"You robbed good men of their property," shouted the hangman.
"You also endangered the financial security of their families, each time you stole their niggers and set them free in the North.
"Do you have any last words before you die for your crimes?"
"I do," Benjamin replied, loud enough for everyone to hear. "I acted to serve God, the creator of all mankind, Negro and white."
"I'm thankful I did it and would have done it again if I hadn't been betrayed by a close friend."
For an instant, Benjamin was silent as the crowd screamed for his blood.
"But wait," he suddenly called out. "There's one more thing I want to say."
"May God save your souls and have mercy on each of you who sought my blood in vengeance for helping slaves."
He then took a deep breath and added. "I don't know how you can call yourselves Christians."
"That's enough," yelled the hangman, and an instant later he performed his grisly task, as the crowd cheered.
No-one understood why Benjamin had suddenly blurted out those last words after having been silent.
What they didn't know was that from the gallows,the tallest place in this flat land, Benjamin had seen a band of slaves fleeing for freedom.
He knew if he could hold the crowd's attention for an instant more, those slaves would make it safely into a thick grove of pine trees, and out of sight to those who would pursue them.
"It is my final act of service," he thought to himself, as he took his last breath.
Dick
No comments:
Post a Comment