We ran to the windows. In an open carriage, with two official attendants, surrounded by a mounted guard and clad in the uniform of a Danish general, the aged¹ governor came. On his breast were the insignia of the order of Dannebrog. His cavalcade² could hardly make its way, and when one of the crowd made bold to seize the horses' reins³ the equipage, just before our house, stopped. The governor sat still, very pale.  
Suddenly he rose, uncovered, and with graceful⁵ dignity bowed. Then he unfolded a paper with large seals attached, and in a trembling but clear voice began to read. In the name and by the authority of his Majesty⁶ Christian⁷ VIII, King of Denmark, he proclaimed freedom to every slave in the Danish West Indies.
 
Our cries of dismay were drowned in the huzzas of the black mob: "Free! Free! God bless de gub'nor! Obbe is free!"
 
The retinue⁸ moved again; but the crowd, ignoring the command to disperse⁹ to their homes, surged after it in transports of rejoicing. At the fort the proclamation, with the order to disperse, was read again. But the mob, suddenly granted all its demands, could not instantly return to quiet toils¹⁰ made odious¹¹ by slavery. Mad with joy and drink, it broke into small companies, some content to stay in town carousing¹², others roaming out among the island estates to pillage¹³ and burn. Here the governor, in failing to employ prompt measures of police, proved himself weak.
 
At evening, leaving our house in care of Jack¹⁴ and Tom, we went to spend the night at Mr. Kenyon's, where several neighbors were gathered, under arms. Our way led us by the ruined court-house, where for several squares the ground was completely covered with torn records, books, and other documents.
 
The night wore by in fitful sleep or anxious vigils. Near us all was quiet; but the distant sky was in many places red with incendiary fires. At dawn Mr. Kenyon, Gilbert, and others ventured out, and returned with sad tidings brought by courier from Christiansted. At the signal on Sunday night the negroes had swarmed¹⁵ there by thousands. Next day, when the governor had just departed for our town, leaving word to do nothing in his absence, they had attacked the fort as they had ours. But its commander, of a sturdy temper, had opened fire, killing¹⁶ and wounding many. This had only defended the town at the expense of the country, into which thousands scattered¹⁷ to break, pillage, and burn. Yet even so no whites had been killed except two or three men who had opposed the blacks single-handed, although the whole island, outside the two towns, was at the mercy of the

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