his family, and a small steamboat, of which he was the proprietor, was readily obtained. Thirty-five men, including a son or two of old Dodge, and several of those whose slaves were missing, volunteered to man her; and they set out about Sunday noon."
The party on The Salem found The Pearl on Monday morning near Point Lookout in Maryland; they took the slaves and ship back to Washington.
Read more about this topic: Pearl Incident
Famous quotes containing the words escape, plan and/or capture:
“To predict the behavior of ordinary people in advance, you only have to assume that they will always try to escape a disagreeable situation with the smallest possible expenditure of intelligence.”
—Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900)
“As I write, there is a craze for what is called psychoanalysis, or the cure of diseases by explaining to the patient what is the matter with him: an excellent plan if you happen to know what is the matter with him, especially when the explanation is that there is nothing the matter with him.”
—George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950)
“Because the young child feels with such intensity, he experiences sorrows that seem inconsolable and losses that feel unbearable. A precious toy gets broken or a good-bye cannot be endured. When this happens, words like “sad” or “disappointed” seem a travesty because they cannot possibly capture the enormity of the child’s loss. He needs a loving adult presence to support him in his pain but he does not want to be talked out of it.”
—Alicia F. Lieberman (20th century)